In the year 2000, Discord rose a third time to conquer Equestria. Far from where previous searches were conducted, one scavenging mare found the Elements of Harmony within an abandoned laboratory. They were not in their last form, however. They had been embedded into a single object: a blue helmet emitting an aura of both magical and technological power. The headpiece was the perfect fit for the aquamareine pony's head. When she put it on, she felt a sudden weight on her and turned to find that a small laser cannon had materialised to each side of her. Not knowing what this weaponry was capable of, she stashed it in her bags and made the trip back to her territory.
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A radio signal reached my green tent, which I had specifically chosen to blend in with the sun-filled plain which it sat upon. I was crouched in front of it, preparing my breakfast over an open fire. A voice crackled to life inside, making me straighten up in surprise. Nopony could have gotten in, could they? I was right here; unless they teleported or were invisible...
"This is the same method I use to find my phone... Do you hear it, Doctor?"
"No. It would be right here if nobody took it..."
Looking inside, I realised the commotion was coming from the helmet I took -- I mean, found -- yesterday. I didn't see any
speakers when I inspected it earlier... I stepped towards it to take a closer look.
"Doctor, I'm hearing hoofsteps through the helmet."
"What?!"
I froze. Could they hear me? Oh geez, it has a mic too, doesn't it?
There was some fumbling from their end; it sounded like the device they were speaking into was almost dropped to the ground. "Hey, you! You know I'm talking to you! Where are you?"
"...Home." This was my home. I lived here. I'd set up a couple hours from the nearest city, but it was worth it for the quiet and to be... here. I was actually planning on seeing what I could get for the helmet when I made my weekly bartering run the next day. If it could be used as a radio too, I might be able to get a lot more for it...
"Luna's shud-- I told you somepony took it. Now, do you even know what that thing is?"
I looked at the helmet for a second. "Some tech that might get me a new generator if I play my cards right." I hadn't had electricity for a while. That might be a good idea...
The voice groaned, muffled as if he had his hoof against his face. "That helmet contains the power of the Elements of Harmony. They're the only thing that can defeat Discord!" His voice rose. "And you destroy my lab and take it to sell!"
I blinked. The place was standing when I arrived and when I left. Well, except for the wall I tested the laser on. How do you make a laser shaped like a lemon anyway? But I hadn't torn the building down. Suddenly, the sound of a large firearm interrupted our friendly conversation, followed by a metallic crash.
"She didn't trash the place, Doc. That was Discord's bot."
"Shit. Did you put the helmet on when you found it?"
I rolled my eyes. This should be obvious to anypony. "Well, duh. I don't take something without checking it out first. I can only carry so much."
"That helmet sends out a small signal when activated. I was never able to eliminate that. Discord's robots will be able to detect that signal and will raze everything in the area in their search for the Elements."
H-had I put on the helmet recently? I was almost certain I had. I'd been trying to see what it could do, to get a fair price when I traded it.
"Wh-who is Discord?" He'd ruin my home just to get this helmet? What was going on?
"He's taking over Equestria, and you are the only one we know who can defeat him." It sounded like saying that last sentence hurt him inside.
I had to sit. The weight of his words was pushing me to the ground.
"The Elements will only allow the chosen to wield them. Everybody else -- not just everypony -- who tried to put that helmet on before you failed."
"Doctor, we need to leave. More bots will close in on this position."
"Hold your bananas. I need to use this terminal. Look, mare. Neither of us are happy about how this turned out, but now that we're here, we can at least try to make do. From the helmet's tag -- " Crap. The helmet had a tracking device too? " -- it seems that you're near one of his strongholds. If you take it down, you might slow his army from destroying whatever it is you're living in." Just put the helmet on and I can teleport you to its boundary. But you'll be on your own from there."
I stepped out of my tent. I had lived here for a while now. Not only that, but this was where...
No. This place wasn't dying any time soon. I walked over to where the helmet lay and prepared to put the damn thing on.
"Alright, but if you're fucking with me, I'm getting that generator."
"I'm not lying. Pinkie Pie swear." I heard him tap a button on the terminal before I disintegrated.
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Footnote: Level up!
New perk: Spark of Realisation - Who do you think you are? A Fallout protagonist? You do not gain any more levels, but you're so accurate anyway that it's almost as if the third dimension doesn't exist.
Haha, sorry this took so long. The next segments will definitely be up quicker. Pinkie Pie Swear. Especially the Metalmare boss scene. SOON>
On another note, it'd be awesome if I got feedback on whether I should stick to the original Mega Man II level design or create my own level to try to make it fit better with how I write. Or if I'm so bad at writing out the levels I should just skip straight to the bosses, haha. Thank you. I have a feeling this is more fun to write than it is to read, but here I am! And here you are. ^^;
Chapter... Two? Well, I guess the introduction is kind of chapter zero so this could be chapter one.
Chapter Twone
Watch in AWE!
I was reassembled at the molecular level inside a large facility. It was brightly colored and largely blue and purple, with enough yellow to make it look like some sort of show for the entertainment of children. There were gears jutting out everywhere in the open air, spinning dangerously fast.
I didn't have much time to examine my surroundings, however. The sickness I had already felt from the teleportation was teaming up with the sudden jolt I felt when I appeared directly on top of a conveyor belt. Luckily, I hadn't actually eaten my breakfast, which was probably burning up over the campfire by now. Unluckily, the conveyor belt was edging me closer and closer to a large pit, which only could have killed me had I fallen down it. I finished being sick just in time to barely hop over the hole, only to land on another conveyor belt, this time facing the opposite direction. In a panic, I ran forward as fast as I could.
My panic was broken only when I tripped over something metallic, and almost washed over again when the fall brought me near another hole. Letting the belt carry me backwards under the suddenly low ceiling, I looked at what I had tripped over. It was a small blue cylinder with only the letter 'E' written on it. I had never been one to leave behind interesting finds, so I grabbed and pocketed it before I stood up. When I was pushed back out of the shadow of the platform above, I jumped onto what had been the low ceiling.
"If I find the pony with this conveyor belt fetish," I swore, "the only thing they'll be conveying is pleas for mercy." I walked forward against the conveyor belt, happy to see I was near its end even though I could see more looming ahead. Suddenly, something crashed down from the ceiling above. In a panic, I leapt back just in time to see the object fly past my face and slowly climb back up by retracting the chain it was hanging by. I got a closer look at it and winced. It looked like a miniature version of the type of magnet a pony would hook up to a large crane, but its outstanding feature was its dangerously spiked lower face. Obviously, intruders were not welcome here. But I needed to press on. I steeled myself and dashed under it as it continued its slow journey upwards. I exhaled after I had passed it, but I soon lost my breath as I looked at the ceiling again. There were more of these crusher traps.
I came back out of my fright just in time to stop the belt from pushing me under the next trap. The crusher came out regardless. I waited for it to rise enough to pass under and shot as fast as I could under it. There was another one, but I was getting more confident about dodging these things and made it through unharmed. Between the next two, however, was a piece of unmoving ground. I was almost tempted to just sit there and not worry about the ground shifting beneath me, but the sound of spikes slamming into the floor around me was deafening. I decided to move on. When I made it past them, there was another pit to cross. Its bottom wasn't even visible. I backed up slightly and held a breath.
...A hop... skip... ANDAJUMP! I just made it, the thought of falling to my death putting me on lock-down for a minute. I shook it off and cursed the creators of the Mareo games for likely giving these ponies inspiration.
I got this far... Well, that actually wasn't very far. But I had to press on. I took a step forward and froze again when a drill burst from the floor and flew straight into the ceiling with no sign of slowing. I really, really hated my life. This would be a good time to test my weapons, though. I summoned the magical laser cannons created by the helmet and took aim.
Suddenly, a second torpedo-like drill exploded out from the ground in front of me. It carried so much force that it flew vertically into the ceiling and continued on its path as if the obstruction were illusionary. I tried to step back, but the ground started shaking as if to prevent just that. Numerous drills akin to the first two shot from below in rapid succession. I turned to avoid them, but I realised I wasn't likely to make the jump over the pit from this side. The only option was to keep heading forward. I took a second to steel myself.
One of the projectiles glanced off my underside, breaking my concentration. The helmet's tech floated the image of a thin rectangular bar, slightly depleted, supposedly representing the remaining strength of its integrated bypass spell. As long as the spell held, the ill-meaning projectiles could do little to injure me. A spell compact enough to be attached to such a small and transportable object as the helmet, however, can only take so much stress. I wasn't too eager to learn what would happen after it fails.
I sprinted forward as fast as I could, zigzagging in case the drills were being aimed. Jumping to a higher point, I was faced with another conveyor belt. I groaned, but ran over it. ( How the hell were drills flying through the belt without disabling it? ) I was really going to give the helmet guy a piece of my mind when I got back. He built the damn thing; he should be the one out here. And why send only one pony down this huge deathtrap when--
I slipped on the moving ground, losing my thoughts as well as my balance. I had time, though. I looked around and saw no immediate threat. The belt pushed me onto its buddy Sir Pushes-A-Lot, who pressed me against the wall by which I had just descended. Trotting down the belt ( I was going against it, so I was walking pretty slow ), I watched every angle for danger.
Quite suddenly, the hall opened up into a huge room. If I had agoraphobia, I probably wouldn't have been able to function for a time. Meaning it's good that I don't. As is natural, however, I do have a slight fear of heights. And fuck, was that a drop. The only was across the room was a really sketchy trio of belts which would have to be crossed like stepping stones over the river of death flowing down to the invisible bottom of the ginormous pit.
SOMEpony was going to die, I decided. Preferably whoever put this place together, and not me. I had to get to the loser first, though. This thing was really, really sketch, but it wasn't like I could just leave. I wasn't even sure there was an exit; I was teleported in. I had to press the hell on.
My anger served as motivation to push forward and onto the first hanging belt, which didn't feel stable at all. I quickly jumped to the next one, which almost pushed me to my death had I not I recovered before it could. Moving to the third platform, I heard some ear-shattering squeaks and the groan of mechanical malfunction. I felt the support under my hooves shifting, and the conveyor belt slowed.
It was breaking off! I was going to fall and break every bone in my body, if it could be called a body after hitting the ground as fast as I would. The next jump would lead me to an actual floor, but it was a huge leap. If I even made that distance, I'd have to make sure I landed right or else I might break something.
The platform creaked and tilted slightly downwards. I had to get off of it now. I took a few steps back and began forward.
...Just a hop, skip, and a jumpOHCELESTIAI'MGONNADIE
I slammed to the ground on the other side of the pit and the conveyor belt mercifully dragged me away from the death-fall as the platform I had jumped from tumbled into the darkness below. My interference had been the last push in its struggle to stay in place. I pushed myself to my hooves and realised that I was mostly unaffected by the force of my incredibly "graceful" landing. Actually, it only hurt where I had landed on something other than my hooves.
I thought for a moment and smiled. Fall reduction magic is fun. Jumping down one of those pits would probably still result in horrible, painful death, but I could hurl myself off shorter drops and remain mostly unharmed. As long as I landed correctly.
And hey, I had an opportunity to test it out! The belt was edging me toward a pretty significant hole, and again it was the only way forward. I steeled myself with the thought of putting down the pony in charge of the place, and let myself be pushed over the edge.
It didn't take long for me to hit the ground; a resounding CLANG told me I could open my eyes. The magic absorbed and dispersed most of the force of the landing, but I was surprised to see the conveyor belt underneath me still functioning, and leading toward yet another drop.
Again I comforted myself with the thought of the leader's death. I realised I had been assuming he was male. What if the loser was female? Or... a ZOMBIE pony? Heh, zombies. Zombies don't exist. Not any more. No matter the gender, though, the fucker was so dead.
I flexed my back leg. I hadn't been this active since my last freerunning accident. I was probably out of practice. But hey, if I'm going to die, I might as well risk it being from freerunning too. I was starting to get used to all the mortally injurious death traps in the place, and I could think more clearly. Well, as clear as I can when I'm out scavenging or something. I did a little stretch. Your body is your enemy when you're freerunning. Along with your mind and gravity, even though gravity is kind of a big part of it.
I got a running start, and launched myself towards the opposite wall. I neared it as I began descending, and I twisted in mid-air to meet it. My hooves touched its surface and I timed my hoofsteps to match my velocity down the wall. Ha, why did I take a break from doing this? It felt great!
The... floor was fast approaching. To avoid smashing my face into the conveyor, I pushed hard against the wall and converted most of the energy into horizontal motion, blasting down the conveyor-belt-corridor as fast as I could, but faster.
I couldn't help but smile. I still had it down.
A brighter light up ahead signified that a large room lay in my path. I didn't slow down; at this speed, I could launch myself over anything the Idiot threw at me.
A giant gear hung above as I burst out of the opening, but gravity just couldn't pull it down fast enough to crush me. The resulting quake, however, threw me off balance and soon the rolling I had to do slowed me to a stop. Relative to the conveyor, of course. I stood up. Celestia-damned Idiot. I kept my speed to a trot as I travelled the length of the room. Eventually, the end of the belt appeared. Solid, non-moving land, holy Luna! Focused on that idea, I was caught entirely by surprise when another giant gear crashed down and began rolling towards me. I had the magical laser cannons materialise to my sides and unloaded a few plasma-lemons at the gear.
A portion of its tread melted, sending it crashing off-balance onto its side. I hopped over it and made it onto actual ground.
Being able to stand still felt great. I halted to catch my breath. In the distance, something abnormally tall was headed in my direction. I didn't exactly expect it to be preaching the sixth element.
I trotted forward until I had a good view of the thing. It looked like a robot made out of four poorly stacked metal barrels, the third from the ground having expressionless eyes that stared straight ahead as it shambled along by rotating its segments.
I had been in enough firefights to instinctively aim for its "face". I positioned myself so that the laser cannons were pointed in the right direction and fired. One of the shots showered the mechanical being's vision with sparks, as it stopped mid-shamble, lopsided. It tilted, slowly, and then slammed into the metal floor with and earth-shaking CLANG and made no other movement.
I resisted the urge to yell "TIMBER!" as I felled the next two. I travelled a number of horselengths with no real significant danger. Just a couple of moving things to shoot and move on. I was getting more confident.
I finally reached the end of the huge-mongous corridor. A large door stood between me and what was hopefully the owner's office. As I approached, it slid up and out of sight with a "click-click-click", revealing another hallway. At least I could see the end of this one. And all its other boundaries, for that matter. I made slow progress, sneaking carefully down the eerily quiet hall with weapons ready, watching for sudden movement. I was so intensely focused on the walls that I almost jumped when I head the "click-click-click" of the next door disappearing.
Revealed inside was a solitary room with no other entrances, a floor consisting of a single, solid conveyor belt, and the figure of one lone unicorn -- blue, with a starred, purple cape -- waiting patiently near the opposite wall. I stepped forward and the door clicked shut behind me.
