//------------------------------// // Vibrant Light // Story: The Life and Death of a DJ // by Syn3rgy //------------------------------// It was the times like these that I loved the most. Those times when the sun was setting or rising, casting the world in a sheet of vibrant monochromatic light. I sat with my hooves tucked close to my chest to keep warm and a peaceful smile splayed across my face. My eyes were partially closed as I basked in the mellow light of the rising sun. A call from a songbird above made me return to reality, and I shifted my position on the wavy hillside to gaze intently at the painted sky, allowing the nagging thoughts to return. Home. Family. Unity. I couldn't help but wonder that if somewhere off in the distance, a mare was looking at that same sun that blazed in front of me now. I even went to the extents of imagining that that mare might be my mother. The smile faded then from my face. Suddenly crestfallen, I turned away from the sunrise to look gloomily at the sun-baked ground. If there even was a mare searching for me, she'd never find me here. The Sunnyside Orphanage was in the middle of nowhere. I got up from where I was resting to canter gloomily back to the silhouetted frame. I sat alone in the far back corner of the cafeteria, prodding my hay and oat lunch combo unenthusiastically. The oats were far too pasty, and the hay was old… typical for Meadowvale’s dishes. However this was my only source of nourishment, and I had to keep strong. There was a grueling work load coming up in the second half of the day, and there was no way I was going to collapse again. My face involuntarily flushed crimson as I recalled my fainting spell earlier on in the morning. Everypony had laughed at me, and I had to swallow hard just to keep myself from breaking out in tears then and there. What did I do to deserve this constant bull’s-eye on my back? “Hey Vinyl, how about you share that meal with us?” Lost in reverie, I hadn't noticed the three approaching colts, and they now stood a mere hoof away, sneering maliciously. I felt my heart contract in despair. “Leave me alone guys, I… I just want to eat in peace… ok? Can’t you… can't you just go away and pick on somepony else?” I said, attempting to hold my ground. “Well you know we would, Vinyl, but you’re the only one with a full meal left; and we’re pretty hungry,” the brawny colt on the left rationalized unfairly. The rest of his groupies nodded in agreement. In an almost choreographed way the bullies moved to flank me; two on each side with the original speaker directly in front. “And besides, I don’t think you really deserve the food. You’re worthless to the workforce.” Again, I flushed. I was wondering when they would bring that up. “I’m not!” I said defensively, “It was hot out, and I missed the watering station because I was working! I’ve put my fair share in, I deserve an equal serving...” A sharp laugh from one of the flanking ponies. The colt continued. “Excuses excuses! Vinyl, you’re nothing but a worthless blank flank who cries like a newborn and still wishes that her mother will come to find her!” Ouch. I felt my eyes burn in humiliation. “You know you’re just a wimp when you have such stupid ideas. Your mom is not coming back, hay, she’s probably happy she doesn’t have to deal with you!" Tears began to well up in my eyes, and I blinked rapidly to clear them before they were noticed by my assailants. I was not a failure! I'd worked as hard as everypony else! Bitterness began to swamp my body and I got up, feeling lightheaded; I swooned a bit. “Would you look at that? The blank flank is about to faint!” the colt said mockingly. A harsh shove from behind sent me flying muzzle-first into my untouched platter of food. The bits of oats stuck onto my sweat laden face, and the hay got all tangled up in my mane. Flustered, I got up and tried to clean myself off. As I spun to face the pony that had pushed me, I realized with a start that the whole cafeteria- drawn by the commotion -had turned to look at what was going on. As my messy face came into view a wave of laughter rose; surging forewords to assault my eardrums. I blushed heavily, wishing I could melt into the dusty floorboards beneath my shaking hooves. When I turned angrily on the bullies, intending to give them a piece of my mind, all the tears I'd been trying so hard to hold back streamed forth instead. "And now she's crying!" the colt hollered, addressing the audience. It was all too much. To prevent any further embarrassment, I turned and galloped away like the blank flanked failure I was. Alone. I was alone. Nopony would find me here. I lay silent, curled in the fetal position; burning in the fallout of a good cry. I had retreated to my safe-haven; a shed on the outskirt of Meadowvale’s boundaries. Dust drifted in motes on the air, and cobwebs hung in the corners of the peaked roof. I recalled the hurting words Alkaline, that bully earth pony, had said. The thought of my mother not wanting me had thrown a horrid spin on my dreams. The very notion that I might have been simply given away dazed me. My mother must love me… right? How could a mother not love her foal? The fact that my ideas on how the world worked were being challenged enraged me. With a flare of anger I lashed out with a hoof at a nearby flipped over bowl. When my strike came into contact with the hollow dinnerware, a brief spark of blue light- something like a camera flash going off -appeared in the corner of my eye. Confused, I got up and spun in a circle to pinpoint where the glint might have come from. Boarded up windows blocked out any source of light from the outside world. Something drove me to strike again at the bowl, and I did. I was amazed to see the same flash appear; it hovered momentarily in the air before disappearing again. With my current predicament momentarily forgotten, I struck a third and then a fourth time on the smooth surface. Each time the same result was present.This was truly intriguing. Getting up excitedly, I scouted the surrounded area, talking aloud as I went. “I need something that will give me a good reverb…” on hearing the musical term, I drawled off thoughtfully. I wondered absentmindedly how I came up with such a word. After a few three-sixty scans, my recon stopped as my eyes locked on to a much larger metal bowl; thin and wide. Cantering over to it, I brought it back to the other, placing it down. Taking a deep breath in, I struck the new bowl. A flash of red. I felt my heart flutter in amazement. Though I had no way to explain the phenomenon that was going on in front of me, I did know what was going on inside… I was feeling genuinely enthralled! My heart was soaring, and something that affected me so positively should not be feared. Feeling adventurous, I brought a hoof down on both bowls. The two colors that rose from the dinnerware floated up to combine in mid air. Unlike the first time, when the flash I created disappeared seconds later, this new entity stayed, pulsing brilliantly in what seemed to be a condensed orb of blue, red, and yellow. The sight made me stop to gaze in wonder at the sphere. To my reproach, it disappeared. Interesting. Cocking my eyebrow I started playing again, forming the orb for a second instance. This time however, I continued to play. Light from the two bowls flowed forth, filling up the orb and making it grow visibly. Squinting against the glare, I began to mix my strikes up, tapping the metal bowl twice and then the wooden one once, or visa-versa. I took note that each time I switched up the beat, the orb would pulse and change slightly. Licking my lips, I began to strike the bowls at different places, electing a variety of sounds that slowly began to transform the orb into another shape. Almost instinctively I felt a rear hoof shoot out to hit the floor. A shock of emerald green light sprung up, smashing into the orb and pulling it apart. A wave of new colors began to flow out of the cracked orb, spreading to fill the small space of the cabin in a cocktail of multicolored light. A wide grin began to spread across my face. Shutting my eyes I noticed that I could still see the colors dancing behind my closed lids. Overwhelmed with elation and controlled by what I could only suppose to be the supernatural, my hooves started moving for me, striking out at a variety of objects, from pipes to barrels- to the wall itself. The aura of light began to form into a solid shape. A figure, faded, but clearly feminine appeared. It was my mother, I just knew it. The shaded figure flickered in and out of focus. It had no real details, but I could see a flowing mane and softly glowing eyes. Breaking out into a sweat I began to play faster, harder, and more precise. My leg joints screamed out in pain from the exertion, however I would not give in. The shape began to smooth out; the edges focused and became sharp and definitive. Clearly now, the shimmering something in front of me had assumed the image of a mare. The shape began to sparkle, and small waves of colored electricity danced over its trim body before settling in to paint the shadowed mare’s cote. The tail began to form, the ears, the smile, the… the…. “Vinyl?” The voice of an unknown colt shattered the trance I had worked myself into and the image dissipated. Turning to the intruder, I saw the silhouette of an older colt in the entrance. My heart seized up in panic. How had I been found? How long had this mysterious colt been standing there? I would simply die if he told everypony else of my strange behavior. “Who… who is it?” I whimpered, fearing the worst. “I’m Cloud Chaser.” So he was a pegasi then? This was a good sign. The three bullies were all earth ponies. “Cloud chaser…?” “Yep! I was at the back of the cafeteria when those three messed with you. When you bolted, I followed. Are you ok?” I nodded before getting up and meeting the pegasus. I had a pressing question that needed an answer: “Did you see the light?” “The light? You mean the one from outside? The sunset?” I shook my head, fearing that if I expanded on what the ‘light’ was, I'd lose yet another chance at establishing a friendship… or at least a neutral peer. Picking up on my hesitation, Cloud Chaser smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, you can tell me what you’re talking about.” Alien gratification filled my heart. For the first time I had been given an equal chance to explain myself. “The music I play has started turning into colorful light, I was just drawing a picture of my mom, and then… well, you interrupted me.” The look on the pegasi's face was a combination of curiosity, guilt and sincerity… he was really taking the time to consider such an abstract idea. Slowly, he began to nod. “I... I kind of understand. When I hear music, I sometimes imagine color...” “Really?” I asked, wide eyed. “Ya, but I could never make an image with it, I just see flashes. You’re special, no doubt.” With a shrug Cloud Chaser changed the topic slightly. “Say, don’t take this like I’m a stalker or anything, but I’ve been here for a few minutes… how are you making such good music out of nothing?” I smiled. “In all truth I don’t know… it’s like I’m being controlled by an outside force or something. That’s not too weird, right?” My insecurity was beginning to assert itself again. “Nope,” the pegasi said with another friendly smile, “I believed your light story...” he drawled off. “Oh, ok good, because I was beginning to wonder.” I emitted a small laugh, one that the pegasi joined in on briefly. “Do you think you can play for me? I was really impressed and…” He didn’t need to explain his request! “Sure!” I replied enthusiastically. I was simply thrilled that what I made was good enough to be requested. “But I’m going to need some things. Let’s look for some extra bowls and barrels, ok?” Cloud nodded and the two of us walked back into the shed. Minutes later, I sat behind a collection of pans, tubes, pots, and other strange items. Cloud Chaser sat against the wall, settling in to prepare for the performance. “Are you ready?” I asked from behind a tall barrel. “Yep!” Cloud replied. I took a deep breath in, calling upon a calm that settled across the entirety of my body. All my attention became refined and focused. The world around me faded. I began to play. Starting off with a simple beat, I slowly began to incorporate layers. The flashing colors began to solidify and combine, but this time, skipped the orb stage completely- choosing instead to rush out and fill the shed, surrounding me and the colt. With the vibrant light shining around me, I felt warmth seep into my chest, taking my breath away. Again I felt the strange presence enter my body, and begin to move my hooves for me. Brimming with raw emotion, I put all my gratitude and pride into the image building up in front of me. Neon blue wings began to form. These were closely followed by a flowing mane and tail sparkling with green energy, a solid body, and a high held head. I began to fill in the details. A ruby smile appeared on the neon face, followed soon by purple eyes and a vibrant pink and magenta cote. The wings were filled in with white and gold. On completing the shape, I slowed my pace and closed the song off with a wicked solo that broke the image apart, sending it streaming across the room in an explosion of light and beauty. As the colors faded, the sight that met me was both comedic and fulfilling. Cloud Chaser sat wide eyed and staring. His jaw was slack and his wings were flared out in what must have been an intense bout of emotion. “So, how did I do?” I asked. Instead of replying however, the pegasus pointed a shaky hoof at my side. It took me a moment to clue in that he was pointing at my flank. “What is it?” I asked, turning slowly to gaze at where Cloud Chasers hoof was directing my. “Is it spiders?” I hated spiders. “Please tell me it’s not…” my words caught in my throat and I squeed. There, on my flank, a mark had appeared- a musical note. I began to shiver in amazement. I had gotten my cutie mark!