Chapters Chapter 1: The First Day.
Hello, I am Tinker Yearling. You might know my cousin: A.K Yearling, but I'm an inventor who got well known by inventing the A.I.'s in Equestria. Since I was 15, I thought of moving somewhere. Finally at 18, I decided to move to Ponyville, due to its fame. [Plus, it's the home of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony.] I was at the train station with my aunt, since I lost my dad years ago in a wonderbolt accident by some show - off when I was either 2 or 4.
"Bye Aunt Mary!" I shouted as the train was pulling away. By the time we were halfway there I was making house plans. I decided to make it near Cloudsdale. That place just sends me good memories with my dad about when he was a Wonderbolt elite who lived there, I followed my first mother before they divorced when I was 1...
"Next stop: Ponyville! Any passengers stopping at Ponyville please get packed!" said the conductor. Might as well get ready to get off the train. Ok, where's my ticket? Oh, here it is! "Your tickets to Ponyville please." said the conductor. I handed mine in to the conductor and walked off the train. As I walked around I noticed a library, maybe I can learn about the place if it's open. I knocked on the door waiting for somepony to answer. When the door opened I instantly got surprised as I noticed THE Twilight Sparkle was there.
"Hello? Oh hi! What brings you here?" she asked.
I calmly responded: "Hi, I'm Tinker, Tinker Yearling, and I was wondering if there was a book about the history of Ponyville." II mean come on! What are the odds that one of the most powerful ponies in Equestria lives in a tree themed library? Very little! "Finally! A visitor! This way." she responded. I followed as I saw an enormous selection of magic books! "Wow! " I thought noticing all the books. "Here it is! Wait, Yearling... Do you know anyone named A.K Yearling?" she asked.
"Yes, she's my cousin! Why?" I asked. "We met her sometime back with Rainbow Dash. Boy was she excited." Twilight said. " Wait, I think my cousin told me about this Rainbow Dash... I'll try to remember. Thanks for the book." I said.
" Oh, you're welcome." Twilight responded.
I wonder why she didn't even acted like royalty. Well no need to wonder, she was just quite casual for a princess like her. Oh well. I gotta find a house to call home! I went to the mayor's office. Might as well go there. As I walked in I noticed how there were others looking for a house. I went to ask how to find a house, I was treated to various options near Cloudsdale. I picked a mansion close to there. I saw the price: 1,500 bits. That's not even 1/4 of what I raise in a sale! I purchased the house and got comfy, and by comfy I mean plugging in my AI butler, adding advanced tech, and adding servalince cameras in and out. Yeah, I had some work to do that day... But it was fast for me since I invented things like an instant all you can eat buffet.
When I finished I decided to look at Cloudsdale, it looked amazing. Then I saw something I thought I would never see in my life: a Sonic Rainboom... As I noticed it I saw who was pulling it off. She was stunning, I asked L.I.G.H.T to record her speeds.
"Over 2,000 miles per hour sir." said L.I.G.H.T. I was surprised for the results, if anypony went at those speeds it can vaporize them! Maybe my calculations were off, I wouldn't be surprised if she was a wonderbolt! When the show was done I went back to my room where I felt a feeling I never felt before... Love. The next day I remembered that I had to return the book. As I went to the library I wondered if that mare was this Rainbow Dash who Twilight spoke about. I went and knocked again. When Twilight answered, she noticed that I had a small computer in my ear. "What's that in your ear?" She asked.
"Oh, that's the way my A.I. talks to me." I said, trying not to brag.
"Neat!" she responded. I returned the book and noticed a rather small dragon sorting the book. "Who's that and should I not be alerted?" I asked. "Oh, this is Spike, a friend of mine." said Twilight.
"Hello." Spike said. I remembered the pony last night. "Hey did you see that Cloudsdale stunt show yesterday?" I asked.
"Yes. In fact Rainbow Dash was in it. Why?" Twilight asked. "I noticed that Sonic Rainboom. Did Rainbow Dash do that?" I asked. "Yes, why?" Twilight asked. I instantly realized that I had feelings for her. "Oh, no reason." I said. "You have a crush on her, don't you?" she asked.
"What makes you think that?" I asked all nervous. "It's a spell I found that reads minds." she said. "Of course it is." I said. "Don't worry, I won't tell." Twilight said. I thanked her and left the library to my house. As I walked I saw more stunts by Rainbow Dash. "Wow." I said. I noticed as a crowd began to rally. "L.I.G.H.T., am I doing anything today?" I asked.
"No sir." said L.I.G.H.T. I watched as she did more stunts. Myself and every pony saw the pony did the stunts that were awesome. When she was done, I saw that it got dark so I headed home. I went to sleep knowing my feelings for Rainbow Dash were absolute. I started to want to meet her someday. If only I knew that day was sooner than I thought...
When I woke up, I asked L.I.G.H.T if he'll design a balcony where I get the best view on Cloudsdale.
"As you wish sir." the A.I replied.
I wondered if I'll ever actually meet Rainbow Dash since I heard of her. When I was tinkering on a new design on a whole "jet pack" deal some pony wanted, I heard somepony knock on my door.
"L.I.G.H.T, scan who's here." I said.
"It is Twilight Sparkle sir." L.I.G.H.T said.
By now I'm not as surprised as I was then due to her visits for my first week. The door opened and Twilight walked in.
"Oh, hi again." Twilight greeted. I waved and showed her around.
"So, what brings you here?" I asked.
"Oh, Rainbow Dash noticed that this hill top got a resident and, she wants to see who lives here." Twilight replied. My heart skipped a beat.
"When?" I asked. By the time I finished, the door knocked again.
"Now, apparently." Twilight replied. I told L.I.G.H.T to open the door. There stood the mare I deeply loved.
"Hello? Oh, hey Twi, are you here?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Oh, Rainbow Dash this is Tinker Yearling. You can guess who his cousin is." said Twilight.
"Step cousin." I said.
Later we caught up on our livings and - surprise - she IS a wonderbolt trainee! What about it, we also had more in common than I thought... Apparently, her parents were assassinated by who-knows-who. When the town got dark, we headed back to the house. But then I had to turn on the news... Man, I shouldn't have.
"Tonight's top story, a terrorist attacks Manehattan's Gear shop using famous inventor Tinker Yearling's weapons. All residents were found incenerated as soon as the blast hit." the reporter said.
I stood there observing the wreckage of what was my aunt's house from the TV, they showed the missle used to attack the house. I read the type. The missile design was familiar to me... the reporter was right, it was my missile.
"No, nononononono." I said as I paused the TV.
"Why do you have harmful terrorism weapons such as these?" Twilight asked.
"Remember the Changelings? Remember Tirek, Twilight? My weapons... They were meant for emergencies like if Equestria was getting attacked by more uncontrollable demons or something like that but, terrorism? Never!" I replied.
I sighed and accepted the facts: My aunt, the one who raised me since my dad died is now with him in the afterlife and it's all because of me. I asked to be alone on the balcony. I sat and do what I do best, I thought. I thought on who did the attack, if they were linked to my father's death, and if they were one of our customers. Twilight and Dash were chattering. Dash nodded and walked over.
"Look, I know what you're goin' through. I really do." RD said. I was confused. I wanted to learn more.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"When I lost my parents..." RD suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"I just noticed something..." RD said.
"What?" I asked confused.
"You said your dad died right?" RD asked, I nodded.
"Well, mine did too. To other non-legendary forces." RD said.
"We should tell Celestia this, Twi'. We're finding non-magical threats all over Equestria. First Daring Do's pals and now, this?" RD asked turning to Twilight.
"When word gets out, we'll know." Twilight said.
RD nodded in agreement.
Later that night Twilight and RD left and I made a schedule for Manehatten.
"Yes sir, so sorry for your loss..." L.I.G.H.T said in agreement.
"Don't become self - aware L.I.G.H.T." I joked. I thanked him though.
When I arrived, the house was in ruins, only the sign was there. I sighed and looked more. I found my dad's picture the day he died, I was with him when he drifted a bad direction in a wonderbolt race and crashed. I brought it back with me the following night, I slept having nightmares. Luna sure knows how to help somepony with their fears. I saw my father die all over again, in the shop fire all alone. I also saw my home town get bombed and I saw dozens of ponies incinerate in a flash. I then woke up in a cold sweat.
The next day, I noticed people glaring at me,whenever I got out of the house, muttering things. Do I blame them? No. They don't know it was my aunt's house who got bombed. I also DID design the rockets. But still... it got to me.
I need to find out who did this, and I need to stop them before they hurt somepony else. First thing's first, I need to close up shop. I went home and made an announcement that I'm shutting down Yearling Inc. and I went to work on a recon device...
I decided to use the jetpack idea to good use. I managed to make a one-pony exoskeleton for recon but not much else, it had camo for hiding, a few thermal scanners for location, and an advanced GPS system that L.I.G.H.T will operate.
"Are you sure of this, sir?"
"Yes." I said as I flew out to find my aunts killer before they hurt anyone else.
I managed to get a hold of my cousin.
"Daring, are you there? It's me Tinker. I think you need to see this."
I was near where my last customers were. I saw weapons - MY weapons, be duplicated and stored. I saw enough bombs to take down Canterlot in a split second. I felt the smog scorn my face, it was horrible.
"L.I.G.H.T, record." I said.
"Yes sir." The A.I began recording.
"Is that all of it?" A guard - clearly not from Canterlot - asked.
"Yes, the boss'll be glad to hear. Celestia will never know what hit her." Another guard said.
I decided to get closer, only to nearly get caught.
"What is it?" A guard said.
"Nothin'. Just thought I saw somethin'." Another guard said.
I hid behind a coach, relieved that no-one saw me. I went closer to hear more, only to see 3 figures walk closer and closer.
"Is it ready?" One asked.
"Not just yet. All we need is a sample of the DNA." A guard said.
DNA? What DNA? I asked myself.
I saw as one of the figures carried a form of a Wonderbolt suit.
Wait, it was dark. The Wonderbolts aren't dark...
"Soon, everyone will know the Shadowbolts." The figure said.
Shadowbolts? I need to tell Twilight. I was leaving when I heard,
"How about that pawn shop?"
My aunt's? That doesn't matter now. What matters now is Celestia knowing about this.
"Let's go." I said to L.I.G.H.T
After flying back to the house, I saw one problem with the suit: It had to be melted to come off.
"L.I.G.H.T, remind me to update that." I said.
"Yes sir. Oh, and your friends are here." The A.I said.
I buzzed them in and showed them what I saw.
"How is that possible? We had that place out of reach." Twilight said.
"Well, if these 'Shadowbolts' think of bombing us, they have another thing comin'." Rainbow said.
"How about we tell Celestia this? She might know what to do." Twilight said.
"You guys will have to go on without me. I have work to do..." I said to them.
When the two left, I was able to upgrade the suit into a more comforting style. I managed to give it a full plating so I was completely covered, a shoulder-mounted laser cannon powered by my magic, and a small missile deplorer on my wrist.. I left it to charge and after an hour of work, I finished it.
"Sir, your friends are back with what appears to be bad news." L.I.G.H.T said.
I buzzed them in and asked them what had happened.
"She's gone. Celestia. Gone!" Twilight said starting to panic.
"She does that sometimes." Rainbow added.
"It's fine. Everything's fine..." Twilight ranted.
'Well, somepony's late for her stress counseling. ' I thought to myself.
"Well, what do we do, Tinker? It's not like you have another one of those suits lyin' around. Not like I need it." Rainbow bragged.
"Wait... That's a great idea! L.I.G.H.T, I need you to start up another suit. I'll explain later." I said.
"But sir, the suits are powered on magic sources only. It would take months if not years to find a replacement." L.I.G.H.T argued.
"You know that big battery that powers you and this place? Can you build a smaller version of it?" I asked rhetorically.
"Yes, sir. New Arc Reactor construction commencing."
"Arc Reactor?" Rainbow asked.
"I powered it with my magic about a year ago. Once I found that magic can power a battery, I decided to make this." I said.
"I read about these. Arc Reactors were invented about a year ago and since then brought new energy to exclusive homes. It's so amazing to have one only a few miles away!" Twilight cheered.
"Feel free to come look at it. It's not much when you do the math; Big battery plus magic equals free gasoline." I joked.
After Twilight took constant notes of the Arc Reactor, Rainbow was ready to test her new suit. I showed her how it worked and she took it for a spin. I saw as she blasted it miles away, out of sight.
"So, now what?" I asked.
"I don't know. Celestia's dissapeared once before. We figured it out once, we'll do it again." Twilight said.
We stayed coming up with a plan surrounding the weapons I saw. We decided to add a rail gun on Rainbow's armor, and a laser near the eye holes. Now, it was about either telling the others, or keeping it to ourselves. Before we could answer, the T.V blasted to life.
"Equestria, you don't know me. But I know you. We have your princess, Celestia. Now, we will attack you. We have developed the ultimate weapon, it is capable of leveling the tallest city in Equestria. All we need is the original developer of the blueprints-- Tinker Yearling." A voice said.
"Oh, no." I said.
"Don't panic, we'll clear your name." Twilight said.
"It's not that I'm worried about. I know those blueprints. They were designed as an apocalyptic last resort. If something like the sirens growing a mass army or Sombra and Chrysalis creating some plauge of sorts, we could have something to combat that. It was designed to release several bombs full of my magic around Equestria's cities. It was top secret for years, how could anyone know about this?" I asked myself.
"Don't look at me." Twilight said.
Before we could think of anything else, Rainbow came in.
"You guys should see this..."
Me and Rainbow were searching for Celestia around Canterlot. We found her crown, but not much else. Before we could fly out and search somewhere else, Princess Cadence walked in.
"Any luck?" She asked.
"No. It looks like she's just... gone." I said.
"Well, where did you say that factory was?" Rainbow asked.
"Inside the Everfree Forest." I said.
"Oh, great..." Rainbow said to me.
We flew inside the Everfree Forest, where we found the lab I saw which was now empty.
"Nothing. Stay close, there might be something here." I said.
We looked around for an hour and all we found were screws, my blueprints--I'm gonna kill those thieves when I find them...--, and a blowtorch.
"L.I.G.H.T, scan the blowtorch for hoofprints." I said.
"Scanning... Scan complete, Hoofprints identified as Dr. Caballeron." The A.I said.
"Dr. Caballeron?! What's HE up to?!" Rainbow asked.
"You know this stallion?" I asked.
"Your last name... Do you know anypony named A.K Yearling?" Rainbow asked.
"Yeah, she's my cousin. Why?" I asked.
After we walked to my cousin's house, Rainbow walked and knocked.
"A.K? It's me, Rainbow Dash." She said.
My typical cousin walked out.
"Hey, Rai-- TINKER?" My cousin asked looking dead at me.
"A.K?" I asked.
"Where have you been?! Your name is all over the news!" A.K said.
"I know. We found out what happened and Rainbow sent us here." I said.
"What happened?" A.K quickly asked.
"It's Calleberon! He was a part of what happened." Rainbow said.
"What? I'll be right out!" A.K said running back inside.
"What's going on?" I asked Rainbow.
"Do you know Daring Do?" Rainbow asked simply.
"Yeah. She wrote the character. Why?" I asked.
Then who walked out was an exact replica of Daring Do. Then it all came together...
"You're... you're..."
"The character I wrote about for the past few years? Yeah." A.K-- Daring Do said.
"Well, I have a secret of my own." I said bringing down the suit.
"Wow... I prefer winging it." Daring said.
"Alright." I said placing the suit on me.
Then Rainbow's suit came down and she placed it on.
"Where did see this doctor last?" I asked.
We flew to where Daring saw Calleberon last. We saw a laboratory with my weapons disassembled and scattered around. The first thing I noticed that the power sources were empty.
"Oh, no..." I said.
"What?" Daring asked.
"The power was stolen." Rainbow said.
"That's just it. I powered the weapons with the most powerful power source I could find-- Dark Magic." I said.
"What?!" Rainbow asked.
"Why?!" Daring asked.
"Because there was no other choice. After Sombra attacked the Crystal Empire, I grabbed as many crystals as I could and checked them for Dark Magic. I found that one crystal alone had enough power to level a small town. I knew that if bad turned to worse and Canterlot was destroyed, we would have a backup plan. Twilight told me about the Dazzlings. Star Swirl couldn't defeat them, Star Swirl ! If that came here, we would've been easily wiped out. That planet survived because of its lack of magic; we would've been wiped out. We would have a way to stop that. But now this Dr. Calleberon has it and I don't doubt that we are now all targets." I said.
We had no time to talk more as the doors to the lab opened ad a mysterious figure walked out.
"Hello, Rainbow. It's been so long..." The figure said.
The figure got out of the shadows and I was able to see who she was. Her coat was light green, her uniform was an inverted Wonderbolt's with a tear on the arm.
"Lightning Dust? What are you doing here?" Rainbow asked.
"Oh, just out trying to take over the world. The usual." Lightning chuckled and 10 more ponies walked behind her.
I quickly placed the suit's helmet on.
"A.K. Yearling-- or should I say Daring Do? Tinker Yearling, great to finally meet you! I gotta say, without your destructive weapons, we would've been lost..." Lightning cackled.
I started the blasters in case this got ugly, but I kept it silent.
"So, who are these ponies? Your loyal henchmen?" Rainbow asked.
"No. These are the Shadowbolts. I know you've heard of them..." Lightning said.
"And you're their leader? What have you done with the princess?!" Rainbow asked charging at Lightning.
I was able to hold her back while my blasters were charging more.
"Now, now, Rainbow. You don't wanna ruin the fun, do you? The princesses are safe with us-- for now... And I'm not the leader, I'm more like her lieutenant... " Lightning said cryptically.
"And what about Calleberon?" Daring asked.
"That old foal? He's with us trying to master your weapons. Too bad you won't live to tell the story. Kill them." Lightning said.
Me and Rainbow grabbed Daring and we flew back home. We were getting ready to tell Equestria what we saw and heard today...