The Robotic Hero of Canterlot High

by TriforceAndroid

Chapter 10: The Mystery of the ACG

Author's Note:

Well, here's to hoping that this chapter is good.

Twilight got out of her taxi, starry eyed at the venue. It was being held on the rooftop of one of Canterlot’s taller buildings, and there were banners and streamers all over the entrance. Security cameras watched every inch of the place, but Twilight wasn’t nervous about them. She had been invited, after all.

Twilight walked up to the entrance, where there were metal detector gates and at least two dozen heavily armed security guards, as well as some staff members. She presented her invitation to the guards.

“Everything seems to be in order,” the guard said. “Go on up, Miss.”

Twilight stepped into the elevator with some other adults and was soon on the way up to the roof.

Once she got out, she was checked again for her pass and had to go through a second security check before being allowed in.

But was it worth it. There were displays of various projects lined up along the side, while about two hundred chairs had been positioned to face the stage. Twilight squealed with delight and went to inspect them, recognizing many famous scientists and engineers all round.

“This is the greatest day of my life!” She exclaimed.

Unknown to anyone, however, two figures were stealthily making their way towards the area Twilight was approaching. Android and Robofist stood ready for anything.

“If it’s the ACG that we both know, I’ll pound them to dust,” said Robofist quietly.

Android rolled his eyes. “Sure, sure, whatever suits you, dude,” he whispered.

Twilight stayed to admire the displays for about half an hour. Next to her, a teenager about her age wearing a formal-looking overcoat with a tie and a beret came up.

“Enjoying the display?” He said, smoothing out his sharry brown hair.

“Oh, yes!” Twilight said. “I’ve been a big fan of the ACG for a while now. Their constant innovations to further humanity’s prospects are very admirable. I’m Twilight Sparkle.”

“I know,” the teenager said. “I’m part of the staff,” he pointed to a patch that was sewn to his coat, picturing a wolf howling at the moon while a shooting star flew overhead. “I’m the director’s assistant. I’m sure he’ll be glad to see such a young mind has an interest in helping humanity. He’ll be giving his speech in about ten minutes, so try to find a seat before then, okay?”

“Oh! Sure thing,” Twilight replied.

The teenager tipped his hat to Twilight and walked towards Android and Robofist, but didn’t stop to talk, passing right by and disappearing into the crowd.

“Be careful,” whispered Android. “You never know when danger is about to hit.”

Robofist smirked to himself. “I’ll be ready,” he whispered to Android confidently.

Twilight left the displays a while later and grabbed a seat near the front, where she would have a clear view of the stage. The rest of the crowd got seated as well, while the guards stayed by the sides of the room, looking around carefully.

The lights dimmed and a spotlight was cast on the stage.

A tall man in a lab coat and jeans came up onto the stage. The screen behind him lit up with the logo of a wolf howling at the moon with a shooting star, and everyone quieted down.

“Welcome to the ACG’s celebration expo!” the man said, looking warmly at each guest as if he knew each of them personally. “We at Aerospace Communication Geotech are so glad you could come. Most of you already know who I am, but for those who might have had a bit too much to drink, my name is Dr. Henry Allister, and I’m the director of the Canterlot branch of the ACG.

“As many of you know, yesterday was a historic moment as the final components to the ACG’s newest project was launched. We made the news, everyone, and we couldn’t have done it without you!”

The screen displayed the rocket on the launchpad.

“The rocket will have linked up with the rest of the satellite, providing constant, uninterrupted internet to anyone subscribed to the ACG’s net plan in the world. How is this possible, you ask? Well, let me share the secret with you. Over the years, there have been hundreds, if not thousands of defunct satellites in orbit around the earth, cluttering up the atmosphere and just being space junk. For the past year or so, the ACG has been repairing and repurposing these satellites so that they no longer litter orbit, but can be made useful again. By bouncing the signal all over the globe, anyone anywhere in the world can have a lightning fast internet, GPS, and streaming connection.”

The crowd cheered, and Dr. Allister raised his hands. He stroked his moustache and smiled wider. “What’s more, the satellite network will be used to help map out the globe. So much of the world remains a mystery and is constantly changing, so we made it our mission to provide people with an up to date map of anywhere in the world, down to the tiniest detail. It’s a side project, I know, but I’m just so excited about it,” Dr. Allister grinned, and the crowd shared his happiness. Cameras flashed.

“As you can see, this venture couldn’t have been done without my team of scientists and engineers at the ACG, or my faithful lab assistant. Why don’t we give them a big hand?”
Twilight sat there, enraptured by the speech. She had her phone out and was taking pictures.

“Again, I’d like to thank all of you for coming today,” Dr. Allister said. “Truly, I’m happy that so many people care about the future of humanity, and taking the next big step forward. I’ll be open to any questions after the speech, but for now, glory to mankind!”

He raised his fist in a sort of salute before bowing and stepping off the stage. The doctor was immediately swarmed by reporters and other guests. The projector screen flashed back to the logo of the project.

Android sat there, feeling relieved. “Well, I guess there’s nothing to worry about,” he said with relief.

“No, wait,” said Robofist. “Look down there at the man with glasses.”

Android followed his teammates' glance and saw a man with glasses and a lab coat. However, as he looked more closely, he saw a symbol that made him clench his fist in anger: A picture of a cyborg with a big red circle around it followed by a big red line across it. The symbol of the Anti-Cyborg Group! That man in particular was the leader of the group, Dr. Ironside. Long ago, his own home was attacked by a cyborg gang who terrorized humans due to the fact that they looked hideous and were treated like trash. Now, Dr. Ironside hated all cyborgs!

“Dr. Ironside,” said Android quietly. “What do you think he’s about to do?”

“Better keep an eye on him,” said Robofist.

Android nodded in agreement as they both kept watch over the mad doctor. What was he up to?

Twilight finally made it to the front of the queue. “Dr. Allister!” She exclaimed. “It’s such an honor to finally meet you. I’ve followed your career since you joined the ACG, and it’s so inspiring!”

Dr. Allister chuckled. “I’m honored to have such a loyal fan. I’ve made some steps in my career, yes, but this global connection program will be my best achievement yet. Of course, it wouldn’t be possible without the funding of my fellow doctor, Dr. Ironside.”

“Lightning fast internet all over the world,” Twilight grinned. “When does it go into operation?”

“That’s a little secret,” Dr. Allister told her. “But make no mistake, that day is soon. Hey, tell you what, why don’t we get a picture together? Something that’ll look good on the front page of tomorrow’s paper.”

Dr. Allister stood next to Twilight as the reporters snapped photos of them both grinning.

“Thanks for coming, Twilight Sparkle,” the doctor said. “I hope I’ve lived up to your expectations.”

In the background, Allister’s lab assistant leaned against the wall, sweeping his eyes over the guests. He lingered on Android and Robofist, but he didn’t make a move to do anything.

“Shoot,” said Android quietly. “I think he saw us. Robofist, we gotta go now.”

“Awe, no fair,” said Robofist quietly. “I wanted to kick some butt.”

“We can’t do that now,” explained Android. “We’ll look like suspects if we stay here any longer. Besides, we have no evidence yet.”

“Ugh! Fine,” said Robofist. “But if I find out that the Anti-Cyborg Group is involved in anything, I won’t hesitate to fight.”

“Noted,” said Android. “Now let’s get out of here.” With that, they both began to make their way to the exit quietly.

Twilight left the venue about an hour later, looking as giddy as a kid in a candy shop. “I can’t believe I got to meet Dr. Allister of the ACG!” She squeed. She had even managed to get his autograph on her notebook. “I wonder if I can become his lab assistant after I leave high school?”
------------------------------------------------------
Later that night, at the Canterlot ACG headquarters, which was a tall tower in the middle of the city.

Dr. Allister stood in his lab while his lab assistant stayed close behind.

“What’d you think of my speech?” Allister asked the teenager. “Too overblown?”

“Not really, I thought it was adequate,” the young man said. “I’m pleased to report that Project Iris is 67 percent done. The processing power of the Ragnarok space station was more than enough to speed up the schedule. Not to mention its key function in Project Aegis.”

“Yes…” Allister muttered, a shadow passing over his face as if he was remembering something terrible. “I couldn’t have done it without Dr. Ironside’s funding. Where is he, anyway?”

“He’s currently in the room where we keep the WM-01,” Allister’s assistant told the doctor. “I hear he has some suggestions to make.”

“Of course he does…” Dr. Allister sighed. “The wolvin units are only part of the plan. You focus on continuing Project Iris and Project Aegis. I’ll go find Dr. Ironside.”

“Yes, sir. Would you like an update on Android? We know where he lives. I can send a wolvin-”

Dr. Allister waved to stop his assistant. “No. Android isn’t our enemy. He was incompetent, but that doesn’t make him a villain. It’s the real villains, Cyber Force we’re after. Keep watching Android, but don’t touch him.”

“He had a new accomplice with him today,” Allister’s assistant continued. “They were watching your speech. I saw them, trying to blend in with the guests, but I have a sharp eye.”

“I’m aware,” Dr. Allister said. “Do what I told you to do; I’m going to go talk to Ironside.”

Dr. Allister ran a hand through his hair and sighed. Then he stepped into the elevator and went down three floors to where Ironside was.

Dr. Ironside was very busy in creating a new invention when he heard Dr. Allister coming down to meet him. “What is it?” He grunted.

"My assistant said you had something to say about the WM-01," Allister said. "Let's hear it."

“Very well,” said Ironside. “The WM-01 has the right amount of armor to go against the Cyber Force, but it lacks two important factors: Weapons and resistance to the Cyber Force’s corruptive energy.”

Allister sighed. He went over to a pod on the side of the wall and wiped the fog off the glass. Behind it was a white wolf mask. "I disagree with the second one. As for weapons, the WM-01 is still a prototype. We can always improve on it. It's every engineer's dream, not having to rely on electricity or black core energy to function. My Papillon Reactor will one day pave the way for clean energy all around the world."

“So, clean energy, huh?” Ironside said. “Good luck with that. Last time I checked, Android is the only being with that kind of power. Yet… I saw that he had an ally with him. I don’t know why, but… there was something familiar about his ally. Like, I’ve seen him somewhere before.”

Allister turned away from the pod and frowned at Ironside. “We’re scientists for a reason, making the world better for humanity. Besides, you’ve already seen what the Papillon Reactor is capable of. If we can just replicate it in scale and make it less unstable…” Allister trailed off. “And I knew there were cyborgs at my speech. But since sensors didn’t register black core energy, I decided to leave them alone. You yourself said that the fall of Metal City was because of the Cyber Force, so that’s who we’re going after.”

"Tch," said Ironside with a sneer. "If Android hadn't tried fighting both my group and the Cyber Force, things would've been different. He's a fool to believe that humans and cyborgs can coexist. Peace between humans and cyborgs is impossible. Cyborgs are all villains, end of story!"

Allister sighed. He took out his phone and looked at the background. It was a photo of himself, a beautiful woman in a green dress, and a teenage girl dressed in white and purple. "Maybe you're right about humans and cyborgs, but even if we want there to be an end to the fighting, we should target the biggest problem first. That's the Cyber Force." He put his phone away. "Project Aegis will do that. It will be a shield for humanity, make sure nobody has to lose a loved one to cyborgs again."

"Then why not aim for Android," said Ironside. "He's a cyborg as well."

Allister shook his head. “Android is still useful to us. He fights the Cyber Force, who are also our main target. Once we finish off the Cyber Force, we can decide what to do with Android.”

“Fine,” growled Ironside before getting back to work. Then he whispered quietly to himself: “Mark my words, Android. You will die by the hand of the Anti-Cyborg Group. I will see to it myself. Then, I will never have to deal with cyborgs ever again!”

"Well, if that's all, I'll make the necessary adjustments to the WM-01. I'm going back upstairs to oversee the projects," Allister turned to leave. "You're welcome to stay here and do whatever it is you're doing."

“Fine by me,” said Ironside as he stopped working for now. He decided to go and get some coffee.

Comments

[Jaxxon Markus Citadel]

This Allister chap seems quite affable. I wonder why he's working with that Ironside character, they don't seem to see eye to eye on things but they're also in on the wolf masked person? Interesting.

[TriforceAndroid]

11137165
You'll have to wait and see.