Magical Rubik's cube? Check. Alternate dimension? Check. Send the Dazzlings there to defeat.....themselves? Um, check!
They lost the Battle of the Bands. Now, they will go to a world where they won.
A strange girl sends the Dazzlings hurtling through space and time to an alternate dimension, where defeating themselves and restoring order to a world straight out of a dystopian novel is the only way they will be able to go home. Worse yet, if the three are killed by their evil counterparts, the girl's magic will grow stronger, making her one step closer to ruling the multiverse. And they thought surviving in their own universe was hard?!
It had been three months, two weeks, and six days since the Battle of the Bands. Since the Dazzlings had been humiliated and booed at by the very people who were supposed to adore them. Now, instead of being mankind's rightful rulers, they were the tenants of the dirtiest, cheapest, most terrible apartment in the multiverse.
Aria Blaze reclined on the shabby-looking sofa, which had definitely seen better days. Her purple ponytails, streaked with brilliant turquoise, were now coming apart, the star bands clinging loosely to a few strands. She was wearing a white tank top, cargo pants, and her usual scowl. Today, she looked even grumpier than normal, as her channel surfing wasn't yielding very good results. Finally she slammed the remote onto the the ancient coffee table with a growl. "There's nothing good to watch!"
"If you can't find anything of your liking, would you be so kind as to switch off the TV?" a voice commented dryly, and its owner, Adagio Dazzle, entered the living room with her arms crossed. She was the trio's self-declared leader, although Aria had challenged her authority several times. But instead of drafting plans for world domination, the yellow ex-siren now monitored how much of their money was spent. This included checking how much money was being wasted with Aria's pointless search.
Aria opened her mouth to retort, but she never got around to it, for the always-cheerful Sonata Dusk had arrived. Her innocence and optimism might have made her a welcome addition to any friend circle, but it didn't get her any favors here. The other two didn't think she had ever taken villainy seriously, and to some viewpoints it could be proven with the next statement. "If you aren't watching anymore, can I use the TV? The marathon of Glitter and Kitty is on and I don't want to miss it."
"Who said I wasn't--" Aria began, and then the change came over her face. "Of course," she said sweetly, syrup oozing from every letter. She held the remote out to the blue girl. "You can watch whatever you want."
Sonata looked suspiciously at it, and then back up into Aria's smiling face. "Are you sure?"
Aria shrugged. "Only way to know is to take it."
She knew Aria was probably going to trick her, but, oh, maybe she wasn't, maybe she really wanted to be nice for a change.....Sonata reached out for the remote slowly and cautiously. When it still didn't go anywhere, she knew she had been right. Aria was being nice! Her hand was about to grasp it--
--only to fall short as it was snatched back.
"Seriously? You fell for that? You're way too easy to fool, Sonata," taunted Aria.
Sonata felt anger explode inside of her, mushroom cloud-style. "That...that...that was so mean! You're so MEAN!" she yelled, trying to tug the remote away from her. Aria, though, was too strong, and she held onto it like it was the easiest thing in the world. "Gimme the remote, or I'll--"
"You'll what? Get a unicorn to fart rainbows in my face?" Aria sneered.
"No, I was GOING to say get Adagio to kick you out, but that sounds even BETTER!" Sonata fired back, now pulling as hard as she possibly could.
"Oh, please. The only one she'd even think about kicking out is you."
That was when the insult trading began.
"You're really, really mean!" "You can't grow up." "You're awful!" "You're the worst." "You're dumb!" "OH, YEAH? WELL I THINK YOU'RE A F--"
"GIRLS! FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIVES COULD YOU QUIT BICKERING LIKE CHILDREN?!" Adagio shouted, finally losing her temper.
"You know what I think?" she continued, after the pair had been silenced. "I think part of the reason we lost is because of you two morons arguing all the time!"
Aria stood up, eyes blazing. "Says the one whose stupid plans got us here!"
"Stupid? My plan was completely foolproof. If those Rainbooms hadn't gotten lucky at the end, every denizen of this cursed world would have adored us!"
"So if it was the Rainbooms who wrecked your plan, then how did we get in the picture?"
"I just said that! You both spent a considerable amount of time fighting instead of dutifully following orders!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Is this what the high and mighty sirens have come to be? Living in a tiny apartment and squabbling over petty matters? It's a pity, it truly is," interrupted a third voice, which caused the Dazzlings to look towards the sound.
Standing on the dirty, worn carpeting was a teenage girl roughly the age of the Rainbooms. Skin as white as cloud, jet-black hair streaked with indigo, hoodie, ripped jeans, combat boots, Rubik's cube in her left hand....she wasn't anyone the trio recognized from CHS for sure. Yet she knew who they were, and weirder still, she had somehow entered the apartment without opening anything or making any noise.
There were only two possible choices: either they were all going insane and this girl was imaginary, or she had....
“Equestrian magic?” the girl finished in an amused tone, as if she knew what they were thinking. “Exactly. Am I correct in assuming that this is what you three now lack?”
Adagio was the first to find her voice, though it took her a few seconds. “Who are you and why are you here?”
The girl laughed, a sound that seemed to cut into the Dazzlings’ ears. “Adagio, why this hostility? I’m on your side, after all.”
“You didn’t answer the questions,” snarled Aria.
“Because you can answer them yourself,” was the response. At first the three were confused, but as soon as she held out the Rubik's cube for them to examine, their doubt melted into pure amazement.
At first glance it looked like a regular, unsolved cube. However, when the girls drifted closer, they could hear a barely audible hum, and when they looked even closer, they noticed a subtle glow. Captivated, Aria reached out to touch it, sparks of magic dancing up her fingers like electricity. She had fallen so deep under the spell the cube had cast over her that she didn't notice the growing heat under her fingers until it practically burned her.
"Ow!" Aria tore her hand away and shook it, cursing under her breath.
"Did I forget to tell you that you can't touch it until it's ready? Oh, I'm so sorry," apologized the girl, in a tone that indicated she was actually the opposite.
"What do you mean by 'ready'? What kind of magic does this contain anyway?" Adagio asked, eyes narrowed.
The girl leaned closer, smile growing unpleasantly wider by the second. "The power to send anybody and anything into other dimensions."
If they had been amazed earlier, they were shocked in the first degree now. The room was so silent you could hear a pin drop, but inside the girls' heads there was the kind of chaos Discord would have been proud of. They couldn't believe it. They just could not believe it.
"It seems that Star Swirl's magic is quite easy to replicate, at least for a unicorn as advanced as I," the girl boasted. "Every time I send someone into another dimension and they die there, the magic in my cube only grows stronger, able to reach even more dimensions. And my cube's power is such that nobody will EVER look down upon Onyx Stone AGAIN!!" The girl's expression suddenly softened, although the grin hadn't quite been erased. "But I'm not here to send you to the same fate. I've seen what you were capable of with your magic, and if you join me, I can give you more power than you ever dreamed." She held her arm out for a handshake. "All you need to do is say yes."
Sonata and Aria glanced at one another, any hostility between them erased. It was here that Adagio managed to recover from her stunned state and force a smile. "Could we have a moment?"
"Take all the time you need. The offer's not going anywhere," said the girl.
The Dazzlings went to Sonata's room, where Aria made sure to lock the door. This was a good place to go when one needed alone time, as the blue wallpaper with pink spots, the army of stuffed animals on the bed, and the photographs of the rare times all three had been in a good mood made it feel cosy. And alone time was exactly what the trio needed. They stood quietly, unsure of where to begin, until Sonata broke the silence.
"I don't want to do it. Everything about her feels wrong," she whispered.
"She sends people into other dimensions to die, for Celestia's sake! I mean, we wanted to rule the world too, but we never used our magic to kill anyone. I'm with Sonata. This is just too much," Aria agreed.
"I can't say I disagree. While the invitation itself is extremely tempting, the means she uses are shocking, to say the least. I also don't get the feeling that Onyx is genuine with her offer. She seems like the type of person who would stab us in the back the second she gets the chance," Adagio concluded, and gave a somewhat wistful sigh. "I suppose that's that, then."
"But how are we going to tell her? Won't she be mad?" inquired Sonata, eyes wide.
Aria smirked and went to the door, unlocking and opening it. "Easy. We're going to say that the deal's off and kick her out...." Her voice trailed off as she saw someone standing there.
It was Onyx wearing a twisted smile, cube in hand. "I see that you've refused my perfectly good offer." The cube's glow began to increase.
Adagio saw this danger immediately and laughed nervously. "N-no, of course not. We're just thinking it out. Maybe you could come back in a few days and we could tell you our decision then?"
"Oh, I'm not going anywhere," Onyx snarled, tone abruptly losing its smoothness. She began to advance towards the door, leaving the Dazzlings no choice but to take fearful steps backwards. "My generosity was wasted on you three. You could have been rulers! You could have been adored!" She stopped to regain her calm manner, and then shrugged. "But I guess you'll have to settle for being victims of the same fate I awarded to everyone else."
Before the Dazzlings could even react to these words, Onyx began to solve the cube with a swiftness that would beat a Guinness World Record holder. It began to glow brighter and brighter, blinding the Dazzlings and swallowing up the room in its light. The trio never saw Onyx toss the cube towards them, never saw the gaping void in the floor that the cube opened. They would only remember the brilliant, brilliant brightness and then falling, until it all had dimmed into black. And before that, they would faintly recall hearing a voice.
The next thing she knew, there was a dull ringing in Adagio's head. She was aware of a soft surface underneath her, and being shaken. Gently. And a voice was calling her name, though it sounded muffled somehow.
"Adagio......wake up......"
Adagio tried to open her eyes, but they felt too heavy to lift. After what seemed like eternities of darkness and the ringing, she was finally able to open them. To see it. The blue blob. It swam in and out of focus, making the little details impossible to see.
It seemed to be a face. A very blurry face, with a cut across the forehead. Sonata's face.
"S-Sonata?"
As if on cue, her sight magically improved. Sonata's magenta eyes, glittering, came into focus.
She wants to cry, Adagio realized. Then it hit her with the full force of a truck on the highway.
"Sonata," Adagio said, trying to be as casual as one could be when they were lying down (on a bed?) with a possibility of--"are you crying because I'm going to die?"
Adagio wasn't quite sure when Sonata had crumbled. A single tear leaked out of her right eye, and more followed, until it was a waterfall and Sonata was sobbing. Her voice broke but she talked fast, leaving Adagio confused.
"No, I-I...I don't think you're gonna die (gulp). Aria put the bandage (gulp) around, around your head. It was bleeding pretty bad earlier, but (gulp) it stopped. (Gulp) She's gone now, to get supplies, but we had a fight and she said we're all going to die in this damn world anyway so how does it matter who goes first and--"
"Slow down," Adagio interrupted. "I can barely understand what you're saying. Take a deep breath, and tell me everything that happened in detail."
Sonata nodded tearfully. She closed her eyes, and her lips moved--Adagio guessed she was counting to ten. After this was over, she opened her eyes again and started over. She told Adagio that they were in an abandoned hotel, and that her head injury, although it had bled profusely, was not too serious. Then she went back to the hotel bit and said that they were still in Canterlot Springs, but the entire town had been deserted. They had had to break into the hotel room. Adagio noticed that she skipped over most of the argument (which was fine with her: it wasn't as if she liked listening to their bickering live anyways), and instead told her that both of them had been able to hear faint singing coming from CHS.
"And if you look outside, the sky's all red," she finished. Her lip quivered. "I don't want to die under a red sky."
"Sonata, nobody's going to die," Adagio reassured her, but she didn't believe herself. The words of Onyx Stone echoed in her mind, along with the ringing.
Every time I send someone into another dimension and they die there....
"Do you really think so?" Sonata sniffled, wiping off her tears in a way that struck Adagio as extremely childlike. Her forehead was creased with worry; she noticed the blood that had dried up on her forehead. And then came the thoughts: she wanted to wipe it off gently with a tissue. She wanted to let Sonata cry on her shoulder and tell her it was going to be okay. She wanted to be there for her.
Adagio quickly dismissed them. I've never cared what Sonata does before. Why should I care now? "Of course I do," she snapped. "I--"
She stopped. She felt something. The same presence that had been created with Onyx's cube.
"There's Equestrian magic here," Adagio hissed. Seeing hope on Sonata's face, as lifting as a butterfly, she exhaled. "It's evil. Like......our magic."
All the color drained from Sonata's face, her mouth forming an O. She pointed a shaking finger past Adagio, in the direction of the window. When she spoke, her voice was a ghost of what it had been. "There."
Adagio wasn't able to see the window from the bed, so she had to sit up. The dull pain in her head became excruciating, but whatever Sonata was seeing had to be very serious. With a gasp, she pulled herself up, the hotel room coming in sight around her. There was an ugly walnut brown loveseat with light blue spots in the corner, with the boudoir pillow she had been lying on also bearing the design. A sliver of mahogany headboard could be seen from the edge of her vision. The bed scarf was cerulean, and two nightstands flanked the bed, each proudly holding up a rectangular lamp. And the wardrobe in the front had--what else?--a small TV.
Adagio's gaze fell onto the window, which was framed by two chocolate brown curtains. She saw a large crowd, comprised of Canterlot Springs residents and a few CHS students, walking in sync with one another. They wore the same clothes, a uniform: plain purple jeans, plain purple tops, and a not-so-plain spiky headband. The sound reached the hotel room gradually as they got closer and closer: they were cheering for something over and over, in scarily perfect unison. It was murder on Adagio's head, but she craned her neck anyways to see who the leader was.
Some part of her already knew before she saw the slender figure at the front turn and face towards the rest of the people. The crowd looked on in awe and admiration. Awe and admiration that had clearly been manufactured.
"My adoring citizens," announced this world's Adagio Dazzle. "You have done an excellent job with this week's performance."
The crowd cheered for their golden-haired controller. Again, in unison.
"You deserve a reward for all your hard work!"
The crowd was all for it. But they were silenced by the other Adagio's index finger.
"Which means....." Her voice trailed off as she considered what to give her fans. But she did not get an idea from her wandering eyes. Instead, she saw Adagio with her homemade bandage, a ripped, now bloody piece of Aria's pants that had been tied around her head, and wide-eyed Sonata with a cut across her forehead.
The two Adagios stared at one another for a few seconds. Both felt a jolt of uneasiness. Somehow, the other Adagio also knew they could not coexist here. Maybe she was in cahoots with Onyx, or maybe she had seen the lack of hypnosis in the ones in the window. Whatever it was, there was no doubt in her eyes when she raised her arm and the finger pointed squarely at Adagio's face. "I want them captured."
The organized crowd instantly became a mob. They ran screaming and yelling into the parking lot far below.
"What're we gonna do?" Sonata asked tearfully. "They're gonna get us."
"Not if I can help it," Adagio snarled, briefly thinking how much she sounded like Aria. She grabbed Sonata's arm and they ran out the door, which was swinging brokenly on its hinges from when they had broken in. They opened the door to the stairs and practically flew down the flights. They seemed to go on forever, but finally the door marked FIRST FLOOR came into view.
"There!" Sonata exclaimed. She yanked the doorknob and was about to jump through when Adagio pulled her sleeve. "Wait. Is the coast clear?"
"Yeah, I think so," Sonata responded.
"Good. Then let's go. But be very quiet."
They crept across the bright hotel lobby and hid behind the revolving door. Adagio peeked out and scanned the parking lot outside. No sign of the other Adagio. Slowly, she came out of hiding, and was about to beckon Sonata to follow when two rough hands clapped over her mouth and left shoulder. She was spun around to face Bulk Biceps. Bon Bon, Lyra, Scribble Dee, and Trixie were behind him, identical (wicked) smirks on each of their faces.
Adagio's heart sinking and mind racing was summarized in one of Sonata's worried sentences.
As far away from the hotel as she could. As far away from Sonata and Adagio as she could.
She knew she'd have to go back eventually. The longer they stuck together, the better chances of surviving they would have. If they survived at all. But she needed some time away from them first. Especially that airhead Sonata, who never knew when to shut up!
She stopped in front of shadowy, empty grocery store, panting. She recognized this place, but the neon lettering was gone. The people were gone, too.
Aria slowly walked towards it and pushed open the glass door. Odd, but it looked recently used. There was no dust settled on the objects lining the shelves, no cobwebs in the corner. It looked as if it had only been closed for the night and would reopen in the morning.
Dark theories pushed and shoved for a turn in Aria's mind as she took a shopping cart and began wheeling it through the store. She shook them away and decided to focus on what they would need. Bread. We need bread.
Aria made a turn for the bread aisle and snatched the nearest package she could find. She wasn't picky the way Adagio was. As long as there wasn't any mold on the bread (but just to be safe, she also checked for the expiration date, which wasn't for a week), it was fine. She tossed it carelessly in the cart and went for the frozen foods section. Microwavable pizza was okay. She added several of those. And there were a few boxes of smiley fries. Sonata loved those things. She used to pretend they adored her and sometimes sing for them.
Aria would never admit it, especially not to Sonata herself, but some of the things Sonata had done made her feel better inside, like maybe life in that world wasn't so awful. Sure, she was ditzy and stupid and argued with Aria all the time.....but when she stopped doing the things that she used to do, like sing, Aria found herself secretly missing it.
Aria caught herself thinking these thoughts and felt a rush of anger. Why did she find herself thinking these things? She threw the smiley fries in the cart and left the frozen foods section. She piled whatever she could find in the green basket and went to the fruit section, which was close to the door. Yup, there were those faint voices she kept hearing. This world was making her crazy! If they ever made it back, Aria was going to make that Onyx girl sorry she had even been born--
Suddenly Aria could hear louder voices whispering over the soft singing. Before she even had time to blink, two girls had pushed open the door and saw her, smack in the middle of their vision. Their eyes became so wide, they resembled saucers.
"Is that her?" one whispered finally, her voice fearful. She had on a bubblegum pair of headphones and light pink skin, and her lime green hair with yellow streaks looked as if it hadn't been brushed for weeks.
The other girl said something in too low of a voice for Aria to hear. She had butter yellow skin like Adagio, but her cheekbones were dotted with magenta freckles that matched her hair, which had blue streaks in it. Face brightening, she curtsied to Aria and intoned, "O powerful one, please forgive us. We are small and insignificant, and not worth your punishment."
Powerful one? Punishment? "What are you even talking about? Who are you?"
The one who had spoken first answered for her. "I'm Lemon Zest, Your Highness, and this is Sour Sweet. The other Dazzlings sent us on, um, an errand."
“If I may have permission to speak, is there a reason why you don’t have your pendant?” inquired Sour Sweet.
Aria looked at her bare neck in confusion. “My pendant?”
“Yes, Your Greatness. Your pendant,” Lemon Zest chimed in.
Then Aria had her “Oh” moment. The red sky, the faint singing, being addressed as “Your Highness”, how the pair seemed to know who she was, these had all seemed like disorganized, scattered pieces. Once it was all connected, though, it all made so much sense. This was the dimension where the Dazzlings won the Battle of the Bands, and apparently they were the rulers of this world. And these girls, somehow, had not been hypnotized: the lack of a slight green tint in their irises indicated this much. But, mistaking her for this world’s Aria, they were pretending to be. Aria felt a glow of pride at her lightning-fast realization. The feeling, however, gave way to a chill as she uncovered another truth. The Rainbooms and the music of friendship had failed here. If they had lost, with their powerful Equestrian magic, then what chance did three harmless ex-sirens stand here?
Aria locked eyes with Sour Sweet. If she was right about them not being hypnotized, then these girls were their only chance. Aria hoped that she wasn't messing it up by lying to them, but she was sure that they would never believe the real story. "Sour Sweet, Lemon Zest, I'm not the siren Aria Blaze," she said.
"You aren't?" asked Lemon Zest, sharing a baffled look with her companion.
"Yes. I'm her, um, counterpart," she responded, thinking fast. "But they labeled Adagio, Sonata, and I as imposters and we've been trying to hide from them for, well, a pretty long time." She paused. "You guys know what a counterpart is, right?"
"Yes, thanks to the sirens. They've done a really good job brainwashing everyone along with telling us all about the wonders of Equestria." Sour Sweet's voice, although bright and cheery, was dripping with sarcasm. Aria now knew why she was called that seemingly strange name.
Lemon Zest took off her backpack, which was pink with hearts, and began rummaging through it. She quickly found what she was looking for, a green magnifying glass, and held it up to Aria's face.
"What are you doing?" asked Aria.
"Just checking," was the casual reply. After a few seconds, she lowered the object and turned to Sour Sweet. "She's safe. We can take her to the society meeting."
Sour Sweet checked the time on her watch, which didn't look like it costed more than a few dollars, and her eyes widened. "The performance is over. We need to get out of here."
"Okay," agreed Lemon Zest. She grabbed a few of Aria's groceries and briefly explained to her. "The performance is basically when the Dazzlings need to hypnotize people again. It happens every week. Once it's over, everyone comes back and we'd get captured if we stayed too long."
"But I have to stay. I need to go back for Adagio and Sonata," said Aria. It was so unlike her to say that. And she didn't love them or anything. But they were the only ones she could really trust, at least a little bit.
"Unless you love being captured and tortured, you're going to have to leave them behind," commanded Sour Sweet, scowl on her face. "Here, it's every man for himself."
"I can't. Adagio's injured and Sonata won't know what to do." Aria snatched a few groceries--she guessed she might not be seeing these girls until next week--and was about to run when Lemon Zest called, "Wait! I'm coming."
"Really, Lemon? Really?" Sour Sweet sighed and pinched her forehead, then grumbled, "Fine. If we all get captured, though--"
Aria had already taken off, with Lemon right behind. Sour Sweet had realized they were leaving without her was a little farther away, but it was obvious that they were very fast runners. The world was a blur around them, with Aria's vision focused straight on the hotel. It was a little square at first, and with every step Aria's worry got bigger along with the shape in the distance.
Sour Sweet overtook her and Aria let her. She was trying to guide them somewhere. They made a wide curve around the hotel and slowed to tiptoeing through the trees and bushes. The three reached the parking lot and peeked through a thorny bush. One thorn scratched Aria on the arm and blood began to well up in the shallow wound, but she was too shocked at what was unfolding in front of her to notice.
A large crowd stood in front of the hotel, and cheered as two people were dragged out from the lobby. Both were struggling, though the looks on their faces showed their defeat. One had cyan hair tied up in a ponytail and the other's yellow hair had been pushed back with a bandanna.
No, thought Aria. No.
"Excellent work, my fans," purred a voice, and Adagio came to stand in front of them all. No, not her Adagio....this world's Adagio, bandage-less with a glitzy purple dress that made Aria want to throw up.
Aria's eyes narrowed. "Don't be. I'm still going to get them out."
"Great! Let's all go get captured!" Sour Sweet agreed sarcastically.
Aria ignored her and kept watching the crowd, careful to avoid looking at her now-captive group. When the crowd finally quieted and scattered, Aria followed the other Adagio and the people dragging Adagio and Sonata along in the bushes. By the looks of it, it seemed that both Lemon Zest and Sour Sweet were close behind.
