The Forest Part 6: Mechanimentum et Odium
Volos exited his standby and stood up. His joints groaned and the metal scraped as he extended his limbs out to get his blood flowing and his oil circulating. The sun beamed down into the throne room of the old castle, lighting it through the destroyed roof. He checked himself over and found numerous scratches and small dents in his armored torso and among his legs. He scratched at his faceplate and found a long and rigid line going from the bottom of his left eye to his chin. He groaned loudly and let his arm fall to his side.
He turned around to see that Luna was still in her resting place, sleeping blissfully. She moaned and her eyelid twitched quickly. Volos stared in anticipation of another abnormality or failing vitals, but saw that she was waking herself. Her eyes opened slowly and deliberately. She looked around and saw a much larger being standing close by clad in black and silver armor with a bleached white faceplate. She looked in awe through her drowsy eyes at the intricate designs of the silver accents and the faceplate that had two glowing ports and came to two points on both sides where the chin ends.
“V…Volos?” she coughed.
Volos knelt down and grasped her hoof gently. His scanners examined her body as he knelt and found that it had been healed almost completely. “Here,” he answered, “as always.” He continued keeping his monitors going to check that they were correct.
Luna’s ears tingled with the reverberation of his deep voice. She smiled weakly, “you can speak now. I’m happy for you.” She pushed off the floor with her free hoof and cringed when her abdomen sent sharp pains through her body. She fell back to the rubble that she had been sleeping on and sighed heavily.
“You need rest,” Volos stated bluntly. “You caused an explosion last night and you need to regain your strength.” He gently pressed a hand to her chest and left it there for a second. He felt Luna try to push back against it but she stopped her resistance. He removed his hand and scooped her up in his arms. He lifted her gently. Her head rested against his right pauldron and he held her against his chest.
What are you doing?” she asked weakly.
“We need to move,” he said looking around the room, his scanners showed the surrounding areas crawling with hostile signals. “The explosion you caused will have drawn attention to this place and you’re in no condition to fight if necessary.” He went to the nearby window, holding onto Luna’s two front hooves, and peered out of one of the many holes in the walls. He zoomed in his optics and saw bushes moving and heard twigs snapping in the distance. “I feared as much.” He turned away from the hole and began moving toward the once present doorway. He tucked his arms under her rear thighs and hoisted her up a little.
He held her there as he slowly made his way through the, now more ruined, castle. Volos’ auditory sensors picked up movement from inside the castle and his scanners showed entities moving about the outer grounds as well. He growled and continued to move as quickly as possible to find a way out of the ruins of the castle.
2
Celestia moved about the halls of the castle briskly. The explosion in the Everfree forest had been sorely unexpected and had turned the castle into a mad house. She had cancelled her court and sent any and all petitioners home, as well as, cancelled all meetings with the nobles of Equestria. She passed by guards and servants as she went back to the throne room to hear the reports from scouting parties sent to investigate the commotion. Celestia walked through the room crowded with Solar Guard and ascended the steps to her golden throne. She sat down and stared out over the crowd of ponies with a stern grimace on her face.
“Captain Helios!” she yelled. “Report!” Solaris walked up to the throne holding a small stack of papers with his magic. He floated them over to the princess, who grabbed them in her magic and sifted through them quickly. She went through the papers and stopped after going through most of the stack. She stared wide eyed at the photo that had been taken of some wreckage from outside the castle. She regained her composure and placed it to the side, starting another pile. She put the rest of the photos in the
stack as well. She cleared her throat. “Explain.”
Helios bowed his head for a moment. “The castle was in complete ruin princess. The photos that were taken depict something that was seen outside by scout team three,” he said. “We don’t know what it was or what is used to be. All we could make of it was that it was very dangerous and extremely large compared to the average pony.”
Celestia remained silent for a moment before speaking. “And the explosion?” she asked.
“It was magical in nature and very potent. It left traces all over the castle. But, we managed to find a slightly stronger trail leading out of the room and into the castle itself. However, it quickly vanished and the trail went cold indefinitely.” He shuffled nervously, “we were unable to find it again.”
The look on Celestia’s face made the captain uneasy and he shuffled in place. “Anything else?” He jumped slightly and nodded slowly. He brought one last picture from under his chest plate and floated it over. Celestia took it and held it in front of her face before feeling a chill in her spine. “Princess? Are you alright?” Solaris asked.
“When... When was this taken?” Celestia asked a twinge of anger in her tone.
“Approximately…uh…” He looked at the report in his hoof, “two hours ago.” He looked up and saw Celestia’s eye twitching. “Is something wrong princess?”
Celestia regained her composure quickly and placed the new photo in the other stack of papers. She looked at her newly appointed captain and steeled her face. “Captain?”
“Yes princess?” he asked, feeling a nervous tick in his stomach. The princess was too calm for the current situation.
“Give the order to evacuate those ruins,” she said with a calm authority and finality.
“Yes, Princess.” He turned away and began to walk away from the throne.
“One more thing captain,” she called to the captain. He stopped and turned back around to face her. “Once all have been evacuated from there,” she paused, a sick grin on her face. “Level it.” She thought for a moment, “Oh, and make sure to use the Infernus Spiritus Trahant. I don’t want anything left.”
Helios remained still, his mouth moved up and down but nothing would come out of his throat. He took a deep breath and found his voice. “But princess you named those ruins a historical site. To demolish it would mean Equestria losing a piece of its history,” he stated, the surprise still evident.
Celestia stood up and walked down the steps and stood in front of her captain. He began to feel very small as her demon-like gaze bored through him. “Did I stutter captain?” He shook his head. “Did you not hear me?” Again he shook his head. “I didn’t think so. Now, get it done Captain Helios! And should you question me again, you will be on the receiving end of my own Hell Fire! Understood?”
“Y…Yes Princess,” he stammered quickly and hurried off and the rest of the guardsponies followed suite.
When the throne room was empty she levitated the photos and lined them in front of her. She looked at it intensely before igniting it on fire. She watched as the flames made their way up the page, grinning as more and more of the paper burned and became ash. Her eyes remained locked onto the glowing eyes that stared out into the distance from the wreckage of the castle. The flames enveloped the remaining parts of the photo and her smile twisted into a sinister and depraved grin.
“Yes. Yes. Burn, burn, burn monster. You will burn; I will make sure of it.”
She exited the throne room with the same grin on her face and a cackle.
3
Volos crept around a corner and held a tight line along the walkway. His auditory and optical sensors were on overdrive, picking up any and all sound around him and giving him a clear scan of the area around him. He had heard voices and snapping noises some time ago and was still surrounding the area. The readings on his scanner began to move away from the castle and began amassing in a very large circle. He stopped and waited to see what was happening. His auditory sensors picked up a loud humming and the distinct chime of magic igniting. The realization came and he began to run down the corridor, not caring about whom or what might see him.
The ringing became louder and he felt the castle shake violently. He stumbled around, still trying to hold onto the princess. He turned down another corridor and recognized it by the remains of the stained glass windows lining the walls. He made his way quickly down the hall before tripping over a rogue brick that had been shaken from the partially collapsed ceiling. He managed to flip himself to his back, sparing Luna the most damaging of the impact. He watched as a bright golden light began to filter in through the windows and also permeate the greyness of the stone itself.
Volos hopped up quickly and found what he had been looking for; a large metal doorway that was projecting an orange film over the entrance way. He pushed on it and found that he could not go through it. He took a step back and set Luna down on the ground.
“What are you doing?” she asked weakly.
Volos didn’t answer and, instead, kicked the edge of the remaining stone by the doorway and watched it crumble away revealing six tube-like structures connected to the orange field. He raised a leg and kicked at the tubes. The metal casings surrounding them caved and folded under the massive force. The orange field fizzled and sputtered but remained steady.
The stones began to glow brighter until the whole castle rocked and shook after a tremendous force erupted from where they had once been located. Luna curled up and tried to cover her head with her hooves, screaming. Volos stumbled around before smashing into the wall behind him. The stones at his impact point began to spark and small golden currents bounced along them. He jumped up quickly and ran in the short distance between him and the field. He tilted his shoulder and rammed the metal canisters. The field generators exploded and the field vanished in a torrent of particles and sparks.
He picked up Luna again and began to move for the lift that was on the other side of where the field used to be. The stones of the castle began to spark and glow like small suns. Another explosion rocked the castle grounds and Volos was thrown to ground by a wave of rock and debris. The princess was thrown into the lift and impacted the metal wall, leaving a small dent. Volos looked around and saw the castle beginning to collapse all around them as the glow of the rock became ever more intense.
Volos crawled over to Luna and propped her against the steel walls of the lift. The cage door to the lift closed and the large metal doors began to shut but stopped midway, sparking and spewing small gouts of flame. Volos grabbed the cage door and began to bend and pull it to make a hole for him to try to force the large metal doors to close. The light coming from the stones reached its critical mass and the magical energies flowing through the rock began to interfere with Volos’ optics.
The stones cracked and let out a blast of concussive force. The force of the blast knocked Volos back from the cage gate. He impacted the wall and felt his biomechanical lungs become clenched, forcing all the air out of them. He lay on the ground dazed and tried to reorient himself. He wheezed and found Luna lying fairly close by. He reached for her when he saw the golden light continue to grow. The magical energy expelled itself from the stones, incinerating them.
The fury of the flames came at Volos and Luna, like a ravenous beast. The large metal doors of the lift did little to calm the fires that came at them and they flooded the small chamber and shaft. Volos bent over Luna and held her close to his chest. The fires engulfed them both. Volos’ sensors blared as his armor’s temperature spiked rapidly. Luna began to struggle as the metal against her body began to feel the heat of the armor.
The lift shook and sputtered violently, shaking Luna out of Volos’ arms and into the fire. She screamed as the fire burned her skin and scorched her fur. Volos jumped over to her position and began trying to remove the flames from around her body. His metal body was giving into the heat as his circuits and other sensitive machinery began to shut down and shut out all electrical pulses. He tried to force his body to do what he wanted it to and he reached out for the princess.
The lift shook again and a loud clang echoed through the small metal container. The lift began to move down rapidly. Volos felt himself get pulled closer to the ceiling and saw Luna’s body doing the same. The flames that had enveloped the lift had begun to sputter out because of the lifts rapid decent. The lift filled with sparks and hydraulic fluids as its systems were disconnected by the damage it had taken.
Volos grabbed the princess and held her once again to his chest as they twisted and spun inside the free-falling elevator. The lift continued to descend in a free-fall until it impacted with a large metal slab. Volos smashed into the lift floor, still clutching Luna. He felt his body contort and begin to feel as though it had been flattened by the sudden halt of their rapid descent.
He slid Luna off of his large chest before flipping himself over and getting to one knee. He pushed off the ground and stood up. His heat sensors continued to blare at him.
‘Begin cooling sequence’
…Opening all cooling vents… Vents open…
His armor panels moved and separated themselves, revealing a maze of mechanical and biological systems. The heat that was trapped inside his body rushed out in a jet of steam and smoke. As his core temperatures lowered the panels began to reattach themselves in their original places. The clamps, screws and restraints secured themselves in position.
Volos looked over to where he had placed Luna and picked her up. He stepped off of the lift and into the chamber below the castle where he had been given his new body. The lights in the room flickered to life once again, revealing the grey metal room with the smashed console in the corner and a metal table stained red, black and orange. He placed her on it carefully and looked her over.
Fur had been burned away and burns on her body were clearly visible and distinguishable. There was a massive cut running down her left eyelid to halfway down her cheek, cauterized by the intense flames. Her ethereal mane had been reduced to its original silver blue and had been burned short and uneven.
He remained silent as he studied her maimed body again and again. He collapsed onto his backend and held his face in his hand, resting the other on an uplifted knee.
“V…Volos?” he heard a feminine voice call weakly. He stood up and found Luna’s mouth open and her lips moving in shallow movements. “It stings,” she muttered. Volos remained silent. “Are you there?” she asked desperately. “I don’t want to be alone.” Volos gingerly placed a hand on her right hoof and held it. “Thank you.”
“Rest princess, while I find something to ease the pain.” He stood up and looked at the hoof he was holding as he let go. He stopped and looked closer, wires were protruding from it, releasing a steady stream of sparks.
Stats
Page generated in 0.029 seconds
Total duration
1,007 users online
2,109,482 hits today, 2,280,440 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Celestia you crazy bitch why? I loved you!
So awesome!!
.. What? What just happened? Oh, Celestia, you FUCKEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRR!
Word of advice, put what crossover this is with in the description so people can just look and know. Also, could you tell me what the crossover is so I can decide whether or not to read this?
No story is complete without a phsycopath
What crossover is this???
Sweet Celestia! How have these updates slipped past me!
THIS MUST BE CORRECTED!
DUM DUM DUMMMMM!!!!!
Dramatic chapter is dramatic!
3852278
3851789
And by popular demand I will tell you what kind of Crossover this is!
It's NOT a crossover.
It has been so long. Can anyone remind me why Celestia did that?
3853505 I haven't explained why she does what she does yet. All the reader needs to know at this current point in time is that she hates Volos with a passion and would do almost anything to kill him. For further reminders, please reread the story as you see fit.
3853536 I remember bits and bobs, but obviously not enough to know why Celestia would kill Luna just to end Volos.
3853555 You're not supposed to know yet. As I said before, all you as the reader needs to know right now is that she would do anything to kill Volos.
3853555 Maybe something to do with Alyssa?
3853572 I should've been more clear in my response.
What I meant is that I recalled stuff from the story, but that attack caught me completely by surprise, so I assumed that I had forgotten something.
I am well aware that I am not supposed to know now, but at the time of my comment I thought it was related to something I had forgotten.
3853607 understandable.
3853407 Alright, it just looked like one. Thank you.
3854418 You're not the first to think that actually. This is all from my twisted head to digital paper.
3855336 Might wanna add an OC tag, then. So people can see that this is original idea, and not a crossover. Will save you the time and effort of answering this question again and again.
Oh my god. No words can describe the greatness of this story. You, sir, have written a peice of art. The mere foreshadowing with Luna is on epic scales, and Celestia being a psychopath is quite the plot twist (mind you, the general idea of her being crazy has been done before, I just didn't expect it here). I applaud you.
3858670 Thanks! Made my morning.
Read this story in about a day and a half. It's damn interesting. I've favorite this.
If his ever happens you should call an ambulance. This isn't how you get the wind knocked out of you. You take in air by expanding your lungs. The diaphragm contracts, letting the lungs expand. You get the wind knocked out of you, the diaphragm does not contract. Because there is no room for the lungs to expand, you can't breathe and you get that suffocation feeling.
3862468 He doesn't have a diaphragm. The mechanics inflate his lungs for him and thus he breaths that way. I may not be a medical expert but concussive force has been shown to deflate and flatten lungs. And you need to keep in mind that Volos is not all organic matter. He contains more mechanics than organic matter.
3862518
Try to phrase it differently. If someone says flat, I think of paper thin or absolutely no bumps or curves. Try something like squeeze.
I like this.
the more i read this, the more i cant wait to draw it
3877660 Duuuuude, you should so contact the author to get more details about how Volos looks so you can draw his original and new version, Iv'e been waiting for someone to do this and thought it would be a sick idea