Beatrix Belladonna in B.A.B.S. : A Cyberpunk Adventure

Babs Seed's team were led out into the wilds, where an unmarked helicopter picked them up. She sat with the others in the cramped interior, kicking her booted feet and puffing smoke from her cigarette. She didn't like the idea of leaving the base unattended, especially since this new Spike knew their coordinates, but didn't see much choice if they were to retrieve Beatrix.

“She'd better be worth it,” she told herself again.

Beside her, Rainbow Dash worked on her mechanical wings, which sparked and filled the air with the smell of burnt circuitry. Sunset Shimmer tried to read, despite the occasional shake of the interior, and Flutterbitch sat surrounded by her thralls, made up of the more intact enemies they'd taken down, which she'd forcibly revived and turned into her meat puppets.

Spike looked over a dossier. “Got all the info I could find on the various parties you've encountered so far. Let's see, those cyborgs are a gang called the Redcaps. We've had a few run-ins with them in the past. We call ourselves the werewolves.” He grinned. “Uh, as for this cult, they're known as the Flower Children.” He turned his eyes on Flutterbitch.

She pouted and reclined in her bondage gear. “Yeah, what of them? Tree Hugger was an old friend of mine, but we cut ties a long time ago. Not our choice. I didn't expect some nasty vampire to make me his bitch. Didn't work out too well for him in the end, though.” She suppressed a malicious snicker when she remembered how she'd turned the tables on him.

He shrugged. “Hoped for a little more, but okay. My soldiers will do most of the work. We'll hit the compound, and you all can slip in and retrieve Beatrix. Don't worry; I'll be down there with you, too!”

Shy narrowed her eyes. “Look, I couldn't care less about what you do with her cult. Just don't do anything to harm Tree Hugger. Otherwise, you'll wish you were dead.” She tilted her head towards her thralls, now reduced to pale, broken shells of their former selves.

He raised his hands before him. “Scary! No worries, I'll pass the word." He peered out a window. "Hey, it's almost time.”

Babs stood and narrowed her eyes when she overlooked her team. “Saddle up bitches; we're going in dry!” She checked her assault rifle with a click.

The bay door thudded open. They dropped down with parachutes, and the compound started to swim into view in the distance.

Within the hour, with the break of dawn, the area would be stormed by B.A.B.S.

*****

Lost in the moment, Beatrix kissed and nibbled at Hugs, their nude bodies pressed together beneath a tree. A fine mist rolled about them, brought on by a light rain that brought out the garden's scents.

They were back in the 'real' world, and like the cult leader promised, the touch of real flesh was preferable to a mere simulation, perfect as the latter had seemed.

“You sure you can't join us? I'm certain you'd be much happier, babe,” murmured Hugs, who sunk a couple of fingers into her lover with a squish. She smelt of earth and flowers, many woven into her frazzled locks. Her digits swished inside Beatrix's, explored her warm, wet confines.

“I...I can't,” insisted Beatrix through a blush.

Pushing her into the soil, Hugs crawled about her with a quiver of heavy breaths. The hippie reached for a double-sided dildo nearby, stuffed it into herself with a low moan, and pressed her crotch to Belladonna's, where the toy quickly slipped in with a squelch. She thrust her hips, slammed into Beatrix, whose body rocked under a press of her ample flesh with a thud.

Their lips locked while Tree made love to her. Spatters of pussy juices erupted each time their twats connected, sticky and dripping down Beatrix's butthole, and she whined her appreciation.

From the corner of her eye, Lady Ewe stood nearby and paused with a deepened flush, uncertain whether she should continue or break away.

“Uhm...I'm not sure how long you wish to indulge in this behavior, but I sense your 'friends' from B.A.B.S are almost here,” warned Oona with pursed lips. “And I don't believe things will end well for these misguided souls.”

Startled, Beatrix pushed through the pleasure and shoved the earth pony off of her, and removed the tool from her swollen vulva with heavy pants.

"Aww, what the fuck, man!" Groaned the hippie. "I was, like, getting close."

“Tree Hugger, this is serious! You're about to be hit, hard, by a team of mercenaries!”

This got her attention, making Hugs swallow. “W-Wha.... How did they find us?” She shot up with reluctancy plain on her face.

“You need her to remain calm,” explained the ethereal ram woman. "I've opened an escape route, though it's unlikely everyone will escape in time. Perhaps, if you were to come forth and surrender yourself, some bloodshed might be avoided."

Beatrix nodded and took Tree's hand, looking the mare in her hazy eyes. “Listen to me, I know a way out. Don't ask, I'll explain later. When we get out, I'll talk to Babs Seed and-” The first explosion knocked the pair of them to their butts and shook the compound with a thunderous rattle.

The glass shattered and rained from overhead under the first volleys. The attackers parachuted in with a staccato of rapid gunfire, and the cult rushed to prep their counterattack, only to be quickly cut down in a hail of bullets.

Flora painted in crimson mists as dozens of bodies toppled around them amidst the smoke. "Nooooo," shouted Tree Hugger, clutching the grass and sobbing ecstatically.

"Wait, no, stop!" Beatrix pleaded, waving her arms to try and get the intruders' attention.

“Route 'em,” shouted Babs, who landed and cast off her backpack. “We'll flush 'em out and finish 'em off! Take their leader alive!”

Among the growing carnage, Lady Ewe watched with deep anguish as some of the cultists slipped into the tunnels she'd opened. They led far below ground, a labyrinth that went for many miles, and would eventually connect with the city.

Screams sounded in a chorus when they funneled in, her worshipers in the hundreds here, and her eyes misted in the hopes that most of them would make it yet.

Babs aimed at the cult leader, and Beatrix stepped in front of her. “Don't you dare,” warned Belladonna.

“Damn it, don't tell me they've brainwashed you already! C'mon, Bea, Time to head home.” Babs jerked her thumb behind her. “A chopper's ready to transport us, courtesy of this other Spike. Get your ass moving now, or I'm leaving you behind!”

“Not until you promise to call off the attack,” demanded Beatrix with a cross of her arms. "The cultists mean no harm here!"

“The fuck did you just say to me?!” Babs spat angrily, poking the nozzle of her weapon against her exposed torso. "You think you can tell me what to do? I'm risking my ass for you, and you think you can give me orders?"

“If you want my help, yes! I will have no part in senseless slaughter, you murderous psychos!” She huffed, aware she was needed.

Babs glared at her for the longest time, her finger itching to pull the trigger. But with a groan, she tapped at her ear communicator. “Everyone, pull back! We have what we came for, plus a bonus.” She grabbed Hugs by the wrist and jerked her over.

Beatrix tried to intervene, only for a rifle butt to the face to knock her aside. The witch glared and rubbed her bloody nose, thankful the damage was mostly superficial but still seething.

Within minutes they were packed back into the chopper. Blades whirred, and it rose away from the smoking, burning compound, where Hugs sobbed and watched her life's work smolder, a green paradise now kindling.

No one spoke, and Flutters tried to sit next to Hugs, who ignored her and continued to stare, shaken. Nearly a hundred lay dead, with only a couple losses to Spike's gang amidst their attack.

They were dropped off back in the forest, near the same train which had taken them there which they hitched a ride on. The Werewolves had connections everywhere that allowed them to stay under President Spike's detection.

Again, no words passed between them. Sunset would shoot Beatrix and Tree Hugger a sympathetic look, the former still seething at their leader while the latter remained distant and sad.

They got to a subway, where they rode most of the rest of the way home, then took the underground tunnels to a secret passage that terminated with a maintenance hole.

*****

Placed under house arrest, Beatrix was confined to her quarters with Tree Hugger and Trixie, the latter still soundly asleep. She continued to give the leader dirty looks as she spoke with them strictly. “We've spent a lot of money to help her beat the addiction,” noted Babs, standing in the doorway. “But we're not a charity case. You better be able to deliver soon or who knows what President Spike will do to B.A.B.S. Don't take this personal. We have a job to do. That's all." With that said, she walked away with the door automatically sealed behind her.

“Great.... Just great,” Beatrix pouted while resting her head against the wall, slinking down to tuck her knees into her chest. “Locked in, like we're spoiled children. Unbelievable!” She smacked a wall and winced.

"At least in here, you're a lot safer," Lady Ewe assured, appearing beside her to place a warm hand on her shoulder. “Things will work out, I promise. Though I feel sorry for what has become of the Flower Children. I may not approve of their methods, but they didn't deserve this! I can't help but feel responsible for this mess.”

"Heh. Relax, it's not your fault. There was nothing you could do. Nor I for that matter,” replied Beatrix, relating to the similar burdens she'd had on her other adventures. “With that said, is there anything we can do?"

"Who are you talking to Bea," asked Tree Hugger with furrowed eyebrows. "And how did they get in here? I thought this place was, like, locked uptight!"

Ewe was caught off guard, staring at the hippie like a deer caught in headlights. “W-wait? Can you see me? No, that shouldn't be possible! I should be solely attuned to Beatrix. Unless..." She moved closer to better look over the dazed hippie before placing a hand to her cheek. Tree hugger jumped slightly as if feeling her hands while gasping. "Ahhh, yes, I see! This one is very sensitive to the soul. Almost as if you have an innate sixth sense.”

“Y-You're her...” Tree's eyes widened and filled with tears. She sunk to her knees with a choked sniffle, clutched at the hem of the shepherd's robes. “Please, I know I'm totally not, like, worthy or anything, but...you gotta help Beatrix return Equestria to what it was!”

“You have a terrible fever,” she whispered delicately and stroked her braided locks. "You should seek some proper medicine that won't fry your brain. But rest assured, we will do what we can to rescue this world."

Hugs whimpered while clutching onto her like a wounded child seeking her motherly figure, and rubbed her cheek against the softness of her wooly pants. “I-I can't take this world anymore, man! It's wicked and cruel and destroying people's lives! People only understand violence nowadays days! Why can't we try another way?!”

“We will,” added Beatrix. “I hate it, too. I mean, it's not all bad, but any world that leads to this...” She nodded at Trixie, who remained in a sorry state. “...well, I want no part of it! On a brighter note, my magic is improving here, bit-by-bit.”

"Hmm..." Ewe pondered before pulling away from the distraught hippie and turning back to the witch. "I'll see what has become of the other Flower Children. Hopefully, by now, they've made it to a safer place. If I find anything else, I return as fast as I can!"

As Lady Ewe vanished, a rattle sounded from a grate overhead. From the duct slipped Flutterbitch, who'd contorted herself, and hung upside-down before she flipped and landed silently on her feet. “Forgive the intrusion,” she said with a swish of her thick mane. “But I simply couldn't stay away, not when a dear old friend is here!” She cast a concerned gaze as she struts towards the hippie, clad in black leather.

The hippie wiped her eyes. “Dear god.... What happened to you, babe? They've turned you into a monster!”

“Things went downhill when you abandoned me,” challenged Flutters in a murmur. “It wasn't right, even if I kept refusing to join your little cult.”

“It's not a cult,” insisted Hugs who twitched a thick eyebrow. “Look, if you could see Lady Ewe for yourself, you'd understand! When she comes back, I'll ask her to show herself to you. You'll see!”

"Might not want to do that," Beatrix said shaking her head while the pale vampire looked between the two as if they were both crazy. "Lady Ewe can barely keep her connection with me as it is, let alone around the place. It's impressive you can see her. We have other things to worry about." Beatrix got up and sat her bottom onto a stool beside the bed where Trixie was confined with a soft cry. “Will she ever recover?”

“I've beaten lots of addictions,” mused Hugs with a broad grin. “But it's hard to say. Virtual reality can be very addictive, but I prefer the real world, you know? The soil and grass below, the fresh scents, sunshine, rain, and rainbows, it's wild, man.”

“Tsk. There you go again, thinking this mythical goat lady will make it all possible,” mocked Flutters with a curl of her lip.

“She's not a myth!” Beatrix proclaimed defensively. “She does exist. She's the only reason there's any chance of survival!”

“Even if I believed you, she's just one person. It's like how everyone expects you to alter Equestria alone.” Flutters clicked her tongue in open disdain. “Doesn't matter. You'll probably all be taken to President Spike, especially after you pissed off Babs.”

Beatrix shrugged with a pout and stroked her unconscious mother's cheek. “Let her do her worst then. I couldn't give a damn about it all,” she proudly boasted.

Though granted, she knew that wasn't entirely honest; she'd often been a bit of a coward at heart, pushing herself to do what was right because her loved ones were at risk. Because it's what her late father, Shining Armor, would have wanted.

But she could never be noble in the same way Flurry Heart was. Goodness didn't come naturally to her. She'd learned it from all she'd endured in a war she'd entered into as a child, of seeing how much others suffered and compelled by guilt to intervene.

Yet there were times like these when she asked herself, was this Equestria even worth saving?

*****

A labyrinth of tunnels stretched below the wilderness into the city. The hippies scattered and followed the routes in an attempt to escape. Ewe's spirit manifested near the mouth of the entrance, sighing to herself in relief at the safety of these poor individuals.

But that safety was effectivly neutrialized when a loud scream echoed behind her. She turned with a jolt when one member of the cult was yelling, looking like he was in unbeliavable pain. But upon further inspection, it looked like something was shifting under his very flesh!

"A-Auauugh, H-HELP ME!" He shouted as sharp steel and machinery began to grow out of his arm. His neck began to bulge before he vomited out screws and green blood. His spine sprang out from his back as wires formed to attach to the base of his neck. His eye was pushed out from his socket, revealing a glowing red light that flickered on.

The Flower Children gazed in horror before fleeing, the automatized victim continuing to crawl after them as his limbs and body fused and tranformed with his newfound mechanical parts. Ewe held her mouth while pressing herself against the wall, terrified of what she just witnessed. "N-no.... Oh sweet lord, no!"

"Impressive, isn't it, Ewe?" A monotonous voice said, drawing her eyes to face the one responsible for this grotesque act against nature. Out from the entrance stood a tall figure clad in a dark green uniform. His arm was utterly robotic, folded neatly behind his back. The most imposing feature was his mask, a unique fusion of a gas mask, and that of a plague doctor. Unblinking glowing red eyes pierced through the eyeholes. Combined with the long fur collar around his neck, this man gave the distinct image of a vulture, waiting for its prey to collapse. "My cure has never been more active through a patient's body. I do believe I've outdone myself."

"Varys..." Oona addressed with a soft, disgusted voice. "I should have known this planet's decay in life was your doing!"

"False," the Vice Lord rejected, turning to face her. "This world was already progressing towards purification long before I discovered it. You'll have this planet's president to thank for that. His obsession in recreating the one he lost was so intense, how could I resist the call and offer a helping hand."

"You won't get away with this, Varys," the goat woman promised. "As long as I muster spirit and hope, this planet will not fall victim to your delusion!"

Digitalized chuckling was his response to her. "How sentimental.... But that was always the biggest flaw in all organisms. These people do not need hope or nature to progress. Once they understand that biomechanical science is superior, they will be cured of their infectious and stubborn emotions. The results speak for themselves," he said, pointing towards the group of scared cultists. One female member was pulled down by the crawling infected, pleading for help before it pinned her down and bit into her shoulder. She screamed before she felt the her wound festered and spread pain through the rest of her limbs as she stared in anguish to see her flesh start to deteriorate to make way for the new machine parts and tubes growing out of her.

"Hmph. It still needs more work in removing the primitive way of transferring the virus. I suggest you leave this planet as you probably won't enjoy what I'm about to do with it," he suggested before turning around to leave. "If you'll excuse me, I must consult with the president about new test subjects. I heard he'll be expecting guests very soon."

"Beatrix!" she gasped, looking to stop Varys before he disappeared back into the labyrinth. All that was left was the two biomechanical zombies completing their transformation and looking for other cult members and hippies to corrupt. Ewe clutched her fists and disappeared from the scene with one thing clear.

She needed to warn Beatrix of the danger growing in this Equestria.