My Little Pony: Symphony of Fire

by LordStarKnight

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The sun had been up for some time when Twilight Sparkle awoke, not because of the light, but a knocking on her door. She sprang from a mountain of paper that had collapsed on her during the night, revealing her dark eyes and unkempt mane. First disoriented, a new series of blows rang out. She got up and dragged her hooves, growling to the door, determined to send back the person who came to visit her. She was in no condition to receive people. The research she had done all night had tired her, and she had found nothing useful, so she was immensely frustrated too. Her vision blurred by fatigue, the purple unicorn opened her door.

“What?” she growled.

As her eyes woke up, Twilight realized there was not just one person. Then that two of them were tall. And finally that it was the princesses Celestia and Luna, escorted by a whole cohort of guards. There were two seconds of awkward silence before the little unicorn processed the news. When she finally grasped the reality of the situation, Twilight's eyes widened and the door slammed shut. Some noises echoed in the library tree as the two alicorns exchanged confused looks. When the noises stopped, the door reopened on a Twilight finishing her hair before swinging her comb with a shameful laugh. The two princesses simply greeted the young unicorn as if nothing had happened.

“Greetings, my dear student,” said Celestia with her usual royal dignity, “we are sorry to arrive so late but we are here to settle this monster case.”

“Oh, you don’t have to justify yourself, Princess,” answered Twilight. “I’m glad that you came to help us.”

“My sister and I have asked some guards to look for your friends and bring them here, but first we would like to speak with thee in private.”

Twilight's eyes showed confusion before she understood what it was all about. In the end, her letter last night had only two notable elements: the report on the recent events and her concern about the resemblance of the Everfree monster with those described in the Canticle of Truth. She wasted no time walking away from the door and inviting them to enter. As the monarchs were about to come in, an approaching gallop drew everypony's attention. The looks of the sovereigns and their soldiers fell on a guard who saluted before making his announcement.

“Your majesties, I’m sorry, but the element of laughter seems to be absent right now. Mrs. Cake said she got out sooner but they don’t know where she went.”

Twilight couldn’t help but facehoof. She was used to her friend’s unpredictability, but now was really not a good time for such a surprise.

“Alright soldier,” declared Luna, “return to her place and wait. Bring her here when she returns. The others, stay on guard and make sure none interrupt us save but the elements of harmony.”

All the soldiers saluted while the princesses entered into the treehouse. Twilight’s ears hung low. Where could Pinkie possibly be?

---

In the Everfree forest, Pinkie Pie was jumping around humming a little song, appreciating the sounds of the forest in the morning. The birdsongs and the rustling of the leaves were a joy to her ears while the cool air, fresh with morning dew, caressed her skin. Despite this, she was worried. After yesterday’s events, all her friends tried to convince her that the creature in the forest was dangerous. They had insisted so much that Pinkie herself began to doubt, to the point of losing sleep.

She couldn't believe that this thing was malicious, as bizarre as it was. It was brutal and sometimes sang disturbing things, but it had saved two of her friends. However, maybe Rainbow Dash was right when she said that the dressed creature just wanted to fight the clay monster. Uncertainty tortured her mind. It was new to her, being somepony who always trusted her instincts without ever having been mistaken. That's why she decided to go meet the strange creature at daybreak. She had to find the truth.

Suddenly, she perceived the cracking of a twig behind her. She looked towards the source of the noise but saw nothing except the bushes and trees. No matter how carefully she observed the area, she didn’t perceive anything. Without looking away, she advanced until she disappeared behind a tree. The thing that followed her sighed in relief.

“Found you!” screamed Pinkie in front of its bush.

In shock, two ponies rushed out screaming from it. Pinkie couldn't hide her amazement when she found out who it was.

“Octavia? Vinyl Scratch? What are you doing here? Playing Hide & Seek? You should have told me, I’m the best at that game!”

The pony with the gray coat got up as gracefully as possible before helping her friend with the white coat and blue mane.

“Sorry Pinkie. You see, Vinyl saw you entering the forest earlier. We were a little curious and followed you to see what you might do at such an hour. "

Octavia seemed very embarrassed and unable to provide a more precise explanation. Her friend, her eyes masked by her sunglasses, gave the gray filly a little hit with her hoof, frowning.

“Okay okay!” renounced Octavia. “The truth is that a few days ago, Vinyl and I heard music coming from the woods. By being attentive, we ended up hearing it regularly. I wanted to find out where it came from, and when we saw you coming in earlier, since you and your friends did it yesterday, I thought you might know something and I chose to follow you. Vinyl is only here because she was worried about me. ”

Octavia watched her friend DJ's reaction. She approved of her story with a simple nod. Pinkie smiled indulgently at them.

“Why didn’t you ask? I would have gladly accepted you coming with me.”

“I… was scared of you saying no, I guess.”

“Nonsense, the more friends we have, the greater the joy. We can meet the monster together!”

“The monster?!” worried Octavia.

Pinkie showed them the way, explaining what Zecora had discovered in the depths of the Everfree forest. Each step brought them closer to the creature's lair and what Pinkie told them troubled Octavia to the highest degree. Vinyl, on the other hand, didn't seem very troubled by what she heard, simply smiling at Octavia. Ultimately, reassured by the serene air of her DJ friend, Octavia's curiosity as a musician won out over fear.

Finally, the trio arrived in the small clearing where the monster's cave was located. They found there an extinguished but still smoking campfire. The creature, on the other hand, was nowhere to be seen. The three ponies looked everywhere, including in the cave, but found no visible trace of it. Pinkie was about to sigh in disappointment when she saw what seemed to be a solution. On a branch, huddled together to keep themselves warm, the two ravens seen yesterday were sleeping peacefully. They woke up brutally when the pink pony called out to them.

"Hello! I'm sorry to interrupt your nap, but I'm looking for the monster who nourishes you. Do you know where he is? ”

The crows at first seemed unhappy to be woken up so brutally, but Pinkie's question seemed to surprise them. The two birds looked around, in the same way as the ponies before. One of them then caught the eye of the other with a wing before saying something in his bird language, after which the two birds flew away.

“Follow these crows, my friends!” commanded Pinkie before running in their direction.

Before that, Octavia looked to Vinyl and said, a bit surprised,“I didn’t know she could talk to animals too.”

Vinyl shrugged. The three ponies ran into the woods.

The three slowed down when they began to hear a deep masculine voice resonating between the trees, accompanied by a little trumpet tune. The trio walked slowly to get closer to the origin and began to perceive that the said voice was singing. They arrived near a river and, hiding by a bush, discovered their objective: the singing creature of the Everfree forest.

Whistle while you work

Put on that grin and start right in,

To whistle loud and long

Just hum a merry tune

Just do your best,

Then take a rest and sing yourself a song

When there's too much to do,

Don't let it bother you,

Forget your troubles, try to be just like the cheerful chick-a-dee,

And whistle while you work...

Said creature was indeed different from anything that the ponies had seen in their entire lives: two arms with fingers, two long legs, and a light, furless skin with the exception of a goatee and hairs black as the night that almost fell on its shoulders, one of which was decorated with a strange painting in the shape of an octopus, whose tentacles were flowing over his arm. Finally, the creature was dressed in a white tank top and blue jeans… Octavia and Vinyl didn’t know what to think of what they had in front of them. His singular appearance worried them, but his current actions were unsettlingly banal. The famous creature was rubbing a red and black checkered shirt while singing casually.

However, they had to admit that the music was catchy. Pinkie, Octavia, and Vinyl couldn't help moving along with the beat, even when they noticed that the creature had a slightly sinister little audience. Right next to him, also dancing in rhythm, was a snake, a fox, a vulture, a family of rats, and the famous crows saw before. The ponies were then both intrigued, enchanted, and amused by what they were looking at. They felt like facing an inverted reflection of a scene in which Fluttershy could have been.

Once the song was repeated three more times, the thing continued mumbling. Pinkie seemed reassured. A malicious being wouldn’t do its laundry while singing, would it? Octavia asked her discreetly what they were doing now, but Pinkie wasn't sure. She wanted to meet the monster, but she didn't want to scare him. Octavia heard a chilling hiss. She slowly turned her gaze to the ground and discovered the snake which was near the singer a minute before. The animal whistled again with its forked tongue and Octavia jumped, screaming.

“Who’s there?!” asked the monster.

The snake ran away as Pinkie looked at the bipedal creature. It was standing straight, a stone in his hand, ready to throw it. She said to herself that it was not the ideal but that it was pointless to hide any longer. She sprang from the bush like a jack-in-the-box, screaming joyfully.

“Hello!” She barely dodged the stone that was thrown at her. "Hey! That’s not nice!"

The monster fled towards the trees at full speed, but she was surprised when it collapsed on the ground, rumbling. Angry at first, Pinkie saw that his face was twisted in pain. Her anger dissipated as quickly as it had appeared. Under the worried but hidden eyes of her companions, Pinkie came out of her hiding place and walked slowly toward the creature. Still suffering, the latter moved away from her when he saw her approach, like by a survival reflex, causing him to winch and clutch his ribs. His hand landed on a new stone and grabbed it, but the sky-blue eyes and the innocent smile of the pink pony made him stop his gesture.

“Are you okay?”

Kenneth didn’t expect this question. Without thinking, carried by his usual pride, he replied.

"I'm perfectly fine."

The pain rekindled, twisting his face again.

"You’re a good singer, but a really bad actor,” Pinkie declared. Her smile continued as she asked him, "What’s your name?"

The monster was taken aback by the innocence with which this pony was speaking to him. He replied, reluctantly.

“Kenneth Marshall.”

“I’ve never heard a name like that before. What’s it mean?

“I don’t know,” he answered, surprised by the question. “It’s just… my name.”

Before he could say anything else, the pink pony continued talking.

“Ke-Neth Mar-Shall…” she pronounced, like she was playing with the letters. “I like the sound of it.”

The musician opened his eyes, wide with surprise, and loosened his grip on the rock. He answered with hesitation.

“Hum… Thanks. I guess.”

Pinkie looked at Kenneth's shoulder and asked him, “That’s an interesting drawing. Is that your cutie mark?”

“What the…?! Don’t do my Cthulhu tattoo dirty like that!”

“What’s a ka-fu-lu? Some kind of octopus? Are you a fisher pony? But you said it’s a tattoo so maybe you aren’t. Since you’re not a pony I guess that isn’t the right term. So, what are you? A monkey? You look kinda like a monkey, which is good since monkeys are funny. But you aren’t exactly like one. Tell me if I’m wrong, I’m usually good at guessing games. I play that a lot with my sisters. Less at my parties. People prefer the apple bucket game in general, which isn’t surprising since I use the ones from the Apple Farm which are really sweet. Perfect for apple pies and juices, but I prefer chocolate cakes personally. I tried a recipe for an apple & chocolate pie but I wasn’t really convinced. I should probably ask Mrs. Cake for some advice, but I don’t want to bother her since she’s been busy with the twins. They’re really cute, but also really troublesome, especially when they’re hungry. Maybe I would actually do her a favor by asking her some help while her husband watch over...”

She interrupted when she saw Kenneth standing there, unable to speak. Seeing how in awe he was, she laughed a bit and excused herself, saying she sometimes got carried away.

“What was I saying? Oh yeah. What are you, Kenneth Marshall?”

“I’m a human.”

“What’s a human?”

“That’s… what I am,” declared Kenneth, uncertain of what kind of answer would be good. But before Pinkie could say anything else, the human demanded, “What do you want?”

“We wanted to meet you. You’re getting pretty famous in Ponyville.”

“What do you mean? Wait, we?”

Pinkie’s eyes widened as she remembered something essential.

“Oh, right! Come on, girls! He’s a nice monster.”

Octavia and Vinyl approached, hesitant. Kenneth, on the other hand, seemed intrigued. One seemed to come out of a manga drawn while listening to some J-Pop band, with its electric-blue mane and sunglasses, while the other looked kind of societal elite with its pink bow-tie with a white collar. Seeing that all of them were uncomfortable, Pinkie broke the ice.

“Come on, don’t be shy. You came to see him, right?”

Octavia cleared her throat before presenting herself and her friend.

“I’m Octavia Melody, and this is my friend Vinyl Scratch, also known as DJ Pon-3.”

“She doesn’t talk so much,” whispered Pinkie to Kenneth.

“We are musicians from Ponyville.”

“Really? What do you play?” asked Kenneth, surprised.

“I’m into classical music,” Octavia informed, sticking out her chest. “I play cello, violin, piano… I’m quite versatile. And Vinyl does electronic music. You know, like dubstep... with turntables. You know what it is, right?”

“I know what turntables are,” said Kenneth with a huff.

Octavia’s ears and head lowered.

“Sorry… We have never seen anything like you before. I am not sure of what you know and what you don’t.”

Kenneth sighed with frustration, and a bit of pain. He really wasn’t in the mood for long explanations.

“Just talk to me like you would with anyone else.”

The ponies were a bit surprised by the use of ‘anyone’ instead of ‘anypony’, but didn’t focus on it. Octavia and Vinyl Scratch were smiling again, relieved.

“Alright, Kenneth Marshall.”

“Just… Kenneth.”

“Ooooh, seems we’re already getting along,” declared Pinkie with enthusiasm, hugging the human with strength.

Kenneth’s face tensed again and a grunt escaped from his throat. Seeing this, Vinyl drew her grey friend’s attention with a little hit before pointing at the human with a concerned face. Octavia informed Pinkie Pie that she shouldn’t do that.

“It seems to hurt him,” she added “Are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?”

“I said I’m fine,” declared Kenneth, before gritting his teeth.

“Still bad at acting,” said Pinkie Pie, still smiling but with a more serious tone. “You are definitely in pain. Must be because of your fight with the big clay monster.”

Kenneth wasn’t surprised that they knew about it. He was about to ask what was the thing but the greyish pony’s curiosity was faster.

“A fight? Clay monster? What are you talking about?”

“You don’t know? I guess it’s normal since it was only yesterday. You see, Kenneth rescued Spike and Rarity from a big creature at the Apple Farm, like a knight from a legend.”

The two musician ponies seemed shocked, and Kenneth seemed almost uninterested, like it didn’t even concern him.

“That’s one way of seeing it I guess,” he said, raising his eyes to the sky.

“How would you describe it?” asked Pinkie.

“I’m an idiot who roughed up a big pile of mud, and it did the same to me.”

The pink pony seemed to think for a second before declaring, “I prefer my version. And it was clay, not mud.” Pinkie laughed a bit before adding, “Rarity probably would have been even more traumatised if it was mud, actually.”

“That’s the white unicorn’s name?”

“Yes it is. And Spike is the dragon. So, let’s bring you to Ponyville!”

“Hey! I didn’t say I would come to your rainbow-colored little village,” announced human being.

Pinkie responded to that grumpy sentence in her still joyful voice.

“You silly filly, you’ll get sick if you stay in the woods like this.”

Kenneth wanted to argue, but the pain in his ribs interrupted him with a new flash of agony. He didn’t want to go to the village but his broken body didn’t agree. Even his pride had limits. The pain hadn’t diminished at all since yesterday. His expectations of recovery by resting seemed definitely false now. Kenneth’s mind tried to avoid this journey to the pony town by doubting the capacity of the ponies to help him, but the grey pony had mentioned an hospital. Like it or not, he could definitely use one now.

“You promise no one will try to capture me to imprison me in a secret underground lab to study me like some guinea pig?”

“Well, I have a friend who will definitely want to study you, but you saved our friends so I’m sure everypony will be happy to meet you.”

Kenneth wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. Being peaceful and safe in his little cave was perfect for him, but his ribs needed to be treated. Tired and angry, he raised the white flag.

“Alright alright…” he said while getting up. “Just let me take my guitar. Something touched it during my absence last time, I’d prefer to have it with me now.”

Pinkie jumped in the air, showing how happy she was without any restriction. After the human took and dried a bit of his plaid shirt, the three ponies followed him, Octavia asking a few questions about his song and Vinyl smiling and listening carefully.

---

Later that day, in Ponyville, the princesses Celestia and Luna were finishing giving orders to their soldiers, with the elements of harmony nearby.

“That’s a lot of soldiers,” whispered Fluttershy. “Not that it’s a bad thing, it’s just impressive.”

“I’m glad they’re here,” declared Applejack. “We can definitely count on the princesses.”

“That monster doesn’t have a chance!” said Rainbow Dash enthusiastically.

“I wonder if such a display of force is necessary,” questioned Rarity.

“Me, I’m more worried about Pinkie’s absence,” expressed Twilight. “Where could she…?”

“Hey everypony!”

“Finally! Pinkie, where were…”

She trailed off when she saw her friend with not just Octavia and Vinyl Scratch but the famous monster of the Everfree forest. Everypony in the street—soldier, princess, or element of harmony—stayed frozen with big eyes and open mouths.

“That’s a lot of ponies,” observed Kenneth. ”Is there a party or something?”

“Not one that I organised,” explained Pinkie.

“GUARDS!” commanded Princess Luna.

In a second, Kenneth, Pinkie and the two musicians ponies were surrounded by spears.

“I knew it…” Kenneth growled.

Author's Note:

Hi everypony !
Thank you again for reading my fic.
And thank you to 0_0 for her still effecient proofreading
See you next time

Comments

[Greenhorn]

One thing that never cease to amuse me is that the first greeting from the land of harmony was not a handshake but often a spearhead.

[Deetboop]

A really nice Story, I hope next thing Kenneth plays is something like Beast and the harlot or Something from Rise Against

[Chaos Blitz]

Moar pls?