> Doctor Whooves Stories: Episode 4: The Silver Army
>  by puropogo
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Episode 4: The Silver Army


Chapter 1

July 19, 1518 CE, 7:45 pm, Changeling Kingdom Ruins.

The night was coming to the remains of the once great Changeling Kingdom. The sounds of bombs and shootings were accompanying the evening. Two earth soldiers were walking through the ruins, trying to arrive to the camp base. One of them was hurt in his forehoof. Seeing that they can't move faster, the other pony grabbed his radio to contact help.

"Lance Snafu to base! Lance Snafu to base! Answer me!"
"Base to Snafu, we are hearing you. What's the situation?"
"Private Fubar is hurt. A land mine exploded close to us. We need a doctor! Quick!"
"Gave us your position, we'll go as fast as we can."
"We… We are close to the Old Changeling Library. We'll stay in the shoe shop in front of it."
"Got it, we are going there, over."

After the communication ended, Lance Snafu carried Private Fubar to the shoe shop. There, Lance checked the injures Fubar got from the explosion.

"Don't leave me alone. Please." Fubar begged to him. The young amber earth pony was 22 when he enlisted to the Royal Guard. Now, with 26, he didn't think of all the horrors he would see when the war began.
"I won't. Don't worry." Lance Snafu answered him. He was older, with 39 the persian blueish gray stallion was more trained than his partner. Still, he was surprised as many others when the war began. He hoped the situation would be fixed in a couple of days, but time passed and they were in the fourth year of fighting. "Do you have family?"
"A wife and a foal."
"A wife and a foal? I think the second one came before the first."
"Hehe, yeah. I love them with all my heart. She must be at home baking all kinds of desserts and sweets to my colt. He loves muffins. They are his favorites."
"Who doesn't loves muffins?"
"Yeah. What about you, Snafu?"
"Well, I've got a girlfriend, she has a son and she loves to bake muffins."
"What?"
"Just kidding! Hehe, I do have a fillyfriend, she works as a seamstress in the Carousel Boutique in Trottingham."
"If we could get out of here, could you give me a dress to my wife? She loves those designs but we can't afford them."
"I'll talk to my fillyfriend." They heard a window crack on the back of the shop. "What was that?"
"A crack. That must be the medical team."
"Why they didn't call on the radio that they arrived? Stay here, I'll check."
"Please, don't leave me."
"Don't worry, I'll be back." Saying this, Snafu took his gun and walked to the back of the shop.

Fubar was getting anxious. With his broken leg, he couldn't move. He was thanking Luna that it wasn't one of his front legs, so he could still use his gun and shoot the enemy if he would come closer. But the anxiety growed more when he heard shootings in the back of the shop, and then silence. He knew something was wrong. He took his gun and pointed to the door behind him.

"Snafu? Snafu, is that you?" Nothing but silence answered him. "Snafu, why did you shoot?" Suddenly, he started to hear steps coming to his direction. Those steps didn't sound like the ones made of the hooves of an earth pony. "Who's there? I'm warning you that I'm armed, and I was trained by the most prestigious Military School all over Equestria, so if you come here and try to attack me, you'll be the one who… who…"

In front of Fubar there was a pony-like figure. There was no mane on it, and its leg was quite short for a pony. Its eyes were small compared with the ones of a pony, it was silver and looked firm, like if it was wearing an armature. Its cutie mark had a strange design, he didn't know what it was or what it mean. It had a handle over his head.

"Who… Who are you? Where is Lance Snafu?" The figure didn't respond. "Who are you?"
"You are compatible."
"What?"
"Your brain is fine. We'll remove your pain, we'll remove your fear. we'll remove your emotions. You'll be upgraded. You'll be one of us."
"What? I don't want to be… ahh!" Fubar tried to move, but his foreleg still was hurt by the explosion.
"There is no need of your leg. You'll have a new mechanic body." The figure started to move in the direction of the hurt stallion, who took his gun and shot to the figure, with no success. "You have been found compatible."
"Get away from me!" He continued to shoot to the figure, until his ammo went out. Then he noticed another figure coming from the back of the door.
"Upgrade! Upgrade! Upgrade!"
"No, no, NOOOOOOO!"
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 2

July 20, 1518 CE, 5:30 am, Changeling Kingdom Ruins.

Since the radio contact, there weren't news about the missing soldiers. They weren't he first soldiers who had disappeared, though. Sometimes, close to the morning and the evening, the soldiers who weren't in the camp base vanished without a trace. This strange incident had been happening the last weeks and nopony who disappeared have been seen back again.

So, when the Doctor and Derpy appeared just from nowhere, that caught the attention of the patrol units, who took them to the camp base so they can be questioned.

"There will be tea?" The Doctor asked.
"Shut up! The Colonel has some words with you!" One of the soldiers replied.
"The Colonel? The colonel would have tea with us?"
"Shut up."

They arrived to a tent, where a guard was watching them from the distance.

"Sergeant Starry Beat! Why did you bring up here these two ponies?"
"Hi, I'm the Doctor."
"Shut up!" Beat yelled at the Doctor. "Private Snow, these ponies appeared from nowhere. I'm taking them to interrogation."
"Sure, enter."

They entered into the tent, where the Doctor and Derpy just could watch an empty chair, a table with a glass of water.

"Are you gonna interrogate us right here?"
"No, not here." The unicorn who caught them said. Lighting his horn, a door appeared below them. He then opened and ordered the Doctor and Derpy to follow the stairs below them.

July 20, 1518 CE, 5:35 am, Equestrian Base Camp.

Upon reaching the lower level, they saw another door, this time was open from the inside, where they saw more ponies, some of them talking with computers, others running with papers, and others grabbing guns and getting ready for the battle.

The guards send the Doctor and Derpy to a room in the base where they would be interrogated.

"Sit here! The colonel will be here in any moment." The unicorn said to them. They were waiting some minutes until a female unicorn entered the room. She had a very pale amber coat with a smooth brilliant amber mane. She was wearing a dark gray jacket with a medal with two golden stars and a golden waxing crescent moon.
"You must be the Colonel, right?"
"How do you know?" Derpy asked.
"My medal." The Colonel said. "Look, the Colonel rank has two golden stars and the crown symbol, which is this moon. A higher rank would have another star and a lower one would have just one star and the moon."
"Ohh."
"Ok. Do you know why are you here?"
"No." The Doctor answered. "And I don't think we should be here." The Doctor pulled his psychic paper and showed to the Colonel.
"It's blank."
"I'm sorry, what did you say?"
"Your paper. It's blank."
"Really?" The Doctor turned his head to his companion. "What does it says, Derpy?"
"It says: 'Sir Doctor from the TARDIS, Miss Derpy Doo.' It's not in blank."
"You two, the ponies who brought us here, what does it says?"
"The same thing your friend said" The unicorn soldier said.
"I think the same." The other soldier said. The Doctor showed back his psychic paper to the Colonel, who still saw it in blank and told that to the Doctor while he was putting it back to his pocket,.
"Genius. Really genius. How do you know it is blank?"
"Easy. I was trained with psychic paper before."
"Psychic Paper?" The unicorn soldier said.
"Brand new, Corporal Tooth. I'll tell you later what is this about."
"There is no point on lying. I'm the Doctor, she's my friend Derpy Doo. We are time travellers and we come in a time machine, the blue box near the Library. We have no idea why you put us here, but I'm telling you that we are not meant to harm any of you. I swear."
"You lie!" The unicorn, Corporal Tooth, said. "That's the most unbelieveable lie I've ever heard on my life, and I've heard a lot."
"Maybe these ponies are spies of the enemy." The earth pony claimed. "Who sent you? Gaulle? Gilda? Gustave? Vladimir?"
"Hey, that one doesn't start with a 'g'." The Doctor said.
"Answer him!"
"But we told you the truth!" Derpy exclaimed.
"Silence!" The Colonel said, and everyone keep quiet. "These two ponies are telling the truth."
"What? How do you know Colonel?"
"I performed a truth spell in this room. There was no way nopony inside the room would lie."
"So… we are not in trouble, right? Can we leave?"
"Who said that? We are in war. We need all the ponies we can get."
"I'm sorry, but we won't…"
"I guess you can't help us since most of our soldiers vanished without trace." The Colonel closed and opened her eyes quickly.
"Ok, you got all my attention. But I'll do it for the lost soldiers, not for the look you gave me."
The Colonel chuckled at the commentary of the Doctor. "I am the Colonel Nate Samus."
"And I am the Doctor, nice to meet you."
"Follow me, Doctor."
They left the interrogation room and moved where the other ponies were working.

"The ponies who brought you here are Corporal Sharp Tooth and Sergeant Starry Beat. Over there is the Flight Lieutenant Sparkling Mist."
"Nice to meet you." A pegasus salute them. He had a very pale cornflower blue coat, with a light brilliant orange mane with light brilliant amber stripes.
"I'm the Doctor, and she is Derpy Doo."
"Lieutenant Mist," Colonel Samus interrupted, "Derpy is a pegasus, maybe she could help you in your routine."
"Routine? What kind of routine?" Derpy asked.
"We need pegasi for surveillance and reconnaissance missions."
"There are no planes or machines that perform that task?" The Doctor asked.
"Our planes are not as fast as the pegasi. Plus, if a plane is taken down, there are more lives in danger that just a pegasus."
"I don't know." The Doctor said. He was concerned about Derpy safety.
"Don't worry, everything will be alright. I won't have to shoot nothing, right?"
"No, you won't. As soon as you follow my orders nothing would happen to you." Lieutenant Mist said to Derpy.
"Are you sure?" The Doctor said to Derpy. "It's really dangerous."
"It's ok. My task is to take photos of the Changeling Kingdom and report to the Colonel about our positions and that of the enemy." Mist explained to the Doctor and Derpy.
"Ok, Derpy. Beware of the changelings."
"Changelings? The changelings are not the enemy. It's the griffons."
"Griffons? Be careful, Derpy."
"Thank you Doctor."
"Come on Derpy. You'll need this…"

Sparkling Mist and Derpy were talking in another stand while the Doctor, Corporal Sharp Tooth and Sergeant Starry Beat were preparing for the mission of their own.

"Look Doctor," Sharp Tooth levitated an old pergamin to the Doctor, "this is an old map of the Changeling Kingdom."
"It's dusty." The Doctor blown the dust from the paper, making Sharp Tooth sneeze and, in a green flash, changing from a unicorn with a cream coat to a black changeling.
"A Changeling!" Derpy screamed.
"A gray pegasus with googly eyes!" Sharp Tooth screamed back. "It hurts, right?"
"Ok, we learned a couple of things about racism, I mean, breedism. What is the right term?" The Doctor asked.
"But… but… but…"
"Remember Honeydew, Derpy. Not all changelings are evil."

"Thank you, Doctor." Sharp Tooth said, changing back to his unicorn disguise. "Like I was saying, the last signal came over here, close to the point where we find you. They told us that they were going to stay in this shop."
"What are we waiting for? Allons-y."
"Doctor, do you know how to use a gun?"
"That kind of gun? No, I don't know how do you use that without thumbs. Do I want to use a gun? No."
"But"
"No guns. That's how I work. Plus, I've got my sonic screwdriver. That's all I need."
"If you say so."

July 20, 1518 CE, 6:00 am, Changeling Shoe Shop Ruins.

The Doctor and the soldiers arrived at the Shoe shop. They were explaining to the Doctor the situation about the soldiers, making emphasis that they were missing and the signal destroyed.

"There are no signals of our soldiers from this point. We don't have any feather or hair that can lead us to them. Not even magic signal. Doctor?" They noticed the Doctor sniffing a crushed flower. "Doctor? Could you stop sniffing that flower?"
"Why? This flower it's telling me more about what happened that you two."
"How?"
"Easy. Do you see how is it?"
"Crushed?"
"Not just crushed, almost pulverised. How do you think it got like that?"
"Well, something stepped on it."
"Exactly. And according to my estimation of the resistance of vegetable fibre, it was stepped on by something that weighed, at least, 150 kilogrammes."
"What?"
"150 kilogrammes. 330 pounds. My weight is 121 pounds, so were looking for something that weighs three times a regular pony."
"Do you know all of that by sniffing a crushed flower?"
"I'm telling you. I'm the Doctor. Now, what kind of creature would take away two ponies without being sighted? It must be fast, quick and capable of shutting off signals."
"Griffons?"
"No, I don't think so. The Griffons are heavy, but I don't think they are that heavy."
"A manticore? An Ahuizotl? A chimera?"
"Anyone of that creatures can interfere with communication signals?" The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Come on, what would be?"

Suddenly they started to hear a siren sound.

"Doctor, come here!"
"What? What is it?"
"An air raid. The griffons are here!"
"Wait, Derpy!"
"As long as she follows Lt. Sparkling Mist orders, she will be fine. Plus, the pegasi are usually faster than griffons."
"I hope you're right. I hope she's alright."

July 20, 1518 CE, 6:00 am, Changeling Kingdom Skies.

"Do you see that?" Sparkling Mist pointed a location to Derpy. "That's one of our camps. You must take a photo from that place, got it?"
"Got it!" She took her camera and took a photo of the place.
"Now we must go to the north. That was the last spot of the griffons."
"Why are we going there?"
"To see damages and how far the griffons have come to this place. Plus, there must be injured soldiers."
"Ok" Suddenly she heard a siren sound. "What was that?"
"Air Raid Alarm. Follow me and you'll be safe!"

The two pegasi were flying lower, trying to arrive to one of the houses on Changeling Kingdom, but the explosions in mid air forced them to fly higher.

"Derpy, Look out!" Lt. Mist saw a griffon squad getting closer to them. They were pointing their claws to the pegasi. "UP!"

Some of the griffons started to chase Derpy, they were behind their quarters when she heard instructions on her radio.

"Do a barrel roll! Do a barrel roll!"
"How I do that?"
"You don't know how to do a barrel roll?" Lt. Mist said. "Can you see me?"

Derpy was trying to find him between the clouds, until she noticed him. "Yes, I can see you!"

"See this and do what I do! Quick!"

Lt. Mist then did a barrel roll, he started to roll and ascend to the clouds until Derpy couldn't notice him, and suddenly she saw him plummeted to her level.

"That's a barrel roll! Now do it!"

Derpy heard shootings at her back so she tried to do the same thing, but in the clouds an explosion knocked her out and she started to fell to the ground.

CRASH!
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 3

July 20, 1518 CE, 7:30 am, Changeling Shoe Shop Ruins.

The air raid alarm went off. The Doctor, Sharp Tooth and Starry Beat left the building to proceed with their investigations.

"Situation normal. I'll try to contact the colonel to receive new orders." Sgt Beat said.

A worried Doctor looked on the skies. "Where's Derpy?"

"She should be fine. " Corporal Tooth said to the Doctor. "She is with Lt. Mist."
"She's not with me." Sparkling Mist landed near them. "I lost contact to her during the raid."
"What?"
"It's not my fault, she didn't listen to me."
The Doctor yelled angry to him "Where is she? Where is she?"
"Don't worry Doctor, we'll arrange a search party for her." Corporal Tooth said.
"If she's not alright, you'll make me your enemy, Mist. And trust me, you don't want to do that. Come on, we have to find Derpy.."

July 20, 1518 CE, 8:30 am, Changeling House Ruins.

Derpy found herself in the ruins of a house. She realized that she had crashed after the griffon attack and she fell through the ceiling, so she decided to leave the house and reunite with the Doctor or Lt. Mist.

SNAP!

An unsupportable and painful feeling came from Derpy's right wing, pass through her body and arrived to her brain. She had broke her wing, so she couldn't fly back home. She got only one option: she must walk to the base. Thankfully, the air raid alarm ceased to ring, so probably there won't be more griffons. That was just Derpy's thinking.

When she left the ruined building, she saw in the middle of the street the bodies of ponies and griffons laying there. She guessed that nopony there was alive.

"He… Help me!"

She heard a slight voice from behind her. She turned her head but couldn't see nopony talking.

"Help me!"

She saw a dying griffon asking for help. She considered running away from him, after all ponies are fighting a war against the griffons, but she couldn't leave him. First of all, she didn't know why the war began, and second, even if she knew what could have happened between ponies and griffons, she couldn't leave anybody injured to die. So she got closer to the griffon.

"What happened to you?"
"My… my wings are broken, my legs are hurt. Please, please don't let me die here."

Derpy was hesitating for a couple of seconds. She knew she could get into trouble, but decided it was the best. "No, I won't." She put his arm on her back. "What's your name?"
"Gerrard."
"Derpy. My wings are broken too, but I can walk."
"Thank you, Derpy."

Derpy was carrying Gerrard to the main camp. They were walking the empty streets of the Changeling Kingdom when they heard a metallic noise coming from the debris.

"Did you hear that, Gerrard?"
"Yes, I heard that."
"What do you think it is?"
"I don't know, it's not griffon or pony made."

They continued on their path, but a couple of minutes later they heard a noise again. This time it was the sound of metallic steps coming to their direction.

"Who's there?" Derpy yelled, but nothing answered her back, just the sounds of the steps getting closer. "We need medical help! My wing is hurt but he's worse. I know he is a griffon but still…" then she could see the figure who was walking to her. It was a silver metallic pony, with a handle on its head and no mane. Its eyes were smaller than those of a regular pony.

"You have been found compatible, you'll be upgraded." The figure said with a monotone voice.

Derpy started to run with Gerrard on her back. The creature started to walk faster and getting closer to them. Gerrard took his gun and started to shoot to the creature in vain.

"It's not working," Gerrard said, "and we got more company."

Another strange silver pony came from behind a door and started to chase Derpy and Gerrard.

"Derpy… leave me here."
"What? Are you nuts?"
"Those things will capture both of us if you don't release me!"
"I won't leave you alone!"
"Come on! I'm not even a pony, why would you help me?"
"Because I must do! I don't care if you are a pony, a griffon, a changeling or anything, you are hurt and I can leave you alone!" Derpy yelled at him. "Try to hold on!" She spotted a broken window in one of the old houses and quickly run straight to it.

"Stop it!" The silver ponies commanded to her, but she didn't listen until an explosion stopped her race. "If you move you'll be considered unfit to upgrade and you will be deleted!"

Derpy turned her head to see a squad of silver ponies, one of them was pointing her with its hoof. Derpy sighed, she turned her head, and looked to the window. She looked back to the silver ponies and gave them a defiant smile. "You are in trouble. My help just arrived."

The window was shattered, and from it the Doctor and the soldiers that were accompanying him came.

"I'm so happy you are ok." The Doctor said to Derpy, but then turned his head to the silver ponies that were pointing their hooves to them.

"Doctor, what are those?" Corporal Tooth asked.
"They are the responsibles for the disappearance of your soldiers."
"According to the Equestrian Laws, you, the… silver ponies, you are under arrest. Now put your hooves in the ground and follow us."
"Hostile elements will be deleted." One of the silver ponies said.
"I said move!"
"Hostile elements will be deleted."
"I SAID MOVE!"
"DELETE!" A light beam was shot from the silver pony hoof and hit Sgt. Starry Beat in the chest.

"No!" Corporal Tooth started to shoot his gun to the silver ponies "They are bulletproof!"
"Stop shooting then! Try with your magic blasts!" The Doctor said. Sharp Tooth started to shoot magic beams to them.
"It doesn't work!" The silver ponies started to shoot to them.
"Try harder! That's all we got!" Sharp Tooth horn was shining with a bright green aura, and then a magic blast was shot from it, destroying one of the silver ponies.

"Oh, gosh." Sharp Tooth unicorn appearance faded away, making him to look like a changeling again. "We've got to run."
"Good idea, they can't run and shoot us." Doctor helped Derpy to carry Gerrard, while Sparkling Mist helped Sharp Tooth to carry Starry Beat body.

They began to run to the Equestrian Base Camp, with some of the silver ponies chasing them. Before they arrived to the base entry, a rocket was fired from the ceiling of one of the buildings destroying them.

"We must avoid those creatures to enter the camp!" A female voice came from the ceiling.
"Nate! It's a pleasure to see you again." The Doctor screamed to the colonel in the ceiling, "We got three injured ponies here."
"That's not a pony! We should leave him here!" Sparkling Mist said.
"We can't leave Gerrard here to die!" Derpy protested.
"Those griffons won't help an injured pony if they found it. They would kill it! We should kill him before he says where we are hiding." Mist insisted.

"Talk like that again and you'll be demoted!" Colonel Samus said to Mist. "He deserves to live just like any of us"
"But he could be a spy!"
"You have a point there. Cover his eyes! We are entering the camp." Samus ordered.

July 20, 1518 CE, 10:00 am, Equestrian Base Camp.

A medical pony was covering Derpy's wings while she was looking to the other injured ponies.

"They are going to be ok?"
"The griffon and the changeling will be ok, but Sgt. Starry Beat couldn't make it." The medical officer explained to Derpy.
"I'm sorry Derpy. I should have stopped that pony from taking you to the battle." The Doctor said.
"It's ok." Derpy smiled to the Doctor. "I don't think I can fly for a moment but I can't blame you on that."
"Still, I feel terrible. I could have stopped this."
"Don't feel bad Doctor. If somepony should apologise it's me." Colonel Samus said. "I've got to say this, Derpy. You were brave there, and you helped someone injured. You are a wonderful pony."

"Thanks." Derpy got up from her bed and walked with the Doctor and Samus away from the infirmary.

"Do you know what those creatures are?" Derpy asked.
"Yes. They come from my universe." The Doctor said, gasping everyone. "Cybermen."
"Cybermen?"
"Cyberhorses or cyberponies. I think they still call themselves cybermen."
"What do you mean with 'your universe'?" Samus asked to the Doctor.
"Have I told you that I came not just from another planet but from a parallel universe as well?"
"What? Are you crazy?"
"He's telling the truth. And yes, he is crazy." Derpy said.

"Look, from my universe, the cybermen are one of the most dangerous monsters ever made. They were once normal people, normal ponies, but they underwent a drastic change so they could live forever. They change most of his biological parts with mechanical ones, and their goal is to upgrade or convert any life form into a cyberman."

"Ok, that's hard to believe! I can't believe you are not from this planet and neither those cybermen."
"You don't believe that, don't you?" The doctor went back to the infirmary, and returned to the Colonel Samus carrying a stethoscope. "Put this." Samus put the stethoscope in her ears, and the Doctor took the bell to his chest. "What do you hear?"

"I'm hearing one heartbeat." The Doctor moved the stethoscope bell to the other side of his chest. "That's impossible."

"How many ponies do you know that have two hearts?"

"But… but…"

A laser beam was shot from behind them. Some of the soldiers run to the entry where they saw the watchman walking to them, accompanied by a cybermen squad.

"Silence!" one of the cybermen said to the soldiers, "Anyone who moves will be killed instantly."
> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 4

July 20, 1518 CE, 10:10 am, Equestrian Base Camp.

A laser beam was shot from the entry. Everypony gasped as they saw the entry guard walking with a cybermen squad at his side.

“Silence! Anyone who moves will be killed instantly!”
“What are you doing, Private Snow?” The Colonel yelled at him, not moving from her position.
“I am half upgraded, but my superiors send me and these cybermen to give you ponies and griffons an offer. You’ll surrender and become part of the cybermen, refuse and you’ll be killed instantly.” Private Snow said to them.
“We are not going anywhere until you gave us back our soldiers.”
“Here they are. At my left this cyberman used to be Lance Corporal Archie Snafu, right there is Private Fubar Bundy, Anchor Clanker it’s behind me and Queep Figmo is the last one.” Snow pointed to the cybermen while he was speaking. “And those are just few. The other ones have been upgraded as well.”

Samus whispered to the Doctor’s ear, “What should we do now?”
The Doctor whispered back to her, “Follow me.” The Doctor faced then the cybermen, “What do we gain with this?”
“Cybermen are immune to all known diseases, we never got hurt and we are always getting more powerful.”
“Yes, and you get rid out of our emotions.”
“Emotions? Emotions are useless.”
“The emotions are the only reason why life is worth living. What was the last time you enjoy a good song, a warm sunlight, a fresh muffin?”
“Those things are not relevant.”
“You can guess what is our answer.” The Cybermen raised their hooves.
“Delete Rejected Subjects.”

“Delete this.” Colonel Samus was lighting, and then she threw a magic blast to one of the cybermen, knocking him out.
“DELETE!” A battle between the soldiers and the cybermen begun, with some soldiers being killed in the process. The battle was over when someone shot the rocket launcher, killing the cybermen and Private Snow.
“Who shot that?” Lt. Mist screamed.
“I did it.” Gerrard said. “You’re welcome.”
“Did i said ‘thanks’? You destroyed the entry and the communication system.”
“Plus the cybermen.”
“Wonderful, there is no way out of here and that’s thanks to you. No wait. Not just you, it’s also, your fault.” Mist pointed to Derpy. “If you didn’t save this griffon we would be safe.”
“Hey, it’s not my fault.”
“No, you’re right. It’s his fault.” He pointed to the Doctor. “Now, we are trapped in this hole, without communication, food and the cybermen know where we are!”
“Silence.” Samus said to him.
“No, I’m tired of this shit, I’m tired of him, I’m tired of her, I’m tired of… those things,” he pointed to Sharp Tooth and Gerrard, “but mostly… I’m tired of you. We won’t have this situation unless there was a male colonel.”

Nate Samus remained calm for a moment. She slowly moved to Sparkling Mist, and spoke to him softly: “Is that what you think?”
“Honestly… yes.”
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
“Do you?”
“Of course mare!” Then she throw him to the ground and push his arm against his back. “Ouch!”
“Excuse me, what did you say? I didn’t hear.”
“Ouch! I’m sorry, I’m sorry, you deserve the position, you are a great colonel.”
“Don’t dare to forget that.” She released him. “Like I was trying to say, there is another exit.”
“Really?” Derpy asked.
“Yes. This base is connected to the Changeling Castle. I was informed of that when I became the colonel of this place.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Sparkling Mist said. “You don’t even know where is connected.”
“There is a fake wall behind the truth room.”
“Nice plan, Colonel.” Sparkling Mist said sarcastically. “Just one tiny little thing: there are cybermen outside and we don’t have any ways to fight them or communicate with the Equestria Army.”
“Yes, we have.” The Doctor said. “We can use the arms of the dead cybermen as guns. I can help you adapt their arms. Plus, both me and Derpy arrived here from the TARDIS.”
“Good idea, Doctor.” Samus said. “People, grab the cybermen front legs and gave them to the Doctor, now. We are leaving this place.”

July 20, 1518 CE, 10:40 am, Below the Changeling Castle.

The Doctor, Derpy, the remaining soldiers and Gerrard were walking in a tunnel below the Changeling castle. The soldiers and Gerrard were carrying the improved guns the Doctor made for them. Derpy was walking close to the Doctor, thinking about everything she experienced on that day.

“What are you thinking?” The Doctor asked to his friend.
“What? No, nothing, it’s just… I didn’t thought I would be in a war.”
“Me, neither. I’m sorry for that. If you want to, I’ll drop you in Ponyville as soon as we stop the cybermen.”
“Are you kidding? Look, yes, I didn’t like when the explosions hurt my wings, but I saved someone’s life, and I’m having the greatest time of my life. I don’t want to stop now.”
“Ok, if that’s what you want.” The Doctor smiled. “I don’t think that’s the only thing you have in your mind.”
“No.” Derpy said. “I was mean to Sharp Tooth. I know and I experienced the changelings before but, I should have been more nice to him. Like you said, there are good changelings, like Princess Honeydew.”
“Yes. Go and talk to him, I don’t have to listen that, but he does.”

Derpy ran next to Sharp Tooth, and she begun to talk to him.
“Hi, I want to say… I’m sorry the way I treated you.”
“It’s ok. I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have said nothing about your eye.” Sharp Tooth apologised.
“Did you born here in the Changeling Kingdom?” The Doctor asked.
“No, nopony lives in the Changeling Kingdom, not even the changelings. I am from Ponyville”
“Hey, as we!” Derpy said. “Why nobody lives here?”
“I don’t know. When I was a foal, I was told a story about the fall of this kingdom. Supposedly two evil lords released their army to this kingdom, only the magic of the ponies and the changelings stop the army. After that, the changelings went to live in Equestria.”
“Why you didn’t say anything of that before?” Mist asked.
“Because he thought it was just a nursery tale.” Gerrard said.
“Thanks, but I don’t need to you to defend me.” Tooth said.
“It’s ok. I just like to mess with ponies like him.” Gerrard smiled.
“Do you know what kind of monster attack this place?” Derpy asked.
“I think they were the cybermen.” The Doctor said.
“Why do you say that?”
“Look at the walls.” Everypony else looked to the walls and saw pictures of changeling fighting cybermen, but most of them showed the cybermen defeating the changelings. “We must be careful.”

“Great.” Samus exclaimed. “There is a locked door.”
“Don’t worry.” The Doctor galloped close to Samus and used his sonic screwdriver to open the door.

July 20, 1518 CE, 11:00 am, Changeling Castle.

The castle showed signs of neglect from centuries before. The Doctor and his party were walking in the debris, trying to avoid the dusty and old weapons, the shattered windows and the old changeling skeletons. They found an open section of the castle, and walked there, trying to not be spotted by the cybermen or the griffons.

“I don’t hear gunshots. It’s the first day since I came here without gunshots.” Samus said.

The Doctor pulled out a couple of binoculars from his jacket and started to watch the landscape.
“The Cybermen usually don’t work at plain sight. But they must know that we left the base. They must be searching for us.”
“What about the griffons?” Gerrard asked.
“I can’t see any. Probably they are in their base camp.” The Doctor pointed to some place in the kingdom. “There!” He passed the binoculars to the Colonel. “We need to get there.”
“To that tiny place?”
“It’s bigger than you think, plus, we can’t stay here.”
“Ok, we should cross to that door. It connects with the main hall of the castle.”

When they opened the door, they saw a new, modern workshop. They saw a lot of plastic cocoons in the walls, as big as a pony. In the throne were the Changeling Queen or King used to stand, there was a bigger cocoon laying there.

“What are those things?” Samus asked to the Doctor.
“Cybermen. We must keep quiet until we left the hall.”

They begun to walk quietly and slowly, but when they were close to the other exit, an alarm was triggered and the cocoons begun to break, releasing the cybermen.

“What was that?” Samus exclaimed.
“Run. Run everyone!” The Doctor screamed.
“Stop there!” Mist shot to the direction where the Doctor and the others were running.
“Mist? What are you doing?”
“I’m sorry, Colonel Nate Samus. You could have been one of the greatest heroes of Equestria.”
“This is because I’m a mare?”
“No, actually I was planning it from before the war.”
“Why?”
“They offered me money, and power. They said to me that I could have anything I want if I helped them.”
“Are you nuts?” The Doctor screamed at him. “Why do you think the cybermen would keep their word?”
“Ask them. They are free now.”

The cybermen closed the Doctor and company. Before anyone would do something, the bigger cocoon opened, releasing a big, black cyberhorse.

“What’s that?” Derpy asked.
“It’s their leader, it’s the cyberleader.”

The cyberleader walked to the group, where the other cybermen bowed at him. He then proceeded to look the soldiers, Derpy and finally the Doctor.

“Who brought them here?” The cyberleader said with a deeper voice than of the regular cybermen.
“I did it. Now, nopony would interrupt your plans.” The cyberleader walk to the pegasus. “I did it for you.”
“Then, you’ll have your reward.” The cyberleader touched the pegasus arm, shocking him with electricity.
“Wh- wh- why?” the electrified pony asked.
“The biggest reward the cybermen can offer is to turn you into a new cyberman. Take him to the cyber conversion room.”
“No, no, no, no.” Sparkling Mist begged to the cybermen who were carrying him to stop, with no avail. He was taken to the other exit of the room.

“My memory bank has a lot of information about you, Doctor.” The Cyberleader said. “But I have more information in my personal hard drive.”
“What?” The Doctor asked.
“We have met before Doctor. I would say it’s a pleasure to see you again, Doctor.”
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 5

July 20, 1518 CE, 11:10 am, Changeling Castle.

“I’m sorry, what?” The Doctor was cornered by the cybermen, leaded by their cyberleader. The cyberleader had just said it knew who the Doctor was.
“We have met before.”
“You must be more specific than that.”
“You tried to kill me.” Everypony looked to the Doctor, who still was trying to recognize the horse in front of him.
“More specific than that.”
“You tried to kill me in Equestria.”
“Oh… You are… Nedry? I thought you were a dinosaur.”
“No, EMMA.”
“Emma? EMMA! But… but…”
“I was upgraded. Now, it will be the turn of your friends.”
“I’m sorry, but how a computer would be upgraded? Stupid question, how a computer become the cyberleader?” The Doctor asked, but the cyberleader didn’t answer him.
“Walk there. Everyone wait for your upgrade.” The cyberleader said to its prisoners.

“How did you met her?” Samus asked to the Doctor.
“Who? Oh yes, she was a supercomputer in the future, tried to kill both Derpy and me, so I had to unplug her. Apparently she started to create her new cybermen.”
“What?” Derpy asked this time.
“Her software was built for Cynux OS, and Cynux was owned by a corporation called Cybus Industries. They created a kind of cybermen.”
“Let me guess… you stopped them, right?” Sharp Tooth asked.
“Yes, I send them over the void. To nowhere in space or time.”
“So, why are the cybermen here?”
“I don’t know.”
“What? How could you don’t know?”
“Because I don’t even know how I got here in the first place.” The Doctor defended himself. “Look, I’ll promise you that we are going to be safe. You’ll not become cybermen and this war ends today.”
“What are you gonna do?” Derpy asked.
“Save our lives.” The Doctor smiled at Derpy.

The Doctor called EMMA attention. When the cyberleader moved her head, the Doctor called her again.
“I was going to tell you that we are going to escape and bomb this place with all the cybermen inside.”
“What are you trying to do? Run to your TARDIS, Time Lord?”
“Oh, you know what is a Time Lord. Good. So you may know something about the TARDIS.”
“Cybermen attempted to take control of your ship a long time ago.”
“Yes, and I stopped them.”
“Don’t you think the cybermen learn from their past mistakes?”
“I don’t think that.” The Doctor smiled at the cyberleader. “If that was true… you’ll know that keeping me here would be disastrous to you.”
“Take the gray pegasus.” The Cyberleader ordered to a couple of cybermen.
“Wait! Stop it!”
“She’ll be the next cyberman. Prepare her upgrade.”
“No you won’t.” The Doctor yelled angry to the cybermen.
“Don’t we learn from our mistakes? Your emotions are your greatest weakness. The love and caring you feel for this pony will be the cause of your defeat.”
“No.” The Doctor almost whispered.
“No what?” The Cyberleader lowered her head and asked again “No, what?”
“You don’t learn from your mistakes.” Then the Doctor raised his hoof, carrying his sonic screwdriver to the ceiling. “I’m quite impressed, that chandelier didn’t fall when the Changeling Kingdom did it, or when the war began on this place. Or even better, when you put this workshop!” The big old chandelier fell from the ceiling, and crashed to the conversion area. The ponies caught their weapons and began to shoot to the cybermen, killing most of them. “RUN!”

“Think Fast. Really smart.” Colonel Samus talked to the Doctor.
“Do that for later, we need to go to the TARDIS.” The ponies ran to the main door, and they were surprised to see the TARDIS standing there.
“That wasn’t the other side of the town?” Gerrard asked.
“Not now, Gerry, everyone inside, now.” The Doctor turned his head and saw the cyberleader running to them. “Well, not you!” The Doctor closed the TARDIS doors before the cyberleader could enter it.

VWOOOOORP! VWOOOOOORP! VWOOOOORP! VWOOOOOORP!

July 20, 1518 CE, 11:30 am, TARDIS Interior.

“Anyone it’s here?” The Doctor asked. To his relief, Derpy, Samus, Gerrard and Sharp Tooth were among the ponies who survived the cybermen attack.
“Ok, we got barely time to explain. Yes, this is where we came from, it’s the TARDIS, it’s bigger on the inside and we can use it to travel through time and space.”
“Ok, I’ll believe you. Everyone here will believe that.” Samus said to the Doctor.
“Now, we must go to the Canterlot Castle and tell the princesses to stop this war.” Derpy said.
“No, take us to the Ministry of Defence. Princess Cadence and Princess Twilight are there.”
“Ok, we are going to stop this war.”
“No, wait!” Gerrard exclaimed.
“Wait for what?” Samus said to Gerrard.
“We must go first to the Griffon Kingdom. We need both the griffons and the ponies to stop this war.”
“Ok, it’s not a bad idea. Let’s go there.”

July 20, 1518 CE, 11:30 am, Canterlot Ministry of Defence.

The building of the Ministry was filled with a lot of ponies running and flying all over the place. In the main room, the generals of the Equestrian Army were debating over the next decision they should made.

“But we can’t do that!”
“Why not? They must be thinking of doing the same thing!”
“But.. that’s genocide!”
“Better them than us. Princess Sparkle, what should we do?”

The purple alicorn horse was thinking about the proposed solution. Almost all of her generals approve the solution of bombing one of the Griffon Cities as an ultimatum. Somehow the thought wasn’t as unpleasant as to continue the war, something nopony wanted to do. But she didn’t want to hurt innocent griffons to stop it. When she was struggling with her mind, one of her generals, a deep sap green pegasus, called her attention.

“Your highness. If we don’t do something now, Equestria will fall. I know you don’t want to do it, but is the only option.”

Twilight cleared her throat and began her chat. “Everypony. I want to tell you that I’m not happy with the choice I made. Let’s remember we didn’t do it for hatred or fear. We did it because we didn’t have other choice.” A tear was coming from her eye when she said that.

“General Hawker” she added, “you may continue with Project Manehattan.”

VWOOOOORP! VWOOOOOORP! VWOOOOORP! VWOOOOOORP!

“Wait!” Twilight stopped her generals, she recognized that sound from her youth in Ponyville. “Maybe we got another chance.” She run to the source of the sound, and she was relieved to see the TARDIS standing in the middle of the other room. “Doctor! It’s a pleasure to see you!”

“Twilight! The pleasure it’s mine.”
“Look, Doctor, I know you won’t like this but-” The Doctor gently put a hoof on her mouth.
“I’m here to end the war. I need both nations to stop this madness.”
“What? Yes, I mean, I was about to do something I’ll regret my whole life.”
“You don’t need to. Now, I need all the princess to come to my TARDIS.”
“That’s kind of impossible. Princess Luna can’t leave her bed.”
“Ok, so let’s go to her. You are going to sign a peace treaty. A fair one that would lead to friendship with the griffons.”
“Wait, but, how we are going to convince them to sign?”
“I already did it.” He pointed his hoof to the TARDIS, where a big griffon came out of there. At the sight of the griffon, the ponies quickly grab their guns and pointed to him.
“Doctor, you told me this wasn’t going to happen.” The Griffon exclaimed.
“Sorry, won’t happen, put your guns down.” The Doctor ordered to the ponies. “PUT YOUR GUNS DOWN!”
“Do what he said.” Twilight ordered.
“But- but- those things almost killed Princess Luna.” One of the soldiers replied.
“Disobeying an order from Equestria Highest Authority it’s cause of martial court.” At the threat of a martial court, all the ponies put their guns down. “Let’s go, Doctor.”

July 20, 1518 CE, 11:30 am, Canterlot Hospital.

The hospital room where Princess Luna was staying was closed for general public. Only generals, doctors and the royal family could go there for safety reasons. Four years ago she was shot by somepony at the middle of an event in the Griffin Kingdom. Since the shooting, Princess Luna had been feeling weaker, and she was trying to do her best to survive. 

Next to Luna there was her niece Princess Cadence. She put Twilight at the Ministry of War so she could decide the course of the war, because she believed that Twilight would do the best to find the culprit of the shooting. She decided to stay close to her aunt just to make sure she got anything she would need.

She was waiting for the time of her lunch when she heard the whirring of the TARDIS.

“Doctor?” Cadence greeted the Doctor.
“I’m sorry, I need both of you. This war ends today.”
“Doctor? What are you saying? The war ends until the griffons pay for the things they have made.”
“I’m here to do something I must have done four years back.” The griffon voice sounded in all the room, waking up Princess Luna. “I have to pay a visit to an old friend.”
“Stay away from her!” Princess Cadence yelled at him, pointing her horn at him. “If you get close-”
“Cadence!” A weak voice said. The Princess of the Night was trying to lift her head to her niece. “Let him talk.”
“But-”
“Please, I know him, he wouldn’t do anything wrong, right Gunther?”
Gunther walked to the side of the Princess.
“This four years I had sent so many griffons to death, there is so much blood from my paws I couldn’t stand the pain I have caused. I’m here to end this war. I hope, your highness, you could forgive me for all the pain my people, specially me, have caused to Equestria.” Gunther said to the Princess.
“I’m sorry too, Gunther. This war could have ended before and without so many losses if we didn’t said those things to each other. I know you didn’t cause that assault, nor you planned it nor endorsed. So many ponies and griffons died for our guilt. There’s no way we could change that. But we can do something now, and sign that.”

“Ok, I need all of you to sign this.” Samus grabbed a paper in front of the princess.
“What’s your name, soldier?”
“Colonel Nate Samus, your highness.”
“Thank you, Brigadier Nate Samus.” The princess smiled at the unicorn.
“Brig- Brigadier? Madame, are you sure?”
“You helped to end a war, and you did it in the most peaceful and honorable way. Why I shouldn’t promote you.”
“No, I mean. Thank you, your highness.” The now Brigadier blushed. “Madame, there is another reason why are we all here.”
“Really?” The Princess got a worried face.
“Yes. My soldiers found a new threat in the Changeling Kingdom. The only way to save all of us is a bombing in that place.”
“Ok, we are going to the Ministry to arrange the attack.” Twilight said.
“Doctor, take me to my kingdom. I must send a message and prepare a bombing.” Gunther said.
“Alright, let’s go Derpy.”

July 20, 1518 CE, 1:00 pm, Changeling Kingdom.

With the newly found alliance, both nations bombed the remains of the changeling kingdom. Then they send a search party for all the remaining cybermen. All of their remains were put in a cellar that was sealed with the magic of Princess Cadence, Twilight and Honeydew. When they made sure nopony would open the seal, they walk to Gunther and his generals to discuss some aspects of the peace treaty.

“As a sign of alliance, both Equestria and Griffonia would help each other to the reconstruction of the ruined cities.” Cadence read.
“And the nations will create an organization to improve the relations between the members of it and to prevent another war.” Gunther read. “But, where we are going to put that organization?”
“Why not here?” Honeydew asked.
“There are cybermen buried here. I don’t think that’s a good idea.” The Doctor pointed.
“But maybe close to this place. We can rebuild this city and put a big building above the cellar so nopony would enter there.” Gunther added.
“How are we going to call the organization?” Twilight asked.
“I’ve got an idea. Where I came from, there was an organization called the United Nations. They had a military taskforce with people from all their nations. It was called UNIT.”
“Ok, so let’s create UNIT and the United Nations.” Princess Luna said. “Brigadier Samus, escort the Doctor and Derpy to the TARDIS.”

The Doctor and Derpy walked to the TARDIS with them. With Samus, Sharp Tooth and Gerrard were promoted as well. They were now a sergeant and Feldwebel. They walked to the TARDIS and stand there to give their goodbyes.

“Brigadier Nate Samus, how does it feel that new star?” The Doctor asked to Samus.
“To be honest, weird. I didn’t think that I would become a Brigadier, specially at my age.” Samus said. “I’m not sure if I’ll handle this well.”
“You’ll be great.”
“Doctor, where those cybermen came from?” Derpy asked. The Doctor face became serious.
“I don’t know. After the bombing I went to some cybermen but their communication was lost and I couldn’t figure it how they entered here. I tried to find the cyberleader but EMMA disappeared.”
“Do you think they’ll come back?” Sharp Tooth asked.
“Yes, probably. I think you can handle that, but if you want any help…” the Doctor grabbed a card from his pocket and gave it to the Brigadier, “call me, no matter where I am or when I am, I would come here as quick as I can.”
“Thank you Doctor. Derpy, it was an honor and a pleasure.” Samus said.
“Your welcome.”

The Doctor and Derpy entered the TARDIS, and it slowly disappeared in front of the soldiers.
“Gentlecolts, take the rest of the day. I’ll see you tomorrow at 1800 in the morning.”
“Wait, Nate, I mean Samus, I mean Brigadier.”
“What is it, Tooth?” The brigadier raised an eyebrow to her sergeant.
“I was thinking that maybe… you know… as friends, it doesn’t have to mean nothing but…”
Samus gave him a serious look, “Sergeant, what you are asking for it’s dangerous and forbidden.”. When the changeling looked to the floor, she smiled at him. “I’ll pay the popcorn and the soda, you’ll pay the tickets. No romantic thing, maybe The Power Ponies: United. Eight o’ clock. Got it?”
“Ummm, got it, Brigadier.” Sharp Tooth smiled.
“Don’t call me Brigadier off duty, call me Nate.”

When they were walking away, a lighting sound stopped them. They saw a big blue sphere with lightings getting bigger. Suddenly the sphere faded away, leaving behind a blue pegasus pony, with a long light blue mane and a brown coat. His cutie mark was a Mars symbol. Suddenly, the pegasus raised up and began to walk.

“I… I…” He then looked at himself “I am a pony? That’s weird, a blue pony. And apparently I can talk.” He looked to the ponies and the griffon, who were in defensive stance. “Hello there.”
“Hello. Who are you?” Samus asked to the pegasus.
“I am Captain Jack Harkness. I’m looking for the Doctor.”


TO BE CONTINUED