12 - No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
Days of Wasp and Spider
by Luna-tic Scientist
Author’s note: the first few pages contain some graphic violence
Inter-Hive Committee for the Study of Astrophysical Phenomena: request for observations
Subject: fluctuations in solar output
Urgent! IHCSAP requests that any researchers with observations of Celestia on 3109.031, between 0900 and 1000, should send their raw data immediately for review and comparison.
=== Chapter 12 (remastered): No Good Deed Goes Unpunished ===
Korn watched with a kind of fascinated horror as the Agent drew her knife and ran along the pony's muzzle. He quietly stood up and started to work his way behind Salrath, the heavy emergency kit held tightly in one paw. If Salrath does this, the pony will never have the confidence to match that performance again, it -- she -- is being punished just for accidentally humiliating the Agent. It's sick, he thought, a half formed plan to knock the Agent out while they waited for rescue bubbling up from his subconscious.
Something struck the back of his legs with stunning force, dropping him to his knees, while an amazingly strong hand gripped him by the throat, sharp claws at the ends of long fingers digging into the flesh on each side of his windpipe. Half choking, he dropped the kit, his own paws coming up to grab the paw at his throat. A slight tightening of the grip and he froze, not daring to resist.
"That's right, stay still. Even with one arm, Ilanrio can still kill Korn in a heartbeat," the injured Agent hissed into Korn's ear. "This one thinks the Student is getting a little too attached to his charge. All those late nights alone with an obedient servitor -- they're always so eager to please -- who knows what might happen?"
Korn's muzzle twisted in disgust. "Are all you Agents mad?"
Ilanrio gave Korn's throat a warning squeeze. "Watch that mouth, cub. Ilanrio is doing this one a favour, assaulting a Security Agent will get Korn half a gigasec of hard time. Not to mention Ilanrio could kill Korn and suffer no more than a little screenwork."
"That servitor is a vital part of our research, if Salrath kills it we will loose megaseconds of time, even if there is a suitable replacement available. It might even be unique, Korn's never seen such performance in a pony," he pleaded.
"It sounds like Korn is in love with it. It's a menace and a potential danger to the Hive," Ilanrio said, voice turning ugly.
"But it's so stupid -- if Salrath is right, then the servitor will kill her, either way we loose!"
"If Salrath sees so much as a glimmer of magic, she'll bury the knife hilt deep in its head. It won't have time to do anything. Now shut up and watch!"
===
What nearly broke Fusion was the anticipation. The little needle point of the knife dug into the skin under her left eye, little pulses of sensation in time with her rapid breathing. Her gaze was fixed on the Agent's face, the blade made a near-invisible blur by its black coating and extreme proximity. The Agent was speaking again, her attention on the Academician, but the point remained absolutely still, as if it grew from her flesh like a misplaced feather.
Amid the terror now flooding her mind a little voice was screaming in fury, berating her for allowing this to occur. Stupid mare, what happened to not being helpless! With an effort of will Fusion stilled the little voice, closing her eyes to await the inevitable, knowing she had no choice but to allow Salrath to do what ever she wanted. Please let this just be a test, she thought, let me get out of this and I'll never be so stupid ever again.
A paw wrapped around her horn, the pressure of the knife never wavering.
"Oh no, servitor. Keep your eyes open," Salrath whispered. "The pony wouldn't want Salrath to get this wrong."
Reluctantly Fusion opened her eyes, staring up at the Agent through tears that she was powerless to stop. The paw on her horn tightened, then the knife lifted away from her skin. For a brief moment, the mare dared to hope that her wish had been granted and it was all just a test.
The pain, when it came, was relatively mild. The knife was very sharp and Salrath had lightning reflexes, the blade darting in and out with the speed of a striking snake. The abrupt intense stinging and the sudden motion made her blink reflexively; when the eye opened again the once sharply focused image had distorted, her view of the Agent drifting, blurring and fading.
Despite realising that the Agent was fully capable of violence in the heat of the moment, she'd not actually expected her to go through with such a cold-blooded action. The sudden pain and immediate loss of vision brought it home and Fusion felt her legs buckle. The grip on her horn vanished as Salrath let go, allowing the mare to sink to the floor. A vague shape moved from her left side, then Salrath walked into the field of view of her good eye. The Agent kneeled down by her head, studying the mare carefully. Reaching forward again, she gripped the pony's spiral horn, tapping the now bloody knife on the floor.
Fusion couldn't help herself; a small whinny escaped her throat and she jerked her head away from that terrible instrument. Sweat poured down her flanks and her remaining eye grew wide.
"Master, please..." she whispered, voice full of terror, all thoughts of her larger rebellion washed away. Unbidden, the patterns required to activate her telekinesis started to fill her mind, simple things that were almost instinctive once a pony was past foalhood. The desire to reach out with that immaterial limb and lash out at the Agent grew very strong. Her fear grew even larger, expanding to encompass her family and friends; the mare certain with the conviction of a true paranoid that the slightest hint of resistance would condemn them all.
Fusion let her mind fill with the terror, let half a gigasecond of conditioning overtake her, and submitted completely to the Master's dubious mercy.
Salrath touched the blade tip to the long, delicate lashes that fringed Fusion's eyelid and held it there, listening to the choked noises coming from the pony. Then she sighed and pulled the knife back. "It looks like the Academician was correct," she said, releasing Fusion's horn and frowning. To the mare, her senses honed by countless encounters where failure to anticipate a Master's wishes would result in pain, Salrath's voice practically shouted her disappointment. Wiping the little blade carelessly on her jacket front, the Agent stood back up and walked away from Fusion without a backwards glance.
Fusion lay there panting, tremors running through her body as the shock of what had just happened finally caught up with her. There were voices raised in complaint, but she paid them no heed as she tried to come to terms with the horror that had been inflicted upon her. Out of reflex, she blinked and rolled her eyes, trying to clear her vision, just as if she had some dust in them. The pain came on in a flash, the shock wearing off and nerves finally reporting the full extent of the damage.
In many ways it was less severe than some of the pains generated by the Blessing; like all ponies, Fusion was used to those and had developed mental techniques for managing it. What really affected her was the mental trauma that came with the injury and the sadistic way Salrath had ordered her to watch her own maiming; those few seconds played over and over in her mind. Still shivering, Fusion pulled both wings over her head and tried to make the world go away.
An infinity of time later she felt something brush against her mane, then press gently between her shoulder blades. She twitched, then flinched away from the hesitant contact, but the touch remained, turning into a slow stroke that ran down her back from mane to half way to her tail root. Despite the strangeness of the situation the contact was oddly comforting, almost like when she was a foal and one of her parents was running a brush through her coat. The stroking stopped, replaced with a gentle pressure on her left wing, pulling it down and away from her head. She didn't resist, refolding the wing with jerky motions.
"It's okay, pony. Salrath has gone."
The voice was quiet and came from her blind side; for a few seconds Fusion couldn't place it. She twisted her head around, only for her muzzle to be gently blocked by an unseen paw. "Student Korn?" she said.
"Yes. The pony will keep her head still and let Korn check her injury."
Fusion obligingly tilted her head to allow the Master easier access to her left eye, wincing when something cold and wet was sprayed on it. The pain surged and she flinched, then it faded to a dull throb. The mare cautiously tried to move her eyes; it still hurt, but was no worse than a muscle ache from a bruise. Korn carefully closed the eye, putting something over the lid to keep it shut, followed by something soft obviously taken from his emergency kit.
Out of her good eye, Fusion saw Vanca step closer to her, holding up one of the green chem lights to study her carefully. The Academician swept the light down the mare's torso, her eyes widening. She stepped back and snorted in tired amusement.
"Vanca knew we should have called the pony 'Celestia' after the light show it put on. Congratulations," she said dryly.
Fusion blinked in confusion at that remark. She wants to call me the same name as the sun? On her other side Korn drew his breath in sharply, obviously seeing the same thing as Vanca had. "Masters?" she said, "I don't understand."
"Korn is sorry it couldn't have been under better circumstances, but he would also like to extend his congratulations." With that, he tapped Fusion on her hind quarters, then got up and stepped away, looking slightly shamefaced.
The mare craned her head to see what they were talking about, realised she'd twisted the wrong way, then looked at her other flank. What had once been smooth, white fur was now marked with a broad yellow circle, eight twisted triangles in orange surrounding it. My labour tattoo, she thought, stunned and all pain forgotten. Flames around a circle... it's the sun. She thought back to that distant point of warmth she had felt at the training centre and in the beam chamber only a kilosecond ago. Was that the sun I could feel?
Suddenly feeling very tired and overwhelmed, the mare tucked her head down and drew her wings back up, doing her best to retreat once more from an unreasonably complex and uncaring world.
What does all this mean?
===
Korn stared open mouthed as the servitor collapsed silently to the floor, thinking for a moment that Salrath had actually killed her. No, still breathing, he thought, noting the rapid heaving of the pony's chest. He started to protest when the Agent walked slowly around to Fusion's other side, freezing when Ilanrio's claws became painfully tight around his windpipe.
With the blood thundering through his ears, he barely heard the pony's whispered plea for mercy. Korn closed his eyes in reflexive sympathy when the senior Agent gripped the servitor's horn and raised the knife again.
"It looks like the Academician was correct," Salrath said.
Korn relaxed in sudden relief as the Agent changed her mind and walked away from the pony, leaving the poor creature slumped on the floor. The pony appeared to shrink into itself, wings hunching up and legs pulling in under her body. He twisted his head slightly to look at Ilranrio. "Let go," he hissed.
"The pony is all yours," Ilranrio replied with a smirk, releasing the Student's throat with a twist that sent the Student sprawling.
Korn picked up the emergency kit and padded over to the pony. Placing it by the huddled form, he flicked the case open and paused, eyeing the small bottle that sat in its own little section, surrounded by red hazard markers. "Emergency stimulants, servitor use only," he muttered, tracing the label with one claw. Maybe later, he thought.
Moving to the section for normal first aid supplies, Korn pulled out a can of anaesthetic spray. Can in one paw he opened his mouth to order the servitor to lower its wing, then hesitated. Is this the right thing to do? he thought. Hesitantly, Korn reached out with one paw and laid it on the trembling back. The pony shied away from his touch, but he didn't remove his paw. Korn stroked gently down the white-furred back, running his claws from coarse pink mane, through the little patch of feathers between her wings and down her spine.
A few seconds of this and the tremors had subsided. Korn took a chance and slowly pulled one wing back to its folded position. "It's okay, pony. Salrath has gone," he said softly. The white head came up, searching for his voice.
"Student Korn?" Fusion said.
"Yes. The pony will keep her head still and let Korn check her injury."
Korn busied himself with the medical supplies. There was little enough he could do, just clean and disinfect the wound. Fortunately the damage was relatively minor; whatever else he thought of Salrath, the Agent was good with her knife. The eye itself was ruined but there was no injury to the surrounding flesh that Korn could see. He dabbed at the trickle of blood running down the pony's muzzle, then covered the socket with a gauze pad. He was just closing up the emergency kit when Vanca stepped up to the pony, holding up one of the green chem lights.
"Vanca thinks we should rename the pony 'Celestia' after the light show it put on. Congratulations," the Academician said dryly.
Korn followed Vanca's gaze down the servitor's flank and to its hip, inhaling sharply when he saw how the fur had changed colour to form a stylised solar disk. By the Maker, Korn shouldn't be surprised at this, he thought, the pony has been doing tremendous work. No one really knew why the servitors formed these coloured patches or why they were always loosely related to something they were especially good at; the ponies’ original design by the Creation Stones was lost to history and the wars that started almost immediately after their creation. There was little likelihood of the question ever being answered -- research into the single Stone Lacunae possessed had never gotten anywhere. As far as anyone knew they just weren’t active when separated.
It's definitely the sun, he thought, Korn wonders if it means anything more than that the pony’s special talent is energy manipulation?
"Masters?" Fusion said, moving her head from side to side to look at Korn and Vanca in turn. "I don't understand."
"Korn is sorry it couldn't have been under better circumstances, but he would also like to extend his congratulations," Korn said, reaching out with one paw to tap the mare's hind quarters, then standing up and backing away. He was feeling genuinely ashamed for how the creature had been treated; this was supposed to be one of those defining moments in a pony's life. Well, the pony won't forget today in a hurry, he thought darkly.
Wanting to get away from the pony and the unwelcome feelings of guilt that seeing it injured brought on, Korn stepped over to the control room windows, now nothing more than a gaping hole than ran across the width of the room. Sticking his head through the opening he looked out into the damaged beam dump chamber, curious to see if the epicentre of the thaumic pulse had been affected in any way.
The control room had been high up on the wall of the chamber, a good five lengths above the floor. That floor was now invisible, covered in a thick layer of white fog with a curiously sharp boundary between the clear air and the opaque layer below. Korn stared at it in confusion for a second, then moved his gaze to the rightpaw wall that had held the beam pipe terminus. Here the fog's surface wasn't smooth, but bubbled up in constant motion, exactly like a boiling liquid. As he watched, the level of the fog crept up the walls slightly.
Korn stared down at the fog, worry starting to eat at him. It was obvious that the cryogenic systems had failed -- perhaps some powered valve had jammed open when its motor was fused by the thaumoelectric pulse -- dumping liquid nitrogen into the beam pipe corridor. The magnets used to steer the particle beam were all high temperature superconductor types, but such things always had better performance when kept cold. Liquid nitrogen was cheap and the accelerator used tonnes of the stuff; now containment had failed and the liquid gas was pouring out into the complex.
"Academician," he called out, "Korn thinks we have a problem."
Vanca moved to the other's side, looking down at the dense layer of mist. "How much does Korn think there is still to come?"
Korn ran the calculations in his head. One cubic length of liquid nitrogen will expand to over eight hundred times its volume as a gas, he thought. This kind of catastrophic release was planned for -- the accelerator ring was sealed off from the rest of the complex while experiments were underway -- but with the gaping hole in the wall, the gas would fill the little control room without pause. Korn swallowed, throat dry.
"It depends on where the failure is, but far too much. The size of those liquid nitrogen tanks..."
"Agreed. We need to leave. Let's take a look at that door."
The pair of scientists trotted over to the door that allowed access to the control room. As had been required in the latest security refit, the door was heavily built, made from a polymer-ceramic laminate that was almost a tenth of a length thick. When closed, as it was now, the surface was featureless, on opening the whole slab would slide sideways into a recess on hidden motors. There was no manual handle, nothing to get a grip on.
Vanca opened up the panel next to the door and eyed the mechanical override. Reaching in she pulled back on the bolt release, retracting the locking mechanism. "So far, so good," she muttered, exchanging a glance with Korn, "This is where the trouble really starts." Taking hold of the manual wheel she wiggled it experimentally. It moved slightly, but showed no inclination to move any further. Sighing, she gestured for Korn to take the other side, then they both pulled on the wheel with all their strength.
"You know the servitor better than Vanca," the Academician said as they both strained at the wheel. "What state is it likely to be in? Is it still functional?"
"Perhaps," Korn grunted, starting to pant with the exertion. "She has received a number of shocks in the last hundred kiloseconds. It was a mistake to separate the pony from her kin last night; they are still a herd species."
Vanca looked like she'd just bitten into something rotten. "Yes," she said reluctantly. "Nothing to be done now. Vanca thinks it will be the only one able to open this door." The Academician released the wheel, slumping against the nearest instrument console.
Gasping, Korn stepped back and started to root through the emergency kit. "Korn agrees, but will try this first. She should be left in peace for as long as possible, to allow her to calm down." Pulling out an arms-length pry-bar, he slotted it through the spokes on the wheel, jamming it in place and leaning on it with all his strength. There was a slight creaking sound, but little else. "Just like the window shutters," he said, releasing the bar and flexing his paw to get the feeling back in it, "Korn thinks the motors are fused."
Pulling the pry-bar out of the wheel he tapped it on the door thoughtfully, then ran his claws around the rim. "Stupid, paranoid security," he muttered, casting an angry glance at the pair of Agents, who were currently sorting through their piles of mostly useless equipment. The door fitted perfectly; there wasn't room to get a slip of paper between the door and its frame, let alone the tip of the pry-bar. Blasted thing is probably hermetically sealed, he thought.
Next to him Vanca's ears folded back. "They say it's a painless way to go," she muttered.
Korn turned to stare at the Academician. "Maybe tomorrow," he said, hefting the heavy metal bar and stabbing it at the junction between door and frame. The impact made the tool vibrate enough to leave his paws numb, but he pulled the bar back and slammed into the door again and again. Panting he stood back and turned to see the two Agents watching him.
"What is the problem, Student Korn?" Salrath said in an amused tone. "Not keen on our company?"
"As much as Korn dislikes Salrath, he has no intention of being present when the Maker finally calls the Agent to account," he said coldly. "If this door cannot be opened in the next kilosecond we are all dead."
"Don't take Salrath for a fool, Student. We are perfectly safe in here."
"Perhaps the Agent should take a look out the window and tell Vanca how far below the lip the fog is?" the Academician said.
===
Salrath stared at the pair of scientists, trying to decide if they were trying to humiliate her. She still burned inside after being rendered helpless by a mere servitor, even if it had turned out to be only following its conditioning. Security ponies were specially trained for the kinds of operations they got to see; mostly they had to stop 'normal' servitors from interfering in security work. Even these days it was not unknown for an operation to be blown by an idiot pony acting to prevent the legitimate capture of a criminal by covert Security forces.
They'll both suffer if this is a joke, the Agent thought. Exactly how she'd get back at someone as well connected as Vanca wasn't certain, but she'd seen Korn trying to interfere with her testing of the servitor. That should be good for at least a property search and a data intercept; no telling what that might turn up... Picking up a chem light, she stalked over to the ragged opening in the wall and looked out.
The Agent froze, trying to understand the scene below her. Illuminated in the green chemical glow of the emergency light was a layer of cloud that filled the whole chamber. She blinked; the floor of that room had been at least five lengths below the windowsill and now there was nothing but a layer of fog so dense it looked like she could walk on it. Or at least a servitor could. Already little wisps of mist were creeping over the consoles that lined this side of the opening. Hesitantly, she reached out one paw and dipped it into that pool of vapour.
Cold, like her paw had been placed into a freezer, filtered through her fur, a cold that grew more and more intense the deeper she pushed her arm. By now the fog was misting her whiskers and she pulled back as the chill started to make the skin around her claws tingle. Flexing her paw, she struggled to remember what little she knew about the big accelerator, determined not to appear stupid in front of the scientists. The thing was the subject of constant documentaries, not the sort of thing she normally watched, but...
"Maker, no!" she said in a strained voice, hurriedly stepping back from the opening. The fog, disturbed by her rapid movement, swirled and followed her back into the room like a hunting snake. And Salrath nearly stuck her head in that! The Agent shivered, running back to the door and snatching the bar from Korn. "When did Vanca plan to tell Salrath about this?" she growled, jamming the bar back between the spokes of the wheel and throwing all her weight against it.
"This one would not have let the Agent climb through the window," Vanca said tiredly.
"Probably," Korn muttered darkly, lending his own strength to the effort to turn the wheel. Something groaned from within the mechanism, but the handle still didn't move.
Salrath cast her eyes around the room, looking for a longer lever, then stopped, staring at the huddled form of the servitor. A dozen quick strides took her to that bundle of white and pink fur. "Get up, you lazy vermin!" she snarled, raising one clawed paw to deliver a kick to the creature's ribs.
"Stop!" shouted Korn.
Salrath nearly completed the action, but something in the Student's voice made her pause. "Korn does not tell this one--" she snapped.
"And if the Agent drives the servitor into fugue, what good will that do?" Korn said in an angry tone.
Salrath threw up her paws in frustration. "Fine," she yelled, waving at the sea of fog starting to pour into the control room. "Take all the time in the world."
Stepping back, she watched impatiently as Korn placed a paw gently on one wing, pulling it down and away from the servitor's head. The Student started to whisper something into the pony's folded ear, all while raking his other paw through the tangled pink mane. Disgusting, Salrath thought, lips drawing back from her teeth in a silent snarl, getting so close to one of those creatures. Something else to add to the 'probable cause' justification for when she started digging through that one's life.
Whatever Korn was saying to the servitor seemed to be working, though; the pony lowered its wings and lifted its head to receive something from the emergency kit, then rose unsteadily to its hooves, walking over to the door.
===
Fusion could hear the voices, but the actual words were indistinct. She felt like she should be able to understand them, but something was happening in her brain to render them meaningless. There was a gentle touch on her wing, and what felt like a coarse comb started to work through her mane; just like the last time this was curiously calming and she felt her muscles relax a little.
"The pony needs to stand up and help Korn open the door. This room will be flooded with nitrogen soon."
Most of that was still meaningless, but Fusion latched onto the last sentence and correlated it with the increasing sensation of cold that was gathering around her hindquarters. Nitrogen, she thought, I must have damaged the magnet housings along with everything else. Unbidden, the specifications of the accelerator flowed through her mind, and she lowered her wings and raised her head to look at Student Korn. The Master was crouched next to her holding a medical spray marked with lurid red hazchem symbols.
Following her nervous gaze, he held the bottle up where she could see it. "Does the pony want this? Korn needs her to open the door," he repeated in a voice that was trying to be calm, but screamed worry to Fusion's attuned senses.
The cold flowed along Fusion's flanks as she felt for her magic. Her mind seemed fragmented, the patterns elusive and blurred. Nothing seemed to work properly. Focussing with difficulty on the bottle, she nodded and opened her mouth to receive the spray.
The cold liquid hit the back of her throat and filled her mouth with something so bitter that she nearly gagged. She swallowed anyway; whatever was in the spray was very fast acting. Heat seemed to flow into her limbs, and everything around her snapped into a clarity that was almost painful. Fusion felt full of energy, her mind razor sharp and capable of anything. Waving Korn back with one wing, the mare staggered to her hooves. A glance backwards told her all she needed to know; mist was cascading over the lip of the broken window and spreading across the floor. Another few seconds and I'd never have risen at all, she thought, shocked out of her comfortable retreat from reality.
Trotting over to the door, she gripped the manual wheel with her magic and started to twist it. A halo of white light appeared around the wheel, growing brighter and brighter as the mare applied more force to the jammed mechanism. There was a sudden loud shriek of tearing metal and the wheel started to move, spinning fast enough that the spokes blurred to invisibility and sang a rising note as they thrashed the air. The door didn't move.
Another pulse of force and she stopped the wheel. "I'm sorry, Master, I appear to have broken the mechanism," she said to Korn.
"Not important," he said, looking nervously at the thickening layer of fog now pooling around his calves. The control room was filling rapidly now, the leak probably made worse by some other failure down in the pool of cryogenic gas. "Korn gives you permission to break it down."
Fusion blinked at him, then turned carefully to face Salrath. "Agent?" she said, fighting to keep her voice steady in front of her tormentor. In truth, Fusion did feel unsteady, almost drunk. Some reaction to the drugs, or am I in shock?
"Yes, Maker dammit, open the door!"
This is what it's like to be reliant on others for your life, you monster, Fusion thought, gazing at Salrath for a second longer than was necessary, feeling her fear evaporate under the blowtorch of her building anger. More than anything, she wanted this Master to suffer, wanted to leave her in this room to die. How many ponies have you tormented? she thought. But I can't do it, you need to live.
Keeping her face expressionless, she turned away, using her magic to examine the door. It was just as heavily built as the window shutters, although it was fully protected by the frame it sat in. Fusion eyed it thoughtfully; even magic needed something to grip onto. In principle she could feel for the edge of the door through the wall and force it that way, but that was slow. There were any number of faster ways, but she picked one that required the least precision, as well as allowing her to safely release some of her rage.
Moving her head in big clumsy arcs, Fusion looked over the room for something suitable to use as a hammer. Eye alighting on the discarded pry-bar, she picked it up and turned it over in her magic.
"That'll never be strong enough--" Salrath started, breaking off when the glow around the bar intensified.
Fusion stared at the Agent, not looking at the bar while she straightened out the hook end of the thick metal with no sign of effort. Holding the bar in the air between them, she flicked it end over end a couple of times to get a feeling for the weight, then pointed it at the door like a stubby spear. "Not yet, Master, but it will be. You should take cover; my control is impaired," she said, watching with satisfaction as Salrath's ears folded back and she dragged Ilanrio to cover behind one of the big instrument cabinets.
A moment's concentration and a high pitched pure tone had the metal bar surrounded by a sharply defined shell of white light within her telekinetic haze. Another crystal chime and she was surrounded by a half dome of white light -- although, unlike the ones generated by the foals, it stopped before it penetrated the floor. Fusion gritted her teeth and shoved the force field protected metal bar at the edge of the door as hard as she could manage.
The room blazed white with horn light as the bar shot forwards so fast it practically disappeared. In the same instant a hoof sized crater was smashed through the upper left corner of the door with a sound like a high velocity bullet striking a metal plate. Half a second later the bar returned, slightly to the right of its original impact point, exploding back through the armoured door in a cloud of fast ceramic splinters that whined off the impervious shell of her force field and rattled around the room.
Dimly, Fusion could see the Masters cowering behind their chosen instrument panels, paws clamped over their ears and eyes tight shut against the dust, but she didn't care. Her horn flared brighter still and the bar reversed its course yet again to punch a new hole, then back and forward and back and forward, cutting a row of craters around the edge of the door. Hidden by the light and incredible noise, Fusion screamed as she poured her rage out into her magic, accelerating the bar until it wasn't even visible for the brief moments during which it was reversing direction.
A continuous explosion ripped around the door, filling the control room with thunder and hot fragments. Within a few seconds the ragged line of holes had stitched its way around the edge of the door and Fusion held the bar still, breathing fast and ragged. She let her magic fade and dropped the bar, now distorted and glowing yellow hot -- not from the impacts and rapid motion, but from her clenched magical grip -- to the floor, where it lit the fog layer with a warm light that rapidly faded to red and then black. Fusion lowered her own force field, then reached out and gripped the door in a haze of white light, ripping it free with a single fast motion.
"It is safe, Masters. We should leave now," she said, her voice loud in the sudden, ringing silence.
The Masters, all looking shocked and more than a little nervous, scrambled through the smashed opening and gathered in the corridor outside. Fusion strode out after them, picking up the emergency kit and pulling the remains of the door through the opening. The mare stopped short, staring at the lilac glowing wall that filled the corridor a few lengths away. The other force field flicked off, revealing the shape of another pony standing with wings raised in the middle of the passageway.
Fusion squinted against the dust that was blowing past her, recognising the other's equipment harness. Glancing from side to side, she waited for one of the Masters to give an order, but they all seemed to be a little stunned, coughing and gagging in the dust laden air. There's something... she thought, flaring her nostrils in a useless attempt to catch the pony's scent, then sneezing. He was on the training field when the foals were Blessed. Then she had it. "Mach Front," she said, "it is not safe here, we need to get these People to the surface."
The security stallion, lilac fur a sick greenish-grey in the chem light's radiance, folded his wings and took a step to one side. Behind him, looking distinctly sheepish, were a trio of Hive Security Masters who had been crouched in the shelter of his force field. "Fusion Pulse? We've been helping everyone we find get to the rescue centre that's been set up at the transit hub; is that all--"
"Salrath will make her own decisions, servitor," Agent Salrath said loudly.
Fusion saw Mach wince like he'd been jabbed in the side of the head with a needle, then turned away so the other pony wouldn't see the expression on her face. To further hide her anger, she dumped the contents of the emergency kit out onto the floor. Picking up the door she jammed the thick slab into the opening; despite the smashed and cratered edges it was possible to wedge it back into position - most of the damage was to the ceramic layers, the tough plastics had merely been perforated and torn.
Rooting through the spilled emergency kit, the mare came up with a fat roll of the ubiquitous high-strength sealing tape and started to run lengths of it around the edge of the door.
"Leave that, servitor," Salrath growled, distracted from her conversation with her subordinate Agents.
Fusion continued to apply the tape, but turned her good eye on Salrath. "Yes, Master, but if I don't at least slow the escape of the gas there may be other casualties in the surrounding area. If I seal this door, then it will be diluted throughout the ventilation system, rather than flooding these rooms. Do you still wish me to stop?"
"The pony is correct," Vanca said, coughing in the dusty air. "There is time and it may save lives."
Salrath snarled something indistinct, then went back to her discussion.
===
Vanca leaned against the corridor wall while the servitor applied sealing tape to the ragged edges of the door. Having to wait was almost torture; she had no way to know how much of the experiment's data had been lost when the local buffers were trashed by the thaumoelectric pulse, and she was itching to check in at the main processing cluster. At least all the analysis is done off site, she thought, hopefully that pulse weakened enough not to wipe the memory cores. The fact that the corridor was without power had come as a great shock to her; if the pulse had punched through the doubly shielded control room wall it could have gone a long way.
The Academician ran the calculations in her head, coming up with numbers that were horrifying to contemplate. To have discovered something new and with such great potential but to be unable to prove anything... She shivered and grimaced in the darkened corridor. Even with the data, Vanca will be lucky to escape censure after causing so much damage, she thought gloomily.
Another few strips of tape and she couldn't bear it any longer. "Servitor, what did you do differently from the previous test?" she said, prodding the white mare with one sharp claw.
The pony, obviously concentrating on its task, jumped in surprise before twisting her head in Vanca's direction. "I..." Her mouth opened and closed a few times, obviously searching for the right words. "I'm sorry, Academician Vanca, it's very hard to put into words. It's a different way to use my magic, so obvious that I'm amazed nopony has managed it before." The mare hung her head, looking dejected. "Please forgive me, Master."
Vanca grunted, digesting what the servitor had said. If this technique is easily transferable... "Could the pony show another how to do what it did?"
The white head lifted and the pony seemed to perk up. "Yes, Master," she said enthusiastically, "with the right spell I can let another experience exactly what I did." She paused, ears flattening. "It couldn't be just anypony, though; they'd have to be strong... there's a barrier you have to break, sort of, in your head."
At this news, Vanca's mood also lifted. Even if the data is gone, the ability to boost a servitor's strength by an order of magnitude would be incredibly valuable. "Excellent. Vanca will check the eugenics database when we return."
"If I might make a suggestion, Master?" the servitor said hesitantly. "I know my sister has good manipulation skills, and she was present during my first... accident. It may be easier to train her in the technique, as well as how to avoid my mistakes."
Vanca raised her eyebrows at that, then started to reprimand the servitor for supplying its unasked opinion. Mouth half open, she paused, suddenly struck by a thought. Same family line, but different specialisation. That would make a superb test case... she thought. "Student Korn is more familiar with the servitor's breeding history, what is his opinion? she asked the Student.
Korn started to reply, then paused to glare at Ilranio when the Agent laughed at this question. "That servitor, Gravity Resonance TP5325, had similar power scores to this one," here he gestured to Fusion, "and was on the short list for after the research on Fusion Pulse TC4668 was, ah, completed," he said, looking sidelong at the white mare, who promptly dropped the roll of tape she was using.
"Apologies, Master," the servitor said, its normally meek tone tinged with some other emotion, "I think I'm having a reaction to the medical spray. I am feeling a little unsteady."
“Vanca will think on this," the Academician said, ignoring the mare's words and completely failing to keep the excitement from her voice.
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Luna has arranged a clear night*, my wood burning stove is hot enough to be a small gateway into Hell, and I've just finished downloading the latest pony on my tin can and string net connection.
All is well with the world. I'm off for some dinner, have fun!
* I hope I'm not the only person who likes to step outside and thank Best Pony for a job well done.
Oh lordy. Luna's next. And the stage is set. And hooray for cutie marks!
Although, I'm curious as to how Celestia gets her eye fixed. I can see her wearing the mantle to hide the burns on her neck, but she's been shown with both eyes visible, and both are perfectly fine. Although, maybe the scar heals and she just can't see out of it. Hmm.
Is this supposed to be underlined?
Dropped a quote
And it all comes together......
Wow. So Celestia earned her cutie mark in the same overall event where she also got an eye gouged out. That's kinda metal. Definitely a cutie mark story that should never be shared with the CMC.
Yeah, someone just gouged out one of my eyes, might make it a tad more difficult to save all of our lives.
Oooo, and there's the explanation for where Luna's power boost is going to come from.
Hmm, that's the first downvote for a while, I wonder how many more I'll get for this one (the chapter the Gunnulf and Random got four, I think), I guess it's the violence. It's hard for me to judge if I'm going too far (everything looses it's impact on the twentieth reread). I don't mind, obviously, at least it's a reaction.
1763760
Nope, that's just what happens when I get distracted by the 'ping' of a completed youtube download. Fixed, thanks.
1763552
There's a bit of a clue to that, but it's waaay back in chapter four. I'd claim it's all a result of careful planning, but...
1764082
This jigsaw is bigger than I thought it was when I started out, but it's starting to come together (although my perspective is from the rough of CH16!).
1764319
Might have more than a few sleepless nights after that campfire story
Celestia may have lost an eye, but who cares?! There's booze in them there computers!
Seriously though. This is good. I'm glad I favorited it way back when.
So, you did it to Celestia. Now I've got to find you. And now, the commas:
"Salrath will make her own decisions servitor," - I don't suppose I have to tell where the lackofcomma(TM) is.
And, as always, excellent chapter! I suppose that Luna'll use her matter manipulation magics to heal Celestia. And I hope she'll wipe the fuck out of Salrath.
So, according to your comment, a clue regarding Celestia's eye healing is back in C4, so okay, I read it, and it'll be thaumic medications? Really? That's pretty obvious, I thought (and I hope) that it'll be healed in a more, ah, "exotic" way. Anyway, off with C4's commas!
I collapsed when I landed on the walkway and didn't see what happened next. - between "walkway" and "and".
You were going to leave that little detail out weren't you. - we've been through this already
"Hello Back Draft." - and that too
"How are you feeling Fusion Pulse? Have you tried to use magic or fly since I first saw you?" - and that too x2
Essentially you just over did it. - I think that it should be "overdid", but correct me if I'm wrong.
1764563 I think it's more the gouging out of one of 'Tia's eyes than anything else.
We know her eye grows back somehow, probably when She and Luna get their hooves on the ElementsJust re-read chapter 4. Now I know how she gets her eye back.From Celestia's Perspective:
"Vanca knew we should have called the pony 'Celestia' after the light show it put on. Congratulations," she said dryly.
From Korn's Perspecive:
"Vanca thinks we should rename the pony 'Celestia' after the light show it put on. Congratulations," the Academician said dryly.
Bit of a discrepancy right there.
And way to shut down Salrath :D Looks like no one really likes her- they keep making her look stupid.
Did she really lose an eye or did it get cut? It wasn't clear enough for me to have a definite idea what of what happened to it other than, something bad happened to her eye and it had to be patched up. That and I'm wondering if she lost an eye and have a scar, and it was supposed to be like the show's origin story then it mysteriously got completely healed (because of her hightened magic) that no one didn't see coming, or was it a simple scratch on it that was so close to being mutilated but wasn't?
There's some kind of jump like feeling at the end and I'm not sure whether or not they are still in the same place anymore. It just seems like one moment they manage to get out to the hallway to fix things then in the next they're somewhere else in an apparently safe spot to talk about using the same "power up" spell that got Luna powerful. Also did Fusion's hair changed back to normal?
1765057
Heh, that is pretty funny. Can you tell I'm not much of a drinker? The annoying thing is I knew it looked odd, but didn't drop it into google to check. Fixed.
1765123
In that case I'm just glad I didn't take her other one as well! So only one to change in this chapter? Those couple of days puzzling through punctuation rules weren't wasted then (in my final editing pass I must have put 20+ commas in). Thanks for the CH4 corrections, I'll put them in when I get a chance.
1765123 1765131
The Master's medical technology is as advanced as anything else they have. If they choose to use it.
1765224
Fixed, thanks.
1766244
The eye is damaged enough that it can't function, but the globe is still there. I'd have to check up what would actually happen under those circumstances, but either way I didn't want to put too much description in (think I'm edging grimdark as it is).
They are still in the corridor just outside the control room, so it's 'safeish' - cold nitrogen would sit at floor level, so as long as you don't sit down you'd be fine (it's also the reason why Fusion is putting the door back, to slow the flow). Having said that, I probably could have described it better.
Fusion is 'flame off' at the moment, she shut down her new power just before going into the control room (it's briefly mentioned in the last chapter).
1766244
1767588
Given the description and the blood on the blade, and because Salrath wanted Fusion to 'see' it, then I think the blade went through the center and struck the back. That means damage to both Fusion's lens AND retina. I'm surprised that Fusion wasn't catatonic with pain before Korn treated her - essentially her eye would have been deflating. So she really needs a doctor NOW.
And I want to hug her. Damnit!
1767588
Okay I think I understand what you were trying to say there when Korn went to take care of her injury. I guess in layman's terms for me is that the eye is damaged but not enough to be permanent nor leave scars on her face. ^^;
Okay it just that I think there was no mention of Fusion still repairing the door, or the mention that she did fix it but didn't indicate that they're still just outside the room with other people scrambling to get out. Either way I guess I just missed that.
That's why her hair change back to normal, I was wondering why that happened and just wanted to make sure.
1767717
Kind of like in... Dead Space 2?
1767749
One of the few scenes I actually know from that game... Yes. Like that. Only Fusion was hit with an actual weapon, so the wound is much larger and the damage so much worse.
GRAAAAH I'M SO LATE TO READING THIS CHAPTER.
I read it. I was giddy throughout basically the entire thing, as well as hoping Fusion would at least graphically imagine the ways she'd like to crush Salrath. Complete with narrative descriptions.
Was her reaction at the end there her realizing that they'd planned for these tests to end with her dead, and to do the same thing to her sister? Because seriously, she has a helluva strong will to continue to act subservient with the
pilingmountaining reasons for her to dislike her 'masters'.1764563
Downvotes for violence? I'd do that if the violence were unjustified or came out of nowhere. I mean, yeah, this is major stuff, but you didn't go into detail more than you needed to, and you've built this world well enough that it's logical. This is a dark story, but to me, not depressing or hopeless. Life's like that sometimes.
Anyway, I liked this chapter and am looking forward to the next.
should be lose, not loose.
hi hi
From my perspective, the institutionalized thought control in this story is far and away more grim and hurtful than physical violence. I've experienced some pretty intense pain in my life ((thankfully there was someone there to shout at me to stay awake and not drift into unconsciousness)), but while I will never forget that moment, it is not the kind of memory that keeps me up at night. Instead, it is the emotionally painful things that I've experienced, the things that I've done, failed to do, and have been done to me; that still bother me.
When your existence is grown from such unjust roots, it would seem that hurt, heartache and physical violence are the natural fruits.
Also: I know Fusion Pulse is not a psychology expert, but she should be careful about "Releasing Rage." It doesn't make anyone less angry, instead all it really does is make one feel better about being angry. Like people who are perpetually sleep deprived, they eventually stop feeling sleepy, but no longer notice that they are still just as impaired.
(( P.S. 1767717 , I figured the blood was from when she involuntarily blinked. ))
OMG update. This made my night <- this makes sense as of now.
And now a pre-comment! That's right, folks, I haven't even read the chapter and I'm commenting already!
Let's see what I remember...Salrath, was that he name of the bad diamond-dog like security/military female officer that was just about to shoot Fusion pulse in the face? And, whatever people say, IMO Salrath was just being the stereotypical brute/muscles person that would rather blow up a city than admitting defeat by logic. Yes, commenting this fast makes me stupid. And a huge part of the secret evil laboratories has gone dark, out of power, and literally fried all it's crystals! Yes, now that I
thinkstupithink about it, crystals=circuits~unicorn horns, which means ponies are cyborgs. Btw, the banner with the fat guy that pilots a mecha brings nice memories.1763464
I thank her for many things, especially new chapters for DoW&S.
1777599
The show is called Megas XLR. Harold (more commonly known as Coop) is the over weight pilot of Megas, and Jamie is his skinny friend he hangs out and plays video games with. Kiva is the engineer that was supposed to pilot it, but can't because of the extensive, and extremely intrusive, modifications made by Coop.
This explains how and why Celestia is so manipulative and good at keeping emotions at bay - she had to do it in order to survive... And now Gravity will be ascended to Luna... and all hell will break loose...
Apologies for the late replies; I lost access to my account about the same time the site upgraded.
1767717
They build 'em tough. Even so, prompt medical help would be a good idea (shame they're at the bottom of a wrecked facility!)
1767734
Yes, the damage is almost all to the eye.
1772866
Ach, missed opportunities! I can even see where I'd put it. Fortunately there are other chances... To your question: yes. Up to this point she was under the assumption that it was just her they were interested in. She's quite prepared to bear the suffering if it's just her, much less so if it involves others.
1773305
Thanks, it seemed that way to me, but I'm a little too close to be objective.
1773474
Not to me!
1775155
Thanks, that one always trips me up. Fixed (well, it will be when the 'save' bug is fixed).
1777400
I've been lucky enough not to suffer that kind of physical trauma, but like most, I've my share of bad memories that tend to stick around. You are right, of course, the real evil is the mind control; they can't escape even in their own heads.
1777599
I hope you're still this fired up after you actually read it!
1779615
Thank you! Seriously though, yesterday morning: star field with a crescent moon and a shooting star, all in the same part of the sky. Fantastic. Of course, that was the morning that my account was locked out. The Goddess gives and the Goddess taketh away! Also, that Dash emoticon makes me giggle every time I see it...
===
Thanks for all your comments folks; I get a lot of pointers from this sort of stuff.
Now for a question: the time will come when I need to go back and make changes to earlier chapters; probably nothing major (as I'm writing ~4 chapters ahead), but it's bound to happen because I can't plan anything in great detail. How do you want me to handle that: in the comments, bottom of the current chapter, blog post or not at all?
1783061
When you say handle it, do you mean announce the changes, or that there were changes, or something along those lines? In those cases, I'd say blog post. I don't check my Fave'd stories' comment sections for announcements, lol. A blog post with this story tagged would give me a notification specifically for it.
hi hi
1783061, as far as corrections go, you could go newspaper style and just put a small mention at the bottom of the given chapter explaining what was changed. Or you could put them all in an appendix at the back once you've got all the chapters published. But as long as there's a way for people to see them somewhere, I think it will be good.
Very curious to see how Gravity Resonance will react. It seems practically miraculous that Fusion Pulse has managed to keep her secret for so long, will her sister prove as good an actor (or even as willing an actor?) I'm hoping to see Fusion Pulse succeed in the worst way, but I can't shake the sneaking suspicion that there's a reason why that type of pony isn't very common in the years afterwards.
I also am sort of dreading reading about what state Gravity Resonance is in. And while curiosity is certainly much stronger than dread, I can't help but wonder, does she even remember what Salrath said, or has she managed to find a way to justify and approve of that action in her mind? (Its not hard to imagine somepony taking up compulsive self-destructive behavior after a run in with Salrath, having justified such behavior as vital for safety and security.)
1783061
I would recommend making a blog post that has all changes in it, with bold lettering saying which chapters so readers can avoid spoilers if they aren't yet up to date.
Thanks folks, that's very helpful.
1783243
Tagged blog post, that sounds familiar, but do you know how it's done (I can't see anyway to link a post to a story)? I thought you had to
stalkwatch someone to see blog notifications.1783668 1784429
At the rate this story is going that might be a while - I think a note with a 'last back edit applied on date XX' at the top of the current chapter directing people to a blog post with all the changes in it sounds likes a reasonable plan.
1783668
I'll be getting back to Gravity Real Soon Now (this fic was intended to be a Luna/ Celestia story, and so far the big C has hogged all the limelight).
1789275
But yeah, I always got tons of notifications for blog posts from authors I'm not Following, since they tag the blog posts with stories I have Fave'd.
Unfortunately, I don't. I have no stories uploaded so I've never had the opportunity to find out... but I know it's possible. Unless they removed that ability with the site update, but that'd be really dumb.
... Of course, now that I think about it, I haven't gotten any notifications for blog posts from people I'm not Following since the site update... did they remove that? Ugh, I hope not...
Absolutely the best chapter yet, hands down. You simultaneously managed to further Korn and Celestia's small bond, maim Celestia, show that Salrath is absolutely out of her gourd sadistic, and implicate Gravity Resonance (*cough LUNA! cough*) into a possible ascension.
Extremely well written, and beautifully executed. I am floored, and eagerly await the next installment. Cheers on outdoing yourself, mate.
1799362
Thank you, I really appreciate that. I'm just glad I've managed to keep you entertained all this time!
(would have replied earlier, but the 'amazing disappearing reply button' is hidden from view without running your mouse over a comment, so I thought it was something that hadn't survived the site upgrade...)
Fusion getting blinded kinda floored me emotionally, it was like a haymaker to my feels. This is only the second time in my life that a piece of mere fiction could do this to me, neither in personal IRL experience or other forms of media (movies, cartoons and comics ect) have had such an effect on me. God damn.
I'm thinking it must be the sheer injustice accompanied by excellent storytelling.
I feel sorry for Korn. Come the revolution, he's going to die, and I can't even predict which side will kill him.
1789275
In your on-site blog, at the bottom just above the "publish" buttons, are checkboxes for each of your stories. Mark the checkbox and everyone who's favorited the story (should) have the post show up in their feed. Though that mainly affects people who've already read past the point you modified, but I think that's who you're worried about.
Did someone else already cover this?
Can I just say that this is great? 'Cuz It's fucking great.
(and the last horse crosses the finish-line)
no..no... nonononononononononononono
You you fucking.. no, NOTING is to good for you you will SUFFER!
We, we know this is fixed.. something else... they already know they can regrow a wing so, this should be fixable but.. and that other asshole........ Fusion save yourself, kill them all! And, they just said they have a way to test the blessing... you need to do something before they get you there.... FUCK!! To intense can't think can't type must read...
Well now
but still THAT!... this needs to end, soon!
See this, this is good, keeping SOME magic, some mystery, some wonder. That, is really nice. Me like but, WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN!
Again what's the point of a manual override, that doesn't work after a total power failure? And wait... how the fuck did those those...
get out?
Oh they didn't and, yeah they are complete fucking idiots. Please, jump in just to prove it's not deadly.
To bad you didn't. Now kindly fucking DIE already! Though at least Celestia's ruse worked. And it is something they are sued to, hopefully that means they won't be doing any other testing.
You, I don't care if I have write it myself. YOU are getting introduced to Red Velvet. AFTER she learns how to make you last long enough for her to finish her song.
(Crisis: Equestria, twisted, fear powered alternate version of Pinkie Pie. Her song.. is the "X bone's connected to the, Y Bone" song, with her breaking each bone as she goes. Must ponies she tries it on, don't live long enough for her to finish. YOU WILL!)
Heh, "Are you sure" 'YES YES" "Because I wouldn't want to upset you Master, are you sure his is okay?" *Salrath cracks to pieces after being frozen*
Translation: "Fuck you bitch!"
heh, and just happen to give you a reason to boost the power of the pony you are most likely to have be willing to help you. Very quick thinking even now.
Yes.. 'completed'
Alright calmed down a bit but FUCK, alright no offense and, this is just venting but... FUCK YOU! Just... FUCK!
okay calmed down a bit but, HOLY FUCK that, that was rough, hard, intense, painful, HURT, and yet, and yet done so WELL! That... I.... FUCK that was well done and horrible at the same time.
SHE.. that.. that... THING needs to suffer, greatly!
And the one redeeming thing that keeps this from getting TO hard is, well we know it's not permanent that it can and will be fixed. Which is really the one really good reassurance we have, we KNOW Celestia and Luna survive, intact. And, just, again having to make that choice, be able to workout what would happen if she doesn't that quickly, and just, have the freaking will to go through with it...... Yeah, Celestia, you are amazing.
Just, just, fuck I, I need a break after that.. that, so emotional so tense, rage, anger, sadness, hope, pain, fear, revuslion, all if it, so strong and and.... just.. words... can't find... stream of consciousness typing right now and... just... FUCK YOU YOU FUCKING BASTARD! And, HOLY SHIT THAT WAS SO FREAKING WELL DONE YOU FREAKING GENIUS! at the same time.
I've never experienced this much visceral rage reading a chapter... Amazing job! (You bastard)
I'm mildly surprised Slarath went through with it, all things considered. I imagine some miracle will happen in the future to repair Fusion's eye.
I have the distinct impression that even if Vanca knew of Fusion's mental unbinding, she would do nothing about it. After all, research is research.
I am going to make a Diamond Dog dummy and call it Salrath. And then I am going to take my axe, dull it first, and THEN SHRED IT.
The impression that I get is that Korn inclines toward kindness, and would be a decent being, if raised in a more decent culture; Vanca is a cold utilitarian, neither needlessly cruel nor unecessarily kind (from her limited perspective); and Salrath is naturally-sadistic. I have noticed that Korn looks for excuses within the People's ethos to treat the Servitors kindly; while Salrath similarly looks for excuses to treat them cruelly.
Is it just me, or does he sound like he talks from experience? Also, eww.
5689306
No. Eyepatches. Metalgear for life.
Great chapter, can't wait for the next. Luckily, I'm rereading, so I don't have to.
cs5.pikabu.ru/images/big_size_comm/2014-11_2/1415407820894.png
and into the fire.