//------------------------------// // It Follows You If Attacked // Story: Cybernetic Wanderers // by Echo Derp //------------------------------// "Ron? How are you here? The Guard didn't get you?" "No. The Guard cannot even defeat two simple creatures or me." Dinky tried to conceal herself as much as she could behind Sparkler's left leg. But there was one thing she noticed about the cyborg. One very certain thing: he was damaged. Dinky remembered he looked fine the day before his disappearance; not a dent, not a scratch, not a part missing, but now here he was battered and wrecked. Ron began to take a few steps forward to the family. The Hooves and the Doctor began to take steps back from the malicious machine. "Ron, can we talk about this in a friendly way?" The Doctor nervously suggested. The cyborg kept on getting closer, the family retreated more closer to the TARDIS, but Dinky came out of her 'hiding spot', and stood in place as the family moved away. Derpy's instantly noticed her youngest daughter standing right in front of the monstrous machine. She felt all the motherly instincts scream in her body. Her filly was in the face of danger and it was a paren's duty to protect their children at all cost. So she immediately flew at full speed and landed with a thud in front of Dinky. "Mom. Stop what you're doing," Dinky surprisingly shouted. "Muffin, run back with your sister and the Doctor. Now," her mother solemnly back. Ron didn't stop his advancement, Derpy stood brave against the cyborg that had death built into it, since the beginning it was built. Dinky came up to her mother, and stared at her directly in the eyes. The filly could see all the terror in her, but all so the bravery in her too. She knew her mother would stand up against Ron. "Mom. Stop what you're doing. I can handle this." "Muffin, No. Run. I'll- I'll... Hold him off..." "Mom, please trust me on this. He'll listen to me." Derpy still stared at her filly petrified. But her daughter had a slight reassuring smile on her face. Derpy didn't know what to choose: believe in her daughter or stand against a cybernetic monster from another world. The choice was nerve wrecking. The grey Pegasus stared between Ron and her daughter constantly. Ron got closer, and that made her panic more. "Muffin, I believe in you." Derpy made a blind choice. Dinky smiled a tad wider, then approached the machine. "Ron!" She said in a strong voice. "I wish for you to stop what you're doing." Her voice went back to her normal tone, but with a hint of sadness. The cyborg took another step forward, then came to a halt. Thunder boomed and lightning stroked across the gloomy sky. The rain slightly eased up, but still had a strong effect. Dinky felt her heart race, she knew what could happen if she angered this machine, but she still kept a brave stance against himv her nerves were like daggers pressing against her. "R-Ron...why are you doing this? Why would you do this? Are you... Evil?" "Child, remove yourself out of the path. The Doctor is what I need, not you or anything else." "Why him? He hasn't done anything wrong." "HERETIC, STEP ASIDE. I WILL NOT BE INTERRUPTED." Dinky was stunned to hear his sudden change of voice. Ron sounded like he had three voices at once. The cyborg started to take more steps forward. Dinky stayed in place, she wouldn't allow the metal monster come close to the Doctor. Another spider leg slammed to the ground with a thud, then another. Ron was just a few meters away from the filly. Then Ron stopped directly in front of her. Derpy couldn't do anything but watch in pure terror as her daughter stood against death. Ron lifted a spider leg up in the air, and placed it right above Dinky, so when he dropped it—it would mean the end of Dinky. "Ron, you wouldn't dare. Because we're friends remember? You promised." Dinky shot daggers at the machine. "I would dare..." Ron was about to drop his leg when the sudden voice of the Doctor interrupted him. "Stop!... Ron, if you wan't me, then... I accept, just don't hurt her. Dinky, please move out of the way." Dinky did as what the Doctor told, and stepped out of the way. The filly caught up with mother and sister, who kept close to each other. The Doctor slowly approached the cyborg, but Ron came charging toward him. Whooves wasn't able to detect on this time, and was knocked down to the ground with brute force. "Now I have you. You are going to comply what I say," Ron grumbled at him. "I know your device here is capable of many great things." Both Ron and Whooves stared at the TARDIS. Whooves was completely stunned, there was no possible way the cyborg could have detected the time machine, yet he knew. "How the heck did you know about it!?" "Days before this, I detected massive energy waves from this area. The morning I 'disappeared', I spotted the machine, and the energy originated from here. Simple." "Wow. I didn't see that coming," the Doctor thought out loud. Then glared at Ron. "But that doesn't mean anything." "You have the capability to travel anywhere in the galaxy and to other places nothing has ever gone before." "And I didn't see that coming twice..." Ron leaned in closer to Whooves, with a metallic leg creeping upon the pony's neck. "YOU WILL TAKE US- ME BACK TO THE HOMEWORLD, OR ELSE." Ron pressed his leg slightly into the Doctor's neck. Whooves was stunned, but also confused by Ron stuttering when he said "Us", but that didn't really concern him. The Doctor was about to give in to his demand, but suddenly glared at the cyborg. "Why should I listen to you?" "EXTINCTION FOR ALL THIS PLANET REMAINS IF WE ARE NOT TRANSPORTED BACK. Few shall remain alive for they have helped Nod. The end remains for those who oppose." Ron began to press down even more against Whooves neck, which almost appeared close to cutting in. The Doctor felt the razor sharp leg slowly making its way into his neck. "STOP!" Dinky cried out in a loud voice. Everypony and machine instantly stared at the filly. "Ron! Just let him go! There a better way to this!" She yelled at him. "Dinky, do no interfere with me. Your father is being ignorant and shall die by the power of Nod if he does not help us," Ron replied back. "Well, my dad isn't going to help you! My dad will never help anyone like you!" The Doctor stared at Dinky bewildered. She just actually called him her "Dad". Whooves couldn't help but wiggle a smile in a joyous way. He continued to glance at the filly, then gaze at Ron. "I would never give in to you," he grumbled. The Doctor grabbed the sonic screwdriver, which he grabbed when he unlocked the TARDIS and kept it hidden, and used it against the cyborg. Only a small spark flash from the Ron's chest. The cyborg didn't even falter by the device. Whooves used the device again as he realized there was no effect on him, but again no result. "Huh!? That's not possible! You can't be unaffected by it! But maybe." Whooves stared at the gaping space between Ron's neck and shoulders, he smirked as he saw an opportunity to escape. "Take this!" The Doctor jabbed the sonic screwdriver into the cyborg. Ron roared in pain and let go of the Doctor as he felt many electrical currents surge through him. Whooves noticed the cyborg was going to stumble back, and immediately acted to remove the device before he lost the chance. He we about to grab the screwdriver when Ron suddenly lashed a fist out to attack him, but Whooves evaded it and grabbed the device from him. "Everyone get inside! Uhh... I mean- everypony get inside!" He yelled at the family. The Hooves immediately fled into the TARDIS. The Doctor ensured they entered, then he immediately followed behind. The Doctor enter the time machine, but he stared at Ron and slightly frowned. The cyborg was still being effected by the device even though it had been removed from him. Vains emerged from his human sides. Electrical currents could be seen coursing around him like streams. But one thing caught the Doctor's eye: the green glow in Ron got brighter. It glowed brighter and brighter, until the currents subsided and Ron was no longer in pain. The cyborg turned around at Whooves and began to charge at full speed toward the TARDIS. Whooves immediately shut the door on him. "Well he's not going to break through this-" THUD The Doctor winced when he heard Ron pounding against the TARDIS' doors. He smirked as he knew the machine couldn't break through. Nice try... THUD THUD "OPEN THIS DOOR, INFIDELS!" Ron roared in his bizarre demonic-like voice. "Nope. There is no way possible way I'm going to open the door for you. Besides, you're too big to get in here anyway." THUD The Doctor calmly trotted over to the Hooves family with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. He's not going to break those doors." he said. "Now let's get out of here and go somewhere safer." Whooves immediately began to powerup the TARDIS. The sound of a Ron pounding against the door boomed inside the time machine. The noise sounded like the cyborg was going to break through in any moment. "Doctor, are you sure those doors will hold-" THUD "-him for sure?" Sparkler wasn't able to complete her question first by the sudden thundering sounds. "Yes. They'll hold him back. I guarantee it," the Doctor assured while he started up the TARDIS. On the outside, Ron was full of rage as the doors to the time machine would not falter by the continues brutal beating by him. He punched the blue doors with his metal fists, the doors wouldn't open. He then began to slam his left shoulder against it, which seemed to be doing a bit more damage than his hands, but still no result. "OPEN THE DOORS OR DIE LIKE THOSE I HAVE ENDED!" Ron then lifted both front spider legs, and began to slam them against the TARDIS. Nothing even appeared to damage the TARDIS, this really began to irritate the cyborg. "YOU WILL FACE JUDMENT, PONIES! Huh?" Ron's legs slightly penetrated the door. He smirked behind his metallic faceplate, and prepared to strike again as he saw progress being made. But his legs wouldn't move – they were stuck in the door. Ron grunted as he desperately tried to remove his jammed legs, but he started to hear strange noises from inside the TARDIS. "What are they doing in- Ah!" The TARDIS disappeared from Equestria ********* "We made it. We got away from that machine." The Doctor sighed in relief as they nearly escaped the mad cyborg. Sparkler and Derpy smiled at each in joy, but Dinky stared at the door with a frown. Whooves noticed this and trotted up to see what was wrong. "Dinky, is there something wrong? You don't look happy." Dinky glanced up at him. "Did he really mean all of that?" She lowered her head down in discontent. "Why does he want to get us so bad?" Whooves understood the filly was confused and lost. He knew the answer why the cyborg acted so violent and brutal, but decided not to explain the real answer her, instead tell a slightly 'better' explanation. "Dinky...?" Dinky looked up at him with a small tear brimming in the corner of her eye. "Y-Yes?" "When something from another world ends up where it doesn't belong, it'll try to seek its way back where it came from. It could take a long time to return or just a short while. Ron, along with his companions, are creatures just trying to find a way back home. But let's just say he's a bit more- Uhhmm... 'frantic' to return." The Doctor garnered a small smile. Dinky returned a meek smile and sighed. "I guess you're right. Everything does want to go back home if they get separated." "There you go! But I'm sure he's just frustrated, since he's stuck in Equestria. Now let's go outside and see where we are." Whooves made his way toward TARDIS' doors. "Is everypony ready?" He looked back to ensure everything was fine. The Hooves smiled and nodded. Whooves acknowledged this and put a hoof against the doors. "Well lets go then." He opened the doors and stepped into the bright light outside. The Doctor smiled, but his smile instantly faded away and froze in place. The Hooves also came outside, and stopped behind him. "Doctor? Is something wrong?" Derpy asked, concerned. "I think we're in the wrong place," Whooves replied. The Hooves took a few steps forward, and their eyes went to the size of pinballs when they realized where they were. The land was just a wide desert. A clear blue sky floated above them, but above the horizon, smoke rose from the ground and covered the air with dark clouds. Dinky took a step forward, but almost slipped over an edge. "Woah!" "Dinky!" Her sister cried out. Sparkler used her magic to catch the filly. The TARDIS was on a cliff edge. The ponies looked over the edge, and stared down at the area below. Just sand and dirt blanketed the world. Not a single sign of life was visible, but only the smoke rising appeared to be the only life. "Doctor, where are we exactly?" Sparkler asked, then looked up to the dark blue, clear sky. "Because it looks like nothing lives here." "I don't know what went wrong. But let me see if I can find another place." Whooves returned back inside. The Hooves family remained outside, observing the unknown world. The wind blew softly and disappeared down below, the sun was bright but there wasn't much heat casting down. "I wonder how long we're going to be here," Sparkler said. "Hey look." Dinky said. Derpy and Sparkler glanced over to her. "There's something flying up there." Dinky pointed a fore hoof at an object soaring through the sky. Sparkler squinted here eyes to get a better look at what it was. The object appeared very small due to its high altitude. It had a tubular body, two large wings and smaller ones in the back, with two objects attached to the large wings. And it was also leaving contrails behind. "I wonder what that is." "I don't know, but it looks like it can go higher than pegasi." Then suddenly, explosions boomed out of nowhere. The Hooves huddled together by the frightening sounds. There was also loud noises that sounded like bangs or multiple firecrackers exploding. "What's going on!?" Dinky yelped, she got closer to her mother. "I don't know! It's coming from everywhere!" Derpy replied back to her filly. A large howling sound was heard coming from the sky. The ponies looked up and saw an unimaginable sight: A massive machine flew overhead. It looked just like the other object that flew high up. But there were was two triangular-shaped, smaller machines accompanying it by its sides. "What is that thing!?" Sparkler shouted in disbelief. But then the three objects soared over the wide desert floor below, and a carpet of explosions trailed behind below. A large column of dust clouds moved across the land, but there was another approaching ahead of it. The clouds stop and revealed a continuous line of objects. Explosions and fire began to consume one another of these things. "Doctor!" Derpy yelled at him. "What is it?" "Get out here now!" The Doctor galloped outside by the dread her voice. "What's going on!?" He gasped loudly when he saw there was a wide-scale battle happening right before them. His eyes couldn't count the number of objects flying in the air, or the commotion happening far below. Derpy couldn't believe what was happening, a battle was literally in front of her. But it wasn't an ordinary fight between ponies with their weapons, this was beyond that. A projectile screeched a few meters from them, and struck one of the objects flying in the air – It was spiraling toward the ground out of control. A small explosion was seen, and a figure flew out of the machine. Then a parachute emerged and it gently glided downward. "Doctor! We need to get out of here- Wah!" One of the projectiles that shot down the machine, landed close to Derpy. A loud humming sound could be heard coming from behind, then it flew over. A bizarre machine, that was colored in a woodland camouflage design, was making those sounds. It dived below and segments of light came forth from the tip of its nose. "I don't like what's going on here!" Sparkler yelped. The ground suddenly started to shake. The sounds of machines rumbling filled their ears with fear. Dinky glanced over to the right and saw bulking machine rolling in close of the edge. The machines were marked with logos of the head of a dragon and a red star. They suddenly stopped and began to deploy, surprisingly legs, and cannons raised up. They fired and a small projectile could be seen flying out of it. Bright explosions filled the desert below with destruction. "Doctor! Let's get out of here!" Derry yelled. "Way ahead of you!" He replied back. The ponies galloped back into the TARDIS, but stopped dead in their tracks when a large shadow loomed over them. The shadow belonged to the death they tried to escape from—Ron. Sparkler turned pale and nearly fainted. Derpy and the Doctor's jaws hung. Dinky simply frowned at the cyborg. "R-Ron? How-How are y-you here!? You weren't inside the TARDIS!" The Doctor stammered. The Reaper was perched on top of the TARDIS like if a bird. He appeared as a silhouette by the sun positioned behind him in the sky. His red eyes glowed in his shadow. "Your machine dragged me along by my legs getting caught in it. 'Wonderful, isn't it'?" He said sarcastically. "But nevermind that, I would like to welcome you to Earth. Where nations live on their own accord." "Ron, if you're back home. Then stop chasing us!" Sparkler yelled at him angry. "I'm not exactly 'home'." We're not even on the right Earth." The humming sound of the flying machine was heard again. Ron saw the aircraft and recognized as "A-10 Warthog". The A-10 flew by, but swiftly came around and began heading toward them. Ron knew what it was going to do. Whooves saw the cyborg distracted and galloped into the TARDIS with the family. Ron aimed his last remaining launcher, that was badly damaged, and fired at the plane. A missile struck the Warthog on the right wing, and spiraled for the ground. The pilot nearly escaped and parachuted downward. But then a bright flash illuminated the sky and a giant beam of light striked the earth; it evaporated anything caught in its path. Ron couldn't help but enjoy the carnage of the weaponry on the battlefield. The TARDIS began to make the strange noises again, Ron slammed his spider legs again the blue box, so he can travel wherever it went to. But then he heard helicopter blades approaching. He turned around, and saw the sleek and stealthy Commanche gunships. They fired their rocket pods at him and the time machine, but the TARDIS disappeared on time. ------------ "Alright, I think we lost him for sure." "You better be right." Sparkler grumbled. Whooves opened the doors, with caution, and nervously poked his head out to make they were clear. He glanced up to make sure Ron wasn't present with them, and the machine wasn't there. "Well that's good..." The Doctor turned around back at the family. "It's clear. He's not with us." He made a reassuring smile. They stepped outside to the new location they were in. "Woah..." the Hooves said in unison. They were on top of a snow-covered mountain, the afternoon sky shined with all the glittering galaxies and stars. Nothing appeared to disturb the tranquility. The cold air swiftly flowed across the mountain but this did not bother the ponies. "Doctor, where are we?" Derpy asked, mesmerized by the breath-taking environment. "Somewhere safe. That's all I can say." Dinky stared down below and saw an alien forest that wasn't covered in snow or ice. Wow... If I told any pony about this, they wouldn't believe me , Dinky thought in her head. The wind howled louder through the vast mountain range. Three small alien birds flew by, making chirping sounds. They were in a navy blue feather color with streaks of violet. Had two large, roundish orange eyes, and a fork-like tail. They circled around the ponies a few times, then headed straight up and disappeared into the air. "What birds are those?" Derpy asked, intrigued by their appearance and sounds. "They look so beautiful." "I'm not sure what they're called but all I know is their harmless," Whooves replied with a smirk. "Hey, Doctor?" "Yes, Dinky?" "What lives down there?" The filly pointed at an unkown forest at the base of the mountains. The Doctor put a hoof to his chin as he thought what could've possibly inhabit the area. "I don't know. Perhaps we can go explore it later." "Hey, look. This plant looks wierd." Sparkler observed a chrome-colored plant that grew out from the snow. She reached with a foreleg and gently nudged the plant. It felt like metal. " Well that is just weird." Sparkler raised her eyebrows in surprisment. Derpy stared off into the alien world, she was fascinated by its design, but then she caught a glimpse of dark purple and blue structures perched on another mountain across a frozen valley. "Doctor, I see buildings over there." The Doctor trotted over to her and also noticed the mysterious structures. There were two broad structures, one towering one, then another that was vertical but had wires, or two antennas. "Derpy, I'm not sure what those buildings are, but I think we she should take a quick look to see what they truly are. Derpy nodded her once, the Doctor trotted back to Derpy's two daughters, and said, "Dinky, Sparkler, me and your mum are going to investigate something real quickly. We'll be back soon, but if anything happens while we're gone... You get inside the TARDIS until its clear outside, understand?" Both sisters nodded their heads as a response. The Doctor then went back to Derpy. "Alright, let's go." "Should I just fly you over, or should we just trot?" Derpy suggested. "Hmm...I guess we can get there quickly by flying, so yeah." "Okay!" Derpy happily replied. She grabbed the Doctor and pulled him up in the air with all her strength. The Doctor smirked as they gently soared over the frozen world. The wind sounded like wails and echoed across the land. Whooves glanced up at Derpy who smiling as they went to investigate. He chuckled inwardly as he saw Derpy in a brighter mood than before. Then he narrowed his eyes back onto the unknown structures. Now they started to appear more clearly. "Derpy, land us near the edge of the mountain." "Okay!" The grey Pegasus lowered her altitude and dropped the Doctor where he instructed her to land. The Doctor dropped himself off, the snow kicked up where he landed. Derpy came next and swiftly landed by his side. "Well done, Derpy. That was some graceful flying." Whooves was surprised by her flying, since she was a bit clumsy at it. "Thanks, Doctor." She made a wide grin at him. "Well then, let's get going." The two ponies made their way up the mountain. The wind got a tad stronger and created the journey more difficult, but the two pressed on, despite the troubling weather. Derpy looked up and saw an Aurora peacefully waving above, with it's endless display of lights. Woah... I wish I can see that in Ponyville, but you have to go north to see those lights. The Doctor also glanced up the path, but not see the stunning display of light, but rather by the strange sounds up ahead. Then suddenly, two indigo-colored objects flew over head. They looked like ovals but turned sideways horizontally. But the body was slightly larger than the wings. Two thin, neon purple trails of light came from the back of the objects while they flew. Whooves was surprised by this, but then he realized they were aircraft and saw them heading for the TARDIS. "Derpy! They're heading for Dinky and Sparkler!" "What!?" Derpy let out a small shriek of terror. Her two daughters were in danger. But the aircraft curved two the left and headed for another direction. Both ponies sighed in relief, and continued on with their after they ensured the objects were gone. The two finally reached the top, Whooves cautiously poked his head above the edge before they proceeded. His eyes widen as he saw the large structures up close, Derpy also had the same reaction when she also leaned her head out to see. "Doctor... Who built this place?" "I don't know, but it looks empty." There was not a single sign of any personnel in the area. The place was almost free of snow, but few patches remained scattered, now it was just green grass. The two broad structures were directly ahead, just ten meters away. They appeared organic but it was a strange metal. They were constructed in a circular square design, and indigo colored. There was four platforms at each corner; two turned outward, and two turned inward, toward a glowing orb hovering directly in the center of the hollow structure. Whooves looked up at the platforms and realized they were landing pads, or stations. "Derpy, those platforms above maintain those objects that just flew over us. I think two are only operating at the moment." He noticed the second building had all the platforms facing inward, which meant nothing was active. But the orb seemed to be the only thing active. The two quietly went around and checked around the corner to see if there was any personnel or creature vigil. "This is really strange. There's nothing here, it's like a ghost town," Derpy whispered to Whooves. "I know. There's nothing even out here," He whispered back. But the two companions quietly gasped as they saw a towering structure up ahead. Same color as the buildings they were right next to, design was a bit more 'smoother', was the tallest out of all them. It had, or what it appeared to be legs around it. Lights were at the flat tips of the legs, and in oval-shaped, dark patches around the structure. A tubular-like object was on the side, and curved upward. Kind of like a large pipe. But a glowing light and humming noise emitted from the inside of the building. "Doctor, do you hear that?" "I do. It sounds like if its alive or something, but let's get a move on before anything else can happen." The two ponies trotted over to the tall building, and went around it to see another unknown structure. This one had the two antennas on top. A blue dot was in the center of it, surrounded by odd designs that went upwards. It was smaller than the rest, but appeared operational by the swaying antennas. Whooves observed the strange movements, until noises that sounded like bugs scurrying came from behind. "Huh?" The Doctor turned around to see what the sound was. "That's strange... I thought I heard something." There was nothing in sight. Just the two buildings that housed the aircraft and the towering structure was there. The Doctor raised a suspicious eyebrow at the sudden sound. "Derpy did you hear that?" "Hear what?" "That noise, it sounded like large insects moving." "Nope. I didn't here anything. Hey what's that?" Whooves turned around and saw Derpy looking at something to the left. His eyes went wide like blowing balls as he stared at a massive creature. It was a tripod creature by the three legs it had, but the legs appeared like large shields at the ends of it. The body was mushroom-like with a large, clear blue eye. On top of the head, which was like the body at the same time, were three extensive arms, or tentacles, with a crescent part connected at the end of its limbs. "Doctor...? What is that thing?" "Derpy... Whatever it is... It does not look friendly at all. The ominous creature had its back turned at them. It constantly made wailing sounds and its body slowly swayed. Derpy stared at the giant with dread and curiosity at the same time. It looked gentle and peaceful as it remained still by the towering, humming building. She couldn't help but make a smirk at it. "Doctor, it kind looks friendly, well despite its appearance and height." "Derpy, you can say whatever you want about it. But I think we should really get out if here now." "Okay. But why are the floating light thingys turning into large thingys?" Whooves turned over at the structure that contained the platforms. The floating orbs inside suddenly turned large in size. Then suddenly a beam of purple and white light appeared next to the aircraft buildings, and a small arch-like structure emerged . There was also an orb in, but then also expanded. Another stucture appeared in the same light. It was just like the arch structure but the upper area was missing, and widely expanded to the sides. An orb also appeared and followed the exact steps as the others. "Doctor, I think this place is coming back to life," Derpy said in fear of the sudden activity. Whooves was about to react to what Derpy said, until a loud, combined roar and wail boomed behind him. The two ponies nervously turned around, and saw the tripod creature looking down at them. The tripod continued to gaze at them, until a massive portal suddenly appeared from behind it. The Doctor and Depry frantically began to take steps backwards to escape. The portal then evicted massive aerial war ships and the same oval-shaped aircraft from earlier. "Derpy! Let's get out here!" The Doctor yelled. Derpy grabbed the Doctor and began to fly away from the death trap of mysterious alien creatures. "Woah!" A beam of plasma energy almost struck the two companions. Whooves looked back and saw the tripod firing plasma beams from the crescent parts on its tentacles. The small aircraft also began firing plasma bolts at them. One of the war ships, that appeared like a bug and spinal cord combined, released a swarm of razor sharp, crescent-like aircraft at them, too. The oval aircraft emitted ghostly howling and screeching sounds, and more of them also joined the chase. "GO! GO! GO!" the Doctor screamed as a plasma bolt came a few inches away from his right. The TARDIS was in sight, Dinky and Sparkler could be seen watching the commotion in terror. The two sisters immediately entered the TARDIS, and waited for their mother and Whooves to enter. Derpy began to lose control of her flying as more plasma bolts and beams came flying at them. She aimed for the door to land in, but instead came crash landing inside the blue box. Sparkler instantly shut the door, and began to take in deep breaths to calm herself down from the conflict. Dinky hugged her mother on how frightened she was, and her mother too returned the hug. Sparkler could hear the phantom and ghost sound outside the TARDIS' doors. It sounded like more of the aircraft arrived. She made a quick peek out the door and saw the massive warships stationed above. The sky was no longer beautiful and glittering, but now obscured by dark storm clouds and howling winds. The warship that contained the crescent fighters was artificially creating a storm. Sparkler immediately shut the door when bug creatures, that were actually on the ground, came rushing at the TARDIS. "Doctor! There's also some of them on the ground and coming toward us!" The TARDIS and the ponies escaped the deadly and mysterious alien threat before they could've done anything horrible. ******** "Okay! THAT IS ENOUGH. We've been almost destroyed two times. TWO TIMES... I am not going to go anywhere else, unless you actually have a safe place for us to stay. Not 'Oh, look it's safe, then suddenly getting attacked by random things from whoever knows where they come from!' I rather get chased by Ron rather than bug creatures with flying ships! Sparkler yelled at the Doctor. The Doctor frowned in discontent at his failure of taking the Hooves family somewhere safe, but instead endanger them even more. "I'm sorry- I'm sorry! The TARDIS isn't working properly for some reason! But the planet we were back on ago was safe when I first arrived on it. But now I guess something else thrives on it. Something powerful..." The ponies then stared at the door. Some of them didn't even dare to even check where they were or step outside. The fear of getting ravaged by another alien force, or caught in the midst of a war was high. But one pony dared to challenge the odds, and that was the unicorn, Dinky. The filly slowly trotted over and stopped in front of the door. "Dinky! Don't you dare go outside!" Sparkler shouted. Dinky took in a deep breath and heavily sighed next. "I know we're all afraid but we have to be brave." "She's right. I'm not afraid to stand against up against whatever lies beyond the TARDIS." Whooves came up next to her with a reassuring smile. Derpy also smiled and flew next to her youngest daughter. "You're right... We shouldn't be afraid of bad things." She nuzzled her filly; Dinky let out a small giggle of joy. Sparkler slightly smiled and trotted over to her family. "I guess you're right." She began to playfully run her little sister's head. "We should face our fears." "Alright then. Let's see where we landed this time." Dinky and the Doctor cautiously peeked their heads out first to ensure the surroundings were clear. Dinky's eyes went wide with joy and awe when she realized where they were... ...They were back in Equestria. The sky was clear, the sun shined brightly over the peaceful lands, not a single storm cloud was in sight like when they barely entered the TARDIS to escape the Nod cyborg; it was just like a normal day in Equestria. Dinky came galloping out, and began bouncing in glee for they have reached home. The Doctor couldn't help but grin at the happy filly she was. Derpy trotted next to him and smiled in content. Sparkler exited out last, but didn't garner a smile or grin – Not even a smirk. She saw that even if the day was brilliant, something didn't make sense. When they left, the rain was pouring with thunder and lightning, but now it was clear like I'd nothing had ever happened. Sparkler came around the TARDIS, then quietly gasp when she realized where they were. "Guys... I think we landed in the wrong area of Equestria." "What do you mean?" Whooves asked. "Look." Sparkler pointed at the hedges and at a sign above an arch gateway, that stated, "Canterlot Sculpture Gardens." "Oops. I guess we're not in the right place. Well, I guess we can go look at the sculptures for awhile." The Hooves and the Doctor trotted toward the gardens to see the magnificent display of sculptural creations. The place wasn't really occupied with visitors – Few ponies were visiting at the hour. Dinky smiled at the endless display of sculptures. So many in shapes, designs, and sizes. The Doctor smirked while he saw a family pass by, appearing happy by the art. The place and day was almost perfect. No sign of Ron, or any of the other Nod brutes. The Hooves turned around a corner and stopped as they stared at very familiar pegasi. Derpy raised a suspicious eyebrow at the pegasi, then her lower jaw dropped in utter disbelief. "Soarin', and... Rainbow Dash the Wonderbolt...?" Rainbow and Soarin' were wearing the proud officer uniform of the elite flyer team. Just like the one that Spitfire wears when she trains the cadets. Derpy eventually found out Rainbow was in training to be one, but never knew she actually made it on the team. And Spitfire was there, too, and next to a small filly that looked similar in Dinky's age. The Pegasus filly had a light blue grey coat color, and magenta eyes. Her mane and tail was a navy blue color like Soarin's, but had the colors of baby blue, too. "Dad, what is that thing?" the filly Pegasus filly asked, she was specifically looking at Soarin'. "That is a monster. A mechanical monster from the another world," he replied back, frowning as he remembered what the sculpture in front of them was capable of when it was free before its imprisonment. The Hooves and the Doctor trotted closer to the pegasi. Once they got close, they all couldn't believe who was the frozen art: Andy. The Cyborg Commando was a sculpture in the Canterlot Gardens. He still had an intimidating look, despite his frozen state. His pose was simple: His free arm placed firmly to the side, and the arm that had the plasma cannon was also facing downward to the side, then the cannon aimed forward. "This is unbelievable," the Doctor said, completely bewildered at what he was witnessing. Sparkler and Dinky looked to the right of Andy, and saw one of the Nod humans also turned to stone. While the Hooves were completely lost and confused, the three Wonderbolt pegasi, and the filly, continued to observe the statues curiously. "Hey, Soarin'?" Spitfire asked. "What is it?" "Remember how that one was capable of going invisible?" Spitfire pointed a hoof at the human statue. "Oh yeah," Soarin' made a slight smirk. "...That was horrible." He then glared at the Chameleon spy. The Pegasus filly, who was the daughter of Soarin' and Rainbow Dash, looked up at the human statue amazed. "Auntie Spitfire, that thing was able to go invisble?" "Yup, kiddo. That 'thing' had the ability to disappear out of sight whenever it wanted to." "Pppfftt... You guys act like if he was dangerous. This mechanical monster nearly took my life and you dad's, too"! Rainbow shot daggers at the Cyborg Commando. She remembered on that day, when it was just her and Soarin' talking, then the Cyborg coming out of nowhere and destroying the whole academy. "Woah... Is this true, Mom?" The filly asked, shocked by the unbelievable story. "Yes, Aurora. This all true what we're telling you." Spitfire continued to gaze at the sculptures, memories began to flood her mind like a storm. All the images of the past , that involved Nod, pained her. But she then remembered a certain creature that spoke to her about the future and a powerful organization: The Reaper. It remained scarred in her mind; never detaching from her. Spitfire glanced to the left of the human sculpture, and read the sign on a large pedestal: "Will be displayed when found." I wonder where that human went... The pegasi moved away and exited to the right. The Hooves got closer, and stared in awe. Their enemies were turned to stone, being displayed in the famous Canterlot Sculpture Gardens. They continued to observe, until a voice from behind interrupted them, "A tragedy I must say..." The ponies slowly turned around as they easily recognized the voice full of terror and death. Ron was standing before them, but wasn't in gesture that he wanted to kill, he was in a more gloomy appearance, but that wasn't noticeable for obvious reasons. "RON... HOW THE HECK... DID YOU FOLLOW US?" The Doctor shouted in a annoyed voice. "I explained to you on how I travel with your machine. Simple." The ponies backed away to escape their relentless nemesis again. Ron stayed in place, staring at his frozen companions. "How unfortunate that they lost the battle in the past." The Reaper looked to the right to see the family of pegasi. He saw the two wonderbolts from the past and the rainbow-maned Pegasus, but with a child accompanying with them. Ron knew who the child was by his vast intelligence, and figured that he was somewhere in the future. But to him it didn't make sense on how his two brothers lost a battle in the past that they could've easily won. The Reaper got closer to the statues. He specifically stared at the frozen Chameleon Spy. The numbers on the human's armor were hardly visible, but Ron recognized the I.D. with ease. "Dave... I wonder how you lost to such pitiful ponies." Ron grumbled to the statue. Ron then turned back to the four ponies he pursued, but they were gone. The cyborg systems went on high alert, since he was on the wrong time and location. Being stuck in the future and in this world would be the ultimate defeat for him. Ron immediately fled back to the time machine. He didn't care whether he was seem or not, the main objective was to get back to the TARDIS at all costs. Ron rushed past ponies who were visiting the Sculpture Gardens, the cyborg easily shoved or bashed the ponies to the side. Two Royal Guards came around a hedge, and saw the metal creature. "Hey you! Stop!" a Guard pony yelled. Ron turned around at the pony. He charged for him and raised a spider leg when he was directly in front of him. The guard was about to attack, but gasped loudly instead when he realized who it was. "Y-You're the... 'Reaper'..." "Out of the past," the cyborg replied. Ron slammed his leg down. He tilted his to the side to see the result. But the pony was gone. He suddenly noticed the guard was saved by another Guard pony, who was a Pegasus. Ron shook his head in anger, then returned back to escaping the future. The TARDIS was now in sight. The Hooves and the Doctor were entering the mysterious blue box. Ron was also able to notice the three Wonderbolts and the filly in a space on the left side of the path. Their backs were turned, Ron knew they wouldn't notice him. "Hello, Miss Spitfire and heretics!" The cyborg hastily said as he passed by them in a second. Spitfire ears and head perked up by the dreadful and familiar voice. She turned round to see the source of the voice, but it was nothing but hedges and more sculptures. "I could've sworn it was 'him'." "Did you say something, Spitfire?" Soarin' asked. "No. Nothing." Ron mischievously smirked as he fooled the confused Wonderbolt captain. The time machine was about to leave, the Cyborg Reaper picked up his pace. He reached the machine and climbed aboard on top. Ron then latched all of his legs to the TARDIS, and prepared to travel. The TARDIS vanished. Spitfire walked along the path by herself, and looked around if the Reaper did actually call her voice. "I heard his voice, I swear I did. Is my mind playing a trick on me? Or is he actually- Huh?" Spitfire saw objects in the corner of her left eye. She glanced to the left and saw figures staring at her by leaning out from behind two hedges that were on both sides of another path. All she could see on them was dark and red armor. But there were two taller ones than the others. They were like silhouettes for some odd reason, yet they had an identical body shape and size like the Reaper. Spitfire rubbed her eyes to make sure it wasn't an hallucination or mind trick. When she opens her eyes again, they were gone. She stared at the hedges where those anomalies were, in confusion and slightly in fear too. "Auntie Spitfire? Why did you go over here?" Aurora asked her 'aunt' while she trotted toward her. Spitfire glanced back at her 'niece' with a slight frown, but she tried to maintain a smile. "Oh, I thought I saw something wierd over here... Something that haunts me." She whispered to herself, and frowned inwardly. ------------ "Get out now!" "Way beyond that!" The ponies that were inside the TARDIS rushed outside as they were completely terrorized by a threat that they couldn't run away from. Not even looking behind, not ensuring safety, not even thinking about it, Whooves gallows as fast he could with the family. They galloped past trees, bushes, and small critters to reach safety. They came up a hill and stop there to catche their breath. Thy sky was still obscured by the dark rain clouds, but there was no rain falling. Open patches in the gloomy natural figures beamed down pillars of light from the sun above. "How... Does he... Follow us?" Derpy said between gasps for air. "I don't... Know!" The Doctor leaned against a tree to rest. Dinky eased up her breathing, and checked behind to ensure they weren't being tracked by the Reaper. Luckily he wasn't, and she turned back to the family to inform them. "R-Ron isn't following us." Although it might have been good news, they still didn't feel safe. The cyborg had followed them throught out the different worlds, and it was likely it followed them here, too. "Hey, what's going on over there?" Derpy was looking at a very large group of figures down on the land below. The Doctor came to her right side, with her two daughters on the left. "It looks like the Royal Guard is down." Sparkler added. "I wonder what could've happened," the Doctor said. "Come on, let go see." The ponies made their way down the hill. The Guard ponies became more visible as they got closer. But there was also very distinct figures amongst them. All of their eyes and bodies froze when they saw who was with the large crowd: Princess Celestia and Luna, with the Elemenst of Harmony. Along with Dave and Andy who have been incapacitated. Andy's body was filled with electrical currents, but it did not damage him. They only disabled him and his weapon. Dave's armor was short-circuiting. Multiple areas of his armor were constantly cloaking and reappearing. And his hands handcuffed behind his back. The Hooves rushed to meet up with the powerful ponies and two foes. Luna noticed the four ponies approaching and raised a suspicious eyebrow at them. "All civilians have been told to evacuate to safe areas. State your business," Luna said bluntly. Her Lunar guards came to confront the Hooves. "Princess Luna! Please listen to us!" Dinky cried out. "There's something we have to tell you and Princess Celestia." Luna glanced to her sister with a slight glare. Princess Celestia simply looked back at the with her gentle smile, then at the Hooves. "You may speak what you have to say." "We know these two. Please, let us explain everything!" Sparkler added. All of the ponies had shocked looks, and some of them glared at them. "You may speak." Luna still had a suspicious look on her face. Whooves took a few steps ahead and cleared his throat. "Forgive us for this sudden interruption. But my name is the Doctor, you highnesses." "Greetings, Doctor." Celestia warmly smiled at him with content. Even though his name was little weird to be called 'Doctor'. "Yes. Well, to start off, we know these two here." The Doctor glanced at the two Nod creatures. "Andy is the large metal one, and Dave is the disappearing and reappearing one." "So that's what you're really called!" Luna shot daggers and stomped a hoof against the ground at Dave. "You said your name was 'Paco'!" "Heh, it wasn't... Loser. Thanks for helping out, Doc. You sure did help." Dave said in a sarcastic voice. All of the ponies gasped out loud as this creature mocked the princess of the night. Luna's guards came up to 'Paco', and began to punch him. Dave couldn't help but laugh at the guards, who had a slight tough time beating him down due to his armor. Luna's eyes filled up with fire and she began to approach the creature with rage. But a hoof stopped her, and she instantly calmed down when she saw it was her sister's hoof. "Luna, please. This isn't the right time to be mad at him." "Fine..." "Well continuing on," Whooves looked back at the two Royal sisters, "there was another one just like Dave. I'm afraid you didn't catch him, did you?" "No. We're still searching for him. He managed to get away just before our arrival." Celestia looked away and stared at a distant mountain range. Like if she knew where the other Chamelon Spy was. "Hmm... I see. Well-" Whooves made a quick look in all directions to make sure the Reaper wasn't watching or approaching. "There is one more of them." He said. Dinky huddled closer to her mother. Sparkler went right next to Dinky to comfort her. Celestia noticed her four subjects were petrified by something that related to what the Doctor said. "Who is the last one of this kind?" she asked. "He's a machine, just like Andy. But he's far more superior than him in almost every way." "What do you mean by 'far more superior'? Luna asked, the explanation about the last of the unknown creatures caught her attention. "He thinks, he watches, he's armored... He knows almost anything. I just can't explain how he does it." The two princesses, along with their guards and the Elements, had a surprised look on their face. "What is his name?" Luna asked again. "Ron..." "That's his name? Ron?" "Yes. That is my name... 'Ron'." The Doctor turned pale as he heard the voice of the Reaper. All of the ponies stared at the cyborg, stunned by his sudden appearance. The returned the look back at them, but the glow from within his cracked armor began to glow a tad brighter. "Are you related to these two here? Because I see that you are." Luna noticed the scorpion tail markings on both Ron and the other two. "Yes. I am related to these two. They are my brothers. But not by blood. Simply by the unity of those who seek the same goals and serve the Prophet. That is all what you must know, hmpf... Loser." Luna uncontrollably twitched her left eye, she began to slowly transform her face from a calm look into a furious and irritated one. "What... Did you... Call me?" "I simply called you a loser: a person who fails at being victorious, is bad quality, or can't win." Luna suddenly flew toward the cyborg, and came face to face with him. "I dare to you say that one more time. One more time." Luna had a bitter look on her face, which both dwelled anger and irritation. "I dare... Loser..." "THAT IS IT!" Princess Luna used the Royal Canterol Voice on him. Rom was a bit taken back by her sudden change voice. It boomers so loudly it echoed far into the lands. Luna's eyes and horn glowed white. A blinding light emerged and consumed her. The light then expanded and blinded all, then instantly disappear like it had appeared. Both Luna and Ron were still there, but Ron was more different. Ron felt like his body had shutdown on him. He saw electrical currents run through him like rivers, the glow in him got brighter. Luna simply smirked at him, knowing she had done something to him. "What did you to me, pony?" "I simply disabled you like your friends. But you're showing much resistance, so you're not completely incapacitated." Ron suddenly felt anger consume him. A simple pony, or alicorn to be exact, was going to render him. He was far superior than her in intelligence, and possibly power. Ponies had beaten his two brothers, ponies had caused some trouble to him, ponies were the only allies and enemies in this part of the world. But the thought of an alicorn or simple pony was out of the question for him. He was a Cyborg Reaper – Nod's newest and advanced generation of cyborg's. The killing machines of Nod cybernetics. Ron could now only feel anger, frustration, and power surging through him. "For attacking me, Nod will arrive at your homes and end all." Ron took a step closer to Luna. "We didn't bring this conflict toward you." "You very much did!" Luna retorted back. "In some ways, yes. But you quadrupeds have difficulty adjusting to others from other worlds. I've heard, I've watched, I've processed... I know." "You may have knowledge on almost everything, but that doesn't give you an advantage." Luna took a step forward closer to the cyborg. "If this is a battle you want to endure, then go ahead... Die like those who tried to stand against Nod." "I would challenge any evil that threatens Equestria and its subjects." Luna and Ron were nearly face to face. Luna's horn glowed with energy, and Ron had the crosshairs on her and slowly raised a fist to fight. "ENOUGH!" Both daring creatures where surprised by a loud voice. Luna turned around and saw it was her older sister that shouted at them. Celestia came up next to Luna, with glare, and said, "You may be from another world, where everything may be beyond this one. But I order you to stand down, or else..." "Or what, infidel?" Celestia's horn and eyes glowed with power and light. Ron was suddenly struck by a beam of light that came from her horn. This almost completely incapacitated the Reaper. His warning systems were going off like mad. Most functions have been disabled, and were losing power. Ron was slowly losing control of everything: His power, his armor, his weapons and possibly... His life. He knew it would be the end of him if he resisted and fought back. But as all cyborgs were made to: Finish the task, no matter what the odds are. Do not fail the objective. Do not surrender or tolerate your adversaries. And if the goal required the ultimate price... Sacrifice yourself if given the order. Ron aimed his last missle launcher to the air. He aimed his capturing nets at all ponies within range. He suddenly grabbed both princesses in the blink of any eye. Both of them tried to squirm out of his graps, but his strength overpowered them. Everypony came charging for them to rescue them, but the Reaper fired all remaining weaponry at them. The nets trapped the guards and the Elements of Harmony. But Twilight managed to evade the capturing devices. Ron fired all his missiles in the air. The missles travelled upward, then came back falling straight down at them. Twilight saw the projectiles approaching and knew what would happen next. She looked back and forth between the princesses and missiles. There was nothing much to do to save them all. Ron raised both alicorns closer to his face. "I have walked along the Messiah's shadow for years. I will give my life for him. I have been given a free mind, unlike most of cyborg brethren, and I praise him for that. My soul is steel and cannot be faltered. We shall die in the glory of Kane." Ron glanced up and prepared for the end of all.