Chapter 1
What is your wish? A life filled with regret or a curse concluded with the unknown?
There are times where trust,
a formation of friendship can be tested.
But even you must
think of what the future holds manifested.
It had been a month after my defeat by the Elements of Harmony, I was 'captured' by their leader and am currently being held in her prison. She is too strong for me to fight back against at this current time. My objective is currently unknown and she continues to question me at random intervals.
There was knocking on the door that was up the stairs and a voice came through it, "Hello?"
Contact. She is at the door right now, my current location is Ponyville Library Basement. It seems to keep me locked in she has put a ward on the door.
There was even more knocking on that door and the voice said, "Hey, you there?" Then there some heavier knocking on the door like the person outside seemed anxious.
Closing self journal, will resume when ready. I can sense she is about to barge into the room and I cannot let any of them know of such hidden recordings.
Now I heard the door slide open and some hoofsteps and then a moment afterwards I heard a voice speaking to me, "Hey, what're you doing?" the purple alicorn that I figured was walking down the steps to check on me, I looked over at her and tilted my head like I was confused. Cannot express emotions too well; I must do my best though so she leaves me alone.
The purple alicorn, the leader of the elements of harmony forcibly pulled me into the main room. There I saw all of the elements gathered up together, what were they going to do to me? I struggled slightly but her power was just too great that I couldn't break free. They probably knew that I could break out of the grasp of a normal unicorn.
She forcibly sat me down on a sofa and said to me, "Don't try running okay? I'm just going to ask you a couple of simple but important questions and I have my best friends here to listen in as well."
I looked around and saw a multicolored rainbow pegasus, I could easily call from my records that she is the element of loyalty. Beside her I saw a small pink earth pony with a curly mane and tail, most likely the element of laugher. I continued exploring with my sight to see an orange earth pony, a yellow pegasus, and a white unicorn; in order I presume they are the elements of honesty, kindness and generosity. I nodded in submission as I couldn't fight back, my main objective to attack Canterlot was thwarted by them and they had destroyed my protective armor plating.
"Alright." the purple pony sat right in front of me. She was just out of my kill range and her friends were backing her up so I couldn't even try. Her eyes focused on mine and she asked, "What is your name?"
"M-my name...?" I said in a stuttered response like a confused foal. I truthfully tried to answer, "My name is Subject 00550."
"That's a lie if I ever heard'one." the orange pony with a hat on her head said.
I looked down and away, avoiding contact with their glares that I knew were coming. "It's okay, she probably doesn't remember that well." their leader pony said.
That purple alicorn looked straight at me once more and used her magic to force me to look her in the eyes. She then closed hers and slowly closed the distance between the two of us and the last thing I knew was a magical touch on my forehead.
I felt a rushing sensation of memories like something was bringing them back, I didn't want them back though... Never in my lifetime did I want them back... so I repelled the magic she was using with my will, I never want to remember my past, I don't want to!
Then visibly my eyes opened and at the same time I could see that five ponies were surrounding me. I shrunk back and slowly figured out what I did to get most of them looking angry at me. I looked over them and saw parallel to me the launched back body of the purple alicorn laying in front of a destroyed bookcase wall.
I saw her get up a moment afterwards, she was resiliant that's for sure. Note made.
Then with a surprised look I could hear her telling her friends to get away from me. Why? The purple alicorn got close to me and trapped me in a solid translucent shield. Now I knew. It was the curse that had ensnared my being with darkness by taking my left eye. It became something like a cat's eye and if they're avoiding me like this... I knew it must've started glowing brightly.
This wasn't the first time, you see, this curse makes my abilities so much stronger than ever... well... at the cost of not even being able to control myself I guess... It kinda just takes over.
"We're not getting anywhere, Twi!" I heard the rainbow pegasus call out and saw the pink, white, and orange one nod. The yellow pegasus seemed to want to see me so I presumed she might want a crack at talking to me. The purple alicorn nodded to her and left to go argue with the others and the yellow one approached me.
She sat down and calmly spoke, "U-uhm... I figure... T-Twilight said I should try speaking to you... you seem... angry..."
I-I'm angry? I don't feel any different, I'm just a lifeless machine right? I can't feel simple emotions... but it seemed my body was telling a whole different story.
"I'm... just... peachy-keen..." I cringed when I spoke.
The yellow pony looked at me and asked, "W-Well... I guess I'll try asking... e-even though it might not work..."
She took in a deep breath and sighed heavily.
"What's... your name...?" she asked politely without any real notice of stutter, even though she stopped and started back up suddenly between the first and second words.
It seemed the curse calmed away immediately and I was able to sigh kindly. I sat up and tapped my chin. I felt like I knew my real name... I felt it slowly coming back to me... "Motionne F-Flow..." I said, "My name is... Motionne Flow..."
"That's a... nice name... Flow..." the yellow pony smiled with a bright kindness that I still couldn't understand. Why was she being so nice to me anyways? She continued, "My name is... Fluttershy..."
Fluttershy, the Element of Kindness huh?
I shouldn't be feeling any kind of emotion but in the back of my mind I couldn't help but show an almost invisible blush. What is this feeling? I don't know. I looked at her and responded, "That's a... nice name too..." I can't easily make an escape right now so I'll wait for the right time, I guess trying to blend in is a good way to gain trust.
But how did I even remember my name... did that spell that alicorn did actually work?
"F-Flow... why does... why does your left eye keep crying...?" that timid Fluttershy asked me. I guess I better be truthful because I feel as if that orange pony might call me out on a lie again.
"A curse." I said.
The yellow pony gasped and I saw her put her forehoof in front of her mouth, then I heard her repeat what I just said, "A-A c-c-curse...?"
"Yes." I said, "The only thing I can possibly remember from it is..."
What is your wish? A life filled with regret or a curse concluded with the unknown?
"I don't want to feel regret all my life... but a curse... I don't want that either... but what choice is there? Both suck badly."
A life filled with nothing, A life filled with a need to remember, A life filled with no friendships.
"No..."
Or... A curse, lost memories... lost vision of the future... a venture into the unknown...
"I..."
"I choose the curse... I just don't want to ever remember anything... I don't care if I just venture into the unknown, I just want to forget everything!"
As you wish.
"So... I forgot basically almost every memory of my life except for basic memories of just surviving and living." I turned away to hide my cursed eye from the yellow pegasus in front me, "I don't even know how I remember this even now. I'm supposed to continually lose my true memories because of it."
I told a truthful lie on that last part. The robotic self in me is what should continually refresh my memories and only keep what was programmed. But somehow...
"What did... What did 'Twilight' do to me...?" I asked. I heard Fluttershy say her name but I wasn't sure if it wasn't just a fake alias or her real one.
Fluttershy shrunk back slightly, "U-Uhm... I t-think... I think Twilight used a memory spell on you."
So it was memory spell, but how was it able to reprogram my already solidified instructions? I feel free... but lost... like how it said a cursed concluded with the unknown. Was this the unknown?
The purple alicorn came back up to me and looked closely. She then released the barrier that trapped me. She then said, "Just stay right there, alright?"
I nodded.
She gathered up her friends and I saw Fluttershy talking to them in their little group circle. I could only presume that she was talking about what I've revealed so far.
The alicorn came back up to me and smiled, "My name is Twilight Sparkle, Flow."
The white unicorn followed up, "I'm Rarity, dear."
Then the orange earth pony came up next, "Name's Applejack, sugarcube."
The rainbow colored one hovered past me and stood behind me and I heard her say, "My name's Rainbow Dash!"
The pink one came up last, hopping, and shouted out, "...and I'm Pinkie Pie!~"
Twilight Sparkle looked at me, "You'll be staying with me for now, Flow, I need to contact Princess Celestia about how to deal with you." she took out a nifty looking black eyepatch from her backpack that was near the door and clipped it right over my cursed eye and around my head and she said to me, "This is a special device that I just recently got from Celestia. I asked her to make something that could hold back immense power and she said she and Luna could easily make something that can dispel curses temporarily and send it over today; she told me that a curse might be the best reason a simple pony like you became so much more powerful."
"I guess she was right" Twilight Sparkle hovered over me, "Oh and Fluttershy told me everything you said so far so don't worry about saying it again. I'll welcome you with open hooves here in Ponyville as long as you can be willing for rehabilitation here."
I nodded in response.
My time here might be longer than expected, I figured it would be long but I didn't think they'd try something so futile. I'll pretend to go along with it; I'll be truthful and honest mostly but there are things I must hide myself. I now know that slowly I'll remember many things that I don't want to and that the unknown in front of me is finally dispelling...
"You'll sleep in the same room as me on the spare bed, by the way. We kept you in the lower floor basement because of certain issues of trust by my friends but I convinced them it's okay. I might take a few precautions since you did try to kill us earlier, but otherwise you're pretty free to roam around ponyville." Twilight Sparkle said to me.
She winked and with a tease she said, "Oh, I also put a protective ward around all of Ponyville that will stop you from exiting. Until I can trust your rehabilitation has worked, you'll be staying here so you won't try to cause any damage."
I guess I'm totally stuck but I presumed she'd make such a measure. I touched the eyepatch that was over my eye and felt a rush of overwhelming heat. That must've been the curse within my left eye trying to break it.
I'll keep track of my built-in journal in the meantime whenever I get some alone time, otherwise I'll narrate to myself and record as much as I can without getting caught.
My left eye cooled from it's sensation of intense heat, it seems the thing behind the curse is giving up trying to break free now but I sense it might try again later.
But truly... for now... I want to see where my memories do lead me.
If they do lead me somewhere...
I've been asleep for three hours currently, but I've woken up with a need to question myself...
Do robots dream?
Maybe not, I'm sure they don't. I lifted up and stretched out my legs, it was still nighttime when I awoke but I'm pretty sure doing anything suspicious might take some freedom away from me. I do kind of not want that to happen, nor any kind of suspicion in general towards me.
I ruffled up my mane and laid back onto the soft cushions. I didn't need the covering over me since I was a cybernetic and all, but it felt familiar and also felt kind of... well... cozy.
I'm still a robot though... I have parameters... I have programmed orders... I shouldn't feel emotion and I should be... I should be stronger than anything...
The heat eminating from my cursed eye began pulsing once more, It started to even hurt slightly. I knew I had built in nerves because pain was a survival tool, but this amount of pain on the left side of my face was too much to handle. I choked back a scream and slowly remembered what I had said before, of my memories.
The curse that I obtained not only made me forget, it made me stronger and faster than many things, was the spirit only wanting for my own destruction? All I can remember after that was just... fire... flames... a burning town...
Was that my doing?
A curse.
I remembered much of the pain I felt when something subdued me. I think... I think I figured it was one of the princesses or something but I guess it wasn't...
But who was it? Who was it?!
Forever a wandering spirit
I couldn't get a good look at her face to even recall any details...
The curse within me began to burn furiously and I felt my steel plated wings overcharging with energy.
Forever without memory
I wanted to run.
Forever without a vision of the future to come...
I struggled out of bed and tried to be as quiet as possible by exiting down the stairs and through the front door. I knocked over some books on my way out accidentally and I felt a sense that something woke up.
I ran out of the building and the electronic eye-patch over my eye broke into small pieces and fell all over the ground as I fled.
Pain.
Pain is all I could feel right now.
I looked behind me for a moment and saw Twilight Sparkle on the ground below, looking at me with dismay as I sped away.
My speed increased in massive increments as per how my wings were designed to work. But it seemed the curse within me had also enhanced it as I could almost break the sound barrier.
I looked back once more and saw that purple alicorn preparing a spell but I knew I could probably outrun it's area of effect... right?
BOOM!
I broke the sound barrier and began flying even faster, my eyes were watering and my ears were momentarily deafened. I saw the large barrier that she talked about that came closer and closer every second a flew further and further...
Then I saw the barrier shrink and compact in size where I was flying towards.
Oh no...
I woke up once more after a minute or so from what I could tell from my internal clock, this time I was being carried down by Twilight Sparkle, it was still night outside but I think I woke every pony up with the sonic boom that I made. My left cheek was bloody, I guess something happened to cause me to bleed as well... I looked over at her face and saw her focusing a spell while hovering back down. Then... I fell back unconscious.
The next morning when I woke up, I was back in the library basement, except I was held down by numerous straps and metal-like grips. I analyzed my surroundings and saw a large white mare talking to Twilight Sparkle. That must be Celestia and I'll presume so unless stated otherwise.
"She's awake, Twilight Sparkle." I heard Celestia say.
"I see, well, let's go ahead and inspect her, Princess Celestia." Twilight awkwardly smiled at me and then they both came closer.
I tried to struggle slightly out of my binds to no avail, then I asked, "What's going on now?"
Twilight looked at me and said, "You tried to make an escape last night and when I tried getting you back in here you starting flipping out, your eyes were glowing a horrible shade of red but luckily I got Rainbow Dash to assist me when she heard that sonic boom you caused which made her rush over here.
I looked over and saw Rainbow Dash leaning back against a wall and eyeing me down.
"I see that the curse has already seeped through your whole body." Celestia nonchalantly said to me, "I can already tell from what Twilight has told me, you don't have any memories of your past."
She inspected me even closer, I felt like she was able to see something that I couldn't.
She then smiled mischievously and I could see her horn glow as bright as the sun. My left eye felt cooler, but I still felt this sense of flame behind that now.
The large alicorn mare then said to me, "I have put a spell on your left eye, which seems to be the catalyst for your curse, which will act as a long-term wall to stop most it's effects. Although that still means that it can break down and you'll just go back to step one once more, but I believe Twilight and her friends can help you."
She released me from my binds and I saw Twilight flinch backwards and Rainbow Dash crouch down, almost ready to pounce on me if it get's hairy.
Then I heard Celestia say to me, "I know who you are, but I want you to find your true self. The only way to break your curse is to remember everything that you've forgotten; Your sadness, your happiness and even your pain and suffering." she looked at me with a sad look as she then said, "Although this temporary spell will only last you seven days as it requires much magical prowess to even cast it. A curse like yours that has almost taken your whole form will only lead to a future unknown once it swallows you whole. I can only promise this spell for you this one time but the rest is up to you."
Twilight Sparkle looked at me and asked, "Do you think you could remember your whole past... in just a week's time?"
"I believe she can, with the help of you and your friends." Celestia smiled at her ex-protégé.
Rainbow Dash came up from the background and said, "I don't think I could trust her after she tried making a b-line outta here. Buuut, I guess I can put that aside... for now."
Celestia nodded, "There is one thing I must ask of you right now though..."
Celestia had this serious look on her face at me and I felt compelled to do something. So I did what I thought I should where I peeled off a small part of my fur to reveal my metal exterior that was hidden.
I also pulled off a feather from my right wing to show my steel-plated wing.
"So my suspicion was correct." Celestia smiled, "Thank you for showing the truth of the matter."
I looked at her with a sad outlook, "I guess I must go against even my programming now since I was giving back my free will."
Then I smiled at Twilight, "I have to thank you for that, even if I was going to try and kill you in your sleep."
Rainbow Dash almost tried to attack me for saying that last phrase but luckily Celestia held her back with her magic.
Twilight Sparkle rolled her eyes like she didn't her that last part and gave me a... rather cute I guess... smile and said, "You're very welcome, even if it wasn't intentional as I was trying to give you back your memory but I guess even a spell as complex as that can be overwritten"
I looked over at Celestia and spoke, "I guess I'should formally introduce myself to you, Princess Celestia, even though you said you already know me."
"My name is Motionne Flow, I was genetically enhanced and physically modified to fight. I am cursed; I am of the pegasi... but I am not like any pony, for I am far beyond different."
Celestia nodded and then silently said something to Twilight Sparkle which I couldn't hear. Twilight Sparkle nodded in return from what I could see.
Then I looked over at Rainbow Dash and saw her crossing her forelegs almost unamused.
Twilight Sparkle came up to me and said, "For the rest of today, Flow, you can do whatever you like here in Ponyville as long as you don't do anything bad. But we're going to schedule you with my best friends and myself. Tomorrow you'll be hanging out with me and sleeping at my place. The day after that, you'll be hanging out with Rainbow over there and having a sleep over at her home-"
"H-Hey! I don't want a murderous, blood-fueled cyborg pony sleeping over at my place!" Rainbow Dash protested from what I could hear.
Twilight Sparkle gave her a glare and said, "This is to HELP her-" she pointed at me, "Alright Rainbow?"
Rainbow Dash gave a huff and nodded.
Twilight Sparkle focussed back on me once more and continued, "Where was I? Oh right, Then after that day, you'll be with Rarity; after that, you're with Pinkie Pie; then after that, you're with Applejack; and finally for the last day, you'll be hanging with Fluttershy."
"Okay." I agreed.
Twilight Sparkle left the room with Celestia and Rainbow Dash soon followed. I guess I was alone now and could record something in my internal journal.
Dear Journal,
It seems that my outlook of things must change now, for I am able to freely make my own decisions. I am looking forward to the next few days and I hope that I can rid myself of this curse that is soon to follow if I don't do anything about it. I will fill you in more later on but for now this is all I can think up of what to say.
Motionne Flow.
There will be tears
shed beyond all measures,
to pass the such fears,
no temptations or pleasures...