Princess Celestia of Equestria smiled as she tucked herself in that night. Blueblood’s robots had been taken care of, her nephew had received a humbling experience, and Starswirl’s journal had been mailed to Twilight Sparkle. Celestia knew that it was only a matter of time before Twilight herself ascended to alicornhood, now that the ancient tome was in her possession.
The princess’ eyes opened wide as a magic spark called out to her through the cosmos. Somepony was ascending right that moment. Celestia leapt out of bed and placed her crown on her head. Her horn glowed as she felt herself leave the mortal plane of existence.
She was in that mystical realm where all soon-to-be alicorns traveled. Pictures from the pony’s life flew past, but Celestia was beaming too brightly to notice. Raising a regal hoof, she welcomed the newcomer to their new life. “Twilight Sparkle, my most faithful student, I’m so proud of—”
“Hey, Princess, where in the heck am I?”
Celestia’s eyes shot open and her mouth dropped to match. Before her stood a white-coated, blue-maned unicorn mare. She wore a pair of stylish sunglasses, worn more for their looks than for any sort of ultraviolet protection. It had been said that she even wore her sunglasses at night.
“And…” Celestia managed to spit out. “And who might you be, my dear?”
“Name’s Vinyl Scratch!” the unicorn replied. “I’mma DJ down in Manehatten!” She grinned as she looked at the moments of her life flying by. “Hey, that’s what I was doin’ just before I came here, makin’ a new kinda magic music player!”
She sat down and grinned as she watched herself work. “Heh, it doesn’t even need a record to play songs. I’m thinkin’ of callin’ it the Magic Player Three. MP3 for short!”
Celestia took several breaths in, almost forgetting to exhale. “I… I have some good news for you, my little pony.”
Vinyl turned to her princess, her grin not diminishing an iota. “Yeah?”
“Due to your… outstanding work in the field of musical magic”—Celestia gulped—“you are to become an alicorn princess.”
Vinyl gasped for a good three seconds. “You mean…” She pointed to her back. “I'm gonna get a boost in magic an’, an’ wings?”
At Celestia’s nod, Vinyl Scratch leaped into the air with glee. “Aw, yeah! Here comes Vinyl Scratch, Princess of Electronic Music and Epic Remixes!”
Celestia’s hesitant smile fell into a grimace as the DJ grew a pair of wings. Vinyl disappeared in a flash of light, and Celestia followed her back to Manehatten. She watched as the scene unfolded and sighed.
Twilight Sparkle would become an alicorn, even if it was the last thing Celestia did.
The streets of Manehatten had never been quiet, especially so after Luna’s return. Many businesses were open twenty-four hours, and several were completely nocturnal. As it was, Vinyl Scratch’s early-morning appearance in Times Square was witnessed by a multitude of ponies, both royalty and common folk.
The shape of a giant music note appeared in the sky, drawing ponies like a beacon. It descended slowly to the ground, landing in the middle of a huge crowd. It sparkled, flashed, and disappeared. In its place was a white alicorn mare with a spiky blue mane.
“Hold onto your butts, ladies and gentlecolts,” Princess Vinyl Scratch announced. “Cuz the wubs are gonna last forever!”