October 15^th, 2019
Monday
Cloudy

Lunch Time

song: School Days - Persona

As soon as Starlight made it to the courtyard to eat lunch, she found Rainbow Dash wrapping an arm around her.

“Hey Starlight! Got the next lesson plan all figured out for ya!” she grinned, “Figure with us going into Elysium tonight, and Rarity’s Dungeon right around the corner, we should probably get back to training.”

Right. Dash still was using video games to train her. Well, she was ahead in her studies, and with everything going on today, she needed a break.

“Alright,” Starlight replied, “Let’s do it.”

“Sweet! See ya after school then!” Dash said, walking off to catch up with Pinkie Pie no doubt. Starlight hadn’t been able to catch Diamond today, but that was alright. Hopefully they’d be done with this by tonight, and she could just enjoy Pep Squad without Diamond being in danger.

After School

song: Like a Dream Come True

Rainbow Dash and Starlight met up at the front gate of the school, where they spent the time walking back to the dorm talking about various things. Starlight was amazed by how easy it was for her and Rainbow to get along, as they didn’t really talk much one on one like this.

She’d definitely have to change that.

One of the things that Starlight found really interesting about Rainbow Dash was her love for video games. It didn’t seem like just an obsessive hobby to her. Rather this was something she loved as much as Starlight loved magic. Made sense then, that her Persona would be a JRPG protagonist.

The two of them worked on their homework together, with Starlight helping Dash with math. Once that was finished, the two got started with Starlight’s latest lesson in being a Shonen Protagonist.

“Alright, so I wasn’t sure what the next lesson would be,” Rainbow Dash said kneeling before her and Pinkie’s shelf of games, “But I talked it over with Pinkie Pie, and she brought up a pretty good point,” Starlight tilted her head, “Teamwork. You gotta get used to working in a unit with people. Not that you don’t do a good job with it now.”

Starlight nodded, understanding what she meant. She was doing fine now, but for the battles ahead, she couldn’t afford to rest on her laurels too long.

“So, figured this would be the best game for your next lesson,” she picked out a game and showed it to Starlight. On the cover were a number of characters, but the one that stood out to her was a boy with short brown hair and red clothes, wielding twin swords.

“Tales, of Symphonia?” Starlight asked.

“Remember when I told you Pinkie Pie and I played a game together, and got so into it that we started seeing the world like that game?” Starlight nodded, “This was the game. The Tales of games are action RPGs. Combat wise, you control one character, and the computer handles your party members. AI’s pretty smart too, so you really feel like you’re working with other people.”

Starlight looked at the game box intrigued. That, did sound like something she could learn from.

“Really though, the story is the main draw of the game,” Rainbow Dash continued, “Guess it doesn’t really matter as we’re gonna be focusing on the combat, though.”

“What’s the game about?” Starlight asked, surprising Dash a bit.

“Oh? Well I don’t wanna spoil everything, but it starts out as a pretty standard JRPG story. The world you live in has begun to lose its life force energy, called Mana. The main character Lloyd, he’s the guy in red, is best friends with the Chosen One, who’s supposed to go around their world and break the seals holding Mana back, which will then save the world. Along the way, they fight this organization of Half Elves called the Desians, who are essentially fantasy Nazis even down to their ideology. Seriously, they capture humans and put them in what they call “Human Ranches”, which are literally just Concentration Camps by another name.”

Starlight was a bit surprised that such powerful themes were in this game. Looking at the box, it looked so colorful and upbeat, and there were representations of Nazis in this?

“And in terms of the story, that’s about all I can say without spoiling something MAJOR,” Rainbow Dash said, surprising Starlight, “JRPGs are all about the plot twists, the Tales of games especially. That one has a plot twist in it that quite literally, changes the entire tone of the story by the 1/8th mark, if not sooner.”

“Huh,” Starlight looked back at the game. She knew that they were doing this mostly for training, but she was really curious about the story if this one, “Could I maybe, start my own file on this game? I think I want to experience this story for myself.”

“What am I gonna do, say no?” Rainbow Dash beamed, “You pretty consistently have multiple members of your party in the game, so we can train while enjoying the story. Gives me a chance to enjoy it all over again.”

Starlight couldn’t help but smile herself. Rainbow Dash’s innocent love for video games was truly infectious.

The game drew Starlight in the moment it started. It had a full on anime opening with a song that she thought was absolutely beautiful. She then went through the beginning of the game with Rainbow Dash, who ultimately decided to take one of the other characters as well.

Fighting games were fun, but playing this game with Rainbow Dash was even more fun.

There were three characters to start with. The main character, Lloyd, Genis a spellcaster, and shockingly, the girl who was supposed to be the Chosen One, Collete. Starlight thought she’d just be a helpless damsel, but she was fighting just as hard as everyone else.

Starlight tried all three of them at Dash’s request, to see which one she liked most. Ultimately she stuck with Genis, who only knew a few spells, but still just felt right to her. Dash as such, took Lloyd in combat.

Combat was a lot of fun, and Rainbow Dash just made it more so. The characters would call out their attacks in true anime fashion, and Rainbow Dash was right there with Lloyd. It got to the point where Starlight started doing the same! They both got so into it that if they took damage, they’d even flinch, and after a tough boss fight, they were both exhausted.

They managed to get pretty far in the game, up to the part where the starting village was destroyed by the Desians. Only reason they stopped was because they knew Ms. Tia was almost done with dinner.

“I, enjoyed that way more than I thought I would,” Starlight beamed, making Dash laugh.

“Awesome! Looks like I managed to get another into the series!” Rainbow Dash said jovially, “You really got into it, too. I didn’t expect you to tune into Genis’ thoughts so quickly when Iselia got destroyed. You were ready to follow alongside Lloyd before he even said it.”

“I just, thought about what I’d do if we were in that situation,” Starlight looked down, “If you were Lloyd, and I were Genis. I would have stood by you just like he did.”

Rainbow Dash’s eyes widened a bit, “Really? You’d have, stuck beside me, even if I got exiled or something.”

“Absolutely,” Starlight answered, “We may not have known each other too long, but I never turn my back on friends.”

Rainbow Dash smiled, “Huh. Good to know. Thanks, Starlight.”

Starlight didn’t know why, but she got the feeling something she said really affected Rainbow Dash in a good light. She felt significantly closer to Rainbow Dash.

“Hey, let’s see if we can convince Pinkie Pie, Lulamoon, and Twilight to join us after dinner,” Dash said getting up “We’ll be getting more party members soon, and if we can get a controller in your girlfriend’s hands, we can actually try something Pinkie Pie and I have wanted to do for a while.”

Starlight nodded getting up too. Right as they were about to leave, Dash turned to the game screen.

“Oh yeah, should probably save and turn that off. Leave it to me,” Dash held her hands out, and started moving them in various ways, making the game screen move on its own.

Starlight was wide eyed, seeing Dash save the game without even touching the controller. She even turned the system off.

“That, was your technomancy, wasn’t it?” Starlight asked, “One of the two things you got in the Akashic Records?”

“Yep,” Rainbow Dash smiled, “I don’t actually need a controller to play anymore, but I like the feeling of one in my hand. Still, I like fucking around with it, and never know when it’ll come in handy. Anyway, let’s go eat.”

Starlight nodded following Rainbow Dash. Ultimately, they did manage to get Trixie to play with them, and all of them enjoyed their time together before going into the Dream World.

Late Night

song: Qualia - Blue Reflection

Adagio sighed closing the book she read, and stepped out of the isle of books she’d been exploring. This place was damn near endless. No, according to Sunset, it was endless. Trying to find what she was looking for here would be like finding a needle in a haystack.

She fell to her knees and hung her head, holding a hand to her forehead and moaning in frustration. Ever since gaining this power, she’d been wondering what she could use it for. She knew that one of those black doors was close to where her Akashic Records were, meaning somewhere out there, there was someone suffering like she was. She wanted to help them, but Chrysalis warned her not to, as the Shadows in there were much stronger, and it was dangerous to go alone.

So what? Was she just supposed to stew in misery and existential dread until she received orders? What was her song meant to do now? Would she truly destroy the world?

Footsteps underneath her caught her attention. She looked and saw those girls from before again, along with that cute purple wisp that followed them. They were heading back to that golden door, the one leading to the golden tower.

Adagio bit her lip, and followed after them. She knew it was wrong to spy, but she was so curious about them, especially their leader. That power to command multiple Personas… why did she have that power?

I need to understand what makes us so different. Why both of you have that power, and I do not.

Hod: Lvl 5

song: BREAKTHROUGH.EXE - Blue Reflection

“Okay, I can confirm,” Twilight said from her end, “Her Dungeon hasn’t changed floors. It’s still on the tenth floor.”

Pinkie Pie sighed in relief, “Good. This means that the floors they’re on are fixed.”

“Told you it’d be alright,” Trixie said, rubbing Starlight’s back.

Starlight smiled in relief herself, “Now we just need to get to the tenth floor. Know where the stairs are here?”

“They’re pretty damn close to you,” Twilight said, “There’s a cluster guarding them, but if you go forward and then turn left, you’ll see them.”

“Thanks Twilight,” Starlight ran forward, her party following her. Sure enough, she saw the cluster of Shadows ahead of them, but when she tried to attack it, the cluster lashed out at her, knocking her back.

“Starlight!” Trixie cried, rushing to help her up as they were suddenly surrounded. Three of the Shadows they knew; Yaksini, Orobas, and Jack Frost. However, there was a fourth one there that was brand new. This one being a fairy similar to Pixie, but larger, wearing a bit of tight body armor, and with short green hair.

“Shoot! They got you surrounded!” Twilight cried, “The new one is High Pixie! Be careful in there!”

High Pixie moved first, casting Magaru on everyone. Unfortunately, Starlight still had Morgana equipped, so she was promptly knocked to the ground.

“Gah! That’s not good! Starlight’s down!”

High Pixie went to fire another wind spell focused solely on Starlight, but this time Trixie jumped in the way of the attack, pushing her aside and taking the hit herself.

“Ah!” Trixie cried in pain.

“Trixie! Are you alright?!” Starlight cried.

“T’is but a scratch!” she said dramatically, helping her up, “Better I get hit with that than you.”

Pinkie Pie wasted no time having Serenity use Dia on Starlight, “There. That should help ease the pain a bit.”

Meanwhile, Yaksini charged at the group, but Rainbow Dash charged forward meeting her blades with her own, electricity crackling around her as she summoned Eclair Farron. Instead of using Zio, Rainbow Dash had her slash Yaksini back with a powerful swing from her blade, “Damn! I don’t think any of these guys have electricity as their weakness!”

“They don’t!” Twilight cried as the fight continued, “Also, they’re all super high leveled!”

“I’ll take out Jack Frost at least!” Trixie said, summoning Elenora, “He’s easy to take down! No offense to yours, Starlight!”

“I get the impression he said none taken!” Starlight assured, slashing Orobas with her scythe, “Go for it!”

Elenora threw two large fireballs at Jack Frost, taking him out instantly. She then turned to High Pixie, and fired cards out of her sleeves at the Fairy Shadow, knocking it down instantly.

“Okay good! If we can keep this momentum going, we can turn this around!” Twilight said.

“Starlight, go!” Trixie said, giving Starlight a High Five.

BATON PASS!!!

Starlight jumped away from Orobas and summoned Morgana, “OUT OF MY SIGHT!!!” she shouted, targeting Yaksini and casting Frei on her, knocking her down.

“I thought Morgana used Ice magic,” Pinkie Pie said.

“Mainly, yeah,” Starlight said, “But I have a means of giving her new spells she wouldn’t normally have, so I gave her a Nuclear spell just in case,” she then turned to Orobas and shifted to another Persona she didn’t normally use, “ANGEL!!!”

The persona that appeared behind Starlight was, interesting. It was a blond haired woman with angel wings, but she was oddly, dressed in what looked like BDSM attire, she even had a blindfold around her eyes, and a chained collar around her neck.

She focused on the light spell she had, which she felt like calling Kouha, and fired it at Orobas, causing golden needles to pierce his body from all side, knocking him to the ground.

“That’s, an interesting look for an angel…” Trixie noted with a raised eyebrow.

“I, don’t know why she looked like that,” Starlight groaned, “But when I fused into her, that’s what came out.”

“Your questionable imagination aside,” Rainbow Dash said, “I got an idea how to deal with High Pixie. Mind letting me take the reigns?”

Starlight shook her head, giving Dash a High Five, which seemed to be a universal symbol among them to let them take the lead in attacking.

BATON PASS!!!

Rainbow Dash raised her sword and glared at High Pixie, “Unleash your power, Eclair Farron!”

Eclair pointed her gun sword at High Pixie, knocking her down to the ground with ease. Starlight wasted no time giving the command to use the All Out Attack, killing them all in one fell swoop. After a brief moment to catch themselves, they rushed to the next floor, not wanting to risk the Reaper chasing them.

Hod: Lvl 6

The next area had a few tough Shadows here and there, but they managed to get by with relative ease. Still, this areas was significantly tougher than the last one, and they were quickly tiring out. Starlight was really beginning to wonder if they would be able to make it to Diamond’s Dungeon tonight.

Starlight attacked the cluster before them right as they turned around, revealing another High Pixie, a Hua Po, and a Koppa Tengu. None of them were all that powerful, so they were able to knock them down with ease. Even though they were weak Shadows, she did manage to get Koppa Tengu to join them. She let go of Bicorn for now, since both of them had Wind Skills, but next time she went to Student Council, she’d have to get him back, in case she spent time with Sunburst afterward.

Hod: Lvl 8

Once they arrived at the eighth floor, they all had to take a second to catch their breath.

“Um, need I remind you that we’re on a timer in these floors?” Twilight pointed out.

“Hey, cut us some slack here,” Rainbow Dash panted, “These fights are tough, and we don’t have the luxury of resting for long.”

“Ooooh! We’re so close to where Diamond is…” Pinkie Pie fussed, “Think we can make it if we rush forward? Avoid any fights on the way?”

“See, I wanna say that we can make it, and we probably can make it,” Trixie folded her arms as the began walking forward, “But we need to consider what we’re up against here. We don’t know what to expect on the tenth floor.”

“Lulamoon’s got a point,” Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her neck, “I’m all for charging ahead, but if we have to fight something big in this condition, we’d be in trouble.”

“There’s a Checkpoint at the Ninth Floor,” Twilight said, “I vote for getting there at least, and resting up till tomorrow.”

Starlight huffed at this, biting her lip nervously. She then felt Pinkie Pie’s arms hold her from behind.

“I know Starlight. I hate it too, but they’re right. We need to make sure we’re fully prepared for what’s ahead,” she said softly. Starlight sighed and nodded. She just hoped nothing happened to make it shift again at Pep Squad tomorrow.

Twilight’s gasp caught their attention, “Girls! A high leveled Shadow has you in its sight! It’s making a beeline for you!”

“Run!” Starlight ordered. The four of them ran forward as quickly as they could, “Twilight, stairs! Where are they!”

“I’m searching…! Damn it to hell! This floor’s so complicated!” she gasped again, “STARLIGHT, WATCH OUT!!!”

Starlight turned to look too late, as the Shadow lashed out at her, knocking her and the group down before taking form. Good news, it was only one. It looked like it was a red oni with long horns, black hair, and wearing a loincloth. In its hands was a scary looking sword.

The bad news, it had a red aura coming off of it, meaning it was very strong.

“Um…! Give me a second! I’m trying to analyze i-”

Too late. The Oni swung its sword right at Starlight. The attack got her in her side, and she screamed in pain, falling to one knee.

“STARLIGHT! Ooooh, this is terrible!” Twilight fussed as the Oni Shadow prepared another spell, this one casting a green shield around itself.

“Well that tells us one this,” Dash said gripping her sword and standing in front of Pinkie Pie, “It probably has a Wind weakness. Well, had I suppose.”

“I’ll help Starlight!” Pinkie Pie said, “Trixie, Dashie, cover me!”

Trixie and Dash nodded and both rushed at the new Shadow. Trixie cast Agilao on him, but he blocked it with ease, slashing Elenora back and causing damage to Trixie as well. Dash meanwhile summoned Eclair Farron and used Zio on the Oni, but he dodged just in time before kicking her back into a wall.

“I’ve got its ID at least!” Twilight said, “It’s name is Rakshasha!”

“That’s a start at least,” Starlight panted, rising to her feet shakily after Serenity healed her, “But with how little energy we have left, I don’t see how we’d get out of this without running!”

Trixie jumped away from Rakshasha’s blade, “Yeah, and he’s blocking the way forward, so if the steps are close by, we’ll have to leave Elysium before reaching the Checkpoint!”

Just as Rakshasha was about to attack again, he stopped and looked around at the sound of someone singing. The voice was high, and haunting, almost like the opera singing Starlight heard in the Velvet Room. A purple wave came over the Shadow, who suddenly looked shaken.

“Wait, what? What’s happening to it?” Twilight asked.

Another melody was heard, this one sounding more triumphant and rallying. Starlight immediately felt invigorated, her attack going up. Based on how everyone’s stances changed, they all felt the same way.

Someone cast Tarukaja on them!

Starlight wasted no time attacking the now terrified Shadow, actually knocking it back. Rainbow Dash followed by summoning her Persona, who slashed wildly with her blade, clashing with the Shadows, who held his ground despite clearly being terrified of something.

Another melody was heard, this one sounding more harsh and biting. This time, it looked like Rakunda was cast on it.

“What in the world…?” Twilight asked, “I hear, singing but, why is it harming the Shadow…?”

“I say, instead of questioning it, we use it!” Trixie said, summoning her Persona, “Light ‘em up, Elenora!”

Elenora appeared behind Trixie and tossed two Agilao fireballs at it, knocking it down as it was a critical hit, “Mistress, what’s the next move!”

“All Out Attack!” Starlight commanded. All four of them brandished their weapons and assaulted the Shadow. They also heard that singing from before, this time the melody sounding downright antagonistic. At the same time, black blades shot out of the ground assaulting the Rakshasha, ripping him apart along with all of their attacks.

Right as the Shadow faded, they heard a familiar rattling of chains. One that made Starlight lock up in fear.

“Oh that’s just what we needed!” Rainbow Dash fussed.

“Shit shit shit shit shit! I don’t know where the stairs are!” Twilight cried frantically.

“This way!” a new voice called out. Starlight turned to get the shock of a lifetime. It was her, the lead singer of the Sirens, Adagio! She was a Witch like them!

“I know where the exit it! Follow me!” Adagio called out, taking off down the hall.

“H-hang on?! Is that a human?!” Twilight asked.

“Question it later!” Trixie said, “Let’s move!” she took Starlight’s hand, and the four of them ran after the new girl. She led them down a few odd paths, but eventually made it to the stairs. Best part, they didn’t run into any Shadows on the way.

Hod: Lvl 9

song: To No One But You - Blue Reflection

Once they reached the rest area, all five of them stood catching their breaths, the newcomer right next to Starlight also panting heavily in exhaustion.

“Are you, alright?” she asked Starlight, who nodded smiling.

“Yeah. Thanks, for the help,” she said. Adagio smiled, but then tensed as Rainbow Dash’s sword appeared right at her neck.

“I think you’ve got some explaining to do,” Rainbow Dash said, her eyes sharp as she glared at the young singer.

“Dashie! She helped us!” Pinkie Pie protested, grabbing Rainbow Dash’s arm, “Please, put your sword away!”

“Nuh uh. Not until we know what her deal is,” Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes, “Remember what Ms. Tia and Twilight said? That guy on the news was killed by a Persona User. This girl’s not only a Persona User, but she’s the lead singer of the group he managed. You guys do the math.”

Adagio looked away, biting her lip trembling.

“Still, that doesn’t mean she’s against us!” Pinkie Pie urged, “She saved our lives!”

“That singing, it was you, wasn’t it?” Starlight asked Adagio, “You used your powers to help us fight the Shadow?” when Adagio nodded, still biting her lip but clearly tearing up, Starlight’s heart melted a bit, “Dash, lower your weapon.”

Dash looked at her wide eyed, “Leader, you can’t be-”

“If she meant us harm, I think we’d already be in danger,” Starlight said. Rainbow sighed and sheathed her sword, and Starlight took Adagio’s hand, “I’m curious though, why did you follow us?”

“I was, curious,” Adagio said softly, “I wanted to know, why you were in this tower.”

“For a number of reasons, really,” Twilight said, “Right now, we’re trying to save someone’s life.”

“S-someone’s trapped here?” Adagio asked wide eyed. Starlight explained a bit about Diamond Tiara’s situation, much as she could without telling her personal business at least. Hearing this, Adagio hugged herself and bit her lip, “The poor thing… now trapped in her own abyss of despair…”

“Y-yeah, something like that,” Trixie said, turning to Rainbow Dash wide eyed. This girl was, certainly dramatic.

“She’s a good friend of mine,” Starlight looked at the way to the tenth floor, “We were going to try and rescue her tonight, but we all used our Personas too much. If you hadn’t come to our aid just now, we’d have died.”

Adagio looked at Starlight intently, “You’re trying to save, your friend…” she looked down and nodded to herself, “Alright, then. I want, to save her too.”

“Wait, just like that?” Twilight asked, “You don’t even know our names.”

“No, but… I want to use my Song, to do the most good,” Adagio held a hand to her heart, “She’s your friend, so I want, to go with you.”

“This sounds really sketchy to me,” Dash folded her arms, “’Sides, you did kill a man, right?”

“He deserved it!” Adagio snapped, suddenly in tears, “For what he did to me…! For what he was going to probably do, to Aria and Sonata…! I…! I had to…! Otherwise… I…!”

“He, was your Dungeon Master, wasn’t he?” Twilight asked, “His Shadow, it was controlling your Dungeon.”

Adagio didn’t answer. She just hugged herself and cried. Starlight couldn’t take this, so she wrapped her arms around Adagio.

“It’s alright,” she said softly, “He was hurting you, and you defended yourself. You’re a good person.”

Adagio’s eyes widened, “I’m, a good person…?”

“My name is Starlight Glimmer,” she said, taking her hands and looking into her eyes, “Yours is, Adagio right?”

She slowly nodded, “Adagio, Dazzle…”

“The name’s Beatrix Lulamoon,” Trixie smiled, “Just call me Trixie.”

“I’m Pinkie Pie,” Pinkie Pie smiled, rubbing her back.

Dash sighed looking away, “Rainbow Dash. And, sorry for scaring you.”

“Just call me Twilight,” Twilight said, “And no, I’m not a wisp. I’m someone from the real world helping from there.”

“It’s, nice to meet all of you,” Adagio gave a small smile.

Starlight nodded in agreement, “If you want to help us, we’ll be coming back here tomorrow night.”

“Then, wait for me,” Adagio said, looking into Starlight’s eyes with so much emotion that it was kind of overwhelming, “I’ll meet you right outside of the door to the tower. Then, we can save your friend.”

“Thank you, Adagio,” Starlight smiled.

Adagio shook her head, “No. Thank you, for saying I’m a good person,” she smiled and hugged Starlight, surprising everyone. Starlight though, felt an intense wave of emotion.

Thank you, Starlight! I love you so much!

Whoa… she only felt love like this from Trixie and Ms. Tia, one being her girlfriend, and the other being made of love almost. This girl though, she seemed to adore Starlight from the get go.

Was this girl okay…? Would Starlight be okay…?

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” she released Starlight and ran through the Checkpoint, leaving the group. For a while, no one, really said anything.

“I am getting, all the red flags from that girl,” Rainbow Dash muttered.

“Yeah, I’m with Rainbow Dash on that one,” Twilight said awkwardly, “Something about how she clung to Starlight just feels, wrong to me. That and her sudden want to help us.”

“I say, we keep an eye on her,” Trixie said, Pinkie Pie nodding in agreement, “She’ll be here tomorrow right? Her powers will be helpful, and even if she was a bit on the intense side, she doesn’t seem like a bad person.”

Starlight nodded in agreement to this. She wasn’t bad, and she didn’t have any malice in her heart. That much she knew for sure. She wasn’t afraid of that.

What worried her, was the intense love she felt from Adagio, all directed at her. Starlight seriously hoped she wasn’t making a bad call here.

Fool – Seekers of Light: 5/10
Magician – Trixie Lulamoon: 8/10
Priestess – Diamond Tiara: 7/10
The Empress – Ms. Tia: 4/10
The Lovers - Pinkamena Diane Pie: 2/10
Chariot – Rainbow Dash: 3/10 LEVEL UP!!!!
Strength - Tokugawa Fluttershy: 1/5
The Devil – Silver Spoon: 3/10
Hermit – Sunburst: 2/10
Transformation - Ms. Luna: 1/10

Click here to check out the Go Fund I'm starting for my parents, and consider either donating or sharing this on your social media accounts.