When Sunset Shimmer opened her eyes, her last waking memory was of being ambushed by a crazy country mare and falling down the stairs. Not really a good last memory in case she, you know, died. Honestly, she had half a mind to burn that crazy mare once she remembers how to make a big enough fire spell.

Now that she was finally awake again, Sunset could see that her surroundings were, once again, different. But this time, it didn’t seem… natural. In fact, it reminded her of that one time she went into the space observatory’s Augmented Reality chamber. Dark and lonely, yet oddly calm and soothing.

She never actually realised it until now, but Sunset Shimmer’s life really did revolve around alternate universes. Sure, she was the one who wanted to run into the World Mirror back in her Equestria, but she never asked to go into a different Equestria! And now she’s in, what, space? What’s next? A world where made of jelly?

Taking in a deep breath, Sunset got on her hooves and started walking on the ethereal plane.

‘Don’t panic, Sunset,’ she tried to reassure herself ‘I can’t really be dead, right? I mean, there aren’t any angels or fluffy clouds or anything. But then again, that’s what human heaven looks like. Did ponies even have a concept of heaven? Now that I think about it, I don’t think there were. Speaking of which, how am I walking anyway? This place doesn’t seem to have a floor. I wonder if I can float…’

Realising that she was starting to go off on a tangent, Sunset shook her head and started walking through the awfully lonely space. Minutes pass by with nothing but absolute silence, and Sunset was starting to feel the solitude kick in. There was no one in sight for miles, and that scared her. At this point, she was willing to have Sonata Dusk as a companion. Anything was better than being this alone!

“Get it together, Sunset!” she slapped her face awake “You are a strong, brave mare! You can survive being alone for a few hours! You don’t need anything like food, or water, or even a nice comfy bed! You can survive with nothing but talking to yourself!”

With a newfound resolve inside her, Sunset Shimmer ran through the empty world in search of something to do.

Hours seem to fly by as her pace gradually slowed down. Has it really been that long? Or has it been days? Sunset didn’t know anymore, her sense of time is skewered in this world. And with no cellphone to check the time, she could have just been running around for months and she still wouldn’t know it.

“…lp”

Was that… a voice?

Sunset stopped her walking and listened, wondering if she had finally gone crazy. That was when she heard a distant Thump Thump noise. It was reminiscent of those times Rainbow Dash tapped on the fish tank in Fluttershy’s house, only… angrier, maybe? Whoever was doing it, they were probably trying to smash through that fish tank and earn Fluttershy’s wrath.

“…elp!”

There’s that voice again. But it was just too muffled to make out.

With no other option left, Sunset Shimmer ran towards whichever direction she heard the voice coming from. Just like her sense of time, Sunset Shimmer’s sense of direction was also messed up. She didn’t know if she was moving forwards or backwards, left or right, right side up or upside down. For all she knew, she was just running around in circles!

“Help!!”

The sound was much clearer now, but Sunset didn’t know where else it could be coming from. She couldn’t see anything in the distance, yet that voice was just so close that she could almost touch whoever was crying out for help.

THUMP THUMP THUMP

It was the same noise again, only much louder. Sunset Shimmer looked around the area, only to be met with the same nothingness as before. As the thumping got louder, Sunset soon realised that the sound was coming from right below her. Swallowing a gulp, Sunset glanced down at the floor, hoping that it was a friendly giant butterfly that was building a house for itself.

THUMP THUMP

“HELP!!”

And then she saw her reflection, banging against the ground in a mad rage.

“Huh?”

Sunset leaned in closer to her “reflection” to get a better look at it, and was surprised by what she saw. It was her, yet at the same time it wasn’t. The expression on her “reflection’s” face was a mix of fear and anger as she slammed her hoof onto the ground, screaming for help. As Sunset continued to watch in surprised wonder, her reflection slowly stopped as she fell to her hooves, panting from fatigue. How long had it been calling out for help?

“Is there another lost lamb within my land?”

A shiver ran down the yellow Unicorn’s spine as she looked for the source of the voice, only to be met with nothingness. No matter what she did, Sunset couldn’t quite make out the voice. It was old, yet young. Violent, yet soothing. Wise, yet innocent. It was like listening to the sound of eternity.

“Has another lost lamb come to my land seeking refuge? Please, stay for a while. Let your troubles run free and settle down into a deep slumber. There is no use in fighting. Sleep, my dear lamb. Sleep…”

Fear started to take root inside Sunset’s heart, yet she had this strange urge to follow the voice’s orders and give in. After all, it only spoke the truth. She didn’t know where to go, and it seemed like the only one in the vicinity that felt real in this world. Nothing else existed, nothing else mattered. Only the voice.

“… get out… hurry…”

The yellow mare looked at her “reflection” once more, surprised that it still had more to say

“please… send help… get out…”

With the last of its strength, Sunset Shimmer’s “reflection” fired a beam of magic from her horn which engulfed the mare in a white light. Adrenaline pumped into her body as the fear and troubles that plagued her mind suddenly vanished, replaced with a newfound confidence in herself.

She raised her head up high, focusing all of her magic into her horn. It has been a while since she last used her magic, but she was Princess Celestia’s prized pupil. Magic should come naturally to her. Could a fish forget how to swim? Could a lion forget how to roar? No, and Sunset Shimmer was not going to be the first Unicorn who forgot how to use her magic.

With a mighty yell, Sunset lit her horn up with as much magic as she could muster. As she looked down to see her reflection again, Sunset saw that it had already fallen unconscious with tears streaming down her face.

“I see you have found your freedom, my little lost lamb. No matter. You shall return, they all do…”

“Aargh!”

With a final triumphant yell, Sunset let loose all of the magic she had stored inside her.

/

“Bu-hah!”

Sunset Shimmer’s eyes fidgeted back and forth, taking in the view of the Golden Oaks Library before her. Despite the relief she felt from getting away from that horrifying place, Sunset still felt a twang of disappointment fill her heart. Why can’t it be a dream? She’d rather wake up naked in school after sobering up from an alcohol-induced nightmare!

…

Then again, her pride was in shambles already. Did she really need to sink even lower?

As she got back onto her hooves, Sunset then noted that the six ponies who were part of this world’s Elements of Harmony were all unconscious, while the room itself looked like it had just gone through an explosion. Were they attacked already? Sure, Redheart said that this world was in constant war, but come on!

“Where are the others…?” she wondered aloud, looking for the three boys who were also in the library “Hello? Hello~?”

“Miss Shimmer’s awake!” a young squeaky voice shouted in joy

“Oh, thank goodness. I was worried for a minute there,” replied a dapper, masculine voice

“Look, if anypony asks, it’s Lightning’s fault, all right? I’m the victim here!” spoke a third voice, although it sounded more like he was trying his best to suppress his rage

“You’re always the victim, Shade.”

Sunset walked downstairs, following the voices of the three conscious creatures in the building. Sure enough, the three boys were all downstairs, tending to the wounds they all attained from the explosion. Just as she was about to ask them what happened, Hikaru, the least injured of the bunch, jumped towards the mare and wrapped itself around her neck.

“Miss Shimmer!” he sobbed, nuzzling her as tears ran down his face “Everything was going so well, bu-but then, then it exploded! S-Spike protected me, but everyone else- They, they were all-And Mom was- Mom was-!!”

“There, there, Hikaru…” she stroked the poor child knowing just how terrifying the experience must have been for him “Everypony’s okay. Your Mom will be up soon, and then we could all think up of another plan, okay?”

“I knew this idea was stupid,” Shade muttered as he scratched his wounds “Seriously, Me? The rebound Element of Magic? Horsecrap! Heck, we’re lucky nopony got killed.”

Hearing that, Sunset released a contented sigh. She walked up to the table that Spike and Shade were sitting on and took a seat herself.

“So, what really happened?” she asked as she opened up the medical kit and looked for any medicine she could use, all the while stroking the poor Kitsune wrapped around her

“Plan failed,” answered Shade matter-of-factly “Since the others had their elements on, they took the brunt of the force. Meanwhile, I…” he tapped on the crown sitting atop the table “was lucky enough that this thing didn’t see me as its bearer. Nothing came out of it, we just redecorated the top floor of the library. Might have scared off a few birds, too.”

“Are you harmed in any way, dear Shimmer?” Spike looked at Sunset, who had finally found some aspirin “You were in the centre of the blast, after all.”

“Surprisingly, I’m fine,” she replied with a smile “Just a bit of a headache, really. Although, I did have this really weird dream…”

“Mayhaps you could share this dream with us once everypony else is awake,” Spike nodded and stood up from his seat “If you had it while in direct contact from the Elements’ beam, then it might hint us as to how we could fix this mess. In the meantime, I shall be upstairs tending to the others. Feel free to make yourself at home,”

“Will do.”

The trio watched Spike as he picked up Redheart’s medical kit as well as the library’s emergency kit and walked upstairs on his hind legs. Hikaru too had uncurled himself from Sunset’s neck and ran upstairs, probably to check on his adopted mother. That left only the two Unicorns sitting at the dining table.

Neither of them had that much energy left to spare, so they sat there in silence. In fact, if somepony were to walk into the library right now, they’ll probably think that Sunset and Shade were on an awkward first date. Knowing both of their bad luck streaks, it wouldn’t surprise either of them if that was the case.

Fortunately for them, the ponies of Ponyville were far too used to huge explosions happening in the library for them to give a damn.

Unsettled by the awkward silence, Shade finally turned to look at Sunset Shimmer and talked.

“So, how’s the me from your world?”

Sunset Shimmer looked at Shade and thought for a moment “Sorry, I don’t think I know you there. Back in my world, people usually just make friends with people who are in the same class or club as they are because, hey, if you have to be stuck in the same building as everyone else till you’re eighteen, might as well make the most of it. The only person I think who actually knows everyone in school is Pinkie Pie.”

“School till you’re eighteen?!” Shade’s jaw hung so low that it could have swept the floor with it “That sounds like torture!”

“I know! Thank god I didn’t live there my entire life! Thirty moons was bad enough already!”

A small chuckle left Shade’s mouth as he imagined Sunset Shimmer’s predicament “The way you said it, you make it sound like you never even came from that world either.”

Sunset slapped her forehead in frustration. She should really word her sentences better. Next thing she knows, she’ll be blurting out her social security number.

“… You didn’t…”

The silence was so heavy you could hear a feather drop.

“Oh man, you did!” Shade howled even louder, almost dropping off of his chair

“Yeah, yeah, before that I lived in a different Equestria,” she admitted with a huff “And I was a total shut in back then. So… I don’t know a Shade from that world either. Even if I did, he’ll probably hate me. I mean, I’ve done a lot of terrible things in the past.”

“I was in a cult that wanted Princess Celestia murdered,” Shade deadpanned “You can’t get worse than that.”

“Yeah? Well I stole my world’s Element of Magic and turned into a raging she-demon hell bent on invading my old world with hypnotized high schoolers!”

The thought of hundreds of school kids walking into Canterlot, unarmed, suddenly crossed Shade’s mind. Damn, that was a bad idea.

“Wait, you stole the Element of Magic?!” laughter escaped Shade’s mouth “Oh, that is priceless! I bet nopony ever let you live that down!”

“Oh, they reminded me, all right,” Sunset sighed, thinking about all the hate-filled stares she got from her schoolmates “But things are starting to look up for me. After all, I helped save the entire world from three Sirens some time ago with the power of friendship! Well, that and a convenient DJ who really hated taking off her headphones. And a dog. But mostly the magic of friendship!”

Shade couldn’t help but laugh even louder at her story. Even Sunset Shimmer joined in, giggling at her past actions. Thinking back on it, she really had acted like a total bitch back then. But you know what? It was totally worth it. She had five great friends now, and she was pen pals with the Princess of Friendship! Life couldn’t get any better than that.

The sound of hooves clopping brought their attention to the staircase, where they saw two mares slowly trotting downstairs. Quickfix and Coco Pommel appeared, a little dazed but healthy for the most part. Once they saw Sunset Shimmer and Shade sitting by the table, the two mares joined them.

“You two feeling better?” Sunset asked. She felt sorry for them. After all, they were only using the Elements because of her.

“Sor’ ef,” the Northern mare grunted, her thick accent sloshing up some of the words “Us Northen’rs could take a hit, ye know. Coco was lucky ta be standin’ next ta th’ bed, so it di’nt hur’ that much.”

“Um…” Coco looked at the ground as she kicked her hooves “It’s nice to meet you…”

“Oh yeah! I never introduced myself, did I?” the mare got up and extended a hoof “I’m Sunset Shimmer, but you could call me Shimmer since, you know, alternate universe and all. I’ve heard a lot about you two from the others!”

“Quickfix Aperture, inventor and fighter. If y’need somethin’ fixed, ye could visit mah lab.”

“I’d keep that in mind.”

“… Coco Pommel,” she then tried to hide behind her mane, failing terribly in the process.

As the seamstress took her seat at the table, Quickfix went over to the fridge to look for something to fill up her empty stomach. She didn’t realise it, but using the Elements really used up a lot of energy. Now, what does her Sunset eat that doesn’t scream ‘fancy schmancy princess food’?

“You know, Coco,” Sunset looked at the timid mare curiously “You look really… familiar.”

“Oh, come on! You know your world’s Coco but not me?!”

“Well, sorry that I can’t make friends with the whole student body, Shade!” she scoffed and turned her head away, all the while failing to suppress a laugh “But really, you look a lot like this exchange student Rarity made friends with. Apparently, the two of them bonded over sewing.”

“You’re friends with Miss Rarity in your world?” the two Unicorns were surprised when Coco suddenly spoke

Now that she thought about it, it does make sense that her friends had counterparts in this world as well. Sunset wondered what it would be like if she gave Rarity a dress made by her alternate self. But then again, this world’s Rarity probably only made pony dresses…

Hopefully her Rarity’s into kinky consplaying.

“She’s one of my best friends, actually,” Sunset added “You could even say she’s the de facto leader of the group.”

“I see…”

“What about me?” Quickfix suddenly appeared from behind and slammed a plate of leftover spaghetti on the table “Am ah an inventor there in yer world?”

The yellow mare shook her head apologetically “Sorry, never heard of you before. But I have heard of Aperture Science Laboratories. They’re the leading company in electronics, medicine, and abominations against nature!”

…

“They also make cakes and that fuzzy green thing on tennis balls.”

“Really? Ah always wanted ta know what that green thing was made of!”

“I’d like to try one of their cakes.”

“Wait, what did you -”

Thud

“SHIMMER!”

Without warning, Sunset Shimmer suddenly dropped onto the floor like a lifeless ragdoll. Quickfix was the first to act, taking out her saddle and started rummaging around. She quickly found the item she was looking for; a small yellow sponge, and shot a beam of magic at it. After a few moments, the sponge started to freeze up and she placed it on Sunset’s forehead, which was already heating up.

“Coco, go upstairs and get Spike,” she ordered as she dug around her saddle for anything else she could use

“O-Okay!” Coco shouted and ran up the stairs in a panic induced frenzy

Beside Quickfix, Shade was standing still, concentrating as his horn slowly glowed a faint purple colour. When he deemed it strong enough, Shade placed his horn on Sunset’s forehead which surrounded her in a purple aura. Sweat poured down his face and he clenched his teeth. He has never used healing magic yet. In fact, it was one of the experimental magic spells that he was studying. But if there was a time to practise, it was certainly now!

As the two Unicorns continued their frantic attempts at getting Sunset to wake up, they suddenly realised that the library suddenly grew colder. Mist started to form around them as silence filled the room. Quickfix looked around for the source of the weird phenomenon, thinking that it had something to do with Sunset Shimmer falling unconscious. And then the room spoke.

“I see that my little lamb has returned to my humble land…”

“Who’s tha’?!” Quickfix scanned the building but to no avail “Who’s there?!”

“Do not fear me, young one. Fear is but a hindrance in life. If you stay within my land, I assure you that you will no longer face any of your worldly fears. Come, my little lambs. Come join me in my world.”

“Don’t listen to that thing!” screamed Shade as he tried to keep his focus on the spell he was casting “It’s dark magic!”

“What is dark but the absence of light? However, light will always be obscured by the darkness. You can try with all your might to escape it, but the shadows will catch up. Such is the frailty of light.”

The mysterious voice echoed throughout the room, slowly but surely making the two Unicorns lose consciousness. Shade soon found himself unable to hold the healing spell and it soon dissipated leaving him falling asleep beside Sunset Shimmer. Quickfix tried to put up more of a fight, levitating anything she could and throwing it around in an attempt to hit the owner of the voice.

“Show ye’self ye coward!” she shouted at the top of her lungs “Ah’ll kill ye! Ah’ll rip ye ta pieces!”

She levitated a plate and got into throwing position, but soon found that her magic’s grip on it was starting to weaken. It soon disappeared altogether as the plate smashed onto the floor, and Quickfix dropped as well. In a last ditch attempt at saving themselves, Quickfix kicked her saddle, activating one of the many defensive barriers she had stuffed in there.

It didn’t take long for a bright silver disk to come rolling out of Quickfix’s saddle, releasing a steady stream of magic that formed a defensive field around the three Unicorns.

“You do not wish to follow me into my realm? Very well, then. Perhaps one day you shall accept my invitation and fall into a deep slumber within my land.”

The voice finally let his presence disappear from the room, taking with it the eerie mist and silence. Seeing that her inventions had once again saved the day, Quickfix grinned smugly as she dropped onto the floor, too tired to continue fighting.

Before blacking out, Quickfix saw Spike running towards her, hand outstretched and calling out their names.

/

Sunset Shimmer groaned as she tried to stand up. A familiar sense of déjà vu filled her as she tried to remember what she was doing before fainting. She was talking to her new friends about her world, and then…

What happened after that?

What if… what if all that was just a dream?

She tossed and turned, realising that she was on a bed. Was she actually back in Fluttershy’s house? Maybe all that was a dream after all! After minutes of struggling, Sunset finally realised that there was something, or someone, on her.

“Get up…” Sunset muttered loudly “You’re too heavy…”

Knowing that her attempt at waking up was a failure in the making, Sunset Shimmer tried to open her eyes instead. What greeted her next was the best thing she could ever wish for. Well, the best thing next to a time machine, that is.

It was Fluttershy’s room.

“THANK YOU!”

After struggling to push whoever was on top of her away, Sunset Shimmer checked her body to see if she had returned to her human self. Thankfully, she was back in her slim, humanoid body and was wearing her pink pyjamas. It was official. She had just been dreaming!

Remembering that she had pushed someone off of her, Sunset then looked at the girl who was lying sprawled on the floor. She really hoped it was Rainbow Dash. Oh, she had so many witty replies to tell her!

And that was the exact moment Sunset regretted every single life choice she has made up to this point.

Instead of one of her friends, the girl lying on the ground had chocolate brown skin and pale white shoulder-length hair. She wore a plain white t-shirt and black slacks. She even had a lab coat on, for some reason. If someone asked Sunset Shimmer to think up of a mad scientist, this would probably be what she looked like.

Realisation then dawned on Sunset that maybe, just maybe, all that wasn’t just a dream.

“DAMMIT!”

“Urgh, will you please keep it down?” another voice muttered. A distinctly male voice.

Quickly rolling to the left, Sunset came face to face with a grey skinned boy with messy purple hair. His black hoodie jacket and dark blue jeans looked pretty plain, but Sunset didn’t have time to think about his clothes now. She was far too busy panicking!

“Can’t ye let a girl nap for jus’ a few minutes…” the rather familiar accented voice spoke up from the ground “Ah just had a rough day, ye know.”

Before Sunset Shimmer could say anything, the brown girl pulled herself up onto the bed and stared at the two people in front of her. She then looked at her former hooves, suppressing a scream as she realised that they were now arms. Spotting a full body mirror near to the entrance, the former Unicorn crawled towards it and stared at the girl in the mirror, her lips quivering as she tried to find her horn.

“Aah… aah…”

“Quickfix, calm down,” Sunset said reassuringly “Listen, I can explain what’s going on right now, but all I’m asking from you is that you don’t-”

“SWEET CELESTIA WHAT IN TARTARUS AM I?!”

“… scream…”

Sunset fought off the urge to roll her eyes in annoyance before turning to look at Shade, who was apparently taking this quite well. Sure, he was still in shock, but at least he wasn’t screaming or anything.

“I thought you’d be the first person to panic,” she said, cocking her head in confusion

“Meh, Quickfix tests her experiments on me on a daily basis,” was his rather mundane answer “After you get turned into a potato for a weekend, nothing really surprises you anymore.”

Wow, maybe there weren’t that many differences between this world’s Aperture Science Laboratories and theirs. Maybe she should start buying her cakes and tennis balls somewhere else…

“Sunset? Is that you?”

No…

Oh please, no…

Quickly getting onto her feet, Sunset Shimmer bolted for the door and opened it, revealing a girl with butter yellow skin and soft pink hair. The two girls stared at each other for a moment a neither wanted to start the conversation. After moments of awkward silence, Sunset finally spoke.

“Fluttershy! Oh, am I glad to see you! How’ve you been?”

“Um, pretty fine actually,” Fluttershy replied with a hint of confusion “Everyone was surprised when you disappeared this morning. Pinkie Pie organised a search party and everything!”

“Ahahah… Well, that’s Pinkie Pie for you! But here I am now, safe and sound! You could call off the search party now.”

Nodding rather awkwardly at Sunset’s unnatural behaviour, Fluttershy took out her phone and typed out a message, sending it to all of her friends. She then looked at Sunset Shimmer, who was trying her best to smile as naturally as she can.

“Um, sorry if I sound mean or anything, but you really aren’t really fooling anyone acting like that.”

Sunset sighed, scratching her hair in exasperation “Okay, fine. You got me. Listen, ‘Shy, I have a confession to make. You see…”

She slowly opened the door and let her friend enter her own bedroom, only to be met with a brown-skinned girl taking off her clothes. Fluttershy stood there, dumbfounded at what she was looking at. Finally, she turned to look at Sunset, shock still evident on her face.

“O-Oh my, I didn’t know you swung that way.”

“No, wait, that isn’t- Quickfix, why are you taking off your clothes?!”

“Well, it’s not like we’re goin’ to a party or anythin’,” she replied, thrusting her chest forward as her breasts jiggled freely “There’s no real reason ta be wearin’ dresses.”

Her patience already at its peak, Sunset pulled her hair and started thinking happy thoughts. Thank Celestia she never did that back on her first day in this world. In fact, it’s a miracle she never did go streaking before she became native. Oh God, that would have been traumatizing!

“NO! You’re supposed to-”

“Umm, why do I feel aroused?”

Fluttershy looked at her bed, where a grey-skinned boy was looking under his pants.

Now, Fluttershy was always the type of person who would think of a calm and rational reason as to why things happen. Especially ever since the whole Fall Formal event. She knew that this situation had a really complex explanation that probably has something to do with dark magic and Equestria. Maybe even a life threatening evil deity that wanted to enslave the world.

And so, she came to the only logical conclusion that she could think of.

“… I didn’t know you swung that way”

“Fluttershy!”