Write Club! A Multi-Prompt Compilation

by HapHazred

History: HapHazred

The stallion, tall and muscular, eyed the ponies in the room sternly. He hadn't wanted it to end this way... but his hoof had been forced. His powerful words sill ringing in his audiences ears, he continued his speech.

“And that's why we can't stand idly by! We're cornered on all fronts! The enemy is advancing into our territory and all of you are our last line of defence!” The stallion at the front of the room stood up to his full height, and puffed out his chest like a robin. “This is where we draw the line in the sand, ponies! Where we stand our ground! Where we look into our opponents eyes and tell them 'no', not one step further!”

He marched around the table with all the self importance of a penguin. “Anypony who can't take the heat... back out now, because things are about to get ugly.”

The room was silent as the grave. Not one of them dared to be the one to attract the stallion's ire. Neon swallowed nervously.

“Are... are our contracts seriously in that much danger?” he asked anxiously. “My wife is expecting, and I don't think...”

The stallion nodded. “Absolutely. Radio Underground has been stealing our ratings from every single time-slot. Neon, you've gone from the top male vocalist in Canterlot to third.”

Neon Lights bit his lip nervously. The manager looked around the table one more time. “Well? Are you guys ready to play dirty?” He slammed his hooves down on the table. “We'll strike aggressively: play the media, steal their contracts, sue them if we have to—...”

Slowly, one hoof raised itself above the others, pristine white. The manager set his gaze firmly on the owner of said hoof: a young mare with a violently fluorescent blue mane. “Yes, Vinyl?”

“I'm not playin' dirty, sir.”

The manager was speechless. “Say what, Vinyl?”

Neon turned towards his coworker, eyes wide and jaw dropped. “Scratchster! You're the toughest pony here! You can't just—...”

“I am,” Vinyl replied. “We do this fair and square, or I'm out.”

The manager's brow furrowed angrily. “Vinyl, we can't afford to play nice. We're standing next to Radio Canterlot's deathbed.”

“I've got buddies on the other side, boss-pony,” Vinyl retorted.

The entire table gasped.

“You... have a history... with the enemy?!”

“Since when have our competitors been our enemies, boss-pony?” Vinyl asked, sipping from her Minotaur energy drink as nonchalantly as she dared.

“Since they've been threatening to drive us out of business! Who do you know? Who's responsible for this defection?!”

“Classical hour. Musician by the name of Octavia,” Vinyl explained.

“But she's the one in your time-slot! She's the one who's been slicing your ratings in half!”

“Yeah. 'Cause she's a better musician, boss-pony.”

Vinyl got to her hooves resolutely. “I've been playing my heart out on this radio, and it barely competes with what those guys can do. It burns like hell, but I'm not compromising my past with my buddies just because of ratings, sir.”

She glared at her manager from behind her tinted glasses. “My history with my friends is worth more than a future without them. I'm out.”

---

“Somepony's been over-dramatic.”

Vinyl grunted in annoyance. “Well, it was something like that, anyways.” She sighed, and leaned back in her chair, balancing the phone between her shoulder and ear. “So? Can you pull some strings for me?”

The pony on the other end was silent for a few moments. For just a second, Vinyl felt her stomach churn. “'Tavi?”

“Hmm? Oh, yes, sorry. I was just figuring out how I'd ask my manager.” Vinyl let out a sigh of relief. Before long, Octavia continued. “Listen, don't worry. I may not be able to find you a full time position right away, but the entire crew here are well aware of how talented you are: we'll certainly be able to find a few odd slots as we figure something more permanent out.”

Vinyl grinned. “Thanks. You're the best.”

“Anytime, Vinyl. I'm glad our past together is worth something.”

“Likewise,” the young musician replied gratefully. "I mean, I knew you'd never leave me hanging, or anything, it's just..." Vinyl chuckled, shaking her head. “I'll keep in touch. Right now, I have to explain to my folks that I'll still have a job at the end of this mess.”

"I'll make sure of that, Vinyl. Don't worry."

Author's Note:

This story is brought to you by yours truly. I strongly advise you check me out.