//------------------------------//
// (Part 3) To hunt a Cyberpony 
// Story: Doctor Whoof: The Iron Horse 
// by Muleicous 
//------------------------------//


To hunt a Cyberpony

The Doctor layed down on the pillow to the side of the sheriff’s station, breathing slowly as he sipped from a cup of apple tea Apple Bloom had made him. The farm filly stood by her friend, a nervous smile on her face as her eyes darted from the time colt to the metal contraption that he had called a Cy-boar mane. The thing was still as the night air, even after The Doctor had used his Sonic Screwdriver on it. He said there was some timey wimey stuff on it, at least that’s what Apple Bloom called it. The Doctor had used some big word that even Braeburn didn’t understand, but that was normal for The Doctor.
“Are you ok now?” Apple Bloom asked the brown colt, kneeling down next to him.
The Doctor nodded, “I’ll be fine... Equestria, on the other hand... hoof... might not be.” The time colt stood and walked over to the bars on the jail cell, his eyes  locked on the Cyberman in the cage. 
“What are these things Doc?” Braeburn asked, breaking his silence as he walked out from behind the desk he was standing by.
“In my world,” The Doctor began, “they where called Cybermen. Here... Well, I guess they should be called Cyberponies. They’re robots, walking suits of armor, with the brains of a pony inside them.”
“Wait,” the deputy pony interrupted, “ your world? You mean...”
“No use hiddin’ it now, huh?” Apple Bloom asked The Doctor, which the colt nodded in agreement, “The Doctor’s a time traveling alien from another planet.”
“... Fine, if ya’ll don’t want to tell me the truth you don’t have ta.” Braeburn fumed, “But don’t make up ol’ foal’s tales just to lie ta me, ok?”
“Understood, sorry...” The Doctor apologized, “The truth is, I’m an agent for Princess Celestia. I investigate strange things like this all the time, and we’ve made up the alien story to keep ponies off our trail.”
“Ah... Now that makes sense.” the deputy closed his eyes and nodded, keeping The Doctor and Apple Bloom’s wink unseen. “So, what where you sayin’ about these... Cyberponies?”
“Yes, well,” The Doctor paused to find his train of thought, “right! Well, the Cyberponies have their minds rewritten, their emotions deleted, and... They’re made to follow one basic thought that’s programmed into their heads.”
“Which is?”
“Delete!” called the electronic voice of the Cyberpony on the floor of the jail cell, “Delete and assimilate!” The robotic pony stood and glared at its captors, the sound of the creature’s gears whirling filled the room.
“Oh, you’re awake now?” The Doctor asked, not a hint of surprise in his voice. Apple Bloom and Braeburn stood behind the time colt, Braeburn ready to charge at the metal beast at anytime.
“Affirmative. Who are you?” The Cyberpony asked, cocking its head to the side in mock confusion.
“Oh come now, it hasn’t been that long has it?” the time colt asked, “You should recognize me, even with all this extra hair. Funny thing about ponies here, their coats are extremely soft. It’s like silk, and it’s just amazing how they can hold things in their hooves. Their hooves!”
“Scanning... Searching memories...” The metal monster stood for a few moments, then took a few steps back, “Analysis complete, subject is The Doctor.”
“That’s it.” The Doctor said, his companions still behind him. “Now, I want some information.”
“All information is classified, as ordered from the Cyber Queen.”
“Cyber Queen? Well that’s new, what happened to the last Cyber Leader?” The Doctor asked.
“Classified, as ordered by the Cyber Queen.” The machine repeated.
“Well, that’s just not nice,” the brown colt walked over to the desk and picked his Sonic Screwdriver up with his teeth, “why don’t we just see if we can fix that.” He said, but since the Screwdriver was in his mouth it sounded more like, “Why dn we jst thee if we ca fix tha?” The Doctor pressed a button on the Screwdriver, setting it off as he had done hundreds of times before. This time, however, it resulted in the Cyberpony behind the cage to scream out and shake.
“D...Doctor...” Apple Bloom looked over at her friend, her eyes wide with fear. 
“Don’t worry Apple Bloom, I’m just over-riding his programming!” The Doctor yelled from between his clenched teeth, “It’s only going to hurt him for a little while!” Then, just as he had predicted, the Cyberpony’s shuttering stopped and it stood as resolute as a statue. “Now then... Let’s try this again. What happened to the last Cyber Leader?”
“Cyber Leader 60440,” the metal monster replied, “was destroyed as a result of trans-dimensional travel.”
“So he couldn’t stand the movement between the different time vortexes...” The Doctor pondered, a hoof to his chin.
“Affirmative.” the Cyberpony responded.
“Now, who is this Cyber Queen?”
“The Cyber Queen is the newly crowned leader of the Cybermen,” the cyborg pony replied, “her function is simple, the fulfillment of our mission on this strange planet.”
“And what is that mission?” The Doctor asked, his eyes taking on a completely serious look that Apple Bloom had only seen a few times in her friendship with the strange colt with the blue box. Both times had been when facing threats to Equestria, and the farm filly knew that it meant something bad was going to happen.
“The mission of the Cybermen on the planet dubbed Equestria is the assimilation of the entire population of sentient being on the planet,” The Cyberpony’s gears whirled as it recalled all the information from the once pony brain inside its head, “and the capture of the most powerful weapons of the planet, items known as The Elements of Harmony. With these weapons, as well as the entire population of the following: ponies, unicorns, pegasi, griffons, dragons, and alicorns; the Cybermen will move on to the next planet in this universe and repeat the process. Then, we shall find and assimilate the greatest enemy of the Cybermen, The Doctor.”
The Doctor stumbled back, a looks of fear mixing with hatred crossed his face, “This whole plan... Is so you have an army that can pull me into your ranks?”
“Affirmative, once the Cybermen have The Doctor, the universe will bow down and join the many who have already been assimilated...” Suddenly, the screech of the Sonic Screwdriver filled the room, piercing the Cyberpony’s mind. It screamed out a cry that no pony could make2 or even dream of making. Braeburn shielded Apple Bloom’s eyes as the cry of the Cyberpony filled his ears, the deputy knew what The Doctor was doing. The yellow colt’s eyes never left the scene as he watched the strange brown colt put the once normal Cyberpony out of its misery.  All Braeburn could hear over the heart breaking cries was the sound of The Doctor’s voice as he apologized over and over, to whatever was left of the poor colt of mare inside that metal shell.

***

The Cyberpony’s cries filled the air, and the windows of Appleloosa where filled with candle light. As a group of grumpy and scared colts, mares, fillies, and foals trotted to the jail house, another sound filled the night sky. The sound of what seemed like a thousand hooves thundering through the plains, but in reality it was a heard of buffalo lead by Chief Thunderhooves.
“Braeburn!” the buffalo chief called out at the top of his lungs. When the peace between the two species was finalized, Braeburn was chosen to be the liason between the buffalo and the ponies of Appleloosa. In other words, when the buffalo seeked  help from the town, they went to Braeburn first. 
“I’m here Chief.” Braeburn said as he rushed out of the sheriff’s station.
“Braeburn, have you seen Little Strongheart? She has disappeared, and I fear that if she is not with you then she has fallen victim to the cloaked ones.” Chief Thunderhooves said, panting as he tried to catch his breath.
“Lil’ Strongheart’s missing?!” Braeburn yelled, his eyes filled with worry, “Chief... I think that... Those things may have taken her.”
“That’s all I needed to hear!” a voice called from the back of the crowd, just as The Doctor and Apple Bloom walked outside. To The Doctor’s displeasure, a familiar unicorn in dark armor made his way thought the group. General Stormbreaker smiled as his good eye caught sight of the strange brown colt. “Ladies and gentle-colts, I am General Stormbreaker of the Royal Canterlot Guard, Torchwhoof devision...” he paused as the confused townsponies locked their eyes on him, “I’m here to tell you all that the Royal Guard is taking over this investigation, and that no colt,” the general’s eyes moved over to The Doctor, “shall interfear until it is a closed case.”