Through the dark hallway lumbered the mechanical. A hulking stone and metal creation, powered by magic, pink light shining out from the cracks in its joints. The six holes in his pointed mask shone with orange light blinking as the mechanical came to a halt in front of an ornately embellished hole in the wall. Slowly the creature lifted a gloved claw, and gently rapped his knuckle against the hole.
Out from the hole echoed a voice, "Don't worry Big B! I'm coming!" In a moment's notice, a small green dragonling poked her head out from the hole. The mechanical moaned appreciatively; it was his Spark.
Her green and pink scales were dirty, the makeup typical of Little Sparks having been rubbed off from her crawling in the tunnels. Her eyes faintly glowed, a sign of the powerful magic within. But the mechanical, only known as Delta, didn't care. He reached out, cradling the baby dragon in his oversized arms, and placed her on the ground. Out the two went, walking down the hallway, claw in claw.
As they walked past the glass walls of the tunnel, the duo was bathed from the blue glow of the sea beyond. The city of Seaquestria glowed brightly beyond the glass. The square pony-made buildings surrounding the rounded pink structures of the original city like a nest. Seaponies and submersible pods weaved in between the buildings. Neon signs and magical lights gaze a multicolored glow to the city.
It was the eve of another Festival of Friendship and much of the city was celebrating, but Delta didn't pay any attention to this. He let his Spark lead the way as the dragonling sniffed out her target. He tromped up a staircase as another darkened hall came into view.
In the middle of the floor lay a hippogriff. It was unclear what had happened to him, but the dark liquid pooled around his head was a sure enough sign that he was the target of the Little Spark. The Spark babbled absentmindedly as she went to work, poking her tail into the hippogriff's feathered torso for the fissure point. When she detected the point, the dragon sunk her fangs into the flesh, consuming the body and the valuable magical essence that lay inside.
Hippogriffs didn't normally have magic, but that was different in Seaquestria, and it was the job of the Little Sparks to help "recycle" this magic. Of course, this "job" was largely kept secret from the populace. However, the amount of turmoil and accidents had been steadily increasing, and most creatures were on edge due to the Esphyre "incidents". But of course, the Little Sparks didn't mind, they continued their work, guarded by their mechanical companions.
"This way Big B!" The Spark chirped as she skipped down the hall.
Delta rumbled softly and followed. He walked through a doorway, round a corner, but his Spark had vanished from sight. In the next room, a Festival of Friendship party was in full swing. Ponies, hippogriffs, and other creatures mingled about, wearing their fancy attire and costumes. Most didn't pay attention to Delta, for mechanicals were a normal sight down in Seaquestria. The crowd's attention was turned to an image magically projected onto a wall, showing the Festival of Friendship ceremony in Cloudsdale where the princess was giving her speech.
Delta rumbled impatiently, shoving a masked griffon aside as he stomped through the crowd in search of his Spark. He halted in place when he heard the last thing he wanted to hear, his Spark's screams of terror. The mechanical dashed into actions, tromping down the hall, swerving around the corner in a large atrium.
His claws gripped the balcony railing as he looked down. Down below was his Spark, but the dragonling wasn't alone. A group of four creatures surrounded the baby dragon.
"Come with us you runt," one of them, a purple earth pony, hissed, "I promise we won't hurt you."
"Yeah!" Laughed the hippogriff member of the group, "We just want to be your friend!"
"Help! Big B Big B! Help!" the Spark screamed as a pegasus wrapped his wings around her.
With a roar of fury, Delta leaped over the banister, flinging himself down into the atrium below. The hippogriff barely has a moment to scream before the cloven boots of the mechanical crushed his skull into the floor. The pony attackers turned their attention to Delta, leaving the Spark to skitter away into the shadows.
Delta gave a deep bellow as he turned to the ponies. The deep crimson light that shined from his joints reflected in the eyes of the attackers, but they didn't back down.
"You want some big guy?" The pegasus sneered as pulled out a bottle of a swirling blue substance. The pony downed the glass and flapped his wing. Bolts of electricity bounced between his wing feathers as his eyes began to glow. With a flap of his wings, the pegasus sent out a curving bolt of electricity that hit Delta squarely in the chest.
This attack jolted Delta, causing him to convulse in place, but only for a second. With sudden burst of speed, the mechanical swept out a gloved claw, a crooked blue crystal extending out and impaling one of the earth ponies in the chest. He tossed the pony's body aside and turned to the purple earth pony. She leapt at Delta, but he reacted faster, using a claw to swipe her into the ground, snapping her neck.
"Get out of here you freak!" Yelled the pegasus as he attacked, but he was quickly swatted into the ground. Delta stomped on over and shot out a crystallene spike, but the pegasus was quick, and he rolled out of the way. Delta turned around to face the pegasus, but he flapped his wings, shooting out glowing green light that enveloped the mechanical.
Delta was stupified, unable to move. As if he was in a trance.
Out of the shadows arrived a new figure, another dragon it seemed. She had a similar coloration to his Spark, but she was older, her wings far larger, and she had no hint of kindness in her eyes.
"There there, he's perfectly safe," the dragon said as she gently grabbed the claw of the Little Spark. "This," she said, looking directly into Delta's mask, her eyes narrowed to slits, "Is not your daughter. Do you undertand? Her name is Kindle, and you and this city, you both took her from me." Delta didn't respond, instead only staring down at the baby dragon. His Spark.
"Kneel." The older dragon commanded.
Delta was compelled to follow, the mechanical sinking to his knees.
"Now take off your helmet." The dragon continued.
Delta did as he was told, a gloved claw grabbing hold of the brown mask, releasing a switch, and taking it off, revealing a scaled head.
"I see the Sparks aren't the only victims here," the older dragon commented, "You know, Queen Skystar said you were robotic, a purely mechanical creature. But I guess we both know that isn't true."
Delta didn't answer, instead only breathing heavily, his faded brown scales shaking in the darkness.
"Now, place your glove against your head."
Delta did so, his left arm slowly lifting up and being placed on his temple. He could only look ahead, watching as his Spark whined and reached out for him.
"Do it."
With only a moment of hesitation, Delta released the magic in his glove. His Spark cried as the blue spike extended and everything went black.
Chapter 1- Prismane Luxury Spa
To my daughter, Kindle. Soon, you will hatch, and Seaquestria will be your home. You shall be raised as I was, like one of our own kind, back in the Dragon Lands, to preserve our culture in spite our surroundings. This city and its magic's potential are immeasurable, Kindle... yet, despite the Princess's teachings, our kind are unwelcome here. Life will be difficult, but the price of freedom is always dear. If we are patient with her... Seaquestria will come to us. ~ Opaidis Greenhorn
"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me?"
The voice faded to static as soon as it arrived. His suit's radio crackling in his ear, Delta knocked on his helmet as he pulled his body out of the puddle of water he had awoken to find himself laying in. The mechanical wearily shook his head, wasn't he supposed to be... dead? How had he gotten here?
He looked around, where was he? The architecture around him resembled the Seaquestria that he knew, but grand gold, pinks, and blues were now all a mildewy green. Everything was dirty and plants, which Delta had seen on his previous tromps in the ocean, were now growing inside the airtight spaces. Of course, the place was no longer airtight, miniature waterfalls trickled from the ceiling creating pools of waters in the sunken crevices of the floor.
As he basked in his confusion, Delta shook his head. No, no matter what had happened while he was... dead, he had a goal. He had to go find his Spark, wherever she, and that other dragon, may be.
And so, the mechanical pressed forward, stomping his way down the hall. He passed through seaweed dangling from the ceiling, climbed over a fallen pillar, and stomped through the puddles on the ground. He flexed his limbs, for his suit was out of shape.
He entered a larger room with a large staircase that was now a waterfall cascading into a large pool of water that took up the floor. A faded mural of Old Seaquestria on the wall was covered picture of ponies while "FRIENDSHIP HAS FALLEN" was written in crude lettering. The meaning of this was unclear to Delta, but it was clear that city had fallen under some hard times since his death.
Up the stairs was a pool area. A place for the air breathing creatures of the city to swim for leisure. Now, the pool was ironically dry amidst the soaked ruins of the spa. Mildew covered the pool's walls, covering up the elaborate tilework while a small makeshift camp, little more than a couple of dirty blankets and burnt out lantern, was placed in the deep end. Delta sighed within his suit, his Spark wasn't here, he would have to look elsewhere. Unfortunately, the exit for the pool was sealed shut, and the power switch was of course nonfunctional. But just to his luck, there was another doorway, labeled "Magic Therapy."
Though he had had never dabbled in magic beyond his suit, Delta was familiar with the magic spells common throughout Seaquestria, including one that could help with his exit.
To the therapy chambers he went, stomping through the derelict remains of a garden, its plant life replaced by coral growths. Delta looked through the therapy chambers, looking for anything of use until he stopped at the end. A Lil' Sparks Depository, a magic essence vending machine of sorts. The thing was dirty, and it lights were long-burnt out, but it could still contain a potion.
Delta looked inside the machine, nothing. He banged a gloved claw, shaking the machine and causing a layer of rust to spill off. As the depository shook back and forth, a dirty bottle containing a glowing blue substance spilled out and clattered onto the ground.
An electrical elemental potion, just what he needed. Delta grabbed the bottle and inserted it into his glove. The suits magically automated systems pumped the blue essence throughout his suit, making the pink light shift to a shade of blue before fading. The mechanical looked down at his gloves and flexed his fingers. Just like he wanted, sparks of electricity crackled between his fingers.
Having gotten what he needed, Delta turned around and lumbered back through the therapy and to the zen garden before he suddenly paused. He heard something in the garden... voices.
On the small bridge of the garden were two ponies. The first sign of intelligent life since he had woken up. But these ponies weren't normal ponies, they were enfused ponies. Years of magic use had taken a toll on their bodies, their limbs and snouts unnaturally lengthened. They were merely skin and bone, their ribs poking out through their dirty and matted fur. Their manes lacked any sort of care, poking out haphazardly or missing chunks torn out from their skull. Dark stains covered their bodies, ripe with scar tissue. Most noticeable were their hooves, the skin having nearly fallen off altogether, revealing exposed flesh with veins that pulsed with an unnatural glow. These ponies were nearly feral, both of which sniffed the air around them.
"Somepony new..." the pegasus mare hissed, "Somepony... fresh."
"New magic," the earth pony added, "New friend."
Delta, having no knowledge of anything like stealth, loudly stomped into the garden, immediately attracting the attention of the enfused. Both ponies snapped their heads, howling at the mechanical in rage. The earth pony stomped a hoof on the ground, the flesh splitting apart as crystals grew up their front limbs, encasing them in makeshift blades. The pegasus furiously flapped her wings, despite being little more than bloody stumps with a few feathers clinging on. Magic flickered from her back, causing rocks to magically float up from the garden's pond.
Delta was almost taken aback, having never encountered ponies like this before, but he was prepared enough to deal with combat. The crystal magic pulsed into his left hand, the electric spell in his right. With a low roar, he charged at the ponies. The earth pony attacked first, dashing at Delta. They swung their crystalline blades, catching across Delta's chest.
This attack would have incapacitated any other creature, but not a mechanical. Delta swerved left, nimbly dodging the pony's hoof, retaliating with his own crystal blade. The crystal extended, allowing Delta to thrust forward, stabbing the enfused pony through the torso. They screamed in pain before Delta stomped on their head, crushing the pony into the ground.
Delta finished off the pony as a large rock hit him squarely in the mask. He rubbed his face, looking up to see more rocks flying straight at him. He tried to dodge them, but there was too many, and they battered the mechanical's suit. In a last-ditch attack, he shot out his claw, making a bolt of electricity fly out and hit the pegasus in the head. The magic around the rocks immediately vanished, making them splash back in the pond. Delta stood up, wiped himself off, and left the garden, leaving the sparking corpse of the pegasus behind.
After using his electricity spell on the power switch, Delta left the main spa. As he walked down the hall, the radio in his mask crackled once more as the voice from before spoke up once again.
"Aha! Here we go! A signal!" she announced happily into Delta's ear before redirecting herself, "You, the mechanical, listen up real quick. M'names Applejack. I know who you are. An' I could really use a bit of your help. Please, find me in the Seaquestria Express Station." The radio crackled and Applejack's voice fell silent.
Delta continued forward, entering the main lobby of the spa. The large room was once a place of grandeur, but the lounge was in disarray, the stairs long collapsed, the exits collapsed or sealed, and the Princess Twilight statue centerpiece was cracked and choked with mildew. The whole room was dark, the only light being the dark green light shining through the glass backdrop.
Suddenly, a strange sound echoed throughout the room. Delta looked around in curiosity, not noticing the glowing eyes that appeared in the upper shadows. Down from above leapt a figure, landing on the statue of the princess. The reptilian figure was long lean but wore a suit much like a mechanical. The dragon climbed the alicorn statue, grasping the stone and leaving three, deep, claw marks across the princess's face. The figure tilted their head in curiosity at Delta, its six-eyed mask casting an orange glow. Just as a suddenly as it appeared, the figure leapt from the statue, clinging onto the wall before crawling into a doorway.
Delta rumbled and followed the figure, stomping through the hallway and into a large, abandoned banquet hall. Delta leaped down from the balcony, crushing a rotten table underfoot, and looked around, there was plenty of debris, and large glass wall, but there was no sign of the figure.
A metallic screech resounded from above. Delta looked up to see the dragon clutching onto the ceiling, staring down at him with its curved mask. The figure raised a claw and stabbed the glass wall with its metallic spike. The wall cracked. Then, the crack began to splinter as more leaks began to appear. Before Delta could react, the wall shattered, sending a tidal wave of water right at him. The water hit him like a freight train, knocking the mechanical off his feet and submerged in the inky darkness of the ocean.
