Sunday, January 10, 2016 / Morning
Today's Horoscope (Virgo): Working to improve yourself doesn't just benefit you, it benefits everybody around you. If you don't strive to surpass your limits, you'll never get anywhere.

Today, we're having a make-up birthday party for Rarity. We're also going to Zodiac.

Through a series of mass texts, we coordinate our day. The party will be this afternoon. Everyone involved in Zodiac will leave the dorm this morning in staggered bursts, to "go shopping" or "to pick up something for the party". We'll all meet up at the mall parking lot, then proceed into Zodiac.

Twilight and I are the third group to leave. We take our time getting to the mall. It takes us several minutes to find Cadance's SUV, and another fifteen minutes for Pinkie, Rainbow, and Rarity to rendezvous with us. As soon as we're all gathered, Cadance hauls the trunk containing our gear out of her SUV.

"Alright...is everyone ready?" Cadance asks.

We all nod.

"Then let's go." Cadance pulls out her phone...

"If you could wait just a moment," a familiar voice intrudes. "I assure you it will be time well spent."

Zecora steps around the side of the SUV!

What's she doing here...?

"Who are you?" Rainbow demands in a challenging tone.

Zecora chuckles. "I apologize if I startled you, dear. I assure you, I am no one to fear." She looks at me. "A moment of your time is all I ask before you begin your lofty task."

"Flash?" Twilight asks. "Who is this woman?"

"An associate, nothing more," Zecora says. "From the room beyond the unseen door."

"Don't we usually have these little chats when I'm asleep?" I ask.

Zecora smiles. "Circumstances have changed today, mostly because my master is away. I wish to impart some strong advice. Heed it, or your friends might pay the price." She glances significantly at Rainbow and Pinkie.

"Was that a threat?" Rainbow says dangerously, taking a step forward.

"No, it wasn't," I say softly. "It was a reminder." I feel a cold pit in my stomach.

"Indeed," Zecora says. "Your negligence may lead to a dire fate, but at this stage, perhaps, it is not too late."

"My negligence?"

"The services offered to you are valuable and rare," Zecora says. "Yet you seem to ignore them with nary a care. Thus far, you have muddled through battles that should have been easy for you. Your potential is wasted, and that is no lie." She narrows her eyes. "Take heed: Develop your Personas, or you will die."

Twilight frowns. "Flash has...what, eighteen Personas? How can you say he hasn't—"

Zecora produces the Compendium from thin air. "Nineteen Personas have awakened within, but for the Wild Card..." She shakes her head. "You have yet to begin."

"Excuse me, but...are you capable of speaking without rhyming?" Rarity asks.

"Rarity!" Cadance snaps. "Don't be rude." She turns to Zecora. "What do you mean, 'yet to begin'?"

"The well of your soul is deeper than deep...yet you rarely enter the Velvet Room except while you sleep." Zecora stares at me, pointedly ignoring the others. "Your bonds with others are strong, and yet...the benefits of those bonds, you seem to forget."

The benefits of those bonds...

"Greater power still lies within your soul," Zecora says. "You must attain this power to achieve your ultimate goal." She closes the Compendium, which disappears. "For today, reflect on the potential within. Tomorrow..." She turns away. "Seek out the Velvet Room when you are truly ready to begin." She walks around the corner of the SUV.

"Hey! Come back here!" Rainbow cries. She runs around the SUV, then skids to a halt. "What the...?! She's gone!"

"Who WAS that?" Twilight demands. "What was all that about?"

"Is that woman friend or foe?" Rarity asks.

"Friend, obviously," Cadance says. She studies me. "If...I understand what she was saying, then essentially...she was telling you to stop screwing around and get serious."

I take a deep breath and nod. "That's...pretty much it," I say. "How many times have we actually gone into Zodiac? I've lost count, but...it isn't enough. And then..." I look down at my hands. "I almost never go into the Velvet Room on my own. I should..." I pull out my phone and open my Persona app. "How many more Personas would I have by now? If I hadn't been so caught up in..." I shake my head. "How many warnings have I ignored? How much advice? What...would things be like right now, if..."

Twilight puts a hand on my shoulder. "Flash..." She sighs. "Let's...let's just do what we came here to do, alright? We all need to get stronger."

"Yeah," Pinkie agrees softly. "It's not just you. We're all in this, and we all need to train. If we don't..." She looks down sadly. "Things could get really, really bad..."

I look around at my friends, who all meet my gaze with determination and resolve. I nod. "Alright...let's do this."

Sunday, January 10, 2016 / Zodiac

As the texts begin crawling around, Rarity starts scanning them, a look of mortification on her face. "Ignore it," we all say.

"Right," Rarity says. She doesn't look too convinced; her eyes are troubled, and keep flicking to the floating text.

Cadance opens the trunk; we each pull out our supply packs and put them on. Pinkie pulls her whip out of hers as Twilight and I grab our weapons. Rainbow straps on her knives. Rarity buckles a belt with a holster around her waist, then checks the clip on a semiautomatic pistol before holstering it. She slides four additional clips into loops on her belt.

"I never woulda pegged you for knowing how to use a gun, Rarity," Rainbow says.

Rarity smirks and flips her hair. "Hidden depths, darling," she says.

"Just be careful with your ammo," Cadance says. "I can only get so much at a time without raising too many questions." She looks around. "Is everybody ready?"

"Ready," we all say.

"Alright." Cadance summons Aphrodite. //I'm reading lots of Shadows in the mall. I don't sense Eris or anything too tough for you to handle. But be careful you don't get overwhelmed.//

"Let's go," I say. We all head for the doors and walk in.

Shadows are milling about all over the place. Several near the entrance boil up to form four pairs of human-shaped figures clad in brown burlap robes, linked together by numerous spears piercing their limbs and torsos. Each figure in each pair is wearing a mask with the Roman numeral 'V' engraved on the forehead. One pair glows brightly and unleashes a lightning bolt at Twilight. The lightning courses over her body harmlessly and dissipates into the ground. The Shadows reel.

I charge forward and swing my axe at the pair that shot at Twilight. They drop to the ground. I charge the next pair in the line, dropping them with another swing. The third pair avoids my strike and counters with a lightning blast that knocks me back to the girls.

Pinkie rushes forward and snaps her whip at the pair that got me as I brace myself on my axe. They go down. She summons Euphrosyne, who hip-checks the last pair, knocking them flat.

//Now, everyone! Here's your chance!//

We pile in on the Shadows, pummeling them into nothingness. As they dissipate, a massive horned beetle drops down from above. Its wings buzz, and it suddenly plows into all of us in a sweeping circle, striking us all with its horn.

"Ewww, big icky bug," Pinkie complains.

Rarity draws her gun and fires a round at the beetle's eyes. Before her bullet even strikes, a huge, semi-translucent mirror appears; Rarity's bullet rebounds and hits her in the shoulder. She cries out in pain.

"Rarity!" Twilight cries. "ATHENA!" Athena appears and heals Rarity.

"Are you okay?" Pinkie asks.

Rarity nods sickly. "Y-yes...just...thankful that only hit me in the shoulder."

//It looks like this one repels physical attacks,// Cadance says.

"We noticed," Rainbow says. "Let's see how it handles wind. PERSONA!"

Nike appears and unleashes a massive wind blast at the beetle. It staggers.

"My turn!" Pinkie declares. "EUPHROSYNE!"

Pinkie's Persona appears. A fountain of glowing white confetti explodes out of her hair, surrounding the beetle. The confetti falls to the ground, disappearing and leaving the Shadow completely untouched.

"Aww," Pinkie whines.

"My turn." I scroll through my Personas as the beetle regards us dispassionately. One Persona I have yet to summon catches my eye...

I choose the Persona I was granted on Christmas Eve...the ultimate form of the Magician Arcana.

"MERLIN!"

At first, a cold, grey stone appears in front of me. Then, as if drawn by watercolors, a sword appears in the stone, its blade shining, its hilt gilded but tarnished. Then, years' worth of ivy and vine creep up the length of the sword, completely ensnaring it. Gradually, an ancient, wizened figure rises like smoke from the meeting of sword and stone. Clad in colorful robes depicting moons, suns, and stars, and a pointy, broad-brimmed hat festooned with bells, the ancient wizard holds a gnarled wooden staff in one hand; a gold crown floats above the other. A flowing white beard falls from his face in long, swirled waves, and the sunken eyes in his wrinkled face glow with power.

With a sweep of his staff, Merlin unleashes a searing wave of flames which engulf the beetle, incinerating it.

"Whoa," Rainbow says. "When the hell did you get that one?"

"Umm..." I scratch the back of my head. "I've had that one...since before Rarity's birthday..."

"And you didn't think to use it then?" Rarity demands.

"Uhh..."

Rarity shakes her head. "I can see now why that mysterious rhyming woman showed up when she did. Forgive me, but..."

"I know, I know," I say as Merlin faded away. "But we're going to change all that, right?"

"Right," Twilight says, wrapping her arms around my right arm and squeezing it. "All of us. Together."

For the next two hours, we fight every wandering group of Shadows we approach. Whenever any of us get tired and need to rest, we hang back while the others do the fighting. By taking turns fighting and resting, we're able to clear dozens of Shadows; some of the battles are pathetically easy, while others are more difficult. A few times, one of the girls is seriously hurt, and has to hang back to be healed.

By the time we're all starting to get tired, we've taken out more than half of the Shadows in the mall.

//You're all looking pretty tired...head for the entrance. It's time to call it a day.//

"Yeah, I'm beat," Rainbow says.

"I need time to rest up and freshen myself up before my party," Rarity says.

"I need time to set up your party," Pinkie says.

As we return to the wing of the mall we entered from, Cadance suddenly calls out to us. //Be careful! I'm sensing five powerful Shadows converging on—//

With a terrifying roar, five lion Shadows surround us. They're larger than the lions we've faced in the past...and there's something else different about them.

Each of the five Shadows is a different color: black, red, yellow, green, and blue. The massive balls they're chained to are solid gold, and the masks bolted onto them are metallic red.

"Not more lions," Pinkie moans. "The lions were bad enough last time..."

"Lions again," Twilight says seriously, settling into a defensive stance. "We need to be careful..."

"Cadance, can you scan them?" I ask.

//There's some interference...sorry. I can't get a read on them. Just...be careful, okay?//

"I've got this," I say. "YEE NAALDLOOSHII!"

Yee Naaldlooshii appears, howling as bubbling coils of blackness rise up from the ground, ensnaring the five lions. When the darkness fades, the lions remain unscathed.

"You don't got this," Rainbow says.

//That's not going to work on these!//

The black lion unleashes a bolt of lightning at me. Twilight jumps in front of me; the lightning courses across her body and dissipates harmlessly.

The blue lion roars; dozens of icicles stream out of its mouth, striking Twilight. She screams as she crumples to the ground.

"TWILIGHT!"

Rarity steps forward. "BASTET!" Rarity's Persona appears and heals Twilight.

Twilight sits up, shaking her head groggily. "I...I'm alright."

The red lion belches a gout of flames at Rainbow which she barely manages to dodge. "PERSONA!" Nike appears, returning fire with a wind blast which drives the red lion back.

The green lion steps forward and howls, unleashing a powerful wind blast which drives all of us back.

"Bad kitty!" Pinkie yells, snapping her whip at the green lion. The yellow lion charges forward and slams into her, sending her flying.

Twilight stands up, rubbing her shoulder. "Electricity, ice, fire, wind, and direct attacks," she says, pointing at each of the lions in turn. "That means their weaknesses are probably..." She taps her phone. "PERSONA!"

Athena appears, blasting the green lion with a powerful thunderbolt. It roars as it falls to the ground. Twilight follows up with a shaky thrust of her rapier. She's looking tired...

"PERSONA!" Rarity yells again. Bastet appears and unleashes an ice attack against the red lion. She shoots it twice in the head, then slumps over.

The blue lion leaps at Rainbow, mauling her before she can summon her Persona. Rainbow goes down in a heap. I rush over and smash my axe into the lion's head, then swing my axe up underneath its chin in an uppercut that sends it flying. "UNDINE!" Undine spreads a healing wave across all of us, soothing our aches and pains, but not our fatigue.

Rainbow grimaces as she picks up her knives and looks at the various bruises covering her arms. "Ugh..."

The black lion suddenly roars forcefully, shaking the ground. The lions all retreat, gathering around it.

//Something's happening...! LOOK OUT!!//

The five Shadows begin to glow red and rise into the air. The golden balls they're chained to intertwine, and the lions blur and change shape...

With a painfully bright flash of light, the five lion Shadows are replaced by a giant, gleaming robot with a massive sword.

"Oh, FUCK THIS!" Rainbow yells.

"Oh. My. God." Pinkie stares up at the robot, her hair going completely flat.

"This...isn't good," Twilight says, staring in horror at the robot.

"You have got to be kidding," Rarity says.

"Cadance? What the hell's going on?"

//I don't know! I'm trying to figure it out...hang on!//

The robot swings its sword, unleashing a pressure wave which sends us all flying.

"We...are so...incredibly...screwed," Rainbow moans as she picks herself up.

I summon Undine to heal all of us again. Twilight summons Athena, who attacks with a lightning bolt. Sparks explode across the robot's body, but it remains steady.

Rarity frowns as she stares up at the Shadow. "I'm...afraid...I'm all tapped out, darlings," she says.

"Don't worry, we've got you. Just...just try to relax," Pinkie says. "PERSONA!" Euphrosyne appears, speeding toward the giant Shadow with a deadly hip-check...

...which does absolutely no damage.

"Lightning seemed to work," I say. "TAKE-MIKAZUCHI!"

Take-Mikazuchi appears, blasting the robot with lightning. This time, absolutely nothing happens. It glares at me and raises one arm, firing several sharp ice crystals at me. The pain from the attack is excruciating...

"There's...there's just no way to beat this thing," Rainbow moans. "We're all too tired..."

"It's not like you to just give up like that, Rainbow Dash," Twilight says.

"Uh, hello? I've never had to fight a giant robot when I'm totally exhausted before! Even I have my limits!"

"What'll we do?" Pinkie whines.

"Okay...it's big, but it's slow," Twilight says as she pulls me to my feet. "If we can...if we can just protect ourselves and get around it, we can escape..."

We all look at the mall entrance. There are no other Shadows around...the only thing standing in our way is the giant robot, and it's not really made for blocking the entrance...

"Rainbow, can you give us a little speed boost?" I ask.

"I think so," Rainbow says. "PERSONA!"

Nike appears and does a quick fly-by over our group. Each of us start to blur.

The robot raises its sword again, swinging it wide. The pressure wave spreads out...

We're all just barely able to avoid the attack. As the robot recovers, we sprint toward the exit.

Forty feet...

Thirty feet...

Twenty...

//LOOK OUT!//

With a roar, the five lions are surrounding us again.

"It's vulnerable now!" Twilight shouts. "Whatever you've got left, now's the time!"

"I've got this!" I slam my hand on my phone. "MERLIN!"

Merlin appears and torches the blue lion with a blast of fire. He then unleashes a powerful thunderbolt at the green lion. Next, he encases the red lion in a massive block of ice. After that, he buffets the black lion with a roaring green gale.

With four of the lions down, and only the yellow lion left, Merlin's eyes glow ferociously. He raises his staff high above his head, then slams the butt of it into the ground with a resounding striking sound. The sword in the stone glows brightly. The light spreads out, washing over the five lions with a rush of white noise.

When the light fades, the lions are all twitching on the ground, dazed and battered. Rarity fires one shot at each lion, and they melt into bubbling pools of inky blackness, which fade into the ground.

Heaving a sigh and clutching at a stitch in my side, I lean on Twilight for support, and we all walk out of the mall and into the parking lot. As soon as we're outside, we exit Zodiac; the bright, cold January sun shines down on us as the noise of Canterlot returns.

The bright sunshine is immediately replaced by blackness and an absence of sound...

Sunday, January 10, 2016 / Evening

"Flash?"

I open my eyes and squint up at the ceiling of my room. My head hurts...

I look to my left and see Twilight sitting beside me. She smiles. "Oh, good...you're awake."

"Ugh...what happened?"

Twilight squeezes my hand. "You passed out after we left Zodiac," she says. "Cadance examined you...she said you were just exhausted. You fought a lot harder than the rest of us." She sighs. "I'm sorry..."

"What time is it?"

"It's after six," Twilight says.

It's after six...?!

"The party...!"

Twilight sighs. "Yeah...you missed it. We saved you some birthday cake, though. Oh, and I gave Rarity your present. She liked it."

There's a knock at the door. Cadance peeks in. "Is he awake?"

"I'm awake."

"Good. I brought you some dinner." She walks in with a plate of food, setting it on my desk. I get out of the bed and head over to the desk, sitting down. Twilight hands me a soda out of my fridge. "How are you feeling?" Cadance asks.

"Sore," I say.

"Yeah..." Cadance grimaces. "Everyone's still pretty banged up. The others...the others noticed. We tried to hide it, but..."

I sigh. "It's getting harder and harder to keep all this a secret, isn't it?"

"Don't worry about that right now," Twilight says. "Just...eat up, then get some rest."

After I eat dinner and the two pieces of cake Twilight put in my fridge, she insists on giving me a rubdown with some medicated rub. It feels good, and the heat of the medicine working its way into my muscles makes me nice and sleepy...

Author's Notes:

[MAGICIAN] MERLIN
Rpl: Fire, Light
Str: Ice, Elec, Wind
Wk: Strike, Dark
SKILLS:
Agidyne Mind Charge
Bufudyne Megidola
Garudyne Null Panic
Ziodyne Spell Master

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An alternate extended version of this chapter can be found on my website. The LTE version of this chapter is very different, so be sure to check it out!