Chapter 1: Smells Like Twilight Sparkle
Sunset Shimmer tossed and turned in her sordid excuse for a bed, which was more like an amalgam of dirt caked rags and towels. Her excited brain couldn't rest, due to several reasons: It was chilly on the cold pavement she slept on, and mainly because something happened that very afternoon that set her thinking cogs in motion. For the first time since the Twiilight Sparkle fiasco, she was formulating a scheme. Sunset frowned as a gust of cold air stung her pale cheeks, forcing her to pull up a hole-pocked rag closer to her face.
Cold. That was how everybody treated her; despite the promises that Twilight and her friends made to show her sympathy, they weren't ever fulfilled. Nobody gave her a second glance when she passed them in the hallway, all having the notion that she was a bedraggled witch.
Not that she didn't ever try. The words Twilight left her with didn't leave her.
"The magic of friendship doesn't just exist in Equestria. It's everywhere. You can seek it out, or you can forever be alone. The choice is yours."
Some words. She tried, possibly harder than anybody in the school, to earn friendship. Obviously, there was something wrong with everybody else, as they still weren't giving her the reception she wanted to her advances, which she brushed off as harmless. They consisted of a loud greeting or request to go out, or even an outstretched hand; to people bold enough to follow through with the latter, they were shaken like a construction drill by Sunset Shimmer's strong grip. The results from such meetings weren't usually pretty. The most polite response she'd receive would be a wave of dismissal or a nervous edge away from her; others weren't so urbane. Some would run away or even scream in fear, the latter in the case of a jittery Fluttershy that bolted not long after she said only two words. Sunset remembered another thing that Twilight said.
"I bet they can teach you."
Some teachers. Teachers that weren't willing to accept her attempts to make genuine friends. Bitter memories of stomping away from a hysterical Rainbow Dash (and friends) beating her at a 'friendly' one-versus-one soccer came to mind. Her vehement glare at the athlete afterwards was enough to silence that though, but that still didn't make her considerate enough to fall into the 'accepting friend' category. If anybody was anything close to an accepting friend, it would be Snips. Or maybe Snails.
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"Hey uh, Mistress Shimmer!" Snips and Snails called to Sunset Shimmer on the first day of school after Twilight returned to Equestria. In response, instead of a snide remark, Sunset gave a wide grin. The pallor in Snips and Snails' cheeks grew palpably greater, as if they'd seen a ghost instead of a kindly smile.
"No need for 'Mistress' now!" said Sunset in a tone she construed as kindly, "We're friends, right? And I'm quite alright, thanks! Your friendly efforts in cheering me up won't go unrewarded, I assure you... we, as friends, shall eat at McDougles later, as friends of course. How's that? Being the friendly friend I am, I'll foot an eighth of the bill, and the rule of friendship dictates that you two should split the remaining amongst yourselves, how's that sound?"
Snips gulped down a great volume of saliva while Snails twirled the end of his collar nervously. Sunset cocked an eyebrow.
"What's wrong, boys? I am your friend, you can confide your worries in me! You can, er," said Sunset Shimmer uncertainly, pulling out her left hand on which she had scribbled a few helping words," cry on my soldier, er, I mean shoulder, or you could, um, a friend is someone who knows all about you and loves you anyway, er, author unknown."
Silence ensued. The grin on Sunset's face was still unwiped, and Snips and Snails were still shuffling their feet, uncertain on what to do. After a long moment, Snips mustered up the courage.
"Look, Mistr-- I mean, Sunset, Sunset!" said Snips as he saw the corners of Sunset's mouth twitch. "We'd really, really like to do all that... friendly stuff but really, we've got one hundred and forty-three bricks to plaster back onto that hole in the wall you made the other night."
"Oh." said Sunset Shimmer. Her eyes moistened rapidly then. Mending that hole was a grueling week, and the real sting to her wasn't so much the physical aspect of repairing it brick by brick, (with two klutzes, no less) but the harrowing memories of that night. Being an insane fire enchantress had its ramifications on her mental well-being; Nightmares of fire and light abounded her dreams every night, making sleep a reluctance. She now had a strange phobia of rainbows and preferred to lie in darkness; She even made a special request to her teachers to shift her desk to a secluded corner of her classrooms where light rarely touched. Despite the requests made by the people around her, she'd staunchly refuse to see the school psychiatrist. She had to grin and bear it and pick herself up, to embark on the journey of mending the regret-filled life she had in the past, a life that made a torture chamber out of others', and a hell out of hers as it dragged on.
She followed Snips and Snails to the wall, a smile on her face as she picked up a brick and a bricklayer and walked towards the hole, a confident stride in her step.
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Though she wasn't high and mighty Sunset Shimmer just yet, the embers of a passion she initially had to take the advice of Twilight had long since fluttered away in the wind. Twilight was just like another one of those self-centered people that the school seemed to be full of. They had their cliques, which really didn't have any more room for another, no matter how assertive she was. Assertion was the main quality Twilight recommended, wasn't it? And it worked out just great for Sunset Shimmer in the past year. Over time, a side of Sunset Shimmer showed itself that nobody would expect to show, not even Snips and Snails; a taciturn Sunset Shimmer, whose skin had paled from a yellow to a chalk white, with the fullness of her cheeks fast receding, (in spite of her rapidly grown appetite) and the voice of one who'd participated in and was defeated by many of life's challenges.
And here she was; though cold and pale, she was cooking up a plot based on the events that had transpired that afternoon, events that provided her with an opportunity she couldn't possibly pass up. The image of a certain artifact was imprinted into her memory, an imprint that would surely haunt her nightmares if the artifact wasn't soon in her own hands. For it was imperative that revenge could be sown as soon as possible, against Twilight, her little friends, and all of Equestria. Those two-faced liars would know the meaning of rejection when Celestia's regal throne was swarmed by her personal army of teenagers; they'd be lying prostrate at her hooves, begging for redemption.
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"Hey R.D., do ya think mah muscles are any bigger?"
Sunset Shimmer groaned from her seat in the corner, right behind Rainbow Dash and Applejack. She had to endure this talk everyday for a week; ever since the start of the new school year, a few months after the fall formal, Applejack's hormones suddenly skyrocketed, and she'd ask closest friend and compadre Rainbow Dash on her appearance. Had this been a year back in time, she'd have laughed coldly and flung a flurry of demeaning remarks about Applejack's looks, and even throw a few at the expected defensive rebuttal from Rainbow Dash. She used to be a master of the trade of taunting, and the haughty comments she would have made would surely leave even the headstrong Rainbow Dash headed for the girl's toilet.
But now, she was somewhat reformed; she still had the impression she was regarded as a fiend by the rest of the school, and opted to keep a low profile, being much less talkative than she'd been before. She'd bottle up the bitterness she accreted day by day, with each person who ignored her or ran away. But what was happening right now was pushing it.
"I dunno, A.J. It's not like I check you out..." said Rainbow Dash, expressionless, as she bounced a tennis ball against the floor and gazed at Applejack who was seated, legs crossed, left hand on her Stetson, right arm flexing. Then Rainbow Dash broke into a grin. "Oh, why'd you ask?"
"Ah think, the other day... Ah actually won Big Mac at an arm wrestle," said Applejack, a tinge of happiness finding its way into her voice. Sunset whipped out a book on literary devices but couldn't help shaking her head. Dumb jocks and country bumpkins didn't exactly have conversations that revolved around the most mature of topics. Why couldn't they talk about something important, like the upcoming Physics test or their grossly overdue essays on Internet Culture?
"Oh really? Well, which arm was it? It's totally relevant, cause, you know, boys," said Rainbow Dash with a grin.
"R.D.!" said Applejack indignantly, which was followed by a hearty laugh from Rainbow. "Ah thought we could discuss this seriously. Ya know, as friends."
Friends. It was a word that Sunset Shimmer couldn't help but reflexively give an eye-twitch to.
"Seriously? How the heck am I supposed to take your arm muscles seriously?"
For once, Sunset Shimmer had to agree with Rainbow Dash, though she had a special loathing for her. Not only because Rainbow Dash was an embodiment of her phobia, but because of how easily Rainbow Dash made those special things called 'friends'. After Twilight Sparkle, Sunset would be punishing the Dash.
"Ya should! Fact is, if we were to get into a strength contest, Ah'd win, hands down," smirked Applejack. Sunset Shimmer couldn't take it anymore. Though her insulting was rusty, her contempt for people was just bursting to escape into verbal abuse. Just as she was about to open her mouth, Rainbow Dash's hatred for losing kicked in.
"What'd you just say about me? I'd soooo not lose. Come on, cowgirl, let's go at it," said Rainbow at her friend's ribald remark, her face flushed in embarrassment but her elbow hitting the table as she prepared for an arm wrestle. But before the competition could even start (or even allow an irate Sunset Shimmer to interject), the door opened to the familiar scent of roses that accompanied Ms. Cheerilee, a teacher that was respected by many since she her will to teach seemed to know no limits, teaching all of the classes in the school Arithmetics and occasionally History. She sat herself down on her desk, but the door was still open; not long after, someone unexpected followed her. Tall and lanky with a multi-color dye in her hair (the subject of a lot of controversy among other school principals), Principal Celestia strode into the classroom, positively beaming as the entire class grew silent at her arrival.
"Good morning, students, and Ms. Cheerilee. I am coming specially to your class to announce and remind all of you about the annual Battle of the Bands!" said Celestia, and this was met with applause, especially from the vivacious Pinkie Pie, who let out streamers and balloons, accompanied with a wild shout of 'rock on!'. Her voice was grating on the ears and Sunset Shimmer couldn't bring herself to do so much as to crease up at her 'humor'. She'd be number 3 on the rack.
"This class has extremely promising musical talent and I hope none of you would be too shy to showcase it," she said, winking at Fluttershy's direction. "So, I hope to see familiar and non-familiar faces at the auditions this coming Wednesday. Oh yes, and one more thing. There is a little change in the prizes offered. In addition to a hearty budget for students to organize an outing for the class, there is one more thing..."
Sunset scoffed quietly at the word 'hearty'. In her experience, after coercing the prize money from past years' Battle of the Bands victors, the sum would be frittered away in a matter of days. Celestia reached into her coat, pulling out a gleaming crown. Right then and there, Sunset Shimmer's heart skipped a beat, and her skin tingled with a warm sensation she felt months ago, when she first held Twilight's crown in Canterlot castle. Though it was months since she last used her unicorn horn, her body had a mechanism that could detect the invisible element that was emanating profusely out of the trophy, screaming to be wielded.
Magic.
The trophy lay there, unassuming on the outside, it's surface gleaming off the rays of the morning sun. The light it reflected seemed grainy to the eye, as if the surface of the trophy was rough in texture. To the untrained layman in magic, it was a cheap plastic product or maybe even an antique that was bought at some value shop; The rest of the students expressed this sentiment, with confused murmurs spreading amongst the students like wildfire. However, Sunset Shimmer knew better.
"Goodbye students, and good luck in the Battle of the Bands!" said Celestia cheerfully, exiting a classroom of students that were furiously talking about the odd trophy. Sunset Shimmer was silent and deep in thought; the next shot at domination, right there in front of her eyes! It was an opportunity she couldn't pass up.
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Or maybe it was an opportunity she should let slide. If her next attempt was a botch-up, the school would most definitely never give her a second chance; the police could be called in, meaning jail time for her, and life could be in an even more hellish state than it was now. She'd know for a fact that nobody would visit her in her cell, not even Snips or Snails, and she'd rot her days away, wallowing in regret and sorrow.
A car passed by through the dark streets, it's loud honk gratuitously shocking Sunset out of her train of thought. Months ago, she would've let out a stream of vulgarities at the driver. But now, the school that had given her the cold shoulder had long since stilled her forked tongue, She didn't how how or why, since she knew that everybody didn't want her, she should have reverted back to her initial cold disposition; maybe, deep down, she thought that there was a chance. Deep down, she didn't want that trophy.
Just then, a lorry passed by, and along with the cacophony of a horn, it brought along a puddle of water that had been sitting beside the pavement flying onto Sunset's rags. Primal bitterness long bottled was now released into the night, her eyes widening and her movements becoming wild; she kicked the rags onto the road and wailed, long and strained, into the night, her hoarse voice heard for blocks around.
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*tap*
*tap*
*tap*
Snips tossed around in bed, unable to sleep due to an intermittent series of taps on his window. It definitely wasn't loud enough to be hail, nor was it soft enough to be rain. Snips brought a pudgy hand over his right ear as he turned onto his left side. When it still didn't cease after a good 5 minutes, Snips took a glance at his bedside clock and sighed angrily: it was 3 am in the morning, and whoever it was that was throwing rocks at his window was just asking for a slew of expletives. He stormed towards the window and opened it.
*BAM!*
"Argh!" cried Snips as he recoiled back, a flash of white blinding his vision momentarily, with the stone that bounced off of his face leaving a bruise on his nose. He felt around the top of his lips, and cried in horror as he felt warm, sticky fluid cake the bottom half of his face. It definitely wasn't mucus as Snips took a whiff, smelling iron. He stomped out to the window yet again to see his perpetrator and gasped. seeing the last person he'd expect: Though still pale and withered, her face was glowing with an arrogant smile, and for once her back was straightened with an erect spine. Her leather jacket was straightened and her arms were crossed. It was like seeing a whole new different Sunset Shimmer. Or glimpsing at a photo of the old one.
"Get down, slime. We're gonna practice for the band competition thingy. And get a bandage for that," sneered Sunset. Snips' face beamed and he rushed down to the ground floor of his house. A tear of joy found itself sliding down his face as he realized that the Sunset Shimmer everyone knew and hated was back.
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Snips and Snails murmured to each other in confusion in the dark as Sunset Shimmer strode in front of them, her gait hurried and nervous. Sunset had not spoken to them ever since she pulled them out of their beds against their will (and broke both of their noses, coincidentally), opting to motion them forward with rough hand motions now and then. Crickets in the bushes that dotted an expansive sward of green grass they crossed accompanied Snips and Snails' hushed conversation.
"Yo. Why the heck is she suddenly so... assertive now?" whispered Snails irritatedly, glancing to and from Snips and Sunset to check for any signs of Sunset eavesdropping.
"Dunno. She was acting pretty strangely today. Didn't even talk to us," answered Snips, " *yawn* and I hope we stop soon. Feels like we've walked a mile..."
"Damn. I liked it when she wasn't so bossy," grumbled Snails. Before the Fall Formal, Sunset would have given Snails hell for walking in front of her when the trio were cruising the halls. But until just now, Sunset was as timid as Fluttershy, letting anybody cut her queue when lining up for grub at the canteen. Why had she decided to revert back to the old Sunset Shimmer?
"Well. Nothing we can do about it," said Snips as Sunset gave the two a grunt and a violent wave of her hand, urging the two to move faster. "Like old times."
"Here we are!" cried Sunset Shimmer triumphantly, spreading her hands out and presenting a decrepit looking square of a building, though there was a sickly yellow light within. It was queer that this abandoned building had lighting, being miles away from civilization. Snips and Snails didn't dare to ask any questions, however, when Sunset Shimmer jabbed a finger at their chests viciously.
"Door. Break it down. NOW," demanded Sunset, and the two scrambled forwards. Snips rotated the knob anti-clockwise and to his dismay, discovered that it was locked.
"It's locked, Snails," said Snips, but Snails gave an angry glare at his words.
"Locked? I was shaken outta bed for this? Naw, man, this ain't how shit's gonna go down," said Snails, pushing Snips out of the way and turning the lock vigorously clockwise.
"That's not the right--" said Snails, before being interrupted by the 'pop' of the rusty knob coming out. Snips and Snails looked at the fallen knob in horror as it rolled down the grass.
"Thanks a lot, Fails! Now what?"
"Now this!" answered Snails as he slapped Snips across his face, eliciting a not-so-masculine moan from Snips as he spiraled backwards.
"Oh no, you didn't!" said Snips as he recovered and snapped his fingers sassily, then charging up to Snails, his fists raised. Snails was prepared, and threw himself forward to meet him halfway, his own hands clenched. They ended up slapping each other prissily, but strangely enough, both succeeded in driving the other to the ground.
"Hey! Stop making out and follow me, you wussies," said Sunset as she forced a large rock through the window beside the front door, spraying glass all over the grass below. She climbed in and the two boys looked at the broken window in awe, before obeying and gingerly stepping into the room via the window, though much clambering was involved as the two struggled to go in at the same time. After some grunts and moans, both of them fell to the floor, panting tiredly.
The room was lit up by a single bulb at the ceiling, and there were multi-colored guitars laid up against the wall, along with a drumset at the back of the room. A socket board with power plugs spilling out from it connected to several amplifiers, which were bulky black boxes with speakers and several knobs and switches. There was also a microphone with a power cord attached to an amplifier, held up by a stand about the height of Snips. Other than the mentioned details, the room wasn't the slightest bit interesting; peeling white paint on all walls of the room and a grey, filthy carpeted floor that seemed home to several species of insect added to the dilapidated impression that the room gave. The two boys struggled to their feet as Sunset walked over to a dark green electric guitar with a 'Zoso sign below its bridge.
"Snails! On the drums," said Sunset sternly, and the boy hurriedly complied. Her gaze shifted abruptly to Snips, who, without a word, scrambled to pick up a blue bass guitar. Sunset smirked and strode calmly over to an electric guitar.
"Uh, Sunset?" managed Snips as she set up a mic on a stand, "What are we doing?"
Sunset Shimmer growled and raised a fist at Snips, causing him to cower into a corner, clutching his bass guitar closely to his chest. She smiled a disconcerting smile.
"We're making music, and entering that upcoming battle of the bands competition nonsense, if you haven't been listening to the news lately, you imbecile," said Sunset as she drew away from Snips and clicked the microphone in place at the head of its stand. Snips glanced at Snails, who was sitting on a drum kit stool, who was looking just as shaken as he was.
"Just so happens, I know this place from last year," said Sunset Shimmer coldly, talking mostly to herself, "Rainbow Dunce and friends used this as a jamming place, and it looks like they're using it yet again this year. Lights and power are still on, and the guitars are still amped up. For some reason."
"I don't get it, Sunset, why can't we just steal the prize again?" inquired Snails, to which Sunset gave a huge, condescending sigh.
"They're probably smarter and honestly, I'm in no position to be fooling around with the students again. I'm on bad terms with the entire school, so I can't risk it. Did last year pass through your heads?" said Sunset, to which her companions furiously shook their heads to.
"Good. Now, time to tune our guitars," seethed Sunset through gritted teeth as Snips strummed on grossly out of tune bass strings.
"I thought you said you had classes for this," mumbled an irritated Sunset under her breath as she wrested the bass guitar away from Snips to tune it on her own, a beaten and worn tuner in her left hand.
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After a grueling session of sustained guitar notes, computerized tuning notes, shouting from Sunset, painfully and awkwardly timed *badum tiss*es from their drummer, and ear twisting from Sunset, (who'd clearly had it after 30 minutes of trying to explain tuning to Snips) they were ready to start. Sunset glanced at her watch, which read 4:00 am, and panicked a little inside, though she didn't physically show it. They had to get on with the jam, and fast. One problem though.
"What are we gonna play?" said Snails, to which Sunset froze. She hadn't thought of that.
"A cover of a famous rock n' roll band, perhaps. Do you know Leonard Skinnard?"
They shook their heads.
"Eagles? The Beetles? The Whooves? Maybe a contemporary path... Maybe Green Hay? Hoof Fighters? Not even freaking MCR??" cried Sunset in desperation, but the other two stared at her blankly. She felt like breaking the guitar against the dying walls of the room, or even better, against the fragile craniums of her 'friends', who were obviously lacking in cognitive faculties if they didn't know what The Beetles were. She crossed her arms and looked down in deep thought, leaning against a decaying, yellowing wall, causing Snips and Snails to look in concern. Snails nudged Snips' shoulder with a drumstick, and he walked forward, placing a hand on Sunset's shoulder.
"If it's any consolation, we listen to Nikki Mineighj!" said Snips joyfully, and Sunset reacted immediately, giving Snips a powerful uppercut to the jaw, sending him flying into Snails' drum kit. Snails panicked and leapt away, while a facially bruised Snips landed and dispersed the components of Snails' drums. If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was filthy contemporaries with no taste in good music at all.
"Look, you little snot globs, I'm not going to enter the competition with any of that Super Bass crap. We are going to bring back good ol' classic rock n' roll even if it KILLS me!" screamed Sunset Shimmer, causing the two boys to pick up their instruments in haste. She nailed a power chord which shook the brittle walls of the frail building they were in.
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On Wednesday afternoon, there was a steady stream of participants walking into the auditorium from the school halls 5 minutes away from the time of the audition. There were students dispersed into their own bands and groups, who were either merrily chatting, humming the tune of their choice pieces of music, or showing off their electric guitars. Some were eying the two empty seats and two desks at the front of the auditorium, before the stage (most of which was hidden by large red curtains), which were to seat the judges, namely Principal Celestia and Vice-Principal Luna. At 2:00 pm sharp, Celestia and Luna walked into the auditorium calmly from the halls, but to eager performers who invited them in with unbridled gusto. Celestia gave everybody a calm smile as she ascended the steps to walk up onto stage, a folder of papers in hand, but a clearly irate Luna seemed bursting to make an announcement.
"All right! Performers go backstage, pronto! Spectators, sit down right here but give full respect and attention to performers. That is all!" called Luna in her notoriously loud and demanding voice, which leveled the noise in the auditorium to zero. Celestia could only look at her sister with an amused yet sorry look as Luna stamped her way down to her desk in front of the stage. The performers, not people eager to tempt a lion out of her den, filled out of the auditorium quickly yet quietly while spectators sat themselves down on the wooden floor, but only having their conversations in whispers. Celestia and Luna arranged their papers and set them out straight before their eyes, ready to announce the name of the first band.
"Now, the first act for today... It's a band called... Mettlicarvana?" said Celestia uncertainly, "with band members Sunset, Snips, and Snails. Give them a round of claps, students!"
The auditorium erupted in cacophonous cheer, to which Luna looked like she was about to put an end to but a reassuring look from Celestia and a hand on her shoulder stopped her from intervening with the applause.
However, instead of the trio emerging from behind the curtain, there was a meek teenage boy who came out instead, recognizable to all of the audience as Featherweight, the president of the InfoComm Club. The odd thing was, he looked positively shaken as he appeared, even more so than usual. There was a wave of confusion that passed through the spectators, which was hushed by a sharp 'shh' from Luna.
"I uh... wanted to read this as an intro for the next band, Me... Me... Metlli-- OW!" cried Featherweight in pain as something poked his back backstage. Sunset Shimmer hissed a threat into Featherweight's ear behind the curtain, to which he gulped and then took in a deep breath.
"The next band is Mettlicarvana, and this is totally my own honest and unsullied opinion," said Featherweight as he referred to a card he took out from his pocket. Feeling Sunset's glare upon him, he looked at the card's contents nervously and sighed.
"I LOVE THIS BAND. IT IS BETTER THAN ZED LEPPELIN AND ROSES N' GUNS COMBINED. I HAVE LISTENED TO ALL 127 ALBUMS OF THEIR MUSIC AND WOULD ROCK TO THE REMAINING 234 IN THEIR EXTENSIVE REPERTOIRE. THEIR MUSIC IS LIKE THE FIRST TIME ONE TRIES WATCHING MY LITTLEST PET SHOP AND AS A RESULT INSTANTLY LOVES IT. WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, METTLICARVANA."
Featherweight cried all the way backstage, while the audience was stunned beyond words. Luna's jimmies looked especially rustled. Nonetheless, the curtains swung open and revealed the trio, all looking ready to go with their performance, with Snails on the drums, Snips on bass and Sunset Shimmer on lead vocals and lead guitar. All eyes were on Sunset as she stepped forward.
"Alright this is a song that I personally composed. It's called 'A Mulatto, An Albino, A Mosquitoe, My Libido" she said briefly, then started jamming the chords to 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'. Then she started singing the lyrics to 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'. Then she did the solo to 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'. Significant differences between this one and the original were that the drummer was restricted to tapping out a standard rock beat all the way, while the bass player played one note for every 16 bars. Oh yes, and they took instrument destroying to a whole new level, with Sunset Shimmer flinging her entire electric guitar across the stage and Snails dismantling his drumset, cymbal by cymbal, tom tom by tom tom, and flinging them off stage. Snips threw his bass guitar across the auditorium. At this point, the crowd, which was respectfully silent went wild as the antics onstage got wilder and uninhibited. Celestia couldn't help but chuckle at the band's craziness but Luna's face was looking blacker than ever.
Sunset Shimmer gave a bow and the band walked off, to thunderous applause. At this, Luna's patience waned and she harshly issued a 'shush', which had a palpable, spontaneous reaction as the auditorium's noise toned down. Celestia tried to bring the mood back up with a few quirky comments.
"Alright... that was interesting, to say the least. I say they at least get a 9 out of 10 in showmanship. What do you think, Luna?"
Backstage, Sunset Shimmer had that feeling of power yet again; the fear in the looks of those below here was manifesting yet again, as she could see from the other competitors' eyes. She gave a smirk to them which said, beat that! Sooner or later, she'd be back on top of the school's social hierachy as the queen, a position which she so regretted foregoing. However, just as she was going to stride confidently away from the other competitors, a group of familiar people made their way from the corridor and through the crowd of performers, apparently in a hurry. Sunset Shimmer's eyes widened as she realized who they were.
"What? Twilight's friends? Oh yes, but of course," Sunset started, her initial confusion transforming into amusement. "It's going to be quite the show they'd have to put if they want to compete with the likes of me. Come, Snips, Snails!"
The trio rushed up to the door separating the waiting area and the stage, and Sunset opened it by just a crack to peek at the performers on stage. The band had Applejack on bass, Rainbow Dash on lead guitar, Rarity on keytar, Pinkie Pie on drums, and Fluttershy on tambourine. Sunset could barely make out their shapes but Celestia's voice was clear as she asked them some questions.
"Good Afternoon, girls. Band name is...?"
"The Main Six," answered Pinkie Pie cheerfully.
"Six?"
"Yeah, well, last member's running a little late," said Rainbow Dash, sounding a little disappointed. "But that doesn't matter. Our songs we're gonna play can do just fine without her."
What? Twilight Sparkle... a little late? The portal wasn't due to open for more than 2 years! Sunset scoffed. Rainbow Dash was much duller than she taught she was.
"Well, alright then," said Celestia, "and what is your song choice?"
"It's an original," said Rainbow Dash as her members stood stoically at standby, ready for the go-ahead by Celestia and Luna.
"You may proceed," said Luna sternly, sounding more like a demand than a request. What followed was indescribable in words.
Applejack's, Rarity's and Rainbow Dash's fingers were blurs as they raced across the fretboards or keyboards of their instruments with surprisingly discernible melodies elicited from their music makers. Pinkie Pie's hands and feet were also blurs, pushing out 16th note triplets on the bass drum while including unbelievably fast yet exciting drum fills. Fluttershy's tambourine work was impeccable too, and was definitely on par with Pinkie.
Amidst the sound of dropping jaws and comments of admiration and worry that nothing the remaining performers could do to match up, Sunset Shimmer was skeptical. The girls were never this good during the years before. She smelled a rat; she had to admit, there was something funky about the aura that the girls were exuding at the moment. How they could be this good was either because they somehow managed to hire the best bass player/elec guitar player/keytar player/drummer/tambourine player in the world to teach them the skills, or...
The ground literally shook as Pinkie crashed her cymbals repeatedly while the guitar players were calmly racing to get the last of their notes in before the ending. A tremor ran through the ground as if the place was getting assaulted by a miniature earthquake; all of the students were panicking, and even the usually cool-headed Celestia was expressing concern. Just then, the wood beneath the stage blew apart and up rose the person of Sunset's nightmares, on a floating platform with a mic.
Twilight Sparkle opened her entrance with an ear-splitting but heavy scream. The other members of the Main Six followed it up with one final bar of power chords, then ending at the same time, with each of their ending notes blending harmoniously together. Everyone went wild with applause, and even Luna's attention was had when all of the windows in the room shattered with the sheer intensity of the band's sound. All spectators ran up to the ruined stage to hoist Twilight up on their shoulders but Sunset Shimmer had a spontaneous reaction; she ran out of the waiting room and into the corridor and kept running.
Author's Note
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