Today's Horoscope (Virgo): Don't bite off more than you can chew.

Morning

Today is Veteran's Day. There is no school.

Twilight, Pinkie, Cadance, and I are going to Zodiac later today.

Before that, though, there's another matter to attend to: Rarity is taking all the girls shopping for dresses for the Fall Formal. Instead of getting dragged along for what will likely be a boring and innuendo-filled day of that, I'm going to go shop for my own outfit.

Daytime

It doesn't take me long to find a suit I like: a charcoal sport coat and matching pants with a navy blue dress shirt. I opt not to buy a tie, but I do buy new dress shoes. After I pay for my new suit, I text Twilight to see how the girls are doing.

They've been shopping for almost three hours and so far none of them has decided on a dress yet. I don't want to get roped into watching the girls shop all day, so I claim I have some more shopping to do, then put my phone away.

I swing by the dorm to drop off my purchases, then head out to lunch. That pizza buffet Twilight and I went to on a date is a good place, so I make my way there.

Surprisingly, it isn't very busy today, and there's plenty of food to choose from. However, one table in particular catches my attention.

Chrysalis, that CEO I met at Vinyl's eye doctor and have seen on the news a couple of times, is sitting at a party booth with seven other people. Most of them are children; the youngest looks to be about seven or eight, while the oldest is slightly older than me...probably around twenty. Curious, I decide to sit down at a table not far from their booth.

Chrysalis' gaze drifts to me, and she does a double-take. Then she returns to a conversation with the oldest person at the table. They all look like her, for the most part. The oldest is a guy; the second oldest is a girl who's probably still in high school, wearing fashionable clothes and not looking up from her phone even as she eats. There isn't much pizza on her plate; it looks like she's more into salad than carbs. Two slightly younger girls who appear to be twins are chatting animatedly as they swap pizza slices back and forth. The other three—the youngest—are all making a huge mess and running around laughing.

Chrysalis sighs. "Papillon, put down that phone and take those kids to the game room."

"Whatever, Mom," the fashionable girl with the phone says.

"Now," Chrysalis says impatiently.

"Ugh. Fine! Come on, brats." The girl stands up—not bothering to put her phone away—and leads the little kids off to the game room.

"She should show you more respect, Mother," the older boy says peevishly. "And can you really afford her ridiculous phone bill?"

"It'll be fine, Skeeter," Chrysalis says tiredly. "We're not exactly on the way to the gutter."

"No, we're just on our way to losing everything we have! She's texting away her college fund!"

Chrysalis rolls her eyes. "Like Papillon's going to bother with college," she says. "She'll latch onto some guy and bleed him dry like a tick." She gives Skeeter a dark look. "Like some of your fathers tried to do to me."

Skeeter looks angry. "That...was uncalled for, Mother," he says. He stands up and heads for the buffet line, his walk stiff and angry.

"Wow, harsh, Mom," one of the twins says.

Chrysalis sighs. "I'll apologize later. Right now, I just want him to shut up for a little while."

"Who could blame you?" the other twin says.

Skeeter returns, slams his tray down, and announces he's going to the bathroom. The twins wander off to see what their siblings are up to in the game room. Chrysalis sighs. She notices me watching them, and gives me a halfhearted smile. "I love my children, I really do. It's just..."

"You have seven kids?" I ask.

"Yes...and I never married any of their fathers. Well...for more than a week or two." Chrysalis smirks. "I'm not one for commitment...always focused on my career and my children." She sighs. "My career..." She laughs. "I guess that's...not going to be an issue for much longer..."

"I heard about that," I say. "I don't really follow financial news, but...you're about to lose your company, right?"

She nods. "It's not a question of if anymore, it's a question of when. I can only stonewall that asshole Sombra for so much longer." She sighs. "Then I'm going to have to sell everything I own and liquidate all my stock options just to make ends meet." She looks in the direction of the game room. "It's going to be hard on them..."

"So that's why you're here at the cheapo pizza place?" I ask. "Because of money troubles?"

Chrysalis laughs. "No, no! I'm here because my children love it. Well, most of them." She wrinkles her nose. "Skeeter hates eating at 'common' places, even though he's the most worried about our money, and Papillon...well...she's always on a diet for no reason whatsoever."

It occurs to me that this must be an amazing and formidable woman, to balance the stress of managing a major corporation with the stress of being a mother of seven without a husband...

"I'm Flash Sentry," I say, extending a hand. "I go to Canterlot High."

Chrysalis takes my hand and shakes it. "Nice to meet you," she says. "Take some free advice, kid: enjoy being young while you can. When you get older, life will eat you alive."

All of Chrysalis' kids return at once, like some kind of bizarre human swarm. I go back to eating my pizza, watching the way they interact with each other and their mother.

I'm just about full when I get a text from Twilight. She wants me to meet her, Cadance, and Pinkie at the mall in two hours.

I decide to head to the mall early and kill time shopping for a birthday present for Rainbow Dash. I note down a number of things she might like, then head to the food court to meet up with the others. I quickly find Twilight and Pinkie seated at a table; Cadance is nowhere in sight.

"Hi Flash!" Twilight says as I join them. "Find anything good to wear Friday?"

"Yeah," I say. "How about you?"

"Oh, we all found just the right dresses," Twilight says, smiling. She looks around for a minute, then lowers her voice. "Cadance is waiting outside with our equipment," she says. "She didn't think bringing that stuff into the mall was a good idea..."

I nod. "How about Pinkie?" I look at Pinkie. "Do you have a weapon yet?"

Pinkie grins. "Uh-huh!"

"What'd you decide on?"

"Oh, you'll see..."

Twilight finishes up her hot dog, drains half her soda in one gulp, and crams most of a soft pretzel into her mouth. "Leffko," she mumbles around the pretzel, standing and heading for the exit.

"You know you're gonna go broke feeding her, right?" Pinkie says as we follow Twilight.

"Nah...she eats a lot, but she eats cheap." Pinkie giggles.

We find Cadance's SUV after a few minutes of roaming the mall parking lot. She greets us, then we look around to make sure the coast is clear...

Zodiac

Pinkie watches the glowing texts floating by, enraptured. "So...this is all the really nasty stuff people say behind your back on Canterbook?" She shudders.

"Ignore it," Twilight and I both say.

"It's hard to ignore sometimes, but try," Cadance says. "Trust me...you're better off. Just...let it become a blur."

Pinkie nods, swallowing heavily. "So...where are the monster thingies?"

"Inside the mall," Cadance says. "That's usually how Shadows operate. It's only when the Zodiac Shadows show up that they wander around outside of buildings. I'm...not really sure why that is."

"You think we'll run into that other Persona user?" Twilight wonders.

"I hope not," I say. "She's part of the reason we need to train."

"If I pick up any sign of her, I'll let you know," Cadance says. She taps her phone. "Persona!"

Aphrodite appears. //I'm not sensing her,// Cadance says. //There's a lot of Shadows in the mall...some of them are pretty strong. Stay on the first floor...the stronger ones are on the second and third floors.//

"Got it," Twilight says. "Let's get our stuff together."

I reach into the back of Cadance's SUV and pull out three backpacks, handing Twilight and Pinkie theirs before shouldering my own. I hand Twilight her rapier, then pull out my axe. I frown. "I don't see a weapon back here for Pinkie..."

"Oh, mine's in my bag," Pinkie says cheerfully. She opens up her backpack and pulls out a long, shiny black leather whip.

Twilight stares at her. "You're kidding."

Pinkie takes a few steps away, winds up, and lets fly with her whip; it makes a sharp whu-krak! sound.

"I'm...sort of terrified now," I say.

"Me too," Twilight says, eyes wide.

Pinkie smirks at us, looping her whip around her waist with a flick of her wrist.

I shake my head. "Okay. Let's...let's just go fight some Shadows..."

We enter the mall, which looks absolutely creepy in the dark monochrome red wash of Zodiac. Several of the weak blob Shadows are lurking near the entrance; upon seeing us, they rush with a horrifying gurgling noise. These are wearing red butterfly masks with a Roman numeral 'II' engraved on them.

Strike Attack

I charge in, cleaving one with my axe. It shudders under the blow, but doesn't disappear. "Huh...these things have gotten stronger..."

"I've got it!" Pinkie declares.

Strike Attack

She slings her whip around, then cracks it against the Shadow's mask. It explodes into bubbles of dark mist and evaporates.

Twilight shakes her head and summons Athena; Athena unleashes an electric attack that strikes the remaining Shadows.

Mazio

They all twitch and shudder as they melt halfway into the floor, looking like pools of spilled ink with masks floating in them.

//They're all stunned...you can finish them off now!//

The three of us charge in, weapons swinging. In a matter of seconds, the Shadows have all been destroyed.

"Whee, that was fun!" Pinkie says. "I was kinda hoping for more of a challenge, though..."

Assault Dive

At precisely that moment, a furious-looking black lion slams into her, sending her flying.

"PINKIE!" Twilight yells. She rushes over to check on Pinkie, leaving me to face down the lion. Strangely, it's chained to a giant iron ball; the ball has a blue mask bolted onto it with the number XI etched upon it.

Strike Attack

It roars and swings the iron ball at me. I jump out of the way and summon Chiron, who rushes the lion with his flaming axe, slashing at its neck.

Cleave

It staggers, its paws sliding out from under it.

Strike Attack

I charge in and use my own axe to finish it off, cleaving its head in half. It melts into the floor and dissolves.

"Is Pinkie okay?"

"Yeah, I'm...just a little rattled," Pinkie says. She's already on her feet. "Uhh...we've got a little problem here, though..."

I look up and around.

Six more of those lions have surrounded us.

//It's okay! They're weak to fire!//

Then, I hear a strange sound...almost like motorcycles.

Three huge...things show up, joining the lions. They look like giant motorcycle wheels with huge steel spikes jutting from the hubs. The top half of each wheel is covered by a brown metal fender in the shape of a lion's mane. At the front of each is a golden lion-shaped mask with the Roman numeral "VII".

"Okay...I think I want the little blob thingies back," Pinkie whimpers.

//I'll see what I can find out about those new Shadows,// Cadance says. //Just...do your best!//

"I can't fight this many at once!" I yell. "Chiron can't do that hit-them-all thing Athena does!"

The app on my phone flashes; the Fool card is replaced with the Chariot card.

A new Persona?

"PERSONA!" I yell, slapping the phone's screen. The image explodes into blue shards of light, and...

Thou art I, and I am Thou...I foresaw this battle, and have come to aid thee...know that my name is Eligor, young warrior...

A red-armored knight on a magnificent steed appears, lance at the ready.

Maragi

His horse rears, and he spins his lance above his head; a ring of flames sweeps out from it, striking all the Shadows. The lions all fall to the ground; the wheels recoil slightly, but seem largely unfazed.

//The wheels are weak to electricity!// Cadance says.

Twilight nods. "Athena!"

Mazio

Athena appears, unleashing her electric assault on all our enemies. The wheels crash to the ground, but the lions seem to be agitated by the electric assault, as one by one, they stand back up.

"Oh no you don't!" Pinkie cries. She charges forward, snapping her whip against one of the lions.

Strike Attack

It explodes into motes of shadow. "Hyaa!" Pinkie darts over to the next lion, once again snapping her whip at it.

Strike Attack

It connects soundly, and the lion falls to the ground and melts into shadow.

Assault Dive

The next lion lunges at Pinkie, attempting to tear out her throat. She dances out of the way, striking it in the flank with her whip. It staggers, then turns and stalks her.

Slash Attack

Twilight lunges in behind it, skewering it with her rapier. It dissipates into an inky mist and vanishes.

Maragi

I summon Eligor again, unleashing the wide-scale fire attack once more. The remaining lions explode into wisps of black smoke, but the three wheels rise from the ground and rev angrily, bearing down on us.

"AH!" Pinkie cries. "How'd they get back up? They're big dumb unicycles!"

Strike Attack

One of the wheels rushes forward, slamming into Pinkie. She screams as she's flung several yards.

"PINKIE!" Twilight yells.

Mazio

She summons Athena, using her electric attack to stun the wheels again. She then rushes over to Pinkie to heal her.

Dia

Pinkie gets up, looking pissed. "That HURT," she complains. "EUPHROSYNE!"

Slam Dance

Pinkie's Persona appears, arms spread behind her like an airplane as she charges straight for the nearest wheel, which is getting back up. She hip-checks it, knocking it back down, then leaps into the air, spins around, tucks into a somersault, and drops her butt right on the idly spinning wheel. It dissolves into dark motes and sinks into the floor.

Pinkie staggers, and Euphrosyne disappears. "Whoa," she says dizzily.

Strike Attack

The remaining two wheels get up. One of them rushes right for Twilight. I yell for her to dodge, but it's too late; she's down. Before I can reach her, the other one has hit me, sending me flying. I struggle to stand up, but I took a pretty solid hit...

Pinkie pulls something out of her bag and throws it. A bright flash lights up the entire room, blinding me. I feel a hand wrap around my wrist, followed by the sensation of being dragged.

When my eyesight clears, I'm outside the mall, lying next to a dazed Twilight. Twilight sits up, looking around. "What?"

Pinkie collapses next to us, panting heavily. "Whew...almost...didn't make it..."

"Are you three okay?" Cadance asks, rushing toward us. Her face is pale, and she's shaking.

Media

Twilight groans and summons Athena. Waves of healing light spill over each of the three of us. I push myself to my feet; I'm sore as hell, but I don't seem to be injured...

"Get in the car," Cadance says. Suddenly, the world around us returns to normal.

"I'm taking you three to the emergency room to get checked out..."

Evening

"It was a hit-and-run," Cadance says. "They're lucky to be alive..."

Her father is hovering over the three of us, frowning. "Well...I'll have to see the X-rays to be certain, but...just by examining them, they don't seem to have any broken bones...no concussions..." He shakes his head. "People these days drive like idiots..."

The three of us spend a miserable two hours in the emergency room, being X-rayed, poked, prodded, and examined by Cadance's father. Finally, he gives us the all-clear to go home, advising us to rest and take it easy.

"Those Shadows could have killed us," Twilight says. "They were way stronger than anything we've faced before."

"Maybe you're levelling up, so the enemies are levelling up too?" Pinkie suggests.

"This isn't a game, Pinkie," Twilight grouses.

"You know," I say, "it's pretty weird that those Shadows were all...well..."

"Lions?" Twilight says. "Yeah...that was strange..." She frowns. "Do you think somebody sent those Shadows after us?"

"I'm willing to bet on it," I say.

Back at the dorm, we endure a lot of questioning, but we stick to our cover story: we were at the mall with Cadance doing some shopping, we got hit by a crazed hit-and-run driver in the parking lot, and we're all just shaken up and sore. We eat dinner and head up to our rooms to rest.

I can't help but worry about our enemy. It doesn't really matter whether it's Sunset Shimmer or not...whoever's gunning for us is dangerous, and they showed us just how dangerous they are today.