Octavia took the center of the stage, letting the spot light show on her, basking in it’s glow. The audience was dark and nopony could be identified in the crowd but she smiled at the excitement she would bring. She raised her bow and put it in the playing position, ready to play the composition she had practiced for months prior.
The moment the bow contacted her strings, she felt the pulse of the melody and rhythm and let the music take hold of her. Her hoof moved smoothly and initiated a sound that made the crowd stare in awe. She closed her eyes and drifted away, letting the music be her road to bliss. She was so far gone, she didn’t even notice the rising sound of a techno beat behind her.
It started of quiet and slow, only catching the attention of the few bored patrons of the crowd, straining to find a sliver of this music entertaining. It then quickly grew in size and speed. Octavia was now fully aware of it now, but was determined to not let it outshine her. She grew in intensity herself, trying to overpower the hard kick.
Just as soon as she was about to give up, the drums stopped and so did she. Octavia turned around just to see two very large speakers as high as the roof of the opera house and a turntable rise out of the ground. Just then, a white pony came out from the shadows and popped up from behind the table. She quickly scanned the crowd, smirked and only yelled one word...
“DROP!!!!”
The house shook as an irregular bass pulse blasted into the crowd, waking most of them up and blowing back their manes with it’s extreme power. Octavia herself was being pushed slowly across the stage, her hooves not being able to grip the smooth, wood floor. Still determined, she braced herself with the grip at the bottom of her cello and strained to stand straight. She looked at the white mare, trying to stare through her purple specs with determination.
She took her position, and started playing her piece, tying it into the wobbles of the bass. Octavia began to focus again, closing her eyes once more and projecting her sound into her mind. A purple knight rose out of her resonating sound, creating an almost neon representation of her sound. The white mare saw what was happening and smirked once more. She turned her resonator up and a blue dragon formed from the large speakers, rising against the neon, iron-clad pony of her opponent.
The white mare scratched her record, sending another wub into the air. At the same time, the dragon spit neon flames straight at the knight. Octavia played even harder and the knight raised his shield to protect himself. The flames almost wrapped around the pony, but then he jumped into the air just as Octavia was increasing in speed and accuracy. Another wub made the dragon hit the the knight with its claws while the knight was still in the air.
The battle raged on on the stage as the crowd cheered and jumped to the music, letting loose and disregarding how ridiculous they looked. The ground shook beneath their hooves and it seemed like the whole venue bounced to the sound as the two melodies battled for dominance on stage.
The fight raged on throughout the night, changing pace, intensity and mood as the ponies attending got hungry for more. They slowly let the music grab a hold of them too, swaying, jumping, wobbling and shaking to the sounds that they were creating.
Both Octavia and the white mare were exhausted. Sweating and tired, they strained to keep battling. But then Octavia did the unexpected. She started playing harder than ever before, making her knight grow in size to match the dragons. With one lunge, he drove the sword into the dragon’s stomach and kept going until both beings joined as one, making an indigo glow and flash. The figure then imploded, showering the crowd with small flares much like watching a firework exploding.
The even caught everypony off guard and made them silent. Then, all at once, the crowd cheered and yelled, believing it was the single, most epic event they have ever seen in their lives.
Octavia walked over to the turntables and started yelling at the other mare, “What the hell do you think you are doing, ruining my show and my reputation!?”
Once again, the white mare smirked her confident smirk and said calmly, “Look behind you.”
Octavia did as she was told and observed the crowd, throwing roses and other flowers onto the stage and landing in front of her. She started to tear up as she saw she had done it. She had become recognized for the first time in her career. She turned back to see the white mare was packing up her cords and accessories.
”Excuse me, I do not believe I caught your name.” Octavia said in a kind voice.
The other mare looked up at her and smiled sincerely this time. “The names Vinyl. Vinyl Scratch.”
“Pleased to make your acquaintance.” she said. ‘Where are you staying tonight?”
Vinyl’s smile faded and she looked down at the floor. “I don’t have a place to stay. I usually sneak my way into places like this and play for crowds that aren’t meant for me. Oh, I’m sorry for barging by the way. You play very beautifully.” she said sweetly.
“Don’t mind about me! You need a place to stay. How about you stay at my place. It’s too big for just one pony as myself. I would enjoy the company.
Vinyl brightened up once again. “Are you sure? I don’t want to impose.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’d love to have you stay with me.”
The two mares laughed and found that they enjoyed each other’s company. They walked together out the back entrance and started home, still being able to hear the crowd’s cheers.
“Hey, Vinyl?”
“Yes?”
“What do you say for forming a duet act?”
-----+-----
Just then, Octavia opened her eyes, automatically squinting as the sun leaked into her room. She looked to the pillow next to her and sat up quickly, scanning the room.
Just then, she heard a rumble from the hallway. “Vinyl, is that you?” she called.
“Yeah, ‘Tavi! I gotta go record for my new album! I’ll be back to take you to dinner I promise!” What followed was the sound of a door slamming and silence.
Octavia sighed in contempt and laid her head back on the pillow. “I love that mare.” she whispered before she fell back asleep.
