Twilight Sparkle was not happy.
She, along with her friends, Princess Luna and her bat-pony guards have been trudging along the Everfree Forest, again - with the exception of the Princess and her guards. While Twilight was with no doubt perplexed about the creature, she would have very much preferred if she had the ability to study it from a distance; away from her or anypony else to be exact.
"Ughh... are we there yet?" Rarity complained for the umpteenth time. "My precious hooves can't take much more of this icky muck."
Twilight groaned inwardly. Being stuck in Rainbow Dash's earlier position, Twilight herself had to suppress an urge to tell her to shut it.
"Don't worry Rarity, we're almost there!" Twilight assured. "I hope..."
With the night reigned in, the forest was darker and creepier than usual. It was placing a heavy toll on the others' nerves; with the exception of Pinkie Pie, Princess Luna and her guards. The latter ponies, well, they're basically the embodiment of anything night-related. It was no surprise they weren't bothered.
Meanwhile, Pinkie was being Pinkie; bouncing along, giggling and pointing at anything that was remotely funny.
"Hey look at that tree! It looks weird; hunched over like that. Wait a minute, why are all trees in the Everfree Forest like these? Are these trees playing copycat? Oh! Maybe they're all brothers and sisters playing together and this whole forest is a family and maybe they had a meanie brother who was crooked and stuff and every tree else ju-"
Pinkie never got to finish her ramble. She was too preoccupied on the overgrowth to realize that Princess Luna was right in front of her. Pinkie bumped into her, promptly stopping her in her tracks.
"Heya Princess! Watcha standing around for?"
"Shh." Luna shushed.
"Whatever is the matter, Princess?" Rarity asked.
"SHH." Luna shushed again; more forcefully this time. "Listen."
Everypony held their breath; listening very carefully of their surroundings. All they could hear was their own heartbeats and the natural fauna. Crickets were chirping, owls were hooting, someone was saying Mayday, wolves were ho-
"Mayday?"
The group stayed completely silent; straining themselves to hear the mysterious voice.
"Mayday... Mayday... SPARTAN-A239... Noble Team... evac... Prioritization... sigma... echo... three"
"Is that the creature you speak of?" Luna asked.
Twilight nodded in confirmation. "That's it alright, but something's off. Why does it keep repeating that?"
Everypony in the group strained to gather a theory, but Pinkie bet them to the punch.
"Maybe it's some sort of of mind control spell! EVERYPONY HIDE!" Pinkie gasped. She grabbed a cardboard box out of nowhere and stuffed herself inside; yelling at the others to do the same.
Twilight rolled her eyes at the scene in front of her. Pinkie can be so random when she wants to be.
"It's not a mind control spell Pinkie. Whatever it is, we're getting closer to it."
Twilight looked over to the Princess, who nodded her head in confirmation. They continued to trek the forest whilst talking among themselves; trying to make the best of the situation at hand.
It felt like hours had passed, but they have finally reached the same clearing they had encountered the creature. However, said creature was nowhere in sight.
"What's that smell?" Luna asked, sniffing the air. "It's like something's..."
"...b-burnt?" Fluttershy answered.
"Why, yes Fluttershy. How did you..." Luna trailed off. She turned to the direction Fluttershy was facing and immediately her jaw went slack, a horrifying sight entering her eyes.
Meters away from them was what looks like a small campfire, but upon closer inspection they could see two bodies burnt along with it. The bodies were reduced to a charred, black lump with spots of purple; hinting its original form. The group gasped and instinctively moved away; resisting the urge to vomit at the sick image. Even Luna's bodyguards - ponies who remain stoic all the time - flinched at the scene. The only one who seemed unaffected was Pinkie Pie. Optimistic as ever, she had somehow turned up in a fire brigade uniform. She grabbed a fire extinguisher out of her hair - the logic behind that still eludes Luna - and proceeded to spray the fire with the white foam, effectively putting it out.
"All done!" Pinkie squeaked, standing straight while doing a salute.
That seemed to remedy the tension. Pinkie's distraction from the image was working; everypony began to relax. However, Princess Luna was still tense. Her facial expression turned stern; the possibilities of this creature running around unopposed was a terrifying thought. Whatever it was, she needed to stop it, now. She walked to the center of the clearing. From there, she took a deep breathe.
She wondered how she herself hadn't gone deaf after using the Royal Canterlot Voice for so long.
"MONSTER OF THE EVERFREE FOREST. COME OUT THIS INSTANT AND SHOW YOURSELF!"
...
"I SHALL REPEAT. COME OUT THIS INSTANT!"
This time, Applejack opted to yell out to Luna.
"Princess! I don't wanna be rude or anythin', but ah don't think it's here. Maybe we can try again tomorrow?"
Luna weighed her options. The creature must have surely left by now. All she had were the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony; who did not have their Elements, two of her personal guards and herself to handle it. On the the other hand, they can come back with reinforcements in the morning; the Royal Guard can help sweep the forest for any sign of the being.
She decided that the second option was probably for the best. While she was a powerful alicorn, it was better to be safe than sorry. She turned to the group, ready to head home.
Whiiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrr
The ponies snapped to attention and turned towards the source of the noise. They could see two large metal objects at the other side, but they could not get a clear sight; the shadows of the trees obscuring their view. The whirring continued to drone out of the larger object before coming to an abrupt stop.
There was a moment of silence. Luna and the others seemed confused. What was that whirring noise about?
Clang
Clang
Clang
Thud
Out of the large object, a figure jumped out and crouched over, staying in that position for a moment. Slowly, it stood up and angled its head towards the group; bringing a chill to their spines.
Thud
Thud
Thud
It walked towards Luna, time seemingly slowing down as its footsteps made a distinct thud on the grassy ground. Fluttershy cowered behind Rainbow Dash, who was gritting her teeth. Pinkie was somewhere in the background, watching the scene play out whilst eating popcorn. Luna and Twilight readied their magic, should things make a turn for the worst.
The figure continued to walk towards them until it was at the edge of the shadows of the trees. It seemed hesitant at first to show itself, but it proceeded to step out of the shadows; the moonlight illuminating the figure.
Luna was interested of this creature and took note of its features. It was taller than her; at least nine to ten inches taller. Twilight was right, it was completely covered in metal from head to toe. There were two items attached to it back and its hip, their purpose was unclear to her. What interested her, however, was its face. It was made of glass, but there was a carving of a skull etched to it.
The creature did not move or make a sound. It just stood there, staring at the group. The silence began to be unnerving; the only noise present was Pinkie eating the popcorn at a much faster rate.
The creature looked at Pinkie with interest, before turning towards Luna again. This time, Luna snapped out of her stupor and introduced herself.
"I am Princess Luna, co-ruler of Equestria and Princess of the Night. State your name and business." she commanded.
The creature did not answer. Luna questioned whether it could understand her, before it answered in a voice she presumed was male.
"Designation: SPARTAN-A239."
Luna was perturbed. What kind of name was that?
"What is you business here?" she ordered.
It didn't answer. Luna huffed in annoyance.
"Very well. Under my command, you will be placed in custody and you are to be taken to Canterlot for questioning."
"Not a chance." it barked.
Luna remained unfazed at the tone of its voice.
"Whatever you are, you are considered a threat to this nation and its inhabitants." She readied her magic, her horn glowing with a blue aura. "We can do this peacefully and avoid any unnecessary violence, or we can do this your way."
The creature continued to stare at her; silence reigning once again. Luna prayed this didn't have to end horribly.
"You think that I will just take orders from someone like you?" it replied with a hostile attitude. It glared daggers at Luna, almost as if it was scrutinizing her very presence. Luna retaliated by glaring back.
The two went at this for a while, facing each other with looks that could kill. Then, the creature lowered and shook its head, sighing while doing so; as if it was disappointed in something.
"Well then, Princess." It said in a mocking tone. "I've made my decision."
It firmly planted its feet to the ground, crossing its arms.
"I'm. Staying."
Luna sighed. That's how it going to be then.
"Very well, creature. Guards, take it into custody."
Luna's guards approached the creature with caution, sizing up their target.
The creature snapped to attention. It grabbed the object from its hip, threateningly aiming it at the group of ponies.
Twilight instantly reacted. Using her magic, she grabbed the object and flung it away, far from its reach.
Capitalizing the creature's apparent confusion, the guards charged; intent on subduing this thing.
Like the wolves before them, they underestimated the creature's capabilities. The first bat-pony attempted to buck the creature, but his hooves only connected with the air. The creature backpedaled, leaving the pony's midsection exposed. Taking advantage, it brought its foot to the guard's chest. A wet snap was heard, the guard sent literally flying a few meters.
The other guard tried an even more daring approach; he was going to charge at it headfirst. The creature rewarded his bravery with a backhand to the muzzle.
Upon seeing her personal guard knocked out of action so quickly, Luna began to charge her magic; the energy building up in her horn. A blue ball of energy had materialized, slowly getting bigger and bigger every second.
"Do not make me do this! Surrender now!"
The creature ignored her warning and made a beeline for her; intent in doing her harm.
Luna did not give this reaction a second thought. Using all the strength and willpower she could muster, she aimed the her horn at it and fired the bolt of energy. The last thing Luna saw was the creature crouching over and slamming the ground. As if that was going to save it from the attack.
The bolt hit its target dead on. The resulting blast knocked everypony off their hooves. Luna caught the worst of it, being so close to the blast.
As the ringing in everypony's ears began to subside, Twilight walked up to Luna; bewildered at the show of power.
"Princess! *cough* What was that? I've never seen a *cough* spell like that before!" she exclaimed.
Luna had doubled over, visibly panting. Whatever the spell was, it took all of her willpower to create.
"That was my most powerful spell, Twilight." Luna had recomposed herself; her breathing returned to normal.
Twilight looked over to where the creature stood, only to find clouds of dust blocking her view.
"What happened to it?" she asked.
Luna hung her head and sighed, somewhat saddened of what she was forced to do. She turned to Twilight, frowning.
"I didn't want to do what I did, but the creature left me with no choice." she said. "It's gone now. Nothing could survive a blast of that magnitude."
"A BIT TOO EARLY FOR THAT, DON'TCHA THINK?!"
Luna froze. No, it wasn't possible.
She turned to the source of the voice. As the dust began to settle, she saw the creature in a crouching position, covered in a blue light. It stood up, unscathed and as menacing as ever. A yellow light began to engulf the creature, but it flickered on and off like a faulty light bulb. The creature seemed perturbed by this, muttering something along the lines of "what the hell is wrong with my shields...".
With timing that couldn't have been any more perfect, Pinkie Pie materialized behind the creature; a remote control with a big red button in her hooves.
"GOGOGADGETPARTYCANNON!" she blurted in one breathe.
Slamming her hoof on the button, the remote control transformed into her signature party cannon in the blink of an eye. Aiming it at the creature, Pinkie pulled the rope, spewing confetti and streamers at the metal being.
The creature was hopelessly confused by now. It gawked at the pink paper that covered its body, as if it could not truly believe that just happened. Time seemed to slow down for Luna as she assessed the situation. Attempting both a mind-reading spell and a sleep spell was a very risky move, both spells only working on living things. If the creature truly was a machine, this could end very badly for her. There was only one way to find out.
Exploiting this window of opportunity, Luna teleported right in front of the creature. It was too preoccupied at the situation at hand to even notice.
"Moment of truth, Luna"
She tapped its head with her horn, her consciousness entering the creature's mind.
Time to see what's in store.
Twilight watched with fascination at the scene. After sending Applejack and Pinkie Pie to carry Luna's unconscious guards to the hospital, she began to observe the two. Princess Luna and the creature looked like they were in a trance; neither were responding to any outside stimuli.
Rainbow Dash -who was controlling her anger the entire time - decided that now was the best time to vent her anger towards the metal being. It was nice to know that on that night, Twilight had learned at least seven new and colorful words; courtesy of yours truly.
"You ain't going anywhere near my friends, you hear me?! I'll turn you into MINCEMEAT!"
"Rainbow, please calm down. You're going to pop a vein if you keep this up." Rarity pleaded. It took the combined efforts of her and Fluttershy to hold her back, preventing any further harm that could happen.
"As if Rainbow could do any harm to it." Twilight thought. "It shrugged off Luna's attack like it was nothing."
Twilight wondered how it was able to come out unscathed. Alicorn magic was very powerful; the creature must've had something of equal or greater power to be able to defend itself from magic as powerful as hers.
She walked towards the object she had separated from the creature. It was vaguely L-shaped; also made of metal. There was what looks like a trigger mechanism on its underside and a hole on one end. She remembered how the creature threateningly aimed it at them. It was probably the best to leave it for now.
Twilight heard a sudden wheeze behind her. Turning a full one hundred and eighty degrees, she saw the Princess had collapsed; looking worse for wear after the excessive use of magic. The same had happened to the creature.
Everypony immediately rushed towards Luna, worrying for her health. Luckily, she didn't have any injuries; she was just exhausted beyond belief. She stood up; albeit groggily, and exhaled.
"Are you okay Princess?" Fluttershy asked, worried sick for the princess. "You look awfully tired."
Luna turned to her and smiled.
"I'm fine, Fluttershy. Thank you for your concern."
"Princess, what happened?" Twilight quizzed. "You were sort of staring out into space for a while"
"Do not fret, Twilight. I simply used a mind-reading spell on him." she answered.
"Him?" Rarity inquired. "Are you referring to the creature?"
"Yes. I went into the recesses of his mind to read his intentions, but he was actively blocking me out while I was trying to access his mind. I could only catch glimpses of information." she recounted. "Don't worry. I put a sleep spell on him before I left his consciousness. He won't be waking up anytime soon."
The group of ponies looked at this him. He was sprawled on the ground, lying face up; the only sign of life was the rise and fall of his chest.
"What do we do with him, Princess?" Fluttershy questioned. "We can't just leave him here."
"We need to bring him in to Canterlot. From there, my sister and I can decide his fate."
Using the last of her magic, Luna created a translucent blue sphere around the sleeping figure; effectively trapping it inside. Before doing so, Luna detached the other item strapped to his back and his knife, placing them in a separate sphere. She strained at the simple use of magic, exhaustion quickly catching up to her. She stumbled a bit after finishing before quickly recomposing herself.
"Let's go, my little ponies. We all deserve some rest after tonight."
Luna levitated both spheres, having it both follow her as she and the rest made their way back to Twilight's treehouse.
A pair of eyes followed the group, its red eyes the stalking their every move. The manticore had followed them ever since they stepped a hoof in its territory, intent in killing them for trespassing and disturbing its sleep. This was, of course; before recent events have transpired. After the show of power from both the tall, blue one and that thing, going after them was a decision only a fool would make. As soon as the group left, the manticore opted to return to its slumber.
Manticores are proficient hunters; their sense of smell, hearing and sight run unparalleled; making them the most vicious and efficient predators of the Everfree Forest. Nothing could get past the beast without alerting its many senses.
Yet the manticore was unaware of one thing. It didn't sense it or even feel like something was wrong. It was a mystery how this abnormality had gone unnoticed by such an excellent hunter of the wild, but you couldn't blame it. After all, who ever pays attention to their own shadow?