Musical Labyrinth

Once they leave the room, it disappeared in front of them. All that's left was a dead end. The clock on the ceiling didn’t restart, it just kept on ticking. It’s as though the culprit didn’t want the clock to restart if some pony enters the maze.

Vinyl and Octavia spotted it above them. It was the most jaw-dropping and frightening sight they’ve seen. Staring at it feels like gazing into a deep vortex, with no hope of escaping. It triggered a memory for both the cellist pony and DJ unicorn.

“It’s a time limit,” Vinyl spoke in a quiet voice. This wasn’t the way she usually speaks.

“I thought this was made up when we were told about this.” Octavia snapped in a panicky state. When she was a filly, she thought the giant clock was a rouse to make it scarier.

Wes can see their expressions. They were exactly the same. He thought why they didn’t get along with each other. He couldn’t think of a single reason. The one reason he thought was stupid was having them fight against each other. It couldn’t be about their musical backgrounds.

Applejack watched the hand move by itself. “How much time do we have?”

Vinyl and Octavia were no longer intimidated by the clock. They calculated the amount of time remaining: 9 hours and 28 minutes. Vinyl told them how long the captured ponies have in order to escape. “Whoever is brought here has 10 hours to escape.”

“What happens if the clock reaches zero?” asked Fluttershy.

“Every pony will die.” Octavia couldn’t bear to see their reactions. All of the Mane 6 were horrified. She couldn't turn away. Vinyl felt the same way. She too hated seeing their once rulers of Equestria, facing their darkest moment of their lives.

Wes wanted them to focus on their mission. “If that clock still ticks down, we lose precious time before we know it.”

This made the Mane 6 snap out of their fear. Vinyl and Octavia didn’t think this happened. Although the fear still clouds their minds, they didn’t let it interfere.

“So what do we do?” Rainbow Dash asked.

Pinkie brought something that might be a way of finding the Alicorn princesses. “We’ll use my Party Cannon!”

“How the hell did you bring that?” Wes didn’t think that Pinkie Pie didn’t bring anything. “It couldn’t fit in your bag.”

Twilight gave him an explanation. “This isn’t Earth Wes. We use magic in Equestria.”

Wes raised his eyebrows. He wasn’t a fan of fantasy. Even when he first arrived in Equestria, he can’t escape the fact it’s all real. He became accustomed to bonding with Octavia and Vinyl, the thought never came to his mind.

They went around the maze searching for Luna, Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armour. They all went in different directions, they lost track of how many turns they took. They don’t know how the Musical Labyrinth works, they weren’t given any information at all. The only thing they know about it was from what Vinyl and Octavia told them. None of the ponies could come up with an ideas on what are they’re supposed to do.

Fluttershy slipped on a wet stone and hit the wall. They immediately turned around, seeing Fluttershy looking injured. They rushed to her, helping her on her hooves.

“Fluttershy, are you hurt?” Twilight was always the first one to rush for her friend’s aid.

Rarity check her for any injuries. She grabbed one of her scarves, creating a bandage. “Oh dear, I must help.”

Fluttershy prevented her from doing so. “It’s OK Rarity, I’m not that hurt.”

Wes found a brick on the ground, it was the same one Fluttershy knocked out of the wall. Vinyl found a TV screen in the hole. To their surprise, it showed Shining Armour. Twilight ran to the screen. No matter how she called his name, Shining Armour can’t hear her voice.

“Brother! Shining Armour!” Twilight pounded on the TV screen.

“He can’t hear us,” informed Wes. “But it might give us an idea where he might be.”

He inspected the surroundings, Shining is near a corner. Unfortunately, he couldn’t make out where exactly he is. “Does anybody have a compass?”

“You don’t where he is?” Twilight asked.

“It looks exactly the same as here. Stone for floors, brick walls, fire torches and a bunch of TV screens. Either this guy’s playing us for kicks, or he’s trying to make this into a fairground attraction.”

“And we’re the test subjects,” said Pinkie Pie. “Without the test tubes and jars of brains.”

Pinkie made Wes laugh. He loved her sense of humour. He was living a life of misery while his first manager was in charge. Although his band was successful music wise, he still can’t escape the frustration and pain he went through. The other band members went the same way. After they made their third album, they knew he drew the line.

They made it to their first task. A wall blocked their way, there’s no turning back. Ahead was a keyboard with a blank TV screen. It turned on by itself. A recording of a static voice surrounded their ears. “Your task is to play a riff from a song that’s been used numerous times. Once you played the right sequence of notes, a recording of the song will play. You have plenty of time, if have less than 10 hours to spare.”

This was a challenge for Mane 6, none of them played the piano. They never played any instrument. They can only rely on Octavia, Vinyl and Wes.

“Do you know how to play this?” Fluttershy hoped they can play the keyboard.

Pinkie Pie ran to the keyboard. She thought of a tune. “Stand back, this will get loud!”

She played “Chopsticks” without hitting the wrong key. As she played, the TV screen displayed the musical notes. Just as she thought she solved it, a giant buzz hit their eardrums. It was the wrong one. Pinkie Pie’s jaw dropped hard, but she quickly recovered.

After that failed attempt, she let Wes, Vinyl and Octavia handle it. “Oh well I tried, you guys should handle this.”
Octavia thought of a tune. Even though she plays the cello, she played other instruments before being accustomed to her signature instrument. She slowly played Moonlight Sonata. All of the ponies were amazed.

“She’s very skilled,” said Fluttershy.

“Such a delight for the ears!” astonished Rarity.

Octavia played an abridged version. Even though they’re against the clock, she didn’t try to rush through it. She’s a skilled musician, she knew getting through it as quickly as possible, can ruin the experience.

Sadly the loud buzzer changed her mood. The noise indicates that it’s wrong one, Octavia treated it as a response from the audience of a concert. None of the ponies were aware of it. Wes was the only person who can see it through her.
It was Vinyl’s turn. She thought of song she remembered practising at a young age. It was the keyboard solo of Yes’ Roundabout. She’s very active when playing a solo or riff. Octavia is the complete opposite, she plays music in a slower and calmer pace.

Not even Vinyl’s mad keyboard skills can prevent the buzzing from happening. Unlike Octavia, she took it bit lightly. After all she was mistreated in her younger years. Wes is still the only person who knows what going on in Vinyl and Octavia’s minds.

“I guess Wes is the only one left,” said Applejack.

Pinkie Pie can see Rarity staring at the clock. She raised her eyebrow. “Why are you staring at that?”

“I just thought of a fabulous trend for my next dress!” Rarity wasn’t in a panicky state anymore. Her love for fashion got her mind off the thought of being trapped in a labyrinth.

Wes remembered what the recording said. A riff from a song that’s been used numerous times. He knew that it has to be a keyboard riff. “I think I know what it is.”

He played the riff, the ponies thought he was playing it over and over again. Then the song played, it was “All Star” by Smash Mouth. It only played the chorus rather than the rest of the tune. The giant screen emerged with wall, it disappeared entirely. The wall then split into two, revealing a path.

“That’s one task completed,” Rainbow Dash said with relief.

“No time to stand around now. We have to find my brother, Cadence and the Alicorn princesses,” reminded Twilight.
They continued on searching, they don’t know what’s going to happen next. The clock had 9 hours remaining. It’s very difficult not to see that giant timer over their heads. It’s almost as though it’s alive, watching over them.

“Do they give you instruments for-” Twilight’s sentence was cut off by a sudden change in the passage.

It grew wider, a new path intersected the other. Before they said anything else, a wall broke through the ground cutting the Mane 6 off from Wes, Octavia and Vinyl. They weren’t aware of how this works. They know they must face challenges, they weren’t told about the maze changing its foundation.

“Vinyl! Octavia! Wes!” cried Fluttershy. “Are you OK?”

“We can hear you,” Wes answered.

All they can do now is go in separate directions. They have better chance of finding the Alicorn princesses, the rulers of the Crystal Empire, either one of the four or all of them.

“Guess we should split up.” Twilight looked at the wall. “Oh wait, that did.”

“She’s right,” agreed Rarity. “Something terrible might have happened to Celestia and Luna.”

“Can’t imagine what will the Crystal Empire will be like without Shining Armour and Cadence.” Fluttershy is on the same page. She too is just as worried as Rarity.

Pinkie was up for the challenge. She wasn’t worried or frightened. She knew this was just a warm up. “Come on girls. Let’s face the music.”

All of the Mane 6 marched on. But before leaving Wes, Octavia and Vinyl; Pinkie ran back. “By the way Wes, how did you learn to play the piano?”

“I come from a family of musicians,” Wes answered.

“Okey Dokey!” Pinkie dashed off to rejoin her friends.

Wes joined Octavia and Vinyl. Neither group knew what will happen if they screw up a task, cheat, or bail at the last minute.