> Records are Vinyl > by Glimmering Knight > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1: Music is Magic > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The club was as busy as it ever was. With world renowned DJ Vinyl Scratch manning the turntables, there was no reason it wouldn't be. Today was a day for the new era of music, modern dubstep and rave. As the wubs exploded through the speakers, all seemed to be in total enjoyment of her mixing abilities. Until a new face in Ponyville walked to the front of the crowd. Her fur had a pale orange tint to it, while her cutie mark appeared to be a set of headphones. Her mane wasn't very aboriginal or ornate, just a simple straight down look. Her mane had two outer red stripes with a yellow one right down the middle. She appeared disappointed as Vinyl caught a glimpse of her frowning face. "That should've been a triplet figure back there. I can do way better!" explained the showy newcomer. "Is it a mix off you are trying to provoke?" questioned Vinyl, a bit overconfident. "That wasn't exactly my intention but very well!" "Let's get started then!" And as the set up an equivalent turntable next to Vinyl, the mix off had officially begun! It started off with Vinyl using a catchy new dubstep song that had a sixteenth note feel to it. In other words, it felt like the music was going at an incredible rate. As the crowd finished raving on to Vinyl's new tune, the bar was set, and expectations were high. The newcomer didn't want to keep anyone waiting, so she started as soon as she could. First came the bass, kind of slow at first. Next came a higher pitch playing slightly faster. Then she added more. And more. And more. And just as it felt like the speakers would overload with sound, the bass dropped, and the crowd was overjoyed with the end product! "Wubs, wubs everywhere!" proclaims a listener in the club. As it went back in forth between the calm and dropped portions of the song, the entire crowd expressed a feeling of goosebumps. As the song ended, it was almost too close to call. As a matter of fact it was, the competition was considered a tie! This was the first time in her young life that Vinyl had ever been matched, or even close to it! "It's impossible! I laid down everything I had out there," said Vinyl softly to herself. "Trust me, I did too haha!" expressed the newcomer. "Oh hello there. Honestly, I haven't had a competition as close as that, well, ever! Did I catch your name?" "The name's Record Rip. I do this kind of stuff all the time!" "Have we met before? The name sounds familiar..." "I don't think so, I'm from over in Coltsburg. I kind of miss my original home..." "Interesting, I was born there but moved away when I was too young to remember. My dad said my mom and him split up a little while after I was born." "So you were raised by your dad?" "Yup!" "Weird, I was raised by my mom... she said her and dad were split up before I came along... she said my dad is dead now though." "That's weird, my dad just died... well maybe we're..." "Is there a chance we're..." "Related?" they said in unison. At that point, Vinyl had a hunch that it could be true, at which she pointed out, "I have a friend who can really test to see if we are, her name is Twilight Sparkle. She'll be happy to help us, I'm sure..." So they fumbled over to Twilight's house, as they had a tad to drink to celebrate their possible sisterhood, and as they had her house in sight, they saw twilight outside the door looking quite happy. They told her their story and she was astounded! "So what do you need me to do girls?" asked twilight. "To basically see if we're sisters." explained Vinyl. "Yes please!" Record chimed in. "Well you're out of luck today girls! I have hornthrax, and I'll be out of magic for a week or two. Sorry!" "No that's ok twilight, we'll find out somehow!" replied Vinyl. "Alrighty then, best of luck to you two!" Twilight said as they were walking away. "Thanks!" beckoned Vinyl in return. As they were walking, they wanted to learn more about the other's heritage and likes/dislikes. What was the other parent's name, favorite color, food, pet, song (of course), game, and many more! The only information from that conversation they needed on their quest was the parents' names. It turns out, Vinyl's mother's name was Operia, and her dad's name was Rockio. "I wonder..." said Vinyl "Wonder what?" returned Record. "If maybe mom can tell us if we're sisters..." "I doubt it, she has Ponyheimer's Syndrome." "Oh, that's a shame..." "Wait, isn't the entire family in the Musical Hall of Fame?" "I guess they are! We have to check!" "But the Hall of Fame is all the way in the Ponico Mountains..." "Why would they put it in the mountains? Why not somewhere more logical, like in the heart of a volcano? Oh! Or maybe at the bottom of the ocean!" "Hey, suck it up cupcake, we have ground to cover if we're ever going to know!" "But I just had that microwave firebomb burrito..." "Too bad Vinyl! I'm sure they have toilets on the way up the mountain!" "Oooh sure... hey guys, what's that on the side of the trail? Oh, that's some hiker taking a dump on his way up! That's not stupid or anything!" "Whatever! My point is, we need to get all the way up to the top, and right now we're 50 miles away and 20,000 feet below where we need to be!" "Ugh Record, why do you enjoy making me do manual labor?" "I don't it's just... whatever, you can stay here if you want, go eat some ice cream and play some xbox fat-so!" "Even I didn't call you names..." "You're right, I'm sorry, but let's do this!" "That's what she said, Record!" "Oh shut up..." And so the long, and verbally annoying trip to the mountain began, as the two possible relatives embark on their journey to find out if they had a long lost sister... > Chapter 2: Meant to be Sisters > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ponyville was still barely in sight, when the real challenge began. They had forgotten that on the way there, they would have to cross a shaky old bridge to get to the other side of the Manes River. "Hey Vinyl, that old bridge looks pretty sketchy..." Record pointed out. "Well no duh, it's made out of crappy old rope and logs from about 100 years ago. You seriously expected it to be safe?" snapped Vinyl. "Well I'm not crossing that rope deathtrap" Record firmly stated as she crossed her hooves. "Oh yes you are weather you like it or not! You wanted this journey with me, and I intend to finish it with you!" "That means a lot, but I'm still not crossing that... thing." "What if I helped you get across? You won't even have to touch it." "Alright but I don't see how you can get me..." She was stopped as Vinyl suddenly ran up behind her, jumped up high in the air, did a full 180° turn, and bucked her right in the center of the rump! "AAAAAAH" Record screamed as she flew threw through the air across the river. Coincidentally, she landed on all four hooves, without a scratch (except for that bruise Vinyl just gave her). Soon join her was the brave Vinyl Scratch as she crossed the bridge, which actually turned out to be very strong. "I was going to cross you know..." Record told her. "That's a lie... but it doesn't matter, we made it to the other side unscathed," thanked Vinyl. "That's true, and let's continue on so we can get there quicker!" "Agreed, but you know what I entirely forgot..." "I could've used my horn to get us across the whole time!" "Wow... and wait a second! Couldn't you have used it in the beginning to help us trace our ancestry?" "Not exactly... I don't have that kind of power. The only reason Twilight does is because she practices and learns a new one every day. And if we're sisters, then where's your horn?" "It got removed because of a flying chariot accident a while back... it came between my horn and my life, so of coarse I chose my life. "I agree, and I'm sorry to hear that." "Oh, it's ok, I don't miss it much. Let's just go on." "Let's!" So they continued on through the forest just outside Ponyville. The forest was so thick, you couldn't even see the sky through the vast green canopy. It was incredibly easy to get lost... Good thing they didn't! "Looks like we finally made it out of there!" exclaimed a grateful Vinyl. "Yea! Too bad it took a full four hours..." responded Record. "Really? It felt like more. How much ground did we cover?" "We're just over halfway there!" "Halfway to the Hall of Fame hopefully!" "Nope, sorry to crush your hopes and dreams, but we're just over halfway to the 20,000 foot mountain that the Hall of Fame sits atop." "Ugh why did I even ask..." "I don't know, why DID you ask?" "Because... Whatever, quit being snappy and let's keep going..." And so they drudged onward through the next terrain: the endless valley. Believe it or not, the endless valley does end. It is only named that because it slowly decreases in elevation and then raises back up and it causes a fog. The explorer who discovered the area thought it was endless because they couldn't see through the thick fog. "Looks like we have to go through." Vinyl stated. "I guess so. I just wished it was named something a bit more... hopeful." said Record. "Yea, the endless valley sounds like a drag. Oh well, it can't be more than 20 miles long. You DID say that the mountain is 50 miles from Ponyville, and we're over halfway there!" "No way... I definitely couldn't figure that out for myself Einstein!" "Quit nagging about my sarcasm! I'm trying to brighten the mood!" "Oh just shut up and accept my apology hug!" So the two friends, possible sisters, embraced and faced the newest obstacle. They put one hoof in front of the other, and accepted that they had to get through this valley to find out the truth. Two additional hours past of hiking through the valley, and darkness was starting to overtake the bright and sunny sky. "It sure looks like Luna is giving us a dark night tonight!" exclaimed Record. "Yeah, it is getting pretty dark out here," Vinyl replied. "Maybe we should set up camp and start a fire?" "Did you bring the tents and flint?" "No, I thought you would have them!" "Well then, we won't have a nice warm fire and tents tonight!" "Well Celestia dangit Vinyl! This journey is nothing but trouble!" "Yeah, well you got to do what you got to do in order to get what you want!" "The words of the wise Vinyl Scratch!" They both giggled at that joke. "Indeed! The prophecy is foretold!" joked Vinyl. They laughed again, a bit harder this time. "Well, I'm too tired to move another inch," complained Record. "Me too," Vinyl agreed. "Let's just huddle together, it's a little chilly for a spring night out here." "Let's!" So as the two possible sisters huddled together and bedded down in the tall grass, the slipped away into the dream land, where they found their answer, and it was exactly what they wanted to hear. Too bad that was just a dream, but you never know what might happen. Dreams can always come true... > Chapter 3: Base for a Picnic > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- At dawn the next morning, the two ponies roused from their deep slumber. Each had slept rather well (and in each other if i might say) and were ready to face yet another day on their adventure. They were roughly half way through the endless valley, and they were starting to be able to see through the fog. They had already gotten farther than that old explorer did. "Hey Record, I think I can see the other side!" exclaimed Vinyl. "Hey yeah! I see it too!" returned Record. "How far do you think it is until we are out of this endlessly boring place?" "I would give it around 10 miles. Maybe more. Maybe less. Why are you asking me? Do you expect me to know these things?" "Jeez, sorry for asking... I thought you might know... Dad always said it was okay to ask questions..." "Oh I'm sorry Vinyl! I didn't know you would take that to heart." "It's okay, but let's just keep our focus getting out of this valley, it's really dragging my hopes down." "I agree, and I'm starting to feel that way myself." "Like what? Hopeless with a side of depression?" "Yeah, my moral compass is tempting me to take a bite of each, but i know in my heart I shouldn't or we'll never get out of here." "That's right. Just keeping fighting off the bad feelings until you're in a better place." "Alright, I will. Thanks Vinyl. "Hey no problem, and if you ever need something, absolutely anything, just give me a call." "Oh trust me, I will!" They both giggled at Record's reply, and it felt like it brought their spirits up. Since the moral seemed to have been raised, they both stood up and started walking in the direction of the mountain. All went smoothly for the following hour, which felt like endless drudging through the endless valley (now they saw why it was coined to be the endless valley) until one random moment... "Stop! Vinyl, do you see that?!" yelled Record. "Nope, what are you looking at Record?" she replied. "I see the mountain!" "Oh my gosh finally! That valley took forever to cross!" "It's only like 200 yards away! Come on Vinyl!" "Alright, but can we have our picnic lunch when we get to the base of the mountain? I'm really hungry," Vinyl said as her stomach grumbled. "Alright, but look! We're almost there!" "Hooray!" As they arrived at the base of the mountain, Record kept her promise to have their picnic. Out came the triangle sandwiches in small plastic baggies and Ponyade, which was a highly popular sports drink. As they ate and drunk in a splurge of pure pony ecstasy unlike anything ever seen before. They hadn't eaten since around noon yesterday when they left. They valued every bite, but something was a bit "off". "Hey Record, where's the rest of the triangle sandwiches?" Vinyl questioned. "I told you a million times already Vinyl, they're in my backpack!" "Nuh-uh, there's nothing left in here, see?" "What the...? I definitely packed more sandwiches than what we just had!" "Apparently not Record, this is all we have." "I could have sworn..." "Hey! There they are!" Vinyl shouted. As Record turned in the direction Vinyl was pointing, she could see the small triangle sandwiches in their plastic baggies floating away back into the endless valley. They were very quick to realize that they were not, in fact, floating, but they were being carried away by a colony of ants! "It appears that they are ants carrying away our food!" Vinyl examined. "Eh, let them go Vinyl, we won't necessarily need them." "But I'm still hungry Record. I know you are too, and they're still in chasing range!" "You should just let it go Vinyl, it is more weight you have to carry on the trail." "First of all, I could have carried them weightlessly with my horn up the entire trail. Second, if we would just eat them now, we would be full, happy, and not have to carry them up the trail." "Look Vinyl, it's fine. We don't need them. We have other ways to get food. And it is better to have eaten and lost than to never have eaten at all." "The words of the wise Record Rip!" As they both giggled, they contemplated how bad the trail would be to get to the top. As they attempted to make plans, a mutual problem arose between the two mares. "Record, I have to use the restroom really bad!" Vinyl said in an ancy tone. "I do too honestly..." Record had said as she tapped her right front hoof to get her mind off of it. "Do you think they still have toilets on the way up the mountain?" "I'm positive Vinyl." "That's what she said!" "Oh shut your face!" "Sorry, but do you really think there are toilets on the way up? I'm hopeful there are." "I'm sure Vinyl... I'm sure..." As the clock started to tick before the indecent action of urinating on oneself occurred without warning, the two mares darted up the marked mountain trail in hopes of finding the Celestia-sent toilet. They raced up and up and up, and then, just as control was about to be lost, something spectacularly unthinkable happened...