//------------------------------// // Arc II - Chapter: 9 - Welcome To My Nightmare // Story: A DJ in the Night // by dj_neon_lights //------------------------------// A DJ in the Night By: Michael A Chapter: 9 - Welcome To My Nightmare [Romance][Slice-Of-Life] The room exploded in applause and stomping of hooves as I finished my set, the smile on my face spreading wide as I soaked up their praise. I wanted to continue, but my time was up; it was the next DJ’s turn to take the tables. Sometimes I wished that I could just stay and DJ the entire night, nonstop, but I still had to give the other DJ's their turn. Can't hog the crowd all to myself. I didn’t say anything as I walked off of the stage, I didn't need to, all that needed to be said was in the music. I just walked off stage, a huge smile plastered on my face. My destination was the same as for every one of my performances: the back room. I opened the door and immediately jumped onto my couch, talking my usual upside down position. I closed my eyes, intent on taking a nap. It had been almost three weeks since I had left the palace. I spent most of that time honing my DJ skills, becoming better than I had ever been, if I do say so myself. I became determined to simply be the best there is. Yes... and finally prove to them that I am better than they will ever be! “No!” I said aloud, "I just want to improve since I was a bit rusty after I came back from that… incident.” You cannot lie to yourself, my ignorant pony. Though, the practice has been worth it. "Whatever," I grumbled, jumping onto my couch and assuming my usual position. I closed my eyes and waited for blissful silence and peace... But, instead, I was filled with worry. The Wonderbolts party was tomorrow night, and, even though I knew I was ready, I was still afraid because, well, this was gonna be my biggest gig ever! I mean, I was gonna be playing for my idols! Not to mention all of the other important ponies that would be attending. If I was lucky, the exposure would lead to a contract. Don't worry, it will. No pony is better than you, and you'll soon show them! "Well, that's not true, there are a lot of ponies better than me. I mean, the princess are! I can compare to a god." No... You are even better than them! And we shall show that tomorrow night... Everypony will know the name 'Neon Lights'! Everypony… I was in the void again; the savage clutch of nothingness bore down on my soul once more. I didn't scream out this time, or even try to move. I simply sat down and looked forwards, awaiting whatever was gonna happen. I sat there in complete silence for a few minutes, or maybe hours, before it finally appeared. "Welcome back," the voice, my voice, spoke to me from the darkness. I let out a sigh, rolling my eyes. "Okay, what is it now?" I grumbled out, annoyed this time. "You never seem to bring anything good, so might as well get this over with as soon as possible." The voice was silent, and I hoped that I'd actually managed to offend the thing. To my disappointment, the damn thing laughed. "Haha!" It laughed, mocking me. "I don't bring pain, my friend, only understanding." "Understanding for what?!" I screamed. "All I seem to understand is how much my life once sucked!" "Exactly!" The voice responded. "That is exactly the point! I want to show you why you need to do something about it!" I rolled my eyes. Seriously? "Why? No matter what my past was, I'm fine now. Hell, my life's been at it highest for the past few months! Why would I do something about something that happened a while ago. Sure, it sucked, but what does it matter now?" The voice grumbled. Sweet, I'm pissing it off! "No!" It screamed, throwing me off a little. Hell, I actually took a step back. The area in front of me shifted, a version of me appearing... and it looked pissed. "You aren't supposed to resist!" It began, stepping closer to me. With each step, it's body got darker, an evil shade of black covering its body. "How can you not submit?!" I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" I asked. "What the hell am I resisting?!" The mirror 'me' face-hooved. "Are you that dense? I am taking over. I am becoming you." "And you are…?" The other me erupted in ghostly black smoke, growing at as dark, tendril wings sprouted from its back. "I am a Nightmare, you idiot! And you will become me!" It screamed, before lunging forward and engulfing my entire body. I tried to scream, but nothing came out. As I stood there, the only thing I could feel was the cold... My eyes shot open, and I instantly realized something was off... Why the hell was I on the floor? I slowly rose to my hooves, and cautiously looked around. It didn't take me long to realize that I was in a bathroom. Not a public one, but one you would find in a high end apartment. "What the hell..." I muttered to myself. Something was wrong. Something was defiantly wrong. Where the hell was I? How did I get here?! I wracked my brain for an explanation and came up with nothing. All I could remember was falling asleep on my couch at the Prancing Pony the previous night... Was it the previous night? I don't remember even drinking that night so I don't imagine a blackout being a possibility. Was I drugged? What the hell happened?! No... Did those ponies kidnap me again?! Before I could think anymore a loud knocking on the door to the bathroom knocked me out of my thought. "Neon! You okay in there? You've been in there for a while." Came a concerned voice from the other side of the door. "Who are you?!" I screamed, jumping up and turning to face the door, preparing for anything. "Uh... it's me, Spitfire. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You said you'd only be a minute and it's been a half an hour." "Oh... Okay... I'll be out in a minute," I said without thinking. "Okay, sweet! The boys just finished setting up your equipment on the roof so you should probably check it out before you begin your set," I heard Spitfire say, before I heard her trot away. I stood there for a second, trying to comprehend what was happening. Finally, I just shook my head, one thought filling my mind. I could figure this crap out later, right now I'm gonna DJ for the freakin' Wonderbolts! With that thought, I pushed aside the issue for now and trotted towards the door. With a flick of magic I pushed open the door and my jaw dropped. In front of me was what looked like a gorgeous penthouse apartment, but that was not what took my breath away. Beyond the expensive electronics and furniture was a panoramic window that spanned the entire front and sides of the apartment. I was speechless and I wordlessly and practically mindlessly trotted forwards towards the window. From where I was currently standing I could see the entire city of Canterlot and the land beyond. Fluffy clouds dotted the area around the view, but didn’t obscure anything, letting the full glow of the setting sun engulf the land below. “Impressive, isn’t it?” I jumped, letting out a squeak of surprise as I turned around to face the source of the sound. “Jeez, are you usually that easily spooked?” Spitfire chuckled as she trotted closer towards me. I nervously chuckled, rubbing the back of my neck with a hoof. “Not usually…” Spitfire chuckles again, shaking her head slightly before turning her gaze towards the view. “Beautiful, ain’t it?” I nodded. “It really is.” “I actually got this apartment for the view; it reminds me of my home in Cloudsdale. Granted, it isn’t the cheapest place to call home for over half of the year, but it’s well worth the money.” I can imagine… I’d pay just about anything for a view like this. I thought as I continued to stare out the window. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Spitfire broke the silence. “Anyways, I think we should be heading to the party now, eh?” I shook my head, knocking myself out of my trance. “Yeah, yeah. We should.” Spitfire and I made our way through her apartment and out the door. After that, we made our way down the hallway and towards the elevator. She hit the top button and we soon assessed, and my excitement rose with it. Soon, the doors opened and we trotted out onto the roof. The roof was huge, easily having the same amount of floor area of the Prancing Pony. Ponies of all sizes and races (mainly Pegasus) were running everywhere, setting up the roof with tables, chairs, and other comraderies to make make it suitable for the party. On the far side of the roof say my DJ booth, seemingly fully assembled. To the right was about half of an assembled outside bar. The "floor" of the roof was composed of some sort of gravel, and crunched beneath my hooves as I trotted towards my booth. As soon as I got to it I instantly realized that the entire wiring was all messed up and, not only wrong, looked like crap! I groaned, my horn igniting as I began to rearrange the plugs into their correct positions. After a few minutes of grumbling to myself I was finally satisfied, I gave my entire setup a good look over and realized that whoever had set it up didn't seem to have messed anything else up. With a nod of my head, I trotted up and behind my mixer and began getting some tracks ready, making sure that everything would be ready for the party. I soon decided the kick things off a little early, playing my first track. I figured that the other staff wouldn't mind some music while they finished setting up, and I could make some more tweaks if necessary before the party actually begun. I began with a quiet, build up song. Simple, easy beat and a slow tempo. I watched from my perch as the staff began to slow down, seemingly relaxed and working easily. I then began to build things up, bring up the tempo and beat, and I watched as everyone began to speed up, working harder and faster. I watched as I could practically control the staff with my music. I watched as their actions changed with a simple flick of a switch, or alteration of the beat. Like little puppets... It was another hour or so until everything was fully set up, and only about a half an hour after that before the guests began to arrive. I continued to play, watching as the pony's began to dance and enjoy the party, enjoy the music—my music. The moon was high in the sky now, the sun fully setting a little before the guests began to arrive. The aura of the night sky and the brilliant stars made the night just perfect. I would've expected the light pollution from the city to completely destroy the stars glow, but I had a feeling that Luna made sure that, somehow, her beautiful night sky could be seen above her home city. As I continued to play, I watched as the pony's continued to dance, drink, and have fun. I was ecstatic—on top of the world! I was DJing for the Wonderbolts! And everything was working out perfectly! About halfway into the party Spitfire trotted up through the sea of pony's that had gathered around the front of my table and over towards me. "Hey, Neon, got a sec?" she screamed over the speakers. I nodded, knowing better than to try and speak this close to my speakers, and motioned for her to follow me off to the side so we could properly speak. We eventually stopped at the outside bar, and spitfire ordered herself something and asked me if I wanted anything. "Nah," I responded, "Unlike most DJ's I prefer not to drink on the job." She shrugged. "Suit yourself," she began, before picking up her drink, which the bartender had just finished preparing, in a hoof and taking a long, savoring sip. Once she swallowed, she continued, "I just wanted to tell you how awesome you are up there! Everypony's been talking about you from down here." I smiled, my grin spreading from ear to ear. She chuckled, before taking another sip. "You keep this up and I think I'll make you our new go-to DJ." Somehow, my grin got wider, and I literally squeed. Spitfire chuckled. "Now, get your ass back up there and–" Spitfire was cut off by a loud "pop" and following screams from the middle of the crowd. I turned to see what had happened, and my jaw dropped at what I saw. Luna stood in the middle of a bowing crowd of previously dancing ponies. Her eyes scanned my DJ booth, before turning to scan the rest of the party. Every pony was silent, either bowing or standing there in shock. The entire party had gone from a ten to dead in a matter of seconds. Finally, Luna spotted me, her horn instantly igniting and she vanished, only to reappear right in front of me. "Neon! We are glad that we have finally found you!" she began, grabbing one of my hooves. "We must get you out of here!" I pulled my hoof out of her grasp. "Woah, wait... Where am I going? What's with the hurry?" Luna turned to face me, her face filled with concern. "You are not safe here. We must get you back to the castle so that we may cure you of your ailment." I shook my head. "Luna, I'm fine. And I'm not going anywhere. Do you have any idea what being here, right now, means to me?" "We know, but this is more important!" she screamed, before picking me up in her magic. "We are sorry, but we must take you away for your own safety!" I struggled as Luna began to carry me in her magic, every pony still silent and in shock over the ordeal. "No!" I screamed, my horn igniting in a dark green aura as I sent out a magic wave that disrupted Luna's telekinetic grasp, making me fall to the floor. "You are not taking me anywhere!" Luna's eyes went wide, clearly in shock over my outburst. After a few seconds, the Princess of the Night recovered. "Neon, this is not up for debate." I could feel rage build up in my core, anger that I'd never felt before bubbling up inside of me. I slammed my hoof down hard, sending gravel flying everywhere. "We are not going anywhere!!!" A dark aura began to radiate from my body, power I'd never felt before slowly building up inside of me. Luna's eyes went wide, her mouth fumbling on her words until she was finally able to scream, "Everypony, get off of the roof!" I watched as Everypony complied with Luna's command, scrambling to their hooves and either running for the elevator or flying away. I ground my teeth as I watched the entire roof empty before my eyes, the best moment of my life ruined as Everypony who I had come here to entertain ran away, screaming. Even more rage began to build up inside of me as I watched the last pony leave the roof, leaving just me and a scared looking Luna. I turned to face her, my voice dripping with malice. "What did you do..." "Neon... please, calm down. Deep breaths," she began, slowly walking closer to me. I snapped, my anger that had been building up erupting as my horn ignited, a bolt of pure magical energy shooting out and striking Luna straight in the chest, the impact sending her flying backwards. I slowly began to walk towards her, my anger and sadness fueling my every step. Luna recovered when I was only feet away, rolling onto her hooves and throwing up a shield spell just as I shot another magic bolt at her. Is sizzles out as soon as it made contact with the magic shield. "Stop!" Luna cried in desperation. "Resist, Neon, we do not wish to fight you!" My eyes burned with green flame, practically burning a hole into the princess that lay in front of me. I charged up another blast, thinking that enough hits would eventually burst her bubble of protection. But, before I cast, I looked into Luna's eyes... those eyes of fear. Not fear of death, but... fear of me. I let the built up magic disperse as I continued to stare into the princess' scared eyes. I looked down, staring at my hooves. "I don't want to hurt you either..." Enough! screamed the voice in my head, so loud that I had to cower and cover my ears, but it didn't help. Luna was at my side he moment I fell, her shield down. "Neon!" She screamed. "What is wrong?!" My body acted without my consent, turning and bucking Luna had in the side, sending her flying once again. I stood there, appalled by my actions. "Princess!" I screamed, my voice strained and echoed, almost like it was my soul speaking. Soon, I regained enough control of my body to move. I got one step before the scream returned, full force. I am tired of waiting! You could've conceded and we could have existed together, but now only one can be in control... With that I felt my body begin to go numb, my mind being teared away from my body. I tried to resist, but my attempts were all met with extreme, rushing pain. Soon, I couldn't feel anything, my only sense I still had control over was sight, and I saw everything. I watched as my body stretched, rotating each limb and muscle, seeming to get used to the movement. Ah, feel good to have control, once again. I wanted to cry out in anger, to shove whatever the hell the thing was that was inside of me out and stomp on it until it didn't move, but all I could do was watch. My body slowly trotted forwards, walking towards the, once again, upright Luna. She looked at my still with fear, but I could see some hope in her eyes. "Neon," she began, "are you okay? Is the demon out?" My body nodded, and I heard my voice answer. "Yes. It's just me, now." Luna didn't seem convinced, but still entertained the possibility. "How can I know for sure?" My body smiled. "We were together for a thousand years on that rock, Luna, I thought you'd recognize me sooner?" My body shifted, my legs growing and my back shifting. I couldn't see for certain, but I could swear I saw the shadow of wings in the reflection of the lunar light. Luna backed, throwing up her shield just in time before my body lunged forwards, magic streaming from my horn and making contact with the magical barrier. Unlike last time, the shield began to crack under the power of the blow, and I could see strain in Luna's eyes to keep it up. "We live once again, dear Princess," my voice called, this time shadowy and violent. "And, this time, we shall not fail." And with that, there was a flash of light and a loud "pop"… All of a sudden, the world was back in an explosion of green light. I wanted to close my eyes, shield myself from the blinding light, but all I could do was endure. Soon, the flash faded, and all I could see was darkness. I was scared, terrified, even. Nothing was making sense, and adding not knowing where the heck I was, again, was just another stupid thing to add to the fast growing list. The darkness didn’t last, however, as the room suddenly filled with a soft, ghostly green glow. I watched as my body began to trot forwards, and look around the room. I was currently in some sort of old, stone cavern. The walls were coated with moss and cracks, showing damage from years of neglect. The room was lit only by the soft glow of my horn, which I believed was from an illumination spell. As my body trotted forward, a pedestal came into view. It was simple, made of some obsidian material and holding up a dark, black orb, swirling with unholy magic and mist. My body stopped once I was steps away from the orb, the light growing brighter as a tendril of dark green magic snaked it's way through the darkness and towards the orb. The orb seemed to sense the approaching magic, the dark magic inside shifting faster and more violently. Finally, the magic made contact, and as soon as it did a large, black tendril shot up from the orb and began to snake up the magic trail, slithering along it until it made contact with my horn, accompanied by a blinding pain. I would've screamed if I could, but I had not mouth to vocalize my pain. The pain continued as my vision blurred, the room shifting as I felt like I was being pulled forwards, and out do my body. Soon, there was a flash, and I crumpled to the floor, pain slowly fading. I shook my head, recovering as fast as I could and getting to my hooves. I looked up... And I saw my body. It was different, though. Large winds stood at rest at my sides, my horn had grown and my legs had stretched. My body had taken a sickly tint of its former color, and my eyes burned with a dark energy. My body chuckled, staring at me with its evil eyes. "So, how does it feel to be an entity without a body?" I shook my head, bringing my hooves to my... What? My hooves were misty, almost translucent. They were almost ghostly. I looked down, and saw that my entire body was the same. My head rocketed up and glared daggers at my former body. What have you done to me?! "Oh, something I should've done the first time," it began, this time it's voice seeming natural. "I removed you from my body so you can't get in my way." He smiled at me, his mouth filled with jagged teeth. Who, I began, taking a step back. Who are you? His toothy smile grew wider. "I used to be Nightmare Moon, but now you can call me… Death Note."