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Mare of Steel

by iowaforever

Chapter 21: Part 2, Chapter 7

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Chapter 21

Rainbow Dash looped over Ponyville once more. She tried her best at not panicking, but her patience and nerves were on the verge of fraying. She even switched between her vision modes, but could find nothing. She growled and swooped down into the plaza, scanning the passing crowds. Her hopes rose when she saw Applebloom and Sweetie Belle standing near Sugarcube Corner, the two fillies talking to each other about something.

“Hey guys!” Rainbow called, ducking through the milling ponies to reach the two Crusaders. “Have either of you seen Scootaloo?”

“No, Rainbow.” Sweetie Belle said. “She hasn’t shown up for any of our Crusader meetings ever since the... ever since we went to see Zecora.”

“We tried goin’ over ta her house, but they haven’t seen her either.” Applebloom said. “Is she in trouble ‘r somethin’?”

“I... I don’t know. I’ll just have to keep looking for her.” Rainbow Dash took off once more, turning east and heading towards the Everfree Forest. She switched through her vision once more, but to no avail. Grumbling she landed just outside Ponyville, scanning the woods for any sign of danger. “Scoots, I think you’re awesome, but sometimes you can do stupid things.”

“Why am I not surprised that you of all ponies would say such a thing?” a voice said from behind Rainbow. She turned and saw a blond Pegasus walking towards her, her already unfocused eyes dull and glowing.

“... Derpy? What’s wrong with you?”

“Oh, rest assured that your friend is perfectly alright.” “Derpy” said. “Although, with her simple mind she was rather easy to manipulate.”

“Who are you, and what have you done to my friend?” Rainbow rose up into a fighting stance, before remembering that she was not carrying her suit.

“Please, violence now would only complicate matters, especially concerning the likes of you. My name is Vril Dox; I am a Coluan scientist in search of... an acquaintance of mine.” Rainbow lowered her forehooves.

“Coluan... that’s some kind of alien thing, right?”

“Derpy” nodded slightly. “Technically yes, but I believe that I have moved beyond that sort of classification.”

“Whatever. What have you done to my friend? And where’s Scootaloo?” Rainbow Dash asked, taking a slight step forward.

“Derpy” blinked before speaking. “Your friend is simply under my hypnotic control. I would have preferred to use another unicorn, but the specimens around here tend to be... a bit stronger when it comes to mental capacity. As for your second question, the filly is safe with me... for the time being.”

Rainbow Dash growled and raised her hooves once more. “If you do anything to hurt her I swear to Celestia I will-”

“Please, save me the speeches.” “Derpy” rose into the air, coming to eye level with Rainbow Dash. “The filly is, by and large, useless to me; her mental capacity is underdeveloped, and I do not worry over physical forms as much as you Equestrians do. However, she does have one thing that I need.”

“What?” Rainbow asked.

“Connections.” “Derpy” said matter of factly. Rainbow raised an eyebrow as “Derpy” kept talking. “Preliminary scans of the filly’s memory and subconscious show that she has a connection with the Kryptonian, ‘Supermare’. What exactly that connection is is not very important right now, but that fact that it exists gives me an advantage.”

Rainbow Dash’s eyes narrowed slightly. “For what?”

“She is close to you, which is why I consider it fate that you happened to be looking for her at the exact same time I was looking for you.”

“So what do you expect me to do?” Rainbow asked.

“I need you to deliver a message.” “Derpy” smirked. “I will be in Seaddle with the filly tomorrow. Supermare will meet me there, and then we can discuss what will happen to our... ‘friend’.”

“You won’t get away with this!" Rainbow Dash rushed forward, right hoof raised, but Derpy’s eyes stopped glowing and the Pegasus plummeted towards the ground. Hero instincts overwrote anything else and Rainbow dove, scooping up Derpy before she hit the ground.

“Remember: Tomorrow in Seaddle.” the voice of Vril Dox said before cutting out entirely. Rainbow Dash growled again and scanned the buildings around her, as if she was searching for any sign of Vril Dox.

“R... Rainbow Dash?” Derpy asked, her eyes returning to their normal skewed position.

“Derpy, what happened to you?” Rainbow placed Derpy on the ground before stepping back, allowing the other mare room to speak.

“Well... I was on my way to Berry Punch’s house to pick up Dinky from a playdate, but then this unicorn stepped out of an alley and... now I’m here.” she shuffled her hooves. “I... I didn’t do anything bad, did I?”

“No... but somepony’s up to no good.”

...................

Rainbow had never done a lot of heroics near Seaddle. Despite attracting a larger proportion of weirdos, there was almost no crime to speak of. It was a ways away from anything that might have caused a natural disaster, and being close to a few airship manufacturers meant that almost all of the construction equipment was top of the line, thereby negating the chance of pony-caused disasters. She turned once more, scanning the city for any sign of Scootaloo or this “Vril Dox”.

When I’m done here, I need to ask my father about Coluans. She scanned the city once more before looping around, heading straight towards Seaddle’s central park. There were not many ponies in the area, meaning that if there was a fight there would be few civilians to get in thee way. Rainbow came to a stop in the center of the park, adjusting her suit once she landed.

She did not have to wait very long.

Beneath a nearby tree a small ball of purple energy began to form. It grew in size before dissipating, depositing a green unicorn with a purple mane and weird suit. Rainbow Dash rose into the air, forehooves raised. “Vril Dox, I presume?”

“More or less.” the unicorn replied, his voice flat and lacking in any emotion. “Judging by your age and your attire, marked by the crest of the House of El, I can assume you are Supermare.”

“The crest of- How did you know that?”

“I know many things about Kryptonians, Supermare; heraldry is nothing of great importance.” Vril Dox took a few steps towards Rainbow before continuing. “As you seem too temperamental in your emotions, you were most likely raised here in Equestria rather than on Krypton. Further records show that only one ship managed to escape Krypton’s destruction, and only Jor-El was capable and had the means to produce such a ship. As the dimensions of that ship were too small to seat a fully grown Kryptonian, you must have come here as a child, meaning that you are most likely Kara Jor-El, Daughter of Jor-El, rather than one of Jor-El’s agents.” Rainbow blinked. How does this guy know all of this?

“... What are you?”

“Many things, Kara Jor-El. My form may appear to be that of a Coluan scientist, but many years of experimentation, augmentation, and acquisition have transformed me into something much greater. All of the knowledge in the universe is within my grasp, ready for me to access at any given moment.”

“So... you’re really smart or something?” Rainbow glared down at Vril Dox. “So what am I suppose to call you now? Ultra-Egghead? Brainiac?” There was a pause.

“Brainiac... that was what your kind called me when I first encountered them in the final days of Krypton... Interesting that one such as you would remember something like that.”

“It doesn’t matter.” Rainbow’s eyes began to glow as her heat vision built up. “Where’s Scootaloo?”

“Ah yes, the filly that you care about so much.” Brainiac’s horn shimmered and Scootaloo appeared next to him. Her eyes were dull, but not glowing with the signs of brainwashing. “Here she is, unharmed.”

“Good, now give her back to me.”

“I said I would be here with the filly; I never said I would give her back.” With a snarl Rainbow Dash shot forward, right hoof drawn back. Brainiac teleported Scootaloo away, but was struck by Rainbow’s attack and sent flying.

“Give her back now!” she screamed.

“My final plan is not complete, and it requires her services. Your impulsiveness, however, may complicate things.” Rainbow Dash rushed forward for another strike, but Brainiac sidestepped the attack and punched her in the side, knocking her to the ground. Rainbow rolled back to her hooves, just in time to catch a spell to the face from Brainiac. The spell sent Rainbow tumbling head over hooves, stopping only when she slammed into a large tree. Snorting, she rose up into the air, tracking Brainiac as he prepared for an attack.

Rainbow growled and rushed forward, tackling Brainiac and slamming him into the ground, showering the park with dirt. She managed to land three punches before Brainiac hit her in the gut and pitched her away. As she recovered Brainiac pulled away, launching a spell that pinned her to the ground.

“Pathetic waste of potential.” Brainiac said as Rainbow struggled against his spell. “The mind of an Equestrian implanted into the body of a Kryptonian. I find it almost insulting.”

“Why? Because you’re too good for something like compassion, loyalty?”

“Those words lack any meaning for me. I understand and respect only logic, not flights of fancy or idealism.” The unicorn replied. Rainbow Dash finally broke free of the spell and lunged at Brainiac, tackling him just as he fired his next spell. The attack went wide and impacted the side of a nearby building, blowing out the windows and starting a small fire. Brainiac bucked Rainbow away, knocking her towards the burning building.

Not wanting anypony else to get hurt, Rainbow rose into the air and turned towards the fire. She took a deep breath before blowing a stream of ice at the building, crystals interacting with flames and dousing the fire. Just as she finished putting out the fire, Rainbow was struck by another blast from Brainiac, tumbling from the sky and landing in a heap on the ground.

“I am not a fighter, primarily,” Brainiac said as he walked towards Rainbow. “But I must say that your performance today has been subpar.”

“Why... would you... care?”

“I am always interested in data, Kara Jor-El. Your strength, speed, mental capacity, all of it is interesting to me. I still cannot fathom how a Kryptonian such as you could retain so much of her ‘Equestrian Upbringing’ and still be able to function... well, I say function in the broadest sense of the term.”

“Sure.” Rainbow Dash twisted around and sent a stream of freeze breath at Brainiac. He managed to block the attack, but this left him open to a gut punch. Rainbow picked Brainiac up and pitched him into a tree. She rushed forward once more, slamming Brainiac against the tree again and again. “Release Scootaloo!”

“No.” Brainiac fired another spell, hitting Rainbow right between the eyes and bringing her to the ground. He kicked her a few times before tossing her into a building, glass and wood raining down around her. “Your persistence is annoying. I will return to my ship but I may be back for something else... perhaps something of value to you.”

“No... You can’t!”

“You could not stop me here, what makes you believe you can oppose me again?” Brainiac's horn began to glow, a disc of light forming around him. Rainbow Dash snarled before pouncing, but Brainiac vanished before she could hit him again.

“No... No! You can’t get away from me that easily!” Rainbow reached out as far as she could with her senses, but could pick up nothing. Brainiac and Scootaloo had vanished without a trace, and all she knew was that he would be back for something or somepony that she cared about.

I need answers... my father should be able to provide some of them.

Author's Notes:

Yes, it's shorter, but Round 2 should be better (we still need Brainiac in one piece for the finale)
Also, I watched a lot of Justice League over the weekend, so I have a few new ideas, not to mention energy
Special Thanks to Bronyman1995 for editing this chapter.
Next up: Rainbow works to get some answers, and Brainiac may be moving on to the next part of his plan.
I don't own ponies or Superman. Likes and comments are appreciated, and if I screwed something up please let me know

Next Chapter: Part 2, Chapter 8 Estimated time remaining: 46 Minutes
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