//------------------------------// // Verse 12 // Story: The Nightmare Knights Become A Band // by SwordTune //------------------------------// The floor of the office building’s reception hall was polished clean like a mirror. Luna flipped through her script, a brief list of all her talking points. She wondered how the rest of the band was doing. They should have come with her to Manehattan, but each of them had their personal lives to think about as well. Tempest and Starlight worked out a spell together that let them teleport from the Crystal Empire to Ponyville. She and Glitter Drops were still planning on taking their extended vacation, but it seemed there was something in the Northern Wastes that demanded all of the patrols attend to. Their new spell would have spelt the end of public trains if it wasn’t for the raw magical power it needed from Tempest and the magical aptitude from Starlight. Without those two, such a spell could be dangerous. Reaching that far away with a teleportation spell could grab the wrong pony or, as Starlight put it, drop a piece of a swamp over your head. Luna didn’t ask why she had to be so specific. Aside from helping Tempest commute to and from the Crystal Empire, Starlight didn’t have much free time either. It was exam week at the School of Friendship, and afterwards would be a one-week break before the second half of the semester began. Starlight said she needed to make sure students got home safely and finish the hiring process for a few substitute teachers. It had been about a month since the Nightmare Knights performed in Canterlot. Since then, they had been working on completing an album and coordinating their performance. But with the first album finished and no tours scheduled yet, the Nightmare Knights all returned to their own lives. Of course, Svengallop was still as focused as ever. When she announced her trip to Manehattan, he had quickly insisted that he reach out to some of his old friends in Fillydelphia who could help them sell their album. Though the rest of the band questioned if he even had other friends, Luna agreed. She figured he was still bitter over what happened with Countess Coloratura. He was adamant about not going to Manehattan. At least Lightning Dust was able to join her on the trip, Luna thought, even if she was only in town to scope out Manehattan’s Equestria Games team. There was little doubt she had what it took to compete, but Luna felt bad that a part of her hoped Lightning’s abrasive attitude would make the Manehattan team second guess her. She had become a much better drummer since they began, giving the Nightmare Knights a lot more variety to play with. Just one minute after eleven o’clock, Luna noticed a smartly dressed young mare in a suit and tie trot her way. “Princess Luna, sorry for the delay. Mister Newbrand is ready to see you now.” “Thank you,” she replied, “and please, just call me Luna.” “Of course,” the mare smiled. Newbrand, CEO of Newbrand Records, had become a leading figure in the music industry since Countess Coloratura left the pop music stage. That, combined with rumours that Sapphire Shores was planning on retiring in a few years, left the market open for old and new musicians to lay claim to the top of the record boards. Of course, Luna didn’t expect she’d ever reach those heights. Heavy metal, and power metal, were small crowds compared to the titans of hip-hop, pop, rock, and electronic dance mixes. Still, if there was a pony who could help her band publish their album, it was Newbrand. Luna stood quietly with the young mare as the elevator ascended to the top floor. It was a massive office building, and Luna could scarcely believe it was all for Newbrand Records. But then she considered what it actually took to make a company work. Accounting, employee resources, management, technical experts, shipping and receiving, those all needed the labour of ponies. “Is it nice, working here?” Luna asked. She still travelled the Dream Realm, guarding half of Equestria while Twilight handled the other half. And out of that half, Manehattan dreams were some of the most uniform. Every pony seemed to have the same fears. Their job and their relationships. The market was tough in a city as dense as Manehattan, and often ponies ended up putting their work before their friends and family. “Huh?” The mare looked up from her clipboard. “Oh, uh, yeah. Being a secretary’s a really big job now. I organize and take notes of all his meetings, file through communications sent directly to him, communicate between him and the project managers on the other floors, it’s all really hard work.” “And that’s good, yes?” She nodded. “You probably think I sound crazy, now that you’ve retired. But this job keeps me busy, and I’m learning a lot of management skills.” They stepped out of the elevator and took a turn through some offices. Theses were not the little cubicles Luna had heard about ponies working in. There were spacious, glass-walled offices with a view of Manehattan’s skyline. In terms of corporate business, this must’ve been the equivalent of a royal court. “Newbrand will see you right through here.” And ahead was the throne. Closed behind solid mahogany doors with a sign that read “conference,” the seat of this musical empire waited. Luna slapped herself mentally. Royal habits die hard, she supposed. This was just the conference room, and a lot less dramatic than she was making it out to be. She thanked the secretary and entered through the heavy doors. But, perhaps sometimes things were exactly as dramatic as they seemed. The table was almost as long as the one in the dining hall back in the Canterlot Castle. It was glass, flanked on both sides by black chairs, and awfully intimidating. At the end, a broad-shouldered stallion with a gelled-back black mane sat, reading through a thick binder. As soon as the doors closed, he peeked his eyes up and saw Luna. “Ah-ha!! Oh, it’s so good to see you, Luna!” He cheered and reared up from his seat. “You have no idea how excited I am to have you here. I almost yelled at Legato Strings when I realized you were still waiting in the lobby. But I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Employee Resources said it was becoming a problem.” Luna scrunched her nose and made a confused look. “Legato Strings? Is she your secretary?” “One and only!” he laughed. “Honestly, it feels like she runs this company more than I do.” Luna took a seat next to Newbrand. The conference table was so long, it seemed a little awkward with just the two of them and a dozen other empty chairs, but he didn’t seem to notice. He flipped through his binder and laid out two pages of information on the table. “What’s all this?” “Why, only a glimpse into the future,” he beamed. “When I got your letter I instantly had my teams pull up all the data on heavy metal. How many sales overall, popularity by each band, you, just the basic statistics.” He swept the papers up with his hooves and tossed them aside. “But none of that matters! I saw your performance at the Canterlot Music Festival and I know you’re going to upset whatever statistic I can find.” Luna gave a confused look. “That’s a good thing?” “Haha,” Newbrand laughed, “only if we make money off of it. You have a copy of your album on you, right?” Luna nodded. The tape was in a small satchel she had slung over her back. The inconspicuous black leather bag was barely noticeable, but it was surprisingly spacious for carrying day to day items. Newbrand then shot out of his seat. “Perfect. Come on, then, I already prepped some trial runs for your music.” Two floors down was a tightly packed floor of sound rooms. Each room was padded and separate from the next, and complete with sofas, projectors, and surround sound speakers. The first room Luna saw had a bunch of fillies watching some kind of music advertisement. One room over, a bunch of colts were viewing the same thing. “Welcome to the simulation floor,” Newbrand said. “Here, we bring in test audiences for all our new music. We brainstorm music video ideas based on feedback we get from here, customizing all our productions to fit exactly what fans want.” “Very impressive,” Luna swivelled her head around to each room. “Let me see that album of yours, will ya?” She produced the tape from her satchel and levitated it into Newbrand’s hoof. The stallion looked at it and made a curious smile as if he had just been given a puppy or kitten. “Little old fashioned, huh?” Luna wasn’t sure what he meant. “The tape? I… don’t know. That’s just how Svengallop records all our music.” “Oh, I see!” Newbrand chuckled. “Working with that old-timer, no wonder you’re still carrying this thing around. His name still makes some waves in the industry, but you gotta keep your eyes ahead. Last year a hippogriff start-up in the Crystal Empire made this incredible thing.” He pressed a button outside of one of the sound rooms. There was a narrow slot next to the controls where a thin disk popped out, cutting off the music being played to the test audience. “CD’s, they call them, short for Crystal Disks. One of these babies can hold ten times as much music as a tape. Since last year they’ve been hitting the shelves of every music shop.” “Now that looks old-fashioned,” Luna took a closer look, “it’s like a vinyl disk.” “Maybe, CD players use some kind of magic crystal to read the disks. I’m not sure how they work, but they’ve been making a lot of money.” Newbrand put the disk back into its slot for the music room and brought Luna to the end of the floor. Two rooms of young ponies, mares and stallions alike, sat waiting and chatting among themselves. They were all dressed in black, with studded bands on their hooves or spiked manes. Not the most eclectic bunch, but if Newbrand wanted fans of heavy metal, they definitely looked the part. “Shouldn’t music be tested with a broader audience?” Luna asked. “I want every pony to enjoy my music.” “We’ll get there.” Newbrand pointed to the two rooms. “But they’re here to make sure your music takes off strong. If a power metal album can’t draw in heavy metal fans, that’s something we need to consider.” He stepped over to the second room. “This is our blind control. They’ve been told that they’re going to listen to some music, but not who made it. They’re testing the music for itself. The other ponies know they’re listening to your album, so the difference between these two reactions can give us a sense of your marketability as a performer.” “Let’s start with the first one, then.” He took the tape and placed it in a player which was wired to both rooms. Despite both having multiple speakers, the walls seemed to perfectly isolate one group from the other. “Alright, my little ponies,” Newbrand said into a microphone for both groups to hear, “I’m going to be playing the first song for today, then have a five-minute break for you to write down your thoughts.” Luna stepped away from the windows. “Should I not stand somewhere else for the control group?” Newbrand shut off the microphone and started the first song. “Don’t worry about it. One way windows. Just stand back and watch the music happen.” Luna wasn’t sure if this was how all music business was done, but it seemed reasonable. In any case, she never expected she’d be able to see ponies listening to her music privately. Concerts were one thing, ponies went there to enjoy the performance. But listening to a song by yourself felt a lot more intimate. She could see what it looked like to touch others with her lyrics. And, once Newbrand turned up the external speakers, she could hear it for herself too: Grimmer Dreamer Come, my children, I’ll guide you away To a world in the dark of the nightmare realm Hidden deep alone With memories stowed We can play in my Garden of Shadows By the end, both groups of ponies were singing the chorus in hushed breaths, trying to match the rhythm and melody of the song. Suffice to say, they enjoyed it. And Newbrand could tell as well. “Well, well, that sure looked like it worked out fine,” he said, extending a hoof to Luna. “A couple more trials will be needed of course, plus the interviews to get their final thoughts, but I am happy to say that I look forward to working with you.” Luna took it and shook happily. “Yes, how wonderful! I can see it now, how my sister will react once she hears I actually made an album!” “I bet, though I wouldn’t know how it feels. Only child and all.” “It’s a blessing and a curse,” Luna told him. “Really? I would’ve thought Celestia would be a great sister--oh, shoot, right. I just remembered…” “The whole moon thing?” Luna raised a brow. “Yeah. But it’s okay, I’m over it.” “Calling your band the Nightmare Knights is ‘getting over it?’” “We must accept who we are in order to change,” Luna put simply. Newbrand smiled. “Huh, wise words. You know, I don’t want to lie, I was originally excited to work with you because of your princess reputation. But now that we’ve spoken, I’m guessing music’s kind of your escape from that label. Am I wrong?” “Not at all,” Luna shifted back slightly, surprised that Newbrand caught on so quickly. Outside of her band, she hardly mentioned her motivations for fear of ponies trying too hard to appease her. “I must confess, you’re quite surprising yourself. All of this, it’s obvious you care about music and what the fans want.” “Oh stop it,” Newbrand waved his hoof. “But, if you want to talk more about your plans for the future, I heard a restaurant downtown just earned three golden hooves. We could grab dinner, maybe talk more about the band.” Luna scrunched her face, hesitant to accept the offer. “I’ve had enough three-hoof rated food, Canterlot is full of them and they’re honestly disappointing. But I’ve always wanted to try a place called the Bronco Brunch and Dinner. Have you heard of it?” “That place is classic!” Newbrand beamed. “I’ll make a Manhattanite out you yet, just you wait. Don’t worry, I’ll set everything up. How’s tonight sound?” Luna shrugged. “I’m not busy.” “Perfect, it’s a date. Just meet me in the lobby at seven.” Newbrand turned around and sauntered back to the elevator. Luna, on the other hoof, stood there a little stunned. The tape player put the next song on for the two rooms once their five-minute break was up. But Luna couldn’t focus on their excitement over the next song. What did I just agree to? A date? She didn’t want to use her reputation as a princess to be the groundwork for her music career, but she didn’t want this either. Business was business, she understood that well enough. Far too many dreams of business ponies had become nightmares when they got too personal. I need to sort this out, now.