//------------------------------// // Vinyl: 1 // Story: Academy Wars: Season 1 // by JP Jackson //------------------------------// Vinyl froze against the wall, back stiff and face contorted in fear. This was bad this was very very bad! She peeked around the corner to see if the guard was coming up the hall. “HEY! YOU! STOP!” Yep, he was. Vinyl dashed around the corner and tore down the hall, knocking over a dozen irreplaceable artifacts as she did. No use using her Sound Magic to muffle the shattering echoes now! It had been Top Knot’s idea, of course, to come to the Tars City Museum of History to try and steal something valuable. The problem was, everything in this damn dust pit was valuable, (and heavily guarded) she had probably just made the museum 1,000,000 plus Bits in insurance money! Vinyl made a mental note to strangle the girl the next time she saw her! “STOP, THIEF!” The guard shouted, chasing her down the hall and tripping over a suit of armor with a loud CLANG! Vinyl couldn't help laughing as the guard struggled to get up. She tore down the next hall not waiting for the guard to catch up. Vinyl skidded to a halt, a window! Why did there have to be a window right there? Boots thundered down the hall as a dozen more guards closed in around the blue haired thief. “Alright kid,” said what looked to be the biggest and stupidest of the guards, so of course he was the leader. “There’s no where to go, just come with us and make it easy on yourself.” Vinyl glanced around, three, six, eight guards in all. This was too many, maybe she could… NO she had sworn never to use that! “Come on, you piece of Halfkai shit!” Hissed one of the guards. Oh it was on now! Vinyl rocketed toward the offending guard, using her Sound magic to launch herself off the ground. She drove her fist into his chest, the resulting sound wave made the other guards clap their hands over their ears. Vinyl felt a satisfying crunch as the man's ribs shattered sending him hurtling back. Standing over her fallen foe, Vinyl realized she wasn’t done quite yet. The rest of the guards surrounded her glaring, nursing ears that would be ringing for a week. “You’re in trouble now, girly!” Hissed the big one. Vinyl glance out the window, a small pink butterfly flew past. “You know what guys,” she said, striking a nonchalant pose. “It’s been fun, but I really need to… fly!” With that she launched herself out of the window. *** About halfway down she wondered if this had been a good idea. To most people, launching yourself out of the top floor of the Tars History Museum is not the best way to spend an evening. Of course most people (luckily) weren’t Vinyl, and most people definitely didn’t have... “OOOF!” “Sorry! Sorry!” Fluttershy! “About time you showed up!” Vinyl said, adjusting her self in the Wing Mage’s arms, putting her hands behind her head. Fluttershy flicked her head to brush a strand of pink hair out of her face. “Sorry,” she said again, flapping her magic wings a little slower as the descended. “Wish I could do that,” Vinyl though looking longingly at Fluttershy’s gold wings. As they slowly fell, Vinyl opened up the little pouch that she had been carrying. The weird relic was still in there. Yhe statue looked like a man, but parts of him were morphed, one hand was clawed and the other was covered in fur. “Where does Top Knot expect to pawn this?” muttered Vinyl. When they landed a man shouted from the door of the museum. “THERE THEY ARE!” A platoon of Guards stormed out of the gates and charged toward the two girls. “These punks just don’t quit do they?” Asked Vinyl shaking her head. She grabbed Fluttershy’s hand. “Now it’s my turn to show off!” She said grinning wide. Blue rings of glowing runes encircled her feet and she dashed off, each step sending out a booming shock wave of sound. They galloped through the city, twice as fast as the guards could run. zipping through alleys and leaping over walls. Fluttershy squeaked with fright as the narrowly dodged an overturned hay cart. “I’D THINK YOU BE USE TO THIS BY NOW!” Vinyl shouted over her booming steps. “YOU’RE NOT THAT EASY TO GET USE TO!” Fluttershy replied. After a few more minutes, Vinyl skidded to a halt in front of a old abandoned tavern. Letting go of Fluttershy she glanced left and right, then knocked on the door, three times, two times, three times. The door opened a crack and the voice of little boy trying to sound like a big man came out. “What’s the password?” He grunted. “It’s me! Let me in!” “Tha’s not it!” “OPEN THE DOOR NOW, OR YOU WON’T EAT FOR A WEEK!” The door flew open the rest of the way to reveal a small chubby boy, dressed in oversized clothes. Vinyl put her hands on her hips. “Did I guess the right password?” she asked. The boy simply nodded. She couldn't help it, she let out a loud laugh and scooped the boy up in her arms! Vinyl walked into the old building, holding the boys hand. “You can go to bed now, Pip, you did a good job!” The boy wearily plodded up the stairs and disappeared behind a oaken door. “Did you get it?” Asked a voice from the shadows. Fluttershy let out another squeak of fright. Vinyl simply turned and glared at the offender. A young woman, just older than Vinyl and Fluttershy, with a tangled mess of hair. “You gods-damned shit hole! You nearly had me killed!” “I would have thought the great theft, Vinyl Scratch had been up to the challenge. Do you have the statue?” Asked Top Knot. Vinyl pulled out the statue and threw it onto the rotted counter of the bar, giving Top Knot detailed instructions as to where she could put the statue. Top Knot, pulled the statue out of the bag and examined it. She giggled excitedly. “Looks like the great thief succeeded!” Vinyl snapped crossing her arms and plopping into a moldy bar stool. “I’m sure, with all that noise you made, the entire town knows of your daring,” Top Knot hissed slamming the statue down onto the counter. “WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!?” “I was thinking I wanted to get me and your little rescue bird out of there!” Vinyl said gesturing to Fluttershy. “Did you fight anybody?” Vinyl was silent. Top Knot covered her face with her hands. “Please tell me you used your spell!” “Of course I didn’t!” Vinyl snapped, how could Top Knot ask that!? “We’ve been over this, if you fight then you have to use your spell! Or better yet don’t fight at all!” “Haven’t we also been over how I’m never using that spell EVER AGAIN!?” Vinyl stood up with such force that the stool snapped in half! “DAMN!” She tried to pick up the stool but a splinter pricked her finger and she jerked her hand back. In a rage She stomped the stool, unintentionally using her magic to shatter the once noble chair into a thousand splinters. She stomped up the stairs to her room, ignoring Fluttershy’s calls to come back. She tore off her sweat covered shirt and plopped into bed, sinking into the moth eaten mattress. Her body thanked her gratefully. all that flowed through her mind was ‘Halfkai... Halfkai... Halfkai piece of shit!’ She propped herself up on her elbows and looked over at the two kids sleeping peacefully in the crib behind her. Spick and Span, the two youngest of the kids housed up here, an adorable pair of twins. Three years ago she had been a street rat, scrambling for any food she could get. Then she stumbled upon this shack, where Fluttershy had made a safe house for orphaned kids, so long as they worked to help out. The thought of a roof over her head pleased Vinyl so she joined the little commune. They had been like a little family, Fluttershy was the overprotective and caring mother, and Vinyl was the boisterous and daring dad. But of course, every family had to have a dysfunctional member. That member was Top Knot. She had joined the group about a year ago, and since then she had had many ideas to try and get them out of the dank stink hole that they lived in, so far they had done little. Vinyl sighed as she watched the twins roll over in their sleep. She hoped this time, Top Knot was right. *** A loud thudding echoed from downstairs. Vinyl woke with a start and stumbled out of bed. Looking out the window she saw that the sun was just peaking over the tops of the buildings. After throwing on a shirt, she walked down to the door and leaned in, to peek through a crack. The door was suddenly blown off it’s hinges knocking into Vinyl and sending her sprawling onto the floor of the tavern. Several men, armed men, stormed into the building, these were not your usual city grunts, these guys were the real deal, the gold armor and brass lances defining them as the King’s Eagle Guard. Through the center of the men marched a tall thick jawed man with a gold plate covering his right eye. “Um… we’re closed, sir,” quipped Vinyl, standing up. The man strode over to her and glared down with his one eye. “Where is The Idol?” he hissed. “I have no idea what you are talking about.” “You are a bad liar, Ms. Scratch,” he growled Vinyl froze. How did he know her name!? he turned to a man in a gold cloak with a winged sun pin on his shoulders. “Search the place. leave no floor board unchecked.” The man nodded and signaled to the rest of the men who charged into the tavern up the stairs, behind the counter and even into the cellar! A very confused looking Top Knot stumbled down the stairs and looked at Vinyl. “What in the hells is going on!?” “These gentlemen want to see the statue I picked up for you,” Vinyl hissed clinically. “OH NONONONO! THIS IS NOT WHAT WAS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!” A guard approached the gold eyed man holding a struggling Fluttershy in one hand and the statue in the other. “We found The Idol, Sir. There’s also a bunch of kids living in the place.” The man scanned the room. “We only need the three, burn the building.” “NO!” Fluttershy screamed, but was swiftly silenced by a blow from the guard. The three of them were shoved out of the tavern and into a small cart with the rest of the soldiers. A few of the men took torches and oil out of the cart. Vinyl watched as the old building went up in flames, she felt the heat radiate off the blaze, she heard the screams from inside, she thought about little Spick and Span. Finally she used her magic to silence the screams echoing from the burning building. It didn’t matter if she heard them, she could do nothing to help them.