She looked up to the heavens, the scarred moon still up, signalling that the riots were still underway. The world, shaken to its core ever since Luna recuperated. She continued to follow Mac through the road that led to the old city of Canterlot, as she had done for hours on end. The Princess looked up at the android, asking, “Are you entirely sure about this? Walking into a city just like that?”

“Yes,” Mac replied bluntly. “Probability of failure is forty percent. We can risk ourselves, or fail entirely.”

Luna sighed at his answer, looking forward once again. It was a matter of time until the towers of the grown Canterlot began to loom over the distance, tall enough to shadow the moon and shroud the ground below even more so. Both her and the android could now hear the loud clashing of the riots taking place inside the city.

“Why isn’t the government calling the Humans!?”

“Burn the criminal!”

“Where are the Princesses!?”

Such were some of the phrases that were yelled all around the street that Luna and Mac were walking through. Collapsed neon signs hung from several buildings. Broken windows, burning vehicles, and the Colonial Guard doing their best to keep the riot from spreading were a few of the things that Luna could notice. Of course, both the Princess and the android did what they could to steer clear from the violent crowd. Suffice to say, at the very least, it was only a fraction of the city that was in chaos.

“The rogue prototype must DIE!”

Luna cringed. She stepped closer to Mac and whispered to him, “Why is it that the Guard has not curbed this cult already? Again, are you sure about this?”

Mac glanced around, then leaned in closer to her. “Yes, I am sure. Princess Sparkle kept the Guard away from certain cults as far as she could on purpose. This is one of them.”

The alicorn nodded, continuing to follow Mac around the crowd. She quietly observed the buildings: bars, pubs, electronic stores, etc. What she rarely ever saw before the Humans arrived was now in front of her eyes en masse.

“Avenge the council!”

As the two were walking, a blood-curling scream reached their senses. Luna turned to see what had happened, only to be tugged on the shoulder by Mac. “Hurry!” She did as told, turning back around and galloping after Mac. They pushed through the crowd, barely avoiding the Colonial Guard as they were forced to intervene in the situation. Finally, they broke out of the riot.

Neither of them were even remotely tired, but that was mostly due to the fact that they could not physically get tired. They looked at each other when Luna spoke up, “What now?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The cult should be hidden inside a nearby pub,” Mac said.

Emptiness was the one word that could describe the state of the street they were on. Pieces of paper hovered centimeters above the ground, and both Luna and Mac could sense dozens of eyes pinned on them, watching their every move. The metallic biped tugged on the Princess’ shoulder, catching her attention before gesturing towards what seemed to be an empty building with a holo sign above its main door. She nodded, following him over to the pub. Once they reached the door, they both stood on each side, flanking it.

Luna looked up at Mac, who stared back at her ready to wave his hand over the sensor that controlled the door. She nodded at him, the android taking the hint and opening the door. They peered inside, seeing what was there. At first glance it seemed like a common bar, minus the people. There were holoscreens set on the walls, metallic cups still on the floor, broken glass, food...

“I do not see any form of cult around here, Mac...”

The android walked over behind the bar, motioning for Luna to follow. Once done, she followed the trace of his arm to a hidden hatch beneath the large counter. “Ah...” she whispered. With her magic, she grabbed a hold of it and pulled, opening the trap door, revealing a staircase that led to the darkness, something she was very much used to.

“Keep it dark,” Mac said, beginning to make his way down the stairs with Luna trailing behind him. Her cybernetic eye aided in the task of looking into the darkness.

She thought about what she would find on the bottom. Her hopes were placed upon the wish that the cult would still be there, and that it would lead towards the next stage in her search.

Eventually, they reached the bottom, finding themselves in front of a blast door. Yet, there were no signs of life.

“Hold on,” Luna said, stepping in front of the door. “Do you see any cameras?”

“No,” Mac replied.

“Very well,” she continued. The Princess figured that it was time to make use of her eye and enhanced senses, so she focused her mind, attempting to catch a glimpse of a sound wave or a heat signature coming from behind the door.

“Bingo.” She smiled, making way for Mac. “Grab a hold of your rifle and then open the door, if you must.”

The android did as told, grabbing a hold of his otherwise concealed gauss rifle and training it at the door. His eyes flashed as he sent the signal for the door to open. The two rushed in, Mac with his rifle aimed and Luna with her horn charged, to find a large church-like complex with a dozen or so individuals of all species kneeling down before them.