CRISIS: Equestria

by GanonFLCL

CRISIS: Equestria - Chapter Seven

CRISIS: Equestria

Chapter Seven: Invention

Shadowstep took in a sharp breath as the pain settled in. His limbs ached, and he couldn’t feel his wings. The pounding in his head was astounding, like somepony was playing drums in his skull. At least now, he knew he’d survived the fall.

He glanced around the room, blinking his eyes rapidly to adjust to the room’s only light source, a bright silver glow emitting from a large cylinder in the corner.

He tried to move, but could not. He lifted his head and saw himself laying upon a metal slab, his body strangely intact. He saw no traces of injury marring his legs or torso through the tears in his flight suit, despite the intense pain he felt. Thick, metal braces upon his hooves locked his legs in place, stretching them to his sides. Shallow indents in the slab held his wings, keeping them sprawled out.

He grimaced when he saw how horribly mangled they were compared to the rest of his body, and was glad that he could not move them. He’d seen pegasi with this kind of wing damage, even inflicted it himself on many occasions. They never flew again.

“Ah, you’re awake. Excellent. I feared my Restomancy was rusty.”

Silvertongue’s voice. Shadowstep attempted to acknowledge his employer, but the pain in his head made him regret it.

“I wouldn’t move too much, were I in your position,” Silvertongue said, stepping out of the darkness. “You look like you took quite a fall.”

Shadowstep gulped as Silvertongue stepped over to the slab. “M-milord—"

Silvertongue sighed. “Shadowstep, I entrusted you with two fairly straightforward tasks, endeavors I believed were tailor-made to your talents and capabilities.” He removed his monocle and breathed on it, then wiped it with a kerchief. “You have not lived up to my expectations. While one task has been completed, you have failed at the other twice in the span of a day.” He set his hooves upon the slab, glaring at the pegasus. “I am disappointed, to say the least.”

Shadowstep made to speak, but Silvertongue silenced him with a glow of his horn.

Silvertongue presented a folder, levitating it over from the corner. He opened it and began to read. “The NPPD report on the explosion at Southeast Point. It would appear that it was caused by a gas leak and an electrical fire.” He lowered the report slightly so that Shadowstep could see his glare. “If somepony were to have orchestrated that, it would appear as nothing more than a freak accident. Not very subtle in its execution, but it would most definitely eliminate the Chronomancer. And, anypony else in the vicinity, for that matter. Particularly six ponies I have no desire to see dead quite yet.”

“S-sir, I had nothing—"

“Save your breath, Shadowstep. If I desired excuses, I would have asked for one. I prefer to divulge my information more directly.”

Shadowstep gulped. “D-directly, sir?”

Silvertongue’s horn shined a brilliant gold. Shadowstep writhed in pain as a searing electrical sensation shot through him. He could feel another presence in his head with him, swimming along his mind as though it were an ocean. A sharp spark shot through his mind as the events of the day after he’d left his master’s dining room were revisited.

He saw the look of scrutiny on Silvertongue’s face. It was the same look the unicorn got when he was perusing a report. This worried him. Is he reading my mind?

“‘Reading’ is such a nondescript term.”

Shadowstep would have jumped in surprise were he not locked in place. “M-milord?”

“I prefer the term, ‘analyzing’. Your thoughts are laid bare before my prodding. I will get to the bottom of this.”

Shadowstep took a deep breath as he recalled himself trailing Twilight Sparkle and her friends from Central General Clinic, in hopes that the Chronomancer would make herself known to them. Silvertongue’s presence in his mind sent a sharp pain through Shadowstep’s spine when he saw her, alive and well, waiting in their apartment.

“And there she is. You certainly did rough her up, didn’t you Shadowstep? Ah, and those six believed her story so quickly. They’re trusting of those who offer them help. Excellent.”

Shadowstep remembered trailing them as they left for the Outer Districts, with plans to pass through the Gate using false passports. He tracked them down to the home of one “Keeneye”, and while he did not witness it first-hoof, he could tell from the looks on the ponies’ faces that everything had gone well.

“False passports. Interesting. I did not anticipate that they would take that route. Unfortunate for them that they are, though. The Gate is much easier to monitor. Well done, Shadowstep.”

Shadowstep remembered returning to Southeast Point on his targets’ trail. He remembered witnessing the explosion, and seeing Twilight Sparkle’s magic save herself and her companions, first by erecting a magical shield, then by teleporting all nine of them to safety simultaneously.

“So that is Twilight Sparkle, is it? Such aptitude. Such power. A pity that her ambition is solely for scholarly pursuits. I shall have to keep an eye on that one.”

Shadowstep remembered spying on them as they recuperated after the ordeal. He saw the NPPD officer, Captain Flathoof, divide the group out of fear that the Chronomancer’s would-be assassin would target his family. He followed them to NPPD Central Station, and overheard them check on the desk clerk, Snapshot. As they left, he rushed ahead of them. He entered through her window and rigged the explosive. Then, he waited.

Last, Shadowstep recalled fighting against them when his trap was foiled. Worse, he remembered losing.

“A pity that this Flathoof fellow seems smarter than he looks. Oh, Shadowstep. It appears that without the element of surprise on your side, you are not the most apt fighter. Well, we shall soon solve that problem.”

The pain drained away the instant Silvertongue’s horn ceased its glowing. Shadowstep took several deep breaths, and watched his master circle the slab, a pensive look upon his face.

“You’re quite fortunate in a great many ways, Shadowstep,” Silvertongue said. He laughed once, then removed his monocle to clean it.

“Fortunate, sir?”

“Yes, fortunate. Not only because the explosion was a freak accident in and of itself, but that your first aforementioned failure seems to have been a great boon.”

Shadowstep hesitated. “Boon, sir? You mean... you’re not upset?”

“It’s simple, really,” Silvertongue said, dismissively waving a hoof. “Had the Chronomancer been taken care of as I had tasked you with before, then the Elements of Harmony would have returned from their immunization shots and likely stayed to rest a while. Certainly some of them may have left, but the risk was there. Had they not been out of their room at that precise time, they’d have been caught in the blast. Ironic, that by your failure you single-hoofedly kept all my plans in order.”

Shadowstep breathed a sigh of relief.

“However, there is still the matter at hoof,” Silvertongue continued. He smoothed back his mane carefully and stepped over to the glowing cylinder in the corner. “While your first failure is justifiable in light of new information, your second is not. The Chronomancer still lives and breathes, and as long as she does so I do not doubt that she will be an ever-persistent thorn in my side.”

Silvertongue hovered the container towards the slab and lifted the lid. The light within shined much brighter, illuminating the entirety of the room. Then, he lifted something out of the container, a sort of liquid kept in a spherical shape by his telekinesis. He floated the orb in front of his face and manipulated it in his magic, causing the liquid to morph into different shapes.

“Do you know what this is, Shadowstep?” he asked.

The pegasus shook his head slowly.

“It is a very rare, valuable metal. You’d be hard-pressed to find much more of it. My own supplies are dwindling, and this is some of what little I still possess. It bears numerous magnificent qualities: it is highly regarded for its functionality as weapons and armor; it is exceptionally lightweight and malleable, yet extraordinarily durable; most importantly, it interacts remarkably with magic.

“Were one to forge a weapon from it, their magic could manipulate it fluidly, as though it were an extension of their mind. It is also notably resistant to any magic other than that of the forger, hence its potency as shields or armor. It’s called obidium, because it obeys orders. Much better than any pony ever could.”

Shadowstep frowned at Silvertongue’s mocking tone.

Silvertongue replaced the ball of liquid into the container, then lifted the container over one of Shadowstep’s wings.

Shadowstep eyed it warily. He could feel the heat coming from it. “W-what are you doing?” he asked.

Silvertongue smiled wide, his teeth gleaming in the light. “Why, isn’t it obvious? I’m going to imbue your wings with obidium.”

He laughed and tossed his mane. “It will repair the damage you have sustained, and my magic will fuse the metal to your nerves, flesh, and bone. The metal will become your new wings, giving you a modicum of control over it. It shall be a new weapon for you to wield against your enemies. Against my enemies. I could have affixed it to you while you were unconscious, certainly, but I believe that if you experience the sensation of it bonding with you, you may have a greater appreciation for the power it will bestow.

“Oh, a fair bit of warning,” he added. “This might hurt a little.”

Silvertongue tilted the container over, and poured the molten metal out.

Shadowstep screamed in agony as it seared the flesh on his wings, burning all the way to the bone. He knew the scent of his precious wings burning away would forever remain ingrained in his nightmares. More pain ripped through him as the magical metal coiled inward and fastened itself to every joint, muscle, and fiber of his wings until the metal became a part of him, replacing his flesh and bone entirely.

He steeled himself through the rest of the ordeal, his breathing ragged and dry. He was unsure if he could even remain conscious through much more. He watched the container move to his other wing, and gave an embarrassingly audible gulp. The process repeated itself: more pain as the metal stripped clean his flesh; more agony as the metal ingrained itself within him. In the back of his mind, there was a wish that the fall had killed him. Surely death would be preferable to this.

Silvertongue grinned and lifted the container just over Shadowstep’s face. Without warning, he snapped the lid closed, and returned the now empty container to its spot in the corner. The room’s only light source now was Silvertongue’s dimly-glowing horn.

With no fear of further writhing torture looming ahead, Shadowstep was allowed to breathe normally again. The braces on his legs snapped open, allowing him to stand. He struggled to his hooves and stood at attention, his legs still trembling as the pain subsided.

Silvertongue laughed. “Excellent! The process went better than expected.”

The silvery-metal wings gleamed in the light of Silvertongue’s horn. They were perfectly proportioned, fitting in place as if they’d always been there. He ran a hoof along one of Shadowstep’s new wings.

Shadowstep could feel every touch, every jolt, every snag. His eyes widened.

“New and improved, wouldn’t you agree?” Silvertongue asked.

Shadowstep took a sharp breath, as the pain still lingered. He flexed his wings to see if they still worked. They did so fluidly, their movement completely natural. The joints looked real. Even the feathers looked real. The metal had coated them flawlessly just the same as the rest of the wing.

“They’re... beautiful, milord.”

Shadowstep reached a hoof out and stroked it along a primary. Though the material was cold to the touch, it had the same smooth, silky texture as his original feathers. His elation showed upon his face. He was eager to see if they could fly.

“Thank you, sir,” Shadowstep said, bowing deeply. “I did not expect to receive such a gracious reward after my recent transgressions. To be honest, I never expected to wake up again. Your last words to me were hardly... encouraging.”

Silvertongue laughed and patted Shadowstep hard on the back, causing the pegasus to stumble forward. “Oh, Shadowstep, wherever would you get that idea? Mindlessly killing my subordinates is hardly what I would consider a worthwhile use of time or effort. You are a valuable asset, more so now than you may realize. Even if your more recent endeavors have proven rather disappointing, I still have a purpose for you.”

“Thank you, milord.”

Silvertongue removed his monocle and cleaned it. “Now, this Chronomancer? She either is not to be taken lightly, or she has the most extraordinary luck imaginable. In either case, these new tools I have bestowed upon you should prove useful in your efforts to destroy her, in due time. So, if you’re quite done preening about, it is time we came to the next order of business.”

Shadowstep saluted with his new wing. “Of course, milord. I’ll finish off the Chronomancer this time, I swear it.”

He trotted briskly over to the door, eager to leave and return to his work. He couldn’t wait to thrust a knife into the Chronomancer’s heart. No more playing around. Oh, and that stupid police captain too. He’d ruined everything. A nice drop from the top of Pandora Tower seemed an appropriate solution. No wings, no magic. Just lots of limb flailing and-

Shadowstep's muzzle slammed into the door.

Shadowstep stopped and tilted his head. This was peculiar. He was used to the doors in Pandora responding to the proximity of ponies and opening automatically. Was it broken? Perhaps this room’s door wasn’t one of the automatic ones? He pushed a hoof against it.

The door did not open.

“Where do you think you’re going, Shadowstep?”

Shadowstep froze up. His heart raced. Beads of sweat formed on his brow. He turned slowly. “To... to kill the Chronomancer, sir? That’s what you—"

Silvertongue laughed. “You? My dear boy, you’ve already failed me twice in that regard. Stars above, what made you think I was going to give you another chance so soon?”

Shadowstep raised an eyebrow, flexed his wings, and took a hesitant step back. He didn’t like the way Silvertongue was smiling at him. “But your gift—"

Silvertongue chuckled darkly. “Oh, that gift of yours is a rather double-edged sword, you’ll find soon enough. I did not grant you this boon so that you may destroy that meddlesome little Chronomancer. At least—" His grin widened. “Not yet. That will come in due time.

“For now, I have more pressing matters to attend to without worrying about whether or not you’ll fail me yet again.” Silvertongue’s horn started to glow brighter, causing Shadowstep to take another step back. “No, your gift has far greater purpose than that. Be glad that it will at least give you some sort of a fighting chance in regards to your punishment.”

Silvertongue’s horn flared white. Shadowstep panicked and made to move, but found himself engulfed in a bright light. A teleportation spell. “P-punish—"

***

“-ment?”

Shadowstep had seen many dead bodies in his career. He’d disposed of corpses, seen ponies soil themselves in fear and upon death, and crawled through some of the most unsavory areas imaginable. He thought his nose to be mostly immune to the sensations of foul odors. Nothing could have prepared him for this stench, though.

The sudden exposure instantly nauseated him. His eyes watered. It didn’t take more than a second for him to be forced to choke back vomit. Only this stench, a rancid odor like hundreds of rotting bodies, colored his sight, hearing, taste, smell, and even his thoughts.

It took several moments for his stomach to settle and his nostrils to become accustomed to the odor. When at last it did, his mind eased and he could finally see where he was.

A blackish-red goo stained the ground, sticking to his hooves like glue. When he lifted his hoof away, he saw it follow his movement just barely, as though it were reaching out to keep him in its grip. It looked like blood, but he’d seen enough of the stuff to know it wasn’t.

The trees around him appeared dead, their branches devoid of leaves and their trunks black. Yet, their trunks were also thick, and the branches swayed gently in the breeze, still soft and full of life. They dotted the landscape, creating the illusion of what had once been a swamp or a marsh.

There were also the corpses. Oh. That’s what the smell is.

At first, Shadowstep had thought the large mounds to be piles of garbage, not carcasses. Their blackened, rotting flesh had been decomposed as though they’d been there for years, yet still meaty enough that they couldn’t have been there longer than a few days. They dotted the landscape, outnumbering the trees. He’d never seen so many in one place before.

Shadowstep groaned as a searing pain flashed and Silvertongue’s voice echoed through his mind.

“The Blood Mire,” Silvertongue said. “A fitting name, is it not? I could tell you stories of this place, Shadowstep. Tales of death that would awe even a murderous psychopath like yourself. I must warn you now, though, you may want to watch your back.”

Shadowstep turned his head, then leapt aside in surprise as a burst of magic screamed past him, exploding only a yard behind him. The explosion wasn’t particularly strong. He’d seen average unicorns with more force than that. But, that didn’t concern him. Shadowstep’s eyes widened as he traced the bolt back to its source. For a moment, he wondered if he were dreaming. If this was some horrible nightmare.

The unicorn was clearly not alive.

It was difficult to describe what, exactly, the unicorn was. It certainly moved like a living, breathing unicorn, even cast spells like one. It may have well been one, as far as those qualities were concerned. Its charred and rancid skin melted away in places, exposing great deals of corroded bone and decayed innards. Its shattered horn could still cast spells without hindrance. One of its legs was ripped apart, and in places where there should have been bone and muscle connecting the two pieces, a faint glow of red magic held them in place. This same magic filled other important voids in the unicorn’s horribly mangled, rotten body, most notably its eyes.

No, it clearly wasn’t alive. But, it wasn’t dead either.

Shadowstep hesitated for a moment, unsure if what he was seeing was real. In that hesitation, he almost did not react in time to the movement to his other side. He turned to see another of these things bearing down upon him like a starved predator. This one, a pegasus. Where its wings were torn and decomposed, the same glow of red magic filled in the pieces, allowing it to take flight.

Shadowstep narrowly avoided the thing’s mangled hoof, panicking when he realized his dodge had been sloppy. The creature twisted around towards his wing instead, jaws open, fangs bared.

Flesh and bone clanged against metal, followed by a crunch. He felt the creature strike his wing, but didn’t feel any pain. He glanced down at the thing that had attacked him. Its face had been horribly mangled by his new metal feathers. He realized they weren’t just feathers. They were blades.

Shadowstep’s grin could not have been more massive. He stretched his wing out and brought it down, cleaving the creature’s head clean off. The head rolled aside, and its glowing eyes darkened. The sensation of his own body being a weapon, capable of tearing through flesh and bone, exhilarated him.

The unicorn fired another bolt of magic at him. Shadowstep swept his wing about in a wide arc, reflecting the bolt of magic back at the creature. It struck with enough force to blow the thing’s body apart. Magic-resistant indeed.

“Fascinating material, is it not? Effective as both a weapon and as a shield.”

Shadowstep chuckled. “If this is my punishment, milord, to slaughter these mutant abominations, then I am thankful you granted me such a gift. I shall return soon enough to slaughter the Chronomancer. Though I do see why the ponies of the city fear them, these creatures are nothing before me now.”

Peals of crowing laughter rang through his head, coming from everywhere at once, and yet from nowhere at all. Shadowstep’s smug smile dwindled away, like a fire facing down a monsoon.

“Arrogance. Amusing. You’ve yet to earn the right to be arrogant, Shadowstep. You think you’ll only encounter them in such short bunches? I was merely giving you reprieve, that you may practice with your new gift. But, if you’re that confident in yourself, then perhaps it is time I removed my protective barrier.”

The reds of the land beneath and the blacks of the mounds of bodies became clearer, as though a shroud had been lifted from around him. Shadowstep watched in horror as the piles upon piles of bodies around him stirred. There were hordes of them. Not several hundred, but several thousand.

Worse, they were not slow to wake, nor were they slow to act. They engaged Shadowstep on all sides. Unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies alike assaulted him with reckless abandon.

He swung his wings around like great scythes, slicing apart most of the ponies that got nearby and sending heads, wings, legs, and horns flying about. He found it difficult to keep up with the horde that seemed to grow larger every minute.

Shadowstep knew that there were only two options: fight, or flight. Right now, the former seemed to be a fool’s errand. He flapped his wings and took to the air. Let’s see what else these new wings can do.

Unicorns continued to fire bolts of red magic at him, and still the pegasi pursued him through the air. His lithe, aerodynamic new wings easily outpaced them. Fighting the creatures was hard. Running from them was easy.

He breathed a sigh of relief as their forms dwindled in his wake, then twisted himself around to make a course for New Pandemonium City, which he could just make out in the distance.

“For shame, Shadowstep.” Silvertongue chuckled, sending a shiver down Shadowstep’s spine. “Are you trying to escape your punishment? Were it that easy to do, I would think myself a right fool to believe you wouldn’t attempt it. No no, we won’t be having any of that.”

A sharp pain shot through Shadowstep’s wings, and suddenly they felt heavy. Very heavy, like metal weights that would grant him flight about as well as they would let him swim. He struggled to maintain altitude, but could barely move his wings at all. He careened into the ground below, rolling several feet and crashing into a pile of bodies to come to a stop.

He felt sick, not just because he’d been injured in the crash, but because he’d been covered in the bloody goo. He was certain the stuff was the remains of some of these abominable creatures, a thought that nauseated him.

He looked up from his crash site to see more freshly-woken monsters stalking towards him. The weight of his wings made moving excruciatingly difficult.

An earth pony lunged at Shadowstep. Half of its face was missing, but the other half bared its fangs. Shadowstep barely had the strength to swing his wing around to defend himself.

He used his wing as a shield, rather than a blade. The earth pony slammed into it and fell to the ground. Shadowstep slumped forward, using his other wing for support, too tired to try and capitalize on his advantage. It took incredible effort just to move, and his focus dwindled.

A pegasus sprung upon him and sunk its sharp teeth into his neck, clamping down like a vice. Shadowstep cried out before tearing it off and stumbling away. The monster was still chewing; Shadowstep felt blood flowing down his back. They’re trying to eat me.

He screamed in anger, slashing at the abomination with his other wing. The creature lunged away, and he only managed to slice off its legs.

He jerked his head up at another noise. A unicorn. He took a bolt of magic to the face that knocked him onto his back. He smelled burning flesh where he’d been struck. It had barely missed one of his eyes, and he struggled to see out of it.

Worse, he felt a sharp, burning sensation at the wound on the back of his neck, like something was crawling inside.

The earth pony pounced upon him and slammed its forelegs down into Shadowstep’s chest. He wheezed, coughing up blood as the creature’s sharpened hooves ripped into him, threatening to pierce straight through to his lungs and heart.

He took a deep breath and flexed his wings above him, bringing them together to crush the thing’s head. Its head burst open, splattering Shadowstep with blood and rancid gore. He fought the urge to vomit as it slumped forward on top of him.

The burning at his neck was joined by one at his chest. The unnatural pain made him feel dizzy.

He screamed in pain when the pegasus bit into one of his legs. He swung his wing down, slicing through its neck. Now, his leg burned too. What is causing that burning?!

He struggled to his hooves and staggered away, until the unicorn’s magic exploded against his back. He felt its weight upon him as it buried its teeth into the freshly cooked flesh. The burning sensations intensified. He felt like his whole body was on fire.

He tried to shake the unicorn off, but could not find the strength. He slumped forward, losing consciousness, then looked out into the field. All he could see were hundreds more of the glowing red eyes coming his way.

That was the last thing he saw before closing his eyes.

***

The elevator hummed quietly as it slowly made its way down the side of Pandora Tower. Its only passenger gazed out of the glass exterior and out into the city skyline. No smog congregated around the tower itself, giving Silvertongue a clear view of the city almost as far as the Outer Wall. Eventually, as the Inner District’s gleaming black skyscrapers and office complexes rose up into view, his view became obscured.

The elevator played soothing ambient music throughout its descent. The slow, delicate melody came from Silvertongue’s favorite opera, the same as all the pieces of music he regularly listened to. He bobbed his head slightly in tune with the music, waving one hoof around as if conducting his own invisible orchestra. The singer, who played the villain of the piece, sang in his deep baritone as he set about his final scheme to vanquish his heroic foe. Silvertongue still recalled the opera clearly from the last time he’d seen it, despite how very, very long ago that was.

The elevator dinged when it reached the underground level. The doors opened, leading out into a long, beckoning hallway with black metal walls decorated with banners bearing the red and gold emblem of New Pandemonium. The darkness coating the hall drowned out Silvertongue’s pristine coat, leaving him in a shadowed veil of deepest black.

A large metal door, bordered with a gold and black outline, stood at the end of the hall. As Silvertongue approached it, he lit up his horn and turned the great circular handle in its center. The door unlocked, giving a great hissing sound. He lifted it open, striding through the doorway with confidence, eager with anticipation. Every step further in was a step further towards completing the monumental undertaking that was laid before him.

The contents of the room beyond were easy enough to see in the dim light. An abundance of techno-magic machinery filled every space in the room, barring the circular walkway that bordered it and the walkway leading into the center of the chamber: monitors larger than Silvertongue displayed mathematical calculations and abundances of text; several machines just to his right bore multitudes of buttons, levers, knobs, switches, and dials; a small power generator stood on the far side of the room, its orange glow bright enough to illuminate the room by itself; cables of all shapes, sizes, and lengths connected them all together.

Silvertongue’s eyes focused towards the center of the room, where a large platform had been raised. He approached it with a spring in his step, ecstatic to see the fruit of his labors firsthand, to see what his mad science and his forbidden magics had wrought.

The large machine on the platform held six large, egg-shaped containers made of blue-tinted glass. Each container connected to a plethora of cables which in turn connected to the series of machines and monitors just to the side. A quick glance at the monitors told him that the contents of the containers were stable.

Silvertongue’s mouth curled in a tiny grin. He turned and called out into the room. “Doctor! Is everything prepared?”

A crash from the side of the room drew Silvertongue’s attention. Somepony had tripped over one of the cables and was now swearing loudly as he tried to untangle himself. The pony, an off-white unicorn stallion wearing a dull beige lab coat and an overly-large pair of goggles, rounded the nearby machinery and greeted Silvertongue with a brisk salute and a smile.

“Herr Silvertongue! I apologize, I did not hear you come in. I vas occupied viz monitorink zee subjects.” Blutsauger ran a hoof through his slick mane to straighten it, giving a nervous chuckle. “But ja, everyzing is ready. I only need to make a few final adjustments, and zen vee may begin. Are you as excited as I am, Herr Silvertongue?”

Silvertongue laughed and patted the other unicorn on the shoulder. “You have outdone yourself, Doctor. Six in total, and in such a short time as well. I am glad to see I will not be experiencing any more delays. This shall be your greatest work, I assure you of that. History in the making.”

Blutsauger smiled and nodded. “Zank you... zank you, Herr Silvertongue. Zough, I really must zank you for makink it so easy to get zee genetic material. I do not know if I vould have been able to do zis vizout pure samples. Zese specimens are fantastic!”

Silvertongue turned his attention back to the containment pods. A mare rested in each. Here, in the one closest to him, lay a lavender mare, a unicorn with a deep purple mane and tail with a bright pink streak shooting along the middle. Her eyes were closed and from here he could not see her breathing, but all of the instruments told him that she was very much alive.

Twilight Sparkle, representative of the Element of Magic. The only difference between the one here and the one somewhere out there in New Pandemonium City was that the latter had a soul, the former did not. The lack of a cutie mark upon the flank of the one in the pod proved that. Silvertongue knew that soon, that would no longer be the case, that the little mare in this containment pod would no longer be Twilight Sparkle, and yet would be all the same. All of the original’s thoughts, memories, passions, and dreams, every last fiber of her being, would be twisted to his advantage.

In each of the other chambers lay another perfectly-copied clone of the rest of the Elements of Harmony, awaiting the next stage of his plan. The thought of his labors being given physical form at long last brought a smile to his face. Soon enough, they could begin the task he had set before them.

Silvertongue smiled. “Excellent. Now then, Doctor, go ahead and finish your final preparations. I need to focus myself for the next stage. I should only need a few moments. Alone.”

“Ja, Herr Silvertongue,” Blutsauger acknowledged, hastily shuffling away.

Silvertongue breathed deep and let his magic waft about him.

Nihila quickly responded, as always.

“My Warden, you work quickly,” she cooed, sending a shiver of cold through him. “I am pleased with your progress.”

Silvertongue responded with his thoughts, not daring to speak aloud. “I am as anxious to begin as you are, milady. The stage has been set, and the actors are all in place. With your blessing, I may pull back the curtain and let our masterpiece perform for itself.”

Nihila hesitated. A curious feeling, one he hadn’t felt in a long while. “My Warden, I will be granting phenomenal magical powers to you, with which you will be gifting these creatures with life. Their bodies and souls will become warped to serve us. But I warn you, it will weaken me greatly. I will be unable to reach out from the Dreaming for quite some time, unable to assist you should you require my aid.”

“I have utmost confidence in my plan, milady. These six mares that we are birthing this very hour are the perfect pawns to carry out this task. I have no doubt that the powers you are to bequeath upon them will be more than enough insurance that, even should our initial plan fail, they may still be of some use in the future.”

“I am entrusting you with a great risk, my Warden. I know you will not disappoint me. You have my blessings. Continue your work and see to it personally if need be that my will be done.”

“As you wish, milady.”

Silvertongue then felt the oddest sensation. Nihila’s consciousness left him, but he did not feel empty. He instead felt empowered as her essence remained, filling with so much dark magic that for a fleeting second he feared it would tear him apart, unable to be contained by his mortal form.

“Herr Silvertongue!” called Blutsauger, shaking him from his awed stupor. “All zee preparations are complete, und vee are ready to begin.”

Silvertongue nodded, and strode away from his prized creations to a large machine opposite Blutsauger’s workstation, where Blutsauger awaited him. The Doctor assisted Silvertongue in attaching a mechanical brace to the latter’s horn. The brace and the machine connected to cables of many different sizes and colors that stretched up to the ceiling, then came down again and attached themselves to the machine holding the six containment pods. Blutsauger checked the readouts on the nearby monitors to make sure everything had been connected properly, then trotted over to his workstation and made a few final adjustments.

“Right, now zen, ven you give zee vord, Herr Silvertongue, I vill begin zee energy transfer,” Blutsauger explained. He ran a hoof through his mane and adjusted his goggles. “Ach, zis is mein first time performink zis precise procedure, but it should not be much different zan zee ozer times, ja? Zis time at least I have bodies to start viz.”

Silvertongue took a deep breath. “I am ready to begin whenever you are, doctor.”

Blutsauger nodded and ignited his horn. He flicked switches, turned dials, adjusted levers, twisted knobs, and pushed buttons, then turned to the massive red power switch behind him. He took a sharp breath as he lifted it, and with a loud clang, it snapped into the ON position.

Silvertongue felt a rush of electricity snap through his horn. The power in his body reacted to the amplification device he had designed, causing the machine to glow a dull red.

Blutsauger double-checked all his station’s monitors, then gave a satisfied laugh. “Ha ha! Vee are all ready to go! Venever you are ready, Herr Silvertongue, you may begin—” He dramatically lifted his hoof straight up into the air. “Zee magicks!”

Silvertongue chuckled. “Then let us begin.”

He churned his new powers slowly through the amplification machine’s funnel, watching as the energy coursed through the cables above, causing them to glow a bright blue, and into the containment machine at the room’s center. The machine rotated slightly and lifted one of the containment pods from the platform to center of the machine, latching it firmly in place beneath the other end of the funnel.

The pony inside was orange. Applejack’s clone. Doctor Blutsauger always did have a habit of doing things alphabetically.

Silvertongue licked his lips as the pod began to glow a dark purple, obscuring the pony inside from view. He allowed more of Nihila’s magicks to flow forth until he was certain he’d drained a full sixth of it. He laced her magicks with some of his own.

Darkness filled the room, shrouding everything in pitch black, leaving only the glow of the machines, the two unicorns’ horns, and the pod to light the room. The room trembled once, causing the monitors to shake and their images to flicker. Once the darkness had ebbed away, the machine stopped spinning. The containment pod remained shrouded in a dark mist, even as the machine pulled it away and lifted it towards the nearby wall, where it would be sent to an adjacent room for safekeeping and further monitoring.

Silvertongue snapped his hoof towards Blutsauger’s station. “Halt the loading process, Doctor. I wish to look upon this first creation of mine.”

“Ja, Herr Silvertongue.” Blutsauger nodded and flicked a pair of switches beside his station, causing the pod to smoothly grind to a halt.

The black and purple mist slowly dissipated, and Silvertongue gazed into the pod. His first creation lay inside, alive, breathing, and kept in stasis to allow her body to adjust to the dark magicks that empowered her and gave her life. A smile crept upon his face. She was lovely.

Applejack’s clone had been changed, no longer looking anything like her original self. Her orange coat had turned a vibrant blue. Her blond mane and tail became a shiny red. Her figure was slightly leaner and more refined than the toned muscle of the original.

Silvertongue eagerly awaited the chance to see how her personality had changed from that of her Harmony counterpart, to see if her mind had been twisted as much as her body. He motioned to Blutsauger to send the pod on its way, then re-focused his magic.

There were still five more ponies to transform.

The machine spun and lifted up the clone of Fluttershy into the central slot. Silvertongue fueled the device with Nihila’s magic, and the room darkened and shook. Fluttershy’s counterpart was lifted away the same as Applejack’s had been. Silvertongue did not signal to halt the process this time. He’d witnessed its effects upon Applejack’s clone already, and knew he would soon see and meet the rest of these marvelous mares without squandering precious time.

Silvertongue repeated the process with Pinkie Pie’s counterpart next, then with Rainbow Dash’s, then with Rarity’s. The one he was most eagerly anticipating, Twilight Sparkle’s clone, came last. Everything started off rather smoothly as he funneled Nihila’s magic laced with his own through the amplifier.

But then, something went wrong. Terribly, terribly wrong.

Several of the machines in the room shook violently, monitors shorting out or becoming overloaded with static. Silvertongue felt phenomenal power flowing outward from the clone of Twilight Sparkle as she was slowly transformed. He’d expected Twilight Sparkle and her copy to have incredible power as the Element of Magic. The energy felt somehow familiar, though he could not recall where he’d felt it before.

He turned to Blutsauger’s station. “Doctor! What is happening here?! Why is she reacting this way?!”

Blutsauger observed one of his readout meters, then leapt away as it burst apart. “Her magical levels are off zee charts, Herr Silvertongue! I did not zink anypony could contain zis much magic.”

“What manner of magic is it, Doctor? This is neither Light nor Darkness.”

Blutsauger wiped his brow and adjusted his goggles to double-check his readings. “Zee machines cannot pinpoint zee source. Zey do not recognize it.”

More of Nihila’s power flowed into the machine, causing Twilight’s clone to give off even more energy. Silvertongue felt it tickling his skin, making his mane and tail waft about as though there were a fierce breeze in the room. The hairs on his coat stood on end. So much of Nihila’s power remained to give this mare, and yet her power still proliferated.

Several tense moments passed.

“Her energy readings are stabilizing, Herr Silvertongue,” Blutsauger said. He ran a hoof through his mane and shook away sweat. “Zee safety parameters vill hold for now. Zee starglass cannot vizstand much more, but so long as her power does not increase, zere should be no—"

A loud crack reverberated from the center of the room, knocking some of the taller machines over.

Blutsauger quickly trotted in and eyed the glass, then staggered back. “Impossible. Impossible! Herr Silvertongue, her magic is cracking zee glass!”

“What?!”

Silvertongue’s eyes widened at the implications. The magical power required to break through starglass was extraordinarily high. He himself had trouble cracking through it, and as Nihila’s Warden he was the most powerful unicorn in all Equestria. Were Twilight Sparkle and her clone that powerful? As powerful as he was? More powerful?

Incredible.

Another crack. The fractures snaked along the surface of the glass like it was ice. The sound of pounding came from inside. Once. Twice.

Blutsauger leapt back as the glass snapped open, and galloped back to the safety of his workstation. “Nein! Impossible! Nein, nein, nein!”

The intense magic burst out the little pod, a fierce storm set loose into the chamber. Without its host to control it, the powerful magic acted of its own will. The magic sporadically took shape and flared about, lashing out randomly at nearby machines. Silvertongue continued to pump more of Nihila’s power into the amplifier, giving this wild and untamed magic more to work with. The cloud of darkness launched bolts of energy that ripped metal and glass apart like paper; it lashed out with fluidic tentacle-like strands, grasping at things, crushing them like toys or smashing them like a sledgehammer.

Blutsauger clambered over to Silvertongue in a panic and groveled before him. “Herr Silvertongue, vee must stop zee process! Her powers vill tear zee room apart!”

“Stop? When we are so close?” Silvertongue snapped, kicking Blutsauger away. “We are only a few short moments away from bestowing life upon the most powerful mortal creature in this world, and you want to stop?” He jabbed a hoof in the direction of Blutsauger’s workstation. “Get back to your station you miserable little foal, and keep her lifelines stable. I am not about to end this just because you are a pathetic coward.”

Blutsauger gulped, and nodded as he backed away. “Ja... ja, I vill... just go back to mein station, Herr Silvertongue.”

Blutsauger returned to his instruments, tweaking them in an attempt to calm the empowered mare’s magic. All the safety dampeners had been damaged or destroyed; she’d already broken through the Starguard glass. Nothing seemed to be working at all. More of her increasing power flooded the room, tearing apart everything it touched. Blutsauger huddled under his workstation in terror.

Silvertongue remained undeterred, even as the magic lashed out at machines close to him. One bolt of magic flashed just past his ear, close enough that he could feel heat. Another exploded nearby, tearing apart a monitor station in a shower of metal, glass, and wires. He continued to stand firm, and grit his teeth and steeled his hoove.

One bolt of magic shot straight at him. He did not attempt to avoid it or block it, and trying to do either was impossible given the circumstances. All of his magic was maintaining the power transfer, and as long as he was latched into the amplifier, he couldn’t move.

When the black bolt struck him, he recoiled in agony. All he could see was black and red as darkness and blood flooded his vision. The blast exploded, shattering his monocle and ripping his eye apart. A lesser pony might have blacked out or gone into shock, but Silvertongue was too far into this focus. He would not be deterred, not if it cost him life and limb. He’d worked too hard for far too long to reach this point. He was not about to stop now.

Only a little more.

He fought through the searing pain. It would not move him.

Only a little more.

He ignored the salty taste of blood. It would not shake him.

Only a little more.

He couldn’t see straight. That would not deter him.

Only a little more.

It was done.

Silvertongue felt a saddening emptiness as the last of Nihila’s magic fully transferred into the clone of Twilight Sparkle. The intense magicks calmed, and retreated back to their host.

Silvertongue snapped the amplifier off his horn roughly and stumbled out of the bracing device. He tripped over some of the broken debris of the room. He felt dizzy from bloodloss.

Blutsauger jumped out from cover and ran to Silvertongue’s aid, helping to keep him steady. “Herr Silvertongue, you’ve done it! Zee process vas a complete success, und—" He trailed off, and his face paled. “Herr Silvertongue... your eye—"

“It is a minor inconvenience.” Silvertongue snorted, though his breathing was labored. He turned towards the center of the room, towards the heavily damaged machine in the center and the broken pod that lay in its remains. “Her pod is shattered. That means she will not be in stasis, correct?”

Blutsauger nodded. “Ja, correct. She vill not be in stasis vizout zee containment pod. Her life signs are stable zough. She vill likely vake up on her own in a few moments.”

“Excellent.” Silvertongue smiled and licked his lips, ignoring the taste of blood. “Bring me to her.”

Blutsauger hesitated. “Herr Silvertongue, shouldn’t vee get you some medical—"

“I said, bring me to her, Doctor. You can attend to my injuries later. I insist that they all see me soon after waking. She is no exception. Bring me to her. Now.”

Blutsauger sighed and wiped his brow. “Ja... ja, of course, Herr Silvertongue.” He assisted Silvertongue in hobbling towards the central platform.

The entire room had become like a battlefield. Sparks of electricity jumped about from nearby machines. Debris had been scattered about. Smoke clouded the air. The pair had to walk carefully to avoid stepping on anything that might cause further injury.

Silvertongue insisted upon limping the rest of the way up the platform without Blutsauger’s help. He came to the shattered pod, and beheld his sixth and final creation.

She had a deep, dark purple coat, not at all the bright, colorful lavender of her original form. Her mane a bright pink and purple mix with a natural curl. This mare was perfect. She was just as powerful as her Harmony counterpart, but without things that prevented her from using that power for personal gain and for destruction, such as compassion or mercy.

The mare’s eyes slowly fluttered open.

Silvertongue smiled down at her. “Rise and shine, little one...”

Comments

[-Pinkamena_Pie-]

Oh dear God...

[Pseudonym1]

So far, this is my favorite chapter. Viewing things from the eye of the antagonists is always something I love. It's much better than evil protagonists, in my opinion. I suspect that I'll be rooting for the 6 clones more than I root for the real 6.

[So_Many_Wonders]

He laughed and tossed his mane. “It will repair the damage you have sustained, and my magic will fuse the metal to your nerves, flesh, and bone. The metal will become your new wings, giving you a modicum of control over it. It shall be a new weapon for you to wield against your enemies. Against my enemies. I could have affixed it to you while you were unconscious, certainly, but I believe that if you experience the sensation of it bonding with you, you may have a greater appreciation for the power it will bestow.

Evil overlord using liquid metal to replace a servants lost body part, hmm never heard that before

“They’re... beautiful, milord.”

Yep

Silvertongue chuckled darkly. “Oh, that gift of yours is a rather double-edged sword, you’ll find soon enough.

Can't wait for the wings to end up killing him

[So_Many_Wonders]

“Herr Silvertongue! I apologize, I did not hear you come in. I vas occupied viz monitorink zee subjects.” Blutsauger ran a hoof through his slick mane to straighten it, giving a nervous chuckle. “But ja, everyzing is ready. I only need to make a few final adjustments, and zen vee may begin. Are you as excited as I am, Herr Silvertongue?”

Don't take vaccines kids, the doctor may be working for an evil mastermind to collect your genetic material

[Victoria]

So, Shadowstep survived as I thought. Though perhaps he'll be a zombie now.

And damn, the evil clones are born now. I would not go as far as root for them. Hope they die soon.