//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: A Pony Among Humans and Robots // by DILLYbOd //------------------------------// Pinkie sits beside Wadsworth as she finishes her third cup of cocoa truffle. “You have to try this, it's so good!” She pleads with him. “Miss. Pinkie, again, I thank you for the offer, but I lack the tools necessary to consume beverages.” Wadsworth pats her on the head, causing her to frown. “Fine… But it's your loss!” She swallows the last gulp of her drink. Wadsworth sees something that catches his fancy and turns Pinkie’s head to face it. “Look!” Pinkie and Wadsworth stare out at the landscape of a small town rolling on past them. “Is that San Francisco?” “No, Miss. Pinkie, that’s Tamalpais Valley.” Wadsworth takes a photo using one of his eyes. With a low hum, a printed photograph pops out from a slot on his body. “Once we get to Sausalito, you’ll be able to see San Francisco in the distance.” He hands her the photo. Pinkie stares at the colored photo. She’s never seen anything like it. So crisp and clear. Nothing like the photos back home, so fuzzy and out of focus. “Thank you.” She puts the picture in her backpack. With a yawn and a stretch, she stands up and puts on her backpack. “I’ll be exploring since I had my fill of cocoa!” She states, heading to the back of the car where the bar is. “Enjoy your adventure, Miss. Pinkie!” Wadsworth hums as he keeps his gaze of the passing landscape. With a nod, Pinkie heads for the door. “Miss?” Pinkie looks over at Jerry, the bartender, and smiles. “Yes?” “I warmed this up for you.” Jerry hands her a small plate with a warm gooey brownie on top. Pinkie smiles at the plate. Taking it, she gives it a sniff. It smells lovely, but… The thought of the rotten food within the fridge from the cabin makes her queasy. ‘The coco was good.’ She tells herself. With a sigh, she takes a bite. “Wow…” Her eyes go wide. “This is good!” She goes to pull out her coin purse. “How much?” “On the house.” Jerry holds up a robotic hand to stop her. “Enjoy.” Pinkie smiles and leaves the car. Entering the next car of the train, Pinkie finds that it’s a passenger car and not like the dining car she was in previously. Two levels of seating are on either side of her totaling about fifty or so seats, impressive, more than the train cars back home. Finding the decor of this car rather dull, however, she makes her way to the next. This one is about the same, minus the side on her left being a rack space for bicycles. Seeing three bikes laying in a tilted manner at the far end beside one of the train’s doors, Pinkie walks up to them and messes with one of the bikes. It’s a peculiar design compared to the bikes from her world. This bike has more of a curvy shape than her bike’s boxier one. She moves her hands over the bike’s handles and feels the soft rubber that coats them; it’s a better feeling than the hard leather of hers. The bike’s tire rims are made of metal and not wood, which makes them look sleeker in appearance. Seeing the bell at the base of the left handle, she runs her fingers over it and pulls its lever to its apex, and let's go. A soft ring sounds off, eliciting a smile. “Admiring… the BIKE!” Pinkie jumps back from the bike – her heart skipping a beat. She looks over at the source of the voice and sees the Conductor standing over her. Its eye glares at her with conflicting intentions. It's color a mix of yellow hues. “Um…” She’s nervous by its tone, but she still doesn't want to hurt its feelings. ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover!’ She chastises herself. “Yes… Yes, I was.” She looks at the bike. “It's different from my bike back home.” She gives the Conductor a smile. The Conductor stays silent as it looks at Pinkie and the bike. “Different? Home?” It grumbles as it bends down, getting uncomfortably close to her face. “I didn’t NOTICE before, but NOW I DO! You don’t look, HUMAN!” The apertures within its eye move back n’ forth. “What are you?” Pinkie swallows a lump in her throat. “I’m a pony…” She gives a weary smile. “An earth pony to be precise.” She fights to rid herself of her nervousness. The Conductor lets out a robotic grumble. “Pony?” It looks her over. “Your face and feet look like a pony… BUT the REST of you doesn't!” “Well, I’m a pony through and through!” She playfully pouts. The Conductor stands up. It’s gaze, never leaving. “I need… PROOF!” Pinkie shivers at his growl. Gulping down her fears, she pulls out a single bit from her coin purse. “Um… This is the currency we use back home…” The Conductor swipes it's out of her hands and studies the gold coin. “Equestria?” It reads. “Is this the name of your country?” Pinkie nods. “Interesting…” It walks away. “Hey?!” Pinkie whines. “Where are you going with my bit?” She follows after it. The robot stays silent as it makes its way to the back of the train. With them arriving at the last train car, the robot places the coin in a jar with others. Pinkie stops at the door and looks into the dimly lit room illuminated by soft glowing orange colored lights strewn about the space. The room is filled to the brim with an assortment of knick-knacks and other hodgepodge items bulging from the makeshift cupboards hugging the walls. Seeing the Conductor staring at the jar, Pinkie timidly steps up to the robot, clasping her hands over her lap. “You have an impressive collection.” She gives a smile. “Now, you have a one of a kind coin!” The robot stares at her with a posture that’s hard to determine. But it changes, almost showing eagerness as it looks through the mass of items before pulling out a paddle ball. “This is… a paddle ball…” It hands the object to Pinkie. Pinkie stares at the toy, noticing the striking similarities with a similar toy back home. She begins playing with it, which makes the Conductor’s eyes light up a bright cyan almost green. It looks through the pile and pulls out a colorful cube. Pinkie takes it and studies its colors. “What’s this?” “It’s a Rubix’s cube!” The Conductor wanders over to a large screen television. Pinkie notices that the small squares can move independently of each other in horizontal and vertical directions. She turns the sides of the cube, its plastic gears make soft clicking sounds as they slide against each other. Figuring out that the toy is a puzzle, she smiles as she tries to figure out its mystery. “PONY!” The conductor grunts. “You enjoying the CUBE?” “Yep!” Pinkie sticks out her bottom lip. “I take it you have to match the colors?” Six sides – six colors… “Never mind, I get it now…” She huffs as she mindlessly wanders up to the Conductor. Matching the blue side, she sets it in her left hand and throws it into the air. Catching it behind her back, she reveals to herself a solved cube. “Solved it!” The Conductor looks over its shoulder and sees the Rubrix's cube in all its glory. Swiveling its head between Pinkie and the cube several times, it picks up the cube and studies it. Amazed by her ‘magic’ act, the robot gives her a pat on the head and sets the cube in an empty space on a nearby counter. Turning back around, it walks up to a television. Pinkie stares at the television. It is similar to the one she saw from Codsworth’s cabin. ‘Strange, he has a mirror just like Wadsworth’s owners…’ The Conductor turns it on. A field of static fills the twenty-inch screen. It grumbles as it messes with a little black box beside it. Pinkie stares at the static in wonder. ‘What is this?’ Her answer comes when the static morphs into an image of a birds-eye view of a buggy driving through a desert landscape. She watches as the buggy races around large boulders and cacti. Her smile grows as music begins to play on the television. “What is this thing?” The Conductor looks at Pinkie’s childlike wonder. “It’s a TELEVISION!” It studies her bright blues eyes as they watch the images on the screen. “You like it?” Her nod is her only response. The Conductor nods as it wanders over towards a heavy blanket covering a large container. “Pony is perfect for them…” It lifts up the sheet and peers at the contents underneath its protection. “Pony?” Pinkie fights to tear her gaze from the screen. “You know I have a name.” She giggles. “Pinkie Pie is my name, and parties are my game!” She points at herself with a cocky smile. The Conductor stares at her. “PINKIE!” It huffs, which causes her to shiver ever so slightly. “I want to show you my favorite collection…” “What is it?” Pinkie stands beside the Conductor, eyeing the dark grey blanket, clearly covering something square in shape. ‘Maybe a chest of some sort?’ The robot pulls the sheet revealing a metal cage. Pinkie’s eyes dilate to the size of pin-needles. Her body stiffens, she sucks in a breath, causing her throat to tense up, making her squeaky voice sound only as a whimper... The skeletal remains of animals and a human lay in the pose of their final moments. The human lies against the bars, its arms stick out through the gaps in an apparent attempt of escaping. Its skull is missing its jaw bone. Its eye sockets stare at Pinkie, digging into her soul like daggers. Pinkie starts to hyperventilate as she keeps staring into their dark abysses. The Conductor stands behind her. Its eye turns a deep crimson. “Pony…” Her tail twitches. The Conductor’s posture stiffens. “Add… Collection…” Her tail twitches even more. ‘Twitchy tail!’ She screams within her mind. She quickly ducks, avoiding the Conductor’s arms as they crash into the television, killing the music. Sparks fly and glass shatters as the Conductor pulls his arms from the television newly acquired maw. Pinkie sidesteps from the robot as she makes her way to the gangway. “PONY!” The Conductor’s torso turns around. “You can’t LEAVE!” It gives chase. Pinkie bolts from the car and makes a mad dash to the dining car. She looks back and sees the Conductor ganging ground. “No, no, no!” She grabs the bikes and throws them to the floor in hopes of slowing the robot down. The Conductor easily crushes the bikes under its feet, tearing through them like a hot knife through butter. Freaking out, Pinkie grabs the gangway’s door and slides it open. Before she can step through, the Conductor grabs her backpack. Pinkie falls back and feels herself sliding backward. Thinking fast, she slips her arms out of the backpack’s straps and scampers on all fours as she puts distance from herself and the crazed robot. The Conductor glares at the backpack and throws it as it resumes its pursuit. “STOP! RUNNING!” Pinkie gets up on her hooves and runs with all her might. “Wadsworth!” She yells as she comes up to the gangway door to the dining car. “Wadsworth!” She stumbles up to the Mr. Handy bot. “Yes, Miss. Pinkie?” Wadsworth looks down at the frightened mare. “The conductor’s crazy!” Pinkie screams as she huddles behind him. “He killed little animals…” Tears swarm her eyes. “He killed a human!” The door to the dining car slams open with a violet crash as it jams itself within its wall-sleeves. The door groans as it fails to return back to its resting position. The Conductor stands under the gangway’s doorframe – the lights around its lens flicker a multitude of colors. It lets out a low growl as it nears them. “Give PONY to me!” “Conductor!” Jerry grumbles as he steps up to his fellow employee. “You’re not supposed to talk to guests like that!!!” The robot grabs Jerry’s head with its right hand and braces its other on his shoulder and tears off his head. “Black oil-like substance oozes out as the Conductor drops Jerry’s body to the floor. Pinkie stares in horror as she sees the lights within Jerry’s eyes go dark. Shivering, she looks up and sees the Conductor approaching. “Wadsworth, what do we do?!” “I have a solution, Miss. Pinkie!” Wadsworth turns one of his arms around. A circular saw blade pops out from his clawed hand. “Time for some cutting action!” The Conductor growls as it goes to grab him. Thinking quickly, Wadsworth brings the blade down onto the Conductor's hand. The blade makes a horrid sound as it cuts through metal, gears, hydraulic fluid, and wires. “With a hiss and a loud ping, the Conductor's hand falls to the ground with a metallic thud. The Conductor looks at its broken arm. Silently it grabs Wadsworth’s offending appendage and rips it off. Wadsworth looks at his sparking joint. “Oh, dear…” He looks back at Pinkie. “I do believe we must run.” She nods. Wadsworth pops out a small cylinder from his body that erupts into a cloud of dense smoke. Pinkie coughs as it enters her lungs. She struggles to see through the smoke, but Wadsworth guides her to the front of the train. “Where are we going?!” She cries out. “We must alert the operators of their malfunctioning conductor.” Wadsworth states matter of factly. Pinkie gulps as they enter and exit through several cars. She looks back at the inraged robot. ‘Why did he kill those animals… Why did he kill that human?” She shivers at that thought. What horrible thing he or she must’ve gone through before passing on. Getting to the engine, Wadsworth opens and holds its door open for Pinkie. Seeing the Conductor closing the distance between them, Wadsworth slams the door shut and overloads its circuit, forcing the locks to engage. Seeing the door holding its ground from the robot’s manic punches, Wadsworth lets out a sigh of relief. “I do believe I bought us some time, Miss Pinkie.” Hearing no response, he turns around. “Miss. Pinkie… Oh, oh, dear!” Pinkie is frozen at the sight of the dead human operator lying over the control panel’s countertop. Its skull's screaming expressions haunts her. “What happened to them?” She asks as she fights back a sob… “Why is the Conductor trying to kill us!?” Wadsworth looks at the dead operator. “I do not know…” He floats up to the robotic operator. “Sir, I must ask. Why is your conductor causing a ruckus?” “A ruckus?!” Pinkie huffs. “I cause ruckuses! I’m a master of ruckussing! He’s trying to kill us!” She points at the door. “Oh, sorry, Miss. Pinkie.” He looks back at the operator. “Why is your conductor trying to kill us?” The operator keeps its eyes on the tracks. Pinkie and Wadsworth wait several more seconds. But the robot does not answer. “I do believe that this robot is broken?” Wadsworth grumbles as it looks at its manufacturer label on the back of its head. “Hallon Industries. Of course…” Pinkie pulls on her mane as she tries to rid her mind of the dull thuds drumming from the door. “What are we going to do?!” The thuds stop. Her eyes go wide. “Why did he stop?” Wadsworth looks around. “I do not know…!” The Conductor jumps down onto the nose of the engine. Its feet break through the thin metal and jam themselves into the air condition system. Loud hissing fills the air as refrigerant pours out over the windshield in a misty cloud. The red crimson glow of the Conductor’s eye shines through the mist. Its hand breaks through the windshield and grabs the head of the robotic operator. It pulls the operator through the windshield. Along its journey, the operator’s body crashes into a multitude of buttons; even its arm snags the engine’s throttle lever pushing it forward. The RPM increases, causing the four diesel engines to roar out a soothing melody. The train wheels scream as they glide along the tracks. A dull thud echoes as the cars readjust to the new momentum thrust upon them. “Miss. Pinkie?” “Y-Yes?!” She looks at Wadsworth. “Get ready to run when I say so.” He unlocks the door. Pinkie looks at the green light on the keypad and quickly turns her gaze to the Conductor worming its way through the windshield. The Conductor pushes with all its might but is halted from its stuck feet. With a growl, it struggles to break its feet loose. “Now, Miss. Pinkie!” Pinkie slides the door open and rushes into the other car. Wadsworth follows after her while keeping one eye on the Conductor. In one swift motion, he relocks the door and fries the locking mechanism, trapping the crazed robot inside. Wadsworth looks through the small window looking into the engine’s cockpit and sees in the Conductor is still stuck, but in the distance, he sees another train station coming into view. “Oh my…” He floats over to a window on his left and opens it. “What’s wrong?” Pinkie asks. Sticking out one of his eyes, he sees several trains parked at the station, including one that is in their line of travel. “Oh, that’s not good…” Pinkie stares at him with her bright blue eyes. He sees that they’re full of fear. “Miss. Pinkie, could you help me with something?” “Yeah!” She stands beside Wadsworth. “What do you need?” “We need to activate the emergency breaks and disconnect the engine from the cars.” He points at a red handle high above them. “Pull that when I tell you to.” Pinkie nods as she climbs onto the seat and stands on her tippy-hooves. “I’m ready!” Wadsworth hums as he opens a small control panel in the corner near the floor. Moving some wires around he cuts a few and sticks some of them together. Little arcs of electricity dance across the wires before a dull clunk sounds off. The Janney couplers release from one another, allowing the engine to roar on ahead. “Now, Miss. Pinkie!” Pinkie pulls the cord – every single break on the train engage. The sudden shift in momentum sends her into the wall. She lets out a little groan as she bounces off. Before she smacks face-first into the metal floor, Wadsworth catches her in his arms. “You alright?” He asks. “Yeah…” Pinkie moans. “Just smacked my head against the wall.” She rubs her head. She looks out the window directly in front of her and sees the landscape coming to a stop. “We did it…” Wadsworth looks out the window as well. “Yes, we did…” !BOOM! A distant flash flickers in their eyes. Looking through the gangway’s door’s small window, they see a towering inferno in the distance. “Was that the…” “The engine, yes.” Wadsworth opens the gangway door. They both look at the raging fire consuming the train station. “We would’ve been dead if it wasn’t for our quick thinking Miss. Pinkie.” Pinkie stares at the fire. “Yeah…” Pinkie looks down at her hooves. A part of her feels terrible for the Conductor. He seemed to be kind. But he just turned violent… No, those skeletons of that human and those animals say otherwise. He killed before. She takes a deep breath and wanders back to the dining car. “Where are you going, Miss. Pinkie?” Wadsworth asks. “Getting my backpack…” “Stupid dish!” John grumbles as he screws down a newly soldered chip he had worked on last night. Pulling the screwdriver away, he rests his arms on his knees as he looks over the dish’s motherboard and all its chaotic glory. “Sir, you need help?” A ball shaped droid with a large glowing blue eye asks as it hovers over his shoulder. “No Beta-012, I’m fine.” John lets out a sigh as he gazes at the vast blue ocean of San Fransico bay from the top of Alcatraz's lighthouse. Scratching his chin through his beard, he lets out a huff and finishes his task. “I think that will do it?” He shuts the door to the dish’s control panel. “Let's give it a test.” Beta-012’s four spinning gravity manipulators shimmer as it flys over to the control panel. “Ready when you are.” A thin robotic arm extends from its base and rests over a large red button. John looks out over the bay once more before turning his attention to the dish. “Let her rip!” !BOOM! Both John and Beta-012 look towards Horseshoe bay over by the Marin Headlands. They try to see anything that would’ve made that sound. Soon they have their answer. A tall pillar of black smoke rises over the horizon. “That seems to be coming from Sausalito.” Beta-012 looks at John. John’s brown eyes stare at the billowing smoke. Walking into the lighthouse, he makes his way to the office. Standing over a plastic tote, he rummages through it and pulls out a small metal briefcase. Stepping onto the lighthouse’s balcony, he sets it down and opens it. Within is a small drone two feet wide and four feet long. Unfolding its wings, he sets it down and turns on the screen of its controller. “Using the drone, sir?” Delta-012 studies it. “What do you think it is?” John lets out a sigh. “It could be Citadel activity, rival survivor groups fighting for control… or rouge robots mucking about.” He turns on the drone. It hums to life. It's four propellers spin at high velocity as they create lift. Hitting the throttle, it takes to the skies. “Let’s see what it could be.”