Chapter 7: Science of the Devil
A week after the insanity that took place at the warehouse, classes at Canterlot High fell back in session. Team Build could not be any more glad to be back in school(although it was a bit iffy for Sol Burner), eager to get back to normalcy even on a Friday.
But as they feared, the student body could not just shut up about the Masked Rider Build and his newly dubbed partner, Cross-Z. The students gossiped about the events that took place over the break, which included the Smash attack at Applewood Acres, the Smash attack at the Research Center, the giant bipedal mech that was somehow formed out of the Research Center’s new Guardians, and the explosion at the warehouse district.
It wasn’t just gossip exchanged through the halls. The Build Blog has been flooded with comments and posts of news stories regarding the two mysterious heroes of Canterlot. The latest was Director Night Light’s press conference thanking the two for what they did the other day.
All in all, it was an exhausting first day back for those directly involved. Team Build because they had to maintain secrecy and avoid detection. Twilight Sparkle had it rough because of her family heading the Research Center, making her into a beacon for people who wanted to know more.
The bespectacled girl sighed as she rested her forehead on the table of the science lab. “I swear, if I have to answer another question about the attack I’m gonna scream…”
“It’s been that bad, huh?” Flash asked in concern as he carefully added another chemical to a heating mixture using a pipette.
The two were currently at their Chemistry Club meeting after school. The moment classes ended, Twilight rushed to the lab to seek refuge from the constant pestering and questions about the Guardians and the attack.
She and Flash were currently the only members present today as Rarity had an emergency clothing order she needed to fill out while Derpy was out sick.
Thankfully, the other students that hounded on Twilight had their own clubs to attend, which gave the girl much needed peace and quiet.
“You…have no idea…” Her voice was muffled as she was face down. She raised her head and looked up at her fellow club member. “I keep getting questions asking about the Smash attack at the Research Center that I haven’t seen since I wasn’t there. I was also asked about the Guardians on how they were hacked and combined into that giant mech weapon. I didn’t even know they had such a function, and I was told they couldn’t be hacked so easily!” She slammed her head on the table once more. “What a mess…”
“I hear that…” Flash nodded. Things had been messy on their end as Team Build. Since the latest victim was Brawly Beats, a close friend of his, he’s had his fair share of inquiries from other students. All he could tell them was that he was caught up in the robot attack and barely managed to escape, but lost sight of Brawly in the process.
Then Sunset Shimmer approached their table at lunch. At first, he was scared that she figured something out. But he was relieved that she just wanted to talk to Sol Burner regarding their meeting the previous week. She noted how much better he looked, concluding that he made things right in the end with his mistake.
He and the others realized that it must’ve been Sunset who helped Sol that time. The musician was grateful for her help, despite not knowing the circumstances.
“So…aside from getting hounded by gossipers and curious students, how you’ve been Twilight?” Flash decided to strike up a conversation to help get her mind off of things.
“Pretty good, all things considering.” She mumbled.
“I heard from Sunset that you and the others have been getting better since the first robot attack. Is that true?”
“Yeah. Frankly, I’m surprised our injuries healed this quickly.” She gazed at her bandage free limbs. “I was expecting us to be on the mend for another week or two. Although rainbow still needs another day or two to heel her ankle.”
“Guess you got the magic to thank for that, huh?” The musician asked. Now that he thought about it the injuries that Sol had from the warehouse incident last week have mended quicker than they were expected to.
He noticed this fact on himself when his injuries from his fight with Sol healed in a day. They consisted of a bruised nose, cheek, diaphragm, and a black eye. Yet they healed in approximately a day. Micro hypothesized that maybe their recovery rates were linked to their Hazard Levels and Nebula Gas exposures, but it was too early to be sure.
“Maybe. But I just wish that we didn’t have to deal with these Smash in the first place. Just where are they even coming from?”
“Well, didn’t your dad say that it was an organization named Faust that made the Smash at that Press Conference? Something about human experimentation?”
“He did. But that’s all we managed to figure out. We don’t know if they even have other hidden bases in the city.” Twilight answered.
“Well, at least they’re doing their best.” Flash answered.
“Maybe. But it’s certainly disheartening that the Guardians were useless against the Smash. And the fact they were hacked and manipulated like that is just scary.”
“But your dad said they were prototypes, right?” Flash argued. “With robots as complex as them, there’s bound to be bugs to iron out. It’s just that the first batch wasn’t Build for the job.”
“That may be true but….wait, what did you say?” The bespectacled girl looked at Flash oddly.
“What? I said that the prototypes weren’t Build for the job.”
Twilight stared at the musician as the words clicked in her mind. “….pft….hahaha…!” She giggled. “F-Flash….that….that was just terrible…!”
“What?” The blue haired teen cracked a grin. “I thought it was real punny!”
“Haha….that was even worse! Just…just stop…!”
Both Flash and Twilight shared a laugh, breaking the serious atmosphere from a moment ago. The laughter soon died down.
“Whew…I…I actually needed that. Thanks, Flash.”
“No problem.” He answered as he put the pipette back and recorded values in his note book. “After everything that’s happened, you looked like you needed a laugh.”
“I did…just didn’t expect you to break out terrible puns.”
“Eh. I improvised. Oh yeah. How’s the progress on that internship you applied to?” He remembered that Twilight had talked about an internship opportunity she applied for at ChangeMaker Incorporated. They were a company that focused on improving the social welfare and medical care of the people and had their headquarters right in Canterlot City.
“Pretty well, actually. I just got back from them. They want me to come in and tour one of their facilities before my interview with them.”
“Really? That’s great! I’m sure that you’re a shoe-in for the job.” Flash nodded. “Any company would be lucky to have someone as smart as you on their team.”
“Heh. Flatterer.” Twilight playfully swatted his arm. “By the way, how has Sol Burner been doing?”
“Why so curious?” Flash asked, slightly wary that she may be onto Team Build.
“Nothing much. Just wondering if he’s adjusted to Canterlot High. I know what it’s like being the new kid here, and you were his friend so I thought you’d know.”
“Oh, that’s fine.” Flash nodded in relief. “He’s been doing pretty well. I think he said that he joined the school Boxing Club…”
In the gymnasium, a mass of students could be seen surrounding a mat in the center of the room. Off to the side of the room were a group of female students dressed in white fencing attire.
Due to the size of the room, both the Fencing and Boxing clubs were situated in the gymnasium for practice. The fencers practiced their thrusts and parries as the commotion went on. Sunset looked off to the side, curious about the match the Boxing Club was having.
Both fighters were clad in t-shirts and shorts with protective padding. The one that wore a pair of blue gloves and helmet was Sol Burner.
The other fighter was a tall, muscular teen that stood a good head above Sol. His skin was white and had red eyes. His ears were pierced with silver rings and his blonde hair was fashioned in a mullet with the top of it buzzed. This was Bulk Biceps, Canterlot High’s resident weight-lifter. He was fairly new to the sport as he joined the club as a means of learning self defense.
“Round….begin!” The club advisor who refereed the match announced before he backed up. Bulk yelled and started with a left straight that Sol easily sidestepped and countered with a right jab. Bulk quickly blocked with his right glove and backed away.
The two circled with shuffling feet, trying to find and opening. Sol moved for a quick feint. Bulk flinched, giving the fighter the opening he needed. He rushed in and began with an uppercut to the torso. The muscular teen was winded by the hit and was unable to react when Sol followed up with a right swing to the face and left straight to the shoulder.
“Point!” The referee drew another line on the white board.
In the Boxing Club, sparring matches are based on a point system. Every clean hit or knock down was worth a point. Penalties were given for illegal moves such as kicks or grapples. Each match lasted for three rounds with a three minute time limit. The winner was decided when a fighter accumulated a total of ten points, or if they had greater points than their opponent when time ran out in the final round.
This was to ensure the safety of the students and prevent them from taking a fight too seriously to the extent of knocking out their opponent.
Sol and Bulk were currently in the middle of their second round with the score of 7 to 4, respectively. While Bulk was larger than Sol, the latter was a fast opponent and was stronger than he looked. Bulk did not have much experience in boxing outside the club, and it reflected in his simple movements in trying to swarm the opponent with fast and heavy hits and use his physique to his advantage. It wasn’t a bad strategy, but to a seasoned fighter like Sol, his movements were predictable and are easily avoided. But large teen was definitely improving, especially with Sol’s advice during practice.
They bore fruit as Bulk had scored two more points than usual against Sol in the previous round. The onlookers were hooked onto the match.
In fact, not just Sunset, but the entirety of the fencing club paused their practicing to watch the fight as well.
The match continued as Sol and Bulk continued to trade blows. Despite being new to boxing, Bulk held his own well enough against Sol. But given his movements, it seemed that Sol took it easy on the muscular teen. The second round ended with a score of 9 to 6 in favor of Sol. Bulk seemed exhausted from the long bouts while Sol seemed like he was still rearing to go.
Sunset noticed that he was smiling during the fight and purposefully left openings for Bulk to capitalize on. It appeared that he was subtly teaching Bulk how to improve in his actions. That and he also appeared to genuinely enjoy the match.
The third round begun as the fighters circled one another. Bulk moved his back hand which caused Sol to react. But the move had been a feint as he rushed in with a punch with his forehand.
But in his exhaustion, Bulk overextended his punch, allowing Sol to duck underneath and dig his gloved fist into his stomach. He then followed up with a straight punch to the cheek. The force of the hit knocked the muscular teen’s mouth guard out from his mouth. Bulk fell on his knees as the final point was awarded to Sol.
“Winner! Sol Burner!” The rest of the boxing club cheered for their rising star’s victory. Bulk panted as he tried to regain his breath and sooth his aching cheek.
“Good match, Bulk” Sol extended a hand to the red eyed teen. “You’re getting better.”
“Yeah!” The bulky teen yelled as he grasped it. “It’s all thanks to you, buddy!” He gave the blue haired teen a one armed hug.
Ever since Sol first joined CHS, he had been searching for a martial arts club of any sort. Whether it be boxing, kickboxing, aikido, taekwondo, any form of martial art. He figured it would’ve been a good way to get some practice and double dip as an extracurricular activity.
That was when his classmate for Gym, Bulk Biceps, suggested the Boxing Club to him. He was a new member and wanted to learn how to properly defend himself. Sol took up on his offer and quickly became a rising star in the club due to his skills.
They then had a sparring match so Sol could test Bulk’s skills. Admittedly, the blonde teen didn’t have much fighting ability. But Sol helped him gradually during his time at the club.
The two became friends ever since.
Even though school was back in session and their time was limited, Micro put every second of his free time to good use. Since today was not when the Science Club usually met, he had the opportunity to continue Team Build’s search for Faust.
Granted, progress was slow as he couldn’t uncover further information than what was already found. He debated about using his drone to scout the city, but realized that he wouldn’t be able to cover the entire area without the battery dying.
He needed to find a way to improve the drone’s mobility and scanning capabilities. But he had no clue where to start. He had done all he was able to without completely compromising the rest of the drone’s functions.
And there haven’t been any further updates regarding attacks on the media. Faust must be taking a break to lick their wounds from the loss of a base, as well as stay out of the limelight.
As he continued to ponder, he received an email notification on his brother’s laptop. He stopped working on the sword-like device on the work desk and looked at the screen in confusion.
He never received an email on it before in all the time he’s had it in his possession.
Curious, he pulled it up. But when he saw the email, but was confused. He didn’t recognize the address. Normally, caution would have him indicate this as a hacker’s attempt to trick him and steal his data. However, the headline of the email instilled rabid curiosity and suspicion.
Plans for a new weapon Faust has created using Nebula Gas.
While Faust has been known by the public for a week now, he thought it would be too soon for some hacker to go around soliciting people for information through scams like this. Furthermore, the part about Nebula Gas dispelled any further doubts.
Because the use of Nebula Gas to create the Smash was never publicly known or revealed. As far as he knew, the only information available about Nebula Gas was in his brother’s videos. And those were only on his laptop.
He was concerned about the origin of the message, but was partly hopeful that it would kick start their hunt for Faust.
Apprehensively, he opened the email.
Dear Micro Chips,
You may be wondering who I am and why I sent you this information. First of all, I want you to know that I am not your enemy. I am your ally in this fight against Faust. But due to circumstances, I cannot divulge my identity to you just yet. I will only do so when I earn your trust that you can complete this.
All you need to know now is that the organization has devised a weapon that will make them more dangerous than they already are.
It must be destroyed. I have also attached schematics of the device that I uncovered and the location where Faust has it developed and stored.
I can only hope my words and what I have given you is enough to help.
Sincerely,
Anony-Mister.
Micro was skeptical of the message contents. But found himself intrigued and worried; intrigued at whom this Anony-Mister really is and worried that Faust has made a weapon to make Smash on the fly. He opened both attached files. The first was a series of blue prints for a weapon dubbed the Steam Blade. It looked exactly like the part on the Stalk had used in the warehouse.
The second was a marked map of an aerial view of the city.
The intellectual then understood their next plan of attack. He immediately contacted the rest of the team.
“I really appreciate your help, Sol Burner. But you didn’t have to go out of your way to carry all those soil bags.” A girl said as she and the fighter walked through the school halls. She had long green hair, green skin of a lighter shade, and brown eyes. She had a baby-ish face with freckles dotting her cheeks. She was dressed in a pair of gray jeans, a yellow, striped sweater, and gray slip on shoes.
“It’s no problem Wallflower. It was my fault for rushing and running into you. As my mom always said, I gotta own up to my mistakes.” Sol replied as he carried the four bags of potting soil with barely any effort on his shoulders.
After Boxing Practice had ended, Sol Burner had received a text from Micro that called all of Team Build to the lab due to an update on the search. Excited by the chance to go after Faust, he ran towards the school parking lot where he parked his motorcycle.
But when he opened the doors, he accidentally crashed into the girl, Wallflower Blush. She had been moving four large bags of potting soil on a dolly. When they crashed, she lost her grip on the dolly and it rolled on the ground before turning over. One of the wheels had popped off and rolled out of sight.
After he helped her up, the girl had been distraught as she had no other way to transport the soil they needed for the gardening club.
Sol felt bad about his mistake, and decided to make it up to the girl by carrying the bags for her. She tried to politely turn down his offer, but the martial artist went ahead and picked up the bags for her anyway. Fortunately, none of them broke open from the fall.
As they walked, the two made some small talk to pass the time. Wallflower told him that she was in the Gardening Club and she had to pick up the orders of soil the club put in as club president. Sol thought it was nice of her to do until she told him that she had to walk off campus to pick up the orders herself due to a mix up with the deliveries.
“Wait, so they accidentally sent you four bags of garden rocks instead of soil? Then you had to haul the rocks back to the store, and then haul the soil back here yourself?” Sol asked incredulously.
“Yeah…it just wasn’t my day, today.” The green haired girl shook her head.
“Well, I wouldn’t say it was all bad. At least you didn’t have to do all the work yourself. You got this guy lending a hand.” Sol grinned as he jerked a thumb to himself.
“I…guess so. Yeah.”She smiled in appreciation.
“So what’s it like in the Gardening Club?” The fighter asked with interest. “I know my parents liked to work in the garden when I was a kid, but I didn’t really see the appeal of it. Is it relaxing as they say?”
“It really is.” Wallflower replied eagerly. “But it’s also hard work. Taking care of plants is like taking care of a pet or a person. It’s a huge responsibility to make sure they grow up healthy and thrive. In fact, some of the ingredients Mrs. Smith uses in her food are grown in our garden.”
“No kidding? That sounds pretty cool! You guys must have quite a few members, then.” He missed the slight cringe on Wallflower’s face.
“Y-yeah!” She said with a grin. “So many members, it’s hard to keep track.” They then stopped in front of the club room. “Well, this is our stop. Thanks again for your help, Sol.”
“No problem.” Sol said as he lowered the bags. “You sure you don’t want me to bring them in the room?”
“It’s fine. You helped enough already. I can handle the rest.” She said in a bit of a hurry.
The martial artist opened his mouth to ask again, but his phone cut him off. He opened the screen and his eyes widened. It was Micro demanding where he was and why he was late.
“Oh crap! Sorry, I gotta go! I forgot I had somewhere to be.” He turned around to leave, but stopped and faced the Gardening Club President. “It was nice meeting you Wallflower. Maybe I’ll drop by some time and see what you guys do.”
“That…that’d be nice. Thank you, Sol.” Wallflower gave him a smile.
Once he was out of sight, Wallflower’s smile dropped and she sighed. She opened the door and entered the room. “I’m back…”
No one greeted her, as she was the only member of the Gardening Club left. After she dragged all the soil bags inside the club room, she dropped her backpack and opened it up.
She reached in a pulled out a gray, oval-shaped stone with intricate markings. They resembled an eye with three triangles pointing away from the top while swirl markings wrapped around the bottom.
Wallflower held the stone in her hands, her face filled with apprehension.
“Just where is he?” Micro scowled as he stared at his phone. “He’s not even responding!”
“He probably had an emergency of some kind.” Sandalwood shrugged as he played with the latest Fullbottle they created. It was a white Fullbottle that had the visage of a Panda Bear.
“But wouldn’t he have told us where he went?” Flash asked from where he sat.
“He better not be going off on his own again…” The tech support grumbled.
“I’m here!” The fighter announced as he hopped down the stairs. “Sorry! I had to help out the Garden Club president for accidentally knocking down her soil bags!”
“…We have a Gardening Club?” Flash asked in confusion.
“Is that why you reek of sweat and dirt?” Sandalwood questioned.
“Kinda. The sweat was from the Boxing Club.” The little mechanical Dragon then flew up to his master. “Hey Crozz. How have you been?” The tiny dragon rested in the palm of Sol’s hand.
“Burrah!” It chirped happily.
After getting back from the Faust warehouse, Sol Burner realized that calling the little guy Cross-Z Dragon every time seemed like a mouthful. So he shortened the name to Crozz, which the dragon seemed to enjoy.
He then turned to Micro. “So what’s up about another Faust base found?”
“Well, now that we’re here, we can get started.” The others sat down as they started the meeting. “Earlier today, I received a….anonymous tip about Faust developing a new weapon.”
“Really? And you’re sure it’s not some sort of internet troll or a hacker trying to get info?” Sandalwood inquired.
“I did at first. But then I thought otherwise because the email was sent to Gizmo’s laptop, and I never received a message on there before. And they knew about the Nebula Gas, which is information that was never disclosed to the public. They even sent in schematics and a location to where the weapon was stored. I verified it myself with the drone. There’s definitely Faust robots in that area. But what’s even more surprising is that the building is an off-location research center owned by ChangeMaker Incorporated. But I don’t think they even realize they know what it’s being used for.”
“So they built another hideout in a building owned by one of the most well-known corporations in the city? Talk about hiding in plain sight.”
“But we don’t know anything other than that? I don’t know, Micro. Seems a bit fishy.” Flash admitted.
“Maybe. But so far, it’s the only lead we got about Faust.” Micro countered. “As much as I loathe to admit it, we don’t have any other option if we want to learn more about them. Plus, this weapon of theirs concerns me.”
“Well, guess that’s all there is too it, then.” Sol said. “Flash and I will sneak in, find the weapon, and destroy it before Faust can use it.”
"And this might come in handy," Micro said as he held up a new weapon. It was a longsword with a black handle and blue crossguard that had a hole in the center of it.
Sol took the sword in hand, surprised by how heavy it was but still managed to lift it. "What is this thing?"
Sandalwood stepped up to him, "We call it the Beat Cross-Zer."
Micro nodded. "It's designed to harness the Dragon Fullbottle's power to allow you to attack with powerful slash attacks. Since I doubt Flash would appreciate you needing to take one of his weapons every time you're in a big fight."
"Since we didn't know what your bottle's match is, we had to improvise."
"We added the musical aspect to it, because originally it was gonna be a new weapon for Flash. But once we find its match, I can readjust it to use it as well."
"Huh," Sol gave it a few practice swings to get the hang of it. It was in that moment he noticed the pommel appeared to disconnect from the handle.
Micro's eyes went wide when he saw Sol was about to pull it. "Wait-!" But it was too late.
HIT PARADE!
Suddenly, the lab was filled with smoke as the sword overloaded and exploded. When it cleared, the lot of them were covered in soot. "I haven't finished working out all the kinks yet," Micro said as he pulled of his glasses to reveal his clean eyes while Flash spat out a cloud of smoke.
"Got it," Sol moaned.
While Team Build spent the rest of the afternoon planning and repairing the Beat Cross-Zer, Twilight Sparkle sat down with her family at the dinner table.
After the insanity at the Research Center with the Smash and the Guardians, her parents had been busy trying to get things under control. There had been public dissent over how the first generation of Guardians were useless against the Smash and were somehow hacked and combined into a giant, bipedal, weaponized mech that resembled a Metal Gear.
Thankfully, Night Light had been able to quell protests. He ensured that to prevent such a thing from happening again, the Research Center would start from scratch in developing the second generation of Guardians rather than basing their design off of the Faust Robots.
Twilight Velvet had also been working late at night developing said new generation of Guardians. Fortunately, both were able to get off work early after their hard work and have dinner with their children and future daughter-in-law.
Shining Armor had invited Cadence to their family dinner, and the woman accepted in a heartbeat. She enjoyed spending time with the Sparkle family and Velvet’s cooking.
But even as they ate, the events of the past two weeks remained in Twilight’s mind, especially the revelation of a group named Faust.
“Something wrong, Twily?” Shining Armor asked his sister when he saw her space out again. “You haven’t eaten much. You feeling alright?”
“Sort of. I’m just thinking about that Faust group. Out of curiosity, have you learned anything new about them?” The bespectacled girl asked.
“Sorry. But I’m not allowed to divulge that information.” The officer shook his head sternly. Ever since information about Faust came to light, Shining Armor has been appointed to lead the taskforce to investigate the mysterious organization. “It’s all classified, Twily.”
“Right. Sorry…” Twilight stared at her food and took a small bite.
“Say Twilight,” Cadence decided to change the topic of conversation. “I heard that ChangeMaker has offered to give you a tour of one of their research labs. How do you feel about that?”
“Pretty great, actually.” Twilight said, her mood improving. “I can’t believe the city’s leading group of social welfare and medical care even gave me this opportunity.”
“I think it’s because they realized just how one of a kind you are, dear.” Velvet smiled at her. Night Light nodded in agreement.
But despite their facades, they had deep reservations about this internship. Mostly because of the woman who was in charge of ChangeMaker.
The team decided to initiate their plan the next day since it was the weekend.
The Research Institute for ChangeMaker Incorporated was….to put it simply, enormous. Based on its apparent size, it seemed to be twice as large as Canterlot High School. Given how it’s owned by one of the most prosperous groups in the city, it was hardly surprising.
But it also left Micro suspicious when he first saw it. Why would they make an off-location research facility this large?
Flash and Sol walked right up to the front doors of the facility. They both wore a different set of disguises. Both wore a pair of dark green coveralls and black hard hats. Flash had worn a bald cap and a brown goatee and fake eyebrows to hide his features while Sol opted for a blonde wig and a bushy beard for his disguise. The guitarist held out an ID card up to scanner. The light went green as the doors opened for them.
“Nice. We got in without a hitch.”
“I was hoping that worked, this beard is itchy.” Sol complained as he scratched his chin.
Last night, Micro had used the drone to scan an employee’s badge and made a copy for them to gain entry. As for their choice of disguises, Sandalwood had made a suggestion:
“You wanna get an all-access pass, be the guy that cleans the place up.”
Given that they would have to potentially slip past restricted areas, the two teens agreed.
“Try wearing a bald cap. Now let’s see…” Flash unfolded a copy of the map Micro received from Anony-Mister. “It says here that the lab’s supposed to be in section C. Right now we’re in section A, so we gotta cross the building through section B.”
“Then let’s go and smash the thing.”
While the two made their way to their destination, a certain tour was taking place through section B.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Sparkle.” The facility manager greeted. He was a middle aged man dressed in a pair of slacks, loafers, a buttoned down, and a white lab coat. A pair of safety goggles was on top his head. “My name is Basic Acid, the manager of this facility.”
“You as well, Mr. Acid.” Twilight shook his hand. “Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity to see what this facility has to offer.”
“Please don’t mention it. After reading your resume, the company head was impressed by your work ethic and experience. She just wants to make sure that you’re dedicated toward the betterment of human health that ChangeMaker advocates for, hence the tour.”
“I’ll do my best to live up to those expectations.” She said in determination.
“Jolly good. Let us begin.” He led the intelligent girl throughout the facility. They peered through the motion capture labs where they test rehabilitation devices for the physically impaired. Following that was the construction lab where they manufacture the prototypes for testing.
In addition, she was given a brief history lesson over the founding of ChangeMaker, where the company president, Chrysalis, started the organization from the ground up nearly two decades ago. She desired to improve the medical field to help her twin sons, Thorax and Pharynx, due to a rare, genetic condition they have where their eyes are unable to filter light properly.
They had to wear special goggles to protect their eyes lest normal light burn their retinas.
“Right here is the chemistry lab, where our team of pharmacists and researchers work on developing new forms of medicine.” The facility manager explained to Twilight Sparkle, who avidly took notes.
The rest of the tour continued, where she was led around various rooms that the facility had to offer. She had to admit, it was quite expansive despite being an off-location building.
“Geez…and I thought the Faust warehouse was like a maze. This place is something else.” Sol commented as they backtracked through another hall. While they had a map of the building layout, it was difficult to determine their proper location as all the hallways looked the same.
Fortunately, as they walked through, none of the other workers or researchers batted an eye at them. It was strange, but they didn’t complain.
“Well, after going back through this hall, we just need to make a right down another corridor and there we’ll find the lab in the middle of the next hall.”
But as they followed the map, they were faced with a dead end….literally. Instead of a path to the laboratory like there was supposed to be, they faced a blank, solid wall.
“Wait…this can’t be right.” Flash checked the map again, but realized they followed it to the letter. “It should be right here!”
“Guess Micro was right.” Sol groaned as he leaned against the blank wall. “Should’ve known it was just a prank.” But after he put his weight on the surface, the wall seemed to indent.
The fighter let out a very manly yelp as a section of the wall slid up and he fell backward into a new hallway.
“Whoa!” Flash exclaimed as he entered the newly revealed path. “No wonder we couldn’t find it. It was a hidden room.” He checked the map again. “I guess that explained the small, dotted line on the map. Nice work, Sol.”
“Happy to help!” Sol, while on his back, gave him a thumbs-up in the air.
Meanwhile, in another room, Blood Stalk could be seen overlooking a scientist putting the final modifications to the weapon Team Build sought out to destroy.
“Excellent work as always, Doctor.” Stalk complimented the man as he leaned against the wall. “But can’t you speed things up a little? I want to try it out as soon as possible.”
“You cannot rush perfection, Stalk.” The scientist snapped back. “You’ll have your weapon, as long as you hold up your end of the bargain!”
“Yes, yes…your family will be returned to you unharmed.” The Cobra waved him off. “As long as your work meets the expectations, you have nothing to worry about.”
Before he could continue, the inside of Stalk’s helmet received an alert. He responded and was shown a video feed from the concealed entrance.
“Well, hello….what is this?” He mused as he saw two workers stumble upon their hidden door….one of them quite literally. But once the two entered the newly revealed hallway, they donned new, familiar disguises. He then saw them take care of the robots that he placed on guard duty with ease. “…Interesting…”
“Wh-what?” The scientist questioned.
“Never you mind. Also, you now have under a minute to finish.” He replied as he plopped into a randomly placed chair. “I suggest you start hurrying now.”
After her tour had concluded, Twilight had lunch in the facility’s mess hall. She had excused herself to the restroom to wash her hands.
However, when she made her way back, she noticed something quite odd.
She could’ve sworn when she entered the bathroom, there had been a solid wall to her right. Now there was an open pathway leading somewhere else in the facility.
She didn’t think that it was possible. She initially chalked it up to her eyes playing tricks on her, but given the existence of mysterious organizations like Faust and the danger they pose, she began to feel wary.
Her first thought was that she would inform Basic about this. But she immediately dashed the idea, as it may be possible that he already knew about the wall and kept it hidden for some reason.
If he wanted it to be known to the public, he probably would’ve explained that there was a hidden door like this.
And she wasn’t completely certain….but she heard some noises down the hall. Some of it was the faint beat of techno music while others were crashing sounds.
Her curiosity propelled her before her mind could register. Before she realized it, she had entered the hall and followed the noise.
“Kinda eerie down here.” Flash said as he and Sol, now in their hooded disguises, walked through the halls. “Like we could get jumped any moment.”
“That already happened.” Sol said as they left the remains of the Faust Guardians behind them. Halfway through the hall and they were already attacked by the robots. Fortunately there were few in number so they were able to handle them with ease. All Sol needed was to punch through their chassis to break them. “Please don’t jinx us again; I’ve had enough close calls in the past week.” He then gestured to the series of pipes that lined the walls. “And what do you think these pipes for? We didn’t see anything like them in the rest of the building. Could they be for Faust?”
“Not to sure. But I think we know someone who might. Crozz?” The musician requested as the blue, mechanical dragon flew up from Sol’s pocket and faced the pipeline. Since they were indoors, a drone would draw too much attention of they needed to scan their surroundings. Fortunately, when he built Crozz, he installed a camera and scanner system just like the drone to keep an eye on Sol. He also upgraded their masks to include a built-in communicator so they could keep in contact without using their phones.
Crozz’s eyes blinked as a light scanned over the length of the pipes. Both teens activated their comms. “Hey Micro. Think you can figure out what these pipes are for? Sol thinks they might be related to Faust in the weapon.”
“I’m scanning right now and…oh….oh no…” His voice was laced with dread and did not sit comfortably with the two.
“…how bad is ‘oh no’?” Sol questioned.
“Uh, guys? I’m running a scan on these pipes and….well….oh, heck, I’m just gonna say it. They’re carrying Nebula Gas through the building!”
“Wait, what?!” Flash exclaimed. “But I thought you could only get the gas from Pandora’s Box!”
“You can. However, we have found another source to exploit.” Stalk cut in as he approached the two with a strange weapon in his hands. It looked just like the blade attachment he had on his Transteam Gun the other day. It looked like a barrel of a gun. But it had a black handle, a scope on top, and a gold blade jutting from the end. On its side was a red valve. Attached to his hip was the Transteam Gun. “Hey! It’s been a while, you too. Well….not really.”
“Why are you here?!” The two teens fell into fighting stances upon seeing the Cobra.
“What do you mean you found another source?” Flash demanded, wanting an answer.
“It’s as I said.” Stalk shrugged. “A little lesson, kiddies. When Pandora’s Box fell to Earth 18 years ago, you didn’t think it wouldn’t have drastic effects, now did you?”
He received no answer. He continued. “As you already know, the Box is what produces the Nebula Gas that is needed for Smash experiments and your little power ups. However, when it crashed, it was buried deep into the earth, spewing gas like crazy. An abundant amount seeped into the earth and reacted with pre-existing gas pockets. They eventually formed underground pockets of Nebula Gas.”
He then spread out his arms in a grandiose manner. “And you know the best part? This very facility’s main purpose is to extract the gas from those very pockets!”
“Wait, what?!” A female voice cried out in shock. If the Team hadn’t been startled by the revelation before, they were now upon recognizing the voice.
All eyes focused on Twilight Sparkle, who couldn’t believe what she just heard. “ChangeMaker…is working for….Faust?”
“Well, I say it’s more along the lines of a business partnership.” Stalk shrugged.
“WAIT!” All eyes turned to a new voice down the hall on Stalk’s end. A middle aged man with a disheveled appearance ran at them. “A deal’s a deal, Stalk! I did what you asked! Now let my family go!”
“Oh yeah…that’s right. Forgot about you…” He glanced over at the man before he faced the teenagers again. “By the way, you’re probably wondering what this does, yes? After all…it’s what you came here to destroy.” He held up the blade weapon, the Steam Blade, for them to see.
Flash blanched, realizing they were too late to destroy the weapon while Sol was confused.
“…Wait, THAT’s the weapon? Didn’t we see you with that last week? What can it possibly do?”
“I’m so glad you asked.” The Cobra spun the red valve on the blade.
“DEVIL STEAM!”
A mass of blue gas gathered on the tip of the blade. He swung his arm and the glowing mass shot out and engulfed the scientist who let out a pained scream and collapsed on the floor.
“What did you just do?!” Twilight screeched in horror.
“Oh, relax missy. He’s not dead…something better is happening.” Stalk waved her off.
Within the cloud, the scientist’s body shifted and warped as he thrashed around. The cloud soon dissipated, revealing his form for the others to see. Like the rest of the Smash, this new one had a humanoid appearance. Its body from the stomach down was covered in monochrome armor plating, while from the chest up it was covered in sharp, blue armor pieces that resembled icicles. Its shoulder pads had a series of tubes and nozzles that seemed to produce a chilling mist. Its head vaguely resembled a mix of a snowflake and an ice cube with a tube running down each side of its face.
“Lady and gentlemen? I present to you…the Ice Smash!” Stalk announced as if he were showcasing a new product.
Said Smash roared as it lumbered towards them.
“You see,” The Cobra continued, waving the Steam Blade. “With this guy here, I can administer Nebula Gas without the usual equipment. A wonderful invention, isn’t it?” The teens stood frozen by the alarming revelation. The weapon in Stalk’s hands could produce Smash with just a turn of a dial.
But as the danger rose and Stalk continued to laugh, Flash snapped out of his stupor and growled. “An invention like that….doesn’t belong in this world!” He donned the Build Driver and shook a pair of bottles.
“RABBIT!”
“TANK!”
“BEST MATCH!”
“ARE YOU READY?!”
“Henshin!”
“FULLMETAL MOONSAULT!”
“RABBIT-TANK!”
“YEAH!”
Build got into a fighting stance as he summoned the Drill Crusher.
“This again, huh?” The Cobra sighed as he quickly attached the Steam Blade to his Transteam Gun, becoming the Steam Rifle.
“RIFLE MODE!”
He then pulled out a familiar-looking item. “Well, let’s see how you can handle this, then.” After shaking the item, he plugged it into the Steam Rifle.
“FULLBOTTLE!”
“STEAM ATTACK!”
“What the-?! He has a Fullbottle, too?!” Sol exclaimed.
“Fullbottle?” Twilight appeared confused by the term.
“But how is that possible?!” Micro exclaimed from the lab. “Fullbottles could only be made through the Purifier…which WE have!”
“You’d be surprised by what we have in our arsenal.” Stalk replied as he aimed his weapon at the three. “But I think it’s high time you all took a nap.”
He pulled the trigger and a rocket shot at them.
Reacting quickly, Flash swung up and knocked the projectile into the ceiling. A hole was made as debris fell on top of him. Sol made sure to pull Twilight out of the way so she wouldn’t get hurt.
“It’s too dangerous to fight in here…” He quickly replaced his current Best Match for a new one.
“HAWK!”
“GATLING!”
“BEST MATCH!”
“ARE YOU READY?!”
“Build up!”
“SKY HIGH VANDAL!”
“HAWK-GATLING!”
“YEAH!”
Flash in his HawkGatling form grabbed both Sol and Twilight and flew out of the hallway and into the skies.
“Don’t you just hate it when they run?” Stalk prodded the Ice Smash with his elbow. “C’mon!” With impressive physical capability, the two jumped up after them.
Given that she was new to the prospect of being carried by a flying, armored fighter, Twilight did the one thing that immediately came to mind.
“KYAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!!”
…She screamed.
Given that she was now several meters above ground with only an arm holding her tightly to prevent her from falling to a gruesome demise….she had the right to freak out.
“Please calm down!” Flash tried his best to reassure her. “You’re going to be fine, we’re almost there!”
“Wh-where are you taking me?!”
“To an open area!” Sol answered her over the rushing wind. “We can’t fight those two indoors! We could end up bringing the building down!”
Before long, Flash landed in an empty construction site on the edge of the city. It had steel girders assembled into the structure of a building, but no workers were present. If Twilight hadn’t still been shaking from the experience, she would’ve dropped and hugged the earth.
“You think they’re behind us, Build?” Sol called Flash by his codename.
As if the universe answered instead, Stalk and the Ice Smash landed a few meters away from them, looking no worse for wear from the landing.
“…Yeah, pretty sure.” Flash said bluntly. He then called out the Hawk Gatlinger. “Get ready Cross-Z.”
“Right.” The fighter pressed a button on his wrist and the Beat Cross-Zer materialized in hand, a feat that greatly surprised Twilight even further. However, the moment he grasped it, Sol was surprised by the change it weight. It was slightly heavier than the last time he held it. But he did his best to hide his behavior from their foes.
“Well, isn’t this just like a standoff in the movies? Two of you and two of us in a fight, waiting to see who makes the first move.” Stalk commented as he hefted the Steam Rifle on his shoulder. “Why don’t I take the initiative?”
In a swift, fluid motion, Blood Stalk aimed his gun at Build and fired a burst of energy. The Rider was quick to evade by taking to the skies and countered with a flurry of energy Hawk projectiles. Stalk ran from the blasts while the Ice Smash and Sol charged at one another.
Twilight immediately scrambled for safety behind a construction crane the moment the conflict began.
Build and Stalk exchanged fire in the form of energy hawks and rockets while Sol swung his sword to try and cut the Smash. However, his inexperience with a bladed weapon shows in his sloppy technique and wasted movements. Furthermore, the blade’s added weight slowed down his swings, making them clumsy. Since he was unused to the sword’s weight, the Ice Smash didn’t have much of an issue blocking the strikes with its arms or tendrils.
Build spun the HawkGatlinger’s Revol-Magazine thrice to charge up his shots. The rate and power at which the projectiles were fired increased. However, Stalk didn’t seem to have trouble keeping up with the increased firepower at all.
The Cobra, then spun around, inserted the Rocket Bottle into the Steam Rife, and aimed it at the airborne Rider.
“FULLBOTTLE!”
“STEAM ATTACK!”
He pulled the trigger and another explosive projectile was fired. Flash tried to fly away to avoid it, but the rocket’s flight path was locked onto him. To his surprise, it seemed to be increasing in speed. No matter how fast he flew, it closed the distance. He could not shake it off no matter how much he maneuvered or cornered.
As he thought of a way to evade the missile behind him, he never noticed the second rocket Stalk had fired.
He ran into the second rocket, which allowed the first to catch up to him. He was swallowed in an explosion from both sides and fell to the ground in a smoking heap. The explosion had overloaded his armor’s damage meter, forcing him back to normal as all of his Fullbottles clattered around him.
“Probably should’ve kept your eyes forward.” Stalk advised as he waltzed up to him. His weapon hung lazily at his side while he tossed the Rocket Bottle up and down. He then caught it and dangled it in front of Flash’s face. “To think you were forced out of your transformation thanks to this little guy. Guess that shows you how big things come in small-hm?”
He was cut off as a magenta aura enveloped the Fullbottle and shot out of his hand.
“…Eh? EH?!” For once, Stalk was surprised to see the Rocket Fullbottle fly out of his grip like magic.
Flash lifted his head and saw that Twilight Sparkle had grabbed the item with her magic and grabbed it. “Got it!”
“…Okay, I’ll admit that little magic trick of yours was impressive, little girl.” Stalk complimented before he aimed his weapon at her. “But I’m gonna need that back. Preferably now.”
But while his eyes were off of him, Flash grabbed the nearest Fullbottle to him and took a page out of Sol’s book. He shook it and opened the cap, letting its power fuel him. With it, he tackled Stalk to the ground to prevent him from shooting her. He then got back up and ran over to Twilight. “Are you okay?”
“I should be asking you that!” Twilight countered.
“Well…” Stalk’s voice cut into their brief exchange. The Cobra-themed man rose and patted off some dirt from his armor. “I will admit you got some guts, boy. And look at you…you finally learned how to use the Fullbottles by themselves.”
“Spare me the flattery!” Flash spat back as he tried to shake a pair of bottles to transform. But he immediately realized that he only had the one that he grabbed while the rest were scattered. Not only that, the bottle he had was Panda, a Fullbottle that they had yet to find its Best Match. “Well, crap!”
Twilight noticed his predicament. As far as she knew, he needed two bottles to activate his armor, but he seemed to only have one in hand. She then looked to the Rocket Bottle she pilfered from Stalk. “Here, take this!”
She handed him the light blue, Inorganic bottle. Flash was surprised that she would give him something like this, but he certainly wasn’t complaining.
"Thanks," Flash said before he shook the bottles. Like before at Applewood Acres, Twilight was surprised by the series of equations that manifested in the air. He then twisted the caps and placed the bottles into the driver.
"PANDA!"
"ROCKET!"
"BEST MATCH!"
Flash looked down at the driver in shock, "Seriously?" What were the odds? He quickly smiled before spinning the crank, the armor beginning to form around him. Twilight stepped back so she wouldn’t get caught up in it.
“ARE YOU READY?!”
"Henshin!" The armor sections slammed into him and exuded a burst of steam.
“BLASTING OFF IN MONOCHROME!”
“PANDA-ROCKET!”
“YEAH!”
In this form, Flash’s armor was mixed with black and white and light blue pieces. The Organic sections were black and white in resemblance to a panda bear while the Inorganic sections had the streamlined design of a rocket. His left arm had an actual rocket for a fist and a set of thrusters for a shoulder pad. His right arm had a large, bear claw. His right eyepiece was a rocket in flight while his left was an image of a panda.
The Rider raised his fists and charged at Stalk. The Cobra chuckled as he tossed his weapon, grabbed it by the stock in a back handed grip, and charged in as well.
While they continued their fight, Sol continued to fight against the Ice Smash. Suffice to say, he wasn’t doing that well with the Beat Cross-Zer. He struggled in dealing damage to the Smash as whenever he got close, it would exude a mist from its tendrils.
The mist had been so cold that his parts of his body had layers of frost on them, hampering his mobility even further.
He even had a few close calls when he learned that it could shoot a volley of sharp icicles from its face. He had been lucky that his frozen pants caused him to trip and avoid the first volley. Ever since, he had been using the Beat Cross-Zer to bat away the icicles and remained on the defensive.
Crozz realized the level of danger and tried to devise a way to help its master. It then noticed the scattered Fullbottles that Build had dropped and got an idea.
It flew over to the scattered items. It picked up the Gatling bottle in its mouth and flung it up into the air. It landed perfectly in the slot in its back as its power filled its body.
“CROSS DRAGON!”
It then flew over to Sol’s fight with the Ice Smash.
The mechanical dragon opened its mouth and unleashed a barrage of blue fireballs. The blue monster scrambled from the rapid series of attacks, giving Sol an opening.
He nodded gratefully to Crozz as he quickly broke off the frost over his clothes. He only had one shot, so he had to take it out in one hit.
"Hope you got all the kinks worked out egghead," Sol grabbed the sword's pummel and pulled it.
HIT PARADE!
The power built, but this time the sword didn't explode. And as the Ice Smash rushed forwards, Sol swung the weapon towards it.
SMASH IT!
The blade became covered in dark blue fire at the apex of the swing. It descended and sliced through the Smash’s body like a hot knife through butter. The Ice Smash sparked before it exploded in a burst of green fire and gas. It lied on the ground motionless.
“Phew…that was tough.” He then raised the sword and stared at it. “This thing works great though.” He was going to have to train to get used to it. He then peered up to see Crozz flying toward him. “Thanks for the save buddy! Really appreciated it.”
“Burrah!”
As soon as the fighter and his pet dragon finished celebrating, he extracted the Smash essence with an Empty Bottle he got from Micro, and went to pick up the dropped Fullbottles. As he did so, Flash continued his fight with Stalk.
Unlike before, since he lost his main source of heavy ammunition, Stalk resorted to using his Steam Rifle as a close quarter’s weapon. Due to its weight and sturdy design, it made a very effective club. The blade at the end only added to its lethality.
However, Flash had also been armed with long, sharp claws and a rocket fist to properly parry the hits and deal damage himself. As Stalk tried to slug him with the Steam Rifle again, Flash parried the strike with his claws and punched him away with his Rocket fist.
Unfortunately, he got so caught up in the fight that he failed to realize where he punched the armored man to. Stalk tumbled and fell close to a hidden Twilight Sparkle. She immediately backed away, but Stalk immediately noticed her. He extended an arm and a black tendril wrapped around her leg and pulled her towards him.
She screamed as she tried to scramble away, but Stalk grabbed her.
“No!” Flash tried to rush to her aid, but Stalk stopped him by pressing the blade of his weapon to her neck.
“Uh, uh, uh….” The Cobra said. “I wouldn’t, if I were you.” He kept his grip on the lavender haired girl tight, preventing her from struggling. She whimpered upon feeling the cold steel pressed against her flesh.
“Damn you, Stalk….!”
“Now, Mr. Hero…” Stalk taunted as he kept his grip on Twilight tight. “Here we have a damsel in distress held captive by an evil, yet devilishly handsome villain with a blade to her throat. What will you do now?”
Flash growled as his mind went into overdrive. He needed to save Twilight, but Stalk had him in check. He couldn’t move without risking his friend getting hurt or killed by the Cobra. As he pondered, he noticed something dangling in the uppermost part of his vision. He subtly lifted his head and an answer popped into his mind.
He locked eyes at Twilight, and saw that she was looking directly at him. He subtly moved his rocket arm and lifted his head. He then pressed his claws together before he pulled them apart. He hoped that she noticed his actions and obscure message.
By the widening and upward tilt of her eyes, she had.
“What will I do…?” Flash asked back. Stalk watched him carefully as Twilight’s pendant glowed. “How about….THIS!”
He raised his rocket arm upward and the rocket shot off from his hand. It continued to soar until it struck through the cable that held the pile of steel I-beams up. Once the cable had been cut, the beams started to fall on top of the red armored man and his captive.
Stalk had been surprised by the action that he loosed his grip on the weapon. This gave Twilight enough of an opening to use her magic to telekinetically force her and Stalk apart. They were pushed away from the strike zone of the I-beams. Stalk tumbled onto his back while Flash caught Twilight in his arms.
“You okay?”
“I am now!”
“Good.” Flash nodded in relief. The rocket flew and he extended his arm. It flew through his shoulder and stopped at his hand. “Now it’s time to finish this.”
He stepped away from Twilight approached Stalk, who tried to pull himself up. “I’ve got the winning formula!” He slid a hand across his eyepiece before he turned the crank on his Driver.
“READY? GO!”
He was propelled by his thruster shoulder pad and flew like a rocket. A series of white dotted ellipses and loops appeared around and through the red armored man as Flash flew along the lines like a roller coaster. He struck Stalk with his claws with each pass.
The loops then tilted up, allowing Flash to ascend as he spun back around with his clawed hand extended.
“VOLTECH FINISH!”
“YEAH!”
He flew along the loop once and stabbed his hand into Stalk before the rocket dragged him around. He dragged his claws again on the second pass. With the third and final strike, Stalk exploded and became airborne.
But to their dismay, he landed in a crouch and laughed. “Hehe…so you really have gotten stronger…”
Flash landed and approached the villain, but stopped when he held up a hand. “Now hold on. I’ll tell you something in exchange for entertaining me. It’s about Faust.”
This caused the teens to pause. Seeing as he now had their attention, Stalk continued. “You see, Faust was the one who first created the Smash…but it wouldn’t have been possible without the help of a certain scientist…one I believe you’re well acquainted with…”
“A scientist?” Flash and the rest of Team Build paused at the implication. Realization then struck them. As far as they knew, only one scientist had been directly involved with the Smash. “No…But that’s….it can’t be…”
“Correct!” Stalk cheered as he spread his arms in glee. “The reason why Faust has been able to produce the Smash…is all thanks to one Gizmo Poindexter!”
“What did you say?!” Flash and the others couldn’t believe their ears. Twilight stood shell shocked by the revelation.
“Well then…” Stalk turned around. “What are you gonna do now?” Without waiting for a response, his body turned into a red mist and flew away.
“Was…was what he said really true?” Sol turned to Flash. “…about Gizmo helping Faust?”
“I….I don’t know but…no way…I don’t believe it.” Flash denied it. He didn’t want to admit that his friend’s brother was responsible for these disasters. “There…must be something we’re missing! We…we just need more answers!”
“….So do I!” Twilight exclaimed as she thrust her hands forward.
A magenta aura encased around Sol and lifted him a few inches off the ground.
“Wh-what the-?!” Sol cried out in surprise. “Wh-what’s going on?!” He moved his legs and tried to run out of the aura. But his legs were unable to gain traction. He struggled and moved to break free. He even tried to use the breast stroke to swim his way out.
If the situation hadn’t been so dire, Flash would’ve laughed at the ridiculous sight. “What are you doing?” Flash inquired of Twilight.
The girl had been using her free hand to telekinetically grasp Build like she did Sol, but something was wrong. Every time she tried to wrap her magic around him, it would somehow dissipate.
“I’m not letting you leave until I get answers!” Twilight exclaimed, frazzled by today’s events. “You two obviously know what’s going on, but you just leave whenever the danger is over! I’m tired of being left in the dark like this! People’s lives are in danger and you two don’t even explain anything!”
Flash remained still as Sol continued to struggle. As much as he wanted to give Twilight information, he just couldn’t. Knowing what they did would only put her and the others in danger. He needed to get Sol out of here fast. Fortunately, it seemed like her magic had no effect on the Build Armor.
“And don’t even try doing anything!” She continued. “I already called the police and they’re on their way here!”
Flash silently cursed. Things just got from bad to worse. Sol continued to flail and try to break free from the telekinetic hold, still having no clue what was happening to him.
Fortunately, their salvation came in the form of a small, mechanical blue dragon that swooped in. With the Gatling bottle still in its body, it fired blue fireballs at Twilight. It made sure not to attack her directly, so it aimed at the ground around her.
The bespectacled yelped as her grip on Sol slackened. As the aura faded, Flash jumped at the opportunity. Using the power of the Rocket bottle, he shot toward the fighter and grabbed him. While he flew, he also grabbed Crozz from the air as well.
Twilight coughed from the exhaust from the rocket filling the air around her. By the time it dissipated and she regained her bearings, the Masked Rider and his compatriots were out of sight.
“Darn it!” She cursed. “They got away….” She then heard groaning off to the side. She turned and saw the scientist that Stalk had transformed slowly regain consciousness.
Relieved that the man was okay, she rushed over to his side. “Are you okay?”
“Wh-what….?” The scientist mumbled as his eyes opened. “Wh….where am I?”
“You’re in a construction site. I called for help and they’re on their way. But that’s not important right now! I need you to tell me something! What do you know about that Cobra man? His name was Stalk, right?” The scientist looked at her in confusion as he scrunched his brow.
“I…I don’t know….I met him months ago but….I can’t recall anything else besides that….” Twilight frowned at this. Whatever the man went through, it must’ve induced memory loss of some sort.
Then the blare of sirens cut in as a series of police cars pulled up. The lead car opened the door as Lieutenant Shining Armor stepped out and rushed to his sister. “Twily? I got your call! Are you okay?!”
“I’m fine Shining…” She assured him.
“Just what happened here?” He looked around and saw the destruction in the construction site and the downed man.
Twilight proceeded to explain to Shining what had happened. She started with the research facility, where she learned that ChangeMaker had been extracting a substance called Nebula Gas from the Earth and how an armored man named Blood Stalk was in league with them. Then she explained Build and Cross-Z saving her and leading Stalk and the Smash he made, which she pointed out was the scientist on the ground, to an area free of civilians to minimize collateral damage.
“…Okay, I can believe that Build and Cross-Z are involved. But a Cobra man turning people into Smash with a sword-gun, AND a mechanical dragon? Not to mention ChangeMaker being involved with a shady group like Faust? I think you probably hit your head during the commotion, Twily.” He said in disbelief.
“I’m telling you, it’s true!” She argued. She didn’t understand why he didn’t believe her! He knows about magic from the misadventures her friends got into! He saw what happened at the Friendship games!
“Yeah, sure. C’mon, let’s get you out of here and checked for a possible concussion.” As Twilight protested, she failed to notice the odd look in her brother’s eyes.
“…I don’t believe it.” Micro shook his head in denial. “He’s got to be lying!”
After Flash and Sol had returned to the hidden lab, they explained everything they learned from their mission to Micro and Sandalwood. They were disappointed they were unable to destroy the weapon, but were pleased to obtain another Fullbottle in their possession.
At least now they didn’t have to worry about Stalk shooting rockets at them the next time they met.
But when they told him about what Stalk had told them about Faust and Gixmo, Micro just lost it. He vehemently refused to believe that his brother would assist those monsters in any way, shape, or form.
“Dude.” Sol told him. “While I think we can all agree that Stalk is an asshole, you can’t deny that he’s been nothing but brutally honest with us so far.”
“So? Doesn’t mean he’s incapable of lying!” Micro countered.
“But what if he isn’t?”
“My brother would never aid those criminals! He would never resort to human experimentation!”
“Well, given that you didn’t even know he had all this stuff, I guess you didn’t know your brother as well as you thought!” Sol snapped back.
“Why you-!”
Before they could start a fist fight that would inevitably be in Sol’s favor, Sandalwood and Flash pulled them apart.
“Guys, cut it out! Now’s not the time to be fighting like this!” Sandalwood shouted.
“He’s right.” Flash agreed. “Besides, think about it. All Stalk said that it was thanks to Gizmo they could make people into Smash. What if he meant it differently?”
“What do you mean?” Sol asked as he and Micro settled down.
“I mean, what if he meant that instead of Gizmo being directly responsible, Faust was just using his research on Nebula Gas to make it possible?”
“But I thought all his research was locked in this room. How would they even access it?” Sandalwood asked.
“Maybe he had copies?” Flash added. “I mean, don’t all scientists and researchers have backups of their findings?”
“That’s true….yeah….yeah that’s it. That has to be it.” Micro said, desperate to believe that to be the case. “Faust must’ve gotten Gizmo’s research, which they used for their experiments. I knew he wouldn’t do it…”
“But…didn’t he say-?” Sol was about to say that it was just a possibility, but Flash covered his mouth before he could finish and shook his head. While the theory wasn’t disproved, he didn’t want Micro to think that his brother would aid in human experimentation. The fighter got the silent message from the look in Flash’s eye and relented.
As soon as the situation calmed down, Sol took the opportunity to discuss the other elephant in the room. “Okay, now that we got that cleared up…..can someone please explain just what Twilight did to me back there? It was like she had me in some kind of tractor beam or something!”
The other boys looked at one another unsure. “Well…” Sandalwood began. “It’s a long story, dude.”
“I’m not going anywhere, so I have time.” Sol crossed his arms. The three teens then explained the existence of magic, how it all started when their friend, Sunset Shimmer, first came from another world through a portal in the school’s statue. How it led to her stealing a magical crown from a Princess in that world, how said princess came to this world to steal it back, and how she repaired the friendship of the Rainbooms after Sunset severed their bonds and brought the students together.
They also had to explain that Sunset used to be nice before she gradually became evil and a bully, all because she wanted a shortcut to what she thought she deserved and didn’t know another way. It was then Sol realized what the mistake Sunset told him about had been.
Then they explained the Fall Formal incident, where Sunset got the crown, but changed into a raging She-Demon from its influence. But the Princess, who was the counterpart of their Twilight Sparkle, and the Rainbooms used the magic of Friendship to blast Sunset with a Rainbow laser and everything went back to normal, where Sunset got a second chance to redeem herself.
It was months later where three transfers came in for the Musical Showcase at school. In reality, the three girls were magical sirens who instilled conflict to the people around them and feed off their negative emotions. It was also their fault that the Musical Showcase became a battle of the bands, where the unified students split up into their various factions like how it was before princess Twilight’s arrival.
Flash admitted that it was his worst moment. Where he made Princess Twilight cry during the Battle, and openly antagonized her and Sunset Shimmer, who only wanted redemption.
They then explained that Flash had a thing for the Princess, but was later told by Sunset it wouldn’t work out due to the interdimensional aspect and other factors.
They continued with explaining how the Rainbooms were able to utilize magic while playing their instruments. And during the finale where the Sirens were at their apex strength, Sunset helped the Rainbooms defeat them and everything went back to normal….until the Friendship Games with Crystal Prep.
That was when their Twilight Sparkle, or Sci-Twi, showed up and revealed to be a Crystal prep student who studied the magical incidents they had previously. During the games, the girls had demonstrated feats of magic. But the device Sci Twi made siphoned off their magic, making things even more complicated during the competition.
It wasn’t until the final part of the games where things got crazy, where the Principal of Crystal Prep Abacus Cinch, forced Sci Twi to release the magic she stored, which turned her into another She Demon called Midnight Sparkle, who opened up interdimensional tears and put everyone in danger.
She was stopped by Sunset, who also transformed into a being called Daydream Shimmer, and everything went back to normal.
Following that was the incident at Camp Everfree, where the girls obtained magical geodes that let them use magic powers and stop the Camp Director, Gloriosa Daisy, who went mad from the magic, from keeping everyone trapped at camp forever.
They explained to Sol that the magic the Rainbooms had varied. Fluttershy can talk with animals. Applejack had super strength. Rainbow Dash had super speed. Rarity can make diamond shields. Pinkie Pie could make sugar confections into explosives. Twilight had telekinesis. And finally, Sunset Shimmer could read minds and memories.
At that last bit of information, Sol was greatly relieved that Sunset hadn’t used that on him during his grieving moment.
After all was said and done, the fighter remained silent as he processed the long story.
“…okay.” He finally spoke. “At first, I thought this Smash and Faust business were crazy…but that definitely takes the cake. I heard of magic from Las Pegasus, but didn’t think actual magic was a thing.” He then turned to Flash. “So…you seriously had a thing for a Princess that was a magical talking pony in her universe?”
The musician blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah…I was pretty naïve back then. Should’ve known something like that could never happen.”
“....wait a minute....if Princess Twilight was a Pony from another world....doesn’t that make Sunset a pony too?”
“Yeah. I thought we already established that.”
“Sorry, it just clicked in my head.”Sol never even guessed that the fiery haired girl was actually a pony from another world.
As their discussion continued, Sandalwood had taken the liberty of turning on the news. Given what happened, it would be best if they kept up to date. He landed on a news channel of his choice, and was surprised to see who was on screen. “Uh, guys? You might want to see this.” The rest of his friends joined him at the monitor and were surprised who they saw.
It was a middle-aged woman with black skin and bluish green hair that fell down to her waist. She was dressed in a gray business suit that hugged her frame nicely as she stood professionally. Her eyes were a bright shade of green that had an ambitious spark to them.
This was Chrysalis, the CEO and founder of ChangeMaker Incorporated. And she was in the middle of a press conference. But their full attention was directed at the headline of the news story.
Build and Cross-Z: Friends or Foes?
“In all my years, I have never seen anyone else with a complete disregard of human safety.” The woman announced. “Not only did they sneak into a secret, corporate owned facility, but they caused collateral damage in the form of rockets and explosions near top secret projects. Not to mention they somehow brought one of those Smash monsters of all things into the facility and start a fight. Just where had the Smash even come from in the first place? It certainly wasn’t present before their appearance.”
The implications of her statement went unsaid as some people started to put the pieces together. Her response to a reporter’s question about the incident continued, further painting them in a negative light. “Whatever is creating these Smash monsters is nothing but pure Devil Science. The public may view these….Riders as heroes. But they are simply menaces that need to be stopped before they cause further harm.”
“What the hell? That ain’t what happened!” Sol exclaimed. “That was all Stalk’s doing!”
“Yeah. But don’t forget about the Nebula Gas pipes we found in her facility. She’s probably trying to cover up the incident.” Micro explained.
“But why?” Flash asked. “What would she have to gain from all this?”
None of them had an answer as the conference continued. The media continues to hound her with questions. Some of which included:
“How did they gain entry?”
“There had been sightings of a Cobra man near the facility. Is he related in any way?”
“What projects were in danger?”
“Were they truly responsible for the Smash in the first place?”
Chrysalis answered each and every one of them easily. Whether with a straight answer or a twist to the truth. As for the final question, she left the implication float above their heads with a question of her own: Is there really other explanation?
The Press Conference came to a close as the woman walked off stage.
Team Build could only stare in silence as they had been condemned by a woman who is likely working with Faust given the findings. This no doubt was a plan to slander their name to keep a target off her back for the incident.
Given the division of opinions broadcasted following the conference….it appeared to have worked.
“Well, that was certainly tiring.” Chrysalis sighed as she lounged in her office. Once the conference had ended, she went straight to her private office on the top floor of ChangeMaker Incorporated. She had kicked off her heels and plopped onto the sofa, shedding part of her professional persona to try and relax.
However, her moment of reprieve came to a halt when her phone rang. Growling, she went over and picked it up. “Hello?”
“Yo, Chryssy! What’s up?” Stalk greeted through the phone. “Saw the news, and I must say that the camera caught your good side.”
“Enough with the pleasantries, Stalk.” Chrysalis said, irritation evident in her voice. “What do you want?”
“Like I said. Saw the news and saw that you condemned the Rider for what we did. Look at you shifting the blame like that.”
“This all happened because you couldn’t stop him from causing collateral damage. You couldn’t even stop him before he got in.” She accused. “All I did was to save face and dissuade public support so we can advance in our plans with less interference.”
“Fair point. Now things can progress smoothly.”
“Speaking of which, what is the progress on the new weapon system you promised? I want results.”She demanded.
“Don’t worry, I’m working on it. By the way, how’s that little present I sent you?”
“You mean the test subject? I will admit that he’s exceeded all expectations. Just a few weeks and his Hazard Level has reached 3.7. Just where did you find this unique specimen?” Her voice sounded that she was actually impressed.
“All honesty. It was just pure, dumb luck. But hey. Who’s complaining?”
“Quite. Now is that all? I must get back to filling out the paperwork to repair the damages you caused.”
“Right, right. Well, see you sometime, Chryssy.”
She hung up without further reply.
Stalk stared at the phone and frowned under his helmet. “Geez. What an uptight woman.”
“Stalk.” Night Rogue called as he approached him. “Just who were you talking to?”
“Just one of our informants. Nothing more.” The Cobra smoothly lied as he approached the Bat. “What’s up?”
“Given how you successfully obtained the upgrades to the Steam Rifle, yet lost the Rocket Fullbottle to Build, I believe it is time to initiate the next phase of our plan to acquire Pandora’s Box.”
Stalk winced at the second part of the statement. He knew the Bat man was pissed at him for losing such an important item. But he ignored it and acted nonchalant. “But how will we do that? I mean, we tried raiding the Research Center, but those guys will have it locked up tight now.”
“I know. This is precisely why our next step is to get our hands on someone who’s studied the Box and is quite knowledgeable about it. And I know just the person.” He held up a data pad and scrolled to a designated image.
An image of Misty Veil.
The rest of the team left with heavy hearts while Micro remained in the lab a while longer. He didn’t need a ride home as he brought his motorized scooter along.
After what happened in the last few hours, he wanted to be left alone.
Not only was his brother’s research data being used by a terrorist and/or criminal organization, but now the attention to Build and by extension, Cross-Z, had skyrocketed. He checked the Build Blog and to his dismay, was flooded with comments, arguments, refutations, and so forth.
Now the media would keep a more critical eye on their activities, making it harder for them to move to stop Faust.
In one of the rare instances of his life, Micro had no idea what to do now.
As he sighed, his brother’s laptop beeped again, receiving another email. He had a feeling that it was same person who contacted him before. Sure enough, it was the same address. He pulled up the email and read its contents.
Dear Micro Chips,
I have seen you and your team at work back at the facility. It’S unfortunate that you were unable to destroy the weapon, but you accomplished and disCovered the truth behind ChangeMaker. That in itself is quite the victory. Please do not be discouraged little micro-mite. You and your team did the best they couLd.
Now that you know of the company’s deAlings with Faust, your quest for the truth will only be that much harder.
Fortunately for you, you have a hidden weapon locked away amongst the Secrets of Gizmo Poindexter. All you need to do is solve the puzzle and bring it to light.
Well, hope to what I’ve said Helps.
Godspeed little micro-mite,
Anony-Mister.
Micro stared at the message in shock. It wasn’t due to how Anony-Mister seemed to know what they had been doing. No…it was the nickname he used in the message:
Little micro-mite.
That was impossible. There was only one person who called him that, and he’s been missing for six months! Was….was he alive? Could this Anony-Mister be….?
Be quickly shook off such thoughts. If it really were Gizmo, then he would have no reason to act all mysterious and secretive like this. He had always been a blunt type of person. So why would he beat around the bush?
Furthermore, there was something else about the message that confused him. The series of capitalized letters in random parts of the text. And when he took a closer look, he realized that they were also bolded.
Could he be trying to type out a message of some kind? Was this a message discretely telling him something about his brother’s research?
Steeling himself, he pulled up the file search on the super computer and typed in the letters.
S-C-L-A-S-H
As soon as he hit enter, a few windows popped up with streaming lines of code and data. They disappeared and reappeared until a different window opened up that read:
ACCESS GRANTED
A single file pulled itself up on the monitor. He clicked on it and opened up another series of videos, research data, and schematics.
The title of the folder stared right in his face and reflected off his glasses.
Project Sclash.
To be Continued…
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Awesome chapter but isn't a bit early for Sclash? What about Build's RabbitTank Sparkling form?
If the main OCs in this story were voiced, what would they sound like?
Another great chapter! Loved the interactions Sol had with the other characters, especially Wallflower Blush. I feel like if she got turned into a Smash, the purified essence would make the Rose Fullbottle.
The mention of Thorax and Pharynx makes me think that the latter would be a good candidate for the Stag Beetle Hard Smash. Which leaves the questions of who the Castle and Owl are? Side note, the appearance of the new Grease form is awesome!
After what she saw and heard, Twilight really wants answers now and I feel like the Rainbooms will get involved ASAP. It would make sense if it happens before Grease's debut, especially with those details at the end.
9711454
Well, I already gave my own suggestion of the voice of Sol being Ryuji Sakamoto from Persona 5. But as for English voices for the Kamen Rider Build opponents, I'm not sure. No clue for the other OCs either.
Okay, either he knows something or he's brainwashed. I don't know which one I'm more afraid of.
You know, I honestly half-expected a wardrobe malfunction of some kind to accidentally reveal Flash and/or Sol's identity. And how do Wallflower and the memory stone connect with the rest of the story?
9712642
Well, you’ll just have to wait and see.
Those possibilities are valid. But who said it was even Gizmo reaching out to Micro in the first place?
Just like the first one, you’ll just have to wait and see.
9712700
Well, no one said that it wasn't Gizmo.
9712713
Fair point. There is no confirmation nor denial.
You’ll just have to wait and see.
Well that could have gone a little better for them. Now Flash and Sol are suffering from Heroes with Bad Publicity. Let’s hope it doesn’t last too long. I enjoyed Sol’s interactions with some of the other students though, it was really nice.
I hope Flash’s Mom is going to be okay.
9712642
On how we have corporations instead of the three regions and how Shining role is I wouldn't be surprised if he was Night Rouge.
I also have to agree with FangDriver8. There are a lot of things still missing and you already introducing the Sclash. I'm only on episode 26 and I have to say Build is one of my favorite seasons of Kamen rider.
I would like to think that in some point Team Build will but heads with the Rainbooms as even if it has nothing to do with Equestria, Sunset and Twilight are trying to get involved.
Speaking of equestria will these events in the human world have effects there? It would be interesting if the portal opens up and both sides interact and team Build save the day(possibly revealing their identities to CHS.
9714721
There is a reason why we're presenting the Sclash Driver early like this. But don't worry. No one will be using it after Rabbit Tank Sparkling. Let's just say....someone is now pulling Micro's strings to advance their plans. Because all plans and data Gizmo made for the Rider System are in Micro's possession. And ONLY his possession. That is all I will say.
You may be right, you may be wrong. Just stay tuned to see how things shall play out.
9715003
Since we are missing at least two players from Build who are the ones who are leaking all of the driver info.
Also, ArcanaMaverick7 mentions the rainbooms finding out but for some odd reason they taking some antagonistic role against team build would be more interesting similar to Grease and his team(but not becoming Kamen riders) or the gear brothers.
9716551 9711403 In his defence, he probably did it to make its creation more believable. Micro's smart, but probably not as smart as his brother so it would make sense he'd need a lot of time to work on completing the driver since he's not at Sento's level of brains.
9711528
I just realized who would be the English voice for Blood Stalk. It is the voice of All for One from My Hero Academia.
I bank on a strong yes.
It was
You do manage to write them with a nice chemistry. Keep that up and please don't stop down to some dumb things.
Suuuuuuuure, Stalk
Huh, Wallflower.
Huh...
Oh, we are doing the research lab raid today.
I'm sure he is trying his best to figure out everything. Nothing else.
Did you two raid a party store or what now?
Boy, this will end not as Twilight has expected
Fascinating.
You just had to ask, didn't you?
Yep, that sounds like a good response
Gutsy.
Clever little guy.
I'm shocked I tell you! Shocked!
I mean, he knows all that about nebular gas and when people die from it when turned into Smash. I'd say, yeah, he is defiantly connected.
I mean... He is right. Blunt, but right.
I think this is excessive. Most people already seen them, which kinda makes this nothing new to these readers. You could have shortened that to about two paragraphs at most.
Keeping their research secret, not getting into legal trouble, the list is long.
Huh... Interesting... Do I smell a robot here?
Yeah, my predictions are starting to harden.
Someone wants those.
Nice chapter. Still hope this branches out more into its own thing as things continue, because the original bits are probably the best things about it.