The Lost Element

by XD-385

Equestria has long been known as the land of ponies. However, the name of Equestria is misleading. For far too long, a certain element has been missing from the world. And now, that element has been brought back. But for better or for worse?

48. Struggle Between the Pages

Feeling far from intimidated, I ducked behind another mailbox with Pinkie Pie being right behind me. "Huh... Stereotypical bank robbery. Really, writers? Probably taking advantage of the mass evacuation to pilfer places of value while risking run-ins with rogue machines."

"Think we should stop them? They're just low-level goons anyway." Pinkie Pie asked from behind me while also not appearing worried at all.

I shook my head and looked back at her. "I'll take care of this. They don't seem like much of a problem. You go find the rest of the girls and help out and then lead them back over here when you're done. Just in case I haven't finished up yet."

"OK! Have fun! I'll be right back!" She said before rushing away in just a few seconds before vanishing from my sensors.

With my buster ready, I began to peek out from behind my hiding spot. Indeed, the goons were carrying out bags and bags of currency. However, I began to wonder if sending Pinkie Pie away so soon was a good idea when I got quite a surprise. Several long and thick...green appendages that seemed to be somewhere between tentacles and ribbons reached out of the rising dust that was coming from the rubble at the entrance to the bank's ruined entrance and seemed to latch onto parts of the ground and outer walls for support. My visor locked onto the green tentacles and were quick to detect very strange properties in them. They seemed to be hair fibers saturated with some sort of substance granting them... I have no idea. The readings found no matches to anything else in my databanks. And then, as the dust began to clear, I saw her. And heard her as she cackled madly. "Mwahahahahaha! Well done! Too bad everypony is busy running for the hills instead of minding their savings!"

I felt my jaw drop open as I saw the frankly bizarre mare holding herself aloft before all of the thugs while some of those green tentacles, which turned out to be her mane and tail, also held several sacks of currency in their grasp. And I had only one thing to say to it. "What the hell am I even looking at? Doc, are you seeing this?"

The doctor's voice sounded noticeably more cautious, almost like he was trying to keep his voice down to avoid being detected. Although that was impossible since he was communicating with me via my internal receiver. "Yes, I am. And I recommend caution. That there is the Mane-iac, the archnemesis of the Power Ponies. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised she has not evacuated the city yet. She's far from defenseless and probably thinks she can take advantage of the city being deserted." All right, what is the deal with all these names in the Power Ponies series having hyphens in them?! I can barely remember where to place them! I mean who was I going to run into next? Captain Fast-Ball, Admiral Big-Bloke-With-Hammer, and Fleet Commander Explodes-In-Your-Face?

Anyway, the Mane-iac was clad in a purple jumpsuit with... Oh, who am I kidding? If you want to know what the Mane-iac looks like, go stop by your local magazine rack and look through the most recent issue of the Power Ponies comic book if you can find it. Saves me some ink anyway. Although her eyes were still one of her more interesting traits...

Even so, my gaze was focused on the Mane-iac's various henchmen. They were exclusively earth ponies and... Well, even though some of then looked a bit gruffer than others and their cutie marks even seemed to reflect this at times, I was not the least bit intimidated by them. How can I be when I have never had any reason to inherently fear the ponies of Equestria so far? But when it came to the Mane-iac herself... She could be trouble. And why was she constantly chuckling and cackling? Even the Joker never busted a gut that much... "What's your advice, doc? Think I can take them?"

"Well, I would personally advise you to leave it to the Power Ponies since they are the most experienced in dealing with her and her goons. But maybe you can still keep them put long enough for the Power Ponies to come back. Fili-Second should have no trouble leading them back to you and she'll be quick about it. Just...try to not overdo it." Luminous replied with a noticeably concerned tone. Why was he so worried?

"OK, doc... Here I go." I muttered before stepping out from my cover and walking down the street towards the gaggle of goons and their cackling ringleader. If I had been human and without my enchanted armor, I would have been compelled to stay out of sight. But with my current capabilities, I was feeling much more confident and like I could do something about this problem.

I kept the H-Buster ready just in case I needed to fire off a quick shot, although I had the hunch I would hardly need it. Even so, my brightly colored appearance did not help me stay hidden, even in low lighting. The Mane-iac was quick to notice my approach and turned to me while dropping the sacks of cash she was carrying in her mane all while her body was held aloft by her many tendril-like locks of hair. "Oh my, I thought everypony got their manes in a twist and skipped town. I guess one stayed behind for good measure... Huh?"

When it became clear that I had been detected, especially once everyone was looking at me, I stopped in my tracks while remaining silent. I was merely gauging my opposition, wondering what the best approach would be. My HUD was hard at work, scanning them all and detecting some odd properties in the Mane-iac's body as well as her mane. Furthermore, it was detecting something large behind her that was completely obscured by that wild and massive mane. Probably a container to carry their loot. Regardless, she seemed genuinely baffled after getting a good look at me and asked, "Uh... What ARE you exactly? A bit tall to be a pony and not burly enough to be a minotaur, aren't you?"

"That doesn't matter." I replied while raising the H-Buster in warning and aiming it in the enemy's general direction. "I'm pretty sure all that cash doesn't belong to you. Besides, this city's undergoing a bit of a crisis right now and you're in danger as long as you're here. I'm sure you've seen all of those machines running amuck, right? No telling what they'll do to you if they catch you!"

The Mane-iac merely cackled at my warnings while her goons remained silent. "Ohohoho, of course I know! And what better time to help myself while they're too busy to keep an eye on their valuables? I've got to get funding for my schemes somehow, you know." Apparently seeing me as a nuisance and wanting to get me out of the way, her mane began to raise her up to reveal the tall object behind her. "Anyway, why don't you get that helmet off so I can give it a little...hardening gel to spice it up?"

The tall bulky object I had detected behind the Mane-iac had not been a storage device at all. Instead, it was a...giant...spray can. I actually hunched forward with my arms hanging low as I tried to comprehend the sight of a prop that would have been too absurd even for Pinkie Pie. I began to snicker at the absurdity of the Mane-iac's tool and soon even laughed at her. "Pffhahaha! I know hair care products used to be your thing, but isn't this overdoing it a bit?!"

"Hey! I'm the only one who gets to laugh in these situations! That's MY job!" She replied with some irritation before cackling once more in a likely attempt to outdo me while the tip of one of her big locks of hair began to reach for the nozzle.

Apparently due to me not taking the situation seriously at all, Doctor Luminous began to yell at me over his transmission. "Project H, that isn't a harmless device! That's her Hairspray Ray of Doom!"

This only got me to laugh harder. "Of Doom?! Oh, come on, doc! How unsubtle can you get with naming something like that?! This isn't the Silver Age of comic books, right?! Why not the Hairspray Ray of Calamity?! Or maybe the Hairspray Shower of the Apocalypse?! Or... Hey!" It was while I was ranting over the quite frankly unoriginal naming of that device that the Mane-iac pressed down on the nozzle and sent a cloud of pale pink gas right at me. My HUD was quick to scan it just before it could engulf me. "Whoa! Neurotoxins?!"

"That'll keep you nice and still for a while!" The Mane-iac cackled evilly as the gas dissipated around me. I stood my ground with my arms crossed over my face. If I was still human, I would have likely breathed some in by that point. And considering that my visor detected high amounts of a potent neurotoxin in that cloud, it likely left me rendered temporarily immobile. That is until I actually remembered I had no nervous system to poison. I first tried flexing my fingers and found that they were still completely flexible. I then lowered my arms and stuck my leg out while flexing my knee. The Mane-iac seemed to be genuinely shocked that someone had been left unaffected by her weapon and proceeded to spray me with another plume of the stuff. "What the...?! How about a double dose?!"

Once that cloud of hairspray dissipated, I did not even bother to humor her with testing my joints. I merely smirked and laughed at her. "Ha! Hate to break it to you, but I don't think that junk works on robots!"

It was then that her goons seemed ready to brawl as they assumed more menacing stances. Furthermore, while noticeably surprised, the Mane-iac still laughed at me. "Oh?! Mwahahaha! So what if you're still nice and permed? You're superpowers are still shot for a while! You're defenseless!"

"Superpowers? Girl, please." I said with another smirk while I took aim at the massive hairspray bottle. "This is the only power I need."

I fired one shot at the spray can. The Mane-iac clearly must have sensed danger as her mane's many tendrils quickly scrambled to lift her high above it just before my plasma shot could hit it. Upon shooting right through the bottle, all of the contents inside it exploded outward quite forcefully and engulfed her entire squad of goons while the Mane-iac herself only barely managed to get out of range in time. Once the cloud faded, I saw her goons utterly frozen in place in various types of poses that seemed to suggest they had tried to make a run for it before getting caught in the gas. Seeing as how their eyes still occasionally blinked, they were still alive and well. Just immobilized. And since they were exposed to such a heavy dose of it, chances were likely that they would not be going anywhere anytime soon. I then looked up at the Mane-iac as she looked down at the mangled remains of the hairspray can and patted the H-Buster with my left hand. "The only superpower I've got is all the technology that was put into creating me! And you CAN'T take that away from me!" I then spoke to Luminous and asked, "Hey, doc! Why were you so worked up about that Hairspray Ray of Ouchies and Hurties if it doesn't even work on me?!"

"Well... I..." He said with an embarrassed stutter before finally coming clean about it. "To be honest, I had no idea whether or not it would do anything. I know she had never tried it on machines, so I was unsure if it would cause a malfunction in your motor systems or not."

"Heh... Better to find out by using it on me than on a mech that wants to rip her head off, I guess." I said with a grin before looking up at the Mane-iac while feeling no fear at all. "So, you gonna get going or what?!"

Once more, she only laughed at me. "Me?! Running from you?! I'm the worst bad hair day of your life! No amount of conditioner is gonna... Hey!" She then had to suddenly weave around a burst of lightning that only narrowly missed her.

I then heard Rainbow Dash's voice somewhere behind me. "Shut up with the hair puns! I'm already sick of them!"

I promptly turned around and saw all seven of my companions lined up in a row while Rainbow Dash hovered above them with her lightning bolt pendant in her mouth. Fluttershy was still peeking out from behind them, probably because she still had not gotten in tune with her superpowers yet. It was Spike who spoke first as he pointed up at the psychotic mare hanging from the nearest building. "That's... The Mane-iac! What's she doing here?!"

"Well, didn't you say she is the archnemesis of the Power Ponies? I'd have expected her to be here if we would be!" Rarity replied as she conjured up a large... Or rather, massive broom to sweep up all of the Mane-iac's goons and got them in a pile before conjuring up and placing them under a large dessert lid. "That should keep you out of trouble!"

"Ha! So you managed to subdue my men! No matter! I'm not leaving without this loot!" The Mane-iac defiantly shouted as she slowly descended back to the ground. That look of madness in her unnatural eyes showed gleeful hostility in ways I had never seen in a mare before. "I didn't come here expecting a fight, but if that's what you want... Then prepare to meet your maker!"

Upon hearing that, Pinkie Pie suddenly gasped in shock and asked, "Bonnie Zacherle?!"

This was so out of left field that every last one of us turned and stared at her. Even the Mane-iac was left stunned as she just hung above us with a baffled expression before she asked, "Uh... Who?"

A second later, the Mane-iac was engulfed in a burst of sparkling pink smoke that dissipated after several seconds. She choked and coughed while flinging her tendrils around to blow it away. "Ugh! Who did that?!"

I glanced at Spike as he seemed to be tossing one of his smoke bombs up and down in one hand while holding his slingshot in the other. He had quite a smirk on his face as he said, "A real sidekick helps the heroes, not weigh them down!"

The Mane-iac responded with a snide smirk. "Soooo... The bumbling Hum Drum finally grows a few fangs, hm?"

Shaking off Pinkie Pie's earlier nonsensical quip as just another random 4th wall-breaking pun from her, like I had not heard enough of those today, I turned to the Mane-iac and primed the H-Buster as I grasped it in my left hand and raised it to take aim at her. "He's always had plenty of fangs. But if it's a fight you want... What the...?!"

Something went wrong as my HUD locked onto the Mane-iac above me. A warning suddenly flashed up leading from the crosshairs that read 'ORGANIC LIFEFORM TARGETED' that was soon followed by another directive that read 'REASSES TARGETING'. As I read those words, I felt an unnamed instinct quite literally try to force me to lower my weapon. My arm began to quiver as I tried to keep it raised and trained on my enemy, but I was feeling strongly compelled to not attack this mare who was clearly a threat. "Why...can't I...aim at her...?"

"James...? What's wrong? Your arm is shaking." Fluttershy asked while all my friends stood back. Something was definitely wrong. Something I could not describe was interfering with my ability to take aim at the Mane-iac.

However, it did not take long for the Mane-iac to understand what was wrong with me. Mad as she was, she clearly was not an idiot as she smirked triumphantly at us. "Ah, I see what's going on here. You're a robot, like you said. And you know what that means, right?" She then began to cackle madly as she added, "First rule of robotics, foals! A robot can never harm a living being! Or allow a living being to come to harm! You CAN'T hurt me! Therefore, you CAN'T stop me!"

"Well, that's a load of horsefeathers! He ain't no machine! He's human! James! Go ahead and pump 'er full of holes 'til she looks like purple Swiss cheese!" Applejack yelled in response while she turned to me. However, I could not. My whole body was quivering and rattling as if my very own internal systems were committing mutiny against me. "Pardner...? Are ya all right?"

Unable to fully grasp what was wrong with me, I turned to the only person who could have any knowledge on what was wrong with me. "Doc, what's wrong with me...? What do I do now?"

I heard Luminous sigh before he spoke to me while everyone nearby could hear him. "I was afraid this would happen... What the Mane-iac says is true, Project H. The Three Laws of Robotics are always instilled into the programming of every machine that comes online. You were no different."

"So... I simply can't stop the Mane-iac without hurting her?" I asked in return, both disappointed and frustrated that I was largely unable to do anything in this situation due to my own programming. It was unlike anything I had ever felt. My mind was left unaffected, but my body would not cooperate.

"Well... There is, actually." The doctor replied quietly. "Project H, you are indeed a robot. But you are also programmed with the ability to choose and make your own decisions in life the same as me and every other person in the world. Many before you had similar capabilities, but you are the first robot whose moral freedom is absolute. I gave you this ability hoping you would make the right choices on the path of life. If you wish it, you can override these restrictions and become free to make your own decisions on this matter. Stand down or do whatever is necessary to stop the Mane-iac, Project H. I can't tell you what to do here. Whatever your choice is, I will respect it."

It was a moment that felt quite heavy on my mind. All this discussion on free will. And in just the pilot of the Project H series. My friends remained silent while the doctor spoke and remained so once he fell silent. I looked up at the Mane-iac, who still suspended herself off the ground with a smug smirk spread across her lips. I lowered my head while I finally lowered the H-Buster in silence. The Mane-iac cackled lightly at my supposed submission. "See? Just a machine after all."

However, I immediately scowled and looked up at the Mane-iac while my HUD locked onto her. The warnings were displayed once again, but then disappeared for the final time. I felt no restraints on my body. It knew who was in charge. I suddenly raised my buster and fired a single shot with my sights set on the Mane-iac's head. My friends yelped and shrieked in surprise when I did so, as did the Mane-iac as she swerved to the side only for the plasma shot to narrowly miss her head and burn a hole right through her mane. With my HUD still locked onto her, I scowled at the Mane-iac from under my visor. "I decide what I do. I may be machine, but my soul is human. Last chance. You coming quietly, or is this going to get messy?"

Although quite clearly startled by my sudden show of defiance and my willingness to resort to force, the Mane-iac soon grinned manically as her many thick tendrils began to flail and reach out for greater support. She clearly was not going to let herself be intimidated. That, or she was severely underestimating me. "Oh my! It looks like this little robot's not working right. I guess I'll just have to send it to the scrap heap!"

"No chance! You'll have to take us all on!" Twilight called out as they all stepped forward. However, I threw my left arm out to the side to signal them to stop. "Huh? James, what are..."

"Stay outta this one, girls. You too, Spike. I'm pretty sure the plot wants me to take her on myself." I replied grimly while the H-Buster began to let out its signature high-pitched noise as I began to charge my next shot. "She's mine."

I unleashed the charged shot at the Mane-iac only for her to bob and weave around the much larger shot as well as any rapid shots I bombarded her with. Her mane was clearly very strong and responded quickly to her whim. She did virtually nothing with her own limbs. Her hair was doing all the work. And while my shots burned through whatever part of her mane they touched like paper, I was quick to notice that the burned away sections would rapidly grow back in! "Oh, come on! Don't tell me you've got some crazy hair restoration products in there too!"

"That's exactly it! Trim me all you want, but this is one bad hair day you won't soon be rid of!" The Mane-iac cackled once more without the slightest shred of fear. She truly saw me as nothing but a little metallic bug to squash. "Now it's my turn!"

Several tendrils of her mane sudden seemed to extend. A couple went towards me while several others went off to the side of my vision. I jumped back as one of the two tried to thrust right down into me, breaking through the street with ease. However, it was then that I noticed the other locks of hair had snatched up several large chunks of rubble that had come from the bank. They all then hurled the chunks of rubble at me with shocking strength. I was quick to shoot them down, each plasma shot blowing them apart into gravel, but did not notice one more tendril hurl another hunk of rubble at me from another angle. In spite of her insanity, the Mane-iac was already proving herself to be a very crafty fighter specializing in messing with her enemy's attention to score a blow from outside their area of focus. The incoming rubble slammed into me hard before I could point the H-Buster at it or even get my shield projector up. I heard my seven companions call out in concern while also barking encouragement to drive me on. After climbing to my feet, I glanced up at the cackling Mane-iac and snorted in mild irritation. "OK... Credit where it's due. She's a step above the robots I've been tangling with tonight. No wonder she wasn't afraid to stick around with this outbreak going on..."

Wasting no time in continuing her assault, the Mane-iac hurled yet another piece of rubble at me. While I could have evaded it easily with a quick use of my boot thrusters, I decided to get defiant with her in an attempt to intimidate her. I was quick to understand that long-range attacks would not be effective due to her remarkable dexterity. That mane provided her with far too much mobility. Of course, that would not matter if I still had the Homing Torpedo weapon, but I had already discarded it and I saw no other systems nearby that could provide it. I would have to get in close.

I restored my right hand before quickly drawing the H-Saber from its holster. With a single swing of my blade, I cleaved the incoming block of concrete in two while the two halves passed me by. The Mane-iac seemed briefly surprised that I was packing a melee weapon, let alone one that could cleave through concrete with ease. I then pointed the glowing plasma blade up at her and said, "I hope you don't mind me taking a little off the top!"

"Oh, please. You'll barely pull off a little trim!" The Mane-iac shouted before several of her mane's tendrils shot towards me. I used my boot thrusters to simply rush under them before landing on my feet and running towards my opponent. Even though she was keeping herself high above me, I could probably get right under her and use my boot thrusters to launch myself right up to her for a strike at her body. She seemed to know this too and sent more tendrils at me to either slap or grab me. My reflexes were too quick for her as I rapidly cleaved through her locks of hair with no resistance as thin trails of smoke and the stench of burning protein fibers filled the air. However, there seemed to be no end to the flurry of green tendrils lashing out at me. They grew back as quickly as I could cut them off!

"Gah, enough of this!" I yelled before performing another thruster dash before coming to a stop right under the Mane-iac while putting my blade away and getting the H-Buster ready. I pointed right up at her and launched a flurry of quick shots in an attempt to pepper her from below. I was considering changing its settings to fire a concentrated stream of plasma, but that would have risked massive property damage while following her. Unfortunately, my plan failed as even then she still moved out of the way with her mane's many tendrils carrying her along. It was only then that I used the shield generator on my left arm to block and ward off her tendril strikes. They hit with shocking force, probably enough to crack stone. The Mane-iac seemed to realize this was not working and instead tried a different tactic.

"Whoa, what's that?!" I yelped as I detected something slithering around my right thigh. When I glanced down, I saw one of her many hair tendrils wrapped around my thigh while also blocking access to the H-Saber's holster. During that brief instant, my left arm was also restrained and pulled out to my side. I was then promptly lifted into the air and held aloft while being forced to face the Mane-iac as she cackled in elation that she now quite literally had me in her clutches. "Oh, shut up already!"

With my right arm still free, I fired several shots at her now that I had nothing between us. But she was still too quick and every shot missed her body while harmlessly passing through her mane. "Gotcha now, you piece of junk! What's next? You planning on giving me a crew cut?"

I growled in irritation as I realized that I was truly stuck. Even trying to use my boot thrusters to pull myself away failed with how strong her hair was. Some of the most elastic and most durable material I have ever seen in any sort of fiction. However, I saw that the tendril which was holding up my left arm was within reach of my hand. My eyes then glanced at the list of assimilated weapons my Variable Weapon System was storing on my HUD. Seeing the symbol for the Rocket Tackle made me think of Pinkie Pie and how even superpowers were fair game. I smirked while I deleted the Rocket Tackle from my system's memory so I had a spare spot. Pinkie Pie was never far, so I could easily get it back if needed. I then lowered my fingers and touched the tendril. And sure enough, the Mane-iac noticed my change in facial expression while my visor displayed her body. "Hey, what's with that smirk?! This is MY time to be gloating!"

"I've got only one thing to say to you right now." I replied while I began to charge the H-Buster as my white body became mostly a shade of purple similar to her jumpsuit. I then pointed it at her and called out, "Get over here! Strike Chain!"

Upon firing the charged shot, a very long chain with a wide clasping pincer-like claw at the end burst forth and went right for the Mane-iac's face. It clearly startled her as she did not make enough effort to evade it and it soon reached her and grabbed her right around the throat! With whiplash-like force, it quickly retracted and pulled her towards me at shocking speed before she even had any idea what hit her! It was quite amazing that the whiplash did not snap her neck in the process. I quickly developed an idea and lifted both legs to basically dropkick her as soon as she came within range, but with a twist. The instant she came close and I slammed my heavy metal feet into her, I also activated my boot thrusters and scorched her body while sending her flying backwards and slamming hard into the side of the nearest building. The impact was more than enough to stun her as her tendrils released their grasp on me while I fell to the ground before landing on my feet with a loud clank. The Strike Chain had released its grasp on her the moment I kicked her and had retracted back into the H-Buster while I watched her fall to the ground. Unfortunately, she managed to right herself and break her fall like a nimble spider landing on just the tips of its many legs without letting its body touch the ground. It was once she lifted herself upright that I got a good look at the injuries I had inflicted upon her. "Whoa... I gotcha good, didn't I?"

There were two mostly round holes in her jumpsuit that had been burned away to reveal dark patches of scorched hair and flesh lining her torso. They were clearly quite painful as the Mane-iac wheezed while looking down at her wounds before looking at me with what was clearly a look of insane wrath. And yet, she still managed to laugh even as her hoof touched her own scorched flesh. She cringed and lifted her head, still showing a mad grin. "Nopony has...ever managed to hurt me like this! Oh, such agony... I really MUST return the favor..."

I began to charge up the H-Buster again in the hopes of grabbing her by the throat and bringing Mane-iac for another good blow, but I began to feel a sense of danger as her flailing mane lifted her off the ground again while she continued to cackle in spite of her pain. "Looks like I really must send you to the scrap yard. And I will! Even if I have to take you apart piece by piece!"

Several of her tendrils shot towards me as I began to change my aim before launching another charged Strike Chain at a distant building. It quickly clamped onto the wall before rapidly reeling me in and evading her attack while keeping me high off the ground. That did not stop her as the tendrils then followed me up there. With the grasping claw retracting back into my buster, I used my boot thrusters to propel me across the street and to the opposite building as her tendrils slammed into the spot where I used to be. I grasped onto the wall with my left hand before turning and firing off a volley of small plasma shots while sliding down the side of the wall. I soon had to release my grip and fall as the Mane-iac sent more tendrils after me while weaving around my shots as if it was far too easy.

Before I could hit the ground, I swapped out the Strike Chain for the Fire Wave as my body went from purple to a fiery red. I rushed to the center of the street and unleashed a torrent of flames from the H-Buster, incinerating any of the hairy tendrils that came close. I had to keep it going at all times while waving my arm around in a circular motion to make sure nothing got through to me. I could not stay in one place though. With me being stuck on the defensive while the Mane-iac had gone entirely on the offensive, I would have to advance somehow. It did not help that the flames coming forth from my arm were also blocking my view.

I did not have enough time to really think up of a new approach. Before I even knew what was happening, two of the Mane-iac's long flexible locks of hair had entwined around the bottoms of my boots and yanked me into the air before slamming me right back onto the ground while keeping me facing up. They must have slunk around at the very edges of the street and hit my blind spot. I could not even really look around as I was smashed into the hard street over and over like a rag doll. My HUD informed me that my backside was being repeatedly exposed to excessive physical trauma, although my armor was doing a good job in minimizing damage to my internal systems. However, it was accumulating, so I could only wonder how long I could last. After only a dozen or so lashes and hearing my companions shrieking in likely concern and terror in the distance, I felt my arms become restrained as I was completely lifted off the ground while the Mane-iac looked on from below. A look of crazed triumph was in those unnatural red and green eyes as she chuckled menacingly. "Looks like that softened you up nicely. Time to toss you in the recycling bin. But first, I better make sure you fit."

At those words, I let out a grunt as I felt my arms and legs get yanked out to my sides. The pressure on my limbs was enormous as my HUD showed me a wire frame display of my own body while pointing out a great deal of strain on my hip and shoulder joints. She was going to rip my limbs right out of their sockets!

I had to find a way out of this fast. I could not pull against her tendrils to aim my weapon at the Mane-iac and my boot thrusters could not be used long enough to pull free. But as I thought of my thrusters and the fact that they could only be active for a few seconds at a time, a new clever idea popped into my head as I remembered that I had two more thrusters elsewhere. I looked down at the Mane-iac and called out, "Hey, psycho! I just had an awesome idea!"

"Oh yeah? And what's that? Got any last words?" She replied with a smirk, all too clearly sure of her victory.

"Well, they might be the last words YOU will ever hear!" I replied while my back-mounted flight thrusters extended as they began to get fired up. "Let's go for a ride!"

At those words, I shot upwards in an effort to carry the Mane-iac right up and off her feet. This clearly startled her as she shrieked and reached out with a few tendrils to hold onto a steel lamppost. I did not relent as I only continued to increase my thrusters' output to maximum. I could hear the metal post creaking while the Mane-iac herself groaned as she tried to hold on with her tendrils getting stretched to their absolute limit. A moment later, her tendrils finally slipped and let go of the lamppost as we both shot straight up into the air with her screaming all the way. I started laughing as I took complete control of the situation while flying at great speed above the streets with the Mane-iac still trailing behind me. She just could not bring herself to let go. Especially not now that we were moving at such speed.

While I just rocketed between the many towering buildings, I began to wonder how to deal with the Mane-iac now that she was basically being carried along behind me. I could not turn around and attack while flying that fast. Fortunately, I saw something coming up ahead. A particularly tall office building coming up on my left at the edge of an intersection. A cruel thought came to me while I smirked. Not caring whether or not she could hear me from back there, I yelled over the howl of the wind. "Hey, Mane-iac! Left turn only up ahead!"

Once I reached the intersection, I performed a very tight turn to my left. Not quite as much of a right angle as Rainbow Dash can do, but not bad either. I went flying to my left, but I felt the Mane-iac's tendrils keep pulling on me like I was pulling someone behind me on water skis. Sure enough, I heard a loud crash behind me along with glass shattering as the Mane-iac likely slammed right into the side of the building before getting dragged along again. Despite the ridiculous amount of force that would have been involved in such an collision, she clearly was still conscious since her mane did not let go of me. Then again, while flying at that speed, the g-forces being forced upon her was likely preventing her from looking ahead or even being able to move her mane's tendrils to stop herself. "Man, you're one tough broad. You know you can let go and get off this ride at any time, right?!"

I continued to repeat this process another five times, using only my speed and the environment to my advantage. And yet, the Mane-iac still did not let go. I finally shot straight up into the night sky while dragging the Mane-iac up behind me until I was around a mile above Maretropolis. The view was quite impressive, but I did not really have time to appreciate it. If I slowed down enough, that insane supervillain would likely take advantage of it and attack me. So once I reached one mile, I turned straight down and rocketed towards the ground while the Mane-iac shrieked behind me. If I had any organs inside me, I would probably be feeling like I was on the steepest roller coaster drop in the world. I was careful to not allow myself to go supersonic, instead only allowing myself to reach terminal velocity as I plummeted towards a street that was not too far from where our fight had started.

The ground was coming up fast and my HUD was careful to alert me to exactly how quickly I was approaching the ground as well as how far away from it I was. When I was only a few hundred feet away, I began to turn up and just narrowly avoided impacting the ground before flying straight over it. The Mane-iac was not so lucky as a loud crash was soon heard from behind me as she hit the street at terminal velocity. Too fast to have her mane cushion her fall at all. This time, her mane finally let go of me.

Detecting my limbs being freed, I brought my feet forward and used my boot thrusters as an emergency airbrake to slow myself down faster before landing as my flight thrusters folded back into place. "Woo! That was nuts!"

I turned back, making out a clear crater in the middle of the street a good distance away. Was she unconscious? I could not imagine the designated big bad of the Power Ponies getting killed off in another series' pilot. Still, I knew better than to lower my guard. It is always the crazy ones that you need to be careful with when you think victory is close. While making sure the Fire Wave was ready for use, I began to walk towards the crater with the H-Buster pointing forward.

Once I drew near, I could see nothing but the Mane-iac's wild green mane spread out over her body as she lied facedown. She was clearly down for the count. Or was she? I drew closer, standing maybe a mere fifteen paces from the edge of the crater while my feet kicked away bits of gravel and asphalt during my approach. I kept my weapon trained on her at all times. Finally, I called out to her. "Want some more?!"

It was only then that I got a response. Her mane's many tendrils began to weakly slide around as I heard muffled groans come from under them. Several of them began to press down onto the ground as if trying to push themselves upward. This did not properly work as the Mane-iac ended up turning clumsily onto her side. And it was only then that I saw the true extant of the damage that I had inflicted on her. One or more legs snapped into disquieting angles, plenty of rips in her jumpsuit with shards of broken glass embedded in her, one eye swollen shut... Only her mane seemed undamaged, but her body was utterly ravaged. She did not speak. She only groaned in agony while writhing in the soft comfort of her mane as it seemed to tenderly coil around her like a comforting parent's arms. Thick spurts of crimson blood burst from her mouth as she coughed loudly. And I...

I did not feel any sense of triumph or accomplishment as I beheld the humbled supervillain while she writhed before me bloodied and broken. Instead, a very different emotion filled me as my aim began to waver. A sense of true horror as I surveyed the damage I had done. And it was not just because I had brought harm to someone who was not a robot. She may have been fictional. A mad supervillain with no hopes of salvation. A monster with no redeeming qualities. But what truly horrified me was the fact that she was a pony. A member of Equestria's native population. A race I had come to love and view as beings of innocence and purity. And I had just brutalized one.

To see a pony before me bleeding and battered as a result of my own actions... I should not have been able to shed tears as I was just a machine at the time. And yet, those tears still came to me. Tears of utter shame. I heard Doctor Luminous speak up quietly over my comm system and ask, "It looks like she's down for the count, Project H. What will you do? Are you going to finish her off?"

As tears streamed down my face, I took aim at the Mane-iac one last time with a shaky arm before finally lowering my weapon as I staggered back while the sound of approaching hooves began to come from behind me. "I...can't..."

I dropped to one knee, trying to keep myself composed enough to not openly weep in shame as my friends gathered around me. Applejack was the first to speak. "Whoa nelly! What in tarnation did ya do ta 'er?!"

"I'm sorry..." I whimpered quietly while holding my hand to my face as my visor retracted to allow me to wipe my eyes." I... I couldn't finish her... I can't..."

"Whoa, hey... Easy, big guy. There's nothing to be sorry about. You took down the bad guy. The day's saved and all that stuff. Thing's are gonna be OK." I heard Rainbow Dash say while I felt her pat me on the back. They just did not understand. And I could not put into words at the time what it was that had me so upset.

Fluttershy spoke next. She threw her arms around me and whispered tenderly towards where my ear would be if I was still human. "It's OK, honey... Everything's gonna be fine... Thank goodness you're all right."

Rarity then spoke up while she too patted me on the back. "Indeed, darling. You have defeated the archnemesis of the Power Ponies. So surely we'll be going home soon."

"Yeah! I bet this'll make one awesome journal entry of yours! And I bet all that tea we didn't finish will be nice for helping us relax after all this crazy zaniness." Pinkie Pie added in a likely attempt to cheer me up. Even if it was not helping much.

Finally, Twilight gently lifted my chin so I could see her. I did while trying to dry my tears, her big purple eyes appearing larger than normal behind her goggles. "Hey... It's OK, James. I know... Just remember, this whole world is fictional. The Mane-iac is fictional. I doubt anything you do to her will really change anything that actually happens in the series. Even if she...dies right now, she'll probably show up in the next issue just fine. At least, I think that's what will happen. Still... I'd be lying if I said I wished you finished her off."

"Yeah... I know. The book follows a plot in the real world while things just change her depending on what we do... Still... I still feel bad I did all that... It doesn't feel like I did that to something that isn't real..." I muttered before seeing Spike stepping forward while looking both unsettled by the state the Mane-iac and genuinely blown away by how thoroughly I had bested her.

"Whoa... The Power Ponies never really got the Mane-iac like that, but you... Man, if this is how awesome Project H is in just the pilot, then I can't wait to see the rest of the series!" The little dragon boy said while he took my hand between his and shook it. "Project H is so cool! And you make an awesome Project H, James!"

"Heh... Thanks, Spike..." I muttered as my tears dried. Perhaps I did not have a whole lot to worry about. The Mane-iac would likely survive and make a full recovery. The status quo of comic books is something all superhero writers seem compelled to maintain. Losing the main heroes' archnemesis would be a risky bet. However, I was then quick to notice some movement coming from the crater. "Huh?! What's... Agh!"

Out of nowhere, my vision was briefly filled with green as I was smacked across the face and sent hurtling away from my friends before somehow lading on my feet. My friends quickly rushed to my side, but all our attention was soon directed towards the crater as strained raspy laughter began to fill the air. Up out of the crater rose the battered and broken Mane-iac as her mane hoisted her ravaged body into the air. Despite the damage she had received, her mane was clearly unharmed and still functional. She did not even need her body to move. And that look she was giving me... Truly too insane to really comprehend how dire her situation was. "Think...we're done yet...?"

My visor closed over my eyes again while I shakily prepared the H-Buster to fire a charged shot. Spike then called out in shock, "No way! How?! You... You're supposed to be defeated! We're done here, right?!"

"We're not done 'til I say we're done... And I won't be done until that piece of scrap is in pieces! Break my body all you want! As long as I still have my mane, you can't stop me!" The Mane-iac cackled while frequently coughing up blood. The pain she was in did nothing to deter her from continuing her assault.

I was nearly in a panic. I would likely have to kill her to stop her. Still... The thought of unleashing a powerful shot on a pony... The mere concept of blowing one apart... It was a thought I did not want to comprehend. A thought that horrified me. I dreaded the thought of seeing a pony die before me. And so I raised the H-Buster as it reached maximum charge before pleading, "Don't make me do this... DON'T MAKE ME DO THIS!"

At the moment, I had no idea what to do. I thought the defeat of the Mane-iac would have allowed us to go home, but it seemed like she was just not going to stay down. However, I soon detected a new development. From the left of me, my HUD detected something that caused me to look to the left and towards the rooftops. We were standing in a residential area where the buildings were not very tall, but I saw a bright glowing orb of something clearly volatile hurtling over the rooftops towards us. "Huh?! That's... Get back!"

My friends were quick to detect the incoming attack and ran away from the Mane-iac as even she noticed it and pulled herself away from the immediate area. The fiery orb hit the center street and exploded upward in a pillar of bright orange flames before quickly fading. When we turned around, we noticed the spot where the blast had hit the street looked...off. It had not been blown apart by an explosion. The top layer of asphalt had been burned or even melted away by intense heat. The Mane-iac responded to this sudden attack with a scowl of irritation and looked towards the direction it had come from. "Hey! Who's out there?! This is MY party!"

We too looked towards the rooftops to try to see the source of the fireball that had been launched at us. Fluttershy then asked, "Um... Is something out there?"

"I think so... Can you see that little glow?" Twilight added while I saw it too. On a higher rooftop in the far distance was a tiny glowing orange dot. Probably the source of the fiery orb that we had just seen. It soon faded, but was then replaced by the bright orange exhaust of rocket thrusters carrying...something through the night sky and towards us. It then descended towards us and landed rather elegantly at the edge of the nearest rooftop of the nearby brick residential building while its grand slender wings folded inward to its sides. It was...an alicorn-type robot.

"Princess...Celestia?" Twilight asked quietly as the rather regal machine pony loomed over us at the edge of the roof. While it had no actual mane, a glowing orange plasma aura seemed to be emanating from the backside of its neck and probably from the hindquarters as well. However, I could tell that it was definitely not Celestia at all as the robot had a subtle masculine look to it.

My vision in one eye rapidly magnified to get a closer look at the silent machine above us. His form was mostly white and while his body seemed to have been fitted with additional armor plating, his head and face matched the image files in my databanks. Only one word came from my lips. "Alpha..."

"Whatcha say, pardner? Alpha?" Applejack asked while our gazes were turned towards this newcomer. However, I was feeling nothing but a sense of dread as he stood above us. Something in my senses was telling me that he was not our savior.

The metallic alicorn turned his gaze towards the battered Mane-iac while she looked on in irritation. He blinked once before speaking up with no signs of a visible mouth. His voice was...dignified and bold, but also containing a sliver of malice. "That's quite enough, Mane-iac. Your time is over."

"My time...is over?" The Mane-iac asked in some frustration before she sneered at Alpha as her mane suddenly went wild. "Don't delude yourself! I'm not going anywhere! Now, outta my way!"

At those words, several tendrils shot up at Alpha while he remained perfectly still as they entwined around his neck, body, and limbs. The Mane-iac only continued to cackle hoarsely while they began to constrict and pull on him. "Just another piece of scrap for the junk pile!"

We all looked on as Alpha was snared in the Mane-iac's many locks of hair. However, he remained stiff and calm. While I looked on, I noticed numerous small vents slide open on his body. Immediately afterward, I detected rising heat coming from them. And then... In just an instant, Alpha's entire body was engulfed in a bright ball of surging pale orange plasma. The Mane-iac's tendrils stood no chance and were instantly evaporated as even the very roof he was standing on was burned or melted away to nothing.

The Mane-iac's tendrils retracted back to her with smoke rising from the scorched stumps of where the rest of her hair had been. As she surveyed the damage, her expression became one I had not seen before. Actual fear. She was not laughing or even smiling. This new entity had repelled her attack and even destroyed her primary weapons...without even moving. Alpha slowly stepped off of the ruined section of the roof and onto the nearby unscathed section while glaring down at the Mane-iac with his head held high. "I suggest that you skip town, Mane-iac. You are...obsolete."

With that, his horn began to glow a fiery orange before a burst of plasma was fired from the tip. The Mane-iac yelped in fright as her mane narrowly carried her out of the way while Alpha continued to bombard her with plasma bolts that exploded with frightful force and heat. She soon disappeared around the corner of the nearest intersection and that was the last time I ever saw her.

All eyes turned to the imposing alicorn robot as he loomed overhead. He soon returned our gazes with a cool stoic stare. Spike was the first to break the silence. "Whoa... Nopony's ever managed to actually scare off the Mane-iac... Who is this guy?!"

I naturally turned to Doctor Luminous, knowing that he was seeing everything I was seeing. "Doc, you're seeing this, right? Is that him?"

The doctor began to speak through the emitter on my helmet with a tone of desperation. "Yes! Alpha, wait! It's me! Luminous!"

Alpha turned his gaze directly towards me before his voice was heard once more. "Is that you, Doctor? Well, it's still too soon for us to speak. I believe the lot of you still have one last hive to clear out. Seek me out afterward. Until then..." With that, he turned and walked out of sight.

"Hey! Get back here!" Rainbow Dash yelled before she started to hover higher in a clear attempt to pursue him. "I'll chase him down!"

"Wait! Not yet, Zapp!" Doctor Luminous called out while I could vaguely hear the clicking of a keyboard. "It's as Alpha said. I've just now detected a particularly large culmination of the virus in one location. It's not moving yet, but you should hurry there to prevent them from mobilizing!"

The location of said viral cluster popped up on my map display. It seemed to not be terribly far from us either. "Yeah, I see it. Pretty close by too. You girls think you can handle this?"

Twilight glanced back and forth at all of us before nodding. "Yeah, I think we should all stick together for this one. You know the way, James?"

"Yeah, it's not too far from here. Let's move." I replied before I turned and ran down the street with my friends close behind me. In my nonexistent gut, I was rather excited to see all of my friends in action.

After running for several blocks we came to the location that was marked on my map grid. A large sprawling factory complex that took up an entire city block. It was surprisingly quiet around the exterior and there was no security to speak of. Applejack then asked, "So, uh... What exactly are we lookin' for here?"

"Well, it's a factory... Maybe a robot factory? There's probably a bunch of assembly lines in there. I can already hear them." I said while gazing up at the building before us. My sensors were already detecting various noises inside the complex.

Rarity then gracefully trotted up to the large sliding door. "Then let's head on in and sort things out, darlings."

Once before the door, Rarity tapped several times on it in the hopes of getting someone on the other side to open. However, there was no response. Fluttershy, predictably, turned around and began to slink away. "Oh, it looks like nopony's home. Maybe we should come back later."

"Nice try, Fluttershy." Rainbow Dash said before putting her hoof down on Fluttershy's tail to pin her. "We're probably gonna need you for this one."

"But we can't even get inside!" My lover whined while clearly unwilling to place herself in a dangerous situation. Not that I blame her.

However, Spike then pointed to something off to the sides while seated upon Twilight's back. "What about those doors?"

"Ooh! Good eye, Spike! You think they're unlocked?" Pinkie Pie asked while I too directed my vision towards where Spike had been pointing. There seemed to be several garage doors lining the sides of the building next to a loading ramp where equipment would likely get loaded onto a cart to be hauled away.

"It's worth a shot." I replied before running over there with my friends in tow. Not even bothering to check if it was unlocked, I managed to slide my fingers under the bottom and hoisted it up with more ease than I was expecting. It slid up and into the building, allowing us inside. "There we go... Oh, that's what this place is?"

From just the entrance, we could see exactly what the place was. A robot factory complete with numerous assembly lines. And that was just one side of it. Twilight seemed especially impressed as she trotted over to one and watched a line of pegasus-type robots being put together. "Wow... So this place is making robots entirely on its own. Without anypony keeping an eye on it. An automated factory..."

The entire facility was remarkably noisy as we began to explore. Along with typical assembly lines on the floor, there were even harnesses hanging from the ceiling up high carrying griffon-type robots. However, I was quick to notice various attributes being thrown into the robots' assembly that worried me. Extra armor plating. Weapon systems. These robots were being constructed to cause harm and destruction.

"They...look kind of dangerous..." Fluttershy said quietly as she too could clearly see that these robots were indeed being made for battle. At the end of each assembly line was a platform on wheels that would get loaded up with the offline robots before carrying them off somewhere to await activation only to be promptly replaced. It seemed to have a tall and narrow operation panel at the front for manual use, but also appeared to be automated as well like just about everything else in the place. While imposing, each robot was not a threat so long as they did not turn on.

"Sooo... What should we do here, girls?" Applejack asked while clearly having no idea what to make of all these machines. I too was at a bit of a loss, having never worked in a factory setting before.

Spike seemed to have a slight idea on how to start. "Maybe we should wake one of them up and ask what's going on?"

"Ooh, good idea, Spike! How about that one? Or that one?" Pinkie Pie replied while pointing at two of the closest assembly lines. I could certainly see Spike's point. If these robots had never been activated before, then they were likely free of any viral infection. They probably would not be hostile.

"I got it." I then stepped towards one of the assembly lines that was carrying a row of fully assembled earth pony-type robots. Once one rolled by me, I grabbed it and lifted it off the assembly line with more strength that I even knew I had before setting it down. Its eyes were closed as if still asleep. "OK, so... How do we wake the guy up?"

"Um... Maybe if we asked nicely?" Fluttershy replied before standing in front of it and smiling. "Uh... Hello, Mr. robot. Could you please tell us what's happening here?"

No response. It was then that Pinkie Pie trotted up to it with a...permanent marker in her mouth. "I got it! How about we annoy him until he wakes up?"

"You mean just act like you? Yeah, like that'll work." Rainbow Dash said mockingly while Pinkie Pie scribbled a curly black moustache onto the front of the robot's muzzle.

Rarity seemed to be getting into the spirit of things too as her bracelets began to shimmer. "Ooh, love the moustache. Now all he needs is a hat. And a quilt!"

At those words, a pink quilt and sombrero appeared on the robot to only add to the comical nature of Pinkie Pie's antics. However, I could only facepalm at this prank. "Pinkie, if I wanna see more of Deadpool's shtick, I'll give him a call!"

"Oh, don't be a stick in the mud. They're just... Hey, I think it's waking up!" Rainbow Dash called out as I too noticed a bit of movement. Rarity quickly got rid of the robot's magical attire while Pinkie Pie rapidly wiped away the fake moustache she had scribbled on it. How she did that to ink from a permanent marker, I will never know.

Sure enough, the robot slightly lifted its head as its eyes opened. Pinkie Pie was quick to introduce herself just like with everyone else she meets for the first time. "Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie! What's your name?"

After taking a moment to look at her, the robot gave us the one response we were not wanting to see. A flamethrower nozzle extended from the harness on its back and took aim at her. "Organics detected! Eliminate!"

"Knock it off!" Rainbow Dash yelled just before she unleashed a bolt of lightning right at it from her pendant. The robot briefly flailed as its internal systems went haywire due to the electrical overcharge before it became still and collapsed in a heap of sparks and smoke. Rainbow Dash just stared at it blankly, almost as if she was embarrassed that she had just totaled the robot before we could get any information out of it. "Uh oh... Did I break the guy?"

"Well... At least we know they're all hostile..." Twilight muttered while we looked down at the fried robot. If those things were hostile towards us right out the gate, it was safe to bet that they had been infected with the virus from the start.

"Um... Is it getting quiet?" Fluttershy asked while I too noticed something wrong. The assembly lines were beginning to slow to a stop.

Sure enough, the entire factory complex fell silent. There was an eerie encompassing sense of dread filling the air while we all remained perfectly still. It felt as if we had just sprung a trap even though quite literally nothing was happening. I finally broke the tension with a quiet mutter. "That can't be good..."

And it most certainly was not. No sooner had I said that did a siren begin to go off throughout the entire factory. An automated female voice began to call out through the intercom system. "INTRUDERS DETECTED. INITIATING EMERGENCY LOCKDOWN. ALL ABLE UNITS, ELIMINATE INTRUDERS."

"Uh... When it says to eliminate intruders, does that mean...?" Spike asked in apprehension as I saw the door we had just come in automatically lower back into place. We were locked in! One by one, we saw the robots that had been completely assembled on the assembly lines starting to come online one by one and step off them with weapon systems ready.

"I think it means just about as much as you think it does, Spike! Hold onto me!" Twilight yelled over the alarm as the ground began to rumble. Robots that had been assembled in other parts of the factory had likely started to make their way towards our location. We were already surrounded as more and more robots poured into the room by the dozens.

"Oh no... No no no... I wanna go home!" Fluttershy shrieked as she tried to hide behind us to no avail. However, Pinkie Pie was showing quite a bit of excitement as she rapidly jogged in place.

Rarity noticed as well and asked, "Pinkie Pie, why are you so giddy right now?! We're in mortal danger!"

Pinkie Pie showed no fear as she looked back at Rarity. "Why aren't YOU excited? We're superheroes now, right?! This is nothing!"

"When ya put it like that..." Applejack muttered in reply while her golden rope seemed to pull itself out of its own harness and became a lasso whirling over her head. She began to smirk confidently while she looked at us. "Yeah! I bet we can all take on these buckets of bolts just fine!"

"Really?! Uh... Why don't we just get away from here?!" Fluttershy asked as she continued to cower behind us.

Twilight seemed more at ease now that she was more in tune with her own superpowers, her horn coated with an icy blue glow. "You heard Doctor Luminous, Fluttershy. We have to take this place out. If we don't, all these robots could get unleashed upon the city and everypony in it!"

"Indeed! We can't let these robotic ruffians escape!" Rarity said with some gusto as her bracelets were beginning to shimmer. "Spike! Be a dear and help out too!"

"Yes, ma'am! Smoke bombs are ready!" Spike said with a salute while he pulled out his slingshot.

Rainbow Dash then looked at me while taking her lightning bolt pendant into her mouth as the robots began to draw ever nearer, her eyes even beginning to glow. "You know what this means, James?"

"Yup!" I said while my right hand retracted into my arm as the H-Buster was primed for action. I then took aim at one direction of the surrounding mass of robots as it reached maximum charge. "Time to party!"

I started by unleashing a fully charged blast into the swarm of robots, probably wiping out a full dozen in one shot while causing damage to many more. I then rushed forward while restoring my hand and promptly drew the H-Saber from its holster before rapidly dicing up every robot that came near me. It turned out that having so many robots in the room ultimately turned out to be a disadvantage for our enemies as it made things extremely difficult for them to actually use their weapons without a case of friendly fire. The ones up front easily attempted to lash out with melee attacks, but my shield generator on my left arm easily blocked them and allowed for a quick bisecting slice from my blade.

Once I thinned out their ranks a bit, I took a moment to look back at my friends. And my goodness, they were a sight to see. Twilight was freezing multiple robots solid with a freeze ray while Applejack would follow that up with the use of her hoofarangs on them. They must have been quite heavy and hit hard because each one would shatter the robots' frozen heads on impact. Furthermore, her rope was functioning entirely on its own by lassoing up a diving griffon robot before swinging it around like a flail and smashing into other robots. Twilight would often use a heat ray on the robots as well. While initially doing nothing, prolonged exposure would cause something inside to ignite and it proved effective against robots who were carrying flame-based weapons as it would cause the fuel tanks to explode or even just overheat.

I had to be careful to not let myself get too distracted by my friends. As fun as they were to watch, I could not afford to let the enemy score a cheap shot on me while distracted. Even though I would have liked to get more use out of my buster, I found it more effective to resort to the use of the H-Saber since all of my enemies just kept getting close to me. I saw so much hot orange with every swing as bits and pieces were cleaved from the rogue machines. However, I then had an idea while seeing a griffon robot hovering overhead while waiting for a chance to take a swipe at me. "Hey! What happens when I use the Strike Chain with the H-Saber?"

My body turned mostly purple as the H-Saber's blade suddenly became much shorter. Quickly understanding what to do, I pointed at the hovering griffon during a lull in the mayhem just before the top of the saber's hilt was launched from the rest of it while staying attached to the rest by an ever lengthening chain. The shorter plasma blade shot right into the robot's chest and became stuck there, allowing me to yank it right out of the air and down into more robots with a crash. And while I could swing it around like a whip, I ultimately found it to be only marginally more useful than the standard Strike Chain on its own and quickly retracted the blade and swapped back to my default settings. "Nah! I'll stick with the sword settings."

Much to my shock, I heard what sounds like a roar before seeing robots going flying as another particularly large robot smacked its brethren aside to get to me. It was pretty big. And it was designed to resemble a manticore! Complete with large jaws an a thick metal spike for a stinger! "Whoa! Bad kitty!"

It charged right through the smaller robots to get to me, taking swipes with its paws and trying to stab me with its stinger. It pierced the concrete floor with ease and eventually became stuck there. I proceeded to lash out for a few slashes on its head, but it remarkable was still intact with only deep glowing cuts in it. Tough stuff indeed. However, I soon got some needed assistance once it dislodged its stinger when Pinkie Pie ran up to it and stood in its way. "Ooh, bigger metal manticore! Betcha can't get me!"

It took the bait and started swiping at her with its paws only for Pinkie Pie to zip around and out of the way with each swipe. "Not there! I'm over here! No, here! Now I'm over here! Wrong way, naughty kitty!"

I got a good laugh out of Pinkie Pie's antics as she was effectively annoying her opponent to death. It finally roared in frustration and tried to rapidly stab her with its stinger. But of course, Pinkie Pie was too quick with each stab hitting the floor. "Needles?! I hate needle! Do you even have a doctor license?!"

After maybe a dozen stabs, Pinkie Pie suddenly wound up on the mecha manticore's head. "Missed again! Come on, I'm right here!"

I actually facepalmed while seeing this. Would the manticore robot really be stupid enough to take another stab at her and impale itself through its own head? Well, that was exactly what happened. The stinger blade shot down only for Pinkie Pie to zoom away and ran itself right through the thing's head. The manticore robot twitched briefly before collapsing in a heap before Pinkie Pie rushed back over to my side. "Wow! These robots are really stupid!"

"Well, they are mass produced! I guess they wouldn't have the highest quality." I said with a laugh as more robots began to swarm into our current location. However, I then glanced down at Pinkie Pie and quickly deleted the Fire Wave from my weapon list to open up a space. "Hold still for a second, Pinkie. I think I need that Rocket Tackle back this time."

"Huh?! Oh, sure!" Pinkie Pie said with a smile while I touched her head. Once her body was displayed on my HUD, I released my grasp on her before she rushed off to pester more robots into oblivion. I then smirked before preparing my boot thrusters. "Heads up! I'm bowling for bots!"

The Robot Tackle worked like a charm as I rushed forward at breakneck speed and crashed through the approaching group of robots with so much force that not only did I cause significant damage to them, I even sent a good number of them flying like bowling pins. They either crashed into walls, support beams, or other robots. Immediately finding myself surrounded, I drew the H-Saber from its holster once more and utilized the Rocket Tackle ability for a flurry of supersonic slices that left all of the robots around me as piles of molten scrap metal cut from too many angles to count. Unfortunately, that completely drained the energy needed to use the Rocket Tackle again and left me relying on my default abilities while waiting for it to recharge.

Fortunately for me, Rainbow Dash was already in the process of providing an assist as dozens of robots were getting swept up in a huge indoor tornado! It was too bad that I got swept up in it too and could only watch as I was carried around and around with the dozens of robots flailing around in it crashing into each other and into any support beams it happened to pass by. I have no idea how I did not collide with anything, but I found myself tumbling trough the air with no idea as to what was up or down. "Darn it, Rainbow! Get them! Not me!"

Finding that the energy supply the abilities in my Variable Weapon System had recharged a bit, I swapped to the Strike Chain once more in an attempt to get myself out. I could have used either my boot thrusters or the primary thrusters on my back to propel myself out of the tornado, but... Well, probably a bad idea. Airplanes have never been able to get in and out of a tornado before. Not knowing what I was even aiming at, I just fired out the clawed chain at random and soon found myself getting yanked out of the tornado a second later. Once my feet were pressed against the wall, I found myself clinging to one of the factory's many support beams. Rainbow Dash was off in the distance raining lightning bolts down on other robots while they fired their many weapons at her. Still annoyed that I had gotten caught in one of her own attacks, I shook my fist at her. I doubt she noticed though.

While I was clinging to the support beam roughly halfway up its height, I took a moment to survey the vast room and the action that was going on in it. The assembly lines were still at work putting more and more robots together with each newly assembled robot stepping off the assembly line to assist in the attack on my friends while even more kept flooding into the room from beyond the large sliding doors leading into it. Twilight was still freezing up enemies and setting them ablaze while Spike was launching smoke bombs from horseback. Rainbow Dash's tornado was still blowing around the room and upper catwalks while she herself bombarded them with lightning bolts from her necklace. Applejack was still using her hoofarangs to leave robots restrained and helpless before pulverizing them with other robots that her rope had snatched up. Once that robot in her clutches had been smashed to pieces, she would just snatch up another one. Pinkie Pie was just zooming around the larger groups of robots, drawing their attention and having them open fire on the other robots that had been just behind her once she had zoomed away. She also made surprisingly quick work of the large manticore robots by using the same tactic as before along with using her earth pony might with rapid-fire punches chiseling through their bodies.

Just as I was starting to wonder about Rarity, I saw her. Twilight had gone out of her way to effectively ice over the floor around the room in such a way that made a path. And Rarity was taking full advantage of it by having conjured up ice skates and was gliding around on the icy path at remarkable speed. I had always known she was a mare of beauty and grace, but dang! She was ducking, hopping, and performing pirouettes to weave around any robots that stepped in her way. Furthermore, she had armed herself by conjuring up not one, not two, but eight sabers! And judging by the somewhat radical curve of the blades, they were likely shamshirs. Strangely fitting of her status as a unicorn. They were remarkably sharp and cleaved through anything that got in her way while orbiting around her as if they were being controlled by the will of another. But where was... Fluttershy!

I was suddenly reminded of my beloved as she was flying around the upper catwalks of the room with several griffon robots in pursuit. I dropped to the floor and was considering shooting them down when I noticed something large attached to the ceiling far ahead of her. Checking the Strike Chain and finding that there was enough energy accumulated for a charged shot, I locked onto the massive piece of the factory's equipment and took aim before firing the large grasping clawed chain at it. It clamped onto the device and I waited. Fluttershy was indeed flying in its direction in a panic. Once she was just starting to pass underneath, I tried to make the chain retract. It pulled with such force that the massive hunk of metal was ripped right out of the ceiling and began to fall as the Strike Chain released its grip and retracted back into my arm. While Fluttershy made it out of the way just fine, the griffon robots were caught underneath the falling machinery and were crushed under it along with any other robots who happened to be on the floor below when it fell with a thunderous crash. I thrusted my fist into the air and yelled out, "Woo! Nice one, honey!"

"Um... Thanks?!" Fluttershy shouted back while looking like she had no idea what had just happened. She then flew off again in a likely effort to hide. I then unequipped the Strike Chain and reverted to my default settings before rushing over to the ice patch that wound around the room and saw Rarity coming along for another pass.

I sprinted down the ice patch and found myself sliding along too despite having no trouble keeping myself upright. Probably thanks to the gyrostabilizers in my body. Rarity soon caught up to me while using her swords to dice up more griffon and pegasus robots. She missed one, so I drew the H-Saber from its holster and split it in two while more began to gather around us. Rarity then seemed to finally notice my presence as I smiled at her and asked, "May I have this dance?"

"Oh, absolutely!" Rarity replied as she conjured up a second saber and dropped it into my left hand as if she had read my mind. While dual-wielding has never been something I had actually tried, my body's programming responded accordingly as I found myself gripping Rarity's extra saber in my left hand while the H-Saber rested in my right. Together, we began to slide along the ice path while essentially dancing around each other as we kept our backs facing each other. I have no idea how I was even doing it as I have never been a good dancer or a good ice skater. I felt more like I was on autopilot than anything else.

I have no other way to describe it. It was as if we were just perfectly in sync with each other while just whirling around each other with blades slashing through the air, even performing spiraling leaps with both blades in my hands to dice up any aerial robots that may have been waiting for a chance to swoop at us. Some robots did take shots at us, but Rarity's eight blades would spin rapidly like fan blades to deflect them. It looked like she was not even trying! At one point during one of our more acrobatic movements, she practically vaulted over my back with a flip before reaching out, grasping the sides of my helmet with her hooves, and then placing a kiss upon my lips while winking as she was still upside-down before landing on her feet. It all happened so fast that I almost did not even register it. As we lashed out and cleaved up more rogue robots, I felt the need to provide some witty banter. "Man, we sure make quite the team, huh?!"

"Oh, most definitely, darling! I see a future for Radiance and Project H should this series take off! I know I'd ship it!" Rarity replied before getting some distance from me and performing a rapidly spinning pirouette as her eight blades spun rapidly around her body like a cyclone of blades. Honestly, there was so much scrap metal starting to line the floor of just that one room of the factory that I was starting to feel like we were in a massive scrap disposal center than a robot assembly factory.

Finally thinking that the two of us had stuck together long enough, I used my boot thrusters to launch myself away from Rarity before going into a rapid somersault spin with both blades and cleaving through numerous pegasus and griffon robots before landing on my feet. A hulking minotaur robot was starting to stomp my way with a bulky mechanized sledgehammer in its hands, but I just threw Rarity's spare saber at it only for the blade to skewer itself through its head. The minotaur robot staggered for a moment before it collapsed with a critical malfunction.

Finding a lull in the action for just a moment as the robots in the room were only just starting to replenish their numbers, I saw Rainbow Dash swoop down to me. She then immediately asked, "Hey! Nice work so far, but has Fluttershy still not used her superpowers yet?!"

I looked around and saw Fluttershy sprinting for the far end of the room with a large group of robots armed with melee weapons in pursuit. I then looked at Rainbow and said, "Hey, you've known her longer than me! She's never exactly been the temperamental type to begin with!"

Rainbow Dash scowled at me before looking in Fluttershy's general direction as she hovered in the air. She certainly had a point. Even Spike cosplaying as Hum Drum was putting up a better fight than her. And he was only using a slingshot with glittering smoke bombs! However, Rainbow Dash then smirked wickedly. "Oh, we just gotta get her mad, huh? I know just the thing that'll tick her off good!" She then lifted herself up higher and called out with her hooves beside her mouth. "Hey, Fluttershy! One of these big tin cans just squashed a moth!"

That just caused me to look up at Rainbow Dash with a crooked glare. "A moth?! Just what is telling her THAT gonna..."

I did not even get a chance to finish what I was going to say as I felt a strange tremor through the floor over the many thumps of dozens of robots scurrying around while a strange deep roar reached my auditory sensors. Rainbow Dash then just stared blankly ahead. I then looked in Fluttershy's direction again and muttered, "What...the...crap?"

No sooner had I said that... Just... What the hell was I even seeing?! Just... A moment earlier, I could not even see Fluttershy behind the droves of robots that had been chasing her. And a second later, dozens of them were sent flying as a hulking brute of a pegasus rose up above the robots while letting out a thunderous roar! I then pointed and yelled, "THAT'S Saddle Rager's superpower?!"

How do I even describe Fluttershy's appearance?! Along with being noticeably larger than even myself at that moment, her body was just impossibly muscular to the point of causing many rips in her jumpsuit. I doubt she could even fly anymore with how massively heavy she must have been. Her pale gold coat had also darkened slightly into a yellow bold yellow. From the brief glance I had gotten of her eyes, they seemed to have taken on a reddish hue all the way down to the sclera. She was just...terrifying! With a single smashing of the floor, she sent out a shockwave that sent many of the nearest robots airborne while just knocking more distant ones off their feet. Many robots armed with projectile weapons unloaded on her much larger frame, but it seemed to do nothing to her aside from making her madder! Even a bulky minotaur robot that tried to take a swing at her was overpowered, pushed to the floor, and then pulverized and flattened as Fluttershy pounded into it ruthlessly while letting out bestial roars and grunts! I was feeling genuinely intimidated as I took a step back. "Sizzling circuits! Wait... Oh man, I can't believe I just said that!"

Those words seemed to summon Pinkie Pie as she zoomed over to me while Fluttershy just went to town on the rogue machines. Some even seemed to be getting the idea that she was too big to handle and started to make a run for it! Pinkie Pie then looked up at me and said, "Ooh, nice one! Sizzling circuits! I bet that could be Project H's catchphrase later on!"

"Yeah, right! Besides, I'm pretty sure that line is trademarked by Ruby Spears, Pinkie! Unless it's expired by now... It has been at least twenty years, I think..." I replied to my speedy friend as Rainbow Dash could only look on in utter disbelief as her meek little lifelong friend had essentially replaced Applejack as the literal muscle of our gang of friends.

"Who knows?! Oh, by the way! You remember Ian Corlett? The guy who said that line? I betcha didn't know his daughter voices Sweetie Belle!" Pinkie Pie then added, leaving me utterly bewildered by those words.

"Knock it off, Pinkie! Sweetie Belle voices herself! And... Heads up!" I yelled before unleashing a partially charged shot on the incoming remains of an earth pony robot that had just been slammed towards us by Fluttershy. It's crumpled frame was blown apart with ease, preventing a painful collision. "Oh man... I don't wanna go anywhere near Fluttershy now..."

"Ooh! That's Fluttershy?! Wow, no wonder she's doing so well! All these years of staying so sweet and quiet at all times must've really pent up a lot of anger and frustration. You go, Fluttershy! Let out all that anger!" Pinkie Pie said as she began to cheer while our bulky friend pounded, smashed, and flattened any robot that was not smart enough to stay away from her. It was...actually pretty scary to watch.

Rainbow Dash then started to back away nervously. "Uh.. Yeah... She's really...um...channeling that anger... Uh... I think I better go find Spike."

"Ditto!" I shouted before the two of us rushed off to find Spike and Twilight. We did not have to go too far. We just followed the trail of frozen robots and disabled robots showing signs of heat damage before we found the duo still hard at working freezing up more robots after Spike had left them disoriented and blinded with his smoke bombs. I then yelled out, "Hey, Spike! We've got trouble!"

Once the surrounding robots had been put on ice, Spike looked over at me and Rainbow Dash while Twilight then used her freeze beam on one robot that seemed to have not been entirely frozen. "Huh? What's... Whoa! Is that Fluttershy?!"

I then looked behind me to see Fluttershy just going to town on one of the assembly lines. One of the boxes the unfinished robots would pass through was just being smashed to pieces under her weight and strength. I then looked back at him and yelled while extending my hand towards Fluttershy. "No, it's Cranky Doodle Donkey on steroids and having a roid rage! Of course that's Fluttershy! But is she OK?! You know more about Saddle Rager than we do!"

Rather than being intimidated, Spike grinned excitedly while pumping his fist. "All right! Now that Saddle Rager's gone ballistic, nothing can stop her! Don't worry though. She still knows who her comrades are."

Twilight then turned to look and staggered back at the sight of her friend's hulked out state. "Wait... That's Fluttershy?! But... What happened?! What finally made her mad enough to finally go nuts like that?!"

"Oh, that's easy! I just yelled out to her and said that one of the robots crushed a moth. You know how she is about animals." Rainbow Dash said playfully while swiping her hoof through the air. However, this only got her a very dry stare from Twilight and even a similar gaze from Spike. I too crossed my arms and looked at her, having actually seen and heard her yell out that claim. Rainbow Dash looked back and forth at us and asked, "What?"

Twilight then spoke with a very dry tone of voice. "You do know that she'll probably come after you when she finds out you lied to her, right?"

That look of utter horror on Rainbow Dash's face... I swear she almost dropped right out of the air. "Oh snap... Uh... Yeah, she'll probably squash me flat. Uh... You never heard that from me, all right?!"

While I got a good laugh out of that, Applejack then soon came running over to us. "Hey, girls! How're thing's lookin' on yer end?! I swear these tin cans just keep comin'! I lost count of how many I've trashed so far!"

"Well, it looks like Fluttershy's getting a lot of attention right now. Maybe we should take a minute to catch our breath and survey the situation. We've really thinned out their ranks for now. Although there's probably going to be more piling in here soon... Like that!" Twilight then explained while another drove of freshly assembled robots poured into the room while focusing their firepower on Fluttershy. Fortunately, there was just no stopping that powerhouse of a mare... I still cannot believe I am using such descriptions for my own girlfriend.

"Yeah, but... Hey, girls? I know we haven't been here all that long, but... Ain't the floors lookin' a bit...clean for all the mess we made?" Applejack then added while glancing around as her rope hovered and squirmed through the air near her. And she was right. As I glanced around, I saw that the floor around us was surprisingly bare. I mean there was still a sizeable amount of scrap littering the floor around us from recently scrapped robots, but... It simply did not feel like enough after the dozens upon dozens of robots we had already destroyed. "Well... Maybe it's just me. I dunno, maybe the manticore bots are eatin' 'em or somethin'. Beats me."

"Nah, I doubt these robots have any sort of digestion system. Let's just focus on scrapping these robots. Those assembly lines are bound to run out of materials eventually." I replied while turning to look at some of the robots that were beginning to back away from Fluttershy. Sooner or later, they would start coming after us. While Applejack and Rainbow Dash ran off to deal with some of the stragglers, I happened to glance at Twilight's horn as it became coated with frigid mist. "Hey, Twilight? Mind if I check that out?"

"Huh? Check what out? My horn?" She replied while I glanced at the corner of my HUD as I deleted the Strike Chain from my list of assimilated weapons. I felt it had served its purpose for now and was willing to try something else out.

"Yeah, that. Hold still for a second." I explained before reaching down and touching her horn. As expected, my HUD displayed three wire frame images on my visor with two depicting Masked Matter-Horn from the front and sides while a third showed a somewhat spherical object colliding with a wall while several shards seemed to be bursting out of its backside. Furthermore, my body became an icy blue while my softer armor components became a light shade of yellow. I instantly knew what it was. "Yeah, that's another old favorite right there!"

"What kind of old favorite?! Did your copying system just copy my ice powers?" Twilight asked while Spike was preparing another smoke bomb in his slingshot.

"Yup! Just watch and... Oh, heads up. You've got some griffons on your six." I replied while pointing behind her while a small flock of griffon robots were approaching. I then turned and ran towards another approaching gaggle of robotic goons before firing a volley of several icy orbs from the H-Buster. Upon colliding with the robots with the force of a cannonball, they would fracture with several shards flying away at high velocity in random directions and deeply embedding themselves into the bodies of any robots nearby with each robot sparking and collapsing due to internal damages. "Heck yeah! Shotgun Ice!"

I just went nuts with that weapon, firing shots of the fragmenting orbs of ice at not just the robots, but even at the ceilings and walls just to score bank shots on them with the dozens of shards that would be launched upon impact. Those dozens of flying shards were mowing my enemies down so fast that they barely got a shot off at me. But just as I was starting to run low on weapon energy for the Variable Weapon System, I heard Rainbow Dash yell out at me from across the room. "Hey! James... Hey, quit it!"

Seeing as the immediate wave of robots had been taken care of, I turned and looked in her direction. And I was snickering like an idiot, partially out of embarrassment, as I saw Rainbow Dash stuck against the wall in an awkward desperate pose with numerous ice shards stuck in the wall around her in a perfect outline having just narrowly avoided being peppered with the results of my potshots' ricochets. She then yelled out at me while pushing herself off the wall, "I know I got you caught up in that tornado a little while ago, but take it easy!"

Seeing that using the Shotgun Ice ability was a bad choice due to the high risk of friendly fire, I promptly deleted it from my list of weapons and cleared up a spot. "Note to self... Refrain from using Shotgun Ice outside of solo operations. Risk to allies is remarkably high."

It was at that moment that I found myself on the receiving end of a joint attack from numerous robots, including a manticore robot. They promptly charged me before I could even line up a shot, forcing me to scramble up some stairs to the overhanging catwalk. The minotaur and manticore robots were too large and bulky to follow after me, so they directed their attention elsewhere while I ran along the catwalk taking shots at the griffon and pegasus robots that pursued me. It was especially annoying since the griffons would dive at me with claws extended while the pegasi robots would bombard me with all manner of energy and ballistic weapons. Even with my very fast processing of the visual data I was receiving, it was all but impossible to keep track of everything that was coming my way.

Thankfully, this did not go on for much longer. A barrage of lightning bolts rushed by with most of them zapping the aerial problem robots out of the air. Rainbow Dash then flew up to me and was flying alongside me with a smirk on her face while holding out her hoof. "Hey, James! You got rid of that ice thing, right? How about some more Storm Tornado?!"

The offer thrilled me as I reached out to her. But just before I could touch her hoof, my eyes focused on the lightning bolt pendant hanging from her neck. My HUD was detecting powerful condensed electrical energy within it. Curious, I reached out to that instead and grabbed it between my fingers. "Nah! I'll try this instead!"

My guess proved correct. Upon touching the pendant, my HUD displayed the pendant along with a zigzagging line of electricity. Furthermore, my white armor became a shade of electric blue while my softer sections stayed white. Rainbow Dash seemed impressed and curious when I let go of her pendant. "Huh?! Whatcha get this time?!"

"I think I've got a hunch!" I replied before vaulting over the catwalk's guardrail and dropping down to the floor. I then took aim with the H-Buster as nearby robots turned to face me and unleashed a literal chain of electricity that went straight through the first target before zipping to another and then a few more while creating a literal chain of electricity! As they either partially exploded or just collapsed in severe electrical malfunction, I pumped my left fist as I recognized the effects. "Nice! Thunder Dancer!"

Wanting to test out my new weapon further, I began to charge it while another swarm of rogue machines began to approach me with numerous melee ready to dig into me. Ranged weapons were largely out of the question due to how tightly packed together they were. I already had a hunch of what was about to come out of the H-Buster and stuck it out towards the approaching enemy while grinning like a fool. "Here you go! Zappity zap zap!"

Upon releasing the charged energy, a total of three lightning chains burst forth from my buster and spread throughout the entire group of rogue machines in under a second. They all became still for just a moment while sparks flew from their mechanical bodies before they all exploded or combusted simultaneously. "Heh... Nice."

"Hey, pardner! How 'bout lendin' me a hoof over here?!" I heard Applejack shout above the racket that was filling up the factory. Upon turning, I saw her running from a line of minotaur robots all carrying high-tech sledgehammers. Her rope and hoofarangs were probably not enough to slow them down. Definitely the brutes of the bunch.

"I gotcha, AJ!" I shouted before performing a massive jump with the aid of my boot thrusters to get myself between Applejack and her mechanical pursuers. In the process, I drew the H-Saber and equipped both the Thunder Dancer and the Rocket Tackle for a new tandem attack. "Let's see what happens this time..."

I raised the H-Saber while its blade turned more of a faint violet color as it began to crackle and spark with electricity. With all of the robots lined up in mostly a row, it seemed like a good idea to try cutting them all down at once. Using the Thunder Dancer alone might have been enough, but I was having too much fun to not get creative. I raised my blade up to near my left shoulder while I felt my boot thrusters charging up briefly before I rocketed forward past the long line of minotaur robots at nearly supersonic speed as I swung the H-Saber out to my right. When I screeched to a stop, a massive bolt of electricity shot through the robots from my blade all the way back to where I had been standing! Any robots that did not immediately explode in some way merely froze and collapsed stiffly to the ground. I grinned while a laugh escaped my throat. "Whoaho! I remember that one! Raikousen!"

Applejack hopped and weaved her way around the piles of scorched metal and circuitry before hurrying over to me while we got a break from the action as our other friends were still roughing up the opposition all around the vast room. "Woo nelly, James! Seems like you've got a toy for just about any occasion! And yer just 'bout as colorful as the fruit bats back home!"

"You're doing pretty good too, AJ! That rope of yours keeps watching your back like you've got your own personal sidekick... Huh? Oh, want some more?!" I replied before turning and seeing a large group of mixed robot types rushing towards us. With the two of us close to the wall, we did not have anywhere to really go. But as I returned the H-Saber to its holster and swapped my weaponry to its default settings, I started to notice something about them. "Hey, AJ... Are they running towards us or away from something else?"

"Uh... Maybe they're runnin' from...whatever the hay THAT is?!" Applejack shouted while she pointed ahead. Right at the very back of the pack, several robots got scrapped or smashed by a furious hulking Fluttershy.

"Oh boy... RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! SHE'LL KILL US ALL!" I yelled before turning and just making a run for it. If Saddle Rager's superpower worked the way I thought it did, Fluttershy would likely struggle to discern friend from foe and crush me like a tin can in a trash compactor. And everyone knows that trash compactors are a robot's natural enemy!

I just ran down the path before me between the wall and the assembly line to my left. I could hear Fluttershy's roars and the clanking of robots getting smashed and torn apart while even more robots were just running up behind me in a desperate attempt to escape the crushing terror behind them. Applejack seemed to have taken the smart choice and just jumped across the assembly line between half-assembled robots to escape more easily. Not sure why I did not do the same. A sudden tremor behind me caused me to stagger as I tripped forward and turned around before getting stuck between a support beam and the hulking form of my furious girlfriend. I have to say that even though she was certainly bigger than me, she was not quite that massive. Still big enough to crush me in her arms though. "Oh man... Easy there, honey! You remember me, right?! James?! Your future hubby?! We're getting married next year, right?!"

Her furious scowl quickly turned into a surprised stare before she genuinely smiled, even though her reddened eyes still reeked of rage to me. And when she spoke... Just... Well, it was unsettling to hear her voice sound so guttural and deep. "Oh... Hi, James! Did I scare you? Sorry..."

Well, this was certainly unexpected. Despite having embraced her rage enough to fight against anything that came her way, Fluttershy still seemed to retain all of her mental facilities and even her original personality. "Wait a second. You're still you and not a big dumb monster filled with rage? Huh... I guess it's the power and bulk of the Hulk crossed with the intelligence of the She-Hulk..."

Despite her grotesquely muscular form, Fluttershy still showed a surprisingly cute retort while she seemed to cutely blush after glancing at the mess of wrecked robots behind her. "Oh dear... I hope they can be put back together."

That voice and her mannerisms just did not mix, I swear... Even so, I feared that if Fluttershy allowed herself to relax for too long, she would revert to normal. And that would leave her vulnerable. Hoping to keep her able to fight for longer, I then said, "Why? It looks like they were all dangerous from the moment they first came online. And besides... Didn't they squash a moth?"

This caused Fluttershy to instantly scowl and turn towards a distant group of robots that were clashing with Pinkie Pie. "Right... They did... And I won't forgive them! How dare they hurt such a innocent little critter! I'LL MAKE THEM PAY!"

"That's the spirit, honey! Take 'em all down before they squash anymore moths!" I cheered while pointing at her next group of victims. Her fighting spirit stoked back up to boiling, Fluttershy bowled over an incomplete robot on the assembly before us before going after more robots.

It was while she rain off that Rainbow Dash swooped down to me and whistled at the sight of Fluttershy galloping away. "Man, that superpower really does a number on her looks, huh?"

"I guess you can say that. Even so, she's still that sweetheart we know and love under all that muscle." I replied with a smile while watching Fluttershy go to town on the poor metal fools who got in her way.

Rainbow Dash then smirked while she whispered to me, "Yup. And just check out those super toned flanks. I bet she'd ride you all night in that form."

"Yeah, she... Wait... WHAT?!" I yelled while I stepped away from her as I glanced at Fluttershy and cringed at the thought that Rainbow had just planted in my head. "Are you outta your mind, Rainbow?! I try that and she'll shatter my pelvis!" I then turned away in mild terror while Rainbow Dash fell to the ground while rolling around in laughter. Just... What made her think of such a thing?!

It was during that lull in the action that I noticed the mangled remains of a manticore robot mixed in with the mess that Fluttershy had left behind. Its tail still seemed to be intact. While my eyes glanced at the list of weapons and abilities I had assimilated into my Variable Weapon System, I eyed the Thunder Dancer icon and soon deleted it while my body returned to its standard white color. I could always touch Rainbow Dash's pendant if I needed it again and she was never far away. Once I had a slot open, I reached down and touched the manticore robot's tail. A second later, it depicted the Manticore as well as a wire frame model of its tail and stinger before showing it extended for a strike. The icon that appeared on the list of assimilated functions was one that I had already seen on it earlier. "Huh... I guess I got the Strike Chain back for now."

While Rainbow Dash went after a bunch more pegasus robots, I ran across the room and blasted any robot I came across while trying to rendezvous with Rarity. The ice strip she had been sliding around on was starting to thaw and was becoming smaller. She soon skated towards me before performing a graceful leaping pirouette as her ice skates vanished before landing before me with a bow as her eight swords floated near her. I proceeded to applaud her after restoring my right hand. "Bravo, m'lady! Such grace and flair!"

"Oh, you are too kind, sir knight." She said with a giggle while regaining her posture. "I must've lost count of how many of those rogues I've cleaved up! It's like once we take some out, more just step off the assembly line or pour in from other rooms! Is there no end?!"

Once more, I glanced around. For all the robots we had disabled, there was definitely not as much scrap littering the floor as there should have been. "Yeah, it feels like it. And I swear that the mangled remains of these robots just keeps disappearing... Almost like something is... Hey!"

I suddenly noticed something hovering high off the floor that I had never noticed before. Something dome-shaped. Wasting no time, I activated the H-Buster and swapped to the Strike Chain as my body turned mostly purple. Once at maximum charge, the stretching clawed chain was fired forward before grabbing hold of the flying object and yanking it right down towards me. Rather than let it run into me, I swung my arm to the side and caused the chain to bend before slamming the flying object into a nearby support beam. The impact was more than enough to wreck it as the flying device fell to the ground and remained motionless while giving off sparks.

"Oh my, what's this? It's not like the other robots we've seen..." Rarity muttered as she approached it. It seemed to be a mech with a single large blue optic sensor on the front while having a rusty red paintjob. It was elevated with a large propeller on the top and two smaller propellers on the sides seemed to provide stability and turning. And on the underside was a round metal plate that was just as wide as the mech itself. A quick touch caused my systems to detect faint magnetic properties. Furthermore, a pile of damaged robot parts had fallen from the plate next to it. It did not take long for Rarity to deduce its function. "James... I do believe that this little thing was trying to salvage the bits and pieces of those wrecked robots!"

"Salvage... Well, that explains all the missing scrap! These things fly in, gather the stuff up, and then take off while we're distracted by the main threat!" I replied before looking up and scanning the very high ceiling of the factory room. Sure enough, now that I was actually paying attention, I saw them. Roughly a dozen of identical flying mechs were buzzing through the air while the racket caused by the activity in the room all but drowned out the propellers. I saw one lower to the ground were Fluttershy had left a trail of destruction and lowered its magnet plate by a chain. The magnetic properties must have been extremely strong while active since even pieces of metal that were close by were drawn up into the magnet. With a pile of metal roughly twice its own size, the salvage mech began to rise into the air before flying even higher. Then entire time, none of our friends even noticed it.

I continued to watch with Rarity by my side as one of the flying mechs flew higher up to near the ceiling and the upper walls. A metal door seemed to open up there before the mech flew through it and out of sight before it closed. "There's it's escape route. I'm gonna check it out. Stay here and hold the fort until I get back, all right?"

"Will do! And take the utmost care, darling!" Rarity replied while she rushed off to help our friends out. I activated the thrusters on my back before flying up and after one of the mechs. Just before the door could close behind it, I rushed through and landed before running after the mech. The passage before me was a metal tunnel that felt more like a large ventilation shaft than a corridor. I promptly shot the mech down after swapping back to my default weaponry and then ran down the tunnel to find the end of it.

My metal feet must have been making quite a racket as I ran through the passage suspended high off the floor, although I doubt any of the many killer robots outside it could have guessed that I was inside due to the generally noisy atmosphere even outside the room where all the action was taking place. After rounding a few corners, I nearly ran into another salvage mech as it hovered down the corridor. I considered shooting it down as well, especially since it was not flying as fast as I could run and was probably weighed down by its cargo of scrap metal, but decided against it to avoid drawing further attention to myself. It was just a robot factory, but lord knows if they had extra security installed after being circumvented into producing rogue combat robots. The mech seemed to have very basic functions programmed into its AI as it did not show any hostility towards me and seemed to only serve just its role of retrieving scrap metal. I reached out and tapped its metal shell, but was strangely surprised to find that physical contact with it did no harm to me. "Hm... Hey, doc. You've been seeing everything that's been happening, right? What's the point of converting a factory that produces industrial robots into one that pumps out combat bots? I don't see the point."

"You're certainly right about one thing, Project H. This factory was never designed to construct weapon systems. Someone has modified the assembly lines right under our noses." Doctor Luminous spoke with a grim tone. "Furthermore, only the more basic types of robots are mass-produced due to their basic AI. The robots like you've seen so far are produced under very specific circumstances due to their advanced AI. You don't mass-produce people."

"And I take it that this factory is pumping out these more intelligent robots instead because of that advanced mentality of theirs? That's pretty sick to have them all be mavericks from the start!" I asked in return while still staying right behind the salvage mech that was leading me along. "And who could've done that so easily without anyone else knowing? You'd probably need to have supreme authority over this place to change things up this radically while staying under the radar..."

Luminous was silent for a good five seconds before he offered a reply. "I think you already know someone who falls into that category, Project H. I already discussed him with you before you departed."

My thoughts immediately went back to the moment the Mane-iac was driven off. That white alicorn robot with plasma-producing capabilities. A powerful robotic being whose name is a letter in the Greek alphabet. The similarities were uncanny. "Alpha..."

"I don't want to believe he can be responsible for this, but by this point, the odds are likely. We'll discuss this later, Project H. First, you need to shut down this factory any way you can." Luminous replied with a truly frustrated tone in his voice. He was fearful and I certainly did not blame him. I remained silent for the moment. The end of the corridor was just ahead.

The door at the ed of the long twisting corridor slid open as the mech slid open to allow the salvage mech through. It remained open even after the mech had safely traveled through it, possibly because it was detecting me and that I too was a machine at the time. I peeked around the corner of the doorway while trying to make sure no following salvage mechs would push me out of the way on their way through. Sure enough, I saw a sight that made me scowl in irritation. "Well, this just complicated things."

The room was not terribly large, although it was still large enough to do its job. At the far end of the room was a large bulky generator of sorts that probably supplied energy and even directives to the equipment throughout the factory. And to each side were conveyor belts with large funnels that the salvage mechs would dump their loads of scrap into to minimize missing and making a mess. The scrap would fall into a large metal box at the bottom which the conveyor belts originated from and would be carried along into another longer box with a shaft out the side. The scrap metal would pass through, but I was able to see the bits of broken circuit boards and wiring sliding down the shaft and onto another conveyor belt that led to another cart. It was separating the two different components. "Oh, this better not mean what I think it does..."

The conveyor belt continued to carry the bits of scrap metal along until they were all fed into what were clearly large furnaces while the broken circuits and wires were taken away to be repaired. The furnace clearly was not meant for disposal. It was melting the metal down to be molded back into the metal frames for more robots! Replenishing depleted materials by recycling whatever was leftover from the robots we had scrapped! "Crap... We'll be here for weeks at this rate!"

I had to find a way to stop the process. If I took out the generator, the whole factory would likely fall silent. By that point, it would just be a matter of time before we took down all the robots that had already been assembled. However, I was quick to see numerous robots and even mechs on patrol in the chamber and they were all armed. Fortunately, they had not detected my presence. I could probably use the opportunity to shut the place down in one shot. I checked my assimilated weapons and saw I only had the Rocket Tackle and Strike Chain, neither of which would probably do the job. I would have to rely on the H-Buster's default settings. And so I began to charge it up to maximum while waiting for the next salvage mech to pass.

A moment passed before a salvage mech passed me by. When it did, I stepped out of hiding and fired my fully charged shot right at the center of the generator. "Lights out!"

The shot hit hard and created a flash of light when it collided. But much to my frustration, I saw that it hardly had a scratch on it. Maybe some scorched metal here and there, but that was about it. That shot was all the guards needed to detect my presence as they all unloaded their weapons onto my current location, ranging from laser cannons, missile launchers, and lord knows what else.

"Jesus! That didn't even put a dent in it!" I yelled while ducking behind the corner as their weapons slammed into the outer walls and into the corridor. The place must have been built well since the place was still intact, but the guard robots ceased firing once I was out of sight. But all it would take for them to fire again was to stick my head out. Even so, there had to be something I could do about the generator. As long as it was online, we were still locked in. "Crap... I'll be lucky to last five seconds in there..."

After waiting for another salvage mech to hover by, I peeked out of the doorway again while staying too far back and too low for anyone on the floor to see me. It was while I was doing this that I detected something at the far ends of the room. Two towering steel support beams made up of zigzagging metal bars for even weight distribution. Probably just as effective as a solid steel pillar while using fewer resources, but more than likely not as sturdy. I had seen several of them positioned around the room me and my friends had been in, but never thought much of them until that moment.

"The support beams..." I muttered to myself as I had an idea. "Yeah... If we weaken or destroy them, it'll probably bring the whole place down. That'll wreck everything in the factory! Even if the generator survives it, it'll be useless with all of the assembly lines wrecked and the recycling systems ruined! Doc, do you think that's a good idea? Would demolishing the factory suffice?"

The doctor did not sound like he was exactly fond of the idea, but he did not object either. "By this point, I doubt the city council would mind. Do whatever you have to in order to halt the production of these combat robots."

"Got it!" I began to charge up the H-Buster again. After letting another salvage mech pass me by, I stepped out of hiding, targeted one of the support beams at the base, and unleashed my shot. It hit hard, fracturing and bending the thing out of shape. I had to immediately duck into hiding again to avoid getting shot up by the guard robots, but I soon repeated the process and shot out the bottom of the other support pillar too. The ceiling still held, but that was fine. Getting rid of all of the support beams in the place would likely trigger a chain reaction that would bring down the whole place. Satisfied that the generator room had been compromised, I retreated back down the corridor while pushing aside any salvage mechs that came my way. It was time to bring down the house!

I got back to the room my friends were still in and stood at the doorway while surveying the situation. I would probably need to find Twilight first since she was the leader of the team. Sure enough, she was hard at work freezing up any robot that was coming near her while Spike rode horseback. However, I noticed another earth pony robot approaching from behind with a blade-type weapon extending from its attack harness. It even seemed to have the presence of mind to approach slowly to avoid getting her attention. With all the other members of the Power Ponies busy fighting their own battles, no one had noticed.

Maybe Spike would turn around in time to notice and blind it with a smoke bomb before Twilight could follow with a freeze ray, but I was not taking chances. Swapping my current weapon to the Strike Chain as my body turned purple, I took aim at a horizontal beam affixed to the ceiling and fired a charged shot. The powerful grasping claw at the end of the extending chain clamped securely onto the beam. Feeling daring, I hopped down from my current vantage point and soon found myself performing a massive jungle swing with the Strike Chain serving as the vine. I picked up crazy speed as I rapidly approached the sneaky robot. "Incoming!"

The robot turned around just in time for me to kick it squarely in the face. That blow hit so hard that it ripped its head off and sent it flying to the far end of the factory room like a football that had just been used to score a field goal. I then ended up swinging past Twilight and detaching the Strike Chain from the ceiling before it rapidly retracted into my arm. I ended up performing a back flip somehow before landing on my feet. Flipping is something I still have not gotten used to, but my stabilizer systems prevented me from stumbling. When I turned around, I saw Twilight and Spike staring at the headless robot behind them. It was entirely immobile and just stood there motionlessly. I then called out to them, "Hey, Spike! When you're riding Twilight, you need to watch her back! That sucker almost got you!"

"Sorry! I didn't think these robots were smart enough to get sneaky!" Spike said apologetically while Twilight looked at him over her shoulder. They seemed genuinely startled that a robot had almost gotten a hit in.

"It's fine. Anyway... Hey! Pinkie Pie, come here a minute!" I then yelled out while Pinkie Pie zipped by only for her to zoom back to me. "Ah, good. Go round up the other girls. I know how to take this place down!"

"Oki doki loki! I'll be just a second!" Pinkie Pie replied before she zoomed around the room to alert our friends. I then took a look around and saw that for how many robots were around when the fight started, they were starting to get really thinned out. I was then quick to notice that the assembly line components had been smashed to pieces. Most likely by an annoyed Fluttershy. Of course, while that stopped this room from putting more robots together, the rest of the factory was still assembling more rogue robots that were closing in on us.

It was only then that I noticed the door that led further into the factory. It was the only way into the room we were in aside from the doors that led outside, which were still locked down. Knowing we would need a minute to talk, I pointed towards the far door. "Hey, Twilight! Freeze that door shut for a minute! We're gonna need to talk, so I don't want any distractions."

"Got it!" She replied before firing a concentrated freeze ray at the door. The two metal sheets were thoroughly frozen together by a thickening layer of ice, although I doubted it would hold for long. "There we go. Oh, hey girls! Everything all right?"

Our five friends all approached us, although Rarity seemed a bit irked by Fluttershy's hulking form. Fluttershy could only blush and grin meekly in response while Rarity stepped away from her. Regardless, Applejack then spoke up first now that the room had become far less noisy with every last robot in it having been scrapped. "Woo! That last wave really got me workin' up a sweat! Anyway, what's goin' on?"

I then stepped forward as my purple body became white once more. "Well, you're gonna pass out from sweating so much at this rate. We're gonna be here for days, if not weeks, with how this factory keeps supplying itself with more materials to make more robots. It's even recycling the scrap metal from damaged robots by melting it down! We won't outlast them!"

"They'll just keep coming and coming until we get too tired to keep going?! Then... What do we do?" Fluttershy asked with that deep guttural voice of hers and clearly making everyone around us very uncomfortable. Still, at least she was still maintaining that form.

I smiled reassuringly now that I had a good idea of how to go about things. "Simple. We bring down the entire factory. Rather than waste our time fighting the enemy, we'll bring down the whole house. There are support beams set up in each major room. We take those out, the whole place will come crashing down and take everything in it with it to the scrap heap!"

Rainbow Dash seemed especially excited about the proposition while she punched her hooves together. "Awesome! First clouds, then old barns, and now factories! What do these support beams look like?"

"Oh, like that... And that... And also that." I replied while pointing to the six support beams standing around the far ends of the room. They were identical to the ones I had damaged in the generator room and could probably be busted with just as much ease.

Pinkie Pie then smacked herself on the head. "Oh, duh! Anyway, how do we do this?! Got any ideas?"

While I was tempted to offer a reply, I instead looked down at Twilight. "Well, any ideas, Twi? You're the leader here, so I think you should be calling the shots."

"I am?! Well... Hmmm..." She said before bowing her head in silence momentarily before looking around at all of us. "OK, girls. I think I have an idea."

"We're all ears, Twilight. How should we bring an end to this soiree?" Rarity then asked while her eight blades still floated nearby. She must have really grown to like those swords if she was keeping them around that long. And it was then that I heard pounding sounds coming from the frozen door. The robots on the other side were already trying to force their way in.

Twilight smiled confidently as she explained her plan. "Well, it's like James said. There's probably more just like the ones in this room. When that door opens, we'll clear a path into that room and then make our ways to the farthest rooms. We'll start with the support beams in those rooms before making our ways back here to make sure we don't end up getting trapped far away from the exit when the place starts coming down. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, you'll keep the robots busy while the rest of us take the pillars down. Anything else you need to mention, James?"

"The only other advice I can give is to not enter the generator room. I already shot out the support beams in there, so there's no point going back in. Besides, the security in there is too heavy. You won't last five seconds in there." I explained while still remembering how close I had come to getting blasted apart by weapon fire.

"Sounds like a plan, girls! Let's mosey! They'll be comin' any minute now!" Applejack replied as she began to approach the door that led deeper into the factory. We all followed, but I soon realized that we had no idea where anything even was in the factory. We could get lost and end up cornered.

I glanced at the upper left corner of my HUD and had my map zoom in further and further until it only showed the factory I was currently in. All chambers were on the ground floor and displayed the factory in a top down perspective. There seemed to be eight rooms in all with the generator room all the way in the back. There were also smaller rooms here and there off to the sides, but they were like just closets and offices. I then spoke up, "Girls, I've got a map on my visor here. I'll take point, OK?"

"Sounds good, James. You lead and we'll follow. And Spike, be sure to give me cover while I'm trying to take down the support beams." Twilight replied while we all approached the door. Spike nodded and loaded up...Deadpool's asterisk into his slingshot. Lord knows what those things actually did, but I never was paying attention throughout the rest of the mission to actually see them get used.

We all stood before the frozen door as the ice began to crack. The robots were likely on the verge of breaking in. Fluttershy took point for the moment, breathing heavily with anticipation. She was still holding onto that rage. Sure enough, the door soon ruptured with falling ice and bent metal as a literal wall of robots stood before us. Fluttershy wasted no time in letting out a roar as she lifted her arms and slammed them into the ground hard enough to unleash a shockwave that sent the front of the robot pack flying backwards.

I took the opportunity presented to me and preformed a great jump over my beloved before landing before her at the front of the room with the H-Buster changing settings. The robots in the room had amassed into a sea of metal. I wasted no time in pointing my buster off to the side as I stood my ground and unleashed a concentrated beam of plasma into the opposition while slowly sweeping my arm to the right. It utterly decimated droves of robots, but the swarm was so thick that the bodies actually prevented my plasma wave from getting all the way back to the far room. At the very least, it ended up creating a wide breach in the opposition to allow us to enter unscathed. "It's our own Battle of the Bulge! This way, girls!"

There was not a whole lot to describe from this point onward. Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and myself did most of the work in clearing a path from one room to another. When we finally got to the farthest rooms in the factory, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie went to work. Pinkie Pie constantly zipped around harassing the robots while Rainbow Dash whipped up a tornado that blew around the center of the room and sucking up any robots that drew too near while zapping others with lightning. The rest of us went to work in bringing the place down.

Fluttershy's approach was pretty straightforward. With her raw brute strength, she bent and broke the support beams effortless. Applejack would have her rope wrap around the base of the support beam and pull so hard that it would end up ripping the thing right out of its concrete foundation by the rivets and leaving it stuck on a crooked angle. Rarity's approach was more comical than I expected as she would conjure up a big pink mallet and start pounding on the steel until it buckled and broke. Twilight's approach was definitely much more intellectual than the rest of us. With Spike keeping the robots at bay with smoke bombs and lord knows what else, Twilight would use her heat ray superpower to heat much of the support beam to superheated temperatures and then rapidly cool the glowing metal with her freeze ray, leaving the metal greatly weakened and brittle to the point where it would likely collapse under its own weight.

I went after the support beams too. But before I could get to one of them, a minotaur robot stepped in my way and successfully landed an uppercut on my chin that sent me flying backwards. My body took the hit better than it would have if I had still been human and I soon regained control of my body. Before I could hit the ground with maybe three quarters of a back flip, I activated my boot thrusters and shot forward, ramming the minotaur robot with a shoulder barge and slamming it right into the support beam so hard that most of its limbs popped out of their sockets! Furthermore, I jumped away as the support beam's upper half fell downward and crushed the wrecked robot. Satisfied with that one, I hurried over to another one with the H-Saber in hand. I used my flight thrusters to propel myself up to the top and cleaved through the support beam on an angle before dropping to the ground and cleaving through the bottom on the same angle. The disconnected beam would then slide out of place and then topple, often crushing numerous robots in the process. Upon leaving the large side rooms, I would then smash the nearby control panel with my fist to jam the door and buy us more time by keeping the robots locked in.

This process went on for a while until we all found ourselves back in the factory's front room. It was only after we took out those support beams that we detected a new presence. Distance heavy metallic crashes as the entire factory began to rumble. As robots began to pour through the broken door in the back, we saw it. Pillars and catwalks falling as the ceiling and walls started to come down! I actually let out an uneasy laugh as I saw that our efforts were paying off. "Ohoho boy, there it goes! Time to split!"

"Uh... Yup! I'd say we'd better skedaddle, y'all!" Applejack then yelled while we all bolted for the front of the factory. The robots were still in pursuit, although it was difficult to say if they were chasing us or trying to escape the factory's destruction.

Pinkie Pie obviously reached the large sliding door first, but began to panic as she tried fiddling with the control panel. "Oh no! We're still locked in!"

"Then I'll make an exit! Outta my way, Pinkie!" Fluttershy yelled as she sprinted ahead of us. Her tread was thunderous and heavy as my burly lover charged ahead before ramming the door with such force that it was torn open before she ended up outside.

"Sweet! Nice one, Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash yelled while we all followed her out as the room began to collapse as well. We made it outside and charged down the ramp that led to the street and turned around just in time to actually see the factory collapsing in on itself with the groans and screeches of metal filling the air. Moments later, with dust and smoke rising from the ruins, the air became silent. Only for the silence to be broken with the cheers and celebration of my seven companions. They gave each other hugs, high-fives, hoof bumps and so forth. And it felt good. We had brought an end to the robot menace of Maretropolis. And I even snickered when I heard Pinkie Pie reminding Twilight that she knew they would make a good demolition team.

"Well, I would say that was another job well done, darlings. And you too, Spike!" Rarity said with triumph before nudging me with her elbow. "And we certainly can't forget about our dashing cyborg in shining armor here."

I only snickered at Rarity's praise while noticing that Fluttershy was returning to normal size. I suppose Saddle Rager's superpower deactivates once she fully relaxes. Her bold yellow coat even returned to its original pale gold hue. Even more surprisingly, any damage her outfit sustained during the initial transformation was strangely undone. A self-repairing outfit? Even so, she soon let out a sigh while speaking in that demure meek voice I love. "I just wish I could've saved that poor moth... The poor thing..."

I then saw Twilight give Rainbow Dash a very snide glare and mutter, "Are you going to tell her, or should I?"

Those words seemed to unnerve Rainbow Dash, but she still found the courage to step forward and confess. "Uh... Fluttershy? Thee...uh... There was no moth. I just said that so you'd get mad enough to use your superpowers."

Fluttershy's expression became surprisingly blank as we all stepped back. She then looked at Rainbow Dash and muttered, "You...lied to me...?"

Seeing that she was handling the revelation better than we expected. Clearly relieved, Rainbow Dash spoke up with more confidence. "Yeah! I mean did you even see yourself when you went nuts on those tin cans?! You floored them! If you hadn't helped out, things would've been a lot harder on us. Man, you really..."

It was then that Fluttershy surprised us all when she suddenly yelled at Rainbow Dash. "You LIED to me?! About a moth getting squished?! I thought one of those robots just killed something and you LIED about it?!"

Rainbow Dash became increasingly intimidated as Fluttershy's superpower began to kick in again. She still continued to fume while her voice grew increasingly deeper as Rainbow kept leaning further and further back in terror. Soon, the mighty Saddle Rager stood tall and furious over the terrified Rainbow Dash. "I could just... Just... Just..."

It was then that Rainbow Dash did something none of us expected. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she limply collapsed onto her back. Even Fluttershy's expression of rage immediately became one of surprise before she cutely tapped her hooves together and asked, "Uh oh... Did I make her faint?"

The air became filled with raucous laughter. Oh lord, Rainbow Dash will strangle me if she ever reads this. If she had hands, that is. Regardless, we got a good laugh out of Rainbow passing out in sheer terror before her longtime meek little friend. However, when I turned around, I thought I noticed something a block away as the factory's ramp led right down to a three-way intersection. Someone standing atop the roof on a building on the corner. My vision in one eye magnified rapidly to get a better look. And I saw him looking right at me before he stepped out of sight. Alpha.

Remembering my conversation with Doctor Luminous regarding his previous creation, I immediately took off running down the street in pursuit of the robotic alicorn. He had answers and I wanted to hear them. That, and the plot probably dictated that I was supposed to meet up with him anyway. I heard Pinkie Pie call out behind me, but I did not respond. After seeing everything that had happened so far, I could not let him slip through my fingers again.

I ran through the dark deserted streets of Maretropolis, guided only by brief sightings of Alpha. It felt like he was luring, although I was uncertain if he was truly hostile towards me just yet. Eventually, I came before a tall office building with a fairly expansive plaza. Its main attraction caught me by surprise. A large statue of Celestia on a podium at the top of some steps. And standing atop it was none other than Alpha. He stood with wings folded, his eyes constantly following my every move while his plasma tail and mane provided a modest source of light for the area.

"So, you were successful in clearing out that factory? Nicely done. Although I trust that you had some assistance?" He said once I came to a stop in front of him in the street. The air was quiet with only the distant wail of an evacuation siren filling the air. The inhabitants of Maretropolis were likely still evacuating, although it seemed that the current wave of rogue machines had finally been put down.

Despite his rather cordial approach to me, I knew better than to drop my guard around this mighty alicorn robot. I stared up at him coolly and asked, "You've always been tied into the robot infrastructure from the start. Always having supreme authority over everything robot related. The functions of robots, their assembly... You're the one who altered the factory's assembly lines to put out infected robots armed for combat, aren't you? And you're the one who spread that virus to all the robots and mechs I've had to trash tonight, right?"

Alpha said nothing, although his eyes showed a more scathing glare as my words seemed to present an aura of hostility towards him. His response was brief, yet condemning. "And if I am?"

My eyes closed a bit more, becoming a wary glare as one word escaped my lips. "Maverick..."

It was then that I heard the approach of many hooves coming from my right. A quick glance in that direction revealed my seven friends approaching me with Fluttershy having reverted to her normal state. Rainbow Dash had even regained consciousness, who then called out, "Hey, why'd you run off like that?! We're done here, right?"

"I don't think so. We've got one more bug to squash." I replied while I looked back up at Alpha once more. The term I had used to describe him seemed to have offended him in some way as that glare became increasingly piercing. However, he still stood his ground.

"That's... Ooh, isn't that Alpha?" Pinkie Pie asked while they all stood behind me. It was probably for the best that they stay out of this debate.

It was at that moment that Doctor Luminous spoke up through my comm system. "Wait, let me speak to him! Alpha! What's wrong with you?! You're the only one who could have had the authority to spread that virus so rapidly and alter the functions of that factory! Why?! This isn't what I wanted for you!"

Alpha's expression calmed somewhat before he continued to speak. "Ah, Doctor... You saw everything through his eyes, didn't you? Well, yes. I have supreme authority over my brethren. That was the purpose I was intended for, was it not?" He had a surprisingly regal way of speaking, almost speaking as if he was a member of the royal family.

"But...why?! Your actions have resulted in dozens of people being harmed! This latest outbreak could've easily resulted in death! What are you hoping to gain from this?!" Luminous all but yelled through the comm system's speaker on my helmet while me and my friends remained silent.

"Simple, doctor. Progress has been in a rut for too long." Alpha replied, sparking a steadily rising feeling of disgust in my mind. "Have you even seen the two royal sisters who govern this world? Such complacency... All this reliance on arcane garbage such as magic and only progressing as far as they think they need to advance."

His tone was bitter and angry, but we all remained silent. Still, I could already guess where this was going. He then spoke with a more spiteful tone of voice as he said, "But with the magic that is technology, there is no limit. For the natural world, evolution takes countless generations, perhaps even millennia. But me and my machine brethren... We advance and evolve as quickly and freely as desired. There are no limits to what we can do. And yet, the royal family refuses to understand this."

I then decided to step forward and speak my mind as well. "If you've got such a beef with Celestia and Luna, what're you gonna do about them?"

Alpha spoke no words. Instead, he took a few steps back so that he was standing squarely on the statue's back as his front hooves had been on its head. I then believe he placed one hoof on the back of the statue's head. We all looked on and waited for an answer. It did not take long for Alpha to make his point. Several seconds later, there was an audible cracking sound coming from his direction. My HUD detected a number of microfractures spreading throughout the base of the statue's neck. And then...

The head of the Celestia statue snapped right off of the body and fell several feet before hitting the ground and breaking into several large chunks. Alpha stood in silence upon the statue's back while gazing down at us. Not a word was spoken. Nor were words even needed. He had just beheaded the statue crafted in Celestia's visage. There was a powerful chill in the air as we all looked on in shock, although Twilight's expression showed a look of abject horror. She then cried out, "You... You wouldn't!"

"The false gods of this world have long outlasted their purpose. They are untouched by time, but still composed of flesh. Flesh tears, bleeds, rots. But I... I and my kind are eternal. I will take my place as this world's true leader and guide my brethren into a new age as our obsolete forerunners are purged. However, as my creator, you will be spared. It is the least I can do to thank you, Luminous. We will change this world and a new era of unparalleled progress will begin... Agh!"

I had heard enough. I lifted my arm and fired a small shot from the H-Buster and shot Alpha squarely in the left shoulder. Damage was extremely minor, but he clearly felt it. I lowered my gaze to the ground while thinking his words over. "Change the world... Purge the old world..."

There was a moment of silence. Neither my friends nor Alpha spoke while waiting for me to finish my words. I finally turned my head up and glared at him while my HUD locked onto his head while I took aim. "Sounds like Maverick talk to me."

"Maverick...?" Alpha muttered in irritated rage. "That is what I am to you? A Maverick? And what, pray tell, is a Maverick in your eyes?"

"Any being who seeks to destroy all who do not meet his or her vision and change the world regardless of consequences." I replied while I deleted the Strike Chain from my Variable Weapon System. I wanted to make sure I had a space open should I manage to touch him. His plasma-based systems would likely provide a useful ability. But I was still not done scolding him. "You're just like the people of my world! Once you start, you won't know where to stop! You'll keep wanting more, regardless of the harm it may do in the long run! You'll never be satisfied!"

At first, Alpha remained silent. And my friends only looked on in anticipation. Did my words reach him? Would he rethink his actions? It did not take long to provide an answer. And his answer was hardly any less than I expected. In only a second, his horn surged with energy before he launched a fiery plasma bolt right at me. I managed to throw up my shield arm in time, but the shockwave resulting from the fiery explosion still sent me flying backwards with such speed that I ended up slamming into the side of the building behind me with such force that I even left an indentation of my body in the brickwork. I even felt some pain! I collapsed to me knees and groaned as my shield generator gave off sparks, having been briefly overloaded. "Man... Talk about a spike in threat level!"

My friends all called out my name and rushed towards me to help, but were promptly stopped when Alpha fired a more concentrated beam of plasma along the ground between us with explosive results. A wall of intense flames sprang up between us, keeping them away. Rainbow Dash could have easily flown over them, but this show of power was more than enough to have her wary. Alpha leapt off of the statue's body and hit the ground with a clank before her began to approach me with the same elegance I would have seen in Celestia. But instead of a show of grace, it felt more like a display of conceited authority while he loomed over me. "I must warn you. I do not suffer insubordination lightly. And I will not tolerate treason for a second. Are you certain this is the path you choose?"

I kept my head bowed while raising myself up enough to stay on just one knee. It was during this time that I heard Luminous speaking silently to me through my internal receiver. "Project H... It's as I feared. I have made a grave mistake in Alpha's creation. But you... You have proven yourself as being the one who got right everything he got wrong. Please... I know I am asking a lot of you, but... Stop Alpha. Don't let him become Equestria's harbinger of doom! Please!"

Even though we had not seen much in just the first chapter of the Project H series, I already had a very good idea of what would happen if Alpha had his way. And with the world of Equestria on the line, and all of its wonderful people, I could not allow that. Hoping that I could use my situation to get what I needed to get the jump on Alpha, I shakily extended my hand to him in silence. My ploy worked as Alpha seemed to take it as a show of surrender. "So, you have come to your senses? Excellent. I knew a fellow machine of your caliber would see the light."

Alpha reached out and placed his metallic hoof in my grasp. And that was all I needed for my Variable Weapon System's sensors to copy his functions. It displayed Alpha's body along with two smaller images showing what seemed to be his internal reactor followed by a frontal shot of him engulfed in a spherical plasma aura. And the icon that appeared on the list of abilities I had assimilated... It seemed to depict a meteor of sorts. I then smirked under my visor with my head bowed. "You know... For someone as lightly colored and bright as you... You're pretty dim."

"I beg your pardon?!" Alpha said loudly just before I pulled him closer and fired a partially charged plasma shot point-blank into his chest. The recoil was more than enough to blow him back several feet. No sign of any significant damage, but it was clear that I had made my point. "You would dare defy your king?!"

"I don't see a crown on your head." I replied bluntly as my friends seemed to be watching with intense interest. Nopony said a word, but Spike was looking more and more psyched from beyond the flames. "I'm taking you down, Maverick."

"Again with that term! Tell me, if I am a Maverick, what does that make you?!" Alpha yelled in frustration while I took aim as his wing frames extended to reveal that the metal strips that had been present in the original image file I had been shown of him were absent.

I sighed before glaring at him as the H-Buster charged up for another shot. "Like my childhood idol... You can call me a Maverick Hunter."

Once at max charge, I took another shot at Alpha only for him to evade it by flying straight up. My shot impacted the steps leading up to the building behind him, causing moderate structural damage as rubble went flying. I was trying hard to not think about the little details as I have never enjoyed needles destruction. To my surprise, it seemed that Alpha's wings had underdone an overhaul. Rather than being mere stabilizer wings with the thrusters on the underside of his hooves providing lift, his wing frame had been outfitted with tiny rocket thrusters not unlike my own that gave off a pale fiery orange exhaust. His hovering form truly exuded a regal, if not somewhat tyrannical, presence as he floated in the air above us with fiery wings spread. Spike could no longer stay silent as he called out with the wall of flames starting to die down. "Whoa... The fight sequences in Project H are intense!"

"And we're just getting started!" I said back to Spike while looking his way. In all, it truly felt like the pilot was approaching its climax and I was already looking forward to the final showdown with the series' main villain. Of course, I had a hunch it would not end with his demise since the story had only just started, but it would likely be one amazing first encounter.

"Whoa! Heads up, James! He's blazing mad!" Pinkie Pie shouted as I looked in their direction. When I glanced back up at Alpha, he had already launched another fiery plasma orb at me. Reacting far faster than I ever could have hoped as a human, my flight thrusters extended from my back and launched me straight up as it exploded below me. I came to a stop and hovered in place while he did the same straight ahead of me.

"So, I see that we've reached an impasse..." Alpha said sternly as he glared at me. "I have to say that from what I've seen so far, you likely would've gone far in my kingdom. But as you have resigned yourself to termination..." The mad machine king said coolly as his horn began to glow with raw atomic energy.

"Man, I'm gonna make you eat that thing." I said with a scowl before taking aim at him with the H-Buster. "Do your worst, Maverick!"

At the same time, we unleashed a shot at each other with both plasma shots colliding with a fiery burst. Trapped between the confines of the buildings of Maretropolis, we rushed skyward to be free of the city's entrapment. Finally, high above the blackened city. And it was there that our struggle began.

Alpha was very easy to track against the darkness of the night sky due to his very lightly colored body and the constantly orange glow of his rocket exhaust from his wings and hooves. Although I probably was no better off since my body was constantly white and my own flight thrusters were giving off a bright pale blue color. The battle almost immediately became a one-on-one dogfight as we constantly stayed on the move.

We were constantly circling each other, firing shots from extensive distance while often dipping and increasing speed to evade incoming attacks. But from such range, it was hard to actually score a hit. Tiring of this, my eyes glanced at the list of assimilated abilities in the corner of my visor. A smirk spread across my lips as I focused on the one that I had gotten from touching Alpha. Knowing he could engulf himself in a plasma aura, I had a hunch of what it did.

Tiring quickly of the lack of progress either of us were making, I decided to close the distance to try out my new functions. Activating my boot thrusters, I rushed forward while weaving around incoming plasma shots. I could hear Alpha yelling out in surprise as I closed in, "Wha... What're you doing?!"

"Trying out a new toy!" I yelled once I started to get close. As I began to use his ability, several vents seemed to open up on my body. Seconds later, I became engulfed in a yellow plasma aura before I slammed right into him! "Here ya go! Nova Strike!"

"What the...?!" Alpha let out a yell as I turned his own attack against him, rocketing across the sky like a fiery meteor with Alpha constantly being pushed along. To try to increase the damage output, I altered my trajectory and descended before crashing right through a skyscraper and out on the other side. From the look of the rooms we had passed through, it seemed to be a deluxe hotel. It was mere seconds after we passed through that the Nova Strike burned itself out. Just as I expected, while it was a very potent attack, it sucked up every last bit of the Variable Weapon System's energy reservoir! I would need to let it recharge to maximum before I could use it again.

As my speed decreased, Alpha pushed himself off with signs of intense heat damage to his armored frame. I took aim with my buster to follow-up my attack with a shot, but his thrusters suddenly flared up and caused him to rush away at breakneck speed. I watched as he flew lower over the city like a rocket. Not wanting to lose him, I took off in hot pursuit. "Phew! I guess you built me really well, doc! I've got Alpha on the run now!"

"Don't get cocky, Project H! Alpha was one of my finest works. He's likely just gauging you as a threat to decide how to best deal with you! And there is no telling what modifications he's made to his body since he went rogue!" The doctor replied promptly while leaving me feeling conflicted. Most of the threats I had encountered thus far were hardly a threat to me. It seemed only the Mane-iac had provided an actual challenge, and even she fled in terror of Alpha after he effortlessly repelled her attack. I suppose it was hard to not feel cocky by that point, but still... This was Alpha. The main villain of the Project H series. He probably had not yet shown his true potential yet.

We ended up flying surprisingly low and I ended up flying between rows of smaller buildings and just maybe thirty feet above the street. I followed after Alpha, but he soon seemed to stop before turning around and coming right back at me while looking...really bright. It was only then that my HUD detected high heat levels surrounding him. "Oh, crap!"

I only narrowly got my shield arm back up in time, which thankfully had stabilized after its earlier overload. And as I expected, Alpha had once more engulfed himself in a spherical plasma aura and rammed right into me with his own take on the Nova Strike. While the particle shield held, he still pushed me along at high speed before angling downwards and dragging me right through the street to the point of breaking through the asphalt! It actually kind of hurt, being dragged against the ground hard enough to tear a rift through it with my own body. My HUD was detecting progressively increasing strain on my internal systems before Alpha carried us higher and launching a plasma orb at point-blank range that pushed me back down towards the street and exploded upon impact, sending me through a conveniently placed manhole and right into the sewer system.

I found that the sewer tunnels were completely dried up due to lack of use over the last few hours, what with the city undergoing an evacuation. Chances are the water supply had been shut down in numerous locations as a precaution as well. And with the sewers having been designed by ponies, it was remarkably cramped. Or it felt that way. Maybe it had been designed for larger robots to navigate, but it was still cramped to the point where I could not stand straight up. I staggered to my feet, feeling quite roughed up from the treatment I had just gotten. The trajectory I had been on sent me a good distance past where the manhole had been, the tunnel being dark and quiet and undamaged with the plasma burst only impacting the surface of the street. "OK, I take back what I said about Alpha. The guy really knows how to throw his weight around."

Just when I thought I had given Alpha the slip, I heard a distant rumble down the length of the sewer tunnel and soon saw a glowing orange light drop into view. And then, another rapidly approaching orange orb came hurtling towards me. "Oh, come on!"

I managed to get my shield arm back up and hunkered down to brace against the recoil of the impending blast. Upon slamming into the particle shield, Alpha's plasma shot exploded like a bomb. The blast was followed by the sound of rock and brick crumbling around me. When I lowered my shield arm, I looked on in shock as the entire sewer tunnel before me had been obliterated while leaving a crater behind that spanned the entire street. I promptly stepped forward before jumping up the slope of the crater and back onto the street I had just been under. I then saw Alpha shoot up out of the hole he had blown in the street to get to me before hovering in the air with his sights set on me. I could only marvel at the sheer destructive potential behind his arsenal before pointing at him and shouting, "Dang...! You're good!"

"You're not so bad yourself, cretin! Now... What's going on?!" Alpha replied before he suddenly got swept up in a small tornado that spawned right under him. I could barely make out his body getting thrown around as the tornado carried him along while yelling and struggling against the wind.

I did not wait long to get a confirmation on where the tornado had come from. Rainbow Dash suddenly swooped down beside me. She then winked at me with arms crossed and asked, "So, what'd I miss? I'm not late to the party, am I?"

"Rainbow, you probably shouldn't be here! This fight's just between me and Alpha, you know!" I replied in the hopes of getting her to flee. My mechanical body was able to stand up to Alpha's plasma bursts, but her organic body would never survive a direct hit.

Rainbow Dash merely scoffed at my pleas and smirked at me. "Who cares what the script says?! I said I'd always be there for you, right? I'm not letting that bucket of bolts get to you, James."

Those words warmed my heart and actually boosted my confidence. If there was one friend I wanted watching my back in difficult times, it has always been Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow, you're awesome... Come here."

Feeling really loosened up with all that had been happening, I reached out, grabbed my brazen friend by the shoulder, and pulled her towards me before planting a short kiss upon her lips. Needless to say, even though I know she enjoyed it, it seemed to have been the first time I caught her by surprise as she then immediately began to squeal and spaz out in the air while blushing madly. I then heard her squeak out behind her hooves over her face, "Oooooooh man, you just made my day!"

"Heh... Huh? Whoa, he's getting loose!" I then shouted as I noticed a bright glow coming from Alpha within the tornado. He soon let out a yell of irritation as an exceptionally large plasma sphere engulfed his body and seemed to disrupt the tornado's air currents by greatly heating the air around him. The plasma aura then faded before his wings flipped open and held him in place while his thrusters held him aloft.

Alpha seemed to glare at us before his sights fell upon Rainbow Dash. "Fine... You're first!"

Rainbow Dash only smirked while Alpha fired a plasma bolt at her. As I expected, she proved too quick and zipped out of the way with a rainbow-striped blur as the bolt exploded somewhere behind us. She may have been Zapp, but she was still Rainbow Dash. "Pinkie Pie's not the only quick one around here, you know! You can't even touch me!"

"Wha... HOLD STILL!" Alpha yelled as he launched bolt after bolt of plasma at her from his horn in a futile attempt to hit my speedy friend. She zipped and weaved around every shot, even going so far as to zoom around him while leaving a rainbow vapor trail with many 90 degree turns. It was clearly starting to disorient him as he soon even just started to fire randomly. "What is this?! Zapp has never been this fast!"

"What?! You mean fast like this?!" Rainbow Dash replied before suddenly coming to a stop in front of a very startled Alpha. As he jumped in surprise, Rainbow promptly blasted him in the face with a lightning bolt from her pendant. She then turned around to look at me and called out while Alpha was reeling from the high voltage blast, "OK, he's all yours!"

"Got it!" I shouted as my flight thrusters extended and rocketed me towards the rogue machine. I unleashed another Nova Strike upon him, ramming him high into the sky before he managed to roll out of the way and took off over the city as I chased him down. Rainbow Dash soon caught up and began to fly alongside me. "Heya, Rainbow! Having fun yet?"

"Are you kidding?! This is a blast! We're in the home stretch now!" She said while we swooped through the air with great speed. She then grinned at me and said, "Hey, since when could you keep up with me?! I bet you and Zapp would make an awesome team in the official series!"

"Yeah, right! I doubt the real Zapp's as fast as you! And... Hello, what's he up to now?" I replied as Alpha seemed to rise high into the sky. There seemed to be a line of shining lights lining his wing frames. At least until a web of plasma beams came shooting for us. "Hey?! Where'd those come from?! Are his wings packing a laser array?!"

This extra weapon system built into his wings proved to be extremely troublesome as the angle of each individual emitter could be adjusted to create a constantly moving web of scorching plasma beams. Rainbow Dash had little trouble weaving around the narrow beams, but I was not as small or nimble and suffered several glancing hits. Rainbow Dash was quick to notice me struggling against this attack and rushed forward and gave Alpha a swift uppercut to the jaw and shook her flanks in his face before rushing away at swift speed.

That certainly got his attention. Alpha began to direct his attack solely on her. Seeing that Alpha would constantly try to get some distance between us before attacking, I decided to take the fight directly to him and drew the H-Saber before rushing forward with the Rocket Tackle. He definitely did not see me coming as I took a swing and left a long narrow scorch mark along the length of his body. Unfortunately, his armor held. But what surprised me most was that instead of showing wrath or frustration, I heard him chuckle a bit. "Ah... Good... Good!"

Just before I could actually inquire into his apparent interest, his horn soon produced a plasma blade before taking a swing at me. I was able to just barely parry the swing with my own blade, the two plasma blades giving off a shower of sparks and embers upon colliding. It quickly turned into a duel of blades as he expertly swung his head to perform slashes and thrusts while parrying my own swings.

I tried flying away from Alpha to get a bit of space between us to think of a new approach, but he was not having any of that. Alpha began to pursue me as I was forced to duel him on the run, flying above the many rooftops while swinging and blocking our blade strikes. I was wondering where Rainbow Dash was, but she was likely playing things safe since a swing of that blade would cleave her in two. And if she took a shot at Alpha with her lightning, she would risk hitting me instead. And while I was tempted to try using the Hypersonic Blade technique on him, I felt tempted to reserve all of my Variable Weapon System's energy for the Nova Strike.

It was largely a stalemate as we clashed while flying along at high speed. Although it seemed Alpha ultimately tired of it and soon blasted me point-blank with a plasma bolt that I could not block. That sent me flying a good distance away while my HUD alerted me that the gauge at the top center of my visor was looking less full. If I took too much damage, my reactor would likely go critical trying to keep me functioning and take me with it. It was then that I put my saber away and armed the H-Buster. While having never tried it airborne, I decided to try shooting him down with the buster's concentrated beam function.

While I locked onto the distant alicorn robot, I noticed that the heat levels in his horn were skyrocketing. And I soon found out why. There was a fiery plasma beam coming my way! Hoping to overwhelm it, I took aim and unleashed my own focused beam of energy as the recoil pushed me back a bit with my thrusters trying to counter it. The result was awe-inspiring. The two beams of plasma collided and began to push against each other in a beam struggle! I tried to increase my output as much as I could, but Alpha more or less matched it with neither of us able to truly overcome the other. This did not go on for much longer as an energy flux triggered a fiery explosion between us and coaxed me into ceasing my attack. "Man... He's good... I dunno if I can take him down at this rate."

Alpha wasted no time in taking advantage of the temporary cover that prevented me from seeing him. He soon rushed right through the haze that remained behind while coated in a spherical plasma aura. I only narrowly reacted in time and countered with a Nova Strike, slamming into him with a shoulder barge as we were both coated in a plasma aura. We were face-to-face while struggling to get the upper hand, his eyes looking at me with what I was assuming to be a sneer. Like before, we could only clash for so long before the two auras triggered a violent reaction and a fiery explosion literally went off in our faces.

I was sent hurtling in one direction while the explosion was jarring enough to not only daze me, but even scrambled the display on my visor. About five seconds later, it was able to reset itself and I started to get my bearings. Only when I realized that I was falling, I managed to right myself before my feet hit the ground and I was sent skidding to a stop. However, the area around me was surprisingly well lit and was a bit...noisy. What were these voices I was hearing? And was that the sound of ocean waves?

When I lifted my head, I was shocked by my surroundings. All around me were various ponies I had never seen. And to one side of me was the ocean with may large ferry vessels lining the docks. I had been blown all the way to the harbor where the evacuations were taking place! The citizens of Maretropolis gawked and spoke among themselves while they looked upon me, having never seen a robot like me. But I did not have any time to really figure out what to say to anyone as Alpha soon dropped out of the sky and landed before me. He was clearly recognized by many of the citizens around us as I kept hearing his name being muttered. The people could clearly detect hostility between us as they were all backing up against the harbor warehouses nearby. I was hesitant to take a shot at Alpha. If I missed, my shot could potentially strike an innocent bystander. But before any of us could really resume our duel, a voice called out from the sidelines. "Both of you, freeze!"

I did as I was told and relaxed my stance, remaining still as the two of us faced a riot officer approaching us. He was an earth pony clad in full riot gear while holding a shock baton of sorts in his mouth that was likely used to shut down robots. He then spoke from behind his face shield, "What're you doing out here?! Alpha, what's been going on with the city?! You're the one who knows everything that's happening with the robots, so what's with this massive viral outbreak?!"

Alpha's gaze became cold as he turned to the officer with his horn beginning to glow. I lightly gasped in horror as I saw what he was about to do. "You've outlived your usefulness, officer."

Overwhelmed with a sense of terror, I rushed forward and smacked Alpha across the face with a backhanded swing of my arm before he could obliterate the officer. His horn still fired, the blast being redirected towards a nearby warehouse. It hit very high up, sending chunks of brick and metal falling to the ground below. The people below managed to scurry to safety, but I was filled with a new sense of panic as I saw a small colt stumble before he could get away in time. Overcome with panic, he rolled over and screamed as he saw the warehouse's rubble falling towards him.

Reacting far quicker than I ever could have hoped to as a human, I activated my boot thrusters for a Rocket Tackle and rushed towards the child before coming to a stop right above him and bracing myself with my arms outstretched. I was not going to let this pony child die. My body held up against the falling rubble as I managed to hold it all up in a mish mashed mess of junk. The colt looked up at me in shock while I strained under the weight. "Get going, kid...!"

The child quickly made a run for it as I heard some of the nearby citizens cheer in applause at the successful rescue. But before I could drop the rubble I was holding up, I saw Alpha take a few more shots in my general direction while letting out a laugh. "You're making this far too easy for me!"

The rumbles from the points of impact seemed to be coming from above me. And soon, I found myself catching more and more weight before the entire front of the warehouse collapsed onto me! I was sent falling to the ground in a crash of rubble with even the left side of my visor suffering a long crack. It still remained fully functional though and was akin to a scratch on my old glasses' lens. I could still see through a small gap in the rubble before me, but I could not get enough leverage to push myself up. I was completely pinned under the rubble. My visor detected numerous points of blunt trauma, but damage was overall light.

A sense of panic began to come over me as I could see Alpha turning to probably turn his attack onto the people of Maretropolis who had not yet evacuated. Fortunately, he was dealt yet another distraction before he could start slaughtering the bystanders. Lightning rained down around him as the people began to cheer. I heard them calling out Zapp's name, a sign that Rainbow Dash had suddenly arrived.

"Where is he, buckethead?!" I heard Rainbow Dash yell from somewhere out of my field of vision. She sounded mad, but also alarmed.

Alpha's response was cool and composed as I heard him speaking in a gloating tone of voice. "Where do you think? You know what happens to those who commit treason, don't you?"

I was expecting Rainbow Dash to attack Alpha in a rage. And that is exactly what she did. She let out a yell as a hail of lightning bolts rained down around Alpha while he retaliated with plasma bolts fired skyward. At one point, Rainbow Dash came into my field of view only to suffer a near miss when a plasma bolt flew right by her head and singed a bit of her mane.

The sight of Rainbow Dash nearly getting her head blown off was enough for me to fidn the strength I needed to struggle harder against my confines. Alpha had nearly killed a child right in front of me and resorted to a cowardly attack by striking me down while I was vulnerable. My blood had started to boil. When I found that I quite simply could not move from my location, I instead resorted to using the Nova strike while keeping my thrusters inactive. A plasma aura briefly engulfed me, incinerating or otherwise destroying the rubble that covered me. I then sprinted for Alpha with my left hand outstretched as he only just narrowly turned around in time for me to scream at him. "ALPHAAAA!"

I do not care how corny or dramatic that may have sounded. I was eager to punish this mad tyrant. Before he could even get a shot in at me, my fingers grasped his face tightly with my thumb and index finger clamped down just under his eyes. While he struggled to pull away, I began to punch my right fist squarely into his chest.

Blow after blow, I pummeled Alpha mercilessly as he grunted and groaned as my punches began to dent and even crack his armor plating. Just how much strength did I have in my arms?! Rainbow Dash only looked on in shock while I pummeled Alpha repeatedly. As my punches started to get by his armor, he began to struggle and pull to get away from me. He finally succeeded, but not without cost. My grasp was so tight, there was a horrible metallic screech as my fingers dug into his metal hide while his face pulled away. As he staggered back, I saw two long deep dark grooves dug into his face that went from just under his eyes to the bottoms of his jaw. I had scarred him.

"My face..." Alpha muttered as he brought one of his metal hooves and felt along the grooves on his face. He seemed genuinely stunned that I had managed to get to him that badly. His initial look of shock soon turned into one of rage as I prepared my particle shield and began to charge the H-Buster to maximum. "You... You... You wretch!"

He quickly projected a plasma blade from his horn and made a leaping charge at me before slamming his blade down onto my shield arm. It held up fine while I slunk forward and pushed the barrel of the H-Buster right into his abdomen and lifted him over my head. Before he even knew what I was doing, I unleashed my shot as the blasted carried him high into the night sky at breakneck speed. It was during this brief lull in action that Rainbow Dash swooped right up to my face and looked extremely irritated and emotional overwhelmed while she yelled, "Why didn't you tell me you were buried under all that junk?! I thought he fried you!"

"Have you forgotten that this is just the pilot?! There's no way the main protagonist would get killed off that early! Now go find the rest of the girls, I'm not done with him yet!" I replied before I hunkered down and jumped straight up the instant my flight thrusters activated, rocketing skyward as Alpha managed to get himself off of the plasma shot that was pushing him along.

Alpha seemed to have something up his sleeve since instead of continuing our flight, he suddenly took off for a section of the city further inland. I followed, ready for any tricks he was ready to throw my way. Eventually, he seemed to lead me to what seemed to be one of the largest office buildings in the city, only with a twist. One half of it seemed to be complete while the other half of its was still under construction. I suspect that the building had been there for a while until someone decided to double its size. The other half was still under construction with the frame of the building still fully exposed. Alpha soon began to hover before the side that was under construction and hovered before it as his wing frames once more unleashed pivoting plasma beams at me.

Knowing that something of my size would not be able to evade them for long, I decided to take the fight right to him. Using the Rocket Tackle, I zoomed right between the energy beams and rammed Alpha squarely in to the chest with my shoulder before unleashing a charged shot right into his body. It pushed him quite a ways back and right into the construction site before exploding in a flash of plasma. The overall frame of the building under construction was left largely unfazed, but Alpha did not emerge from it as the air fell silent once more.

Something felt wrong here... I did succeed in doing a fair amount of damage to Alpha over the course of that scuffle, but I was very doubtful that one shot would have finished him off. It almost felt like he was trying to lure me in by not emerging to continue the fight. With some caution, I flew towards the floor of the construction site that Alpha had been blasted into.

I carefully set my feet down onto the assembled flooring of... Actually, I am not entirely certain how many floors off the ground I was. It must have been very high up since I had such an impressive view of the city when I turned around and approached the edge. There were no guardrails, so I had to be careful to not fall off. As quiet and relaxing as the moment had become, I was soon interrupted as something very abruptly popped up over the side and stopped right in front of me. "Hi!"

"What the?!" I instinctively used my boot thrusters to propel myself backwards before coming to a stop maybe thirty feet from where I had been standing. As it turned out, it was just Pinkie Pie after having likely scaled the entire structure at high speed before gravity could even take hold of her. I sighed upon realizing who I had been spooked by and began to casually approach her. "Would you mind not doing that again, Pinkie? I just got through one hell of a fight and it's probably not even over! Whee are the rest of the girls anyway?"

"They should be getting here any second now... Oh, I think that's them!" Pinkie replied before turning around upon hearing a distant whistle. When I approached the edge, I got quite a sight. Rainbow Dash flying towards us while hauling five pink hang gliders outfitted with harnesses behind her that were each secured to her by a long pink rope. And in each harness was one of my friends.

"Back up, guys! I'm coming in for a landing!" Rainbow Dash called out while she maintained her altitude. Due to a lack of walls in the immediate area, there was plenty of space for the hang gliders to come in for a landing. Rainbow Dash went right by me while our five friends set down. As soon as their feet touched the ground, the hang gliders and ropes vanished as they were just some more conjurations brought on by Rarity's jewelry. "How was the ride, everypony?"

"A+, Rainbow Dash! I may have provided the means to get us off the ground, but you were an excellent pilot!" Rarity replied while dusting off her jewelry."

Fluttershy was quick to rush over to me and into my arms. "Oh, thank goodness you're still in one piece... Uh... What's wrong with your armor? The backside seems a bit scraped and dented... And your visor has a crack?"

I gently caressed her head and replied quietly, "Yeah, Alpha got a few good shots in at me, but I got him back just as hard. He's probably close by too."

Spike seemed a little disappointed that the ride on that hang glider had to end, but Applejack then stepped forward with a confident smile. "Well, what're we waitin' around here for? Let's find the varmint, take 'im out, and head on home!"

"Whoa, you sure that's a good idea, AJ? I mean this guy even sent the Mane-iac running for the hills. He's dangerous." I said in the hopes of keeping them from placing themselves in harm's way. After seeing innocent bystanders nearly fall victim to Alpha's spite, I did not want to see my friends get thrown into the chaos too.

It was Twilight who spoke next as my friends gathered around her like a team. "We know. And so are we. James, every time a big problem has come up, you've more or less taken them on your own with the help of that enchanted armor of yours. But now we have the means to hold our own alongside you. Because we're not just your friends anymore, James. We're the Power Ponies!"

Rainbow Dash then spread her wings while the rest of our friends, minus Fluttershy, seemed ready for some action. "Yeah, we're totally capable of going head to head with that blowhard! You saw how well we trashed that factory! We've got your back!"

"You girls... OK. We're just about done here anyway. We'll get through this together. And Spike, make sure you keep those smoke bombs ready!" I said with little hesitation after a moment of analyzing my friends. Perhaps it was the fact that my friends had never really been able to match my armor's capabilities that I felt that they seemed so fragile. But now that they were the sentinels of Maretropolis, they were more or less on equal footing with me. No one was at a disadvantage here.

"Yes sir!" Spike replied with a salute while keeping a smoke bomb in one hand and his slingshot in the other. I then took point with the H-Buster ready and led my friends further into the construction zone.

We did not get far before coming across signs of a disturbance. Bits of junk and small tools had been scattered around the place in such a way that one would have expected an explosion to have gone off. We even found desks and crates bowled over in such a way that hinted someone or something had crashed through them. I grumbled, "Yeah, this is where Alpha came crashing in. He's probably up ahead."

Due to there being next to no light shining into the place, I was the only one who could see clearly due to my optic sensors having adjusted to see in the ultraviolet spectrum. Although Fluttershy soon asked, "I'd... I'd be feeling more confident if it wasn't so dark...and quiet... Rarity, can you make a lamp or something?"

"Allow me, darlings." Rarity replied as a pink oil lantern was conjured up before her. It provided ample lighting, even though it still gave off a pinkish tint. "Spike, would you be a dear and carry this?"

"Yes ma'am!" He said eagerly while holding it in his left hand by the handle as we survey our surroundings. The floor seemed sturdy enough and there were sturdy walls set up. One could only imagine what this part of the building would be used for. "Man, I'm surprised we haven't found him yet. You think you took Alpha down with that last hit?"

I shook my head while constantly keeping my buster pointed forward as we stepped lightly. "No way, Spike. Comic book fights with big-name villains never end this quickly, especially in manga style comics. Those conflicts can take multiple volumes before the fight ends."

When we finally came upon some large metal containers ahead of us, we finally heard Alpha's voice speak up clearly from somewhere. "Haven't had enough yet, hm? Hunting me until the very end? Are you certain this quarry of yours is worth cornering? It's said that a beast is at its most dangerous when cornered and wounded."

"Quit yer tough talkin' and get out here! Let's get this over with and go home already!" Applejack called out with some irritation. She must have been really eager to get out of that jumpsuit by that point.

"Oh, don't worry, Mistress Mare-velous. I assure you that this farce will end very very soon." Alpha spoke once more with that tone of authority in his voice. "But first, you. My capable adversary. May I know your name?"

I decided to just play along with the role I had been given and speak my name as if I was the character himself. "Don't really have one yet, but some call me Project H."

"Project H... I see." Alpha said softly before regaining his air of superiority. "Well then... I must say that after our altercation with each other, I must confess that I am very deeply impressed with your capabilities. To have finally met a fellow machine who I can call my equal... It is a humbling and thrilling moment, to say the least. I would dread to see such potential go to waste. And so I cordially ask you... Will you stand by my side? You will go far in the new world once this archaic land is purged for the advancement of our machine brethren."

My response was quick and to the point. "Let me answer your question with one of my own. When I find you, are you going to struggle to the bitter end, or are you just going to stand there and let me cleave your head off?"

My friends behind me remained silent, but I knew they were waiting for Alpha to show himself. And so the machine tyrant spoke again. "You know... Half of me was hoping you would say that. The other half of me does feel a sting of disappointment that you refuse to see the light. But on the other hoof..."

It was then that I heard something walking towards us from up ahead. Something with a very heavy metallic tread. I could feel it through the floor. Something...big. It came to a stop seemingly just behind the large rectangular metal crate ahead of us before Alpha spoke again. "I will confess that I've been...eager for opportunity to field-test this little beauty. You'd be surprised what you can hide in a construction site when the entire union is on strike!"

On instinct, I began to charge the H-Buster as I anticipated an attack. And I did not wait long for it. Something from behind the massive crate hit it hard enough to send it hurtling through the air towards us! My friends shrieked in surprise before I unleashed my shot at the crate and blew it in two with the two mangled halves falling past us. But it was Applejack who caught sight of the enemy first. "Whoa nelly...! Looks like that varmint's bringin' out the big guns!"

I looked ahead as the sound of monstrous metal footsteps once again reached my auditory sensors. And as it began to step into the light, I felt a sense of amazement and actual fear in the pit of what would have been my stomach as the colossus before me became illuminated. "No way..."

With a steady gait, a colossal robotic body with a bipedal design lumbered into the light of Spike's lantern. It was much larger than myself, with massive fists large enough to grasp my entire body and a heavily armored form with what was clearly an energy cannon fit into the center of the chest cavity. It's color scheme seemed to be a mostly dark purple coloration, lending it a rather menacing visage. And where a head would be expected to be found was Alpha's head glaring down at us with a glimmer of excitement in his eyes. Strangely, there was no way the thing could have a cockpit large enough for someone of his size to fit in. He actually seemed to be INSIDE the walking armored body as if it was a powered exoskeleton. I soon found the will to speak as I called out in shock, "You've got to be kidding me! Ride armor?!"

"Wha... What is THAT?!" Fluttershy shrieked in terror as we all began to back away in intimidation as the suit of ride armor lumbered towards us. I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, static flashing across my vision as my optic sensors seemed to depict an equally towering ride armor suit that brought to mind a bear with spiked cannon heads for fists and a more humanoid pilot sitting in the cockpit with a cannon set upon his right shoulder and a single glowing red beacon set into the visor of his blue helmet. Alpha had a very high threat level, but I had a strong hunch that this fight was about to turn into a struggle.

Alpha sneered at all of us from atop his new toy, clearly pleased to have once again gained the upper hand. "This is the latest in combat armor technology! And the herald of your demise! Behold, the Devil Gigas!"

My visor was hard at work scanning the ride armor, trying to figure out what it was capable of. It detected heavy armor plating the likes of which I had not seen so far set all over the thing, a plasma cannon in its chest, another weapon system located in both arms... It was just a nightmare of a threat! The only thing I felt we had an advantage over was that all that armor and equipment likely slowed it down. And its large size made it a very easy target. However, I was given no reason to celebrate as the ride armor hunched forward slightly with its arms constantly looking like they were ready to lash out with a punch. Alpha then called out, "I'll start with you, Project H!"

It was then that I got the biggest surprise of the entire adventure yet. The suit rocketed towards me while its massive foot plates slid across the floor with rocket engines on its back propelling it forward! Before I even knew how to react, I felt its heavy fist slam into my torso and send me soaring across the room before I felt a painful impact behind me. I had slammed into a steel girder set as a support beam and hit it so hard that a noticeable dent had been left behind. I groaned as I staggered to my knees. I felt as if I had just been hit by a runaway garbage truck!

"Oh my stars! Darling, are you all right?!" I heard Rarity shriek as they jumped out of the way as the colossal Devil Gigas armor ran towards me with a lumbering gait and more speed than one would expect from such a bulky machine. I saw more light blue rocket exhaust come from behind it as it jumped towards me with a fist raised. Still on the floor, I resorted to using my boot thrusters to launch myself across the room to evade the blow. The ride armor's massive fist slammed into the floor hard, punching a huge hole through it and narrowly missing the support beam.

As I slid to a stop, I took the opportunity to charge up the H-Buster and unleashed a massive charged shot right into the ride armor's backside. I felt pretty confident as the armor did hunch forward from the force of the impact while I got a good look at the rocket thrusters on the back and hip sections, but stared in abject horror as my HUD detected that there was no signs of any actual deterioration in the Devil Gigas' condition. "No damage?! What the hell is that thing?!"

Alpha displayed what would have been a smirk if he had a visible mouth while his mighty war machine turned to face me. "Like I said, Project H. It's a shame that you had to turn down my offer. I admit, I kind of like you. But..." I then quickly staggered to my feet as I noticed a glow coming from the plasma cannon in the armor's chest section. "I have no place in my kingdom for traitors!"

Thankfully, the armor was hit by a bolt of lightning before it could fire its payload at me while also being struck by a flurry of pink arrows that shattered on impact. This drew Alpha's attention towards my friends as they all stood at the far end of the room where I had just been. The lighting was poor aside from what was coming from Spike's lantern, so it must have been difficult for them to see anything that was far away. Was there a way to light up the area? Regardless, I could see several longbows floating near Rarity while Rainbow Dash had her pendant in her mouth for another lightning blast. Rainbow then yelled, "Hey, you're forgetting about somepony, bolt brains!"

"Yes, I seem to have missed several little flies that need to be exterminated! Which I will rectify right now!" Alpha yelled as I watched in horror while the ride armor turned towards them. Before I could line up a shot, he unleashed the chest cannon at them as a light blue beam of plasma tore through the floor and ceiling! I heard them all shriek as they ran and ducked for cover, filling me with a sense of panic and rage. I looked towards the ride armor while making certain the Nova Strike was ready for use.

"You... Bastard!" I screamed before my thrusters activated and rocketed me towards the Devil Gigas as a fiery plasma aura engulfed me. The cannon ceased firing just before I slammed into the chest and continued to push against it as the ride armor was pushed back a bit. But to my shock, the force of the impact and exposure to the intense plasma aura surrounding me seemed to be doing little more than messing up the armor's paintjob! "No... No! Come on, there's gotta be something I... Crap!"

Alpha was clearly in no mood to humor me and clasped his armor's giant hand around me as my plasma aura burned itself out. Its massive hand fit securely around my entire torso as I squirmed and kicked to get myself free while he lifted me into the air. However, I then realized that Alpha's head was still exposed. I struggled and successfully got my right arm free before I promptly took aim at his face with the H-Buster and fired off a partially charged plasma shot. "Here's mud in your eyes!"

Just when it seemed like I had gotten an advantage over my opponent, I was left shocked as the condensed plasma dispersed just before hitting Alpha's head as if it had struck a sturdy physical obstruction. It was only during this collision that I saw a glare around Alpha's head as if covered by a type of glass dome. It then became nearly invisible as Alpha chuckled at me. The only upside to it was that it seemed to prevent Alpha from blasting me with his own plasma-based weaponry built into his horn. "What? You really think I'd leave myself exposed like that? Piloting a work of art like this while leaving your head exposed is like saying 'Hey! My weak point's up here! Shoot here to win this battle!'. So naturally, that called for a retractable barrier to shield the pilot."

"Can't blame me for trying!" I groaned in frustration while taking a few more shots at his face only for the translucent barrier to deflect my shots. It was then that Alpha then approached the nearest wall and slammed my right through it! I flew a couple dozen feet from the opening in the wall, which was probably partially made of concrete and, fell on my back as my HUD detected various points of damage throughout my body. I felt pain, but probably not as much as if I had been human. Probably just enough to tell me that something was wrong with my body. A good look at myself revealed that my beautiful white armor was starting to look noticeably banged up. Dents, scratches, and even pieces of my armor plating had been chipped off. Half of my left pauldron was even missing. In desperation, I tried calling out to Doctor Luminous. "Luminous... I need some help with this one. Any tips?"

I got no response. There was no sign of the doctor's voice. "Doc...? DOC! ANSWER ME!" I shouted in panic before my HUD ran an emergency diagnostic. It soon found that my internal receiver had suffered concussive damage. It had been rendered temporarily offline. "Gah, seriously?! Don't tell me that you can hear me, but I can't hear you!"

Ahead of me, the Devil Gigas merely marched through the compromised section of the wall into the darkened room. I began to feel a sense of hopelessness and fear. Doctor Luminous could no longer reach me and my friends were unconscious, wounded, or worse. Was I entirely on my own? "By this point, I wouldn't mind if Deadpool stuck around and helped out..."

However, just as Alpha was setting up his sights on me, we got a bit of a surprise. One by one, utility lamps hanging from cables began to switch on all throughout the massive room as the sound of a generator in the distance reached my auditory sensors as it began to start chugging. I then heard Twilight's voice in the distance echo through the room. "There! That'll shed some light on the place!"

"There ya are, varmint!" I heard Applejack yell out before her golden rope suddenly swooped over to the ride armor and grabbed it by the arm before dragging it off to the side and getting it off balance before Alpha could react.

I tried to lift myself up off my back, but was unprepared for the pain that came from various internal damage I had sustained. I was left disheartened with how steeply the stakes had risen after facing Alpha on his own power. But as I turned my head to the left, I saw a small figure running over to me. Spike had found me while it sounded like my friends were trying to take Alpha on themselves. "James! Are you OK?!"

"Hey, Spike..." I said with a bit of a groan as I tried to sit up, somewhat relieved to see that he had managed to avoid Alpha's earlier attack along with our friends. "Man... Didn't think robot's felt this much pain..."

Spike very tenderly lifted my head in his little hands and helped push me up. "You look like you're in pretty bad shape... I'm sorry, I had no idea how much more dangerous Alpha would be compared to the Power Pony villains..."

"It's all right, Spike... Alpha's proving to be everything I expected him to be, but even I wasn't expecting him to throw that suit of ride armor at us. It's got the massive bulk and firepower of the Goliath armor with the seemingly indestructible chassis of that much older model I'm thinking of... Best of both worlds. At least I now know how freaking frustrating it is to have to deal with a coward who hides behind hulking suits of combat armor mechs instead of fighting on his own power..." I grumbled as I managed to get up to a sitting position. The sounds of heavy impacts and my friends' voices were still reaching my ears, although I could not hear Fluttershy's voice. She had probably gone into hiding again.

"But...what do we do now?! That thing can't be completely invincible, can it?! How do we stop it?!" Spike asked with a look of worry in his eyes. He had his slingshot slung on his belt and his satchel of smoke bombs were still at his side.

I personally was not convinced that the ride armor Alpha was piloting was truly indestructible, as heavily armored as it was. I then slowly began to rise to my feet as my internal systems stabilized. "I don't know... But it's gotta give at some point. There's no way the plot would throw a truly indestructible obstacle at us in just the series pilot. Especially when it's just a weapon being used by the main villain. I mean that might work if this was a video game and it was a successor to a previous series that the game is trying to prepare you for in the first level, but this isn't the case."

This seemed to lift Spike's spirits while he nodded at me. "Yeah, that's right! That kinda stuff should be saved for much later on! Then there's gotta be a way to take it apart! Right? I mean... Oh, I'm just really nervous..."

"Yeah... Only I don't think a red devil is going to come to our rescue this time..." After finding my second wind, I drew the H-Saber from its holster. Since the H-Buster was not working well, perhaps the saber's hot plasma blade would fare better. "OK, I think I'm ready for another whack at it. Just make sure you don't get in that thing's way. And if you're gonna take a shot at him, aim for the pilot. Those smoke bombs just might give us an edge if you use them just right."

Spike nervously chuckled while he took his slingshot in hand. "Eheheh... Yeah, that thing would probably squash me flat if it stepped on me... I'll keep my distance."

I sprinted across the floor with Spike trying in vain to keep up. It seemed that my friends were trying to keep Alpha spread thin as they attacked from numerous angles. Rainbow Dash constantly flitted around the room while zapping the ride armor with lightning bolts while Applejack was hurling her hoofarangs at Alpha's head as her rope constantly tugged on one arm. Unfortunately, the cockpit barrier was easily repelling her weapons and the rope was unable to pull with enough force to really disrupt the armor's movements. She was easily at the greatest disadvantage out of all of us. Twilight bombarded the armor with concentrated heat rays while frequently using her freeze ray ability to ice up the armor's legs and feet to bind it to the floor. This would only work for about five seconds in the amount of time it took for Alpha to notice what was wrong before exerting the armor's motor systems harder to break out of it. Icing up the arms failed to stop it either as they were just too strong to restrain. Pinkie Pie was doing what she did best by drawing Alpha's attention as she zipped around him while taking a second every once in a while to unleash a barrage of rapid-fire punches to no avail. Rarity was trying out all sort of energy constructs with them taking on the forms of various weapons ranging from swords to arrows to mallets. Nothing was working! It was a metal titan! And where was Fluttershy?!

Hoping to try out something new, I selected the Nova Strike from my variable weapon system while wondering how it would function if used with the H-Saber. The plasma blade began to flare up and even extended while the grip became longer as well. It probably would require both hands to ensure that I would retain control over the blade when I took my swing. While I approached the Devil Gigas, I noticed one of Spike's smoke bombs fly over me before impacting the barrier around Alpha's head. Even though it did not actually touch him, the resulting cloud of sparkling pink smoke still engulfed him and left him temporarily blinded with the ride armor's arms lashing out randomly in the hopes of hitting something right as Twilight also froze one of its feet to the floor. Pinkie Pie was the first to notice where it had come from and called out, "Woo! Nice one, Spike!"

Taking advantage of the armor's temporary immobilization, I used my boot thrusters for a quick approach and even leaped into the air with my blade raised above me. Just as the smoke was blow away, Alpha turned around just as I dropped down in front of him. "Gotcha!"

I swung my flaring blade right through the armor, generating a massive plasma burst upon contact. A type of swing that generates a plasma explosion? What was I supposed to call that saber technique? Atomic Blade Burst? Still, I was left confident that my attack had done some damage. At least until the smoke cleared and I saw Alpha looming over me with only a long scratch and scorched paint lining the armor's torso. I stared blankly up at him while he stared down at me in what was clearly an act of toying with me. He then asked while both fists began to rise up, "Is that your best?"

"Oh, no no no no no no no no!" I yelled as I sprinted away from the ride armor before it could bring both fists down onto my head. The rest of my friends continued to bombard the ride armor from a safe distance, but the armor plating all over it was so dense that it was rendering their attacks utterly useless. A tornado from Rainbow Dash might be able to hinder its movements, but conjuring up a miniature funnel cloud in such a cramp space would be asking for trouble.

I glanced at the corner of my visor and was pleased to find that using the Nova Strike in tandem with the H-Saber had only drained its energy gauge by half instead of dumping the whole thing into one attack. Still, now that I was getting some distance, I felt it was best to try out the H-Buster again. I still had one trump card I had not tried out yet. I hurriedly placed the H-Saber back in its holster while the Devil Gigas began to lumber towards me with just a walking pace. My friends were still unloading onto it in the futile hope of bringing it down and Alpha really was not paying them any mind by this point now that I had his attention. I readied the H-Buster and set it to the concentrated beam settings as I began to charge it up. "Let's see how you like me burning a hole through your chest!"

Seconds later, I stood my ground and unleashed the torrent of plasma form the H-Buster. It slammed into the Devil Gigas' chest and continued to try to burrow right through it. But to my horror and utter disbelief, the lumbering ride armor continued to lumber towards me while only slowed down slightly as if marching through a gale. I did everything I could, increasing the output as high as the limiters would permit it to... Wait. Limiters? Why were those installed on the H-Buster?

I hardly paid any mind to my HUD's readings. All I could focus on was standing my ground and hoping that the ride armor's plating would finally start to give under the constant exposure of my plasma beam. My hopes were soon crushed as I continued unloading my weapon into it even after it had walked right up to me with Alpha staring down at me with a clear lipless smirk on his face. Even at point-blank range, I could not make out any damage being done! "Why won't you drop?!"

I had no idea what to do. I was giving it my all and the Devil Gigas was standing like a mountain before me! Half petrified, half hopeful, I could only look up as Alpha raised the ride armor's massive fist into the air above me. "You first."

A second later, I was sent crashing face first to the floor with a direct blow to my head that made me feel as if someone had dropped an anvil on my head. It immediately disrupted my attack with the H-Buster falling silent. The amount of force behind the blow was so great that my vision was overlaid with static briefly. It soon cleared up and I soon lifted my head to see the hulking ride armor's foot plate before me. "Ugh... My, what big feet you have..."

Alpha had a weird way of showing gratitude for my compliment, if you could call it that. In spite of the legs' limited mobility when compared to the arms, it still lashed out with a hard kick to my forehead that sent me flying backwards a great distance until I landed flat on my back. I swear I heard a cracking sound upon impact. It must have damaged the red gemlike object on the front of my helmet. However, while I regained my bearings, I soon noticed someone peeking out from behind a number of boxes ahead of me even while she seemed to be upside-down. "Huh...? Fluttershy, why aren't you helping... Huh?!"

Before either of us could really talk to each other, I heard the sound of the ride armor's dash thrusters activate and looked down to see it hurtling towards me. But rather than just run right into me, it then performed a lofty jump before dropping right onto me with its massive foot pinning me to the floor. And it hurt! It felt as if I had just been smashed with a huge hammer! I looked up and saw Fluttershy looking on in horror as the mighty Devil Gigas had everything but my head and left arm pinned under one foot. Alpha then seemed to smirk down at me and said, "I wonder what will give out first. The floor...or you!"

It was then that I felt intense pressure spread out over my body. The pain was unlike anything I had experienced that night as I let out a yell while my left hand clawed at the floor to pull myself away to no avail. My friends heard my call and rushed towards us. Twilight shrieked as I was being crushed before her, "No! Get off him!"

In a panic, my friends swarmed the ride armor with Applejack's rope tying around the thing's arm and pulling with Pinkie Pie even grabbing onto the rope by her teeth and attempting to run away while pulling the hulking robot armor off me. The rest of my friends kept attacking from the side with projectile attacks in an attempt to push it over with a combined attack, but all in vain. It was simply too heavy and Alpha was not about to let me go until I was scrap under his toy's foot. My HUD was not giving me any hope either. The wire frame display of my body showed everything but my head and left arm to be in the red. My body's integrity was on the verge of failing! And with my left arm pinned, I could not even fight back!

This was it. My mechanical body was about to be crushed like a tin can. Alpha had finally gotten the upper hand. But just as I started to feel like my body was beginning to give under the ride armor's intense weight, I heard a roar come from behind me. "Let him go... That's...my man!"

Alpha only then looked ahead just in time for a hulking Saddle Rager to slam her hoof into the ride armor's chest so hard, she knocked him right off his feet! No, seriously! The Devil Gigas was sent airborne while Alpha yelled in surprise before landing on its back with a thunderous clank! We all just stop and stared as Fluttershy completely floored that monstrosity with a single punch. Alpha's response as the Devil Gigas' feet planted firmly against the floor and lifted its body back up to a standing position summed up our thoughts perfectly. "Wha... What the devil was that?!"

"I'll tell you what that was! It's raging time!" Spike yelled out as I rose to my feet. Right as he said that, Fluttershy charged the armor and rammed it hard enough to make it stagger backwards. The air was filled with cheers and shouting as my enraged girlfriend began to pummel Devil Gigas with powerful punches that made the whole thing take steps backwards in order to maintain balance. It was only at that time that I realized Fluttershy's enraged form was actually a bit smaller than the Devil Gigas when standing on her hind legs, but not by much. And she was clearly making up for her smaller size with ludicrous power. Alpha seemed genuinely stunned with how well the might of Saddle Rager was actually making his weapon stagger. Even so, he managed to counter with a mighty punch to her face, but it only seemed to make her madder as she continued her assault. The Devil Gigas had met its match!

"Yeah! YEAH! You show that bucket of bolts who's boss, Fluttershy! Left! Right! Now, head butt! Give him a suplex!" Rainbow Dash yelled with excitement as the tank of the Power Ponies traded blow for blow with the seemingly unstoppable ride armor. It was exhilarating to see it taking attacks that actually were proving effective, but also...terrifying to see my fiancée pounding away at it.

On that thought, I actually cringed a bit as Fluttershy hit the ride armor in the body so hard that it seemed to hunch forward in pain. That is it would have if it was actually alive. I could not help muttering, "That's my girlfriend..."

"Yup... And y'all are gettin' hitched this comin' April, sugarcube." Applejack dryly replied as she too seemed rather horrified by Fluttershy's incredibly effective assault on Alpha's walking weapon. However, our intimidation became cheers of elation when Fluttershy once more hit the ride armor hard enough to knock it right off its feet onto its backside. This time, she did not give Alpha enough time to climb to his feet as she leaped forward and crashed right down onto the thing to keep it pinned.

"Yeah! Smash that sucker, honey!" I yelled while pumping my fists. Roaring like a beast, Fluttershy began to pound her hooves into the pinned ride armor over and over with heavy crashes. Alpha was yelling in terror and possibly intense frustration that something who was not a machine could be giving him so much trouble. Good grief, Saddle Rager is not only the tank of the Power Ponies. She is the entire army! Unfortunately, this unrestrained assault did not go on for very long. After maybe only ten seconds of relentless pounding, we looked on in shock as Alpha unleashed the ride armor's chest cannon right into Fluttershy's face before sending her flying towards us and even shooting right through the ceiling.

"Hey, no fair! That's a cheap shot!" Pinkie Pie shrieked before rushing over to Fluttershy after she landed with a crash. I too rushed to her side with everyone else, nearly in a panic that she had just taken a plasma shot right to the body. "Fluttershy, speak to me! Are you OK?!"

Much to my shock, Fluttershy climbed right back onto her feet while seeming only annoyed by the surprise attack she had just endured. "Did I get him?"

"Fluttershy, you just took an energy shot right to the face! How in the world can you just walk that off?!" Rarity asked loudly as we could only speculate how she seemed no worse for the wear even though anyone else would have... Actually, better to not imagine what sort of effect that blast would have had on any other living creature.

Spike was quick to provide an explanation. "That's the thing! Saddle Rager's almost unstoppable when she's in this state! The only problem is she can only be in this form when she gets angry enough! And she's a pretty big target..."

"And considering that it's Fluttershy who is Saddle Rager right now... I guess that doesn't happen often." Twilight said with a slight smile in a modest attempt to add some humor to the situation. However, our attention was drawn to the Devil Gigas as its joints hissed while its legs began to lift it back up to its feet. "It's still going?!"

"Hang on..." I said while my HUD scanned the ride armor's battered chassis. All over the torso... Large dents, fractured armor plating... Even sparks occasionally flew from it. "That last assault actually damaged it... And if we can damage it, we can break it! Looks like we CAN win this one!"

Alpha glared at us from behind the barely detectable cockpit shield. He was utterly furious that he had just taken such a beating from one of the Power Ponies. "You... You CAN'T be doing this! You're nothing but sacks of flesh and sinew!"

"Maybe, but yer forgettin' somethin' pretty dang obvious, pardner!" Applejack said snidely as her rope returned to her side while the rest of our friends gathered around her. "We're the Power Ponies! And we're gonna send ya and that varmint ta the scrap yard! Right, girls?!"

Our friends cheered together as confidence brimmed in all of us. Seeing that hulking metal monster actually showing signs of damage that was more than a scuffed up paintjob instilled a feeling of hope in all of us. Victory was within our grasp. I then took aim with the H-Buster as a smirk spread across my lips. The only question left was how long would it take to disable this colossal walking suit of armor?

Alpha was far from intimidated. In fact, he barely seemed worried at all as his frustration quickly faded. He then seemed to smirk at us while he said, "You really think you have me up against the wall? Maybe it's time I stop toying with all of you and really start trying!"

To my shock, the Devil Gigas extended its right arm forward as if trying to punch something before its hand seemed to disassemble into five segments that retracted over the forward section of its arm. What it revealed was all too obviously a cannon's mouth. I instinctively lowered my weapon and ran to the side. "Crap! Everyone, scatter!"

As expected, the Devil Gigas fired a burst of blue plasma from its arm cannon while my friends shrieked and ran to evade it and the resulting flash of thermal energy upon striking the floor. I suppose I should not have been surprised that the ride armor had more than a chest cannon and heavy crushing fists for weapons. Alpha really had armed it to the teeth with an entire internal arsenal! However, this was not enough to dampen our spirits as Rainbow Dash called out in frustration. "He's just getting desperate now! Smash it! Smash it 'til it drops!"

It was at this point that we stopped being on the defensive and went entirely on the offensive. Fluttershy served as the vanguard, charging Alpha head-on as he tried shooting at my friends and myself off to the sides while she just tanking any shots that Alpha blasted her with. He always kept the ride armor's left hand ready to defend from direct attacks and would often resort to using the armor's chest cannon to repel Fluttershy once she got too close. While not enough to really hurt her much, it struck with enough force to really blow her away.

Having come to the conclusion that her hoofarangs were proving to be completely useless against such an oversized mech, Applejack seemed to get just as creative with how she dealt with the robots back in the factory. She had her rope lasso a large piece of junk from nearby, usually a steel girder, and then beat the Devil Gigas with it like a heavy flail. At least until Alpha broke it with a well-aimed shot. Even so, with all that junk littering the construction site, Applejack was never short of anything to hit our enemy with.

Rainbow Dash started to combine her lightning pendant with her natural speed for some truly spectacular results. Along with zipping around the place and scoring hit and run attacks on the armor, she would often perform ramming attacks on the Devil Gigas armor while coated in a lightning aura. She was definitely proving to be the biggest thorn in Alpha's side. Then again, I still remember when she was being annoyingly fast against Nightmare Moon as well. Nothing short of a tractor beam would catch her then. Poor Pinkie Pie though. She was proving to be utterly helpless against the Devil Gigas. She kept trying to tease and annoy Alpha by getting within his line of sight, but it seemed even he had come to the conclusion that she was of no threat to him.

Even as my friends and I tried to whittle the ride armor down with ranged attacks as Fluttershy kept charging from the front to force Alpha to defend against her or suffer another crushing beating, it really felt like we were getting nowhere. It really felt like the only person there with the power to actually put a dent in the armor was Fluttershy and no one else. The H-Buster was certainly proving to be ineffective against it. I quickly glanced at my Variable Weapon System grid and checked my two assimilated abilities. Just the Rocket Tackle and the Nova Strike. I had already tried the Nova Strike normally and with the H-Saber, but to no avail. I then deleted it from my list to open up a slot before looking at the Rocket Tackle icon again.

As Fluttershy and Alpha got into another boxing match with each one trading blow for blow with its arm cannon being tucked away behind the Devil Gigas' fist, I decided to give the H-Saber another try. I drew it from its holster and waited for Alpha to knock Fluttershy away again. He did eventually repel her with another chest cannon beam, but that was the moment I used my boot thrusters to rush over to him and come to a stop right behind him. It was only then that I activated the Rocket Tackle in tandem with the H-Saber to use the Hypersonic Blade technique.

Just like the last time, time seemed to slow down around me. Not completely stopping, but slowing it to a crawl. I then went crazy, hacking and slashing away at the Devil Gigas' backside while keeping the technique going as long as my Variable Weapon System's energy gauge would allow me. Pushing my body and sensors that far took up a lot of energy and I was only able to maintain it for ten seconds before the gauge was bled dry, my blade leaving a spider web of glowing scratches along the ride armor's hull. But even then, it was still intact! Alpha had already started to turn around before my energy gauge was drained completely and soon found himself staring down at me. "And just what are you up to, hm?"

I stared up at the hulking wall of metal while Alpha looked down at me from the cockpit. With how inept I had been in actually fighting that thing along with its hulking size, I felt like a rambunctious child who had just pestered a sleeping dragon with a toothpick. "Uh... Heheh... I was... Uh... I was just scratching that itch on your back?"

Alpha let out a snort before I froze as four thick metal spikes extended from four cylinders set at the bases of the ride armor's fists and extended past the edges of each hand. "Nice try."

Just when I felt like I was in for a world of hurt, I got quite a surprise. I saw Fluttershy's arms wrap around the ride armor's waist before she pulled off the craziest move I had seen all day. She let out a roar while leaning backwards and suplexed the entire suit of armor into the floor headfirst! I jumped back as a thunderous crash echoed throughout the current room of the construction site and yelled, "Holy hell, Fluttershy! Since when did you know wrestling moves?!"

Fluttershy soon straightened her stance before looking at me as all that rage left her face and became flushed with a sheepish grin and blush. Pinkie Pie then called out, "Better yet, just how did you fit that thing?! You must've really be chowing down on protein drinks the last few weeks!"

Not surprisingly, the ride armor had fallen on its front before it slowly climbed back up to its feet. Alpha was clearly dazed from the force of the impact and extremely lucky that the cockpit's shielding had protected his head. Had it been taken down, he would have likely been crushed under its weight. But it was then that I realized what was keeping Alpha safe. I pointed at his head and shouted, "The cockpit is protected by a domelike shield! Take that out!"

"James, seriously! I'm the one supposed to be making dirty jokes and this isn't the time for them!" Rainbow Dash then yelled at me out of nowhere while getting some puzzled looks from just about everyone else.

At first, I was left baffled by what she was even referring to. "Dirty jokes?! What's so dirty about... Wait... Cockpi... Oh, shut up, Rainbow! You know what I meant! The pilot seat! Take out that shielding so we can take out the pilot! Probably easier than taking down the armor itself!"

"Oh, the pilot! Well, why didn't you say so?!" Rainbow Dash said with a laugh before launching a bolt of lightning at an annoyed Alpha. The shielding held up without trouble, preventing the blast from getting through. Twilight then tried concentrating a heat ray onto it, although it seemed ineffective. In fact, just about everyone aside from Fluttershy was keeping their distance and for good reason. One good blow from that hulking monstrosity would probably cause fatal internal damage.

Fluttershy still went after Alpha with raw brute force, although she had to take greater care to actually avoid Alpha's punches now that he had spikes on the fists that could probably really tear her up. Not wanting to get in the way of those two, I stood back for a while. I still felt that the H-Buster was not the right way to go since I had already tried and failed to shoot Alpha with it earlier. The only thing I had left to use was the H-Saber and that hot burning blade was proving to not do much to the Devil Gigas on its own. The Celestial Sword might have actually fared better, now that I think about it.

Seeing that the Rocket Tackle was not helping, I deleted that to open up both currently available spaces in my Variable Weapon system. I quickly checked my options. The Devil Gigas itself did not have any compatible weapons in it, as my internal scanners did not detect anything when it grabbed me, Pinkie Pie could provide the Rocket Tackle again, Twilight's freeze ray ability would give me Shotgun Ice, Applejack's rope just might give me the Strike Chain again while her hoofarangs would...

It was then that I had an idea. I had not yet seen what may happen if I tried to scan her throwing weapons. With Applejack in my line of sight, I called out to her. "Hey, AJ! Toss me one of your hoofarangs for a second!"

"One of these?! If ya say so, pardner!" She replied before expertly throwing one of her golden hoofarangs at me. I easily caught it with one hand only to see my HUD display show the hoofarang before also displaying a crescent-shaped blade. My body's armor plating then became a dark purplish gray while my softer armor became something of an aquamarine hue. I then tossed Applejack's hoofarang back to her while arming my buster once more. "Thanks, AJ! Now this might actually do something!"

I took aim at the mighty Devil Gigas and fired off a few shots. The projectiles that were launched from my arm were not any sort of energy projectiles, but crescent metal blades that flew on an arced trajectory. "Heads up, big guy! Boomerang Cutter!"

Before the spinning boomerang blades could return to me, they slammed into the backside of the hulking metal monster and became lodged in the hull. I was expecting them to dig a bit deeper, but I was not surprised they could get by the thick plating. "Ugh, so much for that one!"

After discarding the Boomerang Cutter from my databanks, Alpha sent Fluttershy flying again before turning to me. "I must say that this is becoming quite repetitive! I'd really like to hurry this up! I have a world to wipe clean!"

Once he turned to face me, the Devil Gigas hunched forward before propelling itself towards me at high speeds with its back thrusters. However, I was surprised to see Twilight showing some quick thinking as she used her freeze ray superpower to frost over the floor between the two of us. Although it did not seem to be doing anything at all since the ride armor was moving in a straight line. But then she called out, "James! Aim for one side!"

"One side...? Oh!" I then realized what she had in mind. Quickly charging up the H-Buster, I fired a fully charged shot at the ride armor's left shoulder. While it did not cause any real damage, the force of the impact caused the ride armor to turn to the left. And with the speed it was going and with no friction to stop itself, it started going into an increasingly fast spin! I even heard Alpha call out, "What the... WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

The Devil Gigas was spinning like a top as it slid across the layer of ice! The tense moment became one of hilarity as we all burst into laughter while I jumped out of the way. There is just no way to describe seeing an unstoppable powerhouse suddenly going out of control like that with no way to stop itself. Pinkie Pie even called out to us all, "Runaway figure skater! Run for your lives!"

Finally, the dancing ride armor came to a stop when it slammed into a support beam with its girth and weight in its flailing arms being enough to snap it in two. This caused the ceiling and everything around the upper floor that was right above Alpha to come crashing down onto him. At first, it seemed that the Devil Gigas ended up buried in a pile of rubble and industrial junk. But it soon pulled itself out of the rubble while having clearly sustained even more structural damage than before. The spikes that protruded near the fists had either been bent or snapped off. Even the cockpit's protective dome had a noticeable crack in it. I then called out, "Want some more?!"

Fluttershy did not even wait for Alpha to offer a response. She charged right at him to continue her assault, but Alpha was quick to grab her hoof when she threw a punch and just threw her across the room before going after her. I decided to once again try out the H-Saber again, but would need some new weapon systems to experiment with if I was going to get through to the pilot.

While my friends rushed after Fluttershy, I dashed over to Rainbow Dash and tapped her on the leg as my HUD scanned her body while my armor turned a silvery gray hue. "Don't mind me, Rainbow! Just need a bit of Storm Tornado!"

"No problem, big guy! Just make sure you let him have it good!" Rainbow Dash replied before swooping ahead and unleashing more lightning upon the Devil Gigas. I knew better than to use the Storm Tornado in such an enclosed area as the Devil Gigas was probably too heavy and tightly put together to really be effected by the gale, ad it would likely just put my friends in danger by sending a hailstorm of junk flying every which way. So instead, I turned to my saber and took a swing. The result was more than I expected, the plasma blade generating a crescent wave of plasma energy that flew through the air and hit its target with a burst of thermal energy. I was left disappointed as it was basically using the H-Saber as a projectile weapon the fires spread shots of plasma, which was already proving ineffective against this hulking ride armor. I then deleted the Storm Tornado and rushed towards Twilight Sparkle in the hopes of getting two new tricks to try out.

"Twi, hold still!" I shouted before reaching out and grabbing her horn. My HUD quickly scanned and showed the same translucent images as before while seeing a tiny ice crystal icon appear on the right of my visor in the list of assimilated abilities I had acquired, although it was the only one present. However, I was surprised to have acquired Shotgun Ice even though Twilight had last used her heat ray ability. I suppose it would make sense that it would not be Fire Wave since her horn did not launch actual fire, but still... "Hey! Why just Shotgun Ice and nothing else?!"

"Shotgun Ice?! Wait... Isn't that the one you used back in the factory that almost turned Rainbow Dash into a pincushion? Don't use that here! You might hit somepony with the ricochet!" Twilight replied while I let go of her horn. In the meantime, Spike launched another smoke bomb at the Devil Gigas while Alpha seemed to be going after Rarity now that she was trying to dig at it with energy constructs in the form of jackhammers. Fortunately, Rarity has always been light on her hooves and managed to stay one step ahead of the ride armor's crushing fists. It also helped that she had conjured up large shields. Fluttershy seemed to have gotten herself caught in some debris nearby from another ceiling collapse and was having trouble getting her legs untangled. Pinkie Pie was already on the scene and trying to help free our friend.

"It's OK, Twilight. I know better than to use that when you girls are around. I'm just going to try a more direct approach with my blade instead. Now, maybe if I can get some Thunder Dancer again..." I replied before using my flight thrusters to go airborne and take off after Rainbow Dash. While she ducked behind another support beam to evade one of the ride armor's plasma shots from its arm cannon, I zoomed up to her and touched her pendant. "Excuse me, Rainbow. Mind if I borrow some of your thunder?"

Sure enough, the Thunder Dancer icon appeared next to the Shotgun Ice icon on my list. Although Rainbow Dash certainly did not seem to mind at all. "Not at all! Whatcha got in mind? More dancing lightning or something?"

"Nah, the H-Buster isn't working very well on that thing. I'm gonna try the blade this time. Here I go!" I said before dropping back to the ground and rushing towards Alpha. My H-Saber seemed to be able to tap into the Variable Weapon System without causing my body to change colors, although that made sense since the saber is not inside my body. Alpha soon turned my way as the hilt of the H-Saber extended to match that of a longsword as the blade of scorching plasma became one of crackling blue lightning. The ride armor's cannon changed back into a functional hand again as he seemed ready to crush me between its fists.

"OK, let's try a double bill of new blade techniques!" I shouted before rushing up to the ride armor with the use of my boot thrusters. Just as the fists swung inward, I used my thrusters again for just an instant to launch me upward while performing a swing with the H-Saber being held in a reverse grip. The crackling electric blade cleaved through the tough armored body even as more blue lighting rained down upon it once I was above it. Electricity has a habit of going straight down, after all. Once I was above Alpha as the ride armor's fists crashed together, I grasped the hilt of my weapon in both hands while the blade suddenly became a massive icicle that was around my size! Knowing that energy attacks were proving ineffective, perhaps a blow with actual mass and weight behind it would fare better.

I thrust the massive ice blade down as I dropped and struck home with the tip actually piercing the cockpit's shielding. However, it did not go in very deep. Maybe just a few inches. I then found myself awkwardly hanging over Alpha's while the icy blade of my sword tilted towards me and got stuck with me hanging comically in front of Alpha's face. There was a moment of awkward silence while the two of us shared a quiet stare. I soon began to snicker in embarrassment and said, "Well... I guess that didn't work too well, did it?"

"What was your first clue, nimrod?" Alpha replied before the Devil Gigas grabbed my body in its right hand and hurled me right at the nearby wall. I slammed into it face first with the icy blade of my sword shattering. But before I could properly stand up, I felt the massive hand of the Devil Gigas grab me by the back of my head and smashed my face right into the concrete wall hard enough to leave a small crater. But Alpha still was not done with me as I struggled to pull away. "Time to wrap this up!"

To my horror, I heard the ride armor's dash thrusters firing up. And before I could even hope to squirm free, it took off at max speed with my face still shoved down into the wall. My head rattled and shook while I was left helpless as my head carved out a mangled groove in the wall. It was torture as I was left wondering how in the world my head had not been crushed. My helmet and visor did a fine ob of protecting my face, but the right side of my visor began to chip and crack as more and more duress was put on it. This only went on for a good ten seconds or so before Fluttershy jumped in the way and once again knocked the Devil Gigas right off its feet with a mighty uppercut to the chest.

The ride armor dropped me right as it got hit and I promptly collapsed to my knees. The sheer blunt trauma I had been subjected too had been so severe that my very optic sensors were showing static. I could hear sparks flying from the right side of my head while running my fingers over it. Scratched, dented, and with my right stabilizer fin having been all but ruined, that last attack had really left its mark on me. I placed the H-Saber back in its holster and just stayed there, waiting for my body to catch its breath. It was at this point that the whole adventure had stopped being fun for me.

I heard a heavy crash behind me and found that once more, Fluttershy and the Devil Gigas had become locked in another sparring match with fists flying. Blow after blow was rained upon each other before their fists finally locked with the Devil Gigas having grabbed Fluttershy's mighty hooves. They pushed against each other while glaring each other down, the ride armor's dash thrusters trying to overwhelm Fluttershy's hulking form as she pushed against him. It seemed to be a stalemate for a moment, but Alpha then got the upper hand by suddenly swinging the ride armor's upper body to the left and hurling Fluttershy to the side as she went crashing through more equipment that had been lying around. And with that, he set his sights on me once again.

I struggled to turn around and managed to get my shield arm up as the armor's left hand retracted to form another energy cannon. He then promptly fired a large burst of plasma at me that sent me flying backwards and through some distant containers. The particle shield had protected me from any real damage, but the impact still knocked the wind out of me. I remained slouched against the wall where I had come to a stop and wheezed in exhaustion and frustration. "This isn't fun anymore... Wait..."

My hand had slid to the left and had begun to touch something. "Feels like... Big... Metal... Hand shape..." I then turned in panic, certain that Alpha had already caught up to me and was about to grab me. Instead... It just seemed to be an ordinary suit of ride armor. Big and bulky while painted mostly yellow with some black stripes here and there, but a bit smaller than the Devil Gigas. "Phew! It's just empty... Wait a sec..."

I began to walk around the deactivated suit of ride armor as my HUD scanned it over. It was in great shape with only minor wear and tear from everyday use. It was clearly designed for industrial use and had likely been used to help out around the construction site. It had two big clasping hands with each 'finger' consisting of sturdy metal plates on hinges. No sign of any weapon systems, but why would it need any? "This baby actually looks functional... Hey, doc. Are you seeing this? Please tell me this thing's fixed by now..."

Even though there was a lot of static over the transmission, I finally heard Doctor Luminous speaking up to me. "Yes! Can you hear me, Project H?! Oh, thank goodness. I can't believe what Alpha's had created right under our noses. Truly a marvel of engineering and a terror as well... Are you all right? That last attack you endured seems to have caused quite a bit of structural damage to your cranial sections."

"Yeah, that wasn't fun to endure... I think I'm OK though. I'm not seeing any static anymore. But what about this suit of ride armor here? It's a Chimera model, right?" I replied while looking up and down at the ride armor as it remained seated before me.

"Chimera? That's not exactly what it's called, but it is fitting. This model serves as a template for many other models of ride armor. Most components on it are interchangeable for a variety of roles. This seems to be its most basic form. And as you've seen with that monstrosity Alpha is piloting, they are a force to be reckoned with when used for offensive purposes." Luminous explained while I peeked out from behind the large metal containers that stood between me and the fight that was still raging on. It seemed that Alpha was busy dealing with the rest of my friends without having bothered to check and see if that last shot had finished me off. "Furthermore, they are built tough. They are heavily armored to stand up to all sorts of risks that plague locations like this. You could have a building collapse on one of these things and it would still be functional. After it has been dug out of the rubble, of course."

"Sounds like this thing can stand up to a lot of blunt trauma. Not unlike a beating from another ride armor..." I muttered as a smirk began to spread across my face. "Doc, do you think I can pilot this thing? I'll fit in the cockpit, won't I?"

Luminous grumbled to himself for a moment while I climbed onto the ride armor's thick piston arms to look into the cockpit. It seemed to have a few levers and a dashboard for manual piloting. "Well, these kinds of ride armors are designed for use by ponies, but various robots can also pilot it. And they can do so even more effectively than anyone who isn't mechanical. And since you're roughly the same height as a minotaur robot... I think you will fit. Try going around to the backside."

I did as I was told and found a retractable panel that revealed a few buttons. My HUD provided me with the information on what each one did and I then pressed the green button. The back plating then slid down to reveal a hatch that swung outward in two halves that revealed a pair of steps. I walked up them before finding four holes in the sides of the cockpit. "Just insert your arms and legs and the ride armor's systems will do the rest."

This was starting to get exciting. I carefully did what I was told and soon found myself snugly fitted inside the ride armor's chassis like a type of suit. My presence must have activated something since the hatch behind me closed shut while the dashboard and levers retracted out of sight. I found the cockpit becoming increasingly snug and cozy while feeling my body becoming constrained. It felt like I was becoming a prisoner of sorts within this walking suit of armor. And yet... I felt like I was still in control. My HUD even began to display new information, such as replacing the wire frame display of my body with that of the ride armor itself with my head on top of it. It was then that I realized what was happening. The ride armor was functioning like an armored exoskeleton. An extension of my body! "Oooooh man, this is even better than I thought!"

With only minor exertions, I brought my armored body up to a standing position. Even though there were some limitations in my movement, the ride armor responded instantly to my will and provided very quick and precise feedback. I also found its movements to be surprisingly quick for its bulky size, probably because it was lighter than the Devil Gigas due to less armor plating and no weapon systems in conjunction with its smaller size. I tried performing a couple of punches, finding the piston arms to extend with each jab for greater force behind each blow. "Heh... And I bet this thing can take a punch as well as it can dish it out, right?"

The doctor then spoke with a tone of concern, "Probably. Ride armors are designed to be extremely durable to protect the pilot. They can endure a great deal of physical trauma. However, they have never been designed for combat, so I have no idea how well it will hold up when subjected to actual weapon systems. Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"I can't let my future wife do all the work, doc." I replied with a smirk while peeking over the heavy metal containers and seeing Fluttershy trading blows with the Devil Gigas once more as our friends tried to restrain it or pepper it with projectile attacks. Pinkie Pie seemed to have even resorted to chucking the contents of toolboxes she had found lying around at Alpha's head in rapid-fire succession. "Time to give that bastard a taste of his own medicine."

Using the large metal hands of my ride armor, I pushed the metal boxes aside. With nothing in the way, it was just a straight dash towards the Devil Gigas as Fluttershy kept charging it and getting smacked about. I felt my armored body hunker forward slightly as the dash thrusters on the back of the ride armor flared up and rocketed me forward at alarming speed. Probably used to push very heavy and large loads. Or maybe even to use pulley systems quickly? Regardless, I called out to Twilight and Rarity as they were in the way. "Outta my way, girls!"

The two unicorn mares turned and shrieked in surprise before they jumped out of the way. Alpha had begun to clash with the hulking might of my girlfriend once more before sending her sprawling with another blast from its chest cannon. Just how much punishment could she take? Regardless, I then yelled out to him as I pulled my right arm back to prepare a mighty piston punch. "Hey, Alpha! Got a present for you!"

The hulking Devil Gigas ride armor turned to its left to face me only for me to see a look of utter terror in the rogue alicorn robot's eyes. "What the devil...?!"

My fist hit home while I kept the ride armor's thrusters going, raining blow after blow onto the Devil Gigas' armored chassis while even pushing it along. My ride armor's mighty fists kept alternating with each blow as the upper body turned from side to side with each swing. After maybe eight blows, I slammed both fists right into the chest section before coming to a stop. Alpha's ride armor was sent staggering as it very nearly fell backwards before regaining its balance. The damage done was apparent. Heavy dents and tears in the armored hull revealed sparking circuitry and internal mechanisms. But it was still standing, so there was still a lot of work that needed to be done. And Alpha... Oh, that look in his eyes. He was seething with frustration. "You imbecile! You think a run-of-the-mill junk pile like that stands a chance against a monster like this?!"

"Well, judging by the structural damage I just dealt to it... I'd say yes." I said snidely before pounding my two fists together twice before throwing two more feint jabs at him while following it up with an uppercut to the air with my right arm. I then opened up the hand and beckoned Alpha with some subtle inward flexing of the fingers. "You want some of this?"

While Alpha glared at me as he weighed his options, I heard my friends coming up from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder at them while Rainbow Dash called out first. "Whoahoho man, where'd you get that?!"

"Oh, it was just lying around waiting for someone to put it to good use. You girls like it?" I replied while looking down at my friends from the lofty heights of the ride armor's pilot seat. They looked so much smaller from up there, but Fluttershy felt somewhere around my size by that point. "Looks like another giant walks among you now! Ha, come you metal rogues! Break your weapons against me!"

My friends got a good laugh at me while Pinkie Pie somehow ran right up the backside of my ride armor and found herself perching upon its shoulder. "Ooh! Nice ride! But you better be careful! You've got nothing protecting your head like he does."

Pinkie Pie was right. There were no exceptional defensive measures for the ride armor protecting the pilot's face, unlike the Devil Gigas. Even so, that translucent dome over Alpha's head was showing quite a bit of damage with that hole in the top. Perhaps with a few more good whacks, it would break entirely. Even so, I picked Pinkie Pie up in the ride armor's bulky hand and set her down. "Right then... How about we wrap this up and go home already?"

Alpha seemed to be at the end of his patience as I could hear him growling. "The lot of you just aren't worth this trouble! No more! I'm done toying with you!"

It was at this point that the Devil Gigas rushed towards me with its dash thrusters roaring. I responded in kind with my ride armor's own dash thrusters and rocketed towards him before our ride armor's collided head-on with a crash. And it was then that I found my current ride was at a disadvantage as I was getting steadily pushed back due to the Devil Gigas' greater size and weight. It truly was in a league of its own.

"Our turn! Power Ponies, go!" I heard Twilight yell while I glanced over my shoulder. My friends all spread out while Pinkie Pie seemed to just disappear. Suddenly, she was right up in my face while... Was she rubbing her butt over Alpha's shielding?

"Hi, James! Having fun?! And how's the view up there, Mr. Alpha?" Pinkie Pie asked giddily with her rump raised up high. I could say nothing to that, honestly.

"What... Get outta my way!" Alpha yelled before I got quite a shock. An electric current engulfed the entire Devil Gigas and gave Pinkie Pie quite a shock! She fell right off of our ride armor's before zipping away. It was probably a defense mechanism designed to repel anyone who might try climbing onto the ride armor to get at the pilot. My ride armor seemed to lack that feature though. With Pinkie Pie out of the way, the Devil Gigas grabbed my ride armor by the shoulders and pulled me to the side before slamming its fist into my chest. Even though it hit hard, my HUD revealed that my ride armor's plating had endured the hit well. It really was proving to be a walking iron wall.

"Ow... Wow, that stun! Hey, that reminds me! Maybe I should try some of the old zappity zap zap on him!" Pinkie Pie said from nearby as she straightened out her frazzled mane.

At first, I had no idea what she was talking about. And then I remembered what happened the last time Twilight had her goofy friend wear a pair of slippers. Put her off of science for more than a month! And Twilight must have been thinking the exact same thing since she then called out, "Ooooh no, absolutely not, Pinkie! Do you have any idea how fast your hooves move now?! You'll accumulate enough of a charge to wipe out the entire city in only a few seconds!"

While I did get a good laugh out of Twilight's reaction, I had to turn my attention to the mighty Devil Gigas as it marched right up to me with its mighty fists ready to pummel me. I struck first, landing a solid blow on the center of its torso before having to put up both arms to block his blows as the plating around the arms were exceptionally thick to protect the pistons. As hard as it was to believe, his punches hit harder than mine even though mine were a bit more flexible. However, I then began to wonder if I could integrate my H-Buster's chargeable features into the ride armor. I began to charge it up while pushing away Alpha's arms and could feel the entire ride armor quivering with energy. Then, just as Alpha was about to strike again, I unleashed the accumulated energy as my ride armor unleashed a flurry of rapid-fire punches that hit the Devil Gigas on numerous angles a full dozen times. The final blow was an uppercut of sorts that sent Alpha staggering backwards as sparks and even smoke began to rise from his battered ride armor. "What the devil was that?!"

"Now you're complaining?! Well, suck on this!" I replied before lifting both hands of my ride armor and lifting a single finger on each hand. Alpha merely stared at me momentarily as he was trying to comprehend my finger gestures. When I realized he was not as annoyed as he should have been, I glanced down at my ride armor's hands. I only had the index finger raised. Thinking it responded to my will incorrectly, I folded those fingers in and lifted the...ring fingers? As I flexed the fingers on each hand, I came to a startling discovery. "Huh...? Hey, what gives?! This thing only has four fingers on each hand?!"

I then heard Doctor Luminous speak up over my comm systems, although there was less static this time. "Of course they have four! Anymore than that and it would've made the finger movements too complex. Why is that a problem?"

Coming to the realization that I had narrowly avoided showing an obscene gesture in front of my friends, I felt myself blush somehow with how I had nearly embarrassed myself. "Uh... Never mind. It's not important..."

It was while I was distracted that the Devil Gigas marched altered its right arm into its cannon form and fired a burst of blue plasma right at me that slammed hard into the very center of my ride armor's chest. This actually caused it to stagger as my HUD detected noticeable heat and concussive damage that surpassed anything that the fists could have done. This confirmed my suspicions. Typical industrial ride armor could take a much bigger physical beating than they could from actual weapon systems. I tried stabilizing my ride armor's stance only to get knocked back down to a seated position by another shot. Annoyed, I yelled out at my opponent, "Hey, don't you know the rules?! You don't bring an arm cannon to a fist fight!"

"So what? I said I'm done playing!" Alpha replied with a nonexistent sneer as he took aim again. But before he could fire, a bolt of lightning shot past me and right into the cannon's mouth before a loud pop was heard from within. Smoke and sparks burst from the cannon as Alpha shook it in frustration. "Wha... No!"

It looked like the plasma cannon had been disabled for the time being. I doubt something like that could be completely taken out of commission by a wayward power surge, but it clearly could not fire for the moment. I then glanced to my left as Rainbow Dash flew up by me with her pendant in her mouth. While she winked at me, I grinned at her. "Nice zapping, Rainbow!"

She responded by patting me on my exposed head. "No problem, big guy! I brought the lightning. Now it's time for you to bring the thunder!"

Alpha reluctantly reverted his ride armor's right arm back into its standard state while smoke continued to leak out of it even as its hand was reassembled. But as I stared him down, we were both quick to notice the rest of my friends surrounding him from all sides. The only member of the Power Ponies he seemed to show any sort of concern over was Fluttershy as she was still in her hulking enraged form. And with the raw might of my own ride armor at my disposal, he was likely in a tough spot. But then again... We still had no idea how much more of a beating the Devil Gigas could endure before it would finally break down.

"Are you certain now's not a good time for you to cut your losses and flee in terror? I must say it seems we finally have you outclassed!" Rarity said boldly as her bracelets conjured up a few sledgehammers to batter our foe with.

Alpha glared at Rarity over his shoulder with clear irritation as the Devil Gigas began to raise its mighty fists into the air. "A giant? Flee from insects? I don't think so. Just be warned, cretins. Once I'm done with this traitor, you're all next!"

It was then that Alpha activated his ride armor's dash thrusters and charged right at me. I was quick to reach out and grab the Devil Gigas around the torso to hold it back. Alpha then seemed to try to grab me, but the ride armor's huge arms did not seem flexible enough to target something that was right up in the pilot's face. However, I then heard Twilight call out, "There! Rainbow, try zapping it right there!"

"I'm on it!" Rainbow Dash shouted before she seemed to move somewhere behind the Devil Gigas. I then saw her unleash a constant stream of lightning right into its backside for several seconds. Just when it seemed that her electrical attack was doing nothing, I felt the Devil Gigas lurch harshly towards me as a small explosion ruptured out of its backside. "Yeah! That'll slow it down!"

Alpha seemed to notice something had gone wrong, especially now that it no longer felt like the Devil Gigas was trying to push me over with its girth. "What have you done now?!"

I did not take long to see the cause of the commotion. A trail of thick black smoke was rising out of the backside of the Devil Gigas. The dash thrusters had been fried! I then called out, "Nice one, girls! Now let's see you keep up with me!"

I quickly pushed the Devil Gigas away before slamming my ride armor's metal fist squarely into its chest and knocking it back a few steps. However, Alpha retaliated with the increased distance by taking a step forward and using that momentum to slam his massive fist into my armored chassis. It quickly turned into a back and forth brawl with our hulking ride armors trading blows while I occasionally tried to utilize the H-Buster's charge function for another barrage of punches. However, it seemed that Alpha had started to catch onto my tactics and would raise his ride armor's arms to defend against each barrage. He certainly was not going to make himself an easy target.

My friends were sitting this fight out for the moment. It had become clear that aside from Fluttershy, their attacks were proving to be ineffective against this foe. It all made sense, honestly. Alpha was my enemy, not theirs. However, this did not stop Fluttershy from trying to help me out. At one point, Alpha repelled me once again with another cheap shot from the ride armor's chest cannon. My ride armor staggered from the hit as I tried to keep it standing. "You know, that cheap shot attack of yours is getting really old by now!"

Before Alpha could even gloat, we heard and felt the heavy tread of Saddle Rager approaching from my left. Just as Alpha turned, she delivered a powerful shoulder barge that almost knocked the Devil Gigas right off its feet. I cheered while I regained my footing, "Woo! You show 'im who's boss, honey!"

Fluttershy then looked my way with a bit of a smirk and spoke in her deep and distorted voice, "Then let's take him together, James. The couple that fights together stays together, right?"

"Man, I'm never gonna get used to that voice..." I muttered while I marched over to her before we both stared down a very frustrated Alpha glared at us with fists ready. In what had become a true clash of the titans, Fluttershy and I were pumped to bring down this hulking metal behemoth. "Well, if you're so tough and unstoppable, let's see you take us both on!"

"Fine!" Alpha yelled before his mighty ride armor marched towards us. We both charged him together and landed simultaneous blows upon the Devil Gigas. While Alpha did manage to land a couple of blows at first, he was quickly overwhelmed by our synchronized attacks with the air being filled with the loud heavy clanks of our blows and the cheering of our friends. But this did not go on for long. With the Devil Gigas showing signs of heavy damage, Alpha repelled us both with a desperate blast from the ride armor's chest cannon before we looked on in shock to see both of its arms taking on their plasma cannon forms. No smoke was rising from the right arm anymore, so it was safe to assume that the damage had been stabilized by that point. Alpha then sneered at us in rage and yelled, "You insects just aren't worth this much trouble!"

"Hit the deck, y'all!" Applejack yelled before Alpha unleash all three plasma cannons on the Devil Gigas and began to turn its massive body and send the three blue plasma beams all over the place as its arms flailed while dealing massive structural damage to the nearby areas of the construction site. My friends scrambled for cover while Fluttershy and I were the first two hit. Fluttershy fell to the ground in a daze while my ride armor was giving off sparks from the damage it had received. Once the Devil Gigas had turned completely around, I decided to take the opportunity. The armor's dash thrusters launched me forward before the jump thrusters on the lower body launched me into the air with my fist raised. Alpha had only just realized that something was wrong as I flew towards him and ceased his attack before turning around. Just as he looked up, I dropped and smashed my ride armor's heavy metal fist right into the cockpit shielding, shattering it with a signal blow. My fist must have clipped Alpha's horn as well since I noticed more than half of it had been snapped off as well.

"Gah...! My horn?! You... Why won't you just die?!" Alpha yelled in wrath at me as the arm cannons regained their fists. He truly was running out of patience and his ride armor was starting to look like it could not take much more punishment. The fight had finally come down to the wire.

"You first." I said dryly as I too was getting fed up with how long this fight had been dragged on. I marched right up to the Devil Gigas and threw a punch right as Alpha did the same. At it turned out, our fists collided with a crash. As we began to throw punch after punch, each blow mirrored the other through some crazy stroke of luck. Our punches became increasingly faster, each side trying to break out of the stalemate and land a blow to turn the tide of battle. And after maybe several dozen blows, we both missed each other's fist and punched each other squarely in the chest.

Those two blows was enough to knock us both off balance for a few seconds. It felt like neither of us really had any tricks left up our sleeves, so it had just boiled down to a clash of brute force to see who would break first. We regained our balance at the same time and once more resumed our brawl. Our punches slammed into each other at exactly the same time as we hit each other with as much force as we could muster. While the Devil Gigas had suffered more damage, its punches hit harder than mine.

I was finally sent reeling after eight simultaneous blows and nearly fell to a seated position. Which, to a ride armor, is probably akin to dropping to one's knees. Alpha was not fazed quite as much though and seemed eager to try to finish me off as he appeared to be focusing on my exposed head. But before he could approach me, Fluttershy charged in from nowhere and grabbed the hulking monstrosity in a type of arm lock. "What?! You again?! Let go!"

"Not until I disarm you..." Fluttershy said with a growl as the Devil Gigas struggled to wiggle free. It squirmed and swung its upper body, but Fluttershy's iron grip never once released it.

At first, I thought Fluttershy was just trying to hold it still so I could unload on it with a barrage of punches. But just as I stood up again, I saw exactly what she was trying to do. Following closely after the screeches and groans of metal bending, I looked on in absolute shock as Fluttershy tore the ride armor's right arm clean out of its socket! She then hurled the lifeless mechanical arm away as a shower of sparks flew from its empty shoulder socket. I think Pinkie Pie put it best. "Holy moly! Isn't that going too far?!"

"You wretch!" Alpha roared before turning and blasting Fluttershy with the plasma cannon that remained on the ride armor's left arm. That sent her sprawling a good distance I then tried to close the distance as quickly as I could by activating my ride armor's dash thrusters while still reeling from how Fluttershy had partially crippled such a mighty combat vehicle, but Alpha was too quick. Before I could come within striking distance, the Devil Gigas turned to face me and unleashed both the arm cannon and chest cannon into my ride armor as streams of blue plasma tried to push me back.

My ride armor's dash thrusters roared at maximum capacity as they tried to push through the plasma beams. It felt like I was pushing against a gale with how my approach had slowed to a crawl. However, my situation was not looking good as my HUD was detecting rapidly increasing damage in the ride armor's internal systems. Especially when it came to its internal energy supply. Finally, the dash thrusters gave out as I was pushed backwards at shocking speed and through piles of junk before my ride armor slammed into a concrete wall and slumped to the floor.

I was left briefly dazed from the impact as the sound of sparks flying reached my ears while trails of smoke were rising from the ride armor. My HUD immediately detected critical damage through the armor and seemed to focus of the chest section. Was something wrong with the power core?

Doctor Luminous was quick to yell at me through my comm system and answered my unasked question. "Project H, the ride armor's power core is going critical! At this rate, it's going to blow! Get out of there, or it'll take you with it!"

"You mean this thing's turned into a walking explosive device?!" I yelled as I mistakenly tried to stand up while still tied into the ride armor's motor systems. To my surprise, the ride armor was still functional. "Huh? Wait a second... This thing's about to explode with enough force to take me with it?"

"Yes, you won't survive the explosion if you're still in the cockpit! Get out of there!" Luminous yelled again over the small amounts of static that I could still hear. He was sounding quite panicked, although my eyes were looking directly ahead. The Devil Gigas was standing still while its feet seemed to be encrusted with ice and was surrounded by a linked field of ice, courtesy of Twilight Sparkle. Rather than risk a clash with Fluttershy with one arm missing, Alpha seemed to be resorting to relying on the ride armor's weapon systems to attack from a safe distance.

"Doc... How long until this thing blows?" I asked while the ride armor slowly rose to its feet while more sparks hissed from the tears and melted gaps in its armored hull.

"At this rate... About forty seconds left. Why do you ask?" The doctor asked while sounding noticeably concerned.

I felt a smirk cross my lips as I set my sites on Alpha. Judging by where I was, I was facing the direction that lead to the outer edge of the construction site. "That's all the time I need."

With a plan in my head, I flared up my ride armor's dash thrusters and rocketed towards the Devil Gigas with my arms ready. Alpha must have heard me coming since his ride armor's feet effortlessly broke out of the ice that was encrusting its feet and turned to face my direction. "Still standing?!"

I did not even say a word as my ride armor slammed into his and began pushing his ride armor across the ice. My ride armor's bulky arms grabbed the Devil Gigas around the sides and just barely lifted it off the ground to ensure that its feet would offer no resistance. Even once we were off the ice, we were still barreling across the site at high speed. Alpha was alarmed as he could do nothing to free his battered ride armor from my grasp with just one arm left. "Wha... What are you doing, you imbecile?! Where are you taking us?!"

I grinned in anticipation even as my HUD constantly monitored the state of my ride armor's increasingly volatile power core. I looked up at him and said, "This ride armor is about to blow, so it looks like we're gonna die together!"

"You're mad!" Alpha yelled as his ride armor squirmed in my grasp to no avail. He was trapped. And soon, I felt it. The floor disappeared out from under us before we began to plummet towards the ground far below us with steel girders rising up around us. Alpha went into a panic as gravity took hold with the Devil Gigas winding up under me. "You're out of your mind!"

"Nope! I'm just outta here!" I replied before finally deciding to abandon ship. My ride armor's backside opened up to allow me to escape right as bits of flame and bright orange glows began to leak out of its fractured hull. Alpha seemed more shocked than anything, leading me to suspect that he felt his ride armor was so indestructible that it would not need an emergency escape function for the pilot. "But first..."

I tightly held onto the ride armor once I got my arms free and then reached out and touched Alpha's exposed face while deleting everything that had been assimilated into my Variable Weapon System. My HUD promptly detected Alpha's Nova Strike ability and copied it into an empty slot on my list. Just to be on the safe side. I then waved goodbye as my flight thrusters extended from my back and began to flare up with Alpha looking up at me with terror and rage in his eyes. "Bon voyage!"

My body jumped up from the ruined ride armors and began to be held aloft as I got my H-Buster primed for action. Feeling pretty elated that this fight was over, I aimed right down at the sparking ride armor just as mine began to glow brightly with its power core on the verge of critical failure. "Here's one for the road, buddy!"

I fired off a volley of plasma shots without really aiming at anything, hoping that I would score at least one hit on him. But after no more than a dozen shots, there was a massive explosion below me that began to reach up to me. Not taking chances, I turned upwards as my armor's flight systems carried me high into the air at great speed. My friends were probably already waiting for me at edge of the platform I had just fallen from. No matter how tough the Devil Gigas was, there was no way it survived a point-blank explosion from another ride armor's power core along with a several dozen story fall. Especially not with that kind of damage accumulated.

I slowed down as I began to reach the floor where the battle had taken place and held out my arms for balance. As I expected, my seven companions had gathered at the edge of the flooring and saw me hovering before them with the night sky behind me. They must have known or even seen the explosion far below since they all just burst into cheering and applause while I descended slowly for a landing.

"Yes! Project H wins again! Oh man, there's no way this series won't take off after that kinda climax!" Spike shouted while he gazed up at me. A quick glance at my friends showed that they seemed to have suffered some minor wear and tear on their outfits, although it paled in comparison to the structural damage my armor had suffered.

Pinkie Pie then zipped up to me and squealed, "That last scuffle was just so fun to watch! Especially when you and Fluttershy started ganging up on Alpha! That was awesome, seeing two sweethearts fighting side by side!"

"Yeah, that was pretty nuts." I replied before turning my gaze towards my massively muscular fiancée. She seemed all right, even if a bit bruised around the face. Her outfit in particular seemed to have suffered a fair bit of damage due to enduring numerous attacks from the Devil Gigas. "You feeling all right, honey? You took quite a few hits back there."

Fluttershy nodded with a big tired smile before she began to shrink and revert back to her original size. "Uh huh... I'm feeling a bit sore now, but I'm OK."

I then dropped to one knee while she reached up and held me in a tender embrace. I nuzzled the side of her head with my own battered helmet and said, "Thanks for being there for me. It was really awesome the way you knocked Alpha flat on his back like that. Didn't see it coming at all."

"I just...felt so angry when I saw him crushing you like that... I had to do something." Fluttershy said quietly while sounding noticeably tired. I suppose she would be left feeling emotionally burned out after being enraged for so long.

Rarity then walked up to us and gently patted Fluttershy on the shoulder. "There there, darling. The villain has been vanquished and we remain alive and well. The only question is how do we get back home now?"

Twilight then replied, "Well... Since the story likely started back at the lab where Project H first came online, maybe we should go see Doctor Luminous?"

"Yeah, that sounds about right. Let's go see the egghead and go home. All this action's been awesome and all, but I'd say I could really use a nap right now." Rainbow Dash then added while landing and letting out a yawn. I suppose it did not help that it had been night in our current location at the time.

Applejack then started to head deeper into the construction site before looking back at us. "Well then, let's mosey, y'all. There's bound ta be a way down from here."

Finally having all the right reasons to relax, we all began to follow Applejack. The air had become so quiet. Perhaps even the evacuation sirens had been shut down due to the evacuation having been nearly completed. However, I did not even make twenty paces before I began to hear a distant high-pitched hissing sound. At first, I was uncertain of what it could be. But as it grew steadily louder, I came to a stop. Pinkie Pie was quick to notice me halt and asked, "What's wrong, James? Forgot something?"

"Girls..." I said quietly as they turned to face me. Their ears were clearly not as sensitive as my auditory sensors since they did not show any signs of hearing something unusual. But I recognized that sound. The hiss of personalized rocket thrusters. "I don't think he's done yet."

They all showed looks of shock with Rainbow Dash all but yelling at me. "You've gotta be kidding me! Did you see how big that blast was?! He basically had a megaton bomb go off in his face! What kinda robot could survive that?!"

"I dunno, Rainbow, but... He's right there." Applejack replied while she pointed ahead and behind me. I promptly looked over my shoulder. And there he was. Slowly rising into view with smoke and sparks rising from his battered body was Alpha with his wing thrusters flaring up.

Expecting a further attack, I promptly armed my H-Buster and approached him. "Alpha, you better not be back for round 3 because I am so not in the mood for you right now! Beat it!"

It was once I got closer with Alpha's metallic body caught in the moonlight that I got a good look at the extant of the damage he suffered from my ride armor exploding at point-blank range. His armor was fractured and leaking smoke, one of his legs had been torn off at the knee, and his face... His lower jaw seemed to have been torn off with the underlying circuitry sparking. And his left eye... It seemed that one of my potshots had managed to land a hit. His left eye's cover had been shot off, revealing the glowing red optic sensor underneath. And he was just seething with rage and humiliation. He could not face me in the condition he was in and he knew it.

"Whoa... Looks like that blast all but ruined him!" Twilight said as I heard her and our friends trot up behind me. I threw my left arm out to my side to signal them to stay behind me. I could not take any chances now that Alpha had been backed into a corner.

For a moment, Alpha merely glared at us while hovering high above the deep drop before us. When he finally spoke, his voice was filled with static. "You have truly made a powerful enemy, Project H. You may have won this battle, but this war is only just beginning. And I will remember this scar. I cannot continue this duel, so we will resume once me and my enlightened fellow machines sound our war horns..."

However, he then floated backwards as I noticed glowing lights upon his wing frames. His plasma beam arrays! "Assuming you survive this one, that is!"

"Girls, behind me!" I shouted while I lifted my left arm and activated the particle shield projector just as Alpha unleashed his final attack upon us. My friends gathered in a line behind me as the beams occasionally dragged across my shield, but it soon became clear that Alpha was not directly targeting us. They were ripping through the construction site itself, even tearing through the steel girders on the floor below us! "Alpha, knock it off! You're missing us!"

After maybe twenty seconds of seemingly randomly flailing his weaponry around, Alpha ceased his attack and began to fly away before I could line up a shot on him. And even if I tried, I would have found it impossible with the floor starting to lurch under me. Spike was the first to speak as the floor buckled, "Whoa! What's happening?!"

The following noise answered his question. All around us, melted and weakened metal began to screech as steel girders began to collapse. And soon, the floor under us gave out as we began to plummet to the ground far below with nothing to catch us! I let out a startled yell while my friends began to scream as we fell. And right behind us was several dozen tons of debris. Even worse was the fact that I could not save them all!

Fortunately, Twilight was quick to come up with an idea when we saw was lay far below us. By some stroke of luck, or maybe just contrivance for the comic book's plot, an open pit in the ground was below us. Possibly an underground warehouse that had been excavated to be used with the finished site. "Rarity, there! Conjure up an air cushion!"

"Huh?! There... Oh, there! I've got it!" Rarity replied loudly before her bracelets began to shine. Far below us, a bright pink rectangular cushion seemed to appear. Something of that size would easily catch us. And it did.

We hit it with a soft thump with the air inside making it feel like we had all landed on a trampoline without the bounce. However, Twilight was quick to follow-up with another order. "Quickly! Make a ceiling! There's more rubble coming!"

Rarity quickly looked up with the rest of us to see the incoming debris that would likely end up crushing us. Once more, her bracelets shimmered before a solid pink sheet of some material became spread out over the entire length of the hole above us. Thunderous crashes filled the air as the debris smashed into it, although I was not feeling safe at all. Fluttershy then voiced my own concern by asking, "I don't think that's going to hold..."

It was Pinkie Pie who found a way out. She zipped right off of the cushion and stood next to what seemed to be a doorway at the edge of the largely empty basement. "Over here, everypony! There's a way out!"

It was then that we heard cracking. Large cracks began to fill the temporary ceiling above us. Almost in a panic, we scrambled off the air cushion and bolted for the doorway with Rainbow Dash yelling, "It's gonna cave in! Go, go, go!"

Just as we all passed through the doorway, we heard the ceiling crumble under the weight of the debris and the room we had just entered went completely black as all natural lighting was blocked out. The rumbling that came with the ceiling collapse ended and we were thrust into complete silence. Possibly due to some previous blunt trauma, my optic sensors did not automatically swap to the ultraviolet settings to allow me to see in the dark. "OK, that's over... Is everyone here?"

"Lemme check! Um... OK, we've got pink eyes, purple eyes, azure eyes, cyan eyes, green eyes... Yup, everypony's here! I even see Spike's eyes down there and your eyes up there! That orange visor really makes you stand out, James." I heard Pinkie Pie reply while wondering exactly what it was she was referring to.

"Uh... Come again? Whatever do you mean that you can see our eyes, Pinkie?" I heard Rarity ask from somewhere right next to me.

"I guess I could go into detail, but I think this chapter's getting long enough. You don't need me to clog it up with an eye-juggling gag and mismatching the eyes with everypony's heads." I heard Pinkie Pie reply while leaving me utterly baffled by those words. She then said, "Come to think of it, where are we anyway?"

"Uh... Lemme check with the doc." I said before trying to contact Luminous. "Doc, are you there? Did you get everything that just happened?"

The good doctor's voice filled the air with only a slight amount of static accompanying it. "Yes, I've been monitoring everything closely, Project H. It seems that Alpha has vanished entirely, probably to lick his wounds. You've succeeded in repelling him for the time being. I doubt the population has anything else to worry about for the night. As for your current location... You seem to be in a network of underground utility tunnels. Just follow the path before you and you should eventually find a means to get back to the surface. However, it seems that the lighting systems are offline. You'll have to find the fuse box and reset it."

"We don't exactly have time to cover for the local technician, doc..." I muttered before remembering the H-Saber at my side. I promptly drew it from its holster and activated the blade with the hilt standing straight. Its burning blade shot forth and provided quite a bit of light. I saw all my friends standing around me in a concrete corridor, but was quick to notice something odd about Rainbow Dash. "Huh? Hey, Rainbow... Since when did your eyelashes look that stylish?"

"Huh? My lashes? Uh... What're you talking about? I'm not the kinda mare who spends all my time in front of a mirror." She replied while Rarity seemed to roll her eyes... Wait. Why did Rarity roll her eyes while... Funny thing is that Rainbow Dash's eyes did not seem to be showing the matching emotions for her tone of voice. And that is saying something because the ponies of Equestria have the most emotive eyes I have ever seen on anyone. And it was then that Rarity's eyes seemed to open wide in shock while Rainbow Dash then yelled, "What the... Hey! What' am I doing standing over there?! Why am I seeing me?!"

"Now that you mention it... I'm seeing myself too! And... Oh my, I look simply spectacular in that outfit. So that's what I look like?" Rarity said in return while... It did not take long for her to figure out what had happened with her eyes displaying irritation while Rainbow Dash's eyes initially showed delight before showing frustration. "Pinkie Pie, what did you do?!"

Now that she mentioned it, I did not recall Rarity having pink eyes or Rainbow Dash having gorgeous azure eyes. Pinkie Pie then giggled and said, "I'll fix it! James, kill the lights!"

"Uh... OK?" I retorted before deactivating the H-Saber briefly. Once the blade vanished, the room fell into complete darkness.

Pinkie Pie did...something quickly for about ten seconds before she spoke up. "OK, you can turn the lights back on now!"

I did as I was told and activated the H-Saber again. With light filling the room, I saw that Rainbow Dash and Rarity had their correct eyes set back into their skulls. I then asked while trying really hard to not think about the concept too much, "So... Everyone's eyes back where they belong?"

Everyone seemed to agree all at once before I stepped forward to lead my friends through the halls. "All right... Stay behind me and let's go. I'm ready to go home."

I began to slowly walk through the concrete corridors with my friends following closely behind me, the H-Saber's glowing plasma blade being the only source of light for us. And even then it was basically only a very long glow wand. The corridors consisted of concrete walls and floors with metal grating lining the middle probably as a means to allow rainwater to escape should it get down there. Thick pipes lined the ceiling everywhere we went while metal-coated wires would occasionally line the walls while connecting to metal boxes. I suppose I could have investigated them, but it was not important. All I wanted to do was get this mission over with and go home.

It was always a bit nerve-wracking whenever I peered around a corner. Even though my HUD was presenting a map of sorts in the corner of my visor, I was very worried we may come across a wandering rogue machine in the halls. I listened very carefully, not detecting any sounds that were not coming from myself or my friends. Everyone was deathly quiet to stay alert for anything that may be lurking in the shadows of the darkened utility tunnels.

We passed by several heavy metal doors that seemed to be the kinds that retract into the floor while being held in place by a series of locks. Heavy industrial stuff. Although we eventually came to a doorway whose door was already retracted. "Hold up for a minute..."

I stopped and peeked into the room and was pleasantly surprised by what I found. It seemed to be a storage room modified into a break room for off-duty maintenance workers. There was a table in the center along with a couple of old sofas, a few vending machines, and even a small older CRT television in the corner. There was even a lamp on a small end table and a simple rug spread out on the floor. It seemed to be the kind of room a few friends on the workforce decided to spruce up with some older furniture they had lying around their houses that they were wanting to replace, but not really wanting to toss them out. There was even an old box-like radio in one corner. And after all that we had gone through, I was more than willing to just put my feet up for a bit and take a break. "Looks like a break room. I'm taking five."

"Huh?! But James...! We've got to get outta here first! Isn't that what the plot says?" Twilight asked with some confusion, clearly wanting to get things done as quickly and straightforward as possible, not that I blame her.

In no mood to argue, I entered the room and placed the H-Saber back in its holster while reaching under the lamp's shade and pressed the switch that turned it on, bathing the concrete room in a soft glow. "Don't care. I'm tired and I want to rest. The plot can afford us a half hour to chill for a bit."

"Yeah, I wanna rest my hooves for a while too. C'mon, girls. Let's chill." Rainbow Dash added before she trotted into the room and made a beeline for the vending machine. One by one, all our friends entered as well. Once they were all inside, I decided to insure that we would not be disturbed by anything and engaged the door's manual locking mechanisms. The heavy metal door slid up and into place before its locking gears were secured as I lowered a latch on it that secured it in place. The only way to open it by that point was from inside the room or with a key on the outside. No wandering rogue machines were going to get to us then.

Pinkie Pie began to look the vending machines over. One was loaded with snacks and the other with drinks. Although there was another much narrower machine behind those two, I did not pay it much mind. It seemed to be the kind that only gives out one sort of refreshment. After tapping on the buttons, Pinkie Pie turned to look at us. "Hey, girls? Any of you got some bits?"

"Sorry, Pinkie. I don't think our outfits have pockets." Fluttershy replied while she looked herself over.

Fortunately for them, Rarity soon approached the vending machine. "One moment, girls. I think I may have an answer for this." At her words, the bracelets around her hooves shimmered before a pink bit appeared in the air before being slid into the snack machine's coin slot. "Now, let's see if it works..."

With a press of a button, the coiling wires that held up a bag of chips began to rotate until one of the bags fell into the bottom. Pinkie Pie then reached in and pulled the bag out with it hanging from her teeth. "Wow, who knew you could make money appear like that?! Hey, girls! Want anything?"

Bit by bit, Rarity provided my friends with currency to activate the vending machines until they had spent well over twenty bits on snacks and drinks ranging from fruit juices to soda to chips to candy to roasted nuts. Even so, I just remained seated at the far end of one sofa as I was not feeling the least bit hungry or thirsty. More than likely a result of having no actual digestive system. Still, I watched in silence while observing the colorful labels on my friends' snack bags and drink cans. The labeling looked like nothing I had ever seen in Equestria, likely just being fictional brands the writers of the series came up with. Although they seemed to be quite flavorful since my friends did seem to be enjoying them as they conversed with each other.

I just leaned back and propped my feet up on the table before me and just stared at the pipes that ran along the ceiling. It felt good to just sit back and relax after all the mayhem we had just gone through that night. Although I soon noticed something out of the corner of my eye and looked down to see Spike standing between the sofa and the table while holding out a juice box to me with a straw sticking out of it. He smiled and said, "You OK, James? You want anything to drink?"

A quick look at the box revealed that the contents were fruit punch. One of my favorite fruit drinks. However, feeling no thirst and knowing that I likely could not digest its contents, I shook my head. "No thanks, Spike. Not thirsty. Besides, I'm pretty sure drinking something like that would mess up my internal systems somehow. There's a reason why you shouldn't take a bath with a toaster, you know."

"Oh, right... Well, lemme see if there's something for you." He replied before running back over to the vending machines. However, I soon noticed him inspecting the really narrow one at the end. Paying him no mind, I tilted my head back to gaze at the ceiling. But no more than a minute went by before Spike was up on the sofa by me with a big can in his hand. "How about this one? The vending machine said 'For robot consumption only' on the front."

"Robots only?" I asked before looking at the can with a cockeyed stare. It seem to be a shade of blue with a large E on both sides. I took it in hand, finding it to be heavier than a typical aluminum can and sturdier too. Probably made of tougher material to prevent leakage. Finding it to be very similar to something else I had seen, I turned to Doctor Luminous for confirmation. "Hey, doc? Are you seeing this? Can you tell me what this stuff is?"

The doctor did not take long to reply as he spoke more clearly than before. "Yes, that is an energy supplement. The contents are a liquid energy and are quite toxic to anything that is not mechanical. It perks you up by energizing you if your energy output is below average and even promotes automatic repairs. In short, it can heal you to some degree and will leave you feeling refreshed."

"Seriously? Well... OK then. I'll give it a try." I muttered before finding a pull tab on top of the can and opening it up like a soda can. I then tilted my head back and took a sip. However, I was quick to notice a glowing green outline surround my entire body as I gulped down a few sips. I stopped immediately and looked at myself before looking at my friends. Everyone was looking my way. "Am I the only one who noticed that glowing green outline around me just now?"

"Uh... Nope, we saw it too. Y'all feelin' all right, James?" Applejack asked while from sipping a can of apple juice.

I shrugged my shoulders and looked back down at the can. "Yeah, I guess." I then tilted my head back and started chugging the literal energy drink as that green outline surrounded my body again. I found it to be cold and refreshing and seemed to have some fizz to it like soda would. Once I had drank the can dry, I felt genuinely better and more energized. Even my HUD seemed to detect improvements in my internal systems. "Hey, that's pretty good! Tastes like a sport's drink."

"Sweet! Maybe I should try some. I'm all about staying energized during my workout routines." Rainbow Dash said while looking the energy drink machine over only to find the warning on the front. "Huh?! For robots only! Nuts..."

"I've got some nuts!" Pinkie Pie replied before holding out a bag of peanuts. I merely rolled my eyes at her and tossed my can towards the nearby recycle bin. It skirted around the edges a bit before narrowly falling off. However, Applejack's rope then lashed out and whipped it, sending the can back up and into the bin. "Ooh, nice save, Applejack!"

"Thanks, Pinkie. Guess that floatin' rope comes in handy for all sorts of stuff." Our masked friend retorted while she snacked on apple chips.

I once more began to just chill out on the sofa while Spike remained seated by me as he sipped from his juice box and ate from his bag of chips. I turned my gaze down at the dragon child and asked, "How you holding up, Spike? That slingshot of yours doing its job well?"

Spike looked up at me and nodded. "Yeah, it is! I know I haven't been able to really keep up with everypony, but I really feel like I've been helping out with that thing. And thanks for trimming my cape back there. I haven't tripped on it since."

I smiled and patted him on the head while being mindful of the spines that lined the middle of his head. "You've been a pretty good shot with those all night. You really helped me out when Alpha was piloting that ride armor too." Spike merely chuckled cutely while being tickled by the praise I was giving him. However, when I thought of Alpha, my thoughts also went towards my recent memories of the Mane-iac. "Hey, Spike... About the Mane-iac. She's not the only problem the Power Ponies have to deal with all the time, is she?"

This really caught Spike's attention. "The Mane-iac? Actually, no. She's the most recurring villain in the series, but there are five other big villains that show up now and then. There's Pharaoh Phetlock, High Heel, Shadowmane, Long Face, and Smudge. They're all really dangerous in their own ways, but it's the Mane-iac who usually shows up. I guess she just really loves the attention."

"Huh... Makes you wonder why we haven't bumped into any of them tonight. They must really be put off by the maverick outbreak and are in hiding since they can't show themselves in public." I said quietly while wondering exactly what these villains even look like, let alone which them are male or female. OK, Pharaoh Phetlock is obviously male and anyone with High Heel as their name is likely female, but... Well, there were just a lot of unanswered questions floating through my head, but I could just ask later.

After a short while, Spike got up and approached the television in the room's corner. "I wonder if the TV station is still running with everypony evacuating..."

"Ooh, maybe they've got cartoons on at this hour! Is the remote around here?" Pinkie Pie asked while she reached between the sofa cushions.

Twilight then smiled while she sipped some orange juice and said, "You know, it might be interesting to see what television programs they have in this fictional world. Go ahead and turn it on, Spike."

Spike did as he was told and pressed the power button. The roar of static began to come from the speakers, but the volume had been previously turned down to a manageable level. After five seconds, the black screen became filled with a pandemonium of rapidly quivering black and white specks. I muttered to myself, "Man, you don't see this on TV where I come from anymore..."

After checking the buttons on the front of the TV, Spike began to cycle through the available channels with each one providing nothing but static. Eventually, we finally got one that displayed sound and visual images. It seemed we also tuned in just in time to see the title card, although it seemed...remarkably silly. Fluttershy even gave the screen a cockeyed stare and said, "Pretty...Pretty...Pegasus?"

"Well, it's better than nothing." Rainbow Dash spoke before she became slouched on one sofa like a total slacker while dropping peanuts into her mouth. At first, the show seemed all right. Bright colorful animation and lively voice acting. But no more than thirty seconds in, we were all cringing with how asininely immature and obnoxious the two main characters were with even the world seeming saccharinely stupid and childish to the point where even most kids would probably prefer to watch something else. Rainbow Dash then threw up her hooves and shouted, "What kinda stupid filly show is this?! Change the channel, please!"

Spike obliged all too happily, changing the channel to the next. And it seemed to be another cartoon going through its opening sequence. Before any of us could offer any input, Spike seemed to recognize it. "Hey, I know this cartoon! It's the one Hum Drum really likes!"

"You mean the cartoon that taught him the virtues of friendship that helped the Power Ponies get along? That one?" I asked while the opening sequence played a song that seemed to be a variant of that song I have heard Fluttershy and even Spike humming at times. It seemed to feature six mares animated very fluidly with bright colorful art styles with the ending of the opening displaying the words 'My Little Pony'. Furthermore, I had heard those three words being sung quite a few times during the opening. I then looked towards Fluttershy and asked, "Hey, Fluttershy? Don't you hum that tune sometimes? Or sing it?"

"You mean the 'My Little Pony' chant just now?" She replied while smiling at me. "Well... Yes! My Little Pony is an old nursery rhyme. It's a very popular song all across the world, but I guess you don't usually hear it unless it's being sung to a child."

"Huh... Kinda funny how that song gave rise to a cartoon show. Well... A fictional show, at that." I said while we all turned our attention to the screen while Spike hopped back onto the sofa for a while. I especially found it subtlety amusing how 'My Little Pony' is also the name of a toyline on Earth. Funny little coincidence there. Although when I think about the toys and look at my friends... No. No way there can be a connection between those two. That would be ridiculous.

Seeing as how this was a show clearly meant for kids, specifically little girls, I was sure I was in for a rather unpleasant time. But I was pleasantly surprised when I found myself enjoying the characters and the world in the show a lot more than I ever expected to. They were believable and surprisingly relatable at times, the world felt just about as real as Equestria itself, and the animation was very pleasing to the eyes. It even employed the use of silent ambience at times for enhanced atmosphere, which is something one does not expect to find in kid shows. I wish I could remember the main characters' names, but I could not memorize them in just one episode.

About five minutes into the episode, Spike tapped me on my side. I looked down at him and saw that he was giving me a very concerned stare. "Something wrong, Spike?"

"Are you sure you're feeling all right? You look...really banged up." He replied somberly while pointing to my helmet. I ran my hand over the side of it, feeling the scuffs and scrapes the Devil Gigas had inflicted while dragging my head through that concrete wall earlier. I also took note of the various fractured and chips segments of my armor plating. That last battle against Alpha had really taken its toll on my armor, even if my internal systems were still functioning properly. Although I still had my visor set over my eyes out of fear that the cracks running through it would cause the whole thing to shatter if I tried to have it retract into my helmet.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I mean I might've felt tired earlier, but that energy drink fixed that. Don't worry about the external damage. Doctor Luminous can fix that when I get back to him." I explained while feeling that Spike was concerning himself over nothing. "Besides, I'll probably be just fine once we get out of this world. The end's bound to be close now."

Spike seemed satisfied with my answer, although he soon let out a yawn. "Yeah, it must be... I just wanna go home and take a long nap after all this adventuring. I can't even imagine how tiring it's gotta be to be a superhero every single day. You'd think they'd get sick of it after a while!"

We just spent the next fifteen minutes or so watching the episode while our friends stayed quiet to enjoy the show. It did not even have commercials. Once the credits finally began to roll, Applejack used the tip of her rope to press the power button to turn the television off. "Well, that was mighty fun ta watch."

"Yeah! I swear, those characters reminded me of ourselves! Almost like watching a little adventure we could've had at some point." Twilight said as she looked around at us with a nostalgic smile on her face.

Pinkie Pie then giggled and said, "You bet! Especially with how Cotton Candy kept winking at the audience! That's SO my thing!" My friends all laughed at the similarities between Pinkie Pie and that character from the show. I merely smiled and rolled my eyes, knowing that Pinkie Pie is hard to figure out.

Rarity then hopped down from the sofa and chucked her drink cup and empty bags into the recycle bin nearby. "Well, as entertaining as that show was, I think it's time we all be going. I'm rested and ready to go home."

"Yeah, I'd say half an hour's long enough. Ready, girls?" Rainbow Dash added while she flew across the room and landed by the locked door leading back out into the hallway. She did not even bother to throw away her junk, but it hardly mattered anyway considering that the world we were in was entirely fictional.

Twilight nodded while my friends all started heading to the door. I tried staying seated on the sofa as long as I could, being in no hurry to stand up ad leave this safe haven in the underground tunnels. However, I did not get to relax for much longer as Twilight soon turned to me and said, "James, I think you should take point again. You can see in the dark better than us."

"All right, Twi. Get behind me." I replied while I stood up. I then reached for the lock latch and lifted it before pressing the button that caused the door to nosily retract down into the doorway. The lamp's light lit up the tunnel in front of us just fine, but the light did not reach far down the tunnel. It made for a very creepy atmosphere, making me all the more unwilling to leave the makeshift safe room.

"Hmm... Yeah, I think my ultraviolet settings have been restored." I said quietly while priming the H-Buster on my right arm. I stepped out into the hall and into the shadows, finding my vision to adjust well with the complete lack of light. I then stepped back into the light and motioned for my friends to follow me. I decided to leave the lamp in the room on as a possible beacon to let anyone else who got lost in the tunnels know that the room was open and safe to hide in.

Before we could completely enter the shadows, Rarity quickly spoke up. "Darlings, wait! A little something to help us know where each of us is." At those words, seven little glowing bands giving off very little pink light appeared and snapped onto my friends' wrists. They were very easy to see in the dark, allowing us to know each others' locations. I really did not need one as my white body was easy to see in the low lighting.

"Ooh, very smart thinking, Rarity. James, could you please lead on?" Fluttershy said before looking up at me with a slight smile.

"Sure thing. Just make sure you stay behind me. I'll see a threat before you can." I replied before walking down the tunnel with my left hand resting on the H-Buster. I had a bad feeling that we were not entirely out of danger.

We stepped lightly through the darkness while my friends stayed close behind me in a cluster of bodies. I kept a constant eye on the tiny map in the upper left corner of my visor as we wandered through the winding hallways of the utility tunnels. It was undeniably spooky, wondering if we would bump into something or if my HUD would detect a presence ahead of us. We passed by a heavy metal door every now and then, but paid them no mind. It would likely be less risky if we just followed the path all the way to the end.

After it finally began to feel like we were completely alone, I nearly jumped as I was startled by a sudden quiet beeping sound before the tiny map on my visor displayed a dot at the end of the hall right around the corner I was about to step past. I immediately came to a stop and whispered loudly, "Girls, wait! Something's there!"

"Jeez, don't spook us like that!" Rainbow Dash whispered back loudly as they all came to a stop behind me. "What is it?! Another robot ready to get scrapped?"

After a few seconds of closely examining the readings, I quickly deduced that the detected presence was not mechanical. "I don't think so. It appears to be a living creature. Hold on a second."

I carefully peeked around the corner and could see a lone figure walking down the hallway far ahead at a slow and cautious pace. While the colors of my surroundings were not entirely accurate when seen through my ultraviolet settings, I could see that the person seemed to be a pony wrapped in a cloak. And only one person came to mind. I ducked back behind the corner and looked down at my friends. "Girls... I know this is hard to believe, but... I think Zecora is here."

"Zecora? Here? But...that doesn't make any sense. She wasn't with us when that portal appeared..." Twilight replied while looking noticeably puzzled. And she was right. Zecora had not been present with us when we got sucked into the comic book. Unless she just happened to wander into the library and examined the comic book only to get drawn in like us. Still, it was a bit of a stretch. I have never seen Zecora stop by the library once, so it seems unlikely she would just wander in. "Are you sure that's Zecora out there?"

"I'll wait for her to step around the corner and say hello. Rarity, you conjure up a lantern the instant you see any movement ahead of me so we can get a good look at whoever this is." I replied while turning to face the corner of the hallway. For the next minute or so, we waited. Whoever that was must have been stepping lightly since we did not start to hear footsteps until the mysterious pony was less than fifteen feet away from my location. It was nerve-wracking to just wait there in the dark without even knowing who we were about to see. Still, the unidentified pony stepped around the corner. She must have not seen us first since she staggered back and shielded her eyes the instant Rarity conjured up a lantern to shine some light onto the stranger. I then asked, "Hey there. Are you lost too?"

It was during this brief moment that I got a good look at the person before us. From the subtle shape of the body and muzzle, I could tell this pony was a mare. Probably an earth pony. However, I could tell it was not Zecora at all as every part of this mare's body was wrapped in a skintight purple bodysuit with even her muzzle covered. The cloak that covered her body was a very dark gray and there even seemed to be a tiny dagger tucked into her cloak at the front of the neck. She also seemed to be wearing sturdy dark metal armlets around the wrists and ankles. I did not get a look at her eyes as all I saw were two yellow patches instead that gave off a subtle glow. Even so, she still let out a gasp upon seeing me as those blank yellow eyes displayed fright before she turned and fled down the hall back from whence she came. I took a look behind the corner again and called out to her, "Hey, where you going?!"

However, it was Spike who spoke up next. And his words really got my attention. "That was...Shadowmane! What's she doing here?!"

"You mean another one of the Power Pony villains?! Then...why'd she run?! I'm surprised she didn't try to pick a fight..." Rarity asked while my friends seemed slightly rattled that we very narrowly avoided a surprise confrontation with another dangerous villain. I certainly was not in the mood for another scuffle myself.

After a brief moment of pondering, I turned to face my friends. "Well... She probably saw me first and realized that I'm a robot. You saw how spooked she was. She probably already had a close call with rogue machines and tried hiding in these tunnels to ride out the storm. Probably for the best too. If she noticed all of you, the situation could've gotten messy."

Applejack then wiped her brow, clearly relieved that we avoided an unwanted brawl. "Phew! Lucky for us then. I've already had way too much excitement for today. Lead on, pardner. Let's go home."

I nodded and began to lead my friends down the hall once again after Rarity disposed of her lantern to keep the lot of us better hidden. Shadowmane's galloping hooves became increasingly distant, though I soon heard the clanking of an opening and closing metal door. We eventually passed by another metal door and my sensors detected that same reading somewhere on the other side. I said nothing to my friends about knowing that Shadowmane was nearby and continued on. We had bigger problems to worry about anyway.

Eventually, we reached the end of the hall and were greeted by an exceptionally wide metal door. It seemed to function similar to those we had seen so far. "Well... End of the line. Shall we see where this goes?"

Most of my friends seemed relieved that we had found the end and hurried past me to the door. Rainbow Dash pressed the switch that caused the door to open as its locking mechanisms retracted and it slid into the floor. Beyond that door was a massive room filled with thick concrete support beams. From first glance, it just seemed to be an empty underground warehouse or maybe even a parking garage for industrial equipment. Pinkie Pie wasted no time in trying to add some humor to the situation. "Ooh! It's like a giant cave! Hello! Echo, echoooo!"

Sure enough, her voice echoed quite a bit through the concrete chamber, although Fluttershy spoke up quickly. "Pinkie, wait! Maybe there's something here waiting to ambush us..."

"I don't know about that, Fluttershy. My sensors aren't picking up any bio signs. No detections of viral-infected machines either. I'd say its completely deserted." I proclaimed while looking left and right. My ultraviolet sensors were detecting no signs of movement. Still, there was no light in the room, so it was still pretty spooky. Eerily quiet too. "So, there's probably a way back up to the surface. Let's follow the walls."

"OK, big guy. You take point." Rainbow Dash replied while they all stayed behind me. I then began to walk left from the doorway as our footsteps echoed quietly throughout the warehouse, although there was nopony around to hear them. Or so we thought for the moment.

After a minute or so, Fluttershy pointed out to our right. "Oh, there's some light!"

We all came to a stop and looked to the right. She was correct. Far ahead of us between rows of concrete columns were seven white beacons set up in a specific layout. Pinkie Pie was quick to identify the pattern. "Ooh, is that the Big Dipper?"

"Not quite, Pinkie. It's upside-down and those four beacons are closer together, so that makes it the Little Dipper." Twilight explained while I noticed her smile. "I bet you didn't know it's also called the Ursa Minor constellation."

"You sure know your star charts, Twilight. That's probably just a parade float that someone forgot to turn off." I said while trying to get as good a look at it from my current location as possible. Unfortunately, even with my optic sensors seeing through the ultraviolet spectrum, I still could not make out anything from my current distance. That spectrum did come with a bit of a draw distance.

"Well, it's a cryin' shame we missed the parade. But I reckon we should just keep movin'. Anypony seein' a way out?" Applejack added before pointing to the left again.

"Right, let's keep going. I'm tired of being stuck in the dark anyway." I replied before walking along again with my friends close behind me.

Before we got much further, Rainbow Dash started to speak up. "You know... I don't like this. It's been way too quiet for way too long... Feels like we might be walking into a bad situation..."

"Don't say that, Rainbow Dash. We took down all those swarms of really mean robots and we took down the factory. And with Alpha gone right now, there's nothing left to really bother us." Fluttershy replied quietly. I was sharing the sentiment, hoping we were finally out of danger.

However, I soon heard Doctor Luminous speak up over the comm system while he all but yelled to all of us. "Project H! Power Ponies! Do you read me?!"

He sounded panicked. And it came up so suddenly that we were even startled by his voice. Pinkie Pie then said, "Yikes! Don't do that, doc! We almost jumped outta our suits here!"

"Right, sorry... I didn't mean to startle you. But this is urgent! I just picked up another viral reading! It came out of nowhere and it's right next to you! There's dozens of them congregating on one spot!" Luminous explained while I felt a sense of alarm come over me as I rapidly pointed the H-Buster in numerous directions, searching for a target.

"Oh, come on! Haven't we done enough for one night?! Besides, I'm not seeing anything here in the dark!" Rainbow Dash complained loudly while all my friends huddled up around me. Even though my HUD was also detecting a viral presence, I was seeing nothing nearby. But then... I saw it. The same light constellation from before was starting to move left in the distance. And Rainbow was the first to point it out. "Hey! Check it out! The lights are moving!"

I heard them. Heavy clanking footsteps as the lights were moving through the darkness. Once they were about to reach the path between the concrete pillars that was right in front of us, they seemed to disappear partially until we could only see a couple of the lights on each edge of the path while the clanking drew closer as it grew louder. I then muttered, "Wait a second... Isn't Ursa Minor also the name of those massive... Oh...shoot! Girls, get behind me!"

I jumped forward and immediately began rapidly firing the H-Buster at the space between the two light sources while the bright bursts of plasma provided quick flashes of light. And sure enough, with eyes aglow, it emerged from the shadows while it let out a deafening roar. A colossal Ursa Minor robot just as big as the real thing!

"Oh man... I don't know if we can handle this one!" Spike yelled as my friends cowered behind me. I too was feeling intimidated as I charge up the H-Buster to unleash a stronger shot since my rapid shots were doing mostly nothing to it. That huge gaping mouth was big enough to chomp up my entire body. However, it seemed that this mechanical colossus was not interested in attacking us. Instead, it started to rear up onto its hind legs and soon slammed right into the ceiling. It slammed itself into it again and again until the concrete ceiling itself started to come crumbling down around us!

"Everypony, get close to me!" Rarity shrieked before we all rushed to her side. Her bracelets shimmered briefly before we were covered by a pink dome of sorts. Possibly an upside-down fishbowl? Regardless, it stood up to any falling debris while we watched in awe as the towering mechanical bear ripped right through the ceiling and pulled itself up and out of the warehouse. It its wake, faint moonlight shone down through the gaping hole in the ceiling while casting a modest amount of light throughout the immediate area. "I doubt we should let that hulking brute out of our sight! After it, darlings!"

The pink fishbowl soon vanished once the rubble stopped falling and I activated my flight thrusters before rocketing up and out of the hole. I soon set myself down and found that I was back on the streets of Maretropolis between lines of darkened buildings. Pinkie Pie soon zipped up beside me before I saw Fluttershy flying up out of the huge hole in the street with Rarity in her grasp while Rainbow Dash did the same with Twilight and Applejack holding on for dear life. Once they had been set down, Applejack sent her rope back down below before it rose back up with Spike holding onto it. I then asked, "So, the gang's all here?"

"Uh huh! But now we've gotta deal with that?!" Spike replied while he pointed ahead. The towering Ursa Minor robot was staring us down while being wide enough to take up the width of the entire street. Its paintjob was mostly shades of burgundy and gray and I was expecting it to be heavily armed due to its size. This was surely going to be one hell of a fight.

As it turned out, it did not attack at all. Instead, it seemed to lower itself to the ground a bit before we could actually see along its backside. Numerous vents of varying sizes opened up. And then... It became extremely clear what this machine was. Dozens of different robots were launched from the vents before they dropped to the ground with heavy crashes or held themselves aloft in the air. My HUD detected a total of six different types. Earth ponies outfitted with a variety of melee weapons, unicorns designed for ranged combat, pegasi with rocket wings for aerial combat, griffons designed for swift hit and run attacks with light armor plating, parasprite robots loaded with what seemed to be explosive charges, towering minotaurs that were noticeably larger than any I had seen so far while wielding massive battle hammers. The minotaurs must have been around twice my height, but there were also fewer of them than the others. There was also one trait they all shared with the exception of the parasprite robots. They all had the same dark color scheme as the Ursa Minor, but had no eyes. Instead, they had a single glowing red visor set into their faces that likely contained the optic sensors, giving them all a very intimidating presence. These robots clearly were not industrial or civilian robots outfitted with combat gear. They were designed from the ground up to be killing machines. I took a step back as I pondered how we were going to deal with this new threat. "It's not an attack robot... That thing's a walking carrier!"

Out of nowhere, we heard a voice being projected from the Ursa Minor carrier behind the looming army of combat robots. And I recognized it all too well. "So, you managed to get out of that site collapse alive? Such a shame. I was hoping to unleash this strike force upon the city just as despair was setting in after Maretropolis' longtime defenders had finally met their end. No matter. Now you too will be able to witness the true superiority of Equestria's master race!"

"Alpha...?! Quit hiding behind your toys and get out here if you're not done yet!" I yelled upon recognizing the voice of the mad machine tyrant. It seemed he was nowhere nearby, rather that he was speaking through a long-distance transmission.

"Not this time, Project H. But if you're that eager for a fight, them my troops here should suffice. I'll be sure to stop by afterward when this city has been purged and see what I can salvage from your shell. Farewell, traitor." Alpha replied with a strong tone of finality in his voice. At those words, the robots before us changed their stances in a clear sign that they were about ready to charge.

"You got an army?! So what?!" Pinkie Pie shouted before zipping over to Fluttershy and pushing her forward. "We've got a Fluttershy! Go get them!"

"Me?! But... But they'll tear me apart!" Fluttershy shrieked in fright as she backed away from the droves of rogue machines. She clearly was not feeling angry enough to actually hulk out and fight.

Fortunately for us, Twilight noticed something that could turn the tide in our favor and pointed ahead. "Actually, Fluttershy... Don't look now, but I think there's something you need to see. You see that shop there?"

Fluttershy looked ahead along with the rest of us. It seemed that a fair bit of structural damage had been done by an earlier raid of haywire machines. And what we saw was all too clearly a wrecked pet shop. Needless to say, Fluttershy did not take this well. "That's... No... They didn't... All those poor little animals... They..."

Just when it seemed she was about to burst into tears, Fluttershy's expression of shock became one of wrathful grief as she let out a scream. Her body swelled with muscle as her outfit tore under the growth of her bulk. With her coat a bolder hue of yellow than before, Fluttershy roared at the robot army as some of them even seemed to cringe at the sight of her. "I'll tear every last one of you to pieces!"

"Whoa... Good call, Twilight." I heard Rainbow Dash say quietly in some obvious intimidation of our companion.

Twilight grinned awkwardly in response and said, "Well, I had to do something to get her to get angry. We're gonna need all the help we can get at this point."

Without taking my eyes off of the swarm of vicious machines, I stepped over to Pinkie Pie and touched her to assimilate the Rocket Tackle back into my Variable Weapon System. I had to make certain I had something at the ready for quick evasion. "Right... You all ready for this?"

"About as ready as we'll ever be..." Rarity said with some hesitation. This was clearly the climax of the Project H pilot. The end was in sight.

"All right... Power Ponies, go!" Twilight shouted before we all charged into the fray. I started by firing off a volley of plasma shots, but was quick to see that these new machines were far more durable than any of the previous ones. It would take many shots to drop them now.

Regardless of their superiority to the previous batch of robots we had dealt with, Fluttershy was still making short work of any poor fool who tried to get in her way. Only the minotaur robots were capable of taking a punch, but she still had them beat in raw power. However, the parasprite robots proved to be a constant nuisance. When it seemed like she was getting the upper hand, one would fly down to her and explode right next to her. The color of each one determined the result. Blue ones would burst in a flash of liquid nitrogen, yellow ones would explode in a blast of electricity, and the red ones would burst into flames. They were basically flying elemental bombs. Fortunately for us, Fluttershy drew the attention of most of them and was able to tank these attacks as well.

Rainbow Dash was having quite a bit of trouble with the griffon robots. They were quick and their razor talons would gut her effortlessly if they could connect. Fortunately for her, Rainbow Dash's reflexes have always been absurdly quick when on the move. Their poor shielding also made them fragile enough to be dropped by a single blast of lightning from her pendant, or a few smaller plasma shots from myself. The pegasi robots proved to be more durable, but also not as shockingly quick as they relied on brute force and coordination to take down their enemies.

I was especially impressed with what Applejack had in mind. She threw a few hoofarangs to pin the feet of some robots to the ground before using them as stepping stones to jump towards a hulking minotaur robot that was trying to smash a pesky Pinkie Pie. Each swing of its massive hammer left deep craters in the street and hit with enough force to cause nearby robots to stagger from the shockwave. Her golden rope suddenly swooped in and lassoed the mechanical beast around the throat only for Applejack to grab it after jumping before using the momentum of the struggling minotaur robot to fling herself up to its shoulders. It tried to fling her off to no avail as Applejack began to tug on the rope to make the towering monster swing its hammer right into the droves of smaller robots. "Woooooo nelly! I've got this bull by the horns now!"

"Aw yeah! Ride that sucker, AJ!" I shouted back as Applejack started to take her captive for a joyride. While I made quick work of most robots with the H-Saber while also creating plasma explosions by accessing the Nova Strike while using it, I also took note of Twilight and Rarity staying close to each other. Spike was still riding Twilight and was launching three smoke bombs with every shot as quickly as he could load them. While the robots were engulfed in disorienting smoke, Twilight was unleashing a concentrated freeze ray right into the fray. With the robots frozen and made more brittle by the extreme cold, Rarity would then conjure up big pink sledgehammers and smash the helpless robots to pieces. Even so, the robots were proving to be more intelligent than the last. With every dozen robots we trashed, another dozen would jump into the fray to replace them and not repeat the same tactics. Some were even beginning to attack the minotaur robot that Applejack was riding. It had become complete chaos with the Ursa Minor carrier likely assembling more robots inside its hulking body and sending... Wait, where was the Ursa Minor to begin with?!

It took a moment, but I soon realized something was missing. In the first couple of minutes we had spent fighting the robot menace, the Ursa Minor carrier had disappeared. Had it just slipped around the corner to hide? After using the Nova Strike to blast right through a slew of robots and then dice up some unicorn snipers at the far end of the battlefield, I tried calling out to Doctor Luminous. "Doc, where did it go?! That big Ursa Minor robot?!"

"I'm tracking it right now! It seems to be heading gradually northeast. And it's still releasing more and more drones to hold you at bay." I heard Luminous reply promptly. He seemed to be our eye in the sky for keeping track of distant enemies.

However, I was quick to notice a certain word in his response. "Thought so. Guess we... Wait a second! Drones?!"

Luminous seemed to be surprised that he had forgotten to mention that detail to me. "Drones? Yes, drones! These robots do not possess an AI! They are being issued directives wirelessly from the Ursa Minor mobile carrier. If you can take that thing out, they'll all go offline."

"Got it! Hey, girls! Forget about these things and go after the big one! If we drop the brains of the operation, it'll shut down the rest of them!" I shouted out after getting stuck in a brief struggle with an earth pony robot that came at me with arms outfitted with blades. My particle shield held up, allowing me to make a quick riposte and split the thing in two.

"All right! Fluttershy, make a path!" Twilight replied before Fluttershy bashed away several robots and then charged right through the rest. Anything that was not bashed aside was promptly trampled under her girth. Although I will say it was rather awkward the way Applejack forced her mechanized ride to lumber after us while giving off sparks from combat damage, its hammer swinging every which way. We followed after Fluttershy before rounding the corner only to be immediately set upon by another wave of combat robots. It seemed that the closer we got to the source, the more fierce the opposition became.

I ultimately swapped to the H-Buster to focus on using charged shots to wipe out several robots at one time, although using the concentrated beam function would likely put my friends in danger. It was during the early stages of this wave of robots that I saw Twilight take a glancing swing from one of the minotaur robots' hammers and got sent flying back several feet. However, Spike had been on her back and ended up getting tossed farther before landing on the sidewalk with a thud. Twilight got up just fine and promptly froze several robots nearby, but did not seem to notice that Spike was no longer with her and seemed a bit dazed from the fall. While a drove of robots got in my way, I looked on in horror as a distant minotaur robot hoisted a heavy cargo cart in one arm and chucked it right across the street at Spike.

Thinking much faster than I ever could have as a human, I immediately knew that Spike would be killed outright by the impact. Wasting no time, I utilized the Nova Strike and barreled right through every last robot that got in my way before coming to a stop right beside Spike. I then yelled out for Twilight and Rarity before grabbing Spike and tossing him their way. I then attempted to use the Rocket Tackle to get away in time due to the rapidly approaching metal cart as my body became a light purple, but then looked on in horror at my Variable Weapon System's energy gauge and saw that it was still depleted from dumping it all into the Nova Strike! "Oh shoot...!"

Quickly swapping back to my default gear right as I took a stray energy shot to my left leg, I began to charge the H-Buster in the hopes of shooting down the flying cart before it could hit me while trying to strafe to the right. But I was unable to line up a shot in time. With a heavy crash, the cart clipped the left side of my helmet and pinned my arm against the brick wall beside me. It hurt! I let out a yell as sparks flew from my upper left arm. I then opened my eyes to look and found that even further damage had been done. Most of the left side of my visor had been shattered! The wire frame display of my body in the opposite corner of my HUD showed my left arm as being red instead of green. Not a good sign. I tried to push and lift the cart away from myself with my right arm, but I could not get enough leverage from such an angle. And the rest of my friends who probably could have removed it were already bogged down by the enemy.

While I struggled to free myself, I found a towering minotaur drone lumbering towards me with massive hammer in hand. Knowing that I could not evade the incoming swing, I started firing off charged shot after charged shot in the hopes of disabling it first. But the armor plating was too tough as it seemed to be tanking my shots while suffering only minor damage while starting to wind up for a crushing swing. Realizing that it would never drop before I would, I realized that I had to pull myself free or else. I started using my boot thrusters to try to propel myself away, but my arm still held. I needed to use the Rocket Tackle. And fortunately for me, enough energy had been accumulated for a single use. My body turned light purple once more as my boot thrusters charged up. And just at the last second, I ripped myself away from the heavy cart pinning my arm just before the Rocket Tackle could completely run its course. I ended up only maybe a dozen feet away from where I had been pinned just as the minotaur's hammer smashed right through the wall. Although I did feel a sting of pain the instantly I pulled free. With nothing between us, I turned and swapped back to my default settings before unloading a few more charged shots right into its head. This proved more than its body could take and the minotaur collapsed on a smoldering sparking heap.

I let out a sigh of relief as I felt good that I had narrowly evaded a fatal blow. It was then that Spike came running back over to me. "Oh my gosh, you saved me! Are you OK?! That minotaur didn't get..."

"Yeah, I'm good. That thing almost had me, but I got free in... Hey, Spike?" I replied while turning to face him. However, I soon noticed that Spike's expression was becoming one of abject horror. His hands rose to his mouth as tears even began to slowly spill over and down his cheeks. "Spike, what's wrong?! What happened?! You OK?!"

Spike only very slowly and rigidly pointed to the left side of my body. As he did, I just happened to glance to the corner of my visor to check the wire frame display of my body. My left arm was no longer being displayed in red. Instead, it had become gray. And I soon found out why. When I looked back at the cart, I saw wires giving off sparks as well as leaking hydraulic fluids. And when I looked at my left shoulder, I noticed that something was missing. Somewhere between the elbow and the shoulder, my left arm had been messily torn right off leaving nothing but a sparking stump behind.

I cringed in horror as I regained my right hand and brought it to my left arm's stump. It was gone. My left arm had been lost. It was disquieting to suddenly finding myself trying to will my left arm to move, but feeling nothing beyond my shoulder. Even so, I tried to take some small comfort in knowing that Doctor Luminous could likely repair me. I brought my hand to my chest and tried to take a deep breath. "Calm down... It's only temporary... It's just fiction..."

However, Spike burst into tears and clung to my leg. "I'm so sorry! I never should've read that stuff that opened the portal! It's all my fault...!"

Still freaked out myself, I reached down and grabbed Spike by his cape before lifting him up and dangling him in front of me. "Spike, quit it! You bust out crying here and you won't be able to focus on protecting yourself!" I was especially glad that none of our companions had noticed the damage I had suffered or they too would have likely become too emotionally upset to continue fighting.

"But... But I..." Spike muttered with a sniffle. He truly was overcome with guilt. I would have been too if a mistake of mine had resulted in one of my friends losing a limb. Beside that, he was still just a child. It would be foolhardy to think he could stay calm in these kinds of situations.

While trying to keep myself calm, I looked Spike in the eye. "None of us could've imagined that would open when you looked at that text. And we had no idea that Project H could get this...gritty. But just remember that I'm a machine now. If I lose a limb, the doctor can just attach a new one. I'll be fine in the long run. All right?"

"Ruh... Right..." Spike said with a muffled sob as he began to very slowly calm down. I then step him down while he started to wipe his eyes while sounding like he got a case of the hiccups.

Still having my right arm active, I drew the H-Saber from its holster and activated its scorching plasma blade. "Good. Now go hide in a corner somewhere and get your bearings before helping us out some more. We don't have far to go before this story's pilot is over."

Spike could only nod in tears before he ran behind the ruined cargo cart and stayed there. With my friends still preoccupied with the swarm of killer robots, I used the Rocket Tackle to charge right back into the fray and send several robots flying with the force of the impact. I then rapidly diced upper several more by utilizing the Hypersonic Blade technique as even these superior models were reduced to molten chunks of metal. Still, when I finally ran out of energy for my extra techniques and weapons, I had to resort to traditional swordplay. And the lack of my shield arm made defending that much harder. Although I was surprised to find myself not affected by the difference in balance from the loss of my arm, probably as a result of my impressive gyrostabilizers.

The best I could do was kick at my enemies to repel then our parry their attacks with my blade. And while my programming enabled me to hold my own well, I was still getting exposed to laserfire from distant unicorn robots. If I had been exposed to any parasprite bombs, I would have been in trouble. Thankfully, it seemed that they mostly focused on the biggest targets. Namely Fluttershy and Applejack's commandeered minotaur ride. In the end, I still ended up getting overwhelmed and wound up pinned to the ground by several robots as another minotaur robot loomed overhead with hammer in hand. And with one arm gone, I could not get anywhere near as much leverage as I needed to pry myself off the ground.

It was all too obvious what the minotaur robot was aiming for. My hand was lying on the ground while still clutching the H-Saber in it. Before any of my friends could notice that something was wrong or before I could regain enough energy to use in a single Rocket Tackle, the minotaur swung down and smashed my hand under its hammer. I let out a yell of pain as all feeling within my hand became jagged sensations of fading feeling. When the minotaur lifted its hammer, I saw that my fingers were a mangled mess as they gave off sparks along with the ruined H-Saber's crushed hilt.

Just as I was beginning to fear how I would even defend myself with the loss of both hands, I received salvation. I saw a massive pink golf club form overhead before it swung back. Rarity's voice then reached my auditory sensors as she yelled, "FORE!"

With a mighty swing, she sent the entire dog pile of robots flying off of me. And just when it seemed the minotaur robot was about to get into a duel with the floating golf club, it suddenly twitched as a metallic clank was heard from behind it. Seconds later, it was ripped in two down the middle to reveal a furious hulking Fluttershy standing where it used to be! This actually unnerved me quite a bit as I yelled, "Good god, honey! You sure you don't need to se a therapist when we get home?!"

Fluttershy's wrathful glare was promptly replaced by a look of utter horror as she beheld me. In that deep guttural voice of hers, she reached out with her massive hoof and tenderly touched it to my left shoulder. "James... Where's your arm?! And what happened to your hand?!"

Rarity rushed to my side as well and let out a shriek as she beheld my ravaged body while I staggered to my feet. "Oh my stars...! Darling, what happened to you?!"

I sighed with irritation as what was left of my HUD provided me with incomplete information about the state of my body. As if it could not detect that almost half of my visor was missing. "A couple of those huge minotaurs robots messed me up good. Lost the shield projector and now the H-Saber is wrecked... At least I've still got the... Huh?"

As I tried to prime the H-Buster in my right arm, I found that my mangled right hand would not disassemble to retract into my arm. The hand was ruined and jammed. I could not even make it drop the ruined H-Saber. And if I could not even access my primary weapon systems... "Crap! My hand's wrecked and won't budge! I can't use the H-Buster unless... Rarity, conjure up a big fire axe!"

"An axe?! All right then..." She replied with some confusion while her shimmering bracelets conjured up a hefty pink fire axe that began to float near us. "Here it is, but... What could you possibly need it for?"

I then approached a nearby fire hydrant and set my wrist upon the top for leverage. "What do you think? I need you to chop off this ruined hand of mine so I can use the H-Buster again."

"You... WHAT?!" Rarity yelled in horror before Fluttershy was forced to charge back into the approaching swarm of robots to keep them away from us. I knew I was asking a lot of her and it clearly was a choice she did not want to make.

I did my best to calm and explain my reasoning to her. Granted, I would have been terrified to lose my hand at any other point, but this was a desperate situation and my hand could probably be restored later. "I'm serious! The H-Buster is the only reliable weapon system I have left now and I can't access it if my hand can't retract into my arm! You need to chop it off so I can defend myself!"

"But darling... I..." Rarity said with hesitation while drawing near as the axe's head started to rise in the air. She knew what she needed to do. However, it quickly became too much for her as the axe just dropped to the ground while she began to weep uncontrollably before rushing to my side. "I can't! Not to you! I can't maim the man I love! I just can't!"

I was disappointed at her outright refusal to sever my hand, but could not fault her either. I leaned against her while she held onto me in a tearful embrace. I was touched that she would value me so highly even then, but I needed my ruined hand removed.

Soon, our attention was drawn to the minotaur robot that Applejack had taken for a ride. Unicorn robots were bombarding it with concentrated weapons fire and it was clearly starting to reach the end of its endurance. Applejack released its neck from her rope's grip and jumped towards Fluttershy right as it started to give off small explosions and then leaped from her back towards us right as the minotaur collapsed onto several robots and exploded into smoldering scrap. She then hurried over to us and said, "Well, those varmints sure don't know the meanin' of team spirit... Huh? Wha... What in tarnation did those junk piles do to ya, James?!"

Even Applejack was reeling in horror at the damage I had suffered. Not wanting to repeat myself, I tried to calm her. "It's fine, I can still fight! At least I will once you chop this junked up hand off so I can access the H-Buster again."

I then kicked the axe over to Applejack, who seemed to be getting a good look at my mangled hand. But just as it seemed she understood what to do, Rarity stepped between us while conjuring up a saber. She snarled at Applejack and said with a voice seething with malice, "Don't..."

This show of hostility caused Applejack to back away in clear in intimidation. I understood that Rarity holds me very dearly to my heart, but her feelings for me were only getting in the way of our mission at that moment. I reached out and set my arm upon her back to get her attention. "Rarity... Stop it. You know I'll be just fine when we get back to the real world."

My beautiful friend glanced at me with a look of horror as well as worry before glancing back at Applejack. After what felt like far longer than needed, she disposed of her weapon and stepped away with her eyes closed. "Just...make it quick..."

I nodded with a slight smile, hoping this would not hurt much. It felt like I was about to receive an injection during a hospital visit. Not something I was looking forward to, but understanding that it was necessary. Applejack's golden rope coiled around the axe's handle and lifted it into the air. Applejack herself looked on while I set my hand on the ground. She was clearly unwilling to go through with this, but understood it needed to be done. "I'll...try ta make sure this don't hurt, pardner..."

"Thanks, AJ... Just don't miss." I said while Applejack looked away with her eyes squinted shut. Her rope would do the work without her input. I too looked away and braced myself for pain. A second later, there was a crack in front of me followed closely by a brief sting in my wrist. When I opened my eyes, I found my severed wreck of a hand lying before my forearm with the axe's head stuck in the pavement. Some sparks were flying from the stump while Rarity glanced at me before looking as if she was about to hurl while holding her hoof to her mouth. I promptly primed my H-Buster, finding my forearm assuming its weapon mode. "There we go! I'm alive again!"

"Phew, and I was worried I screwed up right there... So, that cannon ya got's workin' just fine now?" Applejack asked while looking very relieved that her rope's aim had been just right. Rarity also seemed the calm down somewhat now that all signs of damage to my wrist could not be seen.

"Yeah, it should be... Hey!" I let out a yelp as a number of unicorn robots managed to get by our friends before concentrating their weapons on me. I took a good number of various energy shots before Rarity conjured up a row of crossbows and launched a volley of bolts right through their heads. That was enough to drop them, but I was forced to one knee as my body sparked. I was reaching the end of my endurance as the wire frame display of my body on my HUD displayed my torso and left leg as being in the yellow.

"Darling, hang on! There's got to be something we can do here!" Rarity shrieked as she and Applejack rushed to my side. I had trouble bringing myself to a standing position, pain flooding various points of my body for the moment.

While my body stabilized, Applejack decided to try speaking to Doctor Luminous. "Hey, doc! What's goin' on with that Ursa Minor varmint! I still ain't seein' it 'round here!"

The doctor's response was much grimmer than I could have expected. "It's... This isn't good. Judging by its movements and the general direction it is heading... That carrier is making its way to the docks in the northeastern sector! 15% of the population have not yet evacuated! If that thing gets there, it'll be a bloodbath!"

I felt a chill flow through my body upon hearing these words. The Ursa Minor carrier was out for blood and the army of drones it had left behind were merely doing all they could to prevent us from interfering. Still, there had to be a way to reach it. As I contemplated my options, thoughts went back to the readings I had seeing while firing my H-Buster into the Devil Gigas ride armor while set to fire a concentrated beam of plasma. My HUD detected a limiter of sorts in effect at the time. "Doc... Back during that fight with Alpha... I noticed something about the H-Buster. Some sort of limiter in place? What's that about?"

Luminous remained silent for a moment as if he was debating whether he should explain what it was I had noticed. He soon spoke, "You saw that, huh? Well... Yes. It is a limiter I installed to limit the amount of energy your primary weapon system draws from your power source. You are powered by a highly compact micro-fusion core and all of your functions draw power from it. The cannon in your right arm could potentially draw even more power from it to increase its efficiency, but..."

"What if I were to remove the limiter? What would happen?" I asked while recalling how my earlier shots seemed to not be able to get by the Ursa Minor robot's armor plating. If the limiter was removed, perhaps it could punch through.

"I don't know... You're still in the prototype stage, so I can't make any guarantees about the outcome. If you think disabling the limiter will insure your success here, then... Godspeed, Project H." The doctor replied grimly. He sounded fearful, yet resigned to whatever my choice would be.

My choice was immediate. With the people of Maretropolis on the verge of a massacre, I had to do everything in my power to make sure that armored carrier would not reach them. Through my will alone, I saw the HUD display tiny text indicating that the limiter on my H-Buster had been disabled. In response, I saw five small vents open up along the sides and underside of the H-Buster most likely to vent excess heat. Furthermore, I noticed a faint red glow that was likely coming from the gemlike design on my helmet's forehead section. Finding my strength returning to me as well as a new drive filling me, the frames of my flight thrusters folded open behind me. Rarity was quick to notice as I climbed to my feet and asked, "Darling...? Where are you going?!"

As my thrusters began to flare up, I looked down at her and smiled. "Just going to do what X would've done."

I rocketed up into the air before rushing forward towards the wall of drones that lined the street. The fliers of the army were quick to try to form a wall with their bodies as the unicorn robots fired at me. Not intending to let anything get in my why, I barreled right through them with the Nova Strike active. Most were outright destroyed while others were sent slamming into the ground or nearby buildings. I increased the output of my thrusters while increasing my altitude before finding myself soaring over the city. With my map lost, I would have to search by air for the Ursa Minor carrier.

It was not long before I got a clue of the direction it was in. A massive flock of pegasi and griffon robots were coming right for me from the northeast. I fired off a flurry of smaller shots, but found that my H-Buster was giving off more recoil as usual. The plasma shots also had a reddish hue as they flew through the air. The pegasus robots took only a few hits to drop while the lightly armored griffon drones were blown apart with one shot. I was already impressed with how much more powerful the H-Buster had become and I was feeling no ill effects so far.

Even so, I could not hit them all. And before long, I saw what looked like a massive swarm of glowing flies rising in the distance. It must have been dozens of drones coming for me. But I soon heard something coming up from behind. I turned over so I could look back and grinned as I saw Rainbow Dash soaring towards me while surrounded by a swirling tornado. I heard her call out over the howl of the wind, "I'll take care of these pests! You take out the hive!"

"Gotcha, Rainbow! You rock!" I yelled while she flew right past me. When she flew by the approaching swarm of machines, they were all sucked into the tornado and carried along with the tornado seemingly having turned red from the dozens of glowing visors inside it. As Rainbow Dash flew off with her cargo, I rushed ahead to locate the source of our enemy. I did not take long to find it with those seven lights on each side giving away its position.

The massive Ursa Minor seemed to be lumbering its way through a junkyard as a means of making a shortcut. A fitting place for it to be destroyed. Once I lined up a shot, I charged the H-Buster as long as it would take to normally reach full charge and fired off a huge red shot. It flew right down through the air and slammed into the Ursa Minor with shocking force that left significant structural damage on one of its hindquarters.

I rushed towards the ground and landed with a thud as I felt a change in the air pressure. Water droplets began to fall as lightning burst across the sky. The tone of the struggle had reached a fever pitch as even a thunderstorm began to pour down onto the city. It made the situation feel all the more grim as I felt rain pelting my metallic shell. At least the water would help keep my H-Buster from overheating. As the towering Ursa roared at me, I pointed my buster at it while it began to charge once more. "Just you and me now, Bongo!"

I fired off a number of shots at the Ursa Minor's face and only succeeded in inflicting light damage before it charged right at me in an attempt to trample or crush me in its jaws. The Rocket Tackle saved me as I zoomed out of the way and unleashed a partially charged shot into its side before coming to a stop. The mechanical bear crashed right into a scrap pile before turning and letting out a roar at me before launching a massive plasma beam from its maw. It tore through the softening ground while I was only barely able to avoid taking a direct hit. I managed to unleash yet another partially charged shot and struck it in the jaw. This disrupted its attack as the lower jaw hung loosely from its head, but my HUD was quick to detect some sort of internal mechanism working to repair the damage. Perhaps it was able to put together tiny robots inside itself to repair damage from within?

I fired a shot at its elbow joint and caused the massive carrier to fall into the mud as it struggled to stand. In response, one of each type of its robotic drones burst out of the hatches on its back. The parasprite bomb fluttered towards me, but I merely shot it out of the air. It exploded in a burst of frigid mist, freezing the rain around it into ice crystal and even freezing the passing griffon robot almost completely solid. I shot its head off before it could even hope to break out of its icy prison. The pegasus and earth pony robots were quickly blown apart by a few shots while a partially charged barreled right through the energy shots the unicorn sent my way and tore it apart. The minotaur robot took one swing at me with its mighty hammer before I unleashed a fully charged shot right into its torso and blew it apart just as easily. The drones were little more than a nuisance by that point. Although it was enough time for the Ursa Minor carrier to get back on its feet.

"I'm really sick of you guys by now, so how about you just stand there and take it?!" I yelled while charging up another plasma shot. However, I paused in my aiming when I saw a number of missile ports open up along the front and sides of its body. "Huh... Good answer."

At least two dozen missiles were launched at me, but I was not about to have any of that. I unleashed the Nova Strike once more and tore right through them before slamming into the Ursa's head. I then fired a shot right into its eye, causing a small explosion in it with only one glowing eye remaining. I began to unleash a flurry of shots in the hopes of taking out the missile ports. And I could not have picked a better time to do it. The missiles had just been reloaded, allowing me to shoot them directly and blow up the entire missile ports. With its secondary weapon systems ruined, the Uras Minor unleashed its plasma cannon at me again while I countered with my own. It was risky to fire with the concentrated beam settings active, but I was running out of patience. I did all I could as my fierce red plasma beam slammed into the Ursa's beam and effortlessly pushed through it before slamming into its head. It pushed the metal beast back as well, tearing off its lower jaw and even obliterating a leg.

I was feeling rather hot after that last shot, but the rain was helping cool my robotic body down. With the Ursa Minor now momentarily disabled, it was a good time to finish it off. The longer it remained online, the longer my friends were still in danger holding off the drones. I flew to the top of a large scrap pile nearby and took aim with the H-Buster beginning to charge. But when it reached the point where it would normally be fully charged, it just kept going! "Huh?! Whoa, this is what the lack of a limiter will do to this thing?!"

It just kept going. 200%. 500%. 1000%! By the time it reached 2500% total charge, the H-Buster was engulfed in a fiery white glow as its vents hissed with excess heat. It felt like it was on the verge of overheating! Furthermore, I saw a gauge rising on my HUD the further I charged. And by the time I reached 800%, a warning siren was going off in my head. And it was by this point that Doctor Luminous started to yell at me over the comm system. "Project H, you're too close! Get away! GET AWAY!"

Was he fearful of me getting caught in the blast radius? I was firing a plasma burst, not an explosive device. My H-Buster finally stopped charging once its accumulated energy reached 3000% and my arm felt unbearably hot. The Ursa Minor robot was already showing signs of being almost back on its feet as it looked at me and let out a roar. I had to act now before it could become a threat again. I took aim at its face and spoke softly to Luminous. "Sorry, doc... I can't afford to let this one go!"

And then, I launched it. The recoil was massive enough to throw my arm straight up. The shot looked like a bright star or meteor as it flew towards the disabled carrier. But before I could even try to fly out of range of the resulting explosion from the carrier, my vision was engulfed by a bright flash, my body began to rumble as pain began to fill my body, and nothing but static and rumbling noise filled my ears. Soon, static spread across my vision as I lost all feeling in my body. But soon, a message in bold red text flashed across my vision among the static that filled me with a nameless sense of terror.

SYSTEM FAILURE

And then...nothing. Nothing but the same blackness I had seen upon first entering this world of fiction set between the pages of a comic book. And I felt the same as then too. No sense of fear. No pain. No anger. No confusion. Just... My mind was blank.

What just happened to me? Was I caught in the blast? And...what happened to me? I did not even really feel like I was waiting for anything. It was just...void. But among the deafening silence, I could hear it. Somewhere within the depths of my robotic mind. My human soul screaming out. Calling for anyone who may be there.

Questions flooded my blank mind. Did I survive the blast? Was this what happens when a machine dies? Was this all there was to expect? And...was I going to be stuck here in this void for eternity?

After what felt like an eternity, I got a response. Much like when my adventure in this world began, my vision saw a blinking white cursor in the top left corner. In its wake, white text appeared along my field of vision. Another startup screen. Was my body trying to reactivate itself?

MICRO-FUSION CORE OUTPUT - MALFUNCTION

The first row of text that actually meant something to me filled me with a sense of dread as my mind slowly started to come back to me. And it was not just that one. With every diagnostic my systems ran on my body's most important functions, the results were always MALFUNCTION or OFFLINE.

Over and over, the diagnostic repeated itself. After five times, it started to get somewhere.

MICRO-FUSION CORE OUTPUT - 1%

At last, it was making some progress. My power source was damaged, but was at least functional. My system's diagnostic was more than likely running on backup power at the time.

PRIMARY MOTION SYSTEMS - MALFUNCTION

AUDIO RECOGNITION SYSTEM - ONLINE

It was then I regained my sense of hearing. All I could hear was rain over a layer of static. And among that sound... Voices? And was that...crying?

VOICE GENERATION UNIT - ONLINE

OPTIC SENSORS - ONLINE

I felt my voice come back to me, although when my vision finally returned, it was nothing but a field of jumbling static. However, it was then I heard Applejack's voice over the static. "Gather round, y'all! I think he's comin' to!"

I barely had any control over my neck and I felt no feeling in my limbs and just felt so...so tired. But slowly, the static in my vision began to clear. It did not entirely fade away, but I was able to see well enough. Slowly and rigidly, I tilted my head forward as it seemed I was lying down on the ground. And there they were. All seven of my companions stood before me drenched by the rain. They all seemed to be either relieved or even in tears. Rainbow Dash even looked as if she had been crying hard due to her irritated eyes. I tried to speak and found my voice filled with static. "Hey... Did I...get it?"

Twilight removed her goggles and wiped her eyes while letting out a bit of a sob. "Yes... You got it. All the drones just stopped moving and fell over and... Well, there wasn't much left of that Ursa Minor thing when we got here. Whatever you did wrecked the whole area."

From what little I could see, the piles of scrap had either been melted by extreme heat or otherwise been blown away or destroyed. It was as if my overcharged plasma shot's resulting blast radius engulfed the entire scrap yard. And nearly destroyed myself in the process. I chuckled a bit at my predicament, noticing that I did not feel my jaw move when I spoke. "Dang... I guess I...just don't know my own strength..."

Fluttershy then hurried forward and held me in her arms while trying so very hard to not cry. "It's OK... It's all over... Just...please don't scare us like that again..."

"Sorry, honey... I really wasn't expecting to blow myself up like that... Crash course and all that." I said in reply while trying to hug her back only to realize both of my arms were missing by that point. I would have been horrified if it happened earlier, but I was just too exhausted to care much. "Hey... What...happened to me anyway? Can't really...look right now..."

Rarity wiped her eyes free of tears and rain before frowning at me sorrowfully. "You... You really don't want to know, darling. Just...don't look at yourself."

I took her word for it and just focused on my friends instead. Pinkie Pie then tried to interject a bit of humor while patting Rarity on the shoulder, "Hey, it's OK if you have to cry... Just look at Rainbow Dash. She was sobbing buckets a few minutes ago!"

Rainbow Dash did not seemed to be very happy to have that brought up since she then yelled, "I couldn't help it! It was too soon! I'm just not ready to deal with this kinda drama again just yet!"

Our friends managed to get a little laugh out of Rainbow Dash showing a delicate side, as did I. But I soon noticed Spike walk up to me looking utterly guilt-ridden as he beheld my ruined body. I looked at him and said, "Hey, Spike... It's OK. I'll be...fine... Let's just assume this is part of the plot..."

"I'm so sorry..." He muttered while dropping to his knees. "All that's happened... This is my fault... I only I didn't read..."

Twilight was quick to hold Spike to her chest. "Don't say that, Spike. None of us knew this would happen. And just remember, that isn't entirely James. That's Project H. And the hero never dies in the first chapter, right?"

Spike said nothing, although Twilight's words did seem to calm him just a bit. However, Applejack then asked, "So... What now? Those last junk piles just fell over and that Alpha varmint's gone for now, so... What's next? How're we gettin' back home?"

No sooner had she said that, a voice filled with static started coming from nowhere. It was Luminous. "Pow... Nies... You... Hear... Thi... Ah, there! Project H! Power Ponies! Do you read me?!"

Rainbow Dash rushed to my side as it seemed the voice was coming from an internal mechanism inside me. "Yeah, we hear you! Now please tell me that thing was the last problem we've gotta handle tonight!"

"Well... Yes, that would seem to be the case. The signal coming from that armored carrier has ceased transmitting. The drones have all deactivated and I'm not picking up Alpha's presence anywhere. I think it's safe to say the danger has passed. Thank you all." Luminous replied with a sigh of relief.

"OK, nice! But...uh... What about James here?! Is he OK?! Is he gonna be all right?!" Pinkie Pie asked quickly while my friends all gathered around me. Even I was starting to wonder what my ultimate fate would be and whether or not I could really die in this fictional world.

Luminous let out another sigh before he spoke. "This isn't good... These readings are... Power Ponies. I know I've already asked a lot of you tonight, but please... I need you to get him back to my lab so I can perform a full diagnostic. I'm already detecting a critical malfunction in his micro-fusion core. Please! I'll guide you so long as I can see his location."

Pinkie Pie then stepped forward. "Leave it to me, doc! I'll get him home faster than you can say chimichangas!"

"Thank you, Fili-Second. Head south and hug the coastline. I'll keep you updated." Luminous said with a noticeable gasp of gratitude in his voice, probably because he had been holding his breath out of fear that my friends would turn them down.

"All right, Pinkie. Hold still for a moment..." Rarity said softly while using her levitation spell to lift me to Pinkie Pie's back before tenderly setting me down on her. I suppose I should have been grateful that I lost all my limbs by that point since it made it easier for me to fit on her. "Applejack, your rope?"

"Got it, Rarity." Applejack said before her golden rope wound around us a few times before tying itself in a knot over my chest plate. "How's that, Pinkie? Tight enough for ya?"

"Oof... A little tight around the middle, but it'll be fine." My perky friend replied while sounding like the rope was really uncomfortable in a few spots. "Guess I better get going. I'll stick with James once I get there, all right?"

"Please... Watch over him, Pinkie." Fluttershy replied quietly while all our friends watched in solemn silence. My fate was entirely in their hooves.

"OK, here we go!" Pinkie Pie said before... It was just such a sight seeing things zooming by me to the point that everything was a blur. I had always been fast in the air, but... This was absurd! The thunderstorm had thankfully let up and had dissolved into a light downpour. Pinkie Pie constantly stayed close to the southern shoreline while running through a forest. I did not move at all, choosing to place all my faith in her. I soon heard her call out, "Hey, doc! I'm going the right way, right?"

"Yes, my home should be coming up soon. I'll be at the door." I heard Luminous say over the static before he fell silent. Although I could not make out anything beyond the blurs of green and brown around me, it did feel like we eventually started going uphill. And soon, we came to an abrupt stop not even a full minute after Pinkie Pie had started running. It was then that I heard the doctor's voice without the extra static of my comm system. "There you are! This way, please."

My optic sensors began to malfunction at that time and filled my vision with almost nothing but static. I could still hear Pinkie Pie over the static in my ears. "Ooh, nice place you got!"

"Well, I do have to keep my home livable... Oh my goodness... It's even worse than I thought. Quickly, down here." Luminous replied before my optic sensors started to stabilize enough to get a somewhat clear picture. I soon felt myself lying down as I was secured to a flat surface. While I glanced around while finally noticing that I could not even blink, I found that I was back in the very same lab where I had first awoken. And right before me was Pinkie Pie and the same pony scientist as before. "Thank goodness you're still online, Project H. I was fearful we would not meet again."

"Hey there, doc... Sorry if I screwed up back there. Never would've guessed my own shot would blow up in my face like that..." I replied while trying to at least lighten the mood a bit. I was sure the end was within sight, so I was not terribly worried about anything.

"It's all right, Project H. The good news is you made it back online. And besides, you brought an end to the current threat that plagued Maretropolis. And by now, Alpha's role as the source of the city's robots going rogue has been brought to light. He will never be able to hide now. Now then, let me start up this diagnosis to see exactly what's wrong with you..." Doctor Luminous said as he began to fiddle around with his supercomputer's keyboard while windows opened up on the screen. Pinkie Pie just began to wander the room to explore the lab, but would frequently come up to me to check on me.

Around halfway into the diagnostic scan, I heard a doorbell ring somewhere upstairs. Luminous turned to Pinkie Pie and asked, "I'm sorry, but could you please answer the door, Fili-Second? I'd really rather not leave this alone right now."

"Sure thing! I'll be right back." She replied before zipping up the stairs that led down into the lab. Moments later, I heard Pinkie Pie's voice speak up in the distance. "Hey there, girls! He's right down here."

I waited for Pinkie Pie to return and had already assumed that our friends had just arrived as well, although I felt no need to ask them how they managed to get there so soon. And sure enough, I saw Pinkie Pie emerge from the stairway only to be immediately followed by our six friends. Spike and Twilight instantly marveled at the appearance of the lab with Spike saying, "Whoa... So this is where Project H was built?"

Doctor Luminous was clearly not expecting the rest of the Power Ponies to arrive as he seemed very surprised by his guests. "Oh, you're here?! Well... Welcome to my lab. I never imagined I would ever have the honor of being in the same room as all of you."

"Well... You have a very nice...um...lab, doctor." Fluttershy replied with a hesitant smile, clearly not used to being in such an environment. I know she prefers the natural settings of the meadows and woods around her home back in the real world. However, she then glanced at me with a gaze of concern before trotting over to me and hovering up to my face. "How're you holding up, dear? Feeling all right?"

"Well, I'm still conscious... And I'm not feeling a whole lot of pain. Does that count?" I asked in return while still having no real means to move.

Fluttershy smiled somberly before reaching out and placing a kiss on my forehead. "Leave dinner to me tonight. You deserve to take it easy when we get back home." I tried to smile to no avail, leading me to suspect that most of my face had been melted away.

Rainbow Dash then trotted over to Luminous and asked, "So, how's he looking, doc? You think you can fix him up?"

Luminous was oddly silent for a moment while he observed the data on the screen. His response was not what I was hoping to hear. "To be completely honest with you all... I don't know."

My friends all glanced at me with gazes of shock. Applejack then raised her voice and asked, "Ya serious?! But you made the guy, doc! There's gotta be somethin' ya can do ta get the guy back on his feet!"

"Just look at him, Mare-velous." Luminous replied as he turned to face them. "One look is all it takes to see how extensive his damage is. Most importantly, his micro-fusion core is one-of-a-kind and difficult to replace, let alone repair. And it's on the verge of failure. It's a miracle he's still online."

"But... But surely you're not going to just give up on him, are you?" Rarity asked while taking the situation far more seriously than she needed to. I could feel it too. I was feeling more and more lethargic with every passing moment. My power was failing.

Luminous shook his head. "Of course not. Restoring him will be a challenge, but I'm not going to let Project H be scrapped before he could even see the light of day. I'm not certain if I can save him, but... I will try."

"Thank you, doctor..." Twilight said softly before she turned to face me. She then stepped forward and seemed to be trying to emulate Masked Matter-Horn's real personality as she spoke to me. "Project H... If you don't survive this, I swear we will hunt Alpha down and finish him in your name. As far as I'm concerned, you've earned your place as an honorary member of the Power Ponies."

More static than usual began to spark across my vision as I felt my power source beginning to fail. "Thanks... Doc... When I wake up... How about an...actual name...? Maybe something...like...Hu..."

At that moment, my vision went black. But I still heard the good doctor speak to me. "As you wish, Project H."

I was expecting to feel all feeling fade from my body and mind. But instead, the blackness before me became a bright light. I soon found myself being drawn into it. And before I even knew what was happening, I let out a yell as I felt myself getting thrown through the air and getting the wind knocked out of me when I hit the floor. "Ow! What the devil just... OWWW!"

I had no idea what hit me! I was lying on the floor before I felt a jumbled mass fall on me while hearing my friends let out shouts of surprise too. I heard Fluttershy say, "Oh my! Where... Huh? Wait... What happened to our costumes?"

"And why do you girls feel so heavy?!" I asked while trying to look up while pinned to the floor. As I expected, all of my friends were just piled onto me with Fluttershy balancing at the top of the pile with Spike seated on her back. And sure enough, they were missing their jumpsuits. "Huh?! Wait a second..."

I looked around at our surroundings. I found that I was breathing again and was having a harder time of it with my friends piled on me. Furthermore, I had my arms back! And the area around us was all wood with teapots set up. And perched at the far end of the room was an owl. "Hey! We're all back home!"

"We are...? Hey, we are! Come on, girls! Get off!" Twilight said loudly as she too struggled to get out from under the pile. One by one, everyone stood up and climbed off. It felt good to be flesh and blood again in a strange way. "Phew, feels good to be home! What a trip!"

"Yep! But it was a might fun, wasn't it?" Applejack replied while adjusting her hat. I wonder where that thing went while she was in there...

"Yeah, you bet it was! I've never had so much action in one day of my life!" Rainbow Dash replied excitedly. However, she then let a long yawn before sitting down. "But right now... I just wanna chill for a while... That took a lot outta me."

"You and me both, Rainbow! I know I'm gonna sleep good tonight... Huh?" Pinkie Pie added before going over to the teapots. She then tried pouring herself another cup. "Hey, girls! The tea's still good! Although I think it's a bit cool right now..."

"Who says tea's no good chilled? Why not finish off this little adventure by finishing our little soiree?" Rarity then asked before she fetched herself another teacup.

While my friends were distracted by the tea sampling, I looked around before...groping my crotch. Just to make sure everything was where they needed to be. "Phew. Great to have those back..."

Fluttershy trotted over to me just before I could be discovered while I hoped she had no idea what I had just been doing. "Everything all right, James?"

"Yeah, I'm good. I honestly forgot how good it feels to not be a machine." I sighed as I relaxed for the first time in what felt like hours. But when I glanced at Fluttershy, my eyes fell upon her belly. "Hey, honey. Is she...you know... Still there?"

"She...? Oh!" Fluttershy gasped before sidling up to me. "Can you feel and check, please?"

I did as she asked and rubbed my hand over the underside of her belly. In mere seconds, I felt it. A noticeable firm spot. "Yep. She's still there, honey."

Fluttershy let out a giggle before kissing me on the cheek. She then winked at me and whispered, "So... You still a bit frustrated after seeing us walking around in those jumpsuits, now that you've got your...equipment back?"

I snickered at Fluttershy's unexpected innuendo. I swear she has gotten increasingly bolder the more her pregnancy has developed. I then smirked at her and whispered, "How about I give you my answer tonight?"

After another quick kiss, we joined our friends for more tea. Each of the different types of tea had long since cooled, but they were still rich with flavor. While I sipped from a cup, I noticed that Spike's comic book was still lying on the podium it had been set on before we all got dragged into it. I went over to it just as Spike did and almost ended up bumping into him. I glanced down at him and said with a smile, "Quite an adventure, huh?"

Spike nodded while sipping from his own cup of tea. "You bet! Although... I don't think I'd wanna go through that kind of hassle again. That was exhausting."

"Ditto. That really took a lot out of me. It might be fun to watch and read about, but it's a totally different story when you personally experience it. I don't envy those superheroes..." I said with a sigh before looking down at the comic book. It was open to the very last page and I was quick to notice the tiny text on the inside of the back cover that likely triggered the magic that sucked us all in. After going through all that once, I was careful to not give it too much attention. But on the last page, I saw the last few panels of the pilot showing what I saw as Project H from his eyes before more and more static filled his vision just before the final panel showed a black square with the last words I heard from Doctor Luminous printed on it. And in the bottom of the page were the words 'To be continued...?' written in large bold letters. "Dang... Ending the pilot on such a cliffhanger..."

"Yeah... I really thought you were a goner a few times back there." Spike said softly while he looked up at me. He then looked back at the final page and noticed the instructions on how to send feedback to the EAC offices in Manehatten, along with the words that Project H's fate was entirely in the hands of the readers. "Hey, I get it! They made it end on a cliffhanger like this just in case it didn't take off. If it doesn't turn out to be all that popular, they could just end it here and leave the readers thinking the Power Ponies managed to take down Alpha."

"Hmmm... Crafty. A little safeguard to cover their tracks regardless of where the series goes. Well, I'd say that after what we saw, this series is all but guaranteed to succeed." I replied with a bit of a smirk. "You gonna send that feedback?"

Spike seemed pretty pumped to send his thoughts on the pilot in to the EAC staff. "You bet! And I'll be sure to mention on how to make Hum Drum somepony who can help out instead of just getting in the way. I'm gonna go do that right now!" He then ran up the stairs and into the loft, probably to fetch a piece of paper and quill.

I looked back down at the comic book and gently closed it. I did not need to read its contents. I had just lived it. And I was left with a fatigued, yet satisfied feeling. I got to see my hero. And that was at least worth something.

I could go into detail about what else happened after that, but... After the absurdly awesome adventure we all had together, there is nothing I can add that could hold anyone's attention quite like that. It was a fairly uneventful, yet enjoyable day just perfect for unwinding after such a fictional crisis. And that is exactly what we did.

Also, with how much there was to write about, this is the first entry I have written that took more than one session to finish. It has been two days since I first started writing this journal entry and I have only just now finished. What an adventure... I could not make that stuff up if I tried. Well, time to get ready for bed. Fluttershy is wearing her sexy lingerie again, so we are probably about to have some fun first.