Fifteenth Principle:
A hero should not let his/her pride to prevent him/her to do the right thing
“Okay, what are we looking at?” asked Watt, staring at the new flat screen that bright and Lumi have been installing for the last ten minutes.
Unlike the other equipment they’ve been working on, this thing only showed random numbers and graphics. Of course the two scientists have offered to explain what the figures mean, and where they came from. But, the young heroes said that it wouldn’t be necessary as long as they know the basics. As long as they didn’t hear an alarm, they wouldn’t have to care about the thing.
“I don’t get it,” said Shadow Ninjutsu. “If this thing warns us about the danger, we just tell you? Why can’t we fight?”
“You’ll do more than just tell us. You’ll help to evacuate the ponies around the area this thing shows up.” explained Bright Spark.
“But, still, we’re heroes!” protested Shadow Ninjutsu, still not convinced.
“A hero’s duty is with people first.” scolded him Flurry Heart.
“Yes, first for people, then, for glory.” added Elementary.
“Besides, this thing is after Lumi and me.” said Bright. “And it won’t hesitate to hurt you to get us.”
The League of Heroes didn’t say anything. Instead, they looked at the screen.
“Okay, as far as I understand, this thing is connected to the ‘drones’ you freed around Equestria. Right?” asked Flurry.
“Yes, and, if something triggers the Geiger Counters, we will be ready.” said Lumi, with a small nod.
“The Changeling Hive, the Diamond Dogs territory, Storm Kingdom, Catrina’s Island, Mount Aris, the Dragon Lands, Griffonstone, Yak Mountains, and practically the entire world is under our watch.” said Bright, calmly, but Flurry could notice a hint of anger. “Next time this thing shows up, wherever it does, we’ll be there to stop it.”
Flurry Heart nodded. “I get it, you’re ready to fight this. But, shouldn’t aunt Twilight, my parents, and, Grannies Celestia and Luna have one of these too?”
Luminositè made an elegant shrug. “Ils devraient, but, we are still expeting our désolés.”
“Dudes, this isn’t cool!” scolded Watt.
Bright rolled his eyes. “For them, we are the ones behind the murders. No matter what, they won’t listen. So, as long as they don’t apologize, we don’t care what happen to them.”
Flurry preferred not to say anything. Like her problem with her parents, this was between them and their families.
And, in case something happens, she and her League of Heroes had a complete brand-new system of underground trains that would help them to get anywhere in Equestria in no time. Also, at the time of truth, they knew Bright and Lumi wouldn’t let that anything happened to their families.
Bright and Luminositè went back to their grandparents’ and aunt’s house respectively. They both had a long day convincing both enemies and allies that they weren’t actually behind the murders, and only wanted to stop the impostor. Some of them believed in the two ponies, some of them didn’t, but they accepted them releasing the drones on their lands. Out of fear, of course, but they all ended up accepting.
Still, they were still a bit worried that someone would try something stupid, like what Tirek’s teacher did. They had enough trouble with this thing killing villains already, they didn’t need that the villains themselves helping it.
Now they could only wait.
For the next few days, nothing strange happened. Bright and Lumi continued attending school like nothing happened. But, they were a bit upset because of the lack of progress. Their drones were watching for twenty-four/seven, but still nothing.
Obviously, the murderer knew they were watching. That only made the situation even more frustrating.
So, Bright and Lumi started working in worthless projects to distract them from the subject.
And, of course they continued pissing off the Crown.
“Please, come on in!” greeted Twilight. She had promised a group of students that she would give them a tour around her castle to help them with their history report. “And, please, feel free to ask me every question you want, and…”
She froze when she recognized Bright among the group. “What are YOU doing here?”
He shrugged. “Helping them. They asked me to tell them about the defense system I installed in the Castle. Which weapons, and where they are. Also, a brief explanation of what they do.”
Twilight glared at him. “You are not welcome here anymore.”
“And I’ll leave, as soon as I finish with them. After all, I made a promise, and I want to keep my word.
The others looked uncomfortably at mother and son.
Noticing their stares, Twilight aimed a hoof to the kitchen door, and gave Bright a significant look.
And, as calm as he was, he nodded, and followed her inside.
“Okay Bright, what do you really want?”
“Like I said, help them with homework.” Said Bright, uninterested. “But also, I had the small hope that at this point, you would had think things better, and realized I haven’t kill anyone. Neither Luminositè. Why can’t you trust us?! SMOOTHIE!”
One of the kitchen robots activated at its creator’s command, and began to prepare the requested drink. It opened the fridge, and took the fruit, yogurt, and ice. Then, it put it all inside its body, and, thirty seconds later, the machine opened its chest again, and Bright Spark took the smoothie with his magic.
Twilight sighed a bit nostalgic. Since Bright left, none of his machines have moved. They still obeyed Flash, but, after the incident with Bright, he argued with Twilight and left to Canterlot and stayed at the barracks.
Finally, the lavender alicorn started crying. “Bright, I want to trust you, okay? But all this time, what you’ve been doing? Being incredibly cruel, and evil!”
“I am cruel, but only to punish evil!” answered Bright. “That makes me good! Mom, it’s only logical!”
“And there you are!” sobbed Twilight. “You almost have no feelings. And you’ve been getting worse with the pass of time. Just look at what happened with Grogar. First you were all worried, neurotic. A normal reaction, after realizing what you’ve done. But, when something else caught your attention, you got back to this cold, logical self of yours. Bright, this isn’t normal. And, yes, I thought that repressing your feelings finally made you lose control. Try to understand me, is not easy to be the mother of a crazy pony. Especially when is as gifted as you!”
Bright punched the wall, angrily. “You are afraid of me.”
She took a deep breath, and fell on a chair, tired. “Bright, I’ve been afraid of you since you were ten, when you revealed your true personality to the world!”
Bright took a deep breath, trying to control himself. “Sorry for saving your lives back then!”
Twilight shook her head, as tears ran from her eyes. “Bright, you don’t understand! You saved us, yes, but, how? By creating a weapon of mass destruction. And you didn’t seemed sorry or troubled by using it. Instead, you were fascinated by its power. How could you just stay there, watching? Why don’t you feel sorry for what you do to villains?”
“Why should I? If the roles were reversed, they wouldn’t be so kind, right?”
“Probably not! But you must show them that you are better than them!” cried Twilight.
“I show them I am better. I beat them up without any effort.”
Twilight sighed. “This is why I’ve always been afraid of you, Bright. You have no feelings. Or, you do have some, but, you barely use them. Instead, you drive yourself by this cold logic, and I’ve always wondered what will happen when this logic of yours drive you to conquer the world. Or destroy it.”
“That’s not how logic works…” said Bright, scratching his head. “It makes you do logical things, not stupid things.”
“It doesn’t matter! Your especial talent is to build your own power, and, because of it, you’ve become more powerful than anyone in the world. Sorry if I’ve hurt you, Bright, but, how do you expect me to feel about you?”
Bright took a deep breath, and took a sip of his smoothie as he tried to find the right words. “What about ‘proud’, mom? I am one of the two smartest beings in the world. I’ve always pursued knowledge, just like you. I followed your steps, and then, I made my own path. Your path brought you to princesshood, mine, to the weapon and technological industry.”
“Precisely my point, Bright. Why weapons? And, why do you have to make them this destructive? And why do you have to test them on captured villains? What you do is not testing, is torture!!”
Bright grinded his teeth.
“It’s never been about power. I use logic because, like you said, I barely have feelings. I do not understand ponies, because I have no empathy. But I understand cause and effect, and I understand rules based on them. I know I’m somehow incomplete, and, because of that I would never understand the world as I should. That’s why I use science, and logic. They allow me to understand what is around me, only, from a different perspective.”
“But, if is not about power, why do you continue building insane weaponry?”
“I’ve made other things. Like trains, devices that allow earth ponies and pegasi to levitate objects as unicorns. What else? Oh, jetpacks to allow other races to fly through the sky, and especial boots to allow them to walk in clouds. What else? Oh, right, I’ve automatized bureaucracy in almost every government office. Pocket devices that allow normal ponies to move the sun and the moon at will, but my Godmother doesn’t allow me to sell those to the public… the thing is, I’ve done other things rather than just weapons. But no, all you care about is the weapons I’ve made.”
Twilight sighed. “Fine, you’ve done a lot for Equestria, I give you that. But, again, what about your weapons? Why do you keep building them, each time more powerful? AND WHAT ABOUT THE VILLAINS YOU CAPTURE TO USE THEM AS GUINEA PIGS?!”
“I capture them only when they attack us first!” shouted Bright. “WHAT DO YOU EXPECT ME TO DO? TO TRY MY NEW INVENTIONS IN OTHER PONIES?”
He was trembling. And tears were running from his eyes. Real tears. “Don’t you know how hard is for me to keep control? I have something deep inside me, a compulsion, a thirst of knowledge. I need to create, I need to improve my creations, or… I don’t know what would happen. The madness exists deep inside me, and insists that I test my weapons over and over, until I am a hundred percent sure they work as I imagined at first.”
Bright trembled. “I need living subjects to test my things fully. But I cannot use ponies, because they are too weak, and they’ll die at the very first test. Then, there’s the fact that I love my family, and I do my best to make all of you proud. I cannot hurt a pony, because I know how much that would disappoint you.”
“Bright Spark…” gasped Twilight.
The teenage colt shook his head. “Villains, on the other hoof, deserve what I do to them. They would do the same if they had the chance. But, I don’t target them because of that, I cannot care less. I do it because I need to keep the madness under control, and, since they are stronger than ponies, I can do whatever I want with them without worrying if they’re going to survive or not.”
He cried. “Every day is a struggle between me, and my inner madness. Every day I do my best to keep it under control… to stay at your side, to make you happy, and proud. But, you demonstrated my efforts mean nothing to you since you decided to believe I actually murdered someone.” He sighed. “What’s the point to keep struggling then? I feel betrayed, I… sad, angry. FRUSTRATED!” He sighed, regaining composure. “It would be a lot easier if I just surrender myself to my madness. That way I could just stop feeling like this. I would stop feeling. Period.”
Twilight cried. “Please don’t, Bright! I never tried to understand you, I was too afraid of what I could find. That was my greater mistake. I’m sorry Bright Spark, please don’t surrender… please…”
“I won’t.” assured Bright. “Because I love my family, and, my logic told me that it would be better if I capture whoever or whatever is behind this, and clear my name.”
Twilight hugged her son. “I’m so sorry Bright.”
He hugged her back. “I’m sorry too. Apparently, my classmates left during our little exchange.”
Twilight stroke her son’s mane. “It’s alright. I’m glad we talked, we needed this.”
Bright was not used to give affection, but this time, he considered appropriate. He slowly hugged Twilight, who hugged him back with her wings and hooves.
The two of them stayed like that for a few moments, when they both felt a powerful explosion of dark magic, coming from Canterlot. Also, Bright’s Geiger-counters went crazy.
“Bright!” shouted Flurry Heart form her transmitters.
“I know.” said Bright, separating from Twilight. “Do what I told you. And mom, I need you to shelter everypony in Ponyville in your castle. As soon as everypony is inside, it would automatically rise the shields.”
“Understood!” said Twilight.
Bright made a small nod, and summoned a bunch of robots. “You, I reactivate my mother’s user. Do as she says.”
The machines biped in response to their creator, and turned to Twilight. She only looked at her son, and for the last time, she gave him a quick hug. “Be careful, Bright. And do not lose control.”
“I won’t.”
Canterlot:
The Canterlot Royal Guard looked really different from how they looked five years ago.
First of all, they didn’t wear armor anymore, except for official acts where they needed to look impressive and elegant. Now, they used white jackets, with stars on the shoulders. White kepis, and that was it.
Luminositè was the one who designed the uniform, so, it was practically indestructible. It offered more protection than regular armor, and allowed more mobility.
The two soldiers guarding the castle entrance were happily enjoying the nice weather, when they heard hoofsteps approaching. They looked who it was, only to see former Prince Bright Spark, and Lady Belle approaching, wearing their power suits.
The soldiers exchanged a look, and aimed a hoof to the intruders, summoning a cannon.
“Hold!”
“Their Majesties were very clear. Since you refuse to leave Equestria, at least, you have forbidden the entrance to the castle!”
Luminositè extended her hoof, and her scarf wrapped around the two guards, and smashed them on the wall, creating a considerable crack.
Then, Bright raised his right hoof, summoning his own cannon, and shot a plasma blast to the already unconscious soldiers. The explosion called the rest of the battalion’s attention, and they trotted and flew toward them, ready to fight.
Bright and Lumi high-hoofed, and ran to the battle.
Lumi’s scarf took the leader of the air force, and forced him down, smashing him on the ground, and then, he threw him to Bright.
Bright Spark caught him on the air, and threw the soldier against the leader of the earth pony and unicorn squad. They both fell unconscious, as the two teenagers took a couple of silver spheres from their pockets.
“No… please…”
The teenagers threw the spheres to the guards, and they exploded. There was no way they could survive.
A couple of new squads came to help, leaded by no other than Flash Sentry.
“You have two seconds to reveal who you really are.” said the pegasus.
“Isn’t it obvious, father?” asked Bright.
Flash frowned. “You can’t fool me, you can’t be my son. Don’t you see nothing that you’ve done have worked?”
The two teenagers exchanged a confused look, and then, looked around.
The soldiers who they supposedly killed, were standing, unharmed. And ready to fight.
“Impossible.” said the fake Luminositè.
“The Royal Guards support Prince Spark and Lady Belle, we believe in them, and we’ve been helping them from the inside.” said Captain Master Sword. “We knew that it was only a matter of time before you show up.”
“Also, they upgraded our equipment while the Princesses weren’t looking.” explained Flash. “They know who you really are, and, believe me, that means that you’re doomed!”
The soldiers prepared their weapons, and the machines did the same.
Flash Sentry grinned, and raised a hoof. The soldiers under his command took their positions.
“We are NOT going to attack!” shouted Flash.
The fakers tilted their heads in confusion. “Wait, what?”
“NOW!!” shouted Flash.
The Royal Guard shot their hoof-cannons in the unison, creating a massive blast over the two impersonators.
Their sensors went crazy, announcing the incoming danger. Something warned them that a single hit of those cannons would destroy them for good. Not to mention this was a combined blast.
They made a quick backflip eluding the attack, but they were intercepted by a pegasi squad that shot them with their own cannons. They barely had time to create a force-field. However, the upgraded weapons passed through the force-field as it wasn’t there, and the explosion sent them to the ground.
They both stood slowly, and tried to run, when Flash shot them again.
The blast sent them through the hallways, rolling. Leaving a trace of oil ponds, nuts, and screws.
Flash grinned. “Hurry, somepony go get the Princesses.”
“Commander Sentry…”
“Just go!” shouted Flash, angrily.
“Do as he says.” confirmed Captain Master Sword.
A soldier ran into the castle.
The two machines got back on fours as they could. Their bodies were starting to collapse.
Flash aimed his hoof again, this time switching from his plasma cannon to a laser, that he used to weld the two things together.
“It’s over.” said the pegasus, coldly.
Luna and Celestia rain into the scene. “Commander Sentry! What happened here? Why did you call us?”
Flash glared at them. “Oh, nothing important. Just, prove my son’s innocence.”
The two Princesses looked at Flash, confused. “Commander…”
“Oh, don’t ‘Commander’ me!” shouted Flash. “Look at this things! They killed all those people, not my son. THEM!”
Luna shook her head. “Commander, I get you’re upset, but this is not the time to talk about this!”
“No, on the contrary, it seems like is just the right time!” said a voice behind them.
They all turned, to see Bright and Lumi, sitting on a couch, combing his mane, and painting her hooves respectively.
Luna rolled her eyes, knowing there was no use arguing with them. “Fine, we were wrong. Do you want a written apology, or what?”
“Oh, yes, you are going to give us one of those. In a public event.” said Bright, coldly.
“Today at five p.m.” added Luminositè.
Celestia sighed. “Fine, I promise once this is over, we’ll do as you say.”
Bright and Lumi nodded in agreement, and jumped from the couch, advancing toward the machines.
Halfway from the machines, they both stopped, and activated their power-suits. Those things were impregnated with radiation, and they better take precautions.
“Just what I thought.” smiled Bright. “You can’t take a ‘no’ for an answer, right, little bell?”
Lumi shrugged theatrically. “Yes, why don’t you wait for the next generation? Eventually, somepony willing to claim the title of destroyer of worlds would come. We are not interested.”
Celestia and Luna frowned.
“Little bell? Destroyer of worlds?” asked Luna.
“Of course!” said Celestia. “The Silver Cowbell.”
Bright examined the machines. “If I’m not mistaken, you managed to possess the two ‘Pretenders’ we send to Tambelon. Impressive.”
The Silver Cowbell glared at them, from its two pairs of mechanical eyes. “Before Creation, it needs to be Destruction. And you must pay for what you’ve done! You killed Grogar, you killed my Chosen One! I need a Destroyer of Worlds, in order to protect the balance of the universe!”
“Dude, our world was in danger, and it was only natural for us to try to protect it. We won, get over it. Again, maybe you can find a new Champion for the next generation.” sighed Bright, exasperated.
The two mechanical bodies began to chuckle. “Come on, you know you don’t fit anywhere but with me. You two are ponies, a race that have distinguished itself by gaining power from friendship, and love, and things like that. And, you, the descendants of the very incarnations of this values, are everything that ponies fear. A moron with no feelings, and a monster who finds pleasure by inflict insane amounts of pain in her enemies.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Said Luminositè. “Je suis la fille of Rarity Belle. And, I will do anything to make her proud.”
“What about you, Spark? You are incapable to feel complex emotions, such as love, and empathy. They think you are a monster. Why do you think they were so easy to convince you lost your mind? They are afraid Spark, you are way more powerful that anyone would ever be. They are the beings you are so willing to protect, but they think the world would be better without you. Why are you still willing to side with them?”
Bright shrugged. “Like you said, I am incapable to feel complex emotions. But love, is not complex. It reduces to the need of receiving, and giving affection, from specific persons. In my case, those persons are my family, and my only friend.”
The mechanical doppelgangers glared at Bright Spark.
“Your family? Their fear makes them try to control you, imposing you with their stupid morality over you, but you, you are beyond that, don’t you? Come on, tell us, what do you think about morality?”
Bright smiled. “I don’t mind telling you. Morality is the chain of intellect.”
“And, the only way to free your full potential, is to get free from that chain.” said Lumi, indifferent. “So? Maybe we cannot do as we please every time, but, the censorship from our mères only makes our search for knowledge more challenging. And, we live for challenges.”
Bright laughed, agreeing. “Yes, it is super funny to find logical loops, and new forms to get away with what we want.”
Celestia and Luna glared at the pair, but didn’t say anything about it. They were really used to them at this point.
The mechanical copies tried to reason with them. “But you… you are… I just showed your families really think of you. You’re supposed to be against them by now!!”
“You know what is a complex feeling?” asked Bright. “Resentment. I was born incomplete, I have no capability to feel such thing. Instead, I have logic, and logic told me that I had to clear my name instead of go, and hurt my family because they didn’t believe me at first.”
The entity possessing the two robots could not believe this. “Fine, if that’s how you like it, I’ll take everything from you until you accept your fate as the successors of Grogar!”
It released the remaining of his power, and shot a magic beam against the Princesses.
Bright and Lumi jumped to protect the Princesses with their bodies.
Their protection reduced the impact at minimum, but they were sent at the other side of the hallway.
The dark energy separated from the mechanical bodies. The robots went flaccid, and the entity materialized in two Silver Bells, ready to join Bright and Lumi.
“I’m not touching this.” said Lumi.
“Neither do I. Stop bothering us.” said Bright.
Princess Celestia frowned. “Can’t you use your gadgets or something?”
Bright and Lumi nodded, and activated their especial cannons, shooting an energy blast in exchange for the one they received. The explosion sent the two Silver Bells backwards, and the two prepared for a second shot.
“Give up, or you’ll force us to get rid of you for good.” Warned Bright Spark.
“Get rid of me?” asked the entity, sending a small trace of energy to the mechanical bodies. They activated briefly, just the right time to roll a couple of silver spheres. “I AM A GOD! NOT EVEN YOU ARE POWERFUL ENOUGH TO DO SOMETHING AGAINST ME!”
The two Princesses, and the inventors watched the micro-bombs roll toward them, and everypony but Celestia jumped away just in time. Celestia, was more used to using magic, so she created a force-field that she thought it would protect her. But the micro-bombs were designed to fight Grogar.
Her shield was destroyed as soon as the energy explosion touched it. Then, it reached Celestia. Its flames were hundres of times hotter than the Sun, and Celestia’s body burned immediately. So fast, that she didn’t had time to scream. But, the heat was only one part of the problem. The force of the explosion itself crushed her bones, and the fragments of the bomb penetrated her muscles, and organs.
All in less than two seconds.
“Godmother!” shouted Bright, running to the mare.
Celestia looked at him from the edge of her eye, but didn’t say a word. She couldn’t. She was dying, and there was nothing anypony could do about it.
“No, Tia!!” cried Luna, kneeling in front of the white alicorn’s body.
“Godmother, godmother, please, answer me…” said Bright, desperately.
She briefly opened her eyes, and smiled at him. “Bright… Spark… I am so sorry. I should trust you… please…”
Bright screamed in anger, and aimed all his arsenal to the damn bells, and shot over and over.
The explosion sent away the Cowbell, but Bright continued shooting, even if the damn thing was long gone.
Luminositè stopped him. “Bright, there’s nothing we can do now.”
He fell on his knees. “What have I done?”
Luna, much to Bright’s surprise, embraced him under her wings. “It wasn’t your fault, Bright Spark.”
“I was the one who designed that bomb, I was the one I decided to not to intervene sooner because of my pride. I was the one…”
He couldn’t continue. He had never lost somepony dear to him before. And the fact that it was one of his inventions that did it, made it worse.
“I swear I’ll make that thing pay!” said Bright, crying. “I AM GOING TO FIND A WAY TO KILL A GOD!”