As Aria departed for Blood Hound’s office, Adagio reiterated her order to her other sister – clean up her room or else. Sonata groaned and rolled her eyes, but she didn’t put up much of a fight.

That was too easy, Adagio thought to herself as she watched Sonata disappear into her room. No doubt, Sonata would try to find some kind of loophole to circumvent Adagio's order. Adagio turned on the TV to kill time until she had to go inspect Sonata’s room. It would almost be easier to just clean it for her, but it was the principle of the thing – Sonata should clean up her own damn mess!

After about five minutes, Sonata came out of her room and announced she was done.

Too easy and too fast, thought Adagio. It barely took her a minute to figure out her sister’s game. Instead of cleaning up properly, Sonata had just stuffed everything she could into her wardrobe, and hidden what was left underneath her bed. Adagio wasn't amused. She spun around and slapped Sonata, knocking her flat on her ass.

Sonata looked up at Adagio from the floor with a shocked look on her face, dumbfounded that her sister had discovered her deception so quickly. She rubbed her cheek as Adagio spoke.

“This is your first and only warning. The next time you try any funny business like that, I will personally take care of your mess, and I promise you that everything except your clothes will go straight to the dumpster!”

She slammed Sonata's door shut behind her and went back to the living room.

“I swear to Celestia, one of these days...!” she said to herself through clenched teeth.

She sat down at the dinner table and opened her laptop to surf the internet and see if there were any reports about last night’s events. She found a few, but fortunately there were no videos. She sighed in relief and read further. According to one of the witnesses, all of the students’ cell phones were broken, as if an electromagnetic pulse has fried all of their devices. Adagio thought about that for a moment.

Hm… since the rest of the city was unaffected, I can rule out the possibility of a high-atmosphere nuclear explosion. If there had been lightning or a non-nuclear device, I would have noticed it. I guess that means it must've been the magical sound waves we were generating. I didn't realize it’d do that to electronics. Good to know, Adagio thought to herself.

Relieved that she didn’t have to worry about any uncomfortable evidence, Adagio leaned back in her chair and absent-mindedly surfed the web for a while. As much as she despised humans, she had to admit, they weren’t entirely worthless. She highly doubted that Equestria had technology like the internet or computers – even considering all the centuries she had been in exile. As she browsed, a video caught her eye. It was from the last time that bitch Twilight Sparkle had come to Earth. Adagio lit another cigarette, took a slow drag, and blew out the smoke.

“She really didn't have a single clue about anything in this world. I guess I was right about the state of technology in Equestria. At least it's kinda funny” Adagio mused out loud. She finished watching the video, laughing out loud at Twilight's comment that maybe this place did have magic after all.

“I guess modern technology would look like magic to someone from Equestria. It doesn't matter, anyway,” Adagio said and turned off the laptop. Sunset Shimmer was the person who was really on her mind – the old Sunset Shimmer.

If only she and her sisters had discovered the secret of Canterlot High School year or so earlier… she was certain that Sunset could've been a valuable ally. Maybe they could've even made her the fourth Dazzling. After all, she clearly knew how to travel between Equestria and Earth. They would have had to make a crimson pendant for Sunset, of course, but with a way to get back to Equestria that wouldn't have been a problem.

Looking back, Sunset Shimmer had been just as ambitious and power-hungry as the Dazzlings. The one thing Adagio couldn’t understand was why on Earth she had chosen those two morons, Snips and Snails, as her minions. Not only were they completely tone-deaf – without a doubt, the worst rappers she had ever heard – but they made Sonata look like a genius.

Well, what’s done is done, she thought to herself. What a pity.

Adagio’s thoughts were interrupted by loud rap music. It was coming out of Sonata's room. Not that Adagio was surprised - gangsta rap was Sonata’s favorite kind of music. Adagio groaned in annoyance and got up. Throwing open the door to her sister’s room, she walked over and yanked out the stereo’s power cord. She then strode up to Sonata, glaring daggers at her.

“Sonata Dusk! What did I tell you about playing your music too loud? I don't give a damn what you listen to, but I don't want to deal with complaints from the neighbors again!”

Sonata flinched and nodded.

“Good. Now get back to work. I want this room to be spotless by six tonight!”

Sonata nodded again. She was clearly terrified of her oldest sister. Adagio suspected she was afraid of having a run-in with one of her older sister’s belts like Aria had the night before.

Adagio walked back out of her sister’s room, but she didn't slam the door this time. Just as she was settling back down on the couch, the phone rang. Annoyed, she groaned and got back up to answer it.

“Yes?” Adagio said. She never said her name on the phone when someone called her.

“Hello, could I please speak to Miss Adagio Dazzle?” the woman on the other end asked.

“This is she,” Adagio answered.

“Oh, good. This is the office of Blood Hound Private Investigations. I’m just following up with you about the Sunset Shimmer case you hired him for. Blood Hound has started work on the case, and he’ll report to you every day as requested.”

“Good. Thanks for letting me know.”

“You're welcome. Is there anything else we can do for you, Miss Dazzle?”

“No, thank you. I'll let you know if there are new developments. Good day.”

Adagio hung up the phone without waiting for an answer. She didn’t like talking on the phone.

Sonata had started listening to her stupid gangsta rap again, but thankfully at a more reasonable volume this time. Adagio sighed and turned the TV back on. It wasn't like she had anything better to do at the moment, anyway.

About half an hour later Aria came back home.

“I'm home!” she announced, kicking off her boots and sitting down beside Adagio.

“I swear to Celestia and her sun, I hate dealing with these stupid humans. Why do I always have to do these chores, anyway? I'm sick of their false politeness and all that shit… especially if you’ve got money. Then they just shamelessly kiss your ass.”

Adagio rolled her eyes and opened a bag of potato chips.

“I sent you because Sonata would just spend all the money on tacos or something, and then I would strangle her,” she answered flatly.

Aria grunted in annoyance, got back up, and went to her room. A few minutes later, she came back holding a clean set of towels.

“I'm taking a bath now.”

“Uh-huh. You do that...” Adagio said absentmindedly.

Just as Adagio focused her attention back toward the TV, a commercial break started.

“Oh come on! Not this again! Fucking commercials!” she yelled, grabbing the remote.

“There are more commercials than actual shows!”

Adagio groaned loudly, turned the TV off, and got up. She didn't want to waste her time on any stupid commercials. Sometimes wondered why she even bothered turning on the TV. It was just about time for lunch, anyway. She wasn’t in the mood to stand around cooking for hours… she’d make something quick and easy.

Hmmm… I guess I can make us some spaghetti, that’s easy enough, Adagio thought to herself. And those two better not even think about complaining!

Just as their meal was getting close to ready, Adagio heard the bathroom door open. She turned and saw Aria come out, still with wet hair and wrapped in a towel.

“Tell Sonata lunch is ready,” Adagio ordered.

Aria nodded and knocked on Sonata's door a little harder than usual – half because she was still frustrated from dealing with those humans, and half to make sure than Sonata actually heard her over the rap music that was still playing in her room. Sonata opened the door and gave Aria a blank look.

“Yo gangsta, lunch is ready,” Aria told her flatly, then left for her room to get dressed.

Adagio set the table and sat down. After a couple minutes, both her sisters made their way to the table as well. There were thankfully no complaints as the three of them began to eat.

“Hey Adagio,” Aria spoke up, “Good thing you thought about getting us so much cash when we still had our powers. We’re really gonna be depending on it now. And I certainly don't wanna get a job. Working is the worst!”

“Yeah, and you’d get yourself fired before lunch break on your first day, anyway,” Adagio said.

Their conversation was interrupted by Sonata noisily slurping up her spaghetti. Adagio turned and smacked her sister on the forehead.

“Sonata, manners! How old are you, six?” she asked.

Sonata slurped up one last noodle and smiled apologetically.

“Oopsie! Sorry…” she said.

Adagio groaned and smacked her forehead in frustration… it was becoming a habit of hers lately. She turned back to Aria to continue their conversation.

“Anyway… did you really expect me not to plan ahead in case we ever lost our magic?” she said, spinning another bite of spaghetti around her fork.

“Well, I've never thought about it,” Sonata chimed in.

“Yeah, we know that,” Adagio and Aria said unison.

As they continued their meal, Adagio thought back to their glory days of robbing armored cars. It was all so elegant – no guns, no explosives, nothing crude like that. They just used their beautiful voices. The guards never knew what hit them. The three of them would always read about it in the next day’s news and laugh their asses off. With no material evidence and all the witnesses under their spell, the Dazzlings would never even be suspected of their crimes, let alone brought to justice.

Who are those humans to say what we can and can’t do, anyway? Adagio thought to herself. Besides, it’s not like anyone ever got hurt.

After their first successful heist, they were already millionaires, but they didn’t stop there. You could never have enough cash at your disposal, after all.

Adagio giggled when she thought back to those capers. It was too easy, like taking candy from a baby.

Adagio held onto that money tightly, too. Not that she was cheap – she always gave her sisters plenty of spending money (which Sonata mostly spent on tacos) – she just didn’t waste it on a bunch of flashy and unnecessary things. Now all the stolen money she had squirrelled away was coming in handy. She really hoped that private eye would find some useful information soon…

Sonata finished up her meal first and sprung up from her chair.

“Time for some video games!” she announced, throwing her arms into the air with excitement.

“Have you finished cleaning your room?” Adagio asked pointedly.

Sonata’s smile faded away.

“But Dagi, that's taking forever! Can’t I take a break? I don't get why you're so picky, anyway! It's not like anyone is forcing you to go in there and look at the mess!” she complained.

“I've already told you – I hate clutter and I won’t have it in my house! Or did you forget who pays the bills around here? Aria learned how to keep her room tidy, and it’s high time you did too. I WILL make sure of that, even if it's the last damn thing I do!” Adagio shot back.

“But...” Sonata began.

“No buts! CLEAN. YOUR. ROOM.”

Pouting, Sonata stormed into her room and slammed the door.

“And stop slamming your fucking door all the time! Next time you do that I’ll bend you over my knee!” Adagio yelled.

Aria flinched, remembering her own punishment. Adagio decided to change the subject.

“Anyway, we need to figure out how we're going to get the information we need from Sunset Shimmer once we have enough intel on her. We can't exactly kidnap her and hold her hostage in the basement – we’d be the number one suspects. We need to deal with her somehow, though… and we need to make sure that she tells the truth. Any ideas how to pull that off?”

Aria idly twirled a few noodles on her fork and sighed.

“Not really... not besides threatening her friends, at least.”

“We wouldn’t do anything too serious, though. We may be bad girls, but we're not murderers,” Adagio said.

“Still, Sunset Shimmer doesn't know that. For all she knows, we could be planning a school shooting at CHS to take our revenge,” she joked darkly.

“Well, maybe we don't need to deal with her at all,” Aria thought aloud. “I mean, that Sparkle bitch had to come through some kind of portal from Equestria, and I bet she’ll want to visit her human friends every now and then.”

“True, but we don't know when her next visit will be or where she’ll emerge. I'm not gonna wait months and months for that sorry excuse for a princess to visit Earth again,” Adagio countered.

Aria frowned and crossed her arms.

“I wish we've never been banished to this awful place!”

Adagio had a flash of annoyance. Over the years, she had taken quite a liking to Earth – or at least, to all the technology and conveniences that the humans had developed. Aria, on the other hand, adamantly refused to enjoy many of the niceties of Earth, and continued to complain about it even after all this time.

“Oh, stop whining. We could've been banished to a much worse place. Besides, it's not like humans are that bad. They managed to prosper without magic, after all. I doubt that Equestria has anything as useful as the internet. Even if somepony invented it, I highly doubt that Celestia would allow the spread of advanced technology in Equestria,” Adagio explained.

“Technology could be a big advantage for us when we figure out how to get back to Equestria. Guns, for example – not even the Royal Guard could defend themselves against bullets.”

“Yeah, you're right… I do really like guns,” Aria answered.

"And we’d have the element of surprise. Nopony would even know what they're dealing with. They brought Equestrian magic to Earth. It's about time we brought technology from Earth to Equestria. We’d be the only ones who knew how to operate and maintain them, too,” Adagio added thoughtfully.

“I doubt we’d even need to use them once everypony saw what we were capable of. Honestly, I'd rather not open fire on ponies if I don’t have to, but I won’t hesitate to pull the trigger if anypony stands in our way,” said Aria.

“Same here... unfortunately we don't know where exactly the portal would spit us out. Probably somewhere in Canterlot… I’d imagine Celestia would want to keep an eye on a portal that leads to a whole fucking parallel universe that she knows next to nothing about!” Adagio finished.

“Yeah that's great and all, but we still don’t even know where this portal is, so I’m gonna take a nap. I’m still exhausted from last night,” Aria said, standing up and loading her dirty dishes into the dishwasher.

“Yeah, I don't think we'll have enough usable information to make a move for at least a couple days,” Adagio said.

Maybe Aria has the right idea… I’m pretty tired myself, she thought as she finished cleaning up the kitchen. Adagio curled up on the couch and drifted off to sleep.

Adagio was dreaming… dreaming of the glorious day when she and her sisters would finally regain their powers. They’d get back at the Rainbooms, throw them into the dungeons, show them what it’s like to be powerless! She dreamed of ruling not one, but two worlds as their supreme, immortal Empress.

She would be adored by all; everyone and everypony would kneel before her and bow to her will. She’d force Celestia to transform the three of them into alicorns, and then they’d be completely unstoppable!

Unfortunately for her, her pleasant dreams were abruptly cut short.

“I'm your God Empress now, pathetic mortals...” she said still half-asleep.

“Dagi! Wake up! My room is clean!” Sonata told her excitedly.

“Uh-huh... the servants do a good job, don't they...?” Adagio muttered.

Sonata wasn't having it. Adagio was going to come and see her neat and tidy room right fucking now! She grabbed her big sister by the shoulders and shook her until she came to her senses. Adagio finally opened her eyes and grunted in annoyance.

“What the hell is it, Sonata? I was having a good dream and you ruined it!” she snarled.

“Sorry, but I finished cleaning up my room and you've gotta check it out!” she announced.

Adagio looked at the time. 5 PM.

“Ah, shit, I overslept again!” she groaned and got up. Sonata took her by the hand and practically dragged her into her room.

“It took forever, but now it's super-duper clean!” Sonata beamed.

“Alright, let's see…” Adagio said sceptically. She checked all Sonata’s usual hiding places to see if there were any dirty clothes or other junk that she hadn’t properly put away. The wardrobe was first, and it checked out.

So far, so good, thought Adagio.

Next she checked under Sonata’s bed. There was no mess under there, either. Looks like getting on her case about this really worked.

“Very good. Was that so hard, Sonata? I don't ask much of you, I just don’t want your room to look like a pigsty,” she said.

Sonata blushed and shuffled from one foot to the other.

“Yeah, but it still took me forever. It's like some pointless chore,” she said.

“It's not pointless! Anyway, since you did as I told you, you can do whatever you want for the rest of the night. Just don't wake up Aria,” Adagio told her, yawning.

“YAY!”

Before Adagio could say another word, Sonata was scampering off to the living room to play the latest online shooter. Adagio shook her head.

Silly girl, she thought. Well, I suppose I could join her for a little while… after all, it is fun to own some noobs every now and then. Next Chapter: Retribution Estimated time remaining: 50 Minutes