Episode 106: Equestria-Fried Chicken:
Episode 106: Equestria-Fried Chicken:
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THE STORY SO FAR...:
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In the year 20XX, in the peaceful land of Equestria, Princess Celestia, the country's benevolent ruler, unveiled a great secret to the ponies that she trusted most. A secret project meant for the better safety of Equestria and all of its citizens: Mega Pony; the first fully-robotic pony!
Some time ago, Mega Pony visted a schoolhouse in Ponyville to speak to the students in Ms. Cheerilee's class. He, along with Princesses Celestia and Luna, taught the young colts and fillies about pursuing their hopes and dreams, both for those who possesed their cutie marks, and those who hadn't yet earned them.
This was a lesson that wasn't new to one of the schoolchildren; Apple Bloom, the younger sister of Applejack, aspired to earn her cutie mark and find out what she was meant to do with her life. To that end, she, along with her two best friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, formed a club designed to help them and anypony else to earn their cutie marks. From then on, the three of them together became known as, "The Cutie Mark Crusaders", and ever since, they had tried all sorts of different things in order to find out what it was that they were best at.
Though they have yet to succeed at earning their marks, the three of them haven't yet given up. Today, the three young fillies are heading to their clubhouse to think of what they should try to do this time. But they will soon find a rather interesting surprise waiting for them...
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CHARACTER SELECT:
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Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony and guardian of Equestria.
Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo: Cutie mark-seeking fillies.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon: Bratty Earth Pony fillies.
Fluttershy: Animal-loving Pegasus. Element of Kindness.
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It was a quiet, peaceful weekend afternoon in the town of Ponyville, though it was a little cloudy outside. It was also the time when Apple Bloom, Applejack's younger sister, had planned to meet up with her two best friends and hang out for the day. The three of them were walking down a short dirt path that led through Sweet Apple Acres' apple orchard. Before they reached their destination, Apple Bloom passed the time by telling her two friends about the day that the two Princesses and Mega Pony had visited their school.
The first of Apple Bloom's friends was a Unicorn filly; more specifically, it was Rarity's younger sister, Sweetie Belle. Although she still lived in her parents' home, she was not too far away to be able to see her friends and older sister from time to time. The other one was a Pegasus filly named Scootaloo. She had an orange coat, along with a fuschia-colored mane and tail and light purple eyes. Of course, like Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo had not yet earned her cutie mark, and her flank was as bare as the other two.
"And then, Mega Pony let out this huge light, and th' last Manticore dropped like a ton'a bricks!" the Earth Pony filly told her friends, having just finished up recounting the events of what happened at the school.
"Wow...that sounded so neat!" complimented Sweetie Belle. "He REALLY took down three Manticores all by himself?"
"You betcha." Bloom answered her.
"That's so cool!" Scootaloo chimed in. "I never heard of anypony that could fight off three huge, snarling Manticores single-hoofed! ...Well, perhaps maybe Rainbow Dash; she probably could do that too." She then sighed and added, "If only I hadn't busted my back leg trying to do those scooter stunts, I would've been there to be able to see it!"
"Yeah, me too..." Sweetie Belle then said. "Of all the days that I had to have a sick day from school, it HAD to be that day...!"
"Well, that was your own fault for forgetting your toothbrush when you came to visit me after the accident." the Pegasus filly reminded her. "Then you wouldn't have had to borrow mine and catch a cold."
"...You sound just like my big sister..." the Unicorn mumbled to herself.
"To be honest, guys," Scootaloo then told them, "the thing that I REALLY would've wanted to see was Princess Luna giving Diamond and Silver the riot act." She then chuckled a little and said, "I'll bet that was pretty funny to see, wasn't it, Apple Bloom?"
The Earth Pony giggled a bit before replying, "Oh, it was funny, alright...You should've seen th' looks on their faces when they heard what the Princess had t' say about 'em!"
Sweetie Belle couldn't help but find it funny as well, and she, too, giggled upon hearing what Apple Bloom had said. Just then, the little Unicorn felt something drip onto her nose, causing her to stop suddenly. "Huh? What was that...?" she asked herself.
The other two filles stopped and turned around when they noticed that their friend was no longer following them. "Hm? Something the matter, Sweetie Belle?" Scootaloo asked.
"I'm not sure, but I think I felt something drop on my face..." the little Unicorn answered.
"Really?" asked Apple Bloom. Just then, a small drip fell down onto the Earth Pony filly's face as well. "Wait! I jus' felt somethin' too!"
The trio looked straight up and saw that the clouds above had gotten darker. Then, all of a sudden, it began to rain: Not too heavy, but enough to drench anypony that happened to be walking outside. "Aw, ponyfeathers!" Scootaloo complained. "I forgot there was supposed to be a rainstorm today!"
"What do we do now?!" asked Sweetie Belle, putting her front hooves over her head to try and block some of the raindrops.
"Our clubhouse ain't that far away," noted Apple Bloom, "so if we hurry, we can get there without gettin' soaked too much...!" After that suggestion of hers, the trio ran as fast as they could to get to the tree where their clubhouse was.
The three fillies finally reached a small, yellow treehouse somewhere in the middle of the apple orchard. It had a brown roof with a set of stairs that led up to the front door. On the right side of the treehouse, facing the front entrance, there was a second set of stairs that led to a floor above, which appeared to be a watch tower of some sort, with a telescope extending out of the window. This was the clubhouse where Apple Bloom and her friends hung out and did all sorts of things, most of which involved trying to find their special talents and earn their cutie marks. Because of this, they called themselves, "The Cutie Mark Crusaders".
After they all ran inside, Sweetie Belle quickly shut the door behind them. After pausing for a moment to catch her breath, the Unicorn then whined, "Awww, my coat's all wet!! No fair!! I already HAD my bath this morning!!"
"And look at my mane!" Scootaloo complained next, pointing at her now-drooping mane hair. "It's so wet, that it keeps dropping in front of my face!" The Pegasus then blew the drooping part of her mane hair back up, but it just dropped right back over her eyes.
"Don't ya'll worry, Ah've got some towels here ya'll can dry yerselves with..." Apple Bloom informed them as she wrung out the water in her pink bow, letting it drip into a small, metal bucket. Once she felt it was dry enough, she put it back on and said, "Alrighty then...since it's rainin' outside, we'll try for some special talents that involve stayin' indoors this time. Ah'll just go 'n get the list and then we can-"
As she spoke, Apple Bloom stepped on a large object covered with a tarp, causing her to trip over it. She tried to keep her balance, but the Earth Pony filly fell over onto the wooden floor.
"Woah...WOAH...WAAAAAAGH!!!"
Noticing the slight accident, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo rushed over to their friend's aid. "You alright, Apple Bloom?" asked the little Pegasus. "What happened?"
"Ah guess Ah must've tripped over somethin'..." the yellow filly answered, groaning a little. The three of them glanced over at the tarp-covered object that had been in Apple Bloom's path.
"Isn't that the tent from when we tried to get cutie marks in wilderness survival training?" asked Scootaloo.
"Oh yeah...Ah remember that!" Apple Bloom chimed in. "Boy, was THAT a rough day we had, right Sweetie Belle?"
"...I ate a butterfly..." Sweetie Belle muttered, trembling a little, her irises shrinking to the size of dots. "...It was so small...beautiful...I was so hungry..."
"Not this again..." grumbled Scootaloo, sighing. "We told you a thousand times: We HAD plenty of food with us! And a tent! You didn't HAVE t' sleep in that hole in the ground!"
"You're just lucky ya'll didn't see her cuddlin' that armadillo like it was her teddy bear..." Apple Bloom noted. "Ah saw it while Ah was headin' to the river t' wash up, and it creeped me out somethin' fierce."
The orange Pegasus' face showed a look that was a mixture of both confusion and queasiness. Quickly changing the subject, she then asked, "Okay, disturbing pictures in my head aside...what's up with the tent? What did you put under it?"
"Nothin'..." answered Apple Bloom. "At least, Ah don't REMEMBER puttin' anythin' under it..." Poking at the large lump under the tarp, she then added, "Ah wonder what this thing is...?"
"Why don't we pull it off and SEE what it is?" suggested Scootaloo.
"Are you CRAZY?!" asked Sweetie Belle, distressed. "What if it's a big, snarling, pony-eating monster from the Everfree Forest?!? What if it's sitting there, just WAITING for us to pull off the tent so that it can munch us all up?!"
"...Well, for one thing," the orange Pegasus replied, "if it WAS a big, horrible monster, it would've attacked us by now."
"...Good point." the Unicorn admitted.
"Well, in that case...Ah'm gonna go ahead and see what it is." And after Apple Bloom made that statement, she then swiftly pulled off the tarp and threw it aside. But what they all saw underneath it caused them to gasp in unison: For under the tent was none other than Mega Pony himself, who appeared to be in some sort of a deep sleep.
"...Is that...Mega Pony...?" asked Sweetie Belle, still not believing what she witnessed.
"Sure looks like him..." Scootaloo chimed in. "But what's he doin' in our clubhouse?" She then walked over to the robot and tapped his helmet, shouting, "Hey! Wake up! Wake up!! Can't you hear me?! Wake UP!!!" But no matter what the little Pegasus did, Mega Pony did not respond at all. "I don't get it...why isn't he wakin' up??" Scootaloo then asked
"...Maybe he ain't sleepin'..." Apple Bloom figured. "Maybe somethin's wrong with him, and that's why he ain't movin'..."
"But what is it?" asked Sweetie Belle. "How are we gonna find out?"
"Well, we could start by lookin' all over him and seein' if there's anythin' unusual..." the Earth Pony filly decided. "You girls look around every inch of 'im and tell me if ya'll find anythin'." The other two fillies nodded and the trio began their inspection, searching for any clues as to what caused Mega Pony's inactivity. So far, nothing was found, until...
"Hey, what's this?" asked Sweetie Belle, finding a small button on the back of the robot's neck, which was blinking red. She then went to press it on instinct, but...
"Sweetie Belle!!! Don't do that!!!" shouted Apple Bloom. "Ah said to tell me if ya find anythin', not 'press random buttons on Mega Pony just 'cause they're blinkin'!"
"Yeah, what she said!" added Scootaloo. "I mean, what if that's his self-destruct button?!"
"Self-destruct...?" asked the little Unicorn.
"Yeah, don't you watch movies, Sweetie Belle?" asked the Pegasus. "Everypony knows that ALL robots have a self-destruct button on them somewhere!"
"Really...?" asked Apple Bloom, not convinced. "On the back of his neck? Where he can't even reach it?"
"Uh..." uttered the orange filly; she didn't think about that fact. "Okay, so maybe THAT button isn't for his self-destruct, but-"
"Oh, it isn't?" asked Sweetie Belle, smiling. "Then I'll press it then!"
"Sweetie!! NO!!!!" shouted Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. But it was too late: the little Unicorn already pressed the button on Mega Pony's neck. Once she did, the blinking stopped, and a slight humming sound could then be heard, gradually getting louder.
"Hey! Look at that!!" Scootaloo exclaimed, pointing her right front hoof at the robot's horn, which was now glowing a bright white. The three of them watched as the glow got brighter and the humming sounded louder. Then, all of a sudden, a beam of light shot out of the horn, causing an image of some sort to form out of it. The Cutie Mark Crusaders watched as the image took shape. When it was done, the image displayed from the light beam took on the form of none other than...
"Princess Celestia!!" exclaimed the three fillies in surprise upon seeing the image.
It was indeed the Princess that had created Mega Pony. But it wasn't really her: It was actually a holographic display of the benevolent Alicorn. The hologram then began to speak. "Greetings...My name is Princess Celestia, ruler of the country of Equestria." it said.
"Wait...I know what this is..." Scootaloo spoke up. "This is one of those things that has a pre-recorded message on it! You know, like R2-P2."
"Lemme guess: You got that from a movie, right?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"Uh, DUH. Where else WOULD I get it from?"
"Would ya'll be quiet?" Apple Bloom asked of her friends. "Ah'm tryin' to listen to this..." The others got the message and kept silent in order to hear what the princess had to say.
The holo-message then said, "If you are listening to this message, then it means that Mega Pony, the robot that lies before you, has somehow become inactive. But do not be alarmed...He is most likely alright. He has merely entered a Sleep Mode in order to preserve his remaining energy. Mega Pony only enters this state if his energy reserves are very low...However, his power can be restored right now; all you have to do is follow these instructions carefully..."
The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at one another, then nodded to say that they were ready to do what they needed to do.
"First," the hologram then continued, "press the square-shaped button on Mega Pony's helmet; this will open a compartment on the right side of his body. Inside, there should be a blue can with the letter 'E' printed upon it. Open it, and then pour the liquid inside it into Mega Pony's mouth. Afterwards, he should wake up and become fully functional once more. When he does, stay with him to make sure that he is okay. In time, he will either teleport back to Canterlot Castle, or I will come by to pick him up myself, if necessary. I know I am asking a lot from you, but right now you are the only one who can help my son...I promise that I will be eternally grateful to you for your service not only to Mega Pony and myself, but to all of Equestria as a whole...Please help him...You're his only hope..."
With those last words, the hologram stopped playing and disappeared. After it was done, Scootaloo looked around Mega Pony's helmet and found the button that Celestia was talking about; it was located on the side of the helmet, under his right ear. "I think this was it..." she muttered as she pressed the button.
Sure enough, a small part of the right side of the mechanical pony's body opened up, and inside was a blue canister: It was one of the many E-Tanks that Celestia had made to assist her creation. "Here it is!" said Apple Bloom, taking the can. However, she wasn't sure how to open it at first. She then glanced over at Sweetie Belle, her Unicorn horn specifcally...and got an idea. "Hey, Sweetie Belle, could ya'll do me a favor?" she then asked.
"Sure. What is it?" Sweetie responded.
"Tilt your head down a bit."
"Like this?" Sweetie Belle said as she followed Apple Bloom's instructions. She moved her head down so that she was staring at the floor and her horn was now aligned horizontally. Then, without warning, the yellow filly took the can and quickly pushed it onto Sweetie's horn, so that the pointy appendage would poke a hole on the top of it. "HEY!!" the little Unicorn shouted in an annoyed tone. Tilting her head back up, Sweetie Belle looked up at her horn, which now had some of the black fluid from the E-Tank dripped all over it.
"Sorry..." Apple Bloom apologized. "Ah didn't know how else t' open it. Whoever made these here cans didn't design 'em with hooves in mind." The Earth Pony filly walked over to where Mega Pony's face was and used her left front hoof to open his mouth. She then slowly and carefully poured the liquid from the E-Tank into his mouth, making sure that every last drop went down his artifical esophagus.
Once the can was emptied out, Apple Bloom closed Mega Pony's mouth shut, just as Sweetie Belle walked over, using a towel to wipe the liquid from off of her horn. "Well, I guess we just hafta wait and see if he wakes up..." Scootaloo noted. The three of them watched the robot and hoped that what they did would help him wake up.
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DATA LOG: UNIT PCN-001; CODE NAME 'MEGA PONY'...
EXTERNAL ENERGY INPUT DETECTED. MAIN POWER SUPPLY AT 100%.
SUSPENDING SLEEP MODE...INITIATING RECOVERY MODE...
SOLAR CORE: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY
INTEGRATED CIRCUIT CHIP: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY
VARIABLE TOOL SYSTEMS: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY
MEMORY BANKS: *ALERT* ABNORMALITY DETECTED
MEMORY FILES HAVE BEEN CORRUPTED. ERROR CODE 112-COTC
TELEPORTATION UNIT: *ALERT* ABNORMALITY DETECTED
UNIT HAS SUSTAINED HEAVY DAMAGE AND IS INOPERABLE. ERROR CODE 118-TSHS
AUTO-REPAIR PROGRAM INITIATED. CURRENT PROGRESS AT 2%...
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"...Uhhnnn...urrrgh..." The Cutie Mark Crusaders watched on as Mega Pony began to moan a little, slowly waking up and rolling himself back onto all fours, though he did not try to stand up yet. The robot then slowly opened his eyes and uttered, "Uhhn...where...am I...?"
"Look, girls! He's okay!" said Apple Bloom happily.
"...Apple Bloom...?" said the robot, still in a daze. "Is that you...?"
"Yeah, it's me, Mega Pony." the yellow filly answered him. "Ya'll gonna be okay?"
"Um...I guess so..." the mechanical pony responded. "Why? Did something happen to me just now?"
"Apparently." Scootaloo told him.
"Then what was it, exactly?" he then asked the three fillies.
"How should we know?" the orange Pegasus asked him back. "We just found ya like this...You were under a tarp in our clubhouse, and when we saw you, you were totally knocked out. Don't you remember what happened to you?"
"...I...I can't for some reason." Mega Pony informed her. "Something scrambled my memory banks recently; no matter how hard I try, I can't access my memories of anything else that happened today..."
"Huh?" Sweeite Belle began. "Does that mean you've got pneumonia?"
"You mean, 'amnesia'..." Scootaloo corrected her.
"Whatever." the little Unicorn replied, huffing slightly.
"I guess I do..." the robot answered. "If that's the case, my Auto-Repair program should be trying to fix the problem right now...But, it might take some time before it's done...Not only that, something also damaged my teleportation unit, so I can't just warp back home and tell Mom..."
"Well, if ya want, ya'll can stay here until you remember what ya forgot." suggested Apple Bloom. "Our clubhouse ain't that small, so we wouldn't mind if ya'll had t' stay here a bit."
"Really?" asked Mega Pony. "You really don't mind if I'm here?"
"Of course we don't mind." Scootaloo answered him. "I mean, the only thing cooler than having you stay here with us is having you AND Rainbow Dash here at the same time!"
"Besides," Sweetie Belle added, "it's raining really hard out right now, and you wouldn't wanna get yourself all wet, do you?"
"Uh...I guess you have a point there..." the robot responded, chuckling a little. "Well, I guess I can stay here for a bit...I'll try not to get in the way of whatever you're doing."
"Well, alrighty then!" said Apple Bloom with a smile. "You stay here as long as ya need to...Ah'll also let mah big sis know that you're gonna be here; maybe she might be able t' help ya out." The Earth Pony filly then walked over to the window, where there was a tin-can phone set up that stretched a line all the way to the Apple Family's home nearby.
Mega Pony smiled, happy that the three of them were nice enough to help him out when he needed it. However, he was still worried about his sudden loss of memory. (What happened to me...?) he thought to himself. (What caused my memory banks to malfunction...?)
Meanwhile, outside, in the town of Ponyville, it was still raining relatively hard. Most of the ponies had already retreated into their homes by this point, but there were some that were still out, trying to get home. Among them were a pair of Earth Pony fillies: Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, who were wearing matching-color umbrella hats to keep themselves dry. The two of them were students in Ms. Cheerilee's class, just like Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo were. However, the two of them thought themselves to be better than everypony else, and liked to make fun of ponies that didn't have cutie marks yet. Unfortunately, it seemed that even after they were lectured by Princess Luna some time ago, they didn't seem to have changed their attitudes much.
"UnbeLIEVEABLE!!" groaned Silver Spoon. "What in the name of Equestria were those Pegasi thinking, having a rainstorm TODAY of all days?!"
"Yeah, I know!!" grumbled Diamond Tiara, equally as frustrated. "It was PERFECTLY fine a few minutes ago, and now we've got THIS!! What? It couldn't have waited to pop up until AFTER we leave the Ponyville Arcade?!" Huffing, she then added, "And the WORST part is, I STILL didn't beat that blank-flank Button Mash's high score in Ms. Pac-Mare!!"
"Well...you have to admit," the grey filly began, "he's pretty good at all of those games: I'm honestly surprised he didn't get a cutie mark for being good at video games yet..."
"It's not fair!! How is that talentless pony better than me at something?!" asked Diamond in frustration. "Well, I'll show him one day! And that goes for everypony else too!!"
Silver sighed a bit to herself. (I hate it when she gets like this...) she thought. (Ever since that day at school when the Princesses showed up, she's been super-stressed out...I guess what Princess Luna said to us really got to her...) But before the grey Earth Pony could think about it any more, she suddenly caught sight of something in front of her and her friend. "Hey...D.T., what's that up ahead?" she asked, pointing.
"What's what?" asked the pink filly. She then looked ahead and saw something that looked like a chicken, but it was too foggy from the rain to see it clearly enough. Sighing, she then answered her friend, saying to her, "It's probably just one those animals that belongs to that yellow Pegasus who lives in that cottage around here..."
"Well, whatever it is, it's coming this way..." Silver noted. The creature in question was indeed walking towards them, bobbing its head back and forth. However, as it neared them, the pair began to notice some peculiar things about the mystery animal: The first was that its wings seemed to be too big to be chicken wings; in fact, they appeared to look more like dragon wings. The rest of its body was about the size of a chicken's body, but its tail was long and spiky, and the body itself was green and scaly. The only parts of it that seemed to really resemble a chicken were its head and feet.
"What the...?" began Diamond, confused. "What the hay kind of chicken is that??"
Diamond may not have known what it was...but Silver did. Trembling, the grey Earth Pony backed up and replied, "Th-that's not a-a-a chicken...It's a-"
But before Silver could finish her statement, the creature looked straight towards the two fillies, showing a pair of eeire, glowing, red eyes. Right on cue, the grey filly ducked and covered, but Diamond, not sure what to do, ended up staring straight at the unknown creature. "What's going...on here...?" the pink filly asked. "I feel...weird..." Then, all of a sudden, the bratty pony was completely silent.
Silver, noticing that her friend wasn't talking anymore, glanced over and gave out a horrified gasp: Where Diamond Tiara once was, there now seemed to be a perfect stone statue of her instead. That's because it WAS Diamond Tiara; she had somehow become petrified. "NO!! Diamond!!!" Silver Spoon screamed. "Speak to me!! Please tell me you're okay!!!" But there was no reply.
Just then, the creature let out a loud squawk, which got the grey pony's attention. Knowing that she had to get out of there quickly, and that there was nothing that she could do about Diamond's condition right now, Silver ran as fast as she could, eyes closed tightly.
About two and a half minutes later, the grey filly finally stopped under a tree to catch her breath. It was at this point that the rain began to slow down a little. Figuring that she had escaped the weird and dangerous creature that had turned her friend to stone, Silver opened her eyes to try and figure out where she was. To her surprise, she saw that she was not far away from Sweet Apple Acres. Looking at the farm from where she was, she asked herself, "Isn't this the farm that Apple Bloom lives in...?"
Silver thought about her situation: On one hoof, it would be very embarrasing for her to ask for help from somepony that she and Diamond picked on frequently, and there was a good chance that they wouldn't want to help her anyway...But she also knew that her friend was in serious trouble right now, and there wasn't going to be anypony else around to ask help from instead. Silver sighed and said to herself, "...Alright...I'll do it...I know Diamond's gonna hate me for it, though..." She then grudingly walked towards the farm, hoping that somepony there would help her.
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Meanwhile, in the Cutie Mark Crusaders' clubhouse, the four ponies inside were busy with all sorts of different things. Mega Pony, who was still trying to remember what had happened to him earlier in the day, decided to keep himself busy in the meantime, and helped plug up small leaks in the clubhouse's roof. Sweetie Belle was drawing with her crayons, making all sorts of pictures. Most of them were of her and her older sister, Rarity, but there were also some of flowers, animals, and other cute little things. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, on the other hoof, seemed to be having a heated conversation with each other...
"Now let's get one thing QUITE clear." said Scootaloo. "I most definitely told you!"
"You did not." Apple Bloom responded.
"Yes I did."
"Didn't."
"Yes I did!"
"Didn't."
"Yes I did!!"
"Look, this ain't an argument!" Apple Bloom then shouted.
"Yes it is." the orange Pegasus simply replied.
"No it isn't, it's jus' contradiction." the yellow filly explained.
"No it isn't."
"Yes it is."
"It is not."
"It is! Ya jus' contradicted me!"
Right in the middle of the "discussion", there was a knock on the door. It then opened, revealing the guest to be none other than Applejack, Apple Bloom's older sister and friend of Mega Pony. In her left front hoof, there was a tin lunch box; in her right front hoof, a bright, yellow umbrella. "Hey ya'll." she said to them. "Jus' bringin' some cookies for ya'll to much on; compliments of Granny Smith." She then looked over at Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, and listened in to what they were saying.
"Look, if I argue with you, I MUST take up a contrary position." the little Pegasus stated.
"But it ain't just sayin' 'No it isn't'." the yellow Earth Pony responded.
"Yes it is!"
"No it isn't." Apple Bloom explained, pulling out a nearby dictionary to help support her point. "An argument's an intellectual process! Contradiction is the just the automatic denial of anythin' the other pony says!"
"No it isn't."
"Yes it is!!"
"Uh...Apple Bloom? Scootaloo?" Applejack said, interrupting. "...What in the hay are you two doin'?"
"Tryin' to see if we can get cutie marks in professional arguin'." the yellow filly answered. Glancing at her bare hind quarters, she then added, "But so far...nothin'."
"Yeah, me neither..." Scootaloo chimed in, looking at her flank as well. Turning to Apple Bloom, she then told her, "Maybe we should try something completely different..."
The two thought about it for a while when, all of a sudden, Sweetie Belle suggested, "How about this: We could try to teach sheep how to fly! Has anypony ever tried to do that before?"
"Uh, no..." answered Applejack. "And Ah think there's a reason for that." She then turned over to Mega Pony and asked him, "So what's up, Mega Pony? Ya'll feelin' any better?"
"Yeah, a little bit. Thanks." he replied. "I just wish I knew what happened to me earlier...Whatever it was, it must've been pretty major to scramble my memory banks so badly..."
"Ah'm sure you'll figure it out sooner 'r later." the orange Earth Pony told him. "Don't try t' rush it." Mega Pony nodded to say that he understood. Not long after that, there was another knock on the door. Applejack glanced over, a bit confused; she wasn't expecting anypony else to be in the general vicinity of the farm, especially in this weather. "Now who could that be...?" she asked herself, walking over to the door to open it.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at one another, equally as perplexed as Applejack was. "Apple Bloom?" asked Scootaloo. "Did you invite anypony else to the clubhouse today?"
"Ah was gonna ask you the same thing..." the yellow filly replied, shaking her head no to answer her friend's question.
"I know I didn't invite anypony to come by..." Sweetie Belle added. "Who could it be?"
Everypony got the answer to that question once Applejack opened the clubhouse door. There, standing in front of the entrance, was Silver Spoon, exhausted from her trip down to the clubhouse, and also shivering from the cold, wet weather outside. "Somepony...help me..." she uttered weakly.
"SILVER SPOON?!?" exclaimed the CMC in unison.
A few minutes later, the little grey pony was given a small blanket and a mug of hot chocolate to warm her up. Giving her the mug, Applejack told her, "There...that oughtta help ya feel better."
"Oh...um...yeah, th-thanks..." Silver responded, still shaking a little as she accepted the warm beverage.
"So...what were ya'll doin' walkin' around in the rain like that?" asked the orange Earth Pony.
"I think a more important question is what she was doin' here in the first place." Scootaloo chimed in. Facing the grey filly, she told her, "Last time I checked, you NEVER come here for a friendly visit. The only times you and Diamond Tiara ever come by here is to make fun of us!" The little Pegasus then glanced around, noticing that there was another thing that seemed strange about the whole situation. "On that note...where IS Diamond Tiara, anyway??" she then asked.
"...D-D-Diamond...?" Silver Spoon asked, her voice beginning to break up. Then, all of a sudden, she began to cry quite loudly.
"What?! What'd I say?!?" asked Scootaloo.
Mega Pony walked over to Silver and patted her on the head. "Calm down, Silver...Everything's going to be okay..." he said, trying his best to help her stop crying. Eventually, his words and actions eased the little filly up and she ceased her bawling. "Now, please tell us: Did something happen to you and Diamond earlier? Is that why you're upset?"
"Mhmm..." the grey filly answered, nodding her head yes. "It...it happened just a few minutes ago...We were just leaving the Ponyville Arcade and heading home when it happened..."
"What was it?" asked Applejack. "What happened?"
Silver Spoon seemed uneasy about telling them all what happened, which was understandable, given the circumstances. But eventually, she spoke up, telling them, "Diamond...she...she turned to stone!"
"Turned to STONE?!" exclaimed the others.
"Wait a second...Apple Bloom, doesn't this sound kinda familiar?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"Actually...it does." the yellow filly replied. She then thought for a while, trying to remember a time that was similar to their current problem. Then, it came to her: "Wait, that's it!!" Apple Bloom then asked, "You and Diamond must've come across a Cockatrice, didn't you?"
Silver Spoon, taken aback, asked her in a pouting tone, "How did YOU know what it was?"
Applejack then narrowed her eyes and inquired her younger sister, "Yeah...how DID you know about somethin' like that?"
"Um...well..." the yellow filly began, sweating a bit, "it happened a long time ago...It was when me and mah friends were stayin' over at Fluttershy's house. We saw one'a Fluttershy's chickens runnin' into the Everfree Forest, so we decided to chase after it...And that's when we saw the Cockatrice; right after he turned that poor lil' chicken to stone! And...well...if it weren't for Fluttershy starin' it down, we would've ended up the same way..."
"...Ah see..." the orange Earth Pony responded, in a bit of a stern tone. "And...ya'll didn't tell me about this because...?"
"A-Ah was gonna tell ya, big sis! Really! Ah was gonna tell ya!" Apple Bloom assured her older sibling. Then, under her breath, she added, "...In about fifty years from now..."
Applejack sighed and asked herself, "Why doesn't this surprise me...?" She then looked over to Silver Spoon and inquired, "So, ya'll came across a Cockatrice, right?" The grey filly nodded yes. The orange Earth Pony then thought about everything so far, and realized something. "Wait...that don't make any sense...What was a Cockatrice doin' in the middle of town? They're supposed to be in the forest..." she noted.
"How should I know?!" asked Silver. "It's not like I asked it to show up in front us like that!"
Puzzled, Applejack then asked Mega Pony, "Say...Ah don't suppose ya'll could make any heads 'r tails out of this, could ya?" However, the robot did not respond. Confused, the orange Earth Pony asked him, "Mega Pony...? Didn't ya hear me?"
The mechanical pony's irises had shrunk to a much smaller size, and his mouth was hanging open, as if a sudden thought had just come to him. "...I remember..." he uttered.
"Huh? What'd ya say?" asked Applejack.
"...I remember now!" the robot exclaimed. "I remember everything now!!"
"What's he talking about??" asked Silver Spoon.
"My memories...What I came here to do...What happened to me earlier...Everything!" Mega Pony exclaimed.
"Wait, you mean you got your memory back?!" asked Scootaloo. "That's great!!"
"Well...yes and no..." the mechanoid told the little Pegasus.
"What do you mean?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"Well," began Mega Pony, "it all started back at Canterlot Castle..."
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...Some time after I woke up this morning, one of the castle guards told me that my mom, Princess Celestia, wanted to talk to me. So after doing a quick check of my systems, I walked to the throne room to meet up with her. Once I got there, I saw her standing in front of the throne, talking with her advisor, Mr. Kibitz; probably about her schedule for the day. Once he left, I went over to her and said, "Good morning, Mom."
She then looked over at me and replied, saying, "Good morning, Mega Pony...Did you sleep well?"
"Fine. Just fine."
"That's good..." Mom then asked me, in a serious tone, "So, I assume that you got my request to see you as soon as possible, correct?"
"Yeah, I did." I answered her. "The guard came by my room to tell me. What's up? Is something wrong?"
Mom sighed a bit and told me, "Last night, my sister had recieved some rather unsettling news during her nighttime duties...There have been reports of Cockatrice sightings outside of the Everfree Forest."
"Cockatrices?! Those creatures that can turn ponies to stone just by staring at them?!" I asked. "What were they doing outside of the forest??"
"That is something that neither I, nor my sister, have been able to find out." she told me. "The important thing right now, however, is that something must be done before it is too late." She then turned to me and added, "Mega Pony, you are the one most suited to deal with the sudden Cockatrice uprising; since you are an artificial being, you should be immune to being petrified. I need you to prevent the creatures from causing any harm, and if possible, figure out what has caused them to leave the forest and and deal with it, whatever it may be."
"Of course, Mom." I said to her with a nod. "I'll do anything to prevent the Cockatrices from turning anypony to stone."
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"...After I was given my assignment, I teleported to Ponyville, not far from the forest's entrance, and began looking around for any sign of the creatures." Mega Pony explained to them.
"So what happened next?" asked Apple Bloom. "If you were out lookin' for those Cockatrices, then how'd ya wind up in our clubhouse?"
"The last thing I remember was that something struck me in the head...But I couldn't tell what it was." the robot answered her. "It must have been pretty hard, though...When I came to, my internal clock showed that I'd been inactive for well over two hours...Not only that, my energy supply was getting dangerously low. So, I used what little power I had left to find some shelter...I remembered that there was going to be a rainstorm today, and I knew that not many ponies would be outside, so I figured that, until I could find some help, I should conserve my energy as much as possible..."
"Ah see...so that's why ya'll showed up here." Applejack figured out.
"Yes...But now that my systems are working properly again, I can finally complete my mission and stop the Cockatrice uprising." Mega Pony glanced out the window and saw that the rain outside was slowing down considerably. "The storm will be over soon; which means that everypony might start going outside again." he told the others.
"But if they do," Sweetie Belle began to say, "then they'll get turned to stone too!"
"Exactly. Which means I have to figure out what's going on before that happens!" the robot told them. "I'm heading out right now!"
"...I'm coming with you, Mega Pony!" said the voice of Silver Spoon, getting up out of her chair and running over to him.
"You're WHAT?!" asked Scootaloo in surprise.
"You heard me." the grey Earth Pony told her. "I'm going with him to help him find those jerks that turned Diamond to stone!"
"Oh, no...Ah can't let ya do that!" Applejack protested. "If you go out there, you might get turned t' stone, too! You're best just stayin' here where it's safe!"
"I'm not sure that idea's any better." Mega Pony informed the orange pony.
"What d'ya mean?" the apple farmer asked him, slightly surprised.
"I mean that, if the Cockatrice problem is as bad as my Mom said it was," the mechanical pony explained, "staying in one spot might not be a good idea...After all, if one of those creatures showed up in the middle of town like Silver said, then there's a good chance that they might be all over the place...In fact, there's a possibility that there might even be one or two right here on the farm..."
"Oh dear..." Applejack gasped.
"As long as Silver stays with me," he continued, "she'll be safe. Since Mom said that I'm immune to the Cockatrice's petrification power, I can block out their stares so that they can't reach her. Trust me, I wouldn't say this if I didn't think that I could do it."
Applejack was still a bit skeptical about it, but decided to trust his word. "Ah see...Then, in that case..." The orange Earth Pony then looked over at her younger sister and told her, "Apple Bloom...I want ya to go with Mega Pony and stay with him at all times." She then said to Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, "And the same goes fer the two of you."
"Sure, big sis." Apple Bloom replied. "Ah promise to stay near Mega Pony. Ah know just how bad those Cockatrices are, and Ah'm sure as hay not goin' near any of 'em!"
Applejack nodded to say that she trusted her younger sister to keep that promise. She then asked Mega Pony, "Promise me you'll keep them filles safe, will ya?"
"Don't worry. I'll make sure nothing bad happens to them." he assured her. The robot then gestured the four young ponies to follow him out of the clubhouse.
Applejack watched the group from out the window and sighed to herself. (Please...come back safely...All of you...) she thought to herself, still worried about their safety, especially in the case of Apple Bloom.
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Several minutes later, the group of five had made their way to the center of Ponyville safely. Before they left the farm, Apple Bloom brought a small, red wagon with her: Since Silver Spoon had told them that Diamond Tiara had been petrified, she figured that she would have to use the wagon to carry the stone pony around.
The rain was not coming down as hard as when it started, but there weren't any ponies around, as it was still pretty gloomy-looking outside. As they got to the town's large fountain pond, Silver Spoon pointed ahead and told them, "Over there; that's where we saw the Cockatrice."
The rest of them glanced over towards the fountain itself. Sure enough, they immediately saw proof that Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara had been there: The petrified form of the bratty pink filly was still standing there, with the same shocked facial expression she had when she saw the creature that turned her to stone.
"Woah..." was all that Scootaloo could say after what she saw.
"This is awful..." Mega Pony said to himself. "I can only imagine just how many other ponies got turned to stone because of those creatures..." He then turned over to the four young filles and told them all, "Stay here, all of you...I'm just going to do a quick scan of this area and see if I can find any clues that will lead us to where the Cockatrices might be hiding now."
After the robot said that and began his search around the fountain, Scootaloo glanced over at her two friends and quietly asked them, "So, girls...remind me again WHY we're helpin' Diamond and Silver?"
"Yeah, I was wondering about that too..." Sweetie Belle added. "Why ARE we helping them? They don't even like us..."
"Ah know...it seems kinda weird." Apple Bloom admitted to them. "But...well...it's just that...mah big sis always said that even if somepony's mean to ya or makes fun of ya...it doesn't give ya the right to do it back to them."
Although the Cutie Mark Crusaders were speaking at a low volume, Silver Spoon could still hear what they were saying. What the three mark-less filles were talking about had gotten her attention.
"Ah know that Diamond and Silver have never been nice to us, and they might never be..." the yellow Earth Pony continued, "But it doesn't mean that we have to act that way towards them. Remember what happened with mah cousin, Babs? We tried gettin' back at her for bullyin' us, and we almost hurt her and ourselves!"
The Pegasus and Unicorn filles looked at each other and sighed; they remembered that day pretty well.
"That's why Ah think we should help save Diamond Tiara and get her back t' normal..." Apple Bloom then told her friends. "Even if they don't like us and they have a mean personality, hating them and bein' mean t' them won't do us any good...So please...let's do the right thing and help them...Whad'ya say?"
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle looked at Apple Bloom, then at each other, still slightly unsure about what they thought they should do. In the end, though, they realized that their friend had a point. The orange Pegasus smiled and said, "Okay...I guess ya talked me into it...To be honest, I felt the same way, but I didn't want to admit it."
"Me neither..." Sweetie Belle chimed in. "But you're right, Apple Bloom. It is the right thing to do...And who knows? Maybe if we're nice to them...maybe someday, they'll stop being meanies to us."
"Maybe..." the yellow Earth Pony replied, hoping for the same.
After listening in to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' conversation, Silver Spoon was pretty surprised, to say the least. (I don't believe it...) she thought to herself. (Even after all this time...they still want to treat us like friends? But why...? All Diamond and I have ever done is make fun of them and give them a hard time...) Try as she might, the grey filly couldn't figure out why Apple Bloom and the others were being so nice to her right now.
However, Silver didn't have much time to think about it; Mega Pony had just finished his search of the area, and was on his way back to where the four filles were. "Alright, I found some bird-like tracks leading away from Diamond." he told them all. Pointing in another direction, he then added, "The tracks seem to lead to the southeast edge of town..."
"But isn't that where the Everfree Forest is?" asked Scootaloo.
"That's correct." the robot answered her. "So I need you all to promise me that you'll stick with me at all times and don't wander off, do you understand?"
"Yes, Mega Pony!" the four young ponies responded.
"Good..." The mechanical pony then started walking in the direction he was pointing in and said to them, "Now let's go...We don't have much time before everypony starts going outside." The four little ponies then followed him, heading to the edge of town.
The group nervously trekked into the infamous forest, constantly looking over their shoulders so as not to be taken by surprise. Apple Bloom glanced around at all of the wild plant life that grew around them as she pulled her wagon (which was now carrying the petrified Diamond) with her harness.
"Ugh...hasn't this place ever heard of a lawn mower??" asked Silver, complaining about the overgrowth. "Just give my daddy's lackies five minutes with this forest: They'd have it trimmed faster than you can say-"
"Silver!! STOP!!" Apple Bloom shouted as she charged towards the grey filly and pushed her onto the ground.
Once they got up, Silver shouted at the yellow Earth Pony and asked her, in an angry tone, "What was THAT for, Blank-Flank?! You could've hurt me!!"
"Well sorry, Silver..." Apple Bloom huffed. "But ya'll weren't watchin' where you were goin', and ya almost stepped in those!" She then pointed over to a field of small, bright blue, flowering plants.
Sweetie Belle gasped. "I-isn't that Poison Joke??" she asked.
"Poison Joke...?" Silver responded, calming down a little.
"Isn't that the plant that does weird stuff to ponies?" asked Mega Pony.
"Yeah, sure is..." the little yellow pony replied. "Ya'll should've seen what it did to mah big sis and her friends."
"AND what it did to us when we went on that cruise and island vacation." Scootaloo added. "Of course that was just ONE of the weird things that happened there..."
Once she realized that Apple Bloom only shoved her to prevent her from walking straight into a Poison Joke field, Silver Spoon got up and said, in a bit of a mumbling tone, "...Thanks..."
"Whad'ya say?" asked Apple Bloom, a bit of a sly smirk on her face.
"...THANKS, Apple Bloom..." the grey filly repeated, not really wanting to say it. The yellow filly chuckled a little and continued on ahead, followed by the others.
Mega Pony continued to follow the path in pursuit of any of the Cockatrices. "Okay...I'm still picking up their tracks on the ground, so we haven't lost them yet." the robot told everypony.
"How do you know?" asked Sweetie Belle. "I can't see these tracks that you keep talking about."
"But I can." he informed her. "My optical sensors can switch to different types of visual modes, for different purposes...Right now, I have it set to Infrared Mode, which allows me to detect heat signatures. Because of that, I was able to detect the creatures' tracks, because they were giving off an abnormal, though relatively low, amount of heat."
"Uh...In English, please?" Scootaloo requested, not understanding any of it.
"But I was speaking-...Oh! I get it! You didn't understand what I said!" Mega Pony exclaimed, finally getting what her words meant. The robot then told her, "To put it simply, I can see the tracks because they're warmer than the rest of the ground."
"Oh, I get it now." the Pegasus responded.
Just then, Mega Pony saw something that caused him to stop suddenly. "Wait...hold on. Everypony stop moving." He told them all. "I think I found something..." The others did just as he said. The mechanical pony then switched his view out of Infrared Mode to Standard Mode. He instructed the others to stay silent as he carefully tiptoed through the bushes. The four fillies followed him, also staying as quiet as possible. When they poked their heads from out of the large shrubs, they saw a small forest clearing, and occupying that clearing were six part-chicken, part-lizard creatures; the Cockatrices.
"There they are...!" whispered Scootaloo. "We found 'em...!"
Silver glanced around at all of the terrifying creatures. She then noticed one in particular. "That's the one...!" she said, pointing to it. "That's the one that turned Diamond into stone! I'd recognize that comb anywhere!" The Cockatrice that Silver Spoon had pointed to had a small nick in the comb on its head, possibly a battle scar of some sort.
"What do we do now?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"You four are staying here, where it's safe." Mega Pony instructed them. "Leave the Cockatrices to me." The robot then thought to himself, (My teleporter's still not fully repaired yet, but fortunately, my Variable Tool System is still working...Before I left, I used the supercomputer in Mom's lab to download the weapons that I thought I would need. Hopefully, they'll be effective enough...) He then used his weapon-swapping power, changing his body color and cutie mark to Rainbow Dash's.
*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Sonic Rainboom ***
Once he changed weapons, Mega Pony then used it to dash forward at high speeds, heading right into the gang of Cockatrices. The creatures heard him coming, but only a few of them were able to react quickly enough to get out of the way; Mega Pony managed to ram right into one of them, taking it by surprise and knocking it out cold.
"Woah! That was amazing!" cheered Sweetie Belle. "He beat one of them already!"
"Yeah, it was pretty cool..." Scootaloo simply responded. "But Rainbow Dash would've probably gotten at least two or three of them easy...No, four; DEFINITELY four."
The remaining five Cockatrices had looks of bewilderment upon their faces. They all glanced up at the mechanical pony, who looked at them and said, "Alright...I don't know why you're leaving the forest and running around town, but if you continue to put any other ponies in danger, you're gonna have to answer to me!"
The creatures looked at one another and put fiendish smirks on their faces. Then, they all turned to face the mechanical pony and stared him down with their bright red eyes, trying to turn him into stone just like Diamond Tiara. The four fillies hiding in the bushes immediately ducked down and covered their eyes so as not to catch a glimpse of the Cockatrices' eerie glares.
But Mega Pony stood his ground, not budging an inch. Just as Princess Celestia had predicted, the Cockatrices could not turn him to stone, as their petrification power could only affect organic material (in other words, it only worked on "real" creatures, not ones that were pony-made). The robot put on a smirk of his own and said to them all, "You're just wasting your energy: My body's immune to your powers, so you won't be able to turn me to stone like you did to that filly earlier!" He then changed his body color again, swapping to a different weapon.
*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Magic Wave ***
With the weapon he got from Twilight Sparkle equipped and ready to go, the robot fired a trio of purple energy spheres at the creatures. The Cockatrices weren't expecting it, and as a result, the blasts managed to take out two more, leaving only three left.
"That's incredible...He's takin' 'em out like they were made out of paper!" Apple Bloom said.
"Yeah, they're hardly putting up a fight! I thought those things were tough..." Scootaloo noted.
"Not really." Silver Spoon chimed in, grabbing the Crusaders' attention. The grey filly looked over at them and added, "It's not widely known, but Cockatrices aren't actually very strong, at least not physically."
"They aren't?" asked Sweetie Belle.
Silver shook her head no and told her, "Because of their awkwardly stout bodies, and the fact that they really don't have any natural enemies, Cockatrices don't tend to get much exercise...While their ability to turn ponies to stone is powerful enough to make them dangerous, if they can't use that power somehow, there's little else they can do to defend themselves."
The Cutie Mark Crusaders were shocked at how much Silver Spoon seemed to know when it came to the part-chicken, part-reptile creatures. "How'd ya know all that?" asked Apple Bloom.
"...I...kinda read a bit in my spare time." the grey filly told them. "And I usually have a lot of spare time on my hooves."
"Well, I can tell ya one thing," Scootaloo began, "the part about them not having any natural enemies'll have to be updated now...'Cause Mega Pony's taking them all out right now!"
Back at the battle, the three remaining Cockatrices finally figured out that their petrification stares weren't going to work on the robot, forcing them to rely on scratching and pecking attacks in order to fight back. But while they had managed to get a scrape or two on Mega Pony, it wasn't causing a lot of damage; Silver Spoon was indeed right about how the Cockatrice's physical strength was very weak overall.
The mechanoid charged up another Magic Wave and fired it right at one of the creatures, scoring another knockout. "You think that's enough to stop me?!" he shouted at them. "You'll have to do better than that!" Even so, he knew that he had to end this fight quickly before the Cockatrices could attempt an escape. Fortunately, he had the perfect weapon to use against them. He then swapped colors again, this time adopting the color scheme and cutie mark of Fluttershy. Then, after a quick charge-up, he unleashed one of his most powerful weapons; he let out a powerful light from his eyes, bathing the surrounding area with a bright glow that could blind anypony who saw it.
*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** The Stare ***
"Urrgh!!" grunted the four young fillies as they ducked down and closed their eyes again, this time to escape the blinding glare of the weapon Mega Pony had gotten from the normally-timid yellow Pegasus. The only ones that were affected were the two Cockatrices, who both fainted as a result of the intense stare. One was completely knocked out cold; the other one managed to wake up, but was heavily weakened from the battle. It just so happened that the last creature was the one with the nick in its comb; the same one that petrified Diamond Tiara.
Mega Pony, who had now returned to his original color scheme, stared down the creature and charged up his Friendship Buster. "Alright...it's over now." he said to it, prepared to take one last shot. But then, something unexpected happened: The robot took a step back in disbelief when he saw what was in front of him: The last Cockatrice, whose face once had a very scary look upon it, was beginning to tear up. This caused the mechanical pony to suddenly stop his attack. "What's this...?" he asked himself.
"Huh? What's goin' on?" asked Scootaloo, watching the whole thing. "Why isn't he attacking it?" All four of the fillies seemed to be confused as to the bizarre situation in front of them.
"Mega Pony? What's wrong?" asked Apple Bloom. "Why'd ya stop?"
The mechanical pony then looked over at the four of them and told them, "Girls...you're not gonna believe this, but...this Cockatrice...he's crying."
The four of them were completely flabbergasted by what Mega Pony said to them. "He's WHAT?!?" asked Scootaloo.
"Come look for yourself." he replied back.
The others came out of their hiding place to see the Cockatrice for themselves. Just as Mega Pony told them, it was tearing up and seemed like it could start bawling at any time. "No way, he's right...!" stated Apple Bloom.
"What's going on here?" asked Silver. "Is he wimpering because you beat him and his jerky friends so badly?"
"...I don't know about that..." Sweetie Belle answered, looking at the creature. "It might just be a hunch, but...I have a feeling that he was upset about something long before we came here..."
"You think so?" asked Scootaloo.
"How do you know that?" asked Silver in a bit of a snotty tone. "He could be faking it for all we know! He's probably trying to trick us so he can run off the first chance he gets!"
"No, I have to side with Sweetie on this one..." Mega Pony told the grey filly. "I kinda got that same feeling myself when I saw it starting to cry...But I'm not sure why it's upset; my database allows me to be fluent in many different languages, but not one of them will help me understand this Cockatrice and figure out what's wrong with it..."
"Wait! I have an idea!!" Sweetie Belle chimed in. "Why don't we take this guy to Fluttershy? I'll bet she can figure out why's he all sad!"
The other young ponies glanced over at her in shock: It wasn't often that Sweetie Belle came up with an idea that made sense. "That's...actually a good idea, Sweetie Belle." Apple Bloom complimented her. "Fluttershy's great with animals, even ones from the forest! If anypony can figure out what's makin' this Cockatrice upset, she can!"
"But why?" asked Silver Spoon, confused. "Why do we have figure THAT out?"
"Because it might help us figure out why they started popping up in Ponyville." Mega Pony told her. "Everything happens for a reason, so something else must have happened earlier to cause the Cockatrices to come out of the forest. If we figure out what it is, we can fix it and help get them back to wherever they belong."
"That sounds good to me." stated Apple Bloom.
"...Fine, whatever." Silver said in a huff. "Let's just go and get this overwith..."
Mega Pony then told the Cockatrice, "Don't you worry...we're going to help you with whatever it is that's upsetting you. I promise." The creature seemed to understand him; not the words, exactly, but the comforting way that the robot was speaking to it. The Cockatrice wiped a tear from its eye and gave out a happy squawk in response. The group then left the Everfree Forest and made their way to Fluttershy's house.
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Meanwhile, away from Ponyville, but still relatively closeby the town, was the quaint little cottage that belonged to Fluttershy, a yellow-coated Pegasus that loved to take care of animals. That fact was quite clear: The house and everything around it had homes for all sorts of critters, big and small. The trees were dotted with many birdhouses, a small, gentle stream flowed around the cottage, and there were open fields in the back for the animals to get plenty of exercise. Having so many animals living in one place would overwhlem the typical pony, but not Fluttershy; she was able to care for each and every one of them.
The sweet-natured mare was busy tending to the flowers in front of her home, watering them with a can that she held in her mouth. Once she was done, she set it down and turned to a small swarm of bees behind her. "The flowers are all nice and healthy now." she said to the black-and-yellow insects in her usual soft tone. "They're all ready for you to pollinate them."
The bees buzzed happily in response and flew right over to the bright and colorful flowers, ready to do their jobs involving the pretty plants.
Walking back into her cottage, Fluttershy grabbed a pencil (using her mouth again) and checked something off of a list hanging on the wall. After dropping the writing instrument, she said to herself, "Okay...that takes care of the bees...And I already fed all of the birds before that...That just leaves-"
But before she could finish, she felt a slight tug on her long, pink tail. She then turned around and saw a small, white rabbit behind her that was scowling a little, front legs crossed in front of it like arms. "Oh! Angel!" the Pegasus said to it, facing the rabbit. "I was just about to say that I was going to get your food next."
The rabbit's name was Angel Bunny. While Fluttershy would probably tell most ponies that she didn't have a favorite among her many animals, almost everypony believed that this rabbit was the one that she loved the most. Angel wasn't your typical rabbit, however; while most would think that rabbits were quiet, sweet little critters, Angel was a bit of a brat. In his own little way, he was quite demanding, a bit selfish at times, and occasionally liked to play tricks on others. Fluttershy never seemed to notice this, or more likely, she was too sweet-natured to address her rabbit's occasional bad behavior.
"Now you wait right there and be patient," she told Angel, "and I'll get you something really nice in a few sec-" But once again, the Pegasus's train of thought was interrupted, this time by a knock on the door. "Oh? Who could that be?" she asked herself, walking over to the door. Angel put on an even grumpier face, knowing that his dinner was going to have to wait a bit longer.
Fluttershy walked to her front door and opened it. On the other side was Mega Pony, along with Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Silver Spoon. "Fluttershy!" the robot exclaimed happily. "Good to see you!"
"Oh! M-Mega Pony?" the yellow Pegasus asked timidly. "I, um...I wasn't expecting you to come by today...Is something wrong?"
"Kinda." he told her. "That's why we came here: We need your help with something."
"M-my help? What is it??"
The group of five stepped aside and revealed the creature that they brought with them to the animal-loving mare: The Cockatrice from the Everfree Forest.
Fluttershy's eyes widened upon seeing the beast before her, and she gave out a loud gasp. "Wh-WHAT?! Why did you bring a Cockatrice here?!" she asked in panic. She then turned to the Cutie Mark Crusaders and asked them, "Didn't I tell you three about not going near those creatures?! They're dangerous!"
"We know that, Fluttershy..." Apple Bloom told her. "But we had no choice."
"W-what do you mean...?"
Mega Pony then stepped forward and told the yellow Pegasus, "Listen...there's a big problem going on in town: Late last night, there were reports of Cockatrice sightings all over town. My mom sent me to take care of it, but now we all suspect that something caused the Cockatrices to leave the forest, and that they're not just attacking ponies randomly."
"What makes you think that...?" asked Fluttershy. All the while, Angel was scampering around in the background, pointing to his wide-open mouth to say that he wanted his dinner now.
"It started crying and getting upset all of a sudden." Scootaloo replied. "But we don't know what it's upset about."
"We thought that you might be able to talk to it and figure out why he's sad..." Sweetie Belle added.
"M-me??" asked the timid mare. She then looked at the Cockatrice; she could tell that he was scared, not sure what was going to happen to him next. The yellow Pegasus then took a deep breath and said, "Okay...I'll do my best." She then walked over to the part-chicken, part-lizard animal and said to it, "You must be very frightened and confused right now, but we only want to help you with whatever is upsetting you...I know they seem very scary to you, but Mega Pony and the others are really nice ponies, and they have your best interests in mind."
Fluttershy's words seemed to have gotten to the Cockatrice; it stopped shivering in fear and wiped away the last of its tears with its wing.
"Now," the animal-loving mare began to ask, "can you please tell us what happened? What caused you to leave the forest?"
The others looked on as the Cockatrice began talking to her in a series of loud squawks that seemed to go on for several minutes. As Fluttershy listened to what the creature was saying, Angel was still trying to get the yellow Pegasus's attention, this time by striking one of the mare's china plates with a spoon like it was a drum.
When the creature had finally finished squawking, Fluttershy gasped a little. "Oh...my..." she responded in shock.
"What? What is it??" asked Apple Bloom. "What'd he say??"
"It's horrible..." Fluttershy began to tell them. "He told me that he and and his friends were driven out of their homes in the forest by some strange-looking figures. They were all being attacked and had to escape quickly..."
"That's awful!!" exclaimed Sweetie Belle.
"That also explains why they started attacking other ponies..." Mega Pony noted.
"What do you mean?" asked Silver Spoon.
"They were so distressed and confused from the sudden attack on them, that they started going after other ponies on impulse..." the robot hypothesized.
"Ah wouldn't blame 'em...If somepony drove me and mah family out of our home, Ah wouldn't know WHAT to do..." Apple Bloom stated.
"Well, what're we all standing here for?" Scootaloo asked rhetorically. "We've gotta find the guys that attacked the Cockatrices and kick 'em in the flanks!"
"Agreed." Mega Pony said to the Pegasus filly. "Whoever did this must be stopped."
But Silver Spoon seemed confused. "Wait, hold on a second..." she said, trying to figure it all out. "That mutated rooster turned my best friend into stone, and NOW we're going to HELP it?! That doesn't make any sense!"
"It's called 'being a good pony'." Scootaloo told her, a bit sore. "You and Diamond oughtta try it sometime..."
"Scootaloo, that wasn't a nice thing to say either..." said Fluttershy, a bit sternly, though still at a low volume. She then walked over to Silver and told her, "I...I know you're angry over what that Cockatrice did to your friend. But being mean to him won't solve anything, and it won't help your friend return to normal any faster..."
The grey filly's anger was slowly ebbing away as she heard what Fluttershy had to say to her.
"Hating somepony and being cruel to them is never right," the yellow Pegasus told her. "All it ever does is cause pain and suffering, and in the end, nopony ever benefits from it. But if you show even a tiny amount of kindness to them, then they might change their attitude towards you and do something kind in return..."
That comment echoed in Silver Spoon's mind. (...Do something kind in return...?) she repeated in her brain. (That...sounds familiar...) Just then, she recalled the conversation that the Cutie Mark Crusaders were having earlier...
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"...Ah think we should help save Diamond Tiara and get her back t' normal..." said Apple Bloom. "Even if they don't like us and they have a mean personality, hating them and bein' mean t' them won't do us any good...So please...let's do the right thing and help them...Whad'ya say?"
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle looked at Apple Bloom, then at each other. The orange Pegasus then smiled and said, "Okay...I guess ya talked me into it...To be honest, I felt the same way, but I didn't want to admit it."
"Me neither..." Sweetie Belle chimed in. "But you're right, Apple Bloom. It is the right thing to do...And who knows? Maybe if we're nice to them...maybe someday, they'll stop being meanies to us."
"Maybe..." the yellow Earth Pony replied, hoping for the same.
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Silver's jaw hung open in shock; she then realized that the reason that the Cutie Mark Crusaders were helping her was simply to show a gesture of kindness towards her. Even though she and Diamond had always been mean to the three of them, it seemed that a small part of each of the trio believed that they could all be friends one day.
Apple Bloom glanced over at the grey filly and asked her, "Ya'll okay...? You've been pretty silent fer a while..."
Silver took a deep sigh, fixed her glasses and said, "...I've...changed my mind. I'll help the Cockatrice get his home back." She then pointed to the wagon that carried the still-petrified Diamond Tiara and added, "But only if he promises to turn my friend back to normal."
Fluttershy glanced at the creature and asked it, "Did you get all of that?" The Cockatrice nodded yes and squawked a few times. The yellow Pegasus then told Silver, "He said, 'Yes, I will. Scout's honor.'" The creature did a little salute to show that he would keep that promise; it was enough to convince the grey filly.
"Alright, if everypony's ready to go, then let's get moving! We don't have much longer before everypony starts going outside." Mega Pony noted. The others nodded and followed him out of the cottage.
Angel Bunny grumbled a bit as he walked over to the front door and knocked on it with his right front paw, giving off a loud BANG each time.
Not a second longer after he did that, Fluttershy flew back inside, headed to her kitchen, and came out with a bowl full of ripe carrots. "Sorry about that, Angel..." she apologized before leaving again.
The rabbit nodded smugly, as if to say, "Yeah, that's right; we both know who's the boss around here.", before heading over to the bowl to greedily devour his dinner.
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In but a few minutes, Mega Pony and the others once again found themselves in the Everfree Forest, this time in pursuit of the perpetrators that had attacked the Cockatrices and displaced them from their habitat. The Cockatrice that was with them was leading the group, followed closely by Fluttershy. The area that they were going into was even darker than where they were before, and it only seemed to get darker by the second.
As they traveled through the forest, Apple Bloom walked over beside Silver Spoon and asked her, "Say...Silver, Ah have t' ask...What made you change your mind about helpin' the Cockatrice?"
The grey filly blushed upon being asked that question. The reason that she was helping them was for the same reason that the Cutie Mark Cursaders and Mega Pony were helping her restore Diamond Tiara to normal: Because she felt it was the right thing to do. However, she didn't want to tell the mark-less Earth Pony because she thought it would be too embarrasing.
"Eh...I, uh...Th-that's none of your business..." Silver replied, trying to hide her blush and act in the way she usually did around Apple Bloom and her friends. "I-I don't need to tell you anything..." She then ran off, leaving behind a slightly bewildered Apple Bloom.
Scootaloo was walking beside Mega Pony at the time and decided to ask him a question of her own. "Say, Mega Pony..." she began. "Who do you think is behind this whole thing?"
"...I have no idea, Scootaloo." the robot told her. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, I was just thinking:" she replied. "Who in their right mind would attack a bunch of creatures that could turn you to stone...and on PURPOSE? That's just totally crazy!"
"You do bring up a good point." Mega Pony said with a nod of agreement. "Attacking a Cockatrice without taking any precautions is near-suicidal...I mean, you'd have a better chance of surviving a nose dive off of Canterlot Castle than surviving a fight with one of those creatures." Looking even more concerned, he then added, "The fact that somepony - or someTHING - was able to chase off SEVERAL Cockatrices so easily is what worries me; whoever or whatever they are, they must be pretty strong..."
"That, or they're just nuts..." added the orange Pegasus filly.
"Don't worry, Mega Pony..." Sweetie Belle chimed in, a smile on her face. "You'll stop them! And we'll be right here if you need us!"
The robot felt a little better from hearing that. "Thanks, Sweetie Belle." he said to her. "That means so much that you believe in me..." He then nodded and told them all, "I'll do my best to help the Cockatrices get their home back and stop whoever is causing all this trouble."
Just then, Fluttershy and the Cockatrice stopped moving, which caused everypony else to stop in their tracks as well. The creature then pointed ahead with its wing and started squawking. "We're here, everypony..." Fluttershy said to the rest of the group. "Phil here says that this where they were attacked."
"...Phil?" asked Scootaloo, eyebrow raised. "Is... is THAT the Cockatrice's name? Doesn't sound very chicken-y."
"Actually, it's his middle name." the yellow Pegasus answered her. "His full name is Chick Phil Leigh." The others looked at each other, trying to comprehend the absurdity of the creature's name. Fluttershy continued, saying, "Anyway, he says that this is where he and several other Cockatrices lived before they were driven out..."
"Does he happen to know what the attackers looked like?" asked Mega Pony.
The Cockatrice, Phil, squawked some more to Fluttershy, telling her what he remembered. The mare then said to the robot, "He said that they were orange-colored...and they looked like ponies. That's all that he can remember..."
"Orange...?" asked Silver Spoon.
"And they looked like ponies...?" added Apple Bloom.
"Doesn't sound like anypony we know." Scootaloo noted.
"It's not much information, but it's better than nothing..." stated Mega Pony. He then began walking ahead and told the others, "You guys stay back here; I'm gonna do a bit of reconnaissance."
"Reconna-what?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"It means he's gonna look around and see what's there...Duh." Silver Spoon told her, a bit of snootiness in her tone.
"Well, excuse me! I've never heard of that word before!" the little Unicorn said, a bit cheesed off.
Mega Pony slowly walked into the clearing ahead and glanced around back and forth repeatedly. Other than what he was told by Phil, he wasn't sure what to expect, and he was understandably nervous. (Okay...whatever you are...) he thought. (Where are you...?) He continued to look around, but he couldn't find any sign of the Cockatrices' attackers.
The others looked on, watching as the robotic pony surveyed the area. The area in and around the clearing was bathed in an eerie silence that suggested that something was going to happen. But what it was and when it was going to happen was a mystery to everypony.
Just then, a faint glimmer of light began to shine from the trees above, and it caught Apple Bloom's attention. "Huh?" she said to herself as she looked over in the direction of the light. When she did, she then saw what appeared to be a pony-shaped figure hiding behind the tree leaves. Squinting, she tried to get a better look at the figure and saw that it seemed to be pointing something at Mega Pony.
Suspecting that the figure was up to no good, the yellow Earth Pony filly shouted to the mechanical pony, "Look out!! Behind you!!!"
The robot looked behind him and gasped when he heard the blast from a laser, and then saw the shot coming his way. He quickly jumped out of the way in time and looked ahead at the same tree that Apple Bloom saw the strange figure hiding in. "Who's there?! Show yourself!!" Mega Pony shouted, angry that somepony tried to shoot him.
After he said that, the figure that was hiding in the tree decided to show itself to everypony (and Cockatrice) watching. The figure was revealed to be pony-like, but it didn't look like the typical pony. It appeared to be wearing armor of some kind, orange in color, with a helmet that covered its entire head. From the visor on the front of the helmet appeared to be a single, glowing, red eye. It had a short, black tail sticking out of its back and two black boots on its hind legs. Its right front leg had some sort of blaster attached to the hoof, and its left front leg was holding a large, white shield with an orange-colored rim and a reinforced glass window towards the top of it.
Mega Pony wasn't sure what was standing in front of him, but he knew one thing about it: It was downright creepy. "What in Equestria is THAT...?" he asked himself.
"What's that thing??" asked Scootaloo. "Is it a pony?"
"I'm...not really sure if it is or isn't..." Sweetie Belle responded.
"Well, whatever it is," Apple Bloom spoke up, "Ah'll bet ya bits t' biscuits that he's the guy who attacked the Cockatrice's home!"
The Cockatrice that was with them let out several angry-sounding shrieks. That pretty much told everypony that Apple Bloom's assumption was correct.
Mega Pony, overhearing the conversation that the others were having, turned to the strange figure in front of him and asked, "Is that true? Are you the one who attacked the creatures here?" But the orange-armored pony just stood there, saying nothing. "Didn't you hear me?!" shouted the robot. "What have you got to say for yourself?!"
The figure responded, but not with words. It raised its right front leg, pointing its blaster straight towards Mega Pony and fired it. Fortunately, the mechanical pony dodged the laser shot just as easily as before.
Mega Pony looked towards his attacker and told it, "On second thought...you don't need to answer that question. I'm pretty sure you're the guy I'm looking for." He then triggered his weapon-swapping ability and switched to one that he had not yet used today...
*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Jawbreaker Bomb ***
Once his armor color and cutie mark changed to Twist's, Mega Pony charged up his horn and fired out the colorful explosive spheres towards his enemy. "Let's see how you handle this attack!" he shouted to it.
But the figure calmly stood its ground and raised its shield in front of it, using its left front leg. The Jawbreaker Bombs struck the shield, letting out intense explosions. But when the smoke from the blasts cleared away, everypony was shocked to see that, while the shield had been scorched a little, the pony holding it survived the attack unscathed.
"WHAT?!?" exclaimed everypony watching, including Mega Pony.
"Ah don't get it...Why didn't those work??" asked Apple Bloom, still shocked. "Those bombs were able to take down a huge Manticore! But they didn't even scratch that thing!!"
Mega Pony was just as surprised, but he didn't have much time to think about it. The figure then went on the attack again, nudging its shield aside so that it could aim its weapon and fire back. The robot reacted as quick as he could, barely dodging the shot. He then fired another Jawbreaker Bomb, only for it to be blocked by the shield once again.
(This isn't good...) the robot thought to himself, (I can't get a hit on it, and I'm barely evading all of its shots! At this rate, I won't last much longer against it...!) Even so, he was still determined to try and defeat this individual...somehow.
The orange-armored pony continued firing its weapon, as well blocking every shot Mega Pony fired at it with the shield. Eventually, the little blue robot was backed up behind a tree with nowhere left to go.
"What's he gonna do now...?" asked Sweetie Belle, pointing to Mega Pony.
"I don't know..." said Fluttershy, worried for the robot safety. "There doesn't seem like there's much he can do...Well, at least, I wouldn't know what to do if I were Mega Pony..."
"He's gotta try and hit that stupid thing somehow!" said Scootaloo, frustrated. "But as long as it's hidin' behind that shield, Mega Pony can't get it!"
The little Pegasus's comment caused a sudden thought to come to Silver Spoon. "Wait...that's it!" she exclaimed. The grey filly then shouted to the mechanical pony. "Hey!! Mega Pony!!! Listen!! You have to attack it when its shield's down!! It's the only way to do any damage!!"
"No, really?" asked Scootaloo sarcastically. "Gee, I never would've thought of THAT!"
But when Mega Pony heard Silver's advice to him, he then realized something himself. (Hold on...) the robot thought. (That thing raises its shield only when I attack it...But when IT attacks me, it has to put its shield down so that it can get a clear shot...Of course! That's what Silver Spoon was trying to tell me!) With a smirk on his face, he said to himself, "It's about time for me to take control of this fight!"
The orange-armored pony then put its shield down and charged its blaster, ready to attack. However, Mega Pony was faster on the draw and managed to shoot out a Jawbreaker Bomb before the attacker could fire its shot. And just as the blue robot predicted, the bomb was able to strike the figure before it could react defensively. Though it did manage to fire an energy bullet at Mega Pony, he was able to sidestep it just in time.
The others (apart from Silver Spoon) gasped when they saw that the assailant had finally taken some damage. "Alright! Mega Pony finally got that thing!!" cheered Apple Bloom.
"But why didn't that jerk put its shield up...?" asked Scootaloo. Just then, the little Pegasus let out another gasp and turned to Silver, asking her, "Wait, did you know that going to happen??"
"Of COURSE I did." the grey filly responded with a hint of her usual smugness. "When Mega Pony was fighting it earlier, I noticed that, whenever it attacks, it had to put down the shield. In other words, it can't put its shield up when it decides to attack."
"Oh, Ah get it!" Apple Bloom spoke up. "That means that Mega Pony can attack it when it's about to attack him!" Silver gave a confirming nod to say that she was right.
Scootaloo huffed a little. "Know-it-all..." she said under her breath.
The figure reeled back after it had been struck by the powerful explosive. It then fired back, only for Mega Pony to dodge each shot easily. As he did, he then switched back to one of his other weapons, the Magic Wave, when he noticed that his current weapon was low on ammo. After adopting Twilight's color scheme, he then waited paitently for the figure to prepare another attack. Once it raised its blaster up, the robot reacted quickly and fired the three shots of magical energy at his enemy, managing to hit it before it could fire at him.
Once the Magic Wave shots made contact, the figure sustained heavy damage and toppled onto its back in defeat, dropping its impenetrable shield. Mega Pony was about to breathe a sigh of relief, until...
"Mega Pony!! Watch out!!!" screamed Fluttershy in distress.
"Huh?!" But before the little robot could react in time, a pair of laser shots hit him right in the back. "AAAACK!!!!" he shrieked as the blasts did some considerable damage and dropped him to the ground. Mega Pony slowly got up and turned around, shocked to see that there were now two more armored ponies, just like the first one, standing there and ready to fight.
"Aw no!! Now there's two of 'em!!" Apple Bloom said, in despair.
The two new attackers fired their shots right at Mega Pony, picking up where their fallen ally had left off. The robot tried to dodge them as best he could, but he was moving a bit slower due to the damage he had sustained earlier. As a result, he ended up taking another hit to the left front leg, causing him to stumble. "Urrrgh...no...not now..." he said weakly, cringing from the damage he had taken.
"Grrrrrr... those jerks!" Scootaloo said with a growl. "Hidin' behind their shields and attacking others from behind! They're nothin' but cowards!"
"Ah agree!" Apple Bloom replied, also quite angry at the orange-armored figures. She then turned around and asked, "Ya'll agree with us too, right Fluttershy?"
But the yellow filly noticed that Fluttershy wasn't behind them anymore. "Huh? Where did she go??" asked Sweetie Belle.
"She probably ran off in terror." Silver Spoon assumed.
"Wait! Look!" exclaimed Scootaloo. "She's over there!" She then ponited ahead, towards where Mega Pony and his attackers were. The others looked in that direction and were shocked to see that the normally timid Pegasus was flying right into the middle of the fight.
"What the hay is she doin'??" asked Apple Bloom.
Just then, Sweetie gasped a little and began to ask, "Wait...is she gonna-?"
"I think she is...!" Scootaloo replied with a nod.
"What? 'Is she gonna' what?" asked Silver, confused. This time, SHE didn't know what the others were talking about.
Mega Pony, heavily weakened from the battle so far, backed away from the two figures, who were ready to finish him off. It seemed like all was lost...until Fluttershy landed right between him and the malicious figures that intended to do them all harm. Her face showed an expression of pure rage; a feeling that she rarely ever had. But when she saw that Mega Pony was getting hurt, it caused her to act on impulse to protect her friend.
"Stop hurting Mega Pony..." she said to them in an angry, yet still quiet, tone of voice. "If you take another step...I can't be held responsible for what I do next..."
Of course, the two assailants ignored her warning. They both raised their right front legs, charging up their blasters for one final attack.
That was the last straw for Fluttershy; she then looked straight towards the two figures and unleashed her famous stare. Her eyes were as big as chicken eggs, her pupils, the size of grains of rice, and her eyebrows jutted directly downwards, completing the fiercest look that the yellow Pegasus had ever had on her face.
It wasn't much longer after she put on that intimidating look that it began to affect the two armored ponies: They had frozen in place and didn't move an inch, aside from nervously jerking their heads every couple of seconds. Their eerie red eyes were also losing their glow, becoming duller and duller at a rapid rate. Then, all of a sudden, the two of them tossed their shields aside and made a run for it through the trees, vanishing from sight.
Once the attackers were gone, Fluttershy let out a small sigh. Her expression after that suggested that even she was surprised that she had been able to stop them both from hurting Mega Pony any further. "Oh...my..." she said to herself.
Mega Pony, finally managing to get back onto his feet, walked over to the timid mare and said to her, "Fluttershy...I...I don't know what to say...except...Thank you...Thank you so much...!"
Fluttershy blushed a little and replied, "Oh...um...i-it's nothing, Mega Pony...I-I just didn't want to see you getting hurt anymore..."
"Well, it means a lot to me." he told her. "You put yourself in the middle of all that just to help me out. You're a lot braver than I think YOU even realize, Fluttershy."
That comment got Fluttershy blushing even more. "Do you really think that...?" she asked. "If you don't mind me asking..." Mega Pony nodded in response to say that he did. The Pegasus giggled a little and said, "I guess...I guess I was pretty impressive out there, what with stopping those two mean ponies and all...I almost feel like I could cheer to myself for doing that!" She then glanced around a little and added, "Oh, why not? I'll do it!" Fluttershy then took a deep breath in order to let out the biggest cheer that she could. But all she managed to get out was, "...Yay."
Mega Pony giggled a little at the (very) quiet cheer. "I'm gonna do a bit more work over here for a while." he told her. "Just wait over by the others until I'm finished." Fluttershy nodded and headed back to where the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Silver Spoon, and Phil the Cockatrice were waiting.
"They did it!" cheered Scootaloo. "They beat those creeps!!"
"Yeah!" Sweetie Belle chimed in. "Did you see the way Fluttershy stared them down?"
"That's our 'Stare Master' for ya!" the orange Pegasus responded.
Silver Spoon was quite shocked, and impressed, with the performances of both Mega Pony and Fluttershy. But mostly, she was just relieved that it was all over. "Finally..." she said to herself. "Now things can get back to normal..."
Apple Bloom looked over at their new Cockatrice friend and said to him, "Well, it looks like you and your friends are gonna get your homes back now, doesn't it?" Phil then began squawking happily and hopping up and down into the air in response.
Sweetie Belle giggled and asked her friends, "You know...he's kinda cute when he's happy, don't you think?"
"I guess so..." answered Scootaloo. "Well, as cute as a part-chicken, part-lizard creature can be..."
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Minutes later, the group managed to return to Fluttershy's cottage after the tough battle they had been involved in. Now that the Cockatrices' attackers had been defeated and their homes reclaimed, there was only one more matter left to take care of: Restoring Diamond Tiara to her normal, un-petrified self (even though the Cutie Mark Crusaders felt that her current state was probably an improvement).
"Alright now..." Fluttershy said to the creature. "It's time for you to keep your promise...So go ahead and turn that filly back to normal." The Cockatrice nodded and began staring at the stone pony, focusing all of his attention on her. A few seconds later, Diamond began to radiate a bright, white glow, and the stone began to disintegrate around her, breaking apart as if it was merely a shell that covered her, as opposed to being soild to the core.
Once the process was complete, the bratty pink filly was transformed back into a flesh-and-blood pony. "Uhhhnnn...wha...where am I...?" she asked herself, groaning and holding her head as if she had a migrane. Diamond began looking around, trying to process what was going on. "Huh? What am I doing in Fluttershy's house??" she then inquired. The filly then noticed the Cutie Mark Crusaders in the same room, which immediately grabbed her attention. "And what are THOSE blank-flank losers doing here?!" Diamond then asked in her usual snotty tone.
"US losers?!" Scootaloo responded, a bit ticked off. "You should be thanking us! If it weren't for all of us, you would've had to start makin' a living as a lawn ornament!"
"What are you talking about?!" Diamond then asked.
Mega Pony then calmly explained to the filly, "You were turned to stone by a Cockatrice, and we all pulled together to get you back to normal...You should be grateful for everything we did for you..."
"Hmph...that's YOUR opinion." the pink filly said rudely. "Last time I checked, I never asked them for help in the first place...As far as I'm concerned, I don't owe them anything!" She then glared over at the mark-less fillies and told them all, "Now, if you don't mind...do me a favor, and DON'T do me any more favors!" Diamond then turned towards the door and said to her friend, "C'mon, Silver Spoon...we're leaving."
The grey filly quickly turned around, dropping a pencil that she had in her mouth. "Oh! Yeah...sure, D.T.!" she said in a hurried tone of voice. She ran towards the door, leaving behind a scrap of paper that was in front of her, and the two of them left the cottage and headed for home.
Not surprisingly, the Cutie Mark Crusaders weren't too happy that Diamond didn't even thank them for their trouble. "You're welcome..." Apple Bloom silently grumbled.
Seeing that they weren't too happy right now, Mega Pony said to the three of them, "Don't get too sore at her...I'm sure, deep down, she really does appreciate that you wanted to help her out."
"We know..." Sweetie Belle said with a sigh. "I just wish she'd show it once in a while..."
"Aw, forget her." Scootaloo told her Unicorn friend. "At least we were able to help Mega Pony out. Thanks to all of us, those Cockatrices'll never have to worry about losing their homes anymore!"
"You're right, Scoots." Apple Bloom spoke up. "And even if Diamond doesn't appreciate that we helped her, Ah'm still happy that we did. And who knows? Maybe one day, we can be friends with them, like Sweetie Belle said."
"I agree." said Fluttershy. "It may take some time, but I believe that, in the end, acts of kindness will always win over cruelty, and that it's always possible to make a friend, even out of a bitter enemy..." She then looked over at the Cockatrice that was still with them and added, "Speaking of which, I think Phil here has something to say to you all..."
The creature nodded and began chirping happily at the others. Apple Bloom then asked the animal-loving mare, "Wha'd he say, Fluttershy?"
The yellow Pegasus cleared her throat and told them, "He said that he's very grateful to you all for helping him and his friends get their homes back, and that he'll always remember how kind you were to him." She then turned to Mega Pony and told him, "Oh, and...he also apologizes for knocking you out earlier in the day, and he hopes that you can forgive him."
The robot nodded yes to say that he did.
"So...does that mean he wants to be friends? With us?" asked Scootaloo. Both Fluttershy and Phil nodded yes.
"That's great!" cheered Sweetie Belle. She then ran over to the Cockatrice and hugged it tightly, saying to him, "We'd LOVE to be friends with you!!" The Unicorn then heard the creature gagging a little, telling her that she was hugging him too tight. Sweetie eased up a little and told him, "Sorry...Got a little carried away there."
Scootaloo then glanced at Fluttershy's grandfather clock and told her friends, "Say, girls...it's still pretty early. So now that's the rain's stopped, whad'ya say we get a little more crusading in?"
"Yeah! Alright!" cheered Apple Bloom. She then turned to the Cockatrice and asked it, "Would ya'll like t' come with us to the clubhouse, Phil? Ah'd love t' see the look on mah big sister's face when she sees that we're friends with a Cockatrice!" The creature chirped a little, saying that he was okay with it.
"So I guess that means you're heading back home then." stated Mega Pony. He then smiled and told the fillies, "Well, goodbye then. Have fun with whatever you do next."
"We will." Apple Bloom responded. She then asked, "You'll come back soon, right?"
"I promise, Apple Bloom." the robot assured her as he patted her on the head.
Fluttershy then said to the robot, "Um...I'll make sure they get back home safely, Mega Pony...So...if it's alright with you, of course...could you keep an eye on my house until I return?"
"Sure. No problem." he replied with a nod. "After that battle, I could certainly do with a rest..."
"Thanks...I won't be gone long, I promise." the yellow Pegasus informed him before leaving her home with the three fillies and Cockatrice.
After they left, Mega Pony glanced around the living room, taking in everything around him, as he had never been in Fluttershy's house until today. As he looked around, he spotted something on the floor; it was the scrap of paper that Silver Spoon had left behind before she left with Diamond Tiara. "Hm...? What's this?" he asked as he used his psuedo-magic to pick up the paper, seeing that there was something written on it...
"Dear Mega Pony..." he read, "I didn't want to say this in front of Diamond Tiara, because I know she wouldn't like it if she knew anything about what's written on here. But I want to tell you all something: Mega Pony...Fluttershy...and even you, Apple Bloom and your friends...I want to thank you for helping save Diamond. It was really nice of you all to help me, even though I've always been so mean to you. However...I don't feel ready to be friends with any of you yet...at least not until Diamond feels the same way, and I'm not sure when or if that will ever happen. But still, even though she may not have appreciated what you did for her, I do. Again...thank you...Thank you very much...Signed, S.S."
Mega Pony was genuinely surprised - and happy - to see the heartfelt letter written on the paper. He now knew for sure that what Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle said earlier was true; about how doing something kind for somepony often resulted in that pony doing something kind right back. The robot smiled to himself as he tucked the paper away inside his hidden compartment. Once Fluttershy returned, he was going to go to the Golden Oaks Library to see Twilight in order to write a letter to his mother, Princess Celestia...
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"Dear Mom..." said Mega Pony. "Today was a pretty crazy day, but I was able to pull through it, despite some difficulty in the beginning. After it was all said and done, I learned something very important: It isn't always easy to do nice things for somepony, especially when that pony is mean to you or even treats you like an enemy. But it's important to do good things for them anyway, even if you think they don't deserve it. While it won't always happen right away, doing kind things for somepony that's mean to you may cause them to realize just how silly it is to act that way towards you...You may even end up making a friend out of them one day. In the end, it's just like my friend Fluttershy said to me: 'Acts of kindness will always win over cruelty, and that it's always possible to make a friend, even out of a bitter enemy.' ...Your loving son, Mega Pony.
"...P.S.: After you finish reading this, could you do me one little favor? I kinda need a ride back to Canterlot; my teleporter's malfunctioning, and I don't have enough energy to walk back home myself...Thanks in advance."
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NEXT EPISODE: "The Ultimate Workout"
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Whoa... SCOOTALOO corrected SWEETIE BELLE, a character that's been called a Dictionary, mind you, on what word to use... huh, what could've happened in this mysterious future to warrant such a change?
Hmm... a brat's knocking on the door to someone they don't like's house for help to save an acquaintance in a fashion in which it's too dangerous on their own? hmm...
Nah, I don't see it.
Hmm... I can see the possibilities for two future episodes: One redeems Gilda as a character (Yeah, like what they did in the rewrite of Turnabout Storm!), while the other may redeem Angel Bunny as a character.
Ah, I've met Chic Phil Leigh before. Yes, he's the son of his pop, Iyes, and his mom, Zax Bees.
You know, if Sniper Joe is based off of Proto Man, then surely Pony Joe has to be based off of a Proto Pony (Name pending.). I know (at least, I THINK I do) that you said you wouldn't use him because he was never in the original game, but there's been a couple things that weren't in the game that are here now (Like additional weapons, conversing with NPC's, and learning morals epic morals). And even beyond that... wouldn't a Mega Pony X be pretty cool?
5871170
In the case of Scoots correcting Sweetie Belle, think about this: Even dictionaries need to get updated once in a while.
As for future episodes, I have ideas in store for the next two (I'm actually writing Ep. 107 as we speak). I'm not sure how I'll get Gilda in there or if I really want to redeem her (though knowing me as well as I think I do, I might at least try), but I'll try and think of something that would at least involve her even a little bit.
As for the enemies Mega Pony faces, I do have a name for them as well as a backstory in mind, which you'll see quite soon.
Anyway, thanks for the comment, and I'm happy that you continue to enjoy the episodes.
5874493 Well, just remember: The rewrite of Turnabout Storm? Best. Thing. EVER.