What happens when Dinky befriends the Brotherhood of Nod?
Near the final days of the second Tiberium War, the Brotherhood of Nod has secretly developed and deployed its newest generation of cybernetic warriors: Cyborg Reapers. They are few in numbers, but that does not mean they are dangerous—they are a prime threat to all.
Capable of causing incredible damage to their victims, they grant the Brotherhood many possibilities and advantages. But one day in a small Nod base, a Cyborg Reaper that is very unique than most cyborg soldiers, is taken into the fray.
Strange Tiberium events occur over this desolate land, but one adversary force shares this area: GDI. Engaged in combat, and competing against Global Defense Initiative's strongest weaponry; victory is a lost cause, but the strange events occur over the toxic crystals in the midst of battle. These troops that are trapped in the heat of battle vanish from sight.
Awakened on another world where it doesn't belong to, now the Cyborg Reaper faces a great challenge ahead of him. But it wonders if it's the only surving Nod member, yet a filly unicorn is the first to encounter this man-machine demon.
The Earth had been scorched and marred by the savage wars of humanity by the one precious, green, toxic crystal: Tiberium. It has been the pinnacle for everything on the planet since its very powerful arrival; life, death, prosperity, destruction, creation, and beyond. Many wish to eradicate and forget this extraterrestrial mineral forever, yet some wish to control it, discover it, and see what its true purpose was, and those who wished to seek its righteous truth was the Brotherhood of Nod.
They sought it to be a great grift from beyond. But to achieve this they would have to go a broad, innumerable and difficult challenges. It began at a brutal start, but in time they slowly defeated each challenge that crossed their paths. But they couldn't have overcome these grave times without one man; Kane. He was called many names, he was harshly questioned by others in the opposing forces, or even by his own followers, they tried to end him but never succeeded.
He still led his "children" to the future he had promised. And that future was the second Tiberium War; it wasn't a curse or punishment for the Brotherhood, but another great challenge they must face to achieve their dreams. But as time passed, the Brotherhood constantly researched and evolved their technologies to compete against the one menacing force that troubled them for so long: GDI.
With the Global Defense Initiative at hand, and deviating their journey off the path, the Brotherhood had made a significant weapon in their arsenal: Cyborgs. These cybernetic warriors easily devastated the vulnerable GDI infantry and light vehicles. But to create these mechanical monsters in the beginning would be a horrifying process for those who were unlucky. The pesky mutant population, prisoners of war, even the Brotherhood of Nod own soldiers would be the "volunteers" of this scientific breakthrough.
Many suffered and perished under the inhuman conditions of the process. But in the end, they were able to create the perfect half-man, half-machine soldier. Now the Brotherhood had new ways to deal with GDI. They fought and won against them, but many human soldiers lost their lives as the result. Many died but some wished to live and serve Kane for another day, but to do this... they would have to become one of them. And so they did. But a new generation of cybernetics was called to the fray.
And so, this new generation of man-machine soldiers was created; the Cyborg Reapers...
**********
The sky was covered in the dark gloomy clouds, the earth was marred in this arid European desert. But it once was a beautiful green land; thrilled with life and joy, but now it is just a husk of what it once was before. The sacred Tiberium grew and thrived off this desolate land; consuming any unlucky organic victim to its merciless power it contained. A bright flash of lightning struck across the sky over these lands. Another and another flash of lightning boomed across the sky, meaning only one thing to those who occupied these lands; "Ion Storm!"
The small Nod base that was built within these infested grounds went on high alert as this bizarre weather phenomena approached closer and closer. Many personnel scrambled to their positions since this was a "perfect" storm to ambush this vulnerable installation. The front gate of the base lowered down, and a Tiberium harvester rolled out with two Tick Tanks escorting it on both sides. But they were shortly followed by a squad infantry equipped with rifles and portable rocket launchers.
The radar communications structure that had a radar dome that never endingly spun came to a halt. But then a great flash brightened the sky for the moment, and massive lightning strikes pounded the Earth like a drum. Many feared for being struck by this electrically charged particles but some didn't. Inside the War Factory-the structure responsible for all Nod vehicle construction-was creating a very unusual unit to be deployed.
A few second passed by, and the large front door to the factory slowly lifted upwards. A mechanical spider leg stepped out of the shadows of the structure, then another. Many of the Nod soldiers outside stared at this unknown object suspiciously. That object soon came forward out of the darkness and into the faint Tiberian sun. All the soldiers were shocked by a unimaginable sight; it was a Cyborg Reaper.
The Cyborg Reaper appeared very inhumane, except for the few remaining organic parts, but it was a machine that petrified all. It rotated its head to right and left, having a deathly gaze under those cybernetic eyes at anything it stared. Yet its human eyes were covered all the way in the back of its mechanical eyes with three dots in each as if they were the eye pupils, it was kind of like it had googles on its eyes.
The skin on its head was very thin, and its remaining human skull nearly showed. The face was covered by a steel faceplate that gave it more of mechanical abomination look, but also had a metal upper jaw piece that depicted small carnivorious teeth on it. But the lower jaw was still slightly human.
The Reaper also had a boom mic that connected to the side of its head. It lifted its front right arachnid leg forward, then the left and back following the same order. Another flash of lightning struck across the sky, and it stopped to observe this violent weather. It placed its targeting cursor in the dark clouds, and gathered data off this weather:
***.../_!_\...Warning.../_!_\...Threat Level: 90%.....Proceed With Caution....***
***...Akbdki3721aksnja...101010101010101.....***
***...Tiberium Gas Level: 95%...***
***...alnisua3797skjsnsjs.....10101010..***.
***...Ion Particle Activity: 100%***
***...Duration: 10 Minutes.***
***...Weapon Armaments Online...***
***...Weapon Access Code....(10957)36774...***
***...Cleared to Proceed...***
The Cyborg Reaper acknoloweged the data it was given and proceeded towards the front gate of the base. The unit was about to reach the gate but was stopped by a soldier. "The Commander has orders for you. You stay here until the vehicles and our guys out there get in some sort of trouble," he explained, in a muffled tone by his masked helmet. The Cyborg obeyed the orders, and headed towards the Hand of Nod; placing itself by the "wrist" area which was the back of it.
"Hey did you hear about the reports about what happened to our guys out there?" a fellow Nod soldier asked, around the corner.
"No, why?" another replied.
"Well, it's crazy actually. They just disappeared out of sight when the Ion Storm appeared, just like this one during some firefight they were in," he explained.
"What? Are you sure they didn't just get blown up by a Titan or Orca?" the other soldier questioned
"No! We also had a SAM Site out there, and it too disappeared!"
The Cyborg Reaper overheard this conversation, and began to wonder in its human side of its brain why his own comrades and their structures have vanished. The Cyborg looked across into the sky in the direction of the gate; small objects were seen traveling across the sky, he knew the objects that were flying would have a fatal fate. A lightning strike flashed in their direction, and one of them was heading straight for the ground. It fell to its doom, leaving a smoke trail as it was shot down from the sky by Mother Nature. It continued to fall until it disappeared behind the large front gate.
The Cyborg Reaper formed a smirk under its metallic faceplate at the sight. "Hey Ron! You look like s***!" a voice called out to him. The Cyborg turned to its torso to the left, and saw a Nod soldier standing before him, the soldier only had the mandible sections of his helmet than it being fully covered. "Oh come on! Don't tell me you don't remember me!"
The Cyborg Reaper glared at the soldier as it continued to call out for him. "Yes, I do..." it replied, in its deep, husky voice. The soldier walked towards the machine to talk to it more up close. He stopped and observed the Reapers armor and features, he had a hand to the chin part of his helmet. "Man, Ron... You're completely different than most Cyborg Reapers. "Ron" was the human name of the Cyborg Reaper before he became one of them. Ron's steel-ceramic armour was painted a silver color, than most of his Reaper brethren who had shades of dark gray. "And you got arms too!"
Ron had arms and hands rather than other Cyborg Reapers who had missile launchers that replaced their forearms. He lifted his cybernetic arms in front of him, and slightly wiggled his metallic fingers. Ron's weaponry was also very unique; he had two missile launchers on his shoulders. The one on his right was lifted but the one on his left was lowered all the way behind the left shoulder, they appeared similiar to a Nod Sam Site, he also had a chain gun under his left forearm.
"Dude, I don't what they did to you, but I say it's pretty awesome," the soldier complimented. The soldiers name was David Xlaner, he had been friends with Ron since their beginning in the Brotherhood. David wasn't shocked or petrified by his friends appearance than most would. But felt it was something special for his machine friend. "What are you suppost to be doing by the way?" asked David.
"I am assign-"
"Hey, Reaper man! We need you over here!" a soldier called out at him, which prevented Ron's statement. Ron shrugged at David, and proceeded to the front gate of the base. A very surprising unit was at the front: a Cyborg Commando. It stood their facing the gate and its plasma cannon on its forearm pointed outwards. Ron placed himself to the left of his cybernetic brother. "Our boys just got ambushed out there by GDI, and we need you two to deal with it!" a soldier explained. Ron and the commando made no expression as a response, and the front gates lowered—they both exited out without saying a word.
"Why the hell do we make these guys?" the same soldier asked, as the gate ascended upwards again.
They traversed to the area of the GDI disturbance without delay. Ron obsereved the desolate lands and the husks of both Nod and GDI weaponry that were littered all over the area. He then rotated around to the Cyborg Commando, who's red, dome-like visor reflected the sky and ground. "What is your name? Before who you are today?" Ron asked.
The commando looked upward at him, and stared at him for a long moment. "Andy... Andy was my name," the commando replied.
"Well, 'Andy'... I am Ron. I see we both share these unfortunate differences," said Ron.
"I believe we both underestimated what was going to happen to us. But GDI was the one who diminished my life..." Anger was convcieved in his tone. "They made me witness the downfall of my brethren and myself."
"We will both have our time to exact GDI for what they did to us," said Ron. He still had more of a human side, but the machine brutality of Nod still lurked in him. Ron remembered at what he believed was GDI's brutal inhuman actions they did to him.
-------------------
Ron was just a normal Nod soldier, he was under the command of General Anton Slavik. Though one mission would change his life forever. He was deployed against a small GDI outpost somewhere in Europe. They ambushed the outpost, but had a very unfortunate result.
They managed to destroy all walkers and infantry in the outpost, but one remained strong.... A Mammoth Mark Two. It was the last man standing. They tried to penetrate its invincible armour but it was useless. It devastated all, and Ron was the few who remained alive. The Mammoth turned its powerful rail guns at him, and fired the devastating round. It impacted Ron by his side. He was on the floor dying from a slow, painful death. But David was able to drag him back to safe lines.
There, back in a medical room in the Hand of Nod, where he found his leg and some of his abdominals would be amputated by the beyond repair damage he was given. The doctor asked him, "Would you like to be... a... a cybernetic?"
Ron didn't want to live a life without legs, and replied, "...Yes." And from that day forth, he would be what he is today, and have no mercy on GDI...
------------------
Gunshots and explosions were heard down the desert hill that was up ahead. Ron and Andy increased their pace to the fight. They came up the hill, and witnessed the firefight down below. The Harvester pulled away from combat and retreated back to base, one of the Tick Tanks was destroyed but the second one was under heavy enemy fire. Sounds of panicking voices and footsteps were coming towards them.
Two light, Nod infantry soldiers and a rocket soldier were cowardly fleeing from combat. They passed by them in such a hurry one of them yelled back at them. "What are you doing! Get away from the place! It's a lost cause and everyone is almost dead! RUN!"
The three soldiers dissaperead around a rock wall. And the two cybernetics stared at each other, then the battle down the hill. The two machines ignored the warnings, and proceeded as planned. Ron looked at the terrain below; it was almost covered in Tiberium, but few areas weren't scarred by the crystals, but these blank spots were filled with dead corpses of both GDI and NOD soldiers. "It appears both Brotherhood and GDI have significantly suffered heavy losses in infantry," stated Andy.
"It appears so," replied Ron.
Ron moved his front left leg, and planted it by a small Tiberium crystal; causing green-glowing cracks to spread around the dirt floor. The Tick Tank was receiving heavy damage from GDI Disc Throwers and Wolverines. Andy switched his cannon to maual ,than homing which was commonly used by other Cyborg Commandos. He charged his plasma cannon, and released a green laser of doom. A Disc Thower turned around at the sound of the cannon. "What the? Ahh-". The GDI soldier instantly vaporized by the impact of the laser. Andy then aimed at a rifle soldier, and fired the laser; the soldier also vaporized.
A Wolverine noticed this and aimed its gattling cannons at them both, it fired, and the bullets were traveling at high speeds. The projectiles simply deflected off Ron's armor, but Andy was slightly being affected by them. Ron's targeting crosshairs were on the Wolverine and they went red. Ron fired four of his multi-tracking missiles from his right shoulder, and they flew towards the target, however, even though they had tracking capabilities they still lacked accuracy.
One of them flew to the right and impacted on a patch of Tiberium crystals; causing them to explode and shatter; releasing deadly shards of Tiberium. Another went to the left to the group of GDI infantry, and exploded in the middle of them, some soldiers were completely blown apart and others were blown to the floor; weakened and wounded by the blast trying to crawl away. The last remaining two missiles destroyed the Wolverine, and created a giant explosion. "Exterminated..."
The Tick Tank was relieved from the heat, and radioed the two cyborgs, "Thanks for the help! I'm gonna take this baby back for repairs. I'll see you back at base! "
The Tick Tank withdrew from combat, leaving the cyborgs and the GDI stragglers behind. One of them was fifteen meters away from Ron, and he quickly went to finish the dying soldier. The soldier turned his head at Ron, and he began to scurry away faster as the metallic demon approached him. Ron was now right next to this weak GDI member, and raised his front right spider leg, and impaled him on the back; blood splattered all over the unlucky soldiers' back. Ron raised his leg in the air to inspect the damage. The soldier that was impaled had his head hanging low and arms, too. "DEAD..."
Ron let the lifeless body slide off his arachnid leg, and on to the dirt-covered floor with green cracks among it. Gunshots went off, and Ron rotated his torso -which was his whole upper body- to the sound. The survIiving Nod soldiers finished off the GDI stragglers. A evil smirk formed under his metallic face plate. Andy had a GDI soldier in his left arm, and closely observed him for any signs of life. "This one has no heartbeat... how unfortunate." Andy tossed the dead trooper's body to the side.
A surviving Nod soldier when to meet the cyborg that saved his life. "Thank God you showed up! I thought we were dead!"
"As always," replied Ron
The ground suddenly shook, but it mysteriously stopped. All the Brotherhood of Nod members frantically observed their surroundings, yet again the ground shook. "What is that?" a Nod soldier asked.
"I don't know but I got a bad feeling, but what is that?," asked another soldier.
A broad, dark object was swaying back and forth coming up from the horizon. Then two large metal box-like objects peeked above first. Ron tilted his head to the sides trying to determine what it was. Then the object revealed more of what it was; very bulky and humongous in height. Ron's human eyes widened as he realized what this object was. "Mammoth Mark two!" he alerted loudly, yet it was still in his deep husky voice.
All the full human Nod members instantly retreated. But the two remaining half-man/machine members stayed behind. Ron stared at Andy who also stared at him back under his red-dome visor. "Let us go into combat! GDI does not frighten us!" said Andy. The two charged at the the invincible walker of GDI. Ron let his anger control his human side by the deep hatred he had for GDI.
"No matter how overwhelming the odds are we shall fend off any GDI incursion. We shall give our lives for Kane and be in his presence even in death," said Andy, in a somewhat brave way.
The Mammoth fired its pulse turret that was undermounted on its chin. The bullets struck both cybernetics but the damage did not halt their attack. Andy aimed and fired his plasma cannon at the turret, which had a direct impact. Now, a ball of metal fell to the floor burning. The weather suddenly started to act up, and the winds harshly blew and lighting began to strike the ground; a Ion Storm occurring over their heads. A lightning strike flashed, and the Mammoth instantly turned to a silhouette, then back to its original form.
Ron shot his missiles at the legs of the massive walker, and damaged them significantly. Pieces of destroyed metal flew off the machine and begun to stumble every step it took. The ground also was shaking violently, causing Ron and Andy too also stumble. Andy fell but caught himself, and Ron was firmly planted to the ground by his metallic arachnid anatomy. Ron had a menacing frown as the Mammoth didn't yield to them. Bullets suddenly striked Ron, he looked around for the source of the projectiles, and discovered a squad of five Jump Jet Toopers.
"Nnnngghhhh!!" Ron growled, placing multiple targeting cursors on the troopers. "Farewell, heretics!"
The missiles flew towards the targets. The troopers threw themselves to the sides to evade the missiles, but some were unlucky and were struck by the missiles. Now only two remained alive. Ron charged at the two finish them off while Andy fought the Mammoth Mark Two. One of the troopers got back up, and was ready to return fire, but a sharp pain of a metallic limb impaled him in the gut, he grabbed the limb but his life drained away from him before he had the chance to remove it. Ron removed the dead trooper and targeted the next one. But the trooper was nowhere in sight.
The Mammoth shot a rail gun round at the ground near Andy, which blew him backwards to the ground, the walker then turned its sights at Ron and fired its rail guns at him too. Ron slid his heavy cybernetic weight to the side to dodge the projectile; it succeeded but he saw both rail guns at him. He knew his fate was as at hand, and closed his human eyes. But lightning suddenly struck the massive machine. The Tiberium began to glow very brightly and the lightning activity increased very maliciously. The Mammoth started to tilt its massive body weight towards Ron, but Ron opened his human eyes and realized he was going to be crushed.
Ron started to move his arachnid legs as fast he could, but the shadow that loomed over covered all that was around him. Ron didn't even want to turn his head back for what it will be sight he did not want to witness. He concentrated both his human and mechanical eyes on the Tiberium fields ahead, but there was also a outline of a figure that resembled a person infront of him. The area was surprisingly getting brighter as Ron fled, he turned his head around, and saw the Mammoth readying to fall upon him, Ron palced his arms out to shield himself but it was useless against the overwhelming body weight. "Noo-"
Darkness devoured Ron when the Mammoth was about to crush him...
********
***...[Danger]....Significant Damage Detected Within Vital Core Areas Of...***
Ron slowly began to open both his mechanical and human eyes as the emergency protocols were put into affect. His left eye displayed a red, upside down triangle as a unknown contact moving towards his position. Ron activated his weapons for who knew what this contact might be. Ron noticed the computers in his head and eyes didn't display any map readings or terrain in the area. He double-checked the strange disfunctions of the advanced hardware that dwelled within him.
"Excuse me? Big metal monster sir?" a nervous little voice called for him.
Ron turned his large metal body around to confront the source of this voice. He looked to his left and right not seeing anything that just talked to him, he grew very suspicious over the unknown voice, and no sight, or trace where it came from.
"Umm...Excuse me? Down here..."
Ron hunched downwards at the direction of the voice. He was surprised to see a small filly, light-purple unicorn with a golden mane and tail, staring at him with frightened eyes and trembling in fear. "Uhh...Hi...?"
The filly unicorn took steps backwards as the "metal monster" planted its arachnid metallic legs into the dirt at at her sides. The unicorn was about to turn tail and run, but tripped and fell on the dirt path. She rolled over to her backside, and was now face to face with the metal monster. "Hehehe...How do you do?"
"Dinky!" a voice called out. "Dinky! Where are you?"
Ron knew that it must be another of the populace, and quickly withdrew from 'Dinky'. Ron headed to the nearby woods by the road. A light-brown stallion with a dark brown mane and a tie appeared. "Dinky, there you are! Your mum is expecting us to be home by now."
"Y-yeah, hehehe.... home, Doctor," Dinky said, in a shaky tone getting back up from the ground.
"Are you alright?" asked Doctor Whooves, noticing Dinky acting strange.
"Yup! I'm completely fine," Dinky lied, staring into the woods where the metal monster disappeared to.
"Well then, let's get a move on."
Dinky and Dr. Whooves continued down the road, Dinky looked back at the path, the metal monster was leaning its torso outwards from the forests edge, staring at them with its red, three dotted eyes. "Umm...Doctor? Have you ever seen a metal monster?"
"Why yes, Dinky. I have seen many metal monsters before," the Doctor happily answered. "Don't tell me you want to see one?"
"Hehehe, No! I just was curious that's all," Dinky said, with a nervous smile.
Dinky turned around again to see if the metal monster was still there watching them: it wasn't. Dinky's heart began to race as the monster was no where in sight. Where is it!? Where is it!? Where could've it went to!...Dinky frantically looked in all directions to spot the this metallic creature but it was nowhere in sight. Dinky turned her head at the dirt wall that was beside the path with the forest planted above it, she looked up and saw the monster's head peeking above the edge watching them carefully. Dinky gulped as the monster's cybernetic beady eyes observed them taking each step forward.
"Dinky, I'm going to take your mum to a fancy restraunt tonight. So, you'll be home with your sister for a while," Doctor Whooves explained.
"Okay!" Dinky answered slightly in glee.
The two ponies were now reaching Ponyville. Dinky checked behind again to see if the monster was watching them; it was gone, out of sight for good. Dinky made a sigh of relief as they safely crossed into Ponyville. Dinky's older sister, Sparkler, was seen buying bread at a cart, Dinky galloped to her sister and pulled her into a hug. "Sparkler!"
"Where did you come from, Dinky?" asked Sparkler, surprised by the sudden appearance of her little sister.
"Hello, Sparkler," greeted Doctor Whooves.
"Oh, hello there, Doctor! I didn't see you there," said Sparkle, as The Doctor met up with them. "Did you take Dinky somewhere?"
"Just on a nature walk, that's all," replied Doctor Whooves.
Sparkler looked down at her sister, who still clung on to her. "I bet you saw a lot of wildlife, did you?"
"I sure did! You should've seen the animals I saw!" said Dinky, remembering the metal monster.
"Well, did you see any intriguing animals out there, too?," asked Sparkler.
"Oh yes! I did see really nice animals, hehehe... this is not going to end up well..." Dinky whimpered under her breath.
Ron barely escaped from being seen by the adult male horse. He was now by himself recovering in a clearing of a forest that he did not recognize, or even the part of the world he was in. Ron looked up to the great blue sky, and gathered data off it's contents.
***...Scanning...Standby...***
***...Tiberium Gas Level: 0%...***
***...Ion Particle Activity: 0%...***
***...Theat Level: 0%...***
Ron was surprised by the readings he was receiving. No signs of any Tiberium activity in the atmosphere, but then he looked to the ground at the green grass he stood on. Usually where he was there was no grass, but just the dirt floor and the Tiberium that thrived in it. He scanned the grass to make sure if it was Tiberium infected or it was just plain grass.
***...Scanning...Standby...***
***1010101...***...1010101...***
***...Tiberium Conatmination: 0%...***
***...Scanners do not detect any Tiberium Contamination within area, or further regions...***
***...This unit is a source of Tiberium origin...***
***...1010101...***...1010101...***
***...Clear to proceed...***
Ron acknowledged the data, and proceeded deeper into the unknown forest. All the natural life was seemingly not marred by the powerful crystal. The echoes of birds chirping rang out through the forests, the small forest critters ran away from him as he continued his undesignated journey. Rays of sunlight came through the openings of the tree canopies above, and floated in the air. Ron wondered on his human side if he was alone, or if any other Brotherhood of Nod members were nearby, but his machine side told him to regroup with them.
Ron continued thinking for the answers he wished to seek. But he realized something was wrong in the area around him; the birds suddenly stopped chirping. He knew there was something nearby that could've caused this, and he lowered his upper body down to reduce any visibility on himself. Ron activated the same the motion sensors he was equipped while he was on standby. The sensors were taking their time to upload data to his head.
***...Scanning...Searching...Uploading...***
***...1010101...***...1010101...***
***...No contacts detected near this unit...***
The sensors only detected the forest critters moving rapidly from him. But they weren't detected as a highly threatening unit.
***...Extending scanning range...Standby...***
***...No signs of any hostile contacts that threaten this uni-...***
***.../_!_\...Warning!...Warning!.../_!_\...***
***...Unknown contact classified at a Lv.2 threat level...***
***.../_!_\...Proceed with Caution.../_!_\...***
"Level two?" Ron was confused why his sensors detected a threat at such level. "That is usually a GDI Disc Thrower, but what else can be that dangerous as a trained GDI soldier?"
He observed the red, upside down triangle in his mechanical eyes as it approached him from behind. Ron realized this, and turned around aiming his chain gun and his targeting crosshairs aligned with his eyesight. But there was nothing. The triangle kept on closing in on his position. "What the?" he asked, confused
The threat then passed over him, and continued more into the forest. Ron then rotated around in the direction the anamoly went, he went back to his sensors to check for malfunction. The maintenance report came back, stated no damage or malfunction in the sensors. Ron saw the option "Altitude" in his left eye that was connected to the sensors. He selected the option and the sensors checked the unknown contact's altitude.
***...Scanning...Standby...***
***...5ft...9ft...15ft...20ft...28ft...***
Ron's human eyes widened as the numbers increased to exact the anamoly's altitude.
***...35ft...64ft...75ft...89ft...***
"How far do you go into the sky?" Ron asked himself as the altitude went higher up.
***...95ft...108ft...125ft...Standby...***
***...Sensors have detected the altitude of the threat is at 145ft...***
***...Directing coordinates to contact...Standby...***
The computers dwelled in Ron displayed a red arrow to the direction of the disturbance. Ron persued the arrow to meet this unrecognized threat. While he was enroute to the location, his rage escalated in him if it was GDI. But he also thought back to his encounter with the small female unicorn. He wondered if his mechanical or human eyes betrayed him for the he saw unicorn was not suppost to be true or alive. Ron went through his databases, and selected the option to playback any video feed that was recorded all the time.
He rewinded all the way back to the encounter, and stopped exactly on the unicorn. Ron closely observed the image, and questioned if it was real or not. "This cannot be true. This horse is mythology and never existed... then why does it exist then?" Ron then searched the databases that contained info and history about almost anything on Earth. He searched "Unicorn" in one file; it displayed information on this creature.
***...A Unicorn is a mythical creature that displays a horn on the cen-akksi*{|^!|...***
***.../_!_\...Data is damaged in this file...***
***...Repairs are in progress.../_!_\...7%...15%...***
"How 'useful' you are," Ron groaned.
Ron continued his journey to the destination he was assigned to go.The birds begun to sing again after the threat passed by. A bright light was head, meaning it was the exit out of the forest. Ron checked his six o'clock to make sure he wasn't being followed by a unwanting persuer, only the path of the forest was trailing behind him. Ron came forth from the forest, and encountered the wide open world. The green valleys covered these vast lands, large mountains rose tall behind these valleys, but between these two was a sea of clouds that covered all.
Ron was now amazed by the appearance of the nature in these strange parts of the world. The sensor suddenly notified him, and he observed the readings.
***...Sensors indicate this unit is now few meters away from target...***
"Now where are you?" Ron had a menacing grin under his faceplate. "Where do you dare hide?"
He checked the sensors, and displayed the contact above a mountain that towered all the way up beyond anything in this region. Ron turned his to to the sky, and noticed very odd cloud formations. They appeared to be formed or structured in a organized manner; unlike most clouds are randomly shaped and sized. Ron turned his head down at the base of the looming the mountain and begun to approach it. "Your fate is at hand whoever you are..."
*******
"Uuuugggghhhh....."
In the bushes that were planted at the highest point of this mountain that was flat, laid a awakening GDI Jump Jet Trooper that was also sent mysteriously to this unfamiliar world. "Uuugghhhh.... what happened?" The trooper opened his eyes under his helmet. The sunlight was penetrating the leaf-covered branches of a tree that stood right next to him. He didn't get up like most people would, but rather look to his left and right noticing he was surrounded by bushes. "Where am I?"
Disorientation, a painful headache and hazy vision clouded his actions to perfrom correctly, and suffered getting up. The trooper tried to raise himself but fell backwards, then again he tried but failed. "Dammit!" He gathered all his strength, and raised up again, and succeeded. The trooper had a unfortunate loss of balance and slammed into the tree. "Uuugghh... What happened to me? Did Nod or GDI put me under the influence!"
His vision slowly returned with his balance, but the headache was still in affect. The trooper looked down at his wrist computer he had on his left, and checked the conditions of his jet pack and ammunition.
*** Fuel: 100% ***
*** Ammunition: 900 bullets remaining ***
"I guess I should thank that Ion Storm for saving my fuel tank. But where is everybody?"
The trooper checked his surroundings for any signs of his fellow GDI members, but no one was in sight. The trimmed grass and hedges were the only things that were visible. And also statues that resembled a pegasus that had goggles in a position where it appeared to be going at high speeds. The trooper suspiciously observed these objects, and carefully stepped out of the vegetation. "I better not be in Nod territory and this is one of their crazed places of chaos."
The trooper noticed he was on a flat mountain top, and clouds were closely floating by the edge, and some very massive in size. But the most that was most intriguing to him was how they were a bright-white color, rather than the dark, gloomy ones he would see everyday. "Now when did clouds look that great or normal?"
"So when are we going to perform next?" a unknown voice asked.
"I don't know, but I think it's in Ponyville," another voice said
"I hope we don't get trampled over by the fans!"
"Ha! I got a bad feeling about that!"
The trooper crouched back into the bushes, and poked his head above the edge. He scanned his left, then his right, for the source of those voices. "Who's talking? And 'Ponyville'? Hehehe... funny." The trooper suddenly spotted two horses walking right into his sight. But they were awfully strange: They were in some sort of suit, goggles were on top of their heads, a marking was in the back of them, and they had actually had wings. "WHAT THE HELL?" the trooper was shocked by the extraordinary sight. "I've still got to be affected by this headache! They can't exist! It's all fake!"
"Did you hear something?" one of the pegasi asked.
"No, but we have to go perform soon," replied the other pegasus.
The two took off, leaving the dumbfounded GDI trooper behind. "What did I just witness?" The trooper stepped out of the bushes again, and stared at the two pegasi flying away. "Oh, yeah... Nod must've captured me and injected me with some sort of Tiberium drug. But I need to get out of here and find the nearest GDI base around here!"
He approached the edge, and looked down below at the long drop down. "Okay... better not mess up here." The trooper checked everything was functioning correctly, then he was about to turn on his jet pack when a voice suddenly called out from behind. "Hey, you!" The trooper felt his heart pounding against his armor, as he slowly turned around to see whoever was behind him. He realized it was a pegasus that was in the exact suit as the other ones. "This is Wonderbolt property! And I believe you don't have any clearance to be here," the pegasus stated.
The trooper had a mischievous smile as he was about to jump off the edge to freedom. The pegasus stared at him with beady eyes, and a unfriendly expression. The trooper waved at the pegasus in departure as he turned around to jump off, he turned around but was surprised to see three of those pegasi that we're in the same suits floating in front of him. "Oh crap...."
"Explain who you are or what you are?" one of them asked.
"Whoa, what type of uniform is it wearing or things it has on?" asked another pegasus
The trooper felt like blasting all of them with his chain gun but he knew he couldn't do that since he was GDI. They all started to close in on him, diminishing the space between him. The trooper frantically thought of a way out of this situation, and came up with a idea: communicate with them. "Whoa! Whoa! There's no need to gang up on me!"
All four pegasi stopped, and had expressions of surprisement. "Let's talk this out rather than kill ourselves, okay?"
They nodded their heads once, and began to communicate with this "thing".
"So, who are you?" the pegaus that stood on the mountain top with him asked. The trooper thought about whether he should give out his actual identity. Should I tell them my name? No! But they seem kind of friendly. I can't tell them my name for my own safety! I'll make up one up! Let's see here... Uhm.... Ooh, I got it...!
"My name is Mammoth, GDI, Jump Jet Squad D twenty-five," he explained
"Kind of weird for a name, but my name is Spitfire," the same pegasus said that was standing in front of him.
"Weird," Mammoth said under his breath. "But Spitfire? Do you mind introducing me to your friends here?"
"Sure," Sptifire replied, pointing a hoof at her Wonderbolt friends. "That's Soarin', Blaze, and Misty Fly."
"That helps, but... where is the nearest GDI base here?" Mammoth asked.
All four pegasi stared at each him confused. "Uh, what's 'GDI' ?" Blaze asked
Mammoth facepalmed his helmet, tinted visor at a ridiculous question that he wished not to hear. "You know, Global Defense Initiative. The good guys! Stopping the mad forces of the Brotherhood of Nod!"
Blaze shrugged at the question, and Mammoth began to mumble words from his mouth. The three Wonderbolts floating in the air landed next to Mammoth as his temper rose. "Hey you alright?" Soarin' asked.
Mammoth turned his head around having a cold stare under his helmet. "Yeah, I'm fine. But where am I?"
"You're in Equestria. I believe you're not from here?" asked Misty Fly
"No, I'm not. But do you know what continent or country I'm in, or when did you guys exist?" Mammoth asked in hopes they had the correct answer. But no, they all shook their heads in disapproval of the answer. "Great! Just great! I have no idea where I am! And we're still at war with Nod!"
The four Wonderbolts watched Mammoth as he flailed about over the unknown names and terms he said. Spitfire decided to intervene with Mammoth to cool down his anger. "Hey, don't worry. You'll find a way back home soon."
Mammoth calmed down a bit, and turned around at Spitfire. "You're right. There might be a way back home, but-" A noise was heard down the mountain. Mammoth walked towards the edge, and looked down to see what it was. His heart skipped a beat when he realized it was the Cyborg Reaper that killed his squad before he appeared in Equestria.
The Reaper climbed up the rock wall below, and upon a flat section of the mountain. Mammoth turned around to explain the horrifying threat to the four pegasi. "We've got to hide, now!" The four pegasi were confused why Mammoth was ordering them to hide. "Why do you want us to hide?" asked Soarin'.
"I mean it! We've got to get out of here!" Mammoth exclaimed.
"Seriously, what has gone into you!" Spitfire replied back in a annoyed tone.
"If you want to live just do what I say!" Mammoth yelled back
The four Wonderbolts decided to follow Mammoth's orders. "Okay... we'll hide," said Blaze. Mammoth ran back into the bushes where he was before, and got low as possible to avoid being seen. The four pegasi also hid with Mammoth to follow this "game" they believed he was doing. Mammoth checked above the bushes, and saw the Reaper climb onto the mountain level they were on. It stood there looking in all directions, as if it lost something. "Oh crap! It's here!"
"What's here?" asked Soarin'.
"That is..." Mammoth pointed out.
Soarin' too checked, and was shocked to see a metallic spider-like monster standing by one of the statues. "What in Celestia's name is that thing!?"
"That is your worst nightmare you could ever have. It will murder you in the most brutallic ways as possible," Mammoth explained. Soarin' gulped at the disturbing explanation, Blaze turned slightly pale, and Spitfire and Misty Fly felt themselves shaking. The Cyborg Reaper approached a statue, and circled around the it observing closely. Then, it headed towards the edge, and stared off into the distance. A pegasus flew by at high speed with the Reaper tracking its movement.
"Who's flying out there?" Mammoth asked, concerned for the safety of the pegasus.
"I think that's Fire Streak," said Blaze.
"Dammit! He's going to get himself killed!" Mammoth groaned
The Cyborg Reaper observed this Wonderbolt until it disappeared into a large cloud. The Reaper shifted its attention away back to the terrain it was on, it stood there gazing to its left and right. The pegasus that was called Fire Streak reappeared from the cloud, and landed ten away from the metallic demon. Mammoth felt his heart racing as the Wonderbolt approaches the Reaper. "Uh... Hello?" Fire Streak asked in a kindly manner. The Cyborg Reaper rotated around, and loomed over him.
"You!" The Reaper appeared irritated. "Tell me the location of this unit!"
"Well, geez! You could've asked nicely! You're in Equestria," Fire Streak explained, but was also surprised by the voice it spoke in. "And what are you?"
The Reaper pointed his gattling gun at the Wonderbolt and the targeting crosshairs on him too. "You will not question this unit's background! You shall only answer questions that you are given to!"
"Okay! Okay! Just don't do whatever you're going to do," Fire Streak yelped.
"Why do you exist?" asked the Cyborg Reaper. "What part of Earth is this unit on?"
Fire Streak was dumbstruck by such shocking questions. "What's Earth? Because you're in Equestria. And pegasi have always existed, we've never gone extinct or such."
"This unit is not on Earth? How unfortunate... no matter! Your race was never meant to exist or be true. You're all mythology," The Cyborg Reaper explained.
"That's insane!" Fire Streak was dumbfounded by these words the walking, spider-machine that he considered it was. "We do exist! But I see your not from here or likely from this world."
The Reaper turned around, and looked down at the grass floor. He was confused, and trying to find a way through these difficult moments. The Cyborg Reaper perked his head up back, and turned around again at the Wonderbolt. "What is your name?"
"Fire Streak... but what is yours?" asked Fire Streak approaching more closer. "It will be better if I knew."
"What did I say over this unit's background information!" The Reaper looming over him; Fire Streak nervously backed away from the machine. Fire Streak fell backwards when the Cyborg Reaper got too close him, and he tried to crawl away from the Reaper. Ron remebered how the pegasus looked exactly like the GDI trooper who tried to crawl away from him. "Why do you cowardly crawl away? You only meet your doom faster that way."
"W-what!" Fire Streak squawked at the shocking explanation. "You're not going to!"
"Nothing stops your end."
Ron lifted his right, mechanical spider leg upwards and placed his left in front of the Wonderbolt to stop his movement. Ron flipped him onto his back, and positioned his right leg over Fire Streak. "Please! We'll provide anything you need!" Firestreak yelped trying to satisfy the machine. "Just please don't do this! I have a family to take care of!"
"You said that your species is in a large number and thriving... they will find someone to replace you," Ron coldly stated.
"No, Please!"
"Prepare for decimation..."
"Hey, ugly! Over here!" a voice shouted at him.
Ron turned his head at the direction of the voice, and discovered it was a GDI Jump Jet trooper. Mammoth aimed his chain gun at Ron and pulled the trigger. The four Wonderbolts watched in amazement as this device Mammoth had under his right forearm came alive. The gun spewed multiple bullets at the Reaper, but they simply deflected off his tough armor. Mammoth realized his weapon had no affect, and saw the Reaper point its gattling gun at him.
"You, GDI, are nothing but arrogant children that forsake the Prophet. Your actions will get your 'friends' exterminated," stated Ron.
"You're the one that's going to get your self killed by me and the... uhm... what were you guys called again?" Mammoth asked, looking at Spitfire who was low in the bushes.
"Wonderbolts...!" whispered Spitfire.
"So... yeah! Me and the Wonderbolts are going to kick your as-... wait a minute? Uh... torso?" Mammoth confusedly asked
"Just how GDI sounds: pathetic. You will be begging for mercy when this is over. And confront me you cowards who dare hide in the natural vegetation. You too shall be judged whether to live or not," Ron threatened.
The Wonderbotls hidden in the brush came forth to confront Ron. They gathered around Mammoth and slid their googles on, determined to stop this mechanical monster. Ron lifted his second missile launcher to add a greater punch to his adversaries. The targeting crosshairs positioned on all five of them; turning from white to red. He then suddenly twitched his head by a sudden shock he felt within him. "You dare attack me? How pathetic!"
"Wonderbolts go!" Mammoth vigorously ordered, the Wonderbolts and himself flew into the air.
Ron fired his missile and gattling gun. Thanks to their elite training the Wonderbolts dodged the projectiles. Mammoth felt the missiles and heavy caliber bullets go by him more commonly since he was the likely target for the Cyborg Reaper. Soarin' came around Ron, and was about to kick this monster at high speed. Soarin' slammed a kick into the monster, but the massive pain from the impact immediately took its toll on his hindleg. "Ow! Ow! Ow!"
Ron turned around at Soarin', and had a unimpressed look under his faceplate. He lifted his left arm in the air and smacked it down on Soarin'. The cybernetic strength Ron had was strong enough to slam Soarin'' to the grass floor and create a hole that resembled his body figure. "Uuuggghhh...."
"Soarin'!" shouted Blaze
"You amuse me," said Ron, with a evil smirk.
Blaze came around and charged at full speed towards Ron. Blaze felt the rush of wind screeching in her ears and her body was pumped with adrenaline. Ron was right in the path of her bull charge, but oddly he had his arms on his metallic thorax. Blaze saw a printed logo on his chest that depicted a scorpion's tail. The logo got closer and closer until...WHAM! Blaze slammed into Ron, but she laid there flattened against him and slowly slid off. Ron wiped off the few saliva trails off his chest.
"Remeber, Wonderbolt, you are as weak as the rest of your race," said Ron, aiming to break their morale.
"That's it your dead!" Mammoth yelled from behind.
Ron turned around to deal with the pesky GDI trooper, but was tackled to the head by Mammoth. Ron felt the trooper hanging on to him but felt that he caused no damage to him. Ron stood there without moving a metallic limb as the trooper thrashed all over his head. Ron simply raised his right arm and grabbed Mammoth's throat by brute force. Mammoth wrapped hands around Ron's arm to remove himself from him but it was no use against Ron's cybernetic strength. "Gggahhh!...let...g-go...gugh! Of me...!"
Ron tightly squeezed his grip on Mammoths throat; blocking the air passage way for precious oxygen. Ron was displeased as this GDI trooper tried to escape the enivitable. Mammoth's actions got slower as the lack of oxygen escalated to a dangerous level. His vision was becoming hazy, his limbs didn't respond to him, his mind couldn't think clearly. Mammoth fell unconscious in the Reaper's grip. Ron scanned him for any signs if he was still breathing or not, and the results stated that he wasn't but barely.
"Muhahahaha! You've failed GDI!" Ron laughed maniacally.
Ron threw the unconscious trooper to the side, and concentrated on the few remaining awake Wonderbolts. But there was something wrong-none of them were in sight. The Wonderbolt that slammed into him was gone, the one he smacked down to the ground had also dissapeared, and Fire Streak was also missing. "Nnngghhh! Ron felt the rage growing within him but he twitched again. "We shall meet again Wonderbolts... you shall soon listen to the screams of your own extinction..."
Ron withdrew from the area, and headed towars the edge of the mountain top he was on. He planted a mechanical, spider leg on the steep rock wall, then another until all four were planted well. Ron took steps forward down the mountain; the area cracking wherever he stepped on. Multiple shadows flew over Ron' and he looked up at the disturbance: multiple pegasi were flying to the mountain top he was on. Ron had a scowfull look on his human face at the sight.
"They dare attack me, and they shall perish if I get the chance to kill them!" he threatened.
Ron reached the lower levels of the mountains, and made it upon another flat section of the mountain. He scanned these unknown lands for any signs of Nod. Ron continued to scan but the slightest signs of Nod were very scarce, he then looked back up the mountain to make sure he wasn't followed. It appeared clear, but something caught his eyes. A hair of something that matched the colors of a rainbow was poking above an edge of another section of the mountain.
Ron went through his weaponry and selected: "Capturing Nets". He aimed his crosshairs on the rainbow-hair while his legs proceeded him down the mountain. The rainbow object didn't move but then it did. Ron fired a net at the target and had a direct impact on it. Ron saw whoever was caught in the trap was thrashing around trying to brake loose.
"Hey! Get me out of this thing! I'm not afraid of you!" the voice of the victim shouted.
Ron turned around, continued his wandering journey into this world. The yells and threats of the thing that was caught in the nets continued to blabber and threaten him. But Ron only menacingly grinned under his faceplate. He looked ahead to the valley that was far; he felt that he might discover something there that mighty benefit him or locate Nod anywhere. Ron came upon a edge, and looked down at a dirt path down below. A family of unicorns was happily passing by without them noticing the killing machine.
The family was only of four. A light-green stallion with a dark brown mane and golden eyes, a mare who's coat color was dark light-blue and a violet-blue mane with orange eyes. There was also a small colt and filly among them. The colt was a spitting image of his father and the filly had a combination of both parents traits. Ron observed this family as they continued down the road, placing the targeting crosshairs on them if they discovered him.
"Dad! Dad! What are we going to find out here?" asked excitingly the colt.
"We'll find some amazing things, son," replied the father.
"Are we going to find a monster out here, Dad?" the filly asked frightened.
"Don't worry, Flower, there's nothing out here that's scary," said the mother.
The family disappeared into a forest where the path led. Ron pulled his attention away from then, and turned to his left to continue his journey. He stared at the valley while walking, not taking eyes off the natural landscape. BUMP! "Huh?" Ron felt that he bumped into something large and metallic, he looked down and realized it was a SAM Site. Ron remembered the words of the Nod soldier he heard back at base: We also had a SAM Site out there, and it too dissapeared...!
The SAM was lowered down pointing at the ground. Ron felt glad that at least he wasn't the only Brotherhood of Nod "material" on this world. He circled around to the back an opened up the panel it had. The display showed the Sam was inoperable due to the lack of electrical power. "Perhaps I can rewire it." said Ron
Ron began manipulating the SAM Site to bring it back online, but he pointed out a finger, and a spark of electricity came from it, and onto the wires that were contained in the SAM. Ron removed his finger, and closed the panel; the Sam slowly lifted upwards towards the beautiful blue sky. Ron felt a smirk on his face, and proceeded towards the valley he planned to go to. The Sam stood there by itself rotating in different directions scanning for hostile air threats.
Ron suddenly heard the SAM fire its missiles into the air. The sounds of the missiles were echoing throughout the area. Seconds went by until BOOM! The sound of an explosion in the air. Ron formed a evil grin as the explosion was loudly heard.
"Hehehehaha! The first victim of Nod on this world! Kane would be pleased..."
Ron had just activated the SAM site that was reported to have gone missing back on earth. Only the sound of an explosion from the sky echoed loudly into this unknown world. Ron continued to walk despite the commotion from behind, all he thought about was heading towards the valley he believed had purpose to get him somewhere. He was entered a forest that lead him out of view from the open, but before he continued, Ron looked back at the Sam site that was still aiming randomly.
"Perhaps I should should shut it down to keep a low profile, but then again it would keep those pesky Wonderbolts to the ground."
Ron stared at his only Brotherhood of Nod 'friend' that scanned the skies, but suddenly the Sam site aimed somewhere and fired its missiles; another loud explosion was heard. Ron grinned again under his faceplate. "I guess I shouldn't disable it. It proves useful and some entertainment, hahaha!" Ron turned back into the forest and continued his journey. The forest appeared abandoned, no signs of any creatures or sounds: a very dead silence. His mechanical joints swiftly moving in his legs were the only sounds that were created. Ron thought about where he was, the questions that made him wonder if he was the only one on this world or what was going on back home.
Ron realized that if he was the only living Brotherhood of Nod, he would be the only living image of Nod on this world. A explosion was again heard from the sky, and there was a scream of pain. Ron had a look of disapproval with a smirk as another victim of the Sam site was fired upon. As Ron traversed in the woods, he observed the natural life here in this world. The vegetation appeared very healthy by their dark shades of green, the trees weren't dry or corrupted by Tiberium, the sky was just a magnificent shade of blue. But Ron knew that all this could be destroyed by the dark secret that dwelled within him. Suddenly he heard something piercing the air from behind.
Ron turned around and saw it was a missile coming straight towards him. He maneuvered quickly to the side, and the missile zoomed by down the path; it struck a large tree. The tree slowly collapsed to the side and slammed onto the forest floor, creating a large sound that could've been heard from afar. Ron leaned his torso outwards and checked the direction from where the missile came from. All that Ron saw was a small object in the distance which was the Sam site.
"Odd, a SAM could've not aimed at me. I'm am marked as friendly even if I'm not an air unit, but if it did aim at something." Ron checked his surrounding to find the likely target the Sam aimed at. "Then where is it?"
"Up here!" a voice yelled.
"What the? Oomf!" Ron felt something collide on him from above. He perked his head back at up and saw a cyan pegasus land in front of him. Ron realized the rainbow-mane it had was the same one on he saw earlier, the posture it had, the look in its eyes, it was all obvious to Ron. "Why do you interrupt my journey?"
"You're the one who attacked the Wondrbolts and that other thing that was with them!" the pegasus yelled.
"They were simply beaten for siding with GDI and going against me themselves, however, if you leave me and never return in my presence I will let bygone be bygones, whoever you are," said Ron.
"My name is Rainbow Dash, and why should I let you go! You'll just cause more damage to other ponies and that box thing back there! Do you what that thing has done!" Rainbow Dash yelped, remembering the unfortunate loss of pegasi that were shot down.
"They were a factor that got simply erased. They shall be replaced by your race in short time, for your race is large and thrives on this world," Ron coldly stated.
"They can't be replaced! Were not produced right away! It takes years for us to develop!" Rainbow explained.
Ron ignored the pegasus, and made his way down the path. Rainbow Dash was still yelling at him from behind, but he still continued to walk and observe the features of this forest. But he also wondered how Rainbow Dash escaped his nets to capture personnel. Ron looked down to his legs, and noticed a small bright pink flower that he was about to crush. He lowered himself down to obtain this peculiar plant. The petals had a golden line streaking vertically, the filaments were a light-yellow shade.
"Are you done looking at that flower?" a voice asked.
"Huh? What the!"
Rainbow Dash was hovering in front Ron's face, her forelegs were crossed and stared at him with disapprovement. Ron stared back at her with a scowl look. "How persistent are you?"
"Very persistent," Rainbow replied, in the same tone.
"What do you want from me?" Ron asked irritated.
"I'm not gonna to let you go anywhere!" Rainbow harshly stated.
Ron crossed his metallic arms, he went through his weapon systems again and selected "Capturing Nets". Ron felt a mischievous smile upon him, and placed the targeting crosshairs on Rainbow; they turned red. "So what were the actions you won't let me do?"
"I said-Gah!"
Rainbow was caught back in the nets she was lucky to get out of, but this time they proved to be a challenge. Ron simply passed by her without turning back to look at her. He could hear the thrashing she made to escape the trap. Ron fired another at her to double the difficulty to escape. "That should keep you down for awhile."
"Get back here! You think you're so tough because you could do all of this! I'm not afraid of you!" Rainbow shouted from behind.
"You've lost, 'Miss Dash', Muhaha!"
The voice of Rainbow diminished as he kept proceeding further away from her. Ron saw the area was getting more open with few trees around him. He turned back to make sure he wasn't being followed by Rainbow Dash or other creatures as well. But also noticed that he was leaving the forest and into the open the world again. Ron traversed these vast lands of green, nothing was in sight, but only a hill with a tree standing above it. "Perhaps it may be a vantage point to survey this area."
Ron made his way towards the hill, he begun to move upwards and stared at the tree in the process. He placed a leg on the top, then, Ron now saw everything in these lands, his cybernetic eyes focused in on spots that looked interesting for him. Ron went through his systems to locate the navigational directions of this world, he continued to observe for anything when the report notified him. Ron accessed it and learned the North, South, East, and West of this planet.
"Now my task should be less difficult. It appears I'm facing the east." Ron looked up to the sun; it was lowering itself down from the sky back into the horizon. "Nightfall will soon arrive, and I must find more about this world and its species who habitat it."
Ron suddenly saw a pegasus fly over him, it stopped and floated there appearing petrified. Ron stared at it placing the targeting crosshairs in it, but noticed it wasn't Rainbow Dash but some other pegasus. The pegasus let out a shriek, then took off flying away at high speed. Ron took off the crosshairs and saw two missiles chasing the pegasus. The pegasus dissapeared behind some mountains. Ron wondered if the missiles had a affect on their targets as they too also dissapeared.
BOOM!
A sound of an explosion echoed from behind the mountain. Ron grinned at the sound he considered "Sweet". "How foolish they are to fly in the air, they will only meet their dooms. But I must continue to locate the valley I wish to meet." Ron was about to take a step forward, but noticed the valley he seeked was ahead not that far away at all. "Nevermind that, I have already arrived at my destination."
While he made his way towards the valley, he was able spot a town that was placed right in the center of it. The town was getting darker as the sun descended, the mountains were turning to a color of dark purple, the clouds were turning to a hot pink in the orange sky, the starry night sky was persuing the remaining day light. Ron was now nearing the town, a river that waś crossed over by a bridge which was the direct route to enter.
"A direct entrance will not suffice to remain hidden, but a indirect approach might do."
Ron scanned for another entrance to the town without getting seen, the houses were closley bunched up together. Ron checked to the houses that were slightly further from the town; there was plenty of space to keep hidden and maneuver freely. Ron looked up to the sky to check if darkness was large enough to conceal him; it was. Ron travelled along the outer areas of the town, the river ahead was a natural barrier he needed to overcome. He crossed the river with splashes of water every step he took, his legs dripping water as they came back on the dry land. The windows that glowed from the houses revealed shadows that crossed into their light behind them.
Ron dissapeared into some small vegetation, then reappeared again pushing some brush to the side to sur vey the area. A two-story house was ahead of him with a wooden fence that surrounded the backyard. Ron saw shadows that resembled a unicorn and there was also a shape of a pegasus by it, he approached the property without being spotted. Ron concealed his lower body in large bushes that grew by the fence and his torso was exposed but only his shoulders and head could be seen over the fence. Now that he was closer he was able to notice the unicorn was the same one he encountered earler in the day.
It was inside the house talking to the same male pony that accompanied it after the encounter and there was also a grey pegasus with a similiar mane to the unicorn. But there was also a pale pink unicorn that had a dark purple-mane with the slight shade of lavender, it stood there to the side of the smaller unicorn.
"I wonder what they can be communicating..."
*******
"Are you ready to go, Derpy?" asked Doctor Whooves.
"Yup, I'm ready!" Derpy excitingly replied.
"Well then, Sparkler we're likely going to be gone for about an hour an a half. So you'll be taking care of Dinky for the night," The Doctor announced.
"Sure, I hope you two have fun tonight," said Sparkler.
Derpy and the Doctor headed to the front door, the Doctor exited out but Derpy turned around back at her two daughters. "If you girls get hungry there are two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the kitchen."
"Thanks, Mom!" Dinky happily said.
"We'll be back, bye now!" Derpy shut the front door, now it was Sparkler and Dinky in the house.
"What are we going to do now?" asked Dinky.
"Hmm, I don't know actually, but do you want eat?" asked Sparkler.
"I guess so."
Dinky and Sparkler entered the kitchen, the two sandwiches were placed on plates on the counter waiting to be eaten. Sparkler levitated the sandwhices with the plates onto the table. They both took their seats on the small kitchen stools. Dinky used her magic to place the sandwich in front of her mouth and bit into the sweet treat. "Thiz is weally gfood."
"Dinky, don't talk with your mouth full," Sparkler reminded.
"Okay..."
Dinky finished her sandwhich first, then placed her plate into the sink. Sparkler came up to her and placed her dish into the sink. "Dinky, I'm going to go to my room, if you need anything just tell me." Sparkler let the kitchen and made her way up the stairs to her room. Dinky was alone in the kitchen, she wondered what she could do insider her home since it was too dark to go play outside. "I guess I could go see the stars outside." Dinky headed to the backdoor and opened it, she exited to the backyard with the cool night air floating everywhere. Dinky stared upwards at the darkened sky. I wonder how it is to fly up there...?
BOOM!
The sound of an explosion echoed afar from the sky. Dinky came out of her thoughts and stared at the direction of the sound. "Huh!? What was that?" A star appeared from behind silhouetted hill; it was traveling at a high speed across the night sky. The star suddenly expanded and glowed a dark orange light, then faded away into the night. "What's going on?" Silence remained after the star dissapeared. Dinky felt that she was staring at the location of the vanishing star for hours, but only a minute passed by. "Must be a shooting star or something?"
Dinky turned around to head back in to tell her sister about this event, but the sounds of something shuffling in the bushes on the otherside of the fence was heard. Dinky immediately turned her head back at the sound, but there nothing in sight. "Must be my imagination." Again, the shuffling sounds were acting up. Dinky was becoming frightened as the thoughts of whatever it was flooded her mind. What's moving in there!? A bear, a crocodile... a manticore...
Two pairs of three red-dotted eyes suddenly appeared over the fence, Dinky felt her heart skip a beat and her legs shaking. The eyes stared at her menacingly, Dinky made a quick look at the door as the thought to escape was becoming more closer to act. The door was wide open, and Dinky made the final act: run. She galloped as fast her filly legs could support her, the doorway to safetyness was so close, but suddenly the door was slammed shut without nopony or even Sparkler there to close it at such force.
"Uh oh," Dinky whimpered.
Dinky slowly rotated around at the eyes that stared at her. The eyes continued to stare at her, but then they dissapeared. Dinky felt glad that they went away but was still frightened that whatever it was could've gone to. She heard something moving around in the darkness beyond the wooden fence, it sounded like machinery but at a quiet tone. The sound disappeared, Dinky took steps backwards to the closed door to escape back to the safe inside of her home. The gate that was also bulit with the fence was suddenly heard being opened, Dinky turned her head back at the gate, and the sound of machinery was heard again.
The eyes also reappeared and stared at her. Dinky couldn't move her body at all, she felt it was all frozen, the sounds got louder as it came closer. A mechanical leg emerged into the light, then another. Then 'it' emerged; the metal monster from before towered over Dinky and the door. It turned its head down at her with that same menacing stare. Dinky felt she was going to fall unconscious in the presence of this monster. It leaned its torso at her; its face directly infront of hers.
"Name?" it asked.
Dinky was shocked by the voice it spoke it in, but mangaged to answer it back. "Dinky..."
" 'Dinky'? Is that the name you are called?" it asked again.
"Uhh... yes," she whimpered. "But what is yours?"
The monster stared at her for a long moment, then replied; "Ron."
"Uhm... Hi..?"
"Greetings, Dinky," Ron replied.
"So, uhh... how are you?" Dinky was unsure what to say to Ron. "Where are you from?"
"This unit originates from the Brotherhood of Nod. I am but machine," Ron stated.
"...I guess that works...?" Dinky stared at the body design it had: a faceplate covered his face with small carnivorious teeth, the nasal area was gone, some of the skin showed around his head and chest collar area but was very thin; this creeped out Dinky, the body was separated in two parts: lower and upper. But it was made out of metal that had a color of silver. Three dots illuminated in each eye, its legs were spider-like, and had a tail or piece that stood upwards on his back. Neon blue lights stretched across his legs and there was also lights that circled around the different sections of his torso; almost like a spiraling column.
The other lights were placed in different areas on him. Ron had box on his right shoulder that was raised with small holes on it, and he also had another one lowered on his left. But the one caught the most of Dinky's attention was the tube he had under his left forearm. Dinky was shocked by Ron's machine anatomy. "Are you okay living like this?"
"Indeed, I am superior than average cyborgs," Ron stated.
"Cy- who what now?" Dinky asked confused.
"A unit that is lesser or downgraded than me," Ron explained, knowing the true meaning was too complex for her mind.
"I kind of get your point there. But Ron...?"
"Yes?"
"Why are you here?" Dinky asked curiously.
Ron stared away from her as he thought of an answer to say to Dinky. His answer would determine his next big step in this world. "Dinky, I am lost and do not recognize these regions. For I need guidance to aid me," he explained.
"Hmm..." Dinky dragged her right foreleg across the ground at a idea she had in mind. "I guess you could stay with us, it's just me and my mom and sister. And also The Doctor... I think they'll let you stay," Dinky said unsure. "But if you do, you'll need to stay out here since you are too big to stay inside."
"That does not matter, as long as I have a per- pony to trust," Ron said.
"I wish you could spend the night here, but I think it's best if you went somewhere else for now since you might scare my family, but come back here when it's morning so you could meet them," Dinky explained.
"Very well then, I shall leave your presence for now," Ron turned around and dissapeared back into the darkness of the night.
"Stay safe," Dinky said, but no answer came from Ron, she turned back at the door and entered her home. Dinky closed the door behind her. Dinky looked back up, and her heart skipped a beat when Sparkler was standing in front of her. "Hey, Sparkler, what's going on? Hehehe," she nervously asked.
"What were you doing out there?" Sparkler asked suspiciously.
"Just looking at the stars that's all." Dinky made a sheepish smile. "How about you?"
"Well, first of all, did you slam the backdoor?"
"Uhm... yes...?" Dinky was sweating beads at the difficult questions.
"Dinky, you no you're not suppost to do that," Sparkler scolded. "And who were you talking to out there?"
"I wasn't talking to any giant metal monster out there! Hehehe..."
"Okay...? But it's time for bed, Dinky!" Sparkler announced.
"Ahhh... I don't want to go to bed!" Dinky complained at her bedtime.
"Sorry, but mom told me to."
"Fine..." Dinky travelled up the stairs to her bedroom hanging her head low in defeat, she was about to enter her room when Sparkler reminded her of something from down the stairs; "Make sure you brush your teeth because you have an appointment with the dentist tommorow!"
"Okay..." Dinky entered the bathroom, and opened up the cabinet, she levitated the toothpaste and toothbrush. Dinky placed the paste on her brush and begun brushing. While she was brushing her teeth, Dinky looked at herself in the mirror and went through her mind over her encounter with Ron. I can't believe I offered a monster that came out of nowhere to stay with my family because it doesn't have a place to go to! I hope my mom and the Doctor don't have a problem with Ron since he does look scary the way he looks...
Dinky levitated a cup of water and dumped some water inside her mouth; she gargled it and spit back out into the sink. Dinky left the bathroom and went to her bedroom, she closed the door and climed onto her bed. Dinky was under the covers, she stared at the area through her bedroom window where Ron had dissapeared to. Only the moon faintly lit the lands under the night sky. Dinky let out a yawn and felt her eyes slowly closing upon her.
"Dinky!" a voice whispered to her.
"Huh?" Dinky raised herself back up to see who whispered to her. Nothing. Only silence filled the room. "I guess I must be hearing things." Dinky went back to her process of falling asleep, here eyes again were closing on her, everything was becoming dark around her. Dinky was now asleep for the night.
"Goodnight, Dinky, you'll be in a world full of consequences tommorow..." a voice whispered to her again.
A orange glow began to grow from the horizon, the clouds of the night begun to lose their shades of darkness and change to a bright color as well. The glow turned to a light, and crept along the vast lands of Equestria, the morning light eventually reached to the awakening town of Ponyville. There inside her home; Dinky was asleep in her bed, the rays of light came through her bedroom window and brightened her room vividly. Dinky slowly opened her golden eyes as morning shined upon her, she let out a yawn and raised herself out of bed stretching her forelegs in the air. Dinky stared outside her window to see the bright sun slowly rise from the horizon.
Dinky got out of her bed, and made her way towards the door, not a single sound was heard in the house. She exited her bedroom and saw Sparkler's room was closed but her mother's room-the one she shared with the Doctor-was open but was dark. Dinky walked to their room and checked the inside. Her mother was still asleep in the bed, but the Doctor was gone, Dinky turned away and went down the stairway. The living room was unoccupied by anypony, Dinky wondered where the Doctor could have gone to, "I wonder where he is?"
"Good morning, Dinky," The Doctor greeted.
"Huh? Oh, Good morning, Doctor!" Dinky realized he was sitting in his couch chair. "I was wondering where you went."
"Oh, I've been simply here reading the newspaper for about fifteen minutes," he said.
"What time did you and my mom get back from dinner?" Dinky asked curiously.
"We returned really late, the restaurant was very busy that night since that famous DJ was nearby," Whooves explained.
"Wow, you two must have been really tired from last night?"
"Your mother was but I'm still fine."
Dinky felt her stomach grumble loudly, she blushed at the embarrassing moment infront of the Doctor. "I guess my stomach is telling me to feed it."
"Haha, I guess it's time to find you some breakfast," The Doctor said, getting out of his chair and heading towards the kitchen. "Let's see what we have for breakfast."
Dinky followed him after he entered the kitchen, the Doctor searched through different cabinets to find a breakfast meal. While he was going through the cabinets, Dinky realized that she told Ron to meet her at her home at morning, she galloped back at the stairs to her room to see if her barely known accuaintice was approaching the house. Dinky checked outside through her bedroom window; Ron was nowhere in sight, but just the backyard and the area beyond it. Great, he still hasn't arrived yet...
"Dinky, I found some waffles to eat!" The Doctor notified from down the stairs.
Dinky left the window and exited the room, Dinky heard her mother yawn and she quickly went to meet her. She entered and saw her mother awakening from her sleep, Dinky jumped on the bed and pulled her into a hug. "Good morning, Mom!"
"And why are you awake early this early?" Derpy tiredly asked.
"Because I got a good night sleep and you didn't," Dinky mischievously reminded.
"How did you-did the Doctor tell you everything?"
"Yeah, he's awake right now, he's downstairs," Dinky explained.
"Him and his mouth... Well let's just go downstairs."
Dinky got off the bed and awaited her mother by the doorway in a gleeful manner, but suddenly a strange sound came to her filly ears. Dinky's smile faded, her expression turned to a confused look. The disturbance made a echoing, humming and wind-like wobbling sound. Dinky turned around to see what it was, but there nothing in sight. "Uhh... Mom? Did you just hear that?"
"I didn't hear anything, did you hear something?" asked Derpy.
"Yeah, it sounded like... Nevermind, it was probably my imagination," said Dinky, forgetting the sound.
Dinky followed her mother down the stairway and into the kitchen. The Doctor had prepared their breakfast on the kitchen table, Dinky smiled at the delightful sight, Whooves grabbed his coffee cup and left the kitchen. "...Enjoy!" Dinky took a seat on the stool, the sweet smell of waffles came to her nose, she was about to take the first bite, but the plate suddenly slid to the side. She rubbed here eyes to make sure she wasn't imagining it, then she tried to take another bite out of it; the plate slid out of her bite again. Dinky was shocked to see her breakfast maneuver by itself, and she was getting very frightened. "Mom, is the house haunted?"
"Oh how silly you are, there's are no ghosts in this house," said Derpy.
Dinky looked down at her plate again, it stood there like any porcelain would do on a table; lay flat until moved. Dinky placed her right foreleg over her breakfast to see if it would move again; the plate remained in plate, she then used her magic to levitate the plate and bring to her. Dinky had a devious smile as she though she outsmarted the unknown force that tricked her. Her breakfast came to a halt in mid-air when Dinky felt something grab her plate, she used all her strength to pull it towards her, but the strange cause was beating her by its strength. Dinky was starting to sweat as it became difficult to overcome the powerful challenger, she suddenly thought of an idea, and let go of her breakfast; the plate flew off the table and onto the floor.
"Oof!" a voice said when there was a loud thud against the wall.
Dinky eyes went wide when she heard the voice against the wall. "Mom! There's ghosts in the house!"
Derpy turned around at her daughter and stared at her in a strange manner. "Dinky, there are no ghosts in this house, it's just your imagination, and why is your food on the floor?"
"Because a ghost tried to take it away from me! I had to fight for it!" Dinky yelped.
"How silly you are being today, well let me get you a new one."
Dinky crossed her forelegs in defeat, and stared down at the table in a frustrated way, she took her attention away from the table, and looked towards the Doctor who was on his chair reading the newspaper, his coffee cup was on a small table at his side, but the coffee cup suddenly lifted in the air. Dinky's left eye twitched, then the cup tilted downwards and poured out the warm coffee on top of the Doctor. Dinky was about to get out of her chair and charge to save him, but the coffee mysteriously dissapeared in mid-air, as if something was actually drinking it. The cup was placed gently back onto the table without Whooves noticing.
Dinky stared at both the Doctor and the cup in complete dumbfoundness. Derpy placed another plate that had another waffle infront of Dinky with a smile. "Don't drop this one."
Dinky turned her head away, and stared down at her fresh plate of food, she took a quick bite before anything else strange happened. Dinky quickly chewed her food and took another bite as fast as she could; her breakfast was gone in four large bites. Dinky was glad that she finished her food, but was still anxious over the unknown force. Dinky got out of her chair, and cautiously approached the living room, but there was not a single sign of the paranormal force. Suddenly, the same strange sound came to her ears, Whooves lowered his newspaper down and was looking in different directions of the room.
"Did you just hear that right now?" asked Whooves
"It's a ghost! I'm being serious!" Dinky exclaimed.
"Ha! Dinky, I like how you're trying to play a funny joke on me."
"No, Doctor! There is actually one! And it makes that noise!"
"Sure...Ghosts make sounds but they're ghosts so they don't." Whooves raised his newspaper back up.
Dinky groaned, and was about to go back upstairs when a voice suddenly spoke in her ears, "That was good coffee."
"Aah-" Dinky instantly put her hoofs in her mouth to prevent her scream from escaping. She checked both her left and right with her eyes, the voice was gone, but then there was footsteps going up the stairway. Dinky rolled her eyes upward at the stairs; the thought of going up there didn't comply to her mind. The ghost is up there! What does it want!? But- Oh no! Ron will be here by any minute...!
Dinky quickly headed towards the backdoor and opened it. The sun was higher up now, there was full view of everything than a pitch-black backyard. Dinky saw no signs of Ron over the fence, she approached the gate to see if he was on his way or not, footsteps approached Dinky from behind, and she quickly turned around to see who it was: nothing was there. Dinky exited the gate and closed it shut to not let the ghost go through. "I hope it doesn't follow me."
The day was bright, few clouds occupied the sky, very quiet than normal. There was a gentle wind that flowed from the east to west, Dinky observed the land to spot Ron if he was approaching. Hills, trees, and very few houses on the outskirts of Ponyville were the only things that were visible. A shadow passed over Dinky, and she looked up to the sky; a pegasus flew over her, and disappeared behind some trees. "I wonder where that pegasus is flying to?"
"Aaahhh!!"
"Huh?" Dinky heard a scream originating from the woods that were near her house, then another scream was heard loudly. Dinky stared at the trees suspiciously at the disturbing sounds. A large figure was moving amongst the trees, dissapearing and reappearing from view. Suddenly, the figure emerged, Dinky squinte her eyes to get a better view of the thing: it was Ron. Ron appeared to be checking his surroundings before he did anything else. He turned his head at Dinky, and began to approach her.
"Well, at least he did show up," said Dinky.
Ron suddenly stopped and looked upwards. Dinky also turned her head to see another pegasus fly over, then she looked back at Ron who had a uncomfortable expression. "Is something wrong, Ron?"
Ron remained silent, and continued to watch the pegasus until it disappeared out of sight. He then turned at Dinky to confront her, "We meet again, Dinky. How did you enjoy the night of rest and rejuvenation?"
"...I did sleep well...?" Dinky was caught be surprise by his vocabulary. "Yes, I did get a good sleep, thank you for asking"
"Hmm, I see... Have you established a agreement to persaude your guardians to house me in their property?" Ron asked.
"No, I'm very sorry! This morning has been very... Weird."
"What do you mean "weird"?' Ron asked suspiciously.
Dinky sighed and hoped her explanation would make Ron believe her, "I was going to eat breakfast, but my plate moved by itself." Dinky checked to see if Ron was paying attention to her and he was. "I tried to get it again but it didn't work. So, I used my magic to get it back from whatever it was that was taking my food away and-"
"I see what it is... You believe a paranormal force is responsible for interfering with your breakfast and halting your consumption for energy," Ron stated.
"Woah... But yes! That's what I said! But nopony believes me!" Dinky yelped.
" 'No pony'? I must familiarize myself to the language that is spoken amongst your species."
"Well, I could teach you, but do you believe me?" asked Dinky.
"Dinky, I cannot determine if you speak the truth or not, but I shall remain on alert for any paranormal units."
"Thank you! Finally somepo- or thing that at least believes me!"
"I understand your thoughts, but you must ask your guardians for their approval to let me dwell in their territory," reminded Ron.
"Oops, sorry... I'll go get them out to meet you."
Dinky opened the gate again and let Ron pass throught first, then closing it behind her when she entered. Ron observed the features of the backyard; very clean and elegant, not destroyed or Tiberium growing out of the ground. A single tree stood in a corner, the grass was finely trimmed down to a neat size. He then looked down at Dinky who had a smile as she approached the door to enter. She opened it and waved at him before she closed it. Ron was now alone in the yard waiting for what was to come.
"This plan better work... It is the only way I can educate myself to obtain valuable knowledge of this world and it's key features."
Dinky was inside getting ready to tell her family about Ron. She was about to enter the kitchen when she suddenly remembered about Ron, the way he appeared would surely frighten her mother and sister, but she thought about the Doctor, the way he acted and the knowledge he knew would be the best way to confront Ron in a suitable way.
"I guess I have to tell the Doctor about this."
The Doctor was still in his chair reading the newspaper, Dinky felt nervous about what she was going to tell him. He sat there with a gently smile as he read the different sections of the paper. "Umm... Doctor?"
"What is it, Dinky?"
"Can I introduce you to a friend I have?" she nervously asked.
"Sure, what his or her name?" Whooves asked curiously.
"...Ron"
"A bit strange, but where is he?"
"In the backyard..."
The Doctor thought how it was strange that Dinky didn't bring her friend inside the house. "How come he is in the back, and not in here?"
"You'll soon see if you meet him," said Dinky heading for the backdoor.
Whooves folded his newspaper and placed it on the table by his chair. "How tall is he?" he curiously asked.
"Very tall," said Dinky.
"Is he wide or skinny? Does he have medical problems?"
"I don't think he's that wide, or has medical problems."
"Is he kind? Polite? Is he immature?" The Doctor had a unpleased look.
"Doctor, he is kind and polite, and certainly not immature," said Dinky.
Dinky opened the backdoor with the Doctor continuously asking questions over her friend. She felt the irritation of many questions building up in her head. Dinky saw Ron, then she turned to the Doctor who still was asking. "Doctor..."
"Is he very flexible? Maybe not by his height."
"Doctor..."
"I wonder if he is very intelligent and a universal graduate."
"Doctor..."
"Does he belong to a organization that is remarkable in advances in education?"
"Doctor!" Dinky yelled.
"Oh... Sorry, so where is your-"
The Doctor stood there with his eyes open wide and his mouth agape. A large metal, spider-like thing stood before him and Dinky. The thing was staring at the tree, but it noticed him and faced his direction. The creature stared at him with its three red-dotted eyes. It took a few steps forward and leaned its torso down at him. "Greetings," it spoke.
The Doctor remained there frozen in place infront of this thing. He felt that he was in a trance in its eyes, he snapped out of it and looked at Dinky who had a concerned look. "Dinky... Whatever you do get behind me right now," he whispered.
"But why?" she asked.
The Doctor was frustrated in his mind as valuable time passed by to remove himself and Dinky from the creature's presence. "Dinky! Why do you have to do this right now! Can you not see this thing is obviously dangerous...!
"If you have a problem with me, sir... Why not confront me to settle this," Ron menacingly suggested.
The Doctor snapped out of his fear and gathered the strength to communicate with this thing. "Well...uhh... I am the Doctor, and I am one of the legal guardians of Dinky."
"Are you not the male parent of Dinky?" Ron questioned.
The Doctor turned red on his muzzle. "No, no, I am not the father of Dinky, just her guardian that's all, hehehe..."
"Your embarrassment makes me believe you hide the truth of being the male parent of Dinky," Ron stated.
"I believe you do not understand, I am-"
"From this day forth, you are now recognized the father of Dinky in my databases," Ron announced.
"W-what!? I am not the father of Dinky! Have your circuits gone mad!?" Whooves yelped.
"Whoa... The Doctor as my dad," Dinky said amazed, her eyes sparkling in excitement.
Ron crossed his arms while the 'father' of Dinky kept on flailing over his position in the family. He turned his attention away from the Doctor, and stared down at Dinky who had a smile full of glee. My plan goes as orchestrated... Learn the behaviors of the indigenous species...
"Are you not paying attention to me!" Whooves yelled.
"I do understand, Doctor... But I believe we should take this confrontation another path. I am Ron, a cybernetic unit that is highly advanced in most areas than most cyborgs units," he explained.
The Doctor fell silent and listened to Ron's information about himself. "Well, uh, pardon me for my behavior, but please continue."
"Very well then... I have come across this world that I do not recognize, I wish to partake in your society to learn and live at a equal level amongst your kind," Ron announced.
"I see where you're going, but where do you exactly come from Ron?" The Doctor asked suspiciously.
"Nod... I originate from the Land of Nod."
"Strange, now why does that sound awfully familiar?" The Doctor put a hoof to his chin. "I'll remember it eventually."
"Cool! Is that someplace faraway from here!?" Dinky excitingly asked.
"Beyond your imagination, child..."
"Well, Ron, where do you plan to go if you are lost?" asked the Doctor.
"That is what I wish to ask you... I ask for your permission to stay in the property you own as I educate myself about this planet," Ron explained.
The Doctor's eyes went small as Ron wished to stay here in his home with the family he cared for. "I-I-I don't know about that... I can't just decide by myself, I also have to get Dinky's mother out here to meet you."
"Then go and bring forth Dinky's mother... It will be a pleasure to meet her."
"Dinky, go and get your mother and also your sister if she's awake," Whooves ordered.
Dinky left the backyard, and disappeared into the house; now it was only Ron and the Doctor. The Doctor suddenly stared at Ron with a glare, "Listen! I don't care who or what you are, but the slightest threat you make to Dinky or anyone else in the family I will-"
"Doctor, what's going on?" Derpy asked concerned, stepping out of the doorway.
"I just want you meet Dinky's new 'friend' that's all," Whooves explained.
"Who is her-" Derpy immediately fell silent in the presence of a terrorizing arachnid creature. "WHAT IS THAT THING!?"
"Oh, his name is Ron! He wants to know if can live here since he's not from here, and what I mean 'not from here' I mean he's not from this planet at all!" Dinky happily explained.
"Oh, ok... So, he's a creature from another planet," Derpy said in a shaky tone.
"Mom, he's very nice and kind," Dinky added.
"Umm... Okay, how do you do, Ron?" Derpy asked nervously.
"I am in fine condition ma'am, it is an honor to meet you," greeted Ron.
"...Well, I guess that's great...?"
Sparkler came out of the house at the conversation outside. "Mom? What's going on out-MONSTER!" she screamed.
"Sparkler, he's not a monster!" Dinky scolded.
"Oh yes he is! just look at him!," Sparkler yelped, shaking.
"The levels of fear in this unicorn cause blind choices and actions," Ron stated.
"Where was I? Oh yes, Derpy... Ron asks if he can stay with us since he doesn't have a place to stay," the Doctor explained.
"So, he wants stay here, because he has nowhere to live?" Derpy turned her head away to think for a moment. "I guess so... As long as he doesn't cause any damage to the house," Derpy announced.
"Well, Ron... I guess you're staying with us then," said the Doctor.
"You have many thankings from the Brotherhood," thanked Ron.
" 'Brotherhood!?' " questioned Sparkler.
"That is where I originate from," explained Ron.
"Yay! Ron is staying here with us!" cheered Dinky.
Derpy had slight smile, and returned back inside the house, Sparkler slowly stepped backwards back inside the house still staring at Ron. Dinky was happily bouncing around Ron, but the Doctor stared at him with a glare. "Dinky... Can you step inside for a moment? I need to talk to Ron personally."
Dinky stopped bouncing and left them both pony and machine to converse. The Doctor watched Dinky until she was fully out of sight. "Ron... Since you have been accepted to stay here with us... If I see you try to harm Dinky, Derpy, or Sparkler.... You will be removed from here and be put in a dimension where you will never return!" he threatened.
Ron crossed his arms, and rolled his human eyes at the Doctor's non-threatening words he considered, "Doctor, you too shall be scorched by the Prophet's power and be brought down begging for his mercy if you dare attack me," Ron threatened back.
"Very well, I see we both dislike each other," stated the Doctor.
"No, Doctor, I have no hatred towards you... It is my appearance that makes you believe I will harm your family. But I promise I will be in my... 'best behavior'," Ron stated.
"Ron, I know this has gone the wrong way, but don't commit any ignorant actions."
"Do not worry, Doctor. As I said before, I will be in my best behavior."
The Doctor still had that glare on him and observed Ron carefully. His red-dotted eyes made the Doctor feel he spoke false words. A pegasus flew over them, and Ron immediately looked up a it. The Doctor noticed that Ron was uncomfortable or troubled by the sight. "Does something bother you?"
Ron remained quiet; the pegasus was still in the air. The pegasus dissappeared from sight and Ron stared back down at the Doctor. "I am fine, Doctor. The sight of pegasi somewhat bothers me."
Dinky looked out the window at the conversation the Doctor and Ron were having. The body movements and expressions they both had meant something was strange. "I hope they're okay with each other." Dinky turned away from the window, and looked at her mother who was still slightly frightened by Ron, "Mom, are you okay?"
"Yes, Dinky. I'm fine... it's just I still have doubts about Ron. Who knows if he's friendly or not," said Derpy, regarding Ron's appearance. "Mom, I think he's very nice, he doesn't look like he wants to hurt us or anypony," Dinky said, staring back out the window again. "He's just lost and doesn't know what to do, or to go."
"Muffin, I enjoy how are you're so sweet and kind, but we barely know what or who he is," reminded Derpy of how little they knew him.
"But I thinks he's fine, Mom. I'll ask him if he could tell me more about him to get a better idea of himself."
Back outside, Ron looked back up at the blue sky; staring as he tried to analyze the different aspects of this world. "Do pegasi only fly in the skies of the planet?" he asked.
"No, there are more than just pegasi who live and fly in the sky. There are also Griffons and Dragons who also fly, but they are rarely seen," explained the Doctor.
"Hmm..."
"Is something wrong?" the Doctor asked, noticing Ron was troubled or disturbed by something. "Are you alright?"
"Yes, Doctor... I am fine. It is just the pegasi who trouble me when one crosses my vision," explained Ron.
"How are you troubled by pegasi flying? Its practically normal."
"I understand, but its what I have encountered in this world that I wish to stay away from," Ron said, observing maliciously at another pegasus flying over. "It will be for the good of all."
"If that's the case, then you'll seen have to get used to it. But I have to go back inside; I don't think Dinky wants to be kept waiting that long for her new 'friend'," the Doctor said, heading for the backdoor entrance of the house . "And remember no mistakes or else..."
"You'll only get your self killed, Doctor," murmured Ron.
"What was that!?"
"I didn't say anything."
"I'm watching you..." Whooves entered the house and Dinky came out right away. Ron recognized that Dinky was full of excitement and curiosity. "Ron, so what are you going to do?"
"I do not contain the answer, Dinky. Perhaps, I will explore the rest of your world."
"Can I come with you if you do?" Dinky asked excitingly, wanting to discover with her new friend. "I won't get in the way! I promise!"
"Very well then... But first I must know your town. It will aid me to know more of its occupants and society," stated Ron.
"Sure, I'll show you around the place!" Dinky happily announced.
"Let us begin, then..."
Dinky went to the gate and opened it to let Ron pass through. Ron could see the the little filly eagerly awaiting for him to pass. Do not get comfortable, Dinky. Things may not seem as they be...Ron thought. Dinky closed the gate and came by his side heading to the town. Dinky looked up at Ron's face; no expression just that same stare he ususally does. Ron turned his downwards at her and stared. "Dinky, why does your mother have an eye that is not correctly aligned with the other?"
"Well...um... She doesn't really like to talk about," she explained, looking away from him. "But she can make it normal if she tries hard enough."
"Mmm, I see..."
"But, Ron? Is the place you come from like you said is a planet or it's a piece of land?" Dinky curiously asked.
"The planet I come from is called Earth. But the land of many of us come from is Nod," Ron explained. "And the Brotherhood is a organization that was formed by our leader Kane," he made a fist in the glory of Kane.
"What is the 'Brotherhood's' purpose, Ron?" Dinky asked again.
"The Brotherhood desires unity, peace, and eternal brotherhood for all," he glorified.
"Woah, is there anymore of your Brotherhood friends around here?" Dinky wondered if there were Brotherhood members in the region.
Ron turned away and scanned the lands that stretched beyond his line of sight, then looked back at Dinky. "I do not know. This is why I must explore this planet; to find my brothers and reunite to remain strong even if we are separated and afar from home."
"I hope you find them, I bet your 'brothers' are trying to find find each other out there, but this is Ponyville!," Dinky introduced. Ron stood in the entrance to the town he saw from yesterday. Very vigor and elegant, the houses looked very medieval style as he had seen in his databases, rows of market stands that were busy with buying customers, multiple pastel-ponies occupied the streets. Ron couldn't believe what he was saying. "How is this possible?"
"Well, come on! I'll show you around the place!" Dinky excitingly insisted.
Ron followed Dinky as she trotted toward the center of town. He felt his presence would not be benefit for him, or for the others around him. Dinky looked back up at him with a smile. "Everypony will nicely meet you. But just don't scare them, please."
"I won't..." Ron murmured.
All the ponies turned their heads at Ron and Dinky; every sound was immediately silenced, some of their items were dropped to the floor; frightened faces and some mouths agape were among them. "Hello there," Ron greeted in the best way he could. "Are you ponies all right?" The ponies continued to stare at him. "What are you? a pony asked. "Machine...just machine," Ron answered, without turning his head at the unicorn.
"Hey! It's you again!" a voice shouted at him. "I want a rematch from last time!"
Ron recognized the voice, and felt like facepalming. "Not again..." A cyan pegasus flew up from the crowd of ponies and headed straight for Ron. Rainbow Dash had a irritated look on her face; she stopped and floated infront of Ron putting up her hoofs imitating a fighting stance. "Put 'em up Put 'em! I'm ready for you!"
"Miss Dash, can we settle our differences and carry on the day without disturbance?" asked Ron, wanting to avoid combat. But Rainbow continued to keep her fighting stance and insisted him to the challenge. "Don't tell me big mwachine mwonster is afwaid," she taunted to insist him to the challenge.
"Miss Rainbow Dash, I ask of you to stand down. There is no need to engage one another."
"Ok..." Rainbow lowered herself to the ground and turned away form him. "Thank you, Miss Dash, for understanding," said Ron, looking back down at Dinky who was frightened by the situation. "Hehehe, it's all good...But not unless you think fast!" Rainbow instantly turned around and flew at top speed towards him. Ron's human eyes went wide at the oncoming threat; he placed the targeting crosshairs on her but remembered lethal force would put his plans in turmoil. Instead of using his weaponry, Ron extending his left arm outward to intercept Rainbow. "Gugh!" she yelped, as she was caught by Ron's hand. Rainbow twisted and turned to slip away from his grasp. "Hey, let go!"
Ron stared at Rainbow while he had his palm wrapped around her forehead--displeased by her actions. "Why did you betray me, Rainbow?" he asked, irritation in his voice. All the ponies stared at both of them shocked by the conflict. "Because you're a total jerk! All the things you have done!" she remarked, shouting at him. "I have done nothing wrong. I am only here with my 'friend' Dinky to peacefully explore the features of this planet," he said, trying to sound friendly as possible. Some of the ponies raised an eyebrow at Rainbow Dash as she seemingly appeared as the enemy.
"You know what!? Fine! But you can't fool me..." Ron released her from his grip, and Rainbow backed away from him. Ron crossed his arms and looked down at Dinky; she was still scared, but had a weak smile. "Do not worry, Dinky. Let us continue our journey of meeting the populace who live here."
"Ok...So, let's meet some-"
"Wait!" Dinky was stopped from a voice behind them. Ron turned around and saw a lavender unicorn trotting up to them. "Dinky, can I join you while you give a tour to your friend here?" she asked.
"I guess so...what do you think, Ron?" Dinky asked to make sure it was fine with him. "It is fine to let this unicorn accompany us, but she better not try to commit the same actions as, Miss Rainbow Dash has done," he explained, anger in his voice was slightly heard.
"Don't worry, I won't be like Rainbow," she said, trying to gain Ron's trust. "Very well then... Dinky let us proceed as planned," said Ron.
"Well, I guess we should start of in this direction." Dinky stated to walk down road that led to a large structure with multiple windows; Ron pictured the structure replaced by a Temple of Nod, but he looked to his right at the unknown unicorn. "What is your name?" he asked. "My name is Twilight Sparkle, and your are 'Ron' I believe?" she asked back at him.
"Yes, I am the one called Ron."
"Well, 'Ron' why are you...you know...machine?" Twilight asked, trying not to get on his bad side. "I am machine for I am superior than most others," he answered trying not to give too much info. "I see, but some of you isn't machine." Twilight observed the parts of Ron that were flesh. "So, what are you then?"
"I will not answer the question for it is something not meant to be acknowledged by your species," he replied, but he also noticed a small figure concealing itself behind Twilight. "And who is this one that hides behind Twilight?"
A small dragon appeared, and looked at him nervously; waving a claw at him. "Uhh...Hi...hehehe." Ron stared a him annoyed by the not-so-liked attention. "What is his name?" Ron asked, wanting only him and Dinky to be wandering. "Oh, his name is, Spike," said Twilight, scooting Spike closer to Ron with her magic. "H-How do you do...?" he asked, in a shaky voice.
"I am fine, Spike, that is my condition," stated Ron.
As the four got closer to the structure outside by Ponyville, many of the ponies stared at Ron as he progressed. He stared at them back by making threatening expressions to frighten them off. Ron noticed a unicorn that stared at him in a very unique way; frightened, yet with curiosity and excitement. A mint coat-coloured unicorn was the one staring at him with dark-yellow eyes. "Why does that one look at me weirdly?" asked Ron.
"Oh, that's Lyra. She has this crazy belief of these things called humans," explained Twilight, rolling her eyes.
The explanation caused Ron to wonder how the unicorn knew or had an idea of humans. This world does not have a single trace of humanity, yet this unicorn who stares at me in a strange way knows. But I am a full trace, or half trace of humans...The four were now in a more open area of town. The structure turned out to be a medical clinic by the giant red cross it had placed in the upper area of it. "Is this your medical facility?" asked Ron.
"Yup, this is Ponyville hospital, if you get sick you- Why is there so many Wonderbolts and Royal Guard ponies?" Dinky asked confused at the sight of the front entrance surrounded by both Wonderbolts and Guard ponies. Ron recognized the pesky Wonderbolts, but not the ones who were dressed in golden armor. He knew that if he gets seen by one of them it would create unnecessary consequences. "I wonder what's going on? Is there a special event going on?" asked Spike, also confused.
"Let's go see what's wrong. And I'll introduce you to the Wonderbolts!" Dinky stared to walk over to the hospital, but Ron refused to move a leg in that direction to avoid chaos. Dinky contined to walk, but noticed Ron wasn't at her side and looked back at him confused. "Well, what are you waiting for? Come on."
"Let us not go there, shall we? Perhaps a expedition to a lake or a park might suffice," suggested Ron, taking steps backwards. "You're just being shy, aren't you?" Twilight asked, raising a eyebrow. "I do not shy away from my enem- personnel, but rather not go to the medical facility for apparent reasons," Ron stated, trying his best to avoid the area. "But, Ron! The Wonderbolts are so cool! You've got to meet them!" Dinky insisted. Ron took his eyes off Dinky, and looked up ahead to the Wonderbolt members by the entrance; there stood the pegasus that was so close to being murdered by him by trying to impale him with his spider leg. The pegasus stood there talking to other Wonderbolts.Fire Streak...! Ron growled in his head.
"So, are you coming or not?" asked Spike, crossing his arms at Ron. "I am sorry, but I refuse to go for certain obligations. Perhaps, when there is few Royal Guard and Wonderbolt members," Ron said, backing even more further away. "Fine, we'll come another time. Bye, Twilight," said Dinky, catching up to Ron.
Twilight waved a hoof in departure and proceeded down to the hospital where a certain guard looked very familiar. "Shining Armor!" she shouted, as her brother stood there by his team. Shining Armour turned his head at the easily recognziable voice. "Twily! Where have you been? Its such a surprise you're here!"
"It's really great to see you, but why is there so many Wonderbolts and Royal Guard ponies?" Twilight asked, observing each and one of them. "We got a message from the Wonderbolts saying that they were attacked by some large spider creature, and there was also another creature with them, but they said it helped them fight off the spider one," explained Shining Armor. Twilight remembered Ron who did have a spider-like anatomy, but still, the spider creature could have been anything besides Ron. "Did anypony get injured in the fight?" asked Spike.
"I'm afraid so...about three of them were injured; two were Wonderbolts and the third was that creature that helped them. But the creature who helped is also in a room away from the others. But how that thing is wierd," said Shining Armour. Twilight raised an eyebrow at how 'weird' the creature that was maintained in the room farther away. "Well, at least I hope they make a full recovery," said Twilight.
"The doctors said they should, but dang...they were pretty beat up back there."
A echoing, wind-like wobbling sound came to Twilight's ears. She turned her head at the direction, but there was only Wonderbolts in sight. "Strange, did you hear that," she asked. Shining Armor and Spike also looked in different directions at the unknown sound. "Yeah, I did, too. I wonder what is it?" he asked, looking at Twilight confused. Twilight heard the sound, and it originated somewhere to the side of the hospital. "It coming from over here," she took steps toward the sound. Shining Armour and Spike followed Twilight to the sound.
Twilight got closer to the sound, but it mysteriously dissappeared. "Well that's weird, it's gone. I wonder if it's a bug or animal?" Shining came to her side, and also observed the area suspiciously. "Kind of strange, but it was probably some bug or animal like you said, but-woah!" Shining Armor was pushed to the ground. Twilight turned back at her brother, and stared at him dumbstruck. "Are you okay?"
"What just happened!? Something just shoved me to the ground!" Shining Armor yelped, getting back up from the ground. Twilight checked both side of their surroundings but there was nothing around them. "Are you sure you didn't trip? Spike, did you do this!?"
"It wasn't me! I swear!" he frantically explained.
"Well, whatever it was...it's gone, but I wonder what was that thing or if-." While Shining Armor talked, Twilight noticed the brush on his helmet was being stroked backwards, as if something was dragging it. "Uhh...Shining...? There's something touching the brush you have on your helmet," she notified, pointing a hoof at it. "But could-wait? What's on my helmet?" he asked, removing his helmet and inspecting it closely. "There's nothing on my helmet..."
"No, I mean something was petting or touching it. But there wasn't anything there," Twilight explained, still confused. A Wonderbolt suddenly came up next to them; "Captain Shining Armor, we're going to be on our way now. I hope you find this creature soon."
"Yes, we will be investigating for any signs of the creature. If you have any sightings on it again please notify us right away," said Shining Armor, in a authoritive tone. "Very well, Captain. We will be off," the Wonderbolt departed. The Wonderbolt took off, but was brought back down to the ground. "Gugh! What was that for!?" he shouted at Shining Armor. "I didn't do it! You must have simply made an error during your takeoff," Shining Armor explained calmly.
"Yeah..." the Wonderbolt stared at him in a irritated way. "Well I'm off, then!" he took off again; gaining some slight altitude, but felt something grab his hindleg. "What the!? Oof!" he was slammed back down by a unknown force, but he recovered and flew away at top speed. Shining was now on high alert by this sudden event and called his team. "Team, get over here!"
"Well, if you're going to be investigating, I better not get in the way, then," said Twilight, in a slight saddened tone.
"You're leaving? Well, okay, then...maybe I'll visit you when this is over," Shining added.
"Ok...well, I'll see you later," Twilight departed with Spike at her side. The guard ponies galloped to their captain as commanded. "What is it, sir?" one of them asked. "Spread out and search! There's something here that's wrong," Shining commanded, making a serious stare, his team followed the orders and began to check the area. "Uhh, Captain, what are we exactly looking for?" a unicorn on his team asked.
"I wish I could tell you, but just watch for anything out of the ordinary!" he explained. A pegasus guard called Wind was walking by his friend who was also a pegasus called Cloud Star while they searched for the disturbance. "Do you think the Captain is acting a bit funny?" Wind asked, looking back at Shining Armor. "I dont know, but- Hey!" Cloud Star shouted as her helmet was flung off of her head; revealing her purple mane. "Why did you do that for!?"
"What did I do!" he shouted back confused. "You just hit my helmet off! What were you thinking!?" she shoved her head aggressively against his, lowering him down.
"Whats going on here?" Shining Armor intervened in the dispute. "He just smacked my helmet off!" exclaimed Cloud; Shining gave a scolding look at Wind. "Why are you-Gah!" Shining Armor was pushed back down again. "Captain, are you alright?" Cloud asked concerned, but also confused by the anamoly.
"No! This is what we're looking for! It's some sort of invisible force!" exclaimed Shining Armor.
"Hahaha! 'Invisible force'? Are we taking about ghosts?" laughed Wind, who thought this was a joke. "Wind, shut your mouth! The Captain was just attack by this 'force'!" yelled Cloud, who was irritated by Wind. "Come on, do you believe ghosts are- Ahh!" Wind was also brought down and dragged across the grass. Wind looked back at who was dragging him, but there was nothing in sight; his eyes went wide and he started to panic, "Ahhhh! It's got me, it's got me!"
Shining Armor quickly recovered by the screams of his team member. "Wind, hold on!" The invisible force was dragging Wind towards to thick vegetation by the hospital. Cloud snorted and charged towards the force that had Wind by the hindlegs. Her eyes were concentrated to the threat, but she suddenly tripped; her face roughly slammed against the ground first and a dirt trail formed behind her. "Uuuuggghhh...."
"Cloud! Alright that's it!" Shining Armor's horn began to form the magical aura around it, he aimed carefully behind Wind; his thoughts concentrated to stop the unseen threat. Shining Armor was about to release a bolt of energy from his horn, but Wind was suddenly stopped being dragged, and everything seemingly went calm. Wind laid on the floor frantically checking his surroundings; rapidly inhaling the air. "Is it gone...? Is it?" he asked weakly.
"I don't know but help Cloud get back up! Lightning, Stone! Escort Wind to the hospital! And tell everypony about this!" commanded Shining Armor. Lightning and Stone were both unicorns, and quickly went to Wind to aid him first, then protect him while he floated, carrying Cloud on his forelegs . "Please be alright..." he pleaded for a safe condition.
Shining Armor watched his team go, and carefully kept his eye on them as they entered the hospital, but Stone remained outside and alerted the rest of the guards; Shining Armor sighed and looked down at his hooves, "What did we just encounter...? Ghosts? But they can't do this...they're ghosts."
CLUNK!
Cloud's helmet was thrown at Shining Armor against the back of his head. "WHAT THE!?" He turned around to see who was responsible for the action. "Now, who- what in Celestia's name are those things?" Shining stared dumbstruck at two figures who stood there mocking him; they were in metallic suits that completely concealed their bodies. The suits were colored red, yet parts of them were dark grey. And a slight shade of green in the dark grey areas. They also had a glowing red visor on their face. One was squatting down pointing two talons or claws, or anything that was concealed under the metallic texture, and the other one was foolishly waving at him.
"Hey, You two come here!" Shining Armor commanded in a loud voice. But the two continued to mock him, until another voice shouted at them, "Hey!" The two figures instantly disappeared from sight, Shining Armor's eyes went wide at the unbelievable sight. Twilight appeared down the path, and was just as confused as her brother, "Did you just see that!? They just vanished right out of sight!"
"I know...I know..." Shining Armor said, in a low tone. Twilight noticed her brother's voice, and knew something was wrong, "Are you okay? Did something happen?"
"I think those things were responsible for attacking my team members. She got injured and she's inside right now getting treated," Shining explained, looking back at the hospital. "Do you think there's more of them?" Twilight asked concerned over the recent events.
It has now been fourty minutes after the unidentified engagement with Shining Armor and his team. The security level has increased, and nopony or guard was allowed to travel on their own by the risk being attacked by these "metallic creatures" they have classified. Shining Armor was waiting by the room where Cloud Star was for any news on her condition, but Wind was pacing uneasy as he waited. "Captain, is she going to be alright!?" he nervously asked. Shining Armor still had the same expression; not gloomy, concerned or saddened, but a blank stare remained. "I don't know, Wind... her head was slammed against the ground violently. We'll just have the wait for what the doctor has to stay," said Shining Armor.
Wind went back to maneuvering impatiently while Lightning and Stone stood there vigil. Lightning watched Wind as he was in distress, and rolled his eyes thinking he was taking this situation a bit too far. Stone looked down the hallway seeing that they were unusually the only ponies in the hallway. "Weird..."
"What's weird?" asked Lightning.
"We're the only team in here... where is everypony?"
"Probably just around the corner," replied Lightning, not having much concern whether or not they were the only ones in the hallway. Stone observed the features of the hallway; the solid wooden doors, the white paint color on the walls, the chairs and small tables that were placed on each side to be used while waiting. But the one thing that stood out of the rest was a tan vase that had a rose towering from the opening, but slightly drooping. Stone made a slight smile at the unusual sight, yet very likable. Perhaps I should get that for my wife, she'll love it... he thought.
But the rose was suddenly taken out of the vase and dropped to the floor, then the magazine that was placed by the vase was opened, and the pages being flipped. "What the?" Stone was surprised by this very odd anomaly. The magazine was then floating in the air being spun in random directions.
"Hey, Stone is something wrong?" Lightning asked, noticing he was troubled by something.
"Yeah! Do you not see-" The magazine was gently placed back down on the table, as if nothing happened. "Forget it... I think saw something." Stone began to walk towards the area of disturbance. Lightning accompanied by his side to investigate. "Shouldn't we tell the Captain about this?" suggested Lightning, looking at Shining Armor watching Wind. "No, I think we'll just scare it off," replied Stone, making a serious stare.
"Umm...okay, but what exactly is this 'it'?" asked Lightning, confused.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you..."
Lighting and Stone were now by the table with the magazine and vase. Stone scanned his surroundings for any signs of the anomaly. Everything remained calm and silent, not a trace of any trouble, Lightning was still confused why Stone was acting suspicious about this area of the hospital. "Are you sure your imagination didn't just play some trick on you?"
"No... this-" Stone put a hoof to his forehead that was protected by his helmet. "I saw this magazine and rose move by themselves," he explained, embarrassed. Lightning stared at him bewildered, then trying to hold in his laughter. "Pppfftt...You think you saw these two things move! You're just getting paranoid that's all!"
"I'm being serious! They moved by themselves! What the?" Stone noticed behind lightning there a was figure leaning outwards from a turn down the hallway staring at them; the figure gave off a red glow from its head, it then disappeared by retracting itself from leaning. "Hey!" Stone shouted at the figure. Lightning stopped laughing by the sudden outburst from Stone, "Hey what's wrong with you!?" he asked.
"I actually just saw something! It looked like a creature with a glowing head or something!" Stone shouted, galloping where the creature was. Lightning hesitated to proceed with Stone, he looked back at Shining Armor, and decided to inform him of the situation, "Captain!" he shouted at him. "What is it?" asked Shining Armor, taking his eyes off Wind. "Stone is chasing after a thing he saw down the hall! I think he's just paranoid!" Lightning explained.
"Uuugghh... it better not be those things again," Shining Armor groaned, remembering the two figures in metallic suits. Both him and Lightning began to gallop after Stone. Stone was persuing this 'creature' that stared at him and Lightning for a few seconds, then withdrawing from sight, he slid around a turn and saw the creature walking down the hallway in a surprisingly calm way; almost appearing if it wasn't bothered or had an idea it was in trouble. The creature stopped at the end and turned around to face Stone head on, Stone came to a halt, and stared into the glowing red visor of this thing - a red visor and metallic suit was the body of this thing.
"What are you?" Stone asked, suprised.
The metal creature stood there, not reacting or making a sound to his question. Stone saw the creature instantly vanish from sight, now he was by himself left completely dumbstruck. "Woah! How did it... Huh?" Stone noticed a red scorpion tail symbol on the wall behind where the metal creature was, he cautiously approached the symbol to make sure the creature wasn't around. Stone saw red paint drip from the symbol, meaning it was still fresh. "What is this...? It's a scorpion tail, but what does this mean?" he asked himself. "Unity..." a voice whispered to his ear. Stone yelped and jumped away from the voice. "Okay! Who are you and what just said that!?"
"Over here..." the voice mischievously whispered from behind. Stone immediately turned around at the voice, but there was nothing in sight, he frantically moved his eyes left and right to find the source of the voice, but it kept talking to him, "There's no one here but you. Are you in the right mind? Hehehahah!" Stone looked down at his legs that were trembling by the fear he felt, his heart was beating rapidly, beads of sweat began to drip down from his head, but then the voice of Shining Armor shouted from behind, "Stone! What's going on?"
Stone slowly turned around at the captain still shaking and sweating, "C-Captain... I-I-I think that ghost is in here..." Lightning rolled his eyes at the belief of the ghosts, "Stone, there are no ghosts! What makes you think that there is one on here?" Stone took a step to the side to reveal the marking on the wall. Shining Armor and Lightning's eyes went wide as a marking they had never seen before was painted on the wall. The marking depicted a scorpion's tail within a chamfered triangle. "Captain... why is there a scorpion tail on the wall...?" asked Lightning, confused.
"I don't know, but... Stone, when was this here?" Shining Armor asked. Stone turned back at the marking, then looked back at the captain, "Well, this is how it goes... I saw a thing in a red suit and its head was also glowing red. I followed it here and...this where we are now."
Shining Armor realized the meaning of the 'thing in a red suit', he commanded Stone and Lightning to alert the hospital of this threat, "Go and tell everypony about this! We cannot risk any more ambushes from this thing! And make sure that thing in the room is secured!" Lightning and Stone galloped at the loud commanding voice of the captain. The two guards eventually disappeared from sight leaving Shining Armor by himself, he looked back at the symbol; the scorpion tail felt it meant something dark, beyond, the unknown. Why would this metal creature paint this on the wall? It doesn't make any sense, but what does it really want? Shelter, money, or is it just here to-
"Shining Armor..." a ghostly voice called his name. Shining turned his at the voice, and again, it was an empty sight. "What do you want!?" he yelled. A chair was lifted up and thrown against the wall, "Do not dare to speak in that voice...for it will only cause suffering for all," the voice announced. Shining Armor clenched his teeth when another chair was lifted up and thrown. "Fine! But what is it you want? Why are you attacking us!" he yelled again, but the sound of footsteps were approaching him. "We are from the beyond, a world you cannot imagine," the voice said.
"Beyond the heavens and cosmos," a second voice added.
"We come in great news—we are peace, we are unity," the main voice calmly explained. Shining Armor shook his head in disagreement of the voices' preachings, "You're lying! You have only attacked and damaged our guards, but why are you here?"
"Did we just not explain? We come to bring unity and peace to this world, but you defy it. We are nothing but shadows unless your kind accepts us, then we will arrive in true form," the second voice announced. Shining Armor closed his eyes as he took in the words of these things. They bring unity and peace? That's sound great, but are they lying or exaggerating? I better inform princess Celestia and Luna about this...
"Captain Shining Armor, we are departing from you. But remember, we bring grifts to the families of this world and to yours also. Farewell," the main voice said, the same exact echoing wobbling sound rang off the metal surfaces of the hallway. Shining Armor opened his eyes as the sounds faded away from being heard. Stone and Lightning came from around the corner down the hall. "Captain, we heard voices! Were you talking to somepony?" asked Lightning, concerned.
"...I wasn't talking to anything. You probably heard other guards talking...yeah," Shining said in a low voice.
"Captain, are you alright? You don't look too well," said Stone, noticing Shining Armor was troubled for some reason.
"I'm fine...I'm fine just thinking about something...something beyond us."
*******
"Uuugghhh..."
The GDI Jump Jet Trooper a.k.a. 'Mammoth' was awakening from a rough p after the encounter with the unique Cyborg Reaper. He slowly opened his eyes, the brightness of the room was slightly blinding him, but he began to adjust to the brightness. He realized that he was in a hospital room laying down on a bed. Please tell me I'm back home and not in a land where reality detaches...
Mammoth began to move his right arm, but felt pain when he moved it. "Nnngghhh! What the hell happened to me!?" Mammoth went back through his memories trying to remember the recent events that led to this. All he remembered was the Cyborg Reaper painfully strangling him. Damn, that Reaper almost killed me! But- The sound of hoofs approaching the room came close, Mammoth played to be unconscious. The door opened up, and revealed a pony that was white as snow with a pink mane and tail and a nurse cap. Mammoth observed this pony without being noticed by the tinted visor that was on his helmet which was luckily still placed on his head. Dammit! I'm still screwed! I'll just wait for the right moment, and I'm out of here...!
The pony placed a tray loaded with medicine onto a table by the bed, then came up next to Mammoth observing him curiously, "I wonder what you are? But you surely did help the Wonderbolts escape from that spider thing like they said." The nurse pony then went to the window and adjusted the curtains to dim the room a little. Mammoth recognized a red cross symbol that had hearts in the inner corners of it on the flank of the pony. Ok...weird symbols or logos on the back of them...
A unicorn entered the room, but was in a purple metallic armor with gold on the rims, it was also appearing troubled. "Nurse, we have to ask you to please keep your guard up for there is a possible threat in the hospital."
"What is the threat, Captain?" the nurse asked concerned. The unicorn looked around the room, as if it was suspicious of something. "Nurse, there is some sort of metallic creature that is able to camouflage with its surroundings. There is a symbol that was somehow painted on the wall!" the unicorn explained. Mammoth thought of the words of the unicorn, but the most that sounded familiar. A metallic creature that blends in with its surroundings? Weird, but- wait a minute! That means its a...
"Brotherhood..." Mammoth groaned weakly. The nurse and the unicorn immediately turned their heads at the 'thing' that was supposedly unconcious. "Brotherhood..." he groaned again. The two ponies rushed to the bedside to aid this creature. "Are you alright? Can you move?" asked the nurse pony. The creature slowly raised itself from the bed, and faced the nurse, then the unicorn, "Names? it asked. "Names?"
"What do you mean...oh! My name is Captain Shining Armor and this is..."
"Redheart...Redheart," she explained.
"Well, my name is Mammoth, but Captain Shining Armor and Redheart, I may have an idea who are these 'metallic creatures' are," Mammoth announced getting out from the bed without interference of the two ponies. "Who!? Who are these metallic creatures!?" Shining Armor desperately asked. "I don't have a exact clue, but when did you encounter these 'creatures'?" Mammoth asked. Shining Armor closed eyes remembering the things that attacked his team and the voices, "They attacked the guards on my team and there was a wierd symbol on the wall that was painted."
"What was this 'symbol' on the wall?" Mammoth suspiciously asked.
"It was scorpion tail painted red and inside some sort of triangle," Shining explained. Mammoth made a fist and slammed it on the table looking away from them, "Dammit! Just as I feared...Nod!" he shouted loudly. Shining Armor and Redheart winced at the loud voice of the Mammoth, he calmed himself down, and faced the two ponies again, "I'm sorry for what you just saw...it's just that I am enemies with Nod."
"That's what there called; those things that spoke to me?" asked Shining Armor.
Mammoth approached Shining Armor, and crouched down to his height ; putting his hands on Shining's shoulders making him uncomfortable, "What spoke to you? Mammoth desperately asked. "Who spoke to you!? Where they wearing suits in a black and red design, or were they completely machine but half human!?" Shining Armor was lost as Mammoth roughly shook him to get an answer. "I-I don't know! They were in red metal suits and they were able to turn invisible!" Shining yelped. Mammoth took his hands off him, and approached the exit. "Where are you going! You're not allowed to leave!" shouted Redheart.
"If you don't let me leave...you're all at risk," announced Mammoth.
"At risk of what?" questioned Shining Armor.
"Your lives and your Equestria," menacingly explained Mammoth. Shining Armor and Redheart were stunned by the shocking information. "What do you mean we're all at risk? asked Redheart. Shining Armor was confused by the explanation of Mammoth, but also by the words of Nod, "That can't be true! They promised peace and unity!" Mammoth shook his head in disappointment. "Why would you believe them! They only bring destruction and death of millions!"
"Death...?" Redheart said suprised.
"Anyone that doesn't believe in them! They'll kill if you don't believe in their 'god'!"
Mammoth placed a hand on the doorknob and turned it to step outside; mutlple guard ponies stood outside in the hallway. One of them turned around at him, and stared at him surprised, "Woah! Hey, you better stay right there!" he commanded. Mammoth rolled his eyes as the guard tried to stop him. "Get out of my way! I got some Nod to take care of!" The guard pointed his spear at him to threaten him, "Stop right there! What makes you think you can leave?" the guard sharply replied.
"Yeah, this!"
"What the- Ah!" The spear of the guard was smacked out of his hoof, and punched in the face by Mammoth—all the other guards surrounded him. "Oh you've got to be kidding me! You're all going to get ambushed by Nod!" Mammoth yelled. Shining Armor and Redheart came out of the room at the commotion. "Mammoth, stand down! Or else we'll have to put you under arrest!" yelled Shining Armor. Mammoth made a fist wanting to punch every guard in his way in order to stop Nod. "Captain Shining Armor...you must let me go, or else-"
"Ah! Its got me! Its got me! a guard cried out.
All of them looked at the guard, but it shockingly turned out to be Wind. He was being dragged across the floor by the invisble enemy again. Mammoth maliciously approached the invisble threat, and shoved any guards in his way. But a guard stood infront and pointed his spear. "Hand it over," Mammoth ordered, motioning his fingers towards his palm. "Give it to me."
"You're not going anywhere!" the guard shouted at him.
"Fine...think fast!"
"Wait, what? Hey!" Mammoth grabbed the spear and shoved the guard to the side. He aimed the spear where the unseen figure was, and raised it in the air to throw the lethal weapon. "Not so tough now..." Mammoth threw the spear at the figure, and had impacted impact. But only a piece of metal that released electrical static was caught by the tip. "Nice try trooper...work on your aim, then maybe you can kill me," a voice mischievously taunted. Mammoth made a fist, then pointed a finger at the direction of the voice. "Stop hiding and be a man, Nod!"
"Your words are false, no affect, no meaning...we will meet again, GDI. But is that Captain Shining Armor among you?" the voice asked. The guards stared at Shining Armor confused; he became very nervous. "Captain Shining Armor, do not be troubled by us, but this is to all! We are Nod, we bring gifts from beyond your world which is: unity and peace. We will arrive with prosperity for you and your families. But for now, farewell." Footsteps began to walk way from them, and Wind was released from its grip. Mammoth turned back at the ponies who were shocked by sudden event, "Don't believe them! They speak lies! They'll only cause destruction and death!" he cried out loudly. "Captain, you have to believe me!"
Shining Armor was speechless and could not find a way on who spoke the truth. Wind got back up sweating, then galloping towards the guards for safety. "Mammoth, I know how you're troubled, but just calm down and let us think this through," replied Shining Armor."
"You're right, Captain. I regret my behavior, and let us start anew, it's just I hate those type of soldiers of Nod: Chameleon Spies."
"Wait! They're not ghosts!?" yelped Wind.
"No, they are soldiers who are weapon less, but that doesn't mean they're dangerous. They can easily infiltrate the most heavily defended areas unseen and cause chaos in the blink of an eye thanks to their stealth suits," Mammoth calmly explained. The ponies were surprised by the stunning explanation of these Nod soldiers. "But if they bring unity and peace... Why did they attack us?" asked Wind, in a irritated tone. "They are really mischievous, that is one of their tactics to cause damage," replied Mammoth. The guard ponies were mumbling with each other about the explanations of the Chameleon Spy soldiers.
"But, Captain, where did you take my jet pack and my weapon?" Mammoth asked, wanting his equipment back. "Your items are in this room. Come on, I'll show you," said Shining Armor. Mammoth approached him, the guards moved out of his way as he came close. Shining Armor and Mammoth walked down the hallway where his equipment was. "So, Mammoth...you said this word called 'man' what does that mean?" Shining asked, curiously.
" 'Man' is another name for my race called Human. But is there any species like us on the planet?" Mammoth asked, in hopes there were humans dwelling in the area. "I'm sorry, but no...there is nothing like you. It's just you and those Chameleon spies like you said, but there was also that spider thing we got notified about," replied Shining Armor. Mammoth realized what the 'spider thing' was, "Captain, do you have any info on where that spider thing went to?"
"Umm... No, we just got a message from the Wonderbolts saying they were attacked by it, and some of them got injured. Wait, you were there! Do you know what it is?"
"Yeah, I do, that spider is called a Cyborg Reaper, it's a soulless killing machine! But the one I got in a fight with was very...different than most Reapers," said Mammoth, looking away a bit confused on the unique Reaper. "Are they armed with weapons? Are they heavily armored?" asked Shining Armor, desperately wanting more information on the Cyborg Reaper. "Cyborg Reapers are part of Nod, but they are half-man, half-machine: a true nightmare. They have missile launchers that replace their- or what was their arms, and they can fire nets to capture any victims so they can easily be eliminated or captured. But the one I encountered was way different; slightly more human and acted differently, yet it has the darkness of machine in it," Mammoth explained.
"Wow... That's kind of disturbing, actually. But why would Nod do this?" Shining Armor asked, bothered by the dark actions Nod commits. "It's Nod, what did you expect? But, please do not listen to them. They'll only betray you!" Mammoth pleaded to prevent Shining Armor from becoming a victim of Nod. "Hey, don't worry! I won't listen to them since you told me about their ways, and I don't think my wife Cad- Mmmppphhh!" Shining Armor felt a gloved hand on his mouth. "Don't say anything that's important to you... Who knows if 'they' are still around," warned Mammoth, then letting him go.
"Phew! Well, thanks for the heads up their, but this is where your equipment is." Shining Armor opened a door with his magic, and Mammoth's equipment was placed in a corner of the room with other medical items surrounding it. Mammoth immediately entered the to recover his weapon and jet pack, he strapped his jet pack on and attached his chain gun under his right forearm. "Thank you, Captain. Now, I'm ready to fight Nod, but I ask for your permission to stay with your guards to prevent another Nod intrusion if they show up again," said Mammoth.
"You may, I'm glad that you're actually the good guy and not the bad one. But I guess I should take you to explain all of this to the rest of the guard to make sure they're not influenced by Nod. Oh, and tell me more about this weaponry you have and Nod's, too," said Shining Armor. Mammoth explained the arsenals if both factions while they exited out of the room, and proceeded back to the rest of the guard before anything else happened.
*******
Outside of the hospital was a clearing that was nicely trimmed and well maintained. The grass gently swayed with the air, the sun brightly shined upon this clearing, birds sang their song in the shaded trees—'peace' traveresed in the area. A ripple of electricity formed above the grass, then an outline of a figure came to view: a Chameleon spy revealed itself, then another spy also became visible. The two observed this unknown environment, the thoughts of wander flowed through their minds. "My brother, what is our next step into these bizzare lands?" the second spy asked. The main spy sighed, then looked at his 'brother', "I do not contain the answer. Gaining support from the populace is likable, but Captain Shining Armor was almost within our grasp."
"It is the GDI soldier that blinds him from Kane's light. We must eliminate him in order to continue our purpose, but we must locate our cybernetic brother, he has the trust of the unicorn, but we must also find a way to gain their trust just like our brother," stated the second spy.
The main spy looked up to the sky, and saw a pegasus fly across at a high speed, but suddenly a object was chasing after it; a smoke trail was coming from the object. The object turned out to be a missile, and was nearing the pegasus. Fly away you mythical creature that deserves not to exist with man...
Boom!
"Aaaaahhh!"
"Ooh, is that the second unlucky pegasus today?" mischievously asked the second spy.
"Perhaps, but let us continue on our journey." The main spy cloaked himself from sight with his partner commencing the action, as well. The two trailed off into the region unseen and quiet. "Through the technology of peace..." said the second spy.
Dinky continued to show who Ron the town of Ponyville and most of its residents. Everything had surprisingly gone well, despite the monstrous appearance of Ron, he had improved his attitude and ways around the ponies, even though in his mind he strongly wished to terminate some of them. The two 'friends' were traveling up a large hill on the outskirts of Ponyville. "Well, that's Sweet Apple Acres over there," Dinky pointed a hoof at the large farmland. "That's where they grow apple for us to eat."
Ron obsereved the agricultural area, and used the zoom optics in his cybernetic eyes for better close up view; vast fields and rows of apple trees were upon his sight. "Who owns this property, Dinky?" he asked curiosly by the large size of the land which he thought would be a powerful pony. "The Apple family owns the land. They're the only ponies who work there, but they do get help once in a while," replied Dinky.
"Mmm..."
"Do you want to meet them?" she asked.
Ron stood there silent as he decided whether or not he should be introduced to the Apple family, "Very well then, I shall meet this 'Apple' family you speak of."
"Ok, they're very nice and kind, I bet you'll like them."
The two began to walk down the hill, Dinky had a smile on her face, but Ron kept his menacing stare as he traversed the different areas of Ponyville. As they got closer, the trees grew larger in size, and the fields sank down behind the large trees. Ron scanned every object that came across his vision: plants, animals and natural land formations. He believed it would be useful to him in the long run. Wooden fences that enclosed this farmland stretched all the way to the end of the last field and apple tree; a large gate was the front entrance to the property owned by the Apple family. "Were here, I hope you like the apples they grow here," said Dinky.
"I do not eat any food, Dinky, for I am machine," Ron explained, staring down at her.
"Ohh, right...Well, uhh...I hope you at least like the family here."
Ron and Dinky passed through the gate, and onto the path that crossed between the aisles of tress. A red farmhouse was standing vividly at the end of the path, but a pale yellow, dark red-maned filly with a bow, was carrying a bucket a bucket in her mouth, and placed it by a tree; Ron placed the targeting crosshairs on the filly by his Nod-machine instincts. "Hi, Applebloom!" Dinky nicely greeted. Apple Bloom turned around and was surprised by the appearance of Dinky. "Howdy, Dinky! What are y-" Apple Bloom looked up at a large, metal spider creature by Dinky, "W-who is y-your friend here?" she said in a frightened tone and shaking.
"Oh, this is Ron! I'm showing him around Ponyville, because he's new here," Dinky happily explained.
"Ohh... Uhh...okay?" Applebloom felt the fear crawling up her spine, Ron stared her with those menacing eyes. Apple Bloom nervously shuffled a leg as a long moment of silence passed by. "Are you friends with Dinky?" Ron asked, pointing a metal finger at Apple Bloom. "Uhh... Yes...?" she said unsure by the fear, Ron stared at Apple Bloom in a suspicious way. "I see..."
"Apple Bloom! Where are ya?" a voice called out for her.
"Over here, Applejack!" she called back.
A orange pony with a cowboy hat appeared from behind one of the apple trees nearby. "There ya are, Ah was looking all ov- WHAT IN TARNATION ARE YOU?" Applejack was petrified to see a large metal monster with her sister and surprisingly Dinky, too. "Wow, I really need to show you more around in public," said Dinky, tired of ponies being surprised by Ron, "Well, this is Ron, I'm just giving him a tour around town."
Applejack was speechless and mesmerized. "Greetings, the one called 'Applejack'," Ron resumed the conversation. "Infi- Applejack are you alright?" Applejack was still frozen, but shook her head to snap out of it. "Oh, uhh... Sorry, don't know what happened to me there. But Ah'm Applejack, and welcome to Sweet Apple Acres, 'Ron'."
"...Infidel."
"What did you just say?"
"Nothing..."
Applejack glared at Ron as she suspected he called her something. Ron simply glanced over to Dinky to avoid any unnecessary 'hostility'. "Is your brother here?" asked Dinky. Applejack looked away from Ron, and at Dinky, "He's here, but he's working in the field."
"Brother? What is the stallion's name?" asked Ron.
"Big Macintosh," replied Apple Bloom.
" 'Macintosh'... Strange, but worthy."
Dinky took her thoughts away from the conversation, and something on her mind was missing or bothering her. This is really getting weird. But there's something missing here, what was I going to do or go? Oh, that's it! Dentist appointment... Dinky came out her thoughts and back to her friends. But it was awkwardly quiet. "Uhh... We have to go no. I have to go to the dentist today."
"Well, you better go. Don't want to be late to an appointment, now do we?" nervously said Applejack, feeling uncomfortable in the presence of Ron. "Come on, Ron. Let's get back home so my mom can take me to the dentist. Bye, Applejack and Apple Bloom!" Dinky departed with Ron following behind her, except Ron looked back at Applejack and said something, "Infidel..."
"What did ya just say!?"
Ron turned his head, and continued the departure, Applejack made a more serious glare at the cyborg. Ron smirked as he annoyed Applejack. They continued back the same way they come from, and Dinky strangely had no signs of fear towards Ron. She glanced up at him, and observed a single wire on each side of his head that connects to his body. I wonder what's that for...?But then she looked down at his legs that were mysteriously covered in red at the tip. "Ron, why are your legs red right there?" she pointed a hoof at them. Ron looked down at his mechanical legs, and noticed the red stains on them," I accidentally stepped on paint before I arrived at your residents."
"Weird, I don't remember seeing anypony painting around the house. But I heard some screams from the woods nearby... Did you have something to do with it?"
"I do not have any association to these 'screams' you speak of."
"Hmm... Well I hope whatever happened turned out okay."
Ron observed the red stains on his legs: it was blood. He remembered the events that happened in the forest that morning.
-----------------
Ron traversed through the woods to rendezvous with Dinky as he planned to do. The sun had risen from horizon; it's rays of light casted down upon the tree canopies, mist hovered above the ground, and the sounds of the creatures of the night were still affect. The morning light became brighter bu the minute. Ron ignored all factors around him, except for any signs of trouble, of course. He shoved vegetation out fo the way that had grown large enough to his chest. But he made a unexpected discovery: two ponies sleeping in sleeping bags by a campfire that had been extinguished by the cold night air. Ron quietly maneuvered around the ponies, but accidentally stepped on a twig. "Cursed..."
"Huh?" the mare woke up running her left eye. Ron hid himself in the large vegetation to prevent being himself, he watched the mare get herself out of the sleeping bag, and placed the targeting crosshairs on the pony. The mare then observed her surroundings for the sound, "Hmm..." she turned in the direction of Ron, and her expression turned into suspicion. " What the?"
"How does it know I'm hidden?" I am comple-" Ron looked down to see the glow of his neon blue lights giving away his position, he shut them down but it was too late, the pony was approaching him. Ron dragged a leg back and lifted in the air in case he and to strike. The mare came too close, and looked closely into the brush. She didn't notice anything, until three red dotted eyes stared at her, "Huh? Ahh-" Ron impaled her between the eyes and dragged her into the brush; the stallion that was sleeping woke up by the half-scream of the mare, "Honey, what's wrong? Honey?"
The stallion got up and started to panic, "Ruby, where are you!?" He shouted again, but there was no response from 'Ruby. But then he heard strange crunching and ripping noises from the large brush by the campfire. "Ruby, is that you?" The noises stop, and silence took over. He slowly approached the brush, but the sound of something shuffling through the vegetation quickly passed by him. "Ruby, if this is a joke to scare me... I'm going to admit its working." The stallion was now right infront of the brush, and peeked through it: blood-stained dirt and plants were the only things. "Woah!" he fell back from the gruesome sight. "What's going on!?"
THUD!
The sound of something heavy from behind shook him. The stallion felt his teeth chattering, and the sound of growling by whatever it was behind him. He nervously looked up, and his heart started to race at the sight of a large spider creature. "Ahhhhh!" The spider creature lifted a leg, and struck him in the left foreleg. "Aaahh-mmmpphh!!" The stallion felt his mouth bring covered by a cold metal limb. "Silence, Pony!" the spider grumbled. "Now, I wonder what I shall do to you?"
"Let m-" Ron impaled him in the heart, before he finsihed what he had to say, then let him slide off his leg when there was no sign of life. "Your 'sacrifice' shall be rewarded..." Ron left the disturbing site, and made his way to meet Dinky, the house from last night's encounter came to view with the filly unicorn standing by the fence awaiting for his arrival. "Let us hope you do not commit the same errors as those two had done..."
-----------------
They were now nearing Ponyville, strangely there were royal guards on the path. "I wonder why is there so many guards in Ponyville today?" asked Dinky. Ron came out of his thoughts, and looked down at Dinky confused. "Did you say something, Dinky?"
"Yeah, I said why is there so many guards, is princess Celestia here today?"
Ron instantly glanced up ahead at the alerting sight of two guards that matched the same ones at the hospital. He felt a shock within him, and the machine killer instinct kicked in, and aimed his weapons; his right human eye twitched, and was about to fire upon them. But he shook his head and snapped out of it, "Ugh...What happened to me there?"
"I hope we don't get into trouble with them, since you know...you kind of look scary," Dinky sheepishly said.
Ron had to avoid the guards to prevent any interference in the most critical time of his plan. "Let us traverse this way, Dinky." He stepped off the path and headed to the nearby woods. "Ron, you're acting really weird, is this normal for you?" Dinky asked, as Ron continued to approach the woods. "Hey, where are you going!" Dinky chased after the large cyborg, she caught up and grabbed one of his back legs to stop his advancement. "It's just a few guards! What's the big deal about them!" she shouted, but only made a dirt trail where her legs dragged and being slammed up and down. "Ron w-Ow! Why d-Oof! Can you sl-Ow!"
Ron looked back to make sure it was safe, and came to halt as it appeared clear. "Uuuugghhh...." he looked down at his back legs to see Dinky, who was dizzy and losing her balance when she let go of him; she collapsed on the floor still dazed. "Are you alright, Dinky?" Ron snickered. Dinky got back up but still had a lost of balance, "Why did you runaway from those guards! Are you afraid of them?"
"No, Dinky, it is very complex to explain the reason for avoiding the guards you speak of."
"They're not going to hurt but maybe be afraid, that's all. But why is it so...'complex'?"
Ron shrugged as answer to Dinky' questions; she rolled her eyes, and continued to walk ahead of him. Ron followed right away. Another path was directly ahead, nopony was also travelling among it, until two pegasus guards suddenly came to view. Ron hid himself from sight in some large brush, and made sure he turned off the lights on his armor, but Dinky was still walking towards them. One of the guards noticed her and became suspicious of a child coming out of the woods alone, "Where do you come from, child?"
"I'm walking with my friend, Ron." Dinky smiled, but realized he wasn't there. "Uhh...Ron? Where are you?"
"Where is your friend, 'Ron'?" the second guard asked.
Ron stared at the two guards with anger, he lifted the gattling gun under his left forearm, his thoughts were concentrated to kill both of them. Do it! Listen to the screams of their own extinction!...a voice spoke in his head. But again he shook himself out of the sudden violent actions. "Ron, you can come out! They wont do anything!" Dinky shouted, but Ron remained hidden. "Listen, we don't have time, but have you seen a giant metal spider creature?" asked the guard. "And if you do, please contact any authorities nearby." The two guards took off into the air, leaving Dinky behind alone by herself on the road. Ron emerged from his hiding spot; Dinky had an angry stare. "Why are you so afraid of the guards!?"
"The reason is very complicated, like I have said before."
"Next time, I'm going to drag you out of your hiding spot!"
Dinky stormed off, and as for Ron, his plan went as orchestrated. Dinky appears to grow dislike when I diverge away from any authorities. Perhaps it is time to follow her orders, despite the consequences. I should enjoy the easy targets if they do engage me!...Dinky's home was now in full view, the Doctor was outside waiting with a newspaper in his mouth. Ron had a sense it was trouble. "Dinky!" the Doctor shouted, "Where have you been?"
"Umm...giving Ron a tour around town."
"Tell me next time, okay? I got worried where you went off to!"
"Sorry, but we had to cut the tour short, because I have the dentist appointment, remember?"
"Yes, Dinky, I do, and I will be taking you today, since your mother is working right now. But can you step inside in for a minute...I need to talk with Ron." He made a glare at Ron, Dinky complied and left the two behind to speak. The Doctor grabbed the newspaper with a hoof and opened it for Ron to see. "What is this?" he said in a annoyed voice, "How do you explain this?" Ron observed closely to the section of the paper, and saw a Nod logo painted on a wall in the picture that a reporter took, "It cannot be! There are others around here, too? I must find them!" The Doctor closed the newspaper and made a serious stare at him, "Why did you do this? Have you gone mad!?"
"I have not created this art that is in the photo."
The Doctor frowned, he opened the newspaper to the same page again, and pointed at the logo in the picture, then at the one on Ron's chest; he looked down at his chest, and crossed his arms and looked away annoyed, "I may bear the same mark as in the photo, but I have no connection."
"Ron, you obviously did this! Why don't you just admit it! Are you afraid to admit your mistakes!"
THUD!
Ron knocked the Doctor the floor, and slammed a spider leg close to his neck and came face-to-face with him, "I AM SUPERIOR DESIGN...I HAVE NO MISTAKES OR FLAWS." The Doctor was sweating and his heart pounding against his rib cage. But he noticed a change in Ron's voice and his red dotted eyes changed blue for a second, then back to red. "IF YOU BELIEVE I AM A PEST IN YOUR PRESENCE AND WANT ME BE RIDDEN, THEN I WILL MURDER YOU..."
"N-Now Ron...hehe, oh dear...we can settle this like gentlemen, can we?"
"I AM NO 'GENTLEMEN' AS YOU SPEAK...I AM THE NEXT STEP I-"
"Ron, do want to come with us?" Dinky came back outside form the house; Ron changed back to his 'normal' stance and glanced over to Dinky, "Huh? What? Oh, the trip to the dentist? Of course..." Dinky made a wide smile, but was confused why the Doctor was on the ground. "Uhh...Doctor, why are you on the ground?"
"Oh you know, just relaxing here a bit, that's all, hehe..." he made a quick look at Ron, then to Dinky. "Ok...? But let's go! We're going to be late!" Dinky started to make her way to the dentist'. The Doctor got back up, and stared at Ron angrily, but saw there was something different with him; he was looking at his metal hands that were in front of his face. Although his faceplate concealed any expression, the Doctor could tell he was confused about something, "Are you alright, Ron?"
"...No, Doctor...There is nothing wrong with me, but what happened a moment ago?"
"You don't remember? You almost ki-" his eyes went wide when he realized something drastic about Ron. "Well, lets just say we're going to take Dinky to the dentist, that's all."
"Is that what happened? Very well, then..."
Ron and the Doctor went off to catch up with Dinky, the Doctor didn't glare at Ron, but stare at him in surprisingly concerned way. He doesn't remember what happened right now? How doesn't he know!? Could it be the strange behavior that suddenly commenced when I- wait at minute...that's it! He his suddenly filled with rage and power when someone gets him to an angry level! How I've should've known! But he is nothing like any machine...
"Ron, are you feeling okay?" No response came from Ron. "Ron?"
Ron stood there not making a expression or moving at all. "Ron, what's wrong with you? You've been acting weird today!" Dinky shouted at him. "Ron, hellllooo...?" He still stood there motionless. "Doctor what's wrong with him!?"
"I don't know, Dinky. Ron!"
------------------
***...Incoming Transmission...Standby!...***
***...A message to any Brotherhood of Nod forces in the region! Cyborg Commando unit C-175-8, broadcasting this message to all Brotherhood of Nod forces! I repeat, this is Cyborg Commando unit C-175-8 broadcasting this message to any Nod forces!...***
***...Acquiring coordinates to friendly Nod unit...Standby!...***
A flickering blue dot represented the Cyborg Commando on the display in Ron's cybernetic eyes, he immediately took off to the location without delay. "Ron, where are you going!" the Doctor yelled at him.
"Ron, comeback! What are you doing!" Dinky yelled.
Ron continued to proceed to his destination despite the loud voices of the two acquaintances. "Blast, I was afraid he was going to do something like that!" the Doctor looked away, for he felt responsible not doing anything to stop Ron.
"Will he come back, Doctor?" Dinky asked, concerned.
"Oh don't worry, Dinky. He will return...eventually."
Ron continued to persue the coordinates that were uploaded that lead to the Cyborg Commando nearby, despite all the yelling and shouting at him. The Doctor shut his eyes and looked away shaking his head, Dinky had a angry stare as Ron completely ignored her voice. The Doctor looked back, and stomped a hoof on the ground. Why didn't I do anything! The machine is going to get himself in trouble!...
"Doctor, are we going to go after him?"
"Dinky... I don't know if we should, but let him be. He will return, I guarantee it."
The cyborg was now out of sight, Dinky grunted and began the trip to the dentist appointment again. The Doctor continued to stare in the direction where Ron had disappeared, then caught up to the Dinky. He looked down, seeing she was filled with anger. "Dinky, I know it's frustrating but just let him go for now."
Dinky sighed and turned her head away, "Why would he do this? He's been acting weird everytime he sees a royal guard!"
The Doctor looked up to the sky, and thought about the strange behaviour of Ron, "Everytime a guard is in the way? That's very strange, but why would he...Uh oh..."
"What? What is it Doctor?" Dinky asked.
"If he's been avoiding any authoritive force...Dinky, he's hiding something!"
"Wait? What do you mean?" Dinky was confused.
"If he's been hiding from any guards, he likely did something very terrible!"
Dinky was surprised by such a stunning answer, sure Ron had been acting very awkward, but not in a way if he had committed any crime. She closely thought if Ron had been hiding a secret from her and her family, the answer debated back and forth in her mind. "Well... everypony has a secret, why is it wrong if he has one?"
"Dinky, the 'secret' that I'm focusing on is if he has done something wrong, like he attacked somepony, or he destroyed something!"
"When he comes back, I'll see if he something 'terribly' wrong." Dinky said bluntly.
"If you do, please be careful."
********
Ron went at full speed to meet up with the Cyborg Commando that had recently sent out a distress call. Ron viewed the display in his cybernetic eyes, and saw the blue dot moving away, then a red upside triangle appeared. More and more triangle suddenly started to appear, the Cyborg Commando was getting surrounded by the threats.
"Cursed! They shall be murdered if they dare attack one of us!"
BOOM!
An explosion sounded in the distance, Ron armed all weapon systems for the battle that might come. Another explosion was heard, then the screams of a pony came right after. Ron had a smirk as he enjoyed the cries of pain of the populace. A pony came out of a bush nearby—bruised and beaten but it turned out to be a royal gaurd. The guard galloped in retreat looking back at the battle, but didn't notice Ron, and slammed into him. He rubbed his muzzle but then noticed the large cyborg towering over him, "No, No! You're one of them! I got away from three, then I bump into another one!"
"You have interesting information, I see. I will interrogate shortly," Ron menacingly announced.
"Wait! What ar-Gugh!"
Ron tightly grabbed him by the throat almost to the point of suffocation, and dragged him to the sounds of battle. The guard flailed to get away form the cybernetic monster, but it was no use against his strength. Ron raised a fist and punched him to stop his troublesome actions. The guard immediately gave up by the solid fist to his face. Ron came up a ridge, and looked down at the commotion; the Cyborg Commando was blasting every structure and pony in sight.
"Run small mammals! RUN," the cyborg announced.
Ron was very much pleased by the destruction and chaos by his cyborg brother. The Cyborg Commando turned to the left, and blasted a cart to ashes. Ron lifted the guard up in the air and aimed him towards the gun where Cyborg stood. "What are you doing!? Put me down!" the guard frantically begged.
"No, this where your interrogation begins!"
"Wait no! Ahhhh!" the guard screamed as he was thrown towards the Cyborg Commando, he saw the dirt floor rapidly approaching, then felt a sharp, rough pain all over his body by the impact. Ron then jumped downwards and slammed next to the beaten guard. The Commando turned around, and was surprised to see another member of Nod standing before him.
"Is that you? Ron?" he asked.
"Yes, it is me...'Andy'," Ron replied.
"I thought I was the only Brotherhood member trapped on this forsaken world."
"I also share these beliefs, but..." Ron looked down at the guard who was beyond terrified by both of them, "...this one has some knowledge that might be useful."
"The small mammal contains data that is beneficial? Let us see what the male guard knows!"
Andy grabbed the guard with his free left hand, and raised him in front of his 'brother'. Ron closely inspected the guard, then placed a few fingers under his chin, "You said you witnessed three of 'them', I know the 'three' is this one here with us, but who are the other two?"
"Umm...Uhh..." the guard couldn't speak a word by the fear he felt within, "T-the other two were ghosts, but you have to believe me!"
"Ghosts? GHOSTS? Do not make out a fool out of us! We will TERMINATE If you do!" Andy aggressively threatened.
The guard turned about to be Stone from Shining Armor's team, those words echoed in his head as if they never ended. Terminate...Terminate...Terminate...He suddenly remembered his wife, and his daughter who was just a filly. The thought of himself leaving his family forever was unbearable. He was violently shaken out of his thoughts by the machine holding him.
"Answer the question!"
"There were two of these 'ghosts'... they promised unity and peace, and also there was a symbol on the wall. Just like yours!" Stone pointed a weak foreleg at the logo on Ron's chest.
Ron looked down at his chest to see the scorpion tail of Nod, and realized what he meant. "These 'ghosts' you speak of they are..."
"Chameleon spies," answered Andy.
"Now I remember! That's what they're called! Dang, why did- Ahh!" Stone felt the spider machine punch him in the gut, then in the back by the one holding him. The spider machine swiped a metal arm to the left, Stone was immediately thrown to the side.
He tried to get back up, but his aching body prevented him to do so. The shadow of the metal monsters loomed over him, then they appeared at his sides. The one that stood upright came in front, and stared down at him, it slammed a heavy metal foot against him, "You are nothing now."
"Well played, brother. But where did you appear on this planet?" Ron asked as they began to walk down a unknown path.
"I do not know. I recall being in a desert environment similar to Earth, but more brighter and active with life. There I got into a scuffle with the populace, and they simply were nothing but ashes the next second," Andy 'happily' explained.
"These species are foolish to engage us. They will only meet their own doom, but I have something important to inform you about it," Ron announced.
"What is that is most urgent?" asked Andy.
"I have gained a small amount of trust with one of the indigenous here. It is a mere child but has vast knowledge of this planet! Her parents have welcomed me into their household. I have also come across the behaviors of these ponies."
"Ponies? Strange for this race, but go on."
"The child is called 'Dinky'. She had shown kindness and generosity, she deserves full respect. But the male guardian of that is only referred as the 'Doctor' has a dislike in me for a strange reason," Ron explained, "They become very obnoxious when you embarrass them like I did to the 'Doctor', how humerous it was!"
"Have you seen any disturbances in the region?" Andy asked.
"I have discovered a GDI soldier, he has sided with the pests of this world, they intend to locate us, specifically me, since I did attack him along with these pegasus fliers called 'Wonderbolts'.
Andy clenched his hand into a metal fist at the hearing of a GDI presence, "Then I will terminate him along with the population!
"Careful for the actions you commit, it is best if we do not engage any 'civilians'. It will only create tension between us and the rest of this planet," said Ron.
"Very well...all weapon systems shall be on hold untill further notice."
Ron looked back to the smoldering remains of the destruction Andy had caused. No sign of anything moving, just small flames flickering and ashes covering the rest of the area. The guard continued to remain unconscious, but a figure disappearing behind a tree caught Ron's eye, "Hold up...I saw something."
"What did you see?" Andy asked turning around to see.
"Follow me," Ron commanded, the two cyborgs cautiously approached the tree. Ron pointed a finger to the right, motioning Andy to got that way. They both slowly peeked around to see who it was. "YOU!" Andy exclaimed.
"Ahhh!"
Andy grabbed a pegasus who was hiding from them, he raised her up in the air in front of Ron, just like what they did to Stone. The pegasus was a filly who had a orange coat-color and a purple mane. The pegasus was now face to face with the machine that held her, she saw her own reflection in its shiny red dome-like visor. The machine then released her, and let her fall to the ground, "This is one is pest," said Andy.
"This one does not appear to be a threat," Ron said, staring down at the terrified filly.
The pegasus lied on the floor, petrified by these machines. Ron grabbed the pegasus by the tail, and held her upside down, "What is your name child?"
"Umm...Umm..." she couldn't speak.
"Do you not have the capability to speak? You did scream earlier," Andy recalled.
"Umm...Scootaloo...?"
" 'Scootaloo'? Fine, but we shall let you go with a warning," Ron said, "If you report us to any authorities, then you shall meet your END."
Scootaloo rapidly nodded her head in compliance. Ron released her, and she scurried away. Andy had a concealed smirk under the metal armor he wore. Ron and Andy walked away once Scootaloo disappeared from sight. The two cyborgs suddenly heard a sound in the sky, they looked up and saw six pegasus fliers flying overhead in a v-formation. They left a trail of smoke that appeared to give off small lightning as it lasted. Andy closely observed these odd fliers, then turned towards Ron, who looked uncomfortable.
"Are those the 'Wonderbolts' you have mentioned?" Andy asked.
"Yes, they are the ones who attacked me and supported the GDI soldier," Ron grumbled,"...They annoy me."
"Do not trouble yourself with them. We can terminate them when we get the chance," said Andy.
"Perhaps, what a interesting challenge it might be."
Andy felt the urge to eliminate the Wonderbolts, but it wasn't the time to end them, yet. The sound that was almost similar to a jet boomed over them, and the two cyborgs looked up again. Andy readied the plasma cannon he had, and Ron armed all weapon systems. They both scanned the area for the likely threat.
"I believe there is GDI aircraft in the airspace. Should we engage or remain hidden?" asked Andy.
"This planet has no trace of any GDI technology, only the GDI soldier is here. But the sound may have possibly came from the Wonderbolts," said Ron. "Let us see what the flying 'vermin' are up to, but remain hidden."
Ron and Andy started to approach the direction where the sound came from. The vegetation concealed there position, and their footsteps were quiet. Another jet sound was heard, and sounded if it directly passed over them. "Hurry! Let us see what they are doing," said Ron.
"Aerial activity must be ripe in this area," Andy stated.
"It is we mu- that is where they originate from!" Ron pointed a finger at the mountain where he first discovered the Wonderbolts and the GDI soldier. Andy slowly gazed upwards at the towering mountain. Multiple clouds of different sizes gently floated around the top, and many fliers were seen landing and taking off. Andy also noticed how the clouds actually formed houses and structures. A group of pegasus fliers flew above them, and immediately pulled upwards to the clouds.
"I gained access to the mountain by crawling against the rockwall, it should be 'fun' if I appear again up there...but with some backup this time," said Ron staring at Andy with a evil smirk.
"I know what your thinking, brother...I would 'like' to meet the Wonderbolts," said Andy.
"Let us begin, but we must find another route to enter. There is too many pegasi in the air."
Ron and Andy tried their best to hold in their laughter as they approached the mountain. But some of the humor managed to escape. Ron saw cave what led inward, and saw light appearing from within. He looked at Andy, who also had the same idea. That is the gateway to gain access....
The light suddenly got brighter within the cave, the two cyborgs stopped and stared at this light confused. The light suddenly dimmed, and faded away. Now, there was only natural light shining downward from an opening in the cave.
"Did the light in the cave suddenly go to a odd amount of brightness?" asked Ron.
"It has but I believe it's the natural light coming downward from the ceiling," replied Andy.
The two cyborgs entered the cave, and observed then features it contained. Dark grey rocks and walls made up most of the area, some plants growing off the walls. Ron stood in the light shining from above, and stared upwards at the brightness.
"This is the only way to go up. I can easily climb the walls like any 'spider' would do, but as for you..." Ron looked at Andy who didn't have the capability to climb surfaces the way he could, "I will throw you up."
"Wait, 'throw me'? Brother, you do not have the strength to lob this unit up there," said Andy.
"Let us try. Come here!"
"Remove your han- Urgh!"
Ron grabbed Andy with both powerful mechanical arms and raised him in the air. He carefully aied at the opening above. "Here we go!"
"You shall put this un- Ah!"
Ron tossed Andy, and saw him disappear into the light. The next thing he heard was Andy's heavy mechanical body slamming onto the floor above. Ron acknowledge the throw was a success, and placed a spider leg against a wall and started to climb upwards. Ron poked his head above the edge, and saw Andy looking down at him angry—even though it wasn't visible, he could still tell. Ron then fully emerged from the hole and planted his legs on the grass.
"Now, the task should be easier. I can carry you up there if you like, or revert back to throwing you," Ron said placing a hand on Andy's right shoulder. Andy removed his hand, then stared up above, "We shall revert to throwing me."
"Very well then prepare for 'takeoff'!"
Ron grabbed Andy again and precisely aimed above to make sure he would land on the next level, and not go up then come directly back down.
"Here we go..."
Ron tossed Andy with all his might. Andy steadily gained altitude, but while he was in the air many curious thoughts came to his mind. So this is what a pilot must feel like. I wonder if GDI Jump Jet troops can go this high? Does a pegasus suffer the affects of G-force like pilots do? If they do...I hope they pass out and crash! Haha-Ah! Andy roughly slammed on the floor, his visor was stained with dirt and grass. He got back up and grunted, then looked down the edge to see Ron already on his way up.
"I will get you for this one day..."
Ron reached the mountain level his 'brother' was on. He knew Andy was angry but ignored him, "Now, let us see if...there one, or actually two," Ron said, "You should 'meet' the one in the uniform, brother!...Brother?"
Ron turned his head at Andy, who eyed the area around them. Andy observed the houses made out of clouds, then back at Ron, "Have you noticed that all aerial activity had oddly subsided?" Ron also searched the surrounding area, and also noticed there was not a single pegasus flying in the air, "Strange...perhaps in this time of day they are not allowed to fly?"
"Who knows but I believe there are two Wonderbolts, yet I believe there is only one official," Andy said, pointing at two suspected Wonderbolts who surprisingly stood on a runway that was built on the mountain. Ron noticed the one on the right, who had a cast around a hind leg, it was Soarin', and the other one who was also in a uniform but wasn't fully covered up like Soarin'. But the one that wasn't in a complete uniform looked very familiar to Ron; Cyan colored and a rainbow mane. He quickly realized who it was: Rainbow Dash. His "killing" instincts suddenly returned to him, and paced the targeting crosshairs on her and the pegasus next to her.
Ron suddenly twitched his head by a shock he felt within, "TERMINATIVE PROTOCOLS INIATED..." Andy noticed Ron acting very strange, "Brother, are you alright?" he asked. Ron came back to his normal state of mind and removed the targeting system off both pegasus. "I don't know what happened to me there, but let us meet them."
Andy began to walk towards the two and clenched his hand into a fist. Ron stayed behind to witness the event that going to unfold. The two fliers had their backs turned, not a single idea the evil that was coming from behind.
"Are you okay? Since you did hit your leg pretty hard against that metal monster," Rainbow Dash recalled.
"Don't worry I'm fine, just need to stay out of anymore trouble. But what was that spider-thing?" asked Soarin'
"That 'thing'? It's a total jerk! It tangled me in some nets that easily wraps around you!" Rainbow exclaimed.
"Woah, so its armed. But how did you enjoy the small break you got from training?" Soarin' asked, who remembered the cadets got a break for about a week of training.
"It was nice and all, but until that spider showed up! I want a rematch with that thing!"
"Your adorable when you get mad," Soarin' said, "But I bet you'll get the chance to get your 'revenge' on him, haha!"
"A-Adorable!?" Rainbow blushed. "What do you mean I'm 'adorable'!?"
"I'm just playing a joke. I wanted to see how you would you react!" Soarin' fell to the floor laughing non-stop. Rainbow had a angry look, and placed a foreleg on Soarin's cast and pressed down.
"Hahaha- Ow! Ow! Ok, ok! I'm sorry!" he yelped.
"Are you sure? Rainbow Dash made a sly look. "Are you?"
"I believe he is," a odd voice said.
Dash and Soarin' immediately turned their heads to see a tall metal figure standing before them. It had a part that had glowing green lights. Soarin's eyes turned wide as he saw the spider creature on the otherside of the area staring at them. He got back up and prepared for the consequences that might come.
"Dash, get behind me right now, and get away from this thing!" he whispered.
"What do you mean back away! I'm gonna hold my ground!" Rainbow boldly announced.
"Rainbow, the spider creature is watching us, and I've seen the damage it can do! We need to get out of here and find help!" Soarin' frantically whispered.
"Listen to the one who has feelings for you, and you too," Andy said, "He will be your salvation."
Both Rainbow and Soarin' looked at each other and deeply blushed, then blurted out random words and excuses, "I don't ha- I mean w- We're not together!" they both said in unison. While the two pegasus were embarrassed, Andy made a invisible smile as he perfectly copied the same plan Ron had done to embarrass ponies. He aimed his plasma cannon at them, and prepared to fire, "It is alright to have fellings for one another, but now I must end you."
"We are...Not exactly, but may- WHAT!?" Soarin' and Dash immediately stopped as Andy planned to destroy them. Andy began marching towards them, Soarin' slowly retreated, but Rainbow held her ground as she had proclaimed. "Dash, what are you doing! We need to get out of here now!" he shouted.
"Charge!"
Dash flew straight at the cyborg at full speed, Soarin' chased after Rainbow before the situation can get worse. "Rainbow! Rainbow! Stop! You can't fight this thing!" he yelled. Rainbow ignored his words, and closed in on the machine. Andy saw the threat coming, and fired his cannon at the ground below Dash to halt her charge.
BOOM!
Rainbow was violently blown away, and slammed into the ground. Soarin' stopped and stared at Rainbow Dash who laid motionless, "Rainbow!" Soarin' rapidly flew to Rainbow, and picked her up on his forelegs, "Say something! Come on, come on!" Soarin' gently shook her to get a response, but she didn't react, "No, No! Say something! Anything!" She still made no movement, Soarin' was about to think for the worse, but Dash made a weak grunt, "Soarin..."
"Oh thank you! You're alright! But I need to get you out of here!"
Soarin' was about to fly away, but the looming shadow of Andy stopped him, he turned around and saw the cyborg's weapon aiming at him. Soarin' sighed and gently placed Rainbow Dash on the floor, "Don't take her...take me instead..." Dash turned her head at Soarin', and saw he was prepared to give his life to let her's live, "...Soarin'...No..." she still had a weak voice.
Andy charged the cannon, Soarin' looked back at Rainbow who was barely awake, he made a weak smile and waved a hoof in farewell.
"No..."
The cannon began to glow green, and illuminated off Soarin's uniform. Andy was about to fire, but Ron's words suddenly came to his mind, Careful for the actions you commit...
Andy lowered his weapon, and grunted, "Urgh, I cannot kill you or her!" He pointed at Rainbow Dash. "But I must take something from you. Perhaps I shall destroy the Wonderbolt property." Andy turned around, and began firing at the Wonderbolt statues, some trees and bushes, and the runway. Soarin' picked up Dash, and escaped while the machine was distracted.
"This is entertaining! How easy it is to destroy such things!" Andy saw a Wonderbolt statue standing proudly untouched. "This statue mocks Kane. I shall do the honor to remove it."
Andy fired a green orb of doom from the plasma cannon, and it immediately tuned to ash. Trees were covered in flames. statues crumbled and fell, the runway was marred by craters and smoke rose from the fires. Andy was surrounded by the flames, he slowly marched out of the burning area. Ron was surprised to see Andy had done so much damage by himself, but that was his role. Ron only said two words to his brother's destructive nature, "...Well done."
Andy came up to Ron, and raised a fist in the air, "Victory..."
"Yes, victory, but we must escape before the mountain is fully engulfed in fire. Come!" Ron climbed down the edge with Andy looking down, and he spotted some areas that were clear enough to land. He jumped down, and felt weird when he landed, since he wasn't used to falls or jumping. Ron made smooth progress going down, he saw Andy having some difficulty, but the two eventually reached the bottom. Andy looked back up, and saw giant plumes of smoke rising.
"Is anyone going to find out that we were responsible for this? Andy asked.
"As long as they don't have a complete description of us we may be fine...otherwise we're going to be hunted," replied Ron.
"If that is going to happen, then let us find this 'Dinky'."
Ron and Andy immediately fled the the burning Wonderbolt Acadamy. Ron looked back at the flaming mountain, gigantic plumes of smoke rose high into the sky. He was able to see many pegasi heading to the area, "They cannot extinguish the flames, it has manifested to a dangerous level."
"Ah, I enjoyed the carnage I have done," Andy 'happily' said, "Next time I shall murder the Wonderbolt, and the female who he protected."
"You may have the chance, but we must reach Dinky before it is too late!" Ron said.
The two cyborgs had gotten much distance from the academy. A group of Wonderbolts flew over them without noticing the cybernetics, "Hurry! The area is swarming with the hostiles! Andy said. Ron and Andy stopped by a large tree to make sure they weren't being followed. Andy searched to the right and saw nothing. Ron checked left and it was also clear. "I believe we are safe for now," said Andy.
"Yes, I believe we are, but how much damage did you cause?" Ron stared at the smoke continuing to rise and expand from the mountain. Andy also looked at the destruction, he was suprised to see the smoke rise than he had ever before seen, "How amazing. All of this has unfolded by this unit?"
"Ha! Oh how much trouble we are goi-"
"Hey! Whats going on at the Wonderbolt place!?" a voice shouted.
Ron and Andy immediately turned to a patch of bushes where the voice came from. They heard scuffling sounds, and more voices talking. A small pegasus came into view; it was Scootaloo. Ron looked at Andy, who clenched his metal hand into a fist, "The tiny winged-mammal better not have reported us to any authoritive force!" he grumbled. Scootaloo saw the two machines, and instantly made a frightened look. Ron pointed a finger at her to remind who she was dealing with. Scootaloo cringed and disappeared from sight behind a tree.
"Ha! You have scared the mammal- or the pegasus away!" Andy said.
"I have. I expected her to yell for help, but surprisingly no." Ron was a little confused. The two moved on, there was no sign of Scootaloo returning or whoever was with her. Andy calmly checked his plasma cannon, making it glow green, then returning to normal. Ron saw a rabbit hop by, and he scanned the small animal.
***...Scanning...Standby...***
***...Type: Mammal...***
***...Weight: 7...***
***...Height: 1 Foot...***
***...Threat level: Laughable...***
"Hmpf...How pathetic."
A large structure started to emerge over the trees that were ahead, Ron was able to recognize the structure as Ponyville hospital. "What it the building that has come to view?" asked Andy.
"That, my brother, is 'Ponyville' hospital. It is the prime medical facility of the town," Ron stared at the hospital, the path becoming very familiar.
"The Wonderbolt and the female pegasus had escaped while I was destroying the Wonderbolt property! Perhaps they are being facilitated at the medical center?"
Ron stared up at the sky to think if the two fliers might be there, "Maybe, but we cannot chase them to the hospital right now, we must find Dinky." Andy grunted has he wanted to finish off Soarin' and Rainbow Dash, but there will be another time if he had the chance. The cyborgs appeared directly behind the hospital, "This is not a path we should travel, it will only bring trouble," Ron said.
"Let me check something." Andy walked towards a window of one of the rooms inside, Ron wondered what his companion was thinking, but followed along. The Cyborg Commando barely peeked his head out to the point where he can see the inside without being spotted. The room was empty, Andy marched on to the next, the room was dark and a sleeping unicorn was on the hospital bed, "Where are you?" he grumbled.
Ron noticed what his brother was doing.
"Brother, stop! You'll have another chance! We must leave the area!" Andy ignored him, and continued to the next - this room had what he wanted. Andy gazed at the sight of Rainbow Dash on the bed still unconscious with a doctor, and Soarin' at her side petrified. Andy made an invisible evil grin, and scanned the room to remember everything. Ron was tugging him on his metal shoulder, but Andy remained cemented to the ground, "We must go! You're risking everything! My pla- our survival!"
"A few more minutes or seconds shall do, I must see what room they are in. Ah, they're in room twelve! I shall return for them!" Andy turned around at Ron, "Now we can leave." Ron placed his hands on his circular abdomen and grunted, "Let's go..."
---------------
After for about fifteen minutes of walking and evading any ponies towards the residents of the Hooves family, the house of Dinky was up ahead. Ron felt glad they had finally reached a safe area. Andy on the other hand sensed something suspicious over this home, "I feel this is going to be a trap."
Ron looked up and shook his head at Andy's random statements, "Is everything a threat to you?"
"Yes..."
"Ugh, just wait and see this area is secure." Ron led Andy around the house to the back gate where both can easily enter. Ron turned around the corner of the wooden fence, but stopped dead in his tracks at a 'unpleasant' sight. "Why have you stopped? Are we going to stop here?" Andy questioned as he was confused why Ron suddenly stopped. Ron 'nervously' waved a hand at Dinky, who had a angry stare, "RON..."
"Uhh...Hi...?"
"Nnnngghhhh...Ron you're doing some things I'm not liking here!" Dinky kept her anger from escaping. Ron approached Dinky and leaned down to her height, "Forgive me for my actions, but-"
"But what?" Dinky questioned.
"Andy, come forth!"
Dinky raised a brow as Ron called something 'Andy'. Her eyes shrunk as a tall metal figure appeared around the corner, "What is that thing?"
Ron smirked and explained who Andy was, "That Dinky, is Andy. He is one of my 'brothers' as I have explained before. Dinky stared at Andy's appearance; tall, dark grey parts in some area, then red covering the rest, red dome-like visor, stood upright, one arm had a odd object attached to it and the other was free, but Dinky didn't recognize what the part both Andy and Ron had at the end of their arms, "He looks similar to you, Ron. But what is that part called, that you're able to grab things?"
"This is called a hand. Something more advanced than just a hoof," Andy explained. Ron placed his hand in front of Dinky to let her observe. Ron moved some of his steel fingers, then made into a fist. Dinky was amazed to see a strange body part work in such a mysterious way, "Woah...I've never seen anything have a hand, just claws that look slightly similar but yours is way more different."
"Yes, more advanced and superior than your usless hoo-"
Ron glared at Andy, he automatically understood, "I shall remain silent until further notice."
"Good...it may keep us alive..." Ron mumbled.
"Dinky! Where are you!" a familiar male voice called out. Ron raised himself up, and saw the Doctor in the backyard over the fence. "Dinky! It's time to- Ron!" the Doctor shouted and stomped a hoof to the ground. Ron shrugged and replied back, "Hello, Dinky's father. How are you doing today?" Ron mischievously smiled under his faceplate.
"Oh no! Don't you dare start with that again! Or I will-"
"Or what?" A unfamiliar voice questioned.
The gate opened and Dinky entered with Ron, but also a unknown figure. The Doctor was shocked to see another machine like Ron, standing next to the Reaper, "W-who is this?" Andy marched forward to the Doctor, clenched his hand into a fist, "Greetings, I am Cyborg Commando C dash one seven five dash eight, or 'Andy' to make it simple. I believe you are Dinky's father?" The Doctor turned red on his muzzle, "For the last time I am- Ugghh...forget it! Yes, I am Dinky's 'father'." He decided to move along with this "Dinky's father" thing
"Wonderful, Now I know, so I can kil- I mean what to properly call you."
The Doctor rolled his eyes, "Please, just call me the Doctor. I'll go get Sparkler and Der-"
"Ahhh!" a voice inside the house screamed.
The Doctor turned around at the house, "That sounded like Sparkler! Sparkler I'm coming! I- we'll that solves one thing..." Sparkler and Derpy came galloping out of the house, and collided with the Doctor, "The house is actually haunted!" Derpy shook his head.
"Ha! I was right! Go Dinky! It's your- wait...What?!" Dinky immediately stopped her victory tune. The backdoor of the house was suddenly shut close by itself.
The ponies stared at the door scared, but the two cybernetics showed no signs of fear, or at least being frightened. The door slowly creaked open - a floating muffin was revealed. "My muffins are haunted!" Derpy shouted, she wrapped her forelegs around the Doctor's neck and squeezed tight. The Doctor's face turned purple as oxygen drained from him, "Der-...py...your...suffocating meee..." he grunted. Derpy released him and sheepishly smiled.
"Oops...Sorry...hehehe."
"That's okay...but- uh oh..."
The muffin floated five meters away from them, it began to hover towards them. Derpy wrapped her forelegs around the Doctor's neck, but didn't squeeze, she rather trembled by how scared she was. Sparkler covered her eyes with her forelegs, and Dinky hid behind Ron's leg as she was also frightened, "Ron...can you please do something about this?" Ron took a step forward, but heard a awfully familiar sound that a Stealth Tank makes when it reveals itself, "I know what it is..."
Ron approached the 'haunted' muffin, and closely observed it. The muffin rotated at him, and began to make wierd growling and snaring sounds. Ron crossed his arms unimpressed, "You don't fool me.." He lashed his arms out at the muffin, and felt he grabbed something metallic on both hands, "Come here!" Ron felt whatever he had was trying to escape from him, but it couldn't escape his strength, "Show yourself!" He slammed both objects together to get a response.
"Hey sto- Ow! You're go- Ow! Stop it- Ack! We give up! Ow!" two voices cried out in pain. Ripples of electricity formed on both hands of Ron; two figures in red metal suits appeared. Ron dropped them to the ground and looked at the Hooves family, "The muffin is not haunted. These two are responsible for this supernatural cause."
The figures were the Chameleon Spies that the guard had mention earlier, or to be more precise "Ghosts". The two spies got back up and angrily stared at Ron behind their red visors, "We're on your side!" the two shouted. Ron walked away back to Dinky, who was a little more calm than scared, but still cautious over these new beings. The Doctor got up and adjusted his tie, "Well, since that was over. Who are you two?"
The two spies looked at each other, then back at him, "Allow us to introduce ourselves, we are the Brotherhood of Nod, as you see here these are two of our members." One of them pointed at Ron and Andy, "We have discovered and followed them to this location where Ron is staying."
"How pesky you must be to discovered Ron's place of stay," said Andy.
"Sure...'pesky'," a spy said, "I cannot believe you accepted a Reaper into your home!"
Ron had his arms crossed and felt like beating the two up, but couldn't do such a thing against his brothers, "Brothers, what are your names?"
"I am John. You can't tell the difference between me and Dave here by the number on our armor. Dave had the numbers "048" and John had "036".
"Well then, 'John and Dave'...what brings you here besides terrorizing us?" the Doctor asked, anger was conceived in his voice. "We are also like Ron here, we have nowhere to go, don't really have a clue on how this place works, and by natural instinct, we stick close to our brothers," Dave explained.
"Doctor, they're just like Ron. What are we going to do about them?" Derpy whispered, "Should we let them stay, too?"
The Doctor thought deeply at the difficult question, and came up with a response, "I know you want, and that is to stay with Ron, and this also goes for you too, Andy," the Doctor pointed a foreleg at Andy, "You may stay, but under one condition."
"And what will that be?" John asked.
"You must help, obey and behave while you stay." John looked at Dave, who shrugged as a response, "Thank you, sir!" John turned invisible, and reappeared by the Dcotor, who he gave a hug to, "Your are very 'kind' to accept into your home!" The Doctor was bewildered by the move John did, "W-what? Get off...me...?" John disappeared, Sparkler was shocked by the capabilities they had.
"How are they-" Sparkler felt something around her neck - Dave appeared by her, "Don't worry! We'll follow the rules around here! Hahaha!"
Dave cloaked himself. Sparkler frantically searched in every direction to find him, but he was nowhere in sight, "How are they doing that!?"
"So simple! But I shall not explain that," Dave exclaimed, "But who is the one that has accepted our brother, Ron, here?" Dave asked.
"I did," Dinky announced.
"You?" Dave revealed himself on Ron's shoulder. Ron was caught off gaurd by this, and tried to smack him away, but Dave turned invisble and evaded, "Nice try, Ron!" Ron grunted and shook his head. The spies revealed themselves by Dinky, they raised her into the air, "Hey! Let me down!"
"You have such a kind heart for accepting one of us!" John said, "We shall serve you especially for kindness towards the Brotherhood!"
"Serve me?" Dinky was confused by what they meant, "What do you mean 'serve me'?" John and Dave looked at each other and widely grinned, "Your thoughts are our actions."
"You guys are going to serve me!?" Dinky was shocked as she caught the vibe.
"Yes! Say anything you want, and it shall be yours!"
"Umm...okay...? Get me a sandwich...?" John had a sandwich instantly prepared for her in his hand, "How did you do that!?" Dinky exclaimed as this was unbelievable. "Physics..." John replied. Dinky looked at Ron scared, "What are they going to do?" Ron shrugged, Dinky became more frightened, "Umm...Can you please let me down?" she kindly asked.
"Why yes, 'Queen Dinky'," John said.
"Q-Queen?!" Dinky exclaimed again.
"Yes, Queen! Do you not like to be called that?" Dave asked. Dinky frowned, but then weakly smiled at him, "Well, I guess so...? Uhh...Why not...?" Dave and John smiled, "As you wish....'Queen Dinky!' Hahaha!" The two spies let her go, and turned invisible. "Woah! Woah! You still have to obey us, too!" The Doctor said, "Just because you may be under Dinky's 'command' doesn't mean you only listen to her!"
"John, Dave, I want you too also obey my family's rules," Dinky "commanded" to maintain order. The Doctor suddenly felt something uncomfortably rubbing his chin, and Dave revealed himself, "Alright we shall also listen to 'Jerk Overlord', here." Dave patted the Doctor's chin and went invisible. The Doctor rolled his eyes at their annoying actions. Derpy giggled, and the Doctor made a stern look at her, "I'm sorry, Doctor! It's just funny!"
"Why do I have to do this?" The Doctor grumbled and face hoofed.
Derpy still giggled, but stopped when she felt something rubbing her mane, "Hey! Stop that!"
"Do not worry, 'Mom'...we shall help you in any way possible," John mischievously announced. Derpy also made a stern look at the spy—where she thought he was. The two spies uncloaked by Ron and Andy, "So, do you have any plans today? We surely can provide assistance," John said, "And don't worry...we'll behave."
"Well, I do have to make dinner, can one of you actually help...?" Derpy hesitated to ask, but she did. "Ah, Andy here can aid you in making food for your family!" John patted Andy's shoulder. Andy turned at him, and lifted his plasma cannon to beat him down, but John escaped before he had the chance, "Nnngghhh! I will kill you for this!" The Hooves family stared at him petrified. Andy noticed what he said and prepared a more "friendlier" statement, "Why of course, I shall help you Ms. Derpy," Andy hesitated, "I will obey you."
"I think it's better if you call me 'Miss Hooves'...?" Derpy couldn't think of a proper name for the members of Nod to call her, "You know what? I think you can call me that. Well, come on Andy! You said you were going to help!" Derpy hovered back inside the house, Andy clenched his hand into a face, and marched towards the house whether he liked it or not. Sparkler also entered but kept her distance from Andy, since she barely trusted him. Now, it was the Doctor and Dinky with Nod outside.
"Ron, I might have something for you to do, and as for you two!" the Doctor pointed a foreleg at the two spies, "I'm going to go to the library, and I want both of you to come with me!" John shrugged and approached him, but Dave disappeared from sight. "Ugh, Dave! Show yourself!" the Doctor shouted.
No response came. Ron also searched for the invisbe spy, the Doctor was about to shout again, but felt something heavy on his back, "What in the- eek!" Dave appeared sitting on him and raised a fist in the air, "To the library! Away!" he kicked the Doctor.
"Get off me! Get off me!" Whooves went in circles to get Dave off if him, but Dave remained sitting. John broke down laughing, Ron shook his head in disproval, and Dinky's eyes widened at the unbelievable situation, "Ron, do something!" Ron remembered how she was the "Queen" and obeyed, "As pointed..."
Ron approached the chaotic scene, and placed a hand under his chin to think. He observed the motion and speed of the Doctor, the direction he travelled in, and the result if he stopped them. Ron placed a arm just barely above the Doctors height, and waited for the result.
"Hahaha! Giddy up- Ah!"
Dave slammed his head on Ron's solid arm, and fell to the ground. Ron slightly nodded at the consequence he predicted, "Your welcome, father of Dinky." Whooves slowed himself down, and panted. "Thank you...Ron."
"And as for you!" Ron shouted.
"What are you- Urgh!"
Ron grabbed Dave by the throat and lifted him in the air, "You shall respect this family at all times! Your childish actions shall get you TERMINATED! Understand?" Dave rapidly nodded as he felt his neck being compressed, "I will! Ack! Just let me- Urgh! Go!"
Ron released him and went back to Dinky. Dave rubbed his neck - even if it was covered. The Doctor came up to Dave, and punched him in the gut, but had no affects by his armor, "Do that one more time! And I swear you'll be out of here soon!"
"Fine Fine!" Dave rolled his eyes. Whooves opened the backgate to leave, John immediately followed him with Dave muttering words. John poked his head around the gate, "Don't worry I'll hold Dave's hand!"
The gate slammed close. Ron looked down at Dinky, who looked glad the two troublemakers went away, "Well at least there gone. But I hope there's not any problems along the way."
"Dinky, I have a question to ask you," Ron announced.
"What is it?"
"Why did you appear happy or glad of my arrival, since we hardly know each other?"
Dinky sighed and looked away, she hesitated to give the answer, "It's because...I don't really have any friends...Sure, I have my family, especially my Mom, but not another pony my age. There is some ponies at my school who call themselves the 'Cutie Mark Crusaders', but they do pretty dangerous stuff, and I know my family won't like. But with you...I felt something different. You did look scary and monster-like."
Ron crossed his arms as he appeared to take it personally.
"Oh, but no offense! I think you're nice and smart. I just wanted a friend who I'll be happy with, that's all." Ron released his arms, and reached down to turn Dinky's head at him, "I understand what you mean...I also had a friend who stood with me for quite a while. Now, I'm separated from him...who knows how long I shall remain isolated." Dinky gently smiled and placed her right hoof on top of his hand, "So, can we actually be friends?"
"Why not?"
"Thanks Ron. I hope you and I will get along, and the rest of the family." Dinky looked at the window where the kitchen was in view with her mother preparing dinner and Andy who stood vigil by her side, "Do you think Andy will also be fine here?" Ron turned his head and stared at him, he knew Andy would have a difficult time to adjust to the new "life", "Maybe, but it will not be an easy task for him."
"I see...I hope everything will be okay. But Ron...? Dinky asked.
"What is it, 'Queen'?" he snickered.
"Ugh, please don't call me that! There is a Wonderbolt airshow coming this Saturday, and I wanted to know if you want to come along?" Ron's human eyes went wide as he remembered everything that unfolded earlier in the day; the Wonderbolt property destruction, Andy's ego to kill them, the actions of Ron himself becoming very devious. "Maybe...Maybe...I shall ask the others if they want to go."
"I also want to know if Dave and John are going to be unfriendly to my family?"
"Do not worry, Dinky. I'll make sure your family is respected at all times, and especially towards you."
"Thanks...Well I'm going to go inside, and it's almost getting dark." Dinky saw the sun lower in the sky, and the moon faintly emerging, "I hope the Doctor will make it back soon. But I'll come back later." Dinky trotted to the backdoor of the house and entered. Ron was left alone, he stood there thinking what he practically promised to Dinky.
I am now friends with Dinky...? This is very unexpected! My survival on this planet may be in peril! As well as my brothers, too! But she is just a mere child. How could she threaten us? But why do I feel odd about befriending Dinky? No matter...
Ron walked over to the tree in the corner of the yard, the day was getting darker, and the moon was becoming more visible. Ron looked up to it, and saw how the moon had a unicorn's head, "Strange, the planet's satellite is marked by the head of one the species here." Ron peeked his head over the fence, he looked off into the unknown world, it was very calm and no sign of any threat to disturb its tranquility. Ron smirked at the sight, but suddenly remembered an infamous object, "I wonder if the SAM Site is still operating?"
He stared in the direction where the SAM was - not a single missile flew in the air, "How unfortunate...perhaps I shall visit the SAM to check on it."
Ron lowered himself down to not be seen over the fence, but he suddenly heard a scuffling sound from the otherside. He peered over again, and saw dark figures disappear behind a tree, "Hmm...when I found out who's behind that tree I shall beat them down if they're trouble!" Ron turned around and looked at the window where he saw, Derpy, Dinky, and Andy preparing dinner, but Andy wasn't actually preparing more like handing the proper ingredients to whatever Derpy was making. Ron saw Dinky smiling has she helped her mother, even if there was a metallic stranger with them.
The Doctor had taken the two Chameleon Spies with him to the library. Although it may be a very horrible mistake, especially to their random and uncontrollable actions, things have gone smoothly...for now. The sky was now turning into a indigo color, the beaming orange light of the sun was fading. Small, faint stars awakened from the darkness beyond the Equestrian sky.The temperature started to slowly drop to a cool level. The Doctor kept a close eye on John and Dave. In his mind he felt this was a horrible mistake, who knows what these two are capable of besides just turning invisible.
I have a bad feeling about this. I hope they don't suddenly switch on to go crazy mode! But I had to do this to keep the family safe, Whooves thought.
The street lights illuminated their surroundings to light the way. Some ponies began closing down their shops and preparing for the night. Yet some stayed outside, either sitting by tables or trotting along talking to friends. The Doctor looked back at the two spies, then back at the ponies. He wondered what they would odd or think about the foreign race that travelled along with them. John didn't mind whether he got attention or not. The only thing that he thought about was to stay on guard for anything, and watch Dave's back, too.
Dave also shared the same thoughts as John, but he felt something odd about this place. "Hey, do you think there's going to be any guards out here?" he asked.
John observed their surroundings for signs of trouble. "I don't think so. They should be gone by now. What else do they want?"
"Do you think their after Ron and Andy?" Dave asked.
"Maybe, they were likely the first ones to be spotted for obvious reasons, but then again, maybe not," John said.
The three were passing by a park filled with ponies laying down on benches or on the grass. But there was one that caught the eyes of both humans—a mint colored unicorn that sat on a park bench. The unicorn had the same posture as a human would do when it sat down, but this very strange for a pony to do.
"Why is that unicorn sitting like a human would do?" John asked.
"What do you mean?" the Doctor asked.
"That one over there." John pointed to the unicorn sitting down on the bench. The Doctor glanced over to the unicorn - it was Lyra. The Doctor eyes went small as he remembered Lyra's belief about humans. All the trouble that might cause great, unnecessary attention was there. "John, Dave, can you please use your stealth abilities?"
The two spies were confused why the Doctor requested to turn invisible. It didn't make sense, since the Doctor was frustrated at them for using their stealth capabilities on the Hooves family. "Why are you suddenly telling us to go Invisible?" John asked.
"Just don't ask questions! Can you please just turn invisible!" Whooves pleaded.
"You didn't like us going invisble, and now you're telling us to." Dave said. The Doctor looked back at Lyra, who was turning her head in their direction. The Doctor felt his heart skip a beat, and pleaded again. "Please! Just do it!" John looked at Lyra, he saw her staring at them. He saw her eyes turned wide with excitement and joy. "I-I-it's...a...human."
"I think I see why you want-"
"HUMAN!"
"Uh oh..." Whooves and Dave glanced over to the unicorn that yelled the name of John and Dave's species. The Doctor looked back and forth between the two humans and Lyra, who was galloping towards them.
"You see why! Go! Disappear now!" he shouted. John and Dave immediately understood, and cloaked themselves. The Doctor nervously smiled at Lyra as she came closer to him.
"Hello, Lyra, may I- Oohf!" He was tackled by Lyra.
"Where are they!?" Lyra exclaimed. "I know I saw Them! I know I did! They were standing next to you!"
"L-Lyra, I have no idea what your talking about!" Whooves stammered and began to sweat.
Lyra sternly stared at him. "Don't you dare lie to me! I saw them here!"
"Pppssstt! Yoohoo!" a voice called out to her.
"Huh?" Lyra turned her head at a figure that was by a tree—the figure was Dave. Lyra immediately charged to the figure that resembled human. The Doctor got back up, but was suddenly picked up by an unknown force. "Hey what's going on!?"
"Don't worry, Doc!" John said. "I'll get you out of here!"
The Doctor was nervous by a human carrying him somewhere. This is not good! I'm being taken away by a human that is insane and reckless! Please listen to me!, Whooves thought.
"Umm...John...? The library is on this street to the right."
"You got it, Doc! And by the way, you're pretty light! I thought you were going to be heavy!"
Whooves felt relief that John actually listened to what he said. John slided and ran to the right, his footsteps echoed loudly as each step pounded the grounded. Whooves saw the library up ahead. The lights were still on meaning it was open.
"John put me down here. This is the library." John put the Doctor down, and stared at a large tree that had windows, some balconies, and lights also coming front the inside. "Doc, is this the library?" John was suprised by the mysterioius structure that was combined with a tree.
"Yes, this is the library. I know this is may be out of the ordinary, but it is a library!" the Doctor said. John continued to stare in amazement, but snapped out of it for one inportant reason. "Doc, I'm going to go find Dave! Who knows what trouble he's in right now. I'll catch up to you!"
John turned on his cloaking ability and disappeared out of sight. The Doctor still felt glad that John was acting properly, and not innapropiately. "Well, I guess that's over. But now it's time to see what they have today."
The Doctor trotted over to the library, and went up the stairs. The Doctor gently knocked on the door, and waited for it to be answered. "Just a minute!" a female voice said inside. The sounds of hooves approaching grew loud as they came close. The door was opened and revealed the unicorn, Twilght Sparkle. "Oh, hello! May I help you?" she politely greeted.
"Yes, I'm here to look at some books, if you don't mind?" the Doctor smiled at her.
"Of course! Please come in!"
The Doctor entered and glanced at all the bookshelves that contained an endless collection of books. He felt lost by the vast numbers. "Hmm...So where do I start?"
"What are you exactly looking for, sir? But you look familiar from somewhere. Have I seen you before?" Twilight asked, remembering this stallion she saw a few times in Ponyville.
"I am the Doctor. I live with Derpy or Ditzy, if you recall. I am looking for a single book about magic, and I'll look for the rest," he said.
"The books about magic are over there." Twilight pointed a hoof at a bookshelf to her right. "Is there anything else you might need?"
"Oh no, thank you. I'm fine."
The Doctor proceeded to the bookshelf that Twilight directed him to. He scanned the left and right of each shelf for the right book. "Let's see here...I want a book about magic, so Dinky can learn and control properly." The Doctor spent a few minutes searching for a book, and finally found one. "Ah, this might be good. Now I nee-"
"HUMAN!" A familiar voice shouted from outside.
The Doctor heavily sighed and shook his head, uncomfortable by the commotion that would've never happened if John and Dave listened to him right away.
"What is going on out there?" Twiligh askedt, she was was surprised by the sudden shouting.
"It's Lyra...you know...'humans," the Doctor responded, trying to appear unimpressed, or having a gesture to think Lyra was crazy.
"Oh, so that's what's going on. I hope everything is fine outside."
The Doctor returned searching for books, but a sudden loud knock on the door stopped him. He gazed at the door and pleaded in his mind it wasn't Lyra. Twilight trotted to the door to answer it. She opened it and there was a surprising result: nothing was there. "Huh? Who knocked on the door?"
Twilight was confused as nothing was by the doorstep. Whooves was also confused, but suddenly realised who could've knocked on the door.
"John and Dave," he said under his breath.
Twilight stepped outside to check, and still found no one responsible. The Doctor frantically searched for the possible mischievous spies, but there was no sign of them. Until a ripple of electricity formed in front of Whooves, then another ripple.
"Hello, Doctor." Dave greeted.
"What are you doing! Hide yourself from sight!" the Doctor whispered, so he couldn't be heard by Twilight.
"Alright."
Both humans went invisble. Twilight entered back in a mere second later after they disappeared. "Strange, nopony was out there. Must be some troublemakers!" she said bluntly.
Whooves looked at Twilight, he wanted to speak with the spies when she looked away. Luckily, Twilight did glance over at another direction, and it was his chance.
"Okay, listen here!" he whispered. "Don't do anything stupid, okay!?"
"You have our word," responded John.
"I hope you do..."
The Doctor reached out for the book he spotted with his left foreleg. "I have this. Now, let's-"
"Let's go see what's upstairs!" Dave excitingly suggested.
"Yeah!" John happily replied.
The Doctor dropped the book he carried, and turned his head at the spies - where he thought they were. "Oh No! You are not-"
"Who are you talking to?" Twilight asked, seeing the Doctor speaking to nothing.
"Oh, Uhhh...nothing!" Whooves sheepishly smiled. A long awkward silence filled the whole library. "Right..." Twilight slowly backed away from him during the silence. The Doctor continued to smile, but anger and embarrassment filled him inwardly.
Wait until we get home, John and Dave!, he growled in his thoughts.
Whooves went to another bookshelf to search for a book. He chose one book, observed it, then place it back if he wasn't interested. The Doctor had about four books after about three minutes of searching.
"Twilight!" a voice shouted from upstairs.
"What is it, Spike?" Twilight shouted back.
"The place is haunted!"
Twilight facehoofed and shook her head as she considered ghosts to be nothing more than crazy superstition. "Spike, there is no such thing as ghosts!"
"Oh yes there is! Ther- help! It's got me! Let go of me!"
Twilight groaned and trotted up the stairs. "I'm sorry about this. It's just SOMEONE is acting very weird!" she said back to Doctor Whooves, who rubbed his right foreleg nervously.
"Spike, what's going on up here!?"
Whooves winced as he heard loud commotion from the floor above. "I'm telling you it's ghosts!" Spike shouted.
"No ti's not! There no such thing as ghosts!" Twilight almost retorted. "It's all your imagination!"
"They dragged me across the floor! They wan-"
"SURPRISE!" a voice yelled.
Twilight and Spike both screamed. Spike came stumbling down the stairs, and landed his face on the floor. Twilight came galloping down and bumped Spike onto her back. "You're right! It is ghosts!" she yelped. The Doctor shook his head, and approached the scared unicorn and dragon. "I'll be checking these books out...?"
Not a single response came from Spike or Twilight. Whooves groaned and called the 'ghosts' names. "John! Dave! Get out here! Now!" he yelled. The two spies appeared in front of the two ponies and the baby dragon. Twilight and Spike were shocked by two tall metal creatures standing before them. Their red visors glowing faintly.
"Hello there, Twilight and Spike." Dave spoke in a menacing tone.
"You're the ones that grabbed me?" asked Spike. "Why I oughta-"
"Do what?" John stomped his foot in front of Spike.
"Umm...What was I going to, do Twilight? Oh, I don't know!" Spike hid himself behind Twilight, as he was easily intimidated by John.
Dave walked around them and stood by the Doctor. "So, Doc...have you found all the books you need?" he asked.
The Doctor glared at them. "I have found the books I need, but I believe you owe a apology to Miss Sparkle and her assistant!"
"But why?" John questioned in a childish tone.
"You scared the living daylights out of Miss Sparkle and Spike, here!" Whooves angrily shouted.
Dave and John were caught by surprise by the sudden loud voice of the Doctor.
"Ugh, fine, we'll apologize," John groaned. "Him and I are sorry." He pointed at Dave, then at himself.
Twilight stared at them angry, but managed to keep herself calm. "Apology accepted."
Whooves trotted over to Twilight and frowned, "I'm terribly sorry, Miss Sparkle! Please forgive me for bringing them here! I only did it to keep Ditzy's family safe."
Twilight slightly smiled at him, and understood. "I see why. But what are they?" She stared at both spies, who were curiously observing the library. "Where did they come from?"
The Doctor heavily sighed and explained, "They're actually not from here. They come from another part of the galaxy." Twilight's eyes turned wide as two beings from another world stood in her library.
"T-t-they're not from our p-planet?" she stammered.
"Unfortunately...No."
Twilight made a wide grin and immediately levitated a notepad and quill to her. "Oh I must know what they know! The knowledge they might have can be endless!" Twilght exclaimed, galloping to the spies.
"Wait, Miss Sparkle!" the Doctor chased after her. "They aren't as what they seem!"
Twilight stopped in front of Dave and John. Dave was a bit creeped out at how Twilight was smiling and staring at him and John with those wide eyes.
"Uhh...Can I help you?"
"Tell me about your race, culture, planet, anything!" Twilight exclaimed.
John glanced over to Dave, then back at Twilight. "Oh gee will you look at the time!" John looked down at a imaginary watch on his wrist; he turned invisible. Twilight stared at Dave who was left alone.
"Umm...I think he needs help telling time!" Dave also went invisble.
"Hey! That's not fair!" Twilight said. "You didn't answer what I wanted to hear!"
The Doctor trotted to Twilight. "Listen, Miss Sparke, I know you're interested in these two because they're not from here, but I do need to checkout these books, since it's getting late," the Doctor said.
Twilight nodded once, and went back to the podium she had. She placed the two objects she controlled with her magic on a table. "Okay, so if you can sign here." she pointed a hoof at a certain line in a book that recorded all the dates of checked out books and returns. The Doctor signed his signature on the paper.
"Well, we better be off now. John, Dave, you're going to help me carry these books!" he said.
The books the Doctor had suddenly floated in the air. The two humans revealed themselves. "Alright, we're waiting for you, Doc." Dave said. Whooves trotted out the door, and waited for the spies to exit out first. John and Dave passed by him, the Doctor smiled at Twilight. "Farewell, Miss Sparkle."
"Please, just call me Twilight." she smiled back.
Whooves closed the door, and trotted to Dave.
"What were you thinking!?" Whooves shouted annoyed. "You were actually behaving! And then you went insane on me! You embarrassed me in front of the librarian!"
"Listen, Doc, I know you're mad at us, but why can't you have fun once in a while?" John asked.
The Doctor became irritated in the inside, his frustration growing. "Because, I have very important tasks to do! They are very consequential if I don't accomplish them!"
"Okay, okay, okay. We understand," Dave said.
The Doctor looked away, the humans ignored him. The plaza was in sight. Most of the ponies that were there before were now gone. The sky had transformed into the dark, starry sky. The moon was above their heads, the streets were left abandoned for the night. The footsteps of both species echoed as each step greeted the ground.
"Hey, Doc, who was the unicorn that chased me?" Dave asked. "It was kind of wierd."
"That was Lyra Heartstrings... She somehow knows your species, and talks about them all the time. Most ponies think she's crazy," Whooves explained.
"Whoa, if this planet has no humans how does she know about us?" John asked.
"That's the thing. No one knows how she even thought about humans. But I suggest you stay away from her and anyone else." The Doctor actually regarded for their own safety. Dave observed the books the Doctor had chosen. Unfortunatley the writing was completely different - so he wasn't able to understand the titles or words. John looked up to the moon, seeing the head of a unicorn marked on it.
This is place is getting weirder and weirder, he thought.
The Doctor remained quiet as they made their way back to home. He ha demand thoughts and concerns over the new viaotrs that were currently residing in his home. But there was something else bothering him. Something very important.
This doesn't feel right... I feel I forgot something... Something very crucial. What could it be? Ron? No, I kind of trust him for now, but what is it? Andy? No, Ditzy is a strong mare she could handle him. What is it!?, Whooves thought.
The Doctor kept on thinking, but he noticed the Ponyville clock tower - the time it displayed was "11: 20 P.M." The telling of time immediately reminded him what was vital.
Uh oh... Derpy is not going to be happy that I missed dinner and came back late!
-------
The trio were now in front of the Hooves residents. The lights inside were off, dead silence occupied the entire front yard. Dave yawned, then John. John stretched his arms, and slightly hunched over. "Listen, Doc, you don't have to offer us a bed or couch inside. We'll just fall asleep with Ron in the back." He handed Dave the library books.
The Doctor was about to offer him the chance to stay inside, but then somewhat agreed to what John said. "Well, if you want that then go ahead. But you could stay inside."
"No, that's okay. See ya tommorow, Doc." John said, as he went around the house, and headed for the back. The Doctor felt guilty as the human went to rest for the night in the back yard. He shook his head, and proceeded to the front door, with Dave following along. He opened it, the door made a slight creaking sound, but went quiet after it stopped moving.
"Dave, you can put the books over there." The Doctor pointed a hoof at a small table in the living room, that was visible by the light outside.
Dave complied and went to the table, then placed the books on the table. "Well, Doc, I'm off. See you in the morning." Dave exited without a sound. The Doctor closed the door after Dave left. The living was completely dark, everything was camoflauge in the darkness. The moon light that casted through the windows outlined some objects, like the couches or picture frames.
"I hope Ditzy won't be upset that I-"
A lamp was clicked on, the whole living room was illuminated. Ditzy was sitting in the Doctor's couch chair, and Andy was at her side, appearing like her own personal guard. The Doctor nervously waved a hoof and smiled at her. Ditzy was in a white robe, she made a stern look at him. "Doctor... We have a few things to talk about."
"Umm... W-what are y-you doing up this late, D-Ditzy?" Whooves stammered.
Derpy stern look turned into a enraged look. The Doctor could've sworn he heard Derpy growl like a vicious beast would do. But then Ditzy's expression suddenly turned sweet and gentle, she glided over to the Doctor. "Did you really think I was going to be mad at you?" She giggled.
The Doctor smile in relief that he wasn't in trouble. "Derpy, I thought you were furious at me!"
"No, why would I be mad at you? I would never do that!" She hugged him around his neck. The Doctor turned red on his muzzle, feeling the cuddles of Ditzy.
"Come on, sit down on your favorite chair!" Derpy led him to the chair where she was sitting before. The Doctor sat down, and yawned as he felt his tired body preparing to rest. But at the same time he was bothered by Andy standing right next to him, not knowing if he was asleep or awake and actually staring at him. "Umm... Derpy...? Why is he here?"
"Oh, that's where he's going to stay. I couldn't find another spot to put him." Derpy explained.
"Ohhh...weird."
"That's okay! He's asleep!" Derpy hugged him again by the neck. "Just rest for now!" She said in a gentle voice.
The Doctor slowly closed his eyes, the presence of Andy was also going away, all the troubles faded away form his mind. He was about to fall asleep.
"GET HIM!" Ditzy said in a menacing voice.
The Doctor shot his eyes open, and he felt a cold, metal hand snatch him by the neck. Ditzy had actually fooled Whooves to make him believe Andy was sleeping. The Doctor tried to move, but couldn't escape the cyborg's grasp. Derpy came muzzle to muzzle with Whooves, and narrowed her eyes down on him.
"You didn't tell me where you went, you skipped dinner with the family, and now you show up here late in the night... You've got something coming sunshine," Derpy huffed. The Doctor was starting to sweat. He saw his own reflection on Andy's dome visor.
"Hehehe...oh dear. Ditzy can you, uhh, tell Andy here to let me go."
The Doctor felt Andy tightly squeezing his throat. Derpy crossed her forelgs, and shook her head. "Nope..."
Whooves gulped and started to shiver by the nervousness. But then he felt Derpy give him another big hug.
"It's okay... Nothing bad is going to happen. You're safe... Andy you know what to do!" Derpy menacingly said again.
"I obey, Miss Hooves," Andy stated. "Prepare for decimation."
Derpy glided over to the staircase, and looked back at the Doctor. "Well, I'm going to bed, Doctor. I hope you sleep well with Andy tonight!" She giggled as she flew up the stairs, and into her room. The Doctor glanced over to Andy, he could've sworn again he heard him let out a small evil laugh. The lamp was suddenly clicked off. Darkness surrounded all.
The Doctor screamed as he was caught in the unbreakable grasp of Andy. He tried to squirm out of it, but he remained trapped in place. Andy let out another evil laugh, and raised his plasma cannon. The weapon began to glow green as it was charging up to full power. The Doctor looked to both sides for anything to help him escape the death that was in front of his face, but nothing was available.
He looked down at the cyborg's metal wrist, and thought of a idea that might possibly work. He closed his eyes and tried.
"Here goes nothing!"
CHOMP!
The Doctor bit Andy on his wrist. The cannon immediately stopped charging, Andy tilted forward to see what the Doctor did. The Doctor put more pressure into the bite in hopes of stopping Andy, he opened his eyes to see if it had worked. But unfortunately the bite didn't even do a single thing. Andy charged his cannon again.
"Doctor, how pathetic that was. Your jaws are nothing. Weak, useless and worthless. An untrained monkey could've been more successful," Andy stated.
The Doctor heavily sighed, and prepared for what was to come: his doom.
The cannon was gaining more power, everything around him was getting more dark. But a bizarre sight was occurring on Andy's visor: a logo of a scorpion tail began to glow white on his visor, and images of figures dressed in red and black body armor marching.
The Doctor didn't understand what this meant, but he shifted his eyes over to the weapon. Andy fired the cannon. The Doctor screamed in terror.
Everything went bright.
--------------
The Doctor slowly cracked open an eye, his vision was very hazy. He groaned and stretched his forelegs in the air. The Doctor realized he was in the living room. The warm sunlight was washing into the living room, the house was silent and things seemed to be normal. He sighed in relief that it was all a dream.
"What a nightmare I had." The Doctor felt a chill up his spine. "Urgh, I hope I never dream about that again."
He slumped back into his chair, and placed a hoof under his chin, to remember the details of the dream.
"What was that all about? Was it a nightmare? A sign of something? A Warning?"
The Doctor couldn't interpret of what the dream meant. But then he remembered the images of those figures in the odd clothing almost appearing like John and Dave. The Doctor was in deep thought for a few minutes, but then he remembered who was next to him: Andy.
He leaped out of his chair, and faced the metal creature. But something surprising was there when the Doctor faced him: Andy wasn't there. The Doctor searched to the left and right for him, but there was no sighting of him. Whooves galloped into the kitchen to check. Nothing.
Then to the bathroom downstairs - Nothing. He looked out the window that had view of the backyard; nothing was there. Ron, Dave and John were also gone.
"Blast! Where did they go!? No matter. If Ron went somewhere with those two lunatics, I trust he'll handle them. But where is that darn machine!"
The Doctor tapped a hoof to chin to think where Andy might possible be, and thought of a horrifying idea: in the rooms upstairs where the family was. The Doctor felt everything disappear from him, everything that he cared for might as well be gone with that deathly cyborg destroying everything.
The images of the Hooves family flooded his mind. Those faces of them having a deep impact on him.
The Doctor formed a determined gesture and galloped up the stairs to stop Andy.
You are not going to hurt my family you metal beast!... He growled in his mind.
The Doctor turned to the left once he made it to the top. He slowly approached the room that he shared with Derpy, and opened it. He poked his head around the door, the room was slowly being brightened by the sunlight weakly shining through the window curtains.
The Doctor gently smiled as he saw Derpy peacefully sleeping on the bed. He quietly closed the door, and went to Sparkler's room next. He opened it and saw the same result just as his room.
Well at least both of you are okay...
But one room remained unchecked: Dinky's room. The Doctor went over to Dinky's, and stopped in front of her door. He to a deep breath and prepared for what might possibly come. "Here I go."
The Doctor opened the door, but gasped loudly as he saw Andy standing next to the bed of Dinky kind of like he did downstairs with the chair. The Doctor clenched his teeth and charged to the ominous machine.
"Get away from her!" he shouted.
Dinky immediately woke up by the loud voice of the Doctor. "Huh? Doctor what are you- wait!"
"You're not going to hurt her you treacherous machine!"
The Doctor threw himself across the bed and straight for Andy; the cyborg remained still. The Doctor came contact with Andy, but instead of tackling the heavy steel creature down, he slammed into his chest and miserably slid off. The Doctor grunted by the pain and rubbed his head.
"Oww..."
"Doctor! What's wrong with you!?" Dinky shouted at him.
"Dinky, he is obviously trying to hurt you! Why else is he here!"
Dinky groaned and explained why Andy was in her room. "I asked him to be in here! Look, I had a bad dream, I started seeing things in my room, so I asked Andy if he can stay with me because I was scared! Okay?"
The Doctor was about to reply back, but took in what Dinky said and lowered his head. He sighed and frowned, but then glanced back up at Dinky, appearing annoyed.
"If you were scared, why didn't you tell your mum or your sister! You could've have also just woken me up. I wouldn't mind, I understand. But why him?" the Doctor gazed at Andy.
"Because, my mom and sister were asleep, so I didn't want to wake them up. And then there was you, but you were also sleeping, and Andy was awake because there was wierd voices coming from him. But I still asked him and he seemed happy to help me," Dinky explained, looking at Andy who stood there motionless.
Andy suddenly twitched his left arm, then his right. His upper body started to act funny, but shortly stopped after a few seconds. The cyborg started to move his fingers. But he went completely motionless again for a mere second. "Hello, Miss Dinky," he greeted.
Dinky smiled and waved a hoof at him. "Good morning, Andy."
Andy glanced over to the Doctor, who was on the floor rubbing his head. "Hello there, Dinky's father." a hint of annoyance was in his voice. "Are you felling head migraines today?"
"No, no, just a small headache, that's all," the Doctor grumbled at both the pain and at what Andy just called him.
"Do not troubled by my presence, Doctor. I mean no harm... Unless you dare attack," Andy finished his statement under his breath.
The Doctor shook his head and exited the room, lowering his head down. Dinky frowned, and looked back at Andy once the Doctor was gone.
"What's his problem?" she asked at him confused.
"Who knows, Dinky. Who knows. But I shall leave you, for the Doctor seems unhappy by my presence near you." Andy went around Dinky's bed and left the room. Dinky sighed and lowered her head, seeing the blanket sheets she slept in. She felt uneasy on how the Doctor looks annoyed or how he behaves around the Nod members. Her mother didn't seem to have a problem, but Dinky also took note that her sister was also acting a bit unfriendly around them too.
"I wonder why the don't look happy around Ron or Andy? They haven't done anything wrong... yet." she said to herself.
Dinky removed the sheets of her and with a single leap she got off. She went to the bedroom window and stared to the outside; the sun's rays were warmly beaming down on Ponyville, the sky was a brilliant bright blue, and Ponyville valley kept its color of green strong.
Dinky looked down to the backyard, and scanned left and right for Ron and the others but no one was there.
"That's weird... Where's Ron and his brothers?" she asked herself as the Reaper was nowhere in sight below.
Dinky raised an eybrow and turned away from the window. She came passed her room's doorway and went down the stairs. The Doctor was on the regular couch, tapping a hoof against his chin, but Andy was mysteriously gone.
"Hey, Doctor? Where's Andy?" Dinky asked him.
"He's in the backyard searching for Ron and the others."
Dinky trotted over to the window that had the view of the backyard; Andy was seen searching for his brothers, but there also something that caught Dinky's eye: a figure that's had its back turned toward her, was dressed in black clothing, its head was completely bald. The creature stood there peacefully staring at the sky, appearing to not have the fear of being spotted. Dinky stared at this figure shocked, but shook her head and rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things - it was gone.
"What was that?" she asked herself again. "I could've sworn there was something that looked like John or Dave, but now it's gone."
Dinky went into deep thought for a moment, until the Doctor abruptly called her name.
"Dinky, do you want to go get the newspaper with me?"
"Sure, I'll be right there." she replied back.
Dinky trotted to the Doctor, who was standing by the front door waiting to depart with her. Dinky smiled at him, and went out the door and into the sunny day. The Doctor and Dinky started to trot toward Ponyville.
Dinky observed the environment around her; perfect and clean like any day in Equestria. But something in her mind reminded her of a very important matter. "Doctor? Have you seen Ron or his brothers?"
The Doctor shook his head as a reply. "That's what I've been wondering about. Where did he and those two pesky troublemakers go to?"
"I wish I knew where they were, but shouldn't we have at least brought Andy with us?" Dinky remembered Andy, who was in the backyard. "I'm sure nothing will go wrong if he's here."
"He prefered to stay and find his companions. I see that he also wants to maintain order, but if Ron is out there with those two idiots, I think they'll be fine." the Doctor smirked as he had some trust in the Reaper.
"What makes you say that?" Dinky asked him.
"Well, let's just say Ron has the power and intelligence to handle anything. It kind of scares me actually." the Doctor admitted. "I've noticed he observes everything; ponies, plants and more, then he takes note on its behaviour or anything. For example, why do you think he calls me your 'father'?"
Dinky stared up to the sky to think on the interesting question. "Well, doesn't he do that as a joke? I thought he was joking and trying to make us laugh."
"No, Dinky, he's seeing how I would react. He's doing this because he wants to gather information. But why would he do this? Is he curious? Planning something big? Or he's just a machine and does this because of his nature?"
So many thoughts and questions flooded his mind about the strange spider-like cyborg.
BOOM!
A explosion echoed loudly as it was heard somewhere far away. The Doctor and Dinky immediately stopped, and searched all directions for the source.
"Doctor, what was that?" Dinky asked him, scared by the frightening sounds.
"I don't know. But I think that was an explosion. Maybe it's construction workers...? Or something else that I hope isn't dangerous."
Dinky continued to search for whatever made the explosion, but remembered it sounded familiar to the one a few nights ago. But she also recalled the star that appeared brightly, then expanded and the explosion sound followed.
"Doctor, I recognize that sound from somewhere."
"You do? Did you see something or you've heard it many times before?"
"I haven't seen anything, but I saw a star the other night, then it grew large in size and made an explosion sound."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow as a star that expanded and made explosion sounds was quite odd to him.
"Thats weird... Stars don't work that way, maybe it was meteor. But then again maybe it's something else." the Doctor listened closely for another sound, but everything remained quiet. "Well, I think it's over now. So let's get a move on, shall we?"
The two began to trot again. Ponyville stood proudly at the end of the path, it didn't appear busy as the one time Dinky showed Ron around town. But the shops and carts were still open for business. A unicorn and pegasus were up ahead, conversing on something they were looking at in the newspaper that was levitated by the unicorn.
"Woah, can you believe this! How could something cause this much damage!" the unicorn said, surprised.
"Yeah! It's like they destroyed this place in a matter of seconds!" the Pegasus exclaimed.
The Doctor and Dinky overheard what they were saying, and looks day each other confused.
"I wonder what they're taking about? I hope it's not bad," Dinky said.
"Well, let's just see what's important today..." the Doctor replied.
The two entered Ponyville and spotted the cart that sold the newspaper. A earth pony was in line and paid the bits for the news. The Doctor came up next and paid. He smiled at the pony who worked at the cart. Dinky waited for him, eager to see what the paper contained today.
The Doctor opened the newspaper and searched through the pages for anything interesting. Some of the content inside was advertisement, boring stories or random subjects. But one was a real attention grabber, since it was written in big, bold letters:
"Wonderbolts Academy Obliterated!"
Dinky's eyes went wide at the stunning topic, the Doctor let out a quiet gasp.
"How could something happen like this? It's nearly impossible to attack their academy," the Doctor said. "It's out of reach for most intruders!"
The eyes of both ponies scanned left and right as they read the unbelievable story.
Wonderbolt Academy was almost destroyed! Heavy damage and destruction has been sustained. One cadet has been hospitalized by minor injuries. Wonderbolt Captain Soarin' was a lucky survivor of this unspeakable attack, "I've never seen such a thing do this! It was a normal day, then it completely gets annihilated by this metal monster that came out of nowhere! It threatened to destroy me and Rainbow Dash who is a cadet training there. It attacked Rainbow Dash and she fell unconcious, I placed myself in front of to defend Miss Dash as it was ready to finsh her off. I fully prepared myself to give my life so she can live hers." Captain Soarin' remarked. Reports and Soarin' say that this tall creature made out of metal was responsible for the attack.
But, Soarin' also says that another creature made out metal was also there. He described that it was like a spider, but all it did was stare at him and Rainbow Dash. The cadet still remains in the hospital recovering, and the Wonderbolts are with her at this time. The Royal Guard has recently been investigating the sighting of a spider-like creature; it possibly may be the same spider-machine that was at the academy during the attack. But the Guard has also been attacked by strange things. Reports are still unclear, but all we know for now is that a possible large threat may be here in Equestria.
Luckily, the Royal Guard has a new ally: a creature from another world. This creature's species is called "Human", the human goes by the name "Mammoth". He says that he knows what these two machines are and their purposes. Mammoth states that these two machines are called "Cyborgs", and belong to a organization called "Nod". But it gets worse, there are two other members of Nod, but their humans and not machine. Mammoth strongly advises all citizens of Equestria to not listen to these two Nod humans because, "They'll persuade you to join them saying, 'We bring peace and untiy' but their actually lying!" Mammoth said.
Furthermore, these Nod humans are described to be in suits that grant them the ability to turn invisible, and the suits are said to be in a red and green color design. With the threat rising and dangerous fugitives on the loose, we ask all citizens to remain safe and proceed with caution to wherever you go.
The Doctor suddenly started to shake his right foreleg that he held the newspaper nervously. He realized that his family were harboring fugitives that were beyond dangerous. He dropped the paper and began to mumble and stutter words.
"I-I can't...t-th-they did- how cou-could they do this!?" He came out his fear and into rage.
Dinky stood there stunned by the disturbing information. She couldn't process that a machine that she considered as a friend, and seemed friendly and intelligent was involved in this terror against the Wonderbolts.
"T-they did this...why would Ron do this? He couldn't have a mind to do this."
"Dinky...We need to get home right away!." the Doctor said in a dead-serious tone. "We need to get your mother and sister out of the house! Ron, Andy, those two idiots are completely insane!"
"Are y-you sure?" Dinky said in a hoarse tone. "Ron couldn't be evil or is he...?"
"Evil or not, we need to get the family to a safe place away from Ron and his brothers!"
The Doctor and Dinky galloped back to their home before it was too late.
********
Mammoth stood outside Ponyville, sternly staring at his surroundings behind his mask. Right next to him was Shining Armor, he looked at the ground with a upset look on his face. He glanced over to some of members of the Wonderbolt team that were conversing with some of the Guard ponies.
"Dang, we thought we were safe and now... We get solid blow by Nod to the head." Shining Amour heavily sighed. "We've got to stop them before they do another attack."
"Don't worry I know how these bastards think." Mammoth grunted. "They'll stay hidden for now, but eventually they'll come back."
Shining fixed his eyes on Mammoth, and smirked as he wanted to know more about the organization Mammoth worked in.
"So... Uhh...What else do you guys use to combat Nod?" he asked.
"Damn, you're full of questions. But it's funny. Well, we got massive machines called Disruptors, and it emits a sonic wave that will blow anything up. Kind of brutal if infantry get caught in it." Mammoth chuckled. "We also have Titans. Tall, ominous walkers that are armed with a large cannon. Those guys can be deployed anywhere, destroy anything, and have range."
Shining smirked and nodded his head at the interesting information about GDI. "Well it looks like you guys can handle anything. But are you the only weapon that can fly?" He saw how Mammoth had the capability to fly.
"Nope. We have aircraft. Like the Orca, there are two types though. A Fighter and Bomber. The fighter is fast and flexible and can attack most targets. The bomber is slow, but only attacks ground targets. Once that thing gets in range... It's all over. Then we have transports. We have the Carryall; a machine that carries vehicles off or on the battfield. Thing goes faster than an Orca Fighter! Heh, am I boring you?" Mammoth noticed Shining Armor appeared confused.
Shining continued to stare at him, but snapped out of his trance.
"Oh no! Sorry... It's just a lot of info to remember. But, woah! You guys seem to have everything."
"We do." Mammoth grinned.
Out of the corner of his eye, Mammoth saw something. He turned and saw a figure. He tilted his head to interpret what the figure was. I wonder what that is...
Mammoth started to see the anomaly more clearly; was in dark clothing, staring in a random direction, and completely bald from the head. Mammoth raised an eyebrow, he still couldn't tell what it was, but his mind insisted him that it was "him": Kane.
No... That can't be him. He's not here, he's back on Earth doing his psycho work...
Mammoth shook his head and the figure was gone. He gave a few light knocks to his head to adjust his mind straight.
The sound of hoofsteps was coming form behind them. Shining Armor and Mammotth turned around to see a Guard pony approaching them.
"Mammoth, the Wonderbolts would like to see you. They say it's important." the Guard informed .
"Alright. Let's see what they want."
Mammoth made his way back inside the hospital.
Both Shining and the Guard watched him until he was out of sight. The Guard pony looked at Shining Armor when it was clear.
"Captain, I have some important news," he said.
"Well, what is it?" Shining Armor asked.
"We've discovered a crash site of a machine with small wings and other unknown objects attached to it. But in the front area there are two seats surrounded by glass. One in the front, then the other in the back. So, that means it needs two operators to control it..."
"Go on." Shining insisted.
"And that's the bad thing." the Guard rubbed his left foreleg. "We don't know if the personnel are dead and something might have taken their bodies, or they managed to survive and escape the wreckage. But we also don't know if the machine has already been there for a long time, but the interesting thing is that it's marked with logos of a Hawk or Eagle. Mammoth is marked with those logos on his suit."
"Your right." Shining slowly nodded his head as realized the GDI soldier shared the same logos. "I'll see to it. But continue to investigate this and find the crew of that machine! Who know what we're up against."
Shining Armor turned back around, but saw something standing next to a team of Guard ponies. It we very bizarre since the team was facing to the right, and the thing resembled a human, but it stood there in front of them. Not a single Guard made a reaction but to continue staring to the right. Shining Armor shook his head; the human figure was gone.
Did I just see something or am I going crazy? I'm sure Cadence wouldn't want a crazy husband...
--------------
Mammoth walked down the busy hallway of the hospital. The doctors, nurses and patients fixed their eyes on him curiously. When a pony crossed into his path, they immediately moved away. Mammoth didn't understand why, but he figured they were probably afraid of him by the way he looked. The group of blue and yellow flight suits stood by a door which marked the place where he needed to go.
"You guys needed to talk to me?" Mammoth said to them.
Soarin' was the first to respond. "Yeah, who was that cyborg that showed up earlier!?" He stomped a hoof against the ground.
"Take it easy there, buddy." Mammoth tried to calm him down. "That, my friend, was a Cyborg Commando. Another monster created by Nod. The good side to it is that it can't shoot you guys down, unlike the Reaper where it can get you wherever you go. But if you get to low... its gonna take an aim at you."
"But, why?" Misty Fly questioned. "Why would it do this?"
Mammoth shook his head as he thought of a possible answer.
"Its probably working with the Reaper. The Reaper must've regrouped with the Commando. But that Reaper must be way smarter than I thought, it could have explained everything to the Commando, then as a likely revenge, attack the academy... It all makes sense now!"
"So you're saying the Reaper is almost like a real-live being, and is smarter than any of us?" Fleetfloot asked him.
"I think so. But we need every town on high alert. If you're cadets or other Wonderbolts try to be a hero and engage these guys...they'll get torn to pieces in seconds."
The Wonderbolts faces were turned into full shock. Spitfire closed her eyes and looked down, Soarin' went inside the room where Rainbow was and frowned as he saw her still unconcious. Fleetfloot placed a hoof on Spitfire's shoulder to get her in a better spirit. Misty looked at Fire Streak concerned.
Mammoth walked inside the room and stopped next to Soarin'.
"How did it all start?" he asked.
Soarin' sighed and said, "The Cyborg Commando just came out of nowhere. I was having a friendly conversation with Rainbow, then that's where it attacked us."
"Sure, you were having a 'friendly' conversation with her... Flirting!" Mammoth mischievously coughed.
Soarin' looked away and blushed under his uniform. "No. No I wasn't it!"
"Yes, you were. Don't lie I understand...it's okay."
"I told I wasn't! I was just-"
"Are you done mocking him, whoever you are?" the voice of the awake Rainbow Dash cut in.
Soarin' blushed to a deeper shade of red, and Mammoth just waved in "Hello". Soarin' nervously smiled at Dash, but Mammoth began to approach her.
"How are you feeling, Miss Dash?" he asked.
"Please down call me that," she said. "I feel fine. But...what happened to me?" Rainbow rubbed her head as she felt a minor headache.
"You don't remember? Well, we got in that scuffle with those two cyborgs, technically just one, but everything got out of control!" Soarin' remarked.
"So that's what happened... Is everypony okay?"
"Yeah, but the academy is completely destroyed."
Rainbow Dash lowered her head as the academy being destroyed took a toll on her. Since her dream of being a Wonderbolt would greatly be delayed. "Darn... I wish I was still awake, so I can kick that machine's flank for doing all of this."
"That would be a grave mistake," Mammoth informed her. "Those things are beyond your level of combat. Do you want to be ashes in the next few seconds when you attack them."
Rainbow huffed and crossed her forelegs in defeat. "Just because they're tough doesn't mean I could beat them!"
Mammoth shrugged and turned around to walkout of the room.
"Fine, your funeral not mine."
Soarin' and Rainbow glared at him as he walked out of the room. Soarin' glance over to Rainbow and smiled.
"You feeling okay" he asked Dash.
"Yeah, just a small- Ow! Headache." she grunted at the pain.
Soarin' sighed in relief that she was fine. "You got lucky that nothing severe happened to you. But you almost lost your life fighting that thing. You should listen to Mammoth, he knows more about these guys." He regarded.
"Fine." Rainbow rolled her eyes and sighed. "I'll listen to tall, walking on two legs, armored guy over there."
"Bipedal." Soarin' corrected.
"Whatever! Bipedal, Bipolar! Same thing!"
Soarin' just chuckled at Rainbow's demeanor. "I told you! You're adorable when you're mad!"
"For the last time! I am not adorable when I'm mad!" she exclaimed.
Soarin' continued to laugh and Rainbow retorted, until the voice of the GDI soldier interrupted.
"Love birds! I need you stop messing around, Soarin'! I need you over here!"
Rainbow twitched her left eye and stuttered. "L-Love Birds...?"
Both pegasi blushed even more. Soarin' shrugged and made his way out of the room. The Wonderbolts and Captain Shining Armor grouped up into a circle outside the hospital room.
Mammoth came next to Shining Armor.
"Alright, we need to take these guys down. There are far too dangerous and willingly to destroy all of us," he said.
"What are you suggesting?" Shining Armor asked. "You know these guys more than us."
"Captain, you need to get this town secured as you can. Get as many troops over here, just a few Guards won't do nothing against them."
"Alright, I'll send a message to princess Celestia immediately!"
Mammoth looked at him confused. "Celestia? Princess?"
"Oh sorry, I forgot to tell you... She's a ruler of Equestria."
"Right..."
Mammoth then glanced over to Spitfire.
"Captain Spitfire, I want you to keep all pegasi grounded near the academy."
"Understood, but why-"
"Wait!"
The abrupt voice of Rainbow Dash cut Spitfire off. The human and the ponies entered back into the room.
"What's wrong?" the GDI soldier asked.
"There's this box-like thing with triangular holes in the front of it," Rainbow grunted by the headache. "It's been destroying any Pegasus that gets near it."
Mammoth curled his hand into a fist. "Damn! That 'box-like' thing is a SAM! How the hell did it end up here!?"
"A 'SAM'?" Blaze asked.
"Yeah, that thing is going eliminate any flying object that it detects! This why I ask of you Wonderbolts to keep every Pegasus from flying. Not just because of the SAM, but also by the Reaper."
"Understood! We're on it!' Spitfire replied.
"Okay, lets-"
"Captain!" A voice shouted from the hall.
Three pegasi Guards came into the room, but two of them carried a bruised, beaten Guard who had some burn marks on him.
"C-Captain," he heavily coughed and wheezed. "We've encountered the metal spider creature to the North from here! It's with those two Nod humans and a mechanical device that's been destroying pegasi that flies close! I barely escaped the device but I crashed, and those monsters got me."
"Okay, that's it!" Mammoth shouted. "Captain, round up as many of your troops and follow me! We're going to end this madness once and for all! Wonderbolts, I need you to come with us too!"
The determined group started to leave, but Rainbow called out for Soarin'. All of them stopped and turned around at her, but Soarin' said, "Go. I'll catch up to you."
"Hurry. 'Cause we're not going to wait for you." Mammith said as they left the room.
Soarin' approached Rainbow Dash, who was rubbing the back of her head nervously.
"Soarin'... I don't know how else to put this, but... thanks for saving my life." She blushed and looked away.
"Oh, it's nothing." He warmly smiled back. "If I didn't... you probably wouldn't be here at all."
Rainbow Dash winced as she thought she wouldn't be alive if Soarin' hadn't rescued her from death. Soarin' began to pat Dash on her shoulders. "Well, at least you're safe and sound."
"Soarin'!" Mammoth yelled at him. "We need to get moving!"
"Sorry, got to go... If everything goes well, we should meet up again."
"Sure." Rainbow replied.
Soarin' departed from her to meet up with the rest. Dash smiled and waved a hoof in goodbye. "Good luck!"
When the Wonderbolt disappeared around the doorway, Rainbow looked out the window, and saw the determined pack on their way to stop the Nod menace from doing anymore terror on Equestria. The mare closed her eyes and lowered her head against the bed's headrest.
"For now relax..." a voice said.
Rainbow shot open her eyes and searched the room for the source. "Huh? Who said that?"
Nothing. Not a single pony, human or creature was in the room. Dash raised an eyebrow in confusion as a voice that had just spoken seemed to come form nowhere.
The rainbow-maned mare shrugged, and went back to resting. Until...
"DASHIE!"
Oh no...
Pinkie Pie excitingly called out her name as she bounced into the room, with Twilight and Fluttershy following close behind. Rainbow smiled at seeing her friends visit her, and asked, "What are you guys doing here?"
"We heard what happened, and we wanted to make sure you were okay." Twilight replied.
"Yes, we were afraid something grave happened to you," Fluttershy added.
"Well, that's great and all, but you guys better get to your homes quick, because the whole town is probably going to be on a full lockdown." Rainbow informed.
Twilight and Fluttershy looked at each other confused. "Why would Ponyville be put on a lockdown?" Twilight asked.
"Remember that spider thing? The one that was with Derpy's daughter?" Rainbow said.
"Yeah... So?"
Dash groaned and rubbed her head. "It attacked the academy, well actually its friend did, but it's out there with others of its kind destroying the whole place! A guard came in here a few minutes before you arrived who's practically beaten down by those guys."
Twilight was stunned by the disturbing information; a machine thats he rarely knew that somewhat friendly was actually attacking the ponies of Equestria.
Fluttershy closed her eyes and lowered her head.
"Spiders are supposed to be friendly. Why would one do this?"
"To break it down, Fluttershy, it's actually a being that's half machine and half- whatever the other side is. But it has body parts of a spider. So, yeah..." Rainbow Dash explained.
BOOM!
The ponies winced as a explosion was heard somewhere in the distance.
"I told you!" Rainbow exclaimed.
"Well, I hope the Guard can stop them." Twilight said.
"Umm... Twilight? Your brother is actually on his way with the Wonderbolts and some other creature to fight them.
Twilight left eye twitched and her mouth hung open. "WHAT?!" she yelped, taking a few steps back stumbling.
"Don't worry, Twilight!" Pinkie wrapped a foreleg around her neck. "I bet your brother will stop that big, meanie spidey-thing out there!"
"I hope so."
*********
"There's one!"
BOOM!
"Ha! Ha!"
"Another one!"
BOOM!
"Oh, this is just too funny to watch!"
To the north of Ponyville hospital was Ron and the two Chameleon spies, enjoying the sight of pegasi being blown out of the sky by the fully-operational SAM Site. (John and Dave are having a good time not Ron)
"That's number seven on the list!" John happily informed.
"Ooh! There's one!" Dave pointed at Royal Guard Pegasus flying near. The SAM rotated in the pegasus' direction and fired.
"Come on! Don't lost track of it!"
BOOM!
Dave fell to the floor laughing and rolling around. "Oh, this is just too good! Haha!"
Ron shook his head and looked way from the two childish spies.
"Ugh, these two are going to cause me to have a system failure. I wonder what Andy is doing back at Dinky's residents?"
The Reaper lifted his right hand in front of his face; it was stained with a few markings of blood. "That Guard had it coming."
"Ron, are you not enjoying this? This is just fun to watch!" John came up next to him on the right.
The cyborg crossed his arms. John patted Ron on his right arm.
"Don't worry, we'll find a way back home." the spy looked out into Ponyville valley. "Damn, who knows what could happen to us in this world."
Ron glanced back to the SAM that was still searching for targets to eliminate. He noticed the small symbol of Nod marked on the back of it.
When are we going to back?
"Brother, who are those that approach us?" John's voice was serious this time.
Ron turned back around, and saw a large group of figures coming towards them. The cyborg leaned his head forward to get a better view; the GDI soldier, the Wonderbolts and the Royal Guard were approaching them. He immediately warned his brothers.
"Brothers! The heretics have come for us!"
"What's going on?" Dave asked as he stopped next to the left of Ron.
"My brother, our time is at hand. It is time to vanquish our enemy... or prepare to die trying." Ron clenched his hands into fists, and armed all weapon systems in him. "John, warn our brother back 'home' about this. We're not going to lose him either."
"Way ahead of you."
John was already preparing a message to Andy through the advanced computer system implement in his helmet. "Done."
"Good... Prepare for your destinies."
*********
The Doctor and Dinky were galloping back home to get Derpy and Sparkler out of the house before anything else can unfold. Whooves opened the front door and galloped into the living room. Dinky galloped right next to him, but came to a screeching halt as they saw Derpy and Sparkler at the table, eating their breakfast.
"Well, where were you two? Derpy asked them.
"Oh, we just went to go get the newspaper." Whooves replied.
"So, where is it?" Sparkler asked him as she noticed neither Dinky or Whooves had the paper.
"We must've dropped it." Dinky smiled widely to make it appear it was an accident.
Sparkler shrugged and went back to eating. The Doctor was about to ask Derpy to speak with him for a moment in the living room, but he felt his heart stop when he saw Andy come into view.
The cyborg approached Sparkler, and placed a plate of fried eggs beside the other one, which had toast on it.
"Enjoy, Miss Sparkler."
"Why thank you, Andy." she smiled at him. "You're pretty helpful and nice around here."
Andy then went to Derpy and stopped next to her on the right; back to the guard-like way.
"Uhh...Derpy? Can I speak with you for a moment?" Whooves asked while staring at the cybernetic terror by Derpy.
"Sure." Derpy replied.
The Doctor and Derpy left the table and into the living room. Whooves made sure it was clear before he explained.
"Okay..." He took a deep breath. "Derpy, we need to get the family out of the house!" he whispered.
"What do you mean we need to leave the house?" she stared at him confused. "Is there something wrong?"
"Yes! Gravely wrong! Derpy, when I read the newspaper it showed that Andy and Ron were responsible in a attack that was directed against the Wonderbolt's academy!"
"They can't be involved in that. Andy couldn't have done that. The way he acts around here has been very nice and appreciated by his help."
"Derpy! That's what he wants you to think! He's evil. He's a machine. Neither he or Ron and those two morons care about us! They just want us to trust them, so they can use us!"
Ditzy looked down and skook her head. The cyborg did appear nice and useful, despite that they barely knew him, she couldn't determine if Andy was a clear threat to her family. Derpy glanced up at Whooves with fear in her eyes.
"Are you sure? They can't do this, right?"
"I would get you and your family out of harm's way. I would never leave you in danger of something evil." He placed a hoof under her chin, and gently smiled.
"Thanks, Doctor." Derpy hugged him for a moment, then let him go. "That really means a lot."
"Now, I'm going to go contact some Guards to detain Andy. I want you-"
"That shall not be necessary, Doctor." A familiar voice said from behind.
Derpy and Whooves slowly faced the Cyborg Commando that had Dinky in his free hand, and pointing his plasma cannon at her.
"I wouldn't do that if I were a small, four-legged mammal like you," Andy said.
"You monster! I had the feeling you were going to do this!" Whooves yelled at him.
Tears began to stream down Ditzy's eyes as she saw her youngest daughter in the grasp of the maniacal cyborg. Andy moved the cannon closer to Dinky's head; the weapon was starting to glow green.
"Our final judgment has come present. Now, it is time to determine our fates. Now- huh?"
A purple aura of magic formed around Andy, and raised him barely above the ground. He dropped Dinky as he was caught off guard by this sudden interruption. Andy was then slammed against the wall multiple times. Sparkler revealed herself, she had a large bruise mark on her head, and controlling the magic to fight the Nod brute.
"This is what you get for knocking me out and threatening my little sister!" she roared as she made the cyborg smash into the wall more violent.
After a minute of brutally slamming Andy against the wall, Sparkler dropped him and panted by the exhaustion of using her magic. "I-I think he's done."
Dinky was hugging her mother as she was traumatized by the recent situation. Sparkler trotted over to Dinky to calm her down. The Doctor came up next to the down cyborg.
He shot daggers at Andy by this close-call action he made.
"I hope you stay like this for a long time."
"Doctor, let's get out of here!" Sparkler exclaimed.
The Doctor continued to gaze at the machine, until Andy suddenly twitched one of his fingers, which made Whooves jump away from him.
"Okay! Let's go!"
The Hooves family immediately left to find help. Andy remained on the carpet motionless. Until...
***...System Recovery...***
***...Standby...***
***...1011010101101010...101100101010...***
*** PRIORITY: Eliminate recognized hostiles classified as the "Hooves Family" ***
*** Elements of the Hooves: Derpy [Mother], Dinky [Daughter], Sparkler [Daughter], Doctor [Guardian...? Father...?] ***
***...Doctor's role in family is currently unknown. More data on the Doctor will be retrieved...***
***...Cleared to terminate with extreme prejudice...***
***...101010101010101010...1101010010101***
Andy rose from the ground, and stood vigilant in the living room.
Andy rose from the ground after Sparkler had violently slammed him many times against the living room wall to save her sister. The cyborg's mind was now fully directed to locate the Hooves family and terminate them. Andy then began to march forward to the front door, but instead of simply exiting the wide open door...
BOOM!
Andy let his machine instinct controll him, and he blasted a large portion of the house to make his own exit. Now, a wide area of the house was completely missing and burning. The cyborg exited the house and observed his surroundings. Everything seemed quiet and normal, but the machine knew that it would soon be overcome by the sounds of trouble.
"Where are they?" Andy asked himself.
Andy glanced to his left and saw the path just led somewhere that had no signs of any civilization but nature itself. He then looked to his right, that's where he saw the structures of Ponyville in the distance. "That is where you fled."
The Cyborg made his towards the small town to finish what he started.
********
Andy walked along a empty dirt path, which is very unusual since the ponies of Ponyville were always travelling on it. But the machine did not make this an important matter, for his objective was incomparable than a lonely dirt path. The cyborg scanned all that crossed his vision to see if it would aid him to locate the specific ponies he was after. But he suddenly stopped, and gazed down at the path.
He observed the dirt for a long moment.
"You can run, but you can't hide what you left behind."
Andy noticed there were newly made hoofprints marked on the ground, which meant the Hooves are travelling the same path as him.
"Fools. You should have chosen the grass. That might have bought you some more time to live."
Andy proceeded as planned, but stopped as he saw the town had many barricades surrounding the outsides of it. There were many Guard ponies taking cover behind these barriers, some ponies made the rooftops as makeshift watch towers. Andy knew that they were on high alert, and expecting him and his brothers. But this did not intimidate the machine.
"They will know fear."
The cyborg marched forward, despite that he was clearly outnumbered, he had no fear, no doubt, no nothing. He was willingly prepared to end many ponies that dared to get in his way. Andy charged his plasma cannon for the fight that was highly going to breakout. "You don't frighten me, you don't intimidate me. You are nothing."
"What the...Sweet Celestia! Here comes one of them!" a Guard shouted from one of the watch towers on the rooftops. All the Guards went to their designated positions to defend the town from the cybernetic terror that approached them. The Earth pony Guards pointed their spears at the cyborg, the unicorns used their magic to pick up large metal objects to throw, like a catapult. The pegasi Guards were the ones who would go up against the machine first.
"TERMINATE."
One of the captains that were in charge of the town's defense waited patiently until the machine got close enough. Andy got closer and closer, until, "ATTACK! GO GO!" the captain yelled to start the attack.
The pegasi flew into the air, then dived down towards the cyborg. Andy saw the incoming threat, and prepared to counterattack.
"THEY WILL KNOW FEAR..."
Andy fired his weapon at the charging group. Some of the pegasi managed to avoid the green orbs of doom, but for some others... it was their end if they didn't evade on time; they were instantly vaporized on contact. Some of the pegasi made a quick glance back at their friends, and gasped loudly as they saw their fellow Guards disappear instantly when they got struck by the weapon. They couldn't believe what just happened, but they immediately had to get over the loss and concentrate back on the machine.
"Take this you monster!" a Pegasus Guard shouted as he was the first one to come close to Andy. The Pegasus began to deliver punches and kicks to the cyborg.
Andy just stood there with a unimpressed stare as the winged creature made no damage against him due to his heavy metal armor. He simply grabbed the Pegasus by his left hindleg with his free hand, and slammed him against the ground. Andy had brought the Guard pegasus down with such force, he immediately passed out by the impact.
The cyborg continued on but stopped as more pegasi Guards showed up to confront him. Some of them had spears to use against him, Andy fired at the ones who held the weapons first, then back to the others who didn't.
"DEAD." he said as he caught the spear of a Guard that managed to get close enough to use it against him. Andy snapped the spear in half, and grabbed the Pegasus by the throat; he used the unfortunate pony as a shield to thwart their attacks.
"I have him. Move closer and your friend is done."
The plan worked. The pegasi that were attacking halted their attacks. Andy approached the barricades closer and closer as he had the upper advantage for now. The pony that was in the cyborg's grasp was Wind. He felt powerless to do anyththing since this machine had its weapon right next to his head. Even though he had a helmet, it still would protect to the power of the cannon.
Wind saw one of his fellow Guard ponies trying to sneak up behind the machine, but he slowly shook his head as in "No." The Guard pony obeyed and waited for a proper time to strike. Andy was now directly between the barricades that covered both sides of the entrance to Ponyville. He saw all of the Guard's aiming their weapons at him as he crossed further into the entrance.
"Don't try anything. You know what will happen," Andy said as he pressed the plasma cannon against Wind's head. The situation got more tense as no pony did anything but to watch helplessly their friend being used as a hostage to let this machine enter the town without trouble. Cloud, who was out of the hospital and fully recovered, could only watch in terror as her closest friend was held by death.
Come on, let go of him you dumb machine! Once you do... Oh, you are so in for it! she exclaimed in her mind.
"I have no use for you anymore. You service is honored," Andy stated, he raised Wind up and threw him at a group of Guard ponies. But by the time the Guards could react, Andy was already in the town and terrorizing all. He blew up houses and carts that had been abandoned, since the town was put on a lock down and were immediately left behind. Andy noticed the Guards were approaching him, and he took action against them.
The Cyborg Commando began firing at them.
Most of the ponies were struck and instantly vaporized, but for those who weren't, weremcaught in the blast. Some were blown against walls, the ground, or crashed through windows and landed in the houses. Cloud and Wind were the ponies that had the unfortunate result of crashing into the windows of a house and ending up in one. Cloud painfully got up, but recovered from the blow.
"Come on, Wind, we need to get out there and stop this thing!" she said to him.
No response came from Wind. Cloud turned her head at him and saw he had some cuts from the glass, and he was bleeding from his muzzle. She nudged him to get up, but there was still no response.
"Come on, get up. Get up, Wind, we still have to fight this thing." He still didn't move. Cloud felt herself beginning to panic, her friend didn't react, she didn't know if Wind was actually unconscious, but the worst she feared was if he was actually gone. For good.
"Wind, come on! Get up, get up!"
The sounds of the cyborg approaching was close. The screams of the Guards outside were heard loudly, and more explosions came too. The mare Guard began to nudge her friend more to get him up and escape quickly. "Don't do this to me right now! We've got to move now!"
Cloud then made up her mind and dragged Wind to a safer area of the house. She searched all over for a safe place to put him in. Cloud walked into the darkened living room of the house. "This area might work," she said to herself.
The mare pegasus placed Wind against a wall where he wouldn't be exposed to any danger like shrapnel or flying debris. Cloud moved a hoof against his neck to feel a pulse... There was a pulse, but very faint. Cloud sighed in relief that her friend was alive.
"Oh thank you're still alive."
"Woooaahh!"
CRASH!"
The sound of something crashing through a wall rang loudly in the living room. Cloud ears immediately perked up at the surprising sound. She poked her head around a hallway and saw one of the unicorn Guards on the floor of a bedroom. Cloud immediate went to aid the pony.
"Huh? Lightning!"
The stallion lifted his head up off the ground, and said, "Cloud is that you? It is! I thought that machine got you!"
Lightning, who was on the same Guard team as Cloud and Wind, was glad to see his friends alive. Cloud immediately helped Lightning get up. "Hurry! I have Wind in the living room."
"You do? Well let's go. But damn! That machine grabbed me and threw me with such strength I've never encountered! "
The two ponies went into the living room. Lightning quietly gasped as he saw his friend laying against the wall unconcious..
"Is he alright?"
"Yeah, he's breathing but he needs medical help. I'll go see if this house has any medical supplies."
"Well make it quick. These wounds he has are serious."
Cloud began to search the kitchen. She looked through many cabinets and drawers for anything useful. But nothing that would provide help was not found. Cloud grumbled as she couldn't find any medical items. "Darn it! Who ever owns this house really needs to have an idea on First Aid."
The mare continued her search in the other rooms. But no medical supplies were appearing at all.
"Cloud, hurry up! Wind doesn't look too good!" Lightning shouted from the living room.
"I'm trying my best here! This owner must be really stupid!"
Cloud noticed the house had a second floor, and she went up the steps to see if there was any medical items above. The second floor of the house was just a long hallway with a window at the end, a bathroom to the right, and another room that on the left near the end of the hallway. The mare decided to check on the bathroom first, then the room down the hall if there wasn't anything. "Please be in here," she said to herself.
Cloud approached the bathroom and saw a cabinet above the sink. She opened the cabinet and saw there was bandages, and other items to aid Wind. "Perfect!"
Cloud grabbed the lifesaving items and exited the bathroom. She was about to head for the stairs, but in the corner of her eye she saw something by the window. Cloud glanced over to the window, and she felt her heart stop for a second as she saw a tall creature standing next to it. This thing was observing the battle outside.
"Hey! Who are you? What are you doing here?" she shouted at the unknown thing. The creature wore dark clothing and was hairless from the head and had a gotee mustache.
The creature looked back at her and raised an eyebrow at her.
"I said who are-"
"Cloud! I need you down here with those medical supplies if you found any!" Lightning shouted again.
"I'm going!" Cloud turned her head back at the stairs. "But there something up here with- me...?" When she turned back at the bizarre creature, it was gone. Vanished. Not a single sign on where it could have gone to. Cloud took a few steps back confused as this thing had mysteriously disappeared to nowhere.
"Uhh... Heh, must be my imagination." she assured herself.
The mare immediately made her way down the stairs to help her friend. Cloud entered the dark living and dropped the medical items between Wind and Lightning. "Alright. Let's get him fixed up."
Lightning began to wrap bandages around Wind's wounds. Cloud disinfected the cuts around his face. The two vigil Guards closely focused on aiding their friend, but were halted as an explosion from the outside shook the house.
"Damn! Are we really having a hard time defeating this thing?" Lightning asked as another explosion shook the house. Dust and dirt fell from the ceiling. Some accessories fell over from their positions and rolled off shelves.
"I guess we are. That thing has some power that I've never seen before. It could easily defeat anything." Cloud responded.
"Well, let's just hope our friends have at least weakened it."
The explosions were constantly heard. The green light of the explosions from the cyborg's weapon could be seen through the small spaces in the windows blinds. The light would brighten the room for a mere second, then fade away and leave it darkness again. Lightning and Cloud managed to bandage and heal their friend from his wounds. Cloud smiled in content and patted Wind on the shoulders.
"Don't worry. You'll make it."
"I hope he does, but we need to get out there and stop that thing," Lightning said as he heard the machine's weapon fire.
"Yeah, I know. But we can't leave him by himself. He'll be vulnerable to anything."
"I know it's tough we're going to have to leave him. But I assure you he'll be fine."
"Okay... Let's go. But hold up."
Cloud made her way to the stairs with Lightning behind her. Lightning closely followed but was confused why Cloud was heading up the stairs than heading off into the battle outside.
"Where are we going? How can are we going to fight that mechanical terror from up here?"
"Look." Cloud stopped and looked back at Lightning concerned. "I saw this thing up here, and it was looking outside. I asked who it was but all it did was stare at me. Then you gave a shout at me and I turned my head to respond back, but when I turned around to face the thing... It was gone."
Lightning stared at her dumbstruck. How was it possible Cloud saw a creature inside the property if it was abandoned.?There was no possible way she could have seen something else with them in the house.
"You're joking, right? How could something that was right in front of you disappear that instant? But it doesn't matter! Let's go!"
"But me hear me out! There's a room at the end of the hallway up stairs, and I think it went in there."
Lightning was about to respond, but another explosion rocked the house. Cloud stumbled a bit as the explosion seemed to be more closer and powerful to their location. Lightning shook his head and made his way toward the battle.
"I'm sorry, Cloud, but we need to stop this thing rather then find a ghost you saw!"
Lightning left the house and charged to the fight. But Cloud remained in the house by the staircase. She looked back and forth between the second floor and the giant gaping hole in the wall that was blown apart by the cyborg earlier. Her curiosity to discover what that thing is overwhelmed her, but then again, she had to defeat the rampaging machine outside. Cloud made her mind and decided.
"Ugh... Fine. I guess it's more important to protect your people than finding a ghost."
Cloud also left to go into battle. Now, all that remained was the wounded guard, Wind. The Pegasus managed to crack open an eye and investigate his surroundings. He realized that he was by himself in a dark room that was brightened for a second by the green light from the explosions outside.
"Where... Where am I?" he asked in his mind.
Wind tried to get up, but struggled as he felt pain from the wounds he had. He looked down and saw he was bandaged in some places.
Ugh... What happened? All I remember was that thing using me as a shield, then it threw me against some of my friends. I recovered and charged at it, but it used its weapon against us. And that's all I remember.
Wind's vision was slightly poor. It constantly shifted between clear and hazy. The only thing Wind could do for now was just sit there and wait out the battle. But he very much disliked this. He heard more explosion and the shouting voices of the troops outside fighting the cybernetic evil.
"Damn. I'm useless like this. I need to get out there and help," Wind grunted as he tried to get up, despite the pain, he still fought through it and managed to get back on all four. Wind took a step forward, but he lost his balance. He tried again and was able to keep himself stable. Wind took a step forward, and he stumbled and fell to the ground.
"Uurrggh... That stupid machine had to weaken me! Damn this sucks!"
Wind looked up from where he is, and saw through the giant hole in the wall the cyborg on the otherside of the road, destroying random objects and purposely targeting the Royal Guard troops. Wind dropped his head against the wooden floor, and his vision becoming more hazy.
Wind just laid there in defeat for the destruction to subside. He winced when he heard another scream. But suddenly he heard footsteps. His ears immediately perked up by the sound.
"Hello? Is somepony there?" he asked.
Silence was the only reply he got back. The steps got louder as they got closer. Wind frantically turned his head in every direction to find whoever was in the house, but it sounded like it came from all directions.
"Hello? Whoever you are come out."
Wind felt a drop of sweat slide down his left cheek as he heard more footsteps approaching him. His vision became more hazy and his muscles felt weaker then before, his stomach felt like it was being squeezed, and he almost felt like throwing up. He tried to move a leg but it didn't follow his command, it simply remained glued to the ground. Wind stared to panic as he lost control of most of his body.
"What's going on?" he grunted between his clenched teeth.
A dark figure suddenly appeared from the staircase ahead. The figure had its head facing the gaping hole in the bedroom. Wind gasped but instead made a wheezing sound, which kind of gave away his position becasue the figure immediately faced him. Wind tried to crawl away but his body refused to act, but he then suddenly felt the motion of something stopping behind him.
He felt his heart stop for a mere second, a large shadow loomed over the weak Guardpony. The figure in front of Wind revealed to be armored in a red and black color scheme. Its helmet's visor was almost T-shaped due to panels that were connected to it on both sides, with what appeared to be holes on it too.
Wind could tell this creature was fully equipped by noticing pouches of equipment and other objects on it. But the one thing that caught his attention was the L-shaped object that was on its left leg, that had another smaller L-shaped object within it. Wind could tell that this thing was not from around Ponyville or any other Equestrian location at all.
You are not somepony...
The armored creatured pointed at something behind behind him. Wind slowly glanced at whatever was behind him.
Oh, how did I not notice you!, he exclaimed in his mind.
Another creature, just like the one in front of Wind but more armored, stood behind him, staring at him expressionless by the helmet it wore. Wind felt himself shaking by the fear that instantly affected him inwardly. More of those creatures appeared from the rooms, and surrounded the pegasus.
"Sorry," the large creature behind Wind said. "But it's not safe here."
"For what? Hiding in this house?" Wind coughed heavily as he asked. "I don't know who or what you are, but are you making me feel like this? I can't move and I feel beyond horrible!"
All of the creatures looked at each other, then they glanced over to the figure behind him. They gave a single nod at it.
"What are you guys going to-"
Wind was unable to complete what he was saying for he felt the underside of a heavy boot connect to the back of his head.
"Alright... Get him out here. Our brother outside will provide the distraction we need."
********
"Prepare yourselves. The time has now come..."
Ron and the two spies gazed at the approaching threat. Ron aimed his targets system onto the single human, and the large group of ponies. He clenched his metal hands into fists. John and Dave stood there slightly frightened, since they weren't armed at all. "Uhhh... Ron? How do you suppose we fight because... We have no weapons!" John shouted frantically.
Ron glanced over at them. A glare was concealed behind the faceplate he wore. "You have capabilities of bending light to provide yourlselves with personal camoflauge. You have the advantage. So, use it." The two spies stated at each other concerned, then looked over the incoming threat.
"Yeah... We're screwed, aren't we?""
The Reaper inwardly smiled impishly as he believed the ponies and GDI trooper was no threat. A small chain gun and "primitive" weapons would do no harm to him. But if there was some heavy firepower, then that might actually have soem effects on the cyborg. Ron fixed his sights on the trooper for he was the one he considered at least dangerous.
The group stooped a few meters in front of the Nod trio. Dave foolishly waved a hand at the crowd, John just stared at them blankly, and Ron... Nearly had the command to release all weapons on the edge to activate.
"Sooo... Uhh... What are you guys doin'?" John asked, awkwardly hunched over and staring at them, with a wide grin.
"What does it look like?" the GDI soldier said, his voice was filled with annoyance. "We're here to stop you!"
"Is that so... Well, No. No, No... no. You can't stop us!" Dave proudly pointed a finger in the air.
"Oh look it's princess Celestia!" John pointed a finger at the large group of soldiers. Shining Armor and the Guard ponies gasped loudly, and immediately turned around to see the powerful princess. But no. The sun goddess was not there, and it was a clear lie. The Guard ponies glanced over at the spies enraged over this devious trick.
"You lied to us you... Huh?" Shining Armor yelled at the two foolish creatures, but was immediatelyleft without words as the two were gone. Out of sight. They had only vanished. Shining's eyes widened as he realized where the two spies were, or what move they just did. He looked back to pack of guards who were utterly confused on where the two spies went.
"Where they'd go?" a Guard asked.
"I don't know. But did they teleport somewhere?" a second Guard asked.
"Wait until I place a hoof against their heads to them for lying to us!" a third Guard hissed between his clenched teeth.
" 'Place a hoof against their heads to smash us'? Why aren't you brutal,' a voice sarcastically said.
The mumblings of the ponies instantly went dead silent. They glanced around frightened by the unknown voice. The GDI soldier, Mammoth, shook his head as he knew who was behind all of this.
"Now, who was the one that wanted to put a hoof against our heads?" a second voice asked.
The ponies that didn't say the certain quote, backed away and revealed an earthpony standing alone in the center. "Oh come on, guys!" the single pony yelped.
"You want to smash our heads?" the voice asked.
"Y-yeah..." the pony stammered, his voice was filled with fear. He heard footsteps approaching home, but they weren't from the GDI soldier or the ponies around him. "I-I can take you on."
"Wait until we rip your head off, and mutilate you," the second voice whispered in his ear.
The Guard pony turned pale and fainted. The ponies that encircled him gasped loudly as they were stunned on how their friend fell unconcious.
"Ha! Ha!" John revealed himself laughing by the fainted pony.
"You guys are so easy to intimidate!" Dave added. "You can't even stand strong against us! What kind of guards are you?"
"Uselss, weak, faithless. You guys can't do anything."
Dave opened up one eye and noticed that the Guard ponies were snarling at them. Some of them began to slowly take a few steps closer toward him and Dave. Yup. This is where it's going to get interesting, he said in his mind.
"That's it. Everypony... ATTACK!" Shining Armor yelled the order at the top of his lungs.
All Guard ponies charged at the members of Nod. "I KILL YOU!" Dave screeched madly. He randomly began to punch any pony that got too close to him. John turned invisible as he saw four guards charging at him. He turned invisble and evaded the threat. But then he came around a pegasus stallion, and... kicked him in the flank.
The Guard pony turned around at him enraged. "Nnnnngghh! Wait until I get my hooves on you!"
"Umm... No thank you." John took off running and kicking any other pony that crossed his path.
Besides the combat that went on between the two Nod humans, and the ponies. Ron simply watched the battle. None of the ponies had dared tried to attack him for some mysterious reason. Perhaps it was conspicuous that the Reaper can easily end any target he comes across, but besides that, it still confused Ron.
"Hmm... None of the ponies has attacked me yet. Are they afraid to challenge me? Or am I being saved for last, so they can overwhelm me?" he asked himself.
"Hey, Cyborg, over here!" a voice shouted at the Reaper.
"Hmm?" Ron glanced over to the direction of the voice, and saw the Wonderbolt team standing before him. "Oh, so that's where you went. Not bad for stealth," he actually admitted.
"Yeah! Wait until we kick your flank- wait... He doesn't have one, so- Uhh..." Soarin' didn't know how to exactly taunt this machine. "Wait. Umm... Torso...?"
Ron shook his head, unimpressed on what Soarin' had to say to him. "Well, wait until I rip your spines out, Wonderbolts."
"Yeah, wait until you- Wait, what!?"
"TARGET MARKED."
"Uh-oh. Here he comes!" Fleetfoot exclaimed as the Reaper approached them at full speed.
"Wonderbolts, GO!" Spitfire commanded.
The Wonderbolt dispersed to dodge the cyborg. Soarin' was about to takeoff, he got a few inches off the ground, but he felt something grab his tail. He looked back and saw the Reaper grasping his tail. Soarin' flapped his wings harder to escape, but only ended up flying in the same place.
Ron slyly smiled inwardly and slammed Soarin' against the ground with great force. Soarin' was heavily stunned by the impact, his vision was hazy and he lost his hearing for a second, then it returned. Soarin' rolled onto his back in pain. But he saw the cyborg looming over, appearing like a silhouette due to the machine blocking the sunlight that casted upon him.
"Uh oh. Not good, NOT GOOD!" Soarin' yelped as he saw the Reaper's right spider leg lift in the air, and stop directly over him.
"EXTERMINATE."
"Oh crud.."
Soarin' closed his eyes to not witness the death that was going to be brought down upon him. "Oh no you don't!" Spitfire yelled. Soarin' shot open his eyes and saw Spitfire fly up to the Reaper. The cyborg noticed her and lashed an arm out to attack, but in the blink of an eye she dodged the attack, and ended up on the right side of the cyborg's head. "Take this!"
Spitfire striked Ron on right side of his head with a solid hind leg. The head of the cyborg was now tilted to the right. Soarin' immediately up got as he has the chance. The other Wodnerbolts, who were flying around to find an opportunity to strike this metal spider, glided downward and hovered next to Spitfire.
The Reaper made no movements. It just stood there with its head tilted to the right. Blaze flew in front of the cyborg's head to see if it was still active, but something was wrong.
Its red three dotted eyes were gone.
"Didn't this thing eyes glow red or something??" Blaze asked, confused.
"Yeah, it does. Are they cracked open or busted up bad?" Fire Streak asked.
"No. There gone. Like they dissapeared."
Spitfire also flew over next to Blaze to see what was going on. She placed a hoof to her chin in confusion as the cyborg remained frozen in position. Spitfire then cautiously moved a hoof towards the machine to see if it would react. I hope it's shutdown or... It's actually dead. I have a bad feeling about this.
"Spitfire, what are you doing!?" Blaze immediately pushed her hoof away before it came close to the cyborg's head.
"I just wanted to see if it would do something if I touched it, or do anything."
"Yeah, 'do something'... Are you out of your mind. Can't you see it's beyond dangerous!"
Spitfire still didn't understand why it didn't react, or to be considered "Beyond dangerous". She moved closer to Ron, and waved a hoof in front of his face. Nothing. No movement. "Hey. I think it's shutdown."
"What makes you think that?" Misty Fly questioned.
"Just watch... Hey! Reaper guy! I'm talking to you! Hello?" Spitfire shouted at the machine. All the other Wonderbotls winded as their captain blurted out random words at it. Soarin' uncontrollably twitched his left eye as he had the fear the Reaper was suddenly going to come back to reality. Fleetfloot slowly gained altitude, so she could be safe, just incase if the machine suddenly switched back on.
Misty Fly and Fire Streak hid behind a log, and poked their heads out over the edge to see if anything would happen. Soarin' stated at his close friend bewildered, but he shook his head and made up his mind to stop Spitfire before anything can dangerously unfold. "Spitfire, just stop! It doesn't matter of this thing went asleep in us. Let's just get out of here and help the rest."
"Soarin', I think it's gone for good," she glanced back at the Wonderbolt. "I've done almost everything to get its attention but it hasn't even moved. I think I defeated it." Spitfire triumphantly smirked as she believed she had defeated the cybernetic menace.
But Soarin' still suspected the cyborg was active, and watching them. But he was also driven by curiosity. Soarin ' wanted to at least give a small bump to the cyborg, to determine if it was alive. Or just say a some words to it.
"Spitfire, I don't know if we won here, but... I still have a bad feeling about this."
"Look, I do to, despite that it might be dead on us, but I think one solid kick to the head might have put it down for good."
"I still have a bad feeling..."
--------------
***...Warning.../_!_\....Warning.../_!_\...***
***.../_!_\...Unit has suffered partial damage on Data Storage.../_!_\...***
*** [Danger]...Data corruption has been detected...[Danger]...***
***...Request in progress...***
***...Unable to complete request to repair corrupted data...***
***...Data corruption and damage is causing replay of recorded events...***
***...Repairs are in progress in damaged sectors...***
***.../_!_\....Playing recorded events in Brotherhood archives.../_!_\...***
"From God to Kane- jgdghdjfkhvh" [Corruption Detected]
"A full frontal attack with you strongest forces should render their center of military opera-"
"Once in, build up an arsenal of weapons- hnjkbfdcbh!" [Corrupted Data]
"I call it Ezekiel's Wheel..."
***...10101101011010010011010...***
"KANE LIVES!"
"Never to leave your side again..."
***...[Caution] Unit has an increase in anger for unknown causes...***
***...Iniating ECCP...[Emergency CABAL CONTROL PROGRAM]...***
***.../_!_\... A.I. not detected! Extracting similar fragments of A.I. from Data Storage...***
***...5%...35%...60%...75%...100%...***
***...Iniating ECCP...Standby...***
"CABAL ONLINE..."
------------
"I'm telling you, we won!"
"How could we just win that easily? That thing is way tougher! It could take more damage than just a small kick."
"Look, it's not even moving! Hey, dumb cyborg! Look at me!"
The machine did not move as the voice of Spitfire yelled at him. Soarin' tried his best to stop his close friend, but wasn't making much progress. Soarin' suspected this thing was playing a trick on them. It didn't make any sense to the Wonderbolt. How could the cyborg suddenly shutdown, or disable if possible, just by a singe kick to the head by Spitfire? It didn't add up, the cyborg was metal beast that could withstand much damage, but a kick could render it?
"Spitfire, I think we should leave it alone," Soarin' said while he nervously backed away from the captain of the Wonderbotls and the Reaper.
"Oh come on Soarin'! It has to be dead- huh?"
Spitfire slowly turned as she heard the sounds of mechanics parts moving. She quietly gasped as she realized the cyborg began to tower above her, its eyes were no longer red, but blue. It slowly scanned to the left and right, then gazed down upon then .
"Heh, I guess you were right, Soarin'. It is alive."
"TARGETING YOU SHALL INCREASE THE PROBABILTY OF A FAVORIBLE OUTCOME," the cyborg spoke.
The Wonderbolts were taken back by the voice it spoke in. It sounded like its voice was combined with a more demonic-like voice. The wires that connected to its head we're surging with blue, electric spikes. All the red lights on it were also glowing blue. Spitfire and Soarin' began to slowly back away from Ron. "Look at the time, we seriously need to go," Soarin' nervously said.
"Y-Ywah, what he said, and W-whatever 'favorable outcome' means... You can tell us later," Spitfire added, stammering.
"No, Spitfire. I will not allow you to leave without knowing the definition of 'favorable outcome'." Ron began to approach them with a loud thump sound as each leg impacted ground.
"Okay, Uhh... What does it mean?" Soarin' asked.
"You all die..."
"Oh, so that's what it means. Well- WHAT!?" Soarin' yelped.
"Hehehaha!"
"Lookout!"
Ron fired all weapons at the Wonderbolts. Spitfire and Soarin' immediately took off into the air to evade the fast moving projectiles. Spitfire felt the small, rapid gushes of wind from the small projectiles that we're being fired from the object under the cyborg's left arm. Spitfire felt the adrenaline in her body, her heart racing at top speed to keep herself moving to live. She dove down and took cover behind a tree. The fiery Pegasus stopped there to catch her breath, but she winced when she heard the projectiles striking against the tree at high velocity.
Then the grass around her was suddenly being shredded and blown apart by the cyborg's weapons. Dirt kicked up and pieces of grass scattered everywhere. Spitfire then cringed as the bark around was also being torn apart. What do I do! What do I do! she exclaimed in her mind. But suddenly everything went quiet. The projectiles had stopped coming, the dirt and bark wasn't being shredded anymore. Spitfire slowly peeked her head to check if it was clear.
Surprisingly it was. Everything was quiet and nothing was moving. The Wonderbolt captain scanned to the left and right for any signs of trouble but there was nothing. Spitfire narrowed her eyes down for this was very strange. But there something wrong about this, besides the weapons bring fired at her. She couldn't understand what was missing, until she gasped loudly after a long minute of thinking.
"W-where's the Reaper at?"
The cyborg, Ron, was missing. He wasn't anywhere in sight. It was like he had just instantly vanished without a trace. The few things that were visible in Spitfire's sight was the figures of the humans and ponies in battle, the destroyed land that was in front of her, and some of her Wonderbolt friends hiding behind objects. "Where is it? How could something huge just dissapear. It doesn't make sense!"
"Oh, how your pony intelligence is nothing compared to cybrenetic intelligence, hmpf... Spitfire."
Spitfire felt her heart stop. Her body instantly froze at the demonic cyborg voice speaking directly behind her.
"Spitfire, do you have any idea on what you're facing? The threat? The danger you know that leads to death?" the machine asked.
Spitfire closed her eyes and slowly shook her head as a response. But she shot her eyes open when she felt the tips of the cold metal fingers of the mechanical terror on her head. Her head slowly being being turned around to make her face the Reaper. Spitfire eyes widened with terror as she saw her close friend in the grasp of Ron's left hand. "S-Soarin'...no..."
Soarin' battered and bruised all over his body. His wings seemed to be dislocated too. Ron glanced back and forth between Spitfire and the beaten Soarin' in his hand. "This is what happens when you defy Nod. When you defy Kane. I could've gave him a chance, but instead he attacked me. Very malicious of him to do this. But now I look forward to you, Spitfire... If you help me and o-our, m-my- your, my three b-brothers- fleshbacks- brothers, we can change your life and Equestria's beyond imagination."
"What do you mean?" Spitfire asked, her head hung low. But she was confused inwardly by the cyborg appearing to have difficulty speaking when he mentioned the two Nod humans plus the other cyborg.
"What I mean is if you join- help us! We can leave you, your friend," Ron pointed at Soarin' with his free hand. "And your other Wonderbolt friends in peace. Plus the rest of this country of course. And remember... We can bring peace and gifts."
Spitfire raised her head up and stared at the cyborg, then at Soarin, who was in critical condition. Soarin'... I'm so sorry... You shouldn't be like this. You've been my friend since my childhood, and I can't leave you like this. I guess I'm going to have to... Believe in the Reaper. Forgive me if I made the wrong choice...
"What will happen if I don't help you?" she asked.
"Hmpf, well I say it would be very intriguing," the cyborg snickered. "You and all of Equestria and the other neighboring countires shall perish. Not by me or the other three. But in time. Maybe soon or in years. The answer is not clear. This is why I'm granting you an option. Live or... Extinction."
The explanation struck Spitfire like a thousand daggers. If she didn't help the cyborg the planet would face mass extinction, but if she did help, the planet would fine like if nothing had happened. She couldn't decide whether she should aid the Reaper or continue to mark it as enemy. What if he's lying? It's a machine. It can't think or know all of this but the GDI human said it's smart...
"I...Uhh... I don't know... If I should," Spitfire glanced back and forth between Soarin' and Ron. But when she saw Soarin' it almost made her form tears in the corner of her eyes. "I accept-..."
"Spitfire, NO!" a voice yelled at her.
"Huh?" both the Reaper and Wonderbolt said in unison. They both turned their heads at the source of the voice.
A figure stood in front of them, and it revealed the lone GDI trooper. He aimed his chain gun weapon at the cyborg. "Spitfire, this guy is lying to you! Nod only brings terror and death to wherever they go! Don't listen to him!"
Ron turned away from the trooper and back to the Wonderbolt. "Did I forget to tell you what GDI has done in the past? They harassed and murdered civilians, that have done nothing but enjoy everyday life. What did they do wrong? Nothing. Nod simply arrived to end the massacre and save the lives of families who were near death. Why have faith in this one?"
"You've got to be kidding me! You are the ones that do all of this. GDI would never do that! We save lives, not kill them. Come on, Spitfire. You know better than this!"
"I..Urgh...I don't... Uhmm... I can't really." Sptifre was completely lost. Both creatures say they are the good guys, but then they tell each other they're both killers. She didn't know what to do. Whatever side she chose could lead to an unfortunate consequence.
"Captain, you know you can't trust this cyborg!"
"Spitfire, Nod is a peacefully organization where they won't disturb others, unless we are provoked, then we shall destroy those who oppose us. I- us, we- just want a path that would lead us back to where we belong. Nothing else. Just a way back... Hmpf, 'home'."
Spitfire felt like she was going to breakdown. Nothing else was this stressful or painful than she ever experienced in her life. A single choice she made can lead to unimaginable results. Spitfire suddenly took in a deep breath and decided who she would help. She slowly glanced over at the Reaper, then back to the GDI soldier.
"I... Choose... Nod..."
"You have got to be kidding me? Nod? NOD? NOD!? Have you got mad!" the human screeched.
"No. She has not lost control of herself. She only saved herself and the planet."
"She only damned it! Come on, Spitfire! You know better than this!"
"Enough. Time to end this now and forever. Listen to the sound sounds of your extinction, human."
The cyborg began to approach the soldier. Mammoth fired his weapon at the metal beast, but wasn't very effective against it. The bullets simply deflected or impacted almost without damage. They machine slightly winced when it got stuck by the projectiles. Mammoth stopped firing as he realized he was only making it angrier. "Bullets don't make a difference here! Damn it!"
Mammoth took a few steps back when the machine got too close for comfort. Then he turned around and made a dash to get more room between him and the mechanical terror behind. The soldier stumbled when he felt bullets whizzing by his head. The diet around him started to kick up around him. "Not good! Not good!" he yelped.
A loud, whistling sound came to his ears. He stopped and checked behind to determine what it was. "HOLY $&@T!" Six missiles were chasing him. Mammoth ran at full speed to escape the missles, but then more bullets came flying at him. He grunted when a bullet struck his weapon, and parts of his jet pack. "Damn it! I'm about in the open, and there's no cover! No weapons or equipment to help me now!"
Two missiles impacted two the right side, the three other to other in front. Only one more remained. Mammoth kept on running for his life. He searched for any cover that could protect him but the area was wide open. "What kind of place has no cov- Ahh!"
A missile impacted directly behind him. Mammoth was thrown violently against the ground. His ears rang loudly, his helmet's visor was cracked. Parts of his armor and uniform were torn off. He struggled to get up but managed to get back up on his feet. Mammoth disconnected his weapon and his jet pack, since they were usless now. The human clutched the left side of his chest as felt incredible pain on it. But he felt his heart stop when he saw the Reaper standing on a mound watching him.
"Why won't you just quit," the soldier wheezed.
But the a loud sound of wind and jet engines filled the sky. Mammoth looked up, and coudln't believe what he saw...
...An Orca fighter flying above.
"Where did that come from?! But hell, at least it can kill that thing!"
The Orca fighter dropped its altitude, and hovered overhead. The human turned to look at the cyborg, and saw it fire it's weapons at the aircraft. The fighter strafed to the left and right to evade the projectiles. Then returned fire with its missile launchers and machine gun. Explosions and large plumes of smoke consumed the Reaper. "Please be dead. Please be dead," Mammoth pleaded.
Seconds passed by. Then minutes without a single sign of any bullets or missiles flying in the air. The smoke slowly daded away, but still concealed anything behind it. Mammoth slightly smiled and raised a fist in the air as he thought the battle was over. "Yeah... You're finally dead. Now let's get out-"
Two missles came flyng out of the smoke. Mammoth immediately dropped his arm, and stood there frozen. The explosive projectiles were heading straight for the Orca. The aircraft tried to evade but was stuck, and started to lose control. The Orca came spiraling down to a forest to the east. "No! NO!" Mammith screamed.
The fighter crashed, and smoke rises from the forest. Mammoth immediately went running toward the crash site. "Damn it! Damn it! This has gone all to hell!"
Mammoth entered the forest. He mantled over logs and large rocks in his path. He ducked under fallen tree branches, then shove to the side any brush that got in the way. The human entered a clearing where parts of metal and other parts of the Orca were scattered like broken glass on a floor. Tiny flames were seen on the aircraft and on the grass. "Hold on! I'm coming for you!" Mammoth shouted.
The cockpit glass was shattered to many segments. And two figures were barely visible inside. Mammoth opened up the cockpit canopy and his eyes went to the size of softballs...
...Two Royal Gaurd pegasi were the pilots of the aircraft.
"How the hell did you guys know how to fly this!?"
Both ponies were in odd flight suits, and brusied with cuts. The Pegasus in the pilot seat in front, cracked open an eye and heavily coughed. "J-jet... We n-need to get out of here," he mumbled.
"Well I'll get you out," Mammoth replied.
"Huh?" the Pegasus slowly turned his head at the GDI soldier. Then slightly smirk. "Hey, you're that creature everypony's been talking about it. I guess this machine belongs to you, huh?"
"Belongs to GDI to be exact. But nevermind that, we need to get you and your friend out of here."
"Forget me. Can you go check my friend, Jet, in the back?"
"Sure..."
Mammoth opened up the canopy more to get to the copilots seat. He saw another Pegasus inside, but his head was leaning against the controls. Mammoth removed him from the controls and checked to make he was alive. "Hey, buddy. Get up," he gently shook him. "Come on, we need to get out of." the human soldier then check for a pulse; there was no pulse. Mammoth shook his head in discontent. "Your friend is gone. Sorry..."
The Pegasus in the pilot's seat made a heavy sigh and closed his eyes. "Damn... If I only could've seen those projectiles coming at us on time. Then he would still be here."
"Don't blame yourself for his death. You can't save everything, you know?"
"I guess your right," the Pegasus opened up his eyes again. "But can you help me help me get out of here? I think I'm stu-"
A bullet striked the pony in the neck. Blood sprayed all over the frontal area of the cockpit. Mammoth fell back on the ground, then friend around to see who was the shooter. His body froze when he saw who it was. "Y-you're still alive? How?"
The Cyborg Reaper was still vigil, but appeared different. Parts of him were either cracked or missing. Sparks flew from him due to the lost pieces. Some wires on his head were ripped off, and no longer surging. Lights flickered on and off on his body. But there was a tell-tale sign of what the human feared most: Tiberium. A green glow emerged from the cracks in the cyborg's armor.
Thunder broke the silence between them. Large waves of dark rain clouds were rapidly covering the land. The Reaper made his toward the weakens the soldier. Mammoth got up to face the machine. "So now what? Here to put a bullet in me too? Huh?"
"The ponies have learned how to use your weaponry. I will not allow that. They don't have the privilege to use. But it's time to end you, so you can no longer threaten this land," Ron replied.
Mammoth knew he couldn't fight the cyborg, it obviously overpowered, but he stood brave against it. The cyborg raised an arm on the air to beat him down, but the human suddenly climbed aboard the machine and came face to face with him. "No. I will stop. You will only bring terror into this world."
"And how will you stop me? By using your weak limbs to damage me- u-us?"
"No, not like that." Mammoth surprisingly pulled out a Frag grenade from a pocket in his uniform, which Jump Jet soldiers didn't really have, and wasn't the type of grenade GDI infantry would use. "But this can..."
"Do you believe a small explosive device can end us- me? I've survived worse."
Mammoth pulled the pin and impishly smirked at Ron.
"See you in hell... Reaper..."
"See you in Ascension... Human..."
BOOM!
A large explosion consumed both creatures. Smoke covered them, and anything nearby. The blast knocked down small plants and forest critters. The dark clouds of smoke slowly faded away, and reveal a lone figure. Rain poured down on the figure. The creature that was left standing was Ron. Drops of water trickled down his faceplate and body. The fires around the crash site were extinguished.
A thin crack crossed his left eye vertically, and other tinier cracks around his face. Cuts and bruises were visible on his human sides. More parts of him were gone. The majority of lights on him have shutdown, yet few remained active but were beginning to malfunction. His gattling gun was also badly damaged, and no longer of use. Ron disconnected the dead weight from him. His missile launcher on his right shoudler was torn by the blast. Ron shook his head, and his eyes turned to red. He was now in his "normal" state again.
"I must now find a way back. But where is this unit at exactly?" Ron checked the computers onboard, but they displayed warning and error messages. "No matter..."
"He's gone..." a voice said to his right.
Instead of usually turning his head at an instant speed, Ron slowly glanced to the source of the voice. It revealed Spitfire and the rest of the Wonderbolts. Spitfire wasn't really soaked in the rain due to her uniform covering her. "Miss Spitfire..."
"The human actually gave his own life to stop you."
"Yes. He did sacrifice himself. But- Hmm?"
Ron noticed a metal object near Spitfire's left foreleg. But this object wasn't part of him or the Orca. Ron leaned down and grapsed the object. "Hmm... It's his military identification." Dog Tags were in the palm of his metal hand. He scanned it for a long moment then dropped back to the ground. Spitfire noticed this and gently picked the tags. The team encircled to see what it was. But she couldn't understand what the alien writing said, yet some did resemble Equestrian writing.
"What does it say?" she asked him, but no response came. Spitfire perked her head up and saw the Reaper was gone. But she barely caught a glimpse of him, since the rain was starting to brew up and obscure anything in it. "Hey, Reaper guy!" she called out.
Ron heard the sound of her voice, and walked back to her. "Yes, Miss Spitfire?" he asked.
"What do these words say?"
Ron was starting to get annoyed. He didn't really feel like answering her question since he had priorities that he was far concerned about than just simple words. But he decided to answer her question. "It says his name is 'Lieutenant John William'. Blood type O positive. Age twenty nine."
"But he said his name was Mammoth. Why wouldn't he tell us his real name?" Spitfire was utterly confused.
"That's another trait of GDI; they lie. Farewell... This is probably the last time you shall ever see me..."
Ron began to depart from the pegasi, but he stopped when he heard Spitfire call him out again. "Wait! I still have something to ask you."
"What is it, Miss Spitfire?"
"Were you lying to us about Nod?"
Ron turned his head away and stared at the soaked ground. He never really meant to say the 'peace and gifts that Nod brings', but he only did to proceed with his plan. He then looked up to face the Wonderbolts, especially Spitfire. "Yes. What I said is true. Nod will bring peace to this world. We keep our promises full. But," Ron noticed that Soarin' was missing from the group and a few others, "Where is your blue friend that I... Put down earlier?"
Spitfire pointed at hoof at a tree. Soarin' was under it unconscious, and out of the rain with Misty Fly and Fire Streak tending him. Ron slightly smirked as he felt the power in him from beating up Soarin'. "Since I believe I will no longer be present in his life, deliver this message to him: 'Good luck if he want's to be with a certain pony, and enjoy a little gift that will be his future and inherit the next genartion'. If he asks why I said this, then tell him: 'Nod knows everything. Past, Present, Future and beyond'."
Ron once again left, and disappeared into the rain. Spitfire wanted to stop him to ask him more questions, but decided to let the machine be. She frowned in discontent and lowered her head. One question would forever haunt her. "What was the Reaper's real name?..."
------------
Ron walked along a muddy path in the pouring rain. Luckily he didn't slip due to his legs keeping him stable. Thunder boomed across the sky, then lightning came next. The wind howled, and blew almost everything back with its strength. Ron wasn't robot by these natural forces. But one thing caught his attention; pegasi were up in the air trying to control the weather. But we're miserably failing as nature fought back against them.
"Don't try controlling Mother Nature. She will beat you down."
The cyborg's plan was to find a certain pony that he marked with vast importance. But he also knew it would be difficult to reach him, since now all Equestria wasn't practically against them and his brothers. "I'm coming for you, Doctor. I know you can get all of us back to the homeworld," Ron grumbled.
He continue on into the path, but was treading on very familiar terrain. In the storm, Ron caught a glimpse of hill with a single tree on the top of it. "Ah, the hill which I found Ponyville from above." Ron followed the road up the hill and stared at the town in the distance. The rain hindered most view of the town, but certain explosion illuminated parts of the town.
Ron knew who exactly was behind all of the trouble. "Andy, why are you so conspicous? But I have faith that you will end this conflict." The Reaper used his zoom optics in his mechanical eyes but was also badly damaged. They either displayed static, or warning messages. But his right eye was the one that displayed at least the best image. It constantly shifted between normal and static. Ron scanned the town left and right to search for the Doctor, despite the bothersome malfunctioning optics.
"WHERE ARE YOU? Hmm?"
Ron spotted four ponies fleeing from the town, and heading up another hill in the distance. But something very bizarre was on that hill. A random blue box that had the words "Police Box". Ron was a tad confused, but didn't give too much attention. He focuses in on the ponies, and discovered it was the Hooves family.
"THERE YOU ARE..."
The Reaper immediately made his way to the pony family.
-----------
"Come on! We need to escape this 'Nod'!"
"How do you suppose that?"
"The TARDIS of course!"
The Hooves frantically rushed up the hill to get to the time machine. The Doctor stopped and let the family pass by him, then he turned around to make sure they weren't being persued by any of the Nod members. Whooves made a single nod as he acknowledged it was clear. He rushed up then to meet the waiting Hooves family. "Alright, I need to get you somewhere safe, away from these monsters." he said.
"Doctor? Where are you exactly going to take us?" Dinky nervously asked, hiding behind her sister's right foreleg for comfort.
The Doctor gently smiled, and came up to her. "Somewhere where they can't hurt you, or your family," he softly padded the filly's head. Dinky smiled back at him, and gave him a quick hug. Whooves got the keys of the TARDIS out and unlocked the doors to it. "Quickly. Get inside!"
The Hooves family was about to enter when they heard dreadful, familiar noise from behind. It sounded like it came from all directions. "What is that sound?" Sparkler asked.
"I don't know. But it sounds machine-like," Dinky replied.
The Doctor raised a suspicious eyebrow at the sound. He searched in all directions for the source but nothing appeared. But suddenly in the corner of his eye, he saw a large figure. Whooves glanced over to what it was, and gasped loudly as he saw the Cyborg Reaper standing before him. The Hooves noticed his gasp and faced what he was looking at – they all stood there terrified.
"R-Ron? You're alive? I thought the Guard got you since you disappeared in the morning..."
"No, Doctor. I am alive. But I have some unfinished priorities with you."
"Ron? How are you here? The Guard didn't get you?"
"No. The Guard cannot even defeat two simple creatures or me."
Dinky tried to conceal herself as much as she could behind Sparkler's left leg. But there was one thing she noticed about the cyborg. One very certain thing: he was damaged. Dinky remembered he looked fine the day before his disappearance; not a dent, not a scratch, not a part missing, but now here he was battered and wrecked. Ron began to take a few steps forward to the family. The Hooves and the Doctor began to take steps back from the malicious machine. "Ron, can we talk about this in a friendly way?" The Doctor nervously suggested.
The cyborg kept on getting closer, the family retreated more closer to the TARDIS, but Dinky came out of her 'hiding spot', and stood in place as the family moved away. Derpy's instantly noticed her youngest daughter standing right in front of the monstrous machine. She felt all the motherly instincts scream in her body. Her filly was in the face of danger and it was a paren's duty to protect their children at all cost. So she immediately flew at full speed and landed with a thud in front of Dinky.
"Mom. Stop what you're doing," Dinky surprisingly shouted.
"Muffin, run back with your sister and the Doctor. Now," her mother solemnly back.
Ron didn't stop his advancement, Derpy stood brave against the cyborg that had death built into it, since the beginning it was built. Dinky came up to her mother, and stared at her directly in the eyes. The filly could see all the terror in her, but all so the bravery in her too. She knew her mother would stand up against Ron. "Mom. Stop what you're doing. I can handle this."
"Muffin, No. Run. I'll- I'll... Hold him off..."
"Mom, please trust me on this. He'll listen to me."
Derpy still stared at her filly petrified. But her daughter had a slight reassuring smile on her face. Derpy didn't know what to choose: believe in her daughter or stand against a cybernetic monster from another world. The choice was nerve wrecking. The grey Pegasus stared between Ron and her daughter constantly. Ron got closer, and that made her panic more. "Muffin, I believe in you."
Derpy made a blind choice.
Dinky smiled a tad wider, then approached the machine. "Ron!" She said in a strong voice. "I wish for you to stop what you're doing." Her voice went back to her normal tone, but with a hint of sadness.
The cyborg took another step forward, then came to a halt. Thunder boomed and lightning stroked across the gloomy sky. The rain slightly eased up, but still had a strong effect. Dinky felt her heart race, she knew what could happen if she angered this machine, but she still kept a brave stance against himv her nerves were like daggers pressing against her. "R-Ron...why are you doing this? Why would you do this? Are you... Evil?"
"Child, remove yourself out of the path. The Doctor is what I need, not you or anything else."
"Why him? He hasn't done anything wrong."
"HERETIC, STEP ASIDE. I WILL NOT BE INTERRUPTED."
Dinky was stunned to hear his sudden change of voice. Ron sounded like he had three voices at once. The cyborg started to take more steps forward. Dinky stayed in place, she wouldn't allow the metal monster come close to the Doctor. Another spider leg slammed to the ground with a thud, then another. Ron was just a few meters away from the filly. Then Ron stopped directly in front of her. Derpy couldn't do anything but watch in pure terror as her daughter stood against death.
Ron lifted a spider leg up in the air, and placed it right above Dinky, so when he dropped it—it would mean the end of Dinky.
"Ron, you wouldn't dare. Because we're friends remember? You promised." Dinky shot daggers at the machine.
"I would dare..."
Ron was about to drop his leg when the sudden voice of the Doctor interrupted him. "Stop!... Ron, if you wan't me, then... I accept, just don't hurt her. Dinky, please move out of the way." Dinky did as what the Doctor told, and stepped out of the way. The filly caught up with mother and sister, who kept close to each other. The Doctor slowly approached the cyborg, but Ron came charging toward him. Whooves wasn't able to detect on this time, and was knocked down to the ground with brute force.
"Now I have you. You are going to comply what I say," Ron grumbled at him. "I know your device here is capable of many great things." Both Ron and Whooves stared at the TARDIS. Whooves was completely stunned, there was no possible way the cyborg could have detected the time machine, yet he knew. "How the heck did you know about it!?"
"Days before this, I detected massive energy waves from this area. The morning I 'disappeared', I spotted the machine, and the energy originated from here. Simple."
"Wow. I didn't see that coming," the Doctor thought out loud. Then glared at Ron. "But that doesn't mean anything."
"You have the capability to travel anywhere in the galaxy and to other places nothing has ever gone before."
"And I didn't see that coming twice..."
Ron leaned in closer to Whooves, with a metallic leg creeping upon the pony's neck. "YOU WILL TAKE US- ME BACK TO THE HOMEWORLD, OR ELSE." Ron pressed his leg slightly into the Doctor's neck. Whooves was stunned, but also confused by Ron stuttering when he said "Us", but that didn't really concern him. The Doctor was about to give in to his demand, but suddenly glared at the cyborg. "Why should I listen to you?"
"EXTINCTION FOR ALL THIS PLANET REMAINS IF WE ARE NOT TRANSPORTED BACK. Few shall remain alive for they have helped Nod. The end remains for those who oppose." Ron began to press down even more against Whooves neck, which almost appeared close to cutting in. The Doctor felt the razor sharp leg slowly making its way into his neck.
"STOP!" Dinky cried out in a loud voice. Everypony and machine instantly stared at the filly. "Ron! Just let him go! There a better way to this!" She yelled at him.
"Dinky, do no interfere with me. Your father is being ignorant and shall die by the power of Nod if he does not help us," Ron replied back.
"Well, my dad isn't going to help you! My dad will never help anyone like you!"
The Doctor stared at Dinky bewildered. She just actually called him her "Dad". Whooves couldn't help but wiggle a smile in a joyous way. He continued to glance at the filly, then gaze at Ron. "I would never give in to you," he grumbled. The Doctor grabbed the sonic screwdriver, which he grabbed when he unlocked the TARDIS and kept it hidden, and used it against the cyborg. Only a small spark flash from the Ron's chest. The cyborg didn't even falter by the device.
Whooves used the device again as he realized there was no effect on him, but again no result. "Huh!? That's not possible! You can't be unaffected by it! But maybe." Whooves stared at the gaping space between Ron's neck and shoulders, he smirked as he saw an opportunity to escape. "Take this!" The Doctor jabbed the sonic screwdriver into the cyborg.
Ron roared in pain and let go of the Doctor as he felt many electrical currents surge through him. Whooves noticed the cyborg was going to stumble back, and immediately acted to remove the device before he lost the chance. He we about to grab the screwdriver when Ron suddenly lashed a fist out to attack him, but Whooves evaded it and grabbed the device from him. "Everyone get inside! Uhh... I mean- everypony get inside!" He yelled at the family.
The Hooves immediately fled into the TARDIS. The Doctor ensured they entered, then he immediately followed behind. The Doctor enter the time machine, but he stared at Ron and slightly frowned. The cyborg was still being effected by the device even though it had been removed from him. Vains emerged from his human sides. Electrical currents could be seen coursing around him like streams. But one thing caught the Doctor's eye: the green glow in Ron got brighter. It glowed brighter and brighter, until the currents subsided and Ron was no longer in pain.
The cyborg turned around at Whooves and began to charge at full speed toward the TARDIS. Whooves immediately shut the door on him. "Well he's not going to break through this-"
THUD
The Doctor winced when he heard Ron pounding against the TARDIS' doors. He smirked as he knew the machine couldn't break through. Nice try...
THUD
THUD
"OPEN THIS DOOR, INFIDELS!" Ron roared in his bizarre demonic-like voice.
"Nope. There is no way possible way I'm going to open the door for you. Besides, you're too big to get in here anyway."
THUD
The Doctor calmly trotted over to the Hooves family with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. He's not going to break those doors." he said. "Now let's get out of here and go somewhere safer." Whooves immediately began to powerup the TARDIS. The sound of a Ron pounding against the door boomed inside the time machine. The noise sounded like the cyborg was going to break through in any moment. "Doctor, are you sure those doors will hold-"
THUD
"-him for sure?" Sparkler wasn't able to complete her question first by the sudden thundering sounds.
"Yes. They'll hold him back. I guarantee it," the Doctor assured while he started up the TARDIS.
On the outside, Ron was full of rage as the doors to the time machine would not falter by the continues brutal beating by him. He punched the blue doors with his metal fists, the doors wouldn't open. He then began to slam his left shoulder against it, which seemed to be doing a bit more damage than his hands, but still no result. "OPEN THE DOORS OR DIE LIKE THOSE I HAVE ENDED!"
Ron then lifted both front spider legs, and began to slam them against the TARDIS. Nothing even appeared to damage the TARDIS, this really began to irritate the cyborg. "YOU WILL FACE JUDMENT, PONIES! Huh?" Ron's legs slightly penetrated the door. He smirked behind his metallic faceplate, and prepared to strike again as he saw progress being made. But his legs wouldn't move – they were stuck in the door. Ron grunted as he desperately tried to remove his jammed legs, but he started to hear strange noises from inside the TARDIS.
"What are they doing in- Ah!"
The TARDIS disappeared from Equestria
*********
"We made it. We got away from that machine."
The Doctor sighed in relief as they nearly escaped the mad cyborg. Sparkler and Derpy smiled at each in joy, but Dinky stared at the door with a frown. Whooves noticed this and trotted up to see what was wrong. "Dinky, is there something wrong? You don't look happy."
Dinky glanced up at him. "Did he really mean all of that?" She lowered her head down in discontent. "Why does he want to get us so bad?"
Whooves understood the filly was confused and lost. He knew the answer why the cyborg acted so violent and brutal, but decided not to explain the real answer her, instead tell a slightly 'better' explanation. "Dinky...?"
Dinky looked up at him with a small tear brimming in the corner of her eye. "Y-Yes?"
"When something from another world ends up where it doesn't belong, it'll try to seek its way back where it came from. It could take a long time to return or just a short while. Ron, along with his companions, are creatures just trying to find a way back home. But let's just say he's a bit more- Uhhmm... 'frantic' to return." The Doctor garnered a small smile.
Dinky returned a meek smile and sighed. "I guess you're right. Everything does want to go back home if they get separated."
"There you go! But I'm sure he's just frustrated, since he's stuck in Equestria. Now let's go outside and see where we are."
Whooves made his way toward TARDIS' doors. "Is everypony ready?" He looked back to ensure everything was fine. The Hooves smiled and nodded. Whooves acknowledged this and put a hoof against the doors. "Well lets go then." He opened the doors and stepped into the bright light outside. The Doctor smiled, but his smile instantly faded away and froze in place. The Hooves also came outside, and stopped behind him. "Doctor? Is something wrong?" Derpy asked, concerned.
"I think we're in the wrong place," Whooves replied.
The Hooves took a few steps forward, and their eyes went to the size of pinballs when they realized where they were. The land was just a wide desert. A clear blue sky floated above them, but above the horizon, smoke rose from the ground and covered the air with dark clouds. Dinky took a step forward, but almost slipped over an edge. "Woah!"
"Dinky!" Her sister cried out. Sparkler used her magic to catch the filly. The TARDIS was on a cliff edge. The ponies looked over the edge, and stared down at the area below. Just sand and dirt blanketed the world. Not a single sign of life was visible, but only the smoke rising appeared to be the only life.
"Doctor, where are we exactly?" Sparkler asked, then looked up to the dark blue, clear sky. "Because it looks like nothing lives here."
"I don't know what went wrong. But let me see if I can find another place." Whooves returned back inside. The Hooves family remained outside, observing the unknown world. The wind blew softly and disappeared down below, the sun was bright but there wasn't much heat casting down.
"I wonder how long we're going to be here," Sparkler said.
"Hey look." Dinky said. Derpy and Sparkler glanced over to her. "There's something flying up there." Dinky pointed a fore hoof at an object soaring through the sky. Sparkler squinted here eyes to get a better look at what it was. The object appeared very small due to its high altitude. It had a tubular body, two large wings and smaller ones in the back, with two objects attached to the large wings. And it was also leaving contrails behind.
"I wonder what that is."
"I don't know, but it looks like it can go higher than pegasi."
Then suddenly, explosions boomed out of nowhere. The Hooves huddled together by the frightening sounds. There was also loud noises that sounded like bangs or multiple firecrackers exploding. "What's going on!?" Dinky yelped, she got closer to her mother.
"I don't know! It's coming from everywhere!" Derpy replied back to her filly.
A large howling sound was heard coming from the sky. The ponies looked up and saw an unimaginable sight: A massive machine flew overhead. It looked just like the other object that flew high up. But there were was two triangular-shaped, smaller machines accompanying it by its sides. "What is that thing!?" Sparkler shouted in disbelief.
But then the three objects soared over the wide desert floor below, and a carpet of explosions trailed behind below. A large column of dust clouds moved across the land, but there was another approaching ahead of it. The clouds stop and revealed a continuous line of objects. Explosions and fire began to consume one another of these things.
"Doctor!" Derpy yelled at him.
"What is it?"
"Get out here now!"
The Doctor galloped outside by the dread her voice. "What's going on!?" He gasped loudly when he saw there was a wide-scale battle happening right before them. His eyes couldn't count the number of objects flying in the air, or the commotion happening far below. Derpy couldn't believe what was happening, a battle was literally in front of her. But it wasn't an ordinary fight between ponies with their weapons, this was beyond that. A projectile screeched a few meters from them, and struck one of the objects flying in the air – It was spiraling toward the ground out of control.
A small explosion was seen, and a figure flew out of the machine. Then a parachute emerged and it gently glided downward. "Doctor! We need to get out of here- Wah!" One of the projectiles that shot down the machine, landed close to Derpy. A loud humming sound could be heard coming from behind, then it flew over. A bizarre machine, that was colored in a woodland camouflage design, was making those sounds. It dived below and segments of light came forth from the tip of its nose.
"I don't like what's going on here!" Sparkler yelped.
The ground suddenly started to shake. The sounds of machines rumbling filled their ears with fear. Dinky glanced over to the right and saw bulking machine rolling in close of the edge. The machines were marked with logos of the head of a dragon and a red star. They suddenly stopped and began to deploy, surprisingly legs, and cannons raised up. They fired and a small projectile could be seen flying out of it. Bright explosions filled the desert below with destruction.
"Doctor! Let's get out of here!" Derry yelled.
"Way ahead of you!" He replied back.
The ponies galloped back into the TARDIS, but stopped dead in their tracks when a large shadow loomed over them. The shadow belonged to the death they tried to escape from—Ron. Sparkler turned pale and nearly fainted. Derpy and the Doctor's jaws hung. Dinky simply frowned at the cyborg. "R-Ron? How-How are y-you here!? You weren't inside the TARDIS!" The Doctor stammered.
The Reaper was perched on top of the TARDIS like if a bird. He appeared as a silhouette by the sun positioned behind him in the sky. His red eyes glowed in his shadow. "Your machine dragged me along by my legs getting caught in it. 'Wonderful, isn't it'?" He said sarcastically. "But nevermind that, I would like to welcome you to Earth. Where nations live on their own accord."
"Ron, if you're back home. Then stop chasing us!" Sparkler yelled at him angry.
"I'm not exactly 'home'." We're not even on the right Earth."
The humming sound of the flying machine was heard again. Ron saw the aircraft and recognized as "A-10 Warthog". The A-10 flew by, but swiftly came around and began heading toward them. Ron knew what it was going to do. Whooves saw the cyborg distracted and galloped into the TARDIS with the family. Ron aimed his last remaining launcher, that was badly damaged, and fired at the plane. A missile struck the Warthog on the right wing, and spiraled for the ground. The pilot nearly escaped and parachuted downward. But then a bright flash illuminated the sky and a giant beam of light striked the earth; it evaporated anything caught in its path.
Ron couldn't help but enjoy the carnage of the weaponry on the battlefield. The TARDIS began to make the strange noises again, Ron slammed his spider legs again the blue box, so he can travel wherever it went to. But then he heard helicopter blades approaching. He turned around, and saw the sleek and stealthy Commanche gunships. They fired their rocket pods at him and the time machine, but the TARDIS disappeared on time.
------------
"Alright, I think we lost him for sure."
"You better be right." Sparkler grumbled.
Whooves opened the doors, with caution, and nervously poked his head out to make they were clear. He glanced up to make sure Ron wasn't present with them, and the machine wasn't there. "Well that's good..." The Doctor turned around back at the family. "It's clear. He's not with us." He made a reassuring smile. They stepped outside to the new location they were in. "Woah..." the Hooves said in unison.
They were on top of a snow-covered mountain, the afternoon sky shined with all the glittering galaxies and stars. Nothing appeared to disturb the tranquility. The cold air swiftly flowed across the mountain but this did not bother the ponies. "Doctor, where are we?" Derpy asked, mesmerized by the breath-taking environment.
"Somewhere safe. That's all I can say."
Dinky stared down below and saw an alien forest that wasn't covered in snow or ice. Wow... If I told any pony about this, they wouldn't believe me , Dinky thought in her head. The wind howled louder through the vast mountain range. Three small alien birds flew by, making chirping sounds. They were in a navy blue feather color with streaks of violet. Had two large, roundish orange eyes, and a fork-like tail. They circled around the ponies a few times, then headed straight up and disappeared into the air.
"What birds are those?" Derpy asked, intrigued by their appearance and sounds. "They look so beautiful."
"I'm not sure what they're called but all I know is their harmless," Whooves replied with a smirk.
"Hey, Doctor?"
"Yes, Dinky?"
"What lives down there?" The filly pointed at an unkown forest at the base of the mountains. The Doctor put a hoof to his chin as he thought what could've possibly inhabit the area. "I don't know. Perhaps we can go explore it later."
"Hey, look. This plant looks wierd." Sparkler observed a chrome-colored plant that grew out from the snow. She reached with a foreleg and gently nudged the plant. It felt like metal. " Well that is just weird." Sparkler raised her eyebrows in surprisment. Derpy stared off into the alien world, she was fascinated by its design, but then she caught a glimpse of dark purple and blue structures perched on another mountain across a frozen valley. "Doctor, I see buildings over there."
The Doctor trotted over to her and also noticed the mysterious structures. There were two broad structures, one towering one, then another that was vertical but had wires, or two antennas. "Derpy, I'm not sure what those buildings are, but I think we she should take a quick look to see what they truly are. Derpy nodded her once, the Doctor trotted back to Derpy's two daughters, and said, "Dinky, Sparkler, me and your mum are going to investigate something real quickly. We'll be back soon, but if anything happens while we're gone... You get inside the TARDIS until its clear outside, understand?"
Both sisters nodded their heads as a response. The Doctor then went back to Derpy.
"Alright, let's go."
"Should I just fly you over, or should we just trot?" Derpy suggested.
"Hmm...I guess we can get there quickly by flying, so yeah."
"Okay!" Derpy happily replied. She grabbed the Doctor and pulled him up in the air with all her strength. The Doctor smirked as they gently soared over the frozen world. The wind sounded like wails and echoed across the land. Whooves glanced up at Derpy who smiling as they went to investigate. He chuckled inwardly as he saw Derpy in a brighter mood than before. Then he narrowed his eyes back onto the unknown structures. Now they started to appear more clearly.
"Derpy, land us near the edge of the mountain."
"Okay!"
The grey Pegasus lowered her altitude and dropped the Doctor where he instructed her to land. The Doctor dropped himself off, the snow kicked up where he landed. Derpy came next and swiftly landed by his side. "Well done, Derpy. That was some graceful flying." Whooves was surprised by her flying, since she was a bit clumsy at it.
"Thanks, Doctor." She made a wide grin at him.
"Well then, let's get going."
The two ponies made their way up the mountain. The wind got a tad stronger and created the journey more difficult, but the two pressed on, despite the troubling weather. Derpy looked up and saw an Aurora peacefully waving above, with it's endless display of lights. Woah... I wish I can see that in Ponyville, but you have to go north to see those lights.
The Doctor also glanced up the path, but not see the stunning display of light, but rather by the strange sounds up ahead. Then suddenly, two indigo-colored objects flew over head. They looked like ovals but turned sideways horizontally. But the body was slightly larger than the wings. Two thin, neon purple trails of light came from the back of the objects while they flew. Whooves was surprised by this, but then he realized they were aircraft and saw them heading for the TARDIS. "Derpy! They're heading for Dinky and Sparkler!"
"What!?" Derpy let out a small shriek of terror. Her two daughters were in danger.
But the aircraft curved two the left and headed for another direction. Both ponies sighed in relief, and continued on with their after they ensured the objects were gone. The two finally reached the top, Whooves cautiously poked his head above the edge before they proceeded. His eyes widen as he saw the large structures up close, Derpy also had the same reaction when she also leaned her head out to see.
"Doctor... Who built this place?"
"I don't know, but it looks empty." There was not a single sign of any personnel in the area. The place was almost free of snow, but few patches remained scattered, now it was just green grass. The two broad structures were directly ahead, just ten meters away. They appeared organic but it was a strange metal. They were constructed in a circular square design, and indigo colored. There was four platforms at each corner; two turned outward, and two turned inward, toward a glowing orb hovering directly in the center of the hollow structure.
Whooves looked up at the platforms and realized they were landing pads, or stations. "Derpy, those platforms above maintain those objects that just flew over us. I think two are only operating at the moment." He noticed the second building had all the platforms facing inward, which meant nothing was active. But the orb seemed to be the only thing active. The two quietly went around and checked around the corner to see if there was any personnel or creature vigil.
"This is really strange. There's nothing here, it's like a ghost town," Derpy whispered to Whooves.
"I know. There's nothing even out here," He whispered back.
But the two companions quietly gasped as they saw a towering structure up ahead. Same color as the buildings they were right next to, design was a bit more 'smoother', was the tallest out of all them. It had, or what it appeared to be legs around it. Lights were at the flat tips of the legs, and in oval-shaped, dark patches around the structure. A tubular-like object was on the side, and curved upward. Kind of like a large pipe. But a glowing light and humming noise emitted from the inside of the building.
"Doctor, do you hear that?"
"I do. It sounds like if its alive or something, but let's get a move on before anything else can happen."
The two ponies trotted over to the tall building, and went around it to see another unknown structure. This one had the two antennas on top. A blue dot was in the center of it, surrounded by odd designs that went upwards. It was smaller than the rest, but appeared operational by the swaying antennas. Whooves observed the strange movements, until noises that sounded like bugs scurrying came from behind.
"Huh?" The Doctor turned around to see what the sound was. "That's strange... I thought I heard something." There was nothing in sight. Just the two buildings that housed the aircraft and the towering structure was there. The Doctor raised a suspicious eyebrow at the sudden sound. "Derpy did you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"That noise, it sounded like large insects moving."
"Nope. I didn't here anything. Hey what's that?"
Whooves turned around and saw Derpy looking at something to the left. His eyes went wide like blowing balls as he stared at a massive creature. It was a tripod creature by the three legs it had, but the legs appeared like large shields at the ends of it. The body was mushroom-like with a large, clear blue eye. On top of the head, which was like the body at the same time, were three extensive arms, or tentacles, with a crescent part connected at the end of its limbs.
"Doctor...? What is that thing?"
"Derpy... Whatever it is... It does not look friendly at all.
The ominous creature had its back turned at them. It constantly made wailing sounds and its body slowly swayed. Derpy stared at the giant with dread and curiosity at the same time. It looked gentle and peaceful as it remained still by the towering, humming building. She couldn't help but make a smirk at it. "Doctor, it kind looks friendly, well despite its appearance and height."
"Derpy, you can say whatever you want about it. But I think we should really get out if here now."
"Okay. But why are the floating light thingys turning into large thingys?"
Whooves turned over at the structure that contained the platforms. The floating orbs inside suddenly turned large in size. Then suddenly a beam of purple and white light appeared next to the aircraft buildings, and a small arch-like structure emerged . There was also an orb in, but then also expanded. Another stucture appeared in the same light. It was just like the arch structure but the upper area was missing, and widely expanded to the sides. An orb also appeared and followed the exact steps as the others.
"Doctor, I think this place is coming back to life," Derpy said in fear of the sudden activity.
Whooves was about to react to what Derpy said, until a loud, combined roar and wail boomed behind him. The two ponies nervously turned around, and saw the tripod creature looking down at them. The tripod continued to gaze at them, until a massive portal suddenly appeared from behind it. The Doctor and Depry frantically began to take steps backwards to escape. The portal then evicted massive aerial war ships and the same oval-shaped aircraft from earlier.
"Derpy! Let's get out here!" The Doctor yelled.
Derpy grabbed the Doctor and began to fly away from the death trap of mysterious alien creatures.
"Woah!"
A beam of plasma energy almost struck the two companions. Whooves looked back and saw the tripod firing plasma beams from the crescent parts on its tentacles. The small aircraft also began firing plasma bolts at them. One of the war ships, that appeared like a bug and spinal cord combined, released a swarm of razor sharp, crescent-like aircraft at them, too. The oval aircraft emitted ghostly howling and screeching sounds, and more of them also joined the chase.
"GO! GO! GO!" the Doctor screamed as a plasma bolt came a few inches away from his right.
The TARDIS was in sight, Dinky and Sparkler could be seen watching the commotion in terror. The two sisters immediately entered the TARDIS, and waited for their mother and Whooves to enter. Derpy began to lose control of her flying as more plasma bolts and beams came flying at them. She aimed for the door to land in, but instead came crash landing inside the blue box. Sparkler instantly shut the door, and began to take in deep breaths to calm herself down from the conflict.
Dinky hugged her mother on how frightened she was, and her mother too returned the hug. Sparkler could hear the phantom and ghost sound outside the TARDIS' doors. It sounded like more of the aircraft arrived. She made a quick peek out the door and saw the massive warships stationed above. The sky was no longer beautiful and glittering, but now obscured by dark storm clouds and howling winds. The warship that contained the crescent fighters was artificially creating a storm.
Sparkler immediately shut the door when bug creatures, that were actually on the ground, came rushing at the TARDIS.
"Doctor! There's also some of them on the ground and coming toward us!"
The TARDIS and the ponies escaped the deadly and mysterious alien threat before they could've done anything horrible.
********
"Okay! THAT IS ENOUGH. We've been almost destroyed two times. TWO TIMES... I am not going to go anywhere else, unless you actually have a safe place for us to stay. Not 'Oh, look it's safe, then suddenly getting attacked by random things from whoever knows where they come from!' I rather get chased by Ron rather than bug creatures with flying ships! Sparkler yelled at the Doctor.
The Doctor frowned in discontent at his failure of taking the Hooves family somewhere safe, but instead endanger them even more. "I'm sorry- I'm sorry! The TARDIS isn't working properly for some reason! But the planet we were back on ago was safe when I first arrived on it. But now I guess something else thrives on it. Something powerful..."
The ponies then stared at the door. Some of them didn't even dare to even check where they were or step outside. The fear of getting ravaged by another alien force, or caught in the midst of a war was high. But one pony dared to challenge the odds, and that was the unicorn, Dinky. The filly slowly trotted over and stopped in front of the door.
"Dinky! Don't you dare go outside!" Sparkler shouted.
Dinky took in a deep breath and heavily sighed next. "I know we're all afraid but we have to be brave."
"She's right. I'm not afraid to stand against up against whatever lies beyond the TARDIS." Whooves came up next to her with a reassuring smile.
Derpy also smiled and flew next to her youngest daughter. "You're right... We shouldn't be afraid of bad things." She nuzzled her filly; Dinky let out a small giggle of joy.
Sparkler slightly smiled and trotted over to her family. "I guess you're right." She began to playfully run her little sister's head. "We should face our fears."
"Alright then. Let's see where we landed this time."
Dinky and the Doctor cautiously peeked their heads out first to ensure the surroundings were clear. Dinky's eyes went wide with joy and awe when she realized where they were...
...They were back in Equestria.
The sky was clear, the sun shined brightly over the peaceful lands, not a single storm cloud was in sight like when they barely entered the TARDIS to escape the Nod cyborg; it was just like a normal day in Equestria. Dinky came galloping out, and began bouncing in glee for they have reached home. The Doctor couldn't help but grin at the happy filly she was. Derpy trotted next to him and smiled in content.
Sparkler exited out last, but didn't garner a smile or grin – Not even a smirk. She saw that even if the day was brilliant, something didn't make sense. When they left, the rain was pouring with thunder and lightning, but now it was clear like I'd nothing had ever happened. Sparkler came around the TARDIS, then quietly gasp when she realized where they were.
"Guys... I think we landed in the wrong area of Equestria."
"What do you mean?" Whooves asked.
"Look." Sparkler pointed at the hedges and at a sign above an arch gateway, that stated, "Canterlot Sculpture Gardens."
"Oops. I guess we're not in the right place. Well, I guess we can go look at the sculptures for awhile."
The Hooves and the Doctor trotted toward the gardens to see the magnificent display of sculptural creations. The place wasn't really occupied with visitors – Few ponies were visiting at the hour. Dinky smiled at the endless display of sculptures. So many in shapes, designs, and sizes. The Doctor smirked while he saw a family pass by, appearing happy by the art. The place and day was almost perfect. No sign of Ron, or any of the other Nod brutes.
The Hooves turned around a corner and stopped as they stared at very familiar pegasi. Derpy raised a suspicious eyebrow at the pegasi, then her lower jaw dropped in utter disbelief. "Soarin', and... Rainbow Dash the Wonderbolt...?"
Rainbow and Soarin' were wearing the proud officer uniform of the elite flyer team. Just like the one that Spitfire wears when she trains the cadets. Derpy eventually found out Rainbow was in training to be one, but never knew she actually made it on the team. And Spitfire was there, too, and next to a small filly that looked similar in Dinky's age.
The Pegasus filly had a light blue grey coat color, and magenta eyes. Her mane and tail was a navy blue color like Soarin's, but had the colors of baby blue, too.
"Dad, what is that thing?" the filly Pegasus filly asked, she was specifically looking at Soarin'.
"That is a monster. A mechanical monster from the another world," he replied back, frowning as he remembered what the sculpture in front of them was capable of when it was free before its imprisonment.
The Hooves and the Doctor trotted closer to the pegasi. Once they got close, they all couldn't believe who was the frozen art: Andy. The Cyborg Commando was a sculpture in the Canterlot Gardens. He still had an intimidating look, despite his frozen state. His pose was simple: His free arm placed firmly to the side, and the arm that had the plasma cannon was also facing downward to the side, then the cannon aimed forward.
"This is unbelievable," the Doctor said, completely bewildered at what he was witnessing.
Sparkler and Dinky looked to the right of Andy, and saw one of the Nod humans also turned to stone. While the Hooves were completely lost and confused, the three Wonderbolt pegasi, and the filly, continued to observe the statues curiously.
"Hey, Soarin'?" Spitfire asked.
"What is it?"
"Remember how that one was capable of going invisible?" Spitfire pointed a hoof at the human statue.
"Oh yeah," Soarin' made a slight smirk. "...That was horrible." He then glared at the Chameleon spy.
The Pegasus filly, who was the daughter of Soarin' and Rainbow Dash, looked up at the human statue amazed. "Auntie Spitfire, that thing was able to go invisble?"
"Yup, kiddo. That 'thing' had the ability to disappear out of sight whenever it wanted to."
"Pppfftt... You guys act like if he was dangerous. This mechanical monster nearly took my life and you dad's, too"! Rainbow shot daggers at the Cyborg Commando. She remembered on that day, when it was just her and Soarin' talking, then the Cyborg coming out of nowhere and destroying the whole academy.
"Woah... Is this true, Mom?" The filly asked, shocked by the unbelievable story.
"Yes, Aurora. This all true what we're telling you."
Spitfire continued to gaze at the sculptures, memories began to flood her mind like a storm. All the images of the past , that involved Nod, pained her. But she then remembered a certain creature that spoke to her about the future and a powerful organization: The Reaper. It remained scarred in her mind; never detaching from her. Spitfire glanced to the left of the human sculpture, and read the sign on a large pedestal: "Will be displayed when found."
I wonder where that human went...
The pegasi moved away and exited to the right. The Hooves got closer, and stared in awe. Their enemies were turned to stone, being displayed in the famous Canterlot Sculpture Gardens. They continued to observe, until a voice from behind interrupted them, "A tragedy I must say..."
The ponies slowly turned around as they easily recognized the voice full of terror and death. Ron was standing before them, but wasn't in gesture that he wanted to kill, he was in a more gloomy appearance, but that wasn't noticeable for obvious reasons.
"RON... HOW THE HECK... DID YOU FOLLOW US?" The Doctor shouted in a annoyed voice.
"I explained to you on how I travel with your machine. Simple."
The ponies backed away to escape their relentless nemesis again. Ron stayed in place, staring at his frozen companions. "How unfortunate that they lost the battle in the past." The Reaper looked to the right to see the family of pegasi. He saw the two wonderbolts from the past and the rainbow-maned Pegasus, but with a child accompanying with them. Ron knew who the child was by his vast intelligence, and figured that he was somewhere in the future. But to him it didn't make sense on how his two brothers lost a battle in the past that they could've easily won.
The Reaper got closer to the statues. He specifically stared at the frozen Chameleon Spy. The numbers on the human's armor were hardly visible, but Ron recognized the I.D. with ease.
"Dave... I wonder how you lost to such pitiful ponies." Ron grumbled to the statue.
Ron then turned back to the four ponies he pursued, but they were gone. The cyborg systems went on high alert, since he was on the wrong time and location. Being stuck in the future and in this world would be the ultimate defeat for him. Ron immediately fled back to the time machine. He didn't care whether he was seem or not, the main objective was to get back to the TARDIS at all costs. Ron rushed past ponies who were visiting the Sculpture Gardens, the cyborg easily shoved or bashed the ponies to the side.
Two Royal Guards came around a hedge, and saw the metal creature.
"Hey you! Stop!" a Guard pony yelled.
Ron turned around at the pony. He charged for him and raised a spider leg when he was directly in front of him. The guard was about to attack, but gasped loudly instead when he realized who it was. "Y-You're the... 'Reaper'..."
"Out of the past," the cyborg replied.
Ron slammed his leg down. He tilted his to the side to see the result. But the pony was gone. He suddenly noticed the guard was saved by another Guard pony, who was a Pegasus. Ron shook his head in anger, then returned back to escaping the future. The TARDIS was now in sight. The Hooves and the Doctor were entering the mysterious blue box. Ron was also able to notice the three Wonderbolts and the filly in a space on the left side of the path. Their backs were turned, Ron knew they wouldn't notice him.
"Hello, Miss Spitfire and heretics!" The cyborg hastily said as he passed by them in a second.
Spitfire ears and head perked up by the dreadful and familiar voice. She turned round to see the source of the voice, but it was nothing but hedges and more sculptures. "I could've sworn it was 'him'."
"Did you say something, Spitfire?" Soarin' asked.
"No. Nothing."
Ron mischievously smirked as he fooled the confused Wonderbolt captain. The time machine was about to leave, the Cyborg Reaper picked up his pace. He reached the machine and climbed aboard on top. Ron then latched all of his legs to the TARDIS, and prepared to travel.
The TARDIS vanished.
Spitfire walked along the path by herself, and looked around if the Reaper did actually call her voice. "I heard his voice, I swear I did. Is my mind playing a trick on me? Or is he actually- Huh?" Spitfire saw objects in the corner of her left eye. She glanced to the left and saw figures staring at her by leaning out from behind two hedges that were on both sides of another path. All she could see on them was dark and red armor. But there were two taller ones than the others. They were like silhouettes for some odd reason, yet they had an identical body shape and size like the Reaper.
Spitfire rubbed her eyes to make sure it wasn't an hallucination or mind trick. When she opens her eyes again, they were gone. She stared at the hedges where those anomalies were, in confusion and slightly in fear too.
"Auntie Spitfire? Why did you go over here?" Aurora asked her 'aunt' while she trotted toward her.
Spitfire glanced back at her 'niece' with a slight frown, but she tried to maintain a smile.
"Oh, I thought I saw something wierd over here... Something that haunts me." She whispered to herself, and frowned inwardly.
------------
"Get out now!"
"Way beyond that!"
The ponies that were inside the TARDIS rushed outside as they were completely terrorized by a threat that they couldn't run away from. Not even looking behind, not ensuring safety, not even thinking about it, Whooves gallows as fast he could with the family. They galloped past trees, bushes, and small critters to reach safety. They came up a hill and stop there to catche their breath. Thy sky was still obscured by the dark rain clouds, but there was no rain falling. Open patches in the gloomy natural figures beamed down pillars of light from the sun above.
"How... Does he... Follow us?" Derpy said between gasps for air.
"I don't... Know!" The Doctor leaned against a tree to rest.
Dinky eased up her breathing, and checked behind to ensure they weren't being tracked by the Reaper. Luckily he wasn't, and she turned back to the family to inform them. "R-Ron isn't following us." Although it might have been good news, they still didn't feel safe. The cyborg had followed them throught out the different worlds, and it was likely it followed them here, too.
"Hey, what's going on over there?"
Derpy was looking at a very large group of figures down on the land below. The Doctor came to her right side, with her two daughters on the left. "It looks like the Royal Guard is down." Sparkler added.
"I wonder what could've happened," the Doctor said. "Come on, let go see."
The ponies made their way down the hill. The Guard ponies became more visible as they got closer. But there was also very distinct figures amongst them. All of their eyes and bodies froze when they saw who was with the large crowd: Princess Celestia and Luna, with the Elemenst of Harmony. Along with Dave and Andy who have been incapacitated.
Andy's body was filled with electrical currents, but it did not damage him. They only disabled him and his weapon. Dave's armor was short-circuiting. Multiple areas of his armor were constantly cloaking and reappearing. And his hands handcuffed behind his back. The Hooves rushed to meet up with the powerful ponies and two foes. Luna noticed the four ponies approaching and raised a suspicious eyebrow at them. "All civilians have been told to evacuate to safe areas. State your business," Luna said bluntly. Her Lunar guards came to confront the Hooves.
"Princess Luna! Please listen to us!" Dinky cried out. "There's something we have to tell you and Princess Celestia."
Luna glanced to her sister with a slight glare. Princess Celestia simply looked back at the with her gentle smile, then at the Hooves. "You may speak what you have to say."
"We know these two. Please, let us explain everything!" Sparkler added.
All of the ponies had shocked looks, and some of them glared at them. "You may speak." Luna still had a suspicious look on her face.
Whooves took a few steps ahead and cleared his throat. "Forgive us for this sudden interruption. But my name is the Doctor, you highnesses."
"Greetings, Doctor." Celestia warmly smiled at him with content. Even though his name was little weird to be called 'Doctor'.
"Yes. Well, to start off, we know these two here." The Doctor glanced at the two Nod creatures. "Andy is the large metal one, and Dave is the disappearing and reappearing one."
"So that's what you're really called!" Luna shot daggers and stomped a hoof against the ground at Dave. "You said your name was 'Paco'!"
"Heh, it wasn't... Loser. Thanks for helping out, Doc. You sure did help." Dave said in a sarcastic voice.
All of the ponies gasped out loud as this creature mocked the princess of the night. Luna's guards came up to 'Paco', and began to punch him. Dave couldn't help but laugh at the guards, who had a slight tough time beating him down due to his armor. Luna's eyes filled up with fire and she began to approach the creature with rage. But a hoof stopped her, and she instantly calmed down when she saw it was her sister's hoof.
"Luna, please. This isn't the right time to be mad at him."
"Fine..."
"Well continuing on," Whooves looked back at the two Royal sisters, "there was another one just like Dave. I'm afraid you didn't catch him, did you?"
"No. We're still searching for him. He managed to get away just before our arrival." Celestia looked away and stared at a distant mountain range. Like if she knew where the other Chamelon Spy was.
"Hmm... I see. Well-" Whooves made a quick look in all directions to make sure the Reaper wasn't watching or approaching. "There is one more of them." He said. Dinky huddled closer to her mother. Sparkler went right next to Dinky to comfort her.
Celestia noticed her four subjects were petrified by something that related to what the Doctor said. "Who is the last one of this kind?" she asked.
"He's a machine, just like Andy. But he's far more superior than him in almost every way."
"What do you mean by 'far more superior'? Luna asked, the explanation about the last of the unknown creatures caught her attention.
"He thinks, he watches, he's armored... He knows almost anything. I just can't explain how he does it."
The two princesses, along with their guards and the Elements, had a surprised look on their face.
"What is his name?" Luna asked again.
"Ron..."
"That's his name? Ron?"
"Yes. That is my name... 'Ron'."
The Doctor turned pale as he heard the voice of the Reaper. All of the ponies stared at the cyborg, stunned by his sudden appearance. The returned the look back at them, but the glow from within his cracked armor began to glow a tad brighter.
"Are you related to these two here? Because I see that you are." Luna noticed the scorpion tail markings on both Ron and the other two.
"Yes. I am related to these two. They are my brothers. But not by blood. Simply by the unity of those who seek the same goals and serve the Prophet. That is all what you must know, hmpf... Loser."
Luna uncontrollably twitched her left eye, she began to slowly transform her face from a calm look into a furious and irritated one. "What... Did you... Call me?"
"I simply called you a loser: a person who fails at being victorious, is bad quality, or can't win."
Luna suddenly flew toward the cyborg, and came face to face with him. "I dare to you say that one more time. One more time." Luna had a bitter look on her face, which both dwelled anger and irritation.
"I dare... Loser..."
"THAT IS IT!"
Princess Luna used the Royal Canterol Voice on him. Rom was a bit taken back by her sudden change voice. It boomers so loudly it echoed far into the lands. Luna's eyes and horn glowed white. A blinding light emerged and consumed her. The light then expanded and blinded all, then instantly disappear like it had appeared.
Both Luna and Ron were still there, but Ron was more different. Ron felt like his body had shutdown on him. He saw electrical currents run through him like rivers, the glow in him got brighter. Luna simply smirked at him, knowing she had done something to him.
"What did you to me, pony?"
"I simply disabled you like your friends. But you're showing much resistance, so you're not completely incapacitated."
Ron suddenly felt anger consume him. A simple pony, or alicorn to be exact, was going to render him. He was far superior than her in intelligence, and possibly power. Ponies had beaten his two brothers, ponies had caused some trouble to him, ponies were the only allies and enemies in this part of the world. But the thought of an alicorn or simple pony was out of the question for him. He was a Cyborg Reaper – Nod's newest and advanced generation of cyborg's. The killing machines of Nod cybernetics. Ron could now only feel anger, frustration, and power surging through him.
"For attacking me, Nod will arrive at your homes and end all." Ron took a step closer to Luna. "We didn't bring this conflict toward you."
"You very much did!" Luna retorted back.
"In some ways, yes. But you quadrupeds have difficulty adjusting to others from other worlds. I've heard, I've watched, I've processed... I know."
"You may have knowledge on almost everything, but that doesn't give you an advantage." Luna took a step forward closer to the cyborg.
"If this is a battle you want to endure, then go ahead... Die like those who tried to stand against Nod."
"I would challenge any evil that threatens Equestria and its subjects."
Luna and Ron were nearly face to face. Luna's horn glowed with energy, and Ron had the crosshairs on her and slowly raised a fist to fight.
"ENOUGH!"
Both daring creatures where surprised by a loud voice. Luna turned around and saw it was her older sister that shouted at them. Celestia came up next to Luna, with glare, and said, "You may be from another world, where everything may be beyond this one. But I order you to stand down, or else..."
"Or what, infidel?"
Celestia's horn and eyes glowed with power and light. Ron was suddenly struck by a beam of light that came from her horn. This almost completely incapacitated the Reaper. His warning systems were going off like mad. Most functions have been disabled, and were losing power. Ron was slowly losing control of everything: His power, his armor, his weapons and possibly... His life. He knew it would be the end of him if he resisted and fought back.
But as all cyborgs were made to: Finish the task, no matter what the odds are. Do not fail the objective. Do not surrender or tolerate your adversaries. And if the goal required the ultimate price... Sacrifice yourself if given the order.
Ron aimed his last missle launcher to the air. He aimed his capturing nets at all ponies within range. He suddenly grabbed both princesses in the blink of any eye. Both of them tried to squirm out of his graps, but his strength overpowered them. Everypony came charging for them to rescue them, but the Reaper fired all remaining weaponry at them. The nets trapped the guards and the Elements of Harmony. But Twilight managed to evade the capturing devices.
Ron fired all his missiles in the air. The missles travelled upward, then came back falling straight down at them. Twilight saw the projectiles approaching and knew what would happen next. She looked back and forth between the princesses and missiles. There was nothing much to do to save them all.
Ron raised both alicorns closer to his face.
"I have walked along the Messiah's shadow for years. I will give my life for him. I have been given a free mind, unlike most of cyborg brethren, and I praise him for that. My soul is steel and cannot be faltered. We shall die in the glory of Kane."
