//------------------------------//
// IV - Civil Protection 
// Story: Half-Hoof: a Resonant Hope 
// by Alfoals Trottenbauer 
//------------------------------//

What Ace suspected was a 'City Scanner', as the Combine put it, peered through a window and snapped a photo.

The radio continued chattering.

"Suspect found, pursuing from intel."

Hoofsteps ran across the floor outside.

Suddenly, a violent pounding on the facade of a drink machine shook the lab's walls. 

"Ace, you need to get out of here." Twilight insisted. "Take my prototype of the HEMV suit mark five." She indicated toward the armor in it's pod.

Ace race-cantered toward the suit and put it on. As he walked out Twilight levitated a nine millimeter pistol back-first toward him. She nudged him toward a heavy door. The door automatically opened by Rumble pushing a button on a panel.

Ace galloped out just as the facade broke.

"Suspect Sparks located fleeing, pursuing." A Civil Protection officer stated.

Ace stopped at a skid into the railing of a platform. He turned and fired the pistol into the head of an officer.

"Unit down at five, zero, five." A female voice rang as the officer fell.

Ace fired into an officer restricting Twilight's horn, then the one beating Rumble with an electric baton.

A chopper lowered itself to a hover behind Ace.

"Suspect Sparks, you are charged with: Resisting arrest, Murder of Civil Protection units, Civil Disorder, and Malcompliance. Anti-Citizen status achieved." The helicopter blared over it's rotor blades.

Ace jumped over the railing onto the ground below. More police rappelled from the craft, levitating Submachine guns. The units galloped after Ace.

" All Protection Team units: complete sentencing at will." The radio rang in the background.

The officers fired. Ace galloped through a gate frame, it's gate long gone. A wall blocked the way. Ace looked around and climbed over a fence before looking, landing on a large slope on the side of a canal, the incline twisted his fetlocks.

The injury caused him to roll down the slope into sludge. Adrenaline overtook his nerves and he got back up to a galloping start. The units stood behind the fence and continued to fire. A helicopter took after him, dropping more units. 

Ace galloped for an area enclosed from the open air, under a bridge.

Two more helicopters gathered behind the first one. They both hummed with energy, about to fire. Ace had made it to the bridge, the choppers showered the bridge with ammunition.

A stallion in a blue uniform motioned Ace toward him.

"You're that Sparks guy they're looking for, right?" He asked, looking around with paranoia.

"Yeah, why?" Ace answered.

"Twilight Sparkle told me to give you directions. At the next fork in the canal, go left toward a building on the inside wall." He told Ace quickly. "Get out of here, run!"

Ace staggered into a gallop through the water.