The Mysterious Maiden Do Well
by Lab Matt
First published
Together, Trixie Lulamoon and Sunset Shimmer are The Maiden, the new heroine of Canterlot Town.
Criminality isn't too high in Canterlot Town, but every now and then some lowlife scum decides to cause trouble, and the police can't catch them all.
That's why the Mysterious Maiden Do Well is here, to make sure no criminal escapes unpunished. She doesn't have one secret identity, though: she has two! Sunset Shimmer, who kicks all sorts of butts with her amazing fighting skills, and Trixie Lulamoon, a very skilled magician who is always ready to create distractions for her and her partner to make their great escapes!
It's not easy to keep a double life, especially when they have to face the greatest challenge of their lives!
Original vectors of Sunset and Trixie made by punzil504 and Adagio made by Mit-boy, all of them redrawn by yours truly!
1. Who Is That Masked Girl?
"Mysterious Masked Girl Saves The Day Again." Rarity, who was reading the morning edition of the saturday newspaper, read the headline out loud. "The locals have given her the title 'The Mysterious Maiden Do Well'." she placed the newspaper on the table she and her friends were sitting at inside Sugarcube Corner, looking at the picture that was taken of the masked girl, standing on top of a building with her hands on her hips. "I have no idea who this girl is, but the design of her costume is simply gorgeous!"
"I don't trust her!" Rainbow Dash said while crossing her arms. "I bet she doesn't even care about the people she saves, she's just doing that to show off."
"Ya show off all the time an' ya don't see us complainin', do ya, Dash?" Applejack asked. Rainbow Dash didn't replied, she just groaned and looked away. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie giggled.
"Well, maybe she's just a nice person." Sunset Shimmer suggested while pulling the newspapaer closer to read it. "Helping those in need just for the sake of doing good deeds, you know?"
"Then why hide her face behind a mask?" Rainbow Dash asked. "What if she's a wanted criminal who doesn't want to be recognized?"
"Maybe she's just shy." Fluttershy suggested.
"Or maybe she's a creature from another dimension who feeds off the evil energy of all the bad guys she defeats, getting stronger and stronger until she is powerful enough to take over the world and become our almighty overlord!" Pinkie Pie said.
"I don't think it's anything that extreme, Pinkie Pie." Sunset Shimmer said. "Maybe she just wants to keep her identity a secret so that the bad guys won't harm her loved ones!"
"Ah agree with Sunset." Applejack said.
"It does sound more likely than the others." Rarity added.
"There's something about her, though." Fluttershy said. "She looks so... Familiar! It's like I know her or something, except that I don't! That didn't made sense, I know, but I can't find any other words to express this feeling."
"Now that you mention it..." Rarity said, grabbing the newspaper from Sunset Shimmer's hand to look at the picture once again. All the girls started thinking about what Fluttershy just said, except Sunset Shimmer, who pulled the collar of her shirt, which was sticking to her skin due to her cold sweat.
"Yeah, I got nothing." Dash said. All the others nodded. Sunset tried to conceal a sigh of relief.
* * *
After their little break at Sugarcube Corner, the girls were walking back home together. They screamed when they heard gunshots coming from the other side of the street and hid in an alley. Sunset Shimmer peeked from behind the dumpster and saw that the bank on the other side of the street was being robbed by three men wearing masks and holding revolvers; the first was wearing the mask of an owl, the second was wearing the mask of a monkey smoking a cigar and the third was wearing a hockey mask. She immediately got up and prepared to run.
"Where are ya going?" Applejack whispered as loudly as she could. "There are people with guns there!"
"I'm going to the police station." she said.
"I have my cellphone right here, darling!" Rarity said, grabbing her phone from within her purse. "You don't need to--"
"There's no time!" after three deep breaths, Sunset Shimmer ran as fast as she could.
"Wait, don't--" Rainbow Dash tried to stop her, but it was too late. "Dang it, Sunset!"
"Well, at least they didn't see her." Fluttershy said.
"Whether she goes in there or not, I'm still calling the police." Rarity said while typing "911" on her phone.
While Rarity explained the situation to the operator, the other four watched the bandits forcing the poeple in the bank to place all their money in bags. Applejack tried to go there and stop them herself, but was held back by her friends. It didn't take long for something unexpected to happen:
Inside the bank, a vent on the ceiling fell on top of the bandit wearing the hockey mask, followed by a girl wearing a purple spandex suit with a large collar, dark blue boots and gloves, a cape, a mask and an utility belt with a buckle with the letter "M" on it. The bandit under her feet was kocked out cold, but there were two men left to deal with.
"It's the Maiden!" the one wearing the owl mask said. "Shoot her!"
Both robbers pointed their guns at her, but she jumped and kicked both in the face at the same time. They clutched their noses in pain, and the Maiden took this opportunity to give the monkey mask man an uppercut. He fell to the floor, dropping his gun. She quickly turned around and kicked the owl mask man in the stomach, followed by another jump, this time hitting his jaw with her knee. He fell down, dazed.
The monkey mask man recovered a little and grabbed his gun, then pointed it at Maiden Do Well. She grabbed his wrist and forced his arm up, making him shoot the ceiling. She hit the joint of his arm with her knee, making him yell in pain and drop his gun. Maiden Do Well looked around, making sure all the criminals were still down and that there were no more robbers hiding anywhere else.
"Maiden Do Well saved us!" one of the clients said, followed by all the other clients and employees cheering. Maiden Do Well saluted them and jumped, climbing back into the open vent she came from moments before the police car sirens could be heard. The police officers entered the bank, ready to subdue the criminals, only to find them on the floor, already subdued.
"I'm sorry, officers, but Maiden Do Well already beat you to it!" one of the clients said with a smile on his face.
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Rarity were standing on the other side of the street, their mouths hanging open after that display of strenght and skill.
"That... Was... So... Awesome!" Rainbow Dash said.
"That Mysterious Maiden Do Well sure do pack a punch, don't she?" Applejack said.
"I know, right? She was like whoosh, and kick, and punch, and the bad guys were like 'shoot her', but then she was like 'nuh uh' and more punch and kick, then the bad guys were like 'oh nooooo' and then turn and pose and YEAH!" Pinkie Pie said, finishing her retelling of the events with a jump.
"I'm just glad everyone is okay." Fluttershy said. "Well, except the robbers. They don't look so good!"
Sunset Shimmer returned once all the bandits had been cuffed and taken away.
"Sorry for taking so long, the station was pure chaos." Sunset said. "And looks like I missed all the action. Boy, I'd love to see the Maiden in action!"
"The Maiden, huh?" Rainbow Dash said, getting uncomfortably close to Sunset Shimmer. "And how exactly did you know the Maiden was here? She arrived after you left and left before you got here. How do you know that?"
"Uhhhh, I... I heard people talking on my way back here, that's how I knew!" she said with a smile that looked very forced.
"Oh, yeah? That's a likely story, Maiden Do Well!"
Pinkie, Fluttershy, Applejack and Rarity gasped.
"Is... Is it true? Are you the Mysterious Maiden Do Well?" Fluttershy asked.
"I... I... Uh..." Sunset Shimmer looked up and smiled. "If I'm the Maiden, then who is that?"
The five girls turned around and looked at the roof of the bank, where the Mysterious Maiden Do Well was standing. Once she noticed that she was being watched, she turned around and ran, disappearing from their sight.
"She is sooooo coooool..." Pinkie Pie said. Rarity and Applejack nodded.
"So, does that mean you'll drop all charges against me?" Sunset asked with a sheepish grin.
* * *
After then sun had set, Sunset Shimmer left her apartment and went to a house a few blocks away from there. She knocked on the door three times.
"Come in, it's unlocked." the voice of a girl coming from inside the house said. Sunset entered and closed the door behind her, locking it. She went to the bedroom of the owner of the house, a girl who was sitting on her bed, reading a book. She was wearing a white shirt and blue-green shorts, revealing the bandages wrapped around her right thigh, which had a small bloodstain.
"What happened to your leg, Trixie?" she asked, appraching the girl's leg to inspect the bandages closely.
"Remember when the guy shot the vent? I didn't exactly get out of there unharmed." Trixie explained.
"Oh, Trixie, I'm so sorry! If I knew you were there, I would have forced him to point his gun somewhere else. Did the bullet...?"
"Nah, it just grazed my leg. I'll be fine! But did you know that getting shot hurts like hell? I couldn't even strike a pose to draw the attention of your friends."
"Yes. Yes, I do, Trixie!"
"Oh, right. I forgot, I'm sorry!"
"You 'forgot'?" Sunset raised an eyebrow. "I thought you said that was the most important night of your life and that you would never forget it!"
"Hey, a guy pressed a knife to my throat, I was in shock, it's only normal for my memories to be a little blurred!"
"Yes, I suppose you're right." Sunset said, lying down on the bed beside her, sighing. She reached into her pocket and retrieved a white disk the size of her palm with a black letter "M" on it. "Want me to tell you all the details?"
Trixie closed the book, placed it on her bedside table and lied down on her side, looking at Sunset Shimmer. "If you really want to..."
"Alright then! It all started on a full moon night..."
Author's Notes:
Surprise! New fanfic on the making, just waiting for you to read it. And if you're wondering why Adagio Dazzle is on the cover, just wait and you'll see!
And next chapter will be a good, old flashback! But I promise there will be only two flashbacks here. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!
2. Partnership
Months ago...
Trixie considered herself a very skilled magician, but even she couldn't make a displeased crowd disappear. A kid in the audience had been mocking her throughout the entire duration of her magic show, and when she finally had enough and snapped at him, telling him to shut up, the young boy started to cry. He wasn't really crying, Trixie could easily see that he was faking it, but did his parents cared about it? Not at all! They were too busy shouting profanities at her. It was uncalled for!
Well, Trixie may or may not have called him 'fatso' after telling him to shut up, but it was still uncalled for. It didn't take long for the rest of the audience to start yelling and throwing trash at her; it was too much for the teenager to bear, so she left the stage in tears and ran straight to the backstage room, where she locked herself in and cried for hours. Literally hours, because the owner of the theatre came knocking on the door, telling her that they would be closing soon.
She had been saving money for months, working like a slave on that dirty emporium owned by those shady Flim Flam Brothers, and now all the money she spent renting the theatre for the night went to waste and her debut show was a complete failure, all because of a mean-spirited brat who couldn't appreciate true art!
But she wouldn't let that keep her down, no siree! She took off her magician hat and cape and stuffed them in her backpack. Since she had already payed the rent in advance, she just left the theatre through the backdoor. It was already past 11 PM and the back alley was dark, but Trixie could still see the two men talking to each other in front of the alley, blocking the path - if they were doing that intentionally or not, she couldn't know for sure, but she wasn't taking any chances either, so she just stood there, hoping that they would leave soon.
That wasn't the case, because one of the men noticed her. She couldn't hear what they were talking about, but she knew that it couldn't be something good when one of them pointed a finger at her and started walking toward the girl. She tried to go back inside the theatre, but the owner had already locked the door. She was about to give up and see what the man wanted, but decided to redouble her efforts when the man pulled a switchblade from his pocket. She was now trying to kick the door down, but it was too sturdy to be overpowered by a frail high school girl.
She tried climbing the metal fence that blocked the path that led to the other exit of the back alley, but the man had already reached her by that time and grabbed her ankle, pulling her back down. She knew that it was a bad idea, but by the time she realized that, she was already screaming for help. The man pulled her up by the hair and slammed her face against the metal fence. He turned her around and pressed his switchblade to her neck.
"Do that again and I'll cut out your fucking tongue!" he said in an angry and very threatening tone. Trixie closed her eyes, already accepting her fate. That was already the worst night of her life, why not end it in the worst way possible?
* * *
Sunset Shimmer finished wearing her Maiden Do Well costume, which was much more simpler back then: a plain black hoodie to hide her very conspicuous hair, gloves for her to not leave fingerprints behind, a purple cloth wrapped around the upper half of her face with two holes for her eyes, a green surgical mask to hide the lower half of her face, brown workout pants for better mobility and slip resistant sneakers. She also had a white badge with a black "M" on it pinned to her chest; a symbol for the criminals to fear - which wasn't working very well, since they were usually too busy laughing at her ridiculous outfit.
She jumped out of the window of her apartment and started her nightly patrol around town. Canterlot Town, even though it was the biggest city of that state, it only had a population of around 300,000 so it wasn't hard to patrol a large area of it in a single night, especially for someone like her, who was originally a pony from the magical land of Equestria, meaning that she was not only fast enough to give professional athletes a run for their money, but she also had a good stamina to keep her going for a while, as well as a better hearing, vision and sense of smell.
Her muscles were also a little more developed than an average person, but that was thanks to the constant working out sessions she went through since she arrived in this strange world filled with hairless apes she eventually grew fond of. At first, she did it to understand that new body of hers, learning what she could and could not do with it, until she noticed that she really liked doing that! She now went to the academy three times a week, never missing a single day. It wasn't long until she started taking self-defense classes as well.
Those perks sure came in handy when she decided to become the new heroine of Canterlot Town, dubbed The Mysterious Maiden Do Well by its citizens. She hadn't thought of a name when she started pummeling criminals, and the fact that her badge had an "M" on it was purely coincidental. That "M" originally stood for "mare", a reminder of her true nature, but "Maiden Do Well" sounded really nice and she went with it.
Sunset Shimmer did not planned on turning into some kind of local superhero, it was all one big accident. Her new life started the same night they beat the Dazzlings during the Battle of the Bands. She was walking alone back home, since all her friends lived closer to Canterlot High than her, when she heard sirens. A man was running straight toward her while being chased by police cars, and she could see that he had a gun in hands. Her first thought was to jump out of the way and let the police do their job, but she had read enough comic books to know that letting the criminal escape always ended in tragedy.
She hid herself behind a street post and waited for the criminal to get closer. The moment he was about to run past her she moved her foot and tripped him. Without wasting a second, she straddled him and twisted his arm behind his back, making him let go of the gun. The policemen arrested him and, after giving a speech about how dangerous what she just did was, they thanked her and left.
That felt good, though. Really good! There were only two times in her life when she felt that helpful, and both happened in the same night! She smiled for days, but never told anyone what she had done, trying to avoid another scolding. Weeks later, she did it again. But this time she was already wearing her "superhero uniform", ready to make her new home a safer place. The Mysterious Maiden Do Well was born!
A scream for help brought her back to reality. It was a short one, but was enough for her to know the direction it came from. The moment she saw a man cornering a girl and pressing a knife to her throat, she knew she had to act quickly! She climbed down a pipe and immediately immobilized the man from behind, disarming him afterwards. She applied a rear naked choke and the man lost consciousness.
Of course, Sunset Shimmer was still new to this "local superhero" thing, so she was much more careless back then. She didn't noticed the second man approaching her from behind until the girl yelled:
"BEHIND YOU!"
The Maiden turned her head and saw a six feet tall man sneaking up on her - he had a gun and was pointing it at her. She tried to dodge, but while she was fast enough to not be fatally injured, she was still shot in the right shoulder. He was about to finish her off when the gun was knocked out of his hand by a flying backpack. Right after that, Trixie hit him in the face with a wooden board she found in a pile of trash nearby - probably leftovers from a play staged in that theatre. She kept hitting him until she was sure he wouldn't be getting up for a long time.
"Two is too much, but The Great and Powerful Trixie can handle one pile of walking trash." she said, then dropped the board on top of him.
* * *
Sunset Shimmer woke up the next morning. She expected to be in lots of pain, but she it didn't felt as bad as she expected. Once she was fully awake, she noticed three things: her shoulder was bandaged, that wasn't her bedroom and she wasn't wearing her Maiden Do Well outfit. She tried to get up and leave, but groaned in pain whe she did so - her shoulder was better, but not fully healed. A girl then appeared on the doorway; her skin was blue, her hair was white and her glare was intimidating.
"Don't you try to slip away after Trixie stayed up all night tending to your wound." she said.
"Tr-Trixie? What are you doing here? Ow..."
"Trixie couldn't just leave you there after you saved Trixie's life." she said.
"It was you last night? Sorry, I didn't even notice."
"Anyway, don't get up. You need to rest! You're lucky the bullet went all the way through, otherwise Trixie would have to take you to the hospital and your secret identity would be exposed."
"You... You didn't tell anyone?"
"Of course not! If the police finds out you're the Mysterious Maiden Do Well, do you think they would let you keep patrolling the city? Trixie can't let that happened! Because, if it wasn't for you, Trixie would..."
"I..." Sunset smiled. "Thank you, Trixie."
"D-Don't thank Trixie. She was just doing what she thought was best!" she crossed her arms, looked away and puffed her cheeks while blushing lightly.
Sunset giggled then looked at her tended wound. "You did a great job, Trixie! When did you learn to do that?"
"Trixie's mother is a nurse and Trixie's father is a doctor. They taught her many things!"
"Wow, Trixie, I had no idea you were from a family of medics."
"Trixie is not really into it, though. Trixie would choose the stage over a surgery room any day of the week!"
Sunset looked at the window. "By the way, what time is it?"
Trixie looked at her watch. "A quarter past ten."
She gasped. "School! We're super late, we have to--"
Sunset Shimmer tried to get up, but Trixie grabbed her good shoulder and forced her to lie down again.
"Stop! Moving! If your wound open, you will be sorry. You're injured, Trixie is sure they won't mind if you miss classes for a week or two."
"But I--"
"No buts! You're not leaving until Trixie is sure you're good enough to leave, understood?"
"What about your parents? What will they say if they see a wounded girl resting on your bed?"
"Trixie's parents aren't here. They travel a lot, visiting many countries in need of help."
"And what about the Maiden?"
Trixie didn't answered that question immediately. She closed her eyes, pondering for a second.
"Trixie will do it!"
"WHAT?!"
"Trixie isn't much of a fighter, but she has many tricks up her sleeves. Trixie will be fine!"
Sunset looked deep into Trixie's eyes. She had a look of determination. She sighed.
"If you come back injured, even if it's just a tiny scratch, I'm tying you up to the bedpost and going out there myself, understood?"
Trixie smiled and nodded.
In the next two weeks, Trixie busied herself with five tasks: going to school, taking care of Sunset Shimmer, teaching Sunset Shimmer what she had missed in school, patrolling Canterlot Town at night while wearing the Maiden Do Well outfit - she sure was glad she and Sunset had very similar measures - and one secret task she wouldn't reveal to Sunset Shimmer until she finished it.
"Are your eyes closed?" Trixie asked from the hallway.
"Yes, my eyes are closed." Sunset said while covering her eyes with her left arm. Her right shoulder was already better, but she still tried not to use it very often.
"Okay, you can look now." she said, her voice now coming from inside the bedroom.
Sunset moved her arm out of the way and gasped. "Tr-Trixie, that's--"
"Yes, Trixie knows. Trixie is ready for your compliments."
Trixie was wearing what would be later known as The Maiden's official outfit; everything was there, the boots, the gloves, the mask, the cape, the hat, the utility belt and even the customized buckle.
"How did you do that?"
She removed the hat and the mask. "What, did you thought Trixie bought her magician outfit in some old clothes store?"
"So, you're a magician, a healer, a capable Maiden Do Well placeholder and a seamstress? I am officially impressed!"
"Trixie is a girl of many talents! And, about that 'placeholder' part..." Trixie opened a drawer and pulled a second Maiden Do Well outfit, an exact copy of the one she was wearing.
"Two? Why do you need--"
"Trixie wants to help you!" she interrupted Sunset.
"You what?"
"You live a very dangerous life, Sunset Shimmer. A life that you can't live by yourself. You need someone backing you up, watching out for you! So, can Trix-- I mean, can I be that person?"
Sunset Shimmer looked at her eyes again. The look of determination hadn't diminished over those two weeks.
"Come here." she said.
Trixie approached her and sat on the bed. Sunset Shimmer grabbed the purple hat Trixie was still holding and placed it on Trixie's head.
"Welcome aboard, partner!"
Author's Notes:
15 upvotes in one day was what I needed to write the next chapter so soon. So much that this chapter is twice as long as I had planned.
Thank you so much for liking it, I'll do my best to make this the greatest MLP fanfic I ever wrote! In the distant future, my grandchildren will ask "Grandpa, what was your greatest accomplishment in life?" and my answer will be "I will never forget the day I shot down that alien spaceship in 2025! They had abducted dozens of earthlings, but I managed to save them all; one of them was a woman that several decades later you would start calling 'grandma'!"
...
Oh, but if they asked me "What was the greatest fanfiction you ever wrote?" I would totally send them a link to The Mysterious Maiden Do Well!
3. An Anonymous Letter
Present day...
"Sunset, wake up, it's an emergency!" Trixie yelled.
Sunset Shimmer sat up, rubbing her eyes. "Hey, Trixie, what are you doing yelling so early in the morning? It's sunday, we can sleep in if we want to."
"Just shut up for a second and look!" Trixie held a piece of paper in front of Sunset Shimmer's face. She rubbed her eyes once again and started to read.
"To the Mysterious Maiden Do Well..." her eyes widened, sleepiness completely leaving her body. "Wait, what?!"
"Someone knows, Sunset! Someone knows and this cannot be a good thing. Well, I mean, I'm not sure, I didn't read anything past that line, but..."
"Where did you find this?"
"In the mailbox. It wasn't delivered by mail because there is no stamp, so whoever put this there came here personally last night!"
"First let's finish reading it and see what they want." Sunset said, then started reading the paper once again.
To the Mysterious Maiden Do Well...
Yes, I know who you are, and if you don't want your secret identities to be exposed, you are going to help me. In three days, at around 10 or 11 PM, a ship will dock at the port and unload crates with the Umbrum Corp. logo on them. You must not allow those crates to be delivered, no matter what! Burn them, smash them, throw them in the ocean, do whatever you wish, but DO NOT let the Umbrum Corp. receive that shipment! If they do, Umbrum Corp. wins and many lives will be lost! Once the deed is done, meet me at the front gate of the port and I'll explain everything.
Trixie punched a wall. "Damn it all to hell!"
"What do we do now?" Sunset Shimmer said. "If we do that, we'll be breaking the law. But if we're exposed, then who knows what kind of crimes will be commited if we're out of commission?"
"Damn you too, Sunset! Why do you always have a point?"
"So, are we gonna do it?"
"I... I don't know. I don't want to raid the port, but I don't want to be exposed either..."
"By the way, what is this Umbrum Corp.? I never heard of it before!"
"Never heard of it before? Umbrum Corp. is a company-- No, the company specialized in technology. In the last few years, they developed several electronics and appliances that are quite useful and popular. The Umbrum Corp. products are all over the world, but it's especially popular here, since this is where their headquarters is located. I mean, I doubt that there are more than ten families in Canterlot Town without at least one Umbrum Corp. product in their houses, backpacks or pockets!
"Of course, Umbrum Corp. also had its share of bad publicity. There were a few speculations about them manufacturing weapons and selling them in the black market a while back, but no decisive evidence was found and the ex-employee who tried to expose them ended up killing herself. Some say the Umbrum Corp. did it to silence her forever but, again, no decisive evidence."
"Wow, that's... Do you think that person was telling the truth? Maybe the Umbrum Corp. really did worked with weapons and sold them in the black market!"
"Probably, but no one could prove it. Every time an employee tried to expose them, they would always drop all charges sooner or later, and then... 'Disappear'!"
"Sounds pretty suspicious to me..." Sunset Shimmer got up from the bed. "Alright, I'm convinced! We're doing it!"
"Wait, what?"
"In three days, at 9 PM, we're going to the port and stopping them from delivering the goods to Umbrum Corp.!"
"Sunset Shimmer, everything I just told you is nothing but gossips they talk about in tabloids and baseless conjecture! Are you sure you want to violate the law over something so inconclusive? Think of the consequences!"
"I don't care about the consequences anymore! There's something shady about this Umbrum Corp., and we're going to find out what it is!"
Trixie sighed. "You're not changing your mind, are you?"
"Nope!"
She took a deep breath, then sighed again and walked out of the room. "I'm gonna buy some smoke bombs..."
* * *
Three nights later. Port. The Maiden was lying down on top of the cabin of one of the cranes, watching every ship through her binoculars. So far, none of them seemed to be unloading crates with the Umbrum Corp. symbol: two black crystals with a red one in the middle and the letters "U" and "C" on each side.
"Any luck on your side?" Trixie's voice coming from the earpiece concealed under Sunset's mask asked.
"Nothing so far." she replied. "But keep your eyes peeled, no matter what!"
"Fine, I just-- Wait a second." a moment of silence. "Shoot, this angle isn't very good. You're higher up, Senset, check the third ship from right to left that just docked."
Sunset looked at the ship Trixie was talking about and she was right. People were using hand trucks to carry boxes out of the ship, all of them with the Umbrum Corp. symbol. "Yes! Yes, that's the one!"
"Awesome. Tell me when you're in position!"
Sunset Shimmer jumped over containers until she was on top of the closest one to the unloading area and watched as the boxes were carried out of the ship. Once the unloaders were done with their job, they opened the back doors of one of the trucks parked nearby and placed all the boxes in there. They closed the doors and banged on them, signaling to the driver that he was ready to go.
"Go for it, Trixie!"
Trixie, who was hidden behind a pile of empty wooden crates, threw several smoke bombs at the workers. Sunset Shimmer acted as quickly as possible: she jumped down and ran toward the truck. The driver had the window open, so he was easily overwhelmed by the smoke - he had his eyes closed and was coughing, making Sunset's task even easier. She grabbed him by the collar and pulled him out of the truck. She jumped in, engaged first gear and drove away while Trixie threw more smoke bombs, just to make sure the workers wouldn't recover just yet.
Sunset turned the truck and engaged fifth gear, driving toward the ocean. She opened the door and jumped out at the last second; she didn't fell in the water, but the same couldn't be said about the truck, which fell with a loud "splash". Sunset Shimmer quickly got up and ran.
"Time to leave, Trixie!" she said.
"Got it!" her voice coming from the earpiece replied. She threw her last smoke bomb before running.
The girls met halfway through their sprint toward the front gate. They ran side by side until they reached their destination. Sunset helped Trixie jump over it, then climbed the gate after her.
"That was... Crazy!" Trixie said while panting.
"Yeah, you said it." Sunset said while looking around. "Now, where could our 'client' be?"
"Pssst." they heard someone whisper. "Over here!"
A person wearing a hoodie was standing in front of the open door of a warehouse, pointing inside before going in. The Maidens followed the person in, who shut the door as soon as they were there.
"Alright, we did it!" Trixie said with her arms crossed. "Now you better keep your mouth shut about our secret identities, or else..."
"Please, forgive me." the hooded person said. "I never had the intention to reveal your secret identities, but I couldn't think of any other way to make you come do what you did tonight, and I simply had no time to ponder my options!"
"Why did you want those crates gone?" Sunset asked. "We want answers!"
"I'll answer each and every question truthfully." the person removed her hood, revealing her face; she had a pale yellow skin, magenta eyes and a giant, orange curly hair with blonde highlights. Sunset and Trixie gasped.
"You're that siren from the Battle of the Bands!" Sunset Shimmer pointed out.
"But you can call me Adagio." she said. "And as promised, I'll answer everything you ask me. But before that, I have one final request!"
"Another?" Trixie nearly yelled. "We just commited a crime for you and you still want more?"
But Adagio didn't listen. She immediately fell to her knees and bowed before the two heroines, her forehead almost touching the floor.
"Please! Help me, I beg you!"
Trixie's glare turned into a look of confusion and she turned to look at Sunset, who looked just as confused as she was. Sunset Shimmer shrugged and looked at Adagio again.
"Uh... And what do you need our help with?"
"It's Sonata and Aria, they... They were kidnapped!"
"K-Kidnapped?!" Susnet covered her mouth in shock.
"By who?" Trixie asked.
"By my boss, President Sombra!"
"President Sombra?!" Trixie was shocked. "You don't mean that President Sombra, do you?"
"Current CEO of Umbrum Corporation?" Adaio looked up at her. "I'm afraid so!"
"When? How? Why?" Sunset had so many questions in her head that she didn't even knew how to start.
Adagio straightened her back; she no longer had her face inches from the floor, but she was still kneeling. The siren then looked left and right before talking. "Can we move this conversation to somewhere safer? I don't think this place is the best choice..."
"Well, my apartment is the closest." Sunset said. "We can talk more more privately there."
"Are you sure it's a good idea to trust her?" Trixie asked. "I mean, she is the girl who brainwashed the whole school."
"So am I, and look where I am right now!" she pointed out. "Besides, we destroyed their necklaces. She is harmless now!"
Trixie looked at Adagio and pondered for a moment. She sighed again and helped Adagio up. "I'm doing what I think it's right, so don't make me regret this decision!"
"Thank you!" Adagio said. "I won't!"
* * *
Sunset Shimmer's apartment. They tried to be as quiet as possible to not alert Sunset's neighbors of her nightly escapades. Once they were inside, Trixie and Sunset removed their outfits and Adagio removed her hoodie, revealing the sleeveless white T-shirt she was wearing underneath. She sat down on the couch, soon joined by Trixie and Sunset, who were both wearing Sunset Shimmer's strong pink pajamas - Trixie sat to the her right and Sunset sat to her left.
"First, tell us how you discovered our secret identities." Trixie demanded.
"It was an accident, really." Adagio began to explain. "Earlier this week, on my way back home after work, I saw the Maiden. I don't know which one of you I saw, but I decided to follow her. I don't know why, I just... Wanted to!"
"Well, if you could catch up to her, then it was probably Trixie." Sunset chuckled, but stopped as soon as she saw her partner glaring at her.
"I followed her until she entered an alley, where another Maiden was waiting. I had no idea that there were two Maidens, and that caught my attention, so I kind of eavesdropped."
Trixie sighed in annoyance, but motioned for her to keep talking.
"You were calling each other by name all the time and I recognized your voices, so it wasn't hard to figure out who you were!"
"See? I told you we should choose some codenames but noooooo, you said that this was not necessary." Trixie said.
Sunset blushed, scratching the back of her head. "Y-Yeah, my bad..."
"We should probably buy voice-changing devices, too. But we'll discuss that later! Second question, Adagio: how can you be so sure that President Sombra is the one who kidnapped your friends?"
"Because he did it right in front of me!" she said.
"Say what?"
"Two months after the Battle of the Bands, a girl approached us. At first we thought she was Princess Twilight, because she looked exactly like her! She asked us to follow her and the next thing we knew, we were blindfolded and tied up on the backseat of a van."
"She looked exactly like her, huh?" Sunset said. "Maybe she was Twilight's counterpart from this world?"
"We were taken to President Sombra's office. Apparently, that other Twilight had discovered that we're not real humans and told him everything. He said that he wanted to study us and use us in experiments. We tried to escape, but you can't really 'escape' from the 50th floor of a building. We struggled, kicked, ran and caused a lot of chaos up there, but it was all fruitless. When we were finally caught, Aria and Sonata said something that I still can't believe..."
"And what was it?"
"They said that... They would go willingly and never try to escape again as long as... As long as President Sombra didn't take me as well!"
"They really did that?"
Adagio nodded.
~ ~ ~
"Why? Why are you two doing this for me?" Adagio asked.
"Because we owe you that much, Adagio." Sonata said with a smile.
"Even if we're disagreeing all the time, you always looked after us, putting our needs in front of your own." Aria added, smiling as well.
"You always cared for us like we were a real family."
"So, in the end, let us care for you. Just this once!"
Adagio could no longer hold back her tears. "Y-You guys..."
~ ~ ~
Adagio was hugging her legs, trying her best not to cry in front of Sunset and Trixie. "A-And they looked so happy, too! My goodness, I will never forget those faces, those smiles..."
Sunset offered her a box of tissues. She gladly accepted it and used it to blow her nose and wipe the tears forming in the corner of her eyes.
"Th-Thanks! Anyways, President Sombra took that offer and they were taken away. I wanted to leave and get help as soon as I could, but President Sombra wasn't about to let me go just yet."
"But I thought you said he promised he would let you go." Trixie said
"Yes, he got me there, too. He actually promised me that he wouldn't take me with them! He immediately turned to his secretary and fired her, just so he could hire me as his new secretary!"
"Why would he do that?"
"To keep me close to him, of course! He knew that if he let me go I would immediately seek help, so he made me his new secretary under the threat that, if I refused, he would... Hurt Aria and Sonata!"
"What a scumbag!"
"That's how President Sombra works." Adagio explained. "He uses fear to make people do what he want! No matter how hard a person tries to hide it, he always finds out what their biggest fear is! It's like he can see inside our souls or something."
"But you said that Sombra likes to keep you close, right?" Sunset asked, and Adagio nodded. "Then how come you're here right now, talking to us?"
"He went on a business trip! He usually has people to do this kind of job for him, but I heard him say that he is particularly interested in forming a partnership with that country, so he went in person this time. I knew that this was my chance, so I had to act as quickly as possible! Hence why I had to threat to expose your identity. I am really sorry, but I couldn't take any chances!"
"Then why didn't you just asked us in the first place?"
"Because we weren't exactly in good terms last time we met..."
"Final question!" Trixie said. "What were in those crates that we got rid of?"
"Some chemicals he imported from overseas. I found some documents that said he planned on using them in the secret laboratory."
"What kind of experiments?" Sunset asked.
"I don't know! Even though I'm President Sombra's secretary, I don't have permission to enter most of the rooms! But I did managed to take a peek a while ago. I lured the guard out of the security room and looked for Aria and Sonata in the cameras. The guard returned sooner than I expected, so I had to leave before I could find them, but I did see a room with many people strapped to surgical tables. It looked like something that you would only see in a horror movie, but it was the real deal! Just thinking that those two could be among those people, I... I..."
"Say no more, Adagio!" Sunset Shimmer said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She looked at Trixie, who nodded. "We will help you save your sisters!"
"For... For real? Are you serious? Please, tell me you're serious!"
"Of course we are!" Trixie said. "After all, we are the Mysterious Maiden Do Well! Helping people is what we do."
Adagio Dazzle couldn't hold back any longer; she pulled the two girls into a hug, crying tears of joy.
Author's Notes:
For all the readers of "The L.R.E. Organization" here, I'm putting it on hold while I write this. I'm sorry, but my brain keeps geving me ideas for this one and completely shut that one off.
4. Umbrum Corporation
The next night, in the security room, the security guard was getting ready to leave. His shift was over, so he was free to go back home to his wife and probably already asleep kids. He just needed to wait for the next guard to arrive. He was surprised, though, to see that the guard was a young woman with bright orange hair wearing the security guard uniform.
"Miss Dazzle?" the guard called, surprised. "What are you doing here? Where's Mike?"
"Mr. Schmidt called not long ago." Adagio explained. "He had an accident on his way here. Nothing serious, but he won't be coming to work today."
"Wow, that sucks. I can cover his shift if you want to!"
"That won't be necessary, Mr. Fitzgerald. You go home now, I can take care of this!"
"But why you? You're the boss's secretary, shouldn't you--"
"President Sombra is not here. If someone calls, we have an answering machine. If someone shows up for no reason, tough nuggets to them. I just want to get away from that desk and do something other than nothing. Even if it's just for tonight!"
"Are you sure? Aren't you afraid the boss will fire you for that?"
She chuckled, then shrugged and shook her head. "I know for a fact that President Sombra won't fire me, Mr. Fitzgerald!"
"Well, if you say so... If Mike calls again, tell him I said 'get well soon'!"
"I'll do that. Good night, Mr. Fitzgerald."
"Night, miss Dazzle."
The guard grabbed his bag and went straight to the men's locker room, where he took off his uniform and put on his everyday clothes. Adagio watched through the cameras as he left the building. Once she was sure he wasn't returning, she reached into her pocket and pulled an earpiece.
"All clear, girls."
Sunset and Trixie, both of them wearing their Maiden Do Well outfit, were hidden in an alley one block away from the Umbrum Corp. building. They had just knocked a man unconscious and tied him up. The man in question was Mike, the security guard who "had an accident".
"Sorry, pal. Nothing personal!" Trixie said to the man. "We'll come back for you later."
"What's the next step?" Sunset asked Adagio through the earpiece.
"I already turned off the recording function of all cameras." she said. "You can come in whenever you want, just don't be spotted!"
Sunset and Trixie made their way to Umbrum Corp. and walked in through the front door. With the help of Adagio's guidance, they sneaked past the guards on the first floor and went straight to the security room, where Adagio sat alone.
"Good job!" she said.
"So, which route we're going to take?" Trixie asked, resting her elbows on Adagio's chair while looking at the screens.
"Where's the screen you mentioned yesterday?" Sunset asked. "The one with people strapped to tables."
"Just a second." Adagio pressed a few buttons on the keyboard and a password screen popped up on the computer. "Not every Umbrum Corp. employee knows about the secret deals going on under the building, so there are some cameras protected by password. Luckily for me, as President Sombra's secretary, even though I can't physically go to many rooms, I have access to all kinds of files and documents! I just need to enter this and..." she typed the password and pressed Enter. "...done!"
Many of the screens changed, showing white corridors with people on lab coats walking to different rooms, a room with people strapped to surgical tables and several other rooms with machines, shelves full of documents, boxes and chemical products.
"Your destination is this one!" Adagio pointed at the screen showing the room with the people. "I don't know if they're there or not, but it's our best option." she pointed up. "There's a vent right above us. Use it to go down to the third basement. I'll guide you as best as I can. Oh, and one more thing!" she reached into her pocket and pulled a small photographic camera, then passed it to Sunset. "Take some photos, we need evidence. Umbrum Corp. is not escaping this time!"
"Got it!" Trixie said, then pulled a small screwdriver from her utility belt. Sunset Shimmer helped her up and Trixie stood on her shoulders. She used the screwdriver to unscrew the bolts and entered the vent, then helped Sunset up.
"Good luck, you two!" Adagio said as they crawled through the vent. It didn't took long for them to descend to the vents of the third basement. They moved as quietly as possible, trying not to be noticed by the people on the corridor right below them.
"What can you see now?"
Sunset looked through the grids, analyzing every detail.
"We're still in the corridor, right in front of the bathrooms." she whispered.
"Let's see... Okay, I found you! The testing room in not too far ahead. Tell me, do the vents have ramifications?"
"Yes! The ventilation system connects all the rooms."
"Perfect! The room you're looking for is on the third left."
Doing just as they were told, Sunset Shimmer and Trixie turned left on the third turn and crouched next to the grid above the room.
"Okay, we're here. What now, Adagio?" Sunset whispered, but was only met with silence. "Adagio, you there?"
"Maybe your earpiece is malfunctioning." Trixie suggested. "Here, let me try mine. Hey, pillow hair, can you hear me?" still nothing.
"I think there's something blocking the signal." Sunset Shimmer hypothesized. "Looks like we're on our own from here."
"So, do we jump right in, knock out whoever is in there and save everyone?"
"Don't be so reckless, Trixie! We need to assess the situation first! As far as we know - which isn't much without Adagio - there could be armed guards in there."
"I see your point."
They approached their faces to the grid and watched carefully.
Two people in the room were not lying down, and both were wearing lab coats. The first was a glasses-wearing young woman with purple skin and dark blue hair with pink and purple streaks, which was tied up in a bun. Sunset Shimmer's suspicions were confirmed; that was indeed this world's counterpart of Princess Twilight.
The second person was and older woman, probably on her mid-thirties. Her skin was light grey, but with dark grey stripes on the side of her face and under her eyes, which trailed down to her neck and disappeared under her lab coat. Her hair was a striped light and dark grey mohawk.
"Please, tell me you have good news, Dr. Zecora!" Twilight's couterpart pleaded.
Dr. Zecora shook her head. "I feel bad for this, but my feelings I must suppress." she said. "We did the best we could, but still no success."
Twilight kept silent for a moment, then sighed. "Which ones did we lose this time?"
The older woman lifted the clipboard she was holding. "Test Subjects from 3 to 8; all of them suffered this terrible fate..."
Twilight grabbed the clipboard from Zecora's hand, looked at it with an angry look on her face and threw it at the wall, breaking the clipboard in half.
"DAMN IT ALL TO HELL!" she yelled before falling on her knees. "It's... It's all my fault... If I hand't..."
Zecora kneeled beside her and placed her hand on Twilight's shoulder. "No, Dr. Sparkle, you are not to blame. It's all President Sombra, he's the cause of our shame!"
"You don't understand, Zecora. I did all this! I told him about the girls from the other world. It was I who brought them here against their will. It was all me! I'm the monster!"
"Using science for evil, sadly I can relate. But the moment we signed the contract, we also sealed our fate. I wish I could cease all this, I truly do. But we can't face Sombra on our own. You agree, don't you?"
Twilight nodded. "I'm tired of him bullying answers out of me, but I don't want him to make my family 'disappear'..."
"Using our loved ones to make sure we'll follow his plan. Truly a condescending, sadistic, despicable man. We had our chance to remove him from the throne, but he'll be back soon - our chance is long gone."
"I know, Zecora. But I was scared. What if it was all a trick, a lie to expose those conspiring against him? As far as I know, he could be in his mansion, watching us through the cameras right now!"
"If that is the truth, this is a matter we shouldn't discuss. If he's on a bad mood, surely he'll punish us!"
"Alright, I heard enough!" a third voice said, startling both of them. Suddenly the grid of the ventilation system fell to the ground with a loud clank and the Maiden jumped in the room from there. Twilight and Zecora gasped.
"It's the Mysterious Maiden Do Well!" Twilight said in shock. "What are you doing here?"
"I am here to stop this madness." she said. "President Sombra went too far, and I am here to ensure that he won't go further than that!"
"That's... That's..." Twilight smiled. "That's perfect! You're not an emplyee, - at least I'll just assume you're not - which means that the President doesn't have anything he can use to force you to keep quiet. This is our chance, Zecora!"
"Indeed, such opportunity cannot go to waste." she looked at the Maiden. "We put our faith in you, make sure it's not misplaced!"
"Of course! But for this, I need help. You see, I lost contact with my informant, so I need to know which equipment has severed our connection and turn it off."
Dr. Sparkle and Dr. Zecora looked at each other, confused.
"We don't have this kind of equipment here." Twilight said.
"Then I guess I need your help even more. I need to find the girls that were kidnapped!"
"They're kept in a special containment room." Twilight said. She then approached the door and slowly opened it. The young scientist looked through the gap to make sure no one was there and, once she was sure no one was coming, motioned for them to follow her. The Maiden took a few pictures with her camera before going after her.
The two scientists led the Maiden to the door at the end of the corridor, which had a keypad.
"Just follow the main path..." the Maiden whispered.
"What was that?" Twilight asked as she inserted the password.
"N-Nothing relevant." she said.
Twilight pushed the door open. The room looked like a laboratory from a science ficton flick, with giant important-looking machines and stasis tanks. Two of those tanks had a person floating in its liquid; the first was a girl with light pink skin - her purple hair with aquamarine streaks no longer tied up in pigtails was gently waving behind her. The person inside the second tank was also a girl; her skin was pale blue and her light and dark blue hair, which was usually tied up in a ponytail, was also untied. Both of them would be naked if it weren't for the bandages wrapped around most of their bodies.
"There you are." the Maiden said. She took a picture, then approached the tanks. "What did they do to you?" when she was close enough, she saw the tubes in their arms. At first glance, she thought that they were pumping nutrients in their bodies to keep them alive, but upon closer inspection, she noticed that this wasn't the case.
They weren't pumping anything. They were draining!
"What the fuck did you do to them?" the Maiden said. She was so angry and concerned at the same time that she couldn't stop her tongue and let a curse word escape.
"We... We're storing their blood to be used in the experiments." Twilight said, looking down in shame.
"And what kind of messed up experiments are those?"
"President Sombra, he... He wants to turn humans into weapons!"
"Human weapons? I want you to tell me everything you know about this. Right now!"
"Su-Sure!" Twilight reached into her pocket and pulled out a small red pebble. The Maiden took it from her and inspected closely. "We use their blood to make these. We call them Red Stones, they're artificially synthesized copies of the pendants they used to wear."
"How do you know about the necklaces? Neither the authorities nor the press were informed of the Battle of the Bands incident!"
"We had several interview sessions. They told me everything about themselves. Their race, their homeland and their pendants. They also told me that the Stones used to be part of their real bodies, so I theorized that even if they were destroyed, they would probably regenerate sooner or later. With the help of some blood samples, I was able to recreate one! But I believe some biological process is involved because, according to both of them, these copies 'felt wrong' and couldn’t be used for the same purpose.
"They also said that even if the energy emanating from them was different, they were still pretty powerful. President Sombra saw this as an opportunity and ordered us to harvest more blood. He then ordered us to find a way to attach them to normal human bodies, so they'd be able to harness their power. That’s how the Project Red Stone came to be!"
"Why? Why would you do such a thing?"
"They were merely doing what I ordered them to do!" a new voice - a very deep and intimidating male voice - joined the conversation.
A man with dark grey skin, pitch black hair and crimson red eyes appeared from behind the machine. His business attire was black, with the sole exception of the blood red shirt. His presence was enough to make Dr. Zecora start trembling and Dr. Sparkle lose balance and fall on her rear.
"Wh-Wh-When did you get back?" Twilight stammered.
"In time to save my company from your betrayal, and that's all you need to know." he said.
"President Sombra, I presume?" the Maiden asked, crossing her arms.
"The Mysterious Maiden Do Well. It's an honor to meet you in person! Welcome to my palace. I would offer you a tour, but it seems you are far too busy."
"Cut the crap, Sombra, and let them go!"
"Why don't you ask those two to help you?" he said while motioning to the two scientists. "They won't be able to help you anymore after they disappear!"
"You are not going to hurt anyone else. I won’t let you!"
"Oh, I won’t hurt anyone." President Sombra pointed at the machine he was hidden behind moments ago, and a fifth figure showed up.
A girl with long, orange hair wearing a security uniform joined them. Her eyes were glowing red and she had a wicked smile on her face. Her tie was missing and her shirt wasn’t buttoned all the way up, revealing the Red Stone attached to her chest.
"But she will!"
Author's Notes:
Why did I HAD to choose Zecora?! You probably already noticed that I suck at rhyming...
Also, this was supposed to be uploaded yesterday, but FiMFiction wasn't working, so it got postponed. Anyway, as an apology, here's Adagio wearing the security guard uniform:
5. Let's Have A Battle!
Maiden Do Well dodged Adagio Dazzle's attack, but just barely. The power of the Red Stone made some changes in her body, and her longer and sharper nails were one of them. She was frantically attacking the masked girl, trying to rip her to shreds with her claws. The Maiden could dodge them for now, but she couldn't dodge forever.
"Why are you doing this, Adagio?!" The Maiden asked. "I thought you wanted to free your sisters! I thought you truly cared about them! Was it all a lie?!"
Sombra laughed. "Can't you see that she is completely blinded by her bloodlust? You might as well give up now and let her finish you painlessly, you're just delaying the inevitable."
The Maiden tried to take another step back, but she didn't realize that Adagio had cornered her. There was nowhere else to run! Adagio prepared to attack one last time, but her blow was blocked by the grid of the vent being held by The Maiden. But it wasn't the same Maiden Do Well she was fighting, for she was still with her back pressed against the wall.
"You ok there, Trix?" the second girl asked, still holding the grid, since Adagio's fingers got stuck in it.
"Yes, thanks." she said.
Twilight and Zecora were surprised by the sudden appearance of a second Maiden Do Well, but Sombra just kept smiling, as if he already knew.
"Your astuteness I'm not trying to belittle." Zecora said. "But this explains so much, and yet so little!"
Adagio finally released her fingers and immediately tried to attack Sunset, but she was quick to duck and spin with her leg outstretched, tripping her opponent. Adagio fell flat on her face, though still smiling that same evil smile. She got up and jumped back to gain some distance, and her Stone started glowing.
Adagio's eyes were now completely red, her nails grew longer, her teeth got sharper and wings sprouted from her back, ripping through her shirt. The next change was a big one: yellow, sharp scales grew all over her body, completely destroying her security guard uniform and covering most of her skin, leaving only her face, neck and the area around her sternum and clavicles, where the Red Stone was located, exposed.
"Together?" Trixie asked.
"Together!" Sunset replied.
Trixie threw a smoke bomb at their feet, creating the perfect hiding place. Adagio looked around, trying to locate her opponents inside the smoke cloud they were all in, but was caught off guard, receiving a flying kick to the stomach. The Maiden immediately concealed herself in the smoke, then prepared to attack again. She tried to hit Adagio with another flying kick, but she was quicker to react this time and grabbed the leg of her assailant, then spinned and threw her against the wall. Sunset was a very resilient girl, though, so she only got dazed for a couple of seconds and got up as soon as she could.
"That can't be right..." she said. "Her movements are quick and powerful, but far too stiff. Like a..."
"Marionette? Yeah, I noticed that, too." Trixie interrupted. "Not to mention that smile. It sickens me! Not because it's intimidating, but because it's too... Forced!"
"I don't think Adagio betrayed us. I think there's something else going on here!"
The siren flapped her wings and flew toward them at breakneck-speed. Sunset dodged in time, but Trixie wasn't as quick as her partner and got pinned against a wall. Adagio prepared to deal the killing blow, but whispered a few words before that:
"His inner pocket... Help me..."
Sunset spin-kicked Adagio's face, making the winged beast drop Trixie. The magician looked at Sombra and smirked underneath the Maiden Do Well mask.
"I figured it out!" she said before sprinting toward the CEO of Umbrum Corp.
Sombra assumed a fighting stance, ready to counter any attack The Maiden might try to use against him, but Trixie was fast like a monkey and was soon standing right between his arms, a place where he couldn't punch. He tried to bear hug her, but to no avail; she used his shoulders as leverage and jumped over him.
"So that's what she was talking about." Trixie said while inspecting the Red Stone she had in hands. Sombra checked his inner pockets, only to notice that the Red Stone he had was indeed missing. Adagio Dazzle stopped moving the moment the Red Stone was taken from him and now just hovered there, montionless. "Were you using this to control her?"
Sombra chuckled. "Looks like you found out. Congratulations!"
"How are you doing this?" Twilight asked. "You know how to make the Red Stones work?"
"Of course I do, Dr. Sparkle! After all, I've been studying magic and magical artifacts since long before you were even born."
"And yet you still forced us to make experiments in humans, killing dozens of innocent people? You truly are a soulless monster!"
"Wait, but magic doesn't exist in this world!" Sunset pointed out. "How can you know about magic?"
"Oh, you think your race was the first one to find their way into our world, miss Sunset Shimmer?" Sunset Shimmer flinched. "That's right, I know who you are. I know what you are! And I must say, your race wasn't the first to visit this world, and it is certainly not the last."
"How? How can you do this?"
"Story time already, huh? Alright, if that's what you want, I'll humor you. It all started one thousand years ago in ancient Egypt, when I was still mortal like the rest of you!"
"Y-You're... Immortal?" Trixie asked with a shaky voice.
"Indeed! Magic truly is a wonderful thing. I bet you miss yours so much, don't you, young unicorn?" Sunset Shimmer didn't said anything, she just kept glaring at Sombra. "Fine, fine, I had no idea you liked stories that much! But anyway, one thousand years ago, I was but a young slave trying to survive another day. Everything changed one night, when my parents and a group of other slaves decided to escape. We didn't went far before the guards noticed us, so we ran through the desert for our lives. I got separated from my parents while running, and that's what saved my life, because while they were caught and executed, I got swallowed by quicksand.
"At the moment I thought I was going to die right then and there, but instead of being buried alive, I fell into an undeground cave. And there's where I found this!" Sombra removed his tie and unbuttoned the first buttons of his shirt, revealing a golden chain necklace with a glass locket hanging from it - a golden coin with an eye-shaped hieroglyph on it was located inside the locket. "This is the Eye of Ra. Many thought it to be a legend but, as you can see, it's very real. And very useful, too, since it allows me to see the inside of a person!
"In layman's terms, the Eye of Ra allows me to see a person's biggest desires, their worst fears and, in cases like yours, their true form! And not only that, but much more. I can see everything! So, I used this new power to destroy those who made my childhood a living hell; the guards, the slavers, my 'owners' and whoever else got in my way afterwards. I spent the next few centuries researching and gathering more artifacts like this one, studying them, testing them. Immortality was just another achievement!
"After a few decades without finding a single new magical artifact, I had a great idea: what if I created my own? That's why Umbrum Corporation was founded! It didn't went well, though, since the amount of magic needed to create one is far too great for a non-magical creature to create on its own. So I decided to merge the ones I possessed with living human beings - maybe I could make them produce their own magic and use it to create more artifacts! Sadly, I lost most of my artifacts once the test subjects died due to rejection.
"Thankfully I decided to never use the Eye of Ra in any kind of experiment and, thanks to it, I saw that Dr. Twilight was afraid that I would find out that she was withholding information from me! It didn't took long to force her to tell me everything she knew about those Dazzlings! You know the rest of the story, because you're living it right now."
"And I also know how this story ends!" Sunset said. "We're going to crush you, and you will never make anyone else suffer! Ever! Specially because we now have the Stone you're using to control Adagio!"
Trixie threw the Red Stone on the floor and stomped on it, shattering it into dust. But Adagio still didn't moved a muscle. Sombra chuckled again.
"Did you really thought I'd come unprepared?" Sombra took off his suit and shirt, revealing his well-developed muscles and the bulletproof vest he wore under his outfit. There were also three Red Stones attached to each of his arms: one on each forearm, biceps and shoulder. "I am President Sombra, CEO of Umbrum Corporation, do not underestimate me!"
Adagio gasped, as if she had just been brought back from the land of the dead, and immediately flew toward Sunset Shimmer, who grabbed the siren's wrist when her claws were inches from her face, stopping her just in time.
"Trixie, you handle Sombra. I'll take care of Adagio!"
Trixie nodded and stood in front of President Sombra, who assumed a fighting stance once again.
"It's just you and me now, girlie." he said. "Let the monsters fight their own battle!"
"If we're going to talk about monsters, let me tell you this: the only monster in this room is standing right in front of me!" she said, getting ready to fight.
"I am bigger than you, stronger than you and have mastered seventeen different fighting styles, not to mention the Eye of Ra, that can give me quite the advantage. What makes you think you can beat me?"
"Sincerely, there's no way in hell that I can beat you!" she said with a shrug. "But that doesn't mean I won't try, right?"
"You got guts, kid. I have a job for someone like you, accept it and I'll spare your life!"
"Nice try, Sombra, but no!"
"Then it's your funeral!"
Dr. Twilight and Dr. Zecora could do nothing but watch as both Maidens battled their boss and their fellow worker, quietly cheering for the masked heroines to be victorious. That didn't seemed very likely, though, since Trixie could do nothing but avoid Sombra's punches and kicks and Sunset couldn't really hurt Adagio, since the scales covering her skin were too tough. Twilight suddenly had an idea and grabbed a pen and a notepad from her pocket.
"I know that of all your goals, knowledge is the prime." Zecora said. "But do you really think this is the appropriate time?"
"I'm going to help them in the only way I can, Zecora." she said. "And that way is studying!" she started scribbling on her notepad. "If Sombra is remotely controlling Adagio, then it means she is receiving orders through a 'signal'. Signals can only be transmitted if the destination has a receptor, like an antenna! And unless whatever is receiving those 'signals' in inside her body, there's only one option left." she took a deep breath and yelled: "MAIDEN DO WELL! AIM FOR THE RED STONE!"
"Can do!" Trixie said, then tried to kick President Sombra's arm. He blocked her foot with his hand, grabbed Trixie by the ankle and threw her against the two scientists. Twilight and Zecora, instead of jumping out of the way, stood there and caught her. "It didn't worked..."
"I was actually talking to the other Maiden..." Twilight explained as she helped Trixie up.
Sunset heard that advice and was now focusing her blows on the Red Stone Adagio had on her chest, but the siren had gotten better at blocking. Sunset Shimmer couldn't do it on her own anymore, and they all knew that.
"Miss Maiden, if you would like, I think I can help you now!" Zecora said. "But for that to work, I need you to hold her down!"
"Sure thing!" Sunset said. She jumped over Adagio and grabbed her from behind. She wrapped her legs around the siren's waist and immediately applied a Full Nelson on her. Adagio tried to shrug her off, but to no avail. She tried to flap her wings, but Sunset's body pressed against her back wouldn't allow her. Zecora ran toward them.
"My legs may not be as powerful as a horse's hooves..." she said before jumping with her leg stretched, successfully landing a flying kick on Adagio's chest. Her aim was very good too, because the stiletto heel of her boot hit the center of the Red Stone perfectly. "But even I know some good moves!"
Adagio's eyes lost their ominous red glow and her forced smile finally disappeared. The Stone on her chest was cracked, but it was still faintly glowing. The Maiden let go of her and she fell on her knees, painting.
"I... I..." she said as she looked around at the laboratory, the scientists, the Maiden Do Well fighting the CEO of Umbrum Corp. with the second Maiden already running to her aid and, finally, her two sisters inside the stasis tanks. Her siren instincts, which hadn't been that strong since she was banished to this world, told her to do only one thing:
Scream!
And that's exactly what she did. From deep inside her lungs, Adagio Dazzle summoned the loudest and most piercing shriek a human being could possibly vocalize, which was amplified by the power of her Red Stone. The Maidens, the scientists and the CEO were all forced to cover their ears with their hands, otherwise they would surely go deaf. Adagio's scream was powerful enough to make all the glass tanks - including the ones the other two sirens were in - shatter, sending glass shards and the green liquid they were filled with spread across the room. Dr. Twilight's glasses weren't spared either but, luckily for her, her eyes were closed, so she wasn't blinded by the shards. Machines all over the secret laboratory ceased to function and some of them even exploded. All the windows of the first, second and third floors and some windows of the fourth, fifth, seventh and sixth floors of the building above them shattered. Finally, the six Red Stones on President Sombra's arms and the seventh on Adagio's chest shattered as well, turning into small clouds of red dust that soon landed on the ground.
Adagio's claws and fangs turned back into nails and teeth. Her wings and her scales disappeared, leaving a naked and unconscious teen lying on the floor, her chest stained with blood that was pouring out of the hole where the Red Stone used to be located. It wasn't deep enough to threaten her life, but Zecora wasn't about to take any chances, so she scooped her up and ran with Adagio to the infirmary located not too far from there.
Sombra didn't had the same luck, though; the Red Stones in his arms were buried deeper in his skin than Adagio's, leaving behind much bigger wounds. He had lost blood enough to make him dizzy and his vision blurry, making it impossible for him to see the two Maidens standing right in front of him.
There was one fact about his immortality that he deliberately concealed: he wasn't completely immortal, he had just stopped aging. That's why he wore that bulletproof vest all the times. Sunset saw this after she grabbed the Eye of Ra that had fallen on the floor after the glass locket containing it shattered. She could also see President Sombra's worst fear: death!
"I was wrong." Trixie said. She then finished him with a kick to the face, knocking him out cold. "There was a way in hell that I could beat you!"
The two Maidens then carried the two unconscious sirens lying on the floor to the infirmary, where Twilight and Zecora were taking care of Adagio, then placed them on the beds flanking their sister's.
"So, what are you going to do with that?" Trixie asked while pointing at Sunset's utility belt, where she had placed the golden coin. Her partner grabbed said coin.
"This thing? I don't know yet." she said. "Maybe I'll destroy it. Or maybe I'll send it back to Equestria, Princess Twilight would love to study something like that! All I know is that I have to make sure that this won't fall into the wrong hands again!"
It didn't took long for the police to arrive at the scene and discover the secret laboratory underneath the Umbrum Corporation building. The Maidens escaped through the vents; they had offered Zecora and Twilight their help in escaping the building, but both refused.
"We took lives in the name of science too many times, and now it is finally time for us to pay for our crimes." those were Zecora's last words.
The police arrested Dr. Zecora and Dr. Twilight, as well as all the other scientists that were still down there. The only person they failed to arrest was President Sombra because, by the time they entered the last room at the end of the corridor, he was already gone.
Author's Notes:
Fooled ya, didn't I? Adagio loves her sisters far too much to double-cross someone when their lives are on the line!
Also, Adagio was naked because this thing always bugged the hell out of me: every time a character goes through some sort of tansformation that would normally rip their clothes to shreds, they always have a piece of clothing when they turn back to normal (or, in many cases, when they're still transformed). I just wanted to keep this a little more realistic (well, as realistic as a fanfiction about two girls - one of them an ex-unicorn - wearing a blue and purple spandex outfit fighting an immortal man and a winged girl covered in scales can be)!
6. The Wrath Of Sombra [FINAL]
President Sombra wobbled through the sewers, pressing his hand against the wall to keep himself standing. The wounds on his arms were still bleeding and his grey skin now had a lighter tone due to the lack of blood running through his veins. Since he was growing weaker due to the lack of blood, he had already taken off his bulletproof vest, which was getting heavier and slowing him down.
"Th-Those cursed women..." he muttered. "If... If they hadn't... If only... I... I would..."
The floor was getting more and more slippery and he no longer had enough strength on his legs to keep himself standing, so it was no surprise that he eventually fell on his rump. Sombra tried to get up, but he not only lacked the strenght to do so, but was also getting sleepy. He knew that if he fell asleep he would never wake up again, so he tried his best to stay awake.
The ex-CEO pressed his back against the wall, and that's when he felt something in the back pocket of his pants. With difficulty, Sombra finally managed to grab it: a small, plastic vial filled with the only sample of siren's blood he could smuggle out before escaping from the building through the sewage system. With all the strenght he could muster, he managed to remove the plastic lid. He smirked, then drank the blood.
He dropped the vial and grabbed his throat. He couldn't speak or breath, all he could make were choking noises. Inside his body, all his blood was turning black, which could be noticed from the outside because black lines appeared all over his body. He was sweating profusely and tears were streaming down his face, but those weren't tears of pain or sadness, his eyes were just being moisturized in excess thanks to the change they were suffering:
His cold, yet stunning green eyes were turning red. His clean white sclera were also changing, turning bright green. Purple smoke started flowing out of his eyes, but that wasn't the only smoke coming out of his body: ruptures started appearing all over his body, from which a thick cloud of black smoke was escaping. He grinned and laughed maniacally!
* * *
Sunset Shimmer was sitting on the couch in her apartment while Trixie was lying down on it with her feet on Sunset's lap. Both of them were watching TV, and the local news channel was broadcasting news about the Umbrum Corporation Case. They had just informed the public that the scientists were all found guilty of crimes against humanity and illegal experiments. They showed images of them leaving the courtroom and being scorted to the truck that would take them to prison - all the scientists, though not pleased by the fact that they were going to prison, were all smiling because they no longer had to fear their former boss, President Sombra.
"I wish I could have helped them..." Sunset said. "Yes, what they were doing was wrong, but it's not like they were doing it because they wanted. That's... That's not fair!"
"I know how you feel, Sunset, but that was what they wanted. People make choices and, while it may look like they chose the wrong option, it might be the option they needed!"
"You think so?"
"Of course! For example, what if you hadn't stolen that pony princess's crown and tried to take over Canterlot High?"
She sighed and facepalmed. "Please, don't remind me of that..."
"Wait, let me finish! If that hadn't happened, you would still be a super mean bitch, I would still be a stuck-up jerk, the Mysterious Maiden Do Well wouldn't exist and President Sombra would probably still be forcing those people to do those horrible experiments, killing more and more people while chasing his selfish goal!"
"When you put it like that..."
Trixie sat up, placed her hand on her partner's shoulder and smiled. "That was the path they decided to take, so let's just hope it was the best path, okay?"
Sunset Shimmer smiled back and nodded. That's when they heard a knock on the door.
"Waiting for someone?" Trixie asked.
Sunset shook her head. Both girls got up and answered the door, only to be startled by a pair of pale blue arms wrapping themselves around both of them.
"Gah!" they yelled at the same time, until they finally recognized the owner of said arms: one of the girls they had saved a few nights ago, the youngest of the Dazzlings, Sonata Dusk.
"Thank you so much for saving us!" she said in her usual cheerful tone.
"So, Adagio already told you everything?" Trixie asked.
"You bet I did!" the girls looked at the still open door and saw two other girls standing there, the two remaing Dazzlings, Adagio Dazzle and Aria Blaze.
"Hey!" Sunset greeted. "Already out of the hospital, I see."
"More or less!" Aria explained. "They wanted to keep us there a little longer to see if the experiments had done something to our bodies that would cause any complications, but we are sick and tired of being lab rats, so we sneaked out of there last night. Sonata and I already have enough scars from when those scientists were cutting us open, we don't need new ones!"
"Scars?"
Aria and Sonata lifted their shirts, revealing their midriffs, which made Sunset and Trixie gasp. They hadn't noticed before, since most of their bodies were covered in bandages, but it was true, they had several cicatrized cut marks on their bodies. And that was just the midriff area, the rest of their bodies probably had many more.
"Nothing to worry about, though!" Sonata said as she let go of her shirt. "We've had our share of running and fighting since we got here, scars don't last long in our bodies."
"Even without your necklaces?" Sunsent asked.
"Uhhh..." Sonata rubbed her chin. "We haven't tested that yet..." she shrugged. "Well, only time will tell!"
There was a minute of awkward silence, until Sunset grabbed her cellphone to check what time it was. She then looked up at the three visitors. "So, it's almost 1 PM, would you like to stay for lunch?"
"Lunch?!" Sonata nearly yelled with a huge grin on her face. As if on cue, the stomaches of the three sirens growled. Adagio and Aria blushed and placed their hands on their bellies. Trixie chuckled.
"We... Kind of haven't had a meal since we left the hospital last night." Aria said. "And not a single decent meal since we got there either."
"Then please, do come in, I insist!" Sunset motioned for them to enter her apartment, which they did. "I'm sure I can cook something good for five!"
"Thank you, Sunny, you're a lifesaver!" Sonata said.
"Don't mention it!"
Once they were all done eating their lunch, the girls sat on the couch and armchairs, then started chatting, trying to get to know each other better. It wasn't long until they were all smiling and laughing together, like old friends who hadn't seen each other in years. Of course, this all had to end when an emergency broadcast interruputed the movie that was being shown on TV.
"Hey, I was watching that!" Sonata protested.
"We interrupt this program to transmit an urgent warning!" the anchorwoman said while clutching a stack of paper on her hands. "For the past six minutes, what it seems to be clouds of black smoke has been erupting from manholes all over Canterlot Town. They also appear to be sentient and are attacking everything that crosses their path.
"An amateur videographer recorded an attack with their cellphone and sent it to us. We warn you, the images are of violent nature. Viewer discretion is advised!"
The anchorwoman was replaced by the recording she mentioned. It was obvious that it had been recorded with a phone, for the images were a blurry and shaky. But even with those impairments, the image of a black tendril coming out of an open manhole near a bridge was clear. They could hear the owner of the phone say things like "whoa" and "shit" - which they hadn't had the time to censor due to its urgency.
Suddenly, the tendril jerked and grabbed a car that was driving past it at high speed. The driver managed to jump out of it in time before the tendril threw the car at a building. It then grabbed the driver who was trying to get up and tossed him on the river behind it. The tendril started to swell, and two large green and red eyes suddenly appeared on it. It tried to reach for the person recording, but he ran away, screaming. That's when the recording ended and the anchorwoman reappeared on the screen.
"We advise you to stay away from any manhole. So far, we haven't been notified of people being attacked while inside, so we also advise you to not go outside. It's not safe! I repeat, it's not safe outside! The sewage system is already being searched, so we hope that the cause of those attacks will be identified and neutralized soon. If new information is presented to us, we'll notify you immediately. Be safe and be careful, Canterlot citizens!"
The emergency broadcasting ended and the movie from before returned. No one was interested in it anymore, though, and were all exchanging glances.
"There's no doubt. That thing is magic!" Aria said.
"You think Sombra is behind that?" Trixie asked.
"Probably!" Sunset said. "I knew he was going to try something eventually, but not so soon! We need to find and stop him."
"So, we're going to the sewers, then?" Adagio asked.
"'We'?"
"Of course! I didn't had the chance to properly make Sombra regret what he did to Sonata, Aria and me! It's payback time, baby."
"If you're going there, then we're going too!" Sonata said.
They heard a crashing sound and a scream coming from the street. The five girls looked out of the window and saw a black tendril coming out of a nearby manhole and smashing itself against a house from several different angles like a sentient whip.
"I'll handle this!" Trixie said as she ran to the bedroom and wore the Maiden Do Well costume in record time. The four Equestrians watched as she jumped out of the window, then through a window of the house being attacked. They couldn't see what happened in there, but they did see Trixie coming out of the same window, accompanied by a woman and two kids.
"Sonata, go help Trixie evacuate the houses and tell them to go as far away from the city as possible!" Sunset ordered. "Aria, there's a phone book in that drawer. Call every news channel you find and warn them that inside is not safe either. Then tell them to warn people to go to the hills, the sewage system doesn't go that far! Once you're done, help Sonata and Trixie, then get outta town!"
Aria nodded and Sonata saluted her before both left the house. Sunset Shimmer didn't even wore the outfit, she just grabbed the utility belt.
"Not gonna wear the uniform this time?"
"We don't have time, Adagio. Let's go!"
The ex-unicorn and the ex-siren ran through the chaotic neighborhood, trying to find a manhole without a magic smoke tentacle coming out of. It took them a while, but they finally found one; together, they removed the lid and jumped in. They both immediately started coughing and covered their noses and mouths with their hands.
"Nevermind the sewer, this smoke smells horrible!" Sunset said.
"It's like something ate a rotting corpse, then died right afterwards." Adagio said.
"Let's just find what we're looking for and get out of here."
The Equestrians walked side by side, looking for the source of the smoke tentacles. During their walk, Sunset stopped and looked around.
"Can you see it?" she asked.
"See what?"
"The smoke is getting thicker. I think we're close!"
A growl made the girls stop walking and look around.
"Tell me you heard that." Adagio said. Sunset nodded. "Ok, then. That's good, because it means I'm not crazy. But it's also bad, because it means we're not alone here!"
They were surrounded by a pack of black wolves with green and red eyes with purple smoke flowing out of them. They weren't attacking yet, just evaluating their prey.
"So, how good are you at fighting?" Sunset asked.
"I can punch a few faces."
"Good enough!"
The wolves started attacking them, the first two going for Sunset Shimmer. With a high kick, she sent the two smoke wolves flying. The moment they hit the wall, they dissipated.
"Well, they're not very resistant but they're still a threat, so don't lower your guard, Adagio!"
"Sure thing, I won't WHOA!" before she could finish that sentence, Adagio was tackled to the ground. The smoke wolf stood on top of her and tried to bite the siren's throat, but she grabbed the smoke wolf's neck and forced it away from her. The construct kept trying to bite her until Sunset Shimmer kicked it, turning it back into just smoke.
"Don't lower your guard!" she repeated while helping her up.
"I wouldn't have if you hadn't distracted me." it looked like she was about to punch Sunset, but Adagio was aiming at the wolf that tried to pounce on her partner from behind, hitting its face and making it dissipate. "Just like you're doing right now!"
Together, they kept fighting until all the smoke wolves were gone. Once they were done, they shared a fist bump.
"You're not half bad, Adagio. The Mysterious Maiden Do Well could use someone like you."
"Thanks, I'll think about it!"
The smoke was getting even thicker - it was so hard to see that they had to hold hands just to make sure they wouldn't get separated. They suddenly stopped when they hit their faces against something.
"Ow, what the hay?" Adagio complained. "Why is there a wall here?"
Sunset knocked on it a few times. "That's not a wall. At least, not a brick wall!" she pressed her hand against it. "It feels like... Magic! Yes, this is a magic shield!"
"Great, a roadblock. Just what we needed. What now?"
"Well, the only way to break a magic shield is with magic."
"Wow, magic. That's perfect!" Adagio said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "That's nothing for an ex-unicorn and a gemless siren, right?" she sat down with her back pressed against the shield. "How are we supposed to stop something we can't even reach?"
A howl echoed throughout the tunnel. It sounded close to their location.
Adagio sighed. "And now they're back and we're completely cornered. Yep, we're gonna die!"
"Or maybe not!" Sunset said, unbuttoning one of the pouches of the Maiden's utility belt and retrieving the one and only Eye of Ra.
"You still have that thing?"
"Fortunately, yes! Maybe, if we channel its magic power, we can shatter this magic wall! I mean, we may not have our Equestrian forms anymore, but we have Equestrian blood coursing through our veins, and President Sombra helped us realize that our blood still has power!"
"That sounds crazy." Adagio said as she got up. "So crazy that it just might work!"
The Eye of Ra had an edge that was sharper than the rest of the coin. Sunset used it to make a small cut on the tip of her finger, then pressed it against the coin, leaving a small bloodstain on it. She then passed it to Adagio, who did the same. Sunset pressed her hand against Adagio's, with the coin pressed between them, then intertwined their fingers. The Eye of Ra started to glow; it was very faint at first, but it didn't took long for it to be dazzling.
The new pack of smoke wolves caught up to them, but they dissipated as soon as they got too close to the glow. The wolves weren't the only thing to disappear: the smoke surrounding them also dissipated, and the magic wall started to melt until it was completely gone. With a smile, they kept walking, still holding the Eye of Ra together.
The glow was still strong, dissipating all the smoke as they walked. More smoke wolves tried to attack them, but they all suffered the same fate.
"There it is." Sunset said. "The source of it all."
They approached President Sombra. Or, at least, what was left of him: a pile of charred bones. The skull was mostly intact, but still as blackened as the rest of the bones. His now red and green eyes were still inside the eye sockets, staring directly at the girls.
"You..." an ethereal voice echoed throughout the tunnel. "This... This world... I must... Destroy... I must... Kill... Everyone dies... Everyone... If my life is over... Then so... So is yours..."
Adagio looked at Sunset who nodded at her. The siren then pressed the bottom of her shoe against the skull.
"That's for my sisters." she said. She raised her leg and stomped on the skull, smashing it. Sombra's glowing eyes turned into purple smoke and dissipated, just like all the black smoke in the area. The coin in Sunset's and Adagio's hands also stopped glowing and turned into dust, disappearing forever.
* * *
In the city above the sewage system, all the smoke tendrils terrorizing it started to disappear. The Maiden, her two "sidekicks" and the population of Canterlot Town watched it all from the hills.
"They did it!" Sonata cheered while jumping up and down.
"I'm not gonna lie, I didn't think they had it in them." Aria said with a smile.
"It looks like Canterlot Town will be able to live another day!" Trixie said, smiling with her arms crossed.
"The Mysterious Maiden Do Well, huh?" a fourth voice coming from behind them said. The people nearby gasped. Trixie was about to turn around when someone jumped on her back and wrapped their legs around Trixie's body, locking her arms in place. "So what are you hiding? Let's see how mysterious you are without that mask!"
"Rainbow Dash, let me go!" Trixie said while trying to shake her off.
"So you know who I am, huh?" she grabbed the Maiden's mask and removed it. "I knew it was you all the time, Sunset Shim--" she gasped and fell down. "T-T-T-T-Trixie?!"
"Give that back, you thief!" Trixie said, grabbing her mask from Rainbow Dash's hand. "I'll just hope no one saw--"
Before she could put the mask back on, Trixie was surrounded by people, especially reporters with cameras, microphones, notepads and recorders, all of them asking questions.
"What's your name?"
"Where are you from?"
"Why do you fight crime?"
"How old are you?"
"Can you take a picture with us for the Official Maiden Do Well fan club?"
"Are your parents aware of what you're doing?"
"Uh... Uhhhhh..." Trixie wasn't sure how to react, all she could do was stare awkwardly at the crowd. One smoke bomb later and Trixie, Sonata and Aria were all gone.
"They're GONE!" Pinkie Pie said in a very dramatic way. "Oh, wait. There they are!" she pointed at the foot of the hill, where the three were running as fast as humanely possible. The population of Canterlot Town immediately started chasing them, all of them itching to ask them questions.
The three girls ran straight to Sunset Shimmer's apartment, where the other two were already waiting.
"Red alert!" Trixie said as she clsoed the door. "I've been busted!"
"Yeah, by the guitarist of the Rainblossoms, or whatever they're called." Aria explained.
"Rainbow Dash did what? Crap, that's troubling news..." Sunset rubbed her chin, then snapped her fingers. "Wait, I know!"
* * *
Trixie was sitting on a bench at the park, drinking strawberry smoothie. All she had to do was blink and dozens of people were already surrounding her again.
"Wait, wait, wait!" she said. "Before you ask me anything, let me make things clear." she said. "I am not the Maiden, okay? I just wanted to help those people and look cool. I apologize for making you think I was her, but I'm really not!"
"And how can you prove it?"
Trixie pointed at the fast food restaurant across the street. They could clearly see the Mysterious Maiden Do Well standing on the roof. The population immediately went after her but, by the time they reached the building, she was already gone.
"There!" a person shouted, pointing at another building where the Maiden was standing.
"How did she get there so fast?"
For about twenty minutes, The Maiden just kept disappearing and reappearing somewhere else, which was more than enough time for Trixie to go back home. Someone knocked on the door not too long after she got there. Trixie opened it and Sunset Shimmer, followed by the Dazzlings, walked in. They dropped on the floor the bags they were carrying and sat down on the couch.
"That was fun!" Aria said with a smile. "Tiring, but fun."
"Tell me about it." Sunset said.
"Why do you two have so many Maiden Do Well outfits, by the way?" Adagio asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Who cares why? It was so much fun!" Sonata said. Even after all that running and jumping, she still had energy to bounce up and down.
"So, about that offer..." Sunset started.
The Dazzlings looked at each other, smiled and nodded.
"We're in!" Aria said.
Sunset and Trixie smiled.
"The Mysterious Maiden Do Well train knows no breaks!" Trixie said as the five girls shared a group fist bump. "Welcome to the team!"
Author's Notes:
THE END
So, how was it? Did you liked it? I sure as hell did! That was a fun ride and I'd love to go through another experience like that! Leave a comment below, expressing your experience. What was your favorite part? Your least favorite? What could I improve? Share your feelings!
I need to write more EQG fanfics!
And yes, the title is a Crash Bandicoot reference. Rejoice, Crash fans!