The Perilous Quest to Save Vinyl From Certain Demise

Through teary eyes, you look back at the prince, his companion,and the cell around you, as you feel the unnatural new horn adorning the crest of your forehead. You cannot believe this has happened, nor do you understand just why the prince would go so far, only to humiliate and destroy his enemies. He certainly seems to have crushed your resolve, at the very least.

Now, as you remain chained to the wall, the subject of a twisted experiment, you can do nothing to escape now, nor even save the stallion who had given up his magic for you. In this place, watched over by ponies who have such power over you, you are truly helpless...

No...

From the very depths of your mind, a voice suddenly calls out in the midst of your inner turmoil, silencing all other thoughts as it fills the very core of your being, resonating through your head, your heart, and your expression.

This cannot be how this ends... the voice calls, as the tears cease, your eyes narrowing in a deathly focus. If they think they can just mold me to their own desires like a filly's toy doll, they think wrong! I am more than just a plaything! I am Octavia! They will not hold me down!

As the voice calls out, louder and louder in your head, you can feel a strange breeze pass through the cell, the air shifting as some base, wild force begins to emanate from your horn. The magic channeling through it grows exponentially, as your emotions fuel the force of the arcane energy, and rapidly growing to an uncontrollable strength.

The tears in your eyes no longer block your vision, for they have been forced to dry as your eyes glow with newfound energy, and your horn glows, preparing to unleash your wrath upon the world around you.

"What?!" Bluelood stammers as he sees you begin to cast spells with the primal magic force within you. "This isn't... You said she wouldn't be able to use magic yet!"

The unicorn in the lab coat panics besides him, thinking frantically.

"She shouldn't! Unless..."

Even now, they think to belittle and control me... the voice whispers, the one stream of thought your still cling to, controlling ever fiber of your being.

I shall show them just how wrong they are!

With a burst of magical energy, your body surrounds itself with a brilliant white aura, breaking your restraints with such overbearing force, they seem like a mere afterthought. Your body floats off the ground, swirling emotions and arcane forces flowing from your new horn, with a strength you never believed possible.

"Run! She's entering a primal magic surge!" screams the scientist, pushing a hoof into Blueblood's side, and signaling for him to exit the cell.

His voice is so pitiful and weak before mine... He does not deserve it! let it never ring through my ears again!

The magic comes to you so easily, as you fire a beam of white light, to quickly to avoid, and in a single moment, the body of the scientist becomes encased in stone, frozen in an eternal expression of shock and horror.

A guard enters the cell, using his magic to lift some kind of syringe, lounging for your body. He never makes it further than a few feet before your power stops him in his tracks, his body replaced with a bronze figure.

Standing before you, and watching your body slowly rise, Blueblood seems unable to move, as he witnesses your power, and his companions are easily dispatched. His expression is suddenly filled with fear, a look nopony had ever seen from the pompous stallion. For the first time, you can tell that he fears for his life, seeing you stare back at him with cold eyes, shining with brilliance and magic.

"I... I... Just what have we created?..."

The panic he shows... the voice calls, It suits him well. Let it be the last thing he ever feels, knowing that he is not so wonderful, nor as grand as he thinks!

With a single beam of brilliant light, his silhouette becomes engulfed in light, and the prince lets out a single scream of agony before his body relents to your power, crumbling into dust as he forever leaves this world.

Now, finally left alone, you float in the center of your cell, giving off more and more of the light and power. You cannot even feel your body anymore, as it is lost in the pulsating surge of your power.

And still, the voice continues on, raging in your head as the magic about you only grows stronger.

These ponies... they deserve this fate. The crimes they committed were far too great for them to be allowed to live. No longer shall they interfere with the lives of the innocent!

But yet... they are not the only ones. There are others who would commit the same grave error that the prince did in his hubris... I cannot allow that! Yes! All of Canterlot must pay for their crimes, and be forced to answer for themselves!

As if it were a flimsy sheet of paper, the stone ceiling above you crumbles before the force of your magic, the stones making way for your figure as your rise through the next floor, and then through the next, and another, until...

Breaking through the final roof, you rise into the sky above canterlot. Above you, the full moon greets your emergence, showering your body with it's gentle glow.

The brilliance of your magic outshines the night sky, and your brilliant presence glows like a star, rising high above canterlot.

This corrupt city is the height of the unicorn arrogance. May it fall before my might, and never again shall the other ponies be outdone by this conceited, worthless minority! By my power, may Canterlot be forever purged of its-

Suddenly, the voice is interrupted, as you feel something touch your body, softly calming the rage with you.

...A hoof?

You turn, preparing to make whomever might interrupt your rampage pay for their insolence!

Before you is the princess of the night, Luna, flying beside you with powerful alicorn wings, her expression calming and majestic.

"Cease thy misgiven rage," the princess says, her voice quiet and serious.

"No matter the crime committed against thee, nopony is undeserving of forgiveness."

The voice in your head silenced by that of the alicorn goddess, you can feel your power quickly fading.

In it's place, your own thoughts begin to work their way back into your head.

She is right... You think, the voice now your own. If I am to pass judgement on all of Canterlot on my own, then I have become just as vain as those I crush beneath me.

This must end...

Suddenly, the magic keeping you aloft dissipates, as the boundless energy from your new horn retracts back inwards, until all that is left is your own mind, and your own body.

You fall, the ground rapidly approaching...

And then, you feel the princess catch you, grasping your body lightly with her hooves as her wings support both your weight and her own with powerful thrusts against the air.

I... I am sorry...

"Very well. I understand your motivation, and though you have committed a grave crime, you were removed from your own senses. I cannot blame you for the death of Blueblood."

In the royal palace, you bow your head low, as you receive judgement from the royal alicorns of sun and moon, after recounting your experiences leading to your newly found unicorn status, and the magical surge of power that had followed.

"Unfortunately, we have yet to find your companion, Vinyl Scratch, amongst the wreckage."

Your head hangs low. All this happened because of your desire to find and save Vinyl... you knew that she had been there, that she had needed your help... but yet, events had gone far out of your control. If only you could have acted differently, perhaps this could have been prevented somehow...

"As this is an unprecedented case, where an earth pony is given the horn of a unicorn," Celestia continues, "I cannot say just how it will affect your life. Because of your inherent magic as an earth pony still remains within you, amplifying the new power from the horn, it is uncertain whether you might break into another magical surge, or what internal forces may control you. As a result, for the safety of our subjects, we must ask that you remain in Canterlot for the time being, so my sister and I might watch over you, and prevent more accidents."

You nod sadly. After all that I've done, they are right to be cautious. It is no more than I deserve...

"We will also need to give you instruction in the ways of magic, to help you control your power, if you ever wish to return into pony society."

You look up again, surprised. That would mean...

"From this moment forth, I make you student of Luna, as she was the one to bring you back to your senses."

"Is this alright, sister?" Celestia adds, turning to the second throne beside her.

Luna looks deep into your eyes, never once looking back at Celestia. you aren't sure what she searches for in your expression, but after a few moments, she nods, signalling her approval.

"It would be an honor."

You can hardly believe this! You, a student to the princess of night? Such an honor for a common pony like yourself...

But then again, you aren't so much a common pony anymore.

The princesses nod in agreement, and then stand, Celestia retiring back to her chambers, as it is still night, the realm of her sister. Luna steps towards you, looking down with a calm smile.

"Do not fear, newly appointed student of mine!" she says, her voice loud and unrestrained. "We shall have such delightful times together, and thou shall acquire much knowledge from us!"

You aren't sure why she is speaking so loudly to you, but it is at least slightly comforting to know that she is to look over you. You don't trust the horn on your head after all of the devastation it caused, but with such a powerful alicorn to keep watch, you feel much safer.

Regardless of your unsure feelings, you put a smile on your face, hoping to placate the royal presence that demands your attention.

"Yes... I'm truly overjoyed to be your student! I think..."

Satisfied with your answer, Luna quickly turns away, and skips towards her chambers in a decidedly un-regal fashion.

"Thy enthusiasm is much contagious! Come, Octavia! Let us commence the shattering of frozen introductions! We are so eager to begin! 'Tia hath suspected that we are ill prepared for such a personal task as instruction of single apprentices, but thus, her doubting words are invalidated by our actions! Look down on us no longer, sister, for verily, we are now..."

As you trot alongside the princess, walking forward to an unknown fate, you cannot help but look back with regret. If Vinyl hasn't been found yet... then she likely hadn't survived the onslaught of your new power. You suspect that the princesses might be hiding her death from you, if only to prevent you from becoming emotional, and flaring up again...

But regardless, you aren't likely to ever see her again.

This hits you hard, knowing that you've done something horrible to a pony you loved. While you might be able to stomach the death of Blueblood, that also weighs heavily on you, for you realize that despite his crimes, he still was not worthy of such a heavy sentence.

Determined to ensure that such events would never occur again, you walk after Luna, and into the new life you had been thrust into. For Vinyl, and for everypony you have hurt on this night, you will try your hardest to learn to control your new powers, and adjust to this new horn you find yourself with.

Filled with a new vigor, you enter the Princess' chambers, ready to begin your first lesson.

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