Scratched

Twitch hurried down the hallway from Sparks’ office, mind racing.

Was he serious? Take Jet Star off the billing that evening? There was no one that could take the spot? She screamed inside her head.

Sure, she had a little problem with being indecent on stage. Everypony does once in a while? Just because there was a report made to the guards about her bringing ‘special toys’ on stage and doing a set with her turntable, and then with them, that wasn’t any reason to go flying off the handle.

She hurried to the lift, eager to head upstairs and figure this out. Pushing some colts out of the way, the bat pony walked over to the corner of the room that Jet had set up as her personal living space. Old tarps and sheets created a sort of mix between a pillow fort and a homeless flophouse.

Flipping open a flap of sheets, Twitch peered inside. Her yellow eyes became even more slitted than usual.

Jet Star was laying straddled across the ground, still half riding a happily vibrating pony sized sybian. Twitch recoiled slightly as she realized she had stepped in the now spreading pool of marecum, as the pony appeared to be half in and out of consciousness as she rode the saddle.

“Hmpff? The mint and cream colored mare mumbled as she flopped off the side. She woke quickly as her entire side became covered in the cooling sticky liquid.

Stumbling to her feet, she glanced over at herself. “Haha, gross…” She said, before wiping the sleep from her eyes with her other hoof.

“Twitch? What the hell do’ya want?” She said, angrily looking over at the bat mare. “You’s weren’t peeking at me, were ya?

“Jet. Pack it up. I think we’re done.” Twitch deadpanned.

“Haha, real good one, ya old bat bitch. Real funny. Go tell that ta ole’ Sparks. Sees what he thinks.”

“I just came from him.” Twitch replied. She turned around, letting the flap shut closed.

“H…hey! Wait up!” Jet yelled after her. She frantically started wiping herself off with a nearby towel. Reaching her tail, she realized it had hardened into a solid clump of cum. “Damnit!”

“Not talking about it, Jet.” Twitch called out as she walked away. “You’ve had too many chances. Sparks told you we’re not about to turn the stage into a donkey show.”

“You’re out.” She yelled back, walking across the room.

Glancing around the room, Twitch thought for a moment. Not a lot of ponies left that could fill the spot. She couldn’t put a colt in that time slot. The bar was mostly filled with men during the later weekday slot, coming to the club to release stress after work. She had to have mare fill it.

“Hey Twitch.” A voice called out behind her. Spinning, the pony was almost face to face with Vinyl Scratch. The filly smiled cheerfully at her as she gobbled a piece of toast.]

“Kind of early for a bat to be up, isn’t it?” Vinly said with a grin.

Twitch smirked back at her. No way, she thought. Don’t do it, Twitch ole girl. She can’t handle that slot yet.

And yet she had heard some ponies talking about Scratch from last night. Maybe?

That’s like throwing a piece of meat to the wolves.

It’ll be some good experience for her.

A filly shouldn’t even be in the bar at that hour, let alone on the stage…

She came here to perform, right? Well…

Replacing her smirk with a sickly sweet smile, Twitch leaned down closer to Vinyl. Actually I was here on business. I’m looking for a fill in for a slot tonight.”

Vinyl’s eyes lit up. “I can fill a slot…”

“It’s going to be tough, Vinyl. It’s late, this crowd will have quite a few drinks in them, and it’s going to be mostly males.”

“I can handle colts just fine!” Vinyl replied, motioning with her hoof that it would not be a problem.

“Who said they’re colts?” Twitch said with a grin. “We get males from all over the place. They’ll probably be species you never even knew existed. You’ve never been in the place after dark, Vinyl.”

“I’ll be able to handle it Twitch.”

The bat stared down at her, smirking. “I’m sure you can, little filly. Sure you can. Just remember, you wanted the spot. I’ll give it to you. But I’m going to warn you as well. Don’t screw it up. Okay?”

“Why did I agree to this?” Vinyl repeated to herself.

The mare sat on her haunches in the loading dock. She had already headed down the hallways to the stage.

Twice.

She saw what was waiting out in the bar. There were ponies, sure. But there was also a group of very unruly looking griffons. There was a pair of green skinned things that walked on two legs that towered over the rest of the club goers. A group of diamond dogs had been shouting loudly from one of the tables near the stage. There was all manner of creatures from around the world.

And they all were pissed that Jet Star wasn’t performing.

“Alright Vinyl, you said you were going to do this. You’re going to go out there. You got this.” She said to herself.

“What the buck are you doing in here still?!” Twitch said, shocking the pony to her hooves. “Get out there! They just want a mare out there singing. They don’t care which one!”

“I’m starting to have second thoughts about this Twitch…” Vinyl said.

Wait was she moving? She thought.

Twitch was through putting up with the filly. She started pushing her down the hallway to the stage.

“H…hold on!” Vinyl cried. She tried to dig her hooves in, but found the steel of the walkway unyielding.

“Get…out…there…!” Twitch yelled. She pushed the filly past the protection of the staging areas, directly onto the steel stage.

Vinyl had pictured it many times. She had been in the club during the day, admitting the size and scope of it. The Argos was made to house hundreds of ponies, or slightly less, depending on the size of the creatures inside. Two large bar areas flanked the sides of the entry, some sort of enchanted stone letting off a dim green light through the smooth surface. A few server ponies stood behind each side, taking orders and serving up drinks.

The club area itself was massive.

It was largely open in the center, with no tables or chairs. A large dance area was made of the same enchanted stone, dimly glowing green in the dark of the club. Dozens of spotlights trailed down from the ceiling, moving swiftly and lighting up most of the area as they played off the floor and walls.

Near the edges of the room were booths, mostly purchased by ponies looking for more privacy. Walls of dirty brick loomed up over everypony, before meeting in a huge arched ceiling, painted black to hide the gangplanks and lighting.

The stage was simple. It had once been a classic theater, but had since been covered over in metal once the old floorboards rotted out.

A large booth lay on one side of the stage, where most of the DJs plugged in. The booth had a short wall to provide some small semblance of a barrier from the main hall, other than the height of the stage.

There was no real protection from the crowd.

She’d never seen the place so…filled.

“Where the fuck is Jet?!” Yelled a particularly angry stallion near the front of the stage.

“I waited through all the shit earlier, and now they send this little filly out? What is this crap?!”

“We paid to see a mare screw herself silly on stage!”

“Maybe this filly will!”

“Get some real meat on the stage, Twitch!”

Vinyl’s heart was beating so fast.

The feeling of the crowd was intense. She could feel the pounding of their hooves and feet, shaking the metal stage. The vibrations echoed through her body, making her mane and tail stand on end.

Rather than feel terrified, she had never felt more energized.

Trying to control her breathing, she trotted to the DJ booth, seeing her familiar equipment already set to go. She pulled the mic from its stand, levitating it to her with her magic. Knowing exactly what she had to play, she eschewed her turntable, instead queuing up a tune on her synthesizer. Bringing the mic, she moved to the main stage, moving close to the jeering males clambering towards the edge.

Smirking, the mare reared up, bringing both hooves down on the metal. Focusing her magic, she created a bright blue wave, amplifying the sound through the mic. The club goers immediately fell away from the stage as her booming entrance echoed though the hall, wisps of magic flowing off the stage before evaporating in the air.

Her music had already started. She focused, adjusting the dials on her equipment by heart. Moving the bass to the maximum, she started moving her hooves to match the pounding beat. Already capturing the audience, she brought her magic to her body, highlighting her mane, tail and eyes in a light blue electric sheen.

Bringing the mic to her muzzle, she got as close to the edge of the stage as she could. She turned across the entire audience as she started to sing to the beat.

♪♫I want you,

To make believe it’s the first time!

♪♫And I gotta say to you,

Love will find a way, and that’s always true!

Her voice echoed off the walls, matching the driving rhythm from the speakers. She turned on the stage, flipping her tail towards the table of Diamond Dogs, watching them hoot in appreciation.

♪♫Want you!

Want you!

Want you!

She sang hard into the mic, floating from one side of the stage to the other. She let her mane flop over her face as she brought her head down towards the fans, looking into their eyes as she moved from side to side. The magic effect mad her pupils light up, piercing through the dim light.

♪♫Take it down and turn it up!

Take it down and turn it up!

Party it up!

Getting into the feel of the club, Vinyl moved quickly to the center of the stage, moving her plot to the crowd. To a chorus of hollering, she bent down, presenting herself as she covered her bits. Snaking her head around to face the crowd, she sang to them as her tail glowed electric blue against her plot.

♪♫I want you,

To make believe it’s the first time!

Love will find a way, and that’s always true!

Flipping around, she moved confidently across stage, grinning smugly as she swished her tail back and forth. Brushing her mane to one side, she brought the beat to a slow constant thump, looking out at the audience.

Erupting, they started cheering for the young filly. All thoughts of Jet vanished as the clamored for another set from the filly. Soaking in the energy, her mind raced as she felt a huge surge of adrenaline course through her young body. She started heading back to the booth, planning her next lead in as she picked up the pace, adding some treble to her set.

As she moved across the stage, she found herself fixated on a tall, slim form standing against the nearest booth. The only one of their kind in the room, he was standing near the edge of a booth, staring at her intently. Almost losing herself, Vinyl found herself drawn to his stare. She knew she had seen him before…maybe at her juniors competition?

Completely unlike the other members of the room, he stood tall on his hind legs. He wore clothing, an unusual trait for Equestria.

Continuing with her set, she felt herself still drawn back to him.

Such an unusual creature…

Vinyl finished her set a couple hours later, breathing quickly as she walked off the stage to the cheers of the crowd. She could feel the breeze of the backstage hallway wash over her, her entire coat drenched with sweat from her performance.

Twitch looked at her as she walked off, a wide smile on her muzzle.

“Aren’t you glad I kicked your plot out there now?”

“Yeah…” Vinyl said, still exhausted from her show.

“You did great. I watched the whole thing. You’ve got a real future if you keep that up, kid.” Twitch said, giving her a playful punch to her shoulder with a wing. “There’s a shower off behind the elevator. It’s kind of wide open back there, but you definitely can use it.”

Smiling gratefully, Vinyl pushed past her, walking across the loading dock. She could see the staff restroom there, heading off to the mare side.

Surprisingly well kept and clean, the restroom sported a small changing area, a long line of stalls, and at the end, a wide open shower area with a few shower heads sprouting down from the ceiling. The white tiling was old and worn, grout graying with age, but still clean under her hooves. Sighing, she turned on the nearest shower head, finding the water already running warm from the tap.

Muscles instantly relaxing under the warm spray, she let her mane and tail mat down against her coat as she just stood there, letting the water wash over her.

She still felt her veins coursing with excitement. She had actually done a real live set. In the Argos.

And everypony there had loved it.

She couldn’t resist chuckling to herself as she used her magic to wash herself off, making a mental note that she would have to remember some bath necessities when she got paid. The water alone would have to make do for now.

Turning off the flow, she shook her body, trying to shed the water as best she could. Focusing magic on her mane and tail, she wring the water from them, flipping the still wet mass of hair over her shoulders. A wave on contentment she hadn’t felt in a long time flowed over her as she walked out of the tiled shower.

Her contentment froze in her veins as she saw a single form standing in the hallway of stalls. Tall and lanky, she felt she knew exactly who it was, even in the dim light.

“That was really good for a filly.” Hiatus said softly.

Vinyl felt a pit in her stomach as she heard him speak. Her entire body froze in fear as he slowly walked towards her.

“I would have liked to see Jet more, I think. That mare knew how to entertain a room of stallions.”

She could see his body clearly now in the light. His tail flicked back and forth as he advanced on her. His eyes were focused on her, intense and bloodshot. Before she had a chance to speak or even act, she could see a golden glow light from his horn. An invisible force gripped at her muzzle, holding it fast.

“Mmphh!?” She gasped in surprise, trying to pull the force away with her hoof in vain. Realizing it was his magic, she lit her own horn, trying to force his magic off her body.

“Heh. You’re too weak, Scratch. That’s not going to work. You were exhausted after your set. I can always tell. That’s the best time to pick up mares.” He said, walking towards her. He had a sickly sweet smile on his face. “Hard to turn down a pony when you can barely stand.”

Glaring at him, she tried to focus on his body, trying to keep him from reaching her. Hiatus merely smiled, concentrating on her weak barrier of magic, pushing through it with a golden shimmer.

Standing almost on top of her now, he reached out with a hoof, touching her stringy mane. She recoiled as he ran his hoof down her side as he walked past her. She tried to move away from his touch, but suddenly felt his magic grasp her tail near the dock, pushing her body against his.

“Haha, so forward for a filly! Practically throwing yourself at me now, huh?”

She grunted into the magic muzzle, feeling his head snake around her haunches, pushing in near her dock. The mare’s eyes widened in surprise as he pushed his tongue against her tailhole, running down to her slit. She flinched at his hot breath against her nethers, struggling against him as he tasted her.

Grunting in pain, she managed to finally pull her tail from his grasp just enough. She bounced sideways on her hooves, pulling away from his muzzle. Retracting her rear hoof as far as she could, she managed to land a sideways kick to his face, catching him square in the nose. She could feel his magic loosen at the blow, but not falter.

Staying on his feet, the stallion immediately was on her. Feeling his magic grasp on her rear hooves now as well, he held her close to him as he rested his now bleeding muzzle on her back.

A few errant drops of blood fell on her snow white coat, leaving small splatters as they fell.

“That was not a good move, Scratch.” Hiatus said, his voice suddenly husky and annoyed.

She felt him pull away from her for a moment, as her eyes searched frantically for any sign of what he was doing. His magic still held her muzzle painfully facing forwards, and she found she could not wrench it free, no matter how she struggled.

As she panicked, she suddenly felt his weight on her back, long gangly hooves reaching around her midsection like an octopus. Fear coursed through her as she felt him positioning himself, pushing his length against her. Vinyl could feel him stroking against her teats, feeling the warmth of his member sliding against her stomach as he savored the moment.

“Did that little bitch Treble ever take you like this? I bet he didn’t.” Hiatus said, moving his muzzle against her neck, biting her nape. “It’s something only a real stallion would do. Showing a mare her real place.”

Whimpering, Vinyl could feel him pulling back, suddenly pushing forward against her marehood. His dick struggled to push inside her, moving up and down her nethers, trying to find entry. She could feel his magic pushing inside her, trying to pry her open so he could enter.

The next moments were hard to remember for the filly. She could recall a dull thud and a jarring impact, followed by the upsetting sound of bone scraping on porcelain.

She remembered feeling all his magic falling away suddenly, leaving her to fall to the cold tile of the floor. Gasping, she opened her muzzle at last, taking long breaths as she tried to regain herself. Glancing over at Hiatus, she saw a familiar creature on top of him.

Vinyl however did remember vividly the scene of Hiatus getting the holy hell beat out of him.

The strange bipedal creature from before had wrestled Hiatus off her, pinning the pony to the ground with his weight. He had obviously already hit the stallion in his muzzle hard enough to daze and confuse him, and was now raining punches down as the pony struggled to realize what exactly was happening.

Flashes of gold lit up the stranger, but did little to stop him. Hiatus struggled in confusion, obviously not sure why his magic was failing him.

The creature pulled back one of his upper appendages quickly, slugging the pony in his solar plexus. Instantly the fight was out of him, as the stranger slammed his head down on the tile, knocking him out.

Vinyl felt a twinge of fear as the strange creature rose up. Easily standing several feet taller than her, she could see now that he was stocky and well built. She struggled to her hooves, trying to pull herself together as he glanced over at her.

“Are you alright?” He spoke to her. His voice was rough, but still kind, despite the violent act he had just committed.

The pony was still too stunned to respond. She just stood there on shaky hooves, trying her best to not appear like an easy target. He may have defended her, but what was he doing here, anyways?

The figure paused, before slowly reaching out to her. Vinyl flinched momentarily, but did not shy away as he reached out to touch her muzzle. With curious eyes, she looked at his strange appendages. Ending with five small digits, his limbs almost resembled a griffon, but was so drastically different. They ended with soft, rounded ends, rather than claws.

She could feel the thought in her head to pull away, but she let the creature touch her, moving his digits along her muzzle, running along her mouth until he cradled her head, gently rubbing her chin.

“I…I’m fine.” She finally felt the courage to speak back. The feeling of his digits along her fur was strangely relaxing.

Wordlessly, he placed a hand on her back, as the pair walking out of the restroom area.Vinyl found it difficult to walk, as her exhaustion finally overcame her. Finding her limbs moving slower, she gasped in surprise as the creature next to her reached down with an arm, easily picking her up. He cradled the pony to his chest as he walked towards the lift. Vinyl felt her fear fading away as he held her closely. She could feel the strength in him, but also sensed his gentleness too.

“Thanks…” She mumbled, letting her head rest against his body. He adjusted his pony burden as he reached out to shut the grating, hitting the button for the elevator.

“It’s fine. I’m just glad I was there.” He said quietly as they rode upwards.

“I saw you at the show. Did you get to see it?”

“I did.” He replied.

“Did you like it?” She asked.

Pretending to think for a moment, he looked down at her. “Better than Jet.”

Vinyl grinned up at him. She finally got to see his face. A strange thin layer of hair covered most of his chin and sides of his head, leading up to a shortly cut head of hair. She was surprised just how little of him had no fur at all. She could see his skin, slightly dark from too much sun, reflecting in the dim light of the elevator. He had intense light blue eyes, but his expression dulled them into a kind gaze.

“Why were you there, anyways? You weren’t planning to do the same…” Vinyl asked.

“I heard a struggle. I usually go out the back alley. Less hassle that way.”

Reaching the top floor, he hoisted her close to him after closing the grate to the elevator. Carrying her, she motioned to her makeshift quarters, feeling ashamed as he pushed the door open with a foot.

“You…live in here?” He asked.

“Well…not when I can avoid it.” She replied. “It’s not so bad. I got room for all my stuff, and there’s a bed on the floor.”

Glancing down, he noticed the pile of straw, covered with a thin blanket.

“Bed. Sure.”

“You can put me down now.” Vinyl said. He placed her on her shaky hooves, watching the unicorn immediately flop down on her mattress.

“Thanks for the help tonight…whatever you are. I appreciate it.”

Hesitating, the biped struggled for a moment, waving good night to her as he took a few steps, only to quickly walk back before she closed her door.

“Hey. I don’t feel comfortable just leaving you like this. Will you meet me tomorrow in the café? Just so I can make sure you’re doing alright.” He asked.

The pony chuckled. “Heh. Look at prince charming here.” She said, looking up at his eyes. She thought for a moment. “Yeah, sure. You seem normal enough. For a weird hairless monkey looking thing.”

“Is ten okay?”

“Sure. I’ll see you there.” Vinyl replied. She watched him walk away quickly towards the elevator.

She couldn’t quite place why she did that. There was something strange about him, and his story. The way he moved, and the way he acted around her. Nothing seemed normal. But at the same time, she felt a strange excitement being around the strange creature that she hadn’t felt before. The newness excited her.

And anyways, she wasn’t about to turn down a free breakfast. She hadn’t been paid yet after all.

Settling down on the bed, she lay on her side, feeling her fatigue wash over her suddenly. Eyes fluttered shut as she drifted off within a few moments. She didn’t even realize she hadn’t curled up quite so tight that evening on her straw mattress.