"You're nuts if you think we'll just give up like that, pal," Rainbow said as she got close to his mobile device. It sent a small current of electricity into her to knock her back. "Wah!? Oof. Hey, ouch. That was uncool. That hurt."
"Well, it's about to get even more uncool if you intend to be persistent." The doctor then pressed a button, the entire factory roof opened up, and a vast bird-like machine rose from it. Dr. Bruner approached it and placed his mobile device into its head like a control terminal. "This beautiful creature of advanced engineering is called the Bruner Albatross Excavator."
"Tia. I understand that we're not supposed to like this guy. But that thing is soo cool!" Luna was gawking up at the marvelous mechanical beast above everyone.
"Luna. Time and place. Now, it is neither of the two. This is your last chance to concede, Dr. Bruner. Or we must bring you down!" Celestia then went for an opportunity to use her magic. But each blast had only bounced off of the shiny exterior of the flying metal bird. "W-What?! That thing is immune to magic?"
"Is that what you ponies are calling that stuff? Interesting. Nice light show, by the way, didn't do a thing to my Albatross, but points for effort."
"Celestia. If magic will only rebound off of its exterior, then why not try to use it to restrain that thing instead?"
"Well, that is not a bad idea. But how can we do that, Twilight? Flying will only bring us up to its level, but we'll get shocked if we ever touch it."
"Y-Yeah. I learned that one the hard way." Rainbow then tried to shake it off. "Great, singed feathers. I'm going to need to get good preening after this."
"I'll turn you all into a crater before that happens. Missiles away!" The doctor gave the order as a volley of guided missiles was aimed at the ponies below.
"Oh no. Everypony, gather up to me, now!" Celestia then raised her golden-yellow shield to block all his missiles; it was enough to crack her magic, making her flinch. "Grr."
"Are you okay, Celestia?" Twilight asked in obvious concern.
"Yes, Twilight, I am. But I definitely cannot keep tanking those." The Bruner Albatross then changed its position as it fired away beams of energy at the ponies below. One of the beams sliced through a nearby tree, causing it to fall over Fluttershy as she stood there, shaking like a leaf.
"I got you, Fluttershy; hold on!" Rainbow swooped in to grab Fluttershy right as the tree slammed down, narrowly avoiding it as Fluttershy hugged Rainbow. "It's okay, Fluts, we got you." Rainbow then looked up at the Bruner Albatross and scowled.
"Fun fact: This baby was designed for excavations, not combat."
"Could have fooled me, being immune to magic and being armed to the teeth like that," Celestia said with a rugged and stoic look.
"Wait, Celestia, let him fire his missiles again." Twilight started as she looked at Applejack. "You got your lasso ready, Applejack?"
"I always carry my rope with me; why?"
"Twilight. I hope you know what you're doing here. I will admit, those things gave my magic a beating."
"What is she planning down there?" The doctor muttered under his breath as he readied his missiles again. "All missiles at the ready! Open Fire!" Another volley of missiles then shot out as they headed toward the ponies.
"Applejack, use your lasso on one of those missiles and return it to sender! If we can penetrate his hull, our magic may hurt it."
"I'm on it, Sugarcube." Applejack's rope caught one of the missiles as she spoke through the string in her mouth. "H-Here you go, you nasty varmint! You can have your missile back!" Applejack then flung the missile back into the bottom of the Bruner Albatross, making a small hole in its steel belly.
"Gah!? No way! How did she do that? The hull has been breached!" This caused him to retreat, "Fall back and assess the situation, Bruner Albatross!" It beeped to affirm its new order as it backed away from the ponies.
"My goodness, that plan worked." The short brevity slightly overtook Celestia before focusing on the current task: defeating their new enemy. Rainbow Dash then looked at everyone and grinned.
"Hey guys, let's try something new cause I'm still mad about my singed feathers. Twilight. All of you channel your magic into me. I don't know if this will work, but it should be enough to total that metal bird."
"So you're suggesting we charge you like a magical battery?" Twilight asked her friend.
"Yeah, then I'll spear right through that thing; it will be awesome!"
"You know that too much magic at once can be dangerous for you, right?" Twilight was unsure if this was a good idea.
"Well, it's either that or get blasted to a pulp by those." Rainbow pointed at the new volley of missiles headed straight for them.
"Everypony! Duck!" Rarity screamed as they did, and the rockets flew right over them and blasted down a few trees.
"Okay then. Stand at the center, Rainbow; we got you." Twilight, the other elements, and the two princesses have joined to charge Rainbow's body. Incredible amounts of energy coursed through her body all at once, making her go into a new form; her mane was more prolonged, her fur was merged with the colors of a rainbow, and her magic aura was brimming with energy. Rainbow-colored static was coursing through her body as well.
"Holy hay! This feels so awesome! Alright then, Doc. I'm coming to get you!" Rainbow then wasted no more time as she darted for the hole Applejack created onto the Albatross's belly.
"W-What in the name of- She's aiming right for the hole they made. Oh no." Rainbow's body then impaled the Albatross as it was about to explode and fall apart. "Aaaguhhh! My machine is totaled. It's time to abort. Eject! Now!" The doctor then released his mobile pod from the head of the broken Albatross as its body was falling and threatening to cause massive damage.
"Hold on; we got this, Everypony." Luna and Celestia had corralled the falling bird into their magic as it exploded. It was enough to break their magical hold, but their magic was also enough to shield the blast. Then, they saw Rainbow chasing after the fleeing doctor.
"That was for the singed feathers. And this is for being a jerk!" Rainbow then rushed to the doctor to deliver a kick to his machine.
"No! M-Mercy!" With a crash, her kick sent the Bruner Mobile flying away with him in it. "Augh! I-I can't believe I just lost!" Then, all they saw was a tiny star in the distance. Rainbow then floated back down as that power left her. They all cheered for her.
"Omigosh, omigosh, omigosh! Rainbow! You bounced him away like big ol' steel and titanium-alloy beach ball!" Pinkie was hopping in place.
"Um, Pinkie. How did you know that the machine was made from titanium?" Twilight asked her.
"Um... just a lucky guess," Pinkie said nervously.
"Well, the good news is that he's been dealt with. Unfortunately, My little ponies, I do not believe this will be the last we'll see of that Doctor Bruner. If he ever returns, we must be ready for him." Celestia said with confidence and concern.
"Then, we'll all work together and send him flying away again, just like last time." Rainbow then bowed to Celestia, to which she returned.
"Sure. I suppose we can always do that, Rainbow." Celestia returned Rainbow's comment with a giggle of her own.
"So then, I suppose we can go about the rest of our day now that he's been dealt with. Tia, wasn't there something important you needed to do today?" Luna asked her sister.
"Oh, ponyfeathers, that's right. Luna and I have to go and see to a diplomatic meeting with the chief of the Griffon Kingdom to maintain our peace ties with both places."
"It's alright, Celestia. Do what needs to be done. I can always continue my lessons next time."
"I'm so sorry, Twilight. We would have started today. But what with our little skirmish with the doctor and such."
"Don't worry about it, Celestia. I'll go and find something else to do with Spike. Oh, that's right, he's still at the castle, right?"
"I do believe so, Twilight."
"Well then, I better go and get to him then. He's probably scared out of his mind right now."
"Or probably bored and sleeping." Rainbow butted in.
"Or maybe that, too." They all left the factory back to the workers, defacing the doctor's symbol on the side of the building and snickering.
"Aaaughhh!? Oh! Oof! Ouch! Guh!" The doctor hit branch after branch as he plummeted inside his Bruner Mobile. "Oh man... my aching head. How did they trounce my precious Albatross? It was designed for excavating, sure. But it was still strong enough to turn them all into pulp. This makes no sense. They haven't seen the last of me, that's for sure." Then he opened his glass window, rolled out of it, and ran to the nearest bush to vomit.
"Hey, Twilight. There you are. So, did you get that weird guy?" Spike saw Twilight enter with her friends and the two princesses.
"Yes, we did, Spike. He goes by the name of Dr. Bruner." Twilight said to the drake as everyone gathered to rejoice in their victory.
"The dude was a total loser. He threatened Fluttershy by nearly crushing her under a tree. Oh, and Rarity, as much as I hate to say it, I think I may need to have a.." The Rainbow sputtered a bit.
"Yes, Rainbow? I know what you'll say, but say it anyway."
"A-A spa day with you." Rainbow got that out with extra difficulty on her end. "But only just preening my wings, okay? None of that girly stuff."
"Oh, Darling, please. Do you think that I'd do anything to make you uncomfortable deliberately? You wound me sometimes."
"I'm going to tend to an Apple Family banquet, then work on the zap apple harvest."
"I'm going to go help Pinkie finish with her pastries. I promised Angel Bunny a piece of carrot cake for his good behavior lately."
"Oh, and before we leave Twilight. Here's both the most recent issue of Magic Anomalies and You. And a study guide for the few spells I wish to teach you this week. Tomorrow, we shall get together to study." Celestia set the books down with her magic as she and Luna left the Throne Room.
"I'll be sure to develop a new plan next time. And an even nastier machine. I do learn from my mistakes, Ponies." The doctor had more schematic data chips to build upon the new land. "I'll be sure to create laboratories all over Equestria in preparation for the worst-case scenario. Next time we meet, I will be victorious!"
The doctor then used a small radio to summon those three robots that weren't yet destroyed as they had to take the trip to their creator. Once they did, however, the doctor then got to work by drawing up new schematics for new bases at choice-specific locations around the country. "Yes, I'll be very victorious next time."