> EQG Series Finale (new) - Part 2/2 > by EverythingGuy > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Prologue > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Somewhere on the edge of a small suburban town was a path that led into a nearby woods. On the other side of the woods was a grassy field where the sun shone brightly overhead. Walking through the field was a young teenage girl with yellowish skin, yellow and red streaked hair, and pigtails. Accompanying her was a boy with slightly darker orange skin and hair, and a girl with light purple skin and purple and blue streaked hair, both of whom were a little younger than she was. The trio lay down in the field and stared up at the bright clear sky. They had no idea their lives were about to change forever in a very bad way. “Beautiful isn’t it?” asked the orange skinned girl. “I love days like this” said the boy. “So what are you guys gonna do first when we get back to school?” asked the light purple skinned girl. It was currently the last day of autumn break. Tomorrow they would resume their respective school years, high school freshman year for the older girl and the final year of middle school for the younger two “I’m probably gonna go to the library during lunch and check for new books.” “If you find anything on mechanics —.” started the boy. “I’ll make sure to tell you, Mr future inventor.” the light purple girl interrupted playfully. “That certainly makes sense.” teased the older orange girl. “Right” said the boy, rolling his eyes “As if you both don’t read books too sometimes.” He was hoping to be an inventor when he grew up. “We’re not as obsessed with machines as you, Sunburst” replied the older girl with a smirk. “As for me, I’m gonna look for a music class.” That got the other two’s attention. “You mean-“ asked the purple skinned girl. “Yep.” said the older girl confidentially, standing up and putting her hands on her hips “I’m gonna try to start singing to everyone.” The other two kids jumped to their feet in excitement “Sunset, that’s great!” Sunburst exclaimed, hugging her. “About time, too!” commented the younger girl, joining in on the group hug “Everyone’s gonna love your voice!” “I certainly hope so.” said Sunset, frowning slightly in doubt. “Come on, Double S.” said the younger girl “You know we’ll be cheering you on the whole time.” “Thanks, Starlight.” she sighed. Sunset had been a good singer since she was only four years old, when she came up with a lullaby to put three year old Sunburst to sleep (with some help from their mother). Every now and then she would sing for him, their parents, Starlight, and sometimes even their other neighbors, who all loved hearing her beautiful voice. However, she was considerably shy about sharing her talent any further than that, which was part of the reason she mostly kept to herself at school, aside of course from her brother and Starlight, her best and only other friend since childhood. Now though, it seemed she was finally ready to step up and take a big challenge. “And if you want” Starlight continued “I can join at some point and help you out.” “That means I’ll have to cheer you both on!” Sunburst commented in surprise. “Thanks for offering to help Starlight” said Sunset “But I think it’s best for me to start this off on my own merit.” ———————————————————————————————————————————————————— Many miles away in the city of Canterlot, one of the four walls of the pedestal underneath a statue in front of another high school started to glow mysteriously. ———————————————————————————————————————————————————— Back in the field, Sunset suddenly felt a huge jolt of pain in her stomach out of nowhere, making her double over and the other two let go of the hug. “Are you okay?” said Sunburst. “I … think so.” Sunset groaned. “What the heck was that?” Then they all noticed something incredibly alarming. Sunset’s hands were disintegrating into dust and floating away into the sky in an eastward direction. “What’s happening to you?!” cried Starlight. “I don’t know!” Sunset exclaimed. She looked down and saw the same thing was happening to the rest of her body. “Sunset!” cried Sunburst, trying to grab his sister again, but much to all their horror, his hands went right through her. Sunset then ran in the opposite direction as where “her dust” was going, with her companions following alongside, but that did nothing and when she got to the end of the field she was engulfed by it. “GUYS HELP ME!” she screamed at the top of her lungs just as there was a massive flash of light and a wave of energy that knocked the other two of their feet. When the light had cleared, Starlight and Sunburst glanced back up at their surroundings and found the area to be absent of one. Sunset had vanished. “Sunset?” Sunburst meekly asked to the field as they got to their feet. “Uh, Sunburst?“ Starlight said, prompting him to glance at her “WHAT THE HECK JUST HAPPENED?!” “I have NO idea.” “Where’d she go?” They ran into the woods and started looking around, hoping this was some kind of prank the older girl has played on them. “Sunset? Where are you?!” “Okay, very funny Double S! You got us! You can come out now!” But no matter how much they yelled, there was no reply from the voice they were listening for. Just dead silence. “No, no! This can’t be happening!” Sunburst started to hyperventilate. “Kids!” The two turned to see three adults running their way, a married couple and a single woman. “What’s going on? We heard screaming. Are you alright?” asked the woman. “No, Mom.” said Starlight running to her in tears “We’re not.” Sunburst, also in tears, collapsed to his knees. “Sunburst?” asked his father, coming over and putting his hand on his shoulder “Where’s your sister?” All Sunburst could stammer was “G-g-gone.” “Is she hiding?” said his mother in slight annoyance “I thought I told her-“ “N-n-no.” the boy managed to get out “She’s disappeared.” Sunburst’s parents and Starlight’s mother, who was still holding her sobbing daughter, could only look at each other. It took a moment, but realization finally hit them. This was no joke. It was horrifying reality. Sunburst suddenly yelled out to the sky. ”SUNSET!” > The Call + Setting Out > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Four and a Half Years Later Very far away from Canterlot, at the National Security Agency headquarters, the phone rang. The man who was the head of the department answered it. “NSA.” A male voice came. “Mr NSA man.” Then there was some coughing on the other end and the voice came again. “I’m calling from Canterlot. I know this will sound ridiculous and crazy, but there’s crazy scary stuff happening. It’s real magic. And a group of girls here are connected to it somehow. Especially one of them.” The person on the other end of the line was clearly trying to make his voice sound different and not doing very well. After some more rambling about the dangers of the mysterious happenings in the city, the head of the NSA finally had space to respond. “Do not worry, sir. We’ve actually been hearing about these strange happenings for a while now. I assure you we will get to the bottom of this somehow. I do ask however that you never call her about this again afterward. Understood?” “Y-yes, sir.” said the person, trying to sound nervous. “Can I get your name?” There was a few seconds of silence from the person on the phone, and then the reply came. “Flash. Flash Sentry.” “Thank you for this information, Mr Sentry. I’m sending my best agent.” The head of the NSA hung up and then called someone else. “Agent Shadow, I have an important task for you.” ———————————————————————————————————————————————————— Three days after the NSA received that call, in Canterlot, Flash Sentry stood by his car with his best friend Comet Tail, his other friends Micro Chips Derpy Muffins and Sandalwood, Comet’s twin sister Moondancer, Moondancer’s friends Minutte Twinkleshime and Lemon Hearts, and Comet’s friend Cheese Sandwich. They were at the edge of a road that lead toward the edge of the city and onto the highway. Just four nights prior, Flash and the twins had discovered something alarming. “So you all know the plan, right?” Flash asked the group. “Yes” Sandalwood replied in slight irritation “We went over it 10 times.” “I still don’t get why YOU guys have to do this.” said Micro. “Because if we don’t, nobody will.” “Not even the Rainbooms?” “Especially not them.” “But couldn’t we just tell-“ Cheese started. “NO.” Flash said sternly “If anyone, especially they, knew about this, they’d just try to stop us. Everyone’s gotten a bit too used to Sunset being here, especially them. She’s only going to accept the truth if the proof is right in front of her.” He sighed “And this is not gonna be easy.” Derpy spoke up next “And what about … your feelings? Don’t you still like Twilight?” Flash was silent for a moment. “Frankly, I could care less about that at this point.” “Hey, you misspoke!” Minuette protested “You mean you couldn’t care less!” “No Minuette, I mean I COULD care less. That whole thing I had for the other Twilight? It was a lost cause, and this one’s gone nowhere, and it’s not going to go anywhere else. She and Sunset have both made that very clear.” He held the article out for them all to see. “THIS is what I care about now.” “So what happens after this?” Lemon Hearts mentioned “Don’t we still have one more year in the same city as CHS?” “We just keep to our own school. As far from them as possible.” Comet answered. “Sounds easier said than done.” Twinkleshine commented. “What isn’t? One sec, guys.” Comet then pulled Flash and Moondancer aside to talk privately. There was a bush that just happened to be there. “Listen. Assuming this works and the world goes back to normal, what are we gonna do about” he whispered even quieter “You Know Who?” “Honestly, he can just do whatever he wants to do with his life. Or I should say, their life.” Flash replied with a tinge of sadness. “It doesn’t matter anymore anyway. As long as he makes her happy, it’s fine with me.” The boys turned to Moondancer, who was fuming in her mind that her new friend was seeing the one who had tricked her so badly. “Moony?” “Oh! Sorry guys. Yeah, I agree with Flash. He can just do him. As long as it doesn’t involve us.” The boys nodded in agreement. "Well, that's gonna be especially easier said than done." Comet pointed out "Aren't you and Twilight friends now?" Moondancer just frowned at that. "Give him a chance, guys. She probably has changed him." Flash insisted. The twins still didn't agree with that, but gave reluctant nods. The trio had a quick group hug. “Alright Comet, let’s do this.” said Flash. They went to Flash’s car and had just opened the doors when Derpy spoke up again. “Guys, one more question. What if she sees the proof and still refuses to leave?” Comet looked at the group and, without a tinge of regret, responded “Then I’ll just smack some sense into her myself.” Everyone, even his twin and Flash, were surprised at his declaration. “You mean YOU’LL get smacked for trying to do that.” Moondancer said, giving her brother a warning look. “Let her try.” Comet retorted. “Come on, Comet” said Flash tapping the dashboard “We gotta get going.” “Right. Let’s do this.” They got in the car and shut the doors. “Guys, please try not to do anything too unnecessarily rash.” Moondancer quickly added “Comet, I’m looking at you.” “You know I can’t promise that.” “Remember,” Flash said to the rest of the group “watch the city for nosy people.” And with that the two of them drove off. “Alright, you heard Flash.” Micro declared. “We’ll take this side.” “We’ll take this side.” Cheese commented. "And we'll take this side." said Lemon Hearts. And everyone dispersed going in separate directions, not noticing someone behind a bush nearby who had recorded their entire conversation on her phone. She slipped away and ran off when they were gone. None of them saw her. > Discussion > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- When Flash had first transferred to Hayton Central, he was in the mindset that it was best for not just him, but also his friends and family. His unrequited crush had consumed part of his life to such an extent that it was effecting his time away from school. Not to mention that everyone else at CHS seemed to not care about his band all that much anymore, since they all loved the Rainbooms and their magic powers so much. So since there was nothing really positive keeping him there, leaving sounded like the best solution. However, the guitar player’s sudden absence hadn't gone as completely unnoticed as he believed. The first full week of the second semester, several kids who had always enjoyed watching him play started to notice he hadn't been showing up too much lately and began to wonder where he was. Even though the Rainbooms were amazing, Flash and his band were still good and they couldn't just forget about them. Several other students also took notice. Octavia and Vinyl Scratch, who had occasionally done behind the scenes partnerships with Flash’s band and received music records from the guitar player, missed having him around. They were rather fond of the nice boy. Lyra Heartstrings and Sweetie Drops AKA Bon Bon, who sometimes hung out with Flash and his little group, also noticed the lack of one of their companions. Of course, the only ones who knew the full story were First Base, Derpy, Sandalwood, and Micro. Lots of the popular students started to bombard them with questions about Flash’s whereabouts, all of which they either gave vague non-answers to or just completely ignored. Luckily, Base tended to not run into them much, if at all, since he was still in the middle part of the school. Except for one particular student around his age who was especially upset about it. This started a gossip chain, until it was revealed, after Moondancer met the Rainbooms and later introduced her friends to them, that Flash had gone to HC. The only thing that stopped everyone from sending tons of messages to him asking him to come back was Flash blocking all of his contacts from CHS, except for a select few. Well actually, they still sent him the messages, but he never saw them. The only thing that kept Base from starting a fight with them was Flash’s talks with him. He did however, squabble with the student his age who was the most upset because they hadn't told her. Once it had even led to a full out physical brawl, which earned them both serious lectures and temporary groundings. ————————————————————————————————————————— The Rainbooms were at Applejack’s barnhouse discussing some recent events. “Did you see how she flinched when Twilight said Timber's name?” asked Rainbow. “It was like she knew him.” “She’s hiding something.” Pinkie declared. “They all are. And we need to find out what!” Twilight meanwhile was laying out on the hay bails, feeling very all-over-the-place. She had broken up with her first boyfriend, she had met the first other person she knew who was as enthusiastic about science as she was, and now not only did her new scientist friend have connections to someone who had liked her pony counterpart since her brother was his best friend, but apparently they knew something about Timber that she didn’t, and that unsettled her. She had no idea what to do about it. Just then there was a knock on the barn doors. Applejack opened the right door to reveal their school’s self proclaimed “Great and Powerful” magician, Trixie Lulamoon. “What do YOU want?” The farmgirl asked annoyed. "I need to talk to you." “Well, we don’t need to talk to you.” snapped Rainbow. “This is important.” “What we’re talking about is important.” retorted Rarity. “This one’s a little more your thing.” “I don’t think so.” Applejack almost shut the door, but Sunset gave her a look. As annoying as Trixie was, she had helped her during the memory stone incident. Applejack sighed, opened the door again letting Trixie in, and shut it again. “What’s up, Trixie?” asked Pinkie cheerfully. “Earlier today, I was walking through town, just getting some scenes, when I came across the bailed guitar player and his new gang from that tiny weird school. And they all seemed so preoccupied that I just couldn’t ignore, so I snuck close to them and-“ Twilight jumped up. “Bailed? Flash didn’t bail on anything. He just transferred to another school.” She exclaimed angrily. The other girls all looked at her weirdly. After a few seconds, she sat back down feeling slightly embarrassed. She had done it again. "You know, I bumped into him and those twins a month back and the smart one said my magic was phony! And the other called it a waste of time! Can you believe it?!" “Uh, yeah.” Rainbow said bluntly. The rest of the band just nodded, making Trixie go red in the face. "Um anyway, you were saying?" said Fluttershy meekly. Trixie recomposed herself “Right, right. Sunset, have you ever worn eyeshadow?” Sunset’s face went blank at the magician’s bizarre question. “No, I don’t think I have.” "Take a look at this." She held out her phone for them to see. The Rainbooms watched the Hayton/CHS mixed group’s entire conversation, and by the end they each had a different reaction. Pinkie and Fluttershy were sniffling, AJ Rainbow and Rarity were frowning, Sunset looked guilty, and Twilight had an unreadable expression. “You spied on a private conversation??” Rarity finally broke the silence. “Says the biggest gossiper in the school.” Trixie retorted smugly. “That’s different!” She spluttered. Trixie rewinded the video she took, stopped at the point where Flash was holding the paper out, and zoomed in on it as much as she could. “You’ve never worn any of this stuff?” She asked the fiery haired girl again, who shook her head “Then who is THAT?” Sunset looked closely. The girl in the middle of the photo clearly resembled her almost perfectly expect for the eyeshadow and dark colored clothes, and the girl to her left did indeed look nearly exactly like Starlight Glimmer, but the boy on the right was on the far edge of Trixie’s shot and couldn’t be seen fully except for his hand and the edge of his head. His skin and hair colors did feel familiar to her though, but she couldn’t quite place it. She did however have an idea who the other two were. “I think I know.” “And what are THEY doing with that picture?” “Good question.” Twilight narrowed her eyes at Flash and Comet on Trixie’s phone “What are you two up to?” > Encounter > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Out on the highway just outside the city, Flash and Comet were driving away from it, heading in the general direction of their destination. They had been discussing how to approach the two people they had to speak with for the past hour, since this would no doubt be quite the personal and sensitive topic for them. “You know, there’s no way they’re gonna believe us about any of this other dimension baloney.” Comet said with a look of dread. “I know I wouldn’t if I was in their shoes.” Flash agreed grimly. “But we have to try.” “And if they want nothing to do with us?” “Which probably will happen. We’ll just leave them alone and have to come up with something else.” At that moment, a black suspicious looking vehicle passed them going the other way. Then a few minutes later it was behind them. The boys looked at each other in terror. They knew a government vehicle when they saw one. “You don’t think -“ Comet said quietly. Flash pulled over to the side and stopped. The black car stopped behind them, and the agent driving it stepped out. She came up to the front window, and the boys could see she had dark reddish skin, lighter red hair, and an emotionless expression. Flash rolled down his window. “Can we help you?” "Good day, boys.” said the woman. “I'm Agent Tempest Shadow of the National Security Agency. We received a call from Canterlot city about unusual and mysterious activity happening. Do you know anything about this?” The boys shared a very quick nervous look. “N-no, ma’am.” Flash stuttered, keeping his composure as best he could. Agent Shadow gave them an intimidating look. “Do not lie to me. This could be a national security threat. What are your names?” Flash took a deep breath. “Right, sorry. I’m Flash Sentry and this is Comet Tail. We have heard about this ‘activity’, but we always thought it was just crazy people making up crazy stuff online. People do that all the time.” “Very true.” Agent Shadow proceeded to note all of this, but then she looked at Flash again with recognition. “Wait, Flash Sentry?” He nodded. “Step out please.” Flash did as she requested, briefly turning to Comet and whispering “Don’t panic.” Agent Shadow led him to the front of her car. “Mr. Sentry, we got your call. Whatever you and your friend know, I need to know now. And don’t try to trick me, I’ve dealt with many people who were professional liars.” Flash was about to answer but then realized what the agent had said “Wait, what? I didn’t call you. I didn’t call anyone.” He was beyond confused. He Comet and the others had discussed beforehand about the government. This was not good. The agent’s face hardened “So this doesn’t ring a bell?” She pulled out a recorder from her car and hit play. Flash heard a voice to describe the girls as dangerous and a threat, empathizing Twilight and Sunset as the most “evil”. And then whoever it was called themselves by his name. Flash was clenching his fists by the end of it. He had heard of prank phone calls, but this was the next level. He regained his composure and faced Tempest again “No. That’s not me. I didn't make that call.” Tempest played the recording again, looking back and forth between Flash and her recorder. Her face softened. “My sincere apologies, Mr. Sentry. It seems you’re a victim of a misunderstanding.” Flash was rather surprised that the agent was taking it this smoothly. Comet was even more surprised. “Wow, that was a lot easier than I thought.” He said from the passenger seat, looking back. “Usually, the agents don’t believe anyth-“ “He’s watched several movies where this situation goes badly.” Flash cut in with a quick sideways look that Comet understood. He stopped talking and returned to his seat. “Don’t worry” Tempest chuckled. “I actually get that a lot.” “So wait, you believe that wasn’t me? Because I’m being serious, that wasn’t me who called you.” “Yes I do, Flash. You’re free to go.” “Thank you, Agent Shadow. Hold on, can I hear that call one more time?” Tempest nodded and played it again. Flash listened closely. Something about the voice on the recording sounded familiar to him, but he couldn’t quite place it. When he explained this to the agent, she asked how often he had left the city throughout his life. “Only a few times a year. Usually just to visit my dad at where he works. Why?” “Any people from there or here who don’t particularly like you?” “Not really. Why do you ask?” “Because whoever called must be someone from Canterlot who has some kind of issue with you. Do not worry, whoever it is I will make sure he or she answers for this.” Tempest opened her car door and was about to get back in when Flash spoke up again. “Agent Shadow?” She stopped and faced him “Those girls whoever called you talks about, I know them. They do have special abilities but they’re not dangerous, at least not on purpose. That’s the best I can say. Please don’t judge them too quickly.” “I’m glad you told me, Flash. Thank you.” She returned to her driver seat and left, getting onto another road going back toward the city. Flash returned to his own car, where Comet instantly on him “Dude, what the heck in the world was that?” “Someone called the NSA pretending to be me, and calling the Rainbooms a threat to national security. But who would do that? And why?” “Maybe someone who has beef with you.” “Like who?” “No idea.” “We’ll find that out later, Comet. Right now we need to hurry.” They got back on the road and continued on their way. “But we need to warn Moondancer and the group!” “Way ahead of you.” Comet quickly texted their group chat “NSA AGENT INCOMING!” —————————————————————————————————————————— Back in the city, everyone received it. “Seriously? It’s only been an hour. Is this a practice alarm or something?” came Micro Chips’ reply. Comet clarified this was not a joke and explained the situation. After sending the text, he then turned to Flash “Hey, do you think maybe-“ “Don’t. Even. Say it.” said Flash curtly. “HE can’t be behind it. There’s just no way.” —————————————————————————————————————————— “Hello Officer Armor. Agent Tempest Shadow. National Security Agency.” “Greetings Agent Shadow. Welcome to Canterlot. What can we do for you?” > Meeting > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- After several hours of driving through unfamiliar territory, the boys pulled up to a gasoline station to refill and discuss how to best approach the two people they were looking for. “How about I approach them first and you hang back and wait until I can get things to go smoothly? I know how people like this can get, and you can be a little - ” Flash made a hand gesture to prove his point. Comet, remembering how he butted in during Flash’s talk with Agent Shadow, agreed. “Yeah, probably the best plan. There’s no need for both of us to go charging in.” Another half hour further on, they arrived at the town mentioned in the article. It didn’t take them too long to find the high school there. It was closed for the week of course, but there was one group of people who seemed to be doing some kind of outside work. And luckily, they knew where the principal lived. After another drive, they pulled up a house. Flash knocked on the door and a few moments later, it opened to reveal a light gray skinned man with a black beard. “Can I help you gentlemen?” “Yes sir, you can. We’re looking for Starlight Glimmer.” The principal narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “What do you want with her?” “We believe we know what happened to a friend of hers that went missing a few years back.” The principal gained an expression of anger “Ah. I don’t think so.” He attempted to shut the door. “Please!” Comet stopped it with his hand. “This isn’t a prank or anything! We’re being serious!” Flash grabbed his arm to make him stop. The principal reopened the door with his expression unchanged. “Miss Glimmer has already had enough emotion trouble from this and plenty of people have gotten on her and Mr Sunburst’s case about this. They don’t need any more.” He tried to shut the door again, but Comet held it open. “Mr Neighsay sir, we’re well aware of that. We’re just trying to help.” Principal Neighsay was only getting more annoyed. “I know tricksters when I see them. Now leave or I will call the police.” “On two boys coming to talk to you?” Comet snarked. Neighsay glared “Yes.” “Look Mr Neighsay,” Flash cut in, “If you want to call the cops on us, you can afterward. But first we need to talk to them. Please.” Comet looked to him aghast, but Flash gave him a look that made him relent. The principal, clearly not having expected to be given permission to have them arrested, was surprised. He was silent in deep thought for a moment and then faced them again. Another drive later, the boys found a nearby karate school. According to Principal Neighsay, this was where Starlight went in her spare time. It was her form of anger management. They parked in front of the building and got out. “How angry and messed up can something make you that you take martial arts to vent all of it out?” Comet said as they looked at the building. “Extremely.” Flash replied. “Wait here. I think it’s better if I do this one.” Comet agreed, and stayed at the car. “Hello, miss.” Flash said to the woman in front inside. “Can I help you?” “Yes, miss. I was just hoping if you could give me a minute of your time.” After talking with the woman, Flash came back out and stood next to Comet. “She’s gonna come out and talk. Remember, try to be as easy about it as you can.” “Right.” A little while later, the girl they were looking for came bursting out carrying a bag over her shoulders. The second she saw them, she came storming over and gave them a glare that could melt steel. “Who are you two?” She growled. Comet was slightly intimidated, but Flash kept his stance. “I’m Flash Sentry. This is Comet Tail. We’re from Canterlot. We need to talk to you and your friend Sunburst.” Starlight grabbed their hands, spun them around, and pushed them against the car, causing them both some moderate pain. All in the span of half a second. “Don't try and pull one on me. I’ve seen this before. You’re here to laugh at us too, aren’t you?” Flash frowned in sympathy despite the pain in his arm. He could only imagine what the two had been going through. “Starlight, please. We-” She twisted their arms further, causing them both to groan loudly in pain. “Don’t. Call me my name.” “Look at us!” Comet pleaded “Do we look like we’re here to pull a joke on someone who’s been through something like that? She looked into their eyes for 20 full seconds, and after seeing the genuinely serious look they both had, released them. Comet held his arm and gasped in relief. “Fine. I’ll take you to Sunburst. But if either of you tries anything funny, you’ll both regret it.” “No need to tell us that.” said Comet. Starlight got in her own car and started driving, and the boys followed in Flash’s. She led them to a cabin in the nearby woods that looked decently put together. She knocked on the door. “Sunburst, two weirdos from Canterlot are here to make fun of us.” A voice from inside spoke “Sun-“ there was some coughing from inside and the voice came again, this time trying to sound different “Sunburst is not home.” “Hey! We told you we believe you!” Comet said annoyed. Starlight returned his glare full measure. Flash however did not intervene right away. Hearing the word “weirdo” had stung him slightly, causing some unpleasant memories. After a few seconds he shook off the feeling and got in between the two. Once they had backed off, he approached the door himself. “Listen, we’re not here to laugh at you. We know what happened to your sister. We just want to talk.” “No, no! You trespassing! I contact authorities!” "Sunburst, you don't trust the authorities. My name is Flash Sentry. My friend and I are from Canterlot and I’ve seen a lot of crazy unusual stuff recently. It’s because of this weird energy.” The door was suddenly flung open and Sunburst appeared. “Like paranormal activity, right?” He said in his normal voice. "Yeah." "Come in." Sunburst stepped aside and Flash and Comet made their way in, Starlight keeping them in her sight the whole time. Sunburst looked awful. His hair was grown out wildly, he had massive bags under his eyes, and he clearly had not washed in quite a while. He was also under immense mental stress, if the enormous amount of papers around the cabin’s interior were any indication. After he and Comet introduced themselves to Sunburst and heard his first hand account, Flash relayed his own story to the duo. Starlight rolled her eyes multiple times while Sunburst never took his eyes off him or spoke once until he was through. “So this other Sunset from this alternate dimension showed up at your school at the exact same time our Sunset vanished?” asked Sunburst. “Pretty much” replied Flash. “There has to be a connection.” “My thought exactly.” “Sunburst, you can’t seriously believe this.” Starlight scoffed. “Magic? Another dimension where everyone is a talking pony? That’s crazy!” “You have your own explanation?” Comet retorted. Starlight fumed, but relented. “Here’s the thing though.” Flash continued. “She’s gotten a bit too close to everyone else she’s met here to just up and leave. And I have a particular- ” he briefly paused “reputation in CHS so she’s definitely not going to believe it from either of us.” “So here’s what I’m thinking.” He gestured for the others to come closer, they leaned in, and he whispered his plan to them. Their eyes all widened, Comet’s in excitement, Starlight’s in bafflement, and Sunburst’s in curiosity. “You can’t be serious. Why in the universe would we go anywhere with the two of you, let alone do something like THAT?” “Because this is your only chance of getting her back.” Flash said simply. Sunburst pulled his friend aside. “Starlight look, I know this is beyond crazy, but this is the information I’ve been trying to find for four years. We have to take this chance.” After a few moments of silence, Starlight sighed “Fine. Let’s do it.” She then turned to Flash and Comet “You two are insane.” She deadpanned. “Maybe we are.” replied Comet cheekily. “Oh, Sunburst?” said Flash. “Yeah?” “Not trying to be rude, but you might want to get cleaned up first.” He looked over himself and gave a sheepish expression of agreement “Sure thing.” ———————————————————————————————————————————— Back in Canterlot, the Rainbooms were practicing their music and discussing amongst each other at the park when police cars pulled up and several officers got out, Shining Armor in the lead. “Sunset Shimmer. I’m placing you under arrest.” “Shining! You’re not arresting my best friend!” “Don’t worry Twily, we’re taking you all in. Tag and bag them.” The Rainbooms were hussled into the police cars and driven to the station, most of them protesting.