• Published 18th Sep 2012
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Ungrounded - Lucien Chance



A modern mage teleports himself to Equestria in a magical mishap, where he continues to try to live his life.

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Chapter 12: The Pony who Would Change the World

A special chapter like this should have a special introduction, but I can't think of one, so I'm just gonna let you dive in.

Ungrounded

Bronze stormed out of her house after she sent that fake letter to Twilight. Just a forged signature, a stolen wax stamp to seal it, and the correct know-how. She was sure that it would send Miss "Most Faithful Student" scrambling to get here as fast as her hooves would take her. Bronze shook her head.

She set out on a course to get to the train station. It was dusk now, the sun having just set behind the picturesque mountains of Canterlot. There was, however, still just enough light to see. The lamps hadn't even been lit.

She trekked through the thinning crowds of ponies, each taking his or her way back to their house. She almost wished that she could be one of them; heading back home after a satisfying day of doing what she loves. She stumbled. "Don't think like that; those days are over now." Even if Celestia took her back, things wouldn't be the same.

After tommorrow, things would never be the same.

She reached her destination, the train depot. She entered and said a brief hello to the mare working the ticket booth, then headed straight for the time tables. She looked up at it and reviewed the times scheduled for the trains tomorrow. "8:30. She'll want to get here as early as possible, and spend some time showing her friends around Canterlot after meeting with Celestia." She made a strong mental note of it and walked back out the way she came in.

She looked around at the ponies passing by. Individual faces, she couldn't make out, but the colors blended into one crazy pastel nightmare that assaulted her eyes. She looked down at her darker coat in happiness. She always liked its shade better than what she saw on other ponies out there.

Bronze joined the crowd once again and just let go for a moment, letting herself get lost in the crowd. She would always do this after a tough day at work. She would always enjoy getting pushed and pulled through the city for half an hour or so to get back to her humble abode. She shut her eyes and allowed the bodies around her to be her guide.

She walked for a time. She wasn't quite sure how long, but eventually a gap in the throng was reached, and she stopped in her pilgrimage back home. Her eyes opened, then blinked once in shock. It wasn't her house that she was looking at.

She was in the marketplace. In front of Sandcroft's stall.

A horrible feeling overcame her senses, and she began to shiver. "Why am I here? And why am I walking in?"

She stepped to the entrance and watched as one of the flaps parted to reveal a familiar blue, top-hat-wearing unicorn. He looked directly into Bronze's eyes and a smile split his otherwise neutral features.

"Bronze!" he called out. "How delightful it is to see you! And what a coincidence it is that you're here, you're just the pony I've been wishing to talk to." He stepped to the side and parted one of the tent flaps. He held out an inviting hoof and said, "Won't you come in?" But it wasn't a question.

She found herself nodding and walking in of her own accord. She wasn't surprised, however, to see that the out-of-place room had once again taken over the features of the tent's interior. She sat down at the end of the table, and Sandcroft took the other end.

He put his hooves on the table and spoke. "It has come to my attention recently that you have just made a very great decision. Would you like to tell me a bit about it?" He asked innocently.

"Well," she spoke through gritted teeth, "I have just sent for my old . . . acquaintance, Twilight Sparkle to join Princess Celestia and I for a little get-together. For . . . old times' sake." She found it easy, yet hard to get the words out. She didn't want to tell him, but the words kept springing from her mouth.

He clopped his hooves together. "How splendid! I'm sure you three will have the best time in each others' company." He leaned forward. "I also know that you have a very . . ." He trailed off for a moment, looking for the right word. His face lit up when he thought of it. "A very peculiar reason for sending this invitation. Care to share?"

She resisted for a moment, but she knew that there was no fooling him; besides, he probably knew already. "You want to know why?" her features darkened as she reached the next part, a rolling rage poked its head above the surface of her mind. "I wish to destroy Twilight Sparkle. Celestia needs to see her mistake. My work is the future and she dismissed it and had it eradicated like it was inconsequential! It never should have happened! And now I want to show them how I've bettered, how I've seen the future. How machine will triumph over magic. From the first moment Celestia took me in, my destiny was set. Even if I didn't see it then, I know that my time under her would lead me towards the knowledge that machines will someday overrun the magic that we so treasure these days. I know, because I saw it happen! I saw myself rising above those of Canterlot as the catalyst of a new age! The Age of The Machine!"

She was breathing hard from shouting so much, but she felt lighter for the first time in the past few years. Once the words had begun to flow, she couldn't stop herself. She panted and her heart rate returned to normal. She glared at Sandcroft. He, in turn sat back in the chair and closed his eyes.

Her head filled with memories of the past. She shuddered to remember the bipedal monsters that seemed to bleed ink instead of blood. It was that terrifying dream she had so long ago. She hoped to never go through that again, but the single experience was worth it in her eyes, because it presented to her a vision of the future; a vision that was she was about to view once again.

The first picture was her, obviously, standing at the head of her class receiving a standing ovation for her work on her team's science fair project. It was her first success, and it awoke in her a need to learn more about the mechanical world. It was the first day she counted in which she actually began to dream about the future.

The second picture was the conference in which Princess Celestia took Bronze under her tutelage. It was the happiest day of her life, and the actual moment itself held a special place in her thoughts still. But now, it was hollow; just a bittersweet reminder of what she had, and what she would never get back. But she still made sure to never forget about it.

The third and final picture depicted the invention she had toiled over for so long. It was a beast of mechanics. A power-driven creature that had oil for blood, and gears for organs. Magic graced it with enhanced movement, through the shard of Arcadium given to her by the unicorn sitting opposite her. The Equinis Suit, as she liked to call it, was the first of its kind. A pioneer to pave the road for the industrialists that will come after her. As she said before, it gave her no sadness that she wouldn't be around to see that glorious revolution in which mechanical products became the standard in the lives of all. It was a part to be played, and she filled it perfectly.

Wait, that last thought wasn't hers. "A part to be played? This is no play!" She opened her eyes and looked forward, to meet eyes with the pony that she had been conversing with.

But he wasn't there. Nor was the room that they had been sitting in. Or the whole tent, for that matter. She was sitting, alone, in the dark, in the field of grass that hosted the Farmers' Market each day. She stood up with a start and looked around agitatedly. There was no sign of the mysterious pony.

Bronze gave up looking immediately and decided to just go home. Not trusting the streets, or the dark for that matter, she teleported to her doorstep. She looked up to her door and gasped at what she saw.

A note was stuck to the wood. She pulled it off with her magic and examined it.

Bronze,

You have a big day tommorow. It's best that you get some rest.

And don't worry, I'll be watching.

Below the writing, in place of a signature, was a simple drawn spade.


Lucien entered the Library without knocking. He had his equipment with him; Balance and his backpack. The blade felt warm against his back, almost as if in anticipation of what would happen next. He walked in to see Twilight pacing frantically around the room and Spike trying desperately to calm her down. It wasn't working.

"Why would Princess Celestia call me to Canterlot all of a sudden? Did I do something wrong? Why didn't she invite my friends too? Maybe it's like what happened with the Gala, and I just need to remind her that my friends would like to come too?" She sat down on her haunches hard. "What do I do?!"

Lucien chose this brief moment of silence to intervene. "Twilight, Twilight, what are you going on about?"

She fixed her violet eyes on Lucien. "You got the letter I sent to you, I see. So you should know why I'm so . . . overworked like this." She calmed down a bit at this statement.

He played it up a bit more. "There's no need to overwork yourself," he started, avoiding the word 'overreact' as best as he could. "I'm sure that whatever reason the Princess has for calling you in, it's nothing bad. Now what you need to do now is sit down on the couch, take a few deep breaths, and help me explain the situation to the rest of your friends when they show up, got that?"

She nodded, and got up to go sit down again. Lucien turned his attention to Spike. "Is she always like this?" He asked the purple drake. He just nodded and gave a half-shrug in response.

The door opened, and in walked Rainbow Dash and Rarity. "Hey, Twilight, so I heard we're going on a little roadtrip. Need any help packing?" Rainbow called out, looking for the mare in question.

"Yes, and where might we be staying? I don't believe I can make any hotel reservations on such short notice. Or will the Princess be providing rooms again?" Rarity asked, her eyes searching the room for the lavender unicorn.

Both of their eyes settled on Lucien, his back half-turned to them. Both pairs then widened a bit, one in surprise, and one in wonder.

"Lucien, whatever would you need such a . . . large weapon for? Surely Ponyville can't be that dangerous of a place." Rarity asked him.

Rainbow had zoomed up to him while she was talking, and interrupted excitedly. "Whoa! That thing is so cool! When'd you get it, and where can I get one?" She pelted him with questions while fluttering around, trying to get a better look at Balance.

Lucien chuckled and slid the weapon out of its non-existent scabbard on his back. "Well, to answer Rarity's question, no, Ponyville is not that dangerous of a place, but Equestria can be, so I needed a bit of an upgrade. And, Rainbow Dash..."

She flew up right in his face, wearing a huge, innocent smile. "I forged this sword myself, and it's got a few magical properties that I wouldn't be able to explain to you myself. It's one of a kind, and before you ask, no, I'm not making you one." She tried to interject again, but he held up a hand, silencing her. "As I said, Ponyville isn't that dangerous of a place, so you wouldn't have any need for such a weapon."

She pouted, then flew back to stand next to Rarity. "So now what?" She voiced her next question with a bit more attitude than before.

Lucien gestured to where Twilight sat on the other side of the library. "Well, Twilight over there is doing some breathing exercises, and we're waiting for everyone else to show up."

Rainbow backed off a little, but she was forced forward again when the door opened to reveal a bouncing Pinkie Pie, trotting Applejack, and nervously-flapping Fluttershy. Their faces lit up when they saw Lucien, but then changed when they noticed what he was holding.

Pinkie Pie just was Pinkie Pie, and she materialized in front of Lucien, looking at Balance in curiosity. "Oooh, what's that? Did you make it? Why is it done in two colors? Are those runes drawn on it? Does it have some super-duper awesome magic stuff that you haven't discovered yet? When did you make it? How long 'til you think you can make it work? Can you get me one? Why's Twilight in the corner over there?" She got it all out in one breath somehow.

Lucien held up a finger and took a breath. "It's a sword. Yes. Because I used a few different metals. Yes. Probably. It took the whole day to make it. I have no idea. No way, and she's trying to calm down." Lucien replied without taking a breath either.

Pinkie nodded in understanding, then sped off to go console Twilight. Applejack took her place in front of Lucien. "Ah hope you're right careful with that there weapon, Lucien. Ya could seriously hurt somepony if ya got careless with it." She warned him, then moved on to join her pink, hyperactive friend.

Fluttershy said nothing and simply cast a nervous, distrusting glance at the blade Lucien gripped. He caught on to the look and sheathed the weapon. She relaxed a bit and moved on to talk with Twilight. "Out of sight, out of mind, I guess."

He turned around to face the group of mares. They were each taking turns trying to relax Twilight, with Spike hanging back and packing some bags. "Looks like she's reading pretty far into this invitation. There's gotta be something I can do."

He walked over, and the group hushed as he approached. "Twilight, what's wrong?" He held out his arms.

She glanced up at him. "What's wrong is that the Princess doesn't just do this! She never just invites us to Canterlot with a few hours notice!" She looked around frantically, then her eyes set on one spot and widened. "Here!" Her horn lit up and the letter she received floated into Lucien's face. "Read it."

Dear Twilight,

I will be meeting with an old friend of mine from outside of the province of Equestria tomorrow, and I wish to extend an invitation to you and the girls. The attire for the meeting is casual, and it is expected to take most of the day. I can provide some rooms in the castle if you wish to stay the night.

Your Mentor, Princess Celestia

It dropped to the floor as he finished with it. "Twilight," he started, and she looked up at him, "you can't read into these things so much. It's unhealthy."

Her eyes grew a bit wider. "But . . ."

"All this worrying has to be causing a lot of stress for you, and I'll tell you what we're going to do. Are you listening?"

She nodded.

"Good. What we're going to do is get your bags packed for an overnight trip, get you some sleep, and get us all on a train to Canterlot tomorrow morning. I know that I wasn't really invited, but, honestly, I think you need the support of the seven of us if you're going to make it there without a complete breakdown. Understand?"

She nodded once again.

"Alright. I see that Spike over there has somehow already finished packing your bags," Spike nodded emphatically, "and I'm sure that the rest of the girls, besides Pinkie, need to pack their own bags, am I right?" He looked at the other mares assembled in the room. They all nodded. Even Pinkie.

He returned his attention to Twilight. "So go upstairs, climb into bed, and get a good night's sleep. You'll need it for tomorrow. It sounds like this will be a very nice, relaxing meeting to attend."

He was just saying anything to calm her down at that point. She probably could go on four hours' sleep tomorrow and be fine.

Twilight got up to her hooves unsteadily, and Rainbow Dash and Applejack leaned up on either side of her for support. Once she was up, her eyes swept across the room. They fixed upon the smiling faces of each of her friends, and her eyes began to water.

"I love you guys." She pulled the mares and dragon around her into a hug. Lucien stood on the outside, arms crossed and smiling at the display of affection before him. Then, Applejack looked over and noticed him standing. Before he could react, her orange hoof snagged him and pulled him into the hug.

They broke up after a few moments.

Lucien looked stunned. "I-" he broke off.

"What?" Rainbow asked, smiling. "Never been in a group hug before?"

Lucien's eyes fixed upon the ground. "No," he said finally.

He heard a few gasps silence the room. All was still for a few moments. Then, the clops of soft hooves were heard echoing across the wood floor. They paused before him, then the front hooves raised into the air, and stayed there.

"Well, now you have."

He looked up and saw the face of Twilight looking slightly up at him. She wrapped her forehooves around his body, then turned and motioned for the rest of the girls to join in. They did after a second's hesitation.

"This feels . . . nice. Maybe I could stay here for a while. At least longer than I had planned."


Lucien left after the heartwarming moment they had shared. His night was spent tossing and turning in his sleep. It was almost restless. He was sure that he had woken up a few times during it too. But, nonetheless, he woke up early the morning after feeling somewhat rested.

He got up and stretched, then unzipped his backpack that was sitting at the foot of his bed. He dug for a moment, then pulled out a small wind-up alarm clock. "Don't know why I didn't put this out before."

He used a bit of mana to raise a two-foot high marble nightstand next to his bed. He wound up the clock and placed it there. One quick spell to sense the time of day later and the hand were aligned with the small hand on the seven and the big hand between the four and the five. "I should probably get going."

Lucien walked to the bathroom and magicked some water into the basin. He had taken it from a stream not too far a way in the Everfree. He assumed it was clean and splashed it onto his face.

Now fully awake, he walked back into his room. His sword was mounted on the wall his bed was facing. He grabbed that and his backpack, then walked downstairs to go out the door.


Lucien made it to the train station by what he assumed was seven thirty-five. Ponies were departing for their jobs in different parts of Equestria, and a locomotive was leaving just as Lucien walked up. His eyes swept the depot for a few seconds, then they caught on five familiar mares and a dragon.

He walked up, raising a hand in greeting. "Hey, girls, what's up?"

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, "Waiting for Rarity."

The statement was reason enough for Lucien, and he sat down on a bench next to the six. After a few awkward moments, he asked, "What's taking her so long?"

Dash looked at him, then said, "She's Rarity. No trip isn't worth packing everything she owns into at least two dozen suitcases. She doesn't travel light like the rest of us." She swept a hoof around and Lucien took into account the few items of luggage that sat near them.

"Speaking of stuff to bring on a trip, where's all yours? And where'd your sword go?" Rainbow asked.

Lucien patted his backpack. "All that I'll ever need is in this pack here, and I gave my sword a shoddy Passive Cloaking Spell." At the mention of "spell," Twilight's ears perked up. Lucien continued. "It'll only appear now when I need it."

"Ah, cool."

"Yeah."

Time passed.

A clock in the back of the station ticked.

Somepony coughed.

Fluttershy ruffled a feather.

Lucien couldn't take much more of this without going batshit crazy on everyone there for being so awkward.

It was a good thing, then, that Rarity appeared, pulling a wagon laden with velvet-covered suitcases behind her. The handle was enveloped in magic, and it made Lucien wonder why a card with a handle was even present in Equestria at all, much less Ponyville. "Best not to think about things like that."

"Good morning everyone. I do hope that you all got sufficient amounts of sleep last night and are ready to go see the sights?" Rarity greeted them in her typical fashion.

Twilight glanced up at her from the book she was engrossed in. "Sure Rarity." Her eyes drifted to the suitcase-covered cart behind her and she scowled. "Really? All that for one night in Canterlot?"

Rarity flipped her mane extravagantly and said, "Perfection comes at a price, you know."

Lucien was just about ready to bite the bullet when the train came rolling in. He turned around to glance at the clock in the back. It read seven forty-five. By his calculations, that would mean that they would arrive in Canterlot by about eight-thirty.

They piled onto the train and took their seats.

When they were all settled, Lucien leaned over the aisle a bit and spoke to Twilight, who was still reading her book. "What time are you all supposed to be meeting the Princess?"

The unicorn jerked up a bit, startled from the intrusion. "Most of the Princess' meetings take place at high noon. I expect that lunch will be served there also."

"Cool."

And with that, Lucien leaned back into his booth and promptly shut his eyes. They didn't re-open until the train pulled into the Canterlot station.


They disembarked, making headway for the castle. Strangely enough, there was no escort sent by Princess Celestia to help with their luggage. Lucien simply dismissed it on account of a pony slacking off, but Twilight seemed to be a bit worried about it.

They walked the same path Lucien and Twilight did when they visited Canterlot the first time. They took a winding path up roads and through squares, taking in all the high-reaching towers on the way up. After a few minutes, all pretenses of worry had vanished from any of their minds.

As the group progressed further up the mountain, they laughed more; jokes were told and stories were related to one another. To anypony passing by, it seemed like they had known each other for years.

They were passing into the Farmers' Market just as Lucien was beginning his next tale. "So this one time, me and my buddy Keith-"

"Hey, what's up with this place?" Rainbow Dash interrupted him.

They all looked around. The tents were all set up, but there wasn't a soul in sight. "Hmm. Maybe there was a sale going on in the Garment District?" Applejack suggested.

Lucien's eyes swept over the tented landscape. "Guys, I think something's up." Balance appeared on his back, and he slowly reached up a hand to grab it.

"What makes you think that?" Rainbow Dash asked in a brash tone.

Lucien turned around and gave the pegasus a remarkably blank stare. "My wizard senses were tingling." He turned back around and started moving forward.

Dash huffed and flipped her hair in annoyance.

"You girls wait here, I'm gonna go check through the tents to see if anyone is still there. I'll be right back." He ran forward and disappeared into the mass of canvas.


Everything was going fine on the trip, until they hit the Farmers' Market. But, Twilight did agree with Lucien, something was wrong.

Every time she had been there, even when she was a filly, the marketplace was always crowded with ponies going about their everyday shopping. The smell of freshly baked goods on display, fruits and vegetables up for sale, the occasional cotton candy vendor! It was all so much to see, to hear, to experience! But now, everything was quiet.

There were small bags of popcorn left laying around in various places; on stands and the ground, and kernels of the stuff were waiting to get stepped on. A few spilled drinks dotted the area, and some pink cotton candy could be seen. It looked like the area was abandoned with haste. "Where could all these ponies go so fast? And why?"

Twilight stepped around the debris while contemplating the mystery. "Something drove them out, obviously, but by what, or whom? And where's the guard?"

The others were kicking about, clearly thinking the same thing, when suddenly a loud noise heralded over their ears. It sounded like a loudspeaker crackling to life. They bent their heads down and covered their ears to protect from the head-splitting whine. It seemed to be coming from everywhere at once.

The PA turned on. "Twilight Sparkle."

The lavender mare in question raised her head up. "Here. Who are you, and what do you want? Did you clear out the marketplace?"

"Your questions will be answered when you answer mine." The speaker cut off with a click after the sentence was spoken.

Twilight turned to face her friends. "What's going on? Where did Lucien go?"


He jumped into the tent nearest him when the loudspeaker crackled to life. It was the first instinct he acted on. If there was an adversary that needed defeating, his best option would be to stay hidden as long as possible. It was a lesson that was branded into his mind after his first run through a dungeon. Not a video game dungeon, mind you, but a real one. The kind that has extremely dangerous traps and enemies prowling the corridors.

The loudspeaker spoke. "Twilight Sparkle."

It was a mare's voice, that much he could make out. But he couldn't tell exactly where it was coming from. It was his assumption that the PA system was set up around the square, and the one speaking was miles away.

"Here. Who are you, and what do you want? Did you clear out the marketplace?" Lucien heard Twilight say from a bit of a distance. He had gotten himself pretty far into the tents, so nobody heard the slap of his hand against his forehead.

"Why can't you just follow basic animal instincts and hide when something calls you out like that?! It isn't that hard!" he thought angrily at the lavender mare.

"Your questions will be answered when you answer mine." The loudspeaker turned off with a clicking noise.

The Farmers' Market was silent for a few moment. It was tense as a drawn bowstring; nobody even dared to breathe.

"What's going on, and where's Lucien?" he barely heard Twilight say.

But then, his sensitive ears picked up on a noise. No doubt the others heard it too.

It was a whistling sound. The sound of something soaring through the air . . .

He was hit by a sickening moment of realization.

Lucien sent the tent flying through the air and immediately yelled to the ponies and dragon. "Everyone get down!"

He didn't have time to make sure they did what he ordered. He cast a mana shield around him just as the bomb hit the ground in the center of the grass area.

A small shockwave passed him and his shield, but it didn't shatter. Dust was kicked up by the first impact, but there was no explosion. He peered through the blue glass of the mana shield, but he could see nothing.

A tense minute passed, and Lucien was sure that the bomb was a dud. He dispelled the mana shield and began tracing his way to the impact site.

Tents had been blown over, and some stands were reduced to nothing more than little splinters of wood. A piece of cotton candy blew past him like a tumbleweed, bouncing softly over the folds of canvas. He drew closer to the origin of the blast.

After a few more steps, his foot connected with something solid. "OW! Shit, my toe!"

Lucien still couldn't see the bomb itself. The area was still too choked with dust particles. He decided to remedy that.

Mustering up a very small amount of mana, he created a large gust of wind that swirled around his position, dispelling the dust in the air. As it cleared, he got his first look at the weapon before him.

It was golden-bronze. Its shape was in that of a giant cylinder, with lines marking the length, probably pieces that would splinter off in the blast. It was clearly a bomb, but the shape wouldn't allow for a very damaging explosion. It confused him greatly, but that confusion only grew when the form began to move.

Several of the interlocking pieces shifted, and began to lift, revealing a mass of gears and clockwork on the inside. As the moments passed, he grew more worried, and began to form a sturdier mana shield around the bomb. He started to see a base form under all the gears.

Finally, all the pieces shifted down and gathered along the bottom of the cylinder. The gears fell off and clattered on the floor. He was joined by Twilight and her friends, thankfully unharmed by the shockwave of the device's landing. She approached him just as the the last gear fell off, revealing the bomb itself.

It had the appearance of a giant Tesla Coil, and was made out of tempered steel. The occasional spark was discharged at the top, giving Lucien the impression that it was a slightly malfunctioning prototype.

Then it went off.

A pulse of electricity launched outward from the thing, destroying Lucien's shield immediately. The group gathered before it was sent tumbling backward a few feet, mostly unharmed. He was up on his feet almost immediately, ready to drop the bomb underground in case it set off a second discharge.

He made the motion to sink it, his eyes never leaving the device.

But nothing happened.

He repeated the action. Same result.

His mind was instantly clouded with rage. "WHO THE HELL TURNED OFF MY MAGIC?"

Heads were going to roll, but first he had to make sure everyone else was okay. He looked around, seeing the ponies and dragon standing up slowly, each seemed alright, aside from a few bumps that were sure to bruise.

Twilight was the first up, and it seemed that she was trying to cast a spell. When it didn't work, she shook her head, thinking to clear her horn. When that didn't work, she sat on her haunches and flicked it with her hoof. She winced in a little pain, but it didn't help at all.

The rest of them were finding similar results. Rarity couldn't use magic either, Rainbow Dash couldn't get three feet off the ground, and the earth ponies seemed to be struggling a bit more to move. Their magics have been shut off.

Lucien unsheathed his sword, gripping it tightly. There was an unearthly fire glowing in his eyes, and his nostrils flared. He was pissed. He had no idea how to go about finding who did this, but he would, and when he did-

His thoughts were interrupted when his ears picked up a loud clank from across the area. Then another, and another, the time between them becoming shorter and shorter, until it was a constant din. Something, or someone, was approaching them.

Lucien strained his eyes to see through the bits of dust that were kicked up from the second, magic-numbing explosion. And when he saw what approached, his blood turned to ice-water in his veins.

There was a great mechanical mass walking briskly towards them, taking its time but still moving at a good pace. The walk itself spoke of intimidation. It was the walk of a pony.

It was colored bronze, just like the shell of the bomb that had landed, and gears whirred along the outside at specific joints. Steam blew out of pipes placed on the shoulders, and there was a pressure gauge on its chest. He could see that its steps were so forceful that the ground cracked when it placed a hoof down. Its face was just a blank, polished bronze, and it reflected the desolate scene around it.

Lucien, the mage who faced down adversity on a daily basis, who took on the royal pony sisters without so much as a second thought, was scared.

Without any magic, he was nothing; just another ordinary human being. And, worst of all, he was extremely mortal.

It paused it its hoofsteps, a good twenty feet away from them.

Lucien heard no battle-cry. Rainbow Dash and Applejack just sprinted straight for it, no doubts about whether the metal mass had launched the bomb at them. They reached it, and the machine just stretched a hoof to the side and swatted the two of them, sending them skidding across the grass to the right.

Fluttershy grabbed Spike, the dragon not protesting, and rushed to attend to Dash and AJ. It was just Lucien, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity left at the bomb.

The pink one and the white one shared a look, and stepped forward, teeth bared in fighting stances. The mech-pony lowered mechanically, freezing in position once it was reached.

Then, with a burst of steam from its rear, the metal mass rocketed forward, front hooves extended. It caught the two mares each in the chest, knocking the wind out of them and sending them bouncing backward. They flew by Lucien and Twilight.

The purple unicorn herself, with nothing to really defend herself with, assumed a battle stance anyway, determined not to go down without a fight. She was surprised when Lucien stepped in front of her, sword held out in front menacingly, a look of determination on his face.

The clockwork pony reached a hoof up to its neck and started to twist a gear. With a hiss and the sound of steam escaping, the mask covering its face lifted up to reveal a copper-coated mare. Twilight gasped.

It looked at the human quizzically, ignoring Twilight for the moment being. "And what the hell are you?"

Lucien smiled. "Is that bomb yours?"

Her eyes flickered to the device on the side. "Yeah . . .?"

"And it neutralizes magic?"

"Uh, yeah."

Lucien's eyes closed, and he brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "So," he started, slightly bouncing on his heels, "you just shot that thing over here and set it off?"

"That would be accurate."

"And I suppose that you're here for Twilight as well?"

"Also true."

"Well, my fine friend," he spoke that last word with vehemence, his face contorting into a scowl, "it seems that you have just pissed me off on a great level; actually, a level that has never been attained by anyone else, ever. That's quite an accomplishment, seeing how I've never even hated anybody before. Now, because you've neutralized my magic, and you want to do whatever to Twilight, I guess I'm gonna have to take action."

The pony's face hardened steadily while listening to Lucien's speech, and when he finished, her eyes narrowed. "Go ahead and try. Nopony, or whatever you are, can stop me now."

Lucien didn't even wait to respond. Balance flashed blue and transformed into his chakrams: Harmony. The one in his left hand was flying at the pony's face at a speed that was difficult for the eye to follow. She, he was guessing it was a she, snapped a metal-coated hoof up to block the attack.

Harmony shattered on impact, shocking those who were watching. Then, as another shocking moment, it appeared back in Lucien's hand like nothing had even happened. He stared down at it in wonder. "Damn. That's pretty cool."

He looked back up, and caught a metal hoof in the face. It clanged against his skull and sent him flying across the grass. He skidded to a stop about fifteen feet away. He sat up slowly, seeing spots behind his eyes. "OW."

Lucien rubbed his hand across his face. "That really hurt."

He didn't have much time to contemplate his next action as a small disc of copper embedded itself in the ground before his feet. He scrambled to his feet as another disc whistled by. Time was not being wasted by either party in this fight. He started moving forward slowly, analyzing his enemy as he did so. Twilight had, thankfully, made herself scarce.

"Alright boys, what do we have here?" His eyes swept over the suit, taking in every detail at a rapid pace. Although his magic had been depleted, his wit hadn't. "The armor is strong, probably reinforced multiple times. Weak attacks won't cut it, so Harmony will be ineffective." He swung Balance in a circle, deflecting a disc off to the side. "Chaos will be best to use, but its attacks are gonna take some time to prepare. Balance might be able to create an opportunity for attack, but I'm gonna have time it right."

Lucien nodded, locking in this plan of action. "Alright, what else do we have?" He examined the various gears that whirred and the steam that was being ejected from the pipes along its back. "Does this thing even have a weak point? It's so well made . . . Must have taken years of tempering and adjustments." Despite the fact that this was his enemy, he would regret dicing up such a masterpiece of mechanical engineering. "Wait. The joints." He looked closer at the connections interlocking each piece to allow movement. Small gears were exposed inset within spaces between the plates of metal. "If I can stop those from turning, then she won't have any movement at all." Another disc whizzed by.

He grimaced. Those gears were small. Really small. It would take expert marksmanship to hit them from a distance, and extreme fighting skill to slice at them during combat. "What do we have on weapons?" The discs were being dispensed from a small device that sat on the top of the bronze pony's foreleg. Naturally, it was raised and pointed at Lucien. "Whatever little tricks it has are still hidden up its sleeves. Nothing to report there except for that medieval disc shooter on its foreleg." He would call the pony's attempt at making a wrist-gun cute if he currently wasn't trying to dodge or block projectiles from said weapon.

He switched to Harmony, and flung each chakram at a angle, aiming right for the metal mass. As he predicted, the pony wasn't accommodated to wearing the armor and she tried to block the blades. Lucien watched her forelegs splay out to the sides in a poorly executed blocking motion, and he sprinted forward. With his weapon gone until Harmony hit its target, he could only hope that he timed it well.

Naturally, he was a little bit off. He took off running just a second too late, and Harmony shattered on the armor just as they had before. The pony stumbled, but looked up in time to see a hammer-bearing Lucien sprinting straight for her. She whipped around to try to buck him, but the gears wouldn't turn fast enough.

Lucien brought Chaos back and then swung with all his might. The blow landed solidly with a clang of metal and a red flash. The metal pony was sent skidding off to the right, barely managing to stay on its hooves.

He didn't want to wait for her to get her balance back. He reverted Chaos back to Balance and rushed for the off-balance pony.

She was fixing her weight slowly. Her hoof reached up to twist a knob on her shoulder and flick a pressure gauge lightly. She noticed Lucien blitzing her again, and she readied for impact.

Lucien saw her get ready, and immediately he knew that he blew his chances by not hitting downward with his hammer. In a slight anger, he threw his sword sideways, like a Frisbee, and sent it spiraling towards the metal clad pony. Instead of having it clatter to the ground or deflect sideways like he thought it would, it stuck in a chink in the armor.

He doubled his speed, not believing his luck. The pony, for whatever reason, didn't react like he thought she would. No screaming, no cries of wounded agony, just the ticking of clockwork machinery.

Lucien reached her, and jumped into the air. He pushed his foot right onto the base of the hilt, expecting the sword to go straight through the chink in the armor. Instead, what he got was the feel of kicking a wall. Not anticipating the sudden stop, he dropped to the ground in a heap.

He looked up at the pony, then at the supposed wound that he had left. He was a little surprised to find that there was no wound at all. Apparently, the sword had stuck directly into the metal pauldrons that made up the bulk of the armor. It had barely pierced it.

A metal-clad hoof reared its ugly face into his vision, and he, thinking fast, swept his hand across the grass. He caught something sharp and small, most likely a pebble, and slammed it directly between the gears that allowed foreleg movement on the armor. The hoof stopped in its tracks, and a shout of surprise came from behind the metal mask.

Lucien immediately kicked at the pony's face and grabbed wildly at the hilt of his sword. Instead of sending her flying backward, like he had hoped, he instead slid on his back rapidly away from her. "Right, right. Metal armor makes her a lot heavier than I am. Probably not gonna want to try picking her up."

He hopped back up, not wanting to spend anymore time on the ground. He raised his eyes just in time to see two metal-covered hind legs striking him in the chest. Something cracked, and he stumbled backward. As he tried to raise his sword, a hard hoof caught him in the jaw. He was stunned immediately, almost down for the count.

His vision blurred and doubled. It looked like he was on the ground. Some giant pony-thing was approaching him. He didn't like the giant pony-thing. Then, a purple bolt flew by, smacking the bad pony-thing in the head. It looked to the side for a moment, and another bolt whizzed by. It stomped off in anger, searching for the shooter of the purple bolts.

Lucien felt himself getting picked up. Several strong hooves were pushing at his back, helping him get steady on his feet. "C'mon, Lucien, you've gotta get up," he heard a southern accented voice say.

"Gotta get up."

The fog over his head cleared, and he scrambled to get to his sword that was lying on the ground to his left. His hand closed around the blade and his head shot up, looking for the metal pony and Twilight. The metal pony was easy to find. She was smashing through buildings at the edge of the marketplace, probably the spot where the purple bolts had originated from.

"Wait, purple bolts?" He suddenly realized that that meant.

Lucien looked down at his hand, and he channeled magic into it until it was glowing a violent green. "We're back in business, baby!"

Choosing to not waste any time running to the pony, he instead opted to try something new. He flipped the sword over in his hand, so he was holding it behind his back in a backhand stance.

He then channeled as much mana as possible into it. It wasn't very much, seeing as how his mana stores had just been depleted by the EMP mere minutes ago. His storage hadn't had adequate time to recover yet.

When all his magic energy had been focused in the blade, he yelled, "Hey!" at the metal pony, causing her to turn around. Then he sliced at the air three times, each swing releasing a fast-moving shockwave of energy in the same shape of his slice.

They rocketed through the distance between the adversaries, and struck the metal mass head-on.

The impact flipped her over, and sent her crashing into the building she was tearing apart. Beams crashed and splinters of wood flew through the air. A small cloud of dust billowed out of the hole in the wall that her entry had left.

Lucien walked over and peered inside. He waited patiently for the pony's inevitable return from her position in the building. He wasn't prepared for what happened instead.

The whole front wall he was standing in front of suddenly exploded outward in a massive ball of flame. The force of the explosion sent him flying backwards, ears ringing. Bricks and ash rained down on his position prone on the ground. The last few chunks were striking the earth as he got up again.

"The ground is not soft! God!"

He looked back at the building with bleary eyes that refocused immediately when he spotted the one responsible for the conflagration. The metal pony was stepping out of the wreckage slowly, each hoofstep clanging over the rubble. Her hooves were glowing a fiery red, most likely the reason why the wall was now in pieces all over the place. "She must have made some modification that allowed her to use spells through the armor. That's brilliant." Even if he was a victim, he had to appreciate the feat of magical engineering.

His appreciation quickly soured when she stopped and raised a glowing hoof. Flames began to lick the air above it, and a ball of lava began to form out of the fire. "OH SH-"

The ball was thrown and it exploded right at his feet. The ground sizzled, and flames crackled, consuming the wooden scraps that the collapsed wall left behind. His eyes snapped up to see another one being thrown at him.

It landed behind him to the left. The flames were beginning to spread, and surround him. Another ball blew up and the base of his jeans caught fire. Scrambling, his hands reached down and smothered the flame before it could consume his whole leg.

Once the fire was out, Lucien looked up in a slight panic. The flames had now completely surrounded him. It wasn't a very good situation.

He needed to stall before the pony could get a good shot at him in his stationary position. His magic was not yet strong enough to formulate a way to put out the fire or teleport out. "Who are you!" he called out through the wall of flame.

Lucien ducked, expecting another ball to come crashing down. Nothing happened.

"Who am I?" the mare's voice could be heard over the crackling of the fire. "You may know me as Bronze Gear. But I shouldn't be the one telling you, when there's one who could give me a much better introduction." The flames died down and sputtered out.

He suddenly found himself face-to-face with the metal pony. Her mask had been removed, and some of the armor around the shoulders was shredded or missing completely. He noticed that her left leg, the one that he had jammed, still was out of commission.

A hoof reached out and punched him hard in the chest before grasping his shirt. He was lifted up into the air by the mare's impressive strength. Her horn ignited in a copper glow. His sword clattered to the ground.

"Twilight Sparkle! You know who I am! Come and tell your friend about me." She called out with a maniac's grin.

"Oh shit! I forgot she's here for Twilight!"

Silence blanketed the mostly-empty area for a few moments, then the sounds of hoofsteps could be heard echoing across the place. Lucien was unable to identify the source of them.

"Her name is Bronze Gear. She was Princess Celestia's ex-personal student, and one of the foremost engineering minds of this era." He heard Twilight say somewhere behind him.

"Correct! Now, can you elaborate a bit more on the nature of my visit?" Bronze asked in a sweet voice that betrayed the face of the deranged maniac that Lucien was looking into.

Twilight took a deep breath. "Bronze, as I said, was the Princess' last personal student, and I believe that she is here because she wants to get back at the Princess." Twilight exhaled. "She was dismissed under the reason of a 'dishonorable discharge' given by Princess Celestia. Her experiments on mechanical and biological fusion were inhumane, and she was caught stealing from the classified experimentation files in the Canterlot Castle Private Library. Her work became too violent, unethical, and obsessive for the Princess to continue funding, so they cut her off!" Twilight's voice grew stronger as she spoke, and Bronze's maniacal grin deepened into a scowl.

"They didn't just cut me off, they tried to have me destroyed! And now, I want to show my old teacher the pain of true loss! My work was my child! And every last scrap of it was obliterated! My entire laboratory and workshop in the castle pulverized!" Bronze roared. "My work is the future! I have seen what comes next! The future has been revealed to me and I am its creator!" The crazed mare panted. "Princess Celestia," she spat the words out with vehemence, "believed that my projects were a threat to ponykind, but she knew where they would lead me, and she was afraid to see it! To have the future become the present would topple her throne, and our gracious diarch wouldn't give up her spot above everypony else for anything; even fate! The Revolution of Machine will happen yet! And its beginning won't be delayed by any-"

She was suddenly cut off by a rather large foot to the face. "That's enough out of you!" Lucien shouted while slipping out of his shirt. He fell to the ground and grabbed at Balance.

He switched the blade to Chaos and brought it above his head. He drove it straight down, but it was deflected off of a metal hoof. The hammer smashed into the ground, causing a small crack to appear. He saw Bronze stagger from the effort of the deflection.

He swung the heavy weapon back up, nailing the mare in the side. He didn't stop the process of the swing, and brought it all the way around. Once its motion paused he reverted it back into Balance.

He launched his attack from that side, the blade cutting across the surface of the metal with a screech. His arm went through, and his combo continued with a similar swing from the opposite direction. He paused with his arm extended behind him and his legs slightly spread. Then, he spun around and dragged the blade across the armor twice. He finished the spin gracefully, with his body low to the ground, and Balance held behind his back, the blade perpendicular to the ground. He sliced across two more times, then grabbed the hilt with two hands and brought it upwards from its position down low with as much force as he could muster.

Bronze had no idea what hit her. The sword's vicious attack had launched her backwards and up into the air. She landed on her side on the ground a few seconds after.

Lucien was left holding Balance with its tip resting slightly in the ground, both hands holding onto its hilt with a deathly grip. He walked over to the spot where the pony lay a moment afterward. He was joined there by Twilight and her friends who had stepped out of the shadows after seeing that the danger had dissipated.

They gathered around Bronze in a circle and looked down at her. The armor was shredded completely. The pressure gauges on her shoulder were shattered, and the pipes were belching out small puffs of black smoke. Gears on her belly ticked erratically, some not moving at all. Small amounts of blood dripped out of open gashes in the armor.

She was still conscious despite the bleeding and the fall she had taken. Her eyes were darting around rapidly, and she grunted in exertion, trying to move in the now immobilized armor. Twilight and Lucien gathered in front of her face just as royal guards started to pour in from the rest of the city.

Bronze saw them coming and ceased her struggling. She knew she had been defeated. A sigh could be head from the metal mass at the ponies' feet. "I know that I won't be a part of the age that I've been shown. I know that my time will come before that glorious revolution. But, I am glad to go down as the catalyst of this event. I will not be forgotten." A fire burned fierce in her eyes as Lucien brought the hilt of his sword down on the side of her head, silencing her in unconsciousness.


Several guard members carted Bronze Gear off to the castle, where certain "bad things" would most likely happen to her. Every other guard member that wasn't participating in the escort was being yelled at by Twilight for their late response time. The battle, of course, had barely taken longer than seven minutes, but to Lucien it felt like a few weeks.

Princess Celestia arrived in her carriage with apologies for Luna's absence, and the situation was explained to her and the guard. A scribe took down all that Bronze said on a notepad and then rushed away to get it analyzed. Congratulations were given for taking down Bronze Gear before she could do something even more drastic. A guard member apologized for not noticing what was happening before it was too late, and for not preventing Bronze from attacking in the first place.

"But, there is one more thing I need ask of you." Princess Celestia said at the end of her little appreciation speech. The ponies, dragon, and human all perked up at hearing this. "I wish for you to go to Bronze's house in the Economic District. We believe the rest of her plans were concentrated there, and I want somepony I know I can trust to handle those blueprints." A guard member trotted up, bearing a slip of paper with an address written on it. "This is the address. I suggest you leave immediately."

The group turned to leave, but halted when Princess Celestia said, "Wait, Lucien." The human paused mid-step and turned to face the Princess. Then, to his, and the ponies' surprise, she bowed gracefully. "You have done Equestria a great service. We are in your debt."

The man was stunned. He didn't quite know how to react, so he just said, "I was just trying to protect my friends." The ponies and dragon smiled at that.

Celestia smiled warmly at the show of affection. "Now that that's taken care of, I suggest that you go."

The group set off instantly, not wanting to arrive at an empty house.


Lucien was the first to spot the address on the place, and he rushed to the front door. Not one to waste time, he quickly checked the hinges for signs of forced entry. Finding nothing, he took a step back and kicked with all his might, knocking the door right down. Those in his company gave him a light smattering of applause while he took an over-exaggerated bow.

They stepped inside and took a look around. The home was modest, a bit on the small side, with only one bedroom, one bathroom, and a living room at the entrance. A staircase off to the side led downward into a basement. The ponies began to move forward, but Lucien shot an arm out, stopping them before a single step could be taken.

"We need to check for traps. A smart engineer like Bronze wouldn't leave her place without booby-trapping it in a few places." He had robbed quite a few machinists in his time, and he knew from personal experience how crafty they could get with common household items such as a can of hairspray, duct tape, glue, and a feather duster.

Twilight's horn lit up in a detection spell and she closed her eyes. After a brief moment, she opened them again and shook her head. "I'm actually not picking up any explosives or anything out of the ordinary in the house."

Lucien scratched his chin. Perhaps he was wrong. Oh well.

He stepped boldly forward and walked into the basement, harboring no doubts that Bronze's research would be found down there. He opened the door and then froze in shock.

There was, of course, a forge and a workbench, but other than that, the place of empty. It was devoid of every scrap of paper, or blueprint, or chunk of metal. The ashes of the fire were cold in the furnace.

The ponies, dragon, and human looked around the area for clues. Lucien went straight for the workbench, noticing that something was on it. There was a shattered frame, containing a picture of what appeared to be Bronze Gear and Princess Celestia. Despite it being nearly burnt beyond recognition, he could still make out two bright smiles. It made Lucien think of the relationship he had with his mentor, Draco.

There was something else on the desk. A note. Lucien picked it up and read it.

Bronze,

I have taken the care of removing the contents of your basement workshop and distributed them to the individuals on your list. They also received specific instruction on their care and assembly. Congratulations on your meeting with Twilight Sparkle, I'm glad to see it went well.

There was no signature at the bottom. In slight frustration, Lucien turned it over and scanned the back.

The paper fluttered to the floor, suddenly dropped out of his grasp. It landed with the flip side facing up.

Taking up the whole entire back side was a drawing of a spade.

Author's Note:

Well this certainly took me some time. I apologize for not getting it out sooner, but as you can see, it's a tad longer than other chapter's I've posted in the past. And, you know, life and stuff.

So, the first arc's done now. I plan on beginning my new story and writing another short of this one before moving into arc two. Sound like a plan?

Other things of note:
-The first few chapters are all edited/redone now. You should probably go back and re-read Chapter 1, (the one after the prologue) because it changed drastically.

-This chapter broke ten thousand words. Holy shet, did I really write that much?

-And check this out! It's so cool!

Right?!
It was made by Jess887cp and now I love him. Thanks, man!

-Last thing is that you can now check my progress on each new chapter for my stories by looking beneath my bio on my user page. Percentages are not always accurate, so don't read too much into them.

That's all for now, thanks for reading!
~Sandcroft

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