Welcome to Ponyville!
Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, there were two regal sisters who ruled together and created harmony for all the land. To do this, the youngest used her unicorn powers to raise the sun at dawn, while the elder brought out the moon to begin the night. Thus, the two sisters maintained balance for their kingdom and their subjects: all the different types of ponies. But, as time went on, the younger sister became resentful. The ponies rested and admired the peaceful night her sister fostered, but spurned her marvelous, radiant daylight in favor of their own work and selfish interests. One fateful day, the younger sister refused to lower the sun to make way for the night. Her elder sister tried to reason with her, but the bitterness in the young one’s heart had transformed her into a blazing mare of self-righteous fury: Daybreaker.
She vowed that she would envelop the land in a never-ending day. Reluctantly, the elder sister harnessed the most powerful magic known to ponydom: The Elements of Harmony. Using the magic of The Elements of Harmony, she defeated her younger sister, and banished her permanently to the sun’s surface. The elder sister took on responsibility for both sun and moon, day and night,
“and harmony has been maintained in Equestria for generations since.
“The Elements of Harmony… It sounds familiar… but from where?” Sunset Shimmer muttered to herself, her eyes dancing over the passage she had just read.
“What’d you say, Sunset?” her companion, a purple and green baby dragon, asked. He sat nestled in the corner of a couch, looking up from a comic he'd been eagerly reading. Small to begin with, the fluffy sofa he sat in absolutely dwarfed him.
Sunset shook her head and brought her snout out of the massive tome in front of her (for the first time in hours) to address him. Her eyes were slightly glassy, which indicated that she was, truth be told, still entirely fixated on the thoughts bouncing around in her head. “Nothing; just talking to myself again.” Her bright teal eyes focused and narrowed at the dragon as her body finally caught up with her racing mind. “Spike, find-“
The door flung open with a crash, causing both occupants of the otherwise empty library to jump. A cream mare with a pink mane and tail that curled at the ends stood, slightly out of breath, in the doorway.
“Ha, finally! I told her I’d find you first!” The mare took a second to catch her breath, to which Sunset rolled her eyes. Really, the drama. Sunset figured she might as well see how much she could speed this along. She had more important things to do. “Twinkleshine, wh-“
“Right! So, Moondancer is having a little get-together in the west castle courtyard,” Twinkleshine interrupted Sunset again, who, at this point, looked about thirty seconds away from setting the mare on fire with her mind. Which, Twinkleshine suddenly remembered, she was perfectly capable and willing to do. “Do you wanna come?”
She beamed at her scowling pseudo-friend, but the smile quickly took on a more nervous twinge. Must be a bad time, then, she thought.
Sunset huffed. “I have work to do,” she said, only continuing because she saw Spike pouting at her out of the corner of her eye. “Maybe some other time.”
She waved her hoof and turned back to her book, where her eyes danced over the passage she had already read twice, leaving Spike to see Twinkleshine out of her library and close the door. Preferably quickly. Her attention turned back to the many shelves surrounding her, and she trotted from section to section, muttering that she was sure that she had read about the Elements before. She called for her assistant, once, twice, and once more. Spike finally ran over to stand next to her.
“Find me…” Sunset’s voice drifted and she muttered to herself for a second, attention never wavering from the books she was looking through. “Find that copy of Predictions and Prophecies, would you? I know it’s here somewhere…”
The two dug through the seemingly endless collection of books until Spike let out a triumphant shout. Sunset whipped around, galloping over to one of the only spots left on the floor that still had space to sit down on. A large pillow lay on the ground, which was more of a comfortable coincidence than anything else. Across the room, the book was enveloped in a bright teal glow and lifted out of Spike’s hands, floating over to meet Sunset. Shortly after, Spike did too.
She (and the book) dropped heavily onto the floor with an “oof!”, and she began flipping through it, subconsciously hugging the pillow to her chest. She was muttering again. “E… Elements… Elementsss. Here!” She glanced at the baby dragon peering over her shoulder before reading the disappointingly short passage. "Six... Laugher, honesty... Blah Blah... A spark to ignite... Ughhh!" Beneath the basically useless paragraph sat one line; “See: Blazing Mare.”
“Blazing Mare? But that’s just an old ponies’ tale,” Spike said while Sunset flipped back through the pages to “B”.
“Got it. Blazing Mare. There aren’t that many entries that start with ‘B’, surprisingly enough,” she grinned at Spike. “The Blazing Mare, a myth from olden pony times. A powerful pony who wanted to rule Equestria, defeated by the Elements of Harmony and imprisoned in the sun. She can be seen in the occasional bursts of fire that spring from the sun's surface - a sign that even after all these years, she fights tirelessly against her prison. Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the sun shall light wholly ablaze, and she will finally escape to bring about an eternal burning daytime.”
Sunset swallowed, her mouth suddenly feeling very dry. “That… doesn’t sound good. Spike; take a note.” She floated a piece of parchment and a quill to Spike, who grabbed it out of the air and watched her expectantly. She paced, and her gaze flicked around as she organized her thoughts into a message that was, hopefully, coherent despite its scrambled urgency.
“My dearest mentor,” she began abruptly. Spike scribbled as she spoke.
“My recent studies of pony magic have led me to the conclusion that we stand on the brink of disaster.” Spike nodded, so she continued.
“The supposedly-mythical Blazing Mare of pony legend is, in fact, much realer than a simple bedtime story. She is Daybreaker – a once terrible threat to Equestria that was defeated by the Elements of Harmony long ago, and banished to the sun.” She paused.
“Wait, wait, how does that even work?” she asked incredulously to no one in particular. “She should just be dead!” Spike’s continued writing drew her attention, and she realized her mistake.
“Don’t write that!” she exclaimed hastily, frantically shaking her hooves. Spike looked at her, then at the parchment in his hands, and crossed out the last couple of lines he had written.
“Okay, uh, where was I… Right!” She nodded at Spike. “This year’s Summer Sun Celebration brings with it anniversary of the thousandth year, the day that Daybreaker is prophesied to gain her freedom and bring burning destruction to Equestria. We must do whatever we can to prevent this terrible prophecy from coming to fruition. I anxiously await your hopefully swift reply. Your devoted student, Sunset Shimmer.”
Spike finished writing and grinned down at his claw-work.
“Cool, send it,” Sunset said with a nod.
Spike made no move whatsoever to do so. “Like… right now?”
“Yes, right now! When else?”
“I just, uh, don’t know, Sunset. Princess Luna’s super busy getting ready for the celebration!”
“Yes Spike, I know, that’s my point,” she huffed. “If we don’t find a solution as soon as possible, there won’t be a Summer Sun-setting to celebrate! Luna needs to know as. Soon. As. Possible!”
Spike shrugged and blew a green flame at the letter, watching it burn to ashes.
“Okay, okay. I wouldn’t hold your breath th-“ Spike stopped abruptly only to burp up another small green flame that coalesced into a letter.
“See? I told you so,” Sunset sang smugly, smile evident in her voice. “What’s it say?”
"That was... uncomfortably fast." Spike cleared his throat. “My dearest, most ardent student Sunset; you know that I value little more than your undying diligence and vigor, and that I trust your intuition completely.”
Sunset nodded sagely.
“But there comes a time when even you must turn your attention to something other than those dusty old books!”
“WHAT?” Sunset yelled, whipping around to face Spike so fast she lost her balance. She stumbled, righted herself, and stared at him.
“Should I… continue?” he tentatively offered.
Sunset snorted. “Yes, of course you should continue!”
“Right…” The tiny dragon’s eyes ran down the paper as he looked for where he left off.
“My dear Sunset, there is more to a young pony’s life than simply studying. What is the point of learning if you never put it to good use, at the least? Upon such consideration, I have decided to send you to supervise and finalize the preparations for the celebration in this year’s location: Ponyville; moreover, I have an even more essential, priority task for you as well: make some friends! A chariot awaits your arrival outside your home; gather what you need - and try not to keep them waiting for too long! Your proud teacher, Princess Luna.
Well, I guess we’re going to Ponyville!”
Sunset just gaped at him.
~~~
Sunset and Spike stood on a flying chariot, watching the humble town of Ponyville grow less and less distant. The fiery unicorn had cooled down and resigned herself to pouting, while her companion tried to cheer her up.
“Hey, at least the Princess arranged for you to stay in a library! That’s gotta count for something, right?” He paused and made a face. “Why does a library have a living space?”
Sunset stomped her hoof and turned to him, eyes blazing. “Yes, it does! You wanna know why, Spike? ‘Cause I'm right! We’ll check up on the prep as quick as we can, and then I can get to the library and find some proof or something of just how much of a threat Daybreaker really is!”
Neither of them noticed the descent of the chariot. Spike tipped his head. “Then… when will you make friends? Like the Princess said?”
“She said to “supervise and finalize preperations”,” Sunset whinnied. “I am her student, and I will do my royal duty and I will not let her down, but the fate of Equestria doesn’t rest on me making friends.”
The chariot bounced a few times as they landed, catching its two occupants off guard. Spike exclaimed and fell over, and Sunset barely caught herself from doing the same. She hopped off onto the ground and coughed, surprised, at the dust she kicked up.
“Streets aren’t paved,” she muttered as she levitated Spike onto her back, still trying to clear the dust out of her nostrils. She trotted around to the front, where the two white pegasi who had pulled their chariot stood stalwart.
“Thanks,” she said dryly, and she walked out a little, into the street proper. Which still was not paved. She heard, and ignored, the pegasi's "Have a nice day, Ma'am!" as she trotted away, coming to a stop in the middle of the road. Ponies of every kind trotted around; all of them simply going about their days, smiling and talking to one another. Completely comfortable in each other's company. Disgusting.
Quaint was a good word for it, Sunset thought. Obnoxiously so, she followed it up with. There wasn’t anything particularly unique about the town, except for the population. For all of her extensive knowledge, Sunset couldn’t think of any other place that had so many different types of ponies content to live together without any sort of fuss. It was strange; it was different from Canterlot in more ways than the unpaved roads. Life was hard enough dealing with the everyday annoyances that came from interacting with unicorns, and Sunset just hoped that the myriad of other types of ponies wouldn’t make it any harder.
“What’s first on the list?”
Spike jumped off her back, kicking up another cloud of dust, which sent the both of them into a coughing fit.
“We need to – cough – stop doing that,” Sunset said as she waved her hoof around to dispel the dust.
“Sorry,” Spike said, accompanied by a sneeze and a small burst of flame. “I think I’m allergic to this town,” he sniffed.
Sunset rolled her eyes and tried – and failed – to keep a small smile from creeping onto her face. “So, the list?”
“Right! Uh, first is… decorations!”
Sunset looked around quizzically before starting in a random direction at a slow trot. “So I guess we just… wander around until we find the town hall? I mean, it can’t be that hard, it not like the town is- oof!”
Sunset felt all of the air pushed out of her as a weight slammed into her side, sending her sprawled out on the ground, with a weight on top of her. She pushed the pony above her off, and scrambled to her hooves. “Watch where you’re going!” she snapped at the mystery mare, the fur on her back bristling.
The small pegasus sitting on the ground shook herself out of her daze and looked up at Sunset when she yelled. Or, well, Sunset assumed she looked up at her. Her head did. One of her eyes did, too. The other was looking in the complete opposite direction. She didn’t even have time to feel bad for yelling before the mare started giggling.
The pegasus wobbled to her feet. “Sorry about that! I forgot how'ta fly again,” she said, with the last hints of a laugh.
“You forgot how to fly.” It wasn’t a question. Next to Sunset, Spike snorted.
“It happens sometimes,” the mare said, picking up the saddlebag that had fallen off of her during the unexpected landing and placing it onto her back.
The mare turned back to Sunset. “Wait, if ya don’t know that, it means you’re new!” Her face broke into a wide grin, and she came up close to Sunset, shaking her hoof excitedly. “Sorry I didn’t notice sooner! I’m Derpy; Derpy Hooves!”
Sunset yanked her hoof back, taking in the odd pegasus in front of her. She was light grey, with a choppy yellow mane and tail. She had an overall smaller frame than Sunset, and through recent personal experience, she knew she weighed significantly less, too. Sunset wondered if that was because she was a pegasus. Research for another time, perhaps. The mare’s cutie mark was a group of rising bubbles. Fitting name, she thought in her annoyance.
“Right well, Derpy, I have things I need to do so… bye.” Derpy had moved on to shaking Spike’s claw, who was returning the gesture much more enthusiastically than Sunset had. Sunset was actually convinced that Derpy was so caught up in… whatever it was that she and Spike were caught up in that she didn’t even hear her, but the mare looked back to her before she could repeat herself. She tilted her head quizzically.
“But I don’t even know your name yet?”
Weird eyes, Sunset thought as she suppressed a shiver.
“I’m Spike! And this is Sunset Shimmer! We’re here to supervise the preparation for the Celebration!” Spike didn’t give Sunset the option to not answer.
“Yes, and we really must be going now, so, bye,” Sunset said and started walking away, in the direction that she hoped to Luna was the one town hall was in. She huffed as she felt Derpy fly to catch up and start walking next to her.
“If you’re new here, I doubt ya know your way around! I gotta deliver some letters anyway, so I can show ya around while we both do what we gotta! Where're ya headed first?”
Sunset sighed in resignation and pointedly ignored Spike’s giggling next to her. “Town hall.”
“Oh,” Derpy said, nudging Sunset until she turned right. “That’s that way.”
Sunset lowered her head and stalked off, scowling. “Of course it is.”
The three walked to the center of town, with Derpy and Spike talking back and forth over Sunset excitedly about some comic the entire way. She almost sighed in relief when they finally came across the colorful tower of a building, trotting up the stairs to the porch with a barely-repressed skip in her step. “Right, thanks Derpy, but we got it under control from here. So you can go do… your letter delivering thing now. Come on Spike.”
Derpy stayed right next to her, because of course she did. She cocked her head at Sunset, who silently wished in exasperation that she'd stop doing that. “Oh, it’s really no worry! It’s a light load today,” she patted her saddlebag, “and a whole buncha it is the same as your list! I can show ya all around Ponyville!”
Sunset resisted the urge to smack her head against a nearby pole. Barely.
“Awesome! We’d get totally lost without help.” Spike laughed. He leaned in towards Derpy and stage whispered, “Between you and me, Sunset’s a terrible navigator, even in places she’s known for practically forever!”
“I can hear you, Spike,” the aforementioned mare said dryly, rolling her eyes. Opening the doors to the hall with her magic, Sunset trotted in to find a small team of ponies diligently decorating the large, open space, all following the orders of a tall and lithe blue unicorn. She seemed to have a very sure idea of what she wanted the decorations to look like, and she made sure the ponies helping her knew as well. Sunset struggled to keep up as the mare called out a constant stream of commentary, using her own magic sort decorations all the while. The only object in the room not in constant motion was a large, colorful sheet of paper floating directly next to her. How one pony could keep so many things straight at one time was a mystery to Sunset; moreover, Spike seemed to agree with her, she noted as he stood next to her and made a soft noise.
“This is… a lot.”
Derpy, unperturbed by the constant movement and noise, leisurely flew through the chaos to meet the unicorn standing in the center of the room, surrounded by overflowing boxes of different materials.
“Sassy! I got a letter for ya!” Derpy landed next to the unicorn, who smiled at her. “And a pony,” she finished and pointed at Sunset, still in the doorway, with a giggle.
That got the unicorn’s – Sassy’s? – attention, and she finally turned to see Sunset and Spike standing in the doorway. Feeling pinned down by the mare’s scrutinizing look, Sunset figured it was time for her to trot over, before they started gossiping about her or something. Thankfully, Sassy’s previously judgemental look turned into a wide smile as she cantered over to meet Sunset halfway.
“Well, bust my buttons, Derpy! Hello, it’s such a pleasure to meet you! I am Sassy Saddles! My sincerest apologies for my behavior today,” she giggled with nervous energy, “I’m a tad bit frazzled, as I'm sure you can tell!”
Her extravagant accent made Sunset want to barf. Talk about putting it on. The mare certainly lived up to her namesake; it was like her every word was dripping with as much sarcasm a pony could get.
“Uh; Sunset Shimmer. This is Spike.” She nodded her head towards her companion, who waved shyly. Sunset noted that the room seemed a lot less hectic now that Sassy had turned all of her attention to her visitors, despite Derpy’s bumping around with one of the other ponies in the background. The mare's magic was actually kind of impressive if she was able to keep her focus on levitating so much as once.
“We’re here from Canterlot to-“
“Canterlot!” Sassy shot forward, eyes sparkling, her snout squished up against Sunset’s. Did nopony have any sense of personal space here, or what? Was that not a thing in Ponyville. Ridiculous. Sassy was either unaware of Sunset’s discomfort or she just didn’t care, and Sunset was leaning heavily towards assuming the latter.
“I am from Canterlot too! Sequins and sashes, how is everything? Have you been to Canterlot Carousel? I have been meaning to visit, but it has just been so busy-“
Sunset cleared her throat. Who knew how long this mare could go on? Well, lots of ponies here, probably. But Sunset did not intend to be one of them.
Sassy at least had the decency to look bashful. “Ah, haha. Anyway. You were saying?”
“We’re here from Canterlot to check on preparations for the festival, and it seems like you’re doing just fine,” Sunset gritted out. This was taking too long. She should have just been in and out, but noooooo.
“Oh, we're making progress, certainly.” Sassy looked distracted, but she quickly shook herself out of it and levitated her large paper over.
Now that it was closer, Sunset could properly see the painstakingly organized plan Sassy Saddles had drawn out and stuck multiple pins into. It was obvious that the unicorn had every last hoofstep plotted out. Suddenly, the chaotic atmosphere from before seemed to have a much sturdier foundation than Sunset had originally given it credit for.
“But, I personally believe things could be better. Faster. There was a huge delivery mix-up, so we wound up hours behind! It’s survivable, but definitely not ideal. Supplies should have come yesterday, but they came this morning instead. It won't be a problem, though! The keystone in the arch of success is the ability to adapt and overcome!” Sassy stuck a pin in on of the pictures on the paper to prove her point, but then she sighed. “At worst, we’ll have to start the midday party a little late.”
Spike perked up at that, while Sunset felt just the tiniest bit of anxiety rear its ugly head.
“Party?” they said in unison, with radically different tones.
Sassy looked at them quizzically. “Of course?”
“We party all day until Luna sets th'sun!” Derpy beamed as she landed next to Sassy Saddles. She looked at Sassy. “Do they have the Summer Sun Festival in Canterlot?”
The mare snorted. “Of course they do!”
“I just don’t go. I have more important things to do,” Sunset butted in before they could get started on their conjecture. Something told her that these two could go back and forth forever if they wanted to, so it’d be best to nip it in the bud.
“Well that’s kinda sad,” Derpy said.
Sassy elbowed her playfully and looked back at Sunset. “Oh no, I can absolutely understand that! Sometimes work feels like the only thing that matters!”
“Right, yeah, that,” Sunset gritted out, her already bad attitude darkening considerably. This mare had no idea. Sunset was literally racing time to try and save all of Equestria, and Sassy Saddles had the audacity to compare that to messing around with fabric? Unbelievable. “Speaking of, we still have a lot to do yet, so excuse me.”
Sunset turned and walked back out of the hall. Outside, Spike caught up to her. “Decorations… check. You know, she was just trying to be nice,” he said to his friend.
“I don’t have time to be nice!” Sunset exploded. She whirled to face Spike. “We are literally facing what could very well be the apocalypse, and I’m trotting around checking on decorations for an inconsequential party, chatting idly with a bunch of annoying ponies! This is just… UGH!” She kicked at the ground in frustration.
Spike hesitantly patted her shoulder. “I’m sure the Princess has a reason for sending you here. Knowing Princess Luna, she’s probably even got everything under control already!”
Sunset hung her head. “I sincerely doubt that, Spike.” But the thought lingered. Was Spike right? And if Princess Luna did have something prepared that she wasn't telling Sunset about for whatever reason - did she even need Sunset at all?
“Sincerely doubt what?” Derpy asked as she landed next to them. Both pony and dragon twisted around in surprise.
“Nothing! Nothing we just-“
“Oh, we were just saying that-“
Derpy snorted. “Yeah, okay,” she said; she didn’t push any further, and she didn't let them continue their frankly embarrassing attempt to cover up whatever they had been talking about. “Where to next?”
Spike scrambled, righting himself and the list he was holding. “Right! Next! Uh, Music! Sweet Apple… Acres? A farm? Wait, that doesn’t sound right,” he said. Worry creeped into his voice as he double, then triple-checked the list of locations.
“Nah, it is!” Derpy said, trotting off. “This way!”
Sunset and Spike shrugged at each other and followed her. It wasn't like either of them had any better ideas. The walk was longer than both would have liked, a fact which Spike in particular was very vocal about. It didn’t take long for Sunset to put him onto her back with a sigh.
They followed Derpy, who was happily trotting along the dirt road, completely unaffected by the late afternoon heat and rough road. Sunset idly wondered how the ponies could stand walking around on dirt and rocks all the time. Her hooves were starting to really ache. She also might have been bleeding, she thought as she noted some scuffed red on her front left hoof. Off in the fields, they could see two ponies, one red and one orange, bucking the trees; as they approached the farm houses, they could hear various instruments playing in what really did not sound like it should be introducing the regal ruler of the land. Sunset’s brow furrowed and she turned her head to share an apprehensive look with Spike.
Derpy led them to a small, open barn next to what must have been the main house, as evidenced by the electricity and the old mare snoring in a rocking chair on the porch. And the fact that it actually looked like a house. She nodded to the barn. “I’m gonna take these to Granny Smith, but you’ll find Rara in there. She’s in charge of th'music.”
As she watched Derpy fly away, Sunset realized how suddenly exposed she felt without the Pegasus leading them around. She wasn't even that far away, but meeting new ponies was a lot easier with such a lively buffer, as it turns out. Not that she would ever admit it. Sunset promptly shoved the thought down, refusing to even entertain the idea that she could prefer any other pony’s company to being alone. Especially that one. That pony was annoying and she had weird eyes, Sunset said to herself, bringing the train of thought to a stop.
Forcing herself to move forward, Sunset trotted into the barn. In the open space of what must have been a huge storage shed were four ponies: a ground pony holding a large string instrument (cello, was Sunset’s best guess), a unicorn levitating a saxophone, another unicorn sitting at a drum set, and another ground pony standing near a piano, but who seemed more focused on giving feedback to her companions.
All four turned to look expectantly at Sunset as she trotted in. Seeing her hesitation, the mare near the piano walked over to greet her. “Hey! I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before; what brings you to Sweet Apple Acres?”
The mare was intimidatingly pretty, and the soft look in her eyes as she tried to make herself approachable did nothing to change that. Her coat was a light seafoam, and her mane and tail were deep purple, curly and striped with a bright blue. She stood slightly taller than Sunset, but she lowered her head forward slightly to be on level with her. All in all, she was the last pony Sunset would expect to find in a barn that smelled like pig shit.
“I’m, uh, we’re here from Canterlot to-“
Sunset winced as Spike clambered to stand up, digging his claws into Sunset’s back and using her head to balance. “Derpy said to look for Rara!”
The mare blinked at them and laughed softly. “Oh, hello. I didn’t see you there,” she said, adding, “and, you found her. That would be me. Or, my nickname. My name is actually Coloratura, but my friends call me Rara. Do you two have names, or is that not a common practice in Canterlot?” she asked, teasing.
Sunset cleared her throat. “I’m Sunset Shimmer, and this is Spike,” she indicated to the dragon, who hopped off of her back onto the ground. It didn’t matter how pretty or nice this mare was; Sunset was getting real sick of wasting her time with introductions. She had a job to do, and she had to finish it fast if she wanted to make any progress on the whole Daybreaker Situation.
“We’re here on official business from Canterlot to check on preparations. Is the music coming along… alright?” Sunset cast her gaze over the musicians with only the slightest hint of doubt. Okay, maybe a bit more than the "slightest hint".
Rather than getting defensive, as Sunset would have expected, Coloratura beamed at her. How in Luna’s name could one pony seem so genuine? “Everything is going great here! Some of us are playing instruments other than the ones we usually play, so we're a bit out of practice, but everything sounds fantastic, all things considered. I’m very lucky to be working with such skilled, adaptable musicians. Here, I’ll introduce you!”
Sunset blanched. “Oh, no, no, it’s okay, really. We still have a lot to do so we really should be going-“
“It isn't like we’ll keep you all day, if you're really in such a rush,” Coloratura laughed. “But music sounds so much better when you know the talented ponies behind it, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Oh, Sunset knows nothing about music! She does nothing but study magic!”
Said unicorn ground her teeth. “Thank you, Spike.”
Coloratura just smiled at them and trotted over to her company, who all pretended they hadn’t been watching the interaction with varying degrees of interest. Pointing to the unicorn mare sitting on the ground, she said, "This is Lyra Heartstrings! She's playing the saxophone for tomorrow."
The unicorn grinned, mischief glinting in her eye. "I originally learned as a joke, but we needed a sax, not a lyre, so I figured I might as well. Sink or swim, amirite?" She winked at Sunset.
"And that is-“ Coloratura giggled and pointed to the grey ground pony mare, and then the white unicorn, “Octavia Melody and Vinyl Scratch - though they prefer DJ Pon-3 - with the upright bass and drums, respectively.” DJ Pon-3 nodded, while the other mare waved politely.
“Aw, cool!” Spike ran past Sunset to the pony sitting at the drum set, bubbling with barely contained excitement. “Can I try? Can I?”
With a small smirk, the pony nodded and gave their drumsticks to the baby dragon. Sunset let Spike assault everyponies’ ears for less than three seconds, at most, before she levitated him up and away from the drums.
“Well! That’s all we have time for, sadly, so we really have to go now, but thanks for everything and, uh, keep up the good work?” Sunset’s voice tipped up at the end, making her statement sound more like a question than the exclamation it was supposed to be. She turned around, and she promptly bumped into Derpy, who had just walked into the barn. Sunset groaned.
“Hey Rara! Just wanted to tell ya that you got a package; I left it with Apple Bloom!” She looked from Sunset to Coloratura and back again. “We’re leavin' already?”
“Yes,” Sunset groaned as she stomped past. It was just one thing after another. At the rate they were going, she was never going make any headway on Daybreaker! Not enough to mean anything, anyway. She heard Derpy and Spike say bye to Coloratura as she trotted away. They would catch up.
Sure enough, they did, chatting happily with each other. Sunset didn’t even bother eavesdropping, too caught up in her thoughts, which were back in full force. DID Princess Luna actually know about Daybreaker’s prophesied return? Was she laughing at Sunset's foalish, and ultimately futile, eager panic right now?
She decided that maybe she shouldn’t fall into that particular spiral and shook her head, tuning into her companions’ conversation. They were talking about some pony from the town; not one of the few that Sunset was familiar with. She slowed down to trot next to Derpy.
“Are you friends with everypony in this town?” It came out sounding nastier than she meant for it to be.
Unperturbed by the sudden input from Sunset, Derpy answered in stride.
“Oh, yeah, pretty much!” She smiled at Sunset. “You’d be surprised how happy some ponies get when they get their mail! I like bein' able to make ponies happy daily. AND, it’s a really good way to get to know everypony, too! Like I met you! It gives me an opportunity to give each pony a piece of my day, every day.” She shrugged. “And that can be a really big thing, sometimes. You never know how somepony’s day has treated them so far.”
Spike said something in response, but Sunset had already zoned out again. That… hadn’t been the answer she was expecting. In all honesty, she wasn’t really sure what answer she HAD expected. Not something so... well thought out. The seemingly ditzy and dumb pony trotting happily next to her had more depth than she let on. Granted, that didn’t mean Sunset liked her, but maybe she respected her a bit more. Maybe.
Sunset didn’t realize they were back in town until Derpy stopped in front of an extravagant and colorful storefront. “Ugh, I must be more tired than I thought,” Sunset muttered. Then, louder, “Where-“
“Sugar Cube Corner!” Derpy happily answered her question before she could ask it.
“Food,” Spike added.
Sunset eyed the shop warily. It looked like a gingerbread house. It looked like a dessert monster puked on it. There was no way any of that boded well. Sighing, she pushed open the door and trotted inside. It was empty, because why wouldn't it be. Sunset looked around apprehensively, thinking nothing at first of the quiet mechanical sounds above her; then, she heard a sharp *tink* of metal on metal, and looked up just in time to see the bucket that crashed onto her head, drenching her in some green liquid. She sniffed and wrinkled her snout. Dye. It was green dye.
Fuming, and now neon green, Sunset levitated the bucket off of her head. She heard laughter through the angry ringing in her ears. She heard Spike’s snorting, and Derpy chortling, and one other. Any positive opinions she may have started to have about this town evaporated as her eyes came into focus on a griffon with light purple feathers rolling on the floor, howling with laughter.
The griffin rolled to the side, dodging the bucket Sunset threw at her, and pulled herself upright with a couple of powerful wing-beats. “Hey, hey! There ain't no need for that!” She swallowed the rest of her laughter. “'S just a prank.”
“Just a- UGH!” Sunset yelled in frustration.
The griffon handed her a towel, which she begrudgingly swiped out of her claws. She’d still be green, and smelling mane-dye fumes for a week, but at least she wouldn’t be dripping.
“Way I see it, you needed that,” the griffon sniffed, eyeing her.
“Needed- I- I NEEDED to have dye dumped on me? Are you SERIOUS?” Sunset unconsciously moved to the side so Derpy could come in to the shop. The pegasus had gotten some backsplash, but nothing too bad. Absently, she wondered if that mare even HAD a bad side, and if she did, if it was possible to get on it.
The griffon rolled her eyes, unperturbed by Sunset’s petulance. “Uh, duh. You show up, acting like you’re better than everypony here from the get-go, and then at BEST, you give whatever pony talking to you the cold shoulder. Not cool. Somepony had to bring you down to size.”
Derpy lightly nudged the griffon. “Aw, c’mon Gilda, she’s not THAT bad.”
Gilda stood up and crossed her claws. The friendly, teasing atmosphere she had cultivated evaporated. “Nopony gets to come into Ponyville and act like that without some serious backlash. And since you ponies are too soft to do anything about it, I will.” She narrowed her eyes at Sunset. Pushing her weight forward, she came muzzle-to-beak with her. “Ya got that?”
Sunset gave her a tight smile, accompanied with a frustrated noise from her throat. “Ugh you – How do you even - I - You know what? Yes,” she snapped, baring her teeth. “I got that. But I have more important things to do! I’m trying to figure out how to SAVE you ungrateful ponies – griffon - WHATEVER! from an apocalyptic threat that most of you don’t even KNOW about- and if you do, you just wave me off like I’m some naive little filly who hasn’t trained in magic since practically birth! So, SORRY that I’ve been a bitch since I got here, but I don’t even want to BE here! And it’s just one damn thing after another in this town!” Sunset finished her outburst, heaving. She pretended she didn’t have tears in her eyes as the other three occupants of the room just stared at her.
She rushed out of Sugar Cube Corner, blinking the tears out of her eyes, and found her way to a nearby alley. She hadn’t seen if there were any other ponies around, and at this point, all she could do was hope there weren’t. She probably looked pretty terrible right now. All green and crying with a flat mane and dirty tail. Landing gracelessly on her haunches, Sunset just sobbed as she let all of the day's frustration out. She curled into a ball and started crying, and then she just couldn't stop. Her mind raced, and none of the thoughts made sense. The only thing Sunset could do was wait for it to be over as she struggled to breathe through the vile fumes coming off of her dyed fur. She felt a rush of air and a heavy thud as somepony landed next to her, but she didn’t bother greeting them. Probably Derpy, with her infinite joy, here to try and cheer her up.
After what seemed like a lifetime, the tears stopped coming, and her sobs quieted down, too.
“Feel better?” The voice was flat, and much gruffer than Derpy’s, and Sunset looked over to come face to face with the griffon, Gilda. Sunset just scowled at her, too drained to bother with a snippy remark.
Gilda sighed. “Sorry for being so hard on you, I guess. But I remember when I first came to Ponyville; I was… cruel. And I dealt some serious damage to the ponies 'round town. I don’t like seeing somepony show up and do that exact same thing, years later. Ponyville’s my home now.”
“So, what,” Sunset sniffled, “You’re just going to harass newcomers instead?”
Gilda scratched at the back of her neck with a claw, looking away. “Old habits die hard, I guess, heh. But you have to admit, I did have a point. Still do.”
“I- yeah,” Sunset sighed. “I’ve never socialized with other ponies very well. The current situation doesn’t help.”
“You’re doing fine right now,” Gilda pointed out, figuring she maybe shouldn't mention the apocalypse thing right now.
Sunset smiled weakly at her, eyes still red and teary. “Maybe it’s because you’re not a pony.”
Gilda bellowed a laugh, making Sunset wince at the volume.
“Derpy and your little dragon friend are inside, talking about the food for tomorrow with my roommate.” She tapped a claw to her beak with a thoughtful expression. “Sounds dangerous, now that I say it out loud.”
Sunset gasped, eyes wide. “The preparations! I still have to-“ she looked down and groaned. “Do so much.”
Gilda laughed at her wild swinging of emotions, which she quickly covered with a cough. “From what I heard, you only got one thing left anyway. Besides, I think you look good in green.” She shrugged and rubbed the back of her neck. “Just my opinion.”
Sunset frowned at her, but she found she didn’t hate the griffon nearly as much as she wanted to. She must be too drained to even muster up her usual passionate emotions.
As the two walked back to Sugar Cube Corner, Sunset found that she was hanging her head. She also found herself too tired to put on her usual bravado. Today was much, much too long.
Gilda pushed open the doors, followed by Sunset, who barely had a second to take in her surroundings before she was bombarded by a bright pink ball of fluff. Upon further processing, Sunset realized it was a pony. Upon even more processing, she found that it was speaking to her. Really, really fast. Too fast.
“-really am so excited to meet a new pony sorry I didn’t know you were coming or I would have had a party allllllllllll ready for you and Spike but I didn’t know you were coming and I was busy when you came in so Gilda got to you first! so sorry about that but she does have the best most awesome pranks though right? and now you’re a real member of Ponyville too! we’ve all been pranked by Gilda at some point it’s a real hazi- OOF!”
Gilda grabbed the pony by the scruff of her neck, lifting her up and away from a dazed Sunset Shimmer. “Give’er some space, Pinkie.”
Sunset blinked as her brain struggled to catch up. “Uh…”
“OH YEAH! I’m Pinkie Pie! And you’re Sunset Shimmer! And I promise I’ll have a party all ready for you lickity split, faster than- HEY!” Gilda dropped her.
"And I'm Spike!" The baby dragon so helpfully pointed out.
“I, uh, yeah.” Sunset was tired. Screw research, at this point, she just wanted to go to sleep.
Derpy flew over and landed next to Sunset, Spike sitting on her back. “Sunset still has'ta check up on Zecora before th'end of the day, so we oughta head off.” She nudged the unicorn with her muzzle until she realized it was her cue to start moving towards the door.
“Right, yeah, so, another time. See you,” Sunset said as they walked out. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gilda wave. Pinkie Pie may also have been waving, but Sunset would probably use the word ‘vibrating’ if she were going for accuracy.
The setting sun greeted them as they trotted out onto the street, its last rays of the day painting the sky brilliant pink, orange, and purple. “Ironic,” Sunset muttered. “This is when my mane always looks best.”
The walk to the edge of town was silent. Derpy was content to walk quietly with her new friends. Her two strange, new friends. Spike played with his foreclaws, unable to think of anything to say to break the uncomfortable silence. Sunset just didn’t care.
At the edge of town sat a hut – more of a hollowed out tree, really - surrounded by various flora, most of which Sunset had never even seen before.
“Steer clear'a that area over there,” Derpy said as she nodded her head in the vaguely-left direction of the hut. “That’s where she keeps th'dangerous ones. Some of 'em bite!”
Sunset thought she looked much, much too cheerful to be saying that.
Derpy trotted over the bridge that went over a small creek and up to the door. She knocked, and was greeted by a muffled voice:
“Come in, come in! I am busy, but that is little reason to turn guests away from me.”
Derpy gently pushed open the door before turning back to Sunset, smiling and waving for her to follow.
“What the hay, this might as well happen,” she muttered as she trotted to the door, hoping that the odd speech pattern was just a one-off thing – more for continuity’s sake than anything else.
Sunset followed Derpy into the hut; in front of them stood a large cauldron of some pink liquid that was bubbling quietly. She took in her surroundings, wrinkling her nose at the myriad of smells assaulting her nose. Added to the dye, she was starting to feel queasy.
The walls of the room they had entered into were lined with shelves, upon which sat a countless amount of plants, both dried and fresh, as well as other various jarred objects. There were also bottled potions, only some of which were labelled. Sunset had to wonder how this mystery mare knew where anything was. Any space left on the walls was decorated with masks of various shapes, sizes, and colors.
Sunset rolled her eyes as she felt Spike grab onto her foreleg and stand slightly behind it, but she didn’t kick him away. It had been a long day for him too, and he was still just a baby, after all.
The curtain in the doorway leading to another room shifted, and a zebra walked out from behind it, carefully holding a bundle of some dried plants wrapped in a cloth. Sunset watched as she trotted across the room to deposit the bundle on a counter, next to a small collection of various other items.
A zebra. Sunset had to say, she didn’t think she’d ever meet a griffon AND a zebra, let alone both in one day. Zebras were rare in Equestria, but she supposed she shouldn’t be TOO surprised, considering the rest of the town’s population, which, as previously mentioned, included a whole entire griffon. And maybe more that she just hadn't met yet.
The zebra – Zecora, Sunset assumed – finally turned to face her guests with a tired smile. “I must apologize for my poor hospitality, but I’m afraid today’s events have led me to a less-than-preferred informality.”
Sunset snorted. “You can say that again.”
The zebra looked at her, one brow raised. “I am Zecora. And am I correct to assume that such a bright green does not lend itself to your usual aura?” she asked, already trotting to a set of shelves holding a collection of various bottled liquids.
“Gilda got her good with a dye bucket!” Derpy shared cheerfully as Zecora balanced precariously on a stool to reach a bottle on the top shelf. Sunset found herself about to offer her aid, but Zecora made a triumphant noise as she grabbed her target and hopped down.
She brought it to the nearest counter, searching for a smaller vial that she then poured some of the liquid into. Trotting over to where her visitors stood, Zecora placed the vial on the ground in front of Sunset.
“Take this with you, and pour it all into a warm tub of water. It will remove the dye and restore your usual color.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Sunset levitated the vial next to herself. “And you just… have this prepared? No stipulations? Or preparation?” She squinted at the zebra. “No strings attached?”
Zecora laughed. “You are not the first pony Gilda has dyed another color, and I would be willing to bet there will one day be another.” She tsked. “The griffon means well, but it would be nice if she were to one day sit and think first for a spell. As for your doubt, it is a gift - from me to you. There is no need to pout.”
Derpy interrupted Zecora mid-pour as she was filling another vial. “I’m okay, actually! Th'spots are fun!”
Zecora looked at her oddly, but she poured the vial back into the bottle, and placed the bottle on a lower shelf.
“So, circling all the way back around to today being a generally terrible day; you’re the pony – er, zebra – in charge of effects, right? Fireworks and live decorations and all of that? Is everything… okay on that front?” Sunset asked.
Zecora shook her head. “Today has been difficult, to be sure. One small mishap has led to an entire day’s headache that I must endure.” She pointed to the cauldron. “Thankfully, my scrambling has made great time, and this is the last batch I must make before I shall lay claim to my bedtime.”
“Does that one… count?” Sunset heard Spike say to himself under his breath.
“Oh!” Derpy exclaimed from beside Sunset. “I almost forgot!” She dug through her nearly empty saddlebags until she found an envelope stamped with a mark matching the one on Zecora’s flank. Did zebras get cutie marks? The zebra smiled and took it from her, placing it on the counter directly next to Derpy.
“Thank you, my courier friend, indeed. I am glad to finally have this plant which I so desperately need.”
Derpy hummed happily in response.
“Right, so, if you’re good on that for tomorrow, then we’re going to leave. I still have to wash this… vile dye out of my coat,” Sunset said. This town is so weird, she didn’t say. She definitely thought it, though.
“I’ll walk ya to th'library! We came this far together, right?” Derpy bumped her good-naturedly, an action which she only got away with because Sunset was too tired to get angry.
“Goodnight, Derpy, Spike, and Sunset Shimmer, hopefully I shall see you tomorrow, as the daylight gives off its last glimmer,” Zecora said with a smile.
Sunset gave her a tired wave as the three walked out into the night. She didn’t realize what Zecora had said until they had already crossed the bridge. “Wait, what? How did she know our names? Spike, did we tell her our names?”
Spike looked at the ground thoughtfully for a second before shrugging his shoulders and making a noncommittal noise.
“Oh, Zecora’s just like that,” Derpy said with a giggle. Somehow, the mare’s energy had not flagged at all. A terrifying power, really. “If you ask her 'bout it, she just says “ZeBrA mAgIc” all spooky-like with a grin.”
Sunset looked at her wide-eyed. This town was more than weird – these ponies were all just straight up crazy.
The group slowed to a stop when they reached the library’s doors. Another hollow tree. Weird. Town. Not knowing how to proceed, Sunset stumbled through her words as she stood in the doorway. “Um, thanks. For sticking with me today, I guess. Better than. Getting lost? So I’ll, uh. Bye.” Levitating Spike and the vial Zecora gave her, she ducked through the doorway and closed the door on Derpy, letting out a belabored breath.
Derpy stood on the other side of the closed door, watching it with an unreadable look on her face. Then she tilted her head, shrugged, and trotted home.
~~~
Sunset Shimmer wandered idly through her dreamscape. Lucid dreaming may be fun most of the time, but when one’s head is buzzing with so much activity, one isn’t really going to bother playing around with the unparalleled power of their dreams. Them’s the breaks. Sunset trotted towards nowhere as she both contemplated the past day and anticipated the day to come with equal parts dread and eagerness. Despite her worries, there was some part of Sunset that loved nothing more than a challenge, and reveled in a seemingly impossible problem. It made her blood rush, and she felt invincible. Like she was walking on air. Like she had magic to contest even the strongest alicorn. As the time ticked nearer, she felt that part of her rear its head.
None of it was helpful when she wasn’t actually directly facing the challenge, however. So instead, she just stewed in her own nervous energy.
Speaking of alicorns, Sunset thought as the space in front of her rippled; the blankness of the dreamscape was interrupted by her teacher, and the ruler of Equestria,
“Luna!” Sunset galloped over, maybe. Maybe she trotted leisurely. It was all the same, here. Princess Luna smiled, and bent down to hug her protégé. Her tall, muscular stature was a stark silhouette against the pastel background, and her almost endless mane and tail of bright stars and galaxies cut a swath through the blank space.
“Hello, Sunset Shimmer. Has Ponyville treated you accordingly?” There was a look in the Princess’ eyes, one her student couldn’t decipher.
Sunset thought back on the previous day. “It… has certainly treated me,” she said as her snout unconsciously scrunched up.
Her teacher laughed softly. “And how goes your task?”
She grimaced. “I swear; these ponies have no clue what they’re doing! It’s a mess, Princess! I mean, I THINK everything will be done in time, but whether or not it’s actually up to any standards is a total crap shoot! Not a single one of them didn't have some problem or another. Some of the musicians aren’t playing their usual instruments; it’s not like Coloratura told me who, but honestly, it sounds like it might as well just be any of them! And yeah, Zecora’s nice and all, but apparently she messed up and had to redo literally everything. Everything! I’ve researched Zebra magic, Princess, and every single book stressed the importance of time and precision! How can you be precise if you’re rushing?!”
Luna smiled at her energetic, pacing student at she caught her breath. Lowering herself to lay down, so they were eye level, she asked, “And your other task?” That look was back.
“Ah.” A patch of dirt appeared at Sunset’s hooves just long enough for her to kick at it.
Luna’s smile became strained, but she quickly smoothed it out when her student hopelessly looked back up at her. The last thing she wished to do was give the volatile young mare any more reason to stress. “I think some of the ponies – and griffon and zebra? – I met today sort of… decided I’m their friend now? But I don’t get it. And I don’t think I’ll ever get it. Which is fine. It's all dumb and annoying, and I really just wish they’d leave me alone. I’m happier alone.”
The young mare in front of Luna suddenly looked a lot more like a filly again, insecure and unsure, trying to convince herself of what she said more than anypony else. “But you’re not alone, are you?”
Sunset looked at her teacher, confused, who continued, “You spend almost all of your time with Spike, and much of it talking to us. And are there not some fillies who attempt to involve you? You must have done something to garner their attention specifically. You are not so completely alone as you’re resolved to think, dearest Sunset.” Princess Luna grinned at her. “Stop overthinking it.”
The Princess nuzzled Sunset comfortingly before standing up abruptly. The look was back, much stronger than before. “We… must go. You will wake up soon. We wouldn’t wish to get stuck in your dreamscape.” She smiled feebly down at her student. “We will see you soon, dear Sunset.”
~~~
Sunset woke up sweating. She tossed the covers off of herself with a groan and rolled out of bed, casting a glance at the baby dragon sleeping on a smaller bed situated next to hers.
Scrutinizing herself in the mirror, she had to admit that whatever concoction Zecora had given her had worked wonders. There wasn’t a hint of green left in her fur. The smell still lingered slightly, now alongside a sharp earthiness, but beggars can’t be choosers.
Yawning, she trotted down the stairs. She had slept late, and she needed to start searching for topical information she might not already know ASAP. Of which there was a lot. While she doubted that the comparably tiny Ponyville library would have anything that the Royal Canterlot Library didn’t, Sunset figured it was worth a shot. It was better than sitting and waiting for the world to end.
She made it through about a third of the books, with no luck, before she was interrupted by three sharp knocks on the door. At some point, Spike had woken up, but Sunset supposed it would be too much to ask that he got the door.
She ambled over to the door, wincing at the stiffness in her joints from sitting in one position for too long. Unicorn perks and weaknesses were often one and the same. She opened the door to find a familiar grey pegasus with wonky eyes smiling at her.
“What.” Her voice came out flat and scratchy from the day’s disuse. Derpy, predictably so, did not care. It was possible she didn’t even notice. Maybe.
“I thought I’d come getcha for th'Celebration! Th'party’s been going on for a while already, but all th'real fun stuff is gonna start soon, and I figured you’d probably miss it if somepony didn’t come and getcha!”
Sunset stared blankly at her, parsing her options. Something told her she wasn’t going to be allowed to wiggle out of this one.
“Derpy! Hey!” The two mares turned their attention to the stairs as they heard Spike come running down. He came to a stop next to Sunset, panting. “You guys weren’t going to go without me, right?”
“Well actuall-“
“A'course not!” Derpy exclaimed. She even sounded slightly offended by the idea.
Spike let out a sigh of relief. “Cool! So we’re gonna go now?” He looked excitedly between Derpy and Sunset.
Derpy nodded and flew back to city hall, low and slowly enough for Spike to keep up and talk to her. Sunset groaned, and, resigned to the knowledge that she had little choice, trotted after the two.
Town hall was overflowing with ponies when they arrived. Literally; many ponies were gathered on the porch and the small expanse of land around the hall eating food and playing games. Inside, even more ponies milled about, talking and laughing. Sunset could spot a griffon weaving through the crowd, and she assumed there was also a zebra to be found in there somewhere. She shook her head, agitated and wondering why she even cared.
It didn’t take long for Spike to wander off, so Sunset just took to following Derpy around for most of the afternoon; an arrangement with which the pegasus seemed more than happy. She enthusiastically introduced her to what felt like every pony in Ponyville. Sunset forgot all of them, immediately. It was nothing personal.
At some point, they found themselves near the stage as Coloratura and the rest of the band were setting their instruments up. Sunset couldn’t help but ask, “Did you get all of the… issues straightened out?”
Coloratura turned and smiled, obviously tired. “Oh, yes, yes. It was an endeavor, but we are more than prepared today. Besides,” she giggled, “are you even a musician if you don’t pull a good crunch now and again?”
Sunset didn’t respond and just hoped she was being rhetorical. Which seemed to work out, as the ground pony just beamed at her before turning to fiddle with something inside her piano. Derpy had gone off to chat with Zecora and Sassy Saddles not too far away, and Sunset, realizing she could either join them or wander around alone, trotted over to the three familiar faces.
Zecora nodded in greeting, while Sassy threw a quick “hello” into the middle of her sentence before moving on. Sunset had to wonder whether that mare actually breathed.
After that, the afternoon went fairly quickly. Gilda joined their merry little group at some point. Sunset actually found herself enjoying the celebration; a fact which she studiously ignored. The air cooled pleasantly as sun fall grew nearer. Spike found his way back to her. Sunset Shimmer noted a familiar yellow glow envelop the curtains, all of them opening at once to let in the last of the dying sun’s light. The windows were crystal clean, impressively so.
Coloratura’s jazz band started playing as the Mayor stepped out onto the stage, and the clamoring quickly died down. Watching what should be the last of the sunlight, Sunset felt the churning in her stomach from the morning come back twofold. She suddenly felt like maybe she shouldn’t have eaten so many scones.
“Fillies and gentlecolts,” the mayor began. “As mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!”
Sunset was sweating again. Had it gotten hotter?
“In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the setting sun, and celebrate this, the end of the longest day of the year!”
Sunset flicked her eyes around as all of the ponies around her started cheering and stomping their hooves. Even Gilda was grinning excitedly. Cold dread settled like a stone at the pit of Sunset’s stomach as the anticipation grew. The sun had stopped moving, and it looked like it was pulsing. She hoped that she was just seeing things. She hoped that for once in her life, she was wrong.
“And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day; the good; the wise; the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria: Princess Luna!”
The curtains opened to show an empty dais. Sunset felt nothing, staring wide-eyed as the very event she had been trying to prevent came to fruition. She had slacked off. She had gotten distracted and didn’t find a solution in time, and now the Princess was gone. Her teacher. Time sped up around Sunset Shimmer, and it felt like she had fallen to a different plane of existence. She heard the mayor attempt to calm the crowd. She heard Gilda yelling. She heard Derpy say something from the stage with uncharacteristic worry in her voice. When did she get over there?
The world exploded. Or, more accurately, the sun did. Sunset Shimmer snapped back into reality and covered her face from the sudden brightness and wave of heat that washed over the crowd, curling around Spike. She squinted up at the dais when she heard a sharp, echoing laughter through the ringing in her ears.
Where her mentor should have stood was a bright white mare. She was all sharp angles and clean edges. Her mane and tail were a massive expanse of white-yellow flame, large enough to contest even Princess Luna’s otherworldly mane. Her flank appeared stained red, and where her cutie mark would be was a white sun engulfed in fire. She wore sharp red armor that seemed to be glowing; following the theme, Sunset could only assume it was with heat. She had sharp, unnaturally colored eyes with slit pupils that ran over the crowd.
"Oh. So that's how that works." Sunset Shimmer was past the depression stage. Now she was just pissed.
The mare’s voice was just as cruel as her laugh. “Oh, my dear, beloved subjects. How long it has been since I last saw your precious, ungrateful faces.” Her smile turned cruel, and she bared her sharp teeth at the terrified crowd.
Gilda shot into the air and yelled at her with barely restrained fury, “What’d you do to our princess?”
The mare sneered down her muzzle at her. “Why; am I not royal enough for you, griffon? Am I not good enough?” Her voice grew louder, and harsher. “Don’t you know who I am?”
The mare’s wings unfurled and she stood tall, looming over the crowd. Her wings were just as ethereally sharp as the rest of her. “Does my crown no longer matter to you now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years? Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?”
Sunset stepped forward, her voice sounding significantly more confident than she felt. Thank Luna for small victories. “I did.” The two words echoed through the hall.
The mare’s burning gaze turned to stare her down, and she swallowed. Her throat felt dry.
“You’re the Blazing Mare – Daybreaker.”
With a wicked smile, Daybreaker launched off the dais and landed directly in front of Sunset, the ponies standing there barely scrambling out of the way in time. She kicked Spike until she felt him let go of her, and saw Sassy Saddles holding onto him out of the corner of her eye. She stared up unflinchingly at the Blazing Mare, a myth made real. All too real, she thought, as the mare towered over her, easily double her height.
“Well, well,” she swooped her head down, bring herself muzzle-to-muzzle with Sunset Shimmer. “At least one of you knows me.”
She lifted her head, grinning down at Sunset. “And if you know me, then you also know why I am here.”
Sunset felt cold. She was still sweating. Despite the fear grabbing at her, she felt much calmer than she would have thought she’d be. It was not a fun combination. “Vengeance,” she whispered hoarsely.
Daybreaker started laughing, and it grew until she was howling: a sharp, grating noise that echoed past the walls and over all of Equestria before it stopped abruptly. She swung her head around, snarling at the crowd that she was standing in the middle of. “Remember this moment, little ponies! Remember your last setting sun, your last peaceful night! For I have waited long for this day, and now that it has finally come, the sun shall never set again!”