"Futures Past Ch. 4-7" by Michelle B. Lackey

Chapter 4 - Crossed

Eagleye was stubborn and he prided himself on that. After watching the meeting between Akria and Turbo, he made up his mind to do something about it. He had feelings for Turbo, always had, and he hated to see her so angry and upset. He was careful to keep these feelings to himself however, but he decided that he should take action in the morning. His mother had told him of the wonders on the other side of the Portal and some small piece of him, the piece that many would claim was still weak, didn't want to see the Land of Power destroyed. Deciding on a course of action completely different from the one he knew he should take, he called Archival to him the very next morning. She was surprised to have received a call from him. Next to Turbo, he was next in line as the most reserved Unicorn to have ever existed.

"What is it?" Archival asked after a moment of silence between them. Eagleye still felt awkward with his plan for it meant putting himself in a great deal of danger.

"I have a plan, Archival, one that will hopefully make Turbo help Akria and Noreen protect the Land of Power, but I need your help and Razor, the Gryphon."

"Razor? Isn't he the one that hates all Unicorns? The one who has held the grudge ever since he fought Turbo and lost?"

"Yes," Eagleye said after a moment. "First, I need you to figure out where Turbo gets her nanobots refitted. I have to have mine recharged every so often and, since we are the same make and model, she has to have it done as well."

"Wouldn't she go where you do?"

"That's the point. I have never seen her at the station where I go." Archival tilted her head in a thoughtful manner as she looked through all her memories for some clue as to where Turbo might go to get maintenance.

"I'll have to look into that. Why Razor though?"

"I need someone that can challenge her. If all else fails, I want to try to talk him into chasing her through the Portal. No Unicorn can go up against her. She's too fast." Archival shuddered as she remembered the state Razor had been in when they had found him. It had taken a miracle to get him back together.

"Alright," she agreed, "I'll meet you at your maintenance station this afternoon. Hopefully, Razor will be agreeable."

"Just mention the word 'rematch' and he should be more than agreeable." Eagleye smiled as she chuckled.

"You're a cruel fellow," she said as she trotted off. Eagleye watched her go. The moment she was beyond her own sensor range, Eagleye turned away and headed for the safety of the city. They had met by the Portal, a place they both knew well and a place that he knew was safe from her discovery of his hiding place and home. As the two poles in the middle of the empty lot disappeared into the distance behind him, he calmed with the safety of the shadows thrown over him. His eyes watched everything around him unconsciously, the upgraded technology that gave him sight adjusting for the shadows and searching for body heat where there shouldn't be any. Up ahead, the abandoned building that was his retreat seemed to welcome him like a loving friend. Not so long ago, his mother had lived there with him. She had taken the foremost room as her own and he went there now. The old beacon that had alerted him to Noreen's coming sat in the middle of the floor, now silent. The collection of blankets that his mother had used for a bed were piled near the wall, the imprint of her body still present. He hadn't touched them since the night she had died. He looked at them longingly.

Unicorns despised him, most of them anyway. His large eyepiece was menacing to them and he carried most of the traits that made Turbo so frightening. He could 'disappear' as they put it and often his words carried more wisdom than any they had ever heard. His most frightening 'upgrade' however, was the removal of his instinct to avoid fighting. Never had the desire to kill come over him as many claimed that it had Turbo, but he had no objection to knocking someone unconscious if they chose to fight with him. That alone went against so many Unicorn thoughts and traditions that he was considered an outsider and a rogue. True, they could never prove that he was unstable and dispose of him, but his mother had been the only one to ever truly understand him. Now she was gone and the only other creature alive that could have a clue as to how he felt was more distant then ever before.

The meeting with Noreen had made the pain worse. Little did she know, the scent his mother had carried was still lingering around the old mare in trace amounts. She had spoken of Crea as if she had just seen the mare only a few days before and had expected her to be perfectly well. For the first time, Eagleye hated his metal eyes. He wanted to cry so badly and there was no way he could anymore.

Fleetingly, Turbo crossed his mind again and he saw Akria in his mind's eye. On meeting the young filly, he had recognized the strength in her, the same strength that made Turbo so frightening, but it had been different. Gentler and more caring, a forgiving heart that would have forgiven anyone of the most terrible crime... it was so hard to believe that Turbo had once been that way. Still, he had been there. He had felt the pain coming off of her like a waterfall and felt the anger that kept the pain from consuming her upon seeing her past self. Archival and Noreen were right, Turbo should never have to live that way, never be consumed by something so sad. He rethought his plan and decided now that it was the only way to bring the mare around. He only hoped that it didn't make Turbo hate him. Sighing, he left the room.

Archival found Eagleye easily that afternoon. He was near the outskirts of the city only a few blocks from where he had met Noreen. Known so well for being hard to find, she was rather shocked to see him standing in the open. It was obvious that he was waiting for her, but she was still surprised to find him so easily. Beside her, Razor, a small Gryphon by his kind's standards, grumbled under his breath. Not only was he meeting the old mare, he had to meet Eagleye. Archival barely suppressed a chuckle as he swore under his breath that he had never been so ill used in his life.

"Mind telling me why I'm here?" Razor asked before Eagleye could edge out a single word. Gears also shifted and whined beneath his voice, making it sound raspy and forced. "I have no desire to meet some washed up old mare and stupid sentry. I was told that I was going to meet Turbo."

"Archival?" Eagleye said in a light manner. "Supposedly you know where she is."

Razor glared at her as she answered. "She comes here to where you get maintenance. It is the only place available for those built with the nanotechnology that you two are equipped with."

"Great. She has to come here eventually then. We wait here until she appears. In the meantime, Razor, this is the plan..." Eagleye briefly filled the Gryphon in on what he wanted him to do. The bird listened intently as the Unicorn filled him in on every detail of how the plan was to be executed with a little flattery added whenever the Gryphon acted as if he would rather leave. When he was finished, Razor regarded him with a little more respect.

"You two like to live dangerously," he said.

"What do you mean?" Archival asked as she watched the area for any sign of Turbo.

Razor motioned to his slightly rusted and dented metal breastplate. There was a large round piece of brand new metal still evident with a welding scar going around it. Two more inches to the right and the wound would have been right over his heart. "Do not tell me what Turbo can do, I should be the one telling you. You two are going to try to cross her." He shook his head with wisdom gained through pain. "She is one that shouldn't be crossed."

"Yet you agreed to a rematch?" Eagleye asked.

"Only if she will fight willingly. I won't cross her again. It hurts too much." Now he was looking over his left shoulder. The wing that should have been feathered was replaced with a draconic metal skeleton with thin, flexible sheets spread across it. He had lost the wing fighting the mare and, as Eagleye could see, he was angry for the loss but he hadn't forgotten it either. The cyborg Gryphon before them probably knew more about Turbo's short fuse than either of them.

"Here she comes," Archival said suddenly. The stallion shifted his gaze and sensors back to searching for her. Sure enough, Turbo was moving cautiously toward the robotic drone that was erected in the middle of the clearing. Her movements were slow, the technology required to keep her in peek condition needing repair and charging. She cast one more glance about her before surrendering to the ministrations of the drone. What happened next, made Archival gasp and the two males back up a step.

The drone opened a compartment in Turbo's chest just as she had with Eagleye only a moment ago, but the thing reached into her and pulled out a metal heart! Cables attached the steel gray box glinted red with real blood as they strained to keep the heart within reach of the mare. The red eye went dim as the sedatives took control and the drone then reached in again and removed a real heart! This one's attachments were dark. The veins that ran through the fleshy heart were filled with oil and the small machines that kept the mare in good condition. Eagleye nearly puked when the drone opened the metal heart and removed a small battery only to replace it with a new one. As for the flesh heart, the drone used a probe to measure the tissue's health. Apparently, the thing was satisfied because it then put the hearts back in. Then it moved to Turbo's legs and made minor adjustments were the alignments of the major joints were out of sync. Beside him, Razor crooned beneath his breath in sympathy. It wasn't every day that a legend was dismantled and put back together like some worn out bit of machinery. Archival couldn't stand it. She took off towards the city, the need for sheltering shadows and the friendship of the herd overrunning the desire to remain and help in the plan.

When the drone was finished, he injected a blue liquid into the area above Turbo's eye and then Eagleye heard Razor gag. The needle clearly reached the brain and Turbo didn't even flinch. She was accustomed to this and that made it even worse. Then the drone turned off, the sedative melted away and Turbo turned an angry eye on them. Without warning, she started walking toward them. She was more graceful now and her hooves barely made any noise.

"Well?" she asked when she was only a few feet from them. "Happy now?"

"What?" Eagleye asked. "How can you ask that?"

"I prefer to go through that alone, thank you," she said flatly, but there was something different in her voice. "It isn't pleasant."

"What did it inject?" Razor asked, his raspy voice hesitant.

"A chemical that helps my massive mood swings. Keeps me from tearing myself apart when I'm alone and holds back my desire to tear other living things apart out of rage. A gift from one of the kind Humans that took pity on me." Her red eye glinted with suppressed rage. "He missed the point that if Humans had left me alone I wouldn't be in this mess." She eyed them suspiciously as if she was just now realizing who they were. "Why are you two here anyway?"

"We want you to help the Land of Power," Eagleye said before he lost his courage. He felt his stomach turn over. Even he didn't have to go through all that for regular maintenance! "Razor is here to make sure you go through the Portal."

"I won't," the mare said flatly.

Razor looked apologetic, but his voice was cold, "Oh, yes, you will." The two lunged for one another before Eagleye could stop them. Just as they tumbled out into the open, his sensors set off every alarm he had. A Royal ship was coming, a big one. He had just got the others' attention before the thing set their own sensors off. All three looked up just in time to see the massive black shape hovering above them. In a single movement, they all leapt away in three different directions. Eagleye dove for the safety of the city, Razor climbed into the air as he headed west toward winged country, and Turbo took off into the open plains.

Having camouflaged himself, Eagleye looked back, but the Royal ship was following Turbo, lasers and restraining beams trying to gain a lock on her fleeing form. She, however, was headed in the general direction of the Portal. He realized that she would never make the other side of the plains or get back to the city in time. Acting fast, he sent her the mental image of where she was and where the Portal was. Accepting that as her only escape route, Turbo turned her feet slightly to the left before disappearing from his sensors. The Royal ship stopped right over the Portal and started to descend until it had landed right over the Portal. Too late, Eagleye realized his mistake. The vessel was a drone ship. The mechanical monster was more than likely calling reinforcements, the Unicorns in the area would once more be open to attack from the Humans that hunted them, and, worst of all, the Portal's position was now known. Quickly, Eagleye created a message and sent it to Turbo through the Portal then he took off in the other direction before the heat sensors detected him.

Akria stood there, her mouth hanging agape as the realization of what she saw seeped through. She blinked her blue eyes as the muddy looking creature stood and shook its head, metal clinking and groaning as the beast moved. It was so painfully obvious what is was... but it just hurt so much...

"What are you staring at?" the beast asked, angry eye aflame as the thing began to back away from her toward the shadows of the forest that surrounded the side of the mountain where the Portal was located.

"I don't rightfully know," Akria responded, the lie distasteful in her mouth.

"You really shouldn't lie, it fouls your breath," the thing snapped, angry metal grinding in the motion. There was a robotic hum beneath the sound of the feminine voice and Akria felt her skin shiver.

"Why are you here?" the white filly asked.

"No reason to tell you. I doubt you would even understand anyway," came the metallic voice. Every time the thing spoke, Akria could feel her hide shudder and shiver with fright as she stared back at what was so obviously the Unicorn that had frightened her when she had traveled through the Portal. "Where am I?"

"You are in the Green Forests of Malkry. I am on my way home to the Blue Shores of the River Sarka."

"You are a water Unicorn then. Don't worry; I know how the markings work. Your quartz horn is a giveaway. Could you please direct me toward Human civilization?" Akria let the words hang in the air like poison.

"Why Humans?"

"I'll have to be repaired eventually. If they cannot repair me by the time my body starts to shut down, I will die."

"What are you?" Akria asked, but she already knew the answer even as the thing before her spoke.

"I am you, Akria. Immortalized through the use of iron, metal, and a technology you cannot fathom. I am what Unicorns will become in the future; twisted pieces of metal and creatures of such brute strength that all beings we once called friends cower beneath us. I am feared, hated, and no longer loved. I am what happened when technology met fantasy, but I have accepted it and earned my own reputation. I am you, Akria, hide and all. Your white hide will be stained with the oil needed to run the mechanical bits and keep the nanobots intact. Your once beautiful blue eyes will lose their color so only the blood vessels can be seen and turn them a nasty red. Humans will capture you and do these things to you, changing you from the inside out."

"You're scaring me," Akria stuttered as the mare of the future walked toward her. She started backing away when the mare was within a few feet of her, but the beast stared back at her through one eye without flinching.

"You should be scared. Noreen and the others have tried to tell you, but you won't listen." The mare glared at her for a moment. "As for me, I don't feel generous enough to explain any further." Turning away, the robotized Unicorn began to walk away, metallic joints gently whining as they moved.

"Where are you going, stranger?" Akria asked tossing her head and throwing away the story without another thought. That could never happen and it never would.

"I am no stranger to you, Akria. I am the one that will one day happen whether you like it or not. I'm going to lie down for a moment and then I am going to follow you home. You can run if you like, but that would prove worthless since I know where you live. Now, your family will not like this and I see no reason to anger your father. For now, call me Turbo."

"Any particular reason why?"

"No." Akria stood there for a moment, but she was completely unaware of the pain boiling in Turbo as she received the message from Eagleye and went over it in her head.

'ROYAL DRONE SHIP NOT GIVING UP - LANDED ON PORTAL - RETURN IS SUICIDE - ADVISE TO REMAIN IN LAND OF POWER UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE - I AM SORRY'

-So, I'm here now,- Turbo thought angrily as she glared at the white filly before her. -I'm stuck being angry with someone I can't reach and in a past that will hate me. Great, I can hardly wait.-

Chapter 5 - Different

Ariay, a silvery Unicorn, and her mate, Crane, the dappled stallion, were quietly relaxing a clearing near their home territory. It was a relaxing day, one of those were even the sun seemed to move slowly across the sky. Akria had been called by Noreen to go see something by the mountain and they didn't expect her back anytime soon. They were perfectly content to remain side by side and enjoy the gentle breeze that stirred their manes. Ariay nuzzled Crane lovingly as he delicately nibbled at the itch at the base of her neck. This was life, as they knew it. There was nothing to worry about, nothing to fret over, just harmony and sunshine all around them.

"Mom?" came Akria's voice through the air. Both Unicorns looked up to see their daughter standing a few feet away beside the forest.

"Yes?" Ariay answered as Crane noted the rather large shadow standing right beside his daughter.

"I want you to meet somebody," Akria said happily as she trotted forward and nuzzled her mother happily. "Mom, Dad, meet Turbo. She's from a distant land and she looks a little scary, but she's okay."

"Akria, what are you-?" Ariay's words were cut off as Turbo emerged from the forest, naked metal glinting in the sunlight. The spike that had replaced her horn reflected light like a sharp dagger. "Crane..."

"Who are you?" Crane asked. He eyed the stranger warily, his entire being tensing to dart into the forest. Turbo stood there, quiet as a statue.

"This is Turbo," Akria said comfortingly as she moved to stand beside the large mare. "She is my friend." Turbo looked down at the filly, red eye showing pain and wonder. She looked back at the white filly's parents, emotions of various strengths fighting within her. More than anything, she wanted to strike Akria for saying such a thing and to lash out at the parents for staring at her, but there was a part of her that liked being called a friend and who recognized the concern in the parents' eyes.

"Turbo?" Crane asked. The word rolled off his tongue awkwardly.

"That's right," Akria said happily. "She's only here to visit for a little while then she'll probably go back home." Turbo watched everything before her as if she were just a spectator.

"Can you speak?" Ariay asked, her voice sounding a little worried as she stepped forward. "My name is Ariay and this is Crane. As you have probably guessed, we are Akria's parents. Where do you come from, stranger?" Turbo just gestured with her head in the direction of the mountains. She knew her voice would scare them and she didn't really want to. They were her parents after all. "The mountains? Wow, that's quite a ways to come! Did you come alone?" The mare nodded. "Pity, could have used more like you around here to spice things up a little bit." Turbo couldn't suppress a smile. It must've completely changed her features because both Ariay and Crane smiled in return. The tenseness flowed out of them as they realized that she was just overly defensive.

"Come with us," Crane said calmly. "We need to introduce you to the Alphas so that they don't panic upon seeing you. As far as I can tell, you aren't dangerous, just reserved." They calmly walked away, leaving Akria standing beside Turbo, both of them surprised at the open invitation.

Akria looked up as Turbo looked down at her and said, "Well, I don't suppose you want to visit them, do you? I don't think I should go, the Alphas aren't really happy with me right now. Mom and Dad are looked up to and no one would dare to challenge them."

"Why?" Turbo asked.

"Make the Alphas mad?" Turbo nodded. "Oh, I... um... went around a Human village and they are worried that I might lead the Humans to us. They already found one of the larger Winged One villages. Only one family of Gryphons survived."

"Razor," Turbo said under her breath.

"Yes, that was the name of the oldest boy they had," Akria said smoothly. "How would you know that?"

"Your parents are leaving us behind," Turbo said bluntly, motioning toward their disappearing forms. Startled, Akria bolted forward to catch up as Turbo lumbered forward. She wanted a moment to think. Something wasn't right in the Land of Power; she just couldn't get her mind to wrap around the idea. What was happening went against some of her memories. Was this really her past? Or was it something else altogether?

"What the heck is that?" bellowed the Alphas as one when Turbo was brought before them. Akria jumped when they shouted at them.

"This is Turbo," Ariay said calmly; Crane wearing a face of disgust beside her. Noreen, standing off to their left in the ring of Alphas, was watching Turbo intently. The red eye was burning with anger and hate, but there was a defensive manner when the Alphas shouted at Akria. Curious...

"What is she?"

"A Unicorn," Crane stated. His manner was so matter of fact that Noreen barely kept her chuckle to herself.

"That... that... thing is a menace to Unicorns! How could you possibly claim that that is one?" another Alpha exclaimed. Turbo sneered. The Alpha Council backed up a step.

"She is a Unicorn," Noreen said calmly. "Akria and I have seen where she comes from. She is what they claim her to be."

One of the most arrogant of the Alphas walked forward and began to circle Turbo. Expecting her head to rotate to follow his movement, Noreen held her breath when the mare didn't move. The muddy mare was tense with uneasiness and anger. The fool was putting himself in more danger than he could possibly know. "Well," he finally stated, "she is the appropriate size for a large Unicorn mare, but she is put together all wrong. She seems mute and blind though since she says nothing and doesn't watch me." His voice made the words an insult. One muddy brown ear rolled about to catch his words. "Ah, she can hear me after all! I was beginning to wonder if she was deaf!" The Alphas laughed.

"Leave her alone!" Akria suddenly shouted. Realizing her mistake, the filly shrank back to stand beside Turbo.

"What?" the arrogant stallion asked. "Are you going to stand up for someone who cannot stand up for themselves?" He advanced on the petrified filly that was huddling closer and closer to Turbo since the stallion separated her parents from her. "How will you make good on that?"

Before anyone could move, Turbo suddenly lashed out. The stallion screamed and then backed away with blood trickling down his neck! "That is enough!" Turbo said defiantly as she bared her newly red stained teeth at the arrogant Alpha. "Colts should never mess with an enemy they do not understand." Her metallic voice made everyone's skin shudder, but Akria didn't move away from Turbo's side and Noreen congratulated her on that. Whatever the mare did, beside her was the safest place for the little filly right now.

"Are you our enemy then?" asked an older mare Alpha.

"If your idea of trying to understand someone is provoking them and intimidating a young filly, I am. You are nothing like those who lead the herds I know of." She glared at them, daring them to come forward again. When the stallion started to advance on his attacker, Turbo turned her full attention to him. The red eye seemed to glow as it caught the light and he faltered in his step. "You carry the instinct to avoid fighting and to resist killing. I have no such restraint. Back off."

Turbo started to turn away as the young Alpha turned to rally support among the leaders of the Unicorn herds, but Noreen didn't watch them. Gently, Turbo was nudging Akria away from the scene. She was being so careful that Akria only staggered a step or two with each nudge. After the speed that Turbo had demonstrated with the stallion, Noreen couldn't fathom how something so dangerous was so gentle. Leaving the Alphas, she followed Turbo, Akria, Crane, and Ariay as they headed away. Sufficiently scared, Akria bolted off toward her home, parents following closely behind. Turbo stood alone by the nearby lake, looking at her reflection with an expression Noreen couldn't read.

"Why did you do that?" Noreen asked when she was standing right beside her. "No one has ever stood up for her before like that. Not even her parents will take on the Alphas." No answer. "I'm sorry."

"It isn't you," Turbo said in her strange voice. "The colt was being a stubborn, arrogant fool. You do not provoke an unknown into fighting." Turbo regarded Noreen for a moment as if she were weighing responses in her mind. Finally, she said, "You taught me that, along with Archival and Eagleye. You have made quite an impression in the Future."

"Would I ever be able to meet myself?"

"No, the Noreen I remember is dead. She was one of the first to fall when the Humans starting taking over. Hating the idea of cages and giving up our horns, she was the first to turn and fight. She fought alone and she fell."

"Did she die alone?"

"No," Turbo's voice had a sad note to it, "I found her later. I watched her die and she told me that I should never fight alone. I never was a good student."

Noreen chuckled and motioned toward Akria and her family's retreating forms, "From my own experience, you learn things that should be learned and quietly forget everything else. Sounds like a good student to me." A moment of companionable silence followed. "You know, the Alphas aren't going to like this one bit. They'll probably declare you a menace and run around screaming 'ooh, ah, scary!' Nobody will care what you say after that."

"No matter."

"It doesn't worry you?"

"It's amazing what you can do with intimidation."

"So, you're not worried about them challenging you or anything?" Turbo felt herself open up a little. She remembered her old teacher as someone who could be intimately trusted and as the understanding type.

"I used to... tell you things when I was your pupil," Turbo said hesitantly. "It's been a long time since someone has been able to stand beside me or call me 'friend'. I don't want you to think I am made weak by being brought here. I just want you to understand why Futures fear me and why I couldn't care less about the Alphas here."

"Sure, anything."

"Crea, Eagleye's mother, used to be a friend of mine. She told me that changing times required a change of pace. I am different from the white filly you are mentoring. Those Alphas, those that we just faced, were killed in a fit of rage by... a Unicorn. Afterwards, the system of Alphas was dropped. It never picked up again."

"You killed them?" Noreen was careful to keep her voice from sounding accusing. "Why?"

"They were the same Alphas that are up there now. That arrogant stallion had worked his way to being their leader. He provoked me that day as well. I hadn't just received maintenance and my temper was less than perfect. That bite on the neck was a warning blow."

Noreen nodded and took the liberty of nuzzling the flesh of Turbo's neck. It was cold, but Noreen, remembering how Crea had felt, didn't recoil. "If he remained so stupid for so long, he deserved it." Turbo relaxed and let the sun warm her. She remained perfectly still long after Noreen had left her alone and tilted her head up towards the sky to watch the sunset. It was red, a comforting and warm red. Turbo sighed and let the cool breeze stir her mane as a single tear rolled down her cheek from her red eye.

"If only it didn't hurt so much..."

Eagleye snorted as he watched the ship as it sat over the Portal like a brooding Dragon. He was going to have to come up with some plan to get rid of the thing if Turbo planned on coming back. Annoyed, he flicked his tail.

"Hey!" Startled, Eagleye looked behind him. Razor was sitting there holding his tail indignantly. "I know sensors need a certain amount of concentration to make them work, but how could you possibly miss me when I'm sitting right behind you?"

"Sorry, Razor, I figured I was alone. Why didn't you go on home?"

"Well, pardon me! I thought I might see if I could get rid of that drone ship. One less Royal ship is a victory for us flyers, you know. They can catch up to us too easily."

"Any ideas?"

"Well I was hoping your Unicorn 'Archival' person might know of a way. She is supposed to remember stuff like that."

"She wouldn't know."

"Well, that's dandy. From what I saw of Turbo's little repair job, we have a tight schedule and we can't go dancing around the planet looking for a way to destroy the thing. We need a solution now."

"Well, you said flyers got rid of them. How?"

"When the dumb things are flying, the engines are holding them up. Take the engines off and the thing hits the ground like a boulder. Tong and I are amazing at getting them off that way. It's on the ground now."

"What if we could get it in the air?"

"How? You want me to wiggle my beak?"

"Any Dragons owe you any favors?"

"No, there isn't any way I'd... don't look at me like that!" Eagleye put all the helplessness in his stature that he could and Razor's enhanced eyes saw the blues and greens of begging wash over Eagleye. "No, I won't... argh, fine. I'll see what I can do. Blasted Unicorns."

"Thanks, Razor."

"The things I do for people..."

"Unicorns!" Eagleye called as the Gryphon mounted into the air.

"Shut up." The Unicorn chuckled as Razor flew into the distance.

Chapter 6 - Plans

Eagleye was still standing in the same place when Razor returned, both excited and angry. The Gryphon landed heavily and then surveyed his surroundings critically. If any drones were nearby, they would be heard speaking which would lead to discovery. Razor's excited manner showed Eagleye that he had a plan and wasn't too keen on being found out before he could get started.

"Alright," Razor suddenly started when he was satisfied, "here's the problem. The Dragons were ready to leave the moment I got there when I told them a Royal drone ship was on the ground without the protection of a Human base around it, but they had to delay their movement because many of them haven't been repaired in ages. The Gryphons were about to bounce off the cliffs until they remembered that our combat leaders are both sick and injured from the last run in with one of those thrice-blasted ships. None of them will follow me, but they reassured me that drones and Humans cannot pass through the Portal. Turbo and the Land of Power is safe on the other side for now."

"For now?" Eagleye pressed.

"No one said anything about a ship full of drones or Humans going through it and no one denied that the Portal could be expanded to become much larger. This is an old magic that we can't control and don't rightly understand. Most of them were just as clueless about the Portal as you were about how to take a ship down."

"Well, that also presents another problem then. Turbo has to receive maintenance every so often, though I don't know her time limit. Mine is about two months and, though we are the same make and model, there are some things she can do that are different. I don't honestly know if she can hear me through the Portal since she won't respond, but I can't get close enough to the Portal to get through. Now a flyer..."

"Hey!" Razor said indignantly. "I have the Dragons and Gryphons ready to bounce off the cliffs to fight the thing, what else do you want me to do? In a few days' time, this place will be swarming with flyers!"

"I thought you said-"

"I said they hadn't been repaired, I never said they weren't coming. You need your ears checked," Razor said flatly. There was humor under that warrior exterior, Eagleye was sure of it. "Besides, I'd have to have a large distraction of some kind in order to get through. You plan on playing bait?"

"No, but there are others who can run other than Turbo. They just can't run as fast." They smiled at each other knowingly.

"No one can," Razor said with a decisive nod. "Still, I can probably out fly the rest of you horned-horses. Who's the unlucky soul?"

"Don't know yet. You're going to help me, um, 'volunteer' someone. How would you like to play the role of maniac Gryphon who'll punch them into doing what they don't wish to?"

Razor smiled sinisterly. "I honestly still think you Unicorns are crazy, but hanging around with you might not be such a bad idea after all. Along the line of 'bad ideas', why don't you send a message through the Portal about what we're doing just in case Turbo can hear you? Those bozos on the ship won't understand Unicorn anyway."

Eagleye nodded. He composed a quick message and sent it through the Portal before following Razor into the city. He gulped as he thought about all the various runners with improved leg mechanics. Sighing, he knew he would make Turbo angrier than ever before. Only three existed that could move fast enough to do what his plan required and all three of them had been friends of Turbo's at one point. Grimacing, his mind flew to Grit, the one Human she had ever learned to trust. Grit would be the easiest to find. The man almost always shadowed Archival or was around the last stream. Eagleye only wondered how he would convince any of them that Turbo was important enough to go after. Since the incident with the Alphas, they had pretty much abandoned her and put her into an unofficial exile. He sighed. The plan had just gotten a little more complicated.

Turbo stood quietly by the lake. She had been invited by Akria and her parents to meet other Unicorns and the survivors of the flyer village, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She had seen so many that she had thought dead that conflicting emotions threatened to tear her in half. She wanted to destroy those that had helped the Humans overrun her kind in the future, but they were kind and gentle now. The more stubborn ones, the ones everyone thought dangerous, were the ones that she wanted to congratulate on resisting Human control, but she couldn't. None of them would know what she was talking about and none of them would understand her compliments. She was a world apart even when she stood in front of them. Sighing, she heard the gentle beep as a Unicorn appeared on her sensors. It was Crane, Akria's father.

She waited patiently as he approached, more uncertain of what to do than anything. He had been watching her strangely ever since she had arrived and it was starting to annoy her. Breathing, she silenced her unruly emotions and waited for Crane to tell what was on his mind. She nearly had a fit when he got a yard from her and just stopped, staring at her with livid curiosity.

"What?" she finally hissed.

He blinked as if he had been lost in thought. "Noreen told me that you were, are, was, or however, somehow Akria. I don't pretend to understand, but I wanted to know before I tell Ariay. I don't know if she would become angry or giddy with happiness. I prefer to know what's going on before plunging headlong into the unknown."

"Smart." Her voice was icy and he shivered at the sound of her joints moving. The mechanized hum of her voice made him nervous, but she was amazed that he wasn't frightened. Still, she didn't show it.

"So, what are you? Lead me through this one question at a time. Simple answers, please," he teased. He smiled crookedly as she glared at him.

"I am what you and the others call a Future."

"What is your name?"

"Turbo." He considered her name for a moment before continuing.

"Did you change your name when you changed?"

"Yes."

"What was it before?"

"I don't remember," she lied. He cocked his head, eyes studying her. If he saw her lie, he didn't show it.

"Do you trust me?"

"Not really." She studied him this time, letting her eyes go up and down his entire body. A steady breeze kicked up, but neither of them moved. Finally, Crane sighed and moved to stand beside her, lips delicately lapping at the water.

"I didn't think so," he responded after satisfying his thirst. "I wasn't sure if you were defensive or dangerous. Now I am certain that you are both." He chuckled as she glared at him. "Perhaps more defensive than dangerous, but still both. I don't think you were ever Akria though. You are completely opposite."

"Many have said that," Turbo said honestly, allowing herself to relax a little. They stood together for a time, studying one another before Crane began to regard her with that peculiar stare. "Why do you look at me like that?" she asked.

"Like what?"

"Like I'm going to turn into a flaming Pegasus and leap into the air or something."

"Oh, that. Well, you might say that you surprise me." She waited. He looked into her red eye without fear, but she didn't back down. She didn't fear confidence. Too powerful to be destroyed by anyone short of an army or a Dragon, she had learned that confidence was something that could make another person foolhardy. Besides, she had plenty of her own. "When they tell me why you look the way you do, I expect something... ugly, I guess. In your own way, you are actually rather pretty."

"Come again?"

"You stand tall and proud, not arrogant and boastful. Your brown hide kind of glows in the sunlight, for whatever reason, and your metal attachments shine like a beetle's back. You are strong, powerful, and what mane you do have falls just right to compliment your angry eye. The tail, I can see, has been ripped when it got caught in your legs, but it is still full and flowing. Despite all stories, you are still a fine looking mare in your own battle-rendered, mechanized appearance. The only thing that could possibly make you ugly are the large joints that show through your skin and the belts holding you together. Now you are looking at me like I'm crazy."

Turbo started to respond when she pulled her head bolt upright, a quick motion that startled Crane. She ignored him as she read the message Eagleye had sent her.

'ENLISTED RAZOR'S HELP TO REMOVE DRONE SHIP - OTHER FLYERS TO ARRIVE LATER - WORKING ON TWO MONTH TIMESPAN FOR MAINTENANCE PURPOSES - WELL CREATE DISTRACTION SO RAZOR CAN BREAK THROUGH WITH WHATEVER YOU NEED TO LAST TWO MONTHS - BLUE LIQUID COMING IN FORCE FOR MOOD SWING CONTROL - GRIT TO HELP IN DISTRACTION - PLEASE RESPOND IF MESSAGE RECEIVED'

"Blast those fools," she said aloud.

"Who?" Crane asked simply. She looked at him for a minute and this time her angry glare startled him a little. "What is it?"

"People who know me are going to try to send some stuff through the Portal through which I traveled, but, on the other side, it is heavily guarded and controlled by people who would destroy me. They think they can break through and bring me what I need to survive."

"Sound like friends to me."

She sighed. "Not friends and not acquaintances. They are more like pesky annoyances that don't know when to give up."

Crane studied her for a moment, his eyes wandering over her frame. "You know, I think Ariay will agree with me. I don't think that you were ever Akria. You are too different. The two of you are like the warm tropics versus the polar forests of the north. There is no way you are connected except by great distance."

"Sorry to disappoint," she hissed back, but he only chuckled.

"Don't get me wrong. You are the one with the flaming spirit. Akria is too gentle, trusting, and caring. A little foolhardy and less than perfect at taking advice, but you are confident and strong. If I had any choice, she would take lessons from you," he said lightly. "Come now, come with me to meet the flyers. If you know anything of our world, you know how testy flyers are about secrets." She nodded and obediently followed him. Deciding against sending a return message to keep the drone ship from guessing what Eagleye was planning, she filed the message for future reference.

As they walked, the sun tried to warm her, but Turbo didn't pay it much mind. Crane represented a strange paradox. He knew that she was different and he was plainly disturbed by her appearance in several aspects, but he didn't turn away and didn't start in fear as Noreen and Akria had. True, he couldn't hide all of his surprise from her, but there was an overwhelming curiosity in him that seemed to blind him from her overall appearance. She couldn't understand how someone so relatively simple could possibly bother to understand her.

Meanwhile, Crane was still watching her as they walked through the fields. He still winced automatically and fought the urge to run when her heavy feet struck the ground. The metallic hum of her voice and clanking of her metallic joints was enough to make his skin crawl. Watching her warily out of the corner of his eye, he also thought of her as a paradox. So obviously different and uncomfortable with herself, Turbo still defended herself enthusiastically against insult and watched over Akria like a big sister. No, he would definitely have to understand her better before he told Ariay of Noreen's decision. He didn't particularly enjoy the notion that his beloved daughter and the hardened battle mare were the same and he truly doubted that his mate would understand.

He sighed with relief when he saw the small family of Gryphons sitting by the river. Other Unicorns were gathered around them giving their congratulations for having escaped the Humans and making it into Unicorn territory. When he and Turbo arrived, however, all eyes were on them. Sensing the tension in the air, he looked back at Turbo as well. To his surprise, the mare had stopped some distance away and was glaring at the young Gryphon sitting happily between its parents. The parents themselves were standing, doing their best to look threatening though they were both bone tired.

"What have you brought here, Crane?" the large female asked. Crane racked his memory, struggling to remember the Gryphon's name. Turbo solved his problem for him.

"Edge, I didn't expect to see you," the mare said bluntly. The mother Gryphon started in surprise. "It's been a long time from my viewpoint."

"I don't believe we have met," Edge answered gruffly.

"Not yet. I would prefer to keep it that way." Turning away, Turbo headed back off in the direction that she had come. She was already a yard away before Crane got over his shock and moved to block her path.

"What is it? What is wrong now?" he asked in a whisper, glancing over her shoulder at the flustered Gryphon. Apparently, she had been just as shocked as he had been. "Do you know Edge?"

"Yes, I did," Turbo answered harshly. "Stand aside."

"Not until you answer me."

"Move!" she snarled, lashing out with her teeth. She barely brushed his hide, but he did move gingerly out of her way. Baring her teeth in a challenge, she walked on by and left him standing with the others. She heard whispers behind her, but one sound caught her by surprise. Once out of hearing distance of the others, she turned about and saw Akria running towards her.

"Turbo?" the filly asked when the mare stopped. A brief sensor check told Turbo that the observers a few yards away were anxiously watching them. Whether they feared for or marveled at Akria, she couldn't tell. Frankly, she didn't care. "I didn't mean to run away when you stood up for me. I just panicked and I couldn't handle their eyes on me for one moment more. I... I should have thanked you, but I didn't. Will you let me thank you now? I didn't mean to leave you standing there."

"You're welcome," Turbo said gently. She smiled a little and Akria beamed back at her. "Now, go down their with your father. He'll be waiting for you."

"I want you to meet my friends," Akria said happily as she bounced about the large mare. "Rau is a neat guy you might like. He's cocky, but very smart. Oh, there's also Elyria. She's kind of a recluse, but she plays mean tag. I'd like you to play a game of tag with us! You can be on my team!" Turbo followed behind the happy filly, following like a guardian angel. Those who watched them were completely baffled.

"What do you mean 'can't find Elyria'?" Eagleye demanded. "Grit, you have known where this crazy people have hung about for the past fifty years. Surely you have some idea where the runners are."

"What you're planning is suicide and, besides, I haven't got a clue," the man answered honestly from his perch in the tree. "I'm telling you that Elyria amazingly vanished and I haven't heard of her since."

"Poppycock," Rau said flatly. His deep voice was heavily motorized. Having been in an accident that had nearly ripped his head off, most of his neck and throat was mechanical. "If you can figure out where I am in a few minutes, you can surely find one little mare." Razor chuckled as Eagleye shook his head.

"You were easy to figure out, stupid stallion," Grit grimaced. "You're the only stallion that stays around the edge of the city where females hang about when they're out looking for a good time. You don't just go there, you stay there!"

"Well then, I believe you should address me as the 'happy' stupid stallion," Rau said confidently, tossing his mane leisurely. Bright blue eyes, one of the last real pair, glinted with mischief. "It's amazing when-"

"Enough, Rau, before you completely prove yourself an idiot. Grit, we need the two of them and you. The three of you are the only ones fast enough to get to the Portal and distract the ship long enough for Razor to get through. We need a distraction, a fast one," Eagleye interrupted as Rau continued grinning. The stallion's dappled gray hide shivered with laughter as he continued his thoughts privately.

"Well, you haven't even told me exactly what we're doing. True, we are runners and we have the reinforced joints that make us move fast, but we are also living beings. If this little mission of yours is as insane as you say, you can count me out and I'll go hang around with a pretty bay filly I just met," Rau said lightly. "I have no desire to die before my own desires are happily filled."

"You mean overflowing," Eagleye said sarcastically. "Grit, where was the last place Elyria was seen?"

"She was last seen with Turbo in the center of the city at a refueling station. The two had words before Turbo received maintenance," Grit said sadly. "Can you guess where that led?"

"I can," Rau said simply. "I wouldn't ever want to go there either. If that happened, my friend, you are going to have your work cut out for you."

"What?" Eagleye asked, looking at the dappled stallion, completely startled.

"If Elyria doesn't run, I don't," Rau said flatly. "We make a great tag team." He smiled stiffly as his eyes became wet with unshed tears. "Always did..." Eagleye nodded knowingly.

"Why don't you help me find her? Someone will have to help me convince her that Turbo is worth going after."

"It isn't Turbo I'll be going after," Rau said, glad for a change of subject. "I once managed to impress her when she was just Akria. I hadn't known her at the time, but I managed to catch her attention. I'll be going for the sake of that smile that she threw at me."

"Are you some kind of mare-magnet?" Grit asked sardonically.

"Only in his own mind," Eagleye said quickly, darting into the city with Rau chasing him with feigned ferocity.

Chapter 7 - The Rescue

Eagleye stood still as he stared at Elyria in complete shock. It wasn't that her mechanical eye glared an angry green at him, as her other mechanical eye sensor seemed to stare at him with a forbidding air. Her coat had amazingly retained its original white though her legs from the knees down were completely mechanical. There were only brief smudges on her where her joints tore at the delicate skin from underneath. She snorted and the reinforced joints within her neck creaked heavily as she tossed her head. A flick of her tail showed her annoyance, but he wasn't gawking at her appearance, he was shocked from what she had said.

"I will not go after Turbo," the mare repeated flatly in a frighteningly smooth tone for one so irritated and with so many mechanized vocal upgrades. "There is no value in it for me." Rau stood quietly... waiting.

"Elyria, you must-" Eagleye started.

"I must do nothing," came the hissed response. "You are young, Eagleye, and know nothing of destroyed friendships. You are still 'innocent' in the ways of the world and do not understand the pain Turbo has dealt to me. I must do nothing for her if it does not benefit me." Elyria stood tall as she spoke, proud and unrelenting.

"What if she dies?" Rau asked. His voice was strangely impassive and Eagleye was startled into looking towards him. "What if she dies and you can never recreate the friendship that you two had?"

"It is no business of yours."

"I say it is," Rau answered tartly. "You two were closer than anyone I have ever known before. It was actually rather frightening the way you two read one another's minds and knew what the other wanted before they knew themselves."

"You were there. We both possess the thought-gifts. There was nothing special about that." Elyria glared at them hotly as if angered by the memory.

So mother was right, Eagleye thought, dumbfounded, the old ones, those who were first changed... Turbo is not the only one who suffered pain not caused by the physical world. What could have happened to them to create such a great rift of trust? And if that has all happened, how will I ever convince her that Turbo should be saved? He was startled out of his thoughts when Elyria turned her stony gaze on him. That was when he knew. "What if she wasn't herself that day? What if she needed maintenance when you approached her?" Eagleye asked in a small voice so as not to anger her further. "What if Turbo's... mood swings hadn't yet been treated and she was unable to control herself?" She doesn't need to know the whole truth about what actually happened to Turbo and me when we were changed. No one needs to know.

"She had just been maintenanced," came the icy rejoinder.

Ok, maybe a little truth. "And if that maintenance couldn't help her because her... damage is too extensive?"

"You're talking about insanity." Elyria was hissing now, but Rau didn't move so Eagleye didn't worry. "I would have to see her face to face again to judge for myself."

"Then follow Razor through the Portal. I see no reason as to why you should not." The silence hung in the air now was almost unbearable, but neither stallion said a word. They needed Elyria's help and there was no way around that minor detail.

Suddenly, "Are you afraid, little Unicorn?" Razor sat cockily above them. The two friends looked up in shock, but Eagleye had known he was already there. He had just thought Razor would know enough to keep his beak shut -apparently not. Still, the reaction on Elyria's face was encouraging. The Gryphon did have a way with words, a way that made people tend to do what he wanted them to whether they actually had any desire comply. "Are you afraid that Turbo will beat you again? Afraid that Turbo hates you?"

"No," the Unicorn snarled.

"Then why are you afraid?"

"I'm not!" But it was more of a plea this time and Eagleye saw the yellow of fear swim over her.

"What happened that day?" he asked coolly. "What did she say that day?"

Elyria breathed heavily and backed up a step as Rau watched uncertainly. "Elyria?"

"I will help you, but only if I can go through the Portal. Rau, you must stay behind."

"To heck with that!" the stallion said indignantly. "This has gone too far without my knowledge already."

"It'll only be solved with a fight," came the heavy answer, but no persuasion could sway Rau's resolve. Elyria even threatened not to help with the rescue operation, but Rau was resolute and there was no way to change his mind. Eventually, they were all satisfied. The flyers would distract, Grit and Eagleye would coordinate the effort, while the three, two runners and a single flyer, would take Turbo the information she needed. There was only one thing left...

Before they reached the edge of the city on the day that the 'Great Rescue' would happen - Rau had named it - Eagleye pulled Razor aside. The Gryphon at first would not come, but at the frightened look on his new friend's face, he allowed himself to listen to the Unicorn's urgent message.

"This is what you will give her. You must administer it directly into her heart," Eagleye said, pulling out a small blanket. Two long needles rolled out, each filled to capacity with a red liquid that seemed to move as if it were alive.

"What is it?" Razor asked.

"That, my friend, is a classified secret between Turbo and myself. If you do not give it to her along with the blue liquid when you meet her, she will shut down and nothing will revive her," Eagleye said in a despairing voice.

"Only if you tell me what it is."

"She may tell you, Razor. I will not."

"Why haven't you mentioned this before and why didn't she receive this at her last maintenance?"

"We only have to receive it once a year. We receive it one month apart. Next month, I will receive a small dose. This is hers." Razor nodded knowingly. He looked at the needles nervously.

"Will she know what they are? I don't want to restrain her."

"She'll know. If she's in a good mood, she'll explain it."

"Turbo's never in a good mood."

Eagleye stared at the needles as if they would jump up and bite him. "You would be surprised what she is capable of." The roar of a Dragon ended their conversation as Razor picked up the needles and headed for the ship. It was time.

Turbo stood quietly by the edge of the lake as pain began swimming through her, but it was no longer emotional pain. Her systems were shutting down and there was nothing that she could do about it. She had to receive the red liquid and the blue counterpart before the end of the day or she would die. Mechanical limbs were already feeling heavier than ever before, but they could only be repaired with the assistance of one of the droids and new nanobots. Right now, they were the least of her worries. The last message from Eagleye had put the arrival time for the 'rescue' team as today...

I only hope they aren't too late. From somewhere in the distance, someone was shouting. The Unicorns and Gryphons had been fighting endlessly over her existence, questioning her and griping to one another about her 'secrets', but she no longer cared. If no one arrived within another two hours, nothing would matter to her. She wouldn't be alive to worry.

"Now?" Elyria asked as Rau tensed beside her. Green eye flashing, she saw the flyers congregating on the rooftops on either side of her. These were the keenest flyers she had ever seen. They knew how to fly perfectly, staying just close enough to the buildings to keep sensors from tracking them and remaining just far enough apart to keep from appearing to mass together. She smiled inwardly. The droids on the ship would be so confused by this point that they would be clueless as to what to do next.

“Not yet,” Razor whispered from her other side. He stood alert, listening to the others speaking as they crowed and growled to one another. “The Dragons say five more minutes. Then the droids will receive new supplies and they’ll have to drop their guard in order to bring them aboard. Once cool, the weapons will be inoperable. We need that thing in the air in order to bring it down. It’ll try to fly to escape.”

Rau snorted, but Elyria scooted closer to him in reassurance. “It’ll work,” she whispered. He didn’t answer. Somewhere down the line, Eagleye stood just as erect, watching with his long distance sensors as he searched for the re-supply wagon. Two Pegasus, too nervous to remain still, flew back and forth gingerly instead of hovering like their comrades. It was eerily silent, only the delicate hum of a thousand mechanical bodies punctuated the stillness. Never had it been so quiet with so many of them together. All their attention was focused on continuing this strange peace to avoid the curious droids’ notice. They were the fighters, the automated soldiers. Eagleye had learned that much.

Above them, there was a sudden rumble. Black clouds rolled in from the south, covering the landscape and making it harder to see. The rain, a thick heavy onslaught of water, didn’t help when it fell a scant minute afterwards. Water began to run like a river over the open space before them, puddles collecting in the previous unnoticed dents. Elyria smiled as Rau nodded knowingly. Eagleye could see weather patterns. Dents that would prove perilous in all out running where obvious now and storm gusts would not catch flyers off guard. Their eyes were not made of flesh, aside from Rau, and would not be fooled by the downpour. The eager stallion, on the other hand, had learned the hard way about watching where he was going. The welded scar showed where his leg had to be reattached. This was going to be fun.

A Dragon screeched from the rear. That was the signal! The entire ranks plunged forward. Ahead of them, the little truck hurtled toward the ship as the engines struggled to gain altitude before the oncoming attackers reached it, only managing to clear the lowered plank before the first Gryphon raked heavy iron claws across the outer hull, exposed wires short circuiting in the pouring rain. A flash of lightning exploded just above their heads and the ship was outlined and then paled like a frightened animal as it struggled to get into the air, weapons whirring as they worked their way up to full charge.

“Get those weapons out!” shouted a soaring voice as a dozen Gryphons plunged toward the defense array. However, the runners on the ground paid them no mind. The carrier was the flyers’ problem. Razor was the runners’ problem along with the droids on the ground. If weapons were raised to fire at Razor, they had to prevent them from connecting. Confusion was their greatest ally and they had to maintain it at all costs.

Elyria was the first in, followed closely by Rau as Grit circled wide to avoid the penalty of coming too close to another. They ran crookedly to avoid being spotted, darting back and forth as they went. Sensors buzzed with excitement as they swerved this way and that, wing beats loud in their ears as another blast of thunder knocked all sound down to a minimum. Rau neighed in excitement as he ran through the midst of several of the soldier droids, confusing them with the returning echo from the city. Seeing how the echo effect confused the automated bipeds even further, Elyria let loose her own battle cry. Rain poured down as the flyers took up the calls, thunder unable to drown out the excitement below the heavy clouds.

Razor circled for a moment before Grit sent up the green flare. This was it! Diving, he remained as close to the hull of the ship as possible, skirting close enough to the metal skin to feel his feathers brush. He shivered involuntarily and clutched the needles closer to his chest. Another bright flash of lightning told him the Portal was not far now…

A low buzz…

Crack! A laser shot the ground where Rau passed under it, but that was just the first. Suddenly, all the weapons started firing, but Razor had eyes only for the Portal. Ahead of him, the two posts stood solidly, only a shimmer between them revealed the Portal for what it really was. He narrowed his wingspan as he neared it, studying it as closely as possible as he hurtled toward it. If he made a mistake, he could cut himself in half on one of the posts, permanently maim a wing or leg, or miss the Portal altogether. He had to hit it just right.

Still running on her diagonal course, Elyria saw the Gryphon disappear through the Portal. Success! Now, all she had to do was group up with Rau… Another flash. The stallion was through, only she remained. Making an abrupt turn, the mare ran as fast as her legs could carry her, lasers scarring the ground behind her as they struggled to hit her fleeing form. Just as she neared the Portal, she heard the Dragons roaring in triumph and the creaking sound of metal ripping apart. Looking up, she saw the inner workings of the ship in perfect clarity as another bolt of lightning lit up the cloudy sky. Thunder made the ground tremble as she took the headlong plunge into the Portal just as the droid ship fell heavily to the ground only feet away from the Portal. Behind them, Grit and Eagleye called a retreat as the flyers performed agile acrobatics in the air above them, calling triumphantly as they headed back to the city.

Eagleye looked back when they reached the edge of the buildings, eye sensors scanning the destroyed ship for any signs of his three comrades. There was nothing. Not even a trace of them remained. Good. That meant they had made it through the Portal. He hoped they were safe…

‘ARRIVED SAFELY – SCANNING FOR TURBO NOW – MISSION SUCCESS – TURBO LOCATED 8.5 KM AWAY BY RAZOR– FIND HER IN 3 HRS – GOOD LUCK EAGLEYE’

The stallion smiled. Elyria had definitely kept her wits about her. He sent a message that confirmed he had received hers and headed home. Hope flooded him. Turbo could be saved and, with those three after her, she most certainly would be. They were too stubborn to give up. He chuckled. So was he.

Razor led Elyria and Rau unerringly down the slope to the nearby lake where Turbo stood eerily still. He had seen her clearly when he had burst through the Portal, climbing quickly to avoid the nearby trees. He had been shocked upon seeing them for he was all too accustomed to the metal and stone features of his world. So much nature overwhelmed him until he saw the glint of metal that was Turbo. Instantly, he reminded himself why he was there, clutching the needles Eagleye had given him. They were perfectly safe, as they seemed to glow in the brilliant sunlight. He looked down at Rau and Elyria. The two Unicorns had remained silent ever since righting themselves and following him down the slope.

“Shouldn’t you be walking?” Rau called to him.

“Why?” Razor asked, landing in front of them.

“We’re supposed to be in the past before Humans took over, dim wit,” the mare said harshly. “You don’t really want to meet yourself, do you? We should keep our existence a secret. I’m sure that Turbo has done the same.”

“Then I am sure that she has not,” Razor replied tartly. “She never does anything according to what someone else thinks. Besides, Eagleye said that she already met herself. Why should she care? Besides, a good walk would feel great right now. I am not use to all this nature anymore.”

Rau chuckled. Elyria groaned, “She can’t be too far away now, you crazy bird. Can you at least get us to her?” Razor nodded, smiling at the mare’s sarcasm. They walked on together in companionable silence until another thought struck him.

“Rau, did Eagleye give you the blue liquid?”

“Yes, he did. I thought he was going to forget, but I had forgotten that he doesn’t forget anything. It’s in a spare compartment in my hind leg. You’ll have to administer it, Razor,” the stallion answered logically. “Neither Elyria or myself have fingers.”

“Eagleye told me…” Elyria stopped. The others looked at her, waiting. They stared at her until she sighed. “He told me that if Turbo had not yet shut down, she could administer it herself. I do not see how, but that is what he said.”

“Do any of you know why he and Turbo act so strange?” Razor asked. “I mean, they are mechanical like us, but they require extremely different maintenance functions not to mention these two liquids we’re hauling. It’s almost like they know something they are unwilling to share.”

“I have no idea,” Rau answered as Elyria nodded. “They have always acted this way after their ‘transformations’ and we didn’t really notice how different they were until you mentioned it. I always chalked it up to Turbo’s resentment and Eagleye’s easy acceptance.”

“Great. Unicorns don’t understand Unicorns. How am I supposed to figure it out?” Razor dropped his head and groaned as the others laughed. They emerged near the lake just before sundown, but they stopped just short of walking into the open. “Uh-oh…”

Turbo was standing in the center of a very large crowd of people they had thought dead or no longer recognized, but each of the three recognized those closest to them first. Rau and Elyria nearly shrieked in panic when they saw themselves standing with Akria and her parents. So young and fully whole, it was a picture of their worst nightmare! Razor was having a similar experience as he gaped openly at his mother and father sitting a few feet from the nearest Unicorn. Between his mother’s clawed feet, a young Razor huddled in fear, shrinking away from the large metal monstrosity that stood only a short distance away. When they saw the three who had some to aid their friend…

“I vote for a dramatic entrance,” Rau said flatly. “At least in Razor’s case anyway.”

“Why?” the other two asked together.

“I remember that during this point in time, flyers and Unicorns didn’t get along well. We’re going to have to show how we are friends. If we don’t, we’re liable to start a stampede.” The stallion flicked an ear in annoyance. “Elyria, can you speak to Turbo and ask her on advice of what to do? We might get lucky and get a response from her.”

“I’ll try,” Elyria said uncertainly. Her eye unfocused as she prepared a message to send then there was a brief flash in her eye. “Message is away. Now we wait.” It wasn’t long before her green eye’s pupil grew large as she read an inbound message. “Well, I got a response, but it isn’t one you’re going to like.”

“Elaborate, please. My ‘telling-the-future-device’ broke last week,” Razor hissed. Then, under his breath, “Stupid Unicorns.”

“Maybe I’m wrong,” Elyria chuckled. “Turbo wants us to be as elaborate as we like without completely overdoing it as long as she gets her medication. I asked her about what it was for while I was at it. She thinks we don’t need to know or be told while those others are around. She mentioned something about telling us later.”

“I can do that!” Rau said happily as Razor smiled mischievously.

“As elaborate as we like, huh?” The Gryphon grinned. “Trumpets and sound effects?”

“Without overdoing it, crazy bird,” Elyria hissed at him.

“Fine,” he said with a smile. “Let’s give them an entrance that they’ll never forget.” The two Unicorns looked at one another and then grinned broadly. Razor’s smile broadened. “Look out world, here we come.”

Akria stood right below Turbo’s nose, looking up into the red eye that was becoming glazed and opaque. The mare’s hide looked stiffer and uncomfortable, mechanical attachments poking through more obviously now as she shifted her weight from foot to foot in an effort to relieve the pain inside her. Many of the gathered persons had tried to question Turbo on what was hurting her, but she had only remained silent or told them that they would never understand.

“Is there nothing we can do?” Akria asked her father, but the stallion just shook his head. The young Gryphon cooed sadly to its mother. Edge reached down to soothe the youngster.

“We are sorry that this has happened,” Edge told those who looked at her curiously. “After so recently losing our aerie, we are pained by the potential loss of your friend there.”

“Is it possible to-“ Noreen started, but there was a sudden scream. Whipping around, all eyes went to the edge of the forest at the top of a small nearby rise.

Suddenly, three figures broke through the brush, the Gryphon mounting into the air as the two Unicorns charged down the hill. Metals enhancements flashed as the Gryphon screamed again, mechanical wing flaring sunlight into the faces of those on the ground. The creatures that had gathered about Turbo panicked and ran away from the water’s edge only three yards before the oncoming ground-bound Unicorns had cornered them away from Turbo but still near the shore.

“Who are you?” a brave soul shouted, but the mechanical stallion screamed into the colt’s pale face. Instantly, the colt backed down and remained silent as the others followed his example. When they had quieted, the mechanical creatures stopped their screaming. They stood patiently and silently, but without allowing the others to leave.

Above them, the Gryphon spiraled down to land right beside of Turbo, the metal wing making the others of his kind wince in sympathy and twitch nervously. With just enough distance between them to keep from being overheard, the Future murmured something into Turbo’s ear that made her stand a little straighter and raise her head a little higher. Those who were made of flesh and blood watched in fear as the mechanized wing flapped once in a beckoning motion. Without a word, the stallion that had been standing between the herd and Turbo backed up before turning and walking briskly to the Gryphon’s side. More words were spoken, but Noreen managed to catch pieces this time as the herd quit its nervous twitching and fidgeting.

“Needed… take… Turbo can… easy as flying… don’t… mad… you’ll live,” was all she could understand from the Gryphon. She expected the Unicorn to say something, but he remained silent. Offering his own leg, she watched in horror as the Gryphon gingerly opened a compartment in the rear leg and removed a large needle filled with a strange blue liquid. Unending in surprises, the Gryphon then placed another needle filled with red liquid on the ground beside it. Then they backed away, all attention now focused on the brutal looking mare. The other mare, the one who had charged down the hill, now took her place a little closer to the other Futures, watching Turbo just as intently.

The sun had begun to sink behind the horizon, but the only movement was that of the herd moving back toward the Futures. Their ample curiosity was overriding their good sense as they moved closer and closer to watch the unmoving mare. Before Noreen thought to look for Akria, the foal was standing between the Future stallion and mare. The two of them didn’t seem to realize that she was even there.

“Is she going to be okay?” Akria asked, causing the Futures on either side to look at her curiously. They didn’t seem startled, a thing that surprised Noreen. “She hasn’t moved at all.”

The mare looked at her comrade and the stallion returned her gaze just as intently. Noreen realized that they were debating over whether or not to tell the young Akria something. Without a word, the mare looked back to Turbo while the stallion sighed and looked down at the waiting filly.

“Turbo never does anything like anyone believes she should,” the stallion answered. Akria shivered beneath the voice that sounded more robotic and mechanical than even Turbo’s. Noreen felt her own hide shiver. “Calm down, I’m not going to bite you.” The mare behind Akria snorted. “No matter what that silly mare thinks. May I ask your name, little one?”

“I’m Akria,” the filly managed.

“Ah, Akria. I remember the Akria that Turbo used to be. Fast on her feet, a little hard headed, and very much admired by the young colts though she most certainly never knew it.” The Future mare groaned and the Future Gryphon giggled. “Why do you stare at me like that, little Akria?”

“Your eyes…”

“Yes, my eyes are real. The only pair I have ever had, in fact, unlike others who have to get replacements. I happen to be very proud of that little detail. Makes the mares like me, too.” Akria giggled and smiled up at the stallion with genuine amusement. “Oh blast it,” he continued, stretching his legs, “if I had known Turbo was going to be all day about it, I would have strolled down here, left the medicine, and gone home.”

“Doesn’t someone have to give her the medicine?” Noreen asked, coming up on the stallion’s other side. “Unicorns don’t have fingers.”

“No, Turbo told my friend over there that she could do it herself.”

“Look,” the unnamed mare said suddenly. Turbo’s head jerked upright as all eyes turned to her. The red eye glowed faintly above the metal rim that encircled it. The head jerked sideways in a manner that made the onlookers wince in sympathetic pain. No one moved, no one spoke, all seeming to be rooted to the ground where they stood in astonishment.

Suddenly, the door in Turbo’s chest began to glow red where it was sealed. With a whisper of a creak, the door opened the width of a hair, the red light within bathing the chest and neck in a fiery glow. Akria gasped as a long snakelike tentacle eased out of the chest followed by another and another. The three winding tentacles seemed to wind about with minds of their own as Turbo stood silent like death. One tentacle went for the red liquid while the others headed for the blue. Moving with a strange grace, the first two needles were lifted as two more tentacles emerged from the chest cavity. These two headed for the other needle containing the red liquid and picked it up as gently as its predecessor did the first. The blue needle was raised to the side of the head, the needle pressed into the head directly into the brain. The Future stallion shifted uneasily and Akria looked at him in surprise, but the pain was all too evident on his face.

“Oh, Turbo…” the mare said quietly as her own mechanical eye dimmed with inner pain. The Gryphon remained silent.

Next, the two needles were brought out in front of the chest cavity. They hovered for a moment. With lightning speed, the gleaming needles charged the little door and buried themselves in the heavy chest! Still as unmoving as ever, Turbo barely shifted her weight beneath the aching pain that had to be flooding her. Needles barely touch inches apart, all tentacles contracted to operate the needles. Someone vomited in the back as red and blue liquid alike disappeared into the battered body. When the needles had been emptied, the strange tentacles removed them and dropped them. As the long arms withdrew back into Turbo’s chest, the empty tubes clattered to the ground, breaking into thousands of little pieces, and everyone remembered that breathing was required to continue living. As they breathed, the sun slipped behind the hills and painted the sky a beautiful orange sunset.

“Turbo?” Akria asked, summoning the courage to walk towards the Future mare, her own heart pounding with fear. As she gazed up into the red eye, it lost its glow and regained the look of intelligence. It tensed in anger but then relaxed slightly. “Are you going to be alright now?”

“Yes, I will be fine,” Turbo answered. Then she looked up and spotted the other Futures. She nodded at Razor and at Rau, but then her gaze rested on Elyria. “Why are you here?”