Chapter 7- Out of Shadows
Chapter 7
Out of Shadows
The computer screen turned on with a flash and Chris once again sat in front of his desk. He typed in a command and a red dot and “REC” appeared in the top left corner. “Alright,” Chris said kicking off the video. “So, it’s been a little while since I made the last video journal. Almost three weeks, actually. Since Shining gave me that beat down, I’ve taken this whole thing a lot more seriously. He made me realize that what I do doesn’t just affect me anymore, which is an odd feeling. Even when I was staying with Ms. Monroe back on Earth, I didn’t feel that.” Chris’ face got solemn. “It’s made me work harder than ever, and to be completely honest, it’s also given me a healthy dose of fear.” Chris chuckled. “Never thought I’d say that.” Chris looked up at the camera, a grin on his face. “It’s not all bad, though. Sam’s been a big help. I imagine it’s how Spiderman feels when his spidey sense goes off. My reaction times are faster, focussing magic is easier, and we no longer have to worry so much about losing control of our powers. With him tagging along all the time, I’ve been able to increase my training, just like he suggested, and asides from the odd disagreement, we’ve gotten along pretty well. We even managed to expand our arsenal.
“As for the Resistance,” Chris leaned back in his chair and let out some air, “things aren’t looking too good. We haven’t seen hide nor hair of any Machine Captains since Cruger and Sam sent Silo to the scrap heap, and it’s starting to wear on everyone’s nerves. The Councilors are starting to think that something big is coming, and I have to agree. In Zeo, Mondo sent a new monster at the rangers almost every other day.” Chris was silent for a moment, his hand on his chin as he thought. He finally sat back forward and sighed. “I just can’t see his game, and it has me worried. I’ve watched every season of Power Rangers at least twice, and this guy has me stumped.” Chris was silent for another moment before letting out another breath. “Guess there’s no use in worrying about it until we get a better idea of what’s going on. Me and Sweetie Belle have patrol again today and knowing our luck, we’ll probably find out exactly what King Mondo and his allies are planning. Until the next journal, Chris Scott and Samson Jaeger signing out.” Chris hit a few keys and terminated the recording.
King Mondo paced around the throne room of Canterlot castle. Nearby, Midnight and Sombra stood off to the side, keeping a certain distance between them. They had been assembled all morning and the only thing to come from the meeting was a new divot in the ground.
“I don’t see what has you so worked up,” Sombra finally spoke up, tired of waiting. “One more fighter amongst the ranks of what could barely be called a Resistance is no worse than saying another blade of grass has grown.” Sombra was adorned in his ruby-studded silver armor, his red, fur-lined cape draping off his shoulder and held together by a ruby on his chest.
Mondo stopped his pacing and looked to his compatriot. “You’re right. Another freedom fighter is of no concern to us.” Mondo’s expression soured into frustration. “Except this fighter is no ‘blade of grass’! He is a weed! A weed that must be pulled before it has the chance to dig its roots in too deep. He has already defeated two Machine Captains in little over a month, a feat the Resistance hasn’t been able to achieve in almost a decade. Do you know what this could do to them?”
“They will become more confident,” Midnight finally spoke up. “They might adapt their tactics from basic scavenging to outright raids.” She stopped and tapped her chin. “We must make a move before they gain this confidence.”
“But how!?!” Mondo raged, swinging his staff in an arc. “We can’t keep sending Machine Captains into that blasted forest to just be obliterated, we need a strategy.” All present were silent as each thought different thoughts.
Finally, Midnight’s eyes lit up. “Of course,” she said out loud.
“If you don’t mind sharing,” Sombra prompted irritably.
Midnight threw him a look. “The castle the Resistance uses as its base stands on top of a sacred artifact; the Tree of Harmony. It powers the Elements and protects the castle from outside forces.” An evil grin spread across her face. “If we could destroy the Tree, both the Element Bearers and the castle will be totally defenseless.”
“And how,” Sombra interjected, “do you suppose we get to the Tree?”
“The Tree’s roots grow throughout Equestria,” she explained. “If we find one of the roots, we can follow it back to the source and destroy it.”
“That sounds like a reasonable plan,” King Mondo said after listening to the two. “And I have the perfect Captain for the job. I’ll prepare him while you find a root.” He let out a menacing chuckle. “The Resistance will never know what hit them!”
Chris walked towards Central Command on his way to meet up with Sweetie and get the briefing on their patrol. After his night with Artemus in his mindscape, he had requested some new attire, and Rarity had gladly accepted the request. He was currently dressed in his pseudo-mystic force outfit, thinking that it would be a better idea than his other smothering clothes. As he approached the twin doors, he scanned his communicator over a newly installed scanner that lit up from red to green. The doors slid open and he walked inside to find Nightmare, Sweetie, and his various teachers waiting for him. The presence of his trainers caught Chris off guard.
“Uh, hey, guys,” Chris started, catching everypony’s attention. “What’s going on.”
“Oh, Chris,” said Nightmare, turning to face him. “Just the one we were talking about.”
Chris looked skeptical at the statement. “You know how I feel about those kinds of sentences,” he replied simply.
Nightmare chuckled. “Yes, but it’s always fun to heckle the new Councillors.”
“Ah,” Chris said in understanding and took his place next to Sweetie. Everyone stared at him in silence. After a while, Chris started to feel uncomfortable. “Okay, guys, kinda starting to creep me-” And it suddenly hit him. “Wait, did you just say I was a Councillor!?!”
Everyone around shared a collective laugh. When they started to calm down, Shining Armor stepped forwards to explain. “The Council has come to a decision. There is a Councillor for each race. In addition to that, Nightmare is head of the Council as acting Commander, and Sunset acts as Councillor for the Elements. The Council also reserves seating for Zecora and Ember while they’re absent. That brings the number of Councillors up to thirteen.”
“Bet you guys don’t get much done,” Chris stated.
“That we don’t,” Shining agreed. “That is until another race joined our ranks.” Shining suddenly stood at attention. “Atten-hut!” Chris sprang to quickly, almost tripping over himself in the process. When he finally settled, Shining continued. “Chris Scott, you are hereby promoted by the Council of the Equestria Resistance Force, the current standing military force of Equestria, to the position of Councillor. Do you accept this position?”
“Yes, sir,” Chris replied, never relaxing.
“Then I, Unicorn Councillor Shining Armor, entitle you Human Councillor Chris Scott.” Shining relaxed and smiled. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you, sir,” Chris replied as he relaxed as well, a grin plastered to his face.
Shining chuckled. “No need to call me that anymore,” he said putting a hand on Chris’ shoulder. “Now, we meet as equals.” He let go of the young man’s shoulder and began walking back towards Starlight and Trixie.”First order of business is to get you fitted for a new uniform, then get you acquainted with your new quarters and office.”
“Cool,” Chris said walking over to Sweetie Belle, “We’ll get to it after me and Sweetie get back from patrol-”
“Actually,” Trixie interrupted, “That won’t be necessary.”
Chris looked at her with a puzzled expression. “What do you mean?”
Starlight spoke up. “You won’t be going on patrol today, or any other day really. Now that you’re a Counsellor, you’re too important a figure to risk losing.”
Chris was taken aback by this news. “So, wait,” Chris began, raising his hand with a confused look, “what you’re saying is that all the training I did over the past month was for nothing?”
“No, of course not,” Shining answered, shaking his head. “One of the requirements we decided on for all Councillors is that they must have gone through some sort or military training.”
“That doesn’t tell me why you’re taking me off the battlefield.”
Trixie once again took the stage. “It’s simple, Chris. We need someone who can inspire. Everypony enjoys your company, Chris, they like you. And on top of that, you’ve shown just how capable you are, against both Nightmare and Shining Armor. You are someone the races of the Resistance can follow.”
Chris was silent. He looked to the floor and leaned against the console behind him. For a while, no one said a word. Finally, Chris looked up at the faces surrounding him. The hope radiating from Starlight and Trixie and pride from Shining, but when he looked to Sweetie, something was off. On the outside, she wore a smile that said everything was okay, but her eyes betrayed a certain unease. He finally turned to Nightmare, who kept herself expressionless. Chris looked back to the floor and let out a sigh before raising his gaze to Sweetie again. On a whim, he moved his hand to hers. She pulled back at first, but then opened her hand and held his. He looked into her eyes and flashed a reassuring smile and giving her hand a gentle squeeze.
“This is an honor, Shining,” Chris said looking back to the white stallion. Shining’s smile widened. “But I have to resign.”
Shining’s face fell. He looked to Chris with shock. “W-what?”
Chris straightened up and looked at his teacher. “If I’m going to be a symbol for the Resistance, I’m not going to sit behind a title and let everyone else fight for me. I’ll stand up and be a soldier others can follow. And besides,” He looked back to Sweetie, “I’ve already made too many promises to back down now.” He looked to Nightmare Moon with an honest smile and stood at attention. “Private Scott, reporting for patrol, ma’am.”
Nightmare returned his smile and turned to Chris. “Private Scott, you and Sweetie Belle will be on the Lottery patrol. Dismissed.”
Chris threw a salute and looked back to Sweetie. She smiled and shook her head as she walked past him and grabbed his arm. Chris allowed himself to be led away by the mare.
As the pair walked through the doors everypony present wore a look of disbelief. Everypony, that is, except Nightmare Moon, who threw a glance to a darkened corner of the room and nodded towards the young freedom fighters. The shadow wobbled and disappeared. As the doors closed Nightmare turned to face the three ponies in front of her, chuckling. “I tried to tell you,” Nightmare looked to the door that Chris had disappeared through, “Chris isn’t the kind to back down.”
Chris and Sweetie walked through the Everfree in silence. Chris simply walked around as quietly as possible while following their route. Sweetie, however, was even more cautious than normal. After several long minutes, Chris became curious.
What’s wrong with her, Chris asked internally. I thought we got over this last time.
Don’t ask me, you doof, Sam replied. Ask her!
What if there’s a really important reason for her caution?
Then check the morpher before you ask!
Okay, okay, no need to shout. Chris raised the Psycho Morpher up and opened the face revealing the screen. The radar showed nothing except the familiar yellow and green blips that represented himself and Sweetie. Well, it seems safe, Chris thought to himself as he put the morpher down. “Hey, Sweetie?”
The young mare jumped at the sudden sound. When she relaxed, she threw an irritated look at Chris. “Yes?” she whispered.
“What exactly are you so jumpy?” Chris asked, lowering his voice as well.
Sweetie looked surprised. “Nopony told you? The Lottery patrol is the single most dangerous patrol to get assigned to.”
“O~kay,” Chris said slowly, “why is it the most dangerous?”
“Because, it’s the patrol that comes closest to Ponyville, or what’s left of it.”
“That makes sens-”
Chris, incoming!
“Get down,” Chris whispered urgently, taking a light hold of Sweetie and moving them into cover. As they turned to watch their previous positions, a battalion of cogs marched past them, a Machine Captain bringing up the rear. He resembled a fire hydrant made of an amalgamation of construction parts, an oversized jackhammer in place of his right arm.
“Come on, you bumbling bots,” the large machine called to his underlings, “we need to find that root before the Resistance catches on.” The machines continued to march past and Chris and Sweetie stayed hidden until the sounds of the group’s footsteps faded away. As the last clang fell, Chris stood up.
“Digster,” he said quietly staring after the troop.
“We should call this in,” Sweetie whispered as she stood up.
“Right.” Chris lifted his morpher to his face. “Chris to Command, come in Command.”
“This is Command, we read you, Chris,” Sunset’s voice answered from the other side. “What’s going on out there? Over.”
“Me and Sweetie just spotted a battalion of cogs and a Captain making their way Southwest, towards the castle. Over.”
“Follow at a distance and find out what they’re up to. If there are any signs of trouble, get out of there. Over.”
“Roger that. Chris and Sweetie, over and out.” Chris put the morpher down and looked to Sweetie. “Let’s go.” Sweetie simply stared at him with an amused look. “What?”
“‘Over and out?’ Really?”
“What? That’s how soldiers are supposed to communicate.”
“Uh-huh,” she said before beginning to go after the machines. “Come on, soldier boy, we’ve got a plan to dig up.” Chris grinned and followed after her. They followed the trail of mechanical footprints for a while before finally coming to a point where the terrain became rockier and the ground hollowed out. The pair caught sight of the automatons below them and ducked behind a pile of boulders. The cogs worked to break up and move the earth with Digster in the middle of everything, breaking up the rock at a much faster pace.
“What are they doing down there?” Chris whispered.
“Hang on,” Sweetie answered. Her horn began to glow green and soon her eyes and ears shone in a magical light. She watched and listened intently to the commotion below, trying to discern anything the machines might say. Suddenly, a cog near the Southern edge of the hollow stood up straight and made motions with it’s hands to where it had been digging. Digster immediately stopped what he was doing and made his way over to the cog, the others following behind. He inspected the area in which the cog had been digging, then took a device out of a hidden compartment and scanned the area. He stopped and made some exaggerated movements with his arms, his muffled words reaching the pair. Sweetie’s eyes widened and she ducked behind the boulder as Digster and the cogs made their way out of the opposite side of the quarry. Chris ducked down beside her.
“What’s wrong, Sweetie?” He asked quietly.
Sweetie took some deep breaths to calm her nerves and turned to Chris, a slightly panicked look still in her eyes. “We need to call this in. Now. They’re going after the Tree of Harmony.”
Chris’ eyes widened and he wasted no time bringing his morpher up. “Sunset, this is Chris. Target is tracking the Tree of Harmony. Repeat, Digster is tracking the Tree. Over.”
Sunset’s voice came through the other side. “The Tree? This could be bad. You and Sweetie get back to base and we’ll prepare to launch an assault team. I just hope we’re not too late. Command, over and out.” The transmission ended and Chris dropped his morpher.
Sweetie got to her feet and started to make her way back to the castle but stopped when Chris didn’t follow.
“What are you waiting for, Chris?” Sweetie asked the frozen figure. “You heard Sunset, we need to get back to the castle and prepare for an assault.”
“They won’t make it in time.”
Sweetie was surprised by his words. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, by the time we got back to the castle and got a team together it’d be too late. The cogs are already only a sixteen-minute march away from the Tree as it is. By the time we got to them, the Tree would already be gone.” He turned away from the white unicorn in the direction the machines had marched off. “If someone doesn’t do something, they’ll leave us defenseless.” Chris looked back to her, an expression of pure determination on his features. “I’m going to distract them, Sweetie. I won’t ask you to come with me, but the Tree can’t wait. Head back to base and give Sunset the details. I’ll meet you there.” Chris took off after the machines leaving Sweetie behind. Sweetie stared after him for a while… then turned and ran back towards the castle.
Chris ran faster and faster into the forest trying to catch up with Digster and his battalion. Are you sure we’re ready for this, Chris? Samson asked from the depths of his mind.
Chris didn’t answer right away, only continued running. We have to be.
Samson’s grin could be felt as he brought his consciousness up to fully bond with Chris’. Now that’s a good answer.
Chris’ felt his brother’s confidence and a grin split his features. Alright then.
Chris ran for about another minute then came to an abrupt stop and dodged behind a tree as the robots came into view. We glanced around the tree to get a better look at his opponents. The cogs ranged between forty and fifty, and Digster appeared far too relaxed considering how deep into enemy territory he was. Chris turned away and thought. Great, we found them. Now we just need a plan.
We need to surprise them, Sam answered, thinking around the details and formulating a plan. Something big that’ll leave a good sized dent in their numbers.
But with what? Chris questioned. The most damage we could do is with ice magic, and we haven’t mastered that yet. And, not only that but the moment we attack they’ll know exactly where we are.
Damn, you’re right. What can we do then? Both parties were silent for a while as they tried to come up with a solution. After a while, Chris threw another look around the trunk to get another look. The machines were quickly moving away, ever closer to their goal.
Better move up, Chris remarked internally. He moved to the other side of the tree and hurried to catch up, dodging behind the foliage to stay hidden. When he was less than a few yards behind the regiment, he stopped behind yet another tree. He thought hard, knowing that every moment he spent thinking was another wasted. Finally, he let out a sigh when both him and Sam came up blank. He looked back towards the mechanical force he faced. “What have I gotten myself into?” He muttered to himself.
“Need some help?”
Chris jerked around and brought his fist to the ready, Black Static dancing across his knuckles. He stopped when he saw Sweetie Belle with her hands raised to her shoulders, a mischievous grin on her face. “Sweetie?” Chris said in surprise, lowering his fist and cancelling the Static. “I thought you went back to the castle.”
Sweetie’s grin faded slightly. “I started to, but I thought about what you said.” She closed her eyes and sighed then looked back up at Chris with steel in her eyes. “It’s about time somepony faced these blaggards head on.”
Chris’ face lit up in pride. “I’m glad you came back. Although, I do have one question.” Chris furrowed his brow in puzzlement. “How did you catch up so quickly?”
“That’s easy,” Sweetie answered. There was a flash of green and she appeared on the other side of Chris. “I used a teleportation spell.”
Chris stared in wonder for a moment before a cunning smile spread across his face. “We can work with that.”
Digster and his cogs marched through the Everfree, en route to the Tree of Harmony. Digster held a device with a green screen in his hand. On the screen, a yellow line made its way from top to bottom, representing the magical signature coming off the root. The device made a beeping noise, indicating that the signal was getting stronger. “Come on, you buckets of bolts, we’re almost there,” he called out to the cogs in his command. “Just a little while longer and the Resistance will be ours!”
“Not on our watch!” A male voice shouted from his right. He turned to face the disturbance only to quickly dodge out of the way as a wave of icy spikes raced through their formation, bringing down more than a few cogs as it passed.
“What the-!” Digster shouted before he was interrupted by another voice, this one obviously feminine.
“This is our forest!” A bright green wave of energy crashed through the crowd from the opposite direction. The wave dismantled even more cogs, leaving the battalion stumbling.
“And we won’t give it up without a fight!” One more shout from the male voice, this time from near their rear, echoed, followed by an enormous ball of fire that scorched the backs of several cogs. Attacks continued to launch themselves from different angles, utilizing an element or in the form of bright green magic. The cogs started to panic and began scrambling for whatever cover they could find. Digster, for his part, stood unmoving, blocking the different attacks with his jackhammer appendage as they came.
“You idiots!” He yelled to his troops. “They’re trying to disorganize us! Full cover formation!” The cogs recognized the order and jumped into action. The machines formed a circle around Digster, who continued to shout orders. “Discharge!” The Machine Captain yelled. The cogs slid their face masks up and fired lasers in every direction, bolts of plasma shooting off through the trees and causing a few small explosions. When no return fire came, Digster gained confidence. “Ha, guess these ‘freedom fighters’ aren’t as tough as Mondo thinks.”
“Think again, metal head!” A blue and black blur jumped from one of the trees surrounding the automatons and landed in the middle of a large portion of cogs. It started dancing around the group, cutting down cog after cog before jumping out of the way before they could regroup. It came to a stop to Digster’s left and he turned to face the threat. He was met by the sight of a human male with dark blonde hair and gray eyes wielding a blue and silver dual sided axe and wearing a blue and yellow vest and grieves, a white undershirt, and black pants and shoes.
“Psycho Ranger Red,” Digster said in recognition.
“The one and only,” Chris replied with a smirk. “And I suggest,” his smirk dropped and his eyes filled with killing intent, “that you leave. Now.”
Digster let out a laugh. “You’re joking!” The Captain returned. He stopped and pointed his weaponized limb at the human. “If I kill you and the Tree, I’ll be rewarded for sure. Cogs, attack!” The machines scattered in a pincer movement, trying to surround him.
Chris grinned. Way too easy. As the cannon fodder closed in around him, he faced the crowd surging towards his right and pointed the head of his axe in their direction. A blur of off-white, purple and pink fell out of the tree and landed beside him, standing into the form of a unicorn mare, magic charged in her hands. “Let’em have it!!!” Chris yelled, unleashing a blizzard from his axe at the approaching mooks.
“Roger!” Sweetie yelled as she unleashed her spells on the force coming from the left. Both blizzard and magic wave cut through their respective targets, reducing the cogs to scrap.
“Hölle yeah!” Chris exclaimed. He turned to face Digster once more smiling smugly. “Sorry, bub, but you're going to have to try a lot harder than that.”
“Tch,” Digster huffed, lifting his jackhammer into a striking position. “Why don’t you try this on for size!?!” He slammed his arm into the ground, creating a shockwave. The earth rolled towards the pair quickly, small explosions sparking out from behind it.
“Nice try, bucket face,” Chris called back, raising his left fist past his shoulder, Black Static dancing around his hand. He slammed it into the ground sending his own wave of rock towards the oncoming attack. The attacks met and erupted out of the ground in a spire of rock. Chris straightened up again, his smile unchanged. “Try again.” The Machine Captain only chuckled in response, causing Chris to pause and his grin to fade. “What’s so-”
Chris, behind us!
Chris spun around and spotted a cog swinging its mechanical spear towards Sweetie and himself. He moved to block the attack but knew he wouldn’t be able to catch the blow in time. Verdammt! He cried internally as the blow arced towards Sweetie. Suddenly, the cog was grabbed by some sort of green substance and yanked backward. The substance retracted up into a tree, lifting the cog as it struggled before a hole erupted from its chest. It went limp then jerked one last time before hanging still.
“What in the…,” Chris whispered in disbelief, trying to wrap his head around what he had just witnessed.
“You looked like you could use some help,” a silky voice said behind him. He spun around and searched for the source of the voice only to be surprised as Chrysalis materialized in front of him. Chris could only stare at the changeling queen as she appeared in all her glory. When she was fully visible, she crossed her arms in front of her and gave a mischievous smirk. “Guess it’s a good thing Nightmare asked me to follow you in case you did something stupid.”
Chris stayed shocked for a moment then grinned. “I thought Councilors weren’t supposed to engage in combat,” he replied with a glint in his eyes.
Chrysalis chuckled. “I was supposed to just to keep an eye on you, but let’s just say you and your little marefriend have convinced me otherwise.” Chris and Sweetie Belle both blushed.
“O-okay,” Chris said, his blush fading as he turned back to face Digster, determination replacing his embarrassment. “Mind sticking around to take this guy down?”
“You did that on purpose,” Chrysalis purred with a small chuckle as she too faced the Machine Captain. “Besides, after what you said this morning, I think it’s time for a change.”
Chris glanced back at the monarch then looked back, a smile crossing his face. I think we’re making progress, Chris thought to Sam.
Progress says you, a change in the wind says I, Sam replied in his best pirate impersonation.
Chris grinned more widely and stepped towards his opponent. “We told you, Digster. We’re not giving up without a fight.” He took another step forward and squared his shoulders. “This is our home, and we won’t let you or King Mondo have it. So,” he dispersed the Psycho Axe and materialized his morpher, “you can run back to Mondo and tell him to give up, or I can send you back to him in pieces. Either way, I think he’ll get the point.”
Digster growled and raised his weapon, before throwing it out to the side. “The Machine Empire will never be defeated by the likes of you!”
Chris snorted. “In pieces then.” He raised his morpher up so that his right arm crossed his chest. Think we can finally do it? He asked. His morpher sparked yellow in response.
I think it’s now or never, Sam responded.
Chris let out a breath of laughter. Yeah. “It’s morphin’ time!” He shouted before throwing his right arm and leg back and placing the middle and index fingers of his left hand on the face of the Psycho Morpher. “Go, Psycho!” He yelled, launching his right arm forward and stepping with the action. The face of the morpher flipped open and Chris was surrounded in dark yellow light. The light shattered, leaving Chris in the Psycho Yellow armor. The update to his armor’s abilities scrolled across his HUD. Psycho Ranger Yellow, unlocked. Yellow Static, unlocked, raises speed and precision stats by multiple of six. Combinations Fourteen through Forty-Five, unlocked. Ultimates 12-4 through 34-5, unlocked. Finales 23-45 and 12-34-5, unlocked. Lightning Magic, unlocked. All this happened in only a moment. Oh, this is gonna be fun, Chris and Sam thought together. “The Resistance is done hiding, Digster. Now we rise.”
“And you’ll fall!” Digster yelled as he ran forward, his right arm raised.
Time to test the new weaponry, Chris/Sam thought as Digster closed the distance. “Chrysalis, ranged or close quarters?”
“Support,” she replied, taking up a stance and charging her magic.
“That’s new,” Chris said, beginning to run forward. “Cover me!” He threw his right hand over his left wrist. “Finale 12-34-5: Cyber Slash!” Multi-colored grid lines began to form under his hand and shaped into a combination of the Psycho weapons. First, the Psycho Rod shortened and formed the handle, the Sling materializing below the horns while the Bow formed a guard over his hand. The Psycho Axe sprouted from the space between the horns forming a base while the Sword materialized from the head, finishing the blade. Chris hefted the sword with both hands as he prepared to go head to head with Digster.
Ranger and Machine Captain clashed with a bang, each struggling to gain the upper hand. Digster began to push harder, driving Chris back slowly. Oh, scheisse/shit, Chris and Sam thought together, their knees beginning to buckle.
Digster let out a chuckle. “Looks like you will fall-” Digster yelled out in pain as an explosion lit up his shoulder causing him to back away from Chris quickly. Chris looked back to see Sweetie standing with her hands outstretched and smoking.
“I’ve got you,” she called to him.
Chris smiled inside his helmet. “Thanks, Sweetie,” he replied, turning back to his opponent. “Alright, let’s see what Yellow can do.” He threw out his arms and was surrounded by Yellow Static. “Here we go,” he muttered, disappearing from view.
“You can’t hide from me,” said Digster as he recovered. His eyes shifted color briefly as he switched to thermal. “Where’d you go?” He asked as he swept his gaze over the area.
“Might wanna check behind you.”
Digster swung his jackhammer to his right and behind him, trying to hit the offending ranger. He was surprised when he was met by thin air. “What?”
“I’m not invisible, blödmann,” Chris growled from behind the robot, “I’m just too fast for you now.” Sparks erupted from Digster’s back as Chris slashed with his weapon.
“ARGH!” Digster yelled out as he stumbled forward and turned to face the ranger.
Chris jumped back after his last strike. “You guys ready to end this?” He asked as he came to a stop in front of Sweetie and Chrysalis.
“Ready when you are,” Sweetie replied, charging her magic to its maximum.
“It’s time we proved our point,” Chrysalis responded, magic circles appearing around her.
“Then let’s do this,” Chris said, “Configuration Two!” The Cyber Slash glowed yellow and morphed into a rifle resembling the Quadro Blaster made using the Psycho weapons, the biggest changes being that the Bow and Sword sat at the front of the weapon in the same formation as the Psycho Shot. “Finale 12345: Cyber Blaster!” A crosshair appeared on his HUD and locked onto Digster. “Fire!!!” All at once Sweetie, Chrysalis, and Chris let loose with their respective attacks, Sweetie’s and Chrysalis’s beams each their respective green while the Cyber Blaster shot an orb of silver and blue lightning. The attacks slammed into Digster, exploding on contact and reducing the Machine Captain to scrap.
“Was that it?” Sweetie asked after a few moments.
“Doubt it,” Chris and Chrysalis said at the same time just as the robots remains began to glow. The pieces began to reassemble themselves, forming a single mass that grew into a giant version of Digster.
“Muhahaha,” Digster laughed. “If you won’t fall,” Digster bellowed as he raised his foot, “then I’ll bury you!” The giant brought his foot down aiming to crush them.
Chris grabbed a hold of both mares and sped out of the way. He came to a stop close to a mile away. “You guys wait here,” he told the pair as he released them and faced the oversized robot once more. “I’ve got this. Delta Megaship!” He called out, summoning the zord. Within a few seconds, the air was full of the sound of screaming jet engines as the Delta flew out of the cloud cover. “Let’s go,” Chris called as he jumped into the Delta’s cockpit. As he landed and took in the cockpit, only one thought crossed his mind. “This. Is. So. AWESOME!” He yelled, taking the controls. “Delta Megaship, fighter mode.” The zord’s limbs unfolded and it landed, the plate underneath the cockpit folding down to reveal the face.
“And I thought I killed you with that stomp,” Digster stated. “Now I get to crush you and your worthless zord.”
The zord was motionless for a moment. “What did you just call Delta?” Chris’ voice echoed from the zord. Digster suddenly felt uneasy and took a step back. “We… are not worthless!” The zord surged forward and slammed into Digster’s torso. Before the Machine Captain could stagger, Chris jerked the controls and raised Digster over Delta’s head. The thrusters in Delta’s feet ignited and launched the two robots into the sky. In no time, the pair had left Equus’ atmosphere. Delta slowed to a stop launching Digster away. “I hope you can hear this, Mondo,” Chris' voice rang out from Delta once more. “We’ll never stop until Equestria and all of Equus is free from you. I hope you’re ready, ‘cause,” Delta lifted its arms and aimed its hands/cannons at the drifting automaton, “we’re coming for you. Gyro Blasters, fire!” Blue laser fire raced from Delta’s fingertips and slammed into Digster, exploding and destroying the machine as he gave out one last cry.
Chris let out a sigh. “It’s over,” he breathed piloting the zord back down to where Sweetie and Chrysalis were waiting. “Let’s go home, ladies,” Chris called out, lowering Delta’s hand so that the mares could enter the cockpit.
“What were you thinking!?!” Sunset yelled at Chris and Sweetie who stood on the other side of her desk in her office. Upon returning to base, the pair had been called into the Spec. Ops. control room for debriefing. What they got was so much worse. “You both could have been killed or, worse, captured!” Sunset raved angrily. She turned and slammed her hands on the desk. “What about this was a good idea!?!”
Sweetie started to say something, but Chris put his hand on her shoulder. She turned to him with a questioning gaze, to which he responded with a small smile and a shake of his head. When she turned back to face Sunset, Chris took a step forward. “It was the only solution I could see,” Chris explained keeping a calm expression. “If we had returned to base and waited to get a team ready, we’d be too late. Digster and his cogs would have found the Tree of Harmony, and who knows what they would have done.” Chris stopped and let out a breath. “I made the decision to distract them until backup arrived.”
“You should have followed protocol,” Sunset replied straightening up again.
Chris began to frown. “And then what?” He asked, anger beginning to creep into his voice. “Let the machines have the Tree?”
“The Tree has handled worse-”
“No, it hasn’t!” Both Sunset and Sweetie were taken aback by Chris’ sudden and violent interruption. “King Mondo is unlike anything this world has ever seen,” Chris continued angrily. “He took this world in a matter of hours and has held onto it for over nine years. Tell me, how many Machine Captains has the Resistance destroyed? How many cogs? What kind of progress have you made?” Chris paused, his chest rising and falling in frustration. “It’s about time a change was made. If this war is going to go anywhere, things have to change.”
Everyone was silent for a while, each thinking different thoughts. Finally, Sunset spoke up. “You’re right, Chris, if the Resistance is going to survive, a change needs to be made.” She paused and took a slow breath before steeling her features and looking Chris in the eyes. “Chris Scott, you are suspended from active duty until further notice.”
Both Sweetie and Chris’ eyes widened in shock, Chris’ jaw dropping. He just looked in surprise at the red and yellow alicorn, before closing his mouth and frowning. “So be it,” he muttered quietly before turning and leaving the room. Sweetie stayed behind for a moment, looking back and forth between Sunset and the door. She finally stopped on Sunset, her features hardening into displeasure before she ran after Chris.
Sunset stared after the pair for a while before slumping down into her chair and letting out a heavy sigh. She leaned her head back, closing her eyes and lifting a hand to cover them. She was silent for a while before she spoke in a whisper. “I’m sorry, Chris…,” she muttered as a silent tear slid out from under her fingers.
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This is definitely going to come back to bite you in the ass. Anyone want to place bets on what going to happen?
7612548
Can I get in on the betting?
7612736 No bad author.
7612816
Aw...okay
7612548 I will. I bet a few days later a super strong machine captain shows up and sunset decides to send other people to fight it, they start getting hurt Chris says "F*ck you I'm going out there" or something along those lines. Sunset tries to get him punished and everyone tells her to f*ck off he saved us bi7ch.
7612821 You already know whats gonna happen so no cheatsies.
7612833
Close, my friend, very close. You're three for four... actually, now that I think about it, I think I'll make a game out of this.
7613231 Really I was that close?
7613252
Indeed, which means you deserve a cookie.
vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/chocolate/images/a/ab/Chocolate_chip_cookie.jpg/revision/latest/thumbnail-down/width/340/height/313?cb=20120618211310
7613267
I hope you know the that the Galleon has stealth tech out the ass... which means a direct assault on Canterlot is possible... Or wherever Mondo's empire is squishy and sensitive.
7613267 YAY! *Nom nom nom nom*
7613810
The reputation of Gai and the Galleon precedes them, but we'd like to keep Canterlot in one peice....
7614230
Ok, true...
7615423 38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m5scbtWNDQ1qdxavc.jpg
Was that one of his foster homes?
I still don’t understand that.
Damn, that’s an achievement.
So are they the same person now?
Why did he terminate it?
That was an easy promotion.
Wait what? Thirteen?
But, they don’t have any other humans.
Didn’t he just get a new outfit?
WHAT?!
On top of that, it’s impractical.
Is that chrysalis?
Is that the name it’s given in the show?
I mean, he could be right, but he could also be wrong.
When did he get that?
Does the different statics have different affects?
Are those new?
Is there a difference?
I mean, she’s not wrong.