Sunset had picked up Twilight for school that morning, deciding – with the approval of her parents – that she would shuttle Twilight to and from school. Upon arriving back at Crystal Prep, both of the girls could tell that the air was different as the eyes of the students fell upon them. Sunset glared at some of them, putting everyone on notice that they would assuredly meet the same fate as the five girls who dared to hurt Twilight. How much of what happened to Twilight and Sunset was unknown to them. Was the full account told to them? Was some version of the truth told to them by the five girls? Or were they just making their own speculations?

Honestly, Sunset didn’t care, and neither did Twilight, they knew what happened and that’s all that mattered. Twilight was a little nervous when she had a couple of classes without Sunset in them, of course one of them had Indigo Zap. Twilight tried not to look at her, but she could feel the girl’s eyes on her. She had noticed the cast on Indigo’s right arm, a souvenir from Sunset for her earlier scheme and a testament to what more her girlfriend could’ve done to the jock had Twilight explicitly asked Sunset not to kill them. In hindsight, breaking her legs and arms would be just as effective, but Twilight wasn’t cruel like them.

Later on, lunch came around and Twilight was happy to see Sunset again. The two girls embraced in a hug, and much to Sunset’s surprise, Twilight leaned up and kissed her on the cheek.

“Whoa, okay, what brought that on?” Sunset asked.

“I just missed you, and, well, I think it’s established that we’re a couple. No need to hide it, or our…displays of affection,” said Twilight with a blush on her face.

Sunset smiled and cupped the young genius’ left cheek. “Well, good, ‘cause I’ve been wanting to kiss you. But only if you want me to.”

“I do. I mean, I do right now. If you want?”

Sunset chuckled and kissed Twilight light lips, it was chaste kiss, nothing deep and passionate, she didn’t want to embarrass Twilight after all.

With their affection affirmed before a few passersby, Twilight and Sunset went through the lunch line and headed to an unoccupied table. Sunset immediately took notice of four of the five girls who had threatened her lover, her eyes became dangerous slits as she glared at them. Sunny, Lemon, and Sour had the good sense to look away at that moment, but Indigo held Sunset’s gaze with her own steely glare. It seemed that the jock hadn’t learned her lesson and was probably still thinking about how best to get Twilight away from Sunset. That was fine with Sunset, she was looking forward to breaking Indigo’s legs next.

About a couple of minutes after they sat down and began eating, Sunset and Twilight noticed someone approaching, Sunset immediately shot up when she saw the person was Sugarcoat.

“Um…can I sit with you?” Sugarcoat asked.

“You got a lot of balls coming over here after what you and your friends did to Twilight!” Sunset growled.

Sugarcoat winced at the venom in Sunset’s voice, not that she could blame her. “I know…I’m sorry. This was a mistake I’ll just–”

“Sugarcoat.” Twilight’s words froze the pigtailed girl in place as she looked upon the victim of their crime. “Please sit down.”

“Sparky!”

“She stopped Sour Sweet from hurting me, if she hadn’t…” Twilight shuddered at the thought of what might’ve happened had Sugarcoat not stopped the bipolar girl. Sure, Sunset would’ve been able to heal the damage with her powers, but that doesn’t mean it would’ve healed the psychological scars. “Besides, I’ve been wanting to talk to her.”

Sunset huffed and sat back down next to Twilight. With the okay given, Sugarcoat sat down across from the couple, the air was understandably awkward as all hell.

“You don’t seem to be afraid of me or resent me for my part in what happened. Is that because of what I did to stop Sour?” Sugarcoat asked.

“Part of it, but, truthfully, I don’t think you’re like them. Mostly because of what you told me on the day that we first met. You said you didn’t want to be targeted; you didn’t want to be put through what I was being put through just by being associated with me. You were pretty blunt about it,” said Twilight.

Sugarcoat rubbed her arms as she sighed. “I…I have a kind of condition. You know how most kids don’t have a filter on when they’re talking and just speak their minds, but later on they learn how to not say everything that pops into their heads? That’s kind of what’s up with me. My ‘filter’ doesn’t work right, and as a result I just spit out whatever’s on my mind when it pertains to the truth, no matter how harsh it may sound to the person I’m talking to. Call it Tourette Syndrome or whatever. I try to catch myself before I say what I say, and sometimes I try to make up for it, but it doesn’t always work out. So, I’m sorry if what I said hurt you back then.”

Twilight shook her head. “Actually, you were probably the first person in the entire school to be honest with me, aside from Sunset being honest about how she feels about me. I figured we could’ve been friends had I not been reduced to being the school’s whipping girl, and I get it. If our roles were reversed – I’m not proud of it – but I think I would’ve done the same thing to avoid what was happening to me.”

Sugarcoat smiled a little. “I wouldn’t have blamed you either……are you – I mean – did you mean it when you said you thought we could be friends? You would want to have a friend like me?”

Twilight rubbed the back of her head as she said, “I’m new to having friends, especially girlfriends.” Sunset smirked at her. “But, I know you’re not a bad person, Sugarcoat, you just did what you could to not suffer the same fate as I have here, and I can’t blame you for that. And what makes me sure of that are your actions on that day, you’re not.”

Sugarcoat felt tears begin to form in her eyes, no one had ever said they wanted to be her friend, not without a motive or something to gain. However, before she could get too sentimental about it, she looked to Sunset and asked, “And, Sunset Shimmer, what do you say?”

Sunset crossed her arms and as she closed her eyes for a moment. “I owe you for protecting Twilight, and if Twilight’s willing to trust you, then I will. But, if you do anything that will get her hurt or cross paths with those four bitches, I won’t hesitate to toss you through a wall. Understood?”

Sugarcoat nodded her head. “I do, and, you don’t have to worry about me associating with them…after that day, I’ve cut my ties with them. I just…I couldn’t be around them anymore after what they did, and after what almost happened.”

Twilight pulled at the collar of her shirt as she said, “Um, Sugarcoat, there is something I wanted to know.”

“Okay,” Sugarcoat dabbed her eyes with her napkin. “What is it?”

“Um…well…I’ve heard that you’ve been…ahem…performing certain ‘favors’ around the school to avoid my fate, which have also apparently propelled your popularity. So, I’m just going to ask, are those rumors true?” Twilight asked awkwardly.

“Oh, if you’re referring to the rumors about me performing sexual favors for some of our classmates, then yes, I have,” said Sugarcoat without any hesitation.

Sunset and Twilight blinked.

“Um…wow…I didn’t think you’d own up to that,” said Sunset.

Sugarcoat shrugged. “It is what it is. I’ve performed multiple sexual acts with different students to elevate my status and to keep from being subjected to the same hazing that you’ve been subjected too. And if you’re wondering, I’ve performed for both the male and female students as well.”

Twilight was blushing bright red; she wasn’t expecting Sugarcoat to straight up just say she was doing the other students in the school. “Okay, thanks for being honest. I just want you to know, neither Sunset nor myself will ever ask you to do something like that to us.”

“After what you’ve been through, I can’t imagine sex is on your mind at all. That and given how new your relationship is, you’ll want to take the time to become intimate with each other first,” said Sugarcoat plainly.

Sunset and Twilight blushed in unison as their eyes met for a second, the thought having crossed their minds once or twice.

“If you want any tips or tricks, let me know, I’ve performed for enough girls to know how to spice up your sex life current or future.”

“GETTING ONTO ANOTHER SUBJECT!” Sunset quietly yelled. “There is something I want to know. Do you know what’s up with Indigo and why the fuck she’s obsessed with Twilight?!”

Sugarcoat played around with the food on her tray, she knew this question was coming, and really, Twilight was owed that much. “I’m not a doctor or a psychologist. If anything, I’m an amateur in the latter. But if I had to make any kind of guess, she’s displaying all the classic signs of a stalker. The obsession, the romanticizing of your encounters, the twisting of the facts of your encounters. Her affection seems to stem from the fact that you don’t care about her status, and that you could see her as more than a jock or star athlete.”

Twilight figured that was the case, but having it confirmed helped. As much as she hated what Indigo did to her, she wanted to know why, and thanks to Sugarcoat, Twilight had gotten a little peek through the window. “Thank you, Sugarcoat.”

“You’re owed more, unfortunately, I tried to keep my distance from her to keep from being targeted by Indigo. Close enough to be considered an acquaintance or ‘friend’, but not so close as to be the target of her…ugh… ‘affections’. I’m sorry I can’t give you more insight into her mental state.”

Twilight shook her head and gave a small smile. “No, what you’ve told me is more than I had.” She glanced to Sunset and asked, “Sunset, I know you said you’d protect me, but…would it be possible for you to protect Sugarcoat as well?”

“Stop.” Sugarcoat raised her right hand in a stopping motion. “Don’t do that, I don’t want that. I can still coast on my…ahem…other ‘skills’ to keep from getting targeted. You need Sunset more than I do.”

Sunset shrugged a little. “I wouldn’t be that much of a problem.”

“No, seriously. Because I know, despite the warnings Indigo was given, she’s not done trying to get you back, Twilight. And right now, she needs you around more than I do. Even if it means I get half of what you were getting hit with, I am willing to take it. Probably long overdue.”

Sunset sighed. “Let’s stop talking about this depressing shit, our food’s getting cold.”

The three girls ate their food while also talking about other subjects, for Sugarcoat, it was nice to just talk to people without having to plot and scheme for once or have some kind of ulterior motive. Inside, she was feeling sad, she could’ve had this kind of relationship with Twilight a long time ago, but she was a coward, and because of it she lost out on a good number of years to solidify a friendship, especially with how close they were to graduation at the end of this school year. But perhaps it wasn’t too late, there was nothing saying she couldn’t try and still be a friend later on after high school was done. Plus, she was curious to see where Sunset and Twilight’s relationship went.

Sunset flew through the air on her metallic wings, feeling the wind in her hair as she searched the city. It had been several hours since she had started her patrol, and unfortunately, the pickings were slim tonight. Ever since the Sentinels stepped up their patrols and numbers, it seemed like criminals and the Blood Kings had been laying low. Sunset had flown by a few of the Sentinels on her flight, and some had asked her if she needed assistance, but she respectively declined, stating that she was trying to find the Darkness and get some payback for turning her into a puppet earlier. The Sentinels sympathized with her plight and left her alone.

She had to be careful if she acted too guarded then she could tip off Neighsay. Unfortunately, she couldn’t find anything, and it was a Friday night at that, this was the time for things to go down. With little else to do, and the hour approaching midnight, Sunset made her way back to Shimmer Manor. She had to be discreet, taking the long way as she weaved through the forest in the distance and then backtracked to throw off any potential pursuers. After a quick check to make sure that she wasn’t being followed, Sunset landed at the back porch of the mansion.

The ruby crystal on the Witchblade glowed as it produced the keys that her twin had made for her. Once she unlocked the door and entered, she spotted a red silk robe draped over a coat rack. Sunset smiled, wondering who it was who put it there, between her interdimensional twin and surrogate mother, it was a tossup. Sunset closed the door and locked it, once she had, the Witchblade retracted its armor back into the bracelet form, leaving Sunset – as per usual – nude. She took the robe and put it on, enjoying the feeling of the smooth silk fabric against her skin. Back before she left Equestria, her bed at the castle had silk sheets and they felt amazing against her fur, but against bare skin it felt even better. There were also a pair of slippers on next to the rack, which Sunset put on.

She made her way down the hall and noticed that there was a light on in the living room. Sunset made her way towards there and leaned against the archway when she saw who was there. Celestia was asleep, her head tilted downwards as her chest rose and fell with each breath, and her dimensional twin, Sunset, had her head resting on Celestia’s lap, like a mother letting her child use her as a pillow. All in all, it was an adorable sight to look at, but it still made Shimmer sigh as she shook her head.

“Hey guys, I’m home,” said Shimmer.

Celestia and Sunset slowly woke up, their eyes locked onto Shimmer to which both gave a sigh of relief.

“Hey, Sis, how’d it go out there?” Sunset asked.

“Not great, all the rats are hiding tonight, I couldn’t find a single criminal! Although that might have something to do with the Sentinels stepping up their patrol, they’ve been active a lot tonight,” said Shimmer as she thought about her patrol.

Celestia lowered her head in disappointment. “I’m sorry, if Angelus had a little more power, we could at least tell you what’s going on in their minds.”

“It’s not your fault, it’s Neighsay’s. For now, let’s just head to bed.” As Shimmer made her way towards the stairs she stopped and said, “You know, you guys don’t have to wait up for me.”

“After what happened last time?! Forget it!” Sunset replied.

“I’m your mother now, Sun – uh – Shimmer, so of course I’m going to wait up for you!” Celestia stated.

Shimmer chuckled a little at their overprotectiveness, but it also warmed her heart to know that she had a family like this that worried about her. The trio made their way up the stairs and into their rooms, Celestia’s room was just a couple of doors down from Sunset and Shimmer’s room, with Gaghiel laying down and guarding the door. Sunset and Shimmer decided to share the bedroom, it was mostly at Sunset’s insistence, the Earthly double was still paranoid after the Darkness took control of Shimmer.

After a quick change into some pajamas, Shimmer and Sunset laid down in the latter’s oversized bed. The two of them just lied there awake, staring at the ceiling.

“Can’t sleep, Sis?” Sunset asked.

“Not really…I can’t help but feel like something bad is about to happen,” said Shimmer.

“Don’t overthink it, and if it turns out that’s the case, then we’ll handle it together.”

Shimmer turned onto her left side and looked at Sunset. “So, what’s going on at CPA? How are things after…you know.”

Sunset turned onto her right side and sighed. “It was okay, not sure what kind of rumors are being spread about what happened, but it hasn’t seemed to impact Twilight or me. Oh, right, one the girls who kidnapped Sparky sat with us at lunch.”

“WHAT?!” Shimmer asked with shock and anger.

“Relax, she’s actually not as much of a bitch as I thought she was. Mostly trying to keep the heat off herself, she’s blunt as a bat when she talks, and bonus, she’s the one that saved Sparky from getting stabbed with a pair of scissors.”

Shimmer calmed down a bit, she did recall Sunset telling her that one of the girls did get seriously injured in saving Twilight from getting hurt, so this girl must not really be all bad. “I’m still considering burning down CPA at some point.”

Sunset playfully shoved Shimmer’s right shoulder as she said, “Not without me you’re not!”

Both girls laughed at their dark joke – at least for now it was a joke – and just stared at each other for a little bit.

“It’s weird, when I look at you, I see myself, but at the same time, someone different,” said Shimmer.

“Same here, I’ve always wanted a sibling, never thought I’d get a twin sister, even if it confuses the hell out of the people around us when they try and talk to us.” Sunset reached out with her left hand and gently wrapped it around Shimmer’s right. “Hey, Shim, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Promise me something…” Sunset squeezed a little harder as a pensive look appeared on her face. “Can we…Can we stay sisters? Can we stay family? I mean…I know we’re not from the same dimension, and our experiences are completely different from each other, but…ever since Mom and Dad died, I haven’t had anyone to call family in a long time.”

Shimmer raised an eyebrow in concern. “What about grandma and grandpa? Our aunts and uncles?”

“Not sure if they’re alive in your world, but Grandma and Grandpa are gone. My aunts and uncles, heh, all they wanted was a handout when they found out I was going to be the sole heir. You…” Sunset looked into Shimmer’s eyes, and the former’s were leaking with tears. “You’re the only one I can call my family, the only one I can trust…and I know we don’t know each other that well, and that soon we’ll be off to college and doing our own thing, but…will you still stay my sister? No matter what happens?”

Shimmer squeezed back and smiled at Sunset. “Of course, I will, we are family, I will always be there for you.”

Sunset moved closer to Shimmer and lowered herself to rest her head below her “big” sister’s chin. Shimmer reciprocated by hugging her “little sister” closer to her, both twins felt content in this moment, felt safer than they had ever had in their lives, and it was great. The door to their room was cracked a little, on the other side was Celestia, checking on them as a mother would. She listened to their conversation and felt her heart swell with emotion, Celestia had declared Sunset – her Sunset – as her daughter, and as far as she was concerned, she considered this second Sunset just as much her daughter, and swore to watch over her if she would allow.

“Sleep tight, my dear Sunsets,” Celestia whispered as she gently closed it and went back to her room.

It was a nice Saturday morning, the rays of sunshine broke through the curtained windows and began to illuminate the room with its orangey yellow glow. It seemed that not being a morning person ran in the family, as both Sunset’s tried to avoid the sun’s light. Shimmer was laying out sprawled on the bed, the two of them someone having kicked off the blanket. Sunset was still sleeping next to Shimmer, but somehow managed to lay her head on Shimmer’s ample chest, and she was drooling on them.

On the nightstand, Shimmer’s cellphone buzzed. It continued to do so again and again, to the point that it was hard to ignore. Shimmer awoke, blinking the sleep from her eyes as she groaned and looked down at herself, spotting her twin sleeping atop her dirty pillows. It would be sweet if Sunset wasn’t drooling all over them.

Gross, thought Shimmer groggily. The buzzing got Shimmer’s attention again, her eyes lazily drifting to the nightstand and groaning in annoyance. Okay, okay…Faust, I swear it better be good…

Shimmer leaned up a little, and in so doing, making Sunset’s head slide down and hit the mattress. She started a little but then crawled up some to rest her head back on Shimmer and went back to snoring. Shimmer groped for her cellphone and pawed the nightstand like a drunk until her hand finally grasped something. She brought the phone to her face, squinting at the light that the device emitted as she read the caller ID.

Shining Armor? Shimmer swiped the icon to “answer” and said, “What’s up…it’s early, y’know?”

{Sunset there’s something big going on!}

Shimmer shook her head, trying to sober herself as she took in Shining’s words. “Whoa, wait, what’s going on?”

{We’ve been put on notice that there’s an operation going down, tonight. They’re not saying much, but there are rumors going around that we’re making a move against the Blood Kings!}

Shimmer sat up right so fast that it tossed her twin off her chest and onto the other side of the bed. Sunset snapped awake as she looked around with frantic eyes.

“Huh, who, what??! What’s happening?!” Sunset sputtered.

“Are you sure?” Shimmer asked.

{Like I said, only a rumor, but we have to take what we can get.}

“Do you know where it’s going to happen?”

{They’re keeping it pretty tight-lipped right now, no details, time, place, it’s all top secret. Apparently, they don’t want any potential leaks getting to the Blood Kings before its time. I’ll try and get some details if I can.}

“Okay, just be careful,” said Shimmer as she ended the call.

“What’s going on, Sis?” Sunset asked.

“Hope you’re in the mood to train hard, ‘cause we might be in for some bad shit tonight.”

Sombra had closed his eyes, thinking hard about what Stygian showed him. Was it really true? Was Darkness in control of his actions up until now?

“The deception of control is believing that you’re in control, Sombra.”

A ghostly image of Stygian appeared before him, Sombra stood up and asked, “Why do you care so much? I don’t see any other of the past hosts comin’ to give me some sage-like advice.”

Stygian smiled a little. “Perhaps we’re more entwined than you are led to believe.” With a wave of the phantom’s hand, the entire room warped into something else, another vision was playing out before Sombra.

They were no longer in the kingdom that Stygian hailed from, if Sombra had to venture a guess it looked more like Italy based on the housing and the people. Stygian was older now, about middle aged, and he was dressed in a dark cloak. He had been wandering for ages, trying to find a way to kill himself, but every attempt ended the same way. The Darkness would not allow him to die, no matter how severe the injury. He once threw himself off a mountain side, bashing his skull and reducing his body to a bloody mess at the bottom, but it didn’t matter. The Darkness just stitched him back up, like nothing ever happened.

He tried to starve himself to death, no food or water, but again, the Darkness prevented this. It just activated the armor and used it to keep him alive, forcing him into dark places so that it could heal him again and again and again. It became painfully clear to Stygian that the Darkness would never allow him to die, to allow his soul to leave his body and rejoin his lover Platinum.

“Why don’t you just give up…I won’t stop trying to kill myself…” Stygian weakly proclaimed.

<^> Heh-heh-heh, you think yourself the first one to try and out last me? Oh, little Stygian, you’re hardly even the hundredth. Each host eventually realizes that it’s futile, you can keep trying to kill yourself, but it will end the same way, you’ll succumb to my will and do as I say. So, I’ll allow you to meander as long as you wish, I’ve existed for eons, if there is anything in existence that knows of patience, it’s me. A few years is but a drop in the vast ocean of time. <^>

“Bastard,” Sombra cursed.

Unfortunately, it was starting to wear on Stygian, eventually he just gave up on trying to starve himself and just ate when he was hungry, still trying to think of different ways to off himself so that the Darkness wouldn’t have the last word. That is until he met someone in that small town called “L’incrocio”. He would just occupy space in the alleyways, a vagrant nobody cared about, which was fine with him, they didn’t need to know that he was once a king, that he was a sorcerer, that he harbored an entity of destruction and evil.

There was one person that would always come to him, a young girl that reminded him much of his long since dead wife and love of his life. She had violet hair, but her complexion was closer to his, a light ashen gray. This girl would always come to him, carrying a basket of violet lilies, and offer him some bread. He would take it and thank her, then she’d go on about her day selling flowers. She’d soon start having conversations with him, and as much as he tried not to, he was enjoying their talks. Stygian had cast a spell on himself that acted as a universal translator, allowing him to understand her and she him.

“I learned that this young girl’s name was Giglio Cuore Re. She preferred Rei. I grew to care for her, and eventually, love her…”

The scenes changed to a night when Rei was assaulted by two men, unfortunately for them, Sombra roamed the night, and he made them disappear. Literally, he opened a black hole and had them sucked into it, Stygian thought it would be better than having the girl he was fond of watch him eviscerate the men. Of course, this only deepened their affection and eventually got them to marry. Although, before they said, “I do” Stygian told her about the Darkness, how it would be impossible for him to sire a child and live to see it grow up.

“She said to me, ‘I can see it in your eyes. You’ve lived through so much and bared so much pain. If it is for only one night, I will release you from this burden.’ I warned her that it would only be a burden passed onto the child, the Darkness would just haunt him. And she replied, ‘Then I will find a way to help our child, there is magic in my homeland too, different from the one you practice. Perhaps fate has brought you here for a reason.’ And so, we consummated our love, and in so doing…I died.”

Scenes fast forwarded, showing the child of Stygian growing up and eventually having the Darkness awaken in him, the years continued as this family made it its duty to keep the Darkness under control, to keep it from destroying the world, a great sacrifice that was never told, heroes that were never sung of. All of whom, Sombra felt an eerily strong connection with. The scenes kept flying by, showing one host after the other, until it stopped with Sombra’s father. He had never even laid eyes on the man, Sombra was given up for adoption the moment he was born, never knew his mother or father’s names or what they looked like, but now he saw them clear as day. That’s when it struck him, his head snapping in Stygian’s direction as the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

“No way…y-you’re–?!”

“Her name, in translation, was Lily Heart King, and I was once King Stygian. You are my descendant, Sombra King. Kind of ironic that you would be adopted into a family bearing a similar last name, wouldn’t you agree?” The stunned expression was all the answer he got from Sombra. “I know this is a shock, but you have to understand what we’ve been through in order to try and stop what’s happening. The Darkness has twisted what you wanted, and it’s time to take the blinders of my son, or grandson as the case may be.”

Sombra took a moment to process all this, Stygian was right, he never wanted to rule a city. At least not in this way, using kids as weapons against cops, turning them into monsters, fighting a war against the Angelus, it wasn’t his way, it wasn’t his plan. He still wanted vengeance against Lupos family for slaughtering his family, and the love of his life.

“Okay, I get it, we’re shuttin’ this shit down, no more!” Sombra declared.

<^> You act as if you have a say in the matter. <^>

The scenes were drowned in a sea of black, the tar-like inky dark started to undulate and writhe as several eel tentacles arose and stared down the former host and the current host.

<^> I am in charge, Sombra, you are my puppet. <^>

“Says you!” Sombra declared.

<^> Feh, I should’ve done this from the start. <^>

Several black tendrils whipped out at Sombra and wrapped themselves around his arms, legs, torso, neck, and head. Stygian rushed towards Sombra, but a great force threw the spirit of the former host far away until he was gone. Sombra struggled against the Darkness’ hold, his will was strong, but the creature before him was stronger.

“FUCKING DEMON SHIT! I’LL MAKE YOU PAY!” Sombra shouted.

<^> Not in this lifetime, I’m afraid. Now, why don’t we see what’s happening outside? <^>

A large portal opened, inside the portal it showed a room, Sombra was sitting on a chair, although he was looking from his point of view.

Young Blood came running into the room, panting heavily as he stopped before the makeshift throne that was made for Sombra.

“What do ya want?” Sombra asked.

Young Blood gulped down some air and then looked up, he gasped when he saw that Sombra’s eyes were pitch black. “Y-You okay, Boss?”

“I am, now what is it?”

Young Blood shook his head and straightened up. “Yeah, we got a call from that priest dude I told you about, says he wants a meeting with you. Says he has something that you want that could win the whole war for you!”

Sombra rolled his eyes. “Tell that priest he can shove whatever he’s sellin’ up his ass.”

“But, Boss, Mr. King, he said it was important! He said to mention it was called the uh…uh…ah shit, what did he call it…the – the Prism! Yeah, he said he has the ‘Prism’! Whatever the fuck that is.”

Sombra practically jumped out of his throne when he heard this. “Where and when?”

“What?” Young Blood asked.

With great speed, Sombra dashed from the throne and appeared right in front of Young Blood, startling the young man. Sombra reached out and gripped Young Blood by his shirt and hoisted him up as he glared at him. “Where and when does he want to meet?!”

The night drew upon the city, the sun had finally set, and the plans of the man known as Neighsay were about to come to fruition. Maria Mare stared out of her office window, knowing full well what was about to happen tonight, and the hand she had in making it come to pass.

Looking back on it, Maria wished she had done things differently, but really though, what were her choices? Neighsay had said that the girl known as the Magdalena couldn’t attack or do anything while she was reciting that prayer, she could’ve attacked Neighsay and made him drop that object, or pushed Magdalena down to make her stop reciting the prayer long enough for Celestia to get free and take Neighsay out. But then what was the alternative? Angelus was planning on taking over the city, no, not just the city, further beyond, she wanted to bring the whole world under her vision of what “order” was.

She recalled her earlier conversation with Neighsay, just before this whole operation started.

“Look, instead of telling me how you can’t do it, figure out how to make it happen!” Maria stated before hanging up the phone. She exhaled in frustration as she rubbed her temples.

“Problems?”

Maria looked up from her desk and glared at Neighsay, who saw fit to wear his “Sunday Best” when meeting her. “It’ll get done by the time you want…”

“Excellent,” said Neighsay. “Your contributions will be looked favorably upon when this is over.” The Stealer of Light turned around and prepared to leave.

“Wait!” Maria called out, making Neighsay pause as he turned around. “There’s something I need to know. I have to look out for the people of this city, you say once you get your power, you’ll be some agent of the divine or some crap like that. I need to know, what are your plans for this city?”

Neighsay took a moment to consider this, he had been so focused on obtaining the powers of the Angelus and the Darkness that he hadn’t considered what he was going to do with the city. “Huh, well that certainly is a question. I’ll most definitely need a base of operations, won’t I? As for the citizens, they’ll serve as an example to the rest of the world. A testament to what I can bring to everyone.”

“I’m familiar with some religions, I know that there are certain ones that don’t look favorably upon such things as same sex relationships. So, I want to know what you’ll do to the citizens of my city that are of that orientation,” Maria explained.

Neighsay rubbed his chin, the sound of metal scraping made Maria cringe with irritation of the noise. “A conundrum, the holy writ does say that those of that nature are committers of sin. However, I’m also aware that there those who follow the word of God despite their knowing of sinning. Hmm, my best answer will be to eliminate them all.”

Maria’s eyes practically bulged from her skull, her heart raced, and her body shook. “Y-You can’t!”

“I am not without mercy, if they repent their ways, they will be safe. If not, I will also do all in my newfound power to ensure that they pass on to a good afterlife for following His will.”

Maria looked around the room, making sure she was alone. She opened the door and looked around to ensure that most of her staff was gone as well. Once she was assured of this, Maria went back into her office, she pulled out her cellphone and found Celestia’s cell number. Maria had fibbed to Neighsay that she had contacted Celestia, but her call history showed that she hadn’t made one call to her girlfriend since that night. Thankfully, Celestia didn’t try to call her either. Taking a deep breath, Maria dialed her girlfriend’s number and waited, it took all of three seconds for Celestia to answer.

{Hello, Maria?!}

“Yes, Celly, it’s me…it’s good to hear your voice,” said Maria with a smile.

{Oh my god, are you alright?! Do you need help?!}

“No, I just…I just wanted to say that I was sorry.” Maria sat in her mayoral chair and stared out towards the city. “I wasn’t the best girlfriend I should’ve been, and truthfully, I wasn’t the best mayor this city deserved.”

{What are you talking about? Yes, you were a little aggressive in some things, but it was something we could’ve worked on. And what do you mean you weren’t the best mayor? You’re the best one that Canterlot City has had in years! And I’m not just saying that because we’re lovers and that I voted for you.}

The two women shared a chuckle over the line. “You’re right, there are things we need to work on, mostly me. But I should’ve stopped that girl when she had you pinned on the wall that night.”

{Maria, you weren’t in a good position to stop it, there’s no telling what Neighsay had up his sleeve! He could’ve had a knife in his robe or something that could’ve killed you. Or worse, my student could’ve killed you.}

Maria raised an eyebrow. “Wait, you know who that Magdalena girl is?”

{She’s a student at my school, I just found out that Neighsay did something to her, brainwashed her. She would never side with someone like him, I swear, Maria, we’ll make him pay, and stop him from whatever he’s planning.}

Maria tapped the armrest of her chair and looked out towards the night sky. “I am the mayor of this city, I’ve done things that I’m not proud of in the shadows, things that…I wish I could take back, but I don’t know if I’ll get the chance.”

{Don’t talk like that, we’re going to make it through this.}

“Listen, Celly, Neighsay’s planning to attack Sombra and get his demon thing. It’s going to happen tonight.”

{I heard about that, but we don’t know where it is Witchblade and…uh, Ember, are out there right now trying to find out where this is happening.}

“The Metroscape Mall, the new one that's being constructed around west Canterlot!”

{What?! Are you sure?!}

“Yes, but that’s not the only thing, you have to warn Witchblade that that’s only – GAH!”

Maria felt pain erupt from her chest, when she looked down, she saw that a hole had appeared, something phantasmal was covered in her blood, painting the invisible weapon in crimson and giving it the form of a curved crescent. The weapon shimmered and then took on physical form. It was a black and gold crescent that had stabbed her, the blade was then pulled out with a wet “shlick” sound. The chair was turned around and revealed another of the Sentinels. His body was silver in color, bearing black and gold armor, his wings were black as night, with tinges of gold in them. He wore a cowl that was connected to his armor, and from it were strands of silver hair. His eyes were pools of tar with white dots for the pupils, and in his right hand he wielded an ornate scythe.

“Who…Who are…?”

“I am Azrael, the Bringer of Death. Lord Neighsay told me to keep an eye on you for fear of you tipping off his enemies. I take no pleasure in this, I detest him, but we are without the ability to fight against him. If you wish, I can make sure that you feel no pain for these last moments,” spoke Azrael.

Maria nodded, with a wave of the Sentinel’s hand, he released a silver aura that did as he said, numbing the pain enough for Maria to speak with Celestia.

{MARIA?! MARIA WHAT HAPPENED?! WHO’S THAT TALKING?!}

“Looks like…I got careless, Celly. Neighsay had a Sentinel here hiding…I – he stabbed me, it’s bad…”

{NO! Just wait I can make it to you! Just hold on–!!!}

“CELLY!” Maria shouted, making Celestia quiet down on the other end. “It won’t matter…and even if you did get here, this guy will just try and take you to Neighsay.” Maria glanced back towards Azrael. “Am I right?”

Azrael nodded.

“Could you turn me around, I want to look at my city.”

Azrael walked towards the chair and gently turned it around so that Maria could face the window and look out into Canterlot City, her city, her kingdom.

“Celly…I love you…don’t let this fucker win…Win and live…find someone who will treat you better than I did…someone who can love you from their very soul…”

Maria could hear Celestia’s heartbreaking sobs on the other end of the phone, she wished she could hug her or see her face one last time.

“C’mon, Celly, say something, I don’t have much more time…”

{I love you, Maria Mare, I love you so much! I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…!}

“The last…part…is in…downtown…goodnight.” Maria ended the call.

With her last bit of strength, she searched her phone for a picture of herself and Celestia, she found one that she was particularly fond of. It wasn’t at some elaborate date, it was just the two of them sitting down on her sofa and watching some movie, they looked and acted like a couple of teenagers that night, but it was so much fun that it was hard to not feel happy about it. She looked one last time towards the city, the lights dotting the skyline and making it look like a city made of gemstones. It was nice…