"Pretty epic," Vinyl said.
It had been a lot easier to get into Everfree Castle than Octavia had feared. The drawbridge had fallen over the moat, chains broken from centuries of rust and neglect, and the gatehouse hadn't posed any obstacles worse than dust. The courtyard was overgrown, but none of the plants were dangerous, and Fluttershy had even reported happily that a few of the shoots growing out of the old pond had medicinal properties. Even the door to the castle itself had swung open at the touch. Octavia allowed herself a small smile. If things continued at this rate, they would have the Elements in minutes.
"Yeah!" Lyra swung a hoof around at the ancient stonework. The entrance hall towered high above them, its ceiling lost in the dim lighting that illuminated the floor and walls seemed to exist without any discernible source. "This is so cool! Octavia, does Canterlot Castle look like this?"
"Not unless the cleaning staff is on strike," said the cellist. "But... architecturally... yes, this seems to be very similar to the castle in Canterlot."
"Awesome." Vinyl turned to Lyra. "Does that song of yours say where the Elements are?"
"Cadance left them in the throne room." Lyra grinned. "She put them there, sealed the door, and didn't tell a soul! They've waited there for eons until--"
"Um..."
The group turned to look at Fluttershy.
"If she didn't tell anypony," said the yellow-coated mare, pre-emptively cringing away from the group, "how did the songwriter know?"
There was a long silence.
"If we came all this way for no reason, I'm throwing you off the castle," said Medley to Lyra.
Lyra shook her head. "Well, obviously Cadance told somepony later! Perhaps one of her favorite bards!"
"Why would she tell him a state secret?" asked Medley.
"Maybe they were lovers!" Lyra's eyes sparkled. "Though a humble commoner, perhaps his skill and lyrical wit brought the attention of the Princess Herself?. Late one night, as passions grew--"
"She's a golem, remember?" challenged Medley. "Why would the tyrants have even made her capable of love? She was just supposed to move the sun and moon around and govern the nation for, like, an hour a each day."
"Maybe it was a native of the woods?" suggested Bluenote. "We've already met Zecora. Maybe there was a zebra or a pony back then who lived here and saw it all."
"Either way," said Octavia, “this legend is all we have." She turned to Lyra. "The throne room?"
"Yes!"
Octavia nodded. "Assuming this castle is constructed exactly like the one in Canterlot, it should be straight ahead. We will need to go through two sets of doors."
"Aren't there supposed to be traps?" asked Vinyl, head tilted in thought.
Lyra nodded again. "Nightmare Moon set one, and then Burning Sun -- who teleported right past hers anyway -- set one further in."
"So two traps," said Medley. "All made by alicorns."
There was a moment of silence.
"I think we can do it," said Bluenote, with her usual merry tone. "I mean, we've beaten so much already."
"We are pretty heroic," said Lyra.
"Those traps are a millenia out of date anyway," scoffed Vinyl. "I'm sure they were awesome when they were made, but I bet we could beat 'em, no sweat."
Octavia nodded. "In any event, we have no choice but to try." She trotted towards the front of the group. "I can help listen for traps."
"And I'll scan with magic," said Vinyl. "Medley, Fluttershy, stay high in case something hits us at ground level. Bluenote, you've got the rear. Lyra, center, light up your horn -- the lighting in here sucks." She clapped her hooves on the ground. "Alright, let's go!"
As the group began to move on in their new formation, Octavia kept her eyes half-shut and listened. If Nightmare Moon's trap made even the slightest sound, she would be ready, She'd hear it and she would tell the group--
There was only a split-second of warning, a few moments in which it felt like Octavia had walked into something very cold and icy, though there was only air in front of her.
Then she felt something pass over her, and all the strength left her limbs. She collapsed, seeing the others fall too -- even the pegasi crashed to the floor. This would have caused her concern, but she lost consciousness moments later.
Above the sextet, a malevolent form seemed almost to chuckle.
***
Octavia groaned.
"Miss Philharmonica?" The voice was soft and conciliatory -- a servant, most likely. "Your tea and breakfast are at the door."
"Door?" the cellist managed. With a supreme force of will, she managed to lift herself back to her hooves, shaking her head as she did so. She felt as if her head was swathed in cotton, although her vision and hearing were at least beginning to clear. "What door?"
"The one that opens to the rest of your estate, ma'am. Will there be anything else?"
Octavia looked around, and her eyes widened as she saw where she was. It was a home -- no, not just a home. It was the home she had always wanted. She had dreamed of it, idly made a few sketches of it in notebook corners, fantasized about owning a place just like this one, but she had never dared to hope to obtain it. Now it was here.
The room was large enough to accommodate several bookshelves, each packed to the brim with scores, books on music theory, and records from the greatest musical performances in Equestrian history. Near one end of the room was a large desk, replete with quills, paper, and ink -- no better place could be found for composing. The wooden walls had no frilly decorations, the shelves no silly knickknacks or trinkets -- in fact, every single object in the room had to do with music. There were no signs of meddling sisters, or friends, or even princesses determined to make Octavia 'expand her horizons' when all she wanted to do was practice her craft.
To one side of the room was Octavia's cello case. She hurried over to it, eagerly unpacking it and checking it for damages. After all, when she had last seen it there had been some catastrophe... although Octavia couldn't seem to remember what it was. What catastrophe had she ever endured? She couldn't think of any. She had lived here for most of her life, perfecting her art and producing the most amazing and gorgeous music ever heard by Equestrian ears.
Well, worthy Equestrian ears anyway. Octavia smiled as she saw an appointments calendar on one shelf that looked impressively sparse. Nopony was rushing her to pump out compositions and perform them to sniveling idiots who knew nothing of music. No, Octavia knew that she set her own schedule, that she would only perform to those who could appreciate it, and then only when she was good and ready.
"Will there be anything else?" the servant repeated.
Octavia frowned briefly. She had thought, for a moment, that the servant's voice sounded familiar. An image flashed in her head of a black-coated alicorn, with a mane like the stars and a helmet like a tyrant's. But she had never known any such alicorn, of course. The very idea was risible.
"No," she said. And then, cautiously, as if afraid it would all be proven to be some daydream, "...except, I would know if I have any other appointments today. Anything at all."
"Why, no. You have no appointments." The servant's voice was merry. "You never have any appointments."
A few faces flashed through Octavia's mind -- a green unicorn with a lyre, a blue earth pony with a tuba and a big smile, a DJ with very stupid sunglasses -- but she pushed the thoughts away. Whoever they were, they couldn't be very important. "...thank you. That will be all."
It wasn't until the servant's hoofsteps faded away that Octavia took out her cello and brought it to her desk. She grinned, and then she laughed. She still wasn't sure just what had happened, but it didn't matter. She had the peace and solitude to produce truly amazing music. She had everything she had ever wanted.
Her face a picture of rapture, Octavia began to perform.
***
"Do you, Lyra Heartstrings, take this mare, the lovely Bonbon, to be your lawfully wedded wife, for ever and ever, and all eternity, amen?"
"Do I EVER!" squeaked Lyra, hopping up and down with the joy of a thousand foals in a candy shop. "This is the BEST DAY EVER!"
She turned away from the minister -- and how awesome was it that she'd somehow wrangled an alicorn, one with stars in her mane and a coat the color of a bedroom at night, to officiate her wedding? -- to her beloved. Bonbon was wearing a wedding dress of pure white and had a look of joy on her face, and it was all Lyra could do not to embrace her right then and there and hug her right into the wedding cake.
Birds tweeted and sang overhead, and a choir of bards nearby was waxing rhapsodic about the glories of love and the pure happiness that could be found in a marriage. The white marble of the Temple of Love seemed to flow seamlessly into the altar, the cake, even the wedding dress -- the purest and most spotless of temples for the purest and most perfect love in Equestria. There were a few paintings at convenient intervals, depicting great love stories from the ballads and epic poems heard all around the world. Above, fireworks were shooting all over the sky and leaving images that lingered in the sky for minutes at a time. One burst into a perfect image of Lyra, then another of Bonbon, and a third of the two, intertwined and embracing.
"Now, the gallant Lyra Heartstrings and the lovely Bonbon are wedded. You may kiss your marefriend," the minister said.
Lyra embraced Bonbon, and then the two were kissing and rolling on the ground. And Lyra had one thought before giving herself entirely over to the sheer joy and happiness that was coursing through her.
The neighsayers were wrong, the doubters were wrong, even her well-meaning friends were wrong. Lyra had her Bonbon now. She had everything she had ever wanted.
They were in the cake. Lyra grinned and smeared a big chunk of chocolate-vanilla-swirl onto Bonbon's muzzle, then lowered hers on top and kissed with renewed vigor.
***
"Another day of profits?" Medley grinned as she looked over the ledgers. "Alright!"
The pegasus stretched out, enjoying the feeling of her wings moving about in the starched suit. There was a clean feeling to a suit that was bought fresh from a tailor. Freshly sewn, perfectly sized, and tailored to perfection. It felt absolutely great.
The proprietor smiled as she looked about her shop -- Medley's Music Emporium, now the largest music supply store in Manehattan -- and stopped to gaze at a piccolo hexaphone. Those were very rare instruments, only a few having been made back during the classical era, but Medley wouldn't let that kind of thing daunt her. She had wanted one, so she just ordered a few supplies and made it herself. She was secure, after all and she could indulge in her craft without worrying about it leading her to ruination. She could forget everything else and take pleasure in the sheer joy of creating...
She frowned slightly. Why did she have the thought, she wondered, that she had once worried about showing off her instruments? She had always loved it. And when had she ever feared destitution? Maybe I need a vacation. I think Caneighda is supposed to be lovely this time of year... and I can certainly afford it.
"If there's nothing else, ma'am, I can take over," said the assistant manager. Medley nodded to her, smiling. This was a new hire, a black-coated alicorn mare, but she was an imcomparably brilliant worker. In fact, as Medley remembered, she had taken over most of the day-to-day responsibilities of the Emporium -- taking in the gleaming instruments, adding up the books, scheduling the practice spaces -- leaving Medley with more time to sit in peace in her little metal shop and build. She'd have to remember this when her annual performance review came up.
"Yes," said Medley. She smiled at the mare. "That would be great. I'll be downstairs."
And she did go downstairs, but not before going home and enjoying a relaxing lunch of bread, pasta, and fresh fruits and vegetables. She didn't eat the apple core; she cut the crusts off the bread; she didn't even save the 'eyes' from the potato to sell back to the potato farm later for a few jangles. She didn't need to. She had resources to spare.
She ate her lunch, grinned, and then flew back to her shop. In moments she was in the basement, carefully carving a set of windchimes shaped like bluebirds.
She couldn't help but think, as she began to work on a set of windchimes, that she had obtained everything she ever wanted.
***
Bluebirds. Was there any sound more beautiful than that of the bluebird?
Bluenote yawned and stretched as the sun's rays played out across her face. She felt enormously rested, like she had been asleep for weeks. It was a pleasant, yet still somehow drowsy, feeling. She took the opportunity to savor it.
Some time later, when she felt like it, she carefully lifted up the covers and got out of bed. She checked herself in the mirror, giggled at her bed mane, and then trotted downstairs. She had big plans for this day!
In a few moments, the plans were put in motion. A big bowl of cereal -- with strawberries, bananas, kiwi slices, and a healthy dollop of cream -- was at one hoof, and a tall lemonade at the other. Bluenote chuckled, trotted to the porch with her breakfast, and then indulged in a delicious repast as the sun continued to rise.
She ate leisurely, taking the time to savor each bite and enjoy the interplay of the flavors. The sweetness of the cereal, along with that lovely crunch!, went perfectly with the soft, delicate banana, and the tart, chewy kiwi. The lemonade was perfect too, with just the right combination of sweet, sour, and a faint hint of strawberries. It was delicious.
When the food was done, Bluenote ambled down to her front lawn and lay down, letting the grass tickle her coat and muzzle. A neighbor trotted by -- the new one, the alicorn -- and Bluenote waved hello. Other than that, she did not move. She simply relaxed, enjoying in the simple delights that good food and a warm sun could offer.
She wondered if there was anything better than this. She had, she thought, at one point in the distant past harbored ambitions of rising to prominence in the musical world. But the thought was barely formed before she rejected it. What could that give her that she didn't already have? Why would she want the hustle and bustle, the endless practicing, the colleagues who screamed and raged and went mad over the silliest of things? She didn't need her name in the papers, or a huge bank account, or to perform for the rich and famous. She would be happy just staying where she was, eating when hungry and sleeping when tired, without needing to worry about any of that nonsense.
No, she would remain where she was. After all, she had everything she ever wanted.
***
"ARE WE READY TO ROCK?" screamed the announcer.
DJ-PON3, the most famous musician in all Equestria, roared in unison with her millions of fans. They thronged the stage, cheering her name and stomping their hooves. They had come, she knew, from near and far, from neighboring cities and far-flung foreign territories, just to see her. Because she was DJ-PON3, and nopony could do what she did with music.
"ALRIGHT!" screamed Vinyl. "THIS NEXT SET IS GOING TO BLOW YOUR MINDS!" Her horn flashed, and some brilliant pyrotechnics -- she'd just perfected that spell, it could produce lights so dazzling that no other unicorn could hope to match them -- burst across the sky. Her fans screamed all the louder.
"ARE WE READY?"
"YEAH!"
"ARE YOU SURE?"
"YEEEEEAH!" the crowd screamed.
"AWESOME!" Vinyl nodded at the announcer, her first -- but certainly not last -- alicorn groupie. The pony smiled coyly and nodded at the mountain behind Vinyl. "OKAY, NOW -- FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, AND JUST FOR YOU -- I AM GONNA PLAY "VOLCANO ROCK" WITH AN ACTUAL VOLCANO! LET'S GO!"
And then the volcano behind her was erupting, spiraling lava around Vinyl so she seemed to step through it like a mystic; shooting smoke through her lights that offset and contrasted with them perfectly, and emitting the roar that would be the perfect background to her truly epic wubs.
Vinyl jammed, blasting forth the greatest music in all the world to the ponies who loved her and loved her work. And around her volcanoes erupted and dragons flew and cannons fired and all that she considered 'awesome' or 'epic' or 'rocking' danced to her beat. Vinyl had time for one more thought before she was completely lost in her music.
She had, she thought, finally gotten everything she ever wanted.
***
"Oh, everything is just so beautiful!"
Fluttershy soared around her house, which was a beautiful little cottage on the very edge of nowhere. There was nopony around to scare or frighten her, nopony to be mean to her, or take advantage of her shyness... there was just her. Her, and all of her adorable, lovely animal friends.
She whistled as she flew from her living room (painted a nice, soothing pink that matched her mane perfectly) into her kitchen and began to chop up some vegetables for a delicious garden salad. She'd serve her animal friends, which would probably only take a couple of hours, and then she'd settle down on her couch with some salad for herself and maybe some yarn to knit a pretty set of socks. Her bird's feet did get awfully cold in winter, after all...
She paused, brightening as something occurred to her. She didn't need to prepare food for all her animals any more -- she had healed them all! Each and every one of them had been cured of their ailments by her expert ministrations. There wasn't a woodchuck left in the vicinity with a stubbed paw, or a raccoon with a broken leg, or a bird or mouse or adorable bunny-wunny rabbit with even so much as a sniffly nose. She had done it all at last. She had given enough.
Smiling merrily, she took the salad and settled down on the sofa as planned. Now she didn’t have to worry about anything anymore, she could just relax and rest and quilt and play with her pets (Angel, she recalled, was due back from his midday nap in a little bit). She could just shut her eyes and savor the sweet taste of the cucumber--
Her eyes opened abruptly. She might have helped all her animals, but what about other ponies? Cucumbers, she recalled, could be pickled, and she was leading a cause to help out artisan picklers who were being pushed out of the workforce by mechanization and the import of cheap vegetables from foreign farmers. And there were the veterinary hospitals nationwide she campaigned to save, and the crusade to raise the pay of the mailponies, and...
She shook her head, feeling a bit woozy. Her crusades... she had finished them, she thought. They'd all been successful. The artisan pickle producers had been saved, veterinary clinics all over the nation were fully funded, and the mailponies had never been better compensated. She could indeed just sit back and relax.
Yes, she thought. She had given enough, and she had saved everypony who needed it. That was enough for her, and she had everything she had ever wanted.
***
The spirit that floated above the six unconscious ponies was not Nightmare Moon, not really. She was a distant echo of that alicorn, a small fragment of her torn off and set aside to guard the path into the castle.
The thousand years of solitude had not daunted the spirit; for she was of alicorn stock and was immune to the ravages of time. Nor did her own inability to affect the physical world. When Nightmare Moon had created her, she had been wary of making her too strong -- that could have drawn her corrupt sister's attention. She'd opted for a subtler path, creating a spirit which could do naught but evoke pleasant dreams. The spirit could not throw a punch, could not lift so much as a piece of paper, but she could put ponies to sleep. And, once asleep, she could make them never want to wake. They would stay there, sleeping through their wildest dreams, and a few years later nothing would be left of them but some bones.
The spirit could think, insofar as it was necessary to respond to any resisting subjects. She was able to understand that this pony wanted solitude for her music, and this other one wanted screaming fans and adoring groupies. She saw that one wanted financial security, another wished for a quiet life of contented indulgence, and a third sought true love. All these things were simple to grant; the spirit did so, and knew that none of them would ever awaken.
And the last one was scared, and tired, and she wanted to know that she had fulfilled what she thought of as her obligations to others. That too she could provide. Indeed, even now she was sighing in contentment. She wouldn't die burning and screaming, but instead in a state of pure happiness -- happier than she could ever be though she lived another eighty years. And, the spirit 'thought', a small echo of Nightmare Moon's personality surfacing, they call me as wicked as my sister. Look at how good I am even to my enemies...
But then the pony twitched again. The spirit was momentarily confused. She had provided everything this pony wanted. What was wrong?
But the spirit knew there was no need to worry. Whatever desire this pony had that it hadn't provided the first time, it would do so now. And this pony too would succumb, just like all the rest.
***
"Could I really have saved all of them?" mused Fluttershy. "There were so many..."
But her memories confirmed it. She had received thank-yous and commendations from every oppressed or unfortunate group she had ever campaigned on behalf of. She had cured every animal in the vicinity of anything that could possibly be wrong with them. She had done it; she had finished. She could stop.
But no sooner had this thought crossed her mind than she knew it was wrong. She had finished all her causes... but surely there were still those in the world who were suffering. Those she had never had the time for, now she had resources and energy to spare. She could give to them, and lift them up, and make their lives better.
As she rose to her hooves, she felt dizzy again. She thought that maybe she had saved all the others too. Maybe she really had already made everypony and every other creature in the whole wide world better off, eliminated poverty, war, disease, and furthermore turned all spooky monsters into compassionate and loving members of society. Her memories, of marches and chants and glorious triumphs, seemed to bear this out. But she couldn't make herself believe it. It was just too much.
She opened her door and squeaked to see another pony outside. She was an alicorn with a very pretty mane (it looked almost like it had stars in it!) and a coat the color of Beakey, her raven friend. "Um, hello?"
"Hi!" said the alicorn. "I'm here from the Society of Saving the World. We just wanted to honor you as the pony who has done more good for all the world than all other ponies put together!" Her horn glowed and balloons and confetti popped into existence around her.
"Really?" Fluttershy could not help but grin. "Me?"
"Yes, you!" The alicorn guided her back into her living room. "You've done it all! Take a load off, Fluttershy. Rest easy in the knowledge that you and you alone have brought light to the darkness, peace to the weary, and happiness to the... sad!"
"Oh, my." Fluttershy smiled. "I hadn't realized I'd done so much..."
"Even more than you can know! You should take some time to relax, now. You--"
But Fluttershy was already shaking her head. "Oh, I can't..." she said. "Even if I've given a lot... now that I have so much, I need to find those I haven't helped yet." And she began to trot back towards the door.
The alicorn seemed flumoxed. "But -- but you've already done enough."
"I'm not even tired yet," said Fluttershy, smiling slightly. "I can help a little more before I rest. I have so much to give, how could I keep it to myself?"
"You deserve a rest," urged the alicorn.
Fluttershy shook her head. "Those with resources have a duty to help those without," she quoted. "My parents taught me that. My mom's a teacher in a really poor town at the edge of Equestria... but she's a great teacher, and she's working very hard for students that don't have any other pony to teach them. My dad's a member of the House of Commons, and he works hard every day helping to ensure that Equestria runs well. They give their all for other ponies. I have to do the same."
The alicorn reached out to stop Fluttershy, but the pegasus trotted past her and left her house. She said, "With all those other ponies helped, I'll probably have to go far to find more that need it."
"No other ponies need help!" called the alicorn, hurrying after her.
"There's always somepony that could use a helping hoof," said Fluttershy.
"But-- no!"
As Fluttershy walked down her path, the sky before her suddenly darkened and crackled. A fierce wind blew through the field, causing Fluttershy to squeak and jump backwards. The ground before Fluttershy began to break off and float away, drifting into the void that was the sky.
"What?" she gasped.
"Stop!" yelled the alicorn, and Fluttershy turned around to see a pony as big as a mansion towering over her. When she spoke, her voice boomed across the world. "IF YOU LEAVE, FLUTTERSHY, YOU WILL NEVER AGAIN KNOW THIS PLACE! YOU WILL NEVER RETURN TO THE HOME YOU ALWAYS WANTED. THE LIFE YOU ALWAYS WANTED. TURN BACK NOW, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!"
Fluttershy looked back behind her, at her cottage -- still brightly lit, warm, and intact. She knew that, as long as she stayed inside, her life would be idyllic; she could do what she wanted, when she wanted, for as long as she wanted. Whereas, if she continued on, it would be dark. And scary. And dangerous.
But the ponies and other animals that she wanted to help, those that needed what she had to give... they were all beyond the void.
She took a deep breath and backed up to get a running start. She heard a scream behind her, but when the alicorn reached at her her leg passed through Fluttershy harmlessly. And then Fluttershy was flying out into the void--
***
And the yellow-coated pegasus awoke with a start on the floor of Everfree Castle.
"NOOO!" she heard.
Looking up, Fluttershy saw a slimy, squat creature -- vaguely equine, looking almost like a creature called a 'nightmare' that Lyra had talked about once. But this nightmare seemed almost pained. It screeched as it reached a long, grubby arm towards her, but then fell over and dissolved. Fluttershy was alone with her unconscious friends.
Fluttershy's hair stood on end. Her wings were tucked close to her body, and she trembled all over. She wanted absolutely nothing more than to just go home and hide.
But her friends needed her. As she looked around, she saw the others lying unconscious on the ground.
She nodded to herself, and then -- though still terrified -- rose to her hooves.
***
Octavia was torn out of her dream by the sensation of water flooding into her face. Coughing and sputtering, she wrenched free of the pony who was holding her and rolled away. "Hey!"
"Sorry..." It was Fluttershy's voice. "I didn't know how else to wake you..."
Octavia realized that she was outside Everfree Castle, lying near by the pond Fluttershy had noticed on the way in. "What happened?" she asked, still coughing.
"I think... um..." And then Fluttershy smiled. "I think I beat Nightmare Moon's trap."
Octavia stared.
Fluttershy grinned for a moment before calming. "...can you help me wake the others, please? I mean, if that's okay with you?"
***
The cellist rubbed her sore barrel. "Ow..."
"Hey. Somepony dunks me in water, my body reacts." Medley smiled slightly. Her face was a bit bruised -- Vinyl's reaction to being woken early had been even more extreme than Medley's. "You're okay, right?"
"I will survive," said Octavia. She nodded at the others. "Are we ready?"
The others nodded. Medley and Fluttershy again took to the air and followed Vinyl and Octavia, in the lead. Lyra trotted behind the cellist and the DJ, her horn illuminating the dim hallway, and Bluenote again brought up the rear.
Within five minutes, they had reached the first set of double doors. Octavia took a breath. "According to Lyra's legend, Burning Sun's trap is behind these doors. Everypony, be prepared."
"Yeah, yeah. Come on, heroes don't wait around and prepare," said Lyra. "Break it open!"
Vinyl smiled and put her hoof on the left door. Both doors swung open immediately, revealing another hallway with a door at the far end. This one was more obviously dilapidated than the first hallway, with numerous holes in the walls and ceiling and large piles of rubble scattered around. Moth-eaten banners and flags hung from the walls and columns of the room, and the remains of an old carpet parted like dust under the sextets' hooves.
As the sextet peered into the room, a distant figure became apparant in the darkness. It was pony-shaped, and was standing perfectly still. At first, Octavia thought it was a suit of armor. But -- when she saw the slightest twitch of motion -- she jumped back. "Lyra, can you illuminate that thing there?"
"Which?"
"The pony-shaped... thing... in the center of the hall." Octavia frowned. It was too dark to see, but something felt oddly malicious about it.
"You got it!" Lyra's horn flared up -- and then the six ponies gasped. Octavia could only gape in shock, and she knew she was not the only one.
"No way!" said Vinyl.
"That can't be!" said Medley.
Octavia was inclined to agree. "Impossible! That's -- that's--"