Chapter 05: Riddle Me This
Marceline's Sun
Chapter 05: Riddle Me This
By Wanderer D
Present Day…
"You should really talk to her."
Marceline looked up at Sunset. "Talk to who?"
"Bubblegum."
Marceline frowned, then crossed her arms and leaned back on the chair. She took in the sights around them.
They had traveled all night and arrived at the Haunted Swamp in time to avoid the sunlight, and now lounged on the deck of a lifted cottage that overlooked most of the inhabited areas of the swamp, where ghosts and ghouls spent the days of their unlives in relative peace and quiet.
SNAP!
"Oww!"
Except for the occasional L33t-e-gator attack, if you got too close to their territory, of course. But since neither Sunset nor Marceline were near them, that wasn't her problem. No, the problem was that they were supposed to be taking a break in light of Sunset's unanticipated reunion with people from the other world, and also to a lesser extent, Marceline's breakup with Bubblegum a couple of months back in the Glass Kingdom.
She was treating it as a low-key separation, but when Sunset had caught her messing around with Ash of all wizards, it had led to a long, long discussion about relationships. And she meant long. Her sister tended to go on very drawn and emotional lectures that sort of meandered around almost as bad as that lady they had met… Princess Celestia.
And to be honest, even if Sunset had been right and Ash was indeed a punk-ass wizard-wannabe that was aiming way out of his league and only achieved her orbit on rebound, (Sunset's words, not hers), she was still kind of wishing she had let her be for a bit.
As if last week hadn't proved it enough, Sunset needed to chill. And getting under Marceline's nerves was not the way to do it.
"We're giving each other time, Sunset," she groused, drinking the red out of her cherry margarita in one sip just to prove a point. "Just let it rest. We're all immortal here. I'll catch up with her later."
Sunset sighed. "Fine, sorry, I know it was bad… I'll keep my mouth shut for now."
Marceline cringed. "Sorry sis, it's just still a bit raw… and I said a lot of things that were hurtful, I just need to give her time too."
"I get it."
Marceline didn't miss the tone in Sunset's voice and sat up to face her. "So… you're going to visit?"
Sunset nodded, glancing deeper into the swamp, her shoulders slumping. "Yeah… seeing Celestia and Fluttershy, then talking about Bubblegum reminded me that I haven't been here in around a hundred years. I should visit the shrine."
Marceline nodded, rubbing her arm. She much preferred it when Sunset was on the same wavelength as her and they could have fun. But she also understood too well how nostalgia could keep you down.
Their tour was technically over for now and they didn't have any other bookings for the next few months. This was usually when they would part ways for a bit of time to give each other space. That's why Sunset hadn't been around when Bubblegum and her had their fallout fighting… that lizard. Larvo.
But that was also how they both had adventures that they could share with each other later on, and not too long ago… about a hundred or so years ago, Sunset had a friend who she had met here in the swamplands while adventuring.
"You should go then," Marceline said.
"Oh, no, Marcie, I'm here with you—"
Marceline reached over to pat Sunset in the head. "Hey. It's me, sis. I know she meant a lot to you. Go say hi. I'll be alright. There's places here for me to explore too."
Sunset grinned, leaning forward to give her a hug. "Alright. Thanks, Marcie." A moment later, she had taken flight into the swamp.
Shrugging, Marceline finished her drink, then stretched thoroughly before floating over to the town.
Built by humanoids and later also populated by ghouls and ghosts who had emerged from the Hunted Swamp, Skanky Bay was almost charming. Wooden houses with decks above the water, lightbulbs strung from house to house over the streets. Vendors and creatures of all sorts just trading and living the best they could.
Marceline had been there once before, when the town had been inaugurated. It was kinda cool to see how things had changed. Not to mention, her favorite place was this little restaurant that—
"What do you mean you ran out of fries?!"
"What?!" Marceline flew over to where a female blue humanoid with rainbow colored hair was staring angrily at the manager, who didn't look too impressed.
"I mean exactly what I said!" the manager, a humanoid neon-green half-lizard replied impassively. "We ran out just a few minutes ago."
"B-but you told me that if I managed to recover your menus from the L33t-e-gators I could have a bucket today!" the humanoid talking to her, who was wearing several layers of bandages covering most of her body and face, snapped. "Ugh, this is so uncool!"
"Yes, well—" he was interrupted when Marceline lifted him up. "M-Marceline the Vampire Queen!"
"You! What does she mean that there's no fries?! You should have fries!" Marceline growled. "That's not cool, bro! I was totally looking to have some here tonight!"
"W-well as I was telling her…" he motioned at the bandaged humanoid, who was blinking at her in confusion, "We ran out! A Shelf Hunter stormed the kitchen and stole the whole batch!"
"Ugh!" Marceline dropped him on the floor. "Then why did you promise her some if you couldn't pay her?"
"Er…" the manager cleared his throat.
"I can't believe we came all the way here to get fries and you're out!"
"Um… we?" the manager gasped. "Y-you don't mean your sister…"
Marceline nodded. "She's had a bad week so I told her you made the best fries in Ooo."
"Umm… I-I uh…"
Marceline took a deep breath. "Alright, bro. Here's the deal: I'll get your stuff back from the Shelf Hunter, but you get my order done fast and free."
"D-deal!" The manager stood up, grinning. "And um, can I get a picture of you and your sister eating here?"
Marceline leaned in, giving him a glare. "You're pushing it."
"R-right."
"Hey!"
Marceline slowed down for the bandaged humanoid to catch up. She couldn't tell much about her, other than she seemed to be fit and really liked bandages. The young woman was wearing a pith hat with large aviator glasses resting above the brim. Through the thorough mummy-job, she could see a pair of red irises peeking at her. "Yeah?"
"Hey, so… mind if I tag along? I can help you deal with these guys. I can't believe I went through all the effort earlier to get the menus back only for this to happen!" She clenched her fist. "I will have my revenge!"
"Hey, easy there," Marceline said, laughing. She floated around the girl, humming to herself. "So you took out some L33t-e-gators? That's not half-bad."
"Heh. It's pretty awesome," the girl agreed. "Name's Daring Do." She extended her hand, and Marceline shook it with a grin. "With a name like that it sounds you're ready for adventure."
"I definitely am!" Daring responded. "That's my gig: rock, sports, and adventure!"
"We're more like Punk Goth, but, I guess you can come with if you manage to keep up, Do, but I'm not slowing down for anyone, I have a concert later tonight, and I can't miss it."
"I can keep up!" Daring said. "The question is, can you?" And then she took off, jumping skillfully from tree to tree, and even using a rope with a grappling hook to swing over larger expanses of water.
"Not bad, Daring Do!" Marceline shouted. "But you're going the wrong way!"
In the end, Marceline had only allowed Daring Do to suffer for a few more minutes before her need for fries and a hint of pity made her sweep lower to pick up the protesting adventurer and fly them both to the Shelf Hunter's hideout.
"So what's a Shelf-Hunter like?" Daring asked.
"What?" Marceline looked down at the humanoid with some surprise. "You went out to hunt one and you don't know what it looks like?"
"Hey, my usual hunting grounds are more… urban."
"Alright, fair," Marceline muttered. "I haven't seen one for some time… I think last time it was with… Bonnie."
"Oh? I sense a story there."
"None of your business." Marceline growled. "We broke up recently, that's all you need to know."
"So… you're into girls, huh?"
"I can hear the smug smile in your face," Marceline responded, unable to hide her own grin."But yeah, and boys." Her smile faded. "Anyway, we encountered one a long time ago. It's like… a humanoid with a Possum's head and tail, usually overweight, and stinky. They tend to be misogynist, egocentric bastards with delusions of grandeur. Clothes are optional for some of them."
"Ugh. Sounds disgusting."
"They are. But you have to be careful. As ugly, blatant and disgusting as they are, they can be very convincing if they catch you at a bad time," Maceline said, "the one Bonnie and I had to stop had convinced an entire town to isolate themselves from the rest of Ooo and to worship him as their king. We arrived just in time before they starved to death."
"Lucky them," Daring muttered. "Seriously though, who would believe such a creature?"
"You'd be surprised… but I think we're here." She slowed and hovered down to deposit Daring Do safely on the ground before hiding next to her. A few feet away, the entrance to a collapsed building of some sort, half looking like the buildings of the city, half like a temple, burrowed deeper underground… and in front of it was a blob that merrily whistled as it bounced back and forth in front of the entrance.
"Is that… a slime?" Daring asked, pointing at a bouncing blob twice their size. "With a giant lemon wedge half buried inside?"
"It's a Lemon Pudding," Marceline said. "Resilient, and simple-minded."
"I bet we could take it!"
Before Marceline could answer, the slime stopped and turned to face them. "Halt! I am THE GUARDIAN OF THE TEMPLE!" it said, two tendrils coming out of its side to wave eerily in the air. "OoooooooooOooooooo."
"Right, guardian," Daring snorted.
"Hey dude, why don't you chill?" Marceline said. "We just need to get the fries the Shelf Hunter stole from the town. Why don't you let us through and no one will have to worry about cleaning up the splatter?"
"Naaaaay!" The slime said, "For he has revealed to me that I am here to protect the temple from aaaaall enemies! I will guard it from the hordes of villains trying to ransack it!"
Marceline and Daring shared a look, then glanced around the completely empty area.
"Are they… um, gone for lunch?" Daring ventured.
"No!" the slime insisted, "they're here… hiding! I must protect this place from the invaders!"
"Right," Daring sighed. She glanced warily at the slime. "How long ago did you discover you were the temple guardian?"
"Oooh, that's a very interesting story!" The slime bounced in place eagerly. "I was passing by this morning, and the Shelf Hunter saw me, and he immediately knew I was intended to manage and guard against everything that might try to get in, other than himself, of course."
"This morning?!" Daring asked, aghast. "You were just like, passing by and this random guy who is known for lying told you you were the guardian of the temple and you believed him?!"
"Heeeey!" The slime rolled forward until it was looming over Daring. "Are you saying I can't do the job?"
"That's not what I said!"
Marceline shrugged. "I already told you they're resilient, and simple-minded, but they're also unusually stubborn once they believe something, even if it isn't true."
"Great. Just great."
"In order to pass you must answer my riddle!" the slime said.
The girls glanced at each other, then back at the slime, which coughed before speaking:
"This as simple
a riddle can be,
This thing has leaves,
rings and a trunk…"
While Daring focused on the Slime, Marceline glanced around and floated away.
"With all said clues,
I think you'll agree,
it can only be a—?"
Before Daring could offer an answer, something huge and heavy slammed on top of the pudding so hard it made the ground shake and Daring hover in the air for a few seconds. She stared with wide eyes at the trunk, easily the size of a house in width, then turned to stare at Marceline, who had her guitar ax over one shoulder, as she grinned at her.
"Hey!" a tiny squeaky voice said, drawing Daring's attention to several little blobs of lemon pudding that were wiggling about. "That's right! It's a tree! You may pass!"
"Thank you, thank you," Marceline said, floating past them.
"That. Was. Awesome!" Daring laughed—a bit hysterically at that—as she climbed over the downed tree to follow the vampire down into the underground cavern/temple.
The cave was as humid and stinky as expected, but the pair simply made their way down and down, until they reached the bottom hall, which was half-flooded. In the distance, they could hear snickering and someone talking to themselves.
With a wary shared sigh, they both slowly made their way into the temple, careful of traps, but surprisingly found none.
"Are these… all sprung?" Daring asked.
Marceline shrugged. "Seems the Shelf Hunter couldn't be bothered to reset them."
"Figures."
The hallway opened into a large room with old machines, and statues, and golden decorations all over the place that would look a lot more grand were they not mostly covered in trash and decaying food.
"Casino?" Daring muttered.
"Don't know what god that's supposed to be," Marceline said, "but their temple now belongs to that."
The Shelf Hunter sat, snickering to itself, on top of a mountain of trash. Next to him, an open fridge full of frozen fries lay on its side, it's contents thankfully still in their plastic bags, but probably close to going bad.
"My, my, my," the Shelf Hunter said, "If it isn't Marceline the Vampire Queen, what brings you to my kingdom my dear?" The possum's face grinned, revealing long rows of sharp teeth. "Decided to marry me? I'm handsome. I know."
"Eww. No." Marceline growled, hovering up to float just out of reach from the disgusting creature. "We came here to take back the food you stole. You can't just walk in and grab what you want, dude. That's not cool."
"Peh." The Shelf Hunter snorted, waving a paw-hand dismissively. "I can do whatever I want. I am the king!" He sneered, pulling down a lever.
Before Marceline could react, a heavy cage slammed on top of her, trapping her within. "Dude! What the hell?!"
"Oh! I am king, dear Marceline, but a king needs a Queen, and who better than the queen of all vampires to be my bride?" The creature leered at her. "I know you broke up with Princess Bubblegum, so only another royal can be my match!"
"Why is everyone so invested in my romantic life?!" Marceline hollered.
"Don't know," Daring Do answered, drawing their attention to where she stood on top of one of the collapsed pillars inside the room. "But I'm willing to bet that it's not going to stop here. You simply have to roll the dice, place your cards on the table, and see where the roulette lands you!"
A moment of silence.
"Really? Guys? We're in Casino?" Daring asked, then slumped. "Never mind."
"And what are you supposed to be?" the Shelf Hunter asked.
"Your worst nightmare!" Daring shouted, jumping down and pulling alongside her a rope.
The vampire and mutated possum watched the humanoid fall past them to the floor below.
The Shelf Hunter snorted. "What was that supposed to achiiiiiiieeeeeeeaaaaaah!?" the last of his scream was due to him being pulled up by the tail—which Daring had somehow lassoed—into the air, with enough force to slam him against the roof of the building hard enough to shatter the fake materials and start a chain reaction.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Marceline mutated into a giant bat creature, throwing all the bags of fries into the fridge, and picking it up before flying down to grab Daring Do all while avoiding the collapsing building.
"Woo whoooo!" Daring shouted as she was carried out of the temple and into the night air. "Dude! Wait until I tell my friends about this!"
Marceline laughed. "Let's get our fries first."
Later…
Daring Do sat on the rafters, eating her fries as the lights dimmed. The ghosts, ghouls, humanoids and other creatures that had packed the small arena started hollering and shouting as sparkling fire lit up the stage.
The fries weren't the best she had ever had, but that wasn't important. What was important was that she had made friends with an amazing girl, who happened to be an awesome adventurer in her own right, a rock star, and a freaking Vampire Queen!
"How awesome is that?" she muttered to herself just as smoke covered the back of the stage.
"Alright, Haunted Swamp!" Marceline called, flying into the stage alongside a group of ghosts that spread around to grab some microphones. "Time to light up the night!"
"Woo!" Daring shouted alongside the many concert goers.
"Ad the first song of the night, is something we just composed, so give it up for my sister… Sunset Shimmer!"
Daring stared, her fries sliding down from her frozen hand as crimson wings parted the mist and smoke to reveal the golden red, clawed and fanged shape of Sunset Shimmer herself.
"Haunted Swamp!" Sunset called as Marceline passed her her guitar. "This is a bit slower than usual, but here's to all the night creatures in the Land of Ooo! Come on, girls!"
The three ghost singers pulled together, their voices invoking a sense of wonder as they rose and fell.
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"
Sunset took the microphone while Marceline struck a chord and the drummer set the tempo. She sang as crystals chimed between notes, and her guitar played a more contemplative note.
"This time the worlds are quiet,
and silence—parts the clouds.
In a dream—full of light!
The nightmares, hide in hope.
And like snowdrops, your sins
Fall and coat the land around!
It's your fears. And your silence.
The cause—and the cure."
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" the ghost trio sang, the music rising to a crescendo, and the music became more lively. The drums' beat faster and more constant. The ghouls, ghosts and creatures that had been swaying to the earlier bit started stomping their feet and nodding to the song.
"When you run into the ether!" Sunset sang, leaning down to stare at the crowd with a grin, her hand going to her chest.
"And your self begins to fade…
And you curse! And you fall!
That's when you know…
You're on borrowed time!
It's the—"
"It's the darkness—of your soul!" the crowd sang.
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" the ghostly trio sang again, headbanging to the beat.
"And you call out for mercy!" Marceline sang.
"And your voice—it just fails!" Sunset sang back.
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"
Marceline leaned in, singing alongside Sunset. "It's the weight—of your regret!"
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"
"And the darkness—of your soul!" the crowd sang.
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"
"It's the darkness—of your soul!" the crowd sang again, alongside Marceline and Sunset.
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" the ghosts sang as the music slowed down again.
"In the darkness—of your soul." Sunset repeated alone, as Marceline leaned back and the crowd swayed again, allowing her to sing on her own again.
"When the silence—breaks the clouds…
"And your nightmares, break your soul."
"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" The ghosts sang. "AaaaaaAAAaaa…"
Both Sunset and Marceline leaned into the microphone to sing the last line.
"It's the darkness—of your soul."
The crowd erupted in cheers, but Daring didn't care. She stood up just as Marceline struck the first chords of another song, and stumbled her way out of the arena. She felt like she was choking, so she quickly removed her hat, revealing a mop of rainbow colored hair, and pulled down the bandages so she could breath.
She slid into an alley and rested her back on the wall, breathing heavy.
"S-she's here. Sunset Shimmer? But how? I thought we killed her?" She licked her lips and shook her head. "And Marceline's on her side? Fu—" she slammed her fist on the wall next to her. "Crap. How?!"
She glanced at the lights from the concert, forcing herself to take a deep breath before covering herself again and fading into the darkness.
To be Continued
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and another member of the human 6 shows up
thanks for the chapter
Huh, I gotta say, Rainbow was adapting quite a bit better than the first two were.
HAS it been a few months since Celestia and Fluttershy showed up? It wasn't entirely clear to me on that at the start of the chapter.
And hooo boy......Rainbow seems like she's going to do something reckless that causes trouble down the line...
Yea, I have a feeling Dashie is going to be trouble.
From what I see this story is set before the first season of adventure time.
If rainbow also ended up in Ooo then the other maine 6 must also be there, I hope princess twilight also appears she could have been dragged from the other side of the mirror to that world or Sci-twilight with the follow-up she gave to magic she can also end in ooo
So Rainbow is blue somehow? Right Equestria Girls humans.
Really Rainbow, a bunch of monsters TAKE OVER YOUR CITY and you care that Sunset is not dead? Priorities!
11239932
Humane 5, there is no human Twilight here as the first movie went horribly wrong.
11240300
Science Twilight only got involved with magic after the second movie Rainbow of music thing, here as Sunset was "dead" and Princess Twilight left to never return the Sirens won. So by the time she found out about magix it most likely was due to the Sirens mind control of the whole city. Only the humane 5 and maybe a few others were able to escape using the portal so unless Equestria Girls happens in the Earth before the Mushroom War and she somehow ended in tne far future is very unlikely for her to get involved.
11240300
The Glass Kingdom visit was actually after the finale.
11240393
Yeah, but the malfunction of the portal could have affected the mirror of Equestria and turned it into a kind of black hole that sucks in Princess Twilight and in this way she could end up in Ooo.
I think it would be interesting if Princess Twilight and Bubblegum got to know each other, they could become rivals and would constantly compete to see who is smarter xD
11240403
Marceline mentions that she broke up with Bubblegum and that happened in the past several years before the first season... In The Glass Kindom special there is a flashback of when they broke up and at the end of the series they don't break up.
11240419
Ah, the details escaped me, never mind.
So Rainbow Dash is here, let's see when the whole crowd is here!!!
Well, now this is interesting. I really want to see what happened to the other rainbooms. I wonder if wallflower followed as well. Really looking forward to seeing how these characters grow.
11240516 Nice avatar
11240527
Didn't Wallflower had some kind of crush on Sunset?
First off, I read the first chapter some time ago and have been looking for this story since. My dumb self just never thought to look under the tag Sunset Shimmer (demon) instead of Sunset Shimmer.
I literally jumped(-ish) out of bed as soon as found this story again.
Second, I love this crossover! Adventure Time was such a big mood, so to see it and also the EQG characters intertwined is downright fabulous. Also, it's only been a few chapters, but I really love the family bond Sunset and Marceline have. I'm excited to see how Sunset being here influenced canon events!
Ah, the gang's all here. Presumably. Though either they've been spread out across time and space or Dash is just adapting to a life of adventure more easily than the others. Whatever the case, she has some soul searching to do. And Sunset may be in for a shock when she hears about her sister's new friend.
11244027
Unless we time skip a few hundred years? Not for now.
11244474
Really? That far eh?
riddle me this...how is the date of the next chapter from now?
11240516
oooo..heyo that is a sunset isikai looking avatar right there...was NOT expecting to find one of those tonight
I love the idea of human Equestria being the past Earth of Ooo before the Mushroom War.
LET'S GO!!!!!! HYPE!!!!!!!!!!!
So since Finn and Jake are a few hundred years away does that mean that sunset could date flame princess, cause I really think they'd be good together.
11351921
Flame princess is 16 years old, if this story is hundreds of years in the past she is not born yet
11362280
But her dads like 800
How is she 16?
11362636
In the episode Incendium Jake asks Flambo if he knows any princesses that are Finn's age and he ends up taking Jake to Flame Princess.
So Flame Princess's age is 16 years old
11362714
I kinda just assumed that flame princess was like bubblegum and was always young
11363332
Her case is different she literally is gum, Bubblegum can add mass this makes her older but she can also remove mass and become younger, that's why she can live hundreds of years
11363346
And your telling me fire ages?
11363365
The fire goes out over time when the fuel runs out it stops burning, the same must happen with the flame princess with time her fire begins to become weaker and older.
11363370
You realize the reason she was locked up was cause she was strong enough to destroy the world right?
11363431
Yeah, she is very strong right now but in the future could change. I think flame princess is very different that her father, she have fisical form and that is the big diferent
The flame king is literally fire and he don´t have fisical form maybe he can live more than usually because he can have more fuel to live but I don't remember that the show gave any indication that the flame king is hundreds of years old.
Looking forward to seeing more of this x-over at some point. Very interesting take on the end of the 1st movie.
Finally read it, excellent fic as always, I love your take on Sunset Shimmer. Applejack propably will end with Tree Trunks on her Apple Orchard. Because they are both apple enjoyers. Pinkie Pie will become new menace to society in Candy Kingdom and she will be wanted for mass property damage of candy public infrastructure (she ate it).