Blueblood, Prince of Equestria, worked feverishly at his workbench. Wood flew in his magic grasp, iron and steel bended to his will, and intricately carved crystals fastened themselves to his creation. A final scrape with his wood carver and it was complete, his latest and greatest creation.

Blueblood was not a fool, nor was he what one would call “lazy.” He was rather the hard worker, especially when he applied himself. Fortunately for posterity, he applied himself in nearly every aspect of his life, even when it wouldn’t have an immediate and positive effect on his goodself.

Before the prince stood a wood-and-metal pony with emeralds for eyes and a ruby for a heart. He circled it, searching for any flaws or imperfections in his masterpiece. Finding none, as usual, he sighed contentedly and sat before the artificial pony.

“Automated Servants Mach Two,” he said to the newly-crafted statue. “You will now ‘Come to Life,’ if you please.”

His horn glowed blue, and the pony glowed to match. A few moments passed as the spell warmed up, gaining power until Blueblood was certain that it would work. A flash, a spark, and the whir of machinery signified the spell’s completion. The Equestrian prince sat back and waited.

The woodwork pony twitched, vibrated, and sputtered to life. It took a bow and addressed Blueblood, “I am at your service, master.”

Blueblood chewed his lip. “This is a little too much déjà vu for me.”

“Time to throw a wrench into things,” Redheart said. She pushed the door aside and plopped a bag on the ground beside the robot. “What’s new about this model?”

“It is utterly incapable of harming ponies.” Blueblood came up beside her and rubbed his cheek against hers. “Notice the complete lack of laser eyes. Notice the servos which have difficulty lifting anything heavier than one hundred pounds. Notice the all-encompassing friendship report programming.”

“Dear Princess Celestia,” the robot said, “I was right all along!”

“And I do mean ‘all encompassing.’” Blueblood kissed her ear. “How was your day at the hospital, Dr. Redheart?”

“Busy,” Redheart said, her voice growing quiet. “And… surprising.”

“Oh? Surprising?” Blueblood laughed. “My dear wife, I’ve become an alicorn, orchestrated the robot apocalypse of Canterlot, travelled to a parallel world, fought a changeling invasion, met my undead great-grandfather, battled Nightmares, watched my friends turn into monsters, watched my friends turn back from monsters, dueled a mad alicorn inside a volcano, and faced death and come out nearly unscathed. I am now friends with a diamond dog, a ranch hand, an ex-evil overlord, and a shapeshifting creature that eats love. I create lifelike machines for a living, partnered with a pony that has invented a magic mirror. Please, I beg you, surprise me.”

“I’m pregnant,” Redheart said. “With our baby, that is.”

Blueblood licked his lips. He gave her a curt nod. “That’ll do it.”

He keeled over in the middle of the workshop floor.

Author's Notes:

Now it's wrapped up! Kinda!