Aurora Lights

@@captainborgue, @@Denim&Venom, Drone sighed as he finished his work in a pained fashion, He looked over and saw Angel snoozing away. He sighed and looked at his armor, softly placing his hoof on the chest, He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment, he then said in a soft voice, "Excalibur...Can you...Can you, you know...think for yourself? Wh-what I'm asking is...Are you sentient? Do you know what you are, or who you are? I mean, with that much processing power, you can't not have a sentience to you..." he asked the machine, the glowing red eyes resting on Drone, "​Operator...I do have sense of what I am...I am a Mark VII Heavy Combat Mech Prototype. I know how to process complex questions that the Operator asks. I have a large Database Matrix, Thus I can Answer any question the Operator has. But, as for true sentience...I do not believe I have such complex Matrix Software. " ​Drone sighed softly and looked down, " Excalibur, run software update." the machine nodded and it stood stiff for a few minutes, then he reported, "Software Updated. Advanced Question Matrix updated. Target acquisition updated. Revival Procedure Updated. Full Hard Drive Reboot..." ​Drone smiled slightly as the machine came back on and it stood on it's hind legs, the machine's physical posture shifting asit looks at Drone, " Scanning Lifeform...Sentinel Drone...Database updated...Professor Drone, Pleasure to meet you. I am Excalibur Advanced Combat Armor. " Drone Smiled slightly before his armor walked over to him and opened it's anterior armor plating, allowing him to enter his armor and Cybernetics again he slowly made himself stand on his rear hooves, pain written all over hi face as he stepped backwards into the armor and he gasped as large needles entered his vertebrae again, the needles locking into place and injecting a pain suppressor, the armor closing him in the machine, he looked down at his hooves and smiled, "Well, now that I can walk like this, I can be a lot more effective in combat." he nodded and fell back to all four as his armor retracted and he walked out the door, soon after walking a few blocks he decided to visit the college again. He walked into the school almost unnoticed by anyone, He sighed as he walked through the empty halls, though he stopped when he heard a voice, a female. He stopped outside of the door before she finished speaking, he smiled slightly as he listened to the voice of Bee. He slowly opened the door and looked at the mare, He then spoke up, "Hi...I don't think I've seen you here before...I mean, when I was working here anyway." he blushed lightly and rubbed the back of his neck, He smiled sheepishly and looked at her then he gulped softly before he spoke up again, "I'm Professor Drone...Uh Sentinel Drone....It's nice to meet you, Oh, and uh...All my friends just call me Drone." he said and looked around at the classroom.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone placed his face in the carpet as the pain finally stopped, the last pin out of it's locked position. He slowly pushed himself up with shaking hooves, he sat on his hind end as his back bled from the open gash in his back, Angel could see the bones in his spine, they were obviously modified to fit with the armor he had. He growled as blood slowly dripped down and he picked up the augmented spine, pressing a button and the armor formed the exo- skeleton he had used for years. Very rarely had he ever taken this machine off, but he had work to do, so he can't use his normal attributes. He looked at Angel and smiled at her slightly, "Th-Thank you, Angel...That hurt, but, I'm ok...I just...can't walk very much." he said and he started to take off the huge exposed cannon on the armor's back, the cannon extended as he unbolted the gun barrel, it clanking to the ground hard with the firing mechanism. He sighed and placed his face on his armor's shoulder, his face showing obvious pain.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone growled in pain as the needle pressed into his spine and then clicked, making her take her hoof off of it, the pin popped up and had blood on the end of the spike, As she did more of the Pins, he seemed like he was in agonizing pain, though she couldn't hear him, his yells and screams were ear splitting.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone took a sharp breath as she unplugged the cable, "All you gotta do is push them down hard...when you feel a click then just take your hoof off of it." he said and closed his eyes once more, "This is the painful part..." he said before he braced himself for the intense pain.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone sighed and he laid on his belly, his dark carbon spine guard looking slightly damaged, "Ok...All I need you to do is unplug the small connector wire from my spine to the base of my skull... Then I need you to depress all of the pins on both sides of my spine, they keep the thing attached to my spinal cord and whatever's left of my actual bone." he said and braced for pain, "Ok, now, If I scream in pain...just ignore it, it happens every time I do this." he said and closed his eyes.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone nodded softly and started thinking, "I-I don't know...I don't think anypony else knows about what I really am. And yes, your 100 percent correct, I was designed to kill enemies of Equestria. Anywho, You are accurate about the princesses dumping lots of resources in me. Hell they sacrificed some of their own DNA into me. Hmmm... It may have been the princesses...I don't know, I mean there are some places that might have a small glim...Oh crap...I think I just figured out who did this... A corporation by the name of BioCorp, They specify in, well, Genetics and physical modifications. If they got some of my DNA, I don't like the things they could make with that power." he looks at Angel and walked over to her, "Listen, I know you don't owe me anything, But I need your help. Em is occupied and I think you can help me more than she can with this issue. You seem...Smart, very smart. Ok, so...the thing is..." he sighs in shame and he looks away as he says with a blush, "I...Have to take off my cybernetics...I-I need to do some repairs...But uh...The process is...Slow, and a little erm...painful. " he looked at her sheepishly for a moment before looking away again.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone nodded softly, " I feel...calm...When I'm around her. And you, now." he said softly and slowly let her go as he stood up and walked over to her empty kitchen, "Hope you don't mind, but I have some repairs I need to get finished." He said and his armor clanked and moved into it's proper places, he looked over his shoulder and said, "Excalibur, Detach MG Left." The machine gun that was exposed on his left shoulder slowly rose to be parallel to his head, then as pistons hissed and the ammo belt detached, the barrels fell into his hoof then he pulled it in front of him and placed it on the counter, He did the same to his right MG. He looked at Angel and his helmet retracted, as well as his armor, he then looked to his guns and sighed hard, "Well, I put up a fight that's for sure...Barrels are all melted and the rifling was stripped...don't know how they still even operate. Rotator motor on the leftie is ground out. that's not gonna be cheap..." he sighed and put his face on the counter.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone looked surprised at first but he slowly embraced her tightly, " I know it's hard to take this pill of reality, But I promise you, The world you believed was real. And it could be the same again, but until then...Until then, You...You have to take that mentality, You have to believe that friendship and love can triumph over every hardship ever. Their may not be anymore Elements of Harmony, but inside us all is a tiny spark of something that all draws us together..." he smiled at her and pet her mane softly, " Love." he said with a soft voice, He stopped talking for a moment to let her soak everything in.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone looked down and softly placed his hoof on her shoulder, "The elements were real. They did help the world, but not in the way you imagined. Friendship was the policy...but after the humans...They showed us military might...They saw how effective it was, so...they did it." he said and looked at her, "But never loose faith. Yes, they did terrible things, Yes you were told lies...But never, Ever, let that stop YOU from being the one to change things the right way...I'm not saying I'm a saint, nor am I saying I've never hurt anypony or killed them...But I'm saying, You have the option to choose...Now, I chose the wrong way...I gave in to my...urges...I indulged in violence, hatred...I gave up the chance that anything could ever change my ways...I know the difference between good and evil. And yes...I do choose to kill..." he said and looked down slowly.

@@Denim&Venom, ((Oh no sorry)) Drone shook his head softly, "The power of money and Gems is quite persuasive Angel. I never saw real combat, and maybe not all of them were massive wars, but the ones that were, well, they were started by the princesses from the inside." He said and sighed softly, "I'm sorry...I've probably just said too much...I-I'm sorry if I freaked you out..." he said and sat beside her.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone looked at her in the eyes and said, " Why would they give a weapon sympathy. Not to mention, Why would they ever, EVER, mention assassination. Why would they slander their name. Everything you know...is a lie... Emerald and her friends all know. And... Who says they have to have a reason to make a trump card?...I was a plan B, Technically, I don't exist. They had wars... Trust me, They had wars, GIANT wars... But it was all secret. Secret wars and national lies. Trust me, kid...The world you see, the world you've been shown is just imaginary...Like nocturnal rainbows...it's all a lie." he said and walked over to the sink, washing the spoon he had.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone looked around and nodded as she spoke, He then looked at the cartons of ice cream and he smiled slightly as he picked out Vanilla and took a spoon from the cabinet and handed her one. He then started eating his treat. He sighed softly as he sat on the couch and said, " So, I guess now is the time to come clean. Never really told anyone my real story. I've always had a cover-up story... But now...Now is the time to be real." He said and his face got serious as he looked down at the floor, still eating his ice cream, " So, 90 years ago, There was...a demand, a need...The princesses needed the perfect fighter, the perfect assassin, the perfect...warrior... You see, they couldn't find that warrior, no pony was strong enough, fast enough, smart enough...Not to mention even if they found that perfect warrior, he could die. So, what else to do than to genetically modify unborn ponies? It took them 5 years to finally create a stable subject. The previous ones, they all died...every single one...from what I can remember it was somewhere around 8,000 subjects that died, and all the parents were, of course, assassinated. The princesses couldn't afford somepony to slip up and tell ponies about their plan. So, Finally, I was born. My parents were also assassinated, so, no I have no family. While I was growing up, I could remember vaguely about being split open, examined, tested. Of course, I can't remember everything they did to me because, of course, they wiped my memories. Everything I knew was a lie. And for a while I believed it. I believed my parents died, I believed I was given a gift, I believed I was divinely chosen...Turns out, I was wrong...A few years before I got iced, I started getting nightmares...horrible nightmares...But they were memories. Those pictures at the lab, they were just...simple tests..." he stopped and looked at his melting ice cream and he sighed hard, "Damnit...I-I'm sorry...I let this stuff go to waste..." he growls at himself and goes to throw away the melted treat.

Drone sighed as they neared the top, "Holy-hay-A...Luna,how many more stairs?!" he cried out as they neared the floor, soon they reached her apartment door and he waited patiently for her to open it, looking down the hallway at both ends, "Nice place." he said as he looked around. @@Denim&Venom,

@@Denim&Venom, Drone blushed lightly as he drifted off about dirty thought, "Ahhh~ One day~" he shook his head as he was snapped back to reality again and this time they turned around to go to her house which had obviously been passed up by mistake. He walked up to the door and stepped aside, "You got the key,hoe." he said in a nonchalant manner.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone didn't even flinch as she threw her hoof around his neck, he just chuckled, "Yeah. Your right. Common ground and all that." He looked away a moment before he looked back at her face, "Yeah. I think we could make this work. I mean...it'd be a damn cool bar story." he shrugged and continued walking with her, "Listen, I think if we tried, and I actually make a real, true friendship...or whatever this thing with us will be...Then I think I'll actually...actually start to show who I really am...And I'm a little scared of that..." he said with a soft chuckle at the end, throwing his forehoof over her neck and smiling at her.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone smiled slightly and shook his head, "Sounds like quite a life." He said and kept walking in silence for a few minutes before he piped up again, " You know, The lab we were at...the one we met at...I don't know how many photos you saw, or how much you heard...but I want to be transparent with you...both of you... You both saved me even though I was a total ass. And I've been thinking about what you said, some decompression would be nice. I can't exactly explain it, but, I think I feel something with you...Shit I just said that aloud..."he sighed and blushed lightly before he shook his head to himself.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone watched the video and started thinking deeply, he took her hoof and stared at the screen, replaying the video twice before letting her hoof go. He smiled slightly and took a deep breath, true, inside he was boiling, but, for some reason, seeing Emerald happy, seeing she made connections with somepony else... it made him happy. Truly happy. He looked at Angel in the eyes and said with the most honest, and caring voice he could muster, "Angel, I thank you. I thank you for, well, Taking care of Emerald. Our time together was...short... And, I don't think I could have found a better...better match for her, than you. You seem genuine...Kind...You and Emerald are similar in ways, some ways you remind me of elements of her. And somehow...Myself...Not just because of your cybernetics, either. Listen, Angel, I think we got off on the wrong hoof... I don't know what they did to me to make me this...unstable... But, I want to make it up to you. I judged you before I even heard your voice. And I offer my greatest apologies, and I'd like us to start from scratch." He smiled at her, he was starting to feel a little like himself again, " So, my name is Sentinel Drone... I'm over 85 years old, I have a cybernetic spine infused with a type of highly advanced armor, and I'm a professor here...or was, I do hope I can work here again. Anyway, I just wanted to say that. I got some more back ground info for you when we get to your place... Come on, you can tell me on the way there." He said and he started walking with Angel on the sidewalk when they left the building.

@@Denim&Venom, Drone cracked a soft smile as he chuckled softly, "I haven't had ice cream in five years, hell, I was a Sentinel pop for all five years. But, eh, what the hell, yeah I'll have some." He looked down as he tried to regain his composure. He smiled slightly as he thought about the times he had before he was frosted, "Hm...Hey, wanna know something funny? When I first met Em, I could tell something was between us. I-I mean, not just romantic. But, you know, deeper...deeper than what I normally had... I, Uh, I don't really know how to explain it...Well, Actually. You know when you just get that feeling, you know, the one that tells you that something meaningful is bound to happen... Yeah, That one. But, It just sort of felt, at least to me anyway, That we had...a connection. Some way, Some how. I don't know why, but I did." He sighed as he thought back and smiled softly at Angel.

@@Denim&Venom, @@Mentis Soliloquy, Drone watched Angel turn and leave, He then looked at Emerald as he started to really think about what she said, he turned around and started walking for the door, but he stopped in his tracks as a question screamed in his ears, fearing the question, but fearing the answer even more, he asked, " Em...W-What do you think...What do you think they...did...to me...I-I can't even sense when I'm about snap...I-If it's as bad as you say...M-Msybe the best thing for me to do is...Is..."he took a long pause as he thought about his next words, tears welling in his eyes, "...Stay...frozen..." he turned around without letting her finish and started slowly walking to the door, each step becoming harder and harder as pain crippled his heart, Fear and sadness clouding his mind. The only thing he could think about is...What if he did snap again, What if-What if he just, like exploded? What if he killed somepony he loved? O-Or...Worse... What if...What...if.

@@Mentis Soliloquy, @@Denim&Venom, Drone sighed softly as he looked down, "Y-You might be right...I might just be paranoid..." He said and looked to Angel," Well, Not really. She is the commanding officer. And you and I are V.I.P. I presume." he said and kept walking with the two, his armor beeping twice, signaling it was low on batteries. He wasn't normally paranoid, nor did he ever get angry and loose his composure, Emerald knew this about him, so she obviously noticed his adverse behavior. It was just a matter of time till he snapped again, and if so, and this issue isn't confronted, the consequences may be more severe than imaginable.

@@Mentis Soliloquy, @@Denim&Venom, Drone started thinking as they walked, '​Four years?...Definitely copies of Excalibur...Just accepted them? Hell, I'd expect at least some resistance. Wait...if they are running off the Excalibur mainframe...' He looked at Emerald and whispered in her ear," These machines are copies of Excalibur...Their armor Is very powerful, and I can spot they are using Nuclear power in the batteries, And yes, they were once a military project...But if a PMC group has them...Wait.....Wait...If a PMC group has them...Then...This evacuation is a false flag...They want the tech that's in here, They want the minds that can control it...Em, I fear soon they will start executing my fellow staff and students..." ​He said in a worried voice, he looked around at the shiny armor

@@Mentis Soliloquy, @@Denim&Venom, Drone kept staring at the mechs, the machines were strange, yet they looked eerily familiar, though he couldn't quite place what it was, " Em, What are these symbols painted on their chest plate, they look like PMC symbols..." he looked even harder at the mechs and thought of scanning their internal software with his suit.

@@Mentis Soliloquy, @@Denim&Venom, Drone looked at the piloted mechs and blinked a few times," When were those put into service?" he asked, fearing his technology may have been duplicated. He looked down as he felt adrenaline pump into him, he was ready to suit up and mount an attack, but he had no weapons, no ammo, barely any armor...he would be destroyed if he fought them head on.

@@Denim&Venom, @@Mentis Soliloquy, Drone sighed softly as he looked down," I don't like putting my burdens on others...Hell, it might make them more mentally disturbed than me..." he sighed and shook his head, "I guess I'll talk...To you...both of you... I guess if I'm going to actually get in a relationship, well, I guess I might have to tell you what I really am..." Soon they dropped by the college and he stared at the students and staff, "What the hell is going on here?" He asked them, making touchdown with the ground.

@@Mentis Soliloquy, @@Denim&Venom, Drone sighed and looked down, "Well... I-I don't know...I might...Maybe...one day...eventually." He shook his head and looked at Angel, "So, What's your favorite food?" he asked kindly, he then smiled at her kindly, He was a handsome stallion. At times he could be seen as brash, brutally honest, even evil at times. But, sometimes, times like this, He didn't seem to be as hardened as he actually was.