Bucky's
Third Arc: Advancement
Gear Head and the remaining Royal Guard arrived at the market center, only to find Bucky's a heaping pile of broken building. He turned to Satin, who was obviously confused about the buildings demise...and perhaps a little bit disappointed.
"Gear..." Satin said, not taking his eyes off of the burning refuse.
"Yeah?"
"I thought you said we were in for a fight."
"That is indeed what I said."
"Then where is the enemy?" Satin asked, irritation growing in his voice.
"Ummm...There I guess." Gear said, shrugging.
A cough originating near the rubble interrupted the exchange.
Gear ran over to where the cough came from, only to find Flower Founder sprawled out on the ground.
"Sergeant!" Gear exclaimed, running to the mare's side.
"Hey Gear Head. How goes the battle?" She asked weakly.
The stallion gave her a once over, and decided that aside from a few bumps and bruises that she was alright.
"As far as I know, pretty good. We don't know where the rest of the rebels are, or if there are any of them left. But I met up with the rest of the Royal Guard." Gear said, motioning to Second Lieutenant Satin who was making his way over to the two.
"Sir!" she exclaimed, trying her best to stand through the exhaustion.
"At ease soldier. From the looks of it you've had a hell of a day." He smiled at her.
"Sir, I didn't know the Second Platoon was still in Wethoof. I thought you were sent to New Findings to establish a guard post there." Flower inquired.
"We were, but after a messenger relayed a call to arms in Wethoof, we high-tailed it back to give you a little bit of extra support. Good thing too, we've saved a few of your people on the way." His veteran eyes went a little hazy before striking back to immense focus. "HA! despite my superiors attempts at keeping me out of combat, I still can find a way to kick some ass!"
This prompted a cheer from the guards of the Second Platoon.
"Anyway, you go get yourself looked at Sergeant, you're no use to the sisters in this shape." Satin proclaimed.
"Yes Sir." Flower said.
Gear helped her to her feet, and they started making their way towards the medics.
"By the way Flower, where's Nar-Kuth?" Gear asked, turning his head to face Flower.
Her eyes drifted to Bucky's, now engulfed in an inferno. Several members of the Second Platoon were attempting to put the fire out.
"He didn't make it." she said, sorrow filling her voice.
Gear stopped dead in his tracks.
Dead? Nar-Kuth? How? Gear's mind started running a mile-a-minute. Questions zipped around in his head. This was the first of their group to die. Would it be the last? Are the others alright? along with a million more.
However, they all stopped when he noticed Flower had pulled him into a hug and was crying into his shoulder. His fur began to get wet from her tears, but he wrapped a hoof around her and held her tight. They stayed like that for a time before she had finished her crying.
"I'm sorry Gear, if I hand't of been captured he would still be alive." She said, barely containing another sob.
"It's not your fault Flower. Nar-Kuth knew what he was doing when him and I delved into the basement. It's not your fault he's dead, it's theirs." he angrily pointed a hoof at the remains of Bucky's. Anger barely contained beneath his breath.
"they'll pay for all the suffering they've caused." Gear said, before turning his back to the fire, and helping Flower to the medics.
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Bronze Hoof made his way through the town. Although most of the damage to the infrastructure was merely superficial, the city appeared to be demolished. Shattered glass and broken carts littered the streets that the lone minotaur roamed. The occasional stray cat would streak across the disheveled road, as if being chased by a sinister spirit.
This city was definitely one that Bronze had never been to, as it was stark in contrast to the city of the former day. Bronze caught glimpses of young, terrified eyes retreating from window sills as mothers ripped their children away from the dark visage.
Bucky's...I swear I saw that when we were comin into town. Bronze thought to himself.
The bull heard a whimper coming from a pile of rubble, which upon closer inspection turned out to be the side of a residential home. There were charred bricks on the rim of the building with which the rubble had been blown away from. Obviously magic was the cause of this particular destructive scene; a slight tingle in the air revealed that a particularly strong blast from an adept wizard was the origin of the powerful discharge. The burnt edges told of a fire based magic attack, perhaps a fire bolt or a compressed timed explosive. The size of the hole spoke volumes of the mage's abilities. Any wielder of the arcane arts has the capacity to create fire in small amounts, however controlling large volumes of it is difficult for most. Considering the sheer force required to blow a twenty foot wide hole into solid brick, the source of this destruction must be very powerful indeed.
All of this Bronze noticed and articulated in the time that it took before a second whimper was heard.
Bronze leapt into action, bounding over a turned over cart containing a multitude of vibrantly colored fruit, and began yelling to whomever was buried alive.
"Hello?! is there someone under here? I need you to answer me!"
A muffled cry of help made it's way out of the refuse, eliciting a ping of ache within The one-armed warriors heart. Judging by the pitch and faintness of the whimper, the victim was a child, and was fading fast.
The minotaur's massive hand gripped the chunks of bricks by the ton, and tossed them aside despite his exhaustion. Second after second ticked by as the sobs of the little one were made louder and more clear with each hurling piece of the destroyed building. After what seemed an eternity, Bronze saw the tear stricken purple eyes of a young filly.
Bronze quickly, yet carefully extracted the final bricks that had trapped the poor foal. He checked her over for any serious injury, checking her pulse and examining for any broken limbs. miraculously, the girl was fine, much to Bronze's delight. Her violet coat has scratches and dirt matted into the fur. Her mouth appeared dry, telling him she was dehydrated, probably from untold hours spent under the rubble. Her navy blue mane was in shambles, with a portion of it coated in dried blood.
He scooped the filly up into his chest, her small form barely covering his forearm. She embraced him and sobbed into his pelt.
The filly started babbling, her unintelligible words interrupted by sobs and tears.
"Where are your parents child?" Bronze asked softly. Enticing a wail of grief to emanate from the foal as she dug her face into his chest once more.
The minotaur's eyes drifted to where he had rescued the child.
A lone hoof stuck out from under a wedge of building debris. A small dried pool of blood encircled the limb. The color of the coat was similar to that of the filly, leading to the answer to his question.
"Do you have any more family in the city?" Bronze questioned.
She shook her head no.
"Then how about we stick together until we can get you some place safe?" He asked.
The filly gave a faint nod, but gave no verbal reply.
The two set off down the road together, towards the market, towards Bucky's.
"What's your name child?"
"Violet Star" she answered meekly.
"Well miss Star, my name is Bronze Hoof, but you can call me Bronze."
"Bronze...is..." Violet started to ask.
"Is what, sweety?"
"Is my mom dead?" She looked up at him, tears burning rivers down the dust on her cheeks.
"Yes...I'm sorry." He said solemnly. A single tear tracing it's way down his cheek.
The duo made their way down the ransacked street in silence after that. The only sound echoing through the vacant city were the small fires started by the fighting, and the sound of a childhood ending in sorrow.