In the evening skies above Ponyville, Astra’s Comet was the most prominent of all the celestial bodies. It shined brightly as it sailed across the heavens; outshining even the moon and stars. But, to the ponies below, the comet’s brilliance was lost to them. For another light shined from the center of town. This one was of an unnatural sort. Suspended in midair and hovering inches above the ground, this radiant aberration was a sight to behold. But, most frightening of all, was what came out of that translucent rift

. Standing before them was a creature too terrible to describe; a beast cladded in iron and leather. Every pony present was terrified of this imposing creature that came from realms unknown. Even Princess Twilight was mortified by the events that had transpired. Minutes before, she was in the midst of a duel with a friendly rival. Now, she was beholding the results of her new found powers with anxiety and regret. As she stared at the other-worldly creature, Twilight noticed that it’s multiple “eyes” (which were actually viewing ports) gave off a sickly yellow glow, which chilled her to the bone. What is this creature and what was is it doing here? That was the question that was every pony’s mind. Although they could not find the answer, they all knew one thing: the monster must not be disturbed; Celestia only knew what would happen if it was enraged by the slightest misstep. No one better understood the precariousness of the situation than Princess Twilight Sparkle.
“No pony move a muscle.” She whispered to the ponies nearby.
The crowd stood still and held their breath. Silence filled the air. They all waited to see what the creature would do. Then, to everyone’s surprise, it grunted and lumbered forward; oblivious to its surroundings. As it did so, the ponies in front of the iron behemoth quickly and quietly stepped out of its way. Even though they were still frighten by this hideous beast, a sense of confusion came over the crowd.
“W-w-w-what is that thing?!” Fluttershy whimpered; her knees quaking with fear.
“Whatever it is”, Rarity replied with disgust, “It’s horrid!”
Applejack, ever rational, was wondering about something else. “The better question is:” she asked, “What in tarnation is it doin’ here?”
“Maybe, he’s looking for something.” Pinkie Pie replied, in a hushed tone.
Applejack disagreed. “Ah don’t think so, sugar cube. Besides, what in the blue blazes would he be lookin’ fer ‘round here?”
“Um…guys?!” The four mares turned to Rainbow Dash, who had a panicked look on her face. What disturbed them more was the fact that the usually confident Pegasus was getting pale. “Don’t look now. But, I think it found what it was looking for!” It wasn’t long before they too saw what Rainbow was referring to. For, in the middle of the monster’s path, a yellow earth pony filly was standing as stiff as a board. Then, to everyone’s horror, the metal creature stopped right in front of her! The poor filly was mortified. But, she didn’t move or yell for help. In fact, she stood there; like a mouse being cornered by a cat. Every pony present stood helplessly, unable to lift a hoof to save her. Lest, they disturb the monster and put the whole town in trouble. But, a certain orange mare was not about to sit idly by and watch her little sister get hurt.
“Apple Bloom!” Applejack screamed at the top of her lungs. Her face twisted with anger. Unable to restrain herself, she built up tension in her legs; ready to make a mad dash towards Apple Bloom and put that “thing” in its place. But, just as she was about to set out, two of her friends, Twilight and Rainbow Dash, rushed in to hold her back! The country mare tried to shake them off, but soon, the rest of her friends joined in the effort. Rarity and Pinkie Pie warped their hooves around her barrel and Fluttershy grabbed and tugged at Applejack’s tail with her teeth. Applejack struggled hard to get loose; huffing and growling with rage. Now, she was more determined to save her sister.
“Let! Me! Go!” Applejack demanded.
“No can do!” Rainbow Dash retorted. “Do you know what that thing will do to ya?” Despite the rhetoric, the cerulean mare knew this wasn’t enough to dissuade Applejack. When she put her mind into doing something, there’s nothing that can stop the stubborn country pony. Especially, when it came to her kin, one of whom was in mortal danger.
“Ah don’t care!” She snorted. “That over- grown- tin- can ain’t gonna lay a paw on mah sister!”
Besides, Applejack thought, if no pony’s gonna help her, then Ah will! She still couldn’t believe that no one else was doing anything about this. Don’t they realize that a little filly’s life is in danger? Are they just gonna stand there an’ watch?! Even her friends were holding her back, which was more than she can take. Applejack gritted her teeth, as she tried to hold back the tears that were welding up in her eyes. She now knew, it’s now or never! Nothing else seemed to matter to the angry mare, as she struggled to break free. She growled at her friends: “Don’t me buck y’all in the…”
“Applejack!”
The orange mare stopped and froze at the sound of her name. She turned to her right and saw that it was Twilight that called her out. She saw the lavender alicorn casting a stern frown on her over-hyped friend; the kind of frown that turned out to be an angry glare. Applejack was taken aback by this and realized what she just said. Ah didn’t mean to say that! She was so caught up in the moment that she came dangerously close to hurting her friends. The very thought of it dawned on her and the country mare’s heart sank! Applejack continued to stare at Twilight, whose frown began to dissolve and revealed an expression of pity and compassion. After that, she quickly stared at ground; no longer able to look at her friend straight in the eye.
“Look”, Twilight said, “we all want to help Applebloom. But, we can’t go into this sort of situation without considering the risks. If you went out there, you would most certainly be killed! I’m sorry that it has to be this way, but I don’t want to lose two of my close friends.”
Applejack’s eyes began to water. She now knew that Twilight and the rest of her friends had her best interest at heart and wasn’t going to stand idly back, while her little sister was at the mercy of that monster. But still, she felt that the others weren’t doing enough to help her. That metal clad monster was not like any other creature that have ever faced and there was the off chance that the beast in question will maim, or possibly, kill any pony that crosses its path. Logic was telling her not to go out there and face the creature. But, her gut instinct was telling her to save Applebloom; screw the consequences! Unable to overcome her internal conflict, Applejack looked her alicorn friend with an anxious expression that surprised even Fluttershy. “Then, what’re we supposed to do?” She asked with a quivered lip. Now, it was Twilight’s turn to be taken aback. The young princess was at a loss for words. Up until now, everything had been planned out; the festival, the various activates, even the way the unicorns used their magic. Now, she was sitting on a ticking time bomb that can go off with one false move. She took her gaze off Applejack and began to think furiously a plan to help Applebloom. Her mind raced to find a solution to this delicate, and possibly, dangerous problem. Beads of sweat streamed down her forehead as her pondering became more and more fruitless. Then, her concentration was broken by an exclamation from Pinkie Pie.
“Hey! Isn’t that Spike?!” She said, pointing out to the clearing in front of them.
They turned to where the pink mare was pointing to and, sure enough, a small, purple and green scaled dragon was running to where Applebloom and the monster were now standing. Everyone was stunned! (Rarity, herself, fainted at the sight of her “Spikey Wikey”* taking this kind of risk). Out of all the shocked ponies, Twilight was the most frantic. The heart starting to pound faster with each beat; sweat now pouring from her brow as she watched the closest thing she has to a younger brother run straight into the danger zone.
“Oh no!” She gasped.
~
Staring up at the iron giant, Applebloom couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Her mouth gaped open, as she watched the massive, rust covered creature loom over her in an ominous sort of way. She stared at the creature’s face and gazed at its glowing, yellow eyes. A shiver went down the little filly’s spine, as it moaned softly and started to move its leather hand to her. Ah gotta run! She thought, franticly. But, for some strange reason, she couldn’t move her legs! All she could feel was the uncontrollable shaking in her knees, which wasn’t a very good sign. Plus, the odor that thing gave off was so overpowering, she began to feel a bit faint. As the monster slowly reached out for the frightened filly, Applebloom felt her heart beat heavily and her breath quicken. She couldn’t run and her throat was so dry, she couldn’t speak. All she could do now was to stand still and accept her fate.Ah guess this is it. Applebloom resigned. Ah’m finally goin’ to that Great Orchard in da sky. She closed her eyes and flinched, as the monster’s hand came closer. A tear rolled down her cheek.
Goodbye every pony. Applebloom said quietly. She stood still for a few second and, suddenly, realized that nothing happened. She opened her eyes and saw the monster’s hand was outstretched; as if it was reaching out to her. Now the little filly was confused. Scared, but confused. She couldn’t help but wonder what this monster wants with her. She was so immersed with her predicament that she couldn’t hear her friends crying out to her.
~

“Come on, Applebloom, get out of there!” Scootaloo shouted as loudly as she could. The orange pegasi filly was very distressed to see her best friend standing there; face to face with the portal monster. She and Sweetie Belle were so caught up in the crowd’s attempt to move out of its way, that they completely forgot about Applebloom. Now, they tried their best to get her attention.
“Run, Applebloom, run!” Sweetie Belle cried out. No luck. Applebloom wasn’t moving an inch. The two friends looked at each other, wondering why she didn’t make any attempt to run. “This isn’t working!” Scootaloo said after a brief pause. Then, she realized that there was only one thing to do. “I’m going out there.” The little Pegasus said, beaming with grim determination. She prepared to dash out towards the monster. But, Sweetie Belle held her back! “What are you, crazy?” The unicorn filly objected. “That beast will squash you like a bug!” Scootaloo turned to her worried friend and frowned. “Well, do you have any better ideas?” She said with indignation. Sweetie Belle hesitated for a moment. She wanted to save Applebloom; but the risks were too great for the two of them to handle. As the Cutie Mark Crusaders, they’ve been in tight spots before and, after facing the consequences of their actions, were able to pull through. But this was something else entirely. Sweetie Belle didn’t know what to do or what to say to Scootaloo. She casted her eyes on the ground and stammered as she tried to come up with an answer.
“I…I…”
Then, something caught her eye. A small figure was approaching from the distance and, as it grew bigger, she was able to see this figure more clearly. Let’s see….it looks like a purple dragon with green scales and a…Sweetie Belle paused. Then, suddenly, her mouth gaped open and her eyes widen in absolute shock! “Spike?!” The unicorn filly gasped. Scootaloo raised her eyebrow at her friend’s random outburst. But, when she turned her head, she too saw the little dragon coming towards the two figures in the middle of the square. Scootaloo felt her jaw drop when she saw this event unfold before her. Then, she uttered the first words that came to mind: “What the hay is he doing?!”
~
In all honesty, Spike didn’t know what he was doing either. He noticed that there was something that stopped the monster dead in its tracks. But, he wasn’t sure what it was. It wasn’t until Applejack called out Applebloom’s name that he realized what was going on. One of his own friend’s sister was right in the crosshairs of the metal beast! Spike braced himself. Watching from the other side of the divided crowd, he had expected the others to come out in full force and save Applebloom before the monster can do any harm. But, much to his surprise, they didn’t. Instead, they were desperately tried to hold back Applejack, who was willing to put her life on the line to save her own kin. The little dragon couldn’t understand why they couldn’t just go out there and face the monster head on. He knew that his six pony friends had faced many dangers from the likes of Nightmare Moon and Discord (heck, they even fought off a whole army of changelings!) But now, they were afraid of going hoof to hoof with this smelly, rusting monster to save some pony they cared about. What surprised him even more is that no one else was lifting a hoof, either. This made the dragon’s blood boil. He clenched his claws and, without even thinking, marched out to the place where the monster stood.
If they aren’t going to help Applebloom, Spike thought, then, I will! As he marched, he noticed that the monster he saw in front of him was getting bigger and it began to dawn on him why it was so threatening. Wow! That thing’s gotta to be five times my size and that drill….Spike shuddered. That drill can turn me into minced meat within seconds! For a brief moment, the young dragon paused as he looked at the monster in question. He knew he couldn’t fight that thing on his own without getting pulverized. Then, he began to wonder why he came out here in the first place. But, when he saw how scared Applebloom was, he regained his senses. “Come on, Spike!” He said, slapping his claw against his face. “Don’t think like that! There’s got to be another way.” Twilight had taught him to always plan ahead and never, ever let your emotions get better of you. Spike realized that he had forgotten that friendly piece of advice and had gone straight into danger without as much as a thought. Now, he couldn’t go back; that would mean he would leave Applebloom to her fate. But, he also couldn’t fight that monster without losing an arm…or worse. Stuck between a rock and a hard place with no…

A rock….That’s it!

Looking at the ground, he saw a rock the size of a baseball and found the break he needed. If I can’t fight that thing…Spike picked it up and casted a sly grin at the monster. Then, maybe, I can distract it long enough for Applebloom to get away. With that, he lifted his arm and took a pitcher’s stance, by pulling it behind his head and took a quick moment to adjust his aim. As Spike prepared to throw his rock, he couldn’t help but to add a bit of bravado. “Hey! Garbage can!” He shouted as he hurled the projectile towards the metal beast. The dragon’s aim proved true. The rock hit the monster straight in the back!

THONK!

The sound of the rock striking the metal could be heard across the silent town. Ponies everywhere were shocked at Spike’s reckless move. They didn’t say anything. But, their jaws slacked open and were gapping at the sight of this little dragon standing up to a giant, metal, thing. Twilight’s jaw was the slackest of all. She quickly slapped her hoop onto to her face. “Oh Spike…” she moaned. Now, we’re in really big trouble! And she was right. Right after Spike’s rock made contact, the iron beast roared so loud, it shook the town and had every pony cowering and covering their ears. But, for Twilight, the worst was yet to come. For, what she saw made her heart sink. The monster’s “eyes”, which were once a dim yellow, turned to bright crimson red! Although, she couldn’t completely understand what that meant, the learned alicorn knew one thing for sure: the monster was REALLY angry! Then, she watched in horror as it charged, at full steam, towards Spike!
I have to act quickly, Twilight thought franticly, before Spike gets trampled! She lit up her horn and prepared to use her telekinesis magic to full effect.
~
Spike stood spellbound as he watches this one ton metal monster charged straight towards him; like a speeding train! He was shocked by how it move so quickly, despite its size. Time slowed down, as the monster came barreling in to his position at high speed. Then, a sudden realization came over the young dragon; one that made him quake with fear.

Holy cow! I’m going to die!

There was nothing he could do now. The monster was moving too quickly for him to make a move. As it came closer, Spike instinctively rose his claws and covered his face; waiting for the inevitable pain that he would receive from the rampaging beast. But then, he felt a slight tingling sensation envelope his body…Strangely, it felt familiar; like he felt it before. Before Spike could figure it out, he was suddenly jerked away and heading at high speed towards safety. For a few brief moments, he could see the monster plow its way into a nearby house! Seconds later, he came face to face with a fuming, lavender alicorn. Twilight glared at him; her face flushed with anger! The little dragon realized he was in big trouble. I would have been better off being pulverized by that monster, Spike thought with remorse. But still, he was grateful to his mentor for saving him from certain death. The mini dragon gave Twilight a sheepish grin, before expressing his gratitude.
“Um…Thanks for saving me, Twilight. I would have been a goner, if it wasn’t for-”

Smack!

Spike felt a sharp sting, as Twilight slapped his face with her fore hoof. He gazed at her, rubbing his brushed left cheek, trying to recover his wits. But, not before being violently shaken around by her magic. All the while, he could hear Twilight screaming at him; rupturing his little dragon ear drums.
“WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!!! WERE YOU TRYING TO GET YOURSELF KILLLED?!!!”
As soon as the shaking stopped, Spike was able to recover quickly enough to see Twilight’s eyes water. A few tears began to trickle down her flushed face. Spike could see the anguish in his alicorn friend’s face, hiding behind a mask of a stern mother. But, he could tell she was more worried than angry. He put his own life on the line to save a friend. While at the same time…. He felt the warm embrace of Twilight’s fore legs, as they wrapped around his little dragon body. ”You idiot.” Twilight muttered under her breath. She bit her lip, while trying to hold by the tears that were welding up in her eyes. At this point, Spike was beginning to regret what he had done. Ah, man. He thought. I can’t believe I made Twilight cry again. He knew he had to say something to make things better. But, before he could utter a single word, the sounds of crumbling debris and low grunting caught their attention. They turned around and saw the monster break its way out of the rubble of what remained of the building it crashed into. Every pony stood dumbfounded as the monster walk away from the ruins, completely unfazed, and more enraged.
Then, all of them screamed aloud.
~
What followed was a scene of mass chaos! Ponies ran around in a fevered frenzy. All of them scrambled, pushed, and shoved each other; just to get away from this frightening creature. At this point, it was every pony for themselves. But, for some, it was in vain. For the monster charged into the fleeing crowd and knocked down any pony that stood in its way. Then, to everyone’s stupefied horror, it lifted its fearsome drill and smacked a group of ponies half way across the town square. No one yet knows how many poor souls were injured by this savage attack. Amidst the sea of panic and confusion, Twilight couldn’t believe what she was seeing! She was at an absolute loss! What was supposed to be an exciting event, turned out to be an utter nightmare? For the first time, in a long time, she felt a sense of helplessness.
It’s my fault. She lamented quietly, it’s all my fault!
An overwhelming sense of guilt came over the young princess. She felt responsible for the mess they were in, right now. If only I had listened to Princess Celestia…this wouldn’t have happened and-
“Twilight! Snap out of it!”
The purple alicorn perked her ears up, when she heard a familiar voice. She looked down and saw Spike, with a frown on his face. Suddenly, Twilight remembered that she held him up with magic. But, due to shock, she involuntary dropped the magical aura surrounding him by mistake. Twilight must have wondered if he was mad at her for being dropped by accident. But, to her surprise, the little dragon said something that struck her deeply.
“Look, you can’t blame yourself for what happened. This was something that was beyond your control, anyway. But, you can’t dwell on that now. There are ponies out there that need you right now!”
Spike looked at straight into the eyes of his friend/older sister/boss.
“They need their princess!”
The way Spike uttered that phrase, struck a chord with the young princess. There was nothing she could have done to prevent the events that have unfolded. But, she can face the problem at hoof and set things right.
He’s right! Twilight thought doggedly, I don’t have time to mess around! Then, she realized that she needed a plan of action. Physical combat was completely out of the question and she had exhausted a good deal of her magic reserves by opening up the portal. So, power blasts were ruled out as an option. Then, Twilight remembered the night Trixie first came into town. She remembered how the Ursa Major caused so much chaos that she used her magic to calm it down. If that can work on the Ursa Major, then maybe….
Twilight turned to Spike and all of her friends. A sense of calm came over the Princess of Friendship, as she proceeded to gather them together and present her plan to her closest compatriots. Her friends can see a bit of composer in her pose; an attitude which would have made Princess Celestia proud.
“Spike,” she said to her assistant, “I need you and the others to gather as many ponies as you can and lead to safety.” To Twilight’s friends, this sounded reasonable enough. But, then, a sudden realization came over them.
“Wait! What about you?” Asked Rainbow Dash.
To this, Twilight replied: “I’m going to take out that monster!”
Her friends were obviously shocked! It was bad that their new princess was going to face the abominable creature head on. But, if the monster had its way, they would be losing a dear friend, as well as a ruling figure. Rarity felt that she needed to make that point perfectly clear.
“But Twilight!” She said anxiously. “How can you hope to fight that wretched thing all by yourself…and in your condition?”
The alicorn princess replied with a smile, which perplexed her friends greatly. They never expected Twilight to be so…calm about all this. Maybe she’s got everything under control, they thought. Maybe this plan of hers is so foolproof, that she can’t help but be confident. But, they noticed that she was looking at Rarity in a devious sort of a way, which was making the fashionista a bit uncomfortable.
“You don’t have to worry about me, Rarity.” She finally said, after a brief pause. “Because you’re going to help me.”
The white mare gave her friend the most dumbfounded look any pony had ever seen! A hinge on her jaw seemed to come loose and her eyes shrank to the size of peas. The others were equally as surprised, as they stared at Rarity for what seemed to be an eternity. Despite her extraordinarily gapping mouth, she managed to utter the first words that to her mind.

“I beg your pardon?!”

Rarity wanted to know more, but Twilight interrupted her. “Listen, I don’t have time to explain. Just follow me and keep up!” She, then, turned to her friends. “The rest of you, get the other ponies out of here, as fast as you can.”
“But-“, Fluttershy peeped, trying to voice her concerns.
Twilight turned to the worried pegasus and smiled. “Don’t worry about us. All you need to do is save lives. Now, go!” Fluttershy opened her mouth to speak; but stopped before she could utter a word. She looked into her friend’s eyes and found a measure of confidence within her violet colored pupils. Content, but not fully satisfied, the yellow winged mare turned to join her friends, who had already headed out to fulfill Twilight’s order. But, not before taking one last look at her two close friends.
As she watches Twilight and Rarity run into the fleeing crowd, Fluttershy couldn’t help offer a silent prayer for her friends.
Great Deity, please, hear my prayer. Watch over Twilight and Rarity. Keep them safe from harm and…
“C’mon Fluttershy”, Rainbow Dash shouted, “Let’s go!”
Her brash friend’s timely interruption brought Fluttershy back to reality. She turned and saw Rainbow Dash hovering over the crowd. The usually timid mare took a big gulp and unfurled her wings. She soon join her fellow Pegasus friend and, together, went about completing their daunting task of rescuing the panicked citizens of Ponyville.

Author's Note

*I can't believe I actually said that!

Anyway, here it is, guys: the long-lost third chapter to the MLP/Bioshock sage.

What is Twilight's plan of action? Will our heroes survive Big Daddy's wrath?! And, where is Trixie?
Stay tuned, folks!

Next chapter: Things go from bad to worse.