The Cybernetic Lifeby JabbieChaptersPrologue: Birth of a DroidPilot: Update to UpgradeEp 1: Know Your PartsEp 2: Trouble With GyroscopicsGuest Episode 3: Sisterhooves CircuitryPrologue: Birth of a DroidRibbon Wishes held her newborn filly in her forelegs while her husband stood at her side. The snow-white unicorn opened her brilliant blue eyes and hiccuped while her short, curly purple mane unraveled. Then she smiled. "Aw, how precious. A foal this young with a smile like that certainly is a rarity. She's beautiful," the nurse said as she gracefully bowed out of the patient's room. Ribbon Wishes smiled and kissed her forehead. "Rarity..." Her husband wiped a tear and hugged them both. "She's perfect." ~~~ Rarity yawned and wiped her tired eyes before her ears perked up. She darted downstairs and dived beneath the Hearths Warming Tree of Giving. "Is this one for me?!" she asked with sparkling eyes. "They're all for you, kiddo." Rarity beamed and tore the package open to find a dazzling diamond necklace. "It's soooo pretty! Thank you!" Ribbon Wishes leaned into her husband's chest while they watched the filly tear her gifts open. "Ooh, I almost forgotted! Look mommy, daddy, not all of the presents are mine." She carried two small packages from beneath the tree with her teeth and dropped them onto their laps. "Open 'em up! Open!" They glanced to one another before unwrapping the gifts. Ribbon Wishes pulled out a pair of earrings made from the golden hooks used to hang tree ornaments. At the ends hung large crystal beads that matched her eyes. Her father pulled a bright blue necktie with complimentary brown felt stripes glued to the bottom. "I made them for you in arts 'n crafts. Do you like them?" Rarity looked up expectantly with gleaming blue eyes. ~~~ Rarity stood on stage in full costume next to her classmates that were dressed in outfits she had volunteered to design. They went through their routine, and Ribbon Wishes stifled her welling tears. After the recital, they found their daughter with a beautiful cutie mark and an eager grin. Their little girl was growing up. She led them to a pile of gems, then began detecting others beneath the ground. She had found her hidden talent. ~~~ Ribbon Wished cried into her husband's shoulder as their baby girl stood next to her best friends wearing a graduation gown. The ceremony concluded, and Rarity signed her first contract the next day. Rarity went back to her new home and place of business while Ribbon Wishes and her husband trudged into their empty home. "I can hardly believe our baby girl's all grown up and on 'er own. Feels like just yesterday we brought her home for the first time. What're we gonna do with all this free time, huh dear?" Ribbon asked. "Well how 'bout we have another?" he suggested with a wink. "I'm not so sure. Watchin' our little girl pack up and leave was just the hardest thing, don'cha know? I don't think my heart could take it again." She sighed and slumped into her chair. He joined her and placed a hoof to his chin. "Well, maybe there's another way we could have a new one and keep her home forever." "I'm listenin', ya hockey puck. We talkin' 'bout raising a basement baby?" "No, don't be crazy. It's expensive, but we have all that college money saved up that Rarity won't need, so... Let's get a robot," he suggested with a smirk. "Oh okay sure, and where do ya suppose we'll be findin' one of those?" she asked. He shrugged and chuckled. "One of my old football buddies was talking about how he's getting one to be a maid, or... somethin'. I guess ya can have 'em programmed to do whatever ya want and all sorts o' whacky stuff." "Oh... Well if it really works, then I say we do it." "I'll make a phone call tomorrow!" ~~~ Several weeks later, Ribbon Wishes and her husband arrived at a dark and grim laboratory where they sat at a steel table. Suddenly a bright light flashed on, and a spiky silhouetted figure approached the other end of the table. "Good afternoon," an older, feminine voice spoke from across the table, and she leaned in. "You know, I don't schedule these interviews with just anyone." "Oh, well in that case we appreciate yer time very much, ma'am." Ribbon Wishes smiled and held her hoof out. Small pale fingers reached through the light and shook her hoof. "Why do you want this droid built?" "Well you see, we're older now and both agree that our times working and our careers are done. My hubby can't play ball no more ball, and I'm out of touch with my old business and it's too late for me to start fresh. We want a daughter to take care of for as long as we live, and somepony referred us to you," Ribbon explained. "Hmhmhm, I see. Yes, very well then. Your letter piqued my curiosity and my love of a challenge kicked in. I have a design drawn up, and would like to show you." The backlight kicked off and a huge blue screen lit up to display a blueprint design of a small pony. "My name is Doctor Wakeman. It's a pleasure to meet you both." The doctor stood up and pointed a laser pointer at the blueprint as she spoke. "I've gone ahead and developed the beginnings of an AI chip that will simulate the natural act of a learning, growing child. Of course I've adapted it to suit your equine biology. She will eat, think, sleep, breath, and even dream, though each of those things is redundant and simply for the simulated experience of parenthood. Her body is fueled by solar power as well as a perpetual generator that charges as she moves her hydraulic limbs. She will require love and attention to indicate that she is functioning properly which will be reflected through her emotions. It will be as if she's really your living, affectionate daughter. I know as well as many others the desire for a daughter, which led to the initial development of this technology... I digress. Tell me, is there anything you'd like me to include?" Each pony looked to the other and shrugged. "Our first daughter is an amazing singer. Could you possibly make it so this robot can sing, too?" "Ooh, and give 'er a horn!" Ribbon added, then blushed. "If it ain't too much trouble, I mean." "No trouble at all. Now, did you bring everything I asked for? I'll need you to let me take a few photos of you as well," she explained as she took a file of pictures depicting their home and town. "That's not a problem." "Excellent. These will do nicely. I need them to create artificial memories of childhood and to form a preexisting bond." Wakeman bowed her head and sighed. "She won't know she's a robot until you tell her. She may not even ever be aware of what robots are unless you explain it to her. I'll leave that decision in your hands... Excuse me, hooves." "Thank you so much for this, Doctor." "Ohhohoho." Wakeman blushed and waved her hand. "Call me Nora. Now let's get started with these memories. We've got a long road ahead of us." ~~~ Ribbon Wishes opened her front door to see a large crate labeled, 'Wakeman Industries'. She pulled it inside and pried the top off, then all four walls fell. In the center rested a small white unicorn filly with a peaceful smile and closed eyes. A plastic tag with the characters, SW3-B printed on it stuck lodged in the back of her neck. She pulled it out, then the filly began to buzz. She stood up and her eyes open, blankly staring into the distance. In a raspy robotic voice, she said, "Greetings. I am your custom designed SW3-B unit with patented AIBIS CPU Software created and distributed by Wakeman Industries Inc. Terms of use can be found within my shipping unit. Please say 'I accept' to continue." The stallion lifted a six-hundred page book labeled Terms of Use and Service. "Uh, I accept." "Thank you for choosing Wakeman Industries Inc. Please assign my name." "What should we name her?" Ribbon asked. He looked at the tag and shrugged. "Swee Bee?" The android perked her ears and spoke up. "Name: Sweebee accepted. Please say confirm to verify. This cannot be changed later." "No no no. Sweetie Belle." "Name: Sweetie Belle accepted. Please say confirm to verify. This cannot be changed later." "Confirm!" Ribbon Shouted. "Name registered. Running Vocoder Processing... Processing... Processing... Sweetie Belle," she said with a higher, softer, yet still very robotic voice. "Sweetie Belle..." Her voice was softer and smoother. "Sweetie Belle," she said with the voice of a precious young filly. The little unicorn with a pink and purple mane shook her head, then opened her bright green eyes with confusion. "Mom? Dad? What happened? What's this mess in the house?" The two ponies leaned down with tears in their eyes. Ribbon picked her up and hugged her, then noted her warmth and light weight. "Nothing, sweetheart. You're home now, and we'll take care of this mess. Don't you worry." "Home... I'm hungry," Sweetie Belle said with a yawn. "I love you, mommy and daddy." "We love you too, Sweetie Belle." Pilot: Update to UpgradeSweetie Belle trotted into the front room and shook her head with a frown. "Something wrong, kiddo?" her mom asked. "Yes! Sweetie shouted. "Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and me were playing and getting our cutie marks, and I... I stopped remembering things. I just left, I don't even remember what they were doing or saying." "Did ya bop yer head?" "What? No!" Sweetie Belle shook her head and groaned. "Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and me were playing and getting our cutie marks, and I just stopped remembering things. I'm not sure what happened. The last thing I remember is Apple Bloom looking at me like I was an idiot." "Oh my, this may be serious... Let me call your nurse." Ribbon Wishes picked up a phone and dialed out. Soon a receptionist answered and directed her call. "Hello, Wakeman Tech Support. What's troubling you today?" "Sweetie Belle isn't able to remember things, or she remembers only a few small things at a time. What should I do?" "Sounds like she's capped her short term memory card. That's supposed to be impossible since she's programmed to dump older short term memories after they become irrelevant. Go ahead and power her down, then manually wipe the card. That'll fix the problem for now, and we'll run remote diagnostics in the mean time." Ribbon Wishes crossed her eyes and scratched her head. "Alright, Hun. I have no idea what you just said to me. Can you send somepony over to help?" "Some... pony? Oh... Oh! That's right, you're in Equestria. I'm afraid we don't have any nearby technicians, so it'll be approximately a three day wait, but hopefully much sooner. I'll post the beacon now if you'd like." Ribbon glanced down at her daughter, who pounded on her head with her hooves. "Yes, please." "Thank you for your call, and help is on the way." The service woman hung up, and Ribbon Wishes sighed. "Somepony is on their way to help you, sweetheart. I'm sorry I can't do it myself." She kneeled down and hugged her frustrated daughter. "I can't remember what I was doing..." "I know. Just be patient." *** A teenage robot flipped through a magazine and giggled at the pictures of male models advertising sexy clothing. She kicked her feet up and down while she skimmed, then her bedroom door slid open. "Jenny, would you like to take a trip with me?" Wakeman asked. "Mom! It's called knocking, hello!" Jenny shouted as she tucked her magazine away with a blue hue of blush glowing on her polished metal cheeks. "Oh, yes dear. I apologize. Now come with me." Wakeman gestured towards the door and walked out. Jenny rolled her eyes and followed her downstairs. "So where are we going?" "There's someone I think you'd like to meet. I didn't mention it to you before because I wasn't sure if this would work properly, but it was a success and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised." Jenny's eyes widened and she scrunched her cheeks. "Is it another robot? A cute teenage robot?" "Yes. Well, no. It is a robot, but she's not a teenager. She's a young female horse with the mind of a ten-year-old," Wakeman explained as they climbed into her car. Jenny sighed and drooped her pigtails. "Oh... Great." "Oh don't give me that, you. I think you two will hit it off. Plus, I've never built a pony before, and this one is extra cute if I don't say so myself." Wakeman tilted her nose up and pressed a button that caused her car tires to lay flat and launch them into the air with rocket propulsion. "So she's extra cute? Can I keep her?" Jenny asked. "She's one of a kind just like you, XJ9. Her name is SW3-B, and you two have more in common than you might think." Wakeman slid on a smug smile pressed on the throttle. Jenny groaned and rested her cheek on her fist. "My name is Jenny, and I bet her name isn't really SW3-B..." "Ohhoho heh..." Wakeman laughed. "You'll see when we get there. I'm interested to see how she's doing." *** Sweetie Belle pressed her forehead against the floor and scooted herself around upside down until she crashed into a wall. "Where am I?!" "Calm down, Sweetie. Help will be here in a couple of days," Ribbon Wishes said while flipping through Sweetie's instruction manual. Just then, there was a knock at the door. Ribbon dropped the book and pulled it open, and her eyes widened at the sight of the familiar old woman. "Oh my, so nice to see you again, Nora." "Yes, and you as well. I'd like you to meet my, my daughter, Jenny," Wakeman said as the six and a half foot tall android stepped into the home. Sweetie Belle covered her mouth and shrieked, "Robot!" She then darted into her bedroom. Jenny grumbled while Doctor Wakeman chucked. "So I see you haven't told her yet... I'm here because I saw the beacon and wanted to check in personally. SW3-B is a very special project to me." "Oh yes, the beacon. Well you see, she can't rem—" "Remember anything new. I'm well aware. I just want you to know that this is a result of her never rebooting, and I now need to perform a manual update by wiping her cached short term memories. The problem is that in order for this update to function properly, SW3-B will remember it. If she isn't aware of her anatomy, then that might be a temporary problem. I'll give you a moment to prepare how to tell her, but we need to perform this update as soon as possible to ensure no permanent damage to her STM Card," Wakeman explained. "Oh... I see. I understand." Jenny frowned and took a step back. "That little pony was a robot?" Wakeman nodded. "Yes. That Exo-Skin is quite remarkable. Fur is so much easier than bare skin, admittedly. SW3-B, please come out here!" she called out. Ribbon Wishes frowned and cleared her throat. "Sweetie Belle, we need to talk to you. This robot is friendly, so don't worry." Sweetie Belle peeked through her bedroom door, then slowly stepped out. She stepped into the front room and locked eyes with Jenny, who smiled and waved. Sweetie squeaked and hugged her mother's leg. "Robot!" Wakeman wiped a tear from her wide, watery eyes. "She's operating perfectly. This is my cutest work to date." Jenny raised an eyebrow and put a hand on her hip. "She's pretty cute, sure..." Wakeman walked over to the little filly droid and scratched behind her warm ears, then reached behind her neck and deactivated her. Sweetie's eyes widened and she went stiff. "Alright, now allow me to take care of this while you prepare your talk. Sweetie Belle, as you've named her, may be a robot, but her mind is as delicate and pure as that of a child. I trust you will be optimal patents and help her through this." Ribbon Wishes wiped her teary eyes and turned away as Wakeman lifted a hatch on the side of her head to slide out a series of memory drives. "Let me know when you're done." The doctor nodded as she used her precision tools to pluck a small black chip from its slot, then plugged it into her pocket reader. Billions of memory files were displayed through hundreds of thousands of subfolders, and Wakeman felt herself sink into the warmth and love that were apparent in the file names about her parents, her sister, and her best friends. A thought to secretly peek into Jenny's memories crossed her mind. She then sorted the files into dormant and repressed status. Everyday events flooded the dormant category, while her angry sister and classmate bullies filled the other. She wiped the dormant ones and replaced the card into Sweetie's head, then latched it shut. "There we go. Now to update her process execution functions so that this won't happen again." "Did you do this to me?" asked Jenny. "I haven't had to. I'm not sure what went wrong here, but it should be fixed now. For some reason her memories that should have been temporary files were being permanently stored. For instance, she specifically remembered how she's opened her bedroom door every day for the past three years, or since activation. Intriguing." Wakeman closed a separate hatch after modifying her programming, then pressed the hidden button behind her neck again. Sweetie Belle blinked several times and wiped her eyes as a series of numbers and symbols crowded her vision. "What did you do to me?" "Just relax, that coding will be gone in a few moments," Wakeman explained. Jenny crossed her arms and watched the little robot stumbling around, then a deathly shriek caught her attention. She opened the front door and spotted five large timberwolves surrounding a pink pony with a yellow mane, who fainted. "Hold on!" Jenny shouted as she flew into action. As one wolf pounced towards the mare, Jenny uppercutted it, which sent its head flying, and rest of its body fell into shambles. The pink mare regained consciousness and scurried away through the opening. The four remaining wolves then surrounded Jenny, who lowered her stance and grinned. "Bring it, you mossy mongrels." The timberwolves glanced to each other, then snarled as they prowled towards her. One leaped forward and Jenny's hand became a timber saw, which sliced the creature down the center with ease. The next attack was met with a rocket propelled roundhouse kick that shattered the wolf into pieces. The final wolf backed away and bared its sharp, wooden teeth. It stood among the remains of its fallen friends, which glowed green as they assembled around him. Each part attached to the remaining wolf to increase his size dramatically, then it delivered an earthshaking roar. Jenny fell backwards beneath the boom of sound, them flew into the air. "You know what they say, right?" Her fists became giant hooks which she stabbed into its chest. "The bigger they are..." She activated her rocket thrusters and slowly lifted the creature off the ground, which whimpered and flailed its legs. "What, scared of heights?" she asked as they soared higher. Jenny then began spinning, swinging the huge beast around and around before she released the hooks and flung it into the side of a cliff hanging over the Everfree Forest. Her arms regrew from their sockets and she brushed her hands off with a smug smirk. "...the harder they fall." Jenny landed back in the center of Ponyville to be swarmed by a crowd of cheering ponies. "Thank you so much, great hero!" they called out. Jenny gracefully bowed and accepted her due praise. Sweetie Belle rushed to her side and looked up with wide, glistening eyes. "You're amazing! I want to know how to do all the things you just did so I can be an awesome superhero too!" Sweetie Belle shouted while she hopped around her new idol. Jenny blushed and knelt down. "I'm not sure if you're the right kind of robot. What sorts of powers do you have?" Sweetie Belle shrugged and inspected herself. "Uhm... hmm..." she mumbled as she lifted the bottom of her hoof. "I don't know..." Doctor Wakeman stood behind her and placed a hand to her chin. "If it's okay with your parents, I could make a few physical upgrades to you so that you could help protect this town from such monsters in the future." The town mayor chimed in. "A crime-fighting superpowered robot will be a great addition to the town! Not to mention the boom to tourism. I can see it now, Sweetie Bot, the Superhero of Ponyvi... Oh, and of course keeping the citizens safe is my number one priority." Wakeman winked and rubbed the filly's soft mane, then glanced to her parents who watched with worried frowns. "Of course, the final decision is yours." "Please, please, pleeeeease!" Sweetie Belle cried and hopped in circles. "I wanna be a robot like... like her!" Jenny leaned down and frowned. "Are you sure, Sweetie Belle? I used to want to be a robot just like you; a robot that blended in and was treated like a normal person. If you were like me, your friends might treat you differently." Sweetie Belle looked back at her parents, then nodded. "Yes, I definitely want to. What if you weren't here? I want to be able to protect the town in case something bad happens and I'm the only one here ponies can depend on." "Mhm, an admirable point of view, Sweetie Belle," Wakeman noted. Ribbon Wishes sighed and hugged her husband. "If it's what you want, then it's fine by me, Hun. I don't have the bits to pay for this yet, though." "Oh don't worry about that. It'll be my pleasure. Free of charge." Wakeman tilted her head and examined Sweetie Belle. "Mayor, how fierce are the monsters that inhabit the area?" "Quite fierce! I've seen everything from a giant three-headed monster dog to a ferocious rampaging hydra in my day. I'm still worried about the dragons that dwell in caves around here as well, who knows when they'll try and destroy the town?" Mayor Mare explained. Wakeman nodded and tapped the filly. "I see. She'll need new Exo-Armor and a series of defensive installations. I hope you don't mind that she may not simulate an organic filly quite as much. She'll still be the same Sweetie Belle inside, but she will be a new girl on the outside." Ribbon Wishes nodded. "Knowing my little girl, she'll never forgive me if I don't let her do this, so... I'm grateful for the three years I've had with her, and I'm looking forward to the rest of our lives with her no matter how she might change. I love ya, kiddo." Wakeman clicked her car keys which called the vehicle over, then she climbed in. "I'll get started immediately. In two weeks, you'll have your daughter back." Sweetie Belle turned back to face her parents. "Tell Scootaloo and Apple Bloom that I'll miss them. I can't wait to tell them that I'm actually a robot!" Jenny climbed into the front seat and looked out the window at all the friendly faces waving her off. Sweetie Belle jumped into the backseat and waved back at them. Jenny sighed and shook her head. I hope you know what you're doing, Sweetie Belle... Ep 1: Know Your PartsSweetie Belle stepped up to the front door of her home and opened it. She walked inside and met the gazes of her parents, who dropped their jaws. "Sweetie Belle?" her mother asked as she looked her daughter over, noting her shiny metal body and mane as well as the steel-blue panel plates connecting her Exo-Armor. In a raspy electronic voice, she answered, "My name is SW3-B, Vanquisher of Evil, Protector of Worlds." Ribbon Wishes covered her mouth and pouted. "Hehe, I'm just kidding!" Sweetie chirped in her normal voice before pulling her mother into a tight hug. "I missed you, mommy!" "I... missed you, too, H-Hun." She choked and tapped her daughter's back. "You're stronger..." "Oh! Oopsie." Sweetie Belle blushed and backed away. "Jenny is supposed to teach me how to manage my new robo-powers, but she had to go destroy a c-class meteor, or... something." "Aw, that's too bad. Or I guess it's good? Anywho, what kinda new stuff you got goin' on?" her mother asked. Sweetie Belle shrugged and lifted her front leg, which transformed into a grappling gun and fired a hookshot through the wall. "Oops! I... Uhm... okay hold on." She then wiggled her leg around until the hook retracted, which finished tearing the wall down on its way back. Her father sat on the toilet behind the wall reading a newspaper. He lowered it and raised an eyebrow. Sweetie shielded her eyes and gagged before heading outside. "I'm gonna try and figure this stuff out for a minute. I think I get how it works, but it's weird." Ribbon scratched her head and blushed. "Okay. Be careful, sugarplum." "I will!" Sweetie Belle waved goodbye, which turned her other foreleg into a sparking taser. She blushed and shook her hoof back to normal. "...Bye!" She galloped down the street for a while, and then began to slowly trot as she reached the trail through Sweet Apple Acres. The sun glared down from above, and she noted that the feeling of heat was absent. After a few short minutes, she reached her clubhouse. "Scootaloo? Apple Bloom?" she called out, then two familiar faces peeked out through the window. "Wow!" Scootaloo shouted. "You look so awesome!" Apple Bloom trotted down the ramp and inspected her automaton friend. "Why didn't you tell us you were a... a robot?" "I didn't know," Sweetie Belle explained. "Who cares?" Scootaloo bumped into Sweetie Belle and tapped her side. "Ooh, solid. Let's go blow stuff up with rockets and explosions!" Sweetie Belle frowned and took a step back. "Wait, I don't know how to control my stuff yet. Jenny is gonna teach me as soon as she gets back from destroying a deadly meteor." Scootaloo's eyes widened and she chewed on the tips of her hooves in overwhelming excitement. Apple Bloom narrowed her eyes and placed a hoof to her chin. "So... have you been a robot the whole time? Or did ya go get turned into one?" Apple Bloom asked. "Whole time, but I didn't know. I guess I'm only three years old, too. I have thirteen years of memories, but some were implanted, or... something." Sweetie Belle shrugged and smiled. "Implanted, huh?" Apple Bloom said and turned away while Scootaloo poked at Sweetie's legs. Sweetie Belle pulled her leg away and accidentally triggered a rocket thruster that sent her toppling over and crashing into a tree. "Ouch!" Scootaloo cringed and peeked between her front hooves. "I'm sorry! Are you okay?" Sweetie Belle stood up and shrugged. "Yeah, I think so. That didn't hurt at all, but it was scary." Apple Bloom rushed to her side and hugged her. "You gotta be more careful, silly." "I know, I know. I'm not sure what I'm doing though... I'm sorry I'm not as cool as you guys thought I'd be." Sweetie Belle sighed and lowered her head. "Apple Bloom and I think you're robotness is awesome, right?" Scootaloo grinned and placed a wing over her shiny metal back. "You'll get used to your gadgets soon I bet. When you put your mind to it, you can do anything!" "That's right!" Apple Bloom wrapped a foreleg around her friend's neck and nuzzled her cheek. "We'll be here to help ya every step of the way!" Suddenly, the tips of two short antennae attached to Sweetie Belle's ears began flashing red. Her chest then slid open and a monitor sprung out. On the screen was Jenny struggling to cut through a solid metal meteorite. "Sweetie Belle! I need your help to break this thing apart. There was an error on the radar and the density was miscalculated. We need to fuse our particle beams in order to—" The screen went to static, and Sweetie Belle looked to the sky. In the distance was a bright white dot, and she gritted her teeth. "Guys... This is what I gotta do... I... I need to go, now, or Equestria could be in huge trouble!" Scootaloo and Apple Bloom glance to each other with wide, beaming smiles. "This is so cool!" they shouted in unison. "This is serious!" Sweetie Belle frowned and wiggled her ears. "Right!" Scootaloo thought for a moment. "Okay, so remember how you pulled away from me earlier? Do that with all your legs at the same time." Apple Bloom nodded, then Sweetie gave it a shot. Sure enough, all four thrusters activated and her ears repositioned themselves on the side of her head while her tail transformed into tail wings. "Whoa!" Sweetie Belle shouted while struggling to keep her midair balance. "It worked!" Apple Bloom cheered. "Okay, now try and move forward. Point your nose towards that star and just go!" Sweetie Belle nodded and focused on her target, then aimed her thrusters all in the same direction. In a flash, she zipped through the air as the output automatically increased after detecting alignment. Her tail and ears kept her level as she soared and left a thick pink trail of vapor behind her. Glancing down, the cloud tops blurred into a round blanket covering the world, and the top of her head frosted over. "Woo!" she shouted as she tilted her head and made a gradual curve to the right. Soon the meteor was in full sight, and she crash landed onto the surface. "Glad you made it." A tall female android pointed a large pistol at her head. "Talk about two birds..." Sweetie Belle tilted her head, then reacted instantly as the gun fired. She ducked beneath a small device fired towards her head, then lifted her front leg. "Come on, do something! Lasers! Rockets! Anything!" "AHHHH-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You think a baby battle-droid can stand up to the amazing Queen Vexus? Even your superior, XJ9 has fallen. Just surrender now and join The Cluster before I'm forced to scuff up that pretty armor of yours." Vexus smiled and pointed towards Jenny, who was tied up and unconscious with a mind-controlling device attached to her head. Sweetie Belle glared and lowered her body. "Never!" Queen Vexus clenched her fist, which began to glow. Sweetie Belle pointed her foreleg which immediately fired a grappling hook at the evil robot, who ducked beneath it with ease. The hookshot then crashed into Jenny's forehead and knocked loose the device. Jenny shook her head, then opened her eyes. "Wha... Queen Vexus!" Sweetie Belle stepped backwards as Jenny tore the steel cables wrapped around her body to shreds. "No, you fool!" Vexus fired another shot at Jenny, who zipped forward and delivered a powerful swing with a spiky fist. Vexus phased through the attack unharmed, and Sweetie Belle readied her grappling hook. "It seems you've managed get loose again... Next time, XJ9. I promise you that you and your impudent little friend will be mine." Jenny fired an array of rockets towards Queen Vexus, who tore a rift in space and slipped through. The rockets carried onto the distance after the portal closed, and Jenny balled her fist. "I haven't seen her in years... We need to be careful. Good thinking with that grappling hook by the way. Anything else might have actually damaged me." "Thanks," Sweetie said with a blush. "But who was that mean lady?" Jenny lowered her pigtails and sighed. "She's trouble. She wants us to join her ever growing army of bad robots who want to enslave all life on this planet. We have to stop her before she grows too powerful. I... I let my guard down while dealing with this meteor." "Well now that I'm here, I'll watch your back! Let's take care of this thing!" Sweetie Belle smiled and activated her thrusters. "Don't worry. That transmission you got was a fake. Queen Vexus is a master of trickery. I can handle this wimpy c-class no problem. I'll teach you how to deal with them later," Jenny said as she fired a drill-tipped missile into the meteor's core. The two then took flight and headed back to the surface of the earth. After landing, the explosive device detonated and blasted the space rock into a million pieces that lit up the sky in a spectacular display of mid-day shooting stars. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom bumped their hooves together as they watched the tiny balls of fire dissipating in the sky. Jenny smiled and leaned down next to her cybernetic companion. "You're a natural at this. I remember when I first started trying to fly and use my gadgets... Let's just say that you'll have it mastered in no time at all." Sweetie Belle blushed and smiled. "I can't wait to learn." Jenny crossed her arms and grinned. "Good! Lesson one starts right... Now!" The Cybernetic Life Ep 2: Trouble With GyroscopicsSweetie Belle hovered in midair with small plumes of vapor puffing from the bottoms of her hooves. "That's it. You're doing great!" Jenny cheered from the ground. Sweetie Belle beamed with pride, then suddenly plummeted several meters. She flailed around and regained her bearings just before hitting the ground, then she collapsed into the dirt. With a huff, she brushed herself off. "This stinks..." "Don't fret. Mastering your antigravity gyro takes a lot of practice. The gyroscope turns with your body, so don't overcorrect." Jenny explained as she levitated off the ground. Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes and kicked the ground, then activated her rocket thrusters. "Why can't I just use these instead of that dumb old anti-gravithingy?" Sweetie Belle asked. Jenny poked Sweetie's belly bolt and pulled out a fuel gauge. "You've got about three hours worth of fuel before you'll need to gas up. Of course, at your max speed of around Mach-Five-ish, you can fly around the world in less than twenty seconds." "Awesome! I wanna try that!" Sweetie Belle kicked off the ground with bright green flames jutting from her hooves and tail. "Whoa! Settle down there, turbo. Those speeds are for emergencies only. Breaking the sound barrier at all could be risky, not to mention the friction heat. Just use your gyro for now." Jenny crossed her arms. "Aw, but why? I really don't like this thing," Sweetie Belle complained. Jenny groaned and blasted the ground with her own thrusters to creat a small crater. "Look, using rocket thrusters near the ground is dangerous, alright? You could easily crash and damage yourself, or you could accidentally hurt someone else. Just... trust me! Okay?!" Sweetie Belle slumped down and pouted. "Fine..." A red light began to flash on Jenny's wrist, and she rolled her eyes. "I've gotta run. Keep practicing and I'll check back in a few." She jumped into the air and blasted off into the distance. Sweetie Belle huffed and stood up, then closed her eyes and began to levitate with wobbly instability. She flipped forward and face-planted into the dirt, then groaned. As she opened her eyes, two orange hooves were standing at her muzzle. "Whatcha doin'?" asked Scootaloo. Sweetie Belle hopped up and dusted herself off with a quick spin. "Nothing... I'm trying to use my stupid anti-gravimajigger because Jenny says it's the most important tool I have when facing monsters... Something about stability in midair is better than rocket thrusters alone, or... something." "Wait, you mean you're trying to fly without rockets?" Scootaloo asked as she spread her small wings. "Yeah. It's more like floating than flying, though," Sweetie Belle explained. Scootaloo sighed and tucked her wings in. "I wish I was a robot..." Sweetie Belle drooped her ears and averted her gaze. "I'm sorry, Scootaloo." "Nah, you're good." She smiled and hopped up and down. "So what's the problem?" Sweetie Belle shrugged. "I don't know. I can start hovering, but then I just fall forward... like I'm too top-heavy or something." "Top-heavy, huh?" Scootaloo trotted in a circle around her bionic friend. "Well maybe the gravimajigger just isn't for you? I saw you floating with rockets earlier, just practice that instead." "But then I'll run out of fuel." Sweetie Belle sighed and kicked the ground. Scootaloo scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Then you'll just refuel, duh. Go on! Try it out!" Sweetie Belle smiled and rapidly nodded. She then took a deep breath and activated her thrusters. "Alright!" Scootaloo smiled and widened her eyes as the bright green fire lifted her friend into the air. "Nice one, Sweetie!" Sweetie Belle nodded and carefully adjusted her hooves and tail to keep her balance while her ears folded down into stability wings. "I'm way better at this." "You look so cool..." Scootaloo swallowed a lump in her throat and looked away while she placed her hoof to her chin. Sweetie Belle nervously wiggled around before lowering the thrusters' outputs and gracefully landing back onto the ground. As her body reconfigured itself for non-flight, she faceplanted into the dirt once again. Scootaloo chuckled and helped her clumsy friend to her hooves. "See? You got it all under control... Mostly, anyway." "Yeah well there's no way I'll know for sure unless we test it out in action," Sweetie Belle said. "You're right." Scootaloo crossed her forelegs and rubbed her chin. "I got it!" *** Scootaloo and Apple Bloom each stood next to a bushel of mushy old apples while Sweetie Belle skeptically waited some distance away. "Guys, I don't know about this," Sweetie said with a frown. "This is perfect. Just dodge the apples we throw at you while keeping your balance. It's the perfect practice," explained Scootaloo. "Sounds good to me." Apple Bloom grinned and lifted a squishy apple onto her front hoof. Sweetie Belle shrugged and kicked off the ground. "Well, if you say so..." Scootaloo and Apple Bloom each readied their mushy projectiles while Sweetie Belle balanced herself on her thrusters. "You ready?" Apple Bloom shouted. "I think so, just a min—"splat! Sweetie Belle shook a pile of apple goop from her face with a scowl. "What the hay was that?!" Scootaloo blushed and shrugged. "Oops, sorry." Sweetie Belle huffed and calmed herself. "Okay, I'm actually ready this time." Apple Bloom and Scootaloo nodded to each other, then lifted their apples. Apple Bloom tossed her apple, and Sweetie Belle instantly dropped half a meter by manually lowering her output. Scootaloo chucked her fruit, and Sweetie burst higher to miss it, then to the left as Apple Bloom threw another. "Wow, nice moves, kid," Rainbow Dash said as she fluttered next to Sweetie Belle. "Whoa-oh!" Sweetie fell to the ground, startled. "Ow..." Rainbow Dash ducked an apple and then glared at Scootaloo, who dropped a second one. "So, Sweetie Belle. Word has it that you're some kind of super-fast-robot-flying-machine. Wanna race?" "Uhm... I'm not sure if I have flying down mastered yet," Sweetie explained. "Right. You're obviously better at falling down," Rainbow Dash said with a laugh. "Come on, kiddo. Take it from me: practice makes perfect. Let's do a lap around Ponyville." Sweetie Belle looked to her two best friends, who each rapidly nodded with wide grins. "Okay. Let's do it." "Atta girl. Okay... Ready... On your mark... Get set go!" Rainbow Dash darted into the air in a flash and disappeared into the distance. Sweetie Belle thrust herself forward and crash landed, her thrusters plowing her face through the dirt. "Dumb rocket legs!" She hopped back into the air and took off with a huge burst of green flames. Her ears flattened horizontally as she picked up speed, then she tilted her head to make a wide turn. The moisture in the air vaporized into a pink cloud mist as she cut through the air at transonic speeds. Her optic scanner turned a quickly approaching hill into a grid map with several red squares along its side. Sweetie Belle detected an imminent collision, then pulled herself upward. She shot straight up into the air, and then she overcorrected herself into a downward spiral and crashed into the forest. She tucked in her legs and tore through the ground while trees and boulders were flung into the air in a plume of dirt and dust. Sweetie Belle laid motionless and half-buried in the ground. She lifted her foreleg only to see twisted metal with sparking wires jutting out from within. Her sight went black, and she shut down. "Psst. Wake up... Anypony home in there?" Sweetie Belle jerked and sparked, then her eyes lit up. Her vision was blocked by a series of notations and statistics being displayed. Her systems noted sever damage to her upper right leg as well as external minor trauma dealt to every inch of her Exo-Armor. The screen minimized itself, and she was blinded by piercing sunlight. "Wakey wakey!" Sweetie Belle shielded her eyes as they slowly adjusted and focused. She watched her foreleg auto-repairing itself and ejecting old, twisted chunks of metal while replacing them with fresh panels from beneath. After it was complete, she lowered it to see a silhouetted mare standing over her. "You alright?" "Yeah. I think so. I feel funny though," Sweetie Belle said as she wobbled to her hooves. "Funny how? Like dizzy?" Rainbow Dash asked as she examined her head. "Hmm... So I guess you really do have a long ways to go, huh?" Sweetie Belle's ears drooped and she rolled her eyes. "I told you so..." "Hey, no harm no... fowl," Rainbow Dash said as she glanced around the devastated forest area. Several squirrels and rabbits crossed their arms and glared. "I'm sorry, forest critters... I... I didn't mean to crash into your homes." Sweetie Belle widened her eyes and began to leak the excess jet engine coolant from her optical corner-ducts. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes as the boiling liquid soaked the dirt. "Hey, come on. They're forest animals that are good at surviving. They'll just hide under the fallen trees or whatever. Let's get outta here." Sweetie Belle frowned and wiped her eyes. "Oh, well okay. I'm still very sorry... Also, I'm just gonna walk if you don't mind." "You sure you're gonna be alright?" Rainbow Dash asked as Sweetie Belle shook a loose piece of bent armor to the ground. "Yeah. I'm feeling better already. Thanks, Rainbow Dash. Sorry about the race, by the way." Sweetie Belle ruefully scoffed and trudged through loose earth. "Hey, don't sweat it, kid. We'll have a rematch when you feel like you can handle yourself better. I shouldn't have pressured you when you didn't feel ready. I guess robot flying isn't like pegasus flying..." Rainbow Dash fluttered into the air and shrugged. "I'll walk ya home." Sweetie Belle smiled as Rainbow Dash flew by her side, and the two made their way through the forest back towards home. *** Sweetie Belle hovered in midair while Scootaloo and Apple Bloom cheered from the ground. She flipped around and held her balance for several long moments, then gently landed on her hooves. Jenny clapped her hands and leaned down with a proud smile. "Awesome job! I knew you could do it." Sweetie Belle beamed and blushed. "You know what they say, right? Practice makes perfect." Guest Episode 3: Sisterhooves CircuitrySisterhooves Circuitry Guest Writer: Razalon Sweetie Belle sat on her bed, looking at the flyer in her hoof longingly. Today was the day of the Sisterhooves Social, held at Sweet Apple Acres where sister pairs would compete against each other in various events. Sweetie Belle had been looking forward to the Social ever since Apple Bloom let her know of its date. But when Sweetie had told Rarity this, the fashionista announced that she and her friends would be in Manehattan for a fashion show that day and she wouldn’t be able to compete with her in the Social like last year. Sweetie, though saddened to no end, said she understood to which Rarity promised to be there for her the following year, no buts about it. That didn’t cure Sweetie’s sorrow of not being able to compete in the Social this year, however, especially now that she had an upgrade they’d plow through the competition in the Big Race event. Sweetie was pulled from her thoughts by a knock on her bedroom door. “Come in!” she called. The door opened to reveal Jenny, a small smile gracing her metal face. “Hi Sweetie Belle!” she said, and strode over to the bed, her robotic feet making loud clanking noises with each step. “I finally found some free time to come here and see how your training was coming along.” She sat down on the bed, which sank underneath her immense weight, but thankfully didn’t buckle and collapse. “So, how’s it coming along?” Sweetie sighed. “Alright, I guess.” Jenny sensed the depression in Sweetie’s voice and frowned. “Is something wrong, Sweetie?” Sweetie turned the flyer around so Jenny could see it. She looked down and read the text printed upon it. “’The Sisterhooves Social: Where sister pairs compete against each other in all kinds of neat events for pseudo glory and fancy ribbons. Be at Sweet Apple Acres on the date of 1/5/02 at 1:00 pm if you wish to compete." “I was looking forward to competing in it with Rarity like we did last year.” Sweetie let the flyer fall to the floor and sighed again. “But she had to go to a fashion show in Manehattan, so she couldn’t compete.” Another sigh. “I guess I’ll give the Anti-Gravity thingie some more practice instead.” Jenny looked down at the little robot filly sympathetically. Being the oldest sister of her own siblings (whom were still, thankfully, powered down and in storage), Jenny could only make an educated guess at how Sweetie Belle was feeling right now. “. . . Sweetie, I could compete with you if it makes you feel better.” Sweetie blanked for a moment, then looked up in surprise at the humanoid robot girl. “You want to compete in the Social?” “Sure, I mean, I’ve got a few hours to kill before mom wants me back home.” A panel in Jenny’s wrist opened up and a built-in cuckoo clock rose out. “It’s now . . . 12:53 pm. Our rocket boosters will get us to Sweet Apple Acres in time if we leave right now.” “I don’t know, Jenny,” Sweetie replied worriedly, “the flyer says ‘sister pairs’ and we’re not really sisters.” Jenny furrowed her iron brows. “Just because there’s no blood between us doesn’t make us unrelated; mom created us both, therefore we’re sisters.” Sweetie tapped her chin in thought for a moment before smiling. “Well, I guess it couldn’t hurt to ask.” Jenny reached down and ruffled Sweetie’s synthetic mulberry mane. “That’s the spirit kiddo.” She activated her rocket boosters and opened the nearest window. “Well, come on; you’ve gotta show me the way.” Sweetie smiled, and activated her own rocket boosters. Her aim faltered, however, and she banged her head on the window frame as she flew out after Jenny, who giggled. “Want me to kiss your boo boo, little sis?” she jokingly said. “Ha ha,” Sweetie responded, rubbing her metal plating whilst rolling her eyes. She began heading south. “It’s this way.” With a haughty smile, Jenny followed. As it turned out, the question of whether or not Sweetie and Jenny would be allowed to compete in the Sisterhooves Social wasn’t about whether they were true sisters. Rather, Granny Smith was adamant that their ‘fancy hi-tech doohickery’ would give the robot pair too great of an advantage over the other sister teams. “C’mon, Granny Smith,” Sweetie Belle whined. “Please let us compete.” The olden mare chortled half-sarcastically in her chair on the platform, her bullhorn in front of her. “Compete, yeah right; more like mop the floor with yer fancy schmancy gadgets n’ junk.” Sweetie looked downcast while Jenny put her hands on her hips. “Miss Smith,” she said, “we’ll willingly handicap ourselves to make the competition fair.” Granny looked up at the teenage girl. “How?” she inquired. Jenny activated her ‘Toy Car mode’ and collapsed her body into a smaller shape, resembling, of course, a remote-controlled toy car. All that remained of her normal appearance was her head, which sat atop the little gadget with a proud smile upon the face. Granny stared in surprise at the teenage robot, now no taller than Sweetie next to her, and furrowed her brows in thought. “Ah still don’t know ‘bout it,” she said. “How do Ah know y’all won’t cheat anyway?” “Look,” Jenny replied; the sight of a talking head atop a toy car slightly unnerved Granny Smith, “I already studied the race course and all I need to finish it in this form are this,” a panel opened up in front of Jenny’s face, to which a metallic hand rose out and waved before retracting, “and this,” a spring mechanism activated in Jenny’s wheels which caused her to bounce about five feet into the air, startling Granny Smith. “And I promise not to use anything but my own four hooves and mouth,” Sweetie proclaimed, her previous sorrow dispelled. Granny Smith looked unsure. “Well, Ah’m still not too sure ‘bout lettin’-“ She stopped herself mid-sentence upon seeing the look in Sweetie’s eyes. The look which all adults dreaded. That which could easily override their sense of authority if weak-willed. Granny Smith had used it on her own parents as a filly, and even a few times as a mare, all to the same effect of getting what she wanted. Now, however, she was on the receiving end of that look, and it made her cringe with regret at what she was about to do. Curse you, puppy dog eyes . . . “Alright, fine,” Granny Smith said. “Y’all can compete.” Sweetie Belle immediately beamed while Jenny merely rolled her eyes with a small smile. “But if’n either of ya cheat, Ah’ll personally drag ya outta the race with my false teeth. Am Ah clear?” Both robots nodded. “Good.” Granny Smith leaned back into her chair. “Now head on over ta the startin’ line.” “AND MAY THE BEST SISTERS WIN!!!” Granny Smith shouted into her bullhorn. The crowd of ponies in the bleachers cheered uproariously and stomped their hooves in excitement. The race was about to begin. Sweetie & Jenny stood at the far end of the racers, whom were casting aside glances at the robot pseudo-sisters every other second. While Sweetie paid no attention to them, Jenny used her retractable hand to wave hi, which the other teams returned awkwardly. “ON YER MARK!!!” All the racer’s attention immediately shifted to the racetrack in front of them. They were all eager to start the race, and equally determined to come out on top. “GET SET!!!” Sweetie stuck her tongue out in anticipation while synthetic sweat began dripping down her face. Jenny revved up her motor and furrowed her brows in determination. “GO!!!” The dirt leading up to the mud pit was assaulted by a barrage of hooves and wheels as all the sister teams galloped madly to gain an early lead over everyone else. Sweetie and Jenny fell into fifth place in the crowd by the time they reached the mud pit. While Sweetie followed everypony else in simply jumping over the mud, Jenny used her spring mechanism to propel herself across. Landing on the other side, they rushed to the next leg of the race which was the barrel hop. Once again, Sweetie simply hopped across and Jenny used her spring to bounce across them. The robot pair passed the team of Sparkler & Dinky while making way toward the crates, putting them in fourth place. For the crates, Sweetie made use of her enhanced strength gained from her upgrade. Unlike the previous year where she couldn’t hoist herself over the first crate, this time she easily climbed over each crate until she reached the other side. Jenny once again relied on her spring to bounce up and over each crate to join her. They then made way toward the picnic tables where the next leg of the race was located. The sister pair of Berry & Pina, who were the winners of last year’s Big Race, were already at the table and shoveling pie into their mouths when Jenny and Sweetie arrived. “Think you can eat an entire pie?” Sweetie hurriedly asked Jenny as she began madly tearing away at her own. Jenny smiled wryly while she returned to her default form. “I’ll have it gone before you can look up; just concentrate on eating your own.” Sweetie barely heard her pseudo sister over the sounds of her own chomps and gulps as she shoved her muzzle into the pie (apple, not surprisingly) and madly swallowed as much as she could with each bite. Apparently, Dr. Wakeman had built into Sweetie an artificial digestive system, converting what she ate into a synthetic oil which would keep her alive and operational; it’s designs based off of those provided by an associate of Wakeman’s who only went by the initials of J.N. Berry & Pina had finished and left by the time Sweetie was done eating her pie. She looked up to see that Jenny’s pie was gone and the teenage robot was back in her Toy Car mode. Sweetie didn’t bother asking how Jenny had finished it, however, and they made a mad dash to the next leg. Sweetie & Jenny got in front of the hay stack and began pushing against it across the ground toward the stopping line; Jenny used her retractable hand while Sweetie pushed against it with her metal-plated head. The combined strength of both robots saw them moving the hay stack swiftly across the ground, passing Berry & Pina and Cloudkicker & Alula in turn to take second place. As they raced toward the grape stomp, however, Jenny fell behind Sweetie to which the robot filly looked back in frightened concern. “Are you okay, Jenny!?” she called back to the teenage robot. Jenny used her retractable hand to wave and motion toward their grape stomping station. “It’s just a minor malfunction with my engine!” she called back. “A few quick repairs and I’ll be back in the race; just worry about finishing with the grapes!” Sweetie nodded and made way to their station. She hurriedly jumped up into the barrel and immediately began madly stomping upon the tiny, succulent, purple fruits it housed. She had no need to worry about short-circuiting from liquid seeping into her systems thanks to her parts being 100% liquid resistant. Mud, however, was a potential hazard, which is why both she and Jenny had jumped clear of the mud pit. Sweetie had stomped about one third of the grapes into juice when all the other sister pairs caught up and began stomping their own grapes. Panicking, Sweetie increased the frequency and strength of her own stomps. It mattered little, however, as Berry & Pina and Dinky & Sparkler managed to finish their own grapes and move onto the next leg while Sweetie was still waiting for Jenny to catch up. “C’mon, Jenny!” Sweetie called to her as she drove herself over, finally finished with her repairs. “Ready to roll!” Jenny replied. Her retractable hand grabbed the glass and set it upon their stool. Sweetie jumped out of the barrel and scurried over to the next leg. “You sure this’ll work?” Jenny asked as she followed. “It worked last year,” Sweetie replied while going long. Jenny drove next to the bench upon which rested their crate full of apples. As per Sweetie’s instructions, Jenny slammed her hand down onto the opposite side of the bench from the apples, in turn sending them flying through the air towards the robot filly. Sweetie lifted up the catching crate and carefully positioned herself so that all the apples fell into the crate at once. It was almost a carbon copy of her stint with Rarity the year prior, the only difference being she got every apple in at the same time rather than having to bunt one in with her flank at the last second. With their crate fully loaded, Jenny & Sweetie took back second place and made way to the final leg alongside the sister pair of Golden Harvest & Noi. The two pairs ran/drove like mad toward the chicken coop where the eggs to carry were located. It was just barely, but Sweetie & Jenny managed to enter the coop first. They quickly grabbed ahold of a single egg, Sweetie with her muzzle and Jenny with her hand, and began carefully carrying it out to the egg basket. “Okay . . . easy,” Sweetie said, moving slowly to keep the egg balanced. Jenny held onto the egg by the palm of her hand, making sure not to grasp it too hard lest she crush it. Unfortunately, this only served to make the egg wobble in their collective grasp. When Sweetie changed direction upon reaching the ground, the egg shifted too far to the left and tipped over in Jenny’s palm. “Jenny, look out!” Sweetie called. It was too late. The egg fell out of their grasp and plummeted straight to the ground where it made a wet splat upon contact and shattered. Frustrated, Sweetie turned around and ran around to the coop’s entrance, to which Jenny followed her. Meanwhile, Golden & Noi had secured their egg and were making way down the ramp to the basket. They carefully maneuvered the egg into the basket and sprinted toward the finish line. Sweetie was about to rush outside the coop with the next egg alone, but Jenny clasped her hand on the robot filly’s shoulder plate and spoke. “It’s over, Sweetie.” “But . . . but . . .” Jenny shook her head. “We’ve lost.” Sweetie sighed in defeat. “I know.” Jenny smiled. “But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t finish the race together.” Sweetie looked back with a small smile of her own. “Okay, sister.” The two proceeded to successfully carry another egg down to the basket outside the coop before completing the final run to the finish line where Golden Harvest and Noi were waving to the cheering crowd. Golden looked at the two robots as they approached and smiled. “That was a great race,” she said. Sweetie half-smiled. “Yeah, I guess it was.” The yellow-coated sister pair was soon presented with their ribbons and carried off by the cheering crowd, just like last year. Jenny watched them go before re-donning her normal appearance and looking down to Sweetie. “That was a lot of fun, wasn’t it Sweetie?” The white filly sighed and looked downcast. “Yeah, I guess it was.” Jenny frowned. “Is something wrong, Sweetie?” Sweetie briefed a glance up to her before looking downcast again. “I’m just a little bummed we didn’t win.” She lifted a hoof and stared at it. “I was really hoping to show everypony how awesome I’ve become after my upgrade; maybe make some new friends too, you know?” Sweetie felt Jenny clasp a hand on her shoulder. “Sweetie . . . I purposely lost us the race.” Sweetie’s eyes widened in shock and she turned to Jenny. “What?” “I lied about my engine breaking down,” Jenny replied, “and I also intentionally let the egg fall to the ground.” “Why would you do that?” Sweetie asked, more curious than angry. “Because I didn’t want anyone trying to befriend you for the wrong reasons.” Jenny knelt down so she was at eye level with Sweetie. “Had we won the race, odds are you would’ve had a lot of ponies trying to be friends with you only because your new gadgets would help them with small, menial tasks that would’ve distracted you from the their intended purpose; to protect your friends and family from harm.” She smiled in earnest. “I learned from firsthand experience that, sometimes, people will forget about a robot’s friendship and only see them for the services they can provide.” Sweetie mulled over all of what Jenny said for a few moments before looking downcast. “Is that why Apple Bloom and Scootaloo love my new gadgets, because they think it’ll help them with their chores and junk?” Jenny’s smile changed to a happy one and she stood up. “They were your friends long before discovering you’re a robot, right? No, they’re probably just excited to see stuff blow up and whatnot. And there isn’t really anything wrong with lending them a ha-err, hoof at certain tasks using your gadgets; friends help each other out, after all. Just make sure they don’t start taking unfair advantage of you and there’s no need to worry.” Sweetie took another moment to mull over all of what Jenny said before looking up to her and smiling. “Thanks, Jenny, for everything.” “Don’t mention it, little sis,” Jenny replied, playfully ruffling the robot filly’s mane. She then opened her wrist panel and checked the time. “3:24 pm. I should get going.” Jenny activated her rocket boosters and rose a few feet up in the air. “See you later, Sweetie,” she said, looking down at her. Sweetie returned her gaze and waved a hoof. “Goodbye, big sis,” she replied. Jenny shot straight up into the sky and quickly disappeared from sight while Sweetie began happily cantering back home.
Prologue: Birth of a DroidRibbon Wishes held her newborn filly in her forelegs while her husband stood at her side. The snow-white unicorn opened her brilliant blue eyes and hiccuped while her short, curly purple mane unraveled. Then she smiled. "Aw, how precious. A foal this young with a smile like that certainly is a rarity. She's beautiful," the nurse said as she gracefully bowed out of the patient's room. Ribbon Wishes smiled and kissed her forehead. "Rarity..." Her husband wiped a tear and hugged them both. "She's perfect." ~~~ Rarity yawned and wiped her tired eyes before her ears perked up. She darted downstairs and dived beneath the Hearths Warming Tree of Giving. "Is this one for me?!" she asked with sparkling eyes. "They're all for you, kiddo." Rarity beamed and tore the package open to find a dazzling diamond necklace. "It's soooo pretty! Thank you!" Ribbon Wishes leaned into her husband's chest while they watched the filly tear her gifts open. "Ooh, I almost forgotted! Look mommy, daddy, not all of the presents are mine." She carried two small packages from beneath the tree with her teeth and dropped them onto their laps. "Open 'em up! Open!" They glanced to one another before unwrapping the gifts. Ribbon Wishes pulled out a pair of earrings made from the golden hooks used to hang tree ornaments. At the ends hung large crystal beads that matched her eyes. Her father pulled a bright blue necktie with complimentary brown felt stripes glued to the bottom. "I made them for you in arts 'n crafts. Do you like them?" Rarity looked up expectantly with gleaming blue eyes. ~~~ Rarity stood on stage in full costume next to her classmates that were dressed in outfits she had volunteered to design. They went through their routine, and Ribbon Wishes stifled her welling tears. After the recital, they found their daughter with a beautiful cutie mark and an eager grin. Their little girl was growing up. She led them to a pile of gems, then began detecting others beneath the ground. She had found her hidden talent. ~~~ Ribbon Wished cried into her husband's shoulder as their baby girl stood next to her best friends wearing a graduation gown. The ceremony concluded, and Rarity signed her first contract the next day. Rarity went back to her new home and place of business while Ribbon Wishes and her husband trudged into their empty home. "I can hardly believe our baby girl's all grown up and on 'er own. Feels like just yesterday we brought her home for the first time. What're we gonna do with all this free time, huh dear?" Ribbon asked. "Well how 'bout we have another?" he suggested with a wink. "I'm not so sure. Watchin' our little girl pack up and leave was just the hardest thing, don'cha know? I don't think my heart could take it again." She sighed and slumped into her chair. He joined her and placed a hoof to his chin. "Well, maybe there's another way we could have a new one and keep her home forever." "I'm listenin', ya hockey puck. We talkin' 'bout raising a basement baby?" "No, don't be crazy. It's expensive, but we have all that college money saved up that Rarity won't need, so... Let's get a robot," he suggested with a smirk. "Oh okay sure, and where do ya suppose we'll be findin' one of those?" she asked. He shrugged and chuckled. "One of my old football buddies was talking about how he's getting one to be a maid, or... somethin'. I guess ya can have 'em programmed to do whatever ya want and all sorts o' whacky stuff." "Oh... Well if it really works, then I say we do it." "I'll make a phone call tomorrow!" ~~~ Several weeks later, Ribbon Wishes and her husband arrived at a dark and grim laboratory where they sat at a steel table. Suddenly a bright light flashed on, and a spiky silhouetted figure approached the other end of the table. "Good afternoon," an older, feminine voice spoke from across the table, and she leaned in. "You know, I don't schedule these interviews with just anyone." "Oh, well in that case we appreciate yer time very much, ma'am." Ribbon Wishes smiled and held her hoof out. Small pale fingers reached through the light and shook her hoof. "Why do you want this droid built?" "Well you see, we're older now and both agree that our times working and our careers are done. My hubby can't play ball no more ball, and I'm out of touch with my old business and it's too late for me to start fresh. We want a daughter to take care of for as long as we live, and somepony referred us to you," Ribbon explained. "Hmhmhm, I see. Yes, very well then. Your letter piqued my curiosity and my love of a challenge kicked in. I have a design drawn up, and would like to show you." The backlight kicked off and a huge blue screen lit up to display a blueprint design of a small pony. "My name is Doctor Wakeman. It's a pleasure to meet you both." The doctor stood up and pointed a laser pointer at the blueprint as she spoke. "I've gone ahead and developed the beginnings of an AI chip that will simulate the natural act of a learning, growing child. Of course I've adapted it to suit your equine biology. She will eat, think, sleep, breath, and even dream, though each of those things is redundant and simply for the simulated experience of parenthood. Her body is fueled by solar power as well as a perpetual generator that charges as she moves her hydraulic limbs. She will require love and attention to indicate that she is functioning properly which will be reflected through her emotions. It will be as if she's really your living, affectionate daughter. I know as well as many others the desire for a daughter, which led to the initial development of this technology... I digress. Tell me, is there anything you'd like me to include?" Each pony looked to the other and shrugged. "Our first daughter is an amazing singer. Could you possibly make it so this robot can sing, too?" "Ooh, and give 'er a horn!" Ribbon added, then blushed. "If it ain't too much trouble, I mean." "No trouble at all. Now, did you bring everything I asked for? I'll need you to let me take a few photos of you as well," she explained as she took a file of pictures depicting their home and town. "That's not a problem." "Excellent. These will do nicely. I need them to create artificial memories of childhood and to form a preexisting bond." Wakeman bowed her head and sighed. "She won't know she's a robot until you tell her. She may not even ever be aware of what robots are unless you explain it to her. I'll leave that decision in your hands... Excuse me, hooves." "Thank you so much for this, Doctor." "Ohhohoho." Wakeman blushed and waved her hand. "Call me Nora. Now let's get started with these memories. We've got a long road ahead of us." ~~~ Ribbon Wishes opened her front door to see a large crate labeled, 'Wakeman Industries'. She pulled it inside and pried the top off, then all four walls fell. In the center rested a small white unicorn filly with a peaceful smile and closed eyes. A plastic tag with the characters, SW3-B printed on it stuck lodged in the back of her neck. She pulled it out, then the filly began to buzz. She stood up and her eyes open, blankly staring into the distance. In a raspy robotic voice, she said, "Greetings. I am your custom designed SW3-B unit with patented AIBIS CPU Software created and distributed by Wakeman Industries Inc. Terms of use can be found within my shipping unit. Please say 'I accept' to continue." The stallion lifted a six-hundred page book labeled Terms of Use and Service. "Uh, I accept." "Thank you for choosing Wakeman Industries Inc. Please assign my name." "What should we name her?" Ribbon asked. He looked at the tag and shrugged. "Swee Bee?" The android perked her ears and spoke up. "Name: Sweebee accepted. Please say confirm to verify. This cannot be changed later." "No no no. Sweetie Belle." "Name: Sweetie Belle accepted. Please say confirm to verify. This cannot be changed later." "Confirm!" Ribbon Shouted. "Name registered. Running Vocoder Processing... Processing... Processing... Sweetie Belle," she said with a higher, softer, yet still very robotic voice. "Sweetie Belle..." Her voice was softer and smoother. "Sweetie Belle," she said with the voice of a precious young filly. The little unicorn with a pink and purple mane shook her head, then opened her bright green eyes with confusion. "Mom? Dad? What happened? What's this mess in the house?" The two ponies leaned down with tears in their eyes. Ribbon picked her up and hugged her, then noted her warmth and light weight. "Nothing, sweetheart. You're home now, and we'll take care of this mess. Don't you worry." "Home... I'm hungry," Sweetie Belle said with a yawn. "I love you, mommy and daddy." "We love you too, Sweetie Belle."
Pilot: Update to UpgradeSweetie Belle trotted into the front room and shook her head with a frown. "Something wrong, kiddo?" her mom asked. "Yes! Sweetie shouted. "Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and me were playing and getting our cutie marks, and I... I stopped remembering things. I just left, I don't even remember what they were doing or saying." "Did ya bop yer head?" "What? No!" Sweetie Belle shook her head and groaned. "Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and me were playing and getting our cutie marks, and I just stopped remembering things. I'm not sure what happened. The last thing I remember is Apple Bloom looking at me like I was an idiot." "Oh my, this may be serious... Let me call your nurse." Ribbon Wishes picked up a phone and dialed out. Soon a receptionist answered and directed her call. "Hello, Wakeman Tech Support. What's troubling you today?" "Sweetie Belle isn't able to remember things, or she remembers only a few small things at a time. What should I do?" "Sounds like she's capped her short term memory card. That's supposed to be impossible since she's programmed to dump older short term memories after they become irrelevant. Go ahead and power her down, then manually wipe the card. That'll fix the problem for now, and we'll run remote diagnostics in the mean time." Ribbon Wishes crossed her eyes and scratched her head. "Alright, Hun. I have no idea what you just said to me. Can you send somepony over to help?" "Some... pony? Oh... Oh! That's right, you're in Equestria. I'm afraid we don't have any nearby technicians, so it'll be approximately a three day wait, but hopefully much sooner. I'll post the beacon now if you'd like." Ribbon glanced down at her daughter, who pounded on her head with her hooves. "Yes, please." "Thank you for your call, and help is on the way." The service woman hung up, and Ribbon Wishes sighed. "Somepony is on their way to help you, sweetheart. I'm sorry I can't do it myself." She kneeled down and hugged her frustrated daughter. "I can't remember what I was doing..." "I know. Just be patient." *** A teenage robot flipped through a magazine and giggled at the pictures of male models advertising sexy clothing. She kicked her feet up and down while she skimmed, then her bedroom door slid open. "Jenny, would you like to take a trip with me?" Wakeman asked. "Mom! It's called knocking, hello!" Jenny shouted as she tucked her magazine away with a blue hue of blush glowing on her polished metal cheeks. "Oh, yes dear. I apologize. Now come with me." Wakeman gestured towards the door and walked out. Jenny rolled her eyes and followed her downstairs. "So where are we going?" "There's someone I think you'd like to meet. I didn't mention it to you before because I wasn't sure if this would work properly, but it was a success and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised." Jenny's eyes widened and she scrunched her cheeks. "Is it another robot? A cute teenage robot?" "Yes. Well, no. It is a robot, but she's not a teenager. She's a young female horse with the mind of a ten-year-old," Wakeman explained as they climbed into her car. Jenny sighed and drooped her pigtails. "Oh... Great." "Oh don't give me that, you. I think you two will hit it off. Plus, I've never built a pony before, and this one is extra cute if I don't say so myself." Wakeman tilted her nose up and pressed a button that caused her car tires to lay flat and launch them into the air with rocket propulsion. "So she's extra cute? Can I keep her?" Jenny asked. "She's one of a kind just like you, XJ9. Her name is SW3-B, and you two have more in common than you might think." Wakeman slid on a smug smile pressed on the throttle. Jenny groaned and rested her cheek on her fist. "My name is Jenny, and I bet her name isn't really SW3-B..." "Ohhoho heh..." Wakeman laughed. "You'll see when we get there. I'm interested to see how she's doing." *** Sweetie Belle pressed her forehead against the floor and scooted herself around upside down until she crashed into a wall. "Where am I?!" "Calm down, Sweetie. Help will be here in a couple of days," Ribbon Wishes said while flipping through Sweetie's instruction manual. Just then, there was a knock at the door. Ribbon dropped the book and pulled it open, and her eyes widened at the sight of the familiar old woman. "Oh my, so nice to see you again, Nora." "Yes, and you as well. I'd like you to meet my, my daughter, Jenny," Wakeman said as the six and a half foot tall android stepped into the home. Sweetie Belle covered her mouth and shrieked, "Robot!" She then darted into her bedroom. Jenny grumbled while Doctor Wakeman chucked. "So I see you haven't told her yet... I'm here because I saw the beacon and wanted to check in personally. SW3-B is a very special project to me." "Oh yes, the beacon. Well you see, she can't rem—" "Remember anything new. I'm well aware. I just want you to know that this is a result of her never rebooting, and I now need to perform a manual update by wiping her cached short term memories. The problem is that in order for this update to function properly, SW3-B will remember it. If she isn't aware of her anatomy, then that might be a temporary problem. I'll give you a moment to prepare how to tell her, but we need to perform this update as soon as possible to ensure no permanent damage to her STM Card," Wakeman explained. "Oh... I see. I understand." Jenny frowned and took a step back. "That little pony was a robot?" Wakeman nodded. "Yes. That Exo-Skin is quite remarkable. Fur is so much easier than bare skin, admittedly. SW3-B, please come out here!" she called out. Ribbon Wishes frowned and cleared her throat. "Sweetie Belle, we need to talk to you. This robot is friendly, so don't worry." Sweetie Belle peeked through her bedroom door, then slowly stepped out. She stepped into the front room and locked eyes with Jenny, who smiled and waved. Sweetie squeaked and hugged her mother's leg. "Robot!" Wakeman wiped a tear from her wide, watery eyes. "She's operating perfectly. This is my cutest work to date." Jenny raised an eyebrow and put a hand on her hip. "She's pretty cute, sure..." Wakeman walked over to the little filly droid and scratched behind her warm ears, then reached behind her neck and deactivated her. Sweetie's eyes widened and she went stiff. "Alright, now allow me to take care of this while you prepare your talk. Sweetie Belle, as you've named her, may be a robot, but her mind is as delicate and pure as that of a child. I trust you will be optimal patents and help her through this." Ribbon Wishes wiped her teary eyes and turned away as Wakeman lifted a hatch on the side of her head to slide out a series of memory drives. "Let me know when you're done." The doctor nodded as she used her precision tools to pluck a small black chip from its slot, then plugged it into her pocket reader. Billions of memory files were displayed through hundreds of thousands of subfolders, and Wakeman felt herself sink into the warmth and love that were apparent in the file names about her parents, her sister, and her best friends. A thought to secretly peek into Jenny's memories crossed her mind. She then sorted the files into dormant and repressed status. Everyday events flooded the dormant category, while her angry sister and classmate bullies filled the other. She wiped the dormant ones and replaced the card into Sweetie's head, then latched it shut. "There we go. Now to update her process execution functions so that this won't happen again." "Did you do this to me?" asked Jenny. "I haven't had to. I'm not sure what went wrong here, but it should be fixed now. For some reason her memories that should have been temporary files were being permanently stored. For instance, she specifically remembered how she's opened her bedroom door every day for the past three years, or since activation. Intriguing." Wakeman closed a separate hatch after modifying her programming, then pressed the hidden button behind her neck again. Sweetie Belle blinked several times and wiped her eyes as a series of numbers and symbols crowded her vision. "What did you do to me?" "Just relax, that coding will be gone in a few moments," Wakeman explained. Jenny crossed her arms and watched the little robot stumbling around, then a deathly shriek caught her attention. She opened the front door and spotted five large timberwolves surrounding a pink pony with a yellow mane, who fainted. "Hold on!" Jenny shouted as she flew into action. As one wolf pounced towards the mare, Jenny uppercutted it, which sent its head flying, and rest of its body fell into shambles. The pink mare regained consciousness and scurried away through the opening. The four remaining wolves then surrounded Jenny, who lowered her stance and grinned. "Bring it, you mossy mongrels." The timberwolves glanced to each other, then snarled as they prowled towards her. One leaped forward and Jenny's hand became a timber saw, which sliced the creature down the center with ease. The next attack was met with a rocket propelled roundhouse kick that shattered the wolf into pieces. The final wolf backed away and bared its sharp, wooden teeth. It stood among the remains of its fallen friends, which glowed green as they assembled around him. Each part attached to the remaining wolf to increase his size dramatically, then it delivered an earthshaking roar. Jenny fell backwards beneath the boom of sound, them flew into the air. "You know what they say, right?" Her fists became giant hooks which she stabbed into its chest. "The bigger they are..." She activated her rocket thrusters and slowly lifted the creature off the ground, which whimpered and flailed its legs. "What, scared of heights?" she asked as they soared higher. Jenny then began spinning, swinging the huge beast around and around before she released the hooks and flung it into the side of a cliff hanging over the Everfree Forest. Her arms regrew from their sockets and she brushed her hands off with a smug smirk. "...the harder they fall." Jenny landed back in the center of Ponyville to be swarmed by a crowd of cheering ponies. "Thank you so much, great hero!" they called out. Jenny gracefully bowed and accepted her due praise. Sweetie Belle rushed to her side and looked up with wide, glistening eyes. "You're amazing! I want to know how to do all the things you just did so I can be an awesome superhero too!" Sweetie Belle shouted while she hopped around her new idol. Jenny blushed and knelt down. "I'm not sure if you're the right kind of robot. What sorts of powers do you have?" Sweetie Belle shrugged and inspected herself. "Uhm... hmm..." she mumbled as she lifted the bottom of her hoof. "I don't know..." Doctor Wakeman stood behind her and placed a hand to her chin. "If it's okay with your parents, I could make a few physical upgrades to you so that you could help protect this town from such monsters in the future." The town mayor chimed in. "A crime-fighting superpowered robot will be a great addition to the town! Not to mention the boom to tourism. I can see it now, Sweetie Bot, the Superhero of Ponyvi... Oh, and of course keeping the citizens safe is my number one priority." Wakeman winked and rubbed the filly's soft mane, then glanced to her parents who watched with worried frowns. "Of course, the final decision is yours." "Please, please, pleeeeease!" Sweetie Belle cried and hopped in circles. "I wanna be a robot like... like her!" Jenny leaned down and frowned. "Are you sure, Sweetie Belle? I used to want to be a robot just like you; a robot that blended in and was treated like a normal person. If you were like me, your friends might treat you differently." Sweetie Belle looked back at her parents, then nodded. "Yes, I definitely want to. What if you weren't here? I want to be able to protect the town in case something bad happens and I'm the only one here ponies can depend on." "Mhm, an admirable point of view, Sweetie Belle," Wakeman noted. Ribbon Wishes sighed and hugged her husband. "If it's what you want, then it's fine by me, Hun. I don't have the bits to pay for this yet, though." "Oh don't worry about that. It'll be my pleasure. Free of charge." Wakeman tilted her head and examined Sweetie Belle. "Mayor, how fierce are the monsters that inhabit the area?" "Quite fierce! I've seen everything from a giant three-headed monster dog to a ferocious rampaging hydra in my day. I'm still worried about the dragons that dwell in caves around here as well, who knows when they'll try and destroy the town?" Mayor Mare explained. Wakeman nodded and tapped the filly. "I see. She'll need new Exo-Armor and a series of defensive installations. I hope you don't mind that she may not simulate an organic filly quite as much. She'll still be the same Sweetie Belle inside, but she will be a new girl on the outside." Ribbon Wishes nodded. "Knowing my little girl, she'll never forgive me if I don't let her do this, so... I'm grateful for the three years I've had with her, and I'm looking forward to the rest of our lives with her no matter how she might change. I love ya, kiddo." Wakeman clicked her car keys which called the vehicle over, then she climbed in. "I'll get started immediately. In two weeks, you'll have your daughter back." Sweetie Belle turned back to face her parents. "Tell Scootaloo and Apple Bloom that I'll miss them. I can't wait to tell them that I'm actually a robot!" Jenny climbed into the front seat and looked out the window at all the friendly faces waving her off. Sweetie Belle jumped into the backseat and waved back at them. Jenny sighed and shook her head. I hope you know what you're doing, Sweetie Belle...
Ep 1: Know Your PartsSweetie Belle stepped up to the front door of her home and opened it. She walked inside and met the gazes of her parents, who dropped their jaws. "Sweetie Belle?" her mother asked as she looked her daughter over, noting her shiny metal body and mane as well as the steel-blue panel plates connecting her Exo-Armor. In a raspy electronic voice, she answered, "My name is SW3-B, Vanquisher of Evil, Protector of Worlds." Ribbon Wishes covered her mouth and pouted. "Hehe, I'm just kidding!" Sweetie chirped in her normal voice before pulling her mother into a tight hug. "I missed you, mommy!" "I... missed you, too, H-Hun." She choked and tapped her daughter's back. "You're stronger..." "Oh! Oopsie." Sweetie Belle blushed and backed away. "Jenny is supposed to teach me how to manage my new robo-powers, but she had to go destroy a c-class meteor, or... something." "Aw, that's too bad. Or I guess it's good? Anywho, what kinda new stuff you got goin' on?" her mother asked. Sweetie Belle shrugged and lifted her front leg, which transformed into a grappling gun and fired a hookshot through the wall. "Oops! I... Uhm... okay hold on." She then wiggled her leg around until the hook retracted, which finished tearing the wall down on its way back. Her father sat on the toilet behind the wall reading a newspaper. He lowered it and raised an eyebrow. Sweetie shielded her eyes and gagged before heading outside. "I'm gonna try and figure this stuff out for a minute. I think I get how it works, but it's weird." Ribbon scratched her head and blushed. "Okay. Be careful, sugarplum." "I will!" Sweetie Belle waved goodbye, which turned her other foreleg into a sparking taser. She blushed and shook her hoof back to normal. "...Bye!" She galloped down the street for a while, and then began to slowly trot as she reached the trail through Sweet Apple Acres. The sun glared down from above, and she noted that the feeling of heat was absent. After a few short minutes, she reached her clubhouse. "Scootaloo? Apple Bloom?" she called out, then two familiar faces peeked out through the window. "Wow!" Scootaloo shouted. "You look so awesome!" Apple Bloom trotted down the ramp and inspected her automaton friend. "Why didn't you tell us you were a... a robot?" "I didn't know," Sweetie Belle explained. "Who cares?" Scootaloo bumped into Sweetie Belle and tapped her side. "Ooh, solid. Let's go blow stuff up with rockets and explosions!" Sweetie Belle frowned and took a step back. "Wait, I don't know how to control my stuff yet. Jenny is gonna teach me as soon as she gets back from destroying a deadly meteor." Scootaloo's eyes widened and she chewed on the tips of her hooves in overwhelming excitement. Apple Bloom narrowed her eyes and placed a hoof to her chin. "So... have you been a robot the whole time? Or did ya go get turned into one?" Apple Bloom asked. "Whole time, but I didn't know. I guess I'm only three years old, too. I have thirteen years of memories, but some were implanted, or... something." Sweetie Belle shrugged and smiled. "Implanted, huh?" Apple Bloom said and turned away while Scootaloo poked at Sweetie's legs. Sweetie Belle pulled her leg away and accidentally triggered a rocket thruster that sent her toppling over and crashing into a tree. "Ouch!" Scootaloo cringed and peeked between her front hooves. "I'm sorry! Are you okay?" Sweetie Belle stood up and shrugged. "Yeah, I think so. That didn't hurt at all, but it was scary." Apple Bloom rushed to her side and hugged her. "You gotta be more careful, silly." "I know, I know. I'm not sure what I'm doing though... I'm sorry I'm not as cool as you guys thought I'd be." Sweetie Belle sighed and lowered her head. "Apple Bloom and I think you're robotness is awesome, right?" Scootaloo grinned and placed a wing over her shiny metal back. "You'll get used to your gadgets soon I bet. When you put your mind to it, you can do anything!" "That's right!" Apple Bloom wrapped a foreleg around her friend's neck and nuzzled her cheek. "We'll be here to help ya every step of the way!" Suddenly, the tips of two short antennae attached to Sweetie Belle's ears began flashing red. Her chest then slid open and a monitor sprung out. On the screen was Jenny struggling to cut through a solid metal meteorite. "Sweetie Belle! I need your help to break this thing apart. There was an error on the radar and the density was miscalculated. We need to fuse our particle beams in order to—" The screen went to static, and Sweetie Belle looked to the sky. In the distance was a bright white dot, and she gritted her teeth. "Guys... This is what I gotta do... I... I need to go, now, or Equestria could be in huge trouble!" Scootaloo and Apple Bloom glance to each other with wide, beaming smiles. "This is so cool!" they shouted in unison. "This is serious!" Sweetie Belle frowned and wiggled her ears. "Right!" Scootaloo thought for a moment. "Okay, so remember how you pulled away from me earlier? Do that with all your legs at the same time." Apple Bloom nodded, then Sweetie gave it a shot. Sure enough, all four thrusters activated and her ears repositioned themselves on the side of her head while her tail transformed into tail wings. "Whoa!" Sweetie Belle shouted while struggling to keep her midair balance. "It worked!" Apple Bloom cheered. "Okay, now try and move forward. Point your nose towards that star and just go!" Sweetie Belle nodded and focused on her target, then aimed her thrusters all in the same direction. In a flash, she zipped through the air as the output automatically increased after detecting alignment. Her tail and ears kept her level as she soared and left a thick pink trail of vapor behind her. Glancing down, the cloud tops blurred into a round blanket covering the world, and the top of her head frosted over. "Woo!" she shouted as she tilted her head and made a gradual curve to the right. Soon the meteor was in full sight, and she crash landed onto the surface. "Glad you made it." A tall female android pointed a large pistol at her head. "Talk about two birds..." Sweetie Belle tilted her head, then reacted instantly as the gun fired. She ducked beneath a small device fired towards her head, then lifted her front leg. "Come on, do something! Lasers! Rockets! Anything!" "AHHHH-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You think a baby battle-droid can stand up to the amazing Queen Vexus? Even your superior, XJ9 has fallen. Just surrender now and join The Cluster before I'm forced to scuff up that pretty armor of yours." Vexus smiled and pointed towards Jenny, who was tied up and unconscious with a mind-controlling device attached to her head. Sweetie Belle glared and lowered her body. "Never!" Queen Vexus clenched her fist, which began to glow. Sweetie Belle pointed her foreleg which immediately fired a grappling hook at the evil robot, who ducked beneath it with ease. The hookshot then crashed into Jenny's forehead and knocked loose the device. Jenny shook her head, then opened her eyes. "Wha... Queen Vexus!" Sweetie Belle stepped backwards as Jenny tore the steel cables wrapped around her body to shreds. "No, you fool!" Vexus fired another shot at Jenny, who zipped forward and delivered a powerful swing with a spiky fist. Vexus phased through the attack unharmed, and Sweetie Belle readied her grappling hook. "It seems you've managed get loose again... Next time, XJ9. I promise you that you and your impudent little friend will be mine." Jenny fired an array of rockets towards Queen Vexus, who tore a rift in space and slipped through. The rockets carried onto the distance after the portal closed, and Jenny balled her fist. "I haven't seen her in years... We need to be careful. Good thinking with that grappling hook by the way. Anything else might have actually damaged me." "Thanks," Sweetie said with a blush. "But who was that mean lady?" Jenny lowered her pigtails and sighed. "She's trouble. She wants us to join her ever growing army of bad robots who want to enslave all life on this planet. We have to stop her before she grows too powerful. I... I let my guard down while dealing with this meteor." "Well now that I'm here, I'll watch your back! Let's take care of this thing!" Sweetie Belle smiled and activated her thrusters. "Don't worry. That transmission you got was a fake. Queen Vexus is a master of trickery. I can handle this wimpy c-class no problem. I'll teach you how to deal with them later," Jenny said as she fired a drill-tipped missile into the meteor's core. The two then took flight and headed back to the surface of the earth. After landing, the explosive device detonated and blasted the space rock into a million pieces that lit up the sky in a spectacular display of mid-day shooting stars. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom bumped their hooves together as they watched the tiny balls of fire dissipating in the sky. Jenny smiled and leaned down next to her cybernetic companion. "You're a natural at this. I remember when I first started trying to fly and use my gadgets... Let's just say that you'll have it mastered in no time at all." Sweetie Belle blushed and smiled. "I can't wait to learn." Jenny crossed her arms and grinned. "Good! Lesson one starts right... Now!" The Cybernetic Life
Ep 2: Trouble With GyroscopicsSweetie Belle hovered in midair with small plumes of vapor puffing from the bottoms of her hooves. "That's it. You're doing great!" Jenny cheered from the ground. Sweetie Belle beamed with pride, then suddenly plummeted several meters. She flailed around and regained her bearings just before hitting the ground, then she collapsed into the dirt. With a huff, she brushed herself off. "This stinks..." "Don't fret. Mastering your antigravity gyro takes a lot of practice. The gyroscope turns with your body, so don't overcorrect." Jenny explained as she levitated off the ground. Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes and kicked the ground, then activated her rocket thrusters. "Why can't I just use these instead of that dumb old anti-gravithingy?" Sweetie Belle asked. Jenny poked Sweetie's belly bolt and pulled out a fuel gauge. "You've got about three hours worth of fuel before you'll need to gas up. Of course, at your max speed of around Mach-Five-ish, you can fly around the world in less than twenty seconds." "Awesome! I wanna try that!" Sweetie Belle kicked off the ground with bright green flames jutting from her hooves and tail. "Whoa! Settle down there, turbo. Those speeds are for emergencies only. Breaking the sound barrier at all could be risky, not to mention the friction heat. Just use your gyro for now." Jenny crossed her arms. "Aw, but why? I really don't like this thing," Sweetie Belle complained. Jenny groaned and blasted the ground with her own thrusters to creat a small crater. "Look, using rocket thrusters near the ground is dangerous, alright? You could easily crash and damage yourself, or you could accidentally hurt someone else. Just... trust me! Okay?!" Sweetie Belle slumped down and pouted. "Fine..." A red light began to flash on Jenny's wrist, and she rolled her eyes. "I've gotta run. Keep practicing and I'll check back in a few." She jumped into the air and blasted off into the distance. Sweetie Belle huffed and stood up, then closed her eyes and began to levitate with wobbly instability. She flipped forward and face-planted into the dirt, then groaned. As she opened her eyes, two orange hooves were standing at her muzzle. "Whatcha doin'?" asked Scootaloo. Sweetie Belle hopped up and dusted herself off with a quick spin. "Nothing... I'm trying to use my stupid anti-gravimajigger because Jenny says it's the most important tool I have when facing monsters... Something about stability in midair is better than rocket thrusters alone, or... something." "Wait, you mean you're trying to fly without rockets?" Scootaloo asked as she spread her small wings. "Yeah. It's more like floating than flying, though," Sweetie Belle explained. Scootaloo sighed and tucked her wings in. "I wish I was a robot..." Sweetie Belle drooped her ears and averted her gaze. "I'm sorry, Scootaloo." "Nah, you're good." She smiled and hopped up and down. "So what's the problem?" Sweetie Belle shrugged. "I don't know. I can start hovering, but then I just fall forward... like I'm too top-heavy or something." "Top-heavy, huh?" Scootaloo trotted in a circle around her bionic friend. "Well maybe the gravimajigger just isn't for you? I saw you floating with rockets earlier, just practice that instead." "But then I'll run out of fuel." Sweetie Belle sighed and kicked the ground. Scootaloo scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Then you'll just refuel, duh. Go on! Try it out!" Sweetie Belle smiled and rapidly nodded. She then took a deep breath and activated her thrusters. "Alright!" Scootaloo smiled and widened her eyes as the bright green fire lifted her friend into the air. "Nice one, Sweetie!" Sweetie Belle nodded and carefully adjusted her hooves and tail to keep her balance while her ears folded down into stability wings. "I'm way better at this." "You look so cool..." Scootaloo swallowed a lump in her throat and looked away while she placed her hoof to her chin. Sweetie Belle nervously wiggled around before lowering the thrusters' outputs and gracefully landing back onto the ground. As her body reconfigured itself for non-flight, she faceplanted into the dirt once again. Scootaloo chuckled and helped her clumsy friend to her hooves. "See? You got it all under control... Mostly, anyway." "Yeah well there's no way I'll know for sure unless we test it out in action," Sweetie Belle said. "You're right." Scootaloo crossed her forelegs and rubbed her chin. "I got it!" *** Scootaloo and Apple Bloom each stood next to a bushel of mushy old apples while Sweetie Belle skeptically waited some distance away. "Guys, I don't know about this," Sweetie said with a frown. "This is perfect. Just dodge the apples we throw at you while keeping your balance. It's the perfect practice," explained Scootaloo. "Sounds good to me." Apple Bloom grinned and lifted a squishy apple onto her front hoof. Sweetie Belle shrugged and kicked off the ground. "Well, if you say so..." Scootaloo and Apple Bloom each readied their mushy projectiles while Sweetie Belle balanced herself on her thrusters. "You ready?" Apple Bloom shouted. "I think so, just a min—"splat! Sweetie Belle shook a pile of apple goop from her face with a scowl. "What the hay was that?!" Scootaloo blushed and shrugged. "Oops, sorry." Sweetie Belle huffed and calmed herself. "Okay, I'm actually ready this time." Apple Bloom and Scootaloo nodded to each other, then lifted their apples. Apple Bloom tossed her apple, and Sweetie Belle instantly dropped half a meter by manually lowering her output. Scootaloo chucked her fruit, and Sweetie burst higher to miss it, then to the left as Apple Bloom threw another. "Wow, nice moves, kid," Rainbow Dash said as she fluttered next to Sweetie Belle. "Whoa-oh!" Sweetie fell to the ground, startled. "Ow..." Rainbow Dash ducked an apple and then glared at Scootaloo, who dropped a second one. "So, Sweetie Belle. Word has it that you're some kind of super-fast-robot-flying-machine. Wanna race?" "Uhm... I'm not sure if I have flying down mastered yet," Sweetie explained. "Right. You're obviously better at falling down," Rainbow Dash said with a laugh. "Come on, kiddo. Take it from me: practice makes perfect. Let's do a lap around Ponyville." Sweetie Belle looked to her two best friends, who each rapidly nodded with wide grins. "Okay. Let's do it." "Atta girl. Okay... Ready... On your mark... Get set go!" Rainbow Dash darted into the air in a flash and disappeared into the distance. Sweetie Belle thrust herself forward and crash landed, her thrusters plowing her face through the dirt. "Dumb rocket legs!" She hopped back into the air and took off with a huge burst of green flames. Her ears flattened horizontally as she picked up speed, then she tilted her head to make a wide turn. The moisture in the air vaporized into a pink cloud mist as she cut through the air at transonic speeds. Her optic scanner turned a quickly approaching hill into a grid map with several red squares along its side. Sweetie Belle detected an imminent collision, then pulled herself upward. She shot straight up into the air, and then she overcorrected herself into a downward spiral and crashed into the forest. She tucked in her legs and tore through the ground while trees and boulders were flung into the air in a plume of dirt and dust. Sweetie Belle laid motionless and half-buried in the ground. She lifted her foreleg only to see twisted metal with sparking wires jutting out from within. Her sight went black, and she shut down. "Psst. Wake up... Anypony home in there?" Sweetie Belle jerked and sparked, then her eyes lit up. Her vision was blocked by a series of notations and statistics being displayed. Her systems noted sever damage to her upper right leg as well as external minor trauma dealt to every inch of her Exo-Armor. The screen minimized itself, and she was blinded by piercing sunlight. "Wakey wakey!" Sweetie Belle shielded her eyes as they slowly adjusted and focused. She watched her foreleg auto-repairing itself and ejecting old, twisted chunks of metal while replacing them with fresh panels from beneath. After it was complete, she lowered it to see a silhouetted mare standing over her. "You alright?" "Yeah. I think so. I feel funny though," Sweetie Belle said as she wobbled to her hooves. "Funny how? Like dizzy?" Rainbow Dash asked as she examined her head. "Hmm... So I guess you really do have a long ways to go, huh?" Sweetie Belle's ears drooped and she rolled her eyes. "I told you so..." "Hey, no harm no... fowl," Rainbow Dash said as she glanced around the devastated forest area. Several squirrels and rabbits crossed their arms and glared. "I'm sorry, forest critters... I... I didn't mean to crash into your homes." Sweetie Belle widened her eyes and began to leak the excess jet engine coolant from her optical corner-ducts. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes as the boiling liquid soaked the dirt. "Hey, come on. They're forest animals that are good at surviving. They'll just hide under the fallen trees or whatever. Let's get outta here." Sweetie Belle frowned and wiped her eyes. "Oh, well okay. I'm still very sorry... Also, I'm just gonna walk if you don't mind." "You sure you're gonna be alright?" Rainbow Dash asked as Sweetie Belle shook a loose piece of bent armor to the ground. "Yeah. I'm feeling better already. Thanks, Rainbow Dash. Sorry about the race, by the way." Sweetie Belle ruefully scoffed and trudged through loose earth. "Hey, don't sweat it, kid. We'll have a rematch when you feel like you can handle yourself better. I shouldn't have pressured you when you didn't feel ready. I guess robot flying isn't like pegasus flying..." Rainbow Dash fluttered into the air and shrugged. "I'll walk ya home." Sweetie Belle smiled as Rainbow Dash flew by her side, and the two made their way through the forest back towards home. *** Sweetie Belle hovered in midair while Scootaloo and Apple Bloom cheered from the ground. She flipped around and held her balance for several long moments, then gently landed on her hooves. Jenny clapped her hands and leaned down with a proud smile. "Awesome job! I knew you could do it." Sweetie Belle beamed and blushed. "You know what they say, right? Practice makes perfect."
Guest Episode 3: Sisterhooves CircuitrySisterhooves Circuitry Guest Writer: Razalon Sweetie Belle sat on her bed, looking at the flyer in her hoof longingly. Today was the day of the Sisterhooves Social, held at Sweet Apple Acres where sister pairs would compete against each other in various events. Sweetie Belle had been looking forward to the Social ever since Apple Bloom let her know of its date. But when Sweetie had told Rarity this, the fashionista announced that she and her friends would be in Manehattan for a fashion show that day and she wouldn’t be able to compete with her in the Social like last year. Sweetie, though saddened to no end, said she understood to which Rarity promised to be there for her the following year, no buts about it. That didn’t cure Sweetie’s sorrow of not being able to compete in the Social this year, however, especially now that she had an upgrade they’d plow through the competition in the Big Race event. Sweetie was pulled from her thoughts by a knock on her bedroom door. “Come in!” she called. The door opened to reveal Jenny, a small smile gracing her metal face. “Hi Sweetie Belle!” she said, and strode over to the bed, her robotic feet making loud clanking noises with each step. “I finally found some free time to come here and see how your training was coming along.” She sat down on the bed, which sank underneath her immense weight, but thankfully didn’t buckle and collapse. “So, how’s it coming along?” Sweetie sighed. “Alright, I guess.” Jenny sensed the depression in Sweetie’s voice and frowned. “Is something wrong, Sweetie?” Sweetie turned the flyer around so Jenny could see it. She looked down and read the text printed upon it. “’The Sisterhooves Social: Where sister pairs compete against each other in all kinds of neat events for pseudo glory and fancy ribbons. Be at Sweet Apple Acres on the date of 1/5/02 at 1:00 pm if you wish to compete." “I was looking forward to competing in it with Rarity like we did last year.” Sweetie let the flyer fall to the floor and sighed again. “But she had to go to a fashion show in Manehattan, so she couldn’t compete.” Another sigh. “I guess I’ll give the Anti-Gravity thingie some more practice instead.” Jenny looked down at the little robot filly sympathetically. Being the oldest sister of her own siblings (whom were still, thankfully, powered down and in storage), Jenny could only make an educated guess at how Sweetie Belle was feeling right now. “. . . Sweetie, I could compete with you if it makes you feel better.” Sweetie blanked for a moment, then looked up in surprise at the humanoid robot girl. “You want to compete in the Social?” “Sure, I mean, I’ve got a few hours to kill before mom wants me back home.” A panel in Jenny’s wrist opened up and a built-in cuckoo clock rose out. “It’s now . . . 12:53 pm. Our rocket boosters will get us to Sweet Apple Acres in time if we leave right now.” “I don’t know, Jenny,” Sweetie replied worriedly, “the flyer says ‘sister pairs’ and we’re not really sisters.” Jenny furrowed her iron brows. “Just because there’s no blood between us doesn’t make us unrelated; mom created us both, therefore we’re sisters.” Sweetie tapped her chin in thought for a moment before smiling. “Well, I guess it couldn’t hurt to ask.” Jenny reached down and ruffled Sweetie’s synthetic mulberry mane. “That’s the spirit kiddo.” She activated her rocket boosters and opened the nearest window. “Well, come on; you’ve gotta show me the way.” Sweetie smiled, and activated her own rocket boosters. Her aim faltered, however, and she banged her head on the window frame as she flew out after Jenny, who giggled. “Want me to kiss your boo boo, little sis?” she jokingly said. “Ha ha,” Sweetie responded, rubbing her metal plating whilst rolling her eyes. She began heading south. “It’s this way.” With a haughty smile, Jenny followed. As it turned out, the question of whether or not Sweetie and Jenny would be allowed to compete in the Sisterhooves Social wasn’t about whether they were true sisters. Rather, Granny Smith was adamant that their ‘fancy hi-tech doohickery’ would give the robot pair too great of an advantage over the other sister teams. “C’mon, Granny Smith,” Sweetie Belle whined. “Please let us compete.” The olden mare chortled half-sarcastically in her chair on the platform, her bullhorn in front of her. “Compete, yeah right; more like mop the floor with yer fancy schmancy gadgets n’ junk.” Sweetie looked downcast while Jenny put her hands on her hips. “Miss Smith,” she said, “we’ll willingly handicap ourselves to make the competition fair.” Granny looked up at the teenage girl. “How?” she inquired. Jenny activated her ‘Toy Car mode’ and collapsed her body into a smaller shape, resembling, of course, a remote-controlled toy car. All that remained of her normal appearance was her head, which sat atop the little gadget with a proud smile upon the face. Granny stared in surprise at the teenage robot, now no taller than Sweetie next to her, and furrowed her brows in thought. “Ah still don’t know ‘bout it,” she said. “How do Ah know y’all won’t cheat anyway?” “Look,” Jenny replied; the sight of a talking head atop a toy car slightly unnerved Granny Smith, “I already studied the race course and all I need to finish it in this form are this,” a panel opened up in front of Jenny’s face, to which a metallic hand rose out and waved before retracting, “and this,” a spring mechanism activated in Jenny’s wheels which caused her to bounce about five feet into the air, startling Granny Smith. “And I promise not to use anything but my own four hooves and mouth,” Sweetie proclaimed, her previous sorrow dispelled. Granny Smith looked unsure. “Well, Ah’m still not too sure ‘bout lettin’-“ She stopped herself mid-sentence upon seeing the look in Sweetie’s eyes. The look which all adults dreaded. That which could easily override their sense of authority if weak-willed. Granny Smith had used it on her own parents as a filly, and even a few times as a mare, all to the same effect of getting what she wanted. Now, however, she was on the receiving end of that look, and it made her cringe with regret at what she was about to do. Curse you, puppy dog eyes . . . “Alright, fine,” Granny Smith said. “Y’all can compete.” Sweetie Belle immediately beamed while Jenny merely rolled her eyes with a small smile. “But if’n either of ya cheat, Ah’ll personally drag ya outta the race with my false teeth. Am Ah clear?” Both robots nodded. “Good.” Granny Smith leaned back into her chair. “Now head on over ta the startin’ line.” “AND MAY THE BEST SISTERS WIN!!!” Granny Smith shouted into her bullhorn. The crowd of ponies in the bleachers cheered uproariously and stomped their hooves in excitement. The race was about to begin. Sweetie & Jenny stood at the far end of the racers, whom were casting aside glances at the robot pseudo-sisters every other second. While Sweetie paid no attention to them, Jenny used her retractable hand to wave hi, which the other teams returned awkwardly. “ON YER MARK!!!” All the racer’s attention immediately shifted to the racetrack in front of them. They were all eager to start the race, and equally determined to come out on top. “GET SET!!!” Sweetie stuck her tongue out in anticipation while synthetic sweat began dripping down her face. Jenny revved up her motor and furrowed her brows in determination. “GO!!!” The dirt leading up to the mud pit was assaulted by a barrage of hooves and wheels as all the sister teams galloped madly to gain an early lead over everyone else. Sweetie and Jenny fell into fifth place in the crowd by the time they reached the mud pit. While Sweetie followed everypony else in simply jumping over the mud, Jenny used her spring mechanism to propel herself across. Landing on the other side, they rushed to the next leg of the race which was the barrel hop. Once again, Sweetie simply hopped across and Jenny used her spring to bounce across them. The robot pair passed the team of Sparkler & Dinky while making way toward the crates, putting them in fourth place. For the crates, Sweetie made use of her enhanced strength gained from her upgrade. Unlike the previous year where she couldn’t hoist herself over the first crate, this time she easily climbed over each crate until she reached the other side. Jenny once again relied on her spring to bounce up and over each crate to join her. They then made way toward the picnic tables where the next leg of the race was located. The sister pair of Berry & Pina, who were the winners of last year’s Big Race, were already at the table and shoveling pie into their mouths when Jenny and Sweetie arrived. “Think you can eat an entire pie?” Sweetie hurriedly asked Jenny as she began madly tearing away at her own. Jenny smiled wryly while she returned to her default form. “I’ll have it gone before you can look up; just concentrate on eating your own.” Sweetie barely heard her pseudo sister over the sounds of her own chomps and gulps as she shoved her muzzle into the pie (apple, not surprisingly) and madly swallowed as much as she could with each bite. Apparently, Dr. Wakeman had built into Sweetie an artificial digestive system, converting what she ate into a synthetic oil which would keep her alive and operational; it’s designs based off of those provided by an associate of Wakeman’s who only went by the initials of J.N. Berry & Pina had finished and left by the time Sweetie was done eating her pie. She looked up to see that Jenny’s pie was gone and the teenage robot was back in her Toy Car mode. Sweetie didn’t bother asking how Jenny had finished it, however, and they made a mad dash to the next leg. Sweetie & Jenny got in front of the hay stack and began pushing against it across the ground toward the stopping line; Jenny used her retractable hand while Sweetie pushed against it with her metal-plated head. The combined strength of both robots saw them moving the hay stack swiftly across the ground, passing Berry & Pina and Cloudkicker & Alula in turn to take second place. As they raced toward the grape stomp, however, Jenny fell behind Sweetie to which the robot filly looked back in frightened concern. “Are you okay, Jenny!?” she called back to the teenage robot. Jenny used her retractable hand to wave and motion toward their grape stomping station. “It’s just a minor malfunction with my engine!” she called back. “A few quick repairs and I’ll be back in the race; just worry about finishing with the grapes!” Sweetie nodded and made way to their station. She hurriedly jumped up into the barrel and immediately began madly stomping upon the tiny, succulent, purple fruits it housed. She had no need to worry about short-circuiting from liquid seeping into her systems thanks to her parts being 100% liquid resistant. Mud, however, was a potential hazard, which is why both she and Jenny had jumped clear of the mud pit. Sweetie had stomped about one third of the grapes into juice when all the other sister pairs caught up and began stomping their own grapes. Panicking, Sweetie increased the frequency and strength of her own stomps. It mattered little, however, as Berry & Pina and Dinky & Sparkler managed to finish their own grapes and move onto the next leg while Sweetie was still waiting for Jenny to catch up. “C’mon, Jenny!” Sweetie called to her as she drove herself over, finally finished with her repairs. “Ready to roll!” Jenny replied. Her retractable hand grabbed the glass and set it upon their stool. Sweetie jumped out of the barrel and scurried over to the next leg. “You sure this’ll work?” Jenny asked as she followed. “It worked last year,” Sweetie replied while going long. Jenny drove next to the bench upon which rested their crate full of apples. As per Sweetie’s instructions, Jenny slammed her hand down onto the opposite side of the bench from the apples, in turn sending them flying through the air towards the robot filly. Sweetie lifted up the catching crate and carefully positioned herself so that all the apples fell into the crate at once. It was almost a carbon copy of her stint with Rarity the year prior, the only difference being she got every apple in at the same time rather than having to bunt one in with her flank at the last second. With their crate fully loaded, Jenny & Sweetie took back second place and made way to the final leg alongside the sister pair of Golden Harvest & Noi. The two pairs ran/drove like mad toward the chicken coop where the eggs to carry were located. It was just barely, but Sweetie & Jenny managed to enter the coop first. They quickly grabbed ahold of a single egg, Sweetie with her muzzle and Jenny with her hand, and began carefully carrying it out to the egg basket. “Okay . . . easy,” Sweetie said, moving slowly to keep the egg balanced. Jenny held onto the egg by the palm of her hand, making sure not to grasp it too hard lest she crush it. Unfortunately, this only served to make the egg wobble in their collective grasp. When Sweetie changed direction upon reaching the ground, the egg shifted too far to the left and tipped over in Jenny’s palm. “Jenny, look out!” Sweetie called. It was too late. The egg fell out of their grasp and plummeted straight to the ground where it made a wet splat upon contact and shattered. Frustrated, Sweetie turned around and ran around to the coop’s entrance, to which Jenny followed her. Meanwhile, Golden & Noi had secured their egg and were making way down the ramp to the basket. They carefully maneuvered the egg into the basket and sprinted toward the finish line. Sweetie was about to rush outside the coop with the next egg alone, but Jenny clasped her hand on the robot filly’s shoulder plate and spoke. “It’s over, Sweetie.” “But . . . but . . .” Jenny shook her head. “We’ve lost.” Sweetie sighed in defeat. “I know.” Jenny smiled. “But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t finish the race together.” Sweetie looked back with a small smile of her own. “Okay, sister.” The two proceeded to successfully carry another egg down to the basket outside the coop before completing the final run to the finish line where Golden Harvest and Noi were waving to the cheering crowd. Golden looked at the two robots as they approached and smiled. “That was a great race,” she said. Sweetie half-smiled. “Yeah, I guess it was.” The yellow-coated sister pair was soon presented with their ribbons and carried off by the cheering crowd, just like last year. Jenny watched them go before re-donning her normal appearance and looking down to Sweetie. “That was a lot of fun, wasn’t it Sweetie?” The white filly sighed and looked downcast. “Yeah, I guess it was.” Jenny frowned. “Is something wrong, Sweetie?” Sweetie briefed a glance up to her before looking downcast again. “I’m just a little bummed we didn’t win.” She lifted a hoof and stared at it. “I was really hoping to show everypony how awesome I’ve become after my upgrade; maybe make some new friends too, you know?” Sweetie felt Jenny clasp a hand on her shoulder. “Sweetie . . . I purposely lost us the race.” Sweetie’s eyes widened in shock and she turned to Jenny. “What?” “I lied about my engine breaking down,” Jenny replied, “and I also intentionally let the egg fall to the ground.” “Why would you do that?” Sweetie asked, more curious than angry. “Because I didn’t want anyone trying to befriend you for the wrong reasons.” Jenny knelt down so she was at eye level with Sweetie. “Had we won the race, odds are you would’ve had a lot of ponies trying to be friends with you only because your new gadgets would help them with small, menial tasks that would’ve distracted you from the their intended purpose; to protect your friends and family from harm.” She smiled in earnest. “I learned from firsthand experience that, sometimes, people will forget about a robot’s friendship and only see them for the services they can provide.” Sweetie mulled over all of what Jenny said for a few moments before looking downcast. “Is that why Apple Bloom and Scootaloo love my new gadgets, because they think it’ll help them with their chores and junk?” Jenny’s smile changed to a happy one and she stood up. “They were your friends long before discovering you’re a robot, right? No, they’re probably just excited to see stuff blow up and whatnot. And there isn’t really anything wrong with lending them a ha-err, hoof at certain tasks using your gadgets; friends help each other out, after all. Just make sure they don’t start taking unfair advantage of you and there’s no need to worry.” Sweetie took another moment to mull over all of what Jenny said before looking up to her and smiling. “Thanks, Jenny, for everything.” “Don’t mention it, little sis,” Jenny replied, playfully ruffling the robot filly’s mane. She then opened her wrist panel and checked the time. “3:24 pm. I should get going.” Jenny activated her rocket boosters and rose a few feet up in the air. “See you later, Sweetie,” she said, looking down at her. Sweetie returned her gaze and waved a hoof. “Goodbye, big sis,” she replied. Jenny shot straight up into the sky and quickly disappeared from sight while Sweetie began happily cantering back home.
