//------------------------------// // Chapter Seven: Within the mind of a metal Kat Arc one // Story: SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron: Equestrian Squad // by Megaskullmon //------------------------------// It’s been a day since Chance brought Jake and the two metal kats back to the bunker. Chance has been doing his best to train other ponies. Mac and Molly have been doing scout parties. They even bring back supplies like food, water, and whatever else they can use. “Starlight we couldn’t find everything for your spell but we found some of it.” Mac sets down a bag of spell ingredients. Starlight opens the bag looking through everything. Dumbing everything to the floor tilting her head. She sighs, shaking her head looking back up at Mac. “We have almost everything, we just need a herb that is normally found in the ever-free I am sure you saw Zecora using some of it for her brews.” Molly heads back to the stairs. “I can get it. Oh, and before I go, Chance. We found some caged ponies in the school” Chance looks at the map of ponyville putting a pin in the map of many areas they have gone to. They couldn’t bring any ponies back of course. Since there is only one of them that has the key. He strokes his chin. “We need to find the holder of the key. The bigger issue is how do we keep them from calling for more help?” Starlight chuckles. “Let me handle that. This spell is a spell I learned during my time as an evil mare. So the spell will cast a magic canceling spell for everything around it. Including me and the others. It will make it harder for us to help you but we need to do this.” Molly nods going up the stairs. __________________ Molly’s eyes I walk back up into this lovely world. When I get into the junkyard I hear a patrol. They have been looking all over here ever since we did what we did. It’s strange to me that I love this world. I wish that Chance would trust me. I don’t blame him for not trusting me. I can understand perfectly why he’s not. I remember what pushed us to become this. We just escaped Alkatraz. I was rowing and we ripped off our tags from our prison numbers. I remember I was the only one rowing. It wasn’t a pleasant experience since that stupid Mac refused to help me but just shoot his mouth off. “First KatScratch.” Why would we could for him first? It confused me I had many things to think about during this time while I was rowing this silly boat. “What about money?” I grunted while rowing “And Transportation?” “Okay okay, first the bank then Katscratch.” I growl trying so hard to row this stupid little boat. “We would get there faster if you would help me” Grunt “Row  We heard a sudden foghorn or a strange horn in the fog. “Quiet I hear something.” I chuckle. “What da ya hear?” Mac turns his head around looking for where the sound is coming from. “I don’t know, I can’t see anything in this soup.” All of a sudden our boat gets smashed to bits by a large ship. I don’t remember much, just I remember what I felt lost. I think it's close to death. I felt my body on cold heavy sand. I don’t know if I was even alive at this time.  I remember waking up in a strange lab. Looking around and looking at my hands. I couldn’t understand what in the world was going on. “I’m still alive. What is wrong with my body? Mac?”  I look around hearing strange wiring sounds as I move my head. I still felt a bit strange and a little odd at the same time. I had no idea what was going on. I tried so hard to find Mac. It just bothered me so much. “Mac, where are you?”  I twist my head around looking for him. Now that upsets me but why do I feel like I am in a metal body?  “Right here Molly” I then heard another metallic voice other than my own. I see Mac holding a strange mask that looks like his head. My head is fully turned around and a robotic gasp comes from my mouth. I had no idea what was going on. “Mac? We're all silvery and weird. What happened to us?” The panic started to come over me. I tried my best not to lose my temper or whatever happened here it just really wasn’t easy. “I don’t know. But I am going to wring the neck of the guy who did this to us.” Now since Mac was upset I was getting upset. I didn’t feel like showing it since I am sure he was angry with the two of us. Just I wish back at the time we thought through more than wanting to kill. I think I have been in the good graces of Zecora for too long. Then I remember him as a good ole soul. A very old voice spoke out. “That would be my neck young fellow.” The old kat walked up to us leaning on his cane with a sweet smile on his old face. I don’t know why back then that smile pissed me off. “I think the masks are good likeness. Eventually, I will create full-body suits for you to wear. No sense scaring everybody. Every time you go into public.” I took off my Mask. I didn’t know what to think of this old man. Just after my time with the zebra. I am starting to understand what she meant. He was being kind to us he gave us new life. Even if this life would be hard for some to enjoy. “Who are you?” “Why did you do this to us?” I sounded angry we both did but how would others feel I wonder if they woke up in bodies like ours. I don’t wish this on any of the ponies I met so far. A lot of them are friends with me already. A sudden realization hit me hard. I just said friends, does that mean I am going soft? Maybe it’s wise for Mac and me to go soft. “My name is Professor Hackle when my robots found you. Your bodies were destroyed. The only way to save you was to plant your minds inside my robots.” A sudden revelation hit me during that time. I was dead or my body was. I would never see my beauty again. But I was alive, maybe that is enough. Still, this is Mac, and I would let this slide even if it’s just us?  “Where robots? You turned us into tin cans?!” The professor nods that he was a nice Kat. Still, though my anger couldn’t know any bounds. I wish I thought differently then. But back during this time hate and only want of money and evil took my soul. Do I even have a soul anymore? “I know this is a shock. But every way you are faster and stronger. The only difference now is that your bodies are steel instead of flesh.” A sudden fear came over me. “We still got our brains right?” “I transferred your memories onto a hard disk.” I wanted to lose it even more now. All I am now is just data on some disk? But still, I regret o what I did to the poor kat. He didn’t deserve it at all. It might be best if we talk to Zecora about this when we see her again. Maybe even one of the ponies could help Mac and me. “Mac I don’t like this.” I turn my head to look at Mac unsure what to think. “I don’t know, I think I could get to like this. I never felt so powerful. Like I could rip apart this whole town with my bare claws.” A smile crept on my new metal face. He was right, we had the power to do all this. We had the right to do all this. This city belonged to us. It didn’t belong to Feral and his enforcers or that dumb Mayor Manx “Indeed you could, my boy. But fate has delivered you to me for another reason.” We follow him and he turns on a light. There are so many weapons all over the table. We had no idea this nice homely kat did all this. It did worry me at first but my lust for power too over then my want for peace was never there, to begin with. “My whole life I have made such weapons of destruction for the military.  Laser weapons, rockets, even bombs. However, now I have turned to my efforts of contributing to kat kind. That’s why you two are so important. As soon as you both are healed I will present you both to the scientific academy. Imagen the great minds that could be saved in the form of brain transfer and history will forgive me. Goodnight children sleep well.” The doctor left us alone and when he did I thought awhile before I did anything but Mac turned the light on quickly. “Imagen leaving us alone to swipe all this loot” “Ha yeah, what a sucker.” Mac went to get the weapons while I found transportation. “Hey, Mac look at this.:” “Kats alive transportation. Let’s go to town” I come out of the memory finally thankfully my sensors didn’t warn me of any creatures in my way. I went into the forest to hunt for the herb I was asked to get. I remember Zecora showing us this herb. She told us it’s not only used for brews that she used on us to keep us from attracting creatures that like shiny things. It was also used to cure sickness and from other things, she said used for some spells. I finally found my way to the hut again. Looking at the hut in the tree I went inside to look through her herbs. But I wasn’t alone. My hand turned into a gun and I went around a corner seeing a little filly. Her poor mother was wounded. The filly looks scared of me. I shift my gun back to my hand. “Shhh, it’s okay. I am here to help you and to find something. I am looking for a herb unicorns can use in spells.” The filly didn’t say much I could tell she was mute. If I had a heart I would be crying right now. But she used her magic to lift over a bag full of many veggies and herbs. Including the one, I was looking for. “Can you walk?” The little one shakes her head. One of her legs is very bent up like it was broken a few days ago. I lift the bag including the filly and the other. I knew I was a big target if I was seen. I don't like this and I wish I could talk to them on the radio but they don’t work here. “If I have to set you down you will stay with your mother won’t you?” The filly nods and I hold onto them as tightly as I can. With all my force of might that my legs could carry. I shift quickly to a fast speed that I could go. My legs haven’t been oiled very well since I have been here.  It took me about 10 minutes to get back into town. When I got back into two holding the mare and the bag. I didn’t know what would happen but things were too silent. I didn’t like this. I heard a spear fly right past me. It jabbed into the street beside me and I saw many of the Storm King's minions coming right for me. I sent down the two ponies as well as the bag. I didn’t know it at the time but the poor mare wasn’t doing too well. I was too blind to see that right now but I swear I could feel a heartbeat. At least I could hear her breathing. My shoulders open up and I turn my hands to guns firing all I have at least enough to take out what I can. But more kept coming. I knew if I didn’t do anything soon I would run out of ammo. My hands click and one of the storm king minions and I tussle with our hands. I was losing power, it wasn’t going to be easy. I heard a blast and many other guns going off. “Molly hurry!!” Mac yells. I drop the dead creature looking at the ponies we trained in a day and Chance with a wounded Jake in a wheelchair firing on what they could. I pick up the mare, the filly, and the bag again running towards them as they all make it back. Mac helps Jake back into the underground and we close it up before they find us again. I sigh and give the filly and mare to Jake and Chance. I put the bag down in front of Starlight with a smile on my metal face. “I hope there is enough.” Starlight nodded but something worried me. When Jake and Chance lay the mare on a cot they look down at her like she doesn’t have long for this world. I walk to them watching the filly try to wake her mother. “Is she okay?’ Jake looks up at me, his eyes full of sadness. Chance puts his hat on his chest, tears streaming down his face. I look at the little filly. It hit me that she was going to watch her mother die. She is so young that is not fair! I heard soft breathing and she could reach her hoof out to me. I hold it tightly leaning to listen to her. “I am not long for this world.” Mac comes over as well to listen. “Please take care of my little Muse. Please…” The pleading eyes made me want to cry. I looked at Mac and he didn’t say a word. He looked down at the little filly and all he could do was pick her up and she knew oh did she know. She had soft pathetic voiceless sobs come from her mouth. “Shhh it’s okay I got you.” “Why me though?” The mare weakly smiles. “I see a good heart in you. Even if..you’re a metal creature. Please oh please.” I look at Chance and Jake. Chance I could tell in his face he didn’t like the idea. But we all knew arguing with a mother on her deathbed is not the way to go. “Let me sing to my little Muse one more time.” Mac sets the little filly back on the mare’s chest and I have to tell Mac what she told me. He didn’t hear it all. “She wants me to raise her Mac” Mac looks at me with worried eyes. “But...we know nothing about raising little ones, we didn’t even have any of our own.” I nod. “We can’t teach her how we used to live...She is too innocent, we need to find another way.” We hear the mother singing. “I will always be with you. I will always be by your side whatever it is you do. I will watch you from the timeless river as I wait for you in the life beyond life. So please little Muse please grow up and become a big and strong mare.” It was getting harder for the mare to sing. “So.. p..Please...grow up. I will always be...there..” She saids her final words. All we could do was watch the little filly sob loudly. She may not have a voice but oh she has pipes on her. I felt it was my duty to raise this little one. No one will stop me, not even the Swat kats. Will Molly and Mac redeem by raising a little filly? Will the Storm King and his minions be defeated by the elements? Will Chance ever trust the two metal kats? Find out next time the same kat story same kat chapters.