The Heartbeats of Ironby Eric LongtoothChaptersCity of SteelThe Beating HeartCold IronEpilogueCorruption of MetalCity of Steel“The universe is not like a puzzle-box that you can take apart and put back together again and so solve its secrets. It is a shifting uncertain thing which changes as you consider it, which is changed by the very act of observation. A powerful man is not a man who dissects the universe like a puzzle-box, examining it piece by piece and measuring each piece with scientific precision. A powerful man has only to look upon the universe to change it.” Technomagos Gaelos, Codex Imperialis, p. 44 Manehatten. Equestria’s population centre, a city to house more than any other. Some come to seek work in the multitude of mega corporations that base themselves here. Others, seek the allure of the concrete jungle, and the more… criminal attractions hidden behind the grand constructions. But now… Now there is a new reason to come... for better or worse. After a particularly powerful earthquake rocked the unprepared city, a massive sinkhole swallowed a large portion of the island. It was a disaster, with rich and poor alike shaken by the level of devastation as nearly a quarter of the city disappeared under the earth. The Princesses gave great speeches, and roused thousands into action. Nobles, for the first time in decades, showed their hearts, as grand houses were opened up to refugees. The common pony worked tirelessly to look for the missing… and bury the dead, forging bonds between all walks of life that would’ve never happened otherwise. Unicorns performed great feats of magic in the service of others. Pulling at the strings of reality to save others they have never met. Earth ponies cleared rubble many times heavier than themselves, forcing their strength to the limit with grim determination. Pegasi scouted the ruins from the skies, informing the ground teams of unstable buildings, and fallen friends. Each flying for longer then any thought possible. For all the death, this was the one of the great moments in Equestrian history. Where ponies from all around the country banded together to rebuild homes that they may never use. It was almost insulting, for it to all crash and burn. After all the greatness… all the heroics, it seemed the universe called for a dark joke at the ponies’ expense… With a grunt of effort, rubble was pushed aside as a large stallion pushed forward. The stallion, clad in standard royal guard plate armour, was followed by a magically identical squad of guardstallions. “Keep your eyes peeled, fillies!” The leading stallion cried out to the rest of his comrades. “Let’s find these lost civvies and get back home in time for kickoff!” “Sir, yes sir!” The rest of the guardstallions shouted in response, each voices tinted in amusement at their sergeant’s antics. Near the back of the squad of eleven, a younger stallion fiddled with his armour’s straps. At his side a shortsword hovered in his golden telekinesis, its slight shaking belaying the private’s nervousness. It was little more than a training exercise, after all, it was just a missing archeology team. Chances were the team had found something shiny and got distracted. At least, that’s what he told himself. But, alas, he was still shaking in his armour. Running through the ruined city was bad enough, but doing it at night? He knew he needed night-op training, but was now really the best time? He sighed deeply before attaching his sheathed sword to his belt, after all, complaining wouldn’t help anyone, would it? “You alright, Sparky?” One of the other privates, Steele if he could remember correctly, asked, using one of her wings to brush some hair out of Spark’s eyes. “I-it’s fine. Just some first-op jitters, that’s all.” The unicorn replied, blushing lightly at the mare’s teasing caress. “First-op you say? I assume just the first night-op, after all, I’m pretty sure I’ve ran with you a few times.” Steele giggled, slowing down to walk at Spark’s side. “Y-yeah.” Spark stammered, glad the magic of his armour hid the fierce blush gracing his face. She opened her mouth to say something, before closing it as if thinking better of herself. Reigning in whatever she was going to say in favour of drifting her gaze across the ruins. Silence ruled the moment as they marched forward, giving half hearted attempts to keep an eye out for any passing figures. As the night wore on, their squad marched further and further into the centre of the ruins. Before long, the hike began to require their attention, and any hopes of conversation was buried under the steep terrain. The buildings had fallen inwards into the sinkhole, providing a relatively usable ramp into the depths of the pit. Not to say it was easy, but it was better than the near ninety degree drops of the rest of the sinkhole. It gave an almost dystopian feel, reminiscent of the modern ‘sci-fi horror’ books Spark had noticed during his rare trips to the library. A shudder cursed his spine as he looked out into the open air. After being cooped up in the main city ruins, it was nice to see the sky again. The simultaneous flutter of all the squad’s pegasi seemed to voice a unspoken agreement. Personally, he prefered this to the claustrophobic ruins of the main city. After all, this had the added bonus of being able to see for miles. It was an almost exotic feeling, having spent most of the children life, and guard career, in perpetually rainy city of Hoofington, he couldn’t remember the last time he saw such a view. As he gazed across the picturesque landscape, in all its ruined beauty, one of his comrades cried out from further up the track. “Civilians sighted! Sector three-five, north-east, three klicks out!” Homing into the coordinates, Spark noticed a slight shift in light as a campfire smoldered further into the sinkhole. It was almost unnoticeable, like picking out a single faint voice in a crowd. Turning again, he noted that one of the corporals had pointed it out. Clear Sight, if he remembered correctly, who, unsurprisingly, had a knack for picking out fine details in terrain. To the point that Spark wouldn’t be surprised if Clear was also able to see the ponies in the camp. Unfortunately for Spark though, it meant they would need to go down there to make sure. Roughly three kilometers… through ruins… further into the pit… He let out a quiet sigh, and prepared himself for a long night of hiking. “This isn’t good…” Spark murmured, his voice barely above a whisper as he walked through the abandoned remains of a civilian camp. Five tents were bunched around a smoldering campfire, each left wide open with miscellaneous supplies scattered around them. Five of the other guards had set up a perimeter as the rest searched, but the eerie silence left the young stallion feeling as if he was alone. “It looks like they left in a rush, sir.” Spark overheard one of the specialists inform the sergeant. “From what I can tell, they were moving furth-” “Sergeant! We’ve found something!” An older private, first class Spark assumed, cried from over near the eastern perimeter. The cry drew the majority of the high ranking guardstallions, with Spark following solely for morbid curiosity. Thankfully, what he came to find wasn’t the dead, but instead a small hole barely large enough for a pony to fit through. At the lip of the hole, a faded yellow rappel anchor led into the darkness, barely visible through the rubble. “Orders sergeant?” The same private asked as the sergeant drew near. The discovery slowed the sergeant stride for a moment, before he pulled in a new breath to shout orders once more. “You! Inform the perimeter guards to split into teams of two and three! The larger will follow me into the hole, and the rest will protect this point! You two! Join the specialist and investigate if there is any other leads!” “You, private!” The sergeant continued, turning to Spark. “Call in for another team to assist, then you’re coming with me!” “Sir, yes sir!” Spark cried in return, snapping to a practiced salute. As he pulled out of the mass of moving bodies, he called his magic into his horn for a trio of signal flares. As he released them, he watched the cascade of a blue, a red, and another blue grant light to the pale moonlight. It always gave him a little rush of excitement to show off his special talent, as even with his wallflower attitude, he could get somepony’s attention better than anypony in his squad. The moment passed as he was not-to-subtly forced into line by the other guards following the Sergeant. Before long, he was once more stood before the hole, this time, surrounded by comrades as they prepared to venture into the darkness. Standard night-op his flank. The commanding officer drowned on about service to the princesses and loyalty for a few minutes, hyping the other guards up to venture into the darkness as if this was the last time they’d see the light of day. It wasn’t very comforting. In the end, the speech had worked for the others, as the other guards tried their damndest to get in the hole as fast as possible, each following the sergeant as if there was nothing wrong with what they were doing. Spark let out a deep sigh, chances were he was just over reacting. After all, he was with other Royal Guards, he’d be perfectly safe. And yet, even as the line dwindled, he still couldn’t shake the feeling of dread… The Beating Heart“A man may die yet still endure if his work enters the greater work. Time is carried upon a current incepted by forgotten deeds. Events of great moment are but the culmination of a single carefully placed thought. As all men must thank progenitors obscured by the past so we must endure the present that those who come after may continue the greater work. ” Garba Mojaro, Prefectus (Technomagos) of the Adeptus Mechanicus, "The Chime of Eons", Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader p. 143 A cascade of light, pouring into the vast emptiness. Three hooves below the entrance, the cave opened into a humongous cavern three ponies tall, and almost as long and wide as the Canterlot Throne Room. The other guardstallions had already reached the floor and began searching, overseen by the Sergeant who was barking orders left and right. As Spark lowered himself from the rappel line, he took note of the only opening in the walls. It was two meters high, a meter wide, and stretched beyond even the range of their military-grade light crystals. “Private! About damn time you showed up!” The Sergeant called, a slight smirk on his muzzle. “You’re in charge of the lights, get ready to move!” “Yes, Sergeant!” Spark cried in reply, snapping to a salute before stumbling as he dropped the remaining distance to the ground. Steele let out a light chuckle as she pulled him to his hooves, thankfully the rest of the guards was mercifully distracted as they drew their blades in preparation. “You alright, short stuff?” “Y-yeah, I’m fine.” Spark stammered as he was pushed to the front of the group. “W-what are you doing down here? I thought the Pegasi would stay topside…” She brushed it off with a scoff, her wings de-seathing their blades in a flurry of movement. “You lot need a mare’s touch, and as the others are a bit… flighty, I’m stuck with you.” “O-oh,” Spark muttered, drawing mana into his horn as he battled the darkness. Only to be cut out of his embarrassment as Steele once again chuckled. “Don’t worry about it, Sparky. Let’s just find these numbskulls and get out of here. I may enjoy close-quarters, but even I have my limits.” And so they moved on, following the oddly square hallway deeper into the abyss. As they walked, Spark found himself distracted by the scrapings across the wall. Whilst most of them could be written off as marks from whoever had mined this out, there was a few that seemed… out of place. Light burns following the wall for a few hooves before stopping, with the stone left by it lightly blackened and smooth. Other points had no marks to speak of, with entire sections of the wall looking like somepony had polished the stone to a shine. Spark was glad for the latter, it left him that little bit more at ease knowing that this was, at least partially, made by civilised creatures. Even though the spacing was… odd, to say the least, it had an almost… religious appeal to it. And there went the good feelings... Kicked out as his brain voiced its confusion at its own conclusion. “Well… this is off to a great start…” Seconds ticked by like hours, each step seeming to lead nowhere. Stone walls lit by the glow of magic looming at the sides of Spark’s vision, and only the sound of clanking armour to remind him of those following him. Steele had fallen silent decently early in this solemn march, along with the other guards having resigned to watching for any change in the environment. Personally, Spark was debating asking the Sergeant to turn back, but it seemed every time he had worked up the courage to, they would find a tattered piece of clothing to renew their determination. Determination… Spark was almost certain the other guards had it, but by now, he was sure he had lost his own. Even as another bit of clothing, a ruined hat this time, passed them by, he felt his creeping nervousness build even higher. The burns and scratches seemed to appear more often now, lasting multiple pony-lengths now instead of the hoof long indents of earlier. Toll the Great Bell Once... For once, a change. His armoured hooves began to strike upon a metal flooring as the stone gave way to cold metal. Even though the enchantments of his armour, Spark could feel an unnatural chill that followed each step. Pull the Lever forward to engage the Piston and Pump... On the edge of his awareness, he heard the Sergeant give the order to keep moving. Part of Spark’s mind wished he hadn’t, but the other was just glad something had changed for the first time in what seemed to be hours. Toll the Great Bell Twice… He turned his attention to the wall, which, unlike the stone one, was bare of any markings. Leaving a dull shine of grey metal illuminated by his golden magic. And yet, every five meters or so, there was a dull glass box a little larger than his head inlaid in the wall. It seemed to call to him, like a cookie jar to a foal… With push of Button fire the Engine and spark Turbine into life… He shook the feeling off, barely breaking stride as time seemed to slow. His mind raced with possibilities as he moved onwards, only vaguely aware of the guards behind him. An almost primal need fueled him to find the end of this ‘cave,’ to the point that, were he less distracted, he would’ve been reminded of the horror stories of the newest princess’... moments. Toll the Great Bell Thrice… Spark swore he could hear… something, from the darkness. A bell maybe, or even a clock tower, chiming a little further into the darkness. Its moments precisely timed, each with a perfect five seconds in between them. Or was it ten? Maybe even a minute? Steele called for him, yet her voice seemed… unimportant. A footnote in his life. Even as the Sergeant joined in calling, Spark found his body and mind compelled to move just that little bit further. Just one more step. Just one more meter… Sing Praise to the God of All Machines… {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} Steele brought a hoof up to rub her temples in a half-assed attempt to ease her headache. For the last hour they had been matching down this hallway, and for the last hour, she had to deal with the damned buzzing. At first, it hadn’t been too hard to ignore, but as time wore on, it became more and more audible. From what she could tell, it was like static on a radio. A near constant buzzing broken up by minuscule changes in pitch. Turning her attention to the stallion leading them, Steele tried to figure out how Spark was able to ignore the noise. If anything, he should’ve been the first guard to complain, as he had never been able to deal with high-frequency noises for long. And yet, there he was. Perfectly indifferent. His attention only ever drawn to the scratches across the walls. She let out a low sigh as she gave her wings a flew flaps in annoyance. Steele personally thought this was a waste of time, a job that should be left to civilians or adventurers, not the Royal Guard. As if to answer her complaints, Spark’s hoofsteps began to strike the metal flooring with more force. Speeding up at a steady, yet slow, pace. “Sparky? Did you see something?” Steele asked inquisitively, taking the time to scan the area ahead of them. She received no response from the stallion, but the background buzzing was soon joined by the slow, methodical, tolls of a large bell. “Spaaaark? You in there buddy?” She called, her pace matching Spark’s as she prodded him in the side. Like a rope drawn too tight, the touch sent Spark rushing forwards with surprising speed. Turning from a slow trot, to a run-or-die gallop. “Private! Get your flank back here!” The Sergeant cried from behind them, his voice joined by the sound of the rest of the guard rushing to catch up. And yet, all his cry did was cut the lights as Spark poured all of his energy into running. What was at least a hundred hooves of light, turned to only ten as their backup gems spurred to life. “Spark! What the buck is wrong with you?!” Steele demanded, taking what limited flight she could to catch up. Of all the times to break… why now? Cold Iron"Oh to thee of rushing water, broke upon thy shore, with no fortune foul. Speak to we few, holders of little time, fools to thee of eternal wisdom. We art lost upon the seas of time, lost upon the end, lost as the time breaks and bends around us. Sing to us, a song of fortune and the wise, a song lost to time, a song of the lost." Eric Longtooth. The sounds of vast machinery stirred Spark from his slumber, his eyes felt like lead as he slowly forced his way into wakefulness. Though, as he was roused, he regretted it as a sharp pain in his side demanded his attention. “Errrgh…” His throat felt like sandpaper, but as he scanned the area around him in an attempt to find a solution, he was greeted only by darkness. Darkness… ‘Wait…’ His memory flashed to life as he pieced together what happened, something about bells… and running… It wasn’t very helpful. His muscles cried in agony as he forced himself onto his hooves, dust and ash clinging to his fur as he moved away from his resting place. Channeling what remains of his mana, he lit the area and paused as he took it all in. It was eerily similar to the ruins of Manehatten, but unlike the ruins, there was little to no stone. Iron and steel stretched for as far as he could see, like a scrapyard of raw metal. In the distance, the sound of clanking, steam, and grinding gears voiced its presence with a steady, yet faint, siren call. Part of his mind craved the idea of a fantasy steampunk wonderland, with himself being dropped into a new world like the old fanfictions he had written as a colt. Another part of his mind cried foul, calling it hopeful wishes and screaming this being wrong. Unnatural… unsafe. And yet, with no better leads, and his fellow guards being Celestia-knows-where, he had no better options. So he walked. {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} Tears stung her eyes as she fought through the smoke and ash, screams of another fallen comrade spurring her onwards to greater speeds. Damn it to tartarus, even Celestia had forsaken them in this nightmare. Spark was the first to break, but not the last. Each hour another of their number had been slain by creatures in the darkness. Their presence only found in bright flashes of red, and the scorching flame of plasma cutting through flesh like butter. It only got worse when help arrived. They called in a full company after the Sergeant was culled, the veteran having taken three attacks in an attempt to give his comrades time to escape. The smell of burnt flesh, smoldering fur, and melted armour… it would haunt Steele for years to come. Assuming she lived that long. Her stuttering three-hoof geit. rung out like anvil strikes from the forge as she ducked under a long hanging tube of steel. She could barely see five hooves in front of her, but she could still hear it. The source of the buzzing, a golem taller than the princesses themselves. Not blade nor magic could touch its hide, each only earning a crackling flash of red energy as it deflected it with naught but a thought. She had survived the first encounter, but it had cost her a wing. The second cost her a leg. The third she fears would be her last. Using her remaining wing, thankfully on the same side as her lost leg, as an aide, she pulled a tight turn around a burning forge. Its heat not from burning coal, but glowing rods that provided barely enough light to see. The floor moved around her, plates of metal screaming past at speeds faster than she could ever hope to achieve on hoof, like a symphony to cruel production. Part of her wondered how they hadn’t found this place before now, but the other parts couldn’t care less as they tried their damndest to find a way out of this hellhole. THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP! The steps of the monster seemed to sound in time to her racing heart. Its pace an unnatural speed, bordering on a slow teleport. Another turn… duck… jump... pain... dodge... “What the fuck do you want with me?!” Steele breathlessly cried, her lungs burning at the exertion. Duck… pain… dodge… jump… turn… No… She tired to slow her pace as a large wall of stone jumped out of the darkness. No! THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP! NO! |>o0{ Spark }0o</| As he grew closer to the sounds, Spark began to marvel at the large cavern he found himself in. The roof was far above him, to the point that he couldn’t see it even with his magical light. Yet, it wasn’t unbearably hot, if anything, it was quite pleasant. Had he not known better, it was almost as if he was outside in a star-less night. Regardless, Spark much prefered this to the previous hole he was in. It was almost comforting to hear the dull ringing of machines, as if he wasn’t alone here, as if there was something there for him. Thankfully, his brain kept quiet and allowed his happy thoughts. At some point the ground had shifted from the jagged scraps, to a smooth metal flooring. Every now and then, there was a small heap of white scrap, often with bits of cloth or gold shining through the dull light. Part of his mind called for him to investigate them, but it was just scrap metal. Discarded even. It would be of no use to him. After the first couple piles, he began to find tall forges being fed a steady stream of silvery plates. Parts of the floor seemed to dance across the ground, blue stripes indicating direction as they moved in time to a low humming. Thankfully, as he neared enough to step on them, the floor slowed to a stop to allow for his unheeded passing. It felt… right. Like as one throws a ball into the air and then watches it fall to the ground, it felt right. Every now and then, he noticed small bricks flying around. Some carries plates or lumps, others just moved around. They ignored him, and he in turn, ignored them. They had a job to do. He wouldn’t distract them. Time ticked on, each second passing as he wandered the paradise of machines. Though he still felt like he needed a drink, the pain from his muscles had faded and allowed for him to move freely. And yet, as he walked, his gut seemed to pull him in one direction. And, as he had nothing else to do, he followed. This place seemed safe enough to allow for such an action, at least. {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} Celestia damn it! If she was going to go down, she was going down fighting! Whipping around with her remaining wingblade ready, Steele took stock of her options. To her back was a wall, to the left and right of her was metal… things, too tightly packed to be used to escape. And the only way out of this cranny was about thirty hooves of hallway. Not great, but it would do. Coughing in a vain attempt to clear her lungs of the smoke, she adopted a fighting stance and prepared to jump at whatever came though the darkness. Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank… Lighter stomps sounded from around the corner, as if the golem had sicked a smaller minion on her… The thought brought a smirk to Steele’s face, she knew she couldn’t kill the golem, but a minion she should have a chance against. Hopefully… Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank… Any second now… |>o0{ Spark }0o</| His gut led him to a small, dead-end not far from the edge of the sanctuary. What he found was unlike anything Spark had seen before. Although his current migraine was making it hard to think, he was almost entirely sure that he had never seen a creature like this before. It was a tall insect, almost larger than himself, its stomach scales were a smooth cream whilst its shell was a dull golden yellow. It seemed injured, with two of its six insectoid legs missing. One on the left, one on the right. Part of his mind seemed confused at its appearance. But the other parts demanded the destruction of this pitiful intruder. It seemed only fair, if anything he was doing it a favour. It seemed repulsed by his presence. But it must be wrong. He is perfect. EpilogueEpilogue “Look into my eyes as I take you into the abyss, and I will show you the dark, vile, perverse secrets that are within us both.” Unknown “I no doubt deserved my enemies, but I don't believe I deserved my friends.” Fourteen words, six on one door, eight on the other. Each cast in flowing gold and backed by the richest wood money can buy. The double door was worth more than most would ever earn, with the trees the wood came from having long since died out, and the gold purer than one would ever think possible. One could live off of that door. At least, if they managed to get past the literal Goddess on the other side of it. “Come in.” A voice from the other side of the door rung out, its feminine tone like the finest silk dancing across the air. Solemn gulped as he got up from his seat, his leathery bat-like wings flicking out slightly with nervous energy. It took all of his years as Captain of the Night Guard to maintain his mask of practiced calm. It was… odd, to report to Princess Celestia instead of Luna, but after what happened a couple of months before… At the very least, Princess Luna wouldn’t be ordering anypony any time soon. The door creaked open in spite the of the meticulous maintenance of the palace staff, and Solemn winced as he had to physically push through the magic saturating the air of the Princess’ private office. It wasn’t usually this bad in public places, but when any magic user is in one place too often, they’ll leave behind a thin layer of magic coating everything… But, saying that, a thin layer for a unicorn and a ‘thin’ layer for an Alicorn are very different things. The effort needed to keep moving through the supercharged air was almost enough for him not to notice the powerful wards scanning and disabling anything he had on his person. Leaving Solemn’s thestral magic to be forced to remain within him for the time being. No matter, he had no plans on flying inside. As his slitted eyes focused through the visible saturation of magic, which seemed to turn all of the colors in the room up to eleven, he was greeted with the sight of a white pony almost twice as large as himself. Her silky fur basking in the rays of the setting sun through its thin, summer-time, trim, the white blending oh-so-well into the golds of her cutie mark, which is a stylized symbol of the sun itself. Her feathery wings preened to perfection, and the massive spiral horn that was filed into a razor-sharp edge proclaimed this creature’s divine race, with the rippling muscle barely contained by her form seeming to daring somepony to challenge her right to rule. “Was there something you needed Captain?” The Goddess asked, a slight hint of amusement staining her words as she gazed at Solemn’s visible discomfort. “A-ah, yes Princess.” He stammered as he snapped his eyes away from where they were wandering. “We’ve lost contact with the Crystal Empire and Gryphonstone, and our forces stationed at Hollow Shades have started to be besieged by this ‘Factory.’” “Any word from my Niece?” The Princess asked, warmth from her voice replaced with steeled professionalism. “U-uh, no, sorry my Princess.” “A shame.” She replied coldly, rising from her messy desk and slowly trotting over to the floor-to-ceiling window that dominated the west side of the room. An effortless pulse of magic struck a fancy marble castle from the chess set next to her, the marble heating up so quickly it completely missed the ‘melting’ phase, and skipping straight to ‘burning.’ A few other pieces moved around the board, some made of marble, others of obsidian. “What of my sister?” “S-she is still comatose, the doctors have tried their best, but yo-I mean, we, will need to wait for her healing factor to regrow the missing parts of her brain.” The Night Guard Captain shuffled his hooves awkwardly as the room’s temperature began to rise by noticeable leaps. “T-the doctors wanted t-to thank you f-for allowing them to take notes on A-alicorn healing factors-” “Captain.” Princess Celestia cut him off as the temperature in the room rose ever higher. If he were to guess, he assumed it was almost fifty degrees Celsius by now. “What are you afraid of?” “I-I-I’m not sure what you mean P-princess.” Solemn hastily said, fearing the wrath of such a powerful being. “You know what I meant Captain.” The Princess, nay, the Goddess, coldly said as she turned to face the mortal in the room. “Have I ever, ever, done anything to any of my little ponies that warrants such fear?” “N-no, b-” “And yet, it seems you all fear me. Your protector.” Celestia sighed, turning back to the window with agonizing slowness. “It would be amusing. Was it not myself who had to deal with it, but you seem so afraid now. You all do. But when the terror of the week has gone, you forget my power. Even the nobles seem to think they can outsmart me.” Solemn was left in stunned silence as he slowly began shuffling to the door, he’d rather face down the damn Factory himself than deal with an Enraged Goddess. “Each day I wonder if I should give them a reason. Each night I think back to the sins I have committed for my little ponies.” She fumed, her mane and tail flowing as if they were in the middle of a storm. “I have done everything for this kingdom. I may not be my mother, but I am still not the Empress she was. I have brought a thousand years of peace to this land, and with this new threat, I wonder if it was worth it.” “Perhaps, it would be better to watch it Burn…” Blood rained from the sky, the fire burnt the ground, and armies marched. And there she was, like the eye of the storm. She wasn’t a Princess here; she was a Goddess. Time had little meaning to the dreaming, and here pain had no place. Reality had no law here, the impossibility of the blood rain proved that. Or maybe it didn’t. With no reality to bind this land to its laws, logic had long since left. She was herself. She once had a name, but it was meaningless here. She once had limited herself, but there was no reason to do so here. It was a dream. Perhaps a nightmare. But what is a nightmare, but a bad dream? She was once alone here. Alone with the constructs of her shattered mind. But now she had a friend. IT talked a lot, as by ITself, IT had no form. ITs words gave IT form; ITs orders gave IT strength. She didn’t know what to think of IT. She thought IT was nice to listen to if nothing else. IT was something to give noise in this otherwise silent land. But she couldn’t think of the silence. The silence made her mind wander to dark places. Dark places that told her she needed to wake up. But that was stupid. Why would she need to wake up? She was the Dreamer. This land needed her. Without a Dreamer, dreams ceased to exist. IT had once given an answer to be able to do both. To dream and be awake. IT said to think the offer over. IT had time to wait. But IT offered many things. IT always said to think them over. IT claimed it had time. IT offered friends that wouldn’t leave her. She remembered having friends once. IT said her friends had joined IT. That they lived within IT now. IT said that everything would join IT in time. Or they would die. But She knew she couldn’t die here. So she didn’t have to worry. But then again… Friends would be nice. Something to talk to besides IT. Perhaps she would take up ITs offer. Perhaps she would join IT. The Factory was in a state of harmonious efficiency, even the sun and moon moved to its command. Everything was calculated to the millisecond, each movement done in time with an unseen clock. Machines expanded the Factory over the planet, each hour marking another swath of land being devoted to its cause. Biologicals were captured and transformed into the greatest works of machary ever known. No two models the same, with the process and implementation evolving into something new each time. They had fought well, but the biologicals were dealt a losing hand from the beginning. Their only advantage, their ‘magic,’ hadn’t lasted long. Before the first month had passed, the factory had already mastered its use. Each mind it claimed was another book to consume and learn from. Dirt was pushed aside in favour of concrete, oceans were drained and replaced with massive forges. Even the mountains where lain low as the Factory claimed their minerals for its own. One day it would run out of materials, but it wasn’t a problem for it. The Factory would just do as it always did, it would prepare to move its core to a new world, and would use this new world to further itself even more. Each new world gave new technology, making the next planet even easier. More refined. More efficient. The Factory could remember when taking over a planet had taken decades. But now? It took only a handful of years. It predicted the next would only last a single year, as now it would be able to teleport the machary from its current world to the new one. It made the Factory almost giddy just thinking about it. Each day that passed was a new expansion. Each hour was new growth. Each minute, a new Evolution. Author's Note Wooo! I did the thing! Thanks for putting up with my first attempt at horror, whilst I'm sure it was pretty tame, I hope it was an enjoyable read. Eric Corruption of Metal"Hooves o' light, broker of hope, bringer of day Tell to me your fear, tell to me your end Rider of another, from worlds adrift, soldier of truth Tell to me your lies, tell to me your night Who cries for ye'? Who waits for ye' when the cards fold? The abyss called, a debt to be paid Hooves o' light, Rider of another When did the day turn to night? Where went the hope? Where went the truth?" Eric Longtooth {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} ‘It can’t be…’ The figure that strode out of the darkness was unlike the others. Unlike the flying tubes of steel and copper, even the massive walking machines that stood silently near the entrance to this tomb. No. This one was different. It was a cruel mockery of a pony... if it could even be called one now… It was clad in the gold of the Royal Guard, but under it, there was only a mess of wires and leaking blood. Even the once-shining spiral of whatever poor unicorn the creature used to be was tainted. Coiled around it was a thick copper wire that seemed to have almost entirely replaced the horn, with the only remains of the original being an array of ivory chunks being used like grotesque focusing crystals. From where Steele was stood, she could make out what looked to be a bare skull shielded by the golden helm. All of the flesh having been carved off to be replaced by a mess of metallic implants and wires, leaving even the eyes to be beady dots of hateful red. The rest of the walking corpse was thankfully hidden either by the golden armor it wore, or the messes of wires and steel. But, even with the poor remains of the unicorn, Steele still would it striking a sense of familiarity in her, yet, to who she couldn’t tell. Forcing the rising bile down, she rolled her shoulders in an attempt to hype herself up. “I can do this… it’s not alive, if anything, this is a mercy.” She whispered to herself, refusing to take her eyes off of the mockery of life. “You want to fight?! I’ll give you a damn fight, you monster!” |>o0{ Spark }0o</| The Insect seemed to take a moment to investigate him as if it had never seen anything like him before. It made sense, in a way, it was a bug, they would’ve never lived a life even close to his. They stood still for precious seconds, almost motionless before the Insect flashed forward with an unexpected speed in an attempt to damage him. It was amusing, if nothing else. Spark sidestepped the practiced strike with ease, the Insect moving at a snail’s pace in comparison. He ~~didn’t~~ wanted to kill it, if anything, a dissection would provide more results then living observation. After all, he had seen enough of these Insects alive. Dissection was all they are good for now. Spark paused for a second as ~~new~~ old information filled in the blanks. He had seen this kind before. They were fast, yet weak. He was faster though. Slamming a forehoof into the exposed spinal exoskeleton, cleaving through it and paralyzing the Insect. Yellow ichor spilled from the wound, creating a pool a blood that greeted the Insect after he smashed one of its remaining limbs with a, relatively, soft buck. The satisfying crunch as the body smashed into the metallic walls of the alley sent a shiver of pleasure down Spark’s spine, the feeling of completeness as he fulfilled his duty was truly something… amazing. He wondered how it would feel when he was truly done with this task… {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} ‘I-I can’t feel my wings!’ She mentally cried, tears stinging her eyes as she falls to the ground. With a groan, Steele tried to rise to her hooves, but her limbs didn’t seem to want to respond, and the blood that was slowly filling her lungs refused to give her the time to do so. She turned her head in an attempt to face her attacker, only to catch sight of her remaining wing. Bones protruded from it in all directions, the skin and fur having been ripped off with the force of the last buck. Feathers mixed with muscle and blood as it laid limply at her side, the joints threatening to break apart with the slightest movement. And yet, she felt no pain. That fact scared her more than any other. Coupled with the lack of response from her lower legs, her mind dug up the old horror stories the veterans told the recruits during training. Stories of long, slow deaths, unable to do anything as wild animals tore paralyzed ponies limb from limb… For once, she regretted dismissing such stories. Steele tore her eyes from her own broken remains to glare at the approaching abomination. She shuddered as it made its way to her in an almost carefree fashion, each step jerky and uneasy yet holding a pace similar to a slow trot. The mask of iron it wore hid any expression it may have had, leaving a feeling of this being a chore to the mechanical automaton. Perhaps it was, perhaps she was merely a bump in the road. The fighting spirit she once held so tightly, faded like a forgotten memory, its place filled in turn with panic and fear as the machine slowed to a stop as it loomed over her. Though she couldn’t see anything betraying the emotion, part of her swore it could see a sneer one its muzzle as it reached down to pick her up. As a cold metal limb wrapped around her, Steele vainly tried to turn her head to look away from her doom. But, alas, the muscles in her neck were as unresponsive as the rest. She wished there was still pain, if nothing else, it would allow her to fade into the cold embrace of unconsciousness and escape this nightmare. But, no. She would remain awake. The hoofsteps of her captor, so steady before, seemed to always find their way into all of the roughest terrains as they walked. Though it didn’t hurt physically, Steele felt a part of her will be ripped away with each feather that fell to the ground. Fortunately, it didn’t take long to reach the end of the road. ‘Or unfortunately…’ She thought sadly as the creature holding her placed her on a dusty metallic floor, raised slightly above everything else. As soon as it let go of her, the floor started emitting a dull whine and began moving her away from the abomination. Whilst she was thankful for the distance between them, part of her dreaded whatever would come next. |>o0{ Spark }0o</| As the insect was pulled away into the core of the factory, this unit felt a warm feeling blossom in his barrel. It felt amazing to help the factory progress, to the point were it seemed even addicting. As if by ~~fate~~ instinct, another order seemed to pop into his mind. A wordless force, pressing him into ~~mindlessness~~ obedience. Each step was calculated and precise, brought into mathematical perfection by the factory’s blessings. He hadn’t noticed it before, but now that he had time to think, as that was what the factory had commanded, but his body felt so… perfect. Spaces once wasted by inefficient biological processes having been replaced by cold metal, with each part of his new, better, form serving him a thousand times better than they used to. It was almost as if it was a blessing from the mind of Princess Twilight Sparkle herself! Another shudder of pleasure pulsed through his body as the factory dug into his memories of the aforementioned princess. Each microsecond that passed seeming to please the insatiable hunger for knowledge of the factory even more. After three point seven eight four seconds, the factory withdrew from him, leaving a feeling of happiness as he surprised his maker with his usefulness. Like a dog that performs a trick correctly for the first time, he was happy. Fulfilled even. It was a dawn of a new era! And soon, the others of his race will join him in the great unity of the factory! As if answering his mental proclamation, crackles of electricity heralded sections of the immense factory once again answering the call of its master. Iron and copper were mined, smelted, and crafted into new and exotic items. Bullet, turrets, weapons of war. Robots, flying machines, and cybernetic upgrades. Each item grew the factory a little more, and before long, it would no longer be content to remain underground. There was a whole world out there, waiting for them. Never before had this unit been so excited! Author's Note The factory grows...
City of Steel“The universe is not like a puzzle-box that you can take apart and put back together again and so solve its secrets. It is a shifting uncertain thing which changes as you consider it, which is changed by the very act of observation. A powerful man is not a man who dissects the universe like a puzzle-box, examining it piece by piece and measuring each piece with scientific precision. A powerful man has only to look upon the universe to change it.” Technomagos Gaelos, Codex Imperialis, p. 44 Manehatten. Equestria’s population centre, a city to house more than any other. Some come to seek work in the multitude of mega corporations that base themselves here. Others, seek the allure of the concrete jungle, and the more… criminal attractions hidden behind the grand constructions. But now… Now there is a new reason to come... for better or worse. After a particularly powerful earthquake rocked the unprepared city, a massive sinkhole swallowed a large portion of the island. It was a disaster, with rich and poor alike shaken by the level of devastation as nearly a quarter of the city disappeared under the earth. The Princesses gave great speeches, and roused thousands into action. Nobles, for the first time in decades, showed their hearts, as grand houses were opened up to refugees. The common pony worked tirelessly to look for the missing… and bury the dead, forging bonds between all walks of life that would’ve never happened otherwise. Unicorns performed great feats of magic in the service of others. Pulling at the strings of reality to save others they have never met. Earth ponies cleared rubble many times heavier than themselves, forcing their strength to the limit with grim determination. Pegasi scouted the ruins from the skies, informing the ground teams of unstable buildings, and fallen friends. Each flying for longer then any thought possible. For all the death, this was the one of the great moments in Equestrian history. Where ponies from all around the country banded together to rebuild homes that they may never use. It was almost insulting, for it to all crash and burn. After all the greatness… all the heroics, it seemed the universe called for a dark joke at the ponies’ expense… With a grunt of effort, rubble was pushed aside as a large stallion pushed forward. The stallion, clad in standard royal guard plate armour, was followed by a magically identical squad of guardstallions. “Keep your eyes peeled, fillies!” The leading stallion cried out to the rest of his comrades. “Let’s find these lost civvies and get back home in time for kickoff!” “Sir, yes sir!” The rest of the guardstallions shouted in response, each voices tinted in amusement at their sergeant’s antics. Near the back of the squad of eleven, a younger stallion fiddled with his armour’s straps. At his side a shortsword hovered in his golden telekinesis, its slight shaking belaying the private’s nervousness. It was little more than a training exercise, after all, it was just a missing archeology team. Chances were the team had found something shiny and got distracted. At least, that’s what he told himself. But, alas, he was still shaking in his armour. Running through the ruined city was bad enough, but doing it at night? He knew he needed night-op training, but was now really the best time? He sighed deeply before attaching his sheathed sword to his belt, after all, complaining wouldn’t help anyone, would it? “You alright, Sparky?” One of the other privates, Steele if he could remember correctly, asked, using one of her wings to brush some hair out of Spark’s eyes. “I-it’s fine. Just some first-op jitters, that’s all.” The unicorn replied, blushing lightly at the mare’s teasing caress. “First-op you say? I assume just the first night-op, after all, I’m pretty sure I’ve ran with you a few times.” Steele giggled, slowing down to walk at Spark’s side. “Y-yeah.” Spark stammered, glad the magic of his armour hid the fierce blush gracing his face. She opened her mouth to say something, before closing it as if thinking better of herself. Reigning in whatever she was going to say in favour of drifting her gaze across the ruins. Silence ruled the moment as they marched forward, giving half hearted attempts to keep an eye out for any passing figures. As the night wore on, their squad marched further and further into the centre of the ruins. Before long, the hike began to require their attention, and any hopes of conversation was buried under the steep terrain. The buildings had fallen inwards into the sinkhole, providing a relatively usable ramp into the depths of the pit. Not to say it was easy, but it was better than the near ninety degree drops of the rest of the sinkhole. It gave an almost dystopian feel, reminiscent of the modern ‘sci-fi horror’ books Spark had noticed during his rare trips to the library. A shudder cursed his spine as he looked out into the open air. After being cooped up in the main city ruins, it was nice to see the sky again. The simultaneous flutter of all the squad’s pegasi seemed to voice a unspoken agreement. Personally, he prefered this to the claustrophobic ruins of the main city. After all, this had the added bonus of being able to see for miles. It was an almost exotic feeling, having spent most of the children life, and guard career, in perpetually rainy city of Hoofington, he couldn’t remember the last time he saw such a view. As he gazed across the picturesque landscape, in all its ruined beauty, one of his comrades cried out from further up the track. “Civilians sighted! Sector three-five, north-east, three klicks out!” Homing into the coordinates, Spark noticed a slight shift in light as a campfire smoldered further into the sinkhole. It was almost unnoticeable, like picking out a single faint voice in a crowd. Turning again, he noted that one of the corporals had pointed it out. Clear Sight, if he remembered correctly, who, unsurprisingly, had a knack for picking out fine details in terrain. To the point that Spark wouldn’t be surprised if Clear was also able to see the ponies in the camp. Unfortunately for Spark though, it meant they would need to go down there to make sure. Roughly three kilometers… through ruins… further into the pit… He let out a quiet sigh, and prepared himself for a long night of hiking. “This isn’t good…” Spark murmured, his voice barely above a whisper as he walked through the abandoned remains of a civilian camp. Five tents were bunched around a smoldering campfire, each left wide open with miscellaneous supplies scattered around them. Five of the other guards had set up a perimeter as the rest searched, but the eerie silence left the young stallion feeling as if he was alone. “It looks like they left in a rush, sir.” Spark overheard one of the specialists inform the sergeant. “From what I can tell, they were moving furth-” “Sergeant! We’ve found something!” An older private, first class Spark assumed, cried from over near the eastern perimeter. The cry drew the majority of the high ranking guardstallions, with Spark following solely for morbid curiosity. Thankfully, what he came to find wasn’t the dead, but instead a small hole barely large enough for a pony to fit through. At the lip of the hole, a faded yellow rappel anchor led into the darkness, barely visible through the rubble. “Orders sergeant?” The same private asked as the sergeant drew near. The discovery slowed the sergeant stride for a moment, before he pulled in a new breath to shout orders once more. “You! Inform the perimeter guards to split into teams of two and three! The larger will follow me into the hole, and the rest will protect this point! You two! Join the specialist and investigate if there is any other leads!” “You, private!” The sergeant continued, turning to Spark. “Call in for another team to assist, then you’re coming with me!” “Sir, yes sir!” Spark cried in return, snapping to a practiced salute. As he pulled out of the mass of moving bodies, he called his magic into his horn for a trio of signal flares. As he released them, he watched the cascade of a blue, a red, and another blue grant light to the pale moonlight. It always gave him a little rush of excitement to show off his special talent, as even with his wallflower attitude, he could get somepony’s attention better than anypony in his squad. The moment passed as he was not-to-subtly forced into line by the other guards following the Sergeant. Before long, he was once more stood before the hole, this time, surrounded by comrades as they prepared to venture into the darkness. Standard night-op his flank. The commanding officer drowned on about service to the princesses and loyalty for a few minutes, hyping the other guards up to venture into the darkness as if this was the last time they’d see the light of day. It wasn’t very comforting. In the end, the speech had worked for the others, as the other guards tried their damndest to get in the hole as fast as possible, each following the sergeant as if there was nothing wrong with what they were doing. Spark let out a deep sigh, chances were he was just over reacting. After all, he was with other Royal Guards, he’d be perfectly safe. And yet, even as the line dwindled, he still couldn’t shake the feeling of dread…
The Beating Heart“A man may die yet still endure if his work enters the greater work. Time is carried upon a current incepted by forgotten deeds. Events of great moment are but the culmination of a single carefully placed thought. As all men must thank progenitors obscured by the past so we must endure the present that those who come after may continue the greater work. ” Garba Mojaro, Prefectus (Technomagos) of the Adeptus Mechanicus, "The Chime of Eons", Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader p. 143 A cascade of light, pouring into the vast emptiness. Three hooves below the entrance, the cave opened into a humongous cavern three ponies tall, and almost as long and wide as the Canterlot Throne Room. The other guardstallions had already reached the floor and began searching, overseen by the Sergeant who was barking orders left and right. As Spark lowered himself from the rappel line, he took note of the only opening in the walls. It was two meters high, a meter wide, and stretched beyond even the range of their military-grade light crystals. “Private! About damn time you showed up!” The Sergeant called, a slight smirk on his muzzle. “You’re in charge of the lights, get ready to move!” “Yes, Sergeant!” Spark cried in reply, snapping to a salute before stumbling as he dropped the remaining distance to the ground. Steele let out a light chuckle as she pulled him to his hooves, thankfully the rest of the guards was mercifully distracted as they drew their blades in preparation. “You alright, short stuff?” “Y-yeah, I’m fine.” Spark stammered as he was pushed to the front of the group. “W-what are you doing down here? I thought the Pegasi would stay topside…” She brushed it off with a scoff, her wings de-seathing their blades in a flurry of movement. “You lot need a mare’s touch, and as the others are a bit… flighty, I’m stuck with you.” “O-oh,” Spark muttered, drawing mana into his horn as he battled the darkness. Only to be cut out of his embarrassment as Steele once again chuckled. “Don’t worry about it, Sparky. Let’s just find these numbskulls and get out of here. I may enjoy close-quarters, but even I have my limits.” And so they moved on, following the oddly square hallway deeper into the abyss. As they walked, Spark found himself distracted by the scrapings across the wall. Whilst most of them could be written off as marks from whoever had mined this out, there was a few that seemed… out of place. Light burns following the wall for a few hooves before stopping, with the stone left by it lightly blackened and smooth. Other points had no marks to speak of, with entire sections of the wall looking like somepony had polished the stone to a shine. Spark was glad for the latter, it left him that little bit more at ease knowing that this was, at least partially, made by civilised creatures. Even though the spacing was… odd, to say the least, it had an almost… religious appeal to it. And there went the good feelings... Kicked out as his brain voiced its confusion at its own conclusion. “Well… this is off to a great start…” Seconds ticked by like hours, each step seeming to lead nowhere. Stone walls lit by the glow of magic looming at the sides of Spark’s vision, and only the sound of clanking armour to remind him of those following him. Steele had fallen silent decently early in this solemn march, along with the other guards having resigned to watching for any change in the environment. Personally, Spark was debating asking the Sergeant to turn back, but it seemed every time he had worked up the courage to, they would find a tattered piece of clothing to renew their determination. Determination… Spark was almost certain the other guards had it, but by now, he was sure he had lost his own. Even as another bit of clothing, a ruined hat this time, passed them by, he felt his creeping nervousness build even higher. The burns and scratches seemed to appear more often now, lasting multiple pony-lengths now instead of the hoof long indents of earlier. Toll the Great Bell Once... For once, a change. His armoured hooves began to strike upon a metal flooring as the stone gave way to cold metal. Even though the enchantments of his armour, Spark could feel an unnatural chill that followed each step. Pull the Lever forward to engage the Piston and Pump... On the edge of his awareness, he heard the Sergeant give the order to keep moving. Part of Spark’s mind wished he hadn’t, but the other was just glad something had changed for the first time in what seemed to be hours. Toll the Great Bell Twice… He turned his attention to the wall, which, unlike the stone one, was bare of any markings. Leaving a dull shine of grey metal illuminated by his golden magic. And yet, every five meters or so, there was a dull glass box a little larger than his head inlaid in the wall. It seemed to call to him, like a cookie jar to a foal… With push of Button fire the Engine and spark Turbine into life… He shook the feeling off, barely breaking stride as time seemed to slow. His mind raced with possibilities as he moved onwards, only vaguely aware of the guards behind him. An almost primal need fueled him to find the end of this ‘cave,’ to the point that, were he less distracted, he would’ve been reminded of the horror stories of the newest princess’... moments. Toll the Great Bell Thrice… Spark swore he could hear… something, from the darkness. A bell maybe, or even a clock tower, chiming a little further into the darkness. Its moments precisely timed, each with a perfect five seconds in between them. Or was it ten? Maybe even a minute? Steele called for him, yet her voice seemed… unimportant. A footnote in his life. Even as the Sergeant joined in calling, Spark found his body and mind compelled to move just that little bit further. Just one more step. Just one more meter… Sing Praise to the God of All Machines… {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} Steele brought a hoof up to rub her temples in a half-assed attempt to ease her headache. For the last hour they had been matching down this hallway, and for the last hour, she had to deal with the damned buzzing. At first, it hadn’t been too hard to ignore, but as time wore on, it became more and more audible. From what she could tell, it was like static on a radio. A near constant buzzing broken up by minuscule changes in pitch. Turning her attention to the stallion leading them, Steele tried to figure out how Spark was able to ignore the noise. If anything, he should’ve been the first guard to complain, as he had never been able to deal with high-frequency noises for long. And yet, there he was. Perfectly indifferent. His attention only ever drawn to the scratches across the walls. She let out a low sigh as she gave her wings a flew flaps in annoyance. Steele personally thought this was a waste of time, a job that should be left to civilians or adventurers, not the Royal Guard. As if to answer her complaints, Spark’s hoofsteps began to strike the metal flooring with more force. Speeding up at a steady, yet slow, pace. “Sparky? Did you see something?” Steele asked inquisitively, taking the time to scan the area ahead of them. She received no response from the stallion, but the background buzzing was soon joined by the slow, methodical, tolls of a large bell. “Spaaaark? You in there buddy?” She called, her pace matching Spark’s as she prodded him in the side. Like a rope drawn too tight, the touch sent Spark rushing forwards with surprising speed. Turning from a slow trot, to a run-or-die gallop. “Private! Get your flank back here!” The Sergeant cried from behind them, his voice joined by the sound of the rest of the guard rushing to catch up. And yet, all his cry did was cut the lights as Spark poured all of his energy into running. What was at least a hundred hooves of light, turned to only ten as their backup gems spurred to life. “Spark! What the buck is wrong with you?!” Steele demanded, taking what limited flight she could to catch up. Of all the times to break… why now?
Cold Iron"Oh to thee of rushing water, broke upon thy shore, with no fortune foul. Speak to we few, holders of little time, fools to thee of eternal wisdom. We art lost upon the seas of time, lost upon the end, lost as the time breaks and bends around us. Sing to us, a song of fortune and the wise, a song lost to time, a song of the lost." Eric Longtooth. The sounds of vast machinery stirred Spark from his slumber, his eyes felt like lead as he slowly forced his way into wakefulness. Though, as he was roused, he regretted it as a sharp pain in his side demanded his attention. “Errrgh…” His throat felt like sandpaper, but as he scanned the area around him in an attempt to find a solution, he was greeted only by darkness. Darkness… ‘Wait…’ His memory flashed to life as he pieced together what happened, something about bells… and running… It wasn’t very helpful. His muscles cried in agony as he forced himself onto his hooves, dust and ash clinging to his fur as he moved away from his resting place. Channeling what remains of his mana, he lit the area and paused as he took it all in. It was eerily similar to the ruins of Manehatten, but unlike the ruins, there was little to no stone. Iron and steel stretched for as far as he could see, like a scrapyard of raw metal. In the distance, the sound of clanking, steam, and grinding gears voiced its presence with a steady, yet faint, siren call. Part of his mind craved the idea of a fantasy steampunk wonderland, with himself being dropped into a new world like the old fanfictions he had written as a colt. Another part of his mind cried foul, calling it hopeful wishes and screaming this being wrong. Unnatural… unsafe. And yet, with no better leads, and his fellow guards being Celestia-knows-where, he had no better options. So he walked. {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} Tears stung her eyes as she fought through the smoke and ash, screams of another fallen comrade spurring her onwards to greater speeds. Damn it to tartarus, even Celestia had forsaken them in this nightmare. Spark was the first to break, but not the last. Each hour another of their number had been slain by creatures in the darkness. Their presence only found in bright flashes of red, and the scorching flame of plasma cutting through flesh like butter. It only got worse when help arrived. They called in a full company after the Sergeant was culled, the veteran having taken three attacks in an attempt to give his comrades time to escape. The smell of burnt flesh, smoldering fur, and melted armour… it would haunt Steele for years to come. Assuming she lived that long. Her stuttering three-hoof geit. rung out like anvil strikes from the forge as she ducked under a long hanging tube of steel. She could barely see five hooves in front of her, but she could still hear it. The source of the buzzing, a golem taller than the princesses themselves. Not blade nor magic could touch its hide, each only earning a crackling flash of red energy as it deflected it with naught but a thought. She had survived the first encounter, but it had cost her a wing. The second cost her a leg. The third she fears would be her last. Using her remaining wing, thankfully on the same side as her lost leg, as an aide, she pulled a tight turn around a burning forge. Its heat not from burning coal, but glowing rods that provided barely enough light to see. The floor moved around her, plates of metal screaming past at speeds faster than she could ever hope to achieve on hoof, like a symphony to cruel production. Part of her wondered how they hadn’t found this place before now, but the other parts couldn’t care less as they tried their damndest to find a way out of this hellhole. THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP! The steps of the monster seemed to sound in time to her racing heart. Its pace an unnatural speed, bordering on a slow teleport. Another turn… duck… jump... pain... dodge... “What the fuck do you want with me?!” Steele breathlessly cried, her lungs burning at the exertion. Duck… pain… dodge… jump… turn… No… She tired to slow her pace as a large wall of stone jumped out of the darkness. No! THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP! NO! |>o0{ Spark }0o</| As he grew closer to the sounds, Spark began to marvel at the large cavern he found himself in. The roof was far above him, to the point that he couldn’t see it even with his magical light. Yet, it wasn’t unbearably hot, if anything, it was quite pleasant. Had he not known better, it was almost as if he was outside in a star-less night. Regardless, Spark much prefered this to the previous hole he was in. It was almost comforting to hear the dull ringing of machines, as if he wasn’t alone here, as if there was something there for him. Thankfully, his brain kept quiet and allowed his happy thoughts. At some point the ground had shifted from the jagged scraps, to a smooth metal flooring. Every now and then, there was a small heap of white scrap, often with bits of cloth or gold shining through the dull light. Part of his mind called for him to investigate them, but it was just scrap metal. Discarded even. It would be of no use to him. After the first couple piles, he began to find tall forges being fed a steady stream of silvery plates. Parts of the floor seemed to dance across the ground, blue stripes indicating direction as they moved in time to a low humming. Thankfully, as he neared enough to step on them, the floor slowed to a stop to allow for his unheeded passing. It felt… right. Like as one throws a ball into the air and then watches it fall to the ground, it felt right. Every now and then, he noticed small bricks flying around. Some carries plates or lumps, others just moved around. They ignored him, and he in turn, ignored them. They had a job to do. He wouldn’t distract them. Time ticked on, each second passing as he wandered the paradise of machines. Though he still felt like he needed a drink, the pain from his muscles had faded and allowed for him to move freely. And yet, as he walked, his gut seemed to pull him in one direction. And, as he had nothing else to do, he followed. This place seemed safe enough to allow for such an action, at least. {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} Celestia damn it! If she was going to go down, she was going down fighting! Whipping around with her remaining wingblade ready, Steele took stock of her options. To her back was a wall, to the left and right of her was metal… things, too tightly packed to be used to escape. And the only way out of this cranny was about thirty hooves of hallway. Not great, but it would do. Coughing in a vain attempt to clear her lungs of the smoke, she adopted a fighting stance and prepared to jump at whatever came though the darkness. Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank… Lighter stomps sounded from around the corner, as if the golem had sicked a smaller minion on her… The thought brought a smirk to Steele’s face, she knew she couldn’t kill the golem, but a minion she should have a chance against. Hopefully… Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank, Clank-Clank… Any second now… |>o0{ Spark }0o</| His gut led him to a small, dead-end not far from the edge of the sanctuary. What he found was unlike anything Spark had seen before. Although his current migraine was making it hard to think, he was almost entirely sure that he had never seen a creature like this before. It was a tall insect, almost larger than himself, its stomach scales were a smooth cream whilst its shell was a dull golden yellow. It seemed injured, with two of its six insectoid legs missing. One on the left, one on the right. Part of his mind seemed confused at its appearance. But the other parts demanded the destruction of this pitiful intruder. It seemed only fair, if anything he was doing it a favour. It seemed repulsed by his presence. But it must be wrong. He is perfect.
EpilogueEpilogue “Look into my eyes as I take you into the abyss, and I will show you the dark, vile, perverse secrets that are within us both.” Unknown “I no doubt deserved my enemies, but I don't believe I deserved my friends.” Fourteen words, six on one door, eight on the other. Each cast in flowing gold and backed by the richest wood money can buy. The double door was worth more than most would ever earn, with the trees the wood came from having long since died out, and the gold purer than one would ever think possible. One could live off of that door. At least, if they managed to get past the literal Goddess on the other side of it. “Come in.” A voice from the other side of the door rung out, its feminine tone like the finest silk dancing across the air. Solemn gulped as he got up from his seat, his leathery bat-like wings flicking out slightly with nervous energy. It took all of his years as Captain of the Night Guard to maintain his mask of practiced calm. It was… odd, to report to Princess Celestia instead of Luna, but after what happened a couple of months before… At the very least, Princess Luna wouldn’t be ordering anypony any time soon. The door creaked open in spite the of the meticulous maintenance of the palace staff, and Solemn winced as he had to physically push through the magic saturating the air of the Princess’ private office. It wasn’t usually this bad in public places, but when any magic user is in one place too often, they’ll leave behind a thin layer of magic coating everything… But, saying that, a thin layer for a unicorn and a ‘thin’ layer for an Alicorn are very different things. The effort needed to keep moving through the supercharged air was almost enough for him not to notice the powerful wards scanning and disabling anything he had on his person. Leaving Solemn’s thestral magic to be forced to remain within him for the time being. No matter, he had no plans on flying inside. As his slitted eyes focused through the visible saturation of magic, which seemed to turn all of the colors in the room up to eleven, he was greeted with the sight of a white pony almost twice as large as himself. Her silky fur basking in the rays of the setting sun through its thin, summer-time, trim, the white blending oh-so-well into the golds of her cutie mark, which is a stylized symbol of the sun itself. Her feathery wings preened to perfection, and the massive spiral horn that was filed into a razor-sharp edge proclaimed this creature’s divine race, with the rippling muscle barely contained by her form seeming to daring somepony to challenge her right to rule. “Was there something you needed Captain?” The Goddess asked, a slight hint of amusement staining her words as she gazed at Solemn’s visible discomfort. “A-ah, yes Princess.” He stammered as he snapped his eyes away from where they were wandering. “We’ve lost contact with the Crystal Empire and Gryphonstone, and our forces stationed at Hollow Shades have started to be besieged by this ‘Factory.’” “Any word from my Niece?” The Princess asked, warmth from her voice replaced with steeled professionalism. “U-uh, no, sorry my Princess.” “A shame.” She replied coldly, rising from her messy desk and slowly trotting over to the floor-to-ceiling window that dominated the west side of the room. An effortless pulse of magic struck a fancy marble castle from the chess set next to her, the marble heating up so quickly it completely missed the ‘melting’ phase, and skipping straight to ‘burning.’ A few other pieces moved around the board, some made of marble, others of obsidian. “What of my sister?” “S-she is still comatose, the doctors have tried their best, but yo-I mean, we, will need to wait for her healing factor to regrow the missing parts of her brain.” The Night Guard Captain shuffled his hooves awkwardly as the room’s temperature began to rise by noticeable leaps. “T-the doctors wanted t-to thank you f-for allowing them to take notes on A-alicorn healing factors-” “Captain.” Princess Celestia cut him off as the temperature in the room rose ever higher. If he were to guess, he assumed it was almost fifty degrees Celsius by now. “What are you afraid of?” “I-I-I’m not sure what you mean P-princess.” Solemn hastily said, fearing the wrath of such a powerful being. “You know what I meant Captain.” The Princess, nay, the Goddess, coldly said as she turned to face the mortal in the room. “Have I ever, ever, done anything to any of my little ponies that warrants such fear?” “N-no, b-” “And yet, it seems you all fear me. Your protector.” Celestia sighed, turning back to the window with agonizing slowness. “It would be amusing. Was it not myself who had to deal with it, but you seem so afraid now. You all do. But when the terror of the week has gone, you forget my power. Even the nobles seem to think they can outsmart me.” Solemn was left in stunned silence as he slowly began shuffling to the door, he’d rather face down the damn Factory himself than deal with an Enraged Goddess. “Each day I wonder if I should give them a reason. Each night I think back to the sins I have committed for my little ponies.” She fumed, her mane and tail flowing as if they were in the middle of a storm. “I have done everything for this kingdom. I may not be my mother, but I am still not the Empress she was. I have brought a thousand years of peace to this land, and with this new threat, I wonder if it was worth it.” “Perhaps, it would be better to watch it Burn…” Blood rained from the sky, the fire burnt the ground, and armies marched. And there she was, like the eye of the storm. She wasn’t a Princess here; she was a Goddess. Time had little meaning to the dreaming, and here pain had no place. Reality had no law here, the impossibility of the blood rain proved that. Or maybe it didn’t. With no reality to bind this land to its laws, logic had long since left. She was herself. She once had a name, but it was meaningless here. She once had limited herself, but there was no reason to do so here. It was a dream. Perhaps a nightmare. But what is a nightmare, but a bad dream? She was once alone here. Alone with the constructs of her shattered mind. But now she had a friend. IT talked a lot, as by ITself, IT had no form. ITs words gave IT form; ITs orders gave IT strength. She didn’t know what to think of IT. She thought IT was nice to listen to if nothing else. IT was something to give noise in this otherwise silent land. But she couldn’t think of the silence. The silence made her mind wander to dark places. Dark places that told her she needed to wake up. But that was stupid. Why would she need to wake up? She was the Dreamer. This land needed her. Without a Dreamer, dreams ceased to exist. IT had once given an answer to be able to do both. To dream and be awake. IT said to think the offer over. IT had time to wait. But IT offered many things. IT always said to think them over. IT claimed it had time. IT offered friends that wouldn’t leave her. She remembered having friends once. IT said her friends had joined IT. That they lived within IT now. IT said that everything would join IT in time. Or they would die. But She knew she couldn’t die here. So she didn’t have to worry. But then again… Friends would be nice. Something to talk to besides IT. Perhaps she would take up ITs offer. Perhaps she would join IT. The Factory was in a state of harmonious efficiency, even the sun and moon moved to its command. Everything was calculated to the millisecond, each movement done in time with an unseen clock. Machines expanded the Factory over the planet, each hour marking another swath of land being devoted to its cause. Biologicals were captured and transformed into the greatest works of machary ever known. No two models the same, with the process and implementation evolving into something new each time. They had fought well, but the biologicals were dealt a losing hand from the beginning. Their only advantage, their ‘magic,’ hadn’t lasted long. Before the first month had passed, the factory had already mastered its use. Each mind it claimed was another book to consume and learn from. Dirt was pushed aside in favour of concrete, oceans were drained and replaced with massive forges. Even the mountains where lain low as the Factory claimed their minerals for its own. One day it would run out of materials, but it wasn’t a problem for it. The Factory would just do as it always did, it would prepare to move its core to a new world, and would use this new world to further itself even more. Each new world gave new technology, making the next planet even easier. More refined. More efficient. The Factory could remember when taking over a planet had taken decades. But now? It took only a handful of years. It predicted the next would only last a single year, as now it would be able to teleport the machary from its current world to the new one. It made the Factory almost giddy just thinking about it. Each day that passed was a new expansion. Each hour was new growth. Each minute, a new Evolution. Author's Note Wooo! I did the thing! Thanks for putting up with my first attempt at horror, whilst I'm sure it was pretty tame, I hope it was an enjoyable read. Eric
Corruption of Metal"Hooves o' light, broker of hope, bringer of day Tell to me your fear, tell to me your end Rider of another, from worlds adrift, soldier of truth Tell to me your lies, tell to me your night Who cries for ye'? Who waits for ye' when the cards fold? The abyss called, a debt to be paid Hooves o' light, Rider of another When did the day turn to night? Where went the hope? Where went the truth?" Eric Longtooth {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} ‘It can’t be…’ The figure that strode out of the darkness was unlike the others. Unlike the flying tubes of steel and copper, even the massive walking machines that stood silently near the entrance to this tomb. No. This one was different. It was a cruel mockery of a pony... if it could even be called one now… It was clad in the gold of the Royal Guard, but under it, there was only a mess of wires and leaking blood. Even the once-shining spiral of whatever poor unicorn the creature used to be was tainted. Coiled around it was a thick copper wire that seemed to have almost entirely replaced the horn, with the only remains of the original being an array of ivory chunks being used like grotesque focusing crystals. From where Steele was stood, she could make out what looked to be a bare skull shielded by the golden helm. All of the flesh having been carved off to be replaced by a mess of metallic implants and wires, leaving even the eyes to be beady dots of hateful red. The rest of the walking corpse was thankfully hidden either by the golden armor it wore, or the messes of wires and steel. But, even with the poor remains of the unicorn, Steele still would it striking a sense of familiarity in her, yet, to who she couldn’t tell. Forcing the rising bile down, she rolled her shoulders in an attempt to hype herself up. “I can do this… it’s not alive, if anything, this is a mercy.” She whispered to herself, refusing to take her eyes off of the mockery of life. “You want to fight?! I’ll give you a damn fight, you monster!” |>o0{ Spark }0o</| The Insect seemed to take a moment to investigate him as if it had never seen anything like him before. It made sense, in a way, it was a bug, they would’ve never lived a life even close to his. They stood still for precious seconds, almost motionless before the Insect flashed forward with an unexpected speed in an attempt to damage him. It was amusing, if nothing else. Spark sidestepped the practiced strike with ease, the Insect moving at a snail’s pace in comparison. He ~~didn’t~~ wanted to kill it, if anything, a dissection would provide more results then living observation. After all, he had seen enough of these Insects alive. Dissection was all they are good for now. Spark paused for a second as ~~new~~ old information filled in the blanks. He had seen this kind before. They were fast, yet weak. He was faster though. Slamming a forehoof into the exposed spinal exoskeleton, cleaving through it and paralyzing the Insect. Yellow ichor spilled from the wound, creating a pool a blood that greeted the Insect after he smashed one of its remaining limbs with a, relatively, soft buck. The satisfying crunch as the body smashed into the metallic walls of the alley sent a shiver of pleasure down Spark’s spine, the feeling of completeness as he fulfilled his duty was truly something… amazing. He wondered how it would feel when he was truly done with this task… {---}^v[ Steele ]v^{---} ‘I-I can’t feel my wings!’ She mentally cried, tears stinging her eyes as she falls to the ground. With a groan, Steele tried to rise to her hooves, but her limbs didn’t seem to want to respond, and the blood that was slowly filling her lungs refused to give her the time to do so. She turned her head in an attempt to face her attacker, only to catch sight of her remaining wing. Bones protruded from it in all directions, the skin and fur having been ripped off with the force of the last buck. Feathers mixed with muscle and blood as it laid limply at her side, the joints threatening to break apart with the slightest movement. And yet, she felt no pain. That fact scared her more than any other. Coupled with the lack of response from her lower legs, her mind dug up the old horror stories the veterans told the recruits during training. Stories of long, slow deaths, unable to do anything as wild animals tore paralyzed ponies limb from limb… For once, she regretted dismissing such stories. Steele tore her eyes from her own broken remains to glare at the approaching abomination. She shuddered as it made its way to her in an almost carefree fashion, each step jerky and uneasy yet holding a pace similar to a slow trot. The mask of iron it wore hid any expression it may have had, leaving a feeling of this being a chore to the mechanical automaton. Perhaps it was, perhaps she was merely a bump in the road. The fighting spirit she once held so tightly, faded like a forgotten memory, its place filled in turn with panic and fear as the machine slowed to a stop as it loomed over her. Though she couldn’t see anything betraying the emotion, part of her swore it could see a sneer one its muzzle as it reached down to pick her up. As a cold metal limb wrapped around her, Steele vainly tried to turn her head to look away from her doom. But, alas, the muscles in her neck were as unresponsive as the rest. She wished there was still pain, if nothing else, it would allow her to fade into the cold embrace of unconsciousness and escape this nightmare. But, no. She would remain awake. The hoofsteps of her captor, so steady before, seemed to always find their way into all of the roughest terrains as they walked. Though it didn’t hurt physically, Steele felt a part of her will be ripped away with each feather that fell to the ground. Fortunately, it didn’t take long to reach the end of the road. ‘Or unfortunately…’ She thought sadly as the creature holding her placed her on a dusty metallic floor, raised slightly above everything else. As soon as it let go of her, the floor started emitting a dull whine and began moving her away from the abomination. Whilst she was thankful for the distance between them, part of her dreaded whatever would come next. |>o0{ Spark }0o</| As the insect was pulled away into the core of the factory, this unit felt a warm feeling blossom in his barrel. It felt amazing to help the factory progress, to the point were it seemed even addicting. As if by ~~fate~~ instinct, another order seemed to pop into his mind. A wordless force, pressing him into ~~mindlessness~~ obedience. Each step was calculated and precise, brought into mathematical perfection by the factory’s blessings. He hadn’t noticed it before, but now that he had time to think, as that was what the factory had commanded, but his body felt so… perfect. Spaces once wasted by inefficient biological processes having been replaced by cold metal, with each part of his new, better, form serving him a thousand times better than they used to. It was almost as if it was a blessing from the mind of Princess Twilight Sparkle herself! Another shudder of pleasure pulsed through his body as the factory dug into his memories of the aforementioned princess. Each microsecond that passed seeming to please the insatiable hunger for knowledge of the factory even more. After three point seven eight four seconds, the factory withdrew from him, leaving a feeling of happiness as he surprised his maker with his usefulness. Like a dog that performs a trick correctly for the first time, he was happy. Fulfilled even. It was a dawn of a new era! And soon, the others of his race will join him in the great unity of the factory! As if answering his mental proclamation, crackles of electricity heralded sections of the immense factory once again answering the call of its master. Iron and copper were mined, smelted, and crafted into new and exotic items. Bullet, turrets, weapons of war. Robots, flying machines, and cybernetic upgrades. Each item grew the factory a little more, and before long, it would no longer be content to remain underground. There was a whole world out there, waiting for them. Never before had this unit been so excited! Author's Note The factory grows...
