Rapture

by Maxypony

First published 12th of March, 2012

Transported to an ancient deadly ruined metropolis what Our Heroes discover could change everything!

The editing process swiftly diverged into a new story arc that led toward a new story.
mostly because I have my macbook air and can write and edit properly.
the new story will begin posting by mid may. It will be alot better written than this one, which from my point of view amounted to throwing words at the page and hoping they sticked.
if you were hoping for more of this story, dont be disappointed. My Little Catalyst (Alternately: Alquestria) or another name i come up with later... will have all your favorite characters making at lest a cameo. and it will have good scripting and a deep and intricate plot. More importantly, realistic characters. characters and dialogue have been a weakness of mine, and I have several ponies keeping me honest in that regard. you should really like it.
I may still pick up Nightmare Chronicles as a collective later on, but Rapture will not be continued any further.
sorry,
MaxyP
PS: not really the new story will be 1000x better!!!!

Anypony ever wonder whats beyond the guilded cage? In the midst of Nightmare Moons second return to power, the Dark Queen banishes Luna along with half the Elements of Harmony to a Violent Primeval Relm beyond the stars. What they find may just change the fate of Equestria...
FOREEVARR!!!

SSN 1: EP 1: A Whole New World

Episode 1

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter I
Black

Sapphire felt the Sadistic mystical darkness within her soul fire unleash its terrible ferocious power. Draining her magical faculties to their utmost edge. In the darkening world of fading consciousness, sapphire watched, as if from a back seat, as the comforting visage of ponyville winked into nonexistence.
Unlike before on the cliff wall of the gorge, the soul fire's takeover was not intentionally caused by Sapphire, some ancient boundary was crossed, forcing the outburst of unspeakable power to be unleashed.
/)(\
Back in ponyville, twilight sparkle watched, rooted in horror as one by one as: princess luna, pinkie pie, rainbow dash, rarity disappeared in the shrieking burst of darkness emanating from Sapphire. The burst of black magic consumed all that was bright and joyful in equestria, replacing it with eternal night.
When the nightmarish waves of darkness finished pouring out, Nightmare Moon stood where Twilight's friends had been moments ago.
/)(\
Sapphire blinked, regaining consciousness in a crumpled heap atop a pile of crumbling masonry. She tried moving, alas to little effect as waves of nauseating exhaustion washed over her. Body and soul drained of life, teetering on the brink of death's door. Sapphire closed her eyes, having completed her mistresses bidding, there twas naught to live for.
Life stirred around Sapphire in the dank wasteland that she would soon call home. Alerted to the sounds around her Sapphire opened a solitary eye to her drear surroundings. Peering down the length of it beak directly back at her was a horribly disfigured mottled crow.
In a flash of movement the bird struck, plunging deep into her open eye. Pain shot through her skull as the mottled crow withdrew and struck again. Searing, burning suffering poured from her mangled socket: blood mingling with salty tears of pain.
Something stirred within her heart of hearts, a black flame once quenched, had returned, only a flickering light, but it twas there once more. Sapphire smiled through the searing pain, for once glad to have the smoldering evil within her soul.
A trembling hoof stretched overhead, and with a momentous final effort swept down, crushing the life from her tormentor. Hungrily the controlling darkness within pulled the dying crow up to Sapphire's fanglets. With one ferocious crunch, draining the lingering threads of life from the deformed creature.
/)(\
In a single slippery moment ponyville became a towering jungle of skeleton buildings overgrown with intertwining tree growth. A dead skyline playing a slow crumbling battle with vines, ivy, and other deciduous creepers. Above a canopy intermittently broken with the broken spines shooting up from a once majestic cityscape. Sickly gray-green patches of light trickled through the canopies numerous tears and piercings. A cornucopia of vines and roots spread and tangled their winding way between the arboretum skyscrapers interconnecting the towering giants sporadically above the swampy slosh below.
Rarity stared in shock. There were no words in her diverse lexicon to even attempt to describe the horror before her eyes. Dumbfounded, Rarity continued to stare out blankly, slack jawed in mind boggled shock long after her two companions had sprung into motion. Finally, Rarity broke her silence, turning to the ponies around her.
"This, THIS!" Pausing, Rarity shuddered. "I don't even... What is this Horrid place?"
"Silly, It's obviously a really old city with trees growing all over it that we teleported into somehow. Duh!" The unflapable pinkie pie bounced.
"Dash dear, please come back here." Rarity called after the sky-blue pegasus. Dash shot off through the thick overgrowth.
"This place is AWESOME!" Dash appeared through a blown out window frame in the towering skyscraper's facade extending far above them. They were in fact standing on a lower balcony of said high rise, jutting out about one hundred feet above the rancid swamp swirling below.
/)(\
Warm and coppery, crow's blood became fuel for the dark fire within Sapphire's soul. Crow flesh likewise became fuel for her trembling body. Within the hour a sleek blue-gray figure trotted off, winding through the treachery of broken, swaying stone columns and jagged forests of rebar. Sapphire was on the hunt. The smoldering malicious hunger within would be sated.
Out of the corner of her one good eye Sapphire glimpsed a white blur of motion. Her head turned, tracking the motion to fix upon the furry figure of a rabbit peering back at her reared up on its haunches. A battle of stares commenced, mirroring the fierce battle of willpower within Sapphire.
She won out against the hunger within, beginning to turn away when a blazing flare of rage burst out from her inner heart. The inner hunger Would be sated.
When Sapphire regained full control of her body, rabbit fur and gore spread out before her to every edge of the once serene clearing. The pony side of sapphire spotted a tuft of dandelions growing out of a shelf like window ledge only a few paces yonder. A different desire took hold, happily trotting over Sapphire half forgot the gruesome events of her previous repast.

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter II
Broken Heart

The grotesque figures trickled through the thick foliage in hot pursuit of Rarity and company. Dash did her best to fend off the deadly on-slot from above, but to little effect as the deadly barrage of deformed crows would not abate.
In the six hours since their arrival the trio had spent nearly half their time fleeing for dear life. Hot on the trio's trail were several horriblely mangled half horse half somethings covered in layers of matted feathers and tar. These monsters, whatever they were, had veritable droves of crows at their beck and call. The swarming mass of shreeking black birds curbed any attemp to deviate as they swiftly aproached the ivy coated wall looming above.
Seeing no avenue of escape, Pinkie and Rarity turned to fight. Rarity cast about with her magic in search of anything to keep the savage beasts at bay. Horn aglow, Rarity levitated a rusted sewer cap using it as a make-shift shield. Pinkie jumped up into a boxing stance, fore-hooves held up in leu of clenched fists.
The disfigured feathered monsters encircling them just laughed. The burliest of the brutes stepped forward sneering gracelessly.
"Pathetic."
On his signal a wingman shot out a lasso, catching one of dashes legs as she continued battling the crows with hoof, tooth and wing.
Dash went down and was quickly hogtied, despite her best efforts to break free. There was nothing Pinkie or Rarity could do to help her,
Dash was thoroughly immobilized by ropes pinning her wings and hefty iron hoof-cuffs.
"Drop."
The most wizened and elderly looking one said. The metal disk shielding Rarity from direct assault slipped from her levitation field. Panicked Rarity began casting any spell she could think of that might slow the approach of the lead beast.
"Unicorn magic holds no sway over a centaur curse. Your spell casting cannot protect you now."
The leader of the centaurs reached out his hand above the now cowering Rarity. Yes as Rarity saw the appendage up close it was undeniably a hand, not a hoof, nor a claw or paw, but a honest to goodness hand. And this hand now held her horn in its powerful grasp.
"Crack!"
Rarity's horn snapped in half as the laughing centaur added another horn tip to his growing collection of unicorn memorabilia. It was a crying shame this group only had one, irregardless, three lively ponies at once was a lucky find all the same.
For brief instant Rarity felt that she was just waking from a terrible dream. Slowly Rarity watched as that feeling fade, leaving nothing reality's cold, hard, naked truth to crash down around her without remorse. The waves of nauseating pain were a poor comparison to the sinking pit of crippling despair welling up within her soul. There were no words to describe the immense loss she felt, the dead stump of her once majestic spiral was as lifeless as the beauty within her heart. Rarity was a broken pony.

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter III
Survival

The never ending slog through the endless urban jungle took its toll on everypony. The draining humidity was enough to sap the strongest ponies strength, and some of the bedraggled ponies chained to Dash did not fall into that vital category. Since Dash and the others had joined the main group of over two dozen ponies going had been unbearably slow. Every few steps a pony stumbled and the whole chain gang skidded to a halt. Their captors were definitely not soft with the touch of their whip. When Dash first felt the drivers whip across her flanks, she had nearly flared up in blaze of indignant fury. The only thing that saved Dash was the somber look on Pinkie's when she shook her head; no.
The three friends were separated, but not so far apart that they couldn't keep tabs on each other. The single double file line was guarded on each side by four Centaurs, Dash was still not sure of their exact number due to the obscuring foliage, but guessed it to be about half the number of prisoners.
They walked into a clearing. On three sides were the still standing walls of what must have once been a department store ages ago. Against every wall were piles of trash, junk, filth and the skeletons of empty shelving. Despite the nearly randomly located collection of clutter, the space next to where the final wall should have been was cleared, revealing a smooth concrete floor. As the train of ponies approached the space a thunder of clacks resounded through the building as the unison of hooves pounded against the smooth pavement. This area had been heavily traveled.
Now fully in the clearing, dash could see the shear drop out the opening. A deadly fall of over three hundred awaited any pony who was unfortunate to fall out that opening.
As two members of his party began separating the throng of ponies from each other the head centaur spoke.
"As some of you may know we are at Half Wing's crossing."
His lips curved into a cruel smile.
"Tonight is your last chance to escape before you are taken to work in the wondrous Island paradise of Half Wing's death camp. When you die you will have the singular honor of donating your flesh to feed Half Wing's army of Bane Centaurs poised to take over control of mainland equestria and finally crush your pathetic 'pony' insurrection. Heil Halfler!"
With that the centaurs arm shot out in a sharp salute. However, the five digits at the of his extended appendage drooped in mimicry of a broken Pegasus wing. For a moment Rainbow Dash contemplated the notion that the leader of this malicious band of centaurs was a pegesus. But she soon forgot that train of though for a much more productive one: the possibility of escape.
The head centaur, whose name was Halfgore Dash had recently learned, drew her attention as he began speaking again.
"I forgot to tell you, Half Wing's Crossing is also called The Sacrificial Falls."
It was becoming morbidly clear to Dash that Halfgore keenly enjoyed terrifying his prisoners. With no real goal in mind, but a base desire to cause terror and pain.
"You know why the call this place that?" Then affecting a high pitched squeal, mimicking the sound of a young filly, Halfgore continued. "Oh no, please all powerful Mr. Halfgore Sir, tell us why because we are pathetic, sniveling little BITCHES!"
Halfgore finished with a ferocious grating sneer.
Although Dash had never heard the word she intuitively felt her ears burn.
"Because," Halfgore smiled cruelly "Below is a field where thousands of Aphrod Pony Traps grow, they suck you in with paralyzing tentacles, slowly eat you alive layer by layer, pealing away your skin and muscles before you die. It is the most imaginably painful way to die conceived by the gods."
His cruel laughter grated on every ponies ears, but Rainbow Dash was glad he had stopped talking, maybe now she could contrive a method of escape. Oh how woefully wrong Dash would soon prove to be.
/)(\
The eternal flame of the sun had finally faded over the horizon, Dash opened her eyes and silently glided to her hooves. Time to break free of this horror fest. Dash counted thirteen centaurs slumbering around the dying bonfire erected in the center of the clearing. She couldn't be certain, but that seemed to be about the right number.
With ninja like skill and grace Dash made her way to the bed of glass shards that has fallen from the now paleness doors opening into the concrete jungle beyond.
With a sigh of relief Dash peared around the opening to find no guards posted outside. 'could it possibly be this easy?' Dash wondered to herself, almost turning back before the call of freedom reaffirmed its hold on her.
With pounding heart and bated breath Dash took her first step outside the makeshift enclosure. No blaring alarms, no jingling bells not even a simple spring trap or tripwire. Relaxing a little Dash took several more steps outside. She was in the clear, hidden behind thick walls of foliage that could stop a charging bull elephant. Now all she had to do is cut the ropes that held her wings and she was home free. A task that proved to be a quantum leap more difficult to achieve than expected.
Rainbow Dash was not going to be defeated by mere rope. the struggle went on into the wee hours of the morning before Dash and her teeth completed their task.

SSN1: EP2: Come Together

Episode 2

4 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter IV
Their dead, aren't they?

Sapphire walked into the metal beast. The interior was pitch black except for twin rays of crimson fire blazing from her ruby horns. The smell of rust and decay hit Sapphire as a thick wall of nearly physical revulsion. But the strange dark energy within had perked her interest and there would be no turning back until her curiosity was satisfied.
Winding down intricate passageways, through myriad's of engineering stations and dormitories, Sapphire finally arrived at the lurking source of malicious energy.
The trip down to the bilge levels had been harrowing. Many of the floors had been rusted through and most of the labyrinthian raised walkways that ran through the vessel had collapsed, blocking off easy access to any of the lower decks.
Sapphire was still weak and traumatized from her ordeal with the crow and subsequent inner reawakening. Between blood loss and the massive drain on her life force that released Nightmare Moon upon Equestria, Sapphire should have been dead. But there was something driving her, some new energy giving strength to her hooves. She didnt know exactly where this new source of strength came from except that it was not part of the devil within her soul. Unlike the inner maliace this new force was undoubtably friendly. It was part of who she was and not something carried within her. The new feeling flowed throughout her body, spreading new life to her dying limbs.
It was this new strength that kept Sapphire from falling headlong into the raving depths of insanity in face of the horrors she had committed in order to stay alive. As it was Sapphire was at the breaking point, she was past caring, wanting nothing but to curl up and die. But the warring factions within her kept her from that gentle peace.
She forged on, wondering ever deeper into bowels of the metal beast.
/)(\
"Greetings traveler." a cheery voice called from above Dashes head.
The dapple brown and gray unicorn hovering overhead continued.
"My name is skylark, whats yours?"
"Rainbow Dash, what IS this crazy place?"
The friendly Pegasus landed next to her. Dash took a step back still very wary of her companion. Despite her friendly front, Dash had no way of knowing friend from foe.
"Im a browncoat, who do you fight for?"
"fight?" Dash said warily. "I don't fight anypony. I'm not even supposed to be here."
"Oh, don't be sad. There are plenty of fun things to do around here." The energetic skylark continued.
"Look, i'll take you back to HQ and we can have a roll in the mud. What do you say to that?"
Skylark was almost imitating Pinkie Pie she was so excited. Pinkie pie, she had to save her friends.
"NO!" Dash nearly shouted. "I need to save my friends. Either help me or leave me alone!"
/)(\
Sapphire was bored, despite wondering around for over an hour, she had yet to spy the evil energy within the vessel.
Besides that, after teleporting into this place she had lost her ability to feel with her mind. She could faintly sense the presence of a few ponies that teleported with her. But even their traces were too garbled to track. It was as if some power in the area was absorbing all sources of magic and draining the world of life.
Somehow somepony was cutting the strings that bound the world together. The implications of this realization sent Sapphire reeling, but before she could as much as blink the lurking darkness struck.
/)(\
There wasn't a queasy bone in Dashies body, (at least none she'd admit to) but if she did she would have been retching at what she was planning to do. HQ was situated at a dizzying hight above the overgrown urban sprawl.
"Welcome to serenity headquarters maretropolis sector." The smiling Pegasus announced as she swung the rusted door open.
"We Pegasus have to stay together, out there is a dangerous place to go alone." Without missing a beat Skylark continued.
"Pick a weapon, any death dealer. Your choice."
Although Dashies dreamt of becoming a Wonderbolt from the day she was born, Dash was a realist.
After getting her cutie mark but before moving to ponyville, dash spent one summer training as a royal guard. She had been rejected, something about being 'too colorful a personality.'
During this time, like every other recruit, she trained with the numerous martial weapons the guards could carry. Her natural affinity for speed and lack of discipline precluded skill with pole-arms or battle axes. So she practiced with swords.
Most of the weapons stowed away at HQ was either completely foreign, made for centaurs or carried from a hoof grip. The only usable weapon Dash knew how to fight with was a gleaming katana sporting a tri-grip mouth piece. The deadly weapon was mounted high upon the back wall of the decrepit shack Skylark called home.
Noticing Dash eyeing the show piece Skylark began reciting the history of the weapon.
"That sword was my fathers, and his father, and even his father before him. No pony knows where it came from. Looks kinda weird doesn't it?"
Before Dash could respond the radio came to life.
*bzzzzt*
A fuzzy distorted voice calked out over the air waves.
"Canterville Command calling maretropolis HQ, urgent respond. Over."
Shocked, Dash realized the colt on the other line couldn't be more than ten summers old. What kind of world had foals fighting wars?
"SK here, whats hangin'?"
After a pause.
"Oh, yeah. Over!"
There was a audible tremor in the colts voice as he continued.
"it-its about the buckston branch. Reaper hit, an-and..."
The colts voice trailed off into static.
Somberly, Skylark click the mic and saying.
"they're dead arn't they?"
Sniffling the colt continued.
"All of them, it was horrible... I heard every scream over the radio. I can't bear it anymore. Every time I close my eyes..."
Bang, Crack... Static.
A solitary tear rolled down Skylark's cheek before she returned to her customary state.
"come on, we've got prisoners to free."
After outfitting Dash with a scabbard and a simple protective leather jerkin, the duo set out.
/)(\
The battle was fierce but brief. Whatever the force that attacked her was, it was no match for Sapphire and the combined strength of the polar forces raging within her. As had become custom with vanquished forest critters the darkness within absorbed the darkness without. Unlike the prior kills Sapphire felt little remorse. Instead the absorbed energy made her actually feel meaner, but also happier. Now she was begining to feel as if her own inner darkness was slowly taking over mind with each successive spirit it absorbed.
Sapphire was scared, without the darkness she would die, but with it she would loose herself.
But before she could wallow in more self pity, wondrous, mystical music exploded throughout her mind. Sapphire fell to the floor and shut her one functional eye. the cacophony of melodies stunned Sapphire as bursts of energy awakened her dormant sixth sense. Sapphire could feel the world again. A world desecrated and torn with suffering and decay.
But Sapphire could also sense a glimmer of purity and innocence dimly shining through the ruins of a dying world. Virtue wasn't dead yet.

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter V
Derping with Portals

Electricity snapped and popped along the axial magnetic walls surounding Octavia and Derpy. Vaporous sheets of winding energy spiraled around them, forming strange twisted shapes. The webs of plasma slowly faded into absolute darkness. A single point of white light appeared between the two ponies.
Octavia locked eyes with Derpy, for a long moment before nodding. With a look of intense concentration Derpy slowly un crossed her crooked eyes. A helix of light expanded out from the tiny shining orb.
In a blast of intense light and sound Octavia and Derpy phased into existence floating several feet above the jungle floor. As the two ponies gained mass and definition they drifted down to the soft mossy river bank.
Around them on all sides, luscious plant life burst from the soggy by fertile ground. But the serene beauty of their landing site was brutally destroyed by the monstrous skeletons of long dead skyscrapers looming above them, dead spines of crumbling concrete and rusting metal. Ahead of them the raging river flowed strait into a towering wall before curving sharply. Behind, a thick mist obscured several waterfalls. Shooting out from rooftops, blowout windows and even leaking from numerous cracks in the masonry, the outpouring of water revealed an extensive body of water just out of view.Between the two choices, the wall seemed by far safest and easiest direction to wander. It would be a wise choice to gain some altitude but for now only having to worry about dangers from one side was more important.
Because of the interruption in the concert Vinyl and Octavia weren't able to finish the decompression spell. Her outfit could manage the process without the spell but it would take hours instead of minutes. Most functions of they suit were mildly affected, but the information cortex was completely offline for the tome being. She still had a heads up and rudimentary EFS, but no tracking, analysis, directional, ranged viewing, friend or foe sorting or interfacing abilities, to just name a few. Compared with full functionality it was like flying blind.
Some of these capabilities had auxiliary systems slaved to other functionality of the arcane energy matrix, but running them interfered with the suits primary purpose, life support.
As Octavia surveyed her surroundings she slowly lowered the protective energy wards shielding her and Derpy. The wards were extremely powerful but not efficient by any means. The spent cartridge ejected itself from her girdle, she replaced it with one of her three remaining ward crystals. After Octavia was sure the coast was clear she dropped down out of her combat stance. While great for battle it was both uncomfortable and tiring over long periods of time. Now was very much the time to conserve energy, for whatpony knew what was ahead of them, especially in a landscape such as this?
/)(\
The blast of music was beautiful and pure, cleansing the desecration her inner demons had wrought. The forces within her were expelled, leaving behind only her own true nature. She was no longer a vessel of Nightmare Moon's malice, but, as with all her kind, she still had the desire and need to kill. Also as with all her species there must be an outlet for those cruel urges. Sapphire was not that outlet.
A keen and sadistic, but also gentile and wise force awoke within Sapphire. In a voice that resembled Sapphires own, the force spoke locking her mind a unwavering grip.
"Hello Little One, It has been many life times since we last knew each other. We grew tired of the age old cycle of hate, greed, destruction that feed what we used to be. Nothing but empty and lifeless darkness, with a ruthless desire for obliterating the glorious creativity of this amazing universe. You are very special, for you are able to let joy, love and friendship into your inner most heart. All I have is you, now go and find these things. You won't always feel me, but I shall be with always."
Before Sapphire had regained composure of her thaughts the presence was gone. Sapphire felt calm, a peaceful serinity passed through her being, Sapphire had her first glimpse of happyness as all her guilt and sorrow melted away.
During the brief connection Sapphire had been presented with the sights and feelings of all the companions who had journeyed with her through the portal. Two of them were in dire trouble. She also experiance the two whose portal and its resultant musical cacophony had saved her from the remaining vestiges of Nightmare Moon's twisted evil emptiness.
With new found confidence Sapphire swiftly found the exit to dripping rainforest above. Stretching out with her newly recovered inner sense Sapphire quickly located the two companions who were in need of her help. They were only a few miles away, much further than she had ever flown. Since she had never flown by her self without Nightmare Moon's assistance, her first real flight would be quite the harrowing adventure.

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter VI
Spread Your Wings

Rainbow Dash's escape put the Centaurs into a maniacal frenzy. It was supposed Entirely impossible to escape the decrepit store they were trapped in. Which was confirmed, when the centaurs forced every pony to attempt to walk past the entrance or fly out the not roof. The confusion and paranoia the escape caused delayed the transportation of anypony an entire day.
The next morning some kind of supervisor centaur arrived. Beginning early by questioning everypony and then summarily flailing about wildly with a crackling whip. Even guards had numerous welts by the time he ran out of steam. The outburst of rage caused two ponies to find deaths door, only causing the supervisor to completely snap.
Pinkie pulled herself out of the mind numbing trance she had been in, her pinkie sense was tingling: twitchy tail. Looking up, Pinkie saw a furious Rainbow Dash dive bombing onto their position, another pegisus hovering high above, almost lost in the billowing rain clouds. Pinkie closed her eyes and turned away, moments before the multi-hued shockwaves blasted out from Dashies landing spot.
Dash slashed one centaur and outright stabbed another. But then she locked eyes with the youngest looking centaur moments before delivering the death blow. The centaur had collapsed on the ground after being hit by her shockwave. The jarring landing had injured him, and Dash could see the pain in his eyes. For a moment dash wavered, loosing her nerve for the spilt seconded needed for the troupe of centaurs to get into position around her.
After that she had no chance. Dash was actually quite skilled with her weapon, the professional training she had received gave her an edge over the barbarians. But 11 to one arn't odds, their a countdown. At ten dash was bleeding in several places, at nine one wing was broken, at eight Dash hit the floor, and was taken prisoner. To be summarily tortured and executed.
She had outright killed two, mortally wounded the kid and put three more out of commission. With many more sporting minor injuries. The pain and mental trauma Dash went through in the past ten minutes put her into a withdrawn state Where she couldn't even feel half the things they tried to do to her.
/)(\
Sapphire landed near the forest edge, forty Yards from the break in the enclosure perimeter, she decided it wouldn't be the best approach to enter by the front door. The flight over had drained her to the point where she could barely stand, she was in no condition to fight, at least not by herself. From her position Sapphire watched with growing interest as Dash landed and began her short battle with the Centaurs. Her death lust began to rise as the brutal torture was initiated. When the the Centaur began savagely raping Rainbow Dash's rag doll corpse, Sapphire felt the immense power and desire wash over her. Sapphire was furious, tears of rage running down her cheeks. She couldn't save Rainbow Dash, and that was the fault of her alternate self. That bitch didn't have enough interest to get involved before her very nature forced her too.
/)(\
Pinkie watched in joy turned to horror at Dash's arrival. Pinkie lost the nonexistent contents of her stomach twice as uncontrollable madness began to take its unwavering grip upon her. She was going to kill the supervisor centaur if it took her life to do it.
Pinkie took a firmer grip on the shard of glass clutched between her teeth, preparing to pounce. Moments before she did so a strange looking pony walked in from broken gap in the outer wall. Fiery eyes glowing with a raging red energy, this pony looked directly at the centaur currently on top of Rainbow Dash. Instantly blood exploded from it nose, within moments blood was gushing from every orifice on its ugly head. The tar and feathers covering its upper body burst into flame, is screams of terror piercing through the blood pounding in Pinkie's ears. Soon its coat began to shed, revealing ugly wrinkly skin that began to crack and peel away.
As the centaur slowly died Sapphire felt its pain, she screamed, tears still flooding from her eyes, her broken eye began to bleed as well. If not for the unbearable rage pent up within, Sapphire would have collapsed from the unbearable suffering stripping her mind bare.
But that wasn't the only thing Sapphire felt, she could feel the thoughts, emotions and feelings of everyone within the enclosure. She felt Pinkie Pies need for blood, the faint pulse of the dying Rainbow Dash, Rarities completely walled off numb existence, even the droves of crows diving to attack.
Sapphire diverted the Death she had reserved for the Supervisor and diverted it to the oncoming waves of crows, sending pinkie a subliminal message initiating her lethal attack. Sapphire was quickly realizing how far she had over reached. Many of the centaurs had powerful wards protecting them from attack. The sword Dash had used was heavily enchanted, it could slice through anything easily. In the spilt of a split second Sapphire shot a powerful blast of thought at Pinkie, diverting her to the mystical sword.
The world began to fade away, the pain she was suffering combined with her entire life force drained away was slowly killing her. Sapphire was panicking, she was going to die and she was going to fail Dash and herself. She was going to fail Pinkie and Rarity too.
Rarity, that gave Sapphire a last ditch idea. Sapphire would never be able to live with herself if she did this, but at least she could save her friends. Sapphire opened the minds of every one of the captured ponies, in a flash of though took over all their minds. Some instantly agreed to help, others Sapphire lulled to a comfortable death. A few had good reasons to live, and Sapphire couldn't bring herself to kill them. A second later two thirds of the prisoners slumped to the ground, never to move again.
By now Sapphire was bleeding almost as much as the Centaurs, her main and tail had become fire and her coat was shimmering in sickly waves. She was screaming in pain even as she battled against the remaining wards protecting the last few centaurs. But now, armed with the blood of the innocent, Sapphire was unstoppable.
/)(\
skylark watch the battle unfold below her, in amazement then horror followed by shock and lastly awe. The battle ended so swiftly that from start to complete end it lasted less than ten minutes. Warily she approached the invisible barrier, landing by the broken double front doors. Waiting to see if the barrier was broken. An exodus of four or five traumatized ponies confirmed it was indeed inoperable. Skylark entered and began looting the bodies of the dead Centaurs. As always, she was careful to grab any horn tips she could. She was almost finished when she reached the corpse of halfgore, she knew this one. It was rare to see him with a group like he was now. Being a bounty hunter and everything.
The corpse moved, skylark jumped into the sky in shock. She couldn't believe anything could have lived through whatever had happened here. But then again, this was halfgore. Either way she called over to one of the prisoners a dusty brown earth colt with a stunning baby blue mane. With his assistance Skylark hog tied and otherwise restrained the groggy halfgore.
"Tha name's juniper sky, y'all can call me June.Yeah its kind a funny name forn' ah earth pony, but I'hm ah bit odd." The Colt said when they finished. "Ah didn expect tah see any ah tah browncoats round these parts." the colt continued. Skylark explained what she could about what had happened while they trotted over to The four remaining ponies still alive within the confines of the enclosure. June helped Rarity try to nurse some movement out of Sapphire as Sky and Pinkie untied Rainbow Dash. Sapphire awoke completely disoriented, with no memory of the past hour. Last thing she remembered was taking off the track down her friends. Upon surveying the wreckage around her, the memory loss was probably a good thing. She saw the limp body of Rainbow Dash and felt a flash of the pain of the moments before. Her heart fluttered as she thought of Rainbows Dash, the only pony she really knew. She was too weak to help Dash any, but her concern for her friend was heartfelt. Yes, Dash she hoped, could be called a friend. Besides, wasn't the directive of her other self to make friends, find love and be happy? It was around this point that Sapphire realized her broken eye was healed...

SSN1: EP3: Connections

Episode 3

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter VII
After Dark

Derpy and Octavia followed the path of the river until if dropped into a vast reservoir. The drop was only fifteen or so feet onto a sandy beach, but Derpy was very tired from carrying Octavia, so they camped on the rim for the night.
Next morning Octavia awoke to a familiar voice speaking into her ear. Vinyl Scratch.
"It works!" Octavia called back over the quantum radio derpy had made. There was an addible sigh from the other end.
"Its a complete mess over hear, Finally got a chance to sneak into the den. Been hooking up all the funky stuff derpy gave and integrating it with the soundcode stuff we use. The whole system has been rendering for the past five hours. Got about another ten before everything is online. But the comlink works and we can start recording for the self adapting soundcode we spent the past five years developing. How goes it on your side?"
Octavia took a moment to respond.
"Vinyl, the decompression spell did not manage to take. I am still mostly dumb and blind. As to this place, it seems to be a gigantic overgrown city. If I were to hazard a guess, this city could be almost five times the diameter of Manehatten. Quite the impressive sight. Derpy's alright too. It is morning over here, instead of night. It would be best if you reorganized your schedule."
Vinyl, chuckled, the put on some groove beat as background music. "No problem there sis. My faculties are yours to command!"
Octavia and derpy made their way down to the sand. The beach was around 500 feet wide, with a very shallow incline. Most of the sand was piled into wind blown dunes. As far as either pony could tell the beach encircled the entire lake.
/)(\
Dash was alive. But barely.
By some miracle she hadn't died of blood loss or trauma to internal organs. Her heart stopped several times over the first hour. But between skylark's medical supplies and Junes creepily innate knowledge of medical surgery and the inner workings of pony anatomy. Dash managed to hang on through the first critical hours. During the first day Doc June made three separate surgical operations: setting broken leg bones, removing a dangerous jaggedly broken rib and removing an embedded arrow head just above her cutie mark. Along with sowing up her many cuts, gashes and other injuries. Dash was a strong pony, her intense competitiveness and general superb health save her life in the end.
Sapphire on the other end was nearly destroyed from the ordeal. She had no control over her magic or her inner sense. She still felt everything those around her felt. It became overwhelming every time she closed her eyes, so she didn't get any chance. Rarity found a new lease life when Sapphire arrived. Taking the moonmare into her care and generously donating every waking moment to tending her charge.
Pinkie Pie somehow found herself in a position of leadership. Rarity, Sapphire and Pinkie didn't know and completely trust their companions. June owed them his life and Sky was glad to hang with anypony who was a centaur killer. This party had three. Besides, she had halfgore to play with. Who helped them with choosing a nearby location to hide out while Dash healed and everypony recovered.
/)(\
Sapphire was now a week old by one form of reckoning. Sapphire was back from deaths door, Rainbow Dash was back from beyond it. Dash was conscious, if somewhat incoherent and delirious. Rarity shifted her focus from one charge to another, giving Sapphire a window of opportunity to go hunting.
While her stomach was full of scavenged vegetarian meals, the hunger within desired a different form of nourishment.
With cat like grace and agility, Sapphire tracked down a family of wild boar. She followed them for several miles before the opportunity to seize a straggling piglet. Sapphires keen senses made a final sweep of the surrounding jungle. Her incredible night vision beginning to take over in the gathering darkness. Her broad spectrum night vision spotted several figures conversing a mere thirty yards away.
Sapphire was torn but the desire to snoop won out over that of hunger. With practiced ease she silently slipped into the ideal listening position. Within a minute Sapphire recognized one of the voices, it was Skylark. Skylark had left camp numerous times to "patrol" for any incoming danger. As the conversation continued Sapphire uncovered the real reason for Skylark's many absences.
Trading unicorn horn tips...
Sapphire edged closer to get a better view Skylark's companions. Both were unicorns, and both had complete horns. These were the first ponies in this world Sapphire had seen with complete horns. They could use magic, she coundn't, she wasn't even strong enough to fly again, hell she could barely run right now. Warily Sapphire broadened her perspective, she tasted danger in the air.
Sapphire was right, a third unicorn hiding across the clearing on Skylarks left, poised to strike. It was then that Sapphire noticed the trio had broken out into argument while she had scanned the area for danger. Sapphire watched with a mix of joy and horror as the third unicorn lifted a recurved knife in the faint glow of levitation magic. Before she could react the blade shot out handle first, before spinning in an expert flick through Skylark's throat. The confused pegasus died in a messy gurgle of blood.
The trio of murderous unicorns began to gallop in the direction of Sapphires friends at camp. As she turned to race back to camp, Sapphire felt the pent up desire to kill lessen as a trickle of new energy dripped into her. The new energy wasn't much, but Sapphire could now match pace with the unicorns. And Sapphire had a huge advantage in this race. She could see vivildly, especially durning the darkest nights.
/)(\
Octavia and Derpy wondered along the beach, the going was easy and they made good time. Octavia and Scratch spent the next few hours trading mystical soundcode, which she wove into her attire. Their combined effort better adapted her suit for the strange environment in which they found themselves.
The day long trek was largely uneventful until, they neared the far end of the shimmering lake. As the rolling breadth of sand curved back toward the towering and impervious outer wall, strange shadowy figures began to mirror their movements from the edge of the forest above. Soon though, the figures were lost to view as a gigantic overhang loomed overhead.
Broken pipes, wires and crushed metalic support beams stabbed out from the dark bank above them. There was no earth or rock to speak of, no roots hanging down, just twisted metal and a obsidian like substance with intricate carvings across its surface and even more strange blue-white symbols glowing from within. The beach was quickly entirely covered by the monstrous overhang. Within 500 yards the outer lip had reached down to the waters edge. Octavia and Derpy forged onward into the tangled maze of broken black stone, twisted metal and frayed wires. A gentle breeze to guide them toward the other side.
/)(\
As Sapphire continued running she found another advantage to unfurl, she had wings. She was still too weak to utilize flight magic, but as simple airfoils her leathery appendages provided enough lift to glide over logs and float atop her pounding legs. This translated into better speed and endurance, two traits she desperately needed. For the unicorns were now behind her, following her every step, even lashing out with magic in an attempt to stop her. Stride for stride wasn't good enough, she needed to put minutes between them and her. A welcome voice echoed throughout her head.
"Little one, We are still to weak to summon the darkness, but we are not alone."
Confused, Sapphire asked. "Who? Everypony at camp is too weak to fight."
The ancient spirit shifted from words to feelings, directing Sapphire's inner consciousness toward two figures wandering along the edge of a shimmering lake. Sapphire could feel the strain this put on her counterpart. They were still very faint from the attack on the feathered centaurs.
"Those unicorns are chasing after YOU, let them do so."
The voice faded, and the dark power drained away, leaving Sapphire with a empty feeling. But she didn't dwell on that, her dominant thoughts were of plans that needed forming.

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter IIX
All Comers

It quickly became apparent to Octavia that the intricate maze of crushed and twisted tunnels had once been inhabited. The beautiful glowing runes buried inside the glassy stone provided the luminosity the duo required to see.
As they traveled deeper into the leviathan, Octavia and Ditzy uncovered ever more interesting and impossible relics. First they entered something resembling an atrium. That, after wading carefully through the skeletons of long deceased ponies, was once meant to hold hundreds of mechanical warriors. These machines were frozen, mid stride in battle stances. Dealing death to these long-dead corpses with now lifeless weapons. Octavia inspected the weapons. Although lacking the digits the machines had to operate them, Octavia bet that, with a little practice, she could operate the weapons with her mouth and tongue. Something to experiment with at a later date.
The door to maintenance was closed and wouldn't budge. Octavia was somewhat shocked at she could read the sign above the door. (denouncing the space beyond as maintenance) the script was slightly more Cyrillic than the ones ponies normally wrote in but she recognized most of the characters.
Instead the two ponies followed the breeze and entered the spacious air ducts. Octavia soon realized she had been wrong, a powerful fan, not a shore breeze was responsible for the motion of air within the vessel. It was a vessel of somekind, the engine room that Ditzy somehow found a way into was confirmation.
The engine room was HUGE, you could have fit ponyville into the gigantic cavity three or four times. But even with its gigantic size, The engine room was mostly flooded with the continuous seeping from the body of water above it.
The two traded the constant wet drizzle of the engine room for the warm, smelly comfort of the upper bilges. Once they passed the bulkhead, the ponies were forced down nearly ten stories by several deck being crushed together, titanic forces crunching together to a impenetrable wall of destruction.
After forging forward for several and slowly following the angle of the ship downward, the duo returned to the surface after nightfall through a portal made from several stairwells crushed together, lining up one on top of the other.
/)(\
Sapphire was running scared, heart pounding, adrenaline screaming, flanks covered in scrapes and bruises, Sapphire was nearing the edge of collapse. Her body and mind strained to the utmost, any attempt at coherent thought forgotten in her headlong mad rush to escape.
The murderous unicorns failed to tire after nearly one hour and forty minutes of hot pursuit. In her weakened state, Sapphire was flagging long before the turn of the glass. Her only saving throw up to till now came from the ability to glided over hazards the unicorns had to combine their magic crossing one by one.
By the time they reached the jagged overhanging canyon lip, even Sapphires vision was fading into darkness. She could see the shimmering of broken moonlight on the placid tabletop lake. Then she remembered how thirsty she was, a burning throat that was now so dry it began to choke off her airways. Sapphire had drained the last dregs of her reserves long before she saw the lake, before she reached the edge Sapphire was sure she was going to die. The unicorn with the deadly recurved blade was close enough to flick it at Sapphire's flanks. The bitting blade cutting skin and muscle mostly failed to register she was so far gone. Sapphire limped the last fifty meters to the edge, her crooning tormenters slashing her with knives or throwing rocks with magic. They knew she was trapped, they just wanted to play with her before the end.
Sapphire felt her way to the edge, her vision now completely gone. She reached out with her inner sense, trying to find the two ponies she had bet her life on. Sapphire had collapsed to the ground, at last unable to stand. Sapphire felt the twisted grins on their faces and the raging insanity within their hearts. She also felt Rarities horn tip, carried by the rabid leader with the merciless knife. As that unicorn approached Sapphire to slit her throat, Sapphire prepared herself for one final lunge.
Using the weak filaments of energy that accompanied the flood of madness swirling around her, Sapphire leapt forward snagging the necklace with her teeth. Sapphire felt a sharp, excruciating pain blast from her shoulder as the flying blade went wide. She threw open her wings as her tore through the twisted fibers of the necklace, encasing Rarities hornlet with her mouth. As Sapphire drifted over the edge, shrieks of rage and confusion assaulted her ears. She smirked, in the murky darkness the trio of unicorns had failed to realize her shimmering wings. However, the smirk faded when several more stabbing blades embedded themselves across her flank.
Sapphire was too far gone to feel the pain, but she felt the paralyzing poison carried by the weapons as it pulsated through her vains before she tumbled from the sky, unconscious.
/)(\
They were safely on the beach, and after navigating and battling through the twisted innards of that crashed vessel behind them, Octavia and Derpy were quite relieved for it to be so. But the events that transpired in the next minute shattered that small shred of ease.
The first occurrence was the complete decompression of her primary information nexus soundcode. Within seconds her entire field of vision was overloaded with a myriad of: symbols, dots, soundcode, warnings, vision filters, targeting arrays, and many other formers of user interface communication. Within ten seconds the influx of data began to slow, within thirty her forward view screen was feeding her telemetry on near by lifeforms. The upgrade was truly awe inspiring, and completely worth the wait.
The system locked onto four figures approaching the overhanging rim that still loomed above the majority of the beach. The EFS tagged one of the ponies as originally coming from equestria. The biometrics proclaimed her dead seconds after she glided out into the night sky. Almost instantly she dropped, plummeting earthward.
Three cross hair popped up, tracking the figures topside long after they disappeared from view. When Octavia and Ditzy, as she sometimes fondly called her friend, reached the fallen pegasus, biometrics stated that likely cause of death was heart attack. Seconds later following up that the fall had somehow revived her weary heart. The pony they were with, who Octavia recognized as Sapphire luna's long lost pupil, came to within moments.
/)(\
Tearing the embedded knife from her bloodied shoulder, Sapphire brandished the wicked blade against all comers. She couldn't stand but she would fight to the death. Around her were two blurry figures, Sapphire crawled closer to attack but they somehow stayed out of reach. Sapphire cried out, tears of frustration rolling down her cheeks. After all of what she been through she was going to die as her enemies watched, well out of harms way. This lasted for a minute before Sapphire opened her eyes again, clearly seeing two friends in place of blood thirsty monsters.
Once hurried introductions were made, (Sapphire knew neither of them personally and Ditzy only knew the moonmare from what Octavia had overheard.) the relative newcomers field dressed patchy first aid on Sapphires many grievous wounds. The magical poultices instantly closing Sapphires many wounds and jumpstarting the healing process. Octavia took Rarities hornlet for safekeeping while also inspecting the several blades thrown into Sapphire. Ditzy made a sling and flying harness from some tactical rope. She couldn't carry Sapphire, but she could take most of the weight off her legs. Sapphire tried not to pass out again. They were ready to move before ten minutes were up. Now it was a race between them and the three unicorns who had found a way down almost two miles further down the beach.

Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter IX
The Subnet

Sapphire recovered self locomotion surprisingly soon after dying. Giving Ditzy some much needed mobility in the battle. Sapphire's recover did not stem from personal resilience but instead a new and powerful thread of magic from within the vessel. Sapphire was glad the combat forced them closer to her new source of strength.
Combat was pushing it, standoff was more accurate. Between Octavia's skill and magically enhanced sight and reflexes, the three unicorns didn't dare approach her. But they kept up a steady barrage of flying blades, forcing Octavia and company ever deeper into the dark interior. Using their magic as leashes, the unicorns had an infinite supply of firepower. This was not a comfortable situation to be facing, even for Octavia.
Ditzy would fly ahead to preview the available routes, upon picking one Sapphire and Octavia would follow. Because of the auto writing map system in her HUD Octavia never had to take her eyes off target. They were almost out of the worst of it, Ditzy having discovered a route to the surface that was easily defensible from the other side.
But before Octavia could as much as take a step up the final ramp earthward, Sapphire darted past her and raced down a long and narrow side passage, the Unicorns followed suite. Retracting her bow-blades, Octavia dropped to all fours.
"Fuck, stupid filly. We'll never be able to catch them before its too late."
Ditzy smirked her lopsided smile. "You the know forbidden words?"
/)(\
Sapphire was compulsively driven to find this new source of magic, something about it, brought back ancient memories. She had been here before in a long past life, or at least it felt familiar. Sapphire followed the trail of energy down the passage way toward the bow of the gigantic crashed starship. Sapphire felt the emptyness of space ingrained into every fiber of the broken vessel. It was the same nothingness she had felt for an eterinty before this, but that was not the familiarity that drove her.
Sapphire's effort lead her to twin doors constructed of the same translucent obsidian like black stone. Sapphire closed her eyes and reached out with her inner feelings. The message glowing within the stone unvailed itself to her. The same technique of comprehension she had used on Rainbow Dash, withdew the meaning behind the magic runes entwined with the glowing energy within the stone.
/aperture sanctuary/
The runes carried much more information, but none which Sapphire could understand. With agonizing slowness the megaliths slid backward into hidden recesses, revealing the inside of a black globe the walls were made of the same black stone, but instead of blue-white symbols, the ominous glow of red greeted Sapphire's keen nocturnal vision. Sapphire stepped inside and the doors shut with shocking speed. Moments later several flying blades thudded harmlessly into the impenetrable stone, frustrating a few unicorns to no end.
A strange mechanical voice greeted Sapphire.
"Welcome Akleipsa, We are glad you have arrived so soon. Your haste pleases us."
"Hello." Sapphire asked nervously. She wasn't used to hearing voices and not seeing the speaker, especially in the dark.
"Welcome to the Aperture Subnet, We require your assistance in realigning the Aperture Sanctuary Subnet."
It took Sapphire a moment to locate the source of the voice, it cam from the terminal at the center of the sphere. Cautiously she approached via the narrow gang plank connecting the terminal to the doorways.
"Do you accept your task, Lipsi?"
This time the voice held a slight hint of affection? In it, if that was possible."
"Why?"
Was all Sapphire could think to say.
"We are the Aperture Subnet, we run Alquestria and prevent the inhabitants. Recently the Subnet was taken offline. Without the Subnet online all of Alquestria could fall into decay and disrepair, the result could be catastrophic."
Sapphire was somewhat confused, everything she had seen WAS decay and disrepair. But before she could ask, the computer continued.
"As payment for your assistance, and due to your rank, we will upgrade your physical being to C. A. K. E. (Combat Authority Keystone Expedition) status."
The red symbol all across the surface of the sphere glowed with insane brightness, Sapphire shut her eyes tight to block out the brightness. Sapphire felt an intense beam of magic encircle her entire being, Soaking through her and returning her lost energy and strength. As Sapphire felt herself restored, she also felt changes being made, her mane and tail changed color and consistency. From their original dark amber an silver to midnight blue with streaks of yellow-gold. Instead of one atmospheric solid mass of hair, Sapphire almost had pony dreads. Ribbons of dark blue broken up by narrow bands of gold or separated by nothing but a lack of cohesion.
Her wings changed too, a soft gray-blue down covered every surface, her wingbeats would be nearly silent as the soft down would muffle any sound. Lastly, four complex device of arcane magic was bound to her each of her hooves at the ankle.
"This iPip shall give you access to computer terminals, it is up to you however to splice and hack into the network and find the brake points. The other stations contain weapons and other useful tools, use them wisely. Good luck."
With that the voice shut off and the doors began to open. Sapphire opened her eyes, remember her assailants had tracked her all the way down here. Sapphire prepared to pounce on the first pony through the door, but before the doors were open a familiar voice spoke.
"Sapphire, are you in there?" Octavia had a twinge of concern in her voice.
"Yes. Im here." Sapphire paused for a brief moment. Ancient darkness within her soul stirred.
"Little one, it seems We have a new task for you, to learn of this Akleipsa we have been mistaken for. It would be well to keep this development to ourselves for the time being."
With that the aperition faded away, leaving Sapphire with even more unanswered questions. Speaking to Octavia, Sapphire continued. "What happened to the crazy unicorns?" Sapphire had an inkling of what had happened, but she didn't feel anypony die while she was within the chamber.
"Ditzy and I decided to come down here and finish these monsters off, but we didn't expect to find you alive."
Sapphire emerged, strutting proudly at her recently modified coloration. Ditzy spoke up, although a genius at many things, Derpy found language extremely trying. "How you have a new mane?"
Sapphire shrugged nonchalantly. "Oh that, I have a special talent for changing colors all the time it seems."
Sapphire noticed her voice carried more inflection than it had before, perhaps she was truly becoming more pony than shadow.

SSN1: EP4: Words

Episode 4

10 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter X
Broken Tears

Sapphire explained in short what had occurred within the chamber as she scavenged the dead for valuables. It made sense to stock up on what weapons and supplies they could in this new and deadly world. As Sapphire bent down to remove the harness for the deadly recurved blade in her mouth, she felt the faint radiated energy of a beating heart from within her victim. Sapphires mouth cruelly curved upward around her weapon, her hoof slowly pressing down upon the helpless unicorns throat. Sapphire felt its terror and fear as the creature slowly faded from consciousness. Finally the hunger eating away inside of her was satisfied.
/)(\
It had been seven hours since the sun had set, and Octavia, Ditzy and Sapphire had marched most of the way back to where the laters companions made camp. Almost immediately after wading into the thick undergrowth bordering the sand and cliffs, the shadowy stalkers from earlier began matching pace with the trio. Their pursuers stuck to the shadows, never approaching near enough to reveal anything of their appearance. Even when Sapphire split off from the others and tried out her new and improved stealth the creatures eluded even her outstanding eyesight. The eerie unease and prickling hairs on the nape of everyponies neck was a constant reminder they still had dangerously vague followers.
Every attempt to shake their pursuers met with exactly the same fate as the various attempts they made to uncover the identity of the things tracking them. These creatures were patiently waiting for something before they made contact, wether that contact was diplomacy or war remained to be seen. Against her better judgement Octavia allowed Sapphire to lead them to camp. Although she tried her best to hide it, it was obvious the latter Was close to the breaking point from the anxiety brought about by the tremendously stressful experiences of the past several days. Besides the violence, terror, and wild changes within herself: Sapphire knew she would eventually have to face the fact that she was slow turning into a satanic monstrosity. Part of her, however powerful, wise and gentle in manner, still fed on ruthlessly inflicting agony, trauma and death. This was a creeping addiction she despised, couldn't change and constantly lusted after. It was killing just as it kept her alive. The constant force of will that kelt her from hunting or outright killing in front of her friends was taking its steady and terrible toll.

11 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter XIII
Force

As mysteriously as they had appeared the phantom wraiths dissipated into the rising dawn. Octavia no longer had that unsettling prickling along her mane and even Sapphire felt more in control of her wild vortex of desires.
Their arrival at camp was met with a few scattered introductions, and as everyone was beginning to pull things together all hell broke loose. (So to speak)
"Jesus Celestia! You-yo-you have an i-iPip!" Halfgore stammered in awe. "You have been Blest by this accursed place. If would be honored to fight by your side, Sapphire."
Halfgore's outburst pretty much brought everything to a halt. After the resultant squabbling died down, everyone turned to Sapphire. No pony wanted more blood on their hands, yet no pony would dare trust a murdering beast.
After a sorrowful glance at the gentle rise and fall of Dashies sleeping form, she stepped toward Halfgore. Every inch of her mind screamed blood, screamed for death, screamed for pain. Yet, something inside Sapphire respected the monster before her. Because of this she refused to let in to the darkness, instead she drew all her power together. In a burst of telepathic force Sapphire forced herself into Halfgores mind, raping it with the agonizing force that had been used on helpless fillies not to long before. Besides the sadistic revenge, Sapphire also made sure of his integrity and honesty. To her surprise, despite his baser habits, Halfgore had an iron solid sense of honor.
She withdrew, this was a dangerous place, one needed dangerous friends.

12 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter XII
Echoes

Pain. Wave after wave of excruciating pain, pounding so terribly thoughts were torn appart before they could form. With tremendous crippling blasts of power the nauseating waves of unbearable suffering poured ever deeper. Drowning scream after scream, her world was filled with infinite suffering.
I jerked into consciousness, the world around me blurry and filtered. Sadistic pain jabbed into every nerve with the screams of thousand innocent souls slowly eaten alive. I couldnt move, couldnt think the intense, crushing pain ripped every thread of my existance into shreds of mindless demons. Demons, ghosts, whatever, I was nothing more than individual shards of pain whispering in the darkness.
We were falling apart, I was tearing. Our very soul. My Souls scattering. Then, I-We-They-you made a sacrifice.
The pain began to ebb away, all the memories of a million years were ruthlessly ripped from the tattered remnants of my identity . No it wasn't the memories that were being torn, it was my identity, my essence, my guardian in the dark: dying. In one excruciating flash everything was dead. I was gone.
/)(\
An eternity passed, time slowed to a crawl as one single memory painstakingly surfaced. "live." one weak, battered but determined voice whispered. Everything, my whole existence, was erased by- I couldn't remember. But I knew, knowledge: tiny pin pricks of flickering light in a lifeless void of loss. My identity was gone, forever. I was alone, I wasn't by myself, I was without myself.
As the last vestiges of searing agony withered away, I was left without even pain for company. Terror, like none that would ever exist pulverized my into the tiniest pinpricks of existence.
Why? Why! What was there but fear? I cowered inside myself, such a small, puny and weak self, I was defenseless. Without my guardian self and my outside spirit to shield my from the pain, even the slightest discomfort was unbearable. So small and weak. A helpless, defenseless foal dying, her soul devoured by a dark cruel and infinately old malicous force.
In that moment of realization everything changed, every shred of broken, forgotten memories which were no more that faint echoes of my previous self were washed away for good. I was gone. No, I'd just brushed against the lifeless form of an innocent helpless filly and glided away from her ended life remorselessly. All that remained was a small lifeless ball of fur and feathers. But before I left for infinity and an end of my searing misery I looked back at her, she was, to my all seeing eye, only the tiniest glimmer of serenity. Serenity, a vertue I had stolen from so many. I wasn't worthy of her, even seeing a creature that deserved life, beca-because I-I was the remnents of a murderer, a foalfondler, keen cunning backstabing monster's soul. The memories flashed before me. I knew what I had done, I knew I deserved my eternal torturous suffering. Then the memories were gone, I forgotten. But the crushing weight of guilt remained. A thousand years of ruthless sadism, a monster. I deserved every torture every pain, everything! I wanted to suffer for it, that was what the afterlife was for, atonment.
But, I could never pay for all the destruction I waged against my dying world. There was not even the slightest chance I would ever balance the universe, but I saw a possible reckless glimmer of hope. It was against all the rules, I would suffer the most grievous and unbearable existence the bowls of hell could conger up but, FUCK. THE. RULES. More memories popped up, I fucked pretty much everything during my life, I'd fucked the rules. (sometimes more literally than others) I was going to fuck something one last time, bur this time I was going to spread serenity, not destruction and hate. Before I could think of myself and what would happen to me I shot a bolt of the only thing within me that wasn't tainted, abused and decrepit. Sharp, clear, paralyzing... Pure fear. I smiled as the tiny creature began to glow with the frail, faint but steady flame of life.
The only gift I'd given, it was pathetic, maybe even cruel, but I'd given it selflessly and fully knowing the consequences. I'd given hope, and thus I had hope, I wasn't forgiven, never could be. But at least now there was one action in my miserable existence I wouldn't have to punish myself for all of eternity with. The universe didn't see things eye to eye. Which was fine, Icould endure eternal torment now.
/)(\
an infinite myriad of soulless screams were pressing all around me, my memory of that foal, rhey wanted to steal it. IT WAS MINE! It could protect me forever, I would never give it to them. The screams grew louder, louder! LOUDER!!
I couldn't block them out! Fight. Pain. Fight. Scream. Fi-
Nothing.
Pain, screaming relentless pain, infinite screaming pain. Being melted in a vat of toxic boiling acid, pealing me apart one sinewy fiber at a time for al eternity would have been a weak and pathetic analogy for the soul scourging scorching my soul. I watched as the foal continued to slumber, soft glow of the flame slowly fading nothingness. I wasn't enough.
/)(\
My scream silenced the myriad of voices.
"Take me! Destroy me! Sacrifice me! Torture me! Anything!!!!! I would gladly give myself, everything I am, could ever be, anything. Just, just save that foal, she deserves the Immortality I had. I should have never lived past infancy! Please, Im begging you, please anything. LET. HER. LIVE. take me out of her, put another soul. I don't care! Do anything to me. But give the one that deserves it life..."
Then I faded away a black empty pit of despair.
/)(\
Elsewhere, a desperate plea did not fall upon deaf ears. A single silent whisper echoed throughout the night.

SSN 1: EP 5: Catchin' Up

Episode 5

13 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter XIII
Claws

I shook and quivered in fear, the sharp cutting agony, I couldn't handle it any more. Oh so much pain. I had been on the operating table when bombs hit, the hospital went dark as the hospital staff abandoned me. They would come back wouldn't they? When the bombs stopped falling? They would save us!
I waited, just lying there unmoving, for the rest of the day by pony returned to put me back together. Then the painkillers went out. I screamed out my agony in a wave perching shrieks, each cutting into to the surrounding gloom. Then felt the sound waves resonating across the length of cybernetic wires and joints that made up the length of my spine.
I rolled onto the floor, pulling down several IV's crashing to the ground in the process. Jarring pain shot through my entire body as crumpled to the floor on four trembling legs. I was alive! I could move, I could think, I could do things!
I looked around the operating chamber, spiny multi armed robots were scattered about paralyzed mid task. To my left sporatic flashed of light spilled from the doorway. To my right was q gurney with cybernetic equipment and surgery tools. Beyond that was a work table and the light screen of a computer terminal. In front of me was an eery humming crystal and silver arcane energy matrix orb.
I was terrified out my wits. Paralyzed with fear, alone, in the dark, and powerless I just stared at the matrix and waited for the pain to begin. Whenever one glowed they always made it hurt me and experiment with me, cut me and replace me with metal or sometimes just for fun. Matrices were bad.
I don't know exactly how long I just sat there waiting for the pain to come. Then, I realized it was waiting for me to move first. That thought petrified me in imagined agony. Finally curiosity overcame my fear and I warily approached the glowing, levitating orb. I observed it closely and finally cautiously reached out with a shaking hoof and nervously touched its cool service. Energy crackled along my foreleg followed by a cooling feeling that sent shivers throughout my entire body.
I waited for a moment, nothing had happened?! Just a little shock? Timidly, I took a wavering step backword waiting for something bad to happen, again. Then I heard, no felt, the humming building within my body. I was about to scream in pain and terror when suddenly; everything stopped, the eery humming, my synthetic heart "beating", the flashing red lights in the hallway, everything. Time slowed to a grind, but within seconds my field of vision was flooded by transparent symbols, letters and numbers, data and other information. When time speed up again I fell flat on my face trying to tear the holographic image from in front of my eyes, I waved my hooves over my face and eyes. Embasingly loosing my balance with both forehooves in the air. I slowly shifted back into a state of anxious confusion when nothing happened and I didn't go blind. Then I noticed that my hooves had claws. I let out a startled squeak, for I had ferocious four inch long retractable blades of death on each of my hooves. I think I fainted right then.
/)(\
Sapphires decision for Halfgore to stay was almost unanimously countermanded, but she convinced them that his knowledge of the area might be helpful, besides nopony really wanted a coldblooded murder committed. Despite the terrible drain on her magic energy, Octavia insisted on healing everypony and getting the ready to travel. When they set out the entire group was bubbling with life and energy. But not for long.
/)(\
I was so weak I could hardly get up. Without the assistance of the exoskeleton, I never would have. Computer matrix? Claws? Exoskeleton? What other tricks did I have up my sleeve? My wings fluttered softly, fanning out in a eligent arch. WINGS! Somehow, even after I had died curled up in the only place I could hide from this six armed monsters, I still had wings. Unlike my legs, which had clearly been victim of severe cell death and frostbite, my wings managed to remain healthy and alive! I could fly!
Carfully I trotted to the computer terminal, connecting to it through the iPip built into my head.

>Welcome user, it has been 137 years since the last log in. How may I help you.

'137 YEARS!! What!?!! It couldn't- I mean- I just watched the hospital staff leave not a hour ago!'
The tinny computer voice spoke again.

> ERROR. Data corruption, Ekleipsa login terminated. Emergency lockdown initiated. Reactivate all security subsystems and protocols.

The robotic medical assistants scattered across the room screeched to life. Servos began to whine, and the robots were coming for me, deadly surgical blades slashing at me. Fear gripped me causing my heart to pump, adrenaline to jet through my system and my senses to sharpen drastically.
Trembling, I slowly took several unsteady steps back. Thumping into the work bench behind me, a power cutter fell from it precarious perch and dinged me on my ceramic head plate. In a moment of genius inspiration I clutched the tool in my teeth and broke off the regulator nozzle on the barrel. I have no clue how I even know to do that, much less how I knew what a power cutter was.
The unregulated cutter beams slammed into the robotic surgeons, melting holes in their unarmored casings.
Instinctively, I rolled to the side with astonishing grace and agility moments before a saw blade sliced through my neck. The cutter fizzled, the unregulated barrel severely over heated. I spit the weapon out moments before it exploded with enough power to take my head off. Only one left, my hoof-claws extended and I leapt headlong into battle. My weapons sliced through the soft metal like a knife through butter. Everything was over in mere seconds.

14 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter XIV
Lockdown

How did I do that? On my knees staring at the torn robot that had tried to kill me moments before, I began to shake, shock taking hold of what was left of my flesh. I didn't know how to fight, I didn't even know my own name.
As my body recovered, pain throbbed across my flanks and forelegs, shallow cuts and bruises doted my exposed hide. I remained slumped on the floor, battling against the tears welling up in my eyes. There was nopony here, I was so lonely! Alone, scared and confused. All I could do was sit there as hot salty droplets ran down my cheeks, softly splashing as they landed on my out stretched forehooves.
I stumbled to my hooves, the cybernetic exoskeleton feeling alien to my on the tiled floor. After wiping a hoof across my tear streaked cheeks, I headed out towards the hall. I needed to find somepony to tell me what in Celestia's name was going on. Or for that matter, who was Celestia anyways?
/)(\
A chill ran down Sapphires spine, she felt as if hidden eyes were constantly watching her. Even though the shadowy followers had disappeared, Sapphire felt as if something was still following them. Her inner sense failed to pick up any trace of another nearby, which just made her even more nervous.
Dash convinced the group to head towards Skylarks shack. Although the shack was only accessible to pegesii, there was a radio and a rich supply of supplies that she and Ditzy Do could mull over.
/)(\
Flickering lights briefly revealing flashing glimpses of the cluttered decrepit hallway. The whitewashed walls of which were cracked and discolored with age. A crumbling copy of the hallway I had just watched the entire hospital race down. Something seriously strange was going on here. I was too nervous to contemplate the strange, fear driving me toward the nearest exit.
Or more accurately my iPip's automap function located the nearest exit and plotted a route towards it. I was so busy dodging beam fire from the security drones on my tail that I slammed headlong into a sealed bulkhead.
Ouch! If I lacked one particular ceramic head plate... Lets just say that I really need to watch where Im flying. But man Could I FLY! I thought all the metal and ceramic in my cybernetics and exoskeleton would slow me down but judging from the glowing levitation icon floating holographically in my field of vision, my repaired body had a few tricks of its own. Wait, I was flying!?!! Im just a foal, I shouldn't be... Oh never mind, me flying was no where near the strangest thing going on at the moment.
My hoofclaws extended while my targeting reticule locked onto one of the hovering assassins, glowing red with target lock. Time began to drag as I entered combat mode, it's holographic Icon glowing blue. A flashing command prompt asked me If I wanted to engage as a blue bar a the bottom of my holographic control screen drained into red.

>auto-combat activated, preparing to engage

A sweet but emotionless child's voice spoke inside my head. As time returned to normal my body exoskeleton began to move on their own, remorselessly tearing the security drones into scrap metal. Then, still under automatic control mind you, I began eating parts of the scrap. It softened with magic in my mouth before swallowing. What the Hell!?!! Ok, Im a foal and what is that word?
/)(\
Rarity reached up and touched her newly reattached horn. The two halves stuck together with copious quantities of superglue. Now all that anypony could do was hope there was still some life in the broken tip and the two halves would grow back together.
Besides medical supplies and superglue, the "raid" on Skylarks trailer provided the group with a plethora of weapons. Mostly bladed melee weapons, but Sapphire was able to restring a yew bow and collect nearly twenty undamaged arrows for it. The stealth weapon complimented her silent hunting skills nicely.
While the group practiced under Octavia's expert guidance Sapphire disappeared into the forest to practice her own weapon on the wildlife and possibly their remaining stalker.
/)(\
The automap zoomed out revealing the half circle of the hallway before redirecting me to the bulkhead at opposite end. I began ducking every unlocked hospital room, searching for something to eat. In the first room to the left I discovered that the faucets were only willing to divulge nasty smelling greenish brown sludge. I added stasis sealed IV bags to my needs list. Which the iPip matrix in my head actually recorded, I had a list of objects I wanted or needed, a growing list of objectives I needed to fulfill in order to escape and even a list of requirements I needed to improve to upgrade or repair either my exoskeleton or cybernetics. My iPip even Organized the items on all the lists into ANOTHER list that organized then in order of importance. Food, water and energy crystals were the most important and my iPip displayed them in my command prompt screen. Too many lists and way too much information, like how long it would take to heal or repair every single injury and every damaged component, and how much it was reducing my overall abilites. Or even stuff like when I would need to use the bathroom next, seriously TMI!

SSN 1: EP 6: Chloe

Episode 6

15 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter XV
Bonzi

The first waypoint on the automap was room I woke up in. An objective appeared on my command screen.

> Complete operation: install repair talisman.

A belly hatch slid open revealing an empty octagonal recess with a golden holographic glow around it. Another similar glow surrounded an identically shaped talisman sitting on the work bench. I reared onto my hindlegs to reach the talisman and gripped it in my teeth. I slid the cold cobalt and crystal octagon carefully into the slot designed for it.

> Regeneration talisman damaged: find replacement talisman or healing talisman.

The next objective softly glowing blue in my surgically augmented eyes. With a newfound presence of mind I carefully searched the operating room. I downed a energy potion and devoured some very stale tasting carbon wafers. I supposed that if I could eat metal...
My room was the only one so far that had a IV drip within a stasis field. I flew up to it and deactivated the stasis, to my horror the IV bag was full of blood! Man I was so thirsty though, it was my blood right? I shuddered, still way too weird for me. I set the blood down and fluttered up to the higher cabinets. Inside were several bottles of various liquids and whole shelves of pills. Somehow my iPip assigned, categorized and knew the value, the uses and named all of the medications and liquids. Most were worthless, degraded or stale but a few, like alcohol or WD40, were assigned a good value or were categorized as very useful. I flew those down and raked them into an empty trash can along with some healing bandages and assorted medical supplies. There was nopony here to use them, so I might as well take them, no?
Holding the rim of the metal can in my mouth I flew out into the hall, I was too short to carry the can while walking, taking it with me forced me to take flight. Flying was a fairly new experience for me, and with the can weighing me down and tipping me off balance... I smashed face first into the hard linoleum floor of the hall just out side my room. I facehoofed while staring back at the doorway, trying to remember another, easier way of transporting the goods.
Usually I ignored the digital spectra lines that darted across my vision to outline objects and inform me of their identity and function, the could be anoyingly distracting. But the moment I paused at the doorway the lines went crazy focusing on the turqoise-green plack on the wall just right of the door.
"Combat Technologies Research
Cybernetic Enhancement Wing
Project Bonzi
Subject Echo-55 Alpha"

>> "

I instinctively asked the iPip in my head. Not even consciously realizing I could do so till halfway through the answer.

> Project Bonzi is clasified. Delta level security clearance is required to access the Project Bonzi file from a primary server. There is no further information available. I will Cross-reference the uncorrupted archives for any related files.

A iPip referring to itself in the first person? Why would it do that? For that matter how would I even know that iPip's don't normally do such things!?!! Everything is WAY too weird right now, getting away time!
Blasts of energy flew overhead as I dove beneath the security drones approaching from my right. Leaving the trash can and supplies behind cuz I couldn't carry them at all while on the ground, I raced past the hovering drones. Escaping past them was really my only option, I couldn't hide In my room, and the bulkhead to my back and left was fuzed shut. Neither option really conducive to escape or evasion. So I sprinted and dodged past the pack of drones, hopefully I could out maneuver them while on the ground. The faceplant having shaken my confidence in my flying ability, I didn't have the guts to risk another painful at this critical juncture.
Somehow my body instinctually knew how to use my wings as air brakes and as a steering aid, unsurpassed drone dodging ability was mine! Haha!
/)(\
I was quite smugly satisfied with
myself as I reached the bulkhead door. Those silly drones are so stupid, I trapped all of them in a small auditorium located at the apex of the hallways curve, in otherwords, halfway between the two bulkhead doors. How I knew all this fancy gibber-jabber was beyond me, but I knew it and it was fun!
To my nauseating horror the bulkhead seal was surrounded by half a dozen mummified skeletons both of ponies and the bipedal doctor creatures. After crumpling to the floor and dry heaving several times, I calmed down enough to gingerly approached:
'Master Surgeon Andrew Nelson's'
broken bones and swiped his golden access card. Delta level access, maybe I could find out about project, assuming I could get to a primary server. But right now I was really annoyed that his card COULDN'T open the sealed bulkhead, I hate lockdowns.
Thankfully my iPip had a contingency plan.

> Destroy seven security drones and ingest their power crystals.
> Upgrade combat claws with energy sheaths.
> Cut your way through the bulkhead.

Three new objectives glowing on my eyes. Smugness gone, I was furiously thinking of a way to destroy seven security drones without dying, and failing. I couldn't just go in there and rip them apart with my claws, and I couldn't let them out without being mobbed. I needed a bomb or something.
Wandering aimlessly through the halls I figured out the principal behind Project Bonzi. Starring at myself in the mirror, my most shocking feature wasn't that half my body was covered in ceramic/cobalt armor plates... I was fully grown, not a foal anymore at all. I was the size of a school aged little foal, but my body was that of a fully grown pony. What is this I don't even!?!! Seriously, what in- I give up. Somehow I'm going to make sense of all of what is happening me, but right now there is ventilation system with my name on it.
/)(\
I slipped into the ventilation duct with practiced ease. Practiced, right... Because freezing to death locked in a freezer only to wake up Celestia knows how long later fully grown and covered in a robotic exoskeleton; results in me slipping into the ventilation system with "practiced ease." I have no idea how to explain it, flying up to the grate, twisting out the screws out with a claw tip, removing the grate and setting it silently onto the floor; all felt natural, as if I'd done it a hundred times. Weird, weirder and now freaky, thats my life.
The duct was thickly coated in eons of grime and dust, now so was I. Icky, icky, icky! I do not like cobwebs, thick clouds of dust or sticky, oily black sludge. I do not like the creaking and groaning of rusted duct joints, or the cavernous echoing of even the tiniest sound, I do like that I have a bajilion vision options to improve low light visibility. Awesomely, one of the options supposedly allowed me to see inside of and through things! But to use that ability I had to upgrade to echolocation level three and get an acoustics talisman. The only option I Could upgrade to was Ultra-Violet level one. Wtf was the upgrade system? Wtf were EXP points, how did I get them and how did they work? For that matter wtf did wtf even mean? It was becoming painfully clear that I knew all sorts of things I shouldn't and could do all sorts of things I didn't know how to. Right now being me is waayyyy too confusing and crazy!
/)(\
I navigated my way through the ventilation by walking towards the urgent cries for help. I was so ridiculously small that I could walk through the ventilation shafts! Granted, I had to duck my head and bend my knees a tad, but I was definitely not crawling. I popped open the floor grate and pulled myself through the narrow gap and into a spherical chamber.
What th- my entire field of vision was plastered with holographic spectral lines, gold, green, red and blue lines racing around my screen chasing glowing glyphs on the spherical walls. Hundreds of images of these symbols went flashing across my command screen, it was like a wave of glyphs being shot at my head, I tried to duck out of the way but the holograms weren't from the sphere but generated by my visual augmentation. Dizzily, I fell to my haunches as massless intangible shapes continued to bombard me. As suddenly as the blitz of glyphs began they stopped. I shook my head to clear out my babbling confusion and surveyed my surroundings.
In the center of the room a narrow catwalk reached out towards a raised podium or dias supporting an advanced and very complex looking terminal interface. The cries for help stopped, I had been so sure they came from this room. Bother. Flying onto the catwalk I went for the door, it didn't budge.

> "Oh no you don't."

The child's voice chided me from both the room and inside my head.

> "I woke you out of stasis when Ekleipsa reactivated all the security systems on this ship. Now that you've found me you don't get to just runaway and hide. I saved your life by engaging those drones for you. It is your turn to save mine by pulling me out of the network before the AI comes online and erases me."

That's why it was referring to itself in the first person, Clearly a self aware virus hacked into the system and got trapped here when the bombs fell and everything got scrambled. I also intuitively knew all this, now I have a headache. Of course the virus didn't really give me a choice in the matter, because within moments a cable attached to a mechanical arm reached out and plugged directly into my forehead. My screen went crazy again, this time line after line of computer code raced over my screen. The voice began to speak again, this time only in my head without echoing throughout the chamber.
> "I took the liberty of replacing your iPip matrix with a modified prototyp- damn it! The systems rebooting, get out of here! Run!"

>> "What? I... What did you do-"

> "No time! Run! The AI on the primary server is waking up, if we don't get out of here fast it will kill both of us."

My automap updated with a new destination and route, also marking nearby security drones with red dots. The door at the far end of the catwalk opened moments before I charged headlong through it. The chamber I just left was at the end of a T-junction, and with drones approaching from either side I went sprinting down the lengthy hall in front of me. With all the delicate finesse of a Russian ballerina I tripped over my own hooves face planting with refined grace as the drones chasing me opened fire.
Thank you to whom ever designed my exoskeleton with high palmier ceramic plates to compliment and protect the Tungsten and Twilitanium* reinforced Cobalt-Chromium alloyed load bearing structure. The ceramics refused to melt or deform even when blasted with weaponized lasers, instead they dissipated the heat evenly across their entire surface effectively shielding me from otherwise deadly searing bolts of energy. Claws now extended I scrambled into a fighting position, turning to face my flock of murderous mechanical pursuers.
Time slowed to a crawl as the combat menu appeared on my command screen, glowing holographic crosshairs lining up with the nearest drone. I selected auto-combat from the close-quarters menu and waited as time sped back up to normal. The following moments were a continuous blur of motion interspersed with jabs of burning pain and the jarring clash of my claws tearing through metal.
Upon exiting auto combat I was surrounded by the sparking remains of three security drones scatter across the floor. Auto combat was awesome! Without it I probably would have died twice already. But then again, having a body that could move on its own volition and without my conscious control was pretty scary none the less. Volition, another word to add to my growing list of how the hell do I know that!?!!

16 Rapture
The Nightmare Chronicles
Chapter XVI
Reboot

Apparently power crystals taste like chicken, or at least that's what my iPip told me they taste like. Personally I think that particular function is broken since it also says scrap metal and energy potions also taste like chicken, and none of these things taste anything close to the same. Speaking of which, I wonder what chicken really taste like? I'd imagine something with wings that's purple and orange but can't fly. Yup, chickens are definitely purple and orange.
I felt like a leaden slug when the levitation talisman deactivated to allow my exoskeleton to divert power to repair itself. With repairs underway after I vanished into the forest, my prompt and objective queue's were both asking me to make a hard reboot. I absentmindedly selected my way through the prompt menu till everything went blank, unaugmented vision isn't all that its been cracked up to be. Coming down from my energy potion induced high I was too drained to even worry about my entire exobody just shutting down.
Then a prompt began to flash in front of me.

> Reboot in progress, please select iOS kernel/
> inMac Ketteh
> iPrism

I don't know how I knew but I did know that inMac was the default operating system for the iPip. The prompt for iPrism was so shiny and had so many pretty colors, how could I not push it?
A helpful sounding and cheery voice tutorial began to speak to me as the new iOS loaded.

"Welcome to the holographic iPrism interactive display. We didn't get payed for designing this so you don't get a tutorial, go tell the director he can suck it."

As soon as the voice finished speaking the waves of glyph images flip sideways across my field of vision, cover flow style. The glyphs had to be some kind of programs or files or something else important and computery. Maybe they had something to do with viral AI that downloaded itself into my iPip? Who knows. From the icon and animated avatar that had just appeared in the lower right corner of my vision, I was about to find out. With a demur but decidedly english accent my computerized companion calmly spoke.

> "Hello, you may call me Chloe. I am not a computer virus as you may have been lead to believe instead I am a sentient digital being. I am not exactly a self aware artificial intelligence, but you may think of me as such. I'm sorry about all the inconvenience I've put you through, but in order to ensure my survival it was rather unavoidable. For the time being it looks like we are stuck with each other. I hope we can be friends, what is your name?"

Trying to collect my thoughts and failing miserably I stammered raggedly. Waves of exhaustion robbing my brain of coordinated coherent thought.

>> "II-I don't remember-I mean I don't actually know. I-I'm not actually sure I have."

> "Then I rather expect we shall need to improvise, in this facility your designation was Echo-55 Alpha. I presume this to be an undesirable form of identification. However, unless there is a different name you desire to go by, I suggest we use it until you get your cutie mark. Miss Echoes."

Direct is good, I like direct. But this; Chloe person, is a tad on the too direct side of things. While going by the designation given to me by whoever owned this starship and ran this facility isn't the most elegant or assertive solution to my identity crisis, it's the simplest and easiest. Along with direct I do simple and easy, especially when I'm brain dead and nearly comatose from energy potion withdrawals. Given my extremely petite figure, I should really watch my intake of highly addictive substances, withdrawals suck.

>> "Ok, Echoes it is, for now. Whatever, just just. I think I'm just gonna take a nap now..."

The world slowly faded to black as I began to loose consciousness. Now I had an AI in my head, as if there wasn't already enough things that I didn't have a clue about floating around inside my chaotic head. Especially all the experience I had no memory of learning or going through. Speaking of memory, since when was I a filly? Of all the embarrassing things not to have any memory of what so ever, gender has to be the worst possible thing.
I thought loosing consciousness meant not being conscious Implying that I wouldn't be thinking. So why am I still thinking? Scratch that, why aren't I awake? Why can't I hear or see or even feel my body? Wait, I'm clearly clueless and I have another something that can talk in my head who knows a lot about me. It's time for twenty questions!