My Lil’ Daddy: Chapter 2
“Man! Wait till everypony in Ponyville gets a look at this guy! Nopony will wanna mess with us!” Spike chatted excitedly.
Twilight looked back at the creature worriedly. It had followed her dutifully the entire walk (since he was too big for the train, and no Pegasus carriage could carry him), occasionally turning to reevaluate its surroundings. Other than that, however, it remained quiet and inanimate. Her eyes drifted down to the drill that was still caked in the troll’s blood. She immediately shut her eyes and shivered, repressing the memory of how it got there.
“I don’t know, Spike. I’m not sure how everyone would react to him.” Twilight started, but was interrupted by the baby dragon.
“Him? How do you know it’s a guy?” He asked.
Twilight looked back at the creature, who was gazing off at the distant silhouette of Ponyville that sat on the horizon. She shrugged. “I don’t know; I guess his protective attitude reminds me of a male figure.” She explained quickly.
Spike grinned. “You have a name for him, yet?” He asked, his tone sarcastic.
Twilight looked confused. “What do you mean?” She asked.
“Think about it, Twilight.” Spike started. “You’ve designated it a ‘him’, you treat him like it’s intelligent, so I just thought the next thing you’d do is give a name to your pet.”
Twilight scowled. “Hey, I know it can understand most of what we’re saying, so I treat it with respect. You should do the same, Spike.” She explained, her words tinted with irritation. “Also, I just went with my gut feeling on its gender. It’s just an opinion. You don’t have to accept that.”
Ignoring Twilight’s tirade, Spike glanced back at the creature, which happened to take an interest in a large sunflower that was growing on the side of the road. “Why do you think it decided to protect you?” He asked. Twilight shook her head.
“How would I know that, Spike? Maybe you should ask it.” She replied exasperatedly.
Spike watched as the creature easily plucked the flower from the stem. “Although I don’t get why that thing suddenly decided to protect you, I guess it’s just for the best.” Spike concluded, raising a brow as the creature approached Twilight again, holding out the sunflower.
He lightly tapped Twilight on the shoulder. “Twilight! Twilight! Look!” He said.
As soon as Twilight started turning around, a polychromatic blur appeared out of nowhere, bowling the creature over with a powerful tackle.
“Wha—” Twilight started, before Pinkie appeared at her side. “Hey, Twilight! We saw you in trouble, so we’re gonna take care of this baddie for ya!” She exclaimed cheerily.
Fluttershy urged them away. “Come on, guys. Let’s go… Fighting scares me.”
Twilight suddenly began to panic, trying to voice an explanation. “Wait! Guys! He’s not—”
Applejack advanced on the creature, tossing a lasso around its drill arm. “Hehe, gotcha!” She started, but was quickly thrown off the rope with a quick sweep of the same arm. She crumpled in a heap several feet from her original spot. Shaking herself off, she struggled to her hooves. “Whoa… He’s a strong un’.” She groaned.
Twilight tried again. “He’s too strong for you all, anyways! Just—”
Rainbow Dash circled back for another hit, slamming right into the creature’s chest. However, it was prepared for her this time, bracing itself with its powerful legs, absorbing all of the impact. “Huh?! Whoaaah!” Came Rainbow Dash’s cries as it flung her to the ground in front of it.
Twilight watched in horror as the drill started up again. “No… NO! STOP!” She cried, galloping forward to the creature.
Everypony was completely surprised when it obeyed, the drill slowing to a stop. Twilight approached the creature, obstructing Rainbow Dash. “They’re friends! They didn’t know who you were!” She explained. There were gasps when the creature lowered its arm, backing away slowly.
Rainbow Dash carefully got up, a noticeable limp in her trot. Fluttershy looked quite worried. “Rainbow Dash, you shouldn’t put too much weight on it! It might be…” Her voice trailed off when the creature began to advance on the two. “…Broken.” She finished, backing away. However, it took no interest in her, continuing to approach Rainbow Dash.
Standing her ground, Rainbow stared back up defiantly at the emotionless visor. They stared at each other for a few minutes, until the creature extended a hand.
Rainbow Dash recoiled from the gesture, turning up her nose away from the hand. “Hmph. Just because you’re Twilight’s friend doesn’t mean I gotta trust you.”
“Rainbow Dash! How could you!” Twilight growled, reprimanding the Pegasus.
Rainbow Dash was about to reply when the creature grabbed her hoof, draping her over his shoulder like some kind of rug. “H-hey! What’re you—” Rainbow Dash protested, wriggling furiously.
Twilight grinned. “Can’t let you walk on that bad hoof, now can we?” She asked, teasing Rainbow Dash’s snout with a flick of her tail.
Pinkie Pie frowned. “Aww! I wanna piggy-back ride, too!” She whined.
~~~
Dr. Lamb examined the cluttered room, most of the small trays of utensils scattered around. The tiles where Epsilon had once stood lay partially broken, revealing the small crater left in the concrete by what appeared to be an explosion.
She turned her nose up at the mess. Untidiness always triggered a sort of underlying irritation at the back of her head. About as much as when things didn’t go to plan.
Brushing off some of the debris from the table, the doctor noticed something fall from the metal surface. It bounced once off of the ground, leaning against the partially shattered glass.
Stooping to one knee, she carefully picked up the object, brushing off the cool iron. It appeared to be some sort of ring, an ornate gate adorning the top. A sudden influx of curiosity made her want to try it on.
As soon as the metal slid over her finger, a yellow light, similar to the one that appeared before, materialized from the gate. Yelling out, the doctor stumbled backwards into the wall. She shielded her eyes from the glare, her glasses falling from her face.
She was surprised when the light faded. Cautiously lowering her arm, her eyes widened at the swirling oval that had appeared before her. She noted that the color was exactly the same as what Epsilon emitted when he disappeared. It did not take long for her to realize what the portal was.
A cold smile slowly made her way across her face. Her eyes fell on the still-sleeping figure in the wheelchair outside of the shattered glass. “You will return to me, Epsilon.” She said quietly, making her way to the wheelchair. She tipped the girl’s chin up, her lip curled. “Your daughter will make sure of that.”
~~~
The sunlight slowly disappeared under the distant rolling hills, the last of the sun’s wild mane fading away.
As Luna’s moon began to rise, Twilight and her friends had just arrived in Ponyville. Rainbow Dash rested her head on her hooves, a little frustrated. “I could’ve just flown home, you know.” She said.
Applejack shrugged. “Welp, too late now, sugarcube. At least you got a free ride from mister… What’s his name, Twi?”
Twilight shrugged as well. “I haven’t really thought of a name for him, yet. He doesn’t really seem to talk much, so I couldn’t really ask, now could I?”
Everpony’s eyes (save Rainbow Dash’s) moved to rest on the monstrous creature, who was either ignoring their gaze, or wasn’t even conscious of it. It had suddenly taken interest in a monarch butterfly struggling to fight the gentle breeze which blew through the town.
Fluttershy giggled. “He reminds me of a big kid.”
Everypony’s stares were soon concentrated on the Pegasus. She cowered behind her pink mane. “S-sorry. Just a suggestion.”
Rainbow Dash grinned. “How ‘bout Junker? Or Clunkface? Oh! Oh! Rusty!”
An icy glare from Twilight silenced the mare. “Something a little less offensive.” Twilight mumbled.
“I don’t know about that, Twilight.” Rarity said, shrugging. “Rainbow Dash has got a point. We don’t really know what else to call him.”
Twilight glanced back at the creature, who was now standing idly beside the shrubbery. “Rusty it is, then.” She sighed, frowning.
They continued through Ponyville, the creature dutifully following them. The rhythmic thudding attracted much unwanted attention by the ponyfolk, who gasped and stared at the metal biped.
Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes at a group of colts gawking at the creature. “They’d better not be checking out my flank.” She growled, her voice dripping venom.
Applejack could not resist a joke. “Who would, sugarcube?”
--
A lone figure knelt on the hill above Ponyville, its single red eye roving the town’s empty streets. Its gaze fell upon a large red barn, where two gleaming signatures resided.
Its targets in sight, the figure leapt off of the ledge, bounding towards the glimmers with inpony speed.
--
Twilight sighed explosively before collapsing into her starry bedsheets. After a quick flurry of farewells, everypony had gone to their respective homes. They had all decided to work out the issue of explaining the creature to the Mayor tomorrow, as their minds were wearied from the shock of the day.
Little had occurred since Twilight and Spike had arrived home; Rusty did not fit through the library’s entrance, and resigned to keeping a silent vigil outside the front door. She hoped that it would scare off any important ponies, although there was little chance that Ditzy would be repelled by—
Her thoughts were interrupted when a loud roar rent the air outside the library. Rusty crashed into the library, making himself a new entrance. W-what’s gotten into him?! She thought desperately, before noticing that the light inside his visor had shifted from its neutral yellow-green to a bright red. Twilight began to panic, hurriedly shushing and attempting to calm down the biped. “Shh! Quiet! I have neighbors, you know-oh-oh-whoa!” She started before being tossed onto Rusty’s back. Spike quickly followed suit, landing squarely on her head.
Stars winking in and out in front of her eyes, she barely had a second to grab onto the large rivet gun attached to Rusty’s back before he took off, sprinting at an alarmingly fast pace away from the town. “H-hey! Where are we going?!” Twilight asked loudly, temporarily forgetting that Rusty didn’t talk at all.
Rusty continued running, his heavy boots making a horrible booming noise as they collided with the rough dirt path. It wasn’t long before Twilight realized they were heading towards Applejack’s farm. “W-why…?” She asked herself, stuttering as she bounced up and down.
Spike was even less happy about the situation. “Twilight! Tell your stupid iron pet to sit! I can’t take much more of this boun—BLLLGH!” He held his mouth shut as his midnight snack almost tumbled out. Twilight shook her head.
“I don’t know what’s wrong! He won’t stop running! I tried!” She exclaimed. However, when they arrived in the front, it was obvious that not all was well. Winona lay battered and bruised against the barn wall, whimpering quietly. Big Mac lay sprawled on top of a shattered wagon, unmoving. After seeing the kicked-down door, it didn’t take long for Twilight to realize what was going on.
Rusty was quick to set her and Spike down gingerly outside, quickly turning his attention to the house. A familiar yell could be heard inside, causing Twilight’s ears to perk up. “A-Applejack?!” She cried. Rusty shouldered his way into the house, his thudding footsteps fading upstairs.
“W-wait! We shouldn’t split up!” Twilight called, chasing him inside. Ignoring Spike’s warnings, she charged inside, slowing down as she ascended the steps in a hurry. She nearly bumped into Rusty’s backside as he leaned forward, grabbing something in the process.
A bruised Applejack soon joined Twilight behind Rusty, who quickly whirled on a darkened figure near the hallway window. “Applejack, what happened to you?!” Twilight asked quickly. The battered farmpony made no attempt to answer. Although her ragged breathing was audible, it was obvious that she was not conscious.
Horrified, Twilight struggled to see around Rusty, who remained crouched in a low stance. Squinting hard to see through the dark, Twilight let out a gasp when the figure stepped into the moonlight streaming through the hallway window.
Towering four feet over Twilight, it was another biped similar in anatomical structure to Rusty, although shorter and much skinnier in comparison to a bulkier Rusty. Large air tanks attached to her back dwarfed her midriff, although both arms sported fearsome-looking needles. It wore a small cage on its back, which looked big enough to fit several small fillies inside. A single ball sat atop her head, a large red eye roving the interior of the farmhouse.
Twilight let out another gasp when she saw Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle caught in its clutches. They struggled weakly, mewling helplessly. “T-Twi! Help!” Apple Bloom managed to squeak before the creature’s grip tightened, preventing her from saying anything else. That thing must be the reason Applejack’s in such a bad way… Twilight thought. Her anger threatened to boil over… if the creature didn’t look so fearsome.
Rusty seemed to hesitate. Twilight glanced between the two bipeds nervously. Why doesn’t he do something?! That thing hurt Applejack! She thought. After a pregnant pause, Rusty began to walk forward. Inevitably, the walk broke out into a full-on charge, his arms outstretched. The creature quickly tossed Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle into its cage. It waited until Rusty was upon it, crouching underneath the metal behemoth and kicking him over it, Rusty’s momentum carrying him through the wall and out the window.
Twilight winced as a loud crash could be heard outside. Her eyes widened when the creature turned back to face her, its head turning at a sickening angle. Twilight froze, wildly hoping that the creature hadn’t seen her. Although it was obvious that it had already seen her, she remained still, desperately praying that it would not decide to advance.
Contrary to her wishes, it charged forward, screeching madly. “RUN, TWILIGHT!” Sweetie Belle screamed. Snapping out of her trance, Twilight quickly hoisted Applejack onto her back, casting a short-distance teleportation spell. She reappeared outside the house with the farmpony in the nick of time, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow to her throat.
Her legs buckled, forcing her to drop Applejack. Spike sprinted up to her. “Hey, Twilight! You okay?! What happened to Applejack?!” He gushed.
Twilight held up a hoof. “I’ll explain later! Just see if you can wake up Big Mac or Winona!” She called back quickly.
She saw that Rusty was slowly getting to his feet, holding his head as if it threatened to suddenly explode. Her expression changed from fear to concern. “Rusty? Rusty!” She called, galloping out to his prone form. When she approached, however, Rusty shoved her away, trying desperately to move her away from the conflict. Twilight bit her lip. “Rusty! I can help! I’m not harmless, you know!”
Rusty ignored her, still keeping his left palm to his helmet. He struggled to his feet, staring down his opponent. The creature stood on the upper floor of Applejack’s farmhouse, directing an equally intimidating glare back at the two. Twilight gulped audibly.
A sudden murmur caught Twilight’s attention. Glancing over, she saw Applejack’s head stirring. “Wha… What happened?” Applejack started. She suddenly sprang to her feet, her voice escalating. “Where’s Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle?! An’ that bucket of bolts?!” She cried, whirling about frantically as she searched for her quarry.
“Applejack!” Twilight hissed, not exactly eager to distract the creature from its staring contest with Rusty. Applejack’s head swiveled to face Twilight, and a look of momentary relief spread across the farmpony’s face.
“Tw-Twi? Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes!” Applejack replied. “Somepony took Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle!” She cried.
Twilight’s gaze returned to the upper story of Applejack’s farmhouse. “I know.” She admitted, gulping involuntarily.
The creature hopped down from the second story, carefully detaching the cage from its back. It set it down gently on the ground behind it, as if a brisk breeze could shatter its cargo. It turned back to Rusty, screeching out a challenge in an inpony cry.
Rusty answered with a cry of his own, withdrawing the fearsome rivet-gun that was placed on his back. Pulling back the bolt on the gun, he slammed a fresh canister of rivets onto the side. He took aim at the creature, firing the weapon madly. Unfortunately, the creature made up for its size with speed, easily dodging the hail of rivets.
Regardless, Rusty continued to fire until the gun clicked empty. Barrel smoking, the gun made another clicking noise as the large canister dropped to the ground heavily, colliding with a heavy thud. Before Rusty could reload, however, the creature flew at him with a flurry of strikes with the needles mounted on its arms. Rusty countered with a vicious punch directly to the creature’s abdomen. It stumbled backwards from the blow, clutching its stomach. Suddenly, a fierce glow appeared in Rusty’s armored hand. Twilight’s eyes widened when he cast his palm outward, an angry blaze belching from several small holes in his glove. The creature ducked underneath the inferno, fire emerging from its own hands. The flames, however, were concentrated into a ball rather than a stream. It threw these two fireballs at Rusty, who lacked the skill to dodge both. One whizzed by Rusty’s visor, while the other slammed into his midriff.
Twilight looked on in awe as the two bipeds battled fiercely, her assurance rising and falling as the advantage constantly switched sides with every blow. A distant voice distracted her. “Twilight!” It called. Ears perking up, Twilight quickly turned to face the voice only to nearly bump noses with Fluttershy. Leaping up in fright Twilight cursed aloud.
“Oh, buck! Fluttershy! Don’t do that!” She exclaimed. Rarity sidled up next to the Pegasus, a light blush on her cheeks.
“Twilight! Please! Keep the language to a minimum!” She scolded.
Pinkie joined her. “Yeah! Wouldn’t want to scare away any of the younger readers!” She added.
Twilight was about to ask her about these “readers” when Rainbow Dash arrived on the scene, zooming past them both and straight into the creature. They rolled about, Rainbow Dash spouting a stream of obscenities. “Bucking bag of bolts! Just—ungh—stay down!” Rainbow roared before being lifted in the air by an unseen force. Her forelegs and rear legs spread out uselessly to her sides, and her wings snapped shut. Her head turned left and right as she struggled against the invisible bonds. The group watched in horror as the creature rose, a single hand outstretched. It suddenly began to close, causing Rainbow Dash to cry out in pain.
A familiar roar was heard, and Rusty careened into the creature’s side, causing it to release Rainbow Dash. Twilight nodded her friends on. “Cmon! Let’s get her out of there!” She yelled, taking the lead. Fluttershy and Applejack hastily moved the unconscious Pegasus away from the scuffle that ensued.
However, just as they were edging away from the fight, Rarity spotted her sister in the cage, sitting at the foot of the barn door. “S-Sweetie Belle?! Sweetie Belle!” She cried worriedly, starting over for the door.
Applejack pulled her back. “Consarnit, Rarity! Pay attention! We can’t exactly go waltzin’ through there while Rusty’s fightin’ that crazy machine!” She growled through gritted teeth.
Twilight thought the exact opposite. “Actually, since Rusty has him distracted, we can probably just extract them from here.” Pinkie raised an eyebrow
“How do you do that? Are you psychic or something?” She asked innocently.
Rarity facehoofed. Applejack couldn’t help a snort. Even Twilight couldn't help a giggle as her horn lit up, enveloping the cage in a lavender aura.
Her smile disappeared from her face when she saw Rusty receive a vicious kick to his chest, denting the metal into the shape of a boot. The cage stopped as Twilight became absorbed in the fight, not hearing the protests of Rarity and Applejack.
As Rusty fell backwards, the rivet-gun slowly levitated, flying to the proximity of the creature. With its free hand, it lifted a fresh canister of rivets into the gun’s loading mechanism, which clicked loudly as it settled into place. The bolt pulled back, cocking the weapon. Twilight could swear she could see the creature smiling inside the helmet as it raised the weapon at an excruciatingly slow pace while lifting Rusty with the other, planting the barrel against his visor. There was a pause as the creature made careful adjustments. Twilight saw this as a chance and took a step forward.
“Rus—”
The bang of the rivet gun echoed through the darkened apple orchards. Rusty fell in slow motion, the red liquid cooling to its neutral yellow-green as it poured out from a hole in the helmet. He collided with the ground, causing him to spasm slightly. The momentum from the fall subsided, and Rusty lay still, liquid still running out of his visor.
Twilight’s eyes widened, and she nearly jumped when she heard a horrible scream. Her mind drifted to Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle, worried that they might be traumatized from such an event. However, after a few seconds, she realized that it was coming from her mouth.
The cage was immediately encapsulated in Rarity’s familiar blue aura and tugged out of Twilight’s mental grasp. A voice rang out from the cage. It was Sweetie Belle’s. “Twilight! Look out!” Twilight cursed aloud as her view was suddenly obscured by the creature. Instinctively, she lashed out with a foreleg, smacking the creature dead on. Not even phased, the creature roughly grabbed Twilight’s neck. The iron grasp of the creature was cold and relentless, mercilessly tightening on the unicorn’s throat. In horror, Twilight scrabbled feebly at the creature’s gloved arm, her panic increasing when her forelegs could find no hoofhold. She slowly felt gravity’s pull on her legs as they left the ground completely.
Her body screamed for air, drowning out all thought and noise. Frantically, she reached out to an idle barrel with her telekinesis, hoping to throw it. However, her gambit failed, as her capacity for magic fell with the oxygen levels in her body. Black spots began to appear in her vision as her face went from a red to a bluish hue, the dark blanket of unconsciousness creeping towards her in a silent march.
She could barely make out her friends suddenly leaving the ground, sharing expressions of shared pain and agony. Her eyes began to roll back into her head. This… This is how it ends? She thought sadly. A tear rolled down her cheek, as the last of her willpower left with her last ounce of strength.
Before she could fall out of reality, however, a muffled yell brought her back, as well as the creature releasing her from its grip. Sparks danced across her vision as Twilight gulped greedily at the cool night air. Her friends fell to the ground as well, disoriented. Twilight looked up at the creature. It stared stupidly at the drill that emerged from its chest. The creature collapsed lifelessly to the side, unmoving.
The yell was still audible, but the clarity was much better as oxygen found its way into Twilight’s cranium. She realized that it was very similar to Rusty’s voice, albeit a little higher pitched. When she looked over, she was shocked by the smashed visor, as well as the large hole that punctured the thick metal of the helmet. How could he still be standing with that kind of injury?! She thought. She struggled to see through the cracked glass of the visor, although she failed to see anything through its grimy exterior.
Struggling to her hooves, she took a better look at Rusty. The liquid had indeed drained from the visor, leaving a massive hole where Rusty’s chin would have been. A larger exit hole gaped on the back of the helmet, but it was off-center, emerging from the right-hoof side of the helmet.
Rusty cradled the creature in his arms, making a soft sobbing noise. When Twilight listened closely, she could hear Rusty struggling to speak in his low voice. “Kahhh... Krrrgh... Kuh... K-Kate...”
While leaning in for a better listen, Twilight tripped on a foreleg, nearly falling flat on her face.
Her friends quickly supported her when she threatened to topple, still giddy from the sudden rush of oxygen back into her system. “Easy there, sugarcube.” Applejack cooed comfortingly.
Twilight smiled at the orange farmpony. “Thanks…” She trailed off as she collapsed, finally allowing unconsciousness to roam free within the confines of her mind.