The magical days of Sunset, Twilight and all their friends.
Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle and all their other friends have certainly been through a lot together. They've faced magic, monsters, other worlds, even a bit of time travel. But even with all that behind them, life always finds a way to throw something new and unexpected at them every once in a while. And they're ready to face whatever comes with their friends by their side, as well as regular high school life of course.
Dawn cracked over the town, bathing every building in a beautiful orange glow. It had been a cold and bitter Winter, but now Spring was here, bringing everything that came with it. Dew covered whatever greenery the town had going for it, and even at this early hour the air was starting to fill with birdsong. Many vendors of the various stores and venues of the town were opening up their doors, and while it would still be a while before they got any customers, they were diligently getting everything ready for the rush of people they'd inevitably get. One store-owner in particular, a greengrocer, took in a deep breath of the cold air of this fresh Spring morning, smiling to himself and giving a quick wave to whatever familiar faces he saw across the street, before turning to attend to his own work. This work did not last long, however, as it was right around this point when the relative silence was shattered by the sudden zooming past of what appeared to be an out-of-control van, hurtling down the road at who knows what kind of speed.
But as shocking as that was, it was overshadowed by the accompanying sight of about half-a-dozen teenage girls, clad in bizarre and brightly-coloured outfits that, at a glance, could be described as superhero attire. Many eyes, including the aforementioned grocer, did not really have time to stop and stare though, as this whole scene sped fast so quickly that, within only a few moments, the van and the girls were out of sight, having zipped around a nearby street corner. And as silence returned once more, several of the people looked to one another not with concern or fear or any other feeling that one would expect after such a sight. Instead, they simply shook their heads slightly before returning to their interrupted work, with the grocer in particular sighing before finally speaking the shared sentiment of all of them. "Huh...the girls are early today."
Said girls were a group that, over the last few years worth of antics, had managed to earn quite a reputation for themselves, for good or for ill. Leading them was, of course, Sunset Shimmer, with known teen genius Twilight Sparkle close behind her. The eager Rainbow Dash was running alongside them, as was farm girl Applejack, who was of course trying her hardest to keep up the same pace as Rainbow in that competitive way of hers. The least combative of their number, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie were just behind the rest, and after simply looking at the back end of the crazy and driverless van, it was left to Sunset to eventually address her comrades. "If anyone's got any ideas, I'm all ears!"
Twilight, who was able to adjust her glasses a bit even during the act of frantic running, glanced to her otherworldly friend. "It hasn't hurt anyone yet, but we need to stop it before that changes!"
Rarity looked over to the former prodigy of Crystal Prep. "Dare I ask if your power can halt it?"
Twilight looked on, thinking only for a moment about that prospect. "Doubtful. My power has limits. And something that big? Going at that speed?"
She didn't finish, but her words had made it clear that she wasn't going to be the saving grace of this operation, leaving the floor open for Pinkie to look ahead with a bit of a mischievous grin. "How about a little boom-boom to stop it?" she asked, whipping out a few marbles from out of nowhere, as she usually did, before rattling them in her hand, no doubt ready to light them up with her power.
But again, Twilight had her doubts. "It'd stop it perhaps, but right now it'd also send it flying off to cause all kinds of damage afterwards."
Pinkie looked to her blank-faced for a time, then stuffed the marbles into her pickets. "Meh, maybe later."
Applejack punched one fist into her other hand, grunting with frustration. "Look! The longer this goes on, the worse this is gonna get!"
Rainbow nodded in agreement with her friend, but then her face lit up, as if having had a brilliant idea. Grabbing hold of her pendant, she activated her power, zipping over to just behind Applejack before the latter had a chance to react to it. "AJ, please don't read too deep into this!" she called out.
Applejack, for her part, only had enough time to look over her shoulder in confusion. "What?" Before she could even get a second word out, Rainbow had managed to pick her up and began carrying her in much the same way a newlywed bride might be, before using her superspeed to hurry them both down the road ahead of the rest of their friends. They all looked on, with Sunset and Twilight's eyes widening when they realised what their speedy colleague was planning. And speaking of Rainbow it took no time whatsoever for her to get far enough ahead of the van to stop, screeching to a halt before dropping Applejack back onto the ground. The young farmer, herself having figured out what Rainbow had as her unspoken plan, turned around as fast as she could, activating her own gem to bring her great strength into the fray. "Here goes nothin'!"
All watched as this once-unassuming girl stretched out both hands, palms flat, just as the van rushed towards her. But instead of the expected tragedy that usually followed such a thing, the van's collision with her merely resulted in its speed dropping immensely, with Applejack being forced back only slowly. She was still being pushed however, and she dug her heels into the ground as much as she could to try and force back the magical transport. Sweat poured down her brow with this effort, and the tyres of the van smoked and span with this road-bound joust. Thankfully, the rest of the girls had caught up, and both Twilight and Rarity began to use their own powers, with Twilight's levitation grabbing hold of the back of the van to pull on it while Rarity conjured two giant diamond-shaped constructs to stand alongside Applejack to join her in pushing at the front. "Have no fear, darling! Your friends are here!"
Applejack smiled, but only just, as her efforts were very much focused on trying to stop herself getting smashed. With the combined efforts of the girls, the force behind the van began to waver, and in this moment, Sunset ran right up to the thing, leaping as high as she could and landing smack-dap onto the vehicle's hood. Reaching down, she pulled as hard as she was able, and though there was some clear magical resistance, she eventually managed to get the thing open. Just as she'd suspected, the engine was aglow with Equestrian magic, vibrating incessantly, and after just a quick look-over, she smirked before grabbing hold of one pipe in particular, giving a sharp tug and dislodging it. Mere moments passed before the small miasma of magic fled from the engine, flying high up above them all before dissipating into the air. And as soon as it had done that, the van stopped at last, giving the girls a chance to deactivate their powers and breathe a collective sigh of relief, with Sunset wiping her brow. "And that, girls, is that."
They all cheered, with Rainbow especially punching the air with triumph. "Oh yeah! That's one more for the Rainbooms!" Tapping onto her gemstone, she shifted back into her normal civilian garb, reaching into her pocket afterwards to pull out what appeared to be a small notepad, which she placed a small tally onto. "And by my count that makes about twelve wins for us this month!"
After having taken a moment to catch her breath from her earlier effort, Applejack arched an eyebrow to her more sporty friend. "Don't sound so happy, Rainbow. This was a close call." Her eyes narrowed shortly afterwards. "And would it have killed ya ta warn me before ya go an' do somethin' like that?!"
Rainbow tapped her pencil against her chin for a few moments, then shrugged and wrote a little note next to her tally. "Note to self, warn AJ before making her the MVP of the day."
Applejack rolled her eyes, but for now she stayed quiet, as indeed did everyone else as they all looked to Sunset. She too resumed her civilian appearance, as had all the rest by this point, and after giving another quick look at the engine, she began to look worried. "Rainbow's scorekeeping aside, she's not wrong. This is happening a lot nowadays. We all knew Equestrian magic was pretty much here to stay, but it seems we can't go even a week before it stirs up trouble."
Giggling, Pinkie walked next to her, slapping her hand down onto her shoulder. "No worries, Sunset! As long as we're here, that sneaky-old magic won't hurt a fly!"
Fluttershy, raising a hand as if to get the attention of the teacher in class, spoke up with no small amount of worry. "Um, well, a few innocent worms and ants got trampled back there on the road before we stopped it."
Pinkie looked to her, seeming very much unhappy about her apparently-poorly-chosen earlier words. "Well...mostly wouldn't hurt a fly."
Sunset smiled to the exchange, but looked ahead to the rest of the street shortly afterwards. "Either way I'll need to talk with Princess Twilight about it when we speak next."
Their Twilight walked over to her. "When's your next correspondence?"
Sunset thought on that for a second. "Later tonight. I'll talk with her about everything we've been doing..." She took on a look of fondness. "And then she'll be telling me how ruling Equestria is going."
Fluttershy clasped her hands together. "It was so wonderful to hear she's been made a Queen!"
"Princess," Sunset corrected. "Equestria's a principality, not a kingdom."
But Rarity scoffed at that. "Semantics, dear. She's a lady of absolute power. That's a Queen in my book."
Getting out her phone, Sunset busied herself with clearing space by deleting old messages as she carried on with their conversation. "Regardless, it must be hard for her right now. All that governance. I'm sure a break from it all with a message from a friend will be nice for her."
Sneaking over to her, Pinkie gave her a playful nudge. "It wasn't that long ago when you were looking for that kind of power, Sunset."
Sunset sighed, then acknowledged that remark with a smile. "Fair point, Pinkie. But frankly, she can have it. Thinking on it, ruling is the absolute last thing I'd want in my life. All those people coming to you about problems, expecting you to fix what goes wrong? Yeesh, no thanks."
Rainbow looked over to her with a confident grin. "No, you just solve all the problems of every monster of the week we have over on this side."
Pausing to consider that, Sunset's shoulders slumped slightly. "Well...shoot."
The group all had a good laugh together over that, and just long enough to suddenly see an older man, the apparent owner of the van they'd been chasing, to come down the road to look over his wayward vehicle. Applejack greeted him, starting to explain what happened and what needed to be done to stop it, and though Sunset never said anything on it she very much hoped the damage they did to the thing could be undone quickly so the man could get it back. But she kept that to herself as Twilight again looked to her, keeping her voice low. "I've been making something of a study of all these magical occurrences myself. Do...do you think Princess Twilight will be able to do anything about it?"
Another sigh from Sunset, and a deep one at that. "Hard to say. She's seemed to be just as nonplussed about it all as we are. We may need to accept the possibility that Equestrian magic is just a fact of life in this world now."
Though clearly worried about that notion, Twilight still had it in her to give a smile to her former pony friend. "Well, at least we're here to do something about it when it shows up."
Looking to her warmly, Sunset took her hand into her own, eliciting a slight blush from them both. "That, Twilight, is a promise."
There was likely no place in the world that Twilight had more mixed feelings about than this one. A cave, echoing with the typical sound of dripping water from above. But this was no mere hole in the ground. This place was special. It was here, so very long ago, that the bespectacled girl and her closest friends all became what they are today. They might have known magic before arriving here, but it was within this dark place that they ultimately gained the tools for all their recent heroics. And to think, for so long it had been right here, sitting idly beside a fun, family, woodland park. It gave her a small moment of amusement to think about, but that smile vanished soon after as all the thoughts she'd been thinking before today returned to the forefront of her mind. Stepping forward, she placed her hand upon her gemstone, looking ahead to the plinth where it and the other six had once been embedded. This place had put her in danger, but it had also given her power, not to mention a pleasant memory of a dance and music-filled evening. But as much as she was expecting to be alone with her musings, fate, it seemed, had other plans. "Penny for your thoughts?"
Twilight smiled and turned, just in time to see Sunset approaching her. "Quite a bit's happened since we were last here, huh?"
Finally reaching her, Sunset too looked to the now-empty plinth. "No question here. Seems like yesterday we were fighting for our lives here. Now look at us."
Twilight frowned slightly as she looked up to the cave's ceiling. "I still remember how unhappy I was for a lot of our time here. All that fear of what I was or what I'd become...it weighed on me."
Sunset looked to her with sympathy, placing her hand upon her shoulder. "Whatever problems you had, you worked past them. All of them."
Twilight's smiled returned as she again regarded her friend. "Not without help. You and the other girls...I'll always be grateful to you for that." She saw Sunset nod in acceptance of that thanks, and the two shared a warm look, but when it ended Twilight looked to her Equestrian friend with curiosity. "Now, if I may ask, how did you know I was here?"
Sunset chuckled briefly. "Oh, you know..."
Twilight groaned. "Spike?" she asked.
"Spike," Sunset confirmed. She folded her arms afterwards. "Right after telling me that you'd been doing, what was it, some very intense scribbling?"
Though somewhat irritated at her canine companion's apparent blabbing, Twilight sighed, relenting in the knowledge that her friend would simply keep asking if she denied anything. So, reaching into the pocket of her skirt, she pulled out a small, black book, which she promptly held out for Sunset to take. Seeing the quizzical look she was getting, she spoke softly. "These are just a few summary notes."
Sunset, though somewhat nervously, accepted the book, opening up about halfway to see, as Spike had said, that there were indeed a bunch of random-looking points written in here. But they were pints Sunset recognised, as well as what looked like brief note forms of what could only have been Twilight's thoughts at the time she wrote them. Flipping through one or two more pages, Sunset eventually looked back up to her fellow heroine. "Keep track of all our magical dealings?"
Twilight nodded, taking a moment to slightly push up her glasses. "I figured it was worth making a record of it all. We've seen a lot, Sunset. And It's given me a lot to think about."
Giving the book one final glance, Sunset closed it and handed it back to Twilight, after which she gave her a look of concern. "Anything in particular on your mind?"
Taking back the book and putting it in her pocket once more, Twilight turned her attention back to the plinth. "Sunset...where did our gemstones come from?"
Sunset looked to her with a mix of surprise and confusion. "Well...Equestria. When I came into this cave for the first time, there was just no denying that feeling."
Twilight nodded in agreement. "Granted. Having had more than my fair share of experience with it, I'm not going to argue that." A pause, and then Twilight looked Sunset right in the eye. "But how long was it here? Who brought it here? And why?"
Sunset thought about that, then gave a quick shrug of her shoulders. "I...really couldn't say."
Twilight nodded, accepting the answer while clearly being disappointed by it. "And that's only one question that bears thinking about. There's also cases like the memory stone."
Sunset arched an eyebrow. "What about it?"
Taking her book out again, Twilight flipped through it until she stopped at the page discussing that very artefact. "It was said by Princess Twilight that it came here when a historic Equestrian figure, Clover the Clever, tried to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands, yes?"
"Well, wrong hooves technically," Sunset corrected, not without some small measure of amusement in her own comment. But, when she saw Twilight's irritated expression, she halted herself. "Right, sorry, carry on."
"Anyway...how long ago was Clover doing what she was doing?"
Placing her hands upon her hips, Sunset thought on that. "Oh, we're talking a long time on that, Twilight. Records of Clover go all the way back to the founding of Equestria. Centuries, even millennia ago."
Twilight nodded. "As I thought. It's a long time. We know she sent the memory stone here, but who knows what else? If even half of what you've told me about your world is true, there were a lot of other dangerous magics that were dealt with by sealing them away somewhere or just sending them off to far-away places."
"And even people, if our dealings with the Sirens is anything to go by," Sunset considered. "I get where you're coming from here, Twilight. We've got a long span of history to work with, and it's entirely possible that a good deal more has made it into this world than we first thought. Doubly so when you think there's more than just one portal between the worlds."
A silence fell, with Twilight looking deep in thought, ending when she finally spoke, albeit with a voice tinted with fear. "And the Sirens...Sunset, what are the chances other beings, not just artefacts and vague magics, could have been brought here?"
"It's possible," Sunset answered. "Either through exile or through choice. The portals, or at least the one outside Canterlot High, have a log history. There's no telling just how many have passed through it." She looked to her friend carefully. "Why?"
Getting her thoughts together, Twilight again pulled out her book, looking through a few of its pages before settling on one in particular. "You've told me before about some of the creatures that can be found in Equestria. Dragons, manticores, hydras, things like that." Seeing Sunset nod to her, she continued. "Our world has stories of beasts like that going as far back as, well, the very start of our history. What if..." She gulped. "What if they were more than just stories?"
To begin with, Sunset appeared sceptical. "So you're thinking those creatures came here, spooked ancient humans and then got all those stories made about them?"
"If it happened with Sirens, it can happened with the rest. We have legends and myths about them too, remember?" Twilight countered. "Who's to say what happened with them couldn't have happened with some big dragon or the like? You said yourself how dangerous they used to be to ponies way back when. Maybe one caused trouble, and then Starswirl or Clover or some other magical pony banished them to this world?"
Sunset, in spite of the seriousness of the conversation, actually managed a small laugh. "Twilight, I promise you. If a dragon, and I mean a full-grown, hot-blooded dragon's dragon made it here, it wouldn't be relegated to just stories and folklore. It would have made its presence known..." She looked away, seeming rather uncomfortable with her own words. "And in the worst possible way too."
Twilight dwelt on that point for a moment, closing her book and giving a slow nod. "Yeah, I guess you're right." Putting said book back into her pocket, she continued. "Besides, every creature that's come through those portals has become something else. Ponies become human, and even dragons like Spike apparently become dogs as a result."
Sunset afforded herself a quick chuckle. "You know, I'm actually liking the idea of some massive dragon-turned-dog out there, confused as all heck as to what just happened to him." The two laughed together, and when it ended Sunset looked again to Twilight, her expression one of calm. "In all seriousness though I don't think we need to worry about it. All those stories and legends you talked about? I think we can say they really were just that. Just...coincidences, nothing more."
Twilight knew Sunset was trying to cheer her up, and she was not ungrateful for it. So, after a moment, she held herself, nodding back. "You're right. I guess I kinda get worked up about magic and monsters sometimes." She winced slightly. "Tends to happen when you've known both like I have."
Sunset too took on a look of discomfort. "Hey, preaching to the choir on that one, Twilight. And you're not wrong to think about it. We've pretty much accepted that it's our job to look out for all these Equestrian dangers ever since we got these powers. You taking all those things into consideration is pretty admirable."
For the first time since this conversation began, Twilight actually started to look a little prideful. "Well, let it never be said that I don't consider all the variables." She glanced back towards the plinth. "In all seriousness though, I think it's important that we remember just how far-reaching this magic has become. We thought at first it was just localised around our school and town. But after the yacht incident we can't believe that anymore. There are other portals, other ways between the two worlds. And there's no telling just where those powers have seeped in, or for how long."
Sunset nodded firmly. "Wherever those problems are, or however long they've been here, if they stir things up we'll do what we can to face it. And who knows..." In a quiet moment, she placed her hand upon her gemstone, looking thoughtful. "Along the way we may get some of our questions answered. Not the least of which is where these stones came from."
Twilight stepped forward, placing her hand upon the empty plinth, just in time for a single drop of cold water from above to fall upon said hand, causing a slight shiver on her part. "Some answers would definitely be appreciated." After wiping the stray water from her hand, she regained her smile as she pointed away to the cave's entrance. "Come on. I've been in here enough for one day. Besides, Gloriosa said she'd have some tea ready for when I was done here."
Her friend breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks for telling me. I could really go for one right now."
The two girls made their way towards the exit, but after only a few steps, Twilight slowed, gaining Sunset's attention. After thinking about this new, stray thought that had come to her, the former Crystal Prep student put her finger to her chin. "...Do you ever think about the other way around?" Seeing Sunset's understandable uncertainty about that question, she elaborated. "We've spent this whole time thinking about stuff from Equestria coming here...but could stuff from this world have gone there?"
Sunset's eyes widened, realising that she'd never even considered that point. But, after looking as concerned about the prospect as Twilight had been, she softened, looking back to her friend with the same relaxed face as before. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
Putting on a small smile, Twilight locked her arm into Sunset's as the two continued on their walk out of this place. "I can live with that."
