Standing there after being accepted into the Wonderbolts Academy, a confused Lightning Dust glanced around after arriving at the school. She checked the nearby clock, knowing she had told her father when the opening ceremony was. She had detailed all of it in her letter to him where she excitedly had told him she was accepted into the academy. He hasn’t responded, but she assumed he would show up on time.

It was now approaching eight o’clock, and her father still wasn’t present. She could see all the other students with their parents conversing, some accepting hugs and gestures that signified how proud their parents were. Lightning Dust watched as a stallion hugged both of his parents and his father rubbed his head playfully. She wondered what that felt like, what it felt like to have a father’s approval, or even to hear him say he was proud.

Today though, she wouldn’t have to wonder any longer. Her father had always said how Lightning’s sister was destined for greatness, how she would get into the Wonderbolts, it was practically all she ever talked about when she was growing up, so she knew that this was the right move.

After her sister’s passing, Lightning made it a mission to follow the dream her sister had, to finish what she started. She would make the Wonderbolts, and her father would finally see that she could measure up to her late sister. Lightning would give it everything she had, just to show him that she could be twice the pony she needed to be if it would make him see her the way he saw her elder sister.

Lightning caught a glimpse of a mare with a multi-colored mane walking past her. She glanced over at her and could see she was in excellent shape, with all the right cuts and curves, definitely a tough competitor. Her train of thought was broken, however when an overhead speaker made a loud ding, followed by the voice of the captain of the Wonderbolts, Spitfire.

“Alright, all cadets are to report to the center arena through entrance number eight, pronto. We are about to start the ceremony, I repeat all cadets report to the center arena through entrance eight, we are about to start the ceremony!” Spitfire’s voice called out.

Around her, Lightning Dust could see many ponies parting ways with their parents, siblings, and loved ones. Each got some kind of gesture of encouragement as they made their way to the entranceway, and their loved ones began to head toward the seating entrance.

When most of the crowd had cleared up, Lightning was surprised to see that her father still wasn’t present. Grumbling in annoyance, she decided it was best to make her way to the ceremony, it wouldn’t be wise to upset Spitfire on her first day.

Going into a sprint, the mare made her way to the designated entrance and caught up with her fellow cadets as she stood in line with them. She could hear the sounds of the ceremony beginning while she glanced around the crowd, looking for her father.

After thoroughly searching the crowd a good eight times, she realized he wasn’t there. He hadn’t attended.

The mare froze there, the sounds of the ceremony became muted in her mind, and all she could think about was how he hadn’t attended. It had affirmed the one thing she had hoped for so many years wasn’t true: it didn’t matter how much she did, nor if she achieved the goals her sister had set out to do; she would never be good enough. Nothing she did would have him see her as anything beyond a big mistake.

“You were always destined to be a failure, Lightning Dust…” The raspy voice of the mare from before echoed in her ear.

Lightning turned in her direction and saw everyone around them had vanished, the entire arena had transformed into a black void, and there stood Rainbow Dash, the mare who would become her rival.

Rainbow Dash’s voice had become distorted as she spoke again. “Once a loser, always a loser. The entire world would have been better if you just weren’t born, you know that?”

“Shut up…” Lightning growled.

“Your mom would still be alive, your father would be happy…” Rainbow continued.

Lightning spoke up. “SHUT UP!”

With that outburst Lightning’s eyes opened. She sat upright and looked around her. She felt her chest, there was sweat all over her. Sighing, she crawled out of bed and grabbed a nearby towel, and began to wipe the sweat off of her body.

“When will these damn nightmares end…?” She asked herself out loud.

She hated thinking about her father, but it seemed as though, thoughts of him would constantly creep into her dreams. Between him, Rainbow Dash, and Serenade, Lightning Dust wasn’t sure there was even any more room to hate other people within her.

Sighing, the woman finished cleaning up and slipped her suit on, carefully pulling it over her form and zipping it up. She hastily placed her boots on and decided that it might be a good idea to check on her “investment”.

She headed down eight flights of stairs and finally found herself in the basement. After a short walk, she came to the makeshift cage where she kept her prize.

There against the wall, Sunset Shimmer lay there, her body barely moving. Next to her, was a very weak-looking Yuna. She didn’t appear to be moving either. Lightning cleared her throat to get their attention, but neither responded.

She rolled her eyes and finally spoke up. “Hey, you two idiots still alive, or should I start digging a hole?”

Sunset opened her eyes slowly, and Yuna followed, but it was clear that Yuna’s condition was far worse as she barely moved to get a better look at Lightning Dust. Her voice was weak as she spoke. “Are you going to let us go…?”

Lightning shook her head. “Sorry kid, while I’m not that interested in you, if I let you go now, you’ll just go squeal to your friends about what’s going on here, and then I might lose my prize…”

“Let her go, Lightning… It’s me you want, and now you have me… There’s no need to let the girl suffer like this…” Sunset said quietly.

“Don’t get me wrong… I am not really a fan of killing children, in fact, I would avoid it if I could, but I also can’t afford to take any unnecessary risks, especially right now…” Lightning said.

“At least give the girl some food, she’s dying…” Sunset replied.

Lightning shook her head. “I can’t do that. I feed her, she’ll give it to you, and that’ll only bring back your strength, you’re better off in this weakened state, much easier to deal with…”

“You do realize that if you keep me here without food, I’ll starve to death too, right?” Sunset raised a brow.

Lightning gave a dismissive hand gesture. “Nonsense. When she goes, you can always eat her… That should give you plenty of food for a while, after that I’ll just give you only enough to keep you alive.”

“For someone who said she didn’t want to kill a child, you’ve put the poor kid in a situation where her only option is to die, slowly and painfully at that. How are you any better than Serenade?” Sunset asked.

Lightning grabbed a nearby chair and set it down, she then sat backward in it, letting her arms hang as she stared at Sunset and Yuna, studying Sunset carefully.

“Sometimes people get caught in the crossfire… I’m not like Serenade, I didn’t make it a point to put this girl in this predicament, but she ended up being here by happenstance. Serenade would have just killed her for the fun of it… Hell, she’d be videotaping your predicament here…” Lightning explained.

Sunset sighed. “Lightning… I know you want to escape Serenade’s grasp, but this isn’t the way. Killing us isn’t going to help you, let us go, and we can stop Serenade… Together.”

Lightning grinned slightly. “You think I’m that naive? Do you think I don’t know that you’ll kill me the moment you get the chance? After all, I’ve done a lot of bad stuff, and you’re a demon just like her…”

“If you really don’t want to be a monster like Serenade, then you’d atone for what you’ve done… You’d let us go so we can take Serenade out. After that… We can find a way for you to atone, you can still have a future, Lightning Dust, but not like this… You keep us in this cage… You are only ensuring that your time will be brief…” Sunset stated.

Lightning laughed. “I have my bargaining chip right in front of me, why throw that away for a gamble?”

Sunset smirked and shook her head. “You’re naive… You don’t get it, do you?”

Lightning raised a brow in confusion.

“Serenade isn’t like that, she can’t be reasoned with, or bargained with. Any offer you make her, she’ll just find a way to get her way in the end. That creature isn’t capable of anything else, she’ll only kill you, and that’s all there is to it. Your only chance at surviving is if you let me kill her…” Sunset grinned.

Lightning stood up. “Sorry, but I only bet on myself…”

The group had been searching all day yesterday, but didn’t get many leads as to where Sunset had gone off to, nor did anyone notice Yuna with her. The last place anyone had seen them was down the street from the cafe, so they weren’t any closer to finding them than they were a few days ago. The ordeal was frustrating, to say the least.

Eclipse let out a long yawn as he sat in a chair at the cafe where they had started their search the day prior. Behind him, Candy had begun to braid his hair. Ordinarily, he wouldn’t allow such a thing, but if it kept her occupied he wouldn’t say anything.

The rest of the group had returned, and Horizon arrived last, coming into the cafe with Thorn at her side. The blind girl felt around with her walking stick before she sat down at a chair that Bolt pulled out for her. She thanked him and sat quietly until she could hear Horizon sit down.

“So, did your search turn up anything?” Bolt asked.

Thorn gave a gentle smile. “Actually, we may have something.”

The entire table flinched forward. “What is it?” Jasper asked.

Thorn reached into the pocket of the pouch attached to her skirt and retrieved a photograph that she and Horizon had printed out so they’d have a hard copy. The group all leaned in with intrigue. “This person was seen watching Sunset a few days prior to her disappearance. So we’re assuming this person knows something.”

Bolt took the photo and examined it. The woman in the picture sported a tight stealth suit with some interesting-looking boots. Her belt likely held all kinds of useful tools. There was no mistaking it though, this woman was clearly keeping an eye on Sunset in the photo. She was standing behind a nearby pillar while glancing around it.

“How’d you get the photo?” Bolt asked as he felt his younger brother peek over his shoulder to get a look.

“Someone saw her that day and thought her behavior was strange. They snagged a picture in case the police came asking any questions, they were fairly confident she was up to something illegal,” Horizon explained.

Bolt stared at the picture for a few seconds before he answered her and set the photo back on the desk. “So now we ask if anyone’s seen this girl then?”

“Seems like the next best move. Hunt her down and get her to talk… using whatever means are necessary to do so, of course…” Thorn smirked.

Eclipse snagged the photo from Bolt and examined it closely. He raked his brain for a few seconds before he had an answer. “I’m pretty sure I know who she is…”

The entire group blinked at once as they all turned their attention to him. “You do? How?” Cloud questioned.

Eclipse set the photo down on the table. “Her name is Lightning Dust, she worked for Serenade before. I’d recognize that haircut and athletic body anywhere. Apparently, after she failed out of the Wonderbolts academy, her life went south; making her the perfect target for Serenade.”

“What kind of powers would we be dealing with?” Horizon asked.

Eclipse thought her interest was strange. Up to this point, Horizon had been very quiet regarding the entire search and hadn’t really shown too much interest in finding Sunset, but suddenly she was curious.

He shrugged. “No idea never saw her in action. Coward ditched right before Serenade fell, didn’t want to die, I suppose.”

“Easy fight then,” Bolt chimed in.

“Don’t be so sure. If she managed to get rid of Sunset somehow…” Eclipse paused before finishing. “She may have a few tricks up her sleeve. Proceed with caution.”

“Let’s go find her.” Bolt grinned.

Sunset stirred gently as she turned her head toward a sound within the room. Her eyes took a few extra seconds to adjust, and present any kind of image to her. Once she could see again, she saw Yuna with her head face down in Sunset’s lap. The woman gently reached to touch Yuna and focused herself. It took more effort than usual but after eight seconds of concentration, Sunset could sense the girl’s emotion, ironically she felt confident, confident that Horizon would come for them. Sunset was envious and wished she could feel the same.

From the other side of the room, she could see the faint figure of what she assumed was Lightning Dust. The figure stepped closer and squatted down to be closer to eye level with Sunset. “Caged bird doesn’t sing, does she?” Lightning spoke.

Sunset’s voice was weak, and her stomach growled. “You’ve got jokes…”

“Not much for humor…” Lightning replied.

Sunset looked down at Yuna in her lap. The girl was breathing, but barely. Sunset wasn’t even sure she was conscious. “So why waste both of our time?” Sunset asked.

Lightning glanced at Yuna. “By the look of it, you don’t have much time left.”

“Let the girl go, Lightning, she’s dying… She’s no threat to you, and you know that…” Sunset requested.

“Shouldn’t you be bargaining for your own life?” Lightning raised a brow.

A small chuckle escaped Sunset. “No sense in bargaining for what you won’t give me… Just let the girl go…”

Lightning sighed and shook her head. “I can’t do that…”

“What made you such a cold-hearted bitch?” Sunset asked.

“You wouldn’t understand…” Lightning rolled her eyes.

“I’ve got time to try…” Sunset said.

For some reason, Lightning felt compelled to tell her. She couldn’t explain it, but something inside of her wanted to share her story, maybe it was the desire to move on from it. “You have no idea what it’s like… My mother died giving birth to me, and my father resented me for it…”

“I figured it was daddy issues…” Sunset mocked.

Lightning ignored her. “I lived in my sister’s shadow for eons. Nothing I did compared, he would praise her and scold me. Even when she got sick and died, I pushed myself harder than before only for him to still hate my existence… You have no idea what it’s like… To live like your existence was a mistake.”

Sunset to Lightning’s surprise began to laugh. Lightning tilted her head in confusion.

“You think I had some kind of perfect childhood? I would have begged for hate if it meant my parents knew I existed. They never cared what I did, I was just a minor inconvenience on their never-ending quest to get into the upper class… They never showed up for anything I did… So maybe we have more in common than you think…” Sunset smirked.

“Maybe…” Lightning was quiet.

“We have something else in common too.” Sunset grinned.

Blinking, Lightning looked back at Sunset with confusion. “And what’s that?”

Sunset’s voice became a near whisper. “We’re both gonna die soon…”

Lightning was silent.

“But I get the better deal… I’ll die right here in this room. I’ll go to sleep eventually and I won’t wake up. It might be a little painful, but nothing compared to how you’re going to die… You get to die at Serenade’s hands… She’ll drag it out, no doubt. She’ll make you suffer slowly before you get to go…” Sunset mocked.

Still, Lightning said nothing.

“You’ve already signed your own death warrant. Even if you let me out now, I can’t nor will I help you… You’re just delaying the inevitable at this point… Tick tock… Tick tock… Time is running out for you…” Sunset teased.

Lightning stood up and flipped over a nearby chair.

“Did I strike a nerve? Well, don’t worry… You won’t have to burden yourself much longer. Serenade is going to kill you, your little plan is going to backfire and you know it… You’re already dead, and no one can save you.” Sunset laughed.

Lightning turned and left the room, not wanting to hear anymore, but caught Sunset taunting her one more time as she left.

“All this effort for nothing… A pathetic creature clinging to a life not even worth living all because she’s scared of death… A fitting end…”

Kneeling before Serenade, was a face that she had come to rely on at least partially, the face of Eight Ball, one of her most trusted subordinates, though she had only recently revealed her own true face to him, for which he seemed exceptionally grateful. He bowed his head with a wry smile on his face as Serenade spoke to him.

“Eight Ball… You’ve served me quite well, minimal fuck ups, and you aren’t hesitant to kill those who are unworthy of the cause…” Serenade spoke.

He looked up and nodded. “I’ll kill anyone who isn’t worthy of serving the great Serenade…”

She smiled back at him and nodded. “You know exactly what I like to hear too…”

He stayed silent as he awaited her words.

“I have somewhat of a little job for you to do for me…” She instructed as she waved her hand.

“It’s an honor to be called upon…” He grinned.

Serenade giggled a bit before coming to a stand. With a wave of her hand, she created a magical projection of Lightning Dust. Eight Ball stared intently at the projection awaiting instructions from his master.

“I’m fairly confident that Lightning Dust has betrayed us. She has failed to produce Sunset Shimmer to me after being asked and now avoids me. What’s worse is Sunset Shimmer has disappeared, and I’m fairly certain she’s involved. There’s a possibility she’s working with that cunt to try and overthrow me…” Serenade explained.

Eight Ball shook his head in disgust. “I never trusted her.”

“Likewise. She’s a coward, and we only brought her back to think of an amusing way to dispose of her, but now I grow impatient with her. I can’t afford to keep letting her get in the way…” Serenade continued.

“What would you have me do, Master?” Eight Ball questioned.

Serenade waved her hand and the hologram of Lightning split in half and then vanished entirely. “I need you to take care of her if you know what I mean… Make it amusing if you like, I know how much you love games…”

Eight Ball’s eyes widened. “So I can play with her?”

Serenade nodded. “I encourage it. Toy with her, and then let her die. After that, you can return to your previous duties. I need this pest taken care of, though I’m sure with you on the job, she will be dead within the next few days.”

Eight stood up and gave a salute. “Consider her dead.”

“You’re an eager one…” Serenade grinned as she offered her hand.

Eight Ball stepped forward and took her hand in his own and planted a kiss upon it before adjusting his glasses and looking up at his master with a prideful look. “Always eager to serve the master who granted me this great power…”

She nodded and gestured for him to go. He nodded back and took his exit. Serenade smiled as he left, she knew she made a great choice in recruiting him. Eight Ball took a special pleasure in watching the suffering of others. He was the perfect subject for her plans. He would even rival Arax if it weren’t for his unpredictability, but he would make the perfect pawn for her.

“Lightning Dust, should consider herself unlucky… Eight Ball will make her suffer, that’s certain…” Serenade spoke to herself.

Lightning Dust had come out of the storage shed she had been keeping for storage of extra supplies. She locked the shed behind her before hearing a young male voice speak to her from behind.

“I’m glad it was me who found you first…” The voice said.

Lightning casually placed the keys into her pocket before turning around to face the teenager. He wasn’t much to look at, a mess of medium-length pink hair tucked under a hat, but a mask concealed his face. She recognized him though, he was one of Horizon’s entourage, Lightning had been shown pictures of the group by Serenade.

He reached onto his back and retrieved a metal bat that he had strapped to his back, holding it firmly in his hand while he tapped it against the palm of his other hand.

Lightning sighed. “And who are you supposed to be?”

“Bolt, Bolt Dash, that’s my name. I’m a friend of Yuna’s and I have a strong feeling you had something to do with her disappearing…” Bolt explained.

Lightning ignored his question. “Dash… Rainbow Dash, then?”

“She’s my mom.” He nodded with a smirk.

Lightning grinned at the irony. While it wasn’t the same Rainbow Dash that had thwarted her chances of becoming a Wonderbolt, the thought of being able to beat someone from Dash’s family gave her an odd sense of satisfaction.

“Kid, you have no idea what you’re up against…” She stated.

Bolt readied his weapon. “Save the speeches for someone who cares. I’ll give you one chance before I beat the ever-living shit out of you. Where is Yuna? Where is Sunset Shimmer?”

“What makes you think I have anything to do with that?” Lightning questioned.

“Call it a hunch… We’ve been looking for you, Lightning Dust, got some tips from people who saw you around town, and so we split up to find you, I just got to be the lucky one who ended up doing it.” Bolt grinned.

“I would consider you very unlucky after what’s about to happen to you in the next eight seconds…” Lightning shook her head.

“Try me.” Bolt beckoned.

Lightning moved quicker than the eye could see, charging at him, but Bolt was able to move quite quickly himself. His body moved faster than any normal human and was able to dodge her attack. He followed up by zipping at her and swinging his bat, only to miss as Lightning had moved faster than he could blink.

She circled around him at ludicrous speeds, Bolt’s eyes not even able to see her. She was fast, far faster than he was, possibly even faster than his mother. “Shit…” He cursed as he tried to focus on finding her.

Bolt darted his eyes around, but couldn’t find Lightning. Her speed was far beyond what he was able to detect, but it didn’t matter, as he suddenly felt a sharp pain from her kick to his side. The teenager stumbled, but he composed himself quickly and initiated a return attack, which Lightning blocked with her palm. The woman caught his bat in her hand and smiled at him. “Is that it? Is that as fast as you can go?” She asked before issuing another kick to his side.

Bolt stepped back after the kick and held his side, but he recovered quickly. “Bitch…” He cursed under his breath before coming back to an attack stance. “You can’t win that easily…” He added.

With a chuckle Lightning vanished from his sight once more, she spoke as she remained invisible to his eyes. “You can’t find me, what makes you think you can defeat me, you pathetic child?”

Bolt stayed focused and ready to counterattack, regardless if he couldn’t see her. “I won’t give in that easily…”

Lightning appeared behind him and with a hand full of electricity, she grabbed his back and sent every volt she could through his body. Bolt tried to focus his powers to counter the attack, but it did little use, the amount of magic that Lightning was able to unleash was far too much for his abilities to counter. He groaned in pain before she threw him to the ground.

While he tried to get up, she kicked him right in the chest, causing him to cough and grip the spot in pain.

Shaking her head, Lightning darted so quickly that eyes could barely see her as she issued a barrage of attacks from all sides on Bolt. He couldn’t block a single one and just took the hits. After about eight or so, he managed to force himself onto his feet. The teen composed himself and shook off the pain before locking eyes with Lightning as she stopped moving.

Lightning cracked her knuckles and kept a neutral face. “Why not just stop now, kid? Would be a shame if you seriously got hurt. You can’t beat me.”

Bolt pointed his bat at her and spoke with determination. “No matter how many times you knock me down, I’ll keep coming back. You can’t stop me. Now tell me what you did to Yuna.”

Sighing, Lightning shook her head once more. “I guess some lessons need to be beaten into people…”

Bolt charged in, swinging, only for Lightning to catch his bat in her hand. With a powerful grip, she ripped it from his hands and tossed it aside before delivering a punch square to his forehead. Bolt staggered but only for a second as she followed up the attack with a kick to his stomach.

The pink-haired boy leaned down gripping his stomach before Lightning delivered another punch to his head, knocking him over. While he was on the ground, she began to kick him repeatedly until she grew bored and knelt down, gripping his hair, and smacked his head against the pavement.

He cough and rolled over in agony as she stayed next to him, still kneeling so he could see her face better. “The world is a fucked up place, kid. If you don’t know when you’re beaten, then you are only going to receive more beatings like this one… Do you understand?”

Bolt turned his head and spit blood in her face. “Every beating you take makes you stronger…” He said.

Wiping the blood away, Lightning sighed and nodded as she stood up. “Yeah… I used to think that too… Just stay away from me, kid… Next time I won’t go easy on you.”

As she tried to walk away, Bolt called out to her. “What are you hoping to gain? Some kind of favor with Serenade? You’ve seen her… She’s a psychopath, I’ve heard about the kind of stuff she’s done… You really think you get anything out of her?”

Lightning paused, chewing her thoughts before answering. “You sound like her…”

As she left, Bolt managed to pull himself up, sitting upright on the pavement as he watched her leave, far too weak to follow her. “Like her? What’s she talking about?”

After a few hours, Lightning decided it was best to check on her hostages. Coming down the stairs, she noticed neither of the two women were moving. Yuna lay face down in Sunset’s lap, and Sunset was propped up against the wall with her head down.

Lightning pulled up her chair and sat down in front of the barrier as she called out to Sunset. “Wake up!”

Sunset didn’t move.

Lightning rolled her eyes. “You’re not going to get me with that pretending to be dead act… I’m not stupid, I won’t take the barrier down to check up on you…”

Sunset’s voice was faint, but she didn’t bother lifting her head. “I was actually just hoping you’d stop talking… It’s such a waste of energy to talk to you…”

“You’re a real comedian.” Lightning rolled her eyes once more.

Sunset finally lifted her head up, her long red hair cascading over most of her face. She had rings around her eyes, implying she hadn’t been getting much sleep. It had been far too long since she was first taken in, she could no longer keep her composure or her calm demeanor.

“If you want to torture me, your voice is enough…” Sunset replied.

Lightning placed her hands in her lap and leaned forward as she spoke. “I’m not like Serenade, I don’t take any pleasure in torturing people…”

“Then why am I here?” Sunset raised a brow.

“Necessity, nothing more. If it served me, I’d let you galavant around here doing whatever you want, but I know how powerful you are… I know what you’re capable of… I can’t take any risks with you…” Lightning explained.

“If you knew how powerful I was, you would have been trying to get me on your side to fight Serenade…” Sunset countered.

Lightning nodded. “Maybe… But I can’t trust you, just as much as you can’t trust me. I worked for Serenade before, which means you’ll always be assuming I will stab you in the back, and as a result, you’ll stab me in the back.”

Sunset laughed lightly at such a proposal. “You’ve got it all wrong, you stupid cunt… I’m not like you… If I was going to turn on you… I’d make sure you saw it coming… Because unlike you, I have honor, and also unlike you… I would take great pleasure in knowing you saw your end coming… And there is nothing you can do to stop it… Sort of like how you look now…”

Lightning fell silent.

“You’re on borrowed time… The only person who could have even saved you is now sitting in a room withering away… There’s nothing that can help you now, there’s no outcome that has you still alive…” Sunset explained.

Lightning wiped her nose and made eye contact with Sunset. “You’re a lot more talkative now, aren’t you?”

“Funny, because I would have imagined I wouldn’t have much to say to a piece of shit like you…” Sunset smirked.

Lightning leaned back in her chair and looked away in thought. She contemplated her situation for a brief moment and chose her words carefully. “If you were me, what would you do? Knowing that the odds of getting you to help me were nil?”

Growing a look of confusion, Sunset took a brief moment to answer. “I wouldn’t have put myself in your situation… I would have asked me to help from the start…”

“And what if all you did was turn on me?” Lightning asked.

Sunset shrugged gently. “Fifty-fifty… Better odds than you had without me, right?”

Lightning bit her lip. Perhaps she had made a mistake, perhaps there really was no point to this entire plan. She considered what would happen if she let Sunset go.

“And if I let you out now?” Lightning asked.

“I’ll rip your fucking head off…” Sunset replied.

“I would have imagined you’d be trying to butter me up to let you out after asking that…” Lightning said.

Sunset’s eyes were filled with hatred, Lightning could feel it. “You and I both know that you are only asking a hypothetical, and you have no intention of following it up, even if I were to butter you up, so let’s skip the bullshit, okay?”

Sighing, Lightning nodded before asking another question. “So what would you do if you were me right now?”

Sunset looked across the floor at the handgun laying a few feet away from herself. Her eyes fixated on it as she spoke. “I’d take myself out.”

“How does that solve anything? Killing yourself doesn’t do jack shit.” Lightning rolled her eyes.

The redhead’s gaze never left the firearm as she continued. “Dying isn’t a choice for you now… It’s an inevitability. The only choice you have now is how it goes down… If I was in your predicament, I’d rather shoot myself than let Serenade have her way with me…”

“If you really feel that way, why haven’t you killed yourself yet?” Lightning raised a brow.

Sunset placed a hand on Yuan’s head, she gently stroked the girl’s hair, feeling Yuan’s faint breath on her leg as she kept her close. “She hasn’t given up hope yet… I can’t go until she goes… She has hope, I wouldn’t want to rob her of that…”

“Hoping for something that will never happen is just torture,” Lightning stated.

“Only for someone like you. For people like her, it’s a comfort in an otherwise hellish world…” Sunset stroked Yuna’s hair once more.

Lightning stayed quiet, she didn’t know what to say.

“Daddy didn’t love you enough, so you turned into a monster… and now you’re about to meet your end to an even bigger monster. Funny… You turned into a piece of shit just like your father was, and I’m sure that bothers you… I’m sure it eats away at you every single day that you never could become the person that he would actually show fondness toward… That you’ll never measure up…” Sunset began to ramble. “You’ll never be good enough, you’ll just die sad and alone…”

“Shut up!” Lightning stood up from her chair and pointed at Sunset.

“Or you’ll do what? There’s nothing you could possibly do to make my situation worse than it already is…” Sunset smirked, knowing she struck a chord.

“I’m nothing like him…” Lightning tightened her fists so hard that her hands were turning white.

“You hate yourself because you were never good enough… You spend your days self-loathing because you’re in denial that you’re a failure…” Sunset continued.

“Shut up!” Lightning shouted again.

“Poor poor Lightning Dust, no one cares about her… Not a single soul will blink when she’s dead… So… So… Sad…” Sunset grinned.

“Fuck you!” Lightning hissed.

“You’re angry because you know it’s the truth…” Sunset mocked.

“I SAID FUCK YOU! SHUT UP!”

Sunset looked up in thought as she continued antagonizing. “Why is it that people are so resistant to the truth? Maybe it’s because they feel helpless once they accept it… Some say the truth is a beautiful thing but in your case… It’s quite ugly, isn’t it? Knowing your end is approaching, and you’ve accomplished literally nothing…”

Lightning covered her ears, not wanting to hear more, but for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to leave, she couldn’t make her legs move, instead, she found herself unable to walk away.

“Daddy’s little failure… So utterly pathetic…”

“I SAID STOP IT!” Lightning shouted.

“Maybe you should have just gotten a cat, at least then someone would love you…” Sunset smirked.

“You don’t know the first thing about me!” Lightning pointed at Sunset with anger.

“I think this just told me all I need to know…” Sunset replied.

“Fuck you…” Lightning shook her head as she left the room, heading back up the stairs. The woman could hear Sunset continue on as she left the room, but she blocked it all out, instead, Lightning made her way up a few floors to the room where she usually slept, and retrieved a knife from inside a drawer.

Lightning stared down the shining silver blade before unzipping her suit, removing it down to her ankles before tossing it aside. As she stood there in her underwear, she sat down on a nearby chair, looking down at the floor before she placed the knife between her thighs with the edge facing her left thigh.

She inhaled and ran the blade across her leg and dropped the knife as the demonic black blood dripped from the cut. Lightning leaned back in the chair and let out a long sigh. Sunset was right, she was completely fucked, and she knew it. She needed a miracle to get her out of the situation she found herself in.

Sighing, she noticed the phone on her wrist ringing. She cursed and checked the hologram that showed who the caller was, and sure enough it was the one person she didn’t want to talk to; Serenade.

Composing herself, she answered the call and a hologram of Serenade appeared before her. Serenade looked Lightning up and down and raised a brow. “Oh, was I interrupting you fucking or something?”

Lightning looked at herself and remembered she had taken off her clothes with the exception of her underwear before calling. She cleared her throat and shook her head. “I was just going to take a shower…”

“Oh, it’s good that you can find the time to do that… While I’m still waiting on you to locate Sunset Shimmer…” Serenade spoke sarcastically.

“I just need some more time…” Lightning lied.

Serenade shook her head, Lightning could see the annoyance in the woman’s eyes. “No more time, you’ve had enough. You have two days, that’s forty-eight hours… Then I punish you. You present Sunset Shimmer or her corpse to me by then, or you and I are going to become very…” She paused thinking of the word. “Intimate.”

“It doesn’t need to come to that…” Lightning attempted to bargain, but Serenade shut the conversation down instantly.

“Two days, you have two days, and then you may as well be planning your funeral.” Serenade hung up abruptly after those words.

“Fuck…” Lightning growled.

This meant she had two days left to figure out what to do, and she didn’t even have an inkling of where to go from here.

Cloud was glancing about heading in the direction that Horizon had told them to go from the details of her text message. Bolt had messaged her stating he had found Lightning Dust, and told the others to meet him at the corner of 8th Street as soon as they could. Horizon had loaded up as many as she could into her car, and the rest piled into Jasper’s truck, some of them sitting in the back, holding on tight as the caravan of vehicles rushed to 8th Street.

Pulling up to the corner and parking on the side of the road, both vehicles stopped as Cloud hopped out of the front seat from Horizon’s car to see his brother limping, holding his stomach as he approached the group. Cloud raced ahead of everyone else and rushed to his brother’s aid. Within seconds he held his brother in his arms as the rest of his friends surrounded the two.

“Bolt! You’re hurt! What happened!?”

Bolt patted his brother’s head and gently released himself from his brother’s embrace. “Relax kiddo, I’ll be okay… I’ve taken worse lickings than this…”

“Did Lightning Dust do this to you?” Cloud’s tone was a mixture of concern and anger.

Bolt nodded. “She’s tough, but I’ll beat her the next time we meet…”

“Why would you do something so reckless!? You should have told us to come to your aid the moment you found her!” Cloud scolded.

“Didn’t have time, she would have fled long before you all arrived. I had to act or we’d have gained nothing.” Bolt argued.

“Then you should have stalled her! What were you thinking, taking her on all by yourself!?” Cloud placed his hands on his hips and huffed.

Bolt dismissed his brother and shook his head once more. “I lived, and I did what I felt was necessary. She’s strong, but not invincible. I just need to recover, and I can take her, maybe after a bit more training…”

Cloud smacked his brother across the face. “You’re an idiot, you know that!? You don’t think before you do things, and you certainly don’t think how it will affect the people around you! You could have been killed, you know that!?”

Bolt fell silent. He didn’t know how to respond to his brother’s anger toward him.

The voice of Key Lime brought some sense to the teen though. “Bolt, you’re tough, but you need to factor in the fact that you’re not invincible. If you died on us, that’d be one hell of a loss…”

Her words melted Bolt’s heart. He nodded sheepishly. “Yeah… I guess I wasn’t thinking straight…” His eyes focused on her cute face, then on her impressive bust.

She giggled and walked toward him, tapping him on the nose. “Just don’t do it again. The world can’t afford to lose a cute guy like you.”

He nodded back. “Promise, I’ll be more careful from now on!”

Cloud smiled at that admission. “Glad to hear it… Let me treat your wounds, and you can tell the rest of us what you learned about Lightning Dust, okay? Just try not to push yourself.”

Realizing he had no choice, Bolt nodded in agreement before sitting down on the concrete of the sidewalk as Cloud approached. Cloud’s amulet lit up as he began to apply the healing magic he knew upon his brother. Cloud’s mother, Fluttershy had explained to him how to apply magic when it came to the wounds of others, and how to amplify its effects to heal those around him. Cloud had paid special attention as he knew his brother, Bolt, would need it most. Bolt was just like his other mother, Rainbow Dash, after all.

While Cloud worked, Jasper leaned down to check up on his rival, making sure he wasn’t too badly hurt. “You alright, partner?”

Bolt grinned at his friend’s concern. “If you think this is going to stop me from busting on your chops, you have another thing coming. I’ll be healed up in no time, and right back to making comments about how hot your mom is, and how much I loathe you…”

Jasper sighed and stood up. “Sadly… I wouldn’t have it any other way… Well… Maybe a little”

Candy let out a comment only just barely quiet enough for Jasper to hear. “Lovers will always find a way…”

Jasper ignored her comment and returned to Horizon’s side, placing a hand on her shoulder. “We’re one step closer…”

Horizon stayed silent and waited for Jasper to interrogate Bolt. “So… What did y’all learn? Anything about Yuna or Sunset? Maybe what the demon did with them?”

Bolt frowned as Cloud focused his magic and healed his wounds. “Not much… Lightning is pretty tight-lipped, she wouldn’t tell me anything useful. Tried to beat it out of her, but I’m sure you can all tell how well that went… I think I just need another shot at beating the snot out of her, is all.”

“Out of the question, she beat you pretty bad…” Jasper stated.

Bolt shook his head. “Give me a day, and some time with my mother… She will show me how to better use my power, and then before you know it I will wipe the floor with her!”

Jasper was unsure how to answer. He looked over at Cloud who nodded, but for the sake of getting a second opinion, Jasper glance at Horizon who shockingly did the same. Rainbow Dash was tough, but Jasper doubted her wisdom would be enough to help Bolt defeat a demon like Lightning Dust, but he trusted his friends. He sighed and nodded in agreement. “Alright, we’ll pay her a visit…”

Jasper watched as Bolt was carried away by his brother Cloud, and some assistance from Nova. Horizon stood next to Jasper and spoke her thoughts. “You really think a day with Rainbow Dash will make any difference?”

Jasper watched as Nova and Cloud both managed to get Bolt into the back of Horizon’s car. “Well… She lost her arm and kept going… I’d reckon anyone with that kind of determination might have some kind of advice that could help in a situation like this… I mean defeating these demons probably sounds like a fool’s errand to everyone around us, after all… And Bolt definitely is a fool… But he’s determined.”

Thorn grinned as she came up behind the two. “I think his determination is endearing.”

Turning around, Horizon glanced at Thorn, she was curious about the girl, but she couldn’t explain why. Bolt was the only one who really knew her all that well, as he talked to her the most, and seemed to go out of his way to help her. Horizon wondered if Bolt saw Thorn as a little sister, his usual perverted nature didn’t seem to extend to her, after all.

Thorn stepped forward, walking past Jasper and Horizon as she spoke once more. “I’ll meet you guys in the car.”

After she had gotten herself back into the car, Horizon couldn’t help but stare in her direction. Jasper noticing his friend raised a brow and nudged Horizon. “You alright?”

Horizon spoke directly. “Bolt likes her for some reason…”

Jasper glanced over at Thorn and noted she chose to sit next to Bolt and appeared to be consoling him in some capacity, though Keylime was on the other side, consoling him in somewhat of a different manner, holding his hand tightly.

“Yeah, I think she reminds him of Fluttershy… He’s always been protective of his mother like that… Bolt seems to have a soft spot for women who are vulnerable doesn’t he?” Jasper smiled.

“Would you consider your mother vulnerable, Jasper?” Horizon asked.

Jasper blinked. “Rarity? No, why?”

“Weird, he speaks very fondly of her too… I believe I recall him mentioning her butt was nicely shaped just this morning…” Horizon spoke as she walked toward her car.

Jasper lagged behind and cursed under his breath. “Fuckin’ pervert…”

As Horizon sat down in the driver’s seat, she could hear Keylime attempting to explain what she clearly thought was sound medical advice. “Let me handle this! I read somewhere that men are put under significantly less stress and anxiety when touching boobs, and the current situation is definitely very stressful.” With those words, she placed Bolt’s hand upon her right breast.

Bolt’s face turned red, but he managed to grin. “Who am I to argue with science?”

Thorn sighed and shook her head. “No offense, Keylime… But that’s stupid, he needs actual medical treatment, I’m sure Cloud can heal him up with help from Fluttershy.”

“Hey, let’s give her theory a chance.” Bolt smirked as he gave Keylime’s sizable bosom a squeeze.

Cloud just emitted a sigh, wishing he didn’t have to listen to the stupidity going on around him.

Bolt raised his voice slightly so that Horizon could hear. “Wanna get in on this, Horizon?”

Horizon glanced at him from the rearview mirror before starting the car. “I think it would be quite difficult to operate the car from the front seat with your hands on my chest. Perhaps if Miss Keylime’s tests are inconclusive, I could volunteer at another time.”

Cloud shook his head. “Don’t encourage him, Horizon.”

“I was merely suggesting that if Keylime’s-“

Cloud cut her off. “I am sure Keylime’s… Test, is more than sufficient. Please do not let Bolt grope you.”

Horizon glanced over confused but nodded in agreement. “Very well.”

“Party pooper…” Bolt stuck his tongue out.

“We should be focusing on finding Yuna,” Horizon reminded.

“And Sunset Shimmer.” Thorn raised a finger.

Horizon didn’t respond to that statement, though everyone in the car already had a pretty good idea as to why.

Inside Jasper’s vehicle as they followed Horizon’s Eclipse leaned against a window in boredom. He was used to Sunset giving him a hard time, but not like this. He was growing tired of searching for her, and if it weren’t for her importance toward stopping Serenade, he would have bailed on the entire operation a good eight hours ago.

The young man sighed as he closed his eyes, not interested in the conversation that Jasper was having with his younger sibling sitting next to Eclipse. It came off as some kind of sibling bickering, something about how Candy lacked manners, though Eclipse could agree with that.

The rest of their group was in the bed of the truck, unable to hear the annoying conversation. Eclipse yawned, ready for a nap after such a long day.

“Holdin’ up alright, Eclipse?” Jasper asked as he glanced over at the man who was about ready to pass out.

“Just bored…” Eclipse replied.

Jasper nodded. “Yeah, sorry… I was hoping we would find out what happened to Sunset and Yuna by now, myself…”

“Not your fault…” Eclipse yawned.

“Still…” Jasper frowned.

The group fell silent until the sound of Eclipse’s phone filled the truck. Eclipse’s eyes opened as he grumbled.

“I swear people have the shittiest timing…” Eclipse complained.

Lifting his wrist, he checked the caller ID. “Oh… It’s Adagio…”

“Adagio!?” Jasper and Candy exclaimed at once.

Eclipse patted his ear and shook his head. “Calm down… It’s not that Adagio, it’s the human one… The one actually from your world.”

“How does she have your number?” Jasper asked.

“I gave it to them… It’s a long story, but I wanted to make sure they were safe, that’s all…” Eclipse rolled his eyes before answering the phone. A hologram of a video feed appeared before him, and sure enough, a young woman was looking back at him.

“Eclipse? Is you?” Adagio asked.

Eclipse chuckled at her poor English. “Yeah, it’s me… Hey listen, I’m sort of… How do I put this… Tied up, as it were?”

Adagio nodded in understanding. “Understand. Wouldn’t call if I had other option. Need your help.” She went on.

Eclipse sighed and rolled his eyes. “Seems like everyone does these days… What’s the problem?”

Adagio glanced to one side and then bit her lip. “Can’t explain well… You need to talk to her, she can explain better.” Adagio gestured to one side but then moved the camera over to another person there with her.

When the camera focused, a redheaded woman with yellow streaks in her hair was visible to Eclipse. His eyes widened as he recognized her. “SUNSET!? WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU!? WE ARE LOOKING ALL OVER FOR YOU!”

The woman adjusted her ponytail and gave a gentle smile to Eclipse. “Oh, did Sunset go missing?” The woman asked.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean? Where are you!?” Eclipse growled.

Candy began to lean in with interest. “Whoa, it’s Sunset!” She commented as she pointed to the hologram.

The woman on the other end shook her head. “I’m sorry, but I’m not the Sunset that you must be looking for… I know it sounds ridiculous, but trust me… She and I are not the same person.”

“Then who the fuck are you?” Eclipse raised a brow.

The woman rubbed her neck, unsure of how to answer such a question. “Listen… I can answer all of that later. Right now, I need your help Eclipse.”

“Help with what?” Eclipse blinked.

“You can do light magic, right?” Sunset’s lookalike asked.

“Obviously…” Eclipse rolled his eyes.

She nodded. “Listen, I need as many capable of light magic at my location. My power just isn’t enough for what’s going on…”

“Which is?” Eclipse tilted his head.

Sighing, the Sunset lookalike turned the camera to an image of a young teen on the ground, hacking up black sludge. Eclipse recognized her, she was the human counterpart of Serenade Dazzle, a girl that he had managed to prevent Sunset from killing to purge her of the demonic presence that the other Serenade had implanted into her. The girl looked unwell, and he could see her skin was pale as she suffered.

“Crap… It got that bad, huh?” Eclipse frowned.

Sunset turned the camera back to herself. “Yes, but I think it’s still manageable. I just need more magic to pull it off…”

Eclipse nodded. “You’re in luck, Sunset’s daughter is in the car in front of us, she has a light magic affinity as well, potentially better than mine.”

“That’s good to hear… Between the three of us, we can help this girl.” Sunset smiled.

“One problem, we have injured as well…” Eclipse stated.

Sunset nodded. “That’s not a problem, bring them here, we can work on both of them.”

Eclipse sighed and leaned back in his seat as he thought all of this over. Whoever this convincing lookalike of Sunset was, he knew she needed his help. While he was interested in who they were, he was more concerned with helping the young girl from becoming what the other Serenade was. If he didn’t act, there was a distinct possibility that the young teenage Serenade would eventually become a secondary Serenade to the one that he so loathed.

“Alright, we’ll help…” Eclipse agreed with a nod.

Sunset smiled and nodded back. “I greatly appreciate it… Do you remember how to get to Adagio and Serenade’s place?”

Eclipse nodded. “Yeah, I haven’t forgotten. I’ll be there in maybe eight minutes, tops.”

Sunset seemed happy to hear those words. “Thank you, I’m grateful. I’ll see you in a little bit, and when this is taken care of… Then we can talk, I’m sure you have a ton of questions.”

“A ton may be downplaying it…” Eclipse responded.

She giggled and nodded before giving a gentle wave with her hand. “I look forward to finally meeting you, Eclipse… And your… Friends as well.”

“Likewise.” Eclipse nodded before the call ended.

The man emitted a long sigh before looking over at Jasper. “Yeah, we’re going to be making a detour… You better tell Horizon.”

Jasper nodded. “No kidding… Though I’d be lying if I said that I am not curious as to what’s going on…”

“You aren’t the only one… Trust me…” Eclipse stated.

“So… We go to save some girl from dying, I take it?” Candy chimed in.

Eclipse smirked and nodded. “Yeah, looks that way, kid.”

Candy smiled at him and nudged her brother. “The plot thickens! Two Sunsets! How exciting.”

“Well, I’m glad someone is at least having fun regarding all of this.” Eclipse chuckled.

Jasper nodded. “Given what’s been going on? I’d say we’re past our quota of surprises. Shit just keeps getting weirder and weirder…”

Eclipse giggled. “You aren’t wrong…”

Next chapter: We get to see more of the other Sunset. :P