Archangel's New Assignment

by SabreXio

To Aid a Timberwolf

THUNK THUNK THUNK THUNK
"Dammit" I exclaimed after my most recent attempt "I'm a big targeting computer; why can't I ever hit the target?"

"Captain, remember that your systems were not intended to incorporate thrown weapons" Guardian reminded me as I approached the tree I was using as a target. I had decided that I wanted to make the removable gears on my hands and shoulders into shuriken-like weapons, but I was failing spectacularly at it so far.

"Yeah, I know" I groaned as I wrenched the five pointed gears from the tree trunk "But these make excellent back-up weapons" I returned to my throwing position.

"Why do I need to do this in the Everfree again?" I asked my assistant as I threw one gear, missing the mark by about six inches.
"Because the mayor of Ponyville has forbidden you from testing weapons in the town after the incident with your rocket-propelled chainsaw" the drone said.

"Oh come on" I said as I threw another gear missing again "it's not like it hit anyone"

"Captain, it nearly sawed a house in half" Guardian shot back

"Yeah but..." I started to argue but then stopped. I realized my argument would be invalid "Never mind"
I threw the last two gears I had and finally hit the middle of the tree.

"YES, got it" I exclaimed joyously

"Congratulations Captain" Guardian's helicopter said "it only took you a few dozen tries"
I glared at the Voyeur-class drone.

"Shut up" I snapped back as I retrieved my gears "I don't see you doing any better"
That's when I heard an odd noise.

"G, did you hear that?" I asked as I replaced the gears into their housings
The drone perked up.
"Yes, I believe I did hear a weak whimpering sound"

"Let's check it out" I said as I began walking to the source of the sound. As the two of us traversed the Everfree, we kept hearing the whimpering sound. I was almost certain that it was coming from a wounded animal.

"Captain, I have located the source" Guardian reported, prompting me to join the floating canister

"That's a Timberwolf" I said as I approached the canine form "he definitely looks hurt"
The wooden wolf was laying on its side in a small clearing, damage evident on its side. It had large claw marks in its side and appeared to be missing part of its front right leg. As I approached the dog, I could see it was scared, but I could also see a particular energy in its eyes, something I couldn't quite describe.

"It's ok" I said softly trying to calm the wolf "I'm not going to hurt you"

"Orders sir?" Guardian asked

"Go get Fluttershy, she'll know what to do"

"Yes sir" the obedient chopper answered as he flew off toward Fluttershy's cottage. I returned my attention to the Timberwolf.

"Don't worry, it's gonna be ok" I said calmly as I knelt down next to its head.
It whimpered in response and tried to nuzzle my leg. As I looked over the wolf, I began to notice some traits that differed from the Timberwolves I had seen before. He appeared to be somewhat smaller and lacked the knotholes and large twigs that most of them had. His eyes were the same color but instead of the entire eyehole glowing green, only a small pupil-like spot existed, and it was locked on me. His teeth and claws were also shorter and more finely shaped.

"Captain, I have located Ms. Shy and are en route to your position" Guardian reported via radio

"Acknowledged" I replied returning my attention to the Timberwolf "Don't worry little buddy, help's on the way"
He whimpered again. I tried to pet the dog's side but he pulled away, apparently they had feeling in their solid wood bodies.
"Sorry" I apologized instead moving to pet his head, which it liked. I then heard a rustling behind me. Shifting my weight, I turned around, drew a shuri-gear and readied to defend.

"We got here as fast as we...eep" Fluttershy began to say but immediately squealed and jumped behind a tree when she saw me.

"Sorry Fluttershy" I said as I replaced the weapon. She slowly crept out from behind the tree.

"Ms. Shy" Guardian said trying to calm the Pegasus "This is the Timberwolf that I informed you of"
Fluttershy walked up next to me and began talking to the wounded wolf
"Oh, you poor thing" she cooed softly "don't you worry; we're gonna get you all fixed up"

"Normally, I would have brought him to you but I didn't want to move him and risk further damage" I said

"You didn't do this" Fluttershy asked pointedly with a piercing gaze "Did you?"

"What? No!" I replied defensively. She never really looked at me the same way since I helped her stop those weird creatures that were hurting her animals. She returned her gaze back to the wolf.

"He looks stable enough to move" Fluttershy said "Let's get him back to my cottage"

"Roger that" I said as I moved to the wolf's side "Don't worry little buddy; Fluttershy's the best medic I know"
I carefully slid my arms under the wolf's front shoulders and rear flanks, trying not to disrupt him too much. I lifted him up as I stood and turned. We all walked in silence, reaching Fluttershy's house quickly.

"Lay him on the couch" Fluttershy ordered as we entered her cozy little home "I'll take a better look at him"
I did as I was told, retreating as the medic pony began her diagnosis.

"Ok first I'm going to need to fix his leg, but I need some wood pieces shaped like his leg.

I tossed my axe into the air and caught it
"On it, Doc" I said as I opened the door "Guardian, help Fluttershy. Do whatever she tells you to do"

The drone bobbed in the air as though nodding
"I am at your command, Ms. Shy" Guardian said

I made my way to the edge of the Everfree, which wasn't far. I radioed my assistant.

"Guardian, I need a scan of the wolf's leg"

"Transmitting now" he replied, instantly flooding my optic with digital blueprints of the Timberwolf's leg. I began chopping apart branches and small trees, trying to find parts roughly the size I needed. A few minutes later, I had all the parts I needed, now I just needed to refine their shape. I returned to Fluttershy's house with my stack of wood. One at a time, I began whittling the logs and sticks down with my axe blade. As efficiently as I could, I shaped the upper leg, followed by the lower leg and paw, and finally the claws. Satisfied, I took the parts into the cottage along with some of the scraps, thinking that was what the Timberwolf might eat.

"Ok Fluttershy, I think I've got the parts" I said as I entered noticing Guardian was gone "Where's G?"

"I sent him to get Twilight" Fluttershy said "We need her to attach the parts"
I set the parts on the floor and walked over to the wolf.

"How's it goin' buddy?" I asked petting his head "I brought ya something"
I held the wood scrap near the canine's nose. He took a few tentative sniffs before cautiously taking the shard in his jaws and eating it. Smiling, I continued petting the wounded creature. I felt a certain kinship with the little wolf: he was hurt bad, left for dead and now was being fixed up with different parts. I also noticed Fluttershy was staring at me.

"What?" I asked

"I'm so sorry" she quickly said hiding her eyes behind her mane "I've just never seen you like this"

"Like what?" I asked scratching the wolf under the chin

"Well...you never seemed like the kind to take...pity" she said softly, scared how I would react. I looked back at the wolf.

"Yeah" I said "I never was. But, I've learned a few things from some good friends of mine"
Fluttershy cocked her head sideways.
"Who would that be?" she asked

"Well, you of course" I said "Who else but the Element of Kindness could turn a soldier into a softy?"

"Oh, it's not all that" she replied modestly "I just do what I can"

"We're here Fluttershy" Twilight said as she and Guardian entered the house.

"Oh good. Twilight, I need you to use your magic to rebuild the Timberwolf's leg" Fluttershy said as she pointed a hoof at the pile of wood and the wolf.

"OK" Twilight said as she took her stance "here goes" Twilight's horn began glowing its normal purple as she took hold of the wooden parts I made and levitated them over to the wolf. Then, Twilight forced more power into her horn causing the parts to fuse together and connect to the wolf. In a bright flash, the leg was made and reattached.

"That should do it" Twilight said as I walked over to the wolf. He recovered from his surgery quickly, rolling over onto his belly and standing up. He hopped down off the couch and looked around the room, shaking his head and testing his new leg. I crouched down to get a better look.

"He looks good as new" I said "nice work team" When the wolf heard me talk, he walked over and sat down in front of me, catching me off-guard

"Awwww" Fluttershy cooed "I think he likes you"
The Timberwolf moved a little closer and nuzzled my arm.

"Huh, I guess he does like me a little" I said

"Maybe you should keep him" Twilight suggested "He could make a great pet for you"

"You're kidding, right?" I asked "He's a Timberwolf, are you even allowed to have a wolf as a pet?"

"I do not see why not, Captain" Guardian said "after all, Ms. Applejack has her collie Winona and Ms. Pie owns a crocodile"

"Silly robot, Gummy's an alligator" Pinkie said

"WHAT THE...!" I exclaimed reactively "When did you...you know what, never mind"

"Aaaawww, is this Arcies new pet?" Pinkie asked, the Timberwolf growling defensively

"Easy buddy, she's a friend" I said calming the beast "So you really think I should keep him?"

"He does seem to like you" Fluttershy said "And the poor thing is too tame to survive in the wild"
I looked over to the wolf, who in turn, looked at me as though asking 'can I?'

"You know what, why not" I said "But you need a name"

"Ooo ooo, how about 'Barky'?" Pinkie offered

"No, it has to be something awesome" I said "Right bud?" The dog nodded.

"How about..." Twilight put a hoof to her chin in thought "Bonsai?"
I looked to the wolf, he nodded no.

"Aspen, how about Aspen buddy?" I offered. The wolf's eyes lit up and he nodded yes.

"He likes that name" Fluttershy said "And I think he'll be a great friend"

"Well then I guess the only thing left to do is learn how to take care of a Timberwolf" I said
I spent the rest of the day learning everything about Timberwolves: from food (wood) and grooming (sanding) to training and medical care.

"Thanks Fluttershy" I said as Aspen and I left her cottage "I'll let you know if I have any other questions"

"My pleasure Captain" Fluttershy answered back

"Come on boy" I said addressing my new pet "Let's get you to your new home"

"Arf" answered Aspen, which I took to mean 'Yay, new home'
We made our way back to Firestorm drawing more than a few concerned glances from the townsponies. I glanced at Guardian.

"Just when I thought we couldn't draw any more attention" I said but we had no problems.

"Firestorm, I've got a new friend for you to meet" I called out to my pilot. The feminine mech walked around the corner.

"Is that...?" She asked open-endedly

"Firestorm, meet Aspen; Aspen, this is Firestorm" I said in introduction. The dog growled defensively.

"Easy boy, she's a friend" I said calming the dog, then turning back to the mech smiling "This is gonna be great"
Firestorm folded her arms across her chest and shook her head.
"What?" I asked

"I've never seen you like this sir" she answered a smile forming on her face "It's kind of cute"

"Oh you're just jealous, right Aspen?" I asked the wolf

"Arf arf" Aspen answered, which I guessed meant 'Yeah'

"Whatever" she replied "But I'm not cleaning up after him"

"I know" I said as Guardian rounded the corner, now in his industrial biped body "That's Guardian's job"

"With all due respect sir..." my assistant said "Hell no"