Shocked by the raid on Equestrias colony on the planet of Horizon, Shetland Sparkle must learn to live with those she lost. But when investigators of the Hyena Empire arrive, it seems that something sinister is happening behind the scenes.
Over three weeks have passed since a raid of hyenas had attacked the colony of Horizon and only under great sacrifice had they been beaten back. Three weeks of nightmares, fear and guilt as Shetland takes shaky steps on the way to recovery.
Yet, things are in motion, and as new events kick off, will Shetland pull herself together in order to stop it?
The room was large and cold, but not uncomfortably so. The metallic walls were utilitarian, yet carried an air of homeliness and comfort that set Shetland at ease. There were no windows, but that was fine, there was little to see outside. She equally ignored the door. She could stay in this peaceful room forever. A smell stung in her nose, scraping her nostrils with the pungent scent. Covering her nose, she looked around, seeking the source.
Instead, there were faces. Ponies. Two unicorns and a changeling, all covering their noses, as well as a pegasus, in the corner of her eye. They seemed distressed, eyeing the door for some reason. Then she heard a noise, a faraway burst of sound. She approached the door as a feeling took hold in her chest like a leech. Dread. She dreaded what was coming. Her breath quickening, she ripped the door open-
And screamed in fright as fire swept in from the hallway. She jumped away, unable to reach the door as the flames leaked into the room. The panicked shouts of her friends came in unison with her own as they all backed away. Helpless, she looked around for any escape, but there was none. Something banged against the walls, as if trying to break them in. Then, her heart froze as a bone-chilling scream split her ears. The changelings body had erupted into flame and as they all shouted in horror, the red unicorn reached out, trying to pull her away, but the flames caught onto his coat as well. Screaming, they rolled uselessly on the floor. Shetlands last friend bawled their names, yet he too could only watch as their bodies crumpled to ashes.
No. Shetland’s mind raced. She knew what was next. She wanted to reach out her hoof, but was horrified to find that her body would not move. Frozen in terror, she watched as the unicorn screamed in anguish and flung himself at the flames. A loud bang emerged from behind her and she dropped to the ground. She was alone. Except…
Her mind screamed at her not to move, but she could not help but look up. As the flames encircled her and grew ever closer, a new face had emerged, metallic like the room, yet it was filled with lively lights as the robot looked at her encouragingly, holding out a helping hoof.
Yet all it did was make dread clutch her heart, like a spider its prey. But she got up, taking his hoof with a kind smile. Then, her body moving entirely on its own, she suddenly pressed against him, and disbelieving screams came from him as she bucked him into the fire.
His cry of agony mixed with her own, or maybe she just screamed so she wouldn’t hear him. Static noise grew in her ears, picking up in intensity and she tore at her ears and still she faintly heard his screams.
Shetland. Shetland. Shetland Sparke…. Miss Sparkle!
A scream awoke her and she ripped her eyes open. She didn’t know if it came from the startled nurse beside her or herself. “Get Princess Twilight, Aphid.” The voice sounded weirdly high-pitched as it rang in her cranium.
She raised a hoof to swipe over her face. It was moist, a mix of sweat and tears, judging by the way her eyes stung. She tried to sit up, groaning as movement came through her still body. Suddenly, a pair of hooves was there, helping her. “Thank you…” she mumbled, her throat dry as dust.
“Are you okay, Miss Sparkle? Y-you screamed and we couldn’t get close enough to wake you up.” The nurse asked.
“I’m fine…” Shetland mumbled. “It was… just a dream,” she looked down at the small nurse, a batpony called Rose Petal, and her gaze hardened. “There is no reason to call my mother.”
Rose looked up at her, worry written clear in her expression. “You thrashed around like a madmare, Miss Sparkle. I’m afraid none of us would have been strong enough to stop you… and Princess Twilight surely wants to be informed of this incident.”
Shetland grit her teeth, but remained silent. It was already too late, and even as anger mixed into her headache, she saw the logic in her words.
“For all its worth… good morning.” Rose said, her lips sliding into a smile.
Shetland let out a grunt.
“How’s your leg feeling?” she pushed on. “Does it still hurt?”
“No.” Shetland tried to turn away, but Rose tugged at her hoof.
“Physical exam is mandatory.” The nurse said sternly. “Let me see.”
Shetland glared down at the batpony, but Rose had received it too often to back away anymore. So, grumbling, Shetland kicked back the blanket and hissed as the nerves in her leg flared up. It was right after her waist where the brown fur on her right side stopped, replaced by naked skin, warped and knobby like the trunk of an ancient oak. Most of it was pink, but on the outward side was a line of blackened scars. The unused feeling of her mattress rubbing over furless skin made Shetland shudder. And even more so as Roses hoof ran over it in her examination.
“Can you feel my hoof?”
Shetland nodded as her jaw clenched. Without fur, touch was strange, blunt. The hoof felt like an uneven slab of granite scraping over her and when she’d have barely noticed that roughness of Rose’s coat, every hair now pricked her like a mosquito bite.
Scraping upwards, Rose’s hoof poked into her flank. “Still no sign of a cutie mark,” she said absent-mindedly, scribbling notes with her mouth. “It’s a good thing you’re an earth pony, Miss Sparkle.”
Shetland shot her a dirty look. “What is that supposed to mean?” she grumbled, her eyes trailing over the batpony’s leathery wings.
“A cutie mark is a cluster in a pony’s magical structure.” she explained. “Losing it has the potential to severely impact one’s magical fluctuations, usually rendering spellcasting or flying much trickier. Luckily for you, earth ponies are rarely affected by this, since your inner magic is much more uhm… raw.”
Shetland let out a relieved sigh. “So I’m fine?”
Rose nodded. “At worst you might feel a little weaker, but I wouldn’t even bet on that…” she hesitated for a moment. “A-although I cannot speak for any amount of alicorn magic, t-there are no studies and I couldn’t hazard-”
“I don’t have any.” she sourly cut the nurse off.
It did not help her mood that Rose’s eyes trailed over Shetland’s alicorn-sized bed with an expression of doubt.
“I had mom check. Many times,” she elaborated. “And I’m pretty sure if I had it, she’d have used it to grow me a horn…”
Rose looked up, her eyes darting to her notepad. “Would you have preferred that?”
“Of course!” Shetland exclaimed. “Who in their right mind would chose to be an earth pony if they could be a pegasus or unicorn?” Under her breath, she added: “Mom would’ve preferred me as a hornhead.”
Rose frowned and Shetland cursed. Damn bat-ears!
“I-if we could continue with your physical-” the nurse suggested and Shetland grunted in agreement.
Regaining her sense of professionalism, Rose pulled something from her mane, which promptly fell out of it's strict hairdo and over her back. “Please stretch your leg out as straight as you can, Miss Sparkle.”
She did so, but just before her leg straightened out, she hit some sort of resistance, keeping it slightly bent. She pushed out, but to no avail, it was like trying to move a stone wall. An angry whinny escaped her throat.
Rose meanwhile looked over her. “Please hold it like that.” she ordered the straining mare. “I will run this needle over your leg now. If you at any point don’t feel it, tell me.”
Shetland closed her eye as the sharp object ran over her warped skin, its pointy and cold prick feeling much too strong on her way too sensitive skin.
“Good, good…” Rose mumbled. “It seems most of your nerve-ends recovered…” The needle was lifted and Shetland let out a relieved sigh.
Rose sucked in air through her teeth and Shetland opened her eyes. It was there. Right over her missing cutie mark the needle still remained, even piercing slightly into a bit of blackened skin. And she couldn’t feel a thing. She took a shaky breath as she met Rose’s worried look.
“What does it mean?” she whispered.
The nurse set to answer, but the sudden clatter of hooves on tiles interrupted her. A second later, Twilight Sparkle burst into the room, startling both mares as she frantically looked around. Her ethereal mane lashed out, as if trying to swat a fly. “Where is she?” she demanded to know.
Rose recovered from her shock first. “She’s okay, your highness.” She bowed her head. “I’m deeply sorry for the false alarm, she simply had a nightmare.”
Shetland shot the nurse a glare. The last thing she needed was her own mother thinking of her as a foal who couldn’t handle her own imagination.
“Did… did it take you back?” Twilight asked, her voice a quiet whisper.
And it was so much worse when it was justified. she nodded and grit her teeth at the pitying looks she received from both Twilight and Rose. “It was just a nightmare, mom.” she insisted.
“Maybe I should ask Luna to protect you-”
“NO!” Shetland shouted indignantly. “One alicorn packing me in foam is more than enough!”
Twilight let out a sigh and turned away. “I’m sorry, Miss Petal, I have completely interrupted your work.”
“N-no offense your highness.” For some reason, her repeated bows were grating on Shetland's nerves, whose look darkened even further. Rose continued, taking out her notepad. “I was just about to tell her of the expected extent of her injuries.”
Twilight’s expression immediately turned to a professional frown. “Please continue.”
Shetland closed her eyes, even as her ears peaked up.
“Her leg is healing remarkably well, considering the extent of her injuries. If she did not deny it, I would swear there is some alicorn magic at work. In most cases like this, the leg would have to be amputated-”
“GET TO THE POINT!” Shetland screamed, causing both mares to snap around to her. She grit her teeth. It was hard enough to know something bad was coming, but to have it at noses length, just to be pulled away, like a kid who couldn’t handle bad news- “Just. Say it!”
Rose swallowed. “I’m afraid her cutie mark will never return.”
Shetland loudly breathed out. She had suspected it, but it still stung. “Will I… always look like this?” she asked, cursing her voice for breaking.
“C-cosmetic surgery is an option, but I’m afraid Horizons supplies don’t permit that quite yet. You will have to return to Equis for that.”
Twilight ‘s head turned to where Shetland’s flank was once again hidden under the covers. “It might take a few years until we can allow the use of medicine on such things. I’m afraid I can’t make an exception.” she said apologetically.
“What else?” Shetland asked gruffly.
“Your leg, uhm… your skin grew back much less stretchy than before, then consequence is a certain… loss of locomotion.”
Shetland groaned. “SPECIFIC, PLEASE!” she roared, causing her to shriek back.
“Shetland.” Twilight interjected calmly, gently placing a hoof on her shoulder and pushed her back. “How severe is this loss?”
“She’ll be able to walk, certainly, though… with a noticeable limp, I’m afraid. Corrective surgery can happen in time, but first we need to see how bad exactly the damage will be once it's fully healed.”
“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Twilight asked.
Rose nodded. “We’ve been doing some stretches with her, but what she really needs is more extended movement. We’re requisitioning a treadmill for that reason. Although any physical activity should happen with oversight… too much and she could cause more damage. I'd advise her to stay in the hospital for maybe another week.”
Shetland fell silent, though her hooves were shaking. Just one more week, she told herself. One more week of being treated like a cripple. It didn’t help much.
“May I at least take her to the waiting room? I’m sure she must be terribly sick of this room.” Twilight asked.
“Of course.” Rose said and lowered her head in an infuriating fourth or fifth bow. “We can also have food delivered to you both-”
“Just a tea.” Twilight quickly blocked. “I ate before.”
Shetland grunted. She would not get a choice.
The waiting room was otherwise empty, yet the walls were still too close for Shetlands comfort. She laid on the only couch, her backside and legs reaching over the side and still her head rested on the outermost edge. But she didn’t bring out more than a sigh, because Twilight’s situation was even worse. Demanding that Shetland take the couch, she was left with a small seat she simply could not fit inside, instead he flank was propped ontop of the hoofrests. Shetland let out a chuckle at the sight of the mighty alicorn attempting to squeeze her butt inside the buckling chair. Twilight met her smile wistfully. “It’s good to see you smile.”
Suddenly aware of it, Shetland’s mouth felt unnaturally stiff. “There’s not much to smile at here.”
Twilight sighed, looking to her hooves. “Is there any way I can help you? Maybe bring you a book?”
“That’d work for you, wouldn’t it?” she asked, rolling her eyes. “Throw some books at the problem?”
“Yes… it would.” Twilight admitted sheepishly. Her eyes darted up to Shetland’s, but the earth pony rolled her eyes, causing Twilight to let out another sigh
“It doesn’t have to be a book, Shetty. Maybe a…” she bit her lips. There weren’t exactly a lot of things she could do. “A… board game?”
A resounding smack came from Shetland’s hoof as it impacted on her forehead. It almost drowned out the sound of a knock on the door. Rose Petal came in, a tablet on her back, which she balanced with her wings. “I’ll leave you alone.” she said hastily, but shot a look at Twilight. “Please watch out that she eats her nutrients, she’s been trying to slip them away.” Then she swiftly fled the room, before Shetland’s glare could burn her to cinders.
“You, not eating something that’s on your plate? I thought I’d never hear that!” Twilight said in acted cheerfulness.
But Shetland merely stared at the tablet, her expression a mix of anger and unwillingness as she scanned the “food”. A bowl of soup, celery if she could hazard a guess, an old-looking carrot and a bottle of water, all okay. But to the side of the bowl laid two thin, white sticks. Nutrient chalk. The healthiest and most disgusting version of nourishment ponykind has come up with. Basically just compressed nutrients and vitamins, one was enough to nurture a pony for a day. And to Shetland’s pure spite, the doctor had apparently decided she needed two!
“Shetty?” Twilight whispered, noting her dark look.
Shetland picked up one of them, glaring at it as she fought her revulsion. Here goes nothing, she thought and placed it in her mouth. She coughed. It was impossibly dry. A taste of filth-riddled cardboard spread in her mouth and worst of all, it foamed. Panicking as her mouth filled with disgustingness, she reached for the water bottle, ripping the lid off to pour it in her mouth, almost chocking at the excess of water. She swallowed a painfully large amount and broke down, breathing heavily. The aftertaste infested her mouth and her stomach fought to push it out where it came from.
It would lose. The chalk always wins.
Shetland looked up to see her mothers pitying look and her tablet, which only Twilight’s magic had saved from being knocked over in her outburst. Shetland grit her teeth, forcing down queasyness. “I’m… fine.” she mumbled. Her hoof shot out, tugging at the tablet. “Give it back!”
Twilight gave in, levitating it back into Shetlands hooves. “Shetty, I-”
Shetland yanked the tablet away. “I’m fine!” she repeated, grabbing the other piece of chalk. Yet her stubbornness quickly ceased and she glared at the piece with every ounce of hatred she possessed.
Suddenly, a movement caught her attention. Twilight, unable to stand seeing her like this, had stood up and fixated her with a stern look. “Shetty, we’re going out.” she announced.
Confused, Shetland stared at her for a few second until her brain caught up. “We- out?” she stuttered.
Twilight nodded grimly. “Outside in the colony. Make yourself ready, I’ll just notify your doctor.”
“But-” Shetland looked back at her side. “My leg-”
“Is good enough to walk, as Ms. Petal said.” Twilight determined. Her gaze softened and she levitated the nutrient chalk out of Shetland's hoof. “You’ve been in here too long, Shetty,” she whispered. “Three weeks. Tiny rooms, no sights, bad food, this place must be like prison to you.” she pushed a strain of mane out of Shetland’s face and smiled. “You’ve always wanted to see Horizon anyway, right?”
“Y-yes.. but” Shetland stammered, yet for some reason, she felt anxious.
“Don’t worry, I’ll clear it with your doctor.” Twilight said and went out to search for him.
Back in the room, Shetland was staring down at her hooves. Her mind raced, reasons to leave, reasons to stay, but Twilight was right, She hated this place, it truly was a prison. But then why, Shetland thought, clenching her teeth to the point where they hurt. Why does it feel so wrong to leave?
There was a tradition on Horizon: To draw a breath of the planets air without a mask on. The air was fresh as it poured in her nostrils, tickling them with a faint scent of… salty, tangy-
“D-does this planet smell like Soy Sauce?” Shetland burst out, staring at Twilight with open mouth.
The alicorn let out a chuckle from underneath her plastic airmask. “Interesting, isn’t it? But put your mask on, please.”
Shetland pondered to ignore her. But as nice as the fresh air was after her long stay in the hospital, where newly recycled air passed as fresh, her lungs already tingled. The outside air, while safe to breathe, unfortunately wouldn’t sustain her. She slammed the mask on her muzzle, breathing in deeply and her lungs stopped cramping as the “Equestrian” air filled them. The corners of her lips twitched upwards in a motion so recently unpractised that it felt weird.
The sun- A sun, Shetland quickly corrected herself, shone down upon her back as she stepped out of the building's shadow. Her eyes, so used at indoor lighting, hurt and she had to shield them from the warm, yet bright light that engulfed the settlement. But even as she had to blink frequently, she still tried to take everything in. The needle-like mountain range on the horizon, the sandy ground with the occasional patch of yellow-dried grass, reminiscent of tiny wooden pickets and the strange orange shade on… everything. She looked to Twilight, who simply smiled. The hospital, a white dome which, as Shetland now saw, was connected to a bunch of haphhazardly spread out metal buildings, seemingly assembled from rectangular building blocks.The connecting tunnels were made of glass over a metallic frame. Completely airtight. She could see ponies hushing through them, a duo of unicorns in labcoats, floating pieces of nutrient chalk beside them as they busily chatted. Shetlands stomach gave a lurch as they vanished in another solid dome.
The other side was in such a stark contrast that she had to do a double-take. There were only five buildings, yet they looked older, rustic even. They seemed to be made of wood, though she could see hints of the usual metal prefab underneath. Still, they had each managed to personalize it. Some had outside stairs or balconies and wooden porches emerge over the dusty ground. If not for the utter lack of windows, they’d easily belong in Appleloosa. Twilight pointed a wing, focusing her attention, although it was barely necessary, the three-storied house was easily the most eye-catching, even without the large sign ontop, proclaiming:
Horse Horizon
A grey, bearded earth pony stood on the wooden porch, occasionally taking off his airmask to puff a pipe and then blow smoke-rings.
“We’ll eat here.” Twilight said. She met Shetland’s sceptical look. “I promise they have real food in there.”
“G-Good food?” Shetland whispered, even as she tried to suppress the weakness in her voice. And the flood of saliva in her mouth. And the roar of her stomach.
“I promise.” Twilight grinned, casting a knowing grin on her.
A Saloon. That was the only word Shetland could think of to describe the densely packed room. Ponies sat around tables, playing cards and licking salt blocks. In the middle of the room several tables had been shoved to the side to make place for a tug of war contest, three earth ponies on either side. Shetland smirked, she could probably win by herself as judging from their scrawny builds, they were clearly not physical workers. Twilight, after checking the airtight door, discreetly pointed a wing at the staircase to the side. Everypony was too busy cheering on the match to notice the alicorn princess in their midst. Shetland groaned quietly as Twilight rushed her up the stairs, her hindleg was oddly stiff and every step emitted a loud, groaning creak from. Suddenly, the stairs were whisked away from her hooves by a magenta aura. She glared back at Twilight, who returned an apologetic smile. Shetland grumbled, especially as she uncomfortably bumped on the ceiling before Twilight carried her through the opening.
“Sorry.” The alicorn said sheepishly. “I just didn’t want to alert them, or let you put a strain on your leg.”
“Why even avoid them?” Shetland murmured, rubbing her back
Twilight raised a hoof- then put it back down. “I… guess I just don’t get to be sneaky that often.” she offered weakly, but it was enough to make Shetland crack a smile. Neither did she, usually.
“So, what is this place?” Shetland wondered. “Why is it so… Appleloosian?” She looked over the second floor. It was quieter, with only a few scattered ponies across the room. Given, they were all unashamedly staring at them, but Shetland didn’t stare back- her attention was drawn to their plates as her stomach let out a wistful purr.
Twilight chuckled, choosing a table and levitated a menu to her salivating daughter. “It’s a watering hole, Shetty. And also a restaurant, we try to cram several things into these buildings, since we need an air generator for each one. Of course it has… drawbacks.” She flinched as bellowing cheer came from the room below. It seemed like the game was over. “As for the style,” Twilight grinned. “We thought it’d be a good idea to provide places of relaxation different from ponie’s workplaces. Do you want to spend your free time somewhere that looks exactly like your office?”
“Mhm.” Shetland barely listened. Her stomach had taken over her brain and commanded all her attention to the menu.
“Thought so!” Twilight grinned obliviously. “That’s why we used the style of Appleloosa, as not only is it quick to build and appropriate for the planet’s temperature, but also Luna really enjoys the old-time flair and-” She probably could have rambled on like that forever, but Shetland raised a hoof, adopting a pitiful look.
“Mom,” she whined. “I’m starving.”
“O-oh…” Twilight chuckled awkwardly, trying to bridge the moment. “I-I’ll just go and speak with the owner.”
“Do that.” Shetland mumbled absently. Her attention was fully spent on the nearest unicorns plate, as if her eyes could suck in the sandwich by just staring hard enough. She barely noticed when Twilight left the room.
Fresh apple fritters. Shetlands mouth watered and she had to force her mouth closed for none to spill out. The warm scent of cinnamon filled her nose, and her stomach yearned, yet her cold brain stopped her, even as she licked her lip, she looked up to her mother.
Twilight sat across from her, levitating a spoon in her applesoup as she observed her daughter uncomfortably. “Is something up?” She asked quietly.
Shetland shook her head, not knowing the answer herself.
“Well, dig in then.” Twilight said awkwardly, yet it cracked through her mental barrier.
After weeks of hospital food, the taste of her first bite brought tears on Shetland’s face. As well as the heat, but even as it hurt her tongue, she could not slow down as she stuffed fritter after fritter down her ravenous maw, moaning every now and then as warm satisfaction spread through her. She took another portion, and another before she finally felt full and well, letting out a satisfied grunt as she finally shoved the plate away from herself. Twilight had remained silent all the time, only raising an eyebrow mildly at the excessive eating, her soup bowl long empty. “Feeling better now?”
“You have no idea…” Shetland said, running her hoof over her tummy, feeling warm and bloated.
Twilight nodded, but her smile soon vanished, and her eyes darted around. The silence soon stretched out and Shetlands cursed the lack of windows. If there were any, she at least wouldn’t be staring at her own plate like a sad poodle.
“Where else would you like to go?” Twilight finally suggested, breaking the awkward silence.
Again Shetland cursed the missing windows- because now she wanted to see the streets. They could visit the acting Voidmarine or even Princess Luna. Although she’d heard that she was currently in a different settlement- But that just brought a bigger smile on her face.
“I wanna go see Luna.”
Her smile instantly faded as she saw her mother’s sharp inhale.
“I… don’t think we can do that.” The alicorn shook her head. With a raised hoof, she blocked Shetland’s protest before she brought out a single word. “You’re clear to leave the hospital, but you should always stay near, in case of- of complications.”
Great. Just great. Shetland saw down at her cursed, scarred leg, letting out a sigh. Even worse, she could see a newly arrived unicorn strain his neck to get a look at it. She shot back a burning glare and was rewarded when he instantly averted his gaze. Only then did it cross her mind that he may have stared because large ponies. Also, Alicorn Princess.
“What about the- uhm-” For a moment, Twilight’s eyes darted to the upper staircase. “The-” she stammered, as her brows furrowed.
“The what?” Shetland raised an eyebrow, trying to relax. At least her mother was trying-
“The greenhouses, wouldn’t it be interesting to learn how we grow food here?”
Something in Shetland snapped. Not because of the suggestion, it would have been fine, interesting certainly and under any other circumstances she would have easily agreed. But as Twilight said that, her eyes were squarely on Shetland’s barren forehead, and it made her blood boil.
“No, I don’t think so.” she pressed through her teeth.
Twilight seemed to deflate a little. “And what about-”
“What’s up there?” Shetland interrupted her, pointing to the staircase. “You keep glancing over there.”
“Oh, it’s nothing.” Twilight brushed off nervously.
“No, it’s not, tell me.” Shetland insisted and resisted the urge to slam her hoof on the table, but if she avoided the question any longer-
“It’s a reading lounge.” Twilight blurted out.
“A…. reading lounge?” Shetland repeated, her anger suspended by disbelief. “Don’t tell me that’s actually a thing.” Although it made sense why Twilight wouldn’t want to mention it. Since Shetland had never displayed a thirst for books like her, after all.
“It is.” Twilight said, avoiding to look at Shetland in favor of the ceiling. Her tone was wistful. “It was the first business of relaxation here, actually, a bath, a massage and then a nice book for an hour or two.”
Shetland blinked. “W-wait, are you saying this is some kind of spa?”
“Mhm.” Twilight nodded. “I didn’t want to mention it, I know you don’t like that kind of stuff.”
“It sounds great, actually.” Shetland said,making Twilight’s head shoot up, her horn almost piercing the ceiling. “Not the reading part, scratch that, but a spa visit would be awesome…” she whispered, inwardly hoping the masseuse was a stallion. It made it better. Objectively.
Her imagination was crushed by a sad shake of her mother’s head. “I’m afraid we can’t do that, Shetty.”
“WHAT? Why not?” This time, she really slammed her hoof down and noted with satisfaction that every head in the room has turned.
“Because the humidity is bad for you.” Twilight insisted, her tone unbearingly reasonable. “Your leg still hasn’t fully recovered and burn wounds should generally be kept in relatively dry air.”
Sending her chair tumbling, Shetland abruptly stood up, groaning as he leg buckled a little at the sudden stress. “I’m going.” she grumbled.
“W-where?” Twilight asked, taken by surprise.
“Fresh air. Alone.” she hissed through her teeth.
“Y-Your air mask-”
“I’M NOT STUPID, MOM, I KNOW ABOUT THE BUCKING MASKS!” she finally shouted, leaving her alone as she came down the stairs. It was calmer now, but only because everypony had apparently been listening in on them. Of course. She simply stormed past them, grabbing her air mask on the way.
Pounding the ground under her hooves was immensely satisfying. At least, with her three healthy hooves. The other kept annoying her however, oddly resistant to her attempts to move it. I am limping, she realized, but it didn’t throw new firewood into her sizzling anger, that had died down to glimmering Embers somewhere deep in her stomach. She lied down in the dirt, a few hundred hooves away from the saloon, lying on her healthy side, the scars pointing upwards. She examined them and if she was crying, she couldn’t have said whether her tears would come from sadness or anger. Sure, she’d known what it looked like, even that… the scars might stay forever, but somehow, she’d always fooled herself that it’d be okay. That, other than looking ugly (and as she’d told herself sometimes when she’d felt down, impressive) there would be no change. Or maybe just that it wouldn’t be a meaningful one. She looked away from her scars, as she searched, somewhere in the distance something to take her mind off-
It stood like a needle in the land, pointing upward, the spaceport. On the Horizon, three hours by hoof away at best. She swallowed, and her throat was cold as she stared forlornly at the mark, wishing she could tear her eyes away from the landing field, where a single ship stood, only a tiny point on the horizon, where her inner eye conjured images of fire-
A hoof startled her out of her stupor. She jumped up, groaning in pain as her scarred leg once again buckled, though this time it was even worse.
“Shetland?!” Twilight’s loud, worried voice all but shouted. “Are you okay?”
“Y-yes…” she mumbled, noticing the soreness of her eyes. She touched her face, feeling the dampness on her hoof.
Before she could react, something warm closed around her back. Twilight had encompassed her in her large wings, using both them and her hooves to hug her like a mother her little foal. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered “We should go away.”
“Yes…” Shetland stuttered, too stunned to disagree. “Go back to the-”
“Not the hospital.” Twilight decided, a hint of authority reinforcing her voice. “You’ve been there long enough, you’ll be in my quarters, the doctor can come to you!”
“But you-”
“I’ll… I’ll go.” she swallowed. “I will just take care of a few thing and then… give you your privacy.”
Shetland simply nodded, yet even the news that she wouldn’t have to go back failed to excite her. Suddenly, she felt something lift her chin, forcing her eyes to meet Twilights face instead of the ground. She was shocked to see the tears welling out of the alicorn's eyes, but despite that, Twilight managed to smile.
“It’ll get better.” she assured her. “In fact, Queen Twinkle has sent us a very special package. I’m not sure what it is, but a surprise just makes it better, right?” Her smile faltered as she received no answer, but nonetheless she pushed Shetland to turn back towards the settlement, her wings covering her from the world. “Let’s get you home, Shetty.”
Her dreams went wild that night, dominated by barely coherent noises and flashing impressions storming into her mind. However, one image flashed up again and again. She sat on the outside, before her the space station doused in flame. She’d been prepared for it, but her hooves were shaking and despite how much she breathed, her lungs felt empty. Suddenly, her ears peaked up, a voice calling from the fire. She froze, it was her name. The voice echoed, the pronunciation off, yet undoubtedly… metallic.
Something cold poked her shoulder from behind.
“Shetland!”
Her eyes snapped open and she let out an ear-splitting scream. A figure stood right beside her bed, she couldn’t made out details because of the morning sun, but she’d seen the gleaming metal chassis and his glowing eyes behind a glass plate-
He took a step back. “S-Shetland, are you okay?”
It’s a mare’s voice, Shetland realized as she recovered from her shock. “S-sorry-” she blinked, her eyes slowly getting used to the light as she got a first good look at her mechanical visitor. Then her jaw dropped and she asked incredulously:
Shetland rubbed her eyes, forcing away the dreaminess. Yet, the robot was still there, light reflecting from her shiny metal surface and jabbing Shetland’s eyes, forcing her to close them again. The robot spoke, her voice synthesized by hidden speakers behind the solid plate that was her mouth.
“I am sorry, I recognized your jerky movements, whimpers, and general muscle tension as signs of a nightmare and chose to wake you.” She averted her eyes, giving Shetland’s a chance to recover from their bright blue glow. “I am sorry if that was the wrong course of action. Or if this particular instance of muscle spasm was of a positive nature.”
“No, no,” Shetland groaned, sitting up. “It was a nightmare, I’m happy you woke me up.” She flashed a smile. Toasty raised her head and nodded. The light of her eyes dimmed a little, letting Shetland look around without having to blink. Toasty stood just before her bed in a sizeable room fit for an alicorn, as well as some commodities the average colonist wouldn’t have, like a small kitchen, a shower and even a wardrobe. Suddenly, Shetland felt very conscious of her bare chest and pulled up her blanket.
“Do you want to continue sleeping?” Toasty tilted her head.
“Nah, I’ve had enough of sleeping.” Shetland’s back hurt as she sat up, and her hind leg was itching. She felt sticky from sweat and… she smacked her lips, had she been drooling in her sleep? “Ugh.” She groaned loudly. She was in dire need of a shower.
“I am happy to see you in good shape.” Toasty said, drawing her attention again. “I was so worried when I saw it on the news.”
“Yeah… good shape. Does this look like good shape to you?” she grumbled, kicking off her blanket, revealing her scarred side.
To her credit, Toasty did not recoil, but her eyelights lit up and Shetland clenched her jaw as she realized the robot was scanning her. “Cut it out.” she demanded, rolling off the bed.
“Sorry!” Now, Toasty did pull back. “I am so sorry, that was rude.”
Shetland looked back. The robot held one foreleg over the other, her head turned to the ground, the dim eyelights flickering on and off- if this was manipulation, it was masterful. “No, I’m sorry.” Shetland sighed. “I don’t know why I’m so…” She searched for the right word. “So irritable.”
A cold hoof touched her shoulder, sending shivers through Shetland’s body. Despite that, she smiled at Toasty, appreciating the warm gesture, even if it was freezing. And… wet- “Is that water on you?” she wondered, wiping a hoof over Toasty’s back.
“I believe it is.” Toasty admitted. “I just came from the spaceport this morning.” She missed how the mention of the port caused Shetland to grimace. “Apparently, morning dew forms even on moving machines.” Her eyelights contracted and she bobbed her head in a jolly motion.
Shetland took a deep breath, focusing her attention on questioning the robotic mare. Her lips contorted into a smile. “Today, huh? I didn’t even know they allowed new colonists after the incident… in fact…” She gave a questioning glance. “Why are you here? What about your job in the Turing Tart? Why did you leave that-”
However, her stomach, having long since digested yesterday’s delicacies, was unable to bear the mention of the cafè and announced its needs with a loud roar.
“Well, well,” an electronic chuckle escaped from Toasty. “Somepony is hungry~”
“I can wait.” Shetland insisted bravely, even as her eyes shifted to the small kitchen… suddenly, the emptiness of her stomach wasn’t just a small nuisance anymore, but a bottomless hungering hole.
“No, no, I will make you breakfast.” Toasty insisted, running to the kitchen.
“You don’t need to-” Shetland started, but her voice died as Toasty’s head turned to an impossible degree, staring right back at her with glowing red eyes while her hooves searched the cupboards.
“You are not stopping me from making breakfast for you, Shetland Sparkle.” She said, and she must have turned up the volume of her voice, because it shook the taller mare to the bone.
Maybe she also used bass.
“You… really like making breakfast then?” Shetland stammered.
“Yes!” Toasty cheered, her voice and eyes returning to normal. “It is the most important intake of nutrition of the day. It fills one with cheer and strength to take on the day, thus rendering the outlook on tasks and hence, the day, more positive.” She let out a happy sigh, which Shetland felt was a weird sound to hear from a robot. “I love breakfasts.”
“But… you can’t eat it, right?” Shetland asked, raising an eyebrow.
The robot froze for a second. “No, I cannot,” she admitted. “Nonetheless, I enjoy making it. The process of making food-” Her voice was drowned out by loud clattering as she searched through the shelves, her hooves making loud, tinny noises against the appliances.
Shetland shook her head as she felt her eyes closing. She suppressed a yawn. The dream was already growing hazy, but it had left behind more than just bad memories. Her mind was clouded, tiredness slowing her thoughts to a crawl. She raised a hoof, wiping over her damp face. Staring at the hoof, she suddenly grew aware of the soggy covers, the irksome itchy feeling in her fur and the tangy smell of sweat. Her eyes followed Toasty as she sliced bread, hoping dearly that the robot was unable to smell. Having to meet her while lying in bed felt awkward enough.
A gasp escaped Shetland’s lips as she clambered to her hooves. Her leg, previously sleeping numbly, felt like a million ants had been sent through her veins, the tingling feeling crawling through her side. Gritting her teeth, she sucked in air, refusing to make further sound, but the robot had already turned around. Shetland looked away, but even without seeing, she could feel Toasty’s gaze wander over her body towards her large burn marks.
“Dear Twilight.” Toasty whispered. “I only heard you’d been injured, but not how badly!”
“It’s fine.” Shetland blurted out, backing off as Toasty approached her. She didn’t need this right now, and the pity in that voice made it so much worse! She put a hoof down on Toasty’s shoulder, pushing gently. Toasty seemed to get the hint, and took a step back.
“Sorry.” She said. “You probably can’t stand to hear reactions like that anymore, can you?”
“I’ll probably have to get used to it.” Shetland said, her anger crumbling away, replaced by a sinking feeling as she looked over the webway of scars on her flank. Tugging at the corners of her lips, she forced a smile. “Does it at least look cool?”
Toasty’s eyes blinked off and on, the light changing to a soft turquoise. “It is quite eye-catching.” she intoned passively, making Shetland cringe. "I am certain you will have tons of stallions stare at your ass now."
Silence. Then Shetland snickered. “Yeah, you could say that. Though I wouldn’t count my chances that high anyway…”
“With buttcheeks at perfect eye-level? You have got to be kidding me.” Toasty crossed her hooves, looking away, as if sulking.
That was too much. Shetland broke out in braying laughter and after a few moments, the robot joined in. She laughed until her sides hurt and she had to gasp for air. And still, she grinned, as the world seemed brighter, like she’d taken off sunglasses. “Phew. Never thought I’d have that conversation with a robot.” she chuckled, pressing a hoof to her lips.
“Never thought I’d have that conversation with Princess Twilight’s daughter.” Toasty responded, her eyelights blinking, which Shetland realized was a sign of amusement.
A loud growl came from Shetland’s stomach, making both mares jerk back. She threw a greedy look at the kitchen, but priorities shouted in her mind. “Hey, uh, Toasty? Do you mind if I pop in the bathroom real quick?”
“Of course not.” Toasty shook her head. “I’ll have breakfast ready when you are.”
----
It hit her like a wall as she left the bathroom. The scent that playfully tickled her nostrils, that made her legs buckle and her stomach roar. It pulled her like a leash, and she was like a dog to it’s whim. Thankfully, Toasty did not abuse that power. She offered a seat and Shetland unceremoniously slumped into it. “You know what I missed all the time since I moved out?” She asked the robot, who took a seat across from her.
“No.” She tilted her head.
“Comfy chairs.” Shetland grinned, rocking it slightly from side to side. “Living with Ciloa was nice, but I’d prefer not living in a dollhouse.” For a moment, she grinned as Toasty chuckled. Then her eyes widened and she swallowed through her dry throat, closing her eyes as she fought her mind. Not now, she intoned silently. Don’t think about it!
“I assume this is a problem for you fairly often?” The robot asked, oblivious to her inner battle.
“Uh, wha- yeah, yeah, all the time.”
Toasty’s metallic hoof poked the table. Her glowing pupils visibly contracted as she observed Shetland. “Your breakfast is getting cold, Shetland, I advise you not to let that happen. I would be very offended if you did not enjoy my cooking to your maximum capacity.” One pupil fell dark for a moment, acting as a wink.
Shetland breathed a sigh of relief, turning her attention to food. Yeah, food was better than thinking anyway. And oh, was it distracting, if simple. Thin apple slices rounded the plate, acting as a delicious highlight to a dish of baked egg on toast, grilled to a perfect crunchy brown. “I can see how you got your name.” she winked.
Weirdly enough, however, Toasty’s eyes darkened a little, and her hoof tapped the table in an unsteady, impatient rhythm. “I did what I could.Foodstuffs still have little variety, so I have to make do. For one,” She pointed an accusatory hoof at the apple slices. “Far too thin. There is no more juice to the bite, I could have just as well dried them into apple chips. But I cannot use more.”
“Uh… why not?” Shetland stared self-consciously at the few slices that had survived her appetite so far.
“Because apples, as well as most fruit for that matter, still can only be grown in greenhouses, which there are a limited number of. Unlike hay or grains. I was informed of such restrictions at my arrival.” Even without having an expression, Shetland could feel the sheer annoyance radiating from her companion. A few slices still lined her plate as she realized what that meant.
“So the only reason I got apples is because my mom’s a princess?” she asked, deep folds shifting on her forehead.
Toasty nodded and Shetland fought hard to keep from grimacing. One thing was clear, she needed a change of topic, pronto. Fortunately, there was something she’d been meaning to ask for a while.
“What are you doing here?”
The robot tilted her head, confused by both the question and the change of topic.
“Up here in the colony.” Shetland clarified. “You had a job in the Turing Tart, why are you suddenly here? What happened?”
A clang came from Toasty’s hooves as she tapped them together. “It happened before your departure. Did you not hear?” she asked, the volume of her voice turned down.
Shetland uncomfortably scratched her mane. “N-no, I didn’t really watch the news very much then.” Or ever. She’d actually avoided any sort of news at the time, in case it covered her and her mother, as they liked to do that when they had nothing better to report on.
“The Turing Tart was vandalized.” she paused, just long enough for Shetland ‘s jaw to drop.
“W-wha-?”
“Five ponies, young adolescents, came into the building. At first they seemed okay, but when I turned my back to bring their orders, they suddenly began tearing up the place. I wanted to stop them, but then… one shot me with a taser gun.” She averted her gaze, not meeting Shetland’s outraged look. “It only fried my systems temporarily.”
Shetland nodded. Robots were built with that weakness, so law enforcement had ‘harmless’ methods of containing them. Yet the thought of using one on Toasty-
“They chased away our customers, broke our furniture- only property damage, I wasn’t really harmed.” she assured Shetland. “But I was only able to watch as they did, feeling impossibly… I think the closest organic concept would be ‘dizzy’. I was already regaining control over my limbs when law enforcement finally arrived.”
“Oh, Toasty…” Shetland said through gritted teeth, torn between feeling sorry for the robot and seething rage at her tormentors.
“That is not the final straw, though.” Toasty mercilessly continued, her gaze centered on her own hooves, which, if she was an organic, would have certainly shaken from anger. “One of the officers passed it off as simple property damage. Me being assaulted was property damage.” Another robotic sigh escaped her. “His partner immediately corrected him and even called a mechanic to check on my functionality, yet it does not feel like it was enough.”
Shetland stammered, unable to find the right words. But it wasn’t necessary, as Toasty continued, ranting as much to herself as to the earth pony.
“I’d always tried to think positively. After all, Equestria is by far the most accepting country for our kind, most simply closed borders for us after the Grinding Wars. But… I…” she sighed as she got up on her hooves, took Shetland’s empty plate and walked to the sink. "I wanted a better chance. This is new. The percentage of robots on Horizon is the highest anywhere outside of Hiroshimare. And that blasted hellscape aside, I wanted to be where I can be… finally, equal.”
“I’m sorry, Toasty…” Shetland mumbled, but the robot interrupted her.
“No, I should not have dropped this on you. Celestia knows you have more to worry about than most of us.”
After a long, quiet pause, Shetland nickered. “I still wanna break their noses.”
“I was tempted myself.” Toasty chuckled her odd staccato. Now that she expected it, Shetland found it almost endearingly strange. Still, her mind was spiraling. She’d always known the Turing Tart as a fun place to drop by, she could almost be called a regular. It was one thing to hear bad news about some unfamiliar place, but entirely different so close to home.
“I’d always felt safe in the Turing Tart.” Shetland mumbled, a faint chuckle seemingly coming from far away. “Remember how I always used to come for breakfast when I was mad at mom?”
“Oh, yes. I listened to many stories. It is a shame you told me to delete them afterwards, I would have loved to use them for gossip. But that’s the reason you did, wasn’t it?”
“That would have been the last thing I needed…” she sighed.
“What you needed was support, Shetland. A friend in need and all that.” Toasty chuckled, only stopping as Shetland’s cutlery clattered to the floor. Then the robot’s eyelights widened as Shetland slammed a hoof to her forehead, leaving a sizeable mark. Her eyes were closed, as if to force something out. “Shetland!” Toasty reached out, but just as suddenly as it had started, it was over. The large earth pony sunk, hooves flopping on the table, then head into the hooves. “S-Shetland?” Toasty asked again. “I-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have mentioned-”
“I need a drink.” Came the shaky answer from the sunken body.
“A drink?”
The whole body rose with a deep breath. “Yes.”
“Right after breakfast?” Toasty asked, startled.
Shetland shot up, her eyes shooting an angry glare at the robot. “YES! I can still decide that myself, can’t I?” Her hoof slammed on the table. “I just want to spend one bucking day without-” She shook her head. “I-” but she failed to say another sentence, instead opting to once again shake her head and leave for the door. With only a moment of hesitation, during which she looked worriedly after the earth pony, Toasty got up and followed.
--------------------
Storming out the sliding door, Shetland quickly found herself lost, cursing the lack of attention she’d paid to the way yesterday. Two glass tunnels connected the building to the rest of the colony… She scratched her head, trying to recall a map she’d been shown at a briefing back on Equus. It seemed it had been outdated, however, as she could have sworn there was only one way from here.
Deep in thought, she missed the opening door behind her, but then the sound of Toasty’s servos, just before her voice, came to Shetland’s ears.
“Do you need help?”
“No, I can do this myself.” Shetland said. “One of these leads to the general dorms, the other towards science labs, which is the way...” she bit her lip, closely watching Toasty for any indication, but of course there was no expression to read. Her voice jumping, she pointed at the leftmost tunnel. “There?”
“No.”
“ALRIGHT, lead the way.” Shetland snarled, before closing her eyes. They hurt, but she kept them closed for several seconds, trying to calm her simmering anger. She wouldn’t lash out at Toasty, she didn’t deserve it. Instead, she briskly followed the robot, not speaking up. Instead, she looked around. The glass walls were badly smudged, so, with a frustrated sigh, she turned to the ceiling. It hit her as a pleasant surprise that it was easily high enough for her to walk upright, maybe even enough for an alicorn without stubbing her horn. Along the ceiling ran several pipes from which she could hear a faint noise, like a leaf blower. She came upon stickers marking the pipes as air, water, electricity and gas- Shetland lost interest, instead focusing on the ground, and the ground seemed to taunt her back by making every one of her hoofsteps (and especially Toasty’s) way too loud. When they got closer, Shetland noticed a whole group passing by, their hooves emitting a marching band on the clangorous metal floor. She looked up: there’d only been ponies moving one at a time before, passing by on their lonesome and always staring up at her, always with curiosity and a bit of caution, a look she’d grown seriously sick of. Shaking her head, she trudged on, leaving them behind, but soon they met more, seemingly a gathering of them near the exits to the outer street. And suddenly, she realized how many robots were among them. She’d barely seen them in Horizon yet, and only in isolated cases. That struck her as strange, hadn’t Toasty said there were alot of robots? Where’d they been before? Had she simply not noticed them?
Toasty sped up, leading Shetland around the crowd she mustered. They were at least forty, with a few normal ponies scattered among them. The sound of clanking and whirring servos filled the room, almost overshadowing the silent discussions all over. Shetland tried to listen in, but failed to distinguish a full sentence. However, she did find the tone to be angry, oppressive even. Hooves scraped at the ground, voices were raised, some calling out to her. Shetland’s ears fell back, she didn’t want to know what they wanted, instead she lowered her head towards Toasty’s ears and whispered. “What’s going on here?”
“I’ll tell you somewhere quieter.” Toasty answered, leading Shetland back into the tunnel they came from.
“Where are we going?” Shetland immediately asked, looking back. They could have just pushed past the crowd to the exit, but Toasty only stopped midway into the tunnel.
“Emergency exit.” she said, flipping open a box hanging on a wall, which contained a set of valves.
“This is far from an emergency-”
“Consider it your introduction.” Toasty interrupted her, before tapping the glass with her hoof. Here, the glass seemed to be cleaned more often, and so Shetland saw that she was pointing at the Horse Horizon, just across the street. Turning back, her glowing eyes prickled in Shetland’s. “Can you hold your breath for roughly a minute and thirty seconds?" She asked, causing Shetland’s jaw to drop.
“You can’t be serious-”
Toasty turned the valves, and Shetland took a deep breath.
-----------
Sweet, sweet air entered her lungs in greedy breaths while Toasty locked the door behind them. The place was almost empty, with only the innkeeper and a few passed-out guests, at least one of them Shetland recognized as a scientist who engaged in the the tug-of-war game last night. In truth, she was surprised that the place was opened at all “Toasty,” she gasped. “What the heck?”
“We arrived safe and sound, did we not?”
“You made me go outside. Without a mask!”
“The air is not dangerous, it simply-”
“Doesn’t sustain me, I know!” Shetland said, her heart and breath slowly normalizing. “But that still wasn’t safe! Or-or logical.” Raising her hoof slightly, she banged it against Toasty’s head, producing a loud clank. “Robot! Logic, remember, what you’re all about?”
Toasty pulled back, swiping Shetland’s hoof away. “I kept you away from the crowd,” her gaze drilled into the ground. “I did not expect them to gather this early.”
“But why?” Shetland’s eyebrow reached new heights as she probed the robot. “What’s this about?” After a few moments, she added with gritted teeth: “If you don’t tell me, I’m marching right back to ask them.”
Toasty’s look shot up. “Do not. It would be unwise- I don’t think you’d want to hear-”
Shetland’s hoof stomped and she pierced the robot’s eyes with her glare, not caring how much her own eyes hurt in the brightness.
“They are here to see your mother…” Toasty started, and Shetland immediately felt her need for knowledge drop. But Toasty had made too big of a deal about it and if she thought mentioning that would stop her from asking, well, she was wrong!
“Go on.” Shetland grumbled. Her leg had begun to itch irritatingly, so she sat down on a chair, which gave off a long, agonized creak.
The lights of Toasty’s eyes dimmed, allowing Shetland’s a chance to recover. “Have you been filled in about the effects of the… attack?”
Shetland’s breath stopped, then she let it wheeze out. Unwanted thoughts dashed through her brain like cockroaches from a rolled-up newspaper. “No,” she admitted. Twilight had refused to talk about it and to be honest, Shetland had also preferred to avoid the topic, only giving a brief overview of her own part, barring… details.
Her throat was dry. She peeked over to the innkeeper, silently wanting Toasty to stop, but the robot simply continued:
“After you fought off the invading hyenas, a very brave thing to do, I might add,” she said warmly, hoping to lighten the mood. Instead, Shetland’s face fell. It was as if Toasty’s words got mangled in her ears, warping, twisting into a much louder noise she couldn’t understand- She shook her head, tearing her way back into the present where she stared at Toasty, who was already finishing her sentence. “-defenses considered too weak to repel a similar attack.”
Shetland nodded, even though she barely remembered what it was even about. Her breath went in bursts and as she raised a hoof to flick her mane out of her face, it was damp. Had… she not dried herself after the shower? She looked up, but the question was swallowed by Toasty’s continuation.
“We’ve had a small increase in Voidmarines since then, as well as updated security policies. For one, unknown ships now require an immediate call to arms as a reaction. However, not all ponies were satisfied with this. Mayn had been defenseless at the paws of their attackers and wished for the option of self-defense. As such, ownership and education for firearms has been granted to all willing ponies for the time being.”
The stress Toasty had put on the last part did not escape Shetland’s ears. “Isn’t that a good thing?” She asked, wondering what the problem was.
“Shetland.” Toasty said quietly. “The crowd we passed was largely formed of robots.”
“What has- oh…” she muttered as it dawned on her.
“This is why they gathered to protest.” A sigh came from her. “I would be there too if I was not with you. Not that I wish to own a firearm,” she stressed, her hoof loudly tapping the ground. “But-”
“You want to have the option, too.” Shetland muttered.
“I want to have left this kind of thing behind.” Toasty confirmed.
“Mom might help you.” Shetland suggested. “She’s got a soft heart for your kind.”
“If she is allowed to. With so many closely watching the leeway we are given…” A shark screech came from the robots neck as she shook her head. “I need an oiling.” she commented evenly.
“So does my throat…” Shetland groaned, lurching to the bar as her leg itched deep within. All that heavy stuff had only increased her desire for a break, just a few hours without all this… “One hard cider.” she ordered with a look to the innkeeper, a rust-colored pegasus.
His voice was leathered with a rough country accent. “Hold on there, miss, ah need yer name first, fer ID reasons.”
Shetland let out a gruff, annoyed grunt. Usually, her sheer size was enough to convince anyone she was of age. “Shetland Sparkle.” she grumbled. And of course, the pegasus’s eyes widened at the name, a reaction she saw annoyingly often.
“Sparkle?” he repeated, looking down at what Shetland assumed had to be a small screen under his bar. “Huh, checks out, Shetland Sparkle, nineteen-” he paused, looking up at her, stuttering. “Ah guess ah should’ve realized raight away, yer bein’ the only giant in the colony.”
She rubbed her forehead with a hoof. Even if he was joking casually, she didn’t want to have a conversation right now! “Just give me the cider, alright?”
“W-well…” He stammered. “Thing is, a-ah can’t really give it to ya. Yer not on the list a ponies ah can serve.”
A bang came from the bar as Shetlands hoof slipped and fell onto it. Against her better judgement, she could feel the anger rising up in herself. “What?” She asked, her voice quiet. “I’ve been drinking for years now, I’m of age!”
“W-well,” The innkeeper looked like he wanted to be anywhere but right here. “Up here, ya need an official allowance from a princess that yer trusted with liquor.”
Silence swept into the room, the only noise coming from Toasty as her eyes shifted nervously. Shetland felt herself shake, this impossible contrivance throwing oil into her burning stomach. Her hooves shaking as much as her voice, she forced out words, channeling all her willpower to control her volume. “Do I have to go to my mom, so she can confirm that I am, in fact, an adult?”
“Not necessarily!” Toasty interjected. Shetland felt the cold touch of the hoof on her side. “What about Princess Luna?”
“Oh, yes!” The pegasus exclaimed, jumping at the opportunity to mollify his angry (and very large) customer. “Princess Luna arrived last night, Ah’m surprised ye haven’t seen her yet, bein’ royal as well.”
“I’m not-” Shetland said loudly, but then she let out a breath, closing her eyes for a moment as she fought back the fire coursing through her veins. “Princess Luna, where is she? Can I talk to her?” she asked.
“Well…” The innkeeper scratched his head nervously. “Ah think she’s where all the robots’re at.”
“Uh oh.”
Shetland sighed. “Then let’s pass by them.”
Toasty’s eyes shifted to the pegasus, searching for help, but either he couldn’t read her expression, or he didn’t know a convincing reason either.
Robots and ponies streamed out of the building when Shetland and Toasty arrived, and they had to stand aside to let them pass, much to Shetland’s chagrin. Her patience had been worn down. Still more left in their direction, but now they were few enough for them to pass by, even if Shetland felt like she was in the middle of a bunny stampede. With bigger, clankier bunnies- It crossed her mind that this was a really bad analogy, but she didn’t ponder where that old saying came from. Instead, she looked over her shoulder, relieved to find Toasty still behind her. She’d been afraid that the robot’s small stature would have her lost in the crowd. The entrance was a thin hallway, leading up to doors on either side. On her way, a loud voice came from the side, where a unicorn loudly argued with a robot pony.
“That is how it is.” The robot intoned sadly. “We will have to wait and see.”
“But she has the power up here!” The unicorn heatedly argued. “If Luna said yes, they’d be hard-pressed to fight her on it.”
“She did not say no.”
“But what does she have to ask Celestia for? Why does she care about tensions? And with who? Hyenas? They attacked us, we shouldn’t give a single horseapple about their opinions!”
“Shhh. Quiet, Spark, we are not alone.” The robot warned, causing the unicorn to turn around and gasp.
“Is it…” he whispered, craning his neck, stammering. “Are you the Sparkle?”
The what? Shetland halted, looking him over. She was positive she’d never seen him before. “What do you mean?”
“There’s only one earth pony that large…” he mumbled to himself before he exclaimed. “Are you the Voidmarine who fought off the attack single-hoofedly?”
Shetland took a step back. “I… kinda? N-not really!” she corrected herself. To her chagrin, a smile erupted on the stallion’s face.
“That’s. So. Awesome.” he whispered, awestruck. “It’s so great I actually get to meet you. I’m Sparks. You...” He looked to the ground, his voice carrying a somber tone. “I was there, too.”
Shetland felt the need for this meeting to end. Thinking about it was rattling on doors she’d been trying to keep closed all day. Yet, how would she just pass him? She didn’t know what to say and brushing past him would be more rude than she liked. She looked to Toasty, who seemed to take the hint.
“Listen, Sparks, we wanted to meet Princess Luna.” she jumped in, disrupting Sparks who had seemed just about to start rambling.
“O-oh, right, right.” he said, stepping aside. But before they could get past him, he blurted out. “But you should have seen her! All hope was lost, we thought they were gonna shoot us any moment, and then she burst in, all giant-like, and smashed the hyenas away! Just like that, she saved everypony!”
Shetland froze. Not only because she remembered it differently, but because of his words. Something in her awoke, locked away in the deepest part of her mind. And the noise of it's rattling was like the background of an old radio losing connection. Her ears dropped and her mouth felt impossibly dry as her mouth formed the words. “I didn’t save anypony.”
“What?” Sparks’ confused answer arrived quietly in her ears. “Yes, you did, you saved me, and everypony else-”
“Shetland Sparkle? Is that you?” A new voice emerged, tearing away the noise attacking her. It was graceful, yet it also carried power. Princess Luna stood at the door, squinting her eyes at Shetland. She stood tall, even more so than Twilight, her horn barely an inch from scratching the ceiling. A large Stetson sat on her head, a hole at the front cut out, fitting her horn. She stepped closer, her eyes examining Shetland up and down as she let out a whistle. “You’ve grown, young lady. Why, when we last met, you were only a few inches taller than your peers.”
“I think I was at least a head taller, actually.” Shetland said, her lips curving into a smile, though not without effort. “I was twelve last time we met, right?”
Luna nodded. “Alas, business up here forced me away from Equestria for longer than I had wished. And with the recent… dilemma, I’m afraid I will not see my sister for a year, still.” She shook her head. “But I should not burden you with this, it is thanks to you that it did not become worse.”
Despite the friendly tone, Shetland flinched. Luna surveyed her worriedly, then she examined Sparks, Toasty and the other robot. “Maybe we should continue our discourse away from prying eyes.” she suggested.
“Toasty is with me.” she turned, shoving the robotic mare closer.
“Your highness!” Toasty lowered her head. “I am honored to meet you.”
“A friend?” Luna gifted Toasty a smile as she turned and stepped through the door. “Please, call me Luna, friend of little Sparkle.”
Shetland ignored the nickname, an involuntary shudder going through her as she followed the pair. Her eyes drifted over the seating, forming a semi-circle around a podium just big enough for maybe 10 ponies. Or 4 alicorns, maybe. She shook from memories of a similar, although bigger room- That thought was brushed aside, however, as she caught sight of a purple alicorn, levitating a stack of papers. A sigh escaped her. She was just doomed to run into everything she tried to avoid today, wasn’t she? Still, she was here now, no turning back. With that thought, she stepped down, just as Twilight raised her head and met her eyes with a look of surprise.
“Hello, Shetty. I, uh, didn’t expect you here.” she said, her eyes drifting around, as if searching for something.
“Hey, mom.” Shetland muttered. “I wanted to meet Luna again.”
“That’s great to hear, you two haven’t had a chance to catch up in years.” Twilight smiled, placing her paperstack on the ground. “And your friend? Uh… Tart Bunch?”
“Toasty Crunch.” Shetland corrected. “She was… more of an acquaintance, really.”
The alicorn’s smile faltered a little. “It’s… still nice to meet her, right?”
“Mhm.” Shetland nodded. Then a frown spread over her visage. “Mom? Did you forget to review my data? Cause the stallion in Horse Horizon just told me I couldn’t get a drink.”
When it faltered before, Twilight’s smile now fell away completely, replaced by a stern, worried look. “Shetty, it’s…” She glanced at the clock. “It’s just after noon. Isn’t it a little early to-”
But Shetland interrupted her, speaking through clenched teeth. “That would be my choice, wouldn’t it?”
“I don’t think you should be drinking in your condition, Shetty!”
“My condition?” she growled. “I’m fine, mom.”
“Horseshit! You’re not fine!” Twilight shouted, startling everyone with her outburst. Even Shetland staggered for a moment. “I can see you suffer, Shetty.” Twilight said. “You just came from the hospital where you didn’t speak for weeks, random things make you lock up and I have to drag you back in your room, and now you want to drink yourself into unconsciousness at noon? Don’t you even dare tell me you’re fine, Shetty! Everypony can see that you’re. Not. Fine!”
“Twilight!” The warning shout came from Luna, who sailed towards them with open wings and regarded Twilight with a stern look. Shetland shivered as her ears tried to reject the wounds her mother’s words had cut into them. “You don’t know…”
Twilight took a deep breath, regarding Shetland with a look of no more sternness, just sadness. “Shetty, few ponies would be fine after what you went through.” she said quietly. “When I heard what happened- Shetland, I was worried I had lost you. And…” Her voice trembled. “When I learned that you would survive, I have never felt that relieved before. And I will not lose you now!” she stomped her hoof.
Hot pressure built up in Shetland’s eyes. Words eluded her lips, but thankfully, Luna spoke up for her.
“I understand your fear, Twilight, but hath you not almost lost her one time because you did not let her make her own choices?” she asked, causing Twilight to gasp and shoot an angry glare at Luna. But the blue alicorn continued without even a blink. “I believe as long as somepony watches her, Shetland should be allowed to order alcohol.”
Twilight’s glare softened. “That should be doable. Shetland.” She turned to face her. “You can drink, as long as Toasty or one of us is by your side. But when we say stop, you have to listen. Is this okay for you?”
“So what?” Shetland growled. “Toasty is my babysitter now?”
“Shetty... “ Twilight sighed. “Yes, I want her to watch over you. Is that so bad?”
Shetland bit her lip, her eyes drilling into the ground. “Fine.”
“Good.” Twilight’s eyes darted to the paperstack. “Good…” she whispered, before raising her voice again. “Shetty, I am sending you to another settlement.”
“What?” Her head jerked back up. She had just found a place she could be relatively comfortable in and now she’d have to go?
“There’s....” Twilight rubbed her forehead with a hoof. “Luna, could you please?”
“Sure.” Luna ruffled her wings. “We’ll soon be getting visitors. A group of hyena investigators were sent up here to, well, investigate.”
Suddenly, her guts felt like they were made of stone. “Hyenas?” Shetland asked, her voice like ice. “From the Great Khan?”
Luna nodded.
“And you’re sending me away?” Shetland burst out. “When you’re investigating with them? I have a right to be part of this!”
“I’m trying to protect you, Shetland.” Twilight said, meeting Shetland’s glare with her own. “You’re not in a condition to handle delicate diplomacy.”
“There shouldn’t BE diplomacy! They attacked us and you’re letting them go around and try and hide the evidence?!”
“We have no proof of that!” Twilight said, raising her voice to shout over Shetland’s.
“NO PROOF?” Shetland practically screamed now. “So you think a bunch of lowly criminals just somehow got a hold of two spaceships, one of them filled with military grade battle drones? Yeah, of course, that was just lying around in an old garage? They HAD to have been sent by them!”
“We don’t know that.” Twilight said. “And we’re not going to throw out accusations until we do. If you want us to find out the truth, you better stay away from this!”
“I… deserve to know.” Shetland growled quietly. “I have to know that we can bring justice to whoever was responsible.”
“You will not get justice by pointing your hoof-” Twilight stopped as Luna’s wing spread over her shoulder and she took a deep breath, motioning a hoof to her chest and then away as she let it go. Her eyes opened and her glare transformed into compassion. “Shetty, this isn’t about what exactly the hyenas did, is it? It’s about your friends.”
It was as if she’d taken a hammer and smashed it against Shetland’s nose. She stared back at the alicorn, shivering, unable to formulate a comeback. The pressure in her eyes finally gave in, releasing two wet lines over her cheeks. She wanted out, she wanted Twilight to stop speaking, but she couldn’t look away, couldn’t shut her ears as her mother spoke again.
“I wish I could have known them better.” Twilight said. “They must have been wonderful ponies.”
“You could have known them.” Shetland forced out between hiccups. “J-just like Toasty.”
Sorrow filled Twilight’s face as she stepped over, gently touching Shetland’s shoulder with a wing and biting her lip as the earth pony jerked away. “That was one of my biggest mistakes, Shetty.” She bent her knees, lowering herself so that she could see in her daughter’s eyes. “But I know how it feels to lose a friend. Believe me.”
At those words, Shetland shoved her hooves in her direction, forcing the alicorn away. Twilight took a step back and had to wipe her own eyes with her forehoof. “I’m allowing you to stay, if you want. Just, please, stay away from the hyenas without me, alright?”
Shetland nodded, turning her back to them. Tears streamed down her face, and the way the others stared, like she was hairless in a hut of yaks! A cold hoof took her own, and the synthetic voice of Toasty offered escape. “Come on, Shetland. Let’s go home.”
Her eyes had dried, yet her vision was still blurred and she was forced to blink. The soft covers of her bed barely registered, and neither did her surrounding room. She opened her stinging eyes again and her hoof brushed over the pages. Carefully, afraid to stain the paper, she looked over the photos and a nostalgic smile played on her lips. Press, at the front, his hoof interlocked with Ciloa’s, their grins just as wide as in Shetland’s memories. Her hoof brushed over the photo, taken just a few days before they’d departed. They all looked peaceful, simply happy to be alive… an uncontrollable sob escaped her and she pounded a hoof into her mattress. It wasn’t fair! She glared at her own form, grinning into the camera, completely oblivious of what was about to happen, what would rip this moment apart. Her own, dumb, happy smile… a feeling like the opposite of a deja-vu struck her, like she both remembered and didn’t remember feeling that way. She couldn’t place her hoof, it was like staring at a changeling pretending to be her, yet she remembered that moment. With a frustrated groan, she frantically shook her head, slamming the book shut.
Something touched her neck, causing her to snap around, eyes to eyes with Toasty standing upright on the bed. “Would you care to show me?” The robot asked softly, nudging the book with a hoof. Shetland’s first reflex was to pull back, but a look in Toasty’s eyes convinced her otherwise. After all… she had known them too. Shetland shivered as Toasty leaned into her side, yet she ignored both the cold of her chassis and her uncomfortable weight. Instead, Shetland cracked the book open and placed it between them. She took a deep breath, preparing to meet the storm once more. Her eyes drifted to her nightdesk, her empty nightdesk-
“Here.” Toasty whispered, a swishing noise accompanying her words as she offered up the bottle of hard cider.
Shetland swallowed as she took the bottle, the cold surface burning against her coat and with a breathy voice, she simply said “Thanks” before she uncorked and took a deep swig from the hard cider.
The air bit at the maimed skin of Shetland’s hindleg as she stepped into the colder room. She cursed under her breath, careful to not drop the small tube she held in her teeth. Hobbling on three legs, letting the burned limb drag behind her, she made her way to a bench. Nopony else had found their way to the small public gym at this early hour, exactly why she was there now. With a groan, she heaved her hindleg onto the bench, trying her hardest not to look at it as she grabbed the tube in her hoof and unscrewed it with her teeth. It was hard not to look, it itched like it was a living anthill. The doctor had said it was caused by dry skin, which was why he’d given her this salve. She squeezed some on her forehooves, awkwardly bending down to rub it over her skin. Suddenly, a spike of pain burst through her joints and she almost jerked back, but she forced herself to hold out, gritting her teeth as she waited for the pain to subside. She mumbled another curse, this time directed at the doctor. His stupid advice had led her here. Avoid overstretching, he’d said, it could damage the skin on your joints, he’d said. But then, in the next breath he’d told her to do stretches so it wouldn’t grow back wrong and restrict her movement.
“Which one is it now?” she growled down at her leg, which only taunted her with it's… disgusting scarredness. She closed her eyes, slowly counting to three, then let out a huge breath. Blindly squeezing out more salve, she continued slowly rubbing it over her leg, ignoring both the pain and her anger, as well as the uncomfortable feeling in her back for the awkward position she was forced to be in. Finally however, the pain and itching fell away to pleasant numbness. Mostly. She let out a breath as she stood tall, stretching her legs as far as she could. Her hoof hovered just above the ground, merely an inch away. But it was like pushing against a brick wall and the effort lit fires in her pained joint until she let go with a gasp. She wiped her face, sweat clinging to her mane. Her eyes crept towards a clock hanging above the entrance. Three hours. With a vigorous shake of her head, she focused back on her stretches, yet they only provided her with vexation. It almost felt beneath her, doing simple stretches like these. She’d been in peak condition back on Equus, her gym had struggled to even supply her with a challenge sometimes! Maybe it was silly, since her size had given her a clear advantage, but growing up in the household of a supremely smart and immortal sorceress, she’d grown to be quite proud of her physical prowess. But now, as she struggled to stick her leg straight out backwards, it hit her how that too had been taken from her.
Like so many other things.
With an angry shout, she ditched the stretches, instead pounding her hooves into a buckbag, revelling at the opportunity to let out her bottled-up frustration
It must have been much later when a knock tore her out of her trance. Suddenly, her face felt cold, her coat itchy and a single drop of sweat clung to her nose, refusing to fall even as she shook her head. Then the voice from the door spoke, and it blew away all concerns over her nose.
“Shetland, are you in here?” Twilight Sparkle asked as she stepped in and her eyes found her puffing daughter. “Are you doing your stretches?” Like an afterthought, she added, “Am I interrupting?”
Hastily brushing the sweat out of her face, Shetland shook her head. “No.” she sighed. “I was just about to finish.”
“And did you have any problems with them?” Twilight asked inquisitively.
“Why are you here?” Shetland glared at her crossly. “Can’t just be to nitpick, is it because of the hyenas?” she glanced at the clock. “It’s still two hours before they arrive, are you gonna tell me to wash up? Clean my room maybe?”
“We should probably prepare, that much is true,” Twilight sat down, regarding her with a smile. “But making sure that you’re okay is more important.”
Left speechless, Shetland slumped on her backside, her anger whistling out like the air from a popped balloon. “You sure?” She asked lamely.
“Yep,” Twilight said sincerely. “I wanted to speak a little sooner, but Toasty said you’d already left. I’m surprised you left her behind, actually. It may be long ago, but I remember you being a big showoff when it came to any sort of strength test.”
“What’s there to show off?” Shetland rose up, regarding Twilight with a scowl. Then she turned around so she could see the mangled limb. “You think I want ponies to gawk at this?” She kicked out and clenched her teeth as another hurtful jab climbed up her leg. “Stupid thing.” she cursed.
“You should be careful with that,” Twilight said. “The doctor said-”
“I KNOW WHAT HE SAID!” Shetland shouted. “But ever since- ever since that happened, I cant buck right, I can’t bend it right, everything feels wrong and it’s driving me up the wall!”
“You know it won’t be permanent?” Twilight’s voice was calm as her hoof clopped a short rhythm on the floor. “We just need to see how it finally heals, in a few months we can use corrective surgery to negate at least your restricted movement.”
“I know. I-” Letting out a long sigh, Shetland turned away so neither she nor Twilight had to look at her scars anymore. “I don’t know why I get so angry.” she admitted.
“I think I do.” Twilight said. “You don’t want to remember, and the scars remind you. I know how you feel.” She compassionately reached out a hoof, wrapping it around Shetland’s shoulder as the earth pony began to shiver. “I lost many ponies I cared for during my long life.”
Shetland closed her eyes. “Stop…” she mumbled, the words hurting through her dry throat. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“I know,” Twilight fanned her wing over Shetland’s broad shoulder. “But talking about it is what will help you through it. But… it’s okay if you’re not quite ready for it. Just know that when you are, I’ll drop anything and everything and listen.” Then she reached down, leaned her muzzle beside Shetland’s ear and whispered. “It gets better.”
“Huh?” Shetland looked up, pushing Twilight away to face her.
“Wounds like this,” Twilight’s hoof poked Shetland in the chest, just above the heart. “Heal slowly, but they do heal. Trust me, things will get better in time.” She smiled as she saw the hope glistening in her daughter’s eyes. But then a shadow fell over Shetland’s face.
“Maybe they shouldn’t.” she said as she drew away from Twilight.
“What do you mean?”
“Ugh, nothing…” Shetland muttered. “Just… sometimes I feel like I deserve it.” she let out a sigh and pressed her eyes closed. Her voice shivered as she continued. “I keep seeing it over and over in my head, and I can’t help but think: Who could I have saved if I had been… I don’t know, better?” she swallowed, a large lump caught in her throat.
“Shetty…” Twilight whispered, but Shetland shook her head, like she was trying to rid herself of a fly.
“And I go over every one and think how, and the worst part?” Her eyes closed, held against the pressure behind them. “It would have been so easy. Ciloa, yes, her…” she opened her mouth, but the word clung to her teeth, refusing to leave. “Nopony saw it coming, but, but, If I had stopped Press, if I had taken charge and told him to stay put, or to focus, he could be alive!” she stomped the ground as she looked away, unable to face her mother. “That was my fault.”
“No, it’s not, Shetland.” Twilight said with conviction. “You were overwhelmed and faced with a million choices and yes, in retrospect you often find you didn’t choose the best one. Trust me, I know,” she bowed her head. “I too had plans backfire and ponies die from poor decisions I made. And you know what, I too blamed myself for a long time. But we cannot change the past or undo our choices. You did your best, Shetty, and that is all you can do. You shouldn’t feel guilty for that.” she chuckled. “Celestia once told me that we shouldn’t rid ourselves of joy for the sake of the dead, but to celebrate your life for their sake as well. A… lesson I sometimes struggle with, too.” she admitted, her smile shaking a little. “They would want you to live, Shetty. You did all you can do for them. And now, to brighten your thoughts, I got a little present for you!” She turned around, missing the dead-eyed look Shetland gave her own hoof as she fetched a box in her telekinesis.
“Take a look.” She grinned, but to no reaction. “Shetty? Are you paying attention?”
“Huh?” Shetland shook her head, but quickly affirmed: “Yes, yes, I am-” she blinked, glancing at her hoof before lowering it. “Did... you hear something?
Puzzled, Twilight’s ears peaked. “No… are you feeling okay?” With a concerned look, she touched Shetland’s forehead. “No fever, at least.”
“I’m okay!” Shetland shook of her mother’s hoof. “I just thought I heard something, doesn’t matter. Now, what is it that you got here?“
“Well, then…” Twilight propped up the box, showing a cover of a gigantic minotaur skull overlooking a hellish landscape full of trenches and soldiers of all species, above which stood in bold letters: The Grinding Wars - 4th Edition
“You- you got my collection?” Shetland gasped, though whether from joy or surprise she couldn’t tell. “But- how?”
“I told you, Queen Twinkle had a nice surprise in store for you.” Twilight grinned. “Got all your little models nicely packed and ready for play.”
“It’s ready for action, mom.” Shetland corrected, but with a smile on her face. “But… who am I gonna play with? I doubt anypony else here has an army.”
“I think you’d be surprised.” Twilight sat down, opening the box and pulling out a little model of a thin, mechanical worm with sharp digging claws on either end. She then put it alongside a slightly larger model of a unicorn battlesage. “”But if you want, I’ll play with you when I have some time.”
“You?” Raising an eyebrow, Shetland gave the models the judging look instead of her mother. “You hate that game. You… well, you lived through it.”
“I’ll be okay.” Twilight smiled. “As I said, time heals every wound- and this one has had almost a hundred years to close. Also,” she added with a smirk. “I’m starting to miss your little ambushes on your birthdays~”
Matching her grin, Shetland chuckled. “I knew you wouldn’t refuse to play then.”
“My little chessmaster~” Twilight laughed and Shetland fell in.
“Phew,” The earth pony recovered first, smiling at the two models. “We don’t have time for a game right now, right?”
“No, I’m afraid not.” Twilight sighed. “But, we certainly have enough to get you cleaned up, I can smell your workout from across the room.”
“You’re exaggerating!” Shetland crossed her hoof.
Twilight’s face was stone cold as she raised an eyebrow. “Am I?”
With a defeated sigh, Shetland gave into her fate.
Getting cleaned up and ready drove them dangerously close to the time limit, especially as Twilight insisted on brushing their coats rigorously. It was only the fact that her mother could teleport that gave Shetland the time to stow the game safely under her bed. Without a word, she stepped to Twilight, who fanned out her wings as her horn began to glow.
What does teleportation feel like? Most ponies expectations would range from the scary to the grandiose. In truth however, it felt like a headache, but in the nostrils. Coupled with that, a shock went through Shetlands body as within an instant, the quality and temperature of the surrounding air changed. She found herself in a large rectangular room with windows on all of three sides, showing them to be above an expansive, flat track of land, only broken up by the sight of several large rectangular boxes made of dark metal relatively close to them. The landing fields. Shetland swallowed as an inner demon forced her to look over to the right, where a crater the size of a couple chariots shaped the ground, wracked with the signs of the fire, cracking open the dirty earth like an eggshell.
“Twilight!” A voice boomed, yet even as it rang painfully in her ears, Shetland had nearly missed it. Yet it drew her out of her minds dark caves as she turned her head to Princess Luna, who stood tall behind a changeling frantically operating what she only recognized as extremely complex computery. She still proudly wore her stetson, despite being indoors. “You’re just in time. I wouldn’t have expected that from you, Twilight ” Luna said, her tone, although scorning lowered to still unpleasant, but not eardrum tensing levels.
“Sorry,” Twilight winced, both Sparkles rubbing their ears in unison. “We got a little caught up in a personal moment.”
“All is well,” Luna said, although her expression was still rigid like a rock. “Slim Cast has just detected the hyenas in orbit. They will attempt their landing once we have prepared everything.”
“What needs there to be prepared?” Shetland blurted out and swallowed as both alicorns stared at her. She blew her mane out of her face. “There was no preparation when I landed, why do they need it?”
“The ship you… boarded had an A.I. steering it, Shetty.” Twilight said. “I’m afraid the hyena empire has a more distrustful relationship to thinking machines and only use the barest minimum.” Shetland met her eyes and saw her mothers brows furrowing. Even as she tried to explain objectively, Twilight couldn’t fully hide how much she disagreed with that sentiment. “Instead they only use a very basic A.I. to support the pilot.” she sighed. “We need to transmit all our data on the weather, update it by the second and set up some landing lights to make sure they land safely.”
“Most of which we have taken care of.” Luna said. “Now we only need to contact their ship directly and set up a connection between our systems. Preferably before the storm hits us, the time frame is getting pretty narrow.”
Shetland looked past the alicorns to the changeling as he operated the insanely complicated looking computer.
“Speaking of which,” Luna grumbled, her patience clearly at an end. “Why is it taking so long?”
“I-I don’t know, princess.” Slim stammered. “I’ve sent multiple signals, but they’re not responding.”
“Do it again, Slim, and doublecheck everything, we cannot allow this to go wrong in any-” Luna said but she was interrupted by the changelings surprised chitter.
“They’re landing!” he shouted.
“What?” Both of the alicorn’s heads shot up. “Without our data, without our systems to connect-?”
“Yes, yes!” Slim exclaimed. They’ve just started the drop into the atmosphere.”
Luna whirled around. “Activate the lights immediately and clear the landing zone!” she shouted and only an instant later, several dozen large floodlights sprang to life, illuminating the landing area so brightly that Shetland had to avert her eyes.
“Bullheaded hyenas,” Luna pressed quietly through her teeth. “We’ll be lucky if this doesn't turn into a disaster.”
Above their heads, there was a fizzle, then a pop, and suddenly, Slim’s monitors turned black. “What the heck?” The changeling exclaimed, pounding a hoof on the power button to no effect. Then, all in the room looked across the landing fields. The lights were out.
“Slim Cast, get the backup power online now!” Luna shouted.
“I-I can’t,” he stammered as he kept mashing the button. “It should have turned on by itself, Princess.”
“They’re gonna miss us.” Twilight bit her lip. “If they even make the landing. Isn’t there any way to turn the lights back on?”
“Not in time, I’m afraid.”
“Then we need to hope they make it and find our way to them before they run out of air.” Luna decided. “Slim Cast, where will they land?”
The changeling grimaced, staring at the blank monitor. “Can’t say for sure, but if they stay on their last course it would be roughly three miles west from here... “
“Then we’ll meet them there.” Luna said “Twilight, you’re with me, between the two of us, we can teleport all back safely. If they made the landing.” she added darkly
“I can come too!” Shetland exclaimed, making the alicorns pause.
“I’m afraid not, Shetty.” Twilight awkwardly avoided her eyes. “You’re not ready to make such a journey yet.”
“It’s just a few miles!”
“Your leg is not well enough, Shetty. Also, we’ll have to fly to make it before the storm hits and I am not letting you out during a storm.”
“I’m still a Voidmarine!” Shetland bared her teeth. “It’s my job to do things like this.”
“It is thy duty to listen to orders!” Luna cut in as she passed a breathing mask over. “We go now, Twilight, there is little time.” giving Twilight no more than a moment to adjust her own breathing tools, her magic forced open a nearby emergency window and with two mighty flaps, the alicorns left the building, leaving Shetland behind to stare after them. A loud roar drew her eyes even further upwards as a long, burning contrail streak flashed across the sky. The thundering sound hit like a rhythmic hailstorm, causing Shetland’s eyes as well as the windows to rattle as it passed above them, heading in a protracted curve beyond the horizon, leaving only the trail to cleave the sky. Left to only stare at the dissipating line, Shetland’s hooves were urging, yet she could only look across the plain, dusty ground to the horizon, where the pair of alicorns were no more than small birds, impossible to make out in more than shape.
And my job, she thought sourly, is to sit still. Beside her, the changeling worked fruitlessly in an attempt start his monitors once again. For a moment, she wished she could be in his place, at least she would have something to do. But that thought was interrupted as another wave of noise swept up to her ears, though this time from a multitude of sources. Down below, ponies burst out of the buildings, sometimes stumbling over one another in their rush to flee, but from what, Shetland couldn’t tell.
“What’s going on?” She shouted to the changeling, but he simply shook his head. With an enraged shout, Shetland grabbed an airmask and ran to the staircase. The shouts were clearer now and she could make out glimpses.
“What’s going on?”
“Attack-”
“LET GO OF ME.”
“HYENAS-”
“Where do I go?”
“What is happening?”
Those shouts were repeated as she skimmed past a group of ponies in the middle of the second floor, but she ignored them as she headed to the airlock, where a Voidmarine forcefully pulled a unicorn from the door. “IT’S ALL FINE!” he shouted.
“What about the power?” A shout came from behind Shetland.
“Why didn’t the backup work?”
“Where do we go?”
“PUT THOSE DOWN!” The marine shouted amidst the turmoil. With her heart sinking in her chest, Shetland realized how many of these ponies were armed. She backed up, why were they armed? This was a powderkeg!
“We’re ready to fight!”
“THERE IS NO FIGHT!” The armored pony screamed. “GO BACK-”
A shot rang out, eliciting panicked screams from the crowd as ponies scattered, some dropping to the ground, those with guns wildly pointing in all directions. The marines shouts for order were unheard as several ponies dashed for the exit-lock. Shetland, frozen, could only watch as several ponies ran outside to spread panic even further- and with a sinking feeling in her chest, she saw one unicorn without a breathing mask. “No, WAIT!” she shouted, running after, ignoring the warning shout of the marine. The outside was barely any better, ponies ran around wildly and the few marines were barely enough to round up even half of them. Shetland ran past ponies, gritting her teeth. Painful jabs struck her leg whenever it smashed down. She couldn’t slow down. But only moments later, her hoof impacted on a small rock and she screamed as pain exploded in her backside. Forced to a limb, Shetland stared at the foolish unicorn, her throat jagged with every breath. Luckily, he came to a skidding halt, grasping his throat as he realized his mistake. He whirled around, inhaling the useless, salty air, his eyes centering on her, fear written in them. Shetland took a deep breath, glaring him down as he dropped to his knees. Taking another deep breath, Shetland removed her breathing gear. Clenching the muscles in her chest, she pressed out a “Here”, before turning back to walk- moderately- back. The unicorn was left taking greedy breaths from the mask. She never heard a thanks. Maybe the clamour was to blame for that.
Gradually, the situation began to turn around, with a few Voidmarines beginning to round up the panicked groups. She had to stay on path. Her lungs burned, the salty scent of soy sauce tickling her nostrils. Irritated, she snorted, then pressed her mouth closed, not letting more air out. Her eyes were trained on a close building, just another minute... But then she saw an indigo pegasus shooting straight towards her, skidding to a halt in her path. “You! You, can you help?” She managed between (infuriatingly) deep breaths. “Somepony’s in danger!”
Shetland swallowed, her lungs were ready to burst now as she knocked on her bulging cheeks for emphasis.
“H-here!” The pegasus passed her mask over, allowing Shetland a magnificent breath of sweet, non-smelly air. How could she have ever liked soy sauce?
“Where?” she snapped her head around, refocusing on the mare.
“In the workshop, follow me!” She yelled and took off, pointing to a structure to the side of the overwatching tower before dashing towards it. Shetland had only made it halfway when she landed beside her.
“Knew it.” she grumbled, stopping for a moment to let her take a breath from the mask. The mare now stayed behind Shetland as she pushed her way through a rallied group, her bulk allowing her to pass through like a scissor through fabric. “What happened?” she asked the mare.
“My friend, he wa- there was suddenly no power, the backup should have jumped in-”
“Focus!” Shetland hissed as she slammed her hoof against the airlock, taking a moment to let the throbbing in her leg quell a little. With a shake of her head, she got rid of the sweat obstructing her eyes before she turned at the valve. With a sudden jab of her shoulder, she threw it open, pushing into the small entrance, doubling as a changing room. There was a door at the end as well as a staircase. “Stairs or door?” she snapped at the pegasus.
“D-door.” she mumbled. “M-my friend-”
“I’ll see for myself!” Shetland said as she threw the door open-
BANG!
It was so loud that Shetland barely heard the zip and clang of the bullet bouncing off the metal doorframe. Out of instinct, she jerked back, as if that would have made a difference.
“HOLY SHIT, MAGGIE!”
“Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh-”
The indigo pegasus blew past Shetland. “YOU ALMOST SHOT THE PONY I GOT TO HELP!”
“I’m sorry!” Another, also female voice shouted. Stepping back into the door, Shetland saw it belonged to a magenta-colored pegasus. On the ground infront of her was a dropped rifle “I-I thought she was a hyena!”
“Does she look like a hyena to you? She’s huge!”
“Drop your weapon.” Shetland glared the pegasus down. “That goes for all of you.”
“I’m the only one with a weapon!” The pegasus cowered, bowing her head. For a moment, Shetland’s glare shifted, something about the pegasus looked familiar, as if she’d seen her before. The next sentence snapped her back to the present. “Please, please, Just help Pipe Dream.”
“Glad you remembered me.” A weak, strained voice came from the back of the dark room. Pushing past the ponies (with a grim look to the triggerhappy pegasus), Shetland followed to see the damage.
In a mix between garage and workshop, these engineers had been maintaining and repairing vehicles specialized for Horizons rocky, dusty grounds. And crunched under the tracks of one of these vehicles was the leg of a white-colored unicorn. “H-hey,” he pressed through his clenched teeth, tears he tried to hold back gathering in his eyes. “Y-you can help me right? Cause-” his lips distorted into a twisted smile. “This stings a little.”
“Definitely.” Shetland assured him, looking over the vehicle. It was like a mixture between a snowcart and a miniature tank, sized for two, a cargo in which a third pony could fit into (maybe even Shetland) and oxygen tanks hefted to the sides. This was an exploration vehicle. It was adaptable, sturdy and most definitely not light. “How did this happen?” she asked, trying to distract him from his pain as she searched for an optimal grip.
“I-I was trying to get some kinks outta this things tracks-,” he gasped, taking a shaky breath. “Oh, fuck this hurts-”
Shetland threw an urging look back to the other ponies watching in stunned silence. Get more help, she whispered. She spoke too quietly to be heard, but luckily they seemed to get the hint. Now just for distracting the pony. “G-go on.” she mumbled. She was not a good distractor.
“Shit, shit…” he took another deep breath. “Okay, okay, T-the thing was just lifting up and I stuck my hoof under, y-you know, get work done faster- Ahhh…” he grimaced. “Safety don’t engage ‘fore this things all up, but I thought, what could go wrong?” he smiled another one of these twisted fake-grins. “Didn’t work out for me, right? Oh, Twilight, if I make it, I’ll follow all the safeties ever, I’ll even brush my teeth more than once a day.”
“You won’t die.” Shetland assured him. “And it’s really weird to have ponies talk about my mom like that.”
“Huh, y-you’re the princesses kid? Mighta guessed, who else would be that big?”
“Yes, yes…” Shetland grit her teeth. “After this is over, you can come visit me and we can play board games.”
“Heh, I’d prefer any game over this-”
He stopped, interrupted by the sound of a door smashing against the wall and only a moment later, a Voidmarine stood beside Shetland, armored hoofs grabbing the sides of the vehicle.
“ALRIGHT,” The automated voice from the helmet barked. “All of you help, You there, Magenta, you pull him when we lifted it!” Moments later, a multitude of hooves grabbed onto the nooks and crannies of the tank. “On 3!” The marine shouted. “one… two…THREE!”
They pulled and it tipped by a hairs length- but some of the engineers strength already faded after this tiny moment and the weight on Shetland’s hooves became more and more- but she couldn’t give up. Veins stood out from her legs and neck and she grunted, pulling, pulling- Beside her, the gears in the marines armor squealed. “Another go!” The electric voice screamed. “One and two and threeeee” A long, strained yell came from the group as they stemmed their hooves and slowly, inch by inch, tipped the machine.
“I got him!” the magenta pegasus shouted, grabbing Pipes tail in her teeth and flapping her wings, sliding him out from under the vehicle. With a relieved sigh, the group dropped the machine. A tingling vibration roused through their hooves as it fell down with a deafening thud.
“Pipe!” Everypony circled around the injured unicorn, regarding his leg with a look of shock and nausea. The entire lower half was overtaken by a dark, sickish blue, it bend all the wrong way and… Shetland covered her eyes, tasting bile as she slowly stepped back, leaving the others to swarm the wounded.
“Holy shit…” Magenta whispered.
“Please don’t say how much it hurts, I can imagine…” Teal covered her green face.
“Pipe?” Magenta asked in rising panic, grabbing the unicorns shoulder-
“Don’t move him. Step away!” The Voidmarine shouted, cleaving apart the group like a knife as they all backed away from the unicorn. “You, big one!” he shouted.
Shetland stepped forth. “Yes?”
“Bring him to medical, you know where that is?”
“I’ll show her!” Magenta jumped up.
“We all will!” Teal and the other got up.
“Just the pegasi!” the marine decided. “Everypony else go to control tower! NOW GO!”
Shetland huffed a little as both pegasi gently lifted the unicorn onto her back. He wasn’t particularly heavy, yet she had to slow down and force her own bad leg into a normal pace. At the very least she could feel his breathing in her neck, both a spot of hope and a growing urge to hurry.
Seeing the infirmary did much to ease the tight knot in Shetlands chest. there were other injured, a changeling with a loose fang, an earth pony hiding a small laceration on his forehead behind a few wrapped bandages, no others were truly serious. The nurse had been everything but relieved however, sending the group away as she observed the broken foreleg with a mixture of shock and concentration
“We’ll stay with him!” Magenta had tried to argue, but the nurse coldly ordered them to leave.
The situation had been stabilized, the panicked gathered up, misconceptions cleared up. Order returned as ponies sheepishly went back to their work or set to repair what had been damaged in the tumult. Even the lights popped back on with an electric hum as the backup generator finally kicked in. Shetland let out a breath, it was over.
However, the ponies by her side seemed as tense as ever. The two pegasi walked shoulder to shoulder, their wings brushing over another in search for comfort while the Voidmarines muttering came stifled through the helmet, the speakers turned off. Eventually, the magenta pegasus turned to Shetland.
“W-will Pipe be okay?”
Shetland sighed, her backside itched badly as she thought how to respond. “I don’t know,” she said after a long while. “I’m not a doctor, but… I’m pretty sure his leg is done for.” she lowered her head, not wanting to meet her eyes. “I’m sorry.”
“You shouldn’t be. If you hadn’t come so fast, he maybe even could have…” her voice died for a moment. “I-I’m really sorry I shot you, you know?”
“Heh,” She was almost startled by her own laughter, yet there was no stopping it as it broke from her, a drain for all the pent up stress. “I- I almost forgot that happened.”
“That happened?” The marine asked coldly.
“Uh… yes, but-” Magenta swallowed, unable to finish her own sentence.
“But nothing! Do you have any idea how much trouble allowing you fools to arm yourselves has caused us today?”
“I-I-”
“All of this wouldn’t have escalated if civilians stayed out of military business.” he said heatedly, his helmet glaring down at the pegasus. “Half of all the trouble was to take the weapons off of overeager morons trying to find the invaders.” He rolled his head, clearly displaying his opinion on the matter. “But at least nopony actually shot somepony!” His speaker actually transmitted the sound of his gnashing teeth, an unnervingly prominent noise. “Until now.”
“I’m sorry, I-I panicked.”
“I noticed.” the marine grumbled drily.
“I thought the hyenas would attack again!” she wailed, her face turning into an awful grimace. Shetland’s eyes widened, she had never seen this expression, but she knew it, she had felt it on her own face. This was the face of one who remembered. “I didn’t know what to do, but I thought they would come again and I knew I couldn’t let that happen, I-I wasn’t powerless this time, but I was scared, we were all scared and when she came in, I saw…” she swallowed. “I-I saw the monster that killed my sister.” Her lip quivered and Shetland had to look away. Suddenly, the widespread panic made more sense: Most ponies working here were the same ponies who had endured the first raid. Their poor reaction to the unexpected outage and subsequent fear… she understood.
The marine shook his head. “Another reason I was against allowing you lot to carry weapons. There was never a chance you would fight with them effectively in your condition.”
“Back off.” Shetland grumbled.
“Excuse me?” The marine swung his armored head around.
“I said back off!” she snapped. “Save it for the Princess, she’ll decide what to do about it, not you!”
Eyes met visor as they both glared at each other. After a few seconds however, the marine looked aside. “Whatever, but we will still disarm everypony until the decision is made.”
“I-it’s okay, I already dropped mine, back in the vehicle workshop.” Magenta said with a nervous smile.
The marine grumbled, looking away. After several seconds, he turned back, however. “Are you going to return to the main hub?”
“I might.” Shetland said. “Why?”
“You’ll have to make the decision very soon. In an hour, a storm is upon us, and trust me, you do not want to be outside when a storm happens on this planet.”
“Are you sure?” Shetland asked, her ears folding back. “I read that our weather predictions dont work here, aren’t even pegasi prone to guessing completely wrong?”
“Scalloway said so, and he’s not a pegasus.”
“Then…”
“He’s a mechanic, fixes up the tin-cans whenever they break. But enough of this tangent!” he let out a frustrated breath. “Storm’s a-coming, if you want to go, better do it now, in an hour it’ll be too late.”
Shetland bit her lip. “Do you know where the Princesses might arrive when they bring back the hyenas?”
He shrugged. “Heck if I know, but if I had to wager a guess, probably main. Comfier. And if they know of this little situation, definitely the hub.”
“Then I gotta go there.” Shetland said.
“Kay, now that you’re all circumstanced, I’ll go back to… fixing this mess.” The marine sighed and trotted off, leaving Shetland and Magenta alone.
“One thing I wanted to ask you,” Shetland asked, a tense knot in her chest. “Your sister… was she your twin?”
“Y-yes, actually… how… did you know her?”
“No.”
“Then-”
“How did she… you know?”
The pegasus looked down to the ground. “The hyenas took us hostage. We were all huddled in the auditorium.”
Shetland remembered all too well, even if some of the details were hazy.
“W-we must have sat there for most of a day and we’d almost lost hope when suddenly one of them dropped dead and the others fired at the door and we all had our heads down. And my sister, she was always brave, she told me that we had to help whoever was trying to help us. A-and so we began sneaking up behind them and others saw us and did the same…”
Shetland remembered, even if just in that moment she’d hidden behind a vending machine for cover, until-
“And then she shouted and grabbed one of their weapons, I think we got the other one, but I couldn’t stop watching as she fought the monster's grip…” She swallowed, and Shetland remembered all too well what came next. “But my sister was never very strong and the hyena shot her in the chest and there was blood and…” She began shaking, even if tears had run dry. “And then this pony comes through and smashes it like it should be.” She took a deep breath, a steely resolve on her face. “That pony took revenge for my sister. That pony…” she blinked. “It was a huge pony…” her eyes widened. “No… It was you?”
Shetland flinched.
“It was!” Magenta shouted. “You- you saved us all! And- and I almost shot you!”
“Not all ponies. I didn’t save your sister.”
The pegasus bit her lips. “I… I wish you had, but… I can’t blame you, you saved everypony else.”
Shetland sighed, a lump caught in her throat. “I should go before the storm begins.”
----------
When Shetland heard of a storm, she had been expecting something the likes of an equestrian weather fluke, uncomfy, yes, a good reason to stay inside, but rarely dangerous to anyone but a foal. On Horizon however, as Shetland now learned, storms are to be feared, to dig deep in search of cover and only leave once it grew silent. Even through the thick walls of the standardized colony structure could she hear the howling wind as dust particles pelted the outside like gravel fired from a catapult. Looking outside had become almost impossible as any glass tunnel-walls were covered in the dust, only in the windshadow were there a few free spots. Yet even there, Shetland could only make out a couple metres before the world disappeared behind a veil of whistling dust. She nervously tapped the glass, almost sensing the millions of tiny impacts- or was it just her imagination? The storm had begun soon after she had arrived, bringing any activity outside the walls to an end. Luckily, Toasty had informed her that Luna and Twilight had come back safely just a few minutes before Shetland herself… with the hyena delegates. And that they would come to Shetland's quarters (technically her mother's) shortly. At first she had wanted to wait, but with her innards twisting into a tightly packed clump, she had been driven outside. Where she had waited, until Twilights head appeared from the other end, blinking several times before acknowledging Shetland.
“Hello, dear.” she said, then her eyes widened. “You have blood on your shoulder!”
Shetland reached up, surprised to feel her coat stuck in a thin layer of crumbly dried liquid. “Not mine.” she said. For a brief moment she wondered how Toasty hadn’t noticed. but then again, nopony but her mother could look at her from above. “I helped somepony who was wounded. Have you heard what happened?”
“Yes.” Twilight sighed. She raised a hoof halfway to her head, but set it back down as a voice, harsh and throaty, came from behind her.
“So did we.” A hyena stepped past Twilight and towards Shetland, whose jaw clenched harder with every step it took. Another, smaller specimen followed, though both were small enough to easily stand below Shetland with only the larger ones ears even touching her belly. They had spotted fur, bouffant in place of the shoulder and the short mane across their backs, arching down to the hips, giving them a wild and predatory appearance, though Shetland faintly recalled that an intimidating presence was considered beautiful within the empire, akin to a carefully coiffed mane style. The hyena stopped only a few steps away from Shetland. “Greetings, daughter of Twilight Princess. I am Khunbish, female. And my protector is called Gan, male.”
“Greetings.” Shetland responded tensely, eyeing both hyenas. At the very least it was useful that Khunbish had introduced herself with their genders, as she could not have told on her own. They looked almost identical, safe for Gan’s lower height and a cut in his ear. “My name is Shetland.”
Khunbish gave a short nod of her head. “I have a few questions, if you don’t mind, Shetland. Though we would all prefer some…” She looked behind herself into the otherwise empty tunnel. “Privacy.”
Privacy was a little cramped unfortunately, not being build for four occupants at the same time. Khunbish shot a look at Gan, who backed off into the small kitchen, leaving a more manageable three. Shifting her weight, Shetland’s eyes were focused on the remaining hyena, her unsteady hooves tapping on the chairs seat.
“Shetland, Ms.” Khunbish began to talk, her raspy voice grating on Shetlands nerves. “I have been sent by the Great Khan, to investigate the… raid, and to find out whoever is responsible.”
Shetland snorted, drawing a glare from Twilight and a raised eyebrow from the hyena. “While space pirating is unprecedented,” she said, drawing out each word clearly and deliberately. “There is no proof that points to an involvement of the Great Khan, and so he wished for us to conduct our own investigation, to prove our innocence. And with you as the possibly most vital witness, Shetland Ms. we need you to retell everything you can remember.”
Shetland took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself against the flashes already flying by her eyes, combining with the developing headache she’d gotten from the hyenas voice- she swallowed drily. Suddenly, there was a shout.
“I am sorry!”
“Step away, machine!”
Shetland whirled around, her blood approaching the boiling point by what she saw. Toasty stood in the doorway, backing away from a long claw strapped to Gan’s paw, reaching above his own with the length of a dagger. The claw emitted a quiet humm, showing it’s true purpose. A shocktalon.
“Machine spy on us!” Gan exclaimed, holding the electrified weapon dangerously close to Toasty’s chest.
Shetland jumped up, but Khunbish preempted her. “Stand down!” she ordered.
Gan obeyed, though he did not deactivate the claw. He shot Toasty a glare. “We talk affairs of state. You will go.”
“I… had something to say…”
“It’s okay, Toasty.” Twilight said. “Just wait in the tunnel until this is concluded.”
The robot nodded, swiftly exiting the room.
“I would be thankful,” Twilight said, her rising temper showing clear in her voice. “If you could be more restraint with your weapons.”
“We are sorry.” Khunbish bowed her head. “Shall we resume?”
Twilight shook her head. “No, I think not.” she took a deep breath. “This day has been quite intense for all of us. You can ask your questions another day, though I wish to be present.”
If Khunbish was disappointed, it did not show at all. With another bow of her head, she simply stepped out, followed by Gan. Only then did Twilight allow herself to fall back into the bed and let out a long groaning sigh.
“If it was them, they’ll have full access to brush under the table whatever they want.” Shetland grumbled,
“I know!” Twilight said. “But the Khan insisted. Initially, he wanted to sent a small army, this is already a compromise that took weeks to form.” she groaned, rubbing her temples. “We’ll have them under some amount of surveillance, but that's all we can do.”
“So you’re just letting them do whatever they want?”
“Shetty…” Twilight rolled over, meeting her daughters eyes. “Even if we found proof that it was definitely some sort of… privateer raid, what do you think we could do about it? Declare war?” she shook her head. “That’s not an option.”
“If the Khan sanctioned it, he basically already declared war on us!”
“Shetty,” Twilight said coldy, serious. “Believe me, even if they ordered hundreds of buccaneers to attack us, it still wouldn’t be anything like an all-out war.”
Shetland slammed her hoof down. “So we’re letting them walk all over us?”
“We do not have proof it was their fault in the first place!”
“Then what about today?” Shetland shouted. “They ignored our orders for a safe landing and just after that we have a power outage and the backup power won't turn on? Doesn’t sound like an accident, more like hacking!”
So, what, you think… Why would they do all this to ensure… what? That they might die?” Twilight scoffed. “That they’ll be stranded on a planet where they cannot breathe, miles and miles away from safety? That’s crazy, Shetland!”
“Crazy and awfully convenient!”
A knock came from the door, momentarily disrupting the argument as Toasty’s voice followed a second later. “Am I now allowed to come in?”
Twilights hoof waved in the air and it fell on Shetland to translate. “Yes, Toasty, what is it?”
Toasty hushed to the table as quietly as her metal hooves could “Somepony went missing.”
“What, When?” Twilight's wings shot up.
“We are not sure, but when the storm began and we counted everypony, a robot called Gyration Stick was missing. He worked very close to base and he had been warned of the storm, we do not know why he did not make it inside.”
“Have we send out search parties?” Twilight asked.
“Yes,” Toasty said. “A small group has checked the workplace under the cover of magic shields, but found nothing.” she sighed, sounding like a sad bellow.
“I’ll talk about it with Luna.” Twilight said, stepping off the bed. “He may have power for up to five days, for so long, we have hope to find him.”
Shetland got up. “Mom, he went missing at the beginning of the storm?”
Toasty nodded.
“Where the hyenas close enough to reach the power center before the storm?” Shetland asked, her eyes narrowing.
“SHETLAND!” Twilight shouted. “I’ve had it with wild conspiracy!”
“But it fits!” Shetland’s voice rumbled. “Maybe they did the crash on purpose so one of them could secretly leave the ship and be a hidden agent, he could-”
“NO!” Twilights hoof slammed on the ground. “Your theories are already reaching for clouds, Shetty, That is… I don’t even know how unlikely!” she shook her head. “I won’t entertain you any longer like this. You know what I think? I think you just want them to be guilty, so you can lash out at them, like you always lashed out at me!” she shook her head again, this time to clear it. “I’ve got a robot to locate and delegates to satisfy, maybe now I can at least do that without you making it harder every time!” And with that, she rushed out the room. Shetland wouldn’t remember what she shouted after her, only that it was loud and made her throat sore.
Shetland passed through the various tunnels of the colony, restlessly moving as the argument played out in her mind over and over. Yet, after hours had passed and nightfall took away the busy light of day, she had to come to a stop. Mom is wrong, she thought for what must have been the thousandth time. Maybe my theory was stretching it, but she has to admit that the timing was just too convenient! A groan surged through her, followed by a heavy sigh. There was no point in imagining the argument again. Her mother was simply unwilling to see that you just couldn’t trust them. She threw a look down the empty, dark tunnel. She wondered what time it was, but there was no clock around, nor somepony to ask. A sigh escaped her as she contemplated just going back to her dorm and sleeping; but she quickly discarded that notion, she felt wide awake! Maybe some of the adrenaline was still around in her blood… maybe the earlier panic had hit her deeper than she’d thought. She vehemently shook her head, no time for that, she had to do something productive, but what? Everypony was asleep. Maybe she could speak with Toasty… but no, Toasty would probably snitch whatever she said to Twilight, and Shetland’s brain had conjured an idea she certainly didn’t want her mother to find out about.
Everypony was asleep. Nopony was around. Therefore, it was her prime opportunity to eavesdrop on the hyenas. It wouldn’t even be suspicious, she was allowed to go wherever she wanted!
A grin played on her lips. She would find the stupid evidence she needed. She would shove it in Twilight’s face and then… then she could relax, knowing everypony was safe.
It only took a few minutes to reach the northern dorms. The inside was a spiraling hallway, heading upward at a narrow angle, both walls littered with the doors of individual rooms. Shetland stepped cautiously, cringing at the sound of her hooves. Then she shook her head. Silly thoughts. She didn’t have to sneak, she wasn’t breaking rules! She could go here all she wanted, in fact, she would inhabit one of these rooms, if her mother hadn’t lent her her own place. It dawned on her that she had no idea where Twilight slept. She snickered. In a way, she had moved back into the castle and kicked her out. Oh, what irony. Suddenly, she wanted to look behind one of these doors, but she resisted. She couldn’t get lost in what-ifs, not to mention that she could wake up whoever was trying to sleep there. No, the hyenas are in one of the top rooms, she thought. Though it would be nice to know which one… I should have asked Toasty. Then again, she’d have snitched on mom. A groan rumbled in her throat before she jerked back, cursing herself. Then she froze. She’d reached the end of the hallway and from behind the door, she heard a muffled voice speak in a throaty language, that was it! Her ears perked, but she could only make out a few words. She grinned, the scrapeaters thought they could speak safely in their language, huh? Stepping closer, she made out shredded sentences.
“We have to search… not sure where.” Shetland couldn’t make out which one was talking, but the other responded a bit quieter.
“Lost machine sounds promising...”
Then the other voice spoke even more quietly and Shetland grit her teeth, stepping closer, almost up to the door.
“What if the ponies find out?” Gan asked after a short break.
“We have to avoid that at all costs.” Khunbish muttered. “If we are to…” And to Shetlands chagrin, she whispered. Pressing her ear to the door, she-
Stumbled into the room as the door suddenly gave way. Her legs thrown protectively over her head, she smacked into the sandstone floor. A moment later, something cold poked her neck and a snarl arrived right by her ear. “Pony not very sneaky.”
“Gan, stand down.” Khunbish’s voice rasped, and he obeyed, pulling away his shocktalon. Shetland swallowed, her eyes centered on the weapon as beads of sweat formed on her forehead and it dawned on her how easily he could have…
“I must say,” Khunbish addressed Shetland. “Eavesdropping on someone’s guest is not what I would have expected from a member of the Sparkle line.”
Shetland stared at the ground. There was no point in denying it, she’d been caught deadhooved. Somehow, they’d known she was there, and played the whole conversation to trap her… damnit. And yet, she looked up, piercing them with a glare. They were sneaky. She would not underestimate them again. With renewed distrust, she threw a quick look across the room, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Yet.
Khunbish had stepped closer. “I’d been hoping for your cooperation, Miss Sparkle, you are quite important for our work here.”
Shetland’s jaw clenched. “My name is Shetland.”
The hyena narrowed her eyes as she craned her neck to face Shetland at eye level. “Very well, Shetland. We need you.” she said openly, causing both Shetland and Gan to raise an eyebrow. “You’re the only witness of the attack. If anyone is likely to have an essential clue we’re missing, it would be you. It would be far easier for all of us if you could trust us.” She stepped closer. “We want to find the culprits just like you, we’re not the enemy.”
Shetland met her eyes, refusing to blink. “Then why would it be so bad if I heard what you said?”
Gan snarled. “Privacy means nothing to ponies, does it?”
Khunbish raised a paw, silencing him. “What happened has destroyed a bridge between ponies and hyenas, one that will take time, effort and trust to repair. How would ponies begin trusting us if others may openly violate our rights in the name of distrust?”
Maybe because we shouldn’t trust you, she thought, glaring at the hyena, her lips forming a thin line.
With a sigh, Khunbish looked away. “I was really hoping for your cooperation.” she mumbled. “You may leave. As a sign of good will, I will keep this a secret, as long...” she said with emphasis. “...as you do not attempt to eavesdrop on us again.”
After a moment of contemplation, Shetland nodded, turning for the exit.
At least the door slammed with a satisfying noise.
That it woke dozens of ponies only occurred to her much later.
------
The next morning, Shetland was awoken by a tortuorous ringing that made her want to smash the instrument of pain, preferably with her forehead. Instead, she woke up and headed for the bathroom, shooting a scowling look into the mirror before disregarding her disheveled reflection. With a voice like a grater, she asked:
“Toasty?”
No answer. She was alone. With a grumble, she ignored the shower and trudged to the kitchen. She’d have to make her own breakfast after all, without the thick-headed robot. She’d already been mad when she returned from her disastrous spying attempt, hoping to let some steam off by ranting to her mechanical friend. But Toasty had been all but open to it, instead shouting at her to get her priorities straight.
“A robot has gone missing, Shetland!” she had shouted. “We should be focused on that, instead of indulging in improbable paranoia.”
Shetland’s hoof shook and she almost spilled her glass of water. Paranoia. Did she have no idea what the hyenas were capable of, what they might have already done? If the power outage was their doing, they could sabotage anything, maybe even the life support! Was it paranoia to acknowledge a threat that could kill everypony, biological or not?
Just as she was about to sit down to a meagre breakfast at her table, she saw a small note. Presumably, it was written by Toasty, considering the perfect hoof writing.
By order of Princess Luna, you need to go to her office by 8 am. Princess Twilight asked me to remind you to eat and, if possible, do your leg exercises before that meeting.
PS: I changed your alarm’s time, you should have a full hour to finish your routine before you have to go.
Shetland let out a disgruntled groan, throwing a glance at the offensively-early time of 6:55 am.
She had neither done her exercises nor showered when she arrived at Luna’s office. This time, without a crowd blocking the way, she managed to slip inside easily. When she stepped through the doorframe, a beep came from her right, where Princess Luna sat at a mess of a desk. Half of the surface was a big screen, even though it was blanketed by paper, plates, cups and her old stetson. Then, only a few feet away sat- Shetland’s eyes narrowed to a glare- her mother, next to Toasty. What was going on here? Twilight attempted to meet her eyes, but Shetland focused on Luna who, despite the noise, had not noticed her yet. Shetland took a breath, but was preempted by Twilight, who loudly cleared her throat.
“Luna, she’s here.”
The blue alicorn’s head whipped up, examining Shetland. “Greetings.” she said. There was no smile. Shetland’s gut tightened.
“Mhm.”
Luna let out a breath, rubbing her forehead with a hoof, but then she caught herself and got up, looking down at the earth pony. Shetland swallowed. It was not often that she had to crane her neck to meet somepony else’s eyes.
“I’ve received a complaint about you, Shetland.” Luna said, her gaze impossible to read. “I’ve received quite an impassioned call that you’ve been trying to eavesdrop on our guests.”
Shetland clenched her teeth. So they’d already gone back on their word! She’d known she couldn’t trust the scrapeaters, but she hadn’t expected it so quickly.
“Are these accusations true?” Luna asked sternly, unwilling to wait for a response.
“Yes,” Shetland pressed through her teeth. I can’t lie, she thought as she shot a glare at Toasty. Not with snitchbot here. “But somepony had to.”
“Shetland,” Twilight spoke up. “You can’t just do this to delegates of a foreign nation!”
“Delegates?” Shetland burst, rearing around to face her mother eye to eye. “More like spies! Are you blind to everything that’s happened just after they arrived?!”
Twilight’s wings flared out, but then a blue barrier appeared between them. Both Sparkles turned back to Luna, who fixated them with a cold glare.
“Enough!” Luna said coldly. The barrier dropped when she had assured their attention. “Shetland Sparkle, I will say this only once. Stay away from the hyenas.”
“I can’t!” Shetland said while grinding her teeth. “If they’re planning something, we can’t just be unprepared-”
Suddenly, Toasty reared up, and despite her lack of facial expressions, her voice carried her anger well enough. “Even if you were right, Shetland, you are not the pony to spy on them.” All heads turned to her. Faced with Luna’s stern glare, she fell back into her seat. “I apologize for my outburst, your highness.”
“No,” Luna said, smiling a little to ease the tension. “If you have a point to make, carry on.”
“Well… then.” Toasty said, uneasily looking at Luna. “Shetland Sparkle, you should stay away from the hyenas. Ever since their arrival, you have been acting irrationally”
“Irrational?” Shetland exploded.
“Furthermore.” The volume of Toasty’s voice rose. “As I previously stated, you are not the pony to spy on them. You are impulsive, easily angered and quite possibly the least sneaky pony on Horizon.”
If glares carried heat, Shetland would have melted right through Toasty’s face. “So what, I should just lean back and wait for the catastrophe?”
Luna let out a sigh. “I see you’re unrepentant.” She looked to Twilight. “She’s your daughter, what do you think we should do with her?”
Twilight bit her lip, avoiding eye-contact with Shetland. “I… I say we put some distance between them. Send her to another settlement, maybe. What do you think?” she asked, looking down her side to Toasty. Taken by surprise, the robot’s eyes shrunk to tiny dots of light.
“M-me?”
“Yes, of course.” Twilight said with a smile. “You’ve been spending more time with her than... anypony else in this room.” She closed her eyes for a moment. “I think your opinion is just as valid as mine here.”
“If you are certain, princess.” Toasty said. “I agree with your plan, although I would specify that we are sent to Coltville River.”
“Oh?” Luna asked. “Where the search for our missing robot is centered?”
“Affirmative.” Toasty nodded. “We could make ourselves useful by searching for him.”
Very clever. Shetland thought, still glaring at the traitorous little robot. You get what you want after all. Toasty met her eyes for a second, then her eyes shifted to the ground.
Just then, a knock came from the door and Khunbish entered, blinking at the scene in front of her. Shetland shot her a glare while both Princesses summoned smiles and Toasty kept staring at the ground. “Am I too soon, Luna Princess?” The hyena asked with her rough, grating voice.
“No, no, come in, we were just finishing up.” Luna said. In the background, Twilight’s horn lit up, tidying Luna’s desk in the blink of an eye.
Khunbish stepped in, followed by her bodyguard, and regarded Shetland with a raised eyebrow. “Is there a problem?” She raised her eyebrow.
“You know the problem!” Shetland snapped, something hot rising up her throat, though whether it was anger or bile, she couldn’t tell.
“Shetland!” Twilight shouted warningly.
Khunbish’s brows furrowed for a moment as she looked from Shetland to Twilight. “Oh, steppes.” Then she turned back to Gan. “You contacted the princesses without my knowledge?” she snapped sharply.
Twilight and Luna shared a confused look and Shetland stared incredulously, clenching her teeth as she whispered: “Horseshit.”
“I had assured Miss Sparkle that it would stay between us!” Khunbish growled.
“You said you would keep it a secret. I broke no order” Gan said, switching into hyaenidae, though Shetland still had no problem following.
“Do not split hairs!” In a lightning fast motion, Khunbish’s paw swiped out, her claws cutting into the surface of Gan’s skin. To his credit, Shetland reluctantly admitted, he barely flinched. “I wanted to solve this privately! Try this one more time and I’ll drag you into a cell.”
At that, Gan lowered his head. “I saw her as danger to our mission.”
“She’s essential to our mission.” Khunbish said, switching back to Equestrian, even if Toasty seemed to be the only one unable to follow the entire conversation. Khunbish huffed. “I’m… sorry for this mixup.”
Like Tartarus you are. Shetland grumbled inwardly.
“I hope you do not punish her too harshly.” Khunbish said. Shetland could have puked.
“No.” Luna said. “But we decided to send her to Coltville River, to keep her…” She shot Shetland a glare as her mouth formed the words behave yourself. “...current impulsiveness in check.” It took all of Shetland’s self control not to shout again as they talked about her like some rabid animal, but she took a deep breath, trying to draw all her anger into a tiny hot, glowing ball in her stomach.
“Additionally,” Twilight added. “She will assist in a search mission for a missing robot.”
“A missing robot?” Khunbish asked, whipping around to Twilight with a suddenness that threw the alicorn for a loop. “When did this happen?”
“During the storm, shortly after your arrival.” Twilight answered.
Khunbish turned to Gan, sharing a look. “We would like to go with your daughter, then.”
“What?” Twilight and Luna yelped.
“Oh, Tartarus no!” Shetland shouted.
“Khunbish…” Luna carefully said. “The purpose of sending her away was to put distance between you.”
“But that goes against our investigation.” Khunbish stated matter-of-factly. “We still have not questioned her, which, I may remind you, is quite crucial. On top of that, the timing of the disappearance is interesting. It may be unrelated, but my instincts tell me to pursue this trail before it becomes cold.”
Luna shared a look with Twilight, heaving a heavy sigh. “Alright,” she said after a long pause. “I will arrange for a transport within the next hour. But for now, please leave my office, I have something to discuss with Princess Twilight.”
“Your highness?” Khunbish raised a paw. “My original matter of discussion-”
“We will have time later, Khunbish.” Luna said. “But this a concern I have to deal with as swiftly as possible, or it will delay everything else.”
The hyena lowered her head in a small bow. “As you wish.”
Shetland did not witness that exchange, however. She had stormed out the room the second she’d been told.
-------------
There was little to pack. Whatever she’d had in her room was her mother’s. What belongings she’d brought to Horizon herself was forever lost in the cold void. In the end, she merely took a bag of provisions in her mouth, packed full of sandwiches. She’d had to raid the entire kitchen’s supply of toast, but it would be worth it if it allowed her to stave off any more puke-inducing chalk.
Warm air blew over the dusty grounds as she stepped outside, a scowl forming on her lips when she spotted Gan and Khunbish waiting next to a vehicle. They were keeping their distance from Toasty, who sat several yards away. Shetland did her best to ignore both as she examined the machine’s tracks, the airtanks on either side-
“O-oh, hi, it’s you!” A voice shouted, snapping Shetland out of her examination. The voice was followed by the head of a magenta pegasus poking from behind the tracks.
“Oh, hi.” Shetland said, recognising the technician from the previous day. “You’re Magenta.”
“Not really.” The pegasus came closer, gifting Shetland a smile. “That's just what that marine called me in the hurry, my actual name is Magna Opus.”
Shetland raised an eyebrow, silently mouthing the name. Then she shook her head. “Nope, Magenta’s better.”
“I-it’s my name…”
“Weren’t you the one who shot me?” Shetland asked, to which Magenta’s head jerked up in alarm.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, it was an accident-”
“Then I’ll call you what I want.” Shetland reasoned with a smirk.
The pegasus let out a mixed sigh of relief and exasperation. “Fine, I’m Magenta…”
Shetland’s resulting chuckle was short-lived, as she threw another look at the thing she now recognized as a larger version of the sandtank. “How’s uh… How’s the uh, the other technician-”
Magenta let out her breath. “He’s gonna live.” she said, her eyes darting to the dusty ground. “But his leg- well, it won’t.”
“Thought so.” Shetland sucked in air, looking back at her own scarred limb, frowning at the sight. But even then, she was also suddenly glad that there even was a leg still attached. The thought made her shoulder itch.
The silence was interrupted by a loud honk from the vehicle, causing Magenta to jump. “Time to get on board.” she grinned, rushing to the back of the tank, where she opened a small hatch.
The hyenas brushed past the pegasi, who cautiously backed away as they jumped through the hole with ease. Shetland swallowed nervously. Then Magenta waved to her and she approached the small hatch cautiously.
Toasty’s eyes made a sound akin to the noise of a zooming camera. “Be very careful.” she warned.
Shetland grunted as she put a hoof on the edge and grumbled. “Shut up Toa-” she stopped. Not out of choice, but because of a cold, unyielding feeling at her sides.
A snicker erupted from behind her, soon joined by a monotone “He he he...”
Scrunching her nose, Shetland pushed against the metallic walls, but they would not budge. Why can’t this stupid thing be any bigger?
“You appear to be stuck.” Toasty’s voice said in between chuckles. Shetland’s face burned, even the scrapeaters were grinning at her like it was the funniest thing they’d ever seen!
With a defeated sigh, Shetland conceded. “Little help?” she grumbled.
“I am unsure.” Toasty mused. “It is quite funny to see you struggle.”
“TOASTY!” Shetland shouted indignantly. There was no answer, but a moment later, two cold hooves pressed themselves against her-
-------
Shetland sat, although the limited space forced her to bend forward. With a grunt, she gave up and laid down on the solid metal ground. “Not. A. Word.” she hissed at the robot and pegasus as they climbed in after her. To her extreme dismay, neither had any problem sitting upright. When the motor kicked in, Shetland had to keep her teeth apart just to keep them from rattling. Still, she felt every bump shake her to the bone. Neither was it quiet, the interior of the small room- Shetland assumed it was mostly used to transport objects, not ponies- bounced the sound around. That, together with her inability to sit comfortably, worked wonders to slowly drive her insane.
After what felt like hours, a hoof poked her side. She shifted around to lie on her back instead, groaning as she moved her sore half. Magenta’s face was above her. “Don’t you have to drive this thing?”
“Nope.” the pegasus shook her head. “I could have sat in the front though. Really regret not doing that. These really weren’t designed to transport ponies.”
“Then why are we on it?” Shetland asked gruffly.
“Well,” Magenta shifted uncomfortably. “Normally we use the smaller sandtank with a sled. But it’s still damaged because… well.”
“Ahh.” Shetland massaged her side. “What did you want?”
“I’ve been thinking about your name.” Magenta blurted out, happy to change the topic.
“My name?” Shetland raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah. It’s not really a normal pony name. I mean, what does Shetland mean?”
“Not all pony names have to mean something.” Shetland grumbled.
“It still does not conform to the norm.” Toasty fell in.
Shetland groaned, shooting a glare at Toasty. “It’s not much of a story. Mom had names ready, no matter what I turned out to be. Can you believe she would have called me Sparrow Puff if I’d been a pegasus?”
“Seriously?” Magenta snorted, trying to hold back her laughter.
“Seriously.” Shetland said, her own expression stone cold. “Well, my name refers to some aaancient leeegend,” She waved her hooves around, screeching as one hit the wall. “Ow… anyway, ancient legend she read about. Apparently there were some Shetland Isles with a bunch of earth ponies who studied magic.” She spat out the last word. A cold hoof appeared on her shoulder, attempting to calm her.
“I assume you dislike this connection because it implies that your mother had expectations for you to pursue magic?” Toasty asked quietly.
“Shut up, Toasty.” Shetland hissed, her hoof smashing on the solid ground, yet the pain barely registered.
Toasty backed away, her artificial pupils erratically changing sizes as she watched Shetland carefully. Then, cautiously, she asked: “Should I inform your mother of this root cause of your falling out?”
“Oh, you shut up!” Shetland whirled around. “Don’t act as if you’re any better than her! Hey, we’re off to go on your search mission, doesn’t matter what I thought, doesn’t matter what I think was the best to do. You and mom, you’re always right about everything, and what can I do to change the wise alicorn’s mind?”
Taken aback, it took a moment before Toasty answered. “Sometimes… sometimes she and I are right, Shetland.” She drew herself up. “You are not always in the right either!”
“Oh, sure!” Shetland said heatedly, growling at the robot. “That’s what she always says,too. I’ve heard this line a hundred times already!” She took a deep breath, waiting for Toasty to answer. She breathed again, and the fire in her chest dimmed. “Well,” She said after a while. “At least you didn’t say it.”
“Say what?”
“‘And you never listened once.’” Shetland repeated robotically. “It’s what she would have said next.”
“I considered it.” Toasty admitted. “But I assumed it would only make you angrier.”
“Heh…” Shetland chuckled. “You know me better than my own mother.” A sigh escaped her as they fell back into silence.
Without any way to look outside, the growing pain in Shetland’s side, sore from rumbling over the uneven track, was the only indicator of passed time. Suffice to say, it shocked her that when the vehicle finally stopped and the hatch opened, she was blinded by broad daylight. But soon, excitement overcame the pain in her eyes and she clambered out of the cursed vehicle, taking greedy breaths of the sweet, salty air outside. Only several deep breaths later did her mind clear and she grasped for her breathing mask-
“I have it here.” Toasty said behind her.
Shetland blinked in surprise, stepping away from the hatch to let the robot out. “Why did you have it?” she asked as she placed the mask on her face.
“I anticipated that you could accidentally roll over and crush it under your weight.”
“I wouldn’t have done that. Probably.” Shetland muttered. Behind them, the hyenas left the vehicle, whispering to each other in quick hyenidae, and Gan constantly threw them cautious looks. Shetland stuck out her tongue before she turned her back.
So far, all she had seen from Horizon were dusty steppes and rocky mountains with the occasional spot of dry plantlife. Now, she felt grass under her hooves, heard the gentle sound of a calm stretch of water, she’d almost forgotten what green looked like! Grass, bushes, shrubbery, fields of vegetables grew on the sides and in between tributaries of the river, occasionally interrupted by greenhouses with air recycling-machines at the side, allowing ponies to refill their air tanks. There was even a recharge pod for robots. And how many robots there were! It seemed that for every two ponies working on a field, a robot was flanking them, plowing new fields with perfect spacing or harvesting grass for hay. Though, Shetland furrowed her brows, it did seem strange that there seemed to be fields in varying stages of growth, from those ready to harvest to having seeds implanted right before her eyes.
Not joining in her amazement however, was Toasty. Instead, she brushed past, tapping Shetland’s shoulder to bring her back to the present. “It is 15:48 pm.” she informed her. “We should hurry to meet with the pony in charge of the search efforts if we wish to receive a coordinated route.”
“W-what-” Shetland blinked, throwing a glance to the colony. “Can’t we look around for a little while?”
“No.” Toasty said resolutely and taxed her with a look. Even without a facial expression, Shetland got the distinct sense that the robot was glaring. “You can do that later.”
With that, she took off, walking to a large building, the usual repurposed cargo space, forcing Shetland to sigh and follow her, throwing a last look back at the fascinating fields.
From the corner of her eyes, she saw the hyenas throw uneasy glances at the robots.
Shetland let out a sigh, looking out over the landscape. Coltville River had disappeared from the horizon an hour ago, replaced by small hills of nothing but dust and rocks. Sometimes of strange colors, yes, but only boring rocks. Ciloa would have certainly gotten a kick out of this, she thought with a chuckle. Then her grimace returned as it felt like weights had been attached to the corners of her lips.
“The sun is starting to set.”
Far ahead of her, Toasty stood on the top of a hill, looking out into the open with just as much vigor than when they had started.
“THE SUN IS SETTING!” Shetland shouted, even though she was certain the robot had heard her the first time: she had really good hearing.
“I know.” Toasty responded, her volume turned up high enough to echo over the terrain.
“Then it’s time to return!” Shetland shouted back.
But Toasty did not move from her rocky pedestal, forcing Shetland to move her aching legs and climb up the hill, cursing under her breath. Especially as a sharp rock pricked her bad hoof. “Bucking hell on Chrysalis’s rotting grave…” She took a sharp breath as she stumbled to the robot, fixating her with a glare. “Toasty, we need to go if we want to be back before nightfall. Not to mention that I have maybe two hours of air left.”
“My predictions allow us twenty more minutes of search if we hurry.” Toasty informed her passively.
“Toasty… Shetland clenched her teeth, then she let out a long breath. “We’ve been looking here for hours, Toasty.” she said in the most sympathetic voice she could manage. “If he was here, he would have drawn attention to himself now.”
“Our survey of the area we were given has only reached 87% completion.” The robot insisted. “His auditory systems might be compromised.”
Shetland groaned. “Then he could still walk back, Toasty.”
“If that system was not compromised as well!” Toasty whipped around, craning her neck to meet Shetland’s eyes.
Shetland’s brows furrowed, but she placed a hoof on her chest and drew another long breath. She had to end this quick or she might actually run out of air. “Toasty, the computer in Coltville told us, it’s unlikely he’ll be here at all.”
“Then I join your group of ponies chasing after highly unlikely possibilities.” Toasty stomped her hoof, glaring up into Shetland’s eyes.
The big earth pony simply shook her head. “Toasty, I don’t want to die out here because I broke my leg and didn’t have enough air to wait for a rescue.” She stated matter of factly.
The lights of Toasty’s eyes went black for a moment and her posture changed, becoming less rigid. As she backed off a step, she let out a robotic sigh. “I am sorry,” she said. “I did not- You are right, safety precautions are still to be followed.” Her hoof poked the ground, leaving a small mark in the sand. “We can head back now.”
The way back was wrapped in tense quiet, neither mare willing or able to break the silence. At least, until Coltville’s greenhouses came in sight and Shetland let out a relieved sigh. Despite the pain in her legs and how dry her lips felt, a grin broke out on her face and she sped up, galloping towards the nearest hatch.
“Shetland?” Toasty’s voice rang out for the first time in over an hour. “Where are you going?”
“I don’t know!” Shetland grinned, searching the glass walls for the familiar hatch. “But I wanna see this.”
“I thought you needed rest!”
“We’ll be slow, don’t worry.” Shetland rolled her eyes.
“We?”
“Oh, come on, Toasty, we did your thing, now we do mine.” Shetland said as she found the hatch and began turning the valve.
“They are hardly of the same importance.” Toasty protested.
Shetland turned around, levelling a questioning look at the robot. “Are you seriously saying you don’t want to explore just a little bit? What else are you going to do?”
Toasty’s head shifted aside. “I wanted to take a look at the maps of the search routes.”
“Toastyyy…” Shetland sighed. “That’s what the maneframe already does. And besides, there’ll be plenty of time later, or are you gonna need the whole night for it?” As no answer came, Shetland decided to push harder. “I’ve been stuck in a tiny metal box today, got my ass stuck, I’m still sore from the rumbling, my legs hurt and I’m really thirsty. You can deal with an hour of what I want.”
Toasty nodded silently and with a victorious grin, Shetland opened the hatch.
Horizon was mostly a desert planet with sparse vegetation and long stretches of infertile, dusty ground, the only large bodies of water covering the northern and southern pole. However, the rest of the planet was littered with thousands of rivers, parting into an absolutely uncountable number of branches. And along their shores was every last bit of fertile land. So it came to no surprise that Coltville River, where all of the colony’s food was grown, had been the first place ponies settled. Several metallic structures still remained from that time, though laboratories had been transformed into public areas and command centers became dorms. Now, for as long as the eye could see, the shoreline was lined with fields and greenhouses. Carrots, salad and spinach grew right out in the open while the large greenhouses were filled with trees. Shetland swallowed as she strolled between the tree-tops, torn between the familiarity of grass under her hooves and the strangeness of being in a forest indoors.
“Where is everypony?” Toasty asked after a while, her hoof impatiently tapping a nearby root. “Should we even be here?”
Shetland shrugged, ignoring the second question as she answered. “If they’re farmers, they probably go to sleep absurdly early.” A smirk appeared on her face as she stared at a low-hanging apple, water gathering in her mouth as she observed the perfect, red orb… it had been days since she’d had an apple.
“Don’t. That is probably a reason not to allow you in here.” Toasty said warningly.
“Just kidding!” Shetland shrugged, although she threw the apple a wishful look before leaving it behind. “You know, mom often told me that ages ago, that was a major reason why Luna and Applejack were always arguing.”
“Was it because the princess would steal her apples?” Toasty asked drily.
“No, sass-o-tron, because Applejack would always go to bed before the night started.” Shetland rolled her eyes.
“Regardless, we should leave this place, even if just to… remove you from temptation.” She threw a sharp look at Shetland, who was certain that her eyes did not shift from side to side. Neither was her muzzle scrunched up. And her legs were definitely not lined up to buck the nearest tree. No, she was a mare of self-control. That one apple she hid behind her back didn’t count.
“Hey, who’s there?” A voice sounded loudly throughout the greenhouse.
Shetland’s heart made a jump and she almost dropped her rightfully-acquired fruit. Her head spun around; the echo had made it impossible to discern the voice’s source.
“We are here!” Toasty said, her volume increased to match the voice. “We are deeply sorry if we overstepped boundaries. If that was the case, we were not aware of them.”
A sturdily-built earth pony emerged from the trees, wearing a black, form-fitting jumpsuit over his bright red coat. Though all pretenses of fashion were destroyed by the thick padding covering the chest and sides. The stallion halted at a nearby tree, his gaze wandering over Shetland, from head to hoof and back. It was a well-known sight for her, but it still made her curl her lips.
The stallion let out a whistle. “Insane how much bigger you seem when I’m naked.”
“Eeeeeh…” Shetland and Toasty echoed each others thoughts, taking a step back in unison.
It struck the stallion a moment later, as he flushed an even brighter red. “I’m not wearing armor, is the point.”
“Do I know you?” Shetland asked the strange stallion.
“Not really, but we’ve seen each other,” he said. “I’m the marine you met in that absolute debacle yesterday.” His gaze darkened. “Utter embarrassment, that was.”
“Y-yeah” Shetland stuttered. Had it really just been yesterday? Just last night she’d been caught by hyenas? It had to be, that’s why she’d been sent here this morning... even if it felt like a week had passed since.
“So it is permissible to enter the orchard at night?” Toasty asked.
“Yes.” The stallion said, his voice losing the warmth it held before. “As long as you stay quiet. After 9pm is bed rest, so no clicking or beeping, please.”
“Where are we staying anyway?” Shetland wondered.
“You don’t know that?” The marine scratched his head.
“We just came back from our search mission.” Toasty said, her voice sounding more robotic.
“Ahhh,” he said, his eyes not moving from Shetland. “Tired?”
Shetland nodded.
“Should I show you where you’ll sleep?”
“Yes, please.” Shetland smiled. Exploration had been fun but - A yawn forced its way through her system. She blinked as a thought occurred to her. “I don’t think you ever told me your name.”
“Neither did you, Shetland,” he smirked. “I’m Burning Crust. Pleased to meet you… under more relaxed circumstances.”
“Nice to meet you.” Shetland responded.
“A pleasure.” Toasty said.
“Do you need to go somewhere, too?” Crust asked the robot. “I can show you the way.”
“Affirmative.” Toasty said, her voice bouncing back to its more monotone sound. “I wish to know where I can rest, too.”
“Great,” he said. “Yours is on the way, I’ll getcha there.”
If somepony had simply welded metal plates together in the shape of a room and left it at that, this would be the result. Somehow, the room managed to be small and barren, yet instill a strong feeling of claustrophobia in Shetland. The ceiling was too low for her to stand upright. In fact, the door was too narrow to allow more than her head inside, as her shoulder strained against the frame. Long cables came from the walls, tied into the occupants as they sat, leaning just a bit forward, with dark visors and lifelessly-hanging heads.
“So, this is how you rest?” Shetland asked, regarding Toasty with a strange look. “You just plug yourself in and sit there?” The sight was more than just a little unnerving. As if she was looking at a morgue.
“What did you think we do?” Toasty asked, tilting her head.
“I… uhm…” Shetland scratched the back of her head. She grimaced as she accidentally hit her head on the ceiling and pulled herself out of the doorframe. “I didn’t think about it at all, actually.”
Toasty made a motion with her head, like ponies would when they rolled their eyes. “Maybe you’ve grown so tall that your heart struggles to pump blood all the way to your brain.” she nickered as she stepped through the door. Shetland stared after her, her brain struggling to process.
“Where did that came from?” she whispered.
“Maybe you crossed a wire?” Crust suggested, earning a dry snort from Shetland.
“Yeah, right.” A loud yawn made her jaw crack. “I’m so ready to hit the hay.”
“Right, right.” Crust said. “Let me show you where.” He quickly led her outside and towards the other half-dozen metal structures. In the dark of the night, they seemed like giant armored caterpillars - Shetland shook her head, trying to chase aways both her tiredness and her feelings of unease. Stupid. Then her attention was drawn away as Crust began to talk.
“If it had been a pony gone missing, the search would have stopped already.”
“Only because they would have choked to death.” Shetland muttered, causing him to turn his head.
“I’m just saying that we can’t forget everything else over this.” He shook his head with a groan. “With so many of our soldiers out looking, we’ve left our defenses dangerously weak. And with these civilians still holding on to their guns-”
“Wait, they still have them?!” Her mouth stood agape.
“Yeah.” he muttered darkly. “In fact, they wanted more. ‘Specially the bots, but the Princess is having none of that.”
“Hmmm.” Shetland threw a look back to the dark block of her friends ‘dorm’. “At least they would be less likely to panic.”
“Armed robots?” Crust shuddered. “That’s just what we’re missing for complete anarchy!”
Shetland stopped. It took him a moment to notice, but when he turned to look, he found her glaring way down at him. Her voice was cold as she spoke, yet every world rumbled in her chest like an avalanche. “There is nothing wrong with robots. Toasty over there is my friend and you will not insult her or her kind.” She lowered her head until it was only a few inches from his, closing the distance as he stepped back. “Understood?”
“Y-yes!” he nearly shouted, his voice sounding closer to a mare’s. He let out a tense breath as she pulled back. “I-it’s my job to be suspicious, I’m sorry.”
Shetland let out a grunt. “I was going to be a Voidmarine, and nowhere in the job description did it say I had to be a jerk.”
“W-well, uh, you seem like pretty good Voidmarine material.” he stuttered slightly, but righted himself. “What you just did was amazing, heck, I’m sweating.” A grin broke out on his face. “You could probably shut down any troublemaker just by glaring at them.”
“You think?” Shetland asked, her anger deflating at the unexpected praise. Then she blinked, as her tired mind caught up. “You think I can still be a Voidmarine?”
“Absolutely,” he whistled. “You’ve been steeled in combat, you’re really huge, strong too - are you a good shot?”
“Heck yeah, I am,” A grin started to form on her lips. “Third-best in the training group, just after…” She swallowed, but forced herself to stay in the present, this was more important. “After a friend of mine, he was second.”
“Even better!” He rubbed his chin, contemplating for a moment before speaking up again. “You know, I’m gonna bring this up with my fellows, I bet there’s somepony who’ll take you under their wing. Would be a gigantic waste otherwise.”
“That would be… awesome.” Shetland whispered. She felt a pang of annoyance as Crust suddenly snickered. “Hey, what’s the matter?”
Raising a hoof to his lips, he suppressed another giggle. “Oh, nothing, I just realized I made a pun there. Eh, ‘gigantic’ waste?”
Shetland’s expression could have been carved from solid granite.
Burning Crust rolled his eyes. “Everypony’s a critic, can’t even tell a single harmless joke without- HEY!” he shouted.
Shetland immediately recognized where they were. Just a few hours ago she had been in this building, where the central computer stood. In this room, full of maps, robots and computer stuff, she and Toasty had received the route they’d been searching. She also recognized the silhouette of the creature at the entrance into that room. The small, hunchbacked form of a hyena.
“STEP AWAY FROM THERE!” She and Crust shouted in unison, causing the hyena to shriek and throw a panicked look around. Shetland presumed it was Gan, even if she couldn’t say for sure in the darkness.
“What were you doing? Tell me!” she demanded, her teeth gritted. To her increasing annoyance, he answered in Hyenidae.
“I was just looking around.”
“Sure you were.” she spoke in the same language, wishing deeply she could see his shocked face right now. “Go back to your mistress and tell her I better not catch you snooping around again!” She licked her lips, chuckling. “The irony, doesn’t it taste sweet?”
The hyena did not answer, hurrying back into the dark. Crust and Shetland watched him disappear. After a short while, Crust whispered. “I wish I could just arrest them.”
“Me too.” Shetland grumbled darkly, switching back to Equestrian.
“What do you think it was looking for?”
“Heck if I know.” she muttered. “Actually, maybe the computer system!” Her blood froze. “The hacking, they hacked our system, he’s trying to do it again!”
“But why do they need physical access now?” Crust asked.
“Beats me, but I know one thing for sure. Don’t. Let them. Inside there.” she hissed, glaring into the dark.
He nodded. “I’ll watch this place.”
“Me too.” Shetland said.
“No way!” he protested. “You’re barely on your hooves, you need rest.” He shook his head as Shetland opened her mouth. “No, no. You can sleep in the dorm over there, there should be a few empty rooms. If you find another marine on the way, tell him to back me up.”
The need to protest still burned inside her, but it was overshadowed by an even mightier yawn. Okay, she thought. I’ll go to sleep, but I’m definitely finding him backup first.
Eating breakfast in a canteen. It felt both strange and familiar as Shetland sat down at a tiny table, an overburdened tray held in her teeth. It brought up memories of boot camp, intense training, overbearing rules, camaraderie, purpose. A smile took hold of her face as she unceremoniously dumped her nutrient chalk under the table. Just like old times. For a moment, she sat there, training her eyes strictly forward, as to not look at the empty seats on either side of her. Her smile cracked. Most other tables were full, but she wouldn’t let that bother her. She knew others tended to find her presence daunting. She heaved a sigh as she focused on her task of driving alfalfa to extinction.
A yawn sounded and just a moment later, Crust sat down at her side. “Morning,” he said with yet another yawn.
“Morning.” Shetland said, observing him. “I didn’t expect you to get up this early.”
“Get up?” He muttered. “That implies I slept.”
Shetland lowered her head, as to whisper in his ear. “Did they try again?”
“Nope. But they would have been stupid to.” He raised his head. “You going out with your robot again?”
Shetland answered with a nod. Her mouth was preoccupied.
“Maybe you should go with your armor then, instead of that little mask.”
“I have no idea where my armor ended up.” Shetland asked. It dawned on her that she’d never asked her mother about it. “And I doubt whatever you have in store fits me.” Then she blinked. “Wait… how did you know I even had one?”
He answered with a grin. “Well, we’ve got one giant suit in store. It arrived a while ago for repairs.”
“You think it could be mine?” she asked. A small bit of excitement fluttered in her chest, like a newly-transformed butterfly testing its wings.
“I‘m struggling to think who else it could be for.”
“When can I get it?” Shetland said, her voice a bit louder than she’d intended.
He shrugged. “Whenever you want, just swing by Scalloway’s to pick it up.”
A grin broke out on her face. She’d get her armor back! It may not help much for just walking around, but it would pack a lot more air than the normal mask and bottle and… well, it was hers and it was awesome! Still, she furrowed her brow. “Scalloway?” she asked. “Doesn’t he repair robots?”
“He can repair just about anything, if he has to.” Crust shrugged. “And besides, I heard there’s actually a whole bunch of similarities.”
Suddenly, Shetland had a picture of her mother before her eyes, excitedly prattling on about two blueprints and cross-referencing them in all sorts of ways. Shetland simply stored it in the fun-fact-bin.
“Have you been able to speak with any of the marines?” Shetland asked, her voice bristling with agitation, despite her efforts to make it sound level.
To her disappointment, he shook his head. “Been up all night, remember? All I got to say was stop snoring. Didn’t work.” he groaned as he rubbed his head. “But maybe I can introduce you today…”
“I’m not sure…” Shetland muttered. “Toasty probably won’t give me much time to rest. It’s like she’s obsessed.” she shook her head. “Understandably so, I guess.”
“Well, If you find the time.” he offered. “And speaking of the devil…” He pointed a hoof at where he’d spotted Toasty, the small robot making a beeline for them.
“Hello.” Toasty said. Her head spun towards Crust, then, after a second of observation, back to Shetland. “Are you finished ingesting twice your necessary intake of calories?”
“Good morning to you, too, Toasty.” Shetland grumbled, trying to wrestle her anger, reasoning that she couldn’t even tell if it was a joke.
No matter, her anger said. It wasn’t a good one!
Shush! Her brain hissed and took anger into a headlock.
Shetland herself pushed her almost-finished plate aside. “I can go right now, I just want to swing by and pick up my armor."
“Your armor?” Toasty asked. There seemed to be a slight dismissive tone in her voice, but maybe that was just imagination.
“Yes,” Shetland grumbled, forcing herself to sound practical. “My armor carries more air, so we can search for an extra hour or two.”
“Well then,” Toasty said, this time her voice free of any sharpness, imagined or not. “We should hurry to get it then.”
Shetland rolled her eyes. “Yes, yes, you’re burning to go.” Standing up, she cursed a little as her bad hindleg smacked against a table-leg and a jab of pain shot through it. Yet, it had grown duller and did not even force a tear in her eye. With gritted teeth, she resolved herself to silence as she followed Toasty.
---
Their search would bear no results. Nor on the next day or the day after. And with every day passing, Toasty grew more silent and sour. When they came back, the robot would quickly seclude herself in her “room” or into the maneframe, where she would tirelessly brood over maps. Left alone, Shetland quickly learned to enjoy Burning Crust’s company, and even those of other marines. Buster, a pegasus with an ever-present grin who could draw from a seemingly neverending pool of jokes (most of them groan-inducing) and Cross Bow, a changeling whose name actually described a dance move, not the weapon. While neither of them were eligible to train her, Crust assured her it was only a matter of time, and meanwhile she simply enjoyed once again having a group to relax with after a long, strenuous day. She only wished Toasty could join, but her friend only scoffed at the idea.
“They would not want me.” she'd said in a tone that allowed no discussion. “And you should focus on your rest, not silly games.”
Shetland remembered saying something about Toasty blowing it out of proportion, but she couldn’t recall the exact words she used. But no matter what she tried, her friend seemed lost in a single-minded dedication to a task that soon grew infuriating.
----
Another search, another dusty wasteland. Shetland let out a loud groan as she resigned herself to it. “Couldn’t we get a route by the river?” she muttered. The dust crunched under her armored hooves.
“You should have said so earlier.” Toasty informed her passively. “But if your surroundings bore you, you could help me look for more interesting things. Like robots in dire need of help!”
Shetland groaned. “I am.” The constant sassing of her friend was really starting to get on her nerves. She observed the back of Toasty’s head, pondering over her next sentences. This morning, Burning Crust had informed her of a storm coming that night, as well as a party to bridge it.
“We’ll all be there!” he’d said excitedly. “Including Space Waver!”
That name sounded eerily familiar. “Is he… related to Captain Void Waver?”
“Yep. How did you- oh.” His face fell for a moment. “Well…” he swallowed. “It… might be a little awkward…”
Shetland snorted. A little
“Buuut, Buster spoke with him yesterday and he’s really interested in meeting you. That’s your ticket!”
“So, when exactly is this party gonna be?”
“At 9 pm, roughly two hours before the storm, if Scallow is right.” Crust said. “Don’t be late.”
And now Shetland wondered how her friend would take this. On one hoof, she couldn’t imagine Toasty risking themselves during another storm. On the other, she could absolutely imagine her insisting on using up every minute before...
“Toasty?” Shetland asked, watching the robot’s back. No answer. The only sign that Toasty heard her was a subtle turn of her right ear. “Burning Crust told me I could still become a Voidmarine.”
“Is he the stallion you spend all the time you can get with?”
Shetland raised an eyebrow. “Yes, you know that, you don’t forget things.”
“You do not know how my mind works, Shetland.” Toasty said sourly. “But I indeed remember him.”
“Yeah, well… any opinion on that?” Shetland asked.
Toasty halted in her tracks. “I think that is a question for a later time, we should focus on the present.” And with that, she resumed walking, not once looking back at the earth pony, who’s eye began to twitch as a furnace heated up inside her.
“I was just trying to make some conversation.” Shetland hissed. “And this is kind of important, it’s my future!”
“Why now?” Toasty asked, the volume of her voice rising.
“Why not now? We’re just walking around!”
“If you think this is boring, maybe you should turn back, then.” Toasty said, her voice icy cold.
“No,” Shetland grumbled. She swallowed a lump of lava down. “Serves me right for trying to ask my friend for advice.”
A long metallic sigh sounded from Toasty as she, for the first time, turned her head, looking into Shetland’s visor. “If you want my advice, you should not jump the gun, if I used that idiom correctly. I honestly do not understand why you would want to after what has already happened.” With that, she turned around, wordlessly traversing the plane as she left Shetland to think.
-----
Their return to Coltville in the late afternoon had been forced by Shetland’s dwindling air supply, something Toasty had a dim view of, even if she wouldn’t articulate it. Her brooding silence said enough. All the while, Shetland cursed herself for still not talking to her friend about her plans.
“Still not even a clue.” Toasty said darkly.
“Sorry.” Shetland muttered. She wanted to continue, but couldn’t find the right words. Yet, as she looked at the robot, maybe it would be better to give her a little while before breaking it to her. “How about you go to the maneframe and grab our new route while I refill my air.”
“Fine.” Toasty muttered, climbing out of the hatch.
Shetland let out a sigh as she took off her helmet and let the cool air hit her sweaty forehead. With a shake of her head, she freed her mane from the compressed state it had been forced into. Taking another breath, she told herself to be calm, even as angry glimmers burned inside her. Toasty is just stressed, she told herself. Even if she’s being a giant bitch for some reason. Was it just worry that prompted Toasty to act like that, stress, or was it something else? She had no idea! She engaged the magnetic function on her helmet and hung it at the side of her armor. There were roughly fifteen minutes and nothing to do but wait, yet her mind wouldn’t let her rest for even one. Her hooves began moving, almost by themselves, carrying her out the hatch and in a big circle through Coltville. Ponies were running around, busying themselves to harvest whatever crop they could and making walls of cement bags to act as a moderate windshield for the rest.
I should be helping here, she thought. Not strolling senselessly through the desert. Shaking her head, she chased that thought away. She was delaying and she knew it, she had to go to her friend and tell her-
“Miss Sparkle.” A rough voice came from her side. Shetland pressed her eyes closed, hoping dearly it was not who she thought it was. Releasing an exasperated breath, she turned to Khunbish, who observed her sternly.
“What do you want?” Shetland snapped. Not the most diplomatic thing to say, but she was not diplomatically-minded.
“Miss Sparkle.” Khunbish repeated calmy, a fact that infuriated Shetland. “As you recall, we have come here to both learn about your missing machine’s whereabouts and to hear your story as a witness to the raid.”
“Yes, and?” Shetland pressed through her teeth.
“With the storm tonight, It would be the perfect time for you to do so.” Khunbish stated. “You will appear at dorm 73 at 10 pm.”
“Hell no!” Shetland protested, glaring at the hyena, aghast at the prospect of spending the entire night- She shook her head again. “I have other plans.” If she wasn’t going to accompany Toasty, she certainly wasn’t going to spend even a second with them.
“You are making it unnecessarily hard for us.” Khunbish’s eyes narrowed. “In fact, you are dangerously close to impeding the investigation. You have interest in finding the guilty, why are you being so stubborn?” A clear tone of anger reverberated in her voice. It was gratifying.
“You give me little reason to believe that thats what you’re after.” Shetland hissed. “What was your servant doing last night when I caught him trying to break into our maneframe?”
“He simply got lost!” The hyena drew back.
“In the middle of the night? Likely story.” Shetland shook her head. Then, slowly, a grin grew on her face as she mimicked Khunbish’s hoarse speech. “‘A bridge between our people broke, one that takes trust to repair. How can ponies trust you when you snoop around and keep secrets?”
With a low growl, Khunbish’s teeth bared, an impressive arsenal of destructive natural weapons. “You want to play that game, pony?” She shook her head, hiding her natural dentition again. “We will not take insults or setbacks. Next time, you might not have a choice anymore.”
A shadow fell over the hyenas as Shetland crouched low, bending her knees far to come eye-to-eye with the ugly canine face. “Bugger off.” She said slowly, clearly. Khunbish’s jaw clenched, she glared into Shetland’s eyes, but then she simply turned around, leaving the earth pony to her gratified chuckle.
---
“Toasty?” Shetland asked carefully, trying not to pay attention to the couple other ponies scattered around the room. “Toasty, we need to talk.” She now directly addressed the robot, who sat in front of a screen, seemingly comparing whatever was on it with a map.
“Shetland,” she stirred. “I have made a discovery.”
The unexpected statement made her blink. “What is it?”
She set down a map, pointing at a whole bunch of lines, circling around Coltville. “These are all the paths that have been searched.”
“And?” Shetland grunted, hoping she’d get to her part soon.
“And, I discovered the computer made a mistake!” Toasty exclaimed. Her hoof pointed at a specific area, devoid of lines. “This place has never been searched, Shetland.” she met her eyes. “If we hurry now, we can still go there and be back right before the storm hits.”
Looking over her friend’s shoulder, she observed the map, traced full of lines reaching out of Coltville just to circle back again. “Toasty…” She groaned, letting out a breath of hot air as she placed her hoof on the small empty portion. “It’s just south of the power plant, silly, we haven’t looked there because he’s obviously not going to be there!”
“I considered that.” Toasty said, meeting Shetland’s eyes. “I still wish to check.”
“Holy heck, Toasty!” With a loud groan, Shetland pushed the map away. “I’m not going out just before a storm JUST because you think you know better than everypony, including the maneframe. News flash, it’s got like fifty times your processing power!”
“What is so bad about helping me check?” Toasty’s voice grew in volume. Behind them, the two other ponies in the room exchanged a nervous look before they hurriedly left.
“Besides not wanting to risk my life?” Shetland shook her head in disbelief. “I’m going to some kind of party with the other marines, so I can actually have a job again!”
A crackling noise came out of Toasty’s head as she stared. If she had a jaw, it would have hit the floor. “Y-you-” she stammered. “You will go to a party instead of assisting me in a rescue mission?”
“Only if it’s a wild goose chase!” Shetland shouted, the implication nagging at her. “This is important to my future.” she said, trying to appeal to her friend, but to utter failure.
Toasty’s eyelights grew into unbearable brightness. “You- You think this is a goose chase? That this is pointless? THERE IS SOMEPONY OUT THERE WHO NEEDS SAVING!” Toasty’s volume increased like never before, forcing Shetland’s ears to fold back just to protect themselves. “After this second storm, we might lose all chance of finding him ever again!”
“Why does it matter so much to you?” Shetland asked, as her thread of patience finally snapped. “Do you even know him?”
“No.” Toasty replied, her voice dropping, yet it made Shetland shudder with its icy chill. “But that should not matter. He is a robot like me. And I- I cannot believe that you would simply abandon one of my kind just so you can go to a party!”
The words zapped through Shetland’s brain like lightning bolts. All her rage, her anger, it was snuffed out in an instant, blurred by the faint sound of static. Toasty kept speaking, but Shetland struggled to make sense of it. Her hooves felt wet, her neck cold, a shiver went through her body.
“I thought you were different than the rest.” Toasty said, her voice finally arriving in Shetland’s brain again. “That at least you really saw my kind as equal, but I suppose it was wishful thinking. Well, if your little get-together is more important to you than this, I’ll go alone!”
“T-toasty!” Shetland exclaimed, reaching out a hoof, but the robot, her former friend, gave it no attention as she vanished out the door.
Shetland had to be steered out the room, caught in her own head. Toasty was gone, not like her friends gone, but close…
You lost her. Her inner voice cackled.
“No..” she whispered out loud. It would all clear up, eventually. Eventually. The sky was filled with fast moving clouds, sucking up all light to an extent that she could not tell whether it was the time that caused the darkness or just the weather. She had been so stupid. So what if she had gone with Toasty, she could have just gone to a stupid party some other time. And what about the missing robot? Did she really care so little about it? Yes, she hadn’t known it... him, but the same could be said about-
Her stomach turned as the name appeared in her mind. No, no, she hadn’t done it again, it was not her fault! A cold chill ran through her body as she stared out to the horizon. It was too late, now. Toasty had gone without her. Even if she followed, it would be pointless. She heaved a sigh and went to her quarters. All she had to look forward to was the party, yet the thought held no more joy for her.
---
Darkness had engulfed the settlement as Shetland listlessly made her way to the only glassy dome of Coltville: the party dome. For now, the air was calm, but that would change soon enough. She was early, but she’d rather wait outside with somepony to talk to than drive herself crazy inside her tiny dorm. That worry was quickly alleviated by the light's shine, lighting up the glass fassade. Just outside the hatch stood a changeling, wearing his armour except for the helmet, alternating between a cigar and his breathing mask.
“Shetland!” Cross Bow greeted her.
“Hey.” Shetland raised a hoof. “Is it open?”
“Yeah, sure,” he shrugged. “Just not much going on yet.” He took another puff from his cigar, then levitated another one. “Want one?”
She shook her head. “I don’t smoke.”
“Well, what a shame.” He leaned back, resting his side on the dome. “Would have shared it, too.”
“Where do you get these, anyway?” Shetland raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anypony else smoking…” Right? Maybe once in front of the Horse Horizon, but she couldn’t say for sure.
With a grave look, he carefully stuffed his cigars into an armor compartment. “They’re not easy to get, I tell you.”
“So… it’s illegal? Do I need to report you?” Shetland asked, half-teasing, half-serious.
“N-No!” he sputtered. “But they’re not part of regular shipments all the same. I get mine from the captain who runs the monthly supply shipment. Well…” He threw a cautious look to Shetland. “The new captain, too. Not uh… Space Waver’s cousin… anymore.”
Shetland groaned. “Just…” she started, then shook her head. “Forget it…”
“Right, you’re touchy about that,” he awkwardly rubbed his neck. “Sorry.”
Pressing her eyes shut, Shetland let go of a long breath. “Just shut up for a second.”
He nodded hurriedly, sat down, and spat out the butt of his cigar. Next to him, Shetland too rested, a relief for both her itching hindleg and her nerves. She couldn’t tell why it was better to sit silently next to a friend, rather than alone, but somehow it was. She glanced at Cross Bow. If only Toasty was here, too, the uneasy feeling in her stomach whispered. She shook her head, trying to shake off that thought. She’ll come back before the storm, and then, when she’s calmed down enough, I’ll try to invite her, too. After all, she probably needs some time to rest her mind just like I do. She let out a sigh. And I promise, I’ll do my best to help you find him.
“Cross Bow?” she whispered.
The changeling’s chin had slowly sunk to his chest, looking downwards. “Hmm?”
“If you keep staring at my ass, I will impale yours on your own horn.”
It was only silent for a few more minutes, during which the changeling had kept his eyes trained straight forward like his life depended on it. But over time, ponies began to pool inside the dome. Shetland smiled as Magenta passed by, but before she could call her over, Burning Crust and Buster appeared, both wearing their armor without their helmets. It made Shetland raise her eyebrow. “Is there some kind of theme here you didn’t tell me about?” she asked.
Crust’s eyes shifted over to Cross Bow. “Heh… no. It’s just something we do to distinguish ourselves from the farmers easier.”
Buster grimaced. “Don’t see why it’s necessary, most of them stay in the greenhouses anyway.”
“Why?” Shetland wondered.
He shrugged. “Oh, you know, earth ponies.”
“Hey!” Crust and Shetland exclaimed.
“Just kidding.” Buster smirked. “But some of ‘em love their crops something fierce.” he flinched. “Damnit, I’ll take it off in a minute, it squeezes my wings.”
It dawned on Shetland that he was trying to move his wings under the suit. To no avail, of course, they were too heavy to fly with and so wingholes had been avoided as they presented weak spots.
“Well, it’s a good thing miss giant here isn’t wearing hers.” Crust chuckled. “Or nopony else would fit on the dance floor. Now can we get in already?” he added in a peeved tone.
There was little unique about the party, Shetland quickly noted. It seemed that no matter where one went, ponies enjoyed the same type of heavy-beat music, alcohol and dancing, mixed with some of the more harmless party games, such as pin the magnet on the robot. It didn’t sit right with her as she walked past the group of ponies forming the magnets into a smiley on the robot’s flickering visor. Of course, she knew it was harmless, the magnets induced little more than a robot version of dizziness, that the victim was chosen by a spin of the bottle and signed up freely- yet, stories bubbled up in her mind, where magnets had been used in kidnappings to restrain the abducted robot. Back when Equestria had made the controversial decision to allow robots to continue their lives within it's borders. Her lips forming a thin line, she upped her pace to leave them behind. It was only a game, after all. She would be fine.
“Is Space Waver around?” She asked Crust, who had already grabbed a drink from a dented, rusty fridge.
“Eh, don’t see him.” he shrugged as he took a swig from what was likely beer. “You look really tense,” With a worried look, he offered her another bottle. “You should take a load off, this is a party.”
Shetland gave the bottle a look, before she shook her head. “I don’t feel like drinking.”
“Then what is it?” Buster asked, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t make us worm it out of you.”
“I’m just worried,” she sighed. “My friend ran off for another search route and she might be cutting it close with her return.”
“Your friend?” Crust asked. “You mean the robot?”
Shetland answered with a nod, not wanting to meet his eyes.
“You worry too much,” He rolled his eyes. “Never seen a bot not be punctual, she’ll be back thirty minutes before the storm, that’s the absolute last moment she has to. Safety rules. Probably a full hour.”
“I know!” Shetland burst out. “She was just… really angry when she left. What if she does something stupid?”
He let out a groan. “Perfect memory, Shetland. No matter how riled up a bot gets, they don’t forget things like this. Now are you gonna pull us all down by being silly or can we have some fun?” he suddenly leaned sideways, raising an eyebrow. “Cross Bow, stop staring at her butt.”
Shetland kicked out, but the changeling had already jumped aside. “S-spare my horn.” he whimpered.
Shetland answered with a glare. And a threat: “I won’t.”
Of course she didn’t actually hurt him. Publically dumping him into the trash container served well enough as punishment.
“B-but Buster did it tooooo…” Cross Bow whined a minute later, holding his dizzy head. Without a mane, it had been easy for him to clean the trash from himself.
“Yeah, but he gets a pass.” Shetland said.
“What? Why?” The changeling protested.
“‘Cause he’s kinda hot.” she grinned.
And so she left the speechless changeling behind. His punishment was now complete.
Despite this bit of amusement, Shetland found herself unable to enjoy the party like she normally would. Of course, the dance floor had never agreed with her. Too many obstacles, and this one was particularly small. But she’d always enjoyed drinking, chatting and measuring herself up against the bulkiest of stallions and beating them with ease at hoofwrestling. And maybe also flirting, though she’d never gotten great results from that front. But no, all she could do was sit on the sideline and watch as Crust, Buster and Cross Bow had the time of their lives while she felt… separated.
“Okay, gang.” Buster said to everypony around. “What tastes really bad and grows on a tree?”
Oh, Celestia, here it comes. She was half-tempted to cover her ears.
“Branches!” he grinned, eliciting a shared groan from his audience. It did not faze him in the slightest.
“It was so obvious you would come up with a punchline like that…” Cross Bow muttered. “Hey, Shetland.” He turned his head with a hopeful smile. “Wanna go dancing?”
“We’ll get thrown out of the dome if we do.”
“They can’t, it’s a storm.” He stuck out his tongue. His very long, forked tongue.
“Not yet. And even then, still no.” Shetland said, causing him to huff and cross his legs.
“Just accept it,” Buster snickered. “She’s not into you.”
“Well, she doesn’t know what she’s missing.”
“Personal space, for one.” Shetland said and rolled her eyes.
“Guys, shut up for a second,” Crust said. “I’m seeing him- Hey Diver!” he shouted over the music and shook his foreleg. “Over here!”
Shetland looked up just in time to watch a pegasus wave back. His blue coat was dark, almost appearing black. As he came closer, she saw that his left ear was missing. He stopped just a hoof’s reach away, his eyes trailing upwards in a way Shetland was all too familiar with. She reached out a hoof. “Hello.”
Her greeting snapped him out of his trance. “How did I not see you earlier?” he chuckled, a smile appearing on his face. “You must be the giant pony I’m supposed to meet here?” he shot a look behind her towards Burning Crust.
“Yep.” Crust nodded. “That’s her.”
“Glad to meet you, uhm…” he stuttered for a moment. “Y-your highness?”
Shetland hurriedly shook her head. “No, don’t call me that, I’m not royalty.”
“Technically you are-”
“Shut up, Buster.” she shot a glare at the pegasus, who ducked away. “Anyway,” she said, turning back to Star Diver, “Just call me Shetland, please.”
“Alright, Shetland.” He said the name slowly, like he had to try it out first. “I am Star Diver, but you can also just call me Diver.”
“He doesn’t like Star ‘cause that’s pretty much the name of every unicorn.” Burning Crust snickered, gaining an unamused look from Diver.
“Off duty or not, I can still put you on never-ending night patrols, private.”
“Y-yes sir!” Crust stammered, visibly recoiling.
Feeling a tug at her leg, Shetland’s eyes met Diver’s. He nudged his head towards a corner of the room. She nodded in agreement.
“They may annoy the daylights out of you,” he said as they stepped into the (slightly) quieter area. “Their professionalism appears and vanishes with the work hours.”
Shetland nodded. “Burning Crust seemed like a no-nonsense stallion when I first met him.”
“First impressions simply don’t hold up.” he rubbed his ear. “I wouldn’t have come here if it weren’t to meet with you.”
“You don’t like parties?”
“I don’t like the music. If you can even call it that.” he sighed, his ears folding down on his head. “You’re the uh… the mare who-”
“The mare who survived.” Shetland nodded somberly.
“A great feat.” he said, his eyes refusing to meet hers. “I heard you shot many hyenas?”
“Some,” Shetland swallowed. “I can’t remember, it’s all… hazy.” A clump of dread formed in her throat, a sneaking suspicion of what he was trying to get at.
“Commendable.” Despite the praise, his eyes still avoided her. “You’re a mare with experience now. You can hold your own. Even managed to save a few ponies.”
Shetland grit her teeth. “I… wouldn’t say so.”
Of course you wouldn’t, her brain whispered. She tried to hush it. It had to have shown on her face, as Diver inspected her expression. Shetland tried to clench her teeth without him noticing.
“No?” he asked. “Why not?”
“I-I-” she stammered, backing off a step from the smaller stallion. “I- I should have done more.” she broke out, loud enough for some nearby ponies to turn heads, but she didn’t notice. Her hooves shook, but she still held some semblance of control over herself as she drew a staggered breath. “I only managed to save a few, when I could have done more.” she bit her lips hard enough to cause pain, not wanting to let more words spill out. She pressed her eyes shut. It took her several seconds until she let go of her breath. “I… have… not done my best.” she finally said.
“You feel guilty?”
“Yes,” she admitted, swallowing. The lump in her throat grew, until it felt like she could choke on it. “If I had done things different, more would be here.” she closed her eyes, but it only conjured images. Her lips moved as she silently formed the words Leave me alone.
Diver backed off a little, shooting hot glares at the ponies staring. “Shetland?” he asked after they’d skittered away.
“Y-yes?” She drew herself up again.
“I’m sorry for asking these hard questions, I’m not trying to be a psychologist-”
“It’s okay.” She took a shallow breath. “I’m okay.”
From his look, he believed that as little as she did herself. Still, he did not call her out on it. “If you manage, I need to ask one more thing.”
“S-sure, go ahead.” Shetland nodded, trying to act confident as she swallowed past that pesky lump.
“After all that, why do you want to join the Voidmarines again?” This time, he met her eyes directly, intensely observing her reaction. For a while, there was none. Her mind blanked as she was unable to look at him.
As the silence grew, he let out a sigh. “Shetland, if you become a Voidmarine, you could face the same again. Do you think you would be ready?”
Shetland licked her lips. Both yes and no battled for her tongue and all she could do in their stalemate was to stare at the ground.
“Shetland,” he called, a little louder. “Please tell me, why do you want to be a Marine after what happened?”
“I don’t know. It’s just what I’ve always done.” Shetland said. Her hoof felt wet, yet it looked ordinary as she looked at it. Maybe just sweat. It pooled on her back in the hot, way-too-loud dome with so many ponies- She took a greedy breath and shook her head, focusing her eyes on the smaller stallion in front of her. “I think I just don’t know anything else to do.”
Diver closed his eyes for a moment. “I’m not taking you.”
Shetland nodded. Somehow, she had always expected that answer.
“You’re not in any condition for it, I’m afraid.” he needlessly elaborated.
“I understand.” Shetland croaked. Her throat hurt, yet her mind was dull. A longing for rest took hold of her. That, and a bottle of cider to chase the dreams away. She had turned away, when Diver spoke one last time.
“Just… one more. I’m sorry to ask this, but… the captain of the Esseless, Void Waver, she was my cousin.” There was a pause as he audibly scratched the ground with his hoof. “Did you see… anything of her when she…”
One last time, Shetland met his eyes, full of sadness and longing, for some kind of answer. And all it did was drive the knife deeper into her soul as she could only shake her head, unable to speak from the powerful urge to vomit. She turned away. It was too loud. She needed fresh air.
Stepping outside was like leaving an entire world. Generous silence welcomed her as she leaned against the outer wall of the dome, even if the muffled music still rang in her ears. She slid down to the ground, enjoying the simple act of sitting, even as she knew she’d have to leave soon. Dark clouds had gathered in the sky and she thought she could even faintly hear their declarations of wrath, only withheld for maybe another hour. She let out a sigh. Where to go? She could not stand to reenter the party, she knew that much, but what else could she do? Being alone drove her insane. So did the ponies at the party. She furrowed her brow as a headache began to form in her temples. What she wanted right now, more than anything, was to talk to somepony who understood. Yet, the only one she had left was Toasty. A groan escaped her as her headache intensified. But then she got back on her hooves. If there was only one option, then she had to resolve their conflict, even if it included literally begging for forgiveness.
Every day after their search, Toasty would charge her battery in the charging pod. Shetland had no idea why, her batteries would last for five days at the very least. But still, she had always withdrawn herself immediately. Shetland had accepted that with a shrug and spent her time with Burning Crust and his friends. Now, she was simply thankful to know where to look for her.
It was hard to squeeze her shoulders into the tight room. Her head had almost no space, and so she had to bend her knees, much to the disagreement of her bad leg. It was dark. She blinked, looking for any source of light. Were they shut off? Even when charging, robots would usually emit some lights from their visors. With a sudden urgency, she forced her body inside, scraping at the nearby walls and ceiling. “Toasty?” she asked, her voice shaking.
No response.
“TOASTY!?” she shouted again, just a second before she came upon her spot.
Empty.
A cold drop of sweat fell on her nose. Toasty was missing. Was she? Was she somewhere else? Did she go somewhere else? Did the storm get her?
No, she shook her head, it couldn’t be, the storm hadn’t even started yet, but then why was she missing? She would not cut it this close on purpose, right? No, no, she was a robot, she literally could not forget the time or route.
Shetland swallowed, taking a breath. Maybe Toasty had gone somewhere else, the maneframe? Her first pick. She knew Toasty wouldn’t go to her party, but maybe the greenhouse? Unlikely, but a robot could have invited her. She only knew one thing: she had to check everything!
Her bad leg pounded as she galloped to the maneframe, but she ignored it. Yet just the sight of the edifice was enough to spurn her fears. There was no light. Coming closer to the hatch, she tried to turn the valve. No effect. It was closed. Nopony was inside. Neither did she have any luck in the greenhouse. Ponies had stared at the giant mare bursting into their midst, but none of them had seen Toasty.
And that was worrying, since many of them were robots. If Toasty had returned, she had to have met at least some of them!
There was only one option left. Her eyes trailed into the dark night, without even the light of stars to pierce the black void.
You lost her.
Shetland whirled around, her eyes widening as she heard the voice- but there was nothing. “I didn’t,” she whispered back. “I didn’t lose her, she can be fine!”
But then, she thought as her jaw shivered, another robot was not.
“Shetland?” A voice spoke behind her. It was Burning Crust, the earth pony approaching her with a worried look on his face. “I heard you’re running all over the place.”
“Toasty is missing!” Shetland shouted.
“What?” he blinked, infuriatingly not getting it.
“She’s. Missing!” she stomped her hoof. “She’s still out there.”
“But why-”
“It doesn’t matter,” she took a deep breath. “What matters is that you alert those in charge and I go find her.”
“F-find her?” he stammered. The his voice climbed an octave as he shouted. “Out there?”
“Yes!” she firmly nodded, her eyes darting wildly as she made a mental list. “I’ll need several air bottles, a radio thingy, some cloth and-”
“You can’t go out there when a storm is happening!” he protested.
“But she’s out there!”
“You can’t risk your life for her! We can find her afterwards and repair her, or just build a new one!”
For one moment, they were both silent. Then, quietly, Shetland whispered. “Friends. Are not replaceable. I left one behind. I will not do it again!”
“You can’t-” he muttered, but faltered under her glare.
“Try to stop me!” she hissed through her teeth. His face went pale. With a final snort, she turned away.
“A-a-at least take your armor!” he shouted after her.
----------
That suggestion probably saved her life, as without the map function in the corner of her visor, she would have surely gotten lost. Nor would she have been able to carry as much air as now clung to her sides, held by her suit’s magnetic function. Yet, even with that, it quickly dawned on her that her search was close to impossible. She could only follow the rough path she remembered from Toasty’s map. It was dark, leaving her with no other light than what her helmet could emit: a narrow cone in front of her. “She’ll be okay.” She constantly mumbled to herself: merely a futile attempt to drown out the whispers in her brain.
This is your fault.
You left her alone.
Now you will be.
Forever.
You deserve this.
“No…” she whispered, desperately trying to focus even as her eyes grew hot and damp. “Focus, Shetland. Focus…”
The wind began to pick up. At first, it was merely a breeze, but only minutes later she had to fight for every step, like she was straining to stretch an oversized rubberband, or the pulling of a black hole. Her legs began to hurt, and finally her hindleg gave in, making her fall to the ground. And then, as the moon broke through the clouds for a single moment, she was able to see it. Like a continent-sized steamroller, a dark cloud rushed towards her, rolling over the land. All Shetland could do was pull in her head as it caught her. Dust particles rattled on her, bouncing off the armor. The noise was deafening. She could barely see her hooves. Cold claws reached around her heart and guts. It was hopeless, yet still she drew herself up, pushing against the wind like it was a brick wall, slowly taking a step.
It was the only thing she could do.
But not for long, as the pain in her legs grew to unbearable amounts. And then, finally, it became too much. Her hindleg gave out and to her horror, the wind blew her back as she fell, almost making her believe it was enough to pick her up. She collided with the ground, eliciting a loud clank. Dazed, she still knew to keep low to the ground, digging her forehooves into it. With one hoof, she wiped her visor, scraping away enough of the dust to see what was right in front of her.
An ear. No, a metal head, with a badly torn ear, spark flying from ruptured cables. Then, the head slowly faced her. The visor was dark, shattered, the head dented, mane torn out. And as Toasty tried to speak, all Shetland could hear was static.
“Toasty!” Shetland shouted the words, yet she barely heard them herself, drowned out by the roaring winds. She tried to raise a leg and a scream escaped her, pain spiking through her side, but still she extended her hoof, touching Toasty’s face. The robot jerked away and Shetland saw sparks flying out from where her ears should have been. Could she even hear her? Was she saying something? Everything was drowned out by the howling wind as it grasped at her, threatening to pull her away. Toasty’s head jerked again. Was she trying to point her to something? Shetland swallowed.
Everything hurt, yet she forced her body to obey as she scooted closer to Toasty. “You’ll be safe.” she whispered as she pulled at her limp body, slowly heaving the robot onto her back. Then, she took a deep breath, readying herself for the pain as she stood up, leaning against the storm. Toasty’s body bore down on her back like a sack of cement, while the storm threatened to push her over, but she managed to stand against both. Careful not to step on her hindleg, she strained against everything holding her down as she took a step. Then another. And another. I can’t give up, she repeated in her mind, using the mantra to ward against the growing weakness in her body. Can’t give up, can’t give her up. Even then, her steps soon grew shaky and she stumbled as a particular strong gust almost knocked her to the ground. She clenched her teeth and tasted blood. If she fell, she knew she would not get up again. Don’t let her down, she desperately thought, but there was no more strength to draw upon. Her legs buckled as she took a few final steps forward.
But then, for the first time in what could have been eternity, something came from the dark. It was a rough shape, but she didn’t care what it was, her mind only saw it as one: cover. She would survive. Toasty would survive! The knowledge reenergized her weak legs, letting her take the last stumbling steps before she collapsed in what was the entrance to a cave. The wind was gone, but so was her strength. All that remained was relief. And agony.
It may have been the only thing that stopped her from fainting that moment, the pulsating pain in her limbs that continued animating her to slip Toasty off her back and slide into a more comfortable position. Her breath was fast, her head heavy. Glimmers appeared in her vision and she turned her head, looking for the fire, Yet none was anywhere. She slid to her side, but there was something in the way, something that wouldn’t allow her to lie comfortably. Stupid air bottles, she thought numbly. Then lightning struck and she shot up. Air! Grasping the bottle, she fumbled at her armor, fighting her own dizziness as she opened the compartment and swapped out the bottles.
The essences of life itself flooded her body. Her pain eased, even her sight changed, like she had put on glasses. She took another deep breath and rejoiced as it invigorated her. The rushing wind just outside the cave barely registered at that moment as she relished in the simple joy of air while her body slowly relaxed. But as the pain subsided, her thoughts became clearer, turning her attention to the broken body of Toasty. In the storm, Shetland had barely been able to make out her head, but now, that she could see the full extent of the damage, bile was rising up her throat.
Toasty had been… bludgeoned, there was no other way to explain the massive dents all over her chassis. Her ears had been torn off the body, leaving ruptured cables hanging freely. And the visor was no more than glass shards, leaving one light to shine way-too-brightly without the dark glass dampening it.
A shudder went through Shetland’s body. “Toasty?” she whispered.
There was no reaction. Of course, Shetland’s wet eyes darted over the robot’s head again. She’s deaf without her ears. Unable to look away she took notice of the broken legs, the machinery brought to air- Oh Celestia, I just hope she can’t feel pain. she swallowed, worry eating away at her thoughts as they spiraled out of control. She could be dying right now and I can’t do a thing! Is she bleeding? Is there a robot equivalent of that? With a loud cry, she forced her eyes away. There was no time to cry, she had to do whatever she could! She stood up. Her limbs felt like they’d been tenderized by a dozen griffon cooks, yet she pushed past the pain, stepping as close to the tunnel’s exit as she dared. The storm howled like a herd of hungry windigoes, the dust it carried still allowing no more than a few feet of visibility. When she felt the first grasps of the storm push and pull, she lowered herself to the ground.
“Build connection to Coltville River.” Shetland spoke into her helmet. The beeping it emitted was almost suffocated by the storm’s ferocity, and she had to retreat a tiny bit further into the cave just to properly hear as her helmet attempted to connect with anything. The beeping continued unfazed and stalwartly, even while Shetland’s teeth ground more with every second that passed.
“Here’s Shetland!” she shouted into her helmet as soon as the beeping stopped, even as it rang in her own ears. “I’m stuck in a cave, North-North-West of Coltville, exact coordinates unknown, I have a wounded at my side, send immediate assistance!” She took no breath while shouting all that, gasping for air just afterwards. The sound of her own breathing sounded unusually loudly as she waited for the confirming beep of her helmet sending out her cry. And waited. “Build… connection?” she muttered, cringing as the beeping began anew, a cold shudder running down her spine.
What she’d mistaken for a connection was her helmet giving up. She took a shivering breath, the air was cold. The second attempt also resulted in nothing. So did the third. Something- something about this storm stopped or intercepted her signals. Magnetism? It didn’t matter. Shetland took a stunned step back into the cave. She swallowed, only aggravating her dry throat. For as long as the storm lasted, they were stuck here, unable to even call for help. She slumped down next to Toasty, biting her lip as she ran an armored hoof over her hull.
“Hold out, please.” she said, her voice shivering. “Hold out, I’ll get help, eventually.” she just had to wait and hope her friend’s condition wouldn’t get worse. Or… her breath stopped. Her own… her eyes fell on the empty air bottle she’d thrown on the ground. Air. Her lower jaw shivered as she realized she only had the current, and two more bottles left. Five hours, closer to four, maybe? The storm showed no signs of weakening, who knew how long it could go on? How long could she? Shetland gasped and immediately smacked her own helmet.
Calm! She had to be calm, she was wasting air. With all her willpower, she calmed her breathing. One breath. Immediately, her throat burned to take another, but she kept her mouth shut. Slowly, she slid to the ground, assuming as relaxed a position as she could. Twenty seconds. She took another breath, but cut herself off before siphoning off too much. Twenty seconds. She counted slowly, drawing out every number for as long as her lungs allowed her. Was it enough? Her head began to spin. How many breaths were left? Was thirty seconds a better number? How could she know?
Soon, numbness took place in her limbs, her head, everything besides her lungs which were clamped up like an oyster. Just one breath, it demanded.
The urge was overwhelming and she even opened her mouth as her brain intercepted. No. You can’t. She forced her eyes to the silent form of her friend. Her chest grew tight, not just because of her struggle for air. The one remaining light in those eyes had gone out. Shetland took one staggered breath. It did not have to mean… death. She couldn’t assume that, she couldn’t! There was still a chance…
This is your fault.
“No…” Shetland whispered, tears overwhelming her attempts to hold them back. “I tried to save you.”
You drove her away. It is because of you that she is here.
Biting her lip, she tried to refute the voice, but the words wouldn’t come to her lips. Nor could she do anything to stop her tears from flowing, smearing her coat and her helmet.
You deserve this.
“It shouldn’t be about me!” she cried in between hiccups. “It shouldn’t be about what I deserve, she… she doesn’t deserve to die!”
And yet, the voice said, and Shetland’s eyes widened as her expression changed to one of disbelief.
I did?
“No…” Shetland whispered breathlessly as the form towered over Toasty. Larger, even more than in life, this robot glared at Shetland, stealing the breath out of her lungs. “You’re dead.” her lips formed silently.
You would know, Mellow said darkly. It is thanks to you, after all.
“You’re not real.” Shetland muttered.
Funny that you still think of me like that, he growled. But I shouldn’t be surprised. I never was real to you. Just a random robot you found when you were all alone. Something you wouldn’t have to feel bad about using and throwing away. He looked down at the open machinery of Toasty. And she- she is just like me.
“NO!” Shetland shouted, struggling to get on her hooves, yet they felt so numb that she promptly face planted.”I haven’t done anything!”
But it is your fault that she is out here like this.
Color drained from her face. “It… it was her own choice to go.”
Of course it was. Like it was mine to try and help you. he chuckled mirthlessly. I did not have to, I could have stayed behind and waited for rescue while you choked to death. But I stood up, I tried to save you, and how did you pay me back? He drew closer, until his visor filled all of Shetland’s vision. With betrayal and murder.
Shetland jerked away, but only succeeded in pressing herself into the cave wall.
You don’t even deny it. Mellow said, averting his gaze toward Toasty.
“Please no…” Shetland pleaded weakly, her eyes wide open as she openly wept. “Please don’t take her too… please, I-I can’t lose anyone else.”
What are you pleading for? Mellow asked bemusedly. I don’t hold her life in my hooves. You did.
At these words, Shetland buckled to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably as she grasped one of Toasty’s legs, pressing it to her chest like a ripped teddy bear. It was all she could do to relieve the unbearable strain in her heart.
--------
Had she lost consciousness? She could not recall, until a low humming sound caught her attention. She let go of the leg, looking around for the source. It seemed to come from deeper within the cave.
Wait! Her head shot up. If she could hear the noise then- she turned, stumbling out of the tunnel on sore legs. The early sun lit up the area and Shetland was never more glad to look out into the boring, dusty plains. “Connect to Coltville!” she screamed into her helmet, hope mixing with tenseness as it gave a couple of beeps.
“Coltiville maneframe.” The automated response sent waves of relief through her body. She let go of the breath she’d been holding.
“Cadet Shetland and robot lost in cave to Northwest, exact coordinates unknown. Need immediate extraction and emergency repairs.” she rattled off in a single breath, gasping for air afterwards.
“Understood,” The mainframe passively responded. “Your request will be forwarded.”
With that, the connection ended and Shetland dropped back, letting go of a big sigh. Then she caught herself, checking her oxygen status in her helmet’s display. It was at 54%. She looked around and her suspicion was confirmed by a second empty bottle on the ground. Had she exchanged it without remembering? Or maybe- she glanced to Toasty, but she was still… Shetland swallowed, sinking down beside her friend. “Rescue is imminent,” she whispered. “You will make it through this.”
Brightness pierced through Shetland’s eyes, forcing her to close them again. She raised a limb above her face, wincing at the spike of pain in her sore body. Still, she shielded her eyes enough so they could slowly get used to the light.
“Who-” She smacked her dry lips, coating them with her tongue before she asked: “Who in Tartarus puts the light right above a hospital bed?”
As she sat up, a powerful headache surged up and she almost dropped again. Her throat was dry, and she looked around for anypony to ask for water. She was alone, but there was a bottle right beside her bed, enough to quench her thirst for now. The room was remarkably small, and so was the bed. From her new position, she noticed that her hind legs were reaching over the short bed, supported by a box with a rug on top. In fact, the room looked less like a hospital and more like the rooms in school where someone would get first aid after an ugly, but not-too-severe accident. Just one other bed stood empty beside her.
Magenta had found them, Shetland recalled through her hazy memory, whether from the lack of air back then or the sedative after, she couldn’t tell. But she had been brought straight to a doctor, while Toasty-
Toasty! Her head shot up, leading to a spike in her headache. She took it with a groan, rolling to the side to set her sore hooves on the ground. However, her bad hindleg immediately buckled, sending her tumbling to the side, cursing loudly from surprise and pain.
But while her attempts at standing showed no success, it certainly did the trick in alarming ponies to her waking, as the door audibly swung open and the tribble of hooves right before they grasped her side, helping her get upright.
“Miss Sparkle,” the pony huffed, his voice strained by the effort; a unicorn Shetland might have found cute under different circumstances. “Are you… okay?” he asked when she stood securely on three legs, her hindleg raised so just the tip of her hoof touched the ground.
“I’m fine,” she responded. “‘Cept that everything hurts.” Letting out a groan, she carefully stretched her back, resulting in a pop loud enough to shake both the stallion and herself. “By Celestia’s hot buns, for a moment I thought I paralyzed myself...”
“Miss,” The stallion helplessly waved his hooves, motioning to the bed. “If you would please?”
“How’s Toasty?” she asked, ignoring his gestures.
“Who?”
“Toasty!” she exclaimed, startling the stallion with her outburst. “The robot I came back with, how is she?”
“S-she’s probably being repaired, I don’t know anything else.” he said, his voice a bit higher.
“Then I’ll see for myself.” She limped towards the door, growling as he blocked her way.
“You can’t!”
“We’ll see about that.” Sse grumbled, casually pushing him to the side with one hoof, though she almost stumbled with only two good hooves to rely on.
“You shouldn’t move with your injuries!” he exclaimed. Then, as that showed no effect, he decided to change his strategy. “And waltzing in during a repair could be disastrous. It would be like walking in on surgery!”
Shetland halted, her hoof resting on the door handle. “I’m going to make a call.” she said after a while.
“Miss, you just woke up-”
“I’ll be careful,” she shot a look back. “I’m not made of glass. And frankly, I need a distraction or I’ll go crazy and there’s no way I can do that when I’m just lying in bed.”
------
The room was apparently just at the back of one of the greenhouses. Less than ten minutes away from the mainframe, even as slow as she was now. Still, even on that short trek, she had to resist the temptation to both continue onwards and not divert towards where Toasty would be. Her legs stung with every step and her head was laden with worry, too much to notice the brightness of the day or the warm sunshine on her back.
Each settlement on Horizon had a mainframe: a computer system that acted as the network for each local device. However, they were not interconnected. If an exchange of data was truly necessary, a storage device would be created and physically carried to the network in question. While this meant that networks were only local and could not interact with one another, devices that could were, for simplicity's sake, kept in the same area. The video transmitter was a monitor hefted on four extendable stilts and a pair of antennae on top, though right now she had set it low to the dusty ground. It had taken a fair share of nice asking and an angry glare, but her request to set it up outside had eventually been granted. Why she wanted it, she wasn’t quite sure. Maybe because of the warm sun, even if it reflected on the screen. Maybe lying on her side was more comfortable than a seat. Or maybe, she just wanted some privacy for this call.
“Shetty? Is that you? Are you okay?” Twilight asked. Her normally-royal appearance was wracked with bags under her eyes from a decidedly improper lack of sleep. Her mane was disheveled, even the occasional magical wave doing little to make it presentable. She squinted her eyes. It appeared that the sunlight made it hard for her to see as well. Shetland carefully shifted herself so her own shadow would cover the screen.
“It’s me, mom.” she affirmed the nervous alicorn. “I’m fine. Things hurt,” she added as her mother looked about ready to protest. “But I’m okay now, I’m taking it easy and stuff.” she sighed, anticipation and fear equally holding her insides in a tight grip. “Mom?”
“Yes?” Twilight asked, her daughter’s serious tone stopping any lecture she might have prepared.
“Do you know if Toasty-?” Shetland swallowed and licked her dry lips. “I-I haven’t been able to see her, she’s in repairs, d-do you know if she’s-”
“She will be fine.”
Did a masseuse just take up shop in her chest? There was no other way Shetland could explain just how many tense muscles suddenly relaxed at once. She let go of her breath, tapping the warm ground with a hoof. Toasty would be fine. The confirmation spread through her brain like wildfire, lighting up the dark dungeons her thoughts had been residing in and throwing them a party. Yet still, the ecstasy didn’t hold for long. “She looked horrible when I found her, mom. How can she be fine after that?”
The sound as Twilight drew breath through her teeth confirmed Shetland’s suspicion. “Well,” Twilight slowly said, “While her data core is undamaged, almost miraculously so, I’ve heard, the rest of her body is in pretty bad shape.”
“That… means?” Shetland bit her lip.
“Nothing major.” Twilight shook her head. “She’s a robot, as long as her software is fine, she will be too.” She gave Shetland a stern look. “Though she is lucky that you were stupid enough to go after her. On a hunch, I might add.”
“It was more than just a hunch!” Shetland exclaimed. “And if I hadn’t, she would-” she shook her head. “I couldn’t have waited, I had to save her and I would do it again, Mom, whether it's dangerous or not!” With fire in her eyes, she glared at the screen, anticipating Twilight’s angry retort. But to her surprise, her mother didn’t look angry. In fact, if her eyes didn’t deceive her, there was a smile on Twilight’s lips.
“I know. And to be honest, as foolish as it was, I would have done the same.” Twilight admitted, embracing Shetland with a warm look. “I’m proud of you.”
Shetland coughed, uncertain what to say as her cheeks heated up. “I-I-” she gasped for a breath. “I had to.” She repeated lamely.
“And it is very good that you did.” Twilight said, her smile vanishing as her features once again adopted a sober look. “Her case was not the only one, Shetty,” she professed. “Two other robots have also disappeared during the storm. Without a trace, in their cases.”
“How?” Shetland’s eyes narrowed and a cold feeling trickled down her back. She sat up, not minding the dust scraping at her scarred side.
“We don’t know.” Twilight shook her head. “There didn’t seem to be a fight, they seem to have gone into the storm of their volition. Whether it was their own volition to not return-”
“It wasn’t,” Shetland clenched her jaw. “Toasty wasn’t damaged by the storm. Something, or someone beat her with some kind of blunt weapon.”
“Are you sure?”
“Dead sure.” Shetland said sternly.
“You…” Twilight hesitated. “I do not want you to run off to find the perpetrator, Shetty-”
“I won’t,” Shetland’s ear flicked and her frown deepened. “I’ll stay with Toasty. I just…” she sighed. “I just wish I could see her.”
“You will.” Twilight assured her. She looked relieved to know that Shetland wasn’t going to do something stupid. “And don’t worry, the workshop is under watch, she won’t be attacked right now.” Her lips formed into a smile. “Nor will she in the future, not with you as her guardian.”
Shetland’s eyes fell to the ground. Thoughts bubbled up, ones she’d been trying to suppress, but with the recent incident… it’d become even harder. “I-” she stuttered. “I-I don’t think I’m the right pony, mom.”
Twilight’s head tilted. “Why would you say that?”
“Because…” Shetland swallowed, the meeting in that cave clear in her mind. “I couldn’t protect her before, mom. You- you don’t know everything, she wouldn’t even have gone without me if I hadn’t screwed up!” she opened her mouth, but even as words teased her tongue, she found herself unable to let out anything more.
There was silence as Twilight observed her daughter through the screen. “Shetland.” she finally, calmly, said. “It’s true I don’t know everything. And, I know there is something you are not telling me.” Shetland flinched at that, but her mother simply continued. “But even if you screwed up before, you didn’t now. You risked your life going after her, even though it was really, titanically, immeasurably stupid.” her gaze softened. “I don’t think she could ask for a more devoted protector, Shetty. And… I think it’s also good for you. You need somepony to protect.”
Shetland’s mind blanched. “What… what do you mean?”
But Twilight merely smiled. “Keep her safe. Though I don’t think I need to tell you.”
Shetland’s eyes widened as she saw her mother's horn light up. With anger sparking in her chest, she shouted: “Mom, tell me what you meant!”
But the screen had already gone dark.
Faintly, then louder and louder, a mighty groan emanated from Shetland. Just like her mother, speaking in riddles, dangling answers right in front of her nose just to pull them away at the last second. Just like Queen Twinkle. She let out an infuriated chuckle. Yes, indeed, who would think that the princess of friendship could be so similar to a queen of two-timing and mind-fuckery?
Her body ached, dust stinging her already-sore side as she slowly stood up. It wasn’t actually complicated, she mused. “You need somepony to protect.” she muttered, a frown digging into her features. She needed the validation that she could do it? Confirmation that she wasn’t incompetent after losing all her friends?! Gritting her teeth, she began to tramp on forward, paying no mind to the direction. Her hooves fell heavy and loud, straining her sore legs, yet she paid the pain no mind either. Her mind fell into a maelstrom, falling deeper into darkness with every moment. And as she fell, memories filled her head, ones she would struggle to forget even if they weren’t so recent.
I never was real to you, the ghostly apparition of Mellow had said. Something to use and throw away.
Was Toasty even real to her? Was the robot just a tool for her to validate herself? Shetland grit her teeth, tasting blood on her tongue. Would she even care about her if her friends were still alive?
Her face felt hot and she pressed it against a wall, wishing her head was just a surface of flat skin, unable to show any emotion.
She was a terrible guardian. She’d proven that much. Everypony she’d tried to protect had died.
But no… The voice quietly, almost impossible to hear, whispered in her ear. You haven’t actually tried, now have you?
“Go away.” Shetland said with a husky voice, trying her hardest not to sob.
As you wish, he cackled. I’m just here to remind you of what you are.
“A monster.” Shetland whispered. Then she smacked her hoof to her own mouth so hard that her teeth hurt. A shiver went through her body as her thoughts broke down, unable to do more than repeat that one word.
She, Shetland, was a-
“Dreamy hunk of meat blocking the way!” A voice, seemingly far away, but familiar, shouted.
Magenta, the pegasus, was poking her hoof into Shetland’s knee, urging her to move away from an exit she’d partially blocked, allowing a duo of robots to leave the greenhouse. And throw dirty looks at the overgrown earth pony.
A chuckle attracted her attention back to Magenta, who regarded her with amusement in her eyes. “You know, there are a lot of words I’d describe you with. Big, strong, scary, bit of an ass… and now I can add ditzy dreamer to the list.”
“Uhuh.” Shetland muttered. She could add a few more herself. None of them were flattering.
Maybe it was apparent in her look, because Magenta’s expression shifted to one of worry. “Not feeling so well, huh? Can I maybe help?”
Shetland opened her mouth to say there was nothing that could be done- when she remembered that there absolutely was something. “Have you been in the workshop today?”
“Yeah, in my own,” she replied. “I work with vehicles, not robots. But,” she interrupted Shetland’s long sigh, “I know why you ask. And I happen to know that your robot friend is fine. Old Scallow’s been asking me for some spare parts for her.”
Good news, right? Yet, it still couldn’t bring a smile to Shetand’s face. It just didn’t feel real, like they were just saying it to placate her. The stupid thought nagged at her, refusing to be brushed off, no matter what the logical part of her brain said.
“He said he’ll probably be done with her about two hours from now.” Magenta said slowly, in response to Shetland’s protracted silence.
The larger mare raised her head, staring at the sky. The bright afternoon sun jabbed painfully at her eyes, forcing her to close them.
“Aren’t you happy?” Confusion rang in Magentas voice. “Is it too long or-”
“No,” Shetland muttered. “I just…” She bit her lip. “I’m not sure I should meet her.”
“Why?” Now the pegasus’s tone changed to full bewilderment. “Aren’t you friends?” As her question was met with silence, she spread her wings, a hoof reaching out to pull at Shetland’s leg. “Okay, no more silent treatment, you’re coming with me and you’re gonna tell me what your problem is!”
She could have easily resisted. Heck, she could have kept still even if half a dozen Magentas had tried to move her, but something in the pegasus’s stern tone made Shetland’s legs move like they had a mind of their own.
For a few minutes, Magenta led her away from the bustling farmponies so they could speak in privacy. Her goal seemed to be an outlying outhouse, one side covered by a metal sheet, protecting it from the frequent storms. “So,” Magenta said, perching on top of the outhouse and staring down at Shetland like she was a criminal about to give a confession. “What’s the issue? Why don’t you want to see Toasty?”
Shetland bit her lip. An inner voice told her to leave. She shot a glare up at the pegasus. She had no right to make her speak, especially if she didn’t want to. Yet, for some reason, her mouth moved, answering truthfully: “I do want to. But I shouldn’t.”
“But why?” Magenta asked, tapping her hooves against the outhouse in exasperation.
“Because…” Shetland’s voice broke and she sighed. “Because I’m a terrible pony, Magna. Because it’s my fault she was in danger in the first place! Because my friends die and I’m too selfish to stop it!” And with that, the floodgates opened. Even if Shetland wanted, she couldn’t have stopped the torrent of words streaming out of her. She spoke about the attack on the Esseless, how it was her own weakness that led to her friends’ deaths and others. How she continued to blame herself, about her nightmares. She even told Magenta about the voice of Mellow that still haunted her, though she managed to withhold the exact circumstances of his death. She couldn’t stop, not even slow down the words that broke out of her like prisoners from Tartarus. But, even though her whole body shook from the horrible memories and the changing expressions on Magenta’s face pained her, there was an odd relief, pushing her to confide with the mare. Lastly, she came to Toasty. The robot that, in Shetlands word’s, deserved somepony better as a friend. When she came to an end, her mouth was dry and she was panting like she’d finished a marathon. Then, she slowly raised her head, trying to meet the eyes of the pegasus who clearly needed some more time to make sense of everything she’d just been told.
“Wow, Shetland.” she finally said with a whistle. “You have issues.”
Shetland winced. “Don’t tell me what I already know.”
“And… you haven’t told this to anypony else? Not even your mom?”
With a snort, Shetland shook her head. “She’d just… say I’m stupid.”
Magenta observed her pointedly. “Does she say you are stupid, or does she make you feel like it?”
She says so! Shetland railed in her thoughts. Just in their last conversation. But then, she had called her actions stupid, not her feelings. In fact, Twilight herself had agreed with them. Shetland closed her eyes, unwilling to see the pegasus’s face. And yet, Magenta's whistle told her that the pegasus had gotten exactly the answer she wanted.
“Do you really think she’d just dismiss what you say?”
“She wouldn’t understand.” Shetland replied.
“And instead you told me, a pony you met a couple days ago? I’m not sure if I should feel flattered or sympathetic, but I’m leaning towards the latter.”
Shetland muttered something unintelligible in response.
With a flap of her wings, Magenta jumped down from the outhouse, placing a hoof on each of Shetland’s shoulders as she fluttered to eye-level. “Tell her. She can’t exactly understand you if you always keep quiet about your feelings, after all.”
“I guess.” Shetland said without meeting her eyes. The logic of those words was sound, and yet, it stung, as some part of her illogically shouted that Twilight was her mother and should just... get her regardless! She sneered at the idea. If that was true, their fight over the last few years would have been about ice cream or something.
“And also tell Twilight, I guess.” Magenta winked.
What?
“Well, your other issue was that you’re worried about you and Toasty not being friends? Well, I think there’s little danger of that.” she waggled her eyebrows.
Shetland stared at her as if she’d just proclaimed that Celestia was actually made out of popsicle sticks. “What?”
“Well, I mean, you and Toasty seem like good and close friends…” The pegasus deflated as she realized that her joke had missed its target. “Sorry.”
Shetland lowered her head, poking her hoof at the ground. “Toasty…” she said, drawing the word out over several seconds. “I just don’t know, Magenta, I can’t even really say what I’m thinking anymore.” she sucked in a breath and pushed it out through her teeth. Then she met the pegasus’s eyes again, staring with an intensity that made Magenta back off by a few wingbeats. “Do you really think that I actually care about her?”
“Considering you basically went through hell for her, yes.”
Shetland took a long breath. “Are you… sure?”
“Look, whatever way you care about her, it still leads you to protect her, right?” Magenta asked. “Then where’s the problem?”
“The problem is the difference between me doing it for selfish reasons or for her. Like…” Shetland licked her lips, a haunted look appearing in her eyes “Am I doing it because she’s my friend or because I think I’ll go insane if something happens to her?”
“Shetland, you ask me things, I’m not a psychologist!” Magenta complained. “It’s probably both, you know?”
Shetland looked away.
“You’re not a bad pony.” Magenta stated, like it was a fact. “I don’t care what you claim to have done wrong, when you came to help Pipe and I almost shot you, you didn't run off or attack me. Instead, you forgave me and went right to saving him.” she tried a smile. “And that’s worth something, right?”
“I… guess.” Shetland said as finally, a crack started to show in her frown.
“Just go and see her, okay? I think she’ll want to see you.”
“I guess.” she repeated a bit less hesitantly. Then, suddenly, she let out a huge breath and a little smile appeared on her face. Her hooves shot forward, stopping just before wrapping the pegasus in a hug and instead they exchanged an awkward look. “Thank you.” Shetland said, lowering her head a little. “I think I know what to do now.”
“In ninety minutes, you mean.” Magenta pointed out. “But don’t worry,” she hastily added. “I can stay with you for the time being, we could, uh…”
A loud grumble made them both jerk back and stare at the sky. It took a second, boneshaking rumble for them to realize it was something far closer, if not necessarily less powerful.
“Shetland…” Magenta asked slowly. “Have you eaten anything yet today?”
The earth pony shook her blushing face, trying and failing to make herself seem smaller.
“Welp, I guess we know what to do then.” The pegasus laughed, poking a wing into the larger pony’s tummy.
-----
It was a feeling of trepidation and uncertainty that stopped Shetland’s hoof from knocking on the workshop’s entrance. Muttering a curse under her breath, she threw a look over her shoulder, but there was no more encouragement. Despite taking a break for Shetland’s sake, something the earth pony would have to repay her for somehow, Magenta ultimately had to return to her own work.
It was infuriating. Just a few minutes ago, she had been sure of herself, but now, in front of the door and without backup, her resolve crumbled like a dried-up pie. Then she shook herself and raised her trembling hoof again. With four loud knocks, she announced her presence.
To her surprise, the door simply fell open. Quickly, she rushed inside and threw it closed, worrying what it might do to the air inside. Surprisingly, there seemed to be no movement in the air. And, looking closely, there was a faint shimmer in the doorway, a protective ward that prevented the air from escaping outside. Why this room above most others had received this preferential treatment could be anypony’s guess. But in truth, Shetland didn’t care to try.
For some reason, Shetland had expected this Scalloway pony to be some kind of mad genius. However, despite the clear chaos that resulted in too many things stuffed in a room too small for them, there had been a clear effort to keep it orderly. The various tables and even the ground was littered in tools, parts and blueprints, yet every stack was still neatly arranged, documented and cleaned. But then, there were the bodies. Around five of them were resting on a bunch of tables pushed together for this very purpose. To Shetland’s relief, none of them looked anything like the Equestrian robots, though it wasn’t easy to recognise what they should look like, as all of them were in various stages of dismantlement. It was only one of the skeletal-looking heads that gave it away. These cannibalized bodies were once the war drones the hyena raiders had used. Shetland suppressed a shiver and quickly forced her eyes away.
A movement behind the table caught her eyes and she stepped around it, knocking something around with every step. She held her breath. There, perched on its stomach, laid a robot. A mare, Shetland could tell. She nervously looked around, but this Scalloway pony was nowhere to be seen. The robot’s head rose, and framed between strands of shimmering, artificial hair the color of seagrass, there were two lime-green lights, dampened by a dark visor, just like Toasty’s. Her body was the same length too, but instead of a grey, metallic look, the chassis was covered in smooth, white ceramic. Shetland swallowed as she met the look, the question glaring in her mind. “Are you… Toasty?” she asked, hating herself for having to ask.
The robot nodded. Shetland jerked back. Without a facial expression, she couldn’t tell if the robot was disappointed, sad or even angry.
“My eyes are green now.” Toasty said evenly. “I wish that was not the case, I liked blue better.” she regarded Shetland with a look as her eyelights grew in brightness. “Now my eyes are ugly green, like yours.” she continued jovially, teasingly poking a hoof into Shetland’s knee.
The earth pony simply stared at the robot, her body and expression unmoving.
“I called your eye-color ugly, Shetland.” Toasty explained. “It was an attempted comedic insult to alleviate the concerns about my new appearance- Oh.” she exclaimed in surprise as Shetland’s hooves suddenly shot out, gripping the robot and lifting her up in a hug.
“Oh.” Toasty repeated as Shetland pressed her dangling body close to her chest, so the robot’s artificial mane tickled her chin. A distant part of her mind noted how light the robot now was.
“Thank Celestia!” Shetland whispered, holding back a sob by a hair’s breadth.
The robot’s eyelights darkened and she could do no more than gently pat her friend on the back. “I’m okay.” she assured her quietly.
Shetland simply tightened her hug, despite the robot’s tough exterior digging uncomfortably into her flesh. “Do you…” she began, her mouth drying up in an instant and her eyes narrowing dangerously. “Can you tell me who did this?”
Toasty made a sound akin to a pony gasping for air. “N-no.” she whispered, pushing gently against Shetland’s grip.
“No?”
“No!” Toasty shook her head. “I cannot recall. The memory is simply not there.” she met Shetland’s concerned look and her ears folded down with a quiet squeaky noise. “I-I wish I could tell you more, but my memory after I left Coltville-”
“Someone must have-” Shetland began, her mind racing for conclusions. But then, her train of thought was rudely interrupted as a new voice shouted, almost startling her enough to drop Toasty.
“Let ‘er down reit now, yer interruptin’ our test!”
Shetland whirled around, trying to locate the source as Toasty gave her a sheepish smile. “We sort of were doing some tests as you came in.”
“I’m sorry.” Shetland shouted as she let Toasty down. “Uhm, who are you?” she asked in a random direction.
“Ahm Scalloway, dumbwit!” The voice clamoured. It sounded close, yet it wasn’t very loud, despite the fact that it was certainly a scream. High pitched and weirdly echoing, it spoke in an accent Shetland had never heard before in her life.
“Where are you?” She asked, checking the low ceiling in case it was a pegasus. Or maybe a changeling, considering the voice.
“Down ‘ere, ye big-barrelled bastard!”
Shetland checked the workshop again, but there was no sign of any life except for herself.
“In her neck, Goliath!”
Her neck? Shetland stared down as a tiny hole opened at the back of Toasty’s neck.
As it turned out, Scalloway wasn’t a pony. Crowned with antennae, dirtied in black smear and wearing a decidedly disgruntled look was a breezie, holding a tiny wrench in his even tinier hoof..
“Yer interruptin’ our final check-up,” he said sourly. “Gotta see if sumthin don’t run correctly. Ah dun wannae `er ta land back on ma workbench by tomorrow.”
“I’m sorry!” Shetland repeated, raising her hooves in the air, even as she observed the puny engineer in amusement. Something about this tiny, tiny creature huffing and puffing as it's antennae bobbed up and down brought a grin to her face. A decidedly goofy one.
“Ya better wash that outta yer mug if ya want yer armor ta work correctly. Was a goddamn hell to repair that giant thing, coulda sworn it was made fer an ox. Tho, lookin’ atcha fat tummy, ah guess ah ain’t too far off.”
Shetland probably would have felt insulted if Scalloway had been less adorable saying it. It was difficult to simply pull back without breaking into a chuckle as the breezie climbed back inside Toasty. The grin quickly crumbled as she watched him command the robot through basic motor functions she had displayed every day previously. Toasty couldn’t actually be so… cool with the situation, could she? When Shetland had woken up to find her hindleg stiff and unresponsive the first time, she’d nearly had a panic attack. Even now it annoyed her to no end with its constant aches and itches and sensitivity. She couldn’t even begin to imagine having most of her body replaced like that. Was it so different for robots or was Toasty merely displaying a tough face. If yes, it’ll be much easier for you since nopony can read your face anyway. The cynical thought spooked through Shetland’s brain before she could extinguish it and it carried behind a string of guilt. How could she even think that?! She let out a breath and stared at the ceiling as she imagined kicking her own body. It brought a grim smile to her face.
She really was the wrong mare to protect her. But then again, what other pony would actually be her bodyguard?
“Shetland?” Toasty asked. The earth pony blinked in surprise, as the robot seemed to have materialized in front of her. Toasty chuckled in her weird, robotic staccato. “Indeed, my new ceramic hooves produce significantly less sound than the ones covered in brass. Although, I think I might have had a marching band attached to my tail and I doubt you would have noticed.”
“Heh, yeah, thank you,” Shetland chuckled sheepishly. “It’s good to have you back, you know?”
Now it was Toasty’s turn to sheepishly rub her head. “S-stop it, Shetland, our dynamic is supposed to be based on teasing and cheekishly insulting one another!”
“Guess I didn’t get the memo yet.” Shetland’s hoof shot down to Toasty’s head, ruffling her silky mane, which cause the robot to jerk back and glare at her in mock disdain. Then both mares broke out in giggles.
Scalloway, now on top of a table, grumbled as he rolled a screw to its destined place using both his forelegs. “Maybe ye could continue your reunion outside me workshop? Yer knocking everythin’ over.”
The mares exchanged a look. Shetland grinned, shifting her eyes to the breezie as her hoof made a flicking motion, but Toasty, despite chuckling, shook her head. “Don’t mess with my surgeon.”
With a heavy sigh, Shetland gave up on her plan and the pair slowly made their way out of the workshop, trying and failing not to disrupt it's tiny occupant’s system any more.
“You’re a klutz.” Toasty teased as the stepped out of the hatch.
Shetland was fairly sure that Toasty had knocked over just as much as herself. The robot’s new body parts seemed to cause her major issues. Her movements were sluggish, and even now she was actually holding on to Shetland’s foreleg for balance. Surprisingly, Shetland thought, even robots apparently could not perfect a movement after just one try. But she said none of that in response as she froze, holding a hoof protectively in front of Toasty.
The robot recoiled, almost falling to the ground, only stopped because she held onto the earth pony.
Khunbish and Gan stood just in front of the workshop. It appeared that they had arrived shortly after Shetland, but unlike her, had waited outside. Their eyes fell upon the pair and Gan’s expression darkened, while Khunbish managed to appear neutral. “Greetings.” she said, her eyes almost exclusively resting on Shetland.
The earth pony gave no response, only staring thin-lipped at the hyenas. The silence grew uncomfortably tense as Khunbish began to frown. “We do not want trouble,” she said, looking over Toasty. “The incidents of last day, however, we need to understand more.”
“I thought you’re looking into the whole raid thing, nothing storm-related.” Shetland grumbled.
Was it just her imagination, or did Gan’s eyebrows narrow for just a second? She wasn’t good enough at reading their strange faces to tell for sure. Khunbish answered with a roll of her eyes. “We believe they could be connected, Sparkle.”
“Incidents?” Toasty’s eyelights lit up. “As in several? What do you mean?”
“You are not only machine that go away yesterday.” Gan said, and Shetland thought she heard a hint of malice in his harsh voice. “But you only one who come back.”
Toasty took a step back. “That cannot be true. Why would others do…” she looked at Shetland, and her eyes dimmed until they almost fell black. “...what I did.”
“We don’t know and we need to find out.” Khunbish said quickly, taking a step towards the robot. Shetland flinched, but refrained from the urge to shoo her away.
“Then... I need to help however I can.” Toasty said quietly.
All eyes fell on Shetland, who looked like she’d been forced to bite on a particularly sour lemon. “I can’t stop you.” she muttered. A fire lit in her chest as she saw Gan’s victorious grin, but it was quickly extinguished as she met Khunbish’s eyes. An awkward exchange followed as they regarded each other silently. Then, suddenly, Shetland darted towards the hyena. Toasty shouted, Gan jumped up and Khunbish shrieked back-
As Shetland lowered her head deeply, hoping none of them could see her face as she bit her lips. “I apologize,” she said, pronouncing every syllable clearly, as if she feared she could otherwise choke on it. There was the familiar lump in her throat as she swallowed. She could vividly imagine all of them exchanging surprised glances. “You were right that we’re on the same side.” she spoke quickly, trying to get the words out before having to taste them. “I want you to find the truth just as bad as you do and…” She threw a glance to Toasty. “I now have an even more pressing reason to.”
“So… you will help us?” Khunbish said, trying to make her voice sound collected, even if she struggled to believe this was happening.
Shetland raised her head and nodded, even as she had her eyes closed. “I will,” she affirmed. “I only ask that I and Toasty get until tomorrow at noon to recover and… well, catch up.”
“I suppose that is doable.” Khunbish said, now sounding collected and cautious again. “But please, there have been enough delays, I wish for this to be punctual.”
“We’ll do what we can.” Toasty said. “I am basically a clock, I will not miss it. Or let her.”
“Then…” Khunbish threw a look to Gan. The smaller hyena shrugged. “I will leave you be, Hopefully, our work together can now actually begin.”
A solid minute after the hyenas had left, Shetland let go of her breath and looked down at the small robot at her side.
“For a second, I was sure you would attack them.” Toasty said quietly. “That you would blame them for the attack on me.”
“I thought about it,” Shetland admitted. “But I’ve… I’ve been asking a lot of questions lately, mostly to myself.” Her hoof felt itchy and she scraped it over the ground, yet the feeling wouldn’t go away. “It could not be them,” she finally admitted, though she quickly added: “But it doesn’t mean it wasn’t.” She glared in the direction the hyenas went, still able to make their shapes out as they walked by the mainframe. “I think they’re hiding something. And I think- no, I’m convinced it has something to do with all of this.”
“Then… why do you suddenly agree to work with them?” Toasty asked hesitantly.
“Because I’m not gaining anything by refusing to.” Shetland said grimly. “Even if they are guilty, I won’t find out by being their enemy. That… only served to make me feel better.” she let out a long sigh as she admitted that, but her gaze had hardened. “There’s now more at risk than my feelings or some stupid revenge.”
“The colony?” Toasty whispered.
“Not quite so big.” Shetland chuckled. “It’s you.” As she met Toasty’s gaze, she saw things from the corner of her eyes. Ghostly figures, a button, dynamite, hyenas and skeletal machines. Yet her only focus was on the green light, the life of Toasty. Whether from self-worth, magic or friendship, it didn’t matter as she spoke, every word seeming to rumble with its own echo: “I promise, Toasty, I will protect you.”
A pencil scratched over the paper as tired eyes shifted from one letter to the other. A sour taste spread through Shetland’s mouth and she spat out the pen. She muttered a curse as it fell onto the paper, poking a hole through it. Clenching her teeth, she tried to smooth out the parchment as she read.
Dear Ciloa,
Hi there…I’m so sorry It’s been a while, huh? A lot has happened since we last saw each other. First, you may be happy to hear that I survived. You and Press, both, it’s it’s hard without you two. I’ve been dealing with… stuff. Unfortunately we still haven’t caught the ones responsible, but I swear I will! There are a few hyenas here, Gan and Khunbish, who do their investigation. I know what you think, it’s obviously them, right? But things happened and I don’t know for sure after what happened with Toasty-
Damnit, I wrote myself into this… You remember Toasty, the robot who works at the Turing Tart? She’s here now and she-
Something attacked her and I don’t know what it was! I promised I’d protect her and I don’t have the faintest as to how! I guess that’s the reason I have to work with those hyenas for now, keep your enemies close or whatever? Mom would know these stupid wisdoms better than me. Then again, that one doesn’t sound like her at all, maybe like Queen Twinkle?
If only it wasn’t that complicated, give me something to smash any day over this! Well, I’ll have to make the best of it. I have to, I have to protect her better than
Wherever you are, if I can avenge you and keep Toasty safe somehow, then, then it’ll all be okay, right? Then you can be proud of me and when we meet again you won’t have to be disappointed with me.
I hope, wherever you two are, I hope you are now together, forever.
Love, Shetland
Shetland let out a strained breath, releasing some of the pressure on her chest and eyes. She wiped over the latter with a hoof, but there was no moisture. She was over tears now. Folding the letter in her hooves, she gently pushed it into an envelope. It had no address. She wanted to add one, just to feel like it was going somewhere. Her eyes wandered over the luminaire hanging at the wall infront of her. She’d love to believe that there was some way to send it, even if she still couldn’t receive an answer. Twilight had told her stories of Spike, the dragon that was both like a son and a brother to her. Could he have sent the letter with his magic fire? Her hoof fell on the table with a loud thud as she dismissed the idea. As if anything could send a letter to the dead! And even if he could, he’d been gone long before she was even born. With a groan, she laid back, rubbing her temples.
“What bothers you?” A smooth, yet undeniably artificial voice asked.
“Sorry, did I wake you?” Shetland asked as she turned towards the robot, who sat in the only small spot not occupied by Shetland’s bed, her desk, a chest for her belongings and Shetland herself. She’d offered the robot a side of the bed, but Toasty had declined, since she had no use for it. And judging by the sound the hinges made when Shetland alone occupied the massively undersized bed, it was probably the smarter choice.
“No need to apologize.” Toasty said, her new green eyes scanning the earth pony. “As I do not really sleep and only use a resting mode to preserve battery power, I feel no discomfort when, quote on quote, waking. Of course,” she added after a short pause. “Normally, such actions are unnecessary since I would be occupying my charging pod.”
Shetland bit her lips. “It’s too-”
“It is okay.” Toasty said, letting the larger pony relax. “I do not mind staying with you. Furthermore, I believe your mental stability would be more at risk than my physical health if you were unable to watch over me.”
Shetland had no idea how to respond to that. Especially since she had a strong feeling that Toasty was absolutely correct in that assessment.
“So, what have you been doing?” Toasty wondered, getting up on her hind legs so she could peak over Shetland's shoulder.
Reflexively, Shetland jerked sideways to hide the letter from Toasty’s view. In the process however, she bumped into the robot, causing her to topple over, smashing into the floor with a loud clang. “Are you okay?” Shetland gasped.
“No damage received.” Toasty intoned. She gave the larger earth pony a look with her head tilted. “Curiosity increased by sixty percent. I am raising my eyebrow right now.”
“You don’t have an eyebrow.” Shetland said as a tiny smile stole it's way on her face. She then gave the letter to Toasty, gesturing for her to read before turning her back. But after a mere second, she felt the robot’s cold hoof pat her back.
“Oh, Shetland…” she whispered quietly.
“I don’t want your pity,” Shetland muttered. Her nose was stuffy, but she refused to pull it up, not infront of her friend. “I’m dealing with it, okay?”
“I…” Toasty hesitated before she withdrew her hoof. “Alright.”
“We’re going to the hyenas later.”Shetland’s eyes drifted to the clock. I just hope they can help somehow. She pushed her breath through her teeth. “Either by knowing stuff or revealing themselves, we’re going to crack this mystery.”
“There is no proof that they are hiding anything-”
“Toasty, I know they’re hiding something.” Shetland stated it like a fact.
“Shetland-”
“No, Toasty, listen to me. Do you remember why you even went out, what did you discover beforehoof?”
Toasty’s eyelights went out for a second before they reactivated. “Do you mean the error the mainframe made?”
Shetland groaned. “It’s a computer, it doesn’t make errors!”
“You would think that.” Toasty said, her eyes dimming.
“Not that kind of mistake, anyway.” Shetland rolled her eyes. “It doesn’t just do its math incorrectly. And lo and behold, in exactly the place that was missing from the map, just before a storm where no sensible pony would be outside, you were attacked by someone. And all of that because the mainframe made a, quote on quote, 'mistake'. And guess who I found a few days before that, trying to sneak his way into said mainframe while nopony was around? It was Gan!”
Toasty backed off. “That could… still be a coincidence.”
“Like that super convenient hacking attack during their landing?” Shetland raised her eyebrow.
Toasty stood, silently but for her head, which emitted a whirring sound as she processed. Slowly, a smile spread on Shetlands face, she was finally beginning to convince somepony!
“Then… you really think it was them?” Toasty asked, her ears squeaking on their hinges as they folded down.
Shetland could have let out a victorious whoop- so it was a bitter pill to swallow as she admitted: “No.”
As the robot’s gave her a surprised look, she elaborated. “Maybe they could do all this, but it doesn’t make sense. Why would they?” She stared at her hoof. “If they’re here to cover something up, why take the risk of randomly attacking robots? There’s no motiv!”
“Then…”
“I think we’re still missing some big piece of this puzzle.” Shetland sighed. “And that’s why, when we meet them later, we need to be ready and…” Her voice halted. “I… I don’t really know what’ll happen,” she admitted. “I don’t have a plan.”
There was a pause. Then Toasty began to chuckle. “And here I thought you had finally accepted the Sparkle Spirit.”
“What, No!” Shetland stood up, barely finding place to stand in the tiny room without touching anything.
“So, great strategist Sparkle,” Toasty mused. “What is your plan until we meet with the dangerous hyenas?”
“Uhm…”
Toasty giggled. “You are adorable when you look clueless.”
Shetlands mouth opened, but her tongue was too confused to decide between a thanks and a protest. Then she yelped as a cold, smooth hoof brushed over her scarred flank. “W-What are you doing?”
“Does it hurt?”
“No.” she muttered, but quickly gave in under Toasty’s look. “Kinda, still sore.” A sigh escaped her lips as the hoof ran over her back, kneading the muscles a little.
“You are very tense.” Toasty commented as she withdrew her hooves, causing Shetland to let out a disappointed moan. “When we go back to central, would you like to visit the spa with me?”
“Oh, Tartarus, yes.” Shetland breathed, wishing those cool hooves back on her skin. Then she blinked. “Wait, with you? What are you gonna do in a spa? I doubt you can get tense joints or sore cogs.”
“I can get a polish.”
“Right.” Shetland hid her smirk, just in case the robot would take offense.
“By the way,” Toasty said, as if she’d just thought of it. “Have you done your exercises yet?”
Shetland’s breath stopped and in the same moment, she realised what a mistake that was. Now she could not lie anymore. And so, she begrudgingly admitted: “No.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” The robot was already on her hooves.
“But I’m already sore.” Shetland whined, even as she, much slower, followed suit.
“Excuses.” Toasty said mercilessly. “Your health is worth a bit of pain.”
“Shouldn’t I decide that?” Shetland grumbled quietly, even as she followed her out the room.
----
It was astounding, really, Shetland thought, that one can make pain better by adding more pain, at least when it comes to sore muscles. With the sound of a bellow, she puffed out air as she stemmed her hindleg against Toasty’s head and pushed. After a moment of strained agony, she was rewarded with the earthy sound of ceramic scraping over rocks as the robot was pushed backwards.
“20” Toasty said to the heavily breathing pony. “You can stop now.”
It was only her long gym-experience that made Shetland wait for air to actually reach her brain again before considering. She wiped off her forehead. It was drenched in sweat, dripping down her face and the rest of her body. A quiet chuckle escaped her. At first, she’d just wanted to skimp out on as much as possible. Then… her competitive spirit had taken over, her ego forcing her to push herself to the limit. Though, the fact they were just behind the dorms, in broad sunlight, probably didn’t help. But the settlement had no gym, as such this was the only place they could work out without attracting attention. It was nice to be able to impress one pony, but to have random strangers watch...
It wasn’t made any more comfortable by the fact that without equipment, the only thing Shetland had that came close to a weight was the robot by her side. She’d stemmed her, pushed her, hoofwrestled and carried her on a jog. Toasty had been remarkably reserved about all this, but that did little to make Shetland feel less awkward about it.
Luckily, they had attracted very little attention. Most ponies were at work in the greenhouses or staying on the shadow-side of the buildings to cool down.
An itchy feeling brought Shetland back to the present and she made a face. “I think I’ll pass.” It wasn’t that she had no ambition, but she was just as much vary about pushing her leg too far. And judging by her nod, Toasty fully agreed.
Relieved, Shetland stretched her back, groaning as a series of pops came from her spine, almost as loud as the growling of her stomach. It caused Toasty to laugh her weird staccato laugh.
“We should probably feed the monster before it devours us.” she said jokingly, poking Shetland’s stomach with her cold hoof.
“Very funny.” Shetland mumbled, though she obliged to the robot mare’s suggestion.
Unlike Shetland’s room in the central colony- well, the room her mom gave her- they lacked a personal kitchen, a luxury to begin with. As such, they headed for the canteens, hoping that now, after the morning rush to feed before work started, there were no lines to contend with.
“They better press the orange juice correctly.” Toasty ranted. “It drives me up the wall how ponies can be so wasteful. Our competitor in canterlot left an average of three percent to be thrown away, can you believe it?”
“I don’t think we get orange-juice here, they probably just put vitamin powder in the water.” Shetland said absent-mindedly.
Toasty shook her head in disbelief. “Where do all these shortcuts in our very sustenance lead us?”
Shetland grunted a sound that could be vaguely interpreted as a yes. Her attention was on a trio of robots carrying a few bags of soil out of a sturdy looking storage house. Far too little weight to warrant that large of a group. The robots halted as they moved past, regarding them with vary, curious looks until they were a distance away again. They weren’t the first to show this reaction either. It seemed that every robot now only traveled in groups of mostly their own. Sometimes they would be seen with ponies, but the organics always seemed to be outnumbered. They were afraid. The realization felt like a cold talon pressing into Shetlands neck. She hadn’t ever considered what effect the news of attacks and vanished robots would have on the colony at large until now, that it was right before her eyes. That robots no longer felt safe to travel freely, to mingle with ponies. That’s what the looks of curiosity must be for, she thought as she looked over Toasty. Despite being the one to directly suffer an attack, she is still optimistic enough to travel with just me. Whether it be because she couldn’t remember or some sort of ill-fated trust.
“What’s bothering you?”
Shetland blinked in surprise as she got aware of her own deep frown. “I’m just thinking. How can we help to put a stop to this? The things that are happening.” she clarified in response to Toasty’s look. “I wanna do something, but I have no idea what could even be done. What can I even do in an investigation with hyenas? I barely remember, like, three clishees from some trashy mystery novel and that’s all!”
“Well,” Toasty began slowly. “Maybe you should just focus on what is next. Which is food. Afterwards, we meet the hyenas.”
Shetland let out a little chuckle. “I guess that’s a nice way to see things. Just think about the food.” Her belly agreed loudly, making both of them giggle, even if Shetland’s was still a bit strained. “I should probably shower first, though.”
“Do you think you need to?”
“Of course. I can’t go like this, I’m all sweaty and itchy and smelly!” she shook her head and in that motion, she was caught unprepared as Toasty suddenly drew closer, reaching her head to Shetlands barrel and loudly drew air through her nose. Startled, Shetland lept away, bringing a good distance between her and the crazy robot before she exclaimed: “Toasty, what the heck?!”
The robot chuckled, her eyelights randomly changing size and brightness and she placed a hoof where a mouth would be. “Oh, this is fun.”
“What. The. Heck?!”
“Oh, relax, I did not smell anything.” Toasty’s head made a little circular motion. “I only inhale as a function to cool my processor.”
“Okay…” Shetland said, her breath slowly normalizing again. “Don’t do this again, it’s… really, really weird.”
“Oh, I won’t.” Toasty said jovially, though one eyelight blinked on and off in a robotic wink. “Now go, I’ll wait right outside. Unless you think it is dangerous and want me in eyesight?~”
“After that action, no way.” Shetland grumbled. “Just… knock if there’s trouble or shout, okay?”
Toasty took a moment to answer and Shetland already assumed she was going to make another joke, but instead she solemnly nodded. “Will do, Shetland.”
It was much too soon when the time came for them to go.And yet, in all honesty, Shetland had been relieved. Cleaned and sated, with nothing to occupy her mind, every second had stretched into minutes. Even Toasty had fallen quiet over time. She now glittered next to her, polished, just to bridge the last thirty minutes.
Curiously, Khunbish and Gan were not situated in the same dorms as everypony else. Instead, they had been granted a small edifice a five minute walk from the rest of the colony. Unlike most structures, it was build neither from metal or glass, instead it was made from smooth white rock akin to those primarily used in Canterlot, even if it was far less tall or grandiose than anything from the city. Shetland breathed in deeply, then allowed the air to slowly escape her lungs. The corners of her mouth twitched upwards at the familiarity. She’d lived with Ciloa in just that sort of building for two years. It’d been her home and now… she swallowed. Now there were hyenas inside. Stop procrastinating! she chastised herself. The door was just infront of her, if a little low. Behind it, she could barely make out their voices. Without thinking it through, she pressed her ear at the door, ignoring the look Toasty gave her. The voice, she assumed it was Gan, was dulled, but clearly recognisable.
“-And now. We discuss secret evil plan. Right before pony arrive. Much logic in decision. PONY VERY LOUD.” he shouted as Shetland, her cheeks burning as she’d been caught red-hoofed again, knocked on the door, hoping it could mask her error.
The hatch turned and Khunbish’s face appeared, tinted blue behind the visible magic shield, preventing the air from escaping outside. “Welcome,” she greeted them with a smile, even as she strained her neck to look up to Shetland. “Come in, Sparkle and machine, I do not know for how long the magic works.”
Shetland and Toasty exchanged an uneasy look, then Shetland stepped inside first, ducking her head to do so. From the inside, the familiarity to Canterlot only increased further. Smooth, clean walls, ornate furniture and big, thin arcing windows- Shetland scratched her head at that, there’d been no windows from ouside. Then she noticed that they showed the wide outlook over a large country-range lush with fields and even the great Everfree swamp. It was enough to make anypony feel homesick. The marks of the hyenas were relatively few. Two hammocks hung from nails driven into the ceilings, each holding a hide of some sort as a blanket. The desk was covered in paper displaying the weird runes hyenas used for letters. If only she could read them, but while Twilight had managed to hammer a whole bunch of languages into her poor head, she was much less proficient in writing them. All of their belongings apparently took no more space than two bags designed for long travel. And that included Gan’s shocktalon, which he had thankfully decided not to wear.
With Khunbish’s help, he pushed a big couch from the wall into the midst of the room. “Please sit down.” The female hyena offered.
Shetland accepted, mostly because while room was comfortably wide, the ceiling was low enough to give her neck cramps over time. The couch even held up surprisingly well, though it did let out a pained screech as she sat down. With her hooves propped on the rests and head head leaning on her hooves, she could even sit fairly comfortably. Toasty meanwhile simply sat infront of the couch, joining Shetland in cautiously eyeing the hyenas.
“If I may ask,” she said. “This room looks different than any other on Horizon.”
“As I was told,” Khunbish answered. “It was used by a psychologist when this was the only settlement. The most common issue, especially as every day was still a struggle, was homesickness. So, it was modeled to closely resemble your country. I have to say, it… is very pretty.” Somehow, from the tone of her voice, Shetland got the impression that Khunbish saw that as a bad thing. “Either way,” she continued. “We should finally begin: Machine, you will have to be patient as we will hear Sparkle’s story first. If the events are related, it is better if we learn in order.”
“I do not have much to tell.” Toasty shook her head. “My memory is missing.”
Gan’s head shot up. “You lie. Machines do not forget!”
“I do not have any data in between my departure and myself when I was broken.” Toasty reaffirmed. “My memory has been manipulated.”
The hyenas exchanged looks. Gan quietly growled, but Shetland’s eyes were drawn to Khunbish and she furrowed her brows. She had a hard time reading their expressions, and yet, the hyenas showed not a single sign of surprise, simply nodding at the information. Somehow, she doubted that even Khunbish was that cold. Meanwhile, Shetland put a hoof over Toasty’s shoulder, her eyes darting back to Gan who eyed the robot critically.
“If the machine not lie-”
“She is not lying.” Shetland said sternly, glaring at him until he gave in, even if just at a whispered command of Khunbish.
“What he meant to say,” the larger hyena said, her voice chiding both of them. “Is we should get back to the business at hand. Miss Sparkle, would you please depict your position in the raid?”
Shetland let go of her breath. Her muscles tensed as she briefly considered simply running away. But no, there was no backing off anymore. Her foreleg pressed to her chest, she took another deep breath before slowly exhaling, straightening out her leg as she did. “Where should I start?” she asked quietly, unable to meet the hyena’s eyes.
“Wherever it appears logical to. If... it becomes too much, when it becomes too much, we can take a break, too.” Khunbish offered.
But Shetland shook her head. It’d been bad enough to wait for this meeting and as much as she wanted to run away, an even stronger part now wanted to just get it over with.
“It was a normal shipment to Horizon,” she finally started. “Far as I know, it was just some supplies, standard stuff. Me and my friends-” she took a breath before she continued. “We were given a few spots on the Esseless so we could cross, y’know? We- uh-” she shifted uncomfortably, trying to find words as Khunbish finally interrupted her.
“When did the attack happen?”
“I… don’t know for sure. The morning of the day we arrived, I think.”
“Can you give an estimate of the time?”
Shetland bit her lips. Funny, that for how vividly she thought she remembered everything, how foggy the details had gotten. “I- really don’t know for sure. Maybe four, five hours before I came here.”
“Did you have any warning? Any sign, a message from Horizon?”
“No… no… maybe. We got- they send us a signal. An SOS. We only knew there was a spaceship stranded in our way, so we tried to rescue whoever was on board. Of course, when the hatch opened-” she swallowed, her voice husky as her hooves trembled, wanting to shield her eyes from what played behind them. “And the fuckers threw a grenade.” Both hyenas winced and Toasty reached out for Shetland. She barely noticed the touch. “I didn’t see much, it threw me away and- it burned my leg.” The limb in question made its presence known as it began to itch horribly. “It all seemed to happen instantly. Next thing I knew, half the crew is dead and I’m running for my life from all these drones. And- and we should have prepared!” she beat her hoof on the couch. “We were connecting to an unknown ship while all our weapons were in the Celestia-damned storage! They could only come from one direction, if I’d been armed-” her voice died. She pressed her eyes closed as she gnashed her teeth. The thought that it all could’ve been prevented if they’d treaded just a bit more warily…
“If you do want a break-” Khunbish offered cautiously.
If Shetland heard her, she showed no reaction. A smell of smoke stung in her nose. “Next thing I know, I’m with my friends and… somepony else in the cargo. It’s got this… this large door that we closed, so we could prepare.”
“Uhm… Shetland?” Toasty asked quietly. “If they couldn’t get in, what about the rest of the crew?”
She couldn’t meet Toasty’s eyes, instead she faced a wall and took a long, shaky breath. The shaking of her hoof became harder and harder to control. “Next... next-” she took another breath, calming her voice until she was ready to speak again. “We made a plan, I don’t know for sure who made it. We were gonna wait until as many as possible stood before the cargo, waiting for us to get out. We opened the door, as well as one at the back.”
“The… back?” Gan asked. It was the first time he said anything since Shetland had started her story.
“To the outside.” Shetland said grimly. “We sucked ‘em out, over two dozen, I think. But then, when Ciloa tried to close the door again, the lever was stuck.” In retrospect, it all seemed like some cruel, cosmic joke. “So, you see, we were all holding on to the wall so we weren’t sucked out too, but when her magic wasn’t enough, Ciloa had to reach out with a hoof-” she took a long, dry breath. “I wasn’t close enough to save her. Only Crimson was and he got sucked out too.” she wanted to kick something, find something responsible to ram into the dirt and trample on its corpse, but there was nothing. Water filled her eyes, boiling tears of futile anger. “He tried to save her and it was for nothing!”
Khunbish stepped closer, her rough voice trying to sound as gently as it could: “You do not have to talk about your friends in such detail, Sparkle. We don’t need to know their exact fates-”
“No,” Gan interrupted her, gaining a bewildered look. But his eyes were focused on Shetland's, deeply narrowed in concentration. “Your friend’s story is tale of honor. They deserve to be told. They deserve to live in memory.”
His eyes met Shetlands and she bit in her lip, slowly regaining her composure. She looked from him to Toasty and Khunbish and swallowed. Then she continued her tale.
It was as if the worst had passed. It hurt less to speak, even as she recounted Press’s reckless charge to his demise. Maybe she’d finally grown numb, her brain simply deciding that enough was enough and turning off her heart. And so, she carried on in a dull voice: The aftermath of the battle. The message she recorded for her mother. How she almost shot herself.
“Stop!” Toasty threw her forelegs in the air, startling everyone else with her sudden outburst. She shook her head, her eyelights switched off.
“Toasty-” Shetland muttered.
“Can we take a break, please?” Toasty asked the hyenas. “I can not listen to this anymore.”
“Of course we can.” Shetland said before either of them could open their mouth. She slid off the couch, sitting down next the robot, so Toasty’s head was a bit below her shoulder. She laid a hoof around her and realized with surprise that she was shivering.
After a minute, Toasty spoke up. “This is horrible.”
“Mhm.” Shetland nodded. There was nothing else she could say.
“How can you deal with it?” Their eyes met and Shetland had to blink from the bright green lights. “How can you stay calm and talk about it, how can you accept these things?”
Shetland took a deep breath to answer, but then she froze. “I’ll… just have to, Toasty.” she let out a drawn out sigh. A hoof reached around the small robots chassis. “All I know for sure,” she said with steely resolve. “Is that I’m not letting it happen again. It-” she swallowed. “It’ll be fine if I can just do that.” She once again met Toasty’s eyes.
Suddenly, Shetland felt something cold squeeze around her lower ribs. “I’m so sorry.” Toasty whispered, her hug not able to fully reach around Shetland.
With a sad smile, the earth pony patted her back. “If you want, you could wait outside while we finish this.”
Toasty hesitated, but then she shook her head. “I’ll stick it out with you. Just please, give me a few more minutes.”
“Certainly.” Shetland said. Then she raised her head, glaring at the hyenas, challenging them to disagree. Neither of them did. Gan simply huffed, shaking his head in disbelief as he muttered “ponies”, like it was self-explanatory.
Meanwhile, Khunbish patiently waited, refusing to let the slightest emotion disrupt her stony face up until a few minutes later, when Toasty broke away from the hug. Then she asked: “You were the only pony left on the spaceship. You already stated you had no means to pilot it either. How did you get out?”
“I didn’t fly with the Esseless.” Shetland said. “I convinced the A.I. of their ship to take me back.”
“WHAT?” Both hyenas shouted, sudden as a gunshot.
“You talk with ship?” Gan asked, his eyes wide. “You convince ship?”
“Y-yes, that’s what happened.” Shetland said quietly, watching with concern as both hyenas exchanged looks. “Is that special, I thought all spaceships pilot with A.I?”
Khunbish shook her head “No machine intelligence like yours. You could not hold a conversation or argue with one of ours. It only maps a course, it is a tool for the pilot, nothing else.”
“Why would you do that?” Shetland raised an eyebrow. “An A.I. would always perform much better and safer. And…” she tapped her chin with a hoof. “Didn’t you use one? Don’t tell me one of you two piloted the ship you landed with.” While she liked to think she had let go of her animosity to these two, seeing their lips become dangerously thin was still a satisfying sight.
“We used a pony ship.” Khunbish said, laying out each word carefully before moving on to the next. “We were under strict agreement with Equestria to only send two representatives. On this one occasion, we accepted the necessity of a machine intelligence.”
“We do not often.” Gan said, speaking a bit louder than her. “Machine should not be trust.”
“Our lands were arguably hit the worst by the grinding wars.” Khunbish justified his words before Shetland could protest. “Plus, Hiroshimare lies on our coast. We have much reason to distrust machines. Either way, we are losing our thread. The fact that these pirates had a machine intelligence on their ship is worrying.”
“Why?” Shetland asked, grumbling to herself as she swallowed her comment to the previous topic. Even if it would have been quite satisfying to say.
“Because ship stolen from us.” Gan said. “So Pirates either steal from your land too, or make own.”
“Bullshit.” Shetland said and shook her head. “No little pirate group can program an A.I. like that.”
“No pirates act in space before.” Gan said grimly.
There was a short silence as Shetland failed to come up with a counter argument.
“If that is true,” Khunbish said. “We might be dealing with a network large enough to cross the continents.” she met Shetland’s eyes. “Maybe the rest of your tale will be able to clear it up.”
Suddenly, her stomach clamped up as her mind was drawn to what came next. A faint voice whispered in her ear, but it wasn’t loud enough to make out. “Can’t tell much.” she said, trying to mask the outbreak inside her. “I convinced the A.I. to bring me to the colony, so I prepared for a fight and flew there. I can’t tell you any details after my arrival either, I was just trying to survive.”
Khunbish sighed. “This is all you can recall? Not a single detail more?”
Shetland just nodded. She didn’t trust her voice.
“In your report, you stated that you planned to free the colonists and arm them. But when you arrived, many of them recalled that you had some sort of breakdown. Some claimed they saw you press a button, after which you violently vomited on the floor.”
“Yes, yes.” If she spoke fast enough, maybe her thoughts could not catch up. “I loaded the ship with explosives as a trap beforehoof, I thought if I could take out a lot of them in an instant, their morale would break and I was right, right?” she gasped for air, having said all that in a single breath.
“True,” Khunbish said mercilessly. “But one thing makes me wonder. Why were a whole bunch of them inside the ship at the same time? Would they not immediately leave it after seeing it was safe? And why haven’t they discovered your trap, they surely had ample time to search your ship and an explosion like that must have been caused by a sizable pile.”
“It was their ship.” Shetland said. Her mouth felt dry and linty, as if she was speaking around a woollen ball. “Why wouldn’t they be on it?”
Her and Khunbish’s eyes met for several seconds before she backed hers down to her own hooves.
“Quite.” Khunbish said. “If you allow a few more questions-”
“Yes, yes.” Shetland gasped. Anything to talk about something else.
That something turned out to be questions about a lot of details she couldn’t remember, like the insides of the pirate ship, their weapons, faces, special marks or uniformity in their clothing. She also had to describe each of her friends, whose names she had used in her tale without explaining who they were. Finally, Khunbish pressed both Shetland and Toasty for further details on their recent “excursion”, but neither was able to provide any new information, to the hyena’s chagrin.
With a sigh, Khunbish stuck the last of her notes inside of a folder. “Thank you both for your time.” she said, even if it didn’t sound very thankful. Admittedly, it could just be her rough voice. But then she let out a long sigh, after which it became much softer. “I’m glad to finally have this behind me.”
“Me too.” Shetland admitted. Her eyes hurt, her guts were cold, but despite all that, she was happy to have it finally be over with.
“And it is good we did today. Tomorrow we will move back to your main colony. We would have this evening already, had you not declared your willingness to talk with us today.”
“Uhm… sorry?”
Khunbish simply shook her head at the apology. “While your spaceport will not be cleared tomorrow, as I tried to arrange with Luna Princess, it was worth receiving your account. Despite interruption, we can maybe find something tomorrow. You can be helpful too.” She added with a look to Shetland. “You were there, maybe you can point something out.”
“I suppose.” Shetland said, even as she suddenly felt quite quite unsure of herself. “If you think I’d be helpful-”
“You will be.” Khunbish said, giving her an unsettlingly toothy smile. “I am sure of it.”
“-third Temür rifle we’ve seen so far. Sparkle, would you note it down?”
Shetland blinked, her eyes darting around for a startled moment. Neither Gan nor Khunbish were looking at her. Instead, both sets of eyes were still glued to the numerous screens, each showing a recording from a different security camera. Most were frozen, displaying one or a group of armed hyenas whose appearances they’d studied and were in the process of writing every detail about down. Meanwhile, Khunbish looped through more recordings, trying to get a clear picture of another. Shetland let out a sigh as she bit down on her pencil and made another mark on her paper. Her cheeks felt uncomfortably warm and she strained her eyes just to keep the heavy lids from closing once again. She’d spaced out. An uncomfortable heat grew on her cheeks. This was her duty and she’d spaced out when she should have been at peak attention!
But then, the thought sneaked into her head. What am I even doing here? Her gaze drifted towards the clock, then over Khunbish’s back who, after almost three hours, still showed no sign of tiredness. How did she do it? Shetland groaned as she looked over the recordings and her eyelids started to droop already. She’d been surprised how little effect these recordings had on her, had expected to feel a deep-rooted fear or anger at the sight. Maybe it was because hyenas all looked the same to her, even Gan and Khunbish who she could only differentiate because the latter was taller (a fact she would not admit to them, even under torture.) Maybe it was the lack of sound that gave it a hollow quality, but in the end, it had been to her like watching the same three minutes of a movie over and over. Without tone or subtitles. “Anything new?” she asked Gan, who dutifully… drew on a map of the port’s layout?
“No.” he said in his coarse voice as he looked from a camera to the map. He didn’t continue drawing, however. Possibly, he might have been irritated by the mare twice his size peeking over his head at the map.
“What’re you doing?”
It was Khunbish who answered, after pausing the recording and turning around. “He is marking which parts of the port the cameras can and cannot watch. With this information, we’ll be able to speculate where the invaders might have gone whenever we cannot see them.”
“What good is speculation?” Shetland grumbled. “I thought we were just looking for stuff that helps you find and punish ‘em.”
“Any piece of information can be helpful.” Khunbish said sternly. Then, her gaze relaxed together with her voice and she gently suggested: “Maybe you should leave us alone, Sparkle, I’m sure we can handle it on our own from now.”
“No!” Shetland said firmly and forced her eyes back to the screens, pushing against her sluggish mind and heavy eyelids. “Continue, please.” Inwardly however, she let out a sigh. She wasn’t actually helpful, and she knew it. The only thing she’d contributed so far was her own impatience while the others worked. With closed eyes, she breathed out in the often-attempted method to calm her mind. She had to find a way to help, to not be a burden. It wasn’t for her, after all. Her mouth suddenly felt dry. This was for the revenge of her friends and she’d been bored. She owed them all to do her best. Certainly, Toasty would have said the same if she was here. A voice of reassurance would have been helpful, too…for fear of irritating Gan and Khunbish, she’d left Toasty with her mother, back in the central colony. Neither of them had been thrilled at the prospect, though Twilight had agreed without complaint. Something that couldn’t be said about the little robot mare. It made Shetland groan just thinking about how much arguing it had taken to convince her friend to let it rest, the effort it took to banish the furious look out of Toasty’s brilliant emerald eyes. And in retrospect, her efforts had been completely pointless, which stung even harder.
A low creaking sound caught her attention and she raised her head. To her side, Gan did the same, turning to the door with a wild spark in his eyes.
Not again, Shetland thought and rolled her eyes before following Gan’s look, just able to catch something backing away from the narrow gap in the door. Too late, as Gan seized the handle and swung it open, revealing a robot just behind. Shetland audibly smacked her own head.
The robot was average-sized, maybe a couple inches taller than Toasty and modeled after a stallion. Behind him, she spotted another of the machines, getting away in time to be spared Gan’s onslaught as he came down on the remaining robot like a swarm of dragons. Shetland watched passively, ready to intercept before something got out of hoof (or paw in the hyena’s case), but otherwise offering no assistance to either side. Khunbish had stopped her work as well in order to glare darkly at the machine too curious for its own good, and Shetland sighed.
Denying Toasty from coming along had been pointless as there were apparently a whole bunch of robots in the spaceport, something Shetland had been unprepared for. Last time she’d been here, she hadn’t spotted even one. It was possible that they’d been moved somewhere else, as it had been the days of the hyenas’ landing, she reasoned. But then, if one would go to such lengths to appease the hyenas, why not do it today? Not only were there a lot more robots than she’d anticipated, they also continued the worrying trend she’d observed in Coltville: traveling in groups and throwing cautious looks at whomever came too close, as if anypony could be a danger! Gan and Khunbish had obviously received a lion’s share of those looks, but even Shetland had gotten more than her usual share of attention. Combined with them beginning to whisper once they were out of earshot, it was enough to sour anypony’s mood, another reason she wished Toasty was there. And then there was this one, Shetland brought her attention back to the present, in which Gan kicked the door shut after verbally disassembling the poor machine.
“Machines,” Gan spat as he got back on his seat. “How ponies work with machines lurking?”
“It’s not that hard,” Shetland said icily. She’d let him chew out this one robot, because he had been listening in, but she was not going to let Gan use him as a strawhorse. “You just accept that they’re just like us.”
“Not like us.” Gan stated matter-of-factly. “Made different. Think different.” he threw a look to Khunbish, but the other hyena just waved her paw, refusing to let herself get dragged into the argument.
“They can be normal ponies like you and me!” Shetland said heatedly. “Or hyenas.” She added after a second.
“Or not.” Gan said stubbornly. “Machines dangerous if thought allowed.”
“You’re just spewing those things out!” Shetland’s voice rose to fill the entire room. “You have no idea how they really are!”
“Only who understand how machine work know that. You don’t understand machine.” his voice rose as well, but it soon hit his limit while Shetland’s still had much more room to grow.
“I have robots as my friends, I spent time with them since I was a little foal, I grew up in Equestria, not a backwards, technophobic-”
Gan jumped on his paws, yet he still had to crane his neck to meet the sitting pony’s eyes. “We have reason we never trust smart machine. Ponies trust machine too easy. We hit by Grinding Wars most-”
“That was almost 90 years ago!” Shetland shouted incredulously, rising up to tower over him. Her face was heated, her eyes narrowed as she glared down at him, determined to prove the scrapeater wrong.
Unbeknownst to her, Khunbish had left the room.
-----------------------------------------
The room should have been empty. Full of the most valuable technology of the port, the maneframe was kept away from the public, only to be accessed by the most advanced technicians a few times a day. Otherwise, the door would be shut, barred with a “No Entry” sign and tucked away, far from the often-used hallways. Normally, it would be an unwise move to tread too closely, as that would raise suspicion. But the circumstances had changed. Many eyes had been blinded as the invaders made their move.
The door was unlocked. They had been fast. Imperfect eyes looked into the room, unable to make out details other than the contrast of bright technical lights and darkness. Stepping lightly into the room, a small figure turned.
With a jolt, the figure was attacked, but it threw several small things that flew forward and then directed themselves to their target, stunning it momentarily.
It retreated. In this small skirmish, the invaders had gained a victory.
It would not last.
-------------------------
Shetland was still engaged in a furious debate with Gan, though they’d both lowered their voices to a bearable volume, as Khunbish re-entered the room. Shetland raised her head, looking from her to the seat she realized had been empty. “Where have you been?”
“I tried to go to the bathroom. Somepony though it funny to point in the wrong direction.” Khunbish said sourly and went back to her seat. “You continued to argue while I was gone?”
“Can’t help it if he’s being stubborn.” Shetland pressed through her teeth.
“Pony foolish.” Gan said in his rough language.
“At least pony not a bigot!” Shetland shot back.
Khunbish groaned. “Pony and hyena not helping!” she said. “Accept that the other has a valid standpoint and focus!”
“Your standpoint is based on bigotry!” Shetland exclaimed.
“Our standpoint is based on our experiences.” Khunbish said, her voice struggling to keep calm. “My kind has more reason than any other to be skeptical of the machines you’re so fond of. Do you want to deny that?”
For a moment, Shetland wanted to shout that, yes, she wanted to deny every argument they made. Instead, she closed her mouth and sat down.
“Then, can we focus at the task at paw again?” Khunbish asked coldly.
Shetland nodded, feeling the looks of both hyenas on her, though she did not return one.
“Great.” Khunbish finally said after a few seconds, and Shetland felt the weight of their stares lift off her shoulders. She pressed a button and the recordings played out once more. “We should be able to wrap up these last ten minutes in another hour or so.” she said as she observed the video. “Of course, we’ll also have copies of these delivered to our quarters.”
Shetland let out a frustrated sigh. She wanted to leave, to contribute, to continue their argument. But fate had chosen neither for her, and so she tested her attention span once again, trying to find some unnoticeable details Gan and Khunbish would miss. And so she glared back at her small list, fighting her eyelids, which kept growing in weight…
It was with great relief that Shetland parted ways with Gan and Khunbish in the central colony, who were eager to take their “findings” to their rooms and… she sighed, tired of constantly speculating hidden motives or agendas. Maybe they were just there to help after all. She let out a groan, arching her back, producing a series of loud pops from her spine, like a cork popping out of a bottle of champagne. Tired eyes swept over the clock in her room… technically her mother’s, but she failed to do much more than grunt at the thought. It almost surprised her that it was still barely afternoon, though she knew it shouldn’t have. With how exhausting the last few days had been, coupled with having to spend almost the entirety of last night packed in Magenta’s ungodly vehicle back to the spaceport - suffering the horrible itching from her scarred side and simultaneously bruising her other- It was fair to assume she’d lost track of time. She placed a hoof on her neck, craned it back and sucked air through her teeth as the muscles first lit up and then slackened. How she was tired of constantly staring down at everyone she talked to, looking down at papers, doors, down in general! She was tired of telling herself to shut up and let Gan badmouth robots while his stupid chaps twisted in a grin, like he enjoyed it! How she was tired… her eyes drifted to the clock once again before she took it off the wall and turned towards the large bed, which welcomed her with soft covers and the promise to take the rest of the day away. With a satisfied hum, she closed her eyes.
Shetland drifted at the edge of sleep for a while, never quite slipping out of consciousness, yet largely unaware of the passing of time. Thus, she couldn’t tell whether it was an hour or just a few minutes when the door to her room swung open.
“Shetty?” A soft, gentle voice asked, accompanied by hoofsteps as the visitor came in.
It was a feat of multiple lessons on behaviour that made Shetland get out of her covers, and even then, only on her second try. With tired eyes, she met the alicorn’s, then she was forced to close them once more as a mighty yawn erupted in her throat. “Hi, mom.” she shook her head, straining her voice to produce a friendlier sounding: “Hello.”
The warmer greeting made her mother smile, though she still seemed uncertain what to do. “Did I… wake you?”
With a shake of her head, Shetland tried to mollify her, deeply wishing this would not result in yet another argument. Thus, she affirmed: “I wasn’t really sleeping, it’s okay.”
“In bed at two pm?” Another voice asked, one that ignited a light on Shetland’s face. Toasty stepped in, her blue-green synthetic hair producing waves behind her as she did. She tilted her head, the lights behind her visor playfully flashing. “You know, if you do nothing but eat, sleep and get hurt, you will get fat.”
“Not my choice.” Shetland said, though she couldn’t suppress a chuckle. Meanwhile, Twilight’s expression ranged from indignant to confused as she looked from one mare to the other.
“You never let me make those jokes.” Twilight noted, sounding a little hurt by the fact.
“Because I was a teenager when you did.” Shetland rolled her eyes. “And I was the freaky giant foal. You think I liked hearing that I was too large in yet another way?”
“I…” Twilight blinked. “I never tried to say that.”
“It’s okay,” Shetland ascertained. “I can take it now.”
“So I can say-” Twilight began, but Shetland interrupted her with a grin.
“Don’t push your luck.”
The two Sparkles shared a chuckled. For some reason, Shetland found the weights on her lips had gotten much lighter and smiling was easier than before. It didn’t last, however, and they sunk into an awkward silence, as they probed each other in an attempt to get the other to speak first.
A sigh escaped Shetland’s lips. “Just… number stuff, Nothing we probably don’t have on record already. And I was absolutely no help.” she added with a frown.
“Shetty, it’s okay.” Twilight whispered, but the earth pony let out a groan.
“I just want some simple, straightforward solutions. Something smashable, not all this… this.”
“Sounds like you want a bucking bag.” Toasty observed.
“Shetty…” Twilight began warningly, but the earth pony waved it off.
“Just joking.” she said as she rolled her eyes.
“Good, because we need their cooperation as much as they need ours if we want to continue our relations with-” Twilight stopped mid-sentence. Shetland, who had already prepared herself to suffer through a minute-long lecture blinked in surprise. The alicorn slowly closed her mouth, a startled look on her face. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, searching her daughter’s eyes. “I shouldn’t be putting more stress on you.”
“I… thank you?” Shetland muttered, uncertain what to say to that. “For uhm… sparing me the lecture? I think that’s a first.”
“Ha,” Twilight chuckled, without a hint of joy. “It sounded like you already had a bad day.”
Shetland snorted. “You can say that again.” She rubbed her sore side, then her scarred, sore side. Twilight’s muzzle strained at the sight of her scars. Shetland pretended not to notice. “How was your day?” she asked, not particularly eager to talk about her own.
Twilight paused, regarding Shetland with a strange look. “Stressful, to be honest. Three robots altogether, disappearing without a trace. And when you found your friend…” she let out a sigh. “If everypony suspected there was a malicious intent behind this, the condition you found her in proved it. Since then, robots have demanded more safety, as they should, but they also want to defend themselves as well.”
“And they should!” Shetland protested. Toasty nodded vigorously. “We have someone or something actively attacking them, let them defend themselves!”
“And that,” Twilight continued tiredly. “Woke up the opposition, who immediately protested against allowing robots to own weapons.”
“So?” Shetland nearly shouted. She swallowed, taking a moment to wrestle control of her voice’s volume back. “Screw ‘em. Screw ‘em all, they’re bigots, since when does Equestria support that?!”
“Since…” letting go of her breath, Twilight closed her eyes and silently counted to three. “Shetty, I agree with you, but… things are not that simple.”
“Why not?” She crossed her forelegs over her chest. “You tell the idiots to screw off and that’s it.”
“Ha!” Twilight burst out, her wings beating down in amusement. “Oh, Shetty, your take on politics is so refreshing, if only it actually worked like that.” she shook her head, keeping a tiny little smile on her lips. “But unfortunately I would still have to get this across diplomatically, or we’d drown in unrest.” she sighed, her eyes rolling up to the ceiling. “That is, if we did allow it, which is unfortunately out of my hooves.”
“You…” Shetland began, but Toasty beat her to it.
“But you are a princess. Why can you not make the decree?”
“I may be a princess,” Twilight said. “But the pony in charge is still Princess Luna.”
“Won’t she listen to you though?” Shetland narrowed her eyes. “She seemed pretty reasonable… I think.”
Twilight shook her head. “It’s not that she wouldn’t listen to me, but after that fiasco when the hyenas landed -- she was furious when she heard about it. I think it’s more likely she’s going to take away weapons than grant them. To anypony. And I can’t say it’s totally unreasonable.”
“So…” Shetland mulled it over. The logic was sound, she had to admit, and still it wouldn’t sit right with her. “So we’re stuck here?” she grumbled. “Some ponies have weapons, robots don’t, and they cannot protect themselves?”
Toasty lowered her head. “It seems like it.” Her voice was bare of any emotion. The defeated tone threw a little extra firewood in the furnace inside Shetland. But as she glared at Twilight, she let out a sigh. It wouldn’t be fair to let her frustration out at her, especially since her mother was on the same side, even if she could be infuriating about it.
“So, if you have to deal with all that, what are you doing here?” Agitated, Shetland slipped off the bed, not moving her eyes from her mother once. “Don’t you have about a hundred things to do for the colony?”
“YES!” Twilight shouted, with a ferocity that stunned everyone else in the room. The alicorn stood tall, though her head was turned towards the ground and her eyes closed. “Yes, Shetty, there is so much to do,” she admitted softly “But… all this time, there has been, and I- I never took the time for myself to check on you.” Her eyes opened and Shetland saw the sad frustration boiling in them. “It’s been a whole month, Shetty, and all this time the most we had were brief conversations, or we had to discuss some new danger. I-” she took a sharp breath before she burst out, her voice rushed, almost pleading: “I want to be with my family for once! Is that too much to ask?”
For several seconds, the question stood in the room like a rearing minotaur. Too stunned to form a reply, Shetland simply stared at her mother, racking her brain on what to do or answer as two cold hooves suddenly shoved her forwards. Nearly stumbling, Shetland embraced the alicorn, who immediately embraced her with both wings, covering her daughter like a blanket. “I wasn’t able to work at all yesterday.” she quietly disclosed into Shetland’s ear. “When they informed me how you ran off into the storm, it felt like it was the attack all over again, and I was powerless to stop it!” The alicorn began to shiver, slowly rocking forward and backward. Shetland swallowed, patting Twilight’s back in what she hoped was an adequate attempt at calming her down.
“S-shhh,” The noise felt awkward from her mouth, but it was all she could think to do. “It’s okay, I’m fine…” With her hooves on Twilight’s chest, she separated herself from the embrace, only to regret it a second later as she looked into her mother’s puffy red eyes, lined with dark circles.
“I could have lost you.” Twilight whispered in a tone that sent cold shivers down Shetland’s back. Her voice was haunted, frail, like it could break if you so much as breathed on it. “I don’t think I did anything that day, Shetty, I could only think about how you were doing.” she sighed, unable to meet Shetland’s eyes. “And I don’t think I could work without making sure you were okay. I spoke with Luna and…” she hesitated. “I know the timing is all wrong, but she agreed that I should have this day…” She looked up, searching for Shetland’s gaze as she attempted a smile. “And your days must have been just as stressful as mine. Maybe we can use today to unwind.”
“Unwind, huh?” Shetland asked as a grin broke out on her face. “Maybe with a good book, hmmm?”
“HA!” Twilight’s face nearly exploded into a grin matching that of her daughter. "Good guess, but no. Not… necessarily. I was thinking about the spa in Horse Horizon, the one you wanted to go to last week. I dug up a spell to help with the moisture since then. My treat.”
“It’s a-” Shetland begann to exclaim, but just as she was about to say ‘deal’, her eyes fell on Toasty. “What about you?” she asked the robot.
Toasty raised her head so suddenly that Shetland was certain she did not expect the question. But it was Twilight who spoke first. “I’m not sure if she can come, Shetty, I don’t think they have any services for robots. She cannot relax her muscles or relish in a massage.”
“I can get polished!” Toasty protested
“We’ll take her with us.” Shetland decided, crossing her hooves over her chest as she leveled a glare at Twilight. “If they don’t want to polish her, we’ll make them. You’re the princess, after all.”
“Oh, Shetty.” Twilight sighed in exasperation as she rolled her eyes. “We are on friendly terms for less than a day and already you are abusing my powers.”
Shetland smirked. “Equestria may rejoice that I didn’t become a princess.”
Twilight gave her a long, odd look before her horn came to life, opening the door. “Well, the day won’t get any longer.”
“Unless we bribe Princess Celestia with teacakes.” Toasty chuckled.
“Those better be some mighty good teacakes then.” Shetland smirked and nudged the robot’s side. Toasty stumbled and only barely caught herself from falling to the floor.
“Do that again and you will never find out how good I can make them.” Toasty threatened, and the two mares chuckled, with Twilight joining in just a bit later.
A sizzling cloud of steam emerged out of a basin filled with hot-red rocks, reinforcing the warm, humid feel of the air. Shetland took a breath, just to let it go in a rolling sigh as the pressure in her lower back dissolved under the masseuse’s skilled hooves. Her eyes were closed as she relished the feeling. It was like her muscles had been a giant cluster of tight knots that only now slowly dissolved. Something dropped on her back and she gave the masseuse a bemused look. The poor unicorn had been working tirelessly, but after an alicorn and a pony the size of an alicorn, her endurance was nearing it's end. The corners of Shetland’s mouth curled upwards. Maybe she should have offered the poor pony a break, but then again, it was greatly amusing to see a unicorn this exhausted from working with her hooves.
“Enjoying yourself?” Twilight asked with a smile. As the spa only had one piece of furniture fit for an alicorn (one that Shetland was currently using), Twilight had teleported her own sofa as accommodation. It was wrapped in the same field of faintly glimmering magic as her book and Shetland’s scarred hindleg.
“Yep.” Shetland yawned lazily. Then she opened an eye, trying to spot whatever it was her mother was reading. Twilight, immediately following her look, cracked a smile and showed her the cover.
“It’s a history book,” she proudly proclaimed. “About the first industrial revolution in Equestria, when trains began to connect more and more of our country, becoming the most used method of transportation to this day-”
Shetland’s yawn interrupted her speech, causing Twilight to throw her a glare. “You know, it wouldn’t hurt you to learn a bit more about history.”
“You’re not gonna turn me into a bookworm, mom,” Shetland rolled her eyes. “Never worked, never will.”
“You don’t know what you’re missing out on.” Twilight sighed. “Well, I can’t be blamed, I've tried everything.”
“Yep.” Shetland said with a snicker. “Remember that time I got a school assignment to write an essay about my favorite book?”
“You took a comic!” Twilight exclaimed, and even to this day, a hint of frustration lingered in her voice.
“It was short.”
“Your teacher sent me a report! There wasn’t even any story to it, it was just action scene after action scene.”
“That’s what makes a comic good~” Shetland smirked. Twilight huffed, shaking her head in disbelief.
“This is why I never made a comic section in my library.”
“And thus, why I never spent any time there.” Shetland stuck out her tongue at the annoyed look Twilight gave her.
The masseuse stumbled back, wiping her own forehead as she attempted to catch her breath.
“Any… further… wishes?” The unicorn gasped between each word, her eyes darting from one to the other.
Shetland let out a sigh. She’d have liked for her to continue. Although in the back of her mind, she suspected that some of her deepest knots wouldn’t dissolve no matter how long the massage took. Still, she felt like a cake that was only half baked.
Twilight granted the unicorn a smile. “You can go, we won’t be needing any more services right now. What we would like now is for some privacy, if that is no bother.”
The masseuse bowed her head, a look of relief on her reddened face. Just then, Shetland’s ears picked up a metallic squeak. Toasty had raised her head from the couch she awkwardly sat on. Her eyes brightened a little as they followed the spa pony, appearing like she wanted to say anything, yet she kept silent. Pursing her lips, Shetland decided to take the matter in her own hooves.
“What about Toasty?” she asked loud enough for everypony to turn towards her. “She wanted a treatment too.”
The unicorn blinked at Toasty, confusion spreading on her face. “The… robot?”
“Yes, her.”
The mare’s eye darted to Twilight’s and swallowed after the alicorn gave her a subtle nod. “O-of course.” The unicorn stammered as she faced the green-eyed robot. “We offer several services, I am just unsure whether one would… apply to you.”
Toasty’s ears squeaked and her eyes lit up. “I do have something in mind. Would it be possible for me to receive a polishing of my outer hull?”
“I… suppose.” The masseuse bit her lip. “Though I don’t believe we have the right kind of oil-”
“I have brought the necessary equipment.” Toasty pointed at a bag resting beside her couch.
“Also,” Shetland added. “I was kinda hoping for a mane treatment. And a hooficure while we’re at it.” she narrowed her eyes as she noticed the bemused look Twilight gave her. “It’s been years since I’ve been in a spa, knock it off!”
“Alright, alright.” Twilight grinned. “We would like to resume these treatments in forty minutes, if that is possible.” she smiled to the spa pony. The unicorn’s expression ranged from relief to protest, but after a second, it was replaced by a professional mask and she lowered her head as she exited the room. Shortly after she left, Toasty turned to Shetland.
“I would not have insisted on it for myself. Thank you for doing it in my stead.” Her ears squeaked a little as they rose, her gaze turning to the door. “She is currently speaking to a co-worker.” Her voice suddenly changed as she emulated the unicorn’s. “I don’t care if you’re taking a break! I will not have the princess’s daughter be disappointed in us.” A strange sound followed, as if somepony breathed into a microphone.“You’ll get off work early, but you help me with this.” Toasty’s eyelights flickered as she lowered her ears.
“She- doesn’t want to disappoint me?” Shetland raised an eyebrow as she threw a confused glance at Twilight, who did a way better job hiding her bewilderment. Instead, she glanced disapprovingly at Toasty.
“Listening in on ponies is a bad habit.” she said sternly. “I would advise you to break it.”
“Oh, shush mom!” Shetland rolled her eyes, reaching a hoof out to Toasty to pat her back. “She’s got good ears, why not use them to have some fun?”
“It is not advisable in the current climate, Shetty.” Twilight said, her tone allowing no discussion.
Shetland let out a sigh as she fell back down. “No talky serious stuuuuff.” she whined, and smiled as it brought a chuckle out of the other mares.
“Of course.” Twilight said, rolling her eyes as magic sparked around her horn, turning a page in her book.
“Hey, mom.” Shetland whispered just as Twilight had read a little into the page. She was rewarded with a roll of the alicorn’s eyes.
“What is it?”
“Remember how I would always annoy you every time my birthday came around?”
Twilight huffed. “How could I forget. You’d make me narrate that model game you collect.”
Shetland grinned. “You hated that.”
“Yes, I did.” she rolled her eyes. Then her horn sparked to life and a box appeared in front of her. “And you’ll see that mama Twilight can also take a hint~”
Two metal forehooves pressed into Shetland’s shoulder as Toasty got up on her hindlegs, trying to make out the letters. “Grinding Wars. You... play a game based around it?”
“Yep.” Shetland said somberly as she shook the robot’s hooves off. “Usually with my friend, Press…” She paused for a moment. When she continued, she spoke noticeably quicker. “But before that, I always tried to get mom to play with me… and share some war-stories.” She regarded Twilight with a cautious, even worried look. “You… don’t have to do this.”
Twilight slowly opened the box, revealing rows upon rows of tiny model soldiers. Deliberately, she placed one after the other on a nearby table, her eyes slowly passing over each one. With a heavy breath, she looked at Shetland. “I want to.” She simply said. “Yes, I hate this game, it brings me back to a time I’d give so much to forget.” Then, miraculously, unfathomably… her lips formed into a smile. “But then, I also remember how you would gnaw my ears off to play with you. How you would listen when I gave you details, even when it wasn’t about the fighting itself. And I want to bring back those times.”
Shetland swallowed as she sat up, stunned by Twilight’s smile, her relaxed posture, the sincerity of her words… words that eluded her own helpless mouth. “That’s cool.” she eventually mumbled and felt an intense urge to smack her own head. Preferably with a sledgehammer. “I-I mean, we should play, yes. Uh…” Her eyes wandered to Toasty. “It’s only for two players, but you could still watch and listen. Mom will undoubtedly tell us all about the Grinding Wars.”
Toasty tilted her head. “I would like to, but I should inform you that I am sufficiently familiar with the events of the war.”
“But mom can tell it like nopony else.” Shetland assured her. “And she will probably not give up this chance to lecture us.” she added with a smirk.
“Undoubtedly.” Twilight grinned.
Shetland rolled her eyes and if her eyes didn’t deceive her, then Toasty made a little circling motion with her head, too. Both Sparkles began to set up the playfield by placing various objects to create cover for their respective armies. Meanwhile, Twilight spoke in a strident voice.
“The Grinding War was the worst military conflict in all our history, changing the fate of the world and our views on technology profoundly. Before the wars, ponykind- no, the entire world made vast use of networks that crossed not only our countries, but the entire planet. Its uses were nearly endless.” she chuckled. “If I started to name them, we’d be sitting here for days. Instead, let us examine the center of progress, the melting pot of ideas: the island state of Hiroshimare.”
Shetland groaned a little, her eyes darting over the game: she was okay with listening, but she also wanted to play while they were at it. Subtly, she poked the models of the pony soldiers, pushing them to Twilight’s side. Twilight gave her a nod, stopping her tale for a moment as she looked over her pieces. Even as she set them down on her side though, she was already back at her tale:
“Just off the shore of the conservative hyena empire, Hiroshimare was the home of all the great scientists over the world. Split into science-clans, they would always try to outdo another with ever greater inventions, some beneficiary to all society, some just… silly. A friend from the Giroux-clan gifted me a toilet that would make artificial fart noises to mask your actual… business.”
“That sounds counterintuitive.” Toasty commented. “Why not mask it with a sound different than the one you are attempting to hide?”
“They always had an immature sense of humor.” Twilight shrugged. Then her eyes shifted to Shetland and her voice became somber. “You want to play as Hiroshimare?”
“Mhmm.” Shetland said, placing down her last model.
Twilight sighed as she examined the model. It was a machine, modeled after a minotaur- or rather, it’s skeleton. And yet, even that was disfigured, with the legs ending in large claws and circular saws in place of hands. “Back then, those were made by the Hiroshimarean youth, geeky youngsters who just wanted to build robots and watch them tear each other apart in arenas. I always thought it was barbaric. They were never self-aware,” she added to Toasty, who slowly sunk back into a sitting position. “But still, it was too close to a blood-sport for my tastes. Maybe it was even the reason for what came next.” she made a pause, maybe for drama, but, more likely, to gather herself. “The war began. We don’t know if it was one A.I, a group of crazed beings in the shadow or some sort of hive mind, but it used the ubiquitously-connected nature of our technology against us. You have to understand, the entire world was connected through this network. And by controlling it, it could switch off everything.” she took a shaky breath. “All over the world, everywhere, lights were out, factories stood still, hospitals-” she swallowed, unable to finish the sentence. “And then, across the globe, we were under attack. By robots.”
“It was not our choice.” Toasty glared at the ground, her eyes a dark shade of red.
Twilight’s wing flared out, but Shetland was faster, reaching around the robot with one foreleg. Twilight stopped, contemplating the sight as a tiny smile replaced her frown. “It was a perfect plot. Attack everyone at once by surprise while simultaneously taking away our best weapons, our communications, everything we have come to rely on.”
“But we were prepared.” Shetland grinned.
“Oh, no, we most certainly weren’t, Shetty.” Twilight shook her head. “We weren’t even close to being prepared. But we had been warned.”
“You had?” Toasty raised her head. “I was not previously aware of that detail.”
“Oh, yes, history books like to gloss over that fact and pretend we beat Hiroshimare at it's full strength.” Twilight huffed. “The truth is, I don’t think we would have stood a chance if it's plan had been given enough time to even nearly reach completion. However, A.I’s aren’t the only beings good at infiltration.”
Toasty’s speaker made the sound of a gasp. “The changelings?” she exclaimed, then she poked her chin with a hoof. “Is that why the queen is now of rank equal to a princess?”
“Yes and yes.” Twilight smirked. “The changelings possibly saved us all.”
With an impatient sigh, Shetland began to tap her hoof on the table in a series of thuds. Twilight turned towards her, raising her eyebrows. “Well, well, little miss impatient is bored?”
“I just want you to get to the good parts.” The earth pony rolled her eyes.
Twilight stuck out her tongue “Well, you’ll have to wait. That’s what you get for bringing a guest.”
Shetland groaned, but decided to focus on scratching her itchy hindleg. Twilight cleared her throat before she fell back into her storyteller voice.
“It all seemed an ordinary day when Queen Chrysalis suddenly burst into my castle. I was taken aback, she could have easily defeated me before I raised a magical barrier. But instead, she surrendered, if only I was willing to listen to her warning.” Twilight bit her lip. “Still, it took her nearly twenty minutes to convince me to write a letter to Celestia. Thankfully, unlike me, she jumped to action immediately. Because a mere three hours after the queen flew through my window, the war had begun.” For a moment, the alicorn’s voice faltered. “If I had wasted less time… Chrysalis’s sacrifice allowed us to warn the world of what was coming. And after what seemed like mere moments, the world turned into Tartarus. Robots ran amok at the drop of a hat, technology failed, killing thousands of ponies as trains crashed into one another, gas pipes burst and even hospitals were left without power.” she swallowed. “Automated weapons went crazy, trying to form into armies with the rampaging robots. But we’d already moved to intercept them. Robots had been rounded up and-” Her voice faltered as her eyes passed over Toasty. “They were soon left without power and with our superiority in numbers and magic, the insurgence was soon largely defeated.” she paused. “I think… I think the warning had forced the machines to act on their plan early. If the infiltration had been more complete, I doubt we would have stood a chance. But as it was, we survived, although suffering enormous losses in lives and nearly all of our advanced technology.”
“And all we had left to fight them were these crappy repeater rifles.” Shetland poked a model of a pony, shouldering said rifle, the eyes hidden under a green miniature helmet.
“In a moment, Shetty.” Twilight whispered. “Somehow, the world had come out of this first wave intact. Many nations suffered great wounds, but only one had been wiped out. The one country whose army had been the most advanced… making it the most vulnerable.” She took a deep breath before she spoke the name, rumbling it in her throat like a curse. “Hiroshimare. They… they wiped out the entire population. Made it into a factory, building one murderous machine after the other, while turning the whole Island into an impenetrable fortress. But penetrate, we would have to. If not… they could have made weapons of mass destruction, ones that we knew in theory, but had never dared to build. And so,” she spoke in a grave voice, like a prophet about to signal the world’s end. “Equus unified. A pact was made: we would take Hiroshimare, no matter the cost.” Silence. Twilight’s eyes were wide open, as if lost in memory. Throwing a look at Toasty, Shetland swallowed, reaching out a shaking hoof to poke her mother’s shoulder -- but Twilight snapped back into reality before her daughter could reach her.
“It was a blood bath.” she stated somberly. “Carnage doesn’t even begin to describe it. We were simply ponies, hyenas, zebras and other beings. We had simple weapons, up against terrifyingly-sophisticated machines, built for nothing but the act of killing, perfectly coordinated in their strategy… terrifying. It was called the Grinding Wars, because it really was like we were throwing our people into a gigantic clockwork mechanism in a vain hope to make it stop. And that,” she whispered, meeting Shetland’s eyes. “Brings us to your game.”
“Y-yes,” Shetland muttered, trying to dodge the alicorn’s gaze. Suddenly, she was disgusted at herself for her earlier impatience. This must have been for Twilight like her own losses, only amplified by… by too much. “You don’t have to, you know?”
“I told you, I want to.” Twilight whispered, her horn glowing as she lifted a strand of Shetland’s mane out of her face. “Please excuse me if I leave out the gruesome details and focus on the… better parts.”
“Of course.” Shetland smiled weakly, and then a little more as her mother reciprocated the notion.
Their armies were put on different sides of the field, with Shetland’s robots starting clumped up between several ruined buildings as cover while the Equestrian army cowered in a long line of trenches, led by General Twilight, ironically.
“Is that me?” Twilight asked, a hint of amusement in her voice as she held up a small model (though larger than most of her soldiers). Model Twilight stood tall, wings flared out as her hoof pointed straight out at the enemy, her face a grimace of steel determination.
“What can I say?” Shetland smirked. “I like beating you.”
Twilight snickered. “Bring on your best.”
“Oh, I will.” Her face sunk into a state of concentrated resolve as she analyzed the battlefield. Twilight’s troops outnumbered her own by nearly six to one, but that wouldn’t be an issue if she was allowed to get up close and personal. With several Cuttertaurs - the creepy machines with the saw-arms - on her side, she’d dominate any close combat, even against Twilight’s single squad of Minotaurs. The problem of course, was getting close enough in the first place. So, for her first turn, she simply moved forward as far as she could while remaining largely in cover.
Nothing much happened on Twilight’s turn, a few potshots at small exposed parts of Shetland’s army, but her dice rolled badly, with no damage caused. Meanwhile, Twilight began to describe the actual war, the initial landing, bloody fights across the beaches, tales of heroism, pyrrhic victories and savage defeats. But for some reason, she didn’t tell it like she used to, Shetland realised. Twilight’s take used to be somber, always cutting back to the horror of the war, undercutting every victory with the staggering number of losses. This time, she left those parts out, telling it like an epic struggle of good versus evil, in which the heroes would inevitably triumph. The moment of confusion was swiftly undercut, however, as Twilight declared she’d landed a shot one one of Shetland’s models. One of her Cuttertaurs had received a hit, but she paid it back with a lucky dice roll, avenging it with one of Twilight’s soldiers. Mother and daughter eyed each other, carefully repositioning their armies, Shetland searching for an ideal moment to charge, Twilight denying her. As Twilight scored another lucky potshot, Shetland grit her teeth, meeting the alicorn’s grin. She wanted a battle? She would get a battle. She scoured the field for another weak point and then, she found it. The right side of Twilight’s line, she’d dismissed it before as the way was too far, but there was a hill she could use as cover. A grin broke out on her face as she pushed her army out of the city. Immediately, she was under severe fire, and although most bounced off her robot’s plating ineffectually, four machines of her fourteen fell over, just to be swiped off the field by Twilight’s magic. Still, Shetland smirked, ten were still more than enough to tear up several squads.
But Twilight didn’t seem worried at all. With a dirty grin, she deployed her backup unit: the great Equestrian dragon, right behind the weak zone. With a wild curse, Shetland re-evaluated the situation: if she went the same way, her robots would be roasted next turn, and if that did not kill them, the dragon would tear them apart. They were infantry-killers, their saws would not cut up a dragon! She muttered a curse again, her eyes darting over Twilight’s, hoping the alicorn would buy it. Because now she was able to deploy her own backup: two “Abominations”. Balancing on two arms that ended in large curved blades, the rest of their bodies were just a long spine, trailing behind like the tail of a snake, ending in an enormous, elongated skull. Several metres tall, they had been designed to destroy tanks by leaping on top of them and slicing them apart with their scythes, though they were incredibly dangerous to just about anything else, including a dragon. And even more importantly, Shetland smirked, they were hella tough. And now she had two of them charging at high speed directly at General Twilight’s position, while the Cuttertaurs looped around the hill and ran for the nearest trench. Twilight’s eyes bulged at the sight of two dangers, neither of which she could allow to come close. She decided to focus all her available fire at the Abominations, letting the dragon deal with the Cuttertaurs as she hurriedly retreated her own model. The end of the turn saw two slaughtered squads before the dragon managed to destroy most of the Cutters, one of the Abominations badly damaged as they failed to make contact with General Twilight. And now it was Shetland’s turn. She had won.
With a victorious grin, Shetland revealed the ace up her sleeve: mechanical worms, about a metre long each, burst out the ground, slicing up some of General Twilight’s bodyguard as they fought her to a standstill. On their own, they would quickly lose, but that was not their purpose. Now, Twilight could no longer retreat. In a single, glorious charge, Shetland’s Abominations wiped out the entire group, drawing an evil, victorious chuckle out of Shetland.
Twilight swallowed as she picked up her dice for the last time, rolling them, biting her lip as the result came. It was a good result, but faced with their leader’s gruesome fate, not enough for her troops. Headlessly turning to flight, the soldiers threw down their weapons, running for their lives as they were cut down by the remaining Mechworms.
With a playfully evil laugh, Shetland grinned at her mother. “I won.”
“Yes, you did.” Twilight mumbled, her eyes still on the field, where she magically put her fallen models back upright again.
“And it was really close, too!” Shetland exclaimed. Then she judged the field critically. “You know, you probably would have won if you’d used your dragon to screen your general, you could have dealt with my worms and just kept shooting my other stuff until it’s down.” She shook her head. “You’re always too finicky with that unit.”
Although Twilight gave no sign that she’d heard her daughter, she held the dragon in her hooves, inspecting it’s large wings, scarred hide and the large, sharpened green spikes. Her face was unreadable.
“Ehem, mom?” Shetland raised her eyebrow, clapping her hooves in front of Twilight’s face.
“W-wha- yes?”
“Are you up for a rematch? If not, you can help me put it back in the box, I’m not gonna do it alone.”
“No- no.” Twilight shook her head. “Though, maybe your friend would like to play against you?” she granted Toasty a friendly smile.
“Possibly in a while.” The robot said. “But for now, I believe we should let the spa ponies do their job. They have knocked three times during your game.”
“And you didn’t tell us?” Twilight shot up, her horn glowing. But then, it stopped and she faced Shetland. “Actually, before we resume our day of luxury, I wanted to ask you one thing.”
“Uh… what is that?” Shetland asked carefully.
“Not much.” Twilight said, though her sheepish smile made Shetland suspicious.
“What. is it?”
“I…” Twilight looked at a spot about a meter to Shetland’s right. “I invited Gan and Khunbish for dinner today.” Before Shetland was able to say anything, she hastily added: “You don’t have to come, though I do think you should…with you being able to work together with them now, maybe you could take the next step and befriend them!” she sighed at Shetland’s disbelieving raised eyebrow. “I know, you think it’s far-fetched, but at least we can learn more about them. What do you say?”
Shetland bit her lips, eyes on the ground. On one hoof, it made sense, even if she could only accept that fact begrudgingly. On the other, she’d been so glad to have the rest of the day free of stress, of worrying, of doing something she wanted instead of what made sense.
Next to her, Toasty’s hoof shot in the air.
“Uhm…” Twilight gave the robot a surprised look. “What is it?”
“May I cook the food?” Toasty asked. “I prefer making breakfast, but I would still be honored to prepare food for a princess.”
Twilight chuckled. “I would say yes, but Khunbish actually mentioned she would bring traditional foods of her homeland, they will be cooking for us.”
Toasty’s eyelights grew in intensity, until both Sparkles were unable to look at her due to the sheer brightness. She turned to Shetland, forcing the earth pony to close her eyes entirely.
“Thanks for helping me out with this.” Magenta spoke around a screwdriver in her teeth. She emerged from the engine, the protective plastic wrapper that was shielding her mouth drenched in oil. “If you can pull the lever now…”
“It’s nothing,” Following the order, Shetland watched as the sandtank was lifted upwards. “I needed to kill some time, anyway.” She knew that if she had nothing to do, she would only start fretting over the dinner. And even she had little patience left for her own paranoia.
Though tapping her hoof impatiently, Magenta waited until the mechanism clicked into place before she crawled under the vehicle. “Well, thank you anyway, this would take hours without a helping hoof.”
“Something I can’t give ya.” Pipe chuckled weakly. “You don’t have to hold the lever anymore, Miss Sparkle.” He looked terribly tired and his voice slurred, a sign of the medication he was on. A sort of walking stick held up his left side, one end propped up right under his foreleg, the lower half ending in three tiny wheels. He shook the bandaged limp, which ended right where his first joint would have been. “No helpin’ hoof, get it?”
Magenta groaned. “It’s not funny, you should go back to the hospital and rest!”
“I’m not leaving ‘til this is done, young lady.” he huffed stubbornly, even as he grasped for a bottle of water and drank greedily. “Anyway…” he said, his voice more level. “I’m only here to tell you and yer friend how ta use this stuff, I ain’t gonna overexert myself.” he sighed. “By the way, Shetland, could ya come here for a second?”
“Sure.” The earth pony shrugged.
“I’ve been trying to work this damn console.” Pipe muttered, poking his hoof against it. With a frustrated groan, he shook his head. “Every time I try to do somethin’ on it, I almost lose my balance with that damn thing. Who thought to put it on damn wheels? ” he wiggled his halved leg and sighed. “I miss lefty.”
“At least you have an excuse for not working out now.” Shetland joked weakly.
“Don’t seem to stop you.” he commented as he regarded her scarred hindleg. “You got lucky, didn’t you?”
Shetland’s eyes shifted from him to the console, dearly hoping he would get the hint so this conversation wouldn’t continue. Yet, after several seconds of silence filling the room, she muttered: “I, uh… didn’t consider myself so ‘til now.”
“Hey, Pipe.” Magenta slid out from below the sandtank. “What is that thing you wanted her to do?”
He blinked, seemingly snapping out of a stupor. “Oh, yes. I wanted to check whether it’s airtight or not. First we’ll create a vacuum and then-”
It took only those few words for Shetland to stop paying attention to the technical bafflegap. Fortunately, he took breaks to explain which buttons to push, and so she could simply wait for the specific instructions. Not that she could have focused on his gibberish even if she’d wanted to. Despite Twilight protecting her leg from the moisture, it had begun to feel sore, like it had been rubbed with sandpaper. But she’d told Magenta she was gonna help, so it’d have to wait until she could get home and smear on that relieving salve.
“Are you okay?” Shetland felt a hoof poke her side. Pipe looked at her questioningly. “You look… angry.”
“Not angry.” Shetland grumbled. “Just… irritated I guess.”
“Is there some way I can help?”
“No. I just gotta tough it out and then get a good night’s rest.” If I can, Shetland added inwardly. Maybe mom will let me have some of those anti-dreaming pills.
“Well, if you change your mind, you can always come to Maggie and me.” Pipe offered. “There’s gotta be a way we can pay ya back for savin’ our flanks.”
“You don’t-” Shetland shook her head. “I wasn’t doing anything special, really. I was just the first to come.”
“And I’m mighty grateful that you did, ‘cause a crushed leg hurts, let me tell ya.”
“Yeah… I can imagine.” Shetland muttered. “Is there anything else you need help with?”
Pipe exchanged a look with Magenta, who once again slid out from under the tank. Magenta shrugged. “No, I think I can go from here alone. Thanks for the help.”
Shetland shrugged as she turned to leave. “Then I should go, gotta fix myself up for the thing later.”
Her hoof had just touched the door when Magenta called out. “Shetland?”
“Hmm?”
“He didn’t just mean the time with the tank. Thank you for saving us before that.”
“Don’t mention it.” Shetland said, shaking her head lightly.
Shetland spun around. “I said don’t!” she growled. Then she blinked, and realized with surprise that her breathing had quickened. Slowly relaxing her features, she took a deep breath before meeting Magenta’s eyes. “If you want, you can come visit me sometime this week. ‘Cept today, of course.” Then she turned to leave. It might be growing into a bad habit, but the loud THWUMP of the door was just so satisfying. Her miniscule smile quickly disappeared as she looked back at the door, feeling like she had to apologize. But she could do that some other time, she decided as she left the building. Maybe she could convince Magenta to go to the gym with her, that’d be a nice place to hang out… and a fresh new experience for the scrawny pegasus. With a chuckle, Shetland began to wander the path between the various structures, towards the Central hub she could make in the distance, an hour away if she hurried. Yes, it’d be much better if Magenta would be the one to visit her, she decided. A flapper could probably make that distance in five or ten minutes.
Suddenly, from the general noise of ponies at work, Shetland heard her own name being whispered. Turning her head a little bit, she could see a robot from the corner of her eye, it’s leg extended and pointing at her.
“That’s her?” A batpony beside it whistled. “Phew, I thought you were joking when you told me how tall she was.” Then, to Shetland’s surprise, he called for her: “Hey, uh, you, earth pony.”
She turned around, watching as the robot smacked the pony’s shoulder, as if punishing him for calling her by her race. “Uhm…” she began, throwing a quick look around, as if there could be anypony else he could mean.
“Are you Shetland Sparkle, the daughter of Princess Twilight?”
“Mhmm.” Shetland said. She should have been used to it by now, but it still irked her to be defined by being her mother’s child like that. Still, she approached the odd pair.
“Damn, she’s like a rhino.” The bat pony whispered, receiving another poke from the robot.
“And I have ears like a bat.” Shetland said, unamused. The bat pony blushed and awkwardly rubbed his mane.
“Please forgive Nightingale, his mouth is faster than his brain.” The robot lowered it’s head a little. From this distance, Shetland could recognise the stockier characteristics of a male model.
“He… is forgiven.” Shetland said as she raised her eyebrows at the pair, then at the surrounding area, quickly noticing a few groups all around watching them, each containing at least one robot. Her head snapped back to the robot in front of her. “What is this?” she asked, narrowing her eyes. She forced her eyes to remain on him, despite the tingling of the others watching her. Is this some kind of elaborate joke?
“What this is?” The robot tilted his head.
“Why did you call me over?” Shetland groaned, feeling her precious supplies of patience dwindle by the second. “And tell your friends to stop staring!” She shot glances at the other groups, noting with satisfaction that all of them rushed to hide their peeking.
“Uhm… excuse us.” The robot said ruefully. “We saw you earlier today and wished to speak with you, but you were in the company of our… guests.”
“Oh.” Of course. “And why did that prevent you from speaking to me?”
“We were not sure what to make of them, if I am honest. They claim to be on our side, and yet, they show disdain for our… for robots-” he stopped, seemingly unsure whether or not to continue. Not that he had to, Shetland knew what came next: And we had three disappearances shortly after their arrival.
And if you counted Toasty, Shetland thought as she grit her teeth, it would be four. Sweat formed on her back. She saw it in the robot’s body language, they were tense, and who wouldn’t be? The realization what a single wrong word could cause in this situation gripped her like the fist of a titan. She wrestled down a sudden urge to kick the stupid pair that pulled her into this predicament, and instead she took a long breath, feeling every single stare as the silence grew. The hyenas definitely had something to do with all this. Even if she had no proof, she knew. But she couldn’t tell these robots, she had to say…
“They’re on our side.” she finally said. Immediately she noticed the doubtful look Nightingale exchanged with his robot friend. Yeah, I would give the same look. Tartarus, why do I have deal with this… politics crap? “They… are not responsible for the disappearances.” At the very least, not directly. Twilight had told her they had an alibi during both storms. But there was a missing piece, something that linked them - she shook her head and swallowed. “But I think you should still give them space. It’s no secret they dislike you and… we can deal with a little less drama, right?” she ended. Sweat dropped down on her nose. Her legs were restless, her hindleg in particular felt like it was filled entirely with pins and needles. What time was it? “Anything else?” she asked gruffly.
“Well, yes!” Nightingale exclaimed. “Luna still refuses to give our robot friends equal rights to us normal ponies, completely unjust! Why should they pay for crimes done by something else nearly a century ago?”
Shetland groaned inwardly as she heard the argument, one that she herself had made so many times. Though, her mind wagered, what would be the consequences of publicly agreeing-
“All we want is to be treated fairly.” The robot said, his volume climbing nearly to a shout. “We are being targeted and Luna refuses to give us the means to defend ourselves!”
“I KNOW!” Shetland stomped her hoof. Fuck Politics. “I know and if I could, I’d change it right away!” she groaned. “There’s no good reason for it. I wish I could do more, but I can’t slap Luna to reason. Not literally.” If only… But she had to sadly shake her head. “Is this all now?”
Nightingale nodded, but his robot friend poked his shoulder. Their eyes met and the bat pony chuckled. “Sorry, one more thing if that’s okay…” he dug into his saddlebag, meanwhile smirking at his friend before he produced a slip of paper. “Could you sign this?”
It took Shetland a moment to realize what he had just asked of her. “What …” she muttered, too quiet for anyone to hear as she looked over the paper, like she was searching for the small print on a contract. But no, it was just an empty slip of paper. She looked to the robot, hoping for an explanation, but he carried the same hopeful look as his friend, who also held out a pen for her. Confused, Shetland reached down and scribbled out her name, wondering what the heck just happened as she spat out the pen and Nightingale presented the paper to his friend with a big grin. “I’m… going home now.” she said, awkwardly waving them goodbye as she rushed, only stopped from a full gallop by the light limp forced on her by her bad leg. A couple hundred questions rushed into her mind, and she felt no eagerness to answer any of them as she fled the scene.
As she stumbled towards the building that was her home, the only thing on her mind her itching side and aching hooves, she was greeted with an unexpected sight. It was like the cooking supplies of an obsessed camper had taken up shop, just that each item looked like it was from a past age. A bowl, suspended by stacks of wood, hung over a pile of hot, glowing rocks. On the ground next to it stood three tureens, each filled with a sauce of different color. And by a long wooden plank, a hyena sat, filling a line of dumplings with ingredients taken from an assortment of bags. As Shetland approached, she realized in a moment of pride that she could tell it was Gan, even without Khunbish there for comparison. Not that he was alone, as just that moment, Toasty came out of the building and threw a tiny bag in Gan’s direction. He cursed as he caught it. “No play with food, machine!”
But Toasty took no note of his words, as she had spotted Shetland. “You’re early.” She shouted over Gan’s nagging, causing him to whip his head around to Shetland.
The earth pony shrugged. “My leg’s been aching.” she replied. “Wanted to take care of that in peace and take a shower, y’know?”
“You do that.” Toasty said jovially and watched with great interest as Gan used a pair of tongs to move a rock from within the fire and into one of the tureens “I will stay here in the meantime.”
Gan’s rough voice grumbled. “She here for last hour. Watching me.”
“Toasty!” Shetland hissed as she pulled the robot aside. She lowered herself to the robot’s ears and tried to whisper, even as she struggled to keep her voice calm. “You’ve been out there with him for a full hour? Was there anypony to watch you?”
Toasty pushed against her, but as Shetland wouldn’t let her go she stomped the ground. “Release me right now.” she hissed and as the earth pony did, created several hoofsteps of distance. “I can watch after myself.”
“No, you cannot!” Shetland said, her pretenses of quiet already forgotten. “Neither of the other robots could. You couldn’t!”
“But that was when we were alone, Shetland. Alone and out of sight. I am currently at the center of our main colony!”
“HE may not be of help when you are being attacked.” Shetland growled. “They are connected, remember?”
“You suspect that without proof.” Toasty poked her hard hoof into Shetland’s shoulder. “And again, we are in the middle of our main hub. He would be really stupid to try something here. Especially,” she created a sound akin to a snort echoing through a metal box. “Since Twilight Sparkle knows I am right outside. I can watch myself, Shetland,” she added earnestly. “This is not much different than it was in Canterlot. Do not go somewhere you cannot be seen. Always have somepony know where you are. These are the rules I was practically built with.” she sighed. “I had hoped I could leave them behind, but look what happened to me when I did.” A white hoof poked against her visor, behind which her green eyelights grew dimmer.
“It’s not so bad, I think you’re looking pretty snazzy, now.” Shetland said hurriedly as she took Toasty’s face in her hooves. “Look, your eyes are like mint drops!” She flashed a big, fake grin.
“Ha.” Was Toasty’s weak reaction.
Shetland sighed. “Yeah, you make sense. I just… worry, you know?”
“I know,” Toasty said as her eyes regained their brightness. “And it is very sweet, if unnecessary. Look, he is even unarmed.” Her hoof pointed to Gan, who indeed wore nothing but what appeared to be a sheet of paper stretched across his forelegs, letting only his claws poke through small holes. She quickly realized why that was, too, as it held back his coat while he was using his claws to drag the dough into the shape of dumplings.
“Machine think I am weak.” Gan scoffed. “I am warrior. I am dangerous, even if no weapon.”
Shetland took a sudden step towards him, stomping her hoof on the ground as hard and as loud as she could. <And you should hope that you never have to show it, hyena, or I’ll have to do the same!> She spoke in his language, sternly, every syllable rumbling in her throat before she threw it out.
She noted with a manner of glee that he jerked back, even swallowed worriedly. He stepped forward again, checking over the contents of each of his pots. Did he chuckle? Shetland blinked in confusion as he looked up, a delighted grin on his face as he leaned his head back in a hearty, utterly confusing laugh.
<You know,> he guffawed. <In the empire, you would be amongst the most coveted mares.>
That took a turn she did not expect. Now startled herself, she stared at him like he had lost his mind. Toasty looked from one to the other, confused and frustrated by her inability to understand their language.
<Strong, aggressive, commanding,> Gan continued to speak at her. <You’re not like the other ponies, you feel intensely, you act wild. Qualities like this would make you very attractive in my homeland.> he chuckled, which turned into a sigh. <I miss my homeland. Among ponies, we are chained like you.>
Shetland shook her head. <What the heck do you mean? Chained?>
<You chain yourself.> Gan said, giving her a look that was almost… pitying. <To land, to rules, to harmony.>
<Oh, don’t tell me you don’t have rules in the empire.> Shetland scoffed. <I’m pretty sure your Great Khan doesn’t stay in power with friendly suggestions.>
<Of course not.> Gan laughed. <He rules by respect, respect for his power and his rulings. We…> he stopped, shaking his head. <You would have to be there. In the empire, we live intensely. We feel intensely. We admire wildness. We create respect for ourselves and clash against that of others.> he chuckled. <This is life. You should consider visiting one day.>
<What makes you say that?> Shetland raised an eyebrow.
<Because,> he grinned pointedly. <You would be immeasurably attractive there.>
It took a moment for Shetland to regain her senses enough to feel her dropped jaw. She shook her head and tried to respond with… something, but at this point Toasty let out a loud coughing noise. “If I may ask, what the heck are you talking about?”
“Oh, sorry Toasty, forgot you couldn’t follow.” Shetland replied sheepishly and briefly outlined the conversation to her.
For some reason, Toasty’s eyes darkened. Her tail struck out, as if to swat a fly. “That is nice.” she said passively. “An interesting insight into hyena values. Although I am more interested in their cooking.” With that, she turned to the boiling stew. “It shows an ingenuity I have never considered.” Suddenly, she poked her hoof right into the fire. Shetland gasped, but it didn’t seem to hurt the robot, who retrieved a glowing rock from the pile. “Earlier, he mixed these rocks into this vessel with the rice and other ingredients for the dumplings, slowly cooking them from within.” Toasty pointed at what eerily reminded Shetland of a milk container. “And later, during the meal, the same rocks are passed around to warm one’s paws and give off good fortune.”
“Well, I’ll be.” Shetland muttered. She had the sudden suspicion that this was not the setup of a hobbyist camper.
Gan groaned. “Tell machine it may help if it not chatter.” he allowed Toasty to take his seat while he stirred the stew. He then looked up at Shetland. “You tell Sparkle Princess we finish in half hour. Please.” he added after a few seconds.
“You’re… gonna be okay, right?” Shetland whispered to Toasty, who seemed fully engrossed in her task of filling dumplings.
“Certainly, Shetland.” she replied, waving a hoof dismissively. “I will be fine. Though you smell like you should take a shower.”
Shetland snorted. “Yeah… be careful, alright?”
“Go!” Toasty groaned.
A strong yet alluring smell teased Shetland’s nostrils as Toasty and Gan filled an exotic carpet with dish after dish, way more than she’d been expecting. Soon, furniture had to be pushed into the kitchen and bathroom, just to allow everypony to comfortably sit. Gan and Khunbish sat across from the Sparkles, while Toasty kept herself distanced, merely watching from a few feet away. She threw a fleeting look to Shetland, softly shaking her head. She did not want to join. Too bad, Shetland shrugged. The aroma and sheer quantity of food was breathtaking. “That’s a lot of food.” she commented as she loaded her plate. There were… blocks of white something she curiously sniffed at. It's smell was dry, with a hint of sweetness, but she couldn’t place it.
“It is called Aaruul.” Khunbish explained. “It is made of sour milk by separating the chunks, pressing them into shape and letting them dry. Their taste ranges from sour to sweet and they never spoil.”
“Interesting,” Twilight mused as she levitated one to her face. “I’ve eaten your cuisine before, but never this. It must be a rural dish?”
“You could say so,” Khunbish said, showing a smirk towards Gan. “You ate this alot when traveling with your clan?”
Gan grumbled something unintelligible in Hyenidae. Then his eyes widened as Shetland had opened her mouth to take a bite out of the strange block. Gan shouted: “Do not-”
But it was too late. When Shetland’s teeth chomped down on the Aaruul, they hit what must have been clay. Her bite managed to imprint on the block, but then it was repelled, sending a merciless wave of pain into her gums. “AUGH!” Shetland shouted, holding her mouth as she waited for the pulsating pain to subside.
“Are you okay?” Twilight asked worriedly, her wings ruffling until Shetland calmed her with a nod.
“Aaruul very hard.” Gan said apologetically.
“Apology… accepted.” Shetland grumbled, testing each of her teeth with her tongue, in case one had gotten loose. She breathed in and out, pointing her hoof away from her chest as she did. <We can speak in your language.> she then offered to him.
<Great idea!> Twilight instantly agreed. Somehow, her excited voice managed a high pitch even in the throaty, rough language of the hyenas. <It would suit the theme of the occasion too.>
Gan tried to hide his relief, but he simply couldn’t summon his stoic mask fast enough, causing both Shetland and Khunbish to chuckle.
<Still though,> Shetland said. <This is a lot of food. Especially for a-> she paused, hoping her assumption was right. <Nomadic lifestyle.>
Gan snorted. <Of course we don’t eat that much while we’re traveling. Do you know the tradition of three meals?>
Shetland blinked, suddenly wondering if she was supposed to know this. She felt an itch at the side of her head, was Twilight glaring at her right now for forgetting? She didn’t want to check as she shook her head.
<We pride ourselves in our ability to cross from any town to another on only two meals.> Gan explained. <Therefore, when traveling, we always pack exactly three meals.>
<But-> Shetland raised an eyebrow, but Khunbish interrupted her before she could even speak.
<One meal is carried for hospitality’s sake. The steppes are vast, and often empty. One may travel alone for weeks. For this reason, meeting another traveler usually results in a warm welcome, paired with a feast.>
<Aaand it’s quite useful to have some backup provisions.> Shetland added.
<Only on rare occasion.> Gan crossed his paws. <If… that doesn’t happen and you do not share it either, it is eaten upon arrival.>
<And… you carry all that around?> Shetland asked in astonishment as she eyed the vast amounts of foodstuff. It seemed impossible for a single hyena to carry this much, let alone three times.
<Spirits, no!> Gan laughed. <This is all three meals from both of us together.> he gently tapped Khunbish’s shoulder, then withdrew his paw quickly, like he expected her to try to bite it.
<And then we requested some supplies from your local kitchens.> Khunbish said evenly, her eyes fixated on Twilight. <I hope you find this acceptable.>
<Of course.> Twilight waved the concern off. Her eyes, sparkling with curiosity, could not be moved from Gan. <You said you come from a nomadic tribe? I’d like to know more!>
Aaaand here we go. Shetland rolled her eyes and hurriedly grabbed more food to fill her plate as her mother squeezed the poor hyena for information. Good luck, she thought. It’ll be like trying to fill a bottomless barrel.
She soon found a liking for a bun-shaped dish called a Boortsog, with a crunchy exterior hiding it's buttery insides. Noodles and rice were abundant, with several exotic sauces, while vegetables were mostly restricted to the stew. Instead, there were a lot of milk-based foods, like the Aaruul, which she discovered one had to suck like a popsicle to the get the sweet taste out of. Though she quickly placed her block down as she realized that it’d take hours to eat even one that way. On the other side, there was Ayrag, fermented milk with a sour tone and a mild amount of alcohol, which she guzzled down until her thoughts slowed considerably. Resting her head on her forelegs and with a pleasant calm sloshing in her brain, she listened in on the conversation.
Twilight had nearly tickled Gan’s entire life’s story out of him: he’d grown up in a nomadic clan travelling through the eastern Khanates, along the coast. They tended to a herd of goats while traveling to fishing villages, trading cheese and wool for fish and various other goods they’d sell at some other point. He had anecdotal stories about a time his clan had fought a small war against another over their herds, ending with his clan as the victor and proud owner of both herds. This became too much to handle for his diminished tribe, and they allegedly lost nearly a third of their “loot” before they could reach a city. While Shetland could only shake her head, Gan told the story with a pride-swelled chest, highlighting specific parts in the fights where he’d played a role.
<So you have combat experience.> Twilight raised an eyebrow. <Though I wonder why you were chosen as one of only two representatives to help us in this case. Those aren’t exactly the skills needed for an investigation.>
In an instant, Gan’s expression changed to one of seriousness and focus. <It played a role.> he said, glancing to Khunbish. <I was chosen to represent the strength of the empire, as well as my loyalty.> he leveled a stern look at Twilight. <I left my clan when I followed the general conscription, even if most do not.>
<Travelling clans are usually exempt from conscription.> Khunbish added. <The Great Khan bestows this, as well as other boons to those wildborn. It ensures that their loyalties are to him, no matter which Khanate they travel through. Of course, there are more reasons why he was chosen than just that. He is always on alert, his attention span is near-infinite and…> A grin formed on her face. <Maybe you should tell them.>
Gan groaned. <I fought a robot. A bad one. Not like yours> he grumbled, throwing a look to Toasty. She seemed surprised to be addressed and gave Shetland a glare. The earth pony nodded, she’d translate everything later.
<Though you can’t really call it a fight.> Gan muttered. <We found it on the beach, rusted old thing. We thought it was dead, that we could sell it whole or in parts. Turns out… wasn’t quite dead yet.> he clenched his teeth. <Suddenly struck out, its spinning saw cutting straight through my clan-brothers leg. I struck out and managed to push it back. Guess that was all it had left. Couldn’t move. Took a hammer and smashed it to bits to make sure.> he shook his head. <There was no honor in fight. I clobbered a hunk of metal.>
<And that gives you more experience than anyone else in the empire.> Khunbish said drily. <As for me, my life wasn’t as exciting. I was born in the southern realms, where I spent most of my life.>
Twilight sucked air through her teeth. <The south is… infamous for it’s constant small scale wars.> she said cautiously, not moving her eyes from the hyena.
Khunbish chuckled. <Skirmishes, rather. The Great Khan allows the Khans to compete with each other for bits of territory.> She placed a paw on her chest. <Competition, on a small scale, breeds wealth, power, prepares you for disaster.> She threw a look to Toasty. "In a way, we have to thank your kind. Without your invasion, the empire would have never existed like it does now." She grinned at the enraged look Gan gave her. <It was only after you wreaked havoc on our lands that the Great Khan could unify us all and lead us to victory. Before, we were hundreds of small, peaceful Khanates. Without power, without rule.>
Shetland and Twilight exchanged an uncertain look. Then, nearly unnoticeable, Twilight’s horn sparked and a small magical aura zipped across her closed mouth.
<Khans freely combat another, it produces strong and experienced soldiers and prevents our people from growing soft… as long as it doesn’t get out of paw.> Khunbish added. <The Great Khan has made it a rule that if he is forced to intervene, he will de-throne both of the would-be conquerors. And who could defy him?>
<Did you ever fight in one of those skirmishes?> Shetland asked darkly. And just as she’d suspected, Khunbish shook her head.
<No, my fate was to move to Clawakorum so I could study.>
Shetland nodded, looking to the ground as her dislike of the hyena peaked. A stupid, little scrap-eater who spouts shit about strength and whatever. One who never had to give up anything herself. Never lost anything! She chomped down a plate of Boortsog, ignoring the complaints of her stretched stomach.
Soon after, the dinner came to an end. Twilight still attempted to chat with Khunbish, but as neither Shetland nor Gan made any attempt to join in, that too soon ceased. Khunbish was the first to stand up, bowing her head first to Twilight, then Shetland.
<Thank you for your hospitality.> she said formally.
<It is you we should thank.> Twilight smiled. Then, with a little frown, she gently kicked Shetland. <That means you too, Shetty, they made all the food you wolfed down like a starving bear today.>
Shetland grumbled as she got up on her hooves. If only she could conceivably call Twilight a liar, but she felt stuffed beyond belief, like her belly was swinging between her legs. Still, she lowered her head, ignoring the pressure in her throat. <Thank you.> she recited.
Twilight groaned. <My own daughter, the pinnacle of good manners.> she shook her head. <I think she would prefer to stay here instead of showing the courtesy of accompanying you back to your quarters?>
Shetland grunted, feeling decidedly too uncomfortable to suck up Twilight’s teasing.
The alicorn clearly disapproved as she rubbed her temple. “Well, seems I have to do it. Good night, Shetty.” With that, she turned away, finally leaving Shetland alone to fall back on her bed.
Tartarus, she was just about ready to burst. She’d definitely have to cut back tomorrow and resume her exercises, she thought, biting her lip as she rubbed her hoof over her stomach, groaning at the sight of her hoof sinking into the flesh. Was it doing that yesterday?
Shetland whipped back her hoof as a chuckle came from the kitchen, looking away as to hide her face, which rapidly attained a hue like a strawberry. And still, she could hear the robot grinning as she approached.
“You are not fat.” Toasty said.
“Who said anything about fat?” Shetland crossed her hooves, shooting a glare at the robot.
“I did. I said you were not. At least, not very.”
“Urgh!” Shetland groaned as she showed Toasty her back. “Don’t gimme sass.”
“I do not plan to. Anypony should be allowed to let loose and wolf down extraordinary amounts of nutrition if they want to. Though of course, I cannot judge that, as I cannot eat. In truth, it makes me quite jealous to see the joy you perceive when feasting like today.”
“Uhm…” Shetland stared at the ceiling, wishing she could force sensical statements to jump out of her mouth. “Sorry for that…”
“You do not have to be. I do enjoy watching the act of consumption. And when I open my restaurant, I will look forward to seeing you double in mass.”
That brought a snicker out of the earth pony, followed by a massive belch.
“I think I felt the ground shake just now.” Toasty snickered.
“You did not!” Shetland rolled her eyes.
“Did too!”
“Did not.”
“Did too!”
“Did not!” Shetland shouted and grabbed Toasty, lifting her off her hooves. “And now you can’t feel the ground do anything!”
“Let me down, please.” Toasty said, her hooves emitting a clank upon landing. “How was the dinner?”
Shetland leaned back. “It was… okay. It wasn’t as much about… I dunno… mindgames as I thought? It seemed to be all friendly chatter, for the most part.”
“Not that I would know.” Toasty said drily. “I still expect you to translate everything later.”
“Do you have it all recorded?” Shetland raised an eyebrow.
“Certainly,” Toasty’s eyelights flickered as she knocked on her own head. “But Shetland, I was asking about the food, still. Also, are you gonna let all of this spoil?” She pointed her hoof at the carpet, where a about a quarter of the dishes remained uneaten, wasted.
“Oh, you obsessed little cookbot.” Shetland nickered before she rolled on her hooves. “Gonna help me store this stuff away for tomorrow?”
“Of course.”
“Also… try to get the recipe for Boortsog.”
Under the sound of continued chatter, they began to stuff everything they could into the fridge. It was at least enough for another hearty meal, a temptation Shetland hoped she’d be able to resist for at least a couple days. Toasty did most of the work, on account of Shetland fearing to upset her stomach if she moved too much. Instead, the earth pony was mostly preoccupied with translating all the conversations. It was amazing how much she’d forgotten or failed to realize the first time around. Did Gan seriously claim to fight using a head-mounted crossbow? What did Khunbish study? And why was Gan chosen to come to Horizon? in retrospect, the answers weren’t exactly satisfying. One would think the Great Khan would send someone with actual experience in crime investigation. Shetland sighed and looked out the window and into the dark of the night as she pondered these questions. While most glass surfaces were still dusty and covered with sand from the latest storm, hers was squeaky clean, certainly an effort on her mother’s part to make the room more presentable. She could really get lost in unnecessary preparations…
Shetland blinked. Somepony was running out there. No, not somepony, it was her mother, and if she recognized the dark shapes at her side, she was flanked by Voidmarines. Only a moment later, Twilight’s voice burst into the room.
“Shetland, are you here, are you okay?”
The voice was quickly followed by Twilight herself, who frantically looked around the room.
“W-What is going on?” Shetland asked, ready on her hooves. “Are we being attacked?”
“Did someone disappear again?” Toasty chimed in.
“No…” Twilight breathed heavily, like she just ran over. “No, nopony is hurt… at least, we don’t know of anypony.” she took a deep breath. “Someone broke into the delegates’ room.”
“Of course somepony was!” Twilight burst out, a wave of anger rising in her voice. “And yet, their room is nearly demolished…” she took another deep breath, sobering her tone. “I need to go now, Shetty, I have to ensure our guests’ safety myself.
“Sparktail,” she addressed the unicorn Voidmarine at her side. “You will stay here until the morning, make absolutely sure of my daughter’s safety.” As the unicorn saluted, Twilight turned to Shetland. “Be safe, I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”
“O-okay.” Shetland muttered, her eyes widened by all the news that had suddenly been dumped on her. She met Toasty’s eyes. “Who would break into the hyenas’ place?” she whispered.
“I don’t know.” Toasty said quietly, her voice lacking any of the brightness it usually sported. And with horror, Shetland realized that the robot was shaking. “But how?”
“T-Toasty!” Shetland swallowed as she reached protectively around her. “Nopony got hurt, remember?”
“But they could have.” Toasty’s voice was nearly toneless. “Their room was not only in the midst of the colony, but it was also guarded. How could someone enter and exit without anypony taking notice? Do you not see?” She spoke louder as she met Shetland’s eyes, her own eyelights shrunk to tiny, bright green pinpricks. “I thought you or I would be safe as long as we were not alone and within the colony. But it turns out, we are not. There is no safe place, There… let go of me!” she shouted as Shetland pulled her into an embrace.
“You’re not in danger.” Shetland whispered, her voice husky.
“Yes, I am!” Toasty protested. “Everypony is!”
“Not you,” Shetland’s hooves shivered as she spoke. She felt sweat creeping out of her mane, but she forced her voice to be calm and determined. “I won’t let anything get close enough to you again. I promise.” With that, she turned to the unicorn, who had awkwardly avoided looking at them. “Private, give me your secondary weapon.”
The mare turned to them, certainly with a bewildered expression, but Shetland gave her no chance to protest. “Now.” Shetland growled darkly, standing up to her full height, towering over the armored mare. With an audible swallow, the unicorn removed her pistol from her side, levitating it over to Shetland.
“A-are you familiar with-”
“I’m sufficiently trained.” Shetland grumbled as she finished checking the magazine and flipped the safety on and off. Then she reached down and carried the smaller robot mare onto the bed, on which she appeared hilariously under-sized. Shetland herself sat down right in front of it, training her eyes at the door. “Rest yourself, Toasty.” she whispered. “If something happens, I’ll take care of it.” She dearly hoped that her voice sounded reassuring and stable. Inwardly, she cursed herself for having drunken so much Ayrag.
A series of blaring beeps tore through the dark veil. Sputtering back to consciousness, Shetland jerked up, momentarily confused to find herself on the cold ground, yet still covered with a blanket. Then memories of the last night caught up. Toasty! she jumped to her hooves, her heart pounding as she frantically searched the empty bed. “TOASTY?” she shouted, her voice trembling. Luckily, the response was nearly instant.
“I am in the kitchen, Shetland. Do not worry, I just wanted to make breakfast.”
Shetland slumped back to the ground, closing her eyes as she pressed her forehead against the cool bedpost, waiting for her heart to calm down. Her head felt like an egg with a cracked shell, courtesy of yesterday’s feast. Meanwhile, her hoof sought out the cold, reassuring grip of the gun beside her. “How long was I asleep?” she asked, unable to face her alarm’s display.
“Only for an hour.”
“Why didn’t you wake me?” Shetland asked as her voice grew louder.
In response, Toasty’s head poked out of the small kitchen. “Shetland, it is nice that you want to guard my sleep, but I do not require rest. You do.”
“Could you have guarded mine?” Shetland faced the robot, holding up the heavy pistol.
Toasty’s eyes shifted to the ground. At the lack of a response, Shetland frowned. “Thought so.” The robot attempted to meet her eyes, but her resolve quickly crumbled under Shetland’s glare and she fled back into the kitchen.
Shetland let out a sigh as she leaned back, her head on the covers as she stared at the ceiling. “Stupid.” she whispered, clenching her jaw until her teeth hurt. She pressed her eyes closed as she kept muttering the word, hoping it was quiet enough that Toasty wouldn’t come looking. A shiver went through her body. She felt exposed, like a plucked, naked little griffon. How can I do this? she asked herself, feeling the stares rest heavily on her back. Her mouth was impossibly dry, the monumental task that she’d almost already failed-
“I don’t know if I can do this.” she whispered towards the ceiling as her voice trembled. “I promised to all of you I wouldn’t fail this time- but how?” she covered her eyes with a hoof, hoping beyond all reason that Toasty wasn’t watching her. “Stupid.” she whispered once more, wishing she could just dig herself a hole and hide in it forever. Then she drew a sharp breath, hauling herself up as she checked the room. “Where is the Voidmarine that was with us last night?”
“I believe she is right outside.” Toasty answered.
“She better be.” Shetland grumbled. Unable to be certain, she went to see the armored Voidmarine sitting across from the entrance, rifle on the ground next to her. At first, Shetland suspected she was snoozing, but then the unicorn raised her head and a second later her gun was facing a spot several feet below Shetland’s hooves. Shetland had to resist the urge to raise her own weapon as she met the unicorn’s gaze, which quickly changed from alarm to concern.
“Everything okay up there?” The unicorn asked.
“Yeah… how about you, uh…”
“Sparktail, and yes. All clear, you can go rest yourself until the curfew passes.”
Shetland’s eyes widened. “T-There’s a curfew?”
“Damn right.” Sparktail shook her head. “Can’t say I don’t agree, three disappearances and now this in just a couple days. I just hope this doesn’t blow up when Princess Luna decides to lift it. Either way, nothing happened over here. You can go back and play with your robot.” she yawned. “Actually, if she could make me some breakfast too, that’d be neat.”
“I’ll tell her.” Shetland promised, closing the door as she let out a sigh, unsure whether to feel more or less worried. A curfew. Of course it made sense, and yet it took all the problems out of some shadowy corner and brought them out into broad daylight. Everypony was now affected. Not just robots, not just Shetland and Toasty, everypony. Somehow, that fact had eluded her until now, but everypony had to be worried, wracking their own brains about what was going on and, most frightening of all: they all knew even less than her.
“Shetland?”
The earth pony gasped for breath, suddenly aware of her surroundings, including the robot in front of her. “Wha-” Her voice died as she discovered her dry mouth. “Yes, I’m here.”
“I see that.” Toasty said quietly. “Breakfast is ready. I used some of the leftovers from yesterday if you don’t mind.”
“No, of course not. I liked all of that.” Shetland said in an attempt to sound cheerful. “I think Sparktail would like some too.”
“She better come fast, I might not be able to keep it from your ravenous maw for long.” her eyes lit up, yet her voice was monotone; the crude stakkato of a machine, bar any sense of accentuation. Still, Shetland forced herself to smile, even giving a little chuckle.
“Yeah… I don’t actually feel that hungry today.” In truth, she would have waited a few hours to eat, but the desire to keep the robot calm made her sit down. Bread, noodles, juice, Shetland poured it in her mouth with little regard, her eyes focused on Toasty. “We… have to talk.”
The robot only nodded, unable to meet her eyes.
Shetland let out a sigh. “From now on, you always have to be at my side, or mom’s or Luna’s. Otherwise… I don’t know. You understand that, right?”
Toasty gave another quiet nod.
“If you need to recharge, you have to tell me as well, alright?” Shetland gave a look to the ceiling. “It’s just for now, until somepony fixes this. Just so long.” she hoped dearly her voice didn’t carry the desperation she felt. It all made no sense. The hyenas had no power to steal the robots. Nopony she knew could have broken into their room, and why do that? How could this all fit together? And what hope did she have to figure this all out if even Princess Twilight couldn’t? Maybe it was Discord messing with them from whatever realm he’d disappeared to. Shetland had a chuckle at the thought, as little sense as it made. “I want to go out later and see the room for myself. You can stay with mother when she returns-”
“No.” At Shetland’s confused blink, Toasty repeated. “No. Princess Twilight is now busier than ever. I- I will stay with you.”
Shetland grimaced. The thought of taking Toasty to the latest place of this mystery didn’t sit right with her. Though, what chance was there of something dangerous still remaining? She took a deep breath. “Alright, but stay close. Do not leave my sight, alright?”
Toasty nodded. Then she raised her head, her right eye blinking on and off. “Even in the bathroom?”
“Even then,” Shetland sternly demanded. “And you will turn your back.”
The curfew’s end was accompanied with seemingly everypony in the colony rushing into the hallways at once. Shetland and Toasty were greeted with an enormous volume of ponies as nopony deemed it necessary to actually go somewhere, instead blocking the way. Even as Shetland tried to pay it no mind pushing past the crowds, snippets of their conversations still pierced her ears. Nopony seemed to have any idea what happened, as those were the questions she heard most often. But there were others: angry cries for more protection, fearful assurances about a later statement from the princesses, murmured demands for the hyenas to be sent back to Equus. Beyond it all, the whispered question whether they were safe. Shetland folded her ears back, wishing she could just turn them off, like Toasty could. Even then though, she would have still witnessed the stifling atmosphere, weighing down on everything around. She stubbornly pushed past all of them, using her sheer size to force a way through the overcrowded hallways, until she heard one more question:
“Who disappeared?”
Shetland froze as she heard the sentence, spoken by a pony in fearful search for a friend. Suddenly, it came from everywhere, ranging in tone from worry to simple cold curiosity and, in a case that made her stop and clench her teeth, joyous malice. Her eyes darted around as lava fried her insides, wanting to find the pony and beat some sense into his thick head- when she felt the cooling, smooth touch of Toasty’s hoof at her side. The robot was looking at the ground as Shetland turned, her hinged ears flat against her head as she nudged it towards a nearby set of doors. With a nod, Shetland pulled her aside, creating a path for both of them to step out of the crowds current and into the side room. The noise of the hallway toned down into dull background noise. Shetland let go of her breath as the cool, sour smell of a public urinal hit her. Beside her, Toasty pressed a hoof on her own nose, yet she still seemed to relax at least a little.
“Are you okay?” Shetland asked.
“Yes, I’m fine.” Toasty intoned robotically. “I just thought it would be less effort to wait for everypony to pass first.”
Shetland raised an eyebrow. “It didn’t seem like they were about to hurry.”
“They will have to go sometime.” Toasty spoke in her emotionless voice.
“And how long do you want to stay in a bathroom with me?” As no answer came, Shetland sat down. “If what they’re saying out there bothers you, I won’t judge you.”
Toasty averted her gaze. After nearly a whole minute, during which Shetland impatiently tapped her hoof, she sighed. “How did it come to this?”
“To what-”
“You are not dense, Shetland!” Toasty stomped her hoof. “All of this. It is like…” She stopped for a moment, as if to decide whether to say that next part. “It feels like… home.”
“What?” Shetland asked incredulously, staring at the little robot, certain she’d misheard.
“Not really,” Toasty shook her head. “But the worst parts of it. This… tension. I’ve experienced it before. When you are not sure whether your home is really safe, whether you or your friends are safe. The knowledge that many do not care.” She let out a dark, tinny chuckle. “Now you ponies experience it, too.”
“That’s bullshit, Toasty!” Shetland narrowed her eyes in a hot glare. “Most ponies here do care about you, so don’t put it like it’s some sort of justice!”
Toasty sighed. “Most do,” she agreed. “But those that do not are quite vocal about it.” she shook her head. “I am sorry, that was not supposed to be my point. I just wanted to say… this is familiar to me. And I hate it.”
Shetland’s features softened as she extended a hoof around the smooth chassis of Toasty’s shoulders. “Was it that bad?” she asked as she lowered her head just over Toasty’s ear. “I… guess I thought the whole thing stopped at name-calling and nasty graffiti”.
“Most of the time that would be true.” Toasty admitted. “But every now and then, something worse would happen… The house of a friend would be upturned. Someone would be damaged in an alley or even…” her voice broke off for a moment. “If you remember twelve years ago-”
“The magnet-botnappings.” Shetland finished her sentence darkly. She’d been seven years old, but even then, she’d learned more than enough by sneaking into her mother’s meetings.
Toasty nodded. “That was just when I was released from the production factory after my adjustments were finished. There was a real sense of terror, like anyone you knew could just vanish to be sold in thousands of pieces later.” she looked aside, her ears drooping. “Somepony told me back then that every robot constructed during my time was likely to include pieces plundered from someone else.”
“Do you-”
“I do not know!” Toasty slammed her hoof down with a loud clang. “There is no proof for it… or for the contrary. But… this sense of imminent danger, I grew up with it. And I so, so wanted to leave it behind when I left the planet.”
“You-” Shetland swallowed, realizing that her throat was dry, her words like the croaking of a hoarse frog. “Do you want to go back? N-not to Equus, to our room? You don’t have to come with me, I’m certain I can convince mom or Luna to keep you at their side, they’re certainly better suited than me!”
Toasty went silent. Shetland swallowed as conflicting ideas jumbled and fought each other in her head. It was like she could count the time by the pearls of sweat running down her back. One, two, three passed when Toasty suddenly reached both her forehooves around one of Shetland’s. “I do not think they are. They both have many, many duties, especially now. I do not think I could feel safer than with a pony who dedicated herself to protecting me… for some reason.” she chuckled. “Just saying it sounds so weird.”
“If it makes you happy.” Shetland muttered, briefly flattered by the words, yet the warm glow in her chest quickly froze. Toasty trusts me. The fact brought a cold shiver over her spine. Somehow, Toasty’s belief only fired up her own doubts. If she trusts my ability to protect her, she’ll rely on it. She had to tell Toasty that she couldn’t be trusted with this, her track record was horrible! She hadn’t been able to save her friends or the crew, she didn’t have the faintest clue what was going on, even what to protect Toasty from. And yet, she struggled to move her mouth as she looked at the way Toasty’s smooth, white head leaned against her foreleg, so relaxed, so calm- she didn’t want her to feel like she did.
The sound of the door scraping over the floor broke Shetland out of her trance. A pegasus stood in the doorway, her eyes wandering over Shetland and then to Toasty, a scowl forming on her face. “You’re blocking the way.” she informed them boorishly.
“We are sorry,” Toasty apologize as she stepped out of the way. “We will be leaving.”
“You better, or I’ll file a complaint!” The pegasus snarled. “Robots have no business in the bathrooms.”
“We go where we want.” Shetland rose to her full height, glaring down at the moronic pegasus. “Maybe you should flap up and piss into a cloud!”
The pegasus shrinked back, but Toasty began to tug at Shetland’s leg, stealing the joy of dominance as she pulled the earth pony away. “Cut it out, you won’t teach them a thing.” Toasty grumbled. “Just ignore what they say.”
Shetland wanted to respond, but her words were drowned in a wave not of fresh air, but an incomprehensible mass of rage-filled shouts. It seemed that right outside the bathroom, two groups had formed, separated by a Voidmarine in the middle.
“If we want to be safe, we need more guards, not more risks!” A unicorn shouted, backed up by agreeing shouts from the smaller group.
“You’re not the one suffering under the kidnappings, you have no grounds on which to object!” The Voidmarine’s amplified voice easily drowning out his competitors.
A quick look proved Shetland’s suspicion what this was about. The Voidmarine spoke for the larger group, noticeably containing more than a dozen robots, while the other was made purely from ponies. Shetland was about to count out the number of unicorns as the marine turned around to face his group.
“Three robots have gone missing, and still the princess denies them what they need just to be safe! Right now, self-defense is as basic a necessity to them as food and water is for us! Who wouldn’t rise up and demand their due if Luna denied you access to water?”
Damn right. Shetland thought as she snuck a glance at Toasty, who grimly stared at the unicorn, creating a screeching sound as she pawed the ground with a hoof.
“Princess Luna is right.” The unicorn sneered. “All we need is more guards, not some malfunctioning machine running around with dangerous items!” His response was met with clashing shouts from both sides. A few unicorns even lit up their horns in warning.
“I think the disaster at the spaceport made it clear YOU were much more likely to misuse firearms!” The Voidmarine’s enraged scream rang in Shetland’s head and numerous ponies in both crowds covered their own ears. His helmet swung around, suddenly focusing on Shetland. “You, you’re the young Sparkle, right?”
Unprepared to suddenly have everyone in the room staring at her, she let out an unintelligible croak before she nodded, unable to trust her own voice.
“Shetland Sparkle!” The Voidmarine shouted. “The pony who saved our colony from the raiders, who saved many among those in this very room, suffering grievous wounds in the process!”
Shetland felt heat rushing to her face as ponies pointed at her burned hindleg, whispering to each other. In a vain attempt to hide it from sight, her tail swept over the leg, but then Toasty’s wide hoof pulled it away. Shetland threw her an indignant glare, but it was no help. And to make it worse, the Marine once again began to talk.
“And then, she heroically risked her own life to retrieve her friend from a terrible sandstorm. A robot friend, I might add.” he threw a sharp look at his opposition. “I’d think she would be a pony we can all respect. So, why don’t we ask for her opinion?”
The sudden shouts of approval were startling. Some of the robots were even clapping their hooves. Shetland felt like she’d temporarily forgotten how to breathe.
“Respect, maybe.” The unicorn spoke loudly in an attempt to be heard. “But I think we all heard that she’s gone pretty loco after all of that. Plus,” he threw her a scornful look. “She’s working with the hyenas now, isn’t she?”
“I’m doing what I can!” Shetland shouted. All of the pressure seemed to pull itself into a tiny, glowing ball. “I don’t see you doing anything to fix things! Instead, you just make things harder for everypony.”
“We’re discussing important matters for the colony!” The unicorn shouted back.
“What you’re doing is being retarded!” Shetland easily overpowered his voice. “It’s fucking obvious that robots aren’t the problem!”
“SURE, YOU SAY THAT, BUT DO ANY OF YOU REMEMBER HIROSHIMARE?” Someone in the crowd screamed.
“The changelings weren’t part of Equestria before that, either!” The Voidmarine shouted. “I don’t see you arguing we should leave them alone to be kidnapped!”
Their answer became nearly incomprehensible in the sudden wave of shouts from both sides. Shetland saw Toasty right beside her, heard her say something, but she was unable to make out the words. The air danced with multicolored magic as even more unicorns fired up their magic and one pony in the crowd reached for a belt around his midriff-
Then, suddenly, the room was plunged into violet light that swallowed up all sound except for one voice:
“That’s enough!”
Princess Twilight Sparkle stepped into the room, scowling as her eyes swept over the two groups and finally resting on the Voidmarine. “That’s enough.” she repeated quieter. Several ponies in the crowd opened their mouths, but no sound emerged. Twilight must have cast some silencer spell.
“Everypony,” she spoke calmly, only her furrowed brows giving a sign of her emotions. “Go to your workplaces. If you need to discuss, then both sides may choose a representative to talk to Luna, but until then, the matter is settled. Now go, everypony, except-” Her eyes fixated on the Voidmarine, then quickly glanced at Shetland. “-you two.”
She waited until the last onlooker had left the room to speak, her voice like an iceberg hiding a sea of boiling water. “What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed to the marine. “Your job is to calm the unrest, not join it!”
The marine pulled of his helmet, revealing the face of a heavily-breathing orange unicorn. “Y-your highness, the demands of our robots and ponies are only right, we-”
“Not one more word out of you, Lofty Goal! Your personal opinions are of no concern. We cannot have our guard pick sides!” The stallion shivered as a fuming Twilight gave him a stern glare. “I will not tolerate another screw up from you, understand?”
“Y-yes!” he yelped, his eyes widened as sweat began to gather on his forehead.
“Dismissed.”
Shetland watched the back of the soldier as he fled the room, her brows deeply furrowed. It wasn’t like her mother to fly off the handle like this at all. But she was given no more chances to consider this as her mother’s glare swung around.
“Shetland.” Twilight paused, taking a deep breath. She repeated the motion twice before she spoke again. “Shetty, Why did you get involved?”
“I didn’t choose to!” Shetland protested. “Loopy Hole or whatshisface asked for my opinion.”
“Shetland," Twilight groaned, drawing the word out through her clenched teeth. “You have to be careful what you say. Your word carries further than you think.”
“W-why?” Shetland raised an eyebrow. “Because I’m your daughter? That never mattered before!”
A groan came from her side. To her surprise, it came from Toasty. The robot facehooved, creating a resounding clang. “Shetland, have you not heard what they just said about you?”
“Well… yeah,” Shetland said slowly. “But I thought he was just building me up as someone important.”
“That…” Toasty shook her head. “Yes, he did, but he picked you out because many ponies look up to you.”
“WHAT?” Shetland stared at the robot like it was the first time she’d seen her. “Since when?”
“It began a little bit after your… arrival.” Twilight carefully chose her words. “Ponies have been telling some crazy tales about you, but most of it blew over while you were still recovering. But then, when robots started to disappear, ponies must have searched for someone to place their hopes in.”
“And then you pulled me out of a terrible storm at the risk of your life.” Toasty said. “Is it so surprising that some regard you as a hero?”
“But… I didn’t do it to be a hero!” Shetland protested. “I fought the hyenas because I wanted to live. I saved you because… because… I had to!”
“Most heroes didn’t try to be one.” Twilight said, a hint of amusement replacing the stress in her voice. “But what you need to understand is that your word carries weight now… maybe even enough to challenge mine.”
“One of ‘em also said I was crazy.” Shetland said drily.
Twilight flinched at that. “Some… say that.” she admitted hesitantly. “But you shouldn’t pay them any mind, they’re just ponies spouting rumors like they’re facts.”
Not so sure about that, Shetland thought, her eyes drifting to Toasty’s new body. Her eyes used to be blue.
Twilight sighed. “Just be careful what you say, okay? It’s best if you just don’t get involved in these discussions at all.”
“Yes, mom.” Shetland muttered, tearing her eyes away from Toasty’s blue-ish mane. Then she raised her head. “Mom?”
“Yes, Shetty?”
“I wanted to take a look at the hyena’s room.”
The alicorn’s face fell. “The old one, I assume. Alright, I’ll take you there. Just be careful and don’t touch anything without permission.”
Shetland nodded. Not the sort of access she’d wanted, but it was the best she would get.
---------
It was like stepping into her mother’s library after one of her more intensive reading sessions. Paper covered the ground: a chaotic mixture of torn book pages, Equestrian documents, files and other papers she couldn’t identify, due to being written in the odd curved signs of Hyenidae. What furniture there was looked like somepony very strong had mistaken them for a buckbag. Shetland looked around the room, wondering who could have done this, or what reason they would have had for it. “How come nopony noticed this?” Shetland asked in disbelief. “The room was guarded, was it not? There is no way someone wouldn’t hear this.”
“Well…” Twilight let out a hot breath. “You met the guard on duty earlier.”
“You mean the guy who just pulled me into his discussion? Loop Hole?”
“Lofty Goal.” Twilight corrected.
“Why- why would anypony think of placing a pro-robot activist to guard the hyena’s room?” Shetland asked, incomprehending. “Do you… think it could have been him?”
Twilight blinked. “No. I don’t.”
“He has an agenda!” Shetland rose up, a hint of excitement in her voice. “He could have-”
“He could not have entered the room, simply because he did not have a key for it.” Twilight spoke calmly. “The only keys are held by me, Luna, as well as Gan and Khunbish respectively. And all of those,” She emphasized each word. “Were accounted for.”
“But-” Shetland wanted to argue, but Twilight instantly interjected.
“The door hasn’t been damaged.” she recited mechanically. “I also personally enchanted the lock so it could only be opened using said keys.”
“What if he climbed through the window?” Shetland argued.
Twilight opened her mouth to speak. But then it fell closed again as a snicker erupted seemingly from her nose. Shetland stared, bewildered at the alicorn who clearly lost her mind when Toasty spoke up.
“Shetland…we are currently standing on a planet upon which the atmosphere will not sustain you. And you speak of…” The robot raised a hoof to her faceplate, as if trying to hide her chuckle. “Climbing through a window?”
“Err… he- he…he could have breached it!” Shetland exclaimed loudly as she felt the heat rising to her cheeks.
“I think you would have noticed that by now.” Toasty said drily. “If you consider the whole cannot-breathe thing.”
“Well…” Shetland stuttered, looking helplessly from her laughing friend to her only slightly-less expressive mother. Then she made a face, crossing her hooves. “Yeah, laugh it up. I was just trying to solve this crime or whatever.”
“I-I’m sorry.” Twilight said, pulling herself together. She let go of her breath, as well as the last of her snickers. “Back to the matter at hoof… I don’t want you to go after Lofty Goals.”
“But why?”
“Because he thoughtlessly made himself a public figure.” Twilight groaned, rubbing her forehead. “And any thoughtless confrontation between you and him could cause waves that could destroy the fragile peace we have. And..” she sighed. “Don’t take this badly, but you don’t typically act… prudently.”
“I can verify that this is true.” Toasty chimed in, catching a glare from Shetland, whose eyebrow twitched aggressively.
“Alright.” The earth pony spoke through clenched teeth, pronouncing each word with excessive force. “I see your point.” she took a deep breath as she slowly relaxed her jaw. Then she furrowed her brows and met Twilight’s eyes. “You’ll solve this mystery, then?"
“I will.” Twilight nodded. “And I’ll get back to you when I learn something new.”
“Great,” Shetland said. She blinked. “Great…” she said again. She swallowed. Her throat felt free. With a nod, she turned around, her mouth nearly curling into a smile, but then she looked over the destroyed room before her eyes found their way to Toasty and a stern look took hold of her features. “Come with me.” she said quietly, but sternly, and Toasty wordlessly followed her, only turning once to wave the Princess goodbye.
----
The dust ground coarsely under her hooves. Shetland sighed, wishing she had the protection of her armor. Her bad leg was once again acting up, stinging like a dozen papercuts. With a quick jerk of her shoulder, she adjusted her saddlebags to weigh a little more on her other side.
“Where are we going?” Toasty impatiently chimed in.
“You’ll see when we get there.” Shetland grumbled, allowing her irritation to show in her voice. She cast one more look over her shoulder, scanning all the way back to the spaceport, an hour and a half away. Her head whipped back to their goal, a rock formation, appearing like a petrified wave. It was large and close enough to be reached with air to spare.
“Shetland?” Toasty once again asked, her tone less demanding this time. “Why are we going out here?”
“Soon, Toasty…” Shetland grumbled.
“I just do not think this is a good idea.” Toasty said quietly. Her head turned, but unlike Shetland, she watched all directions. “W-we are pretty exposed.”
“Don’t worry, I’m armed, you’re safe with me.” Shetland said, her voice sounding a lot more confident than she felt. With a shake of her head, she rejected the notion to turn back. This would help them in the long run. “We’re almost there.” she said, trying to sound collected and calming for the nervous robot.
“And what is in your saddlebags?” Toasty’s eyelights shrunk to gleaming pricks as they projected two green dots onto the large, black case that hung from Shetland’s side. The other carried with it a sack, a backup air bottle and a case containing Shetland’s lunch (half a dozen sandwiches and water with orange powder). Whatever it was the earth pony was taking the robot to, she expected to be there for a while.
Finally, as the rock blocked them from view, Shetland gestured for Toasty to halt. With one suspicious look to each side, she unstrapped her saddle bags, letting them slide gently to the ground.
“May I now learn why you brought me out here?” Toasty asked, nervously looking back around the edge of the rock.
“Yes.” Shetland said. She then pulled a stack of thin disks out of the sack, each lined with consecutive smaller circles of red and white.
“You brought me out here so you could practise shooting?” Toasty groaned. “Look, Shetland, it is nice that you want to protect me, but you do not have to drag me with you for every little thing you wish to do!” she rubbed her forehead, creating a screeching sound as the metal of her hoof and head scratched over another. “Besides, is there not a small official shooting range on the outskirts of the spaceport?”
“There is,” Shetland admitted, walking closer to Toasty as she kneeled down, meeting the robot’s visor on eye level. “But this practise isn’t for me. It’s for you.”
“It is forbidden,” Toasty said, her ears folding back on her head as she backed away. “Shetland, I cannot have a gun!” Even as she spoke, her eyes were fixated on the weapon Shetland held out.
“And it’s stupid,” Shetland said firmly, stomping a hoof for emphasis. “It’s a retarded remainder of something that happened long ago.”
“It is still the law.” There was a slight echo in the robot’s voice as she spoke. She twitched back and forth, both wanting to get a closer look at the gun and to stay away.
“But there are some cases where robots were allowed to defend themselves!” Shetland argued. “Mom told me. There was that robot who defended a store with a shotgun, and he got off scot-free!”
Toasty shook her head. “Those were fringe cases in which individual robots were pardoned for breaking the law at the word of a princess. Tinkle Trumpet was exempt from punishment because he saved eight innocent ponies in the process.” she sighed. “That is not the same as his actions being legal, Shetland.”
“Well, I’ll legalize it then,” Shetland burst out, angrily swatting her hoof as if to chase away the argument.
“You are not a princess.”
“I can be!”
Toasty’s eyes grew in size and brightness until they encapsulated almost her entire visor. Shetland blew hot air from her nose as she let out an angered neigh. “I will take the responsibility, Toasty,” Shetland said earnestly. “You will be safer if you can fight for yourself. There will be times…” she took a long breath. “There will be times when I can’t be with you, when I’m sleeping or Luna or Twilight force me away or…” she shook her head. “Nopony will know, Toasty, just you and me. And if anypony asks, we’ll say we’re searching for the missing robots, and I’m taking the weapons to protect both of us!”
Toasty stared quietly at Shetland as her mind audibly worked to consider the offer. As it did, her eyes were drawn back to the gun and she slowly stepped closer. “You will just give it to me?” she asked meekly.
Shetland nodded. “I’ll have it while we’re in the colony, but when we leave or something dangerous is happening, it’s yours.” She held out the weapon and Toasty hastily grabbed it, her eyelights brightening intensely as she weighted it in her hooves.
“Wow…” she whispered in amazement. “It is heavier than I anticipated…” Her head suddenly rose in alarm and she pointed it as far away from herself as she could. “Is it loaded? What about the safety? Is it engaged?!”
“Oh, Toasty!” Shetland laughed, unable to stay sober at her friend’s reaction. Under flashes of chuckles, she took hold of Toasty’s hoof to show her exactly where the safety was and how to disengage it. “Careful now,” she said, fighting down the last hints of laughter as she pushed the gun to point at the ground. “It’s loaded, so don’t wave it around.”
Toasty nodded, taking a moment to collect herself before she stood calmly, letting Shetland slowly guide her hoof upwards again. “Don’t do anything yet,” the earth pony warned her. “I’m just guiding your hoof.” She aligned the pistol with Toasty’s visor, pointing it at the rock furthest away. Then she turned to Toasty and grinned. “You wanna shoot now, don’t you?”
Toasty made a notion halfway between shaking her head and nodding. Her hoof began to shake until Shetland reached out to stabilize it.
“Whoa, there, Toasty.” A raised eyebrow accompanied her smirk. “Well, you’ll have to stay like that until I’ve explained to you how to treat a gun safely.”
“Please do.” Toasty whimpered.
Shetland chuckled, but she quickly adopted a stern look again. “Alright, first, guns are always loaded. Always.” She patted the robot’s shoulder. “That means you never point it anywhere it could hurt somepony, even if you’ve unloaded it, even if it’s in disrepair, even when the safety’s on and even if it’s just a toy. Though I guess that won’t be too hard for you, seeing as you can’t let anypony see you with it anyway.”
Toasty just nodded, her ears eagerly peeking for the next instruction.
“Identify your target,” Shetland commanded. “Only if you know for absolute certain what your target is and that you are pointing exactly at it may you even think about the trigger.” She looked down at the hyper-focused mare below her. “Alright, now pick a spot on this rock you want to hit and try to put a hole in it.”
Toasty’s head rose and she looked to Shetland with wide eyes before focusing back on her target. Her hoof slowly swayed in the air as she attempted to align the weapon with her eyes, and pulled the trigger. The shock flew high as the recoil took her by surprise, her entire body lurching back in shock. It didn’t even hit the rock.
“Well,” Shetland whistled amusedly. “That’s the equivalent of missing a Buffalo charging straight at you.”
“I was just surprised by the recoil. It was more substantial than I expected,” Toasty said, her eyes gleaming. “I would like to try again if you do not mind.”
“Certainly!” Shetland chuckled and watched as the robot went to work with an eagerness she usually reserved for cooking. After a while, she stopped counseling the robot and went to devour her lunch packet.
Toasty was quick to pick up on how to load and clean a weapon, though when it came to her accuracy with it, she left a lot to be desired.
“That’s a fifth,” Shetland noted as another shot whizzed past the target. “You know, I kinda thought you would just make a formula after a couple shots and then hit every time.”
“It’s not that easy, Shetland.” Toasty sighed. “It would work like that if I had the formula for shooting this specific gun directly programmed into me. As it stands, I have to create my own imperfect one through trial and error.”
Shetland raised an eyebrow “So, basically, you need to practice like everypony else?”
“Pretty much,” Toasty nodded. “Additionally, my body was not made for this task.”
“Gotta be a bit more specific, Toasty, I didn’t make your parts.”
“The cameras that provide for my vision are not equivalent to an average pony’s ability of sight. Specifically, they do not direct light at the correct angle for my processor to always gain a clear picture…” she stopped her explanation when she noticed Shetland’s eyebrow reaching seldomly claimed heights. “I am short-sighted.” she closed her explanation.
“Oooh,” Shetland said and nodded, as if she’d been following her explanation all along. “How much? Do you need glasses?” She managed to stop herself from laughing at the mental picture, but just barely.
“They would not work for me.” Toasty noted passively.
Shetland bit her lip, uncertain of how to reply to that. “Well, how does it feel to finally be blasting targets?” she said in an attempt to change the line of conversation.
“It is great!” Toasty’s eyes shone brightly. “I am now the mistress of my own fate. Do not mess with me, world!”
“Well, don’t get too carried away there, twirly gears, there’s some other stuff I wanted to show you as well.”
“Like what?” Toasty asked, her voice somehow managing to combine both eagerness and disappointment.
“Like how to brawl.” Shetland took a stance, stomping up some dust for dramatic effect. “If you don’t have a gun, it’ll be useful to know how to kick somepony’s flank right to Tartarus.”
Toasty’s eyelights swetpt up and down Shetland’s body. “I have severe doubts that your style would work for me, Shetland. I do not have the physical superiority to brainlessly overpower my opponent.”
“Hey, don’t mock the buffalo style!” Shetland jokingly protested. “But seriously, there are still things I can teach, and if you think I’m above using dirty tricks-”
That was the moment Toasty had been waiting for. Without a warning, the little robot suddenly launched herself at Shetland. Caught by surprise, the larger pony was knocked over into the ground. “OOUCH!” she shouted as pain exploded in her scarred flank.
“Shetland!” The startled robot nearly tripped over her own hooves as she tried to get away. “I’m sorry, are you okay?”
“Aooouh…” Shetland moaned as she rolled away from her landing. She grit her teeth, trying to force her tears back into their ducts. “I’m okay,” she reassured Toasty with a grimace. “I think I fell on a rock or something.”
“I-I’m so sorry! H-how much does it hurt?”
“It hurts…” Shetland forced her features into a pained smile. “An ass-ton.”
Relief visibly washed over the small robot as her posture relaxed a little. “Haha,” she commented robotically. “But please answer truthfully, how much?”
“Like it was hit with a rock, Toasty.” Shetland groaned as she rubbed the stinging wrinkled skin, a pained grimace on her face.
“I’m sorry, I wouldn’t have pushed you if I’d thought I’d be able to actually push you over… o-or if I had known there was a rock!”
“It’s fine, Toasty!” Shetland said, a hint of agitation sneaking into her voice. “I’m not mad, so stop apologizing!”
“Sorry.” Toasty said. Her response was met with the sound of a hoof loudly smacking into a forehead.
“Toasty...” Shetland groaned, but the robot didn’t seem to notice, her eyelights fully fixated on a spot behind the earth pony.
“Shetland?” Toasty whispered. “The rock…”
“What?” Shetland asked as she turned. “What about the-”
But as her eyes fell upon the object, it was very clear what the robot meant. There was a cut in what was clearly not a rock, but a colored piece of cloth draped over and nailed into the ground to give it the appearance of one. But now, most likely caused by Shetland’s fall, it had been torn open.
“What the heck…” Shetland whispered as she took hold of the fabric, tearing it open further. Her veins suddenly froze and Toasty let out a loud gasp as several pistols came to light, coupled with an assortment of dangerous looking knives and a large wrench, easily capable of beating somepony’s skull in. Shetland turned to Toasty, who looked as startled as herself, and she pressed a single word through her dry throat: “Who…?”
But all Toasty could do was wordlessly shake her head, staring at the small assortment of weapons.
“They- they must have been stolen,” Shetland whispered as she looked around for any more suspicious-looking rocks. “There’s no other reason to hide them out here… and for it to be so ill-equipped,” she added with a frown. For a secret weapon cache, three pistols and a dozen or so makeshift weapons wasn’t much… and yet, who could say how many more hiding places there were? It was already a miracle they’d found this one!
“W-we need to notify the colony,” Toasty whispered, her eyelights tinier than ever. Her body shivered, making itself even smaller than usual.
Shetland bit her lip as she looked over the spot. They’d have to find another place to practise in, but this was too important to keep a secret. “Come along. Stay close!” She barked to the robot as she quickly packed up her weapons, keeping a fast firing rifle in quick reach of her hooves. “Keep your gun out, there might be hostiles around!” she ordered, throwing nervous glances at the surrounding area. If only she hadn’t left behind her armor, who cared if it's dark shade was easy to spot in the orange dust?! With a look back, she saw Toasty give her pistol a nervous glance. “Don’t fret about it, Mom will pardon you when I tell her, but now we need to go!” And with that, Shetland hurried for the spaceport, gritting her teeth to block out the constant pained signals from her side.
----
Shetland’s sides burned. She had no idea where to look for her mother. She would most likely still be in the central colony, but Shetland couldn’t risk letting that much time pass. Not to mention the intense, throbbing pain in her leg that was already slowing her down. If only she could find Magenta, then she could fly to Twilight, her oxygen-starved brain reasoned. Her air was starting to run low, but she didn’t want to stop to refill, she desperately thought as they entered the spaceport’s landing field. They were so close! Then Shetland blinked. She saw a small group of ponies, led by a larger figure, her flowing mane drifting despite the lack of wind. Shetland couldn’t believe her luck as she gathered the last air in her throat. But it was Toasty, who shouted: “PRINCESS LUNA!”
Shetland blinked, suddenly recognizing the much darker shade of the alicorn, who raised her head in surprise. After a word to her following group, she opened her wings, rapidly decreasing the distance between her and Shetland.
“What is the matter, Miss Sparkle?” The alicorn asked, raising her eyebrow at the exhausted, heavy breathing. Shetland wanted to answer, but now the last bits of air in her lungs vanished and she fumbled with her backup bottle. Toasty then slammed the breathing mask back on Shetland’s mouth, letting her take a deep breath.
“Princess-” she stammered, but Luna’s eyes suddenly widened.
“Robot!” she exclaimed commandingly to Toasty. “Where did you get that gun?” By now her accompanying group had caught up with them and they immediately started whispering among one another.
Toasty dropped the weapon like it was on fire. “I-I-I,” she stammered, lowering her head under the alicorns glare.
“It’s not important!” Shetland gasped, drawing a furious glare from the alicorn.
“Your friend openly disobeyed the law-”
“Someone has stolen weapons!” Shetland shouted. “They’re back there, hidden away in a secrest cache!"
Luna’s voice failed as her face assumed the color of the moon’s surface. Behind them, the following group gasped. Luna whirled around. “Night shield!” she commanded a bat pony stallion. “How could this happen?”
The stallion shrunk under the princesses glare. “A few weapons have indeed gone missing.” he admitted ruefully. “We assumed they had been lost during the panic last week.”
“Investigate every case of missing weaponry. Now!” Luna snarled, sending the stallion to nearly stumble to the ground as he simultaneously tried to salute and run.
“Who could have been the perpetrator?” an elderly pony called out.
“Possibly a group,” a changeling argued.
“And there is only one group with a motive!” a Pegasus mare called out as her face contorted into a hateful grimace. “Who constantly demands weaponry, who protests and cries for better rights? This is why we cannot allow robots the ownership of guns, if they will steal them for their own gain. This robot even held one just now!”
Toasty let out an indignant cry, but it was Shetland who furiously shouted. “I gave it to her so we’d be safer from whoever really hid the weapons, you retarded, bigoted old hag!”
“SILENCE!” Luna shouted, her voice rolling over the landscape like a hurricane. “The case of this robot will be discussed later, now we will address more important matters!” She turned to Shetland. “Sparkle, stay here while I gather Princess Twilight. Everypony else!” she shouted towards her followers. “Go back to your respective stations and send an alert to the Voidmarines.” She glared over the stunned faces of the unmoving group. “NOW!”
They all took off in a hurry, unwilling to face the angered alicorn.
“Luna-” Shetland said, but the alicorn’s horn had already assumed a bright blue glow, and a second later, she teleported away.
The earth pony stared at the spot where the alicorn had disappeared, fuming anger rising in her throat. “Will be discussed later?” She spat the words out in disbelief as she stomped a hoof into the ground. “What does she think you’re trying to do, stage a coup?”
Toasty wordlessly shook her head and took a step away. Shetland’s hoof shot out, grabbing the robot’s in a firm hold.
“Pick up your gun.” Shetland commanded.
The robot’s eyelights widened. “I-I cannot! not here-”
“We’re not out of danger!” Shetland said, barely able to keep her fury out of her voice. “I don’t care what Luna thinks, you’re keeping it until we’re back to safety!”
“Shetland-”
“Do it!” Shetland demanded, nearly hitting the small robot with the gun as she pressed it into her hoof. Toasty took a step back, then her head made a tiny nudge up and down before she picked up the gun, her eyes unable to meet the larger mare’s.
-------
Shetland looked up as with a loud crack, Luna returned, but she had no time to offer a greeting as a magenta aura immediately seized her shoulders.
“You’ve found a WHAT?” Twilight shouted, her eyes wide open. The Alicorn’s mane was unraveling before Shetland’s eyes, slowly assuming the appearance of an ethereal squid.
“A hidden weapon cache.” Shetland said as she brushed a hoof over her shoulders. Twilight, who got the hint, dropped her to the ground.
“How?” she asked, pressing a hoof to her forehead. “Who? Did you see anything else?”
A deep blue hoof grasped Twilight’s side, gently shaking her back and forth. “Calm, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said. “You are limiting your own reasoning with your panic.”
While Twilight took deep breaths, an unwelcome figure stepped around the alicorns, and Toasty scrambled to hide her gun. Khunbish, the hyena, approached them, flanked by Gan, her eyebrow raised high. “I should not be surprised to see you,” she told Shetland. “It seems many strange things happen around you.”
“Pure coincidence.” Shetland frowned and placed a hoof between Toasty and the hyenas. “What are you doing here?” she asked rudely.
“Why wouldn’t we be here?” Gan snorted. Khunbish gave him a sharp glare before turning her attention to Toasty.
“Your friend, was she with you?”
“Yes.” Toasty said.
“The entire time.” Shetland added feistily, crossing her hooves before her chest.
“I see.” Khunbish looked like she wanted to ask another question, but at that moment, Luna’s voice demanded Shetland’s entire attention.
“Now then, child of Sparkle, show us where you found the weapons.”
“Hold up!” Shetland swallowed. “What about my friend Toasty?”
Luna blinked. “She shall remain here-”
Twilight cut off Luna. “One of us will bring her to safety and catch up with you in a moment.” She met the older alicorn’s questioning gaze with a nod.
“Well then,” Luna took a deep breath. “Where, child of Sparkle?”
Shetland raised her hoof to the rock formation in the distance. “Over there-”
With a sudden crack, Shetland felt like she was falling, yet she couldn’t say which direction. After a second however, her hooves were on solid ground again. With a blink, she realized Luna had teleported Shetland, Twilight and the hyenas just before the rock. Her stomach lurched and she had to swallow bile before she led the group around the rock formation.
Twilight reacted to the cache as Shetland would expect: With a moment of quiet, horrified contemplation, followed by a torrent of questions, none of which Shetland had an answer for. As her mother paused to catch her breath, Shetland threw a glimpse over to Khunbish. The hyena was currently examining one of the pistols, showing it to Gan. Maybe it was her imagination, since she wasn’t adept at reading their strange faces, but neither of them showed much in the way of surprise. Instead, they whispered to each other in hyenidae, possibly plotting-
“Do you have any idea who could have done this?” Twilight ripped Shetland out of her thoughts.
“Whoever attacked the robots!” Shetland said instantly.
“Or,” Khunbish looked up from her private conversation. “Maybe it was the robots.”
“They have motives, so much is true,” Twilight admitted. She spoke slowly, as if her mind wasn’t fully in the present.
Shetland’s jaw dropped and she shot the alicorn an angry glare. Just when she’d thought her mother was finally on her side and now this? She clenched her jaw and swallowed her first retort. It stuck uncomfortably in her throat. “I don’t think we should point our hoof at those who are suffering the most,” Shetland growled.
“I am not pointing a hoof,” Twilight said. “But I am considering the possibility.” She met Shetland’s eyes with a stern look.
Shetland spat on the ground. “You’re right,” she grumbled. “But it pisses me off nonetheless.” She threw a sharp glare at the hyenas. “Some don’t think they need proof to blame others.”
“That good joke.” Gan turned, giving Shetland a dry smirk. “Good joke when comes from you.”
“THAT WAS NOT THE SAME-” Shetland took a sharp breath. “Good. One.” she hissed through her clenched jaw. Silently, she swore to herself that if he winked at her, she would beat his dirty grin into paste. Unfortunately however, he didn’t push his luck.
“Neither of you is wrong.” Twilight attempted to intermediate, but only caught herself a murderous glance from Shetland.
“I wonder,” Khunbish’s rough, silent voice tore into the resuming silence. “How did you find this?”
Shetland swallowed. She didn’t answer right away. She couldn’t trust herself as burning anger boiled her thoughts.
“Well?” Khunbish asked after several seconds, while Twilight gave Shetland a worried glance, as if she feared she’d knocked her head.
“We were...” Shetland swallowed again, speaking again with a less breathy voice. “We were going out here because I needed to do my daily routine. And we decided that maybe, we should do it outside just in case we happen to find one of the missing robots.” She instantly realized how thin her excuse was, as they each exchanged doubtful looks.
“The chances for that must be very slim.” Khunbish waved her paw.
“Also-” Shetland wracked her brain, cursing herself for even saying the word, she should have kept to her first lie! A loud crack interrupted her thoughts of a second excuse however, and Luna appeared in their midst.
“Twilight,” she called. “Please, fill me in on what I have missed.”
Shetland let out a relieved sigh. Now she had time to think of a proper story. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gan, a big smirk on her face. Then, slowly, his eyelid closed as he gave her a wink.
The bastard!
--------
Darkness was sweeping into the colony, only sparsely eased by a few electronic lights. Shetland’s steps were heavy as she lurched towards her room, reminiscing over the softness of her bed, the quiet of privacy, the feeling of safety. A cynical chuckle took hold of her throat, and with a shake of her head she tried to push the thought aside, but it slipped past her mental grasp like oil on water. Why was there never any progress? She grit her teeth, feeling her heart’s rhythm inside her ears. The enemy was now armed. It was fact, there was no way that meagre cache was the only one. They had no idea who it was, not even a hunch! Shetland swallowed. Anyone could be out for their deaths. There was nopony she could trust. Her whole body shivered for several seconds before she let out an enraged shout.
“It’s not true!”
Her voice reverberated throughout the empty tunnels. A sudden rush of embarrassment brought some color back to her face as she peaked her ears in case anypony heard her. Then she facehooved. Nopony could answer, the curfew had most likely already started. Which meant she should hurry. With a deep breath, she tried to calm her heart, despite, as the sound of her hooves once again broke the silence, the feeling that the shadows followed her.
It was a huge relief when she entered her home and two glowing green dots welcomed her in.
“Have you found out anything?” Toasty asked.
Shetland shook her head with a tired sigh. “No, nothing,” she whispered as she locked the door behind herself. “They’ll try and find out which weapons are missing and-” Her sentence broke as a yawn came out of her mouth. She blinked, and it took real effort just to open her eyes again. “Where was I?” she mumbled, her thoughts slow as snails.
“You look tired.” Toasty whispered caringly. “Today has been a lot. My own battery will have to be recharged tomorrow.”
“Yeah... “ Shetland felt her eyelids drooping again as she looked towards the bed with nearly closed eyes, every sleepy inch of her body begging her to give them some rest. And yet… her gaze was drawn back to the door. “Toasty… you were alone.” she swallowed as an ember lit up in her throat. “Alone and unarmed. Defenseless.” her eyes narrowed as she stomped her hoof, her anger allowing her to push past her fatigue. “Luna left you alone here like this!”
“It is fine, Shetland,” Toasty said, trying to appease the larger mare. “I am fine!”
“Toasty, locked doors don’t stop them!” Shetland exclaimed, glaring down at the little robot, ignoring the painfully bright glow of her eyes. “An armed guard didn’t stop them! Three robots didn’t! You were not safe!” She took a deep breath and shifted her gaze to the door, the most likely point of breach, and she clenched her teeth. “We’ll have to stay up,” she decided.
“Shetland, you can’t.” Toasty protested.
“I have to!”
“No, you do not!” the robot crossed her hooves as she glared back, finally forcing the larger mare to avert her gaze. “You will not be able to protect me if you fall asleep on your hooves!”
“And I can’t do it when I’m sleeping!” Shetland argued loudly. “I can sleep tomorrow. I can drop you off by mom, I can-”
“Shetland,” Toasty said, once again trying to reach her. “You need to sleep. What you are doing is bad for your health.”
The look Shetland gave the robot could only be described as baffled. Her mouth silently moved, before she repeated her unspoken question: “My health? Toasty, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that I can keep you alive, that I protect you, that I am not that kind of pony who-” she swallowed, her eyes widening at her own words. Her voice shivered as she shook her head. “Who cares about my health? The ponies who would are not here anymore, because I couldn’t protect them!.”
“Don’t say that…” Toasty said, her voice shaking with horrified disbelief. “Ponies do care, Shetty. Your mother cares… I care.”
“I can’t” Shetland hid her face under her hoof. “You don’t know-” she swallowed. “You don’t know what I did, Toasty. I’m… I’m a bad pony.”
“No, you’re not.” Toasty insisted adamantly. “You are my strong protector, who loves my cooking more than anypony else and who will go crazy if she doesn’t get herself some shuteye.” Reaching far upward, she managed to caress Shetland’s shoulder. “Please rest, I will look out tonight.”
“You can’t.” Shetland whispered hoarsely. “You still don’t know how to fight.” She pushed the robot away, rubbed the wetness from her own eyes and regarded Toasty with a stern look. “I am going to stay up.”
Toasty gave her a worried glance, but she knew she had lost the argument. “Please, at least for a few hours, I am certain I can look out for a little while.”
Shetland took a deep breath. “I’ll think about it,” she said. “Can you make me some coffee?”
Toasty gave her a worried look, but silently nodded and trotted into the small kitchen, leaving Shetland to fight her weighty eyelids. She took a deep breath. Only one night, she assured her exhausted brain. One more… The sounds from the kitchen brought a chuckle out of her. Of course Twilight would bring a coffee machine to a space colony, where even apples weren’t easy to come by. The alicorn was practically addicted to the disgusting sludge. She sighed, unwilling to think about her mother. It just brought her back to the mystery, which would inevitably haunt her all night, leading to nothing! If Twilight couldn’t figure it out… then what chances did she, the disappointing daughter, have? If only she could discuss all of it with a pony smarter than herself. She grit her teeth. Ciloa and Press had always been much better at riddles than she was, if they were here to help-
Or at least give her company…
Shetland lurched forward, slamming her head against a nearby bedpost. Pain broke out in her forehead, freeing her from the veil of old, sluggish thoughts.
“Shetland?” Toasty’s worried shout came from the kitchen, shortly followed by the robot. “What happened?”
“Nothing.” Shetland said, even as her face was still pressed against the bedpost.
Toasty paused, before she quietly whispered: “Should I get the cider?”
Shetland shook her head.
“O-okay, then…” Toasty paused, uncertain what to say as she stared helplessly at the pile of misery. “There… there is a letter,” she finally said.
“Huh?” Shetland slowly rose her head, looking back at Toasty, who took the letter from the table and offered it to her. “What is this?” she mumbled.
“I do not know, it was addressed to you and I respect your privacy.” Toasty’s ear perked up as she forced a more jovial tone. “Though it was not easy.”
Wordlessly, Shetland took the letter. It was a bit of a struggle to open in the dark and without tools, but she eventually just bit into the paper and tore it open. Toasty, standing on her hindlegs, looked over Shetland’s shoulder, thereby illuminating the letter in green light.
Dear Shet Your Highness Princess Shetland Sparkle Dear Shetland,
I’m not sure how to write the address, I mean, you’re technically royalty, right? I hope it doesn’t bother you, but I just decided to write it like I would to a friend, which we are, right?
Things just seem to get worse, huh? Now that somepony even broke into the hyena’s room, I’m constantly watching my back with every step. Just saying that, so you know you’re not the only one. I mean, you were practically falling apart when you helped me and Pipe with those repairs and now this happened…
I know this is kind of a bad time, but if you ever feel like hanging out, you can visit me anytime at my dorm or the workshop, addresses are on the backside. You can even take Toasty, my co-workers are all pretty cool like that (I mean, it’s a given, we’re all tech nuts). Hope I can help.
Take Care, Magna Opus. Learn my name.
“It’s from Magenta,” Shetland said.
“It says here that her name is Magna-”
“We’re not calling her that.” Shetland replied, a little smirk twisting her lips. With a small wiggle of her body, she made the little robot get off her shoulder. “We could visit her in the morning,” she whispered.
“You are not going anywhere but to bed next morning.” Toasty said sternly.
“Yes, Ma’am,” Shetland sighed. Her eyes were once again drooping as she set her gaze on the door. Then she blinked. She had to stay vigilant.
------
Maybe she was promising herself protection from the group. Maybe she wanted to move her legs, so the growing exhaustion wouldn’t sneak past her attention. Or maybe it was just a wish for company, Shetland couldn’t say for sure what drove her to move through the hallways and knock at Magenta’s dorm.
The pegasus gasped as she opened the door and instinctively took a step back from the towering mare. “Shetland!” she exclaimed, before lowering her voice. “What are you doing here? There’s a curfew!”
“I thought that was just yesterday-”
“Get in!” Magenta hissed. “Before somepony sees you.” She practically pulled the earth pony through the door, almost letting her head impact on the frame.
“May I come in, too?” Toasty’s voice took Magenta by surprise, who hadn’t seen her before. Nonetheless, she wasted no time in assuring her:
“Yes, it’s fine, just come in!” With that, she shut the door after the pair. There was barely enough space to stand, and Shetland felt herself uncomfortably squeezed against a cupboard, though at least she was able to stand upright. Pegasi, it seemed, got rooms with a somewhat higher ceiling.
“Your letter said I could come visit anytime,” Shetland whispered apologetically.
“In the middle of the night?” Magenta flapped her wings to jump on top of her bunk, allowing her sleep-ridden eyes look down into Shetland’s. “That’s a little of a stretch, don’tcha think?”
Shetland shrugged. “Can’t really tell you why,” she said simply. In truth, she didn’t feel like arguing the question. She didn’t even know the answer herself.
“Shetland got the heebie-jeebies,” Toasty whispered unmistakeably. “She is terrified someone could suddenly barge into our room.”
Shetland glared at the robot, but her irritated reply was cut short as Magenta sighed. “Aren’t we all? that’s why we have Voidmarines patrolling the colony at night. Kinda surprised you didn’t run into one.” She raised an eyebrow at Shetland, who simply shrugged. “Well,” Magenta yawned. “You can sleep here if you want.” She looked down into the lower bunk. “Might have to share, though.”
“That’s not necessary!” Toasty exclaimed quickly. “I do not require a bed, and I am doubtful it could handle Shetland’s… proportions.” She ignored the sour look Shetland gave her.
“I’m not gonna sleep anyway,” Shetland muttered. “I’m gonna watch the door.”
“You… do that.” Magenta yawned again. Despite her raised eyebrow, she was too tired to question Shetland’s decision. “Good night.”
“Good night,” Shetland and Toasty replied. Shetland leaned back, pointing her tired gaze at the door. A smile twirled around her lips as Magenta’s calm breathing reached her ears. Despite the fact that she was sleeping, her sheer presence had something… calming. Maybe Magenta could even help her next morning with the mystery stuff. The pegasus was certainly smart enough, probably smarter than she was. With a warm feeling in her chest, she leaned against the cupboard, barely noticing as Toasty shoved a pillow in between as a cushion. There are Voidmarines patrolling the colony, she thought. Plus, she and Toasty were watching the door. Her muscles slowly relaxed to the rhythm of Magenta’s calm breathing. Still, she called her attention to the present. No matter how comfortable she may feel in the moment, she had to stay on guard.
An hour later, she was fast asleep.
----
The next morning, Shetland was rudely shocked from her slumber as a pillow smacked her in the face. She shot up, knocking her head on the nearby bedpost, to the amused chuckles of the other two mares.
“Wakey, Sleepyhead~” Magenta called out from the top bunk. Next to her stood Toasty, a second pillow ready to toss in her hooves.
“Are you okay?” the robot asked, a hint of worry in her voice.
Shetland gave the pair a grumpy look. “Yeah,” she grumbled. But she was cut off from saying “Jerks”, as the second pillow smacked right into her muzzle.
“Then I am sure you won’t mind catching another!” Toasty and Magenta laughed, while Shetland rubbed her aching head. The earth pony’s face fell as she looked at the clock.
“I fell asleep. Again,” she hissed through her teeth.
With a loud thwump, Toasty’s metal hooves landed in the ground. “That is because I let you. Do not beat yourself up over it,” she added in a worried tone.
“Why shouldn’t I?” Shetland snapped at her. “Don’t you get that I’m doing this for our safety?!”
“We were safe,” Toasty insisted. “There were Voidmarines patrolling the hallways, like Magna Opus said. Plus, I was up all night. If something happened, I would have called for help.”
“That-” Shetland shook her head. “Whatever, I told you I was going to stay up, but you didn’t let me!”
“You kinda fell asleep all on your own.” Magenta chimed in, catching a dirty glare from both earth pony and robot.
“You are not helping, Magna Opus,” Toasty said sourly.
“Magenta.” Shetland corrected, equally sour. “We’re calling her Magenta.”
“That’s not my name!” the pegasus protested weakly.
“I am sorry, but your assertion is not nearly as impressive than that of my large friend… Magenta.” Toasty said. Although she had no mouth to smirk with, it more than showed in her voice.
Magenta threw up her hooves. “Whatever, have your fun at my cost!”
“We fully intent to,” Toasty said earnestly, garnering the hint of a chuckle from Shetland.
“You’re a comedy duo,” Magenta sighed. She stretched out her wings, before throwing a curious look down at the pair. “So, you have any plans? Are you gonna come with me to work?”
Before Shetland could answer, Toasty fell in: “Shetland has stretches she is required to do. She has been slacking off lately.”
“Hey!” Shetland gave her an indignant look. “That’s my personal biz, what do you care?”
At that, Toasty stretched herself to her full, absolutely unimpressive height. She could have stood under Shetland and barely touched her belly. Nonetheless, her formal speech carried authority: “As my guardian, I require you to be at your peak physical condition. That includes fulfilling your doctors orders and doing your workouts. Plus,” she added mischievously, “It gives you plenty of chances to show off your body.”
Magenta snickered, causing Shetland to throw her a confused glance. “I don’t know if I want anypony to watch this,” she said as she reached back and tapped her burned, scarred right flank. “I can’t go a day without realising how ugly that side is.” She looked up to Magenta, who gave no comment, but her averted gaze was enough.
Toasty however shook her head. “I do not think it is ugly. Think about it: You have a battlescar covering your entire limp. That is not ugly, that is badass.”
A sudden heat rose up in Shetland’s cheeks as she smiled. “Well, uh… thank you Toasty-”
“Literally.”
Shetland blinked. Then, after a second, Magenta groaned loudly. Another second later, Shetland fell in.
“That was so baaaad!” Magenta complained, hiding her own eyes from the giggling robot.
Shetland facehooved.
“I like it,” Toasty said, unfaced by their reaction. “We should go, Shetland… Magenta, do you wish to accompany us?”
The pegasus seemed a little surprised by the suggestion. “Well…” she said, her eyes focused on the ceiling as she thought. “I probably could. Management’s been so wrapped up with all the bad stuff lately, they kinda forgot to give our department something to do. I probably could just pop in an hour or two later and nopony would mind…” She smiled down at the pair. “Yep, I can come with you. On the condition that you’ll use my real name!”
Shetland and Toasty exchanged a look. Then they answered in unison: “No bucking way.”
------
It quickly became clear that this was Magenta’s first time in a gym. The pegasus nervously glanced at the half-dozen machines, each designed to train a different part of the body.
“Don’t worry, you can go at your own pace,” Shetland assured her, although her lips were curving into a smirk as she eyed the barbell, its sides bulging with heavy plates stacked upon each other. “Why don’t you give that a shot?”
Magenta’s jaw dropped. “You’re kidding,” she whispered breathlessly. “That’s like…” She circled the object, her eyes widening as she counted upwards. “That’s three hundred and fifty pounds! You know, we can’t all be giant muscle-mares, I’d like to actually start with something simple.”
“Oh, well,” Shetland smirked. “You should warm up first anyway.” She nudged the pegasus on a treadmill. “See if you can get to thirty minutes.”
Magenta gave her a doubtful look. “How long is this gonna take? Not the running, I mean all of it.”
“Well, you should plan in an hour or so,” Shetland admitted, ignoring the surprised yelp as she switched on the machine. “You said we had time right?”
“Yeah…” Magenta said, trying to run on three legs as she searched the treadmills menu. “Just don’t wanna be pushing it.”
Shetland shrugged, grinning as she saw the utterly untrained pegasus try to match the treadmill’s pace. She’d actually only set it to ten minutes, but by then Magenta should be plenty warmed up, she figured. Alas, as amusing as it would be to watch her friend struggle, her scars were already itching, reminding her of her own exercises.
Toasty stood aside, attentively watching the two mares exercise. “Do you require skin lubrication before you begin, or after?” she asked, holding up the lotion for Shetland’s scars.
“Let’s do it after,” Shetland groaned as she struggled to extend her leg, ignoring the spasm of pain it sent her. Despite the workout she’d given it, it still wouldn’t stretch fully, staying in a slightly bent position no matter her effort. But through Toasty’s encouragement, she swallowed her frustration and kept going. For a while, all that could be heard was the earth pony’s occasional grunt, masking the ever-growing panting of Magenta. The pegasus huffed deeply at the end, nearly slipping off the track. And as the machine suddenly came to a halt, she ran headfirst into the console, gasping as the remaining momentum took her off her hooves. Luckily Toasty was there to catch her before she hit the floor. The heavily breathing pegasus sank to the ground, sweaty drops falling from her forehead.
“Well…?” she asked in between her gasps for air. “H-how wassat?”
“It was… good for a start,” Shetland said slowly, unable to hide her chuckle. While her own forehead was spilling a few drops of sweat, her heart still kept to a fairly disciplined pace. “Ready for the next part?”
“Screw… you,” Magenta cursed, unwilling to get off the ground just yet. “Gimme a moment.”
While Shetland watched in amusement, Toasty was more sympathetic, and offered her a glass of water.
“Thank you,” Magenta whispered before greedily swallowing the cooling gift. With a sour look at Shetland, she grumbled, “Don’t you have something better to do than see me suffer? Lift some weights or whatever.”
“Oh, I will,” Shetland smirked as she casually went over to the hugely hung barbell and slid under the pole. “What do you say,” She grinned at Magenta. “Twenty bits I can’t get it to thirty?”
The pegasus threw a suspicious look to the weights, then to Shetland. “You would not propose that if you couldn’t do it.”
“Maybe I just like a challenge,” Shetland suggested innocently.
“Twenty bits,” Magenta said after a moment. “If you can do forty. With me and Toasty sitting on top.”
At that, Shetland bit her lip, throwing the weight a doubtful look. “I’ll do forty.” She spoke slowly, weighing the options. “And then you sit on it, and if I can still get it up, I get the twenty.”
“Deal!” Magenta matched her grin.
With that, Shetland began to lift, delighted at Magenta’s involuntarily dropped jaw as she quickly got through her first five pushes. The huge weights gave the pole a curved shape, yet she wasn’t worried- they were shaped as large circles, so even if she dropped the barbell, it would impact on her left and right, without injuring her.
“Shetland!” Toasty whispered, just loud enough to pierce through her effort-laden mind. With a grunt, the earth pony let down the weight, gasping for breath as the tension in her body left all at once. Still, she wasted no time in sitting up and following Toasty’s eyes. A hyena, Gan, as Shetland assumed from his somewhat rougher fur, stood in the doorway. His eyes temptatively watched the trio, as if he wasn’t sure whether to approach or leave them behind. Well, Shetland thought as she narrowed her eyes, She wasn’t going to give him a choice.
“Hey,” she called out loudly, though it took her a moment to gather her breath afterwards. “Come here.”
Gan hesitated before he slowly approached, his eyes resting on Toasty for a long second. As he spoke, a hint of tiredness appeared in his voice, almost entirely concealed by the raspy tones of his language. <I would have left you to continue.>
Shetland’s eyes narrowed and she refused to leave out her friends by speaking his language. “I’ve never seen you before in the gym.”
<I didn’t know of this place.> He shrugged, glancing to Toasty, before letting out a groan and finally meeting Shetland’s language. “I just walk. Around.”
“Alone?” Magenta asked. Shetland blinked at her words, looking over the hyena’s shoulder. Indeed, Khunbish was nowhere to be found.
“That strange?” Gan furrowed his brows at Magenta. “Is not allowed?”
“W-well, I-it is…” Magenta stuttered, more and more unnerved. But Gan simply turned to Shetland again.
“Impressive,” he complimented her, a smirk on his face. “How many you done?”
“Twenty!” Toasty shot the reply before Shetland could even open her mouth. “And she will do twenty more.” she decided as she gave Shetland a look as if to say: and if not…
Shetland pursed her lips as she gave Magenta a questioning look. “Does it still count if I made a break?”
“Well…” Magenta grinned mischievously-
“Come on!” Toasty interjected, glaring so brightly the pegasus had to blink. “It is not her fault she was interrupted.”
“Alright,” Magenta rolled her eyes. Then she gave the robot a playful shove. “But if I win, you’ll have to make me dinner.”
“Breakfast.” Toasty insisted, her head snapping around, her eyelights shrinking to tiny dots.
“Dinner or no deal.” Magenta crossed her forelegs, beating her wings to avoid falling over. “I never eat breakfast anyway.”
Toasty staggered, as if Magenta had just kicked her in the face. “W-w-wha?” she stammered, her eyelights growing until her entire visor was nothing but unwatchable brightness.
Shetland stemmed herself against the weights, hoping the effort would deafen her to the inevitable explosion. Luckily, Gan jumped in, directing their attention back onto Shetland.
Soon, she became only faintly aware of the number Toasty counted. The effort drove a sea of sweat onto her forehead and from there it traveled down to her eyes. Thus, the only sign she had of the others presence was the occasional cheer and sometimes a cold hoof swiping over her forehead, just so it could drench itself again.
“Thirty-eight.” Toasty whispered suddenly. “You are almost there.”
Air escaped out of Shetland’s lungs like a furnace as the barbell nearly dropped to the ground. She ground her teeth. It took her nearly a minute for the next push.
“Come on!” Toasty urged.
“You can do it!” Magenta joined her, seemingly forgetting about her bet.
A freakish, convulsed snicker came from Gan, nearly costing Shetland her concentration as she pushed… stemmed her legs against the weight as it felt like they were breaking apart-
“FORTY!” Toasty cheered, and a second later, a massive impact shook the ground under their hooves as the weight smashed into the floor, leaving little dents behind. Shetland fell back on the ground, gasping for breath as she looked at her shaking legs, half-surprised not to see them covered in blood from bursting veins.
“Don’t rest yourself too much,” Magenta smirked, catching the huffing earth pony’s attention as she set her hoof on the barbell. “You still gotta do the extra~”
“Oh,” Toasty said quietly, giving Shetland a doubtful look. “Right.” she said slowly as she climbed on top of the weight. Gan followed them with his eyes, his jaw slowly dropping as he realized what they were doing.
“Impossible…” he whispered.
Shetland was inclined to agree as she watched the two mares clambering onto the weights. There had been little time to recover from the strain of lifting before and this might be one of the heaviest she’d ever managed. Although, she thought as her eyes fell on Magenta, flappers are fairly light. And Toasty had dropped a lot of weight after the attack, with her new body composed of much lighter materials. Still… “Magenta… put one weight on your side, so it’s more even,” she muttered.
“Are you suggesting that I am heavier than her?” Toasty asked. “I am smaller.”
“And fatter,” Shetland joked, smirking as Toasty crossed her hooves. “And I just demonstrated it’s all muscle, so don’t even try shooting back~”
“Well,” Toasty poked a hoof into Shetland’s belly, so it sank in slightly. “Very well cushioned, your muscles.”
To her right, Magenta, with the help of Gan, managed to put the weight on the other side, then looked with wide eyes over the bar, and then Shetland’s smirk. She’d been lifting six of the weights the pegasus had just struggled with. “Are you ready?” she asked and focused back on the enormous task before her. She swallowed. Not a drop of saliva was in her mouth as she placed her hooves at the handles.
“On three?” Toasty asked. Shetland shook her head.
“I’ll do it when I’m ready.” She shot Magenta a glare before she could reply, then she wrestled control over her breathing. She filled her lungs with air, then let it all out in a shout as she pressed against the pole, feeling it bend to the point she’d expect it to break. Then, it rose, and her shivering hooves pushed, as pain spiked under the extreme pressure. With all of her might, she pushed as she simultaneously tried to draw in the slightest amount of breath. It now hung entirely in the air. With another shout, she tried to push, to extend her legs fully-
The bar dropped to the ground and Shetland screamed, clutching her agonized forelegs and cursing wildly. The dazed pegasus climbed off while Toasty nearly jumped over to shetland, worriedly examining her.
“I’m fine.” Shetland insisted, rubbing her forelegs with a grimace. “Did I do it?”
“Well…” Magenta bit her lips. “You didn’t get it up all the way, but… “ she hastily added at the look Toasty gave her. “I’ll let it count, I mean, heck, I didn’t think you could possibly get it up!”
That moment, someone offered Shetland a bottle of water, which she greedily emptied, splashing at least a third over her chest and hooves. As she looked up, she was surprised to see Gan, offering her a towel, displaying his sharp teeth in an awkward smile. “Never see before,” he complimented as she took the towel out of his paws.
“Thank you,” Shetland gasped as she waited for her drumming heart to calm down. “That impressive, huh?”
“If you need to hear it again,” Magenta rolled her eyes. “Yes, it was. Now stop swaggering!”
“Hey, I deserve to boast after pulling that off!” Shetland laughed. “Also, you owe me twenty bits.”
“I for one am very impressed with your prowess,” Toasty said. “Still, stop.”
Shetland crossed her shivering forehooves and made a pout. “Alright, killjoys.”
“Shut up~” Toasty amusedly shook her head. Then she suddenly grabbed the towel out of Shetland’s hooves and began to dry her off, despite the surprised look the earth pony gave her.
Wiping a hoof over her forehead, she decided not to pay the robot’s odd behaviour any more mind. Instead, she laid her eyes on Gan and whispered: “I haven’t seen you alone before. Why now?” Whenever she’d seen him before, he had been with Khunbish, or at least very close to her. Only one time, in the deep of the night, he’d been alone… or at least she hadn’t seen the other hyena. Back then, he’d been trying to break into Coltville’s mainframe. She frowned. Was that what he’d been trying to do now, before being briefly distracted by the sight of her workout?
Gan nervously shifted his weight as he looked over the trio. Then, he seemed to make a decision. “You are Sparkle.” he spoke slowly. “I respect you. Only tell you.”
Shetland’s frown deepened at the obvious attempt to keep Toasty out. She could just tell her afterwards, but it did feel wrong to break a promise, if he already came out to her. Well, that will depend on what he tells me. With that thought in mind, she nodded.
Gan lowered his voice, even as he switched into hyenidae. <Khunbish and me… had a disagreement. I…> He took a breath, looking at the ground. <I cannot say more.>
Well, that wasn’t very suspicious. <Can you tell me what it was about?>
<No.> Gan shook his head. Then he snarled. <We have different ideas how to continue our investigation. That is all I can say> The last part was said with enough force that Shetland didn’t even try. Instead, she awkwardly raised a hoof, patting on the bewildered hyena’s shoulder.
<Hey, uh… It was pretty stressful, huh?>
<We argued long.> Gan shook his head. <No more questions.>
“Alright.” Shetland felt a pang of disappointment, and yet, her mind was brightly lit. She’d made progress. Maybe, if she kept it up, she could coax even more out of him! “You know, if you’d like, you could come train regularly with me.” she offered. “Hopefully with you and Toasty?” she smirked at Magenta, who huffed.
“No way I’m coming here regularly. My schedule wouldn’t even allow it, and I am not getting up earlier.” Her eyes darted to the clock over the entrance and a frown appeared on her face. Then she jumped up, eyes wide. “HOLY HECK, I just realized something!” She looked to the clock again, then to Shetland and Toasty, who gave her strange looks. “You can’t fly!” Magenta exclaimed. “It’ll take you an hour or more, we have to go now! I can’t push my shedule harder!”
“Ugh… Can we at least take a shower? I am drenched!” Shetland complained. While that wasn’t quite true, the dried sweat still hung on her fur, making her itchy and smelly.
Magenta opened her mouth, but Toasty was faster: “THERE IS PROBABLY NO TIME. LETS GO!” As neither mare made any attempt to follow her order, the robot buckled under their glares. “Alright,” she huffed. “But I do not think you smell that bad.”
After advising Gan not to stay alone, the three mares made their way to the spaceport. Magenta was not used to walking the stretch, and continuously beat her wings in frustration, which slowly got on Shetland’s nerves. “Would you stop doing that?” she finally groaned.
“Fine,” Magenta grumbled, folding her wings in.
“Some of us have to walk all the time,” Shetland explained with a snort. “Some do not have the luxury of flying.”
“And some of us can’t lift several times our weight,” Magenta shot back.
“I’d say flight is much more useful than carrying things,” Shetland scoffed.
“Girls, would you stop being jealous over one another?” Toasty interjected with a dirty look to both mares. “I’ll have you know, some of us cannot have orgasms.”
Magenta was stunned, but Shetland broke out in hearty laughter. “Yes, Toasty, you are by far the most pitiable of us,” she chuckled as she calmed down a little. Magenta however was looking at Toasty, deep in thought.
“You know, I heard there were some modifications in development…”
Shetland blinked over from Magenta’s thoughtful look, to Toasty’s piqued interest, and she decided that she was not comfortable discussing that topic seriously. Therefore, she had to subtly influence the conversation in another direction. “Who wants to hear a joke?” she blurted out loudly.
Thankfully, her masterminded plan kept them busy enough until they arrived, and Magenta led them into the workshop Shetland had already been to before.
“Anything going on today?” Magenta shouted into the room.
“Not much. Which is the only reason I’m not gonna rattle you out for your tardiness,” a voice from above replied. A batpony mare was hanging from the ceiling, looking over the small room as if she was searching for something.
Magenta turned around. “That little ray of sunshine is Ocean Dew, she normally works to maintain spaceship parts, isn’t that right?”
“Yep,” Dew answered. “We were finally done fixing some of the parts of the hyena’s ship. Damn scrapeaters, how they crashed this ship…” she shook her head. “Speaking of scrap-eating, you missed lunch. I brought some for you, it’s over on the workbench.”
“Thanks.”
“Today we’re mostly listing stuff,” Dew continued. “After they found this cache, the bosses want everything triple checked, and a list of everything that’s not where it should be.” She gave Magenta a square look. “I hope you and Pipe properly catalogued?”
“Of course!” Magenta said indignantly. “We’re not sloppy here.” She looked to Shetland. “Uh, sorry, but if that’s our job, you’ll seriously be in our way and stuff.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Shetland shrugged. “It’s okay.”
“Actually...aren’t you the mare who found the secret cache?” Dew chimed in. “I heard it was a huge mare.”
Shetland nodded.
“You can stay in the back room then, if you want,” Dew offered. “Maybe you’ve seen some of the things we couldn’t find. You wouldn’t be alone either, “ she added. “We’ve got a visitor here from Coltville.”
“Oh, and Toasty?” Magenta excitedly appeared beside the robot. “We’ve got a place you can recharge, if you need to.”
That settled it. Shetland lowered her head in agreement and trotted into the said room. It was cramped in there, with boxes of screws and tools everywhere, but it was comfortably cool, unlike the hot outside that had once again driven the sweat on her forehead. Comfortably lying on the ground before her was a red earth pony stallion. He lazily raised his head as she entered, but then his eyes widened. “Shetland?” he stammered.
“Burning Crust!” Shetland exclaimed, recognizing the voice.
“Holy heck, I… I forgot how frikkin large you are,” he gasped as he jumped to his legs. “How have you been?”
Shetland silently stared down at him. She wasn’t quite sure how to approach the stallion that had tried to dissuade her from saving Toasty in the storm. Who suggested she replace her. Certainly not like nothing happened.
Crust winced at her look, biting his lip. “You’re uh… you’re mad at me?”
“Not… necessarily.” Shetland said. She wanted to sit. Her hind leg was once again aching, demanding her attention, but that would mean she’d not look downwards at him anymore.
“Look, uh… I’m sorry,” he offered weakly.
“What exactly for?” Shetland raised an eyebrow.
“I… I don’t know!” he exclaimed. “It’s been a few days and that was really tense… I could have said anything…” he swallowed. “Look, I… I guess I know I’ve been an ass to your robot friend? I’m sorry for that.”
Well, that was something, Shetland decided and freed him from her glare. With a sigh, she lowered herself to the ground, finally able to scratch her scarred leg. “Good enough,” she informed the tentatively watching stallion. “I’m kinda surprised to see you here, though.”
“Well, I was just here for a brief visit, picking up some letters,” he said as he settled down. “But then this all happened, and since I was already gonna drive, they chose me to go around and fetch all the missing inventory lists. That is, once they’re done here,” he added, knocking at a box. It made a sound like it was full of a foal’s building blocks.
Shetland frowned. “But… can’t they just use a communicator to get them instantly?”
“Beats me,” Crust sighed. “I think Princess Twilight just has a paper obsession or something.”
“Yeah, that sounds like mom,” Shetland agreed. “But she’s usually more practical than that.”
“I’ve heard you’ve pretty much been at the center of everything lately.” Crust raised an eyebrow. “Would you mind helping me catch up with things?”
Shetland rolled her eyes as she began to explain. Occasionally Magenta or Dew would come in and take one of the boxes, or place it back on the shelves. One time, however, as Shetland was about to close her explanation, Magenta carried a photo. “Hey, Crust,” she called out. “I’d like to check something with you.”
He gave her a surprised look, but clambered to get on his legs. “What is it?”
“You know Scalloway, right?” she asked. “He’s been maintaining your equipment and stuff? You’ve been in his workshop?”
“Yeah?” He raised an eyebrow.
“Do you recognize this?” she asked, placing the photo between him and Shetland.
“Hey,” Shetland whispered. “Isn’t that the wrench-”
“You found in the cache? Exactly,” Magenta said grimly. “Crust, we don’t have that type of wrench here. And in Coltville, you only have Scalloway. Do you think it could be his?”
“No idea.” Crust blew out air. “One wrench looks like the other to me. Though… Scalloway has been complaining about losing things for a while. He gets upset, thinks it’s because poniess mess up his stuff.”
“Hmmm.” Magenta grit her teeth. “We should definitely inform the higher-ups of that. It means they could very likely be over all of Horizon.”
Shetland bit her lip, staring down at the photo. If that was true… “Hey Crust?” she whispered thoughtfully. “Has he been complaining about that before the hyenas arrived?”
“Oh yeah, yeah, he’s done that for a while now. But he’s always been a nagger, so I didn’t pay enough attention to say for sure.”
Magenta sighed. “You’re still on about the hyenas, Shetland? I assumed it was clear they weren’t the enemy when their room was robbed.”
“Well-” Shetland tried to speak, but Magenta interrupted her.
“They even had an alibi. One you yourself can confirm!”
“How that guard screwed up so hard is beyond me,” Crust grumbled. “Who thought it’d be a good idea to replace my cousin with that idiot-”
Shetland’s head shot up. “What do you mean, replace?”
“Yeah, my cousin, Smelting Forge. I was actually here to give him a visit. And let me tell you, he’d never have fallen asleep on the job, disciplined to the core, that guy is. But then, someone from higher up had the brilliant idea of replacing him with that stupid activist-” He stopped as he gauged Shetland’s reaction. “Uhm… that unprofessional idiot.”
Under different circumstances, Shetland would have bashed him over the head for speaking against robot rights, but right now, she was focused on finding out more. “Did he say where the order came from? Does he know?”
“Not really.” Crust shook his head. For a moment Shetland ground her teeth in disappointment, but then he said: “But it was really strange, cause it was Princess Twilight who pushed it through. You’d think she’d see through a stupid decision like that, but I guess she’s too stressed out with all this crap… what do you think?”
But Shetland didn’t answer. Her mind was racing. Twilight had appointed that guard. On the day the break-in happened. And unlike Crust, she was certain the decree had originated from nopony but the alicorn herself. After all, did she not tell Shetland specifically not to question that stallion? Shetland swallowed, and a cold shiver ran down her back.
Shetland wanted nothing more than to go: to find that stallion, to find her mother, to scream until her lungs gave out. She grit her teeth, trying to forcefully loosen her muscles. Twilight. Just mouthing the name made her shiver. Twilight had orchestrated the break-in. She had kept Shetland away from the truth, even though she just wanted to see Toasty safe. Why? Did she think I can’t be trusted? That I would ruin whatever… scheme she’d thought of? Or… is it because if I knew, I would try to stop it? Every thought was like a new log on the fire that was burning in her chest. Her hooves shivered, earning her a worried look from Crust. Shetland took a deep breath. Is mom the enemy? She tossed the notion away. Twilight wouldn’t betray the colony… would she? Shetland’s head shook wildly, as if to cool her burning brain. Speculating was of no use. She had to know. But as hot as she felt, as restless as she was… Toasty was still recharging. With a desperate gasp for cooling air, She opened her eyes on Burning Crust, who stared at her like she’d just burst into flame.
“Whatever you said, Crust,” Shetland muttered.
He blinked, seemingly unable to remember what they’d been talking about. “R-right… you uh…” his eyes darted around, looking for something to talk about. “You wanna play cards?”
She pursed her lips, but was there anything better to do?
Crust dealt her a hoof, but she barely paid attention. Yet, almost against her will, she found herself appreciating his effort. Not because of the game, but that it forced her to calm down and think things through. With a quick look, she picked up two random cards and laid them out, keeping him busy as she pondered. No matter how mad she was, she couldn’t cause a public scene. Everypony was already on edge, because of the curfews. Yes, it was Twilight’s fault, but if it got out they couldn’t trust their own princess- she wasn’t sure what consequences there might be, but it would certainly be bad. Not to mention, as she reluctantly admitted to herself, possibly unjustified. No, she couldn’t cause a scene, not before she knew for sure. Her nose tensed as she let out an angry whinny. It was that damn line of reasoning that had always stopped her. If only, if only she could just ignore the logic behind it…
“It’s... your turn,” Crust interrupted her maddening reasoning. Under his breath, he added with more than a hint of annoyance: “It’s been for over five minutes.”
Shetland threw down a card. First, she had to visit that Voidmarine, Lousy Mole or something. If she questioned her mother before that, she could order him not to speak with her, or teach him a cover story, if she hadn’t already done that. Then… if that worked, she would confront Twilight. Though, if it wasn’t to happen in public, she’d have to do it at night. And there was a curfew… She closed her eyes, one hoof rubbing her forehead while Crust exasperatedly gathered his cards and left to chat with Magenta instead. After just a few minutes, his head poked back into the room. “Hey, Shet, your robot friend’s done.”
“Finally!” Shetland nickered as she burst to her hooves. “Toasty, we’re leaving!” she bellowed as she strode out of the storage. The robot blinked and turned to hastily excuse herself to Magenta, before following the larger mare.
--------
Toasty’s eyes grew as she struggled to keep pace. “Twilight Sparkle? She ordered the-” Shetland interrupted her with a kettle-like hiss.
“Don’t say it out loud!” she whispered with enough anger to make the robot lower her ears. Shetland looked around to see if anypony had listened in, but nowadays everypony was too hurried and too scared to be anywhere outside for long. The landing field was vacant, as vacant as it could be with somepony dashing across every other minute like they were chased by a bugbear. “Yes, exactly,” she added quietly.
“Have you considered that she might do it for the same reason you would? Find out-” Toasty took a look at Shetland’s wildly-rolling eyes. “-what they are keeping hidden?”
“Thought crossed my mind,” Shetland grumbled darkly. “But Mom would do it all sneaky-like! She wouldn’t order to have their room trashed if she just wanted to snoop around.” she groaned, rubbing her forehead. “It all makes so little sense… this isn’t what mom would do at all!”
“...right.” Toasty paused. “I agree, it really does not add up.”
“Mhm,” Shetland grumbled as she observed the landing field. “Do you know where this… Lofty-something stallion lives?”
“No, I do not.” Toasty said, causing the earth pony to groan.
“Then other robots should know. He’s like, a robot freedom fighter or something like that.”
“And do not forget,” Toasty added mischievously, “You are pretty popular with us, too~”
Shetland ignored her quip. She was waving towards a trio of robots that had just left a nearby warehouse, beckoning them to come closer.
“So, you are looking for Lofty?” One of the robots asked as they sat in the shadow of a larger building. He sounded concerned, like he wasn’t completely sure if he could trust the odd pair.
“Yep,” Toasty said. “We just wanted to ask him a few questions.”
“I heard he’s under arrest.” a smaller mare-bot said as she tapped her chin.
“He’s in prison?” Shetland bit her lip. There was no way she would get in there easily-
Her worries were quickly dashed, however. “No, no,” the robot chuckled.“ He just can’t leave his room, as far as I heard.”
“And I heard he’s on probation.” The second robotic stallion shook his head.
“As far as I know, he does not leave his room,” the marebot insisted.
“It doesn’t matter how or if he’s been punished,” Shetland groaned. “I just wanna know where he lives.” With that, she leveled her gaze at the first robot. He hesitated, and she could have sworn his speaker played the sound effect of a gulp.
“Why, exactly?” hhe finally asked.
“Oh, come on, Gear Twist!” his friends exclaimed. “This is Shetland Sparkle, she is on our side.”
“I just want to make sure.” Gear Twist gave Shetland a judging look. “Lofty Goal is one of the most prominent of ponies that care for us. Even if I agree he sometimes goes a little overboard, he is our loudest supporter on your side. You are not looking for retribution for your new friends?”
“My new-” Shetland blinked. What was he talking about? Did Lofty attack somepony she knew? Her eyes darted over Toasty. No, she’s here, I just met Magenta and mom’s fine, so who-
Toasty’s hoof dug into her side. Shetland then lowered her head so Toasty could whisper in her ear: “He is speaking about Gan and Khunbish.”
“What?” Shetland exclaimed loudly. “They’re not my friends. I just-” she shook her head in disbelief. “I, MAYBE, have some respect for the male one. At least he seems kind of honest.” she blinked. “Kind of.”
“Then you mean him no harm?” Gear Twist asked cautiously.
“No,” Toasty affirmed. “In no way do we mean him harm, we simply wish to ask him a few questions, so we can find the bad guy.” she glanced to Shetland, who gave her a stern nod.
Gear chuckled. “Alright, he lives in central hub, dorm number F-88, but he can’t have visitors, so-” but whatever he wanted to say, it was drowned out as a loud voice came from behind them. “What do you think you’re doing!? You’re on the clock here!” The robots scrambled to get to their hooves as they ran towards whatever they’d been retrieving from storage.
“We’re falling behind because of you, you chatty rustbuckets! I’ll get your square rears back into shape if I see you lazing off one more time!” A Voidmarine called angrily after them.
Shetland groaned, staring after the Voidmarine with a scornful look. Then she got to her hooves. There was no point in lazing around.
----
Unfortunately, lazing around seemed like the only sensible option. If what the robots said was true and Lofty couldn’t have visitors, there was no way they could just barge in during broad daylight. So, she had resolved to wait for evening.
“Shetland, there is no point in aimlessly walking around,” Toasty complained as they rounded the central colony’s tunnels for what she claimed was already the third time.
Shetland’s ears folded down, pressing themselves against her head, but she gave no other indication of having heard the robot.
“We could do something else,” Toasty suggested. “Would you like lunch?”
“No,” Shetland said, her voice more monotone than the robot’s.
“We could play your board game together.”
“No.”
Toasty huffed. “What about the gym?”
“We were at the gym just this morning and my forehooves are still sore!” Shetland snapped, wrestling for her last bits of patience.
“Well, what do you want to do?” Toasty snapped back. “There must be something!”
“I want to keep walking,” Shetland said resolutely. Walking was good. It kept her brain busy, a miracle for her developing migraine.
“Well, my presence is not required for that,” Toasty grumbled and turned from Shetland, just to suddenly be stopped in her tracks. She whirled around, but even that motion was stopped by Shetland’s teeth gripping tightly onto her tail. “Let go!” she shouted, her eyelights widening.
Shetland spat out the synthetic tail. “Do you think this is some kind of vacation trip?” she snarled, stomping her hoof on the metal ground. “Do you even remember what danger you’re in?!”
“Of course I do!” Toasty’s voice rose to meet Shetland’s. “I am the one who nearly died. I was going to search for a Voidmarine, or Twilight Sparkle or Princess Luna, not walk around defenseless like an idiot!”
“Well, you look like an idiot!” Shetland shouted. “What if it finds you before you find them?”
“Maybe I would even accept that risk,” Toasty grumbled.
At her words, the larger pony paled. “I would not,” she whispered.
“Well, whose decision is it? Not yours!” Toasty’s cold hoof hit Shetland’s broad chest.
Shetland bit her lips, glaring down at the robot. “You’re not taking it,” she hissed through her teeth, lowering her head right in front of Toasty’s visor. But suddenly, the robot’s eyelights flashed in sudden brightness, forcing her to stumble backwards, rubbing her eyelids as afterimages flashed before her closed eyes.
“You are not intimidating me like this, Shetland.” Toasty’s voice was a mixture of shivering anger and dark sternness. “Now, if you please, you could watch my back until I find someone else who will keep me safe.”
“You-” Shetland hissed, still blinking her watery eyes. “Tartarus!” she cursed loudly, grinding her teeth. “Okay,” she said, her voice shaky, as she glared at the small robot, tears leaking uncontrollably out of her eyes. “You’ll get what you want, I’ll bring you to mom, or- or Luna, they’ll certainly be better than me anyway, I’ll just do it without you, why, it won’t even be a problem! I’m Shetland, the mistress of talky-talk, master of subtlety! Definitely the pony you should send to gently tickle information out of someone.” With heaving breaths, she stared down at the little robot, who had taken a few steps back from her. It took a pause of several seconds, in which Shetland’s breath stabilized, until Toasty responded.
“How did you jump to that conclusion?” the robot asked bewilderedly with a shake of her head. “Of course I will assist you when the time comes. It is just that right now, I am bored. Can we not bridge the time somehow?”
Shetland stared forlornly at Toasty, until her hoof suddenly shot up, hitting her own head so hard it left a temporary mark. “I’m so stupid, Toasty...” she whispered, her voice low.
The robot raised her hoof, as if to object, then she lowered it again. “You… did kind of forget what we were arguing about midway through,” she admitted. “I do not want to leave you to doing it alone, you know?”
“Of course I do,” Shetland said defiantly, raising a leg to push her face into her hoof. Toasty, who hadn’t missed the motion, lowered herself to peek under it.
“Shetland, are you crying?”
“No, I’m not!” Shetland fervently shook her head, pulling her leg away in a motion that brushed over her eyes and glared down at Toasty, mist glimmering in her gaze. She pulled up her nose.
Toasty looked away. “Of course you are not, a pony as tough as you has eyes dry as a desert.” She glanced back knowingly. “However, if the -- certainly negligible -- amount of pressure you are experiencing still seems a little bothersome, a board game often helps to relax.” With a chuckle, she added: “I also learned how to make Boortsog, and I am eager for a chance to try it.” With that, she led the way towards their shared room. The staccato tapping of artificial and biological hooves on the metal ground masked the sound of Shetland’s sniffling.
-----
Toasty tried her hardest to look relaxed as she leaned against the wall, her eyes constantly darting towards the door. Shetland groaned.
“How long ‘til curfew?”
“Five minutes.” Toasty whispered with trepidation. “Shetland… we should go, if somepony finds us here…”
Shetland nickered, but the robot had a point. “Do you hear somepony coming?”
“N-no-”
“Listen carefully.” Shetland warned her.
“I said no, and I mean it!” Toasty protested. Then her ears peaked again, in case somepony heard their conversation.
Shetland pushed herself from the wall and approached the door, biting her lip as she gently knocked. A clattering sound came from the room, as if a dozen pencils had fallen to the ground.
“W-who’s there?” To Shetland’s surprise, it was a high-pitched squeak, wholly different from the charismatic voice she’d first heard from the stallion.
“Lofty Goal?” she asked in concern.
“Yes, that’s me,” he admitted.
Shetland frowned. The disappointment was clear in his voice, but she had no time to wonder where it came from. “I’m Shetland Sparkle. I wanted to speak with you.”
“You can’t.” His voice was dampened by more than just the physical barrier. “You have to go back to your place, t-the curfew can start any moment, you’ll be caught.”
“It’s just a few questions.” Unintentionally, she’d spoken a bit louder, causing Toasty to throw a fearful look around.
“I cannot speak with you, I am under orders.”
Shetland grit her teeth, feeling the sudden urge to buck the door down. But it was massive, not in size but in thickness, made primarily from metal, making it uncertain if she could even muster the necessary strength. Not to mention that such a level of noise would get her and Toasty arrested faster than she could blink. “Let us in!” she demanded, allowing her voice to become a bit louder. “I already know you and mom planned the break-in!”
A hoof poked into her side. “Shetland,” Toasty whispered. “I hear hoofsteps.”
Shetland gripped the door handle, rattling it as it miraculously turned, revealing the unicorn’s pale face. “Inside, inside,” he urged, his magic pushing both mares from behind. He snapped the door shut, somehow without any noise. And not a second too soon, as just after it closed, the distorted voice from a helmet’s speaker called out: “No more talking or running around, you are to all stay in your quarters!”
Shetland let out a long breath. The Voidmarine suspected nothing unusual. Lofty did not share her relief however, staring at her with an unreadable expression.
“How did you know?” he asked, not taking his eyes from Shetland for a second.
“I have my sources,” she said, drawing her lips into a thin line.
“The… the princess could not have told you?” Lofty muttered. It sounded like both an assertion and a question.
“I have my sources.” Shetland repeated. “I know she made you specifically guard the room on that day. I want to know exactly what happened.” As he gave her a thin-lipped look, she responded with a hot glare. “I’ll get this story one way or another, if not from you, then from mom!” The mutual staring contest went on for several seconds and her eyes began to twitch, but she culled the glowing, hot fireball in her chest. “Look,” she said, closing her eyes as she tried to sound reasonable. “We both want the same thing, don’t we? Whatever mom is trying to do, I’d find it hard to believe it would be bad for the colony. And she couldn’t have employed you for a bad reason either, right?” From the corner of her eye, she saw Toasty giving her a wink.
Lofty let out a sigh. “Even if you’re right, I’d still get in more trouble with the princess if she finds out I told you.”
“If she does, then she’ll learn that you helped me in protecting every robot in the colony!” Shetland exclaimed. “Isn’t that more important?” Her eyes narrowed as she saw him squirm, but she reigned herself in. Instead, she put on a smile. “My mom is not unreasonable. Maybe she’ll be mad for a little while, but even if it helps just a little bit, I’m sure she’ll be able to look beyond this. It would help every single robot here!” she repeated, intently watching him, silently pleading.
Lofty let out a strained breath. His eyes closed and whole valleys of wrinkles formed on his forehead. “That is… part of the problem.” It sounded like he was in physical pain as he said this. “If it comes out, it could cause damage that we- that I don’t want to risk.”
So there is more on the line than his career, Shetland thought. Her eyes shifted to Toasty. “Is this something that could be used to frame robots?” she whispered.
“N-no!” Lofty tried to assure her, but his voice had grown in pitch and he’d reacted too quickly. A moment later, he seemed to notice his own mistake and settled down, a chagrined expression on his face.
Shetland bit her lip. “You know, I agree with you in many ways,” she whispered, throwing another glance to Toasty. “We don’t treat robots fairly. We need to stop hanging on to outdated, overly-cautious safety rules that others force on us. I promise I would never stay in the way of that, but right now, my marefriend is in danger.”
Lofty’s head shot up. Luckily, he was too focused on Shetland to notice Toasty’s equal look of disbelief. For a heartbeat, Shetland’s eyes shifted to her and she nearly unnoticeably shook her head. Then, she focused back on the unicorn, noticing with relief that he didn’t seem to catch their quiet exchange.
“You- you two are…” he muttered, looking between the two as if one was going to jump up and shout “April Fools”.
“Yep,” Shetland lied, noting from the corner of her eye that Toasty was eagerly nodding along to everything. Well, if we’re going to play this, might just go all in, Shetland thought, then reached her hoof around Toasty’s side, pulling the small robot in to lean against her. “We haven’t told anypony… don’t wanna raise attention while it’s dangerous.” She could have congratulated herself for the words that had tumbled out of her mouth. Now, he wouldn’t even share her stupid fairy tale about their relationship, as it would place them in danger! “But I’m obviously worried about her, she’s already suffered terrible damage. Her data core had to be transferred into a new body.” she swallowed as the memory of Toasty’s old, broken body, half buried by the raging sandstorm, tore into her thoughts. She took a long, rattling breath. “Believe me, I never want to see something like that again!” Maybe it was the memory that gave her voice the necessary urgency, or her eyes a haunted look, but Lofty finally lowered his head, giving them a tiny nod.
“I suppose… if she’s your marefriend, then I can trust that you wouldn’t share anything that would hurt her,” he said quietly, as if he was speaking more to himself than to Shetland. “Just… promise me that, please.” His lips quivered as he looked at Shetland, his eyes bloodshot. Suddenly, she noticed large bags under his eyes, as if he’d been lying awake all night.
“I’ll-” Shetland began, but she stopped herself as she realized what she was about to promise. She glanced to Toasty, hoping the robot would give her a suggestion.
“We will obviously not share this information with anyone who would wish harm on my kind.” Toasty promised.
“Yeah,“ Shetland hastily added. “Only with those who will help us find the bad guys.”
Lofty gave each of them a glance, before turning around. At first, Shetland was about to snarl and grab for his shoulder, but all he did was light his horn and activate a coffee machine on his nightstand.
“Oooh,” Toasty marveled. “The only coffee machines on Horizon I have seen so far have been in the kitchens.”
“Don’t we have one?” Shetland pointed out.
“It is still in our kitchen. Plus, princess quarters. It does not count.”
Lofty let out a tired chuckle. “Hope you don’t mind, I’d rather retell this story with a less tired brain.”
“If…” Toasty’s voice fell silent, but she gawked at the machine from every angle. “If you are not too attached to it, would you sell it to me?”
Lofty threw a confused look to Shetland. Then both of them raised an eyebrow at Toasty. Shetland was the first to ask: “What the heck do you need a coffee machine for? There’s one in our room.”
“Yes, but that is yours. Technically, your mother’s. I want my own.”
“What for? You don’t have a mouth, you cannot even drink coffee!”
“Do not shame my dreams, Shetland,” Toasty replied stubbornly. “I want my own coffee machine, regardless of what you or anypony else says.”
Shetland threw another glance to Lofty and they shared a mutual shrug. With a ding, the coffee machine finished pouring the unicorn’s cup of disgusting sludge.
“I assume you’re already aware of the official version? That I slept on the job and let some unknown figure break in?”
Shetland and Toasty nodded. “So that’s certainly wrong.” Shetland said, her voice hardened. “And you, and with you, mom, know who broke in?”
“That’s how it was supposed to go,” A dark tone had snuck into Lofty’s voice. “But if it had gone as planned, if I had been more suspicious, then it would have gone quietly, nopony would have known it even happened.”
Toasty perked up. “But you were awake, right? You must have seen who went inside!”
“I did.” Lofty mumbled. Then he let out a sigh. “Princess Twilight employed me to stand guard while she distracted the hyenas with something.”
Toasty threw a look at Shetland, whose expression had fallen. So, the dinner “to get to know our allies” had just been a fake. A sudden, dry chuckle erupted in her throat, interrupting Lofty. “Wow,” Shetland said with a sudden grin. Such a scam from the princess of friendship. I underestimated her. A deception like this fit more to the changeling queen… but then, Queen Twinkle and Twilight had always been fairly close. There was no reason not to assume she’d picked up a few tricks.
Lofty cleared his throat. Shetland’s grin instantly evaporated as she settled back down. “I was told I should just do a normal guard job,” the stallion said, his voice getting slower, until the words were nearly crawling out of his mouth. “Until a robot would appear. I would then make sure it could enter and leave the room unseen.”
“So…” Toasty’s eyelights widened. “It was that robot?”
Shetland grit her teeth. If a robot had done all that damage, it was obvious why Lofty wouldn’t want to reveal it.
But the stallion shook his head. “No… maybe.” he whispered. “You see, the princess only gave me as much information as I needed. So… I was confused when there was not one, but two robots.” He watched the baffled looks of the pair. “Of course I questioned it, but they assured me it was fine, the plan had been changed, and what was I supposed to do, sabotage the princesses’s plan?” he swallowed. “Princess Twilight must have trusted the robot she was sending, so when it assured me it was fine… I just stepped aside.”
Shetland’s mouth was dry as she whispered. “And who are these two robots?”
Lofty sighed and glared fretfully at the ground. “One, apparently, is the robot Twilight sent. But the other…” He shook his head. “I didn’t recognize her. And the crazy part is, the robot we do have insists she couldn’t remember the other at all!”
At that, Shetland jumped up. “You’re bullshitting me!”
But Lofty only gave her a pained expression. “That’s about the reaction I got from your mother.” he sighed. “Believe it or not, that's what happened.”
“What a load of crap!” Shetland hissed. “How convenient that the other witness has forgotten, so any other version of your story must be false!”
“He might be telling the truth,” Toasty interjected quietly, taking the wind out of Shetland’s sails. “It is quite likely, even.”
Astonished, Shetland and Lofty stared at her. Toasty met each of their looks sternly. “Shetland, I could not remember who attacked me in the sandstorm. It… is-is quite likely the attacker can… hack us.”
Shetland’s jaw dropped. “Hack a robot?” she whispered. “Who can hack a robot? You build firewalls like…”
“Like an immune system.” Toasty affirmed. “There are few who can breach our defenses. Even less who could alter a memory to that degree. But it is not impossible. The A.I. of Hiroshimare hacked thousands of firewalls in a second, for example. And even among organics, there are a few who would be capable of such a feat. I would trust Scalloway to do such a thing.”
“Scalloway?” Lofty repeated. “The cranky old breezie? Seriously?”
“He managed to restore many of my mental capacities after I was nearly destroyed,” she confirmed. “He is exceptionally skilled and dedicated in his work.”
The lump in Shetland’s throat could have easily been a boulder. Hadn’t there been a hacker attack when the hyenas landed? Had she not caught Gan trying to sneak into the mainframe? She jumped up, but already a second later, her resolve disappeared and she just stood there, staring into emptiness as her thoughts outraced her unmoving legs. It still didn’t add up. She grit her teeth. “I need to talk with mom. Now,” she decided as she turned to the door.
“What are you doing?” Lofty now jumped to his hooves as well. “Y-you can’t go out there, there’s still the curfew!”
Shetland regarded his objection with a quick nod. “I was counting on that,” she said darkly. “They’ll bring us right to her.”
With a long sigh, Toasty got up, right as Shetland bucked the door open.
---
Shetland smashed her hoof against the metal bars, earning a startled look from the unarmored Voidmarine. So, there had been a little oversight in her plan. Maybe bucking the door open wasn’t the brightest idea. While it did save some time by summoning a whole bunch of Voidmarines, it made them somewhat less accepting of her demands to be taken straight to her mother. Instead, they’d deemed it safer to jail her in the barracks! On the other hoof, that’s a good thing, she thought in an attempt to stifle her annoyance. At least our guards are doing their job and not backing down. But all her mental gymnastics achieved was a dry snort. At least she had managed to convince one of them to go and notify her mom. Shetland was certain it wouldn’t take much longer. There was no way Twilight was asleep yet. In times of stress, her mother rarely went to sleep before she would collapse at around 4 or 5 am. Grumbling, she sat back down, putting a hoof around Toasty’s shoulder and earning a relieved look from the guard.
Toasty gave Shetland a sour look. “I’m not sure I would agree to this plan in retrospect. I did not look forward to being in jail.”
“We’ll be in here for the night at most, then we’ll get out with a fine.” Shetland said automatically, having studied the laws of Horizon as she’d trained to be a Voidmarine herself. “Not that that’ll happen, mom’s gonna let us out.”
“I still did not want to be here.” Toasty said gruffly.
“First time in jail?” The Voidmarine asked, raising an eyebrow at Shetland.
“Never in jail, though I’ve been in detention dozens of times,” Shetland answered.
“No.” Toasty simply answered, not meeting either of their eyes.
Shetland gasped. “When did you get thrown in jail?”
“I do not want to talk about it,” Toasty said and refused to answer any more questions. With a long sigh, Shetland leaned back, simply waiting for her mother to arrive. She didn’t have to wait long. As the automatic doors to the barracks opened, a furious Alicorn rushed through, her feathers as wild as her ethereal mane, which looked as if it were reenacting a thunderstorm.
“What did you think you were doing?!” she shouted into the room, then lowered her voice a little as her eyes fell on the startled Voidmarine. “Please, give us a moment of privacy.”
The marine nodded and almost dropped his ID card in his haste to leave the room. Outside, he took a quick turn to the left, which Shetland knew led to the bathrooms. She looked after him for several seconds, until the automatic door closed again. Only then did she turn her head to her mother. “Hey, mom.”
Twilight snarled. “Did I hear this right?” She asked, struggling to keep her voice in line. “You were out after curfew, broke into another pony’s dorm and vandalized their door?”
Shetland icily returned her mother’s glare. “Lofty Goal,” she said, gripping a metal bar with a hoof as Twilight’s face fell.
“I… told you not to speak with him,” Twilight said, carefully observing Shetland, who was hissing through her teeth.
“And I know why, so drop the act, mom!”
“Shhhh!” Twilight’s head jerked side to side, making sure nopony was listening. Then, she slowly turned back to the earth pony and let out a heavy sigh. “I hoped you wouldn’t find out.”
“Yeah, but I did.” Shetland crossed her hooves. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she whispered, searching her mother’s eyes. But Twilight seemed just as adamant to avoid meeting hers. Shetland snarled. “Did you think you couldn’t trust me? I would have prefered to know when you used me as a distraction in that little plan of yours!”
The Alicorn’s head reared up. “I was not going to gamble the plan on your acting abilities, Shetty!”
“So you don’t trust me!”
“It was better if nopony knew.” Twilight stated objectively as her eyes hardened. “It was less risky if you didn’t know.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me afterwards?” Shetland’s eyes were now tiny slits. “You let me stumble in the dark when you had answers!”
“Because…” Twilight paused. “Because I didn’t know what you would do, if you knew-” She bit her lip. “How much has Lofty told you?”
“He told me that you planned to use a robot to spy on the hyenas, but that there were was a second one which only he remembers,” Shetland said drily.
“Which could very well be true,” Toasty chimed in, receiving surprised looks from both Sparkles. “It is possible that my memory has also been altered during the sandstorm.”
Twilight nodded. “Yes… it points to a theory I’ve been holding for a while now.” she looked around, frowning. “But we’ve already said too much in this place. Shetland, Toasty, you have a royal pardon.” She raised a unique purple ID card to a scanner and the cell door opened. Toasty stumbled out first, but was stopped by Twilight’s wing. “Shetland, please bring a couple breathing masks.” Twilight said, her horn glowing. Shetland knew there was no time to protest, and so she smashed an emergency case holding a dozen and put one over her own muzzle, when the feeling of teleportation hit her. That weird nasal-headache feeling that slowly seemed to pull her entire body through her own nostrils. She landed on the cold, rocky ground, holding her chest as her stomach lurched. Faintly, she felt the other breathing mask float out of her hoof.
“Sorry,” Twilight muttered, looking out over the plain, dusty fields, certainly at least mile away from the lights of the colony. “But this is the only way I can be sure nopony will overhear this.”
Shetland groaned, slowly sitting up. “You said you have a theory?”
Twilight nodded. “We now have three cases of a digital attack,” she began, glancing to the colony. “The first, when our systems were hacked during the hyena’s landing, nearly resulting in casualties. The second, when your friend here got lost during the sandstorm and could not remember who attacked her.”
Shetland gave Toasty a worried look and scooted closer.
“It could,” Twilight muttered. “Have resulted from a regular blow to her head, which would have shaken her processor, but that seems ever more unlikely. And now, if Lofty did not construct an extremely unbelievable story to cover for himself, we have proof that not one, but two robots have been hacked,” Twilight ended with a grim expression.
“Princess Twilight?” Toasty whispered. “Do you have an idea who would be able to do such a thing?”
“No,” The Alicorn admitted. “The only person I know of would be Scalloway, and I would never suspect him of such a thing. I’ve known him to follow the breezy pacifist philosophy religiously, he would never support such a thing.”
“Isn’t there anyone else-” Shetland wanted to ask, but Toasty reached up, sealing her mouth with a hoof. Her eyes were fixated on Twilight.
“What if I am hacked?”
Shetland’s eyes widened as Twilight gave Toasty a pitying look. “I have considered that.” she spoke in a low voice. “On one hoof, if you were supposed to become a puppet, why nearly destroy you?” she pursed her lips. “Yet, on the other…when Shetland took you with her when she spoke with Lofty, you’d learned too much.” she swallowed. “I’m so sorry, but you will either have to shut down until the situation is resolved, or let Scalloway access and delete the memory.”
Shetland let out an indignant cry. “You can’t force her to do this!” she exclaimed. “I-It’s illegal, any sort of mind manipulation is utterly illegal!” A cold hoof poked her side and she looked into Toasty’s dim eyelights. The robot’s ears were folded tightly to her head.
“It is not illegal for robots,” Toasty whispered sadly. “But do not shout, please. I would agree regardless of legitimacy.” She met Twilight’s rueful eyes. “I will not inadvertently help whoever is hacking my people. I wish to let Scalloway perform the memory cut.”
“Thank you,” Twilight whispered. She looked like a mountain had been lifted from her heart. Shetland could not say the same for herself.
“But please,” Toasty raised a hoof. “Allow me to keep my memory for the sake of supporting you in this discussion, if I may be of help.”
“Of course.” Twilight smiled. “I sent for Scalloway yesterday, and he will not arrive before tomorrow morning, anyway. I’m afraid you’ll have to stay under my watch for so long.”
“That is acceptable.”
“So…” Twilight awkwardly looked back to Shetland, whose face could have been carved from a slab of granite. “I am nearly certain there is an incredibly knowledgeable hacker hiding in the colony. I do not think it is one of the hyenas, however,” Twilight responded to Shetland’s raised eyebrow. “It always seems like they are the suffering party, aside from the robots.”
“The hyenas know, though,” Shetland grumbled. “One time, at Coltville, I saw Gan try to break into the mainframe at night.”
Twilight paused. “I have not been informed of that,” she said sternly. “Did he succeed?”
“No.” Shetland shook her head. “He didn’t get inside. Claimed he was lost when I found him.”
“Strange…” Twilight whispered. “Of course, we cannot completely disregard the option that he wasn’t lying-” Shetland snorted loudly. “-but I also find it very unlikely.” She opened her wings, beating on the warm air as she thought. Then she let out a sigh. “But it’s still sketchy proof-”
“There is more!” Toasty exclaimed. Both mares raised their heads. “The landing! Think about the landing!”
“It was the first sign that something was up, yes,” Twilight whispered. “The hyenas tried to land, when suddenly all our systems failed inexplicably.”
“Hold on!” Shetland suddenly exclaimed, her eyes widening. “That wasn’t the first strange thing, mom. First, the hyenas refused to synch up with our systems!”
Twilight gasped. “Right. They did not connect.” her eyes widened.
“And now we know why.” Shetland said grimly. “They know there is a hacker. They know it’s in our system and they knew from the start!”
“The attempt to get into our mainframe…” Twilight whispered, her right hoof trembling. “That means they are trying to trace the hacker without our knowledge.”
Toasty gasped. “That means they really are on our side?”
Shetland spat out. “If you can call it that! They’re still sneaking around us and keeping us away from solving the issue.” she glared at Twilight. “Is that finally enough proof to confront them?”
Twilight visibly deflated. She looked weirdly crumpled, as if her real age had suddenly caught up with her. “No,” she sighed, holding up a hoof to cut off Shetland’s protest before it started. “If we confronted them, they would demand to know how we gained our knowledge. And how are we going to openly explain that I had someone search through their room?”
Shetland could have exploded. It felt like a horrible joke that the answers were so, so uncomfortably close, and yet she could not ask the final questions! “But when?” she demanded to know.
“Soon,” Twilight stated, her eyes lighting up. “I’ll be frank, Shetty. I do not know myself how much more patience I have left for them.”
Shetland took a deep breath, wrestling with her anger. “Did we actually find out anything during the spying act itself?”
Twilight sighed. “No, nothing out of the ordinary. But I should have guessed. Who would leave incriminating documents lying in their room? No, they’ll have it all stored inside their heads.”
“Then we have to get it out of there.” Shetland said grimly.
“Yes, we do.” Twilight agreed. “But I’m not sure how…” Suddenly, her mouth opened wide as she yawned.
“You should go get some rest,” Shetland whispered. “You’ll probably have better ideas when you’re not ninety percent asleep.”
“No… I can’t,” Twilight mumbled, holding out a wing over Toasty. “I have to watch her until Scalloway arrives to… to do his thing.”
Toasty met Shetland’s eyes. “I will stay with her. Do not worry, I will be careful to be as safe as I can.”
Shetland could only frown.
“Well,” Twilight spoke with another mighty yawn. “I should teleport us back before I fall asleep out here.“
“I will make you coffee!” Toasty exclaimed eagerly.
“That would be very friendly of you,” the Alicorn said with a tired smile.
Toasty’s limp body was dwarfed by the enormity of Shetland’s bed. Gently, the earth pony moved the robot’s limbs so that it looked like she was sleeping. With a dull feeling in her stomach, Shetland sat down on an undersized chair, ignoring the agonized creaks it let out in protest.
“Yer bucket’s gonna get up soon,” Scalloway had told her when she’d come to retrieve Toasty from his lab. “Had ta shut ‘er down an’ it takes a while ta reboot.” Fortunately, he’d been able to set up in an unused workshop inside Central Colony, so that the trip had only taken a mere ten minutes.
While her body was limp, Toasty’s eyes were ignited, though their intensity fluctuated like an unstable floodlight. With a sigh, Shetland closed her eyes, as the occasional sudden flash hurt her pupils. She’d discussed with her mother on what to do when her friend would wake up. When she would ask questions. A guilty feeling settled in her stomach. Of course she couldn’t tell Toasty. It would defeat the entire point of the operation. And yet, she couldn’t leave her to wake up alone, she had to do what she could. Her own plans could wait.
At that moment, one of Toasty’s hooves stirred and her eyelights took on a constant level of brightness. “Compiling Data: Complete,” she said robotically, lacking any of the usual nuance that made her voice seem so alive. “Loading ocular program… auditory program… olfactory program…” Shetland could only watch the robot slowly boot up, announcing each action with the same stiff, dead voice. “Loading memory… error detected. Timespan of twenty hours missing. Reloading… Failure. Reloading… Failure. Evaluating inquiry as alternate course of action. Complete boot-up…” Toasty shook her head, her eyelights seeming to focus on something for the first time. “Where… We’re at home,” she whispered, and Shetland could not have been more glad to hear her normal voice.
“Hey, Toasty.” She smiled. “How are you feeling?”
“I…” Toasty began, but her voice died as her eyes darted through the room, as if she was looking for a lost key. “How long?”
“Only a day.” Shetland was quick to explain, thankful there was at least one thing she could tell her.
Toasty sat up, regarding Shetland with a panicked look. “Did something happen? Are you hurt? Was there a fight?”
“No, no!” Shetland exclaimed, raising her hoof defensively. “Nothing of that sort… It’s…” She bit her lip. “Complicated.” she finally said. “You agreed to us removing a few hours from your memory.”
Toasty’s eyelights grew until her entire visor glowed in dim, green light. “What? Why would I agree to something like that?”
“It’s…” Shetland bit her lip, squirming under Toasty’s inquisitive gaze. “I… I can’t say.” She was unable to meet Toasty’s flashing eyes.
“You cannot say?” she revolted. “Why can’t you?”
“Because if I told you what we made you forget-”
“You made me forget?” Toasty shouted. “That’s… that’s mind surgery! Brainwashing!”
“You agreed to it, though.”
“I do not remember myself agreeing. How do I know you are saying the truth?”
Shetland bit her lip until it hurt. “Toasty…” she whispered pleadingly. “Can you please trust me?”
“After this?” The robot spoke incredulously, but nonetheless, her voice sounded calmer.
“Look, I can’t tell you what happened.” Shetland said bitterly. With every word, she felt an irrational anger for herself grow in her chest. “I wish I could, but… you learned something that could harm you.”
“How would knowledge harm me?” Toasty asked, her forelegs crossing over her chest. “Unless it is something I would be targeted for…?”
“Something like that,” Shetland said slowly, glaring at her own shaking hoof as she told her lie.
“But then, why would they stop? Someone willing to attack me for knowing something would not simply accept that I might have deleted the memories… after all, it could be a lie. And how would they even know?”
“It was necessary,” was all Shetland could muster to say. “It’s better if you don’t think about it.” She could feel the incredulous look Toasty was giving her. “Sorry.”
The swelling heat from a million burning questions formed the hot glare Toasty shot Shetland with, but even that died down after a few seconds. “Well…” toasty said slowly. “I accept your apology. And when you do explain what happened afterwards,” she said sternly, jabbing her hoof into Shetland’s chest with every word, “It had better be a tale most awesome.”
“I… will do my best to spice it up,” Shetland muttered, rubbing her aching chest.
Toasty, unable to stay in place, strode through the room at random. “Do we have a lead?” she asked after a few minutes of contemplation. “Last thing I remember was that someone broke into the hyena’s room during your dinner.”
Shetland’s brows furrowed as she considered what answer to give. “I do have a plan,” she finally stated. Me suspecting the hyenas isn’t new, so she won’t suspect anything if I don’t mention what we learned of their goals. “I wanna poke the hyenas for information again.”
“Oh?” Toasty’s head tilted slightly as she observed Shetland. “Did something happen that makes you think they are more receptive now?”
“Well…” Shetland stared at the ceiling. “Do you remember yesterday, when we were at the gym with Magenta?”
The lights behind Toasty’s visor refocused. “Yes, I believe I do, though shortly after, my memory cuts out. And I do remember Gan speaking with you alone. I did not understand what he said, nor have you provided me with a translation… unless that memory is also missing,” she closed gloomily.
“There wasn’t really anything to translate.” Shetland sighed. “He had some sort of disagreement with Khunbish. He didn’t tell me what it was. But maybe, just maybe, I can squeeze a little more out of him.”
“And how do you plan to accomplish that?”
“Well,” her face displayed an awkward grin. “If you remember, he kind of has a thing for me.”
Toasty’s eyelights grew as she unabashedly stared at Shetland. Then she reared back, breaking out in tinny laughter. “Just to make sure I got it right, your plan is to seduce him?” Toasty asked after she’d calmed down a little.
“Well, basically… yeah.” Shetland said, sheepishly rubbing the back of her neck.
Strangely enough, it seemed Toasty found no further humor in this. Instead, her voice gradually became pragmatic, almost barren of emotion. “And how do you plan to accomplish that, exactly?”
Shetland flinched, unable to give an answer other than the shrugging of her shoulders. “I dunno, I thought I’d just try. It can’t get worse, can it?”
At that, Toasty’s eyes lit up to unbearable brightness. “Cannot get worse?” she nearly shouted in exasperation. “You are attempting to seduce an emissary of a foreign nation. What if he takes it seriously?”
Shetland gave her a cross look. That was definitely an argument she would have never expected. “Then what? It’s not like anything could happen there, I’m a pony and he’s a hyena. Heck, I’m nearly three times his height.”
“He called you pretty!” the robot hissed like a shaken carbonated drink.
“He called me intimidating-”
“That means the same to him!”
“Whatever!” Shetland exclaimed, finally rising up to Toasty’s volume. “I’ll make him think whatever he wants, if I can get his secrets, it’ll be worth it!”
“Even if you have to act like you’re into him?” Toasty asked in a strange tone. “I mean… do you even swing that way?”
“Of course I do,” Shetland answered, raising her eyebrow at the bewildering direction this argument was taking. “I was with-” Her voice died for a moment. “With my friend Press, for a month or so.” Her mouth felt dry all of a sudden as the mere mention of her friend scraped at badly healed wounds. What would they think of her plan? Would they agree it was necessary or not? Shetland could just about make out Press before her inner eye, berating her for being unfaithful- She shook her head. No! That was insane, She’d broken up with him on good terms, there was no way she was dishonoring him- The entire thought process was stupid! With a noise that echoed through the room and the colony’s tunnels, Shetland gave herself a pair of slaps across her own cheeks. “I’m fine!” she then assured the worried robot, maybe a bit too forcefully. “I’m fine,” she repeated as her breathing normalized again. “Toasty, I’m going to poke him for some answers, not offer him my hoof in marriage.” A growl accompanied her voice at the thought. “And you’re not talking me out of this.”
The robot’s head lowered itself in defeat. “Are you absolutely sure it’s worth it?” she meekly asked.
“If it stops this?” Shetland said sternly. “Yes, I am.”
Toasty stood still, facing Shetland with a look of determination. “Then I will help you. When are we going?”
There was a pause. It slowly stretched as Shetland regarded Toasty with a wordless look, while the robot began nervously pawing the ground with her hooves.
“Well? When are we going?”
“Toasty…” Shetland swallowed, unsure what to say when faced with her friends eagerness for action. She took a deep breath. Her voice croaked. “I’m going alone.”
“Oh… of course, that makes sense.” Toasty spoke with a tense undertone to her understanding voice. “The hyenas were never too fond of my presence.” Her hooves tapped the floor in a quick rhythm. “Then I will remain here, I suppose. Will you come back soon?”
“Hopefully not. That would mean I failed.” Shetland turned to the door, unable to face her friend for what she would say. “I spoke with mom and I’ve now got Voidmarine assigned to you. Do you remember Sparktail? She’s the one that was with us after the break in. Do not…” she swallowed. “Do not leave this room, alright?”
“Fiiiine.” Toasty said, drawing the word out to thrice it’s length to make her discontent known. “But once you need my help again-”
But Shetland had already left the room before Toasty could finish speaking. Her hooves shook as the door closed behind her. Should she be thankful that her friend hadn’t realized what so obviously dawned on her? With ponies against her, robots against her… Shetland swallowed. With possibly even Toasty’s own brain against her, she would not let her leave that room again.
Shetland did not take the direct route to the hyena’s new room. Instead, she took a number of detours, allowing her to call to mind everything she remembered about hyenas. The problem was that her knowledge was patchy, at best, and probably wracked with stereotyping. Hyenas were more aggressive than ponies. That they ate old cadavers of any species, including their own. That hyenas would often literally fight one another for a higher rank in their social ladder. Shetland would have waved it away as myths, if Gan had not himself made a few comments that made her question if there really was a seed of truth within it. After all, with what he stated he liked about her, Shetland, was just that she was aggressive and commanding, qualities that would never endear her to another pony. And then, he’d also described almost romantically the savage nature of his land, where hyenas would constantly clash with one another’s… respect he called it? Born out of intimidation. Shetland groaned. How could she possibly understand someone who thought like that? And did hyenas still like nice things, like a walk in the park, a cone of ice cream and a nice talk, or was it all about commanding and rivalry and fighting?
She must have taken the longest way the colony possibly allowed, and yet it felt like she had barely begun scraping at these questions when she’d finally reached the door. In front stood two Voidmarines, each throwing her a nervous glance through their visors, yet they let her knock on the door without interference. It seemed she’d been given some sort of clearance.
“Sparkle,” Shetland had to suppress a cringe as she heard Khunbish’s rough, surprised voice. “We did not expect a visit from you.”
“Uh, hello.” Shetland greeted. The words felt awkward in her mouth. “I wanted to ask if Gan is here with you.”
As she spoke, the male hyena seemed to jump from somewhere above ground into her field of view. “I am here,” he said, seemingly wrestling the sentence out of his throat. “Sparkle come for me?”
“Yeah, kind of.” Shetland smiled a little too wide. “Maybe you would like to go, uh… Spend some time? With me. Casually.”
The hyenas exchanged a look. Shetland didn’t need to be able to read their faces to tell they didn’t believe her. Her smile became more and more unnatural. Still, Khunbish shrugged. “Fine. Gan, you leave your shocktalon with me.”
Shetland had no plan where to go. In fact, her stupid plan had already stopped at getting Gan to agree to go with her. Now, she lead the hyena through some less used colony tunnels, ignoring the surprised and sometimes hostile looks ponies gave them, just so it seemed like they were going somewhere.
<A casual visit?> Gan spoke up after they’d left the dorm areas behind. <I am surprised you would visit us without a good reason to.> His voice sounded decidedly unamused, if that wasn’t just the natural sound of his language.
<It’s uh- actually, it was mom’s idea, she suggested that I do.> The lie quickly came over her lips. Yeah, that was something her mother would do, right? Try to force friendship and all that.
Gan raised an eyebrow, though he had to crane his neck so Shetland could see it as well. <So you are here against your will?>
Crap. Shetland’s mind raced for the right words. <No, no, it’s fine, I can spend time with you, casually.>
<But not with Khunbish?>
<I don’t like her.> The answer came out of her mouth before she could stop it, before even a single thought could take place. Gan however didn’t seem to mind. He threw his head back and let out a jangling laugh.
<An honest answer, Sparkle. And I see why. She thinks she understands the world better than she does.>
That was not a reason Shetland would have cited for disliking her. It would have probably been that she suspected Khunbish to be the only remaining reason they couldn’t solve the case. But she couldn’t exactly say that before Gan, now could she? <She spoke about your countries stance on conflict when we shared dinner,> she finally said. <Seemed pretty sure of herself, considering she’s never fought in one.> Her teeth clenched at the memory.
<And that irks you,> he determined. <You have been in horrible battle. Many hyenas would say it was glorious.>
<There was no glory!> Shetland snapped. <Only carnage and fear and survival. Whoever says something different has no idea.>
<It was far worse than skirmish,> Gan sighed. <in truth, few fights in the empire are fought like the one you were in. What Khunbish thinks of as glorious skirmish, is a couple soldiers hiding, trying to gain an advantageous position on the enemy and giving warning shots to ascertain their dominance. The enemy surrenders, sometimes give up some weapons, money or minor patch of land. Real fights,> he stressed those words. <real fights are not common.>
<You’ve been in a few?> Shetland asked.
<Yes.> Gan said before he fell into a long silence. <Khunbish grow up in safe capital, she does not understand.> he closed in a weird return to topic.
<How is Clawakorum, anyway?> Shetland asked, hoping to change the topic from battle as well. <Have you ever been there?>
<Only twice.> Suddenly, Gan nudged her side. <But I am always talking about my country. Tell me about Equestria. Your capital was called Cater->
<Canterlot.> Shetland corrected. To her surprise, Gan had more than a token interest in Equestria and began asking questions in a frequency that was more fitting to a schoolfilly. Time passed rapidly as they talked, changing topics numerous times as Shetland grew tired of answering questions. It must have been several hours later when they parted ways, the promise of a meeting the next day on their lips as Shetland stumbled into her room, waving him goodbye before she flopped on the bed, thankful for the chance to rest her hooves. Her hindleg had been annoying her for the last hour.
“Had fun?” A voice came from the bathroom. Shetland looked up to see Toasty lying on her back within the doorframe. Her seaweed-colored, silky mane was splayed out in all directions, while one hindleg stood straight up in the air.
“Maybe a little,” Shetland muttered reluctantly.
“Good for you,” Toasty sighed. “Meanwhile, I have had a fun time seeing how long I could lie in one spot without moving.”
“Uh… okay, how long?”
“I am uncertain,” Toasty stated with a serious shake of her head. “I’m not done yet.”
Shetland snorted. “Well, I’d hate to make you give up on your record, but just in case you feel like playing a board game with me…” She gave the robot an innocent smile while she placed her box of The Grinding Wars on the table.
“You are playing dirty,” Toasty chuckled as she rolled to her hooves. “I managed seventy-two minutes. Now,” She looked pointedly at Shetland. “Will I get another shot at a world record tomorrow?”
With her hooves slowly unpacking the box, Shetland had an excuse not to meet her eyes. “I’m meeting him tomorrow, again.”
“You succubus,” Toasty stated drily.
Shetland’s cheeks flared, but she refused a response as she passed Toasty the rulebook. The robot seemingly mastered the game in an instant, stomping Shetland’s army in every engagement. Shetland kept a brave face, challenging the robot over and over just so the hours would pass.
Over the following days, her meetings with Gan changed from a gambit for information, to the only pleasant time of day. The morning was dominated by the constant tension felt at all times in the colony. Now everypony preferred to move in small groups, suspiciously eyeing any loner on their way to work. Frequently, a group of ponies would engage one of robots in a shouting match that prompted the Voidmarines to interfere. And then there was the look on everypony’s faces, that tired, weary look when they briefly asked one another whether someone else had disappeared. Gan managed to take her mind off of this as he popped a couple bullets at the shooting range with her, or played at the Billiard table. At first Shetland had been sceptical, she’d never gotten into that game, just for how much she had to lower her head to get a good angle. But it turned out that while that still held true, Gan was forced to struggle with the opposite, craning his head far upwards to use the pole. The fact that he could not see the table while doing that played no insignificant part in Shetland’s victory streak.
Unfortunately, while it was getting easier to speak with Gan, it was the opposite with Toasty. Without distraction day after day, her mood darkened. When Shetland left for the day, she would no longer wave her goodbye, but give her a dirty look and mutter something under her breath. And when she returned, Toasty would make her feel all the impatience she held. “How long until you squeeze it out of him?” she would ask when Shetland returned.
“I don’t know.” Shetland would then say and heave a long sigh. Of course the real question was when can I leave the room? And her answer would be the exact same.
Toasty huffed. “How about we visit Magenta? I do not see how this would be that dangerous if you come with me.”
Shetland closed her eyes. “I’ll ask tomorrow,” she muttered, mostly to shut Toasty off. Not that the answer mattered, she would not drag Toasty outside where she could unwittingly be exposed to hacked robots, ones she would never suspect and all Shetland had to do to let it happen was to let her out of her sight once… especially in case Toasty herself was… Shetland grimaced at the thought, she hated the sheer implication! But… if Toasty herself had been hacked, and if Scalloway’s scan hadn’t found the virus or whatever it was… then Toasty might be looking for the right moment to disappear. Shetland took a deep breath before she decided to go to bed early, drawing a groan from the robot across the table.
The next morning however played out differently. Shortly after waking, Shetland’s morning routine was interrupted as Sparktail stepped into the room. Normally the Voidmarine held a morning shift during which she would stand outside, rigid as a statue. But now she stood infront of the breakfast table, calmly informing Shetland that both hyenas were at the door, waiting to speak with her. “What for?” was Shetland’s immediate question.
“Something regarding your investigation, certainly.” Sparktail shifted her weight. “They will only inform you of the specifics.”
Shetland breathed a sigh as she dumped her face into a bowl of cold water. Gasping, she shook her head, uncaring about the drops hitting every surface in the bathroom. The mirrors were barely usable at this point. She frowned as she faced her distorted, stern glare. “Toasty-”
“I’ll be staying here, don’t worry,” the robot hissed. “Obviously I am not going anywhere.”
“Do you need to recharge soon?”
“No. I am not exactly expending much energy, now am I?”
Shetland stared at her mirrored self for a moment before diving her head into the bowl again, hoping to wash off her annoyed grimace. Then, with water still dripping out of her coat, she went to face the hyenas.
Gan and Khunbish, both wearing breathmasks, looked up as Shetland’s shadow fell over them. “Greetings, Sparkle.” Khunbish hit her chest with a paw, making an unsettling, toothy smile. Gan silently masked the motion.
“Hello,” Shetland muttered, raising an eyebrow at their masks, the bags which hung over their sides and their well-rested expressions. “Are you going somewhere?”
She had, without thinking, turned to Gan for her question, yet it was still Khunbish who answered: “We have discovered interesting news, and it warrants exploration.”
“Uhuh,” Shetland said, closing her eyes for a moment so she wouldn’t heave an annoyed glare at the pair. “And I hope you are going to tell me what this news is?”
“Certainly,” Khunbish nodded, still with her irksome grin. “But we have little time, and we must be moving.”
And so Shetland was forced to go along as she listened to the hyena’s explanation. Apparently, she’d found out that the spot Toasty had gone missing was pretty close to the crash site of the hyena’s spaceship.
“That could mean,” Khunbish closed, “That whoever attacked your machine, might have been hiding there. Maybe still hides there.”
“That cannot be, a crashed ship cannot support an atmosphere,” Shetland said. Of course, she thought, a hacked robot does not need air.
“Our ship is not in pieces, Miss Sparkle,” Khunbish said sternly. “We would no longer be here if that were the case. While the outer hull has been breached, it is not inconceivable that one or two compartments might still be hermetically sealed, or easily repairable to be so. What I am saying,” she added with a look at Shetland’s questioning glance, “If your machine was attacked by a pony, then he or she might have been using the ship as a base.”
Or a hacker. A light shone right into Shetland’s body, burning away all thoughts of tiredness. “Are we going there?”
“If you agree to,” Khunbish’s smirk faltered as she added: “And of course if your mother agrees.”
Princess Twilight was awaiting the trio in front of Horse Horizon, next to what looked like a horse-drawn wagon. It looked only fitting to the old-timey saloon, and just as clashing when compared to the glass tunnels that were the rest of the colony. The Alicorn exchanged a few pleasantries with Khunbish, but her gaze rested squarely on Shetland. And indeed, it didn’t take long before she spoke. “I will have a quick chat with my daughter, if you do not mind.”
That was as close to an order as a request could be, and Khunbish could give no other response than a quick nod, after which she and Gan looked through the contents of the wagon.
“I’m not fond of the timing of their expedition.” Twilight skipped the prelude as she sternly glanced at Shetland. “Even less, considering they want to bring you along.”
“Yeah, it’s strange,” Shetland agreed. “But I thought about it, and I just don’t think it could be a trap. I mean, if they come back without me, they’re done for.”
Twilight let out a long sigh as her wings rose to rub her temples.
“Tired?” Shetland smirked.
Twilight chuckled. “You wouldn’t believe…” She shook her head, returning to her serious demeanor. “I agree that it’s unlikely they’ll try to hurt you, which I must stress, is the only reason I’m allowing you to go with them.”
“I can watch myself, mom,” Shetland frowned.
“Yes, you can,” Twilight seemed more exhausted than ever. “But it’s gonna be a long trip and so much could happen.”
“What about storms?” Shetland bit her lip, thinking back at the desperation she’d felt when she was stuck in a cave. But being in the outside during such a massive storm-
“Scalloway says the air feels as calm as it could be,” Twilight quickly assured her. “Another reason I am even allowing you to go.”
Shetland opened her mouth to protest, but instead, she closed her eyes and nodded. “Thank you, mom.”
“We’ll be traveling for many hours, could we leave now?” The shouted question came from Khunbish, who was standing beside the wagon, ready to go at any moment.
“You will wait until we are finished!” Twilight shot back, before hurried turning to Shetland. “Shetty, this is the last chance they have to let us in on what they know of their own accord. Ask them, squeeze them, pressure them to tell you everything, just don’t attack them, do you hear me?”
Shetland’s eyes widened, surprised by the sudden hard approach her mother was suggesting. “A-Are you sure?”
“Yes,” Twilight hissed impatiently. “They’ve had enough time. Now get ready and wait, I’ll bring your armor, just for safety.”
“Mom!” Shetland shouted as her mother’s horn began to glow. “Can you tell Toasty?”
The glow waned for a second as Twilight gave her a strange look, that changed into a smile. “Of course, Shetty.” Then she popped out of existence.
-----
Shetland stared at the hyena’s backs as they strode ahead on the dusty paths. Her shoulders were starting to feel uncomfortable, but as she was moving at a good pace, breaking it would make it so much worse. If the map could be trusted, and it had been drawn by her mother, then it would take them close to thirty hours to complete their journey there and back, assuming they weren’t planning on taking any breaks. The gravelly ground crunched under the wagon wheels. It was surprisingly light, considering its size, yet vastly important, as it carried all the air they desperately needed. Shetland shook her head, which finally got her mane away from her sweaty forehead. Her helmet hung at her side. protective or not, she would not survive the trip without some cool air blowing in her face. Her eyes settled back on her travelling companions. They weren’t making it hard for her, from the beginning they’d set a pace that was comfortable to follow, especially considering one step of her equaled several of theirs. However, they had withdrawn themselves from her and spoke in hushed voices, allowing her no moment to do what her mother ordered. Shetland huffed, shaking her head again as an obnoxious piece of hair once again threatened to cover her eye. She wouldn’t question them right now. Not Khunbish. The female hyena would immediately block any attempt of hers. No, she had to approach Gan alone.
Sadly, it seemed like it would take a while before an opportunity for that would open up. The hyenas seemed intent on going ahead without a break, and as much as Shetland had begun to sweat, and while her scarred hindleg had begun bothering her with suddens spurs of itchyness, she didn’t need one either.
Luckily, after a while Gan seemed to take pity on her, as he fell back to speak with her. Shetland shot a glance at Khunbish. The hyena was certainly within earshot. For a moment, Shetland considered whispering, but it was exceedingly unlikely that Gan would do the same, and she would most likely even drive him off. So, she mustered a tired smile and greeted him with a “hey.”
Gan returned the smile, though his eyes trailed over the cart. <Do you need help with that?> he spoke in hyenidae.
“No,” Shetland grunted, her eyebrows narrowing as she looked down at him. “Sorry, I’ll be speaking my language, youra hurts my throat.”
<And you cannot use that right now. I understand,> Gan nodded. <But if you need help, let us know. We can probably pull it on the way back.>
Shetland snorted. “I would like to see Khunbish pulling this thing.” She smirked at the foul look Khunbish gave her. Gan rolled his eyes.
<My offer was serious.>
“Yeah, yeah.” Shetland waved it off with a grimace. “I’ll be holding you to it, you should know that.”
<Please do so,> Gan said earnestly.
The two-language conversation was an additional effort, but it was certainly preferable over the brainless walking before. Gan did most of the talking, though he occasionally faltered after a glance of Khunbish. It didn’t seem to be related to the topic, instead it appeared that Khunbish simply thought he was talking too much, and Gan would quickly speak up again, as if nothing had happened.
“You know,” Shetland whispered at a small break during which they re-filled their air bottles at the cart. “Maybe I’ll go to the empire one day. It does seem like a place I would like visiting.”
<You certainly will,> Gan grinned. <Just expect whole clans to ask you to join their family.>
“What about your clan? Would they accept me travelling with them for a while?”
Gan came to a halt, letting a gust of air escape with a strong hiss before her shut the valve again. <Are you saying you would like to… after this you want to go to the empire with me?>
“Why not?” Shetland smirked, patting a hoof on his back. “I’d need a guide, wouldn’t I?”
The hyena broke into an unsettling, sharp-toothed grin. <I’ll be of service. Though I suggest only visiting my clan as we hold for trade, our carts are made for our size, not yours.>
Shetland shrugged. Then she blinked. “Hey, wait a minute,” She growled down at him. “Didn’t you say you have cattle? Are you calling me as fat as a cow?”
“The cow do not travel on the wagons,” Gann pointedly said, a smile on his face Shetland couldn’t quite place. He yapped a few times before jumping to his paws. And the way continued.
The light was draining from the sky as Khunbish raised a paw in the air. “We are here,” she said, pointing to what Shetland, in her tiredness, had mistaken for a pile of rocks, but which shimmered in the unmistakable glance of metal. Shetland gasped and halted, feeling the strain on each of her legs. Her bad flank had become irritated in the last two hours, begging to be treated with the calming creams of sciency medicine the doctors had given her.
It was the smallest ship Shetland had seen yet, even though she could probably fit inside. Two of the legs on which it was supposed to land were snapped off, lying far behind the actual body, which appeared to have slid across the thankfully even ground until it came to a halt. The nose of the ship was stunted, the hull banged up as if a team of sledgehammers had used it as stress relief, but all in all, it was still in one piece. Shetland unhinged herself from the cart and sank into the dusty ground. It was thankfully cool against her cheek, though her armor stopped her from rolling her entire body in the relieving, cold sand. Even Gan and Khunbish set down their bags, though with a serious grimace, and Shetland jumped up. How stupid of her to forget, they were here for a reason! With a shaking hoof, she tapped over her armor until she found the rifle, then put on her helmet.
Khunbish gave her a look. “I will go ahead,” she said. “If there is someone here, we don’t want him to panic. I am unarmed.”
Shetland snorted. Unarmed was a relative term when speaking about a hyena. And yet, compared to Gan, who held a shocktalon, and especially herself, wearing powered armor and an automatic rifle, she had to concede the point, if unwillingly.
“You can check for yourself afterwards,” Khunbish offered, before climbing inside the ship. But it was only a few seconds before she shouted. “It’s forsaken.”
Shetland let out a sigh. Of course, her inner voice told her. That would have been too easy. A double-check confirmed it. The ship was indeed empty. The consoles were all just like the small ships Shetland had gotten to see as a child, taken straight from the blueprints Equestria had shared with the rest of the world, after claiming Horizon for itself. Aside from smaller adaptations, like making everything fit to the size of hyenas, it was nearly identical. With a disappointed groan, Shetland slapped the ship’s hull as she got out and sank into the dirt. As unreasonable as it was, she’d really hoped to find something useful here. Her gaze shifted to the hyenas, who were unpacking their saddlebags, to the sudden joyful cheer of her stomach.
Food.
It took decidedly too long for the camping cooker to get the cans to an acceptable temperature, and Shetland stared with envy at the little straps of reddish, brown somethings the hyenas exchanged. “What’s that?” she muttered.
Khunbish threw her a conscious look, but Gan simply shrugged. “Jerky. Is good ration for long journey. Chew for hours.”
Shetland blinked. “And you didn’t tell me that before, I was starving!” She reached out a hoof and growled aggresively as he hesitated.
“It’s made of meat!” Khunbish warned, causing Shetland to pull back and look from one hyena to the other.
“Not… uhm-”
Gan shook his head. “Beef. made from cow. Not intelligent. Dumb breed. Like pigs.”
“I like pigs,” Shetland muttered. Still, her hoof slowly extended outwards again, to the surprised looks of both hyenas. “Don’t tell my mom.”
Gan laughed, but drew his paw over his mouth as he gave her a few strips. The taste was strange, and annoyingly dry, but it worked wonders to keep her mouth busy until the actual food was ready. And she could tell she would appreciate it much more by tomorrow.
After eating, Khunbish went inside the ship. “What’s she doing?” Shetland wondered.
Gan shrugged. <seeing if something is salvageable, I assume.> His eyes were focused on a hill in the distance, on top of which- <This is your power station,> Gan said.
“Good thing you didn’t hit it,” Shetland snickered.
Gan waved it off. <Yes, but see down.> His paw pointed at a cliffside, about as tall as the spaceship. It was not flat. There were holes, at least three of them, placed across the cliff. <You brought your machine to a cave. This might be it.>
Shetland blinked. Was it? Her memory was fuzzy and the sandstorm had made it nearly impossible to see. “I’d have to look inside.”
To her surprise, Gan jumped to his paws. Shetland looked to the caves, a piece of curiosity spiking enough to bring her to her own legs. Plus, she suddenly realized with a glance at the hyena, this was the opportunity she’d been waiting for.
With her memory as fuzzy as it was, Shetland couldn’t tell whether the first cave was right, but as she entered the second, the memory hit her like a buck to the stomach. A distant sound of flowing water filled the cavern, a sound that back then, she’d thought was made by the storm, or from her own, oxygen-starved brain. She took a deep breath, suddenly thankful for the backup bottles she and Gan had brought for safety. There was a tunnel much deeper into the cavern, shrouded in darkness. Gan looked at everything with mild interest. <There seems to be some sort of underground river deeper in the tunnel.>
Shetland shrugged. It made sense, at least enough. “Maybe that’s where the ponies up there get their water.” She wasn’t focusing on her words. Her eyes were drawn on the hyena, who stood in a spot a friend of hers had occupied, in shambles. She swallowed as she glared grimly at the back of the hyena.
“I need to speak with you.”
Gan turned back, seemingly confused, but for a brief moment, Shetland thought there was a glint of resolve. “Yes?”
“My friend, Toasty. She was here. She was attacked out here. Someone attacked my friend.” Shetland grit her teeth as her eyes narrowed further.
“The machine?”
“Yes, the machine!” Shetland snapped, causing him to take a sudden step back. She took a step forward, taking much more distance than he had created. “Someone is targeting her, and I know it’s not you,” she pushed his response away before he could make it. “But… but there is something you’re not telling us. So many things haven’t added up, that you botched your landing on purpose-” Gan opened his mouth to speak, but Shetland gave him no chance. “That you try to sneak into our mainframe, the unexplained outages, the robots who broke into your room. We know something is going on, and I think,” She pushed closer, pushing him closer to a cave wall. “I think you know exactly what it is.” Her eyes drilled into his, expecting him to break. But Gan returned her glare, refusing to take the final steps that would bring his back into a wall.
<You’re accusing us,> was all he said.
“YEAH, I THINK I AM!” Shetland shouted, stomping her hooves in front of him, wanting him to back away. And yet, he kept the same expression, exposing his razor-sharp teeth in a snarl that matched hers.
<I… think you are mistaken.> Gan said, meeting her eyes straight on. <We are not withholding anything from you.>
“Bullshit!” Shetland exclaimed. “What about the time you came to me, wanting to tell me something important?”
He blanched, but answered through his teeth. <Whatever you interpreted it as, it is not that. You do not have the right to make us share something personal.>
“PERSONAL MY ASS!”
<And speaking of withholding information.> Gan shot Shetland a glare. <What did you say about robots breaking into our room? I think that was a secret withheld from us.>
Shetland paled, shock and anger both serving to turn her cheeks to an unhealthy shade of white before returning to a furious red. He hooves shook as she stared down at the tiny hyena, the liar, who denied what she knew was true right to her face, even though she was sure he wanted her to know. Her heart played a wardrum as she imagined how easy it would be to grab him, to snap one of his thin legs, to pound a cracked bone to dust until he would finally speak- But she took a breath and the red veil lifted. “Just tell me,” she pleaded through her teeth. “If we wrap this up, we can go home, we can visit your country together.”
Finally, Gan took the step back that made him bump into the wall. But then his face slowly twisted into an ugly grimace while all color was lost. “I… am loyal to my country,” he hissed, his voice was barely controlled. “You will not lure me- you-” He shook his head, his eyes dangerously wide open. “Step away,” he finally said, daggers shooting out of his eyes. “Step away and let me out.”
Shetland glared down at him, rage once again boiling in her veins. But it wasn’t enough. With a final stomp of her hoof, she stepped aside, and Gan rushed out of the cave. She stomped a last time, hot tears welling in her eyes. “You’ll see what that gets you,” she rasped after the hyena. “That was your last chance.” Then a shudder took over her body, and she had to settle down, hiding her face in her own hooves.
There was no sleep before the trek back. Gan and Khunbish took the wagon without comment, but at around half the way they began to fall back and Shetland took over again. No-one talked, not even a silent whisper between the hyenas. Gan kept the same frown over the entire course as he dutifully watched the surroundings. Shetland quietly followed, fighting against tiredness and her hindleg, which had begun to burn like it was sizzling over an open flame. Still, she would not complain to the others. She would not ask for a pause. The night passed into the day, and into the afternoon, when the colony came in sight. None of them cheered. Shetland barely looked up. Her legs moved on autopilot, past Twilight who welcomed the hyenas with a stern expression. “We’ve found some discrepancies in each other’s records and must insist that you stay at your current housing until they are cleared.” Their protests were ignored as the alicorn accompanied them to their room, followed by a trio of Voidmarines. Shetland went past Sparktail’s replacement, who took the day shifts while she rested, and straight into her bed, intent on sleeping for an eternity.
If not for a blaring robotic voice that ripped her out of her dreams of slumber. “Been on a nice trip?”
“Mhm.” Ignoring the protests of her tired body, Shetland slowly rose out of her covers, leveling a tired look at the robot, blinking from the shine of Toasty’s eyelights. “We’ve been looking at their crashed ship.”
“That sounds interesting.” Toasty’s voice did not sound excited however, rather, it sounded disgruntled. “I would have liked to see it for myself.”
Oh no, Shetland inwardly sighed, her tired mind trying to come up with a way to get out of this conversation. “Toasty, you know why-”
“And it was a great surprise yesterday to get your note. I had a great time in here, all by myself, all day. Like every other day!” Her voice slowly rose. Then she paused, and her voice suddenly settled into a calm, but ice-cold tone. “How long have I been in here?”
Shetland swallowed. “F-four days,” she muttered, biting her lips. She wanted to get out, but she could fully understand her friend's anger, she herself had never been able to stand being cooped up for long.
“Oh?” One of Toasty’s eyelight’s grew, as her head tilted slightly. “And you are sure of that?” She crossed her forehooves.
“Wha-” Shetland shook her head. “Of course I’m sure. And you know that, you can tell the time better than me for sure!”
“Oh, can I?” Toasty shook her head. “But Shetland, I’ve been thinking, after all, there’s nothing else to do. And you know what I realized?” If possible, the robot’s voice began to approach a hysterical note. “I could have been here for months, and I’d still believe it was just the fourth day!”
Shetland stared at Toasty, speechless, until the bit finally dropped. “Y-you’re worried about me- I’m not deleting your memory!”
“You did not have trouble with it before!”
“That was-” Shetland bit her lip, cursing herself as she glared at the stupid little machine for getting her in this situation. “It was different.” She closed.
“Ha. Very convincing.” Toasty crossed her forelegs.
Shetland’s eye twitched. Her breath went through her teeth as she hissed at Toasty, placing all her pent up frustration and anger behind each word. “I. Did. Not. Delete. Your. Memory.”
But Toasty met her gaze with maddeningly frustrating defiance. “Can you prove that?”
Shetland shouted. There was no word, just pure emotion driving her lungs to get rid of all of the air inside. “Shut up,” she hissed. “I’ve been doing everything, EVERYTHING to keep you safe, I’m doing all I can, don’t you get it? I’ve been up the entire night just trying to make this right for you and now you’re complaining to me? You know what? Why don’t you just shut down if you’re so tired of waiting, and I’ll boot you up when it’s over, so I CAN SAVE YOU IN PEACE!”
Her heaving breath rasped over her sore throat as she glared at the robot, who’d taken a step back, and she felt a small, victorious cheer in her chest. But then it died down as the blood left her burning face, as the words sank into her own ears, and a thick rock lodged itself in her throat.
Toasty glared at her, her limbs shaking. “You want me to shut down?” she whispered coldly.
“Toasty,” Shetland whispered, but the robot spoke louder, drowning out her voice.
“You want me to go on standby, pull the plug like I’m a toy you’re tired of playing with?”
“No!” Grabbing Toasty’s shoulder, Shetland forced her to meet her eyes. “I’m sorry, Toasty, I didn’t want to…” Words left her, but maybe her exhausted expression said enough. Toasty settled down, sitting at the edge of Shetland’s bed.
“If you want,” Shetland whispered, her eyes stuck on the ground, “we can meet with Magenta tomorrow- I promise I’ll ask her this time.” She bit her lip, vividly imagining the skeptical look her friend would be shooting her way.
There was a long pause before Toasty answered. “Actually…” The robot whispered. “If that is possible… I would love to practice shooting just one more time.” Shetland looked up to see Toasty giving her a sincerely cautious look, without hatred, without anger, just with trepidation. She swallowed, her mind already throwing up all manner of warnings.
“Alright.” She breathed the word. “We’ll do it. Just not now,” she hastily added, biting her lip as her friend’s enthusiasm evaporated. “I’m sorry, but I really have to sleep first.”
Toasty nodded. “Do you want something to eat before sleep?” she whispered worriedly.
“Nope...” Shetland smiled as she closed her eyes, discovering a tasty leftover of today’s jerky between her teeth.
Unbeknownst to Toasty, Shetland threw nervous glances at her through the visor of her helmet. “Reload,” she intoned, and the robot swiftly went to work. Toasty had much improved from her first shaky attempts the one other time she was allowed to practice. Her shots now seldomly flew past the bullseye Shetland had planted on the rock they used as cover from sight, and she even hit a few shots square in the middle, a feat that had taken Shetland four days to pull off when she’d been new to firearms. A loud click confirmed that Toasty had finished reloading, but to her surprise, the robot did not immediately resume blasting the rock. Toasty had turned, the gun pointed at the ground as per safety rules, her eyelights reflecting on Shetland’s armor. “What is it, Toasty?” Shetland asked, raising an eyebrow, which of course Toasty couldn’t see.
“You have been quiet. Last time you were much more supportive.” Her tone was almost accusatory.
“You seem to be doing fine on your own.”
“Yes, I am practicing, and I think I am also improving.” Toasty gave Shetland a cross look. “But I would like to try something new, if that is possible.”
Shetland turned her head to the bullseye. While many shots now hit, there were just as many that missed, if narrowly. “I don’t know, Toasty. I think my instructor would have me executed if I let you try moving targets that early…”
Toasty gave her a blank stare, not a hint of emotion showing through her smooth faceplate.
Shetland rolled her eyes. “Alright, we’ll give it a shot.”
“No.” Toasty shook her head. “I think I’ll give it a shot.”
Shetland groaned as she grabbed a stack of flat, wooden bullseyes with a metal rim. Toasty’s eyelights shrinked. “Those do not look very sturdy.”
“They aren’t.” Shetland chuckled. “If you hit, they’ll be splinters.” she smirked. “I think we will have time for a few dozen tries.”
“It is on.” Toasty cocked her pistol.
Shetland gave her a cautious look. Of course, she had nothing to be afraid of. Her armor was strong enough to repel any shot from the small gun, unless it hit a weak spot. Even then, the magical shield would stop the shot in it's tracks. The targets flew through the air and as Shetland had predicted, every shot missed. But she was too far in her thoughts to be snarky, and Toasty was happy enough to simply try again. When this was over, Shetland vowed to herself, she would insist on Toasty staying in their room until it was safe, no matter how much the robot would protest. With an uneasy feeling in her stomach, she gathered the targets once again. They were uncomfortably exposed. The nearby hills would give excellent cover for anyone trying to sneak up on them. “No-one knows,” she whispered to herself. Nopony had seen them leave. Plus, their spot was at the west of the colony, the direction from which the last sandstorm had stained all the glass tunnels, making it impossible to make out anything in the distance. And yet, all her whispered encouragement couldn’t shake the uncertain feeling that was sinking through her guts. “I’m just paranoid.” she whispered to herself. And the feeling is justified, a voice in her brain immediately added.
“Shetland?”
The earth pony was startled to find that Toasty was right in front of her, hammering a metal hoof on her armor to get her attention. When Shetland moved her lips, she found her mouth horribly dry. “Sorry,” she croaked. “Kinda spaced out there for a moment.”
“Yeah, you did.” Toasty’s eyelights shrunk, then she let out a robotic sigh. “Shetland, we are out here in what might be the last time for a long while. Can you not have a bit of fun yourself?”
Shetland shook her head. “Toasty, what we’re doing out here-”
“Is for fun, entertainment, distraction,” Toasty interrupted her. “Whichever of these words you prefer. So can you stop being a downer, please? I was hoping for a break from the constant stress.”
“Yeah, that’s simple to do,” Shetland snorted. “Just forget what has been occupying my mind for weeks without end.”
“It would be a nice change.”
“Well…” Shetland paused. “What do you wanna do?”
“I can think of some things.” Toasty’s eyes darted over Shetland, and then to her side, at a large, deadly looking barrel. “You never let me try the big guns.”
Shetland turned sideways, blocking the robots view at the automatic rifle at her side. “That’s for defense, Toasty. And certainly not a toy.”
“I promise I won’t do anything bad with it. You can stop me at any point, I will do exactly as you say!”
Shetland kept silent, her gaze squarely on her pleading friend. Her own rifle was anything but harmless. It would tear right through a magic shield. If she suffered a full burst from that thing… But then, she thought as Toasty’s ears drooped, accompanied by a distinctly puppy-like whimper, if she was watching closely… With that thought in mind, she slowly unslung the weapon. Toasty nearly toppled as she caught the gun in her hooves. It was nearly as long as she was, Shetland noted with a snort. Yeah, there really was no danger, her friend couldn’t even begin to handle that thing effectively. Still, the robot made a shrill sound that could only be an excited squeak as she handled the incredibly dangerous device with utmost care, or even worship.
“No need to climax just yet,” Shetland laughed at her reaction. “Just imagine how it’ll feel when that bad girl gets off~”
“I am imagining,” Toasty giggled. “Oh, yes, I am.” Nearly shivering from excitement, Toasty tried to figure out how to aim, until Shetland gently pushed her to the ground.
“Trust me, if you stand, this thing’s gonna blow you over. You gotta use the ground with that one.”
Toasty made a disgruntled noise. “I want my own cool guns.”
Shetland quickly swallowed her laughter. “We can only hope,” she whispered soberly. Luckily, Toasty didn’t seem to hear her, she was too excited to finally switch off the safety. Then she raised her head, eagerly watching Shetland. Grinning behind her visor, Shetland gave her a nod.
The burstfire tore a trail of chunks out of the rock, rapidly climbing upwards as the rifle went wild, Toasty being unable to control the immense recoil. But Shetland had counted on that and stepped over Toasty, slamming her hoof down on the weapon, which immediately stopped its onslaught. Shetland’s heart beat faster as she grinned down at a stunned Toasty. “Hardcore enough for you?”
Toasty’s eyelights grew wide as she looked over the damage she’d just caused in the boulder, then back at the rifle with newfound respect. “Holy Celestia!” she whispered, awestruck.
“Yep,” Shetland grinned, feeling her chest swell a little. “Now, was that too scary for you or do you want to try one more time?”
Toasty shot up, her eyelights shining bright lights of excitement. “Try one more time, of course!” she shouted, her hooves clambering for the rifle once again as-
“Freeze!”
Shetland’s blood ran cold. Instinctively, her head shot up, while her hoof reached protectively over Toasty. With wide eyelights, Toasty clutched the rifle to her chest.
On top of the rock stood a pegasus, aiming a rifle straight at the pair. “Drop the weapon!” he hissed.
Shetland’s eyes darted to Toasty, who was still clutching the gun. Her own firearm might be enough to survive a quick firefight, but could she hit him before he took cover? And what if he hit Toasty? A shiver went over her back at the possibility. “Drop it,” she whispered to Toasty, who let out a sound like a steam valve as she flung the rifle to the ground. The pegasus did not lower his own weapon.
“No sudden movements!” he hissed. He glanced nervously around before speaking to his shoulder microphone. “Requesting backup. Found two loose robots, one wears a stolen suit of power armor. No regular build, it’s huge.”
“That armor is mine!” Shetland shouted upwards, her eyes briefly darting towards the fallen gun, but it was far out of reach.
His eyes widened as he clutched his gun. The sound of a gunshot rang in Shetland’s ears and she backed away, cold sweat threatened to run into her eyes as she stared at the whirling dust several feet to her left.
“The next one won’t be a warning shot,” the pegasus warned. “Now show me your face, prove that you’re a pony!”
Shetland bit her lip, refraining from a reply as she took the helmet off, glaring at a point below the pegasus.
“So you weren’t lying.” The pegasus Voidmarine looked up from his weapons sights. “You’re the bots accomplice.”
“I’m not.” Shetland pressed out through her teeth, lifting her helmet again-
“I said freeze!” the Pegasus snarled.
“She needs to breathe!” Toasty exclaimed. In an instant, the Voidmarine pointed his sights at the robot.
“LOWER THAT GUN!” Shetland bellowed, pushing Toasty back so her own armored body was in the way.
“Put on your helmet, earth pony,” the pegasus hissed. “You’re both under arrest for weapon smuggling.”
“Smuggling?!” Shetland shouted. “You-” But another burst of warning fire made her pull her head in.
“LAST WARNING!” the Voidmarine shouted. Suddenly, there was a loud crackling noise, and he whirled around, nearly dropping off his rock as he glared at two more Voidmarines, both wearing their signature armor, though a unicorn was missing his helmet, instead wearing a regular breath mask. “There you are, what took so long?” the pegasus grimaced.
“Two minutes preparation is standard!” The unicorn rose her head to glower at him. “Also,” she added with a look to Shetland and Toasty. “You seemed to have the situation under control.”
“Sure, I did, until I get close to that giant, I ain’t putting cuffs on her without some backup. But listen, I caught the pair red-hoofed, tryin’ to smuggle and practicing with military grade armaments. We need to contact the Princesses.”
But the last Voidmarine only stared at Shetland. Then he turned to the pegasus. “Dude, don’t you know who that is? You’ve got Princess Twilight’s daughter!”
“Bullshit!” the pegasus exclaimed, though his face paled as he looked back.
“Yeah, she is, I know her. And how many other giant ponies do we have?”
Shetland blinked. “Burning Crust?”
He gave her a short nod.
“Whatever!” The pegasus exclaimed, clenching his teeth. “I still caught her shooting guns with a robot. Whoever she is, that’s still a crime and I’m taking her in for it!”
With extreme effort, Shetland swallowed the reply that was on her tongue and allowed Crust to approach her.
“She needs the armor for air, and we got no cuffs wide enough for that,” he said to his colleagues. To Shetland, he only gave a sad look and whispered: “Don’t resist, okay? I’ll contact your mother ASAP. You won’t be in for long.”
Shetland took a deep breath. Her eyes were fixated on the ground, glaring little holes into the sand. She wasn’t so sure what her mother would do for her. Would she step over the law to pardon her? Would she understand? Her eyes darted to Toasty, and her glare immediately softened as she saw her friend's drooping ears and lowered head.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “If I hadn’t complained-”
“Shush,” Shetland interrupted her. “I’m not hearing any of that. Just play along, we’ll be out safe and sound, even if I have to spank my own mom for it.”
Toasty chuckled, but then she got a rude push from the pegasus, forcing her to start moving.
Crust leaned in on his colleague. “Little word of advice, Whirlwind. Do not hurt that robot. Or Shetland will have your throat.”
Whirlwind looked ready to make an annoyed reply, but one look at Shetland’s expression made him reconsider. He spent the rest of the trip keeping as far away from the robot as he could.
Shetland had told herself to remain stoic when she’d been forced to leave Toasty in a cell, and again when she was led in hoofcuffs into her mother’s office. And yet, she felt a pang of remorse as her eyes fell on Twilight deeply asleep, her face buried in reports, her drooping wings brushing across the ground with each rise and fall of her chest. Burning Crust, who had offered to guard her, gave Shetland a nervous glance. He really was in an unfortunate position, having to break the capture of Shetland to her mother. But Shetland was not in a mood to have pity on him, and she just shrugged, forcing him to go and shake Twilight awake. After a brief moment of confusion, Twilight listened to his story, giving no sign of her thoughts other than her ever darkening look. “Leave us alone,” she said as he’d finished, and he ran as if she was an unstable bomb.
Twilight clutched her head with her forehooves and let out a long, frustrated shout. Her mane slowly came to life, but it's movements were jerky, aggressive, unlike the usual gentle flow. “Do you have any idea,” Twilight spoke quietly, but it was the quiet before an oncoming storm. “ANY idea what a difficult situation you’ve just put me in?”
“Mom, we just-” Shetland began but Twilight cut her off.
“I know full well what you were doing, Shetty, I knew you were teaching Toasty gun usage, and so does Luna. But I’d thought, I’d hoped you wouldn’t be stupid enough to try it again. Think of the danger! There could have been other robots, Toasty herself could have been hacked! As it was, you were caught by our own security, and what do you think I can do now?” Twilight’s wings beat up and down, blowing over several stacks of paper, but she paid it no mind. Unable to show her stress only through words, she began walking in circles, never letting her eyes off Shetland. “Do you have any idea what the public is thinking? We are so close!” She held her forehooves about an inch apart. “So close to an open riot already, and the only way I could stop it is by declaring sanctions against the minority of robots.”
“Shouldn’t-” Shetland swallowed, hating the next sentence that broker out of her throat. “Shouldn’t we do that, if they could be hacked-”
“I will not imprison all of them for something that only affects a few, but I told the public that a dangerous virus is out and I have forbidden any direct uploads or downloads of data. Meanwhile, I’ve moved every robot’s software maintenance forward. In a month, Scalloway will have scanned everyone for viruses.”
“What if he can’t find it?” Shetland muttered.
“Even if he misses it the first few times, I am certain he will be able to recognize a pattern soon after. No, I have faith that he will succeed, and maybe even find the perpetrator.” She took a deep breath. “But that does not help our current situation. If I step in to release your friend, half the colony will be convinced that Luna and I are playing favourites, and when that happens-” She shook her head.
“So you’re just going to let her rot in jail?” Shetland stomped her hoof. “We can’t do that!”
“What else would you have me do?” Twilight asked exasperatedly. “My hooves are tied in this, Shetty.”
“But it’s my fault! I told her I would take responsibility, I told her that, punish me!”
“She has her own free will, as much as some would like to deny it, so it was her responsibility to refuse.” Twilight heaved a sigh and shook her head in defeat.
Shetland swallowed. She had no argument. No idea how to get around what her mother just explained. “But… if I…”
Twilight shook her head. “No. there is nothing we can do, for now, until we found the hacker and tell the public. Maybe in their excitement, we can quietly release her, or change it into house arrest. Besides, jail might not be nice, but at least it is safe, right?”
“Yeah…” Shetland muttered, despite the sinking weight in her stomach. Yes, Toasty would now be permanently guarded, right in the barracks. But Shetland knew the prevalence of anti-robot bigotry there. “But I need to visit her daily.”
Twilight blinked. “Shetty,” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I cannot just free you, either.”
Shetland froze, but then she just blinked. “Even better,” she said evenly. “That way I can make sure nopony treats her badly.”
The Alicorn gave her a worried look. “I could… I’ll visit you every day. A-and I’ll bring you something to entertain yourself-”
“It’s fine!” Shetland exclaimed, too forcefully to have a calming effect. “I’ll survive. The punishment is just a week or two, right?”
“Only if you can pay a hefty fine, but I’ll take care of that.”
“Oh, it’s nice to be rich,” Shetland chuckled dryly.
“It’s useful if you can collect two-hundred years of interest on your old account.” Twilight gave a weak chuckle, before she fell silent, her eyes on the documents that littered her desk. “Do you want to stay a little longer?” she whispered softly. “I can… We can pretend we were talking for a bit longer-”
But Shetland shook her head. “It’s fine, mom. It’s fine, but tell me, have you had any success with the hyenas so far?”
“Not yet,” The Alicorn sighed. “As of right now, they are only under house-arrest. I can’t officially question them. But I will, under the pretense of clarifying some… incongruencies, squeeze the truth out of them.” Her eyes glanced at her clock. “I’d be starting tonight, if I can get all these done before that.” She stared down at the documents that now littered the floor and let out a sigh.
“Maybe you should hire an assistant, or several?” Shetland suggested, half joking.
Twilight gave her a sad grin. “Maybe you’re right, Shetty, maybe it is time. But now I should bring you… back.” Her face fell as she rose to her hooves.
“I can walk myself.” Shetland rolled her eyes.
“And how would I explain that?”
Shetland just groaned. And yet, while she wouldn’t admit it, she felt a little comforted by the warm presence at her her side, and the wing that laid across her back. It allowed her to ponder in peace. Jail wouldn’t be fun times, but she would be together with Toasty. They would be perfectly safe. In a way, her job would be done. The realization made her chuckle, even grin a little. “Mom?”
“Mhmm?”
“You can bring us The Grinding Wars, right? And some cider?”
“I am fairly sure the latter is forbidden, but I can probably let that slide, as long as you can control yourself.”
“I can hold my liquor, mom.”
Twilight rose her eyebrow as she stared blankly at Shetland. Finally, she let out a sigh. “There is so much of your life that I missed out on.”
“Mom, it’s fine-” A befuddling sight stopped her words. The pegasus, Whirlwind, leaned against the closed door of the barracks, both hooves pressed on it while his wings beat, as if he was trying to push it in. As he wiped his forehead, he spotted the approaching pair.
“Princess Twilight!” he yelped. “I’m deeply sorry, but my ID didn’t work.” He gestured towards the scanner next to the door.
“Did you handle your card poorly?” Twilight wore a disapproving scowl. Any other day, it would have made Shetland laugh to see this motherly glare directed at someone else.
“Uhh…” The pegasus scratched the back of his head. “Last week something happened, but it worked till now, so-”
Shetland gave her mother a sudden shove, making her stumble towards the pegasus. “Mom, just try your stupid card!” Her guts weresuddenly ice-cold with fear, and it must have shown in her eyes, because Twilight skipped the lecture. With agonizing slowness, or maybe it just seemed so in Shetland’s eyes, the card was levitated into contact with the scanner. Red Light. No Entry.
Twilight frowned, looking at the card, turning it around and trying it again, to the same effect. She turned to Shetland, the same realization dawning in her that was setting the earth pony’s mind ablaze. With an enraged shout, Shetland threw herself against the door, using her shoulder as a battering ram. Yet the door was a thick rectangle of solid steel, and the shock went back into her instead, leaving her feeling as if her shoulder had just burst open. With an angry shout, she backed off, ready to ram the door once again, just as Twilight’s magic blew it off its hinges.
“TOASTY!” Shetland blindly stormed forward, ignoring the warning shouts of the others, the only thought on her mind to see, see for herself, to disprove her terrible fear that-
She smacked into the iron bars of the cell. It stood wide open, and it was empty. Shetland gripped the bars like they were the only thing left in the world. The sound of her breathing rang in her ears, drowning out any other noise as she stared at the empty spot that couldn’t be, that had to have the little robot in it, looking up at her with excitement and asking to play a game. She could see it, nearly real enough to deceive her. Then, she was pulled away and something was strapped over her muzzle. Only as fresh air burst into her lungs did she notice the ache of oxygen starvation that had set in. But why-?
The large, rectangular hole in the wall should have been impossible to miss. An emergency exit, Shetland realized. It only opened one way, and it was supposed to only be used in case one got stuck in the barracks during a power outage. But now it stood wide open and all the oxygen was gone, seeped together with the outside air in an unbreathable mix.
Behind her, Twilight was speaking with Whirlwind, whose responses reached Shetland’s ear, like a sound from far, far away.
“I only left for a brief second, I checked that everything was locked, but when I got back from the bathroom, my ID-”
Shetland slowly turned around, facing the pegasus. Her features felt cold, as if her veins contained only ice. “It’s your fault.”
He turned around, his cheeks glowing redly. “How could I have expected-”
Faster than anyone could react, Shetlands hoof burst forward, gripping the smaller pony by the neck. A second later, he was flung across the room, the impact knocking all air out of his lungs.
“IT’S YOUR FAULT TOASTY IS GONE!” Shetland roared. The shout shook her body, as every thought drowned in burning rage. With a primal shout, she charged at him, at the moron whose sole fault it was, who needed to pay with every brittle bone in his body. Whirlwind stared in horror at the rapidly approaching wall of muscle. By the time he remembered he had wings and tried to escape by flying, she was almost upon him. At the last moment, just as Shetland was about to pluck the terrified Whirlwind from the air by his tail, she crashed face-first into a wall of magic.
“SHETLAND, LET HIM GO!” Twilight shouted, while her hooves gripped around Shetland’s shoulder, trying to pull her back. With a mad cry, Shetland turned and leapt at the surprised Alicorn, toppling her with her bigger mass. Twilight yelled, her horn sparkling with magic, but Shetland bit into her horn, and Twilight let out an agonized scream. Shetland ground her teeth in as hard as she could, pressing Twilight down with her hooves. Yet even through the pain, her mother managed to cast a spell, trapping Shetland in a magical bubble that ascended to the ceiling. Panting, Twilight looked up, a glimmer of fear in her eyes as she stared at Shetland, who hammered her hooves frantically against the sphere.
“IT’S HIS FAULT!” she screamed again and again, as Twilight shouted orders and closed the emergency exit. “I WILL TEAR YOUR THROAT OUT!” Shetland raged. “I WILL GET YOU!” Those things and more burst out of her mouth, even after Whirlwind had fled the barracks. New Voidmarines arrived, rifles ready, as Twilight stormed out.
Her throat burned. She could taste blood in her mouth, whether her own or Twilight’s, she didn’t care to tell. Toasty was gone. Somewhere out there, if controlled, or kidnapped or killed, while she was stuck in a bubble. Yet, as all her efforts to free herself failed, she finally fell back, exhausted. Still her brain raced in chaotic circles, through which only one thought rang with clarity. I failed.I let her be taken. I allowed myselfself to give in, possibly at the cost of Toasty’s life.
“You never learn, do you?” her own mind mocked her.
“Shut up!” she shouted, her whole body shivering. “We can find her still. The hyenas…” She grit her teeth. The hyenas would know everything. She held onto this small, glimmering hope, like it was the last drop of water in a searing desert. “Get Twilight!” she shouted at the Voidmarines below her. “I need to speak with her now!” But even as she hammered against the sphere to get their attention, they only gave her short glances. The sphere must have noise-canceling properties, Shetland realized as she gritted her teeth.
It must have been an eternity before Twilight returned. She looked over the Voidmarines. None of them had waned in their vigilance, and the alicorn gave them a quick nod. “Leave us alone for a moment.” Although her voice was mostly calm, Shetland heard the strain on it. As the door closed behind the guards, her horn flared an the bubble popped. Shetland fell towards the ground, but she was caught in her mother’s magic. Twilight gave her a cautious look, but Shetland had no time to question this.
“Have you found her?” she demanded to know even before her mother let her down.
Twilight shook her head, her mouth opened to speak, but Shetland cut her off.
“Then question the hyenas! We will get it out of them!”
“Shetty, we can’t.”
Shetland’s eyes nearly bulged out of her skull. “You are still protecting them?” She hissed through her teeth. “Mom, Toasty is gone, how many more have to disappear before you stop coddling them? She could still be out there, we can save her, and if you think I will let you stop me because of your politics-”
“We can’t, because they’re gone.”
“Gone?” Shetland formed the word with her lips, but it didn’t make any sense. “What do you mean, gone? How can they be gone?”
Twilight took a deep breath. She looked miserable. Her mane and coat were disheveled, while tiredness obscured her otherwise controlled expression. As she spoke, her voice was husky and faint. “At the same time as your friend disappeared, Shetland, there was a fight outside their quarters. Three robots suddenly attacked the guarding marines out of the blue, and then the hyenas did the same. It didn’t seem like they were allies, one of the robots was taken out by Gan’s shocktalon, but everyone else got away.”
“Was Toasty one of the robots?”
Twilight looked up, her eyes glistening as she met Shetland’s. “No. I asked, but none of the guards saw a smaller than average robot anywhere.”
Shetland took a shallow breath. It had been her last bridge, and now it was mercilessly crumbling away. No! “Couldn’t you catch them? They can’t just be anywhere, they can’t breathe outside!”
“Then, unless they return, they either found a way, or they won’t survive,” Twilight whispered.
Shetland grit her teeth, and something unbearably hot was welling up inside her. “It’s not fair,” she croaked, feeling pressure in her eyes as her body curled up. “It’s not fair!” She felt a hoof touch her back, but she shook it off. She didn’t want to be comforted, she wanted to be forgotten, here, on the cold, hard ground, where nopony had to see her.
“Shetty…” Twilight’s empathetic voice cruelly tore into her ears, but at this point, words seemed to fail the Alicorn. “I’ll have you escorted to your room,” she finally whispered as she turned around to leave.
Frigid water doused her mane, ran down her neck, leaving everything it touched numb and cold. Shetland bit her teeth, not allowing herself to speak. She didn’t want to hear her voice. She pressed her forehead against the wall, her eyes closed, allowing the icy fluid to wash over her body and steal away her ability to feel. Another shaky breath. The last one seemed like an eternity away. A dull ache began in her forehead, but it felt like her body had completely frozen. She grit her teeth and suddenly, a roar escaped her frigid lips, and her hoof came down on the wall. The impact shook her leg like an icicle that was about to break. As suddenly as it had appeared, the outburst vanished, leaving behind a bottomless void just beneath her skin.
There was no telling how long she remained in place, her hoof propped up against the wall. The shower had stopped long ago. Eventually, one of her ears pricked up at the sound that had taken her out of her stupor. It was a dull, weak pounding, like a choking filly trying to escape out of a wooden box. She slowly opened her eyes, then blinked at the hard wall nearly in contact with her pupil. The pounding hit again, and Shetland stumbled away from the wall, almost tripping over her own hooves. Someone was knocking. With shaky legs, Shetland lurched towards the door. Everything felt numb, lifeless, as if she’d drowned in her shower. And yet, her brain slowly noticed as she held onto the doorknob, her mane and coat were nearly dry, except for her face, which she’d kept pressed against the wet walls. She licked over her dry lips and turned the handle.
“There you are,” It was Magenta. The Pegasus flapped a few feet in the air, at Shetland’s height. “I’ve been knocking for like ten minutes. Can I come inside?”
Shetland stared at the pegasus. “Come in,” she muttered in a shaky breath, and the pegasus quickly found her way to the small table. Once seated, she cast a worried glance at Shetland, who wouldn’t meet her eyes. “So,” Magenta swallowed. “Are you… okay?”
Shetland grimaced.
“S-sorry,” Magenta stammered. “That was a stupid question. I- I came here as soon as I heard the news.”
With a deep breath, Shetland turned towards the Pegasus, half-tempted to just tell her to leave her alone. But words refused to leave her mouth, and instead she just stared at Magenta while a battle raged inside her mind. She licked her crusty lips again, and somehow, the one thought that found its way to her was a half-forgotten courtesy lesson. “Do you wan’ anything?”
“Uh,” Magenta blinked in surprise. “I guess a glass of water would be nice?”
Shetland nodded. Something concrete to do, something that would delay the inevitable conversation. She came to a halt, one hoof inside the kitchen, and it felt like she’d crossed a line. This was Toasty’s place. Shetland swallowed, but there was not a drop inside her mouth, and her eyes were drawn, pulled by invisible chains, towards he stove, the toaster, the empty spot, and she could see all the little leftovers of the one who had claimed this space. The plates, stacked in neat little towers, the biggest ones on the bottom and the smallest ones on top, the little stepladder Toasty used to reach the upper shelves, the tiny scratch marks wherever the robot brushed a little too hard over a surface. Shetland forced her eyes away. Staring safely at the wall, her breath was shallow as she glanced over to the bathroom. There was a sink in there, too-
Something warm brushed over her hoof. Shetland’s head shot up, and her hoof pushed a startled Magenta away. She froze in position momentarily as she surged back into the present and stared at the Pegasus, who was looking back at her with widened eyes. “You’re ice-cold,” Magenta eventually whispered tonelessly.
Shetland let out a grunt.
“You`re thinking about her? I- I’m so sorry. I knew her, too-”
“You’re speaking as if she’s already dead.” She tried to swallow again, but her throat was made out of sandpaper.
“N-no!” Magenta threw up her hooves. “I don’t think that, Shetland, not all hope is lost.” A light appeared in her eyes.”If Scalloway finds something in the data core of that hacked robot we captured-”
“IF he does,” Shetland pressed through her teeth. “But he didn’t spot anything wrong in Toasty, now did he? And it sounds like she…” Shetland shook her head, unable to say the words escaped on her own, as a thought crossed her mind. “How… how do you know of the hacking? I never told you of that.”
“Princess Twilight came out after Toa- after the hyenas disappeared,” Magenta awkwardly rubbed over her right foreleg.
“And did she tell you what we’re going to do about it?” Shetland asked tensely.
“She only said that all the previous problems were caused by a hacker, capable of taking over the mind of a robot. She…” Magenta bit her lip, seemingly uncertain if she should continue. “She decided that we can’t frame all the robots for one criminal, but for all our safety, including theirs, we had to insist they stay in their dorms until the situation is settled-”
Shetland’s frown deepened as Magenta spoke. Robots were being locked away, treated like timebombs that could go off any moment, and it was the most logical choice. But nevertheless, frustration began to boil in her chest, the bitter aftertaste of defeat stinging in her mouth.
“Shetland-” Magenta began, but Shetland cut her off.
“No. They-” Shetland shook her head, hissing through her clenched teeth. She pressed a hoof to her face, closing her eyes.
Magenta rose up, but Shetland shook her head. “Leave me alone, Magenta.” She took a ragged breath. “Please.” Magenta’s look of resolve crumbled at the last word. Before she left, she squeezed her hoof against Shetland’s shoulder one last time.
Shetland let out a sigh as she heard the door closing, yet it wasn’t accompanied by a feeling of relief. She fought down a sudden urge to run after her. She’d wanted to be alone. With a huff, she turned back to the table, suddenly realising how parched she was. Hadn’t she drunk anything when she was in the shower? Did other ponies drink some of the falling water? Her hoof was already reaching out for the bottle, as she came to a halt. No, this wouldn’t be enough, she decided as she turned to the bathroom. She needed something stronger. Under the sink, she recovered her bottle of apple whiskey. The strong drink burned down her sore throat, yet instead of bringing pain, it seemed to oil the walls of her throat, smoothening the way for a second wave of alcohol. Her stomach felt like a fireball had found it’s nesting place inside it, and Shetland had to set the bottle down and gasp for cool air. With staggering steps, she slowly made her way back to a chair, knowing that once the intoxication began, she better not be on her hooves anymore. “Sweet Apple Whiskey”, she read quietly off the logo, right above the small Sweet Apple, Inc. sign. Of course it was from Equus, she figured. Horizon couldn’t even grow enough apples for regular eating, especially now that the robot workers were all locked away. Shetland clenched her teeth.
“In what sense could that ever be fair?” she loudly asked the cold room. The robots had done nothing to deserve this, none of them had. Even back in the Grinding Wars, they’d just been puppets, like they were right now. Would they, after this, be banned from Horizon as well? From Equestria altogether? And just because of some hacking bastard! Shetland slammed the bottle onto the table, luckily not hard enough to break it. It was made worse by the thought that this hacker seemingly had no real goal of his own, all he was doing was making things worse for everyone else, and what for? Who would have a reason to cause all this trouble? And who had the skills? All Shetland could say for sure was that it had to be a pony. Any robot would have stopped this… whatever it was, when it became clear it only made things so much worse for themselves.
Shetland let out a long hiss before placing the bottle back onto her mouth, yet her hoof was shaking, and it spilled a solid mouthful before she latched her lips on the opening. She wanted someone to fight, something she could openly struggle with. Instead, she was just sitting here, drinking her ass off, absolutely useless to everyone around her. In a fit of rage, she jumped up, her legs shooting out against a chair. The backrest snapped off on impact. It’s just like last time, isn’t it? she thought, her chest rising with each heavy breath. Robots are disappearing, our leads have vanished, Toasty is gone, they could strike again at any time. Toasty could be dead, and I’m not even coming to save her! A shiver went over her body. And it’s all because of my stupid decision to go out shooting a second time. I gambled her life away, and for what? Why didn’t I say no? Was that even Toasty, or was the manipulating bastard speaking through her? Why didn’t I suspect this?! Shetland covered her eyes under her foreleg. And then, her brain relentlessly continued, you could have stayed with her in the cell, and prevented her from leaving, why did you not demand that mom come to you instead, what were they gonna do? They couldn’t shoot you, and if they’d gotten close, you could have fought them off. If you’d done any of these things, you wouldn’t be in this mess!
“I tried!” Shetland pleaded with the empty room. “I-I tried my best.” But words echoed in the empty space, sounding as hollow as she felt. Shetland’s limbs shook as a sob broke out, tears staining her closed eyes and a powerful shudder took control of her spasming muscles. As her mind swirled, Shetland rose her hoof one more time, pressing the bottle to her lips. But nothing came. No taste, no whiskey, no forgetting. Shetland stared at the empty bottle, and it was like an ember had lit aflame her intoxicated mind. She threw the bottle against the wall, where it burst into a thousand shards. But Shetland wasn’t satisfied, a red haze colored everything she saw, and she let out a wild scream as she rampaged through the room. Soon it wasn’t just a broken bottle. She’d knocked over the table, kicked in the fridge door and threw everything that was in range of her hooves. Soon, the hyena carpet was stained in glass shards and the blood they drew from Shetland’s hooves as she stomped around the room in a wild rage. The sound of blood pumping in her ears drowned out the nervous questions of a concerned Voidmarine, and he was forced to retreat, right before a plate smashed against the door where his head had been poking through. Panting, Shetland stared at the shut door. Then she heard a rustling, and her eyes fell on a torn piece of paper, covered in spots of water and blood. She blinked, narrowing her eyes to see through the red haze. The heat drained from her veins in a heartbeat, as she recognized the words, which she herself had written:
Dear Ciloa,
Hi there… I’m so sorry It’s been a while, huh? A lot has happened since we last saw each other. First, you may be happy to hear that I survived. You and Press, it’s it’s hard without you two. I’ve been dealing with… stuff. Unfortunately we still haven’t caught the ones responsible, but I swear I will! There are a few hyenas here, Gann and Khunbish, who do their investigation. I know what you think, it’s obviously them, right? But things happened and I don’t know for sure after what happened with Toasty-
Damnit, I wrote myself into this… You remember Toasty, the robot who works at the Turing Tart? She’s here now and she-
Something attacked her and I don’t know what it was! I promised I’d protect her and I don’t have the faintest as to how! I guess that’s the reason-
Shetland whirled around, ignoring the shards that dug deeper into her hooves as she frantically stormed towards her desk. It stood crooked, since one metal side had a large dent, with the imprint of a hoof, but there was still a bottle of ink. Shetland stared down at the second half of her letter, rendered nearly unreadable by tears in the paper or drops of blood. With tears swelling in her eyes, she grabbed the pen in her mouth, half-forgotten sentences rushing through her brain.
Mom would know better than me
I hope you’re together, forever.
If I can keep Toasty safe, then it’ll all be okay, right? Then you won’t have to be disappointed with me.
Shetland screamed. Never before had she shouted like this. A scream of utter despair that drained her into complete emptiness. She slammed her forehead into the desk, and the tears began to flow. There was no more resistance, no more barrier as she sobbed, occasionally intercepting her frantic breathing with the weak utterance of a name. Press, Ciloa, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect her, I’m still weak, I’m helpless. I disappointed you.
“Shetland?” A startled voice came from the door. Shetland rose her head, pulling up her nose as she faced her mother. What must she look like, sobbing over a torn letter, amidst a room that has descended into chaos, with dozens of small gashes from which trickles of blood dripped to the ground. Twilight approached her, a small aura around her hooves that protected her from the shards, her eyes widening as she looked over her daughter. “Shetland, you’re bleeding! We need to get you to a doctor!”
But Shetland shook her head, staring down at the letter, horrified by the sight of her own tears damaging the writing further.
“I need to fix this!” Her voice sounded hysterical, and Twilight’s magic gripped the paper, gently lifting it from the table. Her expression changed as she read the first two words, to one full of, Shetland realized with surprise, understanding.
“Oh, Shetty,” Twilight whispered.
“Can you fix it?” Shetland swallowed, as she looked up into her mother’s eyes.
“We’ll both fix it.” The Alicorn spoke with certainty. She threw a look over her shoulder to a Voidmarine in the doorway. “Bring us a first aid kit!” she ordered harshly, before turning her attention back to Shetland. “You really miss them, don’t you.” She spoke the words as a fact, not as a question.
Uncomfortable this close to her reserved mother, Shetland swiped a foreleg over her face, drawing away her tears and snot. “Of course I do.”
“You never told me much about them.” Twilight heaved a sigh. “If I hadn’t been so stubborn, I could have gotten to know them myself.”
“They should have lived,” Shetland whispered, a glimmer of anger making her clench her teeth. “I should have saved them!”
“It’s not your fault, Shetty-”
“NO!” Shetland shouted, rising up, her bloodshot eyes burning into the alicorn’s. “You don’t understand!”
“But I do!” Twilight insisted. “Shetland, I lost many friends in my life, I-” She swallowed. “I must have lost hundreds in the Grinding Wars, and many thousands that I never got to know. Don’t you think I understand what’s going on in your head? The way you’re telling yourself every possible way you could have saved them?” She closed her eyes, taking a long breath. “I understand how you feel, I had the same happen to me.”
“But you didn’t do the same things I did.” Shetland breathed, staring at her reflection in Twilight’s eyes. She’d told herself to keep it a secret, she had no idea how her mother, or anyone would react. but none of that mattered in this moment. “I’m a murderer.”
“You’re a soldier-”
“Not that!” Shetland shouted, causing her mother to jerk away from her sudden outbreak. “You don’t know about Mellow.”
Her reflection disappeared as Twilight blinked, confusion spreading on her face. “Mellow? Who is that?”
“He’s a robot, I found him in the storage of the Esseless,” she said quietly, gauging Twilight’s widening eyes. She had never told her more than a rough outline of that day. “I thought I was certain to die,there wasn’t much more air to breathe in the ship after-” She took a sharp breath. “Ciloa died-”
“I know those parts!” Twilight intercepted. “The hyenas told me your story, you don’t have to repeat them.”
“Thank Celestia…” Shetland whispered. “So, you know how I took the enemy ship and flew to Horizon?”
Twilight nodded.
“Well… I knew the pirates must still be there, and it was just me and Mellow against all of them, and-” she swallowed, her voice becoming so quiet that her mother had to lean closer to understand her. “He could have stayed behind, he didn’t need air, he could have waited to be rescued! Instead, he chose to risk his life to help me.”
“Shetland, that was his choice, it’s not your fault,” Twilight whispered gently, but Shetland’s look darkened.
“I murdered him.” She took a ragged breath. “Our ship had so many explosives… and I put them on the pirate's ship, as a plan B, because…” She wrung her hooves. “Because I told him he should draw their attention to himself, while he was in a good position inside the ship, and that I would come with reinforcements to save him. But in case that didn’t work, I had all these explosives and… and I didn’t tell him about it.” She lowered her eyes, unable to bear the look her mother would give her. Fixated on her own hooves, she took a deep breath, her lips shivering, as if fighting against her as she forced them to form the words. “And then… without warning him… as soon as I made it to the hostages, I-I blew up the ship.”
There was a moment of silence, during which only their breath could be heard. “S-Shetty,” Twilight began. “You made a backup plan, and when it became necessary-”
“Was it necessary?” Shetland shouted. “I had freed the colonists, there were a few guns from the hyenas, we could have fought our way back. The hyenas were pushing into the ship, if we had appeared behind them, they would have been stuck between us! But I- I knew that if I pressed the button, blew up the ship, the hyenas would run… I knew it would be over if I pressed the button, and… and killed Mellow.” She bit her lip as tears once again filled her eyes. “So- now you know. Now you know what a terrible pony I am. And… and I thought, if I could protect Toasty, I could somehow make it up, I could think of my friends and not feel like I’m the biggest, nastiest disappointment!”
A warm feeling blanketed her shoulders, and as she opened her eyes, she saw only specks of light shine through a wall of feathers. “I don’t know whether your choices were necessary,” Twilight whispered. “I wasn’t there and only you can judge that. But I saw the way you looked out for Toasty, I know what you did for her. You did everything you could, and your friends should be proud of you, wherever they are.”
Shetland’s lip quivered at those words, those words she desperately wanted to hear, just from the mouth of somepony else… Her face pressed against the soft, purple chest, and Twilight’s sympathetic heartbeat filled her ears. “I just wish I could see them again,” she whispered. “Just one time and… and explain everything!”
She hadn’t expected an answer. At best, she thought Twilight would give her a sad glance. But instead, she released the earth pony from her hug and looked right into her eyes. “There… might be a way.”
Shetland’s jaw dropped. “You- how?” But Twilight raised a hoof defensively.
“Don’t expect too much off of it, Shetty… but first,” she said, looking concernedly at Shetland’s legs. “I’ll have to patch you up.”
-----
Shetland cried out as Twilight yanked a shard out of her hindleg. It was like she only felt the myriad of cuts now, as her mother tore out the chunks of glass, reopening the way for more blood to trickle out of her body. After a moment, a thick salve spread on the wound, and Shetland had to press her teeth together to not scream again at the burning sensation. Then, she took a deep, panting breath while Twilight wrapped a large bandage roll around her hooves.
“All done,” The Alicorn whispered and snapped the first aid kit shut. “You didn’t lose a critical amount of blood, but you should really take it easy for the next few days-” She broke off as she saw Shetland’s grimace.
“I want to speak with my friends,” Shetland whispered, even her dark glare not enough to banish the longing out of her voice.
“You can’t… speak.” Twilight whispered, fidgeting her hooves. “Rather…” She shook her head. “I’ll show you.” She disappeared, only to teleport back inside the room a few seconds later. In her magical grasp, she was holding a thick candle, about as long as one of Shetland’s hooves. It had clearly been used many times however, as a thick ring of wax around the base showed. “This,” Twilight began to quietly explain. “Is a dragonfire candle. It’s… It’s one of the things I have left of your oldest brother, Spike.”
“The dragon?” Shetland whispered in awe.
Twilight nodded sadly. “I wish you could have gotten to know him.” She took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment before she refocused. “This candle is imbued with the magic of his fire. It can deliver objects to anyone you wish.”
“You mean…” Shetland’s eyes widened. “This thing, it can deliver my letter? To Press and Ciloa?”
“I would like to believe so,” was Twilight’s quiet reply. “They cannot write back, but… I think there may be a good chance they can receive your letters, wherever they are.”
Shetland looked up, into her mother’s eyes. “And… and you’re okay with me using it?”
“There are many messages left in this candle. I can handle letting you have it for a a few moments.” Twilight claimed, but her smile was strained, and her eyes measured the candle’s length with a sadness that, for a brief second, made Shetland consider to simply refuse.
“Mom?” she muttered after a little while.
“Yes, Shetty?”
Shetland’s lip quivered, and she grabbed the Alicorn’s shoulders, squeezing her in a tight embrace. “You’re the best.”
Twilight could only pat her back, too stunned, or maybe too moved, to say a word.
----
The green light flickered atop the candle, dissolving wax as it ate on the lifeline of the dragon’s memento.
“Are you ready?” Twilight asked.
Shetland opened her letter. She had a guilty feeling in her stomach, as she was wasting seconds of her mother’s valuable candle, but she had to re-read it one last time, to make sure nothing was missing. She took a deep breath. “I am ready.” Then she held the letter into the flame, watching as it crumbled and lines of green magic whisked it away, hopefully into the great void where Press and Ciloa were waiting. As she watched, she felt tears enter her eyes, but they weren’t forceful. They didn’t come unbidden. And, as she watched, she leaned against her mother, embraced by her wings, and mourned her friends.
Shetland slowly blinked at the ceiling, sluggishly asking herself how she’d gotten in her bed. She smacked her dry lips. Everything felt so numb, as if her blood had been replaced with sand. Wanting to take a look at her alarm, she stemmed her hoof against the cover and let out a sudden yelp as a hundred burning needles rammed into her leg. She rolled on her stomach, her hooves held out before her head, wrapped in bandages, concealing a few dark spots. And now it all came crashing down on her waking mind. Toasty’s disappearance. The unbelievable rage that had made her ignore the damage she was causing to herself. The letters. Shetland swallowed. It was not just her lips that were still dry. The odd feeling of numbness remained in her limbs, soon calming the pain in her hooves. With a controlled, calm breath, she slid off her bed. An ear-piercing scream came out her throat as her hindleg impacted on something hard, like a rock. Stumbling on her other three hooves, Shetland stared in disbelief at the doorhandle on the ground. Where did that come from? But she was ripped out of these thoughts as the door opened and a Voidmarine peeked inside, worriedly checking each corner.
“Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” Shetland pressed through her teeth as she looked at the destruction in the room. There was little left that wasn’t damaged in some way, from her broken desk to the crack in her table, the dented door on the fridge and the various bent or broken doodads that cluttered the floor, stained by a mixture of spilled whiskey, water and blood. With a groan, Shetland reached down to grab her stained carpet with her teeth, intending to use it to safely swipe everything into a corner, when her eyes fell once again on the Voidmarine. “You can go now.”
But the Voidmarine didn’t leave. Instead, he entered the room, his visor-covered eyes drawn to Shetland’s bandaged hooves. “Holy Celestia, Shetland,” his voice came, distorted by his helmet’s speaker. “You look terrible.”
Shetland covered one hoof with her other, to little effect, as they were equally bandaged. She shot a glare at the marine, who stopped in his tracks.
“Sorry, sorry.” As he spoke, his hooves rose to his helmet. With a sharp snap, the mechanism loosened and he placed it on what remained of the table.
Shetland let out a breath. “Crust,” she sighed, rubbing her forehead in exasperation. “What are you doing here?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” he asked with a nervous smile. “I signed up to guard you. I thought you’d want someone that you knew nearby, since your-” casting her a cautious glance, he cleared his throat.
Shetland’s eye twitched dangerously. “Anything new about her?”
“N-no,” Crust admitted. “But Princess Twilight is examining the-”
“I know!” she snarled, causing him to take a step back. A pang of guilt hit her, but she was in no mood to apologize.
He swallowed. “Though… It’s nearly half a day since I received any news, there may be new developments already. I certainly hope so,” he added with a nervous look. “I-I think me and her could become friends, right?”
Shetland made a gruff, non-comittal sound. Her eyes darted towards the door. If only Crust would leave, so she could go to her mother, wherever she was.
Having followed her eyes however, Crust spoke before she could open her mouth. “Actually, now that you’re awake, we should be going.”
“Going where?”
“To a doctor,” he explained, casting a look at her bandaged limbs. “You think that’s gonna be fine after wrapping some fabrics over it?”
“I want to speak with my mother,” Shetland said firmly. She wanted news, as fast as possible, to satisfy this starving beast inside her that was scratching its bloody claws against impenetrable walls.
“Only after seeing a medic,” he insisted, putting his helmet back on. “I was ordered to bring you there, first.”
“I don’t care!” she snapped. “If this hacked robot can tell us where Toasty is, I want to know right away.”
“The only thing that will happen when you burst in there is that the princess will send you right back to where you should be.” he argued, heat flaring in his voice, even through his helmet’s distorting effect. “Why do you think I even have this order?”
After a bit more back and forth, Shetland was forced to concede his point. It did sound exactly like something her mother would do. So, clenching her jaw, she followed him, occasionally wincing at the throbbing pain in her hooves.
“Ah, Miss Sparkle.” A batpony nurse looked up as Shetland entered the hospital. “Long time no see. I believe you have missed a couple appointments. If you would please follow me.”
Under her breath, Shetland grumbled something unintelligible. Though despite that and the bitter look she cast at the nurse’s back, she followed the order. Crust had made his point clear, and all she could do was get it over with as fast as she could. “I’ve had things come in between, Rose,” she grumbled.
“But it was possible to make a new appointment, or simply come without one, we are typically not fully occupied all day,” Rose Petal argued without looking back at her patient. With an impatient wave of her hoof, she ushered Shetland into a new room. “Now, if you would please take a seat?”
Though giving the small lounger a critical look, Shetland climbed on top, resting on her left, unburned side, seemingly the only place left of her body that was still healthy. All her bandaged hooves dangled over the edge, providing a much needed relief from their constant burning. It was short lived however, as the nurse leaned in closely to get a good look at each of them. Suddenly, she pinched one of them, causing Shetland to gasp for air.
“What was that about?”
The batpony pulled on the bandage, nodding as she barely got any grasp on the fabric. “Very well covered wounds,” she commented as if Shetland wasn’t even there, then began to unwrap the bandages. Shetland grit her teeth, but it was unnecessary, as Rose proceeded slowly and gently.
“No signs of inflammation,” Rose said, giving her patient a nod and a smile. “And if Twilight Sparkle has treated you, then there is no danger of foreign objects left inside those wounds. For a timespan of only thirty hours, you have recovered remarkably well.”
Shetland, who had been about to comment throughout the small speech, sputtered. “Thirty hours?” she asked incredulously. “What do you mean, thirty hours?” What happened in the last day?
Rose blinked. “O-oh, were you not aware? I assumed Princess Twilight had told you before administering the dosage.”
“The-” Shetland shook her head. “You mean that syringe with the stuff that would prevent me from dreaming?” Her mouth felt both fuzzy and dry. Did her mother trick her once again?
“W-well, we were told you would arrive as soon as you woke up, and since you are here now, the d-dosage must have been enough to make you sleep those thirty hours.”
With a sudden cry of anger, Shetland smashed her hoof into the side of her lounger, a move she immediately regretted as pain exploded in her leg.
“I-I must ask you not to do that!” Rose protested.
Shetland grit her teeth. “Just finish your stuff,” she grumbled. The sooner she would be able to confront her mother.
“C-certainly,” the batpony stammered, getting back to working on Shetland’s hooves. She smeared a paste over the wounds, which stung for a brief moment, before settling into an odd, cold feeling, yet the pain now felt suppressed, as if it had gone to sleep. “R-really, I am almost amazed how quickly and well these have healed,” she muttered as she wrapped a new set of bandages over the legs. “If you really do not have any alicorn magic, then you must have at least have more earth pony magic than most.”
Her attempt to lighten the mood was obvious, and Shetland couldn’t bring herself to play into it. “Won’t do me much good, considering I can’t cast spells regardless.” She cut the nurse’s response off with a wave of her hoof. “Is this okay now? Can I leave?”
Rose swallowed. “A-almost, you need to take a small walk around the hospital, to make sure these sit right.”
“They do!” Shetland insisted with a groan. “They definitely feel too tight and they dont constantly brush against me, it’s fine.”
“You cannot decide that yet,” Rose said, her stammer disappearing as she met the larger pony’s eyes. “It’s a doctor’s order.”
“Ugh, fine!” Shetland groaned, slipping off the lounger. “But then I can go?”
“Possibly,” Rose said, and Shetland was briefly tempted to give her a light headbutt, although she repressed the urge, as it would only cause more problems and delay. Sucking a cold breath through her teeth, she began weaving through the hospital. Rose wasn’t lying when she said Shetland could have come anytime. Though the waiting room was occupied, none of the ponies seemed bored or impatient, like they had just arrived. Some of them shot her a wide-eyed look, but she quickened her pace, leaving them and their curious stares behind. Her hooves stung, yet with the salve, the pain was easily bearable, akin to a mere papercut. With a groan, she stretched out her scarred hindleg. The second she’d focused on it, it had once again started to itch, yet the bandages denied her even the small relief of a nice scratch. Only when the shout came a second time did it reach her ears.
“Shetland!” In a purple burst, Magenta appeared before her eyes, the three-legged form of Pipe standing behind her. “Shetland, I’ve been wanting to see you!” Magenta exclaimed.
Shetland edged her features into a forced smile. “Hey, Magenta,” she said, halfway managing to sound joyful. “What brings you here?”
“Pipe.” Magenta’s wing did a motion halfway between pointing at her colleague and shrugging. “He’s getting his leg looked at. Amputations aren’t easy on the body, y’know?”
“I can imagine,” Shetland muttered, glancing over to the unicorn, who managed a pained smile as he waved the third of his foreleg that was left.
Magenta let out a chuckle, before her expression fell, adopting a serious look. “So, how are you doing?” she inquired.
“Hurting a little,” Shetland muttered back. “Got some cuts and bruises, but it’s nothing like missing a limb altogether.”
“You know what I mean.” Magenta attempted to lock eyes with Shetland, who avoided her worried gaze. “If it’s of any help, I feel with you.”
A deep, raggy breath sounded from Shetland’s mouth as she pressed her eyes closed. Of course there’d been no hope to avoid the topic. She felt her throat tighten. “I’ll bring her back.” The words felt hollow in her ears, fragile as clay, uttered just so something was said. And yet, it dragged Magentas features into a smile, both sincere and confident.
“Of course you will. Wouldn’t be your first time saving ponies.” She let out a chuckle, a real, actual chuckle. “And unlike me, Toasty will know that you’re coming.”
Shetland stared at her, holding that impossible smile, speechless at the sheer confidence that she, Shetland would succeed... A tightness grew in her throat and she swallowed, as her nose suddenly felt hot and stuffy. “I-I-” she stammered, then shook her head. “I must be going.” she blurted out before leaving the perplexed pegasus behind, who was hopefully unable to see her face.
----
The moment Shetland stepped out of the hospital dome into the connecting tunnel, she looked around for the armored form of Crust. It had taken a re-examination and a short lecture about her following exercise regimen to satisfy the slit-eyed nurse. If only she hadn’t been so impatient as to not ask about that salve Rose had used on her legs, the wounds were already resuming their stinging sensation.
As always, it was easier for Shetland to be found than for her to find something, and after a few moments, she heard Crust’s distorted cough coming from her side. She gave him a brief look. “There you are. Take me to my mom.”
He nodded briefly. Of course he’d been expecting her demand. “The Princess is currently in the workshop.”
“Working with Scalloway on the bot?” Shetland asked. She took his nod with a brief flare of satisfaction. How convenient that the two things she wanted were in the same spot. This feeling only lasted for a couple more steps however, as her legs constantly shot weak, but nonetheless distracting signals into her brain. With a grimace, she tore her eyes from the path she was walking, forcing herself to look around for a brief distraction.
And there it was. While at first glance just the same, the colony had unmistakably changed for anyone who had been here for even just a week. While not the most common sight, it had never taken long for a robot to come along, mixed in with the normal settlers, going around their daily tasks or just looking for conversation. Now, their absence was haunting, despite the remaining ponies putting on a macabre sense of normalcy. Yes, they went around their business, but their voices were lowered, their ears always raised slightly in alarm. Their business was forceful, never stopping for a chat or just to take a few undeserved minutes of breaktime. And instead of robots, there was the sight of Voidmarines, more than ever. Before, they could easily be passed up, as only some would wear their intimidating, powered armor. Now, there was not a single one even just removing their helmets, their dark appearance lending itself to the tense atmosphere.
She took a deep breath. Out from the un-dirtied side of the glass tunnel, she saw a group of ordinary ponies counseled by yet another marine. A militia, as Crust explained, formed of the ponies judged more trustworthy to handle themselves. As it turned out, Princess Luna had given into the public pressure, even for just a small symbolic notion. Shetland stared at the scrawny ponies as they attempted to rally in groups on command. She shook her head, giving one last glance at their shaken, but nonetheless stern expression before she averted her eyes. She’d been jumped by war unsuspectingly, without warning. The time she’d prepared for the next battle, she could only remember in brief, incoherent flashes of emotion, but it fit the expression of those ponies, the dreading, waiting mood of the entire colony. It felt like they were preparing themselves for a catastrophe.
These thoughts spooked through Shetland’s mind, until a gesture from Crust made her come to a sudden halt. He raised his hoof, banging it against a steel door, which quickly opened.
“Shetty!” Twilight spoke quietly, yet as if to make up for it, she let the words emerge from her mouth at a rapid pace. “No, don’t answer, we have to let him concentrate.” Her hoof reached around Shetland’s shoulder, pulling the mare inside as she closed the door on Crust, without as much of an acknowledgement. “Shhh!” she whispered in Shetland’s ear.
Shetland shot her a glare, but her mouth stayed shut as she passed a look around the room. It seemed like everything it normally contained had been briskly shoved aside. Along the walls was a cluttered mess of robotic parts, small maintenance computers and a few old model Voidmarine suits, most of them possessing guns build into the side of their hooves from back when pistols couldn’t be used by an armored pony. Shetland was surprised to see her own, modern suit stand among the rest, brand new aside from a bunch of scratches and spots where the color had chafed off. But she only gave it a short glance, as she silently stepped to the table, on which the limp body of the hacked robot lay, as if merely resting casually. Shetland swallowed at the sight. While this robotic mare was clearly taller, shoulders much thicker and her mane had been removed, there was an eerie resemblance to Toasty, just from the color and shape of her chassis. Like it had a mind of it’s own, her hoof reached out, only to be slapped away by her mother’s, who shook her head with a stern look. Suddenly, a synthetic voice began to speak.
“Warning: Command ‘sudo move visualFile0311 memory/visual’ failed. User does not have sudo-rights.”
Abruptly, the robot’s eyes began to glow in an icy blue. Shetland tensed up, but as soon as it began, the robot’s eyes blinked out again. Both Sparkles let out a relieved sigh, interrupted by an angry shout.
“Boot up, ye bolted piece a rubbish!” the tiny mechanic shouted, drawing their eyes towards him. He sat at a distance to the robot, most likely to not be squished should it be able to move at all. He glared at a small screen that was still thrice his size, displaying a myriad of symbols Shetland couldn’t decipher as anything but meaningless scribble. Scalloway fell back, rubbing his reddened face with an exasperated groan. “Darn…” he muttered. “A thought ah’d get through it's blasted skull that time.” His feelers hung tiredly as he turned towards the pair. He blinked, then rubbed his eyes before giving them another glance. “Ah’d think a was seein’ double, Princess, but that mug’s hella uglier.”
“This,” Twilight spoke sternly, keeping her voice even. “Is my daughter, Scalloway. I believe you have met before.”
He blinked a few times, raising a hoof over his eyes as if to shield them from an invisible source of light. “Ah, yer the fat ox with the armor. Ye got a strong smell, Sparkle. Ah’d like an assistant ta scrub it before ah get inside the sweat-stained thing again.” That last sentence was directed at the exasperated Twilight.
“Don’t worry, Shetty,” Twilight spoke loudly. “What he utterly, completely lacks in manners, he makes up for in his skills. Though I think you should take a break.” she added worriedly to the wavering breezie.
His feelers shot up and lit up in angry lights, but a moment later, he sank down, rubbing his face. “Ah’d like some cold water,” he muttered, his voice barely reaching Shetland’s ears, and she realized that he was constantly forced to scream in order to be heard at all. Twilight nodded. Her magic seizing a single drop of water from a nearby cup, floating it over to the breezie, who somehow grabbed the little ball of water, slurping a few mouthfuls before splashing it over his face. Twilight turned around, allowing the breezie a sliver of privacy in his makeshift shower. Shetland quickly followed suit.
“Rose told me that I’ve been in bed for thirty hours. Care to explain?” She’d wanted to yell those words, but instead they came out as a whisper. The anger she’d felt had dissipated and the few glimmers that were left only conjured a feeling of awkwardness as she glared at her mother.
“I wanted you to recover a little.” Twilight’s wing reached over Shetland, but then it stopped a few inches over her back before she slowly pulled it back. “If I hadn’t given you the medicine, I imagined you would stomp all over the colony immediately, tearing all your wounds right back open.”
“So?” Shetland crossed her forelegs. “I want Toasty back, and if something happened and I wasn’t awake-”
“If anything happened that we could have acted upon, I would have woken you up right away. I know how you feel, Shetty.” She took a shallow breath. “You feel just like I felt when you ran into the sandstorm.”
Shetland bit her lip, unable to respond. Her mother’s words sounded earnest, but she did not trust that Twilight would have woken her up if she thought Shetland would then do something dangerous, like trying to rescue Toasty. But there was no sense in throwing these doubts into Twilight’s face. “Fine,” she whispered. “But tell me you won’t drug me behind my back again!”
“I hope I won’t have to,” Twilight said noncommittally, her eyes drifting somewhere around Shetland’s left cheekbone. “I have faith that Scalloway will crack through soon.”
“No scrambled brain can stop me fer long, though this one’s a bastardly tricky one,” Scalloway grumbled. He was utterly drenched, but the cold water seemed to drive off his tiredness. “A tried ta go through it’s cameras, feedin’ it a small script disguised as a picture file an’ bypassin’ security. But the darn virus caught me, when ah was so close. Ah’d just got it ta think ah was the root user when that blasted virus caught me. Took away me privilege an’ refused ta comply since.” He let out a groan. “An’ it’s smart. Very smart. Won’t be able ta use the same strategy again.”
“But there are many ways to get into a system,” Twilight said encouragingly.
“Yeh, an’ if ah got a strawberry fer each one ah tried ah’d be fatter than yer daughter.” He shook his head. “But if ah managed ta move a self-replicatin’ file an’ froze most of the system, maybe ah could sneak in a file inta the bootup to prevent it from loadin’!” His feelers let out a bright glow, but it vanished as soon as it happened. “Though how ta go about that…”
Shetland tried to follow the following jargon, but it soon devolved into even worse tech-speak, made utterly impossible to follow as Scalloway fell back into his native tongue at several points during his tired rambling. Still, Shetland forced herself to pay attention, on just the slight off-chance that she would be able to help somehow. She glanced at the disabled robot, the one final lead she had left. She would not half-ass this, and if it took days upon days of trying to understand this mixture of two utterly foreign languages, then so be it.
Hours passed. After a while Scalloway had requested a pen, and, although unable to hold it himself, he’d conscripted Twilight to rapidly scribble down his hurried rambling. Shetland sat aside, occasionally slapping herself when she found her attention drifting. After another long while, however, Scalloway let out an annoyed huff. “Can ya tell that-” His words stopped at an angry glare of the alicorn. “Can ya tell yer daughter to leave us? ‘Er noisyness is distractin’.”
Shetland grit her teeth, but nodded as she got up.
“Shetty, please take your armor,” Twilight called after her. "Take it to your room. Do not leave without it. I want you to be safe, okay?" Twilight explained, seeing Shetland's surprised look.
“Okay,” Shetland whispered, dragging the suit the last few inches outside before gently shutting the door. You were useless to them, anyway, an inner voice whispered, and as much as she tried, she couldn’t fully get it to shut up.
She blinked, surprised to look out the glass tunnel into darkness. Had she been inside that room until nightfall? It seemed like it. Her lack of tiredness had blinded her to the passage of time, but of course she wouldn’t be sleepy after spending a full day in bed. The sound of far-off armored hooves hitting the metal floor startled her with the realization that there was still a curfew, and if she was seen outside, she might have to spend an uncomfortable amount of time explaining the situation, or worse, the marine might even interrupt her mother’s and Scalloway’s work!
Though, Shetland pondered as she looked at her armor. The sheer factor of presence this armor provided was not to be underestimated, and she would take any bet that it, combined with her name, would stop any marine from bothering her.
Also, she could confirm that her armor was not smelly. At least, not out of the ordinary, her mind insisted stubbornly. She shook her head, ridding herself of stupid thoughts. She could go to bed now. Though… she really wasn’t tired at all, her mind insisted. Her body agreed, it didn’t want to rest yet. If only the gym was open at the time. Bet that’d be a great sight for the Voidmarines, seeing a crazy mare working up a sweat in the middle of the night. While she was thinking, her legs already carried her away.
It wasn’t her room she was going towards though, she soon realized. She’d met a Voidmarine on her way, but he’d simply allowed her to pass, even giving her a salute. Shetland reasoned he must have recognized her. It didn’t seem like her legs carried her anywhere, really, just further, making her random way through the colony, staring out into the dark night, searching. It would be cold outside, she knew. Uncomfortably, but not dangerously cold. A part of her wanted to go into the unknown right now, just dash forward, without thinking. She rested her helmet against the glass. She’d be doomed to fail. Only an unimaginable stroke of luck had led to her success last time, and then she’d at least had a faint idea where to go. Now she had nothing. She took a deep breath. Despite the stable temperature in her armor, she felt cold. “I’ll find you,” she whispered into the darkness, her voice frail, scared. “I’ll find you. You won’t get her.” She bumped her helmet onto the glass, producing a light thud, followed by a far-away gunshot. And with a sudden electric whine, darkness took over.
With a startled shout, Shetland whirled around in the utter darkness. Her armored hooves clanked loudly against the floor as she caught herself from stumbling. “Lights on!” she shouted into her helmet, shrill and hysterical, shaking from her rapidly beating heart. There was another shot, then a scream, then a volley of gunfire followed by more screaming, this time closer. Her mouth dried up as she reflexively reached for the gun at her side. Sweat break out over her back as she gripped the weapon's handle like a lifeline.
My room, she thought desperately. Crust would be stationed there, they could hole up in a defensive position. She took a shivering breath, then she clutched her gun tighter as she clenched her teeth. “No!” she shouted, taking a heavy breath as she stomped her hoof at the glass, right where her reflection had been, causing pain to rush through her limb. Shetland turned, facing the direction the growing sounds of battle came from. Hiding was not a choice! Drops of sweat rolled down her forehead and she had to lick over her dry lips before she was able to take a step. The sounds of fire had picked up and now there was screaming, barked orders, volleys of fire, and a loud sound of splintering glass not too far away. Shetland let out a scream, emptying her lungs in a roar, giving her the courage to move on, to charge towards battle. Her hooves pounded the ground, yet unable to match the speed of her cramped heart. Then, as she ran into a crossing, she glimpsed her first sight of the enemy
Five or six robots stood in the tunnel, engaged in a brutal fight with a group of lightly-armored ponies. Several of the ponies had been driven back, unable to use their guns in the darkness, and were now desperately holding off against an assortment of sharp and blunt weapons. Shetland froze at the sight, straight out of her frequent nightmares, her grip around her gun loosening. These robots were not soulless drones, they were real, they had personalities and lives of their own! But as one them turned to her and raised a rifle, her brute instincts took over. Her heavy pistol whipped up, one shot slamming into the robot’s right hoof, shattering the chassis. The next broke through its chest, throwing it back with a static screech. Others turned to the new threat, readying their weapons. But Shetland launched herself forwards, crossing the meagre distance in an instant, a few shots absorbed by her armor before she slammed her helmet into the first enemy, sending it tumbling back. A quick kick to the chest launched the other robot into the wall, it's visor cracking on impact.
Shetland brought up her pistol again, aiming right at the fallen bot’s head. “BACK OFF!” she shouted furiously. From behind her came a click and startled screams. Shetland whirled around to see one of the militia ponies in a headlock, while the robot with the shattered leg, sparks fizzling and crackling, pointed it's rifle at him. Shetland hissed, stepping away from the encircling robots, her gun never moving from the fallen enemy as she slowly joined the group of militia-ponies. Meanwhile, the robots backed away, dragging the pony’s body towards the breached exit. Then, with a sudden jump, the last robot leaped outside, leaving the wounded pony on the ground.
The militia cheered, even if several shouts ended in pained groaning. A quick look told Shetland that more than half were not in fighting shape. While most cuts were superficial, three ponies out of the seven were holding large bruises, some of which might be broken bones, probably inflicted by the large wrench she’d seen.
Shetland slammed the emergency exit shut, knowing she couldn’t lock it completely. “Get your wounded to the hospital. Those who can fight protect them on the way!” she briskly ordered the closest pony.
The victorious relief of the pony fell into horror. “B-by ourselves?” he asked, aghast. “W-where are you going? What if we’re attacked?!”
“Welcome to war! That’s what you signed up for,” she glared down at his horrified expression. “Now go!” she barked, sending them into motion, giving them one last glance before she departed. There is no easy way to learn war, she told herself. Then she banned every thought of the group from her mind.
The sounds of fighting drew ever closer with each tunnel she crossed. Civilian ponies fled in the other direction, forcing her to push through the headless masses. She tried to ask where the enemy was, who was attacking, if anypony had seen a small, green-eyed robot, but their ears had gone deaf with panic, their screams for help drowning out any answer. With a grunt, she shoved a pony out of the way as a Voidmarine stumbled into a crossing, assaulted by a pair of robots. With practised swiftness, the marine pulled up a short rifle, shooting a dart at one of his assailants. It stumbled, visor flashing as it fell to the ground, limbs twitching with static electricity. But the other robot swung what seemed to be a spade, impacting on the marine’s helmet with a sickening crunch, breaking glass. The pony’s head snapped around as he fell to the ground, his weapon dropping out of his hooves. The startled screams of the colonists filled Shetland’s ears, just as she freed herself from the crowd. The robot’s head snapped up, it's eyelights shrinking at the oncoming attack before it snatched one of the fallen weapons and scurried away like a rat.
Shetland slid to a halt at the fallen Voidmarine. She shot a cautious glance after the fleeing robot, then poked her ally. The marine gasped, heaving a large breath before convulsing.
“Are you okay?” Shetland asked worriedly.
“My head- I- feel-” he gagged with each word, moving his forehooves to his helmet. Shetland looked away as he made the unmistakable sounds of vomiting into his helmet. It took almost a minute before his gagging quieted down. “Concussion- must have-” he shook his head, groaning.
“Where are they coming from?” Shetland asked hurriedly.
“Outside,” he gasped, holding his head. “Need to- get to the dorms.”
“They’re attacking the dorms?”
“Charging station, all the ponies and robots-” he gasped for breath, making an effort to get up on his wobbly hooves. “Have to go!”
“Charging station,” Shetland grit her teeth. “Then some of those must be hacked too, or they’re planning to do it. Stand back,” she ordered the Voidmarine. “Bring the civilians to the hospital, there should already be guards there. I’m catching up with the front line.”
The shaky marine nearly fell as he tried to salute, but Shetland was already on her way.
The entrance to the dorm had become a war zone. Numerous robots pushed their way into the room, laying down suppressive fire against the Voidmarines in cover. Here, every robot had firearms. They must have concentrated all their strength into this attack. The ponies were far from giving up, however. Several pieces of furniture had been hurriedly gathered as cover, and they bravely rose out of hiding to catch a robot with a shock dart, relying on their armor and magic shields to protect them from return-fire. Shetland stumbled into the room just as a captain, made apparent by the yellow and blue stripes on his helmet, ordered a simultaneous volley. A group of robots that had attempted to gain ground dove away from the combined fire, but three fell, their bodies shaking as their non-vital systems were fried. The attackers’ attempted push ceased as they dragged their fallen back into the tunnels they’d come from. The marines then fell back into cover, preparing to repeat the maneuver. Shetland slid behind an upturned bed, next to a marine. “I’m the reinforcements,” she gasped between breaths and dared to peek over her cover. There must have been at least two dozen more bots, but another one fell as she looked. A moment later, she was forced to duck back down. “Have you seen a small robot? White body, green eyes?”
The soldier at her side gave her a baffled look under his visor. “I’m trying to shoot these tin-asses, not draw a picture!” He looked over her clutched weapon. “Where’s your shocker?”
“Don’t have one.”
He cursed. “Then watch out, we ain’t got clearance to kill yet!” And with that, he got up to join in another synced volley.
Bullets whizzed past, and yet Shetland felt a bit of relief. If Toasty was among the attackers, there was still a good chance she would be captured, not killed. She hurriedly glanced at the battle. Some of the marines had been wounded, but it didn’t seem like any of them had been knocked out of the fight yet.
“ADVANCE!” The captain shouted, and Shetland looked over her cover to see the robots retreat from their positions. Shetland pushed the bed over, running up to the enemy’s former hold, heart hammering in her throat. Suppressive fire slammed into her armor, rapidly depleting the magic shields as she made a mad dash for the side of the tunnel entrance. Warning messages flared at the corner of her view as she ran into the wall, barely catching herself from the rebounce. She swallowed, looking back at the other marines a bit further behind as she calmed her rapid breath. Her shields were gone. She confirmed the flashing message with a wink, making it disappear from her interface. Most others had safely arrived in their positions, except for one, who was pulled away by a comrade while clutching a bleeding spot in his abdomen.
But the robots were now forced to either retreat further or try to hold a position without any cover, where the marine’s precise fire would cut them down in droves. Meanwhile, the difference in armament became apparent. The robots fell no matter where a shock-dart hit, even if it was a hoof or got entangled in their mane, while the pony’s superior armor shrugged off any but the most well-placed shots. Over and over, the Voidmarines advanced, pushing the attackers out of one tunnel, then the next. It was only when they arrived at the large hole inside of the third segment, that their attack was halted. The robots fled out into the open, but an attempted pursuit was stopped as a hail of gunfire flew from the top of the saloon across from the breach.
“TAKE POSITIONS!” The captain shouted. “I want soldiers on both sides of the hole!” Shetland swallowed, cursing to herself before she leapt forward, across the gap as gunfire just narrowly missed her. Gasping, she leaned against the glass wall, staring at the enemy’s position. At this distance, any dart weapon would be a crapshoot, but many of the robots’ small arms would also be ineffective. Unless they have stronger weapons!
“Everypony, check your weapons. I want two unicorns on lookout, deflect anything that might be dangerous.” The commander ordered, having shared the same line of thought. Shetland tried to get a look at the attackers, but the stained glass barely let her see the robots at all, let alone tell them apart.
She whirled around at the sound of clanking steps, but no robots were trying to outflank them. Gasping, she welcomed the sight of reinforcements, five more marines, carrying a trailer full of what looked like tall, metal frames, with two sharp spikes at the bottom edges. Shetland grinned as she took one off the cart, as big as her chest and a little wider. The others were passed to groups of two.
“I want a slow advance!” The leader commanded. “No crazy actions here. Dewdrop, Huckleberry, you stay back, disable any explosives they might throw. Everyone else, prepare yourselves. Non-lethal takedowns.” A round of clicking noises came from every Voidmarine checking their dartguns, then saluting to show they were ready.
“Three groups in the first wave. Advance straight. Everypony follow on my command. When we get close, fan out and encircle.” He gave each soldier a brief look, before raising his hoof. “NOW MAKE THESE TINCANS REGRET THEIR SORRY ASSES WERE EVER BUILT!”
The first wave leapt out into the open, and was nearly instantly met with fire from the waiting robots. Undeterred, they rammed the metal frames into the ground. Violets lights appeared between the metal bars, as the Twilight shields repelled any incoming bullets. The barrage ceased, robots ducking behind the Horse Horizon sign as projected spears of light shot from the unicorns’ horns, illuminating the night sky and allowing the marines to return fire. Shetland couldn’t see whether they got a hit.
“SECOND WAVE, PREPARE!” The command cut into Shetland’s thoughts, and she grabbed her own frame, hoping it was big enough to completely shield her from a robot sitting on the roof. I may have to cower…
Taking a deep breath, she shot one look to the commander, who had raised his hoof like a track coach at the starting line for a sprint. She licked over her lips, suddenly realising just how dry her throat had become. Her head was already turning back towards the goal, as she caught something out of the corner of her eye. She whirled back, just as a voice shouted her name, a voice she would have never thought could be here.
Out from the retaken tunnel burst a small canine body, paws rapidly beating on the ground as his gaze fixated on her. “Sparkle!”, he shouted, dashing straight towards her, only narrowly avoiding several bullets as he crossed the breach.
“YOU!” She couldn’t believe it. Gan, here, right now? What was he doing here, how did he come back, what was going on?! Her hoof came crashing down on him, easily picking him up by his neck, but he didn’t cease his struggling, instead kicking out against her grip. "THEY COME!" he shouted in her face.
“Who-” But then the first robot rounded the corner. With a sharp breath, she dropped the hyena. “WATCH OUT!” she screamed, but her warning came too late as a wave of robots came rushing into the tunnel, brutally slamming into the closest marines, knocking them down as they attempted to get back up, or just running over their fallen bodies. Few marines managed to react in time, but their hasty shots had little effect on the horde washing over them. Shetland dropped Gan, hastily reaching for her own gun as the robots rapidly closed the distance. Two shots flew into the avalanche before she dropped her weapon and took a wide stance, preparing herself for the impact. It came like the brunt force of a tidal wave, nearly carrying her off her hooves. Wheezing, she stemmed against the overwhelming force, but her hooves slid over the ground causing her to fall, loudly crashing into the floor, knocking the air out of her lungs. The robots clambered over her fallen body, like savage animals intent only for their chosen prey. Shetland grabbed a random hoof and pulled the robot back, looking up just enough to see Gan deftly avoid the first assault, just to be overwhelmed by the sheer mass of his attackers. She saw a robot rushing forward, a gleam reflecting off the edge of a sharp knife.
“No, No!” Shetland roared, shaking off the robot climbing over her as she swiped with her hoof, knocking away the hind legs of two further robots. She felt some grip her tail to hold her back, but in her rage, it wasn’t even close to enough. Her hooves kicked out, impacting on her foe with a sickening crunch. She screamed at the few remaining robots holding down Gan, a maddening rage turning each of her thoughts into a scream for violence. She had him now, and no-one would take away what he knew! Time seemed to slow down, as the robot with the knife raised its hoof. Shetland launched forward. A split-second before the impact, the robot’s head turned, it’s eyelights widening, then she crashed into a world of carnage.
None of the robots could stand up to her, their blows bouncing off her armor while she threw their bodies against the walls, each move accompanied by a deafening outcry. Suddenly, another robot dropped after convulsing for a full second, and Gan emerged from behind it, raising his shocktalon in a quick greeting before charging to Shetland’s side to repulse the few remaining robots. That was too much. Nearly as quickly as it had started, the assault ended, as the robots scrambled to their hooves as fast as their limbs could carry them. “COWARDS!” Shetland’s shout thundered after them as they fled out of the breach, leaving behind the dazed, but undefeated marines. One screamed order caused the fallen to leap up, shooting their darts into the backs of the fleeing machines, catching nearly a whole dozen before they reached the safety of the holed-up saloon.
“ADVANCE! NOW!” The commander screamed, and the marines shouted for revenge as they charged under the cover of their Twilight shields. Shetland nearly joined in, but the panting at her side kept her in place.
“You!” she hissed, the sharpness of her voice only broken by her gasp for air. Gan looked up at her, a glint of fear in his eyes. Before he could react, she grabbed his paw, yanking it upwards, forcing him to balance precariously on his hindlegs.
<I-I will talk!> he shouted, his voice breaking as his widened eyes met her glare. <I promise!>
“You better!” Shetland roared. Despite the raging fire in her chest, she glanced past the hyena. The Voidmarines were slowly advancing behind their shield frames, but at any moment, they would reach the shockgun’s effective range, and then, Shetland knew, it would come down to a full-on assault. With clenched teeth, she returned her glare to the squirming hyena, who was trying to get a hold on the ground. She placed her other forehoof on his shoulder. “Don’t move.” she ordered coldly.
“O-of course, I-” Gan screamed as Shetland tore on his leg, causing the limb to snap out of its joint with a shiver-inducing pop. He dropped to the ground, drawing agonized breaths, eyes bulging out of their sockets as his other paw reach for his dislocated leg. Shetland watched him for a brief second, before turning to the scene of battle. She swallowed, feeling the the ache of her dry gums as she grabbed her metal frame tightly. After one final breath, she charged into the open, her hooves pounding on the ground as she ran as fast as she could, not daring to breathe as she anticipated volley after volley of gunfire to pound into her. She drove the frame into the ground and ignited the magical barrier, before a frown formed on her face. She peeked over her shield’s edge, up at the saloon’s roof, lit up by the unicorn’s projected light. It was abandoned, the only sign of the occupation being a few bullet marks.
“Back off,” The captain ordered, his voice tense. “They’re gonna try something any moment, spread out, long firing line! Huckleberry, keep your barrier up-”
The door to Horse Horizon flew open. A robot charged outside, carrying something large in its gallop, which it flung with the momentum of its charge, a split-second before several shockdarts made it fall to the ground. Shetland ducked her head, but the unicorn’s horn flared up, projecting a thin, bluish aura where the object hit- and then exploded in a giant mass of white fog, almost like crumbled nutrient chalk. Two more of the missiles impacted on the shield, covering its entire length in a cloud of dust, making it impossible to make out anything past the barrier. Shots whizzed through the air, some hitting Shetland’s shield, most going in wild directions.
“HUCKLEBERRY!” the captain’s voice resounded over the soldier’s confused shouts. “SWIPE AWAY THAT CLOUD!”
The unicorn nodded, and, shaping his shield like an enormous shovel, began to shove the fog out of the way, exposing the robots’ backs as they fled the saloon, some running backwards while giving off wild shots in their directions.
“They’re fleeing!” A Voidmarine called out. “Catch them!”
“Belay that order!” the captain shouted. “Fall back.”
“Sir, w-we can catch the enemy right now-”
“We dislodged them from their position. They’re no longer an immediate danger. Now, we must make sure there’s no-one left in the colony, sabotaging our water or air supply. Now, fall back, Private, or I will have you court-martialed!”
“Y-yes, sir!” The marine exclaimed.
Shetland stared after the robots, a lurching feeling of weight in her stomach. She hadn’t been able to confirm whether Toasty had been a part of this… maybe she was running with that group right now, putting more and more distance between them.
Like it came from a far away place, she could hear voices tug at her consciousness. “Huckleberry, take two soldiers and watch that group. Message us immediately if it looks like they might turn back. Somepony will get a pegasus to join your group shortly.” he paused, seemingly requiring a moment to gather his thoughts. “And watch the saloon. Do not enter, we can’t be sure they haven’t hidden any nasty surprises. Sacks of flour as smoke-bombs… clever bastards.”
Shetland stood up, finally feeling her hysterical heart begin to slow down. The situation seemed to be under control. She licked over her lips. Now it was time to get a certain hyena to either loosen his tongue, or lose it. A glance confirmed he was still where she’d left him, holding his shoulder and breathing through sharp, doggish teeth.
“They not come back,” he spoke, his voice strained by the effort not to yelp. “Have what they want.”
“And what was that?”
“The others.” He drew a sharp breath. “Please, I talk, but fix leg.”
Her eyes trailed over the swelling shoulder. “I’m not a doctor.” she said, her gaze hardening.
<It wanted the other robots!> Gan exclaimed in his language.
“Why? And who is it?” Shetland stomped her hoof impatiently. “Come on, you ragged dog, tell me!”
<I will tell you when you bring me to your princess.> he glared into her eyes, exposing his teeth.
Shetland took a long, cool breath. It was like a drop of water in an active volcano. “You want to see mom? Fine.” she pressed through her clenched teeth, roughly grabbing his other foreleg, yanking him forward. “But even if she puts your leg back in, remember that I can pull it right back out again.”
<Y-yes.> he muttered, struggling to follow her pace on his three legs as the colony’s lights, one by one, began to blink back on.
---
It seemed most of the civilians had gathered in the cafeteria, since the hospital was simply too small to contain them all. Chairs and tables had been pushed aside to allow the mass of ponies to sit in place, angstily awaiting further news. Shetland bit her lip, the sight reminding her of the captured hostages back in the raid… it seemed like yesterday. With a shake of her head, she pulled Gan forward, forcing him to enter the kitchen where her mother and several marines had gathered.
“Captain Spitball, report.” Twilight spoke over a transmitter, while another marine took note of every word.
“We have defended a breach in tunnel C-13, your highness. The enemy has tried to push into our dorms, presumably to kidnap the robots we were holding in the charging station. We held their first assault and forced them back out, but an unaccounted element has let the robots out. They were all hacked, your highness. Swarmed my soldiers from behind.”
“Any casualties?” Twilight swallowed, yet she hid her feelings behind a stoic mask.
“Four are wounded. Two of them suffer from concussions and I recommend at least two weeks of recovery before placing them back on active duty.”
“So, nopony has died?” Twilight asked, unable to mask her relief at the news. “What about the robots?”
“We have refrained from applying lethal force as you wished. Still, the enemy has not been able to retreat twelve robots, four of which have been damaged during the battle. They have shut down, but I do not believe they are dead. I have refrained from persecuting the fleeing robots, assuming it more important to reinforce our vital systems.”
“You have chosen as I expected from you. With our communications jammed, you had to assume the worst.” Twilight nodded. “However, me and Princess Luna had the situation under control. She is now on her way to warn and reinforce Coltville, in case the robots attack there as well.” She rubbed her forehead. “This was not a strike meant to destroy us. None have gone for our vital system, and only one pony of the militia has been put in critical condition.”
“Your highness.” One of the marines interjected. “It is not because they haven’t tried, it was mostly our superior equipment-”
“Still,” Twilight cut him off. “The robots may have stolen several valuable guns and increased their number overall, but it was a costly endeavour. It is so unlike every other move before to lose so much and gain so little.”
“Maybe he can answer this question.” Shetland spoke loudly. Every other pony turned to her, and the surprised look on Twilight’s face confirmed that she hadn’t even noticed her arrival. “Look what I brought you.” And with that, she held up Gan by his neck, drawing surprised gasps from the small crowd.
Twilight blinked, her eyes racing over the hyena. “He looks hurt.” Her magic seized his body, a wave of bright purple rolling over him. Suddenly, Gan screamed in pain as it condensed around his shoulder, forcing his joint back into it’s socket with a loud pop. Shetland grit her teeth while Gan’s eyes darted over the gathered marines.
“Leave us alone.” Twilight ordered the soldiers. “Go back to your troops and prepare them in case of another attack.”
<There won’t be.> Gan grimaced and carefully moved his limb as the marines left the room, muttering to themselves and shooting him suspecting glares.
“It does not hurt to be on guard.” Twilight said as she shut the door, leaving only Shetland, Gan and herself. <Now, first, I want to know why you are alone? Where is Khunbish? And why did you arrive during an attack on our colony?>
<Khunbish did not agree with my decision to come here. I came to try and warn you of the attack, but I was not fast enough and had to hide, they would have killed me if I was discovered.>
Shetland nodded, vividly remembering the small group of robots that had split up and attacked them, and the way they had completely ignored her in their attempt to kill him.
<Then where were you?> Twilight asked. <Where have you disappeared to?>
<Our wrecked ship. Khunbish stole a small air generator from our room and installed it in the remains. With a few repairs, we could create a sealed atmosphere.>
Twilight frowned. <That sort of technical knowhow does not sound like a crime investigator.>
He closed his eyes. <Khunbish... is one of the most brilliant computer scientists in the empire. I came along to balance her lack of social skills.>
<A computer scientist?> Shetland raised an eyebrow. <So, all that hacking, was that her?>
<No!> Gan exclaimed. <It was not us, we were chasing- we-> He bit his lip. <I am about to reveal national secrets of the empire to you.>
<If you think I’ll pity you and let you keep your secrets, forget about it!> Shetland snarled. <I’ve had it with secrets. TELL ME WHAT’S GOING ON!>
<Who is it that can hack not one, but nearly seventy robots at once?> Twilight asked, calmer, yet her voice was filled with an unforgiving cold as opposed to Shetland’s rage.
Gan took a shaky breath. <Khunbish was part of a secret group, researching the programming of the Hiroshimarean AI.>
“Impossible!” Twilight exclaimed, her eyes widening as she defaulted back to Equish. “We destroyed it, we scoured the country for everything capable of holding data.”
<At the time, the Great Khan had ordered to retrieve a backup.> Gan admitted, his voice carefully even, as if he was afraid to show his own opinion on the matter. <Then he ordered to study it for the last century, looking for ways to combat this sort of presence.> He grit his teeth. <but three months ago, it managed to convince a scientist to steal it’s data core, no doubt for a huge bribe, and the next thing we knew, two spaceships fell into the paws of criminals.>
Shetland swallowed. <So… that’s what that attack was? It tried to take over the colony?>
<Maybe,> Gan sucked a breath through his teeth. <Judging from the records, we believe the criminal leader had some idea of the monster it had made a deal with, and began killing the robots inside your spaceport after sending his fighting drones off to catch the approaching ship. But it seems the AI has successfully hidden its core somewhere in your systems.> He paused, his eyes darting around, unwilling to meet either of theirs. <The Great Khan did not want anyone to know of this secret, even less now that it has escaped us. So he sent us to pose as investigators, while our real mission was to find and eliminate the AI in secret. Unfortunately,> he grimaced. <It is very smart.>
“Are you telling me,” Shetland snarled, too angry to bother with his language. “That you could have ended this at any moment if you had told us?!”
<Y-yes,> Gan admitted, staring at the ground. <I wanted to tell you for a while, but Khunbish was adamant that we had to fulfill our mission to the letter. But when I saw the robots emerge from the power station, I knew we had to stand by our allies.>
<Fat load of help that was!> Shetland spat out.
<Shetland!> Twilight warned her, her eyes blazing at Gan. <Did you say the power station? We haven’t been able to contact it since the power outage, but->
<It has fallen.> Gan confirmed. <quietly. More than a full day ago at least.>
Twilight held up a hoof. <But hold on, why we are receiving power from the station right now? Why isn’t it starving us out?>
Shetland’s eyes widened. “It’s desperate.” she whispered, her eyes widening as the realization came upon her. A chuckle began in her throat, drawing her mother’s confused look. “Mom, think how that fight just went. We got over a dozen of them and didn’t lose a single soldier! Doesn’t matter how smart it is, it’s outnumbered and outgunned. And we didn’t even use lethal weapons in that fight.” She shook her head. “And if it took the power away, it would force us to throw everything we have at it, and it knows it can’t take it!”
Twilight blinked. “And it was forced to attack because we could get the answers from the robot we captured at any moment-”
<And it couldn’t hide in the colony forever, because it knew me and Khunbish were looking for it.> Gan threw in.
“So it was forced to do a stupid attack, in the small hope it would gain enough to have a chance against us.” Shetland snorted. “Well, it didn’t.”
“Still,” Twilight frowned. “It would cost many lives to drive them out of a defensive position, even more so if it is desperate.” A haunted look appeared in her eyes. Shetland swallowed, knowing that look all too well. Twilight took a deep breath. “We may be able to minimize casualties or force a surrender if we had an overwhelming force. If we wait for reinforcements-”
“Mom!” Shetland blurted out. “Do you have any idea how long that could take? Preparing that kind of unit and measuring a course for the ship-”
“Could take up to two weeks, I know.” Twilight said, her forehead furrowing deeply.
“But the robots!” Shetland stomped her hoof. “Do you even know what could happen to them in that time? That would be long enough to reprogram them, to completely erase them!”
“It already could have done that.”
“And you’re about to leave that to chance?!” Shetland shouted.
“Shetty, if we have reinforcements, we would be able to do the entire operation with minimal casualties-”
“MINIMAL!” Shetland spat to the ground. “And what if there’s nothing left in the robots TO save?!”
“Shetland, I don’t want to take that risk either, but it is the best option-”
Gan took a shaky breath before raising his voice as he interjected. <T-the empire has prepared for this situation, Princess. A military unit is at the ready and could arrive in three to five days, if you gave us permission to land.>
“That’s still too long!” Shetland exclaimed.
“It…” Twilight swallowed, her eyes darting from Shetland to Gan. Slowly, they grew moist and she looked away. “Shetty, I- I must go with the plan that will save the most lives.”
Fires were imprisoned behind Shetland’s eyes as she glared at Twilight, her jaw under so much pressure it felt like it was going to break. “Great.” she whispered, surprising herself that she was still able to form words. “I guess we’re just gambling Toasty’s life away, aren’t we?”
“Shetty-”
But Shetland kicked the door open that the hinges screamed and without another word, she ran outside, fires burning in her throat. Some ponies recognized her, but she paid them no mind as she made her way towards her room.
--------------
The next day, the colony was in a state of contained hysteria. Princess Twilight ran from place to place, trying to manage everything at once while also calming everypony she came across. Constantly, Shetland walked past a group of civilians followed by a marine, as they completed emergency drills in a more or less orderly fashion. She paid it no mind as she stumbled into the cafeteria. The room was just as it should be, ponies eating, drinking, tired heads sinking on their plates. Nothing suggested the panic of yesterday, the crowds that had huddled here in fear. Shetland shook her head. She was parched, tired, but neither of these feeling were the reason she was here now. Her eyes skimmed over the tables, catching sight of a lone pegasus.
Magenta’s head hung barely above the steaming mug of coffee. The spoon in her mouth circled lazily in the fluid, submerging entirely as her mouth opened in a mighty yawn.
“Morning.” Shetland said as she took the chair next to the pegasus. Magenta looked up groggily, her bloodshot eyes widening as the earth pony removed her helmet.
“S-Shetland, y-you okay?”
“I’m fine.” Shetland said with a shrug. “Didn’t get hurt.”
“O-of course you didn’t. Me neither, a marine told me to go to the cafeteria and that I’d be safe.” A shiver went through her body. “S-still, it was terrifying. It felt so much like last time, so… helpless.” She took a shaky breath.
Shetland followed her eyes, down to the large, shaking mug, and placed her hoof over Magenta’s. Still, her eyes were stuck on the coffee, licking her dry lips. No. She closed her eyes and shook off the thought. Concentrate! But as she opened her eyes, Magenta was holding the coffee towards her, it’s roasted scent welling right into her nostrils.
“Take a sip,” the pegasus offered with a concerned smile. “You don’t look like you’ve had any sleep, either.”
“Heh… you’d be right,” Shetland chuckled, greedily swallowing down the swill, ignoring it’s horrid taste as it moistened her throat and invigorated her spirits. As she put it down, it was empty to the last drop. “Sorry for that,” she apologized. “But you’re right, I haven’t been sleeping. And I need your help.”
The pegasus sat up. “What for?”
“Not here.” Shetland whispered, noting how her friend’s interest piqued. “Have you seen…” she paused, but there was no other candidate. “Have you seen Burning Crust?”
“Sure, just a few minutes ago.” Magenta nodded eagerly. “Do you need his help, too? Are you friends?”
“I dearly hope so,” Shetland sighed.
-------
Shetland trotted through the tunnels, while the pegasus and armored stallion nearly had to break into a gallop to keep pace.
“Will you tell me where we’re going?” Crust complained. “I need to be at drilling duty in ten minutes.”
“In a moment!” Shetland snapped. Then she opened the door to the mare’s toilet and pulled him inside, despite his complaints. She carefully opened each stall to make sure they were alone before she locked the door. “Now we can talk.”
“Great.” Crust crossed his forelegs. “Now would you explain why I’m in a place no stallion should ever be in except during a really wild party?”
Shetland took a deep breath. There would be no way to break it to them gently. “Because I need your help. I- I want to rescue Toasty.”
“WHAT?” Crust and Magenta exclaimed.
“Shetland,” The pegasus tried again as the larger mare’s features hardened. “I feel you, Toasty was a great friend to you, but are you seriously suggesting that we-”
“Pull off a three-pony attack against a hundred armed murder-machines?” Crust closed.
“They’re not murder machines!” Shetland stomped her hoof.
“They’re still armed. This is suicide!” Crust shouted.
“As we speak,” Shetland whispered, her voice shaking. “The AI of Hiroshimare is out in our power station, doing who-knows-what to every robots’ brains. If we wait for reinforcements like mom wants to, there’ll be nothing left of them to save!”
“H-Hiroshimare?” Magenta repeated, her wings forming a feathery shield before her hooves. “H-how? It was destroyed.”
“It’s here now.” Shetland gave both ponies a stern look. “I-” She took a deep breath, trying to sound as collected as she could. “I know this is asking too much of you… we could all easily die. But if we can sneak in, find it's data core and trash it, we could end it all in one quick strike!”
Crust’s face lit up. “Like the controlling core of drones!”
“Shetland, that works for drones!” Magenta argued. “But those robots… I don’t know if they would be free after that.”
“Then we could still take the core hostage and force it to surrender.” Shetland said, refusing to let the feeling of energy just go away. “I think we can do it, but I need you both.” She took a deep breath, lowering herself down to the pegasus’s eye level, letting her see every crevice that hope and desperation forged in her expression. “We can’t do it without you, Magna.”
Magenta’s hoof flew to her mouth, a squeak escaping her throat. “You- my name!” She hastily gasped for air. “B-but I’m not a fighter, I can’t even properly use a gun.”
“I know.” Shetland whispered. “There will be fighting, but I need you for different reasons. Can you trust me?”
“W-well…” Magenta drew a long, shaky breath. “I trust you. A-And I want Toasty back, too, she’s a great friend, and fun and- and I owe you. And I owe my sister, too.”
Shetland swallowed, remembering the pegasus that had once charged a gun-wielding hyena by her lonesome, just from the hope that she, Shetland, would be able to use the distraction… she wanted to speak up, but her throat was blocked off. Instead, she just placed a hoof on Magenta’s shoulder. Then, suddenly overtaken by a wave of emotion, she pulled the pegasus into a hug, startling her out of a moment of grief as she was squeezed against the smooth, hard plates of Shetland’s armor.
“S-Shetland!” Magenta gasped.
“Thank you.” The earth pony whispered, loosening the embrace a little so Magenta could breathe. “Just… thank you, Magna.”
“Oh, you did this for so long that it’s weird to hear my real name from you.” She chuckled. “Call me Magenta.”
“Will do.” Shetland said with a ghost of a smirk. Her eyes drifted to Crust.
The stallion rubbed the back of his neck. “I guess I do like your ditzy lil’ robot. She’s kinda funny, and upbeat. Plus, I didn’t stop ‘em when they put her in prison, and letting her escape-” He threw Shetland a nervous look. “If I agree to go on your suicide mission, will you kill my spine?”
“HA!” Shetland exclaimed. “Only afterwards, punk, I need you to move those legs for me!”
“Ay, ay!” He saluted. “If it saves the colony, I’ll help you. Plus, someone’s gotta come to help save your iron maiden, eh?” he suggested with a wink.
Shetland gave him a nonplussed look, and the reality of their situation, of what she was actually planning, came crashing back down on her. “Alright.” she said soberly. “Magenta, we need the small sandtank.” She waved a protest away. “We need something with air that can haul us there with some equipment and possibly bring us back faster than they can chase. Crust, you need to get all the stuff we’ll need. You’ll carry it to the tank in about two hours.”
“And you?” He raised an eyebrow, not excited about the idea of carrying all their equipment.
“Well, it’s a long shot,” Shetland said, “But I’ll see if there’s one more I can recruit.”
-------
For a moment, Shetland was surprised to see the damage to the barracks door. Dents from bullets littered the surface, though the thick steel rendered any damage to it superficial. However, the box that used to scan everyone’s ID had been torn open, cables dangling. Plus, there seemed to be no lock or handle whatsoever. With a frown, Shetland knocked.
Shortly after, it produced a noise, like metal scraping on metal, before it swung open.
“Oh.” Twilight exclaimed in mild surprise. “Morning, Shetty.”
“Morning.” she whispered, throwing a glimpse past the alicorn. “Am I interrupting something?”
“No, not at all.” Twilight sighed, stepping out of the way so Shetland could follow her in. On the other side, the door now had curved handles bolted onto it, perfect for barricading with thick metal bars, which indeed laid on the wall right next to it. It seemed some of the damage had been caused by the colonists themselves, in order to prevent the AI from simply hacking it open. A Voidmarine rushed to close the door behind them, grabbing for a set of keys that clung to the side of her armor before smacking her own helmet with a hoof.
“We’ve had an unexpected visitor this morning.” Twilight said drily as she led her daughter against the lone occupied cell. “I was thinking about sending you a message, in fact. I thought you would have wanted to meet her again.”
Shetland’s eyes widened as she stared into the dimly-lit cell. Across from Gan, who took his incarceration with some amount of dignity, sat Khunbish, facing away from her companion.
“That’s indeed a surprise.” Shetland said, her eyes narrowing at the sight of the grouchy hyena. “So you finally decided to show your ugly face again?”
Khunbish bared her teeth, but showed no other sign of understanding. Instead, Gan answered for her. <Without me, her plans had no chance of success. And she would have been discovered eventually.>
<Quiet, traitor!> Khunbish snarled, glaring furiously at him, and for a moment Shetland expected her to throw herself at Gan, but he let out a low, dangerous growl, and she pulled her lips back over her fangs.
<Your plan was foolish, and would have left no option to let the ponies know of the danger if we died. I did the only honorable thing.>
<You betrayed your orders!>
<I serve the empire, Khunbish. It's honor is more important than the pride of one, even if that one is the Great Khan.> Gan’s voice was clear, yet spoken robotically, and Shetland got the distinct impression that he’d been repeating that sentence to himself for a long while now.
“Glad to know one of you is on our side.” Shetland said drily as Khunbish turned away.
<We owed you,> Gan whispered. <And I owed you for our deception. Please, let the empire help you rid yourselves of the wrongs we have burdened you with.>
“I may.” Twilight whispered as Shetland tensed. “The faster we can put an end to it, the better.” She frowned. “I need your people’s promise, however, that they will only capture our enemies. These robots are still our citizens.”
<I swear.> Gan said vigorously. <I know you do not think highly of us, but the empire still knows how to act honorably, even if some within it have forgotten.> He exchanged dirty looks with Khunbish.
“Then I should send the communication signal.” Twilight nodded. “Your people will get your chance. Depending on the answer, I will allow you to move into a more appropriate setting… under watch, of course.”
<This is more than I deserve, Princess.> Gan responded.
Twilight turned to leave, but as she reached the door, she halted. “Shetty?”
“I want to speak with Gan by myself.” Shetland spoke quickly, too quickly. But she managed to avoid biting her lip as her mother gave her a strange look. “I just want to know the details. And--” she paused. “Maybe vent a little bit, too.”
“Oh, Shetty,” Twilight’s lips curled into a hint of a smile. “I probably should stop you from shouting at foreign dignitaries, but I think he would be understanding of your emotions, plus,” she added, pausing for a moment as her shoulders shook in a sudden flash of laughter. “I really want to do the same. Sparktail, set up a camera, This, I will want to watch again when all this is finally dealt with.” With a final chuckle, she turned towards the door, but her saggy wings displayed as clearly as her limp mane just how tired she really was. Shetland rose her hoof, for a heartbeat convinced that she had to call after Twilight, tell her what she was planning to do, but the impulse faded and she hardened her heart as she closed the door. One hour until the agreed time. She leaned against the wall, forcing herself to stand still, breathe calmly. She barely spoke until the marine gave her a strange look, after which she forced out a few questions, though she didn’t care about the answers.
“You said you owed us,” she eventually asked, her eyes on the clock. Twenty minutes. “Did you mean yourself, personally?”
He nodded. <If I can help.>
“You may be able to-” Shetland said, but then her attention was drawn away as the door opened and a second Voidmarine stepped inside. She glanced at the clock. Twenty still, but then it ticked down as she watched. There was no guarantee that the others could stay out with the tank for even that long. But the pony didn’t seem intent on leaving: in fact, he removed part of his armor. Shetland grit her teeth, before placing her helmet back on.
“Ready to leave?” Sparktail asked as Shetland stepped between them.
“Something like that.” Shetland swallowed. Then, without a warning, her hindlegs shot out, connecting squarely with the armored pony’s side. The other marine gasped, his reaction not fast enough to act before Shetland was on him, clapping both armored hooves onto his ears. His eyes turned upwards, and his dazed body fell limply out of her grasp. Shetland whirled around, facing Sparktail, who struggled to back away, wheezing in an attempt to draw enough air into her lungs to raise an alarm. But she was caught in a corner, and Shetland was too large to evade in the small room. A quick shout came out of her helmet before a large hoof smashed into her armored muzzle, her scream becoming quiet and dull as the speaker in her helmet broke. “Sorry.” Shetland muttered, knowing she must have broken the Voidmarine’s nose, but there was no time for pity. With a swift shove, she pushed both marines into a free cell, locking it with the keys from Sparktail’s armor. A moment later, the cell of the hyenas swung open. “You mean it?” Shetland asked, the adrenaline and rapid heartbeat giving her voice a ferocious tone. “You owe me? Then come end this with me right now!”
Gan simply stared at her, his eyes wide open. <You- you just->
But there was no time. Shetland’s hoof shot forward, grabbing his paw in her iron grip. “Choose now! Come with me, and I’ll see your debt as even.”
It took another infuriating second for an answer, as he looked at her in a blank stare of disbelief and amazement. “You true Alpha.” he whispered, before he broke into a toothy grin. <I will take our honor back, I promise!>
With that, Shetland pulled him out of the cell, them locked the door again, shooting a glare at Khunbish, who had approached it on her own. But Khunbish only had eyes for Gan.
<and now you betray your new chosen allies too. Maybe I shouldn’t have expected more from a steppe-scrouncher.>
<I will fix the mess we caused, or die trying.> he rebutted. <This is what honor means!>
“COME NOW!” Shetland shouted at the open doors, and together they ran as fast as their legs allowed them. Ponies scattered in front of her, Voidmarines jumped aside, shouts following as they recognized Gan right behind her.
“HALT!” they shouted, and some even ran after the pair, but there was no stopping now as Shetland ripped the emergency exit open and ran towards the parked tank. Magenta and Crust sat on top, their eyes widening at the sight of the two running while several marines raced just behind, screaming threats of the top of their lungs, but too uncertain to use their weapons. At least, just yet.
“START THE ENGINE!” Shetland screamed, nearly threw Gan through the entrance to the driver’s area, then clambered on top of the vehicle herself. The motor kicked up, and the sandtank began to roll, rapidly gaining speed as it drove away, blinding the chasing marines with a cloud of dust.
Tight reins squeezed Shetland’s hips as she tried to enter the tank’s storage. Her armor was in pieces on the ground: she’d been forced to throw it in. With drops of sweat forming on her forehead, she glared at Crust, reaching out a hoof. Finally, with his help, she felt the metal’s hold on her sides give way, and she slipped inside, nearly stumbling over him. The tight walls enclosed them both, made worse by the cluttered boxes of supplies on either side. She could barely move, both shoulders a mere inch from the surrounding stuff.
“Holy Celestia…” Crust whispered. He stared at the ceiling, as if he could somehow see the sun through it.
“What is it?” Shetland groaned, shifting around to even slightly lean against the boxes. Behind her, she could hear the sound of the hatch being closed, and a moment later the humming of the air pumps.
“I just-” he swallowed, his eyes darting anywhere but to her face. “I-I didn’t expect our departure to be so- so volatile!”
“Trust me, I would’ve preferred to get out nice and quiet, too.” she said, hissing as the ground began to rumble, agitating the sores she’d already developed while clinging to the tank’s roof.
“I guess I just didn’t really think about- we just went AWOL!” His voice pitched at the last word. Shetland stopped fidgeting, instead meeting his eyes with her own.
“You knew that before we started.” she said sternly.
“I-I thought I did.” He took a shaky breath. “I’ll get fired, won’t I?”
“Probably.” There was no point in dancing around it. “Though, if we win and you become a hero, it’ll probably an honorable discharge. Might even get a nifty medal.” The corners of her mouth twitched as she watched his simultaneously-excited and defeated grimace.
“As exciting as that sounds,” he said drily. “That’s only gonna happen if we make it at all.” He shook his head. “So… what’s your plan?”
She held up a hoof. “One moment, what about the others?”
“Magenta!” Crust called out, his voice at a carefully controlled volume as even his light shout echoed between the metal walls.
“I can hear you.” Magenta’s voice was muffled, but loud enough to be heard above the rumbling. “You have to speak up though, this tank is not designed for me to speak with passengers. Or have passengers at all.”
Shetland clenched her teeth as a road-bump caused her chin to smack into a box. “Did anyone try to contact us?”
“N-no, surprisingly. I would have thought they’d be hailing us with orders to come back, but all I’ve got is a warning about a medium-sized storm in about an hour.”
“Well, that’s something.” Shetland muttered. “I bet mom’s behind this. Any call for us to return would’ve just ratted us out to the bots.” With an annoyed grunt, she swiped the sweat off her face, cursing the oppressively warm air that tasted staler with every breath.
“Ehem?” Magenta’s disbelieving voice cut through the metal wall. “D-Did you hear the part about the storm?”
“Storm protect us.” Unlike the others, Gan’s voice was calm and controlled. “It cuts vision. We use storm to hide ourselves as we attack enemy.”
“Not quite.” Shetland sighed. “I don’t want to attack during the storm if we don’t have to.”
“And where you plan attack?”
“I have ideas.” She swiped a hoof across her sweating forehead, following Gan’s collected voice like a lifeline to clear thought. “The whole thing’s close to a cliffside.”
“I hope you’re not suggesting we climb up there, Shetland.” Crust said drily. “If they so much as look down, we might as well just wrap ourselves up as neat little presents with a ‘please shoot us’ sticker.”
“Not planning to.” Shetland took a breath of the sweltering air. “But I’ve been thinking about the caves. When I ran into that sandstorm to save Toasty, I hid with her in one of those, and further in, there was an underground river. Now…” she swallowed. “It’s just a hunch, but this is a pretty dry planet. I know the power station’s got no river beside it, so I suspect,” she stressed the word, carefully watching Crust’s expression. “I suspect that it’s their water supply. If it is, that’s our access.”
There was silence, as Crust gawked at her. Then, to her surprise, it was Gan who burst out laughing.
<You’re smarter than I thought, Sparkle!> he exclaimed, briefly falling into his throaty language. <That’s the way Khunbish was investigating before I left.>
“And would it work?” Shetland asked hurriedly, an ember setting off in her chest. She’d thought it just some wild idea, but now that it may work-
“Water too strong for us.” Gan’s answer came, deflating her excitement a little bit. “Me and Khunbish too light. Current push us away.”
Furrowing her brows, Shetland picked up her helmet. “I’m not light.” She stated with a steely look. “I won’t be swept away.”
“Is-” Crust’s voice cracked. He stared from Shetland to the wall he was leaning against. “I’m sorry, This idea- w-we’re gonna do that?” His voice was equally filled with fright and awe at the prospect of such a risky move.
Shetland nodded. “That’s our way in. Everything else we’ll have to figure out when we’re there.”
----
It was only when they came to a halt that the howling wind reached Shetland’s ears. “Magenta?” she called out, groaning as she slowly rose from her uncomfortable position.
“I-I think we’re there.” A high-pitched voice answered. “I’m unlocking the exit for you.”
Shetland shot the dazed Crust a quick look before putting on her airmask, just as the hatch opened and Magenta’s hoof reached inside. With her and Crust’s help, Shetland slid outside, to be instantly assaulted as sand grain peppered against her hide. “My helmet!” she shouted to Crust, forced to shield her eyes with a hoof.
“Second.” he called, before climbing outside, carrying most of the pieces of Shetland’s armor.
“We at broken ship.” Gan shouted over the storm, then his paw pointed at a massive dark shape, nearly concealed by the flying sand. “There cliff. I know where cave.”
“Unload the stuff first. Leave some air and medicine.” Shetland ordered, reaching inside the tank’s storage to pull out the remaining pieces of her armor.
It was a gruelling task, and Crust had loaded enough stuff for everyone to have to go back twice. They would probably only use half this stuff, Shetland realized, but she forced herself not to reprimand him for it. She just hoped he’d packed the right things.
“Does anyone know how long this storm will last?” Shetland whispered as sand plastered against the cave walls.
“Not long.” Magenta’s voice sounded weak. Her chest was heaving from the exertion of carrying heavy equipment through the storm. “S-shetland, can I speak with you, alone?”
Shetland nodded as she rose to her hooves and followed Magenta deeper into the cave. She’d been expecting this, had been thinking how to address this. Magenta gnawed on her lip, nervously glancing backwards. And she shook, as if a strong fever had taken over her body. “S-shet-”
“You’re scared.” Shetland whispered, leaning down so she could meet her friend eye-to-eye.
Magenta nodded. “Shetland, I-I know I can’t ask you to turn back now, b-but I’m not a fighter! You and Crust, you have armor, you’re trained, I-I had one lesson with the militia. I can barely hit something that’s not moving, I can’t be in a firefight!” She jerked away, hiding her face behind a wing, as if she expected Shetland to slap her, or scream. “Can I not just stay here?” she whispered, her voice giving out at the last word as hot tears pooled in her eyes.
Finally, Shetland reached out, awkwardly patting her hoof on Magenta’s shoulder. “I’m scared too, Magenta. We all are.”
“But you’re- you can fight! I-I’m just, just-” she swallowed, fishing for a word that was strong enough. “I’m dead meat up there!”
“You’re not a soldier.” Shetland confirmed. “And Magenta, I don’t expect you to be one. But the fact is, this is very dangerous, and I want a way out if it goes south. That’s why I need you.” Her eyes met Magenta’s. “If someone gets wounded, you’ll fly him to the tank, there’s medical supplies there, and you can then drive around the station and try to pick up the rest of us.”
“But what about-” Magenta whispered, her eyes darting over Shetland.
“I’m tough." Shetland whispered. It was all she could say. Then she shook her head. “Magenta, when we’re in there, I want you to keep your head down. Don’t try to fight unless you have to, focus on staying safe. Can you do that?” She took a deep breath. “I wouldn’t blame you if you decide to stay here and wait.” Her gaze hardened. “But I think you would.”
Magenta took a step back, her eyes widened. “A-all I gotta do is stay safe?”
“Don’t think it’s going to be easy. It’ll still be really dangerous.” Shetland said. “But I think- I think you can do it.”
“Then I can.” Magenta took a deep breath as she suppressed her shivers. “My sister died to help you save me, Shetland. T-the best I can do is protect you to do the same for Toasty.”
“Except you will make it.” Shetland said, channeling every bit of determination into her voice. “We will all make it, Magenta, mark my words.”
Magenta nodded, rubbing a hoof over her eyes, even as they teared up again. But this time, it was hope that glistened in her eyes: hope and steely resolve.
As they got back, Shetland noticed that the storm had gotten quieter. “Everyone up.” she ordered. Gan now wore a light armor of bulletproof plates over his chest and shoulders, but no helmet would fit the shape of his head. To his wrist, he had bound his shocktalon, while a pistol was strapped to his side. “Help Magenta with her armor. We’ll have to go now, any minute they could spot the tank.”
Crust nodded, pulling out a set of armor just like Gan’s from a crate. As they went to work, Shetland and Gan made their way into the cave, until the path was suddenly cut off by the river, with a constant stream splashing downhill into the depths of the planet. Shetland took a ragged breath as she regarded the mass of water with newfound respect. If she wasn’t strong enough, or simply slipped, the current would carry her further and further down, from where she would never return. “I can see why you didn’t try this way with Khunbish.” she muttered.
<You might be able to do it.> he said, despite giving her a worried look as he held out a long rope. <If- When you arrive, we can span this rope. With a solid grip, we should be able to follow.>
“And we’ll reel it in for Magenta.” Shetland agreed, doubtful the pegasus was strong enough to resist the stream on her own. Of course, her brain added, that only counts if I make it through in the first place. “Gan, are you sure this will lead to the water collector?”
<Khunbish thought so. And she is very smart.>
Shetland snorted. “Well, we’re not smart, since we’re gonna do this!”
<This makes us dangerous.> he grinned, but it faltered as he also shot an estimating look at the river. <May I ask one favour of you?>
Shetland blinked. His voice had been stilted, reluctant even.
“That depends, we don’t have much time.”
<Remove your helmet.>
“What?” She shook her head. “I need it to breathe, Gan!”
<Only for a moment.>
She threw him a cautious look at the strange request, but if he was going to risk his life for her, then he deserved to be thrown a little bone. With a deep breath, she removed her helmet, looking down at him for his approval. The next thing she knew his breath was on her face as he jumped on his hind legs, then the scruff feeling of his lips pressing on hers. Her eyes widened, but she didn’t pull away from the sudden kiss. A moment later, it was over, as he fell down on his forelegs with a nervous cough. <I- I did not want to lose my chance.>
Shetland swallowed. “Is that… it?”
He nodded, his cheeks burning. <Yes, yes. That is all.> Gan whispered, wearing a strangely shy, toothy grin.
Shetland shook her head, trying to get rid of some of the heat in her own cheeks as she placed her helmet back on, just as Crust and Magenta arrived. The pegasus now wore a helmet much like Shetland, though her body was only covered with thin plates. Slung to her back was a short rifle. A fast-firing model with a large magazine and low recoil, Shetland noticed. Something easy to use. She gave the pair an approving nod. “Are you ready?”
Neither of them looked particularly convinced as they nodded.
“Well…” Shetland began, biting her lip under her helmet. “Once we’re in there, anything could happen. Me and Crust have heavy armor, we’ll try to be at the front while Gan and Magenta stay behind us, but I can’t guarantee anything. Do not get separated. If it does happen, abandon the mission and run, try to reach the tank on your own. Oh, and Magenta, try to look out for any security cameras and destroy them, the more intel we deny them the better.” She took a heavy breath as she gave each of them a thorough look. “I’m going ahead now. If I make it, use the rope to follow me.” A large lump appeared in her throat. “If I don’t, and you can’t pull me back, run.” She looked away, unwilling to see either of their reactions as she placed her weapons in a waterproof bag and secured it to her chest. Meanwhile, the others tied the rope to a large stalagmite.
With her final preparations done, Shetland slowly filled her lungs and took the first step. Immediately, she could feel a pull at her body, though not enough to sweep her off her hooves. Not yet. She rose her head at the first hurdle: a sudden rise in height, from which the river barreled down like a tiny waterfall. She took another step, straining against the neverending force, eerily reminded of the sandstorm, with howling wind replaced by splashing water. Her armor kept her safe, allowing her to breathe as she fought the brute strength of the elements. She grit her teeth as the thought gnawed at her concentration, nearly causing her to topple on the slippery ground. With an enraged shout, she pressed against the brunt of the water. I did this before, her brain madly shouted. Toasty is waiting. The thought lent new strength to her limbs as she slowly waded upwards, step after tiny step. She had done this before, she had fought a storm to get Toasty and this would be no different!She vividly remembered the robot’s broken form in the storm, half-buried by the sand as she laid flat on the ground, broken-
Shetland’s eyes widened. She stopped advancing, slowly sinking to her knees, her breath quickening as water closed in over her helmet, deafening any noise other than the rush of the current. But as her chest hit the riverbank, she was able to reach forward. Flat on the ground, she offered much less surface for the water to push against. “I’m coming Toasty,” she whispered into her helmet. “Crawling all the way if I have to!”
As soon as she had climbed the incline, the pressure lessened, allowing her to pick up her pace. Through the water, she could only get an occasional blurred view of the surface, forcing her to stand up to get a good look. In most places, the water reached up to her shoulders, but more than once she’d been forced to keep going until she could find a higher spot. Am I still going the right way? She thought desperately as she tugged at the rope tightly secured to her chest. What if it runs out before I reach the water collector, what if there isn’t one?
She grit her teeth, trying to focus. There was a dark shape in the water, reaching up to the surface- “YES!” Shetland exclaimed, doubling her efforts against the rushing waves. She’d found the collector, now there had to be some way for the ponies in the station to reach down for repairs-
She barely managed to raise her eyes over the water as she stood. Drops blurred her vision, but she couldn’t raise a leg to sweep them away, or she would be swept away. Still, in the circle of light her helmet gave off, she could make out a ladder, leaning at a forty-five degree angle, which would allow a pony to comfortably walk up, as well as several poles stabbing into the water as a hold for anypony that dropped.
Shetland’s hoof shot out. She now worked her way from pole to pole, towards the ladder. She grabbed the bottom rung with an exclamation of victory, pulling herself out of the treacherous waves. Finally able to catch her breath, she leaned back against the ladder. She’d made it. A chuckle burst from her lips, but the brief feeling of relief was quickly swallowed as reality came crashing back in. This was merely Phase One, after all. Next she’d have to wind up the rope, making it as straight and tense as she could, sending the signal to the others. There wasn’t much rope left to wind. As the rope was tied to the ladder, all she could do was lean back- and wait, nervously gnawing on her lips.
Crust arrived first. He had made his way walking upright, hindlegs braced against the ground as his forelegs clung to the rope. He pulled himself forward inch by inch. Tied to him, there was a large bag with their remaining weapons. “Out of waterproof stuff.” he gasped as he clung to a pole. “Only had one bag left.”
Gan followed soon after. All four legs holding tightly to the rope, he shuffled himself forward, much faster than Shetland would’ve thought possible in these circumstances. Now there was just one left.
“You instructed her on what to do again, right?” Shetland asked Crust.
“‘Hold on until we reel you in’, of course I did!” He shook his head. “Think she won’t follow us?”
“Possible.” Shetland muttered, her eyes narrowing. “More likely that she’s just stalling.” She tugged at the rope. It didn’t budge an inch.
“We can’t take stalling.” Crust exclaimed, then instantly lowered his voice. “What if they already discovered us?”
“We’re not dead yet.” Shetland pressed through her teeth. “I can’t think of a position more vulnerable than this, if they knew-” She stopped mid-sentence, she’d felt a shift in the rope. With sudden vigour, she pulled as quickly as she could, and after a moment, Crust reached to support her, allowing her to use both forehoooves to reel Magenta in like a giant fish.
The pegasus gasped as she burst out of the water, seemingly having forgotten that her mask would have allowed her to breathe just fine. “Thank Celestia!” she gasped as she opened her wings, shaking them before she took to the air. “A sensible ceiling!” She performed a quick mid-air pirouette, spraying her surroundings with all the water that had gotten stuck to her coat.
Shetland wiped her visor. “Take your weapon, Magenta.” She looked up at the hatch. “Follow me.” And with those words, she ascended the ladder.
-----------
They climbed into a small, empty room. Protective suits laid in folded piles on a bench, while toolboxes and cabinets lined the walls. Shetland stepped aside to let Gan follow her, careful to not make any more noise than necessary as she anxiously checked every corner for cameras. Magenta now helped Crust through the hole. Shetland felt a drop of sweat roll down her back as Gan placed his ear against the door. The entire robot army could be right outside; just because she didn’t find a camera didn’t mean there wasn’t one, maybe the robots had heard their arrival-
“Steps. Not many.” Gan whispered, his voice scarcely even making a noise. With a stern look, he raised his paw, the attached shocktalon emitting a faint buzz. Weapon drawn, Shetland gave one last look over her shoulder. Magenta was shaking, clutching her rifle in her hooves while Crust was hurriedly trying to change his gun’s magazine. As they both met her eyes, Shetland put her hoof on the door’s handle.
The door flew open as Shetland burst through, her eyes catching a brief glimpse of the metal hallway before fixating on two robots. They had no time to react as Shetland, carried by her momentum, smashed into one the sheer force send it sliding across the ground. The other quickly went down from a swipe of Gan’s shocktalon. Crust ran in right after, shooting a quick burst into the fallen robot’s chest. “That one’s not getting up anymore!”
Blaring sirens coupled with her heart’s rapid beating as Shetland hurriedly surveyed their surroundings. The hallway branched off in three directions: a long hallway, stairs leading to a higher floor and a large, open door only a few metres away. “This way!” she shouted as she stormed inside the room, catching a glimpse of robots scrambling to get behind workbenches and metal frames in between large machines. They scrambled for their weapons as Shetland’s rifle spat hot fury, tearing off the hoof of the first robot that rose to face her. She charged, ignoring the small arms fire that bounced off her armor. Crust followed into the room, flanked by Gan, putting down any robot daring to show it's face with deadly accuracy. Shetland pulled the last ones out of cover with her bare hooves, smashing their visors with the stock of her rifle. By the time Magenta entered, the fight was already over. Shetland stepped away from her victim, the robot rolling on the ground, holding it’s broken visor, and she had to squash a flash of pity. “Magenta,” she shouted as she looked around the room. “Kill the cams!”
The pegasus let out a startled squeak, fumbling with her rifle before pointing it at the small cameras. Shetland glanced over to the workbenches, littered with guns: some with strange attachments, others torn apart, but her eyes were quickly drawn to the metal frames. Held up by strings stood a large, two-legged figure, akin to the skeleton of a minotaur. Shetland swallowed, recognizing the figure, as if it had stepped right out of her board game into real life. But instead of the saws, one arm ended in a strange metal box, at the end of which was a large stake. “I would bet anything that this thing can punch through our armor.” she muttered. Activated, this thing would’ve been devastating in the tight hallways of the colony. With a grim look, she put three shots into it's artificial skull.
After the ringing in her ears had passed, she heard the sound of metal hooves pounding on the floor. “We can’t stay here!” she shouted, her mind racing. There was only one exit: if they went upstairs, the robots could block them off from the staircases and encircle. But either way, they’d have to move.
“Shetland,” Magenta shouted, her eyes fixated on a wall. “Come here!”
“Magenta-” Shetland exploded, but the pegasus cut her off.
“It’s a map!”
Shetland skid to a halt behind the pegasus, catching a brief glimpse of the power station’s layout. This room was apparently marked as water purification, but the robots must’ve had no use for that. There were two more buildings marked as living areas and the windmill center. “Fine,” Shetland said tensely. “But can you see where the A.I.s core is?”
“N-no-” Magenta admitted. “B-but we should move there-” She pointed at the second building.
“Memorize it!” Shetland shouted as she rushed to the door. She heard metallic thumping from outside, they weren’t alone anymore.
“We’ll be caught in a crossfire!” Crust shouted, his voice pitching.
“No, we won’t!” Shetland kicked against the door, which shuddered at the impact. A shot rang out from behind it, but glanced off its metal surface. “Magenta, I need a wrench, a big one!” She saw the pegasus shoot up, her eyes scurrying over the workbenches before she dove through the air, snatching one from a nearby desk. “Smash the hinges!”
The pegasus gave her an astonished look, but she responded instantly, slamming her weapon down on a hinge, bending it to the side. Another kick from Shetland broke it off. She then pushed at the door, and as Magenta hit the other hinge, it finally broke out of it's frame, nearly falling into the hallway before Shetland caught it. A small barrage of weapons’ fire harmlessly bounced off the makeshift shield.
“Follow right after me.” Shetland screamed, grunting as she heaved her shield sideways, nearly filling the corridor from wall to wall. The long side scraped over the ground as she shoved it forward. Shots hit her exposed shoulders. She sped up, heart beating rapidly. With a roar, she caught up with the first enemy. Its eyes widened as it turned to run. Too late, it was bashed away from the door. Shetland screamed over the screeching metal. Two more robots were swept up in her makeshift bulwark. The enemy dove away. The wall came closer at breakneck speed. At a full gallop, Shetland rammed the barrier into the wall, her shoulder slamming into it with all her build-up momentum. With a sickening crunch, the robots were crushed from the enormous force, metal crumpling like brittle wood.
Stumbling back dizzily, Shetland managed to glance over her shoulder, where Gan and Crust caught up, briefly halting in their gallop to disable the few robots that had jumped out of her way. A movement caught her attention as a metal hoof blindly tried to slap her over the edge of her shield. With an angry snarl, she pulled back, letting both robots slump to the ground before dropping the door on them. Then she jumped, a wild shout on her lips as her entire weight landed on it, crushing them below. The flailing leg now laid still, electric sparks shooting from underneath the large, metal stamp. Shetland gasped for air, tearing her eyes away from their broken bodies.
“They won’t just let us pass!” Crust shouted, despite being only a few metres away. “The whole place will be surrounded!”
“Then we’ll have to break through.” Shetland said through gritted teeth. She grabbed the saddlebags tied to his armor’s sides, hurriedly rummaging through them.
“Shetland, They could be coming right now-”
“You’ve got a gun!” she shouted as she produced two white and black orbs from his pocket, storing all but one in a compartment in her armor. The remaining white ball tightly grasped in her hoof, she ran through the hallway, ending in a glass wall with a door to the outside. But Shetland could already see the enemy get in position, spread far out in groups of two, eliminating any chance of taking them down in close quarters. “Stay together!” She shouted, turning the handwheel on the door.
“What are you doing! We can’t go outside, this is suicide!” Crust exclaimed.
“It’s the only way.” Shetland responded grimly as she took the white orb, throwing it through the open door. A moment later, she took after it, just as the smokebomb erupted in a large, blinding cloud. Without sight, all Shetland had to go on was the deafening staccato of her rushing blood and gunshots, blind fire tearing into the protective fog from all directions. Warning messages flared in her helmet as her magic shields reached a critical low. Putting even more power in her rapidly-stomping hooves, she burst out of the cloud, facing a pair of robots standing beside the living area’s emergency exits. Both held rifles, which they hurriedly pointed at her. But at this point, there was no more stopping. Just that moment, she caught Magenta flying overhead, her wings beating faster than ever before, her hooves clutching around Gan’s chest. The smaller hyena screamed something that was lost in the noise. Magenta dove towards the enemy pair, then suddenly pulled back as Gan launched himself from her grip. He dropped, striking one with his shocktalon before breaking his fall with a roll. The other robot whirled around, a crucial mistake as Shetland rammed her shoulder into it, throwing it aside before she caught herself on the glass wall.
Gan was already back on his paws, but the remaining robots now let up from Crust to focus on them. They sprinted to the door Magenta held open, Shetland trying her best to shield Gan from the incoming fire. A flaring message informed her of her shield’s collapsing. Clenching her teeth, Shetland strained her legs to leap inside the building, shortly followed by the madly sprinting Crust.
Shetland threw the door shut, then slammed her front hooves against the handwheels, hoping to jam the mechanism. “KEEP GOING!” she screamed at the others. “If they catch up to us, we’re dead!”
The remains of a camera fell to the ground, followed by Magenta, holding a large wrench in her mouth. “Wait, Shetland, maybe we can blind them. T-the control room, we can take out all the cameras at once!”
“How-” Shetland shook her head, there was no time. “Where?”
“Next to the kitchens, I-I can show you-”
“No!” Shetland decided. “You stay behind us, tell me the way.”
Magenta nodded, pointing at a hallway. “Y-yes, straight this way!”
The hallways seemed empty, the only robot in sight scurrying away into a side room. “Ignore it!” Shetland shouted. ”No time!” Her heart was racing as she imagined the sound of hundreds of hooves behind them, on the chase. She grabbed her weapon tighter, just as Magenta shouted:
“Now, around the left corner and-”
Shetland nodded, raising her rifle as she and Crust ran around the corner. They were instantly met with a volley of small arms fire slamming into their armor. Shetland screamed as a bullet managed to dig an inch into her shoulder, but she charged ahead regardless, rage clouding her vision as she ignored the pistol shots bouncing off her helmet-
“SHETLAND!” Crust screamed after her, but too late, as Shetland stared down a large barrel, her eyes widening before-
Her ears were filled with a deafening noise, something metallic ripping apart. Her head snapped to the side, as if punched by a minotaur, feeling like her neck was about to break. The impact on the ground smacked the air out of her lungs. Her ears barely picked up Crust’s scream or the inferno of blazing gunfire that followed. She blinked, her eyesight flickering as she tried to focus, her hoof tapping on the ground in the hopes of finding her rifle. A robot rose out of cover, its hooves clutching an anti-armor rifle. Shetland saw it as if in slow-motion, the barrel slowly moving to her fallen position. With sudden defiance, she stopped trying to find her rifle, instead drawing her heavy pistol, not moving her eyes from the robot that now had the muzzle pointed right at her head. Its robotic eyes flashed, widening a moment before Shetland’s shot splintered its visor, the bullet tearing a sparking hole all the way through its head.
Shetland gasped for breath, seeing no other robot standing. Convulsing, she felt an irresistible force push into her throat. Her jaw unclenched as she gagged, while several hooves grabbed her, pulling her into the room they’d conquered. She promptly removed her helmet before emptying her stomach onto the floor.
She drew a sharp breath, waiting for the nausea to subside. The right side of her face was agony, stinging like burning needles in an infected wound. To her side, Crust screamed in rage as he used Magenta’s wrench to turn the many screens of the observation terminal into scrap metal.
“A-are you okay?” Magenta asked, her worried gaze shared by the hyena at her side
“I-I’m fine.” Shetland muttered, straining herself to stand up, screaming as the simple act of grimacing seemed to tear her flesh apart. She raised a hoof, ignoring Magenta’s protest as she touched her cheek, sucking in air through her teeth.
Her hoof was covered in blood. She stared at it in confusion. “I-I was wearing a helmet-”
Magenta bit her lip as she picked it up from a puddle of bile, showing it to Shetland, whose eyes widened. The left side of the helmet was torn off, as if ripped away like a strip of flesh. Frayed shards of metal stuck out of the hole, covered in thick red drops and small shreds of flesh.
“Y-you were really lucky.” Magenta whispered. “F-for a moment I thought you were…” She took a sharp breath. “But it only glanced your cheek from the look of it.” Her features twisted into a shaky grin. “T-That’ll make one ugly, awesome scar.”
“Like I don’t got enough of those already.” Shetland moaned, stepping in place as feeling returned to her limbs. She looked over to Crust, who reloaded his rifle after emptying a magazine into the smoldering remains of what was once an advanced computer system. “The enemy is outside that door, waiting for us, right?”
Even through his visor, she could see the glare he gave her. “Yeah, they are,” he muttered, lowering his head as he stomped a hoof down on a piece of circuitry, a flash of rage crossing his face. “Every damn robot in the colony is out there, Shetland!”
“We’re not gonna die!” Shetland asserted as she retrieved the second white orb. “We’re all going to make it out of this.”
“This is insane.” Crust shook his head in disbelief.
“The whole operation was insane.” Shetland agreed, placing her hoof on the door handle, throwing a final look back as she pressed down, holding her body against the wall as the door slowly swung open. She didn’t dare look, but she clearly heard the sound of whole armaments’ worth of weapons being adjusted in robotic hooves. They were ready for the instant she’d show her face. The thought was enough to make her shudder as she pulled the pin with shaky, sweaty hooves.
“GRENADE!” she screamed with all the force her lungs offered, tossing the white ball into the hallway.
The reaction was instant: metal clattered against metal as the smoke-bomb landed, filling the corridor with its obstructing cloud. Shetland repelled herself from the doorway, past the obscured shapes of the robots getting back on their hooves after her bluff. She briefly looked over her shoulder, but the cloud also prevented her from seeing the others. Face contorting into a frustrated snarl, she kicked out at the nearest dark shape, hearing the loud clanging sound as her armored hoof connected with metal. No one dared fire their guns out of fear of accidentally hitting their allies. Now we’re fighting my way, she thought as she swiped at the recovering robots, clearing a path the others could follow. But already, she was beginning to see clearer as the smoke spread out thinner and thinner. The closest robot took up its gun, but Shetland swiped it out of its hooves before delivering a swift buck to its chest.
“Shetland!” Magenta’s voice shouted from up ahead. She’d been able to fly above the crowd. Nodding, Shetland threw a quick look back, seeing Crust emerge, quickly followed by Gan, but the cloud had now dissipated to the point that the robots could now effectively bring their guns to bear. With a scream of panic and rage, Shetland reached for her pistol as a pained shout rang out.
Gan stumbled, nearly faceplanting into the floor, blood surging out of his side. Shetland’s eyes widened in panic. Her hooves moved on their own, rushing to his side. Magenta screamed in fury, aimlessly shooting her rifle as fast as she could into the general direction of the bots while Crust laid down concentrated fire. Shetland dashed around Gan, blocking several shots with her armored bulk.
<Y-You’ll kill us both> Gan shouted, his eyes widening. <Leave me!>
“I’M NOT LOSING YOU!” Shetland roared as she wrapped her hoof around his midsection. She ran like she’d never run before, all concerns about her lungs and her side stitches completely forgotten, her mad gaze only fixated on Magenta. The pegasus pulled back, flying up the staircase to the second floor, just as Shetland rushed past Crust, up the stairs, the sound of a hundred metal hooves chasing.
Gan groaned, a steady trickle of blood leaving his body. He needs a bandage, Shetland thought in panic, but how? She rushed past door after door, if only they had a moment of time! She turned a corner and suddenly, at the end of the hallway, she looked out through the glass wall to the outside planes and the windmill station. There were chairs, tables and a TV-screen, a place to hang out. An opportunity. Shetland dove towards it, flipping a table on its side to create a makeshift barricade. “Magenta, bandage Gan, he’s gonna make it out of here.”
“Shetland,” Crust protested. “How are we gonna get out of this?”
“We’re. All. Making it out.” Shetland pressed through her teeth as she threw chairs in front of her cover. “How bad is it!?” she shouted to the pegasus.
“I-I’m not a doctor!” Magenta screamed hysterically as she covered the bleeding hole. “I-I don’t think they hit an artery, he might make it.”
Shetland shot a quick burst as the first robot rounded the corner. Falling back into cover, she gave the bandaged Gan a quick look, just as a bullet hit the floor only an inch away from his face. Snarling, she removed her helmet. “Put that on him!” She ordered Magenta. “You’ll have to get him out of here!”
“HOW?” Crust ducked back into cover as a round flew past his armored ear. “There’s no way any of us could get past them again!”
“We don’t have to.” She pulled out one of the black orbs. “We’ll make a new way! Magenta, take Gan and stay right behind me!” As the pegasus hurriedly nodded, Shetland pulled the pin of the grenade, tossing it back against the wall, before pushing her table forward. Fearing a repeat of her door trick, the robots stayed at a safe distance, content to put hole after hole into her cover, despite their shots harmlessly glancing off her armor. Shetland returned fire blindly, not daring to raise her head as she waited for the explosion. The shockwave and booming noise shook her to her bones, agony coursing through her hindleg. A distinct smell of soy sauce pushed into her nostrils as she turned around. The floor was scorched, ground covered in shards of broken walls, flames licking over the remains of the screen and the carpet. “Go!” she shouted, but Magenta needed no signal as she swooped out, carrying Gan’s body away. Crust stared at the hole, hesitating for a moment.
“WE’RE TOO HIGH UP!”
But the robots now reminded them of their presence, as their cover quickly fell apart. “Discuss it with them!” Shetland shouted as she stormed through the hole, head held low so it wouldn’t present a target. Crust screamed in frustration before chasing after her. All four legs held out, she prepared for the impact. Sagging into her knees, she managed to absorb most of it, even as pain shot through her hindleg. Gritting her teeth, she set her sight on the windmill station. It was their last chance. She ran, her lungs tingling as the Horizon air did nothing for them. Behind her, Crust managed to roll with the fall before reaching his hooves again and taking off after her, his heavy breathing audible even through his helmet.
Shetland stared right ahead, the windmill entrance was wide open, but a small group of robots held guns at the ready, shots she wouldn’t be able to take without her helmet. She turned around, just in time as the shots hit her back. Her vision blurred, her lungs struggling as she frantically fumbled at her armor, drawing the final black orb. With a yell, she tossed it inside the group, which instantly scattered. Shetland stormed after it, earning a dumbfounded stare from Crust. Just as the enemies looked up at the grenade, and the pin firmly remaining inside, Shetland rammed into the first. While greedily gasping for air, she swung out her hooves, slapping away the weapon of a second. Sudden pain exploded in her foreleg. Screaming, she grabbed the body of the second robot, hiding her face behind it. The last two halted their fire just as Crust ran in, his rifle spewing hot lead into their torsos.
“Nice trick.” he gasped as he grabbed an airmask from a nearby container. “Here, breathe.”
WIth the flickering in her sight disappearing, Shetland forced herself up, gasping as she moved her foreleg.
“Holy shit,” Crust stared with wide eyes at the small hole in her armor. “H-how is it?”
“Painful.” Shetland gasped through her teeth as she testingly put weight on it. “But I can walk.” She swiped her unused grenade from the floor. “C’mon, last chance, if it’s in here-”
“Then it’ll all be worth it.” Crust nodded, slamming the door shut. “I-I think most of them were back there, we might have enough time.”
With a grim nod, Shetland took off, though her leg forced her to go slower and it was Crust who entered the large room first this time. A shot glanced off his helmet. His weapon whipped up to the assailer, but Shetland slapped the gun out of his hooves. She swallowed, utterly fixated on the two lime-green dots drilling into her.
“Toasty!” Shetland gasped, the sudden appearance knocking the wind out her lungs like a hammerblow. The small robot stood in the middle of the room, all by herself. She was undamaged: more than that, her chassis was shining in the electric lights, her eyes seeming brighter than ever. But the overjoyed moment stopped as she looked over the robot’s hoof, which held a gun pointed right at Shetland’s head. Moreso, it was a gun that she recognized, having personally educated the robot to use it.
“You’ve come far, Shetland.” Toasty said, sending a shiver over Shetland’s back. That wasn’t Toasty speaking. Every word was pronounced sharply, utterly opposed to the energetic, bright voice that she knew. The side of her face throbbed in dull pain as a growl grew in her throat, yet the cold voice cut into her ears like a bonesaw through soft flesh. “You've impressed me with your dedication, really.” The A.I. continued to speak, making Toasty’s body walk up and down an invisible line, never letting her eyes leave Shetland’s. “The damage you’ve caused with only four attackers is incredible - the deaths you’ve caused. Three of us are lost, another lies in shambles, we may never be able to restore her data!”
“Don’t act as if you care,” Shetland hissed, pointing a shivering hoof at Toasty’s body. “Those deaths are on your brainwashing!”
“You seem certain.” The A.I. declared, as Toasty’s hoof ran over her body, almost sensually. “But what about this robot? Will her death not be on you, either?”
Shetland sputtered, her eyes staring through Toasty’s body as ice filled her veins. Only to melt. To boil. To remain as a freezing inferno. “You bastard…” she whispered, unable to stop herself from shaking. “Crust, run.”
“W-What?” he exclaimed, whirling around. “But you-”
“I SAID RUN!” Shetland screamed, knowing full well that it could be seconds until the other robots reached the entrance. Crust wouldn’t be able to escape through there. With grim determination, she pulled the pin of her last black orb.
“But what about you?” Crust asked, pleaded.
Shetland threw the bomb against the far wall, blasting the glass apart to create his escape. “GO!” she shouted, but Crust didn’t need any more encouragement. Shetland looked after him as he ran away, hoping dearly he’d make it.
“You remain?” Toasty’s eyes didn’t spare a glance in Crust’s direction, completely fixated on Shetland. “Knowing full well you cannot win?”
“There’s no going back for me.” Shetland said, keeping her voice even despite the rumbling volcano in her chest. “The real Toasty would have known that.” Her eyes narrowed, shrinking her vision down to those two green eyes. “I’m going to make you pay.”
Toasty’s hoof whipped up, her pistol giving off three wild shots. Shetland charged, the fire harmlessly glancing off her armor. “Toasty is a terrible shot!” she shouted as she slapped the gun out of the robot’s hooves. Suddenly, Toasty surged forward, striking at Shetland’s shoulder. The earth pony roared as something sharp dug into her open wound. She whipped a hoof out to force the robot away, a scream on her lips as something was ripped out of her flesh. The robot slowly raised a hoof, showing off the short knife that seemed to be built into the limb. “Hurts, does it not?”
“Do you think you can defeat me with that little toothpick?” Shetland fumed, testingly pawing the ground with her bleeding leg.
“That is all I need, if you do not dare to fight back!” The A.I. responded with sickening glee, Toasty’s body beginning its charge.
“Don’t you dare speak like that in her voice!” Shetland tried to step out of the way, but she was forced to catch Toasty in her charge, pushing her to the ground. She only bought herself a few seconds as the robot rolled back onto her legs, once again swiping the knife around like a madmare. Shetland stemmed her hoof against her friend’s chest, her teeth grinding, tasting blood as she stared deep into those lime-green eyes, looking for a sign. Straightening out her hoof, she pushed the metallic body back.
“You can’t win like this.” The A.I. cackled. “You’ll have to hurt her eventually.”
As she charged, Shetland shot forward, her hoof slamming against the robot’s side. “I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU DEFILING HER VOICE!” She pressed her forelegs onto Toasty’s sides, pinning both her hooves. “GET OUT OF HER HEAD!” she screamed into the dark visor.
Toasty’s head shot forward, painfully smacking into Shetland’s nose. The earth pony jerked back, eyes filling with boiling tears. Roaring, her head rammed into Toasty’s visor. She screamed as cracking glass dug into her skin. She surged forward, hammering into the visor like a wild beast. Her head rang. Blood surged from deep gouges in her face. Toasty’s body shivered. “S-Shetland-” she exclaimed as the earth pony’s face broke the robot’s cameras, dousing the green dots.
Shetland dropped her friend’s body, blood and tears streaming over her face. She tried to wipe it away with her hoof, yowling as it pushed the shards deeper into her flesh. She turned, staring at Toasty struggling to get to her hooves, the hoof with the knife swiping in the earth pony’s vague direction. With tears of regret, Shetland stepped over her, wrapping the short, metallic body in a restricting hug, ignoring the dull sensations of kicks at her armor. She reached down, her teeth scraping over Toasty’s ear. Using her wounded leg to keep the head in place, Shetland bit into the metal, tearing and ripping at the ear. Sparks flew, the joint let out a deafening shriek. With an enormous crack, Shetland’s head flew back, spitting out the ear. Toasty had stopped fighting, merely shivering as strained breath hit the side of her head.
“I’ll save you.” Shetland whispered, her heart bleeding as her teeth clenched around metal, snapping the other ear off. Toasty’s body trembled, then became still, as if she were just sleeping. Shetland gently laid her on the ground, a hoof caressing over her face even as the broken glass cut into it. Then, sucking air through her teeth, she got up, glancing over the robots all around her. Their metal bodies were an impenetrable barrier to all exits, their combined armament aimed right at her head. And yet, there was no shot, no shuffling movement, as her eyes swept over each one.
“Bring me to your leader!” she demanded sternly. Some of the robots swayed on bent and broken legs, others had their heads turned to accomodate for a broken half of their visor. “Bring me to your leader!” she shouted. Her right cheek throbbed, and she felt an enormous sting in her eye. “Don’t play games with me, I will only speak to you face to face- and I know you want to talk to me!” She stood upright, not allowing her aching body to show any sign of weakness.
The mass of robots parted, creating a single path which Shetland followed, resisting any urge to look at the guns pointed at her head as she was led towards a staircase behind the room. Her eyes narrowed. These stairs were right behind the room Toasty had waited in. The A.I. had used her as a sort of gatekeeper! As the thought made her clench her teeth, her entourage separated into two groups of a dozen each, one going ahead, the other following closely behind her as they ascended the stairs.
The room of the mainframe was unusually large, encompassing most of the second floor. It took Shetland a moment to realize that it was because the walls had been knocked down for some reason. The second she left the stairs, the robots backed several feet away, never moving their weapons away as Shetland drew in for a close look at what laid in the center of the room. The cube was no bigger than the data core she’d bargained with on the hyena’s ship. It looked like it could fit within an average robot’s head. A square basin, covered in hundreds of cables, connected it to the surrounding machinery.
“Do you hear me?” Shetland shouted, slowly approaching the core, until the sound of a cocking gun stopped her.
“You have come far, Shetland Sparkle.” A voice came from the walls, oddly stilted, like a bad recording of an old stallion. “But as stubborn as you are, even you must see that you cannot win.”
Shetland spat, a bit of blood mixed into her saliva. “You stopped me, alright.” she grumbled, trying to ignore the horrible itching in her left eye. “Barely.”
“But you have failed your goal.” The A.I. declared. If Shetland wasn’t imagining things, it spoke a bit quicker. The thought brought a smirk to her face. “I would have you shot down before you could even reach your weapon. I will offer you one last chance to surrender.”
“Surrender.” A chuckle began to trickle out of Shetland’s mouth. She threw her head up as tension broke out of her chest with each new flash of laughter. “You want me to surrender? That’s hilarious!” With tantalizing slowness, she put a hoof to her heavy pistol, slowly raising it upwards until it lazily pointed right at the data core. Her smirk broke into a full-out grin as she looked at the stunned robots on either side. “I think it is your turn to surrender.”
“The second you pull that trigger, you will be shot down.” The A.I. warned.
“I don’t think I will.” Shetland smirked. “You have eighty robots here, armed with small-grade weapons, several damaged- oh, and I think I shot your little pet project. Sure, they can kill me, but then what? You’re gonna hold out against mom, Luna, two dozen Voidmarines plus whatever reinforcements we fly in? I have you at gunpoint and we were just four! But you do have one thing that could get you out of here… and that is me.” She took a shuddering breath, trying to ignore the stinging in her eyeball. “I’m your bargaining chip… as long as I’m alive.” She leaned her head to the side, carefully lining up the shot.
“Your friend is still under my power!” the synthetic voice exclaimed. “Shoot- and I will delete her.
Shetland’s hoof rammed into the ground. “If you do anything to her, I will break you, with my bare hooves if I have to! You can’t shoot me. I can. And when I die, your days are numbered. But you’re right, I don’t want to take the risk. ” She took a long breath. “So, here’s your deal: your little resistance vanishes. All the robots come back, without a trace of your brainwashing. Khunbish has your source code, she’ll be able to detect anything you try to sneak through. In exchange… I’ll sneak you through. You put your core in a spare body. Mom’s gonna keep an eye on you, but nopony else will know. That’s my offer.”
“I would be defenseless.”
“You ARE defenseless!” Shetland shouted. “You don’t exactly have options.” She glanced at her gun for emphasis.
Slowly, one after the other, the surrounding robots lowered their weapons. “Why- why would you offer this?”
“Because… you could be fooling me. This could be any robot’s core, and if I shot it, you would delete her.” Swaying on her hooves, Shetland fought against the dizziness that began to sweep into her mind as half her vision began to blur out, like she was watching through wet glass. “And I need you defeated, decisively, right now. Or mom’s gonna call the hyenas for help…” she grimaced. “All of this… you just happened to escape because of a dumb scientist. You came up here, now they have ‘reinforcements’ ready.” Her hoof began to grow heavy, the gun jittering as she glared at the core. “Call me paranoid, but I don't believe that. Normally, scientists are smart.” She pressed through her teeth. “So there you have it. Now surrender.” Licking her lips, she stared down at the core as it processed. She could already feel the familiar taste of bile rising in her throat.
“I accept your offer.”
Suddenly, the robots dropped to the floor, one after the other. “Hey!” Shetland exclaimed.
“A simple reset!” The synthetic voice was quick to assure. “It is required to fulfill my part of the agreement.”
“Fine…” Shetland breathed out, nearly falling to the floor herself as the adrenaline drained from her body. “Message. Need to message mom.”
“You will be given means for communication, as well as painkillers and first aid.”
“Bring ‘em down.” Shetland muttered, forcing her tired hooved to trot towards the staircase.
“Where are you going?” The voice asked, a hint of confusion ringing in it’s faint echo, causing Shetland to halt.
“You’ve been in Toasty’s head. You should know where I’m going.”
----
Shetland stumbled the final steps towards the small, broken robot. Her breath went fast, constant pained signals shooting through her body. She couldn’t stand anymore. The right side of her face felt like it’d been skinned, while her eye could’ve been sprayed with lemon juice from every direction, including the inside of her skull. Yet still, she was only fixated on Toasty as she crawled the final inches towards her fallen body. “It’s over, Toasty. It’s finally over.” But there were no ears to pick up her words, Shetland realized, her jaw quivering as she wrapped her legs around the small robot.
Suddenly, Toasty’s head reached forward, pushing into Shetland’s chest. There was a quiet noise, like a tiny vacuum cleaner. “Shetty…” she whispered, followed by a pure, peaceful humm.
“You- you should probably stop doing that…” Shetland whispered, a wave of relief washing over her as she cradled the robot in her hooves.
Meanwhile, a couple robots were setting up radio equipment beside them. Groaning, Shetland dragged herself closer, roughly shoving the technicians out of the way. Her working hoof darted over the equipment, hoping she could find the right frequency- “Magenta?” she asked the microphone, licking over her dry lips as she waited… and waited, dreading every new passing second until-
“SHETLAND? Is that you?” Magenta’s disbelieving voice rushed through the speaker.
“It’s me. Is Crust there?”
“I’m here.” His voice was distorted, but it was clearly him, possibly inside of the storage. “By Celestia, Shetland, you actually made it? I-I was assuming the worst!”
“I did it,” Shetland confirmed, hoping her frown would not show in her voice. “Put a couple shots in its core. Wish I could show you, but it’s all electric and stuff, better not touch it.” A lightness was beginning to spread in her head, padding her mind from her physical aches. Shetland groaned, but she couldn’t chase the feeling away, couldn’t stop her thoughts from slowing down like an exhausted rabbit. “Listen!” she shouted, as if speaking louder would make it better. “Me and Toasty, we need a ride to get outta here. Can you come and pick us up?”
There was a moment of silence before Magenta’s voice answered, full of hesitation. “Gan’s bleeding badly, Shetland. I-if there’s any chance you’ll make it a while longer-”
“Oh yeah-” Shetland blinked. Through her foggy mind, even the talons scratching at her eyeball had become bearable. “It’s fine. Just tell mom, tell her I got it, and that I’m here and-” With a shout, she shook her head, mobilizing all of her willpower to force some semblance of clarity back into her mind. “Listen, I want them to scan Toasty first, just in case there’s any bad stuff left in her mind. And-” she caught herself from saying the next part out loud, instead continuing in a whisper, hoping that Crust wouldn’t hear. “There’s another robot, a friend of Toasty. It’ll come talk to you. Make sure this one doesn’t get scanned until I can speak with my mother.”
“W-what?” Magenta stuttered at the strange request. “B-but why-”
“Just do it, please.” Shetland muttered as the world slowly began to turn. Feeling her consciousness bleed out, she looked down at Toasty, a last sentence leaving her lips. “Magenta, make sure they’re ready to repair her.”
Whether Magenta understood, she wasn’t sure, just as she wondered why the floor felt so cold against her cheek-
It stung. Like a needle felt dully through the flaring nerves in her eyeball, probing her skull for shreds of consciousness to bring to the light. A groan rolled off Shetland’s numb tongue as she tried to open her eyes to tiny slits, yet the normally-soft lights pierced into her right eye like flashing lightning. Shifting her weight, she suddenly grew aware of the tight, encasing feeling on her head, as well as her right foreleg. Bandages, Shetland figured, gently touching the wrapped limb under her blanket. I must be in the hospital… again. A noise reached her unbandaged ear, a soft snore, just as she noticed an unevenness in her mattress. Shetland bared the bright light, squinting her eye to make out the head of Twilight Sparkle, perched at the side of her bed, half sunken in a concave formed by her forelegs. “Mom?”
Twilight continued her slow, rhythmic breath, but it was another voice that quietly, but excitedly, answered.
“Shetland!” Magenta’s voice exclaimed, appearing a moment later in the earth pony’s vision.
“Magenta, you’re okay!” Shetland whispered, trying to raise herself up, only for her head to start spinning.
“Woah there,” Magenta warned. “You’ve been out cold for almost a whole day, you should take it slow.”
“Not the first time..” Shetland tried to grin, but it turned into a grimace as her face answered the stretched muscles with a sensation like being sprayed with acid. “Ow…”
“Told you so.” Magenta rolled her eyes. “You shouldn’t move around too much,” She glanced at Twilight. “I don’t think she’s moved from this spot since you got here, she deserves some rest.”
“Surely to scold me,” Shetland joked, trying to find a way to grin without upsetting her wounds.
But Magenta’s lips didn’t even budge. “You should have seen her, Shetland, she was all- WE were all so worried.”
“Sorry,” Shetland muttered, glancing over to her mother, trying to imagine that serene face engraved with deep folds of worry and fear. She shook her head. “But it’s over now, right?”
“Yeah… I think it is.” Magenta nodded, a smile playing around her lips. “It’s kind of incredible, really.”
“Absolutely amazing, if you ask me.” A low voice whispered, its slightly off-putting pronunciation causing Shetland to shiver as she turned to a robotic visitor.
“Toasty,” she gasped, her lungs suddenly devoid of air to form words. “You’re… you’re fixed!”
Toasty nodded, casting cautious glances at the earth pony from underneath a renewed visor. “Right after I had been declared clean from the virus, Magenta took it upon herself to install new cameras into my visor, as well as replace the glass. She did a great job, though the only ears she had in store were of an older model,” said appendages squeaked on their hinges as they twitched, shortly before folding back again. She placed a hoof on the side of Shetland’s bed, yet her eyelights were dim, staring only at the ground. “Unfortunately, you cannot be repaired as easily as me.”
“It’s fine,” Shetland tried to reassure her friend, but her whole body convulsed as a shrug caused burning nails to pierce through her bandaged leg.
“Shetland!” Toasty exclaimed, reaching out her hooves, pushing Shetland back into her covers where she could slowly relax. “Do you need anything? Should I get the doctor?”
“No!” Shetland exclaimed, trying to sit up, but Toasty’s hooves pushed her back down. “Not the doctor…” she repeated. The second those showed up, they would send her visitors away, that much Shetland knew. I’ll get painkillers afterwards, she thought with a grimace.
Toasty nodded, her visor looking back down at the ground. “I’m sorry, Shetland.” she whispered.
“What for?” Shetland blinked, her face falling as she saw the robot’s body starting to shake.
“For everything. You got hurt so bad trying to save me, and I’m sorry I got you into that situation!” Toasty nearly shouted.
“I-It wasn’t your fault.” Shetland stammered as she stared down at the little robot, wishing Toasty would just meet her eyes. “Every robot in the colony got involved!”
“I was safe with you, until I forced you to go out shooting with me and we got caught!”
“You didn’t force me to do anything-”
“And now the doctor says that you lost your eye!”
Shetland blinked. “My eye-” But she shook her head, gritting her teeth as she shoved the thought away. “It doesn’t matter, Toasty.”
“But-”
“Quiet!” Shetland exclaimed, her hoof reaching to forcefully push the robot’s head upward. “Not another word, it happened.” Her features softened as she leaned forward, pulling the robot into a half-embrace, “I’m just happy that you’re safe.” she whispered, feeling her throat drying out in the middle of the sentence. Toasty’s initial struggles ceased as she sank into the hug, her legs slowly reaching around Shetland’s shoulders, barely managing to reach even halfway around them.
“You’re so brave...” she whispered, her robotic voice rising a pitch.
“Desperate, rather.” Shetland chuckled as she looked into the robot’s mesmerizing eyelights. Suddenly, her grip around Toasty’s body tightened as she tried to lift her up. “Err, little help?” she asked sheepishly. “I can’t do it very well with one leg.”
“Shetland-” Toasty wanted to protest, but once again the earth pony’s muscles tensed, and she hurriedly followed the pull. But as she climbed on the bed, Shetland’s eye widened as she saw the object dangling from the robot’s flank.
“You’re armed!”
Toasty’s eyelights brightened as she turned to her side, showing off the holster with the small pistol she was wearing. “That I am,” she said with an obvious attempt to keep her voice calm. “Princess Luna personally gave it to me as Scalloway confirmed I was free of any suspicious data. She even mentioned she might allow more robots the same… after establishing new security guidelines, of course. I spoke with Princess Luna!” She shook her head, as if she couldn’t believe it. “How do I look?” Toasty suddenly asked, striking a pose, hoof resting on her gun’s grip as if she was having a standoff in one of those old Appleloosan movies.
The sheer excitement in her voice was enough to bring a smile to Shetland’s lips. “You know, in reality you would put the holster on the inside of your left leg, so you can draw it quicker- You do look pretty amazing though.” she assured the robot, whose eyelights bristled with energy that needed no mouth to convey her grin.
“Thank you.”
“Yeah,” Shetland’s grin softened, shrinking to a content smile as she stared into the robot’s eyes, as if Toasty could disappear if she looked away for a second. “It’s… it’s good to have you back.”
Toasty stuttered, seemingly taken aback by her simple comment. “I-I’m glad to be here, too.” she whispered, scratching one hoof with the other before hesitatingly taking a step forward. “Shetland,” as she spoke, her voice grew quieter and quieter, until Shetland struggled to make out the words. With Toasty standing on the bed, her eyes were only a few inches below the earth pony’s. “Shetland Sparkle!” The robot started once again, her voice firm, yet oddly delivered, as if she was speaking in court. “W-would you like to… to practise shooting with me?”
“Yeah, sure.” Shetland said, confused by the strange way she was asked such a simple question. Still, she showed a reassuring smile. “We can do it regularly, now.”
A loud groan came from above. “Toasty!” Magenta exclaimed, gaining the robot’s attention as she landed on a bedpost, then proceeded to smack her forehooves against one another.
“What the-” Shetland muttered, but Toasty nodded, the strange message seemingly clicking with her.
“I’m sorry,” Toasty turned back to looking into Shetland’s eyes. “That’s not quite what I meant, I wanted to ask- I uh…” Her voice cut out , her eyelights darkening before both of her forehooves suddenly shot forward, grabbing Shetland’s shoulders. “Shetland Sparkle, do you want to go on a date with me?”
“I-” Shetland’s eye widened as she stared at the small robot. Then, a smile crossed her lips as she nodded. “We’ll go shooting, Toasty. As often as you want.”
That moment, a long yawn reached Shetland’s ears, and she felt the mattress shift as Twilight’s head rose, eyes blinking. “Shetland!” she exclaimed, nearly pushing Toasty out of the way as she rushed to her daughter. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine!” The earth pony exclaimed, trying to stave off Twilight’s motherly assault with her healthy hoof, but it was no use. A second later, she found her head in the alicorn’s tight grip as Twilight felt her temperature, inspected her bandages and fluffed up her pillows all at once. “Mooom,” Shetland complained.
“I don’t want to hear a word!” Twilight said matter-of-factly. “You are far from fine: you are badly injured, and for once, I expect you to behave like it and stay. In. Bed!”
At the final word, Shetland felt an invisible force push against her chest, forcing her back into a lying position.
The alicorn took a slow breath. “Never do that again.” she whispered, but the silence only allowed the rumbling beneath her voice to rise. “Do you have any idea, Shetland, any idea how risky that was? We almost lost you here!” Her hoof slammed down as she shouted. “You looked as pale as a ghost when they carted you in, me and Luna had to take turns donating blood just so you could get through the operations!” She took a shaky breath, her wings halfway flared out as she looked down at Shetland’s bandaged cheek, tears welling in her eyes. “Does it hurt, Shetty?”
Shetland could only nod as the dull stinging in her left eye made her grimace once more. “A painkiller would be nice.”
“I’ll arrange for it.” Twilight whispered, as if she was afraid to lose control over her voice if she spoke any louder. “You should rest now, anyway-”
“No, not yet.” Shetland sat up. “Mom, what about Gan and Crust? And… me? How bad am I?” As much as she’d tried to sound calm and collected, she flinched as those last words came out of her mouth, hating how her voice pitched.
Twilight looked around, as if she wasn’t sure if she wanted to answer. “Gan is no longer in danger,” she finally said. “But he suffered from internal bleeding and it will take a few more days until he is ready to have visitors. As for the Voidmarine that accompanied you, I’m not sure-”
“P-princess,” Magenta’s voice squeaked as she addressed the alicorn, and she nearly pulled her head into her torso like a tortoise as she caught Twilight’s look, but nonetheless she continued. “Crust is in a hearing about his actions, t-they say they might take his job away!”
“For a maneuver this insane, probably.” Twilight shook her head. “But,” she added with a glance to Shetland. “I will see if I can postpone the final decision until you are able to share your part of the story.”
Shetland slumped back into her pillow. “Thanks,” she muttered, yet she couldn’t feel relief. Not when she knew what was coming next. “So… what about me? It-” she swallowed, feeling that familiar lump once more as she croaked out her words. “You said it was bad?”
Twilight let out a long, unwilling sigh. “If you want a full rundown-”
“Please.”
“Alright.” She closed her eyes as the tip of her wing pointed at Shetland’s forehoof. “A bullet was lodged inside your leg. It was stopped by the bone, but on its way it severed tissue and even some muscle. The doctors say they can restore it fully, but only if there is absolutely no further damage.” Her voice had adopted a distanced tone, as if she was dictating a report instead of informing a patient. “Then your face… the damage on your cheek is superficial, yet the area affected was quite large and you lost a lot of blood.” She shook herself, before her feather rose to Shetland’s right eye. “Finally, your eye-” Twilight swallowed. When she spoke, her voice carried revolted horror. “You had glass shards sticking in your eyeball, Shetty, and all over the rest of your face. I-I don’t know how that could happen, but it was-” She bit her lip. “It caused a large amount of internal bleeding in your eye, Shetty.”
“Seriously, it was scary.” Magenta whispered, her eyes widened as if she was experiencing the shock right then. “Your eye was completely red, I could barely make out your pupil.”
Shetland swallowed. She’d taken it all in with a sort of distanced, morbid curiosity, as if she was told the fate of a distant acquaintance. “I… assume I’ll be half-blind then?”
Twilight couldn’t face Shetland’s look, but her nod was still crystal clear.
“W-well then…” Shetland whispered, trying to force a dry chuckle out of her throat. “It’s a reason to wear an eyepatch, right? I-I’ll look awesome with that.”
“To be honest, it stopped being awesome.” Toasty said. “Now it’s just approaching Flankenstein levels of patchwork.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Toasty.” Shetland muttered, resisting the urge to rub over her broken eyeball. “There’s- there’s no way to restore it?” She didn’t have to look up to know that Twilight was shaking her head. It was not just shock that rested heavy in her stomach, it was confusion. How did one respond to that? What did you say after losing half your vision? “I-I guess there’s a reason ponies have two of those.” She joked. There was no laughter. Only awkward and uncertain looks thrown around. She shook her head. If only she could be alone for a day or two, left to dwell on the news. But there is still work to be done.
“Magenta.” She said, her voice carrying a sternness that made the other pony look up in surprise. “I want you to bring in the robot I wanted you to watch over. Is he safe?”
Magenta hurriedly nodded. “I-I left him with Sparktail. Kept wanting to talk to you, said he has some kind of business-”
“Fetch him,” she ordered. “Now.” As Magenta jumped to her hooves, followed by a surprised look from Twilight, Shetland turned her attention to her other friend. “Toasty, I’m sorry, but I need you to leave.”
“Wh-what? Why?” Toasty exclaimed. “What kind of robot is he?”
“I’ll tell you later, Toasty,” Shetland promised. “But for now you have to leave-” Her eyes trailed down to the holster dangling on the robot’s flank. “And I would be very thankful if you could lend me your gun.”
“What?” Toasty and Twilight exclaimed. “Why do you need my gun?”
“Because it’s the kind of visitor I’d rather have some insurance for.” she said darkly.
Twilight’s jaw dropped as she stared at her daughter. “Shetland-”
“Not now. Toasty?” She gave the robot a probing look.
“I don’t like this.” Toasty said, her eyelights flashing dangerously. Yet in the same moment, she pulled the pistol out of her holster. “Promise you will be safe.”
“I promise.” Shetland whispered.
Suddenly, Toasty reared up, her smooth faceplate pressing against Shetland’s nose. Realizing a moment later what she was going for, Shetland pressed her lips to the smooth metal.
“I will hold you to that.” Toasty said sternly as she dropped back on all fours and left the room.
“Did you just-” Twilight blinked, as if she couldn’t quite believe what she just saw. “You and your friend-”
“I think she’s my marefriend now.” Shetland admitted, her lips twitching briefly as she watched her mother’s expression of shock.
But Twilight quickly overcame her surprise as her voice adopted a cold, commanding tone. “Who is that robot you sent your friend for?”
With her eye narrowing to a glare, Shetland closely inspected the pistol. “I’ve made a deal with the devil, mom.”
The temperature seemed to fall several degrees as the A.I. made its entrance, wearing the unassuming guise of a robot-stallion’s body. Twilight’s wings flared out, nearly blocking Shetland from seeing the newcomer. With an annoyed huff, the earth pony shoved the wing aside.
The A.I. came to a halt a metre from Shetland’s bed, its icy-blue eyes glowing slightly as it regarded their reaction. “I see you are already aware of my identity, Princess Twilight.” Its voice was smooth, yet it lacked any emotional affection. At the side of its head was a clean hole, proclaiming the fate of the body’s original core. “Your daughter and I have agreed upon terms for my surrender. In good faith, I have fulfilled my obligations. Now I expect you to fulfill your end of the bargain.”
Distaste flashed across Twilight’s face. “She’s offered you amnesty for all your crimes. From your recent attacks all the way to history’s greatest massacre. Millions of all kinds of creatures, many of them close to me.” She took a step forward, her expression distorting as she glared down at the robot’s body. “Many, many of them were close to me.” She shot a fiery glance back at Shetland. “You had no right to make such an offer!”
The A.I. reared up, meeting the alicorn’s eyes. “She made an offer in the name of the Sparkles!” it proclaimed loudly. “I did my part. All robots have been restored to their normal states. In return, I am allowed to slip through your scanning. Are you going to go back on your daughter’s word, Princess of Friendship?”
Twilight gritted her teeth, shooting angry glares at the A.I., then at Shetland. “It would be just. For the ponies, robots and dragons that died because of you.” she hissed. But then she slowly folded her wings, taking a long, cooling breath. “But I am not the Princess of Justice.”
“Then you will hide me from your scans.” It said, its eyelights brightening.
“Oh, You won’t be checked.” Shetland affirmed. In a burst of movement, she pulled the gun from the covers, centering it right on the A.I’.s head. Its eyes widened, Twilight shouted, the gun lurched upwards as its bang echoed through the room.
The robot’s body stumbled back, shivering as it covered its head with its hooves. Twilight’s magic seized the gun, ready to wrestle it out of Shetland’s grip, but the earth pony offered no resistance, all her attention focused on the A.I. as it slowly raised its head, feeling the hole ripped into its ear. “You get one life.” Shetland hissed, lava boiling behind her eye as it drilled into the visor. “You can walk away, and live like any other robot. But,” she whispered, the rumbling in her voice more apparent as she grew quieter. “If you try anything, I will find you. And there are not enough robots on this planet to stop me. Understood?”
The A.I. nodded. With intensely glowing eyelights, it took a step back.
“Good.” Shetland said, turning her attention to her mother, who gave an equally surprised look. “Can you take care of it?” She made a grimace, as it felt like a lance was slowly pushed through her eyeball. “And… get me some painkillers on the way.”
“I will bring a doctor.” Twilight said. She gave the A.I. a suspicious look as she seized it in her magic, not allowing it the dignity of walking as they left the room. “Oh, and Shetland,” she said with a final look back, “I will see to it that we all can visit you tomorrow morning.”
“Aren’t you gonna be busy?” Shetland asked, trying to force a playful smile through her pained grimace. “What about your schedule?”
“Damn my schedule,” Twilight said, a small grin managing to appear on her face. “My daughter has a marefriend now.”
“Painkillers!” Shetland moaned, leaning back as her mother disappeared behind the closed door. And as the doctor came in and gave her the syringe, allowing the dull throbbing to die away in the background, there was one thought that finally allowed the week-long tension to erode away.
