Yes, I'm ignoring my own advice. Mostly because I want to publicly clear this with a certain robotic nature priest.

Of Clockwork Ponies, part one

Having recently had the chance to examine a unique pony specimen of mechanical nature, I took to not only studying but also illustrating what of the systems I could. The subject, Second Hand, is eager to learn about his own nature and make-up, and so these notes are to help him as much as myself.

1. The Pelvis

I decided to start with the parts of the pony most accessible with minimum damage; seeing as the pelvis has almost-visible bolts, I began there. Featured in this illustration is Dat Plot;

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the outer metals are contoured so as to more seamlessly blend in with nonmechanical ponyfolk. Further study shows They also serve a mechanical purpose; the interior thigh mechanisms sit on floating plates, so as to allow the legs to rotate along their central axis. The rounding provides the necessary room for the mechanisms, and for additional pieces.

The tail, held firmly by a tube of concentric metal rings of different composition (possibly as heat sink?) is some sort of synthetic musculature, akin to fiber optic cables. Biopsy showed small nodes evenly spaced throughout each fiber and fiber cluster in varying patterns, which immediately clenched when exposed to light. Alternate illumination sources show they react subtly to heat and light, allowing the internal components of the pony to power them much like some of the more dexterous Earth race can use their tails.

There was also a hard case and tubing at the bottom I left alone out of prudence. It seems to contain a hydraulics system, as does the neck, central trunk and forelegs - all systems beyond my current level of "vivisection".

Here we see the actual, open pelvis;

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The central turn wheel powers most of the pony's locomotion. A side peg offset from center creates the piston effect of the rear legs used during bucking motions, while an adjustable sliding gear panel on the side plate (the 'flank') works to turn the rotation of he main gear into forward/backward motion through a bow-shaped slot cut into the thigh plate. In my notes I refer to this as the "rear smile" as the shape occurs a lot throughout the pony.

Not pictured are the complicated gear mechanisms which occupy the sacrum of the pony, with the fiber optics descending around the mechanism proper and between it's driving arms as they connect to the actual leg; Second Hand is capable of shifting gear ratios to alter his output.

The mechanisms were too small and complex for me to actually examine or detail, however. I accidentally popped out a single sprocket and the whole collapsed. It took three hours to reverse the damage; a finer touch is needed to examine (note to self: enquire as to Tinker's availability for examination during subsequent sessions)

2. Rear Legs
Pictured below are the thigh plate (note the rear smile below the fortified Femoral insert) and the 'cannon';

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My illustration does poor justice to the highly calibrated system; the rear cop protects from dirt and weather getting Ito the mechanism, and the straightened lower end of the thigh plate ends in another bow which connects to a dongle-style bearing system. The center of the cannon contains a motor box, which receives electric impulses through the thigh plate itself (I discovered too late to pursue that most of the pony contained "impurities" in the exterior material to act as scondary and tertiary circuitry!) and is held stable by a series of calibrated springs on either side which fasten to the pegs on the bottoms of the thigh plate. The dongle itself (the only part of the motor box I could open without risking damage) contains a rubber bow below a pivot, held on either side by stiff rubber grooves and a strange emulsion I was unable to identify. Second Hand informed me this fluid was important for full functionality, but that he had spare cartridges and could operate without for several hours if needed - contaminants would cause complex chemical reactions, but I'd kept pure it operated as an insulator and shock absorber. What of the fluid I could salvage from my clumsy mishap will be studied at a later date.

Connected to the motor box is a pulley system which pulls the cannon up and down for locomotion, and a secondary hydraulic system operates his hoof, which can move with roughly 85% the mobility of a living pony. The seemingly large difference is because the 1-2 degree difference adds up when he can only move the hoof in one direction at once (a nimble enough pony can use composite movements to push, turn and extend the hoof simultaneously).

One thing to note is that Second Hand does not seem to have any knees. The knee motion actually takes place as part of a larger movement within the hip itself. A poorly laid out "walking animation" follows, demonstrating why I am a magician and not an engineer.

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3. The Head
Second Hand's head was a marvel. The surface "skin" contains plates of a strangely mobile, ductile material which is seamless with a small current going through it. I was disturbed in fact to find that when put under sedation, the subject's face broke into a series of thin protective plates!

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Immediately noticeable is the large bolt at the jaw, which is invisible before sedation. The snout, side mouth plates, and zygomatic plates all serve to produce life-like facial expressions - a term I hesitate to use, as everything I have seen points to Second Hand being very much alive.

At the top of his head is the mane field, a series of large pores. When the release clamps were disengaged and his head was removed, the actual mane retreated into the anterior neck tubes (I suspect due to a similar reaction as the tail fibers). This is good, as it gives a mess-free way of getting to the entire cranium.

The ears are marvels of acoustics, using not only different contours but different materials to alternately reflect or absorb certain sounds. I am positive that certain ear positions on the subject's part would serve to 'tune out' certain sounds in much the same way a pony can ignore those it doesn't want to focus on. Sadly, I snapped a cable when removing the subject's left ear, and had difficulties getting the fuse to snap back in as well. He reported no difference after awakening, but I expect to hear back from him at some point.

Also of interest is the eye system of the pony itself - the cranium is mostly hollow, allowing only for the complex eye circuitry. Each eye is a marvel of engineering, being a highly clear crystal sphere with a central imperfection, set into a six-petal flower-like device. The pupil is actually a very small dilating gate that leads into the ocular stem, and is magnified by the crystal to appear the proper size.

The petals themselves seem to be made of a good alloy, and lined with Circuits of orichalc, shakudō, and Even griferrous hydroxide! I left them well enough alone, and proceeded to examine the sphere itself.

The crystal was unidentifiable, but scrutiny revealed it somehow had what I can only describe as a hypercube overlaid with a Coltic knot as an imperfection carved in it's very center. I obviously questioned how such a feat could be achieved, but had to cease as even my naturally delicate telekinetic handling of the sphere was enough to begin scuffing it's polish. Luckily, I had material to take care of it. I wasn't careful enough during reassembly and achieved a thankfully short/lived migraine while reinserting the eye.

The subject had at this time begun to show signs of reawakening. Seeing that being in such a state of disassembly would be bad for the subject's mental Health, I quickly reassembled him and saw to his comfort via positioning.

4. Overview
One of the key discoveries was that Second Hand's head does not hold his "brain". Not as such, anyway, or not as a single discrete organ. However, the entire system seems to be criss-crossed with redundant circuitry, and the torso showed signs of housing organ-like systems. Energy signatures also point to technology which touches on adjoining planar states; if some of Second Hand's circuitry an extend into the spiritual planes, he may very well have a soul in a way that would be easier to account for than with a regular organic pony!

Most of this information has been shared with the subject, and now that one procedure has been accomplished with no deleterious effects (as yet), we are considering broaching the topic of examining his deeper systems. The hydraulic workings, specifically, and his "organs", provided such can be done without causing harm.

All our data will be collated and combed over in excruciating detail over the next few weeks while we wait to hear back from the subject about any symptoms or signs of poor procedure. If we hear nothing in a month, we will evaluate the possible health concerns of deeper study. In the mean-time, Second Hand has been compensated for his help, and was thankful for the polishing of the interiors, as the hips now work as good as at manufacture, he claims.

Truly, a fascinating individual and fascinating specimen.