Patterner appeared in midair above the arena. Clearing his throat, he commanded the attention of the Actuator candidates below,
“Due to recent events, a position among the Actuators has opened. Earlier today, an irreplaceable MAGI known as The Haze Lord was lost just outside of our borders. Its pilot, one Hazel Ray, perished due to unknown causes at the same moment. The test will therefore be quite simple. It has since been recovered and is presently aboard Nidhogg. Whoever is successful at synching with it shall keep it, immediately becoming its Actuator.”
Murmuring broke out from the audience assembled below, but were quickly silenced by Patterner’s instruction.
“Let this be a warning to you. This machine is perilous. Since its construction, almost two hundred have attempted to pilot it. Only a quarter were successful. About ten of the failures recovered after years of intense therapy, but the majority either died or went mad. While this path is an impossibly rare shortcut, it is a shortcut that could cost you your mind or even your life. Ponies seeking to take this path are asked to please notify me when they next see me. With that said, the next match may begin.
Also, due to accusations from some ponies, coughNexuscough, that I’ve been neglecting my duties to toy with the candidates, I’ll be acting as announcer for this match.”
With a hiss, a door opened in the side of the arena and a red Icarus model strode out. Mounted to its forelimb, a smoothly contoured shield protruded.
“Our first competitor is the daughter of the President, a filly who can trace her lineage all the way back to Prince Blueblood! Let’s hear a round of applause for Boiling Blood! She is in the arena today with her custom Icarus-b, a high mobility type!”
Emerging from the opposite wall, a misshapen machine floated into the arena. It’s body was lined with thick cables, which stretched outward from the almost spherical central body. Gently glowing shards of metal tipped the cables, tearing at the air like some strange octopus.
“From the outskirts of the newly rebuilt Fillydelphia, we have a good, old-fashioned colt. If you would, please welcome Iron Wing! Due to blatant favoritism by a MAGI developer, he will be piloting the prototype Non-Equine model, Aether!”
Floating higher, the Aether launched one of the jagged shards of metal toward his opponent, cable whistling behind it.
“And Iron Wing starts on the offensive!”
Smoothly transitioning onto its hind legs, the Icarus parried the attack. However, the shield bulged and bubbled strangely as the metal scraped across it. Jettisoning the shield, it slipped closer.
“For the uninformed, the Aether is a testbed for the new HEE system. Anything that it touches it flooded with a particularly nasty form of magic. It’s more than capable of boiling metal.”
Using it’s greater mobility, the Icarus danced and spun with impossible grace, barely dodging the whiplike blows of it’s opponent. Each dodge brought it just a bit closer to its opponent. With a crack, a shard scraped against its shoulder, causing the attached forelimb to explode violently. A guttural scream followed the severed limb to the ground.
“And it looks like things might already be drawing to a close. That injury looks pretty much unbearable.”
With a gentle thump, one of the shards hit the ground, sending sand flying everywhere. From the center of the cloud, crunches and crashes emanated, interspersed with cries of pain. Chunks of glass, fused from the melting sand by the Aether’s fury, slammed into the walls. Finally, silence reigned in the arena.
“It would seem that we have a winner.” Patterner chuckled.
Slowly, it stepped out of the rapidly dispersing cloud. Long gashes and halfway melted metal littered it’s wrecked form, but it still stood tall. Impaled on its broken sword was the head of the Aether.
“And in an upset, Boiling Blood is the winner! Iron Wing is eliminated.”
As Mobile Armor sat up, groaning, Twilight began speaking, exasperation evident in her voice,
“You know, I’ve been trying to tell you about your grand quest for the past hour. And what do you do? You faint. Not just once, either. Oh no. You did it almost ten times. Could you at least make up your mind? Are you going to go mad from the revelation, or just get over it already?”
“Now, now,” Patterner interrupted, “Driving ponies mad isn’t something you should be doing. That’s my job.”
“I think I’m ready now,” Mobile Armor mumbled, sounding anything but. Rather than trying to get up, she simply rolled over onto her back, staring blearily at Twilight’s metal face.
“Are you sure you’re not going to go unconscious again? Last time, I was halfway through telling you when you fainted again.”
“Yes. I’m sure.”
“Then let me begin.” Twilight tapped the floor, green runes radiating outward. They coalesced into a screen, which floated gently in mid-air.
“Over the last few weeks, Equestria has been suffering from an attrition within our forces. no less than ten generator towers have fallen, most recently Tower 23, The Pike of Uranus.”
Flickering gently, an image of the broken tower appeared on the screen. Raw magic still poured out of it. Most of the stone had burned away, leaving the ruin precariously balanced on a thin column of stone.
“We cannot endure this kind of punishment forever. Tiamat seems determined to destroy us, and there is very little we can do to stop it. Your quest is quite simple. Celestia and Luna are hidden somewhere outside of Equestria. You have to find them.”
Mobile Armor slowly got to her feet, then asked a pointed question, “Did you really have to mess with my perception of reality like that just to send me off on a quest like this?”
“Yes. My reasons are simple. I am sending The Haze Lord, The Mournful Lover, and The Inverse Logic with you. Listen carefully. I’m only going to give you these instructions once. First travel down the mountain to Ponyville. On Moon Street, you will find a shop, The Cosmos’ Requiem. Tell the owner I sent you and he will give you the tools and supplies you will need. You’ll need to convince the army that you’re going to fight for them, so head for the front lines. Once all three machines are ready, Nidhogg will shut off for one minute. Use that minute to escape. After that, you’re on your own. Do you accept this mission?”
“Stop being so serious, Twiley,” Patterner interrupted, chuckling, “You make it sound like it’s impossibly urgent.”
“Don’t call me Twiley. Only my brother gets to call me that. It’s bad enough that you got everyone calling me Nexxy.”
“I’ll go,” Mobile Armor announced, slowly striding toward the door, “Any further instructions?”
“You’ll need the pilots of the two MAGI that are to accompany you. Patterner will see to getting you your machine ready. This mission is not a secret. Tell your companions. Try not to let the army learn about it, though. They won’t be happy about losing three of my machines.”
With a dull boom, the door closed behind Mobile Armor, leaving the pair alone.
“You don’t really think they’ll find them.” Patterner stated.
“Of course not.” Twilight answered, slowly donning the guise of Spiral Nexus, “They’re really looking for something else. It’s nothing that you would understand. Suffice it to say that if they knew what they were looking for, they would never find it.”
“And what if, by some strange chance, they find the two alicorns?”
“That’s impossible. I was there when they died.”
Iron Wing’s every sense screamed at him, burning in the aftermath of his defeat.
“So. How did dying treat you?” Patterner whispered into his ear.
“How do you manage to always be around when I’m at my worst?”
“It’s one of the perks of not having a physical body. I can pester anyone all day, every day. But let’s get down to business. Do you want to try piloting The Haze Lord? If not, I’ll see you out of the tower.”
“I’ll pilot it.”
“How about a bet?”
“What would it be?”
“If you pilot it, you win.”
“Sounds good. From what I understand, if I fail, I won’t need trifling things like money.”
“Very straightforward. I appreciate it. You remind me of Luna. I always loved her way of pretending red tape didn’t exist. She would always ignore my riddles and cut right to the chase. I never could quite stop her.”
As he rambled, Patterner’s form blurred and shifted, slowly settling on the shape of a crimson draconequus.
“Are you finished?” Iron Wing asked, stepping back into the circle.
“Yes. For what it it’s worth, I hope you come back alive.”
With a flash of blue, Iron Wing went limp.
He opened his eyes and found himself standing at the center of a bloody battlefield. Broken bodies were strewn across the landscape. In the sky, gouts of flame heralded the fury of an angry dragon. Examining it more closely, he witnessed a chilling sight. An entire city, floating on a cloud, was under siege. At least as much as such a massacre could be called a siege. Screaming pegasi struggled to escape attacking griffons, only to be mercilessly dispatched. Others scrambled to hide within the crumbling city, only to have their hiding places exposed by the brutal blows of the hungry dragon. Shuddering, he ran for the nearest building with any semblance of structure left, hoping to go unnoticed by the battle above.
“Where am I? I wasn’t aware of any floating cities,” he wondered aloud.
“The fall of Cloudsdale. It was the single most bloody battle in Equestrian History,” a voice announced from above. Though unable to distinguish details, he could make out a pony attached to the ceiling by thick chains.
“How did I get here?”
“You wanted power, I would assume. You will be given two chances to give up.”
“Give up on what?”
The roar of a dragon interrupted him.
“There is an innocent out there. He will die soon. Will you prevent it?”
“Of course.”
“Why?”
“Because it is right.”
“So you are loyal to morality? What about your own life?”
“There’s no time!” Iron Wing shouted, rushing out of the ruined house.
He found himself back where he started.
“Why are you so desperate?”
“You told me that someone is about to die!”
“But what does one more death matter. You would probably die yourself. One loss is better than two.”
Iron Wing bolted again, finding himself back in the room, staring at the dangling pony.
“Why are you so desperate? Why do you insist on throwing your life away?”
“Because nobody’s life is worth less than my own.” he stated, fleeing the room one final time.
He emerged just in time to see a dragon let loose a tongue of white-hot flame, almost striking another lost pony in the desolation. Without so much as thinking, he seized a spear and charged toward the dragon., only to break the shaft on the dragon’s hide. Looping around, the beast prepared to unleash his molten fury.
“Run!” he shouted at the startled pony.
Gritting his teeth, he waited for the searing heat, only to see the dragon dissolve into nothing.
The chained pony hung in the air before him again.
“The path you wish to follow will lead you to places worse than this. It may even demand your life. Are you sure you wish to proceed? Now is the time to turn back. If you do not, you will die.”
“I must.”
“Then do so with my blessing.”
Lightray groaned, forcing himself to open his eyes. Throbbing pain shot through his head. Examining the room, he realized that he was in a medical center. Beds lined the walls, completely unoccupied. From his right, a voice spoke,
“Can you see me?”
Hoarsely, his voice grated forth, bringing a stabbing pain with it, “No.”
“Interesting,” the voice commented, “Apparently you can’t see out of that eye.”
Panic shot through his limbs, showing itself even more in his voice, “What do you mean?”
Slowly, a nurse stepped into sight. Her age was apparent from a white mane and deep wrinkles, “I mean that whatever happened back there is unprecedented. When they carted you in here, I saw something new,” Slowly, she lifted a mirror, allowing Lightray to stare into his mismatched eyes.
“What happened to me?”
“Patterner showed up with you about five hours ago. According to him, you were piloting a MAGI. I don’t kn-”
The rest of her statement was cut off by something stirring in the back of his mind. Before he could stop himself, the words came out, “The Mournful Lover.”
“Is something wrong?” the nurse asked, alarm apparent on her face.
Still entranced, he mumbled again, “It was The Mournful Lover.”
With a click, a door opened, revealing the eternally cloaked form of Spiral Nexus.
“What is his condition?” she asked.
“Outside of being blind in one eye, nothing seems to be wrong.”
“Then you may go.”
“But-” began the nurse, stepping forward in alarm.
“You may go.” Nexus pressed.
“No!” The nurse shouted, stepping between Nexus and the bed. A circle of green runes sent her flying from the room.
“Now. We’re alone. You have questions. I have answers.”
Comically spinning, Patterner appeared in the air above her, “Stop being so serious.”
“What happened to me?” Lightray demanded, ignoring the distraction.
“The machine you were graced with is probably the most powerful MAGI ever constructed. She is not kind. Indeed, She demands a price. However, despite Her demands, She is powerless to take from you what has not been given freely. She asked for sight and you gave it to her without thinking. I only wish that was the limit of what you gave. You are bound to The Mournful Lover until your dying day.”
“If it was so dangerous, why was I given such a gift?”
“A number of reasons. First and foremost, it was a test. If you survived, if She wanted you, your dream would have been fulfilled instantly. A machine of Her caliber is impossible to pilot by anyone who has not been chosen by Her. Simply because of your ability to become Her Actuator, you would have been accepted into the army without question and given remarkable autonomy.”
“I sense a but,” Lightray said impassively.
“We have a smart one this time!” Patterner shouted gleefully.
“Because of events beyond anyone’s control, I have been forced to advance a plan I was not ready to carry through. Your condition is not irreversible. I’m ready to offer you a bribe.”
“What would that bribe be?”
“I am about to send a group out on an impossible mission. I wish you to join them. Help them however you can. However, your goal is very different. When they finally give up, your true mission will begin. Your task is to bring them and any companions they may gather back here, alive. When you return, I will free you from Her encroachment. Do you accept your task?”
“Of course.”
Patterner stopped spinning, shouting, “Blast it! I thought he’d faint at least once!”
“Pay up,” Nexus chuckled, catching Patterner’s grudgingly thrown coins, “Your companions should arrive sometime today. Be prepared to leave tomorrow morning.” Nodding at Patterner, she asked, “I can trust you with the rest?”
“Of course.”
As Nexus exited the sick bay, the general stood waiting. Chuckling, he gestured to a pair of guards, who slammed Nexus into a wall.
“I can’t prove anything, but I think I know who you are. What I can prove, however, is your treason.”
“Then tell me,” Nexus answered, surprisingly calm considering the spears leveled at her, “What treason?”
“You have undermined my authority on at least three counts, withheld information from us essential to the war effort, and are now plotting something potentially disastrous to Equestria. Anything but the words ‘I surrender’ will be taken as hostility. Any hint of magic, and the guards will run you through. ”
“It would seem that it’s time to remove myself from play. I bet you thought you were checkmating me.” A spear cut through the air toward her throat, “Your opponent is one of the greatest machines built by Twilight. The Sixth.”
With a sickening crunch, the spears embedded themselves in her body, revealing delicate magical arrays. At the machine’s core, a massive, star-shaped amethyst gently glowed. Nexus burst into laughter.
“You win, General. I will leave play for a few centuries. However, you have ultimately lost. I already achieved my goals, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
Green runes slowly appeared on the floor, changing into continuous lines of violet. Piece by piece, the machine broke down, converting itself into more of the violet light, which quickly faded into the floor.
“What just happened?” one of the guards asked, “That wasn’t normal.”
“We underestimated our opponent.”
“Sir!” shouted another guard as he ran into sight, “The magic jammers you ordered set up!”
“What about them?”
“They’re all ruined. The word ‘Checkmate’ is burned into them.”
The general blanched, shuddering with pure fury.
“I will find you, Nexus,” he whispered, “And I will drag you back here. And I will make you regret ever daring to toy with me.”
Mobile Armor stood on the platform as it slowly spiraled down into the bowels of the tower. Suddenly, the shaft opened up. Almost forty feet away, she could see the opposite wall of the cylindrical hollow. Every so often, a set of doors would flash by, some larger to accommodate MAGI, while others were obviously intended for more organic inhabitants.
Suddenly, the wall gave way to a smooth glass front, allowing Mobile Armor to examine the proceedings behind it. At various points along the massive room, magic arrays were laid out. The center of each slowly extruded smooth metal. Other machines quickly assembled the parts. An entire Icarus model MAGI was created from nothing in the time it took her to pass the room.
Slowly, Patterner materialized on the platform.
“Things have started going downhill,” he announced, almost mournfully.
“Are you being serious or silly?” Mobile Armor asked, not sure if she believed him.
“I mean that I will soon have no choice in the matter. Nexus is gone. She was usually the only one who put up with my antics.”
With a shudder, the platform stopped before a featureless section of the wall. A set of violet runes etched themselves into the smooth plating, revealing a hidden door. Patterner placed himself between Mobile Armor and the door, uncharacteristically foreboding words spilling forth.
“I would like your attention for a moment. The machine behind this door was sealed for a very, very good reason. It was once part of a greater being, one who broke free of His shackles near the end of the war three hundred and fifty years ago. He was thrown down and bound again, but fear had been seeded in the hearts of the ponies who locked Him away. They lacked a successor, and war was looming once again, assuring His freedom within a few years.
Thus, out of desperation, they tore his mind from his body and banished it into an inescapable prison. However, his body proved uncontrollable and lashed out instinctively. After years of struggle, they finally managed to shackle it’s power to their will, but in doing so, they lost one of their number. In the end, the beast of madness was ruled by humor. Even as they controlled Him, He devoured Laughter, dragging it with Him in His final defeat. That is the power that lies behind this door. Insanity and Euphoria. The Inverse Logic. I’ll ask you this one time, are you sure that you want this door opened? You may never be able to close it.”
“You said that my aunt is gone?”
“That would be correct.”
“Then I will not allow her planning to go to waste.”
Stepping through Patterner’s unreal body, she shoved open the door and stepped into the darkness.
“I’ll see to setting the stage,” Patterner called after her, dissolving into red mist.
Slowly, he re-materialized before the face of the general.
“I was wondering when you would show up.”
“I have important news for you.”
“What is it?”
“Nexus let me in on a piece of her plan. She dug up two of Twilight’s creations.”
“Two?”
“The Inverse Logic was buried near the foot of the tower. As of now, it has an Actuator.”
“What did she plan to do with the MAGI?”
“Restore the kingdom.”
“And you have some way to thwart it?”
“Use what you have been given. Send them to the front lines. With four of Twilight’s monsters, no army would ever be able to break through. We could go on a true offensive for the first time in months.”
“And you have no regrets about betraying her?”
“None,” he announced truthfully. In his mind, the thought echoed, Because I would never betray her.
A/N: Sorry for the considerably heavier chapter. It'll get lighter next installment, I promise.