After many years of hardships, a young violinist is transported to a magical world where he not only makes friends, but finds his true self.
Curtis was a young man who lived in the outskirts of a bustling city. Everyday he would go to work, work a couple of hours, and then head home. Once home, he would play his violin to wash away his dreary days. That would soon change though. Curtis could never expect what happened next.
It was another regular day on the outer edges of Manhattan. A young man could be seen walking a small, almost empty sidewalk. When he walked by other people he would keep his head down. He hated living here. It had been only three years since he was kicked out of his house. He could still recall the words his mother had told him.
" Curtis," she had scolded. " Just because you aren't going to college does NOT mean you can stay here! Your father and I are going on a weekend getaway and when we return we expect you and your things gone."
No matter how much he had pleaded, she hadn't shown any mercy. So that very weekend he had some friends help him move his stuff to a dumpy apartment. He didn't have any friends now. The ones he had were now in college or somewhere across the country. He remembered his friends fondly. Now the only thing he truly enjoyed was the company of his violin. Back in his high-school days he had been quite a virtuoso in a small school orchestra.
He hadn't continued any musical career once he turned 18. Nowadays he worked at a local food market a couple of blocks away from his apartment. He worked five days a week, eight hours a day. The only break he took was a small 15 minute lunch break, and even then he only ate lunch on a few days.
After work he would practice his violin. It was the closest thing to a friend he had now. It helped cleanse his mind of the previous hours he spent working. He would play what his emotions reflected. He didn't worry about bothering the neighbors because he was the only person on his floor. He shared the apartment with only a few other people.
He would play for an hour or so before retiring to his computer. Another thing that relieved his stress was a small television series known as My Little Pony. He spent many hours looked around many pony related things on his computer. Thats all he used it for now. Many people thought that was weird but he didn't mind. Curtis had learned to just let other people be.
" Who cares what they think? ", he asked himself.
Curtis wasn't much of an eye opener either. He was as plain as day. He had brown, unruly hair that would almost reach his shoulders. He wasn't much for fashion though. He usually put on a small t-shirt and would throw over a hoody while he always wore jeans. He didn't much care for anyone so he didn't try to impress.
Snapping out of his own thoughts he approached the doors to his work. As he walked in he noticed the manager waiting angrily for him. Looking at the time he realized he was over a half-hour late. He tried to prepare an excuse as his boss marched over to him
" Why are you late!? "
Curtis looked at the ground still trying to think. He was running through his list of excuses in his mind. He had been late many times before and couldn't think of an excuse he hadn't already used.
" Why are you LATE!? " the manager repeated, this time a little more furious.
" Uhh... I had a um... I was feeling s-sick? I mean, I was feeling sick! " Curtis fibbed. He looked at his boss with nervousness in his eyes.
" Strange, I was feeling sick earlier too ", His boss replied. " Oh yeah!", he continued seeing Curtis' confused expression. You know what I was sick of? " he asked.
Curtis shook his head.
" I was sick of you being late! ", his boss yelled. " I am tired of you. You're done. YOU'RE FIRED! "
Curtis stood there with his mouth wide open.
" You can't do this to me! Please! I need this job. How will I be able to pay for my rent?! ",he cried.
" Should've thought about that before being late AND lying to me. Now i want you out of my store. Now."
Curtis decided it was no use in arguing now. The damage was done. He began to walk his way back home when he felt something hit his nose. He looked up and notice the approaching thunderclouds. He began cursing under his breath.
" What a great day! I was fired from the only job I had, and to top it off, I had forgotten about the storm that was forecasted for today! "
As the rain started falling he grew furious. He kicked a nearby piece of broken sidewalk before he realized it was still pretty stuck in the ground. He winced in the newly found pain that sprouted in his right toes.
Five more minutes of walking brought him the sight of his three story complex. As he began to cross the street, he did not notice the rushing car coming at him from down the road. Midway through the street he felt its lights fall on him. He noticed the speed it was driving at and tried to jump out of its way. " It's too late ", he thought as he braced for impact.
He heard a screech on the pavement as the car skidded to a halt, only inches from him.
" Get out the road dumbass! ", the driver shouted.
Curtis was now shaking as he waved apologetically to the driver. As he crossed to the other side, the driver drove off once more.
" That was close ", Curtis breathed heavily. If the car hadn't killed him, his heart might've. He continued into the building and slowly made his way up to his room on the third floor. He opened his door and slammed it shut. Reacting by habit, he immediately walked over to his violin case. He unpacked it and began to play.
He played a small tune lasting a few minutes. He played a small tune that began a slow smooth melody; the walk to work. It quickly changed to a furious, fast paced collision of noise; the moment his boss fired him. It slowed and began to form a saddened tone; the walk home. And finally, nearing the end he sliced his bow across the strings; the near death street cross.
He was now sweating and his bow had ripped a few threads. After he picked the loose pieces, he turned to his computer.
He browsed through the inter-webs as he searched for Octavia fan-fics. The gray pony was his favorite character from the series. He didn't know why and just assumed it was their share of musical talent.
He arrived at his favorite fanfic site in a few seconds. He looked through the fictions and couldn't find any he liked. He had high standards now because he had read a certain fiction about Octavia and her years in college. He had decided that he wouldn't read anything with lesser tone.
As he began to click his way to the second page of fanfics, he noticed something against the bottom of the screen. It read with bright colors-
" The first over-world rpg game with ponies! Free installation for a limited time, so click now. This game includes a full scale model of all Equestria. Play now! "
He thought for a few seconds before clicking on the ad. It immediately opened a page. The page had full pictures printed over it. It showed extremely fine designed graphics of Equestria. It showed the mane six gathered in a small park, a few ponies talking, and of course Derpy Whooves buying muffins.
After looking through the games information a bit more, he finally clicked on the 'free download' button. He looked at the download bar and realized it would be about another half hour. He decided to get up and make some breakfast.
Normally, he wouldn't have time to eat breakfast but without his job now, he could do whatever he wanted. He realized his logic was broken and decided he would look for another job in the morning. He pulled out a box a Cheer-i-A's and poured him some cereal. He then went back to his computer to find the game had already be installed.
" That's strange ", he mused. " I could have sworn it said thirty minutes. He shrugged. " At least it's done."
He opened the game and found a nice greeting awaiting him from Princess Celestia.
" Hello, my little pony ", she smiled warmly. " Could you tell me your name? "
Curtis looked at her. He was amazed by the graphics. It was even better than shown in the pictures. He took a minute to look at it. He then realized he needed to type his name out. He had to think. What would his name be? He couldn't decide. Maybe something to do with his violin?
" How about.... Vincent Violin? No, that's stupid. How about Curtis? No that's not a creative PONY name."
It took him well over five minutes and he still couldn't think of a name. He then remembered something from his school time. His teacher would always yell at him for playing loudly. The conductor would always yell, " NO FORTISSIMO ! NO FORTISSIMO! " The memory hung in Curtis' mind like a star in an empty night sky.
"That's it! ", he yelled a little louder than he meant. " Fortissimso. That's perfect. Forte for short! "
He then typed in his new name and continued forward. The celestial princess then began with the next step. He had to decide his appearance. He chose to have white skin and a blonde mane and tail. He chose ash grey eyes and a charming smile. He was then asked to choose a cutie mark. It asked for his talent and he immediately chose his career as a violinist who played in the Canterlot Symphony. As if on cue, a violin appeared where his cutie mark should be.
Next he had to pick what race he was. He had already decided that he was going to be an earth pony. With out further contemplation, he clicked the choice and moved on.
Once that was finished he had to choose a place to live. He of course, continued to choose a Canterlot life style. He found where Octavia lived and chose to build his house across from hers. He was excited to play. He had a good feeling about this game.
He then finished creating his profile when he entered the server list. Strangely enough, all of the servers were empty and were unavailable to him. All except one. At the very bottom of the list was a single, activated server.
He quickly chose with enthusiasm and as the game began, his head started to throb. It was extremely painful, and he soon found himself beginning to black out.
Curtis swayed a little from his chair, "Ugh, w-what's happening?" These were the last words he spoke before falling unconscious on the floor.
He soon awoke to find himself in a different building. He tried to move his head but found it was stuck in some sort of brace. The only way he could find his surrounding was by using his eyes. He strained them, looking at his settings while his headache slowly returned.
He noticed the walls were painted a white, boring color. He tried to look at other things as well. He noticed a scale sitting in one corner of the room. At first he thought nothing of it until he found it wasn't designed the normal way. It had a larger scale step that would probably fit two people.
He looked around some more and found a heart monitor hooked up near the side of the bed. He couldn't see his body, but he guessed that it was hooked up to him.
"Why am I in a hospital?, " he asked aloud. "I don't remember being transported here."
As he began to look around once more, he heard someone approaching the room. His jaw fell to the floor, or bed in this case, as he witnessed the impossible. A stallion had walked into the room wearing a doctors coat and a head mirror on top of his head.
"Ah, you're awake Mr. Fortissimo!"
The pony turned to him and asked, "Are you feeling better? When you had been brought in, your neighbor explained the collision to us."
Curtis still sat there. He was at a loss of words. He didn't know what drugs he was put under, but they sure were powerful. Soon he finally responded to the doctor.
"C-collision? What are you talking about?"
The doctor gave Curtis a curious glance. "You don't remember?" He began to look through his notes. " you were hit by a carriage as you were crossing the street, but I guess that's not unusual considering you have slight head trauma. Though, you should be better now. One of my assistants healed you up with a simple remedy. How are you feeling Mr. Fortissimo?"
There it was again. Fortissimo. Curtis thought he had misheard the doctor the first time, but now he heard it again. 'It couldn't be, ' he thought. That was his name from the game he had started earlier. He tried to remember what had happened after he started the world. All he could recollect was the feeling of nausea before crumpling over to the ground.
Maybe he was just imagining the scenario. Yeah, he was just at home sleeping. And tomorrow he would go back to work. He was never fired at all. It is all just a dream. The more he thought about it, the more his head hurt. He decided on answering the doctors question to keep his head straight.
"I feel... fine, I guess." He couldn't feel anything really. He tried moving his body to find, it too, had been locked in place. He looked towards the doctor again to find him shuffling through more papers.
"Well that's good, " the doctor mused. "I'm pleased to say that you'll be able to leave in a few hours!" The doctor turned to Curtis once more. "I will have to fill out some papers and work through some of your medical history, but afterwords you're free to go."
He turned to leave once more as Curtis spoke up.
"Hey, Doc? How long have I been here for?"
"A couple of days or so. It's surprising you recovered that quickly really. Usually a normal pony takes a few weeks to recover, but you seem to have someone watching over you." Once more, he turned to leave and was soon out of view to Curtis.
"Okay. Maybe if I hold my breath, I'll be able to wake up." He closed his mouth and soon felt pressure build up in his lungs. After a couple of seconds, he felt the need for air. "This is impossible!" he gasped. "None of this can be real. If I'm not dreaming, then what is all of this?!"
He finally came to conclusion that something was wrong with the game he played earlier. The graphics weren't high definition. They were real. 'What could have caused this? Was I just randomly teleported to this world or something? But that isn't plausible. There is nothing that has the ability to do this."
This was how his mind worked the rest of the day. He eventually accepted it. If this is what happened, then this was his life from now on. That's when he noticed something. If his guess was right, then that would mean that he was now part of Equestria. He was no longer the social outcast of his world. No. He was Fortissimo.
The hours went by quickly for him. He had soon decided his new name was to be Fortissimo instead of Curtis. He would be called Forte from now on. If he was to be the pony he imagined, then he would be it to the fullest detail. He would choose to live his life like he imagined living Forte's.
Soon, the doctor returned with a smile on his face. "Do you wish to stretch your legs once more Mr. Fortissimo? You're ready to leave. We took the liberty of paying for your medical bills with your account. The total cost was around 1800 bits. Does that seem right to you?"
Forte only grunted as he thought about the costs. He couldn't possibly have payed for that could he? According to the doctors words he had. This was puzzling indeed.
The doctor laid his papers on a nearby desk as he opened a drawer to an over hanging cabinet. He brought a small key that he then proceeded to unlock the cast that inprisoned Forte. With a few clicks he had unlocked the body cast. He then brought his hoof up and behind Forte's head and unlocked a back lock.
Forte immediately felt his body once more as he rose his head. Apparently, the cast had took away his body's feeling. That's when he met his second shock of the day. Has he looked at his hooves, he noticed his skin wasn't white like he had designed. Instead it was a light shade of yellow.
He soon found a mirror hanging on the wall near his bed. He dashed towards it and looked at his reflection. He couldn't believe it. The design he had given his pony on the game was to hide his true features. Now, as he looked at himself he noticed his mane and tail were both a deep brown, while his hair on his head was still as long as ever.
His eyes too, were different than he had wanted. They both were a dark brown mixed with sadness. The only thing that stayed the same was the fact he was an earth pony and his cutie mark. It still showed a violin and bow. At least he was still talented at playing an instrument. Still, the whole reason he chose a different look for his pony was to become a better character. A character that was better in his life than Curtis was in his.
He turned back to face the doctor, who then handed him his billing list. It had a few injuries listed. He had a couple of cuts along the back of his neck and he had apparently had a huge gash in the side of his head. He felt his dome, trying to find where this "gash" was.
The doctor noticed this and exclaimed, "There's no use in trying to find your injuries. My nurse is a unicorn and had you healed up with magic. We didn't give you medicine to heal you. That was to keep you calm while we fixed you with magic."
"Umm, excuse me Doctor...what is your name?" Forte asked.
"Oh! My apologies. I forget to wear my name tag every now and then. The name's Doctor Maximus! What do you need?"
"How was I able to pay the bill here? I don't think I have any money."
Maximus looked at him seriously now. "You don't remember?, " he asked. Seeing Forte's expression, he continued. "You're Fortissimo! You could probably buy this hospital! Probably."
"What do you mean? I don't have any money." Forte was now certainly interested. If in some way he had money, then it sounds like he might be luckier than he thought. If he could buy a whole hospital, then who knows how much money he truly had?!
The doctor opened a small notebook and scribbled something down. He turned to a medicine cabinet and took a canister of pills out. "You seem to be experiencing some sort of memory loss. Now, usually we could use a memory spell to recover it, but it would take months before you could experience it."
"And why's that?" Forte questioned.
"Well, even at full health, a pony is at small risk of sickness. The memory spell is powerful enough that if used on a healthy pony, there is a small risk of Magic Overload. This disorder is not that harmful, and will only cause slight nausea and headaches. If used on a pony in a weaker state like you, it could cause severe damage to the nervous system and might even fry your brains so to speak."
He turned and faced Forte once more before handing him the pills and prescription. "Now, I want you to take these pills for a few weeks, you need to take one a day starting tomorrow. At the end of every week, I need you to visit my office so I can see if you're improving. If not.... Well, let's just hope you do."
Forte took the pills and paper before the doctor escorted him out. As they walked down the hall, Forte noticed other rooms with ponies who were in certain states of condition. He saw a small filly with all sorts of rashes in one room, and he had a quick glance at a pegasus with a blackened wing in another.
They took the elevator to the first floor of the hospital, and as they reached the bottom floor he noticed a clock that read 3:30 on it. He assumed that it was the afternoon as well. He noticed the yellow hue that spread through the windows. So unless in this world time was backwards, then yeah, it was after noon.
As they walked back towards the waiting room. Maximus stopped short and turned to Forte. "It was a pleasure meeting you Forte!" He began shaking Forte's Hoof. "Well not under your circumstances, but I hope you feel better soon. After all, it would be a shame if the Canterlot Symphony's star violinist didn't recover."
