Radio Station Dilemmas

Radio Station Dilemmas

Chapter 1

Azura Peavielle trotted into work at the first ever radio station in Ponyville. She was a bit excited to given the chance to work here and as she entered the building for the first time, Azura looked forward to meeting her colleagues.

As Azura trotted down the main corridor, she noticed its brilliant shine and studied it with her yellow eyes. The shine was so good it reflected her studying gaze and her impressed smile upon her dark blue face. She immediately pondered who the janitor might be and placed her left hoof under her chin and thought the pony who had done this magnificent job was worthwhile meeting.

Then, Azura gazed down the corridor to see if she could see any of her colleagues were about and sighed a bit in disappointment to herself when the corridor was empty, but somehow the shining floor regained her attention and she briefly imagined herself trotting down it as a new DJ and still being impressed. She sighed again as she knew that was her dream job and she had been hired as a records filing clerk, but thought to herself it couldn’t really hurt to briefly imagine herself as a DJ.

Azura decided to just get things started and she trotted over to the door leading to the stairs and thought to herself that she might be a records filing clerk now, but with hard work, making friends with her colleagues and a little determination she might just earn her way to her dream job.

Azura opened the door to the stairs and stroked back her light blue and white mane to refocus herself a bit as she thought thinking about her dream job too much might cause her to become distracted, slip on the stairs and make a fool out of herself and then climbed up them to the second floor. When she reached the second floor door, Azura opened it up and saw a large stash of paperwork being carried toward her. The paperwork stash looked like it could topple at any minute and she couldn’t see who was carrying it, but thought she simply must offer to help this colleague.

“Hello there, do you want some help?” Azura spoke out with some concern toward her colleague.

“No thanks, I’m good, not that any pony cares,” a small male voice responded with what sounded like a snort.

Azura looked briefly at the stack again, but then found his comment a bit odd. Why did he say no pony cares? Then, she saw that the large paperwork stash was being carried by a small purple dragon with green hair and scales and both of his small arms were fully outstretched to keep the large stash under control. She was a little surprised to see that a dragon worked here as he passed her by, but thought he would struggle to carry the paperwork stash up the stairs as she saw he was heading in that direction.

“Are you sure you can manage?” Azura called after him as she was a bit concerned that he might trip or slip on the stairs.

“I said I’m good already, and I don’t need any help,” the dragon retorted angrily and walked through the door and slammed the door shut behind him with his tail.

Azura began to think into why the dragon was being so resistant to help and decided to go and wait by the door for a few seconds to see if the dragon would fall or trip on the stairs or change his mind on accepting her help, but heard slow footsteps and heavy grunting, but by the sounds of things, he was actually managing to climb the stairs and he had said he was good twice already.

Azura sighed as she didn’t know why he was so resistant, but she supposed if he felt he could manage alone then she supposed she ultimately had to leave it up to him. Still, she couldn’t help but to feel a little guilty about not opening the door and going to help him, but he had said he was good twice and she still hadn’t heard any trip or slip, so it appeared he could manage alone. Azura sighed again and decided to trot down the second floor corridor and get to the record filing room and perhaps meet a second colleague or two and help them.

As Azura trotted down the corridor, she noticed she was frowning slightly to herself and the second floor corridor looked just as immaculately clean as the main corridor, but didn’t allow herself to enjoy it. Then, Azura opened up the door to the records filing room and expected to see a colleague or two busying themselves with keeping the records neat and tidy and well-organised, but what she got was very different.

Azura gasped in horror as she met with a cloud of dust and the sight of just one unicorn colleague whose coat and mane were dull grey in colour.

“How does he…,” the unicorn sneezed, “Expect me to work…” the unicorn sneezed again, “In these conditions,” the unicorn finished.

Azura was gobsmacked by the amount of dust in the room when the main corridor downstairs and the corridor she had just trotted through was so clean. Then, she realised the unicorn had turned to face her and was looking at her with dull and grey eyes.

“Oh, it’s about time…,” the unicorn sneezed again, “You must be the new mare I’ve been asking Discord for, but you’re late,” the unicorn finished with another sneeze.

Azura wanted to say something about the dusty state of the room, but she knew also she wasn’t late and she could see a small clock on the west wall of the room which showed she was five minutes ahead of time.

“No, I’m not, I’m early,” Azura said and reluctantly stepped inside the room and pointed to the clock. The unicorn turned her head to glance at it.

“Oh, but so what, it’s not like I care, just go over there and start your job,” the unicorn snorted dismissively and pointed out her left front hoof toward a stash of records that seemed to have been left where they were for quite some time.

Azura noticed the unicorn was the second of her colleagues who seemed a bit off and she looked as was about to sneeze again.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Azura asked with concern as she trotted over thinking the unicorn was going to sneeze again.

“I am perfect, darling and you’ll do well to remember that,” the unicorn huffed.

Azura looked at the unicorn with her yellow eyes and very much doubted that as something about her dull and grey colour, the dusty room she was in and the way she was speaking to her seemed very wrong.

“And oh by the way,” the unicorn spoke up and gained Azura’s attention.

“Don’t get in the way of me earning my gem, Discord promised me one gem for a month’s work and if you get in the way, you’ll have hell to pay, you got it!” The unicorn yelled then puffed her chest out and glared her dull grey eyes into Azura’s eyes.

Azura flinched and took a pace backwards and couldn’t believe her new colleague had just threatened and intimidated her. She thought this sort of behaviour didn’t belong in a workplace and then she noticed some strange yellow swirling effect in her colleague’s eyes before they became dull and grey again.

“Now go and get started unless you want me to report you to Discord,” the unicorn threatened again and then pointed her hoof toward the pile she had previously pointed to again.

Azura thought her new colleague was being very anti-social and sniffled a little and hoped not all of her colleagues were like her and looked over to her pile and reluctantly stepped over to it and cried a little.

“Maybe I’ll speak to Discord about this,” Azura briefly commented to herself before there was a puff of black smoke that came out of nowhere and then Discord appeared.

“Greetings Azura and thank you for accepting the job role that somehow Rarity convinced me she needed help with, you should see how insisting her eyes can really be,” Discord greeted in an elegant manner and huffed a little at the end.

“Actually I would like to raise some concerns with you,” Azura sniffled slightly, but saw Discord was wearing a smart black tuxedo and a red tie and was definitely the boss.

Rarity sneezed, but appeared not to notice her boss was in the room with her.

“Oh, I’m sure you would want to raise some concerns, but first, what do you think?” Discord laughed and showed Azura his lion paw hand. Azura gazed at it and then realised Discord looked very odd indeed.

The horns on his head didn’t match, his yellow eyes looked a little creepy, plus a lion paw hand and what appeared to be a griffon talons from his second hand made no sense, and he had a goat like leg and one covered in scales and finally a red tail coming out of his back. Azura judged he looked very weird indeed, but then thought Discord might think she was rudely staring at him as she noticed her gaze was a bit transfixed on him and stepped back a pace.

“Okay, you’ve had enough of my glorious presence,” Discord boasted, though Azura thought he was more strange looking than glorious and she was thinking about talking to him about her concerns.

“I’ve come to do just one thing and I swear it won’t hurt a bit, though your mind will be muddled,” Discord smiled in a most unpleasant manner.

“What do you mean and what about my concerns?” Azura asked him in confusion and tilted her head up at him and then saw his unpleasant smile and backed off a bit.

Discord started to laugh again and continued to laugh until it drew a tear from his left yellow eye.

“Persistent, aren’t you?” Discord chuckled.

Azura looked up to Discord still with confusion and wondered if he was going to address her concerns.

“Rarity, my dear, would you be so kind to push Azura over to me, she seems to have wondered astray,” Discord commented and Azura noticed he looked over to Rarity and she wondered why Discord wanted Rarity to push her and also noted that must be her colleague’s name.

“Do it yourself, I’m earning my gem,” Rarity rudely commented.

Azura looked over to Rarity with surprise and was stunned that Rarity would dare address her boss like that.

“It appears I may have overdone you, Rarity, my dear,” Discord commented with great sarcasm and disappeared.

Azura noticed Rarity insult Discord further with a non-caring shrug.

“Enough!” Discord growled intensely and reappeared and Azura immediately paid attention thinking her boss would definitely address Rarity’s actions and the dustiness of the record filing room.

“Now, it’s turn, my dear Azura and don’t run, it’s useless other than a small amount of entertainment for me,” Discord stroked his beard in a menacing manner and narrowed his eyes onto Azura.

“Why would I run?” Azura asked in a puzzled tone as she was getting confused as she thought she had no reason to run when she wanted to raise some concerns with him, but then he disappeared and reappeared behind her.

“Brace yourself,” Discord laughed and then grabbed hold of Azura’s body and placed his griffon talons n her head.

Azura suddenly felt very dizzy and then there was an aggressive surge of mental agony as something wanted to take over her mind, but she was too slow to resist and then she thought what surge and why should she care about it…