The evening was long and the air was quiet as a mouse. All around, stallions and mares ran about, rushing to prepare everything – lights, effects, speaker systems, curtains, and background drapes in time for the fans’ arrival. Tonight, Countess Coloratura would be performing her newest hit single, and literally every fan from across Equestria would be flocking to Manehatten’s Celestial Square Garden to watch her perform it live for the first time.

“Raise the curtain!” shouted one stagehand.

“Prepare the speakers!” bellowed another.

From a distance, Rara watched them through her trailer window, gazing at the assortment of equipment being assembled and aligned for the big event she was to be at the very core of. Sitting back, she reflected over the progression of her career – being manipulated by a scheming manager, feeling hopeless, and getting back on her feet. At first it was hard, having no support team or assistants. But with her best friend, Applejack at her side, Rara was able to secure a temporary home in Ponyville until Rarity and Twilight Sparkle could find her new employees.

However, instead of being under the rules of a manager, Rara had decided to go solo, relying on only a personal assistant, an investigator, and a band of tour assistants. She now chose her own stage styles, and her own stage makeup. In a way, self-management meant she was free.

A low but quick knock came from the door. “Hello?”

“Who is it, please?” Rara replied attentively.

“Smooth Soprano, your assistant,” the voice replied.

Rara opened the door to reveal a beautiful sea green pony with smooth cyan-and-yellow hair. “Welcome in, Soprano!” she replied, beaming.

“Good evening, Coloratura,” she replied with a soft smile. “Hope your ears are ready for this event, the fans are gonna go crazy.”

“Ha! I’d bet you may need to double the number of speakers so I can head my own voice,” Rara joked.

“We’ve got plenty,” Soprano replied with a chuckle. “It’s now half past 7, so I’d suggest getting a good rest and go over those fiery lyrics, because at 8 we’ll start the backstage warmup sessions before the final preparations. Canterlot Records are very pleased with your single, and it’s sold over 80,000 copies in just the past few weeks!”

“All the better for people to know me for who I am,” Rara replied humbly, climbing into her comforting bed. “Thanks for reminding me. See you in half an hour.”

Rara laid back in her bed and read over the lines, singing them softly to herself over and over in an attempt to memorize them properly. There could be no margin of error once she stepped through the doors into the spotlight.

After what felt like the thirtieth read, Rara stepped out and, accompanied by a guard, left the trailer and walked down to a set of doors, then down a long, excluded aisle to the centrally mounted stage rooms. The guard opened a set of double doors to a large, curved room. Fancy Pants, Octavia, and a couple of other players were all waiting.

“Good evening, everypony,” Rara announced.

“Had a good rest?” Octavia inquired.

“Yeah, went over some of my performance lines,” she replied. “I feel a lot better now after going through them. Instead of just reading them, I can feel them in my head, just flowing smoothly like a stream in a forest.”

“Well, we’d better get started if we want to make this the best show Equestria will ever see,” Fancy Pants declared. “Let’s get started now, shall we?”

Coloratura stood back by the wall and began to smoothly warm up with a few repetitive words, before moving onto the actual song, ensuring that each line was spelt out correctly with a proper flow. Fancy Pants gazed into her eyes, amazed at the pop singer’s range of notes and vocal pitch control, while Octavia made sure every part of the lead was in line with the melody. In just a little over five minutes, the first warmup was completed.

“Absolutely splendid,” Fancy Pants complimented.

“Your vocal pitches blend perfectly into each other, though I think your pauses need to be more equal in time,” Octavia critiqued.

“No kidding,” Coloratura replied, her breath slightly short and rapid. “There’s a ton of effort on that falsetto.”

“Pretty good performance overall,” the other instrument players added. “Let’s go again in a bit.”

Coloratura took a few quick sips of water, before repeating the song. After four more rehearsals, she got the timing and pauses just right, with a fifth and final one to check that she could still perform it.

“Good evening everypony, and welcome to the Square Garden Concert,” Twilight Sparkle announced over the loudspeaker.

“You all ready?” Fancy Pants asked as they all patiently waited behind the curtain.

“Like I always say, I try and do what is possible within my grasp,” Coloratura replied with a smile.

A portion of the stage, lined with a few strobe lights and spot lights, lowered down, before Octavia and the others stepped on. Coloratura had decided to let her team play on the elevated platform while she sang on a catwalk-like floor below and in front.

The curtains slid aside. Instantly the stadium was filled with the shouts, squeals, and happy cries of hundreds, if not thousands, of fans who’d flocked from all over Equestria to watch. With a slightly nervous sigh, Coloratura slipped on her headset and flipped on the microphone. Strobes flashed, lights beamed, and instruments played as she stepped out onto the stage as the intro to the song began.

“Here I am, ready with all of it…” Coloratura began smoothly belting out the first few words of the song as she walked forwards nearer to the front of the stage, bringing her voice up a notch. But just as she stepped onto the very frontal part of the stage, a loud cracking sound was heard. A louder shrieking sound immediately followed as the crowd gasped in shock, as Coloratura slipped and fell through the stage, seemingly vanishing right before their very eyes. Many front-row-seated fans rushed up onto the stage, only to find a dark, deep hole – and no Coloratura to be seen. The last thing heard was an awkwardly extended note from her mic before it abruptly cut out.

Author's Note

First chapter - hope you like it. Been a while since I wrote in 3rd person so bear with me.