//------------------------------// // Children Of The Night // Story: Tangled Up In Blue // by ShotgunNeko //------------------------------// “Get your filthy hooves off me.” Rarity yelled, as she was unceremoniously thrown onto a large slab of rock. Hoops and Dumbbell just chuckled as they strapped her down, doing the same to the other two struggling unicorns. Although their horns were powerless against the silver, both Lyra and Vinyl fought their attackers as best they could. Their efforts were futile, and all three unicorns found themselves at the mercy of Rainbow Dash and her lackeys. Vinyl could feel tears forming, as the cold silver singed her skin. Unable to produce real tears, streams of metallic red fell from her eyes, staining her cheeks and muzzle. As far back as she could remember she hadn’t felt pain like this. Not physically anyways. “What do you want with us?” Lyra hissed. Hoops trotted over and smacked Lyra hard across the face. Rarity and Vinyl both growled in their friend’s defence. “Settle down boys.” Rainbow said, addressing her lackeys. “There will be lots of time for that later.” The cyan colored pegasus turned to the trio of vamponies and sneered. “Where is SHE? Where’s Fluttershy? And don’t play dumb! I know she was at Fangtasia with all three of you.” XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Octavia brushed her mane quickly, smiling at her reflection in the mirror. She hadn’t noticed how dim the lights in her dressing room were up until that moment. She smiled again, realizing she must be growing accustomed to the dark. The cellist began to hum to herself as she collected her things. Surprisingly, rehearsal had gone well. For the first time since she had brought Vinyl around, everypony had been in good spirits, even Frederick. It was a refreshing change from the recent attitude he seemed to have about her relationship with Vinyl. Although Octavia had met Vinyl when she was young, their friendship had spanned the last decade. Throughout their past, Vinyl had always been protective and secretive, using the excuse that Octavia was simply too young to understand certain things. As such, Vinyl had never allowed her to set foot near her home, for fear that somepony may spot Octavia and hurt her. Now that they had finally taken their relationship public, Vinyl had relented and tonight was the first night that she would be meeting the unicorn at her residence. She couldn’t stop herself from smiling. Octavia had dreamed about being close to Vinyl for years and now finally she would get to see those tiny intimate details, like where the unicorn slept or what her living room looked like. To some they may have been silly, trivial things but to Octavia they meant being part of Vinyl’s crazy, exciting and scary world. The cellist sighed inwardly and closed her eyes. She slowly began to remember the first time she knew she had feelings for Vinyl. How old had she been? Fourteen or fifteen wasn’t it? FLASHBACK—OCTAVIA—AGE 14 “Okay girls, who’s with me?” A spunky orange pegasus yelled. “We are!” cheered a group of enthusiastic young mares, all except one. “Octavia?” Spitfire asked, glaring at her friend. Octavia cleared her throat. Spitfire had moved to Canterlot from Cloudsdale this year and immediately had won over their small group with her leadership and charisma. It was absolute social suicide to disagree with anything she said, but this time Octavia felt she had a good reason. “I just don’t feel this is a wise idea.” She said honestly, looking straight at Spitfire. “Aww c’mon Octavia, you have to live a little. It’s Nightmare Night, the perfect chance to finally see a vampony up close and personal. We’re way too old to go trick or treating like a bunch of foals.” Beauty Brass put a hoof on Octavia’s shoulder. “She’s right Tavi. I thought for sure you would be up for this plan, considering the fact you’re kind of obsessed with vamponies.” Octavia could feel her muzzle flush red. It wasn’t vamponies in general that she found exciting. It was just one vampony in particular that she was enamored with. But thinking of that particular pony made her sad. She had not seen Vinyl Scratch since the last time the vampony had visited the hospital to say goodbye, after Sapphire Shores’ death. Vinyl had promised to come and visit Octavia one day soon, but as the years had gone by, she had begun to lose hope that she would ever see her friend again. In her spare time, when she wasn’t practicing her cello, she had begun to research vamponies and vampony legends. It was because of the research that she didn’t think it was a wise idea to go and provoke a house full of vamponies. Spitfire was adamant that she knew the creepy old house on Elm Street was a secret vampony hideout. She had decided it would be super cool and fun to try and see a real vampony up close and personal. Although the vampony legend was becoming a more widely accepted phenomenon, there were still many ponies who believed the creatures were nothing more than a myth. Octavia herself knew otherwise but her friends wanted to see it for themselves. “This is the perfect night for vampony hunting.” Spitfire grinned. “Hunting?” Octavia asked. “Well, not really. I just mean wouldn’t it be way cool to see a vampony up close and personal? Glowing red eyes? Razor sharp fangs? A thirst for warm earth pony blood? How does this not sound fun to you?” Octavia had never mentioned her time with Vinyl to her friends. She had never thought they would believe her, and some days she herself wasn’t sure that any of it had ever happened. Maybe Vinyl Scratch was just a figment of her imagination, dreamed up by a lonely child who had no friends of her own. Whatever the case was, she kept those memories locked away, close to her heart. “Hey wait a minute. Who says they only feast on earth pony blood?” Beauty asked, glaring at Spitfire. Spitfire shot her a cocky look. “Pegasi are too fast and nimble to be caught by a silly vampony.” Beauty rolled her eyes. “Do any of you know the REAL story of Nightmare Moon?” interrupted a brown earth pony, named Fabled Tales. “Of course, who doesn’t?” Spitfire laughed. “Sure, we all know the tale of Nightmare Moon’s banishment by Princess Celestia and how she returned one thousand years later for her revenge.” Fabled Tales said nonchalantly. “And then was defeated by Princess Twilight Sparkle and returned back to her former self of Princess Luna.” Spitfire finished. “What about it?” Fabled Tales rubbed her hooves together and motioned everyone closer. Curiously, the group inched forward, until they surround her. “That’s only part of the real story. The truth is much more exciting than that old mare’s tale. Apparently the reason Nightmare Moon was able to return was because of a strange disease she had developed on the moon. When she returned, she was no longer living, but in fact, undead. This is how the vampiric disease was originally brought to Equestria. When Nightmare Moon arrived, she began taking advantage of her newfound power, realizing the effect it had on the unicorn race. She slowly began to turn innocent unicorns one by one into an army of blood thirsty vamponies, who would do whatever their Maker commanded.” “Wait, what’s a Maker?” Beauty asked, tapping her chin. “A vampony’s Maker is the one who turned them. The bonds between a Maker and their child are almost impenetrable. And so, these poor unicorns were bound to Nightmare Moon, forced to submit to her will.” “But wouldn’t ponies notice their friends, siblings, and children had gone missing?” “Nightmare Moon was smart. She began assembling her army by taking ponies that nopony else would come looking for. She scoured orphanages, asylums and even small villages. She even referred to them as her children of the night. She took her time and her army grew, until the fateful day she was ready to take her revenge.” “And that’s when Twilight Sparkle took her down?” Spitfire asked. “Yes. But nopony has ever known how the Princess defeated Nightmare Moon. It’s also said that Princess Luna has no memory of these events and the vampiric disease no longer resides in her body.” “Freaky.” Spitfire said. “So what happened to the children?” “Once again, that’s a mystery in itself. The legend says that because their bond to Nightmare Moon was broken, the ones who survived the battle with Twilight Sparkle were free to go their own separate ways.” “Okay, I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am SO ready to see a real vampony now.” Spitfire declared. “Octavia are you in or out?” Octavia wasn’t sure why, but that story had sent a chill up her spine. She looked from Spitfire, to the other anxious and excited mares in the group. She supposed this would probably be better than staying home alone, handing out candy to the little ones. Reluctantly the charcoal earth pony nodded. “All right!” Spitfire yelled, bumping hooves with every pony in the group. Octavia smiled, trying to share their enthusiasm. She was probably overreacting anyways. What could possibly go wrong? XX SEVERAL HOURS LATER XX “Are you sure this is the one?” Beauty asked, raising her eyebrow. “Positive.” Spitfire confirmed. Octavia gazed up at the large, dark and foreboding house that sat upon the hill. For the second time that day, she felt a chill run up her spine. The house looked old, abandoned and much like a stereotypical haunted house one might see in popular folklore. “There aren’t any lights on.” Beauty observed. Spitfire smacked her upside the head. “Well duh! Vamponies HATE bright lights! C’mon gals, let’s take a closer look.” As Spitfire led the way, Beauty rubbed the side of her head while Octavia giggled. Fabled Tales brought up the rear as the foursome continued up the path to the spooky looking house. Spitfire ducked under the side window and slowly lifted herself up, trying to get a peek inside. “I’m not tall enough. Fabled can you give me a lift?” Fabled Tales pushed her head up under Spitfire’s bottom, steadying the pegasus so she could get a better view. Octavia could feel her heart pounding loudly in anticipation. She hadn’t believed they would find any vamponies in the first place, but now she wasn’t so sure and she really didn’t want to be wrong. “I think I see something.” Spitfire yelled excitedly. Octavia and Beauty Brass came closer, trying to get a good look as well. Just as Octavia reached the window, a loud booming noise was heard and the door to the front patio swung open wildly. All four mares snapped their heads quickly in the direction of the sound. Standing at the door was a figure, shrouded in darkness. All four ponies stood frozen as the moonlight seemed to pass over the stranger slowly, revealing large glowing eyes, sharp pointy fangs and a long flowing cape. “OH SWEET CELESTIA! RUN!” Spitfire yelped, flapping her wings as fast as she could. Fabled Tales and Beauty Brass took off as fast as their four legs could carry them, each running in a different direction. Octavia screamed silently at her legs to move, but they weren’t listening. The caped figure jumped from the patio and onto the grass, advancing on the poor frightened earth pony. Finally, Octavia’s legs seemed to realize the danger she was in and she began to run as fast as she could across the yard. Unfortunately for her, she was no match for the speed and agility of a vampony and within seconds she could feel herself being tackled to the ground. Octavia could feel the air leaving her lungs as she was hit hard and pushed to the ground. She closed her eyes, her entire body shaking as she waited for what she believed to be her final moments. “Oh knock it off. You’ve had your fun. I think you’ve proven your point.” Octavia slowly opened one eye and looked upwards to where this strange new voice was coming from. She watched perplexed as a white hoof grabbed her attacker by the cape, slowly pulling her off the earth mare’s body. Her attacker grinned, baring her fangs. “The GREAT and POWERFUL Trixie enjoys a good Nightmare Night prank.” “You got her good. She’s shaking.” The mysterious voice said. “Well, I just gave those ponies what they wanted. They came to see the Great and Powerful Trixie after all.” “Yeah, yeah. Why don’t you go back inside? I’ll take care of this one. A little “glamour” should do the trick.” "Glamouring" was a technique used by the most skilled vamponies. It was a way to hypnotize earth ponies and pegasi, mostly used to make them forget or remember whatever the vampony wanted them to. Trixie sighed and shrugged her shoulders. “You’re too nice, Vinyl Scratch. Instead of making her forget, I’d make sure she always remembers.” With that, Trixie swished her cape, making her way back to the house. Octavia’s head was spinning. She had already forgotten about the great and powerful whatshername. All she could comprehend was the name that lingered in the air. Vinyl Scratch. Vinyl still had yet to recognize Octavia. She leaned forward and stuck her hoof on the shaking mare’s shoulder. “Look into my eyes, I promise this won’t hurt.” Octavia couldn’t believe her eyes. She had waited six years to finally see Vinyl Scratch again. Without thinking she propelled herself forward, catching the vampony off guard. “Vinyl Scratch!” She yelled, wrapping her front legs around Vinyl’s torso. Vinyl was completely caught off guard. She looked down, trying to make sense of what was happening. Who was this mare and why was she acting like they knew each other? The white unicorn allowed the hug to continue but made no movements to return the sentiment. “Vinyl?” Octavia asked, finally looking up. Vinyl studied the charcoal mare’s face for a moment, looking deep into her eyes. It took a few moments before she was finally able to see into Octavia’s eyes. It took another few moments before her face dawned with recognition. “Tavi? Is that really you?” Octavia couldn’t find words, and so she just squeezed Vinyl tighter in response. Vinyl finally wrapped her own forelegs around the young mare in her arms, returning the hug. “It is you, isn’t it?” The unicorn murmured softly, running a hoof through Octavia’s mane. “I can honestly say you’re the last pony I expected to see tonight.” Octavia finally looked up again. There were so many things she wanted to say. So many questions she wanted to ask. “You broke your promise. You forgot about me.” Octavia swallowed hard as she said the first thing that had come to mind. She silently cursed herself as Vinyl’s smile turned upside down. She wondered if the unicorn even remembered her promise, or if she had just promised a child something silly to pacify her in a moment of haste. Vinyl could feel Octavia’s heart beating loudly against her chest as she continued to hold her. “I’m sorry Tavi. I never meant to hurt you. I have kept my distance because it’s unsafe for me to openly be around you. I would never forgive myself if something happened to you because of me.” The response may have seemed cliché to some, but to Octavia an apology was all she wanted. She had waited six years to see her friend again and she was determined that this time the vampony wouldn’t slip out of her hooves so easily. Octavia laid her head on Vinyl’s chest, closing her eyes. Her eyes opened rather quickly though when she felt Vinyl’s soft hooves running over the sides of her flank, tracing the lines of her treble clef cutie marks. “So, the cello is your passion?” Octavia began to nod her head, before she suddenly gasped. “Wait, how did you know?” Vinyl gave her a smug look, lifting her up from the ground and to her hooves. “Just because you didn’t see me, doesn’t mean I wasn’t keeping my eye on you.” She wasn’t sure why, but the thought of Vinyl secretly watching over her, sent her heart fluttering once again. Vinyl looked Octavia over in the glowing light that emanated from the moon. It had been awhile since she had last checked up on the budding cellist. Vinyl resisted the urge to whistle, as Octavia was still just a teenager, but damn, Vinyl could tell she was going to definitely be a heart breaker in a few short years. “Octavia? Listen, I know we haven’t seen each other in quite awhile, and it would be presumptuous to assume that you would want to spend any time together because I’m sure you want to get back to your friends, but I—“ Vinyl wasn’t allowed to finish as Octavia cut her off. “Yes!” She squealed, before regaining her composure. “I mean, yes. I want to spend time with you.” Vinyl chuckled at her enthusiasm. “Are you sure? You don’t have to be polite. What about your friends?” Octavia had long forgotten her friends. “I was thinking, because tonight is the one night of the year I can get away with looking the part of a vampony, maybe we could check out the jazz festival that’s playing in the park? I mean, if you’re into it. I have it on good authority that you’re a lover of the classics.” Octavia couldn’t believe her ears. Vinyl was here, really here, and now she wanted to actually go somewhere together! The earth pony looked down as her tummy did flip-flops. She silently wondered if this was how Beauty Brass felt when she went out with a new coltfriend, or what Spitfire felt when she talked about her old friend from Cloudsdale, Soarin’. Was this her very first crush? “I love music. Yes, I enjoy classical but I’m also a jazz fan as well.” Octavia admitted. “Great! Let’s do this then.” Vinyl said, reaching for her. Octavia could feel the electricity flow from Vinyl to herself as she grabbed the unicorn’s hoof. Octavia? Octavia? XX PRESENT DAY XX Octavia’s eyes flew open at the sound of her name being called. She whipped around quickly to find herself face to face with Beauty Brass. “Hey Beauty...” “Octavia, you need to come with me.” Beauty said quickly. “Is everything okay?” Octavia asked, noting the worry in her friend’s voice. Beauty just shook her head and motioned the cellist to follow her. Octavia complied and soon found herself outside of Frederick’s dressing room. Beauty knocked but didn’t wait to be let in. Octavia followed her, noticing that Parish was also present, along with Frederick. “Tell her.” Beauty demanded, as she looked Frederick square in the eye. “Tell her now.” Octavia looked from Beauty to Frederick. Parish also gave his marefriend a stern look of concern. “Parish, if it was you. I’d want to know. He needs to tell her.” Octavia’s mind was now racing, wondering what the hell they were all talking about. Parish nodded quietly and moved from Frederick’s side, across the room to stand beside Beauty Brass. “Beauty is right.” Frederick stated, earning a smile from his marefriend. “If she loves Vinyl Scratch, then she needs to know.” At the mention of Vinyl’s name, Octavia’s heartbeat quickened. She looked at Frederick, bewildered. Frederick looked down, refusing to meet her eyes. Octavia moved forward with purpose, until she was muzzle to muzzle with the pianist. “What is going on? What has happened to Vinyl?” Frederick cleared his throat, still refusing to meet her eyes. A sense of overwhelming alarm began to wash over Octavia as she reached out to pound Frederick’s chest with her hooves. “WHERE IS SHE?” Frederick sighed, clearly frustrated by the situation. He looked down into Octavia’s fierce and angry eyes, uttering only a single name. “Rainbow Dash.” Octavia’s entire body shook with rage. The way her friends were acting was beginning to make sense. Frederick had something to do with it, didn’t he? “HOW COULD YOU?” The cellist roared, shoving Frederick backwards hard. “Octavia, it was for your own—“ “MY OWN GOOD? MY OWN GOOD?” Octavia seethed, grabbing the first thing she could, which happened to be her prized cello. “WHAT THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ABOUT WHO IS GOOD FOR ME AND WHO ISN’T?” Octavia raised her cello and with the force of ten mares, threw it as hard as she could as Frederick’s head. The pianist ducked just in time to avoid major brain damage, and the cello flew angrily into the wall, shattering into small pieces. Beauty and Parish stood there, unable to move as they watched the enraged cellist destroy her beautiful instrument. “I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!” Octavia spat, looking at her precious decimated cello. The pieces scattered on the floor, were nothing compared to the pieces of her heart that had just been shattered moments ago. With nothing left for her here, she took one last hateful look at Frederick before bolting for the door. She had no idea where she would go, or who could help her, she just knew she needed to keep running. As she opened the door to the auditorium, a helpless feeling overcame her. Rainbow Dash had Vinyl, and who knew what she was doing or had already done to her marefriend. She hoped there was still time to save her. But how? There was no way she could take on Rainbow Dash and her lackeys alone. And then in a single moment of clarity, the answer hit her squarely in the face. “Applejack...” She murmured, as she spun around and began to gallop towards Fangtasia. Surely, if anypony could help her now, it would be the blonde earth mare. As she continued running as fast as she could, she could only hope and pray that she would make it before it was too late. XX FLASHBACK-OCTAVIA AGE 14 XX Octavia snuggled into the crook of Vinyl’s right front leg. They were currently on the rooftop of a well established bakery, looking down on the jazz festival in the park below. Vinyl had assured her that these were the best seats in the house, so to speak and she had to fully agree. Then again, she really wasn’t paying much attention to the music. “Hey Tavi, can I tell you something?” Vinyl asked, looking down. Octavia nodded. “I just wanted to say thank you, for all those years ago at the hospital. I know you were just a foal, but your excitement for life, really helped me get through that tough time.” Octavia smiled. “To be honest, I should be thanking you as well. My mom was always working so hard to support us, that I never really had real friends outside of the hospital. Meeting you, and finding out you were a vampony was the coolest thing that happened to me as a foal.” Vinyl laughed softly as she squeezed Octavia into a tighter embrace. Octavia blushed as Vinyl pulled her closer. She looked up at the unicorn’s muzzle. She then looked down at her lap. She had just had the sudden urge to reach up and kiss the unicorn’s lovely lips. Why was she thinking like this? Vinyl was just her friend and that was it. Besides, she was sure someone like Vinyl already had a special somepony. The unicorn smiled at the cellist again, before turning her attention back to the music. Unbeknownst to Octavia, Vinyl was having her own internal struggle. She had to keep reminding herself that Octavia was just a teenager. Sure, time and age meant nothing to somepony like Vinyl who had all the time in the world but Octavia was at a very tender age. The teenage years were the hardest, most angst ridden, yet still enjoyable years a pony would ever have. She knew Octavia would have to find her way in the world and she didn’t want to be the one to lead her. If Octavia wanted things in life, she needed to be the one to make those decisions. Octavia knew it was getting late as she stifled another yawn. “Sleepy?” Vinyl asked. Octavia shook her head. She didn’t want this night to ever end. Before she could protest, Vinyl’s legs were around her and she was surrounded by a slight aura of magic. When she opened her eyes, she realized she was now on the balcony of her own house that lead to her bedroom. “You lie.” Vinyl laughed. “I just don’t want you to leave.” Octavia confessed, hugging the unicorn again. “I’ll be back soon.” “That’s what you said last time.” Octavia murmured. “You know that I’m only protecting you.” “I know.” Octavia sighed, leaning forward, so she was upright on her back legs. Not knowing what had suddenly come over her, the urge to be close to Vinyl Scratch has struck her again. Octavia could not stop herself as she reached up and very slowly brought her lips to meet the unicorn’s. Vinyl was once again caught off guard and didn’t know how to react. This was wrong. So very wrong. And yet, she found herself snaking a hoof into the cellist’s mane and softly returning the kiss. Octavia couldn’t believe it. She had taken a chance and now here she was, kissing Vinyl and Vinyl was actually kissing her back. As her tongue instinctively darted out to deepen the kiss, the unicorn was forced to pull away. Octavia could feel that familiar rush of redness grace her cheeks. Had she pushed too far? Suddenly Vinyl was gripping her tightly, whispering gently into her ear. “I’m sorry. We can’t do that. Not because I don’t want to, but you’re fourteen and I’m, well let’s just say I’m much, much older and leave it at that. I’m a gentlemare and I refuse to take advantage of you.” “Okay...” Octavia whispered, knowing that Vinyl was probably right. “It’s getting very late. I should probably get back to where I belong, and you need to get some rest.” Vinyl said, finally letting go of Octavia. “When will I see you again?” Octavia asked, refusing to loosen her grip on the unicorn. “Soon.” Vinyl whispered, leaning forward to plant a gentle kiss on the young mare’s forehead. And without another word, Vinyl Scratch disappeared into thin air. Octavia was left standing alone, contemplating the night’s events. She reached up and touched her lips slowly with the tip of her hoof. She had just experienced her first kiss. And what a kiss it was. Even though she had no idea, if or when she would see Vinyl again, somehow she knew their paths would someday cross. In the meantime, she knew it would be a restless night, as she planned to relive those few seconds that her lips touched Vinyl’s over and over again. Octavia finally understood how her friend’s felt while talking about the colts they liked or the mares they admired. The cellist was finally experiencing her first, real crush. XX PRESENT DAY XX Octavia gasped for air, her chest heaving as she began to pound relentlessly on the door. “APPLEJACK? RARITY? ANYPONY? PLEASE HELP ME!” Her hooves began to crack and bleed as she pounded harder, determined to find help for Vinyl. She may have looked crazy, standing there at the entrance to Fangtasia, trying to beat the door down, but she didn’t care and she was feeling no pain. Just as she felt like she could no longer lift her hooves one more time, she door slowly creaked open and a familiar orange mare appeared behind it. “Applejack...” Octavia moaned thankfully, ready to keel over. “Well it’s about time you showed up, Sugarcube.” Applejack said, quickly pulling her inside. Applejack quickly shut the door, double checking to make sure nopony had seen them. Octavia, still trying to catch her breath, noticed Bon Bon behind the bar. Bon Bon flipped a switch and the glasses and bottles against the back wall were flipped out of sight and instead a large wall of weapons, every shape, kind and size appeared behind her. “Hmm...” Bon Bon mused, checking out the nunchucks. Octavia’s eyes widened as the cream colored earth pony skillfully displayed her knowledge of the nunchaku, whipping them around quickly and effectively, taking out a barrage of bar stools. “Not sharp enough.” She seethed. “I really want to hurt them.” She then moved back to the wall and took down a cross bow. “Another of my favorites.” She said, stroking the tip of the arrow. “But again, I really, really want to make them hurt.” Bon Bon returned the cross bow to its place on the wall before smiling sadistically. The earth pony grabbed the large Katana, a japaneighse sword from its sheath on the wall. The blade was sharp and the handle was emblazoned with Lyra Heartstring’s cutie mark. “Perfect.” Bon Bon muttered, licking her lips. “Are ya sure y’all can handle that sword? Y'all need incredible balance to use it properly; maybe you should stick to something lighter?” “Does it look like I don’t know that I’m doing? Lyra’s been training me for a long time. You know I can handle my shit.” Octavia was surprised by Bon Bon’s newly adapted kick ass attitude. Maybe it wasn’t new, but she never would have guessed the mild mannered earth pony would be a weapons expert. Applejack turned her attention to Octavia. “Ah spose’ if ah told y’all this was too dangerous and y’all should stay here, y’all probably wouldn’t listen.” Octavia nodded. There was no way they were going without her. “Well then. Ah guess y’all need to grab yerself a weapon.” Octavia gulped, looking from Applejack to Bon Bon and then to the giant wall of sharp, pointy and very dangerous weapons. Oh Sweet Celestia, what had she gotten herself into now? TO BE CONTINUED...