A Singing Star

by Chloe Ryder

  Rainbow stamped her hoof. ‘The only thing she has stolen is three minutes of precious rehearsal time. Now sing!’

  Diva opened her mouth but no sound came out.

  ‘I can’t,’ she sobbed. ‘My singing voice has gone. I’m just an ordinary pony now.’ Diva reared up dramatically then thundered off the stage.

  Chapter 3

  Stardust stared at Pippa. Her eyes were bright with alarm. ‘Poor Diva,’ she neighed. ‘We have to help her. Jump on my back, Pippa. We’ll chase after Divine and get Diva’s voice back.’

  Pippa hesitated for a moment. Something was bothering her but each time she tried to remember what it was, the thought slipped even deeper into her mind.

  ‘Pippa, hurry!’ Stardust tossed her head.

  ‘We ought to go after Diva first,’ Pippa said, slowly. ‘She was very upset.’

  ‘Oh! I didn’t think about that. Yes, we must.’

  Stardust barely waited for Pippa to land on her back before she set off at a gallop away from the Castle.

  Pippa leaned forward to call in Stardust’s ear. ‘Where are we going?’

  ‘To Diva’s stables.’

  ‘Why would she go there? No one’s at home. They’ll all be on their way here to Stableside for the concert. And Diva seems like the kind of pony who needs an audience.’

  ‘That’s true,’ Stardust slowed down. ‘Then where would a star go when she’s lost her singing voice?’

  Pippa thought about it for a moment. ‘To her unicorn?’ she suggested.

  ‘Of course!’ shouted Stardust. ‘Pippa MacDonald, you are so clever. I bet she’s gone to find her unicorn twin.’

  For every pony on Chevalia there was an identical unicorn friend. The unicorns loved to sing and they had beautiful voices. If anyone could understand how Diva was feeling about losing her voice it would be her magical unicorn friend.

  Stardust changed direction and cantered towards the Grasslands. Pippa leaned forward, sinking her hands into Stardust’s long, silky mane. The wind was behind them – it pushed Stardust along and blew Pippa’s curly hair over her face so she could hardly see where they were going. They crossed the Savannah and a while later Stardust slowed to a fast trot. ‘We’re nearly there,’ she whispered.

  Pippa sat back. Ahead lay the Cloud Forest, home of the unicorns. Stardust stepped carefully as she entered the mysterious woods, shrouded in mist.

  The trees towered over them, making Pippa feel as small as an ant. They hadn’t gone far when Pippa saw something moving ahead of them.

  ‘There she is,’ Pippa said.

  Diva trotted deeper into the forest.

  ‘Diva, wait,’ called Pippa.

  Diva was far ahead and didn’t seem to hear. Stardust hurried on. A low mist swirled around Pippa and Stardust’s legs so it looked like they were floating across a milky white lake. The ancient trees were hung with thick, rope-like vines and Pippa and Stardust had to push together to move them out of their way.

  A dragonfly swooped overhead – its electric blue wings beat rapidly and long, red flames of fire shot from its mouth. Stardust stood very still and the dragonfly ignored her and flew on. The ground grew spongier. Water squelched around Stardust’s hooves.

  ‘Shall I walk?’ offered Pippa, as Star­­­­­dust’s hooves sank deep into the ground.

  ‘Shhh.’ Stardust stopped suddenly. Her ears swivelled forward and began to twitch. ‘Can you hear that?’

  Pippa’s lips curled into a smile. ‘Singing,’ she said. ‘It’s so beautiful.’

  Stardust walked on towards the sound of the music. She went around the trunk of a huge tree with massive green leaves and waited. They’d reached a clearing and there was Diva, listening to a small unicorn sing.

  The unicorn was almost identical to Diva. She had a jet-black coat with a flowing, black mane and tail and a white blaze on her nose. She was much smaller than Diva and had a silver horn in the middle of her forehead.

  Her voice was sweeter than a nightingale’s. She stopped singing as Stardust approached and curtsied so low that her long, black mane swept across the forest floor. ‘Princess Stardust, and Pippa, the human girl. What a wonderful surprise. My name is Harmony.’

  ‘Thank you, Harmony. It’s lovely to see you too.’ Stardust curtsied back and Pippa slid to the ground and curtsied alongside her.

  Diva hung her head low, barely looking up to see Pippa and Stardust. She looked terribly upset.

  ‘Did you hear what happened?’ Stardust asked. ‘Now that Diva’s lost her singing voice there won’t be a royal concert tonight.’

  Harmony nodded. ‘Diva’s just told me how Divine stole it.’

  ‘There won’t be a concert,’ whispered Diva. ‘Not tonight, not ever.’

  Harmony smiled. ‘But if you still have your speaking voice, Diva, then you’ll be able to sing.’

  ‘I can’t.’ Two large tears welled in Diva’s eyes and ran down her face. ‘My speaking voice can’t possibly be anything to do with my singing voice. It’s far too ordinary.’ Her voice dropped to an ashamed whisper. ‘It would be too embarrassing to sing with my normal speaking voice.’

  ‘It sounds to me that it’s not your singing voice that’s gone,’ said Harmony, ‘but your confidence.’

  A memory sparked in Pippa’s head. The thing that had been bugging her earlier, it was something that Mum had shouted to her when she was rehearsing her lines with Miranda. What was it? Suddenly it came to her. ‘You can do it, Diva,’ she said. ‘You just have to practise and you have to believe in yourself.’

  Diva stood stiffly with her front hooves crossed. ‘No,’ she said. ‘Unless Divine gives me my voice back I’ll never sing again.’

  A loud buzzing sounded overhead and a horsefly flew into the clearing. He hovered just in front of Pippa’s face. ‘What’sss going on?’ he asked. ‘When did the concert get moved?’

  ‘Zimb!’ cried Pippa in delight. She’d been friends with Zimb since he’d helped find two of the missing gold horseshoes in the Grasslands. ‘The concert is at Stableside Castle, only it might not go ahead now. Divine has stolen Diva’s singing voice.’

  ‘That’sss terrible,’ buzzed Zimb, darting around in the air.

  Something was puzzling Pippa. ‘Why did you think the concert had been moved?’ she asked.

  ‘Well,’ said Zimb, ‘I was flying near the coastline when I heard shouting in the Echo Caves, ssso I went inside to sssee if anyone needed help. I sssearched the tunnelsss in the caves until I found Divine with a ssstrange glass bottle around her neck. She was talking to herself about how she’d taken away something more import­ant than Diva’s voice. I knew some­thing wasn’t right so I flew to Ssstable­side Castle to warn Diva, but on my way I sssaw you and Stardust trot into the Cloud Foressst. I think Divine is up to no good.’

  ‘That’s for certain,’ Pippa said, thinking about what to do next. ‘Where are the Echo Caves?’

  ‘Not far from here,’ said Stardust.

  ‘Can we go and get my singing voice back?’ asked Diva.

  A look passed between Stardust and Pippa.

  ‘Of course we can,’ said Pippa.

  Stardust lowered herself for Pippa to climb on. ‘We’ll be faster if you ride.’

  Pippa jumped on to Stardust’s back.

  ‘Where are you going?’ asked Zimb.

  ‘To the Echo Caves,’ said Pippa. ‘To rescue Diva’s singing voice.’

  Chapter 4

  ‘I’ll come too,’ said Harmony. ‘Follow me and I’ll show you a quick way through the Cloud Forest.’

  Harmony took off at a gallop, followed by Pippa, Stardust, Diva and Zimb. She knew the Cloud Forest like the back of her hoof and led the group on a twisty route through the tall trees and hidden tunnels in between the vines and bushes.

  ‘Thanks, Harmony. We’d never have found our way out so quickly,’ Pippa said, blinking as they finally emerged from the forest.

  ‘I’ll lead from here,’ offered Zimb. He hovered
at head height so that everyone could follow him.

  Pippa’s heartbeat matched the pounding of Stardust’s hooves as they sped over the rugged ground. ‘Faster,’ she urged, loving the feel of the wind in her face and her hair streaming behind her.

  They galloped around the base of the Volcano and finally Zimb slowed down to let everyone catch their breath. As they continued their journey the ground grew steeper. Soon the ponies’ coats were speckled with sweat and their sides were heaving again.

  ‘How much further?’ gasped Stardust.

  ‘We’re nearly there,’ said Zimb, as they approached the top of a ridge. ‘The cavesss are down there.’

  Pippa’s stomach lurched as she looked down at the craggy cliff face and a large, bowl-shaped cove below. She’d mostly overcome her fear of heights but she still didn’t like them. Be brave, she told herself. Then she caught a sound on the breeze and her pinched face cleared. ‘I can hear someone laughing,’ she said.

  ‘It must be Divine!’ exclaimed Diva. ‘Quick – how do we get to the beach?’

  ‘The path isss there,’ Zimb said, flying towards it. ‘Careful, it’s narrow.’

  Zimb wasn’t exaggerating, thought Pippa as Stardust picked her way down the winding cliff path. In some places it was only just wide enough for one hoof at a time. Pippa stared ahead and tried not to think about the sheer drop to the side. She was breathless with relief when Stardust finally stepped on to the soft sand of the beach.

  ‘The entrance to the cavesss isss over there . . .’ Zimb broke off, staring across the beach in dismay. ‘But the tide is coming in. Unless you can fly like me, you won’t be able to reach it.’

  Pippa stared at the massive, dome-shaped cave. It was even larger than the cathedral not far from where she lived. ‘How high does the water come up when the tide’s in?’ she asked.

  ‘About halfway,’ said Zimb. ‘The tunnelsss flood at high tide. It’sss not sssafe for you to enter without a boat.’

  Pippa fell silent as her eyes scanned the beach for driftwood. If they could find enough they could build a raft. But that was a crazy idea. Even with wood how could they make a raft without any tools?

  Harmony sighed. ‘There’s no way in,’ she said, wishing that her horn had the power to freeze water like some unicorns could.

  ‘Maybe there is,’ said Diva. She walked in a circle, kicking up the sand with her hooves. ‘There!’

  Triumphantly, Diva reached down and plucked a horn-shaped conch shell from the beach. The shell gleamed in the sunlight. Diva shook the sand from inside it. She lifted it to her lips and blew softly into the end. A long, deep note filled the air. Diva kept blowing until the cove seemed to shake with the mellow sound.

  ‘Look,’ shouted Stardust.

  Sailing around the rocks at the mouth of the cove was an enormous boat with three masts, purple and gold sails and cannons lining the decks. Pippa stared at the top of the tallest mast. It was sporting a small, black triangular sail. Her mouth opened in surprise. ‘Look, a horseshoe and crossbones!’

  ‘Pirate ponies,’ Diva said, smugly, tossing her head. ‘They’re some of my biggest fans.’

  As the boat sailed closer a chunky black and white horse with a cropped mane, wearing a pirate’s hat and a purple eyepatch over his left eye, came and stood at the bows. ‘Aaargh!’ he said. ‘Ahoy there, me hearties. Who did call for the swashbucklin’ pirate ponies?’

  ‘Pieces of eight, eight pieces,’ shrieked a blue and red parrot, perched on the Captain’s shoulder.

  ‘Shall I fire the cannon, sir?’ A chestnut pony with a blonde mane and tail muscled her way over to the Captain.

  ‘Don’t ye be doin’ that,’ said the Captain. ‘If I’m not mistaken, there be me favourite singer, the talented Diva. We were just on our way to your concert, lassie. Has the venue changed then?’

  ‘The concert is still at Stableside Castle, but there’s been a hitch.’ Pippa quickly explained to the Captain and his pirate crew how Divine had stolen Diva’s voice. ‘So we need to sail into the caves,’ she finished. ‘Please, can you take us there on your ship?’

  ‘Aye, Captain Rascal and the crew of the good ship The Jolly Horseshoe are happy to sail anywhere you ask,’ said Captain Rascal, ‘and all for the price of a song.’

  Diva paled. ‘A song?’

  ‘Aye. “A Pirate’s Life for Me”. It’s me favourite pirate sea shanty.’

  ‘Oh! I think I know that one. It goes like this – Yo! It’s a pirate’s life for me . . .’ Diva trailed off when she realised everyone was looking at her.

  ‘Yo!’ Pippa shouted, enthusiastically. ‘Join in everyone. It’s a pirate’s life for me.’

  ‘Sailing the glistening sea.

  Pirate ponies have all the fun.

  While landlubbing ponies get none!

  Hey!’

  Pippa glanced at Diva as she sang. The pony was singing quietly so that Pippa had to strain her ears to hear.

  She leaned across and whispered in Diva’s ear, ‘You have a beautiful voice.’

  Diva turned as red as an apple. ‘Really? You’re not just saying that? Only this is my speaking voice, not my proper singing one.’

  ‘Really,’ Pippa said, firmly. If she could convince Diva that all she needed was some self-confidence then it wouldn’t matter if they failed to get Diva’s proper singing voice back in time for the concert.

  ‘Bravo!’ boomed Captain Rascal. ‘That was as lovely as a sunset at sea! Come aboard, me hearties, and I’ll sail you where ye need to be.’

  Led by Zimb, the ponies and Harmony waded out to the pirate ship. Two girl pirates, wearing matching polka dot bandanas, lowered a gangplank and they scrambled aboard. The crew adjusted the sails, leaving a small one flying at the front, and the boat glided slowly into the caves. Inside it was so black that Pippa couldn’t even see her hand when she held it in front of her face. She shivered and wrapped her arms around her chest.

  ‘What’s that noise?’ whispered Stardust.

  At first Pippa could only hear the steady drip of water on rock. She pushed her hair away from her ears and then she heard it too. ‘It’s Divine and it sounds like she’s singing,’ she whispered back.

  ‘That’s so spooky,’ Diva said, sounding perplexed. ‘I hope she’s not going to use my voice next.’

  ‘Don’t worry.’ Pippa reached out and stroked Diva’s neck. ‘I promise we’ll get your singing voice back soon.’

  Chapter 5

  The pirate ship creaked then shuddered to a halt.

  ‘Here we are. Away ye go, me hearties,’ boomed Captain Rascal.

  ‘Away ye go,’ echoed the parrot.

  Pippa leaned forward but even when she scrunched her eyes up she couldn’t see a thing. How the Captain knew they’d arrived at the entrance to the tunnels was a mystery to her. ‘Where do we get off the boat?’ she asked.

  ‘Over there,’ replied a friendly voice. A light shone behind her. Pippa turned and saw one of the polka dot pirates carrying a lantern attached to a long pole. ‘Here, take this,’ said the pirate pony.

  ‘Thanks,’ said Pippa. In the light she could see that the tunnel ceiling was quite low so she slipped from Stardust’s back. The pirates had lowered the gangplank and it was resting on a rock. Pippa went over and held the light so that Stardust, followed by Diva and Harmony, could see to get off the boat. When it was Pippa’s turn the plank creaked as she placed her foot on it. Pippa stood very still. She gripped the lantern tightly as she plucked up the courage to walk the plank. ‘At least there aren’t any sharks,’ she told herself firmly. But who knew what else was lurking down in the oil-black sea­­water beneath her!

  Halfway across the plank Pippa heard a splash. She froze. What was that? The water was still again but Pippa was stuck. The plank seemed to go on for ever. Would she really make it to the end without falling off?

  ‘Come on, Pippa, you’re nearly there now,’ called Stardust encouragingly.

  ‘You can do it,’ said Div
a. ‘We know you can!’

  Pippa took a deep breath. Of course she could do it if she believed in her­­­­self. Isn’t that what she’d been telling Diva? Pippa smiled at Stardust and her cousin. ‘I can,’ she said, loudly, and she took another step.

  Once she got going again, it was easy. Pippa practically ran the last few steps and jumped off the plank. The lantern flickered and she steadied it with her free hand. ‘Whoops! Mustn’t let it go out,’ she said. ‘Then we will be stuck!’

  The moment everyone stepped ashore the pirates raised the gangplank.

  ‘Aren’t you coming with us?’ asked Pippa.

  ‘Nay. We’re pirate ponies, not landlubbers. We belong at sea,’ said Captain Rascal. ‘Good luck, me hearties.’

  The tunnel was only wide enough for everyone to walk in single file. Pippa had to go first as she was carrying the lantern but Zimb flew by her shoulder. Water trickled down the rocky walls and made puddles on the ground. Bar­­nacles and mussels clung to the rocks, their shells clamped tightly together. The tunnel twisted and turned. In some places it was so low that everyone had to bow their heads to avoid scraping them on the rocky ceiling.

  Pippa couldn’t stop shivering but Zimb’s soft voice, whispering in her ear, gave her the courage to go on. Often the tunnel split and sometimes there were multiple passages to choose from. Then Diva would stand with her ears pricked until she picked up the sound of Divine’s voice drifting towards her. They walked for ages. One of Pippa’s shoes was beginning to rub the back of her ankle when suddenly the tunnel opened out into a small, rocky cave littered with slimy seaweed.

  ‘There she is!’ Pippa pointed to the middle of the cave where Divine stood with her back to them. A glass bottle was propped between her front hooves. Her nose was in the air and her mouth wide open as she sang gustily to the empty cave.