//------------------------------//
// The Princess and the Performer 
// Story: When Music is Silenced 
// by Summer Knight 
//------------------------------//

	“Something isn't right here.”
As the group filed onto the platform at Canterlot Station, Twilight looked around uneasily.
“I can't put my hoof on it, but something's wrong,” she continued.
Thunder pricked his ears up. “It's too quiet,” he said. “A big city like Canterlot, there should be music everywhere: concerts, street performers, festivals, whatever. There's nothing.”
“It's spooky.” Even Pinkie Pie was subdued as they walked through the quiet streets. There were many ponies about the city, but none of the usual exuberance that came with crowds. Even conversations were hushed, as if the speakers feared that their voices would attract unwanted attention. Unsettled, the group made haste toward the palace.
“So, what am I supposed to do?” Thunder asked as they walked. Though he spoke at a normal volume his voice seemed to crash through the hushed city, causing everypony to wince slightly.
“What do you mean?” Rainbow asked him.
“I mean, when we get to the palace, what do I do?” Thunder continued more quietly. “What do I say to the princess?”
“Shucks, no need to be nervous,” Applejack reassured him. “Princess Celestia's about as nice as they come.”
“Just be yourself, dear,” Rarity advised.
Thunder twitched one eyebrow. Be a drunken ass? Don't think I will, thanks. Not terribly comforted, he trailed slightly behind the others as they continued through Canterlot toward the palace. He looked around curiously as he went. He had not been to Canterlot in over a year, but very little seemed to have changed, at least about the city itself. Its inhabitants were another story.

“Princess Celestia!” Twilight called out as she and her friends entered the throne room. The others walked in with easy familiarity, but Thunder felt distinctly out of place. He looked around nervously at all of the windows, two of which depicted the very ponies he was with wielding their Elements against terrifying enemies. There was even one of Spike saving the day with some sort of diamond heart floating above him.
“My little ponies,” the princess's infinitely kind and loving voice greeted them, and Thunder hastily joined the others in prostrating himself. He risked a glance upward as he heard her gold-shod hooves drawing closer and found the others already rising from their bows. He followed their lead, and when he reached his full height he was struck by just how big Princess Celestia really was. Thunder was not a small pony, but the top of his head was barely level with her chest. Her slender height was accentuated by her multicolored mane, which flowed over and around her with no regard for gravity. He had known what Celestia looked like, of course, but pictures and distant viewings did little justice to the true majesty of the sun princess.
Then she spoiled the effect by sweeping Twilight into a loving hug and turning a warm gaze upon the others. This was not a princess acknowledging her subjects, it was a pony greeting some old friends. “It is good to see you all,” she said. “Thank you for coming so quickly.” Her gaze settled on Thunder last of all. “Thunder Growl,” she greeted him, “it is a pleasure to meet you.”
Thunder swallowed nervously. “Likewise, Your Highness.”
“Please, join me for lunch,” Celestia invited them, gesturing with a hoof toward another room. “We have much to discuss.”
A pink blur raced past them at the mention of lunch, to be followed more slowly by the rest of the ponies. Twilight and Celestia were deep in conversation as they walked, while through the doorway Pinkie could be seen stuffing her muzzle. Still hesitant, Thunder brought up the rear.
He was put slightly more at ease by the relaxed attitude with which the others took their places and began to eat and talk. Still, he remained unusually quiet, still not certain what his place here was.
“Thunder Growl,” Celestia said after some time, “it is my understanding that you were present the first time Cacophony appeared.”
Thunder, caught with a mouthful of lettuce, swallowed hastily and nearly choked. There was a twinkle in Celestia's eye that made him wonder if she'd done that on purpose.
“Right,” he finally managed to say, “at the Manehattan Bash.”
“And what happened?” the princess prompted. “I have heard the reports, of course, but I would like to hear from somepony who was actually there.”
“Well,” Thunder began hesitantly, “I wasn't there right at the beginning. I had left already, but I went back when I heard that the Bash was under attack. By the time I got there it was pretty much over. The musicians had been,” he had to pause to swallow a lump in his throat, “taken, and everyone else was hurt or unconscious.”
“Yes,” Celestia frowned, “Cacophony attacked everyone who was there, not just the musicians. Why was that? It did not harm anyone but its targets in its other attacks.”
Thunder stopped to chew that over, along with what remained of his mouthful of food. “I don't know. Maybe it just wanted to make more of a splash, since that was its first time showing itself.”
“Maybe,” Celestia allowed.
“You've got that look again,” Twilight accused the princess.
“What look would that be, my faithful student?” Celestia asked, her voice tinged with amusement.
“That look that says you know something we don't.” Twilight sounded faintly annoyed, though it was a look she was more than used to seeing.
“Perhaps,” Celestia replied with a faint smile. “I likely know many things that you do not. I have had longer to learn them.”
“Something about Cacophony,” Twilight prompted.
“Oooh! I know!” Pinkie raised a hoof. “Cacophony is an old enemy that you and/or Luna sealed away a thousand years ago who escaped his prison and came back for revenge!”
Celestia laughed. “Good guess, but no.” She nosed her empty plate away, where it was promptly picked up by a servingpony. “Twilight Sparkle has brought several things to my attention. First, that there are multiple Cacophonies, many more than seems likely or even possible. Second, that the Elements of Harmony have destroyed the Cacophonies that they were used on, rather than undoing the Amalgamation Spell and returning them to their natural state. It would seem to mean that their natural state is that of not existing at all. Third, after the Elements are used, dozens of these Cacophonies appear as if drawn by the Elements' power, though they supposedly exist only to destroy that which is musical.”
“Yeah, we know all that,” Rainbow Dash said impatiently, “but what's it all mean?”
“I believe that what you have faced thus far are thaumaturigcal reverberations that have their provenance in the true Cacophony.”
“Oh!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Ohhh!” Pinkie repeated, nodding knowingly.
“Oh?” Rarity questioned.
“Huh?” Applejack said what Thunder was fairly certain everypony except Twilight was thinking.
“They're, um,” Twilight fidgeted with her hooves as she considered how to explain an incredibly advanced magical phenomenon in terms that her friends would understand. Her eyes lit up. “They're like echoes! Oh, Princess Celestia, you're brilliant, that explains everything!”
“It does?” Thunder asked.
“Sure! Think about it. The things we've been seeing aren't the real Cacophony, they're reflections of its power. It's like... alright, you know how most pony magic is based on light?” As a demonstration, she wrapped her teacup in a purple field and raised it to her lips. “Well, Princess Celestia is saying that Cacophony uses magic that's based on sound. When sound bounces off of something it's called an echo. When sound-based magic bounces off of something, it creates what's called a thaumaturgical reverberation. If the princess is right, that's how it manages to appear almost instantly wherever there's music. Somehow it manages to make its magic 'echo' off of music, which creates these fake Cacophonies.”
“But then what about using the Elements?” Rarity asked. “Why does that bring so many of them?”
“Well—” Twilight trailed off, defeated by the question.
“There are many forms of Harmony,” Princess Celestia filled the gap. “One of the most basic meanings of Harmony is a variety of musical notes coming together. That is one of the ideas embodied by the Elements of Harmony: multiple qualities coming together to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. In that sense, using the Elements could create a much greater 'echo' than any musical performance.”
“So, by using the Elements,” Fluttershy broke off with a whimper as she realized the implications.
“We've been makin' things worse!” Applejack exclaimed, finishing the thought. “Ah thought we were at least destroyin' some of 'em, but yer sayin' that we're just makin' more?”
“Not exactly,” Celestia answered. “You are causing more to appear, but it is likely that these reverberations do not last long. As an echo will lose strength and quickly fade, so will these Cacophonies. I still believe I was correct in saying that the Elements of Harmony can defeat Cacophony, but you must use them against the correct Cacophony. You must find the source of the echoes.”
“Awesome!” Rainbow flew up into the air, ready to begin searching immediately, then stopped. “Uh, how?”
“And how will we protect ourselves if the Elements of Harmony only create more Cacophonies?” Thunder asked.
Celestia smiled. “I have thought about that. These are constructs of sound magic, so it should be possible to disrupt them with the proper spell and a powerful enough source of sound. You, Thunder, should be able to work together with Twilight to create a counterspell. If she finds the correct magical frequency and empowers your voice with it, you should be able to use your musical talent to destroy the 'echoes' without creating more of them.”
Thunder's eyes went wide and his hooves went cold. “Wait, me? Why me?”
Celestia regarded him with kind but stern eyes. “You have shown time and again that you have the courage to face this foe. With your friends by your side, you have the strength to defeat him.”
Thunder tried to swallow his fear. “Am I really the only one?” he couldn't stop himself from asking.
“Not the only one, no,” Celestia replied, “but undoubtedly the best choice. Do you not wish to help?”
“Of course I want to help!” Thunder exclaimed. “It's just...” he shook his head. “Nothing. Never mind. Yes, of course I'll do whatever I can.”
Celestia smiled. “Good. With that out of the way, it is time to get to what is really important.” She clapped her hooves, and a pony in a white chef's coat and hat entered pushing a trolley. There was a rounded metal cover on top of it, just the right size to hide a very large cake. “Dessert!”
The chef bowed and carefully took the cover in his teeth. He pulled it off to reveal...
...a very bloated pink pony with frosting stains around her mouth. Blinking in the sudden light, she belched and giggled sheepishly.
“How did she—?” Thunder looked to his left, where Pinkie Pie had been sitting only a few seconds ago.
Twilight shook her head. “We don't bother asking anymore.” She looked somewhere between bemused and impressed.
Princess Celestia simply looked devastated.

Despite being deprived of their dessert, except for Pinkie Pie of course, it was an invigorated group that left the royal palace. They weren’t yet certain of their next step, but they now knew what they were up against and how to fight it.
“Watch in awe!” a magically enhanced voice commanded from several streets over, accompanied by colorful explosions in the sky.
“Oh, nice, Trixie’s in town!” Thunder exclaimed with a smile. “She puts on a great show. We should catch it before we leave.”
His companions shared uncomfortable looks.
“Ah’ve seen it, thanks,” Applejack grumbled. “Don’t care ta see it again.”
“Oh, she did mention that she was going to Ponyville a while back,” Thunder recalled. “What, you guys didn’t like it?”
“Um,” Twilight looked very uncomfortable, “do you know Trixie?”
“Yeah, we go way back. We spent a lot of time together when we were foals. Her parents didn’t think much of what she wanted to do either,” he confided.
“She came to Ponyville twice, actually,” Rarity said. “The first time she was such an insufferable show-off that I just couldn’t stand it. The second time was… much worse.”
Thunder looked sideways at her. He felt the beginnings of anger burning in his chest. “Trixie’s a performer. It’s her job to show off.”
“But she was up there bragging about how she could do anything better than anypony, and then she cheated using her magic.” Rainbow cut in. “She humiliated us!”
Thunder narrowed his eyes. “Are you really complaining that she was showing off her magic tricks at a magic show? If you didn’t like it, you could have left.”
“Um,” Fluttershy whispered to her friends, “now that I think of it, we were standing right in the front, and saying things that weren’t very nice.”
“Well, that doesn’t excuse her behavior when she came back!” Twilight said.
“But that wasn’t her fault,” Pinkie protested. “It was that amulet that was making her such a meanie.”
“Amulet?” Thunder asked.
“Oh, yeah, um,” Twilight cleared her throat. “She couldn’t perform after what happened in Ponyville because everyone knew she was a fraud. She found an ancient and very dangerous amulet which boosted her magical powers but twisted her mind and made her evil. She came back for revenge.”
Thunder stared silently for a time, trying to process all of this. He wasn’t sure exactly who he was angry with—well, no, he was sure as Tartarus that he was furious with these ponies who had humiliated his childhood friend, he just wasn’t sure what he wanted to do about it. He also wasn’t sure how to handle the news that she had turned into a supervillain, if only temporarily.
“Thunder, where are you going?” Twilight called.
Thunder snorted angrily, already several steps away from the group and heading toward Trixie’s pavilion. “I’m going to go see my friend. I think she might need me.”
“What about Cacophony?” Rainbow shouted after him.
“Equestria will live for another hour,” Thunder shot back.
“Thunder! Wait, let's talk about this!” Twilight shouted.
Thunder ignored her. He was seeing red as he stalked the streets toward where the magical fireworks had originated. He couldn’t believe the sheer rudeness of it: standing in the front row of a show and talking trash about the performer? They were lucky they’d only gotten a few embarrassing magic tricks dished out in return. Anypony who tried that around Thunder would have been on the business end of his hooves before they knew what happened. Maybe it was a bit late to help Trixie with that, but he had to at least see how she was doing.
“Thunder Growl, is that you?”
The voice sent a hot spike through his heart and made his stomach jump. His rage fled, or at least buried itself for a time, as he turned to face the speaker. He had not planned on seeing her during his time here, though it was not an unwelcome surprise. “Octavia!”
“Thunder, it is you!” The dusky earth pony walked toward him and placed her forelegs around him in a gentle hug. “Whatever brings you to Canterlot?”
“I was meeting with the princess, if you can believe it,” Thunder answered with a smile.
“Goodness!” Octavia exclaimed. “What did Princess Celestia want with a ruffian like you?” The way she said “ruffian” made it into a term of endearment. “Nothing bad, I trust?”
Thunder frowned. Now that he saw her up close, Octavia looked very unwell. She had dark circles under her eyes, and though she had always kept herself thin she now looked like she might be bordering on malnutrition.
“Hey Octy, are you alright?” he asked instead of answering her question. “You don’t look so good.”
“So well,” she corrected him with a smile, then sighed, “and I will confess that I have had better months.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Thunder commiserated.
Another explosion of color came from the next street over, which gave Thunder an idea.
“I was just on my way to see Trixie’s show, do you want to come with me?”
“Certainly.” She tagged along beside him as Thunder continued toward the pavilion. “So, Thunder, it’s been quite a while. How have you been?”
“I’ve... well, I haven’t been doing so great either, but I think things are going to start looking up.”
“Oh? Do tell.”
“That’s actually what I was meeting with the princess about. We were trying to figure out a way to fight back against Cacophony, and I think we’re getting somewhere.”
“Who is ‘we?’” Octavia asked curiously.
“Me, Princess Celestia, and six ponies with these magical necklace things called the Elements of Harmony.”
Octavia gasped. “You know the bearers of Harmony?”
Thunder snorted and looked away. “Yeah.”
“Is everything okay? You sound angry.”
“I always sound angry.”
“Thunder,” Octavia demanded.
“Alright, alright,” Thunder grumbled, “they told me about the time when Trixie went to Ponyville. They,” he bit his tongue on the scathing curse words that came to mind, “weren’t very nice to her.”
“Oh, yes, I heard,” Octavia nodded. “The poor dear, her reputation took quite a while to recover after Ponyville. Still, she’s doing wonderfully for herself now. With,” she swallowed as a sudden tightness constricted her throat, “with all of the musicians gone, she’s the only show in town.” As the two rounded a corner a large crowd came into sight, proving Octavia right.
“Yeah, that’s true.” Thunder breathed out heavily. “Well, good, I’m glad for her.”
“Mhm,” Octavia agreed quietly. She seemed distracted, her head turned away from Thunder and her eyes staring at the ground.
“Octy?” Thunder asked, concerned. “You okay?”
“I’m—” she sniffled, then stopped suddenly and made to turn around. “I am sorry, Thunder, I'm afraid that I am not fit company at the moment.”
“What—?” Oh, you bucking idiot. Octavia had two great loves in her life: the cello and Vinyl Scratch. Cacophony had taken them both. Rather than asking a stupid question, Thunder just put a foreleg around her and pulled her in close, not letting her get away.
“Hey. I told you, we’re getting somewhere. I think we know how to stop Cacophony now. We’re going to save everyone and bring music back to Equestria, alright?” He squeezed her a bit tighter, feeling her tremble in his grip. “Maybe we’ll have you play at our ‘we saved the world’ bash. You can open for My Metal Pony.”
Octavia scoffed, though it sounded more like a hiccup. “Not likely. If anything, you louts should open for me.” She sniffed again and rested her head on Thunder’s shoulder. “Ponies are watching,” she said quietly. Indeed, there were looks ranging from worried to scandalized being turned in their direction.
“Yeah, buck ‘em,” Thunder said unconcernedly.
Octavia laughed, a real laugh this time. “Now there is the Thunder Growl I remember. I was going to ask when you became so, ah..."
“Touchy-feely?” Thunder suggested.
“I was going to say caring, but as you will.”
Thunder shrugged. “Oh, who knows? Maybe those Element things are rubbing off on me.”
Octavia gritted her teeth and her shoulders shook against him, and then Thunder had nothing left to say, nothing to do but hold her tightly as her grief ran its course.
“The Great and Powerful Trrrrrrrrrixie—"
“—suggests that you get a room.” Thunder and Octavia jumped as Trixie’s voice came from right next to them. They looked over to see the blue unicorn standing a few inches away with a sly grin on her muzzle.
Thunder snorted as the crowd laughed at her antics. Trixie's words had hit just a little too close to home, but she hadn't meant anything by it. “You ass,” he chuckled. Octavia blushed and stepped away from Thunder, blinking rapidly and then looking up into the sky to clear her watery eyes.
“So, Thunder Growl,” Trixie proclaimed in her best stage voice, “you have returned to challenge The Great and Powerful Trrrrrrrixie to a rematch?”
Thunder matched her expression with a Nightmare-may-care grin of his own. “Bring it.”