//------------------------------// // Chapter 12 // Story: My Little Pony: Symphony of Fire // by LordStarKnight //------------------------------// Chapter 12 For Kenneth, all the gold in the world would not have been worth the amber nectar he had in his hand and in which the moon was reflecting. He used to be offered a drink after a performance, but this was the first time it wasn’t cheap beer. No, what he put on his lips and made his taste buds dance was first class. He took the time to breathe in the flowery scent of the royal garden as he leaned on the balcony overlooking the kingdom of Equestria. Rather than the hubbub of the guests around him, Kenneth preferred to savor the caresses of the wind, the freshness of the crystal bottle placed on the railing, and smile at the few compliments that he received from time to time from the noble ponies who surrounded him at a reasonable distance. The whiskey cleared his throat and made him breathe out an exhilarated breath that shot from the depths of his lungs. “That’s not polite at all you know,” said a delicate lady’s voice. The young man discovered the alicorn of the night in her silver and purple robe. She went through the door separating the ballroom from the gardens as a peacock entered a poultry yard. Some ponies bowed slightly at her approach. Her regal posture could not, however, conceal the joy revealed by her beaming smile. "I didn't expect to see you again for the rest of the evening, I admit," Kenneth said. "Are you tired of your subjects’ admiration?" "A princess does not need to indulge in the flattery of her people, Kenneth," she replied with dignity. “Besides, it was more about respect than admiration.” “That doesn't mean you didn't like it.” The dark alicorn relaxed her posture without losing her smile. Her eyes changed from pride to gratitude. "I admit. And I owe it to you." “Nah! It was nothing at all." “Maybe to you, but to me it matters a lot.” Luna's harmonious voice seemed to jump for a note. “I was very apprehensive about attending this celebration, but thanks to you, I finally have the hope of being accepted by my subjects.” "You mean those guys who were talking about you behind your back an hour ago?" the young man asked with a small laugh. Luna let out a deep sigh before sweeping her gaze over the gardens invaded by noble ponies savoring their champagne and their own voices. “They are not perfect, but they are my people. I will always love them. Even when it is not reciprocated.” Kenneth suppressed a taunt as best he could. “Not sure I would have forgiven them that easily. Well, at least they know how to choose a good bottle." “I’m glad that Fancy Pants’ recommendation pleased you. It comes from the royal cellar, you know. We only keep the best drinks from the entire world.” “I can taste that.” Kenneth took another sip of the amber brew before noticing the half accusing, half amused look the Night Princess was giving him. "You know, politeness would require you to offer me a drink." Kenneth arched an eyebrow that hung over an amused smile. “Why would I? I'm sure you have enough authority to ask a servant for a drink, and I got this whiskey because I was a freaking good singer. And by the way, I only have one glass.” “Although you are right on all points,” admitted the princess with her dignity uneroded, “my authority and your manners are in no way related. I was with you as a duet during this performance, and I am not some snooty girl who fusses because of a simple glass. The question is therefore rather: are you selfish to the point of refusing to share with your wonderful partner the fruit of your success?” Kenneth’s smile melted as his eyes widened at the elated but solemn face of the unicorn. “Okay, total victory for you,” admitted Kenneth while filling his glass and handing it. The princess levitated the drink with her magic, then swirled the glass delicately. She brought it up to her muzzle to appreciate the scent. She savored a sip with almost haughty delight. “Not bad,” she declared. “A bit acidulous but with a great deal of character.” “If you say so,” Kenneth said with a smile. "I’m more of a beer aficionado. Once, I tried to test all the beers the bars from The Battery to Central Park had. I passed out before getting to Little Italy.” Luna didn't know what he was talking about, but the very thought of Kenneth staggering through the streets like a spinning top made her chuckle. “Why do something so absurd?” “I tried fifty different beers,” answered the musician. “Only Yog-Sothoth remembers.” “I guess you had a good sleep after such a night.” “Sure, but I woke up with a fucking headache.” Another laugh was exchanged before Luna lost her smile and lost herself in thought. The young man immediately noticed this sudden change. “Something wrong?” The Night Princess avoided Kenneth's gaze, piquing his curiosity even more. She seemed to consider something without daring to share it. Luna stood up, taking a deep breath. Filled with new courage, she addressed the stranger with a seriousness that contrasted with her previous levity. “I actually wanted to talk with you about it.” “My drinking habits?” "No," she continued rolling her eyes, "your sleep." Kenneth's eyebrow jumped in surprise. "Why? Are you a shrink as well as a princess from a magic kingdom?" "It is important." That indisputable last sentence reminded Kenneth of a conversation he had had earlier today with a certain purple unicorn. “Did you talk with Twilight?” “No. Why?” “Before coming, she advised me to talk to you about that.” "Really? Is there a problem?” “I haven't been sleeping well recently. In fact, since I arrived in this multicolored world, I always wake up feeling groggy and exhausted. It gets better after a good breakfast, but I need daily naps to keep from feeling like I'm on the verge of collapsing. More than usual I mean. Twilight told me to talk to you about that, while, with all due respect, I thought I would rather see a doctor than a princess.” His interlocutor remained silent. She weighed her every word with an attention that intrigued the musician. “Interesting…” whispered Luna. “So why did you want to talk to me about my sleep if you didn’t know that?” The princess snapped out of her thoughts and met Kenneth's gaze with an icy precision that sent chills down his back. “What do you know about the dream realm?” “Nothing apart from what you told me last time: that you rule it and take care of people’s dreams or something like that.” “I can travel through the realm to visit them, that’s right.” “A bit intrusive, don’t you think?” “I’m aware of that. That’s why I only enter into nightmares to help those who can’t face and understand them. The problem is that, recently, a strange dream appeared there.” “Aren’t all dreams a bit weird?” “Please, let me explain. Every dream appears to me like a bubble of light showing what happens in it. However, this one is completely dark. It looks like an obsidian sphere or a drop of ink.” “Okay,” accepted Kenneth, a bit lost, “and that’s not a nightmare?” “No, nightmares look like dreams in appearance. I find them thanks to the fear they produce and that I feel. This black bubble is something else. I tried to enter in but it didn't let me. So I tried to perceive what it was and had inside thanks to my magic.” Luna could see how strange these words were to the human. He was in uncharted territory, with no knowledge of what magic was, but he listened intently. “What did you discover? And what does it have to do with me?” “That’s the point. I saw you.” Kenneth stood speechless, letting Luna continue. “When I focused on the sphere, I perceived a song, then images. Not very long, but long enough to remember it clearly. There were gigantic towers of glass on fire in a pitch black night. And in the middle of this blaze, there was you. Angry like a raging beast.” Kenneth stood there for a moment, eyes frozen wide, before letting go. “What the fuck? Are you sure you aren’t the one who had a nightmare?” “I can assure you I didn’t. I saw what I told you. I tried again the following nights but didn’t get anything else except very different songs. What I am sure, however, is that the appearance of this thing corresponds to your arrival.” “Wait, you think this dark thing is my own dream?” “I believe so.” Kenneth thought about what he had just heard. Very disturbed, he only managed to ask more questions. “So… is that good or bad?” “I don’t know, but it’s definitely worrying.” “Well, I guess you don’t have many ponies whose dreams look like a heavy metal music video. It’s weird, I don’t remember something like that. ” “You said humans don’t remember their dreams.” “If someone tries, I think he can remember a few moments. I've even heard that some people remember it very well thanks to hypnosis or stuff like that, but that isn’t common. They’re usually forgotten soon after waking up.” “And what about this one? Any memory of it?” “Not at all. That’s curious. I wished so many times that I could set New York on fire that I should have.” "I beg your pardon?" Luna wondered. “Don’t judge me. You’ve never lived there. It's like a freaking rocky maze of gigantic walls with no way out, only rats, smoke, and morons.” “Then why did you live there, if I may?” “No other choice if I wanted to get known a bit,” he growled. “So what do we do?” Luna thought for a moment. She hoped that a discussion with Kenneth would bring some answers and she was left with more questions. It was clear that the young man knew nothing and was unable to help her understand. Also, talking about his world didn't seem to have put him in a good mood. It wasn't worth pushing, she thought. “I guess we’ll have to see if anything new happens. Please contact me if you remember or see anything curious regarding your dreams.” “Since I don’t remember any since my arrival, I can only promise I will, but don’t expect anything.” “Your intentions are appreciated.” Kenneth poured himself a glass of whiskey again and swallowed it down before noticing the arched eyebrow and mischievous smile of the alicorn princess. He filled the glass again and handed it to her. She also emptied it in one go. “Glad to see our stars appreciate their reward,” pronounced a new voice. Kenneth and Luna found Rarity approaching with a graceful step, emerging from groups of cackling guests like a breath of fresh air. In her pink dress woven with gold and beading, she stood as proud as the princesses herself. She was in her element at this party. "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything," declared the amused fashion designer. “I just wanted to see if everything is fine.” “Let me guess: Twilight didn’t see me for five minutes, freaked out, then asked you to look for me and make sure I don’t make a mess.” “That’s very indelicate of you, Kenneth,” declared Rarity before looking behind her then whispering, “but that’s right.” The musician rolled his eyes as the princess laughed quietly. He then stared at the unicorn with the milk coat. After several seconds, Rarity noticed this and asked, “What’s wrong?” “Nothing,” answered Kenneth. "Just looking at your dress." “Really?” she wondered with a broad smile. “What do you think about it? I put some real effort into it you know.” “A bit too flashy and Barbie-like, but that suits you.” “I’ll… keep the compliment and not look further. I’m glad you and the princess are getting along.” Both exchanged a look before Kenneth declared, “Well, I don’t know many immortal magical hor… ponies ruling kingdoms, but she’s cool.” Luna smiled at those words. “Oh! And I see you finally got your tie done correctly,” noted Rarity like it was much more important. Kenneth looked down and had to admit he hadn’t noticed he had done it. “It suits you,” announced Rarity, to Kenneth’s surprise. “My! He passed the bare minimum of tying a tie?” declared a haughty, almost shrill voice. This caught Kenneth's curious gaze and made Luna and Rarity tighten each of their muscles. “Oh no…” whispered Rarity. “Not him...” whispered Luna. All three turned to the origin of the remark: a tall male unicorn with white fur and a blond mane. His cutie mark was a wind rose and Kenneth already hated him. Nothing but arrogance could be seen from his posture and face. Luna and Rarity were proud ladies, but this unicorn was clearly a spoiled moron, and his presence attracted everypony’s attention. “That we let this creature come to the gala is already scandalous. I can't imagine if we let him come in badly dressed." “Why do you care what I'm wearing? Who are you, asshole?" “What language! I won't even answer to such a savage.” Kenneth heard the princess of the night sigh before she answered him. “It is Prince Blueblood, our nephew.” “And one of the worst ponies in the entire world,” whispered Rarity. “Blueblood,” continued Luna with full, but quite tested, self-control, ”this human is the first representative of his species to ever walk on Equestria. You should show more respect.” “My dear aunt,” he answered with the same arrogant tone, “you cannot be serious. This creature certainly speaks and can be dressed, but such a terrible animal can’t be considered civilized.” “Is he serious?” asked a dumbfound Kenneth to Luna. “Unfortunately…” she whispered, having trouble containing her anger. “His manners may be poor, '' declared Rarity, ”but he is a far more nice person than you ever were.” The delicacy of her voice didn’t hide how angry she was. “Excuse me, but who are you?” the noble unicorn answered by asking. The Fashion Designer’s dignity was shaken up, but she kept it through much effort. “My name is Rarity Belle and I am somepony who can perfectly testify to how disrespectful my lord is.” “Why are you calling him ‘my lord’?” asked Kenneth. “Just tell him to fuck off.” “Please Kenneth,” whispered Luna, “let us handle this.” Kenneth growled while looking at the so-called prince like a wolf. “You see?” continued Blueblood. “He doesn’t even know when it is proper to speak and how to do it to someone of a higher condition. I learned he was found in the woods. His place is clearly not in our precious palace. And for you Miss Belle, I don’t know what you mean, but you clearly are not worthy of my time if I don’t remember you. So please, let me talk with my aunt and go back to your peasant friends. Your flashy dress will not make you more worthy of my attention.” “Hey!” intervened Kenneth. “Even assholes have limits. That’s just cruel.” Rarity asked Kenneth to go on one knee for a second and told him discreetly, “Listen, I appreciate what you do, sincerely, but you must calm down. I know it’s complicated. People are sometimes really awful and this one is a specialist. However, you can’t shout and get abrupt here as in Ponyville.” “She’s right,” added Luna. “I don’t appreciate his attitude either, but here in Equestria, we try to stay as civil and peaceful as possible. You must control yourself if you want to be accepted and not face complications.” The young man growled again, and he wasn’t the only one annoyed by this situation. “I’m still here!” declared Blueblood. Kenneth stood up, his fist tightened. “Let’s go then,” he told his friends. Rarity and Luna nodded. While Kenneth turned his back on Blueblood, the outraged male unicorn added, “How dare you! I don’t care about a peasant but I won’t accept being ignored by the bastard child of a pig and monkey!” Kenneth froze. “What did you say?” he pronounced slowly. This question stopped the princess and the stylist, intrigued by this strained voice. They then were annoyed by that of Blue Blood, more haughty than ever. “I’m just stating the obvious. What kind of body is this? And let's not talk about your manners. I'm not sure I want to know what kind of repulsive and savage creature could have given birth to such..." The proud unicorn's last insult was prevented by a mass of bone and flesh as hard as a cannonball that exploded in his jaw. Blue Blood was taller than a lot of ponies and his build was second to that of the strongest in his class, but nevertheless, the fist Kenneth had just given him had made the prince fly and collapse. The entire gardens sank into silence. Each of the ponies present, including the Night Princess, became a statue with shrunken irises fixed on this impossible scandal. The sight of its perpetrator added a chilling dread to their astonishment. Kenneth clenched his fists so hard that he shook with rage that pounded against its walls in an attempt to free itself. His razor-sharp eyes and clenched teeth shone like blades of steel. His target jumped and squealed like a piglet. “By Celestia! Wh… What have you done to my face, you filthy beast?! I’ll tell this to the princess and…” Kenneth's foot struck the prince's skull with a power that swayed him against a shaking tree. Rarity and Luna jumped when the young man turned his tense face with visible fangs towards them. Many of the nobles took a step back and all trembled like little mice. “You say your world accepts this kind of asshole?” growled Kenneth. “I’m supposed to stay civil with those like him?” He took one last glance at the moaning mass he had beaten before staring coldly at Rarity's dumbfounded eyes, paralyzed by the giant towering above her. “Fuck your world,” he said. He stepped forward relentlessly, picking up the bottle of liquor in the process. The two ladies moved away at his approach, as did each of the ponies on his way. “And fuck this tie.” He grabbed the rope that was strangling him and threw it to the ground. He entered the ballroom, violently shoving aside anyone in his way to the exit. He took a big sip of the whiskey which burned his tongue and freed his mind. The furious human walked through the crowd in the ballroom and left it by opening the door in a violent gesture, attracting the attention of everypony, especially Twilight. The purple unicorn started after him, worried about his condition and the consequences it might cause, followed him with relative discretion. The enraged man noticed nothing, blinded by anger, and heightened the fear of the element of magic by hitting the walls and knocking down the armor in his way as he made his way through the halls and stairs of the castle to an empty room. Kenneth slammed the door and shut himself away from this miserable world. Rage boiled more and more in his veins. He didn't want to resist anymore. He was more than fed up with those ridiculous constraints they thought they'd escaped and catching up with him. Confused notes burst forth and echoed in the room where every piece of furniture and decoration trembled, as if trapped in a resonance chamber. Twilight leaned an ear against the door at the wrong time, when Kenneth exploded in fury. “Drones since the dawn of time Compelled to live your sheltered lives Not once has anyone ever seen Such a rise of pure hypocrisy I'll instigate I'll free your mind I'll show you what I've known all this time” At first deafened by a piercing tinnitus, Twilight's eyes widened even more when she heard the rest of the words. “God hates us all! God hates us all!” The unicorn worried even more when she discovered that the tremors she was perceiving were not limited to the door of the room. The entire castle shook to the rhythm of the instruments. “You know it's true God hates this place You know it's true he hates this race Homicide-suicide Hate heals, you should try it sometime Strive for peace with acts of war The beauty of death we all adore I have no faith distracting me I know why your prayers will never be answered” The words only reached the ballroom as whispers, replaced by the clanging of champagne glasses and the shocked yelps of the guests. “God hates us all! God hates us all! God hates us all! God hates us all!” Twilight was so scared that she was completely pressing herself against the wall, facing this hellish song full of pure anger. “Yeah, he fuckin' hates me” “What the heck is happenin’?“ asked Applejack, whose sensible hooves could feel all the variations of the unnatural earthquake provoked by the solo. None could answer, not even the Princess of the Sun who was asked the same question by everypony around her. “Pessimist, terrorist targeting the next mark Global chaos feeding on hysteria Cut throat, slit your wrist, shoot you in the back fair game Drug abuse, self abuse searching for the next high Sounds a lot like hell is spreading all the time I'm waiting for the day the whole world fucking dies” The ponies from the deepest dungeon to the highest tower were looking in fear everywhere to understand what this mess was. “I never said I wanted to be God's disciple! I'll never be the one to blindly follow!” All the guards were running everywhere, weapon in hoof, looking for any danger threatening the castle. “Man made virus infecting the world Self-destruct human time bomb What if there is no God would you think the fuckin' same Wasting your life in a leap of blind faith Wake the fuck up can't ignore what I say I got my own philosophy I hate everyone equally You can't tear that out of me No segregation separation Just me in my world of enemies” Luna and Rarity looked at each other. They knew what was happening, but didn’t know what to say first: the origin of this earthquake or what happened before. ”I never said I wanted to be God's disciple I'll never be the one to blindly follow I'll never be the one to bear the cross-disciple” Kenneth was smashing the walls again and again. Pain didn’t exist. He was punching everything, smashing everything. Nothing deserved to be spared. He had been keeping what he thought for an entire evening and felt like he had been submitting to the world. ”I reject this fuckin' race I despise this fuckin' place” He was tricked. He was manipulated. ”I reject this fuckin' race! I despise this fuckin' place!” He would never be tricked again. He would never be manipulated again. ”I reject this fuckin' race! I despise this fuckin' place!” This world, full of colorful ponies and rainbow and sunshine and cute little rabbits, was no different than his homeworld. ”I reject this fuckin' race! I despise this fuckin' place!” When the music stopped, Kenneth gasped like an exhausted wolf. He looked at his bottle. It was empty. He grabbed it even stronger and threw it to the door, making it explode with a crystal and wood smashing sound that made Twilight finally run away. In the ballroom, everypony stood still. Nobody dared react. No one except a pink pony. “Well that’s a gala we’ll remember for sure!”