//------------------------------// // 4. "An Ember" // Story: Terror, Madness, and The Metamorphosis // by Rudefeline //------------------------------// Night of cascading fire. Anger boils in the skin of the attackers, Rain comes down like the tears of god, Burning the monkeys. The truck raged forth into the chaotic fray of life. The ape turned his grimace towards the rust bucket and pulled the trigger of his gun. A flurry of bullets collided and pierced the engine. Steam jetted from the block and blocked the Shogun’s view. He kept the shivering vehicle as straight as he could. His hand gripped the wheel like life unto itself. The ape howled and the grill of the truck burst his chest. He fell under the wheels of the diesel-fueled demon and it popped above the sand for a moment. One monkey fell off the top of the truck and the rest of the riders just about had their heads slammed. Vehicles around stopped and aligned themselves on a crash course with the truck. The truck’s wheels didn’t want to move. Shogun stomped on the gas and the truck lurched. They picked up speed and the windshield began to clot up with pools of water. The man tied to the post screamed as the truck collided with the car he was mounted on. A belt snapped, and the car barely withstood the crash. The motor smoked and sputtered. The man tried to undo the other belts frantically. After a moment he was free, he fell onto the sand just in front the bumper and ran his bare feet over to the rust town. The rain burned several little sores into his flesh before he got to brown sheet walls Shogun punched his windshield with three furious blows before it shattered. He assessed for a moment, shifting into reverse, Rarity trembled into his side. He rounded the car, a beige mare crying bloody murder inside, and ran the rusty old truck into the front gate of the town. The gate shook and the mare atop screamed, “Down!” Shogun turned his head around, the Frankenstein was propelling its horrid gargantua towards them. Atop the behemoth, a gun’s muzzle propelled a stream of bullets into the back of the truck. A bullet found a whole in Shogun’s steel face mask, he flopped violently onto the front wheel, and Rarity screamed in horror. Hoon’s eyes went bloody and he reached for the Shogun’s short blade, but Applejack wedged her hoof. He looked the mare in the eyes seething pure anger, teeth bared and wet. She looked like hell as well. Other monkeys screamed and shouted. The Frankenstein’s gun was empty and being reloaded. The old stallion sweated to find the right magazine Hoon, AJ, and Rarity climbed onto the hood. R8il./arity floated the three up and over the barricade. They landed on the roof of a bus and Hoon pointed back to his group of smaller monkey’s calling to Rarity “White one, help!” Rarity and Applejack looked over, the monkeys were trying to scale the wall. Rarity’s horn glowed, and lifted them over, they dispersed among the trashed cars. The gun was reloaded and a burst fired, just missing the white mare, but Applejack lost her balance trying to avoid the fire and felt the air around her falter. She fell into the darkness below and hit her head against a spare tire. She heard a muffled scream through an ear of water. She blinked and the sky felt brighter, she blinked and it was two shades darker. Everything was blurry, something moved above her, spun. It was a fan blowing from a draft of warm air. Warmth traveled up and down her side. Something bluish was to her right. She was on a bed, a one that was little comfortable. She blinked a few more times and things were clearer. Rarity tucked snugly against Applejack. She breathed petite little breaths. The bluish mane was about as kempt as it could be expected given the situation. Applejack turned as slow as she could in the bed. She ran a hoof down Rarity’s dusty cheek. Rarity quivered rather than stirred. Applejack moved her eyes around the mare awkwardly and decided to do something. She kissed the back of her ear gently. Rarity’s ear fluttered and Rarity stirred leaning on her hoof, looking back over to Applejack. Applejack’s teeth were no longer sharp, but there were still several scratches and scars on her lips and cheek. She looked hurt. Rarity embraced Applejack without permission and whispered “Payback…” Applejack’s countenance was confused and scared. Rarity withdrew and looked at the mare’s scared expression “What’s wrong?” Applejack’s eyes glossed over “I don’t know where I am.” they both sat in the silence of the moment, the only sound being Applejack’s sniveling. “Neither do I.” Rarity nuzzled up to the mare and held her. It was two days after the Shogun died. The sky was blue and the temperature was hot. The man that had unbound himself was currently equipping himself with the trash of the residents of this dusty town. The assault had ended in a draw and both the town and the raiders went back to their regular business. A baboon walked along the edges of the barricade and tossed his dry herb over every few feet. After a half hour, he hopped down and found The Chief in his office. He sat cross-legged on top of his desk. The baboon spoke dryly “Dust’s coming.” “He will not escape, will he?” “The dust will cover his tracks, and our chance for revenge will go like it was never even there” The baboon let a handful of sand he was carrying fall from his fingers. “Are all the new ones awake?” “Yes.” The Chief hopped off behind the desk and said without turning “Summon them for me.” “With haste, I will.” the baboon smiled, sauntered down the stairs and over to the small building across the small town. `` “What has happened?” “Discord.” Rarity spat venom. “This doesn’t feel like one of his pranks.” “He’s the one who brought us to this awful place and the last one.” “This doesn’t feel like one of his pranks, Rarity,” “Yes, he had a rather sad expression on his face as he sent us.” “Why?” “I don’t know.” “That armored monkey...” “It’s so awful, Applejack.” Rarity’s voice cracked. Applejack let Rarity closer to her center. “What’s the first thing you remember?” asked Rarity “The big rig, just before it fell.” Applejack was being dishonest. “Not too much happened before that, dear,” The doorway across from the bed was knocked on, they both looked up from the bed at the baboon. They realized the close position they were in and Rarity pushed herself a few inches away. “Don’t worry, equines, our Chief would like to speak with the both of you,” he smiled enjoying the mares’ discomfort “there’s a fire pit out in the courtyard.” he tipped his head in the direction and backed way. Applejack sat up “Who’s he?” “Some sort of doctor, I believe.” “Where’s those other ponies?” “The lost ones? they’re still waiting, these people won’t help them,” Rarity looked to the ground beside the bed in contemplation. “Hey, Rarity,” Applejack turned. “Yes?” she turned and looked at Applejack with her longing eyes. “Ah’ll make sure they make it here,” Applejack’s scarred face was straight and determined. `` “Amass! Amass!” the doctor ringed a bell above his head and circled the fire pit, meeting his gaze with approaching creatures. An ape was nursing a child and approached the baboon, they whispered back and forth. A few ponies and lizard-like folk approached the circle. Hoon and the man sat, uninterested, on vehicles on opposing sides of the circle. Lastly, Applejack and Rarity made their way to the location. The circle parted for them and kept their distance from the two. The Chief climbed down from his post and walked up to the circle, they parted for him as well. He was a strangely proportioned scaly blue lizard with a feathered headdress. He looked around to his peoples and smiled, but his smiled soured as he spotted the two mares “My name is Axeon, and I’ll politely ask you to leave,” he said in speedily “does anyone object?” “Me!” Rarity called before anyone else could even move “We need help, they're ponies out there starving, waiting for us!” The headdress stood tall “In here as well, little lady,” he gestured around to his people “these people deserve better and the little we have, we need.” he fingered the dust “life is sparse” “I have seen.” “When?” he looked conspiratorially at her “Hoon over there has told me that you are new arrivals.” “New arrivals or whatever, that doesn’t matter, will you let those ponies die?” she was red faced and yelling. He dipped his head down “It is a shame,” he lifted his head “we don’t have the food and it’s much too dangerous.” “Can we do anything?” she screamed at the lizard fellow, Applejack stepped up and put a hoof on her back. There was silence and few others shifted awkwardly. “Yes, perhaps,” he stood “the Frankenstein machine that attacked, we need it gone before we return to our watering holes,” he withdrew something from the bag on his side, a bloody face mask “he was our warrior, and someone,” he gulped struggling to get out the words “needs to replace him.” “I will.” said the white mare with no delay. “Ok-” Applejack interrupted the lizard “No, ah will.” Rarity turned around to her “You’ve been through the worst, there’s no way.” “Ah’ll see worse before we get back.” “I don’t understand,” “Somepony’s gotta be ah hero other than you.” “I do not want you to go out there.” “Please…, Rarity...” Applejack looked up to her. “Fine,” she exclaimed, her worried expression turned sour “die by yourself.” Rarity stamped off. Applejack stood there placid on the surface, just below she felt so hollow. She gulped. “Now…” he clapped his hands together “we have a few vehicles and weapons that might assist you.” “How do yah expect me tah kill them by myself?” “I trust that you can,-” the lizard said attempting to be solemn “I’ll help!” Hoon called from atop the bus removing one of his nails from the grip of his teeth. “Yes, you cared for the Shogun as well,” The Chief said under his breath “Alright help her get geared up,” he walked back up the dry stairs to his office “meeting adjourned, you two set off on the death hunt tomorrow.” The townies spoke in hushed whispers about what was happening. A lizard child hid behind the fire pit and watched Applejack. Hoon walked to Applejack and investigated her. After a few awkward moments of AJ simply leering in return, the bipedal lizard child ran up to Applejack, with his most amused smile. The mare watched as the kid dug through his bag, the kid jumped in joy and turned around, a shotgun slug half the size of him in his hands “Cool pony lady, have this!” he tipped the slug higher for her to grab. She picked it in her hoof and looked down at him “You have ah home?” the lizard looked a little conflicted, resolving to pick up his little bag and run over to a nearby small hole. “Thank yah!” she called after him, she half turned to ask Hoon about the little lizard, but she cared little in all actuality, she fully turned to him “show me to some weapons?” “Sure.”