Zodiac

As the texts begin crawling around, Rarity starts scanning them, a look of mortification on her face. "Ignore it," we all say.

"Right," Rarity says. She doesn't look too convinced; her eyes are troubled, and keep flicking to the floating text.

Cadance opens the trunk; we each pull out our supply packs and put them on. Pinkie pulls her whip out of hers as Twilight and I grab our weapons. Rainbow straps on her knives. Rarity buckles a belt with a holster around her waist, then checks the clip on a semiautomatic pistol before holstering it. She slides four additional clips into loops on her belt.

"I never woulda pegged you for knowing how to use a gun, Rarity," Rainbow says.

Rarity smirks and flips her hair. "Hidden depths, darling," she says.

"Just be careful with your ammo," Cadance says. "I can only get so much at a time without raising too many questions." She looks around. "Is everybody ready?"

"Ready," we all say.

"Alright." Cadance summons Aphrodite. //I'm reading lots of Shadows in the mall. I don't sense Eris or anything too tough for you to handle. But be careful you don't get overwhelmed.//

"Let's go," I say. We all head for the doors and walk in.

Shadows are milling about all over the place. Several near the entrance boil up to form four pairs of human-shaped figures clad in brown burlap robes, linked together by numerous spears piercing their limbs and torsos. Each figure in each pair is wearing a mask with the Roman numeral 'V' engraved on the forehead. One pair glows brightly and unleashes a lightning bolt at Twilight.

Zionga

The lightning courses over her body harmlessly and dissipates into the ground. The Shadows reel.

Strike Attack

I charge forward and swing my axe at the pair that shot at Twilight. They drop to the ground. I charge the next pair in the line, dropping them with another swing.

Zionga

The third pair avoids my strike and counters with a lightning blast that knocks me back to the girls.

Strike Attack

Pinkie rushes forward and snaps her whip at the pair that got me as I brace myself on my axe. They go down. She summons Euphrosyne, who hip-checks the last pair, knocking them flat.

Slam Dance

//Now, everyone! Here's your chance!//

We pile in on the Shadows, pummeling them into nothingness. As they dissipate, a massive horned beetle drops down from above.

Swift Strike

Its wings buzz, and it suddenly plows into all of us in a sweeping circle, striking us all with its horn.

"Ewww, big icky bug," Pinkie complains.

Pierce Attack

Rarity draws her gun and fires a round at the beetle's eyes. Before her bullet even strikes, a huge, semi-translucent mirror appears; Rarity's bullet rebounds and hits her in the shoulder. She cries out in pain.

"Rarity!" Twilight cries. "ATHENA!"

Diarama

Athena appears and heals Rarity.

"Are you okay?" Pinkie asks.

Rarity nods sickly. "Y-yes...just...thankful that only hit me in the shoulder."

//It looks like this one repels physical attacks,// Cadance says.

"We noticed," Rainbow says. "Let's see how it handles wind. PERSONA!"

Garula

Nike appears and unleashes a massive wind blast at the beetle. It staggers.

"My turn!" Pinkie declares. "EUPHROSYNE!"

Hamaon

Pinkie's Persona appears. A fountain of glowing white confetti explodes out of her hair, surrounding the beetle. The confetti falls to the ground, disappearing and leaving the Shadow completely untouched.

"Aww," Pinkie whines.

"My turn." I scroll through my Personas as the beetle regards us dispassionately. One Persona I have yet to summon catches my eye...

I choose the Persona I was granted on Christmas Eve...the ultimate form of the Magician Arcana.

"MERLIN!"

At first, a cold, grey stone appears in front of me. Then, as if drawn by watercolors, a sword appears in the stone, its blade shining, its hilt gilded but tarnished. Then, years' worth of ivy and vine creep up the length of the sword, completely ensnaring it. Gradually, an ancient, wizened figure rises like smoke from the meeting of sword and stone. Clad in colorful robes depicting moons, suns, and stars, and a pointy, broad-brimmed hat festooned with bells, the ancient wizard holds a gnarled wooden staff in one hand; a gold crown floats above the other. A flowing white beard falls from his face in long, swirled waves, and the sunken eyes in his wrinkled face glow with power.

Agidyne

With a sweep of his staff, Merlin unleashes a searing wave of flames which engulf the beetle, incinerating it.

"Whoa," Rainbow says. "When the hell did you get that one?"

"Umm..." I scratch the back of my head. "I've had that one...since before Rarity's birthday..."

"And you didn't think to use it then?" Rarity demands.

"Uhh..."

Rarity shakes her head. "I can see now why that mysterious rhyming woman showed up when she did. Forgive me, but..."

"I know, I know," I say as Merlin faded away. "But we're going to change all that, right?"

"Right," Twilight says, wrapping her arms around my right arm and squeezing it. "All of us. Together."

For the next two hours, we fight every wandering group of Shadows we approach. Whenever any of us get tired and need to rest, we hang back while the others do the fighting. By taking turns fighting and resting, we're able to clear dozens of Shadows; some of the battles are pathetically easy, while others are more difficult. A few times, one of the girls is seriously hurt, and has to hang back to be healed.

By the time we're all starting to get tired, we've taken out more than half of the Shadows in the mall.

//You're all looking pretty tired...head for the entrance. It's time to call it a day.//

"Yeah, I'm beat," Rainbow says.

"I need time to rest up and freshen myself up before my party," Rarity says.

"I need time to set up your party," Pinkie says.

As we return to the wing of the mall we entered from, Cadance suddenly calls out to us. //Be careful! I'm sensing five powerful Shadows converging on—//

With a terrifying roar, five lion Shadows surround us. They're larger than the lions we've faced in the past...and there's something else different about them.

Each of the five Shadows is a different color: black, red, yellow, green, and blue. The massive balls they're chained to are solid gold, and the masks bolted onto them are metallic red.

"Not more lions," Pinkie moans. "The lions were bad enough last time..."

"Lions again," Twilight says seriously, settling into a defensive stance. "We need to be careful..."

"Cadance, can you scan them?" I ask.

//There's some interference...sorry. I can't get a read on them. Just...be careful, okay?//

"I've got this," I say. "YEE NAALDLOOSHII!"

Mamudo

Yee Naaldlooshii appears, howling as bubbling coils of blackness rise up from the ground, ensnaring the five lions. When the darkness fades, the lions remain unscathed.

"You don't got this," Rainbow says.

//That's not going to work on these!//

Zionga

The black lion unleashes a bolt of lightning at me. Twilight jumps in front of me; the lightning courses across her body and dissipates harmlessly.

Bufula

The blue lion roars; dozens of icicles stream out of its mouth, striking Twilight. She screams as she crumples to the ground.

"TWILIGHT!"

Rarity steps forward. "BASTET!"

Diarama

Rarity's Persona appears and heals Twilight.

Twilight sits up, shaking her head groggily. "I...I'm alright."

Agilao

The red lion belches a gout of flames at Rainbow which she barely manages to dodge. "PERSONA!"

Garula

Nike appears, returning fire with a wind blast which drives the red lion back.

Magarula

The green lion steps forward and howls, unleashing a powerful wind blast which drives all of us back.

"Bad kitty!" Pinkie yells, snapping her whip at the green lion.

Kill Rush

The yellow lion charges forward and slams into her, sending her flying.

Twilight stands up, rubbing her shoulder. "Electricity, ice, fire, wind, and direct attacks," she says, pointing at each of the lions in turn. "That means their weaknesses are probably..." She taps her phone. "PERSONA!"

Zionga

Athena appears, blasting the green lion with a powerful thunderbolt. It roars as it falls to the ground. Twilight follows up with a shaky thrust of her rapier. She's looking tired...

Bufula

"PERSONA!" Rarity yells again. Bastet appears and unleashes an ice attack against the red lion. She shoots it twice in the head, then slumps over.

Cruel Attack

The blue lion leaps at Rainbow, mauling her before she can summon her Persona. Rainbow goes down in a heap.

Strike Attack

I rush over and smash my axe into the lion's head, then swing my axe up underneath its chin in an uppercut that sends it flying. "UNDINE!"

Mediarama

Undine spreads a healing wave across all of us, soothing our aches and pains, but not our fatigue.

Rainbow grimaces as she picks up her knives and looks at the various bruises covering her arms. "Ugh..."

The black lion suddenly roars forcefully, shaking the ground. The lions all retreat, gathering around it.

//Something's happening...! LOOK OUT!!//

The five Shadows begin to glow red and rise into the air. The golden balls they're chained to intertwine, and the lions blur and change shape...

With a painfully bright flash of light, the five lion Shadows are replaced by a giant, gleaming robot with a massive sword.

"Oh, FUCK THIS!" Rainbow yells.

"Oh. My. God." Pinkie stares up at the robot, her hair going completely flat.

"This...isn't good," Twilight says, staring in horror at the robot.

"You have got to be kidding," Rarity says.

"Cadance? What the hell's going on?"

//I don't know! I'm trying to figure it out...hang on!//

Heat Wave

The robot swings its sword, unleashing a pressure wave which sends us all flying.

"We...are so...incredibly...screwed," Rainbow moans as she picks herself up.

Mediarama

I summon Undine to heal all of us again.

Zionga

Twilight summons Athena, who attacks with a lightning bolt. Sparks explode across the robot's body, but it remains steady.

Rarity frowns as she stares up at the Shadow. "I'm...afraid...I'm all tapped out, darlings," she says.

"Don't worry, we've got you. Just...just try to relax," Pinkie says. "PERSONA!"

Slam Dance

Euphrosyne appears, speeding toward the giant Shadow with a deadly hip-check...

...which does absolutely no damage.

"Lightning seemed to work," I say. "TAKE-MIKAZUCHI!"

Zionga

Take-Mikazuchi appears, blasting the robot with lightning. This time, absolutely nothing happens. It glares at me and raises one arm, firing several sharp ice crystals at me.

Bufula

The pain from the attack is excruciating...

"NIKE!"

Power Slash

Rainbow's Persona swoops in and slashes at the robot's head. It staggers, then swats Nike away. Nike goes into a wild spiral dive and vanishes.

"There's...there's just no way to beat this thing," Rainbow moans. "We're all too tired..."

"It's not like you to just give up like that, Rainbow Dash," Twilight says.

"Uh, hello? I've never had to fight a giant robot when I'm totally exhausted before! Even I have my limits!"

"What'll we do?" Pinkie whines.

The robot raises its sword...

"IZANAGI!"

An unfamiliar Persona wearing a black trenchcoat and wielding an admittedly awesome-looking spear appears out of nowhere. Its eyes glow as it spins its spear overhead; it hurls a massive ball of electricity at the robot's head. Small explosions ripple across the Shadow's surface.

"ORPHEUS!"

Yet another unfamiliar Persona appears; projecting an enormous fireball which knocks the Shadow flat on its ass.

"What the hell?"

Two teenagers, a boy and a girl, drop down in front of us. The boy has short silver-grey hair and wears some kind of high-collared black uniform jacket over a white dress shirt and black slacks. A pair of black-rimmed glasses is perched on his face, and he has a katana in one hand. The girl has short reddish-brown hair that's tied up in a high ponytail, and wears a black school uniform with a short skirt. A red armband which says SEES is tied around her left arm, and she has a small gun in a holster on her belt. She's holding a naginata.

The boy reaches up and pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Issho ni?"

"Un!" the girl replies.

The boy smiles grimly and makes a downward-pulling motion with his right hand, which fills with blue flames. "PIXIE!"

The girl pulls her gun from its holster and points it at her head, pulling the trigger. "HUA PO!"

---

Garula

Agilao

The robot, which has just risen to its feet, is buffeted by a powerful wind, then slammed by a tremendous fireball. The fire spreads all across its surface, which ripples with explosions.

---

"SARASVATI!" the boy yells.

Bufula

An ice storm rains down on the robot, disrupting its counterattack.

"Nice, Narukami-kun!" the girl says. "KIKURI-HIME!"

Mediarama

A flood of healing energy washes over us all; I can feel all the day's aches and pains fading away. I look over at the girls, and see that even the bruises on Rainbow Dash's arms are gone.

---

"GABRIEL!" the boy yells.

Heat Wave

An armored angel appears; with one swing of the angel's holy sword, a wave of sheer force slams into the robot, leaving deep dents in its torso.

"MOTHER HARLOT!"

Ziodyne

The girl calls forth a nightmare riding a demon, which calls down a thunderbolt that blinds us all temporarily and shakes the ground with the concussive force of its impact. The Shadow splits apart into the five lions again, all of which crouch low and hiss angrily.

//Whoever they are, they're wearing it down!//

The girl turns and smiles at us. "Don't worry," she says with a heavy accent. She turns to the boy. "Ima da, Narukami-kun!"

"Ah," the boy says, nodding.

---

"OUKUNINUSHI!"

Blade of Fury

A cutting force rips through all the lions.

"KING FROST!"

Mabufula

An intense wave of cold spreads through the lions. The blue lion is the only one unaffected; the red lion lets out a yowl and falls. The girl weaves between the lions, spinning her naginata, and slashes the red lion's throat in passing, ending up on the opposite side from where she began.

"Holy crap these two are good," Rainbow says, eyes wide.

"Yeah, they are," Twilight says. "But who are they...?"

The boy turns to me, a superior smirk on his face. "Are you getting it now, newbie?" he says with no trace of an accent.

...newbie?

Mediarama

The yellow lion roars into the sky; a shaft of green light washes over the lions, which all rise to their paws. They look uncertain, but don't seem any more willing to back away from this fight.

---

"SHIISAA!" the boy calls. An Eastern lion-dog-thing appears.

Marakukaja

Golden light surrounds all of us.

"HOKUTO SEIKUN!" the girl yells.

Virus Breath

A foul purple mist issues forth from the latest Persona summoned by the strange girl; the lions all growl as it seeps into their skin.

---

//I think they're almost finished!//

"Got it," the boy says. "One more, Kotone?"

"Un!"

The boy grins. "LEANAN SIDHE!"

Mazionga

Thunderbolts rain down on the lions; the green lion screams and explodes into globs of black goo which quickly dissolve into shadowy mist. With a smirk, the boy charges the black lion and cleaves its flank.

"RAPHAEL!" The girl summons yet another powerful angel, who descends swiftly upon the remaining lions.

Deathbound

The angel's attack tears through the lions, who join their green brother in oblivion.

//It's over,// Cadance says with a sigh of relief.

The boy and the girl turn to us—no, turn to me—and lock gazes with me.

I can see it...

Somehow, I can see it...

Twilight steps forward. "Thank you for your help," she says. "But...who are you?"

The boy snorts and turns away, smirking. "Just two passing-through Wild Cards," he says. He and the girl begin walking away. He raises one hand in salutation, not looking back.

The girl looks back and smiles at us, giving a small wave. "Ja ne!" Slowly, the boy and the girl fade away, disappearing into a royal blue mist that wasn't there before, and suddenly isn't there again.

"Oh...kay..." Rainbow says. "That...was weird. But awesome!"

"Let's...let's just go home for now," I say. We all head for the exit, and once we're outside, we leave Zodiac.