Eyes of a Musician

by artsofallkinds

Ruins

All characters either belong to Hasbro and the Hub or to the Brony fan base as a whole, with the exception to OC ponies, who belong to their respective owners. Enjoy!

-Arts
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Chapter 1:
Ruins

Vinyl was the first to wake up, as usual. She wiped her electric-blue hair out of her face and waited for her eyes to adjust to the dim light. She felt the broken slab of concrete beneath her, the most comfortable bed she’d had in a week. Compared to the usual garbage piles and moist, insect-infested riverbeds her and her partner were used to sleeping in, a dry place to stay was considered lucky.

That night’s bedroom had been the broken remnants of a building, more then likely a great skyscraper. The concrete, cracked and scattered, had steel reinforcements, meaning it was extra sturdy. These metal rods stuck out here and there on the thin parts of lightly-weathered chunks of artificial rock.

If Vinyl had to guess, she’d say this city used to be bustling; full of grays, reds, blues, maybe even some green. But as she looked at the light shining through the cracks in the makeshift rooftop around her, her only thought was how yellow everything felt. The city was so sandy and dusty that the light shining from the sun above was filtered and tinted everything in a yellow hue.

Vinyl sat up and reached for her bag, hoping no rodents had made off with any of the food she kept inside. She checked and found every item there, save for the cans of soup she and her friend had shared last night.

Reaching in her bag, Vinyl pulled out her odd sunglasses. They were purple in hue with black rims, perfect to hide a pony’s eyes. She looked at the slight reflection the eyewear offered. Her hair was as spiky as ever, and her eyes gleamed bright red (although in the sunglasses they always appeared purple). She loved her eyes; they made her feel independent, free, and special. If only her problems didn’t originate from her eyes as well as her pride, then maybe she could lead something of a normal life.

But no. In this world, there is no tolerance for bright eyes, no tolerance for the gleam of inspiration. It has always been an old rumor that bright or oddly-colored eyes proved that the wearer was an inspired individual. An individual whose talent was that of sound, or perhaps of rhythm.

And if their talent was music, they had no right to live a normal life.

For, in this world, music is forbidden, unloved, unappreciated. Any and all who are even thought to know tune and rhythm are immediately sent away for life sentences. Often, it’s only by suspicion, such as if their eyes are abnormally colored. And this is why Vinyl and Octavia are constantly on the move, running and hiding from those who wish to destroy any shred of music. As much as Vinyl hated, how she loathed this prejudice, she could not deny it was true, at least for her. Her special talent was music. It was, of course, much more specific than that, but it was all anyone needed to have her arrested. Octavia and her, she reminded herself.

As her partner crossed her mind, Vinyl’s gaze wandered over to the still-sleeping mare. She was a grey-ish brown pony in both mane and fur, slim and angular like the musicians of folklore stories that one could hear if they could find somepony willing to tell them. Although she was shy to admit it, and certainly not to anyone but Octavia herself (like Vinyl’s life needed any more reason to be socially unacceptable), she was in love with this mare. Her snide humor, her level-headedness, and her caring demeanor hidden under years of snobiness all drew Vinyl like nothing else could. Although her eyes were closed, she knew Octavia’s pupils held a mesmerizing, deep purple that was often hidden under a hood or by special contacts she often bought. The artificial browns were ugly in comparison to the beauty of the naturally abnormal purples that she shouldn’t have to hide but must anyway. Vinyl was glad Octavia could share the secret of her violet eyes with her, otherwise she’d never had seen those two stunning orbs.

Vinyl looked down at her white hooves, thinking to herself about every reason she should hate everyone (with the exception of Octavia). When she was born, her parents had left her to die because of her eyes. She was taken in by a stallion sympathizers and was raised discreetly until she was 14. At that point, the stallion had been found out and was taken away, but Vinyl had managed to escape and hide.

This was when she first met her friend ‘Tavi, another runaway who had a different story. She was raised in a pampered and protected household, always told to wear her eye-changing contacts. But when her parents’ friends heard her humming, they immediately had the parents taken in. Octavia, like Vinyl, had also escaped custody and found a way to hide. She was also 14.

The two had been wandering together for about four years, hiding from the judging guards who would take them in for only their eye color and living off what little money they could make or steal. It was a tough life, but it was a life they both lived and accepted. But one dream kept them going: each hopped to one day find a safe haven where their eyes and love for music could both be accepted as a part of who they were instead of as an indicator for something disgusting and evil.

Octavia stirred, and Vinyl watched as her lids lifted to reveal her stunning purple eyes. Oh, she could never get enough of those eyes. If only she never had to hide them, then Vinyl could stare into them all day long.

“Good morning, Vinyl,” said a groggy Octavia. “We’re not in a jail cell yet, I hope?”

“Not by a long shot,” responded Vinyl, a bit more alert then her friend.

“Oh? And how are you so sure?” playfully asked Octavia.

“Well, I figured since we haven’t seen another soul in days, they’re probably isn’t much to guard. Therefore, no guards,” replied Vinyl smugly.

“As always, your logic is infallible,” smirked Octavia. She got herself onto her hooves and trotted over to her long-time friend. “Are we ready to go?”

“What, no breakfast? Come on, I’m starving!” Vinyl complained.

“I’m kidding, Vinyl! How could I possibly forget your love of gross, canned food?” Octavia was overly obnoxious about some of Vinyl’s qualities, but Vinyl loved to dish back the friendly insults just as much as ‘Tavi liked to say them.

“Once I forget about your love for fancy-pantsy gourmet meals, of course,” Vinyl retaliated. They both shared a good-hearted laugh and opened a can of corn.

-----

As they crawled out of their temporary home, Octavia noticed the ruined city around them was just as yellow as she remembered from yesterday. Tall, but ancient looking buildings filled every possible space a road couldn’t, stretching into the sky if the structure hadn’t already failed. Certain spots were eerily vacant, only filled with rubble and debris. As Vinyl and Octavia made their way through this abandoned city, they treaded cautiously over mountains of rocks and such just to make sure they didn’t break anything.

“’Tavi,” began Vinyl, mystified, “what do you think this city was called?”

“I don’t know, Vinyl,” she answered. “I didn’t exactly get much of a formal education.”

“I was just wondering, yeesh,” grumbled Vinyl under her breath, rolling her eyes.

They continued on through the dusty streets that once probably held a name, but now only serviced as a path for these two young runaways.

After a few hours of walking in silence, the two finally saw it; the edge of the buildings. Beyond was many miles of dusty savanna, but both adventurers believed that they could make out greenery on the horizon. So they stopped to take a quick water break and then continued down the road that lead them away from the city.

They made their way across the many miles of open land, but not two hours later they found themselves back in the familiar woods. Of all the roads they could travel, these roads in the woods were their favorite. They could listen and hope to hear a songbird, or maybe hum a tune together without worrying about the sound carrying through the trees. The woods also offered the occasional stream, providing the two with water. However, the two dawn their costumes in the woods; Vinyl would put on her glasses and stretch her hooded jacket so it covered her cutie mark, and Octavia pulled a much-snugger hoodie over her eyes and rump for the same reasons as her friend. After all, wooded roads were much more populated compared to an abandoned metropolis.

The two noticed that the sun was getting low in the sky. They found a river that flowed with fresh water and set up camp, careful their small fire made as little smoke as possible.

As usual, the ground around the riverbed was slightly moist but, as the pair didn’t have any sleeping bags, they had to make due. Another law the royal sisters had somehow passed was that all camping supplies were banned. After all, a pony could only give their one-hundred percent at work if they had no other possible distractions. Octavia wondered what had happened to the royal siblings, as it was a rumor that they used to be benevolent and caring instead of oppressive.

Octavia, in tradition, sung a little goodnight tune she had come up with when they were young to help them both get to sleep. Vinyl loved the sound of Octavia’s singing; she thought that, even if the rest of the world was allowed to sing, Octavia’s voice would still be the best. ‘Tavi’s Goodnight Tune went a little something like this:

The night is young, the day is old
And every rise a blessing.
For day is warm, and night is cold
And now’s the time for resting

The night is young, the day is old
The cycle never ending
For day is warm, and night is cold
But each we are befriending

Although the tune was slightly simple, Vinyl loved each note, and was glad she could hear it. Why such a thing as singing was so unloved in society puzzled her beyond most anything else, but it was her reality.

Vinyl set herself down and facing away from Octavia’s already curled up form (for warmth, she told herself) and relaxed. “Goodnight, ‘Tavi,” she said.

There wasn’t a response for awhile. “’Tavi?” Vinyl asked.

“I’m sorry, Vinyl, I was just- Well, I have a lot on my mind,” Octavia responded. Her voice almost whined, like she was about to cry.

“You know you can tell me anything,” Vinyl turned herself over and placed a hoof on her friend's shoulder in an embrace.

“Well,” Octavia began, shifting into the hug, “We’ve been searching for more than eight years now for something. We really don’t know what we’re looking for; all we know is that it’s somewhere. But…“ Octavia stifled a sniff, “But are we really going to find some… something that can fix our problems? I mean… Vinyl,” she flipped over to face her friend, “What if there isn’t anywhere we can go?”

Vinyl could see the wetness in her partner’s eyes and hear the clearer wine in her voice that only proved she was on the verge of crying. “Now, now, Octavia. It’s okay. There’s somewhere, someplace for us. We will find a home. And if we really can’t find one, then we’ll make one! Just… just as long as it’s you and me, okay?” Vinyl held her friend in a tight embrace now, letting the grey mare sob into her chest.

“…Okay,” Octavia said after awhile. “As long as it’s you and me, together. Don’t you dare break that promise.” They shared another hug and both fell asleep in the other’s arms, each wondering what exactly the future held for them both.

A daring songbird chirped its tune into the night. It was met with another.

-----

Vinyl’s dreams took her back in time to the one moment that she dreaded every night. But she was asleep, and had little control over what her dreams showed her.

Vinyl and Octavia were both in an alley, alone. They were sharing a can of something or another, fighting the cold of winter wrapped up with the other in the same sweater, hugging and fighting the frigid temperature. A blizzard blew around them both, pushing past their fur easily and icing them to the bone. Vinyl and Octavia together had both experienced this cold twice before, an endless cycle of frozen food in frozen weather. If they had a map, they could try to look for a place south to look for. But a map was a luxury they could not afford.

So they both sat in a dark alley, clinging to the only source of heat and care they could find in this world.

They must have fallen asleep, because Vinyl had woken up to her being lifted and shaken. The guard in front of her had a frown on his face as he spoke, but his words were lost in the freezing winter wind.

He tried again. “Hey, what’s your name? Can’t you tell me?” Vinyl remained frozen in both shock and temperature. Shaking the smaller mare again, the guard repeated himself. “Girl, what’s your name?”

Weakly, Vinyl recalled her current alias. “Spark Sky,” she said with little resolve. She was scared out of her skin, but she knew she had to stay strong for Octavi- She suddenly realized the warmth of her only friend wasn’t on her side. She began to freak out, flailing and trying to turn her head to look for her friend. Octavia was still unconscious, hanging from the hoof of another guard. “Let her down!” Vinyl shouted.

“Hey, girl, we’re here to help,” the guard lied. They had heard it before; these guards would lure in the younger suspects with promises of safety and love, none of which would be offered to someone with their colorful eyes.

Vinyl daringly kicked her hind hoof into her captor’s face, which wasn’t as protected as the rest of his armored body. She was immediately dropped, and hit the ground quite hard.

“Urg, the little brat!” the guard shouted.

Running mainly on adrenaline, Vinyl head-butted the stunned other guard, who dropped Octavia. Using what small amount of magic she knew how to use, Vinyl grunted and picked up her friend in an aura of blue. She then ran off, leaving the two guards to realize what just happened.

Vinyl was in a panic. She had to find a way out of town, a safe place to hide her and her friend. Then the reality of what just happened hit her. If she hadn’t been so lucky, she might have just lost her partner! Horror images of her traveling without her friend filled her mind. She realized this could still happen if she didn’t find some sort of hiding place outside the city.

She searched and searched, but no holes or riverbeds presented themselves to Vinyl. She could hear the guards behind her, slowly catching up. She was growing extremely desperate; she had to find somewhere, anywhere to hide her and her friend.

Celestia must have had a pang of sympathy, because a small hole in the ground presented itself, quickly disappearing in the blizzard. She pushed Octavia into it with her magic and followed, looking behind her as the snow blocked the only way out Vinyl knew about.

Completely encased in darkness, Vinyl hugged her only friend in fright. She felt her heart nearly stop when she realized the heat her partner had was barely noticeable. She embraced her even more desperately, not letting go, never giving up. She could still feel a beat besides her own, and as long as it was there, Octavia was still with her.

Comments

[Tay the Chemist]

Main thing so far is, I like the concept. The only downside, I can't imagine what it would be like to live in a society without music, but what I do know is it would drive me into a murderous rage. The downside is the horror of the world you've set up, which really isn't much of a downside! So, ! I hope there's more, which is good, because the chapter didn't end in any of the ways that suggest a Oneshot.
You can skip all of that, and read this: I like it!

[Roker999]

Well, I don't know. Very well written, but the idea itself is fairly unrealistic. Equestrian society is based mostly upon music. I'll see where this goes; I like your style

[DaMagiks]

An unusual concept but I'm willing to give it a shot and see where it goes
So I'll be tracking this and awaiting the next chapter

[Relevant Heavy Metal]

Defenders Of The Faith - Judas Priest

Bonus Prog Rock: 2112 Suite - Rush

[Tay the Chemist]

590898 I don't know. I would kill others, but I doubt I'd ever kill myself, unless I was bringing others with me. I'd like to say I'd initiate Project September, based on Living Tombstone's song, but I suppose if there were no music, I'd have no inspiration for that. And none of the other Projects would work either. Cupcakes, Factory, Telepath, Rubidium, all out, too small-scale. So... I need a new (theoretical, most likely a reference) project for causing mass destruction.
Wait, did I just write all that? I've said too much...

[Mynn_Yero]

In other stories (and watching MLP) I would never say this, but Celestia can suck it!