The Mad Mane Six.

Chapter 1.

   Gearhead walked out of the rift as it's white light illuminated the surrounding area. It was almost as if the daylight from the world he had left behind was following him. The rift then shut closed, taking the seemingly brilliant light away from the light starved world. He had to blink his human eye as it painfully resolved the difference in light. When it did, he saw that he was standing in the middle of a forest that seemed to be lit by moonlight, which surprised him for it appeared that there was no moon in the sky. Then he saw the wisping black and purple tendrils that wafted from the surfaces of various plants and rocks.
   "I always hated seeing that, it seems as if even this place hasn't escaped the devastation of my home. The presence of the Darkness indicates that nightmares, and subsequently, the virus is here as well. Why am I talking to myself again?" It was a legitimate question that he asked himself. Gearhead then shook his head and decided to climb a particularly tall tree. He unfurled his red energy wings and, almost as quickly as one could blink, flew up it and held the top branch as a tether. At that point, he saw a series of lights at a far off point and decided to head there.
   The journey through the forest was, to be blatant, uneventful. As he walked, he mentally recorded the various flora and fauna and realized that many reminded him of the plants and animals of his home world's of Earth and Mystic, at least before they were destroyed. He also noticed tracks that were more mythical in origin. He then exited the forest and came to a clearing. He instinctively looked around and found a  dilapidated sign, and when he tried to read it, all he could make out wad a P,V,L and E.
   Gearhead looked towards the town and the began to walk forwards. As he got closer, he notice that there was something fluttering through the air. He held out his hand and a speck of volcanic ash landed within it. He then let the fleck fall to the ground and then he continued  walked forward.
   He entered the town, apprehensive at on edge for memories of the wars flashed through telling him to draw the Ax of the Old One. He heard the snarls and growling of creature and knew he wasn't alone. He continued forward as if he didn't hear the growls. One thing you do not show was fear.
   Keeping to the shadows, he got the center of town. He noted the remains of a grand building stood there,  but barely, for age had riddled it with holes and rot. He hesitated until he heard someone talking inside, and, with curiosity peaked, decided to enter. He scanned the dilapidated halls using the infrared spectrum in order to identify who was talking. The smell of fire and wood rot was intense, but he detected a hint of rotting flesh as well.
   He walked from room to room, finding nothing but rot and broken trinkets. He then entered a great Hall of sorts with a series of strewn chairs and a podium on a small stage. There was a metal barrel with the ashes of a recent fire that lit up his infrared sensor. It must have been recently doused. He then heard a crunch of a wooden plank snapping behind him.
   "You know, stealth isn't my forte, but your not suppose to step on anything that may make noise, cause it will always make noise." He mentally kicked himself when his need to comment surpassed his common sense. He turned to face what he spoke to and found what appeared to be a miniature horse of sort that seemed unnaturally colored. It seemed to be able to speak for it cursed at itself. Gearhead then said," Your interesting. Now, I'm not going to  hurt you, as long as your not gonna hurt me, deal?"
   It looked at him as if he dropped a burning coal on it. It spoke, it's feminine  voice telling of age and responsibility that seemed twisted, broken even." Your annoying and strange, and I've never seen something like you before. Food is food, however, and I'm starving."
  Gearhead responded quizzically, "And I thought horses ate grass and grain only... then there's you..." She, or that's the gender he assumed, pounced at him with fury. He used his training to block and knock her away, having her land on her side. That's when he knew he assumed the gender correctly. She scrambled up and knocked the barrel of ash over, spilling hot coals that now made it difficult to move around. Gearhead pulled out a tranq-dart and his Bloody-Nightmares Pistol, placing the dart into that chamber. He aimed it at the mare.
   "I wouldn't try anything more, I really would hate to make enemies with anyone yet. I don't want to hurt you." Gearhead told her.
   "Why point a gun at me if you don't want to hurt me, sounds counter-intuitive doesn't it?" She asked him.
   "Insurance, I don't want to hurt, but I will hurt you." He said.
  He then began to hear growling from above. He looked up to see several beasts that appeared to be constructed from several different animals. He then saw several more coming in from a hole in the roof.
   "The noise attracted them here, in your attempt to protect yoursel...." She began put got interrupted by a dart entering her neck. Gearhead ran to her and scooped her up to prevent her from landing into coals. He apologized, slung her on his shoulder, and began to look around for a escape route only to hear a, "Over here!!"
   The one who shouted at him was what look to be a beefier and more unusually colored horse. He decided to follow it's command, due to his lack of choices. He loaded the Bloody-Nightmares Pistol with 9mils and ran, shooting at the beasts to stun and shock them, purposely missing to get them away. Once he got to the hall, he followed the red horse until they out and a comfortable distance from the building. Gearhead the stopped the progress to get some answers.
   "Are you OK?" The horse said, deep voiced and strong, a stallion's voice.
   "Yes, now, who are you, and why help me?" Gearhead asked.
   "Right down to business, smart. The names Big Mash, or that's what everyone has started calling me now that I work for Riplight." Big Mash said.
   "I take it Riplight is your leader then?" Gearhead asked.
   "Eeeyep, that she is. Some of the immune and Nightmares even try to refer to her as a queen, but she prefers Princess. The title holds memories for her," He said," Luckily you got to this one, Rip has been looking for her ever since she escaped. Could you follow me to the castle, not just for this one, but so that you could meet her?"
   Gearhead nodded and motioned for Big Mash to lead the way. He followed quite quickly and quietly as to avoid the attention of some unpleasant  company... including that of a yellow, pink-maned pegisus mare that had a large creeping pustule and three scalpels with blue butterfly wings as the noticeable mark on her flank. Gearhead then realized that all of them had marks, each one as unique as the horse that owns it. He decided not to ask.
   The group then arrived to a large crystal tree with a door carved to mark it's entrance. Big mash stopped dead and stood for a few moments, and then continued forward when the two doors opened to a large lobby of sorts.
   In the center of the lobby stood a purple mare that had dark purple mane which was streaked with periwinkle and crimson. Her eyes had a royal purple iris that turned red when it got closer to the whites, which wasn't white but rather black. It also appeared as if she had her lips ripped off, revealing a permanent twisted grin filled with sharp jagged teeth and dark red gums. It truly was a sight, and one that Gearhead had seen before.
   "What are you? One of Flutterfright's twisted experiments with Chimeras?" She asked, hostile yet  curious. Her voice had a smart, regal tone to it and somehow had a quiet echo to it.
   Gearhead replied calmly, a to not provoke any more hostility. "I'm human, and you must be Riplight. I am Gearhead."
   Riplight examined Gearhead and then began to clam down, returning her gaze towards Big Mash. "It appears you didn't just find our darling mayor again, but someone who may be capible of helping me achieve my goals. I will still need you to make supplies runs for me and of course there's your immunity that I abuse. Lastly, I will need someone who cares, after all. Get her downstairs, I need to get down there myself and check on our derpy friend's life support machines. The human may wish to follow if he wants." She said.
   Gearhead followed them to the cellar, which was more of a prison that seemed cobbled together. Several of the imprisoned stallions cursed at Riplight, who seemed to ignore the insults. A crazed mare sat in a corner and laughed at the group as the passed by. Riplight only stopped for a moment to give a mare food for her and her child. She didn't stop afterwards until she got to a machine that had a grey, blonde mane mare's head sticking out of it.
   "Hey this cell is empty, put the mayor in this one. She'll be safe here. Alot of the stallions here hate mares, so we try to separate the best we can." Riplight stated. Gearhead noticed it, he almost disemboweled a stallion for spitting at Riplight and the mayor, almost.
   After putting the mayor into a cell, he walked towards the mare in the machine. The  brain monitor had shown that there was activity, the mare was dreaming. Feed tunes and wire hooked to her and the machine from various spots. Riplight noticed the fact that he was examining the mare.
   "Her name is Derpy Hooves, or that was the name that the town gave her. I refer to her as such, but her true name is Bubbles. I found her when she screamed as a infected Unicorn attacked her. By the time I killed the Unicorn, most of the damage was done. She was half alive and barely awake. It was near the beginning of all this when it happened." Riplight said.
   "I think that you hope that she wakes up one day, but I don't know Rip, she's been I that coma from the day that darkness covered the world. I think it's time to let go." Big Mash spoke, so soberly. Riplight stared at Big Mash with eyes of anger.
   "She's still here, she still thinks, look at the monitor!" She roared. Gearhead then scoffed.
   "So, this is your idea of mercy. You see that activity as a good thing, but I've seen it before. It's the brain waves of someone trapped in never-ending nightmare. This isn't mercy." Gearhead said with conviction.
   Riplight turned her glare to Gearhead, but it didn't faze him in the slightest. "I won't kill one of my people when they can be saved. I already saw what this world does. I have to fight what they say to do."
   Gearhead knew there was no winning the argument, and decided to  act. He pulled out a triangular device and flipped it open, turning it into a rectangular screen. He pointed the device at Derpy and a bright light flashed, blinding all in the room. When all was settled, Riplight saw that the brain monitor stopped recording any brain activity at all.
   "What did you do to her! You..."Riplight began to scream at him, only to be cut off by a voice that came from the tablet.
   "What was that? Where am I, and why is everything so floaty?" Gearhead snickered at Riplight when her jaw dropped."Wait, where are my muffins?" The sentence snapped Riplight back to reality, for that very moment she knew it was Derpy.
   "I hope you got a idea of what to put her mind in now that her original body no longer works. After all, the Tripad isn't the most homey place for a blonde mane, yellow eyed grey mare who has a addiction to muffins, although she seems to not like the English kind." Gearhead stated, and Derpy blurts out,"muffins,"as if to agree.
   Riplight thought, for she knew of a way to give Derpy a second chance to live in the world, but she needed supplies. She looked at Gearhead, and even if he did something, she distrusted him. She hated to put faith in someone she didn't trust. She growled at her lack of choices and then ran the idea by him.
   "I may have a solution to that issue. My recent studies involved the construction of synthetic bodies made from metal. Some of the things I need may be found in what we now call Crab-apple acres, and there are also a few things I need from a set of broken down vehicles that some humans left. I'll need to change your form to get you to fit in, but that can wait till tomorrow."She said,  eloquent and formal.
   It impressed Gearhead how smart she was. He responded in suit. "You solution is a elegant idea, but it has a few ethical issues. Trapped in a unfeeling body when you just lost your flesh and blood, but it isn't as bad as not having a physical body as well as being denied the after-life. I will help you, although I will do so begrudgingly. Now, my journey was long and difficult, and traveling to other realms is far from fun. Is there any where to rest?"
   Big Mash looked confused and obviously wanted to join in, but decided not to. Riplight, however, smiled. This human had a brain, and a smart one at that. Big words wouldn't confuse or impede her meaning. She turned to Big Mash, "take him to his room, higher floor, and give him one with a window." She turned back to Gearhead. "Stay near Big Mash as to not stray off. Even this castle has a few dangers that I haven't resolved." Riplight then chuckled.
   "Well, that's my cue. Better get moving, she doesn't like those who linger, for any reason." Big Mash said.
   Gearhead nodded, but didn't leave till he answered a previously asked query. "You did ask me what and who I am. I am Gearhead, leader of the Heroes of the Dark. I am a cybernetic-enhanced human that was born and modified on a planet called earth. I used to live on a planet called Mystic. I would ask more of you, but it may be a long walk, so I will have your friend tell me the backstory. It was nice meeting you  Riplight."
   Riplight waved him away. He just raised a eyebrow and left, following Big Mash. Riplight sighed," Only if you knew the truth."
                             .    .    .
   Gearhead followed Big Mash,  observing and admiring the castle. It was made from several different kinds of crystal and it all sparkled in the fire light. Everything, from the columns, to the doors, and the walls. All except for the semi-torn banisters. He then examined those banisters, and found that they showed Riplight, but a different version of her, along with five others. Gearhead found his curiosity piqued.
   "So, the center one is Riplight, but who are the others?" He asked.
   " the other five? You mean the Mane six? They once where the ones keeping our lands in harmony, that was until Corruption bust out of the mountain that held our capital, instantly killing so many and killing two of our leaders, Princess Celestica and Princess Luna. That was the beginning of the end. The Mane six, their names were Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, and ..."there was a face of sorrow,"my sister, AppleJack."
   Gearhead saw the pain, and didn't ask for anymore, but Big Mash continued. "Their names now are Riplight Jackal, Pink Butcher, MadJack, Varity, and Flutterfright. No one knows what happened to Rainbow Dash but many believe that she betrayed the Mane six and ran. I don't believe it, even if the others do.
   "Rainbow..." Gearhead turned away, lost in thought. He was reminded of someone who he knew well, and would never speak to again. "Best not to dwell here, forwards is where we are going." The question was, who was he telling?
   They then made it to the room that Gearhead would be staying. "If there's anything you need, just ask. Riplight may have the bark down, and she's got the bite to match, but she isn't truly dangerous till she gets touched by the Darkness. Fortunately, she has a barrier protecting the castle. I wouldn't worry, just get some sleep." Big Mash said. Gearhead nodded and entered the room.
   The door closed quietly, despite the fact that it was made of crystal. Gearhead looked around and saw a regal looking bed, a vanity dresser, closet and window. Some may find it comfortable, but Gearhead was not one of them. Using the Tripad, he removed the bed and replaced it with a nest made from silk moss. He left everything else but produced a glass full of Milk-fruit juice, of which he drank with vigor.
   He walk to the window and gazed out, viewing and examining the world. It was plunged into darkness by the virus, but it was Corruption who unleashed it." Another world afflicted by your virus, William. More innocent lives lost, and even more ruined. The LOC are here too, so that's even more of a issue. I'm so tired of fighting them, and of fighting their mistake. Of being one of their mistakes."
   He walked to and curled up in the nest, falling asleep quickly. It was familiar, deep yet uncertain. It was never a good sign.
                                                                                     .      .      .
   A burning stallion galloped through the ashen waste land as the went to his master. He ram towards a burning fort that had a jagged precipice at the top and obsidian walls. The black and grey doors opened as insect winged, green flamed soldiers waited at their posts outside. The stallion went though the great halls to arrive at the throne camber were his Lord and Lady waited, eager for the news he brought.
   The Lord, a regal looking and crowned humanoid with small claws and a grimace, spoke to the stallion, his burning green eyes flickered with expectations. "Laz, my old friend, what news have you brought?" The voice was that of arrogance and ambition. The stallion reeled at his masters good mood.
   "Grave news, my lord and lady. Another revolution has risen in Cloudsdale, and the leader of this one seems to have a rainbow mane and black stitching." The Lord just looked at him with annoyance, as well as a bit of a trickster's twinkle.
   "Interesting, for the leader of that resistance, if I remember correctly is referred to as a traitor. Anyone one who'd even be remotely able to help them would never help for that fact. This one isn't even worth mentioning. Is that all?" The Lord said with amusement.
   "No sir, for one of our spies reported a rift being opened in he Never-free Forest. He also reported that a half metal with strange metallic red wings humanoid exited it." Upon hearing that, his look changed. Any amusement suddenly changed to worry.
   "Now, that is news, and very bad at that." He spoke, conviction in his statement.
   The Lady walked to the Lord, her insect wings dragging the ground as her twisted appearance burned with a subtle hint of anger. She spoke calmly, as to make sure she didn't overstep the Lord. "What is the issue my love, humanoid creatures have come into this realm many times, yourself included. Surely this one won't be that much of a issue."
   "He is an issue. If my memory serves me well, as it should, then that humanoid is the Immortal Hero of the Dark, Gearhead. For the sake of our unborn daughter and of our rule, we should treat these events with the utmost conviction." He raised his voice," I want a war band sent to Cloudsdale and my spies sent to Ponyville, where the lights shine brightest. Send Riplight a message, for it shall displease her that we have the body of her old friend. By the time it gets there, this statement shall be truth."
  The stallion nodded and then bowed."Yes my Lord Corruption and my Lady Chyrisillis, the rulers of these burning lands and creators and savors of the Nightling Empire. As your rule spreads so shall your flame as the great destroyer of Equestria." Hearing himself spoke this way brought great pride to him. Unfortunately, he didn't see the purple eyes that watched him or his legion so, for if he did, he'd be scared of something far worse.