Burning Rubber And Flying Lead

by Gearsmash King

Chapter 8

"Hurry up, Rainbow!" Applejack protested, reloading her revolver and shotgun, "They're gettin' away!"

"All units. All units." A static voice cracked, causing Sunset and Rainbow to look around the cab in confusion, "We have reports of shots fired in Canterlot Park. Any units in the area, respond immediately."

To the two girls surprise, they spotted a blinking red light under the dashboard. Rainbow, being the one driving, didn't look at it too long as she shifted gears, trying to catch up to the three SUVs. Sunset, however, looked from the police scanner to Applejack, who just kept her eyes forward and cocked her shotgun.

"I'll explain later." Applejack said, leaning out her window and taking aim.

She managed to fire three shots before being pulled back in by Rainbow and Sunset, causing the Chevy truck to swerve slightly.

"What the hell are ya doin'?!" Applejack exclaimed, annoyed by the forced retreat into the cab.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Rainbow repeated back, shifting gears again, "You could hit Twilight."

"GET DOWN!!" Sunset called from the backseat, quickly pushing both girls heads down under the dash and ducking down.

Bullets and sparks pounded against the square-body pickup, some even piercing the windshield. This caused Rainbow to stomp the brakes, allowing the Mercedes G-wagon SUVs to pull away. The bullets stopped and the three girls looked again, seeing the shooters retreat back into their vehicles.

"Twilight is most likely in the lead vehicle." Sunset stated, pointing at the lead SUV, "If I can get on it, I might be able to stop it."

"And how do ya plan to do that?" Applejack asked, shooting the redhead a glare, "I doubt ya have the keys to that one."

Then Sunset saw something flash in the rear-view mirror and quickly turned around to look. The motorcycles who had shot at them in the park were now chasing them. This gave Sunset an idea.

"I'm going to try something stupid." Sunset replied, before opening the back rear window and crawling from the cab to the box.

Knowing that she was fully exposed, Sunset stayed in a prone position, listening as the sound of the motorcycles got steadily louder and drawing her Glock. Within seconds the motorcycles were just feet from the back of the speeding pickup. And that was when Sunset put her plan into motion.

As she began to stand up, she leveled her gun and aimed quickly, taking two shots at the riders. The first shot hit one rider square in the chest, causing the Ducati motorcycle to lose control and crash, tossing its rider. Meanwhile, the second shot and hit the other rider in their left arm, the same arm that was holding an Uzi-9mm submachine gun. The weapon fell out of the rider's grip and clattered on the passing asphalt. As the rider tried to recover from the recoiling pain, they were unaware of Sunset leaping out of the box and pivoting in midair, kicking the rider off and taking their place on the saddle. The whole scenario happened within seconds, but Sunset's adrenaline had made it seem to last longer.

"That worked?!" Sunset gasped, releasing a breath she didn't know she was holding, "There's no way that should've worked!"

Glancing forward, the sight of taillights and Applejack's Chevy quickly pulled her from the shock and she opened the throttle. As she passed the cab, Sunset quickly glanced inside and was met by Rainbow's and Applejack's stunned expressions. Sunset only nodded as she passed by, overtaking the truck and accelerating toward the SUVs.

As she got closer, Sunset saw a mercenary lean out of the closest SUV. This caused her to veer sharply, trying to keep the merc from getting a clear shot. Quickly, Sunset positioned herself directly behind the G-wagon, using it as a blind spot. However, to her surprise, the back window broke as a bullet zipped by her head. Instinctually, Sunset drew her gun and fired back, emptying the clip. Then the SUV began to drift back and forth, before turning sharply and rolling over multiple times.

"They're not bulletproof?" Sunset noted, glancing back at the wrecked SUV, then looking back at the other two, "Why aren't they bulletproof?"

Her thought was disrupted by another shot as two gunners from the next SUV started shooting. Sunset quickly swerved and swayed, trying her best to avoid the bullets and keep pace with the SUV. She would've fired back, but her Glock was currently empty and it was extremely difficult to reload on a motorcycle during a chase. However, Sunset noticed the reflection of headlights on the rear of the SUV getting brighter. The gunners were so focused on Sunset, they failed to notice as the Chevy truck sped up to them and rear ended them. This caused the G-wagon the fishtail, which Rainbow Dash used to her advantage, catching the SUV by the rear quarter panel and spinning it out, making it crash into a tree.

Now there was only one G-wagon left, but that didn't make it any easier. Bullets ripped through the back window, giving a clear view of the interior. To their horror, the three girls saw Twilight with a gun pressed to her head. The mercenary holding the gun also held Twilight's phone to her ear. That was when Applejack took out her phone to answer a call from Twilight. Sunset couldn't hear over the rushing wind and engines, but the pale expression on Applejack's face wasn't hard to figure out. Twisting the throttle more, Sunset accelerated slightly, but quickly let off as Twilight raised a hand and shook her head, signaling Sunset to back off.

Sunset watched as Twilight continued to speak with Applejack over the phone, before hearing the Chevy begin to decelerate and gear down. However, Sunset held her position keeping pace with the SUV as she watched Twilight hang up the phone. She quickly glanced back as she watched Rainbow and Applejack slow down and pull off to the shoulder of the road. Sunset looked back at Twilight and saw her point at herself, give an "okay" signal with her hand, and nod her head in reassurance. Sunset nodded back in understanding, but her worry still showed.

"Don't worry, Twilight!" Sunset called, allowing the SUV to open the gap between them as she slowed, "I'll get you out of this! I-I promise!"

Finally, Sunset gave in and released the throttle completely, before braking until she came to a stop. She watched as the SUV carrying Twilight became a pair of red dots, before fading into the darkness. Sunset dismounted the Ducati and dropped to her knees, letting her hair drape over her face as she started to cry. From behind her, Rainbow Dash and Applejack pull up and got out, approaching Sunset. Rainbow tried to lean down and comfort Sunset, but was quickly shoved over by Applejack, who grabbed the redhead by the jacket collar and hoisted her upright.

"WHERE ARE THEY TAKIN' HER?!" Applejack screamed into Sunset's face, slamming her against the Chevy's hood, "WHAT DO THEY WANT WITH HER?!"

"I-I... I don't..." Sunset stammered, caught of guard by the cowgirl's actions.

"DON'T YA DARE TELL ME YA DON'T KNOW!!! YA KNOW DAMN WELL WHERE SHE'S GOING!!! TELL ME NOW!!!"

Coming back to her senses, Sunset twisted her body and grabbed Applejack by the back of her head, before slamming it against the hood. Applejack recovered quick, ignoring her stinging forehead and blood dripping from her nose, tackling Sunset into the ditch. Both girls started throwing punches and kicks, trying to overpower each other. Quickly, Rainbow joined into the fray, trying to get between the two fighters.

"That's enough!" Rainbow called out, punching Sunset in the face and kicking Applejack in the gut, "Doing this isn't going to help the situation!"

Having the wind knocked from her body, Applejack laid on the grass panting, while Sunset held her face in pain as she laid on the ground as well.

"All of this..." Applejack wheezed, holding her stomach, "Is her fault!"

"It doesn't matter who's fault it is right now, AJ." Rainbow countered, extending her hand to the cowgirl and helping her up, "What matters now is how we can get our sister back. And, by the looks of things, Sunset is the only one who could help us right now."

Looking further down the road, Rainbow spotted a sign that pointed to the airport.

"Sunset, can we catch them at the airport?" Rainbow asked, pulling Sunset to her feet.

"Very unlikely." Sunset replied, wiping the blood from her nose and looking down the road, "By the time we get there, they'll most likely be in the air. They've probably got more security there as well. But, I might have an idea where they'll be flying to."

"So ya do know where they're goin'?" Applejack stated, glaring at Sunset, "Where is it? I'll tear it apart from the foundation, if I have to!"

"LEGION Private Security HQ is in Denver, Colorado. But, you can't just walk through the front door. Not without serious firepower."

Rainbow and Applejack exchanged a curious look at each other, before looking back at Sunset.

"However, I also know another way in." Sunset explained, "But, it'll have its own challenges."

Slowly, she began climbing out of the ditch, followed by Rainbow and Applejack. Once she was at the road again, she leaned against the front bumper of Applejack's truck.

"I have a friend in L.A. who could get us the equipment we'll need." Sunset groaned, taking out a cigarette and lighting it.

"And what about the girls? Twilight's family?" Rainbow asked, slumping down on the bumper next to Sunset, "What do we tell them?"

"The truth." Applejack replied, taking a seat on the other side of Sunset, "We tell 'em the truth and that we'll handle it."

They sat on the bumper in silence for a few minutes, before Sunset put out her smoke and stood up.

"Let's meet up with the girls." She said, making her way to the cab, "I'll ride with you two, since LEGION has tracking devices on all of their vehicles."

Applejack and Rainbow glanced at the Ducati motorcycle that Sunset had been riding, before standing and joining her. Still winded and in slight pain from the earlier kick, Applejack let Rainbow Dash drive. Spinning the wheel and turning the truck around, the three of them headed back into the city, towards Fuse's place.

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

Why isn't there a dark tag?

[Gearsmash King]

10567431
When I originally started this, I didn't think I'd take it this far. But, now that you mention it, maybe I should add that.