Vampiric Symphonyby AnonomisChapters123451Octavia Melody was currently sitting on stage of the Canterlot Theater with most of the string players for their latest concert. Although she’d played cello for years; each concert seemed to feel more important than the last with this being her first time performing a cello solo in the middle of one of pieces of music that would also end the concert as well. “Conductor on deck,” someone said in a commanding voice “Thank you to our first-chair violinist for that announcement,” the conductor said “Ladies and gentlemen; we wrap up our final rehearsal before tomorrow night's concert. Go home and get some sleep and we meet here at 5pm for final instrument check and tuning.” With that; many of the players started collecting their sheet music together and returning violins and violas to their nearby cases. Octavia removed her phone and checked in the hope of getting an answer to her previous message. “Come on Vee,” she muttered “Hey, Octavia,” a voice called “Care to join us?” “Coming,” she replied “Had to check something first.” Due to the delay of checking her phone; Octavia was the last to return to the warmup room to store her cello back in its storage case. After finishing up; she grabbed the case and headed towards the back door of the theater. Situated near the rear of the theater was an alley that seemed to be generally agreed by citizens to stay away from. Despite having a measly two lights to allow visibility; it was commonly used as an area for drug deals and homeless to reside as the lights were shot out repeatedly. “One last time,” she muttered “Please get this message.” V- Just got done with rehearsal. Can you pick me up? Waiting by rear alleyI At a nightclub across town, Vinyl Scratch; or more commonly known as her persona ‘DJ Pon-3’; was currently in the middle of a set on stage when her phone flashed with the notice of a message. “Damn. With the music going, I couldn’t hear this,” she said to herself “I totally forgot about our agreement. I hope she doesn’t hold this against me.” Letting the current song play; Vinyl stepped out of the DJ booth and started heading towards the back of the room. Spotting the back of the head of someone she recognized, she tried getting their attention. “Niles,” she called “Come over here for a minute!” A male with an identical shade of dark blue hair and light blue highlights turned around and headed towards Vinyl. “Why do you always insist on using such a ridiculous nickname for me,” the male asked, shaking his head in disbelief “Look, Neon; I need you to take over for me for a little while. I forgot to pick up a friend.” “And why should I do that?” “Two reasons,” Vinyl started “One; you’re my older brother and two; you’re the best DJ I know.” “I am older by a few minutes and taught you everything you know,” Neon Light said with a hint of pride “You know, with our condition; I’m surprised you have a girlfriend.” “We’re just friends and happen to be girls; totally not the same thing,” Vinyl corrected “And I know our condition shouldn’t allow it; but I don’t give a shit what anyone says.” “Just get going before I change my mind,” he countered, heading to the booth As Octavia waited for what she hoped would be her ride; she heard movement in the alley and started to clutch the case for some sort of comfort and safety; as she only was there because it would have been easier to get picked up without causing a scene. Newspapers had reported that Vinyl Scratch was seeing someone and Octavia really didn’t anyone following her trying to get information. “Hey girly,” a gruff voice called Not knowing or caring who might be calling her; Octavia just sat on the nearby steps as her fingers subconsciously replayed the notes of her solo on her leg. Not getting the reaction that was hoped; the person decided to make themselves known. The male was wearing clothes covered in filth and torn in various places with a long gray, completely matted beard that seemed to match his hair. “I got a proposition for you,” he said “No thank you, sir. I’m waiting for a friend,” she replied, trying to be polite “You’re waiting for that dyke celebrity; aren’t you? The one with the blue hair,” he accused “That would be none of your business,” she retorted, still trying to remain composed “With that reaction, I must have touched a nerve,” he said with a dry chuckle “Tell ya what; you take my proposition and I don’t tell the reporters you’re fucking the broad.” Despite there being some truth to his comment; she wasn’t going to give in. Instead; she simply bit her lip to hold back anything that might have slipped out. “I’ll give you one more chance to rethink your position,” he threatened, reaching into a pocket to retrieve a revolver, “I’d hate to shoot a pretty little thing such as your self.” Having now seen the revolver; she found herself actually scared as her heart rate started to get quicker. A multitude of thoughts ran through her head as she started to make a mental prayer for safety. She decided to just give in and hope he wouldn’t hurt her. While calling the police should have been the first priority; they refused to work that area due to how many police officers had been assaulted by the homeless. “Alright, you win,” a defeated Octavia said “What is this proposition of yours?” “Follow me into the alley,” he directed Grabbing her case; she reluctantly did as she was told me hoped Vinyl would get there soon. Once into the alley, the male removed a pocket knife and flicked it open; before using it to slice open her shirt, revealing a blue bra underneath. “Why don’t you take that there garment off and we can get this over with,” he stated as she started to remove her shirt “No, no; just the bra gets removed.” As she reached around to start to unclip the bra from behind; she found herself taking small steps backwards in the hopes of getting away. Seeing this, he raised the pistol to her side and fired. “I wouldn’t try that again, missy. Next time there won’t be a blank in the chamber,” he angrily stated “Now; why don’t you get over here and put tulips on my organ?” Currently seeing no other option, she continued with the removal of her bra that he promptly snatched away from her hand. Afterwards, she walked over and knelt down between his legs before punching him right in the crotch, causing him to double over in pain. As he clutched his stomach, his shirt sleeve rose up enough to allow part of a star tattoo to become visible. “You’ll…regret…that…”he said through pained breaths As she turned towards the way she came in the alley, her attacker grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled, causing her to fall backwards against her cello case. “You’ve been clutching at that case real hard,” he noticed, trying to ignore the pain “I hope it’s not too important. No, on second thought; I actually do hope this means something to you because I’m going to destroy it before your eyes.” He bent down and opened the case to reveal the cello she’d been using and yanked it out. Holding the instrument high over his head, it was then slammed into the ground; leaving a mangled mess in its wake. Before she could get over the shock of losing the instrument, he aimed the revolver directly at her chest. Still on her way from the other side of town; Vinyl was getting near the front of the theater after spending quite a lot of time in a traffic jam due to an accident closing off the road needed and had to resort to using back streets in the Hope’s of making up lost time. “Fucking dammit to hell,” Vinyl swore, hitting the dashboard “If it wasn’t for some dumbass getting into an accident I could have been there already!” With one of her windows cracked open; the echo of a gunshot was heard as she saw the fleeting glimpse of a homeless man running away from the very area Octavia was said to be at. Fearing the worst; she gunned the engine and drove as fast as she could towards its source. She could hardly wait as she reached the alley and jumped out, leaving the engine still running. “Come on, Tavi,” she muttered “Where are you?” Using a small flashlight; she found her friend's broken cello and followed it until Vinyl saw Octavia laying on the concrete, bleeding from a gunshot wound to the chest. “No, no, no,” Vinyl said, trying to hold back tears “You can’t die on me like this.” A small rasping came from Octavia as she seemed to want to speak; but Vinyl just put a finger to her lips. “Vi…na…al.” “Save your breath. I’m here now,” Vinyl said reassuring “I’m sorry.” Wanting to save her friend; Vinyl gently turned her head to the side as she willed her fangs to emerge. Despite being a vampire; Vinyl made every effort to hide her nature and this was to be the first time turning another person. After biting Octavia’s neck to begin the transformation; she was gently carried back to the car and laid on the back seat while Vinyl punched a number on her in-car phone. “Get a room ready now. I’m on my way.” “Need any help,” a voice on the other side asked “A stretcher just in case and a change of clothes." “Alright just be safe.” Trying to be extremely careful to not injure her passenger; Vinyl quickly turned down the nearest side street and made her way towards a two-story building with an extravagant feel of a mansion and pulled up directly towards the front entrance. Just as she shut off the engine, the doors were thrown open as four people emerged with a stretcher as the other two held the doors open. “She has a injury to her chest,” one pointed out “Why bring her here instead of the hospital?” “I did what I had to. Just get her into a bedroom and let her sleep,” Vinyl directed Once Twilight was brought inside, another female emerged from a side room marked with a crescent on the door. She currently wore a dark blue dress that seemed to match her hair. “What brings you here in such a hurry?” “Aunt Luna; I’m sorry. Octavia is my friend and I meant to pick her up when she got shot. I bit her to save her life.” “After all this time I still find it funny to hear you calling me aunt,” Luna mused “She’s your first, am I right?” “Yeah. I had to do something, even if I was punished afterwards.” “Well; that agreement has still held; so I think it’s alright,” Luna noted “No one saw you doing that, right?” “No. It was in the alley behind the theater and completely dark where she was. I probably got lucky by getting there when I did. Any later and you get the picture.” “In the meantime we’ll let her rest and you can get some sleep yourself,” Luna suggested “Although it’s been some time since I’ve been a doctor.” “Just put me in the room next to hers and knock thrice to wake me up,” Vinyl directed A few hours later, Octavia felt an involuntary spasm that caused her to wake. Sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room was a female with purple hair and light purple streak, wearing a purple robe. “Where am I? What happened? Who are you,” Octavia asked, looking around quickly “Calm down please. I’ll go and let the others know about you being awake,” came the answer “Here’s one less,” Vinyl joked as she entered “I couldn’t sleep anyways.” “It’s good to see our guest awake,” Luna chimed in, as she entered last “What’s going on,” Octavia asked “And what happened to my clothes?” “Why don’t you explain what happened a few hours ago,” Vinyl suggested “After your rehearsal; I might add.” “After I sent you the text saying I would wait in the alley, a homeless man threatened me,” Octavia answered before starting to hyperventilate “You’re safe here,” Luna said reassuringly “They can’t hurt you any more.” “He threatened me with a pistol if I didn’t take off my bra and get between his legs to give him oral sex. When I tried to escape, he smashed my cello onto the ground before he shot,” she trailed off before touching her chest “He shot my chest directly in the heart. How am I here?” “You might hate me for telling you this, but I turned you into a vampire,” Vinyl answered, rubbing her arm cautiously “You mean I’m dead,” Octavia asked nervously “Yes and no. Had I not done that, you would have died right there with the wound. Instead; I gave you another chance at life,” Vinyl said, tossing some pants and a shirt onto the bed “Before we forget; what did your attacker look like?” “Dirty clothes and hair, and possibly a star on the arm.” “Unfortunately not a lot to go on if you were to report that to police,” Twilight mused “Where are we and what happens now,” Octavia questioned, trying to change the subject “First off, you can get rid of those clothes and put those on if you want,” Vinyl suggested, motioning to the clothes before hugging her friend “Perhaps introductions are in order to answer the first part of your question,” Luna mused “My name is Luna Nocturnus and this one of my twin daughters, Twilight Sparkle. You already know Vinyl and I’m sure there’s still a few others I’m forgetting.” “Octavia Melody. It’s a pleasure to meet you. If you don’t mind me asking; who are the others?” “My brother Neon Lights; who’s probably at the club still,” Vinyl answered “My twin sister Starlight Glimmer is in Las Pegasus with her wife Trixie Lulamoon,” Twilight added “As to the where; this was known as Canterlot High School,” Luna explained “We simply bought it and turned it into a mansion after it was abandoned.” “Mom; what about the agreement? Is that going to cause any problems,” Twilight asked “What agreement?” “Simply put; it was between our family and my former sister; Celestia Solaris and her group,” Luna answered “We were expected to stay here in Canterlot while they resided in the area commonly known as the Crystal Kingdom. It also explains feeding habits and changing others into vampires.” “For us; we usually make a small incision in the neck and take a small amount of blood. Just under a cup or a few mouthfuls,” Twilight explained “The others preferred to just drain the body completely. Of course we now have a friend that sends a wine bottle filled with blood that makes feeding easier.” “What happens now,” Octavia asked “You can stay here until tonight with your concert. We’ll figure out later what happens,” Vinyl answered “You are more than welcome to move from your studio apartment into one of our rooms. These room are certainly big enough,” Luna offered “I’ve never told anyone about where I live.” “The area you live in is on the boarder so we’ve probably seen you in passing when we were by there,” Twilight answered dismissively “Since I don’t think I’m going to be able to fall asleep, could you give me a tour of the house?” “Take your time,” Vinyl joked “That’ll give me time to get something done. Mom; could you help me with that later?” “I’ll show you around and we’ll give you some privacy to change,” Twilight added Despite everyone being female; they all followed Twilight out of the room as Luna returned to her room and Vinyl took off running down the hallway and out of sight. Once dressed; Octavia left to join her guide. “That wing over there contains the rooms for our assistants,” Twilight explained, pointing towards a section of the house “And as you enter, on your left is our living room; although it does have the feel of a small movie theater.” “The servants; are they like us?” “No. They’re mortal and are bound to the grounds by agreements not to mention anything about us. Some of the existing areas of the school like the nurse’s office, library and cafeteria are still the same as they were originally. We did of course make some major changes.” “Oh?” “The entire back of the school was dug out and refitted with a two-story underground garage; plus a section used as a weapons range,” Luna interjected “The upstairs classrooms were paired up and joined together to create individual luxurious master bedrooms; complete with bathrooms. The lower rooms have been turned into smaller rooms, that are luxurious in their own way. There is one place I’d hope you follow me to.” “If I want to learn my way around I’d have to.” With Twilight trailing behind, Luna led the three down a few corridors that almost led back towards the front door. As the trio stepped into one of the rooms, Octavia noticed the lights were off as she wasn’t able to see her own hand in front of her if she tried. “Surprise,” Vinyl yelled as the lights were suddenly turned on “Ow,” Octavia complained as she was momentarily blinded “What do you think,” Vinyl asked The room was decorated with a white arch situated on a small elevated podium on which Vinyl was currently standing on with a male in all black with a white choker instead of a tie. “Since I’ve met you, I’d always hoped there was a chance I’d get to do this,” Vinyl started “Octavia; would you marry me?” “This is a bit sudden for me. I’m not sure what to say.” “I understand that this wasn’t what you probably expected; but since I met you a few years ago I found myself in love with you,” Vinyl offered “I want to marry you, but I’d like to have my parents here as well.” “I’m sure we could arrange for them to be here,” Luna offered “Why not tonight,” Twilight suggested “Well; they were supposed to attend my concert this evening.” “Then it’s settled,” Vinyl decided “We’ll do it at the end of your concert in front of everyone.” “What about the paparazzi? It’ll be a scandal.” “Honestly; I don’t give a shit about their opinions,” Vinyl retorted “I’m through with hiding my girlfriend. There is one thing I’d like to give you on that table. Consider it a very early wedding present.” Octavia headed over to the table and unwrapped a box that took up the entire length. A black case was inside the box as she continued further into her gift. Inside the black case was a black cello that seemed to have a grid-like pattern upon closer inspection. “This is amazing! I’ve never seen a cello like this.” “That is made of carbon fiber. They’re not available to the general public yet; so you currently have the first one,” Vinyl explained “Thank you so much!” “You’re welcome. The room next door was the school’s music room which has now become my soundproof recording studio. Go ahead and use it if you need it.” “Thank you again. I’m going to need to make a stop at my apartment to get my dress for this evening.” “If you’d like; I could take your keys and run over there now,” Twilight offered “If it’s not too much trouble.” “Not at all. Just give me the address and what you need and I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Twilight corrected After writing the address on a slip of paper along with locations of the required items; Twilight headed down to the garage to grab a car and headed to her destination. Once in the apartment; she went in the bedroom closet and removed a garment bag containing a black dress and a shoebox with a set of small-heel shoes. Double checking the list made no reference to anything else, so Twilight grabbed both items and locked up the house. In the meantime; Octavia had taken Vinyl's offer to practice in the soundproof music room. Some time later in the morning; Octavia decided to head back to the room she was in originally and found the clothes waiting on the bed. After making sure they were hung up, decided to take a nap for a while. “Hey, Tavi,” Vinyl called as she knocked “Time to get up. We’ll be in the dining room waiting for you.” The nearby clock read it was almost three in the afternoon as she bolted upright. Nearly fifteen minutes later; she was dressed and ready and had made her way to the cafeteria with her cello case by her side. Both Luna and Twilight were wearing matching dark blue dresses while Vinyl showed up wearing a tuxedo with her usually messy hair combed straight and without her usual glasses, revealing her red eyes. “Before we head out; why don’t you join us for a drink,” Luna offered “I made a promise to myself when I was twenty-one about not drinking alcohol and even four years later; I’ve been determined not to break it.” “I don’t blame you for your suspicion, but this is blood, not alcohol. Since you’re one of us; you’ll have to drink sooner or later,” Luna replied “Just a shot of blood is enough to sustain you for a few weeks.” Knowing she was right; Octavia rested the cello case on a nearby table and took a seat as Luna poured four shots of blood for each as the others knocked it back like alcohol as she slowly drank. “That’s going to be hard to get used to.” “After a while; you’ll find out that certain blood types can taste sweeter than others,” Vinyl mused “Just don’t think about it and it should help.” Now finished with their drinks; Luna led them down towards a room that had contained a secret elevator down to the garage. Once there; one of the servants pulled up with a car just short of a limo in length with black tinted windows to match its exterior. Another servant took the cello and loaded it into the trunk for safety. “Back of the alley first,” Luna directed “Afterwards; we go to the parking lot.” “Um, aunt Luna; do you think that I can,” Vinyl started “Could you,” Luna asked “I can.” “Then do it,” was the answer True to the directions, Octavia was dropped off in the same alley as before as she headed inside to join her fellow players. Standing near the door was an older male wearing a black suit with a trench coat looking down at his phone with a card in his hand as she unintentionally bumped into him. “I’m sorry for that,” she offered “It’s my fault,” he argued “I was waiting for someone in an area that I probably shouldn’t have been.” “You dropped a business card.” “You may keep it; young lady,” he offered “I have another one.” “I hope you enjoy the concert.” “I’m sure I will. I’d say ‘break a leg' but perhaps for musicians; it’s ‘break a string' instead?” “I haven’t heard that, but thank you for your time and support.” Once she’d gotten backstage, the card was dropped into a pocket in the cello case as it didn’t seem too important compared to everything else as she removed the cello together tuned up. “Good evening; miss Melody,” the conductor offered “Are you ready for tonight?” “I am, sir.” “Nice cello,” someone complemented “It sounds just as good as it looks,” Octavia added confidently With the tuning and last-minute preparations finalized; the orchestra was led to their seats on stage as the front doors were just getting opened to the public. Out front of the theater, Luna led the group inside and up to one of the private rooms on the upper floor. While other patrons were filling in; Vinyl headed downstairs and slipped away unnoticed and headed towards the alley in the back. As she approached the alley; she made sure to be silent to not startle anyone there and started putting rubber gloves on. Finding a lone visitor there; she crept up and grabbed him from behind. “What do you want,” the homeless man asked As Vinyl grabbed his arm; a series of star tattoos were seen as she knew this was her prey. “I’m warning you, I’m armed,” he threatened “I have a gun and knife in my pockets.” “That gun and knife won’t protect you and I don’t suggest reaching for anything else,” Vinyl taunted “You hurt my friend, so now it’s my turn.” Making sure that no cameras were watching them; Vinyl proceeded to snap his neck, using more than enough force to have rotated his head all the way around. Afterwards; she casually removed the pistol and knife from his corpse and found a spike that she surmised must have been the endpin from Octavia’s broken cello. With her mission accomplished; she casually moved the body against a wall and headed back; taking care to dispose of the gloves in private. “Done,” she whispered as she reentered the box “And I have a few souvenirs as well.” “Hand them over to us,” Luna hissed As the night went on, many of the audience found themselves enthralled at the music. Just before the final song was through; Vinyl had left the private room and slipped downstairs to a seat in the last row. “Aren’t you,” a nearby patron started, before Vinyl clamped a hand over his mouth “Yes I am and I’d like you not to say anything,” she whispered as he just nodded The male from earlier leaned forward in his seat on the upper floor out of curiosity as he stroked his chin in contentment. “I haven’t heard such lovely music is quite a long time,” he mused “Sir; when was the last time,” a feminine voice asked “Too long, my dear.” “Thank you for coming to the concert,” the director said as everyone took a bow “Join us next month for our next performance.” “Excuse me for a moment,” Vinyl interrupted, climbing on stage “May I say something?” ‘Isn’t that that DJ?’ ‘What’s she doing here?’ “This should be interesting,” the male in the box muttered “Interruptions don’t usually take place like this.” “I’d like to say something to a very special person here. Ever since I’d met you, I knew there was a connection between us that I hoped we could continue,” Vinyl said, before getting on one knee with a ring in her hand “Octavia Melody; would you marry me?” The audience seemed to be in shock at hearing the DJ in front of them had just come out as a lesbian. A few seemed to leave the room in disgust; while others seemed to be posting the new information online for paparazzi to enjoy. “I will,” Octavia replied, hugging Vinyl, before whispering “Of course; you know that I already decided that earlier.” “My dear; I have a favor to ask you,” he started “Anything you ask, milord.” “Keep an eye on her.” “Which one is my focus,” she questioned “Use your discretion to answer that. Report any findings to me.” “As you command.” Both Octavia and Vinyl headed off the stage as applause broke out from the rest of the crowd and orchestra. A few minutes later; the rest of the members were heading back there to store their instruments as well as offer congratulations to the new couple. ‘Congrats.’ ‘Have fun.’ ‘Be safe.’ “Congratulations to you two,” the conductor offered “Thank you sir.” As the newly formed couple headed out to the back alley; a female with light blue hair with a pair of dark blue streaks was waiting outside. Seeing the woman, Vinyl lunged at her; pinning her to a wall by the throat. “What do you think you’re doing,” Vinyl snarled “Speak fast." “Can’t breathe,” the female wheezed “Go head to the car,” Vinyl directed at Octavia “Ask them for my toy.” Without wanting to further anger her girlfriend; Octavia quickly headed to the garage to meet the others just as they were getting into the car. She quickly stored the cello in the trunk in the time she had. “Where’s Vinyl,” Twilight asked “She mentioned something about her toy; whatever that meant.” “Behind the theater; right,” Luna guessed as Octavia nodded “Let’s help out before anything else happens.” As they pulled in; Vinyl had moved from pinning the other female to the wall, to just keeping her in a chokehold. Twilight jumped out of the car with a set of silver manacles; which were placed on the woman's wrists along with a ball gag for additional protection. “Get in,” Vinyl directed, shoving the other inside Once everyone was inside the car the ride back to the mansion was quiet as Octavia wasn’t sure what to say to attempt to get an answer. Even in the house; Vinyl held their prisoner in a chokehold as she was guided to the cafeteria while Octavia dropped off her cello and joined the others afterward. “Now; what the hell were you doing,” Vinyl demanded, removing the gag “Where are the others?” “I came here on my own without them knowing. I had hoped to try and get some sort of conversation going between us,” came the answer “I know they know who you are, but do you mind giving me your name?” “Sonata Dusk. I’m one of Celestia’s vampires,” Sonata simplified “What do we do with her,” Twilight asked “Could I get some time to talk to Sonata alone?" “What exactly is your reasoning,” Luna inquired “Since all of you seem to have a severe dislike for each other…” “I think ‘Hatred’ feels like a better word,” Vinyl interjected “Regardless; I may be a vampire; but I have no knowledge about either group to maybe offer an unbiased opinion on this.” “Fine,” Luna stated “We’ll be outside if you need anything.” “What exactly brought you there,” Octavia asked once the others left “I just hoped to get lucky to talk to them as I said before,” Sonata answered “Why don’t you want anyone else knowing about this?” “I’m sure you have heard that both of our clans hate each other. I’d just like us to stop arguing and try to get together again. In face; we haven’t fed directly from a human in quite some time and have been getting bottles of blood instead,” she answered “We’ll have to wait and see if there is the possibility of getting together,” Luna said “Get going so they don’t find you here.” “Do you mind if I go with Sonata?” “Just be careful,” Luna offered “I don’t know what would happen.” “Let’s take the bus,” Sonata suggested “I like being in public with others.” After a ten minute wait for the bus, given the early hour; the ride took an additional half-hour as they reached their destination. In front was another mansion-like building Octavia guessed could have been another school; although the size was much more expansive. “This is amazing.” “It was a school at one time,” Sonata confirmed Upon their entry into the house; a female with purple hair and green streaks punched Sonata in the stomach before tossing her towards a chair, causing Sonata to be sent backwards as it tipped over. “Where the fuck were you,” the newcomer demanded “And who’s the walking blood bag you brought here!?” “Give it a rest Aria,” another added, rubbing her temples “You’re giving me a migraine.” “Adagio; that’s bullshit and you know it,” the newly named Aria spat “Could we have a moment of peace,” a third asked that had multicolored hair consisting of pink, blond and purple “Enough,” a final woman with green, blue and purple hair yelled as she came down from a nearby room “What brings you here?” “I came on Sonata’s behalf to convince you to get back together,” Octavia started “Yeah, I’m gonna stop you right there,” Aria countered, raising a hand “What gives you that right?” “That is indeed an odd request from a mortal.” “Mom; shouldn’t we at least introduce ourselves to our guest,” the tricolored female asked “I suppose some sort of courtesy should be observed. My name is Celestia Solaris and that’s my eldest daughter Mi Amore Cadenza,” Celestia started, motioning to each “Just ‘Cadence' is fine,” she interrupted “You seem to already know Sonata and the other two are Adagio Dazzle and Aria Blaze,” Celestia finished “Octavia Melody. And I’m not a moral anymore.” “But a newborn vampire; not even a fledgling; trying to convince us is rather unbelievable. We’ll have to discuss this before any sort of answer can be given,” Celestia said dismissively “Sorry if you seemed to come all this way for nothing,” Cadence offered apologetically “I’ll drive you home if you’d like.” “Just a few blocks away,” Celestia corrected “She can walk the rest of the way home on her own.” Cadence led Octavia down a few hallways that seemed to become a maze, before they finally made their way towards a room with another hidden elevator towards their garage. Cadence headed towards the first car available which happened to be a Volkswagen Beetle and climbed in. “It’s not much; but she’ll do,” Cadence offered “This was my first car mom bought me over thirty years ago.” “I don’t know much about cars, but it does seem in good shape.” “It most certainly should be. I’ve taken her apart and made sure everything works,” Cadence said with a chuckle “Come on, before they get angry.” “The house looks nice from what I can guess." “Every room was at least two small classrooms combined into one; each room has been furnished individually as their own miniature mansions,” Cadence summarized Despite being told to drop Octavia a few blocks away; Cadence instead went across the street as Octavia stepped out and the Beetle took off without waiting. She headed back to the house to see Luna waiting just inside the door. “Didn’t go over well, I take it,” she asked “Couldn’t even get a chance to argue my point,” Octavia confirmed “Not surprised,” Luna offered “She always seemed to be hard-headed.” 2A few days after accepting Vinyl’s wedding proposal; Octavia was in her apartment getting what little she had packed up. It mainly amounted to a few outfits now, since the loss of her old cello. “Knock…knock,” a pair of voices called “Mom, dad; it’s been a while.” “We came to check on you to see what you’re up to,” her mom replied “I’m going to move in with Vinyl.” “You’ve never told us where she lives,” her dad added “It’s the two-story mansion.” “We’ll have to go there and meet them. That way, we know more about your wife’s family,” her dad decided “What are you doing with the apartment,” her mom inquired “Technically; my lease is already at it’s end. The landlord gave me a few days to decide what I wanted to do. When we get done, I just have to tell her I’m going to move out.” “Well; it looks like you’re just about done,” her dad mused “I’ll get the boxes on the trailer and the two of you can talk to the landlord.” “Thanks dad.” “It’s my job to help out, but I do recommend getting a driver’s license some day,” he said with a laugh For Vinyl; she decided to continue working at the club, although it had become more popular by paparazzi wanting more information about her life. “Could you provide a statement to your fans that have been wanting information,” someone asked “Go away.” “What do your parents think about this,” they continued “For the last time; I have no comment,” Vinyl stated, shoving a camera out of her face “What about your wedding,” a reporter pressed “When can we expect the video?” “You’ll get it when Hell freezes over and I highly doubt that happening any time soon!” Apparently some reporters had found information on Octavia and had decided to wait outside theater to badger her with questions. Luckily; the rest of the orchestra was both supportive of her engagement to Vinyl and protective of her, as at least one of the bigger bassists was her escort home. “Thanks, Bulk. I really hate these people now.” “They’re out for themselves and getting paid,” Bulk mused “As long as you don’t give them anything, they can’t report it.” “That’s all I can do right now. I’m glad to have someone as insightful as you as a friend.” “When people give me a chance; they can learn more than I let on,” he answered “See you soon.” At home; Octavia had decided to set up her cello in the entrance hall to play as she hadn’t been able to just play for her own benefit in a while. When she opened the case, the business card fell out. “You dropped this,” Twilight mused, picking it up “Where’d you get this?” “When I was entering the theater for my concert. I just had an odd feeling.” “Odd feeling,” Luna repeated “What made it so odd?” “As you probably remember; it was kind of warm that evening and clothing would have been expected to be lightweight to remain cool. The gentleman that gave it to me was wearing a heavy trench coat on top of his black suit.” “Could you describe him,” Twilight asked “I’m not sure about his height; but it was roughly the same as Luna and had whiteish-gray hair." “May I see the card,” Luna asked, turning to Twilight Luna looked at the card and saw a symbol that seemed to resemble two lightning bolts mirroring each other. On the other side was a message that seemed to make her wide eyed in fear. Before she could answer; the sound of the doorbell brought her out of her current state. “We’ll continue this conversation later,” Luna stated “We have company.” Octavia was the second to get to the door as one of the servants had already opened it. “Sorry if we interrupted anything,” Octavia’s father started “My name is Treble Flat and this is my wife Tenor Sharp.” “We wished to see our future daughter in-law's family,” Tenor added “By all means, come in,” Luna said reassuringly “We’ll head to the living room.” “This is an amazing house,” Treble complimented, looking around the room “Thank you. We bought it some years ago and refurbished it,” Luna simplified "I don’t mean to pry, but are you married by any chance,” Tenor inquired “Well; that is a very interesting tale. Allow me to introduce my eldest daughter Twilight Sparkle; although her twin sister is living with her wife currently.” “A pleasure to meet you,” Twilight offered “Of course you know Vinyl, my younger sister.” “What exactly happened with your husband,” Tenor pressed “And how did you come to have such a lovely house?” “I’d ask you not to repeat this to anyone else; but my family and I have been around for quite a lot time,” Luna started “Simply put; we’re vampires.” “What about you, Tavi,” Treble asked cautiously “I am one myself,” Octavia confirmed “I was attacked and shot at and to save me; Vinyl turned me prior to my concert.” “What are you going to do to us,” Tenor asked with a hint of nervousness in her voice “Nothing. We just ask that no one else know. My husband at the time was also married to my older sister. He reached a point where he let us do whatever we wanted,” Luna offered vaguely “He left us plenty to live off of for centuries.” “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you; but it’s not easy to find the right words,” Octavia offered “Telling the two of you; ‘I’m a blood sucking vampire’ is probably not going to be the right choice of words.” “I do plan to take care of my wife no matter what,” Vinyl promised “We’re just glad to see you okay. Be safe and we’ll see you soon for the eventual wedding,” Treble said before they left “It’s possible we might just have a private wedding,” Vinyl commented “We’ll have it recorded; at least,” Octavia added hastily “We hold you to your word of at least showing us the video,” Tenor mused “I promise to show you when we get the chance.” “Hey mom; what was so important about that card,” Twilight asked after Octavia’s parents left “Something I just hoped never to see,” Luna answered vaguely “See for yourself, if you’d like.” Storm King We weather the storm against vampires “Mom; what’s wrong,” Vinyl asked “That’s a big problem,” Twilight mused “Vampire hunters.” “You never saw this,” Vinyl asked, after taking the card “I just put it in my case. With the concert; I didn’t think about it.” “Okay, let’s calm down,” Luna stated, taking a breath, before turning to Vinyl and Octavia “I need the two of you to do me a favor.” “What about me,” Twilight asked hopefully it “You’re going to stay here with me. As for the two of you; you’re going to pay a visit to the others,” Luna continued “Oh yeah,” Vinyl said enthusiastically “Road trip, baby!” “Where do we have to go?” “You and I are going out to Las Pegasus.” “Considering how far it is, don’t we need supplies like food or drinks?” “You’d be right had we been mortals. We don’t have bodily functions; so there’s no need to piss or shit. It helps so much,” Vinyl said with a laugh “Despite her crudeness; she is indeed correct. We can certainly eat regular food, but no matter how good it tastes to a human; it’ll be bland to us because we must have blood,” Luna added “Shouldn’t we have a coffin to sleep in?” “Another myth that was created. We can use them, but it’s not too comfortable,” Twilight chimed in “By the way; tell Starry, her sister says ‘Hi'.” “Octavia, dear; allow me to take you shopping for some new clothes,” Luna offered “I’ve seen the couple clothes you currently have hanging up and I’m surprised you don’t have more.” “Unfortunately; orchestra players aren’t always paid a lot. I was lucky if a concert paid $1,200 to us afterwards as I had to make almost $400 in rent on my apartment each month; while the rest went to bills with the last bit for food. There was one incident where most of us had to ask for public assistance to get food for the month. We made an unspoken agreement not to bring it up out of embarrassment.” “If we leave now; we can get a few things before your road trip,” Luna continued “If you want; I could let you borrow a few clothes of mine and buy new ones when you return,” Twilight suggested “That works,” Octavia decided “It’ll give me something to wear for a little while. Thank you for that.” “Let’s get going if we’re going to get there at a decent hour,” Vinyl pressed Once in the garage, Octavia headed down the line towards a black Lamborghini with tinted windows and looked inside. “We’re going in this,” Octavia asked in awe “I’ve never seen one of these before.” “As much as I’d love to ride in style in that; it’s way too conspicuous,” Vinyl pointed out “We’ll take something else.” Vinyl instead headed down another row of cars and climbed inside a black Chevy Corvette and opened the passenger door for Octavia. "Want to drive,” Vinyl asked currently “I’d love to; but I don’t have a driver’s license; let alone experience on how to drive.” “Than hop in and sit back.” Vinyl gently eased the car down the length of the garage towards the elevator before slowly driving out of the city. After not seeing any other vehicles or police cars in the area, she decided to speed up. Octavia looked at the speedometer to see them approaching 150mph with everything passing by in a blur. She found herself pressing against the back of the seat out of fear. “You okay, Octy?” “This isn’t what I expected to see happen. What if we run into another driver?” “Not likely. We have faster reflexes than anyone for one thing; and I’ve been hauling ass down empty roads like this for years.” “I have to ask; how did you become a vampire?” Hearing this, Vinyl started to slow the car down. Octavia felt the immediate change and wondered if she said something wrong. “I should have expected that question eventually,” she said with a sigh “My older brother Neon Lights and I were born seven-hundred and fifty years ago. From what I’ve learned from Luna; our birth mother died after giving birth to us and we were taken in as the younger siblings to Twilight and Starlight. When we were twenty-one we were told everyone were vampires and wanted to know if we’d like to become one ourselves,” Vinyl continued “Why’d you choose me?” “You remember how we met? I was browsing the music section in the store and bumped into you. You were looking at one some of my old music and I really felt a connection between us. I hated having to keep simple coffee meetings secret so no one would find out. Never once did you judge me or treat me any differently because of who I am,” she answered “I had no reason to treat you differently. When you sprung the request on me; it was unexpected and it did take some time to see if I had feelings for you. In fact; I’m actually more worried about being a vampire than I am at being your wife.” “Marriage is something I’m new at as well, so that’s some learning experience we’ll both share. On another note; we’re on the last stretch of road outside of town. We’ll be there in about fifteen minutes with the speed limit. You’ll see the infamous ‘Welcome to Las Pegasus’ sign on the way. In fact; you can’t miss it.” True to her word; Octavia was able to see a diamond-shaped sign in the middle of the road with neon lights surrounding it with quite a lot of tourists around it. “You aren’t kidding. It’s certainly a popular destination.” “That’s something we need to do before we leave,” Vinyl decided “That; and one other thing.” “Oh? Care to share? “I thought we could get married here. I know it’s a cliché that all couples have to do here; but that way we don’t have to worry about the damn paparazzi on our ass.” “We’re going to need the wedding rings first.” “There’s a few jewelry stores around the area that will take care of that. And don’t worry about the price; we’ve got plenty of money." “Where exactly are we going?” “It’s the Atlas Nova hotel. Just up the street.” “It’s just hard to take in the sights when there’s so many hotels here.” “First time Luna took us here I was in awe too. After a while; the novelty wears off; although I suppose you’ll have plenty of time with the traffic,” Vinyl said with a chuckle Despite the traffic jam; Vinyl managed to drive down the street towards their destination. After handing over the keys to the hotel valet; the two headed inside; before a woman with purple hair bumped into them. “Aren’t you DJ Pon-3,” the woman asked hopefully “Nah, I’m just an eccentric fan,” Vinyl answered dismissively “Dyed my hair to look like her. Wouldn’t be surprised if she used doubles for that reason.” “She is one of my favorite musicians. I would kill to meet her in person,” the woman replied dejectedly After the meeting with the woman; they continued through the casino towards the ticket counter. “Two for the magic show,” Vinyl announced “Unfortunately this evening’s show is sold out,” the cashier replied “Have you seen the ‘Moon's Glimmer',” Vinyl asked cryptically “I have. I’m sure you know where to go,” came a hushed answer “I do,” Vinyl confirmed with a nod “Let’s go.” “Okay, I guess.” Vinyl led Octavia away from the counter and down a hallway away from the theater. Octavia watched as the casino area seemed to give way to plain walls and lights mounted at intervals. “Vee; where are we going?” “A special backdoor entrance. It should be here,” Vinyl replied, pushing against the wall The wall was pushed open to reveal a door about waist height that Vinyl crouched down to pass through. To Octavia’s surprise; the landing was lower than the floor as she hesitantly followed behind and closed the door. Beyond the room they landed in was a small hallway that Vinyl led them down to a seemingly dead end. “Why’d we stop?” “Wait here.” “Where?” “We’re under the theater. This is a passage used during the show for escapes on stage that leads backstage. You’re the first to know about this.” “I’m not going to tell anyone, if you’re worried.” Vinyl pushed on the ceiling to reveal a hatch that opened up, along with a small step underneath for leverage. She started to lift the hatch, before turning around quickly. “Down, quickly, “ Vinyl ordered “Why?” “Show's still going on” Vinyl hissed “I’d like to once again thank everyone for coming,” a voice announced, before the sound of curtain closing was heard “You can come out now,” a voice said, knocking on the floor “Coast is clear.” I After pulling herself onto the landing; Octavia noticed they were a distance away from the heavy black curtain hanging on the stage. “We just finished a good show,” a female in purple commented “Wish I could have seen it,” Vinyl said wistfully “Vee! It’s been too long,” a purple-haired female said excitedly “Who’s your friend,” the other female asked “Octavia Melody. I’m guessing one of you is nicknamed ‘Starry’. Twilight asked me to tell you ‘Hi' for her.” “Tavi; allow me to introduce Starlight Glimmer and her wife,” Vinyl started “The Great and Powerful Trixie,” Trixie finished, rolling her G's and R's as she spoke “What brings you here,” Starlight asked “One; to have fun before getting married and two, to check on you,” Vinyl offered “We’ve been doing fine here for years,” another female with red and yellow hair argued Octavia looked over and saw the newcomer wearing a tank top and torn jeans. Slung over her back was a black electric guitar. “Aren’t you Sunset Shimmer? The lead singer of the Rainbooms,” Octavia asked in awe “The former lead singer and guitarist; you mean,” Sunset corrected “Before it died.” “What happened? Even though I hate the lies told in gossip magazines; they said there were problems in the band.” “Surprised to say; but they were right for once,” Sunset acknowledged “Let’s just say, shit ain’t all sunshine and roses with bands." “I never thought it would be.” “You’re thinking it anyway; and that’s not mind reading. Rainbow Dash was the biggest partier I’ve ever seen. If she wasn’t fucking anyone in sight; she was drinking and loved going on stage partially drunk. Fluttershy was the shy type but would smoke marijuana to help open her up; which wasn’t a problem. Pinkie Pie was a drug addict whose choice was either cocaine or heroin. That shit proved to be her end sooner than she wanted,” Sunset elaborated “Didn’t she pass out on stage?” “You’re not too far off. It was during the last time we played together three years ago. Pinkie apparently mixed both drugs together and injected too much, before chugging down an energy drink. During our finale; she went into an unscripted and frantic drum solo before hunching over her kit. I already sensed her heart had stopped and she was dead; but somehow her body had enough wherewithal to actually walk backstage before ‘officially’ collapsing,” Sunset continue, using finger quotes on ‘officially' “Needless to say Dash believed in her drunken state that I was at fault somehow and we had a fight over it. From that point on; none of us have spoken to each other.” “Was there anything good that came about the band?” “When we first started; I told each of them to create individual bank accounts and have someone else as a trustee just in case anything happened to then and they decided on family. Pinkie decided her parents and siblings would get half, as her aunt and uncle; the Cakes got the rest. Considering we’d be together for ten years; each was a multimillionaire.” “On a different topic from history; I am curious as to our powers and what exactly are we capable of.” “Tavi, here is like us; a vampire,” Vinyl clarified “I think we guessed that,” Sunset retorted “Well; let’s just say that these tricks work differently for us,” Starlight started Taking a little walk around the backstage area; Octavia saw a few different cages with spikes nearby, along with gigantic bull’s eyes and various other items. “We’re immortal; although that point is obvious; but we can also heal rapidly if injured. I have unfortunately been sawed in half when I failed to move away from the blade,” Starlight continued “For example; this trick of escaping the cage while spikes enter is real; however I will never have anything near the head or heart,” Trixie added, motioning towards a trick “And Trixie has apologized multiple times for her mistake.” “Beyond the healing is speed and telepathy,” Vinyl chimed in “Could someone show me or teach me about the speed?” “Do either of you have something I can use,” Vinyl questioned “Here, you can use this,” Sunset offered, handing over her guitar “I’ll set it over here.” “Use the cage,” Starlight chimed in “Keep an eye on the guitar,” Vinyl directed Sunset walked over to a nearby cage and unlocked it, before resting the guitar against the opposite wall and locked the door; sticking the key in her pocket. Octavia blinked and found herself holding the neck of the guitar. “How? What? What just happened,” she asked in disbelief “The guitar moved on its own!?” “You didn’t see? Perhaps I should try again,” Vinyl joked “Pay close attention this time.” For the second time; Octavia still found herself in disbelief at the sight of the moving guitar as Vinyl just shook her head. “I hate to do this, but could you both hold her,” Vinyl asked “What are you doing?” “You’ll be fine,” Starlight said reassuringly Trixie and Starlight stood on either side of Octavia and held her eyelids open as Vinyl tried for the third time. Without being permitted to blink; Octavia was able to see Vinyl quickly snatching the key from Sunset's pocket before quickly grabbing the guitar and sticking it in Octavia’s hand as the other two let go of her eyelids. “It wasn’t the guitar that moved,” Octavia realized “You did it.” “We can move faster than the human eye can perceive when we want to,” Vinyl simplified “Only another vampire would be able to track us.” “I tend to use that during some tricks such as the bullet catch,” Trixie added “I save that for rare occasions because I actually hate it.” “What kind of magic show do you do?” “There’s two different shows we have. The one is held twice a day Monday through Thursday and is family oriented while the other is late night on Friday and Saturday for adults only,” Starlight answered “We’ll have to see it some time,” Vinyl decided “Really, Vee?” “What? I’ve never seen the adult show. It can’t be that bad,” she argued “Since it’s almost ten o’clock Wednesday night; why don’t you join us in one of our private hotel rooms,” Starlight offered “In the morning, you could head down to the buffet for breakfast if you want.” “Sounds good to me,” Vinyl mused “It is definitely going to take some time to get used to not really eating food. Vee; what was that about with the cashier?” “I hate to say it; but she’s our pet in a way,” Starlight answered “Not literally, obviously; but she is a half vampire we turned. Only the president of the hotel knows about our condition and helps supply us with bottled blood to keep from feeding. We put Moon Dancer there as a sort of guard to inform us if any other vampires drop by using a certain code phrase.” “Since we helped build most of these casinos, we took liberty to add passages for ease,” Sunset added “Of course there are other secrets as well. Now, if you’ll follow me.” Sunset led the way to the back of the theater stage to a pair of doors blended into the wall. Upon opening it up; Octavia saw an elevator car behind it as they stepped inside. Their stop was thirty-seven stories up in the VIP hotel rooms. “Welcome to our home,” Starlight announced “These six rooms are for us and the others working in the show. This entire section may be on the same floor as some of the other VIP suites; but these can only be accessed from the theater allowing us some privacy.” “There is of course the mandatory staircase access that we have in case of emergency,” Trixie chimed in “I’m going to bed; but you two can take room 3 as the girls can temporarily share a bed in one of the other rooms,” Sunset mused “Just keep it to a low roar if you plan on fucking each other.” “I’m not that far yet. I’m still a virgin.” “We’ll get to that eventually,” Vinyl offered reassuringly “Sex isn’t that high of a priority right now.” Despite getting to sleep around midnight; Octavia had found herself unable to sleep and was officially up by five. Vinyl was out the moment her head touched the pillow. “What’s wrong,” Vinyl asked, hearing movement, a few hours later “All of this is still just so hard to get used to. I don’t know who I am anymore.” “You are Octavia Melody and nothing is going to change that. I saved you because I couldn’t see you dying like that. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks or says,” Vinyl pointed out “Now come here and give me a kiss.” “You know how to cheer me up.” “I try. It’s not going to be easy to adjust; but you have others to help when you need it. We’ve been in your same position to know. On another note; I’ll teach you telepathy right now. Simply put; you’re basically talking in your head to another person.” “How do you find the other person?” “It takes a bit of practice; but you try to reach out and poke into the other’s thoughts. I’ll try to show you. Close your eyes for a moment.” ‘Tavi…Tavi…’ “It felt like I heard a voice talking to me just now. It sounded like your voice.” “We’ll have to keep practicing; but for now I’m kind of hungry.” “Don’t we need to let them know?” “They’re a bit preoccupied to care,” Vinyl answered “Horizontal tango, if you get my drift. Tulip pruning…clam diving.” “Sheesh; I get it. They’re having sex.” Wanting to be respectful to their hosts; Octavia worked on getting the bed remade before they headed out. Once out of the room; Vinyl went to the emergency entrance and quickly opened the door and pulled Octavia through before the alarm could go off. They quietly walked down the stairs before crossing the thirty-sixth floor to get to the elevator down to the casino level. Once in the casino; Octavia was surprised at the massive amount of various slot machines and other table games that were run by ladies in lingerie that they passed on the way to the restaurant. One area consisted of games around an area with multiple half-naked girls that looked to be younger than her. “Maybe I’ll get you a lap dance,” Vinyl whispered “Don’t press your luck on that.” Turning the corner around another section of games; the signage noted their destination was fast approaching. After paying for their meals; their hostess led them to a booth in the corner for some semblance of privacy. “Since this is my first time in a buffet; what do you have to do?” “Just grab a plate from the racks and pick what you want,” Vinyl simplified Wanting something easy to start with; Octavia decided on a bowl of soup and a salad, while Vinyl loaded her plate with a little bit of everything. Each of them had three plates before having a few things for dessert. “That was the best breakfast I’ve ever had.” “Definitely filling,” Vinyl added “Since we have nothing to do; let’s go shopping and get that taken care of.” “When do the stores open?” “There’s some stores including the mall down the street that should open at 10; so we have an hour and a half to kill. I suggest taking advantage of what we have; gambling.” “I’ve never played anything like this.” “You’ll be fine. Most aren’t too hard and they can help you if you ask.” Vinyl headed over a casino cage and withdrew almost $7,500 before handing $500 over to Octavia. A thousand dollars was exchanged into chips before they headed to a table with Octavia picking blackjack and Vinyl playing poker. ‘Tavi,’ Vinyl said telepathically ‘Finish your last hand. We’ll want to get that done soon.’ Octavia finished her game with an additional $200 than she’d started with while Vinyl had $700 herself. For safety; Vinyl held onto the money as they headed to valet for the car. They continued down the street towards a large shopping mall as they headed to one of the jewelry stores. “This is bigger than any store I’ve ever been in. How do we know where we’re going?” “One; they have a map with a store directory nearby. But; since I’ve been here a few times before; we need to take an escalator to the second floor,” Vinyl offered Despite the change in floors; there were still countless stores lining both sides of the walkway as Vinyl led them deeper inside. Once into another section of stores; Octavia saw a few signs for jewelry stores and decided on one that didn’t seem to just have a focus on diamond rings. “So; what do you think?” “It might be strange; but this one here catches my eye. It’s not flash; but a simple band.” “I do see your way of thinking,” Vinyl mused “Simple bands don’t really draw attention as it’s expected to get a diamond ring. You don’t love someone if you don’t have diamonds." “I am not permitted to offer an opinion one way or another,” the cashier said “Do either of you know your ring sizes by any chance?” Since neither knew the size; the cashier had to pull out a series of disks to get the proper size ready. They were lucky the store had the exact sizes need for the girls as Vinyl handed over the $300 to pay before heading out. “Since we’re here; I’d like to get you something,” Vinyl mused “Where to?” “I’d have told you to close your eyes; but it’s not recommended,” Vinyl joked “Instead; just follow me.” Vinyl decided on leading the two of them towards the top of the area before heading down the opposite side towards a toy store. “Here we are.” “I didn’t expect this.” “I thought it would be different. That way you have a plush made by you and dressed how you’d like it.” Looking at the bins of toys, Vinyl leaned over and found a white poodle with purple hair and grey tank top. “What do you think,” Vinyl asked, in a faux French accent “I dye my hair purple and I could look like zee poodle?” “Looks cute. I wouldn’t mind a change once in a while.” Octavia found herself pacing up and down the row, trying to make up her mind. In the process, she felt a faint poke in her arm. Looking over; she saw Vinyl holding a grey rabbit as she gently waved its paw. “Hi,” Vinyl said in a high, childish voice “Please pick me.” “Thank you Vee. I needed a laugh,” Octavia said with a chuckle “Glad to be of service.” After getting the two plushies stuffed, Vinyl decided to pick out a simple shirt and jeans to go with some tennis shoes that seemed to fit her usual eccentric look. Octavia decided to just leave hers undressed as no outfit seemed to fit the rabbit. “One last stop for now,” Vinyl mused as she paid for everything “Where exactly do we go to get married?” “That’s the one. Let’s get going and we’ll decide later.” “Take your pick,” Vinyl muse, as they drove down the street “Each of these are wedding chapels that has their own theme.” “Just a simple ceremony is all I want. While I’d have liked my parents here; I don’t need more paparazzi hounding me." “I’m sure they can record it if you ask. And I have to agree with those bastard stalkers. That’s why I’ve never told anyone where we were going so they can’t follow us.” Finding a wedding chapel that didn’t have a theme; Vinyl drove in the parking lot and paid for everything. Luckily; they were able to get the ceremony taped for free. “Do you, Vinyl Scratch; take this lovely lady to be your partner,” the pastor asked “I do,” Vinyl answered confidently “Do you, Octavia Melody; take this lovely lady to be your partner,” the pastor continued “Yes, I do.” “Then I now pronounce you partners for life,” the pastor finished “You may kiss each other.” Their next stop was to turn the paperwork in to make the marriage truly legal. Unfortunately; the wait at the courthouse was rather long. “I did get a text while we were waiting,” Vinyl said “Oh? What’s it say?” You have a room waiting for you the entire time you’re here. Just ask for 669 at counter. Have fun ;) You have 2 tickets waiting for you for Friday’s show “Well; at least we have a room to stay in in the meantime,” Octavia replied, reading the textsup “And we’ll get to see the show tomorrow night,” Vinyl added “For now; today’s activities are done.” “Since it is has been a long day so far, I’m wanting to take a nap.” “You’re right. This was certainly a long wait to get the paperwork in. I’m definitely beat,” Vinyl added Having a mutual agreement; Vinyl drove back towards the casino as Octavia grabbed the two boxes with their newly purchased stuffed animals once in the garage. Picking up the key card and heading to the room was thankfully without incident. “So; should we continue tradition,” Vinyl asked, opening the door “I thought it was supposed to be in one’s house the bride is carried through the bedroom.” “You have a point with that. Then we’ll do it when we’re back at home.” 3Author's Note Contains sex scenes 3 “Since we don’t have anything to do until tonight; why don’t we go out after we eat?” “Where would we go in town?” “I have to ask before we leave; do you believe in other intelligent life,” Vinyl questioned “I’ve never believed we can be the only intelligent life in the universe. Why bring this up all of a sudden?” “Do you want to see something cool?" “Where are we going?” “Just trust me.” Vinyl led them through the casino towards the valet parking. As they passed through; Octavia caught sight of a woman with a mohawk that seemed to disappear before she could process what happened. As Vinyl drove; Octavia noticed they were heading away from the so-called ‘Strip' and through the town towards some of the nearby mountains that surround the city. They passed by a city that had a love for aliens as they continued onward. Now they were driving through a desert that had high cliffs on both sides looking down. “Something feels wrong.” “Like what?” “It feels like someone’s watching us.” “Looks like it's a good time to test some of your powers out,” Vinyl mused “Close your eyes and see how many heartbeats you can sense.” Vinyl pulled the car over to the side of the road as Octavia followed her wife’s instructions. The sound of heartbeats could be heard as a few seemed louder than the other; signifying they were closer to them. Trying to picture the beats as musical pitches; she thought she counted at least two dozen. “There’s at least 24 people nearby.” "That’s what I counted, too,” Vinyl replied “Do me a favor and grab one of the books in the glovebox for me, please.” Octavia opened the glovebox and pulled out a book that had various IDs for Luna before grabbing a second for Twilight before finally getting the right one the third try. Flipping through revealed different ID cards for various agencies and licenses. “What’s with the book?” “I’ll tell you later,” Vinyl dismissed “Right now; just hand me the ID with an eagle on the front. We’re about to have unexpected company.” Just as she said that, a series of jeeps and SUVs showed up with their occupants jumping out as a few people approached them with four people in camouflage with rifles drawn and aimed at the car. Octavia felt like she was going to hyperventilate, before Vinyl reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly. “Occupants of the car, roll down the windows and exit the vehicle with your hands where we can see them,” a soldier ordered Without hesitation; Vinyl did as she was told as before the two carefully climbed out. “What are you doing here,” the soldier demanded “This is a classified area.” “Here’s my identification,” Vinyl said calmly “I came here to show my friend Project Zephyr.” “How can I trust that this is real,” the soldier questioned “There’s no reason not to. That project isn’t public knowledge and it would be impossible for civilians to know about it,” she retorted “Boss; we’ve got a Zulu-Niner-Alpha,” another soldier said cryptically “Identification reads ‘Level Seven’. Please advise the situation.” “Let them in,” came the answer “Apparently; you’re permitted to enter,” the first soldier said in a defeated voice Hearing that; Octavia slowly made her way back to the car as Vinyl casually jumped in. They continued down the road with a single jeep following behind before they reached a nondescript gate that was opened up for them. A nearby soldier pointed ahead towards an airplane hangar further up the way. “What’s going on,” Octavia asked in a whisper “What you see here can’t be repeated to anyone,” Vinyl stated “Technically; I shouldn’t be showing you this anyway.” Once inside the hanger; the floor started to lower as Octavia was losing track of how far they had dropped. After what seemed to be nearly ten minutes; they saw a new room come into view that had solid steel walls. Countless people in white lab coats were running around as a golf cart waited nearby. “Your ride to get around the complex,” a scientist said dismissively “Welcome to ‘No-Man’s Land’. Your car will be waiting for you when you’re ready.” As Octavia started to open her mouth to ask a question, a glance to Vinyl saw her shaking her head as it was dropped. During the drive around the complex, Octavia was secretly glad not to be leading as every hallway had the same steel walls everywhere they went. “Down here are a few things you might like,” Vinyl said casually With that; they turned down another hallway as the door at the end automatically opened for them. Two glass tubes were positioned in the middle of the room with multiple scientists examining the contents. “This is Project Zephyr,” Vinyl announced “What is it?” Looking at one tube revealed a creature that seemed to have a snake-like appearance with arms and legs; but resembled an animal jigsaw puzzle. “What are you?” “Yes,” the creature answered “That doesn’t answer my question.” “I am everything and nothing,” it added “Chaos incarnate; Discord.” “Why did you choose here?” “You people are more chaotic than anything I’ve ever seen. You keep me in this, but I can leave this tube whenever I want,” it continued “Where do you come from?” “Next question,” it stated “Why don’t you want to answer that?” “Next. Question,” it demanded “Why’d you come here?” “Because I could. That thing’s from the same place I was living at the time." For whatever reason; a statue of a creature resembling a satyr was in the next tube over. Looking closely; cracks stretched along every inch of it, as well as some kind of sealant to put it back together. “I’m not a gardener; but that thing’s ugly enough to scare flowers into dying.” “You shouldn’t insult him, you know. He can hear you from his stone prison,” the creature mused “Just how long have you been here for?” “Some fifty-odd years I’d guess,” the creature answered with a shrug “It’s hard to tell the days when there’s nothing to mark the passage of time.” “I doubt you’ll get much more from our friend, here,” Vinyl mused “It’s answers get confusing after a while. I suppose we should get going.” “I suppose you’re right. It’s definitely something new to me. Thanks for showing me.” Later that evening; they decided on hitting the buffet for a quick snack before heading to the theater to pick up their reserved ticket. Looking at a nearby clock revealed the time to be almost 9:30pm. As they made their way inside, a white towel was placed in their hands by an attendant. “What’s this all about?” “You’ll see. Have fun and don’t forget to clean up,” the attendant said vaguely “Let’s take a seat in the back,” Vinyl suggested “In the middle of the row.” “Wouldn’t that be harder to see?” “Not really. There aren’t too many bad seats,” Vinyl argued, before whispering “Especially with our vision.” Once in their seats; the rest of the patrons were filing in and filling up the majority of the theater; leaving seats just in the last few rows for any latecomers. A drum roll signified the start of the show as Trixie appeared from a cloud of smoke. Her current outfit consisted of a white dress shirt, with bowtie and cummerbund topped with a dark blue jacket that ended in a leotard bottom. “Ladies and gentlemen; welcome to the show,” Trixie announced “I am the Great and Powerful Trixie and this evening’s show does have one rule. No electronic recording of the show will be permitted. You’ll find out why as the night progresses. In the meantime, enjoy yourselves.” The first few tricks performed were simple slight of hand for warmups to gauge interest. “For this trick; I’m going to saw my assistant in half,” Trixie announced as Starlight wheeled out the box The audience watched as Starlight stripped out of her leotard, climbing onto the table bare naked. “Wow,” Octavia whispered “Didn’t think I’d see that.” “There’s probably more then that,” Vinyl whispered back “Just guessing.” A few of the males in the audience used the towels they were given to muffle the sound of them unzipping their pants as they started to masturbates. “Really,” Octavia mouthed 'Technically; that’s the idea,' Vinyl offered telepathically Trixie opened the flaps on the box to give another view of her wife’s body to their delight. Following the successful, but temporary dismemberment; Starlight was strapped to a giant dartboard with multiple balloons taped around and one right between her legs. The audience whistled as they watched as Trixie popped the crotch last as the tip unexpectedly penetrated her. ‘Really,’ Starlight asked telepathically ‘Right in the slit!?’ ‘Oops. That was an accident.’ “We hope you’ve enjoyed yourselves,” Trixie started as a few quiet grunts emanated from the males “We’re going to have a fifteen minute intermission.” A collective zipping was heard as the men rushed to close up as they headed towards the bathroom en masse, as a few women had the same idea. “I honestly wasn’t expecting any of this.” “It’s the only one like it, from what I’ve read,” a woman chimed in “They are allowed to do whatever they want.” Once everyone returned; Trixie announced the second half of the show would be a little bit different. Two other women entered the stage wearing flesh-colored bodysuits; one pushing a table with multiple swords on it, while the other had an x-ray screen. “Allow me to introduce ourselves. I am Sweetie Drops and this is my partner Lyra. Do not attempt what I’m about to do. This is extremely dangerous,” Sweetie Drops cautioned A sword was lifted of the table and positioned by her mouth as members of the audience gasped in shock. She stepped behind the screen to show her body as the sword was slid down her esophagus. Lyra handed over another as it was swallowed; followed by a dozen more. Once the fourteen swords were removed, she took a bow to thunderous applause. Not to be outdone; the table of swords was wheeled to the back as a smaller bull’s-eye was wheeled along with a bow and quiver of arrows on a new table. Lyra proceeded to reach towards the crotch of her leotard and unsnapped it; before getting into a handstand. Sweetie grabbed the quiver off the table and proceeded to insert the bottom into her friend’s vagina like a dildo. Using just her toes, Lyra grabbed the arrow and proceeded to not only load it into the bow; but shoot a bull’s-eye as well. “Nice aim,” Octavia mused “That’s not all that’s nice,” Vinyl muttered “I wouldn’t mind trying my luck with them.” “Really? In front of your wife,” Octavia accused, lightly shoving her “You could join in as well.” “I think it’s my turn to try sword swallowing,” Trixie decided, carrying a chair, as the girls returned to the back “I’m going to need an assistant from the audience. Raise your hand if you’d like to help.” With that comment; almost every male shot a hand in the air; while a few males were pointing to one with blue hair; in the hopes of him getting picked. A lone spotlight was making its way around the room before stopping on the blue-haired male. As he stood up to make his way to the stage, his companions were cheering. “Way to go, birthday boy!” “What’s your name; birthday boy,” Trixie asked “Flash Sentry,” he said, trying not to act nervous “How old are you today?” “Twenty-one.” “Well, allow me to give you a birthday gift you’ll never forget,” Trixie offered “I’m a virgin,” Flash said quietly “Don’t worry; I’ll be gentle.” Trixie knelt down and eased his zipper down as he sat down on the chair before performing oral sex on him as the audience cheered in support. Sensing his eminent ejaculation; she eased off and moved the crotch of her leotard aside before sitting down on his lap as he penetrated her. Once he’d shot his load inside, she rose off and returned the crotch in place, trapping his semen. “Happy birthday, Flash,” she added, kissing him on the cheek “Thank you,” he muttered “Best birthday ever.” “Ladies and gentlemen; it’s time for the grand finale,” Trixie decided “I am going to be buried alive.” Starlight, Lyra and Sweetie Drops were wheeling a massive reinforced glass box while a couple stagehands brought a wooden coffin. To show there was no lock picks hidden on her; Trixie stripped nude, before a straight jacket was secured around her. “I have a feeling I can figure this out,” Octavia whispered “You’d be surprised,’ Vinyl answered telepathically “Well; I hope this doesn’t really need repeating, but this is extremely recommended to not attempt this trick,” Starlight warned “Trixie will be buried under sand and will have to escape or risk suffocation.” Following the straight jacket, Trixie was chained into the coffin before it was raised up and positioned into the glass chamber by a special crane positioned behind the curtain. Once in the box; the crane lifted multiple containers of sand and poured them inside, completely filling the box. The audience seemed to wait for what felt like hours as they continued to masturbate or have sex to pass the time. Inside the box; Trixie managed to slip out of the straight jacket and chains easily; only to be temporarily halted due to the lid. ‘Starlight; remind me never to try this again.’ ‘Why?’ ‘I have sand in places I shouldn’t and I’m still not all the way through.’ ‘Do you need help?’ ‘No, I got it. Besides; some of the audience seem to be preoccupied. Almost got my…’ “Tada,” Trixie announced “I have escaped a trip to the grave. On behalf of everyone here; we hope you enjoyed yourselves.” As the curtain started to close; the audience seemed to be in a rush to finish wiping their mess before funneling towards the door. Those first noticed multiple bins to deposit the towels inside for decontamination and cleaning later. “Shouldn’t we be leaving?” “Let’s wait until the crowd lightens up,” Vinyl argued “Besides; there’s something I wanted to check.” Vinyl glanced over towards a large group heading out and saw a female with purple hair pass by before disappearing; leaving only the two of them left. Once out of the theater; Vinyl led them wordlessly to the elevator and to their temporary room. “What happened?” I think I know what you were talking about with that bad feeling about someone,” Vinyl said with a sigh “There was some chick with purple hair there that I have sworn wasn’t there when we entered.” “I know what you mean. I’m sure I’ve seen her once in the casino and when we were in the mall." "Obsessed fan, maybe?” “I don’t know. Whoever she is; we’ll just have to keep an eye out,” Vinyl decided “On a different subject; what did you think of the show?” “A bit hard to focus when the males around us were playing with themselves; rather loudly, I might add.” “That’s the point of that show is for people to fuck in the audience. I’ll admit I was there once some years ago to relax; but this was the first time with you that I was there to enjoy the show.” “She had to have escaped by a secret door, right?” “Nope. Trixie did it the hard way in her escape,” Vinyl corrected “You mean she actually…” Vinyl nodded and finished “Crawled through the dirt. There’s a reason most magicians shy away from that trick. It’s literally one wrong move away from that being their last. I’d highly doubt Trixie will attempt that again.” “Considering how late it is, I’m going to get some sleep. We can head home in the morning.” “Sounds good. I want to let mom know about that as soon as possible. Before we leave town; we’ll take a picture or two in front of the sign.” The next morning; they immediately went to valet and headed down to the sign. Vinyl took one photo with Octavia by the sign before having another tourist take one with them together. Despite their arrival being at night; Vinyl had to drive under the speed limit due to traffic. “In regards to the creature you showed me; what’s its story?” “First things first. In order to answer that; you need to understand we have taken roles over the years to help out; hence the various IDs you saw. We were working when a literal tear in space showed up before Discord emerged,” Vinyl started “That’s the thing’s name,” Octavia asked in disbelief “I thought that was just an explanation of what it was.” “Anyway; he thought he was safe and showed up a series of images. A few images consisted of pony versions of Twilight, Luna and myself that were remarkably accurate. The last one was barren; although we couldn’t tell what happened. Any attempt to question him about that resulted in him shutting down. Somehow; he disappeared from confinement and returned with that statue you saw. He instructed us how to put him back together exactly and revealed the creature’s name to be ‘Storm King'.” “The same as the card,” Octavia realized “That’s why I asked if you believe in other intelligent life.” “It’s hard to believe that other versions of ourselves could exist in another world. I’m still trying to wrap my head around that.” Atlas Nova casino “Milord; my scouting mission is complete,” the purple haired woman said in a call “Do they suspect you,” came a reply “I don’t think so. With any luck, they thought I was a tourist.” “Return as soon as you can.” “As you command.” Octavia & Vinyl They arrived later that evening as Vinyl had to force herself to drive much slower under the speed limit to avoid any unnecessary attention from police. Octavia was the first to exit and opened the trunk to retrieve the stuffed animals and DVD. “Giuseppe; go ahead and take that stuff off of her hands,” Vinyl said “Yes ma’am,” he replied with a bow “Allow me, miss Melody.” Without hesitation; Octavia handed over the items before Vinyl scooped her up in a traditional bridal carry and headed through the door. Instead of setting her down in the living room; Octavia was carried through the house to the bedroom. “I think we’ve cleared the tradition,” Octavia joked “If it wasn’t for what we have to do; I’d probably be ripping off your clothes,” Vinyl answered “Let’s go back.” “So; have fun you two,” Luna asked “We did.” “There was someone we both had a bad feeling about,” Vinyl chimed in “That’s why we came home so early.” “The same thing as the previous mention,” Luna asked “I believe it was similar. It’s just hard to describe.” “I saw a woman with a purple mohawk and by the time I blinked; she was gone,” Vinyl replied “Even with the crowd, it’s impossible to disappear that fast. "I saw her at least twice and couldn’t find rid of the feeling I had." “I have to agree. I kind of hacked into the casino cameras and watched you,” Twilight added sheepishly, rubbing her arm “I did see a woman appear and disappear in a split second. Those cameras aren’t malfunctioning, so something was going on.” “You believe your mystery woman is a vampire,” Luna questioned “I don’t know whether or not she is; but I felt it’s worth looking into,” Vinyl offered “We’ll keep an eye out for anything suspicious. For now; we need to just carry on like normal and see if your suspicions are correct,” Luna decided “Fair enough. Tomorrow; if you don’t mind, we’ll have my parents over to watch the video of our wedding,” Octavia asked “Of course. Just relax in the meantime,” Luna decided “I’ll probably go and practice,” Octavia commented “There’s a concert coming tomorrow night I completely forgot about.” “You’ll do fine,” Vinyl offered reassuringly “Don’t worry too much about it." 4The next day; Octavia made the call to her parents as they agreed to show up around ten that morning. Luna had led them to the living room where Twilight was just finishing setting the TV up to play movies. “Thank you for inviting us,” Tenor offered “You’re welcome. I’m glad you accepted my invitation.” “Have you consummated your marriage,” Treble asked directly “Dad,” Octavia whined “Why would you ask that?” “Not yet,” Vinyl answered slyly “Twily; roll that beautiful footage. Please?” “Thank you for at least asking,” Twilight said with a chuckle “Such a simple ceremony,” Tenor mused, after it finished “With how much we’ve been harassed by paparazzi; she and I wanted to escape and have a quiet ceremony,” Vinyl answered “No one knew where this was going to be held as we decided only moments before.” “We even have simple bands that might be overlooked by anyone not paying attention,” Octavia added “Regardless of the size; it’s still great to be a part of your wedding,” Treble complimented “Thank you so much for showing us the video,” Tenor said, as she hugged Octavia “Have you practiced for your concert tonight?” “Just a little bit yesterday. It’s not a major event; so we’ll just be arriving in casual dress.” “Well; we should get going so you can get ready or sleep before it starts,” Treble mused “We wish you the best in your marriage.” Octavia decided to take her parents up on the offer of taking a short nap before getting ready for their 6pm concert. Vinyl tossed her a pair of black jeans and t-shirt to wear. Despite the possibility of getting attention, Vinyl decided to watch in from audience as her wife played. As Octavia sat on stage; she could have sworn she caught a glimpse of the same woman they mentioned earlier in the audience. Brushing the thought aside, she continued playing, before an intrusive voice entered her head. ‘Having fun? Hope you’re not going insane. Ha-ha-ha.’ Trying to clear the bother, she shook her head a bit; unintentionally losing her place in the song. A few squeaks resonated from her cello as she tried to get back to playing. To make matters worse; the woman decided to make a close up appearance on stage in front of Octavia before disappearing again. “Hey; you alright,” the second-chair cellist whispered “Headache,” she lied “I’ll have to deal with it for now.” ‘Vee; she’s here.’ ‘I heard; since she contacted me as well. Just finish up the show.’ Once the conductor took his bow, signaling the end of the concert; Octavia had to take a moment to gather her belongings in the hopes of forcing herself not to run offstage. Thankfully she had the case with her as it seemed to be haphazardly stuck in the back of the car as Vinyl raced home. Vinyl snatched the case out of the car as Octavia was running inside towards the living room, before stopping in her tracks. Despite the positioning; she could see a male with white hair sitting away from her. “Tavi; you forgot this,” Vinyl pointed out, tapping the cello case “And what’s wrong now?” “It’s him,” Octavia whispered back “You! What are you doing here!? Why have you been stalking me!?” “Octavia, dear; it’s okay,” Luna offered reassuringly “My dear, I assure you; I have not done anything of the sort,” the male answered calmly “In fact; this is probably a case of mistaken identity.” “Mistaken…identity,” Octavia repeated, sounding out the last two words “Indeed. I am sorry for any confusion that may have happened,” he offered “Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Discord; former Count and ruler of multiple nations.” “Perhaps you should start at the beginning,” Luna mused Vinyl headed to Octavia’s room to drop off the cello as Octavia felt herself guided towards a nearby couch by Luna. Once she finished; Vinyl threw herself in the seat next to her wife. “My story is almost as long as human history,” Discord pointed out “I will be skipping around to try and shorten it.” “I don’t remember exactly when it happened; maybe during the end of time when humans were starting to explore the barren ice-covered world; but my brother and I were turned by a being known as ‘Grogar'. At first it wasn’t too bad, since we would take a little bit of blood from multiple people under his teachings.” “That’s amazing,” Octavia said in awe “You were actually alive during the Ice Age.” “It wasn’t fun, practically being frozen at any time. If we didn’t survive and thrive; humanity never would have taken off. No one gave any thought to the trio that hung around together as it was common for small splinter groups to do so, as long as everyone helped taking down the kill,” he admitted “Fast forward thousands of years later and my brother and I were told to kill and consume our master’s body and that our transformation into full vampires would be complete. After that, my brother decided to call himself the ‘Storm King' and from that point on; I never saw him again.” “I had a run-in with someone who had a business card with the name ‘Storm King’ on it. It said he was a vampire hunter.” “That’s surprising,” he mused “A vampire hunting others. Unless it’s because he sees this as a threat.” “Why would he see us as a threat?” “May I answer that, master,” Twilight asked hopefully “Of course,” he said with a nod “Your brother must have founded a new vampire clan in his travels and doesn’t like the idea of a reminder of his brother’s legacy,” Twilight answered “But why target me?” “I don’t think it’s you, directly, but you’re probably just in the way,” Twilight continued “In other words; when you became my wife; you may have been just another addition,” Vinyl chimed in “Guilt by association, regardless if you were mortal or not.” “That’s not right, but I guess there isn’t much of a choice.” “As for me; I took some time off from the world. I found a cave that was completely isolated from everything and dug a pit for myself and slept for a while. Before I did; I took some stone and carved in a sigil that Grogar taught us to be a sort of ‘Do Not Disturb' sign. Of course someone did eventually open it, waking me up during the Grecian or Roman times,” he continued “With those idjits; I’ve always confused the two. Especially when I’ve been to both.” “What did you do during that time?” “I worked behind the scenes with the senators and rulers to earn power and money. I helped influence them to what was best for everyone. Some times it was more in my favor, but everything seemed to work pretty well, overall.” “Did you ever run into your brother during your time in other countries?” “I may have heard rumors of someone fitting a general description of him; but I wouldn’t have put it past him to manipulate rulers to going to war since that was always a favorite tactic. Some time later; I made my way to an area ‘Scandinavia’. Despite the massive change in time; I always kept my sword with me wherever I was for safety. It was outdated, but it’s still served me to this day. Those were fun times; as I was able to pass on my wealth of knowledge to others. The area I was named me as ruler where they saw some of the most prosperous times ever.” “I thought the Vikings were always fighting.” “Sometimes that was true, but we were farmers first that would fight to protect ourselves. Besides; if it weren’t for us; the world wouldn’t have had so much. We explored everywhere we could to learn about the world. I’ll admit I’d killed a fair share in battle and drank their blood afterwards.” “Is that dangerous to do? Drink from the dead? Sorry if I’m constantly interrupting you.” “You have questions I’m happy to answer,” he said “As long as the body isn’t cold; it should be alright. I would only drink blood once; and usually gorge myself so I didn’t have to feed again for a few months. As for what they thought about it; they never asked and I didn’t explain.” “What happened to them afterwards?” “Some moved to other continents we explored in the hopes of continuing their traditions. I honestly; moved down the land from the Scandinavian area to England. That really was the best time of my life.” “I’ll continue from there, if you’d like,” Luna offered “Of course. It would be best for you to explain your portion,” he nodded “It was during what we call now the ‘Middle Ages’. Celestia and I were in our mid twenties when this handsome man had come up to us. We were invited to the castle under his suggestion to live. It was a year later that we were married and my sister and I had been expecting twins,” Luna started “Um; how do vampires reproduce,” Octavia asked nervously “Grogar mentioned nothing about it; but I surmised we were sterile when I tried having sex with another woman a long time before. We were, or at least I was; taught about a spell that would temporarily allow reproduction with automatic success,” Discord answered “As you already know; nine months later; gave birth to Twilight and Starlight while Celestia’s daughters were of course, Sunset and Cadence.” “As for my brother and I; we were adopted twenty one years after the others grew up,” Vinyl chimed in “When did you become a vampire, Luna?” “I asked my wives when they were in their mid-forties and my daughters after their twenty-first birthday about the offer,” Discord interjected “I have to say we did live a good life during that time,” Twilight mused “Servants to take care of our every need, and plenty of money to never have to worry about anything. Even the citizens were actually happy to have someone to listen to them and want to help out.” "My sister seemed to grow a tiny bit of jealousy at the attention we were getting and decided to take her girls and a decent amount of money and left. The next time I heard anything about her; she had adopted and turned three new girls into vampires,” Luna continued “As to Vinyl and her brother Neon Lights; that was a different moment. I’m not sure I can tell you; but I am sorry you have to relive this, Vinyl.” “It’s alright. I’ve gotten over it by now,” Vinyl said with a sigh “It’s just still hard to believe, though.” “I’ll try and answer as best as I can,” Twilight offered “For reasons unknown to us; a pregnant woman was dragged into the town square by the other citizens. Someone decided to disembowel her, before tossing the fetuses in a basket. Afterwards…" “Take your time, dear,” Luna said reassuringly “Afterwards,” Twilight repeated, trying to gather the courage “She was raped until her death. Discord ordered the immediate execution of the participants, but not before extracting confessions. During their torture, they admitted the deceased was suspected of witchcraft and had to be eliminated to prevent problems.” “I left the castle and immediately retrieved the basket and returned where I agreed to raise the kids as my own,” Luna continued “I still can’t get the sight of a woman with pale white skin, blue hair and red eyes being tortured.” “Even hearing the story about an event that transpired hundreds of years ago is hard to believe. At least we know how it’s ended so far to this point.” “For the second time; I decided to return to the earth for a while to get away from life. I told the others to take the wealth and spread it among the population, and the rest for themselves,” Discord added “Of course I did take a portion with me to my grave.” “In case you’re wondering, my name and Neon's only came about in the past few decades when the technology became popular,” Vinyl interjected “Before; I was Melody and he was Archer.” “For a time; the five of us traveled in secret at night with each carrying swords for protection. We took residence in other areas and tried to get into positions of influence to continue gathering wealth. We did this repeatedly; before hiding the money in areas around the world. Funny enough; we made sure to always stay behind the scenes during the course of history as the notoriety was unneeded as a vampire,” Luna continued “Just out of curiosity, did anyone go to college?” “Yes, we all have,” Luna answered “What did you major in?” “Yes,” Vinyl, Twilight and Luna said in unison “I don’t get it.” “From about the middle 1800s to present, we’ve earned degrees in every subject possible. I’ve gotten doctorates in everything, while mom had a few PhD in a few others,” Twilight asked cheerfully “I’ve gotten a few doctorates, and master's degrees in everything else,” Vinyl added “I would never have thought you’d have so many degrees.” “Well; when we’ve had firsthand experience of history, it’s easy to answer about that,” Luna mused “I was actually threatened with a lower grade for calling one of the officers in World War 2 an asshole,” Vinyl chimed in “In my defense, he actually was an asshole. They wanted a fictional telling of you being in the military and how’d you feel. What was I supposed to do!?” “They didn’t actually want to hear opinions, but what you were told to write,” Luna said “Regardless of how you knew them, history books branded them as heroes and that’s how everyone had to see them.” “What was everyone’s favorite class?” “I enjoyed teaching students about history in a way they seemed to enjoy,” Luna answered “I followed the text, but would add little extras here and there.” “Science was my favorite to teach and learn; although I had to constantly deny my students from wanting to date me,” Twilight added “Music appreciation was my favorite to teach. They loved being able to talk to someone about music and I could offer suggestions for them to check out,” Vinyl chimed in “Why did you decide to come back now, sir?” “This wasn’t my decision, but I thought to take advantage of it,” he said “After my return to a resting place in the Middle Ages; I was actually at peace before someone cracked the rock I was using, mere weeks ago.” FLASHBACK: 1 Week Ago; Parts Unknown Two explorers; a female in her mid thirties wearing an olive green shirt, brown shorts and knee length boots and a male in his late thirties with a shaved beard in a khaki shirt and black pants were almost to the bottom of a cave, having rappelled inside. “What exactly are we doing here,” the female questioned “My dear, Daring; I had received information from an anonymous source that said there was something here that would change the course of history,” he said dramatically “Caballeron; I hope you’re not pulling my leg. This is empty,” Daring countered “We both have found treasure in places seemed to be empty before,” he said with a chuckle “Besides; the best place to hide something is deep where no one can get it.” Once free of their climbing ropes; the two retrieved flashlights and continued deeper into the cave. They ended up heading into areas that had passages small enough they had to resort to crawling through in order to continue. “Hold up a moment,” she directed “I see something.” “What do you make of it?” “All I can say is it’s a marking of some kind,” she offered “Unfortunately; there’s no record of this in any of the books I’ve read.” “Well; if we continue on, there has to be something that someone didn’t want anyone to know about,” he said cheerfully “Why else would that be there?” “We should document this for later. I’ll sketch it and you photograph it,” Daring directed “You know, I’ve been giving this some thought,” he started “This mark is placed in an area with a small single entrance. Let’s check if there isn’t any other way past.” “My thoughts exactly,” she confirmed “I thought the wall had a crack in it.” After removing a small collapsible shovel from their bags, they began using the blade as a makeshift pickax aimed at the crack she pointed out. After a few minutes, some of the rocks started to break apart and fall away; revealing a new chamber to explore. As Daring entered, her light was shined around the room, before stopping on another symbol. “It’s like the one in the other room,” she pointed out “The design is a bit different, though.” “Must have a different meaning,” he guessed “Let’s start digging around for treasure.” “Just be careful. We don’t know what we’re dealing with,” she cautioned Starting at the back of the room; they dug out a trench towards the middle where they ended up hitting a series of larger stones that were arranged in a line. “This rock is a little bit smaller. Let’s move this aside and work towards the bigger ones last,” he offered, moving one as he spoke With a few of the rocks moved out of the way, they noticed the body of a male with gray hair and a goatee dressed in a black outfit. To their shock, the body started to sit upright and stretch. “When am I?” “W…wa…what are you,” Caballeron stuttered “Who are you?” “Courtesy dictates you answer my question first,” the creature stated “It’s 2020 now,” Daring answered “Nearly five hundred years,” it muttered, before turning to the others “Why did you wake me?” “We were informed about something that could change history,” Caballeron answered “Now; who are you?” “I am Discord, Count of multiple kingdoms. Who told you to come here?” “It was an anonymous source,” Caballeron said quickly “I wasn’t told what to look for, either.” “If I may interrupt, Count Discord; what exactly are you and how did you end up here,” Daring asked “To answer your first question, young lady; I am a vampire born quite a long time ago. As to how I ended up here; that was my own doing. I decided to take a nap here in private with my trusty sword by my side,” Discord said “Since I’m up, let’s get going.” “Where exactly are we going,” Caballeron asked “You’re leaving the cave and I’m coming with,” Discord stated “But first; do you mind if I have a drink?” Without hesitation; Discord headed towards Daring, before tipping her head to the side. After sinking his fangs into her neck; they were removed about ten seconds later as the wounds healed themselves. “Thank you for the drink,” Discord offered “That was my fiancé you turned into a vampire,” Caballeron retorted angrily “I assure you; she hasn’t been turned. The process takes much longer than that.” Discord reached back into the exposed cavity and removed a Roman spatha sword in it’s sheath and strapped it to his side. Caballeron turned and left the room muttering profanities under his breath while Discord ignored everything mentioned. “I’d suggest you join him outside,” Discord offered “He seems to be getting restless.” “What about you,” Daring questioned “I’ll be right behind you. I need to grab one more thing.” As she headed back through the door; Discord headed into a corner and removed a small pouch of coins and dropped it in a pocket, before covering the tomb up and joining the two explorers. The trip back through the cave was silent as Caballeron still seemed to be irritated. He and Daring hooked up to the harnesses and signaled to someone at the top of the cave to start pulling them up. Discord decided to just walk up the side to the top. “What are you,” another member asked “Something that was woken up from his dirt nap by your friends here. I’m going wherever they are heading,” Discord answered “Boss; did you find what you came from,” another chimed in “I don’t know,” Caballeron admitted “Get the plane ready for departure. Wheels up in ten minutes. I’ve got to make a call.” “What is a ‘plane’,” Discord asked “Where did you come from that you don’t know what a plane is,” one of the team members asked sarcastically “And you know; swords went out of fashion hundreds of years ago.” “I’ll have you know; I’ve never needed my feet to leave the ground involuntarily, as I’m quite fond of terra firma. As for the sword; it’s a matter of protecting myself against attackers. I wasn’t trained to give in without a fight,” Discord retorted Caballeron headed a short distance from the rest of the group and removed a satellite phone from a pouch on his side and started to dial. He put it on speakerphone to talk easier. In the meantime, Discord took a look around and saw two small jeeps being driven into a cargo plane as tents covered with camouflage netting were being taken down and loaded inside. ‘We went to where you told us,’ Caballeron said ‘And? Did you find what I told you,’ the person on the other end asked ‘We found something; or rather some one. A person, to be exact; who woke up after uncovering it.’ ‘And you didn’t dispatch it!? Do you know how much trouble it could cause!? On second thought, take it with you. You can drive over to the rendezvous point and deliver it to me personally.’ ‘Yes, sir.’ Despite the distance from the others, Discord was able to hear the hear the conversation. He knew he’d have to play along until he could get away from them. He had a feeling he knew who was the other person was; and hoped to be wrong about it. “Good news, Count,” Caballeron said cheerfully “You’re coming with us.” “That’s good to hear. Otherwise; it would be a long walk,” Discord joked “You’ll have to pardon the lack of room in here,” Caballeron offered as he led Discord inside the plane, “This is normally used by soldiers for transportation. Just clip into a nearby seat and we’ll be ready to go soon.” “Since my fiancé is gone,” Daring started “How old are you?” “Ancient,” Discord answered simply “I don’t know by whom you were sponsored by; but I’m leaving as soon as we arrive at our destination.” “Where are you planning on going,” she questioned “Anyplace else. I’m supposed to be driven over someplace.” Before either of them could continue their conversation; multiple workers headed inside and started strapping into nearby seats. ‘Luna…Could you help me?’ ‘How can I do that?’ ‘I’m currently on something called a ‘plane’. They mentioned it’s used for transporting soldiers.’ ‘That’s not bad. What’s the problem?’ ‘Whoever’s leading this group is planning on taking me to another person. I don’t like the idea of being handed over to anyone. Can you meet me upon our arrival?’ ‘I can try; but if it’s a military transport; most likely it’ll be on a base. You’ll have to get away from the base before I can pick you up.’ During the flight; Discord looked around to see each member of the crew starting to fall asleep as he stayed awake out of sheer habit. To keep occupied; he drew the blade from the sheath and started to sharpen it as quietly as possible so as not to wake anyone. Deciding it was to his liking; he also started to remove the dust from the clothing in order to look more presentable. A few hours later; the pilot had apparently landed at their destination and started to lower the ramp when Discord took off using his speed. He hoped to be far enough off away from the plane they wouldn’t know he disappeared. Now away from the base; he realized just how much society had changed in the hundreds of years since he’d been asleep. More building had been built, much closer to one another as some towered above the rest. As he started wandering the streets, a police car started to pull up behind him. “Excuse me, sir,” the officer started “I’m afraid you’re going to have to come with me.” “I suppose it’s a good thing you happened along,” Discord offered “You see, I’m from out of town and I’m supposed to meet a friend. Unfortunately; I don’t have an address for them. How do I address you?” “Officer Flash Sentry is my name, sir,” he introduced “You may call me Officer Sentry “I’m sorry to hear that you don’t have an address for your friend; but your weapon is against the law.” “According to that text, aren’t you supposed to ‘Serve and Protect’? How can you protect anyone without a sword?” “Swords have been rendered out of use in the 1700s. Firearms, specifically pistols; are the ways we police officers have to protect others,” Flash simplified In the meantime; Luna grabbed one of the cars and decided to head out for a drive in the hopes of meeting up with Discord. As she turned onto a street not too far off from the military base; she saw someone in all black talking with police. “Is there a problem here, officer,” Luna asked “What is your relationship with this gentleman,” the officer asked, addressing Luna “And the name's Officer Sentry.” “I was supposed to pick him up, officer. Since he’s from out of town, I wanted to pick him up as soon as possible” Luna offered “How’d you get here, sir,” Flash questioned “I arrived by plane,” Discord answered “I haven’t seen any commercial planes coming in,” Flash mused “It was a military plane from what I was told.” “I didn’t think they’d be picking up citizens,” Flash argued “I didn’t ask their reasoning for picking me up.” “Unfortunately; I’m going to have to place him under arrest for his sword,” Flash argued “It’s illegal to carry such a weapon.” “I don’t want to embarrass him; but he’s a fan of ancient history and likes to carry a wooden sword just like gentleman used to,” Luna lied “How’s about just letting him off with a warning and he can promise not to carry a sword in public again?” “Do you promise not to wear such an item in public,” Flash asked, with a sigh “Of course, sir,” Discord answered “I wouldn’t want to break a promise and get in trouble. I have a great deal of respect for the job you do.” “Take your friend and go,” Flash decided “I’ll write it up as a warning to not wear cosplay weapons outside of official locations.” Luna led her husband towards her car before reaching over and unclipping the sheath and sticking it in the back seat. He carefully lowered himself into the front passenger’s seat as she took the wheel. “Thank you for coming to my rescue,” Discord started You’re welcome. I wasn’t sure where you’d be and I just got lucky when I found you. In the meantime; let’s head to our current home and you can relax.” ●PRESENT TIME● “I do apologize for my confusion and anger when I first met you. I did not know it was your brother I’d met before,” Octavia started “And thank you for the history lesson. I have a lot to learn about being a vampire.”r “Your apology is accepted,” Discord replied “I’m happy to share everything I know with family. I bid you adieu for now as I must see how Celestia is doing.” 5After Discord had left; a quick peek at the clock revealed the time to be almost midnight that night. Before anyone might have decided to head to bed; the sound of glass shattering was heard. “You heard that? Right,” Octavia asked “I did. Someone broke a window,” Luna confirmed Following the broken window; a loud crash emanated that almost seemed to echo through the house. “That’s more a broken window,” Octavia realized “I hope it’s not what I think it is.” Octavia took off running down the hall to her room, before having her fear realized. Standing in the middle of the room was a two-legged creature with hooves instead of legs that led to a muscular body covered with mostly black hair with white around the neck. Around the chest was a dark gray vest with the Storm King's logo in blue in the middle, and it was holding the upper portion of her cello that consisted of the tuning pegs. Enraged at the sight; she charged into the creature, knocking it to the floor; before grabbing a large piece of the cello's body that had an edge to it. “That...was...my...wed...ding...pre...sent..you...bas...tard,” she enunciated With each word; she plunged the piece into the creature, repeatedly stabbing it. To her surprise, even after taking ten stabbings to the chest, it was still able to breathe; so she took her makeshift blade and slit its throat. Just as her arm went up for another blow, she felt someone gently holding her wrist. “Easy, Tavi,” Vinyl offered reassuringly “He’s dead.” “I did it,” Octavia replied, trying to hold back tears “I killed him.” “What the fuck is that,” Vinyl asked, looking at the creature “I’ve never seen before, either,” Luna stated “The only thing we know is it has the mark of the Storm King on it,” Twilight chimed in “It does have fangs, so I’d guess it could be a vampire of some kind.” “So; what’s it doing here,” Vinyl demanded “Since it’s the only one here; I believe it could have been scouting out our house,” Luna offered “Great,” Vinyl whined “Can’t we get some peace and quiet!? Hanz; can you grab Hagar to get rid of the body?” As the girls left the room; two of the servants headed into the room pushing a stretcher to drop the body on. They wheeled it towards an out of the corridor and into a sealed off room. Their next task was to drop the body into a hidden chute to a disposal chamber. “Let’s get the acid ready,” Hagar stated “Mixed or not,” Hanz asked “With those things? Use them all. The chamber’s designed to withstand anything. Glad there’s plenty of liquid, just and case. I hope there’s not more of those ugly fuckers. Otherwise; we’d need a burn pit,” Hagar argued “What exactly are they doing,” Octavia asked “How are they supposed to dispose of the body?” “It’s better you not know,” Vinyl answered “The two of them are half-vampires we turned after what they did during World War 2,” Luna added “German chemical warfare experts that loved human experimentation.” “I could see where it’s going. I don’t want to know the details. If that is a scout, what are we supposed to do?” “We just stay here and wait,” Luna decided, before holding up a hand “I know you want to be proactive; but we don’t know where they come from to go to them.” “I really hate this shit,” Vinyl stated “For once; I’d have been happy to deal with paparazzi instead of weird vampire-satyr-monkey fucks.” “I don’t think we should assume what they are,” Twilight cautioned “From what dad told us; both he and the Storm King were taught spells. Why couldn’t that be the reason for their appearance?” Following the assault; everyone seemed to be on edge as they waited for a possible second attack. The following night saw more of the windows broken simultaneously as the attack happened as predicted with the house’s power getting cut. “I hate when someone’s right,” Vinyl whined “And of course the power has to go out.” “Don’t worry, the backup generators should kick on,” Twilight pointed out A small explosion was heard as Twilight ended up face palming at the event. “There goes the backup,” Twilight added “I’ve got one of those things by me,” Octavia said One of the creatures lunged towards Octavia only to be punched in the face by Vinyl in self-defense. Due to the force of the punch; the creature ended up with its nose pushed back into its head as it flew back through a table. “Sorry about that, mom,” Vinyl offered apologetically “We’ll worry about that later. Right now, we need to get downstairs,” Luna countered “How are we supposed to get down there,” Octavia asked “I thought the elevator was the only way.” “There is a staircase we had made that wraps around the elevator shaft. Its entrance is the body of the grandfather clock,” Luna answered Luna led the four towards the clock as Vinyl trailed behind. Trying to slow the creatures down, Vinyl kicked a chair towards them, causing at least one to stumble into another; before doing the same with a table. She caught up a moment later to the others and closed the door behind her just as Luna was entering the garage. “How’s the situation up there,” Luna asked as Vinyl entered “Hopefully I slowed them down a bit,” Vinyl answered “Regardless; get over to the armory and get ready,” Luna directed Twilight was already ahead of her and pushed a hidden button on the wall; allowing multiple metal cabinets to raise up from the floor. Opening one up revealed rows of handguns of various calibers and boxes of ammunition. “This is amazing,” Octavia mused “I’ve never seen such a huge collection.” “We’ve had to be prepared for anything, so we have our own armory,” Vinyl answered, grabbing a pair of pistols “Have you ever used a gun before?” “Never. My dad didn’t want me to ever learn,” Octavia answered “For now, just stay here and grab an ammo clip or pistol when we need it,” Vinyl directed “Sorry about using you as just an assistant,” Twilight said apologetically “It’s just safer that way.” “It’s alright. Since I don’t know anything with guns; you’ll have to direct me.” “Heads up,” Luna called “Our incoming’s incoming!” Despite the announcement; they still felt unprepared when the door broke open and the creatures forced their way through. Luna had to roll out of the way as Twilight fired into the skull of the first in line, that caused blood and brain matter to hit its companions. “I’ll never look at anatomy the same way, again,” Octavia complained A few of the creatures further up in the house seemed to get wise at the deaths happening in front as they crouched down and used a fallen body as a shield for it to push into the garage area. “What the fuck? Why’re these things getting smarter,” Vinyl demanded “Shoot first and we’ll” Luna started, before getting knocked backwards by a thrown body “Shit!” Twilight raced over and lifted the body off her mom, and aimed it towards the legs of creature that originally threw it, as Vinyl put a bullet in its head. Dammit, I’m out,” Vinyl said as she tried pulling the trigger with nothing happening “Tavi; cover me while I grab a clip!” Octavia reluctantly grabbed a pistol and held it like she’d seen the others and pulled the trigger; only for nothing to happen. “Vee; it’s not working!” “Did you switch the safety to off,” she asked “I don’t know where it is!” "Here; I’ll give you a quick lesson,” Vinyl said, putting a hand on her wife’s “Safety is on the side, make sure it’s off if you want to fire. Next; aim the barrel at what you want to shoot and pull the trigger.” Octavia felt her hands being moved towards the steps and the creatures as her index finger was pulled backwards. Vinyl forced her to shoot twice more before removing her hand. “Lesson over,” Vinyl stated “Shoot them while I reload.” “Where do I aim at?” “Take center mass and we’ll finish them off for you,” Luna simplified “The chest, you mean?” “Yeah. Most often it’s referred to as center mass, which is rather self-explanatory,” Twilight added “Damn. How many of these fuckers are there,” Vinyl asked “It’s been slowing down a bit,” Luna realized “Let’s get these moved aside and the servants could dispose of them." Outside the Mansion Seeing the rest of the grunts making their way inside the house in front; the mohawked female; now wearing armor with the Storm King’s logo, and a smaller overweight male walked through the front door with two creatures in purple armor following behind. “Are you sure about this Commander Tempest,” the male asked “I am, Grubber. Besides, I’m supposed to scout the area before reporting back to the Storm King,” Tempest answered “I hate to say it, but this is a nice place,” Grubber complimented, with a whistle “Since the damage leads towards that clock, I’m going to guess our targets are that way.” “What would I ever do without you,” she replied somewhat sarcastically, before motioning to the guards “You two, lead the way.” Inside the Garage Vinyl and the others were double-checking their magazines when they saw two more of the creatures making their way down the steps and into the room. They noticed these two seemed to carry themselves differently as they wearing purple armor and not charging towards the girls. “They seem different,” Octavia commented “Someone’s behind them,” Twilight added “Perhaps these two are that person’s bodyguards.” All of a sudden; a hand shot through each of the guards chests, as they fell facedown on the floor. The same female with purple hair was standing behind them, holding their hearts in her hands, before tossing them aside. “Wha? Tempest; what did you do? Why did you do that,” Grubber asked in shock, as she calmly wiped her hands “I’m telling the Storm King about this treachery.” Grubber removed a small device, resembling a pager from a pocket and pushed two buttons at the same time. Tempest headed over to Octavia and gently removed the pistol from her hand. “I’m sorry, Grubber,” Tempest said under her breath “I have no choice.” Grubber had just turned to head back up the steps when Tempest fired at the back of his head, killing him instantly. The device in hand was destroyed as she brought her heel down on it. Without warning; Vinyl walked over and punched the woman in the face. “What was the stalking about,” Vinyl demanded, grabbing her “Since we probably don’t have much time; I’ll just say that I was under orders to spy on you by the Storm King,” Tempest summarized “I’d suggest you get your weapons ready. He’s sending enough of those ghouls to destroy this place.” “Why’d you kill him,” Octavia asked “Your friend here, I mean.” “Since I’ve had plenty of time to think; I’ve decided to get away from the Storm King’s rule. All my life I’ve just been an assassin, stalking my prey to eliminate them at his command,” Tempest answered “Seeing how nice everyone was here; I hoped to join this clan. I had to destroy any remaining ties to the Storm King first.” “Since I’m the head; we’ll decide your fate later,” Luna stated “In the meantime, we’ll get rid of these ghouls first.” “Just out of curiosity; is there any other weapons I could use? I’m just not comfortable with the pistols.” “Open the last cabinet on the left,” Vinyl directed Following the direction; Octavia opened the cabinet to find a medieval-like shield in the general shape of a cello, minus the upper section of the fingerboard that lead to the tuning pegs and scroll. Next to it was a sword that seemed to resemble a bow. The shield was lifted out and strapped to her left forearm as the sword seemed to feel like a feather in her hands. “Did you have these made for me,” Octavia asked “It’s extremely comfortable; despite having never used it before.” “Not entirely. I’ve played cello for a little while and had it made for me,” Vinyl admitted “I’m glad that you find it to your liking. It’s probably because you’re subconsciously used to holding the bow that it seems natural to you.” “I have two questions for you,” Twilight started, turning to Tempest “One; how did those ghouls get created? And two; how many are there?” “There’s probably a few hundred, if not thousands; created that were ordered to attack here and one other location. As for how they were created; the Storm King used some kind of spell to do it. I don’t know the exact specifics as he never told me; despite making me his commander,” Tempest answered “Where are they going to come from,” Vinyl asked “They were able to see through one another’s eyes; so more than likely they’re use the door,” Tempest answered, before trailing off “However…” “Let me guess; they’ll find any other way they can; including breaking through reinforced concrete,” Vinyl retorted sarcastically “They’ll look for alternative ways in, but yeah; if not, then they’ll dig a single entrance downward.” “Since we don’t know where they’re going to come from; the four of us will form a diamond shoulder to shoulder with Octavia in the middle,” Luna directed “Let them come to us. Do not break formation to engage.” As the girls took their designated positions; the Storm King’s ghouls were breaking through the first floor windows as a way in. Two of the ghouls were headed into the backyard and started digging a hole as the dirt piled up around them. The group felt ready as two ghouls ran down the steps in an attempt to tackle someone, only to be shot down by Twilight and Luna. The tunnel managed to open into the center of the group as Octavia had to quickly move in order to kill the newcomers. “Fuck! Those bastards actually managed to dig in here,” Vinyl exclaimed “Be careful with your ammo,” Tempest cautioned “These guys can take more punishment than the first group of scouts.” “That would have been nice to know when you told us these fucks could tunnel,” Vinyl pointed out “Are you sure you’re not still working that bastard!?” “I only now realized he was sending those ghouls out,” Tempest offered “He told me the bare minimum of information; this included. I can’t give you any information I don’t have.” "Enough with the arguing,” Luna stated “If we take the word of Tempest, and yes; I paid attention when your friend mentioned your name; we need to make our shots count. Heads or hearts only; if not, Octavia will have to finish them off with the sword.” With the suggestion from Tempest; the next wave of ghouls felt a bit easier as they made sure to score headshots. A few stray ghouls ran between the gauntlet, only to be met with a sword through the head; decapitating it or a second bullet in the eye socket. “Damn,” Vinyl said through breaths “These fucks just don’t know when to stop. I think the only thing keeping me going is knowing I’m a vampire. Ah shit. I’m out of ammo.” “Same here on ammo,” Twilight chimed in “And those were our last magazines, too,” Luna added “Get the blades out of the cabinet. Just don’t try to get in one another’s way.” “Hold on. I heard someone coming. Get ready,” Tempest offered Heading down the stairs wasn’t another ghoul; but a person with gray hair and goatee. As he entered the room, Octavia could see it was the same one she met weeks ago during her concert. Despite the carnage; he wore a black suit with a trench coat. “What do you want,” Luna demanded “My dear ladies, I come in peace,” he offered “I merely wished to see how you were doing, since I attacked the other house; too. I see you’ve killed poor Grubber.” “I’m done playing your assassin. I quit,” Tempest stated, ripping off the armor she was wearing “Since I know that no good brother of mine is awake; I hoped to give him an invitation,” he said, handing over an envelope “Make sure he gets this. I’ll be waiting there. Have a nice day in the meantime.” Once he’d left; the girls had returned their weapons back to the cabinets and trudged upstairs to see everything within sight destroyed. Piles of wood scraps that were furniture were strewn everywhere. “Well…shit,” Vinyl offered, kicking a chair leg aside “Think they missed anything?” “Hey, in there,” a voice called “You alright?” “Speak friend or else,” Vinyl threatened “Is that really how you were taught to talk to others,” another chastised It didn’t take but moments to get an answer as Celestia walked inside, trailed by the others. Each of them seemed to have been through twelve rounds in a boxing match as their clothes were ripped to near rags. “What brings you here,” Luna asked “Firstly; we were attacked by some big creatures and had to fight them off. It looks like your place took less damage than ours,” Celestia answered “Second, and most importantly; I had a change of heart. It’s time we rejoin family.” “I’m glad my wives finally came to their senses,” Discord offered n “Dad, this is for you. The Storm King himself gave it to us,” Twilight said “Damn. It’s been so long, I’m out of touch with the world,” he joked “It looks as if I’m going to have to meet him again.” “Well; you can’t get there on your own, so all of us will be going too,” Luna decided “We’ll be one big family for the first time in hundreds of years,” Celestia added "Let’s get going. Off to Las Pegasus for the final showdown,” Vinyl added "Yay, family road trip,” Sonata chimed in, to which a few face palms were heard “This isn’t something you should be cheering for,” Adagio chastised, before rubbing her temple “This is serious business. How you managed to receive PhDs; I’ll never know." “I know, but we’re all together again,” Sonata argued “That’s worth celebrating. As for my degrees; I studied what I liked.” “If you’re done chatting; we need to grab a few cars and get going,” Cadence stated “Considering our new size; perhaps an SUV for both of us,” Celestia suggested “That would work,” Luna mused “Before we go anywhere, I want to know why you attacked our house,” Aria demanded “A few of those fuckers had purple hair like you.” “I worked for the Storm King but had a change of heart,” Tempest answered “He probably sent those ghouls to taunt you into submission. I’d recommend we get going before anything else. The last thing you’d want to do is keep him waiting.” “I’ll leave the decisions of vehicles to you ladies,” Discord decided “I know nothing of this era’s transportation methods.” From the original mess that took up every inch of floor; the servants were able to have most of the damage cleared aside as Luna led the group inside the house. “Thanks everyone for getting this cleaned,” Luna offered “Of course, mistress. The creatures have been disposed off and now we need to get the house cleaned up. With any luck; all we’d have left is to repair the structural damage,” one of the workers answered “We’ll leave it to you,” Luna said “We’ve got something to take care of.” “This is an impressive house you’ve made,” Discord mused “It’s such a shame it’s been damaged.” “We were lucky to move downstairs and fight them using a choke point,” Twilight answered “An old tactic that works wonders,” he added “I know we said we’d take a couple SUVs; but why not use the super stretch limo,” Vinyl suggested “I don’t think we need to draw attention to ourselves,” Octavia replied “And sir; I’d recommend you covering the sword. You don’t want to get caught with it.” “I have already been told by police about not having my sword on me. For this; I’ll just keep it hidden and hope no one notices it,” he answered “I’ll grab a car and meet you lot later,” Tempest decided Luna grabbed one of the SUVs and helped her husband into the passenger’s seat as Octavia, Vinyl and Twilight climbed into the back seat. Celestia decided a multi row van should have been big enough to keep her girls from fighting each other. Considering the dislike she’d already received; Tempest grabbed the keys to one of the sports cars and took off. “What exactly did that letter say,” Luna asked “It was an order to come to someplace called ‘Las Pegasus' and the Maretro-Goldwhinny-Mayor hotel; whatever that is,” Discord answered “A hotel is a big temporary residence for people to stay in,” Twilight simplified “The city has countless scattered around the area, but a good collection positioned down one street, commonly known as the ‘Strip'. In general; the city is notorious for its gambling.” “Seems interesting,” he said, stroking his beard “Why would he direct me there?” “I wouldn’t know,” Luna offered “Perhaps something else,” Vinyl suggested “The city is pretty well known and has video footage shown frequently. Why wouldn’t he want to have it shown to everyone?” “I don’t put it past him,” Discord mused “Although why would anyone else need to see us?” “Well; all we can do is just wait until we get to the city instead of making baseless speculations,” Luna stated “We’ll be there in a few hours since I’m not going to drive any faster than the speed limit." “I hate to say it mom; but this has been a long time coming,” Cadence mused “It really has been too long,” Celestia answered “That young woman, Octavia; entering the house was the spark necessary, although we really haven’t been feeding from mortals in a long time.” “I’m glad we can be together again,” Sonata chimed in “Now we can all live in one house again.” “It pains me to see our place practically demolished by those creatures,” Aria stated, pounding a fist into her other hand “Especially when so much money went into those rooms,” Adagio added “At least we survived,” Cadence offered “Besides; it’s only furniture; we could always get the items again.” “It just wouldn’t be the same,” Adagio countered “Everything was either special ordered or bought during specific times in history.” “What’s done is done,” Celestia stated “All we can do is move on and make the most of our lives.” A few hours later; the three vehicles were pulling into town as they slowed to the casino. Once the cars were taken into valet; they made their way into the casino. ‘Will the party of old geezers report to the arena?’ “Really,” Aria muttered “Let me at that bastard." “Now, now,” Discord offered, putting a hand on her shoulder “It’s not nice to jump ahead of me. I have the first opportunity.” “If you’re the group in question,” a server commented “Follow the signs that were put up. They’ll lead you to your destination.” “Who put the signs up,” Twilight asked “Some older gentleman paid us off,” the cashier answered “He looks like he might have been your twin.” “Thank you for your time,” Discord said with a bow “He is indeed my brother.” Upon entering the arena; they were met with a wrestling ring and various weapons around the area. Vinyl slid down one the rails and landed about halfway above the ring area on the second tier of seats. “Ladies and gentlemen; welcome to the show,” a voice called “I see we have a few celebrities joining us this evening. Let’s have a round of applause for the lead singer of the Hasbins; excuse me, the Rainbooms; miss Sunset Shimmer! And we have world famous DJ; Vinyl ‘DJ Pon-3' Scratch! Of course there’s my traitorous former commander Tempest Shadow; and how could anyone forget my no-good, piece of shit older brother Discord? Welcome to you all!” Luna looked across the arena to see Sunset, along with Starlight and Trixie sitting together. The same man they’d seen entering their house only hours earlier; the Storm King himself; was walking out onto the arena’s stage. He still wore most of the suit from earlier; but decided against the trench coat, and just left the dress shirt and tie on along with the suit pants. “Discord, brother come down to the ring and join me,” Storm King offered, as Discord headed down the steps of the arena Discord stepped through the ropes and removed his shirt, before taking off the sword holstered to his back and setting it in the corner. “What is all of this about? Why here,” Discord demanded, gesturing around the arena “Dear brother, it’s simple. I wanted to end this feud and what better place than with millions of people watching. See those cameras? All of this is being broadcast as part of the event from earlier this evening,” Storm King answered “And don’t worry about any additional casualties; everything’s been taken care of. We have paramedics standing by to collect the body afterwards once the bell has been rang and police know about this. Even the owner of this wrestling company has been paid handsomely for its use and will not be held liable for what transpires. We will settle this once and for all in a death match. Only one of us will walk out of here alive; so the only thing missing is someone to ring the bell to officially start the match.” “Ding,” Vinyl called “I suppose that will have to do,” King said with a shrug With the slightly official match started; the Storm King ran over and started throwing a barrage of punches to his brother’s midsection that backed his brother into a corner. “Come on dad,” Vinyl encouraged “Kick his ass!” “All those years apart. I’ve spent it training with militaries around the world; while you rested,” King taunted “You still carry around that sword and cling to ancient customs. Get with the times old man.” “It’s funny,” Discord started “I was always willing to take the time to study under our master while you searched for shortcuts. That’s why I was given knowledge you didn’t receive. He knew you weren’t ready for it.” “Yet he taught me knowledge that was forbidden,” King countered “Grogar didn’t teach you, you stole the papers with the information,” Discord stated “He told me in confidence that he watched you steal it when you thought he was sleeping.” “You don’t know what I’ve done with that knowledge that I was given,” King taunted “I’ve carved a path of destruction that put fear in the hearts of man. They never knew when I might have them destroyed at my will.” “And I had to carry it out,” Tempest muttered under her breath Wanting a weapon; the Storm King headed out of the ring and reached into the cavity under the ring and removed an object. Once out the confines; it was a wooden 2x4 with various nails sticking out. “This will do,” King mused Discord headed out of the ring, only to be met with the board being swung at him. After ducking the first attack as he landed on the floor; the Storm King did manage to land a successful shot into his brother’s stomach, as the nails sunk into the flesh; only to be swiftly removed with blood covering the nails. “Damn,” Discord said, putting a hand on the wound “Didn’t expect that. Thankfully I heal quick, or that would be painful.” Hoping to defend himself; Discord reached into a nearby metal trashcan and removed a wooden baseball bat with a length of razor wire wrapped around the shaft. Feeling somewhat comfortable with his choice; he swung at his brother; only to snag the shirt. “Not bad for someone who’s never used a bat before,” King taunted “I’m old; but I’m not stupid,” Discord retorted “It doesn’t take a genius to use that. Besides; all those years of training weren’t for nothing. En garde.” Both swung their weapons at one another; only to have the nails become entangled in the wire; causing it to be ripped out of the Storm King’s hands. Having now been disarmed; King lunged towards his brother’s legs, knocking Discord to his back and the bat backwards. Taking advantage of the situation; King started throwing punches at his brother, before it was reversed. “Had enough,” Discord asked “I give up,” King answered “Finish me in the ring.” “What kind of trick are you trying to pull?” “No trick, I promise you,” King replied Discord picked his brother up and rolled him under the bottom rope into the ring. A closed steel folding chair was thrown over the top rope before Discord headed inside and opened it up and sat down. “Before I end this, I want the truth.” “I wanted my revenge against you because you’ve always had what I never did,” King simplified “What do you mean?” “You’ve had a family with a wife and kids; while I’ve only ever had followers under my command. Hell; I could understand why my former commander deserted me because of how I’ve treated her,” King said with a sigh “I’ve had a rough life that needs to end. I love you brother and I’ll be waiting with dad for you later.” Each of the cameras that had been recording the fight, found themselves shut off; thereby terminating the broadcast early for safety reasons. The Storm King bent over the back of the chair as a makeshift executioner’s block while Discord retrieved his sword from the corner. “One last chance to just walk away,” Discord offered “I can’t do that. Like I said; I deserve to die and want my brother to do it. I just ask you never forget me and life a good life,” King answered Of course I won’t forget you. I took time out because I was tired of living and needed a break. We’ll meet again sometime in the future,” Discord answered “Farewell brother. I love you.” With one smooth motion; the spatha sword was removed with the skill compared to that of a samurai’s draw and went through the Storm King’s neck; completely severing it. Vinyl jumped on a rail and slid down towards the announcer's booth and rang the bell; officially ending the match. Two paramedics wheeled a stretcher down the entrance ramp that had a body bag laying on it and slid it into the ring. “We’ll take it from here,” one of the paramedics said “I’ll help you out. It’s the last courtesy I can offer,” Discord retorted The body bag was slid into the ring as Discord made sure to open it and carefully placed his brother’s body inside before the paramedics retrieved it and loaded it onto the stretcher. “Congratulations dad,” Vinyl offered as she hugged him “I don’t know about being congratulations about what I did,” he said with a sigh “I do know that I need a drink.” “Mom, it’s been too long,” Sunset offered “You decided to go out on your own and I’m proud of you,” Celestia answered “At least we can be one big family again.” “If anyone knows this place; please direct me to the bar,” Discord asked “I’ll guide you, dad,” Sunset offered “The rest of us are going to head to the machines in the meantime,” Celestia added With their destinations decided; everyone headed up the stairs as the company’s ring crew set to work dismantling the set. Sunset led him out of the arena and down another hallway towards the bar. On one the TV screens behind the bar was showing the last moments of the death match. “It’s you. You’re one of the fighters that was in the match,” the bartender pointed out “What happened and what could I get for you?” “I’d like the strongest drink you have,” Discord answered “As to what happened; I’m sorry, but I’m not going to repeat what happened.” “I suppose it’s fair. This is 110 proof alcohol here,” the bartender offered “It’s limited to only two shots.” “I’ll take the whole bottle if you don’t mind. This should cover the cost,” Discord replied, removing a few gold coins “An interesting coin,” the bartender mused “I’m not too sure about its age; but it certainly seems old. I suppose exceptions could be made to rules.” Sunset took a small swig off the drink before Discord gave a silent toast and had some. Before he could finish the bottle; someone tapped him on the arm to get his attention. “Would you mind if I joined you in a drink,” Tempest asked “Be my guest,” Discord answered, handing her the bottle “You may need it just as much as I did.” “I actually hate to see it happen; but I’m also glad it’s over,” Tempest mused “I’ve hated the things he told me to do; but I was too afraid to leave or say anything. At least I have the chance to start anew; or at least I hope so.” “Of course you have a second chance.” “Why would you give me a chance so easily,” she questioned “From what I’ve heard; my family’s ancestors were notorious for second chances. They felt that a person should have the ability to redeem themselves and not be judged for things out of their control,” he answered, measuring his words carefully “Thank you so much,” she said bowing her head “It means so much to finally be accepted into a family.
1Octavia Melody was currently sitting on stage of the Canterlot Theater with most of the string players for their latest concert. Although she’d played cello for years; each concert seemed to feel more important than the last with this being her first time performing a cello solo in the middle of one of pieces of music that would also end the concert as well. “Conductor on deck,” someone said in a commanding voice “Thank you to our first-chair violinist for that announcement,” the conductor said “Ladies and gentlemen; we wrap up our final rehearsal before tomorrow night's concert. Go home and get some sleep and we meet here at 5pm for final instrument check and tuning.” With that; many of the players started collecting their sheet music together and returning violins and violas to their nearby cases. Octavia removed her phone and checked in the hope of getting an answer to her previous message. “Come on Vee,” she muttered “Hey, Octavia,” a voice called “Care to join us?” “Coming,” she replied “Had to check something first.” Due to the delay of checking her phone; Octavia was the last to return to the warmup room to store her cello back in its storage case. After finishing up; she grabbed the case and headed towards the back door of the theater. Situated near the rear of the theater was an alley that seemed to be generally agreed by citizens to stay away from. Despite having a measly two lights to allow visibility; it was commonly used as an area for drug deals and homeless to reside as the lights were shot out repeatedly. “One last time,” she muttered “Please get this message.” V- Just got done with rehearsal. Can you pick me up? Waiting by rear alleyI At a nightclub across town, Vinyl Scratch; or more commonly known as her persona ‘DJ Pon-3’; was currently in the middle of a set on stage when her phone flashed with the notice of a message. “Damn. With the music going, I couldn’t hear this,” she said to herself “I totally forgot about our agreement. I hope she doesn’t hold this against me.” Letting the current song play; Vinyl stepped out of the DJ booth and started heading towards the back of the room. Spotting the back of the head of someone she recognized, she tried getting their attention. “Niles,” she called “Come over here for a minute!” A male with an identical shade of dark blue hair and light blue highlights turned around and headed towards Vinyl. “Why do you always insist on using such a ridiculous nickname for me,” the male asked, shaking his head in disbelief “Look, Neon; I need you to take over for me for a little while. I forgot to pick up a friend.” “And why should I do that?” “Two reasons,” Vinyl started “One; you’re my older brother and two; you’re the best DJ I know.” “I am older by a few minutes and taught you everything you know,” Neon Light said with a hint of pride “You know, with our condition; I’m surprised you have a girlfriend.” “We’re just friends and happen to be girls; totally not the same thing,” Vinyl corrected “And I know our condition shouldn’t allow it; but I don’t give a shit what anyone says.” “Just get going before I change my mind,” he countered, heading to the booth As Octavia waited for what she hoped would be her ride; she heard movement in the alley and started to clutch the case for some sort of comfort and safety; as she only was there because it would have been easier to get picked up without causing a scene. Newspapers had reported that Vinyl Scratch was seeing someone and Octavia really didn’t anyone following her trying to get information. “Hey girly,” a gruff voice called Not knowing or caring who might be calling her; Octavia just sat on the nearby steps as her fingers subconsciously replayed the notes of her solo on her leg. Not getting the reaction that was hoped; the person decided to make themselves known. The male was wearing clothes covered in filth and torn in various places with a long gray, completely matted beard that seemed to match his hair. “I got a proposition for you,” he said “No thank you, sir. I’m waiting for a friend,” she replied, trying to be polite “You’re waiting for that dyke celebrity; aren’t you? The one with the blue hair,” he accused “That would be none of your business,” she retorted, still trying to remain composed “With that reaction, I must have touched a nerve,” he said with a dry chuckle “Tell ya what; you take my proposition and I don’t tell the reporters you’re fucking the broad.” Despite there being some truth to his comment; she wasn’t going to give in. Instead; she simply bit her lip to hold back anything that might have slipped out. “I’ll give you one more chance to rethink your position,” he threatened, reaching into a pocket to retrieve a revolver, “I’d hate to shoot a pretty little thing such as your self.” Having now seen the revolver; she found herself actually scared as her heart rate started to get quicker. A multitude of thoughts ran through her head as she started to make a mental prayer for safety. She decided to just give in and hope he wouldn’t hurt her. While calling the police should have been the first priority; they refused to work that area due to how many police officers had been assaulted by the homeless. “Alright, you win,” a defeated Octavia said “What is this proposition of yours?” “Follow me into the alley,” he directed Grabbing her case; she reluctantly did as she was told me hoped Vinyl would get there soon. Once into the alley, the male removed a pocket knife and flicked it open; before using it to slice open her shirt, revealing a blue bra underneath. “Why don’t you take that there garment off and we can get this over with,” he stated as she started to remove her shirt “No, no; just the bra gets removed.” As she reached around to start to unclip the bra from behind; she found herself taking small steps backwards in the hopes of getting away. Seeing this, he raised the pistol to her side and fired. “I wouldn’t try that again, missy. Next time there won’t be a blank in the chamber,” he angrily stated “Now; why don’t you get over here and put tulips on my organ?” Currently seeing no other option, she continued with the removal of her bra that he promptly snatched away from her hand. Afterwards, she walked over and knelt down between his legs before punching him right in the crotch, causing him to double over in pain. As he clutched his stomach, his shirt sleeve rose up enough to allow part of a star tattoo to become visible. “You’ll…regret…that…”he said through pained breaths As she turned towards the way she came in the alley, her attacker grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled, causing her to fall backwards against her cello case. “You’ve been clutching at that case real hard,” he noticed, trying to ignore the pain “I hope it’s not too important. No, on second thought; I actually do hope this means something to you because I’m going to destroy it before your eyes.” He bent down and opened the case to reveal the cello she’d been using and yanked it out. Holding the instrument high over his head, it was then slammed into the ground; leaving a mangled mess in its wake. Before she could get over the shock of losing the instrument, he aimed the revolver directly at her chest. Still on her way from the other side of town; Vinyl was getting near the front of the theater after spending quite a lot of time in a traffic jam due to an accident closing off the road needed and had to resort to using back streets in the Hope’s of making up lost time. “Fucking dammit to hell,” Vinyl swore, hitting the dashboard “If it wasn’t for some dumbass getting into an accident I could have been there already!” With one of her windows cracked open; the echo of a gunshot was heard as she saw the fleeting glimpse of a homeless man running away from the very area Octavia was said to be at. Fearing the worst; she gunned the engine and drove as fast as she could towards its source. She could hardly wait as she reached the alley and jumped out, leaving the engine still running. “Come on, Tavi,” she muttered “Where are you?” Using a small flashlight; she found her friend's broken cello and followed it until Vinyl saw Octavia laying on the concrete, bleeding from a gunshot wound to the chest. “No, no, no,” Vinyl said, trying to hold back tears “You can’t die on me like this.” A small rasping came from Octavia as she seemed to want to speak; but Vinyl just put a finger to her lips. “Vi…na…al.” “Save your breath. I’m here now,” Vinyl said reassuring “I’m sorry.” Wanting to save her friend; Vinyl gently turned her head to the side as she willed her fangs to emerge. Despite being a vampire; Vinyl made every effort to hide her nature and this was to be the first time turning another person. After biting Octavia’s neck to begin the transformation; she was gently carried back to the car and laid on the back seat while Vinyl punched a number on her in-car phone. “Get a room ready now. I’m on my way.” “Need any help,” a voice on the other side asked “A stretcher just in case and a change of clothes." “Alright just be safe.” Trying to be extremely careful to not injure her passenger; Vinyl quickly turned down the nearest side street and made her way towards a two-story building with an extravagant feel of a mansion and pulled up directly towards the front entrance. Just as she shut off the engine, the doors were thrown open as four people emerged with a stretcher as the other two held the doors open. “She has a injury to her chest,” one pointed out “Why bring her here instead of the hospital?” “I did what I had to. Just get her into a bedroom and let her sleep,” Vinyl directed Once Twilight was brought inside, another female emerged from a side room marked with a crescent on the door. She currently wore a dark blue dress that seemed to match her hair. “What brings you here in such a hurry?” “Aunt Luna; I’m sorry. Octavia is my friend and I meant to pick her up when she got shot. I bit her to save her life.” “After all this time I still find it funny to hear you calling me aunt,” Luna mused “She’s your first, am I right?” “Yeah. I had to do something, even if I was punished afterwards.” “Well; that agreement has still held; so I think it’s alright,” Luna noted “No one saw you doing that, right?” “No. It was in the alley behind the theater and completely dark where she was. I probably got lucky by getting there when I did. Any later and you get the picture.” “In the meantime we’ll let her rest and you can get some sleep yourself,” Luna suggested “Although it’s been some time since I’ve been a doctor.” “Just put me in the room next to hers and knock thrice to wake me up,” Vinyl directed A few hours later, Octavia felt an involuntary spasm that caused her to wake. Sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room was a female with purple hair and light purple streak, wearing a purple robe. “Where am I? What happened? Who are you,” Octavia asked, looking around quickly “Calm down please. I’ll go and let the others know about you being awake,” came the answer “Here’s one less,” Vinyl joked as she entered “I couldn’t sleep anyways.” “It’s good to see our guest awake,” Luna chimed in, as she entered last “What’s going on,” Octavia asked “And what happened to my clothes?” “Why don’t you explain what happened a few hours ago,” Vinyl suggested “After your rehearsal; I might add.” “After I sent you the text saying I would wait in the alley, a homeless man threatened me,” Octavia answered before starting to hyperventilate “You’re safe here,” Luna said reassuringly “They can’t hurt you any more.” “He threatened me with a pistol if I didn’t take off my bra and get between his legs to give him oral sex. When I tried to escape, he smashed my cello onto the ground before he shot,” she trailed off before touching her chest “He shot my chest directly in the heart. How am I here?” “You might hate me for telling you this, but I turned you into a vampire,” Vinyl answered, rubbing her arm cautiously “You mean I’m dead,” Octavia asked nervously “Yes and no. Had I not done that, you would have died right there with the wound. Instead; I gave you another chance at life,” Vinyl said, tossing some pants and a shirt onto the bed “Before we forget; what did your attacker look like?” “Dirty clothes and hair, and possibly a star on the arm.” “Unfortunately not a lot to go on if you were to report that to police,” Twilight mused “Where are we and what happens now,” Octavia questioned, trying to change the subject “First off, you can get rid of those clothes and put those on if you want,” Vinyl suggested, motioning to the clothes before hugging her friend “Perhaps introductions are in order to answer the first part of your question,” Luna mused “My name is Luna Nocturnus and this one of my twin daughters, Twilight Sparkle. You already know Vinyl and I’m sure there’s still a few others I’m forgetting.” “Octavia Melody. It’s a pleasure to meet you. If you don’t mind me asking; who are the others?” “My brother Neon Lights; who’s probably at the club still,” Vinyl answered “My twin sister Starlight Glimmer is in Las Pegasus with her wife Trixie Lulamoon,” Twilight added “As to the where; this was known as Canterlot High School,” Luna explained “We simply bought it and turned it into a mansion after it was abandoned.” “Mom; what about the agreement? Is that going to cause any problems,” Twilight asked “What agreement?” “Simply put; it was between our family and my former sister; Celestia Solaris and her group,” Luna answered “We were expected to stay here in Canterlot while they resided in the area commonly known as the Crystal Kingdom. It also explains feeding habits and changing others into vampires.” “For us; we usually make a small incision in the neck and take a small amount of blood. Just under a cup or a few mouthfuls,” Twilight explained “The others preferred to just drain the body completely. Of course we now have a friend that sends a wine bottle filled with blood that makes feeding easier.” “What happens now,” Octavia asked “You can stay here until tonight with your concert. We’ll figure out later what happens,” Vinyl answered “You are more than welcome to move from your studio apartment into one of our rooms. These room are certainly big enough,” Luna offered “I’ve never told anyone about where I live.” “The area you live in is on the boarder so we’ve probably seen you in passing when we were by there,” Twilight answered dismissively “Since I don’t think I’m going to be able to fall asleep, could you give me a tour of the house?” “Take your time,” Vinyl joked “That’ll give me time to get something done. Mom; could you help me with that later?” “I’ll show you around and we’ll give you some privacy to change,” Twilight added Despite everyone being female; they all followed Twilight out of the room as Luna returned to her room and Vinyl took off running down the hallway and out of sight. Once dressed; Octavia left to join her guide. “That wing over there contains the rooms for our assistants,” Twilight explained, pointing towards a section of the house “And as you enter, on your left is our living room; although it does have the feel of a small movie theater.” “The servants; are they like us?” “No. They’re mortal and are bound to the grounds by agreements not to mention anything about us. Some of the existing areas of the school like the nurse’s office, library and cafeteria are still the same as they were originally. We did of course make some major changes.” “Oh?” “The entire back of the school was dug out and refitted with a two-story underground garage; plus a section used as a weapons range,” Luna interjected “The upstairs classrooms were paired up and joined together to create individual luxurious master bedrooms; complete with bathrooms. The lower rooms have been turned into smaller rooms, that are luxurious in their own way. There is one place I’d hope you follow me to.” “If I want to learn my way around I’d have to.” With Twilight trailing behind, Luna led the three down a few corridors that almost led back towards the front door. As the trio stepped into one of the rooms, Octavia noticed the lights were off as she wasn’t able to see her own hand in front of her if she tried. “Surprise,” Vinyl yelled as the lights were suddenly turned on “Ow,” Octavia complained as she was momentarily blinded “What do you think,” Vinyl asked The room was decorated with a white arch situated on a small elevated podium on which Vinyl was currently standing on with a male in all black with a white choker instead of a tie. “Since I’ve met you, I’d always hoped there was a chance I’d get to do this,” Vinyl started “Octavia; would you marry me?” “This is a bit sudden for me. I’m not sure what to say.” “I understand that this wasn’t what you probably expected; but since I met you a few years ago I found myself in love with you,” Vinyl offered “I want to marry you, but I’d like to have my parents here as well.” “I’m sure we could arrange for them to be here,” Luna offered “Why not tonight,” Twilight suggested “Well; they were supposed to attend my concert this evening.” “Then it’s settled,” Vinyl decided “We’ll do it at the end of your concert in front of everyone.” “What about the paparazzi? It’ll be a scandal.” “Honestly; I don’t give a shit about their opinions,” Vinyl retorted “I’m through with hiding my girlfriend. There is one thing I’d like to give you on that table. Consider it a very early wedding present.” Octavia headed over to the table and unwrapped a box that took up the entire length. A black case was inside the box as she continued further into her gift. Inside the black case was a black cello that seemed to have a grid-like pattern upon closer inspection. “This is amazing! I’ve never seen a cello like this.” “That is made of carbon fiber. They’re not available to the general public yet; so you currently have the first one,” Vinyl explained “Thank you so much!” “You’re welcome. The room next door was the school’s music room which has now become my soundproof recording studio. Go ahead and use it if you need it.” “Thank you again. I’m going to need to make a stop at my apartment to get my dress for this evening.” “If you’d like; I could take your keys and run over there now,” Twilight offered “If it’s not too much trouble.” “Not at all. Just give me the address and what you need and I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Twilight corrected After writing the address on a slip of paper along with locations of the required items; Twilight headed down to the garage to grab a car and headed to her destination. Once in the apartment; she went in the bedroom closet and removed a garment bag containing a black dress and a shoebox with a set of small-heel shoes. Double checking the list made no reference to anything else, so Twilight grabbed both items and locked up the house. In the meantime; Octavia had taken Vinyl's offer to practice in the soundproof music room. Some time later in the morning; Octavia decided to head back to the room she was in originally and found the clothes waiting on the bed. After making sure they were hung up, decided to take a nap for a while. “Hey, Tavi,” Vinyl called as she knocked “Time to get up. We’ll be in the dining room waiting for you.” The nearby clock read it was almost three in the afternoon as she bolted upright. Nearly fifteen minutes later; she was dressed and ready and had made her way to the cafeteria with her cello case by her side. Both Luna and Twilight were wearing matching dark blue dresses while Vinyl showed up wearing a tuxedo with her usually messy hair combed straight and without her usual glasses, revealing her red eyes. “Before we head out; why don’t you join us for a drink,” Luna offered “I made a promise to myself when I was twenty-one about not drinking alcohol and even four years later; I’ve been determined not to break it.” “I don’t blame you for your suspicion, but this is blood, not alcohol. Since you’re one of us; you’ll have to drink sooner or later,” Luna replied “Just a shot of blood is enough to sustain you for a few weeks.” Knowing she was right; Octavia rested the cello case on a nearby table and took a seat as Luna poured four shots of blood for each as the others knocked it back like alcohol as she slowly drank. “That’s going to be hard to get used to.” “After a while; you’ll find out that certain blood types can taste sweeter than others,” Vinyl mused “Just don’t think about it and it should help.” Now finished with their drinks; Luna led them down towards a room that had contained a secret elevator down to the garage. Once there; one of the servants pulled up with a car just short of a limo in length with black tinted windows to match its exterior. Another servant took the cello and loaded it into the trunk for safety. “Back of the alley first,” Luna directed “Afterwards; we go to the parking lot.” “Um, aunt Luna; do you think that I can,” Vinyl started “Could you,” Luna asked “I can.” “Then do it,” was the answer True to the directions, Octavia was dropped off in the same alley as before as she headed inside to join her fellow players. Standing near the door was an older male wearing a black suit with a trench coat looking down at his phone with a card in his hand as she unintentionally bumped into him. “I’m sorry for that,” she offered “It’s my fault,” he argued “I was waiting for someone in an area that I probably shouldn’t have been.” “You dropped a business card.” “You may keep it; young lady,” he offered “I have another one.” “I hope you enjoy the concert.” “I’m sure I will. I’d say ‘break a leg' but perhaps for musicians; it’s ‘break a string' instead?” “I haven’t heard that, but thank you for your time and support.” Once she’d gotten backstage, the card was dropped into a pocket in the cello case as it didn’t seem too important compared to everything else as she removed the cello together tuned up. “Good evening; miss Melody,” the conductor offered “Are you ready for tonight?” “I am, sir.” “Nice cello,” someone complemented “It sounds just as good as it looks,” Octavia added confidently With the tuning and last-minute preparations finalized; the orchestra was led to their seats on stage as the front doors were just getting opened to the public. Out front of the theater, Luna led the group inside and up to one of the private rooms on the upper floor. While other patrons were filling in; Vinyl headed downstairs and slipped away unnoticed and headed towards the alley in the back. As she approached the alley; she made sure to be silent to not startle anyone there and started putting rubber gloves on. Finding a lone visitor there; she crept up and grabbed him from behind. “What do you want,” the homeless man asked As Vinyl grabbed his arm; a series of star tattoos were seen as she knew this was her prey. “I’m warning you, I’m armed,” he threatened “I have a gun and knife in my pockets.” “That gun and knife won’t protect you and I don’t suggest reaching for anything else,” Vinyl taunted “You hurt my friend, so now it’s my turn.” Making sure that no cameras were watching them; Vinyl proceeded to snap his neck, using more than enough force to have rotated his head all the way around. Afterwards; she casually removed the pistol and knife from his corpse and found a spike that she surmised must have been the endpin from Octavia’s broken cello. With her mission accomplished; she casually moved the body against a wall and headed back; taking care to dispose of the gloves in private. “Done,” she whispered as she reentered the box “And I have a few souvenirs as well.” “Hand them over to us,” Luna hissed As the night went on, many of the audience found themselves enthralled at the music. Just before the final song was through; Vinyl had left the private room and slipped downstairs to a seat in the last row. “Aren’t you,” a nearby patron started, before Vinyl clamped a hand over his mouth “Yes I am and I’d like you not to say anything,” she whispered as he just nodded The male from earlier leaned forward in his seat on the upper floor out of curiosity as he stroked his chin in contentment. “I haven’t heard such lovely music is quite a long time,” he mused “Sir; when was the last time,” a feminine voice asked “Too long, my dear.” “Thank you for coming to the concert,” the director said as everyone took a bow “Join us next month for our next performance.” “Excuse me for a moment,” Vinyl interrupted, climbing on stage “May I say something?” ‘Isn’t that that DJ?’ ‘What’s she doing here?’ “This should be interesting,” the male in the box muttered “Interruptions don’t usually take place like this.” “I’d like to say something to a very special person here. Ever since I’d met you, I knew there was a connection between us that I hoped we could continue,” Vinyl said, before getting on one knee with a ring in her hand “Octavia Melody; would you marry me?” The audience seemed to be in shock at hearing the DJ in front of them had just come out as a lesbian. A few seemed to leave the room in disgust; while others seemed to be posting the new information online for paparazzi to enjoy. “I will,” Octavia replied, hugging Vinyl, before whispering “Of course; you know that I already decided that earlier.” “My dear; I have a favor to ask you,” he started “Anything you ask, milord.” “Keep an eye on her.” “Which one is my focus,” she questioned “Use your discretion to answer that. Report any findings to me.” “As you command.” Both Octavia and Vinyl headed off the stage as applause broke out from the rest of the crowd and orchestra. A few minutes later; the rest of the members were heading back there to store their instruments as well as offer congratulations to the new couple. ‘Congrats.’ ‘Have fun.’ ‘Be safe.’ “Congratulations to you two,” the conductor offered “Thank you sir.” As the newly formed couple headed out to the back alley; a female with light blue hair with a pair of dark blue streaks was waiting outside. Seeing the woman, Vinyl lunged at her; pinning her to a wall by the throat. “What do you think you’re doing,” Vinyl snarled “Speak fast." “Can’t breathe,” the female wheezed “Go head to the car,” Vinyl directed at Octavia “Ask them for my toy.” Without wanting to further anger her girlfriend; Octavia quickly headed to the garage to meet the others just as they were getting into the car. She quickly stored the cello in the trunk in the time she had. “Where’s Vinyl,” Twilight asked “She mentioned something about her toy; whatever that meant.” “Behind the theater; right,” Luna guessed as Octavia nodded “Let’s help out before anything else happens.” As they pulled in; Vinyl had moved from pinning the other female to the wall, to just keeping her in a chokehold. Twilight jumped out of the car with a set of silver manacles; which were placed on the woman's wrists along with a ball gag for additional protection. “Get in,” Vinyl directed, shoving the other inside Once everyone was inside the car the ride back to the mansion was quiet as Octavia wasn’t sure what to say to attempt to get an answer. Even in the house; Vinyl held their prisoner in a chokehold as she was guided to the cafeteria while Octavia dropped off her cello and joined the others afterward. “Now; what the hell were you doing,” Vinyl demanded, removing the gag “Where are the others?” “I came here on my own without them knowing. I had hoped to try and get some sort of conversation going between us,” came the answer “I know they know who you are, but do you mind giving me your name?” “Sonata Dusk. I’m one of Celestia’s vampires,” Sonata simplified “What do we do with her,” Twilight asked “Could I get some time to talk to Sonata alone?" “What exactly is your reasoning,” Luna inquired “Since all of you seem to have a severe dislike for each other…” “I think ‘Hatred’ feels like a better word,” Vinyl interjected “Regardless; I may be a vampire; but I have no knowledge about either group to maybe offer an unbiased opinion on this.” “Fine,” Luna stated “We’ll be outside if you need anything.” “What exactly brought you there,” Octavia asked once the others left “I just hoped to get lucky to talk to them as I said before,” Sonata answered “Why don’t you want anyone else knowing about this?” “I’m sure you have heard that both of our clans hate each other. I’d just like us to stop arguing and try to get together again. In face; we haven’t fed directly from a human in quite some time and have been getting bottles of blood instead,” she answered “We’ll have to wait and see if there is the possibility of getting together,” Luna said “Get going so they don’t find you here.” “Do you mind if I go with Sonata?” “Just be careful,” Luna offered “I don’t know what would happen.” “Let’s take the bus,” Sonata suggested “I like being in public with others.” After a ten minute wait for the bus, given the early hour; the ride took an additional half-hour as they reached their destination. In front was another mansion-like building Octavia guessed could have been another school; although the size was much more expansive. “This is amazing.” “It was a school at one time,” Sonata confirmed Upon their entry into the house; a female with purple hair and green streaks punched Sonata in the stomach before tossing her towards a chair, causing Sonata to be sent backwards as it tipped over. “Where the fuck were you,” the newcomer demanded “And who’s the walking blood bag you brought here!?” “Give it a rest Aria,” another added, rubbing her temples “You’re giving me a migraine.” “Adagio; that’s bullshit and you know it,” the newly named Aria spat “Could we have a moment of peace,” a third asked that had multicolored hair consisting of pink, blond and purple “Enough,” a final woman with green, blue and purple hair yelled as she came down from a nearby room “What brings you here?” “I came on Sonata’s behalf to convince you to get back together,” Octavia started “Yeah, I’m gonna stop you right there,” Aria countered, raising a hand “What gives you that right?” “That is indeed an odd request from a mortal.” “Mom; shouldn’t we at least introduce ourselves to our guest,” the tricolored female asked “I suppose some sort of courtesy should be observed. My name is Celestia Solaris and that’s my eldest daughter Mi Amore Cadenza,” Celestia started, motioning to each “Just ‘Cadence' is fine,” she interrupted “You seem to already know Sonata and the other two are Adagio Dazzle and Aria Blaze,” Celestia finished “Octavia Melody. And I’m not a moral anymore.” “But a newborn vampire; not even a fledgling; trying to convince us is rather unbelievable. We’ll have to discuss this before any sort of answer can be given,” Celestia said dismissively “Sorry if you seemed to come all this way for nothing,” Cadence offered apologetically “I’ll drive you home if you’d like.” “Just a few blocks away,” Celestia corrected “She can walk the rest of the way home on her own.” Cadence led Octavia down a few hallways that seemed to become a maze, before they finally made their way towards a room with another hidden elevator towards their garage. Cadence headed towards the first car available which happened to be a Volkswagen Beetle and climbed in. “It’s not much; but she’ll do,” Cadence offered “This was my first car mom bought me over thirty years ago.” “I don’t know much about cars, but it does seem in good shape.” “It most certainly should be. I’ve taken her apart and made sure everything works,” Cadence said with a chuckle “Come on, before they get angry.” “The house looks nice from what I can guess." “Every room was at least two small classrooms combined into one; each room has been furnished individually as their own miniature mansions,” Cadence summarized Despite being told to drop Octavia a few blocks away; Cadence instead went across the street as Octavia stepped out and the Beetle took off without waiting. She headed back to the house to see Luna waiting just inside the door. “Didn’t go over well, I take it,” she asked “Couldn’t even get a chance to argue my point,” Octavia confirmed “Not surprised,” Luna offered “She always seemed to be hard-headed.”
2A few days after accepting Vinyl’s wedding proposal; Octavia was in her apartment getting what little she had packed up. It mainly amounted to a few outfits now, since the loss of her old cello. “Knock…knock,” a pair of voices called “Mom, dad; it’s been a while.” “We came to check on you to see what you’re up to,” her mom replied “I’m going to move in with Vinyl.” “You’ve never told us where she lives,” her dad added “It’s the two-story mansion.” “We’ll have to go there and meet them. That way, we know more about your wife’s family,” her dad decided “What are you doing with the apartment,” her mom inquired “Technically; my lease is already at it’s end. The landlord gave me a few days to decide what I wanted to do. When we get done, I just have to tell her I’m going to move out.” “Well; it looks like you’re just about done,” her dad mused “I’ll get the boxes on the trailer and the two of you can talk to the landlord.” “Thanks dad.” “It’s my job to help out, but I do recommend getting a driver’s license some day,” he said with a laugh For Vinyl; she decided to continue working at the club, although it had become more popular by paparazzi wanting more information about her life. “Could you provide a statement to your fans that have been wanting information,” someone asked “Go away.” “What do your parents think about this,” they continued “For the last time; I have no comment,” Vinyl stated, shoving a camera out of her face “What about your wedding,” a reporter pressed “When can we expect the video?” “You’ll get it when Hell freezes over and I highly doubt that happening any time soon!” Apparently some reporters had found information on Octavia and had decided to wait outside theater to badger her with questions. Luckily; the rest of the orchestra was both supportive of her engagement to Vinyl and protective of her, as at least one of the bigger bassists was her escort home. “Thanks, Bulk. I really hate these people now.” “They’re out for themselves and getting paid,” Bulk mused “As long as you don’t give them anything, they can’t report it.” “That’s all I can do right now. I’m glad to have someone as insightful as you as a friend.” “When people give me a chance; they can learn more than I let on,” he answered “See you soon.” At home; Octavia had decided to set up her cello in the entrance hall to play as she hadn’t been able to just play for her own benefit in a while. When she opened the case, the business card fell out. “You dropped this,” Twilight mused, picking it up “Where’d you get this?” “When I was entering the theater for my concert. I just had an odd feeling.” “Odd feeling,” Luna repeated “What made it so odd?” “As you probably remember; it was kind of warm that evening and clothing would have been expected to be lightweight to remain cool. The gentleman that gave it to me was wearing a heavy trench coat on top of his black suit.” “Could you describe him,” Twilight asked “I’m not sure about his height; but it was roughly the same as Luna and had whiteish-gray hair." “May I see the card,” Luna asked, turning to Twilight Luna looked at the card and saw a symbol that seemed to resemble two lightning bolts mirroring each other. On the other side was a message that seemed to make her wide eyed in fear. Before she could answer; the sound of the doorbell brought her out of her current state. “We’ll continue this conversation later,” Luna stated “We have company.” Octavia was the second to get to the door as one of the servants had already opened it. “Sorry if we interrupted anything,” Octavia’s father started “My name is Treble Flat and this is my wife Tenor Sharp.” “We wished to see our future daughter in-law's family,” Tenor added “By all means, come in,” Luna said reassuringly “We’ll head to the living room.” “This is an amazing house,” Treble complimented, looking around the room “Thank you. We bought it some years ago and refurbished it,” Luna simplified "I don’t mean to pry, but are you married by any chance,” Tenor inquired “Well; that is a very interesting tale. Allow me to introduce my eldest daughter Twilight Sparkle; although her twin sister is living with her wife currently.” “A pleasure to meet you,” Twilight offered “Of course you know Vinyl, my younger sister.” “What exactly happened with your husband,” Tenor pressed “And how did you come to have such a lovely house?” “I’d ask you not to repeat this to anyone else; but my family and I have been around for quite a lot time,” Luna started “Simply put; we’re vampires.” “What about you, Tavi,” Treble asked cautiously “I am one myself,” Octavia confirmed “I was attacked and shot at and to save me; Vinyl turned me prior to my concert.” “What are you going to do to us,” Tenor asked with a hint of nervousness in her voice “Nothing. We just ask that no one else know. My husband at the time was also married to my older sister. He reached a point where he let us do whatever we wanted,” Luna offered vaguely “He left us plenty to live off of for centuries.” “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you; but it’s not easy to find the right words,” Octavia offered “Telling the two of you; ‘I’m a blood sucking vampire’ is probably not going to be the right choice of words.” “I do plan to take care of my wife no matter what,” Vinyl promised “We’re just glad to see you okay. Be safe and we’ll see you soon for the eventual wedding,” Treble said before they left “It’s possible we might just have a private wedding,” Vinyl commented “We’ll have it recorded; at least,” Octavia added hastily “We hold you to your word of at least showing us the video,” Tenor mused “I promise to show you when we get the chance.” “Hey mom; what was so important about that card,” Twilight asked after Octavia’s parents left “Something I just hoped never to see,” Luna answered vaguely “See for yourself, if you’d like.” Storm King We weather the storm against vampires “Mom; what’s wrong,” Vinyl asked “That’s a big problem,” Twilight mused “Vampire hunters.” “You never saw this,” Vinyl asked, after taking the card “I just put it in my case. With the concert; I didn’t think about it.” “Okay, let’s calm down,” Luna stated, taking a breath, before turning to Vinyl and Octavia “I need the two of you to do me a favor.” “What about me,” Twilight asked hopefully it “You’re going to stay here with me. As for the two of you; you’re going to pay a visit to the others,” Luna continued “Oh yeah,” Vinyl said enthusiastically “Road trip, baby!” “Where do we have to go?” “You and I are going out to Las Pegasus.” “Considering how far it is, don’t we need supplies like food or drinks?” “You’d be right had we been mortals. We don’t have bodily functions; so there’s no need to piss or shit. It helps so much,” Vinyl said with a laugh “Despite her crudeness; she is indeed correct. We can certainly eat regular food, but no matter how good it tastes to a human; it’ll be bland to us because we must have blood,” Luna added “Shouldn’t we have a coffin to sleep in?” “Another myth that was created. We can use them, but it’s not too comfortable,” Twilight chimed in “By the way; tell Starry, her sister says ‘Hi'.” “Octavia, dear; allow me to take you shopping for some new clothes,” Luna offered “I’ve seen the couple clothes you currently have hanging up and I’m surprised you don’t have more.” “Unfortunately; orchestra players aren’t always paid a lot. I was lucky if a concert paid $1,200 to us afterwards as I had to make almost $400 in rent on my apartment each month; while the rest went to bills with the last bit for food. There was one incident where most of us had to ask for public assistance to get food for the month. We made an unspoken agreement not to bring it up out of embarrassment.” “If we leave now; we can get a few things before your road trip,” Luna continued “If you want; I could let you borrow a few clothes of mine and buy new ones when you return,” Twilight suggested “That works,” Octavia decided “It’ll give me something to wear for a little while. Thank you for that.” “Let’s get going if we’re going to get there at a decent hour,” Vinyl pressed Once in the garage, Octavia headed down the line towards a black Lamborghini with tinted windows and looked inside. “We’re going in this,” Octavia asked in awe “I’ve never seen one of these before.” “As much as I’d love to ride in style in that; it’s way too conspicuous,” Vinyl pointed out “We’ll take something else.” Vinyl instead headed down another row of cars and climbed inside a black Chevy Corvette and opened the passenger door for Octavia. "Want to drive,” Vinyl asked currently “I’d love to; but I don’t have a driver’s license; let alone experience on how to drive.” “Than hop in and sit back.” Vinyl gently eased the car down the length of the garage towards the elevator before slowly driving out of the city. After not seeing any other vehicles or police cars in the area, she decided to speed up. Octavia looked at the speedometer to see them approaching 150mph with everything passing by in a blur. She found herself pressing against the back of the seat out of fear. “You okay, Octy?” “This isn’t what I expected to see happen. What if we run into another driver?” “Not likely. We have faster reflexes than anyone for one thing; and I’ve been hauling ass down empty roads like this for years.” “I have to ask; how did you become a vampire?” Hearing this, Vinyl started to slow the car down. Octavia felt the immediate change and wondered if she said something wrong. “I should have expected that question eventually,” she said with a sigh “My older brother Neon Lights and I were born seven-hundred and fifty years ago. From what I’ve learned from Luna; our birth mother died after giving birth to us and we were taken in as the younger siblings to Twilight and Starlight. When we were twenty-one we were told everyone were vampires and wanted to know if we’d like to become one ourselves,” Vinyl continued “Why’d you choose me?” “You remember how we met? I was browsing the music section in the store and bumped into you. You were looking at one some of my old music and I really felt a connection between us. I hated having to keep simple coffee meetings secret so no one would find out. Never once did you judge me or treat me any differently because of who I am,” she answered “I had no reason to treat you differently. When you sprung the request on me; it was unexpected and it did take some time to see if I had feelings for you. In fact; I’m actually more worried about being a vampire than I am at being your wife.” “Marriage is something I’m new at as well, so that’s some learning experience we’ll both share. On another note; we’re on the last stretch of road outside of town. We’ll be there in about fifteen minutes with the speed limit. You’ll see the infamous ‘Welcome to Las Pegasus’ sign on the way. In fact; you can’t miss it.” True to her word; Octavia was able to see a diamond-shaped sign in the middle of the road with neon lights surrounding it with quite a lot of tourists around it. “You aren’t kidding. It’s certainly a popular destination.” “That’s something we need to do before we leave,” Vinyl decided “That; and one other thing.” “Oh? Care to share? “I thought we could get married here. I know it’s a cliché that all couples have to do here; but that way we don’t have to worry about the damn paparazzi on our ass.” “We’re going to need the wedding rings first.” “There’s a few jewelry stores around the area that will take care of that. And don’t worry about the price; we’ve got plenty of money." “Where exactly are we going?” “It’s the Atlas Nova hotel. Just up the street.” “It’s just hard to take in the sights when there’s so many hotels here.” “First time Luna took us here I was in awe too. After a while; the novelty wears off; although I suppose you’ll have plenty of time with the traffic,” Vinyl said with a chuckle Despite the traffic jam; Vinyl managed to drive down the street towards their destination. After handing over the keys to the hotel valet; the two headed inside; before a woman with purple hair bumped into them. “Aren’t you DJ Pon-3,” the woman asked hopefully “Nah, I’m just an eccentric fan,” Vinyl answered dismissively “Dyed my hair to look like her. Wouldn’t be surprised if she used doubles for that reason.” “She is one of my favorite musicians. I would kill to meet her in person,” the woman replied dejectedly After the meeting with the woman; they continued through the casino towards the ticket counter. “Two for the magic show,” Vinyl announced “Unfortunately this evening’s show is sold out,” the cashier replied “Have you seen the ‘Moon's Glimmer',” Vinyl asked cryptically “I have. I’m sure you know where to go,” came a hushed answer “I do,” Vinyl confirmed with a nod “Let’s go.” “Okay, I guess.” Vinyl led Octavia away from the counter and down a hallway away from the theater. Octavia watched as the casino area seemed to give way to plain walls and lights mounted at intervals. “Vee; where are we going?” “A special backdoor entrance. It should be here,” Vinyl replied, pushing against the wall The wall was pushed open to reveal a door about waist height that Vinyl crouched down to pass through. To Octavia’s surprise; the landing was lower than the floor as she hesitantly followed behind and closed the door. Beyond the room they landed in was a small hallway that Vinyl led them down to a seemingly dead end. “Why’d we stop?” “Wait here.” “Where?” “We’re under the theater. This is a passage used during the show for escapes on stage that leads backstage. You’re the first to know about this.” “I’m not going to tell anyone, if you’re worried.” Vinyl pushed on the ceiling to reveal a hatch that opened up, along with a small step underneath for leverage. She started to lift the hatch, before turning around quickly. “Down, quickly, “ Vinyl ordered “Why?” “Show's still going on” Vinyl hissed “I’d like to once again thank everyone for coming,” a voice announced, before the sound of curtain closing was heard “You can come out now,” a voice said, knocking on the floor “Coast is clear.” I After pulling herself onto the landing; Octavia noticed they were a distance away from the heavy black curtain hanging on the stage. “We just finished a good show,” a female in purple commented “Wish I could have seen it,” Vinyl said wistfully “Vee! It’s been too long,” a purple-haired female said excitedly “Who’s your friend,” the other female asked “Octavia Melody. I’m guessing one of you is nicknamed ‘Starry’. Twilight asked me to tell you ‘Hi' for her.” “Tavi; allow me to introduce Starlight Glimmer and her wife,” Vinyl started “The Great and Powerful Trixie,” Trixie finished, rolling her G's and R's as she spoke “What brings you here,” Starlight asked “One; to have fun before getting married and two, to check on you,” Vinyl offered “We’ve been doing fine here for years,” another female with red and yellow hair argued Octavia looked over and saw the newcomer wearing a tank top and torn jeans. Slung over her back was a black electric guitar. “Aren’t you Sunset Shimmer? The lead singer of the Rainbooms,” Octavia asked in awe “The former lead singer and guitarist; you mean,” Sunset corrected “Before it died.” “What happened? Even though I hate the lies told in gossip magazines; they said there were problems in the band.” “Surprised to say; but they were right for once,” Sunset acknowledged “Let’s just say, shit ain’t all sunshine and roses with bands." “I never thought it would be.” “You’re thinking it anyway; and that’s not mind reading. Rainbow Dash was the biggest partier I’ve ever seen. If she wasn’t fucking anyone in sight; she was drinking and loved going on stage partially drunk. Fluttershy was the shy type but would smoke marijuana to help open her up; which wasn’t a problem. Pinkie Pie was a drug addict whose choice was either cocaine or heroin. That shit proved to be her end sooner than she wanted,” Sunset elaborated “Didn’t she pass out on stage?” “You’re not too far off. It was during the last time we played together three years ago. Pinkie apparently mixed both drugs together and injected too much, before chugging down an energy drink. During our finale; she went into an unscripted and frantic drum solo before hunching over her kit. I already sensed her heart had stopped and she was dead; but somehow her body had enough wherewithal to actually walk backstage before ‘officially’ collapsing,” Sunset continue, using finger quotes on ‘officially' “Needless to say Dash believed in her drunken state that I was at fault somehow and we had a fight over it. From that point on; none of us have spoken to each other.” “Was there anything good that came about the band?” “When we first started; I told each of them to create individual bank accounts and have someone else as a trustee just in case anything happened to then and they decided on family. Pinkie decided her parents and siblings would get half, as her aunt and uncle; the Cakes got the rest. Considering we’d be together for ten years; each was a multimillionaire.” “On a different topic from history; I am curious as to our powers and what exactly are we capable of.” “Tavi, here is like us; a vampire,” Vinyl clarified “I think we guessed that,” Sunset retorted “Well; let’s just say that these tricks work differently for us,” Starlight started Taking a little walk around the backstage area; Octavia saw a few different cages with spikes nearby, along with gigantic bull’s eyes and various other items. “We’re immortal; although that point is obvious; but we can also heal rapidly if injured. I have unfortunately been sawed in half when I failed to move away from the blade,” Starlight continued “For example; this trick of escaping the cage while spikes enter is real; however I will never have anything near the head or heart,” Trixie added, motioning towards a trick “And Trixie has apologized multiple times for her mistake.” “Beyond the healing is speed and telepathy,” Vinyl chimed in “Could someone show me or teach me about the speed?” “Do either of you have something I can use,” Vinyl questioned “Here, you can use this,” Sunset offered, handing over her guitar “I’ll set it over here.” “Use the cage,” Starlight chimed in “Keep an eye on the guitar,” Vinyl directed Sunset walked over to a nearby cage and unlocked it, before resting the guitar against the opposite wall and locked the door; sticking the key in her pocket. Octavia blinked and found herself holding the neck of the guitar. “How? What? What just happened,” she asked in disbelief “The guitar moved on its own!?” “You didn’t see? Perhaps I should try again,” Vinyl joked “Pay close attention this time.” For the second time; Octavia still found herself in disbelief at the sight of the moving guitar as Vinyl just shook her head. “I hate to do this, but could you both hold her,” Vinyl asked “What are you doing?” “You’ll be fine,” Starlight said reassuringly Trixie and Starlight stood on either side of Octavia and held her eyelids open as Vinyl tried for the third time. Without being permitted to blink; Octavia was able to see Vinyl quickly snatching the key from Sunset's pocket before quickly grabbing the guitar and sticking it in Octavia’s hand as the other two let go of her eyelids. “It wasn’t the guitar that moved,” Octavia realized “You did it.” “We can move faster than the human eye can perceive when we want to,” Vinyl simplified “Only another vampire would be able to track us.” “I tend to use that during some tricks such as the bullet catch,” Trixie added “I save that for rare occasions because I actually hate it.” “What kind of magic show do you do?” “There’s two different shows we have. The one is held twice a day Monday through Thursday and is family oriented while the other is late night on Friday and Saturday for adults only,” Starlight answered “We’ll have to see it some time,” Vinyl decided “Really, Vee?” “What? I’ve never seen the adult show. It can’t be that bad,” she argued “Since it’s almost ten o’clock Wednesday night; why don’t you join us in one of our private hotel rooms,” Starlight offered “In the morning, you could head down to the buffet for breakfast if you want.” “Sounds good to me,” Vinyl mused “It is definitely going to take some time to get used to not really eating food. Vee; what was that about with the cashier?” “I hate to say it; but she’s our pet in a way,” Starlight answered “Not literally, obviously; but she is a half vampire we turned. Only the president of the hotel knows about our condition and helps supply us with bottled blood to keep from feeding. We put Moon Dancer there as a sort of guard to inform us if any other vampires drop by using a certain code phrase.” “Since we helped build most of these casinos, we took liberty to add passages for ease,” Sunset added “Of course there are other secrets as well. Now, if you’ll follow me.” Sunset led the way to the back of the theater stage to a pair of doors blended into the wall. Upon opening it up; Octavia saw an elevator car behind it as they stepped inside. Their stop was thirty-seven stories up in the VIP hotel rooms. “Welcome to our home,” Starlight announced “These six rooms are for us and the others working in the show. This entire section may be on the same floor as some of the other VIP suites; but these can only be accessed from the theater allowing us some privacy.” “There is of course the mandatory staircase access that we have in case of emergency,” Trixie chimed in “I’m going to bed; but you two can take room 3 as the girls can temporarily share a bed in one of the other rooms,” Sunset mused “Just keep it to a low roar if you plan on fucking each other.” “I’m not that far yet. I’m still a virgin.” “We’ll get to that eventually,” Vinyl offered reassuringly “Sex isn’t that high of a priority right now.” Despite getting to sleep around midnight; Octavia had found herself unable to sleep and was officially up by five. Vinyl was out the moment her head touched the pillow. “What’s wrong,” Vinyl asked, hearing movement, a few hours later “All of this is still just so hard to get used to. I don’t know who I am anymore.” “You are Octavia Melody and nothing is going to change that. I saved you because I couldn’t see you dying like that. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks or says,” Vinyl pointed out “Now come here and give me a kiss.” “You know how to cheer me up.” “I try. It’s not going to be easy to adjust; but you have others to help when you need it. We’ve been in your same position to know. On another note; I’ll teach you telepathy right now. Simply put; you’re basically talking in your head to another person.” “How do you find the other person?” “It takes a bit of practice; but you try to reach out and poke into the other’s thoughts. I’ll try to show you. Close your eyes for a moment.” ‘Tavi…Tavi…’ “It felt like I heard a voice talking to me just now. It sounded like your voice.” “We’ll have to keep practicing; but for now I’m kind of hungry.” “Don’t we need to let them know?” “They’re a bit preoccupied to care,” Vinyl answered “Horizontal tango, if you get my drift. Tulip pruning…clam diving.” “Sheesh; I get it. They’re having sex.” Wanting to be respectful to their hosts; Octavia worked on getting the bed remade before they headed out. Once out of the room; Vinyl went to the emergency entrance and quickly opened the door and pulled Octavia through before the alarm could go off. They quietly walked down the stairs before crossing the thirty-sixth floor to get to the elevator down to the casino level. Once in the casino; Octavia was surprised at the massive amount of various slot machines and other table games that were run by ladies in lingerie that they passed on the way to the restaurant. One area consisted of games around an area with multiple half-naked girls that looked to be younger than her. “Maybe I’ll get you a lap dance,” Vinyl whispered “Don’t press your luck on that.” Turning the corner around another section of games; the signage noted their destination was fast approaching. After paying for their meals; their hostess led them to a booth in the corner for some semblance of privacy. “Since this is my first time in a buffet; what do you have to do?” “Just grab a plate from the racks and pick what you want,” Vinyl simplified Wanting something easy to start with; Octavia decided on a bowl of soup and a salad, while Vinyl loaded her plate with a little bit of everything. Each of them had three plates before having a few things for dessert. “That was the best breakfast I’ve ever had.” “Definitely filling,” Vinyl added “Since we have nothing to do; let’s go shopping and get that taken care of.” “When do the stores open?” “There’s some stores including the mall down the street that should open at 10; so we have an hour and a half to kill. I suggest taking advantage of what we have; gambling.” “I’ve never played anything like this.” “You’ll be fine. Most aren’t too hard and they can help you if you ask.” Vinyl headed over a casino cage and withdrew almost $7,500 before handing $500 over to Octavia. A thousand dollars was exchanged into chips before they headed to a table with Octavia picking blackjack and Vinyl playing poker. ‘Tavi,’ Vinyl said telepathically ‘Finish your last hand. We’ll want to get that done soon.’ Octavia finished her game with an additional $200 than she’d started with while Vinyl had $700 herself. For safety; Vinyl held onto the money as they headed to valet for the car. They continued down the street towards a large shopping mall as they headed to one of the jewelry stores. “This is bigger than any store I’ve ever been in. How do we know where we’re going?” “One; they have a map with a store directory nearby. But; since I’ve been here a few times before; we need to take an escalator to the second floor,” Vinyl offered Despite the change in floors; there were still countless stores lining both sides of the walkway as Vinyl led them deeper inside. Once into another section of stores; Octavia saw a few signs for jewelry stores and decided on one that didn’t seem to just have a focus on diamond rings. “So; what do you think?” “It might be strange; but this one here catches my eye. It’s not flash; but a simple band.” “I do see your way of thinking,” Vinyl mused “Simple bands don’t really draw attention as it’s expected to get a diamond ring. You don’t love someone if you don’t have diamonds." “I am not permitted to offer an opinion one way or another,” the cashier said “Do either of you know your ring sizes by any chance?” Since neither knew the size; the cashier had to pull out a series of disks to get the proper size ready. They were lucky the store had the exact sizes need for the girls as Vinyl handed over the $300 to pay before heading out. “Since we’re here; I’d like to get you something,” Vinyl mused “Where to?” “I’d have told you to close your eyes; but it’s not recommended,” Vinyl joked “Instead; just follow me.” Vinyl decided on leading the two of them towards the top of the area before heading down the opposite side towards a toy store. “Here we are.” “I didn’t expect this.” “I thought it would be different. That way you have a plush made by you and dressed how you’d like it.” Looking at the bins of toys, Vinyl leaned over and found a white poodle with purple hair and grey tank top. “What do you think,” Vinyl asked, in a faux French accent “I dye my hair purple and I could look like zee poodle?” “Looks cute. I wouldn’t mind a change once in a while.” Octavia found herself pacing up and down the row, trying to make up her mind. In the process, she felt a faint poke in her arm. Looking over; she saw Vinyl holding a grey rabbit as she gently waved its paw. “Hi,” Vinyl said in a high, childish voice “Please pick me.” “Thank you Vee. I needed a laugh,” Octavia said with a chuckle “Glad to be of service.” After getting the two plushies stuffed, Vinyl decided to pick out a simple shirt and jeans to go with some tennis shoes that seemed to fit her usual eccentric look. Octavia decided to just leave hers undressed as no outfit seemed to fit the rabbit. “One last stop for now,” Vinyl mused as she paid for everything “Where exactly do we go to get married?” “That’s the one. Let’s get going and we’ll decide later.” “Take your pick,” Vinyl muse, as they drove down the street “Each of these are wedding chapels that has their own theme.” “Just a simple ceremony is all I want. While I’d have liked my parents here; I don’t need more paparazzi hounding me." “I’m sure they can record it if you ask. And I have to agree with those bastard stalkers. That’s why I’ve never told anyone where we were going so they can’t follow us.” Finding a wedding chapel that didn’t have a theme; Vinyl drove in the parking lot and paid for everything. Luckily; they were able to get the ceremony taped for free. “Do you, Vinyl Scratch; take this lovely lady to be your partner,” the pastor asked “I do,” Vinyl answered confidently “Do you, Octavia Melody; take this lovely lady to be your partner,” the pastor continued “Yes, I do.” “Then I now pronounce you partners for life,” the pastor finished “You may kiss each other.” Their next stop was to turn the paperwork in to make the marriage truly legal. Unfortunately; the wait at the courthouse was rather long. “I did get a text while we were waiting,” Vinyl said “Oh? What’s it say?” You have a room waiting for you the entire time you’re here. Just ask for 669 at counter. Have fun ;) You have 2 tickets waiting for you for Friday’s show “Well; at least we have a room to stay in in the meantime,” Octavia replied, reading the textsup “And we’ll get to see the show tomorrow night,” Vinyl added “For now; today’s activities are done.” “Since it is has been a long day so far, I’m wanting to take a nap.” “You’re right. This was certainly a long wait to get the paperwork in. I’m definitely beat,” Vinyl added Having a mutual agreement; Vinyl drove back towards the casino as Octavia grabbed the two boxes with their newly purchased stuffed animals once in the garage. Picking up the key card and heading to the room was thankfully without incident. “So; should we continue tradition,” Vinyl asked, opening the door “I thought it was supposed to be in one’s house the bride is carried through the bedroom.” “You have a point with that. Then we’ll do it when we’re back at home.”
3Author's Note Contains sex scenes 3 “Since we don’t have anything to do until tonight; why don’t we go out after we eat?” “Where would we go in town?” “I have to ask before we leave; do you believe in other intelligent life,” Vinyl questioned “I’ve never believed we can be the only intelligent life in the universe. Why bring this up all of a sudden?” “Do you want to see something cool?" “Where are we going?” “Just trust me.” Vinyl led them through the casino towards the valet parking. As they passed through; Octavia caught sight of a woman with a mohawk that seemed to disappear before she could process what happened. As Vinyl drove; Octavia noticed they were heading away from the so-called ‘Strip' and through the town towards some of the nearby mountains that surround the city. They passed by a city that had a love for aliens as they continued onward. Now they were driving through a desert that had high cliffs on both sides looking down. “Something feels wrong.” “Like what?” “It feels like someone’s watching us.” “Looks like it's a good time to test some of your powers out,” Vinyl mused “Close your eyes and see how many heartbeats you can sense.” Vinyl pulled the car over to the side of the road as Octavia followed her wife’s instructions. The sound of heartbeats could be heard as a few seemed louder than the other; signifying they were closer to them. Trying to picture the beats as musical pitches; she thought she counted at least two dozen. “There’s at least 24 people nearby.” "That’s what I counted, too,” Vinyl replied “Do me a favor and grab one of the books in the glovebox for me, please.” Octavia opened the glovebox and pulled out a book that had various IDs for Luna before grabbing a second for Twilight before finally getting the right one the third try. Flipping through revealed different ID cards for various agencies and licenses. “What’s with the book?” “I’ll tell you later,” Vinyl dismissed “Right now; just hand me the ID with an eagle on the front. We’re about to have unexpected company.” Just as she said that, a series of jeeps and SUVs showed up with their occupants jumping out as a few people approached them with four people in camouflage with rifles drawn and aimed at the car. Octavia felt like she was going to hyperventilate, before Vinyl reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly. “Occupants of the car, roll down the windows and exit the vehicle with your hands where we can see them,” a soldier ordered Without hesitation; Vinyl did as she was told as before the two carefully climbed out. “What are you doing here,” the soldier demanded “This is a classified area.” “Here’s my identification,” Vinyl said calmly “I came here to show my friend Project Zephyr.” “How can I trust that this is real,” the soldier questioned “There’s no reason not to. That project isn’t public knowledge and it would be impossible for civilians to know about it,” she retorted “Boss; we’ve got a Zulu-Niner-Alpha,” another soldier said cryptically “Identification reads ‘Level Seven’. Please advise the situation.” “Let them in,” came the answer “Apparently; you’re permitted to enter,” the first soldier said in a defeated voice Hearing that; Octavia slowly made her way back to the car as Vinyl casually jumped in. They continued down the road with a single jeep following behind before they reached a nondescript gate that was opened up for them. A nearby soldier pointed ahead towards an airplane hangar further up the way. “What’s going on,” Octavia asked in a whisper “What you see here can’t be repeated to anyone,” Vinyl stated “Technically; I shouldn’t be showing you this anyway.” Once inside the hanger; the floor started to lower as Octavia was losing track of how far they had dropped. After what seemed to be nearly ten minutes; they saw a new room come into view that had solid steel walls. Countless people in white lab coats were running around as a golf cart waited nearby. “Your ride to get around the complex,” a scientist said dismissively “Welcome to ‘No-Man’s Land’. Your car will be waiting for you when you’re ready.” As Octavia started to open her mouth to ask a question, a glance to Vinyl saw her shaking her head as it was dropped. During the drive around the complex, Octavia was secretly glad not to be leading as every hallway had the same steel walls everywhere they went. “Down here are a few things you might like,” Vinyl said casually With that; they turned down another hallway as the door at the end automatically opened for them. Two glass tubes were positioned in the middle of the room with multiple scientists examining the contents. “This is Project Zephyr,” Vinyl announced “What is it?” Looking at one tube revealed a creature that seemed to have a snake-like appearance with arms and legs; but resembled an animal jigsaw puzzle. “What are you?” “Yes,” the creature answered “That doesn’t answer my question.” “I am everything and nothing,” it added “Chaos incarnate; Discord.” “Why did you choose here?” “You people are more chaotic than anything I’ve ever seen. You keep me in this, but I can leave this tube whenever I want,” it continued “Where do you come from?” “Next question,” it stated “Why don’t you want to answer that?” “Next. Question,” it demanded “Why’d you come here?” “Because I could. That thing’s from the same place I was living at the time." For whatever reason; a statue of a creature resembling a satyr was in the next tube over. Looking closely; cracks stretched along every inch of it, as well as some kind of sealant to put it back together. “I’m not a gardener; but that thing’s ugly enough to scare flowers into dying.” “You shouldn’t insult him, you know. He can hear you from his stone prison,” the creature mused “Just how long have you been here for?” “Some fifty-odd years I’d guess,” the creature answered with a shrug “It’s hard to tell the days when there’s nothing to mark the passage of time.” “I doubt you’ll get much more from our friend, here,” Vinyl mused “It’s answers get confusing after a while. I suppose we should get going.” “I suppose you’re right. It’s definitely something new to me. Thanks for showing me.” Later that evening; they decided on hitting the buffet for a quick snack before heading to the theater to pick up their reserved ticket. Looking at a nearby clock revealed the time to be almost 9:30pm. As they made their way inside, a white towel was placed in their hands by an attendant. “What’s this all about?” “You’ll see. Have fun and don’t forget to clean up,” the attendant said vaguely “Let’s take a seat in the back,” Vinyl suggested “In the middle of the row.” “Wouldn’t that be harder to see?” “Not really. There aren’t too many bad seats,” Vinyl argued, before whispering “Especially with our vision.” Once in their seats; the rest of the patrons were filing in and filling up the majority of the theater; leaving seats just in the last few rows for any latecomers. A drum roll signified the start of the show as Trixie appeared from a cloud of smoke. Her current outfit consisted of a white dress shirt, with bowtie and cummerbund topped with a dark blue jacket that ended in a leotard bottom. “Ladies and gentlemen; welcome to the show,” Trixie announced “I am the Great and Powerful Trixie and this evening’s show does have one rule. No electronic recording of the show will be permitted. You’ll find out why as the night progresses. In the meantime, enjoy yourselves.” The first few tricks performed were simple slight of hand for warmups to gauge interest. “For this trick; I’m going to saw my assistant in half,” Trixie announced as Starlight wheeled out the box The audience watched as Starlight stripped out of her leotard, climbing onto the table bare naked. “Wow,” Octavia whispered “Didn’t think I’d see that.” “There’s probably more then that,” Vinyl whispered back “Just guessing.” A few of the males in the audience used the towels they were given to muffle the sound of them unzipping their pants as they started to masturbates. “Really,” Octavia mouthed 'Technically; that’s the idea,' Vinyl offered telepathically Trixie opened the flaps on the box to give another view of her wife’s body to their delight. Following the successful, but temporary dismemberment; Starlight was strapped to a giant dartboard with multiple balloons taped around and one right between her legs. The audience whistled as they watched as Trixie popped the crotch last as the tip unexpectedly penetrated her. ‘Really,’ Starlight asked telepathically ‘Right in the slit!?’ ‘Oops. That was an accident.’ “We hope you’ve enjoyed yourselves,” Trixie started as a few quiet grunts emanated from the males “We’re going to have a fifteen minute intermission.” A collective zipping was heard as the men rushed to close up as they headed towards the bathroom en masse, as a few women had the same idea. “I honestly wasn’t expecting any of this.” “It’s the only one like it, from what I’ve read,” a woman chimed in “They are allowed to do whatever they want.” Once everyone returned; Trixie announced the second half of the show would be a little bit different. Two other women entered the stage wearing flesh-colored bodysuits; one pushing a table with multiple swords on it, while the other had an x-ray screen. “Allow me to introduce ourselves. I am Sweetie Drops and this is my partner Lyra. Do not attempt what I’m about to do. This is extremely dangerous,” Sweetie Drops cautioned A sword was lifted of the table and positioned by her mouth as members of the audience gasped in shock. She stepped behind the screen to show her body as the sword was slid down her esophagus. Lyra handed over another as it was swallowed; followed by a dozen more. Once the fourteen swords were removed, she took a bow to thunderous applause. Not to be outdone; the table of swords was wheeled to the back as a smaller bull’s-eye was wheeled along with a bow and quiver of arrows on a new table. Lyra proceeded to reach towards the crotch of her leotard and unsnapped it; before getting into a handstand. Sweetie grabbed the quiver off the table and proceeded to insert the bottom into her friend’s vagina like a dildo. Using just her toes, Lyra grabbed the arrow and proceeded to not only load it into the bow; but shoot a bull’s-eye as well. “Nice aim,” Octavia mused “That’s not all that’s nice,” Vinyl muttered “I wouldn’t mind trying my luck with them.” “Really? In front of your wife,” Octavia accused, lightly shoving her “You could join in as well.” “I think it’s my turn to try sword swallowing,” Trixie decided, carrying a chair, as the girls returned to the back “I’m going to need an assistant from the audience. Raise your hand if you’d like to help.” With that comment; almost every male shot a hand in the air; while a few males were pointing to one with blue hair; in the hopes of him getting picked. A lone spotlight was making its way around the room before stopping on the blue-haired male. As he stood up to make his way to the stage, his companions were cheering. “Way to go, birthday boy!” “What’s your name; birthday boy,” Trixie asked “Flash Sentry,” he said, trying not to act nervous “How old are you today?” “Twenty-one.” “Well, allow me to give you a birthday gift you’ll never forget,” Trixie offered “I’m a virgin,” Flash said quietly “Don’t worry; I’ll be gentle.” Trixie knelt down and eased his zipper down as he sat down on the chair before performing oral sex on him as the audience cheered in support. Sensing his eminent ejaculation; she eased off and moved the crotch of her leotard aside before sitting down on his lap as he penetrated her. Once he’d shot his load inside, she rose off and returned the crotch in place, trapping his semen. “Happy birthday, Flash,” she added, kissing him on the cheek “Thank you,” he muttered “Best birthday ever.” “Ladies and gentlemen; it’s time for the grand finale,” Trixie decided “I am going to be buried alive.” Starlight, Lyra and Sweetie Drops were wheeling a massive reinforced glass box while a couple stagehands brought a wooden coffin. To show there was no lock picks hidden on her; Trixie stripped nude, before a straight jacket was secured around her. “I have a feeling I can figure this out,” Octavia whispered “You’d be surprised,’ Vinyl answered telepathically “Well; I hope this doesn’t really need repeating, but this is extremely recommended to not attempt this trick,” Starlight warned “Trixie will be buried under sand and will have to escape or risk suffocation.” Following the straight jacket, Trixie was chained into the coffin before it was raised up and positioned into the glass chamber by a special crane positioned behind the curtain. Once in the box; the crane lifted multiple containers of sand and poured them inside, completely filling the box. The audience seemed to wait for what felt like hours as they continued to masturbate or have sex to pass the time. Inside the box; Trixie managed to slip out of the straight jacket and chains easily; only to be temporarily halted due to the lid. ‘Starlight; remind me never to try this again.’ ‘Why?’ ‘I have sand in places I shouldn’t and I’m still not all the way through.’ ‘Do you need help?’ ‘No, I got it. Besides; some of the audience seem to be preoccupied. Almost got my…’ “Tada,” Trixie announced “I have escaped a trip to the grave. On behalf of everyone here; we hope you enjoyed yourselves.” As the curtain started to close; the audience seemed to be in a rush to finish wiping their mess before funneling towards the door. Those first noticed multiple bins to deposit the towels inside for decontamination and cleaning later. “Shouldn’t we be leaving?” “Let’s wait until the crowd lightens up,” Vinyl argued “Besides; there’s something I wanted to check.” Vinyl glanced over towards a large group heading out and saw a female with purple hair pass by before disappearing; leaving only the two of them left. Once out of the theater; Vinyl led them wordlessly to the elevator and to their temporary room. “What happened?” I think I know what you were talking about with that bad feeling about someone,” Vinyl said with a sigh “There was some chick with purple hair there that I have sworn wasn’t there when we entered.” “I know what you mean. I’m sure I’ve seen her once in the casino and when we were in the mall." "Obsessed fan, maybe?” “I don’t know. Whoever she is; we’ll just have to keep an eye out,” Vinyl decided “On a different subject; what did you think of the show?” “A bit hard to focus when the males around us were playing with themselves; rather loudly, I might add.” “That’s the point of that show is for people to fuck in the audience. I’ll admit I was there once some years ago to relax; but this was the first time with you that I was there to enjoy the show.” “She had to have escaped by a secret door, right?” “Nope. Trixie did it the hard way in her escape,” Vinyl corrected “You mean she actually…” Vinyl nodded and finished “Crawled through the dirt. There’s a reason most magicians shy away from that trick. It’s literally one wrong move away from that being their last. I’d highly doubt Trixie will attempt that again.” “Considering how late it is, I’m going to get some sleep. We can head home in the morning.” “Sounds good. I want to let mom know about that as soon as possible. Before we leave town; we’ll take a picture or two in front of the sign.” The next morning; they immediately went to valet and headed down to the sign. Vinyl took one photo with Octavia by the sign before having another tourist take one with them together. Despite their arrival being at night; Vinyl had to drive under the speed limit due to traffic. “In regards to the creature you showed me; what’s its story?” “First things first. In order to answer that; you need to understand we have taken roles over the years to help out; hence the various IDs you saw. We were working when a literal tear in space showed up before Discord emerged,” Vinyl started “That’s the thing’s name,” Octavia asked in disbelief “I thought that was just an explanation of what it was.” “Anyway; he thought he was safe and showed up a series of images. A few images consisted of pony versions of Twilight, Luna and myself that were remarkably accurate. The last one was barren; although we couldn’t tell what happened. Any attempt to question him about that resulted in him shutting down. Somehow; he disappeared from confinement and returned with that statue you saw. He instructed us how to put him back together exactly and revealed the creature’s name to be ‘Storm King'.” “The same as the card,” Octavia realized “That’s why I asked if you believe in other intelligent life.” “It’s hard to believe that other versions of ourselves could exist in another world. I’m still trying to wrap my head around that.” Atlas Nova casino “Milord; my scouting mission is complete,” the purple haired woman said in a call “Do they suspect you,” came a reply “I don’t think so. With any luck, they thought I was a tourist.” “Return as soon as you can.” “As you command.” Octavia & Vinyl They arrived later that evening as Vinyl had to force herself to drive much slower under the speed limit to avoid any unnecessary attention from police. Octavia was the first to exit and opened the trunk to retrieve the stuffed animals and DVD. “Giuseppe; go ahead and take that stuff off of her hands,” Vinyl said “Yes ma’am,” he replied with a bow “Allow me, miss Melody.” Without hesitation; Octavia handed over the items before Vinyl scooped her up in a traditional bridal carry and headed through the door. Instead of setting her down in the living room; Octavia was carried through the house to the bedroom. “I think we’ve cleared the tradition,” Octavia joked “If it wasn’t for what we have to do; I’d probably be ripping off your clothes,” Vinyl answered “Let’s go back.” “So; have fun you two,” Luna asked “We did.” “There was someone we both had a bad feeling about,” Vinyl chimed in “That’s why we came home so early.” “The same thing as the previous mention,” Luna asked “I believe it was similar. It’s just hard to describe.” “I saw a woman with a purple mohawk and by the time I blinked; she was gone,” Vinyl replied “Even with the crowd, it’s impossible to disappear that fast. "I saw her at least twice and couldn’t find rid of the feeling I had." “I have to agree. I kind of hacked into the casino cameras and watched you,” Twilight added sheepishly, rubbing her arm “I did see a woman appear and disappear in a split second. Those cameras aren’t malfunctioning, so something was going on.” “You believe your mystery woman is a vampire,” Luna questioned “I don’t know whether or not she is; but I felt it’s worth looking into,” Vinyl offered “We’ll keep an eye out for anything suspicious. For now; we need to just carry on like normal and see if your suspicions are correct,” Luna decided “Fair enough. Tomorrow; if you don’t mind, we’ll have my parents over to watch the video of our wedding,” Octavia asked “Of course. Just relax in the meantime,” Luna decided “I’ll probably go and practice,” Octavia commented “There’s a concert coming tomorrow night I completely forgot about.” “You’ll do fine,” Vinyl offered reassuringly “Don’t worry too much about it."
4The next day; Octavia made the call to her parents as they agreed to show up around ten that morning. Luna had led them to the living room where Twilight was just finishing setting the TV up to play movies. “Thank you for inviting us,” Tenor offered “You’re welcome. I’m glad you accepted my invitation.” “Have you consummated your marriage,” Treble asked directly “Dad,” Octavia whined “Why would you ask that?” “Not yet,” Vinyl answered slyly “Twily; roll that beautiful footage. Please?” “Thank you for at least asking,” Twilight said with a chuckle “Such a simple ceremony,” Tenor mused, after it finished “With how much we’ve been harassed by paparazzi; she and I wanted to escape and have a quiet ceremony,” Vinyl answered “No one knew where this was going to be held as we decided only moments before.” “We even have simple bands that might be overlooked by anyone not paying attention,” Octavia added “Regardless of the size; it’s still great to be a part of your wedding,” Treble complimented “Thank you so much for showing us the video,” Tenor said, as she hugged Octavia “Have you practiced for your concert tonight?” “Just a little bit yesterday. It’s not a major event; so we’ll just be arriving in casual dress.” “Well; we should get going so you can get ready or sleep before it starts,” Treble mused “We wish you the best in your marriage.” Octavia decided to take her parents up on the offer of taking a short nap before getting ready for their 6pm concert. Vinyl tossed her a pair of black jeans and t-shirt to wear. Despite the possibility of getting attention, Vinyl decided to watch in from audience as her wife played. As Octavia sat on stage; she could have sworn she caught a glimpse of the same woman they mentioned earlier in the audience. Brushing the thought aside, she continued playing, before an intrusive voice entered her head. ‘Having fun? Hope you’re not going insane. Ha-ha-ha.’ Trying to clear the bother, she shook her head a bit; unintentionally losing her place in the song. A few squeaks resonated from her cello as she tried to get back to playing. To make matters worse; the woman decided to make a close up appearance on stage in front of Octavia before disappearing again. “Hey; you alright,” the second-chair cellist whispered “Headache,” she lied “I’ll have to deal with it for now.” ‘Vee; she’s here.’ ‘I heard; since she contacted me as well. Just finish up the show.’ Once the conductor took his bow, signaling the end of the concert; Octavia had to take a moment to gather her belongings in the hopes of forcing herself not to run offstage. Thankfully she had the case with her as it seemed to be haphazardly stuck in the back of the car as Vinyl raced home. Vinyl snatched the case out of the car as Octavia was running inside towards the living room, before stopping in her tracks. Despite the positioning; she could see a male with white hair sitting away from her. “Tavi; you forgot this,” Vinyl pointed out, tapping the cello case “And what’s wrong now?” “It’s him,” Octavia whispered back “You! What are you doing here!? Why have you been stalking me!?” “Octavia, dear; it’s okay,” Luna offered reassuringly “My dear, I assure you; I have not done anything of the sort,” the male answered calmly “In fact; this is probably a case of mistaken identity.” “Mistaken…identity,” Octavia repeated, sounding out the last two words “Indeed. I am sorry for any confusion that may have happened,” he offered “Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Discord; former Count and ruler of multiple nations.” “Perhaps you should start at the beginning,” Luna mused Vinyl headed to Octavia’s room to drop off the cello as Octavia felt herself guided towards a nearby couch by Luna. Once she finished; Vinyl threw herself in the seat next to her wife. “My story is almost as long as human history,” Discord pointed out “I will be skipping around to try and shorten it.” “I don’t remember exactly when it happened; maybe during the end of time when humans were starting to explore the barren ice-covered world; but my brother and I were turned by a being known as ‘Grogar'. At first it wasn’t too bad, since we would take a little bit of blood from multiple people under his teachings.” “That’s amazing,” Octavia said in awe “You were actually alive during the Ice Age.” “It wasn’t fun, practically being frozen at any time. If we didn’t survive and thrive; humanity never would have taken off. No one gave any thought to the trio that hung around together as it was common for small splinter groups to do so, as long as everyone helped taking down the kill,” he admitted “Fast forward thousands of years later and my brother and I were told to kill and consume our master’s body and that our transformation into full vampires would be complete. After that, my brother decided to call himself the ‘Storm King' and from that point on; I never saw him again.” “I had a run-in with someone who had a business card with the name ‘Storm King’ on it. It said he was a vampire hunter.” “That’s surprising,” he mused “A vampire hunting others. Unless it’s because he sees this as a threat.” “Why would he see us as a threat?” “May I answer that, master,” Twilight asked hopefully “Of course,” he said with a nod “Your brother must have founded a new vampire clan in his travels and doesn’t like the idea of a reminder of his brother’s legacy,” Twilight answered “But why target me?” “I don’t think it’s you, directly, but you’re probably just in the way,” Twilight continued “In other words; when you became my wife; you may have been just another addition,” Vinyl chimed in “Guilt by association, regardless if you were mortal or not.” “That’s not right, but I guess there isn’t much of a choice.” “As for me; I took some time off from the world. I found a cave that was completely isolated from everything and dug a pit for myself and slept for a while. Before I did; I took some stone and carved in a sigil that Grogar taught us to be a sort of ‘Do Not Disturb' sign. Of course someone did eventually open it, waking me up during the Grecian or Roman times,” he continued “With those idjits; I’ve always confused the two. Especially when I’ve been to both.” “What did you do during that time?” “I worked behind the scenes with the senators and rulers to earn power and money. I helped influence them to what was best for everyone. Some times it was more in my favor, but everything seemed to work pretty well, overall.” “Did you ever run into your brother during your time in other countries?” “I may have heard rumors of someone fitting a general description of him; but I wouldn’t have put it past him to manipulate rulers to going to war since that was always a favorite tactic. Some time later; I made my way to an area ‘Scandinavia’. Despite the massive change in time; I always kept my sword with me wherever I was for safety. It was outdated, but it’s still served me to this day. Those were fun times; as I was able to pass on my wealth of knowledge to others. The area I was named me as ruler where they saw some of the most prosperous times ever.” “I thought the Vikings were always fighting.” “Sometimes that was true, but we were farmers first that would fight to protect ourselves. Besides; if it weren’t for us; the world wouldn’t have had so much. We explored everywhere we could to learn about the world. I’ll admit I’d killed a fair share in battle and drank their blood afterwards.” “Is that dangerous to do? Drink from the dead? Sorry if I’m constantly interrupting you.” “You have questions I’m happy to answer,” he said “As long as the body isn’t cold; it should be alright. I would only drink blood once; and usually gorge myself so I didn’t have to feed again for a few months. As for what they thought about it; they never asked and I didn’t explain.” “What happened to them afterwards?” “Some moved to other continents we explored in the hopes of continuing their traditions. I honestly; moved down the land from the Scandinavian area to England. That really was the best time of my life.” “I’ll continue from there, if you’d like,” Luna offered “Of course. It would be best for you to explain your portion,” he nodded “It was during what we call now the ‘Middle Ages’. Celestia and I were in our mid twenties when this handsome man had come up to us. We were invited to the castle under his suggestion to live. It was a year later that we were married and my sister and I had been expecting twins,” Luna started “Um; how do vampires reproduce,” Octavia asked nervously “Grogar mentioned nothing about it; but I surmised we were sterile when I tried having sex with another woman a long time before. We were, or at least I was; taught about a spell that would temporarily allow reproduction with automatic success,” Discord answered “As you already know; nine months later; gave birth to Twilight and Starlight while Celestia’s daughters were of course, Sunset and Cadence.” “As for my brother and I; we were adopted twenty one years after the others grew up,” Vinyl chimed in “When did you become a vampire, Luna?” “I asked my wives when they were in their mid-forties and my daughters after their twenty-first birthday about the offer,” Discord interjected “I have to say we did live a good life during that time,” Twilight mused “Servants to take care of our every need, and plenty of money to never have to worry about anything. Even the citizens were actually happy to have someone to listen to them and want to help out.” "My sister seemed to grow a tiny bit of jealousy at the attention we were getting and decided to take her girls and a decent amount of money and left. The next time I heard anything about her; she had adopted and turned three new girls into vampires,” Luna continued “As to Vinyl and her brother Neon Lights; that was a different moment. I’m not sure I can tell you; but I am sorry you have to relive this, Vinyl.” “It’s alright. I’ve gotten over it by now,” Vinyl said with a sigh “It’s just still hard to believe, though.” “I’ll try and answer as best as I can,” Twilight offered “For reasons unknown to us; a pregnant woman was dragged into the town square by the other citizens. Someone decided to disembowel her, before tossing the fetuses in a basket. Afterwards…" “Take your time, dear,” Luna said reassuringly “Afterwards,” Twilight repeated, trying to gather the courage “She was raped until her death. Discord ordered the immediate execution of the participants, but not before extracting confessions. During their torture, they admitted the deceased was suspected of witchcraft and had to be eliminated to prevent problems.” “I left the castle and immediately retrieved the basket and returned where I agreed to raise the kids as my own,” Luna continued “I still can’t get the sight of a woman with pale white skin, blue hair and red eyes being tortured.” “Even hearing the story about an event that transpired hundreds of years ago is hard to believe. At least we know how it’s ended so far to this point.” “For the second time; I decided to return to the earth for a while to get away from life. I told the others to take the wealth and spread it among the population, and the rest for themselves,” Discord added “Of course I did take a portion with me to my grave.” “In case you’re wondering, my name and Neon's only came about in the past few decades when the technology became popular,” Vinyl interjected “Before; I was Melody and he was Archer.” “For a time; the five of us traveled in secret at night with each carrying swords for protection. We took residence in other areas and tried to get into positions of influence to continue gathering wealth. We did this repeatedly; before hiding the money in areas around the world. Funny enough; we made sure to always stay behind the scenes during the course of history as the notoriety was unneeded as a vampire,” Luna continued “Just out of curiosity, did anyone go to college?” “Yes, we all have,” Luna answered “What did you major in?” “Yes,” Vinyl, Twilight and Luna said in unison “I don’t get it.” “From about the middle 1800s to present, we’ve earned degrees in every subject possible. I’ve gotten doctorates in everything, while mom had a few PhD in a few others,” Twilight asked cheerfully “I’ve gotten a few doctorates, and master's degrees in everything else,” Vinyl added “I would never have thought you’d have so many degrees.” “Well; when we’ve had firsthand experience of history, it’s easy to answer about that,” Luna mused “I was actually threatened with a lower grade for calling one of the officers in World War 2 an asshole,” Vinyl chimed in “In my defense, he actually was an asshole. They wanted a fictional telling of you being in the military and how’d you feel. What was I supposed to do!?” “They didn’t actually want to hear opinions, but what you were told to write,” Luna said “Regardless of how you knew them, history books branded them as heroes and that’s how everyone had to see them.” “What was everyone’s favorite class?” “I enjoyed teaching students about history in a way they seemed to enjoy,” Luna answered “I followed the text, but would add little extras here and there.” “Science was my favorite to teach and learn; although I had to constantly deny my students from wanting to date me,” Twilight added “Music appreciation was my favorite to teach. They loved being able to talk to someone about music and I could offer suggestions for them to check out,” Vinyl chimed in “Why did you decide to come back now, sir?” “This wasn’t my decision, but I thought to take advantage of it,” he said “After my return to a resting place in the Middle Ages; I was actually at peace before someone cracked the rock I was using, mere weeks ago.” FLASHBACK: 1 Week Ago; Parts Unknown Two explorers; a female in her mid thirties wearing an olive green shirt, brown shorts and knee length boots and a male in his late thirties with a shaved beard in a khaki shirt and black pants were almost to the bottom of a cave, having rappelled inside. “What exactly are we doing here,” the female questioned “My dear, Daring; I had received information from an anonymous source that said there was something here that would change the course of history,” he said dramatically “Caballeron; I hope you’re not pulling my leg. This is empty,” Daring countered “We both have found treasure in places seemed to be empty before,” he said with a chuckle “Besides; the best place to hide something is deep where no one can get it.” Once free of their climbing ropes; the two retrieved flashlights and continued deeper into the cave. They ended up heading into areas that had passages small enough they had to resort to crawling through in order to continue. “Hold up a moment,” she directed “I see something.” “What do you make of it?” “All I can say is it’s a marking of some kind,” she offered “Unfortunately; there’s no record of this in any of the books I’ve read.” “Well; if we continue on, there has to be something that someone didn’t want anyone to know about,” he said cheerfully “Why else would that be there?” “We should document this for later. I’ll sketch it and you photograph it,” Daring directed “You know, I’ve been giving this some thought,” he started “This mark is placed in an area with a small single entrance. Let’s check if there isn’t any other way past.” “My thoughts exactly,” she confirmed “I thought the wall had a crack in it.” After removing a small collapsible shovel from their bags, they began using the blade as a makeshift pickax aimed at the crack she pointed out. After a few minutes, some of the rocks started to break apart and fall away; revealing a new chamber to explore. As Daring entered, her light was shined around the room, before stopping on another symbol. “It’s like the one in the other room,” she pointed out “The design is a bit different, though.” “Must have a different meaning,” he guessed “Let’s start digging around for treasure.” “Just be careful. We don’t know what we’re dealing with,” she cautioned Starting at the back of the room; they dug out a trench towards the middle where they ended up hitting a series of larger stones that were arranged in a line. “This rock is a little bit smaller. Let’s move this aside and work towards the bigger ones last,” he offered, moving one as he spoke With a few of the rocks moved out of the way, they noticed the body of a male with gray hair and a goatee dressed in a black outfit. To their shock, the body started to sit upright and stretch. “When am I?” “W…wa…what are you,” Caballeron stuttered “Who are you?” “Courtesy dictates you answer my question first,” the creature stated “It’s 2020 now,” Daring answered “Nearly five hundred years,” it muttered, before turning to the others “Why did you wake me?” “We were informed about something that could change history,” Caballeron answered “Now; who are you?” “I am Discord, Count of multiple kingdoms. Who told you to come here?” “It was an anonymous source,” Caballeron said quickly “I wasn’t told what to look for, either.” “If I may interrupt, Count Discord; what exactly are you and how did you end up here,” Daring asked “To answer your first question, young lady; I am a vampire born quite a long time ago. As to how I ended up here; that was my own doing. I decided to take a nap here in private with my trusty sword by my side,” Discord said “Since I’m up, let’s get going.” “Where exactly are we going,” Caballeron asked “You’re leaving the cave and I’m coming with,” Discord stated “But first; do you mind if I have a drink?” Without hesitation; Discord headed towards Daring, before tipping her head to the side. After sinking his fangs into her neck; they were removed about ten seconds later as the wounds healed themselves. “Thank you for the drink,” Discord offered “That was my fiancé you turned into a vampire,” Caballeron retorted angrily “I assure you; she hasn’t been turned. The process takes much longer than that.” Discord reached back into the exposed cavity and removed a Roman spatha sword in it’s sheath and strapped it to his side. Caballeron turned and left the room muttering profanities under his breath while Discord ignored everything mentioned. “I’d suggest you join him outside,” Discord offered “He seems to be getting restless.” “What about you,” Daring questioned “I’ll be right behind you. I need to grab one more thing.” As she headed back through the door; Discord headed into a corner and removed a small pouch of coins and dropped it in a pocket, before covering the tomb up and joining the two explorers. The trip back through the cave was silent as Caballeron still seemed to be irritated. He and Daring hooked up to the harnesses and signaled to someone at the top of the cave to start pulling them up. Discord decided to just walk up the side to the top. “What are you,” another member asked “Something that was woken up from his dirt nap by your friends here. I’m going wherever they are heading,” Discord answered “Boss; did you find what you came from,” another chimed in “I don’t know,” Caballeron admitted “Get the plane ready for departure. Wheels up in ten minutes. I’ve got to make a call.” “What is a ‘plane’,” Discord asked “Where did you come from that you don’t know what a plane is,” one of the team members asked sarcastically “And you know; swords went out of fashion hundreds of years ago.” “I’ll have you know; I’ve never needed my feet to leave the ground involuntarily, as I’m quite fond of terra firma. As for the sword; it’s a matter of protecting myself against attackers. I wasn’t trained to give in without a fight,” Discord retorted Caballeron headed a short distance from the rest of the group and removed a satellite phone from a pouch on his side and started to dial. He put it on speakerphone to talk easier. In the meantime, Discord took a look around and saw two small jeeps being driven into a cargo plane as tents covered with camouflage netting were being taken down and loaded inside. ‘We went to where you told us,’ Caballeron said ‘And? Did you find what I told you,’ the person on the other end asked ‘We found something; or rather some one. A person, to be exact; who woke up after uncovering it.’ ‘And you didn’t dispatch it!? Do you know how much trouble it could cause!? On second thought, take it with you. You can drive over to the rendezvous point and deliver it to me personally.’ ‘Yes, sir.’ Despite the distance from the others, Discord was able to hear the hear the conversation. He knew he’d have to play along until he could get away from them. He had a feeling he knew who was the other person was; and hoped to be wrong about it. “Good news, Count,” Caballeron said cheerfully “You’re coming with us.” “That’s good to hear. Otherwise; it would be a long walk,” Discord joked “You’ll have to pardon the lack of room in here,” Caballeron offered as he led Discord inside the plane, “This is normally used by soldiers for transportation. Just clip into a nearby seat and we’ll be ready to go soon.” “Since my fiancé is gone,” Daring started “How old are you?” “Ancient,” Discord answered simply “I don’t know by whom you were sponsored by; but I’m leaving as soon as we arrive at our destination.” “Where are you planning on going,” she questioned “Anyplace else. I’m supposed to be driven over someplace.” Before either of them could continue their conversation; multiple workers headed inside and started strapping into nearby seats. ‘Luna…Could you help me?’ ‘How can I do that?’ ‘I’m currently on something called a ‘plane’. They mentioned it’s used for transporting soldiers.’ ‘That’s not bad. What’s the problem?’ ‘Whoever’s leading this group is planning on taking me to another person. I don’t like the idea of being handed over to anyone. Can you meet me upon our arrival?’ ‘I can try; but if it’s a military transport; most likely it’ll be on a base. You’ll have to get away from the base before I can pick you up.’ During the flight; Discord looked around to see each member of the crew starting to fall asleep as he stayed awake out of sheer habit. To keep occupied; he drew the blade from the sheath and started to sharpen it as quietly as possible so as not to wake anyone. Deciding it was to his liking; he also started to remove the dust from the clothing in order to look more presentable. A few hours later; the pilot had apparently landed at their destination and started to lower the ramp when Discord took off using his speed. He hoped to be far enough off away from the plane they wouldn’t know he disappeared. Now away from the base; he realized just how much society had changed in the hundreds of years since he’d been asleep. More building had been built, much closer to one another as some towered above the rest. As he started wandering the streets, a police car started to pull up behind him. “Excuse me, sir,” the officer started “I’m afraid you’re going to have to come with me.” “I suppose it’s a good thing you happened along,” Discord offered “You see, I’m from out of town and I’m supposed to meet a friend. Unfortunately; I don’t have an address for them. How do I address you?” “Officer Flash Sentry is my name, sir,” he introduced “You may call me Officer Sentry “I’m sorry to hear that you don’t have an address for your friend; but your weapon is against the law.” “According to that text, aren’t you supposed to ‘Serve and Protect’? How can you protect anyone without a sword?” “Swords have been rendered out of use in the 1700s. Firearms, specifically pistols; are the ways we police officers have to protect others,” Flash simplified In the meantime; Luna grabbed one of the cars and decided to head out for a drive in the hopes of meeting up with Discord. As she turned onto a street not too far off from the military base; she saw someone in all black talking with police. “Is there a problem here, officer,” Luna asked “What is your relationship with this gentleman,” the officer asked, addressing Luna “And the name's Officer Sentry.” “I was supposed to pick him up, officer. Since he’s from out of town, I wanted to pick him up as soon as possible” Luna offered “How’d you get here, sir,” Flash questioned “I arrived by plane,” Discord answered “I haven’t seen any commercial planes coming in,” Flash mused “It was a military plane from what I was told.” “I didn’t think they’d be picking up citizens,” Flash argued “I didn’t ask their reasoning for picking me up.” “Unfortunately; I’m going to have to place him under arrest for his sword,” Flash argued “It’s illegal to carry such a weapon.” “I don’t want to embarrass him; but he’s a fan of ancient history and likes to carry a wooden sword just like gentleman used to,” Luna lied “How’s about just letting him off with a warning and he can promise not to carry a sword in public again?” “Do you promise not to wear such an item in public,” Flash asked, with a sigh “Of course, sir,” Discord answered “I wouldn’t want to break a promise and get in trouble. I have a great deal of respect for the job you do.” “Take your friend and go,” Flash decided “I’ll write it up as a warning to not wear cosplay weapons outside of official locations.” Luna led her husband towards her car before reaching over and unclipping the sheath and sticking it in the back seat. He carefully lowered himself into the front passenger’s seat as she took the wheel. “Thank you for coming to my rescue,” Discord started You’re welcome. I wasn’t sure where you’d be and I just got lucky when I found you. In the meantime; let’s head to our current home and you can relax.” ●PRESENT TIME● “I do apologize for my confusion and anger when I first met you. I did not know it was your brother I’d met before,” Octavia started “And thank you for the history lesson. I have a lot to learn about being a vampire.”r “Your apology is accepted,” Discord replied “I’m happy to share everything I know with family. I bid you adieu for now as I must see how Celestia is doing.”
5After Discord had left; a quick peek at the clock revealed the time to be almost midnight that night. Before anyone might have decided to head to bed; the sound of glass shattering was heard. “You heard that? Right,” Octavia asked “I did. Someone broke a window,” Luna confirmed Following the broken window; a loud crash emanated that almost seemed to echo through the house. “That’s more a broken window,” Octavia realized “I hope it’s not what I think it is.” Octavia took off running down the hall to her room, before having her fear realized. Standing in the middle of the room was a two-legged creature with hooves instead of legs that led to a muscular body covered with mostly black hair with white around the neck. Around the chest was a dark gray vest with the Storm King's logo in blue in the middle, and it was holding the upper portion of her cello that consisted of the tuning pegs. Enraged at the sight; she charged into the creature, knocking it to the floor; before grabbing a large piece of the cello's body that had an edge to it. “That...was...my...wed...ding...pre...sent..you...bas...tard,” she enunciated With each word; she plunged the piece into the creature, repeatedly stabbing it. To her surprise, even after taking ten stabbings to the chest, it was still able to breathe; so she took her makeshift blade and slit its throat. Just as her arm went up for another blow, she felt someone gently holding her wrist. “Easy, Tavi,” Vinyl offered reassuringly “He’s dead.” “I did it,” Octavia replied, trying to hold back tears “I killed him.” “What the fuck is that,” Vinyl asked, looking at the creature “I’ve never seen before, either,” Luna stated “The only thing we know is it has the mark of the Storm King on it,” Twilight chimed in “It does have fangs, so I’d guess it could be a vampire of some kind.” “So; what’s it doing here,” Vinyl demanded “Since it’s the only one here; I believe it could have been scouting out our house,” Luna offered “Great,” Vinyl whined “Can’t we get some peace and quiet!? Hanz; can you grab Hagar to get rid of the body?” As the girls left the room; two of the servants headed into the room pushing a stretcher to drop the body on. They wheeled it towards an out of the corridor and into a sealed off room. Their next task was to drop the body into a hidden chute to a disposal chamber. “Let’s get the acid ready,” Hagar stated “Mixed or not,” Hanz asked “With those things? Use them all. The chamber’s designed to withstand anything. Glad there’s plenty of liquid, just and case. I hope there’s not more of those ugly fuckers. Otherwise; we’d need a burn pit,” Hagar argued “What exactly are they doing,” Octavia asked “How are they supposed to dispose of the body?” “It’s better you not know,” Vinyl answered “The two of them are half-vampires we turned after what they did during World War 2,” Luna added “German chemical warfare experts that loved human experimentation.” “I could see where it’s going. I don’t want to know the details. If that is a scout, what are we supposed to do?” “We just stay here and wait,” Luna decided, before holding up a hand “I know you want to be proactive; but we don’t know where they come from to go to them.” “I really hate this shit,” Vinyl stated “For once; I’d have been happy to deal with paparazzi instead of weird vampire-satyr-monkey fucks.” “I don’t think we should assume what they are,” Twilight cautioned “From what dad told us; both he and the Storm King were taught spells. Why couldn’t that be the reason for their appearance?” Following the assault; everyone seemed to be on edge as they waited for a possible second attack. The following night saw more of the windows broken simultaneously as the attack happened as predicted with the house’s power getting cut. “I hate when someone’s right,” Vinyl whined “And of course the power has to go out.” “Don’t worry, the backup generators should kick on,” Twilight pointed out A small explosion was heard as Twilight ended up face palming at the event. “There goes the backup,” Twilight added “I’ve got one of those things by me,” Octavia said One of the creatures lunged towards Octavia only to be punched in the face by Vinyl in self-defense. Due to the force of the punch; the creature ended up with its nose pushed back into its head as it flew back through a table. “Sorry about that, mom,” Vinyl offered apologetically “We’ll worry about that later. Right now, we need to get downstairs,” Luna countered “How are we supposed to get down there,” Octavia asked “I thought the elevator was the only way.” “There is a staircase we had made that wraps around the elevator shaft. Its entrance is the body of the grandfather clock,” Luna answered Luna led the four towards the clock as Vinyl trailed behind. Trying to slow the creatures down, Vinyl kicked a chair towards them, causing at least one to stumble into another; before doing the same with a table. She caught up a moment later to the others and closed the door behind her just as Luna was entering the garage. “How’s the situation up there,” Luna asked as Vinyl entered “Hopefully I slowed them down a bit,” Vinyl answered “Regardless; get over to the armory and get ready,” Luna directed Twilight was already ahead of her and pushed a hidden button on the wall; allowing multiple metal cabinets to raise up from the floor. Opening one up revealed rows of handguns of various calibers and boxes of ammunition. “This is amazing,” Octavia mused “I’ve never seen such a huge collection.” “We’ve had to be prepared for anything, so we have our own armory,” Vinyl answered, grabbing a pair of pistols “Have you ever used a gun before?” “Never. My dad didn’t want me to ever learn,” Octavia answered “For now, just stay here and grab an ammo clip or pistol when we need it,” Vinyl directed “Sorry about using you as just an assistant,” Twilight said apologetically “It’s just safer that way.” “It’s alright. Since I don’t know anything with guns; you’ll have to direct me.” “Heads up,” Luna called “Our incoming’s incoming!” Despite the announcement; they still felt unprepared when the door broke open and the creatures forced their way through. Luna had to roll out of the way as Twilight fired into the skull of the first in line, that caused blood and brain matter to hit its companions. “I’ll never look at anatomy the same way, again,” Octavia complained A few of the creatures further up in the house seemed to get wise at the deaths happening in front as they crouched down and used a fallen body as a shield for it to push into the garage area. “What the fuck? Why’re these things getting smarter,” Vinyl demanded “Shoot first and we’ll” Luna started, before getting knocked backwards by a thrown body “Shit!” Twilight raced over and lifted the body off her mom, and aimed it towards the legs of creature that originally threw it, as Vinyl put a bullet in its head. Dammit, I’m out,” Vinyl said as she tried pulling the trigger with nothing happening “Tavi; cover me while I grab a clip!” Octavia reluctantly grabbed a pistol and held it like she’d seen the others and pulled the trigger; only for nothing to happen. “Vee; it’s not working!” “Did you switch the safety to off,” she asked “I don’t know where it is!” "Here; I’ll give you a quick lesson,” Vinyl said, putting a hand on her wife’s “Safety is on the side, make sure it’s off if you want to fire. Next; aim the barrel at what you want to shoot and pull the trigger.” Octavia felt her hands being moved towards the steps and the creatures as her index finger was pulled backwards. Vinyl forced her to shoot twice more before removing her hand. “Lesson over,” Vinyl stated “Shoot them while I reload.” “Where do I aim at?” “Take center mass and we’ll finish them off for you,” Luna simplified “The chest, you mean?” “Yeah. Most often it’s referred to as center mass, which is rather self-explanatory,” Twilight added “Damn. How many of these fuckers are there,” Vinyl asked “It’s been slowing down a bit,” Luna realized “Let’s get these moved aside and the servants could dispose of them." Outside the Mansion Seeing the rest of the grunts making their way inside the house in front; the mohawked female; now wearing armor with the Storm King’s logo, and a smaller overweight male walked through the front door with two creatures in purple armor following behind. “Are you sure about this Commander Tempest,” the male asked “I am, Grubber. Besides, I’m supposed to scout the area before reporting back to the Storm King,” Tempest answered “I hate to say it, but this is a nice place,” Grubber complimented, with a whistle “Since the damage leads towards that clock, I’m going to guess our targets are that way.” “What would I ever do without you,” she replied somewhat sarcastically, before motioning to the guards “You two, lead the way.” Inside the Garage Vinyl and the others were double-checking their magazines when they saw two more of the creatures making their way down the steps and into the room. They noticed these two seemed to carry themselves differently as they wearing purple armor and not charging towards the girls. “They seem different,” Octavia commented “Someone’s behind them,” Twilight added “Perhaps these two are that person’s bodyguards.” All of a sudden; a hand shot through each of the guards chests, as they fell facedown on the floor. The same female with purple hair was standing behind them, holding their hearts in her hands, before tossing them aside. “Wha? Tempest; what did you do? Why did you do that,” Grubber asked in shock, as she calmly wiped her hands “I’m telling the Storm King about this treachery.” Grubber removed a small device, resembling a pager from a pocket and pushed two buttons at the same time. Tempest headed over to Octavia and gently removed the pistol from her hand. “I’m sorry, Grubber,” Tempest said under her breath “I have no choice.” Grubber had just turned to head back up the steps when Tempest fired at the back of his head, killing him instantly. The device in hand was destroyed as she brought her heel down on it. Without warning; Vinyl walked over and punched the woman in the face. “What was the stalking about,” Vinyl demanded, grabbing her “Since we probably don’t have much time; I’ll just say that I was under orders to spy on you by the Storm King,” Tempest summarized “I’d suggest you get your weapons ready. He’s sending enough of those ghouls to destroy this place.” “Why’d you kill him,” Octavia asked “Your friend here, I mean.” “Since I’ve had plenty of time to think; I’ve decided to get away from the Storm King’s rule. All my life I’ve just been an assassin, stalking my prey to eliminate them at his command,” Tempest answered “Seeing how nice everyone was here; I hoped to join this clan. I had to destroy any remaining ties to the Storm King first.” “Since I’m the head; we’ll decide your fate later,” Luna stated “In the meantime, we’ll get rid of these ghouls first.” “Just out of curiosity; is there any other weapons I could use? I’m just not comfortable with the pistols.” “Open the last cabinet on the left,” Vinyl directed Following the direction; Octavia opened the cabinet to find a medieval-like shield in the general shape of a cello, minus the upper section of the fingerboard that lead to the tuning pegs and scroll. Next to it was a sword that seemed to resemble a bow. The shield was lifted out and strapped to her left forearm as the sword seemed to feel like a feather in her hands. “Did you have these made for me,” Octavia asked “It’s extremely comfortable; despite having never used it before.” “Not entirely. I’ve played cello for a little while and had it made for me,” Vinyl admitted “I’m glad that you find it to your liking. It’s probably because you’re subconsciously used to holding the bow that it seems natural to you.” “I have two questions for you,” Twilight started, turning to Tempest “One; how did those ghouls get created? And two; how many are there?” “There’s probably a few hundred, if not thousands; created that were ordered to attack here and one other location. As for how they were created; the Storm King used some kind of spell to do it. I don’t know the exact specifics as he never told me; despite making me his commander,” Tempest answered “Where are they going to come from,” Vinyl asked “They were able to see through one another’s eyes; so more than likely they’re use the door,” Tempest answered, before trailing off “However…” “Let me guess; they’ll find any other way they can; including breaking through reinforced concrete,” Vinyl retorted sarcastically “They’ll look for alternative ways in, but yeah; if not, then they’ll dig a single entrance downward.” “Since we don’t know where they’re going to come from; the four of us will form a diamond shoulder to shoulder with Octavia in the middle,” Luna directed “Let them come to us. Do not break formation to engage.” As the girls took their designated positions; the Storm King’s ghouls were breaking through the first floor windows as a way in. Two of the ghouls were headed into the backyard and started digging a hole as the dirt piled up around them. The group felt ready as two ghouls ran down the steps in an attempt to tackle someone, only to be shot down by Twilight and Luna. The tunnel managed to open into the center of the group as Octavia had to quickly move in order to kill the newcomers. “Fuck! Those bastards actually managed to dig in here,” Vinyl exclaimed “Be careful with your ammo,” Tempest cautioned “These guys can take more punishment than the first group of scouts.” “That would have been nice to know when you told us these fucks could tunnel,” Vinyl pointed out “Are you sure you’re not still working that bastard!?” “I only now realized he was sending those ghouls out,” Tempest offered “He told me the bare minimum of information; this included. I can’t give you any information I don’t have.” "Enough with the arguing,” Luna stated “If we take the word of Tempest, and yes; I paid attention when your friend mentioned your name; we need to make our shots count. Heads or hearts only; if not, Octavia will have to finish them off with the sword.” With the suggestion from Tempest; the next wave of ghouls felt a bit easier as they made sure to score headshots. A few stray ghouls ran between the gauntlet, only to be met with a sword through the head; decapitating it or a second bullet in the eye socket. “Damn,” Vinyl said through breaths “These fucks just don’t know when to stop. I think the only thing keeping me going is knowing I’m a vampire. Ah shit. I’m out of ammo.” “Same here on ammo,” Twilight chimed in “And those were our last magazines, too,” Luna added “Get the blades out of the cabinet. Just don’t try to get in one another’s way.” “Hold on. I heard someone coming. Get ready,” Tempest offered Heading down the stairs wasn’t another ghoul; but a person with gray hair and goatee. As he entered the room, Octavia could see it was the same one she met weeks ago during her concert. Despite the carnage; he wore a black suit with a trench coat. “What do you want,” Luna demanded “My dear ladies, I come in peace,” he offered “I merely wished to see how you were doing, since I attacked the other house; too. I see you’ve killed poor Grubber.” “I’m done playing your assassin. I quit,” Tempest stated, ripping off the armor she was wearing “Since I know that no good brother of mine is awake; I hoped to give him an invitation,” he said, handing over an envelope “Make sure he gets this. I’ll be waiting there. Have a nice day in the meantime.” Once he’d left; the girls had returned their weapons back to the cabinets and trudged upstairs to see everything within sight destroyed. Piles of wood scraps that were furniture were strewn everywhere. “Well…shit,” Vinyl offered, kicking a chair leg aside “Think they missed anything?” “Hey, in there,” a voice called “You alright?” “Speak friend or else,” Vinyl threatened “Is that really how you were taught to talk to others,” another chastised It didn’t take but moments to get an answer as Celestia walked inside, trailed by the others. Each of them seemed to have been through twelve rounds in a boxing match as their clothes were ripped to near rags. “What brings you here,” Luna asked “Firstly; we were attacked by some big creatures and had to fight them off. It looks like your place took less damage than ours,” Celestia answered “Second, and most importantly; I had a change of heart. It’s time we rejoin family.” “I’m glad my wives finally came to their senses,” Discord offered n “Dad, this is for you. The Storm King himself gave it to us,” Twilight said “Damn. It’s been so long, I’m out of touch with the world,” he joked “It looks as if I’m going to have to meet him again.” “Well; you can’t get there on your own, so all of us will be going too,” Luna decided “We’ll be one big family for the first time in hundreds of years,” Celestia added "Let’s get going. Off to Las Pegasus for the final showdown,” Vinyl added "Yay, family road trip,” Sonata chimed in, to which a few face palms were heard “This isn’t something you should be cheering for,” Adagio chastised, before rubbing her temple “This is serious business. How you managed to receive PhDs; I’ll never know." “I know, but we’re all together again,” Sonata argued “That’s worth celebrating. As for my degrees; I studied what I liked.” “If you’re done chatting; we need to grab a few cars and get going,” Cadence stated “Considering our new size; perhaps an SUV for both of us,” Celestia suggested “That would work,” Luna mused “Before we go anywhere, I want to know why you attacked our house,” Aria demanded “A few of those fuckers had purple hair like you.” “I worked for the Storm King but had a change of heart,” Tempest answered “He probably sent those ghouls to taunt you into submission. I’d recommend we get going before anything else. The last thing you’d want to do is keep him waiting.” “I’ll leave the decisions of vehicles to you ladies,” Discord decided “I know nothing of this era’s transportation methods.” From the original mess that took up every inch of floor; the servants were able to have most of the damage cleared aside as Luna led the group inside the house. “Thanks everyone for getting this cleaned,” Luna offered “Of course, mistress. The creatures have been disposed off and now we need to get the house cleaned up. With any luck; all we’d have left is to repair the structural damage,” one of the workers answered “We’ll leave it to you,” Luna said “We’ve got something to take care of.” “This is an impressive house you’ve made,” Discord mused “It’s such a shame it’s been damaged.” “We were lucky to move downstairs and fight them using a choke point,” Twilight answered “An old tactic that works wonders,” he added “I know we said we’d take a couple SUVs; but why not use the super stretch limo,” Vinyl suggested “I don’t think we need to draw attention to ourselves,” Octavia replied “And sir; I’d recommend you covering the sword. You don’t want to get caught with it.” “I have already been told by police about not having my sword on me. For this; I’ll just keep it hidden and hope no one notices it,” he answered “I’ll grab a car and meet you lot later,” Tempest decided Luna grabbed one of the SUVs and helped her husband into the passenger’s seat as Octavia, Vinyl and Twilight climbed into the back seat. Celestia decided a multi row van should have been big enough to keep her girls from fighting each other. Considering the dislike she’d already received; Tempest grabbed the keys to one of the sports cars and took off. “What exactly did that letter say,” Luna asked “It was an order to come to someplace called ‘Las Pegasus' and the Maretro-Goldwhinny-Mayor hotel; whatever that is,” Discord answered “A hotel is a big temporary residence for people to stay in,” Twilight simplified “The city has countless scattered around the area, but a good collection positioned down one street, commonly known as the ‘Strip'. In general; the city is notorious for its gambling.” “Seems interesting,” he said, stroking his beard “Why would he direct me there?” “I wouldn’t know,” Luna offered “Perhaps something else,” Vinyl suggested “The city is pretty well known and has video footage shown frequently. Why wouldn’t he want to have it shown to everyone?” “I don’t put it past him,” Discord mused “Although why would anyone else need to see us?” “Well; all we can do is just wait until we get to the city instead of making baseless speculations,” Luna stated “We’ll be there in a few hours since I’m not going to drive any faster than the speed limit." “I hate to say it mom; but this has been a long time coming,” Cadence mused “It really has been too long,” Celestia answered “That young woman, Octavia; entering the house was the spark necessary, although we really haven’t been feeding from mortals in a long time.” “I’m glad we can be together again,” Sonata chimed in “Now we can all live in one house again.” “It pains me to see our place practically demolished by those creatures,” Aria stated, pounding a fist into her other hand “Especially when so much money went into those rooms,” Adagio added “At least we survived,” Cadence offered “Besides; it’s only furniture; we could always get the items again.” “It just wouldn’t be the same,” Adagio countered “Everything was either special ordered or bought during specific times in history.” “What’s done is done,” Celestia stated “All we can do is move on and make the most of our lives.” A few hours later; the three vehicles were pulling into town as they slowed to the casino. Once the cars were taken into valet; they made their way into the casino. ‘Will the party of old geezers report to the arena?’ “Really,” Aria muttered “Let me at that bastard." “Now, now,” Discord offered, putting a hand on her shoulder “It’s not nice to jump ahead of me. I have the first opportunity.” “If you’re the group in question,” a server commented “Follow the signs that were put up. They’ll lead you to your destination.” “Who put the signs up,” Twilight asked “Some older gentleman paid us off,” the cashier answered “He looks like he might have been your twin.” “Thank you for your time,” Discord said with a bow “He is indeed my brother.” Upon entering the arena; they were met with a wrestling ring and various weapons around the area. Vinyl slid down one the rails and landed about halfway above the ring area on the second tier of seats. “Ladies and gentlemen; welcome to the show,” a voice called “I see we have a few celebrities joining us this evening. Let’s have a round of applause for the lead singer of the Hasbins; excuse me, the Rainbooms; miss Sunset Shimmer! And we have world famous DJ; Vinyl ‘DJ Pon-3' Scratch! Of course there’s my traitorous former commander Tempest Shadow; and how could anyone forget my no-good, piece of shit older brother Discord? Welcome to you all!” Luna looked across the arena to see Sunset, along with Starlight and Trixie sitting together. The same man they’d seen entering their house only hours earlier; the Storm King himself; was walking out onto the arena’s stage. He still wore most of the suit from earlier; but decided against the trench coat, and just left the dress shirt and tie on along with the suit pants. “Discord, brother come down to the ring and join me,” Storm King offered, as Discord headed down the steps of the arena Discord stepped through the ropes and removed his shirt, before taking off the sword holstered to his back and setting it in the corner. “What is all of this about? Why here,” Discord demanded, gesturing around the arena “Dear brother, it’s simple. I wanted to end this feud and what better place than with millions of people watching. See those cameras? All of this is being broadcast as part of the event from earlier this evening,” Storm King answered “And don’t worry about any additional casualties; everything’s been taken care of. We have paramedics standing by to collect the body afterwards once the bell has been rang and police know about this. Even the owner of this wrestling company has been paid handsomely for its use and will not be held liable for what transpires. We will settle this once and for all in a death match. Only one of us will walk out of here alive; so the only thing missing is someone to ring the bell to officially start the match.” “Ding,” Vinyl called “I suppose that will have to do,” King said with a shrug With the slightly official match started; the Storm King ran over and started throwing a barrage of punches to his brother’s midsection that backed his brother into a corner. “Come on dad,” Vinyl encouraged “Kick his ass!” “All those years apart. I’ve spent it training with militaries around the world; while you rested,” King taunted “You still carry around that sword and cling to ancient customs. Get with the times old man.” “It’s funny,” Discord started “I was always willing to take the time to study under our master while you searched for shortcuts. That’s why I was given knowledge you didn’t receive. He knew you weren’t ready for it.” “Yet he taught me knowledge that was forbidden,” King countered “Grogar didn’t teach you, you stole the papers with the information,” Discord stated “He told me in confidence that he watched you steal it when you thought he was sleeping.” “You don’t know what I’ve done with that knowledge that I was given,” King taunted “I’ve carved a path of destruction that put fear in the hearts of man. They never knew when I might have them destroyed at my will.” “And I had to carry it out,” Tempest muttered under her breath Wanting a weapon; the Storm King headed out of the ring and reached into the cavity under the ring and removed an object. Once out the confines; it was a wooden 2x4 with various nails sticking out. “This will do,” King mused Discord headed out of the ring, only to be met with the board being swung at him. After ducking the first attack as he landed on the floor; the Storm King did manage to land a successful shot into his brother’s stomach, as the nails sunk into the flesh; only to be swiftly removed with blood covering the nails. “Damn,” Discord said, putting a hand on the wound “Didn’t expect that. Thankfully I heal quick, or that would be painful.” Hoping to defend himself; Discord reached into a nearby metal trashcan and removed a wooden baseball bat with a length of razor wire wrapped around the shaft. Feeling somewhat comfortable with his choice; he swung at his brother; only to snag the shirt. “Not bad for someone who’s never used a bat before,” King taunted “I’m old; but I’m not stupid,” Discord retorted “It doesn’t take a genius to use that. Besides; all those years of training weren’t for nothing. En garde.” Both swung their weapons at one another; only to have the nails become entangled in the wire; causing it to be ripped out of the Storm King’s hands. Having now been disarmed; King lunged towards his brother’s legs, knocking Discord to his back and the bat backwards. Taking advantage of the situation; King started throwing punches at his brother, before it was reversed. “Had enough,” Discord asked “I give up,” King answered “Finish me in the ring.” “What kind of trick are you trying to pull?” “No trick, I promise you,” King replied Discord picked his brother up and rolled him under the bottom rope into the ring. A closed steel folding chair was thrown over the top rope before Discord headed inside and opened it up and sat down. “Before I end this, I want the truth.” “I wanted my revenge against you because you’ve always had what I never did,” King simplified “What do you mean?” “You’ve had a family with a wife and kids; while I’ve only ever had followers under my command. Hell; I could understand why my former commander deserted me because of how I’ve treated her,” King said with a sigh “I’ve had a rough life that needs to end. I love you brother and I’ll be waiting with dad for you later.” Each of the cameras that had been recording the fight, found themselves shut off; thereby terminating the broadcast early for safety reasons. The Storm King bent over the back of the chair as a makeshift executioner’s block while Discord retrieved his sword from the corner. “One last chance to just walk away,” Discord offered “I can’t do that. Like I said; I deserve to die and want my brother to do it. I just ask you never forget me and life a good life,” King answered Of course I won’t forget you. I took time out because I was tired of living and needed a break. We’ll meet again sometime in the future,” Discord answered “Farewell brother. I love you.” With one smooth motion; the spatha sword was removed with the skill compared to that of a samurai’s draw and went through the Storm King’s neck; completely severing it. Vinyl jumped on a rail and slid down towards the announcer's booth and rang the bell; officially ending the match. Two paramedics wheeled a stretcher down the entrance ramp that had a body bag laying on it and slid it into the ring. “We’ll take it from here,” one of the paramedics said “I’ll help you out. It’s the last courtesy I can offer,” Discord retorted The body bag was slid into the ring as Discord made sure to open it and carefully placed his brother’s body inside before the paramedics retrieved it and loaded it onto the stretcher. “Congratulations dad,” Vinyl offered as she hugged him “I don’t know about being congratulations about what I did,” he said with a sigh “I do know that I need a drink.” “Mom, it’s been too long,” Sunset offered “You decided to go out on your own and I’m proud of you,” Celestia answered “At least we can be one big family again.” “If anyone knows this place; please direct me to the bar,” Discord asked “I’ll guide you, dad,” Sunset offered “The rest of us are going to head to the machines in the meantime,” Celestia added With their destinations decided; everyone headed up the stairs as the company’s ring crew set to work dismantling the set. Sunset led him out of the arena and down another hallway towards the bar. On one the TV screens behind the bar was showing the last moments of the death match. “It’s you. You’re one of the fighters that was in the match,” the bartender pointed out “What happened and what could I get for you?” “I’d like the strongest drink you have,” Discord answered “As to what happened; I’m sorry, but I’m not going to repeat what happened.” “I suppose it’s fair. This is 110 proof alcohol here,” the bartender offered “It’s limited to only two shots.” “I’ll take the whole bottle if you don’t mind. This should cover the cost,” Discord replied, removing a few gold coins “An interesting coin,” the bartender mused “I’m not too sure about its age; but it certainly seems old. I suppose exceptions could be made to rules.” Sunset took a small swig off the drink before Discord gave a silent toast and had some. Before he could finish the bottle; someone tapped him on the arm to get his attention. “Would you mind if I joined you in a drink,” Tempest asked “Be my guest,” Discord answered, handing her the bottle “You may need it just as much as I did.” “I actually hate to see it happen; but I’m also glad it’s over,” Tempest mused “I’ve hated the things he told me to do; but I was too afraid to leave or say anything. At least I have the chance to start anew; or at least I hope so.” “Of course you have a second chance.” “Why would you give me a chance so easily,” she questioned “From what I’ve heard; my family’s ancestors were notorious for second chances. They felt that a person should have the ability to redeem themselves and not be judged for things out of their control,” he answered, measuring his words carefully “Thank you so much,” she said bowing her head “It means so much to finally be accepted into a family.
