Mega Pony: Season One

Chapters

Episode 102; Dawn of the Equine Bomber, Pt. 2
Episode 103: Friendship Isn't Easy:
Episode 104: Bringing Down the Schoolhouse:
Episode 105: A Scratch in a Friendly Melody:
Episode 106: Equestria-Fried Chicken:
Episode 107: The Ultimate Workout
Episode 109: Cannon Come Home:
Episode 110: The Good, the Bad, and the Mechanical:
Episode 111: The Sister Act:
Episode 112: New 'Bot on the Block
Episode 113: A Glimpse of Things to Come:
Episode 101: Dawn of the Equine Bomber, Pt. 1 (Pilot):
Episode 108: Honey, I Shrunk the Ponies:

Episode 102; Dawn of the Equine Bomber, Pt. 2

Episode 102: Dawn of the Equine Bomber, Pt. 2 (Pilot):

THE STORY SO FAR...:

In the year 20XX, in the peaceful land of Equestria, Princess Celestia, the country's benevolent ruler, unveiled a great secret to the ponies that she trusted most. A secret project meant for the better safety of Equestria and all of its citizens: Mega Pony; the first fully-robotic pony!

Armed with powerful weapons and abilities, as well as super-strong blue armor, Mega Pony was designed to take on almost any threat to the land. However, as he was only just activated, he has not yet become aware of his programming, and thus, has no idea what his purpose in life is. Knowing this, Princess Celestia tasked her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, and her friends with helping her creation and getting him to meet as many friendly ponies as possible. The Princess is confident that Twilight will be a big help to Mega Pony; her only concern is if he'll come to realize his purpose...

...before he is needed the most...

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony; recently activated.

Princess Celestia: One of the two rulers of Equestria; Mega Pony's creator.

Twilight Sparkle: Celestia's faithful student; Element of Magic.

Parasprites: Ravenous insect-like creatures.

At the Ponyville Train Station, business went on as usual: Ponies entered and exited the buiding, coming from all over Equestria. Some were there as tourists, wanting to see the town, some were there to visit their families. Others were leaving town to go sightseeing in other places. Finally, there were others that were coming back home to Ponyville from a trip, such as the passengers that were on a train that had just pulled into the station.

Once the doors opened, several passengers left the train and got onto the platform. Among them was the lavender Unicorn, Twilight Sparkle. Sitting on her back was Spike, her dragon assistant. She was then followed by five other ponies; her closest friends Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie.

After Twilight and her friends got out of the train, they were then followed by another pony, who seemed a bit timid about stepping onto the platform. It was Mega Pony, the robot that Princess Celestia had built to serve as the guardian of Equestria. He was timid because not only was he just recently activated, but he was also a bit nervous about meeting other ponies. He didn't know what to expect, especially since he was not yet aware of what he was meant to do, as his programming had not yet fully integrated with his robotic brain, or CPU.

"Are ya gonna be alright there, Mega Pony?" asked Applejack. "Ya'll seem a bit tense."

"Huh? Um, no...it's okay, I'll be fine..." the robot answered her. "It's just that...well, I'm just a little nervous about the whole thing...I'm not sure if I can make any friends or not..."

"I know how you feel." said Twilight, walking over to him. "When I first came here, I didn't really know if I could make any friends or if I really wanted to." She then glanced over at the rest of the group and continued, saying, "But once I decided to, I was able to meet up with some of the best friends a pony could have." She then turned back to Mega Pony and told him, "I'm sure everypony will come to like you too, Mega Pony...You just need to take that first step and give it a try."

The robotic equine thought about the Unicorn's words for a while before saying, "I guess it's worth a try. After all, it's not logical to not even make an attempt at it."

"Good to hear that." the lavender Unicorn responded. "Now let's get going...My friends and I will show you around the entire town. I'm sure after you've seen everything, you might feel a little bit more comfortable."

"Yeah, sure...Let's get going, then." Mega Pony responded. The group then left the train station and began the tour around Ponyville.

Their first stop was a small building that looked like a gigantic gingerbread house. It had a roof that appeared to be made of chocolate, covered in frosting, and had support pillars colored to look like candy canes. Pinkie Pie enthusiastically hopped in front of the building and said excitedly, "You're gonna love THIS place, Mega Pony! It's the most super-riffic, sweetest, tastiest place EVER!"

"...But, what is it?" asked the robot.

The pink pony cleared her throat and replied, saying, "This is Sugarcube Corner! From this very building, all of the sweetest of sweet treats are made for everypony in Ponyville!"

"Pastries, I assume?" asked Mega Pony. "You know, based on the way that the building looks and all..." Pinkie Pie vigorously nodded yes to answer his question.

Twilight then walked beside the robot and chimed in, saying, "The store is run by Mr. and Mrs. Cake, and they're as nice as they are talented; in baking, that is." The lavender Unicorn then strolled towards one of the windows of the shop, motioning the others to follow.

They peered through the window and saw two Earth Ponies inside, a yellow stallion and a sky-blue mare. The stallion, Carrot Cake, had an orange mane and tail and wore a small hat, a bowtie, and a white apron. The mare, Cup Cake, had a swirly pink mane and tail that resembled frosting, and wore a yellow apron with pink frills. With them were two foals; a beige Pegasus boy named Pound Cake and a pale yellow Unicorn girl named Pumpkin Cake (such was rare among pony couples, having offspring that were of a different race than their parents). The two parents were busy baking things for anypony that would stroll by the store, while the young foals played with each other and giggled.

"Well it certainly seems like a friendly environment in there." Mega Pony noted, watching the calm scene inside. "And the stuff that they're making...it looks so good, I wish I was able to eat just so I could taste it..."

"You mean you can't eat stuff?" asked Pinkie Pie, a bit surprised and slightly saddened. "That's a shame...You'd love their baking. I know I do, and that's why they're helping me to learn EVERYthing they know! One day, when I can be as good as Mr. and Mrs. Cake, I'll be able to host even better parties than ever!"

"Parties?" asked the robot.

Rainbow Dash then flew beside him and said, "Pinkie Pie here throws the best parties in Ponyville...They're so good, nopony here ever wants to miss out on one, myself included. Her cutie mark says it all: it's the thing that she's best at."

Mega Pony then closely observed Pinkie Pie's cutie mark and saw a slight relation to what it showed and her supposed special talent. "Yeah, I see..." he replied. "I know what a cutie mark was from my databanks, but it makes more sense now that I can see one..." He then glanced over at his own cutie mark, a picture of a yellow oval of some sort. Unfortunately, it didn't tell him much about what his talent was.

"There will be time for discussing things such as that after we're done with the tour." said Twilight. "There's still lots to see, and too little time." The group then continued on with their trip around town.

Their next stop was the top of a large hill overlooking a farm and orchard. "Mega Pony, I'd like ta personally welcome ya'll to my farm, Sweet Apple Acres!" said Applejack proudly.

"Wow...you mean this entire farm belongs to you?" asked Mega Pony, impressed.

"Well, really, it belongs to me and mah family." the orange pony answered. "This farm has been owned and operated by the Apple Family for many, many generations. Of course, since the family has gotten bigger and bigger over the years, there are other apple farms just like this one all over Equestria, run by other members of the Apple Clan."

"Applejack's family makes all sorts of good stuff from their apples." stated Rainbow Dash. "Apple pie, apple cider, candied apples, apple fritters...Just about anything you can think of!"

"Yeah, you've got to give them a try and-" Twilight then stopped her sentence short. "Oh right..." she then solemnly said, "you said couldn't eat food..." Mega Pony nodded, slightly sad as well.

Feeling a bit sorry for him, Applejack walked over to the robot, put her left front leg over his shoulders, and said to him, "Well, don't you fret none, Mega Pony...Ah'm sure that the Princess'll help you with that if ya'll went and asked her about it."

"I suppose I could..." the robot replied with a sigh.

Their next stop was a very fancy-looking building. It was circular, with all sorts of beautiful decorations adorning every inch of the structure. The building was colored in many shades of yellow, blue, violet, and pink, and a large sign showing a picture of a pony wearing a fancy dress hung over the front door. "Mega Pony," Rarity began, "I am pleased to welcome you to my pride and joy, the Carousel Boutique! It is here, in this very establishment, that I create the fanciest and most BEautiful dresses in all of Ponyville!" The group walked inside the boutique after Rarity unlocked the door.

"Sounds interesting..." Mega Pony stated.

"Oh yes...Rarity is very talented when it comes to making dresses." Fluttershy stated in her usual soft voice.

"She once made outfits for all of us when we went to the Grand Galloping Gala." Twilight added. "Though, we got a little too picky about the details once, and THAT ended only in disaster..." she then added, blushing out of embarrasment.

"I think 'disaster' is an understatement, in my opinion..." the white Unicorn chimed in. "Fortunately, for the good of us, and for everypony else, I put those things away in the chest that contains all of my scrap material...They may not be attractive to the eyes, but why let them go to waste?"

Mega Pony glanced around at all of the pony mannequins set up inside, observing the well-made dresses. He liked how they looked, but you wouldn't be able to tell by his face, as he seemed to be depressed about something. Twilight glanced over at him, noticing that he seemed sad, but didn't know what to make of it.

Back outside, the group, now being led by Rainbow Dash, walked into a large clearing a short distance away from town. The cyan Pegasus then stopped and pointed her left front hoof straight up. "See that up there, Mega Pony?" asked Rainbow Dash.

The group then looked up to where Rainbow Dash was pointing. Mega Pony could see an unusually large cloud floating high in the sky far away. "A cloud...?" he asked.

"Not just ANY old cloud..." the cyan Pegasus replied. "That's the city of Cloudsdale! It's where Fluttershy and me used to live."

"Uh, don't you mean, 'Fluttershy and I'?" Twilight corrected her friend.

"Well, excuse me, Officer Egghead of the Grammar Police..." responded Rainbow Dash, slightly annoyed. She then cleared her throat and continued talking about the place she used to live in. "AS I was saying...Cloudsdale contains the super-important Weather Factory where they make all the weather for all of Equestria...Not to mention that it has the most awesome yearly event, the Best Young Flyer competition! A competition that, last year, yours truly aced with no problem..."

(Too bad bein' smug ain't part of the contest...) thought Applejack, rolling her eyes. (Honestly, didn't she learn anythin' from the whole "Mare Do Well" thing?)

"So, you like flying fast a lot, huh?" asked the robot.

"Nah, I don't like flying fast..." answered Rainbow Dash. "I like flying SUPER-fast! See, there's a big difference."

"Um...sure, of course..." replied Mega Pony, sweating a little. He then asked, "So...where should we go next?"

"I-if it's okay with you, Mega Pony..." Fluttershy suddenly spoke up, "I-I could show you my cottage..."

"Okay then." he the replied. "Lead the way, Ms...um...Bumblefly...? Butterfly...?"

"Fluttershy." the yellow Pegasus corrected him.

"Oh! Yeah, uh...sorry..." Mega Pony apologized. "I'm still trying to remember the names...Even a mind as mentally advanced as mine can forget every now and then..." He then cleared his throat and added, "Anyway, go ahead and lead the way, then." The yellow Pegasus nodded and lead the group down the trail ahead.

The group eventually reached Fluttershy's cottage, where, as usual, many animals of all kinds were scampering, flying, and swimming around. "This is where I live, Mega Pony..." said the yellow Pegasus in her usual soft tone of voice. "Here, I take care of all sorts of cute little animals...as well as some cute not-so-little ones. If an animal is injured, hungry, or just needs somepony to love them, they come here, and I take care of them until they decide to leave...if they want to, that is."

"That's very nice of you to do, Fluttershy." Mega Pony complimented. "I'm sure the animals really appreciate everything you give them."

"They do..." she responded with a small smile. "I must admit, ever since I found out that I could communicate with animals, my life has only gotten better...I'm really glad that I found out what I was meant to do in life..."

The robot, hearing those words, replied in a slightly saddened tone, "Yeah...I suppose that would feel very good..." Again, the slight depression on Mega Pony's part was noticed only by Twilight, who began to get worried. Still, she was determined to help the robot as much as she could, to keep her promise to Princess Celestia.

The group now made their way to the large tree that was both Twilight's home away from home, as well as the town library. "And here," the lavender Unicorn began, "we have the Golden Oaks Library, run by me and Spike. In here, I have books on anything and everything that a pony could ever want to know about."

"Oh, I see...so it's sort of like an analog database, right?" Mega Pony asked, sounding interested.

"Yes, exactly!" stated Twilight.

(Ana-what?) thought Spike, not sure what that word meant.

The lavender Unicorn then lead the others into the library and continued, saying, "In addition to running the library, I'm also studying abroad by Princess Celestia's request. Currently, I'm trying to learn everything about the Magic of Friendship."

"Magic of Friendship?" asked the robot.

"It's like a power that's born from deep inside ya." Applejack explained. "A power that comes from the feelin' of carin' 'bout somepony besides yerself."

"And doing everything you can to preserve that feeling." Rarity added.

"Not to mention fighting hard to make sure that nothin' happens to everypony that you care about." Rainbow Dash chimed in.

Mega Pony, after hearing all of this, suddenly spoke. "It...sounds like you all take this friendship thing very seriously." he said.

"Y-yes we do..." Fluttershy responded. "Once we found each other and became friends, w-we've helped each other become better ponies than we've ever been. Before I met them all, I-I was very timid and hardly ever spoke to anypony...I've still got a ways to go, but I think I've improved a lot since I met my friends..."

"Me too!" added Pinkie Pie. "Back then, I used to be crazy, silly, and spontaneous ALL the TIME!!"

Mega Pony seemed confused at first. "...And...?" he began, expecting her to say more.

"NOW...I'm even MORE crazy, even MORE silly, and even MORE spontaneous!!" she finished, her voice gradually getting more and more high-pitched as she spoke. "And all because I know that my friends like me that way! And I like me that way too!"

"And that's one of the reasons why I enjoy doing what I do." Twilight stated. "I want to learn everything there is to know about being a good friend to everypony. And one day, I hope to help spread what I've learned all over Equestria, and help everypony feel the same way towards each other that I feel with all of my friends. I feel that it's my duty to do this, not just for the Princess, but for myself and everypony else as well."

"Your duty, huh...?" asked the robot, becoming slightly saddened again. He then sat down and thought to himself, (I wish I knew how it felt to HAVE a duty...)

Noticing his depressed state, Twilight decided to finally say something about it. She walked over to him and asked, "Mega Pony? Are you okay?"

"What do you mean?" he asked back.

"Well, it's just that every now and then, you start feeling really down." she said to him. The others shared a look of concern as the lavender Unicorn spoke to him. "I didn't want to say anything about it at first, because I didn't want the others to worry..."

"So what ya'll mopin' about, Mega Pony?" asked Applejack. "Don't ya like Ponyville?"

"Uh, no! Nothing like that, Ms. Applejack!" the robot replied. "I-I think this town is very nice, and I think all of you are very nice!"

"So what is wrong, then?" asked Rarity.

"Well...it's just that...all of you have some sense of duty, a talent, or some sort of purpose in life..." he answered them. He then sniffled a little and added, "But I don't..."

"Wh-what do you mean...??" asked a concerned Fluttershy.

"I mean, Fluttershy, that I have no idea what MY purpose is..." the robot responded. "In fact, I'm not even sure if I HAVE a purpose..." Mega Pony then looked at his rear and solemnly added, "I mean, just look at my cutie mark...It doesn't tell me anything about what I'm supposed to be good at...It's not even a REAL mark, it's just painted on...I might as well just be a 'blank flank'..."

"Now what would make you think somethin' crazy like that?!" Rainbow Dash asked loudly. "The Princess would never make you and not give you some kinda purpose in life!"

"Dashie's right!" added Pinkie Pie. "Just 'cause you don't know what you're meant to do doesn't mean that you're not good at ANYTHING! That IS crazy, thinking that you don't have a purpose! And not the good kinda crazy, like what I do; the bad kind."

Twilight spoke to the robot again, saying to him, "Everypony has a purpose in life; a special thing that only they can do...You just haven't found it yet, that's all. Maybe it would do you some good to sit somewhere and think quietly to yourself about it all..."

Mega Pony stood there, glancing around without saying a word at first. Then, coming to a decision, he said, "Okay...I might as well; all I'm doing right now is taking up space...If anypony needs me, I'll be at the tree next to the western bridge...Not that I expect anypony to need me..." He then walked off, a depressed look on his face as he slowly strolled away, leaving the library.

The others were sad, as well as slightly frustrated. "Arrgh...this is SO annoying!" groaned Rainbow Dash. "Why can't we just tell him what the Princess told us?! Why can't we tell him what he's supposed to do?!?"

"Ya'll heard what she said, Dash..." Applejack answered her. "If we tell 'im about what he's programmed t' do too soon, it could cause more harm than good..."

"I know how much it hurts to see him so sad..." Twilight then told the cyan Pegasus. "If anything, it's probably hurting me the most...But it's for his own good that he finds out his purpose by himself, just like all of us have..."

"He just needs time to think about it, that's all." Pinkie Pie added. "And he's got MORE than enough time to figure it all out! I mean, it's not like there's gonna be some horrible plague or something on its way towards town to destroy everything at this moment!" The rest of the group just gave their pink friend a weird look in response.

"...Aaaanyway...Let's just go about our normal routines for the day." Twilight suggested. "Then, every now and then, one of us should check on Mega Pony and see how he's doing. Agreed?"

"Agreed." the others replied. Twilight and Spike stayed in the library as the other five left for their intended destinations.

Elsewhere, far away from town, a pair of beady eyes poked out from within a large bush. Then, several more sets of eyes, all with a menacing look, appeared around the first set of eyes. They were staring straight ahead, towards Ponyville...

About less than an hour had passed since Mega Pony went off on his own to think about what he was meant to do in life. Every few minutes, one of the Mane 6 (a name that had been used to refer to Twilight and her friends collectively) checked up on him as they passed by the tree he was sitting under. Twilight and Spike had just returned from seeing him and were heading back to the library.

As they got there, they were approached by Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, both with full saddlebags after returning from a trip to the marketplace. "Hey, Fluttershy...Hey, Pinkie Pie..." the lavender Unicorn greeted them. "What have you been up to?"

"Just getting a few things." answered the pink pony. "Party supplies, mostly. Gotta make sure I always have everything I need, right?" Twilight nodded to say that she agreed, as she had the same opinion on always being prepared.

"So...um...how is Mega Pony?" asked Fluttershy. "If you don't mind me asking..."

"Still the same..." Spike replied. "He's been sitting under that tree next to the bridge for a while now, and it doesn't seem like he's gonna cheer up anytime soon."

"I hope he feels better soon..." Pinkie Pie stated. "I hate seeing somepony all sad and mopey like that..."

"Same here..." added the yellow Pegasus. Twilight and Spike also nodded in agreement.

Just then, the young dragon heard a strange noise. "Huh?" he said, putting his clawed hand up to his ear to try and hear the noise better.

"What's wrong, Spike?" asked the lavender Unicorn.

"I thought I heard something..." he answered. "Sounded like...buzzing."

"Buzzing?" Twilight asked. She then glanced around the area around them, as did Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy, trying to find the source of the supposed noise.

Just then, Fluttershy spotted something. "L-l-look! Up there!" she said, slightly startled.

The other three glanced upwards in the direction that their friend was pointing. Right away, they understood why she seemed shook up when they saw a small, red, insect-like creature flying above them. "I-isn't that a...a Parasprite...?" asked Twilight.

"But...what's it doing all the way here in town?" asked Pinkie Pie.

Spike then shuddered as he asked, "Y-you don't suppose it's here to wreck Ponyville like last time, do you...?"

The lavender Unicorn giggled a bit and replied, saying, "I don't think so...That only happened because that spell of mine to keep them from eating everything didn't work as well as I'd hoped." The Parasprite then floated down towards the small group as she continued talking. "Besides, there's just one right now, and they need to eat in order to multiply anyway."

"I'll bet it's probably just lost, and wandered into Ponyville on its way home..." Fluttershy hypothesized, walking towards the creature as it stopped flying down, hovering at eye-level. "Isn't that right?" she then asked it.

The Parasprite stared at the yellow Pegasus for a moment. Then suddenly, it put a nasty look on its face and without any warning, it rammed itself into her nuzzle. "Ouch!" Fluttershy wimpered, stepping back and rubbing the slightly sore spot with her front hooves.

The others were shocked at the creature's unprovoked attack. "Hey! Whad'ya do that for?!" Spike scolded it. "She didn't do anything to you!!" But all that got the young dragon was another ram to the nose area by the Parasprite. "Ow!!!" he groaned upon being struck.

Twilight and Pinkie Pie instinctively began stepping back, away from the creature, only to bump into something. But when they turned around to look, they saw that it was a BUNCH of somethings: Right there behind the pink and lavender ponies was a small swarm of Parasprites (though to say it was small wasn't saying much; there were quite a lot), all with that same angry look in their eyes.

"...T-Twilight...?" Pinkie Pie began.

"Yes...?"

"...Are you thinking what I'm thinking...?"

"If it's 'run for it', then yes, Pinkie..." the Unicorn responded. The group retreated quickly, and the angry bugs followed. The four of them ran away as fast as they could, with the swarm following far behind. The Parasprites were relentless in their pursuit, but the group was finally able to lose them by ducking into a narrow alleyway. The swarm flew right by them without even noticing, allowing the four to breathe a sigh of relief.

Panting from running so hard, Twilight asked, "Is...is everypony alright...?" The others, also slightly exhausted, nodded yes.

"Wha-what do you suppose all that was about...?" asked Fluttershy.

"I honestly don't know, Fluttershy." the lavender Unicorn answered her. "Ever since the first problem we had with them, I started reading more about them. And nothing that I've learned matches up with what those Parasprites were doing!"

"Yeah, I don't get it either!" added Pinkie Pie. "Parasprites may be pests and eat almost every food they see, but they don't usually attack ponies like that! Believe me, I know."

"Yes, we're aware that you know more about Parasprites than any of us..." Twilight told her. She then said, "On that note, we've got to get rid of these things again, and I think you know what to do, Pinkie Pie."

"Way ahead of you, Twilight!" Pinkie responded. She then pulled a trumpet seemingly out of nowhere and began playing it a little.

"Alright, good..." The Unicorn then turned to Fluttershy and told her, "Fluttershy, you go and help Pinkie get some more instruments."

"O-okay. I will..." the yellow Pegasus responded.

"Spike and I will go find the rest of our friends to help us out." Twilight continued. "I'll also inform Mayor Mare about what's going on and see if there's anything she can do about it."

"What about Mega Pony?" asked Pinkie Pie.

"He's far enough away from town, so I doubt the Parasprites will bother him." the lavender Unicorn answered. "If we did take him along, we'd only be putting him in danger..."

"I suppose you do have a point there..." said Fluttershy.

"For now, let's worry about clearing away all of the Parasprites in town." Twilight suggested. "We'll check up on him afterwards." The others nodded and split up to perform their duties.

Several minutes later, Twilight and all of her friends were assembled in front of the town hall. "Alright, everypony:" the lavender Unicorn began. "As you know by now, we've got another Parasprite infestation on our hooves, and we need to stop it."

"Honestly, I was hoping that you were joking when you mentioned it to me..." stated Rarity, not all too keen about having to deal with the bug-like creatures again.

"Aw, don't you fret none, Rarity." said Applejack in a confident tone of voice. "We already have everythin' we need t' get 'em all outta here."

"That's right." Twilight confirmed. She then turned to Pinkie Pie, covered from head to hoof with various musical instruments, and asked, "Are you ready, Pinkie?"

"You know I was BORN ready, Twilight!" replied the pink pony, eager to start playing her instruments. (It wasn't clear if her eagerness was due to the Parasprite swarm, or that she just really wanted to make music.) As the swarm headed their way, Pinkie began playing a polka-sounding tune from her instruments. Last time, Pinkie was able to lure away the first swarm that infested Ponyville with this same tune.

The swarm stopped for a moment, observing Pinkie as she played her silly song. But then, unexpectedly, the creatures put on their mean faces again and they all rushed towards her at the same time. "Pinkie!! Watch out!!" yelled Spike.

The pink pony opened her eyes just in time see the attack coming. "EEEEP!!" she screamed as she jumped out of her instrument pile, saving herself. The only casulties were to her instuments, which were completely wrecked and broken beyond repair. "Noooo! My musical instruments!" she said in a sad/shocked tone of voice. "Look at them...they're rife with devastation!"

"Pinkie," began Rainbow Dash as she floated over towards her, "I think you've got bigger stuff to worry about right now...Just look!" The cyan Pegasus then pointed her left front hoof upwards at another swarm heading towards them. The pink pony got the message and she darted out of the way in an instant.

Twilight and the others were completely dumbfounded after witnessing what happened. "Wha-wha-what jus' happened?!?" asked Applejack, shocked.

"The instruments...they didn't work...!" Fluttershy answered, getting scared.

"Oh no...no, no, no, no...nononononononooo...!" Twilight was getting all worked up, trying to process what was going on. "This is bad...this is very bad!!" she said in an increasingly worried tone of voice. "What are we gonna do?! What-are-we-gonna dooooo?!?!"

Suddenly, Rainbow Dash sped in front of Twilight and shouted to her, "Get a holda yourself, Twi!! Running back and forth and wimpering to yourself isn't gonna stop those pests!! We need a new plan and fast!"

"But what ARE we going to do??" asked Rarity. "That song of Pinkie Pie's was the only method we knew of that could rid ourselves of these HORRIFYING little INSECTS!!"

"Maybe we could get some other ponies to help us?" asked Pinkie Pie.

"I'm afraid not..." Spike informed her. "Twilight and I stopped by the Town Hall here earlier to tell Mayor Mare about the whole problem. Not long after that, somepony came by with reports on more Parasprite attacks all over town...So the mayor gathered up everypony in Ponyville and had them all evacuated to a safe place somewhere..."

"Wait, so ya mean that we're the only ones left in the whole TOWN?!" asked Applejack in surprise. "There's nopony else here that can help us out??"

Just then, Twilight suddenly snapped out of her worried state when she heard the orange pony's question. "Wait...that's it!" she responded. "There is still ONE pony left here in Ponyville!"

"There is??" asked the others.

Twilight took a deep breath to regain her composure and told her friends, "You guys do whatever you can to keep those Parasprites from causing too much damage to the town. Spike and I have some work to do elsewhere." The other five ponies weren't sure what this "work" was, but they nodded to say that they would do what they could. They then split apart: The rest of the Mane 6 went towards the eastern side of town, while Twilight and Spike headed in the other direction...

As their friends continued to prevent the aggressive swarms from wrecking the town, Twilight and Spike looked around for anypony that could help them. The lavender Unicorn seemed to know where she was going, but the young dragon wasn't sure about what she was doing. "Twilight," he began to ask, "who are you trying to look for? Mayor Mare evacuated everypony; there isn't a single soul left in town!"

"Not exactly, Spike..." she informed her assistant. "I'm pretty certain that the mayor didn't take EVERYpony out of town...So I've got a good hunch that he's still around."

"Who's 'he' ?" asked Spike. Just then, he realized who it was she was talking about. "Wait, do you mean-?"

"Exactly." Twilight interrupted as she stopped running. "And just as I thought, he's right there...still in the same spot as before." She then pointed her left front hoof forward.

There, sitting under the tree that the lavender Unicorn was pointing towards was Mega Pony. His back was pressed up against the trunk of the towering plant and his head was looking skyward as he was still in deep thought about all of his experiences so far.

"Are you sure he can help us?" Spike asked. "He doesn't know that he's supposed to be a fighter yet, remember?"

"I know..." she answered. "But he's still built to be a fighter, and we'll have to hope that will be enough...It's not like we have any better ideas right now..."

The dragon was still unsure. "I hope you know what you're doing, Twilight..." he said to her.

(...I hope I so too...) the lavender Unicorn thought to herself as she and Spike walked towards the robot pony.

Once they got closer, Mega Pony suddenly noticed them and looked over to his side to watch them coming. "Twilight...?" he asked, slightly confused. "You're back already? You and Spike just left a few minutes ago. Is everything okay?"

"No, everything's NOT okay..." she answered him. "That's why we're here: We need your help."

"My help?" asked the robot, now more confused. "With what?"

"You mean you don't know?" asked the dragon, slightly surprised. "Didn't you see a whole bunch of ponies leaving town on that bridge nearby where you're sitting?"

"No, I didn't." Mega Pony responded. "Nopony came by the bridge here at all. What's this all about?"

(Hmmm, I see...I guess the mayor took everypony out of town via a different exit.) thought Twilight. (That's why he doesn't know about what's going on.) The lavender Unicorn then cleared her throat and said to Mega Pony, "Well, the reason we're here is because there's a large and unusually aggressive swarm of Parasprites in town...They've been destroying properties and attacking other ponies for seemingly no reason at all!"

"Th-that's horrible!" the robot responded in a shocked tone.

"So we came here to look for you!" Spike added. "We need you to help us get rid of these things!"

"But...but what can I do??" asked Mega Pony. "How could I possibly help you and your friends? I don't have any idea of what I'm supposed to be good at...assuming that I'm good at anything, that is...And I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't be much help anyway even if I did know..."

Spike let out a frustrated groan and said to Twilight, "I can't take this anymore! Twilight, you need to tell him! You need to tell him everything!"

"I can't do that, Spike!" the Unicorn protested. "Princess Celestia said that it would cause harm to him if we told him too soon..."

"Twilight, come on! If we don't do SOMETHING, Ponyville's doomed!" the dragon argued. "I'm sure the princess will understand, so please tell him already!"

Twilight looked over at Mega Pony, who wasn't sure what they were talking about, as he was out of earshot when she and Spike were speaking to each other. The lavender Unicorn sighed deeply and thought, (I guess I don't have a choice...) She then walked over to the robot and began to say to him, "Mega Pony...there's something I need to tell-" But before she could say much of anything...

"Twilight! Behind you!!" the robot shouted, pointing his right front hoof forward.

"Huh?!" The lavender Unicorn and the young dragon quickly looked back, just in time to see a small swarm of angry Parasprites rushing towards them. Instinctively, Twilight faced the attacking swarm and charged up energy into her horn. She then unleashed that power, firing three purple energy spheres; one flew straight forward, while the other two spun around the first shot in a clockwise direction while also flying foward. The shots struck the attacking swarm, taking out all of the Parasprites.

"Woah! Nice shot, Twilight!" cheered Spike, impressed.

"You got 'em all!" added Mega Pony, also impressed.

But the lavender Unicorn wasn't showing signs of relief. "Don't celebrate too soon..." she told them, pointing upwards. "Just look..." Up above, there were several more small swarms of Parasprites, all ready to attack in mere moments.

"Just great..." groaned the dragon. "Where there's one, there's bound to be another hundred or so..."

"Both of you stay back, I'll handle this!" ordered Twilight as she charged up another attack. She continued firing her attack spells at the incoming swarms, doing her best to protect her friends. But eventually, she started getting exhausted, and it was getting harder and harder to charge up the necessary power to use her attack. "So...tired..." she said softly before collapsing onto the ground in exhaustion.

"Twilight!!" exclaimed Spike and Mega Pony in unison. The two raced over to her to see if she was okay.

"Twilight! Speak to me!!" the young dragon said worriedly. "Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine..." the lavender Unicorn responded. "Just...tired...Magical energy...fading..."

"Just hang on, Twilight..." Mega Pony told her. "We'll get you some help as soon as-" But his sentence was cut short when the three heard another small swarm coming towards them.

"Uh oh...Brace for impact!!" shouted Spike, covering his head, prompting Twilight to do the same.

The robot stared up at the swarm, and then looked over at the exhausted Twilight Sparkle. He looked up at the swarm again, realizing that they weren't going after him; Twilight and Spike were their targets. Once he found that out, something clicked inside of him, and he began to get angry.

Mega Pony stepped inbetween the swarm and their intended targets. "M...Mega Pony...?" asked the still-tired Twilight. "Wh-what are you doing...?"

But the robot didn't answer her; all his attention was directed towards the flying creatures that meant to do them all harm. "Leave them alone..." he said to the insects. Of course, they didn't listen and still continued to fly towards them. That only made him angrier. "I said...leave them ALONE!!"

And as he shouted those words, a sudden burst of energy, shaped like a yellow oval, shot out of his horn. It flew at a super-fast speed, striking some of the Parasprites in the attacking swarm, knocking them out in one hit. This caused the survivors to stop suddenly, not sure what just happened.

They weren't the only ones: Twilight and Spike were shocked at what they saw as well. But the one most surprised was Mega Pony, as his eyes looked up at his horn, which was giving off a small puff of smoke. "Did...did I just do that??" he asked.

"Woah..." was all that the young dragon could say after witnessing what took place.

Twilight was also suprised, but mostly relieved, by what she saw. Finally finding the strength to get back up, she walked over to Mega Pony and said to him, "Mega Pony...that was amazing! You got them really good there!"

"I did...?" asked the robot meekly.

"Yeah, you sure did!" Spike chimed in. "Those little bugs didn't know what hit them!"

Twilight then added, "You stepped in to protect us, without us even asking you to do it." She then had a idea: She continued to speak, saying, "In fact...it's like you knew exactly what to do...like you were born to do it!"

"Born to do it...?" the robot asked. Then, upon hearing those words from Twilight, something else clicked inside of him: The others watched as his eyes grew wider, as if he came to a sudden realization. In fact, that's exactly what had happened. "Yes...yes, that's it! That IS what my purpose is!! To protect other ponies!" he declared proudly.

"Twilight, did ya hear that?" asked Spike. "He figured it all out by himself!"

The lavender Unicorn smiled warmly and thought to herself, (I had a feeling that the whole, 'born to do it' thing would help him figure it out...)

For the first time in the past hour or so, the robot pony seemed legitimately happy, now that he was aware of what he was meant to do. But the smile faded once the three of them heard more buzzing coming their way. "Maybe we should cut this moment short..." Mega Pony suggested. "At least until these Parasprites are out of our way!"

"I couldn't agree more." stated Twilight, ready to fight once again.

"What are you doing?" asked the robot. "I thought you were exhausted earlier..."

"I was." she answered him. "I just need to rest for a little bit to recharge my magical energy. Fortunately, that sudden attack of yours scared them long enough for me to do just that."

The robot pony was still skeptical, but decided now wasn't the time to argue about it. "Okay, then..." he told her. "Just don't tire yourself out again..."

The small swarm rushed towards them again, but now that Mega Pony got himself into the thick of the battle as well, things were beginning to look up. The swarms were taken out more easily, and since Mega Pony was helping out, Twilight was able to better conserve her magic so as not to exhaust herself. Still, they were horribly outnumbered, and it would take near forever to get rid of them, and the two ponies knew it.

"We're never gonna get rid of them quickly enough at this rate!" the lavender Unicorn complained. "There's just too many of them!" Groaning, she then said to Mega Pony, "Arrgh! If only you could use an attack as powerful as my Magic Wave, we'd probably be able to get rid of them all in seconds!"

After hearing that, the robot suddenly came up with something. "Wait, that's it!" he exclaimed.

"What is it?" asked Twilight.

"I...think I have an idea," he began, "but I'll need your help."

"Anything, what do you need me to do?"

Mega Pony took a deep breath and told her, "I need to touch your cutie mark."

Right away, the lavender Unicorn was taken aback by this request. "You wanna WHAT?!?" she shouted. "Why would you ask something like that, especially NOW?!?"

"...I don't understand..." he responded. "Why are you getting so worked up, Twilight?"

She was about to say why, but then a sudden thought came to her, (Wait, hold on a second...) she thought, (Mega Pony's not a real pony...at least, not physically. He wouldn't have those kinds of...feelings...At least I don't think so...So why would he ask to touch my cutie mark?) She thought about it some more. (Wait, what was it that Princess Celestia told us all earlier...?) She then recalled the conversation that the princess had with them concerning what Mega Pony was capable of...

"Um, if it's okay for me to ask..." Fluttershy began, "is there anything else that he can do?"

(...Could this have something to do with those 'other functions' that she mentioned?) Twilight asked herself in thought. She then sighed and said to herself, "Well...only one way to find out, I suppose." The Unicorn then walked over to Mega Pony and told him, "Okay then...go ahead and touch it." She then stood with her side facing him to show off her cutie mark.

"Um, yeah...sure. Okay then." the robot replied.

Spike, not sure what was going on, watched as Mega Pony walked over to her. (What are they doing...?) he thought to himself.

Mega Pony then put up his right front hoof and placed it right on Twilight's mark. When he did, the mark then began to glow bright white, along with the robot pony's horn. Spike stood there watching them, even more unsure of what was taking place. Then, all of a sudden, there was a flash of light, and the two ponies were pushed apart from each other as the glows on her mark and his horn faded.

Twilight shook her head to rid herself of a slight dizziness that she had gotten from the sudden flash. "Woah, what was that...?" She glanced over at the robot and asked him, "Mega Pony, what happened? Are you okay?"

The mechanical pony rubbed his head as he got up onto his hooves. "I'm fine, Twilight..." he told her. "In fact, everything went exactly as I planned it would..." Before the female Unicorn could ask what he meant, he then told her, "Get ready to fire that Magic Wave of yours on the count of 3, okay?"

"Um, okay..." Twilight responded, staring straight at the remaining Parasprites, who were all ready to attack at a moment's notice.

Mega Pony then took a deep breath, and thought to himself, (Well, I hope this works, then...)

Just then, a larger portion of the swarm flew to attack the two ponies and dragon. Twilight then quickly charged up the necessary power for her Magic Wave attack as Mega Pony began his count.

"1...

"2...

"...3!!"

And right on cue, the lavender Unicorn fired her shot at the large swarm, still not sure what to expect. But the last thing she expected to see happened: A SECOND blast that looked exactly like her own was fired right at the same time, flying right alongside hers. The two combined shots hit the Parasprites with a force so overwhelming, the large swarm was taken down in just one attack.

"Where did that second shot come from?!" asked Spike in shock. The two then turned towards Mega Pony to ask him, but when they saw him, they were certainly surprised to say the least.

Mega Pony was still there, sporting a smirk on his face. But something was different about him: For one, he wasn't mostly blue anymore; now his body and face were lavender in color, and his boots, tail, and helmet were purple with hot pink trims. If you didn't know any better, he looked just like Twilight now; he even copied her cutie mark perfectly, and it took the place of his original one.

"What...what's going on??" asked Twilight. "What did you do??"

"Well, you said that if I had an attack as powerful as yours, we'd stand a better chance." he answered her. "After you said that, something else came to me...I kept hearing the word, 'copy', over and over, and it had something to do with another pony's cutie mark...So, I acted on a hunch, but thankfully, it paid off and I got your special attack out of it!"

*** WEAPON GET! *** Magic Wave ***

"So that's why you wanted to touch my cutie mark...Now I get it." the lavender Unicorn figured out. "Somehow, you have the ability to copy the special powers of anypony by touching their marks. That's a pretty useful power, there."

"Well, since it helped take out those Parasprites, I guess I can agree." Mega Pony then turned towards the remaining pests, charged up his horn, and added, "On that note, we've still got a bit of crowd control duties to finish, don't you agree?"

"Wholeheartedly..." replied Twilight, charging her horn as well.

The rest of the Parasprites no longer had angry looks on their faces; now they looked worried and scared after seeing the power of the two Unicorns in front of them. But before they could flee, Twilight and Mega Pony attacked first, firing their Magic Wave blasts at them with as much force as they could muster. Before long, the entire attacking swarm was no more, and the little pests were knocked out and lying on the ground.

"We did it!" said Mega Pony happily.

"We got them all!" cheered Twilight. She then started skipping around in circles, all the while going, "Yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes...!!"

Suddenly, Spike jumped in front of her and told her, "HOLD IT!! I hate to be a buzzkill when you get all over-excited, but in case you forgot, we've still gotta help our other friends!"

Twilight gasped. "You're right, Spike!" she exclaimed. "I've gotta go help them!!"

Just then, Mega Pony put his right front leg behind her head and stated, "WE'VE gotta go help them."

"You mean it?" she asked, a look of joy and relief on her face.

"I do, Twilight." he answered. "I don't want anything bad to happen to your friends, so I'm going with you to make sure of it!"

The female Unicorn smiled and told him, "Then let's go and teach those pests a lesson they won't soon forget!" After she said that, Spike hopped onto Twilight's back and the three of them headed back to the center of town.

Back in town, the majority of the swarm was still causing trouble. Parasprites were joining together perfectly to wreck anything in their path and cause as much property damage as possible. The remaining Mane 6 members did all they could to slow the damage, but it was still a one-sided battle.

"Hey!! Quit smashing that roof, you little jerks!!" Rainbow Dash scolded a splinter swarm. They immediately bolted, with the cyan Pegasus in pursuit.

"Get outta the marketplace, ya little varmits!!" yelled Applejack, racing towards another swarm that was devouring all of the food that was being sold at the small stands and chasing them off.

Pinkie Pie was swinging her front hooves like crazy to try and swat the little buggers away. "Ugh, why did I have to say something about a horrible plague coming to town?! Saying stuff like that always means that something bad will happen!!" she complained. "Next time, I'm going to say something about a cupcake hurricane coming to town instead!"

"P-please...stop wrecking other ponies' homes, please..." Fluttershy requested, speaking meekly to another small swarm. Of course, they didn't even acknowledge that she was there.

"Don't you dare smash that window!!" screamed Rarity as another small swarm began pounding away at her boutique. "I promise you, if I see even one SCRATCH on my wall because of you, you're going to feel my WRATH!!!"

But all that outburst of hers did was anger the Parasprites. They stopped attacking her boutique, but then went after her instead! The white Unicorn yelped and made a run for it, with the bugs in pursuit. The others found themselves in similar scenarios, and were being chased off by larger swarms. Before long, the five of them were backed into a corner.

"Great...just great..." Rainbow Dash grumbled. "I can see the headlines now: 'Rainbow Dash, Fastest and Toughest Flyer in Equestria, Clobbered by Parasprites'..."

"Right now, Ah just hope THAT'S where we end up in the newspaper...instead of the obituaries..." Applejack noted, gulping a bit as the huge swarm flew closer and closer, as mean as ever.

"What...what are we going to do...?" asked a trembling Fluttershy.

"Weeeeeelllllll..." began Pinkie Pie, "usually at this part of the story, the hero suddenly shows up out of nowhere to come and save the day! It's a little cliché, but it's still very effective!"

"Not to crush your high hopes, Pinkie dear..." Rarity began, "but the odds that somepony will show up at this moment to come rescue us is practically slim to-"

But her remark was cut short when they heard shrieks coming from some of the Parasprites. When the other ponies looked over, they saw that some of the bugs had fallen to the ground, completely unconscious. But it was what they saw next that shocked them all: There, off in the distance, were Twilight, Spike, and Mega Pony.

Rainbow Dash rubbed her eyes in disbelief and looked again. "It's Twilight! And...another Twilight...?" she spoke, confused.

"Hey!! I thought we all Pinkie-Promised that the Mirror Pool was off-limits! Forever!" Pinkie said loudly.

"Wait, hold up! Look a wee bit closer!" Applejack instructed them. "There ain't two Twilights...That other one's Mega Pony!!"

"Mega Pony?!" exclaimed the others in surprise.

The rest of the swarm turned to face Twilight and Mega Pony and went in to attack. But they didn't get very far before the two Unicorns fired off Magic Wave blasts their way, taking out several of them at once. They were then able to rush by the surviving Parasprites in the confusion and get to their friends.

"Are you guys alright?" asked Twilight, concerned.

"We've been better, dear." answered Rarity. "But we've also been worse, so, all in all, we cannot complain."

"I'll take that as a 'yes'." the lavender Unicorn responded.

Rainbow Dash then glanced over at Mega Pony, who was still colored like Twilight. "Uh...that IS you, right, Mega Pony...?" she asked in an unsure tone of voice.

The robot giggled a little and said, "Yeah, it's me, Rainbow Dash..."

"So, how come ya'll look like Twilight?" Applejack asked. "Last Ah checked, you were all blue in color..."

"It's some sorta power he has..." Spike answered. "According to him and Twilight, he can copy anypony's special powers by touching their cutie marks!"

"Really now?" asked Rarity. "I must say that IS remarkable, to say the least..."

"Um...guys...?" asked Fluttershy. "I really don't like to interrupt...but...look up..."

The rest of the group glanced up and saw that the remaining Parasprites had returned to attack once again. "Looks like it's not over yet..." Twilight noted. "Those things are probably going to strike again soon, and we have to stop them from causing any more harm to the town..."

"That's going to be a problem..." Mega Pony stated. "I don't have much ammo left for the Magic Wave that I got from you, and I'd rather save what I have just in case things get really bad..."

"Then the answer t' that problem's obvious!" Applejack suddenly spoke up, walking over to the robot. "You need t' get yerself another weapon, and I'm willin' t' offer mah services!"

"You are...?" asked the robot as Applejack stood in front of him, showing her cutie mark.

"Go ahead and see what ya can get offa me." she told him. Mega Pony nodded and touched her mark with his right front hoof. Just like with Twilight, her mark and his horn began to glow, and a flash sparked when it was all over. Once they recovered their wits, the orange Earth Pony asked, "So, did it work?"

Mega Pony nodded and said, "I think so, I'll try it out right now..." He then closed his eyes to concentrate. As he did, rays of light circled around his body, moving from his front to his back. As they did, his color scheme began to change from Twilight's lavender and purple colors to Applejack's orange and yellow. And of course, her cutie mark was now proudly displayed on his flank.

"Well, Ah'll be..." said the amazed Applejack.

"So that's how he does it..." Twilight said to herself.

With his new weapon activated, Mega Pony stared straight up at the swarm of Parasprites, who only stared back. His horn then began to glow, and then, from out of thin air, an apple appeared in front of him and flew a short distance straight upward. The rest watched, not sure what to expect.

Mega Pony then turned around, his back to the apple that was now dropping to the ground. He then balanced himself on his front legs, pulled his hind legs back and, once it was within range, kicked the falling apple, sending it flying at an upward angle towards the swarm. The Parasprites tried to fly away, but many of them got struck by the apple, which exploded upon contact with them.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Apple Bucker ***

"That was awesome!!" praised Rainbow Dash. "Did you guys see that?!"

"Not exactly the most refined method of eliminating pests," criticized Rarity, "but as they say, 'If it works, it works.' "

Mega Pony hopped back over to his friends and said to Applejack, "Thanks for the great new weapon, Applejack! It sent those Parasprites running! Er, I mean flying..."

"No problem at all, Mega Pony!" the orange pony responded, tipping her hat. "Always happy to help a pony."

Just then, the group suddenly heard screaming nearby. "HEEEEEELLLLLP!!!!" They turned around and raced in the direction that the cries were coming from. Once they got to the scene, they were horrified at what they saw: There were four young ponies, two colts and two fillies, trapped under some rubble from a nearby building that was ready to collapse on them.

"Oh no! That building's going to fall right on them, and they can't get away from it!" Twilight stated in distress.

"Rainbow Dash, you've gotta save them...!" said Fluttershy. "You're the only one fast enough to get to them in time..."

"Well, YEAH...Of course I am." the cyan Pegasus told her. "But there's just one problem: I can only carry about two of them tops and still be able to fly to safety fast enough!"

Mega Pony (who changed back to his standard colors by now) stepped over towards Dash and said to her, "Then I'll go and help you! I'll get the two to my left, and you grab the two on your right."

"Are you sure you're fast enough?" asked Rainbow.

"I'm not...At least right NOW I'm not." he answered, pointing to the Pegasus's cutie mark.

Dash looked over at her mark, and realized what he was getting at. "Ohhhh...I see, I see..." she responded. "In that case, go ahead and see what you get from me." The robot nodded and touched her mark. After the light show was over, she then asked him, "So, get anything good? As if I have to ask?"

"Yeah, I think so." he replied. "Go on ahead, Dash...I'll catch up." The cyan Pegasus nodded and sped off to save two of the young ponies. Mega Pony then changed colors again, this time switching to Rainbow Dash's color scheme. Once he did, he then said, "Activating Emergency Wings!" Upon doing so, a pair of wings formed at his sides. The others were surprised, but not nearly as much as when the robot sped off in a rainbow-colored streak, going from 0 to 60 in less than a second, and even creating a small rainbow shockwave that was visible for a split-second.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Sonic Rainboom ***

"Aiyiyi!! Did you see that?!" exclaimed Pinkie Pie.

"We did..." Twilight responded. "It was small, but that was definitely a Sonic Rainboom!"

The robot flew as fast as possible: Of course, it was easy since he now had Rainbow Dash's power helping him. In no time, he managed to catch up to the speedy flyer. The cyan Pegasus was pretty surprised to see somepony that was able to keep up with her. She then smirked and asked, "So I guess this means you did get something useful from me, huh?"

"Yeah, but more on that later." Mega Pony told her. "We've still got a job to do!"

"On it!" the Pegasus responded, speeding up, prompting the robot to do the same. The two of them used their speed to smash away the rubble that prevented the young ponies from running away before looping around and scooping up the colts and fillies and whisking them off to safety...mere moments before the building collapsed over top of where they were.

The two flying ponies landed safely next to the rest of their friends, placing the younger ponies back on the ground gently. "There, you guys are safe now." said Rainbow Dash. She then asked them, "But what were you thinking coming here? Didn't you see the mayor evacuating everypony outta town?!"

"We're sorry..." said one of the fillies, a Unicorn who had a slate-blue coat and a blond mane and tail. "We didn't hear anything about that..."

"It's okay." Twilight told them. "Just be careful getting out of here, it still dangerous." She then looked up at Rainbow Dash and resquested her, saying, "Take the four of them out of town safely."

"I hear ya, Twi. No prob." the cyan Pegasus responded.

One of the other fillies, an Earth Pony with a beige coat, puffy red mane and tail, and a cutie mark depicting two candy canes, walked over to Mega Pony (who no longer had his wings active, as they were only a temporary power-up). "Thankth for thaving me, mithter..." she said to him, a slight lisp in her voice. "How can I ever repay you?"

"Just live your life happily and safely...that's all I ask." the robot responded in a humble tone, patting her on the head. The filly giggled and left to join the other young ponies being led out of town.

Not long after they left, the rest of the group heard more buzzing. "Oh dear...not AGAIN..." groaned Rarity as she and her friends looked up to see the Parasprite swarm returning in greater numbers.

"Looks like they're back..." noted Applejack. "And they brought reinforcements!"

"That's not good..." Mega Pony stated. "I only have so much energy left for my weapons, and it's not enough to take out that many Parasprites...I need some kind of weapon that's not only effective, but also energy-efficient as well."

Rarity then put on a smirk and spoke up. "Then I guess I will go right ahead and 'step up to the plate' as they say." she said to them.

"You think you might have something that can help, Rarity?" asked Twilight.

"Ah, but of course, dear." the white Unicorn replied. "After all, being efficient with my resources is something I'm very good at. Not a single cloth or jewel goes to waste when it's in MY boutique. So, I'm fairly certain that whatever I give to Mega Pony here will be EXACTLY what he needs!"

"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to try..." the robot stated. "Here goes." He then went and touched Rarity's cutie mark next, triggering the bright light show once more. Once he succesfully copied her, he then said, "Okay...yeah, I think this is what I was hoping for. Only one way to find out, though..." The robot then switched colors again, adopting Rarity's white-and-violet color scheme and cutie mark.

Spike sighed with a slight frown when he saw Mega Pony in Rarity's colors. (Those colors...) he thought, (it just doesn't work with him as well as it works on Rarity...)

The robot approached the swarm, a look of justifiable anger upon his face. Once again, the Parasprites flew in to attack, but the robot was ready with his new weapon. His horn then glowed brightly, and all of a sudden, six large, white jewels began to circle in front of him rapidly. The bugs then ended up striking the gems instead of him, and were swatted away easily. But Mega Pony wasn't done yet; he then activated his horn again and swung his head up and forward, causing the gems to fly out towards the swarm. They tried to get away, but the crystallized projectiles homed in on them and took out many of them anyway.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Gem Seeker ***

"This is great!" Mega Pony said to himself. "Rarity was right: I've fired of six of those things, and I barely used up any weapon energy at all!" He then used his weapon to create more gems, firing them off at the swarm repeatedly. Not long after, Twilight got back into the fight, firing her Magic Wave attack at the pests as well.

Pretty soon, the huge swarm that attacked the town earlier was now only a shell of its former self. The remaining Parasprites flew off in a panic, managing to get out of the area before being attacked. "Look! They're flying away! We did it!" cheered Pinkie Pie.

Applejack huffed and said, "Figures, they act all big n' tough when there's a ton of 'em, but as soon as things start lookin' bad, they turn tail n' run!"

"So...i-is it over now...?" asked Fluttershy.

"No way!" replied Rainbow Dash, returning from escorting the young ponies out of town. "They wreck the town, and we're just gonna let 'em get away with it?! We've gotta take 'em all out now while we've got the chance!"

"Are you sure we need to?" asked Rarity, puzzled. "If they're leaving town, then our problem is solved, right?"

"No, I have to agree with Rainbow Dash on this one..." stated Twilight. "If we let them get away, there's a chance they'll multiply like crazy and try this again! Those things have made it perfectly clear that they don't care about anypony's safety or well-being, and it's our duty to make sure that they can't hurt this town or any of us again!"

"I saw the swarm heading towards the Everfree Forest, if my GPS system is working correctly..." Mega Pony noted, changing back to his original colors. "If we move fast enough, we can cut them off and end this!" The others nodded in agreement, and ran off towards the forest in hot pursuit.

The remaining members of the swarm flew as fast as they could to get away, but to no avail. Their flight was interrupted when the Mane 6, Spike, and Mega Pony leapt out in front of them. "That's as far as you're going, you little ruffians!" shouted Rarity.

The swarm panicked and flew off in the opposite direction. Twilight then got an idea and said to her yellow Pegasus friend, "Fluttershy, get in front of them quickly, then use your stare to keep them in place!"

"Um...uh...o-o-okay..." the meek pony responded, a bit unsure. She flew past the swarm and managed to get in front of them. But when she prepared to use her stare, an ability that could frighten even the biggest of creatures, the small swarm gave off a stare of their own, glaring angrily at her. "EEEP!" shreiked Fluttershy, hiding her face.

"Come on, Sugarcube!!" Applejack shouted. "Stare 'em down!"

"Oh...it's no use..." noted Rarity. "She's too frightened to move, much less use her stare...Not that I can blame her, the poor dear...This HAS been quite the horrid experience so far..."

Mega Pony, listening to the conversation, chimed in and asked, "Twilight, what's this 'stare' they keep talking about...?"

The lavender Unicorn answered him, saying, "Well, Fluttershy has this power...By just staring at something, or somepony, she can frighten them so much, that they can't help but to freeze in place completely." She then looked over at her trembling friend and added, "But with everything that's happened so far, she's too scared to use it!"

The robot then responded, "In that case, if she can't do it...I will!" He then ran past the Parasprites, reaching Fluttershy. He then quickly tapped her mark to try and copy her power.

"EEEP!" the timid Pegasus yelped. She started shaking again until she realized who it was that was touching her. "M-Mega Pony??"

"Don't be scared, Fluttershy..." he said to her. "I'm here to help." After saying that, he managed to finish using his copy ability. Once he did, he changed his armor color to match Fluttershy's color scheme and said to the Pegasus, "You might want to get back to the others and tell them to cover their eyes; if this stare power is as strong as I heard it was, this could get intense."

"Ummm...okay, then." replied Fluttershy. "G-good luck!" She then ran off to pass on Mega Pony's message to them.

Once she was out of harm's way, Mega Pony looked up at the swarm and said, "So, you wanna pick on somepony, huh? Then why don't you try picking on me?! That is, if you think you can..."

That comment struck the nerves of the Parasprites. Since their escape was cut off, they decided to fight back instead, rushing towards the robot. But Mega Pony simply looked ahead, and saw that the others took his advice and had their eyes covered. Once he confirmed that everything was okay, he shut his own eyes and concentrated hard. Then, he opened them again, and when he did, bright, blinding lights came out of them. It was so intense, the swarm had stopped completely, unable to move even the slightest inch.

*** WEAPON GET! *** The Stare ***

After a few seconds of using the new weapon he got, Mega Pony finally deactivated it, feeling slightly woozy. He rubbed his head for a bit, saying to himself, "Woah...that took a lot of energy..." He then looked up at the Parasprites, saw that they were stalled completely in mid-air, and added, "But most importantly, it worked. Those things aren't going anywhere!"

Twilight and the others opened their eyes once they heard the robot talking. They were then able to see that the remaining bugs were now sitting ducks. "Look, he did it!" Applejack said happily. "He froze 'em all!"

"Oh...my..." was all that Fluttershy could say about it.

"Alright, now to finish these things off..." Mega Pony said to himself. "But what should I use to make sure that they all go down at once...?"

"Maybe I can help!" Pinkie Pie responded, (somehow) appearing behind the robot. "I'll bet I have something that can get rid of these party poopers once and for all!"

"Uh, okay. Why not?" asked the mechanical pony. "After all, I got good weapons from all of the others; it wouldn't make sense not to add whatever you have to my supply as well." He then touched Pinkie's cutie mark, triggering the light show, and copying her special power.

"So, wha'dya get?! Wha'dya get?!" asked the silly pony as the robot changed his color and mark to hers.

Mega Pony, a bit confused at first, answered, saying, "My systems say that it's called the...'Party Cannon'...?"

*** WEAPON GET! *** Party Cannon ***

"No WAY!!!! You got my Party Cannon!!!" Pinkie replied excitedly. "That'll be perfect!!!"

"It...will...?"

"You betcha, Mega Pony!" she continued, pulling out her Party Cannon out of nowhere. Her cannon was light-blue colored and was supported by two pink and purple wheels with flowers on them. "But maybe we oughtta let the cannons speak for themselves! But that might be hard since they don't have mouths." Going completely off-topic, she then added, "Say, now that I think about it, what would you say if you were a cannon that could talk? If I were that, I'd say, 'Fill me with cake and cookies!' And then I'd fire it to anypony who wants a treat and-"

"Um, Pinkie...?" Mega Pony interrupted. "The Parasprites...?"

"Oops, sorry." the pink pony apologized with a slight giggle. The two of them looked right up at the still-frozen swarm, ready to take them out for good. "Alrighty-rooty, Mega Pony! Let's go!! FIRE!!!"

And with that command, the two of them fired their weapons, shooting pink, blue, and yellow balloons towards the Parasprites. When the balloons came into contact with them, they immediately burst, letting out a noise so loud, it scared the bugs into moving again...straight down to the ground. And with that, the crisis was over.

"We did it!! We got them all!!" cheered Rainbow Dash with a congratualtory loop-de-loop in the air.

"What a relief..." sighed Rarity. She looked at her front hooves and added, "And would you look at that: All without scratching a hoof..."

Twilight walked over to Mega Pony as he changed back to his original colors and thanked him, saying, "My friends and I really appreciate everything you've done for us. Thanks a lot."

"Yeah, same here!" added Spike. "You were awesome out there!"

The robot gave a small smile and told them both, "Only because you and the others helped me. I don't think we would have done so well if we didn't work together as well as we did..." He then added, "You were a big help especially, Twilight: You helped me figure out my purpose and what I was programmed to do."

The lavender Unicorn responded, saying, "Look...about that...I have to confess something: See, my friends and I-"

"I know." Mega Pony interrupted, causing Twilight to gasp a little. "Princess Celestia probably told you what I was built for, but she didn't want you to reveal that to me too soon, right?"

"Y...yeah." the Unicorn replied, feeling slightly ashamed. "I'm sorry, but the princess said that if we told you too soon, it could damage you internally..."

"I know that." he replied. "Believe me, I considered that possibility...But you helped me discover my talent; my purpose, on my own...And not only that, you stood by my side and put your complete trust in me when it was needed the most...I'll never forget that, Twilight."

"It was nothing, Mega Pony." Twilight told him. "That's just what good friends do: Help each other out."

"Friend? Me?" asked the robot, a bit surprised. "Really?"

"Of course." stated Applejack as she and the rest of the group strolled over towards him. "After all that's happened today, there's no way that we WOULDN'T consider you a friend, Mega Pony."

"You fought against those creatures for the sake of everypony in Ponyville," began Rarity, "and I daresay, we were more than happy to be right there to support you!"

"So like it or not," Rainbow Dash added, swooping in from above, "you can consider yourself one of us now."

Mega Pony was clearly touched by what they said to him. "Th...thanks, guys..." he said. "That really means a lot to me, that you want me to be your friend..." After he said that, a small tear came out of his eye.

"Um...are you...crying?" asked Fluttershy. "If you don't mind me asking..."

"I didn't know robots could cry." added Pinkie Pie.

"...I didn't either." the robot told them. "I just feel so happy right now, I guess I couldn't help it..." He then wiped the tear and added, "But if being a friend to somepony else feels this good inside, then I guess that's what I'll do!" And not long after he said that, he found himself in the middle of a group hug, courtesy of Twilight and the rest of her friends, which essentially cemented their new friendship.

Once they broke the group hug, Twilight then said, "Well, I guess we'd better get back to town to let everypony know it's safe to come back."

"I agree." stated Mega Pony. "Besides, there's a bit more I want see and do in Ponyville before I head back to Canterlot."

As the group began to leave, a loud CRUNCH sound was heard. Everypony glanced around a bit to figure out where it came from, until they heard a loud "EEEEEEEEEEEK!!!!!!!" from Fluttershy.

Rushing over to the yellow Pegasus, Rarity asked her, "Fluttershy! Darling, what's the matter?!"

"I...I...I stepped on one...!" the timid pony responded, shaking in horror. "I stepped on a Parasprite...!"

"Really?!" asked Twilight. "Let me see." Fluttershy slowly moved her leg so that the lavender Unicorn could inspect the unlucky bug. But when she got a look at it, she gave out a loud gasp. "WHAT THE-?!?!"

"What's wrong, Twilight??" asked Applejack, concerned.

Twilight, shaking a little, pointed her hoof down and said, "L...look..." The others glanced down and became just as shocked as her when they saw it: Right where the Parasprite was, there were pieces of broken metal, nuts, bolts, and small microchips instead. The eyes of the Parasprite looked like shattered glass...because they WERE glass, broken from being stepped on.

"Th...that Parasprite!" Mega Pony stuttered. "It was a...a robot!"

"Wait...hold up a sec:" started Rainbow Dash. "You mean t' tell me that this whole time, we've been fighting ROBOT Parasprites?!"

"Y'know what...?" Applejack began to ask, "I'll betcha that those Parasprite robots..."

"Para-Bots!" Pinkie Pie blurted out, interrupting her orange friend. The others looked at her, which prompted the pink pony into saying, "What? I just think that sounds better."

"Uh, right." Applejack replied. She then began speaking again, saying, "Anyhoo, I'll betcha those, 'Para-Bots', were progammed to attack other ponies and pretty much everythin' else! That's why they were acting so aggresively!"

"But...that poses one more question..." Rarity added. "...WHO programmed them?"

"You're right, Rarity..." Twilight said with a gasp. "Robots can't program themselves, so somepony must have sent these robots to attack on purpose!"

"But who would be so mean to do that...?" asked Fluttershy.

"Well whoever they are," started Rainbow Dash, "they'd better not show their face around here, or they're gonna have to tangle with me!"

"I suppose we'll know in time..." stated Twilight. "For now, let's get back to Ponyville and tell Mayor Mare about what we found out." The others nodded and followed the lavender Unicorn out of the forest and back to civilization.

Several hours had passed since the Para-Bots' attack in Ponyville. All of the citizens were able to return home, and life carried on as usual. Fortunately, the damage caused by the swarm was minimal, thanks to the efforts of the Mane 6 and Mega Pony, so repairs were quick and relatively cheap.

Mega Pony stayed with Twilight and her friends for the rest of the day, chatting, sightseeing, and generally having fun with each other. After the huge battle they had fought, being able to wind down and relax felt really good to them. Of course, as nighttime neared, the group had to soon say their goodbyes to their new friend. Mega Pony remained with Twilight and Spike in front of the library and said his farewells to the others as they prepared to leave for their homes.

A short while later, Spike, looking through a pair of binoculars, said to Twilight and Mega Pony, "There! Here she comes!" He then pointed straight up at a chariot, pulled by two Pegasus guards, flying high up in the sky and heading towards them. In the chariot were the princesses, Celestia and Luna, coming over to pick up Mega Pony and take him back to Canterlot.

After the two Alicorns stepped onto terra firma, Twilight bowed to show her respect before telling them about everything that had happened. The two rulers of Equestria were surprised, not only to find out about the strange Parasprite robots, but also the fact that Mega Pony had grown into his programming and even ended up becoming friends with Twilight and her friends.

"I must admit, Twilight..." Celestia spoke, "as confident as I was in you, I didn't expect you to help Mega Pony come into his programming THIS quickly. I have to say, I am very proud of you, my student."

"Uh, th-thanks, Princess Celestia..." the lavender Unicorn responded. "But to be honest, that sudden crisis here a couple hours ago sorta helped a little..."

"Nevertheless, you've once again exceeded my expectations, Twilight." the white Alicorn complimented. "If you keep this up...well, I'd rather not spoil the surprise for you just yet." The Unicorn giggled a bit in response as Celestia walked over to her creation. "So, random mishaps aside," she began to ask him, "did you enjoy your day here in Ponyville?"

"Yes, very much so!" the robot answered. "Twilight and the others were really nice to me since I came here. I'd love to come back and see them again someday!"

"I'll see if I can arrange that..." Celestia replied. Mega Pony then yawned a little, feeling tired. "But for now, I think we should head back to the castle for the night." she then suggested.

"Yes, we should." Luna added. "After all, it is getting late, and I have to make sure that the moon rises on time." As the three of them got in the chariot, the dark-blue Alicorn then asked, "Say, Sister...why did you give Mega Pony the ability to yawn?"

"Oh, that's simple." the white Alicorn told her. "So that he and anypony else will know if his energy reserves are low and need recharging. Fortunately, we have that sort of thing all ready back home."

After he got into the chariot, Mega Pony waved his left front hoof and said, "Bye, Twilight! Bye, Spike! Thanks for everything!"

"Goodbye, Mega Pony!" Twilight said, waving back. "Have a safe trip!"

"Come back soon someday!" Spike added, also waving goodbye.

"I will! Goodbye!!" the robot responded as the chariot lifted off of the ground and headed back towards Canterlot.

Once they were back at the castle, Princess Celestia took Mega Pony up a set of stairs to a higher floor, while Princess Luna took care of her task of raising the moon. "I'm very pleased to hear about how well you performed today, Mega Pony." she told him. "You, too, have exceeded what I expected out of you, and I know you will be a fine guardian for all of Equestria."

"Are you sure?" asked the mechanical pony. "After all, I don't think I would have been able to fight that Parasprite swarm if Twilight and the others hadn't helped me."

Celestia chuckled softly and told her creation, "Now, Mega Pony...You do not have worry about such things." The two stopped walking as she continued, saying, "While you are built to handle most threats alone, I never intended for you to try and do EVERYTHING by yourself." The robot seemed confused, but listened on to see where she was going with this.

"I know from experience that there will be problems and threats that are too big for one pony to face on their own..." the princess continued. "So I designed you to be able to accept help from anypony who wishes to fight for the safety of themselves and/or others. That's why I gave you your Copy Chip and Variable Tool System, the devices that work together in order to allow you to adapt any pony's special power into yourself. Not only will it make you more powerful, but it is also a reminder to you that, no matter what, you are never truly in a fight alone, and that your friends will always be there right by your side."

Mega Pony smiled a little, happy to hear that. "Thanks..." he said. "That means a lot to me...And I promise to fight hard to make sure that Equestria remains safe for everypony."

"And I know that you will do a great job, Mega Pony." Celestia replied as they walked up the rest of the stairs. "But for now, you need your rest, which brings us to the next surprise I have for you."

"Surprise...?" The robot watched as his creator opened a door in front of them, revealing a very neat and tidy bedroom. "What is this??" he asked, a bit shocked.

The white Alicorn chuckled and answered him, saying, "This is your bedroom, Mega Pony. It was a storage room previously, but Luna and I converted it while you were away with Twilight and her friends. Since you'll be staying here with us for quite a long time, I felt that you should have someplace in the castle to call your own."

"Wow...! Thank you so much!" the robot pony said happily and gratefully.

A few minutes later, the princess tucked Mega Pony into his bed and used her magic to connect a series of cables from a device behind the bed into small ports in the back of the robot's helmet. "Okay, everything's all set." she told him. "Once I leave the room, you are to activate your Sleep Mode. This will allow the generator behind your bed to recharge your power reserves. By morning tomorrow, you should be back to full power."

"Okay then..." he responded with a yawn. "Thanks again for everything today..."

"It was my pleasure." Celestia replied. She then kissed him on the forehead and said to him, "Good night, Mega Pony."

But as the princess turned around and began to leave the room, she heard something from her creation that made her stop for a moment: "Good night...Mommy..."

The white Alicorn did not expect Mega Pony to say something like that to her. But the smile on her face and the small tear of joy that escaped from her eye said it all: She was deeply touched by the fact the he considered her his mother. She then finally left the room as the robot fell asleep.

As Celestia walked downstairs, she saw her sister Luna walking up the stairs to meet her. "Well, that takes care of the moon for tonight..." said the dark-blue Alicorn. "I just have a few more things to look over, and then I'll take care of my nightly du-" She then paused when she saw her sister, Celestia; particularly the tear that was still in her eye. "Um, Sister? Is everything alright?" Luna asked, concerned.

The white Alicorn wiped the tear from her eye and said, "It...it's nothing...Nothing you need to concern yourself with."

The younger sister still wasn't sure. "Did something happen? Is Mega Pony okay?" she asked.

"Oh, he's fine." Celestia told her. "However...you might have to get used to him calling you 'Aunt Luna' from now on..."

"Well, I suppose I can-...Wait, WHAT??" Luna exclaimed, not expecting to hear something like that. "What is that supposed to mean?! Sister!! SISTER!!!" She asked loudly, running after Celestia. All the while, Mega Pony slept soundly in his room. But as he rested, everypony that knew him already knew that this was only the beginning; the beginning of a new legend in the country of Equestria: The Legend of the Equine Bomber.

NEXT EPISODE: "Friendship Isn't Easy"

Episode 103: Friendship Isn't Easy:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

It has now been five days since Mega Pony was activated. During that time, however, he has managed to garner a good reputation amongst his fellow ponies. He has performed many good deeds, fought some dangerous creatures, and stopped trouble wherever and whenever it presented itself. But now Mega Pony is about to be given his most difficult task yet, and it will answer a question that is sure to be on everypony's mind:

Can a pony built for combat fit into normal society?

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony. Built to defend Equestria.

Rarity: Fashion-forward Unicorn. Element of Generosity.

Rainbow Dash: Super-speedy Pegasus. Element of Loyalty.

Applejack: Hard-workin' farm pony. Element of Honesty.

The sun was just now rising over the peaceful land of Equestria, its glorious light beginning to cover every inch of the country. The benevolent Alicorn, Princess Celestia, used her incredible power to raise the sun (after her sister, Princess Luna, lowered the moon, of course) until, at last, it was brought to just the right height, officially signalling the start of morning. Their tasks complete, the two Royal Sisters then headed down the stairs to the dining hall to have breakfast.

"So, what do you suppose is on the menu for us today, Luna?" Celestia asked her younger sister.

"Pancakes, I believe." the dark-blue Alicorn answered. "I managed to sneak a peek into the Head Chef's dream last night and found out." As she spoke, the two of them had now just walked through the doors to the dining hall.

The two sisters walked over to the large dining table, heading for their specially-decorated seats. Sure enough, on the fancy plates set in front of their seats, were several stacks of steaming-hot pancakes. The two Alicorns inhaled deeply, taking in the wonderful scent of a well-made meal. "Well, they certainly smell good." stated Celestia as they both sat down. "And I see they even made them in our favorite flavors: Banana for me and blueberry for you."

"To be honest, Older Sister," started Luna, levitating a short stack of pancakes onto her plate, "I don't really have a favorite flavor of pancake. But I cannot deny that I have a weakness towards blueberries."

Celestia used her magic to cut her stack of pancakes into pieces and asked, "I wonder: If I had presented you with all the blueberries you could eat a thousand years ago, would that have stopped you from being Nightmare Moon?"

The dark-blue Alicorn gave her older sister a look; Celestia frowned a little, wondering if she had crossed a line with that remark. But Luna smirked and answered her, saying, "I probably would have." There was a bit of silence for a while before the two giggled to each other at the off-hoofed remark.

The Royal Sisters then began eating, enjoying every single bite of the delicious breakfast in front of them. "Oh my..." Celestia began, "This IS good...VERY good..."

"I agree, Older Sister..." Luna said, taking another large forkful into her mouth. "The cooks have certainly outdone themselves today." She then turned over to her sister and asked her, "Pass me some of those hay bacon strips, would you?"

Celestia, sighing, said to her younger sister, "Luna, you know better than to talk with your mouth full." Passing over the grassy strips that her sister asked for, she then added, "That aside, I do agree with you: This is probably their greatest work yet."

The dark-blue Alicorn munched on a piece of hay bacon and (AFTER swallowing her food this time, of course) asked Celestia, "Speaking of greatest works, where is Mega Pony? Shouldn't he be awake by now?"

"His internal alarm clock is programmed to wake him up at exactly 7:00 AM." the older sister answered. The two of them then glanced over at the grandfather clock in the room, which showed the time was 6:59 AM. Celestia then spoke again, saying, "He should be getting up right aboooouuuut...now." And after she said that, the hour hand clicked over to the 7.

Not long after, one of the guards entered the room. "Your Highnesses." he said to them. "I came to inform you that Mega Pony has just gotten out of bed and is waiting to come in and see you."

"Very good." said Celestia. "Allow him in."

"As you wish." the guard replied. He then glanced behind him and nodded to somepony outside of the dining hall. At that moment, Mega Pony then slowly trotted inside, walking past the guard. The robot had most of his armor on, except for his helmet. Without the headwear on, he was revealed to have a chestnut-brown mane, and his Unicorn horn was actually the same peach color as his face. He walked over to Celestia and Luna as the guard left the room.

"Good morning, Mega Pony." the white Alicorn said to him, giving her creation a friendly hug.

Mega Pony returned the favor, hugging her and saying, "Good morning, Mom." Since the day he was activated, the mechanical pony had been calling Princess Celestia not by her name or her title, but as his mother. She was inititally surprised when he had first called her as such, but overall, she was perfectly fine with it.

"Did you sleep well last night?" the white Alicorn asked. "Is the generator in your room working fine?"

"Yep. Just like it has been the past few days." Mega Pony answered. "Did you sleep well too?"

"Yes, though I don't require nearly as much sleep as the other pony races." Celestia responded. "This is of course, due to not only my Alicorn magic, but also the simple fact that I've gotten used to it over the past few centuries. On that same note, Luna is mostly nocturnal because of her duties, so she doesn't require much sleep either, aside from a small nap every now and then."

Upon the mentioning of Luna, Mega Pony then trotted over to the dark-blue Alicorn, who was still eating her breakfast. The robot then happily said to her, "Good morning to you too, Aunt Luna."

Luna's eyes widened a bit as she hacked and coughed a little, as she was in mid-swallow when Mega Pony spoke to her. Clearing her throat, she asked him, "Um...Mega Pony? Did we not have a discussion earlier about...well, you calling me that?"

"...Yes, we did. Two days ago, in fact." he answered. "You told me not to call you 'Aunt Luna' in public. But right now, it's just the three of us in here, so I don't see what the problem is."

Luna sighed and put her left front hoof to her face. (Curse your infallible logic...) she thought to herself. "Fine, have it your way..." she then told him, blushing a little. "Just...well, keep it at a low volume...It's...it's embarrassing."

The robot was a little confused until Princess Celestia walked over to him to explain things. "Don't take her actions and remarks personally, Mega Pony." she told him. "She's just not used to being called an aunt before."

"Well, it's not like I'm trying to make her upset..." he replied. "And besides, you're okay with me calling you 'Mom'."

"That's true, but that doesn't mean that everypony can adjust to such things just as quickly." the white Alicorn informed him. "For instance, it took you a while to adjust to what you were programmed for and to accept it, am I right?"

"Yeah...I-I see your point."

Celestia smiled and returned to her seat at the table. "And while we're on the subject of your programming," she began, "I feel it is the right time to give you this new assignment."

"What new assignment?" asked Mega Pony. Luna glanced over to her older sister, interested as well.

"Your assignment today..." the elder Royal Sister began, pausing to take a bite out of her stack of banana pancakes. "...is to fulfill your secondary directive."

"Secondary directive?" asked the robot.

"Yes." Celestia responded. "As you know, your primary directive is to protect Equestria and its citizens. However, I have also programmed a secondary directive into your CPU that will allow you to function, even when you are unable to perform your primary duties in one way or another."

"And what is this secondary directive?" asked Mega Pony. "Or...do I have to figure this one out on my own, like before?"

"Don't worry about that." the Princess of the Sun told him. "I feel okay telling this to you right away, now that you are aware of your primary functions." She cleared her throat before speaking again. "It is actually very simple: I want you to go out and act as an ordinary citizen."

"An ordinary citizen?" asked the robot.

"Indeed. While I did build you to fight against any threat to Equestria, I also intended for you to be able to live your life like any other pony." Celestia explained to him. "You have already made some progress with that when you became friends with my student and her friends, but now I want to you to find a way to be useful or just simply enjoy yourself, without involving your skills as fighter at all."

The mechanical pony thought about his creator's words for a while. He then smiled and said to her, "I think I understand, Mom. I just need to find some way of helping, or being around, other ponies that doesn't involve rescuing them or fighting in any way."

"Exactly." said Celestia. "So, do you accept the assignment that I have given to you?" she then asked.

"I do, Mom." answered Mega Pony.

"Very good to hear. I knew that I could count on you." the white Alicorn told him. "With that said, you are to head to Ponyville immediately. I have already informed my student ahead of time, so she will be expecting you to arrive today."

"Ponyville?" he asked. "I haven't been back there since the day you activated me...But the train station doesn't open for another hour, and besides that, it will take me a while to get to Ponyville."

"Don't worry, I have thought of that too." the white Alicorn replied. She then turned to her sister and asked her, "Luna, would you please present my son with the device we worked on yesterday?"

The younger Alicorn sister used her magic to levitate a small object out of her moon-decorated chestplate: It appeared to be a flash drive. Luna walked over to her "nephew" and said to him, "Okay, hold still now...this will only take a second." She then opened a hatch on the back of the robot's head, revealing some of his inner workings. Luna plugged the drive into a USB port inside and pressed a small button, which glowed red for a while. After a few seconds, it turned green, and Luna took the drive out and closed the hatch once more.

"Woah...what was that, Aunt Luna?" Mega Pony asked.

"That is the programming for your teleportation device." the dark-blue Alicorn answered him. "It is designed to work with your GPS unit in order to teleport you to any place that you have already been to."

"With it, you will be able to reach Ponyville in mere seconds." Celestia added. "It should also prove helpful to you in the future as well."

"Wow...thanks, both of you!" said the robot, grateful for the gift that they gave to him. He then closed his eyes and in a second, his blue helmet then materialized over his head. "Well, I guess I'll get going now..." he told the two Alicorns. "I promise that I'll do my best today."

"That is all we ask of you." Celestia informed him. "Good luck, Mega Pony." The robot nodded and immediately used his new teleporting power, whisking himself away in a long beam of light.

After Mega Pony left, Luna then asked her sister, "So what should we do now? Our duties during the daytime don't officially begin until 8:00."

Celestia's face turned to a more serious expression. "Well, while we have some time to talk about it," she began, "I believe we should look into matters regarding what Twilight and Mega Pony witnessed on the day my creation was activated."

"You mean the robot Parasprites?" asked Luna. "Or as she called them, 'Para-bots'?"

"Yes...those." the white Alicorn confirmed. "I have every reason to believe that whomever built those things did intend to do harm with them, and that their sudden attack was by no means an accident."

"So what do you propose that we do about it?"

Celestia took out a parchment from out of her mane and signed her name on it. Giving it to Luna, she told her younger sister, "First, I'd like you to sign this: With this decree, I am officially putting you and your personal guard in charge with investigating the matter. If you and/or any of your guards find out anything valuable, contact me ASAP."

Luna seemed a bit startled. "Do you really think it is necessary to have me do this?" she asked. "Don't get me wrong: I shall do this for you, Sister, but don't you think it is a bit much having me and my guards taking care of this, and not any other official instead?"

"I see what you mean, Luna." the white Alicorn answered her. "But I am putting you in charge of this because I know you will do a good job. Besides my student and Mega Pony, you are the most dependable pony I know. Besides, you don't honestly think that I'll leave such a delicate matter in the hooves of the Canterlot Investigative Squad, do you?"

The dark-blue Alicorn's eyes widened after hearing that. "Oh...yes..." she responded. "I forgot about them...I have heard that those ponies don't exactly have a very good track record in terms of the cases they've worked on." Luna then said to her sister, "Very well, then. I will put my best stallions on it, and will personally oversee their work." She then signed the document that her sister presented to her.

"Thank you, Luna. I know you'll do well." Celestia replied. "As for me, I have to assist Mayor Mare in making the preperations for the Running of the Leaves event tomorrow in Ponyville, so I will be quite busy later today."

"Then I shall see you later tonight, then." stated Luna. "Farewell for now."

As the dark-blue Alicorn left the dining hall, Celestia sat back down in her chair to finish her breakfast. As she ate, she thought to herself, (Those Parasprite robots...I hope I am wrong, but...were they made by who I think it was...?)

Meanwhile, in the quiet town of Ponyville, everypony had just gotten up, and were going about their morning routines. Some left to go to work, the young colts and fillies went on their way to school for the day, and others simply relaxed at home and took things easy. At the Golden Oaks Library, the young Unicorn, Twilight Sparkle, and her dragon assistant, Spike, were standing just outside the library entrance, seemingly waiting for somepony.

"You see him yet, Twilight?" asked Spike.

"Not yet..." the lavender Unicorn replied, looking through a pair of binoculars, which were held in front of her face with the use of her magic. "Just be a little more patient, Spike...Princess Celestia said that he'll be coming by very shortly."

Not long after she said that, the two of them spotted a long beam of light suddenly appearing off in the distance, followed by a small flash. "Woah!! What was that?!" asked the dragon.

Twilight levitated the binoculars away from her face and set them gently on the ground. "I think that's him right now." she answered her assistant with a smile. "C'mon, let's go and meet up with him."

The two of them walked down the road in front of them and eventually met up with Mega Pony, who was walking towards them. Of course, the robot was more than happy to see his friends again and ran over to greet them. "Twilight! Spike!" he shouted. "It's good to see you again!"

"It's good to see you too, Mega Pony!" said the lavender Unicorn. "We were all so happy to hear that you were coming by today!"

Spike then asked him, "What was with that beam of light earlier? Did you cause that?"

"It's my new teleportation device." the robot explained. "That's how I was able to get here so quickly."

"Well that's a good thing, considering the surprise we have all set for you in the library." Twilight said to the robot.

"Surprise? What kind of surprise?" Mega Pony asked as the three of them walked back towards the library.

"You'll see." she responded. The trio eventually reached the library, standing in front of the large red door that led inside. Mega Pony then pushed the door open wide, and when he did, he was immediately greeted with a...

"SURPRISE!!!!"

All of a sudden, a cloud of confetti blew into their faces, and the three of them were confronted by Pinkie Pie, who was smiling as wide as she possibly could (which was saying quite a lot). On her head there were two striped party hats; one was red and orange, and the other was green and blue. There were also several colorful balloons tied around her stomach area, and she also had a green kazoo in her mouth.

"Wha-what's this??" asked Mega Pony, a bit startled.

The pink pony giggled a little. "Don'tcha know? It's a super-duper-special-especially-for-you surprise party!!" she answered him in her usual excited tone.

"...P-party...?"

"Of course!" Pinkie told him. "After you left five days ago, something kept bugging me in the back of my head, and I couldn't figure out what it was for the longest time! Then, all of a sudden, it hit me and I went all," She then interrupted her dialogue and gave out a huge gasp to emphasize her point. "But anyway," she continued, "I realized right then and there that I COMPLETELY forgot to throw you a 'Welcome-to-Ponyville' party!"

The four them walked into the library, and glanced at all of the decorations set up in the main room. Colorful streamers were strung up along the walls, several balloons were floating in the air up against the ceiling, and there were several tables set up with snacks and punch for the party guests, which of course, consisted of the rest of the Mane 6 as well: Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Fluttershy.

"Wow...you put this all together just for me?" asked Mega Pony, impressed by their work.

"Why of course, dear." Rarity replied. "It's the least we could do after all the help you gave us during that Parasprite-"

"Para-bot!" Pinkie Pie interrupted.

"Um...right," the white Unicorn continued. "that Para-BOT attack on the day the Princess activated you."

"So Pinkie got us all together the other day to help her put together an awesome party for ya." Rainbow Dash added. "Naturally, we were all for it." Fluttershy, who was standing next to the rainbow-colored Pegasus, meekly nodded in response to say that it was all true.

The robot was speechless, happy about the generous gift that they gave to him. Finally, after a few moments of processing what was going on, he finally spoke, saying, "That's...so nice of you all...I don't know what to say..."

"Then y'all don't need to say anythin', Mega Pony." Applejack told him. "In fact, let's all quit talkin' and just enjoy ourselves right now!"

"I agree! Let's PARTY!!" Pinkie Pie shouted as she wheeled in her Party Cannon and fired it, letting out a cloud of confetti, streamers, and balloons.

For the next hour and a half, the six ponies, robot, and dragon spent their time enjoying the party and each other's company. They ate, drank, played all sorts of party games, and chatted with each other about whatever was on their mind, such as the events of the previous days. Of course, Mega Pony couldn't eat or drink anything, but he still was able to have a good time regardless.

"Really? Gremlins?" Mega Pony asked during a conversation he was having with Rainbow Dash. "Floating over Ponyville in a huge, black cloud and feeding off of everypony's depression?"

"Yeah, crazy, right?" the cyan pony told him. "I tried nearly everything to kick 'em outta town, but nothin' seemed to work until I pulled off not one, but TWO Sonic Rainbooms, giving yours truly the burst of speed she needed to smash that cloud into nothin' but vapor!"

"Uh, technically, clouds ARE 'nothin' but vapor', Rainbow Dash." Twilight informed her friend.

Dash gave her super-smart friend an annoyed look in response. "Twilight! What'd I say about you mucking up my stories of awesomeness with your egghead talk?" she asked, whining a little.

"I'm just pointing something out." Twilight told her. "It wasn't like I was trying to ruin your story."

The cyan Pegasus sighed in response. "It's okay, Rainbow Dash." Mega Pony said to her. "I liked hearing your story. It was amazing! I mean, based on what you told me and after analyzing everything, I'm surprised you're still able to fly after something so intense."

(Yeah, me too...) Rainbow thought, as she remembered that time as well. On that day, after pulling off the Sonic Double Rainboom, she had nearly thought that she would never be able to fly again.

Applejack walked over to the three of them to join in on the conversation. "Yeah, it was mighty intense. Ah should know; Ah was there when she pulled it off." she said to Mega Pony. Taking a sip of punch from a plastic cup she was holding, the Earth Pony then asked him, "So, what's on the agenda for y'all today, Mega Pony?"

"Agenda?" he asked. Then, realizing what she meant by that, he replied, "Oh! You mean what I'm doing here today?" Applejack nodded yes in response. The robot pony then answered her, saying, "Well, to put things simply, my mom sent me here to-"

"Uh, hold up: Did you just say 'mom'?" asked Rainbow Dash. "When did you get a mother?"

Twilight, however, was able to figure out what Mega Pony meant. "Wait...are you referring to Princess Celestia?" she asked him.

"Well, yeah. Who else?" he responded. "After all, she did create me and looks after me...Why wouldn't I consider her my mom?"

Seeing the logic in his explanation, Applejack simply said, "Makes sense t' me." Once that was out of the way, the Earth Pony then asked him, "Anyway, you were sayin'...?"

"Oh, right." The robot then told everypony (and dragon) in the room, "Anyway, my mom sent me here to try and fulfill my secondary programming. She wants me to blend in and find a way to help others without using my powers or weapons."

"And...why would you wanna do that?" asked Rainbow Dash, confused by what he said.

"It's simple:" Twilight chimed in. "The Princess wants Mega Pony to be able to do things and live amongst us without having to fight anything or anypony."

"That's right." Applejack added. "She told us all that when she activated him, that she wanted him t' be able t' be a normal pony, just like all of us. Ah think that's great that the Princess wants that for ya, Mega Pony."

The robot nodded with a smile. Then, putting an unsure look on his face, he then told them, "The thing is...I'm not exactly sure how to go about it. I mean, what kinds of things should I be doing anyway?"

"Pardon me for one second," said Rarity, walking towards the robot, "but I believe I might have an idea on how you can be helpful."

"How?" asked Mega Pony.

"Well, it's nothing too big, but I feel it's at least a step in the right direction." she informed him. "So, long story short, I'm currently working on a very important project for an even MORE important client, and I could use your assistance."

"Me? You want me to help you with your dress-making?" the robot asked.

"Don't you usually have your younger sister helping you out, Rarity?" Twilight asked her.

"Usually, but not today, I am afraid..." the white Unicorn answered. "Sweetie Belle went with my parents to go to a miniature golf course somewhere near Las Pegasus. Apparently, little Apple Bloom and Scootaloo convinced her into trying to get a cutie mark in mini-golfing, or something like that. So, because of that, I am a bit short-hoofed right now."

"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to try..." decided Mega Pony. "I'll help you with whatever you need."

"Oh, WONDERFUL!" cheered Rarity, clapping her front hooves together. "I just know this will work out perfectly!" Taking one last sip from her cup of fruit punch, and using her magic to throw the empty cup into a wastebin, she then gathered her things and said, "Then let us be off immediately! We haven't a moment to waste!"

Mega Pony nodded and followed the white Unicorn through the door outside. "Bye everypony! I'll see you all later!" he said to them, waving. "And thanks for the great party, Pinkie Pie!"

"Anytime, Mega Pony!" the pink pony responded, waving both front hooves vigorously. "Lemme know if you want another one!"

Once Mega Pony and Rarity left, Twilight then told the rest of her friends, "Well, I suppose we should all get to our duties for the day as well."

"Aw, do we hafta?" asked Pinkie. "We can't end this party without doing the Macaroni!"

"Uh, you mean the Marecarena..." Rainbow Dash corrected her.

"Oh, silly Dashie!" the pink pony chuckled. "You can't put cheese on that!"

"I...eh...wha...huh??" were the only sounds that the confused cyan mare could make.

"Now everypony sit tight; I just have to go and melt ten tons of cheese, and then we can end this party in style!" And with that remark, Pinkie Pie hopped off to do who-knows-what elsewhere, leaving the others completely perplexed.

A short while later, Mega Pony and Rarity entered the Carousel Boutique, which served as both the white Unicorn's home and place of business. "Wow, this place looks even better than the first time I was in here..." the robot pony complimented, glancing around at all of the fancy decor and beautiful dresses on display.

"Why, thank you dear." Rarity replied. "I do my best to make sure everything looks as fabulous as possible. After all, I can't exactly sell beautiful dresses if the environment around them isn't equally as beautiful, now can I?"

"That makes sense." the robot answered her. He then asked, "So, what is it you need my help with?"

"Oh, nothing that you cannot handle, I assure you." the Unicorn Fashionista responded. She then walked over to one of her many pony-shaped mannequins, showing off the dress that was draped over it. It was mostly white, with blue trims and golden yellow ribbon-like pieces of cloth draping over from the back area. It also came with what seemed to be a headdress, but it was still unfinished at the moment. It seemed to be made for a particularly high-class pony, based on the overall design.

"This is the project that I am currently working on, Mega Pony." Rarity told him. "This is a special dress that I am designing for the famous Sapphire Shores! Ever since she first commissioned me to make an outfit for her, I've been working harder than ever to make sure that it's nothing but the best!" She then pointed to the golden yellow pieces of cloth and added, "But as you can clearly see, it is not yet complete. I still need to figure out what sort of jewels to adorn it with, among other things...At the rate that I'm going, I should have it done by the time she starts her fourth seasonal tour."

"So what do I need to do?" asked Mega Pony. "I'm not sure if I'm good at designing or sewing or-"

"Oh, not to worry. I shall handle that myself." the violet-maned mare informed him. "I just need you to do some odd jobs for me, such as getting me any supplies that I may need. That way, I can focus completely on working on the dress."

"Oh, I see now. So what should I do first?"

Rarity put a hoof to her chin and said to him, "Well, you can start by getting my gem collection chest from my bedroom. It's up the stairs, behind the last door to your left, and it's the purple chest with the gold trims."

"Okay, got it! I'll be right back, Rarity!" the robot said before trotting up the stairs behind him.

After he left, a sudden thought came to the white Unicorn. (Hmmm...I probably should have told him that the chest is rather heavy...) she pondered. (Oh well, I'm sure he can handle it on his own...I think...)

Mega Pony walked down the hallway and entered Rarity's dazzling bedroom, passing by the fashionista's fluffy, white cat, Opalescence. The feline was busy playing with a fuzzy, multicolored ball, batting it with her front paws. The mechanical pony glanced around the room, looking for the chest that contained all of Rarity's jewels. He then managed to locate the purple and gold-trimmed chest that she wanted him to find. "Ah! That must be it!" he said to himself. "Now let's get this downstairs..."

Mega Pony began pushing the chest, but found out that it wasn't easy to budge. "Urrrrgh! UrrrRRRRRrrrgh!" he grunted as he did his best to shove the heavy thing out of the room. "This thing must weigh a ton! How does she lug this thing around all the time?!" Then the answer came to him. "...Oh yeah...her magic. That's right..." he added. "Unfortunately, my mom's still working on a way for me to pick things up like that, using magic...Which means that I'll have to move this chest the old-fashioned way."

The robot pushed the chest slowly but surely towards the staircase leading down to where Rarity was. But as he got near the steps, Opal, still playing with her cat toy, swatted the ball especially hard, causing it to roll towards Mega Pony, stopping right under his right front hoof. Not noticing it, he brought down his leg, stepping on the ball and slipping on it.

"WOAH!!" he exclaimed, falling forward and slamming into the chest. The impact caused the chest to tip over and roll violently down the stairs, making a loud BANG each time it made contact with the steps.

Of course, Rarity heard the loud noises and glanced behind her. She gasped in horror when she saw her gem chest tumbling down the stairs. "My chest!! MY GEM COLLECTION!!!" she screamed, dropping everything she was doing and running over in an attempt to save her possessions. However, in the end, the chest finally slammed against the floor below, breaking apart and smashing most of the gems inside to pieces. "NOOOOOO!!!!" Rarity shrieked in distress, staring at her destroyed belongings.

Mega Pony quickly ran down the stairs to investigate the scene. "Oh my!" he exclaimed. "I-I'm so sorry!! I don't know what happened!! I guess must have tripped on something and-"

The white Unicorn glanced over at the robot with an angry look on her face. "Whatever could you POSSIBLY have been thinking, pushing my chest down the stairs?! And with that much brute force as well!" she interrupted him, a hint of frustration in her voice.

"I-I'm sorry, Rarity! Really, I am!" pleaded Mega Pony. "I'll clean up the mess if you want me to!"

"No, I'LL clean up the mess, thank you very much!" she huffed, using her magic to grab a nearby broom. "I think you've done enough for today, Mega Pony...I'd rather take care of everything myself than allow another faux pas from you!"

As the angry Unicorn began sweeping away the remains of her chest, Mega Pony felt guilty about the whole incident, even though it was an accident. He sighed sadly and said, "Okay...I guess I'll just go, then...I'm sorry..." He then walked though the purple door leading outside and shut it behind him.

Rarity, still a little miffed, continued her cleaning. "I swear, if it's not one thing stalling my most important project, it's another..." But she was so busy sweeping and grumbling to herself, that she didn't see Opal's ball in her path...until she, too, slipped on it, falling on her back. "Ouch!! What was that??" she asked herself. Sitting up, she finally saw the cat toy in front of her. "Wait a moment... that's Opal's favorite ball..." Rarity then looked up the stairs and saw her cat at the top step, licking her paw and cleaning herself.

"Oh...I see now..." the Unicorn said to herself, realizing what happened. "Mega Pony must have slipped on this ball like I did, and that caused him to shove the chest down the stairs by accident..." Her anger quickly snuffed out as she continued her monologue. "Oh dear...If I had known, I probably wouldn't have blown up in front of him like that..." Standing back up on all fours, she then added, "Still, that leaves me the problem with my smashed chest and broken gemstones..."

But right after she said that, another sudden realization came to her. "Wait another moment...these gems? Broken into pieces?" she asked herself. "But that's impossible...these gems can't break apart so easily, unless...oh DEAR." A feeling of dread came over her. "These gems are FAKES!!" she said with a horrified gasp. "And I was going to put them on Sapphire's dress! If I had done that, it would most certainly have been...THE. WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!!"

And with those words, Rarity sighed and fainted dramatically onto a nice-looking red couch (which she pulled over with her magic). The only response she got from her performance was an unimpressed meow from Opal.

Opening her eyes, Rarity then thought to herself, (Oh dear...I feel HORRIBLE about what happened. I should have known Mega Pony would not intentionally destroy my belongings...And besides, if he hadn't, things would have been a lot worse in the long run...) She then sat up and said in a determined tone, "I have to go and apologize to him; he didn't deserve to be yelled at like that...I just hope he'll forgive me for it..." She then raced out the door to try and find the robot pony.

Elsewhere, far away from the boutique, Mega Pony, still feeling bad about what happened, trotted slowly down the path, passing by the locals. Many of them recognized him from the first time he was in town and waved happily over to him. Although he wasn't feeling too happy, the robot did his best not to show it towards them and waved back.

Just then, he heard a voice coming from behind him. "Yo! Mega Pony! Over here!" The robot stopped walking for a moment and turned around to see Rainbow Dash flying towards him. "What's up? I thought you were helpin' Rarity with her dresses and stuff." she inquired.

Mega Pony said nothing at first, not wanting to bring up what happened at the boutique. "Um...something came up." he simply replied. "Let's just leave it at that." Suddenly, he began sniffing the air around him, smelling something peculiar. He then asked her, "...Why do you smell like mozzarella?"

"...Let's just say that you missed the 'best part' of the party." Rainbow Dash answered sarcastically. "At least, that's what Pinkie called it." After grumbling something about having to take another bath today, the cyan Pegasus then changed the subject, saying, "Anyway, since ya seem to be doin' nothing right now, maybe you could help me out with some of my work?"

"Uh...what kind of work?"

"Well, the bigwigs at the Weather Factory need me and some of the other Pegasi to gather up some clouds for a rainstorm 2 days from now." Rainbow Dash explained. "However, they need a SPECIFIC number of clouds to make sure there's no flooding or anything, so I have to count how many I bring in. The point is, math ain't really my thing, and every time they have me doin' it, it takes forEVER..." Sighing, she then added, "So, long story short: I need you to help me keep track of how many clouds I bring in. Whad'ya say?"

"Um...I'm not sure if I can, Dash..." Mega Pony answered, his confidence a bit shaken after what had happened earlier. "I mean, I WANT to, it's just..."

"Aw, c'mon! It'll be easy for ya!" the Pegasus told him. "You're literally a walking calculator, Mega Pony! You're, like, at Twilight's level of smartypants-ness."

"Uh, I don't believe that's a word, Dash..." he informed her.

"See, right there! Twilight does that all the time whenever I say stuff." she then pointed out. "I think counting a buncha clouds will be a walk in the park for ya."

The robot still wasn't completely sure, but he didn't have the heart to say "no" to her. "Okay, I guess I'll give it a try." he responded.

"Cool! Then I'll meet ya at Cloudsdale's Weather Factory." Rainbow Dash opened her wings and was ready to take off, but she paused for a moment to say, "Wait, that's right: Only Pegasi can stand on clouds without falling...We should go to Twi and get her to cast that cloud walking spell...Or Lyra...I think she used it once..."

"Oh, don't worry about that, Dash." Mega Pony informed her. "My mom figured that I'd have to go to Cloudsdale one day, so she designed an anti-gravity system in my hooves to allow me to walk on clouds, too!"

"Oh, cool!" the speedy mare replied. "Then we don't have to waste any more time, then. Alright, if you're ready, let's get flyin'!"

"Wait a sec..." the robot said, tapping Rainbow Dash's cutie mark and copying her power. "Just getting your special power first. That way, you don't have to slow down just to let me keep up with you."

*** WEAPON GET! *** Sonic Rainboom ***

"Ah, yeah...good thinkin'." she said back. "All right, then...Last one t' Cloudsdale's a rotten apple!" Rainbow Dash opened up her wings and sped off into the air. Mega Pony chuckled a little as he changed to Rainbow Dash's color scheme, activated his Emergency Wings power-up, and flew off at an equally-fast speed.

In almost no time at all, the two ponies reached the picturesque city of Cloudsdale. The last time Mega Pony saw the city, it was from the ground, and he couldn't see much of it, as it was far away. Now, he could see it in greater detail, and the robot was in awe of what he witnessed: Cloudsdale had the look and feel of a city right out of Ancient Rome, with beautifully sculpted buildings and decor, towering high into the sky (well, highER). The only difference was that, instead of stone, the structures were, naturally, made out of clouds. Mega Pony then looked around at all of the ponies that were going about their daily routines, seeing that they were all Pegasi, just as Rainbow Dash told him.

"Oh, wow...this place looks so wonderful...!" the robot stated, still stunned at the beauty of the city.

"I told ya you'd like the place." Rainbow Dash informed him. "Cloudsdale's practically a Pegasus paradise!"

Mega Pony continued to glance around at all the sights as he asked, "So, which way is the Weather Factory?"

"Not far from here." Rainbow answered. "Just down this path." As they walked down the cloudy path to the facility, the cyan mare explained all of the purposes of the factory. "The Weather Factory is one of the most important places in all of Equestria:" she told him. "It provides all of the necessary weather for the entire country, when and where it's needed! Clouds, rain, thunderstorms, twisters, snow, and most of all, the rainbows that come up after a storm."

"Wow, you get to make rainbows?" asked Mega Pony, eyes lighting up. "That sounds like a dream come true..."

"Yeah, it is." Rainbow Dash responded. She then told him, "Just don't go believin' that silly rumor about how they THINK we make the rainbows. I'd rather not go into detail 'bout it, but I can assure you, it ain't true."

"Uh...sure, okay." the robot said, a bit taken back. "I...wasn't aware there was a rumor like that..."

"Yeah, it was so long ago, I can't remember who started it." stated the super-fast Pegasus. "I think it was, like...I dunno, Woody-somethin'...Meh, never mind. Forget I mentioned it." The two of them reached the front doors to the factory at that moment. "Well, here we are." she said to Mega Pony. "You ready to get t' work?"

"I sure am, Rainbow." the mechanical pony answered.

A short time later, after Rainbow Dash convinced her supervisor to allow Mega Pony to help her, the two were busy with their duties soon after. The speedy Pegasus flew as fast as she could, gathering up several clouds with each passing second. Even though she was moving so fast, that most normal ponies couldn't even follow her, Mega Pony had no trouble keeping track of every single cloud she collected.

After about a minute or so, Dash flapped over towards Mega Pony and asked him, "So, how many was that so far?"

"Exactly 39 clouds, Rainbow Dash." he answered her in no time at all. "Ten large, thirteen medium-sized, and sixteen small."

"Aw yeah, that's great!" she responded. "Just a few more, and I'll have my work done real quick!"

Mega Pony smiled a bit, but as he glanced around behind Rainbow Dash, he noticed something coming towards her: It was a thundercloud; one that was expelling an unusual amount of lightning. The robot gasped, as it was approaching her very quickly. "Um, Rainbow Dash..." he said, trying to warn her.

"Yeah, at this rate, I think I'll be able to break my old record!" the Pegasus began to gloat, unaware of the cloud coming towards her...or Mega Pony trying to warn her.

The robot tried to talk over her, but it was no use: She couldn't hear him, or the cloud behind her. Left with no other option, Mega Pony quickly used the Sonic Rainboom power he got from Rainbow Dash to shove her out of the cloud's path.

"ACK!!!!"

The two of them landed on the cloudy ground below, mere moments before the thundercloud reached the area where Rainbow Dash was. Once they recovered their wits, the robot prepared to tell her what happened. But before he could, the cyan Pegasus asked him in an angry tone, "Mega Pony! Wha'd ya do that for?!"

"I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash!" he apologized to her. "But I was just trying to-"

"You don't just go and shove somepony like that for no reason!" she continued to yell at him. "I can't believe you'd do that!"

"But I-"

"No, don't even bother, Mega Pony...There's no excuse you can make for pushin' me like that!" Grumbling, she then added, "Just get outta here...I don't NEED your help! I can get the last few clouds myself!" The robot tried to explain himself one last time, but in the end, said nothing. He simply activated his Emergency Wings and sadly left Cloudsdale. Once he left, the cyan mare was ready to get back to work, when...

CRRRRRRACCCKK!!!!!

The sudden loud noise was enough to startle the normally brave Rainbow Dash. "Wha-what the hay was that?!?" she asked herself.

"Rainbow Dash...!" called out somepony off in the distance.

The speedy Pegasus glanced behind her and saw another Pegasus flying towards her. She had a grey coat, a pale-blond mane and tail, and a cutie mark that showed a picture of a small cloud of bubbles. Her most defining feature, however, were her yellow eyes: While one of her eyes seemed to work normally, the other one seemed to be misaligned.

"Derpy?" Rainbow Dash asked the incoming Pegasus. "Is that you?"

The grey mare landed next to her and said, "Rainbow Dash! Thank Celestia you're okay! Did that thing hurt you at all??"

"I'm fine..." the cyan Pegasus answered. "But I have no idea WHAT got into Mega Pony for him t' shove me like that!"

"Shove you?" asked Derpy, a bit confused. "I don't know anything about that...I was talking about that stray thundercloud that was behind you."

"Wait, what??" asked Dashie, not expecting to hear something like that. The grey Pegasus pointed up in the air at the passing thundercloud to show what she was talking about. As they looked at it, the cloud was still shooting out a lightning bolt every few seconds. "Wh-where'd that thing come from??" asked the cyan Pegasus.

"Well, Heavy Lifting thought it would be funny to blow that cloud towards you as a joke..." Derpy explained. "But I knew if that cloud hit you, you could've been seriously hurt, so I tried to follow it, but it was moving way too fast for me...You're lucky you got out of the way in time..."

Once Derpy told her everything, Rainbow Dash then figured it all out. "So THAT'S what happened..." she said to herself. "Mega Pony must've seen that cloud coming up behind me and was just trying to get me out of its way..." The mare groaned in frustration and said loudly, "Arrgh! I should've known he wouldn't do something like that to be mean!"

"Um, Rainbow? What are you talking about...?" asked Derpy.

Dash sighed and answered, saying, "Long story..." She then asked, "Listen, Derps...could you cover for me for a little bit? I got somethin' I need to take care of."

"Um...I guess I could..." the grey mare replied.

"Thanks, I won't be gone long." And with that response, Rainbow Dash flew out of Cloudsdale to try and find Mega Pony and apologize to him.

Back down on the ground below, Mega Pony was sitting all by himself on a large rock, depressed about how the day had been going so far. He began to wonder if he would ever be able to find a way to fit in with normal society without making some stupid mistake. "This day's just been the worst so far..." he muttered to himself softly. "Every time I try to help somepony, everything just goes wrong...I'll never be able to learn how to live like a normal pony at this rate..."

"What'cha mutterin' to yerself for, Mega Pony?" asked a voice coming from right next to him. The robot's head shot up as he glanced over to his left. He saw that it was Applejack standing there, talking to him.

"Oh...uh...nothing important, Applejack..." he then answered her, still in the same low voice from before. Trying to get his mind off of the events of the day so far, he asked the Earth Pony, "What are you up to?"

"Well, now that Ah've just finshed gettin' every bit of Bleu and Cheddar off of mah coat..." said Applejack, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "Thanks a LOT, Pinkie..." Regaining her composure, she cleared her throat and told Mega Pony, "Anyway, since that's all taken care of, Ah'm heading back to the farm t' help with the weekly apple harvest." Getting an idea, she then asked, "Say, would y'all like t' come with me an' help out? We could always use another set'a hooves on the farm."

Immediately, Mega Pony got back on all fours and said, frantically, "Um, I-I-I don't know about that...D-don't take this the wrong way, b-b-but I don't think that would be a good idea...!"

But the orange pony simply chuckled to herself and told him, "Now, now...Don't get all worked up, Mega Pony. Ain't nothing wrong with a little manual labor ev'ry now an' then! Besides, I know how tough you are first-hoof, so somethin' like buckin' a coupla apple trees shouldn't be much trouble fer ya at all!"

"I...I don't know..."

"Quit doubtin' yerself there, Sugarcube. Ah know y'all will be a big help to me and the family, especially right now." She then told him. "See, today's harvest is bigger than it usually is; Ah would say that big rainstorm we had a coupla days ago had somethin' t' do with it. The thing is, it'll take me and mah family the whole day just to get MOST of the trees harvested, so we really could use some help this time." After explaining the whole situation, Applejack asked, "So, whad'ya say? Y'all think ya could give me even a li'l bit of help?"

Mega Pony was still unsure; his reluctance was due to how badly things went with Rarity and Rainbow Dash. But still, his drive to help other ponies won out in the end. "I'll...I'll try my best, I suppose..." he told her, still unsure.

"That's more like it!" replied Applejack enthusiastically. "Now follow me; I'll take y'all to the farm. This'll work out great, Ah know it!"

(Yeah...I hope so...) thought the robot as he followed the Earth Pony to her family farm.

A few minutes later, Applejack and Mega Pony had made their way to Sweet Apple Acres, the Apple Family's apple farm. The farm was quite large, and the land seemed that it could go on for miles. Every inch of the farm that didn't consist of some sort of building, such as the family's house, or the iconic bright red barn in the middle of the land, was dominated by apple trees, each one covered with juicy apples.

"Alright, let's get to work, Mega Pony." Applejack told the robot as they walked into the orchard. "We have a lotta trees t' buck and too little time."

"Where's the rest of the family?" Mega Pony asked her.

"Still gettin' ready, I suppose." the orange pony replied. "I always like t' get a head start on the harvest before the rest of them. Besides, with all the work we've gotta do, a good head start is exactly what we need." Applejack then used both of her back legs to kick the tree she was standing next to, causing several apples to drop into the baskets laid out below. "See that?" she asked him. "That's all ya gotta do. Kick at the trunks with your hind legs, and the apples will all drop into these here baskets."

"That's it?" asked Mega Pony. "That doesn't sound hard at all."

"It ain't." she assured him. "That's the idea." Applejack then kicked another tree, sending all of its apples down as well. "I'll take care of this half of the field, and y'all can get the other half. That okay with ya?"

"...I think I can handle that." the mechanical pony responded. He then gave it a try and kicked the tree next to him. Just as Applejack had done, he was able to knock down several apples into the baskets around the trunk. "Yeah, I think I can do this."

"Good t' hear." said the Earth Pony. "Then you go on your way, and I'll check up on ya a li'l bit later." Mega Pony nodded and headed off to the other side of the field.

Several minutes passed by since the two ponies began their work in the orchard. So far, Mega Pony wasn't having any problems; he kept right on bucking the trees and harvesting the apples without breaking a sweat (theoretically, of course; he couldn't actually sweat). He began to feel his confidence coming back to him, even managing to form a small smile as he worked. Getting his mind back on the job, he said to himself, "Okay...that's 35 trees so far with all of their apples harvested. Based on my calculations, we should have over half the field done by the time the rest of Applejack's family comes to help out."

As Mega Pony strolled to the next tree, he then glanced over at a different tree that seemed a bit peculiar to him, even though it looked just like the other trees, other than the fact that it had no apples to begin with. "Hm...that's odd..." he said to himself. After looking at the tree for a while, the robot walked over and prepared to kick it.

Elsewhere, Applejack had just finished bucking another tree on the side of the orchard she was working in. "Good," she said to herself, "that's the 35th one, now. I reckon me an' Mega Pony oughtta be done with a great deal of this by the time Big Mac, Granny Smith, and Apple Bloom get here." Just then, she heard a loud CRACK off in the distance, followed by an equally as loud THUMP. "What the hay was that?!" she shouted. Once she recovered her wits, she then told herself, "That came from where Mega Pony was! Ah'd better go and see if he's okay!"

Applejack galloped as fast as she could to get to where the sound came from. But when she got to where Mega Pony was, she was shocked to see that one of the trees in the field had been knocked clean down. "M-Mega Pony...?" she began to ask, still very much startled. "Did...did you just kick this tree down?!?"

"Uh, yes...I did, but I can explain-"

"Ah can't believe that you'd go and do somethin' like that!!" she said to him, getting angry. "What did that tree ever do to you?! Ah expected better outta ya, Mega Pony!"

"But, Applejack...I...I..." he stuttered, trying his best to explain himself. But then he just gave up and told her, "Oh, forget it...I give up...I'll just leave right now so that I don't cause any more trouble for you..." And that's exactly what he did as he trotted off, sadder than ever.

As he left, Applejack began to wonder if she was too hard on him, even though he did knock one of her trees down. Before she could ponder any more about it, she heard the voice of an elderly mare behind her. "Alrighty, Applejack! We're all ready!"

The orange mare glanced behind her to see three more Earth Ponies coming her way; the rest of the Apple Family that she lived with. The one that had spoken to her just now was an elderly mare with a green coat, a silver-haired mane done up in a bun, a silver-haired tail, and a cutie mark that showed a picture of an apple pie. She also wore an orange polka-dot ascot with frills around the edges, and had bold orange eyes.

The second of them was a red-coated stallion and the largest of the group. He had a short mane and tail, both colored a light orange, dark-green eyes, and light-peach-colored hooves. His exceptionally large cutie mark showed a picture of a green apple, which appeared to have been sliced in half.

The last of them was a young filly, and the smallest of them. She had a yellow coat with a red mane and tail. She had orange eyes and wore a large, pink bow in her mane. Unlike the rest of the family, the young pony had yet to recieve a cutie mark, so her flank displayed no picture whatsoever.

"Oh...hi everypony..." Applejack greeted them, taking her mind off of what happened earlier.

"Somethin' the matter, Applejack?" asked the elderly mare. "You were a lot happier earlier when y'all told us that your new friend Mega Pony was gonna be helpin' us out."

"Yeah, Ah was all psyched up t' meet him, big sis!" the young filly told the orange pony. "After all, Twist told me all about how he saved her, Dinky, and coupla others from gettin' crushed by a house!" She then looked up at the red stallion and asked him, "Y'all wanted t' see him too, right Big Mac?"

The male pony replied with a simple, "Eeeyup."

"Yeah...'bout that..." Applejack began. "Ah had t' send him off after he went and smashed this poor li'l tree up over here. Well, actually, he sent himSELF off, really..."

The rest of the family looked over at the fallen apple tree and gasped in unison. "Oh my...Yer tellin' us he knocked THIS tree down?!" asked the elderly mare in shock.

"Yeah, he did..." Applejack admitted. "Ah'm real sorry that it happened, Granny Smith...I don't know why he-"

"That's AMAZING!!" the elderly mare cheered. "Fer Pete's sake, Ah thought nopony would've been able t' knock this here tree down!"

The orange Earth Pony was stunned at what she heard. "Wait...huh?? What are y'all talkin' about??" she asked, totally confused.

"Ya mean ya didn't know?" asked the young filly, walking over to Applejack. "Didn't Granny Smith tell ya?"

"Tell me what, Apple Bloom?"

"That tree's been dead since yesterday..." the filly informed her older sister. "For a while now, it stopped growin' apples, so Big Mac got somepony t' come over an' take a look at it." Apple Bloom then looked towards the red stallion and asked him, "When he came by, he said that it was dead, right big bro?"

"Eeeyup." replied Big Macintosh.

"Since then, we've been tryin' to take it down, but the stubborn thing just wouldn't budge!" added Granny Smith. "We were just about t' give tryin' t' get rid of it...But thanks t' that li'l robot friend o' yers, we ain't gots t' worry about it no more!"

"Now Ah see..." Applejack said to herself. "Mega Pony must've kicked that tree down because he knew it was already dead! And Ah went an' yelled at 'im for nothin'..." Groaning, she added, "Shoot...Twi's gonna have a fit about this when she finds out...I gotta go and apologize t' Mega Pony, an' quick!"

"What'cha mutterin' to yourself for, big sis?" asked Apple Bloom.

The orange pony sighed and said to her family, "Listen, everypony, Ah got somethin' Ah need to take care of...Ah'll be back t' help with the harvest when Ah'm done."

"We know ya will." said Granny Smith with a smile. "Y'all never leave in the middle of a harvest unless it's somethin' real important."

"We'll take care of things in the meantime." stated Apple Bloom. "Right, Big Mac?"

"Eeeyup!"

Applejack smiled and responded, saying, "Thanks, guys...And don't worry: Ah'll be back real soon!" The orange Earth Pony then galloped down the path that Mega Pony used to leave the farm, heading straight towards Ponyville.

In no time at all, Applejack reached the center of town. Once there, she stopped and looked left and right, and then managed to find Twilight, who was standing in front of the library entrance with Spike. The Earth Pony raced over to her friend so that she could speak with her. "Hey, Twi! Ah'm glad Ah found ya!" she shouted to her.

The lavender Unicorn glanced over at her approaching friend. "What is it, Applejack?" she asked her.

"Did y'all happen t' see Mega Pony anywhere 'round here? Ah need t' talk to him..."

Twilight narrowed her eyes a little and then asked the orange pony, "Let me guess: You asked him to help you with something, he then did something that you didn't like, you yelled at him, and then he ran off, right?"

"Uh...yeah...that's right..." Applejack answered, a bit embarrased. She then asked, "Wait: How'd you know?"

The Unicorn didn't answer with words: Instead, she opened the door beside her, revealing that there were two other occupants inside. It was Rarity and Rainbow Dash, who both shared an expression that was a mixture of both guilt and embarrasment.

"Oh no..." groaned the Earth Pony, putting her left front hoof on her face. "Not you, too..."

"I'm afraid so, Applejack..." Rarity said with a sad sigh.

"I still can't believe I said and did those things..." moaned the Pegasus. "This is SO embarrasing..."

Twilight then approached her three friends and said sternly to them, "Well, you all oughtta be embarrased...You all should have known better than to yell at Mega Pony over something so silly like that! I know he doesn't LOOK like it, but technically, he's only five days old! He's practically still a foal! Think about it: would any of you ever shout at a five-day old foal like that??"

"Alright, already! We get it!" shouted Rainbow Dash in frustration. "We know we messed up! You don't need to give us the riot act, Twilight!"

"Calm down, Rainbow Dash..." Rarity told her. "Getting angry over trivial things got us into this mess in the first place; there is absolutely no need to make things any worse than they already are."

"...You're right...Sorry..." replied the Pegasus, finally easing herself up.

"Dash is right, though..." Applejack told Twilight, "we know we screwed up, and we all just wanna make things right again...That's why we need t' find Mega Pony so we can apologize and put this whole thing behind us..."

"We won't have to go looking for him." the lavender Unicorn informed the Earth Pony. "I contacted Mega Pony and told him everything." She paused for a moment before adding, "He'll be here shortly."

Not long after, a few minutes in fact, there was a knock on the door. Spike walked over and opened the door, revealing Mega Pony on the other side. "Come on in." the dragon said to the robot. "They're waiting for ya."

The robot glanced over at the other ponies in the room. When he saw Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack there, he backed off a bit, remembering earlier about how angry they were towards him. But he eased up when he saw that their faces showed no signs of anger at all, and began walking further into the room. "Y...you...you all wanted to speak with me...?" he asked them meekly.

Rarity approached the robot first, cleared her throat, and said to him, "Mega Pony, dear...I...I speak for all of us when I say that we're truly sorry for the way we acted towards you..."

"You are...?" Mega Pony responded.

The three of them nodded to confirm what Rarity said. "I know you didn't mean to destroy my gem chest..." the white Unicorn then told him. "It was just an accident, and it wasn't your fault at all. Besides, if you hadn't destroyed my chest, I would have ended up putting..." She paused for a moment to shudder to herself before continuing on. "...COUNTERFEIT jewels on Sapphire Shores' dress..."

Rainbow Dash then spoke up, saying, "And I should've let you explain yourself about why you shoved me earlier...I probably would've understood why if I'd known I was gonna be elect-...um...eccen-...er, elecman..."

"Electrocuted." interrupted Twilight.

"Yeah, what she said." The Pegasus then glanced over at the book-smart pony and said to her, "And I could've figured it out if I had enough time to think about it!"

"And Ah should've known that you'd never smash any o' my apple trees unless y'all had a good reason for it." Applejack then told the robot. "You were just tryin' t' help me out, and all Ah did was get mad at ya for it."

"Well, to be honest," Mega Pony said to the apple farmer, "I probably should have told you about the dead tree before knocking it down...But I didn't want to bother you while you were working, so..."

"It's okay. Ah understand." the Earth Pony replied with a smile. "The point is, we all made a mistake, and we don't want t' lose a friend over somethin' like that..." Applejack then extended her left front hoof towards the mechanical pony and asked, "So, what were askin' is...Do y'all think we can put this behind us and start off fresh?"

Mega Pony stared at the orange hoof in front of him, and then glanced over at Twilight and Spike. The two of them smiled and nodded to say that he should accept their apology. The robot looked back towards Applejack, smiled, and replied, "I'd like that very much." He then pressed his right front hoof against her hoof to show that he forgave them.

"Wow, really? You're gonna forgive us just like that?" asked Rainbow Dash. "I would've thought that it would take longer than that..."

"Well, Mom taught me that I shouldn't hold grudges against anypony, no matter how mean or nasty they may have been to me." he told them. "If somepony didn't like me, or got angry at me for something I did, getting angry or hating them back wouldn't solve anything. If it comes down to me making an enemy or me making a friend, I'm gonna go with making friends any day."

"Well said, Mega Pony." Rarity spoke up. "This may have started out as a bad experience for all of us, but in the end, we got through it, and we're much better friends as a result." The others nodded to say that they agreed.

The robot was happy to know that everything was going to work out well now. However, his smile turned to a more serious expression as he stated, "There's still one thing, though: Even after all of this, I still don't know how I'm going to fulfill my secondary programming. Even when I tried to help you all out with what you were doing, it just...well, it just didn't 'click' inside of me like when I found out about my primary purpose."

"I think I might know why." stated Twilight. "All day long, you were just helping other ponies with the jobs that THEY were good at. Don't get me wrong, that's good to do for somepony who needs help, but it didn't help you figure out what YOU were good at, you know?"

"I'm not sure I follow, Twilight..." Mega Pony replied, unsure.

"I do." Rarity spoke up. "What she is saying is that, you have find something that YOU like to do, or something that you can do well at...Or better yet, both! Just because your cutie mark shows ONE thing that you're skilled at, that doesn't mean you aren't good at anything else! Take me for instance: My cutie mark shows that my best skill is finding gems, but as you already know, I am also an expert fashion designer, and a good businessmare as well, if I do say so myself."

"Ohhhhh...I get it now! I just need to go out there and find something that interests me; something that I can enjoy doing!" the robot exclaimed with a smile. He then asked, "But what else would I like to do...?"

Just then, everypony (plus dragon) in the library was immediately assaulted by an incredibly loud noise. It seemed to be music of some sort, but it was so loud and obnoxious, nopony could really tell what it sounded like.

"AAAAAAACK!!!" screamed Rarity, covering her ears with her front hooves.

"Aw, not this again!!!" yelled Twilight, also covering her ears.

"ARRRRGHHH!!! What the hay is that loud noise?!?" asked Rainbow Dash as loud as she could. "Where's it comin' from?!?"

"You can't be serious!!!" shouted Rarity. "How could you NOT know?!?"

"She's not usually here when it happens!!!" yelled Applejack. "Dash is either workin' at the Weather Factory, or doin' her aerial stunts, so she isn't around t' hear it!!"

"Hear what?!" the cyan mare asked again.

Spike glanced over at the Pegasus and answered her, saying loudly, "That noise is comin' from next door! And the pony makin' the noise...that would be Vinyl Scratch!"

"Wait, Vinyl?!" Dash looked over at Twilight and asked her, "Isn't that the name of that Unicorn mare that played music at your brother's wedding reception?"

"Yeah, that's her!" the lavender Unicorn replied loudly. "But for some reason, she thinks early morning is the best time to work on her remixes!!"

"Arrrgh, that MUSIC!! If you can even call it that!!" whined Rarity. "I swear, there isn't enough asprin in all of Equestria that would cure the migrane I'll have from hearing it!!!" Turning towards their robot companion, she then asked, "Don't you agree, Mega Pony?"

But there was no answer from him.

Confused, Rarity asked again, thinking that he just didn't hear her. "I SAID, Don't you AGREE?!"

Again, there was no response. Then, all of a sudden, Mega Pony began walking towards the door leading outside and opened it, leaving the library. "Mega Pony??" Twilight inquired. "Where are you going??"

The robot continued walking along the dirt path outside of the giant tree. The others watched him as he began heading towards a nearby house. "He's walkin' straight towards Vinyl's house!" Applejack pointed out.

"Probably to complain for us!" Rarity hypothesized. "Good! Saves me the trouble of going there myself...again!!"

But Twilight hummed a bit to herself before saying, "I'm not so sure..."

"Whad'ya mean, Twi?" asked Rainbow Dash. "What are ya sayin'?"

The lavender Unicorn smiled and said, "I have a feeling that Mega Pony won't be needing any more help from us, concerning his secondary programming..." The others looked at one another, but none of them were sure what Twilight meant.

Mega Pony then finally approached the front door of Vinyl's house. He tapped on the door loudly with his right front hoof to get the attention of anypony inside. "Just a moment!" shouted a voice from inside. "Vinyl! Will you turn down that infernal noise this instant?! You're going to get us another summons from the mayor at this rate!!"

Shortly after that last remark, the loud music coming from the house finally quieted down to a more managable volume, though it still kept going on. It was now soft enough for Mega Pony to hear hoofsteps gradually coming towards the door. When it opened, the robot was approached by a female Earth Pony with a light, sepia-colored coat. Her dark brown mane and tail were styled very neatly, and she had beautiful violet-colored eyes. Around her neck was a lavender bowtie, and her cutie mark was a lavender treble clef.

"May I help you?" the Earth Pony asked. Her voice had a hint of a British accent, which went very well with her refined and fancy appearence.

Mega Pony looked at the mare in front of him, a bit perplexed. "Um...are you Vinyl Scratch...?" he asked.

The Earth Pony sighed a little and answered, "No, I am not. That would be the name of my roommate that you are referring to. My name is Octavia Melody. And you are...?"

"Oh! Um, my name's Mega Pony, Ms. Octavia." he replied. "Sorry about that...I'm relatively new around here, so I don't know everypony in town yet."

"Ah yes...I see now." Octavia responded. "The Unicorn robot that drove off that swarm of Parasprites. I thought that I had recognized you from somewhere." She then said to him, "Anyway, if you are here about the noise coming from our home, you have my sincerest apologies. Vinyl tends to...not know her limits, in accordance with town regulations..."

"Oh, actually...I'm not here to complain about it, Ms. Octavia..." the mechanical pony informed her. "I just came here because that...that sound, whatever it was, sounded really...interesting. And I just wanted to know more about it..."

"...You cannot be serious..." the Earth Pony said, not expecting to hear that. "Are you telling me that you...LIKED that music??"

"Is that what that sound is called? 'Music'?" asked the robot.

"Well, that's what she and her fans seem to call it..." Octavia answered.

"Well, then...I guess I do like this, 'music' then..." Mega Pony then asked, "Can I...speak with her? Your roommate."

Octavia sighed and said, "Very well, if you insist..." She then turned her head back and shouted, "Vinyl!! There is somepony at the door who wishes to talk to you!"

"Hang on, hang on...I'm comin'!" shouted a rough-sounding, yet still feminine voice. Sounds of clattering were then heard upstairs, yet nopony came walking down the staircase right away.

After about a minute or so, Octavia shouted again, saying, "Vinyl!! He's not going to wait here for you forever, you know!"

"Alright, already!!" Vinyl yelled back. "Keep your pants on, Tavi!!"

"I do not wear pants!"

"You know what I meant by that!!" Finally, about 10 seconds after that last remark, a white-coated Unicorn mare came walking down the stairs. She had a wild, electric-blue mane and tail, bright red eyes, and a cutie mark that showed a black beamed-eighth note. Resting on top of her horn were a pair of black-rimmed sunglasses with purple lenses.

"You must be Vinyl Scratch, then..." Mega Pony figured.

"Yeah, that's me." the Unicorn answered him. Taking a closer look at the robot, she then added, "You look kinda familiar, but I'm not sure where..."

Octavia, sighing, told her friend, "That is Mega Pony. Don't you remember? We read about him in the newspaper four days ago."

"Oh, yeah! That robot pony who kicked the Parasprites outta town! That's it!" Walking up to the mechanical pony, she then said to him, "Anyway, yeah...I'm Vinyl Scratch. Or you can call me DJ PON-3, whatever you want."

"Oh, I see...you have a nickname that you go by." Mega Pony responded.

"More of a stage name, but yeah, same difference." Vinyl told him. "So what's up?" She then asked.

"Well, it seems that your weekly 'morning performance' for the whole town captured the interest of our guest here." Octavia informed her roommate in a less-than-enthusiastic tone. "To put it simply, you have a new fan."

"Aw, cool! That's great!" the white Unicorn responded excitedly. Turning to Mega Pony, she then said to him, "Well, I must say: You sir, have EXCELLENT taste in music! Everypony knows dubstep music is hot right now!"

"Perhaps in your circle of rowdy party ponies, it is..." the Earth Pony muttered softly.

"Wha'd ya say, Octy?" asked Vinyl.

"...Nothing."

Vinyl shrugged and said to their guest, "Say, why don't ya come in and hang out with us for a bit? I could show you some of the basic stuff that I've been workin' on...Believe me, what I was playin' earlier is NOTHIN' compared to what I've done in the past."

"Sure! I'll come in, if it's okay with you and your friend here." Mega Pony responded.

"I suppose it is alright..." the Earth Pony told him with a sigh. The three of them then walked inside the house together and shut the door behind them.

Minutes later, inside the home of Vinyl and Octavia, Mega Pony sat beside the sepia Earth Pony as her Unicorn roommate played the music that she was previously working on; the one that was blasting all across town earlier. This time, of course, the music was kept at a lower volume, though it was still pretty loud. The robot stared at all of Vinyl's equipment as he listened to her song intently. Octavia, on the other hoof, simply sighed as the music played on. It was quite obvious by now that the Earth Pony wasn't exactly a fan of dubstep or electronic music.

Once the song was finished, Vinyl pushed her sunglasses off of her eyes and asked, "So wha'd ya think, Mega Pony? Awesome, right?"

"Y-yeah! It was pretty good!" he complimented, clapping his hooves. "Though it seemed to end pretty abruptly..."

"Yeah, that's 'cause it ain't finished yet." the Unicorn told him. "It's still a work in progress, but I think it's almost done. Just need to make a few tweaks to it."

"Well, it's very impressive so far, Ms. Vinyl." the mechanical pony responded. "I'd like to hear it once you've completed it."

"No prob, Mega Pony." Vinyl replied. "It's the least I can do after you helped save the town."

Just then, Octavia stepped in front of her roommate's sound equipment and said, "If you are quite finished, Vinyl, I believe that our guest should be treated to a TRUE performance of the musical arts..." She then headed towards a large stringed instrument in the corner of the room.

"True performance...?" asked Mega Pony.

Vinyl sighed and told him, "It means Tavi here is gonna start playin' her boring cello music now...And just when the moment was gettin' good..."

"I can assure you, Vinyl, that my style of music is much more interesting than you may believe it to be." Octavia informed her as she pushed in her large cello. "The grace and beauty of a song played on such a fine instument such as this speaks for itself." The Earth Pony then smiled and asked Mega Pony, "So how about it? Would you like to hear what true musical talent sounds like?"

"Um...I guess it couldn't hurt..." the robot responded. "Sure, let me hear what you're working on, Ms. Octavia." Vinyl just rolled her eyes in response.

The Earth Pony breathed deeply to relax herself, took the bow that was used to make music on her cello, and began playing her song. The music that came from the instrument was slow, calm, and relaxing to the soul. Vinyl, who wasn't at all interested in classical music, yawned out of boredom. Mega Pony, however, was not bored at all. He was listening just as intently as he had been when Vinyl was playing her music. As he listened to every note, all of the troubles that had piled on top of him earlier in the day seemed to melt away completely.

Once she was done, Octavia took a bow and asked, "Did you enjoy my performance, Mega Pony?"

Before the robot could answer, Vinyl butted in and told her roommate in a rather rude tone, "Oh please...Do you HONESTLY think that Mega Pony over there is gonna like your boring oldie music over my hip tracks? Like that would ever happen..."

The Earth Pony, miffed at the Unicorn's comment, said to her, "How dare you...My 'oldie' music, as you put it, is in no way boring at all! A true classical theme such as mine is designed to soothe and relax those who listen upon it! Perhaps if you would take the time to give it a chance, you would not be making such uncouth comments such as that last remark of yours."

"Oh, here we go again: usin' all those fancy words and junk to try and confuse me!" Vinyl said, raising her voice. "Well, tough cookies! I actually looked up the word, 'uncouth' the last time you said it to me!"

"Well, congratulations." Octavia told her roommate sarcastically. "You finally learned something useful for a change..."

"Don't you try and start somethin' with me, Octy...!" grumbled the Unicorn mare.

"Would you rather I finish it, then?!" the Earth Pony shouted back, her muzzle pushing right up against her roommate's as their angry eyes stared each other down.

Just then, Mega Pony pushed the two apart and said to them, "Hey, cut it out! Both of you! Why are you two fighting with each other like that??"

The two were at a loss for words after the robot interrupted their argument. The only sounds that came from them were a series of "Um"s, "Uh"s, and "Er"s, but no actual words.

Mega Pony sighed a little and said to them, "Look...there's no need to fight over whose music is better. To be honest, I really liked BOTH of your songs!"

"Huh??" asked Vinyl, surprised.

"You do??" asked Octavia, equally as shocked.

"I mean it." the mechanical pony told them. Turning to the Unicorn mare first, he said to her, "Vinyl, your style of music is lively, catchy, and really fun to listen to! I felt like wanting to dance to it the whole time you played it!" He then looked over at the Earth Pony next. "And you, Octavia," he added, "your cello music was so beautiful and calming, that it felt like all of my problems and concerns just washed away!"

The two mares looked at each other, but couldn't say anything to each other or their guest.

"The point I'm trying to make," he then said to them both, "is that what makes Vinyl's music great is completely different from what makes Octavia's music great! And it's silly to fight over which is better, because there really isn't a comparision, or at least there shouldn't be. You should be pretty proud of yourselves and each other that you have such great talents in music...And instead of wasting time fighting over who's better, you should spend more of that time sharing that talent to everypony."

The two roommates stood in silence for a while. Eventually, Vinyl spoke up and said, "He's right, Octy. It's kinda dumb to fight over something like this..."

"I feel like a hypocrite by calling you 'uncouth'..." Octavia responded. "I wasn't exactly acting any better myself."

The Unicorn mare put her hoof up and asked, "So, we cool, Tavi? At least for now?"

The sepia-coated pony thought for a while. She then smiled, placed her hoof against Vinyl's and said, "I suppose so." The two of them then turned towards Mega Pony as Octavia said to him, "I'm sorry that you had to see our little spat there, Mega Pony...Unfortunately, we tend to...disagree every now and then."

"It's okay, Octavia." the robot replied. "The important thing is that you two were able to make up in the end. Losing a friend over something silly like an argument over whose music is better, or a mistake that you made in the past doesn't make sense at all...and a true friend is willing to look past things like that and try to remember why they became friends in the first place. Holding a strong friendship with somepony is much better than holding a grudge against them, believe me."

"Wow...that's deep, buddy..." Vinyl responded. "Where'd ya learn that from?"

"Um...I learned that from some good friends of mine." he answered.

"Well they sound like very good company." Octavia told Mega Pony. She then added, "I was thinking: Since you seem to show a great deal of interest in music in general, perhaps we could meet again in the future and teach you everything we know about it."

"You mean...how to make music?" the robot inquired. "I'd love that!"

"Cool! I like that idea, too." Vinyl chimed in. "And I guess it couldn't hurt to have a referee around in case Tavi and I 'disagree' with each other again."

Mega Pony chuckled a bit at the Unicorn's remark. "I guess that would be a good idea..." he said to them. He then added, "Well, I suppose I should get going now. It was nice meeting you both!"

"Same here, dude." replied Vinyl, giving the robot a hoof-bump. "Come back sometime, okay?"

"I sure will, Vinyl. See you both later!" he told them before leaving the room, heading for the door leading back outside.

As Mega Pony ventured back outdoors, he trotted down the path for a while before he was approached by Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Spike. "Mega Pony!" the lavender Unicorn shouted over to him. "There you are!"

"Oh, you guys!" exclaimed the mechanical pony. "What is it?"

"Nothin' much...'cept you were over at Vinyl's house for quite a while." Applejack told him. Noticing the expression on his face, she then asked him. "What happened? Y'all seem happier than ya were back when we were all at the library."

"Well, I went over to meet Vinyl and Octavia..." he began to explain, "they played their music for me, which was really good, by the way, and I even helped them settle a little argument that they had with each other."

"An argument?" questioned Rarity. "What sort of argument?"

"Nothing major." Mega Pony answered. "But I was able to resolve it by using what you all helped me to learn about looking past somepony's mistakes and all that."

The group looked at each other with surprised expressions on their faces, a bit amazed that Mega Pony was able to use a lesson that they all learned together to help two other ponies resolve a similar problem.

"In fact," the robot continued, "they asked me if I could come back to visit them sometime to teach me how to make music. And after hearing it for the first time, I can't wait to try it myself!"

"That's great to hear!" Rainbow Dash congratulated him. "You finally found something that you're interested in! Guess that means you've found a way to fulfill your secondary programming, huh?"

"I think he has." Twilight agreed. "But not just because of the music thing..."

"What do you mean, Twilight dear?" asked Rarity. The others in the group, including Mega Pony, were also curious as to what she meant by that.

"He resolved a conflict between two ponies by using a lesson that we all learned together." the lavender Unicorn explained. "In other words, he's found a way to help other ponies without fighting or using his weapons or powers at all!"

"...You're right!" the robot exclaimed. "I wasn't really even thinking about it when I did it! All I was thinking about was that I didn't want to see two good friends arguing over something silly, and...well, I just did whatever came to mind."

"Well, we're all glad that ya found out what it means to be a normal pony like all of us." Applejack told him. "Ah think the Princess'll be real proud of ya when ya tell her 'bout it!"

"Well, I heard my mom's gonna be busy today, so I might have to wait until later tonight to tell her."

"I think I've got a better idea..." Twilight pondered.

Minutes later, the group of ponies (and dragon) assembled in the library. Twilight was using her magic to write on a parchment using one of her quills. The lavender Unicorn had convinced Mega Pony to help her write a letter to Princess Celestia about what they all learned today; the robot was dictating the letter, while Twilight wrote what he said:

"Dear Mom," he began, "this may seem a bit strange at first, but Twilight told me that writing a letter to you about the lesson I learned, instead of just telling you about it later, would make it a lot more special and significant to you. Today, you sent me to Ponyville to figure out what it means to be a real pony, and I think I figured it out...To me, it means being there to help your friends out, especially during the rough patches. But I also learned that there's no such thing as a perfect friendship: There are going to be times when you can't always agree on something, and there will be times when something that you do might make somepony else angry at you...However, a true friend is one that's willing to forgive and keep their bonds strong, and not let a friendship die over something that really shouldn't have been a big deal in the first place.

"Not everypony is going to like you or want to be your friend like most will, but hating them and being mean to them right back is never a good idea, and I know that I never want to let that happen between me and my friends. That's why I'll keep helping everypony that I can, on or off the battlefield, and make Equestria a better place for it." He then smiled as best as he could and closed, saying, "Your loving son, Mega Pony."

Once the letter was finished, Twilight gave the paper to Spike, who used his flames to turn the letter into a smoky cloud that would whisk itself away to Canterlot and reform back into a letter once it got to the castle. "That takes care of that." the dragon said, rubbing the dust off of his claws.

Rainbow Dash then flew over to Mega Pony and asked him, "So, now that everything's cool between us, you mind comin' back to Cloudsdale with me and help me finish up with my cloud collecting?"

"Of course, Rainbow. I'd be happy to help!" the robot told her.

"And perhaps after you are done there," Rarity chimed in, "we could finish things up in the boutique, since some of my gems are still intact."

"And me and mah family could still use your help with the harvest." Applejack added.

"Now now, everypony..." Twilight told them all. "Don't pile so much on him at once..."

"It's okay, Twilight." Mega Pony said to her as they all walked down the dirt path through town. "I know I can handle it this time...After all, helping others is what I'm born to do."

NEXT EPISODE: "Bringing Down the Schoolhouse"

Episode 104: Bringing Down the Schoolhouse:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

As the days go by, Mega Pony is learning more and more about what his duties are, as well as learning about what it means to be a real pony. He is slowly, but surely, making friends with the ponies that he is meant to protect, and enjoys helping them out, either by keeping them safe from harm, or just simply assisting them with small jobs here and there. Today, he is accompanying Princesses Celestia and Luna to a schoolhouse in Ponyville to speak to the young colts and fillies and offer them encouragement in pursing their hopes and dreams.

Will everything go according to the school schedule, or will everypony find themselves in a situation far worse than getting detention?

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony. Built by Celestia.

Princesses Celestia and Luna: Alicorn sisters that rule over Equestria.

Ms. Cheerilee: Highly respected and well-liked school teacher.

Diamond Tiara: Daughter of a rich family (and quite a spoiled brat).

It was a bright and sunny Friday in Ponyville, as it often was on a Friday. The current time was around quarter to 12, which meant that school was in session for the young colts and fillies. There were a few schoolhouses in town, but the one that was most well-known to the townsfolk was the one owned by Ms. Cheerilee. She had been teaching in Ponyville for quite a while, and was well-liked by both her students and the town's citizens.

Today was quite a special day for her class, but Cheerilee had not yet told them what she had planned on the agenda, until now. At the moment, the classroom consisted of just her class, which included Apple Bloom, Applejack's younger sister who still had not yet earned her cutie mark, Twist, an Earth Pony filly with a puffy red mane and a candy cane cutie mark, and Dinky, a slate-blue Unicorn filly who also didn't have a mark yet. Including the three of them, there were about 12 students in the class.

The room was filled with activity as the students were talking with one another while the teacher was out. But it wasn't long before Ms. Cheerilee stepped back into the classroom. The teacher pony was a magenta-coated Earth Pony, with a smooth mane that was colored in pink and light pink stripes. Her eyes were as green as the grass that grew around the schoolhouse, and her cutie mark showed a picture of three smiling, yellow flowers.

Cheerilee walked behind her desk and sat down before tapping the piece of furniture with her left front hoof. "Okay class, settle down now." she spoke in a pleasant voice, but still loud enough to get everypony's attention. After a couple of seconds, the noise quieted down and all of the students sat down at their desks, turning to face their teacher. "Alright now, everypony. I would like your full attention as I present the surprise that I have for you all today."

The students looked at one another, wondering what their surprise was.

Cheerilee cleared her throat and spoke to them, saying, "Today, I have arranged for two very special individuals to come and speak to you all. They have agreed to donate some time from their busy schedules to come here and offer some very special advice...both for those of you who know what your special talents are, and for those who haven't discovered them yet." She then turned around towards the classroom entrance and put out her left front hoof in the same direction. "So, without further ado, I am pleased to present two ponies who need no introduction: Please give a warm welcome to none other than...Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!"

There was a collective gasp from the entire class as the two Princesses walked into the classroom. The young fillies and colts were certainly not expecting a visit from royalty today. Celestia and Luna casually strolled past the chalkboard as two guards stationed themselves beside the entrance outside of the room. The dark-blue Alicorn then glanced over towards the students when she saw that one of them was waving over to her. It was a small Earth Pony colt with a white coat and large brown spots, along with a dark brown mane and short tail. Luna simply smiled and waved back to him.

"Thank you so very much for coming here today, Your Highnesses." Cheerilee said to them both with a respectful bow. "I know the students would love to hear what you have to tell them."

"It was our pleasure, Ms. Cheerilee." Celestia replied with a smile. "After all, part of being a Princess is helping and inspiring others to be their very best. So any time we can take to encourage young ponies and help them to work hard to pursue their interests is time well spent."

"Well said, Your Highness." the teacher replied. She then stepped aside and told them, "Go ahead and begin whenever you're ready."

The Alicorns nodded to say that they were pretty much ready right now. "You go first, Sister." Luna told Celestia. "I would still like some time to prepare myself...After all, giving speeches isn't something I'm terribly skilled at, unlike giving orders..."

"Don't worry, you'll do great, Luna. I know you will." the white Alicorn said to her. "But if you insist, I'll give you as much time as you need to make sure you're ready." After saying that, Celestia then walked over to Cheerilee's desk and sat down. The Princess then cleared her throat and began her speech:

"As a ruler of Equestria, I feel that it is my sworn duty to inspire young ponies such as yourselves to be at their best." she started. "From what I can see, it seems that many of you have already discovered your special talents, and earned your cutie marks." Many of the cutie mark-bearing children glanced at their hind quarters after the Princess made that statement.

Celestia continued, saying, "For those of you who have earned their marks, I congratulate you for all of your hard work and effort so far. And now that you know your special talent, it is up to you to figure out the best way to use that talent to help others and continue to build a great future for all of Equestria." Glancing over at the few students in the class that didn't have their marks yet, she then added, "And for those of you who haven't found their special talents yet, do not be discouraged; continue to go out into the world and experience all sorts of different things. Your cutie marks will appear upon you when the time is right, and you may even be surprised to learn what your special talent is. There's a good chance that it might be something you never would have guessed it to be, but sometimes, the unexpected is all part of the fun of learning about what you're truely meant to be in life."

The students clapped their hooves at Celestia's speech. "Very inspiring words, Your Highness." Ms. Cheerilee told her. The teacher then turned over towards the other Alicorn in the room and said to her, "Princess Luna, if you would be so kind to offer your own words of encouragement?"

Luna gulped a little bit, a drop of sweat running down the side of her face. (Oh dear...here we go...) she thought to herself, a bit nervous. She looked over at her older sister, who simply smiled and nodded, silently telling her to just give it her best shot. Luna smiled and nodded back, adjusting her crown and walking over to the desk to speak.

"As you all are aware," the Princess of the Night told the class, "my special talent is raising and lowering the moon...Speech-giving, on the other hoof, is not exactly my forte, I shall admit. But nevertheless, I shall do my best to offer advice for you all that will undoubtably assist you in the future." Luna paused for a second to levitate a glass of water on the desk in order to take a sip out of it. Once she finished, she continued, saying, "Now, for the young colts and filles who have yet to earn their cutie marks, I can safely assume that, at some point or another, you may have had envious thoughts towards those who DO possess them."

The students stared ahead at the dark-blue Alicorn, wondering where she was going with this. Not all of them were as interested in the speeches as their classmates were; two Earth Ponies in particular, one pink with a purple-and-white striped mane and tiara cutie mark (and also wearing a real tiara), and one grey with a light grey-and-white striped mane, a pair of glasses, and a spoon cutie mark, seemed to be disinterested in the Princesses' speeches, based on their tired-looking facial expressions.

Luna noticed the two Earth Ponies' bored expressions, but decided to ignore it for now and continued talking. "Anyway, as I was saying, harboring thoughts of jealousy towards others will only cause you more trouble in the future, as I myself have learned the hard way." she said to them. "Instead of hating and despising the ponies that have their cutie marks while you do not, you can use that time to find out what you ARE good at. If any of you here ever wish to succeed in your lives, then you must vanquish the demons called Hatred and Jealousy in your heart. Only then will you be able to find your true selves, and your cutie marks." Once she was finished, she walked back over to her older sister as the students gave a round of applause.

"That was a very good speech you gave, Princess Luna!" Ms. Cheerilee complimented her.

"Well, I must confess..." the dark-blue Alicorn admitted, "most of what I said was ad-libbing. I do not usually prepare my words ahead of time like my sister does."

"Well, it was very good, regardless of whether or not you had it prepared before today." the teacher pony responded. She then said to them, "Anyway, if both of you are finished for now, we can all go and have our lunch break."

"Well, there is one more thing we would like to do, Ms. Cheerilee." Celestia told her.

"Oh?" asked the magenta Earth Pony, not expecting there to be anything else right away. "And...what might that be, Your Highnesses?"

The white Alicorn smiled and turned towards the class before saying, "Since my sister and I were asked to come here to talk to you all about trying to find your true purpose in life, I felt that it would be a good idea to bring with us, a pony that many of you might already know about; a pony that, like many of you here, has had trouble trying to find his talent and fit in with everypony else." Celestia then turned towards the classroom entrance and announced, "But now that he has found his true calling, he has volunteered to accompany us in order to provide his own inspirational words. So now, I present to you all, my greatest creation and gift to all of Equestria: Mega Pony!"

Once his name was said, the blue armor-wearing pony robot walked into the classroom. Almost immediately, the students began talking with one another:

"No way! It's him! It's really him!"

"This is so cool! Mega Pony showed up in our classroom!"

"Whod've ever guessed that he'd be here of all places?"

Apple Bloom stared at the robot pony as he walked into the room with a smile on his face. (So that's the robot that mah big sis was talkin' about...) she thought to herself.

Twist, of course, was quite happy to see Mega Pony again after so long. (That'th the pony who thaved my life when thothe Parathpriteth attacked the town...) she thought to herself; apparently, even her internal monologue had a slight speech impediment involving the letter 'S'.

The sudden appearence of the robotic pony was enough to grab the attention of the pink and grey Earth Pony fillies, who were bored stiff up until now. (Hmmm...so that's the Mega Pony guy that everypony's been talking about...) the pink one thought to herself.

The robot walked over to his creator, Princess Celestia, and waited for further instructions. The Alicorn smiled and told him, "You can start whenever you're ready, Mega Pony."

"Thanks, Mom." he simply replied before walking up to Ms. Cheerilee's desk. Once he sat down, Mega Pony turned towards the students to begin his speech. "As many of you already know," he began, "my name is Mega Pony; I'm a robot built by Princess Celestia, who designed me to protect other ponies from harm, or simply help them with whatever they need my help with." He then put on a more serious expression as he said, "But on the day I was activated, I was just like many of you were at some point in your lives: Confused, scared, and not sure what my purpose was, or if I even had a purpose. However, just because it may seem difficult to find out what you're meant to do in life, that shouldn't discourage you from trying your best to find out what it is and how you should use it to help everypony. At this point, all that can really be said to you is that you should all work hard and keep up your determination, and you will most certainly find out what you're truely meant to do in life...Thank you."

The class gave a round of applause after the robot was finished with his speech. Mega Pony walked back over to his mother as the white Alicorn said to the students, "Now, I am fairly certain that many of you here have all sorts of questions for Mega Pony." Celestia glanced over at the clock in the room, which showed that it was currently 11:55. "Seeing as how we have a few minutes before lunchtime, I will allow a few of you to ask any questions you have about him." she finished.

Almost immediately, most of the class raised their front hooves, waving them to try and get the Sun Princess's attention.

The white Alicorn glanced around for a while and pointed to a bright yellow-coated filly with a slightly darker yellow mane and light purple eyes. "You over there, in the back..." Celestia addressed the filly. "What is your question?"

The yellow filly put her hoof down and asked, "What kind of metal are you made of, Mr. Mega Pony?"

"Well, it's kinda complicated, but basically, my armor is made out of a super-strong titanium alloy." the robot answered. "It's capable of absorbing even some of the most powerful blows without so much as leaving a scratch on me."

"Ti-tay-nee-um...?" asked the yellow filly, trying to pronounce the word slowly in order to get it right. "I'm not sure what that means, but it sure sounds strong to me!"

"Alright, then. Next question..." said Celestia, looking over the class again. She then focused her attention over to Twist, who was quite eager to ask a question of her own. Pointing to her, the white Alicorn then said, "You over there, with the puffy mane...Go ahead and ask your question."

Twist paused for a moment, not actually expecting to be picked next. "Um...oh my..." She tried to ask her question, but the thought of everypony looking at her right now was making her a bit nervous. "Um...well, you thee...I-I-I jutht thought that...well, I wath going to athk..."

"Oh, get on with it, already...!" groaned the pink tiara-wearing filly. "We don't have all day!"

"Diamond Tiara, that wasn't very nice of you." Ms. Cheerilee sternly told the pink pony. "Complaining isn't going to make her ask her question any faster, so sit still and be patient."

"Whatever..." Diamond Tiara huffed as she slumped down on her seat. Princess Luna glanced over at the filly once more after the rude comment she made, but once again, the Alicorn decided not to say or do anything.

Getting back on track, Celestia then asked Twist, "Anyway, you were saying...?"

"Oh, right! I remember now!" the puffy red-maned filly exclaimed. She then asked, "Well, I've alwayth wondered jutht how you managed to move tho fatht when you thaved me and the otherth during the Parathprite attack...Can you alwayth go tho quick like that?"

"Not all the time." Mega Pony answered her. "The only reason I was able to move that fast was because I got a special power from Rainbow Dash first. Once I did, I was able to move just as fast as she could."

"Yeah, Ah remember mah sister Applejack told me that ya'll could get special weapons and powers from other ponies." Apple Bloom noted. "Ah'd really like t' see how ya do it, Mega Pony."

"Yeah, me too!" added Dinky.

"Me too!"

"Same here!"

The robot sweated a little. "Um, I'm not sure about that..." he said to the class. "That's up to my mom, not me." He then turned his head towards Princess Celestia and asked, "What do you think I should do?"

The Princess of the Sun smiled and told him, "It is alright with me. You can show them your Copy Ability, on the condition that you do not use any of the weapons or powers that you acquire."

"Okay then, I promise." Mega Pony replied. He then faced the students again and told them, "Alright, everypony. I'd be happy to show you just how my Copy Ability works." The class cheered when they heard that they were actually going to see some of Mega Pony's powers.

"Why don't we all head outside first?" suggested Cheerilee. "That way, there's more room for everypony to move around."

"Sounds good to me." Celestia replied. "Let's go right now." And with that, everypony in the classroom headed out the door, making their way over to the playground outside.

In less than a minute after leaving the classroom, Ms. Cheerilee and her class, along with Mega Pony and the Royal Sisters, were all standing outside of the schoolhouse, in a large open field nearby the playground area. "Well, I suppose that this is as good a spot as any to start my demonstration." the robot stated. He then faced the class and told them, "Okay, then...All I need now is a volunteer...Anypony willing to come up here with me and participate?"

Not surprisingly, all of the students began waving their front hooves at Mega Pony in order to draw his attention towards them. The robot glanced around at all of the colts and fillies, trying to decide who would be the first to come up and help him out.

In the end, the decision wasn't hard for him to make as he pointed towards one of the students. "You over there." he said to the lucky individual.

Not surprisingly, the mechanical pony's choice just so happened to be Twist. "Um...me...?" she asked meekly.

"Yep. Come on over here." Mega Pony responded in a friendly tone. The puffy-maned filly slowly walked up towards the robot, still a bit uneasy at all of the eyes that were on her right now. "Now then...Twist, was it?" he asked her, trying to remember her name.

The filly nodded to say that he had gotten it right.

"Okay, good." he responded. "Now, I need you to stand perfectly still for just a few seconds." he began instructing her. "This might feel weird at first, but you'll be fine. I promise. So just stay still and don't make any sudden movements."

"Um...okay." Twist replied, doing as she was told.

Mega Pony then raised his right front hoof and pressed it against the young filly's candy cane cutie mark. About one second later, his horn and her mark began to glow a bright white. The brightness of it all made Cheerilee and the others step back a bit. Finally, a large flash of light erupted between the two ponies, pushing them back and completing the process.

"What...happened?" asked Twist, a bit woozy.

"Don't worry about that." the robot told her. "The flash just means that I've finished using my Copy Chip. Now for the final part of the demonstration..." Mega Pony then closed his eyes tightly as bands of light flowed around his body, going from the tip of his horn to the end of his tail. Once he was finished, his armor changed colors: His body was now mostly a pale yellow, and his helmet, boots, and tail were now a deep red color, just like Twist. In addition, he now had her cutie mark displayed on his flank instead of his original one.

Needless to say, the class, along with their teacher, were astounded by the sudden change. "That's amazing..." said Ms. Cheerilee, still not exactly sure what just happened.

"So that's how he does it..." Apple Bloom said to herself, amazed at what she saw.

Diamond Tiara and her grey Earth Pony friend were equally as amazed when they saw Mega Pony using his powers. "D-Diamond, did you see that??" asked the grey filly. "He looks just like Twist now!"

"I can see that, Silver Spoon." the pink filly responded. She then shouted over towards Mega Pony, "Hey! How did you do that?!"

"Well, it's pretty simple, really:" the robot began to explain. "You see, all I have to do is touch another pony's cutie mark, wait a little while, and after it's all said and done, I have a new weapon."

"Mega Pony's Copy Chip is specially designed to scan and record everything about a pony just from their cutie marks." Celestia added. "Then, using whatever information he gathers, his Variable Tool System allows him to adapt that pony's special abilities and skills in the form of an offensive weapon. More often than not, he can obtain special attacks and powers that are already possesed by the pony he copies from. But occasionally, he may end up obtaining a skill that even the pony that he gets it from may not be aware of."

"So...his power only works on anypony that already has a mark?" asked the little Unicorn, Dinky.

"I'm afraid so." the white Alicorn confirmed. "Mega Pony cannot obtain a skill from a pony that doesn't yet know what they are skilled at."

"Well, that stinks..." said Apple Bloom, groaning a little out of disappointment.

"Hmph, what a surprise..." Diamond Tiara said with a sneer. "The blank flanks are left out of all the fun once again...You'd think they'd be used to it by now."

"Don't you even start, Diamond..." the pink bow-wearing filly growled at her.

"Yeah, it'th not very nice!" added Twist, quick to defend her friend. "Apple Bloom didn't thay anything mean to you, tho don't do it to her!"

"Oh, just listen to yourself, Twist..." grumbled the bratty pink filly. "You might have your cutie mark now, but you're still just the same as before! Isn't that right, Silver?"

"Uh...yeah! Just the same as before!" Silver Spoon repeated.

"When are you going to learn that those of us that HAVE their marks are...entitled to many more privileges than those that don't?" Diamond asked rhetorically.

"Now, Diamond Tiara, we've been over this before:" Ms. Cheerilee suddenly spoke up. "Just because you have your cutie mark, it doesn't mean that you can make fun of anypony that doesn't have one..."

"I haven't made fun of anypony yet..." the pink filly huffed. "I'm just stating something that's totally true, nothing else. And I'm going to go right ahead and prove that my claims are true once and for all!" Diamond Tiara then walked towards Mega Pony, motioning Silver Spoon to follow her. Clearing her throat, the pink filly said to the robot, "Mega Pony, sir...Silver and I would like to be the next volunteers for your copy power demonstration."

The mechanical pony stood silent for a few seconds before saying, "Um, sure...I guess that's alrght with me. Okay, I'll copy your powers, then." Mega Pony then tapped Diamond's cutie mark, triggering the light show once again. Once he was done, he then changed his armor color to match that of the pink filly's coat and mane, along with her cutie mark.

"Nice...very nice, indeed." Diamond Tiare said, smirking. "Those colors look great on you; after myself, of course." When she made that remark, Apple Bloom and a few others made soft gagging noises behind her back in response. Diamond then turned to her friend and told her, "Okay, your turn, Silver Spoon."

"Uh, yeah! Sure!" the grey filly replied, walking up to the robot next and presenting her cutie mark. Mega Pony then tapped the mark and copied whatever her power was as well. Just like before, he changed his armor color scheme and cutie mark to match hers. "Wow!" Silver Spoon exclaimed. "That IS cool!"

"Yeah, Ah can think of only one thing that's cooler than that..." Apple Bloom whispered to Twist.

"What'th that?"

"Jus' about everythin' else." she answered, elicting a giggle out of both Twist and Dinky.

Ms. Cheerilee glanced up at the sky to see what time it was, based on the current position of the Sun. "Well, I think we should all go back inside now. We don't want to miss lunch, do we everypony?"

"No, Ms. Cheerilee!" the class responded.

"Exactly." the teacher replied. "Now let's all go back into the classroom; single-file line, as always."

"Yes, Ms. Cheerilee!"

Cheerilee then glanced over at the two princesses and Mega Pony (who had changed back to his original colors). "You are more than welcome to join us, if you wish." she said to them.

"We would love to, Ms. Cheerilee." Celestia responded. "How kind of you to offer." As they all headed back into the schoolhouse, the white Alicorn noticed that her sister had a slightly annoyed look on her face. "Is something the matter, Luna?" she asked. "If this is about Twilight house-sitting for us while we're here, you don't have to worry. Knowing my student, she'll be in the same place as we left her: The Royal Library."

"Um...no, it's not about that, Older Sister." replied the dark-blue Alicorn. "I'm well aware that we can afford to stay here in town a while longer."

"Then what is it? You know you can always talk to me about whatever is on your mind."

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about right now." Luna told Celestia. "I'll...I'll talk about it when we return to Canterlot."

"...Very well. If you insist." the white Alicorn said back. Celestia could tell by the tone of Luna's voice and her facial expressions that there was more on her younger sister's mind than she was willing to discuss at the moment. But for now, Celestia chose not to dig any deeper into the matter right now, and they went back into the schoolhouse along with Mega Pony.

Unbeknownst to them or Cheerilee's class, two young Unicorn colts chose not to follow the others back inside. One of them was a bit on the tall side, had a golden-yellow coat, and a messy green mane and short tail. He had small, beady black eyes and a cutie mark that showed a picture of a snail. The other one, who was short and chubby, had a teal-colored coat with an equally messy mane and tail, colored a dirty orange. His eyes were also black and beady, and his cutie mark was a pair of scissors.

"Aheh heh! Did ya see that, Snips?" asked the golden-yellow colt. "That was the coolest thing ever!"

"Pfft...what was so cool about it, Snails?" the teal colt responded. "All Mega Pony did was COPY weapons! He didn't even use any of 'em!" Huffing, he then added, "That's not what I wanted to see! I wanna see Mega Pony in action!"

"But ya heard what the Princess said..." Snails said in a slow tone. "She said he wasn't allowed to use them..."

"I know what the Princess said..." Snips grumbled. "Rrrgh...If only there was a way to make her change her mind and get him to use his powers...But the only way she'd let him do that is if we were all being attacked by some big horrible monster and-" Just then, the young colt stopped talking as he got an idea. "That's it! Snails, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Yeah, I know what you're thinkin'!" Snails answered, ecstatically hopping into the air a few times. "I'm DEFINITELY thinkin' what you're thinkin'!" He then paused for a second, glanced around aimlessly a few times, then asked, "Uh...what am I thnking that you're thinking?"

"Just follow me." the teal-coated colt answered him. "We're going to take a small, unscheduled field trip into the Everfree Forest..."

"E-E-Everfree Forest??" Snails replied nervously.

A few minutes later, the two colts were journeying through the perilous and bizarre Everfree Forest. It was infamous because of the unusual things that went on in there. One of those things was that the weather around the forest was not controlled by a single Pegasus, instead being influenced by some unknown, unexplainable force. The other thing was that the creatures that called the woods home were capable of taking care of themselves, without the help of anypony. In fact, many of the beasts of the forest were large and vicious enough to consider a pony as their next meal.

Unaware (or possibly uncaring) of the dangers within, the two young Unicorns walked deeper and deeper into the haunting forest. "So here's my plan:" began Snips. "All we gotta do is find some big, mean, and vicious monster, then we go and tell Mega Pony and the others that we were being attacked by it! Once they buy into our story, we'll lead 'em all back to where the creature is, he fights it, and BAM! We get to actually see Mega Pony use his weapons! It's perfect!"

Snails wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, but even he had his doubts about his buddy's idea. "Um, Snips?" he asked him. "My memory's not the best, but...didn't we do something like this before??"

"No, this is TOTALLY different from the other time..." assured the teal colt. "This time, we're not actually going to BRING the monster with us, like we did with that Ursa Minor cub. Instead, we're just gonna pretend that we were attacked, and that'll be enough to get Mega Pony to show off his powers for us, understand?" Snails nodded, but the worried look on his face suggested that he still wasn't too confident about the whole plan.

After about a few minutes of wandering around, the two colts came to a large clearing, devoid of any animal life...except for one. Snips and Snails peeked out from behind a bush and spied on the large, sleeping creature before them: a Manticore. The beast seemed to be a combination of three different animals; its body and head resembled a lion, but its tail looked like that of a scorpion, and it even had a pair of bat wings, to boot. The creature's intimidating size and appearance were the answer as to why there were no other animals nearby.

"Do you see it, Snails?" whispered Snips. "That Manticore is exactly what we're looking for...!"

"Whad'ya say??" asked the yellow colt, not hearing what his friend said because he was talking too softly, not to mention that the Manticore was snoring pretty loudly.

"I said...that Manticore is exactly what we're looking for...!!" the teal pony responded, a bit louder.

"I still can't hear you...!" Snails whispered even louder. "That thing's snoring too loud!"

"Well, I can't help it if the Manticore wants to snore louder than the Ponyville train!!"

"What?! I still can't HEAR YOU!!"

"THEN GET THE WAX OUTTA YOUR EARS, ALREADY!!!" yelled Snips, getting frustrated. "Sweet Celestia, it's like I'm talking to a sack of potatoes!!! Now stop wasting my time and help me come up with a good story to-" But as Snips turned around to look at the Manticore again, he suddenly stopped talking and froze up completely, aside from an occasional twitch. His eyes bulged, his jaw dropped, and the only sounds that came out of his mouth were a series of small gasps.

Snails noticed that his buddy had stopped talking and glanced over towards him, wondering why he had stopped in mid-sentence. But once he got a look at what Snips saw, he, too, went into a similar state of fear, and for good reason: The Manticore that was previously snoozing away in the middle of the forest clearing had been stirred awake by the colts' yelling. Now it was snarling at the two of them, staring them down with its bloodshot eyes.

Snips and Snails stared fearfully at the angry monster, too scared to do much of anything. Then, all of a sudden, the Manticore gave out a loud roar that shook the whole forest. It was enough to snap the two colts back to reality; they screamed in terror as they made a run for it. But instead of chasing them down, the Manticore just kept right on roaring as loud as it could.

The yellow-coated colt looked back and said, "Hey! He's not chasin' us! He's just yellin' at us! What a lucky break, huh?"

But Snips wasn't as relieved. "I wouldn't be too sure about that...Look!" he said, pointing ahead.

In a large thicket of trees and bushes in front of them, two large figures suddenly popped out. The two figures were revealed to be two more Manticores. As it turned out, the first Manticore was roaring loudly in order to call for others nearby, triggering them into attacking as well.

The two Unicorn colts screamed again as they made a quick sharp turn to their left in order to avoid the other two beasts. They ran as fast as they could, with the three Manticores in pursuit, heading for the schoolhouse...

Meanwhile, back at Cheerilee's schoolhouse, everypony had settled down to have lunch at an outdoor seating area (after, of course, walking into the building in order to retrieve their packed meals). Each student brought their packed lunch over to one of the picnic tables set up behind the schoolhouse and sat down with other students, chatting with each other as they ate.

Cheerilee herself sat down to enjoy the meal that she had brought with her: A fruit salad, that was made up of slices of strawberries, cantelope, apricots, pineapple, and watermelon, a small-sized thermos filled with grape juice, and a slice of apple pie for dessert (courtesy of the Apple Family).

Princesses Celestia and Luna, along with Mega Pony, had decided to stay at the schoolhouse for the rest of the day before returning to Canterlot. They sat down at the same table as Cheerilee to talk with her while enjoying the food they brought with them. The white Alicorn had with her a simple banana-and-daisy sandwich with a cup of plain white milk; it wasn't as extravagent as most of her daily meals were, but it suited her just fine today.

Luna's meal, on the other hoof, wasn't nearly as much of a healthy choice as her older sister's meal. On the way to the schoolhouse, the dark-blue Alicorn wandered into the local hayburger stand, ordering two double-hayburgers with lettuce, dandilions, and globs of mayonaise...with a small fries and a Diet Colta-Cola.

Celestia gave her younger sister a look and said to her, "I still can't believe you actually went and ordered that, Luna...You ought to know that the food they serve there isn't exactly...well...'wholesome', shall we say..."

But the dark-blue Alicorn huffed a little and responded, saying, "Oh, thou worry too much, Elder Sister. I went there because your student recommended it to us before we left today, even though she said that she hadn't had the time to go there in a while..." Taking a rather large (and sloppy) bite out of one of her hayburgers, she added, "I cannot imagine why: the bold taste of this cookery is quite intoxicating..."

Celestia simply sighed, deciding not to say anything more on the subject. Turning over to her robot "son", she said to him, "I apologize if you feel left out, Mega Pony."

"That's okay, Mom." he simply replied, still with a smile on his face. "I know someday that you'll be able to find a way for me to be able to eat and drink like normal ponies do."

"Oh! That reminds me...I have something for you that I think you'll appreciate." the Sun Princess told him while rummaging through one of her saddlebags. "With all that's been going on today, I had nearly forgotten..." Once Celestia found what she was looking for, she used her magic to levitate the item onto the table. "This is for you, Mega Pony."

The robot looked at the item curiously; the object was a small, cobalt-blue can with a black letter "E" printed on the front of it. "Um...what is it...?" he asked.

"It's called an 'E-Tank'." Celestia answered. "I created it some time ago with the help of the zebra mare that lives in the forest. Inside this tank is a special liquid fuel that is designed to work with your backup power devices. All you need to do is to injest it, and your power reserves will be fully recharged, even if you're unable to draw any energy from the Sun for your solar core."

"Wait, does that mean that I can-?"

"Exactly." the white Alicorn answered him. "Now, at the very least, you'll be able to drink fluids. It's a small step towards making you more like everypony else, but a step forward nonetheless."

"Thank you so much!" Mega Pony replied happily. "I know it might seem silly, but this really means a lot to me!"

"Don't get too ahead of yourself, Mega Pony." Luna told him after finishing one of her hayburgers and wiping her mouth with a napkin. "This doesn't mean that you'll be able to drink ANYTHING. Right now, these E-tanks are all that you can have. We're not exactly sure yet how other fluids would affect you."

"That's true." added Celestia. "However, I have added some artifical flavoring to each fluid mixture. That way, you'll be able to know what other things taste like. Why don't you give this one a try, Mega Pony?"

"Okay, sure." he replied. He then watched as the white Alicorn used her magic to open the tab on the E-Tank before setting it in front of Mega Pony. The robot then used both of his front hooves to pick up the can and took a sip. It was a bit awkward at first, but he had paid close attention to how other ponies drank, and he was able to do it. After the liquid flowed past his tongue, he gave out a slight gasp as he experienced the sense of taste for the first time. "Wow...that was...that was so good! What was that??" he asked, trying to process the feeling.

"That would probably be apple that you're tasting right now." Celestia replied. "You can thank Applejack for that; after all, she gave me the idea to add that particular flavor."

"I'll definitely have to thank her!" Mega Pony said. "I've always dreamed of what apples tasted like, but this is better than I had ever thought it would be."

Cheerilee giggled a little at what was taking place before glancing over to her side. There, she noticed that three of her students, Apple Bloom, Twist, and Dinky, had not yet sat down at a table. They were looking around, holding their paper lunch bags in their mouths. "Is something the matter?" the teacher asked them. "Why haven't you three sat down somewhere yet?"

Placing her bag down for the moment, Apple Bloom answered, saying, "Well, we WOULD be sittin' down...If it weren't for Diamond and Silver hoggin' the table we usually sit at..."

"I beg your pardon?" asked Cheerilee.

Dinky set her lunch bag down next. "We tried to sit there, but they wouldn't let us..." she told the teacher. "And when we tried to say something about it, they just laughed at us and wouldn't budge."

"Tho we went to try to look for a different table to thit at," Twist chimed in, "but all of the other tableth are full already..."

"Really?" asked Celestia. "There were no other tables availiable?"

"Well, I DO have a relatively small class, so I didn't think it was necessary to set up more tables out here." the teacher pony admitted. Turning back over to her students, she shuffled aside in her seat and asked them, "Why don't you three come over here and sit with us today? I'll have a talk with Diamond and Silver about this later."

The three fillies were taken by surprise. "S-sit with you...?" asked Apple Bloom.

"And the Princesses...?" added Dinky.

"AND Mega Pony?? Twist finished.

"Of course." Cheerilee replied with a smile. She then turned towards the two Princesses and the robot and said to them, "If that's okay with you three, that is." The guests nodded to say that it was perfectly fine with them.

"Alright!" cheered Apple Bloom as she and her two friends/classmates ran over with their lunchbags, eager to sit with their teacher, the Princesses, and Mega Pony.

"Oh wow...I never thought that I'd get to have lunch with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!" said Dinky. "Wait 'til my big sister Amethyst hears about this!"

Twist decided to sit next to Mega Pony, who shuffled over to allow her enough room. "It'th good to thee you again, Mither Mega Pony..." she said to him.

"Good to see you too." he responded with a smile. "How have things been for you the past few days?"

"Pretty good..." the curly-maned filly answered. She then sighed a little and added, "I with I could thay that it'th been perfectly good..."

"How come?" asked Mega Pony, concerned. "Is it because of Diamond and Silver?" Twist sadly nodded yes. The robot then asked her, "Do those two pick on you and your friends a lot?"

"All the time." Apple Bloom answered. "Diamond and Silver make fun of us just 'cause we don't have our cutie marks yet...Well, at least Dinky and I don't have 'em. But they make fun of Twist too, simply 'cause she's still friends with us."

"I'm...sorry to hear that they give you such a hard time." Celestia told them.

"It's okay...we're kinda used to it." stated Dinky. "Their words still get to us every now and then..."

Mega Pony looked over at Cheerilee and asked her, "Did you ever know about any of this, Ms. Cheerilee? Haven't they ever told you about what those two say and do to them?"

"Yes..." the teacher pony answered with a sigh. "But no matter how much I tell Diamond and Silver not to pick on anypony, they just don't listen. Sometimes, I wonder if they'll ever learn their lesson and stop acting in such a way..."

"Just give me two minutes with those upstarts..." Luna suddenly spoke. "I assure you, I'LL set them straight better than their own parents could."

"Now, Luna...I don't object to you discussing such a thing with those two fillies, but don't be nasty towards them." Celestia warned her younger sister. "After all, it wouldn't look good for your reputation if word got out that you were acting harshly towards children, would it?"

"...I suppose not." the dark-blue Alicorn reluctantly agreed. "That doesn't change my opinion on the matter, though."

"Fair enough." the white Alicorn replied, taking a sip of milk from her cup.

"Oh dear...!" Cheerilee suddenly said with a slight gasp, grabbing the attention of everypony.

"What's the matter, Ms. Cheerilee?" asked Apple Bloom.

"I was just looking over my class list and counting all of the students..." the teacher stated, "and I just noticed that two of them are missing!"

"Missing??" asked Mega Pony. "Who?"

Cheerilee looked at the list again, trying to figure out who it was that wasn't present. Once she found out who, she then asked, "Have any of you seen Snips or Snails since lunchtime started?"

"Nope." said Apple Bloom.

"Nuh-uh." replied Dinky.

"Haven't theen them." Twist responded.

The teacher pony groaned a little out of frustration and asked herself, "What are those two up to this time...?"

Elsewhere, at another picnic table, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were chatting with each other as they ate their respecitve lunches. "So..." started the pink filly, "did ya hear the latest rumor about Lyra and Bon Bon?"

"Um...was this something you heard, or something you just made up?" asked Silver.

"I prefer to call it 'fabricated'..." Diamond responded smugly. "Anyway, the rumor is that they were both wearing hats, they were taking about something, and-" Suddenly, she stopped talking for a moment and gasped when she looked over at the table where their teacher, the Royal Sisters, and Mega Pony were sitting. "What the-?!"

"What is it?" asked the grey filly.

Diamond Tiara pointed over to the other table and said, "Look over there! Do you see who's sitting over there with the Princesses and Mega Pony?!"

Silver Spoon adjusted her glasses and saw Apple Bloom, Dinky, and Twist sitting with the others. "What?? How'd THEY get to have lunch with them?!" she exclaimed.

"Hmph! I bet they made up some stupid sob story about not having anywhere to sit just so they could be with them!" the bratty pink filly deduced. "Those dorks'll do ANYTHING to get their way and get attention that they don't deserve!" Of course, the irony that Diamond Tiara did things like that almost every day was apparently lost in the discussion. Getting up and putting on an angry expression, Diamond started walking over towards the other table. "C'mon, Silver Spoon! We're going over there and giving them a piece of our minds!"

Silver's eyes widened a little. "Um...are you sure we should...?" she asked in a not-so-confident tone.

"What are you talking about??" asked Diamond, a bit surprised that her friend wasn't as willing to go along with her this time. "We just need to show them all that if anypony deserves to be in their presence, it's us! Now, hurry up and follow me and we'll be sitting pretty faster than you can say-"

"...HEEEEEELLLLLLLP...!!!!" shouted a voice from far away.

"...Um, what was that you just said, D.T.?" asked the grey filly.

"That wasn't me..." the pink filly answered. Pointing in a direction, she told her friend, "That came from over-"

But before she could finish, the two of them suddenly saw who it was that made that loud noise. It was none other than Snips and Snails, still running and screaming in terror. They were so scared, that they didn't even notice that Diamond and Silver were in their way. The two fillies screamed, but to no avail: The Unicorn colts ran right over them in their panicking state, knocking them both out cold and covering them in dirty hoofprints.

"Run for your lives!!!" shouted Snips.

"Mares and foals first!!" yelled Snails.

Everypony else heard the two colts coming and looked over at them as they kept right on running. Of course, the screaming grabbed the attention of Cheerilee, the Princesses, Mega Pony, and the three fillies that were with them. The teacher stepped into their path and put out her left front hoof, causing them to stop suddenly.

"Snips! Snails! What is the meaning of this?!" the teacher pony asked, slighty angry at them. "Why weren't you with everypony for lunch?"

"M-M-Ms. Cheerilee!" the teal colt spoke up, still shaking. "W-w-we love to stay and answer your question...but-"

"But we've gotta get outta here before THEY show up!!!" Snails finished.

"What are you talking about??" Cheerilee inquired, confused. "Before WHO shows up??" But she never got that answer, because the two colts suddenly darted around her and ran away as fast as they could. "Hey! What has gotten into you two?!?" she shouted towards them.

"Um...Ah think Ah know..." Apple Bloom suddenly said, trembling a little.

"What is it?" asked the teacher. The yellow filly pointed ahead, causing everypony else to see what it was that had terrified Snips and Snails so much: It was, of course, the three Manticores that they unwittingly woke up from their sleep. And in their frenzied state, they were ready to trash anything or anypony that got in their way.

"M-Manticores?!?" shouted a surprised Mega Pony. "Where did those come from?!"

"I'm not sure, but we'll figure that out later..." said Celestia. "Right now, we have to move fast!" Coming up with a plan, she then instructed, "Ms. Cheerilee, go and gather up all of your students and get them in front of the schoolhouse!"

"Wouldn't we be safer INSIDE the schoolhouse??" asked Dinky.

"I can't be too sure about that, Dinky." the teacher responded. "I can't risk putting all of you inside the building only for one of those monsters to smash it apart and cause it to cave in on all of you!"

"...Good point." the Unicorn filly agreed.

"Don't worry, any of you." the white Alicorn stated. "Once you're all in a safe spot, Luna and I will combine our magic to create a barrier to protect you." She then turned to Mega Pony and told him. "We'll focus on protecting everypony...while you go and defeat those beasts. As of right now, I am authorizing the use of your weapons."

The robot nodded and said, "Okay, Mom...I'll do my best to stop those things!" He then ran towards the Manticore trio, charging up energy in his horn. "Hey you!" he yelled at them. "Why don't you try picking on somepony that can fight back?!" The beasts simply roared in response; now their attention was focused competely on Mega Pony.

Once the robot had the Manticores distracted, Cheerilee and the two Princesses rounded up all of the colts and filles in the class, including the still-unconscious Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. They moved as fast as they could to get to a safe enough distance away from the commotion that was about to go underway. Once everypony was secure, Celestia and Luna glanced over at each other and gave a nod, telling the other that they were ready to get to work. The two sisters tapped their long, glowing horns, combining their incredible power to project a magical barrier in front of them and the others.

"This barrier should hold out long enough for Mega Pony to finish his job." Celestia noted. "Now...it's all up to him at this point." The others looked on ahead towards where the robot was, hoping that he would make it out okay.

Mega Pony swiftly dodged the razor-sharp claw attacks of the towering Manticores, sidestepping out of the way of each strike in what seemed like an instant. The beasts were strong, but they weren't able to hit such a small and fast target, despite the fact that they outnumbered him.

However, to say that the fight was one-sided because of that would not have been true: Even though Mega Pony was fast enough to avoid getting hit, his Friendship Buster (a name that he himself gave to his primary weapon) wasn't strong enough to incapacitate any of the monsters. Even the charged shot was too weak to cause any real damage, and the robot knew it.

(This isn't good...) he thought to himself. (They'll tire me out long before my buster weapon can affect them!) Already panting a little from all of the moving around that he had done, the robot took a moment to come up with a new plan. Then, a thought occured to him. "That's it! I can use one of the weapons that I got today to help me out!" he exclaimed. "But which one...? I hadn't gotten a chance to examine any of them yet."

Mega Pony then heard a loud roar coming from the Manticore in front of him, which caused him to look up and swiftly jump aside to dodge another crushing claw attack. He knew that he didn't have much time to think of a plan; he would have to think on his hooves for this one. "Alright...I guess I'll just have to try each of them and figure out which one is the best to use!" he decided. The robot then closed his eyes and triggered his weapon-swapping power. Rays of light formed around him, changing the color of his armor. Once he was done, his body was colored the same as Diamond Tiara, and her cutie mark was shown on his flank instead of his original one.

"Okay...here goes nothing...!" The robot rushed towards the closest of the Manticore trio, charging up his horn at the same time. Once the robot felt he was close enough, he released the stored energy in the form of...a tiny beam of light; no brighter than that of a flashlight. If anything, all it did was temporarily blind the Manticore in its left eye.

Mega Pony opened his eyes to see what was going on when it seemed like nothing happened. His heart sank when he saw just how "effective" Diamond Tiara's weapon ended up being. The creature growled a little as the robot chuckled weakly in response. "Aheheh...aheh...ehhh...uh-oh..."

The Manticore then let out a roar as he swiped at the mechanical pony once again. Mega Pony tried to avoid it, but he was too close to the beast to escape it, and he ended up taking a hit, causing everypony else to gasp in horror.

"Oh no! He's hit!!" Apple Bloom cried out.

"Oh dear...I hope he's okay...!" said a worried Ms. Cheerilee.

Celestia trembled a little at the sight of her "son" taking such a blow. "Mega Pony! Please tell me you're okay!!" she shouted over to him, concerned.

Fortunately, the robot was still able to get back onto his hooves. His armor was scratched up a little, but he was still able to fight. "I'm...I'm fine, Mom..." he said to her. "Luckily, I didn't take the full force of that attack, or I probably wouldn't have been able to get back up like I did just now..." The white Alicorn breathed a sigh of relief once she knew that her "son" was alright, though she was still worried for his well-being.

Mega Pony let out a small sigh himself as he looked up at the angry creatures, who were preparing to attack again. (Great...) he thought to himself, not too happy to find out the hard way that Diamond's weapon was practically useless. (I guess I'll have to try something else...) He then swapped weapons again, this time changing his body color and cutie mark to Silver Spoon's.

One of the Manticores roared as it pounced towards the robot. Fortunately, he was able to evade it while preparing a counterattack of his own. He then fired up his horn and used Silver's weapon...only to find out that all it did was fire a barrage of small spoons at the monster's leg. If it did any damage, it wasn't visible to anypony watching. "Oh, come ON...!!" Mega Pony groaned out of frustration before jumping to avoid another claw attack.

"Something's wrong..." Celestia told her sister, Luna. "He's never had this much trouble fighting off a threat before...What do you suppose could be the problem?" she then asked, growing more and more concerned.

"Hmmmmm..." hummed the dark-blue Alicorn, closely observing the fight.

Mega Pony himself was also wondering what was going wrong. "I don't get it..." he said to himself, "neither of those weapons worked on them...! Of course, that's assuming that I can even CALL those things 'weapons'."

The Manticore trio snarled as they inched slowly towards the robot, who could only back away in response. Mega Pony glanced back, looking at his worried mother and aunt, still projecting the magic barrier, as well as the frightened students and teacher who could do nothing but watch. He then noticed Twist looking straight towards him with a sad, but still hopeful look upon her face. "Pleathe, Mega Pony..." she said silently to him. "You're the only pony who can thave uth...Don't give up...!"

When he heard the little filly speak to him, the mechanical pony then remembered something: He still had one weapon left; the weapon he got from Twist. "Twist's weapon...it's the only one I have left right now..." he said to himself. "But what if...what if it doesn't work either...?" The robot had his doubts, but in the end, he knew he had no other choice. "I have to do it...For the sake of everypony...I have to at least try...!" He then swapped weapons again, changing to Twist's color scheme and adopting her cutie mark.

The puffy red-maned filly's eyes widened when she saw Mega Pony switching to the weapon she gave to him. (He'th uthing the power I gave him...) she thought, watching intently.

The robot pony bravely walked towards the growling creatures, still not sure what was going to happen when he used Twist's weapon. Still, he knew that he had little choice but to use it. Taking dead aim at one of the Manticores, he charged up energy into his horn, and when he released it, he fired off a large, pink sphere. The beasts weren't sure what to do as the projectile flew towards them. Then, once the sphere made contact with its target, it let out a humongous explosion that caused the Manticore to roar in extreme pain.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Jawbreaker Bomb ***

Mega Pony was flabbergasted, but also very much relieved. "It...it worked!" he cheered. "This weapon works!!"

"Oh thank goodness..." Celestia said, also relieved. "He was able to get his powers working again." Luna simply smiled, happy to know that the little robot was going to be okay now.

The Manticores were stunned when they saw just how powerful the mechanical pony really was, especially the one that got hit by his attack. They turned to face the robot, only to see a confident smirk on his face as he said to them, "I think you've had your fun for long enough now...Now it's MY turn!" He then used Twist's weapon, the Jawbreaker Bomb, again, firing off pink, blue, and mint-green spheres at them.

The Manticores panicked and tried to run away, but the one that had been struck earlier had been weakened slighty by the earlier explosive, and got struck by one again. Mega Pony focused his aim completely on that Manticore, firing off as many spheres as possible. Finally, after a few more hits, the Manticore was taken down, and he slumped onto the ground, alive, but in no shape to fight back.

"Alright!!! He beat one of 'em!" Dinky cheered happily.

"He did indeed..." Cheerilee responded in awe. "That power he has is amazing...!"

Mega Pony then turned his attention to the remaining two Manticores and prepared to fire his weapon once more. But now there was a new problem: When he tried to fire a shot, nothing happened. The robot was confused at first, but then realized why this was so. "Uh oh..." he said to himself, "the weapon's out of ammo...!"

The Manticores snarled as they both flew towards Mega Pony, who quickly ducked in response to avoid their charge. But he then noticed that the creatures weren't coming back; they just kept right on flying. He was confused at first, but then realized something that made him shudder. "Those Manticores..." he said to himself. "They're going after Mom and the others!!" He quickly got onto his hooves and ran as fast as he could.

Fortunately, he was able to get to others just before the Manticores did. "Mom!" he called out to Celestia. "Is everypony alright?!"

"For now, yes." she answered him, watching as the two remaining monsters headed towards them all. "But now it seems that those other Manticores are coming this way..."

"How come?" asked a trembling Twist.

"Well, Manticores are predatory in nature..." Luna began to explain. "Because of that, they have a tendancy to target anything - or anypony - that they see as weak. Since Mega Pony has proven to them that he is not an easy target, they chose to ignore him in favor of us!"

"So they're gonna attack us now?!" exclaimed Apple Bloom.

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Mega Pony proclaimed. "But I'll need to get another weapon if I'm going to be able to stop them!"

"Then you'd better get one quick..." Dinky told him. "'Cause here they are right now!" She then pointed ahead of them as the two Manticores finally got to where they were.

The beasts growled as they opened their maws as wide as they could. Then, all of a sudden, they each exhaled a stream of flames, firing them right at the group. Luckily, the barrier that Celestia and Luna put up repelled the attack. The monsters continued to breathe their flames at them, trying as hard as they could to breach the shield.

"The barrier is still holding strong..." Luna commented. She then turned to Mega Pony and told him, "Now, use this time to acquire a new weapon!"

"Got it, Aun-...I mean, Princess Luna!" he replied. He then looked at all of the ponies in the group, trying to figure out who would be the best one to use his Copy Chip device on. He eventually made his decision: "Ms. Cheerilee!" he called over to the teacher pony. "I need your help! Can you let me copy your power?"

"Um, sure! Whatever you need!" she replied, showing her cutie mark to him. Mega Pony then tapped the mark, triggering the usual light show that followed afterwards.

Just as Mega Pony finished copying her power, he heard his mother gasp. "Oh no!" she spoke.

Everypony looked around and saw that one of the two creatures flew over to face the terrified group, this time from a side of them that wasn't being protected by the Alicorns' barrier. "No!" Luna shouted. "They're planning to attack from two different directions!"

"Can't you put your shield up on both sides?" asked Ms. Cheerilee.

"I'm afraid not..." answered Celestia in a worried tone. "Luna and I have to combine our powers in order to project a barrier strong enough to repel almost anything; if we attempted to split that power on more than one side, the shields will be considerably weaker, and I can't say for certain that we'd all survive unscathed..."

"Wha-what're we gonna do...?" asked Apple Bloom, scared as a tear began to form under her eye.

"I don't know..." said Cheerilee, "but I'll find some way to keep you all safe. I promise...I'll protect you all, no matter what!" The teacher was clearly scared, but wasn't about to let that deter her from keeping her students safe from harm.

(...Protect them...?) pondered Mega Pony. With Cheerilee's words running around his mind, the robot did a quick scan of the weapon he just obtained, and was delighted to find out its purpose after he was finished. "That's it! There is a way out of this mess!"

Everypony looked over at him, not sure what he meant. But they didn't have much time to think about it more when they saw that the two Manticores were readying another flame attack. "Here it comes..." said Luna, a hint of frustration in her voice. "Brace for impact!"

The creature in front of the Alicorns' barrier fired first, striking the shield. As expected, it wasn't able to break through and hit anypony. But then the other Manticore fired its flames, attacking the group from the side that wasn't being protected. Cheerilee and her class instinctively ducked and covered, expecting the worst.

But just then, Mega Pony bravely stood inbetween the stream of fire and its targets, changing his armor color and cutie mark quickly: He now looked similar to Cheerilee. Without a moment to waste, Mega Pony activated the new weapon, creating four metal plates out of thin air; the plates were shaped like flowers, specifically, the flowers that made up the teacher's cutie mark. Once they appeared, the plates began to spin super-fast, creating a yellow blur in front of the robot just as the flames reached the group. However, nopony was hit by the attack: The centrifugal force created by the spinning metal plates was powerful enough to repel the attack, sparing them all.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Flower Shield ***

Cheerilee and her class opened their eyes when they realized that they were perfectly fine. "We're still okay??" asked Dinky, happy, but confused. "How?"

Apple Bloom stood back up and saw Mega Pony using his new weapon to deflect the Manticore's fire attack. "It's Mega Pony! He saved us from gettin' hurt!" she exclaimed.

Cheerilee stood back up as well to make sure that everypony in the class was accounted for. Once the teacher made sure that all of her students were okay, she walked over to Mega Pony and thanked him, saying, "Thank you so much for saving my class, as well as myself, Mega Pony..."

The robot looked back at her and told her, "You're welcome, Ms. Cheerilee...But I couldn't have done it without your help. After all, you obviously care a lot about protecting your students, and that's what allowed me to obtain a shield weapon from you." He then glanced right back at the attacking Manticore, who had just now stopped breathing its flames and looked exhausted. "Of course, defending isn't ALL this weapon can do..." the robot added as his Unicorn horn began glowing. He then leaned his head upwards before quickly swinging it down and to his left, which caused the metal plates that were still spinning in front of him to fly out forward, striking the behemoth hard.

The Manticore growled out of both pain and exhaustion. Before it could recover from the shock, Mega Pony switched back to his original colors and fired a charged Friendship Buster shot at it. This time, the robot's default weapon seemed to be more effective now that the Manticore was weakened heavily, and the creature toppled to the ground, defeated. Now there was only one Manticore left.

"This fight's not over yet..." stated Celestia. "There may only be one of those things left, but it's quite clear that it's still at full power. If this fight drags on any longer, there's still a high chance that somepony will get hurt..."

"Then we have no choice:" stated Luna. "You have to use that attack and try to take it down with but one strike!"

"I know...but I have to stay here and keep the barrier active in case it attacks us again!" the white Alicorn reminded her younger sister. Just then, the Princess of the Sun got an idea: "I've got it!" She glanced over towards Mega Pony and called for him. "Mega Pony! Come over here, quickly!"

The robot ran over to his mother as soon as he heard her. "What is it, Mom?" he asked.

"We need to end this fight, and end it now, before that creature gets another chance to attack." Celestia told him. She then presented her cutie mark to him and said, "Which is why I want you to copy my power."

"Copy YOUR power?!" he asked, not sure if he heard her correctly.

"Exactly." the white Alicorn confirmed. "Our only chance to end this battle quickly is defeat that Manticore in one attack, and I have just the special power that will do that." Turning her head towards him, she instructed, "Mega Pony, go ahead touch my mark; I will focus every last bit of my willpower to send you the weapon you need...Once you obtain that power, do not hesitate to use it, understand?"

"I understand, Mom." Mega Pony replied with a nod. He then brought his hoof to his mother's cutie mark and tapped it, triggering his Copy Chip. Once the process was complete, the robot then swapped his color scheme for Celestia's, taking a second or two to look at himself, as well as his mother's cutie mark on his flank. Once he felt he was ready, he galloped in front of the remaining Manticore, who snarled at him in response, preparing to launch another stream of flames. But Mega Pony showed absolutely no fear as he began drawing energy into his horn, taking in more solar power than he normally did and focusing it into one spot.

Celestia and Luna then glanced back at Cheerilee and her class. "Everypony, cover your eyes and keep them covered until we say otherwise!" the Princess of the Sun ordered them. The others nodded and did just as the Princess told them, ducking down, closing their eyes, and putting their right front hooves over their closed eyes.

Not long after Celestia gave out that order, Mega Pony had finished collecting all of the energy he needed. Then, just as the Manticore in front of him spewed out its flames, the robot's horn sparked and let out a massive ball of light that got bigger and bigger, covering almost every inch of the schoolyard. The light was so powerful, that it snuffed out the Manticore's flame attack as soon as it made contact, and the sphere continued to grow even bigger. Eventually, it completely engulfed the creature, and it was hit with a light so intensely bright, that it constantly roared in agony for several seconds, until, at last, it fainted and fell down to the dirt, completely knocked out.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Sunburst ***

The powerful light that radiated from Mega Pony lasted for several seconds before it finally began to dim, the sphere shrinking as it did so. Eventually, the light faded away completely, and the robot slumped down on one hoof, panting heavily in exhaustion.

Once Celestia and Luna opened their eyes and saw that the last of the Manticore trio had fallen, they dispelled their barrier and ran over to the mechanical pony. "Are you okay?!" asked the white Alicorn, concerned. "Are your systems still functioning?"

The robot was tired, but still active. "I'm okay, Mom..." he told her. "All my systems are functioning normally."

Luna helped her sister bring Mega Pony back onto all fours. "I must say, Mega Pony...I'm impressed that you managed to use my sister's strongest attack so well." she told him. "Though, I have to admit, I was very skeptical at the thought of my sister giving you that power as quickly as she did, without giving you the chance to practice using it first..."

"Yeah, I'll defintely need to practice using this weapon some more..." he told his aunt. "Hopefully before I'll need to use it again..." After his remark, he then switched back to his original color scheme.

"Is everypony okay?" Cheerilee asked her class. "Did any of you get singed or anything?"

"Ah'm fine, Ms. Cheerilee." Apple Bloom answered.

"I'm okay too." Dinky added.

"Thame with me." Twist responded.

The teacher pony sighed out of relief, now that she knew that the crisis was over and everypony was okay. All that was left on her mind was one question: "What do you suppose caused those Manticores to come here and attack us like that?" she asked the Princesses.

"I think I might have a way to obtain that information." Luna chimed in. "I'll walk over to one of them and scan their memories; perhaps I might be able to see what it was that caused them to go berserk."

"You can do that, Aun-...er, I mean...you can do that, Princess Luna?" Mega Pony asked.

"I can enter the dreams of anypony that I choose." Luna stated. "Looking into another's memories is, as you young ponies put it, 'no sweat'." The Princess of the Night then walked over to one of the fallen Manticores. She then made her long horn glow brightly as a similar glow surrounded the creature in front of her. The glowing lasted for a few seconds before it faded away. "Ah...I see now..."

"Did you find out anything?" asked Celestia.

"I did, Elder Sister." Luna replied. Turning towards the approaching Ms. Cheerilee, she stated, "Apparently, these beasts had attacked us because two of Ms. Cheerilee's students disturbed their nap and made them cranky."

"Two of my students?" asked the teacher, shocked. "But who would even-" She then stopped her sentence short when she realized who the culprits were. Narrowing her eyes, she then said, in a low voice, "Oh...I see..."

Turning towards the fallen Manticore again, Luna stated, "Before we attend to any other matters, we should first take care of removing these creatures from the school grounds before they recover." She then walked over to Mega Pony and said to him, "Here, copy my power, Mega Pony. And don't worry: It will not be nearly as intense as my older sister's weapon."

"Um, sure! I'll do whatever you need me to do." the robot stated, touching the dark-blue Alicorn's cutie mark, and then switching to her color scheme afterwards.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Lunar Beam ***

"The power that I have given to you is the Lunar Beam." said the younger Royal Sister. "It has the power to force a foe into falling asleep. Since these three Manticores' naptime was rudely interrupted, I believe it is only fair that we put them back to sleep, don't you agree?"

"Seems fair to me." agreed Mega Pony. "So what do I need to do?"

"Just get close enough to each of the creatures, and fire the beam to put them to sleep." Luna instructed him. "That is all you need to do."

"Got it." the robot replied. He then moved towards each of the three Manticores and fired the Lunar Beam at them. Each time, the ray automatically targeted the head of each of the beasts, and when it was finished, they were all sleeping soundly as if nothing had happened. "Wow, that's impressive..." Mega Pony said to himself. "I didn't know there were weapons that worked like this..."

The two Princesses walked over to the robot once he put the third Manticore to sleep. "Great work, Mega Pony." Celestia said, praising him for his job well done. "We'll handle things from here." After that, she and Luna then activated their horns and used their levitation spells to pick up all three of the creatures. The Alicorns then took flight and headed deep into the forest, with the Manticores in tow.

About two minutes had passed by since the battle was over, and everypony else was waiting patiently for the Princesses to return from the Everfree Forest. Just then, Dinky spotted two figures flying towards where they were and shouted, "There they are! They're back!"

Celestia and Luna soared towards the schoolhouse and landed softly on the grass below. "So, did you get the Manticores back home?" asked Mega Pony.

"We have indeed." the white Alicorn answered. "The creatures were returned safely to the forest with no further complications."

"Not only that," Luna spoke up, "I also erased their memories of everything that happened just now. This means that they do not know the identities of whomever woke them, or the location of the school." Turning to Ms. Cheerilee, she said to her, "You and your students should not have to worry about them anytime soon."

"Thank goodness..." the teacher said with a sigh. "I'm just glad that it's all over." Putting on a slightly angry expression, she then added, "That just leaves one more matter to take care of...Pardon me - TWO more matters." She then turned around to face Snips and Snails, emerging from a faraway bush after they saw that the battle was over. Cheerilee's angry expression was shared by just about all of her students.

The two were trembling, knowing full well that they were in deep trouble. "Uh..." began the teal-coated colt, trying to explain himself. But all he could come up with was, "Aheh...uh, April Fools...?"

Apple Bloom's eyes widened when she heard Snips' rather pathetic reply. "...April Fools?" she asked. "THAT'S the best ya'll could come up with to explain yerselves?!? Ya'll went an' led three mad Manticores over here that nearly killed us all, and the best excuse ya'll could think of is 'April Fools'?!? It's not even anywhere NEAR April yet!!!" she shouted at them, clearly angry at what they did.

Just then, Cheerilee put her left front hoof on Apple Bloom's shoulder, which prompted her to calm down immediately. "Apple Bloom..." she said to her. "That's enough..."

The yellow filly sighed sadly and responded, saying, "Sorry, Ms. Cheerilee...Ah jus' had t' get that off mah chest."

"I understand." the teacher told her. "But I will take care of this myself." She then walked over to the two Unicorn colts, sporting a look on her face that told everypony that she meant business. Staring at the two of them, she said, "Now as for you...I don't know WHAT in Equestria possessed you two to not only go into the forest unsupervised, but also endanger your fellow classmates by bringing those monsters here, but whatever it is, I shall not stand for it!!"

"Wh-wh-wh-what are you gonna do, M-M-Ms. Cheerilee...?" asked a cowering Snips.

Cheerilee breathed a sigh of relief to calm herself. Then, she told the two Unicorns, "Well, luckily for you two, nopony was hurt when the Manticores came here; otherwise, the punishment would have been straight-up expulsion for the both of you. That being said, however, it doesn't mean that you two are off the hook. So you both can look forward to having detention for the remainder of the school year to think about what you've done. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Ms. Cheerilee..." groaned both the colts in unison.

"Good. Now go inside, get all of your things, and leave. I'm suspending you for the rest of the day." she told them. "And based on how angry the rest of your classmates are at you, I believe it might be in your best interest."

"Yes, Ms. Cheerilee..." Snips and Snails slowly walked back towards the schoolhouse, hanging their heads in shame.

After Cheerilee was done with the two young colts, Luna walked over to her with a smirk on her face. "Nicely handled, Ms. Cheerilee..." the dark-blue Alicorn complimented. "I have to admit, I didn't think you had it in you to be so strict with those two."

"Oh, I can be tough when I want to be, Your Highness." the teacher pony informed Luna. "Underneath this sweet demeanor of mine is a pony that isn't afraid show a little discipline when, and only when, it's necessary. Besides, what I did to them will seem like nothing compared to what might happen after I inform their parents...I've heard that they're still grounded from when they brought that Ursa Minor cub into town."

"They did WHAT?" asked Luna, a bit shocked.

"Yes, it's true." Celestia said to her sister. "I'll tell you about it later, though." The Princess of the Sun then strolled over to her "son" and said to him, "Mega Pony, once again, you've done a fine job protecting your fellow ponies. I'm very proud of you."

"Thanks, Mom." he responded. "But really, it was nothing; I was just doing what you programmed me to do."

"But you would have thaved uth anyway, wouldn't you?" asked Twist. "Even if you weren't built to do that?"

"...I guess that would be plausible." the robot replied with a smile.

Just then, everypony heard a pair of groans coming from closeby. When they turned around to look, they saw that it was none other than Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon making those groans, having just regained consciousness after Snips and Snails collided with them earlier. "Urrrrnn...what happened...?" asked Silver, rubbing her head.

"I don't know, but whoever did it is gonna have to answer to me!" Diamond complained.

Cheerilee walked over to the two fillies and asked them, "Are you two okay? You were both knocked out when the Manticores came here."

"What Manticores?" asked Silver, confused.

"Three of them." answered Mega Pony. "They came here and attacked us, but I was able to get rid of them."

"I see..." hummed Diamond. "I guess that's pretty impressive...Of course, I'm pretty sure that you wouldn't have succeeded if we hadn't given you OUR special powers, right Silver Spoon?"

"Totally true, D.T." replied the grey filly.

Mega Pony's smile disappeared from his face; he didn't have the heart to tell them at first that their weapons were ineffective against the attacking Manticores. But he eventually decided that he had to tell them sooner or later. "Um...actually, about that..." he began. "I...I hate to have to tell you both this, but..."

"But what?" asked Diamond Tiara, still feeling pretty smug. "No need to be so modest, Mega Pony. Go ahead and tell everypony just how useful our weapons were against those creatures."

"Well..." the robot replied. "to be honest...the weapons you gave me weren't very useful at all..."

"Yep, just as I thought! Our weapons weren't helpful to-...Wait, WHAT?!?!" Diamond Tiara exclaimed, shocked when she realized just what the robot had said. "What did you just say?!?"

"I'm sorry, Diamond. But it's true." he told her. "I tried them both, but they didn't do anything to the Manticores at all. In fact, the best weapon that I had gotten prior to the attack was the one Twist gave me."

"Twist?! TWIST?!?!" shouted the bratty pink filly. "That can't be!!! I don't believe you!!!" Now angry, she stared right at Mega Pony and said to him, "You're just saying that to make her look better, is that it?!?" Her yelling was loud enough to frighten even her friend, Silver Spoon.

That accusation of Diamond's was the last straw for Princess Luna. "That is it...I cannot take any more of their comments!" the dark-blue Alicorn growled to herself.

Celestia, seeing that her younger sister was getting angry, said to her, "Luna...calm down and be reasonable..."

"Do not try and stop me, Elder Sister..." the Princess of the Night told her. "I am not going to be overly harsh with them, but I am also not going to stand here and allow them to insult Mega Pony like that. You do understand, don't you?"

The white Alicorn was a bit concerned, but knew that her sister had a point. "Very well, but don't be nasty towards them." she instructed.

Luna nodded and walked over to where Diamond and Silver were. The pink filly stopped shouting once she saw the Princess walking towards her. "P-Princess Luna??" she asked, stepping away from Mega Pony for the moment. "Wha-what is it?"

The dark-blue Alicorn stood silently for a while, staring at the two of them. Finally, she spoke to the pair, saying, "As you both should know, I am well over a millennium old, so I might be a bit hard of hearing...But did I just hear you call my nephew a LIAR?"

"Urk...!" Diamond Tiara didn't have a comment to say back, because even she knew that it wasn't wise to speak ill towards a Princess.

"Not going to say anything, are you?" asked Luna. "I shouldn't be surprised. After all, admitting when you're wrong is something you don't do often, if you ever did." The Princess turned away from them and continued, saying, "I have been observing you and your little friend - Silver Spoon, I believe - ever since I came here to meet with you and your classmates. You both think that just because you have your cutie marks now, it means that you think that you're better than everypony, don't you?"

"Who? Me??" asked Diamond frantically. "Well, I-I-I wouldn't exactly call it that..."

"Hmph...Well, whether you call it that or not is insignificant." Luna told her. "The fact is that you make fun of others because you believe that you're better than them all...After all, you come from well-off families, and you got your marks at a young age. However, those alone do not make you any better than anypony else..." Diamond and Silver said nothing as Luna continued talking.

"I am sorry to tell you both this, but I am afraid those cutie marks of yours are not as glamourous as you may think them to be." she continued. "You see, from what I have observed, a pony's cutie mark tells of not only that pony's best talent, but it also shows some insight into that pony's personality. Most of the time, it shows their most positive traits." Luna then turned to face Diamond and Silver before continuing. "However, every now and then, a pony may recieve a cutie mark that shows a rather...different part of their personality."

"Different how?" asked Mega Pony.

"Instead of showing their positive traits," the dark-blue Alicorn answered, "their mark will instead reveal their negative ones; their flaws, everything about them that is...unfavorable. That, of course, only happens if said negative traits overpower their positive ones. And unfortunately for you, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon...the two of you just so happen to fall into that rare breed."

The two bratty fillies, who normally were smug and overly-confident, were now totally silent upon hearing that.

"And you only have yourselves to blame for it." the Princess of the Night continued. "All your lives, you've had everypony doing all of your work for you, and you never once made any effort into doing anything for yourselves. And because of that, you received your cutie marks...But instead of showing your special talent or any redeeming quality of your personality, it will instead be a constant reminder, to you and anypony else, that you chose to waste your potential and talent."

"...That...that can't be..." Diamond replied, completely in shock. "There's...no way that could be true..."

"So that's what it is, huh?" Apple Bloom suddenly asked. "That's why ya'll give us all such a hard time, ain't it?"

"What are you talking about??" asked Diamond in a bit of a nasty tone.

"You make fun of uth becauthe you're jealouth of uth." Twist answered. "Becauthe you know that we have, or will have, cutie markth that could be better than yourth."

"And I'll bet that thinking about it gets you really mad, doesn't it?" Dinky then asked.

"Oh, what would you know about that?!" shouted Diamond. Pointing at Dinky and Apple Bloom, she whined, saying, "You two don't even HAVE marks!"

"We might not have our cutie marks yet," Apple Bloom then told her, "but at least we have the chance t' get a good one like Twist did, an' not get stuck with one like yours fer the rest of our lives."

This situation was something that the normally snooty Diamond Tiara was not used to. Up to this point, she and Silver Spoon were the most popular among their classmates (or at least they thought that was the case). Now they felt as though that they had just become a laughing stock, even though nopony was actually laughing at them. "St...st-st...stupid! This is all so STUPID!!" the pink filly yelled out of frustration before stomping away and grumbling to herself.

"D.T., wait!!" Silver Spoon called out as she ran towards her friend. "Wait for me!!"

After the two of them left, Luna let out a sigh and said to her sister, "Elder Sister, I...apologize if I was too hard on them both..."

Celestia hummed to herself a little, thinking. Then she told her younger sister, "Well, I suppose that what you said to them is something that they probably needed to hear..."

"So is that why their weapons turned out to be weak?" Mega Pony then asked.

"I believe so." Luna answered. "Because they did not put nearly as much effort into earning their cutie marks like many of us here did. All they probably cared about was earning them as soon as possible just so that they could rub it in everypony's face. I believe the old adage, 'Haste Makes Waste' is quite applicable to the two of them."

"But...if that's so," the robot prepared to ask, "does that mean that they'll never be talented at anything?"

"Well, that depends on whether or not they finally realize that putting other ponies down and acting as if they are better than others isn't right." Celestia answered him. "But maybe now, they'll think twice before making fun of anypony again, and make some effort to better themselves. If they do, they might finally see what they were truely meant for in life."

"You know..." Apple Bloom chimed in, "a part of me hopes that they do change...Ah think it'd be much better if we were all friends with each other."

"I think so, too." added Ms. Cheerilee. "And I'll bet that deep down, Diamond and Silver think that too, even if they won't admit it." The teacher then turned towards the Princesses and Mega Pony, saying to them, "Anyway, I'd like to thank you all for coming here to meet with us, as well as help us out when the Manticores attacked."

"It was our pleasure, Ms. Cheerilee." said Celestia with a smile. "If you ever want us to come back again, do not hesitate to call for us."

"I'll make sure to." the teacher replied with a slight bow.

"See ya later, Mega Pony!" Apple Bloom called over to the robot pony. "Come back sometime, okay?"

"I sure will, Apple Bloom." he said to her. "I'd be more than happy to come back again." Mega Pony then walked over to Twist and told her, "Promise me that you'll live safely and happily, and don't let anypony like Diamond get under your skin."

"Don't worry, Mr. Mega Pony." she responded. "It won't bother me anymore. I'll jutht keep doing what I do every thingle day, ath long ath it maketh me happy inthide." The robot smiled and patted her on the head. He then got up and left with the Royal Sisters, with Cheerilee and the rest of her class waving them goodbye.

Minutes later, the three of them were riding in a chariot back to Canterlot, pulled by two Pegasi in the Royal Guard. As they headed to their destination, Mega Pony then asked, "Um, Mom?"

Celestia looked at her "son" and responded, asking him, "Yes? What is it?"

"Well..." he started, trying to think of how to say what was on his mind. "I've been thinking about something since Aunt Luna was talking about cutie marks earlier, like how they can represent somepony's personality and stuff...When I was first activated, I wasn't sure what my mark meant...So, I guess what I'm asking is...what does my cutie mark represent?"

The white Alicorn smiled and said to him, "I had a feeling that you would ask me that one day..." She then went on to explain, "As you know, your cutie mark is artificial; I painted it on you while I was constructing your body. But even though it is not a 'real' cutie mark in the physical sense, it doesn't make it any less special than anypony else's."

"And why is that?" Mega Pony inquried further.

Celestia then pointed at her creation's cutie mark and answered him saying, "The mark that I painted here is actually a drawn representation of the projectile that your main weapon fires. But I did not simply choose this design because of that." The Princess paused for a moment before posing a question of her own. "Do you see how it goes around in a circular shape?" she asked, tracing the outside of the robot's mark.

Mega Pony and Princess Luna nodded to say that they acknowledged that fact.

The white Alicorn then informed them, "Now think about this: When you trace a circle with your hoof, you notice that you will keep tracing that circle, around and around, over and over again, without stopping to turn a corner or reach an end." The other occupants of the chariot listened on, wondering where Celestia was going with this. "To me," the Princess of the Sun continued, "that represent's one's pontential. A pony's drive to improve themself and do their very best is virtually unlimited. Those that do not yet know what they are good at will eventually find their calling, and those that know their talents already can continue to improve at them and learn something new."

"That's what you were saying to Cheerilee's class earlier..." noted Mega Pony.

"Indeed. And that is the reason why I thought that you would be the perfect pony to talk about such things with us." the white Alicorn told him. "Although you are a robot, I designed you to be able to grow and better yourself with everything that you experience. You have the ability to learn from both your accomplishments and from your mistakes, and you'll come out a better pony as a result. And that is the meaning behind your cutie mark: A circle, which represents your unlimited potential."

"Wow..." said Mega Pony after learning about the meaning behind his mark. "That's...quite a lot to think about..."

"My older sister has always thought deeply about such things." stated Luna. "You should feel quite pleased to know that she put a lot of thought and care into every last detail when she designed you."

The robot smiled as he wiped a small tear from his eye. "I do feel pleased to know that..." he responded. He turned towards his mother and said to her, "I'm glad that I mean so much to you, Mom...Thanks for...well, everything."

Celestia nodded and replied, saying, "You're welcome, Mega Pony. It was my pleasure."

Mega Pony then glanced over at Princess Luna and said to her, "And thank you, too...You know, for standing up for me when Diamond and Silver were giving me a hard time."

"It was my pleasure as well." the dark-blue Alicorn told him. "I shall not allow anypony to badmouth you as long as I am around."

The robot smiled back after hearing that. Then, suddenly, he recalled something from that point in time. "Say...Aunt Luna? I just remembed..." he began. "When you were telling off Diamond and Silver then...I heard that you called me your nephew. Is that right?"

The normally-confident Princess of the Night stiffened up a bit, her pupils shinking in size. (Oh dear...) she thought. (Did I let that slip out...?)

Smirking, Princess Celestia looked over at her younger sister and chimed in, saying, "Oh yes...I DO recall hearing you say something like that earlier...Does this mean that you aren't really as embarrased with Mega Pony calling your his aunt?"

Luna sweated a little as she tried to figure out what to say to try and convince them otherwise. "Aheheh...Elder Sister...thou art mistaken...!" she said in a frantic tone. "I-I-I didn't say, 'nephew', I said...um...uhhhmm...'achoo'! Yes, that! I...had to sneeze, nothing more."

Celestia and Mega Pony glanced at each other, a sly smirk on each of their faces; they knew full well that Luna was lying in order to save face. They both chuckled a little as their chariot neared Canterlot Castle. Today, things had gotten pretty interesting for Mega Pony, and he had a feeling that the next few days would offer more of the same. He would learn as much as he could from everything that he would experience, in order to become the best he could, and truely be the powerful guardian of Equestria that Celestia wanted him to be.

NEXT EPISODE: "A Scratch in a Friendly Melody"

Episode 105: A Scratch in a Friendly Melody:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

Although Mega Pony has established his reputation as the guardian of Equestria and its citizens, the robot has also been built to be able to live his life like any ordinary pony, and pursue interests of his own as well. One of those interests was making music, which he had discovered when he had first visited two other ponies, Vinyl and Octavia, during a trip back to Ponyville. After showing an interest in their musical talents, and after helping them resolve an argument, they became friends with one another, and have enjoyed each other's company since then.

But as Mega Pony stated himself, no friendship is perfect: He has often had to settle other disputes that had erupted between the unlikely pair.

This is the story of one of those disputes...

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony. Built by Celestia.

Vinyl "DJ PON-3" Scratch: Popular disc jockey. Loves to "drop the bass".

Octavia Melody: Vinyl's friend and roommate. Expert cellist.

Rarity: Skilled dress designer and gem hunter. Element of Generosity.

The time was somewhere in the afternoon on another typical day in the town of Ponyville. The sun was shining brightly, the gentle winds were cool and comfortable, and the citzens were walking around, going about their usual duties. At that time, in a cottage not far from the Golden Oaks Library, the faint sounds of piano keys could be heard. The chimes could only be heard by those who passed by, and were nearly mistaken for bird songs, as the notes complimented the birds' chirping perfectly.

The pony playing the piano was Octavia Melody, an Earth Pony mare that enjoyed listening to and playing music; classical music, mostly. While many knew her expert cello-playing, the sepia-coated mare was experienced at playing all sorts of different musical instruments. Sitting next to her was the robot, Mega Pony, who had come by not only to visit Octavia and her roommate, Vinyl Scratch, but also to attend a music lesson; since the day he met Octavia and Vinyl, Mega Pony showed a great deal of interest in music, and desired to learn all about it.

The Earth Pony had just finished playing a series of notes in front of Mega Pony. Turning over to her "student", she told him, "Now Mega Pony, what I have just played for you is called an 'octave'. It is a set of eight notes, placed together in ascending pitch."

"Octave?" asked the robot. "Wait: That sort of sounds like-"

"My name?" Octavia interrupted. "Well, it should: After all, it was directly inspired by this musical term."

"I see..." Mega Pony then asked, "But, I must ask: What would have happened if you DIDN'T pursue an interest in music? I'm just saying, it would be...well, kinda weird if you had a musical-sounding name, but chose not to have anything to do with music at all."

"Hmmm...yes, I suppose that would be rather bizarre if that were to happen." the Earth Pony responded. "I am not exactly sure how it all ends up working out with a pony's name and everything...In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if nopony else knew why that was either." Octavia then immediately changed the subject, saying to him, "However, let us discuss that another day; we should get back to our lesson for now."

"Oh! Yeah, sure...sorry about that." Mega Pony replied, chuckling weakly.

"Quite alright, Mega Pony." the sepia mare told him. "Everypony comes down with a wandering mind every now and again...some more so than others." At that moment, there was a knock on the door. "Speaking of which...I believe that's Vinyl, returning from the marketplace." she then told him as she moved off of the piano bench and got on all fours. "Excuse me one moment..."

The Earth Pony trotted over to the front door and opened it. Sure enough, standing there was Vinyl Scratch, Octavia's white-coated, electric blue-maned Unicorn roommate and friend. Floating next to her were several paper grocery bags filled with food and all sorts of other things from Ponyville's outdoor market. Vinyl seemed to be slightly frustrated, based on her annoyed-looking facial expression.

"So, did you get everything on our list?" asked Octavia.

"Yeah, yeah...I did." Vinyl answered, grumbling a little. "I didn't forget anything this time..."

Noticing her roommate's tone, the Earth Pony said to her, "Vinyl, I know you don't enjoy doing any of our weekly chores, but you don't need to display your frustration in front of everypony."

"Whatever..." the white Unicorn said with a sigh. "Just help me get this stuff into the kitchen; trying to levitate so many heavy bags at once makes my head hurt."

"Very well, then." Octavia then turned towards the room where Mega Pony was still sitting in and called out to him, "Mega Pony, could you come over and lend us a hoof with these grocery bags?"

"Sure! Of course, Ms. Octavia!" the robot responded, leaving the piano for now to assist the pair. "It'll be a good opportunity to test the new device that my mom built into me, anyway." He then turned over towards a pair of grocery bags and closed his eyes. His horn then began to radiate with a light-blue light, which also appeared around the bags as well. Then all of a sudden, the bags began to levitate in front of Mega Pony, just like how Vinyl was doing the same with her Unicorn magic.

The three of them brought all of the groceries into the kitchen (Octavia balanced one of the bags on her back, since she couldn't use magic) and set them down on a round table in the middle of the room. "I suppose that takes care of that." the sepia-coated mare stated. She then said to Mega Pony, "So I see that the Princess finally designed something to allow you to use magic..."

"Well, technically, it isn't really magic;" the robot informed her. "Mom installed a device inside of my horm that allows me to move and operate objects using electromagnetisim. To put it simply, it's supposed to replicate basic Unicorn magic."

"Ah, I see." Octavia responded. "Anyway, I'll take care of putting the groceries away. It shouldn't take very long."

As the Earth Pony mare began sorting out all of the items in the bags, Mega Pony glanced over at Vinyl, noticing that something was bothering her. He decided not to ask what was upsetting her, deciding instead to try and take her mind off of it, whatever it was. "That's a...nice dishwasher you two have set up here..." he said to the Unicorn, glancing over at the appliance in question.

"Huh? Oh! Yeah...uh, sure...Thanks, Mega." Vinyl responded, still slightly distracted by whatever was on her mind.

"Yeah, it...it looks like it's a real top-of-the-line model." Mega Pony told her, trying his best to get her thinking about anything else. After looking at the dishwasher for a while, he then asked, "Uhhhh...why are there speakers attached to it, Ms. Vinyl?"

"Well, to answer your question, Mega," Vinyl began to say, in a rather proud tone, "those speakers are a personal modification of my own: Now this thing cleans dishes with the power of wubs!"

"...Wubs...?" asked Mega Pony.

"Sound waves, if you wanna get all technical and junk." the Unicorn explained. Pointing to the washer's control panel, she added, "See here? Ya crank this dial up to eleven, and it cleans the dishes at a microscopic scale! Trust me: It's the only way to clean dishes in just the right way!"

"...It's ALSO the only way to clean dishes and annoy half the town at the same time." Octavia commented as she placed the last of the groceries in the refridgerator.

Vinyl, hearing that remark, turned to face her roommate and said to her in a raised tone, "Don't start talkin' under your breath, Octy! If you've got somethin' to say to me or about me, say it to my face!"

"The only reason I made that comment was because I'd like to have at least ONE morning where I'm not abruptly awakened from bed because of that infernal device!" Octavia said back.

"Um...guys...?" Mega Pony meekly said. "That's enough now..."

But his words fell on deaf ears as Vinyl shouted, "Don't you call it that! If anything, I improved it!"

"You DO realize that what you did to that machine voids the warranty, right??" asked the sepia mare angrily. "If that thing breaks down, we would have to buy a completely NEW dishwasher to replace it, and we'd be lucky get even ten bits just to dispose of this one!"

"And I said that it'd be no problem!" the Unicorn yelled back. "I'll just give that Amy chick at Maretag a call and we'll have a new washer in no time!"

"You're saying that as if money grows on trees, Vinyl!" Octavia scolded her. "In fact, we wouldn't be spending so much money replacing all of our food supplies right now if it weren't for that last-minute party you and your rowdy friends had right here in our home last night!!"

"Guys...please...calm down..." Mega Pony pleaded. "There's no need to-"

"At least THEY know how to have fun once in a while!!" shouted the Unicorn. "Maybe you oughtta try it sometime instead of acting like a stuffed shirt 24/7!!"

"I act the way that I do because it's expected of a mare like myself to actually ACT like a proper lady!" the Earth Pony argued. "By far, the only thing YOU know about manners is how to do everything you AREN'T supposed to do!! Sometimes, I believe that the only reason you exist is to make my life as difficult as possible!!"

"Alright, THAT'S IT!! I don't need to take this!!" Vinyl shouted louder than anything her DJ equipment could muster. "I see what this is all about: You just don't want me around, right?! You think your life would be SO MUCH easier if I weren't livin' here with you, is that it?!?" Heading out of the kitchen, the Unicorn angrily added, "Have it your way then, Tavi! I'm outta here!!" The enraged mare then walked past the front door and slammed it closed as hard as she could.

There was a bit of an awkward silence in the air after the heated argument. Mega Pony glanced over at Octavia, whose face was both shocked...and slightly saddened. Once she regained her wits, however, she huffed and said to herself, "Fine then...Good riddance...", and began walking towards the staircase leading up to their bedrooms.

Mega Pony followed the Earth Pony out of the kitchen and asked her, "M-Ms. Octavia, you're not just gonna let Vinyl run off by herself like that, are you?? What if she gets hurt or something?"

"Hmph...forget it..." the mare grumbled. "If she wants to run off and start acting like a foal, so be it. I am not going to waste my time talking to her if she doesn't want to listen. And frankly, I have absolutely nothing to say to her anyway..."

The robot looked at Octavia, showing a rather worried expression. He wasn't convinced that the sepia-coated pony was making a sound decision.

Octavia sighed and told her guest, "I need some time to clear my head, Mega Pony; we will return to our lesson a bit later. Right now...I just wish to be left alone."

The robot nodded and said to her, "I understand, Ms. Octavia...I'll just keep practicing what you've taught me so far until you come back." The Earth Pony nodded to say that she heard him and continued up the stairs to her bedroom, gently shutting the door. Mega Pony then trotted back over to the piano, with that feeling of worry still floating around him.

Outside their home - in fact, outside of Ponyville entirely - in the stone-covered wasteland known as Rambling Rock Ridge, the still-angry Vinyl Scratch was wandering aimlessly about, still grumbling to herself. "Stupid Octavia...thinks she knows everything about everything..." she muttered. The Unicorn then sat down on a small, flat stone and said to herself, "Who does she think she is, talking to me like that?!" She then groaned a little during her inner monologue. "As if I didn't have enough problems today already, now there's this!" Vinyl then picked up a small rock and hurled it as hard she could out of frustration.

The rock skipped across the ground before landing very close to a single bush growing right nearby one of the few trees in the area. The clinking sounds of the rock hitting the dirt attracted the attention of three individuals, who poked their heads out of the bush to see what it was. They all appeared to be canine-like creatures, but they had slightly different appearences from each other:

The first one was tall and thin, and had brown fur with pointed ears that were fully erect. He wore a red-colored vest and had a long, thin tail. The second one was big and burly, covered with bluish-grey fur, had a large forehead and tiny, floppy ears, wore a large grey vest, and had a very small, stubby tail. The third one was the smallest of the three, bearing tan-colored fur with slightly folded ears, long droopy jowls, a small grey vest, and a short tail with spiky bristles on it. All three of them also wore diamond-studded dog collars as well, with the red-vested one even having a dogtag attached to his own collar.

The big, burly canine picked up the small stone and asked the tall, thin one, "Who threw this stone? You heard it too, right Fido?"

"Oh, I heard it alright, Rover..." the tall, thin dog, named Fido, answered. Pointing ahead, he added, "And I'm certain that's the one who threw it over here."

The other two dogs looked over and saw Vinyl Scratch sitting on the flat stone and still grumbling to herself over the fight she had earlier. "It's a pony; so what?" asked the short one. "There's nothing weird about ponies tossing rocks around."

"You can't be serious, Spot..." Fido said to him. Pointing at the Unicorn again, he asked, "Do you have any idea who that is??"

The other two dogs glanced over at Vinyl for about five seconds. Afterwards, they looked back over towards Fido and said to him, in unison, "...Nope."

The tall, thin canine slapped his face before telling them, "That's the pony that makes the music that we hear on the radio!! Don't you remember?! She's the one we're looking for; the pony we need...to pull off the BIG job..."

"...Ohhhhhhhh..." the other two dogs responded, finally getting it.

"Once we have that pony in our clutches," Fido explained, "the rest of the work will be easy! Finally, no one will be able to get in our way!!"

"...Y'know, from this far away," Rover began, "that pony kinda looks like Ms. Ra-"

Just then, Spot quickly stopped his companion's comment short by covering his mouth, causing him to muffle the rest of his statement. "Do you mind?!" the short dog yelled at him, "The last thing I need right now is to remember that white-and-violet headache again!"

"Would you both be quiet?!" growled Fido. "You're gonna scare her off! Now follow my lead and don't make any sounds!" And after that order was given, the three dogs began to burrow through the ground under their clawed feet.

Vinyl, unaware of what was going on around her, sighed a little to herself and began to think more about what had happened earlier. "Y'know, now that I've had some time to think about it," she said to herself, "maybe I was being kind of a jerk to Tavi...Even though she did make a snide comment at me...I mean after all, she actually taught me what the word 'snide' meant..." Getting up off of the stone she was sitting on, she then told herself, "Maybe I should go and talk to her...After all, it wasn't her fault that I was angry to begin with...I just hope that she isn't too sore at me..."

But before she could take a single step forward, the Unicorn suddenly heard something behind her. "Huh? What's that?" she asked herself. She looked around for the source of the noise, but didn't see anything. (That's weird...) she thought. (I know I heard something...But what? And where?)

At that moment, Vinyl suddenly heard the sounds of rumbling earth behind her. When she turned around to look, she finally saw the source of noise: The three dogs that were spying on her earlier. "Hello..." said Fido with a sly smirk on his face. "Lovely day today, isn't it?"

The Unicorn gasped and took a defensive stance. "Back off..." she said to them. "I know who you guys are! You're those Diamond Dog things I've heard about!" Backing up a bit, she then asked them, "What d'ya want from me?? I don't have any gems or jewelry or anything like that on me, so it's not like I have anything you want!"

"Heh heh heh...Oh, but you DO have something we want." said Spot, rubbing his tiny paws together. "We don't want something FROM you...We want YOU, period!"

"M-ME?!?"

"That's right, pony." stated Rover. "And you're comin' with us right this minute!"

"...And if I refuse?" asked Vinyl.

Fido's eyes squinted a little, but his sly smirk never left his face as he told her, "We weren't asking for your permission." He then shouted to his cohorts, "Get her!!"

Vinyl gasped as she tried to run away, but stopped as soon as she saw the small, but feisty Spot in front of her. She then turned around, only to confront the hulking Rover. She then looked over towards Fido and realized that she was surrounded. "G-g-get away from me!!" she shouted at them. But they didn't listen.

Not far away, there was yet another individual roaming around the wasteland. It was none other than Spike, a young dragon that was often seen working with Twilight Sparkle. This time, however, he was collecting gems in a small, red wagon. The reason was because gemstones were actually a food source for many kinds of dragons, and Spike was no different. Of course, he was also looking for gems to give to Rarity, to help her with her dress-making.

The little dragon had just located a shiny purple jewel in the shape of a hexagon. "Wow..." he said, licking his lips, "This one looks like it would taste REAL good..." Spike then paused for a moment to think about it. "Then again..." he added, "Rarity could possibly use this for something...It's so hard to decide what's food and what isn't."

"...HEEEELLLLP...!!" shouted a voice off in the distance.

Upon hearing the cry for help, Spike immediately stopped what he was doing and frantically started looking around. "What was that??" he asked himself. He left his wagon full of jewels behind for the moment to investigate the noise. When he got there, he was shocked when he saw Vinyl Scratch being abducted by the three Diamond Dogs. "Oh no! It's the Diamond Dogs again!!" Spike exclaimed, worried. Getting angry, he shouted at them, "HEY!! What're you doing to her, you big brutes?!"

Unfortunately, no one heard Spike's yelling, including Vinyl. The dastardly canines grabbed the poor Unicorn and took her down into a nearby hole that seemed to go deep into the Earth. "Help me!!" Vinyl screamed. "Somepony, ANYpony! HEEEELLLP!!!!"

Spike was dumbstruck by what he had just witnessed. However, he was able to snap himself out of it quickly so that he could come up with a plan to save her. "I need to find somepony to help me save Vinyl from those Diamond Dog jerks!" he told himself. "But who?" Thinking for a while, he then decided, "Well, maybe I should start by telling her friend Octavia about what happened...She might know what to do..." The young dragon then ran off towards Ponyville to go find help.

Several minutes had passed by since Vinyl left. During that time, Mega Pony continued to practice playing the piano with the lessons he had learned so far, starting with a simple melody that he had heard Octavia play during one of his sessions with her.

"Now...let's see if I got this right..." the robot said to himself. He slowly tapped each piano key in the correct sequence, while also saying the name of each note to himself in order to help him better understand them. "...F-sharp...A...F-sharp...E...A...D...E...D...C-sharp...B-" But when he tapped the last note, it gave off a sound that he knew wasn't right. "...No, no no...I meant 'A', not 'B'!"

Mega Pony then took a deep breath to calm himself. (Just relax now...) he thought to himself. (You can do this right...just remember the lessons you learned so far...) He then played the sequence once more, this time getting the last note right. "Alright! I did it! I played the tune perfectly!" he cheered. "I can't wait to tell Ms. Octavia!" After he said that, he then realized something: Octavia hadn't left her bedroom since the fight she had with Vinyl earlier. "Hmmmm...she's been up there for quite a while..." Mega Pony said to himself. "I hope she's okay...Maybe I ought to check up on her before I do anything else..."

The robot left the piano for the moment and trotted up the stairs towards Octavia's bedroom. Once he approached the door, he paused for a moment before knocking on it. "Who is it?" asked the mare on the other side.

"It's me, Mega Pony. May I come in?"

"Yes. The door is unlocked; you can come in."

Once he got permission, Mega Pony used his "magic" to operate the doorknob and open the door. When he stepped inside, the robot looked around at all of the fancy decor that covered the Earth Pony's bedroom: Full bookshelves, file cabinets filled with various music sheets, a large redwood desk with an old-looking desk lamp, and a soft, red chair off to the side, which was where Octavia was currently sitting while also paging through a book to pass the time.

"Have you been sitting there the whole time, Ms. Octavia?" Mega Pony inquired.

"...Yes, I have." Octavia answered. "I do apologize if I've worried you by not coming back earlier; I suppose I did lose track of time while I was up here..." She then told him, "However, I was able to hear you practicing even with my door closed; you're doing quite an excellent job so far on the piano."

"Oh, um...thank you, Ms. Octavia." the mechanical pony responded. Glancing at the book that Octavia was holding in her hooves, he then asked her, "Is that a photo album?"

"Yes, it is." the sepia-colored mare answered him. "It's my family's photo album, in fact. My family has been adding meaningful photographs in this very album for decades...I was just looking through it a little to help calm myself down..."

The Earth Pony then flipped to another page, where Mega Pony saw a picture of her and Vinyl standing in front of a large, fancy building and smiling. "Wow...you two look really happy there." he noted, pointing to the photo. "When was this taken?"

"This picture was taken sometime after we graduated from West Manehatten University." Octavia explained. "Very nice school; lots of interesting classes, especially their Psychology Department. I daresay I will certainly not forget about that class anytime soon."

"Manehatten? Is that where you're from?" Mega Pony then asked the mare.

"Yes. And so is Vinyl."

"...Huh. I would've thought that you lived where I live, in Canterlot."

Octavia chuckled a little. "I get that a lot, espcially since I perform there quite often." she told him, turning back to her photo album. "Anyway...this school was where Vinyl and I first met each other. And you'd be safe in assuming that our first meeting didn't exactly go over well..."

"I see..."

The Earth Pony then flipped to another page, which showed various photos of them either at home, or at various places around town. She then continued to talk, saying, "At first, we really couldn't find any way to co-exist...but over time, we eventually came to respect one another, and against all odds, we found a way to become best friends and care for each other...We even split a down payment on a house here in Ponyville so that we could save the rest to pursue our individual interests...In fact, it was Vinyl who chose this house for us, so that I would not have to walk too far to get something I need from the library..."

"That was really nice of her, wasn't it?" asked Mega Pony.

The Earth Pony slowly nodded and replied, "Yes...it was..." After she said that, a tear began to form under her left eye, which dripped onto the cover of her photo album.

Noticing that Octavia was crying a little, the concerned robot then asked her, "M-Ms. Octavia? Are you okay??"

Sniffling, the sepia-coated pony responded by saying, "I'm just horrible...What kind of friend am I...?"

"What do you mean?"

"I should have never let Vinyl run off like that without trying to stop her..." Octavia told her houseguest. "But I allowed my anger to get the better of me when I should have asked her what was wrong with her and try to make her feel better...But now she's left, and now I have no idea if she'll even want to talk to me again..." As she spoke, the sad mare began to slowly get more upset, which was evident in the way her words were beginning to break up.

Mega Pony put up his right front hoof and softly patted the Earth Pony on the back to comfort her. "It'll be okay, Ms. Octavia..." he told her. "I'm sure if you go and apologize to her, she'll forgive you, and you'll be back together in no time."

"How can you be sure?" asked the mare.

The robot smiled and answered her, saying, "If Vinyl is a true friend, she'll forgive you; no doubt about it. Take it from me: One little fight isn't going to destroy your friendship with her, and it never will."

"...Well, I wouldn't call our argument 'little' by any means, but-" Octavia then stopped herself and said, "No, you're absolutely right, Mega Pony. I need to go and talk to Vinyl so that we can work things out, and get our lives back to the way they were."

"Exactly." the robot told her. "All we need to do is find out where she is right now...But where would she be?"

At that moment, there was a frantic pounding on the door that grabbed the attention of both ponies. "Who could that be?" asked Octavia. "I wasn't expecting any other company today..."

"Maybe it's Vinyl?" asked Mega Pony.

"I suppose we shall see." After saying that, the sepia-coated mare walked down the staircase, with Mega Pony following close behind. She then opened the door to see who it was.

It was Spike, who was still in a panic over what he had seen earlier. "Ms. Octavia! Am I glad to see you right now!" the dragon said to her, relieved to find somepony home. He then glanced over and noticed that Mega Pony was there as well. "Mega Pony? What are you doing here?" he then asked.

"Don't you remember?" inquired the robot. "I come here every Tuesday and Thursday for music lessons. I told you that a couple weeks ago..."

"Oh, yeah...I guess I forgot." replied Spike, embarrased that he had forgotten about that. Clearing his throat, he then told the pair, "Anyway, I glad you're both here; we got a REALLY big problem right now!"

"What sort of problem?" asked Octavia.

"Well...i-it's Vinyl Scratch; she's...she's been kidnapped by Diamond Dogs!!" the dragon informed her.

The two ponies gasped; they were in complete shock, especially Octavia. "You...you must be joking...!" she said to Spike. "Are you absolutely SURE it was Vinyl??"

"I'm sure, alright!" he answered. "I wouldn't miss that wild, blue mane of hers anywhere!"

The Earth Pony was completely horrified by what she had just heard. "This is terrible...!" she said to herself. "It's...it's all my fault...I let her run off by herself, and now she's in danger! If anything happens to her...I will never forgive myself...!"

"It's okay, Ms. Octavia...We'll save her and get her home safe and sound!" Mega Pony assured her. "I promise, nothing bad will happen to Vinyl at all!"

"I do hope you are right, Mega Pony..." the mare responded, still feeling guilty.

The robot then asked Spike, "Where did you see Vinyl last?"

"She was in Rambling Rock Ridge when those dogs took her underground." the dragon answered. "We can get there by heading south from town, but..."

"But what?" the mechanical pony questioned.

"But if we try to go after them, there's bound to be a whole buncha guards waiting for us!" Spike told him. "Those Diamond Dogs will have us horribly outnumbered!"

"That...could be a problem." Mega Pony admitted. "But what else can we do?"

Just then, Octavia snapped out of her state of depression when a thought came to her. "Wait a moment: Didn't an acquaintance of yours have a run-in with these Diamond Dogs a while ago?" she asked the dragon.

"Acquaintance?" asked Spike. "Oh! You mean one of my friends, right?" Octavia nodded yes as the little dragon began to try and remember when the last time he encountered the Diamond Dogs was. He then let out a gasp when he recalled that very event. "Oh yeah! Of course! I almost forgot!" he exclaimed. "Rarity! She knows exactly how to deal with those jerks!"

"Really? Rarity's dealt with those things before?" asked Mega Pony.

"She sure has!" Spike informed the robot. "We should go and see her; she might be able to help us save Vinyl!"

"Sounds good to me." Octavia said to him. "Let us hurry and speak to Ms. Rarity and come up with a plan; the sooner, the better." Mega Pony and Spike nodded to say that they understood. The trio then moved as fast as they could to Rarity's home, with the baby dragon riding on top of Mega Pony's back.

Meanwhile, at the Carousel Boutique, the fashion-forward Unicorn was busy working on another new dress project. This time, she had some help, courtesy of her younger sister, Sweetie Belle, who was a friend of Apple Bloom's. The younger Unicorn had a white coat, just like her older sister, with a puffy mane and tail, both colored with light-pink and light-purple stripes. She also had a pair of big, light-green eyes, which gave off an aura of youthfulness. Finally, just like her friend Apple Bloom, her flank lacked a cutie mark, as she had not yet earned one.

Normally, the young filly had a bright and cheery attitude, and was always seen smiling or otherwise happy. This time, however, she appeared to be slightly frustrated, mainly because the job Rarity had given to her was to stay still and help model the dress that she was designing. Standing still and doing nothing was something that Sweetie Belle wasn't fond of, especially when the pins that were stuck in the dress were beginning to make her itch.

"Rarityyyyyyyyy...!!" the little Unicorn whined. "Are we done yeeeeet?! I need to scratch reeeeeeeeally badlyyyyyy...!!"

"Stop complaining, Sweetie Belle! We won't get done any quicker if you don't stay still!" Rarity told her. "We are already a bit behind schedule as it is, thanks to that little cold you picked up that prevented you from going to school a while ago..."

"Okay, I get it! I won't borrow Scootaloo's toothbrush again!" Sweetie Belle responded, still feeling uncomfortable in the dress that she was modeling.

As Rarity used her measuring tape to record the length of the dress, she heard a knock on her front door. Glancing over towards the boutique's entrance, she said to her younger sister, "Hold on a moment, I need to answer the door. I'll be back shortly."

"Aw, c'mon!!" complained Sweetie Belle, knowing that she was going to be stuck wearing that itchy dress a while longer.

Rarity trotted gracefully over to her front door and opened it. Once she saw who it was, she greeted them, saying, "Oh! Mega Pony, Spike, Ms. Octavia! What can I do for you today?"

The young dragon then told her, "We've got a bit of a problem...and we could really use your help."

"My help? With what?" asked the Unicorn.

After the trio of guests let themselves into the boutique, Mega Pony, Spike, and Octavia told Rarity about everything that happened involving Vinyl and the three Diamond Dogs. "You can't be serious...You mean to tell me that those...those ruffians had just abducted Vinyl?" asked the violet-maned Unicorn, who wasn't pleased to hear that the Diamond Dogs were causing trouble again.

"They sure did..." Spike replied. "I saw it happen with my own two eyes! They all swarmed around her, grabbed her, and then took her deep underground!"

"But whatever for?" asked Rarity. "I don't recall ever seeing Vinyl wearing jewelry of any kind, and it's not like she would have anything else valuable on her..."

"That's what I am not sure of either..." Octavia chimed in. "In all the time that I have lived with her, I know for a fact that Vinyl absolutely hates wearing jewelry, though she does like looking at it...I honestly can't think of any reason that those creatures would want to take her away like that..."

"Well, whatever their motive was," Mega Pony began, "the only thing that we should worry about is making sure that Vinyl's safe. We need to find a way into the Diamond Dogs' lair, locate Vinyl, and get out before those dogs cause us too much trouble."

"This little dragon friend of yours told us that you had an encounter with these Diamond Dogs before..." Octavia said to Rarity. "Is that true?"

"Yes, unfortunately..." the Unicorn responded, feeling slightly uneasy. "I don't really like bringing it up, though. It's an experience that I'd rather forget...Everything about those beasts is absoLUTELY unpleasent! Their fur smelled horrible, their posture was dreadful, their sense of fashion was HORRENDOUS...UGH! I could go on for DAYS explaining how disgusting those things can be!"

The other occupants in the room were a bit stunned after listening to Rarity and hearing how much she disliked the Diamond Dogs...except for Sweetie Belle, who was scratching herself all over after she was finally allowed to take off the dress. The robot decided to break the silence and said, "Well, I'm not really sure what to expect from these Diamond Dog guys, besides what I know from my databanks, so we could use all the help that we can get in order to save Vinyl...So, will you lend us a hoof and come with us, Rarity?"

The violet-maned Unicorn shuddered a little. "Ugh...the thought of having to go back to that dreadful cavern is making my coat hair stand up on end..." she admitted. She then sighed, and manged to form a smile before adding, "But I suppose that I would not be living up to my Element if I didn't help you out in your time of need."

"So you'll help us save Vinyl?" asked Spike.

Rarity nodded and answered, saying, "I most certainly will!"

"Thank you so much, Ms. Rarity." Octavia told her. "This means so much to me..." The Earth Pony mare put on a determined facial expression and said, "Alright then, if everypony's ready to go, then let us move out immediately!" The others nodded in response.

"Sweetie Belle, you stay here and be good while I'm gone, okay?" Rarity requested of her younger sister.

"Okay, Rarity." the little Unicorn replied. "When you guys get back, I'll cook up a really nice meal for you all to enjoy!"

"Oh, um...tha-that's quite alright, dear..." Rarity replied in a hesitant tone, a bead of sweat running down the side of her face. "There's absolutely no need to go through all that trouble just for us...Just be good until we return! Goodbye!"

As Rarity closed the door behind her, Mega Pony then asked, "What was that all about, Rarity?"

"It's...it's nothing. Nothing we need to worry about right now..." the Unicorn answered him. "Let's just go and do this as quickly as possible..."

From inside the boutique, Sweetie Belle was watching her sister and the others leaving to go rescue Vinyl. Once they were no longer within eyesight, the filly raced over to the kitchen, eager to prepare a meal despite what Rarity told her. She opened up one of the cupboards, noticing that there wasn't much left inside. "Hmmmm..." she hummed to herself, picking up a tin can and a small box. She then glanced over to the corner of the room, where Rarity's pet cat, Opal, was sleeping.

Sweetie Belle trotted over towards the cat and set the two items that she had gotten earlier in front of her. "Hey, Opal..." the filly said to her, "what do you think goes best with pancakes? Eggplants or creamed corn?" The cat just gave an uninterested look in response.

It wasn't long before Mega Pony, Octavia, Rarity, and Spike (who was sitting on Rarity's back) reached Rambling Rock Ridge, searching for the missing Vinyl Scratch. The group eventually reached the top of a medium-sized plateau overlooking an even taller cliff ahead. A large tunnel could be seen going into the cliff wall, and standing beside the entrance were two Diamond Dogs, clad in metal armor and holding sharp spears.

"There it is..." said the robot, peering at the cave entrance from behind a large boulder. "That must be the Diamond Dogs' lair."

"Indeed it is." Rarity confirmed. "I'll never forget this place for as long as I live, no matter how hard I try to."

"We need to find a way to get in there to save Vinyl..." Octavia noted. "But how are we going to get past those two guards without them knowing?"

"Leave that to me." Mega Pony told her. "I have a way of stopping those two dogs down there without even having to fight them." The robot then closed his eyes and triggered his weapon-swapping power, changing his body color in an instant. Once he was done, Mega Pony's face and body were now sepia-colored, and his helmet and boots were colored a dark grey; the same color scheme as Octavia. And of course, he now had her cutie mark on his flank.

"What...what did you just do??" asked the Earth Pony, shocked at what she saw. "Why do you look like me right now?"

"That's Mega Pony's copy ability." Spike told her. "He can get special weapons and powers from anypony just by touching their cutie marks."

"Ah, I see...Now I understand why you wished to touch my mark before we got here." said Octavia.

The others watched as Mega Pony pointed his horn towards the two Diamond Dog guards. All of a sudden, it began glowing, and a second later, a soft, soothing melody began to play out of it. The song was loud enough for the two guards to hear it, but before they could find the source of the music, they began yawning and getting very sleepy. Before long, the two couldn't stay awake and fell to the ground, their loud snoring making noise comparable to that of the buzzing of a chainsaw.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Octavia's Lullaby ***

Once the guards were incapacitated, Mega Pony's horn stopped glowing and the soothing music ended. "There, that should stop them for a while." he said.

"Awesome! He put them both to sleep!" cheered Spike.

Octavia was astounded, but not just because of how Mega Pony was able to deal with the guards; there was something else that he had done that surprised her. "That song..." she said out-loud, "that's the same lullaby my mother used to sing to me when I was a filly...But only my mother and I know about it..." Turning over to the robot, she asked him, "How could you have possibly known about that song?"

"Don't ask me..." he responded. "My Copy Chip is designed to replicate or create a weapon that relates to the special talents of the pony I get it from. Other than who I choose to copy, I really don't have any control over how my Copy Chip works."

After pondering about it, Octavia then hypothesized, (I guess that Mega Pony must have picked up the melody from my subconscious when he copied my power...Well, I certainly can't complain about the results, since he was able to defeat both those dogs down there with it.)

"Alright, let us go...The sooner we save Vinyl, the less time we'll have to spend in this horrid place..." Rarity commented as she carefully trotted down the side of the small plateau that they were on, followed by Mega Pony and Octavia. The group then entered the cave, running right past the sleeping guard dogs.

Once inside, the three ponies and dragon now had to figure out where Vinyl was being held captive. "Well, now we're inside the Diamond Dogs' lair," Octavia began, "but now we need to figure out WHERE we actually have to go..." She then asked Rarity, "Since you've been here before, I assume you know the way around these caverns?"

"I wish it were that easy..." the fashonista answered her. "I may have been here in the past, but it's safe to assume that these beasts have dug some new tunnels through here since then."

"Hey, I have an idea!" said Spike, still sitting on Rarity's back. "Maybe you can use your gem-searching spell to find out where they are! After all, that's how Twilight and the others were able to find you the first time we were here!"

"I suppose it's worth a try." the Unicorn replied. She then activated her horn to use her gem-seeking spell; one that she usually used to help her find gems for her dresses. Unfortunately, her spell was only able to locate a single gemstone: A small ruby that was sitting beside the group, buried in the dirt and stone. "Oh dear...I was afraid of this..." she said, sighing.

"What's wrong?" asked Mega Pony.

"My spell was only able to find one gem..." Rarity told him. "More than likely, the rest of the gems that were here have already been dug up..."

"That's not good..." said Octavia. "We're no closer to finding Vinyl than we were before." After that comment, the three ponies suddenly heard crunching sounds nearby. They all glanced over and saw that Spike had hopped off of Rarity's back, dug up the ruby, and was eating it.

The dragon glanced up at the others and saw that they were all giving him a look. "...What? All this tension is making me hungry." he said to them, gulping down the last pieces of the jewel. The others sighed in response.

Thinking for a while, Rarity came up with another idea. "I've got it!" she exclaimed. "I think our best course of action is to go to any place that is heavily guarded."

The others were shocked when they heard that. "Not to offend, but...are you CRAZY?!" asked Octavia. "Why would you suggest something like that?!"

"I know it seems a tad extreme; believe me, I'd rather not attempt such a thing if I had the choice." the Unicorn told them. "But think about it: Those beasts wanted Vinyl for some reason, so it's a safe assumption that wherever they have her, there are sure to be lots of guards around to make certain that nopony can get to her."

"Oh, I get it now!" exclaimed Mega Pony. "So if we see any part of the cavern that contains guard dogs, there's a good chance that Vinyl will be there, too!"

"Exactly." confirmed Rarity. "And if any guards come after us, you and I can stop them!" Mega Pony nodded to say that he was on board with her plan.

"Sounds good to me!" added Spike.

"I suppose it is our best option..." Octavia commented. "I'm okay with this plan if it will help us find Vinyl sooner."

"Alright then." Rarity then looked over towards Mega Pony and told him, "You lead the way, Mega Pony."

"Got it." the robot replied, walking up in front of everypony. Spike hopped onto Rarity's back once more before they all headed forward. Not long after they started, Mega Pony already found some guards ahead of them. "Alright, I'm picking up some movement: There are two guards in the left tunnel, and three in the right one." he informed the others.

"Then we should head towards the right." stated Octavia, pointing at the tunnel with her right front hoof. The group then headed inside, entering a small chamber.

Sure enough, three guard dogs were inside, and they immediately turned to face the ponies and dragon as soon as they came in. "Hey! What are you doin' in here?!" shouted one of them. However, that guard rushed towards them to attack before an answer to his question was given.

But Rarity was ready for it: Using her magic, she hurled a good-sized rock right into his abdomen area. The impact was enough to make the creature collapse onto the ground. "Don't even THINK about touching me with those dirty claws of yours!" she yelled at them.

"Alright! Nice shot, Rarity!" Mega Pony complimented.

The Unicorn turned around to face them and said, "Oh, why thank you. I have been practicing my throwing skills in my spare time. I might even try my hoof at a game of Darts sometime and-"

"Look out!! Behind you!!" shouted Octavia, pointing behind the Unicorn.

Rarity gasped as she looked behind her and saw the other two guards coming up from behind. The Unicorn had no time to react, but luckily for her, she was saved when both the dogs were struck by six, white gemstones and knocked down to the ground. Rarity breathed a sigh of relief and looked over at Mega Pony, who was now sporting the white-and-violet color scheme and diamond cutie mark that she had. "Thanks, Mega Pony." she said to him. "I appreciate it."

"No problem, Rarity." the robot replied. "Lucky for us, I had the right mind to get your special weapon as well before we came here."

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Gem Seeker ***

Once the guards were taken down, the group began searching the chamber for any signs of Vinyl, but she wasn't anywhere to be found. "She's not here..." Octavia said with a sigh. "The only things that these dogs were protecting was this gem chest and...sound equipment?" The Earth Pony seemed a bit confused when she saw what appeared to be speakers in the chamber they were in.

"Well, at least we took these guys down." Spike noted. "That's three less guards we'll have to deal with later."

"Yes, but I am sure that we'll have to fight through more if we want to save Vinyl, and escape without any implications." Rarity added. She then turned to Mega Pony and asked him, "Do you think you will have enough energy to continue using my power on anyone who attacks us?"

"I have enough power to use the Gem Seeker about fifty more times." he answered. "So as long as I don't have to fight any more than fifty guards, we'll be fine." Turning towards the tunnel ahead, he added, "We just need to be smart and pick our battles wisely." The others nodded and followed the robot through the tunnel ahead.

Meanwhile, in a rather large chamber that seemed to serve as the Diamond Dogs' main living quarters, the three dogs that had kidnapped Vinyl earlier were sitting at a round table (which was actually constructed out of gemstones, like most of their belongings). They were in the middle of a card game, unaware of what was going on elsewhere.

The short Diamond Dog, Spot, was looking over the cards that he was holding. "Alright...I'll see your three rubies and two sapphires and raise you...one emerald!" he said to the big and burly Rover.

Rover glanced at his cards and thought about what to do. He then took an emerald from his pile and tossed into the center of the table. "I'll call." he said.

"Same here." added the red-vested Fido. "What have you all got?"

Spot then showed his cards and told them, "I've got a Flush: All of them are hearts!"

"Three of a Kind..." grumbled Rover as he grumpily threw his cards onto the table.

"Heeheehee...too bad for you!" chuckled the small dog as he prepared to take all of the gems in the pot.

"Not so fast, Spot..." Fido told his companion. He then slowly put down his cards, revealing that he had three Jacks and two Aces. "Full House."

"Urk!" the little dog grunted once he saw those cards.

Fido chuckled and slid every last jewel in the center of the table into his pile. "Nice try, but this round goes to me!" he gloated.

"Urrrrgh...that's not fair!" complained Spot. "I just dug those up today!!"

"Yeah, yeah...Tell it to someone who cares." the red-vested Diamond Dog responded while counting up his winnings.

Just then, one of the guard dogs walked into the chamber and said to the trio, "Hey, guys! We've got a situation in here!"

Fido and the others glanced over towards the guard upon hearing that. "What kind of situation?" asked the red-vested canine.

"One of the other guards has reported that there are four intruders in the caverns." the armored dog explained. "According to what they've said, three of them are ponies, and one is a baby dragon."

"Then deal with it." Spot simply said while shuffling the deck of cards. "That's what you're paid to do."

"Well...that's the problem..." the guard began, feeling uneasy. "None of the guards have been able to stop them. There are still reports that they're progressing deeper into the caves..."

"What?! That's impossible!" shouted Fido. "There's no way that a bunch of ponies and a little dragon could take on the entire Guard Dog Squadron!" Grumbling, the red-vested canine then asked, "Who are they? Do you have any idea on what they look like?"

"O-only one of them..." the guard answered. "Only one of the three ponies was identified. We don't have a name, but they say that it's a female Unicorn, with a white coat and a violet-colored mane and tail."

"Hmph." Spot responded, not hearing the description at first. "So what? That doesn't sound very-" But when he and the other two dogs realized what the guard had told them, they froze up completely. "D...did you say...a white coat...and a violet mane and tail...??" the small canine asked, not really wanting to hear the answer.

"That's what I heard." the guard responded.

Fido, Rover, and Spot were all trembling a little after they heard the description that the guard gave to them. "G-guys...you heard what he said, right...?" the pint-sized Spot asked his companions. "There's no mistaking it: That whining pony, Ms. Rarity is here!!"

"Wh-what could SHE possibly be doing here?!" asked Fido, worried. "I thought we were done with her for good!"

"Wh-what are we gonna do, guys...?" asked Rover. "She'll be here any moment!"

"Well, don't look at me!!" the shorter dog responded in a frantic tone. Getting stressed out, he then added, "Of all the times for that pony to show up, why did it have to be now?! We can't afford to let her presence here ruin our plans!"

"And what kind of plans are those?!" asked a voice that the three dogs recognized immediately. The trio slowly turned around and saw the very pony that they didn't want to have to deal with: Rarity. Standing next to her were Octavia, Mega Pony, and Spike, and all four of them had looks on their faces that told the canines that they were through playing around.

"M-M-M-Ms. Rarity...!" began a trembling Fido. "F-fancy meeting you here...! W-we were just talking about you!"

"Don't. Even. Start." the white Unicorn told them sternly. "I'm on a tight schedule as it is, so I'm going to make this short: You're holding Vinyl Scratch down in these dank caverns against her will, and we're here to rescue her!"

"Urk! Wh-what are you talking about??" asked Rover, trying to play dumb. "We don't even know this, uh...'Flyer Scorch'..."

"You know who we're talking about!" Spike shouted at them. "I saw you three take her down here earlier, so don't try and lie to us!"

"So do us all a favor:" Octavia chimed in. "Let my friend go right this minute, or you will most certainly regret it!" The three Diamond Dogs trembled; they didn't know what to do.

"If you don't release Vinyl by the time I count to three, I'll start my complaints by telling all of you just what I think of your, 'living quarters'." Rarity threatened. "And by the way, I'm using the word 'living' VERY loosely."

The three canines were in a panic, especially Fido. Sweating, he thought to himself, (This is bad...If they force us to let the other pony go with them right now, our plans are ruined! But I can't stand having to listen to Ms. Rarity whine again! And neither do Rover or Spot! I don't know what to do!!)

Rarity, tired of waiting, began to make good on her earlier threat and began counting. "One...Two..."

"Hey! What's goin' on down there?!" asked a voice from out of nowhere.

Rarity suddenly stopped counting as she and the others looked around. "Who was that?" asked Mega Pony. "And where did that voice come from??"

Octavia then suddenly glanced up at a cliff above and gasped once she saw who it was that was standing there. "Vinyl! It's you!!" she exclaimed.

Sure enough, it was Vinyl Scratch, standing on a path high above them. The Unicorn DJ glanced down and seemed surprised to see her roommate and Mega Pony there. "Huh? Octy? Mega? What are you doin' here?" she asked, confused.

"We came here to rescue you, Ms. Vinyl." the robot answered.

"Rescue?" asked Vinyl.

"Yeah." Spike chimed in. "I saw you getting kidnapped by those three Diamond Dogs a couple of minutes ago! So I got Octavia, Mega Pony, and Rarity to come with me to help save you."

"Save me?" asked the DJ. "What are ya talkin' about? I don't need saving..."

"WHAT?!" exclaimed the other three ponies and dragon. They certainly didn't expect to hear her say that.

Several minutes later, the four ponies, one dragon, and the three Diamond Dogs were now sitting down at the large round table. Vinyl was prepared to tell them all exactly what had happened after she was brought to the underground caverns. "Vinyl...I don't understand;" started Octavia, confused about the whole thing, as were Mega Pony, Rarity, and Spike. "This dragon here told us all that you were abducted by these creatures and taken down here against your will...And now you're saying that you are NOT in any danger whatsoever?? That doesn't make any sense at all..."

"Look, I know it seems kinda weird, but trust me: There's a logical explanation to all of this, Octy." the Unicorn DJ assured her.

"Then what is it?" asked Mega Pony. "Was Spike wrong when he said that you were kidnapped?"

"Well, he's ALMOST right..." Vinyl answered. "They did force me to come down here, just like he told you. However, the story doesn't quite end there..."

After those Diamond Dog guys dragged me down into their lair, I thought that they wanted to steal something from me. But since I don't like wearing jewelry, I knew that I didn't have anything on me other than my favorite sunglasses. Needless to say, I wanted some answers, and quick.

"Alright, what's the big idea?!" I shouted at them. "Why'd ya bring me down here, anyway?! I don't have anything you want, so if you're tryin' to mug me, you're wastin' your time!"

But then, all of a sudden, I saw that the small one dropped down onto his knees and said to me, "Please...! Ms. DJ PON-3! You have to help us!!"

"Huh??" I asked, not exactly expecting to hear that. "Help you??"

The one in the red vest then came over and said to me, "Please, forgive us for dragging you down here the way we did, but we were afraid that you would refuse to assist us with a little problem that we're having..."

"Problem?" I asked, calming down a little. "What kinda problem?"

The really big one then stepped forward and told me, "It all began a few days ago: We were digging around for gems like we usually do, when all of a sudden, we began hearing some weird rumbling sounds from far away. At first, we ignored it, but as time went on, the rumbling began getting louder and louder..."

"Not only that," the small one added, "but in addition to the noises we heard, we also began feeling strong tremors from time to time...And just as the rumbling sounds got louder, the tremors also started getting stronger..."

"At first, it was just simply annoying..." said the red-vested dog, "but since the tremors began, cave-ins within the tunnels have tripled in number. Worst of all, two of own have already been seriously injured as a result of these cave-ins. If we don't do something soon, the entire lair could be buried in rubble!"

"Woah...that's horrible!" I said, shocked at what I heard. I then asked them, "But what do you need me for?"

"Yesterday," the big one started, "me, Fido, and Spot were wandering around through the tunnels to try and figure out where the tremors were coming from, and what was causing it...For a while, we didn't see anything, but eventually, we found out what it was: It was some sort of huge, drilling machine!"

"Drilling machine?"

"Yes, a drilling machine!" the tiny one answered me. "And it was tearing up our tunnels and stealing all of the gems that rightfully belong to us!! We went over to try and stop it, but as soon we yelled at the thing, it started chasing us! We thought we all goners!"

"But then, one of your songs happened to start playing on the portable radio that we take with us to our digging sites." the red-vested dog told me. "We're not sure why, but once your song started playing, it caused the digging machine that was chasing us to go haywire! It spun around in place several times, its drills began flailing around, and finally, its back exploded and it fell over! And it's been completely motionless since then!"

"So wait, lemme get this straight:" I said to them, trying to process everything. "You're tellin' me that one of MY songs on the radio caused that digger to malfunction and shut down?" Thinking about it for a bit, I chuckled and said to myself, "...That's actually pretty awesome."

"Yeah, that's right!" the big one confirmed. "We thought everything was okay after that, but then we still kept hearing and feeling earthquakes in the caverns! We then figured that there must've been MORE of those machines around, tearing up our home!"

"That's why we need your help!" the small one then said. "We need you to play your music all throughout the caves, and get rid of those infernal digging mahcines once and for all! Please, you've just GOTTA help us! We don't know what else to do!!"

I paused for a moment to think about everything that I had just heard. It was kind of a bizarre situation: These Diamond Dogs, who most other ponies considered to be dirty, snarling brutes, were on their claws and knees asking for my help, wanting nothing in return, except for the chance to live their lives peacefully without having to worry about losing their home...or being trapped forever in it. Even though they sorta forced me into their lair without asking me, I couldn't say "no" to them.

After making up my mind on the subject, I smiled and told them, "Alright...I'll do it. I'll stop those digging machines and save your home."

"You will?!" asked the red-vested dog, happy to know that I was going to help them. "Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!!"

"Woah...did ya hear that...? Fido just said, 'thank you'..." I overheard the big one whisper to the little one. "He almost NEVER says that..."

"I heard that!!" the red vest-wearing dog shouted. He then cleared his throat and said to me, "Anyway...whatever materials you need to assist us in shutting down the other diggers, we'll be happy to get for you, DJ PON-3."

"Sounds good to me." I told them with a nod. "And please: Call me Vinyl."

"...So for the past coupla minutes, the Diamond Dogs have been bringing in all sorts of sound equipment and setting them up all over the place so that when I play my tracks, it'll cover every nook and cranny of the lair." Vinyl explained, finishing her story.

"So that explains why we saw all those speakers and other equipment here..." Octavia realized, recalling the time when they fought the first three guard dogs inside the caves. "Now it all makes sense..."

"Well, I must say..." started Rarity, a bit flabbergasted. "I certainly never expected to hear something like this..."

"I don't think any of us really did, either." Spike agreed. He then asked, "So...NOW what do we do?"

"Well, I don't know about you guys," Vinyl spoke up, "but I gave the Diamond Dogs my word that I'd stay here and help them get rid of the diggers that are wrecking their caves. So for now, I'm not leavin' this place until the job's done."

"Then I guess that settles it..." Mega Pony started, getting up off of his seat and showing a determined look on his face. "If you're really sure about this, Ms. Vinyl, then I'll stay and lend a hoof as well."

"You mean it?" asked the Unicorn DJ. The robot nodded yes in response.

Octavia then got up next and added, "I shall remain here and help out as well. Wherever Vinyl goes, I go, and I'm not going to abandon her."

"Tavi..." Vinyl responded, touched by what her friend had just said.

"I'll help too!" Spike chimed in. He then asked Rarity, "What about you?"

The Unicorn fashionista wasn't sure what to do at first: She didn't like the Diamond Dogs because of what they did to her in the past, but after hearing what Vinyl told them just now, she couldn't help but feel even a little sorry for them. Finally, after thinking about it for a while, Rarity finally caved in and said, "Very well. I shall help also...I suppose not even creatures such as the Diamond Dogs deserve to have their homes destroyed."

"Thanks, guys..." Vinyl said to the others. "I really appreciate it that you all wanna help out. With all of us workin' together, we'll smash those diggers into scrap in no time!" She then asked, "So, where should we start?"

"I think we'd better split up into smaller groups first, so that we can take care of all of the necessary preperations simultaneously." Mega Pony suggessted. "We have to be ready as quickly as possible, before the remaining machines start digging again."

"Good idea." Octavia commented. "I shall stay with Vinyl and assist her in setting up all of her sound equipment." She then turned towards her roommate and asked, "Is that okay with you?"

"Uh, sure Tavi." the DJ replied. "I'll get the big Diamond Dog to help out with the heavy lifting, too."

"Okay then." Mega Pony then looked over at Fido and said to him, "Meanwhile, I need you to take me over to the digging machine that's already been disabled. I think I might be able to scan it and find some more information about them."

"I suppose that sounds like a good idea to me..." the red-vested canine replied.

The robot then glanced over at Rarity, Spike, and Spot and told them, "As for the three of you, you're going to be our main lookout: We need the three of you to go around and map out all of the tunnels, so that none of us will get lost if we have to do any moving around." Rarity and Spike nodded to say that they understood. Spot wasn't enthusiastic about having to be in close proximity to the violet-maned Unicorn, but he, too, went along with Mega Pony's idea and nodded as well.

The robot tapped a button on his helmet, which remotely opened a hatch on the right side of his body. Inside was a compartment containing an E-Tank and three headsets with microphones attached. "Everypony, take one of these communicators." he then told them. "This will allow us to keep in touch with each other while we're working. If anypony sees anything suspicious, do not hesitate to contact each other." Rarity, Octavia, and Vinyl nodded and each took one of the communicators.

"Well, if we're all ready, let's get moving and stop those diggers!" Spike chimed in. After that, they all split up into their assigned groups, ready to get to work.

Deep in the dark tunnels of the Diamond Dogs' lair, Mega Pony and Fido were heading towards the chamber that contained the already-disabled digging machine. As they walked through the caves, the dog suddenly spoke up. "Um...Mega Pony, was it?" he said.

The mechanical pony glanced up at him and replied, saying, "Yes, what is it?"

"...Has...has Ms. Rarity told you about when she was down here before...?" Fido then asked him.

"Only bits and pieces." Mega Pony answered. "Not a whole lot; she didn't seem to like talking about it very much."

"Uh...yeah. I guess she wouldn't."

The robot sighed a little and told Fido, "Based on what I can tell, I can safely assume that her first visit down in these caves wasn't a pleasent one, right?" The Diamond Dog nodded, feeling a bit uneasy from hearing that. Mega Pony then said to him, "I'm not going to ask about what happened between you, your friends, and Rarity; as far as I'm concerned, it's none of my business. But whatever the deal is, you and your friends need to find a way to resolve things and co-exist. Trust me, it'd be much better if you did."

"It's not exactly that easy." the dog said to him. "In case you weren't aware of it earlier, Ms. Rarity hates us."

"All the more reason that you guys should try to work things out..." said the mechanical pony. "Otherwise, nothing's going to change: Rarity will still have contempt towards you and your friends, and all of you will still be scared of her...Do you really want to live the rest of your life the way things are?"

That last comment of Mega Pony's really got the Diamond Dog thinking about the whole situation concerning their uneasiness towards Rarity. "I'm...I'm not sure about that..." Fido responded. "I'm pretty sure Ms. Rarity won't even talk to us, and I'm sure Rover and Spot don't want to either."

"Don't take her remarks and actions too personally..." Mega Pony informed him. "Rarity's a really good pony; she just has problems letting certain things go sometimes, especially if it was particularly upsetting to her..." He then asked, "But think about: If Rarity really hated you as much you think she did, then she wouldn't have offered to help you take care of the problem that you're having with these digging machines."

"I guess you have a good point..."

The robot smiled and added, "Tell ya what: After we're done with everything here, I'll go talk to Rarity about it. Even though she might not want to listen to you, she'll listen to me...And hopefully, all of you can finally get rid of all this bad blood between you and her..." Changing the subject, he then told Fido, "We'll worry about that later, though; right now, we have a job to do. How much further do we have to go?"

"Oh! Um...not much further." the Diamond Dog answered. "The chamber's just ahead of us." The two of them then continued heading forward to where the downed digger was.

Meanwhile, back in the Diamond Dogs' living quarters, Vinyl was busy setting up all of the sound equipment that the other dogs had brought into the caverns. The machines were expensive, but it was a relatively small price to pay, especially since the Diamond Dogs had more than enough valuable gems to cover it all. Octavia was also there, helping her roommate hook up every last speaker, and they were further assisted by the big and burly dog, Rover, who took care of all the heavy lifting.

No one had said anything since they started working, until, all of a sudden, Vinyl glanced over at her friend and said to her, "Hey...Octy? You got a sec?"

The Earth Pony stopped what she was doing and glanced over at her Unicorn roomate. "What is it...?" she asked her.

Vinyl sighed and replied, "Look, there's something I need t' say to you..." The DJ rubbed the back of her head with her right front hoof, trying to work up the courage to say what she felt she needed to say. "I...I'm...I'm sorry...about the way I acted back home earlier...I didn't really mean any of that stuff I was saying to you, but I just wasn't thinkin' straight because I was so mad..."

"...Well, I suppose that when we're angry," Octavia replied, "we tend to say a lot of things that we don't really mean to say..."

"Yeah, exactly." Vinyl responded. She then told her friend, "But...you oughtta know; I wasn't mad at anything you did or said today..."

"You weren't?" asked the Earth Pony, a little surprised.

The Unicorn nodded to say no and told her, "To be honest, I was angry long before I came home from the market...See, while I was shopping, I ran into Neon Lights..."

"Neon? What was he doing all the way here in Ponyville?"

"Lookin' for me." Vinyl answered. "He came by to tell me that...that my gig with him tomorrow in Las Pegasus got cancelled. He said there was some sort of electrical problem or somethin'...He told me that he tried t' mail me a letter 'bout it, but I guess it got lost in the mail or whatever..."

"Oh dear...I'm sorry to hear that, Vinyl." Octavia responded, showing a great deal of empathy. "I knew how much you were looking forward to it...And to be told that just before the day of the event...It's no wonder that you were so angry."

"Uh huh...I was so mad about it, that...well...that I guess I just took it out on you..." Vinyl replied, feeling really guilty. "Sorry for being such a rotten friend, Tavi..."

The Earth Pony genuinely felt sorry for her roommate, understanding why she had been so angry earlier. Octavia walked over to Vinyl and told her, "It's okay...I forgive you, Vinyl." She then told her, "And...I'm sorry, too..."

"Huh? About what?" asked the Unicorn.

"To be honest," the sepia-coated pony began, "I could tell that something was bothering you when you came home, but I foolishly chose to ignore it...Perhaps if I had asked what was troubling you sooner, we would have avoided our earlier altercation completely...Please forgive me."

"...It's cool, Octy. No hard feelings." said the DJ. "We were both acting a little boneheaded, but we know better now. Let's just leave it that."

"Agreed."

Vinyl smiled and said to her roommate, "Now, c'mon Tavi, we've got some work to do. This equipment's not gonna hook itself up." Octavia nodded, smiling as well.

At that moment, the two of them heard sounds of someone blubbering nearby. They glanced over and saw that Rover, who had been listening to the whole conversation, was in tears at what had taken place. "That...that was so beautiful...!" he said inbetween sobs. "You guys are so good to each other...I just can't help myself!" The Diamond Dog continued to cry out loud sobs. The two ponies simply chuckled a little at the thought of someone like him acting in such a way before returning to their assigned duties.

Further down into the lair, Rarity and Spike were following the small Diamond Dog, Spot, through a rather large, pitch-black tunnel. It was so dark, that it was necessary for the Unicorn to use a light spell in order to be able to see clearly. Spot, on the other hoof (or claw in his case), opted to carry a portable lantern to light the way.

"Ugh...This tunnel is WAY too dark for my liking!" the Unicorn complained. "I can barely see a hoof in front of my face! Why is it that the rest of the cavern is lit up while this passageway is comPLETELY pitch black?!"

"Grrrrr...would you quit whining ALREADY?!?!" shouted a frustrated Spot. "We have enough problems right now without you around, if you recall!!" Grumbling, he then added, "And to answer your question, the reason that THIS tunnel isn't lit up yet was because it was recently dug out!"

"Recently dug out?" repeated Spike in question. "You mean by those diggers you and Vinyl were talking about?"

"Of COURSE it was the diggers!" the dog replied a bit loudly. "There's no way that a Diamond Dog would ever dig out a tunnel like this!"

"How could you possibly tell?" asked Rarity. "You creatures create so many tunnels around here, so how do you know that it wasn't dug by one of your own? It looks just as shoddily-made as all of the other tunnels..."

Spot groaned a bit and pulled out a piece of paper from out of his vest pocket; it was a map of the entire tunnel system that made up the lair. "Look here: Do you see how all of these tunnels have been carefully created?" he asked them. "You might think that we don't pay attention to every last detail like you do, pony...and you're right. But we at least pay enough attention to make sure that we dig out each and every tunnel as carefully as possible!"

"Why's that?" asked Spike.

"Because this cavern is more than just a place for us to dig gems..." the Diamond Dog began to explain to them. "It's also where we all live! And if we DON'T dig out our tunnels carefully, we'd be subject to cave-ins frequently and someone would most DEFINITELY get hurt!" Spot then added, "But these digging machines are making all these new, huge tunnels all over the place, with no regards to our well-being at all!!"

Rarity and Spike were a bit surprised to hear that. Apparently, the one thing that the Diamond Dogs thought was more important than valuable gemstones was the safety of their own kind. "I see..." the Unicorn responded. "I have to admit: It's very generous that you value the safety of your own more than anything else...Perhaps I was a bit hasty to think otherwise..." Rarity then told Spot, "I'm still not pleased about being here or around you, but I shall still help you to save your home and everyone in it."

"...Hmph. Just don't get in the way." huffed the dog. "And if you could do us all a favor, keep your whining to a minimum."

"...Fine." the Unicorn responded grudgingly as they continued down the tunnel.

Back with Mega Pony and Fido, the pair had just now entered the room that contained the digger machine that had already been disabled. The robot was shocked when he saw the large contraption before him; the digger seemed to resemble an ape-like creature of some sort. It had a rather large body, similar to that of a bodybuilder. It had a big chest area that was black with a red circular jewel-like decoration in the middle, complemented with two, large, red shoulder pads. Its head was also rather big, and it consisted of a yellow helmet and an underbite that was bigger than its overbite.

The machine's arms were long and thin, and at the end of each one, there was an oversized drill bit; it was clear that those drills were what the machine had used to dig around the Diamond Dogs' lair. Instead of legs, the machine had a pair of tracks, the working part that also allowed tanks to be able to move, and on the lower front part of it, there were four long, sharp spikes. Finally, there was a third arm on the machine with a claw at the end of it, extending out of what appeared to be a backpack.

"Is that the digging machine...?" asked Mega Pony, almost speechless after seeing the mechcanical behemoth before him.

"That's it, alright." Fido confirmed with a nod. "This is the machine that's been causing trouble for all of the Diamond Dogs here."

"Well, I don't blame you for showing so much concern...I mean, just LOOK at this thing!" said the robot, still a bit shocked. "Whoever built this wanted to be sure that it was ready for anything..." He then walked over to the inactive contraption and told Fido, "Alright...I'll do a quick scan and see what information I can get from it..." Mega Pony then put his right front hoof on the machine, which would allow his internal devices to obtain important info regarding its name, what it was desgined for, and, hopefully, what its weakness were, if any.

After a few seconds, the robot pony took his hoof off of the machine, having just finished scanning it. "So, what did you find out?" asked Fido.

"Quite a bit, actually." the mechanical pony replied. Looking at the downed mechanism, he explained, "This digging machine is known as MEU-1, a Mining and Excavation Unit; codename 'Guts Driller'. Apparently, it was designed using blueprints from other machines...No names were listed, though...just some more serial numbers: 004, 027, and 075..."

"What do they mean?" asked the dog.

"Beats me..." Mega Pony replied. "What I do know is that this machine was designed not only for digging, but also for combat as well. Apparently, its creator must have assumed that it would meet with some resistance. It's heavily armored, well-equipped with all sorts of weapons, and is capable of being able to fight in an underground environment."

"How does it do that?" Fido then asked.

"Well, it's equipped with powerful hearing devices, so that it can use its sense of sound to move around, even when its surroundings are completely pitch-black." Mega Pony told him. "However, it has one fatal flaw, which you and your friends discovered. Its hearing devices work a little TOO well, and because of that, it is unable to handle any noise that's at a particularly high volume."

"I see...so that's what happened!" the Diamond Dog exclaimed. "When Vinyl's music played on the radio when we encountered this machine, it must have been loud enough to make it malfunction and shut down!"

"That's what seems to be the case here..." agreed the robot. "But there's more: This mechanoid was only one of four diggers that were built; the others are MEU-2, MEU-3, and MEU-4. According to what I could find, the other three machines were built exactly like this one."

"So now it's just a matter of finding them and making sure that they hear Vinyl's loud music." Fido stated. "But how are we going to find the other diggers?"

Before another word could be said, a beeping sound suddenly came out of Mega Pony's helmet. It was then followed by a familiar voice. "Mega Pony! Mega Pony! Are you there, dear?!"

"It's Rarity!" the robot exclaimed. He then put his left front hoof up and tapped his left ear with it before saying, "Mega Pony here. What is it, Rarity?"

"I think we've found what appears to be one of the diggers!" the Unicorn told him over the communicator.

"Really? How can you tell?" the robot asked.

"Because it's chasing us RIGHT NOW!!!" Rairty screamed in panic.

"What?!"

Elsewhere in the tunnels, the Unicorn fashionista and her companions were running as fast as they could to avoid getting run down by the Guts Driller behind them. Unlike the one that Mega Pony found, this one was still fully functional, and was using its drills to try and swipe at Rarity, Spike, and Spot.

"Sweet Celestia!" the baby dragon exclaimed. "That thing's humongous!!"

"Of course it is!!" yelled the Diamond Dog. "We wouldn't be having any problems if it was tiny!"

Rarity was panting heavily from exhaustion, but did her best to ignore it in order to stay ahead of the mad mechanoid behind them all. "Mega Pony...!" she said between gasps. "What should we do...?!"

"Stay as far ahead of the digger as possible, and try to lead it into the living quarters!" the robot told her. "Fido told me that's where most of the sound equipment is set up, so it's more likely to hear Vinyl's music there than anywhere else! I'll contact Vinyl and Octavia to let them know."

"Alright, then...I'll try my best!" the Unicorn responded before cutting off their connection. Mega Pony then went ahead and began contacting the rest of the team in the living quarters to warn them of the impending robot attack.

"So one of the other three diggers is comin' this way, huh?" asked Vinyl after Mega Pony told them what was going on.

"Yeah, I'm afraid so, Ms. Vinyl." the robot told her. "It's chasing Rarity and the others right now!"

"Oh dear..." Octavia chimed in. "Is she okay?"

"Right now, yes...but we'll all be in really big trouble if we can't get our plan to work!" Mega Pony said, a bit worried.

"Don't worry 'bout a thing, Mega!" Vinyl said to him while glancing over her turntables and other equipment. "Octy and I got all of my DJ equipment set up. So once that thing shows its ugly mug, it'll get more wubs than it can handle!"

"Okay, good to hear." Just then, after finishing his comment, Mega Pony then heard rumbling right near where he and Fido were. When they looked over to see what it was, they were horrified to witness the emergence of another Guts Driller, active and ready to cause some damage. "Uh oh, we've got more trouble!" the robot then said to Vinyl and Octavia. "Another digger just showed up! We're on our way to the living quarters, so get ready to play that music!"

"You can count on us, Mega Pony." Octavia told him. "Be careful." After switching off her communicator, the Earth Pony then asked her friend, "Did you hear that, Vinyl?"

"Loud and clear, Tavi." the Unicorn DJ answered her. "Two of those diggers are comin' this way, and I'm willin' to bet that the third one'll show up, too."

"Most likely." Octavia agreed.

"I've got the perfect song to play for when those brutes get here, and it's probably my loudest one yet." Vinyl continued. "I WAS planning to play it at the gig I was supposed to go to tomorrow, but I suppose now's the perfect time to test it out!" The DJ then added, "There's just one thing, though: This music's meant to be performed with the help of TWO ponies, and the other one was originally supposed to be Neon..."

"Are...you asking me to-?"

"I know you're not a fan of dubstep, Tavi...but right now, this song's the only thing that's gonna save our flanks!" Vinyl reminded her. "This is life and death we're talking about here...So, I'm askin' you...as a true friend: Will you come on up here and help me give the performance to end all performances?"

The Earth Pony thought for a while; while it was true that electronic music wasn't anywhere near her favorite, she knew that her friend needed her help now more than ever. Octavia smiled and nodded, saying, "Very well, then...As you yourself have said in the past, let's blow the roof off of this place, Vinyl!"

The Unicorn gasped a little; after all, this was the first time that she had actually managed to get Octavia to help her perform one of her dubstep songs. Vinyl smiled and levitated a pair of headphones over to her friend before saying, "Alright, Tavi...Just follow my lead, and the rest'll be a piece of cake!"

Not long after the pair did a final check on all of their equipment did the ground began shake and rumble. "Here they come..." said Octavia, sweating a little. She then asked Vinyl, "Are you sure that I'll be able to do this with you?"

"You'll do fine, Tavi." the Unicorn DJ assured her. "I wouldn't have asked ya if I didn't think you could do it." The Earth Pony smiled, happy to know that her friend had so much faith in her.

The rumbling began getting louder and louder, meaning that the diggers were getting closer and closer. "Brace yourselves, ponies..." Rover told Vinyl and Octavia. "Here they come...!"

All of a sudden, there was a loud BANG, followed by the sounds of spinning drills, revving tank tracks, and hysteric screaming. The two Guts Drillers that were chasing Mega Pony, Rarity, and the others had just emerged from the tunnels and entered the living quarters. A second later, the third machine appeared as well, in pursuit of some of the Diamond Dog guards.

"There they are!" exclaimed Octavia. "Those must be the diggers right there!"

"Woah...! Those things're MASSIVE!!" added Vinyl, surprised a little. The DJ regained her composure and stated, "Well, they ain't scarin' me one bit! I'll take 'em all down with the power of wubs!" Turning over to her sepia-colored friend, she asked her, "You ready to kick up things up a notch and drop the bass?!"

"For the first time, it would be my pleasure, Vinyl!" Octavia answered. She then switched on the equipment and the two music-loving ponies began playing what was indeed the loudest piece of music that anypony in Equestria had ever heard. The beat was hard, the volume was high, and the sound covered so much of the caverns, that there wasn't a single soul that couldn't hear it.

Vinyl, of course, was having loads of fun playing her newest work. However, surprisingly enough, so was Octavia; the pony that, up to this point, never cared for dubstep, seemed to be having just as much fun as her roommate, just as Mega Pony, Rarity, Spike, and the Diamond Dogs were enjoying listening to it.

The only ones that WEREN'T enjoying Vinyl's music were the three Guts Drillers. Just like the first one, they began acting strangely upon hearing the loud song all around them. Sparks began shooting out of their heads, they began twitching violently, and their arms began flailing around. Finally, it was too much for them to handle, and two of the diggers' heads exploded almost immediately, toppling over and hitting the ground hard, no longer capable of performing their duties.

"They did it!!" cheered Mega Pony. "They destroyed the diggers!"

"That was so awesome!" Spike exclaimed happily. "Those junk heaps didn't know what hit 'em!"

But Rarity wasn't nearly as happy when she noticed something peculiar. "Wait, hold on: Something's wrong..." she told everyone in the room.

The others were confused at first, but when they saw that one of the Guts Drills was still active, they understood why she was so concerned. "I don't understand..." Fido began, getting worried. "That song was just as loud as the music that the first digger heard! So why isn't it blowing up, too?!"

"I'm not sure," Mega Pony started saying, "but if I could harbor a guess, I believe that Vinyl's song only caused the machine to malfunction slightly. It's still active, but now it seems to be going berserk!"

The robot was right: The remaining Guts Driller was still showing signs of being affected by the Unicorn DJ's dubstep music, but instead of destroying itself, the digger went haywire, driving itself all over the place and smashing apart whatever got in its way. In its crazed state, the mechanoid swung one of its drills towards where Vinyl and Octavia were. Luckily, the Earth Pony reacted quickly and pushed her friend out of the way before avoiding the drill herself. The pair got out okay, but the sound equipment was smashed beyond repair.

Once she recovered her wits, Octavia asked her roommate, "Vinyl! Are you alright??"

"Yeah, thanks to you." the Unicorn replied. After they both stood up, the pair saw what was left of all of the DJ equipment. "Aw, crud! That stupid thing smashed all of my stuff! Without that song, there's no way to stop it now!"

"Quick! Everyone get to a safe place!" shouted Mega Pony. "There's not much time!!"

All of the others went to higher ground in order to escape the rampaging digger. But as Rarity began running up the stairs, she heard screaming nearby. When she turned around to look, the Unicorn fashionista saw that Fido, Rover, and Spot were being chased by the Guts Driller.

The three Diamond Dogs were running as fast as they could to stay ahead of the dangerous machine, but it seemed to be gaining on them. "Run faster!!" screamed Spot. "That crazy thing's still behind us!!!"

The canines picked up their pace, but gasped when saw that they had accidentally ran right into a dead end. The trio screeched to a stop and tried to look for a way out, but it was no use; they were trapped, and the Guts Driller was closing in on them. "Rover...! Why did you lead us over here?!" asked Fido.

"Me?! I was following Spot!!!" argued the bigger Diamond Dog.

"Don't you try and pin this one on me!!!" yelled the small dog. Their argument quickly subsided when they heard the whirring sounds of the drills behind them. The Guts Driller was ready to strike them down as the three ducked and covered in a futile attempt to protect themselves...

But just when all seemed lost, a large boulder, surrounded by a sparkling, blue aura, suddenly flew through the air and struck the digger's drills, successfuly smashing one of them off completely. This sudden attack caused the Guts Driller to reel back, temporarily stopping it from doing the unthinkable. The Diamond Dogs slowly opened their eyes when they realized that they were still alive. "What...what happened...?" asked Fido, confused.

"What are you three doing still standing there?!" shouted a familiar voice. "Get out of there before that HORRID machine flattens you into pancakes!" The trio was shocked when they heard that it was none other than Rarity saying that; as it turned out, it was her who was responsible for throwing the large rock at the digger to stop it. The Diamond Dogs had no time to ask why she decided to save them; they simply ran as fast as they could to reach the staircase leading up to a higher cliff.

Once everyone was safe, the group watched as the Guts Driller continued trashing everything that it could see. Luckily, it wasn't equipped for climbing stairs, so there was no chance that it would get to the cliffs above. Still, the crazed machine was presenting a problem, and it had to be stopped. "We might be safe up here for now," began Mega Pony, "but if we don't do something soon, that digger will most definitely destroy the entire cavern!"

"But what're we gonna do?" asked Spike. "That thing smashed up all of Vinyl's sound equipment! That means that she can't play her song anymore!"

"The little dragon dude's right:" the blue-maned Unicorn chimed in. "I can't make any music without my turntables and stuff! Without it all...my special talent's practically useless right now..."

Right after Vinyl had made her comment, Octavia then recalled something she had heard earlier in the day, and got an idea. "No, Vinyl..." she told her friend, "your musical talent will still be able to save us all!"

"Huh? How?" asked the DJ.

The sepia-coated mare then turned her attention to Mega Pony and told him, "Mega Pony! Use your copying power on Vinyl and see if you can get something that will help us out!"

The robot gasped; in all of the confusion, he had forgotten about using his Copy Chip to do just that. "Ah! Of course!" he exclaimed. "That could do the trick!"

"What're ya talking about, Tavi??" asked Vinyl, confused.

Octavia then explained to her friend, "Just allow Mega Pony to touch your cutie mark, Vinyl...I know it sounds strange, but trust me: You will see what I mean."

Vinyl wasn't sure what her friend was talking about, but something in her mind told her that she could trust her advice. "...Alright, Tavi." she responded. "If there's one thing that I've learned from you, it's that you always tend to give advice that makes some sorta sense." The Unicorn DJ then walked over to Mega Pony and presented her mark to him. "Alright, Mega...do what'cha need to do."

Mega Pony nodded and immediately pressed his hoof against Vinyl's cutie mark. As it had done in the past, his horn and the mark began glowing brightly for a few seconds, followed by a small explosion of light. Once he was done using his Copy Chip, the robot then did a quick analysis of the weapon he recieved in order to figure out what it did and how it worked. Once he was finished with that, he then told everyone, "Okay...I think this will do the job...But there's only one way to find out for sure..." Mega Pony then swapped out his default weapon and changed his color scheme to match Vinyl: A white body, and a bright blue helmet and hooves. And, of course, the DJ's musical cutie mark was on his flank now.

Vinyl, needless to say, was shocked at what she saw. "Sweet Celestia..." she uttered with a gasp. "How'd he do that??"

"Just watch, Ms. Vinyl..." Rarity told her. "I'm certain you'll be impressed with what he does next, whatever it is."

The robot then jumped down to the low ground below, and prepared to face the malfunctioning Guts Driller. When the digger noticed that something was behind it, it immediately turned to face him and spun its remaining drill. It then charged ahead, ready to mow Mega Pony down.

"He's gonna fight that thing by himself?!" asked Spot. "He's NUTS!!"

"Naw, he knows what he's doin'!" Spike assured the Diamond Dog. "Just watch him! That digger's goin' down!"

As the Guts Driller came closer and closer, Mega Pony began drawing energy into his horn. As it charged up, small blue electrical sparks came flying out of it, and the horn even began glowing a light blue color. By the time it was fully charged, the wild machine thrust out its drill towards the mechanical pony.

But before it could even reach him, Mega Pony then unleashed the energy he stored into his horn, firing a large, white beam at the metal monstrosity. At the moment it was fired, a loud sound filled the room, similar in volume to Vinyl's music. The sudden noise caused everyone in the chamber, even Vinyl herself, to cover their ears. The beam continued forward and struck the Guts Driller with incredible force. Fueled by the power of sound waves, the beam caused the beast to sputter and spark even more. Its head began spinning, its arms shook violently, and its entire body quaked and rattled. Finally, at long last, the sound wave beam proved to be much more than the digger could handle, and the machine exploded into thousands of pieces, which scattered all over the living quarters.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Bass Cannon ***

The rest of the group above uncovered their ears and opened their eyes once the final Guts Driller had been destroyed. They all looked in awe at what remained of the devious device. All that was left was a charred shell, barely recognizable at all. "Oh my goodness..." Rarity spoke up in astonishment.

"Woah...THAT...was epic." Vinyl added.

"For once, I can most certainly agree..." Octavia stated.

Mega Pony took a deep sigh and blew away the small puff of smoke that came out of his horn before swapping back to his standard colors. He glanced over and saw the others running over to meet up with him. "Awesome job, Mega!" Vinyl congratulated him. "You totally trashed that thing!"

'Thank you, Ms. Vinyl," the robot responded, "but this couldn't have been done without all of your help. Thanks to everypony - and dog - here, those digging machines won't cause any more trouble!"

"Yes, I think that we should feel very proud of ourselves and each other that we were able to work so well together." Octavia stated. "Despite our differences and attitudes towards each other, we were capable of performing a task that anypony else would have thought to be impossible." The Earth Pony then glanced over at Vinyl and added, "And through it all, we learned to care for each other and be able to co-exsist."

The Unicorn smiled at her friend upon hearing that. It was clear to her and everyone else that their eariler grievances towards each other were now in the past.

Fido then walked over to the Unicorn DJ and said to her, "Thank you, Ms. Vinyl, and all of your friends, for helping us get rid of those digging mahcines once and for all! Now we can finally dig for gems again in peace!"

"Hey, no prob, dude." Vinyl replied. "Happy to lend a helping hoof...But next time, if you need my help with something, try asking me instead of kidnapping me."

"Um...yes...o-of course." the red-vested dog responded.

Rarity then walked over to Spot and said to him, "Well...I suppose I should say that I am happy that all of you will be able get your lives back to normal now..."

"And why's that?" asked the small dog, in a slightly bitter tone.

"To be honest," the Unicorn continued, "when you showed concern towards your own kind, I was pleased to hear that you considered their health and well-being to be the most important thing, even before your desire to obtain gems...Perhaps you three might have some good in you after all..."

"Um...thanks." Spot replied. He then paused for a second before adding, "And I guess I should...I should...well...thank you...for saving me, Fido, and Rover from the driller earlier..."

Rarity glanced over at Spot after hearing what he said to her. She then put a small smile on her face and said, "...You're welcome." before walking over to Mega Pony and the others. The four ponies and dragon left the caves soon after.

Once they were gone, the three Diamond Dogs stood there in place, thinking about what had just happened. "Say...you guys..." Rover suddenly spoke. "Did ya notice that Rarity seemed a lot...nicer that time when she was talking to us...?"

The others nodded yes in response. "Maybe she's not as bad as we thought she was..." Fido said to them all. "After all, she helped us out when we needed it..."

"...Maybe. We'll see, I suppose." Spot told his friends. "Now come on...we've got some cleaning up to do before we get back to digging. And we'll start by removing all this scrap metal from this chamber." The other dogs nodded in response before getting to work.

Outside, in Rambling Rock Ridge, Mega Pony and the others were heading back home after performing a job well done. The robot pony sighed happily as he said, "I'm glad that's all taken care of. Now the Diamond Dogs can live in peace again, and not have to worry about losing their homes." He then put on a look of concern and added, "But...there's still one thing that bothers me..."

"What's that?" asked Vinyl.

"...Who built those digging machines?" he then asked. "Somepony had to have been behind their construction. Unfortunately, my scan of them didn't tell me who was responsible for it...This is starting to feel like the Para-Bot attack all over again."

"It certainly does seem to be the case..." Rarity told him. "I got that feeling myself when that one began chasing me back in the tunnels...There was definitely something similar about how that dreadful machine acted compared to the Parasprite robots..."

"Which means, in all likelihood," Octavia chimed in, "that whomever created the Para-Bots may have also been responsible for those diggers as well."

"But who??" asked Mega Pony. "And why??"

"Don't worry yourself, Mega." said Vinyl calmly. "You'll find that jerk someday, and you'll stop them! For now, just be happy that you and all of us were able to stop whatever that guy was tryin' to do in the Diamond Dogs' cave!"

"You're right, Vinyl." the robot replied, easing up a little. "I'll find out who they are soon...Until then, I'll work hard to make sure that they don't cause any more trouble for anypony! Anyway, changing the subject..." he then said, looking over at Vinyl and Octavia, "I'm also glad to see that you guys are friends again."

"Thank you, Mega Pony." the Earth Pony responded. "Of course, that's assuming that we had ever stopped being friends at any point today."

"Yeah, Octy's right." the DJ agreed. "All we did was have an argument; we've had 'em in the past, and we're probably gonna have a few more later on...But there's no way that I'd ever stop bein' friends with her, no matter how angry I might get towards her."

"Same for me." Octavia then stated. "We may not always agree with each other, but Vinyl and I know for a fact that nothing can destroy true friendship. Our bond may take a beating every now and again, but in the end, we'll always try come out of it, and be even better friends as a result. It's like the old saying goes, 'That which does not kill us only makes us stronger'."

"That is a good attitude to have, Ms. Octavia." Rarity told her. "Perhaps I should take you both to see Twilight later; I believe you might even help her compose a letter to Princess Celestia about what you both learned."

"Send a letter to the Princess herself? I'm in!" said Vinyl. Octavia simply nodded yes to say that she was okay with the idea as well.

"I'm sure my mom would love to read what you have to write to her." Mega Pony told them.

Octavia then glanced over to Vinyl and said to her, "You know...I have to admit something, Vinyl." The Unicorn DJ looked over at her, wondering what she was going to say. "Although classical is still my favorite style of music and always will be...I have to tell you, when I was behind the turntable and performing that song to stop the diggers, I felt an incredible rush while I was up there...It's hard to describe, but it was unlike anything I had ever experienced!"

"...You serious, Tavi?" asked Vinyl, not sure if she heard her correctly.

"Very." the sepia-coated mare simply replied, smiling. "I must say...it was actually quite enjoyable to be up there, playing that music with you...It's something that I shall not soon forget, Vinyl..."

"Wow, thanks for sayin' that, Tavi." the white-and-blue maned pony told her. She then smirked and asked, "So does this mean that you'd like t' do some collabs with me and perform at clubs all over Equestria?"

"...Vinyl, I had an epiphany, not a brain aneurysm." Octavia informed her in a more serious tone.

"...Huh? What's a 'brain anniversary'?" Vinyl asked, not understanding the word her friend used.

The Earth Pony slapped her face with her left front hoof, groaned, and replied, saying, "No, not an anniversary, Vinyl! An aneur-" She then stopped after she realized that she was raising her voice out of frustration. Octavia then took a deep breath to calm herself and said, "Never mind...I'll tell you when we get home."

Mega Pony, Rarity, and Spike chucked to one another at the whole thing. Not long afterward, the Unicorn fashionista began sniffing the air in a perplexed manner. "What's that smell...?" she asked herself, sniffing as deeply as possible. "It's hard to tell...but it seems to smell sort of like..." Her pupils then shrank to a smaller size once she realized what it was. "...Burning pancakes...! Oh no!!" The others watched as Rarity galloped to town as fast as possible. "Sweetie Belle!!! That better NOT be you messing up MY KITCHEN!!!!" she screamed in distress.

"Rarity...!!" Spike shouted, clutching onto the Unicorn's violet tail as tightly as he could. "Slow down!! You almost tossed me off your back!!"

[Unknown Location / Time: 22:37 (a.k.a. 10:37 p.m.)]

"...Hmmmm...so the Guts Driller units failed, huh?" a shadowy figure asked a pair of small creatures before him. The creatures appeared to be no bigger than the size of a head, had dark-colored faces and small beady eyes with a pair of tiny feet on the bottom of their very small bodies. Their other defining feature was the yellow helmet that each one wore on the top of their heads. The pair nodded yes to answer the other individual's question.

"I see..." the figure replied. "And did either of you happen to find out who was responsible for destroying them both?" This time, the pair shook their heads to say, "No."

"Hmph...well you two better hope that the boss is in a good mood, 'cause he's certainly not gonna like to hear about this one." the figure warned them. "However, if you tell him as delicately as possible, he might NOT turn the two of you into matching soup bowls."

This remark made the two creatures shiver in worry.

"Now...get out; both of you." the figure ordered. "You've given me more bad news than I really wanted t' hear..." The creatures nodded yes and did just as they were told. After they did, the figure then got up and said to himself, "First those bug robots failed, and now this...Seems as though the boss's plans for this place aren't gonna be as easy to implement as he had hoped..." The figure then chuckled and added, "Oh well...at least we'll get a little bit of enjoyment out of it...And as for whoever it is that's tryin' to play hero, I'll see to it that they...crash and burn..."

The figure then walked into a faint beam of light, extending what appeared to be an arm of some sort; at the end of its arm was a drill, and he began revving it up to emphasize his threatening words...

NEXT EPISODE: "Equestria-Fried Chicken"

Episode 106: Equestria-Fried Chicken:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

Some time ago, Mega Pony visted a schoolhouse in Ponyville to speak to the students in Ms. Cheerilee's class. He, along with Princesses Celestia and Luna, taught the young colts and fillies about pursuing their hopes and dreams, both for those who possesed their cutie marks, and those who hadn't yet earned them.

This was a lesson that wasn't new to one of the schoolchildren; Apple Bloom, the younger sister of Applejack, aspired to earn her cutie mark and find out what she was meant to do with her life. To that end, she, along with her two best friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, formed a club designed to help them and anypony else to earn their cutie marks. From then on, the three of them together became known as, "The Cutie Mark Crusaders", and ever since, they had tried all sorts of different things in order to find out what it was that they were best at.

Though they have yet to succeed at earning their marks, the three of them haven't yet given up. Today, the three young fillies are heading to their clubhouse to think of what they should try to do this time. But they will soon find a rather interesting surprise waiting for them...

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony and guardian of Equestria.

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo: Cutie mark-seeking fillies.

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon: Bratty Earth Pony fillies.

Fluttershy: Animal-loving Pegasus. Element of Kindness.

It was a quiet, peaceful weekend afternoon in the town of Ponyville, though it was a little cloudy outside. It was also the time when Apple Bloom, Applejack's younger sister, had planned to meet up with her two best friends and hang out for the day. The three of them were walking down a short dirt path that led through Sweet Apple Acres' apple orchard. Before they reached their destination, Apple Bloom passed the time by telling her two friends about the day that the two Princesses and Mega Pony had visited their school.

The first of Apple Bloom's friends was a Unicorn filly; more specifically, it was Rarity's younger sister, Sweetie Belle. Although she still lived in her parents' home, she was not too far away to be able to see her friends and older sister from time to time. The other one was a Pegasus filly named Scootaloo. She had an orange coat, along with a fuschia-colored mane and tail and light purple eyes. Of course, like Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo had not yet earned her cutie mark, and her flank was as bare as the other two.

"And then, Mega Pony let out this huge light, and th' last Manticore dropped like a ton'a bricks!" the Earth Pony filly told her friends, having just finished up recounting the events of what happened at the school.

"Wow...that sounded so neat!" complimented Sweetie Belle. "He REALLY took down three Manticores all by himself?"

"You betcha." Bloom answered her.

"That's so cool!" Scootaloo chimed in. "I never heard of anypony that could fight off three huge, snarling Manticores single-hoofed! ...Well, perhaps maybe Rainbow Dash; she probably could do that too." She then sighed and added, "If only I hadn't busted my back leg trying to do those scooter stunts, I would've been there to be able to see it!"

"Yeah, me too..." Sweetie Belle then said. "Of all the days that I had to have a sick day from school, it HAD to be that day...!"

"Well, that was your own fault for forgetting your toothbrush when you came to visit me after the accident." the Pegasus filly reminded her. "Then you wouldn't have had to borrow mine and catch a cold."

"...You sound just like my big sister..." the Unicorn mumbled to herself.

"To be honest, guys," Scootaloo then told them, "the thing that I REALLY would've wanted to see was Princess Luna giving Diamond and Silver the riot act." She then chuckled a little and said, "I'll bet that was pretty funny to see, wasn't it, Apple Bloom?"

The Earth Pony giggled a bit before replying, "Oh, it was funny, alright...You should've seen th' looks on their faces when they heard what the Princess had t' say about 'em!"

Sweetie Belle couldn't help but find it funny as well, and she, too, giggled upon hearing what Apple Bloom had said. Just then, the little Unicorn felt something drip onto her nose, causing her to stop suddenly. "Huh? What was that...?" she asked herself.

The other two filles stopped and turned around when they noticed that their friend was no longer following them. "Hm? Something the matter, Sweetie Belle?" Scootaloo asked.

"I'm not sure, but I think I felt something drop on my face..." the little Unicorn answered.

"Really?" asked Apple Bloom. Just then, a small drip fell down onto the Earth Pony filly's face as well. "Wait! I jus' felt somethin' too!"

The trio looked straight up and saw that the clouds above had gotten darker. Then, all of a sudden, it began to rain: Not too heavy, but enough to drench anypony that happened to be walking outside. "Aw, ponyfeathers!" Scootaloo complained. "I forgot there was supposed to be a rainstorm today!"

"What do we do now?!" asked Sweetie Belle, putting her front hooves over her head to try and block some of the raindrops.

"Our clubhouse ain't that far away," noted Apple Bloom, "so if we hurry, we can get there without gettin' soaked too much...!" After that suggestion of hers, the trio ran as fast as they could to get to the tree where their clubhouse was.

The three fillies finally reached a small, yellow treehouse somewhere in the middle of the apple orchard. It had a brown roof with a set of stairs that led up to the front door. On the right side of the treehouse, facing the front entrance, there was a second set of stairs that led to a floor above, which appeared to be a watch tower of some sort, with a telescope extending out of the window. This was the clubhouse where Apple Bloom and her friends hung out and did all sorts of things, most of which involved trying to find their special talents and earn their cutie marks. Because of this, they called themselves, "The Cutie Mark Crusaders".

After they all ran inside, Sweetie Belle quickly shut the door behind them. After pausing for a moment to catch her breath, the Unicorn then whined, "Awww, my coat's all wet!! No fair!! I already HAD my bath this morning!!"

"And look at my mane!" Scootaloo complained next, pointing at her now-drooping mane hair. "It's so wet, that it keeps dropping in front of my face!" The Pegasus then blew the drooping part of her mane hair back up, but it just dropped right back over her eyes.

"Don't ya'll worry, Ah've got some towels here ya'll can dry yerselves with..." Apple Bloom informed them as she wrung out the water in her pink bow, letting it drip into a small, metal bucket. Once she felt it was dry enough, she put it back on and said, "Alrighty then...since it's rainin' outside, we'll try for some special talents that involve stayin' indoors this time. Ah'll just go 'n get the list and then we can-"

As she spoke, Apple Bloom stepped on a large object covered with a tarp, causing her to trip over it. She tried to keep her balance, but the Earth Pony filly fell over onto the wooden floor.

"Woah...WOAH...WAAAAAAGH!!!"

Noticing the slight accident, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo rushed over to their friend's aid. "You alright, Apple Bloom?" asked the little Pegasus. "What happened?"

"Ah guess Ah must've tripped over somethin'..." the yellow filly answered, groaning a little. The three of them glanced over at the tarp-covered object that had been in Apple Bloom's path.

"Isn't that the tent from when we tried to get cutie marks in wilderness survival training?" asked Scootaloo.

"Oh yeah...Ah remember that!" Apple Bloom chimed in. "Boy, was THAT a rough day we had, right Sweetie Belle?"

"...I ate a butterfly..." Sweetie Belle muttered, trembling a little, her irises shrinking to the size of dots. "...It was so small...beautiful...I was so hungry..."

"Not this again..." grumbled Scootaloo, sighing. "We told you a thousand times: We HAD plenty of food with us! And a tent! You didn't HAVE t' sleep in that hole in the ground!"

"You're just lucky ya'll didn't see her cuddlin' that armadillo like it was her teddy bear..." Apple Bloom noted. "Ah saw it while Ah was headin' to the river t' wash up, and it creeped me out somethin' fierce."

The orange Pegasus' face showed a look that was a mixture of both confusion and queasiness. Quickly changing the subject, she then asked, "Okay, disturbing pictures in my head aside...what's up with the tent? What did you put under it?"

"Nothin'..." answered Apple Bloom. "At least, Ah don't REMEMBER puttin' anythin' under it..." Poking at the large lump under the tarp, she then added, "Ah wonder what this thing is...?"

"Why don't we pull it off and SEE what it is?" suggested Scootaloo.

"Are you CRAZY?!" asked Sweetie Belle, distressed. "What if it's a big, snarling, pony-eating monster from the Everfree Forest?!? What if it's sitting there, just WAITING for us to pull off the tent so that it can munch us all up?!"

"...Well, for one thing," the orange Pegasus replied, "if it WAS a big, horrible monster, it would've attacked us by now."

"...Good point." the Unicorn admitted.

"Well, in that case...Ah'm gonna go ahead and see what it is." And after Apple Bloom made that statement, she then swiftly pulled off the tarp and threw it aside. But what they all saw underneath it caused them to gasp in unison: For under the tent was none other than Mega Pony himself, who appeared to be in some sort of a deep sleep.

"...Is that...Mega Pony...?" asked Sweetie Belle, still not believing what she witnessed.

"Sure looks like him..." Scootaloo chimed in. "But what's he doin' in our clubhouse?" She then walked over to the robot and tapped his helmet, shouting, "Hey! Wake up! Wake up!! Can't you hear me?! Wake UP!!!" But no matter what the little Pegasus did, Mega Pony did not respond at all. "I don't get it...why isn't he wakin' up??" Scootaloo then asked

"...Maybe he ain't sleepin'..." Apple Bloom figured. "Maybe somethin's wrong with him, and that's why he ain't movin'..."

"But what is it?" asked Sweetie Belle. "How are we gonna find out?"

"Well, we could start by lookin' all over him and seein' if there's anythin' unusual..." the Earth Pony filly decided. "You girls look around every inch of 'im and tell me if ya'll find anythin'." The other two fillies nodded and the trio began their inspection, searching for any clues as to what caused Mega Pony's inactivity. So far, nothing was found, until...

"Hey, what's this?" asked Sweetie Belle, finding a small button on the back of the robot's neck, which was blinking red. She then went to press it on instinct, but...

"Sweetie Belle!!! Don't do that!!!" shouted Apple Bloom. "Ah said to tell me if ya find anythin', not 'press random buttons on Mega Pony just 'cause they're blinkin'!"

"Yeah, what she said!" added Scootaloo. "I mean, what if that's his self-destruct button?!"

"Self-destruct...?" asked the little Unicorn.

"Yeah, don't you watch movies, Sweetie Belle?" asked the Pegasus. "Everypony knows that ALL robots have a self-destruct button on them somewhere!"

"Really...?" asked Apple Bloom, not convinced. "On the back of his neck? Where he can't even reach it?"

"Uh..." uttered the orange filly; she didn't think about that fact. "Okay, so maybe THAT button isn't for his self-destruct, but-"

"Oh, it isn't?" asked Sweetie Belle, smiling. "Then I'll press it then!"

"Sweetie!! NO!!!!" shouted Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. But it was too late: the little Unicorn already pressed the button on Mega Pony's neck. Once she did, the blinking stopped, and a slight humming sound could then be heard, gradually getting louder.

"Hey! Look at that!!" Scootaloo exclaimed, pointing her right front hoof at the robot's horn, which was now glowing a bright white. The three of them watched as the glow got brighter and the humming sounded louder. Then, all of a sudden, a beam of light shot out of the horn, causing an image of some sort to form out of it. The Cutie Mark Crusaders watched as the image took shape. When it was done, the image displayed from the light beam took on the form of none other than...

"Princess Celestia!!" exclaimed the three fillies in surprise upon seeing the image.

It was indeed the Princess that had created Mega Pony. But it wasn't really her: It was actually a holographic display of the benevolent Alicorn. The hologram then began to speak. "Greetings...My name is Princess Celestia, ruler of the country of Equestria." it said.

"Wait...I know what this is..." Scootaloo spoke up. "This is one of those things that has a pre-recorded message on it! You know, like R2-P2."

"Lemme guess: You got that from a movie, right?" asked Sweetie Belle.

"Uh, DUH. Where else WOULD I get it from?"

"Would ya'll be quiet?" Apple Bloom asked of her friends. "Ah'm tryin' to listen to this..." The others got the message and kept silent in order to hear what the princess had to say.

The holo-message then said, "If you are listening to this message, then it means that Mega Pony, the robot that lies before you, has somehow become inactive. But do not be alarmed...He is most likely alright. He has merely entered a Sleep Mode in order to preserve his remaining energy. Mega Pony only enters this state if his energy reserves are very low...However, his power can be restored right now; all you have to do is follow these instructions carefully..."

The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at one another, then nodded to say that they were ready to do what they needed to do.

"First," the hologram then continued, "press the square-shaped button on Mega Pony's helmet; this will open a compartment on the right side of his body. Inside, there should be a blue can with the letter 'E' printed upon it. Open it, and then pour the liquid inside it into Mega Pony's mouth. Afterwards, he should wake up and become fully functional once more. When he does, stay with him to make sure that he is okay. In time, he will either teleport back to Canterlot Castle, or I will come by to pick him up myself, if necessary. I know I am asking a lot from you, but right now you are the only one who can help my son...I promise that I will be eternally grateful to you for your service not only to Mega Pony and myself, but to all of Equestria as a whole...Please help him...You're his only hope..."

With those last words, the hologram stopped playing and disappeared. After it was done, Scootaloo looked around Mega Pony's helmet and found the button that Celestia was talking about; it was located on the side of the helmet, under his right ear. "I think this was it..." she muttered as she pressed the button.

Sure enough, a small part of the right side of the mechanical pony's body opened up, and inside was a blue canister: It was one of the many E-Tanks that Celestia had made to assist her creation. "Here it is!" said Apple Bloom, taking the can. However, she wasn't sure how to open it at first. She then glanced over at Sweetie Belle, her Unicorn horn specifcally...and got an idea. "Hey, Sweetie Belle, could ya'll do me a favor?" she then asked.

"Sure. What is it?" Sweetie responded.

"Tilt your head down a bit."

"Like this?" Sweetie Belle said as she followed Apple Bloom's instructions. She moved her head down so that she was staring at the floor and her horn was now aligned horizontally. Then, without warning, the yellow filly took the can and quickly pushed it onto Sweetie's horn, so that the pointy appendage would poke a hole on the top of it. "HEY!!" the little Unicorn shouted in an annoyed tone. Tilting her head back up, Sweetie Belle looked up at her horn, which now had some of the black fluid from the E-Tank dripped all over it.

"Sorry..." Apple Bloom apologized. "Ah didn't know how else t' open it. Whoever made these here cans didn't design 'em with hooves in mind." The Earth Pony filly walked over to where Mega Pony's face was and used her left front hoof to open his mouth. She then slowly and carefully poured the liquid from the E-Tank into his mouth, making sure that every last drop went down his artifical esophagus.

Once the can was emptied out, Apple Bloom closed Mega Pony's mouth shut, just as Sweetie Belle walked over, using a towel to wipe the liquid from off of her horn. "Well, I guess we just hafta wait and see if he wakes up..." Scootaloo noted. The three of them watched the robot and hoped that what they did would help him wake up.

*******************************************************

DATA LOG: UNIT PCN-001; CODE NAME 'MEGA PONY'...

EXTERNAL ENERGY INPUT DETECTED. MAIN POWER SUPPLY AT 100%.

SUSPENDING SLEEP MODE...INITIATING RECOVERY MODE...

SOLAR CORE: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY

CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY

INTEGRATED CIRCUIT CHIP: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY

VARIABLE TOOL SYSTEMS: FUNCTIONING NORMALLY

MEMORY BANKS: *ALERT* ABNORMALITY DETECTED

MEMORY FILES HAVE BEEN CORRUPTED. ERROR CODE 112-COTC

TELEPORTATION UNIT: *ALERT* ABNORMALITY DETECTED

UNIT HAS SUSTAINED HEAVY DAMAGE AND IS INOPERABLE. ERROR CODE 118-TSHS

AUTO-REPAIR PROGRAM INITIATED. CURRENT PROGRESS AT 2%...

*******************************************************

"...Uhhnnn...urrrgh..." The Cutie Mark Crusaders watched on as Mega Pony began to moan a little, slowly waking up and rolling himself back onto all fours, though he did not try to stand up yet. The robot then slowly opened his eyes and uttered, "Uhhn...where...am I...?"

"Look, girls! He's okay!" said Apple Bloom happily.

"...Apple Bloom...?" said the robot, still in a daze. "Is that you...?"

"Yeah, it's me, Mega Pony." the yellow filly answered him. "Ya'll gonna be okay?"

"Um...I guess so..." the mechanical pony responded. "Why? Did something happen to me just now?"

"Apparently." Scootaloo told him.

"Then what was it, exactly?" he then asked the three fillies.

"How should we know?" the orange Pegasus asked him back. "We just found ya like this...You were under a tarp in our clubhouse, and when we saw you, you were totally knocked out. Don't you remember what happened to you?"

"...I...I can't for some reason." Mega Pony informed her. "Something scrambled my memory banks recently; no matter how hard I try, I can't access my memories of anything else that happened today..."

"Huh?" Sweeite Belle began. "Does that mean you've got pneumonia?"

"You mean, 'amnesia'..." Scootaloo corrected her.

"Whatever." the little Unicorn replied, huffing slightly.

"I guess I do..." the robot answered. "If that's the case, my Auto-Repair program should be trying to fix the problem right now...But, it might take some time before it's done...Not only that, something also damaged my teleportation unit, so I can't just warp back home and tell Mom..."

"Well, if ya want, ya'll can stay here until you remember what ya forgot." suggested Apple Bloom. "Our clubhouse ain't that small, so we wouldn't mind if ya'll had t' stay here a bit."

"Really?" asked Mega Pony. "You really don't mind if I'm here?"

"Of course we don't mind." Scootaloo answered him. "I mean, the only thing cooler than having you stay here with us is having you AND Rainbow Dash here at the same time!"

"Besides," Sweetie Belle added, "it's raining really hard out right now, and you wouldn't wanna get yourself all wet, do you?"

"Uh...I guess you have a point there..." the robot responded, chuckling a little. "Well, I guess I can stay here for a bit...I'll try not to get in the way of whatever you're doing."

"Well, alrighty then!" said Apple Bloom with a smile. "You stay here as long as ya need to...Ah'll also let mah big sis know that you're gonna be here; maybe she might be able t' help ya out." The Earth Pony filly then walked over to the window, where there was a tin-can phone set up that stretched a line all the way to the Apple Family's home nearby.

Mega Pony smiled, happy that the three of them were nice enough to help him out when he needed it. However, he was still worried about his sudden loss of memory. (What happened to me...?) he thought to himself. (What caused my memory banks to malfunction...?)

Meanwhile, outside, in the town of Ponyville, it was still raining relatively hard. Most of the ponies had already retreated into their homes by this point, but there were some that were still out, trying to get home. Among them were a pair of Earth Pony fillies: Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, who were wearing matching-color umbrella hats to keep themselves dry. The two of them were students in Ms. Cheerilee's class, just like Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo were. However, the two of them thought themselves to be better than everypony else, and liked to make fun of ponies that didn't have cutie marks yet. Unfortunately, it seemed that even after they were lectured by Princess Luna some time ago, they didn't seem to have changed their attitudes much.

"UnbeLIEVEABLE!!" groaned Silver Spoon. "What in the name of Equestria were those Pegasi thinking, having a rainstorm TODAY of all days?!"

"Yeah, I know!!" grumbled Diamond Tiara, equally as frustrated. "It was PERFECTLY fine a few minutes ago, and now we've got THIS!! What? It couldn't have waited to pop up until AFTER we leave the Ponyville Arcade?!" Huffing, she then added, "And the WORST part is, I STILL didn't beat that blank-flank Button Mash's high score in Ms. Pac-Mare!!"

"Well...you have to admit," the grey filly began, "he's pretty good at all of those games: I'm honestly surprised he didn't get a cutie mark for being good at video games yet..."

"It's not fair!! How is that talentless pony better than me at something?!" asked Diamond in frustration. "Well, I'll show him one day! And that goes for everypony else too!!"

Silver sighed a bit to herself. (I hate it when she gets like this...) she thought. (Ever since that day at school when the Princesses showed up, she's been super-stressed out...I guess what Princess Luna said to us really got to her...) But before the grey Earth Pony could think about it any more, she suddenly caught sight of something in front of her and her friend. "Hey...D.T., what's that up ahead?" she asked, pointing.

"What's what?" asked the pink filly. She then looked ahead and saw something that looked like a chicken, but it was too foggy from the rain to see it clearly enough. Sighing, she then answered her friend, saying to her, "It's probably just one those animals that belongs to that yellow Pegasus who lives in that cottage around here..."

"Well, whatever it is, it's coming this way..." Silver noted. The creature in question was indeed walking towards them, bobbing its head back and forth. However, as it neared them, the pair began to notice some peculiar things about the mystery animal: The first was that its wings seemed to be too big to be chicken wings; in fact, they appeared to look more like dragon wings. The rest of its body was about the size of a chicken's body, but its tail was long and spiky, and the body itself was green and scaly. The only parts of it that seemed to really resemble a chicken were its head and feet.

"What the...?" began Diamond, confused. "What the hay kind of chicken is that??"

Diamond may not have known what it was...but Silver did. Trembling, the grey Earth Pony backed up and replied, "Th-that's not a-a-a chicken...It's a-"

But before Silver could finish her statement, the creature looked straight towards the two fillies, showing a pair of eeire, glowing, red eyes. Right on cue, the grey filly ducked and covered, but Diamond, not sure what to do, ended up staring straight at the unknown creature. "What's going...on here...?" the pink filly asked. "I feel...weird..." Then, all of a sudden, the bratty pony was completely silent.

Silver, noticing that her friend wasn't talking anymore, glanced over and gave out a horrified gasp: Where Diamond Tiara once was, there now seemed to be a perfect stone statue of her instead. That's because it WAS Diamond Tiara; she had somehow become petrified. "NO!! Diamond!!!" Silver Spoon screamed. "Speak to me!! Please tell me you're okay!!!" But there was no reply.

Just then, the creature let out a loud squawk, which got the grey pony's attention. Knowing that she had to get out of there quickly, and that there was nothing that she could do about Diamond's condition right now, Silver ran as fast as she could, eyes closed tightly.

About two and a half minutes later, the grey filly finally stopped under a tree to catch her breath. It was at this point that the rain began to slow down a little. Figuring that she had escaped the weird and dangerous creature that had turned her friend to stone, Silver opened her eyes to try and figure out where she was. To her surprise, she saw that she was not far away from Sweet Apple Acres. Looking at the farm from where she was, she asked herself, "Isn't this the farm that Apple Bloom lives in...?"

Silver thought about her situation: On one hoof, it would be very embarrasing for her to ask for help from somepony that she and Diamond picked on frequently, and there was a good chance that they wouldn't want to help her anyway...But she also knew that her friend was in serious trouble right now, and there wasn't going to be anypony else around to ask help from instead. Silver sighed and said to herself, "...Alright...I'll do it...I know Diamond's gonna hate me for it, though..." She then grudingly walked towards the farm, hoping that somepony there would help her.

Meanwhile, in the Cutie Mark Crusaders' clubhouse, the four ponies inside were busy with all sorts of different things. Mega Pony, who was still trying to remember what had happened to him earlier in the day, decided to keep himself busy in the meantime, and helped plug up small leaks in the clubhouse's roof. Sweetie Belle was drawing with her crayons, making all sorts of pictures. Most of them were of her and her older sister, Rarity, but there were also some of flowers, animals, and other cute little things. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, on the other hoof, seemed to be having a heated conversation with each other...

"Now let's get one thing QUITE clear." said Scootaloo. "I most definitely told you!"

"You did not." Apple Bloom responded.

"Yes I did."

"Didn't."

"Yes I did!"

"Didn't."

"Yes I did!!"

"Look, this ain't an argument!" Apple Bloom then shouted.

"Yes it is." the orange Pegasus simply replied.

"No it isn't, it's jus' contradiction." the yellow filly explained.

"No it isn't."

"Yes it is."

"It is not."

"It is! Ya jus' contradicted me!"

Right in the middle of the "discussion", there was a knock on the door. It then opened, revealing the guest to be none other than Applejack, Apple Bloom's older sister and friend of Mega Pony. In her left front hoof, there was a tin lunch box; in her right front hoof, a bright, yellow umbrella. "Hey ya'll." she said to them. "Jus' bringin' some cookies for ya'll to much on; compliments of Granny Smith." She then looked over at Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, and listened in to what they were saying.

"Look, if I argue with you, I MUST take up a contrary position." the little Pegasus stated.

"But it ain't just sayin' 'No it isn't'." the yellow Earth Pony responded.

"Yes it is!"

"No it isn't." Apple Bloom explained, pulling out a nearby dictionary to help support her point. "An argument's an intellectual process! Contradiction is the just the automatic denial of anythin' the other pony says!"

"No it isn't."

"Yes it is!!"

"Uh...Apple Bloom? Scootaloo?" Applejack said, interrupting. "...What in the hay are you two doin'?"

"Tryin' to see if we can get cutie marks in professional arguin'." the yellow filly answered. Glancing at her bare hind quarters, she then added, "But so far...nothin'."

"Yeah, me neither..." Scootaloo chimed in, looking at her flank as well. Turning to Apple Bloom, she then told her, "Maybe we should try something completely different..."

The two thought about it for a while when, all of a sudden, Sweetie Belle suggested, "How about this: We could try to teach sheep how to fly! Has anypony ever tried to do that before?"

"Uh, no..." answered Applejack. "And Ah think there's a reason for that." She then turned over to Mega Pony and asked him, "So what's up, Mega Pony? Ya'll feelin' any better?"

"Yeah, a little bit. Thanks." he replied. "I just wish I knew what happened to me earlier...Whatever it was, it must've been pretty major to scramble my memory banks so badly..."

"Ah'm sure you'll figure it out sooner 'r later." the orange Earth Pony told him. "Don't try t' rush it." Mega Pony nodded to say that he understood. Not long after that, there was another knock on the door. Applejack glanced over, a bit confused; she wasn't expecting anypony else to be in the general vicinity of the farm, especially in this weather. "Now who could that be...?" she asked herself, walking over to the door to open it.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at one another, equally as perplexed as Applejack was. "Apple Bloom?" asked Scootaloo. "Did you invite anypony else to the clubhouse today?"

"Ah was gonna ask you the same thing..." the yellow filly replied, shaking her head no to answer her friend's question.

"I know I didn't invite anypony to come by..." Sweetie Belle added. "Who could it be?"

Everypony got the answer to that question once Applejack opened the clubhouse door. There, standing in front of the entrance, was Silver Spoon, exhausted from her trip down to the clubhouse, and also shivering from the cold, wet weather outside. "Somepony...help me..." she uttered weakly.

"SILVER SPOON?!?" exclaimed the CMC in unison.

A few minutes later, the little grey pony was given a small blanket and a mug of hot chocolate to warm her up. Giving her the mug, Applejack told her, "There...that oughtta help ya feel better."

"Oh...um...yeah, th-thanks..." Silver responded, still shaking a little as she accepted the warm beverage.

"So...what were ya'll doin' walkin' around in the rain like that?" asked the orange Earth Pony.

"I think a more important question is what she was doin' here in the first place." Scootaloo chimed in. Facing the grey filly, she told her, "Last time I checked, you NEVER come here for a friendly visit. The only times you and Diamond Tiara ever come by here is to make fun of us!" The little Pegasus then glanced around, noticing that there was another thing that seemed strange about the whole situation. "On that note...where IS Diamond Tiara, anyway??" she then asked.

"...D-D-Diamond...?" Silver Spoon asked, her voice beginning to break up. Then, all of a sudden, she began to cry quite loudly.

"What?! What'd I say?!?" asked Scootaloo.

Mega Pony walked over to Silver and patted her on the head. "Calm down, Silver...Everything's going to be okay..." he said, trying his best to help her stop crying. Eventually, his words and actions eased the little filly up and she ceased her bawling. "Now, please tell us: Did something happen to you and Diamond earlier? Is that why you're upset?"

"Mhmm..." the grey filly answered, nodding her head yes. "It...it happened just a few minutes ago...We were just leaving the Ponyville Arcade and heading home when it happened..."

"What was it?" asked Applejack. "What happened?"

Silver Spoon seemed uneasy about telling them all what happened, which was understandable, given the circumstances. But eventually, she spoke up, telling them, "Diamond...she...she turned to stone!"

"Turned to STONE?!" exclaimed the others.

"Wait a second...Apple Bloom, doesn't this sound kinda familiar?" asked Sweetie Belle.

"Actually...it does." the yellow filly replied. She then thought for a while, trying to remember a time that was similar to their current problem. Then, it came to her: "Wait, that's it!!" Apple Bloom then asked, "You and Diamond must've come across a Cockatrice, didn't you?"

Silver Spoon, taken aback, asked her in a pouting tone, "How did YOU know what it was?"

Applejack then narrowed her eyes and inquired her younger sister, "Yeah...how DID you know about somethin' like that?"

"Um...well..." the yellow filly began, sweating a bit, "it happened a long time ago...It was when me and mah friends were stayin' over at Fluttershy's house. We saw one'a Fluttershy's chickens runnin' into the Everfree Forest, so we decided to chase after it...And that's when we saw the Cockatrice; right after he turned that poor lil' chicken to stone! And...well...if it weren't for Fluttershy starin' it down, we would've ended up the same way..."

"...Ah see..." the orange Earth Pony responded, in a bit of a stern tone. "And...ya'll didn't tell me about this because...?"

"A-Ah was gonna tell ya, big sis! Really! Ah was gonna tell ya!" Apple Bloom assured her older sibling. Then, under her breath, she added, "...In about fifty years from now..."

Applejack sighed and asked herself, "Why doesn't this surprise me...?" She then looked over to Silver Spoon and inquired, "So, ya'll came across a Cockatrice, right?" The grey filly nodded yes. The orange Earth Pony then thought about everything so far, and realized something. "Wait...that don't make any sense...What was a Cockatrice doin' in the middle of town? They're supposed to be in the forest..." she noted.

"How should I know?!" asked Silver. "It's not like I asked it to show up in front us like that!"

Puzzled, Applejack then asked Mega Pony, "Say...Ah don't suppose ya'll could make any heads 'r tails out of this, could ya?" However, the robot did not respond. Confused, the orange Earth Pony asked him, "Mega Pony...? Didn't ya hear me?"

The mechanical pony's irises had shrunk to a much smaller size, and his mouth was hanging open, as if a sudden thought had just come to him. "...I remember..." he uttered.

"Huh? What'd ya say?" asked Applejack.

"...I remember now!" the robot exclaimed. "I remember everything now!!"

"What's he talking about??" asked Silver Spoon.

"My memories...What I came here to do...What happened to me earlier...Everything!" Mega Pony exclaimed.

"Wait, you mean you got your memory back?!" asked Scootaloo. "That's great!!"

"Well...yes and no..." the mechanoid told the little Pegasus.

"What do you mean?" asked Sweetie Belle.

"Well," began Mega Pony, "it all started back at Canterlot Castle..."

...Some time after I woke up this morning, one of the castle guards told me that my mom, Princess Celestia, wanted to talk to me. So after doing a quick check of my systems, I walked to the throne room to meet up with her. Once I got there, I saw her standing in front of the throne, talking with her advisor, Mr. Kibitz; probably about her schedule for the day. Once he left, I went over to her and said, "Good morning, Mom."

She then looked over at me and replied, saying, "Good morning, Mega Pony...Did you sleep well?"

"Fine. Just fine."

"That's good..." Mom then asked me, in a serious tone, "So, I assume that you got my request to see you as soon as possible, correct?"

"Yeah, I did." I answered her. "The guard came by my room to tell me. What's up? Is something wrong?"

Mom sighed a bit and told me, "Last night, my sister had recieved some rather unsettling news during her nighttime duties...There have been reports of Cockatrice sightings outside of the Everfree Forest."

"Cockatrices?! Those creatures that can turn ponies to stone just by staring at them?!" I asked. "What were they doing outside of the forest??"

"That is something that neither I, nor my sister, have been able to find out." she told me. "The important thing right now, however, is that something must be done before it is too late." She then turned to me and added, "Mega Pony, you are the one most suited to deal with the sudden Cockatrice uprising; since you are an artificial being, you should be immune to being petrified. I need you to prevent the creatures from causing any harm, and if possible, figure out what has caused them to leave the forest and and deal with it, whatever it may be."

"Of course, Mom." I said to her with a nod. "I'll do anything to prevent the Cockatrices from turning anypony to stone."

"...After I was given my assignment, I teleported to Ponyville, not far from the forest's entrance, and began looking around for any sign of the creatures." Mega Pony explained to them.

"So what happened next?" asked Apple Bloom. "If you were out lookin' for those Cockatrices, then how'd ya wind up in our clubhouse?"

"The last thing I remember was that something struck me in the head...But I couldn't tell what it was." the robot answered her. "It must have been pretty hard, though...When I came to, my internal clock showed that I'd been inactive for well over two hours...Not only that, my energy supply was getting dangerously low. So, I used what little power I had left to find some shelter...I remembered that there was going to be a rainstorm today, and I knew that not many ponies would be outside, so I figured that, until I could find some help, I should conserve my energy as much as possible..."

"Ah see...so that's why ya'll showed up here." Applejack figured out.

"Yes...But now that my systems are working properly again, I can finally complete my mission and stop the Cockatrice uprising." Mega Pony glanced out the window and saw that the rain outside was slowing down considerably. "The storm will be over soon; which means that everypony might start going outside again." he told the others.

"But if they do," Sweetie Belle began to say, "then they'll get turned to stone too!"

"Exactly. Which means I have to figure out what's going on before that happens!" the robot told them. "I'm heading out right now!"

"...I'm coming with you, Mega Pony!" said the voice of Silver Spoon, getting up out of her chair and running over to him.

"You're WHAT?!" asked Scootaloo in surprise.

"You heard me." the grey Earth Pony told her. "I'm going with him to help him find those jerks that turned Diamond to stone!"

"Oh, no...Ah can't let ya do that!" Applejack protested. "If you go out there, you might get turned t' stone, too! You're best just stayin' here where it's safe!"

"I'm not sure that idea's any better." Mega Pony informed the orange pony.

"What d'ya mean?" the apple farmer asked him, slightly surprised.

"I mean that, if the Cockatrice problem is as bad as my Mom said it was," the mechanical pony explained, "staying in one spot might not be a good idea...After all, if one of those creatures showed up in the middle of town like Silver said, then there's a good chance that they might be all over the place...In fact, there's a possibility that there might even be one or two right here on the farm..."

"Oh dear..." Applejack gasped.

"As long as Silver stays with me," he continued, "she'll be safe. Since Mom said that I'm immune to the Cockatrice's petrification power, I can block out their stares so that they can't reach her. Trust me, I wouldn't say this if I didn't think that I could do it."

Applejack was still a bit skeptical about it, but decided to trust his word. "Ah see...Then, in that case..." The orange Earth Pony then looked over at her younger sister and told her, "Apple Bloom...I want ya to go with Mega Pony and stay with him at all times." She then said to Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, "And the same goes fer the two of you."

"Sure, big sis." Apple Bloom replied. "Ah promise to stay near Mega Pony. Ah know just how bad those Cockatrices are, and Ah'm sure as hay not goin' near any of 'em!"

Applejack nodded to say that she trusted her younger sister to keep that promise. She then asked Mega Pony, "Promise me you'll keep them filles safe, will ya?"

"Don't worry. I'll make sure nothing bad happens to them." he assured her. The robot then gestured the four young ponies to follow him out of the clubhouse.

Applejack watched the group from out the window and sighed to herself. (Please...come back safely...All of you...) she thought to herself, still worried about their safety, especially in the case of Apple Bloom.

Several minutes later, the group of five had made their way to the center of Ponyville safely. Before they left the farm, Apple Bloom brought a small, red wagon with her: Since Silver Spoon had told them that Diamond Tiara had been petrified, she figured that she would have to use the wagon to carry the stone pony around.

The rain was not coming down as hard as when it started, but there weren't any ponies around, as it was still pretty gloomy-looking outside. As they got to the town's large fountain pond, Silver Spoon pointed ahead and told them, "Over there; that's where we saw the Cockatrice."

The rest of them glanced over towards the fountain itself. Sure enough, they immediately saw proof that Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara had been there: The petrified form of the bratty pink filly was still standing there, with the same shocked facial expression she had when she saw the creature that turned her to stone.

"Woah..." was all that Scootaloo could say after what she saw.

"This is awful..." Mega Pony said to himself. "I can only imagine just how many other ponies got turned to stone because of those creatures..." He then turned over to the four young filles and told them all, "Stay here, all of you...I'm just going to do a quick scan of this area and see if I can find any clues that will lead us to where the Cockatrices might be hiding now."

After the robot said that and began his search around the fountain, Scootaloo glanced over at her two friends and quietly asked them, "So, girls...remind me again WHY we're helpin' Diamond and Silver?"

"Yeah, I was wondering about that too..." Sweetie Belle added. "Why ARE we helping them? They don't even like us..."

"Ah know...it seems kinda weird." Apple Bloom admitted to them. "But...well...it's just that...mah big sis always said that even if somepony's mean to ya or makes fun of ya...it doesn't give ya the right to do it back to them."

Although the Cutie Mark Crusaders were speaking at a low volume, Silver Spoon could still hear what they were saying. What the three mark-less filles were talking about had gotten her attention.

"Ah know that Diamond and Silver have never been nice to us, and they might never be..." the yellow Earth Pony continued, "But it doesn't mean that we have to act that way towards them. Remember what happened with mah cousin, Babs? We tried gettin' back at her for bullyin' us, and we almost hurt her and ourselves!"

The Pegasus and Unicorn filles looked at each other and sighed; they remembered that day pretty well.

"That's why Ah think we should help save Diamond Tiara and get her back t' normal..." Apple Bloom then told her friends. "Even if they don't like us and they have a mean personality, hating them and bein' mean t' them won't do us any good...So please...let's do the right thing and help them...Whad'ya say?"

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle looked at Apple Bloom, then at each other, still slightly unsure about what they thought they should do. In the end, though, they realized that their friend had a point. The orange Pegasus smiled and said, "Okay...I guess ya talked me into it...To be honest, I felt the same way, but I didn't want to admit it."

"Me neither..." Sweetie Belle chimed in. "But you're right, Apple Bloom. It is the right thing to do...And who knows? Maybe if we're nice to them...maybe someday, they'll stop being meanies to us."

"Maybe..." the yellow Earth Pony replied, hoping for the same.

After listening in to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' conversation, Silver Spoon was pretty surprised, to say the least. (I don't believe it...) she thought to herself. (Even after all this time...they still want to treat us like friends? But why...? All Diamond and I have ever done is make fun of them and give them a hard time...) Try as she might, the grey filly couldn't figure out why Apple Bloom and the others were being so nice to her right now.

However, Silver didn't have much time to think about it; Mega Pony had just finished his search of the area, and was on his way back to where the four filles were. "Alright, I found some bird-like tracks leading away from Diamond." he told them all. Pointing in another direction, he then added, "The tracks seem to lead to the southeast edge of town..."

"But isn't that where the Everfree Forest is?" asked Scootaloo.

"That's correct." the robot answered her. "So I need you all to promise me that you'll stick with me at all times and don't wander off, do you understand?"

"Yes, Mega Pony!" the four young ponies responded.

"Good..." The mechanical pony then started walking in the direction he was pointing in and said to them, "Now let's go...We don't have much time before everypony starts going outside." The four little ponies then followed him, heading to the edge of town.

The group nervously trekked into the infamous forest, constantly looking over their shoulders so as not to be taken by surprise. Apple Bloom glanced around at all of the wild plant life that grew around them as she pulled her wagon (which was now carrying the petrified Diamond) with her harness.

"Ugh...hasn't this place ever heard of a lawn mower??" asked Silver, complaining about the overgrowth. "Just give my daddy's lackies five minutes with this forest: They'd have it trimmed faster than you can say-"

"Silver!! STOP!!" Apple Bloom shouted as she charged towards the grey filly and pushed her onto the ground.

Once they got up, Silver shouted at the yellow Earth Pony and asked her, in an angry tone, "What was THAT for, Blank-Flank?! You could've hurt me!!"

"Well sorry, Silver..." Apple Bloom huffed. "But ya'll weren't watchin' where you were goin', and ya almost stepped in those!" She then pointed over to a field of small, bright blue, flowering plants.

Sweetie Belle gasped. "I-isn't that Poison Joke??" she asked.

"Poison Joke...?" Silver responded, calming down a little.

"Isn't that the plant that does weird stuff to ponies?" asked Mega Pony.

"Yeah, sure is..." the little yellow pony replied. "Ya'll should've seen what it did to mah big sis and her friends."

"AND what it did to us when we went on that cruise and island vacation." Scootaloo added. "Of course that was just ONE of the weird things that happened there..."

Once she realized that Apple Bloom only shoved her to prevent her from walking straight into a Poison Joke field, Silver Spoon got up and said, in a bit of a mumbling tone, "...Thanks..."

"Whad'ya say?" asked Apple Bloom, a bit of a sly smirk on her face.

"...THANKS, Apple Bloom..." the grey filly repeated, not really wanting to say it. The yellow filly chuckled a little and continued on ahead, followed by the others.

Mega Pony continued to follow the path in pursuit of any of the Cockatrices. "Okay...I'm still picking up their tracks on the ground, so we haven't lost them yet." the robot told everypony.

"How do you know?" asked Sweetie Belle. "I can't see these tracks that you keep talking about."

"But I can." he informed her. "My optical sensors can switch to different types of visual modes, for different purposes...Right now, I have it set to Infrared Mode, which allows me to detect heat signatures. Because of that, I was able to detect the creatures' tracks, because they were giving off an abnormal, though relatively low, amount of heat."

"Uh...In English, please?" Scootaloo requested, not understanding any of it.

"But I was speaking-...Oh! I get it! You didn't understand what I said!" Mega Pony exclaimed, finally getting what her words meant. The robot then told her, "To put it simply, I can see the tracks because they're warmer than the rest of the ground."

"Oh, I get it now." the Pegasus responded.

Just then, Mega Pony saw something that caused him to stop suddenly. "Wait...hold on. Everypony stop moving." He told them all. "I think I found something..." The others did just as he said. The mechanical pony then switched his view out of Infrared Mode to Standard Mode. He instructed the others to stay silent as he carefully tiptoed through the bushes. The four fillies followed him, also staying as quiet as possible. When they poked their heads from out of the large shrubs, they saw a small forest clearing, and occupying that clearing were six part-chicken, part-lizard creatures; the Cockatrices.

"There they are...!" whispered Scootaloo. "We found 'em...!"

Silver glanced around at all of the terrifying creatures. She then noticed one in particular. "That's the one...!" she said, pointing to it. "That's the one that turned Diamond into stone! I'd recognize that comb anywhere!" The Cockatrice that Silver Spoon had pointed to had a small nick in the comb on its head, possibly a battle scar of some sort.

"What do we do now?" asked Sweetie Belle.

"You four are staying here, where it's safe." Mega Pony instructed them. "Leave the Cockatrices to me." The robot then thought to himself, (My teleporter's still not fully repaired yet, but fortunately, my Variable Tool System is still working...Before I left, I used the supercomputer in Mom's lab to download the weapons that I thought I would need. Hopefully, they'll be effective enough...) He then used his weapon-swapping power, changing his body color and cutie mark to Rainbow Dash's.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Sonic Rainboom ***

Once he changed weapons, Mega Pony then used it to dash forward at high speeds, heading right into the gang of Cockatrices. The creatures heard him coming, but only a few of them were able to react quickly enough to get out of the way; Mega Pony managed to ram right into one of them, taking it by surprise and knocking it out cold.

"Woah! That was amazing!" cheered Sweetie Belle. "He beat one of them already!"

"Yeah, it was pretty cool..." Scootaloo simply responded. "But Rainbow Dash would've probably gotten at least two or three of them easy...No, four; DEFINITELY four."

The remaining five Cockatrices had looks of bewilderment upon their faces. They all glanced up at the mechanical pony, who looked at them and said, "Alright...I don't know why you're leaving the forest and running around town, but if you continue to put any other ponies in danger, you're gonna have to answer to me!"

The creatures looked at one another and put fiendish smirks on their faces. Then, they all turned to face the mechanical pony and stared him down with their bright red eyes, trying to turn him into stone just like Diamond Tiara. The four fillies hiding in the bushes immediately ducked down and covered their eyes so as not to catch a glimpse of the Cockatrices' eerie glares.

But Mega Pony stood his ground, not budging an inch. Just as Princess Celestia had predicted, the Cockatrices could not turn him to stone, as their petrification power could only affect organic material (in other words, it only worked on "real" creatures, not ones that were pony-made). The robot put on a smirk of his own and said to them all, "You're just wasting your energy: My body's immune to your powers, so you won't be able to turn me to stone like you did to that filly earlier!" He then changed his body color again, swapping to a different weapon.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Magic Wave ***

With the weapon he got from Twilight Sparkle equipped and ready to go, the robot fired a trio of purple energy spheres at the creatures. The Cockatrices weren't expecting it, and as a result, the blasts managed to take out two more, leaving only three left.

"That's incredible...He's takin' 'em out like they were made out of paper!" Apple Bloom said.

"Yeah, they're hardly putting up a fight! I thought those things were tough..." Scootaloo noted.

"Not really." Silver Spoon chimed in, grabbing the Crusaders' attention. The grey filly looked over at them and added, "It's not widely known, but Cockatrices aren't actually very strong, at least not physically."

"They aren't?" asked Sweetie Belle.

Silver shook her head no and told her, "Because of their awkwardly stout bodies, and the fact that they really don't have any natural enemies, Cockatrices don't tend to get much exercise...While their ability to turn ponies to stone is powerful enough to make them dangerous, if they can't use that power somehow, there's little else they can do to defend themselves."

The Cutie Mark Crusaders were shocked at how much Silver Spoon seemed to know when it came to the part-chicken, part-reptile creatures. "How'd ya know all that?" asked Apple Bloom.

"...I...kinda read a bit in my spare time." the grey filly told them. "And I usually have a lot of spare time on my hooves."

"Well, I can tell ya one thing," Scootaloo began, "the part about them not having any natural enemies'll have to be updated now...'Cause Mega Pony's taking them all out right now!"

Back at the battle, the three remaining Cockatrices finally figured out that their petrification stares weren't going to work on the robot, forcing them to rely on scratching and pecking attacks in order to fight back. But while they had managed to get a scrape or two on Mega Pony, it wasn't causing a lot of damage; Silver Spoon was indeed right about how the Cockatrice's physical strength was very weak overall.

The mechanoid charged up another Magic Wave and fired it right at one of the creatures, scoring another knockout. "You think that's enough to stop me?!" he shouted at them. "You'll have to do better than that!" Even so, he knew that he had to end this fight quickly before the Cockatrices could attempt an escape. Fortunately, he had the perfect weapon to use against them. He then swapped colors again, this time adopting the color scheme and cutie mark of Fluttershy. Then, after a quick charge-up, he unleashed one of his most powerful weapons; he let out a powerful light from his eyes, bathing the surrounding area with a bright glow that could blind anypony who saw it.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** The Stare ***

"Urrgh!!" grunted the four young fillies as they ducked down and closed their eyes again, this time to escape the blinding glare of the weapon Mega Pony had gotten from the normally-timid yellow Pegasus. The only ones that were affected were the two Cockatrices, who both fainted as a result of the intense stare. One was completely knocked out cold; the other one managed to wake up, but was heavily weakened from the battle. It just so happened that the last creature was the one with the nick in its comb; the same one that petrified Diamond Tiara.

Mega Pony, who had now returned to his original color scheme, stared down the creature and charged up his Friendship Buster. "Alright...it's over now." he said to it, prepared to take one last shot. But then, something unexpected happened: The robot took a step back in disbelief when he saw what was in front of him: The last Cockatrice, whose face once had a very scary look upon it, was beginning to tear up. This caused the mechanical pony to suddenly stop his attack. "What's this...?" he asked himself.

"Huh? What's goin' on?" asked Scootaloo, watching the whole thing. "Why isn't he attacking it?" All four of the fillies seemed to be confused as to the bizarre situation in front of them.

"Mega Pony? What's wrong?" asked Apple Bloom. "Why'd ya stop?"

The mechanical pony then looked over at the four of them and told them, "Girls...you're not gonna believe this, but...this Cockatrice...he's crying."

The four of them were completely flabbergasted by what Mega Pony said to them. "He's WHAT?!?" asked Scootaloo.

"Come look for yourself." he replied back.

The others came out of their hiding place to see the Cockatrice for themselves. Just as Mega Pony told them, it was tearing up and seemed like it could start bawling at any time. "No way, he's right...!" stated Apple Bloom.

"What's going on here?" asked Silver. "Is he wimpering because you beat him and his jerky friends so badly?"

"...I don't know about that..." Sweetie Belle answered, looking at the creature. "It might just be a hunch, but...I have a feeling that he was upset about something long before we came here..."

"You think so?" asked Scootaloo.

"How do you know that?" asked Silver in a bit of a snotty tone. "He could be faking it for all we know! He's probably trying to trick us so he can run off the first chance he gets!"

"No, I have to side with Sweetie on this one..." Mega Pony told the grey filly. "I kinda got that same feeling myself when I saw it starting to cry...But I'm not sure why it's upset; my database allows me to be fluent in many different languages, but not one of them will help me understand this Cockatrice and figure out what's wrong with it..."

"Wait! I have an idea!!" Sweetie Belle chimed in. "Why don't we take this guy to Fluttershy? I'll bet she can figure out why's he all sad!"

The other young ponies glanced over at her in shock: It wasn't often that Sweetie Belle came up with an idea that made sense. "That's...actually a good idea, Sweetie Belle." Apple Bloom complimented her. "Fluttershy's great with animals, even ones from the forest! If anypony can figure out what's makin' this Cockatrice upset, she can!"

"But why?" asked Silver Spoon, confused. "Why do we have figure THAT out?"

"Because it might help us figure out why they started popping up in Ponyville." Mega Pony told her. "Everything happens for a reason, so something else must have happened earlier to cause the Cockatrices to come out of the forest. If we figure out what it is, we can fix it and help get them back to wherever they belong."

"That sounds good to me." stated Apple Bloom.

"...Fine, whatever." Silver said in a huff. "Let's just go and get this overwith..."

Mega Pony then told the Cockatrice, "Don't you worry...we're going to help you with whatever it is that's upsetting you. I promise." The creature seemed to understand him; not the words, exactly, but the comforting way that the robot was speaking to it. The Cockatrice wiped a tear from its eye and gave out a happy squawk in response. The group then left the Everfree Forest and made their way to Fluttershy's house.

Meanwhile, away from Ponyville, but still relatively closeby the town, was the quaint little cottage that belonged to Fluttershy, a yellow-coated Pegasus that loved to take care of animals. That fact was quite clear: The house and everything around it had homes for all sorts of critters, big and small. The trees were dotted with many birdhouses, a small, gentle stream flowed around the cottage, and there were open fields in the back for the animals to get plenty of exercise. Having so many animals living in one place would overwhlem the typical pony, but not Fluttershy; she was able to care for each and every one of them.

The sweet-natured mare was busy tending to the flowers in front of her home, watering them with a can that she held in her mouth. Once she was done, she set it down and turned to a small swarm of bees behind her. "The flowers are all nice and healthy now." she said to the black-and-yellow insects in her usual soft tone. "They're all ready for you to pollinate them."

The bees buzzed happily in response and flew right over to the bright and colorful flowers, ready to do their jobs involving the pretty plants.

Walking back into her cottage, Fluttershy grabbed a pencil (using her mouth again) and checked something off of a list hanging on the wall. After dropping the writing instrument, she said to herself, "Okay...that takes care of the bees...And I already fed all of the birds before that...That just leaves-"

But before she could finish, she felt a slight tug on her long, pink tail. She then turned around and saw a small, white rabbit behind her that was scowling a little, front legs crossed in front of it like arms. "Oh! Angel!" the Pegasus said to it, facing the rabbit. "I was just about to say that I was going to get your food next."

The rabbit's name was Angel Bunny. While Fluttershy would probably tell most ponies that she didn't have a favorite among her many animals, almost everypony believed that this rabbit was the one that she loved the most. Angel wasn't your typical rabbit, however; while most would think that rabbits were quiet, sweet little critters, Angel was a bit of a brat. In his own little way, he was quite demanding, a bit selfish at times, and occasionally liked to play tricks on others. Fluttershy never seemed to notice this, or more likely, she was too sweet-natured to address her rabbit's occasional bad behavior.

"Now you wait right there and be patient," she told Angel, "and I'll get you something really nice in a few sec-" But once again, the Pegasus's train of thought was interrupted, this time by a knock on the door. "Oh? Who could that be?" she asked herself, walking over to the door. Angel put on an even grumpier face, knowing that his dinner was going to have to wait a bit longer.

Fluttershy walked to her front door and opened it. On the other side was Mega Pony, along with Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Silver Spoon. "Fluttershy!" the robot exclaimed happily. "Good to see you!"

"Oh! M-Mega Pony?" the yellow Pegasus asked timidly. "I, um...I wasn't expecting you to come by today...Is something wrong?"

"Kinda." he told her. "That's why we came here: We need your help with something."

"M-my help? What is it??"

The group of five stepped aside and revealed the creature that they brought with them to the animal-loving mare: The Cockatrice from the Everfree Forest.

Fluttershy's eyes widened upon seeing the beast before her, and she gave out a loud gasp. "Wh-WHAT?! Why did you bring a Cockatrice here?!" she asked in panic. She then turned to the Cutie Mark Crusaders and asked them, "Didn't I tell you three about not going near those creatures?! They're dangerous!"

"We know that, Fluttershy..." Apple Bloom told her. "But we had no choice."

"W-what do you mean...?"

Mega Pony then stepped forward and told the yellow Pegasus, "Listen...there's a big problem going on in town: Late last night, there were reports of Cockatrice sightings all over town. My mom sent me to take care of it, but now we all suspect that something caused the Cockatrices to leave the forest, and that they're not just attacking ponies randomly."

"What makes you think that...?" asked Fluttershy. All the while, Angel was scampering around in the background, pointing to his wide-open mouth to say that he wanted his dinner now.

"It started crying and getting upset all of a sudden." Scootaloo replied. "But we don't know what it's upset about."

"We thought that you might be able to talk to it and figure out why he's sad..." Sweetie Belle added.

"M-me??" asked the timid mare. She then looked at the Cockatrice; she could tell that he was scared, not sure what was going to happen to him next. The yellow Pegasus then took a deep breath and said, "Okay...I'll do my best." She then walked over to the part-chicken, part-lizard animal and said to it, "You must be very frightened and confused right now, but we only want to help you with whatever is upsetting you...I know they seem very scary to you, but Mega Pony and the others are really nice ponies, and they have your best interests in mind."

Fluttershy's words seemed to have gotten to the Cockatrice; it stopped shivering in fear and wiped away the last of its tears with its wing.

"Now," the animal-loving mare began to ask, "can you please tell us what happened? What caused you to leave the forest?"

The others looked on as the Cockatrice began talking to her in a series of loud squawks that seemed to go on for several minutes. As Fluttershy listened to what the creature was saying, Angel was still trying to get the yellow Pegasus's attention, this time by striking one of the mare's china plates with a spoon like it was a drum.

When the creature had finally finished squawking, Fluttershy gasped a little. "Oh...my..." she responded in shock.

"What? What is it??" asked Apple Bloom. "What'd he say??"

"It's horrible..." Fluttershy began to tell them. "He told me that he and and his friends were driven out of their homes in the forest by some strange-looking figures. They were all being attacked and had to escape quickly..."

"That's awful!!" exclaimed Sweetie Belle.

"That also explains why they started attacking other ponies..." Mega Pony noted.

"What do you mean?" asked Silver Spoon.

"They were so distressed and confused from the sudden attack on them, that they started going after other ponies on impulse..." the robot hypothesized.

"Ah wouldn't blame 'em...If somepony drove me and mah family out of our home, Ah wouldn't know WHAT to do..." Apple Bloom stated.

"Well, what're we all standing here for?" Scootaloo asked rhetorically. "We've gotta find the guys that attacked the Cockatrices and kick 'em in the flanks!"

"Agreed." Mega Pony said to the Pegasus filly. "Whoever did this must be stopped."

But Silver Spoon seemed confused. "Wait, hold on a second..." she said, trying to figure it all out. "That mutated rooster turned my best friend into stone, and NOW we're going to HELP it?! That doesn't make any sense!"

"It's called 'being a good pony'." Scootaloo told her, a bit sore. "You and Diamond oughtta try it sometime..."

"Scootaloo, that wasn't a nice thing to say either..." said Fluttershy, a bit sternly, though still at a low volume. She then walked over to Silver and told her, "I...I know you're angry over what that Cockatrice did to your friend. But being mean to him won't solve anything, and it won't help your friend return to normal any faster..."

The grey filly's anger was slowly ebbing away as she heard what Fluttershy had to say to her.

"Hating somepony and being cruel to them is never right," the yellow Pegasus told her. "All it ever does is cause pain and suffering, and in the end, nopony ever benefits from it. But if you show even a tiny amount of kindness to them, then they might change their attitude towards you and do something kind in return..."

That comment echoed in Silver Spoon's mind. (...Do something kind in return...?) she repeated in her brain. (That...sounds familiar...) Just then, she recalled the conversation that the Cutie Mark Crusaders were having earlier...

"...Ah think we should help save Diamond Tiara and get her back t' normal..." said Apple Bloom. "Even if they don't like us and they have a mean personality, hating them and bein' mean t' them won't do us any good...So please...let's do the right thing and help them...Whad'ya say?"

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle looked at Apple Bloom, then at each other. The orange Pegasus then smiled and said, "Okay...I guess ya talked me into it...To be honest, I felt the same way, but I didn't want to admit it."

"Me neither..." Sweetie Belle chimed in. "But you're right, Apple Bloom. It is the right thing to do...And who knows? Maybe if we're nice to them...maybe someday, they'll stop being meanies to us."

"Maybe..." the yellow Earth Pony replied, hoping for the same.

Silver's jaw hung open in shock; she then realized that the reason that the Cutie Mark Crusaders were helping her was simply to show a gesture of kindness towards her. Even though she and Diamond had always been mean to the three of them, it seemed that a small part of each of the trio believed that they could all be friends one day.

Apple Bloom glanced over at the grey filly and asked her, "Ya'll okay...? You've been pretty silent fer a while..."

Silver took a deep sigh, fixed her glasses and said, "...I've...changed my mind. I'll help the Cockatrice get his home back." She then pointed to the wagon that carried the still-petrified Diamond Tiara and added, "But only if he promises to turn my friend back to normal."

Fluttershy glanced at the creature and asked it, "Did you get all of that?" The Cockatrice nodded yes and squawked a few times. The yellow Pegasus then told Silver, "He said, 'Yes, I will. Scout's honor.'" The creature did a little salute to show that he would keep that promise; it was enough to convince the grey filly.

"Alright, if everypony's ready to go, then let's get moving! We don't have much longer before everypony starts going outside." Mega Pony noted. The others nodded and followed him out of the cottage.

Angel Bunny grumbled a bit as he walked over to the front door and knocked on it with his right front paw, giving off a loud BANG each time.

Not a second longer after he did that, Fluttershy flew back inside, headed to her kitchen, and came out with a bowl full of ripe carrots. "Sorry about that, Angel..." she apologized before leaving again.

The rabbit nodded smugly, as if to say, "Yeah, that's right; we both know who's the boss around here.", before heading over to the bowl to greedily devour his dinner.

In but a few minutes, Mega Pony and the others once again found themselves in the Everfree Forest, this time in pursuit of the perpetrators that had attacked the Cockatrices and displaced them from their habitat. The Cockatrice that was with them was leading the group, followed closely by Fluttershy. The area that they were going into was even darker than where they were before, and it only seemed to get darker by the second.

As they traveled through the forest, Apple Bloom walked over beside Silver Spoon and asked her, "Say...Silver, Ah have t' ask...What made you change your mind about helpin' the Cockatrice?"

The grey filly blushed upon being asked that question. The reason that she was helping them was for the same reason that the Cutie Mark Cursaders and Mega Pony were helping her restore Diamond Tiara to normal: Because she felt it was the right thing to do. However, she didn't want to tell the mark-less Earth Pony because she thought it would be too embarrasing.

"Eh...I, uh...Th-that's none of your business..." Silver replied, trying to hide her blush and act in the way she usually did around Apple Bloom and her friends. "I-I don't need to tell you anything..." She then ran off, leaving behind a slightly bewildered Apple Bloom.

Scootaloo was walking beside Mega Pony at the time and decided to ask him a question of her own. "Say, Mega Pony..." she began. "Who do you think is behind this whole thing?"

"...I have no idea, Scootaloo." the robot told her. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was just thinking:" she replied. "Who in their right mind would attack a bunch of creatures that could turn you to stone...and on PURPOSE? That's just totally crazy!"

"You do bring up a good point." Mega Pony said with a nod of agreement. "Attacking a Cockatrice without taking any precautions is near-suicidal...I mean, you'd have a better chance of surviving a nose dive off of Canterlot Castle than surviving a fight with one of those creatures." Looking even more concerned, he then added, "The fact that somepony - or someTHING - was able to chase off SEVERAL Cockatrices so easily is what worries me; whoever or whatever they are, they must be pretty strong..."

"That, or they're just nuts..." added the orange Pegasus filly.

"Don't worry, Mega Pony..." Sweetie Belle chimed in, a smile on her face. "You'll stop them! And we'll be right here if you need us!"

The robot felt a little better from hearing that. "Thanks, Sweetie Belle." he said to her. "That means so much that you believe in me..." He then nodded and told them all, "I'll do my best to help the Cockatrices get their home back and stop whoever is causing all this trouble."

Just then, Fluttershy and the Cockatrice stopped moving, which caused everypony else to stop in their tracks as well. The creature then pointed ahead with its wing and started squawking. "We're here, everypony..." Fluttershy said to the rest of the group. "Phil here says that this where they were attacked."

"...Phil?" asked Scootaloo, eyebrow raised. "Is... is THAT the Cockatrice's name? Doesn't sound very chicken-y."

"Actually, it's his middle name." the yellow Pegasus answered her. "His full name is Chick Phil Leigh." The others looked at each other, trying to comprehend the absurdity of the creature's name. Fluttershy continued, saying, "Anyway, he says that this is where he and several other Cockatrices lived before they were driven out..."

"Does he happen to know what the attackers looked like?" asked Mega Pony.

The Cockatrice, Phil, squawked some more to Fluttershy, telling her what he remembered. The mare then said to the robot, "He said that they were orange-colored...and they looked like ponies. That's all that he can remember..."

"Orange...?" asked Silver Spoon.

"And they looked like ponies...?" added Apple Bloom.

"Doesn't sound like anypony we know." Scootaloo noted.

"It's not much information, but it's better than nothing..." stated Mega Pony. He then began walking ahead and told the others, "You guys stay back here; I'm gonna do a bit of reconnaissance."

"Reconna-what?" asked Sweetie Belle.

"It means he's gonna look around and see what's there...Duh." Silver Spoon told her, a bit of snootiness in her tone.

"Well, excuse me! I've never heard of that word before!" the little Unicorn said, a bit cheesed off.

Mega Pony slowly walked into the clearing ahead and glanced around back and forth repeatedly. Other than what he was told by Phil, he wasn't sure what to expect, and he was understandably nervous. (Okay...whatever you are...) he thought. (Where are you...?) He continued to look around, but he couldn't find any sign of the Cockatrices' attackers.

The others looked on, watching as the robotic pony surveyed the area. The area in and around the clearing was bathed in an eerie silence that suggested that something was going to happen. But what it was and when it was going to happen was a mystery to everypony.

Just then, a faint glimmer of light began to shine from the trees above, and it caught Apple Bloom's attention. "Huh?" she said to herself as she looked over in the direction of the light. When she did, she then saw what appeared to be a pony-shaped figure hiding behind the tree leaves. Squinting, she tried to get a better look at the figure and saw that it seemed to be pointing something at Mega Pony.

Suspecting that the figure was up to no good, the yellow Earth Pony filly shouted to the mechanical pony, "Look out!! Behind you!!!"

The robot looked behind him and gasped when he heard the blast from a laser, and then saw the shot coming his way. He quickly jumped out of the way in time and looked ahead at the same tree that Apple Bloom saw the strange figure hiding in. "Who's there?! Show yourself!!" Mega Pony shouted, angry that somepony tried to shoot him.

After he said that, the figure that was hiding in the tree decided to show itself to everypony (and Cockatrice) watching. The figure was revealed to be pony-like, but it didn't look like the typical pony. It appeared to be wearing armor of some kind, orange in color, with a helmet that covered its entire head. From the visor on the front of the helmet appeared to be a single, glowing, red eye. It had a short, black tail sticking out of its back and two black boots on its hind legs. Its right front leg had some sort of blaster attached to the hoof, and its left front leg was holding a large, white shield with an orange-colored rim and a reinforced glass window towards the top of it.

Mega Pony wasn't sure what was standing in front of him, but he knew one thing about it: It was downright creepy. "What in Equestria is THAT...?" he asked himself.

"What's that thing??" asked Scootaloo. "Is it a pony?"

"I'm...not really sure if it is or isn't..." Sweetie Belle responded.

"Well, whatever it is," Apple Bloom spoke up, "Ah'll bet ya bits t' biscuits that he's the guy who attacked the Cockatrice's home!"

The Cockatrice that was with them let out several angry-sounding shrieks. That pretty much told everypony that Apple Bloom's assumption was correct.

Mega Pony, overhearing the conversation that the others were having, turned to the strange figure in front of him and asked, "Is that true? Are you the one who attacked the creatures here?" But the orange-armored pony just stood there, saying nothing. "Didn't you hear me?!" shouted the robot. "What have you got to say for yourself?!"

The figure responded, but not with words. It raised its right front leg, pointing its blaster straight towards Mega Pony and fired it. Fortunately, the mechanical pony dodged the laser shot just as easily as before.

Mega Pony looked towards his attacker and told it, "On second thought...you don't need to answer that question. I'm pretty sure you're the guy I'm looking for." He then triggered his weapon-swapping ability and switched to one that he had not yet used today...

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Jawbreaker Bomb ***

Once his armor color and cutie mark changed to Twist's, Mega Pony charged up his horn and fired out the colorful explosive spheres towards his enemy. "Let's see how you handle this attack!" he shouted to it.

But the figure calmly stood its ground and raised its shield in front of it, using its left front leg. The Jawbreaker Bombs struck the shield, letting out intense explosions. But when the smoke from the blasts cleared away, everypony was shocked to see that, while the shield had been scorched a little, the pony holding it survived the attack unscathed.

"WHAT?!?" exclaimed everypony watching, including Mega Pony.

"Ah don't get it...Why didn't those work??" asked Apple Bloom, still shocked. "Those bombs were able to take down a huge Manticore! But they didn't even scratch that thing!!"

Mega Pony was just as surprised, but he didn't have much time to think about it. The figure then went on the attack again, nudging its shield aside so that it could aim its weapon and fire back. The robot reacted as quick as he could, barely dodging the shot. He then fired another Jawbreaker Bomb, only for it to be blocked by the shield once again.

(This isn't good...) the robot thought to himself, (I can't get a hit on it, and I'm barely evading all of its shots! At this rate, I won't last much longer against it...!) Even so, he was still determined to try and defeat this individual...somehow.

The orange-armored pony continued firing its weapon, as well blocking every shot Mega Pony fired at it with the shield. Eventually, the little blue robot was backed up behind a tree with nowhere left to go.

"What's he gonna do now...?" asked Sweetie Belle, pointing to Mega Pony.

"I don't know..." said Fluttershy, worried for the robot safety. "There doesn't seem like there's much he can do...Well, at least, I wouldn't know what to do if I were Mega Pony..."

"He's gotta try and hit that stupid thing somehow!" said Scootaloo, frustrated. "But as long as it's hidin' behind that shield, Mega Pony can't get it!"

The little Pegasus's comment caused a sudden thought to come to Silver Spoon. "Wait...that's it!" she exclaimed. The grey filly then shouted to the mechanical pony. "Hey!! Mega Pony!!! Listen!! You have to attack it when its shield's down!! It's the only way to do any damage!!"

"No, really?" asked Scootaloo sarcastically. "Gee, I never would've thought of THAT!"

But when Mega Pony heard Silver's advice to him, he then realized something himself. (Hold on...) the robot thought. (That thing raises its shield only when I attack it...But when IT attacks me, it has to put its shield down so that it can get a clear shot...Of course! That's what Silver Spoon was trying to tell me!) With a smirk on his face, he said to himself, "It's about time for me to take control of this fight!"

The orange-armored pony then put its shield down and charged its blaster, ready to attack. However, Mega Pony was faster on the draw and managed to shoot out a Jawbreaker Bomb before the attacker could fire its shot. And just as the blue robot predicted, the bomb was able to strike the figure before it could react defensively. Though it did manage to fire an energy bullet at Mega Pony, he was able to sidestep it just in time.

The others (apart from Silver Spoon) gasped when they saw that the assailant had finally taken some damage. "Alright! Mega Pony finally got that thing!!" cheered Apple Bloom.

"But why didn't that jerk put its shield up...?" asked Scootaloo. Just then, the little Pegasus let out another gasp and turned to Silver, asking her, "Wait, did you know that going to happen??"

"Of COURSE I did." the grey filly responded with a hint of her usual smugness. "When Mega Pony was fighting it earlier, I noticed that, whenever it attacks, it had to put down the shield. In other words, it can't put its shield up when it decides to attack."

"Oh, Ah get it!" Apple Bloom spoke up. "That means that Mega Pony can attack it when it's about to attack him!" Silver gave a confirming nod to say that she was right.

Scootaloo huffed a little. "Know-it-all..." she said under her breath.

The figure reeled back after it had been struck by the powerful explosive. It then fired back, only for Mega Pony to dodge each shot easily. As he did, he then switched back to one of his other weapons, the Magic Wave, when he noticed that his current weapon was low on ammo. After adopting Twilight's color scheme, he then waited paitently for the figure to prepare another attack. Once it raised its blaster up, the robot reacted quickly and fired the three shots of magical energy at his enemy, managing to hit it before it could fire at him.

Once the Magic Wave shots made contact, the figure sustained heavy damage and toppled onto its back in defeat, dropping its impenetrable shield. Mega Pony was about to breathe a sigh of relief, until...

"Mega Pony!! Watch out!!!" screamed Fluttershy in distress.

"Huh?!" But before the little robot could react in time, a pair of laser shots hit him right in the back. "AAAACK!!!!" he shrieked as the blasts did some considerable damage and dropped him to the ground. Mega Pony slowly got up and turned around, shocked to see that there were now two more armored ponies, just like the first one, standing there and ready to fight.

"Aw no!! Now there's two of 'em!!" Apple Bloom said, in despair.

The two new attackers fired their shots right at Mega Pony, picking up where their fallen ally had left off. The robot tried to dodge them as best he could, but he was moving a bit slower due to the damage he had sustained earlier. As a result, he ended up taking another hit to the left front leg, causing him to stumble. "Urrrgh...no...not now..." he said weakly, cringing from the damage he had taken.

"Grrrrrr... those jerks!" Scootaloo said with a growl. "Hidin' behind their shields and attacking others from behind! They're nothin' but cowards!"

"Ah agree!" Apple Bloom replied, also quite angry at the orange-armored figures. She then turned around and asked, "Ya'll agree with us too, right Fluttershy?"

But the yellow filly noticed that Fluttershy wasn't behind them anymore. "Huh? Where did she go??" asked Sweetie Belle.

"She probably ran off in terror." Silver Spoon assumed.

"Wait! Look!" exclaimed Scootaloo. "She's over there!" She then ponited ahead, towards where Mega Pony and his attackers were. The others looked in that direction and were shocked to see that the normally timid Pegasus was flying right into the middle of the fight.

"What the hay is she doin'??" asked Apple Bloom.

Just then, Sweetie gasped a little and began to ask, "Wait...is she gonna-?"

"I think she is...!" Scootaloo replied with a nod.

"What? 'Is she gonna' what?" asked Silver, confused. This time, SHE didn't know what the others were talking about.

Mega Pony, heavily weakened from the battle so far, backed away from the two figures, who were ready to finish him off. It seemed like all was lost...until Fluttershy landed right between him and the malicious figures that intended to do them all harm. Her face showed an expression of pure rage; a feeling that she rarely ever had. But when she saw that Mega Pony was getting hurt, it caused her to act on impulse to protect her friend.

"Stop hurting Mega Pony..." she said to them in an angry, yet still quiet, tone of voice. "If you take another step...I can't be held responsible for what I do next..."

Of course, the two assailants ignored her warning. They both raised their right front legs, charging up their blasters for one final attack.

That was the last straw for Fluttershy; she then looked straight towards the two figures and unleashed her famous stare. Her eyes were as big as chicken eggs, her pupils, the size of grains of rice, and her eyebrows jutted directly downwards, completing the fiercest look that the yellow Pegasus had ever had on her face.

It wasn't much longer after she put on that intimidating look that it began to affect the two armored ponies: They had frozen in place and didn't move an inch, aside from nervously jerking their heads every couple of seconds. Their eerie red eyes were also losing their glow, becoming duller and duller at a rapid rate. Then, all of a sudden, the two of them tossed their shields aside and made a run for it through the trees, vanishing from sight.

Once the attackers were gone, Fluttershy let out a small sigh. Her expression after that suggested that even she was surprised that she had been able to stop them both from hurting Mega Pony any further. "Oh...my..." she said to herself.

Mega Pony, finally managing to get back onto his feet, walked over to the timid mare and said to her, "Fluttershy...I...I don't know what to say...except...Thank you...Thank you so much...!"

Fluttershy blushed a little and replied, "Oh...um...i-it's nothing, Mega Pony...I-I just didn't want to see you getting hurt anymore..."

"Well, it means a lot to me." he told her. "You put yourself in the middle of all that just to help me out. You're a lot braver than I think YOU even realize, Fluttershy."

That comment got Fluttershy blushing even more. "Do you really think that...?" she asked. "If you don't mind me asking..." Mega Pony nodded in response to say that he did. The Pegasus giggled a little and said, "I guess...I guess I was pretty impressive out there, what with stopping those two mean ponies and all...I almost feel like I could cheer to myself for doing that!" She then glanced around a little and added, "Oh, why not? I'll do it!" Fluttershy then took a deep breath in order to let out the biggest cheer that she could. But all she managed to get out was, "...Yay."

Mega Pony giggled a little at the (very) quiet cheer. "I'm gonna do a bit more work over here for a while." he told her. "Just wait over by the others until I'm finished." Fluttershy nodded and headed back to where the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Silver Spoon, and Phil the Cockatrice were waiting.

"They did it!" cheered Scootaloo. "They beat those creeps!!"

"Yeah!" Sweetie Belle chimed in. "Did you see the way Fluttershy stared them down?"

"That's our 'Stare Master' for ya!" the orange Pegasus responded.

Silver Spoon was quite shocked, and impressed, with the performances of both Mega Pony and Fluttershy. But mostly, she was just relieved that it was all over. "Finally..." she said to herself. "Now things can get back to normal..."

Apple Bloom looked over at their new Cockatrice friend and said to him, "Well, it looks like you and your friends are gonna get your homes back now, doesn't it?" Phil then began squawking happily and hopping up and down into the air in response.

Sweetie Belle giggled and asked her friends, "You know...he's kinda cute when he's happy, don't you think?"

"I guess so..." answered Scootaloo. "Well, as cute as a part-chicken, part-lizard creature can be..."

Minutes later, the group managed to return to Fluttershy's cottage after the tough battle they had been involved in. Now that the Cockatrices' attackers had been defeated and their homes reclaimed, there was only one more matter left to take care of: Restoring Diamond Tiara to her normal, un-petrified self (even though the Cutie Mark Crusaders felt that her current state was probably an improvement).

"Alright now..." Fluttershy said to the creature. "It's time for you to keep your promise...So go ahead and turn that filly back to normal." The Cockatrice nodded and began staring at the stone pony, focusing all of his attention on her. A few seconds later, Diamond began to radiate a bright, white glow, and the stone began to disintegrate around her, breaking apart as if it was merely a shell that covered her, as opposed to being soild to the core.

Once the process was complete, the bratty pink filly was transformed back into a flesh-and-blood pony. "Uhhhnnn...wha...where am I...?" she asked herself, groaning and holding her head as if she had a migrane. Diamond began looking around, trying to process what was going on. "Huh? What am I doing in Fluttershy's house??" she then inquired. The filly then noticed the Cutie Mark Crusaders in the same room, which immediately grabbed her attention. "And what are THOSE blank-flank losers doing here?!" Diamond then asked in her usual snotty tone.

"US losers?!" Scootaloo responded, a bit ticked off. "You should be thanking us! If it weren't for all of us, you would've had to start makin' a living as a lawn ornament!"

"What are you talking about?!" Diamond then asked.

Mega Pony then calmly explained to the filly, "You were turned to stone by a Cockatrice, and we all pulled together to get you back to normal...You should be grateful for everything we did for you..."

"Hmph...that's YOUR opinion." the pink filly said rudely. "Last time I checked, I never asked them for help in the first place...As far as I'm concerned, I don't owe them anything!" She then glared over at the mark-less fillies and told them all, "Now, if you don't mind...do me a favor, and DON'T do me any more favors!" Diamond then turned towards the door and said to her friend, "C'mon, Silver Spoon...we're leaving."

The grey filly quickly turned around, dropping a pencil that she had in her mouth. "Oh! Yeah...sure, D.T.!" she said in a hurried tone of voice. She ran towards the door, leaving behind a scrap of paper that was in front of her, and the two of them left the cottage and headed for home.

Not surprisingly, the Cutie Mark Crusaders weren't too happy that Diamond didn't even thank them for their trouble. "You're welcome..." Apple Bloom silently grumbled.

Seeing that they weren't too happy right now, Mega Pony said to the three of them, "Don't get too sore at her...I'm sure, deep down, she really does appreciate that you wanted to help her out."

"We know..." Sweetie Belle said with a sigh. "I just wish she'd show it once in a while..."

"Aw, forget her." Scootaloo told her Unicorn friend. "At least we were able to help Mega Pony out. Thanks to all of us, those Cockatrices'll never have to worry about losing their homes anymore!"

"You're right, Scoots." Apple Bloom spoke up. "And even if Diamond doesn't appreciate that we helped her, Ah'm still happy that we did. And who knows? Maybe one day, we can be friends with them, like Sweetie Belle said."

"I agree." said Fluttershy. "It may take some time, but I believe that, in the end, acts of kindness will always win over cruelty, and that it's always possible to make a friend, even out of a bitter enemy..." She then looked over at the Cockatrice that was still with them and added, "Speaking of which, I think Phil here has something to say to you all..."

The creature nodded and began chirping happily at the others. Apple Bloom then asked the animal-loving mare, "Wha'd he say, Fluttershy?"

The yellow Pegasus cleared her throat and told them, "He said that he's very grateful to you all for helping him and his friends get their homes back, and that he'll always remember how kind you were to him." She then turned to Mega Pony and told him, "Oh, and...he also apologizes for knocking you out earlier in the day, and he hopes that you can forgive him."

The robot nodded yes to say that he did.

"So...does that mean he wants to be friends? With us?" asked Scootaloo. Both Fluttershy and Phil nodded yes.

"That's great!" cheered Sweetie Belle. She then ran over to the Cockatrice and hugged it tightly, saying to him, "We'd LOVE to be friends with you!!" The Unicorn then heard the creature gagging a little, telling her that she was hugging him too tight. Sweetie eased up a little and told him, "Sorry...Got a little carried away there."

Scootaloo then glanced at Fluttershy's grandfather clock and told her friends, "Say, girls...it's still pretty early. So now that's the rain's stopped, whad'ya say we get a little more crusading in?"

"Yeah! Alright!" cheered Apple Bloom. She then turned to the Cockatrice and asked it, "Would ya'll like t' come with us to the clubhouse, Phil? Ah'd love t' see the look on mah big sister's face when she sees that we're friends with a Cockatrice!" The creature chirped a little, saying that he was okay with it.

"So I guess that means you're heading back home then." stated Mega Pony. He then smiled and told the fillies, "Well, goodbye then. Have fun with whatever you do next."

"We will." Apple Bloom responded. She then asked, "You'll come back soon, right?"

"I promise, Apple Bloom." the robot assured her as he patted her on the head.

Fluttershy then said to the robot, "Um...I'll make sure they get back home safely, Mega Pony...So...if it's alright with you, of course...could you keep an eye on my house until I return?"

"Sure. No problem." he replied with a nod. "After that battle, I could certainly do with a rest..."

"Thanks...I won't be gone long, I promise." the yellow Pegasus informed him before leaving her home with the three fillies and Cockatrice.

After they left, Mega Pony glanced around the living room, taking in everything around him, as he had never been in Fluttershy's house until today. As he looked around, he spotted something on the floor; it was the scrap of paper that Silver Spoon had left behind before she left with Diamond Tiara. "Hm...? What's this?" he asked as he used his psuedo-magic to pick up the paper, seeing that there was something written on it...

"Dear Mega Pony..." he read, "I didn't want to say this in front of Diamond Tiara, because I know she wouldn't like it if she knew anything about what's written on here. But I want to tell you all something: Mega Pony...Fluttershy...and even you, Apple Bloom and your friends...I want to thank you for helping save Diamond. It was really nice of you all to help me, even though I've always been so mean to you. However...I don't feel ready to be friends with any of you yet...at least not until Diamond feels the same way, and I'm not sure when or if that will ever happen. But still, even though she may not have appreciated what you did for her, I do. Again...thank you...Thank you very much...Signed, S.S."

Mega Pony was genuinely surprised - and happy - to see the heartfelt letter written on the paper. He now knew for sure that what Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle said earlier was true; about how doing something kind for somepony often resulted in that pony doing something kind right back. The robot smiled to himself as he tucked the paper away inside his hidden compartment. Once Fluttershy returned, he was going to go to the Golden Oaks Library to see Twilight in order to write a letter to his mother, Princess Celestia...

"Dear Mom..." said Mega Pony. "Today was a pretty crazy day, but I was able to pull through it, despite some difficulty in the beginning. After it was all said and done, I learned something very important: It isn't always easy to do nice things for somepony, especially when that pony is mean to you or even treats you like an enemy. But it's important to do good things for them anyway, even if you think they don't deserve it. While it won't always happen right away, doing kind things for somepony that's mean to you may cause them to realize just how silly it is to act that way towards you...You may even end up making a friend out of them one day. In the end, it's just like my friend Fluttershy said to me: 'Acts of kindness will always win over cruelty, and that it's always possible to make a friend, even out of a bitter enemy.' ...Your loving son, Mega Pony.

"...P.S.: After you finish reading this, could you do me one little favor? I kinda need a ride back to Canterlot; my teleporter's malfunctioning, and I don't have enough energy to walk back home myself...Thanks in advance."

NEXT EPISODE: "The Ultimate Workout"

Episode 107: The Ultimate Workout

Episode 107: The Ultimate Workout:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

While Mega Pony was built for combatting dangers to Equestria and its citizens, he was also programmed to live as a normal pony as well. And since every pony needs a break from hard work every now and then, the robotic equine has decided to do just that. Today, Mega Pony is going on a trip to the seaside city of Baltimare. Joining him on this trip is Rainbow Dash, who is also taking a break from her usual duties in order to have some fun and cut loose.

However, for the two heroic ponies, they're going to find out that trouble has a way of finding them...And that they'll never know who will lend a helping hoof when trouble does rear its ugly head...

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony and guardian of Equestria.

Rainbow Dash: Self-proclaimed fastest Pegasus in Equestria. Element of Loyalty.

Princess Celestia: One of the two rulers of Equestria. Mega Pony's creator and mother figure.

*** ??? ***

It was another glorious day in the country of Equestria. It was warm outside, but not too hot that it was unbearable. And without a rain cloud in sight, it was the perfect day for a pony to go out and enjoy themself. This was even true for Mega Pony, the mechanical pony that was built to fight any and all threats to Equestria and its citizens. But today, he had no plans to do battle with ferocious monsters or petty troublemakers: This time, he planned to take a break from his usual duties and have fun with his friends for the whole day.

Today, Mega Pony was riding on a train that had left the Ponyville Train Station not too long ago. The train was bound for Baltimare, a portside city that was located on the eastern edge of Equestria. However, he wasn't taking the trip alone: Sitting on the seat next to him was Rainbow Dash, a cyan-coated, rainbow-maned Pegasus mare that the robot had known since the day he was activated. Like Mega Pony, she was taking a break from her usual work during the day; since the next few days of the week were scheduled to be bright and sunny, Dash, along with the other Pegasi that worked in the Cloudsdale Weather Factory got a few days off from work.

Rainbow Dash seemed pretty excited about the trip; she could hardly sit still in her seat, and her face showed an anxious, but happy, grin. "Omigosh, omigosh, omigosh, omigosh...! I can't believe it!" she said ecstatically, bouncing up and down on her seat. "We're actually gonna be there this year!! Ever since I first heard about it, I've always wanted to go see the annual Ponies for Fitness and Workouts Convention!!"

"You seem pretty excited to be going to this convention." Mega Pony said to her. "What's it all about?"

"Well, every year," the cyan mare began to explain, "famous athletes, fitness instructors, and all-around tough guys meet up to share all sorts of advice and tips about the latest trends involving workout regimens, sports - just about everything you can think of that involves moving around, and moving around a lot!"

"Sounds pretty interesting." the robot replied.

"Oh it is!" Rainbow Dash told him. "And best of all, the Wonderbolts are going to be showing up this year to tell everypony all about their training sessions! I've even heard that they're gonna be sharing a few of their workout secrets, too!" Getting herself even more excited, she then said, "Omigosh!! I can't wait to get there!!"

Mega Pony chuckled a little and said to her, "Well...if this convention is as good as you make it sound, then I'm really flattered that you decided to give me your other ticket."

"I still can't believe that I managed to win that contest on the radio last week that got me those two tickets!" the Pegasus noted. "Of all of the questions they could have asked me, what are the odds that it would be a quiz about the Daring Do books?" She then added, a bit smugly, "Then again, I'm not that surprised: When you're as awesome as me, good luck just tends to happen on a daily basis."

"Uh...I suppose that makes sense...I guess." the robot responded, not sure how else to reply to that. He then asked her, "So, just out of curiosity, why'd you decide to bring me with you? Didn't you ask any of our other friends?"

"Eh, they're not into fitness and sports as much as I am, Mega." the rainbow-maned pony answered him. "Well, except for Applejack...but you know her: Always has like, a million billion chores to do on her farm..."

"Uh, Rainbow...?" the robot began to tell her. "A million doesn't go before a billion in a descending numerical sequence."

"Would you mind not doing that?" Rainbow requested. "That's the exact reason I didn't want to bring Twilight with me to the convention."

"Oh...sorry about that." Mega Pony apologized.

"It's cool." the cyan mare replied. She then told him. "Anyway, the other reason I brought you along was...well, because I wanted to make it up to you for when I got mad at you...Y'know, back when you were helping me gather up those rain clouds a couple months ago?"

"Rainbow Dash, I already said that I forgave you for it." Mega Pony reminded her.

"I know, but even I felt that I got off too easy on that one." she admitted. "I'm not doing this because I feel I have to. I'm doing it because I WANT to."

The robot seemed pretty touched by what she told him. "Well, that's very nice of you to do that for me. Thank you very much." he said gratefully.

"No prob, Mega." She then said to him, "I have to ask though; is Princess Celestia okay with you shirking off work to come and go to Baltimare with me? I thought she needed you to fight bad guys and stuff."

"Well, actually, having me taking a break from my duties today was her idea." the mechanical pony informed her.

"Really? Why's that?"

"Well, yesterday," Mega Pony began to tell her, "after Mom and I got back to Canterlot Castle after the whole Cockatrice incedent..."

...we made our way to the throne room, which was otherwise unoccupied at the moment. Mom then said to me, "Mega Pony, once again, I'm proud of your work today. And I'm also happy to see that you're okay, as well. I was starting to get worried when I hadn't heard from you for so long."

"Sorry about that, Mom." I apologized to her. "I didn't mean to worry you. Believe me, I would have contacted you much sooner if I was able to."

"I understand." she told me. "Besides, you're alright, and that's all that matters." She then put on a more serious expression and asked me, "Now...about your mission; these strange ponies that you told me about on the ride over here...What did they look like again?"

"Well, my memory's still not completely fixed yet," I told her, "but if I recall, they were wearing orange armor and had these really big shields to protect them."

"...I see." she responded with a sigh. "And you're sure about this, are you?"

I nodded yes to tell her that I was pretty sure that I saw what I saw. "Mom..." I began to ask, "you wouldn't happen to know what they were, do you?"

"I do, as a matter of fact." she said to me. "I apologize if what I'm about to tell you startles you, but...those ponies that you fought...are, in fact, your predecessors."

"My WHAT?!?" I asked her in shock.

Mom then told me, in a rather solemn tone, "When I was designing your body and weapon systems, I drew up several blueprints as to what you would look like on the outside. I went through several design changes, made all sorts of alterations, and corrected anything that I felt would not work with what I had envisioned..." As she spoke, she began heading in the direction of her secret laboratory where I was created and motioned me to follow her.

Once we were in the lab, my mom opened up a file cabinet, pulling out a large sheet of paper and setting it out flat on a nearby table. I was surprised to see that the pony-like figure drawn on the sheet looked almost exactly like the three weird ponies that I had fought that day. "That's it! That's what they looked like!" I told her.

My mom nodded and then began to explain, "This was one of the many designs for your body that I had drawn up. It was designed to have excellent offensive and defensive skills...However, I quickly dismissed this idea for your appearence; my goal when creating you was to make you more like a real pony, and not just simply as a tool for combat. This body design did not meet my wishes, so I stored it away forever. To put it simply, I never intended for these robots to ever be constructed."

"But if that's true," I started asking her, "then how did three of them show up and attack me like that?"

"That's what worries me the most." Mom answered. "So far, you're the only one that I have said anything to regarding these machines. Not even Luna knows about these blueprints...How anypony could have found out about these baffles me." She then asked me, "You mentioned on the trip over here that you had scanned one of them...Tell me, what information did you obtain regarding it?"

"Not much..." I said sadly. "All I got was their name. It was called an 'Equine Joe'. Is that what they are called?"

"I never gave them a name." she replied. "More than likely, the one who stole the blueprints and built them is also responsible for naming them as well. And we need to find out who it is that's behind all these sudden robot attacks before things REALLY get out of control."

"In that case, I think it would be a good idea to tell Twilight and the others about these Equine Joe things, just in case more of them start popping up." I suggested.

"Indeed." Mom replied. "And I suppose, since my sister is in charge of investigating these attacks, that I'll have to inform her as well..." She then said to me, "Luna and I will continue to look into the matter...As for you, though, I believe some time off from your guardian duties might do you some good. Once you're fully repaired, I would like you to spend the day tomorrow just enjoying yourself."

"Are you sure about that, Mom?" I asked.

She smiled and answered me, saying, "I am. Don't worry, Luna and I will keep an eye on things while you take the day off. Everything will be okay; I promise."

"I guess I could use a rest after all the crazy stuff that's happened so far..." I admitted to myself. I nodded and told Mom, "Okay...I'll do it. Tomorrow, I'll just go out there and have some fun with my friends!" My mom seemed pretty happy to hear that from me and gave me a hug before she began repairing the rest of my systems.

"Wow..." said Rainbow Dash, pretty surprised at what she had heard. "What kinda sick jerk would be crazy enough to steal something from a Princess? And not only that, use it to build a bunch of death-bots and try to terrorize everypony??"

"I'm not sure." Mega Pony answered her. "But hopefully my Mom and Aunt Luna will figure it out soon..."

The cyan mare snickered a little. "Sorry, Mega...I just find it kinda funny that you call her 'Aunt Luna'." she told him.

"Yeah, she gets embarrased whenever I call her that." the robot responded. "I don't know why...I only call her my aunt because I care about her. Luna's one of the nicest ponies I know, and I'm proud to have her as my aunt." He then added, "Anyway, let's not think about stuff like stolen blueprints or anything like that...Today's our day to have fun and enjoy ourselves."

"You got that right!" Rainbow Dash said with a nod. Glancing out the window next to her, the cyan mare could see a city off in the distance. "There it is!" she exclaimed, pointing to the metropolis off in the distance. "That's the city of Baltimare!"

"Great!" Mega Pony responded. "Based on our current location, and the relative distance from the city, we should be there in about five or so minutes."

"Awesome!" Rainbow then asked the mechanical pony, "You have our tickets to get into the convention, right?"

Mega Pony nodded and tapped the side of his body while telling her, "I put them inside my body compartment; they'll be perfectly safe in there." Rainbow Dash then smiled and looked out the window, anxious to get to the portside city as soon as possible.

Not long after they left the Baltimare Train Station, Rainbow Dash and Mega Pony made their way to the large building that was the Baltimare Community Center, where the convention was being held. Already there was a long, LONG line stretching out from the building's entrance. "Woah...this line is huge..." the little robot said with a slight gasp. "It'll be hours before we can get in..."

"Not exactly, Mega." Rainbow told him. Showing him one of the two tickets, she explained to him, "These passes will allow us to get in right away; no waitin' in line required!"

"Really? That's great!" Mega Pony said cheerfully. "So...where do we go to present them if we're not going to wait in line?"

"We just hafta find the V.I.P. entrance." she answered him. "Then we just show the guy our tickets, and we should be allowed inside."

"V.I.P.? What's that?"

"You know; Very Important Pony."

"Oh...I see. Well then, let's go and find that other entrance, Rainbow." stated the robot. The cyan Pegasus nodded and they both walked around back to find the V.I.P. entrance. Eventually, they located it, and saw a male Unicorn security guard standing in front of it. He had a dark-brown coat and a spiky, black mane. He wore a pair of sunglasses over his eyes and wore a black suit. His cutie mark was a picture of a pair of sunglasses, much like the ones that he wore.

When the two walked up to him, the guard immediately got in their path and told them, "Hold it, you two. This is the V.I.P. entrance. The main entrance is around front."

"Yeah, we know that." Rainbow Dash told him. Clearing her throat, she then introduced herself, saying, "My name's Rainbow Dash. I'm the one who won the contest on the radio station? Y'know, station SRB-116? I should be on a list or somethin'..."

The security guard hummed a bit, slightly skeptical at the Pegasus's claims. "I dunno..." he told her. "I get a lot of ponies tellin' me stuff like that." The guard then used his magic to levitate a clipboard in front of him and began paging through it. "Let's see here..." He scanned through all of the names written down on the paper to try and locate Rainbow's name. After a while, he stopped and said, "Oh...wait, here you are...Rainbow Dash." He then looked up at the cyan mare and told her, "Looks good so far. I just need you to show me your cutie mark, just to make sure you are who you say you are."

"Yeah, sure." Rainbow then turned to show the side of her body, presenting her rainbow lightning bolt mark. She used her left front hoof to rub the mark, to show that it wasn't just painted on. "There ya go: One hundred percent real and all mine!" she told the guard with a smirk.

"Yes...I see; looks just like the one on this picture here." the guard said, referring back to his clipboard, which had both the names of ponies and their respective cutie marks (if they had any). He then put the clipboard away and told them, "Alright, that's good enough for me. I suppose I can let you in then."

"That's more like it." Dash responded with a slight smirk.

"There was also a note next to your name on my list that stated that you had won TWO tickets..." the guard then added. Looking at Mega Pony, he then asked, "I'm assuming that he is the one you brought with you today?"

"That's right." Rainbow then introduced him, telling the guard, "His name's Mega Pony."

"Um, pleased to meet you, sir..." the mechanical pony responded a bit meekly.

The guard gave a nod, finally convinced that the two of them were allowed to go inside right away. Using his magic, he unhooked a velvet rope that blocked acess to the special entrance. "Alright then...you two go on in and enjoy yourselves." he told them both. Mega Pony and Rainbow Dash nodded and walked into the Baltimare Community Center.

The pair wandered around the inside of the lobby, checking out all of the stands and booths that were set up, as well as all of the other ponies that were in attendance. There was so much activity going on, it seemed as though it would be impossible to see everything at the convention in just one day. "Woah...it's even better than I thought it would be...!" the cyan mare said in awe.

"Yeah, this looks like it could be really fun!" stated the robot. Glancing over to his left, he spotted something that interested him. Pointing, he asked, "Rainbow Dash, what's that over there?"

"Oh, that stand's for TreadMare." the cyan mare answered, pointing to the booth in question. "They sell treadmills for galloping and power-trotting." Sure enough, there were several ponies there, trying out the treadmill equipment and talking about them. Some had even decided to purchase some of exercise equipment.

"Wow..." Looking towards another booth, the robot then asked, "What about that?"

"That's for Gelding's Barbells." Rainbow then answered, glancing at the ponies trying out the heavy gym equipment. "They actually have their main HQ here in Baltimare, but they've got stores in most cities and towns. I've gotten a few barbells from them in the past; that's how I got as tough as I am now."

"Huh...if you have those things in your house, wouldn't they have fallen through the clouds by now?" asked Mega Pony.

"...Y'know, I've never thought about it." the Pegasus replied. "Does seem kinda weird." Glancing over to her right side, she then said, with some excitement, "Oh, cool! Look over there!"

Mega Pony glanced over in the same direction as Rainbow Dash, seeing a group of Pegasus stallions sitting in front of a table draped with a red-and-white banner that displayed a capital "A" in front of a picture of a large Manticore. "Who are those guys?" asked the robot.

"Those are the Appleloosian State Manticores." answered Dash. "They're the college basketball team that won the ECAA tournament this year." Pointing at the Pegasus stallion sitting in the center of the long table, she added, "And that guy in the middle is Trick Shot, their team captain." The stallion in question had an orange coat and a blond mane and tail. He had brown eyes and wore a white jacket with a red collar and cuffs. His cutie mark, appropriately, was a basketball net and backboard.

"Oh yeah...I remember that. I read about it in Canterlot's newspaper." Mega Pony mentioned. He then asked his friend, "So, what about the Wonderbolts? Didn't you say that they were showing up here?"

"Yeah, but not until 1 o' clock." Rainbow answered. "Right now, it's only 12:30." She then pointed to a clock nearby that was built onto a tall post to confirm her statement. Mega Pony nodded to say that he understood.

Just then, the two of them heard some commotion nearby. The pair glanced over and saw a large crowd of ponies gathered together in one place. "Huh? What's going on over there that's got everypony all huddled up?" asked the cyan mare.

"Not sure." said the robot. "Let's go and see." The two of them walked over to the crowd and nudged their way through, making their way to the front so that they could see what it was that had grabbed their attention.

The pair saw a small booth in front of the gathering of convention guests. The booth was covered with a small red tent, inside of which was what appeared to be a bucking bag game, like one that you would typically find in an arcade. The game was set up so that, when a pony kicked the bag with their hind legs, the machine would display a pair of numbers: One would show how powerful the kick was, and the other number determined the speed of the kick.

But it wasn't just the game itself that was causing everypony to stare in awe: It was the pony that was currently playing the game that was the main focus here. It was a female Earth Pony with a light-peach colored coat, along with a cyan-colored mane and tail. The mane was cut short and styled quite neatly, giving it a sort of wing-like appearence. She had light lavender eyes, and wore a small, blue T-shirt. Around each of her hooves was a white, fuzzy sweatband, and her cutie mark was a pair of white running shoes.

"Who's that?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Not sure." said a green-coated Unicorn stallion standing next to her and Mega Pony. "I was walking by when I noticed her playing that bucking bag game. She's been at it for almost forty-five minutes."

"Really?" asked Mega Pony. "And how's she doing?"

"Amazing!" the stallion quickly answered. Before he could say anything else, the group then saw that the Earth Pony mare was ready for another round. "Hold on, she's about to buck it again...!"

The crowd watched as the peach-coated pony did a few leg stretches first, getting herself ready. She then turned around, lifted both of her back legs, and kicked the bag with a force so powerful, everypony expected to see the bag fly clean off the machine. But the bag stayed attahced, and the game then displayed incredibly high marks for the pony's kick.

"No way...that's amazing!!" said a dark-grey Pegasus stallion.

"That's the fifth time that she's beaten her own record!" added a pale-pink Earth Pony mare.

The peach-coated pony took a deep breath and used her left front hoof to wipe some sweat from her face. "Alright..." she said. "I think that'll do for now. Time to take a quick breather." She then walked over to a large gym bag that had her cutie mark emblazoned upon it and pulled out a bottle of water from it using her mouth. She then gripped it using her right front hoof and pulled the top off of the bottle with her teeth before drinking from it.

The mare then glanced behind her when she noticed that Mega Pony had walked up towards her. "That was pretty impressive, ma'am." he said to her. "I've never seen a kick that was THAT powerful before!"

"Oh, thanks." the mare responded. "But that last buck was nothing; I was holding back a little bit so as not to break the machine..."

"Oh...I see." the robot replied, chuckling weakly a bit. Rainbow Dash didn't respond; she just narrowed her eyes a little at the Earth Pony's remark.

After the peach-colored mare finished drinking from her water bottle and set it down next to her bag, she then turned to the mechanical pony and asked him, "If not mistaken, aren't you that Mega Pony kid everypony's been talking about?"

"Y-you know about me?" the robot asked meekly.

"You bet I do." the Earth Pony answered. "Word travels pretty fast around Equestria. I heard all about ya from the town newspaper, The Baltimare Times."

"Well, I'm...um, I'm happy to know that everypony gets to know about everything that I'm doing..." said Mega Pony, blushing a little. He then asked, "So...what's your name?"

"Oh! Yeah, sorry about that...I almost forgot to introduce myself." the mare responded with a chuckle. She then told them, "I'm Adrenaline Rush. But you can just call me Addie for short."

"Pleased to meet you, Ms. Addie." the mechanoid said politely. "Well, as you already know, My name's Mega Pony..." He then pointed over to his left and added, "And this is my friend, Rainbow Dash."

"Nice to meet you both, too." Addie replied.

"Uh, yeah...sure." Rainbow responded in a less-than-enthusiastic tone. "Same here."

Noticing her tone, Addie, putting on a slight smirk, then asked the cyan mare, "What's up with you? Intimidated by my skills on the bucking bag?"

"What? ME?? Intimidated by that?! No way!" the Pegasus replied. "I could do all that in my sleep!"

"Oh really?" asked the peach-coated pony. Stepping over to the bucking bag game, she then said to Rainbow, "Then let's see just what you've got in those legs of yours. Go ahead and give the bag a kick; I'll even let you stay awake for it."

Dash grumbled a little, but decided to take her up on that offer. "Fine! I will!" she said, flying over to the arcade game.

"Um...Rainbow Dash? What are you doing?" asked Mega Pony, slightly confused. "What are you trying to prove?"

"What am I trying to prove?" the cyan mare repeated. "I'm proving that there's nothing that's too hard for me to do! Just watch, Mega Pony: I'm gonna blow away her high score on this game before she can realize it!" Rainbow Dash then prepped up her legs, lifted them high into the air and performed a very swift kick that delivered a heavy hit to the bucking bag.

Everypony watched as the display screens began to show just how powerful and how fast Rainbow Dash's kick was. Once the numbers came up, the cyan mare was shocked to see that her kick wasn't as strong as Addie's was. "What?! That can't be right!!" she complained. "That was the strongest kick I had!"

"Perhaps..." Addie replied a bit smugly, "but still not as strong as mine...Such a shame."

"Hey! Check it out!" said a pony in the crowd. "Check out the speed display!"

"Huh...?" Immediately, Adrenaline Rush looked at the machine, looking at the screen that displayed how fast the kick was. The Earth Pony was surprised when she saw that Rainbow Dash's kick was much, much faster than her last kick to the bag. (That's...that's nuts!) she thought to herself. (My buck was stronger...but hers was faster!)

Once Rainbow saw that the speed of her kick was better, she chuckled a bit and asked, "Well whad'ya know? It looks like I'm better than you at something after all, huh?"

"...Maybe." Addie replied. "But don't let it go to your head." Walking over to the Pegasus mare, she then added, "Now, Rainbow Dash was it? You might think you're pretty tough, but I've been working out and training myself ever since I was a filly."

"So have I." Dash responded.

"I've devoted nearly every waking moment of my life toughening myself up!" Addie then told her.

"So have I!"

"And most importantly," the Earth Pony stated, "I've never lost at any kind of physical challenge!"

The cyan Pegasus smirked and told her, "Neither have I..."

"...Seems as though we've reached an impasse." said the peach-coated mare. "What do you suppose we should do about it?"

"Simple: We figure out just who between the two of us is the toughest pony." Rainbow Dash suggested, "and I know the perfect kind of competition that will do just that..."

"Are you going to suggest what I think you're going to suggest?" asked Addie, smirking.

"I think you probably do..." The Pegasus then said to the Earth Pony, "I challenge you to an Iron Pony Competition!"

The second she made that statement, everypony in the crowd gave out a collective gasp. They began talking with one another, wondering what the Pegasus was thinking, challenging such a strong pony to a contest such as that.

"An Iron Pony Competition, huh?" asked Addie. "You sure about that...?"

"Totally sure." Dash said confidently. "If you're even half as tough as you say you are, then you should have no problem tryin' to prove it right here, right now!"

The Earth Pony chuckled a little and said to the cyan mare, "You've got a lots of guts, girl...I can respect that. Kinda reminds me of when I was a filly." She then nodded and added, "Alright then. I accept your challenge!"

"Heh, now you're startin' to make some sense..." Rainbow Dash replied. "Alright then, let's get this competition goin' right now!" She then glanced over at Mega Pony and asked him, "Hey, Mega; could you act as the referee for us?"

"Um...I suppose I could." the robot replied.

"Great!" After that exclamation of hers, the Pegasus pony then glared at Addie with a look of pure confidence. Of course, the Earth Pony had a similar look upon her face as well. Everypony that was watching them knew that what was going to take place next was going to be epic...

Everypony in the Baltimare Community Center had now gathered together to witness what they all expected to be an epic contest: Rainbow Dash had challenged the Earth Pony named Adrenaline Rush to an Iron Pony Competition. The last time that the cyan Pegasus had issued such a challenge was sometime before last year's Running of the Leaves event. And just like before, the super-fast mare was determined to win it all.

Mega Pony had agreed to be the referee, as well as Rainbow Dash's coach. However, he was still a bit skeptical at the Pegasus' sudden challenege. "Rainbow, are you totally sure about going through with this?" he asked. "Not to try and talk you out of it, but are you sure you can beat this pony? After all, she's made it pretty clear that she's gonna give everything she's got..."

"Trust me, Mega. I'm sure. About twenty percent more sure-er than I was earlier!" the mare replied. The robot then opened his mouth to say something, but Dash interrupted him and added, "And yes, I know that 'sure-er' isn't a word. You don't have to tell me that!"

"I'm just making sure that you know what you're doing." he informed her. "It's just in my nature to be concerned about my friends, that's all."

"I know...and I appreciate it that you care that much." stated Rainbow Dash. "But if I'm gonna be the best that I can be, then I can't back down from this. That's the first rule in 'Rainbow Dash's Law': Never say 'no' to a tough challenge!"

"I understand." Mega Pony responded. "In that case, give it your best out there, Rainbow Dash. I'll be rooting for you!"

"Thanks, Mega." The cyan mare then walked towards Adrenaline Rush and asked her, "So...you ready to watch me win this competition?"

"Not really." Addie answered her. "After all, it's gonna be ME that comes out on top here. Just promise me that, if you lose, you don't start cryin', my little Dashie."

The Pegasus grumbled a little and thought, (We'll see who cries when I'm through with ya...)

Mega Pony then trotted between the two competitive ponies, and said, in a loud voice so that everypony could hear him, "Alright then, if everypony's ready...Then let us get this Iron Pony Competition underway!"

The crowd cheered in response.

"The rules of this competition are simple:" the robot explained. "This will be a series of up to nine physical challenges, and the first pony to win five of those challenges will be declared the overall winner. The rules for each individual challenge will be explained in full before it begins. To ensure fairness, once the first event is over, the next one will be revealed right away, and no sooner. As a result, neither of our competitors have any previous knowledge of the events that will occur."

"I get it..." said an Earth Pony stallion in the audience. "This way, they can't prepare for the events ahead of time, and neither of them could possibly have an unfair advantage over the other."

"With that said," the robot continued, "we will now begin the first event: The 100-Meter Dash!"

"Awesome! A race!" cheered Rainbow Dash. "This'll be so easy!" Addie simply hummed a bit in response, not intimidated at all.

After the two competitors took their places at the starting line of a long, long race track, Mega Pony then explained the rules to both them and the audience. "The rules for this event are simple: The first pony to cross the finish line at the end wins. The only other rule for the race is to stay on your own track at all times." the robot stated.

Rainbow Dash and Adrenaline Rush looked ahead at the long race track ahead of them. "Looks pretty tough, doesn't it?" asked the cyan mare with a smirk. "Want me to strap my wings down so that you have at least a SLIGHT chance at winning?"

"Heh...why?" asked Addie. "So that you have an excuse just in case you lose?"

Dash grumbled in response. "Why you..." She then huffed and said, "Fine, don't say I didn't warn ya!"

Once the two were ready, Mega Pony walked over beside the track, holding a checkered flag with his psuedo-magic. "Get ready..." he began. "get set..." He then waved the flag and shouted, "GO!"

Not much longer after he said that, Dash and Addie had already taken off, heading for the finish line ahead. The Pegasus was truely living up to her name, flying as fast as she could to get to the end first. "Heh...this is WAY too easy." she said smugly to herself. "Did she REALLY think she could keep up with somepony like-"

But her gloating was cut short when she saw something that caught her off-guard: It was none other than Adrenaline Rush, who was galloping as fast as she could and had managed to, despite the odds, keep up with the cyan mare. "What's wrong, Dashie?" she asked in a sly tone. "Were you expecting me to be behind you?"

Rainbow was shocked that this pony had not fallen behind since the race started. "What?? That can't be possible!" she protested. "How are you even moving that fast?!"

"Super-tough leg muscles." Addie answered her. "You tend to develop them when you don't have a pair of feathery crutches growing out of your back." She then began pulling ahead, and actually managed to pass the super-speedy Pegasus. "I'll see ya at my victory celebration!"

Rainbow Dash was shocked, but nowhere near ready to give up yet. "Oh, you wanna do this the hard way...?" she asked silently. "Then we'll do this the hard way!" The cyan pony then flapped her wings even faster, taking off like a bullet.

Before long, Dash had managed to catch up to Addie, and now the race was tied once again. "Well, looks like somepony got their second wind..." the Earth Pony told her.

"Look, Addie," the Pegasus began to say to her opponent, "up to now, I was goin' easy on ya...But now you've got my attention, and I ain't holdin' back!"

"Oh, is that so?" asked the peach-coated mare, unintimidated. "Then prove it, Dashie!"

That's exactly what Rainbow Dash intended to do: She flew as fast as she could, keeping the race close, as did Addie as she galloped down the track. The pair kept right on ahead, leaving behind a mutli-colored blur in their wake.

"Who's winning?" asked a pink Unicorn mare in the audience.

"I-I don't know..." said an orange female Pegasus. "They're moving so fast, it's impossible to tell!"

The two competitors kept right on racing, and before anypony knew it, they both crossed the finish line. However, they were moving so fast, nopony could tell who actually won. "Woah...that was awesome!" said a dark red Earth Pony stallion.

"It's a photo finish!" chimed an indigo Unicorn stallion.

"What did you say?" asked the red Earth Pony.

"Oh, I meant that it's a JOB for Photo Finish...Sorry about that." the male Unicorn corrected himself. "She was standing over there at the finish line." he then added, pointing to light-blue pony with a silver-white mane and tail. She wore a pair of black glasses with fuschia lenses and a stylish dress with black and white stripes on the top and a black skirt with bands of white and pink. Her long dress skirt covered her hind quarters, so her cutie mark wasn't visible, though it was assumed that she had one.

The audience, along with Mega Pony and the two competitors, approached the dress-wearing pony named Photo Finish, who had managed to snap a picture at the very moment that Dash and Addie crossed the finish line. Once the photograph developed out of the camera, Photo Finish took it out and began shaking it a little so that the picture would appear a bit faster. Finally, an image began to show up. "And the winner is..." she began to say, waiting for the image to fully appear. Once it did, she then finished her announcement, saying, "...Rainbow Dash!"

Sure enough, the picture clearly showed that Rainbow had crossed the finish line first, though Addie was not far behind. In fact, the difference between their finishing distances was quite thin, as the Earth Pony mare appeared to be only an inch behind Dash.

"Aw yeah!!" cheered the cyan Pegasus. "That's what I'm talkin' about!!" She then flew over to Addie and told her, "See that? Nopony can beat me in a race!"

But Addie didn't seem worried at all, even though she lost the first event. "Calm down, Dashie." she told her. "That was just the first challenge. We've still got a long ways to go before this is all over...And when it IS over, you'll see just who the real champ will be."

"Yeah, and it'll be me!" stated Rainbow Dash, super-confident that she would take the crown in this Iron Pony Competition.

Elsewhere, far away from all of the commotion, hoofsteps could be heard...or, they WOULD have been heard, if anypony was around to hear them. Almost every single attendee at the convention was watching the Iron Pony Competiton between Rainbow and Addie. But it appeared that not EVERYPONY was there to see it. A shadowy figure was making its way to the back of the community center, heading for a door that had a sign saying, "DO NOT ENTER: Authorized Personnel Only".

The figure brushed its head hair aside, revealing a Unicorn horn. Using magic, the figure levitated a pair of lock picks towards the door's keyhole and began fiddling with it, trying to unlock the entrance. Eventually, a small clicking sound came out of the hole, signalling that the door was now unlocked. Once it was, the figure put away the lock picks, turned its head around and made a motioning gesture using its right foreleg; this caused three more figures to approach it from behind.

Once they all gathered together, the group of four wandered into the now-open room before them. They immediately began scanning the area around them, apparently in search of something. The room seemed to be an office of some sort; there was a large wooden desk located in the center, there were file cabinets standing up against the leftmost wall, and the right wall had several motivational posters hung up, which included one that read, "Keep Calm and Flutter On", and it showed a picture of a pony wearing a fancy green dress that looked suspiciously like Fluttershy.

Just then, one of the four ponies that went into the office suddenly shouted, "Hey, boss!! I think I've found it!!"

"Would you keep it down, you imbecile...?!" grumbled the apparent leader of the small group. "The last thing we need right now are security guards showing up while we're in here...!" It was the Unicorn that had picked the lock earlier. It was a male Unicorn with a navy blue-colored coat, along with a silver grey mane and tail, both of which were a little messy. Unlike most Unicorns' horns, which often had slightly rounded tips, his had a very sharp tip, giving it more of a spike-like appearence. He had bright yellow eyes and was wearing a black sweater with all sorts of burglary tools hidden inside of it. He was also wearing a pair of black shorts, which hid his cutie mark.

"Relax, boss...I doubt that anypony's gonna hear us all the way over here." said another member of the group. "All of 'em are watchin' that Iron Pony Competition between the blue Pegasus and the peach Earth Pony. By the time they're done, we'll be long gone!"

"That fact aside," the navy-blue Unicorn rebutted, "we can't afford to take any chances...If even one of them gets a whiff of our plan, it might compromise the whole job!" Turning his attention to the first pony that had spoken up, he then asked him, "Alright, so what did ya find?"

"Just see for yourself, boss..." the other pony responded, shuffling aside to reveal a metallic, medium-sized, combination lock safe, sitting underneath the large desk.

"Heheheh...just as I thought..." said the devious Unicorn stallion. "This is the safe that belongs the owner of the convention hall, and it's bound to be filled to the brim with more bits than you can count!" Looking at the tumbler dial on the front of the safe, the crook grinned and added, "Now it's just a matter of figuring out the combination; something that, to me, is mere foal's play..." He then put his ear next to the safe as he used his magic to manipulate the tumblers. It took some time, but the Unicorn figured out the combination and opened the safe.

Just as he predicted, there was a ton of money inside; Several gold bit coins of varying amounts were stuffed in the safe, and the pile of money gave off a shimmering golden glow that could almost blind anypony who stared at it for too long. "Wo-o-o-oah!! Look at all of that loot!" said one of the other burglars.

"There must be five thousand bits in there, no doubt!" said another crook.

"And it's all ours." stated the male Unicorn. He then ordered his underlings, "Alright, get the sacks out and start stuffin' the coins inside. We don't have all day..."

Meanwhile, back at the convention's main hall, the Iron Pony Competition between Rainbow Dash and Adrenaline Rush was still going on. After Rainbow got her first victory in the 100-Meter Dash event, the competition immediately moved on to the next challenege: A wrestling match. Unfortunately for the cyan Pegasus, she quickly found out that the event was rather one-sided, as Addie proved to be too much for her to overcome. Once the bell rung, the Earth Pony leapt straight towards Rainbow Dash and pinned her down in mere seconds, winning the event.

Next was a weight-lifting contest, in which both opponents had to lift more weight than the other in order to win. Luckily, the Gelding's Barbells stand was generous enough to loan some of their heavy equipment for the contest. Rainbow Dash was able to pick up a pair of 100-pound weights and hefted it over her head. Then, all of a sudden, the Pegasus found herself in the air, but she wasn't flying or hovering at all. She looked down and saw that Addie had picked HER up while she was still carrying the heavy barbells, meaning that she was now carrying her weight in addition to the two 100-pound weights that Dash was already holding. Needless to say, Addie won that event as well, putting the score at 2 to 1 in the Earth Pony's favor.

The next event was the Long Jump, in which whoever jumped the farthest was the winner. Addie went first, and made an impressive thirty-foot leap onto the long sand pit in front of her. However, Rainbow Dash, who was more aerodynamically designed (at least that's what she claimed), was able to jump much further, landing at the 41-foot mark and evening the score between them.

With the score tied once more, the competition moved on to the High Dive, which, of course, took place at a large swimming pool that was set up in the center of the hall. The winner was the pony who made a more impressive dive. Rainbow went first, leaping off of the diving board and doing several mid-air spins before spreading her wings and forelegs wide and going into a swan dive. The cyan mare's dive caused a large wave to form, which splashed over many of the ponies watching. Addie then went next, jumping off of the board and doing a few somersaults that gradually got faster and faster. She then impacted the surface of the water, creating a geyser-like splash that easily towered over twelve feet into the air. It was impressive, but the judges had determined that Rainbow's dive was just slightly better, so she won that event.

After that, several more events followed, inculding shotput throwing, a military-style obstacle course race, and even caber tossing. After all of that, the score was tied, with each competitor having won four of the eight events so far. Everypony watching wondered who would end up the overall winner; it looked like that it could go either way.

"Filles and Gentlecolts," Mega Pony began. "we are nearly ready to end this Iron Pony Competition. So far, the score is tied, with both Rainbow Dash and Adrenaline Rush having won four events each. This next event, the last event, will determine who will be the overall champion!"

Both opponents seemed to be pretty exhausted as they panted heavily after going through eight different physical challeneges so far. But they both still had that look in their eyes that told the other only one thing: They were not about to give up now. "Y'know," began Addie, "a part of me is actually kinda glad that I met you, Rainbow Dash...It's been a really long time since I competed against somepony that's actually at my level..."

"I could say the same thing about you..." Dash responded. "But let's be realistic here, Addie...You ain't gonna win this contest; that honor'll go to me!"

"...We'll see about that, Dashie." the Earth Pony mare replied with a smirk.

Mega Pony then annouced to everypony, "The final event will be the Javelin Toss." He then asked the audience, "Will somepony go and gather some javelins from the equipment booth nearby?"

"I'll do it!" said a Pegasus mare in the crowd. She had a pure white coat, with small freckles underneath her baby-blue eyes. Her mane looked strikingly similar to Twilight Sparkle's mane, in that it was styled very straight. The only real difference was the color scheme; instead of Twilight's purple hair with pink streaks, she had red mane hair with green streaks. Finally, her cutie mark was a small flower with five pink petals. She immediately took flight, in search of a convention booth that sold and displayed the sharp spears that Mega Pony asked for.

Around that same time, the Unicorn stallion and his three cohorts that had broken into a back office safe were making their way out of the community center...rather slowly. The bags that they were carrying were stuffed with bits; perhaps too much, because the bags were weighing them down and making their movements much slower than they would have been without the heavy sacks. "Urrrrgh!! URRRRRGH!!!" grunted one of the burglars, trying to drag his bag of bits across the linoleum floor.

"I told you to keep it down...!" the Unicorn male silently scolded his accomplice. "We can't allow anypony to see us, let alone know what we're doing...!"

"But this bag's too heavy...!" complained the crook.

"Well so is mine, but you don't hear me complaining...!" grumbled the navy-blue stallion. However, he too, let out a grunt that essentially contraditced his earlier statement. The gang passed by another booth, nearly reaching a back exit leading to their freedom. Then, all of a sudden, when the male Unicorn tried to take a step, something tugged him back, preventing him from moving. "Wha-huh?" he let out when he felt the slight tug.

"What's wrong, boss?" asked one of the other ponies in the group.

"Darn it...I think my shorts caught on something!" he answered. He then glanced back and saw that something did grab a hold of his black shorts, something spiky. The Unicorn and his gang glanced up and saw that the booth they were standing next to was a stand that sold...

"Javelins...javelins...Where the hay is that stand that sells javelins here...?" asked the white Pegasus mare, who was trying to locate the booth to get the needed supplies for the last Iron Pony Competition event. She flew around for a bit, but couldn't find it. She then took a deep breath and said to herself, "Alright, Blossomforth...just concentrate...You passed by the stand earlier...You just have to try and remember where you were when you saw it..." The Pegasus then rubbed her temples with her front hooves to try and relax her mind and focus on retrieving the information she needed.

She then let out a gasp and said, "Oh yeah! I remember now! The javelin stand was near the community center's rear exit!" Once she knew where she was going, the Pegasus, known as Blossomforth, flew towards the back of the building.

At the very stand that the white Pegasus was searching for, the Unicorn thief pulled his body as much as he could to try and free himself from the javelin that had caught ahold of his shorts and prevented him from moving. "Come on, already..." he said while pulling himself. "Let go...Let go!!" Getting frustrated, he then shouted at his cohorts, "Well, don't just stand there lookin' stupid! Get over here and help me!!"

"Uh, right boss!" said the trio of crooks in unison, running over to him.

Not far away, Blossomforth landed back on the floor once she felt that she was closeby the booth that she was looking for. "Okay...I think the booth is to the right of here..." she said to herself, walking in that direction.

At the javelin stand, the three other crooks had grabbed onto their Unicorn boss and were trying their best to pull him loose from the spiky spear that had stuck itself into the navy-blue stallion's shorts. "Pull harder...!!" said the Unicorn. "We have to get out of here before anypony sees-"

RRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIPPPPPP!!!

The four crooked ponies immediately froze up and stopped what they were doing upon hearing that deafening sound. "...Tell me that isn't what I think it is..." the Unicorn stallion told his minions.

At that very moment, Blossomforth had just approached the javelin stand, unaware that somepony was already nearby it. "Aha! Here's the booth where they sell the javelins!" she said to herself. "Now I just need to get a few of them and-" But at that moment, when her gaze shifted in the direction of the four crooks, she let out a horrified gasp.

She saw the Unicorn stallion, who had finally been freed from the spear that had caught onto his shorts. However, the force of the pulling by his cohorts had ripped a large hole on the small piece of clothing. This revealed the Unicorn's cutie mark: It was a picture a small, silver-colored safe.

Blossomforth just stood there, jaw dropped, irises the size of dots, and occasionally trembling a little. "...Ah...ah...ah..." she stuttered, trying to say something, but the sudden fear that had overcome her prevented the words from coming out.

The Unicorn crook and his accomplices just stood there, also unsure of what to do in this awkward moment. All the navy-blue stallion could get out was, "Uh..."

"AHHHHHH!!!!" the Pegasus mare screamed. "It's Lockpicker!! Run for your lives!!! Lockpicker the safe robber is in the building!!!!" Blossomforth then flew as fast as she could to warn everypony in the community center.

"Wha-what're we gonna do now, Lockpicker sir?!" asked one of the other thieves in a worried tone. "She's gonna tell everypony we're here! The cops are sure to find us now!!"

"Would you clam it already?!" yelled the Unicorn, named Lockpicker. "We'll just have to go to Plan B! Lock up all the exits and make sure nopony else gets out of here!!"

Back in the main area, Rainbow Dash, Adrenaline Rush, Mega Pony, and the audience watching the Iron Pony Competition were sitting around, waiting for Blossomforth to return with the needed equipment. "Yeesh...what's takin' her so long...?" asked the cyan mare impatiently. "She should've got back here by now..."

"Maybe she got lost?" asked Mega Pony. "This convention is pretty big, after all, so I wouldn't be surprised."

Just then, everypony heard the sounds of someone screaming. "...AHHHHHHHHHH...!!!" sounded the shrill voice as it echoed throughout the halls.

"What the-...What was that??" asked Addie.

Everypony looked around in order to try and locate the source of the loud screaming. Just then, Mega Pony pointed up in the air and shouted, "Up there! Look!!" The rest of the convention guests glanced upwards in the direction that the little robot was pointing. The source of the screaming was none other than Blossomforth, who was still in a state of terror after her encounter with the Unicorn burglar and his minions.

"That's the pony that was supposed to get the javelins..." noted Rainbow Dash. "What's got her so freaked out?"

"Let's go and see." Mega Pony suggested. Once the white-coated Pegasus touched ground, the robot rushed over to her and asked, "What's wrong? Did something happen to you??"

"It's horrible!!" Blossomforth told him. "I was on my way to get the javelins you needed, when I saw somepony standing next to the booth! When I went over to look, I saw..." She then began to tremble as she spoke. "I saw...I saw..."

"Saw what?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"...I-I saw him! It's Lockpicker! Lockpicker's here in the community center!!" the white Pegasus screamed hysterically.

Everypony gasped upon hearing the name of the Unicorn thief. "Did I hear her right??" asked another Pegasus mare in the audience. "That guy's really here?!"

"I don't believe it!" said an Earth Pony stallion. "What's he doing here, of all places?!"

Mega Pony and Rainbow Dash were slightly confused about what was going on. "What're they talking about?" asked the cyan Pegasus. "Who's Lockpicker??"

"A crook, that's what." answered Addie. She then went on to explain, "Lockpicker is one of Baltimare's most notorious thieves, and his specialty is cracking safes."

"Cracking safes?" asked Mega Pony.

"Yep." The Earth Pony then told them, "Back a long time ago, he used to work as locksmith; he built and designed all kinds of complex lock systems, as well as ways of opening them. But when he lost his job at some point, he began using his special talent to rob safes and other secure areas. He's been in and out of jail ever since..."

"That's horrible..." Mega Pony commented.

"I'll say..." Rainbow Dash agreed. "We'd better get ourselves and everypony else outta here before-"

"Nopony's going anywhere..." interrupted a low, mean-sounding voice. Everypony else turned around and was shocked to see who was behind them, standing not far away from the community center's main entrance. It was Lockpicker and his three accomplices, blocking the only way out of the building. "All of you are to stay put right here, and nopony'll get hurt...Understand?"

"You must be Lockpicker, then..." said Rainbow Dash with a snarl.

"Indeed I am..." the Unicorn crook told the cyan Pegasus. "My accomplices and I snuck into the convention hall earlier in the day to do a bit of...shall we say, 'spring cleaning'?"

"Yeah, as in 'cleaning out the main safe'!" said one of the other burglars.

Lockpicker growled and shouted at his cohort, telling him, "You moron! We weren't going to tell them that!!"

The crook chuckled weakly, saying, "Uh...whoopsie...?"

The navy-blue stallion sighed and said to all of the other ponies in the building, "Unfortunately, one of the guests found out we were in here before we could make our escape...But when I say, 'unfortunately', I mean that towards all of you." He then announced to them all, "Until we are allowed to leave this hall with what we came here for, everypony here can expect to be staying in this place for a VERY long time..."

"You mean you're going to hold all these ponies hostage?!" asked Mega Pony in shock.

"That ain't gonna happen!" said Rainbow Dash angrily. "Nopony holds me for ransom! And you're gonna find out why!!" The Pegasus then recklessly started flying towards them in an attempt to attack the crooks.

But Lockpicker snickered to himself and thought, (We'll just see about that...) He then charged up his horn, which first began to radiate in a bright yellow light before turning light blue. He then fired a bright blue beam at Rainbow Dash, aiming for her wings specifically. When the beam hit her, it caused her wings to freeze up, preventing them working properly.

"Huh? What the-?!? My wings!!!" the Pegasus shouted. Once the realization that her wings were frozen solid had hit her, she immediately began plummeting to the floor. "Ahhhhhhhhh!!!"

Luckily, Mega Pony was quick to react and swiftly ran underneath Rainbow Dash so that he could catch her on his back. "Are you okay?" he asked her.

"I'm fine, Mega...but my wings aren't lookin' too good right now..." she answered, looking her frozen wings.

"Quick, let's get outta here, you two!" Adrenaline Rush suggested to them. The trio began running as fast as they could to get away from Lockpicker and his minions.

"After them, you dolts!" shouted the Unicorn thief. "Don't let 'em get away!!" The three other crooks nodded and began chasing after the runaways. In all of the confusion, nopony noticed Blossomforth had also managed to escape from the area, making her way into an air duct...

Minutes later, Lockpicker's accomplices were still searching for Mega Pony, Rainbow Dash, and Adrenaline Rush. However, despite having covered nearly every square-inch of the community center, they weren't able to find them anywhere. "Where d'ya think they went??" asked one of them.

"They couldn't have gotten too far!" said another of the crooks. "There's no way outta this place!"

"Keep lookin' around!" said the third one. "We have t' find them, or the boss'll have a fit about it!" The three of them then split up and left the area they were in. However, not a single one of them was aware that the gym apparel booth that they were standing in front of just so happened to be where the three runaway ponies were hiding. Addie poked her head up once she heard that the three burglars had left and looked around to make certain that they were gone.

"Okay..." said the tough Earth Pony, "I think we're safe for now..."

Mega Pony was busy rubbing Rainbow Dash's wings with his front hooves, warming them up and trying to undo the effects of the freezing spell that she had been hit with. Once he was done he told her, "There, I think your wings are good to go again."

"Good, 'cause I'm not finished teaching that burglar jerk a lesson!" said the Pegasus, ready to take off again.

"And what the hay do you think you'll do once you get there?" asked Addie. "You couldn't even touch the guy earlier, so do you really think doing the same exact thing is gonna help you one bit?"

Rainbow sneered and inquried her, "Oh, and I suppose YOU could do any better??"

The Earth Pony crossed her forelegs in front of herself and answered, saying, "Of course I would...If it had been me going after him earlier, this crisis would've been over quick."

"How do you know that?!" asked Dash. "How do you know that he wouldn't have frozen you up like he did my wings??"

"Um...guys...?" began Mega Pony, trying to get a word in.

"Because I'M the toughest pony in Equestria, not you!" argued Addie angrily. "You're nothing but second-rate compared to me!"

"...SECOND-RATE?!?" shouted Rainbow Dash. "I dare you to say that again to my face!"

"Guys...please..."

"Second-rate, second-rate, second-rate, second-rate!" the Earth Pony repeated.

"If I'm 'second-rate', then you're LAST-RATE!!" yelled the Pegasus.

"That's ENOUGH!!" shouted Mega Pony, stepping inbetween the two. "This isn't the time to be arguing with each other! At a time like this, that's the last thing you two should be doing right now!"

The two competitive ponies tried to say something back, but the words couldn't come to them.

"Right now, we have a crisis on our hooves, and we need to figure out what to do about it!" he told them both. "Not one of us will be able to take on that guy and his gang all by themself, so we have to come with a sensible plan and work together!"

"Work together? With HER?" asked Rainbow Dash, pointing to Addie. "Not gonna happen." She then asked the robot, "Besides, you could probably take those dorks on single-hoofed!"

"For once, I agree with her." Addie chimed in. "You're probably the strongest one out of all three of us. So what's stopping you from going out there right now and fighting those crooks?"

Mega Pony put on a sad face, sighed, and told them, "...It's not that simple...I'm powerless to fight them myself."

"Huh? Whad'ya mean?" asked the cyan mare. "I've seen you in action; you're a buncha times stronger than those wimps!"

"That's not the problem, Rainbow Dash..." the mechanoid informed her. "It's not that I don't think I can beat them, it's that I can't fight them at all...My mom programmed me to help other ponies, not hurt them. I'm not allowed to cause harm to another living pony, even if it's totally justified..."

"Are you serious??" asked Rainbow Dash, surprised.

Mega Pony nodded yes to answer her question. He then said as his voice began to break up a little, "There's nothing that I can do on my own to stop those thieves...At the rate we're going...we might never be able to leave...We might never see our friends and familes again...I might never see Mom or Aunt Luna again..." He then began sniffling a little as tears leaked out of his eyes.

Seeing the little robot crying was enough to dispell the anger between Addie and Rainbow. The Earth Pony, feeling sorry for him, said to him, "Hey...take it easy, kid...We didn't mean to upset you that much..." Addie then sighed and asked her rival, "Dash, do you think we took this whole competition thing a little bit too far just now...?"

"You took it too far." the Pegasus said with a huff. "I was being perfectly reasonable."

"Excuse me...?" the Earth Pony mare said, giving Rainbow a look.

The cyan mare glanced at her and groaned, finally admitting, "Okay, okay...fine. I agree: We took it too far." She then added, "Besides, Mega's right; we have a problem right now, and arguing with each other isn't gonna solve a thing. We have to do what he said and cooperate with each other if we're gonna get out with our flanks in one piece."

"You're absolutely right, Dash." said Addie, agreeing. "If we put our heads together and come up with something, not even Lockpicker would stand a chance against us!" She then told Rainbow, "It's time we put our rivalry aside for now and put our talents to better use."

"But what about Mega Pony?" asked the cyan Pegasus. "He just told us that he can't attack those guys, so how's he gonna be able to help?"

"Don't worry about that." the robot spoke up, wiping away the last of his tears. "I might not be able to fight them directly, but that doesn't mean I can't do a thing to help."

"You sure you're up for it, kid?" asked Addie. "You seemed pretty upset earlier..."

"...I'll be fine." he told the peach-coated pony. "I'm still a bit worried about it all, but I'll do whatever I can to end this problem as quickly as possible. That's my job, after all."

"Good to hear, Mega." Dash responded. She then asked, "So, what's our plan then?"

"I think I might have an idea that could work, but only if you're truely ready to work together..." the robot said to the pair. When they nodded to say that they would, Mega Pony then huddled them together and told them his plan...

Back in the main area, all of the other convention guests were still huddled together in one place by the nefarious burglar, Lockpicker. The navy-blue Unicorn paced back and forth, slightly on edge after he and his plan had been discovered. Knowing that the three ponies that had run away earlier could be a hitch in his plans, he desperately wanted to hear any new information regarding them. Using his magic, Lockpicker pulled out a walkie-talkie and turned it on before saying, "Progress report: Have any of you found the ponies that escaped earlier?"

"Not yet..." came a voice from the device. "We've literally been looking all over, but we haven't spotted them yet."

"Well, keep looking!" said the criminal. "We can't let them get away! Although the exits are all sealed, we can't afford to take any chances!"

As Lockpicker and most of the hostages were distracted by the conversation that the Unicorn was having with his cohort, not one of them noticed that Rainbow Dash had returned, approaching the crowd of ponies from behind. She approached a male Pegasus and tapped a few times on his shoulder. It turned out to be Trick Shot, the captain of the visiting college basketball team. When he saw Rainbow Dash, he was about to say something, but the cyan mare covered his mouth and shook her head no to tell him not to make a sound. She then whispered something into his ear; after she finished, Trick Shot gave a nod, telling her that he was willing to help out. The two then silently crept away while the others weren't paying any attention to them.

Rainbow Dash then tapped a device on the side of her head; she was wearing one of Mega Pony's mobile communicators, and switched it on so that she could talk to him. "Okay, Mega. I got that Trick Shot guy to come and help us with the plan." she said, speaking into the device.

"Good." the robot responded. He then asked, "What about you, Addie? Did you find somepony to help us out?"

"Yeah, I found some help on my end." the Earth Pony answered. "I got that Photo Finish chick here with me. She actually insisted on participating with the plan."

"Indeed." stated the fashionable photographer. "I'll gladly do whatever I can to remove these heathens for good! I have got more important things to do than to be held hostage for hours at a convention hall."

"Uh, yeah...sure. Whatever..." Addie said, sweating a little. She then spoke into her communicator and told Mega Pony, "Anyway, we're ready on our end."

"Good. Then let's get started." Mega Pony then thought to himself, (The first thing I'll have to do is to disrupt the link between Lockpicker and his minions...I picked up some sort of radio waves in the area just a few seconds ago, so they obviously have some sort of device that lets them talk to each other. But if I jam the signal, I can prevent them from talking to their leader, thus preventing him from knowing about our plan.) The robot then charged up energy into his horn, causing several small sparks to jump out of it. The energy was then released into a small shockwave that spread over the area completely unnoticed. His job done, Mega Pony then left the area that he was in.

Elsewhere, Lockpicker's cohorts had met up with each other as they continued to search the area for the runaways. "Rrrrgh...where are those brats?" asked one of them. "This is a total waste of time...It's not like they can get out of this place..."

"You heard what the boss said..." responded one of the other crooks. "If he said, 'go after them', we've gotta go after them."

"But they could be anywhere by now!" shouted the first crook. "This place is humongous, and there's plenty of places for them t' hide!"

"Who's hiding?!" shouted a voice in front of them. The three henchponies turned to face the direction in which the voice came from. There, standing in front of them, was Mega Pony, who had a confident smile on his face.

"That's one of the brats right there!" said one of them. He then turned and said to another, "Quick, tell the boss!"

"Got it." the other minion responded. He pulled out the walkie-talkie and spoke into it, saying, "Hey, boss! We've found one of 'em!" However, the crook heard nothing but static on the other end. "Hello? Hello?!" the crook responded, trying to get his device to work, but to no avail. "Guys, there's somethin' wrong with this thing! I can't get the boss!"

"What?!" asked the other two.

(Good...that jamming wave I released earlier worked.) Mega Pony thought to himself. (Now that Lockpicker can't hear what's going on, there's no way that they can warn him of what we're doing...)

Try as they might, Lockpicker's accomplices couldn't get the walkie-talkie to work properly. In the end, one of them simply said, "Oh, forget contacting the boss! Let's just grab him and take him there ourselves!" The thief then said to Mega Pony, "Alright, you brat...get your flank over here this instant, and we won't hafta hurt ya."

But the robot wasn't intimidated. He smirked and told them, "If you want me, you'll have to catch me first!" And with that remark, the armored pony bolted away, galloping as fast as possible.

"That little..." grumbled one of the criminals. He then shouted to his partners, "After him!!" The trio then gave chase, pursuing Mega Pony in an attempt to capture him. Unfortunately for the three crooks, the robot was just slightly faster than they were. In fact, he was running a bit slower than usual so that they could keep up with him; he wanted them to follow him so that the next part of the plan could get underway.

As soon as Mega Pony approached an intersection between convention booths, he said to himself, "Alright, let's hope this works..." The robot then made a sudden left turn, heading between two booths; one of which had a sign that read "UFP Energy Drinks: Boosts your energy faster than you can say, 'sand'!".

"There! He went that way!" said one of the minions, pointing towards the area where Mega Pony made his sharp turn. But when they approached the intersection to make their turn, they suddenly stopped, as somepony else was now in their path.

It was Photo Finish, who had already set up her camera to take a picture. She smiled and asked them all, "Did anypony ever tell you that you ought to be in magazines?"

The three were a bit stunned, not sure what to say or do.

The photographer then added, "Why don't I get a good head shot of all of you, and see what happens?" She then pressed a button on her camera, which not only snapped a photo of them, but also let out an incredibly bright flash that temporarily blinded them all.

"AAAACKKK!!! My EYES!!!" shouted one of crooks.

"I can't see a thing!!!" yelled another of them.

"That light...too bright...!!" groaned the last of the trio.

Photo Finish then pulled out the photograph that she took and looked at it. On the photo were the shocked expressions of Lockpicker's minions. "Ugh...Perhaps I was a bit hasty when I said that you ought to be in magazines..." she said with some disgust. "I doubt this would look good even on the funny papers..."

The criminals vigorously rubbed their eyes, trying to get their sight back. Eventually, they were able to see once more...just in time to see a pair of back legs come into contact with them. The trio were bucked high up into the air, courtesy of Adrenaline Rush. "WAAAAAUUUUUGGHHHH!!!!!" they screamed as they were sent flying. As they did, one of them dropped their walkie-talkie, their only way of contacting their boss, onto the floor below.

At that moment, Rainbow Dash and Trick Shot took to the air themselves, each one carrying one side of a replacement soccer net (which they had borrowed from a booth that sold soccer equipment). "Here they come!" said the cyan mare as she spotted the three criminals, still screaming hysterically. On cue, the two Pegasi stretched out the net as wide as they possibly could. The henchponies then soared right into the trap and got caught in the large net. Without wasting another moment, Rainbow Dash and Trick Shot brought the net up and tied it onto a large chandelier, forming it into a bag-like shape, trapping the crooks for good.

"Alright! Way to go, everypony!" cheered Mega Pony. "We got them!"

"Heh, we sure did!" said Addie, quite pleased with how things went. She then complimented to Photo Finish, "I've gotta say, using the flash from your camera to blind them was pure genius!"

"Hmmm...yes, I suppose it was." the photographer pony replied. "A pity that I had to waste a frame from my roll of film on their absolutely distasteful appearences."

"Uh, try to think of it as a sacrifice for the greater good." Mega Pony told her.

Rainbow Dash looked up at the three crooks that they had caught and asked the little robot, "Say, Mega...We only got three of them...I thought that there were four burglars that broke in."

"There were." Mega Pony stated. "I felt that it would be too risky to try and get all of them at once, especially after I saw how powerful Lockpicker's magic was. But now that his accomplices are out of the way, he should be considerably weaker."

"He's right." said Addie. "Since his little cronies can't help him anymore, he won't be able to take us all on at once."

"That's the idea." the robot confirmed. "Still, we'd better be careful...Even though the odds aren't in his favor anymore, he could still try something out of desperation."

"Yeah, he seemed pretty crazy..." Dash noted. "Kinda like when Pinkie Pie thought that we were avoiding her and she started talking to a pile of rocks, a ball of lint, and a buncha other weird things..."

"Wait, really?" asked Mega Pony.

"Yeah...Long story short, we all agreed to be EXTRA cautious if her mane and tail got all straight and droopy." the cyan mare. "It's generally never a good sign."

"Well, no matter how crazy he is, we've still gotta confront him and put an end to his plans." Addie told them all. "You all ready to go and kick some flank?" she then asked. The others nodded to say that they were ready to do what they needed to do, and with that, they all headed for the main area where everypony else was.

Back in the main area of the community center, Lockpicker kept his eyes on all of the convention guests that he and his gang had held hostage, making sure that nopony made any sudden movements. It had been several minutes since he had heard from his accomplices, so the Unicorn criminal took out his walkie-talkie and tried to contact them. "Progress report... What's the situation so far?" he spoke into the device. However, he got no answer, as the crooks had lost their walkie-talkie after they were caught. Confused, he then said, "Progress report, come in!"

Again, no answer.

The trapped ponies watched Lockpicker as he desperately tried to contact his cohorts. He then started slamming the walkie-talkie against a pillar as he asked himself, "What's wrong with this stupid thing?!" He then began to get worked up as he spoke into the device again. "Come in! COME IN!! Somepony!! ANYPONY!!!" he shouted, becoming fearful as beads of sweat rolled down his face. But no one spoke on the other end. Lockpicker then, in total frustration, chucked the walkie-talkie across the room using his magic. The device hit the ground hard, causing it to break and cease functioning altogether.

"What's going on here...?!" the now-fearful crook asked himself. "Why aren't the others contacting me?? What happened?!?" The hostages watched the Unicorn freaking out, wondering what could have gotten him so jumpy all of a sudden. More importantly, they wondered if what was going on would affect them in any way.

Just then, a sudden realization came to Lockpicker. "It was them...!" he said to himself. "It was that blue Pegasus brat and the other two!! They had something to do with it, didn't they?!" Getting angrier (and slightly crazy), he added, "Those little pests had better hope I never find them, or else I'll-"

"You'll what, exactly?" interrupted the voice of Rainbow Dash nearby. The criminal suddenly froze up and turned around, coming face-to-face with the cyan Pegasus, as well as Mega Pony, Adrenaline Rush, Photo Finish, and Trick Shot.

Immediately, Lockpicker took a defensive stance and began charging up a spell. "B-b-b-back off!!" he said, trembling. "Don't make me come after you...!!"

"Give it up, Lockpicker." Mega Pony ordered him. "Your plans of robbing this building are finished!"

"We already took care of your cronies, so they can't save your flank anymore!" Addie told the Unicorn thief. "You've got nothin' left up your sweaty sleeves."

"Oh, is that so?" asked the crook. He then turned towards the hostages, pointing his horn at them and making them all gasp. "I've still got all these other ponies right where I want them!" With a demented look on his face, he then delcared, "Either the five of you all back off now, or you'll be responsible for what happens to them!!"

Mega Pony and the others gasped when they heard Lockpicker say that. "You wouldn't dare...!" said Addie, not believing what she and the others had just heard.

"You coward!!" Rainbow Dash said insultingly. "You can't just use innocent ponies as a shield! That's beyond low!"

"I don't care! That's exactly what I'm doing!!" shouted the crook. "You either do what I say, or somepony's gonna get hurt!"

Now Mega Pony and the others weren't sure what to do now. "Now what...?" asked the robot. "If we try to stop him, he might harm the hostages..."

"That jerk..." Addie commented. "He knows he's finished; all he's doing right now is trying to hold off the inevitable..."

But in his mind, Lockpicker thought that he was in complete control. (They think they have me...) he said in his warped mind, (but I'M the one who has THEM! As long as I've got the rest of them held here, they can't touch me!! Nothing will stop me! Nothing!!) But all of a sudden, his crazed thoughts were immdiately halted when everypony in the room heard the sounds of sirens nearby.

"What's that??" asked Rainbow Dash, looking around for the source of the sudden noise. Everypony else glanced around, trying to figure out what was going on now.

Just then, a loud voice was soon heard: "Lockpicker! This is the Baltimare Police Department! We know you're in there! Come out quitely or we will use force against you!"

"...Th-th-the cops?!?" asked the navy-blue Unicorn, getting scared. "H-h-h-how'd they know I was in here?!?" In his angry, crazed, and fearful state, he immdiately turned towards his hostages and yelled, "YOU!! One of you must have brought them here!!!" Then, on impulse and fueled by his uneasy thoughts, Lockpicker suddenly fired a blast of yellow energy at the crowd. The hostages dove quickly to avoid getting hit.

"Hey!! Wha'd ya do that for, you big jerk?!" asked Rainbow Dash. "They didn't do anything to you!!"

Mega Pony, after seeing Lockpicker's sudden attack on the other ponies in the room, began getting angry himself. So angry, that he let out a powerful charged shot from his Friendship Buster, aiming it right at the dangerous criminal. Lockpicker heard the shot and looked behind himself, but it was too late; the shot made contact and sent him flying a short distance away. "AACK!!" he shouted as he took the hit from the robot's main weapon.

Taking deep breaths, Mega Pony then scolded the crook, saying, "Don't EVER do that again!!"

Rainbow Dash and Adrenaline Rush were shocked when they saw what the mechanical pony had just done. "You...you attacked him..." the cyan mare stuttered.

"I thought you said that you couldn't attack other ponies..." the Earth Pony reminded him.

"Well actually, that's only partially true." the robot explained. "Normally, my programming does not allow me to attack any living pony. However, if NOT attacking would result in causing more harm to an innocent or innocents, then that rule is temporarily waived until I feel that nopony is in any more danger."

"Uh, what do you mean?" asked Rainbow, slightly confused.

"It means that since Lockpicker went and attacked one of the ponies over there," Addie explained in simpler terms, "it gave Mega Pony all the excuse he needed to fight back."

"Oh, I get it now!" Dash then asked the little robot, "Did you know he was going to do that?"

"I was hoping that he wouldn't..." Mega Pony admitted. "But now that he's shown himself to be a danger to everypony here, he's left me with no other choice."

"Urrrrgh..." groaned Lockpicker as he got back up after getting hit so hard. "What happened...?"

"Not so tough now, are ya?" asked Rainbow Dash in a smug voice. "You might have gotten this far, but let's see how well you do once Mega Pony here gets through with ya!"

Lockpicker's eyes grew to the size of volleyballs upon hearing that. "Wait...Mega Pony?!" he asked, getting scared again. Taking a closer look at the trio, he then realized that the robot built by Princess Celestia was right there in front of him. "No...! How could this be?! I didn't even realize it was him over there!!" Becoming more terrified by the second, the crook bolted away from the area in a futile attempt at an escape.

"He's getting away!" said Addie in alarm.

"Don't worry, he won't get far." Mega Pony assured her. He then turned towards Photo Finish and Trick Shot and told them, "You two unblock the main entrance and get everypony else out of here. Leave Lockpicker to us." The two of them nodded and ran over towards the crowd of convention guests.

Once that matter was taken care of, Rainbow Dash prepped up her wings and said, "Alright, time to teach that coward what we do to thugs like him!"

"Not so fast..." said Mega Pony. "Before we go after him, I'd better copy your powers first." The Pegasus nodded and presented her cutie mark so that Mega Pony could touch it and gain her special power.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Sonic Rainboom ***

After the light show, Addie then asked, "What did you just do there?"

Mega Pony and Dash looked up at her and realized that they didn't tell her about the robot's copying ability. The cyan Pegasus then explained, "Well, Mega here has the ability to get special powers from other ponies by touching their cutie marks. He just used that ability to get a power from me."

"Really? That sounds interesting." The Earth Pony then turned around and suggested to the robot, "In that case, see what you can get from me. Couldn't hurt to try, right?"

"Makes sense to me." the mechanical pony replied. He then brought his hoof to Addie's shoe cutie mark and tapped it, triggering his Copy Chip a second time. Once he was done, he deployed his Emergency Wings power-up and switched his color sceme to Rainbow Dash's. "Alright, Dash and I will look for him from above; once we find him, we'll tell you where he is. Then it'll be up to you to lead him back to the main hall and keep him there."

"No problem." the Earth Pony replied before running off. Soon after, Mega Pony and Rainbow Dash took flight to search for Lockpicker.

Lockpicker, on the other hoof, was panicking as he desperately tried to run away, searching for any way out. Unfortunately, because of what he and his cohorts had done earlier, there were no open exits in the entire building. Still, the crook searched for any possible way out of his own trap. He was so focused on trying to escape, that he didn't even notice Mega Pony and Rainbow Dash in the air directly above him.

"There he is!" the cyan Pegasus announced, pointing straight down towards the crook.

Mega Pony tapped his helmet to trigger his communicator. "Okay, Addie...we found him." he said. "He just ran past the Hoof Locker booth. Based on your current location, he'll be coming towards you in about 7.4 seconds."

"Got it!" the Earth Pony responded. "Then I'll take him by surprise and get him to where you need him." She then ducked behind one of the other booths and waited for Lockpicker to pass by. Once he did, she immediately gave chase, which naturally spooked the criminal.

Lockpicker galloped as fast as he could, but he was unable to shake off his pursuer. Of course, there was no way he could; after all, Adrenaline Rush had pretty much proven that she could keep up with even the fastest of ponies. "G-get away from me!!" he cried out, getting even more worried by the second.

Back in the main area, up towards the ceiling, Mega Pony and Rainbow Dash hovered nearby another chandelier. This lighting fixture was dome-like in appearence, and it hung directly above a large circular design on the floor below. The robot glanced to his side and saw Addie chasing down Lockpicker not far away from where they were. "Here they come now..." he said to Dash.

"So what now?" asked the cyan mare.

"Once they get here, I need you and Addie to get him standing on that circle below..." Mega Pony instructed her. "Once you do, I'll drop this chandelier down to the floor, trapping him and putting an end to his escape."

"Drop this thing?" asked Rainbow. "You sure you can? This thing seems too heavy, even for you."

"Not to worry...The special power I got from Addie will help me out here." he explained to her. "Just focus on keeping Lockpicker from leaving the area, and let me worry about the chandelier."

"Got ya. Good luck, then." the Pegasus said before zipping down to the floor below.

She reached the main area's floor just as Adrenaline Rush and Lockpicker got there. "Ack! You!!" the thief responded once Rainbow Dash confronted him.

"Yeah, it's me alright!" the Pegasus told him. "And you ain't goin' anywhere!"

The Unicorn crook tried to turn around, but Adrenaline blocked his path. "Don't even try anything, buddy..." she warned him. "It's just like she said: You're not leaving here on our watch..."

The burglar backed up as much as he could to put some distance between him and the two courageous ponies. As he did, he eventually stopped right in the middle of the large floor design, just as they had planned.

Once Mega Pony saw that Lockpicker was right where he wanted him, he then immediately swapped his body color, changing to Adrenaline Rush's color scheme and cutie mark. He then wrapped his forelegs around the chain that the chandelier hung from and began pulling with all of his might...

*** WEAPON GET! *** Iron Hoof ***

Thanks to the new weapon that he got from Addie, the robot's physical strength was increased dramatically. In but a few seconds, the chain finally snapped apart, and the chandelier was no longer attached to the ceiling, instead hanging from inbetween Mega Pony's front hooves. He then moved around in the air, aiming for the large design on the floor that Lockpicker was now standing on. Once he felt that he was in the right spot, the robot let go of the light fixture and let it drop down below.

"I've dropped the chandelier, guys!" the mechanoid informed his friends. "Get out of there, and fast!"

Once the message was recieved, the two ponies immediately sped out of the way. Lockpicker wasn't sure what was going on...until he heard a sound coming from above. He then looked up, only to see the giant, cage-like chandelier coming right towards him. He screamed hysterically, but it was too late: The fixture hit the ground and trapped the criminal underneath it. The Unicorn crook's jaw dropped in complete shock, as his brain wasn't yet able to register what had just happened. "What...what...just happened...?" he said in a low tone.

At that moment, Rainbow Dash, Adrenaline Rush, and Mega Pony (now back to his normal color scheme and minus his wings) approached the now-imprisoned Lockpicker. "You wanna know what happened?" asked the Pegasus. "You just got beat, that's what happened."

"You...you little..." the crook snarled. "You're gonna pay for this...!"

"Oh, save the empty threats for somepony who cares." Addie told him. "Just face the facts: You're finished."

Mega Pony then told him in a stern voice, "Look, Lockpicker...there was no other way that this would have turned out. Forgive me for saying this, but you deserve everything that just happened to you. You used to be a good pony, doing honest work...But when things didn't go the way you wanted, you decided to abuse your special talents for your own personal gain...And you didn't care who got hurt, as long you benefited from it. Until you realize that your path as a criminal will only lead you to a dead end, you will never be happy again...And deep down, you know that."

Lockpicker was still angry at first, but after listening to what Mega Pony said to him, he finally cracked and hung his head in shame. "Oh...who am I kidding...?" he said in a sad and pathetic tone. "I'm a horrible thief...It's the truth..."

The trio of heroic ponies looked at one another and gave confiming nods, knowing that they did a great job in stopping Lockpicker's robbery attmept.

Several minutes later, the cops were finally able to enter the community center. They then proceeded to escort Lockpicker and his cohorts into a large-sized paddy wagon. In addition to each of them having restraints placed around their legs, a metal band was also placed around Lockpicker's horn, which was designed to surpress his magical abilities. Once all the crooks were accounted for, the police left the area and headed back to the station.

"Well, that takes care of that." said Rainbow Dash in a proud tone.

"The cops should be able to handle things from here." said Adrenaline Rush. "After we took care of the hard part for them."

"That's good to know..." Mega Pony chimed in. He then hummed and asked the others, "But...how did the police get here so fast? How did they about what was going on?"

"Um...that would be because of me." said a voice coming from beside the group. The three of them looked over towards the right and saw the white-coated Pegasus Blossomforth standing there, rubbing the back of her head with her left foreleg.

"Hey, aren't you the one that warned us about Lockpicker and his crew earlier?" asked Addie.

"Mhmm." the white mare hummed, nodding her head yes. "I managed to escape through an air duct before those bad guys could close up all of the exits." she the explained. "As soon as I was outside, I flew as fast as I could to get to the police station. After I told the police what had happened, they immediately came out in full force and headed for the community center."

"That was very nice of you to do that." Mega Pony complimented. "Thank you so much!"

"Aw, it was nothing..." said Blossomforth, blushing a little. "I was just doing what anypony else would have done."

"Well, it means a whole lot to us and everypony else here." the robot then told her. "We're all very grateful for what you did for us." Rainbow Dash and Addie nodded to say that they agreed with him. Blossomforth smiled and flew back into the building. After the white Pegasus left, the mechanoid then asked the others, "Y'know, I just remembered; we still haven't finished the Iron Pony Competition yet...Why don't we go and get back to it, now that everything's alright again?"

"Actually..." began Rainbow, "Addie and I were just talking to each other about it while the cops were doing their thing...And, well...we both agreed to call it a draw."

"Really?" asked Mega Pony. "How come?"

"Nothing much, really." the Earth Pony responded. "We just didn't feel like finishing it anymore after everything that just happened. And to be honest, it was acutally a lot more enjoyable working together with each other than competeing against each other...Not that it wasn't fun facing Rainbow here as an opponent, mind you."

"Same here." stated the cyan mare. She then said the peach-coated pony, "I respect ya, Addie. You're one of the toughest ponies I've ever seen, and you did pretty well out there when we took down that burglar."

"Same to you, Dash." Addie replied. "I never thought I'd say this, but I'm really glad that I got to meet you. It's great to know that there's another pony out there that takes fitness and working out as seriously as I do."

"Heh, seems kinda weird, though..." the Pegasus then told her. "To think that after all this, we were actually able to become friends in the end."

"It's not really that weird, actually..." Mega Pony chimed in. "The two of you share a lot of similar interests, after all, so I'm more surprised you two didn't hit it off sooner."

"We might have, but I guess our egos really didn't let us see it that way." Adrenaline admitted. "We just didn't think that we could get along because of our sudden rivalry."

"Maybe..." the robot began, "but I don't think that something like that really should prevent you from making a new friend. I mean, think about it: The two of you might compete against each other a lot, but when it comes right down it, in the end, your rivalry with each other is something that might actually benefit both of you."

"Whad'ya mean?" asked Dash.

"Well, as long as you two don't take things too far, your constant competitions with each other will help you both to become even stronger ponies, both inside and out." he explained to them. "From what I was able to observe, I actually believe that a rival can be a pony's best and most treasured friend. Because, whether you realize it or not, the two of you are helping each bring out the best in each other. And if that isn't a friendly gesture, I don't know what is."

Rainbow Dash and Addie smiled upon hearing that, knowing that the little robot made a good point. "Y'know, Mega? When you're right, you're right." Dash told him. Turning to her new friend, she then said to her, "Listen...I wanna apologize for the jerky things I said to you earlier...It's just that when I get competitive, I-"

"You don't have to apologize, Dash. I know the feeling." Addie informed her. "Besides, I said a few things that I shouldn't have either...Why don't we just forget about all that, and start off fresh?"

"Deal." the cyan mare replied, and two performed a hoof-bump to cement their newfound friendship.

"Well, I'm glad that everything's all good between the two of you now." Mega Pony commented.

"Yeah, I think we'll be fine from now on." stated Rainbow. She then added, "I kinda feel sorry for ya though, Mega...Y'know, with your day off ending up being the exact opposite, and all."

"It's okay...There will be other times for fun in the future." said the mechanical pony. "Besides, we've still got some time left to enjoy the rest of the convention. So why don't we all go back in and have the best time we can?"

"Sounds good to me." said Addie.

"Same here." added Dash. "I'm still psyched to get to the Wonderbolts' booth once they finally show up! I can't wait to hear about what they have to say!"

"So, is it true what you told me earlier?" the Earth Pony then asked Rainbow Dash. "Y'know, about how you got into the Wonderbolts Reserve?"

"Yeah, pretty crazy story, actually." the Pegasus answered. "See, it all started when I met this pony named Lightning Dust...She was a bit of a jerk, really. So, anyway, as I was saying, we all got to the academy when all of a sudden..."

"Dear Mom...Even though my day off today didn't exactly go as we planned it, I still had a great time with Rainbow Dash at the convention in Baltimare. While we were there, we met a really nice pony named Adrenaline Rush. Although she and Rainbow didn't exactly get along with each other at first, they eventually were able to respect each other in the end. After everything was said and done, we all learned a very important lesson: Even if you consider somepony else to be your rival at something that you're good at, that doesn't mean that you can't be friends with them. In fact, a rival can actually end up becoming one of the best friends that you can make. Two ponies that are rivals can help bring out the best of each others' abilities and help them to become even better at what they do, whether they're competing against each other, or cooperating with each other to take care of a difficult task.

"In the end, a rival is not somepony that's trying to be better than you...Instead, they are somepony that, in their own competitive way, wants to help you become the best that you can be. And as far as I'm concerned, that's something that only a true friend would do...Your loving son, Mega Pony."

NEXT EPISODE: "Honey, I Shrunk the Ponies"

Episode 109: Cannon Come Home:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

...Okay, enough with the part that you always read at the beginning of each episode; I should probably introduce myself right now...

Hi! My name's Pinkie Pie! Or Pinkamena Diane Pie, if you want the long version. My favorite things are parties, sweets, my friends, chimi-cherry changas, my toothless alligator Gummy, the Cakes' twins, smiling, fun, parties, and...What? I said, "parties" already? Hee hee, I guess that means I like parties a WHOLE lot!

Anyway, speaking of parties, tomorrow's a superly-super-special-awesome day for me! It's the anniversary of the day that I got my cutie mark! I love my cutie mark so much! It showed me that I was good at planning parties and helping everypony around me smile! Plus, I like the whole blue-yellow-blue thing it's got going on there; that's pretty cool, I have to admit.

So anyway, In honor of the event, I'm throwing one of my biggest parties ever, and everypony's invited! All of Ponyville, my best friends, my family, and also Mega Pony, my all-time favorite robot pony! ...It also helps that he's the ONLY robot pony. In fact, he's right here, helping me set things up in Sugarcube Corner! HEY!! Mega Pony!! Wanna come over here and say "hi" to our readers?! ...Huh? Whad'ya mean, "Who am I talking to?" I'm talking to them!

...I think he's a little busy right now. Oh well, you can just read on and see what happens with me and Mega Pony today. I hope you enjoy it! Bye-bye!

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): A super-great pony robot built by Celestia herself! Wasn't that so super-nice of her?

Pinkie Pie: Super-silly party pony. Element of Laughter. (Hey! That's me!)

Mr. and Mrs. Pie: My dad and my mom! They're not as energetic as I am, but they're still great anyway!

*** ??? *** (Ooooh! Mystery character! I wonder who it is...?)

"Pinkie Pie...? Who were you just talking to?" asked Mega Pony during another bright and sunny afternoon in the town of Ponyville. The robot pony was helping his friend, Pinkie Pie, set up decorations all over the town's sweet shop, Sugarcube Corner.

The pink pony glanced over at him, narrowed her eyes a little and answered, saying, "I told you, Mega Pony: I was talking to our fans! Yeesh, I'd tell you to clean the wax out of your ears, but you don't get earwax."

The mechanical pony glanced around the room, but there was nopony else around, making him even more confused. He then sighed and responded, telling her, "Never mind, it's not important right now. Let's just focus on our work for today." The silly pink pony nodded vigorously and the two went back to their duties, hanging up banners and streamers, blowing balloons, and setting up small tables for party snacks. "So," Mega Pony began to say to her, "you said that this party is for the anniversary of when you got your cutie mark?"

"Yep, yep, yep, yep, yep!" Pinkie Pie answered, hopping up and down as she circled the room, smiling brightly. "It was such a great day, too! Up until then, I never once thought that I'd get that kind of cutie mark! I had always thought mine would involve rocks or something like that, like the rest of my family." She then stopped in front of a bunch of balloons and used the nearby helium tank to blow them up. "Buuuuuuut, I can't take ALL the credit for discovering my talent; Dashie was a big help in that department."

"Yeah, I remember that you guys told me about how Rainbow Dash was responsible for all of you getting your cutie marks." stated the robot. He then glanced at his mark and told her, "I kinda wish I could've been able to get my cutie mark in the same way you got yours...But I guess that would have been a bit tricky for my mom to program something like that into me."

"Well, in a way, you KINDA got your mark like how I did..." Pinkie noted. "Even though yours is painted on you, you still had to discover your talent on your own. That's not much different from how everypony else got their marks."

"You make a good point. Thanks for telling me that." Mega Pony told her, smiling. "You know, for how funny and silly you are every day, I tend to forget that you're pretty knowledgeable about all sorts of things...No offense."

"None taken." the pink pony replied. "Sometimes, I don't even know how smart I am!"

Mega Pony chuckled a bit and used his psuedo-magic to levitate a nearby clipboard towards him. As he looked it over, two other ponies showed up, one yellow and one blue, stopping in front of the counter and setting out trays of pink cupcakes and pink cookies; the cookies were also decorated with blue and yellow sprinkles. The robot glanced over at the two and said to them, "Oh! Mr. and Mrs. Cake! I see that you've finished with the party treats."

"Oh, just a few of them." stated Mrs. Cake, the blue Earth Pony. "We're still working on the cake; it's going to take a little while longer..."

"That's okay, just take your time; no need to rush things!" Pinkie said to her. "As my friend Twilight always says, 'Good things come to those who wait!' I should know: I've been waiting for this day for a super-long time!"

"Yes, we know, Pinkie. You've marked every calender in the shop." Mr. Cake, the yellow Earth Pony, told her.

"So, how are the twins doing?" Mega Pony asked the Cakes.

"Very well, thank you." answered Mrs. Cake. "They're both upstairs, sleeping like babies."

"Well, duh. They ARE babies. How ELSE could they sleep?" asked the pink pony.

"Well, we meant that figuratively, but I guess it's also true in the literal sense." stated Mr. Cake, chuckling a bit afterwards. He then said to Pinkie and Mega Pony, "Anyway, Cup and I are going back to work on the cake some more. Can you two handle things here by yourselves?"

"Yes, I think we'll be able to manage things here on our own for a while." answered the robot. "See you both later, and thanks for all of your help so far."

"Our pleasure." Mrs. Cake replied before she and her husband went back into the kitchen.

Mega Pony then glanced back at the clipboard that he was carrying and said, "Okay, let's run through the list to see what else we need for the party tomorrow...The party food's already being taken care of by the Cakes...How are we on decoration supplies?"

"Well, all the streamers are set up, the balloons are all blown up," answered Pinkie Pie, "and the banner that Derpy delivered is hung up over the counter." She then pointed up at the banner, which read, "Happy Cutie Mark-iversary, Pinkie Pie!"

"Cutie Mark...-iversary?" asked Mega Pony. "Is that even a word?"

"Yep! I made it up myself!" the silly pony answered him.

"Uh...okay, then." the robot responded. He then looked over the clipboard and said to her, "Let's see here, as for music, I was able to get a hold of Vinyl, and she said that she'd be happy to play for the celebration...She said something about Octavia going out tomorrow to attend some music club with Lyra or something..."

"Oh, I know that group!" Pinkie Pie chimed in. "Octy's cousin from Appleloosa is a member there. They do such a great job playing music!"

"Well, if they're even half as good as Ms. Octavia is, I might ask her about seeing them sometime in the future." Mega Pony then glanced at his list and told his friend, "Well, I think we've pretty much gotten everything we need for tomorrow. With everything you have planned, I'm sure everypony will be all fired up for the celebration!"

"Fired up...?" asked the pink pony, focusing on those words for a short while. She then let out a loud gasp and shouted, "Sweet Celestia!! I almost forgot!!! I need to check my Party Cannons and make sure that they're perfectly cali-...er, cabby...um..."

"Calibrated?" asked Mega Pony, trying to help her find the word she was looking for.

"No, wait...not that; Cadbury!" she corrected him. "I need to make sure that my cannons can handle firing cream-filled chocolate eggs! I'll have to test-fire them a few times just to make sure..." Pinkie Pie then bounced up a nearby flight of stairs, heading for her bedroom. Pinkie not only worked at Sugarcube Corner, she also lived there with the Cake Family; she had even watched over their two babies, Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake, though it took her some time to figure out how to be a good babysitter for them.

Mega Pony then continued to glance over the list that he was holding, making sure that everything was in place. He was just about to set the clipboard down, until...

"AIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEE!!!!"

The robot was startled by a sudden scream from upstairs. Realizing that it was Pinkie who had screamed, he dropped the clipboard and ran up the stairs to see what was going on. "Pinkie Pie??" he asked. "Are you okay?!" Mega Pony then made his way to the pink pony's bedroom, and there he saw his friend sitting completely still, eyes wide, pupils dialated, and mouth agape. "Pinkie! What's wrong??" he asked, walking over to her. "Please, say something!"

"I-i-i-i-it's...it's gone..." she uttered softly.

"What? What's gone?"

"My...one of my Party Cannons...IT'S GONE!!!!" Pinkie shouted in despair. She then pointed to her bedroom closet, showing that it was completely empty.

"You're serious?!" asked the mechanoid. "Your cannon's gone?! What happened to it??"

"I don't know!!" Pinkie answered him. "I always put it right here, in my closet! I know it was in here when I woke up this morning! But now it's gone!! It's no more!! It has ceased to be!! It's expired and gone to meet its maker!! This is a late cannon!!"

Mega Pony then tried to speak up, saying, "Um...Pinkie? I think that-"

But the crazy party pony interrupted him and continued to wail, saying to him, "It's a stiff!! Bereft of life, it rests in peace!!"

"Uh, Pinkie...?"

"It's rung down the curtain and joined the choir invisible!!! This...is an EX-CANNON!!!"

"PINKIE!!!!" Mega Pony yelled at the pink Earth Pony, causing her to stop lamenting. She then stared at him intently as an awkward silence filled the room. The robot then took a deep sigh to calm himself and told her, "Sorry for raising my voice there, but we're not going to find your cannon by sitting here in despair like this...We have to take action: We need to search around this area and try to find some clues that will tell us what happened."

Pinkie wiped a small tear from her eye, smiled and said to him, "You're absolutely right, Mega Pony...I'm sorry for losing it there. It's just that I've had that Party Cannon for as long as I can remember; I've used it to help put together so many parties, I've just grown really attached to it, you know?"

"Believe me, I know how you feel." the robot told her, putting his right foreleg around the back of her head. "And that's why I want to help you find it. Now let's search around and see if we can find some clues, okay?" Pinkie Pie nodded and the two began looking around the room to figure out where the party pony's most prized possession had disappeared to.

The pair searched the entire room for several minutes, but neither of them found anything. Just then, as Pinkie stepped near her window, she felt something gooey under her left front hoof. "Huh?" she said, glancing down at the floor. She then saw that there was a small muddy spot where her front leg was. "Hey! Mega Pony!!" she shouted to the robot. "I found something! I found something!!"

"What is it?" he asked, walking over to his friend. He then looked down at her feet and saw the muddy spot on the floor where she stepped. "Mud...?" he said curiously. "Where did that come from?"

"Well, it comes from outside, after the dirt gets all wet and stuff!" Pinkie answered him.

"No, that's not what I meant." Mega Pony informed her. He then said to his silly friend, "The only way that mud would ever be inside of a building is if somepony tracked it inside..." The mechanical pony then asked, "Pinkie, was that muddy spot there when you woke up this morning?"

The pink pony shook her head no in response.

"That means that it must have been brought in here today, sometime after this morning possibly..." Mega Pony hypothesized. "That's when you last saw your Party Cannon, according to what you told me. Do you see where I'm going with this?"

Pinkie Pie gasped. "Are...are you saying that somepony...came in here and STOLE my cannon??" she asked in despair and shock.

"Unfortunately, that's what appears to have happened." the robot answered her. "But on the bright side, if your cannon was only taken just recently, the thief can't be too far away."

"Then we'll be able to find him?!" Pinkie Pie asked, regaining hope.

"I'm pretty sure of it." The robot then told her, "However, I think it would be in our best interest to prepare ourselves for whatever we might face, as I'm pretty sure that the thief won't go down quietly once we locate them. I can download some weapons from my mom's lab back at the castle, but..."

"But what?"

"Well, the last time I fought alongside you, during the Para-Bot attack," he reminded his friend, "you used your cannon to help me defeat those bugs..."

"Oh yeah..." the pink pony responded, understanding the problem. "But I can't just sit and do nothing while my cannon is off who-knows-where, alone and hungry and unable to throw parties like it loves to do!"

Mega Pony was about to make a comment about the fact that an inanimate object like a cannon would not be able to eat or have feeings of loneliness, but before he could say it, a sudden thought occurred to him. "I've got it!" he exclaimed. "Maybe my mom could help us figure out a way for you to defend yourself! It's worth a try!"

"Hey, yeah!!" the pink pony said, regaining her cheerful attitude. She then asked him, "But how are gonna get there? It'll take too long to use a train..." She then perked her head up and exclaimed, "I know! You can teleport there, and take me with you!"

"Um...I don't know..." said a somewhat reluctant Mega Pony. "I'm not sure how well my Teleportation Unit would work on a real pony. There could be some nasty side effects..."

"Oh, don't worry about that!" Pinkie reassured him. "I'm a main character: It's not like I have to worry about anything REALLY bad happening to me anytime soon!"

"Uh...main character? What are you talking about??"

Pinkie chuckled and put her right foreleg on the robot's back, telling him, "Just fire up that teleporty thingy and take us to Canterlot Castle! Trust me: I'll be just fine!"

Mega Pony still wasn't sure about using his teleporting power on his friend, but he figured that he'd give it a try; after all, Pinkie seemed pretty confident that nothing horrible would happen as a result of it. "Well, okay then..." he said to her. "Don't say I didn't warn you, though...Now hold on tight and don't let go." The pink pony nodded as the robot activated his Teleportation Unit, whisking the two of them away in a tall column of light.

Meanwhile, in Canterlot Castle, the two Princesses, Celestia and Luna, were hard at work; the two of them were sitting in the Sun Princess's bedroom, looking over several papers and reports that were hastily assembled on a large writing desk. "So..." the white Alicorn began, "what do we know about everything so far?"

"Not very much, unfortunately." Luna replied. "Ever since the Para-Bot attack in Ponyville, I have, as you requested, put my personal guards in charge with investigating the one responsible for the creation of the Parasprite robots. However, whoever they may be, they have been smart enough to keep a low profile and cover their tracks so as to elude capture."

"That seems to be the case..." stated Celestia. "And while we are scrambling around trying to find him or her, they have continued to launch attacks, one right after the other." She then pulled out another stack of papers and continued on, saying, "Not long after the Para-Bot attack, there were the Guts Drillers that Mega Pony found in the Diamond Dogs' territory in Rambling Rock Ridge. Then, shortly after that, he then encountered the pony-like robots, the 'Equine Joes', that had attacked Cockatrice flocks in the Everfree Forest."

"There has to be some sort of pattern with all of these incidents..." the Princess of the Night added, looking over all of the reports. "Unfortunately, it seems that the only way that we will find any more clues as to the identity of our saboteur is if they strike again..."

Princess Celestia was worried, and it was quite obvious why: This mysteious attacker's identity was completely unknown to them, and the only clues that had come so far as to who they may have been were found in the wake of their assaults. And just as Luna said, more clues would only come when the villian/villianess launched another attack. And the Sun Princess knew that Mega Pony would have to be the one to repulse that attack. Even though she had built him to defend Equestria, she did not like putting her "son" in constant danger without knowing just what this unknown attacker was truely capable of.

Just then, a sudden noise was heard in the courtyard outside, interrupting the Princess' thoughts. The two stopped what they were doing and headed to the courtyard to see what it was.

The sound was from Mega Pony's teleporter, which he had used to warp him and Pinkie Pie to Canterlot Castle. Looking at himself and his friend, he told himself, "Well, it looks like we're here, with no negative side effects from the teleport..."

"Speak for yourself, M.P..." groaned the pink pony, feeling a bit woozy and her face turning a little green. She then gave out a slight gulp and quickly ran behind a bush. All that the little robot could hear after that were various sounds from Pinkie Pie that indicated sudden nauseousness. After the sick-sounding noises ceased, Pinkie walked out from behind the bush, wiping her mouth a little. "Ewww...that was unpleasent..." she commented, recovering from her unfortunate situation. "I think I saw a Flufflepuff Marshmallow in there..."

"Uh...are you going to be okay, Pinkie Pie?" Mega Pony asked her.

"Yeah, I will..." she told him. "I just wasn't used to how fast your teleport-thingy was...It's faster than even the fastest roller coaster at Whinny Land!"

"Well, I told you that I hadn't tried my teleporting power on a real pony yet..." he reminded his friend. "But now that I've tried it, it's good to know that feeling nauseous is the only worst-case scenario."

Shortly after that comment, the pair saw Celestia and Luna walking into the courtyard. "Mega Pony!" the white Alicorn said in surprise, not expecting him to show up so suddenly.

"Hi, Mom. Hi, Aunt Luna." he said to the two Princesses. "Sorry for showing up unexpectedly like this, but it's an emergency."

"What kind of emergency?" asked Princess Luna.

"Well," the robot started, "what happened was-"

But Pinkie Pie quickly nudged him aside and interrupted him, screaming in panic, "Somepony stole my Party Cannon!! It's vanished!! It's gone!! It's no more!! It has ceased to-"

Mega Pony then quickly covered his friend's mouth and told her, "Pinkie...please don't do that again."

The pink pony rubbed the back of her head and sheepishly replied, "Oopsie...sorry about that. It was just so funny, I couldn't help but say it all over again..."

"You lost your cannon?" asked Celestia, feeling sympathetic towards Pinkie. "I'm sorry to hear that..." She then glanced over to her "son" and asked him, "And I'm assuming that you're going to help her find it, am I right?"

The robot nodded yes.

"And you've come here to download some of your weapons from the Weapons Archive, is that true?" the white Alicorn then asked him.

Mega Pony nodded yes once more and told her, "That's right, but there's something else, too..." He then pointed towards his pink friend and added, "Pinkie Pie insisted on coming with me to help out, but without her Party Cannon, she has no way of defending herself in case things get...well, ugly."

"What about that cannon that she had gotten on Hearth's Warming Eve?" Luna inquired.

"I thought about that," Pinkie replied, "but the cannon that Dashie gave me is now the only one I have left, and I'd really, really, REALLY hate to lose that one too! Not to mention it's WAY too heavy to just carry around in my hair all day long like with all of my other belongings."

"In...your hair...?" asked the Night Princess.

"It's true." Mega Pony informed his aunt. "I swear, I saw her pull a bowling ball out of her hair one time...I didn't even know that she bowled."

"Oh, that?" asked Pinkie Pie. "That wasn't mine: It's Twilight's. She told me that she wanted to try bowling one day, so I'm saving it for her until then!"

"Uh huh...I see." the robot stated. He then turned back to his mother and said, "Anyway, we're getting off-topic here: What I'm asking is if you could build something for Pinkie Pie so that she can defend herself. Do you think that could be possible?"

Princess Celestia pondered a bit, rubbing her chin with her right front hoof. "Well," she told everypony, "there is ONE thing that could help her...I've been working on a new device down in the lab for some time, and I think it could do the trick." She then headed towards the entrance to the courtyard and told the others, "Everypony follow me down to the lab." The other three ponies nodded and followed the Sun Princess.

Downstairs, in the bowels of the castle, the group of four made their way to Celestia's secret laboratory: the place where Mega Pony was built and activated. The four of them walked over to a large, steel table; on it was a small, cylindrical object made out of metal. It had an opening on the front of it, and the inside was nearly completely hollow.

"What is this, Mom?" Mega Pony asked Princess Celestia.

"This is a new invention that I've been working on for a while." explained the elder Royal Sister. "It is called a hoof cannon."

"A hoof cannon?" asked Pinkie. "What's that?"

"It is designed to be a compact weapon that can be worn on either the left or right front hoof." Celestia explained. "Its small size allows its weilder to easily carry it, no matter where they are. I believe that, in time, I can try to mass-produce them for the entire Royal Guard." The Sun Princess then told the others, "However, as of now, this is the only one that I have finished so far, and I have yet to arm it with any sort of weapon data..."

"Weapon data?" asked Mega Pony. "Like the weapons that I use?"

"Exactly." said the white Alicorn. "This cannon has been installed with a microchip that acts much like your Copy Chip does, though this one is much more limited in comparison. It only has enough memory storage to hold one weapon at a time." Celestia then added, "Even so, I think I can use the Weapons Archive to copy and download the data from the Special Weapon that you obtained from Pinkie Pie into the cannon's microchip. If so, then your friend will be able to use the same exact weapon that you get from her."

"Really? That's amazing!" said the mechanical pony, very much impressed.

"That's so superly-super-great! A compact Party Cannon for my hoof!" cheered Pinkie, hopping up and down enthusiastically. "How long will it take?" she then asked.

"It shouldn't take long at all." Celestia stated, using her magic to pull out a cord from out of a nearby desk drawer, which she connected to both her main computer (which had Mega Pony's Weapons Archive on it) and the hoof cannon. After that, the Sun Princess then tapped a few keys on the keyboard in front of her. After she was finished, a box appeared on the screen, showing an empty bar. A green color then began filling it, starting from the left side, to show that the dowloading process had started.

"Wow...this is something like out of a sci-fi movie!" Pinkie said. "If only Twilight could see this right now!"

"She's been asking to see this place again ever since we first came down here." Luna told the pink pony. "But we know that if we let her, she would probably never leave."

"I'd believe that." Mega Pony added.

Just then, the bar on the computer screen filled up completely, indicating that the download was complete. Celestia then told Pinkie Pie, "There. All done. The hoof cannon prototype now has the weapon data for the Party Cannon."

"Hurray!!!" cheered the party pony.

"Now you'll be able to defend yourself from whatever we might face while searching for that thief!" Mega Pony told her.

"Yeah!" said Pinkie. She then stood up on her hind legs and flexed her forelegs, putting on a tough pose and saying, "Now I'LL get to be the super-tough fighting robot pony! ...Without the robot part, of course." Mega Pony and Luna chuckled a bit in response.

"Hmmmm...That's interesting..." hummed Celestia as she looked at her monitor.

"What is it, Sister?" asked Luna.

"Well, it seems that even after downloading the weapon data," the elder sister answered, "there's still a good amount of memory left on the microchip. If that's the case, I think I might be able to make a few more additions to the cannon to make it more powerful..."

"Well, if you think it will help, then go for it." the mechanical pony suggested.

Celestia nodded and used her magic to type up some more data into the computer to transfer to the microchip. Once she was done, she then initiated the download, and the empty bar appeared on-screen once more. As it filled up, the white Alicorn then asked her creation, "So, what weapons do you think you'll need for your mission? We can figure that out while the data is being downloaded..."

Meanwhile, back out in the courtyard, a male Earth Pony was strolling around the area. He was a groundskeeper, making sure that the vast gardens within the yard were as pristine as when he first saw them. As he made his rounds, the Earth Pony glanced over at a nearby bush, seeing something behind it. Walking over to the bush, he asked himself, "Now what in Equestria is thi-" But once he got a good look at what was there, his irises shrunk, and he stuck his tongue out in disgust. "UGH! Ewwwwww! Sweet Celestia! That's disGUSTING!!!" He then groaned a little as he went to get a nearby hose and began sparying the area behind the bush while muttering, "They do NOT pay me enough for this..."

Minutes later, Mega Pony and Pinkie Pie returned to Ponyville after getting everything they needed from Princess Celestia. Now that Pinkie had a way to defend herself, she would be able to accompany the robot pony in search of her stolen Party Cannon. The pink pony admired her new hoof-cannon, loving the way that it looked on her right foreleg. "Wow, Princess Celestia did such a great job on this thing!" she commented. "She even painted it pink and put my cutie mark on it!"

"It was very nice of her to let you keep that one," the robot told her, "even though it was the only cannon that she had built."

"Soooooooo...how does this thingy work again?" asked the party pony.

"Well, since the cannon has the weapon data for the power that I had gotten from you," Mega Pony explained, "it has the ability to fire balloons like missiles. However, they aren't just ANY ordinary balloons; they have special microchips inside them that allow you to remotely inflate them at any time. And the blast that they make when they pop is enough to cause some damage to an enemy."

"Self-inflating balloons...what'll they think of next?" Pinkie asked.

"Also," he continued, "while my version of the weapon only has enough energy to be fired up to twenty-eight times, your cannon has the power to continuously regenerate energy for ammunition. In other words, you can fire it as much as you want without running out of ammo!"

"That's great!" cheered the pink mare. "Anything else?"

"Well, I think my mom mentioned something about a secondary function, but I can't seem to recall what it was. But I'm sure that we could-"

"Oh! There you are! We've been looking all over for you!" said an older female voice, which interrupted Mega Pony's statement. The two turned around and saw a pair of figures heading towards them.

They were two Earth Ponies, one male and one female, clearly a married couple. The male one had a light-brown coat, a short mane and tail, both colored grey, and golden-brown eyes. He wore a black hat on his head, a black tie and white collar around his neck, and his cutie mark was a picture of a pick-axe. The female Earth Pony had a grey coat with a slight bluish tint to it and light-blue eyes. Her mane and tail were both colored slate-blue, and the mane was done up into a bun. She wore a pair of glasses over her eyes connected to a chain, had a black collar around her neck with a white grid design on it, topped with a shiny blue brooch, and her cutie mark was a picture of three boulders in a triangle formation.

Pinkie seemed slightly alarmed by the appearence of these two ponies. "...Mom? Dad?" she asked them. "What are you doing here??"

"We came here to see you, of course." said the male Earth Pony. "Did you forget? You mailed invitations to us and the rest of the family so that we could come to your...Cutie Mark-...iversary." He then leaned over to his wife and softly asked her, "Did I pronounce that word right? I was just guessing..." The older mare shrugged, but nodded yes to say that she believed that he had pronounced "Cutie Mark-iversary" correctly.

"No, I didn't forget." Pinkie informed her father. "Trust me, I NEVER forget who I invite to a party! It's just that I thought you weren't coming until tomorrow..."

"That was our original plan;" Pinkie's mother told her, "we were originally going to leave later tonight, but the annual Rock Farming Convention in town was postponed until the end of the month, so we didn't have to rush and get everything ready just yet. So we took an earlier train this morning just to make sure that we wouldn't miss out on your big day."

"Oh...aheheh...I see..." the pink pony replied, feeling a bit uneasy.

"You're Pinkie Pie's parents?" asked Mega Pony, walking over to them. Putting out his right front hoof, he said to them, "My name is Mega Pony. I'm a friend of hers. It's great to finally meet you; Pinkie has told me a lot about you."

"We know who you are." said Pinkie's father, using his right front hoof to grab Mega Pony's and perform a hoofshake. "Pinkamena's told us about you and all of the friends that she's made since she moved out of our rock farm." He then told the robot, "I will admit, my wife and I were a bit skeptical at first about what she wanted to do with her life, but we couldn't say no to her decision, especially after she threw us such a wonderful party back when she was a filly."

"Speaking of parties," Pinkie began to ask, "did...you two happen to go inside Sugarcube Corner yet?"

"No, but we were about to." stated Pinkie's mother. "Your invitations said that's where your party was going to be. But when we got there, we spoke to the owner of the shop just outside the entrance. He told us that you had gone out, so we decided to stroll around until we found you."

Pinkie sighed out of relief. (Thank Celestia...I don't want them to see the party before it's all completely finished...But that will never happen unless Mega Pony and I find my missing Party Cannon!!)

Noticing his daughter's worried expression, Pinkie's father asked her, "Pinkamena, dear, are you okay?"

Not wanting to make her parents think that something was wrong, the pink mare answered him by saying, "Oh! Yeah! Just fine! TOTALLY fine!! Everything's all peachy-keen!" She paused for a moment to think of something to tell them, and after coming up with something, she then added, "I was just wondering if anypony else from the family was going to be showing up!"

"Oh, not too many; just your father and I, as well as your sisters." Pinkie's mother answered. "Well, two of them to be accurate; Maud won't be able to make it, since she's busy studying abroad. But she did send us a letter to say that she wishes that she could be here, and that she's sending you a gift in the mail."

"That was very nice of her to do that." Pinkie replied. "Let her know that I really, really, really, REALLY thank her so much!"

"Um, we'll be sure to, dear." the mother responded, sweating a little.

"But you said my other sisters are here, right?" asked the silly party pony. "I haven't spoken to Blinkie or Inkie in ages!"

Pinkie's father groaned a little and said, "Pinkamena, you know for a fact that those aren't their names..."

"Now dear," his wife told him, "there's nothing wrong with them coming up with amusing nicknames for each other. It just means that they love each other very much."

"I know that, but I can never figure out whom she refers to when she calls them by those silly names..." the husband stated.

Pinkie's mother chuckled a little and said to her daughter, "We're staying over at a home nearby here, if you want to see your other sisters right now."

"Um, no that's okay, Mom..." Pinkie told her. "I'm still busy; Mega Pony and I were on our way to...our way to..." Trying to think of some sort of excuse, she then said to her parents, "...to get some more streamers and balloons for the party! We need a WHOLE lot of them, so we're both gonna be superly-super busy!"

"But Pinkie," Mega Pony began to tell her, "we have plenty of-" He then stopped himself when he realized what she was doing: She was trying to stall for more time so that they could have plenty of time to track down Pinkie's Party Cannon and finish setting everything up. He then chose to say nothing else; he couldn't make even a little white lie due to the small bit of Applejack's personality that was in his programming, so he knew that he couldn't say anything to add to Pinkie's tiny fib.

"We understand, dear." Pinkie's father replied, believing his daughter. "We know how important this party is to you, so you do your very best to put it together the way you want it to be. If you finish up early, though, be sure to drop by and visit us."

"Okay, I will!" the party pony responded. "Bye, Mom! Bye, Dad!"

"Goodbye, Pinkie." said the mother. "We'll see you later. Have fun!" After that, the married couple left the area, leaving both Pinkie Pie and Mega Pony by themselves.

Pinkie let out a sigh and said to the robot, "We've gotta hurry and find my Party Cannon...Or I'll never have the party ready in time!"

"Don't worry, we will." Mega Pony assured her. "There's still plenty of time before the party tomorrow; we'll find the thief and get your cannon back with more than enough time to spare!"

"But we don't even know where to look first..." the pink pony told the robot.

"Well...maybe we could start by asking around to see if anypony saw anything suspicious." the mechanical pony responded. "But who...?"

The two of them pondered for a while, wondering who they should inquire first. As they thought, Pinkie suddenly felt something behind her. When she turned around to look, she noticed that her tail was vibrating very rapidly. "Uh oh!" she exclaimed.

"What?! What's wrong now??" asked Mega Pony.

"My tail's going all twitchy-twitchy!!" stated the silly mare, pointing to her shaking tail.

Mega Pony was confused as to why that was a cause for alarm. But then he remembered something that she and the rest of his friends had told him about. "Wait a second, isn't that one of the triggers for your...um, Pinkie Sense was it?"

"Uh huh! Uh huh!" she confirmed. "And this means that something's falling!"

The pair looked up at the sky and saw nothing at first. But then, all of a sudden, they could see an object high up above that was coming down towards them very fast. But Mega Pony noticed something about the falling object that made him gasp. "No...it's not something..." he told her. "It's someONE!!"

Just as he said, the object that was coming down to them was a living being. "AHHHHHHHHH!!!!" it screamed as it plummeted towards the ground.

Thinking on her hooves, Pinkie quickly stood up on her hind legs and put out her front legs in front of her. "Don't worry, mister!!" she called out to the falling individual. "I'll catch ya!! I'll catch ya!! I'll catch y-WAAAAUUGH!!!"

At that moment, the falling creature came back down to Earth, landing right on top of Pinkie Pie, and landing down hard. When the dust settled, the individual was revealed to be a male donkey with light blue eyes and wearing a golden-yellow wig on his head. "Oh my!!" Mega Pony exclaimed, running over to the scene. "Are you okay??"

The donkey groaned a bit and said to the robot, in a slightly cranky tone of voice, "I'm fine...Luckily, I landed on something soft..."

"Um...actually," the mechanoid began to tell him, "you landed on someONE soft..."

"Say what now??" the donkey responded in surprise. He quickly moved aside and saw that Pinkie Pie was underneath him, slightly battered after having been used as a landing pad. "Oh no...!" the donkey said, concerned for the pink pony's well-being. "Pinkie Pie, are you okay??"

The party pony, still dazed a bit from the accident, responded only with, "...I'll catch ya...I'll catch...I'll catch..."

Turning towards Mega Pony, he said to him, "Um...sorry about that...I didn't mean to hurt anyone."

"Don't worry, sir. She'll recover pretty quickly, trust me." the robot told him. He then asked, "What about you? Are you going to be okay? I just want to be completely positive..."

"I told you, I'll be fine." he repeated to him. "But that's the last time I'm EVER taking a flying taxi anywhere. I don't care how far Manehatten is; I'm not traveling there on something that puts me at risk of letting gravity choose my destinations for me..."

Pinkie Pie eventually was able to get back onto her hooves and was able to see who it was that landed on her. Looking at the donkey, she let out a loud, happy gasp and called over to him, "Cranky Doodle!! It's you!! It's been WAY too long since I've seen ya!!" Zipping over to him, she then asked, "How've ya been?! How's Matilda?! I've heard you two are gonna get engaged! Are ya?! Is that true?!"

"Pinkie, cut that out!" Cranky shouted, silencing the hyper pink mare.

"Oops...sorry. I got a little carried away." stated the pink pony.

The donkey sighed and told her, "To answer your questions...I'm fine, Matilda's fine, and yes, we've gotten engaged, but we're not sure when we're having the wedding yet."

"You could have it a hundred days from now!" suggested Pinkie Pie.

"Um...why a hundred?" asked Cranky.

"...Nnnnnnot sure. It was the first number I could think of."

The donkey sighed a bit and then asked her, "So how have you been, dare I ask?"

"Well, today hasn't been getting off to a good start, to be honest." Mega Pony told him. "Pinkie's lost her Party Cannon, and I think it's because somepony stole it."

"Stole it?" asked Cranky. "Why would anyone want to take something like that?"

"We're not sure yet." the robot answered. "But just out of curiosity, did you happen to see anything or anyone weird or suspicious, by any chance? I only ask because you were up in the air just a while ago and you might have seen something down below."

The donkey hummed a bit, thinking to himself. "...Nnnnope, can't say that I have." he told them. "But if you want my opinion, I'd guess that, if it WAS stolen, the thief could be hiding out in the forest somewhere. That's where I'd go if I were them."

"That sounds logical." the mechanoid commented. "Very few ponies ever go into the Everfree Forest because it's so dangerous, so it'd be the perfect place to hide." He then asked Cranky, "But how can we be sure that the thief is there?"

"Hmmmmm..." the donkey thought, trying to come up with an idea. Suddenly, a thought came to him and he told them both, "I've got it! If the thief DID go into the forest, there's someone there that will know for sure."

"Who?" asked Mega Pony.

"He's an old friend of mine who lives in the forest's river." Cranky informed them. "His name is Steven Magnet: He's a sea serpent, and he and I go way back."

"Sea serpent?!" Pinkie exclaimed. "Does he have orange hair and purple scales?"

"You've met him?" asked the donkey, surprised.

"Yep, yep, yep!" the pink pony answered in her usual bubbly tone. "My friends and I met him on the night that Nightmare Moon returned! He lost part of his moustache, but Rarity helped fix it for him!"

"He did tell me that a pony fixed up his moustache that night, but I didn't know it was one of your friends..." Cranky noted. "I'll have to remember to thank Ms. Rarity for helpin' him out..." He then said to the two of them, "Anyway, I think he'll be able to assist you; He's quite helpful, especially to anyone that's done something for him."

"Well, then we'll keep an eye out for him. Thanks, Mister!" Mega Pony told him. He then began walking towards the edge of town where the Everfree Forest was.

Pinkie then approached Cranky and said to him, "Cranky? I know you're not exactly a fan of big parties like the ones I throw, but I'd really appreciate it if you come to my Cutie Mark-iversary...Maybe you could bring Matilda with you!"

"Well, you're right about me not being a fan of parties..." he began, taking the invite that Pinkie had pulled out of her mane and started looking at it. "But...I suppose I do owe you one for helping me reunite with Matilda." He then smiled a little and told her, "As long as you promise to keep your excitement to manageable level, then we'll be there."

"Oh thank you, thank you!!" Pinkie shouted. She prepared to give Cranky a big hug, but then remembered that he probably wouldn't like that, so she paced herself and simply shook his right hoof before leaving with Mega Pony.

The pair made their way into the Everfree Forest, searching for the river that Cranky Doodle Donkey was talking about: The river that was the home of Steven Magnet, the sea serpent. Fortunately, Pinkie remembered the way from the last time that she and her friends had visited the river, and it didn't take them long to find it.

Standing at the north side of the river, Mega Pony looked around for any sign of the sea serpent. However, there didn't seem to be anyone around. "Well, here's the river, but no sign of that Magnet guy anywhere..." the robot stated.

"Gee, you'd think for a giant sea monster, he'd be easy to spot." noted Pinkie Pie.

The two continued to look around, trying to find any sign of the serpent. As they searched, Mega Pony suddenly felt something tap on his front hoof. When he looked down, he saw a rather large object lying on the grass. "Huh? Where'd this come from?" he asked, looking at the object, which seemed to be a comb of some sort, but at a larger scale.

"What is it?" asked Pinkie.

"I think it's a moustache comb..." Mega Pony answered her. "But it's bigger than I am!" He then used his psuedo-magic to pick up the giant comb to look more closely at it.

"Oh my! You've found it!" shouted a cheerful voice from far away. "You've found my favorite moustache comb!"

The pair turned towards the voice and saw something large coming down the river towards them. It was none other than the sea serpent, Steven Magnet. He was a rather large creature, with many purple scales covering every inch of his long body, and he had a very fashionable hairdo that was orange with some yellow streaks; the same colors were proudly displayed upon his magnificent moustache.

"Is that the guy we're looking for?" Mega Pony asked Pinkie Pie.

"Mhmm! That's him alright!" the party pony replied.

The giant sea serpent stopped in front of the two ponies and took the giant comb into his left hand. "Oh thank you so much!!" Steven told them both. "I almost thought I lost this thing forever!" Glancing at the two of them, he spotted Pinkie and immediately recognized her. "Oh, hey! I know you!" he told her. "You're friends with that white Unicorn that helped me out a couple years ago!"

"It's good to see you again, Mr. Magnet!" the pink mare said to him. "How have you been since last met?"

"Oh, just PEACHY!" the sea serpent replied with a slight chuckle. "Ever since your little companion helped me with my moustache problem, things have been looking up: WAY up!" Twirling his moustache, he then added, "As you can see, my natural hair has grown back since then, but I've held onto the lock of hair your Unicorn friend was generous enough to give, as a reminder of how good you all were to me!"

"Thanks!" Pinkie responded. "I'm sure Rarity'll LOVE to hear about how grateful you were!" Stepping aside, she pointed her right foreleg at Mega Pony and told him, "Anyway, I'd like to introduce you to my new friend here!"

"Hi, Mr. Magnet," the robot said to the sea serpent, "my name's Mega Pony."

"Mega Pony, huh?" Steven responded. "So you're the brave little pony that the whole forest's been talking about! I remember the other day that Phil the Cockatrice told me about how you helped him and his buddies get their homes back from a bunch of dreadful thugs!"

"Yeah, well I can't take all the credit;" the mechanoid replied, "Fluttershy was a big help that day, too. In fact, if it weren't for her, I probably wouldn't be here right now."

The sea serpent then leaned on his elbows along the river bank and asked the two, "So...what brings you here today? It's a bit bizarre for ponies like you to be wandering around the forest like this."

"Well, someone stole something from Pinkie Pie," the robot told him, "and we believe that the thief might be hiding here somewhere."

"Cranky said that you might know if anything was going on around here." the party pony added. "So...um, do you?"

"Hmmmm..." hummed the giant sea creature, trying to remember anything and everything that had happened today in the forest. Just then, he snapped his fingers and exclaimed, "Oh, of COURSE! I DO believe that I've seen something suspicious going on late this morning! While I was looking for my moustache comb, I happened to catch sight of some strange-looking figures running around...They seemed to be heading in the direction of the nearby ruins..."

"The Castle of the Two Sisters?" asked Mega Pony, a bit alarmed upon hearing Steven Magnet mentioning the castle that his mother and aunt used to live in before the first Nightmare Moon incident.

"Trust me; these eyes do NOT lie." the sea serpent told him.

"Oh, eyes can lie, alright..." Pinkie told them. "I know because one time, Rarity and I were in the middle of the desert outside of Dodge Junction, and every time I looked towards the Sun, I kept seeing things like giant cupcakes, swimming pools filled with chocolate frosting, a entire forest that grows party balloons instead of trees..." Feeling slightly upset just thinking about it, she then said, her voice breaking up a little, "But NONE of them were real at all!!"

Mega Pony and Steven Magnet gave the silly pony a perplexed look, not sure what to say about it. Turning to face the sea creature, the robot then told him, "Well anyway, thanks for your help, Mr. Magnet. We'll check out the ruins and see what's going on."

"Actually, I think I had better take you closer to the castle." Steven suggested. "It would be a lot safer than having you two wandering around this forest by yourselves for the longest time..."

"Oh yeah...I guess that does make sense." Mega Pony then asked him, "Are you sure you don't mind?"

"Oh, HEAVENS no!" the sea creature answered, chuckling. "I don't have anything more pressing at the moment, and besides, your friend Rarity was so good to me, that anything you need my help with is on the house!"

"On what house?" asked Pinkie asked. "My house? Rarity's house? Is it on the roof??"

"It's just a phrase, Pinkie Pie." the robot informed her.

"...OHHHHhhhhhh..." the mare responded, finally getting it.

"Okay, well if you two are ready, let's set SAIL!!" said Steven, pumping his left fist into the air. Mega Pony and Pinkie Pie then hopped onto the creature's back and traveled along the river to reach the castle ruins.

Nearby the river, a relatively large, shadowy figure was concealing itself behind several trees. Tapping the side of its head, it said, "Attention all units: I've detected two individuals coming your way...Be ready to do battle; we cannot allow them to disrupt our plans with our recently-obtained cargo." The figure then moved its hand away from its head area and began to leave...

Minutes later, Steven Magnet arrived at a particular area of the river and stopped. Letting his two passengers off, he then said to them, "Okay, you two; this path here will take you straight to the old castle ruins. And please be EVER so careful; I'd hate to have to tell Ms. Rarity that two of her friends got lost in these woods or worse..."

"We promise, Mr. Magnet." Mega Pony assured him. "Thank you very much for your help."

"Same here! Thank you!" Pinkie told him politely and energetically. "See you later!" As she turned to leave, she paused and added, "Oh! And if there's anything I need your help with in the future, I'll make sure let you know...AFTER I check every roof in Ponyville first, juuuuuuust in case it got there already."

"Um...good to know, dear." the sea serpent replied, chuckling weakly. "Good luck to you both!" Everyone waved goodbye to each other before the two ponies began their travels to the Castle of the Two Sisters.

The two traveled slowly and carefully, keeping an eye out for anything that could cause them them any trouble. Mega Pony let Pinkie Pie take the lead, since she had been to the ruins of the Royal Sisters' old castle. "So, you've never been to the old castle before?" the pink pony asked her robot friend.

"No, I haven't." Mega Pony answered her. "I only know about it from what my mom told me. According to her, it's where she and Aunt Luna used to live a long time ago...But it was nearly completely destroyed when Luna became Nightmare Moon." He then asked his friend, "Twilight told me that you and the others found the Elements of Harmony there, right?"

"Yep, yep, yep!" Pinkie replied with a smile. "It was so great! First, the pieces of the Elements began to hover around, then WE all started to hover around...I felt likeI was a marshmallow in a cup of hot chocolate! It was so amazing, I can hardly believe everything that happened!" She then paused to take a breath before continuing, "Anyway, the pieces of the Elements turned into these sparkly-glitterly necklaces with pretty jewels on them, and we used them to blast away all the meanie-mean-meanness outta Princess Luna!"

"Wow...I wish I could have been there to see something like that." stated Mega Pony. "Though...the thought of seeing my aunt as Nightmare Moon is a bit...unsettling, to say the least."

"Yeah, she sure was mean when she was all big and scary and stuff with that dark coat and those big, sharp teeth and that eerie, echo-y voice..." the pink mare continued. "But that's all ancient history now that she's back to her old self again! Though TECHNICALLY, she looked WAY different on the day when we changed her back to what she looks like right now; I never quite got that..."

Mega Pony had more questions about the day that his friends had first visited the castle, but he had to put those thoughts aside for now as they approached the rickety rope bridge that led to the remains of the anicent building. The robot stared in awe at the ruins, almost completely at a loss for words.

The ruins of the Castle of the Two Sisters was literally a shell of its former self; large, cracked stone pillars stood tall, but looked like they could collapse at any time. The windows were comprised only of shattered glass shards, some were on the ground nearby while some were still stuck to the frames; some windows were completely devoid of glass altogether, and many of the frames were charred beyond recognition. The rugs, carpets, and tapestries were heavily shredded, though some were still mostly intact, aside from a tear in the fabric here and there. Vines and other overgrowth grew all over the castle as nature began to slowly reclaim the area.

The robot was still silent as he looked at the former home of the two Princesses. He tried his best to imagine what the building looked like back when it was in its prime. Just then, he felt a tap on his left side. Mega Pony snapped out of his trance-like state and turned to face Pinkie Pie. "Um...what is it, Pinkie?" he asked her. She then pointed her right front hoof towards the castle and the two caught a brief glimpse of a small figure running in through where the front doors would have been. "What was that?" he asked.

"I don't know..." the pink pony said to him, "but we'd better check this out: The future of every party in existence depends on it!"

"...Or, at least every party in existence that takes place in Ponyville, to be specific." the robot told her.

"Yeah, those too!" the party pony responded. "C'mon! I've gotta teach that thief that nopony steals from Pinkamena Diane Pie and gets away with it!" She then swiftly ran into the ruins, eager to get her cannon back...perhaps a bit too eager.

"Pinkie! Wait!!" the mechanoid urged her, concerned for her safety. "Do just go barging in!! You could get hurt!!" He had no choice but to run in after her. Running into the main foyer, he searched around for any sign of his friend. Just then, he heard something coming from a hallway to his left. He then galloped as fast as he could, hoping to find Pinkie Pie.

Suddenly, as he turned a corner, Mega Pony gasped when he saw a large hole in the floor that created a pit that nearly extended the entire length of the hall ahead. He did his best to skid to a stop, but he ended up sliding right over the edge. Thinking quickly, he grabbed onto the side of the floor overlooking the pit with his forelegs, hanging on for dear life. Sweating, he glanced down and was horrifed to see that the entire bottom of the pit was made up of hundreds of jagged stones that were shaped like razor-sharp spikes.

"This is bad...This is REALLY bad..." he said to himself. The robot then tried to activate his Emergency Wings function to try and fly out of the pit, but for some reason, the wings couldn't form. "Huh? What's wrong with my-" But before he could ask himself why the Emergency Wings wouldn't activate, he could feel his hooves slowly slipping from the ledge. He tried his best to hang on, but he knew that he couldn't stay there much longer. Then, to his horror, his forelegs slipped right off...

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!" he screamed as he fell to what seemed like his doom.

But before he even knew it, he stopped falling all of a sudden. He was confused at first, but when he looked up at the ledge, he saw why he had stopped falling into the pit: Pinkie Pie had grabbed onto his forelegs at the very moment that they slipped off of the ledge and was now pulling with all her strength to get him out of the pit. Luckily, while she didn't often display it, she was able to use her naturally-high Earth Pony strength to pull the heavy robot to safety.

Panting heavily, Pinkie Pie asked him, "Geez, Mega Pony, what are ya made of? Solid lead?"

"No...Titanium, actually." he corrected her. Getting back onto his hooves, he said to the pink mare, "Anyway...thanks a whole lot, Pinkie. If you hadn't shown up when you did, I'm pretty sure that fall would've done me in..." Looking back down at the pit behind him, he added, "Something about those spiked rocks down there makes me really uncomfortable..."

"Anytime, Mega Pony!" Pinkie told him with a smile.

The robot then put on a stern look and informed her, "But the only reason I almost fell in there was because I was trying to find you after you decided to abruptly run into the castle...You should know better than to just run into someplace that could be dangerous all by yourself; you or I could've been hurt...or worse."

Pinkie sighed sadly and said, "I know...I'm REALLY sorry. I just wanted to get my Party Cannon back so, so, SO badly, that I wasn't even thinking about that!"

"Look, we'll find your cannon, Pinkie...But only if we work together." the mechanical pony told her. "No more running off alone, okay? Pinkie-Promise?"

The pink pony giggled and shook his hoof, saying, "Sure! Pinkie-Promise!" Just then, Pinkie saw something on the other side of the spike pit, just before it ran down another passageway. "Mega Pony! I saw it!!" she informed him. "That thing we saw running into the castle! It's on the other side of the pit!!"

"Really?" asked Mega Pony, looking over across the dangerous chasm.

"Quick! Fly over to it with your wings!" she told him.

"I'm afraid I can't." he told her. "I tried to use my Emergency Wing function to get out of the pit, but they didn't work..." Closing his eyes, he did a quick scan of his systems to try and figure out the problem. After he was done, he continued, saying, "And now I know why: I don't have enough energy stored to use them..." He then groaned and slapped his face with his right front hoof. "Rrrrgh! I KNEW I forgot to do something at Mom's castle before we left! My processors must be slow today...!"

"Well, maybe there's another way across those spikey rocks." Pinkie suggested.

"There's a good chance." the robot responded. "Based on the size of the thing that we saw, there's no way that it could jump over a pit this huge, and I didn't see it having any wings that would allow it to fly over..."

"Then there's still a chance! We can still find it AND my Party Cannon!! Let's go!!" Pinkie was about to run off again, but remembering what Mega Pony told her, she stopped herself and politely said to the robot, "Um, after you, of course." He nodded with a smile as he went ahead of her. The pair then began to look around the castle to try and find the small-sized creature.

The two ponies wandered the many halls and passageways of the castle ruins, but there was still no sign of the small, suspicious creature that was running around. As they went deeper into the castle, it started to get darker around them. "Ugh...it's getting too hard to see..." the robot noted. "I'd better turn on my Infared Vision..."

"And I'd better turn on my 'Wave-My-Hoof-in-Front-of-My-Face-and-Feel-My-Way-Around' Vision!" Pinkie chimed in, swinging her left front hoof around. But as she did, her hoof accidentally grabbed onto an overhead lever and pulled it down. When she did, it triggered a trapdoor to open up underneath them. The two of them screamed as they fell through, sliding down a smooth, stone slide down into the bowels of the castle.

The two then dropped into a torch-lit room deep underground, emerging from a long, green tube that was sticking out of the low ceiling above them. They both hit the ground hard, but their flanks cushioned their fall. "Woah...what happened??" Mega Pony asked himself. Rubbing his sore bottom, he looked up at the tube that they came out from and said, "I guess we must've fallen through a trap door and came out from that green pipe; Mom and Aunt Luna did tell me that the whole castle was full of tricks and traps like that." Turning over to Pinkie Pie, he said to her, "Lucky for us, there wasn't anything in there to bump into."

"Speak for yourself, Mega..." the pink mare told him, presenting her flank and showing him a large, red plant with white spots and sharp teeth, biting her rear end. She then simply shook the plant off of her and said to herself, "What's the deal? Those things aren't supposed to pop up if you're standing on or next to where they come out!"

"Pinkie! Look over there!" Mega Pony shouted, interrupting her thoughts and pointing at something behind her.

The party pony glanced over and saw something that made her eyes light up with delight: It was her missing Party Cannon, sitting on a raised part of the stone floor in the back of the room.

Letting out a happy gasp, she began to shout, "It's my Party Can-mmmff!" Her cry was stopped short when the blue robot covered her mouth with his foreleg.

"Keep quiet, Pinkie...!" he whispered. Pointing towards the cannon again, he then told her, "Take a closer look..." The pair looked ahead and saw that the cannon wasn't the only thing in the room; there were several figures strolling around, seemingly guarding it. Mega Pony felt a tinge of nervousness when he saw that some of those figures were none other than Equine Joes, similar to the ones that he had fought before. Also with them were several smaller creatures that appeared to be disembodied heads with a pair of feet growing out from under them. They had beady, black eyes, tiny yellow mouths, and wore shiny, yellow helmets.

"What are those things...?" asked Pinkie Pie, keeping her voice quiet for once as they ducked behind a wall to conceal themselves.

"Well, I know what those pony-like robots are;" he answered her, "they're the Equine Joes that I told you about." Looking over at the smaller, head-shaped figures, he then added, "Those smaller ones, I'm not exactly sure...Maybe I can do a quick scan of them from all the way over here..." Mega Pony's eyes then began to glow green as he scanned one of the small creatures. Once he was done, he told his pink friend, "Okay, according to what I scanned from them, those small things are robots, too. They're called Mettaur, or Mets for short."

"What do they do?" asked Pinkie Pie.

"Well, I've actually heard about what they're for, long before we came here." the robot stated. "My mom said that they were designed to handle more menial tasks that would be too tricky or even dangerous for a pony to accomplish."

"Did she build them, too?" the pink mare then inquired.

"No, actually, she didn't." the mechanoid answered. "She said that somepony else designed them. All she did was authorize their construction in limited amount...But I can't say for sure if the same pony who built them also ordered them to do what they're doing right now; my mom told me that after a Mettaur is built, it can then be programmed and modified by anypony, depending on what they need it to do for them."

"So whoever stole my cannon also ordered these Met guys to guard it!" Pinkie deduced. "But who?"

"We'll figure that out another time." the robot recommended to her. "We have more important things to do right now, and that's getting your cannon back and finishing your party on time." Mega Pony then closed his eyes and triggered his Varibale Tool System, chaging his color scheme and cutie mark to Pinkie Pie's.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Party Cannon ***

Looking over at his friend, Mega Pony then asked her, "You ready to stop those thieves, Pinkie?"

The pink pony nodded and held up her new hoof cannon. "It'd be my pleasure!" she told him with a smirk. "Let's go!!"

Back in the room where Pinkie's cannon was, the robot guards were surveying the area, making sure that nopony would get past them. One of the Equine Joes was perched up on a ledge above, spying on the area below. It was so focused on its duties, it failed to notice a pair of balloons hovering to either side of it. Before it knew what was going on, the balloons let out a loud BURST, popping mere inches away from where it was. This caused the wicked machine to jump up in surprise, and after it landed, it began to lose its balance and fell off of the platform that it was on. Once it hit the ground, it smashed apart, putting it out of commission.

The destruction of the Equine Joe attracted the attention of the other guards, who went to inspect the damage. As they looked at the wrecked remains of the orange pony-like robot, one of the Mettaur was struck from behind by another balloon that flew straight towards it. The balloon burst caused the tiny robot to be put out of commision permanently. The other guards looked around, trying to figure out where the attacks on them were coming from.

They got their answer when Pinkie Pie and Mega Pony leapt into the room, firing off several more colorful balloons at them. Reacting quickly, the other robots defended themselves: The Equine Joes put up their shields, while the Mets ducked completely underneath their yellow helmets in order to dull the impact of the shots. The Equine Joes then returned fire, shooting out energy bullets from their hoof-mounted blasters. The Mets fired several slow-moving shots from out of their mouths.

Pinkie Pie ducked to avoid the blasts coming towards her. As for Mega Pony, he reacted quickly enough to swap weapons, changing his colors and cutie mark to Ms. Cheerilee's.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Flower Shield ***

The mechanical pony then used his newly-activated weapon to produce a shield made up of four metal plates shaped like flowers. The plates deflected the blasts, sending them far away from both him and Pinkie. He then aimed the shield at the attacking robots and fired it at them. The Equine Joes defended themselves with their shields, but many of the Mettaur got hit by the metal plates and were destroyed.

"Pinkie, I'll take care of the other two Equine Joes!" Mega Pony told her. "Can you handle the rest of the Mettaur?"

Pinkie Pie then told him, "Well, HANDLING them might be tricky, since all I have are hooves, but I'll try my best anyway!" She then pointed her hoof cannon at the helmet-wearing robots and fired off more colorful balloons out of it. On cue, the Mets ducked under their helmets and shielded themselves from the shots. The pink pony narrowed her eyes a little, annoyed that the attack was blocked. But then she came up with an idea: She then shouted to the little bots, "Hey! The price of D-batteries are at an all-time high!!"

Upon hearing that, the small robots perked their heads up out of surprise and fear, unaware that by doing so, they made themselves completely vulnerable to attack. Pinkie then pointed her hoof cannon and fired off several more colorful balloons that burst upon hitting them. The bursts from the projectiles put each and every one of the Mettaur out of commission. Pinkie smirked as she blew off a small puff of smoke from her hoof cannon.

Elsewhere, Mega Pony was fighting off the two Equine Joes. Luckily, the blue robot remembered their weakness from the last time he fought them, and had just the weapon to defeat them with. He then changed his color scheme to white and violet, signifying that he had now activated Rarity's special weapon.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Gem Seeker ***

The mechanical hero used his new weapon and created four shimmering gems that circled around him, just before the Equine Joes fired at him. Two of the gems absorbed the enemy shots, and Mega Pony used the other two to attack the Joes, striking them before they could defend themselves. Once they were stunned, the blue robot switched back to Pinkie's weapon and fired a barrage of balloons to finish the two orange bots off.

"We did it!! We did it!!" cheered Pinkie Pie, celebrating their victory.

"We sure did, Pinkie!" Mega Pony added, happy as well. "Now we can take your Party Cannon back and finish things up in Sugarcube Corner!"

But the two were unaware that someone was watching them; it was the same figure that was spying on them when they were at the rivier earlier. Watching the two ponies from a ledge near the ceiling, the figure then said to them, in a low voice so that they couldn't hear him, "Sorry to break this to you, but our little party's not over just yet..." The figure took out what appeared to be a remote control-like device and clicked a button on it. "I think it's time those two met our special guest; one that somebody like me can truely appreciate..."

At that moment, both Mega Pony and Pinkie Pie could feel a slight tremor that was slowly, but surely getting stronger. "Um...what's that?" asked the robot pony, getting a little worried.

"Something super-bad, I'm sure..." she answered him. "I'm no expert, but big, loud rumbles towards the end of a story are never a good sign."

And Pinkie's words (no matter how little sense they made) were proven true, as out of the shadows, behind where Pinkie's Party Cannon was sitting, came a gigantic, ferocious beast known as a Timberwolf. True to its name, the massive creature looked almost exactly like a wolf, except much bigger, and the obvious fact that it appeared to be made completely out of wood. But the monster was by no means an inanimate object; it snarled and roared just like a real wolf, and it stared down the two ponies with its menacing, green eyes.

"Wh-wh-what the hay is THAT?!?" asked Mega Pony, scared.

"Oh no, it's a Timberwolf!!" the pink mare answered.

"A Timberwolf?!" repeated the robot. But before another word could be said, the giant wood creature began to raise its left claw into the air to strike them. Putting his fear aside, the mechanoid then said to Pinkie, "Grab onto me and whatever you do, don't let go!" The party pony nodded and wrapped her forelegs around his midsection, just as he swapped his color scheme to that of Rainbow Dash. He then used his newly-activated weapon to speed out of the way before the beast could slash them.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Sonic Rainboom ***

Frustrated, the Timberwolf slashed its claw again, but Mega Pony continued to use Rainbow Dash's power to speed out of the way each time. However, he knew he couldn't keep it up forever; he had to attack the creature sooner or later, or he and Pinkie would never escape the castle ruins alive.

All the while, the large figure perched up near the ceiling watched and chucked to himself. "Heh...that's right, just try and dig yourselves out of this one." he said. "You're only delaying the inevitable..."

"Mega, what are we gonna do?" asked Pinkie Pie. "We've gotta stop that thing somehow!"

"Yeah, but how?" the robot asked. Just then, as he glanced back over at the Timberwolf, he noticed something peculiar about it: Around its neck was a metal collar with a blinking red light on it. "What's that thing...?" he asked himself. "How can there be a piece of metal on a creature that supposed to be made out of wood?" He then realized how this would be possible: The only way that an all-wood creature could have a piece of metal attached to it was that if somepony put it on the beast. "That's it!" he exclaimed.

"What's up? Do you have an idea?" asked Pinkie Pie. "A Save-the-Day-at-the-Last-Minute Idea?!"

"Possibly." he answered her, pointing up at the metal collar. "See that collar?" he then asked Pinkie. "I'm sure that thing has something to do with why that Timberwolf is coming after us. I'm sure that if we destroy it, we might be able to get out of this okay!"

"But it's so high up; without your wings you can't reach it all the way up there!" the party pony noted. "I can't even bounce that high with one of my hops!"

"Bounce...? That's it!!" exclaimed Mega Pony. "I just remembered: The second function of your new Party Cannon!" Whispering his idea into her ear, Pinkie nodded to say that she understood what he asked of her.

Jumping out of the way of another claw strike by the Timberwolf, Mega Pony switched to his Party Cannon weapon as Pinkie readied hers. But when she fired it, instead of shooting out balloons, the hoof cannon produced a hot-pink springboard which landed in front of the Timberwolf.

"What the...?" asked the figure that was watching the scene from above.

Once the object was in place, the little blue robot galloped over and jumped on top of it. The springboard then catapulted him straight up towards the Timberwolf. The creature, not sure what was going on right now, reeled back and unintetionally exposed its metal collar. Mega Pony then fired several more balloons from his horn, striking the collar dead-on. The intense bursts from the balloons' popping was enough to break the collar, causing it to fall to the hard stone floor below and break apart.

"Yay! He did it!! He DID IT!!!" cheered Pinkie Pie with lots of enthusiasm.

"What? No!! How'd he do that?!" asked the figure that was spying on them, not believing what had just happened. He could only watch as the Timberwolf began to shake its head and look around in confusion; it didn't seem to know where it was. Grumbling the figure then scowled to itself, "No matter...I still got what I needed, anyway." Holding up what appeared to be a CD, the figure left the room and exited the castle.

"Bye-bye strange and mysterious figure!" Pinkie said cheerfully, waving her left front hoof. "See you in a later episode!"

"Um, Pinkie...who are you talking to now?" asked Mega Pony.

"Didn't ya see him, Mega Pony?" inquired the silly pony. "I was talking to...um, talking to...uh...I don't really know. I guess his name wasn't revealed yet."

"Never mind that now, Pinkie," the robot said to her, ignoring her comment for the moment, "we've got another problem..." He then pointed over to the Timberwolf. Although it was free of its metal collar, which was used to control the beast, it seemed to still want to attack the two ponies. The pair backed up as much as they could to get away from the massive beast, but there was nowhere for them to run. Then, just as the creature began to swipe at them...

"BA-KAAAAWWWWWK!!!!"

All of a sudden, a loud screech could be heard from the large pipe nearby. A small creature then emerged from out of it, dropping onto the stone floor. But it wasn't just any creature: It was a Cockatrice; more specifically, it was none other than Phil, the Cockatrice that Mega Pony had helped some time ago. He ran as quick as his little chicken feet could carry him and got inbetween the Timberwolf and the two ponies.

"What's a Cockatrice doing here??" asked Pinkie Pie.

"Wait, I know him!" Mega Pony told her. "That's Chick Phil Leigh! I recognize that nick in his comb!"

The pair watched as the half-chicken, half-lizard began squwaking at the Timberwolf, seemingly scolding it. The giant wooden wolf stopped its attack and began making confused growling sounds at Phil. The Cockatrice then squwaked back, and pointed towards Mega Pony as it spoke. After Phil "talked" to it for about a minute, the Timberwolf then backed off and calmed down before it left the room, heading out through a large cave opening in the dark area of the room that it came from.

"What just happened...?" asked Mega Pony, astonished.

"Well, I'm still a bit rusty in Cockatrice-talk," Pinkie replied, "but I think that he told the Timberwolf not to attack you. Once he told the wolf who you were and how you helped him, the Timberwolf decided to leave us alone."

"Well, we sure were lucky he was around, especially since today's Sunday." the robot noted. "Usually Chick Phil Leigh doesn't show up on a Sunday..." He then asked Pinkie, "Wait...since when did you know how to speak Cockatrice?"

"Well, one of us had to know how to speak his language." she answered him. "Otherwise, how is the reader going to know what he said?"

Once again, Mega Pony didn't understand what Pinkie Pie meant. But once again, he decided to worry about it another time, since they had more important things to worry about right now. "Well, now that all of the guards are gone, we can finally get what we came here for." Running over to the now-unguarded Party Cannon, the mechanical pony told his pink friend, "C'mon, Pinkie. Let's get this back to Sugarcube Corner; we've got a party to finish!" Pinkie nodded and helped her robot friend to wheel the cannon out of the castle. Phil decided to help as well, flying up in front of them both in order to lead them to a path that would take them all back outside.

The next day soon came, and everypony in Ponyville came to Sugarcube Corner to attend Pinkie Pie's Cutie Mark-iversary. Despite the crisis yesterday, Mega Pony and Pinkie were able to finish putting together the party on time. Now all they had to worry about was trying to have as much fun as possible.

Pinkie had invited everyone she could think of to attend the festivities; the guest list consisted of her best friends, Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Spike, and her family, which included her mother and father and her two sisters, whom she called Blinkie and Inkie. Even the donkey, Cranky Doodle, had come to the party with his fiancée, Matilda. Though he still didn't care for big parties such as this one, even he seemed to enjoy himself, even if it was just a little bit.

Over at the DJ booth, Vinyl Scratch was doing what she loved to do: Play her super-loud, super-catchy music all over the room. Over at the snack table, Mr. and Mrs. Cake laid all sorts of sweet treats made by both them and by Pinkie Pie. One of the guests in attendance was certainly enjoying the food; it was Phil the Cockatrice, whom Pinkie had invited to the party after he had helped them to escape the Everfree Forest. It took some convinicing, but the party guests were able to co-exist with the strange creature after Mega Pony assured them all that Phil wasn't dangerous.

Mega Pony watched as the Cockatrice had his fill of the cupcakes and chocolate lollipops. Just then, a question suddenly came to him. "Wait...I just thought of something;" he began to ask, "how did Phil find us so fast? And what's more, how did he know to come to the castle ruins?"

"Oh, I must confess, that would be because of me." said the voice of Steven Magnet, speaking to Mega Pony and his friends through an open window from outside of the sweet shop. "After I brought you and your pink friend closer to the ruins, I caught sight of Phil and told him EVERYTHING. After hearing your name, he rushed over to the castle as fast as he could."

"So you sent him to help us?" asked Pinkie Pie. "That was so nice of you!"

"Oh, it was nothing, Sweetie." the sea serpent replied. "I was just doing what felt right, like how your friend Ms. Rarity helped me out."

"Well, thank you EVER so much for helping my friends, Mr. Magnet." the Unicorn fashionista told him with a smile. "You truely are as nice as you are fashionable." She then gave a slight kiss on his moustache-covered face to show her appreciation.

Steven giggled a bit and responded with, "Oh, stop it...You're making me all giddy!"

Spike, after watching Rarity give the sea serpent a little kiss, huffed a little, crossed his arms, and said under his breath, "Lucky..."

Pinkie Pie then walked over to Mega Pony and said to him, "And thank you too, Mega Pony. It was because of you that we able to finish the party!"

"It was because of US, Pinkie." he corrected her. "We did it together. You showed a lot of bravery coming with me to help out, even though you knew it would be dangerous. I couldn't ask for anything better than that kind of support from you."

"Just trying to be a good friend, M.P." the pink pony said with a giggle. She then asked him, "Say after this party is over, could help me out with my next one?"

"Um...next one?" asked the robot. "When's it going to be, Pinkie?"

"Tomorrow!"

"T-T-TOMORROW?!?"

"Well, duh!" the silly pony told him. "I have to make Cutie Mark-iversaries for my other friends, too! After all, we all got our cutie marks at the same time! So we'll be super-duper busy putting together parties for the whole week!!!"

Mega Pony's eyes widened upon hearing just how busy he was going to be this week. "Oh dear..." he said to himself, feeling exhausted just thinking about it...

[Unknown Location / Time: 1:25 a.m.]

Elsewhere, in a place far, far away from Ponyville, two figures were speaking to each other...

"So your entire squadron in the forest couldn't prevent a pair of prissy little ponies from recovering one little cannon?" asked one of them. Although his body was concealed by the shadows around them, one could make out what appeared to be a boomerang-like object on his head area. He chuckled a bit and added, "Heh, the boss'll REALLY love t' hear about how ya screwed this one up..."

"Now let's get one thing straight:" said the other, slightly chubby-looking figure; the same one that was at the Castle of the Two Sisters. "While it IS true that all of the Mets and Equine Joes were defeated, along with that big, wooden wolf-thing that had the control ring on it, I didn't necessarily, 'screw it up'..."

"Oh, really?"

The portly figure held up a CD and told the other, "Unlike some people, I actually had a Plan B in store, just in case...Just before those two ponies showed up, I did a full scan of the cannon and downloaded all of its data onto this disc. Thanks to what I have here, the boss can construct a completely new cannon for his plans instead."

"Hmph...well, I have to say," the leaner figure told him, "that was some pretty quick thinking on your part; and I should know a thing or two 'bout bein' quick. Good to know that your brain's not made of wood."

"...I suppose I should take that as a compliment." the bigger individual said. "Anyway, I have to deliver these cannon schematics to the boss. Do us all a favor and make yourself useful somewhere else."

"Heh, I was just about take a quick leave anyway." the other figure replied. "See ya, bro." And in what seemed like a second, the leaner figure was already out of the room. The remaining individual then walked forward to perform his assigned duties...

NEXT EPISODE: "The Good, the Bad, and the Mechanical"

Episode 110: The Good, the Bad, and the Mechanical:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

In the short time that Mega Pony has been alive, he has had to deal with all sorts of dangerous foes and troublesome situations. But none seems more troubling than the robot attacks in various places within Equestria. Not much is known about these bizarre instances, other than the fact that it seems to be the work of a single individual. Who they are and why they are attacking the normally-peaceful country is a mystery, and it is one that has baffled Princesses Celestia and Luna, who are investigating the seemingly random attacks.

In the meantime, Mega Pony is heading to a new region of Equestria: The rustic, western-style town of Appleloosa. He is accompanying his friend, Applejack, on a trip to the town, which has been growing steadily ever since the farm pony and the rest of the Mane 6 had first visited there. With them is the rest of Applejack's family; the elderly Granny Smith, the older brother Big Macintosh, and the eager young Apple Bloom. They are making a delivery from their apple farm to the orchards in Appleloosa. Also joining them is none other than Princess Celestia, who is going to attend a ceremony for the opening of a very important building in the slowly expanding town.

What has begun as a simple trip will soon turn into a crisis in which an apple a day may not make it go away...

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony and guardian of Equestria.

Princess Celestia: One of the two rulers of Equestria and Mega Pony's creator.

Applejack: Hard worker and lover of apples. Element of Honesty.

Braeburn: Applejack's cousin and well-known resident of Appleloosa.

It was scorching hot in the desert regions south of the town of Ponyville. Luckily, for those travelling through the desert by train, the locomotive was air-conditioned. The train was bound for a town called Appleloosa, which had the look and feel of a wild west boom town (though, in actuality, the town wasn't very old at all). Despite the fact that the town bordered the harsh San Palamino Desert, the residents were able to run a working apple farm, quite possibly one of the largest in all of Equestria. This was probably due to the fact that Appleloosa was mostly, if not completely, populated by Earth Ponies, the pony race that was known for their deep connection to the Earth (it was in their name after all) and their ability to take care of all kinds of plant and animal life. This meant that the seemingly-impossible task of growing apple trees in the middle of a desert was no problem for the citizens of Appleloosa.

Several passengers were on board the train; either Appleloosians that were heading home from a long visit, or ponies from other towns and cities that wanted to see the western-style town. In one of the train cars, specifically the car reserved for first-class passengers, Princess Celestia, one of the rulers of Equestria, was sitting with her robotic son, Mega Pony, to attend a special event in the rustic town. Also with them was Mega Pony's friend, Applejack, along with the rest of her family from Ponyville: Granny Smith, her grandmother, Big Macintosh, her older brother, and Apple Bloom, her younger sister. The Apple Family was on their way to town to make a delivery; since the Princess and Mega Pony were going to be on the same train as all of them, Celestia offered to upgrade them all to First Class so that they could all travel together.

Applejack glanced around at everything in the train car, feeling a bit uneasy at all of the fancy stuff inside, which included a small orchestra band playing in the background. "Uh...Forgive me fer askin'," she began to say, "but ain't all this a li'l much just for a simple train ride?"

"Ah'm certainly not complainin', big sis." Apple Bloom told her as she was recieving a complimentary hooficure from one of the stewards working aboard the train. This elicted a sigh out of Applejack.

"Aw lighten up, young-'un..." said Granny Smith, who was in the middle of having her mane styled. "It ain't every day that we get quality treatment such as this! Ain't that right, Big Mac?"

The large red stallion, who was enjoying a rather large and fancy meal, glanced over at his grandmother and nodded, saying, "Eeeyup!"

Applejack sighed again, feeling a bit embarrased. "It's times like this that make even ME feel like Ah'm the only normal one in the family..." she muttered to herself.

"Oh, don't worry yourself, Applejack..." Mega Pony said to her. "Just let them relax and enjoy themselves; with everything that we'll be doing today, a small break might be exactly what we need."

"Ah suppose so." the orange Earth Pony responded. "We certainly do have a whole heap o' stuff t' do, so Ah guess a quick breather will do them some good."

"I can agree with that." Celestia added, putting down a newspaper that she was reading during the trip. "Everypony should make time to relax every now and again. There's no sense in overworking and wearing yourself out, especially not today."

"Yeah, 'bout that," Applejack began to ask the royal Alicorn, "what is it that you an' Mega Pony are doin' over at Appleloosa, Your Highness?"

"Quite a big thing, actually." Mega Pony answered her. "My mom's going to the town to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Apparently, there's this important new building that's recently been built that's supposed to help the whole town a lot, so Mom made plans to show up and officially open the place."

"What kinda buildin' is it?" asked Apple Bloom, becoming interested.

"Not sure." the robot admitted. "I never asked." He then turned to his creator and asked, "What is this new building for, Mom?"

"I could tell you," Celestia began, smiling a little, "but I think you all might appreciate it more if you saw it with your own eyes."

"Awwww, I wanna know what it is!" said Apple Bloom, whining a little.

"Now, now..." Granny Smith told the little filly, "Patience is a virtue, li'l filly. No need to get impatient."

"Eeeyup." added Big Mac, agreeing with the elderly mare.

"Well, it sure sounds pretty important." said AJ. She then asked Mega Pony, "So why're you ridin' along with us?"

"Well, I heard some good things about Appleloosa," he answered her, "so when I heard that Mom was going over there, I asked if I could accompany her and see the town for myself." He then asked his orange friend, "I'd heard that you and rest of our friends went there one time; what's it like?"

"Oh, it's a pretty nice place, Mega Pony." Applejack told him. "It's a bit small, but everypony over there's friendlier than a barrel o' purrin' kittens! Not only that, but there's a relative of ours that lives there that Ah'm sure you'd like t' meet with."

"Well, it sure sounds like something to look forward to." the robot told her, anxious to get to the town as soon as possible.

At that moment, the train whistle sounded, which signaled to all of the passengers that they were about to arrive at their destination. Applejack got up out of her seat and said, "Well, we'll all be arrivin' soon; Ah'd better check the cargo and make sure that everythin's still okay."

"Can I come with you?" asked Mega Pony. "I could use a minute to stretch my legs; theoretically speaking."

"Sure, fine by me. Ah was gonna ask if y'all wanted to come anyway." The orange Earth Pony then walked towards the back of the car and said to him, "Come on, follow me."

The robot hopped off of his seat and said to Celestia, "I'll be back in a few minutes, Mom. I just need to see if Applejack needs my help or not." The Alicorn smiled and nodded to say that she understood.

Mega Pony and Applejack walked through the train cars, heading for the back of the locomotive. The last few cars on the train were used for storing large cargo. The two ponies stopped in front of several large burlap sacks; as Mega Pony sniffed the air around him, he then cringed a little before asking his friend, "Ugggh...what's that smell...??"

"That'd probably be the delivery y'all are smellin'." AJ answered, pointing to the sacks with her left front leg. "It's somethin' Ah've been workin' on fer a while with Twilight: A special fertilizer designed specifically to contribute to the growth of healthy apple trees."

"Um...sounds interesting." the robot told her, still trying to ignore the unpleasent odor.

"Yep, Twilight was a real big help." Applejack then told him. "She brewed up some natural chemicals to add to the mixture, while Ah..." The Earth Pony then paused for a moment, seemingly trying to think of what to say. "...Well...let's just say Ah made a major contribution to the project mahself, if ya know what Ah mean..."

"Um...duly noted." Mega Pony said to her, understanding what that meant.

The orange pony chuckled weakly a bit, a little embarrased. "Anyhoo, gettin' off of THAT topic..." She began to tell him, "now that it's finished, Ah've decided to bring some of it over to the farm in Appleloosa so that they can use it on their trees an' keep 'em nice an' healthy!"

"That sounds like a great idea to me, Applejack." stated the robot. "I'm sure they'll really appreciate it."

"That bein' said," AJ then told him, picking up one of the bags with her front legs and loading it onto a nearby dolly, "Ah could use an extra set'a hooves t' move all o' these sacks from here to the orchards. Think you could help me out?"

"Um...I guess I could..." he answered semi-reluctantly. He wanted to help his friend, but was still put off by the odor of the fertilizer. Luckily, his psuedo-magic allowed him to move the burlap sacks from a distance, so he went and did that.

By the time they were finished, an announcement came through the speakers set up inside of the train. "Attention passengers, we are now arriving in Appleloosa. Do not depart until the train has come to a complete stop. Have a nice day, and thank you for traveling with Friendship Express."

"Well, that's our cue, Mega." Applejack said to her robot friend. "We'd better go and inform the rest of mah family that they'll have t' cut things short with their hooficure appointments, mane stylin', and all o' that other fancy-shmancy gobbledygook."

"Seems like it." Mega Pony said with a chuckle. "Let's go, then. I can't wait to see what Appleloosa's like!" The two of them left the cargo area to join up with the others.

The train pulled into the station, and all of the occupants departed as soon as it was completely motionless. Celestia and Mega Pony came out first, then Applejack and her family, along with the dolly that had all of the fertilizer bags loaded upon it. When they came out of the train station building, the group was surprised by what they saw: The town of Appleloosa still had that rustic, wild west feel to it, but it seemed to be bigger than what they all expected it be. There were many more buildings and ponies than there were the last time that Applejack had been to the town.

"Whuh...what happened to this place?" asked the orange Earth Pony. "It's huge!"

"Yeah, this place is a LOT bigger than Ah remember it..." added Apple Bloom.

At that moment, the group heard a voice calling out to them. "Hey y'all!! Welcome to Aaaaaaappleloosa!!"

The others turned around towards the voice, seeing that it had come from an Earth Pony with a pale-yellow coat and a darker yellow mane and tail. He had bright green eyes and wore a brown hat and vest that were made of a leather-like material. His cutie mark was a picture of a bright, red apple, and his facial expression showed a great amount of energy and excitement.

"Cousin Braeburn!" shouted Apple Bloom as she happily ran over to see him. "Great t' see ya again!"

"Hey there, li'l Apple Bloom! Good to see y'all too!" the pale yellow Earth Pony said to her. He then looked up at the rest of the group coming towards him. "Hey there, AJ! Hey, Granny Smith! Hey, Big Mac!" He then looked over at Mega Pony and said to him, "Hey there...uh...pony that Ah've never met before!"

"Um, my name's Mega Pony, sir." the robot told him, introducing himself.

"Oh yeah! That's right!" said Braeburn. "You're that one my cuz had been tellin' me all about in her letters! Nice t' finally meet y'all." He then asked everyone, "So what brings y'all round these parts?"

"Well, my mom and I are here to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony today." the mechanical pony answered, pointing over to Princess Celestia.

"O-of course! A-Ah didn't forget!" the male pony replied, a bit frantically. "Everypony in Appleloosa's been real psyched t' see ya, Your Highness!"

"And I'll be happy to see all of them as well." the elder Royal Sister told him. She then added, "Though, I will admit: I had no idea that the Sun was exceptionally bright in this area...This...is a little embarrassing to ask, but...Are there any shops that sell sunhats here? I could actually use one right now..."

"Of course there is!" answered Braeburn. "One actually just opened up recently! Just head over t' the shop two buildings after the Salt Block Saloon; y'all can't miss it."

"Thank you." Celestia then said to her son, "Mega Pony, stay with Applejack and the others until I return, okay?" The robot nodded to say that he would, and the Princess then left soon after that.

"Heh, it's funny, ain't it?" asked Granny Smith. "The Princess of the Sun needin' a sunhat! No offense, young'n."

"It's okay. I'm sure even Mom would find it humorous as well." Mega Pony responded. He then added, "There's just one thing though, Applejack...You said that this town was small in size, but it's clearly the opposite based on what I see here..."

"Well, it WAS small when me n' mah friends were here the last time." the orange Earth Pony told him. She then asked her cousin, "Since when'd the town get so huge all of a sudden, Braeburn?"

"Well, that's actually an interstin' story, Cuz." the western pony replied. "C'mon, lemme show y'all around and Ah'll tell ya all about it!" The rest of the group agreed to do so, and they began their complimentary tour of the town.

The group of six walked through the now-large town of Appleloosa, taking in all of the new sights and sounds. There were lots of ponies walking around town, and there were all sorts of new homes and stores set up all over the place. As they walked, Braeburn told them all about how the town got to where it was now. "A lotta things have changed since the day y'all came here with your friends, Cousin AJ." he explained to them all. "Thanks to you and all of them, Appleloosa's apple farm has been able to bring in a lot, and Ah mean a WHOLE lot, of money t' help improve the town!"

"So all these new buildings an' stuff were made usin' JUST the money from the farm here?!" asked Applejack in astonishment. "If that's so, then y'all must REALLY be doin' a good job over there!" She then asked her cousin, "But...how did me an' mah friends help the farm be so successful?"

"Well, it was because of y'all that we were able to settle things peacefully with our neighbors, the Buffalo Tribe." he reminded her. "Because of that, we didn't lose our farm or the town to their stampedin', and the money that Sheriff Silverstar intended t' use to foritfy the town to keep 'em out was put to much better use!"

"That's real great t' hear, Cuz!" said Apple Bloom.

"Eeeyup!" added Big Mac, agreeing with his youngest sister.

"What is your cousin talking about?" asked Mega Pony. "Who are the Buffalo Tribe?"

Applejack gasped after the robot asked his question. "Oh right...y'all weren't built when that happened." she said to him after realizing that very fact. She then told him, "Well, Mega...Last time me an' mah friends were in Appleloosa, we found out that the town had been built right in the middle of their traditional stampedin' grounds. The Buffalo were threatenin' to smash the whole town and the apple farm apart, and the townsfolk were ready to fight them off. But luckily, they were able to resolve things peacefully and share the land."

"Wow...I wish I was there to see all of that happen..." the mechanoid responded.

"Well, truth be told, ya might not've been too fond of Pinkie Pie's attempt to get the townsfolk and the Buffalo t' work things out." the orange Earth Pony informed him. "We all know THEY didn't enjoy her li'l song for 'em."

"It's true." Braeburn commented. He then said to them all, "Anyhoo, like Ah said, we've been expandin' the town ever since that day. In fact, some of the Buffalo have been helpin' us put up some of the buildings here." He then pointed to a larger building much further away; unlike the other structures in Appleloosa, this one was more modern-looking in appearence. "That place, on the other hoof, took quite a bit of time to construct; we actually had t' hire some professionals from out of town to get it finished last year."

"What is it?" asked Apple Bloom.

"That's Appleloosa Community College:" the yellow Earth Pony answered. "Our very first one in town!"

"Hey, I've heard of that place!" Mega Pony suddenly chimed in. "Rainbow Dash told me about it when she and I were at the convention in Baltimare."

"The big sports convention, right?" asked Braeburn. "Then y'all must've met Trick Shot, the captain of our town's new basketball team. Quite an amazin' player; he commuted all the way from Cloudsdale when he heard that we were puttin' together a team for the new college. Did y'all know he's been playin' basketball ever since he'd been t' middle school? Ah tell ya, EVERYpony here really likes havin' him as captain of the team, and not only that-"

"Um, Braeburn?" Applejack interrupted her cousin. "Ah hate t' interrupt, but weren't ya gonna tell us more 'bout the new stuff in town?"

"Oops, sorry cuz...Got a bit side-tracked there." the western pony responded, chuckling a little. Getting an idea, he then asked the others, "Hey, Ah know what! Would y'all like t' see the new buildin' that we're gonna open durin' the ceremony today?"

"Ah do!! Ah do!!" said little Apple Bloom excitedly.

"Sounds good t' me!" added Granny Smith."'Ah must admit, Ah'd been curious t' see what the whole fuss was about concernin' it. That sound good t' you, Big Mac?"

"Eeeyup." was all that the large, red Earth Pony said in response.

"Guess that means we're all in agreement about it." stated Applejack. "Let's go an' check it out." Braeburn nodded and led his group to where the new structure was.

Little did they know that, in an alleyway behind them, there was a mysterious, rectangular-shaped figure, observing the town and all of its citizens. "Everything's all go, sir." it said. "We're ready to initiate the plan, as previously scheduled." After a long pause, it then said, "Very well, I'll inform the others right away...Hopefully before I faint from this unbearable heat..."

In time, Applejack, Mega Pony and the others followed Braeburn to where the town's apple farm was. Most of it was still as the orange Earth Pony remembered it: Rows and rows of apple trees dotted the landscape, covering every inch of the land ahead of them...except for a long dirt path that cut straight through the middle of it. The path was made for the Buffalo Tribe, so that they could stampede through the land without harming any of the nearby trees or properties. However, there was one building within the apple farm that Applejack did not recognize; it was rather large in size, painted blue and green in most places. The structure was also quite tall, easily consisting of around four floors. Parked behind the building were several carts with oversized trailers; they were obviously designed for storing large items or large amounts of items.

"There it is, everypony..." said Braeburn with a happy sigh. "Ain't she a real beaut?"

"Uh...what is it, exactly?" asked Applejack.

"That's the new addition to the farm; the buildin' that's gonna help make our town into a household name!" the yellow Earth Pony answered her. "This is our new Shippin' Department!"

"Shippin' Department?" inquired Apple Bloom.

"Yep: Shippin' Department." Braeburn replied. "Once this place is officially opened up, we'll be able to send tons and TONS of Appleloosian apples all over the country! Maybe even the whole WORLD!!"

"Sounds purty big, Braeburn..." noted Granny Smith.

"Oh it'll be big, Granny." the western pony told her. "And if'n it all works out, this town might be almost as rich as Canterlot!"

"Well, Ah wouldn't set the bar THAT high," Applejack told her cousin. "but it sure seems like this place'll be a real big deal here. Who thought of puttin' it up?"

"Well, Ah did, actually." Braeburn told the orange Earth Pony in a slightly proud tone. "Y'see, since we opened up the new college, ponies from all over Equestria have been visitin' here to check it out. In time, we even started gettin' Unicorns and Pegasi makin' permanent homes here in town!" Looking over the vast fields of apple trees, he then told them all, "Many of the newcomers here were quite interested in our apple farm, and some even wanted t' help support it. So that's when Ah thought of the idea of settin' up a place where we could send our apples t' anywhere in Equestria. The Pegasi would work as delivery-ponies, and take carts of apples to where they needed t' go. As fer the Unicorns, they elected t' handle all of the paperwork; they figure out where our products have t' go, and when it needs t' arrive! And in the meantime, us Earth Ponies make sure to maintain the quaility of our apples so that we can remain successful."

"Well, it sounds to me like you have this all figured out." commented Mega Pony. "This farm will be even better than ever once the Shipping Department is open for business! Now anypony in the country will be able to enjoy your apples, not to mention that there will be more job opportunites for the townsfolk."

"Yep, from what Ah can tell, this place'll do a hay of a lotta good 'round here!" Granny Smith added.

"Eeeyup!" chimed Big Mac.

"Aw shucks, Ah'm just doin' what Ah can t' help out the town." Braeburn replied, rubbing the back of his head. "Ah love it here so much, and Ah just wanna make sure that everypony else can appreciate the town just as much as Ah do." He then asked Applejack, "Oh! Ah almost forgot! Cousin AJ, didn't y'all say that you were bringin' somethin' fer me in your last letter?"

"Yep, and it's right here." the orange mare told him, showing him the dolly with all of the burlap sacks loaded upon it. "This is that new fertilizer that Ah've been workin' on with Twilight. Although Ah'm pretty sure it won't be as much of a help to the farm as the new buildin' will be, Ah think y'all could make good use of it."

"Well, thanks a heap, cuz. We'll make good use of it indeed!" Braeburn said, checking out the burlap sacks.

Just then, a faint beeping sound could be heard around them. "What in tarnation's that??" asked Granny Smith.

"Oh, I'm sorry...that's coming from me." Mega Pony told them. "That beeping sound is for when somepony is trying to contact me. It's probably just my mom, telling me that she's on her way to meet up with us."

"Oh okay, then." Applejack responded.

The robot then tapped the side of his helmet and said, "Hello, Mega Pony here...Hi, Mom! ...No, I'm over at the apple farm with Applejack and the others, why do you ask?" Celestia continued to speak to Mega Pony for a while. Just then, the mechanoid put a distressed look upon his face and asked, "What? Something's going on in town?? ...What is it??" The rest of the group then started to get worried, having a feeling that something wasn't right. "...Okay...Okay, we'll be there as quickly as possible! ...Alright then...I'll see you there."

After the robot finished his conversation, Apple Bloom asked him, "What was that all about, Mega Pony?"

"That was my mom." the mechanical pony answered her. "She told me that someone's causing trouble back in town, and she told us all to get there ASAP."

"Trouble in the town??" asked Braeburn. "Wh-what kinda trouble?"

"I don't know; she was too busy keeping the townsfolk safe, that she couldn't tell me right away." Mega Pony responded. "I'll use my teleporter and get to the town ahead of time...The rest of you just get there as soon as you can."

"We'll see ya there, Mega Pony." Applejack told him with a nod. The robot nodded back and activated his teleporter in order to warp directly to Appleloosa.

Once Mega Pony arrived in the center of town, he could see that the entire place was in a state of panic, judging by the fact that everypony was screaming loudly and running around like headless chickens. "What's going on here??" he asked himself, trying to figure out what could have caused all the pandemonium.

"You came! Thank goodness!" said the voice of Celestia as she ran up to him. She was now sporting a light pink sunhat on her head, which she had purchased from one of the shops.

"What's going on, Mom?" the robot asked his creator. "Why is everypony acting all scared and crazy?"

"There's been an attack." she answered him solemnly. "Just moments ago, there was a commotion nearby the community college, and a vandal of some sort had smashed its way through one of the building's walls!"

"That's terrible!" exclaimed Mega Pony. "Did anypony see who it was?"

"Yes, however, the reports from the citizens weren't very helpful; the only description of the perpetrator was that it wore a long, slightly tattered cloak." Celestia told him.

"Well, that's not much help..." the mechanoid said in despair.

"Don't worry, Mega Pony." the Princess then said to him in a pleasent voice. "We'll find whomever it was that did this. They cannot be too far away; if the townsfolk are still panicking, then the criminal must still be causing trouble."

"You're right, Mom." Mega Pony replied with a nod. "Let's look around and see if we can catch them!" The two then ran off together to find any trace of the crook who made a big, gaping hole in the wall of the college building.

Luckily, they didn't have to go too far to see the aftermath of the vandal's presence: Many barrels were smashed into pieces, other buildings' walls had gotten the same treatment as the college did, and many a stagecoach had been broken apart and rendered unusable for the forseeable future.

"This is horrible...Who would ever want to do something like this??" asked Mega Pony, slightly shocked from witnessing all of the destruction.

"I do not know..." Celestia replied, "but when we find this individual, whomever they may be, I'll certainly want some answers from them regarding this."

The Princess and the robot followed the trail of destruction all around town, trying to track down the criminal that was responsible for it all. Their search seemed to go on forever, until Mega Pony saw something up ahead. "Mom! Over there!!" he shouted.

Celestia looked at where her son was pointing and saw a rather large, cloaked figure repeatedly ramming its body into the wall of a general store. "That must be the one that is causing all of this damage." the Sun Princess stated.

"If that thing is this reckless with a building, then there's no doubt that it may try to attack innocent ponies as well!" Mega Pony deduced.

"I agree, Mega Pony." the Alicorn told him. "Therefore, I am authorizing you to use whatever means neccesary to stop it from causing any more harm to the town and everypony in it."

The robot nodded and ran towards the cloaked figure, who turned to face him when it heard the mechanical pony coming towards it. "Hey, you!!" he shouted at the figure. "That's the last thing you'll smash apart in this town!!" He then fired small blasts from his Friendship Buster towards the crook, forcing it to sidestep out of the way.

Mega Pony continued to fire his main weapon at the figure as rapidly as possible. Unfortunately, despite the creature's size, it was able to run fast enough to evade each and every shot. It then began rushing towards the robot, threatening to trample him with the force of a tank. Luckily, the mechanoid rolled out of its way in the nick of time and returned fire, managing to hit the beast with one of his shots. The figure let out a deep groan of pain upon getting hit, but wasn't ready to give in just yet.

"Crud...my main weapon won't be enough against that thing." Mega Pony told himself as he dodged another ramming attempt by the crazed creature. "And I doubt this thing will let me have enough time to charge up a stronger shot...If I had known that I'd be fighting today, I would've downloaded some weapons before leaving the castle!"

Luckily, the mechanical pony heard a familiar voice nearby. "Hey! Mega Pony!! We're here t' help ya!!" shouted the voice of Applejack. The voice had come from a dusty plateau overlooking the town.

"Applejack!" the robot said cheerfully, happy to see the others show up. "Perfect timing! I could use some help!"

"What's that thing?!" asked Apple Bloom, pointing to the cloaked vandal.

"Whooooeee, that thing is huge!" noted Granny Smith. "I'm sure glad that I ain't down there fightin' it like Mega Pony is! What about you, Big Mac?"

"Nnnnope!" the red stallion said, not wanting to fight the large figure either.

As Mega Pony fought the large-sized vandal, Braeburn watched, trying to figure out who or what the perpetrator could have been. Unfortunately, he could only come up with vague theories as to the attacker's identity. Still, something about the creature seemed...familiar.

Applejack galloped as fast as she could to give her robot friend a helping hoof. "Sorry it took so long t' get here, Mega." she told him.

"It's okay, Applejack. You're here now, and that's all that matters." he said to her. "You ready to do this?"

"Ah sure am, Sugarcube!" the orange Earth Pony said, nodding and presenting her cutie mark to him. Mega Pony then tapped her mark and obtained her special weapon.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Apple Bucker ***

"Alright! He's doin' it again!" cheered Apple Bloom. "He just got a special power from Big Sis! Now he's gonna use it t' fight that big guy!"

"Say what now?" asked Braeburn, confused. "Ah don't understand..."

"Just watch and see, cousin Braeburn." the pink bow-wearing filly told him. "Trust me, it'll make sense once ya see it fer yourself." The rest of the Apple family then watched on, waiting to see what would happen next.

The creature then charged forward, running straight towards Mega Pony and Applejack. They both jumped out of the way quickly, avoiding the attack just in time. The figure then skidded to a stop, nearly sliding into the wall of the general store that it was trying to break into earlier.

"Ah've got an idea, Mega." Applejack told him. "Ah'll lure that big brute towards me and get it t' crash into a wall. Once he does, you blast it with those bombs o' yours. Got it?"

"Got it." Mega Pony replied with a nod. Applejack then ran towards the beast while the robot swapped his color scheme and cutie mark for hers.

"Hey you!!" the orange mare shouted at the vandal, getting its attention. "Think you can get me with one'a those high-speed tackles?" The creature snorted and began running straight towards Applejack, intending to do her harm.

Luckily, the farm pony jumped out of its way at the last second. The cloaked figure skidded to a stop and turned back around to face her. "That all ya got?" she taunted. "Y'all couldn't trample a dandelion with a charge like that!" That comment got the beast angry; it charged towards Applejack even faster than before. But it still wasn't fast enough to hit her, as she effortlessly dodged that tackle as well.

"C'mon! Ah'm not even tryin' really hard to avoid ya!" she shouted at it, continuing to toy with the attacker. She then positioned herself in front of a large wall and said to it, "C'mon! Give it one more try! Ah'll even move a l'il slower so that y'all actually have a chance!"

With another angry snort, the beast charged forward with all its might, wanting nothing more than to trample the Earth Pony into a pancake. It raced forward, gradually increasing its speed and power. Then, just before it could make contact with Applejack, she hopped a short distance out of its way. The figure tried to stop, but it was moving way too fast; it ended up crashing right into the wall, stunning itself as a result of the impact.

"Now, Mega!!" Applejack shouted. "Before he gets up!" The robot nodded, using his newly-obtained power to create an apple-shaped bomb out of thin air. He then kicked the bomb with his hind legs, sending it straight towards the crook.

The figure heard the sound of the apple bomb behind it and turned to look. It moved to get out of the way, but the explosive still managed to strike it. As it exploded, a small, silver, horn-like appendage could be seen from underneath the cloak. The blast from the Apple Bucker's bomb caused the tip of the horn to break off and fall to the dusty ground below.

(What was that...?) Mega Pony asked himself in his mind.

Faced with the power of both Applejack and Mega Pony together, the vandal realized that it wasn't going to be able to defeat them in its current state. The beast then made a run for it, leaving the town of Appleloosa.

"Well, so much for that big bully..." said Applejack, wiping her forehead with her right front hoof.

Mega Pony walked over to where the figure was when his Apple Bucker bomb had struck it, looking at the chipped piece of horn lying on the dirt. He picked it up with his "magic" and stored it inside one of his side compartments.

"That was so cool, Mega Pony!" cheered Apple Bloom as she and the others ran over to him and Applejack. "You too, big sis!"

"It was nothing. I just wanted to make sure that nopony got hurt because of that guy." Mega Pony sighed a little and added, "I just wish I didn't have to shoot at him like I did."

"Well, it was either him or you two." Granny Smith noted. "Right, Big Mac?"

"Eeeyup."

"Is everypony okay there?" asked a gruff-sounding voice from nearby. Everyone turned around to see another male pony walking towards them. He had a light brown-colored coat and a dark brown mane and tail. He had a black moustache growing above his lips and had sky blue-colored eyes. He wore an outfit that consisted of a black hat with a red hatband, a red neckerchief around his neck, and a blue denim vest. His cutie mark was a silver sheriff's star.

"Sheriff Silverstar!" exclaimed Braeburn.

"I'd heard that there was some sorta commotion goin' on in town, but it seems like everything's okay now..." said the sheriff, glancing around the area. "Well, aside from some damage here n' there."

"Well, it might've been a lot worse if Mega Pony and mah big sis didn't stop the guy that was causin' it." said Apple Bloom. "You shoulda seen them out there, fightin' that big brute!"

"Ah see..." Silverstar then turned towards the blue robot and said to him, "Well, Ah guess Ah should thank you and your friend for savin' the town an' everythin'."

"It was nothing, Mr. Silverstar." said Mega Pony. "We just wanted to make sure that nopony got hurt as a result of the attacker's rampage."

"On that note...did either of you happen to see who the crook was?" the sheriff then asked them.

"Sorry...we couldn't see who or what it was." Applejack told him. "It had a big, dirty-lookin' cloak coverin' it head-t'-hoof, so there was no way that we could tell..."

"There is one thing, though." the mechanical pony began to say as he opened his side compartment. Using his psuedo-magic, he showed Silverstar the piece of horn that he had picked up earlier. "I found this on the ground after the criminal left. I think it might have come off of him or her."

"Lemme see that." The sheriff then examined the chipped horn closely. After only a few seconds, the stallion growled and grumbled to himself, "It's just as Ah thought...This is a piece of buffalo horn! Ah'd recognize it anywhere!"

"B-buffalo horn?" asked Braeburn, slightly surprised. "Are you sure about-"

"Of COURSE Ah'm sure!" shouted Silverstar. "They must STILL wanna get rid of our town, so they sent someone to do just that!"

"Um, actually Mr. Silverstar," Mega Pony tried to say, "this horn is-"

"Ah should've known that we couldn't trust them any further than we can throw 'em!" the sheriff snarled, clearly getting angry about the whole thing. "Ah swear, if Ah see that Chief Thunderhooves or any of those other brutes, Ah'll...!"

"You'll do what, exactly...?" asked another gruff voice from nearby.

Sheriff Silverstar immediately stopped ranting as he and everypony else turned around to see several large creatures off to their side; it was none other than an entire herd of buffalo. Leading the herd was a dark brown-colored buffalo, wearing a feathered headdress and sporting an angry look on his face.

"Chief Thunderhooves..." growled the sheriff. "You and your kind have got a LOTTA nerve showin' yer faces after y'all sent one'f your own here to smash up the town!!"

"...You're accusing US of wrongdoing?!" asked the head buffalo, shocked and angry at the sudden accusation. "What about YOUR kind?!?"

"What about them...?" inquired Silverstar.

"Just a few minutes ago, someone from YOUR town came and attacked us!!" shouted Chief Thunderhooves. "I didn't see WHO it was exactly, but it was definitely pony-shaped! And since I don't know of any other ponies that live around here..."

"Are you seriously accusin' me and the townsfolk of attackin' you?!" asked the sheriff. "How dare you!!"

"You should talk!! YOU blamed us of causing you harm when you know for a fact that it was you who attacked us!!" yelled Thunderhooves.

"Don't you give me that!! You're the ones causin' trouble and y'all know it!!" the sheriff yelled back. The two of them glared at each other with the angriest faces that they could muster; it looked as though there was going to be a rumble between them, until...

"Stop that at once!!" shouted Princess Celestia's voice.

Both Silverstar and Thunderhooves immediately stopped giving each other the evil eye once they heard the stern voice of the royal Alicorn. Both of them, along with everyone else immediately turned to face the Princess, whose face told everyone that she was not in the mood to hear any more of their arguing.

"Now, from what I can gather, there is no concrete proof that either of your claims are true." Celestia stated once she had everyone's attention. Turning over to the sheriff first, she told him, "The chipped piece of horn from the criminal that attacked the town could have come from any type of horned creature..." She then looked over at the chief next. "And there was no way that you could be sure that the pony-like figure that you claim had attacked your tribe came from Appleloosa; after all, you said it was wearing a cloak to conceal itself, am I right?"

The bitter pair grumbled; they were both very sure about what they had claimed the other did, but they didn't want to argue with a Princess.

"Now that I've made myself perfectly clear on the matter," Celestia told them, "I would like the two of you to return to your homes and stop bickering with each other in such a childish manner. A situation such as this can only be resolved if we remain calm and civil about it."

Silverstar glared at Chief Thunderhooves, still angry towards him. "...This isn't over, Thunderhooves." he told his enemy.

"Likewise..." the head buffalo replied. The two then left the area, heading for the homes. The rest of the Buffalo Tribe then followed their leader, heading back to their land.

Once the rest of the crowd dispersed, Braeburn let out a content sigh and said to the white Alicorn, "Thanks a heap, Your Highness...Not everypony can stop Silverstar from arguin' when he thinks he's right about somethin'."

"It would appear so." Celestia responded. "But now we are left with a much more pressing problem."

"Yeah, Ah'll say we are..." Applejack chimed in. "Ah mean, y'all heard what Chief Thunderhooves said; he's claimin' that it was him and his tribe that were attacked by somepony from here in town!"

"But we just saw one of those buffalo here, smashin' up everythin' in its way!" Apple Bloom reminded everypony.

"That may be so, Apple Bloom..." Mega Pony told her, "but even so, the chief claimed that he had nothing to do with it, much like Silverstar claimed that he wasn't responsible for the attack on the buffalo."

"So who was tellin' the truth?" asked Braeburn. "That's what Ah'd like t' know."

"Well, the thing is, cuz..." replied Applejack, rubbing the back of her head. "Ah'm not exactly sure."

"You don't know??" asked Apple Bloom in surprise. "But you're supposed t' be the Element of Honesty, big sis! You should've known which one'f them was lyin'!"

"That's just it, though." the orange Earth Pony rebutted. "Ah'm not sure who was or who wasn't tellin' the truth. To be honest, it didn't seem like either of 'em was lyin' about what they claimed the other did."

"Well, this is a fine pickle we've gotten ourselves into..." said Granny Smith with a sigh. "What'll we do now?"

"Psssssssst!"

The group suddenly heard a slight hissing sound coming from an alley nearby. They turned to look and saw a small hoof gesturing towards them and telling them to come over to it. When they did, they were surprised at who they saw: It was another buffalo, but she was much smaller than the others. She had a light brown coat and puffy "hair" that was colored a light tan. She had a small tail that was as puffy as her head hair, and she wore a headband that was decorated with white and purple triangles and had a pair of white feathers sticking out from the back of it.

"Another buffalo?" asked Apple Bloom, a bit alarmed.

Luckily, Applejack recognized the individual immediately. "Hey, Ah remember you!" she said to the young buffalo in a pleased tone. "You're Little Strongheart, ain'tcha?"

"Mhmm! It's me alright, Applejack." the small creature replied. "It's good to see you again!" She then put on a sadder face and added, "I just wish you had picked a better day to come here, what with the problem that we're having and everything..."

"You mean the attacks on your tribe?" asked Mega Pony.

"Not just that." Little Strongheart told the robot. "I was also here when that rogue buffalo came and started smashing up everything; I watched the whole thing from right here in this alleyway. You and Applejack were really brave to stand up to that guy..."

"Just doin' our job, Sugarcube." AJ told the young buffalo. "But why are y'all here in Appleloosa?"

"I was going to warn the sheriff and everyone in town when I saw the rogue was coming over here." Strongheart told her. "I knew it was up to no good, so I ran to town as quick as I could...But, unfortunately, the rogue got here before I did. And after that argument that the sheriff and the chief had earlier, there's no way that he or anyone here will listen to what I have to say..."

"What about the pony-like figure that attacked your tribe?" asked Mega Pony. "Is what your chief said true?"

"Well...kinda." the young buffalo answered.

"Whad'ya mean, 'kinda'?" asked Granny Smith.

"Chief Thunderhooves is right about the fact that we were attacked by a figure that looked like a pony, despite the cloak that it wore." said Strongheart. "But...I managed to catch a glimpse of it, while it wasn't wearing its cloak."

The others leaned in closer, interested to know more about what the little buffalo had seen.

"It was only for about a second, but I saw what it looked like..." the young creature continued. "I don't remember all the details, but it didn't look like anyone here in Appleloosa..."

"What DID it look like?" asked Braeburn.

"All I can remember was...orange." Strongheart replied.

"Well, that don't tell us much..." said Apple Bloom. "We're no closer t' figurin' this whole thing out than when we started..."

"That's not exactly true, Apple Bloom." stated Mega Pony. "What Little Strongheart told us was actually quite helpful."

"How so?" asked Granny Smith.

"Well, from what she told us," the robot explained, "we now know that neither Silverstar nor Thunderhooves were lying to each other when they said that they were attacked. But it seems that neither side was responsible for the attack on the other."

"Which means that there must be a third party involved in all of this." Applejack deduced. "And whomever they are, they're tryin' their best t' make it LOOK like the Buffalo Tribe is attackin' Appleloosa and vice-versa."

"But why?" asked Little Strongheart. "It doesn't make any sense!"

"There must be a reason for all of this." stated Princess Celestia. "And I'm sure that if we all work together, we'll find out what that reason is and put a stop to these assaults."

"Ah'm all for it!" said Braeburn. "We worked real hard t' establish peace between the townsfolk and the Buffalo Tribe; Ah'm not just gonna stand here and let some jerk ruin it all!"

"Same here!" chimed Little Strongheart. "Ever since we all worked things out between us, everyone's been able live happily and peacefully. And I want to keep it that way!"

"Then we're all in agreement, then." said Mega Pony. "We're gonna figure out what's going on and put a stop to it! Who's in?"

"You know Ah'm in, Mega!" said Applejack.

"Me too!" added Apple Bloom.

"Ah'll help too!" said Granny Smith. "Can't let you young'uns have all the fun fer yerselves, can I?"

"Eeeyup!" chimed Big Mac.

With everyone in agreement, the group was now determined to solve the mystery behind the attacks on Appleloosa and the Buffalo Tribe. They still had no idea who was behind it, or what their motive was, but they would find out and put a stop to it before it was too late.

Minutes later, Mega Pony, Applejack, and the rest of the group gathered together outside of Appleloosa to begin their investigation behind the strange attacks on the town and the neighboring Buffalo Tribe. They were ready to discuss with each other about what their next moves would be.

"Alright, everyone," began Princess Celestia. "we have to work quickly; I suspect that our mysterious assailants are planning to make another appearence very soon. If they initiate another assault, it may be enough to stir both sides into fighting with each other."

"Ah agree, Princess Celestia." said Applejack. "But it ain't gonna be easy."

"I'll say it won't." agreed Mega Pony. "That buffalo that was attacking Appleloosa was really strong; it shrugged off my Friendship Buster shots like they were mosquitoes. Even after we managed to hit it with my Apple Bucker bombs, it was still able to get away."

"He does have a good point, cuz." Braeburn told Applejack. "Y'all sure you can fight that thing again if ya have to?"

"Well, Ah can say that Ah'll do mah best," the orange Earth Pony stated, "but whether we'll succeed in takin' it down or not is another story..."

"Yeah, I thought the same thing about Pinkie Pie when her Party Cannon was stolen a few months ago." Mega Pony told his friend. "It's too bad that my mom can't do for you like what she did for Pinkie."

"Ya mean that hoof cannon thing-a-ma-jig she had with her?" asked Applejack. "Yeah, somethin' like that would definitely be a big help in case we run into trouble."

"Hmmmmmmm..." hummed the Princess, thinking to herself. Just then she got an idea. "Applejack," she then began to say to the farm pony, "I think I might have something that could help you; could I borrow your hat for a moment?"

"Mah hat??" asked Applejack in surprise. "Whatever for?"

"I know it seems unusual, but trust me: I only have your best interests in mind." the Alicorn assured her.

Applejack still seemed somewhat reluctant, but Mega Pony nodded to his friend to tell her that everything would be just fine. The orange Earth Pony then looked back over to the Princess and said to her, "Alrighty then...Just be careful with it; it used to belong to mah mother..."

"I promise that I will." Celestia replied as she took the hat from Applejack. She then said to the rest of the group, "Mega Pony and I are heading back to Canterlot Castle to do some work, but we shall return shortly. In the meantime, I want the six of you to do some investigating and figure out as much as you can concerning the attacks."

"Will do, Your Highness." replied Braeburn, tipping his hat to the Alicorn.

"Let's go, Mega Pony." Celestia then said to her son.

"Okay, Mom." the robot replied. He then tossed two of his mobile communicators over to Applejack and Braeburn and said to them, "You can use these to keep in contact with me. If you get into any trouble, just give me a call, okay?" The two Earth Ponies nodded to say that they understood. Mega Pony then grabbed onto his mother and used his teleportation unit to whisk them both back to their home in Canterlot.

Once the two had left, Braeburn then told the rest of the group, "Alright, we've got a lotta work t' do 'til the Princess and Mega Pony get back, and we don't got much time 'til there's another attack. Ah think it'd be best if'n we all split up and do some pokin' around in both the town and in the Buffalo's land."

"In that case," said Little Strongheart, "I'll go and try to speak to Chief Thunderhooves about the whole thing. Though I doubt he'll listen to me; he tends to be pretty stubborn when he thinks he's right about something."

"Aheheh, yeah...kinda like Sheriff Silverstar." Braeburn told the little buffalo. "When he believes that he's right about somethin', it's next to impossible to make him change his mind."

Strongheart giggled a bit at what the Appleloosian said. "Yeah, that sounds just like our chief." she told him. "But deep down, he's very kind-hearted and willing to put others before even himself."

"Same with Silverstar." Braeburn responded. "With how much they have in common, it's a surprise that they aren't friends already." This elicted another giggle from the little buffalo at that comment.

"Um, are y'all finished?" Applejack asked them. "'Cause we're runnin' outta time, and we've still got a job t' do."

"Oh! Yeah, sorry 'bout that, cuz." Braebrun then stated to the others, "Ah'm gonna head back t' town and try to talk with the sheriff."

"I'll go with ya, Braeburn." Granny Smith chimed in. "What about you, Big Mac? Ya wanna go with us?"

The red stallion nodded and said, "Eeeyup."

"In that case," began Applejack, "Ah'll go with Little Strongheart and see what we can find out back in the buffalo's territory." She then turned to Apple Bloom and told her, "Apple Bloom, you're comin' with me."

"Alright, big sis." the little yellow filly replied with a nod, running over to her and the young buffalo.

"We'll meet back here a bit later to discuss anything that we've found out." stated Braeburn. "Until then, we're on our own for now, so be careful." The others nodded and split into their respective groups.

Back in Appleloosa, the townsfolk went about their routines once more, though they were all a bit nervous after the attack earlier. They kept looking over their shoulders, keeping an eye out for anyone and anything suspicious. Braeburn, Granny Smith, and Big Macintosh felt their nervousness as they passed by them all and headed for the Sheriff's Office. There, they would try and convince Silverstar that someone else was trying to attack the town, and not the Buffalo Tribe. Of course, they knew it wouldn't be an easy task...

"Ridiculous!!" shouted the sheriff after Braeburn and the others told him everything. "You can't seriously believe all of that nonsense about someone else wreckin' the town! Especially not from one'a them buffalo!!"

"But what if it's true?" Braeburn asked the stubborn stallion. "If there really is someone else causin' the trouble here, then we can't waste time fightin' with the tribe!"

"That's the stupidest thing Ah've ever heard!" shouted Silverstar, clearly not paying any heed to what they were saying. "Ah know fer a fact that it's the buffalo attackin' the town! Besides, y'all don't have any proof that what that little buffalo told ya is true!"

"Well, pardon me fer sayin' this, Sheriff Stubborn-as-a-Mule," began Granny Smith, "but y'all don't have any proof that what yer sayin' is true, either! Whad'ya think, Big Mac?"

The red stallion shook his head and said, "Nnnnope."

The sheriff paused for a moment, realizing that they were right. But that only made him angrier. "That's enough outta y'all!!" he yelled. "Ah know Ah'm right about this, and there's nothin' y'all can say or do that'll convince me otherwise!! I've never trusted them danged buffalo before, Ah don't trust 'em now, and Ah never will!!" Pointing towards the door, he then demanded of them, "Now get outta here and quit wastin' mah time!!"

After being shown the door, the trio collectively breathed a heavy sigh. "Well, that worked out like a hole in the head..." noted Granny Smith.

"Eeeyup..." Big Mac simply responded.

"Ah knew this was gonna happen..." Braeburn said with an annoyed moan. "Once Silverstar has an opinion 'bout somethin', he sticks to it, even if HE thinks he's wrong..." Sighing, he then added, "Ah just hope AJ and the others are havin' better luck than we are..."

Meanwhile, in the Buffalo Tribe's territory, Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Little Strongheart were on their way to the teepee-laden land in order to tell the leader, Chief Thunderhooves, about everything that they had found out. They knew that the chances of convincing the buffalo leader that the Appleloosians weren't responsible for the attacks on them were next to zero, but they also knew that they had to try anyway.

"So you are telling us that there is someone else involved with the attacks on our territory instead?" asked Thunderhooves, still somewhat skeptical about the whole thing.

"I'm positive, Chief." urged Little Strongheart. "That pony that came here wasn't from Appleloosa; I just know it!"

"I cannot see how that could be possible." stated the dark-coated buffalo. "There is no other pony settlement nearby here that would be able to send an assailant as quickly as they did; perhaps the Sun was in your eyes when you thought you saw what you saw. I know for a fact that I think I see all sorts of things when it's really just the Sun playing tricks on me...For instance, one time, I thought that I had found a large pile of scrumptious apple pies right in the middle of the desert...Of course, when I tried to bite into it, I was alarmed to find out that it was, of all things, a rather large cactus...I was pulling out needles from out of my mouth for weeks..."

As the chief rambled on, Applejack, Apple Bloom, Little Strongheart, and even the rest of the Buffalo Tribe, began to let out deep yawns. This wasn't the first time that Chief Thunderhooves had bored those around him with a long-winded story, and it probably wouldn't be the last time.

"Mr. Chief..." Apple Bloom began to say to him, "Ah hate t' interrupt, but we've gotta do somethin' about this! Ah mean, who KNOWS when there's gonna be another attack??"

At that moment, everyone heard the sounds of galloping hooves nearby, which stopped the buffalo leader's long story short. It started out at a low volume, but gradually got louder as time went by, meaning that whomever or whatever was making the sounds was coming their way. After a few seconds, everyone saw who it was: It was a pony-shaped figure wearing a long cloak; the tattered cloth looked somewhat familiar to Applejack, but she couldn't immediately remember where she had seen anything like it before.

"Oh no!" shouted one of the other buffalo. "He's back!!"

"Me an' mah big mouth..." whimpered Apple Bloom.

Chief Thunderhooves growled silently to himself and said, "So, they've sent him back to attack us again, did they...? Well, once I am through with that thing, that town and its bull-headed sheriff will have to answer to me!"

"Now hold it, Chief..." Applejack told him. "We still don't know fer sure if that IS somepony from the town...Ah'm not sayin that they aren't responsible fer anythin' yet, but we can't jump t' any conclusions until we find out more info, got it?"

"Either way," the dark-coated creature told her, "I will not allow that thing to harm my tribe. You can believe whatever you want, but my mind is made up." And with that, Thunderhooves charged towards the figure, attempting to trample it.

But the strange attacker wasn't going to just be an easy target for him: It leapt into the air, sailing right over the Chief's head and continuing towards their humble village.

"No!!" shouted the leader, quickly turning around and heading back towards the territory to chase it down.

The rest of the buffalo were too scared to try and go after it...all except for Little Strongheart, who bravely charged towards it. "Don't you even THINK about what you're trying to do!!" she shouted at it. But she froze up when she saw that the figure seemed to fire a small blast of yellow energy at her. Gasping, she ducked for cover.

Luckily, Applejack quickly ran over to the little buffalo, scooping her up and carrying her on her back. "Y'all okay, Sugarcube?" the orange mare asked her as she carried her to safety.

"I think so...Thanks a lot." Little Strongheart replied, grateful to Applejack for what she did.

"Big sis!!" shouted Apple Bloom. "Look out!! He's chasin' after ya!!"

"What the-?!?" AJ quickly turned around and saw that the figure was indeed chasing them, firing off more shots. Luckily, the Earth Pony was able to sidestep every one of the blasts.

As Applejack kept evading the assailant's shots, Apple Bloom looked on, hoping that her sister would be okay. At that moment, Chief Thunderhooves walked over to her and said, "Come with me. You are not safe where you are."

"Y-you're helpin' me?" asked the filly, a bit surprised.

"As part of the Buffalo Tribe, I am duty-bound to assist those that help our own, according to our laws." he told her. "Your elder sister saved Little Strongheart's life, so I shall return the favor and keep you safe from harm as well."

Apple Bloom smiled and said to the buffalo leader, "That's real of nice of y'all t' do that fer me; you're nothin' like that jerk that tried to hurt everypony in town." The Chief was happy to hear that from her, and began to wonder if he was wrong to think that the Appleloosians were out to get him and his kind. But right now, he had a job to do, so he let the little filly onto his back and took her out of the village so that she would be safe.

Applejack breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Thunderhooves protecting her little sister. "At least Ah know she'll be okay..." she said to herself. "Though Ah'm not too sure if we'll make it out in one piece..." Not long after she finished talking, the Earth Pony sidestepped to avoid another small energy blast.

"That thing's gettin' real close, Applejack...!" stated Little Strongheart. "We can't keep running forever; we HAVE to try and fight it!"

"Ah know we do! But that thing's too fast to hit directly!" AJ told her passenger. "It's not like Ah've got any fancy ranged attacks like Mega Pony does!" Just then, she realized something. "Of course!! Ah almost forgot!!" She then quickly tapped the communicator that the blue robot gave her and spoke into it, saying, "Mega Pony! Mega Pony, are y'all there?! We need some assistance, an' quick!!"

Not much longer after she gave out the S.O.S., a long pillar of light appeared far away, grabbing the attention of everypony (and buffalo), inculding the mysterious attacker. They all stared in the direction that the light came from, wondering what was going to happen next...

Just then, a pair of figures sped forward towards the buffalo territory: They were none other than Princess Celestia (who was wearing a pair of saddlebags in addition to her new sunhat) and Mega Pony. The robotic pony had donned Rainbow Dash's color scheme, using her special weapon in combination with his Emergency Wings in order to reach the buffalo's village quickly.

*** WEAPON EQUIP! *** Sonic Rainboom ***

The strange attacker bolted out of the way for the moment as both the Princess and the robot landed in the area. "Somepony call for help?" asked Mega Pony with a friendly smirk as he changed back to his original colors.

"Thank goodness y'all got here!" said Applejack. "We could use a hoof 'r two right about now!"

"The strange pony that attacked the tribe came back and is trying to finish the job!" stated Little Strongheart. "We've gotta get rid of it!"

"I couldn't agree more." said Celestia. "Luckily, we were just about to leave the castle when you contacted us." She then used her magic to open her bags and pulled out Applejack's favorite hat, which she had asked to borrow earlier. "Here. I am giving this back to you." the Princess told her.

"Mah hat!" exclaimed the farm pony upon seeing it. As she took the hat in her front hooves, she then asked, "But...why'd ya'll need it earlier?"

"I needed to borrow it for a short while so that I could give you something that would assist you, both for right now and in the near future." the Alicorn explained. "Using my magic, along with one of Mega Pony's spare Copy Chips, I have bestowed your hat with a special power; now, you'll be able to use the same weapon that Mega Pony gets from you: The Apple Bucker."

"Wait, ya mean that Ah can toss those explosive apples just like he can??" the Earth Pony asked in surprise.

"Indeed." answered Princess Celestia. "As long as you wear that hat, you'll be able to use the Apple Bucker just like my son can. The only difference is that your version of the weapon has limitless ammunition, and is slightly more powerful, too."

Applejack stared at her hat and saw that there was a small patch that had been sewn on the back of it; it was where the Princess had placed the chip that contained all of the data for the special weapon. "Ah don't know what t' say..." she said, clearly grateful to the royal Alicorn for the gift she gave to her.

Before another word could be said, the strange attacker decided to go on the offensive again, firing off more shots at Applejack, Mega Pony, and the others. "If I could make a suggestion," the robot said to the Earth Pony, "how about saying that you'll use that weapon to help me take down that guy?"

The farm pony nodded and put her hat on her head. "Alrighty then, Mega." she told him. "Just tell me what t' do, an' Ah'll do it."

Mega Pony fired off shots from his Friendship Buster, trying to take out the cloaked crook as best as he could. "Just imagine an apple right in front of you;" he instructed, "focus completely on that thought, and it will appear."

"Alright then..." Applejack then closed her eyes and did her best to focus on the thought of an apple right in front of her. It took a while to keep her mind clear of anything else, especially since there was a crazed pony-like assailant trying to tear up the place. But then, all of a sudden...

"Applejack! You did it!" cheered Little Strongheart.

"Huh??" The Earth Pony opened her eyes and saw that, lo and behold, an apple-shaped bomb had been flung up into the air in front of her. Quickly remembering how Mega Pony used the weapon, she aimed her back legs towards the cloaked assailant and used them to buck the explosive straight towards it.

Mega Pony heard the kick and quickly moved out of the way so as not to get hit by the bomb. But the attacker never saw it coming and was struck by the projectile. The Apple Bucker bomb exploded upon contact, sending the figure flying backwards and right into the side of a cliff wall.

"She did it!!" cheered Apple Bloom from the sidelines. "Mah big sis got 'im real good!!"

But Chief Thunderhooves was focused on something else that had happened after the bomb struck the attacker; the explosion had caused its cloak to fly off. He then looked over at the assailiant and gasped loudly. "What is that?!?" he shouted.

Everyone else looked over at the strange figure when they heard the lead buffalo's exclamation. They all finally got a good look at the villian, and it caused Mega Pony, Princess Celestia, and Apple Bloom to gasp in shock as well.

"It's...It's an Equine Joe!!" exclaimed the blue robot upon seeing the attacker's orange-colored armor.

"Aw no! Not those things again!!" complained Apple Bloom. "Ah thought we'd seen the last of 'em after Mega Pony got rid of the ones in the Everfree Forest!"

"So those are the Joe-things y'all told me and our friends about?" Applejack asked Mega Pony.

"Uh huh..." the blue robot answered her. "But don't be too alarmed; they're dangerous, but also predictable. Just attack it when its shield is down, and we can defeat it." Mega Pony then switched to his Apple Bucker weapon again, readying himself for a fight. "Alright, Applejack...let's do this together!" The farm pony nodded as they both rushed towards it, firing off a pair of apple bombs.

However, the Equine Joe quickly responded, putting up its shield to guard itself from the attack. After the explosions were dulled out, the menacing mech returned fire, shooting out energy bullets from its hoof-mounted blaster, which the two heroic ponies swiftly avoided. They continued to fire at each other, but neither side seemed to gain any edge over the other.

But after a while, Little Strongheart, not content with just sitting idly by, decided to take action. While the orange robot was distracted by Mega Pony and Applejack, the little buffalo ran as fast as she could towards the attacker. The Equine Joe heard her coming, but it was too late: Strongheart used her super-tough head to knock away its shield, sending it a great distance away. "Mega Pony! Applejack! Now's your chance!!" she shouted to her friends.

"Way ahead of ya." stated Applejack with nod. Both she and Mega Pony kicked another pair of Apple Bucker bombs straight towards the Equine Joe. Now that it no longer had its shield to protect itself, the bombs were able to strike it hard. The force of both blasts were able to damage the enemy robot severely enough to take it completely out of commission. The Equine Joe then lay on the ground, completely motionless, as its glowing red eye dulled away.

"We did it, Applejack!" cheered Mega Pony. "We defeated it!!"

"Was there any doubt, Mega?" asked Applejack as the pair performed a hoof bump in celebration. "There was no way that thing could take us both on!"

"Three of us." the blue robot corrected her. "It was because of Little Strongheart that we were able to get the opening that we needed."

"I-it was nothing, Mega Pony..." the small buffalo replied, rubbing the back of her head. "I just did what I had to do to protect everyone, that's all."

Chief Thunderhooves and Apple Bloom, along with the rest of the Buffalo Tribe, all walked over to what remained of the mechanical attacker. "So this is the one who has been attacking us all along?" the head buffalo asked. He then sighed a bit and said to Little Strongheart, "Well, it seems like you may have been right about what you and the others have told me."

"Strongheart," Mega Pony began to ask, "the pony that you told us you saw; did it look like this one?"

The young buffalo nodded yes. "That's it alright." she responded. "I remember it all completely now. Just before it could put on its cloak and get away, I saw that it looked just like this."

"But why was it causin' trouble here?" asked Apple Bloom. "The ones that Ah saw before had some reason fer doin' what they were doin', even though what they were doin' was bad and all..."

Princess Celestia thought for a while about what had happened. She then told Mega Pony, "Scan that Equine Joe and see if you can find out anything about what it was programmed to do."

"Oh! Good idea, Mom!" the blue robot replied. He then tapped the wrecked machine with his left foreleg, allowing his systems to scan its brain for any information. Suddenly, he gasped as he removed his leg from the mechanoid. "So that's it...Now it all makes sense!"

"Wha'd ya find out?" asked Applejack.

"This Equine Joe was programmed to stir up trouble, both in here and in Appleloosa." Mega Pony told everyone. "It was given a list of tasks to perform in order to fulfill its duties: I'll read them off to you all." The blue robot then took a deep breath and began to tell everyone about what he had scanned.

"Task #1: Infiltrate town of Appleloosa and scan the individual known as 'Sheriff Siverstar' for combat data.

"Task #2: Locate Buffalo Territory.

"Task #3: Attack Buffalo Tribe and stir them into combatting the town of Appleloosa.

"Task #4: After both the buffalo and Appleloosa townsfolk have worn themselves out from fighting each other, work with Unit OAB-121 and call in reinforcements to finish off both sides and claim the territory for..." Mega Pony then paused before saying, "That's all I could scan; the rest of the data is too scrambled as a result of the damage we inflicted."

Everyone was shocked by what the little robot told them. "So that's what's goin' on..." said Applejack. "This robot was sent here to get the Buffalo Tribe and Appleloosa to fight with each other again!"

"That's right." said Celestia. She then turned to Thunderhooves and added, "But the only reason that it was able to get this far was because whomever built it knew that there was bad blood between them."

The Chief was dumbstruck after hearing all of this. "So...it was taking advantage of that fact so that it could wipe us all out at once..." he said in a soft tone. "I don't believe it."

"Well, you heard the Princess," Little Strongheart told him, "it was only able to do so because it knew that there was still a lot of mistrust between you and the sheriff. Otherwise, we would have been able to resolve the whole thing together in just a few minutes..."

Chief Thunderhooves took off his headdress for the moment and sighed, saying, "I am ashamed of myself...for allowing this to happen...Please forgive me."

"It's okay, sir..." Mega Pony told him. "Now that we know what's going on, we can fix it...together."

"Mega Pony's right!" Apple Bloom chimed in. "It's not too late to patch things up and help everyone out!"

"I agree." stated Celestia. "And we'll need to pool all of our resources if we are to succeed. After all, according to what we have seen so far, as well as from the data that my son had collected, there's another robot that is dead-set on wiping out both your territory and the town all at once."

"Which means we'll need to cooperate with each other if we're ever gonna get outta this mess." Applejack reminded everyone.

At that moment, Mega Pony's helmet began to beep again; somepony was trying to contact him. The robot tapped his helmet and asked, "Mega Pony here, what is it?"

"Mega Pony!" said the voice on the other end. "This is Braeburn. We've gotta big heap of a mess over here in town!!"

"What's going on?!" asked the mechanoid. "Is the town under attack again?!"

"Ah'll say it is!" Braeburn responded. "You'd better come quick! Ah don't know how much longer we're gonna last over here!!"

"Okay, I'll be there as soon as I can!" After clicking off his communicator, he then told everyone, "We've gotta get going; Braeburn just told me that Appleloosa's under attack again! I think it might be the other robot! I'm gonna teleport there right away!"

"Hold on! Ah'm comin' with ya!" shouted Applejack. "Ah ain't about t' let ya go out there all by yerself!"

"Are you sure about that, Applejack?" asked Mega Pony out of concern.

"Just trust me: Ah'll be fine." the farm pony assured him. "Now let's go already!"

The robot was skeptical at first, but eventually decided to put his faith in Applejack's words. "Okay then. Grab ahold of me and don't let go." he instructed his friend.

"We'll be there to assist you as well." Princess Celestia stated to the two of them. "As long as Chief Thunderhooves is willing to cooperate."

"I am, Your Highness." he told the Alicorn. "I must reclaim my lost honor by putting an end to the threat that I inadvertedly had a hoof in. You can calm yourself in knowing that the entire Buffalo Tribe will fight by your side!"

"YEAH!!!!" cheered the rest of the tribe.

Little Strongheart hopped onto the Chief's back and shouted, "For the honor of the Buffalo Tribe and their allies, we shall not fail!!"

Princess Celestia then motioned Apple Bloom to hop onto her back. "For the Buffalo!!" the little filly cheered. "For Appleloosa!! For Equestria!!"

Mega Pony, confident that everyone was ready and willing to fight for the greater good, activated his teleporter and warped both him and Applejack to the town in order to stop the plans of the attacking robots and their unknown creator.

Back in Appleloosa, the townsfolk were scrambling all over the place, trying to get away from the crook that had attacked the town earlier. This time, it had the help of two others just like it: Big, strong, and wearing cloaks to conceal their identities. They had not managed to harm anypony in town yet; so far, the only casulties were the walls of buildings, along with many stagecoaches and carts.

Braeburn did his best to keep everyone safe, directing them all to an area outside of town where they would be out of the beasts' way. "Everypony remain calm!" he told them all. "Keep followin' each other in an orderly manner, and y'all will be safe!"

"That's right, keep on movin'!" Granny Smith told the townsfolk as she assisted Braeburn. "Just 'cause there's a big brute smashin' the town apart, that doesn't mean y'all need to push anypony over gettin' out of here! Right, Big Mac?"

"Eeeyup!"

As the members of the Apple Family helped keep the townsfolk safe, Sheriff Silverstar took it upon himself to deal with the vandals...despite the fact that they were much bigger than him and that they outnumbered him, three to one. Still, he wasn't about to let them have their way. "You ornery brutes..." he said to them, growling. "If y'all want t' take this town from me, y'all are gonna have t' pry it from my cold, dead hooves! Do your worst!!"

The three crooks looked at each other for a while; they then turned to face the sheriff and charged towards him. They were ready to make good on the whole "dead hooves" thing that he had mentioned. Even so, Silverstar bravely stood his ground, not intimidated in the slightest.

But just when it seemed like the attackers would do the unthinkable, a small, red projectile flew towards the beasts, striking the one in the front of the pack. The projectile exploded upon contact, damaging it and causing its cloak to fly off. Once the covering was gone, the sheriff was finally able to see who the assailant was. Needless to say, he wasn't prepared for what he saw. "Wh-wh-what the hay is that thing?!" he exclaimed.

The attacker was revealed to be buffalo-like in terms of its body shape; however, it was quite clear to Silverstar that it was something else entirely. The creature's forest-green body shimmered in the sun, its silver horns were razor-sharp at the tips (except for one of them; it had been damaged, shown by the fact that the end of the horn had been broken off), and its single, glowing red eye would be enough to creep out even the toughest of ponies.

"Th-that buffalo..." Silverstar said to himself. "That...doesn't look like anyone from Buffalo Tribe...!"

"Sheriff Silverstar!!" shouted the voice of Mega Pony nearby. Both he and Applejack raced to the scene as fast as they could so that they could render assistance.

"What are you two doing here??" asked the law-enforcing stallion.

"We came by t' help." AJ answered him. "After we found out what was really goin' on with these attacks, me an' Mega here got here as soon as we could!"

"What're ya talkin' about?" asked Silverstar. "What did y'all find out??"

"No time to explain, sir." Mega Pony informed him. "All we can say is that the Buffalo Tribe are NOT responsible for what's going on." The robot then switched to Applejack's weapon and added, "Just leave this all to me and Applejack! I promise that we'll stop these attacks once and for all!"

The sheriff still wasn't sure about what they were saying, but he decided now wasn't the time to ask them anything about it. "Very well, then." he replied. "Do what ya need t' do t' save the town..." He then ran off, deciding to check on the townsfolk in the meantime.

"Cousin AJ! Mega Pony!" shouted Braeburn from far away. He, along with Granny Smith and Big Mac, ran over to see the pair as soon as the sheriff left. "Boy, are we all glad to see ya!"

"Where is everypony?" asked Mega Pony. "Are they okay?"

"Don't you worry, young'un!" the elderly mare informed him. "We took care of all o' that fer ya! Everypony in Appleloosa, save fer us, are all outta town!"

"You really got everypony t' safety?" asked Applejack, impressed with what they had done.

"Eeeyup!" Big Mac replied with a nod.

At that moment, the group glanced over and saw that the other two vandals had thrown off their cloaks, since their identities were no longer a secret anyway. The other two beasts were revealed to be exactly the same as the first one, being buffalo-like in body shape, but not in overall appearence. "Those things look mighty creepy, Mega..." stated Applejack as she looked at their glowing eyes. "And familiar..."

"Well, they should." the pony robot told her. "I just did a quick scan and found out what they are: They're the robots that the Equine Joe was working with; Unit OAB-121, otherwise known...as a Buffalo Joe."

"Buffalo Joe?" asked the orange mare.

"Yep. They're built using the same technology as the Equine Joes, only they were designed to look and attack just like buffalo." he explained. "They lack the nimbleness of the Equine Joe, but they make up for with pure brute force; they can dish out a lot of damage, and take a lot as well..."

"Doesn't sound good, Mega..." Applejack said, worrying a little. But she quickly regained her composure and told him, "Still, that don't mean we're just gonna let 'em wreck stuff and hurt innocent ponies! We've gotta fight 'em!"

"I agree." said the little robot. "Let's go!"

The two of them then kicked a pair of Apple Bucker bombs at the Buffalo Joes, striking them hard. But just as Mega Pony said, their dark green armor was able to shrug off most of the damage. The three of them began charging forward, forcing the two heroic ponies to dart out of the way before returning fire. Still, it seemed that even the Apple Bucker weapon wouldn't be enough to stop them.

All of a sudden, Mega Pony's Apple Bucker stopped working. Try as he might, he couldn't fire another bomb from his horn. "Uh oh! My weapon's out of ammo!" he said in despair.

"Then get yerself a new weapon, an' fast!" Applejack told him as she continued to buck the explosives at the menacing buffalo robots. She didn't have to worry about ammo, because her version of the weapon was able to provide as much as she needed.

Mega Pony decided to take AJ's advice and began looking around for somepony to obtain a new weapon from. Of course, the only ponies that were nearby were the rest of the Apple Family, who took shelter in the Salt Block Saloon. Knowing what to do, he ran over to them and said, "Quick, I could use some help! Let me touch one of your cutie marks!"

"What're ya talkin' abou- Oh! That's right! Ah almost forgot; AJ told us that's how ya get your fancy weapons n' stuff!" Granny Smith exclaimed, realizing what he was trying to do. Showing him her mark, she then told him, "Alright, go ahead an' give 'er a tap!"

The robot nodded and touched Granny Smith's cutie mark, triggering the usual light show that happened whenever he copied a pony's special power. After he was done, he then said to them all, "Okay, I think this one will help, but I'm not sure what my odds are with this weapon alone..."

"Then try gettin' one from me, too!" Braeburn told him, showing Mega Pony his cutie mark as well. He then looked over at Big Mac and asked him, "What about you? Think y'all could lend us a hoof as well?"

The big red stallion nodded and said, "Eeeyup!" He then showed off his mark, too.

"Thanks a lot, everypony." Mega Pony said to them. "I'm sure these will be a big help to AJ and I." He then went ahead and copied the powers of both Braeburn and Big Mac.

Back outside, Applejack still kept up her attack, knocking apple bomb after apple bomb towards the meancing mechanical buffalo. Despite repeated blows, the beasts were virtually unaffected, thanks to their heavy-duty armor. Grunting a little out of both frustraion and exahaustion, she muttered to herself, "Mega, where are ya...? Ah don't know how much longer Ah can keep this up...!"

But at that moment, the little blue robot ran back to the battle after having finished his work in the saloon. "Sorry if I've kept you waiting, Applejack." he apologized.

"Never mind that; did ya get some new weapons t' use?" she inquired.

"I did." he answered her. "And I think they'll be much more effective against enemies like them..." Mega Pony then swapped to one of his new weapons, taking on the green-and-silver color scheme of Granny Smith, as well as her apple pie cutie mark. Applejack watched on, wondering what he was going to do.

"Alright, here goes..." the robot pony said to himself as he used his new power. With enough concentration, he used his "magic" to create...a piepan. After it materialized, Mega Pony grabbed it using his mouth and hurled it towards the Buffalo Joe robots like a frisbee. As it flew through the air, the sides of the pan unfolded into small points, transforming the seemingly-ordinary piepan into a razor-sharp blade. The enemy robots tried to run, but one wasn't quick enough to get away, and the blade sliced right through one of its back legs, cutting it cleanly off of the beast and causing it to stumble over.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Piepan Blade ***

"Nice shot, Mega!!" cheered Applejack.

"Would ya look at that...!" said Braeburn. "Who would've guessed that he'd get that kind of a power from you, Granny?"

"Heh, I ain't surprised." the elderly mare responded. "Everypony's been tellin' me that Ah've got a wit that's as sharp as a nail! Or, in this case, a sawblade."

The downed beast struggled to get back up, but its weight made standing, much less walking, on three legs next to impossible. "Not that Ah'm complainin' or nothin'," Applejack began to ask, "but how come it got taken down by one blade when a bucha bombs hardly even scratched it?"

"Take it from me:" Mega Pony told his friend. "We robots tend to have a bit of a weakness when it comes to sharp objects..." He then readied another piepan and added, "On that note, that thing isn't defeated for good just yet..." He then hurled another blade at the Buffalo Joe, which struck it in the head and got stuck. The blow from the sawblade damaged its CPU, shutting it down for good.

"That's one down..." stated Applejack. She then looked up at the reamining enemy robots. "An' two more t' go."

"I'll conserve the energy for Granny Smith's weapon for now." Mega Pony informed her. "In the meantime, I'll try out a different weapon instead." He then changed his color scheme again, this time adopting the color scheme and cutie mark of Big Mac. "Be ready with your apple bombs, AJ." he told her.

"Got it!" the orange mare responded, ready to assist him at a moment's notice.

Mega Pony then leapt into the air, heading straight towards one of the Buffalo Joe robots. It looked on, but wasn't sure what he was doing. At the apex of his jump, the robot pony then triggered his active weapon. He then dropped straight down to the ground, creating a massive tremor that shook everything and everyone within its range. It also caused a pair of shockwaves to form around the impacted area, which immediately struck the Buffalo Joe that Mega Pony intended to hit.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Crusher Stomp ***

The impact of the shockwaves hit the enemy robot so hard, it caused it to flip over onto its back. Because of the large size of its body, and the (very) small size of its legs, it was unable to get back up, and it could no longer cause any more damage to anything or anyone.

"Alright, Applejack! Finish it off!" Mega Pony instructed her. The farm pony nodded and kicked a trio of Apple Bucker bombs at the helpless foe. This time, the blasts were able to destroy it completely, after Mega Pony's earlier attack managed to severely weaken it.

Now there was only one Buffalo Joe left to defeat. It just so happened that it was the one that had the broken horn. "Hey, Mega..." whispered Applejack. "That last one...ain't that-?"

"Uh huh." the robot pony interrupted her, knowing what she was going to say. "That's the same one that was attacking the town earlier...But we're not gonna let it get away this time." Switching to Braeburn's colors and cutie mark, he added, "And it just so happenes that I have exactly what I need to ensure that it doesn't." Using his newly-activated weapon, he then formed a blue stream of energy from out of his horn, which looped around itself to form what appeared to be a lasso.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Thunder Lasso ***

Mega Pony then hurled the energy stream towards the remaining Buffalo Joe as it charged forward towards him and Applejack. The lasso-like stream looped around the mechanical beast's midsection; once it did, the robot pony then closed his eyes once more and triggered the weapon's other function: Small bolts of energy began shooting out from the stream coming from his horn, and the sparks traveled towards the enemy robot. Once the sparks reached it, the beast was shocked with massive amounts of raw electricity, enough to fry its CPU and put it out of commission permanently. It fell over in a heap, no longer able to harm anyone or anything ever again.

"We did it! We saved the town!!" cheered Applejack. "It's all finally over now!!"

"Um...Ah wouldn't say that just yet, cuz..." said the voice of a very worried Braeburn as he, Granny Smith, and Big Mac walked over to join them. "Just look!"

Everypony looked towards the direction that Braeburn was pointing in...and saw that there was now a large army of villianous robots in front of them. The army of bots consisted of a few Equine Joes, several Mettaur, and even a few Para-Bots.

"Those must be the reinforcements..." stated Mega Pony. "The ones that were going to attack both the town and the buffalo after the others did their job!"

"Shoot...an' just when things were lookin' up, too..." Applejack said with a sigh.

"There's no way that we can fight off that many robots by ourselves!" cried out a trembling Braeburn. "Wh-wh-what're we gonna do, everypony??"

But before the robot army could initiate their final assault, someone fired at them first: A large ball of white energy struck the enemy forces, eliminating many of them in one shot. Mega Pony and the others gasped, wondering where the shot came from. But they didn't have to wonder for very long...

"YEEEEEEEEHAAAAAAAW!!!!!" shouted the voices of both Apple Bloom and Little Strongheart, riding on the backs of Princess Celestia and Chief Thunderhooves, respectively.

"It's my mom and the buffalo chief!" exclaimed Mega Pony.

"Not just them," Braeburn chimed in, "they've brought the whole Buffalo Tribe with 'em!"

Indeed, the rest of the neighboring buffalo all banded together in order to end the threat once and for all. Princess Celestia continued to fire magic blasts from her horn, specifically going after the airborne Para-Bots, while the buffalo did battle with the Equine Joes and Mets.

The townsfolk watched from far away as the Princess and the Buffalo Tribe bravely took on the enemy. Once they all realized that the large beasts were on their side, they weren't about to sit idly by and have the buffalo fight the villians all by themselves. "C'mon, everypony!" shouted Sheriff Silverstar. "Let's get down there and run those outlaws outta town!!" The Appleloosians cheered loudly in response as they all came together to lend their assistance as well. Using whatever they had on-hoof, the townsfolk helped take down the evil robot army that intended to wreck the town.

"Lookit that!" said an astonished Braeburn. "The townsponies and the buffalo...they're finally workin' together and helpin' each other out!"

"And that's what we need t' do, too!" Applejack chimed in. She then turned over to Mega Pony and asked him, "Y'all ready t' go, Sugarcube?"

"It'll be my pleasure, Applejack!" he answered her. He and the others then ran into the massive battle as well, fighting off every last one of the enemy bots. With the combined efforts of Mega Pony, Applejack, their friends, as well both the Appleloosians and the Buffalo Tribe, the entire robot army was wiped out in only a few minutes. The crisis in Appleloosa was over, and everypony (and buffalo) celebrated their victory.

From a plateau overlooking the town, the rectangular-shaped figure was watching the whole thing. It did so using a floating dome-shaped drone robot with a propellor on its head, equipped with a camera that was linked to a computer tablet that the figure was holding. "No, no, no, no, NO!!" it shouted in frustration, tossing the tablet aside. "None of that was supposed to happen! None of it!!" Sighing, the figure recollected itself and picked up the tablet. "Oh well..." it then said to itself, "at least now I can get out of this heat..." The figure then walked off before disappearing in a column of yellow light.

Several minutes later, the residents of Appleloosa were hard at work repairing the damage to their town. Luckily, they didn't have to do it alone; Mega Pony, Princess Celestia, and Applejack, along with the rest of the Apple Clan, assisted in fixing up the town. Even the Buffalo Tribe decided to help out as well. With everyone's hard work, Appleloosa was as good as new.

"Well, that about does it..." stated Applejack. "Great work, everyone! Appleloosa's lookin' even better than ever, 'specially now that those jerks that were tryin' t' wreck it are gone fer good."

Looking over at both Sheriff Silverstar and Chief Thunderhooves, Braeburn told them both, "Now can y'all see how much better everythin' is, now that we've proved that we can truely work together?"

The sheriff and the chief didn't say anything at first; neither was willing to admit to the other that they were wrong.

"Look, I speak for all of us, both pony and buffalo, when I say this:" started Little Strongheart. "Until we can truly learn to trust each other and become friends, we'll never be able to live together in peace...Whoever sent those robots to attack us knew for a fact that there was still a lot of conflict between the town and our tribe. So they took advantage of that fact in order to make us fight with one another, so that they could wear us out and take us all down at once..."

"So please..." Braeburn chimed in, "for the good of everyone here...Let's bury the hatchet...fer good."

The two stubborn leaders began to finally realize that their hateful feelings for each other only did more damage in the long run. Chief Thunderhooves spoke first, saying to Silverstar, "They are right; in order for your town and my tribe to be able to move forward, we have to at least try to trust each other...If not for us, but for those that we care about." Taking off his headdress, he then told the stallion, "If it means anything...I apologize for accusing your town of attacking us without getting all of the facts..."

Silverstar let out a deep sigh. At this point, even HE had to admit when he was wrong about something. Fixing his hat, he said to the chief, "I forgive you...and...I'm sorry for thinking that your tribe was behind the attacks on our town." The two of them then performed a hoof-bump, signaling that the two of them were no longer enemies with each other.

Mega Pony let out a sigh and said to Princess Celestia, "I'm glad that's everything's okay now...Up until now, even I didn't think that they would ever be able to work things out."

"You'd be surprised at what someone can do once they've accepted the friendship of another." the Alicorn told him. "While not everyone can change so quickly, I do believe that there is some good in everyone, even if it seems very unlikely..." She then thought to herself, (Perhaps...even HE could learn to be good as well...)

"Mom?" the little robot asked when he noticed that she had become silent for a brief moment. "Is everything okay?"

"Oh! Yes, Mega Pony. I'm okay." she told him. "I was just...thinking about something." She then cleared her throat and said to everyone, "Well, now that the problem here has finally been resolved, there is just one more matter left to take care of."

"What's that?" asked Mega Pony.

"Oh yeah!" exclaimed Apple Bloom. "The ribbon-cuttin' ceremony! Ah almost forgot about it!"

"Indeed." Celestia confirmed. "And I would like it if everyone here could come and attend the festivities." The ponies and buffalo in the crowd cheered loudly, which told her that they would be there for it.

The Appleloosians and the Buffalo Tribe, along with Mega Pony, Applejack, and her family, all gathered together to attend the opening of the Appleloosa Farm's new Shipping Department. With a swift snip of the ceremonial giant scissors, the building was now officially open for business. Afterwards, everyone attended the party that followed the event. Soon, they were all playing games, talking with one another, and of course, enjoying the many foods provided by the apple farm, which included apple pie, apple cider, candied apples, apple fritters, and many, many more.

Mega Pony and his friends and family were happy to see that the Appleloosa townsfolk and the Buffalo Tribe were not only able to trust each other, but they also seemed to enjoy each other's company as well. Even Sheriff Silverstar and Chief Thunderhooves were chatting it up with each other; in fact, Silverstar was probably the only one who could listen to one of Thunderhooves' long stories without becoming tired or bored. For the first time in a while, the two sides were able to come together in peace, and their days of fighting with each other seemed to be nothing more than a distant memory.

NEXT EPISODE: "The Sister Act"

Episode 111: The Sister Act:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

In addition to being a hero to those around him, Mega Pony has also been a very good friend to others, helping them out with various things or just simply being good company to them. Thanks to what he had learned from his creator, Princess Celestia, and his closest friends Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie, the little robot is slowly beginning to understand what it means to be a "real" pony.

But things aren't always happy-go-lucky with the mechanical pony: Whenever he is not on a mission or hanging out with his friends, Mega Pony spends many a lonely hour in Canterlot Castle. While Princesses Celestia and Luna are busy with their various duties, he is left all by his lonesome, with no one around to be with him. And his depressed state is felt by those around him, especially Celestia. She wants only the best for her "son", but she knows for a fact that she cannot be around him 24-7.

So what is one to do about a problem as troubling as this...?

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony. Built by Princess Celestia.

Princesses Celestia and Luna: Alicorn sisters that rule over Equestria.

Princess Cadance and Shining Armor: Married couple and rulers of the Crystal Empire.

***???***

It was yet another pleasent day in the country of Equestria. The sun was just rising over the horizon, signalling the coming of morning. Its bright glow covered every inch of the peaceful country, including the royal city of Canterlot. Around that same time, a beeping sound was heard from inside a small room in the castle that was the home of Princesses Celestia and Luna.

The beeping was coming from a device that had been installed behind a comfortable-looking bed. At that moment, there were signs of movement from underneath the sky-blue covers as a young pony pushed them aside and gave out a deep yawn. It was Mega Pony, the robot that Princess Celestia had built to protect Equestria from harm. He slowly opened his eyes and gave out a tired, but pleasent smile. He then activated his Unicorn horn and detached the cables that were hooked up to the back of his head; they were connected to a generator that would fully restore his energy every night when he went to sleep.

After getting on all fours and off of his bed, Mega Pony strolled over to a nearby wall mirror and took a look at himself. He sighed as he looked at his short, brown mane, which had a small case of bed-hair. "Yeesh..." he said to himself, "my mane's all over the place...I think I've been wearing my helmet too much. I'd better straighten it out before I see Mom and Aunt Luna." He then used his psuedo-magic to open a nearby nightstand drawer, taking out a small comb. He then used it to fix up his mane hair, styling it the way he liked it, pushing most of the mane hair towards the back end of his head.

"There, that should do it." Mega Pony told himself once he was comfortable about how his hair looked. Putting the comb down on his nightstand, he then said, "Well, let's go and see what Mom and Aunt Luna are up to." The blue robot then walked out of his bedroom and down the long staircase, heading for the dining room.

When Mega Pony opened the double doors to the dining hall, he began looking around for his mother and aunt. But all that he saw in the spacious room were the various castle guards and servants, performing their usual duties. Once he figured out that Celestia and Luna weren't in the hall, he decided to ask somepony about their whereabouts. Tapping the shoulder of one of the guards, the robot then asked him, "Um, excuse me, sir...Can I ask you something?"

The guard glanced over and replied with a smile, "Oh! Hey there, Mega Pony. What can I do for ya?"

"I was just wondering where Mom and Aunt Luna are, that's all." the mechanical pony said to him.

"Hmmmm...I believe that Princess Celestia's in the Throne Room right now, taking care of some important Princess-type stuff." the guard informed him. "And I think that Princess Luna's in her bedroom..."

"Oh, okay. Thanks a lot." Mega Pony responded before heading off towards the Throne Room to see his creator first.

"No prob, Mega Pony!" the guard said to him. "Have a good day!"

The little blue robot trotted happily to the giant double doors to Canterlot Castle's Throne Room. After walking through the open doors, he then looked up towards the room's namesake and saw his mother, Princess Celestia, sitting there and using her Alicorn magic to manipulate a large, feathered quill. She used the item to sign several important papers that were sitting next to her throne.

Walking up towards her, Mega Pony then greeted, "Good morning, Mom!"

"Huh?" Celestia was a bit alarmed at first, as she wasn't expecting anypony to come in. Once she looked to her side and saw that it was her son, she responded, saying, "Oh, Mega Pony...you're awake. I wasn't expecting you to show up here so soon."

"Oh, sorry Mom. I didn't mean to startle you." he apologized. "It's just that...since there doesn't seem to be any big crisis or anything right now for me to deal with...I was thinking that we could do something today. I heard that Canterlot Theater is putting on some interesting plays this week; you always said that you wanted to take me to see one someday."

"Oh, I would love to do that, Mega Pony..." the white Alicorn told him in a solemn tone of voice, "but I am afraid that I can't; I'm going to be busy today...After I finish signing these documents, I need to look over the friendship reports that Twilight and her friends have sent me last week, and I have several important meetings scheduled for this afternoon...I'm sorry, but it's just not going to be possible today..."

The little robot's facial expression changed to that of a less-than-cheerful one after hearing that his mother would not be able to spend any time with him. Letting out a sad sigh, he then told her, "I understand...Sorry if I bothered you..." He then slowly turned around and sadly left the room.

As he did, Celestia looked over at him, feeling a bit sad as well. In her heart, she wished that she wasn't so busy all of the time so that she could spend some time with her son. The Princess sighed to herself as she continued her work.

Minutes later, Mega Pony walked upstairs to where Princess Luna's bedroom was, hoping that he would have better luck with her. "Maybe Aunt Luna would like to do something with me..." he said to himself. "After all, she does most of her work at night, when I'm in Sleep Mode. I don't think she has much to do during the daytime." Trying his best to smile, he continued forward to his aunt's bedroom.

But when he got to the door where the bedroom was, he saw two of Luna's personal guards standing there; Mega Pony could tell that because their coats were dark-grey instead of white, like the rest of the castle guards. He then carefully approached them and asked, "Um, excuse me...can I speak to Au-er, Princess Luna, please?"

"Sorry, Megs." said one of them. "Princess Luna has requested not to be disturbed during her morning nap."

"She...she has?"

"I'm afraid so." the other guard replied. "She had a lot to do last night, and she's real tired n' stuff. So I'm afraid that we can't even let you in to see her."

Mega Pony, disappointed, sighed and told them, "...I understand. Just tell her that I came by when she wakes up..." And with that, the robot sadly left the hall, heading back to his bedroom.

Unbeknownst to either him, or the two guards, Luna hadn't yet begun her morning nap and overheard everything from the other side of the door. She felt a little bad that she wouldn't be able to spend time with her nephew. However, she was too tired to do anything of the sort right now; she gave out a deep yawn, climbed into her bed, and fell asleep.

3 Hours Later...

Princess Luna gave out a slight yawn after having just gotten up from her morning nap. Feeling refreshed and energized, she trotted her way over towards the Throne Room to meet up with her older sister, Princess Celestia. When she walked inside, Luna saw that her sister had finished signing the papers that she had to sign, and was now looking over the letters that Twilight and her friends had sent to her. Luna couldn't help but notice that her sister seemed to have a slightly downcast look upon her face. Concerned, the Night Princess asked her, "Sister? Can I speak with you for but a moment?"

Celestia glanced over at the dark-blue Alicorn and replied, "Oh, sure...what is it?"

"Well...earlier today; three hours ago to be precise," Luna began, "I overheard a conversation between two of my personal guards and Mega Pony. It seems as though he wished to do something with me, but they told him that it would not be possible." Sighing, she added, "Normally, I would have honored his request, but last night was so exhausting, I could barely stand on all four of my hooves..."

Celestia sighed and told her younger sister, "I figured as much; he came to me for the same thing, but I had to turn him down..." Putting down the letter that she was reading, she then said, "I feel so bad about having to do that to Mega Pony...I only wish for him to enjoy his life as an ordinary pony and be happy..."

"But what can we do, Sister?" asked Luna. "You know as well as I do that we cannot be around him at all times; we have so many important duties to perform every day and every night, that we cannot simply abandon said duties whenever we want to. And it's not like we have somepony employed here that can attend to him when he needs company..."

Celestia said nothing at first, thinking about what her younger sister had said...and let out a slight gasp. "That's it!" she exclaimed. "Luna, you're a genius!"

"I am...?" asked the Princess of the Night. "Why do you say that?"

"I'll explain later." the Sun Princess replied, getting off of her throne for a moment. "For now, let us go and find where Mega Pony is." The two Alicorns left the Throne Room and headed up the staircase towards Mega Pony's bedroom.

Once the two Royal Sisters got to the bedroom, Celestia opened the door slightly so that they could both take a peek inside. There, they saw Mega Pony, slumped down on his bed with a forlorn expression on his face. The two Princesses felt sad just looking at the lonely little pony.

"Poor Mega Pony..." Luna stated to her older sibling. "He seems so depressed..."

"I know..." Celestia chimed in. "But if my idea works, I believe that he will feel much better in future."

"So what do you have planned?" inquired Luna.

"Well, first things first," the white Alicorn began, "I want this to be a surprise for him; therefore, I do not want him to know about what I have planned before it's finished. So I'm going to send him away from the castle to perform some simple duties, which will leave plenty of time to prepare his surprise."

"I see." the dark-blue Alicorn replied with a confirming nod. "In that case, what do you wish me to do?"

"I want you to talk to my advisor, Kibitz, and tell him to cancel all of our other appointments for today." Celestia instructed her. "We'll need as much time as possible." She then looked over at Mega Pony and added, "While you do that, I'll talk to my son and give him his duties for the day." Celestia then gave her younger sister a small paper with writing on it and told her, "This is the password to my laboratory; once we're both done, I want you to meet up with me there. I've already taken the liberty of putting your information into the security system, so you will be able to enter the lab without my help."

"As you wish." Luna responded before flying down the stairs. After she left, Celestia then took out an empty parchment and her quill and began writing a letter upon the sheet. After she was done, she then whistled into the air, summoning her pet phoenix, Philomena. She then gave the letter to the brightly-colored bird, who then flew off with it.

With that taken care of, Celestia walked into Mega Pony's bedroom to speak to him. "Hello, Mega Pony." she greeted her robotic son.

Mega Pony glanced up at his creator and responded, saying, "Oh, hi Mom...what is it?"

"Well, I actually have a job for you to do, if you don't mind doing any work today." Celestia informed him.

"Might as well..." the mechanoid replied with a sad sigh. "I've got nothing better to do today anyway...What is it?"

"I'd like you to go to the Crystal Empire today and assist Princess Cadance and Shining Armor with their duties over there." the Alicorn instructed him. "I'll download the coordinates of the Crystal Empire into your teleportation unit from my lab's supercomputer, so that you can get there as quickly as possible."

"Okay then." Mega Pony replied in a less-than-enthusiastic tone as he followed his creator to her secret lab.

Once inside the laboratory, Celestia pulled out a long cord from her computer and plugged it into the USB drive on the back of Mega Pony's head. Afterwards, she then sent the exact location of the Crystal Empire straight into his systems, which would allow him to use his teleporter to go there, even though he had never been to the empire before. Once she was done, Celestia then told him, "There, you're all set to go. Good luck out there, as usual."

"Thanks." Mega Pony simply replied as he materialized his blue helmet over his head. Without any further words, the robot then teleported himself out of Canterlot Castle for his next destination.

Not long after he left, Luna arrived inside the laboratory to meet with her older sister. "Alright, Sister..." the dark-blue Alicorn began, "I've given the news to Mr. Kibitz. He wasn't exactly happy to hear what you asked of him, but he does plan to comply with your request."

"Good." Celestia told her. "As for me, I've just sent Mega Pony to meet with Cadance and Shining at the Crystal Empire. I've already sent them a letter so that they will be expecting him to arrive. That should give us all the time we need to work on the idea that I came up with."

"Sounds good," began the Princess of the Night, "but what sort of idea is it?"

"Well earlier, you had mentioned that we couldn't be around Mega Pony at all times, and that nopony employed within the castle could attend to his needs, either..." the white Alicorn reminded her younger sister. "So we'll need to address that issue, and have a companion for my son that he can spend time with."

Realizing where she was going with this, Luna then asked Celestia, "Sister, are you saying that-"

"Yes..." the Sun Princess then said to her, "Luna...I would like you to help me build a sister for Mega Pony!"

Far away from Equestria's captial city, towards the northern edge of the country, was one of the most brilliant and beautiful places you could ever lay eyes upon; It was the Crystal Empire, so called because just about every building in the city was made out of shimmering crystal. Even the residents of the city shined and sparkled like crystal as well. Though the city seemed quite pleasent, it had a bit of a dark past: Long ago, a tyrannical Unicorn named Sombra had enslaved the empire for his own evil purposes. However, his plans had been thawrted not just in the past, but also in the present day, ensuring that the sparkling city would have everlasting peace.

In the center of the city was a gigantic castle; where the current rulers of the Crystal Empire took up residence. It was called, appropriately enough, the Crystal Castle, and it was there that Princess Cadance and Shining Armor were currently busy with their usual duties in the kingdom.

At a shiny round table in one of the castle's many rooms, Shining Armor, Twilight Sparkle's older brother, was looking over some documents. They consisted of either matters regarding the Crystal Empire, or things involving the Royal Guard; besides being one of the two rulers of the empire, he was also Captain of the Royal Guard as well. As one can imagine, he was often pretty busy, but he didn't mind the extra work.

As he was looking over the many documents on the table, Shining suddenly felt something brush up against him. When he glanced over to his right, he saw the warm smile of his wife, Princess Cadance, right there to brighten his day. "Good morning, Shining..." she said to him in a pleasent tone of voice.

"Uh, morning Cadance..." the Unicorn stallion replied, blushing a bit.

"What'cha doin'...?" the pink Alicorn then asked him in a bit of a lovey-dovey tone.

"Just, uh...just lookin' over some stuff here." he answered her. Taking one of the papers that he was reading, he then said, "I was mostly glancing at this thing here; it's about a possibility that the Crystal Empire could host this year's Equestria Games...It would be great if we could get that kind of opportunity, but it might not be easy; I've heard that the inspector for the games is pretty judgemental over the smallest details."

"I'm sure we'll have a good chance, Shining." Cadance assured him. "As long as we can look presentable for the inspector, I don't think we'll have much of a problem."

At that moment, the pair heard a loud noise from outside of the castle. When the couple turned to see what it was, they saw a large column of light off in the distance. "What's that thing??" asked Shining Armor.

"That must be Mega Pony." Cadance figured. "Celestia's letter said that he'd arrive here by teleporting."

"Oh, okay then." the male pony replied. "Now all we have t' do is keep him busy for a while until Princesses Celestia and Luna are finished with whatever they're working on. Maybe I might have him help me look over these papers; he'd probably have them all sorted out in a couple of seconds."

"We'll see." the pink Alicorn said. Heading for the door, she then told him, "Well, we'd better go downstairs and see him, then. Let's go." Shining nodded and followed his wife out of the room.

Mega Pony strolled down the sparkling road to the Crystal Castle, taking in all of the sights around him. "Wow, Twilight was right..." he said to himself, "this place IS pretty beautiful..." The shining buildings, streets, and ponies helped a little to take his mind off of his earlier depression that morning. That, and the friendly hellos from the cityfolk helped him feel a bit better.

Once he finally arrived at the castle, he immediately saw Princess Cadance and Shining Armor waiting for him. "Hello, Mega Pony!" Cadance called over to him. "Good to see you again!"

"Same here." the robot told her, trying his best to look happy. "I haven't seen you both since the day Mom activated me. How have you two been?"

"Kinda busy." Shining responded. "The Crystal Empire was recently nominated as a potential host for the Equestria Games, and we're doin' whatever we can to try and make the place presentable for when the inspector comes by."

"I see..." Mega Pony then inquired, "Anyway, Mom told me that you needed me for something important; what was it?"

Cadance gulped a bit; she hadn't yet thought of anything that would help to occupy Mega Pony's time so that Celestia and Luna could finish their work in secrecy. Luckily, she came up with a solution that would at least buy them some time. "Um, we'll discuss those matters a little bit later..." she told him. "First, I'd like to give you a complete and detailed tour of the castle, while Shining here takes care of some - ahem...some important matters, isn't that right?"

The pink Alicorn then nudged her left front leg against the side of her husband's body after she made her statement. Realizing what she was getting at, Shining then responded, saying, "Oh, yeah! VERY important matters...You two'll probably be done with your tour by the time I'm finished...You two have fun!" And with that, the older brother of Twilight ran off into the city, looking for a place in which he could think to himself in private.

Princess Cadance then said to the little blue robot, "Alright, let's go and start the tour...I'm sure you'll come to appreciate it once you've seen the castle on the inside, as well as from the outside."

"I guess that I could enjoy doing something like that..." Mega Pony replied. "I don't have much else to do, anyway...I have to admit, this might be one of the few times that I actually would LIKE to see some crisis or something going on that would require my help in fixing..."

"Trust me, I know how you feel." Cadance said to him. "I'd like to see something interesting going on in this city, too...But after the whole incident with Sombra, there's not much excitement here these days, other than the Equestria Games coming over here, that is..." She then told Mega Pony, "Anyway, let's get going." The robot nodded and followed the Crystal Empire's ruler into the giant crystal building.

Elsewhere, in a dark alleyway far away from the Crystal Castle, a shadowy figure glanced around at all of the sights while staying concealed in the shadows. Everypony in the area was so busy, no one even thought of glancing over into the alley. "I have to admit..." it said with a male voice, "this country's got a lot of interesting sights here, especially this city...Kinda reminds me of that cave I was in back home..."

"Well, we aren't here to sightsee, remember?" said another male voice nearby, coming from a second figure. "We're here because the boss wants us to take care of some stuff here, and I'd like to do it as quickly and efficiently as possible."

"Ugh, would you calm down already?" the first figure said with a slight whine in his voice. "I didn't forget about what we were sent to do." He then glanced over towards a nearby building, which happened to be a stadium of some sort, before tapping the side of his head. "Alright..." he then appeared to say to himself, "we're good to go. Send them in..." After saying that, the first figure then asked the second one, "There, I've given the order to the boss, and he's sending in the new troops as we speak. Happy now?"

"I suppose it's good enough." the other figure replied. "Now let's get out of here before anybody spots us..."

Elsewhere, Shining Armor was sitting at a table in a donut shop. About an hour ago, he had entered the store and had bought a box containing a dozen donuts to munch on while he tried to think of something to preoccupy Mega Pony. Try as he might, nothing came to him. Sighing, he said to himself, "It's no use...I've been thinkin' for a good long while, but I can't come up with any ideas to distract Mega Pony at all...Rrrgh...why'd Twilight have to be the smart one in the family? If she were here, she'd think of a great idea to keep Mr. Metal-Pants occupied in a flash."

Just then, Shining heard something outside of the tiny restaurant that he was in. "Hm?" He got up out of his seat and glanced out the window. There, he saw several ponies running in large crowds, seemingly trying their best to get away from something. "What're they running around for like that?" he asked himself. He then looked behind where the crowds were to try and find out what it was...and his irises shrunk to the sizes of peas. "Sweet Celestia!! Where did THOSE things come from?!?"

Back in the Crystal Castle, Princess Cadance continued taking Mega Pony around to tour the beautiful building. The tour was rather lengthy, lasting almost an hour; the point was to try and stall for time while Shining Armor thought of some sort of task for the robotic pony to perform. The pair entered the rather long dining room, where several of the guards and castle staff were strolling around, performing their daily duties. "So, what do you think of the Crystal Castle so far?" Cadance asked the little robot.

"It's nice and all," Mega Pony answered, "but I'd rather just take care of what I was sent here to do, if it's alright with you."

"Um...well..." The pink Alicorn sweated a little, trying to think of some sort of assignment to give to the robot. She was hoping that her husband would return, having thought of something by now, but he was nowhere in sight. "Well...yes, your uh...your mission!" She said to him, trying her hardest to stall for time. "Yes, a VERY important one at that too! And difficult! So difficult, even I couldn't hope to take care of it all single-hoofed...!"

"...So what is it?" Mega Pony then asked her.

"Um, what is it...?" she inquired back, sweating even more. "Well...it's, uh...it's..."

"Cadance!! Cadance!!" shouted the voice of Shining Armor from outside.

(Oh, thank Celestia...) thought the Alicorn, relieved that he had come back. After letting him in, she then asked her husband, "So, how are those...'matters' of yours that you were attending to?"

"No time for that!" he said to his wife. "We've got trouble!"

"Trouble?" asked Mega Pony. "What kind of trouble?" Cadance also seemed to be surprised a little, based on her facial expression. However, the robot didn't notice it.

"While I was in the Donu- er, I mean...when I was walking around in the city, I saw a bunch of ponies running away in terror..." Shining explained. "And when I saw what it was chasing them, I couldn't believe it! There's a pair of giant Manticores in the Crystal Empire!"

"Giant Manticores?!?" asked Cadance in surprise. "But how-" She then stopped herself and glanced over at Mega Pony, getting an idea. "I mean...of course, Shining Armor; I knew well in advance that there were two Manticores on their way here! That's why I asked Princess Celestia to send Mega Pony over here to help us take care of it!" She then gave a wink to her husband.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" the Unicorn stallion then asked. Just then, he gasped, realizing that his wife had made up what she said to convince Mega Pony that he was sent to the Crystal Empire to deal with the attack. "Uh, I mean...Oh! I see! That was some very smart thinking of you, calling in for help BEFORE the attack happened! Very smart!"

"Oh...I see now..." Mega Pony then spoke up. "So that's what Mom sent me here for..." He then asked Princess Cadance, "But, how did you know they were coming?"

The pink Alicorn began to sweat again; she hadn't thought about that. "Er...well..."

However, the mechanical pony then shook his head and told her, "On second thought, never mind...It's not important. Let's just go and confront those creatures before they hurt somepony!" The little robot then ran as fast he could towards the castle's exit.

After Mega Pony left the room, Shining then said to his wife, "Good call on that, Honey...This will DEFINITELY keep him here in the city for a while."

"Perhaps, but I wish the situation wasn't so dire." Cadance admitted. "We'll have to go out there and help him; it's our duty to protect the citizens of the Crystal Empire, and we need to fulfill that!" Shining Armor nodded and the married couple left their home to assist the blue robot.

Meanwhile, back in Canterlot Castle, Celestia and Luna were working as hard as they could in the castle's lab to prepare their surprise for Mega Pony. So far, in the past few hours, things were going very well, as they had managed to complete the robot's body. Wiping off some sweat from her forehead, Celestia smiled and said, "Not bad so far...the body frame is complete. We just need to paint it and add some artifical mane and tail hair, which we'll get to a bit later."

Looking at the new robot so far, Luna told her older sister, "I must say, this is turning out to be quite an enjoyable experience, assisting you in the creation of this new robot." She then noted, "It is also surprising that you were able to make this much progress so quickly, considering the fact that it took you years to complete Mega Pony."

"Well, he was...a bit more complex in terms of his functions and programming." the white Alicorn informed her younger sister. "Not to mention that he was the first robot that I ever made, and I had to do all of the work on my own." She then smiled and added, "This time, however, things are much different."

"How so?"

"Well, now that I've had lots of experience in this type of science from building my first robot," Celestia explained, "it should be much easier for me to construct another one, now that I know what to do...In addition, this robot's programming will be a bit simpler, or at least, simpler compared to Mega Pony's. It will still have feelings and a personality like he does, but its programming will not be as complex, since it will only have one real directive."

"Oh, I see now." Luna replied. "I suppose that sounds plausible..."

The Sun Princess then glanced towards her sister and added, "But the most important difference from back then and now...is that you're here to help me. And I know that with you here, we can make this robot as close to perfect as possible."

Luna blushed a little after hearing Celestia say that to her. "I don't know if I'll be of THAT much help, Sister..." she told her. "I mean, getting the supplies that you need, when you need them is one thing, but actually building and programming a robot is something that I have no experience in whatsoever..."

Celestia put down the tools that she had been holding with her magic, walked over to her younger sister and said to her, "Of course you'll be a big help, Luna...especially right now. I'm going to begin writing up the programming to be downloaded into the robot's I.C. Chip, and I'll need your assistance now more than ever to do it."

"But how?" asked Luna. "I just told you that-"

"I know what you said, but that doesn't matter." the white Alicorn told her. "If I'm going to build a suitable sister for my son...I'll need the help of the best sister that I know to inspire me."

The dark-blue Alicorn was touched when she heard that from her older sister. "You really mean that?" she asked, smiling even as tears began to form in her eyes. Celestia nodded to say that she did. Wiping the tears from her eyes, Luna then told her older sister, "Very well, then...I shall do naught but my absolute best!"

Celestia giggled a little and said, "I know you will, Luna." Moving over to her supercomputer, she then told her, "Now let's get back to work right away. I'm not sure how much longer Cadance and Shining Armor will be able to stall Mega Pony, so we must work fast."

"I agree. Let us make haste and complete his surprise as quickly as possible." the Night Princess replied. The two of them then began discussing ideas as to what kind of programming the new robot should have...

Back in the Crystal Empire, Mega Pony, Princess Cadance, and Shining Armor rushed through the sparkling city, in search of the Manticores that were supposedly tearing the place up and scaring everypony. Try as they might, they found dodging the crowds of hysteric ponies difficult. Still, the three of them were determined to get past them all in order to deal with the creatures that were scaring the Empire's citizens away in the first place.

Once the crowds finally cleared up enough for them to move faster, Cadance then asked Mega Pony, "So you say that you've dealt with Manticores before, right?"

"Yep." the robot answered her. "I fought a bunch of them that were attacking a schoolhouse back in Ponyville. Of course the only reason that they attacked in the first place was because they were disturbed from their sleep..." He then added to his thoughts, saying, "The thing that bugs me is what a pair of Manticores are doing this far up north; I didn't think any lived around here..."

"Well, they don't." the pink Alicorn informed him. "That's what still puzzles me..."

"Well, all I care about is getting them out of the Crystal Empire as soon as possible!" Shining Armor chimed in. "This place only just recently came back from wherever Sombra sent it, and I'm not just gonna let those oversized kittens smash it all apart!"

"I'm with you there, Shining." agreed Cadance. Mega Pony nodded to say that he shared the same feeling as well.

It wasn't long before the heroic trio encountered a few more crowds of scared ponies, galloping for their lives. After getting past the hysteric equines, Mega Pony, Cadance, and Shining Armor continued forward, only to suddenly screech to a stop. Their eyes widened when they finally encountered what the cityfolk were trying to run away from: Right in front of them were the two Manticores that Shining had told his wife and Mega Pony about. But now that they got a closer look at them, they saw that the creatures were unusually large, just slightly taller than most of the Crystal Empire's buildings.

"Sweet Celestia..." gasped the white-coated stallion.

"I...I don't believe it...!" added Cadance, also shocked.

"Th-those things are huMONGOUS!!" noted Mega Pony in a startled tone of voice. "How's that possible?! The last ones I fought weren't even as large as Cheerilee's schoolhouse!"

"This is bad..." began the pink Alicorn. "We might outnumber them two to three, but we're nowhere NEAR their size!!"

Before another word could be said, the two gigantic Manticores went on the attack, swiping at all three of them with their razor-sharp claws. Luckily, their attack just missed when the ponies leapt out of the way. The creatures let out a roar as they began to charge at their foes. Mega Pony and the others dove out of the way quickly, knowing that they wouldn't be able to survive getting trampled by them.

Once they got out of the way, Cadance glanced over at her husband and nodded to him, asking, "Are you ready to do this, Shining?"

"You bet I am." Shining Armor answered, nodding his head as well. The two of them quickly ran over to each other and tapped their horns together, both charging up a spell at the same time.

(They're combining their powers...) Mega Pony noted to himself. (Twilight told me that her brother and Princess Cadance are more than twice as strong together...I just hope it'll be enough to at least give us an edge...)

Once they had fully charged their magic, the married pair let out a powerful blast of violet-colored energy, sending it straight towards the two giant Manticores. The creatures turned around, only to get a faceful of magical energy, which exploded on contact.

"Yeah!! Bullseye!!" cheered Shining Armor.

"We did it!!" added Cadance.

But Mega Pony watched on, just to make sure that the blast did its job. Once the dust settled, however, the three were shocked to see that the massive creatures had survived the blast, and even managed a super-loud roar in their direction. "No! They're still standing!" the robot said in despair.

"But that was the best shot we had!" protested Shining. "Not even Queen Chrysalis could stand up to that one!"

"There's something strange about those Manticores..." the pink Alicorn stated, "and it's not just their size. I can't quite put my hoof on it, but this seems to look like more than just a random attack."

"Well, whatever the case," Mega Pony began to tell them, "we have to stop them before they hurt any innocent ponies! You have to fire another of those large blasts at them!"

The two of them prepared to do just that, tapping their horns together. But Cadance and Shining gasped when they saw both of the super-sized behemoths exhaling streams of fire their way. This sudden attack forced the two to seperate and dive for cover. Just as they got up, they soon had to dodge another pair of flame streams.

"Rrrrgh...it's no good!" growled the white stallion. "They won't give us time to combine our powers again!" He then dodged another shot of flames and added, "It's like they're purposely trying to prevent us from using that combo spell!"

"Great, just our luck..." grumbled the pink Alicorn, who had to continue to avoid the Manticores' flame attacks while returning fire by shooting blasts of pink energy from her horn. "Not only are they tough, they're also smart! But how could they have thought to do that so quickly??"

Mega Pony began to wonder that himself. Acting on a hunch, he then began to scan one of the two Manticores, trying to obtain any useful information about them. What he found out surprised him greatly: "Cadance!! Shining Armor!!" he called out to them both. "I figured it all out!! Those two aren't real Manticores!! They're both robotic!!"

"Wait, they're robots?!" asked the white Unicorn male.

"Now it makes sense..." the pink Alicorn spoke up. "I just knew there was something unusual about all this!" She then asked Mega Pony, "But now that we know that, what do we do?"

"Well," the blue robot began, "from what I was able to scan, these robots were designed to cause massive damage to any area they are sent to. I have no doubt that whomever sent them here intends to have them purposely destroy the city..." Sighing, he then told both of his comrades, "If they keep up their attack, there's only a 2.25% chance that anypony nearby will survive it...We have no choice but to destroy them."

"So be it, then." Cadance then called over to her husband and told him, "Shining!! Mega Pony told us that we have to destroy these Manticore robots quickly! So don't hold anything back!!"

"I'll do my best, Cadance..." he told her as he fired a dark-blue shot of magic from his horn before dodging another claw attack. "But these things were clearly built to take a lot of punishment! My shots don't seem to be doing much damage at all!"

The pink Alicorn became worried as she said to Mega Pony, "It's no good...at this rate, we won't be able to make much progress at all...And if Shining and I try to merge our powers again, those creatures will stop us before we can unleash it! We need something more to tilt the odds in our favor, and fast!"

Mega Pony did his best to think of something...and when he got a look at Cadance's Crystal Heart cutie mark, he then exclaimed, "Of course! I think I know what to do! I can try and obtain a power from you to help fight them off!"

The pink Alicorn gasped when she realized that. "Of course! I almost forgot about that!" She then quickly showed the mechanical pony her mark and told him, "Hurry! We don't have much time!"

The blue robot nodded and tapped his left front hoof on Princess Cadance's cutie mark, triggering his Copy Chip. Once the process and resulting light show were finished, Mega Pony quickly adopted the Alicorn's color scheme and mark and ran towards Shining Armor, all the while charging up a great amount of energy into his horn. "Shining Armor!!" he called out to him.

The white Unicorn glanced over and thought that his wife was running over to him. But once he realized it was Mega Pony, he then asked, "Mega? What's the deal? Why d'ya look like-"

"No time! Just listen!" the mechanoid interrupted him. "Keep them both busy and don't stop for a second!"

"Uh...sure!" Shining responded. He then kept on firing his magic blasts at the two giant Manticores, preventing them from paying attention to anyone else but him. As he did, Mega Pony had just finished up gathering the energy he needed. Once he did, the robotic pony then unleashed the energy he had charged into it, releasing it in the form of three, heart-shaped lasers that flew towards one of the two Manticore robots, striking it hard and causing it to reel back.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Heart Laser ***

Before the creature could srike back against the Equine Bomber, it got a face full of rapidly-firing shots from Mega Pony's new weapon. Because it was getting hit so much by the heart-shaped rays, the Manticore was unable to move much, let alone fight back, and it was taking lots of damage to boot. The big brute let out a loud roar, but that was all it could muster before it finally toppled over in defeat.

"Woah! Nice work!!" complimented Shining Armor. "You hammered that thing!!"

"Don't start celebrating just yet..." Cadance reminded her husband. "There's still one of those Manticore robots left to deal with. Let's try our combo spell one more time!"

"But...what if it tries to stop us from using it, just like before?" the stallion asked his wife.

"Don't worry about that." Mega Pony assured him with a smirk on his face. "I'll make sure it doesn't get the chance to interrupt you two! You two just worry about charging up the best spells you can muster!" The married couple nodded and tapped their horns together once more, preparing their super-powerful combo spell.

The remaining Manticore robot noticed the pair combining their powers again, and was ready to stop it. The mechanical beast prepared to breathe fire on them once more in order to halt their attack. But before it could, Mega Pony fired his new Heart Laser weapon at its face, causing the creature to reel back and lose its focus. It glanced over at Mega Pony and swiped at him angrily, forgetting all about Cadance and Shining for the moment. But the robot swiftly dodged it and returned fire. Though each individual shot didn't do much damage, it kept the creature stalled, which was Mega Pony's real goal.

Eventually, however, the little robot exhausted all of the weapon's energy and ran out of ammo. "Uh oh..." he said to himself, switching back to his normal colors. The Manticore then growled ferociously as it prepared another claw attack.

But by this point, both Princess Cadance and Shining Armor had gathered up more than enough magical energy for a combo attack. Once they saw that Mega Pony had swapped back to his standard Friendship Buster, that was their cue to unleash their combo spell. Unlike the first one, however, this blast was several times more powerful; when it struck the Manticore robot, it let out a much more powerful explosion that indicated that a lot of damage had been done. In fact, it was so strong, that after the dust settled, much of the mechanical beast's outer shell had been obliterated, revealing its inner workings.

"Woah..." noted Shining Armor. "THAT...was awesome..."

"Well, we certainly did a good job on that thing just now..." Cadance added. "But it still seems to be standing; this isn't over yet..."

"By the looks of it," Mega Pony observed, "the Manticore robot is indeed still functioning, but just barely...One more good attack, and this will all be over..."

"Well, I'm not sure that I can muster enough energy for another blast like that last one we fired..." stated the white Unicorn Stallion.

"Then I think it should be Mega Pony himself to deliver that last strike." the pink Alicorn suggested. She then pointed at his cutie mark and told her husband, "Let him copy your power like he did with me earlier."

"Got it, Cadance." Shining said with a nod. He then presented his mark to Mega Pony, and the little robot tapped his hoof against it, triggering his Copy Chip a second time.

After getting Shining's power, the mechanoid quickly swapped to the stallion's color scheme and mark. "Alright, now all I need is to get close enough to that thing's face;" Mega Pony informed them both, "I have to damage its CPU in order to completely shut it down for good." He then turned to Shining Armor and asked him, "Twilight told me that you're pretty good at throwing stuff, right?"

"Uh...yeah, a little bit." the white Unicorn male answered.

"He is." Cadance added. "I should know."

"Okay then..." Mega Pony then pointed towards the robot beast and told Shining, "I need you to throw me straight towards the Manticore as hard as you can; I'll handle the rest."

"Um...okay. Whatever you say there..." Shining Armor then stood on his hind legs and picked up the robot with his front ones. Though he found the task initially difficult, the white stallion was able to lift Mega Pony over his head before tossing him forward and into the air as hard as possible.

Once he was in the air, the blue robot triggered his Emergency Wings to give himself even more speed as he sailed towards his target. He then outstretched his left foreleg and pointed straight it towards the Manticore. After he did so, the hoof at the end of that leg folded over forwards, and a stream of bright white energy came out of it, forming into the shape of a sword. At that point, Mega Pony was only a few feet away from the beast as he slashed the energy sword across its face. The mechanical creature's head was sliced apart, and a shower of sparks jumped out of the Manticore robot from where it had been struck, seconds before it exploded into a firey blast.

*** WEAPON GET! *** Shining Sword ***

After making his attack, Mega Pony retracted his new sword weapon and deactivated his wings before landing back on the ground below. Looking back at the remains of the Manticore robot, he then sighed to himself, wishing that he didn't have to resort to using violence in order to stop it.

"That was amazing, Mega Pony!" cheered Princess Cadance as she and Shining Armor ran over to congratulate him.

"Yeah, you sure sent that brute packing!" added the white Unicorn stallion.

"Thanks..." the little robot responded with a sigh. "I just wish that I didn't have to go and destroy it...I would've preferred to try and reason with it, if it was possible...But I guess some things just can't be helped, I suppose."

"Hey, don't feel so sad or angry at yourself for doing what you did." the pink Alicorn told him. "If it weren't for you, the Crystal Empire might not have survived this attack."

"Besides," Shining added, "if you have to be mad at anyone, be mad at the jerk who built those things and sent them here to cause damage in the first place...whoever they are."

"...I suppose you're right." Mega Pony stated, managing a smile.

"Well, let's get all of this cleaned up and head back to the castle." Cadance suggested. "We could all use a rest after what's happened today."

"Sounds good to me." agreed the mechanical pony. As the three of them walked back to the place that Cadance and Shining called home, he then said to the pink Alicorn, "By the way...about the thing that I said earlier, about wishing that there was some sort of crisis for me to resolve...?"

"Yeah? What about it?"

"...I totally take it back." he then finished. Cadance and Shining chuckled a little bit to each other at his comment as they all walked to the Crystal Castle together.

About a few hours later, the cleaning crews employed within the Crystal Empire finished their work in gathering up all of the remains of the two Manticore robots that had attacked earlier. Fortunately, thanks to the quick intervention of Mega Pony, Princess Cadance, and Shining Armor, the city sustained very little damage, and nopony was injured as a result of the attack. Many of the citizens came to greet the little robot and their rulers at the Crystal Castle in order to personally thank them for saving them and the city.

"Okay...it looks like they've gotten the last of it." noted Cadance as she watched the cleaning crews from a window in the castle. She then turned to Mega Pony and told him, "And by your request, I have ordered the crews down there to have all of the debris delivered straight to Celestia and Luna."

"Thanks." Mega Pony replied. "Hopefully, my mom and Aunt Luna can examine the remains of those robots and figure out where they came from...And perhaps they can salvage anything that still works from out of those two Manticore robots." He then sighed a little and softly added, "...Which means that they'll be busier than ever..."

Noticing that he seemed sad, Cadance then asked Mega Pony, "Are you feeling okay...?"

"Just a little down, that's all..." the robot answered her. "It...it feels like my mom and aunt are too busy to pay attention to me lately...Signing papers, going to meetings, looking over reports...It's like they care about all of that more than they care about me..."

"That's not true, dude." Shining Armor told him. "Just 'cause your folks are busy with their jobs, doesn't mean that they like doing all of that more than they like you."

"In fact," Cadance chimed in, "I believe that, if given the choice, they'd much rather spend their time with you than do all of that work." She then smiled and told Mega Pony, "Even if Celestia and Luna can't be with you all the time, that doesn't mean that they don't WANT to be around you at all. And it DEFINITELY doesn't mean that they'll love you any less than they already do."

"Y-you mean it...?" asked the blue robot, a hopeful expression upon his face.

"Of course I mean it." the pink Alicorn guaranteed him. "I've known Celestia for a very long time, and I'm sure that, no matter what, she'll still care about you more than anything else in the world. You're very lucky that you get to be HER son, Mega Pony."

The mechanical equine smiled after hearing all of that from Princess Cadance. Wiping a happy tear out of his eye, he then stated, "You're right, Princess Cadance. I should have known that Mom and Aunt Luna would always care about me, even if they're aren't right next to me...Even if it isn't much, I'll always appreciate whatever time that I do get to spend with them." Nodding his head, he then told the pink Alicorn, "Thank you so much, Princess Cadance. I won't forget what you've told me."

"My pleasure, Mega Pony." she said to the little robot, patting him on the head with her right front hoof. "And I promise you that, in the end, your family will always come through for you." Mega Pony nodded to say he understood.

"Letter for Princess Cadance!!" called out somepony outside. "Letter for Princess Cadance!!"

"Oh! I'll be right there!!" she called back. Mega Pony and Shining Armor watched as she left the room for a moment to retrieve the letter. She ran outside and met with a young, grey Pegasus with a lazy eye carrying a mail bag; it was none other than Derpy Hooves, who worked as a mailmare when not performing her usual duties at the Weather Factory. The little Pegasus gave the letter to the pink Alicorn before slowly flying away.

After unfurling the letter, Cadance then read it silently to herself right there. It was from Princess Celestia, stating that they were finished with what they were working on, and that it was okay for them to send Mega Pony back to Canterlot Castle. Smiling, the pink Alicorn re-tied the ribbon on the letter and took it with back her into the castle, walking back into the room where her husband and Mega Pony were.

"What did the letter say?" asked Shining Armor, curious.

"That was from Celestia." she answered him. "She said that, if Mega Pony is done with his work here at the Crystal Empire, that she would like him to return to Canterlot Castle's Throne Room immediately."

"So, I guess this is goodbye for now, huh Mega?" asked Shining.

"Yeah, for now." the robot responded. Waving to them both, he then said, "Goodbye, Princess Cadance! Goodbye, Shining Armor! Thanks for everything!"

"Same here, Mega Pony." said Cadance as she and her husband waved goodbye back to him. "Have a safe trip!" The little robot nodded with a smile before using his teleporter to leave the Crystal Empire and head home to Canterlot.

After he left, Shining Armor then said to his wife, "That Mega Pony's a real good kid...Makes me wish that we had somepony like him living here with us, too."

"...Hmmm, yes it would, wouldn't it?" hummed Cadance, thinking about what he said as she scratched her chin.

Back in Canterlot Castle, Mega Pony had just reappeared in the Throne Room to meet with Princesses Celestia and Luna. "Mom? Aunt Luna?" he called out. "I'm home! Where are you?"

"Welcome back, Mega Pony." said the sweet-natured voice of Celestia as she and her sister walked over to meet him. "How did things go over at the Crystal Empire?"

"Um, let's just say for now that I won't be forgetting my time over there anytime soon." the robot answered. Going over to both his mother and his aunt, he hugged them and said, "It's always good to see you, Mom...and you too, Aunt Luna."

Both of the Royal Sisters were happy to see that Mega Pony was in a much better mood than he was earlier in the morning. The Princess of the Night then cleared her throat and said to the robot, "Listen, Mega Pony...? My sister and I wish to apologize for not being able to spend any time with you today like you wanted to...It's just that-"

"It's okay...you don't need to apologize for anything." Mega Pony told her. "I understand that you're both very busy every day, and that you can't always be there with me whenever you want." He then closed his eyes, still keeping his smile and added, "But that's okay; as long as I know that you both still care about me...that's all I need."

The two were surprised to hear him say something like that, but they were also happy to hear that from the little robot. Celestia smiled and told him, "It seems that you have learned a very important lesson today, Mega Pony. We're both very proud of you." She then told him, "Even so, we still feel bad about turning you down earlier, and we want to make it up to you...so we have a very special surprise for you."

"A...surprise?" Mega Pony asked, perplexed. "What kind of surprise...?"

Celestia and Luna glanced at each other, smiled, and nodded. The dark-blue Alicorn then glanced over towards the Throne Room's double doors and shouted, "Okay! Come on in!"

The three of them watched as the doors to the room slowly opened wide. Once they did, there was a small figure standing there at the entrance; it was a pony, specifically a filly. She was small, with a pale-yellow coat and a short Unicorn horn on her head, which was nestled in her bright yellow mane hair. She had bright blue eyes over her youthful smile and a short tail that was, of course, the same color as her mane. The other notable thing was that her flank currently lacked a cutie mark. Mega Pony just stood there, not sure what was going on, or who this young filly was; he simply just stood there, staring at the young pony.

The little filly giggled a little, waved to the blue robot and said to him, "Hi! Nice to meet you!"

"Um...Hello..." Mega Pony responded, waving back. He then turned to Princess Celestia and asked her, "Um, Mom? Who is this pony?"

The Sun Princess chuckled a little and answered her son, saying, "Mega Pony, allow me to introduce her to you: This is my newest creation, PCN-002. Also known as...Midi."

"Midi?" asked the robot.

Celestia nodded and continued, saying, "As for who she is...She is going to be your little sister."

Mega Pony gasped a little when he heard that. "S-S-SISTER?!" he exclaimed. "You...you made a sister for me?"

Luna nodded yes and explained to him, "After my sister sent you away to the Crystal Empire, she and I decided to work on this new robot together. Since we cannot always be there to spend time with you, it made sense to us both that we should build somepony for you that can."

"Midi was designed to be fully compatible with you, so that she can always be there for you when you need her." Celestia then informed her son. "As long as she is around, you will never, ever have to worry about being lonely again."

The little blue robot was at a loss for words after seeing just what his creator and his aunt had done for him. He then asked the new robot, "Is that true...? You'll always be around to spend time with me?"

Midi giggled a little and answered him, saying, "You bet I will, big brother! I can hardly wait to start spending time with you and have all sorts of fun!"

Mega Pony was touched by how kind Celestia and Luna were to do this for him. Remembering what Princess Cadance had told him earlier, he then thought, (She was right...they DID come through for me in the end. I guess that means they really DO care about me after all.) Smiling, he then hugged his new sister and said to her, "In that case...welcome to the family, Midi. And I promise to be the best big brother I can be."

"And I promise to be the best little sister that I can be, too." Midi replied.

The blue robot then said to the Princesses, "Mom...Aunt Luna...thank you so much. I don't know how I could ever repay you for doing this for me..."

"It was our pleasure, Mega Pony." Celestia told him. "We only wish to make you as happy as you can be." And that certainly seemed so, judging by the fact that the blue robot was smiling as he and his new sister, Midi, continued to hug each other, laughing happily.

After a while, Luna then hummed a bit, pondering about something. She then looked over at her sister and asked her, "So...what do we do now?"

"Hmmmm...that's actually a good question, Luna." Celestia responded. "I've already had all of our other appointments for the day canceled so that we could work on constructing Midi together...But it took far less time than even I thought it would." Just then, she smiled as she got an idea. "Mega Pony?" she then spoke to her son. "I think now is perfect time to honor that request that you made to me this morning: How would you like it if you and your new sister would come to see a play over at Canterlot Theater tonight?"

"You mean it?!" exclaimed Mega Pony. "That's great!" He then asked Midi, "Would you like to see a play with us?"

"What's a play?" asked the little filly-bot. "Is it something fun?"

"Yeah, I think you'd like it very much!" Mega Pony told her.

"Then sure! I'd love to come and see one, big brother!" Midi happily replied. The two of them shared another laugh as they continued to talk and get to know each other better.

Celestia and Luna smiled as they watched the heartwarming scene in front of them. The Night Princess then said, "Well, it seems like we are one big, happy family again, dear Sister."

"Indeed." the white Alicorn replied. She then sighed and added, "And it also seems that Mega Pony is growing up quite fast...Perhaps too fast; for the first time in my life, I actually feel as though I'm getting older."

"Oh, worry not, Sister." Luna told her. "I'm fairly certain that you still have plenty a millenia left in you." She then glanced back over at Mega Pony and Midi and added, "Which means that you'll have more than enough time to spend with your son...and your daughter."

"I suppose you are right, Luna." Celestia agreed. She then gave her younger sister a hug and told her, "Thanks for being a great sister...If it weren't for you, I don't think I would have ever been able to make such a good sister for Mega Pony."

"Anytime, Sister...anytime." Luna responded, returning the hug.

[Unknown Location / Time: 23:07 [a.k.a. 11:07 p.m.]

"Well...so much for those big, bad Manticore robots the boss made..." said one of two figures in dark room. "You would think that they'd last a little longer than that..."

"Well, luckily for him," the other figure responded, "he had the right mind to make those machines impossible to trace back to him. At the very least, he'll have a chance to come up with a new plan for this place..."

"In the meantime...I think we'd better learn everything we can about that blue pony that keeps interfering with the boss's plans." the first figure suggested. "At this rate, our chances of effeciently taking over this region will be rather low."

"We'll figure out what to do about him later on, Brother." the second one said. "For now, we'd better tend to things here at the base and assist with the next plan." The first figure nodded and they left the room, which was still dark as night...save for the slight gleam of light that reflected of the top of the second figure's head...

NEXT EPISODE: "New 'Bot on the Block"

Episode 112: New 'Bot on the Block

Episode 112: New 'Bot on the Block:

THE STORY SO FAR... :

About a week ago, after seeing how lonesome Mega Pony was day after day in the castle, Princess Celestia decided to do something for him to help him feel better. After she sent him away to the Crystal Empire, she and her sister, Princess Luna, began work on a new project: A new robot that would become a literal sister to Mega Pony. With their combined efforts, the two Alicorns were able to finish their work, and Mega Pony was introduced to his new sister, Midi.

Midi was created specifically to keep Mega Pony company while their creators were busy with their usual duties. Since then, they have had all sorts of fun together, playing games, talking with each other, touring the city of Canterlot, and helping each other out with various things. The two have become an inseperable pair, almost always seen together; the only exceptions being whenever Mega Pony had to leave to handle minor threats in Equestria.

Now that Mega Pony has gotten to know Midi very well, he feels ready to introduce his sister to his best friends in Ponyville. With permission from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, the two have teleported to the small, humble town to spend the day there, on what they expect to be an ordinary day for the both of them...

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): Super fighting pony robot. Built by Princess Celestia.

Midi (PCN-002): Mega Pony's friendly and optimistic "sister".

Twilight Sparkle: Bookworm and Egghead. Element of Magic.

Zecora: Mysterious Zebra mare that lives in the forest. Likes to rhyme a lot.

It was yet another peaceful and serene day in the town of Ponyville. The townsfolk were going about their daily duties, ranging from going to work, shopping around the marketplace, or chatting with other ponies. At the local restaurant, Twilight Sparkle and her best friends were all sitting at an outdoor table, having lunch while seemingly waiting for someone.

"Is he here yet?" Rainbow Dash asked with a sigh, as she did not like sitting still for long periods of time.

"Just be patient, Rainbow Dash..." Applejack told her. "He'll get here when he gets here. You always do this when we have to wait fer somethin'..."

"Well, I don't really blame Rainbow for being impatient..." Fluttershy spoke up. "To be honest... I'm kind of anxious to hear about what he wants to tell us once he shows up..." She then meekly added, "Oh... I hope you don't think that I'M being impatient too after I said all of that..."

"It's okay, Fluttershy." Twilight assured her timid friend. "I'm sure we all have that same feeling ourselves."

"I wonder what it could be, though..." Pinkie Pie hummed to herself while in deep thought, sitting upright while rubbing her left front hoof under her chin. "OOOOOH!! I know!! Maybe he's planning a birthday party and he needs our help with setting it up! Finally!! I have an excuse to use my new Cake Cannon!!"

"But... nopony we know is having a birthday today..." Rarity informed her hyper pink friend. "And it can't be HIS birthday, otherwise we would have known about it in advance..."

"Awwww..." Pinkie moaned in disappointment. She then looked over at a brown cannon behind her that had a cake-like design painted all over it. Rubbing her right front hoof against the cannon, she said to herself, "One day... it'll be your time to shine..." She then began pushing the cannon away, supposedly putting it back to where she had gotten it from.

About a minute later, the group of ponies heard a familiar sound nearby. All of them (including Pinkie Pie, who somehow managed to instantly return to them all after putting her cannon away) looked towards the source of the noise in time to catch a glimpse of a tower of light from far away. "Alright! Finally!!" said Rainbow Dash, instantly flying up into the air and speeding off towards where the light was.

"Rainbow Dash, wait for us!" Rarity shouted at her. "You seem to forget that not all of us can move as fast as you can!" The five of them chased after their rainbow-haired friend, heading for their next destination.

After they all got closer to where the tower of light was, the six young mares saw somepony walking towards them: It was their robotic friend Mega Pony, who had a bright smile on his face after he saw them heading his way. "Hey, everypony! Good to see you all again!" he greeted them.

"Good to see you too, Mega Pony!" Twilight greeted back. The lavender Unicorn gave the little robot a welcome hug and said to him, "Before we start, I just wanted to thank you; my brother sent me a letter telling me about how you helped him and Princess Cadance a couple of days ago. So again, thanks a lot."

"Anytime, Twilight." Mega Pony told her, returning the hug. He then looked at the anxious-looking faces his friends had and asked them, "So... based on your facial expressons, I guess you must really want to know why I asked you to come and see me here, am I correct?"

The others nodded yes to say that they did.

"Well, in that case," he began to tell them all, "I should start by telling you... I'm not here by myself this time."

"Hm? You ain't?" asked Applejack. "Who's with ya?"

The little robot smiled... and then moved off to the side, revealing that, behind him, there was a small Unicorn filly standing there. She seemed a little bit shy, though not unhappy to be where she was. The filly had a light-yellow coat and a bright yellow mane and tail. Her eyes were a bright baby blue, and her flank had no picture upon it, indicating that she did not yet have a cutie mark. "Um... hello." she said to them meekly.

Mega Pony then said to his friends, "Everypony... I'd like you to meet Midi, my new little sister."

Twilight and her friends gasped a little bit in surprise. "Your sister??" asked the lavender Unicorn.

"But how can you have a sister?" asked Rainbow Dash. "You're a robot. And last time I checked, robots don't give birth..."

"Ain't it obvious, Dash?" Applejack asked. "She's a robot too. The Princess built her jus' like she built Mega."

"That's right." Mega Pony confirmed. "My mom built Midi to keep me company while I'm in the castle. Since then, she and I have become very good friends, and I felt that you should all get to know her, too."

"Oh, she looks absolutely adorable!" Rarity complimented, walking over to the young filly. She then introduced herself, saying, "Hello there, Midi... My name is Rarity; I'm a very good friend of your older brother. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Um, hello Ms. Rarity." the filly robot replied as she slowly performed a hoof-bump with the Unicorn fashionista. "My big brother's told me all about you and the others; is it true that you make all kinds of pretty dresses and things for ponies to wear?" The white Unicorn nodded yes to answer the little filly's question.

"Rarity is very good at designing fancy dresses for everypony..." Fluttershy informed Midi. "You should see all of the beautiful clothes that she's made... Not to, um... make you think that I'm forcing you to do it, that is..."

Midi's eyes lit up a little after hearing that. She then asked her brother, "Could we go and see them, Big Brother? I'd really like to see all of the pretty dresses!"

"Sure, why not?" Mega Pony replied. He then questioned his white Unicorn friend, "Is that okay with you, Rarity?"

"Of course it is." the fashionista replied. "I was going to suggest the idea myself, as a matter of fact." She then turned around and said to everyone, "To the Carousel Boutique, everypony!" She then began walking towards the building that served as her home and place of business.

The others followed their violet-maned friend through town. Rainbow Dash groaned a little and thought to herself, (Why couldn't she say that she was interested in sports or something...? Why dresses?) The cyan mare simply sighed and followed her friends to Rarity's house.

Inside Carousel Boutique, the group glanced around at all of the fancy decor, as well as the new outfits that Rarity had recently finished or started working on. Midi glanced at all of the beautful dresses and fancy clothing with wide, sparkling eyes. Clearly, seeing all of the beautiful outfits filled her with great joy. "Oh wow... they're all so pretty..." she said out-loud. "I love how they all look!"

"Why thank you, darling. That is a very nice thing for you to say." Rarity responded, grateful for the filly robot's comment. "I take it that you have a great interest in fancy dresses, am I correct?"

"Uh huh! I've seen all of my mommy's pretty dresses back home, and I always liked how they looked!" Midi told her. "I sure wish that I had something like that for myself!"

"Hmmmm... I think I might be able to arrange that." the fashionista told her. "After all, you do look a little... plain. Not to criticize your creator's- erm, your MOTHER'S vision, but I feel that your outward appearence could be slightly improved... Just a little bit, though."

"Well, that would be nice of you to do that for her." said Mega Pony. He then asked his little sister, "What do you think? Would you like Rarity to make a dress for you to wear?"

"I'd love that!" Midi answered without hesitating.

"Oh, how wonderful!" Rarity cheered. "In that case, we can get started immediately!" The Unicorn mare then rushed over to a nearby file cabinet and opened it; inside were all of her different patterns for dresses and other articles of clothing. After paging through all of papers that she had in the cabinet, she eventually found a pattern that she felt would work the best for the little filly-bot. "Here we are!" she said to herself. "This pattern isn't the most decorative or most extravagent piece that I've designed, but since this will most likely be an outfit that you'll wear daily, I suppose that it doesn't have to be too elaborate... I do not think that it will take very long for me to finish; I'd say that this may only take around... a half hour to forty-five minutes to complete."

"That's good to hear." Mega Pony replied. Midi was happy to hear that as well, anxious to get her new dress as soon as possible.

As Rarity had told everypony, creating the new dress did not take very long at all (though it felt like a long time to Rainbow Dash, since this sort of thing never really interested her). She used sky-blue fabric to create the article of clothing, fashioning it into a simple dress designed to fit a filly-sized pony. She also sewed a long, white, decorative stripe around the hem of the skirt. Rarity didn't stop there, though; she also made four small shoes for Midi, in the same sky-blue color, to wear on her hooves. She also fashioned the filly robot's hair into a pair of small buns, tied tight with a pair of green ribbons.

The other ponies in the room were quite impressed by their fashionista friend's latest work. "Oh wow... you did such a good job, Rarity!" Twilight complimented.

"Yeah, even I gotta admit; this one's pretty good." Rainbow Dash chimed in (though the tone of her voice still suggested that she was a bit bored).

Midi smiled as she looked in the mirror and admired her new look. "So?" Mega Pony began to ask his sister. "Do you like it?"

"I love it!" cheered the little filly-bot. "It looks so pretty on me!" She then said to Rarity, "Thank you so much, Ms. Rarity!"

"My pleasure, darling. It was nothing; just part of my generous nature." the white Unicorn replied. Suddenly getting an idea, she then told her, "You know, I just thought of something; perhaps you'd like to meet MY little sister. She's about the same age as you are... in the physical sense of course, you understand?"

"I understand." Midi simply replied. "And I'd really like to meet her, Ms. Rarity. Where is she?"

"Hold on, I'll get her for you." The dress-making pony then walked towards the stairs and shouted, "Sweetie Belle!!"

"What is it...?!" a voice shouted back.

"Could you come downstairs for a brief moment?" Rarity asked of her younger sibling. "There's somepony here that I'd like you to meet!"

"...I'm coming, Rarity...!" the voice replied. The others heard hoofsteps from the ceiling above, and then, about a few seconds later, Sweetie Belle came trotting down the stairs. Once she got to the bottom, she immediately took notice of her older sister's friends, including Mega Pony. She then greeted them, saying, "Oh, hi everypony! Hi, Mega Pony! Hi... um..." She then stopped when she looked over at Midi, not recgonizing her. "Um, who are you?"

The small robot walked over to the pink and purple-maned filly and introduced herself, saying, "Hi there! I'm Midi; Mega Pony's sister. Pleased to meet you!"

"Same here!" Rarity's younger sister replied, hoof-bumping with Midi. "I'm Sweetie Belle!" After the friendly gesture, the small white-coated filly then told her, "And yeah, I've met your big brother before; he helped me and my friends out a while ago."

After they introduced themselves, Midi glanced over to Sweetie Belle's side and noticed something about her. "Oh... you don't have your cutie mark yet?" she asked her.

"Nope, not yet." the little white filly answered with a sigh. "I've been trying all sorts of things to try and get one, but... so far, nothing. I'm starting to think that my classmate, Diamond Tiara, will stop being a jerk long before I get my cutie mark..."

"Well, don't feel too bad about it, Sweetie Belle." Midi said to her. "I don't have mine yet, either."

Snapping out of her slightly depressed state, Rarity's younger sister then asked, "You don't??" The filly robot nodded and pulled the hem of her dress to show that her flank was, indeed, "blank". "Oh, that's perfect!" cheered Sweetie. "Not about you not having your cutie mark, of course, but it's just that... I have two friends of mine that don't have their cutie marks yet either! I'm sure they'd love to meet you! What do ya say?"

"Um, sure! I'd like to meet them, too!" Midi replied. She then asked her big brother, "Is that okay with you?"

"Sure, it's fine with me, Midi." the blue robot answered. "Just as long as there's somepony to watch over you."

"Don't y'all worry 'bout that, Mega." Applejack told him. "As ya know, their clubhouse is on Apple Family property, so Ah can keep an eye on 'em all for ya."

"Okay, that's good to know." the blue robot replied. "Still... I think I should go with you, just to be sure, you know?"

"Not a problem at all." the orange Earth Pony replied, tipping her hat to him. "Well, if everypony's ready t' get goin', let's move on out." Mega Pony, Midi, and Sweetie Belle nodded in response before the four of them left for Sweet Apple Acres.

"Well, I've still got some orders to work on today, girls, so I'll be busy for a while longer." Rarity informed her friends.

"Then I guess we'll see you later." Twilight replied. "Have a good day, Rarity."

"You too, Twilight, and the rest of you as well." the white Unicorn told them before heading back to her file cabinet. The rest of the group soon departed from the Carousel Boutique together before splitting up to go off on their own for a while.

Meanwhile, at the Apple Family's property, Apple Bloom and her friend Scootaloo were sitting together in their clubhouse, apparently waiting for somepony. Based on the tired and bored-looking expressions on their faces, they appeared to have been waiting for quite a while.

Yawning, Scootaloo then asked Apple Bloom, "Ugh... what's TAKING Sweetie so long?? She should've been here by now! I feel like we've been waiting for eons!"

"Ah know... She's never THIS late for a meetin'..." groaned the pink bow-wearing filly. "What could she possibly be doin' right now??"

"I'm HEEEEEEEEREE...!" shouted a filly's voice from far away.

"Finally!" Scoot blurted out. "It's about time!!"

Soon after that, the clubhouse door opened, and in walked Sweetie Belle and Midi. "What took y'all so long??" asked Apple Bloom. "Ya know our meetings on Saturday and Sunday always begin at 12 in the afternoon!"

"I know... I'm REALLY sorry, girls..." the tiny Unicorn filly apologized. "It's just that I brought somepony with me this time, and that's what kinda held me up for a little bit..."

"You... brought someone with you?" asked Scootaloo. She and Apple Bloom then glanced over at the other pony that was with their friend. "Um... who's she?" asked the little Pegasus.

"Everypony, I'd like you to meet Midi." Sweetie Belle said, introducing them both to the robot filly. "She's Mega Pony's sister."

"His SISTER?!?" exclaimed the other two fillies.

"But... how does a robot have a sister??" asked Scootaloo.

"Uh, maybe 'cause she's a robot too." Apple Bloom explained. "How else?"

"Oh yeah... I didn't think of that." the little Pegasus replied, rubbing the back of her head.

Sweetie Belle then said to her friends, "Mega Pony brought his sister with him today to introduce her to my big sis and her friends. And get this! She doesn't have her cute mark yet either!"

"She doesn't?" asked Apple Bloom and Scootaloo in unison.

The little white Unicorn filly shook her head no and asked them both, "So, I was thinkng that... maybe we could let her join the Cutie Mark Crusaders... if it's okay with all of you, that is."

"Of course it's okay!" Apple Bloom replied with a smile. "We're always lookin' for new members to the club, and Ah'd be happy t' let her join us!"

"Especially since she's Mega's sister." Scootaloo added. "That's reason enough for me."

Sweetie Belle giggled a little and asked her new friend, "So whad'ya say, Midi? You wanna join the Cutie Mark Crusaders?"

"Um... I guess I do," the filly robot answered in an unsure tone, "but what is it? What do you do?"

"Well, it's pretty simple:" Apple Bloom began to explain to her. "We formed the club in order to find out what our special talents are and get our cutie marks. But besides that, we also try to help other ponies who, like us, don't have their marks and help them find out what they're good at."

"That sounds like a very nice thing to do for yourselves and for other ponies." Midi commented. "But... it's safe to assume that you haven't found out what your talents are yet, right?"

"No, not yet..." Scootaloo answered. "But we'll find out what they are one day, and we'll try everything we can think of until we do! That's the first law of the CMC: Never give up at anything!"

"...But, are you sure you would want me in your group?" Midi asked. "I'm a robot; I don't get my cutie mark the same way as other ponies do."

"Hmmm... you do have a point..." Sweetie Belle commented, humming a little as she thought about it. "How WOULD she get her mark?"

"Yeah, I forgot that cutie marks work differently for robots..." Scootaloo added. "Mega Pony did tell us that his was painted on his flank."

"Well, Ah don't think that should matter that much, girls." Apple Bloom then told them. "Ah think Midi's really nice, and Ah'd love to have her as part of the group anyway! And Ah'm sure that, if we put our heads together, we can figure out a way for her to get a cutie mark of her own!"

"Yeah, you're absolutely right!" agreed the little Pegasus.

"I'm with you on that, too!" Sweetie chimed in. She then glanced over to Midi and asked her, "So what do you say? You wanna join the club, Midi?'

The little filly robot pondered about it for a few seconds, wondering what she should do. In the end, the decision wasn't hard for her to make. With a smile, she answered them, saying, "Well, if you're all okay with it, then sure! I'd love to join your group! After all, my big brother said that I should try to make some friends here while we're visitng."

"In that case," the white Unicorn filly told her, "I'll have to give you the CMC Initiation Speech!"

"Aw no... not THAT speech again..." Scootaloo groaned a bit under her breath.

Picking up a nearby scroll, Sweetie Belle unfurled it, cleared her throat, and began reading the words written upon the paper. "We, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, elect Midi to join us as a sister, friend... um, com... uh, comfor... er, cutman..." Scootaloo and Apple Bloom groaned a little as their friend kept mispronouncing the word on the scroll.

Luckily, Midi managed to figure out the word that her new friend was trying to say and asked, "Um... are you trying to say the word, 'confidant'?"

Sweetie Belle stopped speaking and replied, saying, "Oh! Yeah! Thanks a lot, Midi!" She then continued, "As I was saying... we now accept you as our... con-fi-dant..." (She said the word slowly to make sure that she got it right this time.) "...ally, bossom buddy, gal pal, compadre, chum of chums..."

"Ugh, can't we just skip this part, Sweetie Belle??" asked Scootaloo with a grumble. "This ALWAYS takes forever!"

"Well, you should have written it shorter, Scootaloo!" the white Unicorn filly rebutted. "You said you were going to revise it all after we let Babs Seed join!"

As Scootaloo and Sweetie argued with each other, Apple Bloom then walked over to Midi and said to her, "Look, Ah'll just make this real short-like..." She then shook the robot filly's right foreleg and told her, "Welcome to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Midi!"

Returning the kind gesture, the filly-bot shook Apple Bloom's hoof and said, "Thank you so much! I'm glad that you're letting me join your group."

"Well, we 'blank-flanks' gotta stick together." the bow-wearing filly told her. "There's a lotta ponies out there that're gonna make fun of ya for not havin' your mark yet, but ya gotta just ignore 'em and remember who your real friends are."

"They make fun of ponies over something like that?" asked Midi, surprised. "That doesn't make sense... No one's born with a cutie mark, so they should know what it's like not to have one."

"You'd think that, but unfortunately, that's just how it is..." Scootaloo then told her, after she and Sweetie Belle stopped arguing with each other. "But don't worry; no matter what anypony says to you, we'll always be there for ya."

"Thank you." the filly-bot replied, happy to hear that. "My big brother was right when he said that there were lots of good, friendly ponies out there. I already feel like I'm fitting in with everyone, even though I'm not a 'real' pony. So again, thanks for being so kind to me." The rest of the CMC nodded with a smile, to say that they were more than happy to accept Midi as their new friend.

Just outside of the clubhouse, Mega Pony and Applejack were listening in to what was going on inside. Smiling, the blue robot then told his Earth Pony friend, "Well, it sounds like they're getting along very well up there..."

"Ah thought that they would." Applejack replied. "Mah sister and her friends are very accepting to other ponies, especially to ones that don't have cutie marks yet."

"That makes sense, I suppose." Mega Pony then told her.

"Ah think those fillies'll be fine on their own fer a while." the orange pony then said. "Why don't ya'll come in the house fer a spell n' take a li'l break?"

"Sounds good. I have been pretty busy the past few days, so a break might be just what I need right now." the robot told her. And with that, the pair left the orchard, heading for the farmhouse, while Midi and the Cutie Mark Crusaders began spending the day together in the large treehouse.

But while Midi was settling in with her new friends, something else was going on in the mysterious Everfree Forest. A pair of shadowy figures - one large one that was standing on the ground, and a slightly shorter one that was soaking in a crystal-clear pond - were talking with each other, apparently discussing something that they were going to do shortly from now...

"Ugh... why, pretell, did you ask me to meet you here in these woods??" asked the figure standing on the ground. "Why couldn't we have the rendezvous point be somewhere that isn't... well, so full of leaves? You know how much I dislike falling leaves..."

"It was the only place that I could think of with a large body of water for me to be in." the other figure answered. "Besides, it's not Fall yet anyway; these leaves ain't gonna fall anytime soon..."

"Rrrgh... why couldn't you be better at traveling around on the land...?" the larger figure muttered to itself. Sighing, it then said to its companion. "Whatever... let's just do our job here and get going before the boss has a fit." It then asked, "You DID bring the new units here, like he asked you to, did you?"

"Oh, come on...! Whad'ya take me for?!" the other individual rebutted. "Of course I have 'em! I'm not THAT absent-minded!" The figure then climbed out of the pond and awkwardly hopped over towards a large, wooden crate. It then picked up a nearby crowbar and used it to open the crate. "Urrrrgh...! URRRRRRRGGGGHHH!!!" It grunted as it pulled with all of its might. Finally, after a few seconds of straining, the figure was able to pry open the front of the crate. "There! We're all set to go!"

"Good." the larger one replied. "Now since the boss didn't have time to give them any set directions, they'll go after the first thing they see. So we had better take our leave immediately." The other figure nodded, and in an instant, the pair were swept away in a pair of light columns; one blue and one green.

After they left, a faint glow could be seen from the inside of the open crate that was left behind. Not long after the glow appeared, a small, bluish-grey insect came flying out of crate; it appeared to be the source (or at least part of the source) of the light that came from within the box. Although it looked like a common Parasprite, it actually seemed to be a different type of bug altogether. As it flew around in the air, it constantly shedded off small, blue sparks from off of its body...

Elsewhere in the forest, though not too far away, there was a large tree home that had a mysterious-looking appearance to it. The inside of it was even more mysterious: All over the walls of the home's dark interiors were strange objects such as large tribal masks, jugs of all shapes and sizes (some hanging from the ceiling on ropes), and books written in many strange languages. Another object that was in this small abode was a large, black cauldron; inside of it was a strange, bubbling, green liquid.

Standing in front of the cauldron was an equine, but it was not a pony. She was actually a creature called a Zebra, noted by the distinctive black and white stripes that covered her body. Her name was Zecora, and while it was plainly clear that she was not a resident of Equestria, her actual origins were, as of now, currently unknown. She had bluish-green eyes, had her mane done up into a mohawk, wore a pair of oversized earrings in her ears, and gold bands around her neck and left foreleg. On her flank was a large spiral design; it was similar to a pony's cutie mark, but whether or not it actually was one was left up to debate.

The Zebra mare seemed to be busy with her cauldron, cooking something up inside of it while following a set of directions from a book that was sitting on a small bookstand nearby. "Hmmm... will mistletoe leaves work well in this stew...?" she asked herself as she tossed the plant in question into the cauldron. But after she did so, the pot began to smoke, the liquid turned red... and then it exploded a little. Zecora then coughed a bit and added, "No no no... that will simply not do..." She then looked back at her book, trying to figure out where she could have gone wrong.

As she worked, Zecora suddenly heard a faint buzzing sound from outside of her home. Normally, this wasn't a big deal, given that she lived in the Everfree Forest, but it attracted her attention this time around because it wasn't a sound that she was used to hearing at this time. "Hm?" The Zebra then stopped what she was doing and walked over towards one of her glass-less windows to take a look.

She then saw that a large swarm of insects were flying right by her humble home. They all looked exactly the same as the bug that had emerged from the giant open crate: They had bluish-grey bodies, large purple eyes, six, short, black legs, and a pair of typical insect-like wings on its back. Its back end, as well as its antennae, were blue in color and shaped like lightning bolts. Each of them had a nasty scowl on their face, as if they seemed angry for some reason.

"What? Twittermites?? What are they doing here??" Zecora asked herself. "This is not the season that they usually appear..."

Just then, one of the bugs stopped flying with the rest of the swarm and glanced cruelly over towards the Zebra mare. Then, without warning, the insect's abdomen and antennae began to glow brightly. It then let out a powerful electric bolt towards her. Zecora managed to duck out of the way, and the bolt struck her cauldron instead, knocking it over and spilling its hot contents onto the ground. The nasty little bug chuckled in a mean tone before it rejoined the rest of the swarm.

Once she felt that it was safe, Zecora stood back up on all fours and said to herself, "I had better find Ms. Twilight, and I must be swift..." She then glanced back at her cauldron, tipped over and left with a scorched mark from where the lightning bolt had struck it. "...before the rest of my house is burnt to a crisp..." she said, finishing her little rhyme. The Zebra mare then grabbed a few books, loaded them up into a pair of saddlebags, and departed from her tree home, heading straight towards Ponyville.

Meanwhile, back in Ponyville, Twilight and the rest of her friends went their seperate ways for the moment, going off to do their own things for a while. For the lavender Unicorn, that meant arranging and categorizing newly-donated books to the library; a job that she relished every time. Spike usually assisted her in this duty, though he often had a hard time keeping up with her, especially once she really got into it.

"Alright, the newly-released Daring Do book should go on the second bookshelf, row five..." Twilight instructed her dragon assistant while reading off of a list that she held with her magic, "then the 'Guide to Housekeeping' by Maretha Stewart needs to be placed ooooooon... the fifth shelf, row three. Then after that..."

"Twilight! One at a time!!" Spike whined a little. "I'm still trying to find out where this 'Pony's Guide to Card Games' book is supposed to go!"

"You're still on THAT one?" asked the book-smart pony. "I thought you would've gotten past that one by this point! We have to have this place ship-shape for when somepony comes in to take a look around!"

"I'm sure nopony will complain if ONE book isn't back in its spot on the shelf yet..." the little dragon told her, "You seem to forget that not everypony can fully memorize the Decimal System like you can..."

"That's no excuse not to try and keep every book organized, and you know it." Twilight rebutted. Before she could say anything else though, she suddenly heard a knock on her front door. "I'll get the door." she then told her assistant. "You keep putting away everything exactly as it says on the list." Spike sighed a bit as he took the list; at least now, he told himself, he could work at HIS own pace rather than hers.

The lavender Unicorn opened the door and was surprised to see who it was standing there. "Oh! Zecora! Good to see you again!" she greeted. "I... wasn't expecting you here today. Is there something you need to tell me?"

"Yes indeed," the Zebra began, "but before I do, you should gather your friends so that they may hear, too."

"My friends?" asked Twilight, wondering what could have happened that would require the combined effort of all of her companions. Deciding that Zecora had a good reason for it, the Unicorn nodded and said, "Okay then... follow me, and we'll all meet over at Applejack's." The Zebra mare nodded, understanding what Twilight had asked her to do. The two equines then galloped away, leaving the Golden Oaks Library.

"...You mean I've gotta do the rest of this organizing MYSELF?!" Spike shouted to Twilight, waving the list that he was holding in his claws out of frustration.

Before long, Twilight and Zecora met up with Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie, gathering them all up and heading towards Sweet Apple Acres together. Once they all arrived at the front door of the farmhouse, Twilight knocked on the door a few times. When it opened, Big Macintosh was standing there to greet them.

"Hey, Big Mac." Twilight said to him. "Are Applejack and Mega Pony still here?"

"Eeeyup." he answered, pointing his hoof towards the kitchen.

"Thanks." the lavender Unicorn said politely. She then motioned to the others behind her to follow her inside.

Big Mac was then ready to close the door, when he noticed a small bug flying off in the distance. It buzzed at a medium-level volume as it flew around the orchard. The large stallion immediately recognized it and thought to himself, (Uh oh... it's one'a them pesky Twittermites again... Ah'd better go and find some help real quick-like...) He then trotted outside, closing the door behind him.

"Twittermites?!" exclaimed Applejack after Zecora explained everything that she had witnessed.

The others were just as surprised when they heard about the strange bugs themselves. "Are you absolutely sure that's what you saw, Zecora dear?" asked Rarity, sweating a little.

"I kid you not, and I do not lie," the Zebra stated, "I saw them outside as they flew by."

Rainbow Dash scratched her head with her left front hoof while hovering in the air, apparently confused about something. "Okay, wait: Back up a teensy-tiny bit... What the hay is a Twittermite?" she asked them.

"A type of insect," Zecora explained, showing them all a page in one of her books about the creature, "or more commonly called, a bug... But they are not as ordinary as, shall we say, a slug. They shed electricity, zapping things while in flight, but they do not usually try to pick a fight..."

"Pick a fight...?" asked Mega Pony. "You mean that they tried to attack you?"

The Zebra nodded and told him, "That is most correct, my little robot... luckily, the only victim was my large pot."

"That doesn't sound good at all..." noted Twilight. "if that's the case, they might try to attack other ponies here in town as well..."

"Oh my..." whimpered Fluttershy, an ill feeling coming over her. "This is almost like that horrible Para-Bot attack all over again...!"

"Not 'almost', Fluttershy..." Mega Pony corrected her. "This is EXACTLY like the Para-Bot attack... Just think about it: A bunch of strange insects show up unexpectedly, and they try to zap somepony for no reason at all? This can't be a coincidence, I know it!"

"Are ya sayin' that whoever was behind the Para-Bots might also be responsible for these Twittermites bein' here, too??" inquired Applejack.

"Maybe... I'm pretty sure there's a good chance of that, AJ." the robot answered her. "And if that's the case, then this problem might be even more serious than we first thought."

"If that is so, then we must hurry!" Zecora suggested. "Or else those bugs will unleash their fury!"

"Heh, 'hurry' is my middle name!" stated Rainbow Dash in her usual confident tone of voice.

"I thought it was 'Danger'." Pinkie replied. "Or was it 'Jennifer'...? You kinda look like you could be a Jennifer..."

Applejack then walked over to Mega Pony and told him, "If those Twittermites are as dangerous as you and Zecora are makin' it out t' be, then y'all will need t' be fully equipped and ready fer anythin'! So Ah think it might be a good idea for y'all to copy our powers again before we all go in there."

"My thoughts exactly." the blue robot replied with a nod. "I was actually going to suggest the same thing myself."

Twilight and her friends nodded to each other as they turned around and showed off their cutie marks to their mechanical friend. "You ready, Mega Pony?" asked Twilight. The robot nodded yes as he tapped each and every one of his friends' cutie marks and obtained their Special Weapons...

*** WEAPON GET! *** Magic Wave ***

*** WEAPON GET! *** Apple Bucker ***

*** WEAPON GET! *** Sonic Rainboom ***

*** WEAPON GET! *** Gem Seeker ***

*** WEAPON GET! *** The Stare ***

*** WEAPON GET! *** Party Cannon ***

Once Mega Pony had finished copying his friends' powers, he then said to them, "Alright, we'd better stick together for this one. We'll need every bit of power we can muster if we're going to stop those Twittermites from doing whatever it is they set out to do..."

"Makes sense..." noted Twilight. "After all, it took our combined powers to defeat the Para-Bot swarms last time."

"In that case, Ah'd better get that hat o' mine that the Princess put that microchip in;" stated Applejack, taking off the hat that she was currently wearing and setting it on the table. "Y'know, the one that lets me use those apple bombs that Mega throws?" She then took out the special hat (which looked exactly like the previous one; Applejack had more than one of the same hat) and placed it upon her head.

"And I'm all ready to go too!" Pinkie chimed in, reaching into her poofy mane and pulling out the pink hoof cannon that Princess Celestia gave to her. She then equipped it to her right foreleg and pointed it forward, making believe that she was aiming at an enemy.

"So are we!" added Rainbow Dash as she did a swift loop in the air, while Twilight charged up a small amount of purple-colored energy into her horn. Fluttershy just meekly nodded to say that she was ready to fight as well... even though she would have preferred not to if she could.

"What about you, Rarity?" Mega Pony asked his violet-maned friend. "Everypony else has everything they need, but I don't remember you having the ability to use the Gem Seeker weapon that I get from you..."

"Well, as a matter of fact, that will not be a problem at all." the Unicorn fashionista stated. "Just watch..." She then charged up a white-colored energy into her horn, preparing to use a spell of some sort. Before long, Rarity managed to create a large-sized diamond that began orbiting around her. "I have taken the liberty of watching you ever so closely whenever you used that weapon of yours, and after a bit of practice between my many projects, I was able to figure out how to perform the magic myself."

"Wow...! So you can use that power too?" asked Fluttershy in an impressed tone.

"Yes, among other things, Fluttershy dear." Rarity answered. "But right now, all you need to know is that I will be fully capable of taking care of myself, not to mention contributing my skills to our mission as well."

"That's good to hear." stated Mega Pony, feeling a bit relieved. "Still," he then told her, "be careful; I don't know what to expect from these Twittermites, and I wouldn't feel good if anything bad happened to you while you were helping me." Rarity nodded to say that she would do just that.

"Well, if we're ready to go, then let's move out, everypony!" Twilight told them all.

"...Wait, hold on...!" Mega Pony told his lavender friend, "what about my sister and the others? Who's going to look after them while we're gone?"

"Don't worry 'bout that." Applejack informed him. "Ah'll let mah big brother know and he'll keep an eye on 'em... Granny Smith, too. We ain't got nothin' t' worry about as long as they're lookin' after things!"

"Okay, sounds good to me." the robot responded. He then pointed ahead towards the front door and shouted, "Alright! Let's go!"

"Yeah!" the others said in unison as they followed Mega Pony out of the house.

Meanwhile, Midi, along with the rest of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, were busy playing a card game with each other. They were apparently playing Texas Hold 'Em, a form of Poker (nopony knew why it was called that, however, as no one knew what a "Texas" was). All four of them watched each other, trying to read one another's facial expressions... of course, that was all that they were doing in the past few minutes; nopony had even drawn a single card from the deck the entire time.

"Um... I'm not exactly familiar with this game," Midi began to say to her new friends, "but I'm pretty sure one of us needs to make a move at some point... right?"

"Listen, Mid..." Scootaloo began to tell her. "The MAIN point of this game is to try and read your opponents' facial expressions; that way, you'll know if they have good cards or not!"

"Of course, considerin' that we haven't made any move since we started playin', it's kinda hard to tell who's doing well an' who ain't..." Apple Bloom noted.

"At this rate, we'll NEVER get our Poker-playing cutie marks..." groaned Sweetie Belle.

Midi then glanced out of the nearby window and noticed Mega Pony and his friends running past the treehouse and out of the orchard. "Huh? Was that my big brother and the others...?" she asked herself. "What are they doing?"

Noticing the little filly robot suddenly looking outside, Apple Bloom then asked her, "Somethin' the matter, Midi?"

"Huh?" Midi quickly looked away from the window and answered her friend, telling her, "Oh, uh... it's nothing. Let's just keep playing." The other fillies nodded and went back to their game.

Just then, Sweetie Belle heard a strange noise that immediately got her attention. Ears twitching, she then asked, "What was that?"

"What's what?" inquired Apple Bloom.

"I thought I heard something buzzing from outside..." the little white Unicorn told them all. She then pointed with her right foreleg and added, "It's coming from over there!" The other three girls glanced over in the direction that Sweetie was pointing in and saw a small, grey bug flying in through the window.

"It's probably just a stupid mosquito or something..." Scootaloo noted, not really caring in the slightest.

But at that moment, the bug looked straight in the eyes of the four fillies... and shot a bolt of electricity right at them! Luckily, the girls were able to get out of the way at the last second. The box table that they were all sitting in front of, along with their deck of playing cards, were fried to a crisp, but luckily, nopony was hurt.

"That definitely ain't no mosquito, Scoots..." Apple Bloom told her. "That's a Twittermite!!"

"A what??" asked the other three fillies.

"Egon, our Pest-Control Pony, told me all about 'em one time when he was here." Bloom explained. "He comes by every now n' then to get rid of any pesky critters that pop up in our farm." Glancing back up at the dangerous bug, she continued, saying, "Accordin' to him, Twittermites are insects that have the ability to shoot small lightnin' bolts from out of their bodies."

"Woah... bugs that shoot electricity? That sounds cool!" replied Scootaloo.

"Not really, Scoots..." Apple Bloom told her. "Egon told me that Twittermites really don't have much control over where they shoot their bolts; they kinda do it randomly. They don't mean to hurt anypony, but it tends t' happen every now n' then. What's more, their electric zaps are more powerful if they're in a large group!"

"But there's only one right there in front of us..." Sweetie Belle noted. "So, we're safe... right??"

Before a reply to her inquiry could be made, the Twittermite in the treehouse fired another bolt of deadly electricity at the four fillies, forcing them to move out of the way again. Soon after, it fired another bolt that was barely avoided as well.

"Yeesh... that thing's a pretty good shot." stated Scootaloo. She then asked Apple Bloom, "I thought you said that they fire their bolts randomly! Because so far, this thing's been able to aim right at us three times-" She stopped when they all had to run out of the way of another lightning bolt. "...FOUR times in a row!" the little Peagsus finished.

"But how's it doin' that?" the Earth Pony filly asked. "Ah don't get it!"

After dodging yet another electric attack from the Twittermite, Midi anxiously told them all, "Let's worry about that later! We should get out of here before that bug hurts one of us! Hurry!!" The four of them wasted no time in doing just that, opening the door to the clubhouse and running out as fast as they could. But just when they thought that they were safe, the four fillies were horrified to see that several more Twittermites were right outside waiting for them.

"You've gotta be kidding me...!" whimpered Sweetie Belle with a crestfallen look on her face.

"How're we gonna get away from all of THOSE things?!?" asked Scootaloo, sweating a tiny bit.

Apple Bloom trembled a little and replied, saying, "Ah... Ah don't know, Scoots... Ah just don't know!"

Midi was also frightened by the meancing bugs that were dead-set on doing them all harm. In fact, she seemed to be even more scared of the electrical insects than her new friends were for some reason. But just as the bugs began to charge up large amounts of energy for a powerful attack...

"Don't ya worry!!" shouted a nearby voice. "I'm-a comin'!!"

The group of four glanced over and saw two ponies coming straight towards them and the Twittermites: One of them was Big Macintosh, galloping as fast as he could to get to the defenseless fillies in order to rescue them. The other pony was also an Earth Pony, but appeared to be much older than Big Mac, possibly near Granny Smith's age. He had a greyish-brown coat, with a silvery-white mane and tail, and had bright, green eyes. He wore a green cap and shirt, and his cutie mark was a picture of several Twittermites. On his back, there was a large, vaccum-like machine, with a large, glass capsule attached to it. Inside of the capsule were several Twittermites that he had managed to capture already.

"It's Egon!" shouted Apple Bloom. "He came to rescue us!!"

The expert pest controller ran as fast as he could to reach the trapped fillies, readying his vaccum at the same time. "Hang on, Apple Bloom! I'll take care of these pests real quick-like!" The older Earth Pony then switched on his vaccum; while it wasn't strong enough to draw in Apple Bloom and the others, it WAS strong enough to suck up each and every last one of the bugs, trapping them inside of the glass cylinder.

At that same time, Big Macintosh managed to make his way to his little sister and the others, motioning them to follow him and get to safety. "Thanks, Big Mac!" Scootaloo told him. "I don't know what would've happened if you didn't get here so fast!"

"I do!" Sweetie Belle chimed in. "We would have all been shocked, and Scootaloo would've become fried chicken!"

Grumbling, the little orange Pegasus yelled, "Would you all stop calling me a chicken already?! That joke got old a long time ago!!"

As they ran for their lives, Apple Bloom then asked her older brother, "You brought Egon over here t' help us out, didn't ya?"

Big Mac nodded and said, "Eeeyup!" Once they all got to a safe distance, the five of them turned around to watch the pest control pony do his job.

Egon, of course, had no trouble dealing with these dangerous insects. Though the bugs tried to zap him a few times, the Earth Pony was prepared for it: His cap and shirt weren't just stylish; they were also insulated with rubber, which absorbed the electricity without causing him any bodily harm. Egon was skilled at removing all sorts of pesky bugs and critters, but dealing with Twittermites was his speciality, which explained why he had the cutie mark that was on his flank.

Once every last Twittermite was sucked up into his vaccum, Egon wiped some sweat from his forehead and said, "Well, that's all of 'em! I must admit though, those little guys put up a real fight; they're must feistier than I'm used to seein' 'em..." He then turned his head towards the four fillies and asked them, "You girls okay?"

"Yeah, we're just fine, Mister." Scootaloo answered him.

"We sure are lucky you happened to be right nearby..." noted Sweetie Belle.

"It ain't really luck that factored into it..." Egon told her. "The thing is, this is the fifth case of Twittermite-sweeping that I've had to deal with today! Something's riled these bugs up for some reason and now they've been attacking ponies in and around town all day!"

"Y'all are serious?" asked Apple Bloom in surprise. "But that don't sound right at all! Why're they goin' after everypony??"

As the group tried to figure out what was going on, Midi stared at the large capsule that was attached to Egon's vaccum device, as well the Twittermites that he had captured inside of it. Suddenly, the filly-bot asked him, "Um... excuse me, sir... But could I take a closer look at those bugs that you've captured? Without letting them out, of course..."

The pest-control pony seemed confused at first by Midi's request. He wasn't sure why she wanted to look at his collection of electrical insects. However, the older stallion decided that it was okay and said to her, "Sure... go right ahead. Just be careful, though..." He then unbuckled the straps that kept the device attached to his back and gently set it on the ground in front of the little robot.

Midi then slowly approached the glass capsule and took a closer look at the Twittermites inside of it. She even placed her left front hoof against the capsule while doing so. When she did, a sudden rush of information flowed into her CPU. What she found out from it shocked her and made her gasp. "So that's what's going on!" she exclaimed.

"Um, what are you talking about??" asked Sweetie Belle.

"I know why these Twittermites tried to attack us and everypony in town..." she explained to them all. "It's because they aren't real Twittermites; they're all robots!"

"ROBOTS?!" gasped the Cutie Mark Crusaders in unison.

"Robots ya say??" asked Egon, also surprised. "You mean somepony built them and let 'em all loose in town on purpose??"

"I think so... at least, it would make the most sense." Midi replied. "Though I'm not sure why somepony would ever do something like that..."

"Arrgh... not again..." groaned Scootaloo. "I thought we were done with the crazy robot attacks after your brother fought those stupid Joe-something guys a while back!"

When Midi heard those words, she suddenly gasped in horror. "Oh no... my brother...!" she whispered to herself in fear.

"Somethin' wrong, Midi?" asked Apple Bloom. "What's got ya'll so worried?"

"I just remembered..." the filly robot said to them all, "a few minutes ago, I saw my brother and his friends running off somewhere, but I didn't know why at the time... But now I think that I do... I think they're going to try and fight those Twittermite robots!!"

"They are?!" asked Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.

"So what?" Scootaloo inquired, not sounding as worried about it as the others were. "Mega's super-tough; he won't lose to some puny little bugs! Especially since Rainbow Dash is out there helpin' him!"

"I'm not really sure about that..." Midi told her. "If those Twittermites shoot electricity from their bodies, then my big brother might be in more danger than he realizes!"

"How so?" asked Apple Bloom.

"Well, there's a chance that, if he were to get hit by a powerful enough shot of raw electricity from one or more of those insects... It could damage his CPU... or worse, his Integrated Circuit Chip; if THAT happened... there'd be no way to bring him back...!"

"But couldn't the Princess just rebuild him if something happened?" asked Scootaloo.

"Not if the I.C. Chip were to break..." Midi informed the little Pegasus. "Those chips are what gives us robots our personalities. If I had to compare it to something, the I.C. Chip is kind of like our soul: They're completely irreplaceable..."

"...So that's why you seemed to be more scared of them Twittermites than we were." Apple Bloom figured out.

"Mhmm..." whimpered the filly robot. "That's why I'm worried about my big brother; I don't think he knows that these Twittermites are robotic! He might be putting himself in danger right now as we speak!" Turning towards the trail ahead, she then added, "I've gotta go and help him!" Then, before another word could be said, or another action could be taken, little Midi had already taken off and was headed in the direction that she saw her brother and his friends moving in when she saw them last.

"Wait!! Midi, come back!!" shouted Apple Bloom, trying to convince her to stop. But the little filly robot was already long out of their sight. The five ponies just stood there, not sure what was going to happen next...

Meanwhile, deep in the Everfree Forest, Mega Pony, along with his friends and Zecora, had arrived at the small tree that the Zebra mare called home. The eight of them looked around the cottage, trying to find any clues pertaining to the strange Twittermites that had been nearby the tree earlier. So far, the only evidence they had that the bugs had been there was the tipped-over cauldron, along with the few scorched smudges on the floor that had come as a result of bugs' electrical attacks.

"Woah... looks like those little guys sure made a mess of things in here..." noted Rainbow Dash as she hovered in the air, looking around at scene below her.

"I do hope you plan on cleaning all of this up after we're done locating these tiny little vandals..." Rarity told Zecora.

"Right now, we've got more to worry about than the state of Zecora's home right now, Rarity." Twilight informed her fashionista friend. "There's a swarm of bugs out there that are trying to intentionally cause harm to everypony in town, and we have to not only figure out why, but we also have to figure out how to put an end to it as soon as possible."

"I agree with that Twilight." Mega Pony chimed in. "But first, we need to look around and try to locate these Twittermites and try to see where they went." He then closed his eyes and told them, "And I think I have a device that can do just that: If I can trace the Twittermites' electrical pulses, we can pursue them, no matter where they try to hide. I just have to concentrate for a little bit..." He then focused his mind as best as he could, hoping to find any leftover electrical pulses from when the bugs had passed by Zecora's tree home. Just then, he was able to sense something from nearby. "There! I think I've got it!" he exclaimed.

"You've found 'em?" asked Applejack.

"I think so..." the robot answered the farm pony. "It's faint, but I can definitely detect some electrical activity nearby." He then ran outside and continued to try and trace where the pulses were coming from. Pointing ahead in a particular direction, he told the others, "That way! There's electricity coming from over there, at 3 o' clock!"

"But it's only 1:45." Pinkie Pie said to him, looking at a watch that she was apparently wearing.

"He meant that as in a direction, Pinkie Pie. Not time." Twilight corrected her.

"Oh, I knew that." the pink pony admitted. "I just needed an excuse to make a joke involving this new watch of mine. But now that that's done..." She then stopped her sentence short as she removed the watch and casually tossed it aside, as if its only purpose was for the joke.

Rainbow Dash then flew over next to Mega Pony and said to him, "Well, if ya think you know were you're goin', then lead the way, Mega!" The robot nodded and walked ahead in the direction that he had pointed in. The others soon followed him, making sure to keep an eye out for anything that might take them by surprise.

The group of eight traveled through the forest's thick, overgrown plants as they continued walking in the direction that Mega Pony had directed them all in. It didn't take long for them to discover something peculiar ahead. "Hey, what's that??" asked Applejack, pointing with her left foreleg.

The group glanced at the object that their orange Earth Pony friend was pointing at. There, in a large clearing and sitting next to a small pond, was a gigantic wooden crate. The front of it was wide open, but there was nothing inside of it. Laying next to the crate was a long, steel crowbar, which they assumed was used to open the large box in front of them. "What's with this crate?" Twilight asked everypony. "What is it doing here in the middle of the forest?"

"I don't know," Mega Pony answered her, "but what I do know is that I can most certainly trace some kind of electrical residue coming from inside of it... If I had to guess, I'd say that there's a good chance that, at one time, those Twittermite bugs had been inside of it."

"And let us not forget that crowbar sitting next to the box..." Rarity reminded them as she pointed to the object in question. "That item was most definitely used to pry it open."

Mega Pony sighed and said, "...I knew it; based on all of this evidence, somepony must have somehow stored all of those Twittermites inside of this crate, carried it all the way over here, and opened it so that all of those insects could be let loose both in here and in Ponyville!"

"But...why...?" asked Fluttershy. "Who would ever want to do something like that...? I don't understand..."

"That ain't what's important right now, Flutters." Rainbow Dash told her and everyone else. "What's important is that we've gotta get those things before they get us or anypony else!"

"Exactly." stated Mega Pony, agreeing with his rainbow-maned friend. "We need to stop those Twittermites now before it's too late... We'll figure out why it happened some other time." Glancing around, he continued to detect the bugs' electrical pulses within the forest. He then pointed ahead and told his companions, "There! I can sense them coming from over there! Let's move out!!" The others nodded and continued to follow them, this time at a much faster pace.

Elsewhere, back at Zecora's tree home, Mega Pony's sister Midi was trying to locate her brother as quickly as possible, after she learned that the attacking Twittermites were really robots. She looked around the Zebra mare's home, but not even Zecora herself was inside. "Big Brother!!" she called out as loud as she could. "Where are you?!" But there was no response. Getting more worried by the second, Midi darted off in the same direction that her brother and his companions had gone in earlier on.

The little filly trembled a bit as she carefully, but swiftly, made her way through the forest, following the exact same path that her brother took while searching for the vicious electric insects. The reason that she seemed to know where she was going, despite never having been in the Everfree Forest before, was because Princess Celestia had installed a tracking chip that was specifically designed to allow her to find Mega Pony, no matter how far apart the two of them were from each other. Luckily, the tracker was still receiving strong signals, indicating that the two were getting closer to each other.

Before long, the little filly robot had made her way over to the large crate in the middle of the forest clearing. However, Mega Pony and the others were already long gone. "There's no one here..." she said to herself, still worried. But she tried her best to remain hopeful and added, "But I know that he's nearby here somewhere, and I'll find him... I just hope I'm not too late..." She then galloped as fast as she could to try and locate her older brother.

Far away from where the empty crate was, Mega Pony and the rest of his group were still tracking down the swarm of Twittermites that attacked Zecora. "We are getting closer, I can feel it in my skin..." the Zebra remarked, "I just pray this is a battle that we can win..."

"I hope so too..." Mega Pony replied. He felt a little worried himself, but wasn't exactly sure why.

Just then, Twilight could see a faint, blue glow in front of her, a short distance away. "There! I think I can see something!" she told them all.

"That must be where they are, then." noted Applejack. She then told the others in a quieter tone, "Let's get closer, an' move real quiet-like..." The rest of them nodded and carefully followed each other to where the glow was coming from.

The eight of them looked ahead from behind a thicket of bushes at the scene in front of them. There, they saw a large swarm of Twittermites, trapping and surrounding a pair of helpless squirrels. The two small rodents trembled as the bugs shot out small sparks, grinning evilly as they did so. "Oh no...!" Fluttershy said in her usual quiet tone of voice. "Those poor little squirrels...!"

"If we don't do something, those nasty little vermin will most certainly cause them harm...!" Rarity whispered.

"Not if I have anything to say about it...!" Mega Pony told them, getting a little angry from what he and the others had seen. As the villianous insects began charging up electricity in their bodies, the blue-armored robot drew energy into his horn, charging up his Friendship Buster. Then, before the Twittermites could do the unthinkable, Mega shot first, letting out a powerful blast that took out most of the insects immediately.

The remaining Twittermites immediately looked over from where the large energy blast came from (which distracted them long enough for the squirrels to make a hasty escape). They didn't spend much time wondering who fired at them before Mega Pony and the others revealed themselves. "Alright, bugs!" Rainbow Dash shouted at them. "That's the last animal you'll ever threaten around here! 'Cause we're here to take you all down!"

The bugs began growling in response. Just then, one of them began making loud buzzing sounds for a few seconds. That buzzing had gotten the attention of several more angry Twittermites nearby. Now the swarm was even bigger than when it started.

"Figures..." grumbled Applejack. "Where there's one of 'em, there's about a million or so more not far behind...!"

"Well, we can't let that scare us!" Mega Pony told them, though he did feel a bit more worried about it. "If we don't stop them, everypony in Ponyville will be at their mercy! We have to do our best and make sure that they don't have their way!" He then quickly changed his body color to Applejack's color scheme and swiftly kicked an Apple Bucker bomb towards the bugs, wanting to make sure that he got the first attack.

The swarm did their best to fly out of the apple bomb's path. Though some of the Twittermites had been struck by the explosive and fell to the ground, most of the swarm had escaped damage. They quickly responded with powerful electric bolts, firing them right at Mega Pony.

"Here it comes, Rarity!" the pony robot shouted to his violet-maned friend (while swapping to her white and violet colors at the same time). "Hurry! Initiate Defense Plan G!"

"On it!" the white Unicorn shouted as she charged up her horn, surrounding it with a light-blue aura. Both she and Mega Pony then triggered the Gem Seeker weapon at the same time, surrounding themselves with twelve orbiting jewels (six for each of them). The gems' constant spinning, as well as their reflective surfaces, were easily able to deflect the Twittermites' lightning bolts; some of the bolts were even reflected back at the swarm, taking out some of the bugs with their own attack.

Once they were able to successfully deflect the electrical attack, Mega Pony and Rarity gave each other a knowing nod. After that, they fired their gemstones straight towards the swarm, picking off more of the Twittermites and eliminating them from the fight.

"Yeah!! Way to go, Mega!!" cheered Rainbow Dash, impressed by the move that he and Rarity had performed.

"C'mon, gals!" Applejack told them. "We can't just sit here n' let Mega do all the work, can we? Let's get in there and show those varmits who's really the boss around these parts!"

"Yeah!!" shouted Twilight, Rainbow, and Pinkie in unison.

"...Do we have to...?" asked Fluttershy, who wasn't the type that really liked fighting, even when it was totally justified. She then let out a sigh, knowing full well that she really didn't have much of a choice but to do her part. She then followed the rest of her friends, ready to lend a hoof.

Zecora stayed behind, watching the scene in front of her. "Good luck, dear friends... but do not drop your guard..." she told them silently. "This battle may soon turn incredibly hard...

Mega Pony immediately switched to a new weapon, adopting Pinkie Pie's color scheme, and fired several balloons straight towards the swarm. The balloons burst upon contact, and the impact created from their popping took out several of the Twittermites, who kept on firing bolt after bolt of deadly electricity towards him and the others. Pinkie Pie supported him by using her hoof-mounted Party Cannon and firing balloons of her own at them.

"Mega Pony!!" shouted Twilight's voice. "I need some backup, and fast!"

The robot turned over towards his lavender Unicorn friend and saw that she was being attacked from all sides by the electrical insects. She did her best to hold them off with her Magic Wave attack, but it was clear that she wouldn't be able to fend them off all by herself. "Hold on, Twilight! I'm on my way!!" the robot shouted as he swapped his body color for Twilight's lavender and dark purple look. He then fired off his own Magic Wave at the bugs that were surrounding Twilight, taking out several more. Once he got to Twilight's side he then told her, "Okay, let's attack them together, Twilight!"

"I'm on it!" the book-smart pony responded, charging up more magical energy into her horn. Mega Pony did the same, and the pair fired off several powerful magical blasts at the attacking bugs. Though several were struck down, there still appeared to be many more left, still intent on causing them harm.

"Ugh! Where do these little creeps keep comin' from?!" asked Rainbow Dash out of frustration as used her speed to tackle the Twittermites in mid-air. "There must be a million of 'em around here!!"

"Yeah, it sure seems like it!" Applejack stated, kicking several Apple Bucker bombs at the bugs that went after her. "How could there possibly be THIS many Twittermites in one spot?! It don't make a lick of sense!"

Mega Pony switched to Rainbow Dash's color scheme and used her Sonic Rainboom weapon to ram through several splinter swarms of Twittermites. But even he was starting to feel overwhelmed by their sheer numbers. "This isn't good..." he said to them all, "at this rate, I might run out of weapon energy before we can defeat them all!"

"Wh-what are we going to do...??" asked Fluttershy, trying her best stay out of the bugs' way, difficult as that was.

The robot then glanced over at Fluttershy and got an idea. "It looks like this situation might call for something a lot more powerful." he stated. "Something that can affect them all at once... And there's only one weapon that I have that can do that..." He then swapped his body color to Fluttershy's yellow and pink appearance.

Right away, the others knew what he was about to do. "Mega's about to use The Stare!" exclaimed Applejack. She then shouted over to the rest of her friends, "Quick, everypony! Cover your eyes!!" The others got the message and ducked down onto the ground, each one shielding their eyes with their forelegs.

Once he knew that his friends would be safe, Mega Pony then prepared to use one of his strongest weapons. Closing his eyes, he concentrated himself, drawing all of the necessary energy he needed to use Fluttershy's weapon. Once he was ready, he then opened his eyes, letting out a blinding light that affected each and every one of the Twittermites in front of him. The powerful stare was strong enough to render them all unable to fight back. Once he was done, Mega Pony breathed a sigh of relief. "...Finally... It's all over..."

"Mega Pony! Behind you!!!" screamed Rarity.

"Huh?!" The robot turned to look and saw a few more Twittermites coming up right behind him. But it was too late to do anything about them as they fired their electrical bolts, striking the robot hard. "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" he screamed in pain as the raw electricity caused him to take a lot of damage.

"Oh no!! Mega Pony!!!" shouted Twilight. She, along with the others, were horrified to see their friend getting hurt. But there was nothing that they could do to help him.

Once the bugs' attack was over, the poor little robot fell to the ground, not moving an inch. His body color returned to its normal state, as his energy seemed to have sapped out of him completely. The Twittermites grinned evilly as they slowly flew in closer, preparing to finish him off.

Rainbow Dash growled angrily and yelled, "I can't just sit here and let them hurt him anymore! I'm goin' after 'em!!" But before she could, the cyan Pegasus saw someone whiz by her, running straight towards Mega Pony. "Huh?? Fluttershy? What're ya doin'??" Rainbow asked her.

But the normally-timid Pegasus did not answer, as her mind was focused on only one thing: Just like she had done before when Mega Pony fought the Equine Joes that attacked the Cockatrice flocks, Fluttershy was prepared to fight in order to save her robot friend once more. "How DARE you hurt Mega Pony you... you meanies!!" she yelled at the Twittermites angrily.

The bugs looked over at her, and at first, didn't consider her a threat. But even they gulped a little when they saw the enraged look upon her face. Fluttershy never usually got this angry, but when a friend was hurt or in danger of getting hurt, that little assertive spark in her became like a massive flame; a flame that was prepared to scorch anything and anyone that would cause harm to her and her friends.

The yellow Pegasus then gave out the fiercest stare that she could muster, directing it straight towards the nasty bugs. The others reacted quickly and covered their faces once more so that they wouldn't be affected by it as well. Unfortunately for the remaining Twittermites, they had no way of shielding their faces, and they got hit by The Stare at full power. And with that, the insects dropped down onto the ground in a heap, unable to attack or even fly.

Fluttershy took deep, heavy breaths after having used her incredible power. "Oh... my..." she said inbetween gasps. "That... that took a lot of energy out of me... I can't believe that I was...that I was able to do that..."

Rainbow Dash quickly sped over to her fellow Pegasus friend and asked her, "Hey... you gonna be alright there, Flutters?"

"I... think so..." she answered. "I just need... a little nap, that's all..." She then said to her friend, "Never mind me... what about Mega Pony?"

"Urk! Aw, ponyfeathers! I almost forgot!" the cyan Pegasus exclaimed. In a flash, both she and Fluttershy raced over to the downed robot. The others in the area also gathered together to try and help their friend.

Twilight removed Mega Pony's helmet and opened up a small hatch on his forehead. She then glanced at what appeared to be a meter of some sort; on the meter, there were only three small bars (out of twenty-eight total) lit up on it. "Oh no... this is bad..." the lavender Unicorn said in despair. "His energy meter is very low... And it's only getting lower...!"

"That must've been a real nasty shock..." noted Applejack, getting worried about the little robot herself, as was everypony else.

"But how'd it hurt him that much??" asked Rainbow Dash. "I've seen him survive much worse than that!"

Just then, the group heard somepony shouting from far away. "Mega Pony!! Mega Pony!!!"

The gang recognized it as a young filly's voice. But it wasn't just any filly's voice: "Is that Midi?!" asked Rarity in surprise. "How did she find us??"

Sure enough, the figure that came running up to them all was indeed Mega Pony's younger sister. She ran as fast as her little legs could carry her, but when she got to the scene, she was horrified when she saw her big brother lying motionless on the ground. "...No! I'm... I'm too late...!" she said, a tear welling up in her eye.

"Midi, what the hay are y'all doin' here??" asked Applejack. "You're supposed t' be back at the farm!"

"I had to come here, Ms. Applejack...!" the filly-bot told her. "I needed to find my big brother and warn him about something!" She then informed the others, "You see... those Twittermites that are causing trouble in Ponyville... they're all really robots!"

"ROBOTS?!" exclaimed the others in shock.

"So that's it...!" Twilight realized. "That's why those Twittermites seemed to be much more powerful than they usually are! Whoever built them must have wanted to make sure that they could handle anything that got in their way!"

"And it seems, more than likely, they were mass-prouduced too..." Zecora added. "That's why there seemed to be many of them, and not just a few."

"Oh dear..." said Fluttershy. "We had no idea...! We all thought that they were just normal Twittermites...!

"Y'know, besides the fact that they seemed to act like they were pure evil, of course." Pinkie Pie interrupted.

The others looked down at Mega Pony, who was still totally inactive after the heavy hit that he had taken. Midi, tearing up even more, looked at him and nudged him with her front hooves. "Big Brother..." she pleaded. "Please... wake up... wake up, Big Brother...!"

"I'm sorry, Midi..." Twilight told the little filly-bot. "Mega Pony was struck pretty hard by those Twittermites... His energy meter still has some power in it, but..." She then sighed sadly a little as a tear appeared in her eye as well. "...but it doesn't seem like... he has much time left..."

"...No... that can't happen...!" Midi protested. She kept nudging her inactive brother and cried, "He can't go away!! We're supposed to be friends forever!! He can't go away!! It can't happen!! I don't want it to happen!!!" The tiny little robot then placed her head inbetween her forelegs, sobbing on her big brother's back.

The others couldn't help but to feel saddened as well. Rarity couldn't help but to look away a little as she wiped a tear from her eye. Pinkie Pie's normally poofy mane and tail suddenly drooped down, becoming totally straight as a downcast look appeared upon her face. Fluttershy cried long, hard sobs as Twilight did her best to comfort her. Although not a single tear appeared in the eyes of Applejack, Rainbow Dash, or Zecora, they were just as sad from what had happened as everyone else, based on their facial expressions. It seemed to all of them that Mega Pony was no more...

But then, all of a sudden, as Twilight glanced back over towards Midi, she let out a gasp and asked her, "M-Midi?? What's happening to your body?!"

"H-huh...? What are you talking about, Ms. Twilight??" asked the filly robot, cutting her sobs short.

The others snapped out of their saddened states to take a look at Midi and were surprised at what they saw. "Hey... why are you glowing so brightly?" asked Pinkie Pie.

The filly robot then took a good look at herself and saw that she was indeed glowing all over. A bright, golden light was surrounding her from head to hoof, and she didn't know why. Just then, she and the others watched as the light began to flow over Mega Pony's body, becoming more intense by the second.

Twilight then glanced over at Mega Pony's head, looking at the power meter... and let out a gasp when all twenty-eight of the bars lit up in less than a second. "I... I-I don't believe it!!" she exclaimed. "His energy meter! It's back to full power!!"

"Hey! Look at that!!" Rainbow Dash suddenly told them all, pointing at Mega Pony's legs. The group all saw that, somehow, the legs were beginning to twitch a little, when, just a few seconds ago, they were totally motionless. And that wasn't all; Mega's eyes also began to open slightly, and he let out a low, tired groan.

"He's waking up! He's waking up!!" shouted Pinkie Pie, her mane and tail returning to its usual poofiness as she did.

Everyone was shocked, but overjoyed, when they saw Mega Pony seemingly fully recover from the nasty hit that he had taken earlier. None more so than Midi, who nearly believed that she had lost her big brother forever. The blue robot sat up and placed his right front hoof against his head. "Urrrgh... what... what happened...?" he asked in a groggy tone, still recovering from the electrical attack he suffered earlier. He then looked around at his friends, most of them still shedding tears, but this time out of joy and not sorrow. "Um... what's going on? Why does everyone look like they're sad and happy at the same time...?" he asked, confused.

"Big Brother!! You're okay!!" cheered Midi, hugging him with all her strength.

"Huh?? Midi?! What are you doing here??" the blue robot asked, wondering why she had left the farm.

"I came to help you, Big Brother!" she told him. "When I found out that those Twittermites were really robots, I had to try and find you so that I could warn you about them!"

"Wait, what?! They were all robots?!" asked Mega Pony. Once he heard that, everything about what had happened finally came back to him. "So that's why those bugs seemed so strong! It all makes sense now!" Recalling the last few things that he could remember, he then said, "I remember... I had defeated a whole bunch of those Twittermites using Fluttershy's weapon... Then I turned around to see several more of them and then... everything went black, but only for a moment... Or at least it seemed like a moment to me."

"Well, it felt like an eternity had passed for all of us, Mega Pony dear..." Rarity told him. "We were beginning to think you wouldn't make it..."

"Yeah, those bugs really zapped ya good there." Rainbow Dash told him. "You were lyin' there and not makin' any move at all for a really long time. I don't know what your little sis did, but it seems to me that it's because of her that you're okay now."

Mega Pony seemed a bit surprised to hear that his sister was the one responsible for restoring him back to normal. He then turned to Midi and asked her, "Is that true? Did you really help me?"

"I... I think so..." the little filly answered in an unsure tone. "But... I don't really know how I did it..."

"Hmmm... that's strange." Mega Pony thought about it for a while and stated, "According to what I'm hearing, you have some sort of special power in you... but yet, you don't seem to be aware of it... Very mysterious... Don't get me wrong, everypony; I'm certainly not complaining about it if it saved my life. But it seems weird that my sister would have some sort of power that she doesn't know about..."

"If more about this strange power is what you wish to know," started Zecora, "then to your creator, the Princess, I suggest that you go."

"Yeah, that's a good idea, Ms. Zecora!" Mega Pony agreed. "If anypony can figure out what this power is, my mom can!" Looking around the area, he then added, "In fact... while we're at it..." He then got back on all fours and walked over to the pile of inactive Twittermite robots and used his psuedo-magic to pick one up and store it in his side compartment. "I'd better take one of these robot insects with me so that Mom can take a look at it." He then asked his friends, "What do you say guys? You want to come with me and figure out all of this?"

"Of course we will, Mega Pony." stated Twilight. Looking around, she then added, "Besides, it seems as though all of the Twittermite robots are taken care of, so we don't have to worry about them right now." The others nodded to say that they would go along with him.

"Alright then." the blue robot stated. "I'll send a remote message to my mom, and ask her to send somepony to pick us up."

"Ah'd better go and check on the farm in the meantime." Applejack chimed in. "Just in case those nasty li'l bugs got into any of the trees..." The group then left the site of their battle against the Twittermites, heading back to Sweet Apple Acres.

Not far away, a pair of figures - the same two that had released the Twittermite robots - were watching everything closely. "Aw man..." whined the shorter one of the two, "looks like the boss's plan didn't work... AGAIN... He's gonna be real sore at us for this one..."

"Not to worry, brother." the larger one told him. "You should know that he always has a 'Plan B' in store, just in case... I've been watching those ponies down there very closely as they fought against the insect robots... and with the data that I have acquired, he'll be satisfied, regardless of how things went here... In fact, I'd even go as far as to say that he might be more pleased with this instead."

"That's good to know..." the shorter figure replied, sighing out of relief. "You know how scary he gets when a plan of his fails..."

"Well, again; we have nothing to worry about." the larger figure said. "With what the boss has in store, that little blue pony will be wishing that he stayed the way he was..." And with that last cold remark, the two figures turned into a pair of lights and vanished.

Midi heard the noise that was was made after the figures took their leave and turned around to catch a glimpse of the light that they vanished into. Noticing that she had stopped walking, Mega Pony asked her, "Something the matter, Midi?"

"...Um.... no, it's nothing, Big Brother... It's nothing." she told him. The group then continued to exit the forest so they could get ready to head for Canterlot and see Princess Celestia.

About an hour later, Mega Pony, Midi, and the rest of their friends were whisked away to Canterlot Castle in the Princess's personal chariots. In addition to Twilight and her best friends, there were a few other individuals that had come along for the ride, including Zecora: Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo had also decided to tag along as well, after they heard about what had happened earlier.

After they were dropped off in front of the castle gates and allowed to enter, Princess Celestia greeted them all and took them all to her secret lab so that they could figure out everything. When they all stepped into the massive laboratory, the castle guests were impressed with everything that was in it. This was especially true for the ponies (and Zebra) that had never seen the facility before until now. "Holy horseapples!" exclaimed Apple Bloom in amazement. "This place is HUUUUUUGE!"

"So this is really where Mega Pony and Midi were built?" asked Scootaloo. "This place is so awesome!!"

"And pretty!" added Sweetie Belle. "Look at all of those lights! They're blinking in lots of different colors!"

Zecora was a bit stunned by all of this highly-advanced technology around her; it was a bit overwhelming, but nothing that she couldn't mentally handle. (This place...) she thought, (it is undoubtedly amazing... To witness this place is a once-in-a-lifetime thing.) Apparently, the Zebra mare even rhymed in her thoughts.

Princess Celestia had hooked up a cable to the back of Midi's head that connected to her lab's supercomputer. She then carefully studied all of the text that made up Midi's programming, trying to figure out where this mysterious power she used had come from, as the Princess did not recall ever giving her anything such as that when she and Princess Luna had built her. Just then, she spotted something peculiar and exclaimed, "There! I think I have found it!"

"You did?" asked Twilight, who, along with Mega Pony, helped the Alicorn Princess search through the filly robot's mind. "What is it?"

"Well," Celestia began to explain, "from what I could see here, there appears to be a slght glitch in Midi's programming."

"A glitch??" asked Mega Pony, getting a bit worried. "What kind of glitch?"

"Now do not be alarmed, Mega Pony... It's nothing that you need to worry about." the Sun Princess assured him. "I suspect that this glitch only came about due to me mistyping a line or two during Midi's construction. I probably would have caught it, but I was so anxious to finish contructing Midi in time to surprise Mega Pony with when he returned, that I didn't even think about it..."

"That's okay, Your Highness!" Pinkie Pie told her, suddenly popping out from behind the Alicorn. "So you made an error or two; it happens to the best of us! It's like they always say: 'Popony's Nerfect'!" The humorous quote elicted a giggle out of everyone in the room, inculding the Princess.

After she giggled a little, Midi then asked her creator, "So... you said that I have a glitch in my programming, right Mommy?" Trembling a little, she then inquired, "Is... is that a bad thing...?"

"Actually, in this case, it's not." Celestia answered her robotic daughter. "This glitch actually seems to have some beneficial side effects. As a result, you seemed to have gained an incredible power: You have the ability to restore energy to anything of a mechanical nature... including Mega Pony. The reason that you didn't know about it is simply because, from what information that I possess, robots are not often aware if they have a glitch in their programming."

"You mean... I have healing powers, Mommy?" the filly-bot asked.

"Indeed." confirmed the Alicorn. "And those powers allowed you to restore Mega Pony's functionality, even when he was near-death..." Celestia shuddered a little; just the thought of her "son" being in such a state made her blood run cold. Snapping out of it for the moment, she then added, "However, as it stands now, Midi, I'm afraid that you don't have much control over your powers. Since they came about as the result of this glitch, your healing ability is... well, somewhat random, and as you are right now, you are unable to consciously trigger it."

"What does that mean?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"It means that she cannot trigger the ability whenever she wants to." answered Rarity. "If she could, then she would have restored Mega Pony the very instant that she got to us all."

"That is true, Rarity." Celestia confirmed. She then smiled and added, "However, I believe that, if I can make a few slight alterations to Midi's programming, I can allow her to use her healing powers more reliably. After all, it has become quite clear that this sort of power is something that would help us all, especially in Mega Pony's case."

"You can do that, Mom?" asked the blue robot.

"Yes, though I will have to shut Midi down for a while in order to make the necessary changes." noted the Alicorn. "But it won't take long at all."

"Sh-shut me down...?" asked the little filly robot.

"Don't worry about it." Mega Pony told his sister, comforting her. "It's... it's kinda like going to sleep for a little while. No matter how long it will actually take, to you, it will seem like only a second or two has passed. I should know; I had to let Mom shut me down every now and then so that she could keep up my condition."

Midi still seemed a little wary about it, but decided to trust her older brother. She then asked him, "...C-could you... stay by my side the whole time? Please?"

Mega nodded and told her, "Of course. Whatever helps you feel better."

Midi smiled a little; she was still scared about being shut down for a while, but knew that it would be for her own good to just go and get it overwith. She then turned over to Princess Celestia and said to her, "...I'm ready, Mommy."

"Okay then..." The white Alicorn then walked over towards her robot daughter and opened a hatch in the back of her head. "Have a good sleep, Midi... We'll see you in a little while." she told her before flipping her ON/OFF switch. Once she did, Midi immediately flopped over onto the table she had been sitting on, in a lifeless-like state. Mega Pony felt a bit weird seeing his sister this way, but didn't have much time to dwell on it as his creator told him, "Alright then... I'll start making the necessary changes to her programming. And I could also use your help as well, Mega Pony."

"Of course, Mom." he replied. "Anything for my little sister." The others watched as Celestia and her "son" tinkered with Midi's programming.

Luckily, the process didn't take long at all, just as the Sun Princess had told them. This time, Mega Pony made sure that there were no typos in the lines of coding this time around. "There, I think that will do it." Celestia stated. "I've altered her programming, and I made sure to plan for every possible contingency; no more surprise glitches this time around."

"That's good to know." said the blue robot. He then asked, "So, should we switch my sister back on?"

"...Not just yet, Mega Pony." the Princess responded. "There's one more thing I would like to add to her... Again, this won't take long at all." She then used her magic to levitate a pair of paint cans and move them over to the table where the little filly bot lay. One can had red paint in it, and the other had pink paint.

Twenty Minutes Later...

"...Midi... Wake up, Midi..."

"Uhnnn... Five more minutes, Mommy..." the little filly-bot groaned in a tired tone of voice, her eyes still completely shut.

"...Midi... It's me... your brother; Mega Pony...!"

"...Uhnn... Big... Big Brother...?" Midi then opened her eyes and sat up when she realized that she was back online. She looked off to her side and saw that her brother was standing right there beside her.

"Hey there, Sis..." he said to her in a calm tone of voice. "How are you feeling?"

"Mmmm... pretty good, actually..." the filly robot answered, stretching her legs and then sitting straight up. "I guess it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be; I felt like I had just woken up from the best nap ever..." She then asked her creator, "So... were you able to fix my programming, Mommy?"

"I have indeed." confirmed the Alicorn. "Now you have total control over your ability to restore and heal any machine, inculding your brother. And I also made sure that this time, your programming will be totally glitch-proof."

"But that's not the only thing that Mom did for you." Mega Pony then told his sister.

"Huh? It's not?" asked Midi.

The blue robot pony then smiled warmly and instructed her, "Take a look under your dress."

"My dress...?" Midi then pulled the hem of her skirt up to see what was underneath it. She then gasped at what she saw there: What had used to be a completely featureless flank now had a small picutre painted upon it. It was a large, pink heart with a red, plus-shaped cross in the center. Right away, she knew what it was: "M... Mommy? Is this... is this a cutie mark?" she asked.

"It is indeed, Midi." Celesta answered with a nod. "I felt that, since your healing ability will become a very valuable asset to those around you, you needed something that would best display your newfound talent. Do you like it?"

"I... I love it!! Thank you so much, Mommy!" the filly-bot cheered. Wasting no time, Midi jumped off of the table and ran over to show her new cutie mark to Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. "Hey, girls! Look! I finally got my cutie mark!!"

"Congratulations, Midi!" said Apple Bloom, happy that her friend had gotten her mark. "Ah knew y'all could do it! Ah just knew it!"

"Me too!" Sweetie Belle chimed in. "I knew that you'd get your cutie mark somehow!"

Midi was very happy with her accomplishment... but then a thought came to her. "Hold on..." she then began to ask them, "if I have my cutie mark now, then does that mean I'm not in the Cutie Mark Crusaders anymore...?"

"What're ya talkin' about?" asked Scootaloo, walking over to her. "Of course you're still in the club, Mids! In fact, we could probably even call you our greatest success story! After all, you had only been in the CMC for about a coupla hours, and already you've got your cutie mark! If that kinda notoriety gets out, ponies from all over Equestria will be knockin' on our door, asking us to help them find their cutie marks!"

"Well, Ah wouldn't go that far, Scoots..." Apple Bloom stated. "But what y'all said there DOES give me a grand idea..." Walking over to Midi, the Earth Pony filly then told her, "Y'see, Midi... There's this other member of our group that lives all the way over in Manehatten; mah cousin, Babs Seed. We asked her t' start a Manehatten branch for the Cutie Mark Crusaders so that she can help fillies n' colts over there to get their cutie marks. So... what Ah was thinkin' was that... maybe y'all could put together a CMC branch right here in Canterlot!"

"You want me to make a Cutie Mark Crusaders club in Canterlot?" asked Midi, making sure that she heard her correctly. "You really think that I could do something like that?"

"Ah know it won't be any trouble for ya at all!" Apple Bloom told her with great confidence in her voice.

Midi was definitely interested in helping to start a branch of their club in Canterlot, though she was a bit concerned. "I don't know..." she replied. "It seems like something that might be too big for me to do on my own..."

But Mega Pony walked over to his little sister's side, smiled and told her, "Don't worry Midi, I'll help you put it all together, if you want me to. It's the least I can do for you after you saved my life."

Midi's eyes lit up after Mega told her that she could count on his help. Smiling, she then told her friends, "Okay! I'll do it! I'll do whatever I can to help ponies in Canterlot find out what they're good at!"

"That's great! Thank you so much, Midi!" said Sweetie Belle.

Glancing at a nearby wall clock, Rarity then gasped and said, "Oh my! Look at the time! We had best be getting back home!"

"You're right, Rarity... I'd better get back to the library;" Twilight said to her fashionista friend. "I wouldn't feel too good if I had Spike put away all of the new books by himself."

"And we'd better get home so as we aren't late for dinner." added Applejack. She then looked over at her younger sister and asked her, "Ready t' go, Apple Bloom?"

"Sure, big sis!" the bow-wearing filly replied. She and her friends waved their left front hooves to Midi and said, "See ya later, Midi! Make sure to come by an' visit again soon!"

"I will! Goodbye!!" the filly-robot called out to her friends.

Fluttershy walked over and gave Mega Pony a small hug and told him, "Goodbye for now, Mega Pony... Please do your best and be safe out there."

"Don't worry, Fluttershy, I will." the blue robot promised. As he watched the others leave the laboratory, he then glanced over at his mother, who appeared to have a worried look on her face. Having a feeling as to what she was concerned about, he walked over and asked her, "Mom? Are you alright?"

"Um, yes..." she told him. "Why do you ask?"

"Well..." he began to tell his creator, "it's just that... I was concerned that you'd feel down after... after you heard about what had happened with the Twittermite robots... And, well... how I almost died."

Princess Celestia said nothing at first; the only sound that came out of her mouth was a sad-sounding sigh.

"...Mom... if it... if it would make you feel more at ease..." he then said to her. "You could always... get rid of all of my armor and weapons... and just make me into a regular pony..."

The Princess sighed again and told him, "Well... I would be lying if I said that I wouldn't want you to do just that..." She then paused for a brief moment before saying, "I suppose I always knew that things such as your sudden brush with death would happen sooner or later, but... it was still distressing to hear that it had happened... I feel as though I aged another thousand years right after you and your friends told me everything about it."

Mega Pony and Midi felt sympathetic towards their creator after hearing that. They felt a bit sorry for her because she seemed to feel very sad and concerned.

"...That being said, though," Celestia then told her robot son, "I do not want you to make any rash decisions just for my sake. I knew that you would be risking your life whenever you went out on a mission, which is why I made sure that you would be equipped with everything you needed in order to deal with whatever threat comes your way..."

"...Mom..." Mega Pony simply replied.

"Mega Pony..." the royal Alicorn then told him, "Although I have total control over how the country should be run, I don't feel that I have any right to discourage you from doing what you feel is right." Pausing for another moment, she then continued, "So... I will ask you: Do you still wish to continue your work, and keep Equestria safe?"

The blue robot thought for a while about what he really wanted to do. For a while, Celestia and Midi waited anxiously for his answer. Then, with a smile, he then answered his creator's question, saying, "I do, Mom. I want to continue making sure that Equestria is safe for everypony... and safe for my friends. And I'm not just saying that because of my programming, believe me."

The Sun Princess smiled as well, telling him, "Very well, then... While I am still concerned for your safety, I will not try and stop you from doing what you want to do. And you can rest easy knowing that I, my sister Luna, and your sister Midi, will always be there to help you, whether it be assistance during battle... or if you just need somepony to comfort you when you feel down."

"Thanks, Mom." Mega Pony replied. "That's all I would ever want from you." He then gave his mother a hug to let her know that everything would be alright, no matter what. Midi also decided to join in on the hugging, snuggling up to them both to put everyone at ease. After they broke off of their hug, the blue robot then asked his little sister, "Hey, Midi! You wanna go out and play in the courtyard for a while?"

"Sure, Big Brother!" the filly-bot replied with great enthusiasm.

As the two sibling robots ran off to play, Celestia then thought to herself, (Mega Pony... you may not have been alive for a whole year yet, but I already feel that you have grown up so much...) Shedding a happy tear, she then continued her soliloquy, thinking, (And I am happy to have been with you throughout it all... I know the path you have chosen is a difficult one, but your friends, your family, and your desire to do right will help you see through all of the hardships that come your way...) She then moved over to one of the lab's worktables, where a device that appeared to look similar to a surfboard lay upon, along with a pair of miniature rockets sitting next to it. The Princess then glanced over the blueprints on the table before getting to work on the device sitting in front of her...

NEXT EPISODE: "A Glimpse of Things to Come"

Episode 113: A Glimpse of Things to Come:

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Episode 101: Dawn of the Equine Bomber, Pt. 1 (Pilot):

[Equestria; Castle of the Two Sisters / Year 10XX, Equestrian Calender]

Deep within the mysterious and often dangerous Everfree Forest, a violent struggle was taking place. Although the skies were as dark as night, and the full moon was visible, it was actually supposed to be morning, 7:43 AM to be precise. The reason for this bizarre phenomenon was clear: Princess Luna, one of the two Alicorns that ruled over all of Equestria had suddenly refused to perform her duty of lowering the moon. Jealous because of the love and attention that her older sister, Princess Celestia, was getting, Luna vowed that the sun would never rise again, and that the lands would forever be cloaked in everlasting night.

Despite Celestia's protests, Luna would not listen to reason, and her feelings of jealousy and bitterness changed her, both physically and mentally. The loving sister that Celestia knew was gone, replaced by a monster named Nightmare Moon. It was inevitable that the two would clash in a battle that the elder sister knew would have no winner, no matter who survived the fight.

In a last-ditch attempt, Princess Celestia did the only thing she thought she could do for the good of all of her subjects: She called upon the most powerful force in all of Equestria, the Elements of Harmony. Their combined powers proved too much for Nightmare Moon...

"No...NO!!! Thou cannot do this to us!!!" the malevolent mare shouted.

"...Forgive me, Luna..." said Celestia, a small tear escaping from her right eye. "I wish there was another way, I truly do..." She then looked up at the beast that was once her sister, with an expression on her face that seemed to be both angry and sad. "But for the good of everypony in Equestria...I have to do this. So, henceforth...I now banish you to the very moon you control for eternity!!"

And with those words, the beams of light that emitted from the Elements of Harmony combined together, overwhelming Nightmare Moon.

"Rrrgh! RRRGGHHH!!! This is not over, Elder Sister!!!" she screamed. "We promise thee...We WILL escape thine banishment!! We WILL seeketh our revenge!!! And thine kingdom will belong only to us...!!!!!" As she shouted her last threatening words, the former Princess Luna was whisked away to the moon for what everypony believed to be for eternity...

The battle was over. Celestia had won. But she was not happy...

[From the Memoirs of Princess Celestia, Ruler of Equestria]

To the pony who reads this: I have written these documents in hopes that those who look upon them will be able to learn from them. To learn from both my accomplishments...and from my mistakes.

My name is Celestia, Princess of the country of Equestria, both its ruler and its guardian.

In the many, many years that I have been Equestria's active ruler, I had achieved many great things, and everypony looked up to me as both their protector and for guidance. However, nopony's life, not even my own, has been perfect. There have been times where I feel that I could have done more, or should have done something differently. But the action that I regret most of all...was having to banish Luna, my own sister, to the moon when she became that...that thing. Equestria may have gained a victory that day, but I felt that I did not. After all, I lost my only sister that day; a sister that I loved with all my heart.

While this was the main reason that I regretted this action of mine, it was not the only reason. Days after the first Nightmare Moon incident, I suddenly came to a grim realization: What would happen to the land that I loved so much...if, Heaven forbid, something were to happen to ME? I didn't want to think about it, but it was something that I was not going to leave to chance. I wanted to make sure that, no matter what became of me, that my country would be safe.

After coming to this realization, I began coming up with ideas that would ensure the overall safety of Equestria and my subjects. One of those ideas was the forming of the Earth-Unicorn-Pegasi of the Protective Pony Platoons, or simply the E.U.P. Guard for short. Made up of the best, brightest, and strongest of each of the three races, they would be the first line of defense against any enemy. It was not long after that, one year to be exact, that during the celebration of the First Celestial Year of Peace, that the impressive display of General Firefly's Pegasi squadron led to the creation of the aerial fighting force known today as the Wonderbolts. To this day, they proved themselves to be the most effective means of protecting the country. It was truly a glorious time indeed...

The next decision I made to improve the safety of Equestria involved the School for Gifted Unicorns: I had already established this facility to help Unicorns with exceptional magical abilities to hone and perfect their skills. However, after the first Nightmare Moon incident, I made significant improvements to the classes that specialized in the use of offensive and defensive spells for use in battle. I authorized the teaching of more powerful magic in those classes. Until then, I never once thought that such spells would ever be necessary in such a peaceful country. Back then, I never gave it much thought, but I feel I made the right decision...at least, I hoped that I had.

While these new decisions gave me a better peace of mind, they did not dispell my uneasiness completely. I still felt more could be done to protect my country. I am not sure what made me think of such a thing or why, but at that moment, I came up with another idea: creating an artifical pony that would be powerful enough to ensure the safety of all. It was an...interesting idea to say the least, but also one that would prove most elusive. Such a thing had never been done, or even attempted, in Equestria before. Thus, information on the subject was next to non-existent, and at first, it seemed that such knowledge was beyond even my understanding...

The next few centuries passed by; it all seemed like a blur to me. I watched generation after generation of ponies live and work in peace. I saw young fillies and colts, who at first didn't know what their purposes in life were, become productive, even massively successful, members of society. For a time, the peace of Equestria was maintained, thanks to the decisions I made so long ago. This century, however, proved to be a very fascinating one indeed, especially on the day that I met a young Unicorn named Twilight Sparkle, who was taking a test to be accepted into the School for Gifted Unicorns. Her display of magical power was amazing; I had never encountered such powerful magic before. And when I saw the cutie mark that appeared upon her, I knew she was meant for a greater role in the future. So I took it upon myself to teach her everything I knew to prepare her for whatever her destiny had in store for her. Back then, however, I just hoped that this student of mine would prove to be better off than a previous student that I had...

During the time that I was Twilight's teacher in magic, she learned many things from me. But I also seemed to learn from her; it was a true bond between teacher and student. She was not the only pony to learn new things, as I continued to refine my own skills and mind. Then one day, I came across amazing information on a new type of knowledge: the science of robotics, the creation of artifical life. Once I learned of this, I wasted no time in trying to find out more on this subject. This was the answer to the problem that eluded me so many centuries ago. Once I felt that I knew enough about this science, I immediately began work on a new idea: The creation of a suitable guardian of Equestria.

As the years went by, I continued work on my project. Any free time that I had on my hooves that was not spent making decisions, teaching my student, or anything particularly important, was used in the creation of this new life. Using what I knew on robotics, as well as my own strong desires, I carefully and painstakingly built my creation, placing every part, wire, and circuit in their proper place. My work on the project hit a few sangs, however, when certain incidents arose, such as the return of my sister as Nightmare Moon, the sudden and unexpected arrival of Discord, the attack by the Changelings, and the reappearance of the Crystal Empire. Still, despite these temporary setbacks, I was determined to finish my work. And while my faithful student and her newfound friends have done well to protect Equestria and its citzens, and while I am confident in their abilities, I do not want to continue to put them in any more danger than what they have already experienced so far.

Eventually, I was able to complete the construction of the robot's body. I built it to look like a real pony in almost every imaginable way. The project was kept in total secrecy: No pony knew about my work on the robot. Not my guards, not my advisors, not my student and her friends, and not even my own sister, Luna. It wasn't that I didn't trust them with such a secret, but I had my own reasons for not telling anypony. But I knew they would have to know soon, as my creation was nearly finished.

As of writing this portion of my memoirs, I am also writing a suitable program to be downloaded into my creation's brain, or "CPU" as I heard it was called. This programming would not only allow my creation to fulfill its assigned duties, but also allow it to act as a normal pony. My goal wasn't simply to make a war machine; far from it. I wanted to create a life that would not only perform admirably to protect others, but also have a reason to WANT to do it. I wanted it to make friends with the ponies that it would have to protect.

As I have learned from the letters that Twilight and her friends have sent me, the desire to protect those that you consider to be your friends is quite a powerful feeling. I want my creation to have that same desire, so that it will protect everypony without having to think about it, and not just simply because that's what it was programmed to do. I also have plans for another function for this robot; a function that will encourage it to accept help from anypony willing to fight for the greater good. While I want it to be capable of handling most threats alone, I know that some forces may be too powerful for a pony to face alone, and that is the reason for this new device.

Once the programming is complete and all of its other functions are ready to go, I will finally be ready to unveil my creation to the ponies that I trust the most. From that point on, I can only wait and see if my work will truely be a success...

[Equestria / Year 20XX, Equestrian Calender]

The mid-morning sun shone brightly in the sky above, a sign that today was going to be a pleasent day for many, especially in the small, quiet town of Ponyville. Although the town was not quite as big as other places in Equestria, such as the royal city of Canterlot or the vast metropolis that was Manehatten, it was the ideal home for the ponies that lived there. Everypony knew each other, was kind to each other for the most part, and the overall look and feel of the place was soothing to the soul. What it may have lacked in size and notoriety, it more than made up for in serenity and good-natured citizens.

Trotting down the streets of Ponyville on this day was a young female Unicorn, heading for a specific destination. She had a white coat and a beautiful, swirly violet mane and tail. Her eyes were dark blue in color, and her eyelids were topped off with light-blue eyeshadow and large eyelashes. Her other most defining feature, of course, was the emblem that was proudly displayed on either side of her rear, known as a "cutie mark". The mark that was there was a picture of three blue, four-sided diamonds. On her back were a pair of bags, with latches that resembled her cutie mark.

The Unicorn was making her way to a large tree not far from the center of town. Of course, it was no ordinary tree; it was actually Ponyville's Golden Oaks Library, built inside the towering plant. The Unicorn walked up to the the red door that served as the library's entrance and tapped on it with one of her front hooves.

The door was answered by another female Unicorn, but this one was different in appearance. She had a lavender-colored coat and a straight, purple mane and tail, the latter two each having a long hot-pink streak running down the middle. She had purple eyes and her cutie mark was a picture of a pink, six-pointed star, surrounded by five white, smaller stars. The lavender Unicorn smiled at her guest and greeted her, saying, "Oh, it's you, Rarity. Good morning."

"Good morning to you as well, Twilight dear." the white Unicorn, named Rarity, greeted back.

"What can I do for you today?" asked the other Unicorn, named Twilight.

"Well, I had just gotten an order today from a client, a very well-known mare at that, too." Rarity explained. The order in question was for a custom-made dress; the white Unicorn worked as a fashion designer in Ponyville. "The trouble is," she continued, "the specifications for her outfit were, well...let us just say that they were not the usual sort of thing that I have done in past projects. So, I was just wondering if you-"

Twilight interrupted, asking, "If I had a book on the subject? I probably do. As I'm sure you're aware by now, I've got books on almost anything and EVERYTHING. What sort of specifications were they? Just tell me and I'll see what I have in stock."

The two Unicorns strolled around the inside of the library as Rarity told her friend exactly what her client asked of her. Sure enough, Twilight had exactly the correct reference material that she needed. Once the book was located, a young dragon that was with them insisted on getting it from the high shelf. The dragon was about the size of a baby for his species, but he seemed to be a bit older than his appearance suggested. His body was covered in pale purple scales, had a light-green underbelly, green fin-like appendages that ran from the top of his head to the tip of his tail, and two light-green ears on either side of his face.

"Are you sure you can get it from that high up, Spike?" Twilight asked the young dragon.

"I'm sure, I'm sure...Don't be such a worrywart, Twilight." Spike replied. He then swiftly pulled out the right book, but lost his balance on the ladder and fell off. "WOAH!!" Fortunately, the shelf he came from wasn't that high up, so the worst he got from the fall was a sore bottom. "See? Told ya I'd be alright." he added, wiping off the dust from his chest and stomach area.

Twilight sighed in response to what just happened. (Sometimes,) she thought to herself, (I think that Spike's common sense goes out the window the minute that Rarity's around...)

The young dragon then proudly presented the book to the white Unicorn. "Here's the book you wanted, Miss Rarity..." he said, sighing happily.

Rarity giggled and used her Unicorn magic to levitate the book from Spike's grasp. "Oh, yes, thank you so very much for getting it for me, Spikey-poo." she replied amusingly.

The dragon looked away, blushing. (Anything for you...) he thought to himself.

The white Unicorn then moved the book into one of her saddlebags. "Now remember to bring that book back in two weeks, Rarity." Twilight informed her. "I'd really hate to have to make one of my friends pay a fine for bringing a book back late...Like I had to do with Rainbow Dash when she didn't return one of my Daring Do books right away. I know it was only two days late, but still-"

"Oh, do not worry yourself, dear." the white Unicorn assured her. "I'm no stranger to deadlines and I promise to return it on time."

Before the two could say another word, however, they suddenly heard some coughing sounds coming from Spike. They turned over to look at him, seeing that he was clutching onto his stomach. "Oh no...not again..." he groaned.

"Spike, what did I tell you about eating all of the ice cream?" the lavender Unicorn asked him sternly. "You know you get a stomachache when you eat too much."

"Urk...It's-it's not that, Twilight..." the dragon said between groans. "It's...oh...it's..."

Then, all of a sudden, Spike's cheeks puffed up and he let out a firey burp. The flame that came out was bright green in color, but it didn't stay a flame for long; it snuffed out into a black, smoky cloud, which then in turn, transformed into a scroll of paper.

Immediately, Twilight and Rarity knew exactly what it was. Using her magic, Twilight picked up the scroll and unfurled it. "It's a letter from Princess Celestia." she stated.

"A letter from the Princess?" asked the white Unicorn. "What does it say?"

Twilight read the letter, but something seemed a bit unusual about it. "Not much, Rarity..." she answered her friend. "All it says for me to do is to gather all of my friends and take the next train to Canterlot. Besides the seven train tickets enclosed in the letter, that's about it..."

"How very...strange..." Rarity responded. "It is not like the Princess to be so vague. Usually when she sends a letter to you, it's at least a little bit more specific than this one is..."

"Well, I suppose we'll find out what's going on soon enough." said the lavender Unicorn as she placed the letter, the train tickets, and a few other things in her own set of saddlebags (which had latches shaped like her cutie mark, like Rarity's did). After putting the bags on her back, she then stated, "I'm gonna go and find Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. You go and get Pinkie Pie and Applejack. We'll all meet in front of the Train Station. Is that clear?"

"I'm on it." Rarity replied. "I shall see you there shortly." The white Unicorn then ran off to find their other friends.

"Alright then, Spike," Twilight said to her dragon friend, "let's get going." She then turned to an owl sitting in the main room and told it, "Owlowiscious, keep an eye on the place while we're gone."

"Hoo." the owl simply said back.

"You, of course!" Spike said to the owl, incorrectly thinking that it said something else.

Twilight sighed and said to her assistant, "Spike, we don't have time for this right now...I'll explain it to you on the train ride." As they left, she then muttered to herself, (Honestly, how many times do I have to explain it to him before he realizes that's how Owlowiscious always talks...?)

The Ponyville Train Station was a relatively lively and busy place, as ponies from all over Equestria constantly interacted with each other. Some were natives of the town, taking the train to another place entirely. Others were visiting Ponyville from far away. All in all, the station saw a lot of business on a daily basis.

As a train left the station, an announcement came over the loudspeakers set up around the building. The announcement stated that the next train was bound for Canterlot, and that it would arrive in exactly a half-hour. After that, the announcer then said that the train would then leave for its destination in another half-hour upon its arrival. Not long after the announcement was made, Twilight and Spike had made their way to the station's front entrance, just in time to see their friend Rarity just getting there as well. They weren't alone, though; each of the two Unicorns were followed by two other ponies.

Behind Twilight and Spike were a pair of Pegasi, ponies with the ability to fly. The first one, hovering in the air with the aid of her wings, had a cyan-colored coat and a mane and tail that consisted of all of the colors of the rainbow. The scruffiness of her mane and tail suggested that keeping such things neat and stylish wasn't a concern of hers. She had magenta-colored eyes and her cutie mark was a picture of a storm cloud with a rainbow-colored lightning bolt. The other Pegasus, who wasn't airborne, had a yellow coat and a long pink mane with a medium-length tail, also pink. The mane on this Pegasus seemed to be better taken care of compared to the other Pegasus. Her eyes were turquoise in color, and her cutie mark was a trio of pink butterflies arranged in a triangle pattern.

Behind Rarity were two Earth Ponies; while they lacked the magical and flying abilities of the Unicorns and Pegasi respectively, they made up for it with their inherently high physical strength and vitality, which allowed them to easily take care of their usual duties. The first of the two had an orange-colored coat, with a blond mane and tail, each one done up in (what else) a ponytail. She had green eyes, and wore a brown cowboy hat on her head. Her cutie mark was a trio of apples, arranged in a triangle pattern. The other Earth Pony, who was continuously hopping up and down in place, was all pink in color: Her coat was light-pink, and her puffed-up mane and tail were colored in a darker hot pink. Her large eyes, which gave off an abundance of youthful energy, were cyan-colored, and her cutie mark was made up of three balloons: One was yellow with a blue string, the other two were blue with yellow strings.

Once they all gathered in front of the station, Twilight cleared her throat and said to them, "Thanks for coming over here, everypony."

"No problem, Twilight." the orange pony responded, her southern accent very prominent in her speaking. "But, Ah have to ask, it seems kinda strange that ya'll would ask us to come out here, but not tell us why...That's not like you, Twilight."

"Yeah, Applejack's got a point." the cyan-and-rainbow Pegasus added. "Usually when you want us all to meet up like this, you let us know what it's all about first. So what's the deal?"

"To be honest, I'm not really that sure myself, Rainbow Dash..." the lavender Unicorn told the Pegasus. "All I know was that we had to take the next train to Canterlot, possibly to meet with the Princess. That's...about all I can gather from the letter she sent me." She then took the letter out of her saddlebag and showed it to everypony to reinforce what she told them.

The pink pony looked at the letter closely (both figuratively and literally; she had pressed her nuzzle against the parchment in question). She hummed a bit to herself in deep thought before saying, "Oooh! I know! I'll betcha that the Princess wrote most of it with invisible ink!"

"In...visible ink...?" asked Rarity, slightly confused.

"Uh, DUH! Of course!" the pink pony responded immdiately. "That's what I would do! I write all sortsa superly secret stuff in invisible ink! But I kept losing the ink vial, so I wrote a note to myself to remind me where I put the silly thing! The trouble is, I wrote THAT note in invisible ink, and wasn't able to read it, so I STILL can't figure out where I put it! I know I had some really special glasses that let me read those secret notes to myself, but I can't find them because the note that reminded me where they were was also written with invisi-"

"Alright, aready!!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "I think we get the point, Pinkie Pie!"

Twilight breathed out a small sigh and said to her energetic pink friend, "Pinkie, I'm pretty sure that if the Princess wrote some of the letter in invisible ink, she would've told me."

"Well that stinks...We're no closer to figuring out what the Princess wants us for..." groaned the cyan Pegasus.

"Ah think we'd just be better off gettin' ourselves into that train, go to Canterlot, and let the Princess herself tell us what she wants us all for." Applejack recommended.

"I suppose that is our best possible option." Rarity said, agreeing with the orange pony. "Let us get onboard before it departs." The others nodded and they all walked into the train station together. They showed their tickets to the attendant inside, and he let them pass through. Once the train finally arrived, the seven of them got onboard and took their seats. The train set off for its destination soon after.

The train ride wasn't terribly long, as Canterlot wasn't that far away from Ponyville (it was, after all, visible from the town). The ride was about 45 or so minutes long after departing from town. Once the train stopped, Twilight and her friends stepped out onto the platform in the Canterlot Train Station. The city was an impressive sight to behold; after all, it was the royal capital city of Equestria. The city looked bright, clean, and well-kept. Due to its appearance, only the richest and most important ponies could call this place home. But for Twilight and her friends, there was no time for sightseeing. They had to get to the castle ASAP.

The group made their way up to the castle gates. As expected, there were a pair of male ponies in golden-colored armor that served as the guards. As Twilight approached them, one of them stood in her way and said in a serious voice, "Halt! State your business."

Twilight wasn't even slightly irritated from his tone of voice, as she understood that they were only doing their job. She simply used her magic to pull out the letter she got from Princess Celestia to show them. "I'm Twilight Sparkle." she said to them. "Princess Celestia is expecting me."

The guards looked at the letter and saw that it had the Princess's official seal on it. That was enough to allow themselves to drop their guard and allow entry. "Very well, then. You may enter." said the other guard. "The Princess is waiting for you all in the Throne Room. I assume you know the way there?"

"I do. Thanks." the lavender-colored Unicorn responded. She and the others then walked through the gates and made their way into the castle, heading for the Throne Room.

The seven of them walked through the rooms, hallways, and many staircases within the castle in order to reach their overall destination. As they walked, the yellow Pegasus glanced around repeatedly, as if she felt that somepony was watching her. "You okay, Fluttershy?" asked Rainbow Dash, flying over to her seemingly worried friend.

"Oh, I'm...I'm fine." the yellow Pegasus answered in a very low voice. "It's just...these large hallways kind of make me feel, well...uneasy."

"Aw, don't fret yerself, Sugarcube." Applejack said to her. "There ain't nothing to be scared of in here, trust me."

"O-okay...I will." Fluttershy replied, though she still felt a bit timid.

In no time at all, the group made their way to the large double doors that led to the Throne Room. After Twilight used her magic to operate the door handle and opened the way in, she and the others were surprised to see three other ponies inside, seemingly waiting for something...or somepony.

The first of the three was a rare type of pony known as an Alicorn; a pony that had the combined traits of Earth Ponies, Unicorns, and Pegasi, only more powerful. As a result, she had a long Unicorn horn, large Pegasus wings, and her overall body size was larger than most other ponies. This Alicorn in particular had a coat that was colored a very dark blue with a long, flowing mane and tail that were mostly dark blue, with a slightly transparent purple trim. Her beautiful eyes were teal in color, she wore a black crown upon her head, a black chestplate with a white cresent moon shape emblazoned upon it, and had four shiny, lavender hoofplates on her hooves. Her cutie mark showed a partial black night sky with a bright white cresent moon in the middle of it.

The second of the three was also an Alicorn, though she was slightly smaller than the other one. She had a light-pink coat and her mane and tail were colored in streaks of violet, hot pink, and pale yellow. Her Alicorn wings had purple-tipped feathers, and she had vibrant violet-colored eyes. She wore a gold crown on her head, a gold chestplate, and gold hoofplates. Her cutie mark depicted a heart-shaped crystal; it was actually a picture of the mystical Crystal Heart, which brought power to the Crystal Empire that this Alicorn ruled over.

The third pony in the room was a male, white Unicorn with a dark-blue mane and tail, with cyan-colored streaks running down the center of both. His eyes were sky blue, and he had navy blue hooves at the ends of his legs. His cutie mark was a picture of a dark-blue shield, decorated further with a pink star shape that looked strikingly similar to the star shape that was Twilight's cutie mark.

Twilight and her friends recognized the other three immediately. "Why, it's Princesses Luna and Cadance!" said Rarity, pointing to the dark-blue and pink Alicorns respectively.

Twilight's eyes lit up the moment she saw the white Unicorn stallion. "Shining Armor!!" she cheerfully called out to him. "Over here!!"

The stallion glanced over at the lavender Unicorn. Once he saw her, he displayed a similar feeling of joy. "Twily!" he called out, waving his left front hoof. Twilight ran over to him and hugged him tightly. Hugging her back, he said to her, "Good to see ya again, little sis."

"It's good to see you too, BBBFF!" replied the lavender Unicorn. "BBBFF" stood for "Big Brother Best Friend Forever". The two were siblings that loved each other very much, as much as siblings could love one another.

The pink Alicorn, Princess Cadance, smiled at the moment as she walked over to the two of them. "When your brother found out that I was called to come over here," she told the lavender Unicorn, "he insisted on coming with me, since he knew you would show up, too. Since Celestia was okay with it, we got on the next train together."

"Thanks, Princess Cadance." Twilight politely responded. "It's good to see you as well. How have things been since you and my brother got married and started ruling the Crystal Empire?"

"Pretty slow and dull, actually." the pink Alicorn answered with a slight giggle. "But if it means that there's no chance of dealing with changelings or a power-mad Unicorn, I'll take 'slow and dull' any day."

Twilight giggled a bit at her sister-in-law's answer. Clearing her throat, she then asked her, "Cadance, do you happen to know what it is that Princess Celestia called you over here for?"

Cadance let out a sigh and replied, saying, "The truth is, I have no idea."

"What?? You don't?!"

Shining Armor walked over towards his wife and said to his sister, "I can back her up on that. All the letter said was that she had to come over here to Canterlot Castle as soon as she could. Besides that, nothing. Not a single thing."

"That don't make a lick o' sense..." noted Applejack. "This is just gettin' weirder and weirder by the minute..."

Fluttershy then walked over to the dark-blue Alicorn, Princess Luna. "Um, e-excuse me, Your Highness..." the yellow Pegasus meekly asked, "but did Princess Celestia tell you anything about why we all had to come here...? That is, if you don't mind me asking..."

Luna hummed solemnly and answered her, saying, "I do aplogize...but I am afraid that I am just as much in dark about it as all of you are. After my sister raised the sun this morning, she told me to go to the Throne Room and wait for all of you to come here...But she didn't tell me why, which, I must admit, has me a bit worried..."

"That's so strange..." Rarity noted. "She didn't even inform you, either??"

"With all due respect and whatever," Rainbow Dash added, "what kinda pony goes all secretive on her own sister?"

"I am sure there is a reason, truely I do." the dark-blue Alicorn informed them. "But still, I would hate to think that my own sister would have some skeletons in her closet..."

"Well, that's pretty silly!" Pinkie Pie chimed in. "Why would she wanna put someponies' skeletons in her closet?? I put much better things in MY closet like cakes, pies, cupcakes, candy, cherries, cherry-changas, chimi-cherry-changas..."

"Princess Luna didn't mean that literally..." Twilight informed her pink friend. "That phrase refers to somepony having some sort of dark, unsettling secrets..."

"...Ohhhhhhh." Pinkie replied, finally understanding. "Well, that makes a WHOLE LOT more sense! But it's still a silly phrase, though...Did somepony come up with that when they found actual skeletons in a closet? It makes you wonder..." Twilight rolled her eyes, but admitted to herself that her friend (sorta) made a good point.

Just then, the group of ten heard the sounds of hoofsteps coming their way. "Is that...?" began Spike, having an idea of who it was that was making those sounds.

"Yep, it's gotta be Princess Celestia..." Twilight answered her dragon friend's unfinished question.

"Well, I suppose that whatever my sister has been keeping secret all this time," Luna noted, "we shall now know what it is in but a moment..."

The group waited anxiously as the doors opened wide, revealing the pony that they had been waiting to see this whole time: Princess Celestia. The Alicorn princess was extremely beautiful: She had a bright white coat, and her long, constantly flowing mane and tail displayed vibrant streaks of green, blue, purple, and violet colors. Her wings were very large, even for Alicorn standards, and she had sparkling lavender eyes. Her gold crown and chestplate were each decorated with a small, violet, four-pointed jewel, and she wore four golden hoofplates. Finally, Celestia's cutie mark was a picture of the sun, and it seemed almost as bright as the real article.

Celestia glanced around at the group assembled before her for a while, before deciding to speak. "I am glad to see that all of you arrived here safely." she said. "No doubt, all of you are wondering why I asked you to come here, am I correct?" The ponies (and dragon) in the room nodded to say yes. Celestia let out a small smile and added, "Well, do not worry. I plan to reveal everything to you before you all leave this castle. But rest assured, there is nothing to worry about; I have not called you here because of any crisis or anything of the sort."

The group breathed a slight sigh of relief. "That's good to hear..." Fluttershy responded, not keen on the idea of having to deal with another evil villian or massive danger.

"But, Sister..." Luna asked Celestia, "if that is not the reason, then why must you be so secretive about it all?"

"As I said, I plan on revealing everything to you and everypony else today." the white Alicorn assured her younger sister. "The reason I wanted you all to come here rather than explain it on the letters I sent...Well, I feel it would be more appropriate to show you rather than to tell you." Celestia then headed towards the doors out of the room and instructed the group, "If you would all follow me, please..." The rest nodded and did just as she asked of them, heading down the stairs leading out.

Celestia led the group down deeper and deeper into the castle through hallways and staircases that seemed to go on forever. Eventually, they reached what seemed to be a dead end chamber. Before anypony could ask what was going on, the white Alicorn used her right front hoof and tapped a specific area of the wall in front of them on the far right side. After she did so, a small portion of the area she tapped suddenly slid aside, revealing a silvery-metallic keypad with numbered buttons. She then used her magic to press a series of buttons in a certain order.

After she did so, a voice then came from the keypad. "NUMERICAL PASSWORD ACCEPTED." it said in a robotic female voice. "PRESENT VOICE RECOGNITION."

The white Alicorn then cleared her throat and said, "I am Princess Celestia."

After about a second or two, the voice then responded, saying, "VOICE RECOGNITION CONFIRMED. WELCOME BACK, PRINCESS CELESTIA."

The rest of the group was confused as to what was taking place, but that was quickly pushed out of their minds when the area around them began to tremble. "Wh-wh-what's going o-o-on?!?" Twilight frantically asked, trying to keep her balance.

"The floor!!" Rarity added, "I-it's shaking fer-r-rociously!!"

"Aiyiyiyiyi!!!" Pinkie Pie cried out in panic. "Why is e-e-everything all tw-w-witchy-twitchy?!?"

"Wait, l-l-look at that!" Shining Armor told the others as he pointed his left front hoof at the wall before them. The rest were shocked to see that a large portion of it was sliding upwards, revealing a long, dark staircase behind it. Finally, after about a half a minute of constant tremors, the wall finally slid all the way up and the shaking stopped.

Needless to say, those who witnessed this event were in complete shock and awe of what took place. "Well, I'll be..." Applejack said, breaking the awkward silence. "It's some sorta secret passageway..."

"So awesome..." Rainbow Dash complimented, extremely impressed.

"But...what's it for?" asked Cadance. "What's behind it?"

"You'll see." Celestia informed her group. "Just follow me, and be careful; it's a long staircase and it's pretty dark down there." The white Alicorn then used her magic to make her horn glow brightly in order to provide some light on the trip down. The other Alicorns and Unicorns decided to do the same and used their magic to provide additional light. One by one, they entered the secret chamber, not sure what to expect.

Just as Celestia informed them, the spiral staircase went quite a long ways down, and it probably would have been pitch-black if it weren't for the sources of light produced by the Alicorns and Unicorns within the group. After what seemed like hours (when, really, it was about 5 or so minutes), the group finally reached the bottom of the staircase, standing in front of a large, metal door. Princess Celestia then pressed her right front hoof on a large, red button beside the door, which opened it. What was behind said door caused everypony else in the group to gasp in shock and amazement...

The room behind the door looked like it came out of future, as all sorts of large and strange machines were set up everywhere. Towering supercomputers lined the walls, and generators supplied clean, constant energy to power them up and keep them active. But it was what was in the center of the room that caught everypony's attention. The group stared up at a gigantic, cylindrical, metal capsule set up on a large podium of sorts. The podium itself had several computers relaying data and information, presumably about what was inside.

Princess Celestia walked up towards the towering capsule and said, "Everypony...this is it." She then tapped the side of capsule and continued, saying, "This is the reason I called you all here. Within this capsule lies my soon-to-be-former secret project."

"Secret project?" asked Twilight. "What kind of secret project?"

The white Alicorn took a deep breath and answered her faithful student, telling her and the others, "Many centuries ago, when I was the only princess left to keep watch over Equestria, I was desperately seeking ways to better safegaurd the country. This inculded many things, such as the forming of the E.U.P., the Wonderbolts, and allowing more powerful magic spells to be taught in the School for Gifted Unicorns. But another one of those ideas was something enitrely different..." She paused for a moment before continuing. "It was only yesterday that I was able to finish that idea completely. And now I feel ready to reveal it to those that I trust the most..."

Everypony looked at each other; they weren't sure what Celestia was talking about, but they knew it wouldn't be much longer before they found out.

The princess then pressed another button and said to them all, "Without any further delays, I now present to you all...what I hope shall be my greatest gift to all of Equestria..." As she spoke, the metal cylinder began to descend, revealing a reinforced glass capsule inside of it. As it slowly descended, the rest of the group were on pins and needles wondering what was in there. Fluttershy was a bit terrified at what was going on, but Rainbow Dash stood beside her to help give her some comfort.

Once the metal cover fully retracted into the podium, the group was finally able to see what was in there. Needless to say, they weren't expecting to see what they saw in the glass capsule.

"Wha...?" Luna began asking. "What...what is that...??"

"Oh my goodness...!" Rarity added.

"...Huh...well that's something ya don't see every day..." noted Rainbow Dash.

Inside the glass capsule was what appeared to be a male pony, but there was something peculiar about him. His body was mostly blue in color, save for his peach-colored face. Most of his body area was cyan-colored, but the hoof area on each of his legs seemed to be covered with a boot-like object. The "boots" were a much darker shade of blue than the rest of him, with trims and hoofplates that were a slightly lighter shade of blue. His tail was colored the same dark blue as his boots, and he also wore what appeared to be a dark-blue helmet, with a Unicorn horn and ears that were light-blue poking out of it. His eye color wasn't visible as his eyes were closed completely shut. His cutie mark showed a small, pale-yellow oval with a highlight on it. The strange pony stood on all fours inside of the capsule, completely motionless.

"P-P-Princess Celestia...?" Twilight asked meekly, having a bit of a "Fluttershy-like Moment" herself. "What...what is that? Is it a...a pony...?"

The white Alicorn nodded. "In a way, yes." she answered. "But he is not any ordinary pony..." She then flew up onto the podium, stood beside the capsule, and continued, saying, "This...is Mega Pony: The first fully-robotic pony in all of Equestria."

All of the others gasped at what Celestia had told them. "Wait-wait-wait, hold up a sec..." Rainbow Dash started. "Did you just say that he's a...a robot?"

Celestia nodded yes and said, "I did indeed."

Rarity walked closer to the capsule to get a better look at the robot pony. "Simply marvelous..." the white Unicorn mare stated. "I must admit, I never would have guessed that it was a robot..."

"Yeah, me neither..." Shining Armor added, putting in his own thoughts about it. "That thing looks NOTHING like the robots in those movies that Cadance and I went to see while we were dating."

"But what's it s'pposed to do?" asked Applejack, curious.

"I am glad that you asked, Applejack." Celestia replied. Looking at her creation, she stated, "Mega Pony was designed for many things. But his main directive...is to act as the ultimate guardian of all of Equestria."

"Ultimate guardian?!" asked the others in unison, surprised at this declaration.

"Indeed." the white Alicorn confirmed. "Mega Pony was built to be able to combat almost any threat that comes his way. His armor is built out of the hardest known metals in the country; his Unicorn horn has the power to store energy and release it in the form of energy bullets. He can also store even greater amounts of energy and hold a charge to unleash a more powerful shot, should such a thing be necessary. In addition, he draws power from a revolutionary solar core that recharges by absorbing energy from the sun; at full capacity, he can remain fully functional for about 10 hours when he is not exposed to the sun, before he needs to be recharged."

"That's amazing..." Luna complimented, obivously impressed with her sister's creation. But then she asked, "But I must ask: Why did you not tell us about this 'Mega Pony' before?"

"I meant no offense to you, Luna, or anypony else." stated Celestia. "I do indeed trust you all, and I knew you would keep this a secret if I had told you all sooner. My reason for not doing so is actually very simple: I just wanted to wait until my work was complete before I showed it to anypony."

"I see..." Rarity spoke up. "I understand now. You just wanted to be sure that your creation would be perfect for when you presented it to us. Believe me, I know the feeling."

"Yeah, same here!" added Pinkie Pie, somehow stretching her neck so that her head was right in front of Rarity's face. "It's kinda like getting a surprise party! I mean, what's the fun of getting a surprise party if you already KNOW about the surprise??"

Twilight was no doubt impressed as she looked upon the robot pony inside the capsule. Then, mustering up her courage, she then asked Celestia a question that came to her shortly after the Alicorn's creation was revealed. "Princess Celestia?" she inquired.

The white Alicorn glanced over at her student and responded, asking, "Yes, Twilight? Is something troubling you?"

"Well, it's nothing really..." the lavender Unicorn said. "It's just that...you said that this robot was built to protect Equestria...But...well, not to go against anything you do, it's just..." Twilight got a little tongue-tied, as the question she was asking was something she didn't seem to want to ask.

But Celestia simply smiled as she flew over towards her student and said to her, "I think I know what you wish to ask me. You are wondering why I built Mega Pony when you and your friends have done so much to keep Equestria safe from harm. Rest assured, I have not forgotten, nor will I ever forget, the service that you and your friends have done for the safety of everypony. Mega Pony was not built to replace you all, rather, he was built to assist you in ensuring the greater safety of the country." The white Alicorn then strolled towards the podium and added, "In fact, you could say that Mega Pony is a living testament to all of the things that you and your friends have done to benefit Equestria and all those who live here."

"R-really...?" asked the lavender Unicorn.

Celestia nodded. "Which brings me to the part of Mega Pony that I am most proud of creating:" she continued. "His brain, or as it is also called, his Central Processing Unit. It houses a powerful artifical intellegence (A.I. for short) that contains his core programming. To put it in simpler terms, his CPU allows him to think logically and solve even the most complex problems in mere seconds. And though he does not possess a true free will to make his own choices and decisions in life like we do, his A.I. will allow him to have something close to it; he will be able have feelings, care for others besides himself, and be able to interact with other ponies as much as a 'real pony' would.

"But that is just the beginning." she continued. "The personality that I programmed into him is what is most remarkable about him, for his personality is actually a perfect combination of the most positive traits of most of you here."

"A combination of us?" asked Twilight.

"Yes...exactly." replied the white Alicorn. "For instance, he possesses your intellegence and leadership skills, Applejack's honesty and ability to know right from wrong, Rainbow Dash's loyalty and courage, Rarity's generosity and selfless nature, Fluttershy's kindness and mercy towards others, Pinkie Pie's happiness and youthfulness, my own benevolence and sense of justice, Luna's power and determination, and Cadance's love and trust. With such positive traits within his personality, he will be able to perform his duties of protecting others and enjoy them for the right reasons, while also being able to live amongst us as a normal citizen."

"That sounds amazing..." Cadance complimented. "I never would have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes!"

"Um, if it's okay for me to ask..." Fluttershy began, "is there anything else that he can do?"

"Well, there are some other functions that I have added to Mega Pony to allow him to fulfill his programming." Celestia answered. "However, he will know of those functions in time, once his progamming has fully integrated with his A.I. But that won't start happening until he is activated." The white Alicorn then walked back over to Twilight and glanced over at her sister and Cadance before saying, "Twilight...Luna...Cadance...It is finally time to introduce Mega Pony to the world, and I will require your assistance."

The three of them nodded to say that they were ready for whatever they had to do.

"Very well." said Celestia, walking over to a panel with a large red button. "On this podium are four red buttons, including the one I am standing in front of now. The three of you are to walk over to one of the remaining buttons. Once I give the signal, we will press them all at the same time. This will start the activation sequence and supply the necessary power to bring my creation to life. Is that clear to all of you?"

"Yes, Princess." said Twilight.

"I understand completely." added Luna.

"As do I." Candace then finished.

"Very well, then...We press the buttons on the count of three..." instructed Celestia. The four of them each hovered their right front hoof over the button in front of them, waiting for the signal.

The rest of the group took a few steps back, not sure what was going to happen next.

Princess Celestia then took a breath and began counting...

"1...

"2...

"...3!"

And at that moment, the four of them pressed the buttons that were in front of them at the same time, and the machine started up. The room was filled with a blinding light as bolts of raw electricity filled the glass capsule. Almost immediately, the group backed off and put as much distance between them and the wild light show in front of them as possible. The crackling noises of the electricity coming out of the device was near-deafening, and it almost seemed that it would never end. But then, the machine stopped almost as suddenly as it started, its job complete.

The group had shielded their eyes as best they could, but once they heard that the machine had stopped, they opened their eyes and moved their front hooves away from their faces. "Is ev'rypony alright?" asked Applejack.

"Ummm...well, most of us are, anyway..." Rarity answered, pointing her right front hoof to her side. When the others glanced in the area that she was pointing, they saw Fluttershy had fallen to the floor; the sudden bright lights and loud noises scared her so much, she ended up fainting at some point.

"I'll take care of it." said Cadance, walking over to the yellow Pegasus. She then used her Alicorn magic and sprayed her with a shot of water from out of thin air.

Immediately, the easily-startled pony coughed a little as she woke up from her dazed state. "What happened...?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing much..." Rainbow Dash answered with slight sarcasm. "You just fainted again, that's all." Upon hearing that, Fluttershy blushed a little out of embarrassment.

Celestia looked towards the capsule that contained her creation. "So, did it work, Sister?" asked Luna, walking beside her.

"We'll see soon enough..." replied the white Alicorn. She then used her magic to operate the controls on the podium, which opened the glass chamber. Once the glass was out of the way, the entire group slowly walked towards the platform that the robot pony was standing on, waiting to see if the princess's experiment was a success.

Then, all of a sudden, the robot's eyelids began to twitch a little before they slowly opened, revealing a pair of bright, baby-blue eyes. The group watched in slight awe as they saw him slowly come to life. He glanced to his right side, then to his left. He then looked ahead and tilted his head downward, where he saw the ponies (and dragon) that could only stare back.

Tilting his head a little, the robot then stared at them for a while before finally breaking the silence in the room.

"...H...hello?"

The group then gasped when the mechanical pony spoke to them. They exchanged surprised looks and whispered to each other as Princess Celestia walked over to her creation to introduce herself.

"Hello there..." the white Alicorn said to the robot. "Let me be the first to welcome you to our world."

The robot glanced up at her and asked, "Wh-who are you?"

"My name is Celestia." she answered. "Princess of the land of Equestria, and your creator."

"My creator?" the robot then asked.

Celestia nodded. "Yes, that's right." she told him. "Your name is Mega Pony, the first fully-robotic pony in all of Equestria."

"Robotic...?" he asked. He then closed his eyes for a brief moment. Opening them back up again, he then said, "Yes...yes, that's right. My name is Mega Pony...model PCN-001." The robot then glanced back at the princess and added, "And you are...Princess Celestia...my creator...Yes...yes, it's all coming to me now...I don't know why, but it is."

(Good...) thought the white Alicorn, (his progamming is beginning to slowly intergrate into his CPU. Soon, he will know what his purpose is, and from there, it all comes down to whether he will be able to accept it or not...)

Mega Pony glanced around the room that he was in, very curious about everything and everypony around him. It was only natural that he felt sensations of curiosity and confusion, since he was just "born". He then said in a low voice, "I am not...sure what to make of all this...My sensors say that we are in a 'castle', and I know what a 'castle' is...I'm just not sure why. It's all so...bizarre..."

"Amazing..." Luna said to her sister. "He hasn't even been active for five minutes, and he's already become self-aware. He's taking in data from his surroundings, and has begun to process it into logical thoughts and feelings...I'm very impressed; you have certainly outdone yourself."

"Perhaps..." Celestia replied. "But what it really comes down to is whether or not he'll be able to accept what he was made to do..."

"What do you mean, Sister?"

As the two sisters talked with one another, the other individuals in the room decided to break the ice and introduce themselves to the pony robot. Twilight decided to go first, walking up to him and putting out her right front hoof. "Hello, Mega Pony." she said to him. "My name is Twilight Sparkle. It's great to meet you."

"Um, yes...you as well." he replied, putting his right front hoof up against hers. He then added, "You seem to speak to Princess Celestia a lot...Do you two know each other?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact." the lavender Unicorn. "I was her student for most of my life. Well, technically, I still AM her student, but I'm studying abroad right now."

"Student..." said Mega Pony, thinking about that word. He then exclaimed, "Oh, yes! Student! That's...somepony who studies under the tutelage of a teacher or instructor."

"Um, yeah! That's right!" Twilight replied, impressed with how quickly Mega Pony was able to define the word so well. "You're pretty smart...That's something that I can definitely respect."

"Uh, thanks I guess..." the robot responded, letting out a slight giggle. "So who are all of these ponies with you?" he then asked.

"Come here, and I'll introduce you to them." the Unicorn told him. She then stopped in front of her orange Earth Pony friend first and said, "This is Applejack..."

"Howdy there, Mega Pony." the cowboy hat-wearing pony responded.

Twilight continued on, going to each of her friends. "...Next, there's Rainbow Dash..." she said, introducing her cyan-colored Pegasus friend next.

"What's up?" Dash replied in her usual cool-sounding voice.

"...Then, there's Rarity..."

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mega Pony." the white Unicorm mare said politely with a slight bow.

"...This here is Fluttershy..."

"Um...hello..." the yellow Pegasus responded shyly.

Twilight then began to introduce Pinkie Pie next, but before she could, the pink Earth Pony did the job for her. "Hey there!! My name's Pinkie Pie!" she said, zooming in front of the robot, doing her usual hopping in place. "I've gotta say, of all of the cool robot ponies I've ever met, you're certainly the coolest ever!"

"But...Pinkie, he's the ONLY pony robot you've ever met." Rarity chimed in.

"Yeah, I know!" the silly pink pony continued. "Which means that everything that I just said is completely and totally one-hundred percent true!"

Mega Pony was a bit taken back by how hyperactive Pinkie Pie was. Twilight walked over to his side and told him, "Don't worry about her, she's always like that."

"Oh, uh...that's okay." he replied, a slight smile forming on his face. "To be honest, it was actually kind of...funny."

Spike then went over to Mega Pony next and introduced himself. "My name's Spike." he said to him. "It's great to meet ya."

The robot then looked over at the young dragon curiously. He then said, "You...don't look like the others...So I assume that you're NOT a pony, right?"

Spike chuckled a little and answered him, saying, "No, of course not. I'm a dragon."

"A dragon..." Mega Pony responded. "Oh yes...I see now. I'm sorry, this is all still new to me. It's just taking me a while to get used to all of this..."

"I know the feeling." the young dragon replied. "Don't worry about it."

Princess Cadance and Shining Armor then went to the robot next to introduce themselves. "I am Princess Cadance, ruler of the Crystal Empire." stated the pink Alicorn. She then pointed to the white Unicorn stallion beside her and added, "And this is Shining Armor, my husband."

"Nice to meet ya." Shining Armor replied, putting out his right front hoof, which prompted Mega Pony put his hoof up as well. "I've gotta say, I like that blue armor you're sporting there. It's pretty cool."

"Uh, thanks sir." Mega Pony replied. Noticing the shield cutie mark that he was sporting, the robot pony then asked him, "Your mark...It looks similar to Twilight's...Are you two related?"

"Yeah, I'm her older brother." he answered him. "Or as she prefers to call me, her 'BBBFF'."

"BBBFF...?"

Twilight then chimed in, saying, "It's short for 'Big Brother Best Friend Forever'. Shining Armor and I got along really well when we were younger, and we still do." She then asked Mega Pony, "So what do you think of me and my friends?"

"Well, you all certainly seem nice and friendly so far." the robot answered. "I'm still trying to get used to everything that's going on, but you introducing me to all of your friends certainly helped me feel a least a little bit better about it."

As Mega Pony and the others continued to chat with each other, Celestia and Luna were still discussing some important matters regarding the robot. "I see..." the dark-blue Alicorn said, "so in order for Mega Pony to realize his programming, i.e. his purpose in life, he needs to 'grow into it' on his own, so to speak."

"Yes, however, the process can be sped up a little with the use of outside stimuli." explained Celestia. "In other words, other ponies can help him to figure out what he was meant to do, what he was designed for. It will still be a relatively slow process, but not nearly as much as waiting for it happen naturally."

"But if that is the case, then why not simply tell him what he was built for right away?" asked Luna.

"We cannot risk giving him that much information in one sitting too quickly." answered the white Alicorn. "If we're not careful about it, we could run the risk of overloading his CPU. If that happened, he could have an internal meltdown, and it might cause internal damage to his Integrated Circuit Chip, which houses his core personality. If it were damaged too severly, there would be no way to replace it."

"Oh, I see.." stated Luna, understanding her sister's concerns. "Then all I have to ask then, is how you plan on helping Mega Pony figure out what he was meant to do?"

"I have that planned out already." Celestia answered her sister. "And it is the other reason why I asked my guests to come here." The white Alicorn then walked over to Twilight and motioned the Unicorn to come speak with her and Luna.

"What is it, Princess Celestia?" asked Twilight.

Celestia took a deep breath and said, "Twilight, my faithful student, I have a new assignment for you and your friends."

"What's that?"

"I would like you to take Mega Pony with you to Ponyville and show him around, get him to meet other ponies." the white Alicorn instructed. "I believe that by doing so, it will assist him in realizing his programming and hopefully, be able to accept it."

Twilight thought about it for a bit and then figured out (rather quickly) what the point of it was. "I get it..." she began, "if he can make friends with and care about everypony in Ponyville and elsewhere, then that would give him a good reason to want to protect them. That makes sense."

"So, will you be able to handle it, then?" asked Celestia.

The lavender Unicorn nodded and happily said, "It would be my pleasure, Princess. I won't let you down!"

Celestia smiled. "I know you won't." she said. "You've never let me down before...Well, other than that time when you-"

"I KNOW..." Twilight interrupted, grumbling a little, "I remember...The whole thing with my Smarty Pants doll. Believe me, I haven't forgotten."

The white Alicorn giggled a little and said, "But seriously, I know you'll do a good job with Mega Pony. I have complete confidence in you."

The lavender Unicorn smiled and replied, saying, "Thanks, Princess Celestia. I'll do my best." Twilight then went back over to Mega Pony and the rest of her friends and said to the robot, "Mega Pony, Princess Celestia said that you ought to come with us back to Ponyville!"

"What's a 'Ponyville'?" asked Mega Pony. "Is that a place or something?"

"Yeah, it's a really great place, in fact!" Rainbow Dash answered him. "You'd love it there!"

"We can talk more about it once we get on the train home." Rarity added. "Now let's get going and make sure that we don't miss it." The others nodded in agreement.

"Shining Armor and I will stay here a bit longer until our train back to the Crystal Empire shows up." said Princess Cadance. "Have a safe trip, all of you."

"Bye, Princess Cadance...Bye, Shining Armor...Please write back to me soon." said Twilight.

"We always do, Little Sis." assured her big brother. "You be good now." Twilight gave her BBBFF a goodbye hug before she left with her friends and Mega Pony.

Celestia and Luna watched as they left. The younger sister then glanced over at her older sister, noticing some slight worry on her face. "Elder Sister...you do not have to worry yourself." the dark-blue Alicorn assured her. "Twilight will do a good job in helping your creation grow into his programming."

The white Alicorn let out a sigh, smiled weakly, and responded, saying, "I know she will...I know she will do everything in her power to help Mega Pony find his purpose." She then closed her eyes and added, "The only thing that worries me...is whether or not he'll realize his programming...before we desperately need his services..."

Meanwhile, very far away from Canterlot, in the mysterious Everfree Forest, things were relatively calm for once. The sun shone brightly over the tall trees, with some light escaping onto the forest floor below. At this time, a pair of small insect-like creatures fluttered slowly above the ground, one blue and one yellow. They were creatures called Parasprites; they were infamous for having voracious appetites and could reproduce very quickly. But if left alone, they were mostly harmless, such as these two.

The two Parasprites were chirping at each other happily; they seemed to be having a conversation, but what it was about was known only to them. Still, they seemed to be fine with each other's company.

Suddenly, the two Parasprites stopped when they heard a buzzing sound, different from the sounds that their wings were making. They glanced around, trying to see where it was coming from. Then suddenly, it was clear to them: A third Parasprite, red in color, flew in front of them. The two looked at it for some time before the blue one flew closer and chirped at it in a friendly tone, as if it wanted to make friends with it.

However, there was something peculiar about this red Parasprite, especially when it gave off an angry expression. Then, without any warning whatsoever, it rammed itself into the blue one, knocking it down to the ground. The yellow one seemed shocked at what this new Parasprite did to its friend and began scolding it (more than likely, its chirps sounded angry). The red one said nothing back and began glaring angrily at the yellow one. The yellow Parasprite was so scared, that it flew off immediately (after of course, using its mouth pick up its unconscious friend).

The red Parasprite watched them leave as another one flew beside it, this one violet in color. They were soon joined by more Parasprites in different colors, but all having that same menacing look. The swarm then looked ahead at the area that was not far away from the forest's entrance: Ponyville...

-- To Be Continued...

Episode 108: Honey, I Shrunk the Ponies:

THE STORY SO FAR...:

Today is a very special day for Mega Pony; it's his first Hearth's Warming Eve, and his creator, Princess Celestia, wants to make it his most enjoyable day yet. The benevolent Alicorn Princess has decided to throw a Hearth's Warming party for him in her castle, and has also invited Twilight and her friends to join in on the celebration. The robot had just left for Ponyville to deliver the invitations while Celestia and the castle staff got everything ready for the party.

Mega Pony is excited about celebrating Hearth's Warming Eve for the first time, and can't wait to attend the party his mother is organizing. At this time of the year, it seems that nothing could ever go wrong...

...or could it?

CHARACTER SELECT:

Mega Pony (PCN-001): The first robot pony and guardian of Equestria.

Princess Celestia: One of the two rulers of Equestria. Creator of Mega Pony.

Princess Luna: Celestia's younger sister and a ruler of Equestria.

Twilight Sparkle: Highly intelligent Unicorn. Element of Magic.

It was another beautiful day in the country of Equestria. However, it wasn't just like any ordinary day; today was a very special day. It was Hearth's Warming Eve, a holiday that just about everypony was excited about. To many, it meant spending time with families, throwing Hearth's Warming parties, and of course, giving and receiving presents. Some would claim that the whole idea of gift-giving and the madness that often ensued when it came to purchasing those gifts detracted from the true meaning of the holiday. However, most ponies didn't share that opinion, and thought of it as a way to deepen the bond between their friends and families.

All over Equestria, ponies were hard at work putting up Hearth's Warming decorations throughout the country's many towns and cities. Manehatten had pre-ordered a gigantic pine tree to be set up in the center of town, after which it would then be adorned with all sorts of decorations. The floating city of Cloudsdale commissioned the Pegasi to fly to the northern regions while carrying the liquid rainbow that the Weather Factory produced. That liquid would then, at nighttime, be used to create a beautiful, transparent light that would be big enough to be seen all over Equestria (thus, many dubbed it "The Northern Lights"). In the Crystal Empire, all of the buildings would light up during the night, creating a multicolored hue that was truely a sight to behold.

Compared to what the major cities did when it came to Hearth's Warming decorations, the town of Ponyville was nowhere near as flashy or as vibrant. However, to say that it was any less significant than what other towns and cities did would have been a lie. Red and green streamers were draped over every building and lamppost, many houses had set up personal Hearth's Warming decor in and around their homes, and faint holiday music could be heard from loudspeakers that were set up all over town (courtesy of Vinyl Scratch).

The Golden Oaks Library was very neatly decorated. The tree home was garnished with multicolored lights, gold and silver Hearth's Warming balls, and shimmering streams of tinsel, complete with a jeweled star on the top. The library's resident, Twilight Sparkle, spared no expense when it came to prettying up her humble home for the season. The Unicorn in question was busy with her duties, using her magic to replace several holiday books that had just been returned to the library from various residents of the town. Her dragon assistant, Spike, was doing a bit of sweeping while munching on a sugar cookie that came from a batch made by the Cake family at Sugarcube Corner.

Just then, a knock on the front door could be heard. The two occupants of the tree home stopped what they were doing and glanced over at the library's entrance. "Who could that be?" asked Spike, his voice muffled slightly because he was still eating his sugar cookie.

"I don't know...I wasn't expecting any company today." Twilight answered. She then walked over to the door and opened it to see who it was. She was surprised and pleased to see Mega Pony standing there, who was wearing a scarf around his neck that had stripes of light and dark blue upon it, similar to the color of his body. "Oh! Mega Pony! Good to see you again!" the lavender mare greeted.

"Good to see you too, Twilight." replied the robot, walking inside and shutting the door so as not to let in all the cold air from outside. "How've you been?"

"Pretty good, actually. And you?"

"Same for me." Mega Pony then shivered a little and added, "Though I am a bit chilly; it's absolutely freezing outside..."

"You can feel how cold it is out there?" asked Spike.

"Mhmm." hummed the little robot. "My mom designed me to be able to notice abnormal temperatures. That way, I'd know if I was in an area in which my systems could be negatively affected by extreme heat or cold."

"That makes sense." Twilight commented. Of course, the little dragon didn't quite get it, but decided not to dwell on it, for fear of getting a slight migrane. The lavender Unicorn then asked, "So what brings you all the way here, Mega Pony?"

"Well, as you know, today is Hearth's Warming Eve..." the robot began to say.

Twilight then suddenly interrupted him and asked, "Oh, wait! I just realized: This will be your first Hearth's Warming Eve ever, isn't it?"

Mega Pony nodded and continued, telling her, "That's right, and my mom wanted my first one to be really special. So, she's going to be throwing a party at Canterlot Castle, and she sent me to give you this." He then opened up his side compartment and used his psuedo-magic to levitate a small envelope over to the Unicorn mare.

Twilight used her magic to take the envelope and opened it, pulling out a small paper that was about the size of a typical index card. "Oh, wow! Is this an invitation?" she then asked the mechanoid.

"Yep. That's right." Mega Pony answered. "Mom asked me to deliver invitations to you and all of our friends so that you can come to the party."

"That's so great!" the lavender pony cheered. She then put on a slightly worried expression and asked him, "Wait...is this party going to be anything like the Grand Galloping Gala? Because, well...my friends and I really didn't enjoy it..."

"Yeah, I know. Mom told me about that." the robot replied with a chuckle. Answering her question, he then told her, "No, it's not going to be anything like that. It'll be a small party; just me, you, our friends, and of course, my mom and Aunt Luna."

"Oh, okay." Twilight replied, feeling relieved to know that.

"Um, do I get an invitation?" asked Spike.

"Of course you do." said Mega Pony, giving him a envelope similar to the one he gave to Twilight, which made the little dragon happy. He then asked Twilight, "So, will the two of you be able to go?"

"Sure! No problem at all!" the Unicorn mare answered. "It's not like Spike and I really have anything to do here today; the library will be closed early for the holiday anyway. So yeah, we'll be there, guaranteed."

"That's great!" cheered the robot. He then trotted off and told them, "I'll see you both later then; I still have a few more invitations to deliver!"

"Okay! See you at the castle!" shouted Twilight as she waved her right foreleg at him. The robot then galloped away, heading for his next destination...

"A party at Canterlot Castle?" asked Applejack shortly after Mega Pony got to Sweet Apple Acres and gave out her invitation.

"That's right. My mom's putting one together for my first Hearth's Warming Eve, and she'd like you to be there." the robot told her.

"Sounds like it could be a whole lotta fun, Mega Pony." the Earth Pony told him. "Ah'd love t' be there!"

"Really? That's great news!" The mechanical pony then asked, "Are you sure you'll be able to make it? After all, you and your family tend to be pretty busy every day."

"Usually, but this is one of the few days of the year that we really don't have much goin' on." Applejack informed him. "Not much grows durin' the winter, and besides, Hearth Warming's the time of the year to not worry about all that sorta stuff anyway. So don't you worry yerself; I'll be at the party fer sure!" The robot smiled, happy to know that the farm pony would be able to attend the festivities.

Mega Pony's next stop was at Rainbow Dash's home in the clouds. He flew up there using his Emergency Wings and knocked on the cloudy door. Sure enough, the cyan-coated Pegasus opened the door to greet him. "Hey, what's up, Mega?" she said to him.

"Hi, Rainbow Dash!" the robot greeted. "Good to see you again." The mechanical pony then glanced over to the side when he noticed that there was somepony else in the cloud house as well. "Oh! Hi Fluttershy! I didn't know you were here, too!" he called out to her.

"Um...Hi, Mega Pony..." the yellow Pegasus said to him in her usual shy tone.

"Me and Fluttershy were just talkin' for a bit before you got here." Rainbow explained. "I was just tellin' her about that pony you and I met in Baltimare."

"Oh, okay." the robot responded.

"I-I'm sorry...Were you expecting me not to be here...?" Fluttershy asked him.

"No, it's okay...It just means that I won't have to make an extra trip to your house just to talk to you, so it's actually a good thing." stated Mega Pony. He then presented two more of his envelopes to the two Pegasi and told them, "Anyway, I came here to give you these: They're invitations to a Hearth's Warming party that my mom is throwing at Canterlot Castle."

"A party?! Awesome!!" Dash responded in excitement.

"...Yay." Fluttershy cheered meekly upon getting the invite.

"So will you two be able to come?" he then asked them.

"You know it!" cheered the cyan mare. "I ain't got much else to do; the rainbows used for the Northern Lights tonight are being handled by some of the other Pegasi...And my tortoise, Tank, is spending the next few months at this special reptile spa far away from town. Isn't that right, Fluttershy?"

"Um...Oh! O-of course!" the yellow Pegasus responded. "He's going to have a very nice time there, I'm sure." The timid mare then turned her head away from Rainbow Dash, so that the cyan mare wouldn't see her wince a little to herself; she was clearly hiding something from her boisterous friend. (Someday, I'll tell her the truth about that...) she thought. (But...not now.)

"Okay, good! Then I'll see you two at Canterlot Castle, then." said Mega Pony. The two Pegasi nodded to say that they'd be there, and with that, the robot then flew off, heading for his next destination...

Mega Pony then arrived at Sugarcube Corner to meet up with Pinkie Pie so that he could give her an invitation to the Hearth's Warming party that Celestia was throwing. He knocked on the door and called out to her, "Pinkie Pie, are you in there?"

"Just a secooooond!" said the pink pony's cheerful voice from inside. The robot waited for about thirty or so seconds for her to come to the door. Just then, he felt a tap on his shoulder, and when he turned to look, he was alarmed when he saw the crazy party pony right behind him, as if she was there the whole time. "Hiya, Mega Pony!" she said to him.

"Huh?? Pinkie Pie??" asked the robot, confused. "But...I could have sworn that I heard you in the shop. Did you...go out a back exit?"

"Nope!" she said with a smile. "Sugarcube Corner doesn't have a back exit. So I used the front exit."

Mega Pony was even more confused, not sure exactly how she could have left the store without him seeing her. He then sighed and said to himself, "It's a good thing my mom installed a Pinkie Logic algorithm in my CPU, or my head would've exploded by now." He then told her, "Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something. You see, my mom is-"

"I know!" Pinkie suddenly interrupted. "Your mom, Princess Celestia, is putting together your first Hearth's Warming party, and you're here to give me an invitation, right?"

The robot was astounded that she guessed that right on the dot. "H-how'd you know that?" he asked in curiosity.

"Simple. I read all that twenty sentences ago." she answered with a smile.

Mega Pony had absolutely no idea what the silly pony was talking about, but he chuckled a bit in response, chalking it up to her fun-loving personality. He then took out the invitation and said, "Well, anyway...since you already know, here's your invite. And I can safely assume that you'll be there, right?"

"Yeppity-yep-yep!" Pinkie Pie answered with her boundless enthusiasm. "I always have time for a party!"

"Good to hear that, Pinkie." he responded. He then turned to leave and told her, "Alright, I'll see you at the castle then, okay?"

"Okie-dokie-lokie! See you there!" said the pink pony, waving good-bye as he left. After he was gone, Pinkie then sighed and said to herself, "I am so happy that someone came up with that for my catchphrase...Okie-dokie-lokie! Oh, I love saying that!" She then began saying the phrase repeatedly, occasionally putting more emphasis on certain parts of it. "Okie-dokie-lokie! O-KIE-dokie-lokie! Okie-DOKIE-lokie...!"

Mega Pony's last stop was at the Carousel Boutique, so that he could give his last invitation to the beautiful Unicorn, Rarity. The robot strolled up to the fancy white building and said to himself, "Okay, I just have to deliver this last invitation, and then we can all meet up and enjoy the party!" But as he approached the door to knock on it...

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"

The mechanical pony had stopped when he heard the shrill cry of the Unicorn fashionista from within the boutique. Thinking that she was in danger, Mega Pony quickly opened the door and ran as fast as he could to find his friend. "Rarity?! Was that you??" he asked, concerned. "Where are you?!"

He then heard the voice again. "Nooooo!!! How could this have happened?!?!" she shouted in distress.

The armored pony then figured out that the voice was coming from upstairs, presumably from Rarity's bedroom. Remembering where that room was from the last time he was in the boutique, Mega Pony raced up the stairs and burst through the door to the bedroom. Sure enough, Rarity was in there, sitting in front of her vanity. She had buried her face between her forelegs, which were placed on top of the table-like part of the piece of furniture, and was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Rarity...?" the little robot began to ask her. "Are you okay?"

The white Unicorn looked up at him once she noticed that he was there. Tears were still running down her face and ruining her makeup. "Oh, Mega Pony..." she said, still crying a little. "It's horrible...just terrible...! I'd even like to go as far as to say that it might be the worst possible thing!" She then sniffled a bit and, in her normal tone, added, "But I can't for the life of me remember where I put my red fainitng sofa, so I won't say that."

"What's wrong?" Mega Pony then asked her.

Turning towards the robot, she then pointed to her mane and asked him, "Look! Do you see what I see?!"

"See what exactly...? Your mane?"

"It's what's ON my mane that's upsetting me!" She then ponited to a specific part of her mane, revealing that one hair on it was not the same violet color as the rest of her mane hair. "It's a grey hair! A GREY HAIR!!!" she shouted. "I was just brushing myself when I noticed it!!"

"So is that why you were screaming earlier?" asked the robot.

"Of COURSE that's why!!" she snapped. "Don't you get it?! This is a sign!! A sign that I'm getting older!!!" Rarity then went into a whining fit as she asked herself, "How could this happen to me?!? I try my best every day to be as beautiful as possible and now THIS!!!!" She then began crying again, distressed over the grey hair.

"Calm down, Rarity..." said Mega Pony, trying his best to comfort her. "Everything will be okay..."

"Hmph! Easy for you to say..." she said a bit snottingly. "You don't technically age. You don't have to worry about getting gray hairs, wrinkles, crow's feet, a bad hip, or anything like that!" Still grumbling, she said to herself, "Some Hearth's Warming Eve this will turn out to be, getting a gray hair as a present!"

Mega Pony, feeling a bit down from hearing that, said to his friend, "...Rarity, please...This isn't the time to be upset about something that's beyond your control."

The white Unicorn sighed and told him, "...You're right. I shouldn't be trying to drag you into my personal problems, especially not now. Please forgive me..."

"It's okay...I understand." The robot then pulled out his last party invitation using his psuedo-magic and said to her, "Anyway, the reason I came here was to give you this: It's an invitation to a party that my mom's throwing for my first Hearth's Warming Eve. I'd like it if you could be there for it; maybe going there will help you feel a little bit better."

"Yes, perhaps..." said Rarity as she accepted the invite. "It might at least take my mind off of my mane problems."

"So, um...will you be there?"

The white Unicorn nodded and told him, "Yes. I will. Thank you very much."

"You're welcome, Rarity." Mega Pony replied. He then headed towards the door to leave the bedroom. Once he got there, he stopped, turned around, and told the white Unicorn, "I'll see you at Canterlot Castle, then. And if you could, try not to let what's bothering you get in the way having fun with me or the rest of our friends. You know how much I hate seeing you or anypony else with a sad look on their face..."

"I promise." Rarity told him. After the robot left, she then looked through the drawers on her vanity, trying to find something to cover up the grey mane hair that she had found.

About an hour later, Twilight, Spike, and their friends went to the Ponyville Train Station and boarded the next train that was heading to Canterlot. It was a bit later in the day, so the sun was already beginning to set, but it was still bright enough for the time to still be considered as daytime.

The train ride was long, so the seven of them decided to think of something to do together during the trip. "Say, I've got it!" Pinkie Pie chimed. "Why don't we all sing a song on the way over?"

"Oh that sounds like a wonderful idea, Pinkie." said Fluttershy. "Um...that is, if nopony else thinks of anything better..."

"Ah think it's a great idea too, Pink." agreed Applejack. She then asked, "So...anypony know any good songs?"

After she asked that, there was an awkward silence in the air. The group thought and thought, but nopony could think of a good song to sing. Twilight even pulled out a book from her bag that was titled, "1,001 Fun Songs to Sing", which was placed right next to another book that was titled, "A Pony's Guide to Conveniently-Titled Books". Fluttershy and Spike, who were sitting next to her, glanced at the book as well to see if they could find any good songs in there.

"Find anything in there, Twilight?" Rainbow Dash asked, leaning over from the seat behind the lavender Unicorn and yellow Pegasus so that she could look at the book.

"No...not really..." hummed Twilight, a bit of disappointment in her tone of voice.

"Shoot...Is it always this hard to think of a song t' sing?" asked Applejack, who was sitting next to Rainbow.

"Yeah, usually when we sing something, it just kinda comes to us without any thought." the cyan Pegasus noted. "Like we knew it beforehoof."

"Okay, so I'm not the only one who notices that, right?" asked the lavender Unicorn. The rest of them nodded yes. "How...bizarre." Twilight said to herself. Taking out a notepad and pencil with her magic, she added, "Note to self: Investigate occurances of spontaneous singing..." After making that note, she put the other items away and went back to looking through her songbook.

"So...what are we going to sing, then?" asked Fluttershy.

"Ooooh! Ooooh! Ooooh! I know! I know!" screamed Pinkie Pie, waving both her front hooves. "I've thought of a great one! My mom used to hum it to herself all the time while she worked!"

"Alright, then. let's hear it." requested Applejack.

The pink pony then cleared her throat and began singing. "The old grey mare, she ain't what she used t' be, ain't what she used t' be, ain't what she used t' be...!"

Upon hearing that song, Rarity, who was sitting right next to Pinkie Pie, shot her head up, her eyes bulging and her bottom lip quivering. Several thoughts ran through her head, asking her why Pinkie had chosen, of all the tens of thousands of songs out there, to sing THAT song today.

Meanwhile, the pink pony, oblivious to her violet-maned friend's current problems, kept right on singing. "The old grey mare, she ain't what she used t' be, ain't what she used t' be, ain't what-"

"PINKIE!!!" Rarity shouted in frustration, interrupting her friend's song. "Could you not sing that INFERNAL song?!?" The others, including Pinkie Pie, just stared at her, wondering what had gotten under her skin. Realizing that all the eyes were on her at the moment, the Unicorn fashionista snapped out of her enraged state and sheepishly whispered, "...Sorry."

"Uh, maybe we should try n' think of somethin' else to do..." Applejack suggested. "Ah didn't feel like singin' anythin' anyway..." Getting an idea, she then asked, "Hey! How's about a game of 'I Spy'?"

"Good idea, Applejack." said Twilight, putting away her book. "Why don't you go first?"

"Sure thing, Twi." said the orange Earth Pony. Glancing around the train car, she tried to find something to have the others try to guess the identity of. Once she came up with something, she told them, "Okay, here goes: Ah spy with mah li'l eye, something...grey!"

"IT'S NOT ME!!!" Rarity suddenly blurted out without thinking.

The others turned to stare at her again. "Uh...no. It ain't you, Rare..." Applejack told her, puzzled. "You ain't grey anywhere on ya..."

"...E-exactly!" the white Unicorn stated, trying to save face. "I'm...n-not grey at all! Never have been, never will be!"

Once again, an awkward silence hung in the air after Rarity's second sudden outburst. Just then, the timid voice of Fluttershy asked, "Um...Applejack? Would the thing you spied happen to be the...um, the loudspeaker in the corner up there?"

The orange Earth Pony then glanced up to they grey box that the yellow Pegasus was pointing to. The farm pony then nodded and said, "Er, yeah...that's right, Fluttershy." The shy mare then smiled a small smile, happy to know that she had gotten it right. Rarity rubbed the back of her head, blushing and showing an uneasy facial expression out of embarrasment.

About less than an hour later, the train finally arrived at the Canterlot Train Station and slowed to a stop. Afterwards, the doors opened and several ponies, including the Mane 6 (plus Spike), departed the train and headed into the royal city. After glancing around for a bit, Pinkie Pie suddenly said, "Hey! Look over there!"

The others looked over in the direction that their pink friend was pointing in. They all saw one of the Royal Guards standing there, a Unicorn, using his magic to hold up a sign that read, "T. Sparkle".

"He must be waiting for us." deduced Twilight. "Let's go over and see him." The seven of them all strolled over to the guard to talk with him. "Um, excuse me, sir..." began the lavender mare.

The guard glanced over at her and responded, saying, "Oh, hello Miss Twilight. I've been expecting you and your companions to show up sooner or later." He then told them all, "Princess Celestia has insisted on providing you with some suitable transportation to the castle."

"What kind of, 'suitable transportation'?" asked Rainbow Dash, hovering in the air.

The guard then motioned them all to follow him out of the station, where he showed them what he meant. Sitting on the road in front of the building was one of the Princesses' golden chariots, with a pair of Pegasi Royal Guards ready to pull it.

"Wow, we're gonna ride in on'a these?" asked Applejack, astounded.

"How simply MARVELOUS...!" Rarity added as she stared at the beautifully-decorated chariot.

"This chariot'll take you all straight to the castle." the Unicorn guard told them. "The rest of the castle staff, and of, course the Princesses, will be expecting you, so you should be able to get in right away." And with that, the six ponies and one dragon sat down in the vehicle, and the Pegasi pulling it took off moments after that.

The chariot then arrived at the front gates of Canterlot Castle. The occupants got out of the vehicle, and were then escorted through the entrance by the two Pegasi pulling the chariot. Once inside, the group strolled their way towards the Throne Room, which was where they were supposed to go first, according to their invitations.

Spike glanced over at Rarity, always taking any chance he could to eye the beautiful Unicorn. But this time, when he looked over at her, he saw that something still seemed to be bothering her. "Rarity? Are you alright...?" he asked her.

"Huh? Oh! Yes, I am, Spike..." she quickly told him. "Nothing's wrong! Nothing's wrong at all."

"I dunno...you seem a bit tense." the dragon noted. Pulling out a brush from Rarity's saddlebag, he then asked, "Want me to brush your mane to help you calm down?"

Rarity gulped; she didn't want anypony - or dragon - to know about what she had found in her mane hair this morning. "Nonono! That's just fine, Spikey-poo..." she told him with an uneasy chuckle and a blush. "I-I-I brushed it this morning!"

The little dragon didn't seem convinced by what she was telling him. But he simply shrugged and put the brush back into the bag, saying, "Suit yourself." He then looked over at Rarity again, still concerned about her.

The group finally reached the Throne Room and walked through the already open doors. Inside were Princesses Celestia and Luna, and of course, Mega Pony. The three of them looked at the approaching ponies and dragon as they walked into the large room. "Alright! You all made it!" cheered the little blue robot, running over to his friends. "I'm so happy you were all able to come!"

"We'd never dream of missin' out on this, Mega Pony." Applejack told him.

"Totally!" added Pinkie Pie, suddenly jumping out in front of the orange pony. "I mean, you only get ONE First-Hearth's-Warming-Eve Party ever in your life, and we didn't wanna make you all sad and stuff by not showing up! And also-...OOOHHH!!! Are those Hearth's Warming cookies?!? Lemme at 'em!!!" The pink pony stopped talking and zipped over to a table full of cookies that she had spotted and began stuffing her face full of holiday treats.

Princess Celestia chuckled a little and said to her guests, "I'm glad to see that all of you could come to Mega Pony's first Hearth's Warming Party. I'm sure you know that it means a lot to both him and myself that you could be here for it."

"No problem, Princess." Rainbow Dash said casually. "Anything for a buddy of ours."

Celestia then continued, telling them, "Luna and I have spent most of the day putting everything together for the celebration; we've come up with all sorts of things to do that I think you'll all enjoy very much."

"Indeed, Sister." the dark-blue Alicorn chimed in. "I took the liberty of coming up with all of the games that we'll play during the festivities. I think that you'll agree that, thanks to me, the fun we'll have shall be doubled! Perhaps even tripled!"

"Um, I'm sure we'll all enjoy whatever you have planned, Princess Luna." Twilight replied with a chuckle of her own.

Pinkie perked her head up from eating the holiday cookies; her mane was covered with crumbs and sprinkles. "Hey, if the rest of this party's even HALF as good as these cookies are, we'll have tons of fun without having to try very hard!" she told the others.

"Well, then what the hay are we all waitin' for? Let's get this party started!" said Applejack. The others cheered in response, and the celebration began immediately.

The group took part in all sorts of traditional Hearth's Warming merriments. They started by singing Hearth's Warming carols (many of which were in the songbook that Twilight had brought with her), with Mega Pony playing the piano. Thanks to all of the music lessons that Octavia had taught to him, he was able to play the large musical instrument with expertise.

Next, Princess Celestia brought down a large cardboard box from her bedroom. Inside of it, there were all sorts of festive Hearth's Warming sweaters for the party guests to try on. There were all kinds of different designs on them, such as holiday trees, snowflakes, snowponies, knitted pictures of Stallion Claus, nutcrackers, wreaths, and hoof-shaped stockings. "Oh wow..." said Fluttershy, rubbing her front hooves over the soft red and green sweater she was wearing. "It's so soft and comfy...It's as if I were wearing a fluffy cloud..."

"Speak for yourself, Fluttershy..." said a blue-sweater wearing Spike as he scratched himself like crazy. "This stupid thing's makin' me itch!!" The other chuckled a little as Twilight helped the little dragon out of the itchy garment.

Next up was the Secret Stallion Claus gift exchange; on each invitation, there were instructions saying that everypony that was invited had to get a gift for somepony else. Each personalized invitation told its recipient the name of the individual that they were to give their gift to.

During the exchange, Spike had gotten a large, tasty amethyst from Rarity, who had told him that it matched the colors of his scales perfectly. Princess Luna was given a large, tower-shaped playhouse for her pet opossum, Tiberius (or Tibbles, as she liked to call him), courtesy of Fluttershy. Applejack got a red ascot from Pinkie Pie that was practically drenched in glitter. Twilight got a large set of high-quality quills made from swan feathers (willingly donated from swans, of course) from Princess Celestia, who, in turn, received a recipe book titled "One Hundred Meals you can Make With Bananas" from Applejack.

Rainbow Dash recieved a pair of gold-rimmed flight goggles from Twilight, which she immediately tried on, liking how they looked on her face. The cyan Pegasus then gave her gift to Pinkie Pie, which was none other than a backup Party Cannon. The pink pony was quite grateful for her gift, saying that now she could put together parties twice as fast. Rarity got her present from Luna next; ironically, they were expensive hair care products, which immediately reminded her of the unfortunate discovery she made this morning. However, she tried her best not to seem irritated by the gift she recieved, especially since it came from a Princess; a Princess that, long ago, was a feared creature of pure darkness.

Mega Pony then offered to give a gift of his own next. "Here, Fluttershy." he said to the yellow Pegasus, pushing a rather tall present towards her. "I got this for you."

Fluttershy then grabbed the pink ribbon of the gift using her mouth and pulled it to undo the knot. Afterwards, she then tore through the yellow wrapping paper and opened the box to see what it was. She gave out a happy gasp and said, "Oh my...A new beehive for all of my honeybee friends! I've been needing a new one for a long time! How did you know?"

"Just a hunch, really." the robot told her. "The last time I visited your cottage, I noticed that your bees were running out of places to live, so I figured this would be the best thing for you."

"Well, thank you very much, Mega Pony. That was very kind of you..." she then told him.

Now it was Spike's turn to give his present to somepony. It just so happened that his gift was for Mega Pony. The little dragon handed the robot a square-shaped gift wrapped in blue wrapping paper. "Here, this is for you!" Spike told him.

Mega Pony was very excited: This would be his first Hearth's Warming present ever. He levitated the gift using his psuedo-magic and removed the wrapping paper. Inside, there was a golden, bejewled picture frame. The picture in the frame was a group photo of the Mane 6, Spike, and Mega Pony that had been taken some time ago. "Hey, I remember this..." the robot began. "We had this photo taken on the day I was activated, after the Para-Bot attack."

"Yep." the baby dragon confirmed. "After the picture was developed, we all decided to give it to you next Hearth's Warming Eve. I picked out the frame and the jewels."

"And I put it all together." Rarity chimed in.

"We all wanted your first Hearth's Warming present to be a special one." Twilight told the little robot. "And we all agreed that this would be the most special gift that we could give to you."

Mega Pony smiled and told his friends, "Thank you...It IS very special. I'm glad that I mean so much to you all." Looking at the picture again, he added, "I'll treasure it forever." Everypony (and dragon) in the room smiled warmly upon hearing that.

After the gift exchange came various other traditional Hearth's Warming festivities. There was fruitcake baking and tasting, something that Pinkie Pie definitely enjoyed doing (both the baking AND the tasting), as well as tree trimming, in which everyone placed a special ornament of their own, in addition to the rest of the decorations, on the Hearth's Warming tree set up in the corner of the Throne Room. Finally, the group went out into the courtyard to play in the snow, which involved making snowponies, snowball fights (an activity that Rainbow Dash and Princess Luna enjoyed very much), and having sled races.

It was about quarter to ten when the party guests and hosts came back from the chilly weather outdoors. "Aw, yeah! This was the best Hearth's Warming Eve ever!" said Rainbow Dash.

"Definitely in the top five for me!" added Pinkie Pie. "No offense, but it's kinda hard to beat the time when a carriage carrying Hearth's Warming cookies crashed into the side of Sugarcube Corner! I almost got a tummyache from eating all those cookies!"

"So, now what're we gonna do?" asked Applejack.

"Well, it's still not that late yet..." noted Princess Celestia. "We could probably do at least one more thing before we all turn in for the night...Well, except for Luna of course; she'll be busy implanting dancing sugarplum dreams into everypony tonight."

"We could all sing again!" suggested the hyper pink pony. "I know a REALLY great song!" She then cleared her throat and sang, "The old grey mare, she ai-"

"Dont." grumbled Rarity, covering her friend's mouth with her left front hoof. Pinkie's voice was muffled, but she kept right on singing anyway.

"Hang on, everypony...I just remembered:" began Twilight. "I had a book here in the castle that listed all sorts of fun things to do during Hearth's Warming Eve!" Recalling where the book was, she informed everypony, "I think it was in my old room, back when I was still studying here." She then asked Princess Celestia, "Princess, is my room still here?"

"Sort of." the Sun Princess answered. "Some time after I sent you to Ponyville, I had the room converted to a storage room...Then, after I built Mega Pony, I had it made into a bedroom for him. Several items in that room have come and gone, but I believe that all of the books on the shelves there have not been disturbed, so it's safe to assume that the book you are referring to might still be in there."

"I could go and look for it, Twilight." offered Mega Pony. "I can hang up my new picture of us while I'm there anyway."

"Sounds good to me." the lavender Unicorn replied. She then turned over to her dragon assistant and told him, "Spike, you go with Mega Pony and help him find the book."

"Sure thing, Twilight!" he replied, doing a salute before leaving the throne room with the robot.

Minutes later, Mega Pony and Spike climbed up to the top of the staircase that led to the robot's bedroom. They walked inside and began searching for the book that Twilight Sparkle wanted. In addition, Mega Pony took out his picture that he had recieved and, just as he had told his friends, hung it up on the wall right next to his bed. After placing it on the wall, he stood there and admired it for a while before heading over to the bookcases.

Spike was already searching through the lower shelves for the book. As he did, the baby dragon had to continuously blow on his claws, as they were getting very dusty. "Yeesh, how long have these things been sitting in there?" he asked. "It's like no one's touched them in years!"

"Well, I haven't really had the time to look through them much." admitted the robot pony as he searched through the higher shelves. "Most of the time, I've been busy with my daily duties. But one day, I would like to look through them more in detail..." As he looked through the bookshelves, one book in particular caught his eye. It looked rather old, judging from the wear on the red cover and the pages inside. "Hm? What's this?" he asked as he opened it and read through one of the passages out-loud, but at a low volume...

"As you read upon this lore, the power of youth will then take form. For as these words transform into power, then foals they shall be within the hour..." As the robot read the words in the book, both he and Spike failed to notice a faint, pink mist flowing from out of the dusty old tome. "And if not undone upon the day's end, then they alone must learn to fend..." After the last line was read, the strange mist flowed out of the room, completely undetected.

"What was that?" asked Spike, too busy to hear the whole passage that Mega Pony read.

"I don't know..." answered the mechanical pony. "I thought it sounded like a poem, but it sounded a little weird to me...What do you think it could b-"

"AHHHHHHHHHHH...!!!!!"

Just then, a sudden scream interrupted Mega Pony's statement and caused both him and Spike to swing their heads towards the door to the bedroom. "What was that scream?!" asked the baby dragon. "Where'd it come from?!"

"It sounded like it came from the Throne Room!" Mega Pony figured. "Let's go down there and see!"

The two of them rushed downstairs to see what was going on. It took a while, of course, since the staircase was quite lengthy. Once downstairs, Mega Pony burst through the doors to the Throne Room, stepping inside along with Spike. At first, they didn't see anything or anypony in the spacious room.

"That's weird..." muttered the robot. "Where's Twilight and the others?"

"They were right here when we left..." noted Spike, looking around. He then shouted, "Hey!! Anypony here?! It's us; Spike and Mega Pony!!"

"...Spike? Is that you...?" asked a voice that sounded familiar...kinda.

The robot and the dragon looked around to find the source of the voice. "I...I think that sounded like Twilight..." said Mega Pony. "But...something about her voice seemed...off, don't you think?"

Spike shrugged his shoulders and told him, "I'm not really sure...But now that you mention it, it did sound kinda...high-pitched."

Mega Pony then called out, "Twilight? Is that you?? If it is, come out here in front of us!"

"O-okay..." the voice responded. "But...promise me that you won't freak out..."

"Uh...okay, I guess." the mechanoid promised, a bit confused by the comment. At that moment, a small figure then peeked out from behind one of the tall columns in the room. When Mega Pony and Spike looked at it, they gasped in shock: It was Twilight Sparkle, but something was different about her, the most obvious thing being that she was a lot smaller than usual. In fact, she seemed only about as tall as one of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

At first, Mega Pony and Spike were at a complete loss for words when they saw the lavender Unicorn in Fun-Size form. Finally, the little dragon began to speak, asking her, "T-T-Twilight...? Is that...is that you...?"

The small Unicorn nodded and said, in a slightly squeakier version of her normal voice, "Yes, Spike...It's me..."

"What...happened to you, Twilight??" asked Mega Pony, still in shock. "You're...you're a..."

"A filly?" she said, finishing his sentence. "I'm afraid so...But I'm not sure how it happened. One second, I'm sitting in here, minding my own business, and the next second, I see everything getting bigger around me!"

"Where's everypony else?" the robot then asked.

"Over here." said the voice of Princess Celestia as she walked into the Throne Room. She was followed by Princess Luna...along with five smaller ponies. They were, in fact, the rest of Twilight's friends, but just like the lavender Unicorn, they were also filly-sized.

"I...I don't understand..." Spike began, now more confused than ever. "What in Equestria happened??"

"We're not exactly sure yet." the Princess of the Sun told him. "All we know is that, just a few seconds ago, everypony in the room began to shrink all of a sudden, so we took them all out of the room as quickly as possible."

"Afterwards, I decided to go back inside and look around, but I wasn't able to find out what could have happened." Twilight stated.

"How are the others?" asked Mega Pony. "Are they okay? Y'know...besides their size?"

"We're not exactly sure about that, either..." Luna said to herself. "Physically, they appear to be fine other than their sudden reduction, but..."

"But what, Aunt Luna?"

Before the dark-blue Alicorn could say anything, the filly-sized Applejack looked over at the smaller Rarity and asked her, "Hey! Ah like your mane!"

"Oh! Well, thank you!" said Rarity in a higher-pitched voice. "I do take great care in making sure that it's perfect!" She then asked her, "My name is Rarity! What's your name?"

"Ah'm Applejack!" answered the orange filly. "Nice t' meet ya'll!"

The sudden conversation surprised Mega Pony, Spike, and Twilight. "What the-? Did they just introduce themselves??" asked the baby dragon. "But they've been friends for years!!"

"Yeah, that doesn't make any sense!" stated Mega Pony. "It's like...it's like they don't even know each other...!"

"Unfortunately, it seems that is exactly the case..." Luna informed them all. "After we brought them out of the Throne Room, they began behaving...rather oddly, to say the very least. They began talking with one another in a way that seemed to suggest that something unusual has happened to their memories, as well as to their physical bodies...All except for Twilight, though."

"Princess Celestia?" Twilight asked her mentor. "Do you have any idea what's going on?"

The white Alicorn thought for a while, but wasn't sure what could have caused this bizarre phenomenon. Looking over at Mega Pony and Spike, she asked them, "Did you two notice anything unusual happening when you were upstairs? Did you see anything or hear anything that could possibly be related to something like this?"

"Not really, your Highness." said the baby dragon. "Me and Mega Pony were just looking through the bookshelves to find that Hearth's Warming Eve book..."

"Anything else?" asked the Sun Princess.

"Well, the only other thing I could remember doing just before we heard that scream was that I found this dusty old book." Mega Pony then told his creator. "I read some weird poem that was written in it, but I didn't know what it meant."

"Wait...I don't have any books on poetry in my old room..." Twilight informed the robot. She then asked him, "This book you found...What...did it look like? Could you show me?"

"Uh, sure. Follow me." the robot replied, turning towards the staircase leading up to his bedroom.

"I'll go as well." Celestia added. Turning to her sister, she then requested, "Luna, please keep an eye on the others, would you?"

"Um...of course, Sister. No problem at all!" the dark-blue Alicorn said confidently. After Mega Pony, Twilight, Spike, and Princess Celestia left, the Princess of the Night looked over at the now much younger members of the Mane 6, who were looking up at her with wide eyes. "Um...what art thou staring at...?" she asked them, a bit uneasy.

"Wow...lookit her mane!" said Applejack in her new child-like voice.

"It's so...so beautiful!" added Rarity, thoroughly impressed. "It's like a starry night sky...!"

"So awesome...!" Rainbow Dash chimed in.

"Oh...um, well thank you." replied Luna, flattered by their comments. "It took me quite a while to style it this way. I used to have it much shorter and in a lighter color, so-"

"I wanna touch it! I WANNA TOUCH IT!!!" Pinkie Pie screamed ecstatically. Before another word could be said, the pink filly leapt towards the dark-blue Alicorn and grabbed onto the flowing, semi-transparent mane.

"Urk! Hey!!" said the Princess. "Get off of that!!" She swung her mane hair around to try and shake Pinkie off, but to no avail.

"Wheeeeeeee!!!" the pink filly screamed, clearly having fun.

"Hey lookit her! It's like she's in a rodeo!" Applejack said. "I wanna play rodeo, too!!" She then hopped onto Luna's back to join in on the ride.

"Count me in, too!!" Rainbow Dash chimed in, hopping onto the Alicorn's back as well. Even Rarity decided to join in (mostly to get a closer look at Luna's equally as beautiful tail), hopping on soon after.

"...Um...I think...I think I'll just...stay right here..." said Fluttershy, hiding behind a potted plant.

"Get off of me!!" shouted Luna. "What dost thou think I am; a bucking bronco?!?" Of course right now, she was thrashing around like one, so, in a way, she was. Try as she might, the Princess couldn't get them off of her; these fillies were starting to become a hoof-ful.

Meanwhile, upstairs in Mega Pony's bedroom, the robot looked around the bookshelves in order to find the book that he had last read prior to the incident involving his friends. The filly-sized Twilight was also helping him look for it, along with Spike and Princess Celestia. For a while, the search turned up nothing, until...

"Here! I think this was it!" Mega Pony declared, using his psuedo-magic to hold up a dusty, red book. He then paged through it to try and find the passage that he read. Sure enough, it was in there. "Here, Twilight." the mechanoid said, giving her the book with the mysterious poem.

The tiny little Unicorn looked at the pages carefully, first at the poem itself, and then scanning the pages before it. The lavender filly gasped at what she had found. "I don't believe it!" she said in shock.

"What? What is it, Twilight??" asked Spike, eager to hear what she had discovered.

"Well, according to what I've read here..." the tiny Twilight explained, "this is the incantation to an age-regression spell!"

"Age-regression spell??" the others repeated.

The lavender filly nodded. "It says here," she continued, "that when the incantation is chanted, it releases a power that seeks out its target or targets, based on whomever the caster was thinking of at the time..."

"...That's right..." Mega Pony spoke up. "When I was looking for the book you wanted, and up to when I read the passage, I was thinking about everypony down in the Throne Room!"

"I guess that's why I wasn't affected then." Spike figured, as he wasn't in the Throne Room when the spell affected the others. Another thought then came to him; he then glanced over at Princess Celestia and asked her, "Hold on, you and Princess Luna were in the room, too. How come both of you don't look like fillies like Twilight and the others?"

"Well, according to the book here," Twilight continued to read, "The spell only regresses a pony's age by up to fifteen years, even when used at full power. And since both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are over two thousand years old, taking fifteen years off of their ages won't do much at all."

"I suppose that makes sense." stated the Sun Princess. Deciding to look at the book herself, she then read, "It also says that one side effect of the spell is that it alters the minds of those affected by it, slowly reverting their memories to the times when they were younger. That explains why they didn't seem to recognize each other."

"But Twilight didn't seem to forget anything or anypony...And neither did you or Princess Luna." Spike noted. "Why's that?"

"I'm not really sure, Spike." the lavender Unicorn responded. "Maybe it's because our magical auras are stronger than the rest of my friends, so the spell couldn't affect our minds, even though it DID change our bodies...Well, MY body mostly, really." She then put on a worried face and added, "But...I'm not sure how long that will last...There's still a chance that I'll forget about everything...and everyone..."

"This is horrible..." said Mega Pony, feeling guilty. "What have I done...? My friends are going to lose their memories, and it's all my fault...! I can't let that happen, or I'll never forgive myself!" Tearing up, he then asked his creator, "Mom...please tell me: Is there a way to reverse this??"

"Of course there is." she answered him. "Every spell and curse can be undone; we just have to figure out what to do." She smiled and told him, "I promise you: we'll fix this...together."

Mega Pony looked up at the warm smile that Celestia was giving him, which told him that everything was going to be alright. He wiped the tears from his eyes, smiled and said, "Okay...let's do this."

"I'll look over the spell and try to find more information about it." Twilight told them all. She then said to her dragon assistant, "Spike, I need you to head over to the Star Swirl the Bearded Wing of the castle and see if there are any books or scrolls that would have any other pertinent information."

"Per-what?" asked the dragon.

"It means something related to our situation." Mega Pony informed him.

"Oh! Got it!" Spike replied. "I'll do my best."

"I'll go and check up on my sister and your friends." stated Celestia. "Come and meet with us once you find out how to break the spell. I know you and Mega Pony will figure it out, but please hurry..."

"Will do, Princess." Twilight responded before going back to reading the spellbook. The group was determined to solve this problem; whatever it took, they would save their friends and the memories that they shared together before it was too late.

Several minutes passed since everypony (and dragon) took on their assigned duties. Spike had returned, carrying with him several important scrolls from the special library wing in the castle for Twilight to look over. Princess Celestia assisted her sister, Luna, in keeping an eye on the rest of the filly-sized ponies. Unfortunately, not much progress had been made as far as getting an answer to their problem.

"This isn't good..." Mega Pony said with a sigh. "We've been at this for a while now, but we haven't figured out a thing!"

"I know..." Twilight replied in a solemn tone. "So far the only information that I've found since we started..." She paused for a moment, not wanting to say what was on her mind at first. But eventually, she sighed and added, "Well...I can't say it's good news..."

"What? What is it...?" asked the robot, getting anxious.

"Well...it says here...that if we don't fix this before the end of the day; by midnight tonight..." the lavender filly explained, "then the effects of the spell will become permanent."

"You mean...that they'll forget about us? For good??" asked Mega Pony, horrified by what she had told him. Twilight simply nodded yes to say that it was true. The robot looked up at the clock in his room: It showed that the time was now 10:30 p.m., which meant that there were only one and a half hours left to reverse the age-regression spell. It seemed hopeless...

Mega Pony now felt even worse, knowing that it was because of him that his friends were in danger of losing their memories forever. "This is horrible..." he said to himself, tearing up again. "There's not much time left before our friends are gone forever, and we're still no closer to figuring out how to fix it!" He then looked over at Twilight and sadly told her, "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry...This wouldn't have happened if I didn't read that spell..."

"Please...don't blame yourself, Mega Pony..." she told him. "There was no way you could have known about that spell...I didn't even know about it. If I had known that there were any spellbooks left over in my room, I would have come up here myself and took care of it..." As she spoke, everyone else in the room could detect a hint of sadness in her voice as well. Spike patted her on the back, trying his best to comfort her, though he too, was depressed about the whole situation.

"And just when I was getting to know you all, too..." the robot then told her. "It felt like only yesterday that I was activated...I remember when I first met you all, and how much you helped me learn about who I am."

"Yeah, and how we all worked together to stop the Para-Bots from wrecking Ponyville." Twilight chimed in, doing her best to smile, despite the downcast feelings that she and everyone else had. Recalling another memory, she looked out the window at the falling snow and told them, "I also remember when I first participated in the Winter Wrap-Up...I couldn't find any way to help, until I was able to organize everypony and have them all do their jobs so efficiently."

"Yeah...that day was pretty crazy at first..." Spike noted. He then asked her, "Remember the time when you tried to figure out how Pinkie Pie's 'Pinkie Sense' worked?"

"Yeah, that was pretty crazy, too." the lavender pony replied, actually managing a slight chuckle. "Oooh! What about the time when I helped Princess Luna during her first Nightmare Night?"

"Yeah, I still remember the looks on everypony's faces when she brought that toy spider to life." the dragon replied, chuckling.

"Twilight! What's going on?!" Mega Pony suddenly spoke up in shock.

"Huh? What are you talking about?? Is something wrong??" the Unicorn filly asked.

"I don't know..." the robot answered. "All I can tell you is that...well, you...you're glowing for some reason!!"

"Glowing?? Me??"

"No way! He's right!!" Spike confirmed, pointing at the reflective tile floor that they were all standing on. Sure enough, Twilight was glowing brightly, and the light seemed to get more and more intense. Then, all of a sudden, the glowing energy filled every nook and cranny of the room.

"Ack!!" said Mega Pony as he and Spike covered their eyes in response to the flash. The bright light filled the room for a short while before it eventually began to fade. Once it was completely gone, the robot and dragon opened their eyes to look...and were shocked by what they saw. "I don't believe it...!" the mechanical pony uttered.

"What...? What's going on now?" asked Twilight.

"T-Twilight..." Mega Pony spoke, "you're...you're back to normal!!"

"Huh? I am?!" she asked in surprise. After hearing what the robot said, as well as her own voice, she noticed that her tone was not as high-pitched as before. She then looked at her reflection on the tile floor; sure enough, she was now back to her correct age and size. Any effects from the spell that had been put on her were now completely gone. "I am!! I'm back to my old self!!" she exclaimed. "...No pun intended."

"Alright! Twilight, you're back!!" Spike said excitedly, running over and hugging her. "I thought I was gonna lose ya forever!"

"Don't worry, Spike." she told him. "I'm not going anywhere anytime soon..." She then looked over at Mega Pony and asked him, "But what happened? Did the spell wear off on its own somehow?"

"I don't think it did." the robot told her, shaking his head. "And I know I didn't do anything to break the spell, since I can't use real Unicorn magic. All that we did so far was look up information, and then we began talking about all the things that you, I, and our friends have done..."

Upon hearing him say that, Twilight gasped. "That's it! I know what happened!!" she said with a big smile on her face.

"You do?" asked Spike.

"It's...just a hunch, but I think that when I was recalling all of the memories that I had with my friends, it must have undone whatever effects the spell had on me!" the lavender Unicorn hypothesized.

"So, in order to change the others back," Mega Pony chimed in, "they just have to remember their old lives! I think it'll work!!"

"There's just one problem:" Spike noted. "The rest of them don't remember a thing about themselves or each other! The only reason Twilight was able to remember on her own was because the spell didn't mess with her brain right away."

"Yeah, that's right..." the book-smart pony responded, snapping out of her cheerful state for a moment. "It's going to be hard to remind our friends about who they were..." She then glanced up at the clock, which now read 10:37 p.m., and added, "Especially since we don't have a lot of time left to do it..."

Mega Pony looked over at Twilight, who was starting to lose hope that her friends would all come out of this problem okay. She was beginning to act just as depressed as he was earlier. However, the robot wasn't willing to give up; not after they got this far. He then began looking around to try and find some sort of solution to the whole thing. Then, all of a sudden, something caught his eye: It was the photograph that he recieved from Spike as a present. He stared at it for a while, thinking deeply. It seemed that he had figured out some sort of plan.

"Maybe it might not be so hard, Twilight..." the robot then told her.

"Huh? What do you mean?" asked the lavender Unicorn.

"I think I have an idea." he told her. "And I think this picture is the key to this whole problem." Spike and Twilight looked at one another, not sure what he was talking about right now. However, they figured that he knew what he was doing, so they both nodded to say that they were willing to lend a hoof (and claw) and help out.

Mega Pony unhooked the picture on his wall and said to them both, "Alright, let's get back to the Throne Room! We don't have any time to waste!" And with that command, the three of them left the bedroom and headed downstairs to meet up with the Princesses and the rest of their friends, hoping to resolve this crisis once and for all.

About a minute later, Mega Pony, Twilight, and Spike ran back downstairs towards the Throne Room, meeting up with Princesses Celestia and Luna. The two Alicorns looked over at them, gasping when they saw that Twilight was back to her usual self. "Twilight! You're back to normal!" exclaimed the Sun Princess, galloping over to her and meeting the group just outside of the double doors. "You managed to figure out how to break the spell?"

"We did, Princess Celestia." the lavender Unicorn told her mentor. "And it was actually pretty simple: All we have to do is remind the rest of our friends about their old lives. Somehow, we have to spark their memories before the end of the day!"

"And how do you plan on doing so?" inquired Luna, walking up to them as well.

Mega Pony then revealed the picture that he carried down from his bedroom, saying to his aunt, "I think I might be able to use this photograph that Spike gave to me to help remind them of who they were."

"I see..." hummed Celestia. "If they were to see what they looked like as adults, it might be enough to trigger their memories and reverse the spell."

"So what're we waiting for?" asked Spike. "Let's show the picture to the others and get them all back to normal!"

Everypony else nodded and went through the entrance to the Throne Room. But when they got inside, there was nopony there. "Wha-? Where are they?! What happened?!?" asked Twilight.

"They were just in here a second ago!" protested Luna. "Where could they have gone to??"

"...You don't think they're playing Hide-and-Seek, do you?" asked Spike, not wanting to hear the answer to his own question.

Twilight looked at the floor and found a hastily-written note. She looked at it and let out an annoyed groan before saying, "Unfortunately, that's EXACTLY what they're doing! Just look at this!" She then levitated the note to the rest of the group so that they could read it...

"Dear Ms. Really Big Pony Princess and Ms. Slighty-Smaller-But-Still-Really-Big Pony Princess: We're playing Hide-and-Seek! Betcha can't find us!"

"...How did they leave the room without us knowing??" asked Celestia.

"It seems physically impossible..." Mega Pony noted. "Which means that I'm assuming that Pinkie Pie had something to do with this."

"Probably." Twilight said, agreeing with him.

Celestia let out a sigh and thought, (I'm so glad that I had the right mind to install that 'Pinkie Logic' algorithm into his CPU...) The elder Princess then said to the others, "Well, it's quite clear what we have to do next: We have to locate the others and bring them back here so that we can reverse the spell."

"And we have to do it quickly!" Twilight reminded them. "We only have until midnight tonight, or the spell's effects will be permanent!"

"But this place is huge!" noted Spike. "We'll never find them all quickly enough!"

"No, there is one way that we can find them in time..." Celestia told them, heading towards a small chest next to her throne. Lifting it up with her magic, she carried it over to the others and opened it. Inside were six beautiful pieces of jewelry. Five of them appeared to be necklaces, each one adorned with differently-shaped colored gems: a pink butterfly, a cyan balloon, an orange apple, a violet diamond, and a red lightning bolt. The sixth piece of jewelry was a tiara adorned with a pink, star-shaped gem.

"The Elements of Harmony!" exclaimed Spike upon seeing the contents of the chest. "Of course! They might be able to help us!"

"So these are the Elements of Harmony that Mom told me about..." Mega Pony stated to himself. "I've never seen them before...They're...they're absolutely amazing...!"

"How do you think the Elements will help, Princess Celestia?" Twilight asked, wondering where her mentor was going with this.

"I believe that, although the Element Bearers have had their bodies and minds affected by the age-regression spell, they should still be mentally linked to the Elements themselves." the Sun Princess explained. "If my theory is correct, then you might be able to use them to locate your friends, no matter where they might be hiding."

"Oh, I see...that makes sense." the lavender Unicorn replied as she took out the tiara with her magic and placed it onto her head. She then said to her robot friend, "Mega Pony, you hang onto the other five Elements and try to pinpoint our friends."

"Got it, Twilight." the mechanical pony responded, using his psuedo-magic to store the other pieces of jewelry into his storage compartment. He then also took out his mobile communicators and gave one to each of the others. "Once I find one of them, I'll let you all know where they are, and the pony that's closest to the location can then go and get them." he then told them.

"Very well, then." said Luna, adjusting the small device. "Then let us be off! We haven't a moment to waste!" The rest of the group nodded and split up to find the missing fillies.

Mega Pony began his search in the Dining Hall after he heard small hoofsteps inside the humongous room. "Where are you?" he said out-loud. "I know somepony's in here!" The only response that he got was soft giggling.

The mechanical pony turned his head towards the door in the back of the hall; it lead to the Main Kitchen, where the castle staff would prepare all the meals for those who lived and worked within the castle walls. Mega Pony heard the giggle coming from there, so he ran towards the door and burst into the kitchen. Nopony appeared to be inside, but he knew that somepony was hiding in here. To confirm his suspicion, one of the Elements of Harmony that he was carrying began to glow brightly: It was the one with the orange apple jewel.

"Activate infrared vision..." he said to himself. His eyes then turned completely red as he scanned the kitchen, using the infared vision function to search for abnormal heat signatures. Since it was nighttime, the staff that worked in the kitchen was not present; therefore, none of the ovens, toasters, or other machinery used for cooking were switched on, and they gave off no heat whatsoever.

As a result, in Mega Pony's eyes, everything appeared in either a violet or dark-blue hue to show that everything was as cool as a cucumber...except for one thing that the robot noticed. He looked up towards one of the high cupboards and saw a blob-like shape that, in infared vision, was colored in red, orange, and yellow. (There you are...) he thought to himself as he switched back to normal vision and used his psuedo-magic to operate the cupboard's handle.

When he jerked the cupboard door open, he found the filly-sized Applejack hiding inside. "Aw shoot, mister...Ya'll found me...!" she said, whining a little.

"Alright, Applejack. Come with me; everypony's wondering where you ran off to..." he told her in a stern voice.

"Okay..." she responded, sighing.

As he and the orange filly left the room, Mega Pony then tapped his helmet and said, "This is Mega Pony. I've just found Applejack in the kitchen."

"That's great to hear!" said Twilight. "And in only...six minutes since we split up! At this rate, we should get them all back with time to spare!" The lavender Unicorn then asked, "Have you found any of the others?"

Just after she asked her question, the robot pony then felt a pulsing sensation from his side compartment. Opening it, he then saw that another of the Elements, the one with the red lightning bolt gem, was glowing. He then glanced outside through the window to see if anypony was outside. Then, all of a sudden, he saw a small figure whiz by, leaving a rainbow-colored trail in its wake.

"Mega Pony? Are you there?" Twilight asked again.

The robot tapped his helmet again and told her, "Uh, yeah. I'm still here...Sorry for not responding right away...It's just that I saw this blue streak speed by; almost went too fast for the naked eye."

"That has to be Rainbow Dash." the book-smart pony informed him. "Where did you see her?"

"I think I saw her heading to the courtyard..." Mega Pony answered her. "Who's closest to that location?"

"I am." said the voice of Princess Celestia through the communicator. "I'll go after her while the two of you continue searching the castle."

"Thanks, Mom." the mechanical pony replied. "Good luck."

In the courtyard, the Princess of the Sun began searching the large and spacious area around her for the super-speedy Pegasus, Rainbow Dash. At first, all that was in the courtyard was snow; lots and lots of snow, along with the occasional snowpony that was still standing from when the whole group was playing outside earlier.

Then, all of a sudden, Celestia heard a loud SWOOSH right above her head. She quickly perked her head up to look and caught a short glimpse of a cyan-colored streak as it sped by. "There you are...!" the Princess said to herself, raising up her large, white wings and flying into the air to chase after it. Sure enough, as soon as she caught up to the streak, she saw that it was indeed Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow Dash, that's enough now." she told her. "It's time for you to come back inside."

"Sorry, Princess! You'll have to catch me first!" the cyan Pegasus said to her before speeding away, flying even faster.

Celestia sighed to herself and picked up the pace, pursuing the filly-sized Rainbow Dash wherever she went. However, even the Alicorn Princess had a tough time just trying to keep up with her, and the Pegasus's smaller size made her much more manueverable. At first, it seemed like the chase would go on forever, but just then, Celestia stopped in mid-air and asked herself, "Wait...why am I trying to catch her this way...?" After asking the rhetorical question, she then fired up her long horn and surrounded Rainbow's tail with a small, yellow glow; the spell grabbed onto her tail, stopping the Pegasus in mid-flight.

"Huh?! Hey!! That's not fair, using magic!!" whined the small filly, wriggling around in a vain attempt to free herself.

Celestia used her magic to pull Rainbow Dash towards her as she spoke into the communicator, saying, "This is Princess Celestia...I've found Rainbow Dash, and we're on our way to the Throne Room right now. Mega Pony, I'd like you to take Applejack there as well."

"Okay, Mom." he told her. "Also, I think I've located Fluttershy: I believe she might be in the Library somewhere."

"Leave it to me, then!" spoke Luna's voice. "I shall locate her and bring her back safely!" After saying that, the Princess of the Night strolled into the main Library room (not the Star Swirl the Bearded section). The interiors of the book-laden room were very dark, thanks in part to the fact that it was now nighttime. This worked in Luna's favor: Her dark-colored coat allowed her to easily blend in with the darkness of the room.

The younger of the two Royal Sisters crept around the Library as quietly as possible so as not to alert anypony to her location. Just then, Luna saw a peculiar sight: There was a tall vase in the back corner of the room that was constantly vibrating. She then walked over to the vase to investigate, and when she poked her head inside, she let out a hearty, "Aha!"

Luna pulled her head out, but it wasn't the only thing that came out of the tall vase: The Princess pulled the tiny Fluttershy out by grabbing onto her long, pink tail with her mouth. The tiny yellow Pegasus filly trembled and said, "I-I-I'm s-sorry, M-Ms. Princess...Please don't be m-mad..."

Setting the tiny pony down, Luna told her, "If you promise to behave thyself and allow me to escort you to the Throne Room, I will overlook the fact that you ran off all by yourself." Fluttershy nodded to say that she would be good and the two left the Library.

Elsewhere, the tiny dragon, Spike, was searching around upstairs in Princess Celestia's bedroom. According to what he had heard from Mega Pony, the robot had detected the prescence of Rarity inside the room. He searched under the Sun Princess's bed, the fireplace (currently unlit), and around the tall post where Philomena, Celestia's pet phoenix, was sitting. Unfortunately, the little dragon couldn't find Rarity, and he began to get frustrated. "Arrrgh! Where could she be?!" he asked himself. "I've looked almost everywhere, but I can't find any trace of Rarity!"

Just then, Spike heard some squawks coming from the nearby phoenix, as if she was trying to tell him something. "Huh? What's up with you, Philomena?" he asked.

The firey bird squawked some more, trying her best to speak to him.

"What?! You found her?!" Spike then asked in shock. "Where is she?" Philomena then pointed towards a closet next to Celestia's vanity. Spike then strolled over to the closet doors and opened them. Sure enough, the filly-sized Rarity was in there, admiring all of the Princess's fancy dresses. The dragon sighed and said to himself, "Of COURSE she'd be in here...I should've known."

Rarity looked over at Spike and said to him in a chipper tone, "Oh! It's you! I was hoping YOU would find me..."

"Uh...you were...?" asked the dragon, blushing a teensy bit.

"Mhmm. I sure did!" answered the Unicorn. "I...did not want to say it in front of everypony, but...but I think you're...you're...kind of cute."

"R-really...?!" said Spike, blushing more and putting on a hopeful smile. He then chuckled weakly and added, "Well...I have to admit...I get that a lot."

"I mean it." Rarity told him. "In fact, I would've liked to make you my special somepony one day..." Spike then began grinning, thinking that he might finally have a chance with beautiful Unicorn. But then she added, "Or...I WOULD say that, but...you are NOT a pony, are you? So I am afraid it wouldn't work out..."

The little dragon's jaw dropped just as suddenly as his hopes of a date with Rarity were crushed to pieces. "Uh...uhhh..." was all that came out of his mouth.

"Anyway..." the little Unicorn began again, "I have had my fun for now, so I feel ready to return to the Throne Room...Could you take me there? I'd rather not get myself lost in this castle."

"Uh...yeah, sure." Spike quietly replied. As Rarity left the room, he let out a slightly depressed sigh and thought to himself, (Oh well...I like her better older anyway...) He then left the bedroom to escort the tiny filly to the Throne Room.

Only one pony was left to find: Pinkie Pie. Mega Pony had located a faint, but present signal coming from somewhere around the main foyer, and Twilight went to investigate. The lavender Unicorn searched carefully, using her own Element of Harmony to find her pink friend. As she strolled around, the pulses from her tiara began getting stronger, indicating that Pinkie was closeby, but Twilight couldn't see her anywhere.

"Where could she be...?" thought the book-smart mare. "I can't figure out where she could be hiding..." She then began thinking to herself, (I've just got to look at the problem another way...Think: If I were Pinkie Pie, what would I consider to be the perfect hiding spot...?) Then, a thought came to her. (...She's been right behind me the whole time, hasn't she...?)

Twilight immediately turned around to see and, sure enough, she saw the tiny Pinkie Pie standing right there. "Wow! You're REALLY superly-super good at Hide n' Seek, Ms. Smarty Pants!"

"It's Twilight." the lavender Unicorn corrected her. "Smarty Pants is my doll's name." She then told her filly-sized friend, "Okay, let's get back to the Throne Room now; everypony's waiting for us."

Pinkie then immediately hopped onto Twilight's back, procured a cowboy hat seemingly out of nowhere, and shouted, "Yeah! Let's go! Ride 'em, cowgirl!"

(...This feels weird somehow.) Twilight thought, referring to how Pinkie was sitting on top of her at the moment. She then left the main foyer and headed back to the Throne Room to meet up with the others.

In but a few minutes, all of the filly-sized members of the Mane 6 were returned to the Throne Room. Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Mega Pony made sure to keep a close eye on them to make sure that they wouldn't run off again. Once Twilight entered the room and took Pinkie Pie over to the others, she sighed and said, "Okay...that's all of them. Now we can reverse the spell and get them all back to normal." Twilight looked over at the clock; it was currently 11:40, meaning that there were only twenty minutes left to undo the age spell.

"Alright then, let's go and help remind our friends about who they were." said Mega Pony as he, Twilight, and Spike walked over to the very little ponies. He then asked them, "Hey! Would you all like to see something really neat?"

The five fillies immediately perked their heads up and looked over at the robot, eager to see what this "something" was.

Mega Pony then opened his compartment and pulled out the picture that he had recieved from Spike. Showing it to them, he said, "This is a picture that was taken a while ago; it's a photo of me and my best friends, some of which I think you might recognize..."

The five fillies looked at the picture closely, and sure enough, they did see something familiar about it. "Those...those ponies look...kind of like all of us!" Pinkie Pie noted.

"Even their cutie marks look just like ours!" added Rarity.

"...You don't suppose that they could be us, could they?" asked Fluttershy.

"But that's impossible!" protested Rainbow Dash. "Those ponies in there are clearly older than we are! This picture has to be a fake!"

Mega Pony and the others were beginning to get worried upon hearing that. "This isn't good..." the robot said. "They don't believe that they're the ponies in the picture here..." He then looked at the clock again as the minute hand moved, showing the time was now 11:41. "If we don't think of something soon, it'll be too late...!" he then added, falling more and more into despair.

"Don't give up, Mega Pony." Celestia urged her creation. "There is always a solution to every problem that you face out there...Always remember that."

"Remember..." Just then, the mechanoid came up with an idea. "That's it!" Running over to Twilight, he whispered something into her ear. The lavender Unicorn nodded a few times and smiled, saying that she was okay with whatever plan Mega Pony came up with. "Do you think it'll work?" he then asked her.

"Only one way to find out, Mega Pony." Twilight told him. She then took the photograph and walked over to her filly-sized friends, saying to them, "Like Mega Pony said, this is a photo of our friends; the very best friends that I ever had. And we experienced all sorts of wonderful things together...Like, for instance, there was this one time when I had a slumber party during a thunderstorm with two of my friends...We did all sorts of things, such as playing Truth or Dare...Though I can't seem to remember how that game went..."

"Ah do! After we started, Ah dared Rarity to run out into the rain and get her mane all wet!" Applejack suddenly blurted out. She then put on a confused look and asked, "Wait...how did Ah know that...?"

"Well, I certainly don't recall such a thing happening to me..." stated Rarity. But then, she became a bit skeptical about her own statement and asked, "Or...do I...?"

"Say Twilight," Spike chimed in, "remember that time when Rarity secretly entered the Sisterhooves Social, dressed up as Applejack? She wanted to run the whole race along with her little sister."

"Well, I had to." Rarity interrupted. "I had to do something to show Sweetie Belle that I cared about her..." Just then, she put on a confused look like Applejack did, not sure where that sudden memory came from.

"I think it's working..." said Mega Pony. "They're starting to get their memories back!"

"They are, but we're not quite out of the woods yet." Twilight told the robot.

"Wait, 'woods'? That reminds me of something...I'm not sure how, though..." Rainbow Dash suddenly spoke up, scratching her head. "I remember something about going on a camping trip with somepony named...uh...named...Scoota...loo? Yeah! I went on a camping trip with Scootaloo, and I told some REALLY wicked scary stories during that time! Though, I think I might've overdid it; she was scared stiff almost every night."

"Oh yeah...Ah think Ah remember that, too." said Applejack. "Ah think Ah was there with Apple Bloom...And Rarity and Sweetie Belle were with us too!"

"Yes...that's right! I WAS there!" the white-coated Unicorn filly confirmed. As the three of them spoke, they began glowing, just like Twilight was just before she returned to normal.

"Yes! It's working!! They're returning to normal!" exclaimed Twilight. She then pondered some more and then asked Fluttershy, "Say, um...Fluttershy, do you remember anything about a phoenix named Philomena?"

"Um...I...I don't think I-" The yellow Pegasus then gasped and corrected herself, saying, "Oh wait! I do! I saw that Princess Celestia's pet looked very sick, so I tried to take care of it, without knowing that Philomena would just revive herself eventually!"

"Yeah, you got so worried, that you actually thought that the Princess would imprison you, banish you, or imprison you in the place that you were banished to." Spike noted. Celestia chuckled softly a bit, remembering that day as well.

"Yeah...it was really silly of me, wasn't it?" Fluttershy asked rhetorically as she, too, began to glow brightly.

Twilight then turned to Pinkie Pie next and began to ask her, "Pinkie...do you remember the time when-"

But the pink filly interrupted her, asking, "When I pranked that meanie Griffon? When I tried explaining my Pinkie Sense to you? When I thought nopony was coming to Gummy's After-Birthday Party? When I played as Chancellor Puddinghead at last year's Hearth's Warming Eve pagent? When I took care of the Cakes' twins? When I made friends with Cranky Doodle Donkey? When I discovered who ate the M.M.M.M. before the National Desert Competition? When I made clones of myself? Which one?"

Twilight, Mega Pony, and the others just stood there, eyes wide. Apparently, Pinkie recalled just about every event that mostly involved herself. The book-smart pony then asked, "H-how did you remember all of that so quickly...?"

"Easy!" the pink filly replied, holding up a book. "I bought the episode guide! It wasn't that expensive; only seventeen bits!" Of course, the others had no idea what Pinkie was talking about. But since she started to glow like the rest of the filly-sized Mane 6 did, they weren't complaing about it.

"So...that really IS us in that picture, isn't it...?" asked Fluttershy.

"It is." Mega Pony told her, nodding his head yes.

"Yeah...yeah it is us!" exclaimed Rainbow Dash, now fully convinced. "I don't know how, but it is!" She then looked closely at her older self in the photo, smirked and said, "Heh, look at that: I'm even cooler when I'm older! In fact, if I could put it at some sorta percentage, I would say that I look...um...uh..."

"Twenty percent cooler?" Twilight suggested.

"Yeah! That's perfect!" the cyan Pegasus said, liking the idea.

"Oh my...do you girls see how my mane looks when I'm older?" asked Rarity. "It's positively STUNNING!! Oh, how I would love to brush it for hours on end without stopping!!"

"And check out mah older self's legs!" Applejack chimed in, pointing to herself. "They look real super-tough!! Real buckin' machines!"

"And look at how poofy my mane is!" added Pinkie Pie. "It looks so good, I don't EVER wanna have straight and flat mane hair ever again! You know, unless I get REALLY super-depressed, or angry, or super-totally creepy, but I don't see that happening anytime soon!"

The others watched as the filly-sized ponies' glowing began getting more and more intense. It got so bright, that everypony else had to cover their eyes as the light filled the entire room for several seconds. Then, once the glow faded, the others opened their eyes and were delighted to see that Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie were now back to their old selves; both figuratively and literally.

"We did it!!" cheered Mega Pony. "They're back to normal!! All of them!!"

Twilight glanced at the nearby grandfather clock, which now read 11:55 p.m. "And with only five minutes to spare." she told them all. "That was TOO close."

The now-fully restored members of the Mane 6 looked at themselves and one another, happy to be back to their correct ages again. "Whooee! This feels SO much better!" said Applejack, performing a few air kicks with her back legs. "Ah don't EVER wanna lose these tough buckin' legs again!"

"Oh, I'm so happy to be the old me again, too!" added Pinkie Pie. "I don't think I would've been able to push my Party Cannon around so easily with such a teeny-tiny body!"

"I will miss seeing how fast I was when I was a filly," Rainbow Dash noted, "but I look so much cooler flying around looking like I am now."

Fluttershy walked over to Mega Pony and the others and gratefully told them, "Thank you so very much...For bringing us all back to normal."

"I just wish I didn't read that spell in the first place..." the robot said, still feeling down about that. "And when things started getting hard for us when we were trying to break the spell, I almost felt like giving up and trying to get away from the problem instead of trying to fix it..."

"But you DIDN'T give up, Mega Pony." Celestia reminded him. "You saw the problem all the way through to the end, despite the apparent difficulty of the task in front of you. And for that, I am very proud of you."

"Thanks, Mom." said the little robot. "And I promise that I'll always do my best to solve a problem, no matter how difficult it might be. Because I believe that, the only way that somepony can fail at something, is if they give up or don't even try."

"Nicely put, Mega Pony." Twilight praised him. "And you should also know that, if things do get too hard for you, always know that there is no problem with asking your friends for help." Mega Pony nodded to say that he agreed with that as well.

"Well, I am just pleased to be my old self again." said Rarity. "And I do emphasize the word, 'old'." Looking at herself, she then added, "I'll still always wish that I was a filly again, but if doing so would mean losing all of the memories and good times we've shared together, I'd much sooner be an old grey mare." She then used her magic to pull off the grey hair in her mane and looked at it, smiling. "From now on, I'll look at this hair as a badge of honor, as a reminder of how my life has only gotten better with the times we've shared together."

"Is that a grey hair, Rare?" asked Applejack, looking at it.

"I am afraid so, Applejack..." the white Unicorn informed her. "I found it this morning while I was brushing my mane."

"So, wait...is that why you were so crabby during the train ride over here?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Yes, and for that I am very, very sorry..." Rarity told them. "I shouldn't have lashed out at you all over it."

"It's alright, Sugarcube...We can forgive ya." Applejack told her with a smile. Just then, the others noticed that Pinkie Pie was staring (VERY) closely at the grey hair that Rarity had in front of her. "Uh...somethin' the matter, Pink?" the orange Earth Pony asked her.

Pinkie didn't answer right away; She just continued to stare at the hair intently, squinting her eyes. Then, she asked her white Unicorn friend, "Hey, Rarity! What are you doing with my favorite piece of string?!"

The fashionista's eyes widened after hearing that question. "Um...d-did you say...string...??" she inquired.

"Well, DUH!! Of course I said, 'string'!" the pink party pony answered her. "It's been missing from my string collection for DAYS!! I almost thought that I'd lost it forever!!" Taking the piece of string, she then told the white Unicorn, "Thanks so much for finding it for me, Rarity! You're such a good friend!"

Rarity was dumbstruck by what had happened. "So...I'm not going to have grey hair yet...?" she asked herself. "Or crow's feet? Or a bad hip?"

"I don't think you'll need to worry about that anytime soon." Twilight assured her. Rarity then chuckled and blushed a little bit, embarrased that she had been all worked up over nothing.

"So, um...what are you going to do with the spellbook?" Fluttershy then asked Twilight. "The one that made us younger?"

"I think I'll take it with me and study it for a little bit." the lavender Unicorn answered, stuffing the red book in question into her saddlebags. "I'd like to see if there's a way that I can refine the spell and try to reduce or even nullify the negative side-effects of it. It will be difficult, but I think I can do it."

Just then, Mega Pony, who glanced over at one of the right-side windows, suddenly shouted, "Hey! Everypony! Look outside! Quick!"

The others ran over to the window that Mega Pony was looking through and saw a truely beautiful sight: The Pegasi from Cloudsdale's Weather Factory were now spreading the rainbow fluid for the Northern Lights all across the sky. The lights sparkled, shimmered, and glimmered, and the colors brightened the night sky in the most beautiful way.

"Wow...so awesome...!" Rainbow Dash said, enjoying the sight.

"Truely the definition of the word, 'beauty'!" Rarity added.

"Why don't we head up to the balcony, so that we can get a better look?" suggested Celestia.

"Capital idea, Sister!" agreed Luna. "Let us go before the lights disappear completely!" The entire group made their way out of the Throne Room in order to see the Northern Lights much more closely.

Atop the highest balcony in Canterlot Castle, the group of ten stared in awe at the beautiful, colorful lights that covered the night sky. It wasn't just them, though. Everypony that lived in the royal capital came out to see the Northern Lights as well, and were just as impressed with its beauty. Truely, for Twilight, Mega Pony, and their friends, this was a memory that would last a lifetime.

As they watched the lights, Spike then tapped Rarity's right front leg to get her attention. He then asked her, "Um, Rarity...? Do you remember anything that happened to us- er, YOU while you were a filly earlier?"

"Hmmmmm..." hummed the fashionable mare. She then replied, saying, "Only small bits and pieces, really...I don't recall too much of it, I am sorry to say...Why do you ask?"

"...No reason. Just curious." the little dragon responded. He then went right back to watching the lights above.

The white Unicorn glanced back up to see the lights as well, but then took another quick look at the tiny purple dragon. She then smiled a little, as she thought about something to herself before looking back at the light show in the sky above.

NEXT EPISODE: "Cannon Come Home"