She was tired. Exhausted. But she still pressed on, motivated entirely by bravado. It didn't matter how many brambles scratched her, how much mud she trudged through, or what kinds of monsters she'd have to face here. She had been preparing for months just for this one moment, and she wouldn't let it slip through her hooves. Checking the trail of hoofprints to make sure she was following the right path, she let a weary smile creep across her lips.
“Tonight's the night I get EVEN with you...(pant)...Twilight Sparkle...”
----
“Autobot? What in the hay's an Autobot?”
Applejack was the first to question the one called Ironhide. He started to reply, but a raised hand from Beachcomber stopped him. “Please allow me the honor. It looks like you're about to blow a gasket there, old pal.”
His words rung true as his companion made a fist and looked away with a tense expression. He continued, “We're a race of sentient machines from the planet Cybertron.” Twilight mentally shuddered at the thought of an entire race of these things inside that vessel. “The name 'Autobot' refers to the faction of Cybertronians we belong to, as shown by this.” He tapped the insignia on his chest. “We've -”
Ironhide cut him off, holding a hand in his face. “Yeah, well, we'll tell y'all 'bout that later. Right now we're pursuin' an extremely dangerous Decepticon and we don't got time fer talkin' 'bout our life stories!”
Pinkie innocently asked, “What's a Decepticon?”
It was obvious his patience was wearing thin. “Bad guys! The same one that nearly scrapped meh while ah was savin' those kids! And the longer we sit here gittin' all warm an' cozy with each other, the further he gits away!”
Rainbow Dash interjected, flying square in his face. “Oh yeah?! How do we know YOU'RE not the bad guys here?!”
Ironhide looked her in the eye, attempting to remain level-headed. “Look, ah know we ain't exactly, er...trustworthy right now. But ya gotta understand, if we don' move now, we're gonna lose track of em'!”
Fluttershy floated softly to the ground, timidly adding, “Uhm, well, there was someone chasing after that, uhm...Decepticon. Was that smaller, red vehicle an Autobot?”
Warpath scoffed and shook his head. “Must've been Cliffjumper. Shoulda known that hothead would go off on his own.” He turned his attention to Rainbow Dash. “Anyway, gramps here is right. The sooner we get goin', the sooner we can KABLAM!” He drove his point home by smashing his fist into his palm. “ - turn that Decpti-creep into a smokin' crater!”
“I'm afraid that will have to wait Warpath!”
Everyone's attention is once again drawn to the top of the stone mound, a mostly white colored Autobot standing atop it. “We've managed to deter the remaining Decepticon forces inside the Ark, but we've suffered massive casualties! There's far too many Autobots that are in need of immediate medical attention, and I'm going to need every hand I can spare!”
Warpath retorted, “Are you serious Ratchet?! We can't leave that Con' on the loose, s'pecially not a Con' like Soundwave! We all know what he's done! You think for one second I'm gonna let him get away?!” He faced Ironhide. “C'mon old man, back me up!”
He was visibly showing his distaste for the situation, averting his eyes from everyone present and clenching his fist tighter. After taking a moment to assess his priorities, he slowly relaxed and responded in a calmer tone, “No Warpath, he's right. Gettin' everyone patched up is more important than chasin' after Soundwave. Best we kin' do's hope that Cliffjumper's got it covered.” He knelt down onto one knee and looked at Twilight. “Sorry, what's yer name missy?”
She was getting used to simply watching these 'Autobots' that she was somewhat startled when Ironhide addressed her. She cleared her throat, “Oh, (ahem), I'm Twilight Sparkle.”
He nodded once. “Twilight. Ah'm guessin' this is a lot to take in right now, but ah promise y'all the time to git things straightened out. It's jus gonna have ta wait.” Standing up, he announced, “Alright, lets move out Autobots!”
At his command, all three of them transformed into their respective vehicle forms, Beachcomber's being a dune buggy, while Warpath's was a hover tank. “Sorry 'bout all this.” Ironhide apologized to the ponies present before following behind the other two Autobots up the stone mound and out of sight. The one they called Ratchet spared a glance at them before departing himself.
A rather awkward moment of silence followed soon afterward. Here they were, witness to the awakening of an entire civilization of technologically advanced machines - or as Pinkie had put it, 'giant alien robots' that could transform into vehicles as if it were second nature. Nopony here knew how to react or what to say. Deciding the atmosphere was getting rather chilly, Rarity voiced her thoughts first. “Well...then...that wasn't quite what I expected...”
Twilight's gaze rested firmly on the colossal spaceship. “...actually, I should have seen something like this coming. When Princess Celestia told me of the gates, she also mentioned that she apologized to whoever was inside. They were sealed away because both the princesses feared that whatever these things were could ultimately destroy Equestria. The thing is, nopony actually met the Autobots...” Her gaze drifted to the ground, suddenly being reminded of a lesson about friendship she had recently learned. “And here I was stressing about 'the terrible threat' behind the gate...”
Brushing past the stifling atmosphere of the moment, Applejack added, “Well, anyway...I'm gonna take the fillies home already. Thinkin' they've had enough excitement for one day.” Applebloom had stopped crying now, but was still holding her sister close, trembling lightly from the stress. Fluttershy trotted up to next to her, gently stroking her head. “I'll go with you Applejack. It's gotten dark out, so all the nocturnal animals are probably up. I don't want some naughty critter to bother poor Applebloom.” Her eyes flickered over to Twilight. “Oh! Uhm, unless you want me to stay, Twilight...”
She looked over and responded, “No, it's okay Fluttershy. The rest of us will get to the bottom of this, you two just get them home.”
After saying their goodbyes, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash began taking turns air-lifting them out of the ravine. As this was happening, Rarity trotted up to Twilight. “Well, do you have a plan of action? Because, honestly, I still don't know how to feel at the moment...” Though she was eternally grateful that Ironhide had saved her sister, one look at the Autobots made her feel incredibly anxious. Aside from Beachcomber and perhaps Ratchet, the other two felt violent and brutish. She was worried that the rest of them had the same kind of disposition.
Twilight showed uncertainty in her eyes as she stared at the ground, but only momentarily. Creasing her brow, she looked to Rarity and said with resolve, “I'm going to help them. They saved those fillies' lives, so it's only best that we do the same.”
At this point, Rainbow had finished bringing them back up the ravine and heard what she wanted to do. “Hold it, HOLD IT! Just like that, you're going to trust them?!” She zipped in front of her. “We don't know anything about them! How do you know this 'Ironhide' didn't save those kids just because he wanted something out of it?!”
Twilight put a hoof onto the stone mound, making eye contact with her. “I don't know that, Rainbow. But that's what I intend to find out.” She looked to the rest of her friends. “I'll understand if you don't want to come with me, but...this is best possible course of action. We have to put this mystery to rest, right now.”
She teleported to the top of the pile of rubble and galloped out of sight. Rainbow Dash simply floated there, her mouth hanging slightly open. She almost missed Pinkie Pie bouncing past her. “Pinkie, not you too!”
She stopped mid bounce and nonchalantly exclaimed, “Aw, c'mon Dashie! I didn't think they were bad robots! I bet we just have to get to know them, that's all! And besides, I have to get started planning! Giant robots means an even giant-er super duper welcome party!”
“Well...in any case, I suppose I should give Ironhide my thanks...” Rarity adjusted her mane and followed the still-bouncing Pinkie up the stone mound. “Ohh, all this filthy dust is going to RUIN my pony-pedi...”
Rainbow Dash was beside herself. She apparently was the only pony here who had any inkling of common sense. She brought a hoof to her face, disheartened. “Ugh, you gotta be kidding me...” With a deep, resigning sigh, she hollered out, “Wait up guys, I'm comin' too!”
(“WrrrRRrrrrr...”)
She made it to the top of the stone mound before hearing the most unusual sound, stopping mid flight and taking a quick look behind her. Figuring it was some kind of weird forest animal, she shrugged it off and flew after her friends.
----
“Ironhide, the power grid's fluctuating, I need it stabilized!”
“Already on it! The relay blew another moleculon fuse!”
“Oh no...this one's leaking badly! Someone get me an energon defibrillator, stat!”
“O-over here! Just managed to get it working!”
Navigating the twisting corridors, Twilight followed the voices and commotion to a massive room, even in comparison to the Autobots themselves. Judging from the complex consoles, diagnostic screens, and lack of any stretchers or tables, this room was recently turned into a makeshift sickbay on short notice. The sense of urgency was high here, as she saw all four of the Autobots she had recently met, plus several others she had yet to be introduced to, frantically running from place to place, either working on fixing equipment, or each other. Twilight's breath became short upon seeing so many brutally injured lying in a row next to each other. She felt her friends slowly coming up behind her, but didn't look away.
Rarity brought a hoof to her mouth, aghast. “Oh...my...t-this is dreadful...”
Pinkie had plopped down onto her haunches, covering her mouth with both her hooves. “It's so horrible...”
Rainbow Dash hovered behind them all, unsure of whether to still feel distrustful, or sensitive to their plight. “Oh man...these guys got messed up pretty bad.”
It was a grim sight indeed. But she wouldn't let it unnerve her. Galloping over to the one giving orders, Twilight called out to him. “E-excuse me? You're called Ratchet, right?”
She couldn't see what he was doing from her angle, but she saw sparks coming from the shoulder of an Autobot he was working on. He briefly glanced down at Twilight. “The natives?” His eyes drifted over to her friends in the doorway before concentrating back on his work. “I'm afraid this isn't the time. Your concern about us being here is warranted, but it's not something that can be discussed now. Countless Autobots are in danger of dying.”
Twilight visibly winced at the thought of anyone dying, but quickly retorted. “I-I know! We're here to help!”
“You can't be...” Ratchet sighed in slight annoyance, but replied politely. “I appreciate your valor, but I refuse to believe there's anything the four of you can do. Our anatomies are clearly different, not to mention you lack any sort of Cybertronian medical background. I'm sorry to say this, but you would only be in the way.”
She wanted to argue this further, but her train of thought was interrupted by another white Autobot appearing in the doorway. This one had blue eyes, a cylindrical faceplate for a mouth, and two cone shaped protrusions on the sides of his head which blinked with blue lights as he spoke. “Hope you're finished over there Ratchet, cause' we've got a huge problem!” He had the arm of another wounded Autobot over his shoulder, a smaller yellow one. His eyes were black and lifeless, and there was a giant, sparking wound in the left side of his chest. “Whatever jolted us all outta emergency stasis did the same to Bumblebee here, and I can't put him back! If we don't find a way repair this, he's gonna die in, like, less than a cycle!”
“Thank Primus I just finished...” Ratchet immediately ran over and put Bumblebee's other arm over his shoulder. The ponies standing near back up slightly out of their way. “There's a space for him over here, lay him down gently, Wheeljack.” Twilight galloped over next to Ratchet, this time getting a better look at what he was doing. She watched him examine the wound in his chest methodically and carefully, eventually finding two ends of a severed cable that sparked with blue electricity. “From the looks of it, he took an ion cannon point-blank...I'm surprised he's even functioning at all. Wheeljack, please tell me you manged to salvage a welder!” He stood up and shook his head. “Don't have the time...I'm finding damaged Autobots all over the place.” Ratchet slammed his fist into the floor in frustration. “Blast! You were right, if I don't find a way to repair this energon cable, he'll die for sure...!”
As Twilight saw the cable, her eyes lit up. “Ratchet, I can fix that cable! All I have to do is put those two ends back together, right?!”
Ratchet couldn't believe his auditory sensors. “You can't be serious! A wound this severe requires delicate precision and the proper equipment! I can't trust the life an Autobot soldier in the hands of a complete amateur, much less someone from a different world!” She responded with utmost conviction, “Hooves. And if it's something like this, it shouldn't be any problem at all. Please Ratchet, you have to trust me!” He was taken aback. It looked like he wanted berate her for being foolish, but a look of resignation fell over his face. “There's no time...and we're completely out of options. Alright, you may proceed if you're so confident.”
She nodded once and teleported on top of Bumblebee, surprising all the Autobots watching. Her horn glows a soft magenta, and the two ends of the cable in Bumblebee's chest do the same. “Okay...delicately...” As she slowly fits the ends together, a quick flash of light blinded Ratchet for a second, causing him to shield his optics. When he looked down into the wound again, he saw that the cable had been completely repaired, with no signs of wear or tear. “This...defies all logic and physics, how did...!” He looked between Twilight and her friends once again, reminding himself of his priorities. “Ah, never mind! I...I will allow you four to assist me. However, you absolutely must follow my instructions.”
Twilight smiled. She calls out to her friends, “Hear that?! Come on girls, let's get to work!”
Pinkie Pie and Rarity matched her smile and galloped over to Ratchet. Rainbow Dash still had her reservations, but wasn't about to let any of these Autobots die. Slamming her front hooves together, she joined them.
----
She immediately regretted following her into the forest now. It took nearly an hour to get to the bottom of the ravine without falling, and what she found at the end of the trail was something she hadn't expected at all. A combination of tiredness and intimidation caused her to fall backwards.
“Wh...what IS that thing?!”
Although she had voiced it out loud, she actually had no interest in finding out. The only thing she wanted was to get far, far away from the giant 'whatever this was' in the cliffside. Unfortunately, the moment she turned around to start scaling the cliff again, she was met by a black pegasus clad in dark bluish-purple armor and uncharacteristic bat wings, staring at her with yellow, slitted eyes. She squeaked in surprise when more of these pegasi start landing around her.
“The Canterlot night guard?! Then...that means...!”
Her eyes turned to the night sky. Sure enough, an ornate purple chariot drawn by two more bat-pegasi streaked across sky and landed directly in front of her. The alicorn exiting her escort caused her to fall to her haunches again.
“P-princess Luna?! But, how...why...what are you doing here?!”
Luna raised an eyebrow in curiosity. “Actually, I should ask the same of you.”
----
- Several Hours later
Ratchet closed a panel on another wounded Autobot and sighed in relief. “Wheeljack tells me that's the last of them...I thank you all for your assistance. We've saved a lot of lives this day.”
“It's the least we could do Ratchet. I mean, after sealing this place up and all...”
The long night and strenuous activity was starting to wear Twilight down, but not enough to have one more chat. Feeling it was now appropriate, she asked him, “Well, now that all of these Autobots have been patched up, would it be a good time for you all to explain yourselves?”
Ironhide set down a piece of complex machinery, walking over to her, “Now's a good a time as any.” He noticed that Rainbow Dash still has the same grimace he saw earlier. “Still feelin' antsy, missy?”
She scowled, “The name's Rainbow Dash, not 'missy'. And even though I helped fix you all up, that doesn't mean I've got any reason to trust you yet.”
He held a hand up, “Fair enough. Hope we kin' earn that trust eventually.”
Rarity also had a grimace, but for an entirely different reason. “Ohh, I'm almost certain my beautifully styled mane is out of place somewhere...Ironhide, could you be a dear and hold still for a moment? I have to make due with your leg as a mirror, all this icky manual labor has probably ruined me...”
“Uh, sure thing...”
Twilight sighed out of both weariness and exasperation. “Rarity, the only actual labor you got done was with your magic. And trotting back and forth pointing out all their wounds for us doesn't count.”
Ratchet managed to catch a specific word during their little comedic return. (“They can't be serious...could they? Does magic actually exist on this planet?”) It was a subject he wanted to explore, but decided someone else would be more appropriate. Besides, it was time for both of them to exchange stories. “(Ahem), in any case, I believe we should meet up with Perceptor first. He's been busy attempting to get Teletraan-1 back online, so we should find him on the bridge.”
“Um...ok.” Twilight had no idea what he was talking about. “Alright everypony, let's – wait a second.” She stopped herself short, looking around the sickbay. Noticing the hint of shock in her eyes, Rainbow Dash asks, “Hey, what's the matter Twilight?”
Her face paled almost as white as Rarity's coat. “...where's Pinkie Pie?!”
----
The aforementioned pink pony looked behind her with a troubled expression as she trotted down the battle scarred halls.
“I really hope they don't mind me leaving so suddenly. I just can't stand the thought of somepony – (somebot?) - still hurt somewhere...I must remain diligent! Vigilant! On top of things...i-int! And, OH! You! You over there! Are you hurt anywhere at all?!”
“...”
“Hello-o, Pinkie to Autobot!”
“...”
“(gasp), you must be really, REALLY hurt! Like, so hurt you can't even talk! I've got to get you to Ratchet pronto!”
Unfortunately for her, she wasn't quite able to discern Autobots from machinery or wreckage just yet, mistaking a broken munitions crate for another casualty. Not to be deterred, Pinkie got behind it and started pushing to no avail.
“Come...on...gotta...get you...fixed up! Bleh...how'd you get so heavy anyway? It's like you ate a million cupcakes in one sitting! I can't even eat that much without getting a big, nasty, tummyache!”
Realizing this wasn't working, Pinkie took a few steps back and snorted out. “Okay, I can do this! Nurse Pinkie's gotta get you some medical attention!”
She galloped forth and body slams the crate, causing it to slide forward a few feet and leaving a Pinkie Pie-sized imprint in its place. Peeling herself off, she proclaimed, “Ha! How's that mister one million cupcakes?! Now I just need to do this exactly seven hundred eighty three more times until we get to the sickbay!” What she didn't realize was the impact from a pony body slamming a munitions crate jarred a grenade out of place inside of it. “Alrighty, here I go agai – WAAHHHWE'REUNDERATTACK!!!”
Right as she moved back to gain distance again, the crate exploded, igniting the munitions and spraying flames everywhere. Assuming something was attacking, Pinkie galloped off in a erratic pattern without any clear destination. Quickly ducking into a darkened room, she grinded to a halt and sat herself down with a tired sigh. After giving herself a moment to think, she said out loud with a raised eyebrow, “...that was just a crate, wasn't it? Well...at least nopony – I mean bot got hurt.” She took a quick look around herself. “Wait...where am I anyway? Ohh, Pinkie, you just had to get yourself lost now, didn't you?!” She got up and began to leave, only to stop herself short at the doorway. “Double wait! What if there's somepony, I mean bot injured in here too?!” She turned around and walked back in the room, “Helloooo, if there's an Autobot that needs some fixing up, please say somethiiiing! Ouch!” While she was aimlessly wandering around in the dark, Pinkie stubbed her hoof against a wall. Sitting down again, she rubbed it with her other hoof. “Owie...all this annoying darkness is making it too hard to see in here. I wish somepony or somebot would turn the lights on...” Pinkie's eyes widened as the room's lights activated immediately after she made her comment. Making a thoughtful face, she responded, “Um...I wish a giant chocolate ice cream cake would appear for me to gobble up!” She held her hooves out with a big smile on her face, actually expecting a cake to appear, only becoming disappointed five minutes later. “Drat. I thought for sure that would work.”
“IDENTIFICATION: NOT FOUND. REQUEST: EXPLANATION.”
“EEEP!”
Pinkie's ears were suddenly filled with a deep, booming voice that seemed to come from everywhere, startling her and causing her to jump backwards. Her head flicked around wildly, searching for its source. “W-who said that?! Why do you sound like someone turned the bass to eleven?!”
“THREAT ASSESSMENT: ZERO. RESPONSE: INCONCLUSIVE. REQUEST: EXPLANATION.”
Getting a better idea of where the voice was coming from, her eyes go to the wall where she stubbed her hoof. However, she was quick to realize it wasn't technically a wall as her eyes traced what it was connected to. Pinkie was forced to walk back slowly to get a better look at the Autobot sitting against the wall.
“Oooooo...”
He was gigantic. Gargantuan. Enormous. Simple words couldn't describe just how big this Autobot was, even relevant to the ones she had recently met. The 'wall' she bumped into was in fact his left hand; some kind of detailed cone-shaped apparatus. His right hand was just as strange, it being a four-pronged, circular claw. His rectangular torso housed two domes facing forward in his hips, with two more adorned on dual wire-framed steel beams held on his back that curved left and right respectively. His head was shaped like another dome, as he had no neck, but a recognizable face with eyes and a mouth. Along from his obvious size, everything about him was exaggerated, from the loud whirring of his joints, to the small moving parts of his armor. He held the Autobot insignia on chestplate, letting Pinkie know he wasn't a danger.
“Hi there! I'm Pinkie Pie! What's your name?”
He bent forward slightly to look down at her, not showing any emotion. “IDENTITY: OMEGA SUPREME.”
“Um, so...your name's Omega Supreme...?” She was having some difficulty getting used to his method of speech. “Sounds like something Dashie would come up with! Sooo, why are you just sitting here? Shouldn't you be meeting up with your friends?”
“INTERNAL SYSTEMS DAMAGE: EXTENSIVE. PROLONGED MOTION: ILL-ADVISABLE.”
“(GASP), so you're hurt too?! But where? It's kinda hard to miss something like that being as big as you are, but...oh.”
The rest of his body showed no visible damage, but now that Pinkie was looking for something out of the ordinary, she was able to spot it instantly. Sticking subtly out of his chestplate were gnarled, black, pulsating crystals.
“Oh my...that looks really painful...”
This was worse that what she first witnessed back in the sickbay. Something about those crystals instinctively made her uneasy. Just looking at them for this short amount of time made her feel...bad. She couldn't properly describe the feeling, all she knew was that she felt was bad. Those crystals were bad. And they were lodged in his chest. Pinkie tore her eyes away from the sight and looked into Omega's eyes.
“IDENTIFICATION UPDATED: PINKIE PIE. DESIGNATION: UNKNOWN. RECOMMENDATION: DEPARTURE.”
Pinkie tilted her head to the side, taking a second to decipher what he was saying. “Wait...I-I don't wanna just leave you like this! I mean, you're hurt, right? Lemme get Ratchet, he can -”
“FURTHER REPAIRS: IMPOSSIBLE. CURRENT STATUS: STANDBY.”
“O-oh...” So there was nothing more that could be done for him. Pinkie's eyes fell downward, shifting back and forth slightly in thought. He couldn't leave, and he couldn't get fixed up right now, but she just had to do something for him. Not being able to meet up with the other Autobots or even move right now was just too sad. (“Sad...? Silly me, of course!”) Her repressed mood was quickly replaced by her usual happy-go-lucky smile.
“...I know what I can do for ya, Omega! Laughter is the best medicine after all!”
----
“The explosion came from this direction, hurry!”
What was previously a search for a missing pony suddenly became a mad dash to locate a possible attack. Rainbow Dash had no trouble keeping up with Ratchet and Warpath as they ran down the corridor, but the same couldn't be said for Twilight or Rarity, no matter how fast they galloped. As the three of them rounded a corner, Rarity's speed dropped to a canter.
“Pick up the pace Rarity! We'll get lost in here if we can't keep up!”
She pouted a little, “But Twilight! I just got my mane back into place, I can't possibly let it become ruined again!”
There were times where she just couldn't understand her friend's priorities. “Ugh, are you really – never mind, there they are.” A part of her wanted to continue complaining, but thankfully everyone else ahead was stopped at a massive, open doorway. Ratchet and Rainbow each shared an incredulous look as they looked inside, whereas Warpath was quite the opposite.
“Bwahahahaha! This is hilarious, what's she doin'?!”
As they approached the doorway, Rarity and Twilight's moods were just as soured. Pinkie Pie was here alright, tearing around the room, doing Celestia knows what. In one moment she was spinning around like a top on her foreleg, in the next she was juggling scraps of metal while balancing on the corner of an empty crate.
“GENERAL PHYSICS: DEFIED. LOGIC CIRCUITS: OVERLOADED. REQUEST: IMMEDIATE REMOVAL.”
Right as Twilight was about to do her best to calmly ask Pinkie what she was doing, her train of thought was interrupted by a booming voice that she could literally feel blasting through the doorway. She and her friends shrieked a little when they got a look at its source.
“Oh! Hey there everypony! And everybot! I'm just doing my best to make Omega Supreme here smile but I haven't been very successful yet ya see I tried singing, break dancing, telling funny jokes, tying balloon animals, tightrope trotting, tying myself into a balloon animals while tightrope trotting, but then I decided to just try everything I know at once but – mmpphh!”
Pinkie quickly found another one of Twilight's hooves in her mouth, courtesy of a teleport. “Pinkie, I know you're a little loopy, but are you CRAZY?! This isn't the same as trying to make a dragon laugh, I-I mean, this guy could easily flick you away like a dust bunny!”
It seemed like her standpoint was lost on Pinkie, as she merely smiled her usual, innocent, smile. “Oh Twilight, there's nothing to worry about, see?” She pointed a hoof to Omega's chestplate. “He's an Autobot! That means he's one of the good guys!”
The same grimace Rainbow Dash had throughout the night was back.
“...yes, well then, your...concern is appreciated Pinkie Pie, but I feel as though you've done enough for now.” Ratchet was the first to change the subject. He walked within earshot of Omega, asking him, “It's good to see you out of stasis and still functioning Omega, how are you feeling?”
He turned his head, “POWER CELLS: 49 PERCENT. EXOSTRUCTURE: OPTIMAL EFFICIENCY. INTERNAL SYSTEMS DAMAGE: EXTENSIVE.”
(“His power cells have been charged...? It must have something to do with the phenomena that awoke us...either than that, it seems there’s no change in his condition.”) He began walking back towards the doorway, speaking to everyone present, “That's enough pleasantries for now. We still have to find the source of that explosion.”
Pinkie chimed in, “Oh, if you're all wondering about that, that was my fault. I'm so sorry, I thought this crate thingy was an Autobot, but I think there was a bomb inside and -”
Ratchet jerked to a halt as he heard her explaining herself. It was obvious from his expression that he really wanted to respond to this, but simply couldn't find the words. Everypony else in the room either was groaning or had a hoof on their face, expecting this sort of development. Warpath was still snickering.
“Man, I'm glad I decided to follow Ratchet, this girl's a laugh riot!”
Before he could get any more confused or stressed, Twilight came up next to Ratchet. “Um, try not worry about her too much. She's just being Pinkie Pie.”
He brought a hand to his head, attempting to calm himself. “In-in any case...Warpath, could you escort them to the bridge? There are a few more matters I need to attend to before I will be able to join the rest of you. I'll radio Ironhide that the situation has been taken care of, so he should be there soon.”
“Oh, wait! Ratchet, can I ask you something?”
He got just outside of the doorway before being stopped by Pinkie. “Ah...yes, what is it?”
She asked with genuine concern, “There were these horrible looking black crystals sticking out of poor Omega's chest, is that the reason why he can't move from that spot? I mean, just looking at those nasty things made me feel really really bad, so that's why I wanted to cheer him up...”
Ratchet raised an eyebrow in interest for a moment before his expression grew pensive. “...yes, I'm afraid that's precisely why. As for what they are, well...” He stopped himself, eventually looking away. “...you will understand once we explain ourselves.
----
After traveling up several elevator flights and traversing what felt like an endless distance of corridors, the four ponies were led to a circular doorway. As Warpath approached, it split into thirds and opened in a clockwise manner.
“Alright, we're here.” Three of them breathed a sigh of relief, save for Rainbow Dash. Getting here was nothing short of a workout. “Hey Perceptor, ya get Teletraan-1 workin' again?”
“I am almost finished Warpath, but I will need at least fifteen microcycles to finish debugging several hundred more lines of code.”
As the ponies entered the room, the first word that came to mind about the decor was 'complex'. Nothing in this room was familiar to anypony; all of the walls were lined with consoles and computers, monitors displayed difficult algorithms in an alien language, and some kind of strange circular contraption was recently set up in the center. The Autobot that responded to Warpath was seated on the left side of the room, typing away on a keyboard behind another row of computers. He looked up for a moment from what he was working on, eyeing their guests. “Ah, I see the representatives of this planet have arrived. I am Perceptor, chief science officer of the Autobot forces. Please forgive me for not greeting you properly, I am currently engrossed in some rather tedious coding processes.”
He spoke with the same dignified air as Rarity did, much to her surprise and elation. She couldn't help but think of a certain high society friend of her's back in Canterlot. “Well! It's lovely to know that there are Autobots with a sense of refinement I see.”
“Heeey...!”
“I am Rarity, it's a pleasure to meet you, good sir.”
“I'm Twilight Sparkle.”
“Hi theeere! I'm Pinkie Pie, the bestest party thrower in all of Ponyville!”
“Hmf...” Seeing that their cyan pegasus was still being a grump, Twilight jabbed her in the ribs with her elbow, earning an irritated look from her. “...Rainbow Dash.”
“...guess that accounts fer' everyone then.”
Ironhide appeared in the doorway, carrying a few coiled up cables in his left hand. “Looks like it's jus' us fer' now. Everyone elses either fixin' up the ship or salvagin' parts.” He walked to the machine in the center and plugged the cables into it, connecting them to one of the many consoles on the wall.
Pinkie asked, “Ooo, what'cha doin' with that big, metal doughnut thingy?”
After making the connections and typing a few keys on the console, the machine in the center sparked to life and created the image of an intricately detailed silver sphere out of light. “It's a holographic image inducer I asked Perceptor to bang up real quick. Provides the 'show' part a' show n' tell.”
Twilight was already quietly fascinated by the level of technology the Autobots possessed. If the situation were less serious, she would be as giddy as a filly in a candy store. Ironhide walked over to the image, “This is Cybertron, our home planet.” He paused for a moment, as if he said something he shouldn't have. “Well, I guess I should be sayin' was our home...” The last few words came out with an unmistakeable pain. “Before everythin' went downhill, the Autobots were scholars and workers. Only thing we were ever interested in was learnin', creatin', and advocatin' freedom for all Cybertronians. S'what Autobot stands for, autonomous robot. Problems is, we didn't exactly have the nicest of neighbors...”
He walked over to the console again, typing a few keys. The image of Cybertron vanished and is replaced with a purple insignia, a stark contrast to the red one the Autobots carried. “Unlike us, the Decepticons were mostly gladiators that lived on violence and mayhem. Only thing these guys ever knew or wanted was to fight. Eventually, one of em' came up with the idea that Cybertron should be ruled through power an' control...”
Typing on the console again, the image inducer displayed a terrifying and imposing Cybertronian whose whole visage evoked brutality, causing everypony in the room to shudder at the mere sight of him. His entire body was silver and jagged, with glowing, purple highlights in his torso and limbs. Connected to his right arm was a massive cannon, equal in size of the arm itself. His eyes were a heartless crimson, and he held the Decepticon insignia in his chest. “...this is Megatron, the undefeated champion of the Kaon gladiatorial pits, and leader of the Decepticons. He brought his ideals to the Cybertronian High Council, and when they just as quickly trashed em', well...” His voice got noticeably lower. “...that was the start of our civil war.”
Rainbow Dash interjected, “Yeah, well...that doesn't explain what you're all doing here.”
Twilight chastised her, “Rainbow! Show some tact! Ironhide just told us they've been at war!”
“Nah, it's alright. I don' blame her fer bein' all riled up bout' us bein' here. Besides, I'm gittin' ta that part.” He brought the image of Cybertron back up again. “The war lasted fer eons. Countless Cybertronians fell in the line of duty, till' we eventually suffered the greatest casualty of all...” They had not noticed the glowing, yellow lights on the planet until they faded from view. As it left, it made the image of their homeworld significantly colder. “The conflict from the war caused the core of Cybertron to shut down, stoppin' its production of energon.”
Twilight asked him, “I've heard Ratchet say that word a lot when we were in the sickbay, what exactly is energon anyway?”
“It's the fuel all Cybertronians need to keep functionin'. Without the core producin' it, we can't survive. Our home became barren and lifeless...” He clenched his fist as he brought up the next image, a still frame of a chamber with a massive sphere. Multiple cables came out of its sides, and an ill purple light shined through its detailed lining. “This image is straight from my memory files. Megatron infected the core with dark energon, thinkin' it would empower his troops an' wipe out the rest of the Autobots. Unlike ordinary energon, dark energon corrupts an' destroys anythin' it touches.” His attention turned to Pinkie Pie. “Ratchet tells me you paid a visit to Omega Supreme. Did ya git a good look at his chestplate?” She merely nodded, now that she understood what was hurting him so. “Yeah...Omega's one of our heaviest hitters. Ratchet's done what he can for em', but the crystals in his chestplate are too close to his spark chamber. If any a' those dark energon shards expel their energy, his spark'll be extinguished and he'll die.”
Twilight was beginning to put the pieces together in her head. Ironhide continued, “Anyway...when news spread of the core shutdown, a planet-wide evacuation order was given to all Autobots. This here hunk-a-junk we're standin' in's called the Ark. Was supposed to be our salvation, the last transport that would take us to a new home beyond the stars. Problem was, well...you've seen how scrapped this place is. The Ark wasn't built for combat.”
It was no exaggeration. Twilight had seen the innumerable scars of battle on the way here.
“Oo! Ironhide, can you back up a second?” Pinkie Pie took her turn asking a question. “If the Decepticons have a super-duper-evil leader, does that mean the Autobots have a super-er GOOD guy leader?”
Ironhide's fist relaxed as his eyes drift to the floor. Warpath, who had his arms crossed and was leaning against the wall, had a similar reaction. Even Perceptor had stopped typing upon hearing Pinkie's inquiry. “Wh-what? What's wrong? Ohh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you all sad, I-I was just wondering...”
Another awkward silence followed. Twilight was already tired from all that was happening tonight, and these increasingly frequent moments were only making it worse. Warpath was the first to break the ice, “Beachcomber and Wheeljack reported that Megatron and our leader were fighting on the Ark's upper decks when we entered the space bridge. There's a high chance they didn't even make it here at all.”
Ironhide's voice had a hint of melancholy as he continued. “His name's Optimus Prime. He's the leader of the Autobots, an'...a close friend'a mine. He's the one who issued the planetary evacuation order an' commissioned the construction of the Ark. There've been times when his orders were questionable, but ah know fer sure he was only doin' what needed to be done. In the end, Prime's always been the glue that hold us all together.”
Warpath spoke up again, “That's why Perceptor's been busy gettin' Teletraan-1 back online. We need the sky spy operational so we can start scourin' the planet. Ain't no way I'm gonna believe Prime's been done in just like that, no matter what the odds say...”
From the was they spoke of him, and the way all three of them had reacted, it was clear that their leader commanded a great deal of respect. They were willing to go above and beyond for his sake, even when it seemed like hope was lost. Twilight's thoughts briefly touched on what it would be like if Princess Celestia wasn't around.
“Anyway, nuff' bout' that fer now. We're gittin' off topic again.” The next image Ironhide brought up was that of a swirling, orange vortex suspended in space. “At the climax of the war, the Cons' managed to tear open a portal in space-time. Not really sure bout' the specifics, but what I do know is that they were plannin' on goin' to another planet to drain it dry of any energy resources they could find, revitalizing the Decepticon army. Good news, a team of Autobots managed to smash the space bridge transmitter, leavin' the Ark with a one-way ticket to a new home. Bad news, the feedback from the emitter's destruction caused the portal to become unstable. Worse news, the Cons' followed us...”
For the final image, Ironhide displayed a menacing-looking spaceship. Its size was comparable to the Ark, as the image was apparently taken from Ironhide's memory files again. It had a long, pointed bow, and rounded wings that curved forward. Its hull was covered in armaments, and massive, silvery tow cables came from the underside, driving themselves into their ship. “This is the Nemesis, the Decepticon's most powerful battle cruiser. They ambushed us right as we were bout' ta enter the space bridge, an'...y'all should know the rest of the story.”
This was all too much to take in at once, and going by way too fast for anypony to keep up emotionally. Twilight had knelt down onto her belly, the gravity of his story making her weak in the knees. At this point, even Rainbow Dash was starting to feel sorry for them. She refused to look any of them in the eye, turning her head away.
“Like ah said, ah'm sorry bout' all this...we were soldiers on Cybertron, but I guess at this point we're more like refugees. Only thing we wanted was ta find someplace where we could survive, someplace ta call home...”
Twilight was once again having a hard time finding the words she wanted to say. Instead, she opted to say what needed to be said. “Ironhide...one thousand years ago, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna saw the Ark and the Nemesis fall to Equestria firsthoof. I'm guessing that's right after you entered this...space bridge. At the time, they were afraid of what these 'behemoths' from the sky could do to our world, so they locked both ships away behind impregnable, magic sealed gates.” Perceptor eyed Twilight for a moment when he heard the mention of magic.
Warpath interrupted her, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up! You're sayin' the Nemesis is here too?! Oh, yeah!” He slammed his fist into his palm. “Nothin's stoppin' us from goin' over there and BLAM, KAZOW, scrappin' the rest of the Cons' while they're still in stasis!”
Everypony became a little mortified at his display. The Autobots and Decepticons clearly hated each other, and this was a prime example of their conflict. Twilight stamped her hooves down as she stood up to retort, but Ironhide did it for her. “Outta the question, Warpath.”
Even though he had a visor and a faceplate instead of any discernible features, they could tell he was upset as he looked at Ironhide. “...WHAT?! Y-you can't be serious! We have a chance to stop the Decepticons once and for all, and you're sayin' NO?!”
“We came here lookin' fer a home, not a fight. If the Nemesis is sealed behind this 'gate', then that's gonna have ta be good enough. It ain't right to bring our war to another civilization.”
“But what's to stop somethin' from smashin' that gate open and wakin' the Cons' up?! I mean, the same thing happened here, right?! We're not gonna get another chance like this!”
“Forget it Warpath...look, ah'm only tryin' to follow Optimus' example. He wouldn't want unnecessary destruction, s'pecially when yer gamblin' with someone else's home.”
That was enough to pacify him, as he begrudgingly looked away. Twilight was beginning to surmise that Cybertronians were not that much different than themselves, at least socially. She was none too pleased about Warpath's outburst, but at least they understood when to restrain their anger.
“Actually, Warpath brings up a rather interesting point.”
Everyone's attention is drawn to Perceptor. He doesn't face anyone, but continued talking whilst typing away. “I'm terribly sorry for my silence, but I've been analyzing the energy signatures of the immediate area, and my findings are proving to be quite astounding.”
Ironhide responded, “Then I'm guessin' Teletraan-1's back online?”
“Yes, debugging was completed several microcycles ago.” He slid backward in his chair slightly as multiple holographic diagnostic screens are activated around the monitor. “According to this data, we have been in stasis for approximately 988 decacycles. I am assuming in their increments of time, this equates to 'one thousand years'. What I am finding fascinating however, is the results of what forcefully jarred us out of stasis and re-energized our power cells.” He turned to face everyone in the room, the ponies finally getting a better look at him. He had yellow eyes, a face that resembled Ironhide's, and a strange cylinder on his left shoulder. “My readings indicate that a fairly large vein of raw energon situated directly above the Ark was detonated.”
Ironhide was surprised. “Wait, there's energon on this planet?!”
Perceptor responded, “I am afraid that particular vein may have been a simple coincidence. There are multiple deposits of energon within the immediate vicinity, but none outside of it. My guess would be that these deposits were seeded when the Ark made landfall. Any number of damages or leaks in the hull would have instigated a naturally occurring vein.”
“(sigh), figures...but what does an energon explosion gotta do with us wakin' up?”
“That is what I find fascinating.” He gestured to one of the diagnostic screens. “Apparently an unknown energy was introduced into the deposit. Whatever it was, its unique wavelength reacted violently to the presence of energon, much like a positive and negative polarity. As it entered the deposit, it was unable to leave it, increasing its power exponentially until the entire vein detonated at once from the stress. Now aside from completely defying the laws of conservation of energy, the resulting explosion also created a shock wave of pure energon, somehow traveling through solid matter and removing us from stasis. Or so I have theorized...”
“Hey. Ah thought you were a scientist, Perceptor. What you just said doesn't make any sense.”
“It's unfortunately the only plausible hypothesis I have available.”
While those two continued to debate this mystery, Rarity noticed Twilight was rubbing her foreleg over her mouth in thought, piquing her curiosity. “Twilight, you've been rather quiet, is something the matter?”
“Not really, I've just been thinking...the gate's destruction, the Autobot's revival, those fillies ending up inside the Ark...there has to be some kind of connection. But I feel like we're missing something, like, just one piece of the puzzle...”
“Well...ok....” Rarity sat down on her haunches, softly sighing. Although she had decided she had nothing to fear from the Autobots, the excitement from this night had physically and emotionally drained her, much like her friends. Pinkie Pie had already fallen onto her back and passed out during Perceptor's explanation, and Twilight was straining herself to stay awake. The only one who seemed fine was Rainbow Dash, although she had stopped hovering behind them some time ago to rest her wings.
(“War, refugees, Decepticons...oh, this is simply too much to take at once! If only I could have a moment's rest right now...perhaps a visit to the spa tomorrow afternoon would perk me up.”)
“...excuse me, Rarity was it?”
She was brought back to reality by Perceptor. He walked over to her and knelt down, “Please forgive me if this is invasive to you, but may I examine that necklace you're wearing? The mineral in the center of it is quite intriguing.”
Rarity smiled and brought a foreleg across her chin, squealing with delight. “Oo, I had no idea Autobots had a sense of fashion! I'd be delighted to let you critique it! Now don't be too harsh with me, it is my first piece of jewel work...”
“Uh, yes...quite.”
She unhooked the necklace and levitated it in front of Perceptor, although he didn't take it immediately. Instead, he stared at it as if he were dumbfounded.
“...hm? What is the matter, Perceptor? Ohh, it's the embroidery, isn't it?! I'll admit I did make a mistake there, but I tried to make it work...”
“N-no, that's not the issue. How are you doing that?”
“Um...I'm afraid I don't understand.”
“Your horn is glowing with the same aura as your necklace. Is there some sort of anti-gravity device installed in either one?”
“Oh, this? This is simply levitation. It's one of the basic fundamentals of magic, we all learn it at a very early age.”
“There is that word again...but I find this hard to believe. Are you telling me that magic, real magic, somehow exists on this planet?”
“Oh, of course! Magic is an essential part of our society. Why without it, the sun and the moon would not be raised or lowered!”
“What...I-I don't understand. Planetary revolutions are based solely on orbit, what you're insinuating is...”
Perceptor trailed off, bringing a hand to his head in confusion. Even Ironhide and Warpath were looking at her funny. Not wanting him to become any more stressed, Rarity interjected, “Erm, well, Twilight would be more appropriate to discuss this with. I'm not particularly proficient with magic, however, she is an expert on the matter. Anyway, you wanted to examine my necklace?”
He shook his head, deciding it was matter to be explored later. “Uh, yes of course...” He took a step backwards and transformed into what looked like an electron microscope. No matter how many times she saw it, Rarity wasn't getting used to seeing that anytime soon. “I want to run a full spectrographic analysis on the mineral in that necklace. If you would be so kind, I would like you to place it beneath the lens.”
It was her turn to feel awkward. “Uh, mhm...” As she levitated her necklace in place, she could see the lens moving up and down slightly, and could hear Perceptor mumbling to himself. “My word...this molecular composition is nearly identical...perhaps if...Warpath, can you get me a techvolt emitter?”
“Yeah, sure, but what for? Doesn't look like anything in here needs a kickstart.” He walked over to a console and typed a few keys, dispensing yet another complex piece of machinery. It resembled a firearm, but had three triangular plates that were arranged around its fore end.
Perceptor transformed back into his bipedal form, dangling her necklace by a finger and taking the emitter. “I wish to confirm something.” It combined with his right forearm, activating a blue electrical current between the three plates. In a quick motion, he dipped the necklace into the current for half a second and pulled it straight out. As he deactivated the emitter, Perceptor smiled triumphantly. “This is truly astonishing! Come take a look at this!”
Ironhide and Warpath were both confused and surprised. As he knelt down to give the necklace back, Rarity saw that the emerald centerpiece had transformed into a glowing blue jewel. “Ooo, such a beautiful luster! I've never seen a sapphire shine so, so brilliantly! Though, I must admit the emerald brought out my eyes a tad bit better, but I mean LOOK AT IT! Oh, I don't think I'll eeever take it off now...”
“No, you don't understand, the mineral in your necklace is a dormant form of energon! This is precisely what we had hoped for! You absolutely must tell us where we can find more of these minerals!”
Rarity nonchalantly explained, “Oh, that. Jewels like this can be found in the ground all the time, yet it does require some digging and some patience. I'm not too enthralled about excavation, but I do have a spell that can locate them for you all.” She demonstrated by activating this spell, creating a magical aura around her necklace.
“UWAAA!!!”
“BAAHH!!! TURN IT OFF, TURN IT OFF!!!”
Unfortunately, it also caused the energon inside the Autobots present to be illuminated through their bodies, showing their circulatory systems for all to see. Warpath and Rainbow Dash were both freaked out by this, urging her to turn the spell off. Raising an eyebrow, she complied, much to their relief.
“Ah, man...that was creepy. Warn me the next time you show my guts off like that! I'm gonna have that burned into my memory files for weeks...”
“Yeah...what he said, Rarity.”
Twilight was aware of what was going on around her, but most of her attention was focused on contemplation. Her eyes were closed to drown out the noise; she couldn't shake that nagging feeling of the one missing piece that tied all of this together. “Perceptor said an unknown energy was introduced into that energon vein...but the only thing they wouldn't understand would be -”
Her eyes snapped open at the realization, immediately drawing her attention to Rarity's necklace. Sure enough, she saw the signs of instability, as it began vibrating and emitting sparks of blue electricity. Not saying a word and acting on instinct, Twilight hastily galloped over to Perceptor and bit the necklace's chain, throwing it as far away as she could.
“Twilight! What is the meaning of...!”
The loud explosion of her necklace and a wave of azure energy cut her off. The moment it passed through the Autobots, it dropped them to their knees, causing them to cry out in agony. Rarity and Twilight didn't fare well either, the energy of the shock wave affecting their horns. Rainbow Dash flew into a panic at the sight of everyone in pain.
“Hey, what's wrong with all of you?! What happened, why'd that explosion hurt you guys?!”
“Gaaahh...! What jus' happened?! It feels like someone jus' kicked mah spark from the inside...!”
“No, my necklace! OW, my horn! B-but, my necklace...”
“I'm sorry...I figured it out as soon as you did your gem-finder spell...” Twilight grunted a little to get her horn working again, the electrical power from the blast interfering with her magic. With a little bit of straining, she was able to push out the malignant energy. “Listen...I think we all just found out how that energon deposit exploded. That unknown energy Perceptor was talking about, it was magic.”
Warpath looked over himself and the other two Autobots, giving off a wary vibe. “Hey, wait a sec...if what you're sayin's true, how come WE didn't go boom...?”
Perceptor responded as he climbs to his feet, “Ugh...I am guessing...it is because it was raw energon, unprocessed. Nevertheless, we should immediately allow Ratchet to give us all a thorough examination to prevent any lingering effects.” His expression goes to urgent as he realized something. “...oh no!” He scrambled to the console he was previously working on, only to confirm his fears; the monitor was unresponsive and filled with static. He slammed a fist down, “Blast! It was just as I feared...that explosion has scrambled Teletraan-1's entire source code! It will megacycles to defrag!”
Rainbow Dash responded, her tone slightly dismissive. “Alright, you've been talking about this 'Teletraan-1' for awhile now, and I don't really get it. What's so special about this computer thing anyway?”
Perceptor sighed in frustration, “You don't understand, Teletraan-1 is our main supercomputer! It's responsible for long range communication, data processing, but most importantly, reconnaissance! If it's offline, we will not be capable of using the sky spy to locate Cliffjumper or Soundwave!”
Warpath adds, “...or Optimus.”
Everyone here unanimously believed the situation had just taken a bad turn. And unfortunately, it was only going to get worse.
“I heard the explosion on the way here, is everyone alright?!”
The door behind them all opened to reveal Ratchet. He was frantic as he entered, but relaxed slightly when he saw that no one here had any visible injuries.
Ironhide responded to him, “Everyone's fine Ratchet, at least physically. We have bigger problems to deal with, anyway.” He gestured to Perceptor who had once again seated himself at the console, furiously typing away.
“I see...well, I wanted to inform you all that an encampment of the natives have seated themselves just outside of the Ark, though they have not made any aggressive actions. Judging from their attire, they seem to be of political authority.”
Twilight could feel her heart starting to race again. “Ohmygosh, I completely forgot! I had Spike send a letter to the castle about the gate, Princess Luna and her personal guard must have arrived a long time ago!”
“Oh man, thank Primus you're here Ratchet! You gotta give us a once over, there was this weird explosion of energy and -”
“I cannot be concerned or distracted with a physical diagnostic right now, Teletraan-1 MUST be operational, otherwise -”
“What are you waiting for Twilight, we can't keep the Princess waiting!”
“zzzzZZzz...more cupcakes...”
The bridge had degenerated into a cacophony of arguments, only adding to Twilight's stress. She had been obsessing over the gate for days on end, and these last few hours were like every single stressful moment of her life amplified by ten. It was only natural for her to reach the boiling point.
“QUIEEEEEEET!!!”
Everyone here surprisingly complied, bringing their attention to her. Twilight was starting to feel better after that outburst, sitting down and sighing. “...now listen up! All this arguing isn't getting us anywhere!”
Everyone here silently agreed, but were not able to voice any particular thoughts. Ironhide was the first to respond, “Well, ya have anythin' in mind? We jus' found out Teletraan-1's gonna be offline for a good while, an' we don't got any other way a' trackin' Cliffjumper or Soundwave fore' somethin' bad happens.”
“I-I know that...but I have an idea. I'm not sure if it'll work, but it's better than nothing. But first, Ratchet, you have to give those three a medical assessment. They were exposed to some kind of, erm...weird energon, and I don't want anything to happen to them. The rest of us have to go meet Princess Luna out front.”
Ironhide nodded, “Sounds like a plan. Alright, you go do what'cha need to do. Jus' hope this idea a' yers works.”
----
“Listen, what are you keeping me here for anyway? I mean, I was just -”
“Looking for Twilight Sparkle I assume.”
“Wh-what?! How did you – I mean, you're the princess and everything but -”
“She had informed me that the sealed gate in the Everfree Forest had been disturbed. No doubt she would have arrived here. And to answer your previous question, it is because I do not wish for the masses to learn of the metal behemoth. It could spread fear and panic.”
Fear and panic was what she was experiencing right now, both at the sight of this mountain of metal, and Luna's personal guard keeping watch over her. As she cursed herself for letting vengeance cloud her judgment, her vigor was returned as she saw her target at the top of the stone mound, followed three of her friends. Twilight, however, wasn't particularly excited to see the deep sky blue unicorn with the alice blue mane knelt down next to Princess Luna as they all descended.
Pinkie Pie yelled out, “Oh hey! It's that pony that was yelling at your door, Twilight!”
“Trixie?! Ugh, of all the – what are you doing here?!”
She smiled a haughty smile. “Oh? What does it LOOK like? I have studied the most complex and advanced spells for months, endured the heckles and jeers of everypony around me, even followed you into the dreaded Everfree Forest, and you're wondering why? It's so I could make you pay for my humiliation!” Any panic that she had was apparently forgotten.
Twilight couldn't believe this was happening at such a critical time. Princess Luna remained silent for now, deciding to let them resolve their differences. “Listen, I understand where you're coming from Trixie, but you couldn't of picked a WORSE time for revenge!”
“Oh really? Well, you're just going to have to MAKE time, because I won't stop until...uhhh...”
Trixie's face paled as her eyes drifted to the top of the stone mound. Twilight looked behind her to greet her new acquaintance as he slid down and landed with another loud thump.
“Wh...WHAT IS THAT THING!?!” Trixie fell to her haunches for a third time tonight upon seeing the metal giant before her. Luna's personal guard immediately made a protective perimeter in front of her, ready to attack. Twilight was thankfully able to pacify them quickly. “It's alright sirs, we don't have anything to fear.” She turned to their guest, “It's nice of you to join us Beachcomber.”
“Pleasure's all mine. I love getting to know new people. Or, you're called ponies, right? Heh, my mistake.” He put a hand on his hip and gave a two fingered salute. “Nice to meet you, Princess.”
Luna stared at Beachcomber in confusion, not saying a word. Wondering if she was distressed, Twilight asked her, “Princess Luna, is something the matter? I know he's kind of intimidating, but I can honestly say he's no threat to us.”
She brought a hoof to her forehead and looked down, “No, it is nothing...I apologize for my rudeness, Beachcomber. I am Princess Luna.” She turned her attention to the unicorn next to her. “Now then Twilight Sparkle, I understand that you are familiar with the situation now?”
She sighed, “I sure am...please sit down, we have a lot to go over.”
----
[Shockwave's Case Files, Entry #: 008]
After assessing every possible variable, I have finally confirmed the Ark and Nemesis' new destination after discovering they had not made contact with the previous target planet. And I must say, this planet may prove to hold significantly larger promise than what was archived by the ancients. Not only does this world hold multiple opportunities to harvest energy, but the dominant species displays unusual phenomena that I had originally deemed impossible. Further research will be required to fully understand these strange, quadrupedal life forms.
On a minor note, totalitarian control of Cybertron is now complete. Guerrilla warfare presented by Elita-1 and the Dinobots have proven to be something of a hindrance, but are a mere annoyance at best. Furthermore, augmentation of my prototype weapon to replace my left arm is successful. A field test is required to confirm its destructive power and application, an opportunity I may have in the near future.