Glorious Song

Chapter One: A Day in the Life

        Another beautiful day in Manehattan. At least, it would be, if I didn’t have to work in the morning. Such is the illustrious life of a DJ I suppose. Sometimes I enjoy when my fans chant my name as I enter the club. “Mad Wubs! Mad Wubs! Mad Wubs!” Other times I wish there was another DJ who could drop their beats that they love so much. I deserve a vacation sometimes. Who am I kidding? Where would I go? All the hotspots in Equestria have ponies who would just tell me that I’m a shell of my old self. The worst part is they’d be right.

        I walked over to the tattered calendar hanging on the indigo walls of my Upper Manehattan apartment. “What day is it?” The calendar had a massive red stain covering everything from the fifteenth to the end of the month. The stain looked like...wine? When did I have wine? “The after party. This place was a mess after that. I should remember not to volunteer to host a party next time I start to “go with the flow,” as I would say.” I think I said that. The whole night was a blur. I must’ve been drunk off my ass.

        I guess it’s a good thing I never have ponies over who would actually think less of me if they saw the shape of my humble abode. Yea, it’s...a good thing. After all, everypony I think something of has already left me or vice versa. I don’t need them anyway. I’ve got the club. Sigh. Maybe I should’ve never left Canterlot. That’s a thought for another day I suppose. Off to bed.

        “What day is it?”

        I sat up in bed and stared at the calendar across the room. “Right.” Luckily, the work schedule in my nightstand has just what I needed. I opened the top drawer of the gray, wine-stained nightstand. “Are you serious? Is there anything in my house that wouldn’t lead somepony to believe I’m an alcoholic?” The schedule was at the bottom of a stack of bills I had paid but kept as a reminder as to why I can’t quit working. My previous assumptions were proved wrong when I pulled it out and closed the drawer. It had no dates. Just the days I’m supposed to work written down on a row of seven blank boxes.

        “Apparently, I work every day this week.” I tossed the schedule to the floor and got up from my bed. My reflection watched me with its tired, golden eyes as I stumbled to the bathroom. My mane was a mess. My horn lit up with a gold glow akin to my eyes. A comb covered in the same glow flowed through my mane. The clubgoers seemed to take a liking to what I did to it. Crimson with a teal streak zigzagging its way down my head to the ends of my tail.  They say it goes well with my coat, which looked like what you’d get if you mixed purple with grey. I wasn’t sure if it was dull or regal. Some ponies thought it would be so...swag, I think they said, to tattoo a streak from the end of my mane to the start of my tail. I told them I didn’t know what “swag” meant.

        Fully groomed, I trotted out of the building, feeling more positive now that I wasn’t half-asleep. A few bystanders noticed me as I walked down the street. They waved their hooves at me. I smiled and kept on trotting. The club where I worked was just a few blocks from where I lived. The famous club, Music of Manehattan, was known far and wide, so I heard. As far as I was concerned, we were leaving the impression that Manehattan only listened to dubstep and techno. Which, for me, it may as well be true. It’s all I’ve heard for years.

        “Welcome back, Wubs!”

        I turned to see the club’s manager grinning at me, probably imagining all the money I’ll make him today while he sits in his office “managing.” “It’s nice to be back, sir.” To be honest, I didn’t really like him, but as the stack of paid bills kept reminding me, I must work. “What’s it like inside? Many ponies come around to see me?”

        The manager had the impression I was excited. I haven’t been excited in a long time. “The place is packed! Filled with ponies who came to see you spin the records, as usual!” I could tell he was trying to get me pumped. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t working a bit. I mean, who doesn’t love a bit of adoration every now and then?

        We walked towards the door together. I could hear ponies in the waiting line cheering for me. A tall, well-built stallion stood at the door. I looked up as we reached him. “Hey, Big T. How’s it hanging?” Big T wasn’t a pony of many words.

        “Good.”

        See? “That’s nice. Mind letting us in? Gotta entertain the masses and pump up the jams.” I liked Big T. He and I saw eye to eye on most things. We occasionally get drinks when the club closes early. The manager, never a pony to miss a chance to earn some extra bits, only closes early when the house is empty.

        “Of course, Wubs. Give em’ a good show.”

        “Thanks, Big T. Catch ya later.”

        As we entered the club, far enough from the door so that nopony outside could hear, the manager leaned in close to me and asked, “Why does everypony call him Big T?” At first, I thought he was joking, then I realized how serious he was when I saw the confused look on his face.

        I laughed. This took the manager by surprise as I was never one to laugh in his presence. “We call him Big T because we’re all too scared to ask him what the “T” stands for. You hired him. Don’t you know his name?”

        The manager laughed too. “Actually, it’s been so long, I can’t remember anymore. I started calling him Big T years ago when you started working here. Never knew why. Guess I picked it up from you.” This was actually a nice conversation we were having. The manager and I don’t typically get along like this. It’s...nice.

        “Well, I’m gonna hop on stage now.”

        “Knock em’ dead!”

        I walked across the room bathed in the light of flashing floor panels and strobe lights. All eyes fell on me as I climbed onto the stage and put a hoof to the record. The room was dead silent. Everypony knew that when the music stopped, one of two things was about to happen: the party was over or it was just getting started.

        “Are you ponies ready to party?” My shout echoed through the room. The crowd let out a thundering shout and a resounding “YEAH!” “Alright! First track I’m gonna spin for you lovely ponies is from a certain somepony you all know and love. Here it comes, the legendary beats of DJ Pon-3!” As the music started playing, I put on my headset. The sounds of her music flooded into my ears. Everything else drowned out as I lost myself in the rhythm.

        I heard these sounds live once, when I moved to Manehattan. I wasn’t always a DJ. In fact, I was a violinist. But when I heard the beat and saw the mare who was making them, I felt a love for her music that superseded my own. Well...I thought it was for the music, but all these years since feel like a blur. My heart just isn’t in the beats like hers was.

        The night dragged on and I kept playing the music they wanted to hear. If I had a say in it, I’d throw in some classical every now and then, but that’s not what the people want. That’s not what makes the money, and after all, the money is all that matters around here. We all know it. Everypony knows it. Everypony except the customers. That’s why they’re the customers and not the ponies at the theater down the street.

        Closing time. The manager came out of the office and shut off the effects. Now the only lights shining were the fluorescent bulbs hanging from the ceiling. “Closing time!” Ponies started the make a beeline for the door when the manager got up on stage next to me and said, “Don’t forget to come by tomorrow for the debut of a new track by none other than our own Mad Wubs!” The ponies smiled and went on their merry ways.

        “This place will be so packed tomorrow, we may have to send guests out once they hear your song and play it again with a new crowd.” The manager was ecstatic at the thought of all the business he would get. I, on the other hand, was apprehensive because I’d have to actually play the song instead of putting the record on and listening.

        “We can only hope. More exposure means my career will launch sooner.” I saw his smile fade as he heard my words. Bye bye business. Hello now hiring.

        “What’s the rush? You’re fans want you here as long as they can keep you. This is like your home away from home. Don’t leave it til you’re ready.” He didn’t care about me. He cared about himself. Just as so many other ponies in these big cities do.

        “I know. I was just thinking that it’d be nice to travel some while I play.”

        “Why don’t you just take a vacation?” Yeah right. Like you’d ever give me one.

        Before I could argue this, a white pony clad in golden armor entered the club. Behind him was Big T, who was looking especially confused. The pony spoke, “Where is the pony who goes by the name Mad Wubs?”

        I stepped down from the stage. “That would be me. To what do I owe the pleasure of being greeted by Celestia’s guard?”

        The manager looked to the armor clad pony. “Celestia’s guard? What do you want? Can’t you see we’re closing up?”

        The guard didn’t make eye contact with him. Instead he kept watching me and said, “I have no business with you or your establishment. I am here, under Celestia’s orders, to retrieve the pony called Mad Wubs and bring him to Canterlot.”

        Now, the manager looked to me. “Boy! What did you do?”

        I was as confused as him. “I didn’t do anything. I don’t know what Celestia wants with me, but it looks like I have no choice but to go with him.”

        “B-but what about the debut tomorrow? We can’t just call it off!”

        “Sorry, looks like we’ll have to. Maybe when I get back, we can reschedule it.” This actually plays in my favor since I forgot to write the song. “I’ll see you soon.” Maybe. I crossed the room to the guard. The manager’s eyes followed me, the shock never leaving his face. We passed by Big T and I said goodbye to the club. The trains wouldn’t be running again for a few hours, so I had a little more time in Manehattan. A little more time before I see Celestia again. I was starting to get excited now.

        The guard escorted me back to my home and waited while I gathered my things. Not that I had much to gather. Most of the stuff here was in poor condition or simply junk. The glow of my horn faded as I placed a suitcase on the bed. I placed a few items for personal hygiene in the bag. I looked around the see if I had forgotten anything. My gaze fell upon a sack of bits. I’d probably need money.

I walked over to the old leather sack and lifted it with my horn. Under the sack was a book. It had a note attached to the inside of the cover. I couldn’t quite make out what it said, even after all these years. I stared at the book for a while before finally deciding to take it with me. I packed them both into the suitcase and closed it.

        The guard noticed this and asked, “Are you ready?” He looked slightly impatient. Perhaps I shouldn’t have looked at that book for so long.

        I looked at him and back to the bed. “Yes.” Horn now glowing as I lifted the suitcase, I turned towards him and started in his direction, but stopped when something caught my eye. I lifted the violin that was carelessly placed on the floor, placed it in its case, and brought it over to where we were standing. “I’m ready.”

        We exited the building and made our way to the station. He stayed silent, and it began to make me uncomfortable. So I broke the silence. “What does Celestia want me for anyway?”

        His gait never slowed. “I honestly don’t know. The princess said that it’s urgent and must be done immediately, so I came here on the first train. I didn’t find you until night fell. Canterlot is big, but nowhere near confusing as Manehattan.”

        “I know that’s right. I got lost a few times when I first moved here from Canterlot.”

        “You lived in Canterlot?”

        “Yeah. A long time ago. I must’ve left when I was about six or seven.”

        “That young? Did your parents have business here?”

        “I came alone. I’ve been alone since I came to Manehattan.”

        “Your parents let you leave Canterlot? Just like that?”

        “My parents...my parents aren’t alive. They haven’t been since before I left.”

        “Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.” The rest of the trip to the station was dead silent. Even in this bustling city, the early hours were quiet enough to hear your own thoughts, and I sure had a lot to think about. I don’t know why Celestia wants me back in Canterlot, but she must have a good reason.

        We arrived at the station when sunlight broke the sky and illuminated the city I was leaving behind. We got our tickets and boarded the train. I asked the guard pony if I could sit alone. He obliged but made sure to be close enough to see me if I tried to sneak away. I had no intention to, but it’s nice to know he doesn’t trust me. Hell, if I was him, I wouldn’t trust me.

        I had the good fortune of going unnoticed by the other passengers. Turns out anypony leaving Manehattan doesn’t partake in the activities that my fans do. Who would’ve guessed. It had been a long night. I drifted off to sleep while reading the book I had taken, Magic for Beginners. When I awoke, the magnificent city of Canterlot greeted me. I watched as we approached the city and pulled into the station. How long has it been? How long since I stepped hoof in Canterlot? The guard pony escorted me off the train, and as I inhaled the fresh air, I knew it. Oh yeah. Now, I’m excited.