//------------------------------//
// 11 - Gaeaopolis 
// Story: Re:Harmony 
// by starcross7 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 11 - Gaeaopolis
 
“Gizmo. Gizmo.  GIZMO!”
 
The scrawny, bespectacled, and cream-colored pony bolted up after enjoying his nap underneath a stack of papers and tools.  He came face-to-face to a poster-sized sketch of a robotic mare in a sultry pose, illustrating her pushing down her yellow skirt that an invisible wind pushed up. 
 
“Gizmo, get out here!”
 
The pony fixed up his lab coat and stepped out of his own personal, albeit messy workshop of mechanical legs and torsos hanging haphazardly from the ceiling on hooks and piled onto shelves and tables.  Once the door slid open, he immediately came face to face with his stern supervisor, Professor Covalent Bond. 
 
“Good lord, every time I come look at your workshop it's a mess! Never mind that, the Chancellor herself is coming to do an inspection. I hope your ’Roboponies’ will work unlike last time.”
 
“Oh-ho, I am confident this time,” said Gizmo as he pushed his taped glasses back towards his eyes. 
 
The two stallions walked through automatic sliding doors and into a large central hallway that had a curved cylindrical glass ceiling.  Above them in view were all the stacked rows of caged pens containing all sorts of creatures, whether natural, chimeric, and utter abominations in all different sizes.  Manticores roared, monkeys rattle cages, and frightened mountain lions huddled to the corners as indifferent Clone Soldier in white lab-sterile armor marched up and down the maze of crisscrossing catwalks. 
 
Bond and Gizmo passed through the main entrance door, passing through another via a sally port that served to disinfect ponies going in and out--and to trap any would-be escapees and intruders inside.  Steam-cleaned off any possible germs, the two stallions arrived at the massive and pristine lobby where a gray mare with a beautifully brushed dark mane sat with her lab coat draped over her body.  Gizmo did not expect to accompany Dr. Octavia as part of the representative entourage, and he quickly fixed up his own brown mane and glasses, and hoped that his pimples were on their best behavior.
 
"Dr. Octavia," said Bond.  "So glad you came in such short notice.”
 
“From the looks of things, it must be another inspection,” replied the dour gray mare.
 
“I hope your findings will sway them should Gizmo’s fail. Ah, here they come."
 
The primary entrance doors into the lobby whirred and split open, and in stepped a gruff and muscular stallion with a flattop mohawk along with a handsome blue stallion with an orange mane.  The two were flanked with a total of eight personal Clone Soldiers, four for each of the President-Advisers. 
 
However, the most important visitor in question was nowhere to be seen. 
 
"Greetings President-Advisers Teddy and Lancer," bowed Covalent Bond.  "You honor us with your presence, but I must ask about the whereabouts of our Chancellor."
 
Teddy spat into a nearby planter.  "Posey isn't feeling good today, she sent us to watch over your sciencey stuff.  Let's get this over with."
 
"What about Ace?" asked Lancer. 
 
"The jerk is probably hitting up on some mare on his way.  Let's just forget about him."
 
"I'm here!" cried Ace, who slid into the lobby.  His black uniform appeared a little disheveled.  Upon seeing Octavia, he plucked a comb out of Teddy's flank pocket and quickly fixed the stray hairs on his blonde mane. 
 
"Anyway," said Teddy after rolling his eyes, "shall we?"
 
Professor Bond showed the three President Advisers down the same glass ceiling corridor where, to them, was almost always a new sight every visit.  New creatures had been captured, and some zipped to and fro across the massive holding pen inside shiny metal cages.  Young scientist ponies rode in hover carts trying to wrangle these creatures with the help of their accompanying Clones Soldiers. 
 
"Okay poindexters," said Teddy.  "Supposedly this creepy lab was supposed to be developing a--what was it called?  A Robopony?"
 
"Indeed," said Bond.  "Our esteemed researcher has revised his findings to further develop a more suitable prototype." 
 
They arrived in a designated research chamber where a lone technician had been busy hoofing through the smooth and glassy gesture keyboard at one of the computer terminals at the corner.  In the center surrounded by a raised ring on the ground was a robotic manifestation slightly larger and bulkier than the largest of all stallions.  The robotic pony had a single mechanical eye that tracked across its face in a black slit when the technician began its initial activation. 
 
“This is Deep Blue,” said Bond.  “The first in a series of roboponies designed to create a perfect soldier to aid in the war effort against the pegasii.”
 
“Yeah, sure, that's great and all, but what does it do that our Clone Soldiers doesn't already do?” asked Teddy. 
 
"And how much does it cost to make?" Ace asked.  This was typical as President-Adviser of Economic Affairs. He needed to be in the loop of all the overall financials of Gaea, or at least pretend to be.  He was no degree-holding economist, and that was why he hired ponies to do all the thinking.  Besides, there were probably a lot more bureaucrats more incompetent than he was. 
 
He shifted his eyes at Teddy, President-Adviser of Information Control.  If anything, that lunkhead was the worst at keeping the lid on confidential information. 
 
"Gentlecolts," said Doctor Octavia, "if I may offer up my findings, the creation of the Clone Soldiers, while cost-effective, is but a short-term solution.  Do know that we are currently using a synthetic creation of the Mirror Formula for our cloning vats, which in of itself is a magical creation of the Before Times.  If we are to create a purely non-magical society, should we not invest in a solution that relies solely on technology?"
 
"I like this mare," grinned Ace.  "Continue on."
 
"Indeed," and Octavia cleared her throat as to regain her composure from such unneeded flattery.  "The process of cloning requires a brave soldier who have served in numerous battles to be immersed in the formula.  However, there have been times that aberrations have occurred that dwindled the effectiveness of our fighting ability.  The originator may have had a traumatic experience during the battle or before his enlistment that would carry onto the Clones, which may manifest with varying results.  Let us not the forget the possibility of the Clones developing free will and join the Rebel Cause despite all the mental conditioning we have put them through.
 
"We have also calculated that if we maximize our current production of the Mirror Formula, we can only create up to five hundred Clone Soldiers per month.  That's if we have all the supplies and infrastructure at our ready disposal." 
 
"Hey, can I get your number?" Ace asked. 
 
"President-Adviser Ace, my number is listed in the directory."
 
"I meant your direct line to your office.  Or would you prefer to give me your private home number?  I know you're allowed to have one for, ahem, top secret communications."
 
"Cut that out," said Teddy.  "Don't make this worse than the boring lecture I just listened to."
 
"That's an awful thing to say!  Can't you see she has done important work for our country?"
 
"Have you even listened to one word she just said?"
 
"Something… about… Roboponies?"
 
Teddy groaned.  "Okay, is this thing battle-ready?"
 
"Ready and willing," said Gizmo. 
 
"Good.  Lancer, fight that thing."
 
"Is that really necessary?" asked the blue pony.  "We have our Clone Soldiers to do that."
 
"You don't want to disappoint the Chancellor do you?"
 
Lancer grumbled and waited as the lab technician activated the lock release of Deep Blue.  Cables and shackles blew off the robot's body, and slowly but surely it whirred to life. 
 
Teddy wasn't impressed, and he yawned in indifferent disappointment. 
 
"Gizmo," whispered Bond.  "I thought this thing was battle ready."
 
"Just give me a second."  Gizmo drew out his wrist-mounted pocket computer and traced a command gesture on its touchscreen. 
 
Click-clack. Deep Blue finally took a few steps out of its holding ring, but its slow and clunky movements did nothing to excite anypony.  Even Lancer started to get bored, and he then sat on his haunches waiting for the robotic menace to challenge him to combat. 
 
Teddy rolled his eyes, and he marched over to kick the machine with his hind leg.  Deep Blue then whirred and whined before toppling stiff over its side with little or no effort.  Gizmo's jaw hung at the total lack of regard to his creation, and he ground his teeth as he stared at the jock of a President-Adviser. 
 
“See?” Teddy cried.  “This is just a dumb hunk of metal!”
 
"My apologies sirs," said Bond.  "Perhaps the results from the teleportation experiment will please you.  Doctor, what are your findings?"
 
"Subject 616 failed the latest experiment we prepared for him," Octavia replied flatly. 
 
"What?  Okay, then how is the Alicorn waveform decryption progressing?"
 
"We are unable to decode the second set past twenty-five percent."
 
"Looks like this was just a waste of time," said Teddy.  "Brothers, let's go."
 
"Wait sirs!" Bond cried.  He chased after the three President-Advisers and their entourage, leaving Gizmo and Octavia alone with the technician, who quietly left the chamber about a few seconds afterwards. 
 
"Those dumb, ungrateful jocks," growled Gizmo as he struggled to raise the downed Robopony back to its metal hooves. "They kissed more than just hooves to get where they are to serve that Clipper Chancellor."
 
"Try not to say such things," said Octavia.  "Even in here they might be listening." 
 
"Let them listen!  Do you know how many times I submitted to the House my plans of a Robopony Phalanx?  Non-conductive armor, and weight to withstand pegasii wind attacks.  I even have plans to merge them with our fighter jets to give them more of an edge than our current pilots.  It should be me that should be winning the war."
 
"I am sorry that my assistance in programming the mental waveforms into Deep Blue have failed you."
 
"Oh no, I'm not angry with you.  I'm angry with Posey and her lazy government frauds who aren't putting as much support into our research."
 
"Yes, our research has helped off stave off pegasii for the time being, but is this what we are meant to do?  These experiments?" 
 
"You said it yourself.  We need to wean ourselves fully from leftover ancient magic in order for us to rely solely on science and technology."
 
"That is true, but is it necessary to subject these creatures to such torturous experiments?"
 
"Why shouldn't we?  Half these creatures are magical and the other half are abominations.  The evolutionary records indicate that they should have not have existed."
 
"And who are we to judge?  In the Before Times, ponies existed as feral animals.  Surely there is a missing link between them and us in the modern era.  Perhaps we are no different than the creatures we are imprisoning."
 
"You don't believe that Twilight forced the evolution of ponies, do you?"
 
"I'll reserve my judgment until I find evidence to the contrary."
 
"Well it doesn't matter anyway because it's back to the drawing board for the two us.  Say, you wouldn't happen to be free tonight, would you?  I mean, I'm betting Professor Bond is going to make us work overtime without pay again, but maybe we can go to a cafe and grab a snack before he breathes down our neck again."
 
"I'll pass."
 
"Are you sure?  I'll make sure the workers brew us the best coffee.  Not the junk we get from the supermarket.  I mean the good stuff from Saddle Arabia."
 
"I have to go now."  The gray mare headed out. 
 
Rejected.  Again.  Ah, Octavia.  A perfect specimen of genius and beauty.  She turned heads everywhere she went, and it was only her dour demeanor that stopped many stallions from making further advances. 
 
That Ace.  That lunkhead of a President-Adviser of Information Control.  Gizmo would prove those jocks his prowess soon enough.  He turned around and stared at his latest prototype, Deep Blue.  Then he kicked it. 
 
"He is right, though," he said.  "You are a dumb hunk of metal."
 


 
 
As usual, Twilight became the first to wake once the Brotherhood Express reached a full stop at its main destination.  Climbing up the ladder to the upper bunk bed, she found Applejack whimpering and twitching.  She had been doing that ever since they left Sewer Town. 
 
Poor Applejack.  There were so many things Twilight wanted to say and do to comfort the troubled earth pony, but the mare in question had too much pride to admit that she had problems sleeping.  She did wake up to find her traveling companion staring at her like concerned filly daughter. 
 
"You're doin’ it again," said the orange pony. 
 
"Sorry, but I was worried we won't get off on time."
 
"Well, I'm up.  And don't tell nopony."
 
"Who would I tell?" asked Twilight. 
 
"Exactly."
 
From their room and out of the first class car, Twilight and Applejack stepped into a warm if not sterile marble monorail station where almost everypony moved with the utmost order in front of the regular watch of soldiers.  The station took on a dome shape, which in of itself lied underneath a greater dome that covered one of Gaeaopolis’s many important government districts.  Here, one could not help but pass by the flag of Gaea hanging off almost every wall.  On some of these walls were framed propaganda posters praising the pure ponies, the earth kind, as well as the valiant soldiers on battlefield and the hardworking laborer at home. 
 
Outside the station, the streets were perfectly clean, and even the haggard street sweepers appeared clean.  All the buildings carried the overall shape of bare and basic geometry, with spherical roofs on many, and blocky buildings merged into and on top of one another.  Airships powered by electricity floated lazily inside the domed city where the walls purposely had so many glares and reflection to give the illusion that Gaea was the most peaceful country in the entire world. 
 
After what Twilight had experienced so far, this place was all but a facade for the city's denizens to fool themselves. 
 
One could still admire the technology of efficiency. The hover cab Applejack hailed was completely driverless, and the electronically programmed voice asked them on what destination they desired to be.  Once boarding the twin seats, the two mares rode on the automated vehicle that was as quiet as it was speedy and safe. 
 
“I never thought this would be such a beautiful place,” said Twilight.  “It’s sad to think that the ponies outside are living in fear and poverty.”
 
“Actually, the ponies in here are the most miserable,” said Applejack.  “They constantly have to put up a perfect face in front of everypony because one slip up, and they're gone. They don't care about the ponies livin’ outside.”
 
“Oh, so they get demoted in class?” 
 
“They disappear.  Luckily, the fake IDs we got came from two ponies who fled Gaeaopolis before they were punished for makin' a remark that Posey is a pegasus clipper. Who knows where they are now, but if you ask me, we won't have time to idle around if we want to get that Alicorn thing.”
 
“This lab we’re heading to; what’s its actual name?”
 
“The one we’re goin’ to is codenamed Tartarus 01.”
 
"Tartarus?  As in the underworld Tartarus where the evil creatures have been imprisoned during the Before Times?"
 
"I ain't sure if those legends are true or not, but the stuff the Government put out from the labs might as well be evil." 
 
“So we’re going in now?”
 
“Not yet sugarcube. We’re gonna stay in a hotel and wait until midnight to enter the lab.  There should be less ponies there.”
 
“Are you sure we’re doing the right thing?  I mean, breaking in and stealing?”
 
“I don't like stealing as much as you do, but it’s not like we have a choice in all this.  They’re the ones who stole our loved ones from us, and no amount of takebacks is going to bring them back.  I’m at war against the Government, if not the entire country.  I don't care what ponies will say when I am long gone.  They may call me a thief, or they may call me a hero.  All I know is that I am doing what is right and just not just for myself, but also for my family, and all those who are victims of Gaea.  Besides, they stole your pa, bro, and your best friend.”
 
“If it helps to prevent more evil, then I guess it’s not wrong to steal something dangerous away from them.  I hope we can pull this off.”
 
“You’re only with me ’cause I got half your soul in my Element of Truth.  If you ever get cornered and convicted, just say I forced you to assist me.”
 
“I won't lie like that Applejack, and I would never abandon you.  I wanted to come to the surface anyway, and the only clue to my father and brother’s whereabouts lie in those labs.”
  


 
 
Compared to the lodgings of Sewer Town and Ponyville, Twilight and Applejack stayed in what could be best described to be a mansion.  Though exhibiting the same sterile minimalist design as the rest of the district, their suite contained many generous, if not superfluous amenities like hoof-carved wood furniture, wool rugs, a Jacuzzi, a full-size refrigerator stocked up with food, and a flat screen television in each room.  For safety and cost reasons, the two mares could only afford one night. 
 
The suite she stayed in was a small library filled mainly with political books, mainly manifestos and the like, including another copy of A Brief History of Gaea, the same exact edition that she read on the night before and had dutifully returned before leaving the monorail.  In the instant the title caught her eyes, she recalled the kind of lies Gaea was teaching to all of its young foals. 
 
In A Brief History of Gaea, famine had plagued the earth pony tribe, forcing them to leave their original homelands for fertile grounds.  They had met obstacles along the way until they reached the land that would soon become Gaea.  Initially, the three tribes of earth, pegasii, and unicorns brokered a deal that would share the continent between all three.  However, the assassination of Chancellor Puddinghead destroyed the alliance, and Smart Cookie was executed for betraying him. 
 
Twilight did recall from Applejack there were rumors that the unicorns had manipulated Smart Cookie into assassinating Puddinghead, but in the book she read, Smart Cookie willingly worked for the unicorns out of his own greed.  The version Applejack told was that there was the written history the Government put out, but also whispered history designed to instill fear in all earth ponies to remind them of the deviousness of unicorns.  Twilight wasn't sure if Applejack knew the truth, or had learned the truth from her Element necklace.  She surmised that the Element truly did not reveal everything to its bearer, lest she becomes omniscient of all events.  Such power would have already overwhelmed her by now. 
 
The little history book seemed to have downplayed any mention of religion or any importance of magic.  It depicted pegasii and unicorns as evolutionary abominations, and the alleged extinction of the unicorns was not caused by a fear of a prophecy, but rather a prolonged war that lasted hundreds of years.  The book failed to mention anything about Twilight, First Unicorn or prophesied agent of destruction. 
 
Before resting Twilight started on a book titled Posey: an Official Biography.  Twilight did not get much sleep after she read through almost half of Posey's biography, and when she woke up, she could only recall Posey being painted as a tragic figure who rose up from up rape and humiliation from pegasii barbarians to become Gaea's ace pilot during the country's many border skirmishes against the winged nation.  Twilight saw Applejack was up and active, and she could see the furrowing disgust on her face when she found the unicorn's hooves on a falsely glowing tome.  Silently, Twilight put away the book and joined her companion for an outing into the city to scope out the entrance to Tartarus 01. 
 
The building, despite being in the most beautiful districts of Gaeaopolis, appeared decidedly plain.  Aside the from the barb wire fence, security cameras, and a few guards posted at the gate, there was nothing to identify the building other than the terse “T-01” painted on the side and the guard post.  Ponies passed by without giving a glance at the lab’s entrance, even as military vehicles and limousines passed to and fro from the entrance. 
 
Midnight eventually came, and both Twilight and Applejack had an exceptionally filling meal before donning their government uniforms for their operation.
 
The dome district in the night remained clean and brightly lit.  Through the thick and latticed glass ceiling, the Mare in the Moon kept watch over Twilight and Applejack, who trotted right up to the guard as if nothing was out of the ordinary.  The two mares displayed no emotion as the guard, a young rookie stallion, checked and double-checked their fake IDs. 
 
“So,” he began, “what business do you two have in this hour?”
 
“Why in the hay are you asking?” retorted Applejack.  “Doncha' know we’re doin’ top secret government work here?”
 
“But you’re inspectors.  I must ask what exactly you are inspecting.”
 
Applejack sighed.  “If you must know, we’ve been investigatin’ allegations of unpatriotism and we were given a tip that it originated here.”
 
The guard shifted his eyes left and right, and leaned from his post towards Applejack's ear. 
 
“If you ask me,” he whispered.  “It was that Gizmo fellow.  Three President-Advisers stormed off, muttering about Roboponies not working or something.  Besides the cute Doctor, he really likes Roboponies.  You can keep a secret, right?  Gizmo seems to be unhinged, and I don't want to be eaten or blown up by his experiments.”
 
“Don’t worry yourself comrade.  We’ll make sure he gets what he deserves for spoutin’ unpatriotic dribble.”
 
“I never liked the creep anyway.  See if you can haul his flank away to Rock Prison.”
 
“Will do.”
 
The guard raised the striped barrier, allowing Twilight and Applejack to pass through with unusual ease.  The two mares remained silent until they boarded the incline elevator leading deep down towards the main entrance. 
 
“You weren’t usin’ your magic were you?” Applejack asked.  “Like some kinda voodoo hypnotism on that guard?”
 
“Just the one hiding my horn.”
 
“This is just weird. They should have magical-detection devices put in place with their sensitivity turned up.  Either they forgot to pay the power bill or they must be waitin’ to ambush us.”
 
“Shall we go back?”
 
“We made it this far, and there’s no turnin’ back.  We’ll face whatever past them doors over there and let loose.”
 
“I thought we were trying to sneak in.”
 
“Call it a hunch, but something ain't right here.”
 
At the end of the elevator ride, they came before a large double-gated door that whirred open upon their presence.  Applejack expecting to face off against soldiers, clones or otherwise, so she transformed her necklace into her katana.  Likewise since Applejack activated her magical equipment Twilight dropped her horn-hiding spell and prepared for a possible assault. 
 
They charged in and then immediately slid to a halt in shock.