//------------------------------// // Act II Chapter 5: A Royal Summon's. Part 1. // Story: The 7th Element. Season 1: The Magi-Tech Pony // by Rojack79 //------------------------------// Feb, 1, 1000, C.E. 12:00 P.M. Gadget awoke to the sound of clanging coming from the kitchen. He was about to go back to sleep when a huge crash brought him to his hooves. "Uh who's there?" He feebly called out, his mouth feeling like he had been sucking on cotton. No one answered. He grabbed a baseball bat and inched towards the kitchen were more noise was coming from. In fact it sounded like someone was rooting through his fridge looking for something. "NO! NO! NO...no..no..no.. AHA!!!" Gadget gripped his bat tighter. Who the hey is in my house? Oh i hope Nightmare and Uncle are OK. He rounded the corner and swung the bat but it ended up getting wrenched from his grasp. He was to shocked to respond and was soon tackled to the ground by the intruder. "Get off of me!" Gadget said as he struggled to get out of the intruder's grasp. He was startled out of his struggling by the sound of laughter. He finally got a good look at his assailant and saw that it was none other than, "MOM?!" Ruby Rose smiled at her sons shocked face and nodded her head. "Hi sweety." She said beaming down at him. "How ya do'in son?" Gadget looked around and saw his father coming down the stair's. But he was not alone. Both Nightmare and his Uncle were with him. Ruby got off of her son and helped him to his feet. He looked from pony to pony. "So what are you two doing here? Last i heard was that you two were up in the crystal mountains on a dig." Ruby and Sky looked at one another. "Well son we were." Sky answered. "But we got another contract." Ruby added. Gadget looked from his mom to his dad. While he was happy for them he couldn't stop a sad smile from marring his face. He quickly wiped it off and put on a fake smile. "So were'll you be this time he asked?" His parents weren't fooled. "Honey is there something wrong?" Ruby asked. Gadget looked from his mom to his dad and just couldn't stop from grabbing both of them in a hug as he began to cry uncontrollably. "Wow squirt why the water work's?" Gadget could not stop sobbing so his words came out a little mangled. "I-i-i'm s-s-s-sorry." He said. Looking through blurry eye's at his parents. "I-i-i j-just m-m-miss y-y-you t-t--two s-s-so m-m-much." He sobbed some more. His parents hugged him back. "B-b-but e-e-e-ever s-s-s-since i-i-i-i a-a-a-lmost d-d-d-ied i--i-i j-j-just c-c-c-couldn't s-s-s-stop t-t-t-hinking a-a-a-a-bout y-y-y-ou t-t-t-t-two." "WHAT!!" Both of his parents just starred at him jaws on the floor. Gadget cringed at his parents outburst but so did Nightmare. She began to feel uncomfortable about the whole situation. She slowly stepped back from the family. Gadget felt Nightmare's emotional turmoil and mentally chastised himself. He turned back to his parent's and told them the whole story minus a few detail's. This made Nightmare feel a little better but she was still on edge. His parents however were even more shocked about his story. "Oh my poor baby!" Ruby screamed as she hugged her son tightly. "Mom can't breath!" Gadget wheezed. His suffering continued however as his dad joined in the hug. Gadget was sure his ribs would break. His eye's began to bulge out of there socket's before his parents finally let him go. He slid to the floor like a wet noodle. The parents then turned there attention to Nightmare who was silent through out the ordeal. "So honey who is this dashing young mare?" Ruby asked her husband. Nightmare was glad she had a disguise up to cover her horn. For all Gadget's parents knew she was just a simple pegasus living with there son. "You know i don't believe i got your name miss?" Nightmare thought fast. "Eclipse." She said. "My name is Eclipse." "Well then miss eclipse it is a pleasure to meet you." Ruby said extending her hoof. Nightmare took her hoof and softly shook it. With there greeting done the to mare's went over to the couch to sit and chat leaving the colt's to themselves. "So." Sky said nudging his son, a smirk on his face. "Have you two been using protection?" "WHAT!!!" Gadget shouted jumping up to his feet. His face was bright red, which for him having a jet black coat of fur was quite an achievement. He began to shake hie head rapidly. "No dad you've got it all wrong were just friend's." He said putting up his hooves defensively. He looked over to nightmare and saw that she was deep in conversation with his mom. "So how long have you and Gadget known each other?" Ruby asked. Nightmare looked at Gadget who was talking to his father and looking like he was about to barf. "We just met at the beginning of the year." She answered, a mischievous smile adorning her face as Gadget looked like he was squirming in his skin. "Oh really?" Ruby said. "So how did you two meet?" Nightmare thought about it. "Well h-h-he rescued me from a 'monster'." She said a sad fearful look in her eye's. Nightmare closed her eye's willing the painful memories of her imprisonment on the moon to go away. She felt a pair of hooves rap around her neck and opened them to see ruby embracing her. "Hu hu that sounds like my boy. Ever the Knight in shining armor to the rescue." Nightmare smiled as she reciprocated the hug. The two stayed that way until an odd sound reached there ear's. They looked over and saw Gadget face first in the waste basket puking his gut's out. "And that my son is how you give the lady's a night they will never forget." He winked at Ruby who just blushed a bright crimson. "Sky Daring Diver you did not just tell our son about that!" Ruby said getting to her hooves and walking over to Gadget who was still looking sick. "Oh god mom please make it go away!" He cried. Ruby gave her husband a stern look. "You and me are going to have a little talk on the way back to canterlot mister." "Were's the brain bleach!" Gadget shouted running up the stair's. Point Dexter looked up the stairs and then back to Sky and Ruby. "So what were you two doing in canterlot?" The couples faces lit up but they held off on there reveal until gadget came back down. When he was thoroughly done trying and failing to wipe his memory of his dad's 'advice' he came back down and sat on the couch ignoring everypony. Until Nightmare came up and tapped him on the shoulder at which point he shook his head to get rid of the after image's. Oh he was going to need more therapy. "Yes N---Eclipse?" He said meekly looking into her golden eye's and blushing fiercely. He may never be able to look at another mare the same way again. Not even his mom. UH More Therapy! "Are you ok?" She asked concern evident in her voice. He shook his head and smiled. His parents came back into the living room and both of them had smile's on there face's. "So son when were you last in canterlot?" Gadget thought about it. "The last time i was in canterlot? About three years ago when i graduated. Why?" his parents looked at one another then to him with smiles on there face's. Swift Watched as the family of pony plus Nightmare exited the clock tower and made there way through town. He spied them from his observation cloud and with a small push of his wings both he and his cloud drifted along fallowing the group. His keen eye's also spotted another pony fallowing the family. It was Hot Shot. He was swiftly making his way from roof top to, roof top. "Just what are you up to?" His ear piece lit up and he began to rely his news to H.Q. "Control this is Swift Wing." "Swift Wing this is Control, Over." "Control were we able to find anything else on this pegasus Hot Shot?" he said as the group made there way to the train station. They stooped at a tree house and a purple unicorn came out to greet them. They all exchanged pleasantry's and the family was on there way again. Hot Shot was right behind them. They all made there way onto the train and they were off. "Swift Wing this is Control." "I hear ya." "We have some new's on this Hot Shot character. Apparently he was a world famous racer before he was exposed as a cheater. Now he go's from place to place participating in races to earn a living. As of now that's all we have on him. We'll keep you informed of any new developments. Out." "Read you loud and clear control. Over and out." Swift shook his head. He had a bad feeling about this guy. "So let me get this strait, you two have to go back to the frozen north to help excavate a kingdom?" "Yup. According to the documents we got from the contractor this kingdom's been in the ice for a thousand year's." Gadget was ecstatic. "That is so cool!" He said giving his parents a hug. As the family was going over the final preparations for the trip, Point Dexter and Nightmare were sitting next to a window. Nightmare was looking out the window with curiosity etched on her face. "So Nightmare i have a question?" She looked up at Point Dexter who was starring off into space. "Yes?" "What was it like on the moon?" Nightmare froze up. She hadn't thought about that in at least a month. The thought dredged up painful memory's. "Eclipse?" Nightmare looked over to see Gadget looking at her. "Are you ok?" She looked at him and her fear's melted away. She knew she had nothing to fear. She shook her head. Gadget gave her one last passive look before he and his parents went back to there conversation. Nightmare looked out of the window. "I am sorry miss." Dexter Said. He hung his head. "I'm afraid as smart as i am i sometime's forget to control my curiosity." Dexter bowed his head in respect and backed away sitting in a seat further down. Nightmare sat down starring out the window watching the country side whiz by. Nightmare felt the seat shift as a pony sat down. "Hello miss. How are you today?" Came a voice Nightmare was not expecting to hear. She looked to her left to see a new pony sitting there. He was a pegasus. A big one to. She had to look up just to see his face. His coat was a bright yellow one. His mane was a solid red styled back into an elegant Pompadour. She was not sure why a total stranger would come up and talk to her but she did not want to be rude. "Hello good Sir. I am fine." she said with a smile. "I couldn't help but notice that you seem to be new to train travel. Is this your first time?" "oh yes yes this is." She said her smile still on her face. She couldn't place it nut something seemed off about this pony. He gave her the chill's. She really wished Gadget was hear right now. Maybe he would be able to drive off this guy. "Hey Eclipse." Oh thank Celestia! Both pony's craned there necks to see Gadget make his way to Nightmare. Nightmare pushed past the Pegasus with an, "Excuse me." He moved out of the way and Gadget came and extended his hoof out. The Pegasus took it and gave it a strong shake. Obviously he was trying to show a form of dominance over Gadget who was a head shorter than he but Gadget was not having an of it. He held a firm grip through out the shake and looked the big stallion in the face the entire time. "Hey there. The name's Gadget." He said a cheeky smile on his face. "Pleasure to meet you." He said a small smile masking his envy. "The name's Hot Shot." "Cool. Oh and like wise." Gadget said releasing his grip. He looked at Nightmare who went around the pair and went to sit with Gadget's parent's. Gadget looked out the window to see Canterlot off in the distance. "Well it was nice meeting you Hot Shot, but this is our stop up ahead." He said gesturing to Canterlot in the distance. Hot Shot nodded his head and smiled. "Like wise." He said. Gadget went to go and sit with his parent's making sure to sit next to Nightmare who had taken a seat between Sky and Ruby. She was having a conversation with the two but felt Hot Shot's eye's on her. she looked up and saw him starring her with a hungry look in his eye's. She just looked back to Gadget's parent's. Hot Shot smiled and turned to go to the next train car. So she want to play hard to get. A devious smile crept onto his face. That's fine with me.