Canterlot of the Dazzlings

>"Blindsided by the beat
>Clapping your hands
>Stomping your feet
>You didn't know that you fell
>Whoa-oh-oh-oh..."

>Canterlot City, 2020
>5 years after the fall of Canterlot high.
>The Dazzlings' song echoes over the devastated streets from every television and radio.
>A giant jumbotron has been erected above Main Street, showcasing the sirens swaying forms silhouetted in front of a wave of spinning technicolor.
>Projectors cast the footage across buildings and billboards.
>Few places in the city will let you escape their image, escape their voices.
>But no one wants to.

>"Dazzles, charge! FOR THE QUEEN!"
>"RAAAAAAA!"
>A loud shout rises up from the street as a mob of Canterlot citizens plow through the street, throwing bricks and fiery bottles of oil through already busted shop windows.
>"Not on our fucking watch! Blazers, attack!"
>A young man in the dark purple and mint green livery of the Blaze faction leads a counter offensive against the orange and violet garbed invaders.
>Chains swing, and lead pipes split skulls as they meet in a bloody street brawl.
>Opposing chants rise above the noise of battle-
>"Daz-zle! Daz-zle!"
>"Blaze! Blaze! Blaze!"
>"Duuuuuuuuusk!"
>A third cry rises from the street.
>A hoard of pink and blue charges, hurling rocks and debris at the other two factions.
>The Duskies split, allowing a huge roaring beast to hurl past them, sirens blazing.
>The former fire truck is now a sickening eyesore of pink and yellow.
>Images of rainbows and hearts and fluffy bunnies adorn its sides, under a thin layer of gore.
>With a blast of its horn, the fire engine blasts through the Dazzle and Blaze factions, cutting a swathe of death and destruction as the Duskies charge into the gap.
>The other gangs retreat as the Duskies take the square, tearing down metal posters and covering graffiti with posters of their favorite pop star.

>"Wooo!" Sonata cheered, dancing a jig on a nearby rooftop.
>"I won! Ari, did you see that? Did you see? Ari, my guys won, did you see- ow!"
>Sonata tumbled to her ass, rubbing her jaw.
>"Shut the fuck up," Aria growled, shaking her smarting fist. "That was MY fucking street, you assholes."
>"Oh get over yourself," Adagio snapped impatiently.
>"Dagi!" Sonata cried, "Ari's being mean!"
>Adagio sneered at her mockingly. "Honestly, you two get so worked up over these petty squabbles."
>"Oh sure," Aria shot back, "You didn't just lose an entire block. If we'd taken one of yours you'd be sulking for the next week."
>She grinned wickedly. "I wonder how you'll feel when I finally manage to smash up the stupid statue they erected for you in the park."
>Adagio rounded on her, snarling as she grabbed her by the collar and pulled her close. "Don't. You. Dare."
>Aria smirked, not even bothering to fight back.
>"Feeling a little vain, Dagi? Personally, I thought they made your ass way too big. But nothing wrong with a little wishful thinkiiii- aaah!"
>Aria screamed as Adagio's boot found her chest, sending her stumbling back until she tripped on the edge of the roof, fell six stories and crashed into a dumpster.
>"Well," Adagio said haughtily, tossing her head as she glanced at Sonata's horrified expression. "Ice cream? To celebrate your victory?"
>Sonata nodded mutely, mouth agape. She glanced back at the edge of the roof, before turning to follow her sister.
>Three seconds later, she had moved on, and was planning out another elaborate sundae for her slaves to build to celebrate her victory.
>At the bottom of the building, Adagio paused to kick at the remains of a newly demolished dumpster. "Get up."
>"Ow-" Aria coughed, lying in a mess of garbage and twisted metal. She coughed blood, and pulled a piece of rebar from her chest. "Fuck you, Dagi."
>"You'll heal," Adagio said flatly, moving on without her. "We're getting ice cream."
>"You're buying," Aria grunted as she pushed herself to her feet.
>Already her wounds were starting to heal, as the ambient chaos in the air flowed into her.
>Chaos, violence, war.
>The world really was a better place with them at the helm.
>She glanced to the side where some mangy dog was skulking through an alley, digging through the garbage for a scrap of meat.
>It barked in shock as a can smacked it in the head, and ran off with a whimper.
>Aria scoffed. Fucking mutt. Probably belonged to some sappy, loving family before all this.
>Before the Dazlings showed the pitiful little sheep who was truly deserving of their love.
>She turned to follow her sisters, wiping her hand on her already filthy shirt.
>Ice cream. A pointless dessert following a wholesome meal of pain and suffering.
>...
>Rocky Road sounded good.

>Meanwhile, just south of Canterlot.
>A faint, discordant thrumming fills the night air as a sleek white sports car tears across the dusky evening roads.
>Silver and blue piping flash in the street lights, the faint glow of cyan undercarriage lights flashing on the street reflectors.
>Muffled dubstep disturbs the night air over the engine's purr as two young women jam their heads to the beat.
>The driver: Short, messy blue hair, pale skin, and rose tinted glasses. Her name is Vinyl Scratch.
>The passenger: Pink skin and long, electric green hair. She wears a maroon school uniform. She is Lemon Zest.
>And they are the resistance.
>Lemon signals Vinyl with her hand, and the tires screech as the car spins onto a side road.
>Ahead of them looms the Canterlot Broadcasting Tower.
>They share a nod, and Vinyl yanks the clutch, sending them drifting into the nearly empty lot.
>A push of a button, and hidden panels slide away, revealing a bank of powerful built in amps.
>Another button and the amplifiers thump with smooth, mind healing wubs.
>The few mindless groupies screech in rage, fleeing the healing bass like demons out of hell, but they'll be back before long and in greater numbers.
>The girls jump out of the car, securing their headphones.
>Lemon slings a guitar over her shoulder, plugging it into the power mini amp attached to her belt.
>Vinyl hefts a boom box onto her shoulder, keying it up to her sickest jam.
>She holds up two fingers and points to the door. Lemon signs her assent. Unslinging the guitar, she moves to cover the door.
>She peeks inside, and holds up two fingers. Two guards inside. Vinyl nods, positions the boombox, and cranks the volume.
>The guards fall and Lemon motions Vinyl forward.
>They enter the building, instruments at the ready, and step over the two guards convulsing on the ground as the sick wubs shatter the years of brainwashing and knock them out cold.
>They creep further in. An exec wearing a Dazzle hoodie rounds the corner, tries to sound an alarm, but Lemon takes her out with a wicked power chord.
>Quickly they clear the building. With the city under the Dazzlings' control, most people are too busy with their idol wars to do any real work.
>Only a handful of drones have been ordered to maintain vital infrastructure, just enough to ensure the sirens' continued quality of life.
>The pair quickly make their way to a final door, the lone remaining studio still in operation.
>A crimson recording light casts a ruddy glow over the hallway as the girls stack the doorway.
>Vinyl sets down the boom box, fishing out her secret weapon. She motions to Lemon, who throws open the door, and Vinyl rushes in.
>A DJ sat at the booth, eyes fixed ahead blankly as a pair of black headphones pumped his brain with siren music.
>His head nodded to the beat as he switched the records, setting up to play yet another hour of unbroken, commercial free Dazzling albums.
>Vinyl grabs his headphones, tearing them free and replacing them with her earbuds in a single fluid motion.
>He screams as the full volume wubs drop the bass on years of mental conditioning.
>Vinyl cracks her knuckles, shoving the convulsing man out of his seat as she takes control of the booth.
>A moment later, the disks are tossed away and her laptop is plugged into the board.
>She keys up the frequency...
>cranks the volume...
>And presses Play.

>The three sirens lounged at the booth of some quaint little shithole called "Sugarcube Corner."
>Sonata was demolishing a veritable mountain of ice cream in a rainbow of colored scoops, while Adagio daintily sipped a malt.
>Aria for her part wasn't a pretentious bitch, so she had a simple cone of Rocky Road.
>The melodic harmony of their own music drifted from the shop speakers as usual, a lilting hypnotic tone that honestly made Aria a bit sleepy.
>She was just licking up the melting bit of the cone when the radio suddenly started spitting static.
>She glared at the radio in irritation.
>Damn human-made crap never worked right, especially now that they'd been robbed of all motivation and free will.
>She'd have to order someone to fix it. Or order them to find someone who knew how, so she could order THEM to fix it.
>Work, work, work, all the time.
>Her brooding was interrupted by an electronic screech from the speakers, and the discordant chaos of overmixed dubstep.
>The harsh electronic music filled the shop, forcing Sonata and Adagio to cover their ears.
>Aria grimaced, unwilling to drop her cone.
>And thus she was the first to hear the screams. Not the screams of combat and discord, but of horrible, piercing agony.
>"W-what's going on, Dagi!?" Sonata shouted over the raucous din.
>Adagio grimaced, face filled with rage. "Someone is trying to undo all our hard work!" she snapped back.
>"Aria, the radio station! Now!"
>Aria glared at her, pointedly ignoring the nails being driven into her skull by the music. "Who don't you go yourself? I'm not finished with my ice cream."
>Adagio met her glare with the cold fury of an ancient glacier.
>She reached out, snatched the cone from Aria's hand, and stabbed it scoop first onto the table top.
>"Oops, looks like you're finished."
>Aria snarled in rage, and pushed herself away from the table.
>She clutched her soul gem, her vision going red as a pair of glossy, gossamer wings formed on her back.
>She turned to the window and screamed. The sonic waves shattered the glass, sending knifelike shards hurling across the street like shrapnel.
>With a leap she shot out of the store front, taking to the skies to orient herself before diving toward the Canterlot broadcast tower.
>Adagio turned to Sonata. "Come on, Sonata. We are going to need to suppress the riots and keep these idiots under our control."
>Sonata pouted, motioning toward her sundae. "But... my ice cream."
>Adagio scowled, flipping the saccharine monstrosity onto the floor. "Let's go."
>Sonata's lip trembled, eyes wide and wet as she followed her sister out of the shop.
>Before the door closed, she turned back to her fallen treat.
>"I'll always remember you."

>At the radio station.
>Vinyl keeps watch as Lemon Zest plants the explosives.
>They can hear the screams of agonizing freedom even over the music pumping through their headphones.
>Lemon nods to Vinyl, slipping through the hole they'd cut in the chain link fence as she flashes the detonator.
>Vinyl nods back, and extends her fist for a bump.
>Mission success.
>Another scream pierces the noise of their headphones.
>It is loud and full of rage and purpose.
>The very ground shakes, and windows shudder in their frames.
>The girls shoot each other wide, panicked looks and run for the car.
>They jump in, Vinyl revs the engine.
>She looks up, raising her classes as a streak of crimson splits the sky, burning toward them like a shooting star.

>Aria screamed in frustration as she shot through the Canterlot skyline, unleashing a powerful sonic attack that demolished a small office building.
>"Fuck you, Adagio!"
>It was cathartic.
>She hoped Adagio didn't hear it.
>She wasn't... afraid of Adagio.
>Just didn't want to deal with the drama.
>Yeah.
>She destroyed another ambulance for good measure.
>The radio station was just ahead, and she put on more speed, the power she burned immediately replenished by the hate and despair stirring in the air.
>Maybe that dubstep shit wasn't all bad, judging by the screams of anguish filling the streets.
>She could get used to that.
>Angling in on the station, she saw the car.
>How could she not?
>It was shiny and expensive, still maintained in spite of the dinge and grime pervading the fallen city.
>She wanted it.
>Falling into a dive, she flipped to land on her feet, leaving a crater in the pavement as she slammed her fist into the parking lot.
>She stood, her twintails whipping behind her as the dust billowed up around her.
>With a feral grin she stalked forward, her pendant growing an angry red.
>She was going to-
>DUUUUUUUUUUUUU
>WUBWUBWUBWUB
>DRRRRRRRRRRR
>WUWUWUWUB!
>"Ahhhhhhh!"
>Aria screamed as panels opened on the front of the car, blasting her with amps and blinding her with floodlights.
>She darted forward, asphalt exploding under her feet as she blindly propelled herself toward the attack.
>Tires screeched, and the world flipped as the car went zero to sixty straight through her, sending her tumbling over the back of the car to land on the pavement.
>She smashed the ground with bloody knuckles, pushed herself to her knees.
>Her wounds were already healing.
>She rose to pursue.
>And the building exploded behind her.
>BOOM
>Aria fell to the ground as her back was pelted by brick and glass shrapnel.
>A horrible, creaking groan filled the air, and a shadow fell over the parking lot as the tower toppled toward her.
>She swore, rolling out of the way as several tons of steel crashed down around her.
>"Fuck!"
>Most of the debris missed her, but a twisted beam had struck her head, matting her hair with blood from the lacerations.
>She twisted the offending beam, snapping it free and hurling it into the smoking radio station.
>The front wall collapsed from the impact.
>Screaming obscenities, Aria leaped into the air, wings flaring as she shot after the escaping vehicle.
>It was already several hundred feet away, but the lights and sound made it hard to miss.
>Arrogant bastards!
>She screamed again, exploding the road next to the car, rocking it on its wheels as it swerved to avoid the attack.
>The roof opened and a figure pushed herself to her feet, anchoring herself on the back of the car.
>Her electric green hair whipped into a frenzy by the wind, she took a pick and tore it across her guitar strings.
>BRUMMmmmmm
>The powerful chord echoed from the rear facing speakers, buffeting Aria with turbulence as the sound waves distorted the air.
>Aria opened her mouth, taking a deep breath as she fought back against the musical assault.
>"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa~!"
>The girls fingers moved, dancing across the guitar as they dove into a rock power ballad, trying to throw off her pursuer.
>But Aria was her match.
>She and her sisters had lived on this world for centuries, following music, practicing it, even influencing its development at times.
>Aria matched the song note for note, countering the sound waves with a haunting melody as she slowly but surely gained on the vehicle.
>She was close.
>Just a little more and she would tear them from the open top.
>Hurl them to the street and snap their headphones, break their minda and turn them into her personal FUCKING slaves!
>She snarled, preparing a final sonic attack, the attack that would end the little terrorists whole fucking career.
>The car swerved, peeling off into a side street.
>Aria followed, flaring her wings as she turned on a dime.
>It was far too late for fancy maneuvers to save them.
>She regained lost ground, drifting into position behind them.
>Almost.
>Almost.
>The car swerved again, tires screaming as the driver ground the gears, the car twisting and drifting into a donut, leaving concentric rings of black rubber across the blacktop.
>Aria braced, expecting a final, desperate attack.
>Instead the girls ducked, curling up in their seats with their hands over their heads.
>Pathetic.
>As if that would stop her.
>Her sonic powers weren't so weak as to be stopped by-
>BWWWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!
>Aria screamed fell to the ground, knocked out of the air by a literal wall of sound.
>She curled up on the pavement, unable to even hear her own screams.
>Her hands clamped over her ears, blood staining her fingers as her eardrums ruptured and burst, but even that wasn't enough to save her.
>The ground rattled under her body, the air tore at her clothes and skin, her teeth rattled in her skull.
>She called for her magic, to heal her, save her from the torturous assault, but it would not answer her call.
>Her vision swam as she tried to understand.
>She'd been so focused on pursuing the car that she hadn't noticed she'd been lured out of town.
>She was in some sort of amphitheater, some old, unused show space from who knew what decade.
>The sound waves bounced off the curved walls, amplifying and reverberating as they drilled into her skull.
>The last thing she saw was a wall of amplifiers, thirty feet high, arranged in a massive semicircle around herself and the car.
>And then she blacked out.