Gleaner Chronicles: American Monsters

by sevenofeleven

Chapter Nineteen: White House gleaner woes

The White House
Oval Office

A griffin with piercing-green eyes and grey-brown plumage stared at a set of green view crystals while panicked voices filled the room. Hopecrusher turned down the volume of the other crystals to listen from the half-drained mayor of New York City. NYC had been a model city, providing more than its share of essence. Now, not so much.

Mayor DeBlaz stuck his white-furred pony face up to the crystal. “You gotta send an evac helicopter, resistance fighters have breached the building and are heading up the stairs. You have to do something! Eya Sore is dead and they blew up her studio!!”

Machine guns rattled in the background then a door slammed open.

Panic filled DeBlaz’s voice. “They’re here!”

A shotgun boomed then blood covered the crystal for a moment before it went dark.

Hopecrusher looked up and saw several of the view crystals were dark. That meant that the crystals that were transmitting were destroyed. He put his talons up to his head while dismay filled his heart.

The whole north eastern seaboard was now in open revolt. The Terran Council that ruled this planet would not be happy about that. Hopecrusher got up and walked to the middle of the room. On the floor was a picture of an eagle holding laurel leaves and arrows. Right now, Hopecrusher felt like someone was shoving arrows up his butt.

He remembered when they attacked Washington D. C. The cold air ruffled his feathers as waves of zombies and drained soldiers moved into town. All his side had were soldiers, zombies, gleaners and a few mages. Gleaners went through the attack helicopters and they fell from the sky because the pilots were now zombies. Tanks and armored vehicles tried to attack them, but gleaners turned the drivers to zombies. Then he ordered the gleaners to drain the defenders. The screams of the ponies and other creatures that were being drained put a wide smile on his face. Of course, the defenders tried to shoot the gleaners, but their bullets had no effect. Magic worked, but the few brave mages fell under the combined assault of gleaners and newly made zombies. To make sure the city was under his control, Hopecrusher sent the rest of his forces through the doomed city. He thought that was a good time, not like now.

Other worries crawled into his mind. When they took Washington D.C., he noticed that the president and cabinet were never found. Maybe, he thought they were behind this revolt? Somewhere, the president could be pulling strings from a hidden place. Hopecrusher’s green eyes narrowed. He was going to fight. No pony was going to pry his talons off of this country. Hopecrusher went back to his desk and buzzed the secretary.

“Yes, Administrator,” she said.

“I want General Trample and Dr. Geist here in my office as soon as possible.”

“Yes sir.”

A few minutes later there was a knock at the door. Hopecrusher said enter.

General Trample cantered through the door and took a seat. He was a square faced brutish looking greyish-brown earth pony stallion. His green eyes scanned Hopecrusher’s for signs of weakness.

Trample saluted. “Sir.”

Hopecrusher nodded. “At ease.”

“When do we go back and take down these resistance dirtbags?”

“Not yet.”

“Sorry sir but why not? Every minute we wait gives them more time to dig in and fortify.”

“I have a feeling that who or whatever got the NYC resistance going is coming here and we need to be ready. If we lose Twilight Sparkle, the Terran Council will come for us.”

“Really? Won’t they come for us for losing control of the northern seaboard?”

“General Trample.”

“Sorry sir. Permission to speak frankly sir.”

Hopecrusher tiredly waved a claw.

“We have enough soldiers to secure the Pentagon. No resistance filth will get through.”

Another voice joined the conversation. “Ahhh yes, arrogance. Oooh yes, let’s be overconfident about our chances. What could go wrong?”

General Trample grimaced.

Hopecrusher managed to keep his expression neutral. “Dr. Geist, I’m glad you’re here.”

“Oooh yes, my boy, I’m not so glad. I’d rather be in my lab. Ohhh yes, there is much work to be done. Sooo much!” A greenish glow appeared in the other chair in front of the desk.

General Trample scowled. “So have you broken Twilight Sparkle yet?”

“Oooh nooo, what a question. Shows your disdain for subtlety it does. Ohhh yesss. Twilight Sparkle has a wonderful mind. Sooo bright and interesting. It would be such a tragedy to break such a mind, ohhh yes. The ham hooved ponies you call interrogators would do such a thing. I want Ms. Sparkle to become one of us. Ohhh yesss. To have the power of a Princess serving us. I can think of many uses for such power..”

“So that’s a no,” Trample said flatly.

“Oooh yes, it’s a no. But with a few more days, we could have her power. Ohh yes, she’s getting close to being ours. Ohhh yes. The ponies here have a religion that worships the Ascended One. Oooh yes, we could use their weakness, religion against the resistance. Twilight Sparkle is, what do they say here? The spitting image of the Messiah. Oooh yes, we have a chance to rule these ponies peacefully.”

Hopecrusher looked up then he fixed his gaze on General Trample and Dr. Geist.

“I got a call from Razorhoof. She warned me about a pink unicorn mare with a blondish mane and tail. We need to be on the lookout for her and her allies.”

Dr. Geist flickered. “Oooh yes, Razorhoof was a fine pupil. She learned a lot from me, ohh yes. I did find her fondness for equines very strange.”

General Trample smiled. “No problem sir. I will have my hooves on this pink unicorn’s neck soon. Then I’m going to smash her horn to bits! Then we will send her to Gitmo.”

“Ohh yes, I wish I was vain enough to make a body so I can sigh,” Geist said.

General Trample looked at Dr. Geist and shook his left forehoof at him.

“Well, my too brutal boy. Oooh yes, do you think it might be better to persuade that pink pony to give up her secrets?” Dr Geist sneered.

General Trample growled.

Hopecrusher’s wings unfurled. “ENOUGH! The two of you will work together and stop the pink pony and her allies before the Terran Council decides we’re unfit to rule. Going to Gitmo would be the best case outcome for us.”

General Trample nodded. “Yes sir.”

“Ohh yes, it will try my patience. Ohh yess, but I will work with this cretin.”