Old writing: MLP fiction: Equestrian Clockwork Tales: Chapter 1 [Incomplete] [Abandoned]

Equestrian Clockwork Tales: The Magnificent and Ingenious Doctor Adwin

Chapter 1: In which we meet a psychotic watchmaker apprentice, and Adwin find’s a lovely new gift for mother.

During most hours of midnight in the country side, one might hear only the peaceful sound of crickets as they watched the beautiful starry sky; strange bulky vehicles, with boiling engines, and classical wagons occasionally passing by. Unfortunately though, on this particular night, a disturbing mechanical beast raced across the night, its engine howling and hissing at all it came across, and what was worse were the shouts coming from its insides.

“I still absolutely do not understand how this is my fault?! Why were they so angry, please explain me that,” yelled the Doctor with a frown, arms crossed as he slumped back in his chair, staring at his zebra assistant who drove their horribly noisy, bulky contraption.

Said assistant growled with clenched teeth, gripping her wheel with crossed eyes as she honked and bypassed a slow carriage, one of those new ones on four wheels, replying back with an equally loud volume, “Why were they so angry?! You insulted their bloody witch doctor! How many times do I have to say it, you don’t ever do anything disrespectful to a witch doctor!”

“Why?! Why are they so important?!” The Doctor threw his arms up in frustration, yelping as he knocked his left hoof against the low metal ceiling. He brought it down and sucked on the light bruise, still keeping his crossed expression fixed on Marmalade.

“Why are they… Adwin, I can’t explain, how many times do I have to say that? I’d have to give you a lecture on Zebra culture and I am not in the mood!” Marmalade shot him a glance, flaring her nostrils at his expression, “Oh stop giving me that damn look.”

“Well if you can’t explain it well enough on your own, at least give me some comparison to show me the gravity of the situation! You know, so I could perhaps watch my steps next time?”

“Ha, like you ever do.”

“Marmalade…”

Marmalade didn’t respond, eyes focused on the road.

“Marmalade.”

“Oh for… fine! Give me a damn moment to think.  Um… ah, I got it. Know the good ol’  Princess Celestia?” Marmalade’s lips slowly curled into a smirk.

“Of course.” The Doctor nodded, relaxing as he tipped his ears to her, listening.

“Well, what you just did back there was the equivalent to someone walking up to her and bucking her right in the teeth, or dropping a bucket of feces on her and than laughing.”

The Doctor’s eyes went wide, raised in question and disbelief, mouth agap, “Bu-but, I did no such thing!”

“You turned him into a giant furball and made him a laughing stock, and that’s not counting what other side effects your little “divine solution” might have later on.”

“Oh… Uh… Marmalade, my dear, what exactly would they have done to us if they had caught us?”

“ Oh I don’t know, anything from a good old fashion beating to maybe a tarring and feathering, to skinning us alive and using our guts for rituals and then hanging our bones on some branch in the forest.” Marmalade’s smirk grew into a wide, wicked grin as she peeked at the silent Doctor from the corner of her eyes, watching the horror becoming apparent on his shocked face.

“Oh… OH... Ooooooooh…. Oh my. Well, I see why you had to use a spark gun of all things to chase them off.”

“Yeah, now you understand why I was so panicked?”

“Quite…Um… How powerful are witch doctors exactly, considering how… revered they are apparently?”

The zebra mare burst into a chuckle, shaking her head as she hastily turned onto a new road, brushing side of their large vehicle against a common wagon, the ponies drawing it protesting furiously and shaking their fists at her as she passed by. From the satisfied smile she had as she looked at her side mirror, she didn’t seem to care at all.

“Oh don’t worry Doctor. He doesn’t know your real name nor has anything personal, you’re safe. Although, I’d still recommend watching your back around other zebras for a while.”

The Doctor sighed in relief although he still looked rather frightened; fur practically standing on it’s ends, breath shaking as he exhaled. After a moment he chuckled and crossed his hooves over his chest, a cocky smile painting his face as he looked out, although even that seemed wavering in his shaking voice, “Of.. of course… Bah! Banish the thought; what do I have to fear?!”

The Doctor exclaimed, getting up onto his hind legs and standing on the seat, one hoof holding onto it for balance as he proclaimed, “I am the Magnificant and Ingenious Doctor Adwin! I can handle some… some… wicked mage and his lunatic zealots! Through my divine clockwork beauties and genius mind, with my loyal and trusty assistant at my back and call, I’ll carve through all obstacles without hesitance!”

The eccentric pony swung his hoof and pumped it into the air, his assistant twisting her face at his actions before bursting into a roaring laugh, tears even coming out, “Doctor… Doctor, you bloody crazy buck, you know there isn’t any crowd around anymore, right?”

The blue pony looked at her and smiled wickedly, plumping back down onto his seat and smirking, “One does not need a crowd to bask in their own glory.”

She rolled her eyes in response and her expression relaxed into gentle smile as she sighed happily after that good laugh “Ha, whatever you say Doctor, whatever you say. Hm…”

“Hm? Something the matter?”

“Just… Sorry.”

“What? What ever for? No wrong was committed… Unless, you admit to being the saboteur that has been turning my devices to explosive ruin for the last 15 years, hm?!” The Doctor said in an exaggerated voice, snapping and pointing his hoof at in her in a mock frown.

“Ha, good guess but try again. Maybe it was those magic pixies of yours?” Marmalade teased in return.

“Hey, you never know with those tricky, conniving vermin! The Book of Supernatural Occurrences says they’re very hard to spot, and as we well know, no book that’s 600 pages thick can be wrong!” The Doctor huffed, crossing his hooves and putting on a stern expression.

The Doctor continued to keep said expression before they both burst into laughter once more, the pony settling back in his chair.

Marmalade shook her head again and sighed, “But, no really, I’m sorry. For snapping at you before, I mean.”

The eccentric showpony quirked his brow, peering at her curiously before a soft smile of his own painted his face, waving a hoof at her, “All forgiven and forgotten, my dear assistant.”

The pony sighed happily himself then, turning his gaze to the night sky and moonlight road rushing past them. A silent moment fell then, Marmalade humming a soft tune to herself as she occasionally glanced at the Doctor, although each time she did so her humming became louder and strained.

Eventually, she turned to him with a cheerful smile, talking through clenched teeth, “Um… Doctor?”

“Yes?”

“Don’t you also have something to say?”

“… Such as?”

The zebra dropped her smile and gave him a blank stare, sighing low and returning her focus fully back to the road, “Never mind.”

The Doctor shrugged, looking around absently as they drove in silence before suddenly clapping his hooves together, a bright smile returning, “Oh! I just remembered something very important!”

The Doctor peered frantically around his seat, even leaning down and passing his hooves under it, grunting as he felt and looked, “Bloody…where did it go…”

“Where did what go?”

“Our map!” The Doctor exclaimed in glee, pulling out a thick folded sheet of colorfully labeled paper, uncurling it to its full lengths which almost covered the entire half of their vehicles window pane. He layed it over his lap as he stared intensely, tracing his hoof across it, “Now, what shall our next adventurous destination be? Can’t simply be driving aimlessly through the countryside you know, no matter how pleasant that may be.”

“I’m not driving aimlessly.”

“Hmmm... didn’t Adricon say there was some new mining town opening up southwest of Fillydelphia? Now that would certainly be an opportunity if there was one! We could even fix up their own meticulous devices; Luna knows that trash from ‘Tinmare-Inc’ isn’t worth a bit.” The Doctor thought out loud, his voice taking on a bitter tone as he spoke the business name before his cheerful demeanor returned, still focusing very intently on the map.

“Doctor, we already have a destination.”

“Although it is a tad far off, do we even have the fuel for that? Bah, never mind. Perhaps Hoofington wouldn’t mind another visit.”

“Doctor, I know where we’re going… Also, I highly doubt it, the last time we were there one of your inventions tore up a part of the town hall, remember?”

“Oh right, they probably haven’t forgotten about that little incident, have they…Oh! We haven’t visited any of those picturesque lake side fishing villages yet.”

Marmalade perked her head up at the sudden reply and growled, clenching her teeth, “Oh so now you hear me... Dammit, Doctor?!”

“Although perhaps being sea side isn’t the best place for a construct, even a hex bot…”

The zebra flared her nostrils and took in a deep breath, releasing in quite the ear shattering volume, “DOCTOR!”

“HUH?!” The Doctor yelped in response, so shaken that he jumped up in his seat and threw up the map, looking around in panic before resting his wide eyes on Marmalade, “What, what ,what?! Are we under attack?! Marmamalde, what’s going on?!”

“No, we’re not under attack; I’m trying to get your damn attention!” Marmalade huffed, rolling her eyes.

The Doctor twisted his face at that, tilting his head, “Well good Celestia, did you have to shout? I’m right here you know.”

“Well you didn’t hear the first three bloody times.”

“… Well maybe you should talk louder than, I mean I am busy trying to plan our next venture so of course I’m going to be focused.”

“I did!”

“Let me elaborate: Talk louder but in a manner that doesn’t cause my ears to bleed and gives me a heart attack, please and thank you.”

“Argh!...Okay, deep breaths…Okay, before you say anything else that makes me want to strangle you even more, I said I already have a destination for us.”

The Doctor blinked and leaned over to her, curious, “Oh, and what would that be?”

The zebra kept silent, the Doctor blinking at her as he waited, tilting his head alittle now and then. Just as he opened his mouth to say something, she sighed and muttered,” Home.”

“What?! Why! We’ve hardly finished our current run!”

“Oh yes we have, if you haven’t noticed, we’re practically out of stock.  That and I’m tired Doctor.” Marmalade sighed, taking another deep breath as she prepared for the incoming argument.

“But but, how can you be tired already?!”

“Oh I don’t know, maybe getting run out of town three times in a row tends to do that to a person?”

“Bah! Minor setbacks! And I’m quite sure we still have one last batch of my divine devices, just eager to showcase their majesty and glory to the rest of the world.”

“Doctor, please don’t start….”

The Doctor either didn’t care for her annoyance or didn’t hear as he took a breath and was about begin another round of boasting, stopping in confusion as his assistant suddenly pulled on a lever underneath the wheel, a loud metallic click heard, the wheel suddenly freezing in place as the zebra lifted her hooves off. The vehicle seemed to be set on its path, its speed slowing down to half its previous run.

“Right, and that’s my que. Take the wheel, would you?”

Despite the fact that their speed matched the nearby passing carriages and they were hardly in danger of collision, the eccentric blue pony’s face was still shaken with a sudden panic as he dashed for the wheel his assistant left.

Marmalade couldn’t help but chuckle and smile amusingly at that, “Oh the pity, the Great and Magnificent and Ingenious Doctor Adwin afraid of motorized vehicles.”

“Good Luna you are out of your mind today, and excuse me for being safety conscious! Where are you going anyways?” The Doctor sighed in relief at first, his muscles tensing as he unlatched the lever and wrapped his hooves around the wheel, gulping down before glancing behind him at Marmalade walking out of the door leading to the main room of their stage on wheels.

“Ha, safety conscious, now if only that applied to your inventions, and keep your eyes on the road, would you! I’m going to get out of this tacky crap you made me put on…” The zebra muttered under her breath as she closed the door, “Safety conscious my plot…”

“How dare you, I had it made just for you. Besides, you look absolutely marvelous in it! I don’t see how you can hate it.” The Doctor yelled back as he heard the door close, pouting before his eyes looked back at the road and he began to sweating again as he remembered what he was assigned to do, returning full focus to the road. Marmalade’s voice faintly broke through the metal door behind.

“No, you had it made so you could dress me up like some fruity doll. Plus it’s tacky as hay.”

“Bah, fine, have your unsophisticated opinions, just don’t-“

The squeaking sound of another nearby door being opened, and then the loud slam of metal following its closing, echoed quite clearly through the door behind the Doctor.

“-throw it out…Truly, that mare sometimes...” The Doctor sighed, still rather tense as he drove, eyes darting left and right to the mirrors and at the wagons and more newer mechanical carriages nearby, slowing down to an almost painful crawl as he let them pass by.

After a few uneventful minutes, the echoing sound of the previous far door opening and slamming close returned and Marmalade returned shortly after, a red bandanna wrapped around her mane and forehead with a black vest loosely worn over her chest as she opened the nearby door leading to the driving seats.

The Doctor glanced back immediately, and in turn absently pressed down on the paddle. “Ah, how fetching, your usual working garb.” He smirked, perking her eyes up as a strange, burning smell passed through his nostrils. He sniffed the air around him, looking around.

“Eh, I find it fitting. Kind of grows on ya, you know? Least it actually fits me.”

“That dress fit you perfectly fine as well!”

“I meant personality wise Doc.” The Zebra smirked, looking over her shoulder for a moment.

“Where…did you put the dress by the way?”

“Oh, I set it on fire” Marmalade chuckled, smelling the air with a satisfied smile.

“What?! Marmalade what…What the hay?! I could have returned it; it was in perfectly good condition!”

The zebra grinned as she looked on his horrified expression, “Well, let’s call it a lesson. Next time don’t, you know, break our agreements?”

“But but… Marmalade!”

The assistant dropped her voice to a teasing high pitch, sticking her tongue out at him, “Doctor.”

“Marmalade!’

“Doooctooor.”

“Marmalade!!”

The zebra grinned and was about to continue her mockery, but something caught her attention and her eyes went wide in horror, her voice shaking, “Uh… Doctor, can you tu-”

“Dammit mare, spit it out already!” The Doctor shouted in a hasty response before she could finish, still oblivious to the sudden speed they had gained and the furious honking coming from outside.

His assistant growled and suddenly leaped at the pony, pushing him aside as she grabbed the wheel and turned it sharply, “WATCH THE FUCKING ROAD DUMBASS!”

The pony screamed at the top of his lungs as his eyes caught glance at what lay ahead of their window and what they narrowly avoided; the head lights of a mechanical storage carriage, which looked similar to their own in size, blinding them momentarily.

Their own beast of steam and bronze shook violently as it veered off the main road, their bodies being tossed about inside, both of them holding onto the wheel for their dear lives.

In the precious seconds of the chaos that seemed like an eternity, Marmalade slammed her hoof down on a smaller pedal to the bottom left, their metal beast tearing through soft grassland and throwing up dust clouds as its wheels pushed against the soil.

When the vehicle finally came to a halt, the sudden jolt of it sent them both flying and smacking into the metal door behind.

Both of them groaned simultaneously, rubbing their aching heads. The Doctor glanced up and whatever color could been seen on his face paled then as he saw they stopped just an inch of hitting a very thick and large tree. “Oh my…”

“And this… is why I don’t usually let you drive.”

“I… I... Um… Are we still heading home?”

“If you don’t want me to smack you right now, yes.”

“Dammit….”

=====================================================================================

Night had passed and morning dawn settled on the horizon as they neared their destination. The Doctor stirred, eyes opening slowly as a loud yawn passed his lips, stretching his hooves out as the tenderness of dream went away and the haze of waking came. He sat up, looking around, glancing at his zebra friend who seemed to be half-awake herself. His assistant was leaning her face down against her hoof, propped up by her elbow resting on the open side window. As his vision cleared, he noted that the expression she wore was not one of a struggle of sleep, but of boredom. He wondered why.

Turning his gaze forward, he quirked an eye as he noted the dark gray clouds covering the beautiful blue morning, eyes slowly trailing down till he found their source: Large chimneys, some as tall as sky scrapers or weather towers, rose in the distance against the backdrop of the sky, spewing what seemed like an endless supply of ash and smoke. Below them could clearly be made out the tightly packed buildings and looming factories of the city. Above floated several cloud stations which anchored dozens of the cargo airships, airships that could be seen so frequently gliding through the air in modern times.

He sighed bitterly, remembering their destination, before he became aware of an even greater annoyance and covered his ears, groaning pathetically in an imitation of weeping as he realized: They were stuck in traffic. Hundreds of both steam hissing vehicles and simple wagons and carriages could be seen filling the marked lines of the more refined, paved roads all around them. Most of them were moving at a regular speed except for the one they were in, which contained large mechanical monstrosities, roaring engines spewing ash clouds of their own through several exhaust pipes on their sides, which carried thick metal crates on their backs as they moved at a snails pace.

Marmalade grunted, lifting her head and looking over to the sudden sound, a sly grin painting her face as she noticed his irritated state, “Hey if it isn’t the Magnificent and Ingenious truck crasher. Sleep well?”

The young stallion growled and crossed his eyes at her, “How long are you going to poke at my wounded pride, I’ve stated my apologies well enough! Besides, it was their fault for not moving out of the way…”

“Yeah yeah whatever you say, and to answer your question: Until it annoys you so much you’ll simply have to remember it as a reminder. Can’t have you forgetting now,” Marmalade said in a cheeky tone, not dropping the grin as she pressed down on the pedal briefly to move their vehicle forward in the line.

“Remember what? Oh Luna, no no no, I remember I remember! No need to remind me!” The pony waved frantically as a scowl crossed his companion’s face.

“Yeah, you better.” She huffed, returning her gaze to the backside of the vehicle in front of them and its clouds of smoke, sighing.

The Doctor matched her expression and irritation, looking around, “Why are we not moving anyway? This is a cargo transport line last I checked, we’re supposed to be racing past the common roads!”

Marmalade shrugged, returning to her bored posture from before, “Beats me, although good news is we’re nearing our outpost so it won’t take too long.”

“Oh yes, not too long at all.”

A few moments later they arrived at the reason for their slow pace: a checkpoint set up on their road, which lead to a large district of warehouses and a few factories on the outskirts of town. A small, finely crafted frigate airship was hovering close to the ground, anchored to the side of the route. The glow and small arc of a portal stood in its shadow; a unicorn wearing the deep purple garbs of a magus standing near it, her horn glowing gently.

A dozen or so ponies bearing projectile rifles and wearing thick, dust brown trench coats and wide brimmed hats of matching color also stood around the magical gate way, or in the middle of the road, one or two occasionally passing or coming out of the portal. The rest were either on alert or stopping the large storage vehicles one by one and seeming to inspect them.

The airship itself was a simple, and small, common military vessel which hanged by the ropes of an air balloon and had only one line of cannons across either of it’s sides, although several well placed turrets and small anti-air guns could seen stationed on the edges of this one’s deck if one hovered at its level. The ensign on the cloth of their balloon and the hanging flags of their ship exclaimed itself proudly in the air: Three red apples in front of a large bronze cog against an orange backdrop, two rifles, which crossed over each other in an ‘X’, drawn under it.

 “Ah shit, Applejack Rangers.” Marmalade growled under her breath, her bored expression quickly fading as her muscles tensed and both hooves grabbed and clenched the wheel, eyes crossed.

The Doctor, in turn, grew panicked, breath coming in shallow bursts as his eyes went wide and he backed tightly into his chair, as if hoping it would swallow him up. “Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear, oh dear… Oh Celestia forgive me, do… do you think they are here because of that little mob we started back in Trottingham? I mean, aren’t they all suppose to be busy out west in Appleloosa, or east in Birdmingston dealing with the border problems?”

“The hay you asking me for?! Fuck if I know.” Marmalade spat back, sighing afterwards at Adwin’s hurt expression and taking a deep breath briefly, speaking once more in a lighter tone, “Okay, calm down, don’t panic. We still have some illusion potions left, right?”

The pony stared at her for a moment before his expression suddenly beamed, eyes raised in hope as he nodded eagerly and a nervous smile painted his face, “Yes! In the back, no doubt about it! We’ve hardly had any situations to use them thus far, oh what luck!”

Marmalade smirked lightly at his hasty grasp for any thread of hope, although her stern expression quickly returned. She nodded to him, “Alright, go chug one down quick and hide in the bathroom. If they ask me to step out and they seem to have one of those new magic scanners I’ll knock once on the door, you go hide in one of the pocket spots then, got it?”

The Doctor did just that, dashing past the door. As Marmalade became the next in line to be met by the Rangers, she breathed in deeply, her lips curling into a gentle smile. She leaned out the window and met one of the armed ponies, a young green coated stallion, putting on a cheerful demeanor.

“Well howdy handsome, what seems to be the hold up?” Marmalade grinned at the young pony, brushing some of her mane out of her eyes. She noted with a slight satisfaction that the stallion squirmed for a brief moment before quickly putting back on his stoic mask.

“Nothing for you to worry about madam, I just wish to ask you a few simple questions.”

“Well, shoot.” The ranger eyed for a moment before he took a deep breath and broke off into repeating the same lines he had probably said to every other vehicle.

“Where are you coming from?”

“Good ol’ lil’ Trottingham.”

“What were you delivering? “

“Oh you know, robotics and spare parts and all that jazz.”

The ranger raised an eye at that, “You… seem unsure, if I may say so. What business do you belong to?”

“Oh, we’re freelance delivery foals or whatever you call us nowadays. Can’t you tell by our fancy lil’ colt of a truck?” Marmalade chuckled, bumping the metal underneath her window twice.

“Ah, I see. May I have a look at your papers then?” Marmalade nodded, reaching up to a compartment on the ceiling and pulling a set of rolled parchments, handing them over to the Ranger who continued asking as he looked them over,

“Are you delivering or resupplying?”

“Latter.”

“Transporting any organic materials?”

“Well I mean apart from packed lunches and snacks, no.”

“Hmm… Well, your papers look official. We’re almost done here.” The ranger stated as he handed the parchements back, briefly smiling before sighing as he asked the next question, now seeming to pay extra special attention on the mare, “Have you been to or around the Fillydelphia area recently?”

“Uh, recently? Nah, we’ve been visiting them lil’ towns up Northeast for the past week or so. Why? Something happen there?”

The ranger raised his eye, canting his head,”Have you not heard the rumors?”

“Huh? What rumors?”

“.. Not to alarm you but… There has been a supposed breakout in the city, an epidemic some are calling it. Although accounts of what it is and where it came from is… shoddy at best.”

“Damn… Is that why you colts and mares are here?”

“Part of the reason. Now, may we inspect your storage for a moment?”

“Ehhh, sure, why not?”

The Doctor meanwhile waited within the bathroom stall, sweat pouring down his forehead as he tried to find something to preoccupy himself with. He glanced briefly at the thin line of smoke rising out of the edges of a nearby trash bin, sighing. Minutes that seemed like hours passed and he almost fell asleep right there and then before he finally got a knock on the door, three quick knocks to be specific. He smiled, relaxing as he reached up to wipe some sweat off his brow while likewise leaning forward and unlocking the door.

The door cracked open and Marmalade’s head came into view, a wicked smile painting her face, although it dropped when she saw him, suddenly bursting into a laugh after a second. The Doctor raised an eye, frowning, “What in the name of her good grace is so funny?”

“Your… your… Your illusion Doc! Have you looked in the mirror?”

The Doctor did that just now and it quickly dawned on him what was so humorous, his frown deepening as his assistant’s laughter grew: The disguise he was given was that of a purple coated mare, with pigtails.

“Hey, hey Doctor, maybe I should have saved that dress after all. You would have looked simply marvelous in it.”

The zebra teased and burst into more tears of laughter as the Doctor got up and they returned to the drivers front, the pony growling behind clenched teeth, “Yes yes, laugh it up will you. Once you’re done, do care to explain the situation to me? I assume we’re safe considering your light mood.”

The Doctor tensed for a moment as he glanced at the Rangers still standing outside their vehicle, although most of them, he noted as he relaxed, had obvious expressions of boredom, some even leaning against their rifles. Marmalade sighed blissfully, wiping tears away as she started up their custom carriage and set them on their way, their speed quickly gaining as the rest of the storage vehicles resumed their natural speed of haste once they past the checkpoint.

The zebra smiled for a brief moment as took a deep breath, her expression dropping as she spoke, “Yea, we’re good. They weren’t looking for us after all. Apparently, from what I was told, something’s broken out in Fillydelphia. They’re probably checking for infected food or some such.”

“Break out in Fillydelphia? What break out?”

“Not sure… not even they were.”

“Luna’s grace, another breakout… now that is a scary thought.”

“You’re telling me.”

The pair drove in silence the rest of the way with fearful expressions, nearing and passing row after row of looming warehouses, which were occasionally broken up by a small office building huddled in between. Several storage carriages gathered around the fronts of the warehouses, full crates being brought out or in by workers of either robotic or organic origin.

After another passing moment the Doctor, with his gaze fixed to the view of his side window, spoke up, “Um… Marmalade, my dear, I just remembered something. Shouldn’t we have stopped at the check in station back there to meet Sourpine?” He pointed as they passed another office building, this one with a sign reading “#7” put out front.

Marmalade shrugged, driving on, “Nah, don’t worry. I stopped by a Dragon post on the way while you were sleeping, sent Sourpine an early message that we were coming. He said he’d be waiting in front of our warehouse.”

“Huh, how nice.”  He stated plainly.

A few minutes later they turned and stopped in front the mentioned building, white paint on its dark red brick walls reading “Metal line #89”. Unlike the rest of the long warehouses which had shiny green or blue metallic walls with triangular prism roofs, this one specifically seemed of an older state, small with a more contained square shape and roof, dust covering up some of the glass windows, one even broken. On it’s close right side extended a smaller square building, about half it’s length and size.

As they halted, a stallion of a light brown coat, wearing blue patched overalls and a brown newsy cape, approached them, particularly Marmalade’s side. He coughed, brushing gray strands of his mane out of his eyes, smiling up at the zebra with tired, wrinkled eyes, “Well if it ain’t good ol’ Marma. Comin’ home a bit too soon this time around, ain’tcha?”

Marmalade smiled warmly down at him, nodding, “Eyup, had a bit more unlucky runs than usual, and there is only so much one can handle of the Doctor, as you know.” The zebra glanced over at the pony sitting to her right, grinning wickedly. Sourpine tipped his head as he leaned up and looked at the other passenger himself, “Huh, is that him? He looks kinda funny, almost like a…”

“Mare,” The assistant said with a cheeky tone, the Doctor growling at her briefly before leaning over into the worker pony’s sight and waving, “Greetings my good stallion! You seem fetching today, the factories treating you alright?” The Doctor shouted over in a hearty tone.

Sourpine in turn twisted up his face as he eyed the other pony, mouth dropping slightly before a hoarse, coughing laugh broke out, “Well shit, when you said you had a few bad runs I didn’t think you meant this bad! What, did one of them vulture folk pull a shifty on him?”

“Nah, it’s just an illusion potion. Although, it still was bad enough! Did I mention he stuffed me into a dress?”

The older stallion broke further into a fit of laughter, a wicked smirk painting him, “Damn, that didn’t end well I assume? Shoot, for someone that’s supposed to be one of this era’s biggest new minds, he’s a pretty dim bulb ain’t he?”

“He’s pretty bright, just a tad self-blindingly so.”

The Doctor meanwhile stared at them with crossed eyes and pouting lips, hooves crossed over his chest as he listening to another batch of laughter before speaking again, “Would you two shush it and hurry it up and open the warehouse already? We’ve got business to attend to! At least I do in any case.”

“What business?” Marmalade spat out, grinning.

“The one that doesn’t involve me sitting around and listening to a torrent of insults, that’s what,” The Doctor stuck his nose up at them and turned the other way.

His assistant raised an eye and gave him a look before breaking into a mocking pout , “Aw, he’s angry, better hurry up before he makes something else explode,” She teased, sighing happily as she turned back to the worker pony. “Ah, but anyway he’s right, it’s been good talking to yea Sour. We all clear?”

“Yup, all complications checked and cleared out. He’s all yours. Just let me open him up and y’all can be on your merry way.”

“Thanks Sour. Oh! Wait, I got a question. You know the checkpoint set up on the route, by the Applejack Rangers?”

“What? What checkpoint? There’s a checkpoint? Damn, well that explains the hold up. What’s going on?”

“Hay if I know; although from what I’m told there is apparently a breakout in Fillydelphia. They were asking if I was near it and carried food supplies and stuff like that, so they’re obviously on lookout, although even the ponies stationed don’t know what the heck is going on, or they ain’t letting on anyways. You hear anything about that?”

“Oh yeah, I heard. Some new epidemic, although no one is sure what the hay it is. They’ve got half the city on lockdown from what I’ve been told, no one going in or out except the real higher ups. They say they’ve got everyone in on it: from the Rainbow Bolts to the Circle of Harmony, to even the Applejack Rangers and the Friendship Guardians. The bloody Friendship Guardians! I mean, I’m thinking, what the heck would the Ministry of Moral have to do with this?”

The Doctor turned around and listened in as Sourpine told his findings, raising an eye and speaking up, “Even the Diamond Curtain’s ponies? And the Rainbow Bolts? Celestia’s grace, it must be truly awful out there for both of them to be involved…”

Sourpine nodded, sighing bitterly, “Yea… I mean I thought it was all just ruckus and shouting, but if you say there is a checkpoint nearby, and one set up by the Rangers of all ponies, then… well, I got no comforting thoughts.”

“You’re telling us…”

“Although... I did overhear our more species diverse employees calling it the ‘Sand Plague’, and I think I even heard some of our bosses saying stuff about it, something about it probably coming from Zebrica…”

A growl was suddenly heard then, the zebra mare’s face twisting up in rage, teeth clenched and nostrils flaring as she spat out at the pony below her, “Oh for fuck sakes, this again?!”

Sourpine immediately backed away in terror, eyes wide in terror as he shook his head frantically, “Hey now! I never said this myself; you asked me what I heard so I’m telling ya! Calm down would ya, don’t shoot the messenger!”

Marmalade sighed and pressed a hoof against her forehead as she breathed in deeply, “Sorry… sorry… Just, you know, the stupid myths and-“

“I know I know, no need to be sorry, it’s understandable. So, shall I let y’all get to it then?” The old factory pony smiled warmly, sighing quietly in relief at the zebra’s calming.

“Yea, probably should let you get back to work. It was nice seeing you again Sourpine.”

“Eyup, I’ll be seeing ya two, have a good one!”

The Doctor smiled, leaning over further to Marmalade’ side and waving briefly, “Tally ho my good stallion! Harmony’s blessings and all such!”

“Yup, and watch yourself next time! I mean, shoving Marma in a dress? The heck was going through your head colt?!” 

“Well excuse me for trying to bring out her beauty…”

Marmalade scoffed, pulling on a lever which caused their vehicle to roar as it kicked back into sudden life. She frowned deeply as she watched Sourpine walk inside the warehouse through a side door, the metal wall in front of them rolling upwards a moment later and allowed them passage, glancing at Adwin and muttering, “Oh give it a rest.”

They both sighed, the Doctor rolling his eyes as they began to move forward into the warehouse, Sourpine seen flipping a nearby switch, rows of light bulbs on the ceiling sparking to life, illuminating the dusty emptiness of the building.

Marmalade gave him a last wave as he walked off to his own duties, muttering after a brief silence, though her voice quickly rose as she went on, “Fucking bastards… Just because my people don’t exactly come from a plentiful paradise, they think they have the bloody nerve to insult and look down on us. Oh sure, ignore the fact we taught you colorful bastards advanced alchemy during the war, go ahead and call us dirty savages! Ain’t our fault you assholes have weak immune systems and yet practically pushed us into your lands!” 

“And here she goes again, brilliant, thank you Sourpine! Just had to mention it… Marmalade, my dear, you are aware I’m not the aristocracy, yes? Perfectly agree with your views; just please don’t bleed my ears out.” The pony threw his hooves up in annoyance, sighing deeply as his partner ignored him and continued off into a furious rant, waiting as they drove into the vacant, old warehouse.

Upon their arrival, and himself ignoring his partners continuing verbal anger, he pressed down on a latch beside him, hopping out onto the dusty floor stone floor beneath as his side door popped open with a satisfying hiss. Marmalade did likewise, still stuck in her own world of passionate anger, her voice immediately echoing within the empty building,

“Okay, so maybe we carried some of the smaller illnesses, but we at least bloody helped cure them just as fast! Sheesh, a couple minor breakouts and suddenly we’re the fucking scapegoats for every new disease and epidemic that goes big, just because it’s fucking convenient to hate on the species without magic, or sharp claws, or wings. I mean, how many fucking problems did you cause in our lands, huh?! But do you see any of my people whining about Equestrian expansionism like petulant children and scoffing at your naivety? No, we have some damn sense of dignity and respect.”

Adwin sighed, slamming the door shut and looking around at their little base of operations. As mentioned before, it was horribly vacant except for, at least from Adwin’s side, a row of open crates against the eastern wall, each filled with various pieces of scrap metal and equipment, each box having a name painted on their front sides, telling of their main stored components, be it pipes, cogs or glass eyes.  To right of the crates stood three tables and a comfy, but rather torn, silk chair in front of them, a few lamps and some writing equipment laying atop the furniture as well as papers filled with diagrams and calculations scattered about all over. To the far right of all that, near the northern wall, lay a simple wooden door, iron words posted above it reading, “Research area.”

Marmalade had finally gone silent then as she came around the front, coming to stand beside her companion as they both looked over the building, “We really need to spruce this place up someday.”

“What are you talking about, it’s perfectly fine for our needs.”

“Yeah, but come on, it’s dusty, empty for the most part, and dreary. Not exactly a fitting atmosphere for work. We could at least replace the damn posters.” Marmalade muttered as her eyes trailed over the eastern wall, posters, bearing propaganda, adorned it above the crates.

Most of them were motivational posters of one kind or another, one displaying silhouettes of ponies that were carrying hammers and torches and seemed to be working on some kind of machinery, bright red letters underneath reading, “FRIENDSHIP! UNITY! INDUSTRY!” Another showed the image of a group of mares of various age and size, particularly an orange mare with a flowing yellow mane and tail, wearing a wide brimmed hat with three red apples adorning her flank, packing crates of food into a military carriage in front of an apple orchard, letters beneath them reading, “The Apple Family is doing its part for Equestria, are you? Donate food and supplies today!” The rest of the posters went along similar lines.

“Why would we ever wish to do that? They give the place a somber, almost retro feel, don’t you think? In any case, they’re colorful in their own right, and they’re absolutely spotless! Now that’s dedicated preservation magic you won’t find today. These beauties have been around for, what, twenty years? Beginning of the war? And not a single speck of dust on any one of them. Besides, I’ve added my own personal touch to some of them.”

“Oh yeah, burning some of them certainly adds some new color to them.” Marmalade snorted, eyeing the few posters in which a scorch mark was left in place of the figure pony’s face. What could be recognized was that the pony was most likely a mare of a light purple coat and had an even brighter purple star as her cutie mark. “And you’re just too lazy to clean up.

“Bah, your opinions. I like it and it suits me just fine.”

“Typical… Can we at least sell of them if they’re so good?”

“If you’re thinking in those terms, then I counter that they serve as an emergency reserve in case we ever need money.”

“Doctor, we do need money.”

“We will always need money!” The pony threw his hooves with a grunt of annoyance, sighing as he began to walk over to the tables and pick up the various scattered paper, stacking them.

“Meh, whatever, fine. Just give me a second to check on the bots before we head off.” Marmalade turned around then, looking left and right before turning her head skyward and shouting, “WALTER! TOM!”

The Doctor visibly winced as he came back to her after finishing his task, “Must you be so loud as always.”

Marmalade grunted in turn, “Yes.”

They both sharply turned in the direction of their vehicle then as a loud metallic crash echoed from the western wall, followed by what sounded like footsteps, as well as the loud turning of gears accompanying each step. They rushed around the front of their motorized contraption, both raising their eyes as they watched two autonomous machinations hover and walk towards their direction.

One was a hexbot in the shape of an earth pony, its eyes and network of runes glowing a faint blue, and the other looked like a giant, hovering bronze egg with small, red eyes and six, long, bronze arms, with five digits at the end of each, extending from it’s back. Underneath its belly could be seen a rather large, crystal power core, also glowing a light blue, a faint stream of air releasing from it and pushing against the ground, keeping the bot afloat.

Behind the two machines, near the western wall, could be seen two tables set quite a few feet apart from each other and, between them, various crates full of parts, similar to the ones from before. Said parts were also scattered all across the floor along with several open toolboxes. Among all this chaos, stood two inactive earth pony bots, one fully complete and frozen in place while the other was missing half it’s head, a jumble of pipes and gears jutting out. And below those two bots lay several smaller, doll sized contraptions, some of them being the toy bot sold the previous day.

Adwin grinned wickedly as he watched the two machines stop in front of them, throwing up his arms up as his roared in a cheerful voice, “My two wonderful servants! Greetings, greetings! How goes the production in our absence? Hm?”

The two constructs remained silent, merely staring at them with cold, unblinking eyes. Marmalade facehoofed, sighing and speaking up herself in a more dry tone, “Translation: Status report.”

“Bloody cold voice commands…” 

The constructs spoke up simultaneously then, high pitched, almost feminine, metallic voices arising from unmoving mouths, “Greetings, Doctor Adwin and Miss Marmalade. You have been gone for: two weeks, five days, thirty five minutes, and fifty five seconds. This unit has constructed: One earth pony, two Friendship dolls, two…” and thus it went on like that for a brief moment, the two bots listing off the devices they had created in their absence.

The Doctor shook his head eagerly with a wide smile, clapping his hooves in approval, “Wonderful! Simply wonderful! We should have a new batch ready within a few weeks time. Doesn’t it seem like they’re getting better at this? Faster? How adorable, my darlings are growing!”

“Nah, that’s just your rose-colored glasses. Besides, if they’re faster that means they’re sloppier, which means I have to spend more time fixing their mistakes. You know, this is why they don’t usually have constructs making other constructs?”

“Bah, at least you can get to it quicker, and at least you don’t have to construct the main bulk of the machination, piece by piece.”

“Actually, sometimes, I have to remake the whole damn thing. So, yeah. I still think we should have just hired a production line.”

“Oh yes, and have the authorities crawling all over our backsides? Are you not supposed to be the more percept one here?”

“Yeah yeah, I’m just getting tired of the fact that I gotta make all this crap on my own.

“Well I did offer to help…”

“Yes, and then have us set back another two weeks after something happens to blow up? No thank you.”

“Well we can’t exactly hire another hoof. Too risky.”

“Ugh… Can we please just head on over to the city already? The last thing I want on my mind is work…”

“It’s not work, it’s bone breaking passion of science and progress! The most divine work around.”

Marmalade growled behind clenched teeth, looking back at the constructs, eyeing them over, “Alright, return to assigned task, regular schedule. Wait… Report on resource supply, percentage comparison.”

“Supplies have gone down by eighty percent since last report Miss Marmalade.”

“Shit… Doctor, we’re going to have to buy more gears soon, and I don’t think we have enough money this time…”

“What are you talking about?! How much did we earn on this run. Must be at least a dozen thousand total.”

“Yeah, and if you haven’t heard, Fillydelphia has been hit with a plague. How the hay do you think the market is going to be affected if one of the main production centers has been fucked over?”

“Um…”

“Here is a hint: It’s going to cost more, a lot more than before.”

“Oh dear…”

Marmalade let out another exhausted sigh, waving the robots off before heading back to the eastern wall, in the direction of a simple metal door near its south end, “Return to regular schedule.”

The Doctor eyed her for a moment before stumbling frantically after, one hoof raised to hold his fanciful white top hat as he ran to her side, “Hey now wait a minute, aren’t we going to unload the truck? Our earnings?! How are we getting into the city, are we taking a ride or aerial passage or what? Marmalade?!”

“Well, I’m heading towards the south door, which leads to a stair case to the roof, which has our gyrocopter. What the hay do you think Doctor? And I’ve filled my pockets with enough coin, we can come back and unpack later. I’m tired as hay thank you very much. You know, driving all night and day?”

“But but… It’s rush hour! Just imagine the Celestia aweful traffic lines, especially in the air of all places.”

“Well…” Marmalade stopped for a moment, glancing back at him with a wicked grin, “Who said we had to follow the traffic beacons?”

=====================================================================================

The industrial metropolis roared and shivered with activity in the peak hours of the day. Round towers of steel of various heights jutted out across the wide urban landscape, as far as one’s eye could see. From their tops poured vast amounts of smoke and ash from the uncountable factories and mills below, so many and so thick that it formed a second, artificial, layer of clouds that blanketed the city, giving it a gray, somber hue.

The city’s narrow, thin streets bustled with life at every corner. Massive, huddled crowds of ponies, zebras, and other equines rushed and went about their daily chores, pressed up against the walls of the many brick stone buildings as the middle of the streets were crowded with wagons, carriages and motorized contraptions of all shapes and sizes. From four wheeled motors to mechanical beasts that walked on six legs, all of which bellowed their own exhaust into the city’s already dreadful atmosphere.

Above them, and barely a few hoofs higher, raced flying mechanizations, from stuttering small copters to hovering wagons, and large boxes of steel dangling from magical rail lines, windows strewn across their sides revealing the passengers inside. The rail lines glowed faintly, runed metal crackling with electric magical energy, a power crystal occasional seen in between tracks. All of these contraptions were organized in lines by pegasi, most of which circled and dashed around furiously, darting from one point to another, making sure no one got out of their designated lanes and everything ran smoothly.  The aerial vehicles older cousins, the airships, could be seen barely breaking the smoke cloud cover far high up, as they anchored on stations just above.

Shopkeepers and merchants called out their products and prices over the masses, from candy stands to clockwork stores, while the bang and thunder of mechanized production lines echoed throughout the city in an almost synchronized rhythm, like the throbbing of several frantic heartbeats.

Adorning many of the red and gray walls of city was modern propaganda of all kind, the most common, and threatening, offender being the large posters which portrayed three looming, dark silhouettes of unicorns with dark red eyes peering down. A white unicorn with a flowing dark purple mane and piercing blue eyes, wearing an imposing satin dress, hovered in front of the three and matched their gaze, staring down along with them at white shadows of various non-pony equines: from zebras and griffons to desert dogs, for the most part jackals, and other strange bipedal creatures, ones with beak mouths and three talon fingered hands, who all cowered underneath the towering pony figures. Large, white letters beneath all this proclaimed, “ENEMIES OF HARMONY BEWARE, MOM IS WATCHING!” If one were to stare at the red orbs of the three pony shadows, it would almost seem as if they were staring back at the individual.

And in the midst of all this organized chaos, this burning heart of industry, the Doctor was hanging on for his dear life.

“DAAAAAAAMMMIIIIIIIIIIT MARMALAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADE” The Doctor screamed at the loudest volumes his lungs could produce, gripping the edges of his seat behind his assistant in their flying contraption. Blades above him spinned frantically on a metal pole as the two boiling steam engines to his left and right shook horribly with strained effort, leaving a thick trail of smoke in their wake as they zoomed, almost carelessly, past the various aerial traffic lines, between the narrow streets and looming factories. A squad of furious pegasus flied right behind them, chasing. Marmalade glanced back at her companion briefly, noticing this. A mad grin painted her face then as she began to descend closer to the ground.

“HOLD TIGHT DOC, IT’S GONNA BE A BUMPY RIDE!” She proclaimed, a carefree, maniacal laugh shortly following as they flew down below a wide metal bridge, upon which large, monstrous steam train cars raced along, and into the sewer tunnels underneath. They were encased in choking darkness briefly, the eager zebra pilot sharply turning a few corners before gray sunlight returned and they were in the clear industrial skies once more.

The Doctor whimpered during said time, pressing down into the torn cushion he sat upon and crossing his forelegs over his head, waiting for the light to return, and yet even then remaining in his position, only looking up as he felt another wave of bile rising in his throat. “Oh dear Luna…” Behind, in the darkness of the tunnel they left, could be heard the grunts and shouts of pain and confusion from their pursuers.

More blocks of shops and factories raced past below them in a blurry haze before being broken up by the wide square roofs of apartment blocks. On the roof of each building lay several cube blocks of stone, one side covered with a metal wall and it’s adjacent containing a simple door. On one of these roofs, in front of one of these blocks, stood a donkey who noticed them and waved frantically in their direction, the metal wall behind her raised, revealing a cushioned inside.

Marmalade waved back and nosed dived for the roof garage, cutting sharply through the wind as they gained speed, which raced past their sides fiercely, shaking their aerial vehicle with a horrible anger. As they neared the roof surface, Marmalade slammed down a lever below her seat, suddenly deactivating their engines and propellers, which protested with a straining of metal and a whining hiss of steam. The mad pilot pulled her wheel upwards, straining and gritting her teeth as their small copter hit the ground, breaking the cushioned legs underneath, that were meant to support their landing, and screeching across the roof on its round belly, sparks flying in a blaze all around them as they spun and slammed into the garage, it’s soft surface easing their impact considerably.

The donkey grinned at the, somewhat crushed, smoking vehicle and it’s passengers, the eccentric blue showpony groaning from his seat while the zebra pilot was already getting out, winking back at her with a toothful smile. The donkey nodded in return, reaching up and bringing down the metal wall, enclosing them just as a squad of pegasi came into view in the distance, scanning the horizon frantically.

A moment later the side door burst open and the Doctor came racing out, sprinting across the rooftop to its edge and puking out his stomach’s contents as he leaned over it.  Marmalade followed out of the exit shortly after, laughing, tears flowing from her eyes as she shouted.

“Oh holy crap. Ahahahah, you should have seen the look on your face Doc, priceless!” She calmed down after another snort of laughter, shaking her head and turning to the donkey mare now, pumping a hoof in other air before wiping sweat from her forehead and pulling up her huge, red tinted goggles, “Woo! That was fucking awesome, haven’t done something like that in a while, hay yeah! Damn, that brings back memories.”

The donkey mare burst into laughter, “Shoot, you can say that again, hehe. Although I almost had a heart attack when I saw ya. I thought ya were going to blow up in the sky like a firecracker right there and then in that hunk of junk! The heck were you flying Marma?”

“Ehh, basic specs, and hey, it ain’t that bad.”

“Well it’s sure as the stars a real hunk of junk now.”

“Meh.” Marmalade chuckled, walking up to the donkey and wrapping her hooves around her, the two embracing briefly.

“Heh, it’s been a while, how ya been?” The zebra smirked, pulling back from their hug, her friend shrugging.

“Oh, ya know, same old factory garbage. Speaking of which, would ya give me a sooner warning next time? Yer lucky I got first shift off today. I mean, what woulda happened if I wasn’t here?!”  

“Eh, sorry it was a spur of the moment kind of thing. In any case, I would have just improvised, or crashed into your apartment and waited for you to come home, either way.”

“Still as big of an ass as ever I see.”

“Speak for yourself.” They both burst into laughter, hugging once more as the Doctor came back, still groaning as the fur around his mouth was tinted with bile. “By the Element’s grace, I’m surrounded by lunatics…”

Marmalade turned to the Doctor, a wide smirk painting her face, “Ha! Says the pot calling the kettle black. Besides, I got us here quick, didn’t I? Like I promised you. You’re the one who agreed so happily without objection.”

“Well now I remember how you bloody fly, and I think I would have much preferred the traffic if I remembered before…”

“Oh stop whining like a little colt and be thankful.”

The zebra’s friend spoke up then as she noticed them beginning to bicker, loudly clearing her throat, “Uh, Marma, sorry to cut this short dear but I gotta run. Ya kind of cut me in the middle of a meeting of friends, but I’ll meet ya at the FGI Music Club later tonight, like old times. Ya remember the place?”

“Hay yes! Of course I do, I still go there. Alright, have a good one! Oh, and if you spot Adricon by any chance, tell him we’re back.”

“Will do dear, will do. Oh, and nice seeing you again Doctor, be good to Marma now!”

“Yes yes, a pleasure seeing you as well Matilda… Ugh, my bloody head…” The Doctor waved her off absently, walking over to press his head against the garage’s stone wall, looking as if he might puke again. Matilda raised an eye briefly before shrugging and trotting off with a happy skip, smiling and humming to herself.