//------------------------------//
// Movie: Riders of Two Worlds Part 3 
// Story: To Build the Winning Formula 
// by Snow Fire 
//------------------------------//

The moment the other Earth had appeared in the sky, the people grew panicked and terrified. The members of the Rainbooms and Team Build were no exception. Applejack had to catch Rarity after she fainted. Rainbow Dash was speechless. Fluttershy hid behind the athlete in fright. Sandalwood stood still. Micro repeatedly cleaned his glasses to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. 

And Pinkie Pie continued to panic. 

“IT’S THE END OF THE WORLD! EVERYBODY RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! KYAAAAAAAGH!!!!!!” She screamed as she ran back and forth across the yard and in circles….and up and back down the walls of the community center. 

“How...how is this even possible?!” Micro questioned, finally finding his voice. 

“Y’know dude? I always had a feeling we might see the end of the world in our lifetime...but I always chalked it up to climate change.” Sandalwood admitted. 

“Oh dear…” Fluttershy trembled. 

“Just what the hay is goin’ on right now?!” Applejack exclaimed while trying to revive Rarity. 

“This is just plain crazy!” Rainbow paced back and forth once she remembered to speak. 

They continued their little bewildered episode before a ringtone cut them off. Micro answered after seeing who it belonged to and put him on speaker.

“Director Night Light! Are you seeing this right now?!” 

“We are! But we have more pressing concerns at the moment!”

“How is it more important than this?! We have a flipping Earth staring right back at us!”

“We can see that! But we also have Gigabyters attacking the Coltfield Dam. We already contacted Jet and Flash and they’re on their way. We need you and the others back at the lab where it’s safe...well, relatively, and help provide support!”

“R-Right! On it!” Micro hung up and looked at his friends. Even Pinkie had stopped to hear what the man had to say. As much as he wanted to ask more, they were needed more elsewhere. Plus, they could still question him when they returned. “You heard him. We need to head back and try to help Flash while we figure this out. Hopefully they can stop this insanity.”

Rainbow Dash looked at him, then at the Earth overhead, then down deep in thought. Face scrunching in determination, she made her decision. She thought of a better way to help her friends. 

The athlete took Rarity from Applejack and handed the unconscious fashionista to her best friend. “Flutters, you take Rarity. AJ and I got this!” 

“Got wut? Whoa!” The farm girl yelled as she was suddenly pulled along the rainbow blur towards the Coltfield Dam. 

“What the, where are they going?!” Sandalwood wondered. 

“...Knowing Dashie, I think they’re trying to go and help them fight the Gigabyters at the dam!” Pinkie answered in a moment of clarity. 

“What?! That’s crazy!”

“We can worry about that later. Knowing those two, they should be fine and handle their own. But we should get moving too!” Micro announced. Hesitantly, they nodded and rushed back to the lab. 





At the Coltfield Dam, the Gigabyters were at work draining energy from the hydroelectric generators. Normally, the amount of power produced by hydroelectric generators is low in comparison to other alternative energy systems such as nuclear reactors. But due to the proximity of the Enigma unit hidden in town, it was the best source of power due to Canterlot’s lack of nuclear reactors on site. 

“...This town is completely out of date.” Trail Blazer, donned in his gear armor, murmured. “If only this were my world’s Canterlot. The Nuclear Reactors would produce the necessary power in a shorter amount of time. But I guess it’s a moot point...since it’s no longer there...or them…”

His thoughts were soon overtaken by memories...horrific memories that he’d rather deny and forget. 





 4 Years ago…

It was utter chaos. Buildings that once stood tall were broken down and now mere rubble. The bustling streets were bursting with chaos as monstrous Gigabyters roamed and attacked any nearby civilian. The skies of Canterlot City were darkened as the landscape itself burned. 

The virus monsters flooded the streets after hijacking the data fields one day. They poured out by the dozens. The local law enforcement was overwhelmed. The citizens stood no chance. Many didn’t even have the time to scream as the Gigabyters’ lasers charred their bodies to a crisp. If they hadn’t been blasted, they would’ve been ripped apart by their bladed, jaw-like arms. 

The Research Center was the first to fall, being the course of the city’s data fields. Then the security stations. Then the hospitals. Anywhere and everywhere that had access to data fields for their needs were taken out. This included communications, which resulted in the town being cut off from the rest of the world. 

It was not mere mindless bloodshed. Malware had created these Gigabyters for an organized attack to wipe out all of the people in Canterlot City. He even stationed them out at the city gates to keep them trapped as they were systematically killed off.

Seeing no other option aside from death, there were some that tried to band people together to form a resistance of sorts and drive the monsters back. One courageous soul inspired those willing to fight to rise up and protect their loved ones. The man known as Trail Blazer inspired the citizens to stand together to fight back. 

...It did not last long. 

They were simply outnumbered. For every Gigabyter they subdued through guerilla tactics and numbers, three more took its place. While their firearms and explosives were able to do damage to them, the monster’s weapons were much more lethal. Additionally, their defenses were superior due to their armor. 

People continued to die off one by one. Then the dozens. 

Canterlot and a significant portion of its populace had been taken down in only half a week. 

And now the one who started it all, the one who tried to bring hope to the citizens, continued to fight as he started to choke on their despair. 

Using his weapon baton, Trail Blazer stabbed it into a Gigabyter’s eye. He ripped it out before slapping an explosive charge on its chest and threw it into another group of them. He pressed the trigger and they blew to pieces. The force of the explosion knocked him off his feet as the flames licked his cheek. He hissed at the pain, but the adrenaline had numbed it. 

He panted heavily. He had been at this for several minutes. He had to keep going. To regroup with his wife and children. 

Once the situation had taken a turn for the worst, upon seeing many family and friends being gunned down, Trail Blazer finally called for an escape plan. Many had blamed him for not proceeding with this action sooner. Many called him a fool for trying to fight back. A lot of them consisted of people who lost everything. The sole Pie Family sister had been quite vocal, the pain of losing her sisters and parents breaking through her monotone voice. 

The sole survivor of the Apple Family had tried to strangle him, his rage blinding him and opening a floodgate of enraged slurs. He had lost his whole family and friends because of him.

The man bore their resentment and anger, as it was his mistake to stick with his beliefs when the odds grew to be insurmountable. Yet his family stuck by his side. They believed in him. They trusted him. If anything, even if he didn’t survive this, he would be damn sure that they would. 

The reason why an escape order hadn’t been issued was because it involved a suicide plan. As some were needed to cause a distraction to draw the guards attention while the rest of the people slipped through the breach in defenses. 

Since they had nothing left, Big Mac and Maud Pie volunteered for the bait group. Trail Blazer volunteered himself as well. 

His family had vehemently protested this course of action. But he promised them that he would come back to them safely. And he never broke a promise. 

So when the remnants of the resistance made its way out of the city, the trio made their move. They set off a variety of explosions at key locations to draw the guards away while they ambushed any that strayed too far to keep their number manageable. 

His tactics training from the military paid off in more ways than one. While he lost hundreds of people, it was due to him that dozens had managed to survive days longer than they would have. 

Even though they knew it was suicide for them, Maud and Big Mac kept fighting….even to their last breath. He gazed sorrowfully at their bodies...or rather their remains. Big Mac had been torn in half from the waist. Maud had her arms chopped off before a laser shot through her skull. Trail made a small prayer for the two, thanking them for their assistance and hoped they reunited with their families. 

He was the only one left. But at least he took down the guards, allowing the remnants of the resistance to escape. 

Then his thoughts were broken by a scream. A familiar scream from a familiar voice. His daughter’s voice.

“SCOOTALOO!” Now panicked, Trail kicked off the Gigabyter and ran to the source of the noise. The monsters behind him tried to shoot him down. Most of the shots missed, but quite a few grazed his body. He bit through the pain and continued to run, his feet thundering against the ground like a man possessed. 

Trail Blazer soon made it to the clearing where the scream originated from. He took his rifle and gunned down any Gigabyters that got in his way. He changed the mode of his baton and now had a hard light blade. He used it to hack through any Gigabyter that got too close and shot down any incoming ones. He tried to run towards his wife and kids to get them to safety... 

...only for the blood in his veins to run cold. 

Everything felt like it was going in slow motion. There were two Gigabyters. One stood in front of a 13 year old Flash Sentry, who had been protecting his mother and sister with an energy knife in a shaking grip. The other stood over a nine year old Scootaloo while she was wrapped in Misty Veil’s protective embrace. The mother had her own rifle unsteadily aimed at the monster, despite having depleted ammunition not too long ago. 

Then the eyes of the Gigabyters glowed brightly. 

Trail screamed. He pushed himself through the pain and exhaustion and rushed towards his cornered family. His yells have caught their attention as they turned to him in hope. 

Only for it to be extinguished by the well-aimed lasers that tore through them like tissue paper. Their bodies dropped to the ground, riddled in gaping wounds. They choked on their own blood as their lives rapidly faded before succumbing to the cold embrace of death. 

Trail Blazer had stopped in his tracks. His body froze as chills crept up his heart. 

The Gigabyters, the ones that slew his loved ones, turned their sights on him. 

He could barely remember anything after that. Everything just blurred together. There were angered cries. All he saw were flashes of red and blood. His vision fell to half when one slashed him over the eye. He felt pain. He felt numbness. 

Deep in his heart, he only sought one thing: retribution. 

Soon it all came to an end. All of the Gigabyters were in pieces. He stomped a severed Gigabyter head vindictively. Once the adrenaline finally died down, his body grew numb. Numb to the weight in his hands. Numb to the pain. Numb to the world. He limped over to where his family lay. The sight haunted him to the core as the despair that plagued so many beforehand finally caught up with him. 

Back then, it all seemed so simple. Trail Blazer had the ability to protect the remaining people of their beloved home. He had the skills, the training, and the tactical knowledge. He had the responsibility to act and keep them safe. 

But this? How was any of what he did keeping them safe? Most of them were dead. Canterlot was in ruins. Everything had been for naught. And he had been a part of this. He was responsible for their deaths. Responsible for many of them walking off to their doom. And now it all caught up to him. 

The horrific realization crept him. Added to the sight of the lifeless bodies of his wife and children, Trail Blazer finally broke. 

Unable to take it anymore, he fell to his knees and screamed. 





He shook off those horrible memories. They were a thing of the past. If everything went well, he’d have them back. Then everything would return to normal. Maybe even better than before. The Sentry Family on this world and him were both broken. But together, they would be whole once more. It was the lone hope, the sole reason why he continued to live. 

“This time...I won’t fail them…and nothing will get in my way” Trail vowed. He then noticed the two Riders fighting off the Gigabyters. He frowned when he saw the Riders arrive. “...even if I have to force my son to stand down.”





“Just how many of these guys are there?!” Flash yelled as he and Jet swerved their vehicles to a stop. 

“Not sure, but I’m guessing about a hundred or so.” Jet answered in dismay. 

To say that the dam was infested with Gigabyters would be an understatement. They have the structure completely swarmed. They could even see several of them at the hydroelectric generators siphoning off the energy. 

“With all of this going on, it’s almost like a nightmare.” Sunset admitted. 

“I know. Everything’s just happening too fast. If we don’t stop them, then the Enigma on this world will be fully functional and merge our worlds.” Twilight added. 

“We won’t let that happen.” Jet and Flash donned their respective Drivers. 

“These guys are going down!” The musician inserted the Rabbit and Tank Fullbottles while the otherworlder prepped his Cyber Pad. 

“RABBIT!”

“TANK!”

Flash turned the crank of his Driver as Jet slotted the pad into his own Driver. 

“Henshin!”

"DOWNLOAD!"

“FULLMETAL MOONSAULT!”

“RABBIT-TANK!”

“YEAH!”

Now donned in their armor, the two charged into the horde, leaving the girls alone. Twilight nudged her friend. “While they’re handling the monsters, let’s see if we can work on the power lines of the dam.”

“Why?”

“If we reroute the power, then we can minimize how much the Gigabyters can drain.”

“...Which in turn would delay the plans to bring Enigma online.” Sunset realized. 

“Exactly.” The two then snuck off to the power management facility. 

Back with the guys, Build and Cyburst continued to mow their way through the Gigabyter horde. Although it was more so Cyburst thinning out the horde while Build continued to struggle. Try as he might, his weapons had no effect on these monsters. They shrugged off his attacks and simply kept going. 

He tried using the Drill Crusher to slash and stab them, but it failed to break through their armor. After he got thrown back, he switched to its blaster mode. The lasers didn’t faze them. 

On the other hand, Cyburst’s attacks have been taking them out left and right. With the Blast Burner in one hand and the Blade Buster in the other, he tore through the enemies like they were tissue paper. 

The two-toned Rider cursed his inability to fight them. If only they had time to crack Cyburst’s software for him to use! Then he recalled what happened earlier. Their meeting with Gizmo. There was a way to fight these things. 

Flash then pulled out the bottles Gizmo had given him. It might have been stupid, but right now he didn't really have any other choice.

Pulling his current bottles out, he then placed the purple bottle into one slot.

"CROCODILE!"

He then placed the orange bottle into the slot next to it.

"CHAINSAW!"

"BEST MATCH!"

He started turning the crank as the purple and orange spruces appeared around him, forming the armour in front of him.

“ARE YOU READY?!”

"Build up!" The armor slammed onto him, morphing him into a new form. Most who'd seen it thought they were looking at Key Dragon, as the design was so similar. Build was a mismatch of purple and orange. The left side of his helmet, right arm and left leg was purple while the right side of his helmet, left arm and right leg was orange. The eye-patches were of a crocodile head and a chainsaw, the blade and snout sticking upwards. His right arm was the head and back of a crocodile, the mouth opening to show his hand. His left arm had a large chainsaw blade sticking out the back.

"CUTTING CAIMAN, SAWDILE!"

“YEAH!”

The surrounding Gigabyters were momentarily surprised by his change in attire before they snapped out of it. They soon rushed at the Rider to crush him right then and there. 

The saw blade started to rotate as Build swung his arm around, slicing through the encroaching Gigabyters. The bisected creatures collapsed before exploding. 

“Whoa...that was awesome!” Flash exclaimed in amazement. He actually got them. But the moment of joy was soured upon recalling it was due to Gizmo’s assistance. 

He almost didn’t notice the Gigabyter jumping at him from behind until Cyburst shot it down. 

“Good to see you taking care of things!” He snapped before cutting through another one. “But stay locked on!” He ducked below a swing and shot it through the back of the head. 

“O-On it!” He nodded before entering the fray once more. Now that he was able to fight back properly, the mob started to thin out even further. However, many of these mutated enemies swarmed the dam. 





“You think this is the right place?” Sunset asked as she and Twilight crouched out of sight to avoid the Gigabyters. They made their way towards the power station to see if they can shut down the facility to prevent them from stealing the power. 

“We’re almost there. I remember the directions to the generators and power management station from when I toured here a while back.”

“Of course you did.” Sunset shook her head, knowing full well that would be a Twilight thing to do. 

“We just need to make it past this pathway and...oh no…” She trailed off as she and Sunset stared at at least a dozen Gigabyters that blocked their path. Their sights were now focused on them. “....RUN!” Using her magic, she levitated a nearby trash bin and threw it at the group. The lead monster blasted it to bits with a laser. But the explosion was enough of a smokescreen to cover their escape. 

The two fled down the path they came to try and find another way to their destination while simultaneously shaking off their pursuers. 

It was a short lived mission. 

When they made it to the clearing that branched off to a different path, they found that their way of escape was blocked by another trio of Gigabyters. 

They tried to backtrack again, only to be cut off from the dozen they fled from before. The two of them were now pincered in. “...Well this just went from bad to worse.” Sunset lamented. 

The two girls stood back to back. Twilight’s hands glowed with her magic while Sunset had her arms raised defensively. Even though her own magic wasn’t useful in combat, she wasn’t going down without a fight. Yet their determination was betrayed by their knees shaking at the prospect of certain death. 

The Gigabyters closed in, their eyes glowing brightly. But before they could surround and end them, the three that arrived were suddenly bowled over by a rainbow blur. The blur then zoomed back around and knocked a few more Gigabyters off their feet. It then swept Sunset and Twilight up before zipping away from the monsters and stopping. 

“R-Rainbow? Applejack?” Sunset questioned as she and Twilight recovered from the near whiplash. “What are you doing here?”

“To help you guys out of course.” The athlete answered as she wound up her arm. 

“And good thing too.” AJ added. “You gals ‘right? Y’all were in a sticky situation there.” 

“Well with you two here…” Twilight said as she turned to the recovering Gigabyters. “I think we stand a better chance."





A Gigabyter fired a blast from its eyes, but Build raised his right arm to block. The laser bounced off of the crocodile hide. The two-toned Rider then threw a punch. The crocodile heard around his arm opened and enlarged until it slammed its jaws down on the monster. He flung his arm out and tossed the Gigabyter into its approaching brethren.

Cyburst rolled away from another laser blast and landed on his knees before shooting another Gigabyter in the eyes. The blast struck the upper half of its face, damaging it and flinging it back. He then spun up and slashed another one across the chest. 

“Just how many left are there?!” Build delivered a spin kick at a rushing enemy before grabbing another and slamming it into a third. 

“No clue, but I think we’re thinning them out!” Cyburst declared as he jumped on a Gigabyter, using it as a platform, before snap kicking another in the face and downing it with a well placed laser to the face. 





Ever since Applejack and Rainbow arrived in the nick of time, the conflict turned into the girls’ favor. 

Rainbow’s speed gave her the advantage, allowing her to zip around the enemy and unbalance them. Since their focus was on her, the others were able to pick them off one by one. Applejack handled close quarters and managed to overpower the Gigabyters with her magic. One tried to strike her down. But a well-timed block and counter-punch tore through its body and taking it out. 

Twilight held a supportive and offensive role by levitating random debris and using it to pelt the Gigabyters. 
Due to the nature of her Magic, Sunset stayed back for a supportive role and kept an eye for enemy attack patterns that they could exploit. But as they fought, she couldn’t help but wonder. If these Gigabyters really had Nebula Gas infused into their being, then how could their magic be working on them? 

Ever since they got their answers, she came to the realization that Equestrian Magic doesn’t seem to have an effect on Nebula Gas, which is why they were useless when fighting the Smash, Blood Stalk, and Night Rogue when using magic directly. But this was not the case here. Was it because of the otherworldly nature of the Gigabyters? Or something else?

As the four fought off the enemies that surrounded them, they failed to notice the armored figure watching their actions. When he saw them use their powers, he noticed a strange energy being emitted from them. It was more prominent in the three girls fighting, but he was also able to detect the same signature from the remaining one, albeit at a lower intensity. They were all connected and synchronized. It was unlike anything he has interacted with previously. 

“...strange….this power those girls possess…” Trail became intrigued. He did not know the nature of their abilities. But perhaps Doom Raiser has an idea. It wasn’t part of the plan, but if these abilities would somehow help in their endeavors, then all the more reason to take them. 

After a while, the girls finally took care of their enemies. With one final punch, Applejack knocked the head off of one Gigabyter. 

“Finally…” Rainbow sighed in relief. While it took quite a bit of effort, they were able to beat the Gigabyters. It felt nice to be able to beat something that wasn't robots. 

“Well, we got that taken care of. Now we need to go to the power room and divert power so the Gigabyters can’t steal energy from the Dam.” Twilight declared. 

“Stealing power? Why would they do that?” AJ questioned. 

“We’ll explain on the way.”

“You four won’t be going anywhere…” A distorted voice announced. The girls turned around and saw the red gear armor of Trail Blazer approach them. 

“....Uh-oh…”





After taking out several of the Gigabyters, it was time to end this fight. 

Cyburst dismissed his weapons and pushed down the lever on his Driver. 

“FULL POWER!”

He ran up to his group of Gigabyters and jumped up with his foot extended. “Rider Kick!” He suddenly shot forward as his foot exploded with energy, turning him into a meteor that came crashing down towards the Gigabyters.

"VIRUS BUSTER!"

Cyburst struck one of the Gigabyters and caused an explosion, the others were caught in it and were destroyed.

Build, on the other hand, began turning the crank of his driver.

“READY? GO!”

An aura of purple and orange energy flared off his body before shooting into the air, merging to form the image of an energy crocodile with a chainsaw tail.

“VOLTECH FINISH!”

Build punched the air, the crocodile charging forward until it reached the Gigabyters. It scooped them up in its mouth and chomped down on them before throwing them into the air. And as they fell back to earth, it spun around and slashed them all with its tail.

Their bodies sparked before exploding into fiery blasts. 

As soon as the fight had died down, Flash received a call from his communicator. 

“Flash? Do you read me?” Micro asked. “Have you seen the sky?!”

“Yeah, I was filled in by Director Light earlier. So what’s up? We just finished taking out the Gigabyters.”

“We just got back to the Lab. Except for Rainbow and Applejack. They went to you to provide backup.”

“Wait, they’re here?! But how do they expect to fight?”

“No clue, but just what are those Fullbottles? We never purified those two. Where on Earth, and I mean our’s, did you get them?!” 

“...Yeah…” Flash grimaced. “...We actually ran into Gizmo on the way here. He gave them to us.”

“Wait, what?!” His alarm was shared by the others that listened in. Gizmo gave those to him?!

Flash then explained what happened and what they learned from their conversation. Starting with Doom Raiser and his role in orchestrating the Gigabyters, Enigma, and his mad plan of fusing the two worlds.

“That’s insane. How is that even possible?! Combining worlds like that doesn’t sound possible without repercussions!”

“He said that the details would be on his laptop. You think you could look it up from the hard drive?” Flash inquired.

“I’m already on it.”

Micro then hung up, leaving the two riders alone. “So what was that? You got a radio in your helmet?” Jet inquired. 

“Yeah. Micro called in. Hopefully we can figure out what’s going on with the world fusion thing on his end.”

Their conversation came to a close as a multi-colored blur zoomed past them and skidded to a stop. 

The Riders saw that the source was an exhausted and slightly battered Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Sunset, and Twilight.

“Are you girls alright?” Flash rushed over to them in concern. Jet followed.

“We’ll live.” The athlete grunted. “But we gotta get outta here!” 

“But why? We still need to stop the Gigabyters from taking power!”

“We got bigger things ta worry ‘bout!” The farmgirl added in alarm. 

“Is it what did this to you all?”

“It is...and it’s definitely worse…” Twilight warned. Before the guys could ask them for more, a blur of red shot from the sky and crash landed right next to them, kicking up dirt. 

“Did you really think you could escape?” Came the chilling voice as the dust settled. The visage of the armored Trail Blazer stepped forward, unperturbed by the Riders before him. 

“So you’re actually here.” Cyburst scowled as he readied a memory card. “Didn’t think one of the masterminds would show up this soon.”

Build remained silent, yet stared at the man before him. He knew that this was an alternate version of his father from another world. It wasn’t the same person. He was an enemy. He had to fight. Yet…

...he couldn’t even bring himself up to speak out. 

“Plans have changed.” Trail answered and snapped his fingers. The giant mechanical hand, Enigma, materialized into existence before them. “In addition to what we have stolen so far,” His gaze focused on the four Rainbooms. “We have found a new source of power to study.” 

The girls realized what he meant and the dread set in. “He wants us?” Rainbow asked.

“No...he wants our Equestrian Magic.” Sunset corrected in trepidation. 

Before either Rider could react, Enigma’s hand opened up and shot a ray of light down at the group of four. 

“Twilight look out!” Sunset reacted quickly and shoved the bespectacled girl out of the rays. She tumbled before stopping and looked up to see her friends get abducted. The girls were then sucked through the gate Enigma had made before it closed. 

“NO! SUNSET! RAINBOW! APPLEJACK!” Twilight screamed in horror. But it was all for naught as her friends were no longer in this world. 

“...A pity. I was only able to nab three.” Trail shook his head before turning his sights on the bespectacled girl. “Oh well. The remaining one will be no issue.”

“...you…” said a voice seething in rage, causing the red armored man to look up. 

Trail quickly brought his arms up to block a savage strike from Build’s crocodile arm. “GIVE THEM BACK!” He roared angrily. “GIVE BACK MY FRIENDS!” 

“...sorry son,” He apologized before kicking him away. “Afraid I can’t do that.” 

“Then we’ll just make you!” Cyburst cried as he came at him with the Blade Buster in hand. Trail expertly weaved through the swings before grabbing the Rider by the arm and twisting it behind his back. He twisted it hard enough to force his grip to weaken before ramming his geared shoulder into him. And energy gear manifested and ground against his back before exploding. Cyburst was sent flying before he smacked against the dam wall. The impact left cracks along the surface and forced him out of his transformation the moment he dropped to the ground. Twilight rushed over to help him up. 

Flash recovered and charged at Trail once more. “Son, just listen to me!”

“Shut it! I'm not your son! You’re not my dad!” He threw a punch, only to have it parried and countered with a liver strike. Momentarily stunned, Trail dropped and kicked his feet out from under him. Once he went down, he pinned him to the ground with his foot on his chest. 

“I am!” He shouted desperately. “Why can’t you understand that?!”

“You’re just someone trying to replace what he lost!” Build snapped before summoning the Drill Crusher and firing at him. Trail had to leap away to avoid the lasers. Flash closed in swinging his chainsaw arm. “You don’t know me, just like I don’t know you!”

“I know more than you think!” He rammed his gear shoulder to the saw blade. Sparks flew as the two rotating blades slammed into each other. “I know you lost your father, just as how I lost my own family.” 

“And you expect to be a replacement?!” Flash roared before batting him away and stabbing him with the Drill Crusher. “My dad’s dead! And you’re nothing like him!”

“I’m trying to bring about a better world! Can’t you understand that?!” Trail snapped in frustration. He took out his own weapon, a modified version of the Transteam Gun, and fired back. Flash blocked it with the crocodile hide. 

“You’re risking billions for an insane plan at the behest of a madman! My dad would never do something like that!”

“You mean because of his principles, right?” Trail stopped firing with a hint of venom in his voice. “Of how having the ability and talent gave you a responsibility to help others?”

“What of it?” Flash questioned as he slowly lowered his arm, but kept his own weapon at ready. 

“...stop believing in those worthless lies.” He said coldly, voice unfiltered. 

“...Wh-what?” Flash actually backpedaled. The fact that it wasn’t his father momentarily forgotten as those words spoken with his voice registered in his mind. 

“That philosophy is a sham. You thinking having power gave you the responsibility to help others? Moreso, you expect to help everyone just because you have some sort of talent? Well guess what? It’s not true...it was never true…”

The musician froze as he words of this...remnant reached his mind. Part of him thought it was just a ploy to force him to drop his guard. Yet...another part of him questioned the truth of those words. 

“No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t save everyone. My ideals turned out to be nothing more than a sham that got everyone killed. But you...you don’t have to do that. Just give up, and everything will be alright.”

“I...I can’t give up!” Flash shook his head rapidly, trying to snap out of it. He raised the Drill Crusher and fired. But his unfocused mind made him miss his shots. “I have to fight! To stop Blood Stalk and protect this town!” 

“Even if it meant risking your life? Risking your mother and sister losing you?” Trail asked rhetorically as he slowly approached.

“That’s…”

“You fought with that philosophy driving you, as it is one of the only things left of your Trail Blazer. But what did it leave you? An impossible ideal to live by. A life of continuous regret. And doomed to be obligated to help others when you can’t even help yourself!”  Trail rushed in and knocked the Drill Crusher from his hands. He kicked his son in the knees to destabilize his footing before kicking him into the wall. He pressed his forward against his throat and pinned his Chainsaw arm to the side. 

“I...I thought...you’d be proud of your son helping people.” Flash choked, his mind in disarray.

“One time I would. But now...I can only be disappointed and ashamed.” 

“FUNKY DRIVE!” 

The gears on his shoulder glowed and spun once more, at a greater intensity than before. They ground against Build’s armor, eliciting a pained scream. Then they finally exploded. 

“Flash!” Twilight yelled as she helped Jet limp over. The smoke soon cleared, revealing an injured, unarmored Flash Sentry at the mercy of the Red Kaiser. 

Seeing that his son’s armor was gone, Trail backed away, leaving him to crumple on the floor in agony. 

“Give up trying to be the hero, son. It’s not worth it. It never was.” Trail Blazer shook his head. “Rest assured, what I’ve done won’t be for naught. Soon...the perfect world will be born.” He spun on his heel and walked away. A portal appeared that soon swallowed him and the Enigma. 

The three were left alone to wallow in their defeat and loss. 

Flash glared at the ground despondently with clouded eyes. 





Sunset had experienced interdimensional travel before. One prime example was going through the mirror portal from Equestria to the human world. 

She expected a lot. But she didn’t quite expect her, Rainbow, and Applejack to appear several dozens of feet up in the air and falling freely. 

They screamed as they descended at terminal velocity. It was only a matter of time before they hit the ground and went splat. 

“C’mon wings! Open! Fly! Help!” Rainbow had desperately tried to conjure wings as she had back in the Friendship games. However nothing worked. 

“What’re we gunna do?!” Applejack yelled over rushing air as she kept a tight grip on her hat. 

“I don’t know!” Sunset yelled back in panic. 

Just when they thought they would splatter on the ground, they were saved in the form of three armored figures. Hacker and Vaccine had managed to catch Applejack and Rainbow respectively while Cross-Z misjudged his timing and simply broke the fall for Sunset Shimmer instead. The three landed safely on the ground while the latter two groaned in pain, but nonetheless alive. 

“We’re...we’re alive? Hah! We’re alive!” The athlete cheered. “That was awesome!”

“Never again…” Applejack shook her head as her adrenaline levels regulated themselves. 

“Are you girls okay?” Vaccine questioned as they set them down.

“We’re fine. Thanks for the save.”

“You’re just lucky we detected the spatial anomalies and reacted accordingly.” Hacker replied. “Now who are you?”

“Ow….” Sol and Sunset groaned as they untangled from each other.  

“...How could you have missed that catch?” Hacker wondered aloud. 

“No clue…” Cross-Z groaned. 

“Wel, thanks for that, Sol.” Sunset thanked before her mind registered something. “Sol! You’re alive!”

“Yeah, you two.” He groaned as he cancelled his transformation. “What are you three doing here?”

“We got sucked up by that Enigma Machine. It almost got Twilight until I pushed her out of the way.”

“So you know about the Enigma? Who are you?” Hacker interrogated.

“Relax man.” The fighter got between him and the girls. “They’re my friends. Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack.” 

“So they’re from your world?” Vaccine inquired.

“Wait, world? Where are we?” AJ wondered as she looked around. It was then the three noticed the futuristic setting they were in. They were simply amazed by how everything looked clean and advanced. 

“Well, you’re not in Canterlot anymore. You’re in NewGear City. Believe it or not, the year is 2017 like ours.” Sol answered. 

“Seriously?” Rainbow exclaimed as she took everything in. “Man, Twilight would have a fit if she saw all of this!”

“Well that can wait. With everything going on, and the sight of another world staring back at us from the sky, we’re gonna need you three to come with us and answer our questions.” Hacker explained. 

“Just where are you taking us?”

“Cyburst Industries.” Sol Burner answered. “Hopefully we can find some more clues there.”





Back in Canterlot, the group of three finally made it back from the dam. Seeing as Flash was in no condition to drive the Machine Builder, Jet drove them all back on his Cyber Cycle. 

They entered the lab to see their friends and family at work. Misty and Scootaloo immediately rushed over to Flash to ensure that he was okay. He answered despondently, mind still reeling what he had heard from the alternate Trail Blazer. 

“Welcome back.” Night Light welcomed. 

“Where are Sunset, Rainbow, and Applejack?” Fluttershy asked. 

“They...they were taken. They were captured by the Enigma.” Twilight morosely answered. 

“WHAT?!” Pinkie Pie yelped in a mix of shock and horror, a sentiment shared by their friends. 

“Twilight, please explain. What happened back there?” Velvet asked her daughter. 

She explained how they encountered the Gigabyters at the Dam and Flash and Jet worked to fight them off while Sunset and her tried to reroute the power or shut down the dam to prevent them from stealing energy. However, they were intercepted by a group of Gigabyters until they were saved by Rainbow and APplejack, who helped fight them off. 

But then Trail showed up and tried to abduct them for their Equestrian magic. They ran, but he caught them in the end. He would’ve taken all four until Sunset pushed her out of the way. 

“As you can see, we didn’t have much luck in stopping them.” Jet added while shaking his head. “But what about you guys? Did you find anything about the world fusion?”

"Yes," Micro nodded with a frown, "and it's not good." He showed them his computer, which had a bunch of complex algorithms, charts, equations, and readings only Twilight understood. "When my brother looked into the Enigma's ability, he realized the worlds could be fused. But there was a possible problem. Overlap."

"What's overlap?" Pinkie asked.

"Basically, it's trouble. If two universes are fused together, anything that exists in both universes will overlap and cancel each other out."

"Still not following," Sandalwood told him.

Twilight thought for a moment to try and figure out how to explain it. "Alright," she had an idea, "let's try it like this. There's a version of Trail that comes from Jet's world, but there isn't one in our world. At least there isn't one anymore. If the worlds fuse, there'd be no overlap because there's only one of him in both worlds. But if there's, say, another version of you in Jet's world, then when the world fused you'd overlap with your counterpart and would be destroyed." Now everyone was starting to understand.

"So if the world's fused," Rarity went on. "Anyone in our world who has a twin in Jet's world would...what, both vanish?"

"Possible," Micro explained. "He said it's only a possibility. It's just as likely only one of them would survive while the other vanished. The fusion process would pick and choose which bits of both worlds it took to make the new single world. And it's not just people. Cities, possibly whole countries could both be destroyed or mixed and matched. And that's if the fusion's done right at all?"

"What happens if it's not done right?" Fluttershy asked.

"Imagine two cars hitting each other at super fast speeds." This image made Fluttershy 'eep' and hide behind her hair.

“So by fusing our worlds together, there’s a huge risk of cancelling itself out or both would implode?” Twilight questioned.

“That’s exactly right.” Micro responded morbidly. 

The revelation weighed heavily on all of them. This plan of Doom Raiser and Trail Blazer would risk the destruction of both planets. Even if they were somehow successful, there would still be casualties from people and places being cancelled out. 

Despite the troubling discovery, Jet felt his own determination to stop them burn brighter. He was not going to let his world be destroyed by some technophile who’s willing to risk destruction to fulfil his desires. 

On the other hand, Flash stayed silent. The more he heard about the fusion of worlds, the heavier the weight on his mind became. 

“Wait, dude. Where are you going?” Sandalwood asked as he noticed Flash heading for the door. 

“...I’m just gonna clear my head. I’ll be back later.” He answered without turning around.

“Flash, wait.” But Scootaloo’s cry came too late as he stepped out of the room. 

“What’s up with Flashy?” Pinkie wondered as she rocked on her feet. 

“I have no idea, darling.” Rarity shrugged. 

“Did something happen at the Dam?” Misty asked Twilight.

“Well…” She wasn’t sure how to explain this. 

“Don’t worry.” Jet said, shifting focus to him. “I’ll keep an eye on him.” Before the others could question what he meant, he already left.





“Brilliant….absolutely brilliant!” The man exclaimed ecstatically. Trail had just returned to their shared base of operations. While his Enigma was not yet fully charged, it almost had just enough power to complete their goals. All he had to do was find the final source to energize it. 

He had also submitted his readings regarding the strange powers he received from the girls to his partner. Said man was in his own corner, studying the readings and conducting calculations. He was a middle aged man with red skin and yellow hair that was slicked back. He was garbed in a pair of slacks, a shirt with a bloodied sword emblazoned on the front, and a lab coat over it.  His eyes shone with mirth and curiosity as his fingers moved rapidly across the keyboard. 

“I can’t believe that you were so fortunate as to find this mysterious form of energy, Trail Blazer!” Doom exclaimed in glee. 

“Neither could I.” The scarred man answered as he focused on his own task. “Still, I had no idea what to make of it. I was unsure if they were a discovery that we can use to accelerate our plans. Can the energy be harnessed?”

“That remains to be seen. However, it appears that the energy sources you claimed are synchronized and linked. They seem to resonate with one another.”

“And what does that mean for us?”

“For now, it’s still inconclusive. However, if we were to acquire these girls and harness their powers, we may be able to further power the Enigma to unprecedented levels, possibly enabling a completely perfect fusion of the worlds!”

“Is that truly possible?” Trail asked hopefully. 

“Well, it’s merely a hypothesis. I still need to conduct further tests, with those girls preferably. But now that they are in this world, it should be no issue to retrieve them.” Doom then began to ramble on theories and possibilities that have opened up. 

Realizing his partner was lost in his own world, Trail resumed his own tasks. Ever since returning to the world he desired, he made it a habit to acquire any information about the current state of affairs. The more informed he was, the better preparations he can make. 

It was during his browsing that he found a news story that caught his interest. It featured the debut of Masked Rider Build saving Canterlot High School from an organization called Faust. It also talked about a man who had been a part of Faust, as well as a lieutenant in the city police force, was arrested and how his life was lost due to his transport exploding. 

“...how interesting…”





“Okay, I stand corrected, this is even more awesome!” Rainbow cheered as they saw the Cyburst Industries laboratory. Everything was so high tech and futuristic that it just looked so cool to the athlete. 

Sunset was equally excited, wanting to know how everything worked. They were sure Twilight would have a gushing moment if she were present. 

“Yes yes, everything is more advanced than what’s back on your own world, but we don’t have time for that.” Code steered the conversation back on track. Once they entered the lab, he and Heart requested their phones. They needed to contact the other world in order to determine if there had been any discoveries that could help them understand the situation. 

Sunset had explained to them what she learned from Gizmo on during the trip. The others were surprised by the revelation, and Sol grew angry at the mention of the fallen scientist for helping them for some odd reason. But they learned how the Enigma’s were made to combine the two worlds using Nebula Gas. However, they needed copious amounts of power to activate. With the activation of the Enigma in NewGear City, the merge is halfway complete. 

And based on her explanation, Trail Blazer nearly completed his task in Canterlot. It will only be a matter of time before he tries again, so they had to act quickly. 

Which was why Code and Heart used their phones to forge a more stable connection to the other Earth and make contact. They were hooked up to the computer as he typed on the keys. The screen buffered briefly before blinking to a new image. It was the inside of the CRDC Lab. 

“Hello?” Code spoke through the microphone, startling the inhabitants and catching their attention. “Can you hear me?”

“Wh-who are you?!” Micro Chips demanded. 

“Hey guys!” Sol waved as he pushed Code Breaker out of the screen. 

“Sol?! Is that you?!” Sandalwood questioned as he rushed up to the screen next to Micro. 

“Yep. It’s me!” He was then shoved to the side as Rainbow and the others joined in. 

“We’re here too. These guys found us as we came into this world! And let me tell ya, it’s all so sci-fi here!” The athlete said. 

“Thank heavens you’re alright, darlings.” Rarity said in relief. “Your disappearances made us worried sick.”

“Where have you been all of this time?!” Pinkie questioned. 

The fighter opened his mouth to speak but he and the girls were shoved out of the way by an irate Code. “We can talk about that later. I’m not sure if you noticed, but we have a planet earth staring at us from Orbit! I’m sure you guys do too, and we really should figure out how to stop this mess before our worlds end up colliding! So what do you know?!”

His exclamation startled the teenagers, but also conveyed how dire the situation had become. “R-right!” He quickly explained what he learned from his brother’s data. He went in-depth about how the merging of two worlds would lead to drastic complications should it fail. 

The crew in NewGear City processed this discovery. The girls and Sol were shocked by the notion of cancellation. 

“That’s….awful…” Heart gasped. “So this insane plan of fusing the worlds would end up causing billions of casualties?!”

“I’m afraid so.” Micro nodded morbidly. 

“But wait, if this Doom guy is doing this, then what’s to stop him from disappearing too?” Sol questioned. 

“That’s what we need to figure out.” Velvet spoke in as she appeared. “...Say, do you know if there’s a Doom Raiser in your world?”

“In our world?” Code inquired. 

“Yes. If Doom was really adamant about this plan, he would no doubt deal with any obstacles in his way. That was the type of man he was.”

“Let me see.” Heart performed a quick search and was greeted with the results. “It says here that Doom Raiser was a leading mind in environmental conservation. But it also says that he went missing around two months ago.”

“So that’s it.” Night stated from his end. “Doom definitely took precautions for his plan. It’s highly likely he killed his other self to ensure his existence when the worlds would combine.”

“That is troubling.” Code stated with folded hands. Doom Raiser was definitely determined to see his goals to fruition. But he seemed to be overlooking one glaring implication. If two Earths fused like this, then wouldn’t the planets themselves cancel out?

Before he could voice said concerns, Sol spoke out, noting the missing person in the lab. “Hey guys? Where’s Flash? Isn’t he with you?”





The Masked Rider of Canterlot leaned against the railing of the city bridge. The man-made construct overlooked the wide river below. He stared off into space as the words of the alternate version of his father circulated through his head. They had weighed down on him ever since the fight’s conclusion. 

Were...were his father’s principles nothing but lies? 

He recalled a time in his past, when his father explained to him his principles. He was a skilled jet pilot. But instead of continuing his work in the military, he chose to be a test pilot instead. Flash had wondered why that was the case. He could’ve helped people while still a member of the air force. Then he explained his reasoning. 

“Sure I would be able to help out the nation’s defense as an air force pilot, but what about the little guys? Who would help them? While so many would come to the conclusion that being a member of the military, a policeman, or fireman, or doctor would help people, there are other ways to do so. For example, if there were no test pilots, how would aerospace manufacturers know how well their creations function? If they were to fail mid flight, a lot of people would get hurt or killed. Just because I have the skill to be a good pilot, doesn’t mean I should use them for my own benefit. It’s because I have these abilities that it is my responsibility to help others in my own way.”

He never forgot those words. They were what helped Flash become the man he was today. But after hearing the refutation from Trail Blazer, he wasn’t so sure anymore. 

Were those principles truly a lie? Sure it was impossible to save everyone. That was the nature of this world. Not everyone can be saved. But were the words his father told him completely false? 

He became Build to help people. It was his responsibility to. But was it all for naught? What would his father really say if he were alive?

Is this what his father would’ve been like? Would this be how he reacted instead? Would he have condemned him for doing something so dangerous that it risked his life?

The more he pondered about it, the more his hesitation and fears grew. He grasped his father’s goggles around his neck and took them off. There was a hairline crack on the side from where it saved him from a bullet. If he hadn’t worn them, he would’ve been killed back then by Blood Stalk. 

If he didn’t have them, he would’ve died. 

But now? They were just a reminder of his father’s and Trail’s words. Flash’s grip on the goggles tightened until his knuckles turned white. His face twisted into one of confliction and anguish. Unable to take it anymore, he reared his arm back to throw them over the edge. 

But a firm grip on his wrist stopped him. He turned his head to see the stern expression of Jet Stream. 

To be Continued...