A series of blaring beeps tore through the dark veil. Sputtering back to consciousness, Shetland jerked up, momentarily confused to find herself on the cold ground, yet still covered with a blanket. Then memories of the last night caught up. Toasty! she jumped to her hooves, her heart pounding as she frantically searched the empty bed. “TOASTY?” she shouted, her voice trembling. Luckily, the response was nearly instant.
“I am in the kitchen, Shetland. Do not worry, I just wanted to make breakfast.”
Shetland slumped back to the ground, closing her eyes as she pressed her forehead against the cool bedpost, waiting for her heart to calm down. Her head felt like an egg with a cracked shell, courtesy of yesterday’s feast. Meanwhile, her hoof sought out the cold, reassuring grip of the gun beside her. “How long was I asleep?” she asked, unable to face her alarm’s display.
“Only for an hour.”
“Why didn’t you wake me?” Shetland asked as her voice grew louder.
In response, Toasty’s head poked out of the small kitchen. “Shetland, it is nice that you want to guard my sleep, but I do not require rest. You do.”
“Could you have guarded mine?” Shetland faced the robot, holding up the heavy pistol.
Toasty’s eyes shifted to the ground. At the lack of a response, Shetland frowned. “Thought so.” The robot attempted to meet her eyes, but her resolve quickly crumbled under Shetland’s glare and she fled back into the kitchen.
Shetland let out a sigh as she leaned back, her head on the covers as she stared at the ceiling. “Stupid.” she whispered, clenching her jaw until her teeth hurt. She pressed her eyes closed as she kept muttering the word, hoping it was quiet enough that Toasty wouldn’t come looking. A shiver went through her body. She felt exposed, like a plucked, naked little griffon. How can I do this? she asked herself, feeling the stares rest heavily on her back. Her mouth was impossibly dry, the monumental task that she’d almost already failed-
“I don’t know if I can do this.” she whispered towards the ceiling as her voice trembled. “I promised to all of you I wouldn’t fail this time- but how?” she covered her eyes with a hoof, hoping beyond all reason that Toasty wasn’t watching her. “Stupid.” she whispered once more, wishing she could just dig herself a hole and hide in it forever. Then she drew a sharp breath, hauling herself up as she checked the room. “Where is the Voidmarine that was with us last night?”
“I believe she is right outside.” Toasty answered.
“She better be.” Shetland grumbled. Unable to be certain, she went to see the armored Voidmarine sitting across from the entrance, rifle on the ground next to her. At first, Shetland suspected she was snoozing, but then the unicorn raised her head and a second later her gun was facing a spot several feet below Shetland’s hooves. Shetland had to resist the urge to raise her own weapon as she met the unicorn’s gaze, which quickly changed from alarm to concern.
“Everything okay up there?” The unicorn asked.
“Yeah… how about you, uh…”
“Sparktail, and yes. All clear, you can go rest yourself until the curfew passes.”
Shetland’s eyes widened. “T-There’s a curfew?”
“Damn right.” Sparktail shook her head. “Can’t say I don’t agree, three disappearances and now this in just a couple days. I just hope this doesn’t blow up when Princess Luna decides to lift it. Either way, nothing happened over here. You can go back and play with your robot.” she yawned. “Actually, if she could make me some breakfast too, that’d be neat.”
“I’ll tell her.” Shetland promised, closing the door as she let out a sigh, unsure whether to feel more or less worried. A curfew. Of course it made sense, and yet it took all the problems out of some shadowy corner and brought them out into broad daylight. Everypony was now affected. Not just robots, not just Shetland and Toasty, everypony. Somehow, that fact had eluded her until now, but everypony had to be worried, wracking their own brains about what was going on and, most frightening of all: they all knew even less than her.
“Shetland?”
The earth pony gasped for breath, suddenly aware of her surroundings, including the robot in front of her. “Wha-” Her voice died as she discovered her dry mouth. “Yes, I’m here.”
“I see that.” Toasty said quietly. “Breakfast is ready. I used some of the leftovers from yesterday if you don’t mind.”
“No, of course not. I liked all of that.” Shetland said in an attempt to sound cheerful. “I think Sparktail would like some too.”
“She better come fast, I might not be able to keep it from your ravenous maw for long.” her eyes lit up, yet her voice was monotone; the crude stakkato of a machine, bar any sense of accentuation. Still, Shetland forced herself to smile, even giving a little chuckle.
“Yeah… I don’t actually feel that hungry today.” In truth, she would have waited a few hours to eat, but the desire to keep the robot calm made her sit down. Bread, noodles, juice, Shetland poured it in her mouth with little regard, her eyes focused on Toasty. “We… have to talk.”
The robot only nodded, unable to meet her eyes.
Shetland let out a sigh. “From now on, you always have to be at my side, or mom’s or Luna’s. Otherwise… I don’t know. You understand that, right?”
Toasty gave another quiet nod.
“If you need to recharge, you have to tell me as well, alright?” Shetland gave a look to the ceiling. “It’s just for now, until somepony fixes this. Just so long.” she hoped dearly her voice didn’t carry the desperation she felt. It all made no sense. The hyenas had no power to steal the robots. Nopony she knew could have broken into their room, and why do that? How could this all fit together? And what hope did she have to figure this all out if even Princess Twilight couldn’t? Maybe it was Discord messing with them from whatever realm he’d disappeared to. Shetland had a chuckle at the thought, as little sense as it made. “I want to go out later and see the room for myself. You can stay with mother when she returns-”
“No.” At Shetland’s confused blink, Toasty repeated. “No. Princess Twilight is now busier than ever. I- I will stay with you.”
Shetland grimaced. The thought of taking Toasty to the latest place of this mystery didn’t sit right with her. Though, what chance was there of something dangerous still remaining? She took a deep breath. “Alright, but stay close. Do not leave my sight, alright?”
Toasty nodded. Then she raised her head, her right eye blinking on and off. “Even in the bathroom?”
“Even then,” Shetland sternly demanded. “And you will turn your back.”
The curfew’s end was accompanied with seemingly everypony in the colony rushing into the hallways at once. Shetland and Toasty were greeted with an enormous volume of ponies as nopony deemed it necessary to actually go somewhere, instead blocking the way. Even as Shetland tried to pay it no mind pushing past the crowds, snippets of their conversations still pierced her ears. Nopony seemed to have any idea what happened, as those were the questions she heard most often. But there were others: angry cries for more protection, fearful assurances about a later statement from the princesses, murmured demands for the hyenas to be sent back to Equus. Beyond it all, the whispered question whether they were safe. Shetland folded her ears back, wishing she could just turn them off, like Toasty could. Even then though, she would have still witnessed the stifling atmosphere, weighing down on everything around. She stubbornly pushed past all of them, using her sheer size to force a way through the overcrowded hallways, until she heard one more question:
“Who disappeared?”
Shetland froze as she heard the sentence, spoken by a pony in fearful search for a friend. Suddenly, it came from everywhere, ranging in tone from worry to simple cold curiosity and, in a case that made her stop and clench her teeth, joyous malice. Her eyes darted around as lava fried her insides, wanting to find the pony and beat some sense into his thick head- when she felt the cooling, smooth touch of Toasty’s hoof at her side. The robot was looking at the ground as Shetland turned, her hinged ears flat against her head as she nudged it towards a nearby set of doors. With a nod, Shetland pulled her aside, creating a path for both of them to step out of the crowds current and into the side room. The noise of the hallway toned down into dull background noise. Shetland let go of her breath as the cool, sour smell of a public urinal hit her. Beside her, Toasty pressed a hoof on her own nose, yet she still seemed to relax at least a little.
“Are you okay?” Shetland asked.
“Yes, I’m fine.” Toasty intoned robotically. “I just thought it would be less effort to wait for everypony to pass first.”
Shetland raised an eyebrow. “It didn’t seem like they were about to hurry.”
“They will have to go sometime.” Toasty spoke in her emotionless voice.
“And how long do you want to stay in a bathroom with me?” As no answer came, Shetland sat down. “If what they’re saying out there bothers you, I won’t judge you.”
Toasty averted her gaze. After nearly a whole minute, during which Shetland impatiently tapped her hoof, she sighed. “How did it come to this?”
“To what-”
“You are not dense, Shetland!” Toasty stomped her hoof. “All of this. It is like…” She stopped for a moment, as if to decide whether to say that next part. “It feels like… home.”
“What?” Shetland asked incredulously, staring at the little robot, certain she’d misheard.
“Not really,” Toasty shook her head. “But the worst parts of it. This… tension. I’ve experienced it before. When you are not sure whether your home is really safe, whether you or your friends are safe. The knowledge that many do not care.” She let out a dark, tinny chuckle. “Now you ponies experience it, too.”
“That’s bullshit, Toasty!” Shetland narrowed her eyes in a hot glare. “Most ponies here do care about you, so don’t put it like it’s some sort of justice!”
Toasty sighed. “Most do,” she agreed. “But those that do not are quite vocal about it.” she shook her head. “I am sorry, that was not supposed to be my point. I just wanted to say… this is familiar to me. And I hate it.”
Shetland’s features softened as she extended a hoof around the smooth chassis of Toasty’s shoulders. “Was it that bad?” she asked as she lowered her head just over Toasty’s ear. “I… guess I thought the whole thing stopped at name-calling and nasty graffiti”.
“Most of the time that would be true.” Toasty admitted. “But every now and then, something worse would happen… The house of a friend would be upturned. Someone would be damaged in an alley or even…” her voice broke off for a moment. “If you remember twelve years ago-”
“The magnet-botnappings.” Shetland finished her sentence darkly. She’d been seven years old, but even then, she’d learned more than enough by sneaking into her mother’s meetings.
Toasty nodded. “That was just when I was released from the production factory after my adjustments were finished. There was a real sense of terror, like anyone you knew could just vanish to be sold in thousands of pieces later.” she looked aside, her ears drooping. “Somepony told me back then that every robot constructed during my time was likely to include pieces plundered from someone else.”
“Do you-”
“I do not know!” Toasty slammed her hoof down with a loud clang. “There is no proof for it… or for the contrary. But… this sense of imminent danger, I grew up with it. And I so, so wanted to leave it behind when I left the planet.”
“You-” Shetland swallowed, realizing that her throat was dry, her words like the croaking of a hoarse frog. “Do you want to go back? N-not to Equus, to our room? You don’t have to come with me, I’m certain I can convince mom or Luna to keep you at their side, they’re certainly better suited than me!”
Toasty went silent. Shetland swallowed as conflicting ideas jumbled and fought each other in her head. It was like she could count the time by the pearls of sweat running down her back. One, two, three passed when Toasty suddenly reached both her forehooves around one of Shetland’s. “I do not think they are. They both have many, many duties, especially now. I do not think I could feel safer than with a pony who dedicated herself to protecting me… for some reason.” she chuckled. “Just saying it sounds so weird.”
“If it makes you happy.” Shetland muttered, briefly flattered by the words, yet the warm glow in her chest quickly froze. Toasty trusts me. The fact brought a cold shiver over her spine. Somehow, Toasty’s belief only fired up her own doubts. If she trusts my ability to protect her, she’ll rely on it. She had to tell Toasty that she couldn’t be trusted with this, her track record was horrible! She hadn’t been able to save her friends or the crew, she didn’t have the faintest clue what was going on, even what to protect Toasty from. And yet, she struggled to move her mouth as she looked at the way Toasty’s smooth, white head leaned against her foreleg, so relaxed, so calm- she didn’t want her to feel like she did.
The sound of the door scraping over the floor broke Shetland out of her trance. A pegasus stood in the doorway, her eyes wandering over Shetland and then to Toasty, a scowl forming on her face. “You’re blocking the way.” she informed them boorishly.
“We are sorry,” Toasty apologize as she stepped out of the way. “We will be leaving.”
“You better, or I’ll file a complaint!” The pegasus snarled. “Robots have no business in the bathrooms.”
“We go where we want.” Shetland rose to her full height, glaring down at the moronic pegasus. “Maybe you should flap up and piss into a cloud!”
The pegasus shrinked back, but Toasty began to tug at Shetland’s leg, stealing the joy of dominance as she pulled the earth pony away. “Cut it out, you won’t teach them a thing.” Toasty grumbled. “Just ignore what they say.”
Shetland wanted to respond, but her words were drowned in a wave not of fresh air, but an incomprehensible mass of rage-filled shouts. It seemed that right outside the bathroom, two groups had formed, separated by a Voidmarine in the middle.
“If we want to be safe, we need more guards, not more risks!” A unicorn shouted, backed up by agreeing shouts from the smaller group.
“You’re not the one suffering under the kidnappings, you have no grounds on which to object!” The Voidmarine’s amplified voice easily drowning out his competitors.
A quick look proved Shetland’s suspicion what this was about. The Voidmarine spoke for the larger group, noticeably containing more than a dozen robots, while the other was made purely from ponies. Shetland was about to count out the number of unicorns as the marine turned around to face his group.
“Three robots have gone missing, and still the princess denies them what they need just to be safe! Right now, self-defense is as basic a necessity to them as food and water is for us! Who wouldn’t rise up and demand their due if Luna denied you access to water?”
Damn right. Shetland thought as she snuck a glance at Toasty, who grimly stared at the unicorn, creating a screeching sound as she pawed the ground with a hoof.
“Princess Luna is right.” The unicorn sneered. “All we need is more guards, not some malfunctioning machine running around with dangerous items!” His response was met with clashing shouts from both sides. A few unicorns even lit up their horns in warning.
“I think the disaster at the spaceport made it clear YOU were much more likely to misuse firearms!” The Voidmarine’s enraged scream rang in Shetland’s head and numerous ponies in both crowds covered their own ears. His helmet swung around, suddenly focusing on Shetland. “You, you’re the young Sparkle, right?”
Unprepared to suddenly have everyone in the room staring at her, she let out an unintelligible croak before she nodded, unable to trust her own voice.
“Shetland Sparkle!” The Voidmarine shouted. “The pony who saved our colony from the raiders, who saved many among those in this very room, suffering grievous wounds in the process!”
Shetland felt heat rushing to her face as ponies pointed at her burned hindleg, whispering to each other. In a vain attempt to hide it from sight, her tail swept over the leg, but then Toasty’s wide hoof pulled it away. Shetland threw her an indignant glare, but it was no help. And to make it worse, the Marine once again began to talk.
“And then, she heroically risked her own life to retrieve her friend from a terrible sandstorm. A robot friend, I might add.” he threw a sharp look at his opposition. “I’d think she would be a pony we can all respect. So, why don’t we ask for her opinion?”
The sudden shouts of approval were startling. Some of the robots were even clapping their hooves. Shetland felt like she’d temporarily forgotten how to breathe.
“Respect, maybe.” The unicorn spoke loudly in an attempt to be heard. “But I think we all heard that she’s gone pretty loco after all of that. Plus,” he threw her a scornful look. “She’s working with the hyenas now, isn’t she?”
“I’m doing what I can!” Shetland shouted. All of the pressure seemed to pull itself into a tiny, glowing ball. “I don’t see you doing anything to fix things! Instead, you just make things harder for everypony.”
“We’re discussing important matters for the colony!” The unicorn shouted back.
“What you’re doing is being retarded!” Shetland easily overpowered his voice. “It’s fucking obvious that robots aren’t the problem!”
“SURE, YOU SAY THAT, BUT DO ANY OF YOU REMEMBER HIROSHIMARE?” Someone in the crowd screamed.
“The changelings weren’t part of Equestria before that, either!” The Voidmarine shouted. “I don’t see you arguing we should leave them alone to be kidnapped!”
Their answer became nearly incomprehensible in the sudden wave of shouts from both sides. Shetland saw Toasty right beside her, heard her say something, but she was unable to make out the words. The air danced with multicolored magic as even more unicorns fired up their magic and one pony in the crowd reached for a belt around his midriff-
Then, suddenly, the room was plunged into violet light that swallowed up all sound except for one voice:
“That’s enough!”
Princess Twilight Sparkle stepped into the room, scowling as her eyes swept over the two groups and finally resting on the Voidmarine. “That’s enough.” she repeated quieter. Several ponies in the crowd opened their mouths, but no sound emerged. Twilight must have cast some silencer spell.
“Everypony,” she spoke calmly, only her furrowed brows giving a sign of her emotions. “Go to your workplaces. If you need to discuss, then both sides may choose a representative to talk to Luna, but until then, the matter is settled. Now go, everypony, except-” Her eyes fixated on the Voidmarine, then quickly glanced at Shetland. “-you two.”
She waited until the last onlooker had left the room to speak, her voice like an iceberg hiding a sea of boiling water. “What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed to the marine. “Your job is to calm the unrest, not join it!”
The marine pulled of his helmet, revealing the face of a heavily-breathing orange unicorn. “Y-your highness, the demands of our robots and ponies are only right, we-”
“Not one more word out of you, Lofty Goal! Your personal opinions are of no concern. We cannot have our guard pick sides!” The stallion shivered as a fuming Twilight gave him a stern glare. “I will not tolerate another screw up from you, understand?”
“Y-yes!” he yelped, his eyes widened as sweat began to gather on his forehead.
“Dismissed.”
Shetland watched the back of the soldier as he fled the room, her brows deeply furrowed. It wasn’t like her mother to fly off the handle like this at all. But she was given no more chances to consider this as her mother’s glare swung around.
“Shetland.” Twilight paused, taking a deep breath. She repeated the motion twice before she spoke again. “Shetty, Why did you get involved?”
“I didn’t choose to!” Shetland protested. “Loopy Hole or whatshisface asked for my opinion.”
“Shetland," Twilight groaned, drawing the word out through her clenched teeth. “You have to be careful what you say. Your word carries further than you think.”
“W-why?” Shetland raised an eyebrow. “Because I’m your daughter? That never mattered before!”
A groan came from her side. To her surprise, it came from Toasty. The robot facehooved, creating a resounding clang. “Shetland, have you not heard what they just said about you?”
“Well… yeah,” Shetland said slowly. “But I thought he was just building me up as someone important.”
“That…” Toasty shook her head. “Yes, he did, but he picked you out because many ponies look up to you.”
“WHAT?” Shetland stared at the robot like it was the first time she’d seen her. “Since when?”
“It began a little bit after your… arrival.” Twilight carefully chose her words. “Ponies have been telling some crazy tales about you, but most of it blew over while you were still recovering. But then, when robots started to disappear, ponies must have searched for someone to place their hopes in.”
“And then you pulled me out of a terrible storm at the risk of your life.” Toasty said. “Is it so surprising that some regard you as a hero?”
“But… I didn’t do it to be a hero!” Shetland protested. “I fought the hyenas because I wanted to live. I saved you because… because… I had to!”
“Most heroes didn’t try to be one.” Twilight said, a hint of amusement replacing the stress in her voice. “But what you need to understand is that your word carries weight now… maybe even enough to challenge mine.”
“One of ‘em also said I was crazy.” Shetland said drily.
Twilight flinched at that. “Some… say that.” she admitted hesitantly. “But you shouldn’t pay them any mind, they’re just ponies spouting rumors like they’re facts.”
Not so sure about that, Shetland thought, her eyes drifting to Toasty’s new body. Her eyes used to be blue.
Twilight sighed. “Just be careful what you say, okay? It’s best if you just don’t get involved in these discussions at all.”
“Yes, mom.” Shetland muttered, tearing her eyes away from Toasty’s blue-ish mane. Then she raised her head. “Mom?”
“Yes, Shetty?”
“I wanted to take a look at the hyena’s room.”
The alicorn’s face fell. “The old one, I assume. Alright, I’ll take you there. Just be careful and don’t touch anything without permission.”
Shetland nodded. Not the sort of access she’d wanted, but it was the best she would get.
---------
It was like stepping into her mother’s library after one of her more intensive reading sessions. Paper covered the ground: a chaotic mixture of torn book pages, Equestrian documents, files and other papers she couldn’t identify, due to being written in the odd curved signs of Hyenidae. What furniture there was looked like somepony very strong had mistaken them for a buckbag. Shetland looked around the room, wondering who could have done this, or what reason they would have had for it. “How come nopony noticed this?” Shetland asked in disbelief. “The room was guarded, was it not? There is no way someone wouldn’t hear this.”
“Well…” Twilight let out a hot breath. “You met the guard on duty earlier.”
“You mean the guy who just pulled me into his discussion? Loop Hole?”
“Lofty Goal.” Twilight corrected.
“Why- why would anypony think of placing a pro-robot activist to guard the hyena’s room?” Shetland asked, incomprehending. “Do you… think it could have been him?”
Twilight blinked. “No. I don’t.”
“He has an agenda!” Shetland rose up, a hint of excitement in her voice. “He could have-”
“He could not have entered the room, simply because he did not have a key for it.” Twilight spoke calmly. “The only keys are held by me, Luna, as well as Gan and Khunbish respectively. And all of those,” She emphasized each word. “Were accounted for.”
“But-” Shetland wanted to argue, but Twilight instantly interjected.
“The door hasn’t been damaged.” she recited mechanically. “I also personally enchanted the lock so it could only be opened using said keys.”
“What if he climbed through the window?” Shetland argued.
Twilight opened her mouth to speak. But then it fell closed again as a snicker erupted seemingly from her nose. Shetland stared, bewildered at the alicorn who clearly lost her mind when Toasty spoke up.
“Shetland…we are currently standing on a planet upon which the atmosphere will not sustain you. And you speak of…” The robot raised a hoof to her faceplate, as if trying to hide her chuckle. “Climbing through a window?”
“Err… he- he…he could have breached it!” Shetland exclaimed loudly as she felt the heat rising to her cheeks.
“I think you would have noticed that by now.” Toasty said drily. “If you consider the whole cannot-breathe thing.”
“Well…” Shetland stuttered, looking helplessly from her laughing friend to her only slightly-less expressive mother. Then she made a face, crossing her hooves. “Yeah, laugh it up. I was just trying to solve this crime or whatever.”
“I-I’m sorry.” Twilight said, pulling herself together. She let go of her breath, as well as the last of her snickers. “Back to the matter at hoof… I don’t want you to go after Lofty Goals.”
“But why?”
“Because he thoughtlessly made himself a public figure.” Twilight groaned, rubbing her forehead. “And any thoughtless confrontation between you and him could cause waves that could destroy the fragile peace we have. And..” she sighed. “Don’t take this badly, but you don’t typically act… prudently.”
“I can verify that this is true.” Toasty chimed in, catching a glare from Shetland, whose eyebrow twitched aggressively.
“Alright.” The earth pony spoke through clenched teeth, pronouncing each word with excessive force. “I see your point.” she took a deep breath as she slowly relaxed her jaw. Then she furrowed her brows and met Twilight’s eyes. “You’ll solve this mystery, then?"
“I will.” Twilight nodded. “And I’ll get back to you when I learn something new.”
“Great,” Shetland said. She blinked. “Great…” she said again. She swallowed. Her throat felt free. With a nod, she turned around, her mouth nearly curling into a smile, but then she looked over the destroyed room before her eyes found their way to Toasty and a stern look took hold of her features. “Come with me.” she said quietly, but sternly, and Toasty wordlessly followed her, only turning once to wave the Princess goodbye.
----
The dust ground coarsely under her hooves. Shetland sighed, wishing she had the protection of her armor. Her bad leg was once again acting up, stinging like a dozen papercuts. With a quick jerk of her shoulder, she adjusted her saddlebags to weigh a little more on her other side.
“Where are we going?” Toasty impatiently chimed in.
“You’ll see when we get there.” Shetland grumbled, allowing her irritation to show in her voice. She cast one more look over her shoulder, scanning all the way back to the spaceport, an hour and a half away. Her head whipped back to their goal, a rock formation, appearing like a petrified wave. It was large and close enough to be reached with air to spare.
“Shetland?” Toasty once again asked, her tone less demanding this time. “Why are we going out here?”
“Soon, Toasty…” Shetland grumbled.
“I just do not think this is a good idea.” Toasty said quietly. Her head turned, but unlike Shetland, she watched all directions. “W-we are pretty exposed.”
“Don’t worry, I’m armed, you’re safe with me.” Shetland said, her voice sounding a lot more confident than she felt. With a shake of her head, she rejected the notion to turn back. This would help them in the long run. “We’re almost there.” she said, trying to sound collected and calming for the nervous robot.
“And what is in your saddlebags?” Toasty’s eyelights shrunk to gleaming pricks as they projected two green dots onto the large, black case that hung from Shetland’s side. The other carried with it a sack, a backup air bottle and a case containing Shetland’s lunch (half a dozen sandwiches and water with orange powder). Whatever it was the earth pony was taking the robot to, she expected to be there for a while.
Finally, as the rock blocked them from view, Shetland gestured for Toasty to halt. With one suspicious look to each side, she unstrapped her saddle bags, letting them slide gently to the ground.
“May I now learn why you brought me out here?” Toasty asked, nervously looking back around the edge of the rock.
“Yes.” Shetland said. She then pulled a stack of thin disks out of the sack, each lined with consecutive smaller circles of red and white.
“You brought me out here so you could practise shooting?” Toasty groaned. “Look, Shetland, it is nice that you want to protect me, but you do not have to drag me with you for every little thing you wish to do!” she rubbed her forehead, creating a screeching sound as the metal of her hoof and head scratched over another. “Besides, is there not a small official shooting range on the outskirts of the spaceport?”
“There is,” Shetland admitted, walking closer to Toasty as she kneeled down, meeting the robot’s visor on eye level. “But this practise isn’t for me. It’s for you.”