Tang Ri Shan

My Little Pony Equestria Girls- Project Tantabus

(This is a sequel to Equestria Girls- Seeing Double)

Prologue:

Somewhere in Canterlot city:

It was a clear moonlight night, and the full moon hung in the darkened sky like an enormous milky-white jewel. Accompanying the moon were dozens and dozens of sparkling stars that made the night sky shimmer like glitter.

The silvery moon shone down on the skyscrapers of Canterlot city, which was all aglow with lights of its own, streetlights illuminating street corners, car lights chasing each other up and down the roads ahead of the vehicles that they belonged to, and the lights streaming through the windows of the various shops and businesses that were still open at this hour.

As the rays of the moon filtered down through the night sky, they seemed to seek out one building in particular. Though smaller than the skyscrapers that crowded around it, this building seemed to suck in the moon's rays like a vacuum, making the building itself glow softly in the pale light until it looked like it was made of pearl. The only other difference that could be seen about this particular building was that the moonlight was the only light that emanated from the building itself, as all other lights had been turned off, giving the appearance that the building was closed down and empty.

But it wasn't. Any of the moon's light that happened to find a small window on the ground level of the building would shine upon a small basement laboratory that was nearly packed full of electronic equipment, beakers and tubes, and everything that would make up a scientist's laboratory. Besides the light streaming in through the window, the only other light in the room came from a group of laptop computers that were set on desks at the opposite ends of the room.

At one of the computers, a young woman with pink skin and purple hair with teal streaks in a white lab coat was typing in a sequence of commands into the computer, which set one of the nearby electronic devices to whir and beep. The young woman did not look up, but kept her eyes glued to her computer screen, which was showing several bar and pie graphs made up of a multitude of various colors. As her eyes swept over each and every graph, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a miniature tape recorder. Pressing the record button, she spoke into the device in a clear voice.

"Audio research log of Starlight Glimmer, Crystal Prep Academy 9th grade student, October 31st, today my partners and I continue our observation of the energy signatures present in and around Canterlot City in our mission to discover the origination of the strange energy spikes and lights that have been present in the last few months."

The girl paused, and then continued.

"As we enter our 60th day of observation with little or no reading changes occurring in the last two months, our resolve has begun to wear thin. Nonetheless, we remain vigilant with the comfort that our efforts will pay off one day. When the next energy spike occurs, we will finally be able to pinpoint these strange energies back to their source, and upon locating that source, we will…

"BLOOOOOOOW!" Starlight jumped as a loud voice yelled behind her.

"Razzle Dazzle! Glitz and Glam!

Turn it all up! It's a spectacle!"

Starlight's look of surprise faded into a frown of annoyance as she realized what the racket behind her was. "Lemon?" She asked, slowly spinning around in his chair.

Behind him, a teenage girl with pink skin and green hair was leaning back in her chair with her feet up on the desk, singing along (rather horribly) to the music that was blaring through her headphones.

"Razzle Dazzle! Glitz and Glam!

Turn it all up, it's a spectacle!" She sang

"Lemon!" Starlight exclaimed louder, but the teenage girl either didn't seem to hear her. In fact if anything her voice suddenly got louder.

"Gimmie more! Razzle Dazzle!

Glitter eyes, big surprise, lights, Camera! OOOOAAAOOOOAAAAAOOOAAOOAAOAAHHHH!" She threw back her head and howled, her mouth wide open.

Gnashing his teeth, Starlight stood up in her chair and screamed "LEMON ZEST!"

The girl stopped singing and opened her eyes. Tilting her head back she slid her headphones off her ears and flashed Sunburst an upside-down annoyed look. "What?" She snapped.

"You just ruined my log entry for this evening!" Starlight scolded as she sat back down in her own seat again, and then paused as her ears picked up the music still blaring from the earphones. "What are you listening to anyway?"

"Only the latest single released by Countess Coloratura" Lemon Zest's upside down frown melted into an upside down smile and she began nodding her head to the music again.

Starlight raised an eyebrow in clear confusion. "Countess who-ra?"

Starlight rolled her eyes and swiveled her chair around until she was sitting facing Starlight. "Countess Coloratura is only one of the biggest pop stars in the country! Seriously Starlight, what rock have you been buried under?" She chuckled at that last remark, then leaned back in her chair and sighed happily "She's my fave!" She admitted, sounding like a little kid in a candy store.

Starlight looked confused. "I thought you said Sapphire Shores was your 'fave'"

Lemon Zest snorted as she sat up. "Oh please! That was sooooo last season" She scoffed, flipping her hand for some added measure. "Countess Coloratura is the new in!"

"Be that as it may, we're supposed to be working" Starlight reminded her. "So could you please keep it down, and please try to take this seriously?"

Lemon Zest frowned, but she did stop the song and place her phone and earbuds into her pocket

"Take what seriously?" A third voice spoke up for the first time as a girl with blue skin and silvery-white hair glanced up from her own computer screen and narrowed her eyes at Starlight. "There's nothing serious about this Starlight"

"Of course there is, Sugarcoat!" Starlight argued. "Just because you've always thought of this project as a joke doesn't mean we shouldn't at least try to take it seriously!"

Sugarcoat rolled her eyes. "Oh really? What was the purpose of this project again, to track the supposed mystical energy that has been spiking in and around Canterlot?" She accented the 'mystical' aspect with her fingers and Lemon Zest chuckled. "Be honest Starlight, that doesn't even sound serious, it sounds like a joke."

"I know, I know" Starlight sighed, sitting back in her chair "But now that I've actually looked at the data that's been gathered so far, I'm starting to think we may have been on to something"

"Really?" Lemon Zest paused from spinning her chair in a circle to glance up at Starlight

"Huh, yeah right. If you ask me, Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer have been spending far to long in that lab of theirs" Sugarcoat scoffed.

Starlight felt her mouth curve down into a frown, but didn't say anything.

"Hey, isn't Twilight Sparkle an alumni?" Lemon asked.

"Of course" Starlight nodded at her. "According to Principle Cinch, she was the best this school had ever seen. Aced every test, top of every class, graduated with highest honors last year."

"Okay, I get it, she was a smart kid!" Lemon went back to spinning in her chair.

"And this is supposedly her project we're doing, right?" Sugarcoat rolled her eyes again. "So why isn't she here watching graphs and charts that haven't changed for days on end while listening to you prattle about how awesome this project sounds when in fact it is completely useless?

"That was uncalled for, Sugarcoat" A soft but firm voice answered making all three teens glance towards the door to see a tall man with charcoal grey skin and jet black hair step out of the shadows by the door. Starlight gasped and Lemon Zest stopped spinning.

"Dean Sombra!" Sugarcoat rose from her chair, a suddenly fearful expression on his face. "W-w-we didn't hear you come in"

The gray-skinned man adjusted his black tie and stepped into the room, his eyes never leaving Sugarcoat's face. "I would prefer you not disrespect our graduated students or their work. Remember, Crystal Prep High has a reputation. All of our graduated students have gone to become successful people upon leaving us, and Twilight Sparkle is no exception."

The man paused and his gaze swept over all three girls. "In fact, if memory serves, she was hired the day after her graduation occurred and started working the very next day. That girl is a credit to this school and you three should feel honored to be assisting her in any way."

Sugarcoat sighed. "Yes Dean Sombra"

"But Dean Sombra" Starlight spoke up. "She wasn't alone in that department, was she?"

Dean Sombra's mouth curled up into a smile. "Correct, Starlight, she was not alone. We cannot forget the contributions made by her partner, Sunset Shimmer"

Sugarcoat snorted. "A suck up, that's all she was"

Starlight glared at her. "Hey, she was my friend!"

"If she was your friend, why did you stop hanging out with her?" Sugarcoat smirked as Starlight gasped.

"That's enough, Sugarcoat!" Dean Sombra stepped in between the girls. "Besides..." The edges of Dean Sombra's mouth curled upwards. "If you think this project is 'a joke', then why are you here?"

Sugarcoat's mouth dropped open as Starlight smirked triumphantly and Lemon Zest burst out laughing.

"Well Sugarcoat?" Dean Sombra pressed, waiting for an answer

"I-I need the grade sir" Sugarcoat admitted, then narrowed her eyes and spat. "Not everyone at CPA is as smart as her" She aimed that last word at Starlight, whose smirk faded.

"Exactly" Dean Sombra placed a hand on Starlight's shoulder. "Starlight Glimmer is one of our most talented students, and if she says that this project should be taken seriously, than you should heed her"

"Yes sir. I'm sorry" Sugarcoat said as she sat down at her desk again, not sounding sorry at all.

Rather than call out Sugarcoat's lack of emotion, Starlight turned to look up at the dean. "What brings you down here this late, Dean Sombra?" She asked.

The man removed his hand and glanced down at her. "I thought I heard a racket coming from down here. It sounded like someone was yelling. Do you know what that noise was?" He asked.

"That wasn't yelling sir. That was just Lemon Zest doing her Countess Colo-retch-ura impression". Sugarcoat spoke up from her corner, causing Starlight to chuckle.

"Hey!" Lemon Zest exclaimed, bringing her chair to a stop and rising out of it, wobbling dizzily on her feet.

"She has a point there, Lemon." Starlight added, causing the green-haired girl to glower at her. "You're not exactly the best singer around"

"Ha Ha Ha! Very….funny" Lemon Zest's glare melted and her tone dampened as her eyes drifted down to the screen of Starlight's computer, and her eyes widened. "Uh Starlight? What's up with your computer?" She cried out, pointing to the screen, which showed the bar graphs and pie charts all suddenly rising to maximum possible measurements.

Starlight whipped around and Sugarcoat glanced up just as a shrill beeping began ringing from the computer. Starlight's face lit up. "A massive energy reading! Just like the other spikes mentioned in Sunset's data. I knew it! I knew they were on to something!" She exclaimed as she quickly took her seat.

Sugarcoat and Lemon Zest exchanged a bewildered glance, then glanced up as Dean Sombra cleared his throat. His eyes narrowed as he stared at them "Well, what are you waiting for?" He barked. Sugarcoat and Lemon Zest quickly turned back to their computers and began rapidly typing out commands.

"Launching signature isolation program now!" Sugarcoat announced.

"I'm ready at my end!" Lemon Zest replied a few seconds later, pulling up a satellite map of Canterlot City.

"Come on, come on. Just stay like that for a few more minutes" Sunburst urged under her breath as his screen was filled with a series of waving multicolored lines surrounding a spinning wheel.

Then Sugarcoat's computer beeped twice and a line of code appeared on the screen. "Got it! Energy signature captured! Input the following code: 40.18-52 and 12.19-140!" Sugarcoat read out the code, then whipped around at Lemon Zest's fingers flew over her keypad. A few seconds later, her computer beeped.

"I've got a lock! Following the signal now!" Lemon Zest exclaimed as the map on her screen began to zoom into a section on the outskirts of Canterlot City.

"Well, it looks like someone owes someone an apology" Starlight smirked at Sugarcoat

"Don't get ahead of yourself. We haven't confirmed anything yet" Sugarcoat retorted.

"Just admit it. I was right and you were wrong"

Sugarcoat's frown deepened "I'm not admitting anything until I see...!"

"Girls!" Dean Sombra stepped in between the two girls, who were almost nose to nose with each other. "Do not start this again, I mean it!"

"Sorry" Starlight and Sugarcoat muttered unanimously, each staring coldly at the other.

"WOAH DUDE!"Lemon Zest suddenly yelled, making both girls turn towards her to find her staring at her screen with a look a sheer astonishment.

"What is it?" Starlight rushed to the girl's side, and her eyes widened. "Woah!" She gasped as Sugarcoat and Dean Sombra crowded in to look. "What are those?"

"They look like…people" Sombra answered.

He was right, kind of. On the screen was an image of three winged girls in what appeared to be an aerial battle. Two of them were surrounded by a rainbow of light which made their faces impossible to identify, but the third girl, the one the other two were attacking, was cowering behind a wall of green energy.

"When was the last time you saw people do that?" Sugarcoat asked aloud. But no one answered her. Then, as they watched, red and purple rays of light shot out from the first two girls, there was a flash of blinding white light and the image suddenly faded.

"Hey!" Lemon Zest leaned forward and tapped a few keys, but nothing happened. "What happened?"

Starlight glanced over at her computer, but all the graphs had dulled. "We lost the signal" She said grimly.

"No matter. You were able to capture it at least" Sombra straightened up. "Do we know where the signal came from?"

"Hang on" Lemon Zest squinted at her screen. She smiled and looked up. "Yep, GPS coordination pinpoints the source at Canterlot High School." Her face frowned. "Hey, isn't that the school we're playing against?"

"Yes, for the Equestrian Games" Sugarcoat's eyes narrowed. "Rather ironic that we finally get a signature of magical energy and it happens to originate from one of our biggest rival schools"

"Indeed" Sombra stroked his chin. Regardless, I think Principle Cinch will want to hear about this. Compile all the data you have and be ready to present to her on Monday, alright?"

"Monday?" Starlight yelped. "That soon?"

"The Equestrian Games is only a few days away" Dean Sombra smiled down at her. "If Crystal Prep is going to be facing 'magic' in the games, then we need to learn all we can about this 'magic' so we can be ready to overcome it." His eyes narrowed as he gazed at each of the three girls. "Can I count on the three of you to prepare us?"

"Yes Dean Sombra" the three girls nodded.

Dean Sombra nodded curtly. "Then I will leave you to your work." With that, he turned and strode out the door, closing it behind him. As he walked down the darkened corridors, he reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, and dialed a number.

"It's me" He said after a minute. "We've just had a new sighting, three new potentials" His face broke into a smile at the reaction of the person on the other end. "Yes, my students have traced the signal to Canterlot High, the same as last time."

Dean Sombra chuckled at the other person's remark. "I know, this is a great day for the organization." He paused near the main doors of the building "Yes I will tell Principle Cinch first thing tomorrow." Another pause "I agree. The time for waiting is over" Dean Sombra pushed open the doors with one hand and strode out into the night. As he did, he said one final phrase into his phone "Project Tantabus is Go".

And Cut.

Well, I told you I'd get a sequel out, and now you've got one!

I'm throwing the prologue out now to give you a sense of what's coming up, but I'm still finalizing the plot-line so it may be some time before I start uploading chapters. There are several spoilers in this prologue, see if you can find them!

As I've mentioned before, I enjoyed the third Equestria Girls movie, but I one thing I did not enjoy was the name. 'The Friendship Games', what kind of name is that? It doesn't really scream serious competition, which is what we ended up with in this movie. I changed the name to 'Equestrian Games' for a specific reason. Think anyone can figure out what that is?

READ AND REVIEW! Seriously, the more reviews I get the faster a new chapter might come up!

Until next time!