//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 - Attack // Story: Project Clockwork // by Arceaion //------------------------------// Blueblood grumbled as he walked into the meeting room around him stood most of the other nobles. "Well, what do we do now." One of them growled as he glared at the stallion. "Have the mercenaries move in we deal with this personally. Also bring the good doctor as well. They are currently in the CORE so this is a perfect opportunity to finish what we started." "And what of the princesses, they won't stand by and let us kill their precious little pet. Blueblood turned to the nobles with a devious smile. "Oh, but she certainly wouldn't dare to harm her subject." He said with a smirk. The nobles looked at each other before smiling. Eris walked in to the Ponyville C.O.R.E.S. Control room and looked around. "Lay her on that table." She said as she walked over to the main controls and began to work. Celestia walked over to the table and lay Twilight on it before simply watching her sadly. "You care a great deal for Maker don't you?" Eris asked as she worked. Celestia nodded. "I love her, not in the sense of romance but in the sense of her being the daughter I never had. I only want her to be safe." Eris didn't reply only continuing to work. Celestia turned and eyed the robot. "You claim to be a robot but you act so much like a Clockwork." Eris chuckled as she picked up several cables and walked over to Twilight. "Maker may have crafted me from steel but she still gave me a shard of her soul. I am still alive but I know what it feels like to have my programming dictate my every action, to have no free will at all." Eris shuddered. "When Maker crafted me she was just learning about her powers and abilities. After learning how she gave me a shard of her soul, I didn't know what to do or say. I was a child scared of the world." Eris plugged the cables in to Twilight before walking back to the control console. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "It's time." she said. "Computer, bring Ponyville CORE AI fully online." The room glowed and the lights in the room changed from there normal white to a light green. The control console lit up and a robot that looked like Fluttershy appeared. "Shy!CORE online." the console said before looking around. When it noticed Twilight it gasped. "Oh dear, i-i-it's time isn't it." She stuttered and looked at Eris. "I-I did-n't think i-it would be so soon." "You'll do just fine, but Maker needs your help." Eris said calmly. Shy!CORE nodded and and several cords and cables appeared and plugged into Twilight. "Right, I-I'll have to go in." She said and her image disappeared. "Now we wait." Eris said as she walked over to Twilight and sat down next to Celestia. Shy!CORE watched as her worked slowly faded and was replaced with an empty void. She slowly looked around shaking. "What is this place." She whispered as she slowly began to walk forward. She noticed that the path ahead was lighter and she began to slowly walking toward it. Celestia and Eris waited for a while in silence before the sound of yelling came from the hall as well as the sound of the Clockworks weapons firing. Luna and the HK's ran into the room and took up defensive positions behind the nearest thing. The sounds of the weapons ended and the Clockwork guards were thrown into the room were they landed in a pile groaning. Blueblood walked in a vicious smile on his face, in front of him were at ten ponies all of them varying ages each with a knife to there throat. After them were several mercenaries and behind them was the nobles. "What is the meaning of this?!" Celestia asked angrily. "Oh do shut up you whore." Blueblood yelled as he approached them. Celestias eyes glowed and her main caught to fire. "Blueblood you will explain this now." She ordered. Blueblood laughed. "Why it's quite simple Celestia, We nobles have grown tired of you and your incessant catering to the impure blooded. As such we are taking over and if you have anything to say about it then we will start killing these peasants you love so much." "And you think I will simply stand aside." Celestia growled. "Oh no, of course I expect you to fight but you see there is one thing your overlooking." Blueblood said with a smile. "And what is that?" Celestia asked. "Me." A stallion said as he slowly walked forward. The Stallion wore a lab coat and glasses. "Greetings, I am Dr. Technology." Eris hissed at him. "You, Maker had hoped you had been caught in the explosion and died." The doctor laughed. "Oh, Twilight survived!" He exclaimed and walked to the side to get a better look at the techno alicorn. "And it appears she was made a machine. Oh this will be fun~." He sang as he approached. Eris hissed as he approached. "Ah,ah, ah I really wouldn't." He said as he reached into his lab coat and pulled out a device. Eris froze as did the Clockworks and Hk's. "Ah you recognize this." He chuckled. "Electro Magic Pulse Bomb." Eris growled. "Designed to shut down any and all Magitech." Blueblood smiled. "Chain the alicorn's up and restrain the machines but make sure they have a good view. After all we don't want them to miss the good doctors work." The mercenaries walked forward and shackled the Clockworks while chaining the Alicorns wings and placing a magic restraint on their horns. "Sorry but those are our families they got, we have no choice." One of them said not looking them in the eye. The doctor smiled as he turned to Twilight and pulled out several tools. "Greetings my dear, Let's have some fun." Dr. Technology grabbed the saw and brought it closer to Twilight's chest as it came to life. The doctor slammed it into her chest and sparks began to fly. Celestia and Luna screamed as the blade of the saw met but a ear piercing whine emitted from the saw as it shattered. The doctor stared in shock before lifting his drill and trying to drive it into her chest only for the drill brake as well. The doctor growled and grabbed a welding torch. As Shy!CORE drew closer to the light she felt her fears began to fade and she began to walk closer, when she finally reached the light she saw Twilight at the center of hundred of Clockworks foals. She lay at the center her wings spread out and covering them. Shy!CORE Slowly approached them causing the foal to look up. At first they looked at her in fear before calming down. Sensing something Twilight lifted her head and looked at Shy!CORE with narrowed eyes. "Who are you." She asked cautiously. "I am the Ponyville C.O.R.E.S. Designation: Shy!CORE." Shy!CORE whispered as she slowly approached. As she walked forward and entered the light some of the foals slowly approached her while most stayed at Twilight side. "Um... I was sent to connect with you to help with your...um...Metastability." Shy!CORE said as she stood in front of Twilight. Twilight nodded. "Thank you Shy!CORE." "D-do you know were we are, I mean if you don't mind me asking, I was just curious, I didn't mean to be rude or anything!" Shy!CORE panicked. Twilight laughed. "Your so much like how Fluttershy was when we first met. We're in what I call the Web. When I passed out on the way to Ponyville I was brought here. It seemed to awaken the link between myself and the souls placed in the Clockworks." Suddenly four of the souls began to cry and look around fearfully. Twilight hurried over to them and embraced them. They were the souls of her guards and Eris "What's wrong." Shy!CORE asked concerned. "Monsters!" Scrap cried as she hugged Twilight. The two adults looked around confused. "Where I don't see anything." Twilight said concerned. The soul shook its head. "Not here there." Suddenly Twilight felt a pang in her chest as she looked down she saw her chest removed. She quickly turned to Shy!CORE. "With you here I can go, please protect my children." Twilight closed her eyes and slowly began to fade. Dr. Technology growled as he finally ripped off the plate covering Twilight's chest revealing the circuits and machinery inside. "Finally." he sighed as he examined her body. "Enjoying yourself Doc?" A voice asked. "Hmm? Oh yes such a shame I can't experiment on her. But Blueblood wan't her dead so I will have to find a way to kill her. "Hmm, hey doc? Look up." The voice said. Dr, Technology sighed and looked up only to come face to face with the glowing red eyes of Twilight. "How you doing Dr. Technology?" She asked in a friendly voice. The doctor stared at her in shock. Twilight ripped through the restraint and grabbed the doctors throat. Doctor Technology began to gasp and claw at Twilight's hand. The nobles in the room noticed and froze. "Funny isn't it?" Twilight asked. "Seven years ago our positions were reversed as I desperately tried to stop you from destroying Canterlot. You held me over the C.O.R.E.S. and laughed as you released me." Twilight then turned to Blueblood who was trying to leave the room. "And Blueblood, How good of you to join us!" "Oh, uh h-hello Tw-Twilight..." Blueblood stuttered. "Its been a while... so how are you?" "Good, I've been good." Twilight said with a smile. "So still planning to kill Celestia?" She asked as the doors began to close. "Oh, well..." Blueblood turned and ran. This snapped the nobles out of their shock and they turned as well. Blueblood slipped out of the room just as the doors closed and the other nobles slammed into them. "Seven years ago you lot conspired to sabotage the Canterlot C.O.R.E.S. and destroy the city. You thought that it would kill me and the other Alicorns and you could then take over Equestria. Blueblood and Dr. Technology sabotaged the C.O.R.E.S. and when I arrived they beat me nearly to death and threw me into the abyss below it as it was set to explode from the pressure building up. I fell and landed in the control room where I managed to send a warning and released the pressure causing the explosion. Though it was significantly weakened it would still destroy Canterlot. I planed to give my life but that obviously didn't happen, instead I survived and now I'm back." Twilight tightened her grip on the doctor as she looked at him. "I could care less about you lot, let Celestia sort you out. However Technology, You and Blueblood I will be personally dealing with. you for what you did and Blueblood because he planed this" Twilight continued to tighten her grip. "However, I would also like to thank you. With out you the Clockworks, my children would have never been born. So thank you, Dr. Technology." The doctor was gasping for breath as a loud crack as heard and the doctor went limp. Twilight dropped the doctor and glared at his body. "M-maker..." Eris sobbed causing Twilight to turn in shock and run over to Eris. Twilight broke the chains on Eris and the others before pulling them into hug. The mercenaries walked over to the princesses and released them before turning to the nobles. "What do we do with them?" There leader asked Celestia. Celestia eyed him before turning to the nobles. "I will have the guard escort them to the dungeon, as for you..." She eyed the mercenaries. "There is no excuse for what we did. But we would do it again, These nobles didn't hire us, instead they used their influence to find our families and have them kidnapped. These civilians are our wives, husband and children." "Your pardoned." Twilight said shocking everyone. "Twilight, they committed treason and they chained us up, they cant be expected to go free." Luna said shocked. "And yet in their place would you have done the same. Besides I doubt they will be talking about this." Twilight replied as she looked at the mercenaries. the leader snorted. "Got that right, we ain't proud of this but it doesn't matter why we did it we still broke the law. We should revive some form of punishment." "If you truly feel you deserve punishment then you will be taken to the dungeons as well till a trial can be given." Celestia said. The mercenaries looked at each other before one spoke up. "As long as we aren't placed with the nobles then I think we'll be fine." The other mercenaries laughed in agreement. Twilight nodded and the doors opened. As they opened several platoons worth of guard swarmed in their weapons trained on the nobles and mercenaries. "Guard, have the Nobles taken to the lowest cells, the mercenaries will be placed in the noble cells and given what ever they need." Celestia said calmly. The guards nodded and herded the group out. Celestia sighed and turned to Twilight. "Well today has certainly been interesting." Twilight and Luna as well as the Clockworks burst out laughing.