*SCREECH*
"Sorry!"
*SCREECH*
"Sorry!"
*SCREECH*
"S-sorry!"
*SCREECH*
"So sorry!"
"Heeeeeey!" *HONK HONK* "If you can't drive that thing, then get off the road!"
"I-I'm sorry!" Twilight whimpers, yanking left and right at the wheel as we brake-and-lurch-brake-and-lurch-brake-and-lurch across town. "I'm not usually this clumsy! I promise!"
"Well at least learn to indicate! Damn!"
"Indicate?" She bites her lip, looking at me. "Indicate?? Indicate what?? Th-that we're off on a quest to save the other Vinyl? But if we let anyone in on what we're doing, we might tip off the Dazzlings and—"
I motion viciously between the other metal monstrosities honking behind us and the "parking lot" looming just to our right.
"The light's green! Go!" *HONKKKK*
"Oh, is that what it means?" Twilight exhales, turning us into bumpily into the lot. "I-I thought it meant they were serving salad at the adjacent establishments—"
VRMMMMM! Traffic roars by us within seconds of our rolling over the curve.
"Hmmmphh..." Twilight frowns. "And I thought the ponies of Manehattan were rude." She looks over at me. "And why was that school bus driver yelling when we passed? I mean... the flashing red signs told me it was stopping. What else could he have wanted from us?"
I rub my head, wincing from all of the skull-splitting noises and fossil fuel fumes.
"I guess we'd better check on our progress. Just where are we? Some sort of snack store?" She squints out the driver's side window. "Wow, humans aren't very imaginative. Who names a store after two randon numbers? Anyways... uhm... now to make the car stay put." She yanks the stick. "There! 'N' for 'Neutralize!'"
We glide ever so slightly forward.
"I... I don't get it! Why haven't we stopped?"
I point a savage finger at the letter "P."
"Oh please, Vinyl..." Twilight rolls her eyes. "We're in no position to 'Prance' right now."
Gritting my teeth, I reach over and shove stick into the appropriate position.
We lurch to a final stop.
"Ohhhhh... I get it!" She grins. "'P' for 'Planted!' Heehee... humans are so silly..."
I sigh, then tap my finger across the computer screen.
"How's the signal?" Twilight leans forward. "Is it any clearer?"
I play the radio frequency's broadcast across the speakers. The sound system crackles with a more distinct harmony. It has many layers to it, like that of a mellow trance track... something that I might make in my spare time to fill an elevator for waiting ponies.
But beneath it is something else... a signature...
It's something that I've used several times in my own work... almost as a personal scavenger hunt to myself when I go back to sound edit.
It's one of the first melodies I ever heard... dating back to when I first got my cutie mark. It was an evening that I would never forget. There I was... standing atop my older sister's shoulders inside a high school hoofball stadium... and out of nowhere comes this killer stallion with a blue mane, riding a badflank float like a gallant knight... and instead of a lance he has a keytar... and he's just wailing his soul out with such crazy and wild passion that I felt my destiny unfurling before m—
"Shhhh!" Twilight rests a hand on my shoulder. "Listen! You hear that?"
Indeed, something has changed. Though it's hidden behind crackling layers of white noise, the melody suddenly stops. And a velvety voice takes over, a murderous mixture of vomit green and mud brown:
"No. No. No! That's the same damnable track as before! Stop refusing to make changes when I ask you to! Do you want to see your friends and fellow schoolmates ever again? Huh? Then create something that will help the Dazzlings and I unlock our hidden potential! I just know that we have some residual magic left! And we need your melody to retrieve! So quit stalling and get to work!"
After that, it's all static and hissing.
Then, with limping quality, the music repeats... slightly augmented now, but not without the hidden melody that only my ears can hear.
"No doubt about it," Twilight grumbles. "That was Adagio Dazzle." She looks at me with a frown. "Even without her gift of mind-bending song, she sounds as contemptuous as ever."
I pull out two pens and gesture.
"But... you're sure that's you performing?"
I nod at her.
"Well... the signal's clearer than it has been the last two times we checked." Twilight gulps. "We must be getting closer. A little further north?"
I smirk.
"Great!" She switches the gear back into drive. "Hold on, other Vinyl! Your friends are coming to get you!"
I grip the edges of my seat.
Aaaaaaand...
*SCREECH*
"Sorry!"
*SCREECH*
"S-sorry!"
*SCREECH*
"So sorry!"
Ooooh boy... Seriously, you couldn't ask Brad to drive?
...Dammit Twilight, you have six friends in this world and I bet every one of them could drive better than you.
...That's it. Twilight's never allowed to drive again. Ever.
derpicdn.net/img/2013/9/25/434563/large.jpg
...Well, I suppose there's no reason it couldn't be an older sister in this universe, but I'm pretty sure Long Play is a stallion, bruh.
derpicdn.net/img/view/2013/10/30/460501__safe_comic_vinyl+scratch_dj+pon-dash-3_idw_twitter_useless+source+url_sweetcream+scoops_andy+price_long+play.jpeg
You'd think she'd have read a driver's manual. Or at least paid attention while being driven places. Or asked any of her friends "Hey, how the heck do you operate this thing?"
Thankfully, we'll be getting to the Dazzlings soon.
*all she can do is silently facehoof* Celestia and Luna, save us from Twilight's driving. Where's Sunset when you need her?
It's even worse than I imagined. Vinyl at least seems to have some common sense. Dayum.
...wait. No. NO! STAHP
If this was GTA, cops would be swarming them right now.
But apparently, all the cops have evaporated.
I would tell Twi to read the manual, but I'm half wondering if the Wubmobile is custom built.
You know, assuming they can make it to human Vinyl's location without getting into an accident or arrested... just what's the plan here to save Vinyl? Walk up to Adagio Dazzle and be all like 'let my friend go, please!'? Don't think that's going to work, especially without the rest of the human mane six.
I bet she's one of those who slow down to 5 for a bucking speed-bump.
What happened to the other Mane Six? Funny as it is to watch Twi almost wreck Vinyl's car, I suspect that Rainbow or Sunset would be way better at driving.
Loved the flashback to Vinyl getting her mark, although presumably she met Shining again at the wedding, I suppose she might not have recognised him after all that time.
Let's see if Twi will become even a tiny bit decent at driving until they reach human Vinyl.
Next Chapter - Twilight Sparkle and the Reckless Driving Ticket.
Sigh. 100+ chapters in, and I'm now losing patience with this story. Is it a story? Will there be a story arc holding it together? Or will it just continue meandering along, a slice-of-life that lasts from now until the end of time?
It's still well written, but the fact that there's no end in sight, not even a potential, hypothetical, end, drags down my enjoyment. There have been a few hints at an underlying arc, but they're so far and few between.
Maybe I'll take to reading the updates once a week, instead of daily. Maybe that will help.
6579512
Spacing it out does help a bit.
This story feels more like an endurance exercise on behalf of the writer, to be honest. There's nothing wrong with it, of course, but it does make it a bit tedious to read if you only read one chapter a day.
Yes Twilight... that's exactly what that means, Yellow also means they have mustard
Nice job~
Twilight's incredible driving skills, everyone.
Hmmm, I'd have expected V to drive stick. Or possibly electric.
Unless she's working on an autopilot system...
Only discovered this a few days back, but I gotta say I'm enjoying it.
Seriously, if this whole thing has been leading up to this Equestria Girls thing then I've gotta say I'm glad I've kept on to the current chapter. It's very interesting to see the two of them working to deal with a situation in the human world that I could TOTALLY see happening after Rainbow Rocks.
Keep up the good work!
When someone was rolling Twilight's character sheet, they must have rolled a 20 for luck; that's the only way I can believe that explains her still being alive after trying to drive - a skill in a technology with which she only has vague and passing familiarity.
6579512 It's what the writer does. And he does it well. Besides, if you Didn't want a Random slice of life piece perhaps you should have avoided the Random slice of life tagged story.
That said, if you want something by the writer that is more Story arc and adventure oriented Check here https://www.fimfiction.net/story/25966/austraeoh Different account same writer, one of the best stories I have ever had the pleasure of reading IMO.
Edit: that came across as snarkier than I intended, Sorry