Missing Magic

by Coda Singer

Chapter 3: Moral Principal

"What do you think they want from us?" Asked Steel as he trotted alongside Strict Hoof, both of them were heading towards the center of town. Craterville was designed to have the town hall in the center of town and many circular layers leading outwards from the center. Each layer would decrease in wealth the further away from the center you got. Silver lived three layers away from the center, Steel lived five layers away, Dale lived eight layers away.

"I don't know." Said Strict Hoof, obviously trying to avoid as much conversation as possible. Especially since Steel was happier than usual, he had a spring in his step that he never had before. He had asked Iron Rose on a date, and she accepted! She even kissed him on the cheek! The two ponies walked in silence for several minutes before finally approaching the town hall. The town hall was a giant metal dome with ornate carvings around the rim, a massive circle of glass was set into the top as a sun roof. This was where all of the major decisions for Craterville were made. This is where the fate of the city is determined. Steel and Strict Hoof glanced at each other briefly before walking through a massive pair of metal doors, carvings of the Masked Lords set into the iron. The dome was big, inside was a courtroom. A large desk with two seats were set near the opposite side of where Steel and Strict Hoof were standing, many wooden chairs were placed in rows facing towards the desk. Two masked lords were sitting behind the desk while one was standing in front of it, looking at Steel.

"Step forwards." He called, his metallic voice echoing through the large room. Steel and Strict Hoof obeyed the Lord's orders. After a short walk they were face to mask with the masked lord. "Do you know why we called you here?" Steel shook his head.

"We have reason to believe the city of Blood Field is sending an army to attack us, they should arrive in around two hours." Said one of the Masked Lords sitting behind the desk. "And we need to be ready." Steel and Strict Hoof looked at each other, looks of worry and confusion. "The leader of Blood Field has openly stated that he is trying to kill all of the Masked Lords, he doesn't understand why we should be in power and he shouldn't." Steel sat down as the pony spoke, he could feel the blood rushing out of his head.

"Are they a threat?" Steel asked, almost subconsciously.

"Usually we could kill their raiding party with minimal casualties. But they say they have a powerful weapon on their side. We don't know if they're bluffing or not but we need to make special precautions." Steel nodded.

"What kind of precautions?" The Masked Lord hesitated and looked to the masked stallion standing beside him, he nodded.

"You are familiar with the undertunnels I assume." Steel froze, Tell me they aren't about to say what I think they're gonna say.

"Yes..." He answered hesitantly.

"We have discovered one of the entrances hidden inside of Hammer and Nail's Metalworking." Steel felt like laughing and punching Dale at the same time. "We are taking ponies of importance from this town and hiding them in the undertunnels, to keep them safe just in case Blood Field isn't lying." Steel stood up, a look of confusion and disbelief on his face.

"What about everypony else in Craterville?" The Masked Lord looked back at Steel, though he couldn't see the Masked Lords facial expressions he could see his eyes. They showed annoyance and irritation.

"Those who pay enough will be escorted to safety as well." Steel took a step backwards, confusion and anger hitting him like a brick. "Survival of the fittest." The Masked Lord finished.

"More like survival of the richest!" Steel yelled. "You're ransoming off their lives! What about the outer rim? Ponies in poverty?" The Masked Lords looked utterly shocked and angered.

"You need to learn some respect!" The Masked Lord near Steel swung his hoof at Steel's face. A reflex kicked in and Steel's left hoof was thrust upwards, blocking the Masked Lord's attack before it could reach. He was strong, but Steel was strong as well. He didn't care he might get into trouble, this was a matter of moral principal and he wouldn't stand down out of respect. He swung his right hoof forwards, E.U.D hitting the Lord's metal mask and causing him to stumble. The other two Lords jumped over the desk and landed in front of Steel, wings outstretched. He looked between the two of them, I could take one of them, but not two at the same time! Steel paused, looking into the enraged eyes of the Masked Lords, before turning and running out the massive iron doors. He ran as fast as he could and quickly turned into a side street. He kept running until he reached the house he was looking for and entered the unlocked front door.

"Who... Oh hey!" Said a voice from behind Steel. Steel panted and turned around, standing there was his friend Cable. He was a deep purple pony with a pitch black mane, he wore a pair of dark sunglasses over his eyes. He didn't like to take them off ofter an accident he had when he was a filly, his father was working on a project using Tesla coils and Cable got too close. An arch of plasma struck his left eye, burning it badly and blinding it completely. Cable came to Steel asking if he could replace it, that's how they met. Steel installed a bionic eye for Cable, half price. Cable was wearing a black, leather jacket and a blue undershirt.

"Cable..." Steel panted, "You have to warn the others and get everypony out of Craterville." Cable paused, looking at Steel with a half smile, he couldn't tell if Steel was kidding or just being paranoid.

"Why?" Cable decided to ask.

"We're going to be attacked in about," Steel paused to look at his E.U.D. "One hour and fifteen minutes, a rival city is coming and we need to get everypony out!"

"Okay okay, calm down." Said Cable, not knowing if he should trust Steel or not. "Why are they attacking?"

"They're after the Masked Lords and three of them are here." Cable paused.

"But they only leave their towns during emergencies." Said Cable.

"Emergencies like an ATTACK!" Steel shouted, trying to get Cable to understand. "Blood Field is sending an army, the Masked Lords were going to put important ponies in the undertunnels to protect them, everypony else would have to pay to survive. They offered me a chance to hide in the undertunnels too." Cable looked up with curiosity.

"Did you take it?" He asked.

"I think I lost my privileges when I punched one of them." Cable fell silent, jaw open in shock.

"You punched a Masked Lord!?" He exclaimed.

"He swung first!" Said Steel defensively. Cable laughed nervously. "Blood Field claims to have a powerful weapon with them, we need to get everypony out now!" Cable nodded shakily. "I'm going to find Iron Rose, you get Silver and Dale." Cable nodded and pushed a few buttons on his E.U.D, a map of Craterville appeared on screen with two blips labeled "Silver" and "Dale". Cable noticed Steel examining it.

"I designed it." Cable explained. Steel shook his head, opened the door and ran outside at full speed. He began running as fast as he could back to the metalworking shop, What am I going to do? Is Iron Rose okay? Will Cable get everypony out? Worried thoughts flitted through Steel's mind as he dashed around a corner and found himself at Hammer and Nail's Metalworking. He ran at the door and slammed into them, causing them to thrust open, followed by the doors to the workshop where Iron Rose was working. She jumped and turned to see Steel running towards her.

"Hey Steel, how did the meeting with the ma-" Steel had grabbed Iron Rose's hoof and was trying to tug her out the door. "Whoa, slow down there. Where are you trying to take me?" Steel paused to explain before he got an idea. He stopped in his tracks and turned around.

"I'll explain in a sec, I need your help." Steel explained. "I need you to look around for a trap door or something leading underground." Steel let go of her hoof and began searching, lifting up wooden tables and pressing buttons on computers around the workshop. Iron Rose watched, a confused look on her muzzle.

"Why are we trying to get underground?" She asked, walking over to her own desk and lifting papers lazily, trying to seem like she was helping but she was too confused.

"There's an entrance to the undertunnels we need to find, I punched a masked lord, long story short we're being attacked and we need to hide." Steel Rose froze, giving the same look Cable gave when he heard this news.

"You punched a-"

"I know!" Steel interrupted, causing Iron Rose to jump and blush as he shouted, she had never heard him angry before. She looked downwards, her ears folding backwards slightly. He paused, realizing what he had done. "Rose," He stood walked over to her and sat down. "I'm trying to protect you." He lifted her chin with his hoof, she didn't look sad, just scared. "Lives are at stake and I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." She blinked and nodded. Steel nodded in return and walked over to the drill press, examining the interface for any things he hadn't noticed before.

"Guess you'll have to buy me a drink later then." Iron Rose chuckled nervously. Steel returned a chuckle. Iron Rose moved to the heat chamber and pushed a few buttons, not knowing what to look for. Suddenly the ground shook as a loud boom sounded from outside, a gravelly voice echoed through the metal streets and into the workshop.

"Fillies and gentlecolts! We are Blood Field, and we're tired of Craterville casting a shadow over our city... Well to be honest I just wanted to watch you burn." The voice let out a cackle which turned into a cough. The sound of a stallion clearing his throat sounded through the workshop. "You see I have a Unicorn Bomb in my possession and I'm going to set it off, this is a suicide mission for many of my soldiers but their deaths will lead to a greater cause." Iron Rose began shaking slightly. Steel frantically tapped buttons with his nose until a screen reading, "Enter Password" appeared, with twenty blank spaces for letters. Steel paused, trying to think of what the password could be before he remembered something one of the masked lords had said. He tapped the audio button and spoke.

"Survival Of The Fittest." The drill press jerked before sliding to the side with great difficulty, revealing a large hole leading downwards into a metal tunnel. He waved to Iron Rose who galloped over, still shaking. She put a hoof onto the steps leading downwards as they heard the front door to the shop open. Steel began pushing Iron Rose into the tunnel but she looked up at him with a look of concern. He shook his head, pushed her into the tunnel and tapped a button marked, "Seal Tunnel" on the drill press. Steel watched as Iron Rose looked up from the darkness and clutched the necklace he had given her.

The drill press shut and the door to the workshop opened. A grey pony with a black mane and a large scar over one eye entered the shop. He had a small hoof drilled into his hoof, the hook was gripping a poorly made sword. Steel ducked behind the drill press and waited, trying not to breathe too loudly. The pony limped into the room, trying not to step on the hoof with the hook screwed into it. He moved to Steel's desk and examined the few papers still lying there. Steel looked around the room, looking for possible weapons, there were bins all around the room containing scraps of metal in every shape, his gaze stopped at a thick metal pipe sticking out of a wooden box. He looked back at the grey pony who was now ducked under Steel's desk.

Steel took a deep breath and dove for the metal pole with his E.U.D. He clamped onto it and ducked behind the bin. The grey pony grunted at the sound of Steel's E.U.D hitting the pole. The grunt turned into a small shout as the grey pony whacked his head on the underside of Steel's desk. Steel peered around the bin to see they grey pony rubbing his head and looking around the shop, Steel ducked his head back behind the bin quickly. The grey pony shrugged and moved to Iron Rose's desk. Steel paused to think about what the gravelly voiced pony had said.

"I have a Unicorn Bomb in my possession." Steel had heard about Unicorn Bombs. All of a unicorn's magic poured into a glass orb, when it was set off it destroyed everything in a large radius. there were only a few ever made, two of them coming from Celestia and Luna themselves. Steel couldn't let them set it off. Steel quickly focused as he heard hoofsteps nearby, he tilted his E.U.D slightly to see the grey pony approaching the bin. Steel took a deep breath and lept around the corner, swinging the metal pipe. The grey pony quickly blocked with his sword and jumped backwards, preparing to attack. Steel jumped to the side and swung. Metal came into contact with the grey pony's skull and he collapsed.

Steel was breathing heavily. He calmed down slightly, feeling adrenaline rush through his veins. He dropped his pipe and picked up the grey pony's sword. He examined it and marked each flaw before shaking his head and turning towards the doors leading out of the workshop. Here we go. He thought to himself. The gravelly voice from outside spoke once more as Steel approached the door, the voice sounded distant and muffled.

"We demand everypony who want's to live to come out and climb aboard one of the wagons outside the gates to Craterville. You will be a slave, you could die at any moment but it's better than dying now right?" Steel opened the workshop doors slightly and looked through the crack he made. He didn't see anypony in the main hall but he did see a blue pony's flank entering the medical room. Steel took a deep breath and slipped into the main hall, making sure to stay out of sight of the doorway. He pressed his back against the wall and peered into the medical room. The blue pony had no cutie mark, this wasn't an uncommon occurrence in the wasteland, ponies are so tied up in trying to survive they don't have time to find their destinies. The blue pony also had a sword attached to a clip which was screwed into his hoof, Steel could only imagine how painful it had to have been.

Steel quickly pulled his head out of the door frame as the blue pony turned around and examined the doorway. Steel readied his sword in case the blue pony decided to leave the room but after a few seconds of silence he slowly tilted his head back into the room. The blue pony was examining the interface, noticing where the money giving slots would open. He began to tap the screen with his nose, trying to figure out how to make the slots open and spit out spheres. Steel quickly slipped into the room and raised his sword, but the blue pony spun around when he noticed Steel's reflection on the screen.

Steel's sword clashed with the blue pony's, causing the blue pony to wince as the jolt ran into his hoof. Steel smirked when he realized his advantage. Steel pressed hard against the blue pony's sword causing him to back away due to pain. Steel flicked his wrist and the blue pony's lowered his sword quickly. Acting on instinct, Steel swung his sword back up to the left and quickly realized what he'd done as blood began to pour from the large cut Steel had left in the blue pony's neck. He clutched his throat, trying to keep the blood back before he fell onto the floor. Steel stood over the blue pony in silence, gaping. He had never killed anypony before, he felt as though a piece of his soul had ripped itself away from the whole, he felt like he had lost his sanity slightly as he became less of a pony.

He snapped out of his trance and stumbled out of the medical room, knees shaking while he tried not to step in the blue pony's blood. Steel exited the medical room and leaned against the wall, he felt like he might faint. Steel's mind was racing, not being able to focus on any single thing. He eventually calmed down and slumped against the wall before he remembered why he was trying to escape. He straightened, held back vomit and approached the main doors leading outside into the metal streets. Steel opened the door slightly and peered outside. The sides of the metal buildings had spots of graffiti scattered hither and thither down the streets.

"Blood Field attacks! Slaves or Die! Bye Bye Craterville!" Were merely a few of the phrases painted onto the metal walls. Steel didn't see anypony on the streets so he slipped out of the doors and dashed into an alleyway. His eyes flicked back and forth, expecting somepony to leap out of the shadows and attack, but it was just Steel and the dark. He crept his way down the alley and peeked out onto another street where he saw a line of ponies walking down the street. They were all citizens of Craterville, marching towards the front gates. Many other ponies were standing next to the lines holding guns, very few ponies had E.U.Ds but those who did had guns held in a gun grip they had installed. Most of the ponies had blank flanks while others had cutie marks representing farming or organizing, skills that are useful in the wasteland. Suddenly the gravelly voice echoed through the street once more.

"We humbly thank you for volunteering to become our slaves, we hope you find presence very hospitable." Steel felt sick as the pony who the gravelly voice belonged to walked into view. He was a dark grey Pegasus with a black mane which hung over his eyes, he walked with a sort of slumped self confidence. He seemed to feel so powerful he didn't care if he had bad posture. He had a blank flank and his wings ended with black tipped feathers. Underneath one of his wings he had a glass orb the size of a hoofball, inside the orb was a cloud of purple and blue energy. This was the power of a unicorn turned into a weapon.

"You!" A voice shouted. Steel looked up and realized he had accidentally stepped out of the shadows, three ponies galloped towards him and tackled him to the ground, knocking the sword out of his E.U.D.

"Looks like we've got another slave!" Said the gravelly voiced pony. "Allow me to introduce myself," The three ponies tied a rope around Steel's neck and began pulling him towards the line of other ponies. Steel walked with them to avoid being choked before he found himself in front of the black maned pony. "My name is Ignatius Blackwood." Steel looked into Ignatius's deep grey eyes. "But you may address me as Sir." The three ponies dragged Steel over to the line of other ponies and shoved him. He began to walk with the others and looked down to the ground trying to process what had just happened.

All he knew, was he needed to escape and find Iron Rose. But first he needed a plan.