//------------------------------// // Ride 10: Master of Puppets // Story: Kamen Rider Achilles // by Axle the Cobalt Exorcist //------------------------------// "Cyber Journal. Day nine hundred and eighty-nine. It's been a while since my last entry, so I have a lot to say. At the time, Cypher and Terra were the only successful creations I had. The results of the two test subjects prompted me to go for a third. That’s when I found Starlight and she accepted my offer. I knew the Unicorn Card was the most unsustainable one, but I decided to take the risk. Unfortunately, the gamble didn’t favor me and the power was too much for her. Humans were not meant to handle all that power at once, so Starlight’s body rejected the magical circuits she'd formed through the first transformation that caused her to become unstable. I was so scared by this, that I worked tirelessly to create the Magi-Beast cards we use now. A way of making loyal soldiers, without the risk of their power source burning out. In the meantime, I tried my best to prevent the power from rotting her from the inside out, but I needed a permanent solution. Finally, after many sleepless nights of research, I found my answer. A rare stone that an organisation I once worked for, who had written it off as useless, was the only thing I could think of that could compensate for what Starlight’s body lacked. In the end, my hypothesis was successful and now Starlight was in a stable state.” The doctor looked away from the screen as a beeper went off, making him stand up and head into another room. There he saw Cypher, who was standing next to a calmly sleeping Starlight. He moved over to her and typed on the computer next to her. The process was finally over and for the first time in a long time, she wasn’t in pain. “Finally it’s over,” The Doctor said as he checked her vitals and saw she was perfectly fine. “I’m glad,” Cypher said. The two left the room and returned to the one he'd previously been in. “So what’s next for us?” He asked as the doctor slumped into a chair. He removed his surgically mask and cap as well as his goggles revealing a man in his late twenties-early thirties. His skin was dark blue with long grey-blue hair. The man picked up a purple book covered in gold ornamentation. He flipped through the book, which was filled with pictures and descriptions of strange creators. A white-furred ape, a bee-like bear, and a mass of slime. “Now we rest, because our work has only just begun. I still need data on magi-beast." Cypher nodded. “I promise, I will get whatever you need." “I know you will Cypher,” The Doctor said as he closed the book. He then placed it into a metal box and started to type on a computer. The machine came to life and lights flashed. After a moment, the machine opened up to show six new Magi-Beast cards. The Doctor picked up two of the cards and gave them to Cypher. “Here, two for you, two for Terra, and two for Starlight when she wakes up. I know she would want to see the Magi-Beasts in action.” Cypher took the card, “I’m sure these will give you what you need.” With that, the younger man turned and rushed out the door. Once he was gone, the Doctor pulled out a key and opened a draw. He pulled out a box which appeared to have a card in it, but it was filled with what looked like a miniature storm around it. “This is all for you. Once I understand how this power works, you will lead me to what I want The sun had just started to rise over the Sparkle house. Twilight did her best not to wake the rest of her family, not even Spike. She went out to her Lab and waited for her visitor. It wasn’t long till the gate opened and to reveal Trixie. “Hello," Trixie rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "I'm so glad you could make an opening for the Great and Powerful Trixie- *yawn* at the crack of dawn.” “Yeah but I couldn’t say no when you said you wanted my help with your next big illusion,” Twilight responded. She opened the door and the two entered. “So what are you looking for, something chemical like your last show or more mechanical this time?” “Well, I was wondering what you know about projectors?” Trixie asked as she picked up one of the random unfinished projects Twilight had. “I have an idea of improving the projectors I use in my show. I just what to know if they're even possible.” “Improve them how?” Twilight asked. “Maybe have it where I don't need to fill the room with smoke to get a picture. Or maybe having them small enough where I can hide them anywhere,” Trixie said. “Making them smaller would be easy,” Twilight said as she got to her computer and started typing. “But making full-on light holograms is going to be a bit harder.” “Oh I see, well if it's too much trouble you don’t have to do that,” Trixie said as she put down the gadget. “I said hard, not impossible,” Twilight cut in. “I’ve dabbled in the idea myself but if I really put my mind to it I might be able to have a working design by the end of the day.” “Really?" She asked, "that’s great. Hehe, the Great and Powerful Trixie is about to get even more great.” Trixie smiled as she started looking around Twilight's lab, interest in seeing what she was cooking up, and noticed a strange machine in the back. It was around the size of a washing machine and had a plasma globe on top. Around it was seven containers, each with a colored energy within it. “Hey what’s that thing?” “Oh, that’s magic containment unit. It holds samples of all of our magical energy,” Twilight said. Trixie walked up to it to take a closer look. She picked up the tube with orange energy contained. “Be careful Trixie. That stuff can be unpredictable if anyone but the original source is exposed to it.” “Yes I’m going to smash the magic container and become some kind of power-mad demon girl,” Trixie said in a mocking tone. “Give me a bit more credit Twilight. I’m not some dimwit that will break anything she touches,” She said as she went to put the tube back. Unfortunately, a mouse ran across the floor and brush her leg causing Trixie to toss the tube into the air. Trixie tried to catch the tube but she kept missing till the tube fell on the floor and shattered. The caused the girl to be swallowed in a puff of smoke. “Trixie!” Twilight yelled out she couldn’t see anything through the smoke but she could hear the sounds of fabric being ripped. A loud thud filled the room as the smoke finally cleared. Twilight’s eyes went wide as she saw what had happened. “Ok, you can’t blame that all on me. You need to clean this place one and a while,” Trixie said as she gave her head a shake. She had fallen back which meant she needed to look to see that Twilight was staring at her. “What?” She asked before something felt a bit off. She took a look at herself as was show shocked that she stood right back up, causing her to see the full scope of what happened. The magical energy transform Trixie's physique to that of a heavy weight lifter. Her shoulders were broader to help support her massive arms that were Apple sized biceps. Her hoodie was ripped up due to the sudden gain in mass. Her belly which was flat before was now an impressive six-pack. Her legs bulked up as well, stretching her skirt out as tight as it would go and her socks were ripped up. All the better to support such a bulky build. But her muscles weren’t the only thing that had grown. Trixie’s modest height of five foot, four now skyrocketed to a towering seven feet even. The magic had transformed Trixie into a modern aged Amazon. “H-h-How do you feel alright?” Twilight. Trixie was silent as she tried to process what was happening. She looked at her arm and gave it a flex. This caused a grin to show on her face. “I feel AMAZING!” Most of the student body of CHS have already arrived. During the free period before class started, Flash was in the middle of talking to one of his good friends, Bulk Biceps. Executing Applejack and her magical powers, Bulk was one of the stronger students in the school. Physically. Emotionally the big brute was a total softy. Too kind-hearted to hurt a fly and quick to let his feelings get the better of him. That’s why what he wanted to do was so hard that he why he needed Flash’s support. “Come on bro you can do this. There is nothing to be afraid of,” Flash said in an attempt to boost his confidence. “Do you really think I can,” Bulk asked. “I know you can. now show me that Bulk Bicep Confidence,” Flash said as he put his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Yeah!” He yelled out. “Yeah,” Bulk repeated weekly. “That’s not the Bulk I know,” Flash told the larger teen. “Yeah!” Flash yelled louder. “YEAH!” Bulk yelled. His voice was so loud that it caused Flash’s hair to be blown back. After doing some flexes to pump himself up he walked off to achieve his goal. “Go get em big guy,” Flash whispered, giving his friend a thumbs up. Bulked kept up his courage as he walked towards an open locker. It closed to reveal that it belonged to Fluttershy. “Hey Fluttershy,” Bulk greeted. “Oh hello Bulk,” Fluttershy said with a warm smile. This caused Bulk’s outward courage to melt away. “Um, I was just…” Bulk managed to get out before getting tongue-tied. Bulk has had a crush on Fluttershy ever since freshman year and he had decided today was the day he was going to confess his feelings. Flash encouraging him as best he could but that proved to be useless in practice. Fluttershy’s adorableness was just too much for the teen to handle “...Just…” He stopped when the doors of the school’s front entrance slammed open to taking everyone’s attention. “Look out Canterlot High,” Trixie’s voice boomed as her bulkier build walked into the school. Wither her normal outfit destroyed, Trixie rushes back home to change into something a bit more appropriate for the situation. A blue tank top with matching gym shorts which were stretched to there limits on her large body. She also tied her hair into a ponytail to give her a more sporty look. Usually, this ensemble would be reserved for gym class but Trixie really wanted to show off her new strong woman look. “For the mighty Trixie has arrived!” She announced with a grin. She then performed a double bicep pose to make sure everyone knew the kind of power she had. Everyone’s jaws hit the floor as Trixie walked, acting like there was no big deal. She revealed in the attention she was getting. She dwarfed everyone she walked passed and all there shocked expressions just inflated her ego more. This drastic change did not go unnoticed by Sunset and her friends. “Can you believe what happened to her Rainbow?” Rarity asked. Her question was only followed by silence. “Rainbow Dash?” She asked as she turned to her athletic friend. She turned to see that Rainbow was frozen in place as if her brain had a short circuit. “Rainbow Dash!?” She yelled as she started to shake her friend with no response. “Was Trixie caught in the middle of a gamma radiation leak?” Sunset asked. “Actually it was one of my Magic containment units braking that caused this,” Twilight answered as she walked up to the group of girls sheepishly. “The one that contained Applejacks Super strength to be more specific.” “But why does she look like lived at the gym for twelve years?” Applejack asked. “I mean, I know I’m in shape but nowhere near that.” “Remember Trixie’s body isn’t used to magic. I hypothesize that her body was forced to adapt to the specific magic in a very short time. Resulting in accelerated growth in muscle tissue and additional height. It was enough to not go unnoticed but not too much to cause a Midnight Sparkle incident,” Twilight explained. “I guess that makes sense. In some kind of crazy way,” Sunset said as she scratched her head. “It could have been worse. By my calculations, there was a possibility she could have transformed into a chicken,” Twilight added. “How does that work?” Applejack asked “The universe is run by a weirdo, that’s why,” Pinkie chimed in. “Should we be worried?” Sunset asked. “No more then we should with Trixie normally,” Twilight answered. She then turned to Trixie who has lifted a trash can singlehandedly only to crush it down to a baseball-sized lump, laughing all the while before tossing the ball over her shoulder. “I’m already working on my old magic collector as we speak,” Twilight said as all of the girl's pupils shrank, already fearing the worst. Trixie continued to walk down the hall before spotting Bulk. “Oh Bulk, Trixie didn’t see you there,” Trixie said with a wide grin. “It’s hard for someone as big as the mighty Trixie to see someone so small by comparison. Her muscles are just so impressive that they eclipse anything you can dream of,” She gloated. She then punctuated her claim by putting bother her arms behind her head and flexing both her abs and thighs. “Hey! I don’t know what happened to you but I can tell you my muscles are the result of my hard work, dedication, and a ton of protein powder. YEAH!” He yelled out flexing his large bicep. Trixie said nothing ash she grabbed Bulk by the back of his shirt and lift him up with one arm. “Hmm to Trixie you seem to be a bit more of a lightweight,” she said as she did a few reps with Bulk as her weight. She soon dropped the teen before putting both her hands on her hips in triumphant. “If you want to keep up with Trixie maybe you should be hitting the iron.” This was such a huge blow to Bulk’s started to tear up. Not wanting others to see him as weaker then what Trixie has shown he ran off. “Oh Bulk don’t cry,” Fluttershy said to Bulk before following him. “Trixie, what is wrong with you? Well besides all this. I actually have several questions about this,” Flash said as he took note of Trixie’s new physics before looked up to meet her gaze. “You know how sensitive Bulk can get. You shouldn’t have humiliated him like that.” “I'm sorry if Trixie just too big for the rest of you,” She said as she grabbed her right wrist with her left hand and flexed her biceps. ”I mean how can she help herself with guns like these.” “The only thing that has grown more is your head” Flash mumbled under his breath. “What was that?” Trixie asked. “Nothing,” Flash answered with a roll of his eyes. “You really should watch it though. You know who will love to take advantage of someone as emotional as Bulk.” “Trixie thinks you're underestimating Bulk. He can be a tough guy when he wants to,” Trixie said. “I hope that’s the case for the big guy,” Flash said. Fluttershy lost Bulk as he ran into the school’s weight room which was good since Bulk didn’t want her to see him like this. He went right to the free weights which he loaded to his max of 75lbs on two dumbbells. He attempted to drown to humiliation in the endorphins of exercise. So focused on his bulging biceps, the teen didn’t notice a familiar figure in a white parka. “I can understand the frustration of having your strength undermined,” Cypher said as he held up the glowing card. “May your passion for strength mix with you humiliation to create a beat of untold strength,” he said before throwing the card into Bulk’s back. The card turned into energy before reforming into a monstrous form. This Magi-Beast was of a large build and covered in black and white striped fur. Its head looked like a bear but with large. Red, bug-like eyes. On its right arm was a large bee stinger with a needle coming out of it. “Bulk, are you here?” Fluttershy asked as she opened the door. She was greeted by the sight of the monster having just been created. “EEEEEEEEEHHHH!” she yelled out getting the attention of the other teen. “Fluttershy?” Bulk asked as he turned around to see what was happening. He first saw the monster than to Fluttershy who was screaming. “DON'T HURT HER YOU WASP!” He yelled as he barreled across the room. Past the monster and tackled Fluttershy threw the doorway and out of harm. “What was that all about?” the monster asked. “Your host running off, but don't worry about that Swolsting. We can always get him later to increase your power,” Cypher said with a wave of his hand. “Right now I’m more concerned with seeing what your power can do so we can destroy the rider.” “Sounds fun to me. I’m the beefiest Magi-Beast around,” Swolsting said as he flexed his arms. “That rider is going to be nothing but a toothpick compared to me. YEAH!” “You better back up your words. The Doctor is in a good mood right now and I would hate to ruin it with another failure,” Cypher said as he led the monster out. “I’ll bring the gains and the pain when I see that rider,” Swolsting said as he followed. When the two left, Bulk poked his head from behind the corner to see if the coast was clear. “That was a close one,” Bulk said. He looked down at Fluttershy who he held close to his larger body to try and keep her safe. “That Magi-Beast came from you. Are you scared?” Fluttershy asked with concern. “A little, but I can deal with that until your safe. I know you don’t like to fight,” Bulk replied. “That’s very kind of you Bulk but can you please let me go?” Flutters asked. “Oh sorry,” Bulk said as she let go of Fluttershy, His face was turning bright red. “We should go find the others and tell them what’s happening.” “Good idea,” Fluttershy said as she graves Bulk’s hand and they ran off. Lunchtime came and many of the students went outside to see the feat of strength Trixie was putting on. Lyra, Bon-bon, Ditzy, and Octavia all sat on the roof of one of the student’s car. “You all better hang on,’” Trixie said after a moment. Soon after the car was lifted over the wannabe titan’s head with just a casual smile on her face. The act cause the girls on top to gasp in amazement at Trixie’s display of strength. As she kept the car up all her muscles flexed, showing just how defined they were. “Rainbow is going to love this when she gets out of the nurse's office,” Pinkie said as she snapped a picture with her phone. Applejack and Sunset not too far away. “Haha," she declared as she slowly lowered the car, "Is there nothing the Mighty Trixie can’t do." The student watching all gave her a round of applause “A'h bet ya'h can't go five minutes without flexing or showing off,” Applejack yelled from the sidelines with Pinkie and Sunset not too far away. “Oh, what's the problem Applejack?” Trixie asked as she walked up to the girls. “It's all in good fun,” “Ma'h problem is how ya parade around like you're better den everyone else,” Applejack said as she poked Trixie in her well-defined pectorals. “Remember ya'h got the same magical powers than me so don't think ya'h all dat special.” Trixie responded by putting a hand on her hip. “While it may be true that you and Trixie may have the same powers that it one key difference between us.” “Oh," Applejack raised an eyebrow, "And what would that be?" “Showmanship,” Trixie answered before turning around with a flip of her hair. Applejack's face grew very red, while Sunset patted her on the shoulder. “It'll all be over soon." “I don't see it much different than how she usually is,” Flash’s voice said as he walked up to the trio. “What do ya'h mean?” “I mean it's like she just traded jobs from a magician to the circus’ strong woman,” Flash explained with the mental images of the two kinds of Trixie’s in his head. one in her usual magican's outfit and the other in some kind of animal print dress. “Trixie loves performing. This is just her trying out something new for her audience.” “She does pull the look off very well’,” Sunset mentioned. The others looked at her curiously, causing the former unicorn to blush and look away from them. Applejack crossed her arms. “That may be fine and dandy on stage, but her attitude still rubs me the wrong way.” “Oh," Flash nodded, "I’m going to make her apologize to Bulk when this is all over. But as long as her new strength doesn't go to her head and she does something stupidly dangerous, I think we're fine." “You probably shouldn't have said that,” Pinkie said out of nowhere. “What do you mean?” As if to give him an answer, there was a loud crash coming from the parking lot. Looking over, the group saw Swolsting flipping a car repeatedly across the pavement. It was at this point Flash realized what Pinkie was talking about. “I'll get everyone out of here. You girls, I think should try and keep Trixie from doing what we all think she’s going to do. I'm sure the Rider's gonna be here soon to take care of the Magi-Beast.” “Sounds like a good plan,” Sunset said as she ran off. Flash watched to make sure that everyone was safe before running off behind a dumpster and pulled out his driver. He pulled out the rider card and slotted it into the driver. “Henshin!” “R-R-R-RIDER!!!” The armor began to form over his body, causing him to be replaced by his alter-ego. “YEAH!" Swolsting yelled as he raised both his arms up, "let's get that heart rate up.” His flexing was soon interrupted by a slash of a spear. “Sorry," Achilles said as he rested his spear on his shoulder, "but PE's next period." He spun his spear around before pointing it at the monster. “Glad you could come Rider,” Swolsting said as he kicked the car into the air and caught it with both hands. “I could really use a spotter.” He tossed the car at the armored teen, who quickly rolled out of the way to dodge the attack. "Great," Achilles moaned, "I thought I only had to deal with one self-centered muscle head today.” Swolsting took advantage of the opening and rushed the rider, trying to stab him with his stinger arm. Luckily, Achilles managed to side-step it. He avoided several other attempts with the stinger before jabbing the monster with the butt of his spear. Swolsting recovered quickly and kicked the rider into a group of parked cars. “Okay." he pulled out his Knuckle Card, "looks like I’m going to need to out muscle this guy." “Oh no you don't,” The Magi-Beast fired his stinger at the rider. Achilles ducked out of the way and the stinger hit the car instead. Strangely, the stinger seems to have disappeared upon impact. The rider let out a laugh as he picked himself up. “You should have been working on your aim rather than you arms,” “Oh," the monster laughed as his eyes began to glow, "my aim isn't that bad.” Soon the car the stinger hit started up on its own and gunned it right into the riders back, knocking him to the ground. “It always pays to have an ace in the hole!" He let out a laugh before coming in close for an attack. Meanwhile, Applejack was grappling with Trixie. “I know what ya'h thinking Trixie and ain't no way a’m gonna let ya'h get ya'self hurt doing something so stupid." “Come on," Trixie moaned. "I’m just as strong as you. why can’t I help?” “Ya'h may be bigger but ya'h are nowhere near ma'h strength." Applejack managed to push Trixie back, but the magician just smiled. “That may be true, but I think you are underestimating something.” Trixie then broke away from Applejack before trapping her in a bear hug, “that sometimes size does matter.” She remembered clearly the moves the pro wrestlers used when Flash invited her over to watch matches. She performed a German Suplex on Applejack that got her out of the way. She then made a mad dash towards the battlefield. It was in this moment Swolsting swung his arm around to knock Achilles off his feet. “And down for the count,” the monster cheered as he raised his arms up in celebration. He was so pleased with his victory that he didn’t notice Trixie rushing in and knocking the beast away. “Hehe, now it’s time for round two." She then did a double bicep flex, "for now you face the Mighty Trixie.” “Your a big one," Swolsing picked himself back up. "but you will never match me." He then rushed at Trixie with his stinger extended, but the buffed up teenager ducked out of the way. She then raised up to deliver a kick right in the chest. “I'd say I’m a pretty good match,” Trixie said with a grin. It was here that Achilles finally picked himself up. She couldn't tell due to his mask, but he was glaring at her. “What are you thinking!?" The rider marched up to Trixie, "this guy had some pretty strange powers and you just charged in like a crashing bull!” “Well whatever powers he has, it's clearly no match for me,” Trixie gloated. As she did, she felt something pierce her arm. The pain caused her to double over as Achilles looked to see that Swolsting shot one of his stingers. “Gotcha,” the monster cheered. "Not good," the rider tightened the grip on his spear. “I need to take him out now before he uses that power again.” He jumped up and prepared to bring down the blade of his weapon. However, the attack was interrupted by another blade. Looking over Achilles saw the sword was being held by a familiar white-winged monster. “Cypher.” The Advanced didn't respond as he swung his sword to throw Achilles back. “This fight is very enlightening. I would have never guessed the meathead would have such a useful ability." He pointed the sword at him, "I think this one is worth nurturing.” Before he could say anything else, several pieces of sprinkles fell on the ground before bursting into colourful smoke. Cypher raised his sword to protect himself before looking up to see Applejack and Pinkie run up to them and were ready to fight. Sunset, meanwhile, rushed to check if Trixie was alright. It was now three on two as Achilles and the two girls cornered the Advanced and Magi-Beast. “Can you use your control stinger on the other girls?” Cypher asked. “Sorry," he said while dodging a sprinkle explosion, "I can only use it on one target at a time. And even then I don't have enough power to control something with a will of its own.” “I See,” Cypher growled as he took a look at the downed Trixie. “I guess you have some bulking up to do then.” he raised his sword before a storm of feathers kicked up and the two vanished into thin air. With the monsters gone, Applejack and Pinkie turned to help Sunset while Achilles left without being noticed. “Are you alright Trixie?” Sunset asked. “Yeah," Trixie held her arm, "the pain just passed." Once she moved her hand, she saw that there was nothing there. “That was a close one. Guess I wasn’t much help.” “Well, ya'h lasted longer than he expected. Let’s just hope ya'h not allergic to bee stings. Now ya'h see why we didn’t want ya'h to get involved. Just because ya'h have powers, ya'h also need to learn how to use them.” “Yeah," Pinkie pulled a cupcake out of her hair, "I can't tell you how many cupcakes I blew up before I mastered my powers." “I get it," Trixie sighed. "Stick to performing and leave the fighting to the pros." “I'm happy to hear that you learned something today but I'm pretty worried about that sting,” Flash said as he ran back to the group. “I saw that monster using it to control those cars back there.” “There’s nothing to worry about, the rider sent that freak running,” Trixie said with a wave of her hand. “I think we better call Twilight just in case,” Flash said as he pulled out his phone. But before he had a chance to unlock it, Trixie’s arm had a spasm. It was moving all over the place and even Trixie didn't even know why. “Ahhhh I'm not doing this,” Trixie said scared of losing control of her limb. Her arm grabbed onto Flash’s Phone and crushed it in her grip. When she opened her hand to let the broken pieces fall out, she had gain control again of her arm. “Oh man," Sunset observed. "I think that's a sign the Magi-Beast is getting stronger. We need to find the host.” As soon as she said that, Fluttershy and Bulk both ran up to the group. “Sunset," Fluttershy waved to her, "we have an emergency." “This is almost too easy,” Sunset remade. The group got Trixie back to Twilight’s lab. Flash and Sunset stayed behind as Applejack and Fluttershy went out to search down the Magi-Beast and Pinkie stayed with Bulk to keep him calm. Flash told Twilight about Trixie’s arm spasm and showed her his crushed phone, which she wanted to take a look at later. Right now, Twilight had electrodes attached to Trixie to see what was going on with her. “Hmm," she said as she pressed on the spot, "I am picking up a weak magical signal coming from this spot on her arm.” “That's the spot I was hit,” Trixie pointed out. “I saw that monster using its stinger to control some cars,” Flash said. “You don’t think that monster was going to take control of her?” Sunset asked. “No, well not yet." Twilight hummed, "odds are the spasm was her body syncing with the monster. It's very weak, but we all know Magi-Beast only get stronger with time.” Applejack and Fluttershy were out to find the Magi-Beast. Their search brought them to a back alleyway. “We need to hurry," Fluttershy said as she ran ahead. "I don’t know how long Bulk might last.” “Wow," Applejack said, "what has you all riled up?” “Well," Fluttershy blushed, "I don’t want Bulk to disappear. After all, he saved me when the monster showed up." Applejack raised an eyebrow, “Bulk saved you? That’s a surprise. Didn’t think he had it in him.” “Bulk is just a gentle soul and I don’t think people understand that. They see his big bulky build and think he’s supposed to be a tough guy, but he’s really in tune with his sensitive side.” “Wow, sounds like your kind of guy.” “Oh um, I didn’t mean for it to sound like that,” Fluttershy said as she clammed up. “Fluttershy, there nothing to be scared of. Whatever ya say will just be between the two of us.” Applejack placed her arm around Fluttershy’s shoulder. “Well , but only cause I wanted to say it for the longest time,” Fluttershy blushed before letting out her next words into a whisper. “I have a crush on Bulk.” “Well ya'h do seem like the kind of girl who’d want to be swept off her feet,” Applejack said. "After this is all over, ya'h need to tell the guy.” “Do you really think he has feelings for me too?” Applejack smiled as she brought her friend in close. “I think he was about to confess his feelings before Trixie made a whole show in the hallway.” “Really?!” Fluttershy asked. Before Applejack could say anything, a shadow passed over them. The two looked up to see the flying object land on a lamppost, revealing it to be Cypher. “There you are,” The Advansed said with his arms crossed. “It was a real pain trying to find you.” “What do ya'h want, you feathered freak?!” Applejack demanded as she prepared to fight. “I’m after the pink-haired girl.” Fluttershy let out an 'eep' before jumping behind Applejack. “I suggest you stand down. Someone like you may have a chance against Terra, but not against someone like me.” Applejack responded to this by grabbing a trash can and throwing it at the monster. Cypher spread his wings and dodged her attacks, then dive-bombed right at the girls. In a single motion, he smacked Applejack away with his wing before snatching Fluttershy and pulling up into the air. He landed on a roof with Fluttershy held under his arm. “Fluttershy!” Applejack yelled out. “If you want her, come get her!” With that, Cypher leapt off the building and disappeared into the sky. "NOOOOOOO!" “THIS IS TERRIBLE!” Pinkie yelled out with her phone in her hand. “What’s going on?” Bulk asked. “Applejack just texted everyone one that one of thoughts monster kidnapped Fluttershy,” Pinkie answered. “NOT FLUTTERSHY!” Bulk yelled. As the emotions went wild over this news, colorful wisps of aura came out of his body and flew into the air. At an unoccupied construction site, Swolsting was busy using some makeshift dumbbells to do bicep curls. As he was working out, the wisps of energy that were coming off Bulk was absorbed into his body. “Oh yeah, I’m getting jack. YEAH!” “That’s good to hear,” Cypher said as he landed. He waisted no time tying the unconscious Fluttershy to a nearby poll. “Why don’t you try your powers on that one girl you hit now. You should be strong enough to take control of her.” “Not a bad idea," Swolsting's eyes started glowing red. "I’ll use that girl as my own personally lackey." Meanwhile, at Twilight’s lab, the group had just read the news of what had happened to Fluttershy. “This is not good, not good at all,” Flash said. “I know," Sunset had gone pale when she heard what had happened. "Fluttershy must be scared out of her mind." “Not just that," Flash continued. "When Bulk sees this he going to freak out. And that will just make that huge bee stronger." “That just means it’s only a matter of time before- Twilight didn't get to finished, as a loud crashing sound caught their attention. "They all turned to see Trixie had just flipped over a table. “Trixie!?" “I swear I didn’t mean to do this. My body just acted on its own." Trixie soon doubled over and held her head like she was having the worst headache of her life. “Trixie," Flash stepped over to her, "are you ok?” He and Sunset tried to get her back on her feet. Unfortunately, Trixie suddenly used her strength to throw the two off. She turned to her friends to show her eyes started to glow solid red. “RRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!” “Oh no,” Sunset said after Trxiei's roar. She charged full force towards the door, ripping it right off its hinges. “Trixie, get a hold of yourself!” Trixie looked around, lost for a moment, before using her strong legs to jump far off into the distance. “Twilight," Flash turned to her, "how much longer do you have on the magic collector?” “I only have a few tweaks to make on it." Flash only nodded before running off. He quickly mounted his bike and as he was putting on his helmet, Twilight and Sunset interrupted him. “What do you think you are doing?” “I'm going to try and keep track of where Trixie is going,” Flash said as he started his bike. “That's a good idea," Sunset nodded. "But how are you going to tell us where the hulking monster is when you find her. You phone is, for lack of a better term, out of service.” “Oh, I think I might have something.” Twilight ran back into the lab as quickly as she could before returning with a device in hand. It looked like a normal smartphone, with a bit of a green color scheme and some extra bits coming off it. “Oh great, you have a spare phone,” Flash said as Twilight gave him the device. Twilight smirked. “Not just a phone, but the next stage of my drone technology. Press the owl looking app." Flash did what she said and as he pressed the app, the face of the phone split in half and opened. The two halves of the screen became wings as the whole phone transformed into a small robotic owl. “It's called the Owl phone. Not much of an original name, but now you have a copilot that can help you keep track of Trixie. It doesn't have GPS so we won’t be able to track you unfortunately.” “That won’t be a problem. All I need to do is text you,” Flash said before pulling out on his bike. The Owl Phone flew out to follow and was keeping up surprisingly well. Flash followed the path of destruction to the destruction to the construction site. The controlled Trixie stood before Swolsting and Cypher. The Owl Phone perched on his shoulder as they watched the monsters talk. “Hmm, she's not bad at all. I think she will make a great spotter,” Swolsting said. “As long as she can beat the rider then you can use her to open cans of salmon for all I care,” Cypher followed. Flash looked back at the Owl robot on his shoulder. “You don't have any camera or anything that will tell Twilight what will go on right?” The Owl Phone shook its head no. “Good, cause this needs to be our secret.” Flash then ran out to confront the two monsters. “Let my friend go!” Flash demanded to get the two’s attention. “Well, well, well," Cypher smirked. "Thanks for making it and saving me the trouble of finding you.” Swolsting slowly stepped up as Trixie turned around, growling like an animal on a leash. “Are you ready to take on our new weapon?” “Don't you dare call my friend a weapon!” Flash yelled as he placed the driver on his waist. “Too bad, cause you're going to have to deal with her like one." Swolsting's eyes glowed again, as he willed Trixie to charge at him. “Henshin!” Flash yelled as he quickly slotted in the Rider card and transformed. The rider suit appeared on his body to defend him from the freight train that was the punch delivered from Trixie. Achilles got up but was attacked by Stingswol, who got an attack in with his stinger. “YEAH! You won’t hurt your own friend. That leaves you wide open for attacks from both of us.” “Yeah," Achilles smirked, "I won’t hurt Trixie. But that won't help as much as you think.” The Rider pulled out his weapon in blaster mode and shot the Magi-Beast several times. “Idiot!" Cypher ordered and slapped his own forehead, "fall back and let the girl take care of the fighting.” “Oh right,” Swolsting said as he ran away. Achilles tried to follow, but was intersected by Trixie. “Trixie, get a hold of yourself. You need to fight this guy’s control.” He tried to get through to his friend but it was useless. Trixie just charged at him and delivered several blows to the rider, knocking him back. “Honestly, I should have rethought you fighting before." He moaned as he tried to get up. "You're actually pretty good." As the rider was trying to recover, Trixie jumped up and prepared to smash Achilles in with both her fists while she came down. Achilles raised his arms in defense, but something else seems to have taken the blow. Looking up, the rider saw Applejack caught the attack. “Come on partner, a'h thought ya'd put up a better fight than that.” “Hey," Achilles stood up, "I didn't want to hurt the girl. I'm just glad you saved my butt.” Applejack gritted her teeth before throwing Trixie back. “Well a'h was just in the neighbourhood, but now’s not the time for small talk. That giant bugger is getting stronger, ya'h need to save Fluttershy and squish that thing. A'h can keep Trixie busy here till Twilight gets here to get the magic out of her." “Got it,” Achilles said as he started to dash after the Magi-Beast. Trixie recovered and tried to stop him, but Applejack intersected again. She punched Trixie in the abdomen to let the rider pass. “Hey, a'm the one ya'h fighting now sugarcube.” Applejack, cracked her neck. When Achilles finally caught up to Swolsting, he found Fluttershy as well. She was tied up and unconscious, but looked perfectly fine. “Let Fluttershy go!” Achilles demands as he pulled out his spear. “Now why should I do that?” Swolsting extended his stinger. More whisps flew in to be absorbed into the Magi-Beast’s body, causing a more powerful aura to start radiating off the monster’s body. “As long as she’s here, the more pumped I get.” He then charged at the rider to swing his stinger. Achilles sidestepped before hitting him but Swolsting followed quickly with a punch that sent flash flying. “Ok," Achilles picked himself up, "I think I figured how to beat you.” He pulled out the Knuckle card and then slot it into the driver. “Element change!” “OK” "HUSSLE, MUSCLE, TRUE METAL OF STRENGTH!” “K-K-K-KNUCKLE!" The magic circle appeared and Achilles ran through it to transform into his Knuckle guise. With his large gauntlet, the rider delivered a mighty punch to the monster’s head. “Let's see who can hit harder,” Achilles said as he launched another punch. Swolsting took the punches, but interrupted Achilles attacks with a blow of his own. “Yeah, and that's going to be me.” “YEEHAAA!” Applejack yelled while she performed a dropkick into Trixie. This was followed by Applejack pushing up from the ground to kick Trixie right in the jaw. This caused the larger girl to fall on her back like a pile of bricks. “There. That atta take care of ya'h.” Unfortunately, Trixie did not stay down long as she stood back up and looked even angrier than before. “GRRRRRRR!” She growled as she tried to smash Applejack with her hand. Applejack caught the attack. This prompted Trixie to try again with her other hand, but the same thing happened. The two girls were in a stalemate as they tried to push into one another. Applejack dug her heels in before picking up Trixie till she was upside down. She then tossed the hulking girl up to change her grip. Now Trixie was upside down with her neck resting on Applejack’s right shoulder and both her legs were restrained. “Honestly, a'h think this move is all kinds of stupid to use but since ya'h won’t seem to quiet down, a'h don't see another chose." This strange hold confused Trixie that she didn’t see it coming when Applejack started to fall backwards. When the two landed all the force was put into Trixie’s back, cause an insane amount of pain. “Applejack!” Sunset’s voice yelled out. Both Sunset and Twilight came onto the area and Applejack stood back up. “I got the magic collector working again,” Twilight announced. She held up a circulars device with wires hanging out of it. “Well, what are ya'h waiting for? Use the dang thing." “Get behind me or else you get caught up in it,” Twilight said. Applejack quickly ran behind the two. As soon as Trixie let out a groan, Twilight opened the device and a ball of light appeared. An orange aura began to come out of Trixie's body and into the device. Trixie’s body began to shrink down back to normal. When the process was over, Twilight closed the collector. Trixie let out another grown as she laid on the ground in ripped clothing. the three girls ran over to their friend, Sunset crouching down to elevate Trixie’s head. “Are you ok?” She asked. “My-my back is killing me,” Trixie answered. “You could have taken it easier on me.” “Hey," Applejack replied with a smile, "ya'h didn’t pull any punches with me. Now, all we gotta do is hope the rider can finish things up.” She looked over in the direction of Achilles’ fight, hoping Fluttershy was okay and Bulk wasn't gone. Achilles was elbowed in the face my Swolesting, but stood firm. The rider stayed strong as the two exchanged blows. Achilles held up his gauntlets to defend before finally clocking the Magi-Beast in the face. “Lucky punch,” Swolsting said as he threw a slash with his stinger. “But you won’t stand a chance when I use my control stinger to make you another one of my minions.” He aimed his stinger arm and fired. “I won’t let you have the chance,” Achilles said as he pressed the button on the driver. “KNUCKLE FEEDBACK!!!” An orange aura appeared around the gauntlets before Achilles leapt into the air to dodge the stinger. “This is for Trixie!” He came down on the monster with his fist to smash him to the ground. A magic circle appeared on Swolsting’s body before he exploded. Achilles was breathing heavily before he turned to see Cypher standing on a pile of building supplies. “Do you wanna take a shot, or are you still recovering from the last time I kicked your butt?” The rider asked the Advansed. Cypher just glared at him for a moment. He pulled out his sword as prepared to attack but soon a pain struck his arm. “I’m still not fully recovered,” he mumbled to himself. “You may have gotten stronger, but don’t think I’m just going to sit by. I will use the Doctor’s power to create a Magi-Beast that will help me fulfil my mission,” The Advansed said as he speeds his wings and flew off. Achilles ran over to Fluttershy and untied her. “Everything is alright now,” he assured. “Thank you so much,” Fluttershy said as she slowly got to her feet. “Your friends are outside and things should be alright,” Achilles as he helped her up. The two walked out of the construction site to meet the others. “Glad to see you girls are alright,” The rider said. “Glad to see you got our friend safe and sound,” Applejack said as she carried Trixie. “Now we can put this whole thing behind us.” The next day everyone was more or less fully recovered. Trixie had not broken bones after her fight, but still needed to rest. So she just sat in her chair as Flash handed her her drink. “Thank you Flash,” Trixie said. Flash smiled as she sat down on the other chair, his new Owl Phone perched on his shoulder. “So how did it feel being in battle?” He asked. “It was alright, wouldn't mind doing it again,” Trixie said jokingly. “Well hopefully if you are forced to fight, next time you won't let the power go to your head. Fighting monsters isn't like being on stage. There is a real risk to it,” Flash explained. “I know, I know,” Trixie said. She then looked at her arm and flexed it seeing that it was indeed back to average size. “I am going to miss being strong,” She said. “Well if you want, Bulk can help you out with that. But your not cut out for that kind of hardcore training,” Flash said with a laugh. He then looked behind Trixie with a smile. “Speaking of, looks like things are looking up for the big guy” Trixie turned around to see both Bulk and Fluttershy were sitting on the couch in the cafe. Bulk’s large arm wrapped around Fluttershy’s shoulder, holding her smaller frame close as they sipped on smoothies. “Glad to see Bulk bouncing back after what I did,” Trixie said. “The important thing is that you realize you did something wrong and you apologized. Plus Bulk is tougher than people credit for,” Flash said. He then stood up and waved to get the two’s attention. “I know you could do it, bro,” Flash said supportively. “YEAH!!!” Bulk yelled, grabbing the attention of everyone in the cafe. Flash and Trixie both rolled their eyes as Bulk returned to spending time with Fluttershy.