To Test is Science!

by Crimson Star

All it takes...

Ace sat inside the Sorou-mobile, overlooking the mercenaries’ camp from a high plateau. Rainbow Dash waited impatiently next to him. The pegasus looked over at Ace. “Ugh, Doc, what are we waiting for? We know Spark and Pinkie are down there, so why not just move in and take ‘em down?”

“Patience, Rainbow.” Replied Ace, holding up a hand. “These things take time. No battle plan has ever been successful when the commander’s gone off half-cocked. My forces are moving into position as we speak. As soon as I get the message-” His PDA beeped, prompting Ace to check it. ”Speak of the devil. Let me make an important call real quick, and then, the attack will commence.” He smirked in confidence, before tapping a few buttons. Ace brought out his microphone on the PDA, and spoke into it. “Surgeon to Blueskull, come in. do you read me?”

A voice crackled over the comm. “Loud and clear, Surgeon. I read you five-by-five.”

“Blueskull, you have new orders. Return to base, the mission’s been scrubbed.”

“Alright, I'll get out once I save Spark. I'm not leaving him behind!” Came the reply.

Ace sighed, before speaking again. “Do what you have to, Blueskull, but be advised, the machines are on approach to wipe that base off the map.”

“Understood, I'll stay out of their way. I just hope they realise that I'm not the enemy...”

“Good luck, Blueskull.” Ace cut communications.

Rainbow looked at Ace with a cocked eyebrow. “Was that John?”

Ace smiled, nodding. “No, that was secret agent Blueskull. He’s gonna do everything in his power to bring Spark back.” He pressed a finger up to his lips.

Rainbow crossed her arms, catching on. “He’d better, for both their sakes.” She replied. “I’d hate to get Applejack’s fiancee in trouble.”

Ace frowned. “You have no concept of innuendo, do you?” He sighed, and waved a hand forward. A moment later, an entire column of Tread-bots appeared on the plateau, their battering rams reforming into oversized particle beams. The cannons rotated, targeting various gun emplacements and security towers. As one, the particle cannons opened fire, destroying or heavily damaging their targets in the first salvo. Alarms all over the the mercenary base blared, and the mercs started getting their weapons together.

“Doc, they’re grabbing their weapons.” Rainbow said, watching the battle unfold.

“I know, Rainbow. They’re trying to organize a defense.” Ace smirked. “They won’t be able to, though.” Ace tapped a button on his PDA, and suddenly, inside the camp, dozens of Mine-bots shot out of the ground, immediately opening fire on the mercenaries. The ones with weapons try to return fire, only to be wounded in the onslaught. To make matters worse for the mercs, several Float-bots suddenly appear out of a portal that opens in the sky, followed by the squidlike robotic form of Grav-bot. The gravity around the mercs becomes so great, that all they can do is lay down. The mercs in the immediate area around the entrance and barracks are subdued, and Ace pounded a fist into his palm in triumph. “Victory already, Rainbow.” He announced. “Let me get something, then my main force will move in.” The Sorou-mobile floated off towards a group of bots, and landed in a donut shaped machine. The machine hooked up to the Sorou-mobile, and immediately began floating, as two huge mechanical hands floated up with it. “Loyal Guard, report!”

Pyro-bot, Hydro-bot, and a third bot appeared. The third one looked much like a bot that Ace had previously shown the ponies. These bots reported alongside several other robots, ones who looked like their mass-produced models except were colored red. “We’re moving in.” Ace announced from the seat of his machine. “Secure the prisoners. With any luck, we won’t encounter much resistance.” Ace turned to the new bot. “Dark-bot, you sure you’re ready?”

“I’m ready as I will ever be, Father.” Replied the bot in a dark, metallic voice.

Ace nodded. “Alright.” His machine faced Manglanosa’s camp, and he waved forward. “All forces, move in!” Led by his Loyal Guard, Ace’s legion of machines entered Manglanosa’s camp, encountering little resistance. Rainbow Dash flies up over the prisoners, looking for John or Spark Plug. Suddenly, in the distance, someone shouts “I’m not a merc!” Rainbow looks over, and see John dressed in a mercenary’s uniform, holding up his weapon in a non threatening manner. With him was the unicorn Spark Plug, walking out of one of the structures.

“Spark!” Rainbow Dash tackled the unicorn, giving him the biggest hug she can muster. “I’m glad you’re safe.” She muttered, rubbing her cheek up against his.

Spark Plug smiled. “Did you miss me, Rainbow?” He asked, hugging her back.

John clears his throat, catching the attention of the two ponies. “You can celebrate later, let's just get the fuck out of here!”

Before anyone could respond, the report of a cannon sounded, and the sound of an artillery round broke the air. “Incoming!” Shouted Ace, as a massive hand went up to shield the cockpit of his machine.

Several tanks began pouring out of the garage, as a large explosion rocked Ace’s machine. Several more cannons erupted, and several explosions spelt the end for dozens of unfortunate bots. “Return fire!” Ace ordered, as the ponies and John took cover behind Ace’s bots. The mercs who got taken prisoner took their opportunity to escape their captors, and take up weapons. They opened fire on Ace’s forces, retreating behind their lines.

“Cabal, Where are these reinforcements coming from?” Ace asked, his computer doing rapid calculations.

“Sensors indicate a large complex underneath the base.” A deep voice replied. “Likelihood that both Manglanosa and your wife are somewhere underground is favorable. The corridors are perfect for ambush. Exercise extreme caution.”

“That settles it.” Ace said, as a cutting laser lanced out from his machine, and melted a Leopard I in half, before setting off the gas in the tank in an explosion. “Mine-bots! Begin assaulting the underground complex!” He ordered. The spider-like drones began making their way through the dirt, tunneling straight into the halls.

Choppers were heard hovering overhead, prompting Ace to look up. “Gunships!” He shouted, seeing a flight of Hinds take off from some underground port. The bots barely had time to prepare, as rockets bombarded their position, devastating their forces. “Fall back!” Ace shouted. “Get into more defensible positions!” The bots began running, but they didn’t give much ground, opting to take cover behind the ruins of various mercenary structures.

“We’ve got to keep them busy!” Ace told his Loyal Guard through his radio. “Grav-bot, take your unit, and destroy those choppers! Pyro-bot, Keep those tanks busy until Grav-bot’s unit can join you! Hydro-bot, your unit will render whatever assistance it can to Pyro-bot’s unit!” The machine Ace was piloting landed, and Ace wordlessly instructed a Doc-bot to take the controls. “Dark-bot, you and your unit are coming with me!” He said, pulling out a pair of plasma pistols. “We’re going to get Pinkie back!”

As Ace and Dark-bot descended into the complex through one of the holes dug by his Mine-bots, the attack on Manglanosa’s mercenaries began. The Float-bots charged towards the ‘Copters through one of Grav-bot’s portals, taking the pilots totally by surprise. Pyro-bot and several Tread-bots led an armored assault against the Leopards, attempting to outflank them. Hydro-bot and dozens of Doc-bots ran ground support, guarding the bulky Tread-bots from antitank units. The battle raged on, leaving two ponies and a human huddled behind a Unicorn’s shield, in an attempt to stave off the stray fire.

*****

In a stark contrast to the battle outside, the inside of Manglanosa’s complex was eerily silent. The rumbling of explosions occasionally made it’s presence known, but all in all, it was quiet.

Ace entered a large chamber, and was immediately greeted by the sight of dozens of Mine-bots wrecked and destroyed. Robotic carnage littered the floor, causing him to go on alert. “Be on the ready.” Ace ordered to the bots accompanying him. “Cabal said that it’s easy to get ambushed down here.”

“Query: Master, that should work both ways, should it not?” Asked one of the Doc-bots.

“Yeah, but we don’t have a map to this complex.” Ace replied. “We don’t know what’s-” A shriek echoed through the halls, putting the entire unit on high alert. “Stick together!” Ace exclaimed. “Whatever it is, it’s coming this way.

Suddenly, a horde of rat-like monsters bursted from the halls, snarling, and lashing out at Ace and his robots. Ace wasted no time, letting loose with his plasma pistols, and prompting the rest of his bots to open fire.

Against standard bullets, the creatures might have stood a chance. But with the various heat rays, particle cannons, and plasma lancers forming the bulk of fire coming from Ace’s califax, the creatures were utterly annihilated. Smoldering corpses filled the room, and by the time Ace ordered his unit to hold their fire, the smell of cooked rat weighed heavily in the air. Ace blinked, his attention focused on the rat corpses. “Deebee-ninety-six, scan it.”

As the bot begins to scan the remains of the rat, a hail of gunfire erupts from a dark corridor, instantly peppering the Doc-bot, and taking it offline. “Take cover!” Shouts Ace, as he dives behind a steel crate. The other bots took cover, as the hail of fire ricocheted off their surroundings. The gunfire stopped, and something large, and heavy walked through the door. It looked human, but it was enormous! It could only be described as a horribly mutated man, with only anger in his eyes.

“Take it down!” Ace ordered, firing his pistols in rapid succession. The bigger man obviously still had his intelligence, because he was smart enough to take cover. Manglanosa’s monster hid behind a section of wall that was rapidly disappearing from the onslaught of particle beams and plasma weapons, but as the bots moved in to press their advantage, the monster-man unleashed his attack. He swung a massive fist covered in chitinous armor out from his hiding spot, knocking the heads off several of the bots that got too close. Tanking the fire, he charged into the other bots, making short work of each and every one of them. “Fire! Fire!” Ace shouted, trying to take him down, but seeing that he was continually regenerating his wounds. “Don’t let up!” The monster took notice of Ace amidst the carnage, and leveled it’s fifty caliber machine gun at him. Ace’s life flashed before his eyes, as the monstrous man snarled a smile.

Suddenly, the man was enveloped in a blue mist, to which he shouted in surprise. The mist formed a robotic hand aimed at the monster-man’s face. From the hand, a blast of magic shot forth, utterly annihilating the creature’s head. Dark-bot landed, fully reformed from the mist, and confirmed that his opponent was dead with a few more blasts. The monster didn’t get back up, and all regeneration seemed to had stopped. Ace caught his breath, placing a hand over his heart to confirm it was still beating, as he walked over to Dark-bot. “How did you know magic would work?” He asked.

“I didn’t.” Dark-bot replied. “But I made an educated guess, thinking Dr. Manglanosa made no attempt to research it.” Ace smiled, and was about to reply, when more shots rang out, forcing everyone to take cover. Ace looked, and saw an entire squad of the monster-men coming. He cursed his luck, and got ready to fight, when suddenly, Dark-bot put up a shield, deflecting the bullets. “Father, I’ll hold them off! Go! Find your lover! Save her!” Ace nodded towards him in thanks. Signaling his remaining Doc-bots to follow, Ace runs off, deeper into the complex.

*****

Manglanosa sat at the control room, an annoyed expression on his face. The high pitched voice coming from the pink mare wrapped in ropes next to him did nothing to alleviate this feeling. “...And when she got back down, it was like, ‘woo, woo, woo, woo, woo’ but then she ran into a well washed window. Poor Rainbow Dash broke her leg, but the doctors fixed her right up. They say if she comes in again, she gets a free sundae. Y’know, why don’t they call it a Saturday?”

“SILENCE!” A red-faced Manglanosa shouted, at his wits end with this mare.

“Isn’t it ironic to shout the word ‘silence?’” Pinkie asked in reply.

“Would! You! Please! Shut! Up!” Manglanosa shouted. “How does doutor Sorou get any work done with your vexatious voice!? If you don’t keep those incessant sounds to yourself, I will be forced to put a bullet through your head!”

Pinkie frowned angrily at Manglanosa. “You’re just a big, mean, grumpy pants! I’m not afraid of you! My Acey’s coming for me! And when he gets here, he’s gonna whoop your butt faster than you can say-”

“There you are, Manglanosa!” Ace’s voice rang out from behind. Manglanosa and his soldiers turned around, aiming their weapons at a company of Doc-bots led by Ace. Ace and his bots trained their weapons on Manglanosa and his soldiers.

Pinkie shrugs. “I was gonna say ‘Oh no! Acey! You’re too strong for me to resist,’ but that works, too!” But as she speaks, Manglanosa grabs her, and holds a gun to her head.

“Surrender, doutor! I have your lover!” Manglanosa demanded. Pinkie merely rolled her eyes.

“Well, I’ve got the strangest feeling of Deja vu.” Ace says, as his PDA beeps. Ace took a moment to look at it, and smiled, tapping a few buttons. “Luckily, I've come prepared. I've learned my lesson from the last time I had to deal with a hostage situation.” As he spoke, Slender-bot teleported in, holding two people in his tendrils. “Back from your mission, Slendy?” He asked, the appearance of the bot startling more than a few enemy soldiers.

Manglanosa gasped. “Sofia! Daniel!” He shouted.

The woman and boy in Slender-bot’s grasp looked up at the sound of Manglanosa’s voice. They struggled more, to no avail. “Henrique!” Pleaded the woman. “Save us!”

“Here’s what’s gonna go down.” Ace said, interrupting any more interaction between the two. “You’re going to give me back my wife. What remains of your forces will leave Equestria, and never return. Then, and only then, your wife and son will be returned to you.” Ace smiled at Manglanosa, as if daring him to say ‘no.’ “Unless you wanna find out what happens if you refuse.”

Manglanosa cursed, growling silently in anger. But as he was about to respond, a red beam is shot from a hallway, and a large explosion overtakes the control center, sending the roof to come crashing down. Ace is thrown forward over the railings of his elevated position at the entrance. He comes close to hitting the ground, as black tentacles grasp him, causing him to stop, but not before conking his head, causing him to black out.

Ace wakes up, still in Manglanosa’s control room. He can barely make out the shouts and orders of Manglanosa’s troops, but it sounded like they’re retreating. As the stars clear from his eyes, he looks up to see Slender-bot, trying to ensure his safety. “Where’s...Pinkie?” he muttered, still trying to piece the world together. Slender-bot looks to Ace’s side. Ace follows his gaze, and gasps. “No...” He muttered.

Right beside him was the motionless form of Pinkie Pie. There was a piece of metal sticking out of her neck.

Comments

[GeodesicDragon]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU—

Wait, why am I angry? I know what happens next!

Also: Congrats on getting into the featured box!

[Lucky424]

denver.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/img/mlfw2260-55357_-_animated_cute_fluttershy_reaction_face_wtf.gif
th198.photobucket.com/albums/aa179/godzzillla/Ponies/th_1314404125579.gif
2476080 Yeah, well keep it to yourself!! I have a sniper rifle to go with the rest now!! You know what I'm talking about!!

[Tyrannosaurus_Tux]

Kill em all.

[Louisaro]

Thank you, now I have a severe hate against the Nazi (once again) AND the Pokemon Theme Song who don't want to leave my head
Oh, and also: PINKIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE, WHYYYYYY ?

[TheNextGamer]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO