Age of the Machine.

by SigmaAtlas

Anna

Anna poked the barrel of a sniper rifle out the small hole of the cracked window. Her barrel scanned up and down the street, the sidewalk, the alleys, the street itself, to see if anything was lurking in the darkness. A cold, overcast fall day. It was bitter, unforgiving, but worst of all was the complete silence. The rustle of leaves was all you could hear, anything different could mean multiple things. It could of been something to eat, or possibly a ally to join her in her sanctuary. That was the optimistic side of her, but what she knew was that most of the time it wasn't anything good. It was a angry boar that wanted to tear her head off, or a psycho that wanted to do unimaginable things to her. Worst of all, it could be the turning of gears. The sound of metallic foot steps heading down the road in whatever direction. A deadly machine, wandering, and trying to find today's kill. Whatever it was going to be, not in a million years would Anna let that thing have mercy. It would be killed, if had no feelings other then the will to murder and kill. Never could she risk anything hostile coming of 100 feet of this apartment. It was protected, and as at any moment a machine could come running on it's metal, bipedal legs, the same any moment could a bullet come shooting out of the barrel of the mares rifle, killing whatever would want to mess with her.

She often became lost in thought. It was only natural to get bored and for her mind to wander about the situation she was in. How much she regretted her old life, or how much she missed it. How many ponies were gone and how it was because of how stubborn and stupid the Equestrian government was. Anna remembered. She remembered the time when they told you everything was alright and would always be that way when in reality they had thousands of killing machines under their noses. Her thoughts were filled with anger up in this room of the apartment. That anger replaced a feeling that put a risk in Anna's survival, and that was loneliness. The rifle scanned the beaten road that was filled with ruble, ash, and scrap metal. It eventually paused as the sun went down. It filled the sky with it's orange lust that Anna saw as hope. Hope that there was still beauty, still love, and still somepony out there to keep her company.

At first glance it seemed her luck wasn't for her. A single mother, that was pregnant when it all began. Almost ready, only a few months away, and the mother ran through the streets filled with chaos. Ponies running back and fourth and shouting for loved ones. Lasers shooting in all directions as the sound of stomping was almost deafening. Anna didn't have anypony, not even a father for her baby. So she ran, for as long as she could run. Now stuck with a young one, the only thing she could do now was nest. The luck was for her the entire time, that somepony above blessed her to keep running despite the pain of the extra weight and sore body. Now Anna had a safe haven, a nest, not the best one, but one that could do for now. The feeling of being alone though was the bad part. A feeling that haunted her for a long time now, even before this all happened.

The mare stopped at the bottom of the wooden stairs. They were bare and cold, but Anna made sure to keep everything else like a real home. She let all her pain or anger drain out of her before turning the corner into the main parts of the home. She would walk down the hallway, and look into a pair of eyes she wouldn't want to upset. Anna sighed as she clicked the safety of her sniper rifle and put it on a shelf she installed by the stairs. She had to stop thinking about the anger and loneliness for a little while. The pegasus breathed in, opening her wings with it, and out, closing her wings with the exhale.

Anna turned the corner, trotting down the musty hall, filled with pictures of a probably dead family she never met. At one point it was a pair of parents, and two sons living in this home.To the right was the family room, or the base of operations for this little HQ Anna had set up here. It was filled with all sorts of equipment, but most importantly, there he laid. A little colt who tilted his head to the right with curiosity. Very young, only a month old and growing like a champ. Blue eyes that stared into Anna's that were the same shade, something that always made her smile. He had to be glad to see her after napping while she was on watch. She rubbed his head, a brown mane that was a mix of his fathers black and her blonde. His coat that was a darker grey, something that was the complete opposite of Anna's lighter tan, but still had the same texture as hers. Last but not least was the wings that opened up in excitement when his mother showed. The innocence he had, how happy he always was, something that would vanish when he laid eyes on the dark world around him.

Anna picked up her baby, giving him a hug then a nuzzle. This was the second part of her duties, her tasks now being to be a mother. To care and love for her little colt, and depression were the threats that stopped her from doing this duty. She inhaled and resisted the urge to gag "Somepony needs a changing" Anna chuckled. She moved her son over to a small pile of supplies, then she laid her son down on the floor. Sprinkled into their daily bonding was always something that reminded her of the war outside. The pile was filled with the supplies she needed for her son. What reminded her this time was when she reached for the diapers, she was to the last package. Not only did she know she would have to venture out again to get more supplies, but this pack was half burned. Anna couldn't help but to imagine what other innocent little foal these once belonged to. But in order to keep herself joyful for Zeus, she smiled again and went to work.

"Momma?" The little colt said as soon as she was finished, and was being given a rub on the belly.

"Yes?" The mother replied to her foal, knowing there probably wouldn't be much more of a response in his small vocabulary.

"H-Hi"

"Hi Zeus" Anna chuckled

She turned him over, discarding of his dirty diaper at the end of their small conversation. Her ears listened carefully for any activity outside, but oddly enough there wasn't any. You would think in the city there would be more activity, being the epicenters of ponykind's society. But instead they were the first targets, and as soon as she showed up, it had already been wiped clean of life. They marched endlessly. It wouldn't be long until their march circled back, where there lasers would shoot again and the street would echo with the screams of the only survivors.

It wasn't something to be thinking about. It was negative, and Zeus didn't need negative. He needed for his mother to be happy and positive so he could continue to be a joyful, and innocent foal he was without a worry. Anna started up a fire in the fire place, knowing the smoke would rise through the chimney, and release high up where it would be hidden in the city's towers. It glowed and was something that always had Zeus staring. The mother cradled her foal, sticking a pacifier in his mouth and rocking before she had to go back to her survival business. He had been sleeping when she was upstairs keeping watch, so there was no chance he was falling back to sleeping. Later in the night there would be a feeding in order so that way he would feel full, and happy enough to drift into sleep. Right now he wanted to play, but waited patiently as Anna continued to rock him. Appreciating her love that she was giving him. The mother closed her eyes, just taking a few stray seconds to enjoy the calm, quietness. Letting her mind empty and her coat warm up from the fire. It was nearing winter, the upper floors of the apartment building got cold. Anna put her foal down by the fire as she headed for the old, dusty radio on the table. Zeus trotted along, watching and observing what she usually did every night.

The mother looked at the beaten radio. It was a beacon. A beacon of hope for anypony in the city that still had a working radio. It's broadcast reached every frequency around the city. It was the last frequency that could hopefully be heard. Anna had a antenna that ran up the side of the building that would send out the signal. She would talk into the microphone and within seconds her voice would be heard across Manehattan. But, when the sun rose the next day and nopony was there... It just made her feel more lonely. The thought that in reality, she wasn't heard at all across the city after all. But Anna still did it anyhow. She pressed the button on the speaker, knowing her baby was watching her growing stress, and she spoke. Her voice was gentle and calm, not bombastic like the military did on their frequencies. Just like a foal, ponies needed calmness to know everything was alright. Being frantic would make them doubt her message.

"This is frequency 8, broadcasting from apartment 7210 on 40th street. My name is Anna, and I have established a safe haven in the center of the city. I have supplies and a strong, old apartment building that can hold hundreds if needed. If anypony is out there, I'm alive. I lived, and continue to live everyday with-" Anna stopped herself, something she was about to add. What she said changed slightly everyday, but never once did she mention Zeus. It put his safety at risk in her eyes. That time she almost did. Anna ignored it, and continued after some hesitation "-safety and happiness. As long as you pull your weight, we can restart here. I'm on 7210 on 40th everyday. I will always be here when it's light, but when it's dark, I can't guarantee I will answer. I will continue this broadcast, everyday, for any survivors. If you are out there... Please come, it's safe" The mare stopped. She turned a few dials, and the broadcast ceased. Anna rustled Zeus' mane as she headed for the couch. Work was over for the day, and now she could only watch her son play as hell continued outside.

Anna laid her head down, staring up at the cracks in the ceiling. She could only dream that someday things would go back to normal, and she could start a small society in this apartment. But she couldn't be sure, it almost felt like it would never happen. But she could hope couldn't she? Zeus was on the floor, pushing building blocks around with his nose. It was all she could really care about now. Anna's offspring was the only thing she could bring up and hope could survive happily. It's what her ancestors and family did for years and years before her. Maybe this Apocalypse was supposed to be a reset to remember what was really important.

Author's Note:

More chapters, a lot more to come

Comments

[Rotorix]

Hey, hey hey, haven't heard from you in a while!
Well, this was pretty good!
A few errors, but nothing too major.

[redskin122004]

Uh..
Why is this in the Conversion Bureau?

[SigmaAtlas]

3561437 Erm, I don't know. Maybe I put it in the wrong group? I was entering it into qualifying group pretty quickly.... Maybe it was a mess up