Chapitre Dix-Huit
"Hello?"
Butterscotch's voice echoes in the pure white space less space. He didn't know how he got there, but all that he knew was that he was lonely, confused yet strangely comforted by the serenity of this place. It wasn't hot nor cold, it was almost airless. It was silent...that until Butterscotch began to call out.
"Anypony? Hello...Bluebell? Baba? Eris? Eris, is this you magically transforming my dressing room again?"
Then, all of the sudden, he heard perfectly indescribable singing. Singing that ringed in his ears and made the white space less void echo with it's music.
"Eris?!"
It sounded like her voice. He was sure of it, or at least...he hoped it was. He doesn't know any other pony with a divine voice like hers.
Butterscotch galloped straight towards the voice. The faster he galloped, the more things stayed the same in the void. For a moment...Butterscotch thought that this place was getting bigger. But what kept him sane despite this fact was lyrical-less soprano note that the voice kept singing.
Finally, after losing his breath, and probably losing it faster than the stallion should, he stopped and stood still. That's when a bright yet warm light shined right into his eyes. He looked up and saw...her.
His mother...
She was floating above him...wearing robes made of cloud white light and sashes of gold. Her wings were spread out wide, and they looked bigger than her once pegasus wings. They looked like alicorn wings tipped in gold paint. Her wavy brown mane and tail were flowing and moving in the air all by themselves, glowing like sunlight. Her white coat looked so pure and flawless and it had a heavenly glow to it. Her front forelegs were spread out wide and she towered over Butterscotch.
The young stallion stared into her brown eyes. Her brown soulful yet gentle eyes that beheld the glory of love, compassion, and beauty. She truly was the Angel of Music.
Especially when she started to sing...
Never knew I could feel like this
It's like I've never seen the sky before
Want to vanish inside your kiss
Seasons may change
Winter to Spring
But I will love you
Untill the end of time
Come what may, Come what may
But I will you until my dying day...
Her voice was like Eris's, that he couldn't deny. However, he couldn't deny that her voice sounded heavenly. It was unnatural in the most beautiful and immortal way. Her voice is what dreams and fantasies are made of. Her voice was higher and more soprano than Eris's. In fact, it was more operatic than Eris's, which Butterscotch never knew that such a thing can be possible.
When her song ended, she looked down at Butterscotch and smiled warmly like the warm day sky.
"M-Mother?"
"My son."
Her speaking voice echoed through his soul, almost piercing his heart when she uttered those words. Was this reaction of sadness or joy? Butterscotch couldn't tell. However, tears began to stream from his eyes...without him really knowing it. Yet his tears...became his doom.
The tears stained his hooves and started to magically transform them into stone. The stone spell quickly traveled to the rest of Butterscotch's body. He soon noticed it when the grey matter reached his withers. Naturally, he panicked.
"Ah! Mother!" He screamed out to her, "Help me!"
Yet...she did nothing. She stared at him blankly. She was waiting...for him to do something.
"Mother! Please!" The stone was now reaching to the top of his neck.
She still didn't respond.
Now, the stone was reaching his cheek bones and tears streamed down his face once more. "I don't...I don't understand." Butterscotch muttered sadly.
"Come what may..." was the last thing he heard before his world turned black.
"Butterscotch. Butterscotch. Butterscotch baby."
Eris tried to soothe her sweetheart while shaking his shoulders gently.
He was sleeping on his dressing room couch. He only planned to take a short nap. At least, that's what he told her. She came into his room to wake him up for the opening night of "Figara". Luckily, he was dressed in his costume. His character, the messenger! The silent role ironically.
What worried the mask draconequus was her beloved muttering in his sleep in a desperate tone and sweat pouring out from his body. He kept uttering "M-Mother...Mother...please...help."
"C'mon my sweet, wake up. It's me."
But he continued to moan in his nightmare.
"Alright, this is getting old. Time for a more...immediate result."
Eris then shook Butterscotch's shoulders violently, resulting in his head banging back and forth on the pillow.
"WAKE! UP!"
This caused to Butterscotch to wake up immediately, grunting in his shock and his eyes to pop wide open.
"Huh?! Huh?! I'm wake! I'm wake!"
"Good morning sweets." Eris said with a pleasant smile, still towering over him with her hands on his shoulders.
Butterscotch yawns while rubbing his eyes "Good morning Eris. Wait...Is it morning?! Did I miss the show?!"
"Don't worry silly," Eris giggle, "you didn't miss it. You still have a thirty minutes till show time. Did you honestly think that I, your teacher, would let you miss your own performance?"
"I guess not." Butterscotch chuckles tiredly with a soft smile.
Eris smiled warmly at Butterscotch, taking in all the details of his sweet sleepy face. However, this did not last long...for the plague of his nightmare haunted her mind.
"Butterscotch?" She asked hesitantly, "your nightmare...what was it about?"
Even though she knew, she had a feeling that Butterscotch needed to talk about it.
"Oh...um...well...it was...about my mother."
"But that's good, isn't it? I mean, you've been working so hard to see her. And now, here she is. In all of her Angel of Music glory. It might have not been a real world encounter, but isn't this the next best thing?"
"Yeah but...she wasn't what I expected her to be."
"What was she like then?"
"She was beautiful...more beautiful than I could ever imagine. And her voice...I was not worth to be in the presence of such a voice."
"Don't talk that way my dearest, you know much I hate it when you do."
"I'm sorry Eris."
"It's alright, now please, continue."
"Right. Anyway, she seemed so impossibly real. Like some pony like her could never exist in the real world. However..."
"However?"
"However...when I started to turn into...stone..."
When Butterscotch uttered "stone", Eris could sense horror and fear in his voice and yet regret as well.
"She just...stood there...watching me coldly into my own demise. It was as if...she didn't care for me at all."
"But how could she not care for you? Not only are you her only son, but...you have so much love to give. And the love you give is so...magnificent and dear. How can any pony dismiss that kind of love?"
"But...she doesn't know me Eris. That's the problem."
There was silence. Truly unbearable and restricting silence. And Eris hated silence with a burning passion...especially with the one she loved.
"To be honest Butterscotch, I think that mother of yours is then missing out."
Butterscotch looked up at her, wide eyed and surprised. Yet somehow, curious.
"If she's not going to take the time to get to know you then...that's her problem. Not yours. Butterscotch...I know that it's hard to bear a life without a mother to guide you. Believe me, I speak from experience. I never meet my own mother either."
"Eris." Butterscotch uttered sadly yet with concern.
"But, that's doesn't mean that you can't live on without her or find new love. You have many ponies who care about you and..."
Eris looked down into Butterscotch's innocent teal eyes, and soon felt at lost for words. Her heart fluttered in her heart and butterflies consumed her stomach.
"And..." She whispered.
"And you care about me too, don't you?" Butterscotch finished her sentence.
"You know that I more than just care for you. I...I love you Butterscotch." She whispered with breathlessness in her tone.
Butterscotch's eyes widened and his heart stopped beating. His throat became clogged with nerves and tension. There it was...she said it...as clear as Solaris's day. His doubts about her affection were completely wiped clean, and he couldn't believe it.
Heat flooded into his heart,and made it feel full and tight. Butterflies soon join his heart and began fluttering all around it. His chest felt so restricting and tight that he couldn't breathe,but only sweat out his nerves.
"E-Eris...I..."
"Anyway my dear,you should get ready. Tonight is a big night for you." Eris interrupted with a smile on her face.
"But Eris, I..."
"You'll do great, like you always do. I'll see you after the show. Break a leg!"
And before Butterscotch could say another word, Eris was gone in a bright white flash.
Butterscotch kept staring at the spot where the masked phantom disappeared from...sadly...and with frustrated confusion consuming his mind. It wasn't because of Eris, but...about himself...and how he felt...when she finally said those three little words. It was as if it wasn't a big deal...it was natural for her to say...it was simple.
Why couldn't his own feelings be that simple?
His thoughts were interrupted by two ponies walking through his door. It was his father and sister, waiting in the doorway with excited yet proud smiles.
"Hey Butters, are you ready to go?" Bluebell asked.
"Uh, y-yeah. Sure." Butterscotch answer hesitantly.
L'Opera de Cheval was packed full tonight. There were no empty seats, and every aristocrat was eager for Figara. And the audience's expectations were fulfilled with great ensemble singing, a light hearted orchestra, lovely scenery, graceful ballet dancers, and delightful characters. Although, they were slightly disappointed that their new favorite stallion, Butterscotch, was not the lead Tenor. In fact, no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't recognize Butterscotch in the mist if the ensemble. They couldn't hear his beautiful voice anywhere. The audience could only get quick glimpses of yellow and pink flying on and off stage every now and then. So, they had no choice but lay their attentions on the solos of Monsieur Elusive himself...who was enjoying every moment of his rightly earned limelight.
Meanwhile, Butterscotch's mind was somewhere else. The young stallion was too occupied trying to find Eris in the corner of his eye. He didn't know why he needed to see her while performing. Often, he could only see her shadow...or her eyes...or even just hearing her heavenly voice behind him. But he wanted more than that for some reason. Was it to settle his nerves? Or was it to help slow down this quick and rushed night? Butterscotch couldn't say. Yet all he knew was that...he was thankful that he wasn't singing tonight because...he would probably sing out her name instead of the lyrics.
But Butterscotch wasn't the only pony who felt lost that night. Dusk Shine was wandering backstage,searching for some kind of answer as to what he needs to do at L'Opera De Cheval. He was going to sit with the managers, but he told them that he had to help the crew backstage with...organization and call cues. Complete and utter lie. Although, that was something that Dusk Shine wished he was doing. Ever since Monsieur Butterscotch's lead performance night, he couldn't remember the real motivation of why he was particularly interested in this opera house. He knew that he was here because of the Princes, but...he felt like there was more to this duty. His purpose lied in the darkness of L'Opera de Cheval...there was a dark secret waiting for him.
As for our dear Phantom...she was waiting in the shadows of her box seat...with an evil grin on her face. As soon as Butterscotch and Elusive went off to stage left, she poofed herself high into the rafters above the stage.
She used her large ears to get every single word.
Elusive pushed Butterscotch rudely to the side and hissed "Step aside ensemble."
Then, the unicorn stallion went directly to a small table where Sweepy Belle and Barbara were waiting for him.
"That was amazing Elusive." Barbara stated excitedly.
"I agree, you were great. As usual of course." Sweepy Belle added in the same tone.
"Thank you. Now, spray." Elusive commanded before opening his mouth to them.
The small dragon pulled out a red perfume bottle filled with lemon, ginger, and honey water sprayed into the Tenor's mouth. Sweepy pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the extra moisture on the sides of his brother's lips.
Elusive sang out the basic note scale before heading back out to the stage. Meanwhile, when no pony was looking,Eris poofs Elusive's red perfume into her claws. She waved one of her claws over it and magically turned the liquid inside...green. She cackled like a witch at her creation,then poofed the bottle back onto the table...and watched the show unfold.
"Huh?" Butterscotch whispered while looking into the rafters.
For a moment...he thought he heard Eris's laugh...
"Butterscotch!"
The young pegasus turned around and saw Bluebell standing behind him with a smile on her face. She then surprised him with a hug around his shoulders.
"You did great out there!" She exclaimed.
"Oh, I don't know about that Sis. I mean,I didn't do much."
"Well, you're certainly doing alot better than Elusive."
Butterscotch looked over to the purple haired unicorn on stage. He particularly noticed the almost blank expressions on the audiences' faces. When comparing their faces to the expressive face on Elusive's, Butterscotch couldn't help but giggle.
"Bluebell," Butterscotch tried to scold his sister in between his giggles, "that isn't a very nice thing to say."
Both siblings soon laughed with each other,awhile trying to keep their laughter in a hushed tone.
The audience reluctantly applauded for Elusive's performance. He bowed graciously and smiled at his fans before exiting the stage. When he went past the chuckling siblings, he scrowled "Keep it down will you. I can hear you two all the way from center stage."
Butterscotch immediately stopped, due to his daunting fear for Elusive. Meanwhile, after the Tenor walked past them and directly to his little table,Bluebell stuck her tongue at him.
But Elusive didn't notice that. But rather, smiled and approached Barbara and Sweepy who were holding the perfume bottle. They sprayed the liquid into his mouth and he went off to wait for his next scene. Luckily, Bluebell and Butterscotch didn't have to wait with Elusive for they were dancing in the big ensemble scene.
Eris...on the other hoof...was not paying attention to her beloved in the dance scene...was instead glued on the the patient Tenor. The draconequus looked like a filly waiting for candy to rain from the sky. She will soon be bathing in glorious chaos.
Meanwhile, Dusk Shine caught something swinging and white in the corner of his eye. He looked deep into the rafters above the stage. At first, he couldn't see anything. However, the swinging white thing reappeared to him.
"Is...is that...a dragon tail?" He asked aloud.
By instinct, he went over to the stairs leading to the rafters, but he was stopped by...
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?"
Dusk Shine stepped back and saw that it was Rainbow Blitz. When the rainbow stallion recognized who was trying to tresspassed, he changed his tone. "Oh. Monsieur Dusk Shine. What are you doing here?"
"Monsieur Blitz,I saw...I saw a dragon tail."
"A...a dragon tail?"
"Yes, a dragon tail! High up in the rafters!"
Rainbow Blitz chuckled, "Hahehe! Still on that Phantom investigation huh?"
"Phantom?"
"Don't worry Monsieur, there's no Phantom up there. Trust me, I was just up there and no pony was there."
"Ugh, I don't have time for time! I don't care about a phantom, I just saw a giant dragon up there and I need to protect L'Opera de Cheval from this threat."
Dusk Shine pushed Rainbow Blitz out of the way, and galloped up the steps.
"Wait! Monsieur Dusk Shine wait! Ugh! Great!"
Rainbow Blitz then flew after the royal advisor.
After the ensemble dance scene was over and the dancers left the stage, Elusive trotted back on stage. This is the scene where he sings with Figara. The unicorn looked to the old conductor to start the next piece. The elderly stallion rolled his eyes before waving his baton.
Beautiful music flowed out of the orchestra pit. Figara and Elusive sang harmoniously together. Nothing revolutionary or spectacular, but they simply sounded...good...together. But it was time for Elusive's solo in the duet...and when he switched notes...he...
CROAK!
Literally.
He croaked like a fat toad.
The music screeched to a sudden halt. Every pony in the audience, backstage,in the orchestra pit,and even the mare playing Figara were staring at Elusive. They gasped deeply. Even Elusive gasped. He covered his mouth quickly and stared down at his hooves.
What just happened?! Elusive screamed inside his head. Maybe..I should just...try again?
He opened his mouth to sing again, but instead was rewarded with a loud...
CROAK!
This made everypony gasp again and stare at the now embarrassed Tenor. Elusive's face was tomato red and his covered his mouth so tight with his hooves. Meanwhile, Eris was cracking up silently high above the stage. She too was covering her chuckling mouth. There were tears of laughter in her eyes. Her fist was pounding hard on the old wood rafters. She could break it if she wasn't careful with her strength.
And...before Elusive knew it...POOF!
The regal and handsome unicorn turned into...a small, fat, warty, toad...right in front of every pony's eyes. The old conductor dropped his baton,his mouth wide open. Every pony's jaws dropped to the ground. Silence filled the opera house.
With a snap of Eris's fingers, a spotlight appeared on Elusive the toad. Then, the two opera managers appeared side by side with their Tenor. With awkward and surprised looks on their faces. After that,a top hat magically appeared on top of Elusive's head and jazzy music began to play. Out of nowhere.
Before anypony knew it, the trio in the spot were dancing the Can-Can together and Elusive was singing...but in a voice that was not his own...
Hello, my baby!
Hello, my honey!
Hello, my ragtime gal!
Send me a kiss by wire!
Baby, my hearts on fire!
If you refuse me
Honey, you'll lose me!
Then you'll be left alone!
The twin sisters and Elusive couldn't controlled their movements or their bodies. They were puppets on invisible strings...handled by Eris high above. She was dancing and smiling along with her puppets. And she kept dragging them all over stage, having a grand old time.
As a finale, Elusive the toad and the managers sang out of forced will...
Oh baby, telephone
And tell me I'm your own!
Live on the rag!
Dusk Shine and Rainbow make it to the top of the stairs. Rainbow's eyes widened at what he saw in front of the royal visor. Two wooden puppet string holders were floating in mid air, and dancing about it. To Dusk Shine, it looked like some unicorn was using an invisibility spell. A very advanced spell, one that he hasn't seen performed often...but not impossible.
"Hey you!" He commanded.
The wooden puppet string holders freezed in mid air.
Dusk Shine looked below to see what the invisible pony was controlling. His eyes widen at their fullest capacity. A full body controll spell?! For three living bodies?! Dusk Shine couldn't believe it.
"Release them! At once!"
The invisible pony chuckles before revealing herself. It was...Eris. In all her Phantom glory with a sharp fang smile on her face.
"T-The Phantom?" Rainbow whispered with fear in his voice. His knees started to shake and he took a step back.
Even Dusk was surprised to see this creature. He didn't know what she was...yet she somehow looked familiar.
"As you wish." Eris uttered in velvet tone.
She threw her puppets all the way to stage right and into backstage. Harshly and will result in much pain for her toys.
"Elusive!" Barbara shouted as she ran across stage to Elusive. Sweepy and Applejack followed her.
While pulling on the giant red curtains, Bubble Berry announced to the audience "Hehehe,nothing to see here folks. We will...be back soon! Bye!"
This caused a bustling and gossiping audience, waiting impatiently for some answers to this crazy incident.
Meanwhile back stage, Butterscotch stomped his hoof while hissing under his breath, "Eris! You promised you wouldn't do this anymore!"
"Who promised? And who's Eris?" Bluebell asked.
"No pony!"
Butterscotch cleared his throat and tried to hide his flustered face from her. "I mean, l-let's go see if they're alright."
The two ponies then gallop to the other side of the stage to see if Elusive and the Shim Sham sisters were injured.
Meanwhile, high in the rafters,Eris uttered in a cheeky tone "Oopsie!"
"By order of the Princes," Dusk announced to the enemy, "I hereby arrest for disturbance of peace and use magic against civilians!"
"Oh, the Princes! I'm so scared! I'm just shaking in my boots." Eris mocked.
Then,she magically summoned two black boots on her feet.
"Turn yourself over or face dire consequences."
"Dusk." Rainbow whispered to the purple stallion.
Eris then started to slowly approach the two stallions in front of her. She looked so tall, so fierce, so powerful from where they stood. "My, my. Even without your memory, you're still a nuisance. Oh well, it's your own fault for wasting your own second chance."
"My...my memory?" Dusk mumbled.
"Monsieur Dusk Shine! Run!" Rainbow exclaimed whip pushing Dusk to run far away from Eris.
He stood between the Phantom and the foolish unicorn, and was ready to face certain...dire consequences. He stared into the eyes of the Phantom...lunging towards he and Dusk Shine.
When Butterscotch and Bluebell arrived to the other side of the backstage, there was a huge crowd surrounding Elusive and Zircoro. It looked like their father was giving the Tenor some kind of check up.
"Is...is he going to be alright?" Barbara asked.
"No bruises, wounds, or injuries...that I can see. But as for the magical damage...nothing can't be seemed."
"WHAT?!" Toad Elusive shouted, "You mean...you can't fix this?! You're a zebra witch doctor for Artemis's sake!"
"You know as well as I...that the Phantom's spells can't be fixed by you or I...in a blink of an eye."
"No...no...THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!" Elusive cried out before hopping off into the dark shadows of the theater.
Barbara and Sweepy Belle ran after him, calling his name so desperately. Zircoro tried so hard to not hear their cries. Applejack stepped forward, reaching out to them. He was tempted to follow them, but...the stallion had a feeling that he wouldn't be much of a help. Especially to Elusive. With a heavy heart, he returned back into the crowd of ponies. Bubble Berry,with a heavy heart, gave his friend a pat on the back.
Shim stepped forward towards Zircoro and said "But...Zircoro! What about...?"
"The show?! What about our Tenor?!" Sham finished.
"There's nothing that I can do. It's up to you,to go forth and journey through."
Then, Zircoro left the managers and the crowd surrounding him. They were at staring at him. Lost, frazzled, and out of luck. He didn't even give a departing glance to his children. And they were deeply surprised by their father's sudden cold shoulder.
Silence quickly dissolved into multiple, loud and quick questions to the managers. The sisters couldn't handle all at once. Questions were coming from all directions.
They were able to stop this madness when they both stomped on the ground together and proclaimed "QUIET!" And their audience did as they commanded.
"Ah, much better. Anyway, do not panic my friends." Shim announced.
Sham continued this announcement with "For we have a solution to this...current...dilemma. Presenting...!"
"Our new Tenor for the evening...!"
"Butterscotch!" The two sisters announced together while pointing to the shy pegasus in the back.
Soon, all eyes were on Butterscotch. And he could already feel his heart traveling up his throat and heat burning in his cheeks. "M-M-Me?" He squeaked.
"Well of course you! Dear boy!" Shim replied.
"Aren't you his understudy?" Sham asked.
"Y-Yes. But..."
"Then it's decided!" Sham proclaimed while wrapping one of her forelegs around Butterscotch.
Shim joined her in wrapping one of her forelegs around Butterscotch, "Butterscotch is our new lead!"
"What?!" The terrified stallion whispered.
Every pony cheered for him and gave him their deepest congrats for saving the show. Even Bluebell was doing it and showing pride in her adopted sibling. This pressure landed heavily on Butterscotch's shoulders and back, and he felt like he could collapse at any moment. But he knew it, he was pulled away by the costume team. They immediately started changing him into his new outfit.
Before Rainbow Blitz could even strike Eris, she swiped her lion paw across his face. And that swipe send him to the ground in pain.
"Rainbow!" Dusk called out to his friend.
Eris disappeared into the shadows surrounding Dusk, and tormented him with the echoing sound of her soft but evil laughter. The unicorn slowly kept swirling all around him on the rafters, with his horn glowing. Ready to attack.
"Poor Monsieur Dusk Shine," Eris mocked in a devilish yet hushed tone, "so naïve. So innocent. So ignorant of what truly is."
"What...what do you mean?" He asked in an angry yet serious tone.
"You seek to protect L'Opera de Cheval...for them. The Princes. You think this opera belongs to them. Oh hahaha! Monsieur, you are sorely mistaken. This opera belongs to, and will always belong to...me. Oh, don't you just love the irony of it all?!"
"Is that so? Well, I don't see your name on it...Mademoiselle."
"Haha! Well...I don't see your precious Princes' names on L'Opera de Cheval either."
"Ugh! This is ridiculous! Surrender now creature of darkness or face...!"
"Dire consequences? Monsieur, monsieur, so repetitive. Do you honestly think your sweet Princes can protect you? Especially now? In the clutches of the Opera Ghost?"
"No creature or 'ghost' has the power to defeat the Princes! Especially not yours...you harpy."
"My my, you just love to flatter and riddle a girl...don't you? Now let's see...what has more power...than two Alicorn brothers? Hmmm. Oh I know! Riddle me this Monsieur. What's stronger than harmony?"
"W-What?"
"What's stronger than harmony?"
"Nothing..."
"Wrrrong! I'll give you a hint..."
Rainbow Blitz gently opened his eyes and rose his head above the wooden floor. He saw a glowing pair of yellow and red eyes...a horrid smile...and sharp fangs ready to take a bite out of Dusk's shoulder from behind.
"It's..." Eris whispered.
"Dusk look out!" Rainbow called out on the top of his voice.
Dusk turned around rapidly and gasped.
"CHAOS!" Eris roared before lunging towards Dusk's face.
He dodged her attack and returned her strike with a blast of his magic. She dodged it by magically splitting her face in face. And then putting it together.
"What are you?" Dusk asked in horror.
This made Eris laugh darkly "I am...a mystery. I am a riddle. I am chaos itself! I...Am...The Phantom of the opera! Bwhahaha!"
In the mist of her cackling, her claws began to glow. They soon rose towards Dusk Shine's direction.
Rainbow fanatically flapped his sore wings and flew towards the defenseless stallion, "DUSK SHINE!"
Meanwhile, down below on stage, Butterscotch was straightening his costume as he positioned himself center stage. The mare playing Figara was next to Butterscotch and she was going through her calming exercises. These exercises included blowing air through her lips, pronouncing her "A's, U's, O's", and taking deep breaths through her nose. Butterscotch kept wishing that he could calm himself quickly like this mare. Sweat consumed his coat underneath his costume and his knees felt so weak and sickly.
The ponies running all around him were either getting ready into their positions or getting the sets and lights re-set into their original positions. Before Butterscotch knew it, he heard the distinct tapping of the conductor's baton. "No!" He whimpered.
The crew, the singers, and dancers murmured and rapidly went back to backstage. Shim and Sham returned to their box seats and instantly heard the audience calmed down...when the giant red curtains began to rose.
Butterscotch stared into the silent theater...like a rat caught by a trapper in the night. His own night...right now...felt like a utter nightmare. His heart beat began to race when the orchestra started to play. The mare next to him gave him the signal to sing. He opened his mouth weakly and...
CRASH!
Dust consumed the stage. Pieces of old wood were everywhere. Silence filled the area surrounding the stage. Everypony in the orchestra pit, on stage and back stage struggled to see what landed harshly upstage. Everypony coughed and tried to blow away the dust consuming the air.
When Butterscotch was finally able to catch his breath and refocus his eyes, he saw a grey stone statute on stage. He took some hesitant steps towards the statute. He saw that it was a statute of a stallion...with short edgey hair...and wings...
Butterscotch gasped in horror and covered his mouth with his hooves. He backed away from the statute with terror and tears in his eyes.
It was Rainbow Blitz...