Fluttershy's Giant

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Part Two

The thing, or Delta Oh Gamma (as was it's full name, shortened to DOG), was fully aware it had fallen out of it's orbit around the planet.

How it didn't know. or why. But it felt as if it was supposed to do this.

But that was silly. Because robots don't feel things.

It scanned it's optical sensors at where it was going to land, ignoring the white hot burning it's steely skin.

[Destination: Unknown.]

It said to itself. It's voice was loud and grating. The kind of voice one would expect a thirty story robot to have.

[Approaching target. Commence landing procedures.]

It tried to raise it's arms out and assist it's descent. And widened it's sensors in surprise as it's arm broke off.

[Problematic. Left appendage missing. Right appendage following.]

It's right arm broke off now, and tumbled down to the ground below.

[Brace for impact.]

It turned itself around and switched off it's sensors as it readied itself for the impact of the earth below. And there it waited for the time of impact.

[T-Minus thirty seconds.]

It opened one sensor and saw the green of the forest's canopy rushing to meet it's head.

***

Fluttershy reached her home, quivering in fear. She looked up and started backwards. The thing was missing. She gulped and glanced around nervously and saw a large colony of bats fly up from the tree tops. She shivered and hoped none of her woodland friends would be disturbed by this thing.

"Goodnight little friends," she whispered and opened the door, to see the inside of her house as if the thing had landed in here instead of out there..

"Oh um... Fluttershy. W-we can explain." Sweetie Belle stammered and tapped Scootaloo and Applebloom on the backs.

Fluttershy blinked at them. They were covered from head to hoof, in blue paint. "What were you three doing?"

"We um... were making a surprise for you, for being such a good foalsitter," Applebloom murmured. "It's not finished though. So you can't see it."

Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief and looked at them all with a smile. She giggled and covered her eyes with her elegant, pink mane, opting to humour them. "Alright, I'm not looking."

She heard the girls giggle and the shuffling of objects, accompanied by the splash of more paint. "Can I look yet?" she asked.

"No!" the girls adamantly cried and giggled again. "Not yet."

"Alright. I'll just go upstairs until then, then," Fluttershy said, her small voice just barely heard by the crusaders.

She felt a hoof take hers and lead her to the stairs. "You wait, we'll shout when we're done, and then clean all this up. Promise," Applebloom said.

"OK." the foalsitter whispered and smiled. She parted her mane in order to see where she was going as she climbed her stairs. She bit her lip and risked a quick glance behind her, spotting a beautiful piece of art. Blue paint was everywhere, the fillies were covered in it and several of her pillows were now blue. "Awww," she thought and turned into her room.

She gazed around and smiled at the sleeping Angel bunny in his basket. "I'd better not disturb him. But he's sooo cute," She thought and gently nuzzled him, being careful not to wake him.

Fluttershy sighed contently and gazed out the window, out into the dark Everfree. "I hope Zecora's alright. Who knows how close the thing fell to her house..." she trailed off, worrying and shaking at the thought of whatever it was in the dark of the night.

***

DOG blinked one sensor.

[Optical sensor damaged.]

One of it's sensors was missing, seemingly to have fallen out as it collided with the planet's atmosphere. It noted it's legs were missing, both it's arms, it's left optical sensor, part of it's jaw and various bolts and joints. Along with a large dent in it's forehead.

[Repai-airs ne-ee-ded. Cirtcuitzzzzzz... fried-d-d... shutti-i-ing d-dow-wn...]

The light in it's good lens faded as darkness took it's vision.

And there it waited.

Amongst the fire and flames of it's landing spot.

Under the watchful eyes of all the woodland creatures, and a certain zebra.

***

"Fluttershy! You can come look now!" Applebloom called upstairs.

Fluttershy opened her eyes and smiled. "Oh. I must have dozed off. Coming, girls!" she called down as loud as she dare, and glided down the stairs. She gasped at the thing they'd made for her.

"One, two, three. Surprise!" all three of them cried and danced happily around her.

"Oh my..." Fluttershy whispered as she looked at their gift. "It's wonderful girls. How did you make this in such a short time?"

Scootaloo flicked her mane. "Aw it was nothin'. We'd been planning it for weeks, and we only added the finishing touches just now."

Sweetie Belle squeaked with delight. "So you really, really like it?"

"I love it... what is it exactly?" Fluttershy smiled and tilted her head slightly at the bright blue heart shaped thing, with glitter, ribbons and pink butterflies all around it, adorned with a couple of Rarity's gems.

"It's how much we love you as our foalsitter, 'Shy," Applebloom explained and pointed to the gems. "These here represent... uh..." She coughed and scratched her head, turning slightly red in her cheeks as she thought of something. "How... how solid our bond is. Yeah that's it," she murmured and glanced at Sweetie.

"Mhm. And the ribbons represent the knot you form around us and keep us together," the unicorn filly said and nudged Scootaloo.

Scootaloo cleared her throat and took a deep breath. "AndtheblueisbecauseblueiswhatcolourRainbowDashisanditshowshowawesomeyouare," she gasped, taking a large gulp of water Applebloom fetched for her.

Fluttershy giggled and hugged them all. "Slow down and take a breath, Scootaloo."

Scootaloo panted and blushed. "Sorry. The glitter also shows how fantastically awesome you are. As well as the blue."

"And the heart is from all of us. It's so big because that's how much we love you," Sweetie piped up

The yellow pegasus hugged them all, then realized they were all still covered in blue paint. "Now girls, bath-time then bed. OK?"

"OK 'Shy. Whatever you say," Scootaloo said and fluttered off, just barely an inch off the ground.

The girls trotted into the bathroom, where Fluttershy ran a nice, warm bath for them.

"I'll leave you three to it then. try not to flood the place," she said and smiled.

"We won't," they replied and hopped in the tub.

The foalsitter smiled as the water turned a light blue shade, and gently closed the door.

She trotted back downstairs and surveyed their handiwork. "Well... it's... nice and big..." she murmured as she trotted around it. "To Fluttershy, we love you. Less than three," she read. "Who's Three?" she wondered out loud and looked more carefully at the symbol. "Oh." she murmured when she realized it was a heart on it's side. "Silly me. Awww."

She trotted around and propped it up against the far wall, fairly out the way, but still where she could see it.

A splash and a thud from upstairs caught her attention.

"Girls? Everything alright?" she called up and cocked an ear out.

"Yes!" the fillies giggling voices shouted down.

Fluttershy sighed and looked out the window at the warm glow of the morning sun. Then she stopped and thought for a moment. She glanced at the clock. Four thirty.

"Sunrise isn't until another few hours, at least," she whispered, quaking with fear. When she realized where the light was coming from, she quivered even more. "Oh... my..." she gasped and pressed her face up against the window. "The chickens..." She flung open the door, ready to confront whatever was shining on her poultry friends.

She squealed as she saw a rather large bulb like thing sitting just outside of the door. It's cracked lens flickered at her and seemed to slowly blink.

Fluttershy froze up. "H-hello?" she whispered to it.

The bulb blinked again.

Her jaw worked up and down as utter terror took hold of her. She quickly darted back inside and slammed the door, whimpering softly and praying to Celestia the thing wasn't going to eat her or hurt her in anyway possible.

She huddled down on her side of the door and wept quietly.

"Fluttershy?" Applebloom's voice asked from the top of the stairs. "What's the matter? Why'd ya'll slam the door?"

"N-nothing. G-go back to s-s-sleep, girls. I'm f-fine," Fluttershy sniffed and smiled at them, trying to hide her tears and conceal her fear as best she could.

The crusaders shrugged and quietly went back to their room. "What do you suppose is up?" Sweetie asked.

Scootaloo shrugged. "Probably just Fluttershy being Fluttershy. I'm sure she's fine."

Applebloom wasn't convinced. "Ah don't know... she usually ever just breaks down like that. Maybe somethin' with one of the animals happened."

"Maybe she doesn't like our heart," Sweetie ventured sadly.

"No, she loved it. She said so herself. She wouldn't lie to us right?" Scootaloo defended the foalsitter.

Sweetie shook her head. "You're right. She wouldn't... Applebloom what're you looking at?" she asked when she noticed the earth pony had pressed her nose up against the window.

"Look at that," she whispered and pointed to a large object, slowly moving out the chicken coop.

"What is it?" Scootaloo breathed.

"Maybe it's an alien!" Sweetie belle said with excitement.

Applebloom rolled her eyes. "Aliens don't exist, silly."

"Then what else could it be?" Sweetie deadpanned. "A robot? Please."

"How about we go find out?" Scootaloo ventured. "We could go on another adventure."

"Yeah! Cutie mark crusader cutie mark adventures!" Applebloom cried and they all high-hoofed in a triangle. "But Fluttershy won't let us. No way."

"Hmmm." The girls sat and pondered their predicament for a few minutes.

"How about we wait until morning? I'm sleepy as it is," Sweetie yawned.

The earth pony and pegasus rolled their eyes. "Fine. But we have to wake up really early, and find this thing. Deal?" Scootaloo asked.

"Deal," the girls replied. They all performed their signature high-hoof and crawled into their bedroom, where they drifted off to sleep almost instantly.

***

Twilight rubbed her hooves together, anxious for the morning. "What do you think it is, Spike?" she asked. Obviously meaning the falling object.

"Beats me," Spike grunted. "Go to sleep, Twilight. It's... four thirty in the morning."

Twilight shook her head. "Who could possibly sleep at a time like this? With a strange object falling out the sky, possibly landing in the Everfree, right on poor Fluttershy's doorstep. Figuratively speaking."

Spike grunted again and turned over in his basket. "Sure. Well, I'm going to sleep. Try and keep the noise down would you?"

Twilight nodded absent-mindedly and began pacing around the bookshelves, looking for a book on extra terrestrial visitors.

"Aha," she murmured. "Here it is: ''Dealing With Visitors from Outer Space''. Lucky I had this one really."

The purple unicorn grinned and took it over to her desk. "Chapter One: How To Say Hello To Your Visitor..." she read and began absorbing the knowledge, as she usually did when she read one of these books.

***

*Beep*

*Beep*

*Beep*

DOG's remaining sensor flickered on again at hearing the sound of it's repairs beginning.

*Beep*

[Repai-ai-airs com-m-menci-ing...]

*Beep*

*Beep*

***

"Strange sounds from it's mouth I hear,

how very queer," Zecora murmured as she watched the strange thing, as even stranger parts came out the trees and attached themselves to the bulk of the creature.

She decided she would have to warn her pony friends when she saw them in the morning. She thought they would surely try and investigate the strange thing, if they saw it that is. Especially the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

"I hope they are well,

Applebloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie belle.

I would not wish them to come here,

when this thing of fear is so near," the zebra murmured as she made her way to her hut.