> The Apocalypse [Pony Edition] > by Pinkamena666 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > The Journey Begins > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dune awoke from his sleep and let out a yawn. He looked over at the clock on the bedside table. It read 7:04am. Letting out another yawn, the colt pulled the covers off and got out of bed. His room was average-sized. A bed in the corner and the door in the opposite corner. Between his bed and the wall was a table with a digital clock and a picture of his older sister. Dune then trotted into the bathroom and began to get ready to go out. Moments later, he emerged from his home and breathed in deeply, taking in the morning air. The colt began making his way to the marketplace to see what the shops had to offer. He had checked his saddlebag before he left to make sure he had enough bits and exactly how much bits he did have. He looked around the area when he suddenly bumped into two colts. "Oh... Sorry," he said, before realizing who it was. "Well, well, well..." said the blue colt on the left. "Look who it is, Cinder. It's Dune." "This sure is a nice surprise, isn't it, Ash?" said the red colt on the right. "Ash. Cinderblock," said Dune. "Can't you leave me alone for just one day?" "Oh, come on, D," said Cinder. "You know why you pay us, don't you?" "Yeah, we... keep others off your back," said Ash, stepping closer. "You need our protection." "No, I don't. I can handle myself." "Is that a fact?" asked Ash, before shoving Dune to the ground. The colt's saddlebag fell off and hit the ground. Cinder picked it up and opened it. "Look, Ash. Bits." "Hey, that's mine!" Dune protested as he started to get back up. Ash pushed him back down and he hit his head. "Not so fast, Dune." Dune let out a grunt as he began to get angry. "Give it back!" "Ooh, temper, temper," said Ash mockingly. Dune's eyes flashed red briefly and Ash's grin faded. "Uh... Cinder?" Cinder ignored the colt and looked through the bag. "What else you got in here?" Dune's hoof started to glow bright blue. He just stared at his hoof in awe. "What the f..." "Cinder!" yelled Ash. "What?" said Cinder, annoyed, looking over at Ash. Upon seeing Dune's hoof, his grin faded. "What's going on?" Dune began to crawl backwards and stomping his hoof into the ground to try and put it out. "What the hell's going on?!" he yelled, afraid. The light grew brighter until a large energy blast fired from it, impacting the ground, and launching him into the air. The concussive blast also knocked the colts back and sent a strong gust of wind throughout the marketplace. Dune watched the ground get further and further away until he suddenly began falling. "WHAT THE HELL??!!!" he yelled as his large arc seemed to be ending in the Everfree Forest. It wasn't long before he slammed into the ground at full force, creating a large crater. The colt lay motionless for a while before letting out a groan. "Oh, sweet Celestia..." he groaned, staggering to his hooves. He shook off some dirt and looked around. "Did I really just survive that fall?" he asked himself before looking at his hooves. "And what the hell was that?" He looked around and realized where he was. Dune then took off back home. Once there, he burst through the door and slammed it shut behind him, locking it. Suddenly he collapsed. "So... weak..." he groaned. Dune took in a deep breath before crawling into his room and into the warm comfort of his bed. Dune slowly opened his eyes and looked out the bedroom window. Night time. He let out a groan as he rolled out of bed and headed into the hall. He was on his way to the kitchen when he noticed the front door was open. He let out a gasp as his heart rate sped up. He quickly ran into the kitchen and grabbed the biggest knife he could find. "I don't think you'll be needing that," said a female's voice. Dune let out a yell and spun around, pointing the knife at a purple mare with goggles on her forehead. "Wh-Who the hell are you and why are you in my house?" "We need your help, Dune." The colt hesitated. "And how do you know my name?!" "There's no time for that. Right now, you need to come with us. The fate of the world's at stake." Dune cocked his head. "The f... The world? What are you talking about? What's going on?!" The purple mare sighed and sat down at the kitchen table. "Long ago, during the Great War, scientists thought that if they developed machines to fight for them, it would lessen the number of soldier casualties." Dune slightly lowered the knife and began to slowly move towards the table, intrigued by what the mare was saying. "Well, the scientists succeeded in making one perfect machine," the mare continued. "MK-0001, they called it. Well, apparently one day, something went very wrong and the machine killed every pony it crossed as it broke out. Now, it's created an army called the Metaru, powerful robotic ponies." "And where do I come in in all this?" asked Dune, a litttle afraid of what the mare was telling him. "You're the only one who can stop him." "What?" asked Dune. "No no no no no... I can't fight a legion of robots with the entire world at stake." "Look, Dune... without you the world's already dead. At least with you, there's a chance." Dune covered his head with his hooves. "This can't be happening." The mare stood up. "Well, it is. So, are you in or out?" Dune lowered his hooves and smiled briefly. "My father always said that one day I'd know my purpose." He looked at his hooves. "And now I know." He lowered his hooves and looked up at the purple mare. "All right. I'm in." > On The Ship > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dune and the purple mare stood outside. The mare looked up at the starry night sky. "What are you looking at?" asked Dune, confused. The mare smiled. "Our ride." "What are you--" Dune started. He was cut off when a small circle of light appeared in the sky and a metal plate shhot out from it, hitting the ground in front of the mare. Dune jumped back in shock. The metal plate had a chain attached to it, leading up to the circle of light in the sky. The mare stepped onto the circular plate and faced Dune. "You coming?" she asked. Dune gulped and slowly stepped onto the plate. "Might wanna hold on." Dune looked at the mare, who had her left foreleg around the chain. Dune did the same with his right and suddenly the plate was yanked into the sky. Dune let out a yell as the circle of light kept getting bigger and bigger. He closed his eyes and he hunkered down, still gripping the chain. He could feel the wind rush passed as he went further and further into the sky. Then, all of a sudden, the plate slowed to a stop and a metal clanking could be heard. "We're here, Dune," said the mare. "You can open your eyes now." Dune slowly opened his eyes and looked around. They were in a semi-small room with only one hallway leading out. Beneath the plate was a closed, circular, metallic door. The colt watched as the mare stepped off the plate and headed down the hall. "Come on," said the purple mare. "Move it." Dune quickly scrambled off the plate and caught up with the mare. "So, you know my name..." Dune began. "What's yours?" The mare eyed him before looking straight again. "Wave Rider." Dune nodded as he eyed a couple hallways that branched off of their current path. "Cool name." Wave eyed him again. "Are you looking at the hallways?" "Um... Yeah... Why?" Wave looked forward again and smiled. "No particular reason." The mare suddenly turned down a hall on the left. Dune followed, making sure he didn't lose her. They continued moving through corridor after corridor. "So, where are we?" asked Dune, looking around. "A large aircraft. Powered by ancient Babylonian technology. A constant source of energy." Dune nodded. "Right. And why couldn't we see it from the ground?" "The entire bottom of the ship is cloaked to match whatever the sky looks like." They continued moving down hallways until they arrived in a large room with double doors at the far wall. Wave approached it and the doors slid open, revealing a command room with a large cockpit window. A green colt stood at the window. "That you, Wave?" he asked. "Yeah, Jet. We got him." The green colt turned around as Dune entered the room. "Dune. How are you?" "I'm, uh... confused... and slightly nervous." "Well, that's to be expected," said Jet, trotting over to him. "Right, so... she's Wave Rider... and you are?" "Jet Stream. Founder of the Rogues." "Rogues, huh?" asked Dune. "So, you act outside the law like... bandits?" Jet eyed Wave before looking back at Dune. "That is our normal activities. We specialize in tracking down ancient treasures. But, given the current situation, we've put all our focus on stopping Metallix." "Right, so..." said Dune, tapping a hoof on the floor. "Am I gonna learn how to, uh... do... stuff?" Jet turned and walked towards his desk. "We'll teach you what we can tomorrow. Right now, we need to rest. Wave will show you to your room." The purple mare eyed Dune before leaving the room. Jet looked over his shoulder. "Better follow her, Dune. It's a big ship." "Oh! Right..." said Dune, running after Wave. Jet looked out the window and sighed. "I sure hope this works." Wave stopped in front of a door and pressed a button on the wall. The door slid open. "Here's your room, Dune. Now, get some sleep." "Thanks..." Dune stood in the doorway and turned around. "So, what's your story, Wave?" "My story?" "Yeah. Your past. I'd like to know who I'm gonna be working with." Wave's eyes narrowed. "Listen here, Dune. If you can't deliver on your end, then we won't be working together, do you understand me?" "Well, I just--" "Because we'll all be dead," Wave interrupted. "So, stop worrying about who we are and start worrying about how you're gonna fight." With that she turned and left. Dune watched her leave before slowly turning around. "Dayum..." he said, closing his door. Dune looked around his room. A bed was set up in the far right corner and a dresser on the left. Very basic necessities but it works. Dune yawned and headed to bed. Wave trotted down the halls and stopped at her room, opening the door. Jet trotted up to her. "You okay, Wave?" he asked. "You seem on edge." "Nothing, Jet," said Wave, thinking about her past. "Nothing at all." "Is it about your past?" he asked. Wave eyed him and looked away. "It wasn't your fault, Wave. There was nothing you could've done." "Yes, there was! I-If I wasn't too scared, I-I could've..." Jet put a hoof on her shoulder. "Wave. It wasn't your fault." Wave hesitated before quickly went inside and closed the door. Jet let out a sigh and headed to his own room for the night.