The PEGASUS Project

[SilverSwirl]

This tale involves a robotic version of Silverbolt who gets sucked into another universe.

The PEGASUS Project

Herein lies the tale of a metallic sentient being and partly how he came to be. This project is still highly classified by the parent governments involved as it pertains to some gate technology used to acquire test subjects from different realms of existence. The facility still exists but the project this story focuses on has been closed and deemed a success from the standpoint of the Mobian people as the resulting product is harmless to the indigenous population.

Part 1: The Gate Opens

It had been a few weeks since the PEGASUS Project research facility opened on Angel Island and progress was being made on the gate formula. Scientists were working feverishly on achieving a formula that would create a stable gate capable of transporting objects to and from other locations throughout the world. Currently, the gate would appear and fall apart in a matter of moments, a good start the scientists claimed but a long way from their goal. "See, we put more power here and change the resistance by an ohm or two a d it should work!", a bespectacled red-haired wolf exclaimed in the meeting room. The slim, young, scientist was pointing to a diagram on a projection screen with the pointer, his name tag said, "Dr. Reginald Zinc". One of the only scientists to get acquainted with the being dubbed, PEGASUS-01. A few jeers and doubtful glances were made by the others in attendance as he finished the presentation, raising the lights to call the meeting to a close.

"Let them think it won't work, I've worked on this too long to give up now. They don't think the gate project will succeed and have begun to work on other research to keep the facility funded. When it opens and stays open, they'll be celebrating with me.", Dr. Zinc muttered to himself as he left the meeting, heading for the gate lab. He swiped his key card and presented his print to the sliding Lexan door. The red light flashed green and a voice said, "Access Granted.". There was a hiss as the door slid right to allow acces and he stepped into the gate labs. Ambling to his terminal, he sighed as he tossed his white lab coat into his open locker and slammed it shut. There was so much to do, even though the formula was supposedly complete in his notes, he had to make sure the changes didn't interfere with other systems. Flopping into the office chair, he poured himself a mug of sweet tea and pulled up the gate program.

Typing furiously, he was in a trance, focused on finishing the gate program. This went on for hours, until the rumbling of his stomach couldn't be denied any longer. He rubbed his eyes and yawned sleepily, glancing at his watch. He grimaced as his watch read that it was 6:30 PM. He had been at the terminal for 5 and half hours and every physical need was screaming to be tended to. He groaned and as he got up from the chair, his paw tapped the mouse on the "Open Gate" icon. He left the room, sprinting for the restroom.

In the gate lab, an electrical hum filled the air and the monitor began to scroll lines of code being executed. Power coursed through the metal oval on the reinforced concrete wall as the address system spoke to empty air, "Gate opening, please stand clear of the device. Gate opening, please stand clear of the device.". Sparks flew as the device roared into life, a membrane forming in the oval. Instead of collapsing, it remained stable as Dr. Zinc sat in the cafeteria, eating a plate of pasta and drinking a glass of fruit juice. He was blissfully unaware of his success as he bantered with a few foxes who were working on some non lethal alternative weapons. At least until the klaxon sounded and the cafeteria lights turned red. "Unauthorized personnel in the gate room. Security teams have been dispatched to Dr. Zinc's lab station.", the address system announced. His mouth dried up and he dropped his fork, a shocked look in his grey eyes. He knew he had sealed the door behind him when he left his workstation. That only left one other possibility, he had accidentally initiated the gate program and something came through!

PART 2: First Contact

The security team hustled down the corridors, armed to the teeth with assault weapons and flash bangs. They were trained to handle any situation that could possibly occur in the research station, but nothing would prepare them for what waited for them in Dr. Zinc's lab. The squad leader, Lt. Dorian, held up his left paw in a signal to halt as they approached Dr. Zinc's lab. "Security, would you please override the lock on Dr. Zinc's door?", he asked through his earpiece while signaling for two of them to flank the door. "Acknowledged", came the reply through the earpiece as Lt. Dorian clicked the safety off on his weapon.

As they prepared to breach and clear the lab, Dr. Zinc was rushing out of the cafeteria. His only thoughts were about ensuring whatever came out of the gate would be in a condition that was satisfactory for study. "I really hope those brutes don't damage anything in there! If they do, it'll be weeks again before we can even begin gate testing!", he exclaimed as he dashed towards his lab, disregarding his own safety. His pulse pounded with excitement he hadn't felt in years, he was so close to making possible contact with something from outside this world.

Lt. Dorian waited for his override to be processed. The stocky raccoon tapped a boot impatiently as he could hear the clicking of keystrokes in his earpiece. This was taking much longer than expected and it was getting on his nerves. He blinked his hazel eyes, scowling as he resisted uttering an explosive curse at the security of this place. "Can't this go any faster? Why did Dr. Zinc have to make it so difficult?", he thought to himself in mild disgust. His mood did not improve as he saw Dr. Zinc rush up to him. "Dr., please open this door and stay out of my way.", he said to Dr. Zinc quite angrily. Dr. Zinc looked at him coldly, frowning at being spoken to in such a fashion. "I'll open the door, sheesh... But promise me that you will not destroy anything. I'll be behind your men, to make sure you don't. I could have you fired if you mess up the gate tech.", he retorted, smirking. Dorian just grumbled and waved his men away from the door to let Dr. Zinc open the door. "Security, we have the Dr. Stop the override.", he whispered into his earpiece and the keystrokes stopped.

Dr. Zinc placed his paw on the door and the red light flashed green once again. The voice that stated, "Access Granted", was a little distorted though. Dr.Zinc looked back at Dorian and shook his head, incensed that they'd try to mess with the print lock mechanism. The door slid open with a hiss and Dr. Zinc entered the gate lab first despite Lt. Dorian shouting at him, "Get behind us!". Lt. Dorian and his small team entered after him, checking corners as they swept the first room of the lab. Finding nothing, they moved towards the gate room, "Stay alert, team.", Dorian said softly to his team behind him as Dr. Zinc opened the sealed door to the gate test chamber.

His thoughts were a blur and his heart was pounding in anticipation for what may be waiting for him. He gasped in awe as he stepped into the room, the security team not as amused at the sight. Moving about the gate room was a robotic equine, painted cobalt blue with retractable wings and icy blue metal mane and tail components. His eyes glowed with life as he looked about the room, curious as to where he was. The security team wasn't taking any chances as they shouldered their weapons, prepared to fire at what they thought was a creation of Dr. Eggman's that had come through the gate. "Zinc, get back! It's one of Eggman's bots!", Lt. Dorian shouted at the scientist who was blocking their field of fire. The robotic Pegasus turned and looked right at the armed raccoon and his team, cocking his head in confusion. "Who is Dr. Eggman? I do not know of this doctor you speak of.", the robot replied with a well synthesized voice. That was enough for Dr. Zinc, who stood in front of it to protect it further. Dorian groaned and lowered his weapon, signaling his team to stand down.

"Where am I? And who are you?", the robot asked, shuffling his metallic hooves on the sturdy floor. Dr. Zinc, surprised at the robot's intelligence, answered with enthusiasm. "You are on the Planet Möbius, and my name is Dr. Reginald Zinc, head of the Gate Project at the Angel Island research base.", he replied, his gray eyes filled with excitement. Lt. Dorian sighed, he really couldn't believe he was telling his name to nothing more than a glorified, albeit intelligent, appliance. "I'm Lt. Dorian, security.", he said coolly. The Pegasus robot nodded, a small smile on his metal muzzle. "Thank you for the information, Dr. Zinc and Lt. Dorian. I am Silverbolt, a Pegasus robot created by Dr. Grey Matter. I am a variant on the ancient robot known as Zynk, a great piece of technology from a long forgotten civilization.", he replied, bowing his head reverently to the sentient beings in the room.

Part 3: Exploration and Testing

Several days after the success and failure of the gate, Silverbolt was still getting used to all the visitors to his quarters in the base. He felt like he was a zoo animal most of the time, based on the reactions of the scientists and technicians. Only Dr. Zinc made him feel comfortable and at ease in his reinforced chambers. "I wish they would stop fawning over me and try to talk with me like an intelligent being.", he grumbled to Dr. Zinc, the young wolf nodding in agreement. "I'm sorry about that, but they're used to dealing with what we call "badniks", robots that cause damage and aren't exactly intelligent. Creations of Dr. Eggman, whose only goal is to be the ruler of this planet. He's an egomaniacal scientist with an IQ of over 300, but all his bots have a weak point, thankfully.", Dr. Zinc added with a small chuckle. Silverbolt grinned back, he had been hearing a lot about this Dr. Eggman from Zinc and others in the short time he'd been here. He sounded extremely intelligent, yet he always got his comeuppance from a blue hedgehog and his friends time and time again. "So, when do you think I could go back? Or was the gate rift a fluke that picked my space in the universe just that time?", he asked Dr. Zinc, cocking his head inquisitively.

Dr. Zinc took a deep breath, this was going to be painful to tell Silverbolt this. They were becoming friends, even though he was a living, mortal wolf and he was a Pegasus robot. "I'm not sure, I was away from the terminal when the program was executed. Plus I believe my team is trying to fix that bug in the programming. You may be trapped here, but I'll try my best to figure something out.", he replied with an encouraging smile. Silverbolt nodded at the answer, sighing softly. "I could be stuck here, which isn't bad. They're a nice enough lot and they treat me well.", he thought, a grin appearing on his metallic muzzle. If he was stuck here, he might run into Eggman, which would be most amusing and interesting. But he could also be decommissioned by that blue hedgehog they called Sonic too. But as Dr. Zinc had explained in the first day of him being here, it was far more likely that the echidna would punch his ticket and ask questions later than Sonic would. Silverbolt pulled in his wings and stretched, yawning as Dr. Zinc stood up and waved to the observers in the observation room.

"Um, Silverbolt, we're going to be doing some testing today. I hope you don't mind!", Dr. Zinc said to Silverbolt with an excited gleam in his eyes as he left the chamber. Silverbolt perked his metal ears at that and extended his wings. "A test?", he asked the empty chamber and an immediate response came from the observation room. "Yes, just a test of your capabilities and the like. Nothing that would jeopardize your existence.", was the reply, and Silverbolt narrowed his eyes, not exactly trusting that voice. "Weapons primed and armed.", he whispered, his auto cannons sliding out from his sides, nestled under his wings. His muzzle opened and the end of a laser based weapon emerged.

In the observation gallery, the observers gasped as his weapons appeared, taking down notes. The short, elder canine at the microphone growled, he would have to escalate the test. He, Dr. Dahm, had been at work on just such a project, only to be found redundant with this Silverbolt being discovered. Dr. Zinc didn't deserve all the glory for the gate and this, THING. He was much too young, and needed to be taught a lesson. He grinned and pushed up his spectacles as he pressed buttons to release the most annoying Badniks they'd captured for the test. As they showed up on the observation monitors, the observers were outraged, shouting at Dr. Dahm, "You old fool! What's wrong with you! You'll destroy it!". Dr. Zinc had entered the room at that time and was also similarly angry. He knew the score though, it was all because Dr. Dahm was angry at having his project cancelled. "Are you kidding me, Dahm? You really have to let your petty squabble with me cloud your judgement?", he asked forcefully, his eyes narrow slits. "Yes, you little upstart. You're too young for these things, I should be getting the scientific glory!", Dr. Dahm replied, cackling with glee as the Asterons, Slicers, Shellcrackers, and Orbinauts entered the chamber.

Silverbolt knew he was in a pickle, as these Badniks entered the room. He was educated on most of them from Dr. Zinc and knew that these were the worst of the worst that had been acquired over time. This only meant that somebody in that room wanted him destroyed, out of fear or jealousy, he did not know. The only thing that was important right now was surviving. As the Asterons tried to home in on him to explode and release their payload filled barbs and the Orbinauts launched their metal stars, he could see the other Badniks launching their attacks. The room was becoming a death trap, and Dr. Zinc could see it unfolding from the observation deck with the now rogue Dr. Dahm. "He's done for, Zinc. Say your goodbyes to him.", Dahm said with a smirk, tilting the mic to Zinc while the other observers left the room and pulled the security alarm. Leaning in to the mic, Zinc laughed and said, "I believe in you! Help is on the way!". Dr. Dahm hissed and grabbed Zinc, planning to use him as a hostage when the security team arrived. Silverbolt steeled himself, taking flight with his jet hooves as he opened fire with his auto cannons and muzzle laser. Weaving and rolling in the confined chamber was hard, but it was working, even as he heard the scraping noise of a Slicer throw scuff the paint on his wing.

Lt. Dorian heard the commands from HQ about the test chamber and that Dr. Dahm had gone rogue on Zinc and Silverbolt. Cursing, he mobilized an assault force and hustled to the test chamber. Luckily, his team's assigned station was near the test chamber and they arrived in about 3 minutes. Dorian gritted his teeth at the sounds of laser and gunfire coming from the chamber, fearing the worst. "Team, don't go in the testing chamber, Silverbolt is dealing with it as best as he can. We're taking down Dahm, he's responsible for this.", he said to his team, flash bang in his hand. They could hear Dahm laughing maniacally inside the observation room, as he shifted around in the room, a dagger to Zinc's throat.

"If you come in, I'll kill Zinc!", Dahm shouted at the team outside the door. He wasn't taking any chances as he saw the test Badniks getting chewed up by Silverbolt, the screens showing only scratch damage to the paint of the robotic equine. That frustrated him, considering what was in the room, what was that thing made of?! "Zinc, what is he made of? Tell me!", he exclaimed, shaken. "I have no idea Dahm, but it's a lot stronger than what we know.", he replied softly, trying to wriggle free of Dahm's hold. For one in his golden years, he was surprisingly strong.

Outside the door, Dorian couldn't wait any longer. Dahm wasn't answering him to peacefully exit the room and release Dr. Zinc. The sound of explosions coming from the testing chamber were unnerving his team as well. "We have to move in, he won't comply. Flash and clear team.", he whispered, quickly opening the door and rolling it in. Dr. Zinc saw it roll in and covered his eyes, as the sound and bright flash filled the room. Ears ringing to beat the band, he felt the grip on him disappear as Dahm was disoriented by it. Taking his chance, he scrambled away on hands and knees, hitting the button to end the test. The Badniks in the room ceased functioning and the door opened. Dahm was quickly overwhelmed by Dorian and his men, while a medic looked Zinc over. Silverbolt saw the door open and boosted out into the hallway, visibly upset. The door sealed shut behind him and he trotted to the door marked "Observation". It opened for him and he pulled in his wings and weapons so he could enter. Fuming, he approached Dorian, who wasn't getting much out of Dahm besides his petty grievance with Zinc showing him up and being too young to be getting this sort of discovery. Dorian and Zinc saw the look in Silverbolt's eyes and averted their eyes. "He's not worth it, Silverbolt.", Dr. Zinc whispered to Silverbolt. "I'm not killing him.", was the cold reply.

Dahm scuttled back on his behind, away from the visibly enraged robot equine. "I-I-I am s-s-sorry.... Forgive me!", he cried pitifully, defeated. His eyes were filled with panic and fear as he thought that he was finished. Silverbolt grinned as Dahm reached the back wall and couldn't skitter away any further. "You aren't sorry, you bitter old dog. I won't kill you, I'll give you this one free on account of you being old and bitter. Get him out of my sight, before I change my mind and do this planet a public service.", he growled, stepping aside to let Dorian cuff the old dog.

Part 4: Further Complications

It had been quite the week for the research station. First, the gate produced Silverbolt, a quite intelligent equine robot. He had beaten the Turing Test, proving he was a true AI with what one would classify as a "soul". However, it wasn't all sunshine and roses on Angel Island with the breakdown of Dr. Dahm and the subsequent arrest of the old canine. Security was tightened around both Silverbolt and Dr. Zinc with Dorian and his team standing by. All this added security put a damper on their spirits as the week dragged on. They were always surrounded by technicians and security soldiers as they went about their daily routines. It was driving them crazy, they couldn't have a moment alone with each other to just unwind and talk.

Dr. Zinc sighed as he sat at his terminal, typing up another report on the gate. "Stability has improved and the duration of the gate has also increased... We've conducted several successful tests since the accidental acquisition of PEGASUS-01. We know his chosen name, Silverbolt, but little else. He sees himself as a male and has shown emotions during the incident in the testing chamber... The gate is safe for use with inorganic objects as of this report...", he typed in his report to GUN and all the nations of Möbius. He yawned and stretched, leaning back in his chair. His paw tapped the cold metal of his guard's weapon and he reflexively pulled his paw back. "Sorry...", he muttered softly, shaking his head. The guard just chuckled softly, but he felt bad for the disheveled scientist. Having little to no privacy can really wear someone down. He put his paw on Zinc's shoulder and smiled, "It's okay, Doc... I'll see if I can arrange a meeting with Silverbolt without any supervision. I'm sure Dorian will understand...", he replied to Zinc softly, tipping a wink to him. Dr. Zinc gave an understanding nod, managing a smile. That would do him a lot of good, to have a little time to relax with his friend Silverbolt.

Deep in the facility, Silverbolt faced his own problems. Having been identified and seen in action, the board of directors saw it fit to keep him secured in the interests of safety. Stuffed into an indestructible room with relatively simple accommodations, he quickly got bored of pacing around in the 10x10x10 room. He huffed and stamped his hooves in growing anxiety, worried about his friend Dr. Zinc. "I hope nothing has happened to him... Also, why am I such a threat to this research station? Just because I blew up some hostile bots in self defense, doesn't mean I'm going to harm a living thing!!!", he muttered to himself, steadily raising his voice as he uttered the last sentence. On the other side of the reinforced doors, the guards were shuffling nervously. After a day or two, they had to put up with Silverbolt's internal monologues about varying subjects with greater frequency. "Dorian should be hearing about this... He's getting a little too restless in there.", the taller of the pair muttered as the doors rattled from a well placed kick. The other nodded, touching his ear piece and speaking into it, "Dorian, Silverbolt... I mean, PEGASUS-01 is growing rather restless... The doors are still holding, but his kicks are starting to deform the metal...". As he closed the transmission, another loud bang was heard and another hoof shaped imprint bulged between the two guards.

Dorian, on the other end, grimaced. It wasn't looking to good for both Zinc and Silverbolt. He began to doubt the board's decision to isolate them from each other and to quarantine Silverbolt. It was having adverse effects on their emotional stability and performance. "Listen, son. I want you to release him. Silverbolt can take care of himself. Also, lay off Zinc, let him get some privacy. I'll deal with the board!", he barked his orders into his headset, fuming. He swiveled around in his office chair and faced his desk. Determined, he leaned over the keyboard and began to type out his report to the board of directors.

The next morning, they awoke from another night of fitful sleep. Zinc was resigned to being under surveillance and guard for another day as he sluggishly performed his morning routine. However, as he exited his quarters, he saw that the guards were gone. He laughed, a broad smile on his face. "Dorian! I'm gonna buy you a drink!", he exclaimed in absolute joy. He didn't care that the government and GUN received his reports on Silverbolt and the gate.

On the other side of the base, the battered hangar doors opened, revealing a rather distraught robot. His eyes were warily glancing about at the technicians and scientists looking him over. He was wishing he had never arrived here, as he finally noticed that the guards were noticeably absent. A weight seemed to be lifted off his back and sweet relief filled his neurons. "Where are the guards? Not that I mind their absence...", he asked the young feline scientist currently looking him over. The calico scientist gave him a matter of fact look and replied softly, "Lt. Dorian has lifted the protection orders on you and Zinc. The directors have been notified and the governments have been notified on our progress with our research.". Silverbolt stared quizzically at the scientist, simultaneously overjoyed at being free to see Zinc again but also hesitant, somewhat concerned about the involvement of the government.

Wheels had begun turning in the government bureaucracy as soon as the report hit the desks of the President and GUN. As the pair reunited in the solarium, conference calls and meetings were being arranged to figure out how they would handle the pair. Zinc and Silverbolt were oblivious to this as they cheerfully chatted and played chess. Dorian watched and smiled, his eyes watching the game unfold. "You two seem to be in much better spirits now!", he said with a laugh. "Yeah, not being held down by guards makes things a lot better!", Zinc said with an excited swish of his tail, moving his pawn on the board. Silverbolt made his move before a laugh burbled forth from his muzzle. "Checkmate, Zinc. And yes, Dorian I am much happier now that I am no longer in confinement...", he replied with another laugh, his tail flicking in joy. Things seemed to be looking up for the trio, but the government and GUN may have other plans.

[SilverSwirl]

Part 5: Executive Orders

In the wee hours of the morning after Zinc and Silverbolt's reunion in the solarium, government officials and GUN met in a top secret meeting. The President took his seat at the head of the table, looking at a folder labeled, "Project PEGASUS". The folder contained the research reports sent in by the Angel Island research station. He cleared his throat as he came upon the photographs of Zinc and Silverbolt taken from security footage. This was going to be difficult to handle in a way that would make the military and GUN happy as well as appealing to the more peaceful members of the population. "Ladies and gentlemen, we do not necessarily have a problem at this very moment in time, but that may change with little warning. This meeting is to make you aware that I've been informed about this new robot that has appeared out of the gate. I assure you I am weighing the options very carefully, considering the combat data collected from Dahm's test, before he went rogue.", the president explained calmly, he had done this sort of thing before. He clicked a button and the screen behind him came to life. It showed Silverbolt's test films in sequence, several high ranking officials looked at each other nervously as the combat footage started rolling. The GUN representatives smiled knowingly, already envisioning putting the equine to work for them in keeping the peace.

The film eventually ended and the lights came back on to a flurry of questions and accusations from both sides of the fence. The President banged his fist on the table angrily, snarling in contempt at their needless bickering. "Enough! I only wanted to bring you all in the loop on this development in the multinational gate project as it occurred to our team of scientists! In the meantime, I'll call for Dr. Zinc to report immediately to Central City with this PEGASUS-01 for a formal meeting with us all in attendance. You are all dismissed.", he said with an odd calmness, the snarl gone from his middle aged face as he took a long sip of his black coffee. He turned about in the chair and listened to the shuffling of feet and the doors closing repeatedly; a grin on his face. He picked up the telephone and dialed the research station. "Yes? This is the President calling. Oh you're quite welcome for the budget increase. Congratulations on getting the gate operational. Please tell Dr. Zinc I wish to congratulate him in person and to bring the new robot with him. I am quite intrigued by it all. I'll be waiting for him. Goodbye.", he spoke into the handset before quietly putting it back down and chuckling.

Dr. Zinc was awakened by a loud knocking on his door. "Grrr.... What do you want?!", he called out, annoyed at the disturbance. He looked over at the clock and saw it said, "3:30 AM". This was too **** early for work! "It's half past three in the morning! What is so important that I need to be roused at this hour?!", he added in growing anger. A familiar voice answered him sadly, "The President wishes to see us, Zinc.". Silverbolt sighed as he heard Zinc's voice change in his reply of, "Oh! I'll be right there, Silverbolt! Sorry I yelled at you!". Zinc opened the door, dressed in his best black suit and blue tie. Giving Silverbolt a reassuring pat, he walked with the robot to the helipad and a possible reward from the president.

Silverbolt wasn't too sure of all this as they sat in the helicopter. The takeoff had been smooth and they had clear skies all the way to the meeting point. Even though Dr. Zinc looked thrilled to be meeting the president, something bothered the robot. From what he had overheard from Dorian and the others at the base was that the government wasn't always acting in the best interests of the people despite their best efforts to do so in front of the cameras. "Zinc? I have a bad feeling about this... What if he separates us?", he asked his wolf friend nervously, shuffling in his secured transport pod. Dr. Zinc was nervous as well, but not for the same reasons Silverbolt was. He was meeting the President and GUN to report his findings in person. He shrugged and turned around in his seat, offering the nervous equine a smile. "We won't know until we arrive and I give my report. However, I do believe that the military and GUN will be highly interested in you... Bunch of warmongering scum... Well I amend that, GUN is usually interested in the public defense...", he replied nervously as he turned to look out the cockpit window at the skyline of Central City. Their fates were in the hands of politicians now. All it took were a few words and Zinc would be a renowned scientific mind or Silverbolt would be scrap.