Broken Record

by Wheller

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“The bloody hell is that doing here?”

Captain Reginald Blackthorn and Lieutenant William Cutting were sitting in an observation post at the top of the tallest tree they could find in the Everfree forest, the two kangaroos were looking out to the west, having spotted a target moving towards the forest from the far side of the forest.

“Lost, it’s got to be!” Cutting said, giving his opinion.

“Sure is, four hundred kilometres into the Equestrian border? Pretty damn lost! Four hundred kilometres is a long way to go, think of how many could have seen Lef-tenant!” Blackthorn said half-heartedly.

“Consider how many might not have, there’s a lot of sparsely populated countryside to travel, if it is lost, that might explain why it hasn’t gone back yet.” Cutting said.

“In any case, get somebody down there and take care of it!”

...

There weren’t a lot of tried and true ways for a street urchin to make money. There was one, however, that worked extremely well, assuming that you didn’t get caught.

Zap was the commodity in Manehattan in this day and age. What seemed like everypony wanted it, and worse, there was plenty to go around. Vinyl was ashamed of the fact that just after leaving home, she’d been roped into dealing zap for a very nasty Gnoll by the name of Trigger.

Gnolls, known colloquially as ‘Diamond Dogs,’ were native to the Splendid Valley, which was a fair distance from Manehattan, that didn’t stop a few of them who were exceptionally greedy to travel this far west. Gnolls loved gems and shiny things, and Trigger was quite smitten with the Equestrian Bit. When Vinyl started working for him, she’d thought that she’d gotten a good deal, she’d been allowed to keep five per cent of the profits for herself, and the remaining ninety five went back to him, and he would certainly know if she had been cheating. She didn’t dare steal from Trigger, he would make the beatings given to her by her mother seem like a mild spanking.

And so here Vinyl was, dealing zap on a street corner, taking all the risk, and not making anything for herself in return. Trigger had given her a place to live and food to eat, but it turned out it was nothing more than a scam to sap more money out from under the young filly, not yet old enough to have her cutie mark, in the end, she was lucky to be living on a hundred bits a month during the middle of a recession.

Despite being on the short end of the stick of their arrangement, Trigger kept Vinyl around, she was popular with his customers, and many would seek her out and buy from her especially, when customers came around, Vinyl would occasionally sing a few of the songs that she knew. She wasn’t the best singer in Equestria, but she wasn’t bad either.

“Blue Moon! Now I’m no longer alone! /Without a dream in my heart, without a love of my own!” Vinyl sang.

A small crowd had gathered listening to the unicorn filly sing, she finished up the song, and had nearly an entire city block stomping their hooves in applause, even everyday people began giving her bits just for the singing that she did.

Trigger found out quickly and generously allowed her to keep six per cent of the money she got from singing.

Then one morning, everything changed. Vinyl was out in the streets, singing and selling zap, when she looked up, hearing a loud booming noise, and sky filled with a band of expanding colour. Vinyl recognised it as the fabled Sonic Rainboom, from a story that her father had told her when he wasn’t being a self-righteous bastard.

Vinyl knew at that point that she wanted to sing about that, but she knew no songs about such an event. She had the brilliant idea that she would make one up!

She knew nothing about music, she could sing, kind of, but she couldn’t make a song. She went to the library and found a book on music theory, which would basically become her best friend. She’d come in to the library, return it, and then take it out again with such frequency that the head librarian would eventually give it to her, since no pony else was clearly using it.

Vinyl spent months with her head buried in that book learning how to make music, arranging her song about the Rainboom carefully so that would be perfect, and five months later, her work paid off.

She preformed her song the next morning, and hadn’t even been able to finish before the applause started, the city ponies started throwing bits at her by the dozen for her performance, but despite all the money that she’d made from her song, nearly all of it going to Trigger anyway, Vinyl earned something more important, her cutie mark, a barred quaver, appeared.

Vinyl knew at this point that music was her calling. She wanted nothing more than to write music.

The problem was, getting Trigger to let her.

...

Vinyl Scratch awoke from her slumber, raising her head off her pillow. It was early, probably around four.

“Why am I awake at this hour?” she groaned to herself, she wanted to close her eyes and go back to sleep, but that wasn’t happening. Sleep had become out of the question, she decided that a walk wasn’t out of the question. Donning her goggles and saddlebag, she quietly stepped out of the library.

“Just like birds of a feather, a rainbow together we’ll find! / Volare! Oh Oh/ E Contare oh oh oh oh!” she sang to herself, as she often did on walks. Unfortunately, the other residents of Ponyville were exactly glad to hear the song.

Vinyl heard a window open, and a mare called out to her. “Do you mind!? Trixie is trying to sleep!”

Vinyl looked up at the window to discover Trixie half hanging out from it, looking down at her.

“Heh, sorry Trixie! My bad!” Vinyl called back to her.

“Vinyl Scratch... Trixie knows you’re a musician, but she requests that you wait until everypony is awake before singing!”

Trixie pulled her head back inside the window, and presumably went back to sleep.

Vinyl continued walking, and discovered the relatively unfamiliar figure of a kangaroo in the street. Oddity, they weren’t usually up this early. Then again, neither was she, Vinyl got closer to the kangaroo and discovered that it was the Tank Driver, Corporal McNair.

“Hey! Driver Nephi! What’s going on?” Vinyl asked.

McNair looked at her blankly, before feebly responding. “My name is McNair...”

“I know what your name is Stephen,” Vinyl said plainly, “What’s going on?”

“I’m... not allowed to tell you,” McNair said softly.

“Aw come on! That’s lame sauce! Tell me what’s going on!” Vinyl said, mock pleading with the kangaroo.

“Vinyl... I’m serious, I can’t tell you. I’ve been specifically ordered not to,” McNair said.

Vinyl’s grin vanished. “It’s... not bad, is it?”

“I’m not allowed to tell you,” McNair repeated.

Vinyl frowned. “Of course not... whatever it is? Stay safe.”

McNair nodded at the unicorn as she went about her way.

That was disconcerting. Something was bothering the kangaroo, but she wasn’t allowed to know what it was? It meant that gryphons were probably involved.

Or other kangaroos.

Vinyl had met the kangaroos of No.38/42 Commando, Lieutenant Cutting was decent, Captain Blackthorn reminded Vinyl of her father, and she’d only had words with a few others. She walked to the edge of Everfree, opened her saddle bag and levitated out her 11mm magnum revolver that she’d reclaimed from Twilight’s care.

Everfree had never been a safe place, and she wasn’t going a millimetre inside it without a little assurance.

Comments

I wonder what exactly it is that No. 38/42 Commando are commenting on; they already know about the tank crew so it could be a little something that the Gryphons are about to put into play.

That being said, it still seems as if Vinyl Scratch's past will somehow affect the outcome of whatever is about to happen.

took me a long time now but i realize what is wrong with all this.

Twilight not telling the Princess anything about this new kangaroos ,black ops landing in the middle of Equestria ,near the Capital.

That would be something like a declaration of war if not sanctioned by Equestria.

Plus them getting Equestria involved in the damn war they dont want to be part of.

[Wheller]

3466

Indeed it would be. Fortunately for 38/42, the number of ponies that know about them is limited to Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Vinyl Scratch.

Cutting may have talked to Applejack, but she couldn't tell the difference between him and Tebbs.

No. 38 came to investigate the possibility of Gryphons running around in Equestria, and report back to command with a recommendation about what to do about it. Well. Cutting, Willoughby, Vinyl, and the CMCs proved that the possibility was reality...