Rainbow Rocks - The Untold Story (Chapter 27)

Level Up knew the truth now. She was a monster. She had allowed Golden Chaos to spawn in her subconscious by wishing for revenge that didn’t need to be sought. As for the part about her pony self joining minds with her human self… Well, it just made her that much more confused about who she really was.

Her current environment wasn’t helping. The students of CHS, who had seemed uncommonly nice on her first day here, were now acting exactly like the Manhattan thugs from her false memories. It was “Hey Goldie, mind if I go prospecting?” this and “Only rabbits are supposed to like karats, stupid” that. Several of the tougher students tried in vain to steal her arm, and the nerd whose notes she had ruined on the first day even went so far as to empty an entire pen’s worth of ink onto the arm as a form of “payback”. It was just like her Manhattan memories, except this time it was worse, because this time it was real.

Level didn’t know what to do anymore. Her first instinct was to try and patch things up with Sunset Shimmer, but she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t bring herself to face her sister knowing what she had vowed to do. So Level simply watched from a distance while Sunset tried in vain to comfort a heartbroken Twilight.

“Why does everyone here have to be so cruel just because they’re brainwashed?” Twilight was sobbing into Sunset’s shoulder. “It’s not fair! It’s just not fair!”

“I know, Twilight,” Sunset replied, hugging Twilight and rubbing her back. “I know.”

“I know how you girls feel,” Level Up thought, but she didn’t dare say it aloud. She didn’t want to draw attention to herself. She walked away, heading in the direction of the school doors, wanting to get as far away from this hateful environment as possible.

Level stared down at her hands as she walked. One of them was golden, the other magenta. She could easily picture them both as demon claws. She wasn’t sure if she was actually her human self or her pony self. Had Golden controlled both versions of her? If so, her memories hadn’t mentioned it. Before she could think about it, she felt rain pour down on her head and saw it wash away the ink that the nerd had poured on her arm. But she was inside. How could that be? She looked up and saw a single storm cloud directly above her. Her unparalleled despair must have caused it to appear. Not that she cared; she was past caring about anything at this point.

Finally, Level made it out of the school. However, the sadness she felt had sapped her of her strength, so rather than putting some distance between herself and the building, she sat down on the front steps and began to cry. She was a monster. She was repulsive. She didn’t deserve to have friends. She didn’t deserve anything.

She wasn’t sure how long she’d been sitting there before she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up and found herself staring into the covered eyes of DJ PON-3. The DJ wore a concerned frown, but it soon turned into a reassuring smile as she leaned in and gave Level a hug. Level accepted, as the embrace gave her a much-needed shoulder to cry on. She could barely believe this. After everyone else had given up on her, the DJ was the one who came back. But why?

When Level’s eyes were finally dry and the cloud above her head had disappeared, she pulled back enough to see DJ PON-3’s face. “Thanks, DJ,” Level said gratefully. “I feel better now. But why did you-” She faltered once she saw that the DJ had somehow gotten her headphones back from Principal Celestia. “Of course,” she muttered. “The headphones. You never actually heard any of the Dazzlings’ songs, did you?” The DJ shook her head. Level added, “So how come you can hear me?”

The DJ pulled away and took out her phone. Knowing what was about to happen, Level pulled out her own phone in anticipation of the inevitable text. Sure enough, the phone soon alerted her to the text in question, which she quickly pulled up. The DJ had texted, [I only hear things that are worth hearing. And your problems are worth hearing about, because I know the feeling.]

“No,” Level muttered. “No. There’s no way you could possibly know.”

[Actually] the DJ texted in response, [I, too, was once taken over by my Dark Side. Her name was Doom Note, and long story short, she tried to make me bring humanity to its knees as vengeance for the bullying I had endured for years due to my inability to speak. She nearly succeeded, too. Then, one day, someone noticed what was happening to me and reached out to help me. It took a bit of prodding – mostly because Doom Note didn’t want to be defeated – but I was eventually able to accept.]

It took a little while for Level Up to process this. Then she simply said, “You’re reaching out to help me just like how someone reached out to you.”

[Exactly.] the DJ’s text read. [Now, unfortunately, I can’t help you get Golden Chaos out of your soul completely. That’s impossible. After all, our Dark Sides are a part of who we are, whether we like it or not. However, I can help you use the ambitious side that Golden provides you to help you in your everyday life.]

“How?” Level asked, starting to feel desperate. “I’m afraid to even be talking about her. You saw what happens when she takes control!”

[True.] the DJ texted. [Our Dark Sides are called Dark Sides for a reason, after all. But in addition to containing our darkest secrets and desires, they also possess our sense of determination. If you can learn to tap into that, then you can truly reach your full potential. I can help you do that.]

“Yes, please,” Level replied. “I beg of you. Help me get through this.” She was surprised when, rather than texting a response right away, DJ PON-3 removed her headphones and placed them over Level’s ears. “What are you-” Level started to ask, but she was quickly interrupted when a song started pumping into the headphones.


Earth, sky
Day, night
Sound and silence
Dark and light
One alone is not enough
You need both together
Winter, summer, moon and sun
Lesson Number One


Level wasn’t sure why, but there was something soothing about the song she was hearing. She listened patiently, eager to hear more.


Like a rock (Haa-haa) you must be hard (Haa-haa)
Like an oak (Mmmmahh) you must stand firm (Haa-haa)
Cut quick like my blade
Think fast (Haa-haa) unafraid


Just when Level thought she couldn’t possibly be intrigued further, DJ PON-3 removed her shades and put them on Level, right over her glasses. Immediately, Level’s vision changed. As she looked at the DJ, she found that the girl seemed to be divided into two halves: her regular self, and a darker version with purplish-black skin, a sea green eye, and orange hair with red streaks.


Like a rock (Haa-haa) I must be hard (Haa-haa)
Like an oak (Mmmmahh) I must stand firm (Haa-haa)
Cut quick like my blade
Think fast (Haa-haa) unafraid


“This is freaky,” Level mumbled. The DJ (DJs?) gave her a reassuring smile and gestured for her to just keep listening.


Like a cloud you are soft
Like bamboo you bend in the wind
Creeping slow, you’re at peace because you know
It’s okay to be afraid

Like a cloud I am soft
Like bamboo I bend in the wind
Creeping slow, I’m at peace because I know
It’s okay to be afraid


Was Level Up imagining things, or did the entire world seem to be synchronizing itself to the song?


One alone is not enough (One alone is not enough)
You need both together (You need both together)
Winter, summer, moon and sun (Winter, summer, moon and sun)
Lesson Number One


The world was synchronizing itself to the song. Every single detail that Level Up observed – the clouds, the grass, the setting sun – seemed to be moving in accordance with the various musical notes. As Level realized this, she felt something spark deep down within her soul.



Like a cloud I am soft
(Like a rock I must be hard)
Like bamboo I bend in the wind
(Like an oak I must stand firm)
(You can fly!)
Creeping slow, I’m at peace because I know
(Cut quick like my blade)
It’s okay to be afraid
(Think fast unafraid)


Level Up soon realized what she was feeling. It was enlightenment. For the first time in ages, she was able see a single truth that had been hiding in plain sight from her corrupted (and later ignorant) mind: it took the Light Side and the Dark Side together to make her mind function. Having her Dark Side in control had made her too aggressive, but having her Light Side in total control would make her too passive. If she wanted to be whole, she would have to let her Light and Dark Sides work together.


(You have begun!)
Lesson Number One
(Lesson Number One)
(Lesson Number One)
Lesson Number One!


As the song wrapped up, Level Up’s Personal Touch suddenly dominated her vision. The image of a Wii remote and a nunchuck on either side of a fountain pen symbolized her ability to create and control various things her surroundings. She wasn’t sure why she was suddenly seeing this, but she didn’t care, either. As the image faded and the world returned to normal, she proclaimed, “That’s it! I know what must be done!” Then she realized she was still wearing the DJ’s headphones and shades. “Oh, here’s your stuff back,” she added sheepishly, removing the headphones and shades and handing them back to her friend. The DJ put the items back on and gave Level a thumbs-up.

“Help!” a familiar voice screamed. “Trouble! Trouble!” Level turned in the direction of the voice, only to see a dog running towards her. As the dog got closer, she realized that it wasn’t just any dog, but that same dog who had gone out of his way to keep Jerk Sentry from sabotaging The Earth’s Salvations.

The dog came to a stop in front of Level and the DJ, panting in order to catch his breath. “What seems to be the trouble?” Level asked.

“Trixie…has flipped…her lid,” the dog replied, panting in between words. “The Rainbooms…are trapped under…the amphitheatre!”

“What?” Level gasped. This wasn’t good. Now that she knew the truth about who Twilight Sparkle was, she knew that she had to get to the amphitheatre and put her plan into action. If it worked (and she was all but certain it would) then it would provide Twilight with the strength she needed to win, and the Magic of Friendship would cause that strength to circulate to the other Rainbooms, making them all stronger.

Before she could say anything, Level felt her phone vibrate. She had forgotten it was still in her hand. Curious, she pulled up the text, [We should get going. I have a feeling you’re going to need a ride there. Plus I know that you’re planning something, and whatever it is, I’ll need you to do your part before I can do mine.]

Level wasn’t sure but that meant, but she decided to shrug it off. She had more important things to focus on at the moment. “Okay,” she said. “Lead the way, DJ.”

The DJ smiled tenderly and shook her head, much to Level Up’s confusion. She texted something on her phone. When Level Up received the text, she was simultaneously surprised, confused, and moved to tears. This was because the text simply read [Call me Vinyl.]