Chapter 4
Bree curtseyed with the grace of bubbling streams on far mountains, her dress all young leaves and strands of morning dew. Long red hair flowed behind her like sunlight, making her seem in digital space as though spring itself had been frozen in flesh.
King Richard had done no datamancy to enhance his appearance, either with more realistic things or the artistic flourishes that Bree herself used. Even so, Bree knew the reality was no less imposing. Richard was almost seven feet tall, with a mane of black hair and the fierce eyes of a king. Like the knights of his house he wore white, a regal uniform that needed no enhancement to stand for his authority.
Even in a data transmission, seeing him was an impressive sight. Bree looked with disdain on many of her fellow citizens of the Tower, knowing no equal in all the Infinite Realm. Yet in King Richard her pride was cowed, and she bowed with genuine humility and respect.
“It is a joy and honor to see you, Your Grace.” Her voice was as high as her age suggested, though there was melody and wisdom there that no true child had ever had. Bree was something the natural world had never made, an eternal Unseelie child. In the Infinite Realm she would never weaken or rot. Harsh nature, vindictive queen of all the world, would not take back the gift of youth she had given.
Richard stood five meters away, stance rigid in the virtual space within the transmitter. There was no furniture here, nothing physical beyond the two of them and a vague grayness all around. “I read your last report.” The king’s voice was deep, deep enough that Bree felt her chest vibrating with the force of it. “Your words disturbed me more than the news of the death of Sir Leonidas. I came to confirm the words of your missive for myself.”
Bree wilted before that gaze like a flower left without water too long in the sun. Within the transmitter’s buffer, datamancy required conscious effort on her part. The blue flowers in her hair went white, even as the leaves around her bare feet turned gray and brittle.
“What… what disturbed you?” All the grace and beauty in the world couldn’t make Bree feel less like a child.
The king of all mankind advanced on her, just one step. He did not raise a hand to threaten, and indeed she had never seen him do it. Of course, she had never seen him so angry before, either.
“This.” He tossed something at her feet, a sheaf of paper that struck and broke apart, sending paper flying through the air. She recognized the plan of course, for it had been sent as part of her last message back to the Tower.
“The…” She winced, retreating from him. It didn’t make a difference. “Invasion plan? Was something wrong with it?” Bree dropped, scooping up the mass with a flurry of wind and spreading the files in the air. They took shape around them, each one seeming gigantic in size by comparison.
Each page was filled with text, maps, diagrams, all showing her plans for an invasion of Equestria. The detail was exacting, right down to an attractive graphic design with colors she had taken from herself. “Your grace, I’ve run the simulations many times! I’ve accounted for every variable—I won’t soil the Tower’s mighty name with defeat!”
Richard gestured angrily, and the files vanished. Not burned away, not decompressed, just gone. Like his knights, the king had absolute authority. Their hands alone could bring true death to beings made of information, erasing it forever. Bree shivered, wondering if he could do it to her through a databand connection.
He didn’t shout or scream, as before. Only his eyes reflected the anger, and the imperious tone of his voice. It was a strength unlike anything the living world could know. “Tell me the gates of the Tower, Brigid Curie. What are they?”
She didn’t even hesitate. She had learned from long ago, back when she had actually been a child. “Intellect, bravery, knowledge, fortitude, temperance, justice, and prudence.”
Richard nodded, his anger not seeming the least bit tempered. “Does it seem just to conquer a nation that never lifted a sword against the Tower? Does it seem prudent to make ourselves enemies of a world we barely understand?” His eyes practically burned as he asked the last question: “How many nations has the Steel Tower ever conquered?”
Bree thought about it, about the union of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Russia. Many nations, large and small, had united to form the Tower. As she quickly considered the history, she realized that each one had always had large majorities clamoring for membership in the Tower. It was true, some of their governments had resisted. But the people… They had always been liberators.
That was the history she knew, anyway. Bree shivered. “N-none.”
“None,” Richard repeated, advancing towards her again. “Perhaps you thought it a charming story, or some kind of clever propaganda. Maybe you thought we built our gates from whole cloth and empty promises.”
“N-no!” Bree’s elegant dress wilted away to nothing, leaving Child_Female_Dress_111 behind, plain gray cloth without even a texture to it. “I didn’t!”
Richard glowered. “What did you think?”
“That…” she stammered, having not expected Richard to actually give her a chance to defend herself. “I was thinking of the long-term consequences!” She wasn’t sure where she found the words, but find them she did. Confidence returned, at least enough for her to turn her dress green. It was something.
She continued. “There are fifty million ponies in Equestria, and plenty of other creatures. All of them have near-human intelligence, all wasted on meat bodies. They live and die and rot and they’re wasted! An invasion could be over so fast it wouldn’t shed blood! Their government is fragile—strike swiftly at the head, and resistance would crumble! We could—”
Richard silenced her with another imperious gesture. Was that a little softness in his expression? He seemed to have noticed her fear now. Being young was sometimes an advantage there, too.
“I believe you meant well, child.” Richard folded his arms across his chest. “If I thought otherwise, I would have you replaced at once. Tesla has already assured me, however, that you made this proposal at his request. He assures me there is none better for your duty in all the realm. You’re the most talented drone designer we have, and the most resourceful.”
He reached out, resting one hand on her shoulder. She tensed, but there was no need. He didn’t hurt her, just turned her head up so she was meeting his eyes. “The realm will not punish a wrong you did not do.”
Bree wiped a tear from her face with the back of one hand, nodding. She did not touch the monarch in return, however.
“Hear the will of your king, servant of mine. Your commandment is the same—remain hidden, prepare for my arrival. Make no enemies in Equestria and kill none who do not lift sword first.” He released her shoulder, leaving her free to show her tears. She did, and they flowed freely.
“Your projections suggest you will be able to stabilize the rift in eight years. Serve me in faithfulness, and when I come I will crown you with glory. Do you understand?”
She nodded, and the king smiled. It wasn’t much, but it felt like sunlight on her face compared to what she had been watching before. “It will be done.”
“I do not doubt it.” Richard vanished.
No sooner was he gone than the tears vanished from Bree’s face, pretended emotions replaced with the collected calm of her natural state. She sent one command, and the transmission buffer vanished from around her.
Bree returned to consciousness in her android body, resting as it was on a chair of soft wood the dogs had given her in her first days.
Bree rose, throwing on her cloak as she hurried from the room and into the burrows proper.
Her assembly line was a vast space now, far larger than the single cavern she had taken in the first weeks. Every spare inch of space was filled, with bubbling vats or whirring machines or tracks for the little wheeled drones to roll. Further still she heard clanks, the tools of dogs as they mined her metals for her.
Everywhere she went dogs showed her respect, though she was half their size and no warrior at all. Even the mighty knew that Bree was the Alpha above all others, even brave Sir Leonidas. All in the Great Pack would bow to her command.
Bree watched a group of miners return, pushing old-fashioned carts around tracks they themselves had built. She watched as they dumped huge carts of rubble onto the conveyor, which would take and refine the ore into the metals that drove their industry.
As she watched, Bree felt a plan weaving itself in her mind, a way to adapt the invasion she had written for Leo. It wouldn’t take much—from what she had learned of Equestria’s history from her stolen books, the nation faced constant threats and frequently struggled.
It wouldn’t be so hard to wait a little longer. Sooner or later something disastrous would happen, enough that she could justify questioning Equestria’s survival. When that happened, she could act.
Tesla would be disappointed she had failed to convince Richard of their plan. She imagined his reaction would change, once he heard what she was planning now.
Equestria’s last day was coming, and Brigid Curie would make it happen.
* * *
“Chance!” Twilight screamed, teleporting past the policemare and back to the control station in the center of the room. Alicorn or not, even Twilight had been blinded by the sudden flash of light from all directions. There had apparently been more than just light by the control panel, because all the little dials and switches had gone black and the whole area smelled like ozone.
Second Chance was on the floor, huddled into a twitching mess on the bare ground. There were burns on the filly’s fur, her mane and tail a little blackened and all standing on end. Twilight shoved with magical force, breaking tables and prying the chair from the floor and flinging it all out of her way. She took the filly into her grip, terrified tears streaking her vision. “Please be okay please be okay please be okay.”
Twilight’s mind raced with all the awful things that electricity could do to a pony, and her heart nearly stopped as she considered them all. Pegasi were resistant to most of the damage electricity could do, as they spent much of their lives surrounded by it. Little unicorn fillies, on the other hoof…
Chance moaned from in front of her, coughing and spluttering. She opened one eye, looking weakly up at Twilight. “Guess I… s-screwed something up.”
Twilight knew she should’ve felt reproving. Instead she pulled her daughter close, holding her to her chest and remaining that way. “Sweet Celestia, don’t scare me like that…”
“Yeah,” the filly whimpered. “S-sorry.”
Police ponies swarmed around them, pouring into the warehouse from all sides. Twilight rushed her apprentice to the hospital, rushed with magic faster than anypony could gallop, but it proved not to be necessary.
Her burns weren’t nearly as bad as they had looked. They spent the night there, Twilight and Spike both sharing the single overlarge armchair in Chance’s hospital room, before catching an afternoon train back to Ponyville.
The filly got her proper share of scoldings then, as well she deserved. Twilight tried not to be too hard on her, not with the disaster she had apparently prevented. Whatever Chance had done, it had been in time to stop the whole city’s electrical grid from being destroyed. Twilight didn’t even want to imagine the damage that might’ve caused.
Her adopted daughter had a shorter mane, and a few darker patches on her coat, but otherwise she had made it through unskathed. So far as adventures went, it could’ve been worse.
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Why the hell would scoldings be deserved? She was hit by a booby trap, she didn't stick a fork into an electrical socket wtf.
Don't berate yourself for the short chapter. This is a good amount of information and I always enjoy your updates.
Actually, I check daily just in case there is an early update.
I don't remember Tesla ever working to subvert his sovereign....
Cut weird, yes, but that last section was also pretty compressed.
It seems to me that if it was an artfully concealed booby-trap, less time should be spent scolding Chance and more trying to determine why a booby-trap was needed.
As for chapter length – chapters are as long as they need to be. If it works out that they are relatively short, that is not necessarily a problem.
7207674
While the reader was told that it was a trap, I don't think it's been said that any of the characters know that. From their perspective, Chance screwed something up and got herself electrocuted.
I don't think that boobytrap would have been worthwhile if the builders only ended up sending Chance into a hospital. Either the boobytrap should have killed Chance outright or - more likely in light of what we know - Chrysalis swapped Chance with her daughter.
7209114
I'm thinking it may have affected her nanites somehow. Only advanced knowledge built it so they were targeting something advanced, and taking out the town would be a bonus.
7210408 Didn't she get the nanites from Truth which means that they could replace them? Also, if those were destroyed I think that would have been mentioned.
I'll second the "compressed" thing about this chapter. You ended on a cliffhanger in the previous chapter, involving the protagonist of the story getting electrocuted. The resolution of that cliffhanger then fits in one single screen's worth of text? No lengthy period of time Twilight's panicking while the paramedics arrive, and "Second Chance" recovers her faculties. No description of how medical care works. No in depth speculation on Twilight's part on every single specific consequence of an electric shock to a young unicorn filly. No reproving going on, just a quick recovery and a hug to make it all better. Statements about what happened, rather than what actually happened. "The filly got her proper share of scoldings then, as well she deserved." (What scoldings? When were they given? What did Twilight say? Where was she being scolded? How did she react? Why did she deserve to be scolded? Is Twilight worried about being the filly's parental figure? Is "Chance?")
Not saying it's bad, just... there's plenty of room to expand that last screenful if you wanted your chapter of comparable size to the others.
7211912
Yeah, I think you're completely right. This story was written with lots of goals, and one of them was a target wordcount of 45k. I failed dismally at achieving that goal, but that doesn't mean there aren't signs of that on the story. Scenes where I might've spent 2k before I sometimes only spend 1k this time-- start later and end sooner.
I still think I have a way to go before I can write short stories, but... I don't think we'll be seeing any other chapters this length. It was just an unlucky cut in where individual scenes got sorted.
You've killed Second Chance!
How could you.
Didn't Bree, like, straight-up murder that pegasus archivist a few stories back? Are we going to get some resolution on that?
So assuming her nanobots are fried then? Otherwise no real point
Actually makes me wonder why Twilight, the mane cast and the cmc don't have a Neurophage
It's spelled 'unscathed'.
Also, Chance has totally been replaced at this point.
7874573
Ah, so I'm not the only one who thought that... though I don't think this will work like Chryssi thought...
Not to say it WON'T work, just not in a way she'd like...
I mean he's right
I'mma be cross with you if she gets redeemed in any way, shape, or form. It's very obvious from this line that she has zero chance of understanding right from wrong.
I knew she'd live but I'm worried about her nanophages now.