The lounge was quiet, with only the crackling of the fireplace breaking the silence. Luna stared into the flames, almost mesmerised, as she looked back at the day’s events once again.

Seeing Sunset, and hearing everything she and the others had been through, had shaken Luna in ways she didn’t think she would ever understand. She had initially considered reproaching Sunset for her sudden vile language, but that idea seemed laughable now. A little bit of swearing was the least that could be expected from someone after being trapped in a world this dangerous for months on end.

Guilt gripped Luna like a suffocating weight in her chest. Intellectually, she knew that the Rainbooms’ situation wasn’t her fault. The only ones to blame were Mandible and the other Sunset, and, she hated to admit it, the Sirens as well, albeit to a lesser extent. Emotionally, however, Luna couldn’t help but blame herself. These girls were her students. They had been in her care when everything had gone wrong, and had spent the last few months in a living nightmare because she hadn’t been able to protect them. Even if there wasn’t much, if anything, that Luna could have done for the others, she had been the one to grab Applejack when the portal had been sabotaged. She would never forgive herself for not being able to keep a grip on her when the girls needed it.

Tearing her gaze away from the flames, Luna turned her attention to the other two girls who had been dragged to this world thanks to her failure as a teacher.

Trixie was sitting on one end of the sofa with her head in her hands, while Sonata was curled up on the other, her arms wrapped around her knees. Sunset had already gone to bed, muttering about sleeping pills. Sure enough, when Trixie had tried to check on her only a few minutes later, she had been out cold, though Trixie hadn’t dared to actually try and shake her in case she reacted violently to being woken up.

Luna wanted to ask the girls if they were alright, maybe offer some words of comfort and reassurance, but nothing was coming to mind. Weak platitudes weren’t going to help them after seeing Sunset so thoroughly broken.

With a sigh, Luna turned back to the fire. There was only one thing she could do to try and make things safer for the girls. As soon as she had a chance the next morning, Luna vowed that she would get someone to train her to use a gun properly.

---

Trixie couldn’t believe what she had seen. Sunset Shimmer was strong, resolute, intimidating, and above all, confident. There was no way that she could be so… beaten.

Even when she had been defeated at the Fall Formal, forcibly transformed from a demon back into a human and left smouldering in a crater, Sunset hadn’t been so subdued. Miserable, tear-stained, filthy, and scared, yes, but that had been nothing compared to how she was looking now. To Trixie, it looked as if Sunset’s very soul had been ripped out of her body, leaving behind a hollow husk that hadn’t quite realized that it was dead yet. It was almost impossible to reconcile what she was to what she had become.

That, more than anything, had cemented in Trixie’s mind just how terrible this world really was.

The reality of her situation impressed itself further and further on Trixie’s mind with every passing moment. She was stuck in an alternate world, filled with all kinds of unspeakable dangers and monsters, and the only way of getting home had been completely ruined. Trixie was terrified. If even the smartest and most incredible people she knew had been battered beyond recognition by this world, then what chance did a half-baked stage magician stand?

---

Things weren’t going well, as far as Sonata was concerned. She had been dumped into a bizarre world with a pair of annoying creatures before, but this was way different. For a start, the Sirens had never been violent with each other, no matter how much they had mouthed off and argued.

Sonata gently rubbed the scabbed line where Sunset’s knife had dug into her skin. That had been way too close for comfort. Sonata had expected that this human world would be near enough the same as the other one. Lame, but maybe a little cooler thanks to the nuclear war and stuff. Having seen what it did to Sunset, though, she decided that she didn’t particularly want to see any more of it.

Unless it had more magic.

Or powerful artifacts.

Or other Sirens.

Sonata frowned slightly as she considered her options. She’d have to see what she could possibly get her hands on, then try and figure out herself whether it was worth the risk. She fought back a sigh. This sort of thing was Adagio’s job.

Giving up on her calculations for now, Sonata suddenly realized that she had a much more pressing concern she should be focusing on. “I call dibs on the other bedroom.”

“Other bedroom?” Luna asked curiously, turning away from the fire again.

“Uh, yeah? The one that doesn’t have the girl who wants to kill me in it?” Sonata explained bluntly.

Luna’s eyes widened as she suddenly cottoned on to that particular problem. “Of course. You can sleep in the room with me, Trixie can sleep with Sunset. Is that alright with you, Trixie?”

Trixie just nodded slowly.

“Good. That’s a relief.” With her chances of surviving the night now looking more reasonable, Sonata sighed and allowed herself to relax a little.

---

Doctor Mercer’s office was almost offensively bright compared to almost every other part of the base complex. Then again, Mercer was one of the most accomplished doctors in the Enclave, and his skills were in higher demand now than ever before, so Becky didn’t see any issue with allocating him a little extra electricity and some decent light bulbs.

“Miss Shimmer is not capable of combat,” Mercer said flatly, his tone at odds with his normally deep and resonant voice. “I do not even need to give her a complete examination to see that. She has endured too much trauma. At this rate, even such simple tasks as getting out of bed or getting dressed are going to be beyond her. I recommend transferring her to the psychiatric unit for the foreseeable future.”

Becky gritted her teeth. As much as she wanted to acquiesce to his recommendation, she couldn’t. Sunset was just too important to the ongoing situation with Unity. “That’s not acceptable. If it were any other time, I’d allow it, but right now her input and abilities will be invaluable. Is there anything you can do to keep her going?”

Mercer gave her a conflicted look, then sighed. “There’s a regimen of drugs I can put her on. It’s effectively a cocktail of antidepressants, antipsychotics, Mentats, and a handful of other bits and pieces. I’ll warn you, though, the side effects are… unpleasant. We usually only use it on our most traumatised soldiers.”

“Will it work?” Becky asked.

“To an extent,” Mercer replied reluctantly. “Miss Shimmer will be functional, at least enough to suit your purposes, but the chances of her regaining any semblance of normality…” He shook his head. “There is a possible alternative, which is effectively the same drug but with a couple of things taken out and replaced with measured doses of Sunset’s own magic taken from our production lines, but it is very experimental. We’re testing it on active personnel and children who have night terrors, or who were exposed to some of Acheson’s less ethical magical experiments.”

The thought of Acheson exposing children to whatever Mercer considered to be unethical magical experiments made Becky clench her fists in anger. “What sort of side effects does it have?”

“Mostly the same as the ordinary version, though the researchers have noted a slight increase in demonstrated empathy among the patients,” Mercer explained. “As for the long-term effects, we have absolutely no idea. All we can do is cross our fingers and hope that God is merciful.”

Becky fought the urge to grimace. The fact that she was even considering such things, let alone having a conversation about it, made her sick to her stomach, but she couldn’t let her emotions get in the way. Sunset deserved better, but she was only one woman. As President, Becky had the safety of the Enclave and, with the Brotherhood compromised, the entire Capital Wasteland to consider. There was only one option. “I need Miss Shimmer on her feet and coherent as soon as possible. I’ll have her sent to you in the morning. Give her the experimental version, as much as it takes.”

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