I Feel...

"Recite your Baseline."

<|>

“H-hello?”

Communication request detected.

Optics offline.

“Are you awake?”

Interstellar Communications offline.

Starchart offline.

Internal damage script offline.

“Are you… alive?”

External damage script offline.

Primary guns functional.

Primary guns standby.

“I mean, what even are you?”

Tail Model; Scorpio.

Module extension lost.

Beaconing for its return.

Rebooting…

“Hellooooooo?” The voice of a female continues to speak. “Equus to… you, I guess. Hey! Is anyone home!?”

I feel a physical entity tapping my chest in a curious manner. I detect zero threats from the subject at this time.

New objective.

Study subject.

Attempting auditory scan of my current surroundings.

Seagulls. Waves of an ocean against a shore. I detect an exceptional source of vitamin D against my plating in a solar format.

Odd. Places such as this do not exist anymore. A simulation, perhaps?

…

Reboot complete.

Optics online.

I lift my head from a sandy shore and find a mare standing before me; one of unknown origin. She is taken aback in a startled state from the glowing lights of my optics flashing on.

She is not that of an average pony I have dealt with in my line of work, as she has amphibious qualities to her slender figure. Specifically that of a crossbreed of shark and pony. An interesting specimen…

New objective.

Learn more about this creature and her race. Study. Protect from other threats. Earn her trust until further notice.

“C-can you hear me…?” She asks softly as her ears fold back. Her tail wraps around her rear leg instinctively.

“Affirmative.”

I sit up, but she takes a few more steps away from me. Her facial structure, along with the escalated pulse of her heart rate implies she is startled. But she hasn’t yet run. She appears to have a very curious state of mind. As I do, her.

She tilts her head to the side with a half smile as I study her. But it’s fake.

She carries a number of unique traits to her; one of them being a series of purple stripes along her back. Her face carries these same colors, but in a more distinct, artistic design.

She has the ability to grow hair on her head. Her natural hair color; purple-7c0161.

She wears a gold necklace around her neck. The only piece of jewelry I can detect on her at this time.

“Who are… you…?” She asks in a timid manner.

“I am CM-104 W4RH0R53.”

She gives me a puzzled look at my serial number.

“W… four… R… H… Zero…” She pauses for a moment, thinking to herself before her eyes light up, and a grin spreads on her face. “Oh! Like Warhorse?”

“Negative. I am CM-104 W4R-”

“Okay, okay…” She waves a hoof at me, closing her eyes and knitting her brow, displaying signs of mild frustration. “Can I just call you Warhorse?”

“Affirmative.”

“War for short…” Her smile softens a bit as she regards me, looking into my visor.

“Confirmed.”

“My name is Areia.” She speaks with a cheerful tone, holding a hoof out to me.

“Sand.”

“W-wh…” She now looks puzzled. “Huh?”

“Your name means sand.”

She looks unamused.

“Fancy sand.”

She sighs as her head hangs down, and her hoof drops.

I study my surroundings further. I appear to be in a tropical setting, along a beach. The ocean reaches the horizon.

Interstellar Communication is inoperable at this time.

Starchart is inoperable at this time.

Data files on my arrival to these coordinates are corrupt.

Confirmed.

I will work on scrubbing the data when I know the island is clear of any hostilities.

I turn back to the mare that holds the name of sand. She still looks unamused.

“Where are we?”

Her annoyed expression slowly breaks down into a soft smile. “On an island, south of Equestria.”

“Planet Equus?”

She looks confused again. “Uh… yes?” She tilts her head. “Did you hit your head or something?”

“Negative.”

I lift my head to the bright blue sky. It’s an oxygen rich atmosphere. There is no sign of radiation in the air. The sun does not scorch this land.

I must have traveled far. The Equus I know is a polar opposite of the one I am currently on.

“W-where did you come from…?” Areia asks.

I regard her once more as she moves in warily. She runs her hoof along my chest in a gentle caress.

“What are you…?”

“I am a machine. My origins are confidential.”

She looks into my visor with peaked curiosity. Her eyes reflect my blue light. “A machine?”

“Affirmative. There are other names for my kind. Droid. Mech. Robot. Metal man. Tin man. Dumpster. Toaster. The last four are slang terms, however.”

She nods slowly, but she still looks confused, all the same. “Right… well… what do you eat?” She perks up. “You must be hungry. I can get something for you.”

“Negative.” I stand on all fours, to which she backs away in an alarmed motion; her heart rate increases drastically. “I do not require nutrition. We function differently.”

The more I speak, the further she gets pulled deeper into a state of confusion, it seems.

“A creature that doesn’t eat food…?” She sits on her haunches, narrowing her eyes at me. “How are you even alive then?”

“I am not a living entity.”

She stares in silence for a moment, processing what I said. Somehow, it still hasn’t gotten through to her.

“W-what…?” She whispers.

“To be alive means having a soul. I am a machine. I do not.”

“... O-oh…” She looks down, and her voice carries what is portrayed as sadness. I am unsure why.

ALERT.

I detect a static charge approaching in a large mass from my right. Records imply that water will often times accompany this phenomena.

I am unsure if my body can withstand such things, as I do not yet know the full extent of my damage, and do not know if there are any cracks in my plating or not.

“I must seek shelter. A storm approaches.”

She looks at me in concern.

“I-I can help with that. I thought I saw a cave earlier.”

“Take me there.”

She gives me a look of what would be referred to as shock, but she does as she’s told. I begin to follow behind her.

As we walk the shore, she glances back at me on occasion. Something that would, in most cases, warrant orientation and possible reassignment. More so, on account of her name.

It disrespects the system.

But she offers me assistance. We will go through the process of orientation when my superiors arrive.

She seems unsettled. Her heart is picking up in pace. To have her suspicious is not wise at this time.

I trot up to her side, to which she stares at me. Her heart is beating rapidly now; her eyes wide with what I assume to be fear.

“Are you okay, Areia?”

She sighs as her heart is slowly decreasing from a state of panic, and her eyes relax.

“Y-yeah… I just… I don’t know what to make of you…”

“The same applies to you. I have never seen a specimen quite like you before. You have me in a very intrigued state.”

She smiles faintly as she looks ahead, walking alongside me.

An hour and three minutes pass, and the thunderclouds begin to roll in from the north. The sun is beginning to set.

It is no matter, though. We are already walking along the cliff. She did not verbally confirm it, but the way she examines our surroundings tells me this is the place.

We stop at a canal, where violent waves of the ocean repetitively slam against the rocks.

…

Subjects and superiors alike ram against me in attempts to get past me and the other mechs that stand alongside me, screaming and crying. Pleading to be let through as the threat approaches from behind them.

Nekkra lifeforms detected.

Termination order authorized.

By any means necessary.

Weapons engaged.

“Warhorse?”

I jolt my head slightly, staring at the waves as they pound against the rocks.

On the other side of the canal is the entrance to the cave the mare spoke of, formed into the wall of the cliff side, close to the water. It isn’t the best choice in terms of shelter against water, but it is still viable.

“War? Are you okay?”

I turn to Areia as she regards me with a worried look.

“Why?”

“You…” She pauses for a moment, her eyes locked on my visor. “You got really quiet. You wouldn’t stop looking at the waves, and then your lights went red. You said something about… uh… termination?” She bites her lip.

“Did I?”

Odd. I don’t recall saying it.

I will relay this bug to my CO at my earliest convenience.

“Yeah…” She says softly. She’s worried, but it seems her worry is more for my wellbeing than herself. I am intrigued…

Malfunction detected.

Odd. I will relay this to…

Negative. False script.

“Can you swim?” Areia asks with a hint of a smile, still studying the light in my visor.

“Negative. Water may prove lethal to me. But my wings are still operable.”

I extend my wings after my statement, to which her eyes open wide as a gasp escapes her. She stares at them in astonishment.

“They’re so… big…” She runs a hoof along my silicone feathers. “And thick…”

“Affirmative. The size is necessary to support my weight during aerial manuevers, as I weigh approximately 940 pounds.”

She stares in wonder still. “Whoa…”

“Will I see you in the cave?”

She nods as a smile grows on her. “Yeah, of course!”

“I can carry you across.”

She backs up a few paces, immediately frowning. “Oh… uh, n-no thanks… I’ll stay down here… where it’s safer…” She chuckles softly. It appears I made her uncomfortable.

“Affirmative.”

I flap my wings as I leap off the cliff edge, gliding down to the cave across the canal of rushing water.

I come to a landing a few feet past the mouth of the cave. My visor’s light grants me sight further in.

Confirmed.

This will suffice for shelter against the coming storm. No water droplets detected. The entrance has a few puddles, but are otherwise easily avoidable.

I step further in and wait for Areia.

After five minutes and 48 seconds, I see her climbing out of the water. Her smooth body reflects the light of the setting sun.

In her mouth is a raw salmon, and her tail is curled around a bundle of sticks.

She sits before me and spits the dead fish out, before smiling at me.

“I brought firewood!” She beams at me, evidently proud of herself.

“It’s wet.”

“Huh?” She gives me a curious look.

“Wood is harder to burn after it’s been in the ocean, based off my records.”

She frowns as she regards the branches. “Oh…”

“I take it you do not come to the surface often?”

She nods, cracking a smile as a soft shade of red forms on her cheeks. “Yeah…”

Note added.

Other specimens of her race may follow in her life choices. Standby for confirmation and wait to act on the capture of her race.

Reinforcements required.

I will send for them when Interstellar Communications has been repaired. I will continue to gather data off subject Areia in the meantime.

“What is the ocean like?” I sit down as she starts ripping into the fish she brought up with her, tearing a chunk of meat off with her fangs.

She looks up at me, and after chewing and swallowing a part of the fish, she smiles.

“It’s cold, wet, and beautiful.” A realization swipes over her face as she looks down. “Though… I… don’t run into many like me.” Her eyes grow distant as she places a hoof over her necklace. “Or anyone… for that matter…”

“Sounds lonely.”

She closes her eyes and shudders under her breath, before gritting her teeth and inhaling sharply.

“I’m gonna… go get some proper firewood…” She sits up, tearing her hoof away from her necklace and spins around with haste, as if to escape. “I’ll be back later…”

Malfunction detected.

Anomaly detected.

I shall report this to my CO at my earliest…

Negative.

False script.