//------------------------------// // Chapter 20 - It's All Relative // Story: A Gizmonk in Ponyville // by Moheart7 //------------------------------// A month after Nightmare Night had come and gone, Goggles soon found himself in another troubling situation. With nowhere to run and nowhere to hide, his only choice now was to stand up and fight. “You ready this time Goggles?” Rainbow Dash asked smugly from across the room. “Uh yeah, I think so.” Goggles replied. But he had been so far from ready that he was wondering what he was even doing here in the first place. At the moment he was standing in the middle of Ponyville’s local dojo, several feet away stood Rainbow Dash, who glared down at him from her fighting stance, finally she lunged. “Oh Scrap-Bunnies!” Goggles squealed, narrowly managing to duck out of the way. For the past month, mere days after Nightmare Night was, Goggles had begun practising martial arts with Rainbow Dash every week in this dojo, not his own Idea of course, but it was definitely something new worth trying… at least that’s what he first thought. Goggles may have been built for speed but that energy was mostly combined with his brainpower in order to stay focused on building his inventions, never in his life would he have expected to try and use it for fighting, and of course his speed was nothing compared to that of the fasted flyer in Ponyville. At first Goggle didn’t do so well, Rainbow Dash tried to teach him basic defences but he ended up getting beaten black and an even darker shade of blue than his fur, however that didn’t stop him from trying again and again, and overtime he did get better at it. Now a month later, Goggles was starting to get really good at the Martial arts Rainbow Dash had been teaching him, granted he got defeated several times, but certainly not as often than when he first started. Armed with a Bo Staff as his primary weapon, Goggles flipped over Rainbow Dash as she went in for a kick and used his staff to trip her up, instantly recovering, Rainbow Dash managed to head-butt him whilst he went in for another jump, however using his tail as a spring, Goggle quickly bounced off the wall he flew into and launched himself towards the Pegasus. By the time the fight was over, both individuals were breathing heavily and faced each other with beads of sweat running down their face. Finally, with a satisfied chuckle, Rainbow Dash spoke. “Not as cool as me,” she commented. “But you ARE getting better at this.” Goggles had come to expect any signs of Rainbow Dash’s ego at any random time by now, so much so that he sometimes found himself humouring her and chuckling along. “Thanks,” he said. “I think you might have only gave me 5 bruises this time.” At those words both of them laughed and gathered up their things, they had been practising for at least two hours now and it was time to call it a day. “I better get going,” Rainbow Dash said, wrapping a small towel around her neck and heading out. “Same time next week?” “Oh you bet,” Goggle answered, collapsing his makeshift Bo-staff into a smaller version of itself and putting it in his vest pocket. “See ya Rainbow! “Keep practising Goggles!” Rainbow Dash called out as he ran out of the dojo. This was advice that Goggles had certainly taken to heart ever since he first started training with Rainbow Dash, ever since the first day, he knew that he would certainly need more time than once a week if he was ever going to get any better so he practised with his Bo-staff every chance he got, sometimes whilst even doing his inventing. In time, perhaps he will even become great at it, perhaps add a little bit of brawn to his brains. As he walked back towards Sweet Apple Acres to relax his muscles for the day work on a new invention, perhaps even pour himself a nice cup of Camomile while he works so he could relax a bit, Goggles smiled, nodded, even waved at almost every single pony to walk by him, most of which doing the same back. Soon enough, he found himself bumping into a blue Unicorn with a Navy and white mane. “Hey Colgate,” Goggles greeted, giving her a bow of his head. “Looking good as usual.” “You too Goggles,” Colgate replied, trying to hide a slight blush. “By the way, thanks for those mechanical toothbrushes, their selling like crazy.” “Well, be sure to send in another order in case you run out!” Goggle replied before she gave him a gentle smile and walked away. Over the months that Goggles had now been in Ponyville, he had grown to know each individual pony by name and personality, at this point he had made friends with pretty much all of them, some would even say that he came at a close second to Pinkie Pie in that department. And in some cases, Goggles would make it his prime directive to make weekly visits every so often to some of his closest friends, such as Tea with Fluttershy, training with Rainbow Dash, club meetings with the CMC, he even joined a Book Club with Twilight and a few other ponies at the library, this also gave him an excuse to gain more research material at any time after the meetings. Needless to say, Goggles severely enjoyed his time in this town, and of course as many ponies had told him ever since he had arrived, there was certainly never a dull moment. For example, just a short while ago, Pinkie Pie of all ponies found a genealogy scroll at the library that suggested she and the Apple family were related, but the text confirming it was smudged beyond legibility. After traveling to their relative, Goldie Delicious, to find out for sure, after encountering what Goggles could only describe as the road-trip of nightmares, the Apples STILL weren’t sure because the text Goldie had was smudged too, however they accepted her as family anyway, however the thought of Pinkie Pie being in relation to the Apples, and therefore him, gave Goggles the chills slightly. However that did bring up an interesting thought, could the Apples consider HIM as family too? Granted they did take him in and they had treated him as one of their own from the start but that was back when they though he was little more than a pet, and a lots of things have changed since then. As Goggles began to mull the thought over, he soon found himself walking into the busiest part of town. As usual market day had come, and Applejack was the one tending the Apple Stall today, needless to say her family’s business had picked up ever since Goggles had used some of his inventions to make jobs around the orchard a little easier, not to mention the extra advertising he had Silver Lining put into her business, which of course, Applejack appreciated greatly. While a smile Goggles walked up to her. “…we’re Apples to the core.” Applejack sang to herself as Goggles jumped up onto the stall. “Howdy Goggles, how was the lesson?” “Painful as usual,” Goggles chuckled, receiving a small laugh from Applejack in return. “So good day so far?” “Ah guess you can say that,” Applejack answered. “Not any problems that I can…” “Hey Applejack!” said a familiar voice just in front of the stall. Turning both their heads towards the owner of the voice, Goggles smiled upon seeing Spike, Applejack however choked slightly and looked back at him sheepishly. “Oh uh hey Spike,” she said nervously. “What brings you here?” “Oh Twilight asked me to pick up a few groceries while she’s busy at the library,” Spike explained. “Do you by any chance have any Golden Delicious?” Applejack then quickly regained her composure and put on a smile, causing Goggles to merely react with a roll of his eyes. “Sure thing Spike,” Applejack said as she looked through the many varieties on her stall. “How many?” “About half a dozen please,” Spike answered as Applejack began putting the specified amount into a bag. “Twilight was thinking that she could use them to make some pie later. So how much do I owe ya?” However before Spike could count his money, Applejack raised a hoof, grabbing his attention. “It’s on the house Spike,” she said, much to both Spike and Goggles’ surprise. “Call it my treat.” “Whoa really?” Spike asked. “Really?” Goggles added with a deadpanned look. How obvious can this mare get!?! If Spike was still not aware of her feelings for him by now then there was something wrong with him. “Thanks Applejack,” Spike said with a smile as Applejack handed him the bag of apples. “How I’ll more money to buy Rarity something nice.” There was DEFINITELY something wrong with him. At the very mention of the word ‘Rarity’ Applejack was taken aback a bit, in fact hearing her name emanating from the dragon’s lips simply made her what to curl into a ball and sob. “Oh you’re getting something for Rarity huh?” she asked trying desperately not to look saddened. “Yep,” Spike answered with a naïve grin upon his face. “I thought that she might like something nice after all that work she did with the Ponyville Days festival, I’m really hoping she likes it.” “Yeah I’ll bet,” Goggles commented. The Ponyville Days festival, that had to have been one of the days when Goggles had seen Applejack at once of her worst moments. When some pony named Tenderhoof, a trend-setter who came to the festival became smitten with Applejack, Rarity tried impersonating her in order to catch the stallion’s eye. After a ridiculous turn of events leading up to Applejack dressing up as a fancy pony and temporarily changing her name to Applejewel, the Earth pony couldn’t help but notice Spike’s perk of interest in her as she was displaying the dress she was wearing, that had to have been to only time the Spike had EVER looked at her like that. By the end of the day Goggles could have sworn that he had Applejack crying herself to sleep that very evening from the other side of her bedroom door. The event itself was bad enough, but now Spike was bringing it up again and stirring things up in Applejack’s heart. “Well I gotta go,” Spike said as he gave the two a wave. “Lots of things to do.” And with that Spike turned and left, leaving Applejack to sulk with depression. Goggles on the other hand merely crossed his arms and gave Applejack a stern look. “Ok AJ this has gone on long enough,” he said, catching her attention. “You have been getting worse with this little crush of yours ever since Nightmare Night. It’s time for you to go up to that dragon and come clean! Applejack’s eyes widened at that. “Wha… what are you saying?” she asked nervously. At those words, Goggles face-palmed with a heavy groan. “Ok let me spell it out for you,” he said looking her straight in the eye. “Tell. Him. The. TRUTH!!!” Goggles almost screamed that last word, practically gaining the attention of a few bystanders, who much to Applejack’s relief, merely shrugged it off seconds later. “Ah told you ah can’t!” she argued. “You know ah can’t!” However Goggles wasn’t going to have any of it. “Applejack if you don’t do something about this, then I will!” he snapped. Those words made Applejack gasp in fear, she may not have known what Goggles would do but given his skills she knew what Goggles was capable of. “Don’t even think about it!” she retorted, a sudden thought popping into her head. “Besides you promised that you would keep quiet about this!” Indeed he did, and as both of them knew all too well, Goggles was a Gizmonk of his word. After a few brief moments of silence, he sighed with defeat. “Fine,” he finally said. “Just please AJ, do something about this whole situation, I can’t bear to see you torturing yourself like this.” Applejack nodded at that. “Alright then, I better get going,” Goggles said, jumping off the stall. “I’ll see you back at the farm.” And with that the Gizmonk left Applejack alone with her stall, however he barely walked a single yard before stopping right by a nearby Oak tree and leaning up against it. “So how long have you four been listening?” he asked, seemingly to no one. “Long enough,” Silver Spoon replied as she and the other Cute Mark Crusaders came out from behind the tree. “She’s still in denial huh?” Goggles may have promised to keep his mouth shut about Applejack’s feelings for Spike but that didn’t stop Silver Spoon from overhearing their conversation at Rocky Road’s Ice-cream shop on Nightmare Night before she had told Goggles of Diamond Tiara’s sabotage. And while Goggles may have promised to stay quiet, Silver Spoon felt that Applejack’s little sister at least deserved to know and Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo just happened to overhear them during their talk after the play. By the time Nightmare Night was over, all four members of the CMC had known about Applejack’s secret, and by the next morning, so did Trixie when all four of them confronted Goggles about it the next morning. He knew that Applejack would be ticked off that more ponies knew about her feelings for Spike but at least now he had someone to talk to about it. “Gah! I cannot take it anymore!” Goggles groaned, banging his head against the tree. “This whole Applespike-love-triangle is REALLY starting to get on my nerves!” Needless to say Apple Bloom shared Goggles’ annoyance, she loved her sister deeply and as such couldn’t bear to see her torture herself either. “Well, what can we do about it?” she asked with a sigh. “It’s not like we can just bring them together just like that.” “Yeah, we tried that once and it SO didn’t work out,” Scootaloo added. “You did?” Silver Spoon asked with a raise eyebrow. “Long Story,” Sweetie Belle said, rolling her eyes. After a few more moments of banging against the tree, Goggles finally rested his head against the trunk and sighed. “You know what?” he said, lifting his head. “I don’t have the energy to think on this right now, I’m just gonna head back to my lab and make myself some tea.” “Ah’ll come with ya,” Apple Bloom said, allowing Goggles to hop onto her back. “Okay, see ya guys,” Silver Spoon replied as she and the other Crusaders gave them a small wave. # The trip back to Sweet Apple Acres had to have been one of the most irritating Goggles had ever had, throughout the entire trip over, all he could think about was how to help Applejack, there was no way she was going to just admit her feelings, at least not on her own, she was WAY too stubborn for that. Suddenly Goggles’ train of though was interrupted when Trixie ran up to him and Apple Bloom just when they arrived back at the farm. “Oh thank Celestia, you’re here!” she said, breathing heavily. “You gotta come back to the lab now!” “What’s going on Trixie?” Apple Bloom asked. “Just take a look,” Trixie replied, leading the two back up to the barn. Not really understanding what was happening here, Goggles and Apple Bloom shrugged and followed without question. After Trixie opened the doors, they were met with an interesting yet confusing sight, right in the middle of the laboratory were the three Diamond Dogs, Rover, Fido and Spot, all three of whom were in a state of panic and trying desperately to fill up the hole underneath the Poker table, which lead to one of their tunnels. “Block it up! Block it up!” Rover screamed fearfully. “We’re blocking! We’re blocking!” Fido and Spot both replied in unison, no less fearfully than Rover. “Well do it faster!” Rover snapped. “That messenger was sent three days ago, she’ll be here any minute!” Neither Diamond Dogs seemed to even notice the three other individuals entering the building, they were all too busy being completely insane with fear. Finally Goggles spoke. “What the heck is going on with you guys?” he asked. That was when all three Diamond Dogs finally acknowledged their presence. “Goggles! You gotta hide us buddy!” Rover pleaded. “What?” Goggles exclaimed, raising an eyebrow. “Why?” “Mama Akita escaped from the old-folks home again,” Fido explained as he and Spot continued to fill the hole. “She’s on her way here!” But those words didn’t make sense to Goggles, Trixie or Apple Bloom in the slightest. “Who’s Mama Akita?” Apple Bloom asked. “You dogs have old-folks homes?” Trixie added. “Specialised caverns specially built for old Diamond Dogs up north,” Spot clarified. “And Mama Akita has already escaped it three times already!” Rover squealed in terror, tugging at his ears as though as his fear began to drive him bonkers. “She’s the scariest thing ever!” “I thought Rarity was the scariest thing to you guys.” Goggles commented, scratching his head. All three Diamond Dogs shook their heads in response to that. “No way Monkey-boy! Mama Akita is WAY worse!” Rover stated, earning a nod from his comrades in response. “She’s vicious!” Fido said in agreement. “She’s brutal!”” Spot added. As the Dogs all described this supposed terror of the Diamond Dogs’ Old-folks home, Goggles, Apple Bloom and Trixie couldn’t help but look at each other with a nervous twist in their stomach, if this Mama Akita was as bad as what the Dogs say she is then they hope that they would never get to meet her. Suddenly rover spoke again. “But the worse thing is, she’s loves to call me…” he began, only to be interrupted by another voice, one that was loud, shrill and scratchy that began to echoe through the tunnel that the dog s had been trying to block. “ROVEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!” it screeched. Suddenly all three Dog’s eyes widened with terror and they all screamed. “AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!! SHE’S HERE!!!” Rover cried as he fell to his knees and grabbed Goggles by his vest in a pleading manner. “Oh please pal, you gotta hide me!!!” But before anyone could say another word, the ground beneath them began to rumble, as though something was trying to dig its way out from down below. Suddenly the small earth mound that had been the Diamond Dogs’ attempts to block their hole exploded in a burst of dust. As everyone picked themselves up and began to cough out the dust from their lungs, they finally came face-to-face with the creature that spooked the Diamond Dogs to the extent of pleading Goggles for sanctuary. However as Goggles, Trixie and Apple Bloom looked upon Mama Akita, what they saw was far different from what they expected, as expected she was a Diamond Dog but unlike Rover, Spot and Fido, Mama Akita was fairly small, in fact she was so small she had to have been no bigger than Apple Bloom in terms of height, not only that but her wrinkly fur colour was also sickly shade of pink save for a patch of wild white hair that grew at the top of her head, at first glance one would assume that she was just a simple Diamond Crested Dog that walked with a cane. “THAT’s who they’re afraid of?” Trixie whispered into Goggles’ ear, making sure the old Diamond Dog couldn’t hear her. “She looks like a rat in a wig.” “Don’t let appearances fool you,” Goggles whispered back. “Let’s just watch and see what happens.” At first mama Akita didn’t speak, she just stood there glaring at the three other Diamond Dogs who collapsed to the floor in a childish manner, covering their faces in their paws in hopes that it would somehow make the scary monster go away. Suddenly Mama Akita’s glare turned into a toothy grin of delight as she opened he warms up wide and beamed at Rover. “Is that my little Rovee-wovee?” she said happily, much to the Confusion of Goggles and the two ponies. Mama Akita then walked over to Rover and pulled him up to his feet, with more force than anyone would have expected from a dog of her size. It was at that moment that Rover began to wail like a baby as Mama Akita pulled him in for a hug. “Ma Please no!” he pleaded. But those words fell upon deaf ears as Mama Akita squeezed him tighter. “Come now, give your mother a kiss!” she said blissfully as everyone else’s widened with surprise. “SHE’S YOUR MOTHER!?!” Goggles, Trixie and Apple Bloom shockingly exclaimed simultaneously. So this entire fuss has been about Rover’s own MOTHER!?! As that information sunk in, Goggles had to desperately try his best not to burst out laughing, as did Trixie and Apple bloom who both tried to hide their faces in their hooves. Granted it was natural for any child to be scared of their parents at certain points in their life, but Rover and his two friends had taken it to a whole new level, they must have been well into adulthood and their still scared of a little of lady. Upon taking a deep cleansing breath to keep himself from laughing, Goggles jumped off Apple Bloom’s back and walked over to Mama Akita. “Rover, you never said that your mother was such a lovely looking lady,” he said, trying to be polite. However that was when Mama Akita’s smile turned back into a glare as she looked down at the weird creature standing next to her. “What the heck it this thing?” she said, fiercely poking Goggles in the stomach with her cane, winding him slightly. “Does this place need pest-control?” Needless to say, both Trixie and Apple Bloom were surprised at this strange mood swing, it was as though Mama Akita was disgusted by the very sight of Goggles, it was then that they decided to try and smooth things over. “Actually um, Mama Akita was it?” Trixie said, receiving her own glare in return from Mama Akita. “Goggles and I are good friends with your son, in fact he and Goggles here are big business partners, isn’t that right?” “Oh... um, yes that’s right,” Rover responded, almost terrified at what his mother would say to that. “He makes us Magic Growing Juice that gives us more gems than ever before, turned our mines into a never-ending supply.” Goggles hoped that would at least make Mama Akita at least smile since gem were pretty much the livelihood of all Diamond Dogs, however all that she did in response to that statement was shrug and spit on the floor. “It stinks of pony in here!” she growled. “Rover, bring me a drink! Your Mama is thirsty from her long trip.” At those words Goggles smiled, it may not have looked like a good first impression but if there was once thing that always smoothed things over whenever Goggles got into trouble, it was a cup of his favourite beverage. “How about a nice cup of tea?” he asked, rubbing his sore belly. That was a sentence that Goggles instantly regretted saying afterward. When Mama Akita gave in to her son’s pleas to give his friends a chance, and sat down at Goggle’s Poker table, Goggles, Trixie and Apple Bloom soon came to realised why Rover and his two friends were scared of her so much. After about 10 minutes of listening to Mama Akita’s complaints and insults, all three of them were just about ready to bang their heads against the table. Mama Akita had to have been one of the biggest bigots that they had ever met, anything that wasn’t a Diamond Dog Mama Akita considered was beneath her, and she wasn’t even trying to hide it. And not only was she insulting, but violent too, if there was anyone who she considered was insulting her or disrespecting her, she took a swing with her cane, thankfully Fido, Spot and rover took most of the hits and she never even touched Apple Bloom, if she did then Goggles would have had to take a swing at HER. Before long she had moved on from calling Trixie names to insulting her own son for associating with her, Apple Bloom and Goggles. “What happened to the proud dog I raised?” she moaned, gulping down her hot tea. “Since when did he even consider these weird monkey-things or even ponies equal to him?” “Now come on, don’t you think that’s a little harsh?” Fido asked, nervously, receiving a whack across the head from Mama Akita’s cane in response. “OW!” “Yeah,” Trixie added, her proud stature never faltering despite the cruel Diamond Dog’s words. “I’ll have you know that the Great and Powerful Trixie is more than equal enough to assist with your son.” But Mama Akita merely scoffed and once again spat on the floor. “You know, it’s probably an attitude like this that’s keeping you from getting a husband,” she retorted. “What am I saying? You’re a lost cause anyway.” Trixie’s eye began to twitch with fury at that, granted she had been used to the scorns from other ponies but the old crone of a Diamond Dog didn’t even know her and she was just saying spiteful words right to her face. At that moment Trixie had just wanted to jump across the table and strangle the very life out of her. “Well I never…!” she snapped angrily, before Goggles put a paw on her should and pulled her away. “Please excuse us,” he said, dragging her away from the table. “I just need to talk to my assistant for a moment.” “Whatever,” Mama Akita huffed, taking another gulp of tea, much to her disgust. As soon as they were sure that they were out of earshot, Trixie and Goggles felt safe enough to talk freely. “Okay, she has got to go!” Trixie hissed. “Do you think I don’t know that!?!” Goggles retorted, his mind deep in thought before his tail lit up. “Just stall for a little longer, I have an idea.” Based upon the serious look of determination Goggles always displayed whenever he had a good idea, Trixie understood completely and nodded in acknowledgement before walking back towards the table, where Fido and Spot were trying to shield Apple Bloom from Mama Akita’s view. A few minutes later, Goggles followed suit, carrying a fresh pot of tea and some clean cups. “More tea, Mama Akita?” Goggles asked, pouring out another cup of tea. “I suppose if I must,” Mama Akita moaned before accepting the cup and taking another gulp. “As I was saying Rovee, you must understand that as a Diamond Dog you must be proud of your… of your…” However Mama Akita never got to finish her sentence, as her words began to slur and her eyes began to feel heavy, everyone but Goggles gasped in surprise as the elderly Diamond Dog collapsed and fell face-down into the table. “What happened?” Fido asked worryingly. “I crushed a couple of Granny Smith’s sleeping pills and put it in her tea,” Goggles explained as he took the small jar of pills out of his pocket to show everyone. “She should be out for at least a couple of hours, maybe even a day.” At those words, everyone let of a sigh with relief, even the Diamond Dogs felt like a giant load had been lifted. “Thank Celestia!” Apple Bloom exclaimed, rubbing her temples with her hooves. “I know right? If I had to listen to any more of her racist comments and I would have probably had to kill her,” Trixie added, before reliving what she said in front of Rover. “No offence.” However Rover merely smiled. “None taken,” he said. “Don’t get me wrong, I love my Mama, but there is a reason that she’s supposed to stay in the home.” Hearing this Goggles put on a smile of his own. “Well you guys had better make sure she goes back there and quick,” he chuckled, though secretly worried that two pills might not have been enough and the old Diamond Dog would wake up at any second to take out her revenge. “No arguments there,” Fido said before grabbing the unconscious Diamond Dog and throwing her down the hole and shouting down into it. “Hey guys! Get this one back up north! And make sure she’s stays there this time!” After Fido shouted those words, everyone could clearly here the sounds of the small pack of Diamond Dogs waiting beneath the lab rummaging their way towards Mama Akita’s unconscious body and dragging her away. “Uh, just how long have those dogs been under there?” Apple Bloom asked inquisitively. “You kidding? Mama Akita has escaped the home so many times, it’s a wonder that the entire species wasn’t after her,” Spot answered with a slight chuckle. “The only reason they didn’t come up out of the hole sooner was because she had already found her son, and trust me you don’t want to see her when she gets… possessive.” Indeed they didn’t, as a matter of fact no one wanted to see her again period. “We can’t thank you enough Goggles,” Rover said, shaking the Gizmonk’s paw. “And I apologise for all the things my mother said.” “Hey, no worries,” Goggles replied, trying his best to put on a smile, despite his disgust with the whole situation. “Just make sure to keep her out of my lab next time.” “Deal,” Rover chuckled. “And if there’s ever anything else you need, just ask. We owe you.” At first Goggles would have said that he didn’t need anything, maybe he would have taken up Rover’s offer some other time, however there was one thought that had been plaguing him ever since he had left Applejack’s stall. Suddenly the orb at the end of his tail lit up, which meant that he got an idea… a brilliant idea. “Actually,” he said, leaning in towards the Diamond Dogs. “There IS something you can do for me, but it will require you to follow every instruction I give to the letter. Understood?” All three Diamond Dogs nodded at that. “Good,” Goggles continued. “Now here’s what I want you to do…” At those words, Rover, Fido and Spot all leaned in closer to make sure they could hear the Gizmonk’s whispers into their ears. With every word Goggles spoke, their eyes grew wider and wider with shock. However, unable to hear the conversation, Trixie and Apple Bloom merely looked at each other with confused looks, wondering what Goggles could possibly be saying. Finally Goggles finished whispering and spoke up again. “Can you do that?” he asked. That was a question, Goggles quickly got his answer to in the form of a trio of sinister grins smearing their way across all three Diamond Dogs’ faces. “It will be our pleasure,” Rover answer, before turning towards his comrades. “Let’s go boys!” And with that Rover jumped down into the hall, disappearing from sight, followed suit by Fido and Spot. As soon as the Diamond Dogs were gone, Apple Bloom and Trixie walked up to Goggles. “What y’all up to Goggles?” Apple Bloom asked, her eyes narrowed with an accusing glare. “Yeah, don’t keep us in the dark,” Trixie added. At those words, a huge, creepy smile etched its way across Goggle’s face. “Only my greatest idea yet,” he answered rubbing his paws together in a menacing manner. “Trixie, what’s my schedule for the next couple of days?” “Well, let’s see,” Trixie replied, walking over to Goggles workbench and reading off the piece of paper upon it. “We have 10 cases of Laser Cutters that need to be built and delivered to Silver Lining’s business partners in Canterlot, two vials of Growth Potion to be made and delivered to the Diamond Dogs and you have also have a tea visit scheduled with Zecora.” As Trixie spoke each word, goggles gave a slight nod with understanding, finally he responded. “Push back both our schedules for at least a week,” he said, much to both ponies’ confusion. “We’re going to be pretty busy for the next few days.”