Chapter 22
Author's Note: Welcome back, everyone! I hope you're all ready for Part Two of the Chained Defiance arc. In terms of how long this arc is, we're in the middle chapter, meaning that the next chapter will be the finale. Not the finale of the story itself, but the finale of this mini arc I've had in mind. Today's chapter will feature another character I've created for this story, as well as the identity behind the robotic alicorn Pika had discovered to be the thief. That's all I have to say, so I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and I'll see you at the end.
Ruthless Punishment
From within the thoughts of my mind, I think back to my teacher Volisk. One of the 'mons that changed my life, I helped him with experiments for the greater good of life as a whole. One feat I'll always remember is how he had created the first artificial Pokémon in the whole world. From getting to know him as an individual, I grew appreciative of his dream of wanting to create species of artificial life. Witnessing the birth of this 'mon, I smiled towards the possibility of his dreams becoming reality. From then on, whenever me and my brothers found blueprints for a artificial Pokémon, we take them to Volisk and have him give life to this 'mon. We could help them find meaning in their life, while Volisk gained one step closer towards his dreams.
The reason why I'm thinking this thought was from what I saw within that robotic alicorn. During my travels in different worlds, I encountered numerous amounts of robots like them. But, from my duels, those robots wanted to end me and my brothers' lives, to which we end theirs as a result. But, that pony from before didn't seem to be that hostile, but instead like a errand droid. I remember how the artificial 'mons that Volisk created were made to experience emotions like us. So, judging by the actions of that robotic pony, they didn't seem to have a free will of their own. I hope that whenever I meet them again, I can find a way to let them experience the world as it is for the first time. Beautiful and serene, with a gust of wind to blow the leaves and grass...
Thinking that thought to myself with a smile, I heard Twilight say from behind me, "Fascinating. I've never seen a feather quite like this before." After my discovery with that synthetic pony, me and Twilight returned the stolen goods to the Bookshop owner, Barrel Boss, and the robbed owners. Afterwards, we went back to Twilight's castle and head towards the library for research. Searching for clues for who that robotic pony was, I told Twilight on what I found out about the culprit being a robot. At first, she looked at me as if I was crazy, but when I showed her the feather, she immediately joined my claim and began her research as well. At first, we haven't found much, but it seems to be that Twilight found something interesting about that feather.
Believing that thought, I asked her, "Did you find something interesting, Twilight?"
Nodding her head, she explains to me, "You see, sweetie, this feather doesn't seem to be that of a normal pegasi feather. Sure, it does look like a feather Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy may have, but this is made of artificial material. Whoever made this has supreme knowledge of artificial creation since it's nearly impossible to make a synthetic feather like this!"
Hearing her facts about that feather gives me a bit of a clue as to what's going on. It looks like whoever created that artificial alicorn must be a genius crime inventor, using them to steal without dirtying their hooves. I don't know what we need to do, but I know for now that my next objective is to follow that robot towards their base. Looking at Twilight, I tell her, "If that pony's a inventor, then we need to get towards their base and stop them, Twi."
Nodding her head, she mentions, "You're absolutely correct, Pika. I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure that robot pegasus will be back here soon, stealing more possessions from other ponies." I don't get surprised over her saying pegasus since she wasn't there when the synthetic alicorn revealed themselves with their horn and wings. However, her determined expression turned into a questioning perspective as she asked herself, "But, how are we going to get that pony to reveal themselves?"
Thinking towards a plan, I try to think of a strategy for following the alicorn and catching the real culprit. The best way to catch them would be to lure them into a trap with an item worth stealing. But the question is, what should we use to lure the mechanical pony with? As much as a single possession from one pony would work, I can't guarantee the safety of that item. Especially if that item's extremely precious for that particular pony. However, as I was thinking this over, I suddenly thought of a perfect item we can use to follow that android! However, in order to make this work, I need to have the acceptance of this pony.
Looking over at Twilight, I asked her, "Can I ask you a question, Twilight?" Upon seeing her nod for yes, I questioned, "Is Pinkie Pie still up?"
Confused by my question, but willing to answer, she tells me, "Well, Pinkie's probably gonna close up shop for the night, but she should be up. Is there a reason you asked, sweetie?"
Smiling over at her, I explain to her, "I know the perfect way to follow that pony and catch the real culprit. However, in order for this to work, we must go to Sugarcube Corner first."
Realizing what I had in mind, she smiles and tells me, "Oh, I see where this is going. Alright, partner, we're heading off to Pinkie's place, so hop on!"
Happy over her calling me 'partner', I hop on Twilight's back, and we both set off towards Sugarcube Corner. Walking within the light darkness, we leave the Castle of Friendship and head into Ponyville. Roaming street after street, I take note of the eerie atmosphere regarding the robotic thief. Because of what they did, and how they're still on the loose, ponies were locked up in their homes, scared for their items' safety. Feeling sympathy for the innocent, I narrow my eyes towards the ground in determination. No matter what happens, I will catch the true culprit behind this and save that robotic alicorn.
Looking around, I spot the bright lights of the sweet shop, signifying on how it's open. Inside, I could see Pinkie hopping around, checking the quantities of the desserts. Walking towards the shop and heading inside, she notices us and smiles wide, asking us, "Twilight! Pika! What are you two silly owls doing out in the night?"
Smiling at her chirpiness, showing that she may not have been robbed, I tell her, "Well, Pinkie, me and Twilight are trying to solve a case of a pony stealing possessions from other ponies."
I heard her gasp sharply at this, not surprised over her getting alarmed for this situation. But, what did get me surprised was how she zoomed over to us and quickly exclaimed with wide, joyful eyes, "You two are solving a case?! That's amazing! Hey, do you think I can join in as well?! I can help really well, I really can! Me and Twilight solved a case at the Friendship Express, so she can vouch for me! Can you let me join, pretty pleaseeee?"
Holding a paw up to comprehend her words and sentences, I look at Pinkie's excited gaze and puppy-like eyes, before replying with, "Since Twilight told me of your deeds towards that case, it would be appreciative if you join us."
Laughing joyfully, she grabs me from Twilight's back and hugs me tight, telling me, "Woohoo! Thank you so, so much, Pika! I can guarantee you that with me, you, and Twilight here, we'll be the best detective team in all of Equestria! Though, if we had Rarity with us, then our team would be the most ultimate and sweetest team EVER!"
Hearing her mention Rarity, I figured that she must have experience being a detective as well. I could have gone to her for assistance with this case, but number one, it was almost night, so she probably would be sleeping right now. But, for number two, even if she was awake, she seemed rather prideful of her work, and I couldn't sacrifice her work for the artificial alicorn to steal. Going to Pinkie Pie for help seems like a much better idea, since she's a great cook, and making desserts like cupcakes is easier than making clothes.
Letting me go, she looks at us and questions in a merry tone, "So, what's our plan, team? Do we go find the culprit, party cannons blazin', or do we lure them in, like a foal seeking chocolate ice cream?"
Placing a paw on my side, I explain to her, "Probably the second option you said, Pinkie. Here's what I had in mind." Gesturing and walking towards a clean, flat table, I hop on it as Twilight and Pinkie walk towards me, sitting down on the ground. Clearing my voice for a bit, I describe to the both of them my plan for following the culprit.
"From what me and Twilight know, Pinkie, there's somepony going around, stealing possessions from other ponies. From glassware to books, this culprit has something that they want to achieve, and it's probably not a good thing. My plan to stop these robberies involve baking cupcakes irresistible for the thief to not pass up. To make following the pony easier for us, I'll place a high level tracking spell on the cupcakes. Because of the advanced magic I'll be using, they shouldn't be able to detect the tampered cupcakes giving us their location. Does this idea sound good?"
Twilight nods her head, telling me, "That sounds good, sweetie. We'll follow the thief with the baked cupcakes, and catch the true schemer of this situation." Looking back at Pinkie, she asks in concern, "Are you ok with us doing this, Pinkie?"
Blinking a few times, Pinkie Pie says in a, surprisingly, happy tone, "Why, of course, Twilight! We can catch this meanie-beanie with bakey treats, and then we'll throw one, big party to celebrate!" Hopping all around us excitingly, she exclaims, "I'll go ahead and prepare the cupcakes! Be back out in a second~!"
Before I can ask her if she needed help, she zooms off towards the kitchen and back out in a flat second. On her back was a plate with three, green frosted cupcakes on top. There were sprinkles of varying colors, and the aroma that the cupcakes were giving off was simply divine. I must say, I didn't expect Pinkie Pie to finish the cupcakes and be back here in one second. It's as if what she did was completely normal, because Twilight wasn't fazed whatsoever.
Shocked, but clapping my paws regardless, I say in a impressed tone, "That was incredibly fast, Pinkie. I was about to ask if you needed help, but you managed to finish within one second. Honestly, I'm pretty impressed of your skills as a baker."
Placing the cupcakes on the table, she grabs me with her hooves and lightly rubs the fur on my head. Giggling profusely, she tells me, "Oh, you sweet, little mouse! I'm so excited to see if this pony's gonna love my cupcakes!"
Letting me go, I walk over to the plate, and hold my arms out forward. Muttering a few activation words for the tracking spell, I watch as a red wisp sprung out of my paws. Moving towards the plate, the wisp goes around the cupcakes before moving its body above them, turning into a sphere big enough to consume all three. Moving down, we watch the sphere seemingly consume the frosted desserts, but then it dissipates, leaving the three behind, all normal. Both Twilight and Pinkie look at me with smiles, seeing how my powers can make finding this cloaked thief easier to catch.
Looking back at them, I questioned, "So, should we take the plate outside now?" Saying that sentence, we place the plate outside of Sugarcube Corner, and then we went towards a brown crate outside the shop. Hiding behind it, we watch the plate and its surroundings, with me concentrating on the coordinates of the cupcakes, just to test if my spell's working.
After a while, I heard something walking, and I looked around, only to notice the same robotic alicorn from before. Looking at their appearance, I could see that their cloak was still tattered a bit, revealing their face and horn. At first, the synthetic pony examined the plate, not showing any emotion on their face for me to examine. However, after a while, I noticed a white aura radiating from their horn, which grabs hold of the cupcakes. I could tell that Twilight has her mouth agape, seeing how the pony in front of her is a alicorn, just like her. Mentally laughing from that thought, I watch as she places them in her bag, before she spreads her wings out and flies towards the sky.
Getting out of the cover, I rush towards the alicorn, not losing sight of them and not intending to. Twilight and Pinkie Pie follow afterwards, with Pinkie shouting in excitement, "Follow that pony!"
Pursuing the alicorn around, we went out of Ponyville and towards the plains, with the night sky beaming shining light upon us. During the travel, I saw how the alicorn was still non-vigilant towards their surrounding. In fact, the robot pony looks to be slowing down a bit. I may have no clue as to why it's doing this, but it may be due to how it's close towards its base. My evidence for this was how in the distance, I could see a building sticking out from the plains, and the cloaked pony was flying towards it. As we get closer, I could make out how it looked.
The building itself doesn't seem to be that huge. Its structure seemed to be that of a spacey circle, with a gray telescope shooting out the center of it. The color of the building itself was a dark silvery clear, with some blue windows sticking out the wall. To the side of the building, a hangar-like place was hanging out with the doors open. Whatever that area was, it seemed to contain something created by this schemer for even more trouble. Stopping in my tracks, I take note of how... deserted this area looked to be. The walls seemed to look a bit rusted, with cobwebs sticking out towards the ground. Perhaps whoever owns this building doesn't want anypony or creature to come inside to see what they're doing. But, for the sake of everypony in Ponyville, we must stop the schemer behind this.
Hearing panting behind me, I could hear Pinkie ask in exhaustion, "Did we make it? Or am I going to lie down and dream about desserts till morning, Pika?"
Slightly giggling towards her question, I tell her, "We made it, Pinkie. But, I'm pretty sure this dilapidated area is the schemer's home base."
Looking up, Twilight sees the building in front of her rather exhausted, inquiring to me, "Really? But why would somepony live here? Especially if they're far away from civilization?"
Shaking my head, I answer, "I have no idea, Twi. All I know is that whoever's inside must be the owner of this and the alicorn above us." Looking towards the both of them, I question them both, "Are you two ready for what's inside?"
Seeing them nod in perseverance, I smile and say, "Good. Because we're going inside right now. And the pony above us is gonna lead us right towards them."
With the synthetic alicorn a bit far from us, we rush towards them just as they stop in front of the building. With my hearing, I decipher what the alicorn says, which is, "NO. C-913 ARRIVING FROM SURVEY. REQUESTING ENTRY FROM MAFI-MASTER."
When they finished, I could see the walls open up in a slow fashion, revealing darkness from within. The cloaked pony heads inside, to which the walls start to close afterwards at a fast pace. Seeing this, I use Quick Attack, and, to my luck, managed to reach it just as the door closes. Knowing how Twilight and Pinkie were left behind, I use Psychic, and open the gate for them. Holding it up, I watch as both Twilight and Pinkie enter through, to which I close the gates soon after, my powers not straining me from that exertion.
Glancing around the dark, I use electricity to make my tail glow in the dark, giving us a light source to use within this area. The colors inside are the same as outside, but the area didn't seem to look as abandoned as before. I could see some machines in the background, pumping out some sort of energy to make this building function. Around us were crates we could use as cover for chance of the schemer not finding and exposing us. I could see the alicorn from before, standing there as if it's awaiting orders from somepony. However, I saw them move their head towards me, but to make sure I don't get caught, I use Teleport and move myself towards one of the crates. Seeing what I was doing, Twilight and Pinkie hid as well, with me peeking out to see what's going on.
Suddenly, the lights blared on, with the alicorn's head turning back to its original position. I could see two doorways from the left and right sides of the room, with a green-furred unicorn moving from the right side. This unicorn was wearing what seems to be a lab coat, making it impossible for me to see their Cutie Mark. However, I could imagine that their mark represented something involving mechanics and engineering. Also, I saw that their horn looked a bit taller and seemingly artificial, meaning that their original horn was destroyed and replaced in the first place. They had glasses on their face, and their red-orange eyes looked a bit feminine, showing that they were a female. As a final bit, her mane color was a bit of a yellow and gray combination, making sense as to what her occupation must be.
Walking towards the robotic pony, she asked them, "Did you find anything from that measly town, C-913?"
Using their horn to levitate the bag toward the unicorn, C-913 explains to her, "SURVEY SHOWS NOT MANY OBJECTS TO SALVAGE FROM TOWN PONYVILLE; ENCOUNTERED CUPCAKES 5 FT AWAY FROM A SHOP."
Pulling out a cupcake and taking a bite out of it, the green-furred pony questions, "I'm going to assume that the shop was still open, right?"
Nodding their head, C-913 tells her, "LIGHTS FUNCTIONING NEAR SHOP; PROBABILITY OF PONIES STILL AWAKE - 82 PERCENT CHANCE."
Suddenly, without warning, the unicorn shoots out a fast, arrow-shaped red spell from her horn towards C-913. Not expecting this, they don't move as they gets striked down, skidding across the floor. Despite being synthetic, I saw a glance of pain radiate from their eyes, revealing that they can experience pain. My eyes widen, as I glared at the unicorn who shot them, seemingly revealed to be a heartless mastermind. From asking what the robot stole, to questioning if anypony's awake, she was definitely part of a sinister plot for something within Equestria. I quickly thought out a plan for stopping this scientist, while I wondered what my act would be for preventing the mechanical pony from becoming a criminal.
Suddenly, a thought goes into my head for the robotic alicorn, asking me, 'Could this pony live a life full of emotions? Could I teach them to see how they aren't a machine full of logic and arithmetic?' I don't know why this thought entered my mind, but I was willing to try to convince this alicorn to leave evil and redeem themselves. If we could stop this unicorn from succeeding in their schemes, then perhaps the alicorn could break free of their controlled fate and live in harmony with us. The worst case scenario for me would be to destroy this pony and erase their life forever, but hopefully, I wouldn't have to resort to that.
Looking towards the hurt alicorn, I could hear the attacker call out, "You idiotic, wired abomination! Your goal was to steal without being caught by anypony, or creature! What if that "Hero of Ponyville", or whatever, found and scrapped you to pieces?! I'll tell you: You'll be shut out of reality, and I'll have to face discipline by the Padrone! Would you want that to happen to your caretaker and master, C-913?"
Getting up, C-913 dully replies, "EXECUTION OF MASTER - PROBABILITY OF NEVER SEEING AGAIN. WOULD BE... REGRETFUL TO SEE YOU DEAD."
Making a 'tch' sound from her mouth, the green-furred scientist exclaims, "Exactly! First, your last mission ended in failure, and now this mission was probably a fail as well! I thought I was given a proper working android to get my hooves dirty, but apparently, I was wrong."
Walking towards the hurt pony, I watch in horror as the unicorn charges another red beam towards the robotic alicorn. Analyzing the size and intensity of that magic ball forming, this would be enough to deconstruct the poor robot into pieces. If she's really serious about this, then she's gonna... No. I'm not going to stand by and let them die by that lunatic schemer. They deserve so much more than that unicorn coward who prefers to let other ponies do evil deeds for her plans!
Laughing manically, the glasses-wearing pony cries out, "Well, if you can't finish your missions properly, then you might as well eat the dust off of Equestria!"
Seeing the very sliver sight of fear in their eyes, I prepare a spell as C-913 inquires, "MASTER CHARGING ATTACK FOR NO. C-913. PROBABILITY OF ERADICATION OF UNIT - 79 PERCENT CHANCE."
Eyes widening like a psychopath, the scientist cries out, "DIEEE!" as she fires the beam towards the synthetic alicorn...
Author's Note: And that's the end of the second part of the Chained Defiance arc. As I mentioned before, the next chapter published will be the finale of this mini arc. But, this finale will reveal another shocking fact about Pika. Though, if you were observant of this story, then you will probably have a guess at what this fact is. If you want to solve it before reading the next chapter, then I'll give you hint. You may want to reread Chapter 18 to have more sense of what's going on with Pika. That's all I'm going to say, so I hope you all enjoyed today's chapter. Have a good day, and be safe and healthy!
