This Is It!!! [Concluded]

[20monkies]

((This is an open RP to everypony! A concert is taking place at Town Hall, and everypony is invited! So, just jump in and have some fun! There is no order, really - you can break off with another pony if thats what happens. Just be mindful, and wait some time before posting. You might want to refresh the page just before posting in case another post was done in the meantime. Other ponies can even join you, I might even have Onyx Bass jump in and join you as well. You can join him backstage before and after the show, if thats where you want to be. We'll see how this goes. Enjoy the show!))


This is it. This is the day that history was going to be made. Onyx Bass could feel it in his blood - today was going to change the way his parents thought of him. Every pony that was no pony could make it in this world. It wasn't necessary for one to have magical abilities like Unicorns or have the ability to fly and control the weather like Pegasi. Earth ponies like himself could just as well do any of those things and be just as famous.

He had talent. And he wasn't afraid to show it off.

The train pulled up into Ponyville Station and the steam rolled off the tracks like a cascading wave retreating back into the ocean. A beige pony, donning dark black shades and a black bass guitar strapped to his back stepped off the train and surveyed his surroundings. He was grinning widely, happy to be here. He could see the excitement vibrating in the town, posters of his concert plastered on every shop window. Mares and stallions both alike were gathered in small groups around them, talking about his music. Oh, he was sure that there was going to be a large outcome from this stint of his. He already had his album released and was working on some new songs as well. Most definitely popular among the mares was one song called "Our Hooves Are The Same". At first glance, one would think it sounded like a love song, but it was definitely rock and roll (Elvis style).

He trotted through town, heading towards Town Hall where preparations were being made for his concert and arrival. A few ponies had stopped in their tracks and gasped their astonishment - even asked for autographs! He gladly signed them, his charming smile never faltering in any way. No pony could mess with his mood. He was already on Cloud 9 and just excited to give them a fun time with his music.

Evening came, and there was a mass of ponies just waiting to get inside and get seated. Onyx Bass was backstage, his heart beating fast as the adrenaline began to kick in.

"I can do this. I can do this! I've done it before!"

Ponyville was, after all, the heart of Equestria in a way, and many things exciting happened here now.

"Do I look good?" He asked his makeup stylist, Powder Poof, who nodded her head.

"You look amazing, my dear!" Onyx Bass grinned ear to ear. Looking in the mirror at his reflection, his silver eyes shone of determination. His hair, black with a streak of electric blue, swept to one side perfectly and neatly. He liked his tail to stay messy - it gave him that neat but 'grungy' look.

"Why thank you! You look just as stunning, darling." The stylist blushed and gave him a quick once over before dashing away.

[waxworks]

"Come oooon," cried a small, squeaky voice. "We've been pent up in the theater for two weeks straight now rehearsing... you owe it yourself to get out and have a good time!"

The purple unicorn eyed the poster again with some consideration mixed with a small twinge of guilt. She was certain that really they should be back at the theater rehearsing but then it had been quite a while since she enjoyed herself watching somepony besides herself performing on stage. Really, Mannequin Grace was a sucker for performances of all sorts, music, theater, comedy, magic, if you put enough soap boxes side by side and sat atop them, Grace would be drawn to you. She licked her lips and thought on it again. For some reason the pony in the posters certainly looked familiar, but she couldn't quite place it.

As she tilted her head in an attempt to shift her memories, the wooden puppet on her back nudged her again. Her specialty was of course puppetry, and it was a useful way to keep her mind organized. "You know his music," said Stump, the little wooden dragon carefully rising to his feet on Manny's cape-covered back, "it's real hip swaying stuff, you know, like this!"

He did a small variation of a hip waggle and a low mimicry that would've sounded like a small squeaky thing attempting to perform rockabilly, but it was sufficient. She'd heard his music before, and she'd come to the decision that she was going to hear it again. With a relenting grin and a nod, she adjusted her shoulders so that Stump fell back onto his wooden rump with a plop. The pair trotted through the city and made their way to the large crowd gathering in front of Town Hall. It was a good crowd, Grace had more than enough experience in front of an audience to be able to get the general feel for them, and there was a mixture of excitement, anticipation, and she thought she even caught a little wisp of disbelief here and there, a few giddy mares not really believing that such a pony would come to their 'little' town. After finding a fairly clear space she sat down with a plop, the little wooden dragon on her back clambering on top of her hat for a better view.

[20monkies]

There was still a lot of work to be done and still some time before the start of the concert.

Onyx Bass was sure that preparations were still underway and the crowd gathering in the Hall itself and outside were steadily finding their way to a suitable seating position. He did a once over in the mirror, tossing his mane back. He looked the part, but could he play the part? Getting up from his seat, he paced over towards the table that had his sheet music and guitar. Onyx picked up a cloth and rubbed down the instrument, ensuring that it was shining despite it's darkness. The lights would have to hit it perfectly for it to show best on stage.

"Where's my microphone?" He asked, turning around. Who he ended up turning to was the Mayor of Ponyville herself. He gave her an enormous smile and opened his arms out to her.

"Ah, lovely Mayor! I'm so happy to be here. Are you excited? You must be thrilled with the outcome!" He was beaming his happiness, and the Mayor couldn't help but smile back. He could tell that she didn't want to hold back, in all seriousness.

"You have indeed captured a lot of attention from mares and stallions alike from all over Equestria. I'm so humbled that you chose Ponyville to hold such a joyous occasion."

Onyx Bass leaned forward and took up her hoof, giving her a gentlemanly kiss on the back. He peered up at her from beneath his sweeping hair and grinned. The Mayor stuttered and flushed a deep crimson red.

"I must have captured your attention too." He let out a soft laugh and turned around to pick up his guitar, testing the strings.

"Onyx, you have 10 minutes before you go on stage. We'll have the Mayor do an introduction for you before you go on."

Onyx nodded his head as he listened to the stage manager give him his directions.

"Thank you. It was lovely meeting you, Mayor. I'll see you in 10 minutes. I can hardly wait!" He swept himself away to put on the finishing touches to his ensemble.

[SkyBolt]

Sky Bolt was, to say the least, unimpressed. This stallion was to showy. Way to showy. She seemed to be the onky pony around with that idea, though. The plant loving unicorn had a very carefully grown necklace with one flower instead of some jewel. Yes, it was a living plant. Don't ask me why. The white unicorn marched up to the guitar pony on the posters, and gave him a melting glare. "Tone it down, show off. Have talent, don't have way to many fans." The blue maned mare had not had the most successful seed sales day, and it was because every pony just wanted to see this old show off.

[Dark Star]

Dark Star woke up to a unusually loud amount of cheering that apparently came from the train station. "I never thought I'd see the day where I could hear ponies squealing from the other side of town" she said aloud. After ridding herself of her bed-mane, she stepped outside and focused in order to teleport to the train station directly. She found herself a few feet above some other ponies and then fell to the ground with a thud. "Gotta remember not to do that after waking up" she thought as she picked herself up.

She looked around the crowd and managed to find out the reasoning behind the group of squealing fan-mares, the source being some rock star-looking stallion coming to play a concert in town hall that night. She looked at one of the thousands of posters plastered over the store windows and gave the stallion on it a good look-over. 'I could almost swear I've seen that stallion in Canterlot at least once.....but where I saw him is the real problem here' she thought to herself. After a few minutes she decided to trot back to her home in order to try and get some sleep back. She had a feeling or two about attending the concert for a bit, then heading out to the forest to work. 'I suppose I can indulge myself a bit before working, Professor Specks would probably want it like that anyway' she thought.

It was around dusk hours the next time Dark Star stepped out of her home once more. She had her usual materials with her, but started trotting towards town hall instead of passing by it. She stepped in and found the place packed with ponies from all over town already gathering in a large crowd. Rather than stand in a crowd that would prove difficult to get out of, she decided to teleport to the balcony above and sit among the many other unicorns and pegasi that had the same idea. From the corner of her eye, she could see a few ponies going backstage, obviously to meet this Onyx Bass that the posters advertised.

[20monkies]

As Onyx was getting ready, stage assistants getting the backdrop ready behind the curtains, makeup artists cleaning up their scattered mess, he heard a mare approaching him and begin to scold him.

Oh, this was fun. He couldn't help but turn around to face a blue maned white unicorn, nose to nose with her as she was glaring at him. Why was she glaring at him? Didn't she like his music, too? Oh, it's because she was a unicorn. Right. He thought to his parents - this pride that unicorns tended to feel about themselves when they were threatened by those who were just as talented as them.

"Oh, my dear friend, but you must be a fan if you've come out all the way to meet with me!" He swept up her hoof and planted a kiss on the back, grinning widely at her. "Such a beautiful flower, for a flower." He touched the floral necklase she was wearing around her neck, gently nudging the delicate thing with his hoof before he was called to.

"5 minutes to showtime, Bass!" Onyx nodded his head and smiled charmingly at Sky Bolt.

"If you want to join my background dancers, you are more than happy to! Manager Light!" Onyx turned away from the unicorn, calling to the Stage Manager. "Are the band members ready?" Onyx had hired a small group of musicians to be the background players. They attended many of his gigs with him, but this was the first time they were arriving after Onyx and for such a big show too.

[Dark Star]

As Dark Star waited for the concert to begin, she was suddenly surprised to hear the voice of a certain friend of hers booming in her eardrums. "Yo, Dark Star, didn't think you could actually have fun?" asked Slipstream sarcastically. Dark Star frowned and looked off the balcony to see Slipstream just hovering there with her hoofs crossed and her face wearing a smug grin. "I had a bit of time before I could start working, so I decided to come here for a bit, see what all the fuss is about" she explained to the blue Pegasus. "You sure it ain't 'cause you wanna go gaga over Onyx Bass?" Slipstream asked innocently. Dark Star sighed and looked at her, annoyed by her comment. "What a ridiculous thing to say, I don't even know who he is" she said to her.

"What's the matter, too good to let yourself act like a girl?" Slipstream asked pretentiously. Dark Star's eyes started glowing a brighter shade of red than normal. "Ooh, the scary eyes, better watch out for the stare" Slipstream mocked. "Is it too much to ask that you act your age, you're not a little filly anymore you know?". "I'd rather be a filly that knows how to have fun than be some boring stick in the mud who only goes out when everyone else is asleep" Slipstream retorted.

The two continued their little back-and-forth until they were silenced by a peeved stage managed who could hear them from the other side of the stage. Slipstream landed gracefully on the balcony, sitting on it's edge, and smirked back at Dark Star with one eye closed. "Just hear me out; it's great that you're living the dream job and all, but the thing is, you're way too uptight more than half the time. You gotta enjoy your life while you're still young, otherwise you'll wind up as some dusty old book on the shelf". Dark Star breathed and deep sigh and calmed down, her eyes returning to the same red as normal. She looked at Slipstream from behind and half-smiled at her sentimental explanation. "You sound like an old woman" she deadpanned. Slipstream just started laughing loudly and gave Dark Star a good whack on the back. "You see, that's how you want to start a good night off" she said joyously. 

The two mares sat on the balcony, waiting for the show to begin without a care in the world that night. They stared down at the stage just waiting for the curtain to rise and the rocker to strut right and out and wow them. 

[20monkies]

The Hall lights dimmed and a spotlight came on the curtained stage.

The audience hushed as they all eagerly waited in desperate anticipation.

The Mayor of Ponyville came out from between the dark velvet curtains and cleared her throat, holding a microphone in her hand.

"Welcome, citizens of Ponyville! Tonight, we are all gathered here to welcome Equestria's most well-known pony for a great cause. His message has spread high and low, and you have all opened up your arms to his music and welcomed him into your homes. A citizen of Canterlot, he has come here tonight to give every pony a special presentation that will feature some of his newest creations to be heard for the very first time. Mares and Stallions, Fillies and Colts, I present you with - ONYX BASS!"

Smoke billowed out from beneath the curtains as they parted from the center. Electric blue stobe lights flashed out from behind, the sound of a bass guitar strumming a solo before the spotlight hit Onyx Bass. His bright blue streak shined under the light, his silver eyes scanning the crowd. He had a huge smile on his face, despite how fast his heart was beating. He was nervous, and scared but would never chicken out. This was his moment to shine. This was his limelight.

"GOOD EVENING, PONYVILLE!!!" Onyx called out over the microphone.

The crowd erupted with shouts, applause and cheers. Some even whistled out loud.

"I'm so happy to be here to give you all a night you will never forget!"

Once the crowd died down from it's excitement, the drummer behind Onyx counted down for their first song.

"A five - six - seven - eight!"

The band and Onyx broke into their first song, rough around the edges, but nevertheless catchy and upbeat. Bass was lost in the music - catching each note with his hooves in perfect sync with the beating of the drums. It was a difficult instrument to play if you didn't have magic abilities, but he had mastered it and could play it with such ease that sometimes he got lost in his concentration over the music notes.

((Think... Nirvana/Metallicaish, but not heavy-metal))

The music slowed for a moment, and he slowed down his pace. The lyrics were to begin:

In the light of the new moon,
I can hear you next to me,
The world is quiet and lonely,
But I'm right here with you...

[Dark Star]

As the lights dimmed down and the steam rolled in, Onyx Bass started the concert off with a bang. Dark Star observed carefully as his hooves glided directly over the strings of his guitar, impressed that a pony could play an instrument such as that with such talent, in spite of how he clearly was an earth pony. She wondered if it were possible for something like this to happen, then believed it happening right in front of her. She then thought that Slipstream was looking at her, probably wanting to say something like "Any pony can do anything if they work hard enough and never give up". She looked over, wondering if she was going to do the aforementioned act, but was surprised to see her head-banging, rocking out to the music, her mane whipping back and forth rapidly. Dark Star simply thought to herself 'I'm almost envious of that enthusiasm of hers'. 

Dark Star merely stared down at him, concentrating specifically on his lyrics. She heard a soothing tone behind his voice, despite how her initial thought about him was something a bit more...metallic for a lack of better words. She then felt somewhat reminded of some pony else she heard in Canterlot once, but was unable to locate the exact source from memory. For once, she couldn't remember something that suddenly became important. Luckily, this was one of many things that Slipstream didn't know, which meant that Slipstream couldn't tease her about it in the way she did. 

Her bright red eyes began to glow with frustration as she stared down at this enigmatically familiar stallion. Slipstream peeked through one open eye and found Dark Star staring intensely at Onyx Bass and gained a mischievous smile as she scooted slightly closer to the dark mare. "So, you're really checking that guy out, does he really look as good to you as he does to me?" Slipstream asked. Dark Star simply scoffed under her breath and directed her still-glowing eyes toward her in annoyance. She didn't need to speak a word as Slipstream smiled w/ her eyes closed and continued raving to the music.

Dark Star wondered exactly where it must've been in Canterlot that she knew this pony from, then formed an idea in her mind; "When you have questions, you ask the best candidate to know the answer" she said under her breath. Now she had a plan, one that she'd be certain to put into action later that night.

[waxworks]

Little bits of crushed popcorn toppled down Mannequin's back, the little wooden dragon sitting on her not so much eating the popcorn, as throwing clawfuls into his wooden mouth and smashing them with his jaw before letting it topple back out. Grace didn't seem to notice, her eyes fixed on the stage as the lights began to dim. Spotlights and billowing smoke always put her in a great mood, something about them promised pure entertainment, and she eagerly leaned forward.

The moment the music erupted from the speakers, her top hat blew off backwards and her mane fluttered as she came to the sudden realization that she might be standing far too close to the speakers. After quickly retrieving her hat from the head a surprised pony, she eagerly began whistling and stomping her hooves, bobbing her head in time to the music. There was so much energy, so much electricity, and Onyx and his band were sending off such a wave that the little purple unicorn began to eagerly thrash about, the wooden dragon on her back hanging on for dear life (or the lifeless puppet equivalent of that).

She'd recently made the acquaintance of a very large pegasus mare who had told her that the right kind of music automatically gave birth to a scene in your head if you just listened carefully enough, and there was already an image growing in Grace's head of a stallion on a cliff reaching his hoof out as the land cracked apart and flames belched out and... maybe she was getting too into the music. She felt a little wooden claw nudge her shoulder, and she sheepishly retracted her head into her shoulders slightly.

[20monkies]

“…The howling of the wind echoes,
The horizon glowing white,
We are no more in the shadows,
Not afraid of the night!”

Onyx Bass’ voice echoed throughout the hall, trilling, swaying, hanging in the air. It lingered momentarily, and then disappeared before it was overtaken by a sweeter lament. The song he was singing touched the deepest corner of his heart. He knew what it was like being left in isolation, always looked down on. This was his song, though. His heart and soul. It resonated with every particle of his being, and it was the hope he wanted to show others. Everyone that was ever bullied, everyone that was ever put down like he was.

But this was not a known fact to others. Oh no, he never made the sad part of his life an issue with the public. He just wanted to connect with them on a different level, and even though the lyrics were mostly about him, he always had a cheerful outlook on life. Always pushing himself, never giving up.

That was just it. He never gave up.

His hooves were flying across the strings of his bass guitar, the drummers and background guitarists keeping up with him. The lights flooded his vision, and he could hardly see the audience behind the spots dancing across his vision but he knew they were there just by the sound of hooves beating the ground and the applause he was getting.

One song finished, and they took a momentary break. Onyx needed to catch his breath as he raised his hooves in the air and grinned.

“How did you like that!?” He asked them all. “Let’s pick up the pace with something original. Superspeed!”

Again, he picked up the strings with his hooves, this time the music more intense and fast. The beat raced alongside with his heart, as though it would pop out of his chest at any moment.

He was going to go through his entire first album, and was playing through 5 new songs he had written up that could even go onto his second!

[Dark Star]

The two mares sat in amazement as Onyx Bass' songs went from a rock song, to emotional and heavy, back to fast-moving rock with such ease, such proficiency. Slipstream looked down at the beige stallion in absolute adoration and Dark Star's eyes glowed with emotions of sympathy and comprehension. Her face, however, was completely stoic, unchanging throughout anything he played/sang. The two simply stared at him from their vantage point for as long as possible. At some point, Dark Star had looked down at the crowd below them and noticed how many of the mares looked as though they were about to explode from the built-up emotions running through them, some of the colts/stallions even joining them in the same emotional fever pitch as the mares.

Slipstream was waving her fore-hooves through the air passionately as the concert continued to simply fly through emotions. Dark Star looked at her in concern, but Slipstream wouldn't be able to see this look of hers through her closed eyelids anyway. She simply continued flailing her hooves excitedly as she started lifting off the ground. Her wings flapped as excitedly as her hooves did as she slowly started hovering away from the balcony's side railing. She was enveloped by a dark red aura as Dark Star brought her back to her side in a manner similar to a scrolling mechanism on a typewriter. She continued this until the end of the song, when it started to annoy her. Slipstream just smiled and hovered upside-down after the emotional piece of his ended. 

Slipstream leaned over the balcony bursting with excitement about the next song. Dark Star simply stared down at the stage, still trying to realize what it was that she remembered from Canterlot, but to no avail.

[SkyBolt]

Sky Bolt almost wanted to buck this guy. He was obviously inpressing the crowd, but from her vantage point back stage, were she was not aloud to be, all she saw was a stallion with some guitar skill and a couple good songs. He was just a show off, like the small and powerless Trixie, as Sky preferred to think of her. Not completely fake, but way overly showy. Who cares how many fans this idiot has, Sky was going to lecture this guy after the show. She was angry. A small part of her mind was asking her why she was angry, but she just shoved it down. This stallion was an annoying show off, and the whute unicorn had convinced herself to give him a price if her mind as soon as he got off stage. This guy could go back to his big fancy Canterlit, and never come back, for all she cared.

[20monkies]

The night was passing smoothly and without a hitch - Onyx Bass was surprised that nothing out of the ordinary happened. Normally he would stumble on his own lyrics, or play a wrong note. He was thankful to Celestia that all went according to plan.

There were many ponies in the crowd, some pegasi flying in the air in excitement and some unicorns flashing lights to match in time with the beaming strobe lights. But there was one that seemed so strange out in the crowd, as he finished one of his songs. He looked up at where the balcony must have been and saw a pegasi enveloped in a red light and couldn't help but smirk softly to himself.

He was lost in a strange and surreal world of his own music, the background ponies coming out for a few of the musical numbers that he had. The night had to end at some point, it was getting late and he had gone through numerous songs. The last one he was saving was his ever popular song.

"Thank you so much, Ponyville, for having me tonight. I had so much fun playing for you, and I wish you all a wonderful night! I just have one last song to help lull you to bed, and I'm sure you've been waiting for it this evening. So here it is, "Our Hooves Are The Same.""

The Mayor came out while he was giving his final speech of the night before wrapping it up, and she bowed down to the audience as well.

"Thank you, Onyx Bass, for coming here to entertain us. Ponyville, I'm sure you've have an amazing time. Onyx Bass has generously offered to accept donations for a small fund he is starting, to help all ponies in Equestria's dreams come true. If you haven't, you may donate what you can on the way out of Town Hall. There will be a box set up at the door. Once again, thank you Onyx Bass, for your generosity to our community."

This was the heart of his concert. The heart of him. The reason why he had done such a big event. This was his great cause, helping out those who were unfortunate and in the similar situation as he had been. Colts and Fillies would look up to him for inspiration, and he wanted them to know that it didn't matter if you had a cutie mark or not, if you had talent or not, or were of a lower class. They were all the same and they could fulfill their dreams if they put their heart into it.

So finishing his concert off with a *BANG!*, Onyx's song went to a slower pace. Plucking at the bass strings, the drummer sure and steady almost as quiet as a heart beat.

"It doesn't matter who you are
It doesn't matter where you're from
It doesn't matter what you'll do
We are all one, we are all one

We are from the same land
We are from the same world
Equestria, is in our blood
It's in our hearts, in our soul

Never give up, never go down
Never let them push you around
Let them know who, let them know why,
There's a reason for it all…

Our hooves are the same,
Our hooves are the same,
We were made to understand,
Our hooves are the same..."

Melodic, and entrancing, he was lost in his own words. He was filled with emotion, and knew that the song was nearing it's end. And when it was, the audience burst forward with lots of applause and cheer. It filled him with such happiness, he wanted to grab every single pony there and give them hugs and kisses. He knew that was impossible and probably would put him out of line but the need was there.

Bowing to the audience as mares threw flowers and other such gifts of gratitude towards him, the curtains closed and the chattering of tired ponies filled the hall as it did before the performance.

Onyx Bass was gathered by his band members, embracing them all.

"You guys did amazing! We did such an awesome job! I can't believe we got through it!"

"I thought my arms were going to fall off, you were playing so fast I thought I would lose my beat!" said the Drum Beat, the drummer. Onyx beamed with happiness and gratitude towards them. They really did such an outstanding job.

[Dark Star]

The evening was young, but the concert drew to a close. Slipstream was positively glowing with excitement, while Dark Star barely looked impressed with the performance at all. "Man, oh man! That was so awesome!" said Slipstream excitedly. She started to fly in small circles chatting in a blurred, almost squealing voice, completely incomprehensible to Dark Star who remained calm on the balcony. She enveloped Slipstream in her magical aura and held her close to her side, her eyes glowing slightly with annoyance. "Would it kill you to grow up?" she asked the Pegasus seriously. Slipstream simply smiled with her eyes closed and tapped Dark Star on the head with a hoof. "You're too serious, my dear. What's the fun in growing up when all it does is get in the way of living life to the fullest?" she asked in retaliation. Dark Star simply rolled her eyes and released her magical hold on her. 

"Ooh, looks like there are some fans going backstage, wanna come with?" Slipstream asked. Dark Star took a few steps forward and looked down at the stage. Slipstream was right, there were a few ponies going backstage, although most of the ponies were going out to the front to pay a few donations towards his cause. Dark Star gave her a quizzical look and nodded in agreement. Slipstream smiled with her eyes glistening and flew down to the stage while Dark Star simply teleported down, taking a regal-looking stance as she trotted alongside her to the musicians behind the curtain. Slipstream looked so nervous that she could explode at any moment. Dark Star, however, kept her cool and walked alongside her fluttering friend in strides.

The two mares saw Onyx Bass congratulating his fellow band members and Slipstream immediately rushed over to congratulate him. "OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG, I am such a fan of your work, Onyx Bass" she said in the typical rabid-fangirl-like pace. She was enveloped in the same red aura Dark Star had placed her under all night and just like before, was dragged back to the dark unicorn's side with her eyes glowing brightly. "I'm sorry about her, she's a bit excitable in front of...talented young stallions such as yourselves" Dark Star said in a tone as regal as her stance looked. 'Leave it to Slipstream to embarrass me in front of somepony I'm trying to find out more about' she thought to herself as she calmly approached the musician.