Dan Vs. The Magic of Friendship(Season 1)

by Barrobroadcaster

Heart, Mind and Spirit

"So, you understand now, why humanity's presence can't be tolerated," Vice said, leading them back to the elevators. "If there was a spell or a button I could press and just make everything work out for everyone, I'd use it. But, there are limits to both science and sorcery, so we just have to do what we can. This way just works best for both worlds," he explained.

Dan and the others had been silent since Vice had told them about the black box, about the invasion. Now, for the third time today, they were in the silence of the crystalline elevator traveling down into Vice Grip's no-longer-crystal palace. Even Fluffle Puff understood the implications of what Vice had revealed and had not uttered so much as a "thppp" in response.

Vice noticed their silence. No matter how good his hand was, he still needed them to make a move in order for things to continue. Otherwise, even having the upper hand was worthless. Still, maybe he hadn't told them everything. He turned to the lawyer.

"Phoenix, you… happened to notice the pony in the hood at the entrance?"

The attorney said nothing but shifted uncomfortably.

"I believe you had met them before?"

"I… have," Phoenix replied. "You're referring to the Director, right? Yes, I met… him… earlier in Canterlot."

"As a matter of fact, so did I, a couple years ago," Vice said in a casual tone. The change in conversation from doomsday to chitchat unnerved the group, to say the least, save Vice Grip. "He's a bit of an interesting fellow, isn't he?"

"Didn't you say he attacked you?" Dan asked Phoenix. "The guy that gassed you at the anniversary? That was him?"

The lawyer nodded. "Yeah, that was him. Or… whatever he is."

"Whatever he is?" Chrys asked. "What do you mean?"

Vice clasped his hands in front of him. "The Director is… well, I think he was a pony at some point. Like Lightning Claw, something happened to change him though I assume it was a bit more complicated than just growing a horn or manifesting strange powers. To be honest, I don't know that much about him but he seems to be very-well connected."

"He wanted to collect me," Phoenix said.

"Well, he-wait, what?"

Eyes went wide all throughout the elevator. Even Vice was shocked.

"Collect you," Twilight repeated. "Like a trophy or something?"

"I don't know," Phoenix said. He turned to Vice. "That's all he said. I had a feeling he wanted someone else, too and went to go get them. I escaped by breaking down the door to the closet I was being held in while he was gone. You're saying you weren't aware of this?"

Vice shrugged defensively. "I knew he prevented you from disrupting Twilight at the anniversary but… it seems he left out a detail."

"Who is he, exactly?" Twilight asked. "He's part of your organization?"

"He owns it."

Dan's eyes went wide. "WHAT?"

Vice grinned. "Heh, you think FIST just popped up all on its own? No, my plan was originally far less complex than nuking the Earth. Before the Director showed up, I didn't even know Earth existed."

Twilight and Phoenix turned to face Vice as he explained to Dan. With the two of them butting heads, this was the time to glean information. From anything they said.

"Originally, my plan was just to use the first Magic Gear to attack Canterlot, get rid of Celestia, Luna, deal with… you and your friends and-"

Twilight's magic lifted Vice and very carefully pinned him to the wall. The aura around him pulsed a brighter purple-red, the edges vibrating more rapidly than usual.

Vice smiled at Twilight. "It's nothing personal, I assure you. Not against you, anyway."

Twilight's glare did not waver. She didn't even blink. "I don't care, Vice Grip. I really, really don't care." Her words were that of rage, but unlike Dan's, it was cold. Unlike Dan, it was far more dangerous.

"The point is, I didn't go through with it!" Vice said defensively. "He convinced me that going against you and Tia wasn't the best option and I have to admit, I agree. So, he gave me the resources to build an army of Magic Gears. We lured Dan into different scenarios to test them against humans and now, we're finally ready to deploy them against Earth."

"We don't even know why Earth is invading," Dan said, angered himself. "For all we know, you FORGED that black box. And you haven't explained why you need ME to do your dirty work for you."

Still pinned, the scientist shrugged. "You have to admit, it is kinda zen-like. We've seen your dreams, remember? We know you've wanted to nuke L.A on several different occasions and pretty much every other city on Earth you've ever been to. Or heard of. This is a way of it coming full-circle. The one guy that hates other humans and wants revenge on the world more than anything else finally gets a chance at that."

Dan looked away. Vice was right. Or… he had been. "I don't want to nuke Earth. I don't…" he closed his eyes, shook his head. "Look, I know I kind of have a reputation. Heck, I wear this shirt because of it."

"I thought you wore your JERK shirt ironically," Chrys said.

"Sometimes it's ironic, sometimes it isn't. Another reason why I like it," Dan remarked. "And I might not like many places on Earth… but… I guess it's not that bad a place. Maybe… maybe it doesn't deserve to be destroyed."

Twilight's glare faded. The aura holding Vice Grip up disappeared and the scientist slid back to his feet again.

Dan sighed. "Being here, it's made me realize that there's more to any one person… more to any one thing than just what we're focused on at any one time. There's… complexity, depth, and the bond that connects everything together."

Twilight smiled, placing a hoof on his shoulder. "That's really touching, Dan."

Chrys nodded. "And also the tagline of Transformers."

Dan turned back to them. "But it has a bit more significance to me. The world is too big, the universe is bigger than any one thing we're angry about or frustrated with at any given moment. There's always new things happening, new things to learn and every day is a chance to start again."

The others joined Twilight, comforting hooves, hand and claw holding Dan's shoulder in comfort.

"Touching indeed," Vice remarked. Unlike the others, he was frowning, and it seemed the distance between them in the elevator had grown in more ways than one. He adjusted the collar of his lab coat. "Comforting philosophies and warm fuzzy feelings aside, there are some problems that can and do affect the entire world. Which is what we're facing now. Honestly, if I was as naive as any of you, Equestria would probably be destroyed instead. And we wouldn't be having this little conversation, would we?"

"Have you really thought about this problem?" Chrys said, turning to him. "Maybe if you embraced some warm, fuzzy feelings, you could find a solution that didn't involve a nuclear holocaust."

Vice smirked. "Fine, I'll get onboard the "good vibes" train," he turned to Dan. "Dan, my friend, would you please help me destroy the rest of your species before they annihilate Equestria?"

"Fuck you, evil Bill Nye pony."

Vice's smile didn't fade. "I figured as much. Well, I did my best to convince you but I suppose we'll have to do this the hard way now."

"The hard way?" Phoenix asked. "So it's been easy up until now?"

The scientist clasped his gauntlets behind his back again. "Oh, believe me, it'll be quite easy for you once you have the proper motivation. The hard part is simply finding it but fortunately, I think I have something that should clear that right up."

Before Phoenix could ask what that was, the elevator doors opened. The room ahead of them was darker than the command center and apparently smaller. The only light was coming from blue energy fields, some on the ceiling, some around them connected from the floor to the ceiling. Cages. Evenly spaced around the room were also tesla coils and other strange, glowy machine thingies that Dan and the others couldn't make out nor cared to. It was clear to them after two steps that this was a dungeon.

"So, what happens now?" Dan asked aggressively. "You're gonna threaten us to make it happen? Hold Shining Armor and Cadence hostage until I press the button? Or are you going to steal my hands or something and then try to nuke Earth?"

Vice stepped out of the elevator, doors closing behind him. "Before we get into anything too drastic, I wanted to show you one last thing." He walked through them, leading them around several of the blue energy cages. Dan and the others had to step over cables and wires on the floor. Vice didn't seem to mind them. Or even notice them.

They approached a larger energy tube, one housing another tesla coil-shaped structure but larger than the others. On top of the structure was another lightning ball, iconic of the electric experiments but one that was again, larger than the others and pulsed a cool purple inside.

"An interesting thing about the Crystal Heart, it does affect all of Equestria when it's active. It regulates magic, making sure it continues to flow like the lifeblood of the planet itself, almost like a real heart. The magic is taken in from various sources, combined, energized and then rushed back into the environment, changing a little bit every time with the bonds that created the magic," Vice said, stepping closer to the machine. He clicked a button on his glove and a panel opened on the side of the coil.

Inside was the Crystal Heart, the real one. Like the one that had been on the pedestal in the plaza, it had been changed but in more subtle ways. It was still crystal but a large purple cog was wedged through it, partially inside of it. As magic poured into the heart from around and below, it spun the cog, powering two other cogs at the side which in turn spun a motor. It had also turned an unsightly gray color but not entirely steel. Wires hung from it, etched throughout like the chest cavity of a robotic body.

"What none of us realized was that it can be separated from Equestria, the magic it has can be blocked for a while or stored. Or altered," Vice explained.

"What… what are you doing with it?" Twilight asked, her voice exasperated. She couldn't help but move closer.

"Bleeding it dry," Vice said cooly. "Bleeding all of Equestria… dry."

"And again, you've crossed the line!" Chrys announced. She stomped over to him, her magic instinctively grabbing several of the cables around the room and hoisting them into the air.

Vice clicked one button on his gauntlet. The energy field surrounding the Crystal Heart vanished.

"Ah… unh," Chrys fell to one knee. The cables she was holding dropped to the floor.

"Ah… AHHHHH!" Twilight yelled. She fell to the floor.

"Thpp…" Fluffle collapsed.

"Twilight? CHRYS!" Dan yelled. The two humans and Spike moved to help their fallen friends.

Smiling, Vice stood over them and simply walked closer. "My Magic Gears require great amounts of magic to function. With most of the potion and crystal going to the Sword Spells, I was forced to seek an alternative energy source for the Gears themselves. Fortunately, I found one."

"Ehhhh, AAAAAGHH!!" Twilight, Chrys and Fluffle writhed on the floor.

"What did you do to them?!" Dan shouted, moving closer to Vice Grip. "What did you do them you son of a-"

Vice flipped another switch and the energy barrier reappeared, this time between him and Dan.

"I began siphoning magic from the Crystal Heart when I made an interesting discovery: the link works both ways. The magic the Crystal Heart absorbs can be changed, as can the heart itself. With it fueling my Magic Gears, my Magic Gears began to reciprocate and the Crystal Heart began absorbing their magic as well. I then began to notice… interesting side effects," Vice said, scratching his chin.

"What kind of side effects?!" Dan demanded. "Did you turn it into a nuke, too? Make it radioactive?!!"

Vice smiled. "More like radio controlled."

Dan quirked a confused eyebrow at him. "I've had about enough of-"

"Uh, Dan?!" Phoenix's voice came from behind, sounding panicked.

The other human turned to see Phoenix being held by Twilight's magic. Twilight herself was standing along with Chrys and Fluffle Puff.

"Twilight?" Dan asked. "Oh thank goodness. You guys are all-" The purple aura grabbed Dan. It lifted him off his feet and into the air.

"Human. Alien. Biped. Non-combatant. Threat level: negligible," Twilight said, her voice devoid of emotion.

"Twilight, what is this?!" Dan asked, helplessly spinning. "What are you doing?!"

Behind him, Vice Grip deactivated the energy shield and walked forward. "I think you fully grasp the situation now," he said with a chuckle. "I think these three will make a great addition to the collection! Meet the newest Gear Ponies!"

Corrupted Friends
Twilight, Chrys and Fluffle Puff
NOW we're screwed

"What did you do to them?!!" Dan yelled.

"He's brainwashed them! Whatever happened to the Crystal Heart, it's effecting Twilight and the others!" Phoenix yelled, helpless himself. Twilight moved the two of them closer to each other, guiding them.

"You can release them," Vice said.

Twilight's magic stopped and Dan and Phoenix fell to the ground with a thud.

"You… you corrupted them!" Dan rubbed his head. "Let them go… YOU LET THEM GO, NOW!"

"Silence him," Vice ordered.

Chrys' horn glowed and an arrow key appeared next to him. It grabbed Dan's mouth, dragged it to a floating waste bin and deleted it before disappearing.

To his side, Fluffle Puff nudged Vice's glove.

"Hmm? What do you want?"

"Beep," Fluffle said. I AM A ROBOT NOW. GIVE ME CAKE.

Chrys leaned over to Vice. "She desires-"

"Yes, yes, I can read," Vice dismissed her, turning to Dan and Phoenix. "Magic, technology, ponies, humans, no matter what it is, it just requires a little understanding and the proper motivation to achieve results. The right cogs matching up," Vice said.

"So now you're holding them hostage?" Phoenix asked.

Vice smiled. "Again, not exactly. As I said, Dan is going to be the one to nuke Earth."

His mouth gone, Dan rubbed the place where it was until it reappeared. "Like hell I am," Dan replied, spinning. "I'm still not helping you and now I have ANOTHER reason to beat the crap out of you."

"No, you are. Or rather, this Dan is," Vice said. He turned to Chrysalis. "Change into him."

A green flash appeared over Chrys and she changed into Dan.

"Oh… I get it now," Dan remarked. "Identity theft. That's another thing I'm going to beat you for."

Vice rolled his eyes. "Well, don't I have it coming, then? I think you see now that I don't need you any longer. Again, I would've preferred if we could've worked things out but you just had to have things your way. You just didn't realize I could change your to make it mine. Twilight," he turned to her, "put them with your brother and the pink one."

"By your command." The purple alicorn's magic grabbed them again, holding them aloft over the cables on the ground.

Suddenly, the lights in the room shut off. All the energy fields and the elevators went dark. A blue spark appeared from behind one of the machines.

"I won't let you brainwash Twilight!!" The sparking cable flew at Vice Grip, electricity whipping through the air in streams. The scientist ducked and Chrys caught it in her magic.

Vice Grip's gauntlets produced a green glow, illuminating the space around them. Attached to the other end of the cable was Spike.

"Ah, almost forgot about that one," Vice said. He lifted the cable and grabbed Spike by his neck, holding him up. Twilight then grabbed him with her magic and added him to the collection of prisoners.

"All of you, not ponies, not magic but so resolute. I can't help but admire your resolve; it truly is inspiring," he turned to Twilight again. "Kill them."

"Twilight…" Spike's eyes teared.

"By your command."

Another flash exploded in the center of the room.

"Stop."

Vice practically jumped out of his own lab coat. "SON OF A-!!! How many times have I TOLD you not to do that?!"

"You remember our deal?" The Director asked.

Vice pinched his brow. "I'm altering the deal. These two have been far more trouble than they-"

"No," The Director said. He turned to Twilight. "Release them."

"What are you doing?" Vice asked, appalled. "Belay that order! Take them to the elevators, at once!"

"By your command."

The aura around Dan, Phoenix and Spike dissipated again and the three hit the ground.

"What the hell was that?!" Vice demanded to Twilight. "YOU are supposed to obey ME. I am your leader, I am the regent of the Crystal Empire, you will do as I command or-"

"You will do as I instruct, Vice Grip," The Director said to him. "The humans are to be mine."

"That's AFTER we nuke Earth," Vice said. "All of this hinges on our ability to-"

"And you are not to harm any humans. Only Dan was. Or in this case Dan*," The Director clarified. "You also have another problem."

"What's that?"

"Celestia and Luna are on their way."

Vice's jaw dropped. "Here?! NOW?!!"

"They'll be here in three days along with the Saddle Arabian delegation. When they arrive, your right to regency will be challenged."

Vice's eyes went wide. He shook his head. "That's… that's not a concern. I was appointed security advisor after Sombra's capture. When he's found guilty, they'll have no choice but to recognize my authority."

The Director said nothing. His hood still obscured every feature except his muzzle, a dull whitish blue. "The trial is tomorrow. You should prepare."

"Heh," Vice chuckled. "Prepare for my ascent, you mean. In three days, the Swords will be ready and we'll turn Earth to dust. Until then, we need to do something with these three-"

"They will be in my care until then," The Director said, cutting off Vice again. "They will not interfere with the launch. If you interfere with them, there will be… consequences," he said.

Vice glared at The Director but made no challenge to his instruction. "I'm going to see to the final trajectory calibrations. Tell Lightning Claw to report to the command center when he returns," Vice said. He turned to leave, followed by Chrys and Twilight.

Fluffle nudged his hand again.

"Not now, abomination."

"Beep-boop." I AM STILL A ROBOT. GIVE ME CAKE.

"She said-"

"DO I LOOK LIKE I GIVE A DAMN WHAT SHE SAID?"

The elevator door closed behind them and it quickly departed. The four traveled upward, leaving Dan, Phoenix, Spike and the Director in silence.

"One of my more foolish tools, he still has his usefulness," the Director finally said. The cloaked figure turned to face them.

"You… you helped us," Phoenix said, confused. "I don't understand. Aren't you with Vice Grip?"

"We share similar goals and backstories. Suffice to say, Vice Grip's… desires… are more attainable than mine. For now, we share similar goals," the Director said. As he spoke, the room seemed to grow colder, every breath like an icy gale.

"Who are you?" Dan asked.

The Director didn't look up at him. "I'm something I'd rather not be. So I prefer to think of myself as what I want to be instead of what I am."

Dan and Phoenix exchanged puzzled glances at each other.

"What you don't want to be is arrested. What you want your friends to be and Equestria to be is free. In order to accomplish this, King Sombra must also be free," the Director said.

"What? What does that even mean?" Dan asked, puzzled.

Again, the Director didn't answer. "I will take you to him now."

"To who?" Phoenix asked.

"The Judge."

Another bright flash illuminated the room before it was dark once again.

Author's Note:

Robo-Fluffle Puff is made of steel wool. Do not attempt to pet/huggle.

Comments

[APonyReadingFanfics]

Oh so robo fluffle is made of steel wool. .. let's hope noone has got a battery.

[Booster Spice]

Trouble is, if Flufflepuff is now a robot, the cake she is going to go after, is Yellow Cake.

Which has all sorts of intresting side effects when anywhere near delicate electronics and likley delicate magical control systems.

That, and she makes a great nightlight.

[Barrobroadcaster]

6194900 You've only just started. Buckle up, it's gonna be a bumpy ride. And seriously, it needs to be edited in more than a few places and the Christmas episode is almost a disaster but we can still smooth it out. Can always go back and fix it up a bit, as they say.

[Warrior Kitten]

Oh no. Fluffier Puff is under his control. We're doomed.

[Warrior Kitten]

As a side note, Vice does realise he is killing Equestria at the magical level by doing that to the Crystal Heart, right? That's gonna send some mad ass ripples through the æther

[howard035]

With Flufflepuff a robot, will Chrysalis starve unless someone can teach a robot how to love?

[Barrobroadcaster]

6205194 We originally wanted to end the Christmas episode right after Dan's decoration defamation spree was over but we decided to extend it. It's now MORE ominous and foreboding.

And the reason why some of the chapters are repeated is because they are condensed when the episode is completed but… kinda behind on this one. Might need a few touch-ups here and there. But thank you for reading and I'm happy you're enjoying it

[Barrobroadcaster]

6206175 You seriously like this story that much? Wow, I can't thank you enough :pinkie happy:
Support like yours is very rare but I am only too grateful for it, thank you so much.
If you have any suggestions or things you'd like to add, please feel free to. I believe we can all have a piece of this universe. Or these universes. Universi? Something like that.

[Dustchu]

Robo-Fluffle! :D heeheehee, niceness!
Humans may be shitty sometimes, but we don't need to be magically nuked Dx

Nice job!
Can't wait for more!

[JakeAndDollars]

I hugged her anyway...

~Dollars.

[JakeAndDollars]

6194638 I will set him on fire myself if it comes to that. Interdimensional barriers be damned, I'll get there!

~Dollars

[LadyLeomon]

That ... that bucking creep! Taking Twilight and my favourite Changeling Queen is one thing, but ... He stole Fluffle TT--TT* oh it is ON!

Sounds like there's gonna be a trial, good thing we have a super cool/super cute lawyer on our side! Go Phoenix! You break the case against Sombra (I feel icky after saying that) and then Dan will break his scrawny neck >:)

[Razzy]

I do hope Vice is slowly crushed to death, millimeter by millimeter, starting with the balls. Nobody brainwashes Chryssie!

[Typist Gray]

I still don't get the black box issue. All this proves is that someone on Earth (doesn't even specify who) is aware of Equestria and was trying to pinpoint its location. It seems like there be a lot more steps before assuming the intent for nuclear war.