The Bonds of Eternity

by Wheller

Chapter 4

Vinyl Scratch lay awake on the sofa of her new Ponyville flat. She listened to the silence from the other room where Octavia Auditore was sleeping soundly in her bed. The sun was about to come up, and Vinyl Scratch hadn’t slept a wink. A lot had happened recently, and Vinyl Scratch could tell that something was coming. Though she didn’t know quite what, it wasn’t every day that Princess Celestia decided to come to town for seemingly no reason.

Something was going on, Vinyl Scratch could feel it. She sat up on the sofa and looked over at the wireless sitting on the floor; she thought about turning it on, a little music would be nice, nice, of course, if she wanted Octavia to wake up and kick her in the face.

Vinyl Scratch smiled, she though back to a time that seemed like forever ago, she and Octavia had gone to a bar in Manehattan. Some dumb stallion started hitting on her. Octavia clearly wasn’t interested, but the colt wasn’t smart enough to figure that out. So he kept at it, and eventually Octavia had sent him flying over the bar and smashing into the bartender’s expensive liquors. Vinyl remembered that night well. The first reason being it had been the only time Octavia had gotten them kicked out of a bar. Every other bar they’d been kicked out of had been Vinyl’s fault. The second reason that they had only been there for three minutes, and Vinyl had gotten caught up in chatting with the bartender and had yet to even have her first drink.

Pity that they had gotten not only kicked out, but a lifetime ban as well. Pity because the mare that had been tending bar had been cute, a unicorn called... oh what had been her name? Stardancer? Or something the likes of that?

Vinyl Scratch didn’t remember exactly, that had been nearly five years ago.

The door to the bedroom opened, and Octavia sleepily stumbled out of the room and let out a loud yawn. She looked over to Vinyl Scratch, who gave her her trademarked stupid grin.

‘Since when do you wake up at this hour?’ Octavia asked.

‘Oh I’ve been awake pretty much all night... I’ve been clopping to mental images of you’, Vinyl said with a grin.

Octavia returned her grin with a death stare; she stood quietly, staring intensely at Vinyl Scratch, who just kept grinning.

‘You know, if you’re trying to set fire to me with your mind, that doesn’t work, ponies have tried’, Vinyl said.

‘Oh I know, I’m debating wither it is worth kicking you in the face right now or not’, Octavia said. She eventually broke the gaze and trotted into the kitchen.

‘I just moved in you know, I don’t have any food’, Vinyl said.

‘Oh I know, I’ve determined that stabbing you would be a better course of action than kicking you’, Octavia said nonchalantly.

‘Awake for five minutes and already threatening me with domestic violence’, Vinyl Scratch said with a grin. ‘Some copper you are’.

‘It just so happens I know where to hide your body where they can never find it, and you do have a habit of disappearing for months at a time without warning or notice. I’d get away with it, scot free’, Octavia said as she returned to the room, fortunately without anything on her person.

‘You’re a real psychopath sometimes Tavi, I mean that as a complement, really’, Vinyl said.

‘And you’re not?’ Octavia said, cracking a small grin.

‘Well, that goes without saying’, Vinyl said, flashing a bright grin at her.

Oh it was good to have her back.

...

Cloud Kicker spread her wings in order to get to work; she had gotten the ‘lucky’ early shift on the job rotation for this week. She swore that Blueberry Muffin and Gumdrop had rigged the system because neither of them ever pulled the early shift. Rainbow Dash, was of course, her boss, and pretty much never worked the early shift, and Cloud Kicker figured that she didn’t really have a problem with that. So it basically came down to her, Cappuccino, and Brolly pulling the early shift. This week, Cloud Kicker came up short.

Cloud Kicker was facing towards the east; she had her foreleg up above her head shielding her eyes from the bright sunlight as it came up over the eastern horizon. There were only a few ponies out and about; however one pony caught her eye, a Pegasus stallion that was walking into town from along the east road... wait a moment. She recognised him! It was Whirlwind!

Cloud Kicker’s rage soared, that lazy featherhead hadn’t shown up for work in five months! Rainbow Dash had refused to fire him, and refused to give a reason for it when pressed. ‘Just trust me’, Rainbow Dash had said. Well now Whirlwind was going to answer for it.

Cloud Kicker dived down upon him and landed a metre in front of him. ‘Whirlwind! You featherhead! Where the heck have you been!?’

Whirlwind stared blankly at her, saying nothing.

‘Whirlwind?’ Cloud Kicker asked. Something wasn’t right here.

‘We are not Whirlwind’, he said, he trained his eyes directly onto Cloud Kicker. ‘We are Legion’.

‘Huh?’ Cloud Kicker asked. She didn’t get an answer, she felt something take her over, she lifted into the air, her body went stiff, but she wasn’t doing it. Legion continued to stare directly at her, Cloud Kicker looked in horror, was he... was he using magic? He couldn’t be! He wasn’t a unicorn! He was a Pegasus!

Suddenly, and without warning, Cloud Kicker was tossed backwards; she crashed head long into an earth pony’s cabbage stand, smashing it to pieces.

‘My cabbages!’ the earth pony street vendor called out.

Legion was unconcerned, and he trotted along on his way. Everypony that had seen what had happened quickly and smartly moved out of his way. Some of them began screaming and ran for cover.

Legion glanced over at some of the other stands; he noticed a carrot stand and looked at it. Carrot Top and Caramel stood behind it, huddling together in fear. Legion focused on the stand and it immediately caught fire. In what was likely the best choice of their lives, Carrot Top and Caramel ran for their lives.

Legion’s visit to Ponyville had already caused quite a stir, it wasn’t long before the ponies that he wanted to see opened their doors and came out to see what the commotion was.

Vinyl Scratch and Octavia Auditore stepped out of Vinyl Scratch’s home. Octavia looked at Legion in confusion, she did not recognise him. Vinyl Scratch did instantly, in under a second, she whipped out her revolver and fired a shot at the Pegasus pony. Oddly enough, the bullet seemed to slow, coming to a complete stop just before it was about to hit Legion in the eye. It hung in midair for a few seconds, and then dropped harmlessly onto the ground.

‘Well fuck’, Vinyl Scratch said.

Legion was unfazed by Vinyl Scratch’s attack; instead he began to walk towards her.

‘You stay away from her!’ Vinyl Scratch said, moving in front of Octavia and putting her revolver between her and Legion.

‘We do not remember Octavia Auditore, she is irrelevant’, Legion said. He focused his eyes on Vinyl’s gun and the magical hold she had on it broke, the weapon went flying and smashed through the window of the Ponyville Public Library.

‘Then what do you want? You certainly don’t want me or you’d have tried already!’ Vinyl barked at him.

‘We do not remember Vinyl Scratch. You are irrelevant’, Legion said. ‘Where is Surprise?’

...

‘What is going on out there!?’ Rainbow Dash cried out in the early morning of day. They had heard several carts being smashed up, some yelling, and then was sounded suspiciously like a gunshot.

‘I don’t know’, Twilight said, she got up to look out the window, however, just as quickly as she did, she immediately ducked down, an object came crashing through her window and skittered onto the floor. Vinyl Scratch’s revolver came to a rest on the floor. Twilight enveloped the revolver in her magic and brought it over to her, she snapped open the break and took a look inside. There were only five rounds in the cylinder. Twilight got down low to the ground and peered up and over the broken window.

‘Oh no’.

...

Surprise and Fluttershy were already up and walking towards Ponyville when they heard the gunshot ring out.

Fluttershy instinctively jumped in fear and hit the ground, covering her eyes and ears. Surprise glanced around, she recognised that sound, and there was only one pony in town that had a gun, and it was Vinyl Scratch.

Surprise leapt into the air, Vinyl Scratch was in trouble, she knew it, and she sped into the air and took a look around. She spotted Vinyl Scratch immediately and dived down upon her. Then she saw the ponies with her.

‘M... Master?’ Surprise asked herself, she outstretched her wings and turned herself upward to hit the aerobrakes on her movement and quickly slowed down.

Legion turned and discovered Surprise in the air. He watched as she lowered to the ground.

‘M... Master?’ Surprise asked again.

‘Kneel’, Legion commanded.

Surprise did as she was told, and she got down before him.

‘Surprise! No!’ Vinyl cried out.

Surprise did not listen. Legion’s facial expression did not change, he pulled open his saddlebags and a photograph levitated out of it. He set it down on the ground in front of Surprise’s eyes. Surprise looked at it in confusion and then back up at Legion.

Legion said nothing; he spread his wings and leapt into the air, and flew away without saying another word.

Vinyl Scratch trotted over to Surprise and took a look at the photograph. The photograph was of a worn out old tombstone, the writing on it, however, was as clear as the day that it had been cut into it.

It said:

Surprise stared at the photograph for what seemed like hours. Tears began to form in her eyes; she curled into a ball and began to rock back and forth.

‘Surprise...’ Vinyl said.

‘That’s me Vinyl’, Surprise said. ‘The me that belongs to this world... but if she’s dead, then what am I supposed to be?’

Vinyl wished she had an answer to that.