• Published 23rd Sep 2012
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Decretum - BlackRoseRaven



Realities, worlds, and good and evil collide, and Luna fights one last struggle to save Equestria.

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Her Flawless Design

Chapter Sixty: Her Flawless Design
~BlackRoseRaven

Rarity shivered, and Spike stepped protectively in front of her, half-hugging her close as they both breathed hard and stared at the figures that had just torn their way into the locked down nightclub. One was enormous and intimidating and terribly synthetic... the other, all-too-familiar and yet all-too-alien at the same time.

The larger one was clearly the muscle: it was some kind of golem, built from domed and rounded plates of black alloy metal that were scuffed and scarred here and there, but otherwise polished to perfection. It was enormous, towering over them at perhaps nine feet of height and almost as wide, its arms like tree trunks that ended in massive, complex metal claws, its unguligrade legs nearly as thick and terminating in wide, bladed bases that were reminiscent of sharpened hooves.

Its head was like a rounded helm, and its eyes were glass lenses that burned with horrible, intelligent emerald light: a squared muzzle jutted from its skull, with ant-like mandibles pushed up against either side of its jaw, these decorated with sharp, tooth-like triangles of metal. Even though the golem was made of steel and titanium, it still moved as if breathing... it still seemed to survey them like it was a living thing, not simply some terrible machine.

But still, it was the other figure that scared them more, and not just because of her calm smile: she too stood on her rear legs, her body covered by a pristine, heavy white lab coat that was neatly buttoned from collar to hem, lower hooves just visible beneath the edge of the garment clad in thick black rubber. The same dark material covered her upper limbs to the elbow... and protected not hooves, but hands that were neatly laced together in front of her breast.

Her features were pale white, but beautiful, and her blue eyes shone with unnatural luminescence, half-veiled by a coiling, corkscrewed violet mane parted to one side of her tall ivory horn. It was Rarity... but it was not Rarity. It was... “Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Beauty, the Giver of Life... and I have to say, Brynhild, you are truly living up to your reputation of being an admirable and exceptional warrior. By no means did I expect Breakbeat to be any match for you, but... I did think that she would at least have weakened you a little further than she did.”

Luna snarled at this, leaning forwards and saying sharply: “Thy true trap... I understand, Breakbeat was only a diversion, bait, was-”

“An expendable asset. A pawn, I believe is the term, yes.” Beauty replied kindly, and Scrivener narrowed his eyes as Sleipnir growled low in his throat. “She was a loyal servant, right up until the end. You fought her only a few hours ago, I believe... not nearly long enough for you to have healed or regained your strength, or recovered from the internal injuries, which can be so hard to detect without the proper equipment. So do the intelligent thing, please... come peacefully with me, and no one else has to die. For I assure you that my compatriot here, Number 59133, will be more than a match for your friends, even without my assistance.”

Beauty smiled at them as the group of ponies readied themselves, and then she unlaced her fingers to reach up and slowly brush her mane back... revealing an enormous, Y-shaped scar that marred half her face, hidden only by the fall of her mane as she said softly: “It's useless to try and resist.”

“If thou art so confident, then why hast thou not simply sent thy meddlesome toy against us? Art thou afraid 'tis fragile, that I will break it? I will do my very best not to, thou has my promise on that.” Sleipnir replied ironically, and then he grinned and leaned forwards, adding: “'Twould be such a shame to bring thy toy out to play and not use it, after all!”

Beauty only gave the enormous earth pony a condescending, calm look, and then Rarity asked in a whisper: “What... what happened to you to turn you into such a... a monster...”

Beauty's eyes slowly roved over to Rarity, studying her and Spike silently for a moment before the Clockwork Pony replied quietly, reaching up to touch her own face gently: “Yes. You would think that... you're still young, and still pretty. And you're happy...” Beauty smiled, coldly, cruelly. “You haven't understood yet how easily that's all taken away. You haven't understood yet... what true beauty, true perfection is...”

Beauty turned calmly, bowing her head and closing her eyes as she reached up a gloved hand to stroke slowly along the metallic limb of the golem, as it only continued to look unflinchingly ahead. “True perfection... true beauty... is unchanging, and constant. Does not require food, or nurturing, and is not based around an exterior shell... but the inner workings, the gears and guts and mind... protected by an easily-repaired and potently-powerful exterior. True perfection and beauty comes from within: from a mind and heart and soul filled with the strengths of knowledge, discipline, and dedication. Comes from unflinching will and a readiness to do anything to achieve one's goal. Stands alone... above all else.”

She closed her eyes, then smiled and turned slowly around, saying softly: “Do you understand? That is why I am perfect. That is why I am beautiful. And that is why if you should take my generous offer and surrender, Brynhild, or I will not simply take you away from everything that you care about... I will take everything you care about away from you.”

“Yes, well, I have this awful feeling that should I accept thy so-called 'generosity,' then not only will thou kill me, thy idiot Clockwork King will return to this layer anyway and destroy everything that matters to me... not to mention the rest of reality as we know it.” Luna retorted with disgust, and she leaned forwards aggressively, snapping: “Send thy number... five... whatever against us, I care not! I shall pummel it, and then I shall pummel thou, and then I shall pummel thy entire world!”

“Childish.” Beauty said softly, sounding almost disappointed, and then she stepped calmly backwards and snapped her fingers, the golem's eyes flashing as it stepped forwards and flexed its metallic, blade-like claws. “Kill them all.”

Luna snarled, but before she could step forwards, Sleipnir ran across the dance floor and shouted cheerfully over his shoulder: “Sister, stay back! Thou hast already had thy fun, must I always remind thee to share?”

“Sleipnir, idiot, watch out!” Luna shouted in a strangled voice, as the golem ran suddenly forwards, moving with surprising fluidity for such a bulky, heavy monstrosity. It lashed a claw downwards, but Sleipnir, still facing away, grinned and only ducked his head before he spun around and kicked both rear hooves hard into one of its large knees.

It dented in the metal and made the giant golem twitch, but then it simply reached down, seizing Sleipnir by the body and making him squeak before it flung him savagely at Applejack and Apple Bloom when they began to run forwards. It started to turn its eyes towards Twilight as her horn glowed, but then a bullet from Cowlick's rifle slammed into it, sending up a spray of sparks as it ricocheted off and distracted it before Beauty ordered sharply: “Protocol B, 59133!”

The golem seemed to nod as it stepped back, and the mandibles on either side of its muzzle clicked before they opened, the lower jaw of the golem splitting apart into two sections that slid to either side of its face before it leaned forwards with a loud hiss.

A thick, toxic fog sprayed out of its maw, a noxious cloud filling the air and crawling over the floor towards the ponies as they drew quickly backwards before Cowlick's eyes widened at the sound of several loud clicks even as Sleipnir began to run forwards, shouting: “Wait!”

Sleipnir halted just as a flurry of sparks went up from 59133's jaws, and then the cloud of smog exploded into flames that rolled like an orange-red, all-consuming cloud of hell towards them, Sleipnir cursing in shock at the conflagration before Twilight stepped forwards with a snarl and swung her horn down, and a blast of wind ripped through the nightclub, shredding the slow-burning cloud of poison fire apart before the conflagration dissipated. But 59133 was already charging again... except this time, Sleipnir leapt upwards to meet it, smashing bodily into the golem and knocking it back a step before he landed sideways and dropped his body low, forming a step that Applejack used to leap up and kick off of before she dove straight into 59133's face.

Her front hooves smashed into its forehead and both her powerful rear legs kicked savagely into its chest, denting its body and knocking the golem staggering back another step as gears clanked inside of it. Applejack, meanwhile, was launched safely backwards, Sleipnir nimbly reaching a hoof out to half-catch her and guide her back to the ground before she could fly too far back, as Apple Bloom shot past the two to slam her shoulder into one of the golem's knees.

It whirred again, then backhanded Apple Bloom hard, knocking her flat before it started to raise one enormous metal hoof to stomp the life out of her... but immediately, Sleipnir was there, seizing it firmly by the underside of the bladed hoof and straining his muscles against its weight and synthetic power. Then Cowlick fired another round into its face, seeming to startle the mechanical monster before Sleipnir roared and put his full strength into flinging it backwards, sending it crashing loudly down onto its back.

Then Sleipnir gritted his teeth as he flexed, beginning to drag the golem slowly around in a circle on its back... but before he could, the golem hurriedly drew its leg back, then kicked him savagely off, the blow smashing across the enormous earth pony's face and making Luna snarl, but she only trembled as she stayed back, keeping her unspoken promise to her brother. Besides, she knew he was right: Beauty was staying back as well, only coldly watching. They would need to be ready to deal with her.

Then, before Apple Bloom could run forwards as the golem began to sit up, there was a rattling bang from above before Cowlick shouted: “Get clear, kid!”

Beauty and 59133 both looked up to see Bob above, standing upside down with a slight smile down to them before he twisted a loose bolt one last time, and then one of the enormous spotlights fizzled before the supports holding it in place snapped, and it fell with a screech of metal to smash squarely down on the golem below in a blast of electricity and sound. The golem was knocked flat again as it convulsed once on the ground, and Beauty snarled before 59133 seized the spotlight on top of it and sat hurriedly up, throwing it to the side as it clawed its way back to its metallic hooves.

Loose pieces of armor plating tumbled down off the monster, unmasking heavier, uglier alloy beneath... but also revealing a large cylinder built into a recess on one side of its lower back, the metal plating that had covered it hanging loose. As the golem strode furiously towards the ponies, it didn't notice Spike drawing his sword, or running forwards to sweep the weapon down against it... barely scratching the glass cylinder, but making the golem twitch as if in pain before it half-spun and slapped the dragon across the room and into a metal girder, sword flying from his grip.

He bounced off with a cry of pain, Rarity shrieking as she ran over to him, and the golem's jaws clicked open as it began to advance forwards... before its back arched and it staggered violently as Spike's sword ripped through the fuel cylinder, green fluid bursting out of the tube as the sword glowed violent with telekinesis, Twilight snarling before she shouted as her eyes glowed: “You stay away from them!”

She snapped her horn upwards, sending a blast of fire hammering into the golem's back, and to her shock the fuel immediately burst into white-hot flames, the golem howling and staggering before the leaking cylinder exploded in a blast strong enough to knock the nearby ponies backwards. It stumbled, white fire ripping up from the gaping wound now in its metallic back as flames vomited out of its open jaws its claws and body flexing and flinching as it staggered back and forth across the dance floor and Beauty leaned forwards with a cry of: “No!”

Explosions ripped through the chest of the golem as electricity tore along its body, and then it fell forwards, the behemoth crashing down as a mechanical voice announced in a blur of static: “Catastrophic damage detected. System s-shutdown imminent... forcing recalibration...”

“Override, hibernate and conserve your strength.” Beauty snapped sharply, and then she snarled towards the ponies, reaching up to yank the sleeve of one rubber glove back and unveiling what looked like a keyboard of some kind. “I'll deal with them myself.”

Her gloved fingers moved in a flurry across the keys, and a moment later, a spherical shield burst to life around her... but the ominous glow that came from it made it all too clear it was something different from what Breakbeat had possessed. Something better, no doubt, as Beauty's eyes irises glowed bright blue before sapphire screens formed in the air around her: far more evolved and far more complex than Breakbeat's single set of numbers.

“A shield? Pathetic! I'll deal with this as I deal with all things!” Sleipnir shouted, charging forwards before anyone could stop him, and Beauty grimaced before the enormous, vine-maned pony smashed into the spherical shield around her... then howled in agony as he was held in place as massive arcs and jolts of electricity ripped over his body, sending the earth pony into convulsions before Beauty smiled coldly and held up a hand.

Her horn glowed as she seized him in a tight telekinetic grip, holding him in place for a moment longer against the electrical shield protecting her as he cried out in agony, and then she simply shoved her hand forwards, and Sleipnir was launched across the room as if from a cannon, smashing into the wall and crumpling to the ground. Luna cried out in denial, then snarled furiously over at Beauty as she said coldly: “First rule of design, darling. Always save the best for yourself.”

Cowlick snarled as she brought up her rifle, firing a round towards Beauty, but there was a crackle of electricity, and the bullet was deflected as the Clockwork Pony smiled coldly, striding slowly past the smoldering body of 59133 before Twilight flicked her horn down, unleashing another fireball. It exploded uselessly against the shield, however, just like a blast of lightning from Luna was absorbed, and Beauty laughed coldly before her own horn glowed as she flicked her wrist almost dismissively, and a streak of lightning erupted from her shield, bouncing back and forth across the dance-floor as the ponies broke and ran for cover, Cowlick cursing loudly and Apple Bloom shrieking as the lightning struck her and bounced off, knocking her sprawling in a smoking heap as Applejack hurriedly spun around and leapt in front of her little sister as Beauty's eyes turned to them, smiling cruelly. “Let me make you stronger, by taking away all your flaws. By taking away the ones you love.”

Beauty began to raise her hand... and then Rarity ran forwards, her horn glowing as she lifted several large gemstones from her satchel before flicking her horn almost desperately, flinging them at the Clockwork Pony. Then the ivory unicorn spun around and bolted back for where Spike was kneeling and clutching his ribs, and Beauty's eyes widened in horror as the gemstones were caught in the field of lightning, beginning to vibrate violently as they started to glow with energy absorbed from the shield. “Voltaic topazes!”

Beauty cursed and hurriedly brought up her keypad, hammering wildly at it as the sound of crackling electricity grew, but too late: a moment later, the gemstones exploded in several surprisingly-large blasts of lightning and thunder, Beauty screaming as she was slammed backwards, mane and coat bursting into flames as she grabbed at her face. Without hesitation, Luna leapt forwards, roaring as she focused her magic and Scrivener snarled, pouring as much energy in that single second as he could into her as they both saw the vulnerability.

A blue fireball rocketed forwards and smashed into Beauty as her eyes widened as she shoved a hand out in front of her, as if to try and catch the fireball... and it exploded in a tremendous blast that knocked Beauty skidding violently across the dance floor on her rear hooves, pieces of flaming lab coat flying in all directions as she shrieked in agony. For a moment there was nothing, only silence from the cloud of smoke that had formed... and then, as it dissipated, Beauty strode slowly forwards and tore the remains of the lab coat from her body, and Rarity moaned in horror at the sight.

Her upper body was covered in scars and had a pair of enormous metal plates welded like doors over her chest, and the flesh of her upper limbs ended at the elbow: these were then hooked into metal prosthetic arms, which fed down into complex steel hands... one of which was sparking weakly as the keypad built into the steel arm fizzled and smoldered, the fingers of the other visible through a half-melted rubber glove.

Both her rear legs had been removed completely, and her lower body was held up by a girdle of steel bars and straps that helped support her on the gleaming, skeletal steel limbs she stood on. They were filled with wires and powered by brightly glowing crystal cores, her fake tail switching sharply back and forth: little more than a metal cable, now that all the false violet hair had been burnt away.

“You can't kill me. I am beautiful. I am flawless. I am eternal. And I won't allow the same trick to work on me twice.” Beauty snarled, reaching up to rip the remains of the rubber glove off her other arm and unveiling another keypad, and then she tapped quickly across this before the illusionary images reformed around her, as did a shield... except this one was a thicker, more solid-blue, as she held her arms out and her sapphire eyes glowed, electricity crackling along her body. “Give in to death, and join me: I'll make each and every one of you perfect.”

Scrivener and Luna traded looks, then they both shot forwards, but Beauty snarled and flicked a metal claw out, and a blast of lightning slammed into Scrivener, knocking him flat. Luna hissed in pain but continued her own charge forwards, diving into the shield... but it was like smashing into some kind of thick rubber, the forcefield repelling her before Beauty seized her in a telekinetic hold as her eyes glowed.

Twilight's horn glowed, snapping it upwards, and Beauty was distracted as the ground beneath her shattered: although the spikes of earth that jutted upwards were simply deflected by the rippling shield, the floor moving beneath her still knocked her off balance, and let Luna swing her rear hooves up to brace against the rubbery force-field before she kicked off and flapped her wings, tearing free of Beauty's psychic grip. The Clockwork Pony snarled, then she quickly looked to the side, examining the different images floating around her before she shoved a hand suddenly upwards, and a blast of lightning hammered into Discombobulation, who was still above trying to loosen another set of cables from a spotlight.

He was knocked off the girder he was standing on, tumbling towards the floor before he hurriedly pointed downwards, a rip forming in the ground that he dove straight through, and Beauty gave a look of disgust at this before she flicked a steel hand out to the side, sending a blast of lightning hammering into Applejack when she tried to flank in from the side. The goldenrod mare howled as she was slammed backwards, and then Beauty grinned viciously as she rose her other hand, her horn glowing as above, spotlights and enormous speakers took on a bright glow and began to tremble before the Clockwork Pony swung her claw down.

A hail of heavy metal objects fell as wires tore and supports ripped, and Applejack's eyes went wide before Luna shot forwards and slammed into her, tackling her out of the way. One of the largest objects, some kind of speaker system, crashed down in front of them... and Luna hurriedly threw Applejack towards the edge of the dance floor as she leapt behind this when a blast of lightning shot towards them, the winged unicorn shouting: “Escape!”

“There is no escape, not for any of you!” Beauty shouted, and her metallic hands sparked before she spread her arms out to the side, horn glowing brightly as above, more of the heavy electronics began to shudder violently, electricity tearing back and forth along the girders and supports. “I'll crush you all!'

The objects began to rip themselves free from where they were anchored, launching through the air as ponies fled for cover and tried to find some point of safety, Rarity and Twilight both creating barriers with winces: but then Rarity screamed as a spotlight smashed like a meteor off her shield, barely deflecting it as the magical wall shattered into pieces.

It drew Beauty's attention, and the Clockwork Pony turned sharply towards her before she rose a hand: above, one of the enormous glass reflectors took on a vibrant glow before cracks spread through the sheet of thick glass, and it exploded into a sharp rain that fell like knives towards the unicorn and the dragon. Spike's eyes widened in horror... but then Twilight Sparkle shot forwards, expanding her barrier into a dome that surrounded all three of them, the hail of glass shards bouncing violently off the defensive magic as Beauty said coldly: “You cannot keep this up forever. But I can.”

Then she glanced up sharply as Scrivener ran forwards and smashed against her barrier... but the assault was useless, only knocking the earth pony backwards. It did, at least, distract Beauty, and she turned her attention to the charcoal pony, stomping one metal hoof down into the ground to send out a shockwave he was barely able to jump over before she slapped him backwards with a telekinetic lash.

Luna cursed, looking over the enormous speaker that was still sparking weakly in front of her, before she winced in surprise when Cowlick leapt down towards her, asking grimly: “You think that we can lure that bitch over here while you conjure up the strongest lightning you can?”

“Leave it to Scrivener.” Luna frowned over at Cowlick curiously as the engineer ripped open a panel on the back of the massive speaker, asking sharply: “But why?”

“Trust me.” Cowlick muttered as she reached into the speaker, cursing under her breath before she looked over her shoulder as Apple Bloom joined her, saying curtly: “We gotta work fast.”

Luna stepped out of the way as the two went to work, rewiring the speaker and wincing every now and then as they shocked themselves, and then Cowlick snapped up at the winged unicorn: “Do your job!”

Luna grunted, closing her eyes to send out a mental message and page quickly through her mental library of spells, breathing slowly as she calmed and focused herself... and Scrivener, meanwhile, winced as he quickly ran around the other side of Beauty as she strode slowly after him, trying to keep a medium distance away: not too far she wouldn't be tempted to move forwards, not too close she could seize him with telekinesis, as he leapt back and forth away from objects being flung by her mental powers and evaded blasts of lightning. “Horses of Heaven, you're as bad a shot as you are ugly!”

Beauty snarled at this, flicking her mane before she simply thrusted a palm forwards, and Scrivener cursed as a telekinetic blast hammered into him and knocked him skidding backwards. Beauty followed this up with a swipe of her claw, aiming not at him but above, ripping loose a speaker she hadn't yet torn down... but before it could crush Scrivener, Twilight Sparkle caught it and then snarled with exertion as she snapped her horn to the side, sending it flying into Beauty.

It exploded uselessly against her shield, but Beauty cursed under her breath as she was blinded for a moment by the debris flying around her, before she waved both arms to the side and threw the remains of the speaker away and off her shield... and then Cowlick yelled sharply: “Now, now, now! Hit the speaker, the speaker!”

She and Apple Bloom both leapt backwards, and Luna snarled before she nodded and shoved her horn almost point-blank into the back of the panel, a blast of lightning hammering into the modified innards of the speaker... and there was a loud whistling sound before a shockwave of electromagnetic force blasted Luna backwards as the speaker exploded in a hail of sparks and sound. The shockwave hammered into Beauty as well, and she screamed in agony from where she was standing only ten feet away, her body stiffening and beginning to convulse violently as her shield burst out of existence and electricity ripped up and down her body, the floating images blinking out of sight.

Scrivener felt a rumble of pain through his body, but moreover, he felt Luna's mental roar... and he charged immediately forwards, rearing back and slamming his hooves viciously back and forth across Beauty's face and into her metal-plated chest, knocking her staggering backwards even as her synthetic legs gave squeals of protest, the crystalline core of one exploding in a burst of light and fire that Scrivener felt scorch his own body.

But he didn't care as he continued to forge forwards, putting so much force into each and every blow that it kept his own body upright before he slammed both hooves down into her shoulders, hearing her collarbone snap as he forced her to her knees and dropped forwards, slamming his head once, twice, thrice into hers.

The third blow gave a sickening crack and Scrivener felt something slice against his own skull, felt blood running down his face, but he ignored it as he drew his head back again... and this time when he slammed his skull forwards, he felt something snap before there was a blast of flame and light that knocked him backwards with a howl of pain, grabbing at his face and his eyes. He shoved himself backwards quickly, his vision nothing but blurs for the moment as Luna snarled in shock as she stumbled in mid-charge around the speaker, then looked up in horror as Beauty staggered back to her hooves, dragging herself backwards as blood gushed down her seared features from her shattered horn.

It had broken off near the base to reveal it wasn't a real horn at all: it was an enamel coating, filled with now-broken, sizzling crystal. But still, she was snarling, raising her metal hand as the crystal core glowed visibly, electricity sizzling down her limb...

Twilight Sparkle snapped her horn forwards, and a blast of lightning hammered into Beauty's chest before she could unleash her own attack, knocking her skidding backwards with a scream of agony again, remaining upright only by virtue of the sturdiness of her mechanical legs. Her body sparked, shivers wracking her frame as she looked down and over her shoulder at the fallen golem, blood and drool slowly leaking from her ajar mouth... and then her lips curled into a slow, crazed grin as her eyes glowed, a clawed hand slowly up and seizing into the plating covering her chest.

She clenched her eyes shut, then tore to the side, ripping one of the plates completely free and knocking the other loose and open, before she threw the now-useless hunk of burnt and blackened metal to the ground. It revealed a raw, terrible cavity, where ribs had been cut way and organs had been long ago replaced with synthetic gears and apparatus. Sapphire eyes opened as she reached her claw into her chest, then she gasped as she tore several wires free before clenching them between her metal fingers as her hand sparked and glowed, fusing them together as she whispered: “Beauty is on the inside. I cannot be killed. I will not be killed. I will not be stopped.”

She arched her back, her eyes beginning to glow brighter as she ripped a tube free and jammed it forcefully into another slot in the pulsing purple core that was her heart. Coolant and not-blood gushed down as her claw moved down, grasping a dial as the ponies stared in horror, and then she screamed as she cranked it all the way up, electricity ripping across her body as her limbs spread wide, and one of her hands sparked violently before bursting into flames as holographic images flickered into being around her, displaying vital signals, images of the dancefloor around her, and other information that scrawled by, sizzling with static as the Clockwork Pony rasped: “Let's finish this.”

Scrivener snarled as he picked himself up, his vision returning slowly to normal as Luna stepped up beside him, and the two ran quickly forwards before Beauty lashed her burning claw out: Luna slashed her horn forwards in response, wincing at the sparks of flame and lightning that burst down over her face before she slashed forwards, knocking it wide as Scrivener tried to tackle Beauty backwards and Luna's horn ripped up towards the creature's heart, but Beauty was faster now, slashing Scrivener across the face to knock him staggering into Luna before she swung her burning claw up, and a telekinetic blast slammed into both ponies, knocking them hurtling across the dancefloor.

Twilight Sparkle leapt forwards, spreading her wings, and Beauty threw her head back with a roar as she swung her claws outwards, electricity bursting off her body and ripping through the air around her, the glass panels still above shattering and becoming a swirling cyclone as Twilight screamed, lightning and glass ripping against the violet mare before she was knocked from the air and sent crashing to the ground. Slowly, she began to get up, covered in lacerations and burns, but with only a flick of one half-melted wrist, Beauty sent a broken spotlight rocketing across the ground to crash into her, making her vomit blood before she shivered and fell limp beneath it.

Beauty began forwards as Luna and Scrivener struggled to pick themselves up, and then the Clockwork Pony snarled and seized on the ruins of the speaker nearby, lifting the shattered pieces with telekinesis and flinging them violently into Scrivener. He was knocked sprawling, and Luna staggered stupidly back and forth before Beauty extended a claw towards her and clenched it. Telekinetic bands seized tightly around Luna's body, snapping her ribs and making her gargle as her eyes filled with horror, then she screamed in pain when lightning tore over her frame, her mane sparking violently.

Beauty began to grin, then she cursed as a powerful set of hooves slammed into the back of one knee, knocking her to a kneel before Applejack seized the Clockwork Pony around the neck and threw her hard down on her back. She dropped over her, slamming her hooves back and forth across her face, snarling before she screamed when Beauty seized the goldenrod mare by the face with her smoldering claw, then swung her viciously out to the side to smash her into a girder.

Apple Bloom cried out in shock, and she charged forwards... but Beauty only glared at her, smashing her with a telekinetic attack that knocked her flying backwards into Cowlick. Then the Clockwork Pony forced herself up to its hooves even as blood began to run from her eyes and ears with other fluids, even as her heart began to stutter and electricity jagged twisted along its body before she looked forwards-

A half-melted sword tore up through Beauty's heart, Beauty's core, and she gasped in shock, reaching her claws up to seize Spike's shoulders as the dragon trembled violently, one claw still tightly gripping the hilt of the sword, the other wrapped around his own chest. For a moment, Beauty stared down at him, studying him, even as she trembled violently, and the dragon breathed hard, tears leaking from his eyes as he stared up at her, Rarity beside him...

Beauty staggered backwards, and Spike's hand fell away from the sword. The Clockwork Pony reached slowly up, seizing the handle, pulling it inch-by-inch painfully from her broken core even as she gagged and a violent beeping rose up, the screens around her vanishing but for two: one that showed her spiking, erratic vitals, the other that flashed a single word over and over again: 'Danger!'

The sword fell to the floor, and Beauty followed it a moment later, crashing down on her knees as she grabbed at her heart, then vomited black bile over herself, mixed with coolant and blood. She shivered, then toppled slowly sideways, crashing down as Spike fell heavily beside Rarity, staring weakly at the Clockwork Pony.

The screens flickered out even as Beauty trembled, trying to raise herself... and when she failed to, she forced herself to turn on her stomach, beginning to drag herself slowly across the dance floor, leaving a trail of blood both synthetic and real behind her as Spike and Rarity could only stare in disbelief. Still, she clung to life... still, she forced herself towards some unknown goal, some objective, as she crawled away from them... fleeing? Seeking better ground? Desperate for some final attack?

Luna and Scrivener had hauled themselves to consciousness, watching groggily as Scrivener gasped beneath the wreckage and Luna staggered drunkenly. She snarled after the monster, but didn't have the strength to stop it, as she fell forwards and cursed weakly...

And then she stared, in disbelief, as Beauty reached her metallic, working hand out for 59133, trembling as she seized the charred, damaged metal claw with her own, and a single spark of electricity passed between them, the golem's eyes flicking to life as its smoldering body twitched once on the ground. For a moment, there was silence... and then a surprisingly-soft voice echoed up from the golem's open maw: “You should have... run...”

“I... I won't leave you...” Beauty whispered quietly, and Spike and Rarity could only stare, barely able to believe, barely able to process, as tears of blood spilled down Beauty's cheeks and she repeated gently, reassuringly: “I won't leave you.”

59133 lay for a moment in silence... and then, slowly, his metallic fingers clutched against Beauty's as a shiver passed through the golem, and finally he let out a faint, weak whisper as the light died out of his eyes. And Scrivener felt tears already on his own cheeks as Beauty smiled weakly, looking slowly over her shoulder at Spike and Rarity before she swallowed thickly as

she stood silently, her head bowed, her eyes closed, trembling weakly. What could she do? What could she say? Nothing... she was powerless. She was helpless, and behind her, the Jötnar smiled calmly, coldly.

They stood in her old boutique, which had been restored to its former beauty. Dresses that ranged from beautiful to exquisite, accessories for every mood, gemstones glittering of every shape and size and type, woven expertly into fabric or shaped to be the most gorgeous of accessories all on their own.

And none of it was worth anything. None of it. Here she was, surrounded by beauty, but it was all a cage, it was all worthless, and meaningless, and stupid. And when in rage, she had tried to tear it all down, tried to make this place as ugly as the rest of the world outside her windows was, as ugly and lonely and hopeless and miserable, the moment she had closed her eyes it had all gone back to normal.

She looked silently up at Valthrudnir as he reached a hand down and squeezed her shoulder gently, but she didn't have the strength to fight him. Not literally, not metaphorically, as she trembled weakly and whispered: “Please. Let it end. You destroyed everything I ever cared for... you killed Spike, right in front of me... you... please. Is this punishment, for greed and vanity? Have I really done so much to deserve this much torture, this fate worse than death? Or are you truly just this cruel, this... evil?”

“I'm big on teaching lessons, that's all. Evil is just a matter of perspective, Rarity... besides, I have an offer for you that's going to make everything okay again, just you wait and see.” Valthrudnir said kindly, looking up with a smile, and Rarity laughed weakly before he added softly. “But you're right, you know. All this... this isn't beauty. This is nothing but narcissism and materialism. I mean, if you put a dress on a pony, you're still nothing but an ugly, worthless little pony... you know that, yes?”

“Yes.” Rarity whispered, tears forming in her eyes as she looked silently ahead, and Valthrudnir smiled with mocking kindness as he reached up and traced a finger gently along her cheek.

“Excellent. A step in the right direction. Physical attractiveness, after all, has so many variables... and some are born beautiful, others work for it, but in the end it's a truly unachievable quality, and an unreachable goal. Someone will always find you ugly.” Valthrudnir paused, then he slowly dug two claws into Rarity's cheek, and she gasped, trembling, tears leaking down her face as he tugged and tore downwards, ripping two ugly mars along her features as he dragged his fingers slowly together, then in one long line down the side of her face, smiling mockingly the whole while as he ripped the Y-shaped cut into her features.

Then he flicked his claws off, as Rarity only bowed her head silently, blood and tears leaking down her face as he said softly: “I know. I know. It's not nearly enough pain quite yet, but we'll get there. But do you know what I find truly beautiful, truly immaculate?”

With that, Valthrudnir waved a hand, and Rarity stared as the shop around them melted away and transformed into an enormous, cold room, a massive, steel shutter closed in front of them over an immense window-wall. Steel surgical tables that were polished to a shine rested around the room, each with their own rolling metal cart nearby loaded with tools and equipment.

Rarity swallowed thickly, staring in horror around what could be a torture room or some kind of mass-surgery theater. Steel statues of ponies stood around the room as well... except as Rarity stared at them, she realized they weren't statues. They were moving slowly with easy, calm breaths... and they were glorious, made of silver and platinum, inset with beautiful gemstones and carved with delicate designs...

“Now those are beautiful... and do you know what makes them beautiful? The craft and skill. The fact they all serve and have a purpose, each and every single one of them. The mingling of metal and flesh and magic and science.” Valthrudnir smiled calmly down at her, saying softly: “Hard and ornamented outer shells, over lives that will live... forever. Can you argue they aren't beautiful?”

Rarity swallowed thickly, looking down weakly before Valthrudnir reached up and stroked gently through her mane, adding thoughtfully: “And it provides you with a solution to your own problem, doesn't it?”

Rarity frowned at this, and then Valthrudnir smiled calmly and leaned over, knocking on the shuttered window, and a moment later this slowly rose. Rarity's eyes widened in horror at what was revealed beyond, staring at countless cold coffins she somehow knew were filled with ponies, trapped in half-life, half-death, and more who were clearly dying hung from chains and enormous meathooks... including... “S-S-Spike...”

The lanky dragon looked up weakly, opening his eyes at the sound of her voice, dangling from hooks holding him up by the arms... and Rarity shook her head in denial, moaning in horror as Valthrudnir said softly: “What I'm offering you, Rarity... is the chance to make the world beautiful. Truly beautiful... a beauty which is strong, and dominant, and best of all has purpose to it. A beauty that can be measured and quantified... and I am offering you the chance to not only be beautiful, to make yourself and your friends beautiful... I am offering you the chance to save his life, as well, and to spend that life... all that long, long life... with him.”

Valthrudnir smiled calmly over at her, and Rarity mouthed wordlessly, shivering, staring in horror before she whispered: “I... I don't know how... how this... I...”

“You're a designer, sweet Rarity. I'm simply asking for you to turn your artistic inspiration to helping me with my little projects here and there... don't worry, I'll give you all the tools, all the knowledge, everything you'll ever need and more.” Valthrudnir said kindly, leaning over her with a smile as he let one hand rest on her back, gesturing with the other towards the glass wall and the awful storehouse of ponies beyond. “You wanted meaning as well as beauty? There's nothing more meaningful, more beautiful, than this.”

Rarity was silent, shivering weakly as she stared through the glass... and then she clenched her eyes shut before nodding silently, and Valthrudnir smiled calmly before he seized her suddenly by the back of the neck. Through the window, Spike gave a weak cry as Valthrudnir threw the unicorn back onto a metal table, and Rarity hit it with a grunt before the beautiful statues surrounded her, seizing her limbs, binding her down, as Valthrudnir said kindly as he walked away : “Out with the old, in with the new...”

Rarity screamed, and Spike howled in misery as he was forced to watch every moment, unable to turn away, to even close his eyes as Rarity was torn into, modified, transformed in front of him... until finally, her screaming stopped, and the unicorn only lay on the bloody table with the silent statues all around her, looking almost peaceful despite the terrible things done to her body, as the Y-shaped scar on her face gleamed.

Slowly, she sat up, opening her glowing eyes as she looked up at Spike... and she murmured softly: “Dragons live such long lives... and I knew I had to save him. I knew I couldn't leave him alone, for all that time, in that awful place. So I did the only thing I could to try and help them all...”

Beauty smiled faintly, standing up and stepping over to the window, reaching out to press a metal hand against it... as on the other side, a large, metal claw pressed back, glowing emerald eyes gazing down at her silently, before

her head lowered, and the light in her eyes died out. And for a few moments, there was only hollow silence before Scrivener realized that corruption was leaking from his eyes, from his mouth, from his nose...

But it didn't feel important. His mind had gone numb, and he couldn't feel Luna, but he couldn't feel the pain, either, as he coughed several times and dark ooze splattered out of his jaws. Trembles ran through his body as he continued to stare upwards, watching as Beauty's body sizzled quietly before skin and flesh crackled and melted away to nothingness, and metal warped and cracked, becoming rusted and broken, as he whispered: “Wait... don't go...”

Scrivener tried to drag himself forwards, the remains of the speaker shifting, clawing against him before he managed to rip himself free from the wreckage, and Luna looked at him with shock even as she twitched as several rips formed over her own side. The charcoal stallion staggered drunkenly forwards, stumbling around Rarity and Spike as they continued to clutch each other tightly, and then the earth pony shivered before he fell forwards in a sprawl, gagging and coughing more poisonous mire as Luna hurried forwards, saying weakly: “Scrivy, Scrivy, 'tis... 'tis too late, Scrivener, thou... thou must rest...”

But Scrivener could barely hear her as he continued to drag himself slowly towards the broken remains of Beauty and 59133, still seeing the faintest outline of energy around their corpses as he rasped: “Wait... wait for me... y-you have to answer me...”

The bodies flashed in his vision, going from piles of scrap to Rarity and Spike, laying quietly, peacefully together, claw gently grasping an extended hoof... and then the eyes of the corpses both opened, staring at Scrivener, and the earth pony stared back as his mouth worked weakly before he spasmed when a hoof touched his back, staring wildly over his shoulder and yelling at the sight of Nightmare Moon, yet not Nightmare Moon, something greater and more terrible than Nightmare Moon could ever be... but a moment later, he realized it was only Luna as he clenched his eyes tightly shut, shivers running along his spine as he whispered: “I... I thought... I... I...”

“Shush, shush, 'tis... 'tis okay.” Luna shook her head, breathing hard, but reassured despite the fact it looked like Scrivener was about to have a crying fit: it at least meant that whatever madness had taken him over was gone. “Ponies... everyone else, where and how is everyone?”

“Twilight's alive... weak, but alive!” Cowlick called sharply, and Apple Bloom was already helping a groggy AJ slowly up. Then Luna's eyes snapped towards Sleipnir... but Greece was over by the earth pony, and Luna half-cursed, half-thanked the dwarf in her mind before she glared over at the sight of the sheriff, standing safely off the dance floor and staring with horror still at what had just happened.

She snarled at him... but her rage was washed away by concern as Scrivener leaned forwards and vomited black mire, Luna feel a weak pulse tear through her own mind before she whispered: “Oh no. Perhaps the absence of pain is... is a sign of things worsening, not getting better... Scrivy, Scrivy, we must get thee to Celestia, as soon as possible, I...”

“No... no...” Scrivener whispered, shaking his head weakly and closing his eyes tightly as a tremble raced through him. “I'm fine... c-check the others... make... sure...”

Then the charcoal stallion groaned in pain, shivering as he leaned forwards, almost dropping his face against the black bile that he had just thrown up before he forced himself to fall to the side instead of forwards, shivers that were almost convulsions ripping through his body as he whispered: “I'll be fine. Make sure Twilight is... okay...”

“Damn thou, Scrivener Blooms, I am thy wife... where is thy worry for me?” But Luna was smiling weakly all the same, leaning down and nuzzling his neck silently, heedless of the dark muck that splattered against her features.

“I know... and that's why... I'm going to be okay. Why I know that... I'll get through this.” Scrivener closed his eyes, smiling faintly. “I gotta take care of myself to take care of you. Now... go... get Twilight up. Tell her... she's an idiot.”

“Of course.” Luna said softly, studying him for a moment before she reached up and quietly brushed some of the muck from her muzzle, and then she shook her head and turned around, heading quietly over towards where Cowlick was carefully helping Twilight slowly, dazedly crawl to her hooves as she breathed hard, blood dripping slowly from her cuts and lacerations as the sapphire winged unicorn shook her head slowly.

She approached, nudging Twilight gently with her muzzle as Cowlick stepped back, and the violet mare winced a little and wrinkled her own muzzle a bit, glancing down at the smear of black mire on her cheek. She reached up and rubbed at it, and Cowlick looked meditative before she began to open her mouth, but then winced and hurriedly closed it when Luna gave her a flat look. “Speak not, foul creature.”

“Then may I say 'tis so nice to see thou art passing on such pretty kisses from one mare to the next?” Sleipnir asked clearly, and Luna smiled over her shoulder at her brother with relief as he approached on wobbly legs, shaking his head slowly and saying wryly: “Damnable unicorns. Magic and cruelty, thou art all great cheaters.”

“There is no cheating in cruelty, Sleipnir, I have witnessed thou be plenty evil thyself.” Luna said mildly, and then she shook her head slowly and added softly, as her eyes roved to dazed, still-stunned-looking Twilight: “And oh. Scrivener Blooms wished for me to inform thee that thou art an idiot. For once, Twilight Sparkle, I wholeheartedly agree with my husband, and not only that, I wish to further impress upon thee that thou art not like us: thou art not a pony whom Equestria can stand to lose.”

“Do not speak in such a way, little sister, thou and Scrivener have thy place and importance too.” Sleipnir said gently, and Luna grumbled a bit as she dropped her head forwards, before her eyes slid closed when Twilight silently dropped her own head against Luna's. And for a few moments, there was only silence as Apple Bloom and Applejack approached, before Sleipnir hesitated and looked over his shoulder at Scrivener, asking quietly: “And thy husband...”

Luna smiled faintly, but it was Twilight who answered, saying quietly: “Scrivy's fine. He's... he's okay. He just needs a few minutes to calm down, find himself, and get himself back together. But he's okay, right, Luna?”

The sapphire winged unicorn looked up with faint amusement, and then she nodded slowly before murmuring: “I thought thou did not want him as a husband?”

“I... I don't. But you can't always be trusted when it comes to Scrivy, Luna... you and he always cover each other's flanks when you do something dumb, after all.” Twilight murmured back, and Luna grunted in agreement as their heads continued to rest together, before they both sighed quietly and pulled apart, their eyes studying one-another for a few moments.

Then Luna reached up and gently tapped Twilight's collar, and Twilight smiled after a moment before she glanced down as the sapphire mare turned away, looking up at Sleipnir and asking softly: “Art thou healthy enough to leave and fetch Pinkamena? Letters can and will be delayed before they reach Celestia if she is in meeting, but Pinkamena can go straight to her and she will clearly understand the importance of what has happened if...”

“Telling my wife she can show up in the middle of the Royal Court and scare everypony? Well now, little sister, I might just get afternoon delight thanks to this request!” Sleipnir said cheerfully, and Luna sighed and glowered at him before he looked thoughtfully over his shoulder, adding mildly: “Shall I escort the sheriff out? He seems to not have yet processed that the battle has ended and there is no longer any need to fear.”

“There is much need to fear, Sleipnir.” Luna grumbled, and when Sleipnir gave her an amused look, she huffed and grumbled under her breath: “The damnable idiot did nothing to help, and even young Apple Bloom fought bravely, admirably, despite this being her first true battle...” Luna hesitated, looking thoughtfully towards the mare as she looked up with a faint smile. “Aye. I have underestimated thee in training, Apple Bloom. I shall endeavor to train thee harder now.”

Apple Bloom half-laughed, half-winced, and Applejack gazed up even as her hindquarters twitched awkwardly. Luna frowned towards her, but the goldenrod mare only shook her head, rubbing at her back with a grimace and muttering: “Ain't nothin' serious. Just a slow ache... probably be twitchy for a while. I... Rarity, Spike, are you two okay?”

Spike only nodded silently from where he was curled with Rarity pressed against him, her eyes closed before the unicorn whispered quietly: “We're... we're just shaken. And I know now that... I need to work harder. I need to do more... anything and everything I can, to put a stop to Clockwork World. Maybe I can't offer much but...”

“You offer a lot, Rarity, and you're already doing plenty. Listen... you're freaked right now, and understandably so.” Cowlick said quietly, looking at her with a bit of a smile as she walked over and reached a hoof out, gently touching the ivory unicorn's shoulder. “You and Spike... why don't you two come with me? We got a job to do here, after all, we'll go over to the staff room, you can tell me about the gemstones we found, we'll get a little drunk because it's past noon somewhere in this big wide world. Sound good?”

Rarity smiled faintly at this, and Cowlick glanced over her shoulder at Luna, who nodded as Sleipnir paused, watching as Spike and Rarity stood slowly and let the engineer lead them away. Apple Bloom softened as Applejack laughed a little despite herself, and the goldenrod mare reached up and adjusted her hat as she murmured: “Way better with folks then we give her credit for, ain't she?”

“Only when she wants to be.” Apple Bloom replied with a bit of a smile, and then she glanced up at her big sister as Applejack twitched again, saying quietly: “We need to get you looked at too.”

“I'm fine, I'm fine.” Applejack responded quickly, shaking her head briskly before she turned to look at Scrivener, hesitating a bit before she strode away from the group and towards the charcoal stallion. Luna looked after her almost worriedly, but then Twilight shivered and nearly fell over, and the sapphire mare instead turned her gaze to the violet mare, sighing softly as her horn glowed and she focused her attention to at least healing the lacerations to prevent any further blood loss.

Scrivener was sitting over the golem's body, studying it quietly: he barely noticed when Applejack sat beside him in silence, or when Sleipnir passed, patting him gently on the shoulder. What startled him out of his reverie was the sound of the enormous, vine-maned stallion shouting loudly and cheerfully at the sheriff: “The time for fearing and peeing thyself is over, so why does thou still have such traces of yellow all upon thy legs and floor beneath thy hooves?”

The sheriff began to hurriedly babble excuses and apologies, but Scrivener only looked down with a faint smile: he was a small town police officer, and this wasn't a job for the police, after all. As he looked down quietly at the golem, he reached out and touched its chest, before Applejack said quietly: “I'm sorry we didn't help more. Seems like you and Luna and Twilight do most of the work... well, Sleipnir seems to do plenty too, when he doesn't get himself knocked out. And Pinkamena...”

“You see a pattern developing?” Scrivener smiled despite himself over at Applejack, and then he slowly returned his eyes to the golem, pressing down against its scarred, burnt metal chest as he said quietly: “It's monsters who make the best monster slayers, Applejack. But this is me in the self-pitying, self-loathing phase that tends to follow murdering an enemy I'm probably letting myself feel way too much for.”

Applejack looked at him quietly, and then she leaned over and nudged him gently with her shoulder, saying softly: “I ain't gonna say that I... understand a whole lot about how things work with you and Luna, Scrivy. Or you and Luna and Twilight, even if... I've come to understand a lot of things over these years that I never thought I could.

“But I also know that you and Luna are honorable, trustworthy ponies. That you both strive to do everything you can for the ponies around you, and... that you always put everypony else first.” She smiled a bit, adding quietly: “Even if you two don't always do it for the right reasons.”

Scrivener glanced up in surprise at this, smiling a little in return despite himself as Applejack said softly: “Been there, after all. I know what it's like to feel responsible for others and every little thing... and to feel less than worthless when you fail. Just as I know what it's like to cling to the most important thing in your life so tight and so hard and so much that... you end up almost screwing everything up.

“The real difference between you and me, though, is that... I sure as hell got depressed, and angry, and upset, and did some things I probably shouldn't have... but I gave into the fear. But for you it ain't fear, is it? It's... I wanna say despair, but it's something even more than that, ain't it?” Applejack asked quietly, looking at him for a few moments, and Scrivener nodded slowly as he returned his eyes to the fallen golem. “We're all screwed up, ain't we?”

“And that's why we're the ones so hellbent on protecting the world around us.” Scrivener replied softly, and he drew his eyes back up to hers with another slow nod. “Because pain can teach; because suffering and choosing to learn from it can give us strength and empathy and... help us to understand and feel good about what we're doing in life, weird as that sounds.”

Applejack looked at him for a moment, then she finally gave him an amused look and asked: “You don't really believe in people doing the right thing just because it's the right thing to do, do you?”

“On the contrary, I believe that's the only reason anypony should need to do anything... because it's the right thing to do.” Scrivener gave her a quietly entertained look. “But I'm also a cynical bastard and know that sometimes people need an extra push or two in the right direction. Still though... believing that people, ponies, can learn from bad things to do good... that's good, right?”

Applejack only shook her head and laughed, then she sat back and murmured: “You got some weird thoughts runnin' through your head, Scrivener. Hard to say if they're good or bad when you stop and really think about 'em, though.”

Scrivener smiled wryly at this, looking back down at the golem and replying quietly: “Then they're probably bad. Or most ponies will assume they're bad, anyway. People don't like to think, especially not about the fact that a lot of us will never really know what life is like behind closed doors for someone else. I wish sometimes... everyone could see everyone else's true face, what they're really like, that all our deepest, darkest secrets were exposed to the light. Both because I'm curious, and because if you could get people to just try and understand each other for five minutes when they're all that vulnerable, that exposed, that forced to show trust... I think we'd end up with a lot less hatred in the world.”

“Or a lot of dead ponies.” Applejack remarked, and Scrivener grunted as Apple Bloom approached as well, the stallion glancing back between the siblings... and then he grimaced as his vision flared, showing not just glowing auras, but how they were both different... and yet so much the same, too, whether they knew it or not. They shared details large and small, even with how many things about them were almost opposites... and then he hurriedly turned his eyes back to the golem, and Applejack asked abruptly: “What about this thing has you so fascinated?”

“I don't entirely know. But it feels like he still has something to tell me.” Scrivener said finally, and then he glanced over at Apple Bloom, asking quietly: “Can you help me open it up?”

Apple Bloom hesitantly nodded, then she looked up and called to the dwarf who was lingering awkwardly at the edge of the dance floor: “Greece! Need your help here, I ain't so good at stuff like this!”

Greece winced but came quickly forwards, looking both relieved and a little anxious... but without looking up, Scrivener said mildly as the Nibelung drew in close: “Luna and I already know that you and your Architect brethren aren't allowed to fight. She's probably going to yell at you later anyway but... she'll yell at you less if you help open this thing up and figure out why I keep... being drawn to it.”

“I figured, I figured. The fancy-corn is fond of getting things both ways.” Greece said quietly, and then he smiled awkwardly at the ponies, but both Applejack and Apple Bloom had already returned their attention to the armored body, and Greece turned his own eyes downwards as he said finally: “This isn't just your run-of-the-mill golem, though... apart from the... obvious technology that's been employed and this heavy alloy plating... there was a living core. Necromancy as well as alchemy...”

Greece leaned down as he spoke, running his fingers quickly over the plating as the pones watched, and then he nodded suddenly before tapping on the armor and muttering: “We can't open this here. It's melted shut, but I think that we have the tools to crack this shell open in one of the labs. There's definitely a maintenance hatch here, though, for lack of a better word, but... I doubt what we find will be pretty.”

“Please.” Scrivener said quietly, glancing up... and Greece hesitated, then he nodded and sighed, turning to go before he frowned when the earth pony turned and whistled loudly: “Luna!”

Luna looked up in surprise, then she frowned across at Scrivener as he looked at her, trying to force back his visions even as corruption still dripped from him... and finally, the winged unicorn sighed quietly as Twilight looked up nervously. “Very well. We shall drag the damnable thing across Ponyville, then, but... then thou art going to lay down and permit us to examine thee, Scrivener Blooms, is this understood?”

“We can all get some rest once this thing's opened up.” Scrivener replied quietly, and ponies looked at him nervously before Scrivener closed his eyes, saying softly: “Please. Trust me on this one.”

“I do. Always.” Luna answered softly, and then she sighed a little as she strode forwards, smiling faintly despite herself as she met his eyes: and even though their link was clogged with static, she could still tell what he felt, still felt the importance he was putting on this strange metal thing in his thoughts, and knew that he saw and felt her concern for him, too.

And even as she began to conjure up a harness of vines so they could drag this enormous thing across Ponyville, Luna hoped two things: that it did indeed give answers... and that none of these answers would lead to any further pain.

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