//------------------------------//
// Silver Tears 
// Story: Book 1 - The Behemoth came to Canterlot 
// by Equimorto 
//------------------------------//

"Do you see any?" Applejack asked, ducking behind a corner and occasionally looking past it. Occasionally she looked back towards the centre of town too. She could see Twilight had taken off with Rainbow, and Luna was keeping Nightmare Moon busy for the time being, according to plan. She also caught sight of Shining being sent through a building. Not quite according to plan, but accounted for, and still something they could manage. She adjusted her armour with a hoof. It was light, but it was better than nothing. 
"I think I spotted one," Pinkie said, dropping down from the top of the building to land at Applejack's side. Her own armour clattered a little as she fell down. It was even lighter than Applejack's, but again it was better than her bare skin and hair. "Alright, you know what to do," she said, turning to the constructs waiting there behind her. Then she eyed the unicorn guard in the middle of them. "Think you can do it?"
The guard stood at attention and nodded. "Yes."
"Alright." Pinkie peeked past the same corner Applejack was hiding behind. "Starshine, how are you doing?" she whispered at shouting volume.
"Oh, me?" asked the alicorn. "Just fine." Something almost like a paw slammed down on her position and left visible cracks on the crystal surface of the ground. Starshine just appeared a moment later floating beside the creature's head, and shot it a tiny magic blast. It seemed to bother the thing more than anything, and in retaliation it swung its arm against her, missing her.
Four other of those were around the alicorn, all either busy trying and failing to attack her or being forced back into it by her efforts whenever one tried to advance instead. None of them managed to get a good hit in on her, or to hit her at all for that matter, but her own magic didn't do any damage either when used against them. "Still trying to figure this thing out," she apologetically said as the blast she'd fired did nothing to slow down the arm coming crashing down against her. She disappeared and reappeared in a different spot, and things continued on as before, with regular soldiers on both sides refusing to approach the stalemate.
"We'll have to go around," Applejack said, having taken another look alongside Pinkie. "Unless we figure out a way to deal with those."
"Let's go around." Pinkie began to lead the way to the next building over, moving perpendicular to the direction they were supposed to head in to get away from the group Starshine was blocking. Applejack and the others followed her.
"How far is it?" Applejack asked, as they hid behind the building and again looked past the corner to see if the way was clear. Up ahead a set of dark armoured soldiers were locked into a fight with a group of Sunburst's construct warriors. They outnumbered and outpowered the small set of the Empire's forces, but the constructs's incredible sturdiness meant they still held their ground despite the disparity. No mutated ponies in sight, and Applejack was unwillingly reminded of how much she didn't like thinking about them that way.
"It's a mostly straight line from here, can't take too much more than half an hour even if we're slowed down heavily. Might be more if we're forced to stop." Pinkie looked over their group, then looked back at the battle ahead. "I think we might not get a better shot soon. We should charge in."
Applejack nodded, taking a moment to breathe in slow and deep. She shared a look with the unicorn guard, who nodded in response, then looked to Pinkie again. "Let's do it."