Haywire

Chapters

Who Made Who?
Chase The Ace
D.T.
For Those About To Rock
Hell's Bells

Who Made Who?

It was a beautiful morning at the Ponyville Drawbridge, where the operaters were busy with a game of cards. Chub knew he was losing, but soldiered on anyway, putting all his best cards on the table in a final attempt to win the game. Stein was winning, and enjoying every moment of it. Meanwhile, hundreds of cars, trucks, and busses crowded the old bridge, a reminder to the crew of the morning rush hour.

In one of these cars were Carrot Top, Lyra, and Bon-Bon, carpooling to work in Carrot's new Oldsmobile. They were starting up the ramp leading toward the bridge, when Carrot noticed something odd. The traffic light on the bridge was flashing, unheard of in traffic signals. She stopped the car short of the bridge.

"What's the matter, C.T.?" Lyra asked, lying on the seat in her usual, legs-first fashion.

"Nothing, Nothing."

Meanwhile, in the bridge's control house, something peculiar started to happen. The control lights began to flash in a carnival-like way, and a button began to depress by it'sself. Writing above the button read, "Press To Start Drawway Motor".

The huge engines below the deck of the bridge simultaneously fired, and the havoc began. Two levers, each one controlling one half of the bridge, both were adjusted to raise the drawbridge. Guages flickered into life, and the engines strained to split the roadway, full of unsuspecting motorists, in two, and raise them into the sky.

"Uh, Carrot Top?" Bon-Bon stuttered in fear, "The bridge is going up!"

"Don't be silly!" The ginger mare laughed back, "The light is green, and the gates are up!"

The Olds proceeded up the bridge with the rest of traffic, unaware of the horror that awaited them. As soon as all the cars were on the bridge, the gates snapped shut, trapping them. An alarm began to ring, heralding the arrival of a ship, but the canal was clear. A truck driver was trapped in the middle of the bridge, and opened his door to see the crack in the deck awaiting him.

"Oh, SHIT!" he screamed, throwing the dumptruck into reverse, but it was no use. The truck's speedometer pegged at 80 MPH as it vainly struggled to escape the bridge, and the live axle snapped off the chassis due to the extreme stress it was under. The driver braced for impact as the truck slided off the deck, and into the river below.

A VW Van full of musicians marvelled at this site from across the river.

"Far out, man!" a white mare with electric blue hair laughed.

Meanwhile, a flatbed full of watermelons' tailgate gave out, and the huge fruits came rolling down the bridge. Cars began to fall down the deck as the angle increased, watermelons pummeling the survivors. A melon came flying through Carrot Top's sunroof, and landed in Lyra's lap.

"GET US OUTTA HERE!" she wailed as more landed all over the car, severely denting it. Carrot Top threw the Oldsmobile in reverse, and raced backwards across the bridge, skillfully dodging destroyed cars, and breaking through the gates that trapped them in the pile of twisted metal.

Stein, Chub, and Dutch had heard the alarms, and raced out to the balcony overlooking the bridge span.

"THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Chub sobbed, kicking his coworkers simultaneously in the shins, "THE LIGHT WAS GREEN, THE GATES WERE OPEN, THERE'S NO SHIP!!!!"

"It's alright, boss," Dutch sympathized, still reeling from the hit to his leg, "accidents happen-"

"STEIN, YOU GODDAMN STUPID PLOTHOLE!" the slightly overweight bridge boss roared, "YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO LOOK OUT FOR ANYTHING WEIRD, CAN'T YOU SEE WE GOT A BUCKIN' SITUATION HERE?!!"

Chub's angry screaming could be heard all over Ponyville, where chaos was about to strike, and dwarf the horror of the drawbridge. All over the world, people were waking up to terrifying tech-related accidents, and everyone, pony or human, knew something bad was about to happen.

While this was all happening, a black Western Star flew gracefully down the highway, the stallion driving only shifting when needed. He opened the window, and felt the breeze in his mane. He then realized exactly where he was. He read an all-too-familiar sign: "Lunoco Truckstop: Diner, Arcade, Shower Facilities, Next Exit," it read. He began to get excited. In the early light of dawn, he pulled into the stopover, and several ponies ran out to greet him.

"HEY, RAY!" one laughed, shaking his hand vigorously, "YOU'RE HOME!"

"It's nice to see you too, Beltran!" Ray chuckled back, remembering how close the two were after an accident near Appleooza.

"So," another stallion started, pounding the hood of his truck, "What's this ugly son of a biscuit doin' here?"

"I'm being contracted by Happy Toyz to haul a few loads for 'em," he replied, staring thoughtfully at the huge green-ish face on the front of the tractor, "I don't like that creepy Green Goblin mask as much as you do, Bubba, but it pays good money!" He than handed a gas pump to Beltran. "Give her a drink, I'mma go get me some food!"

Ray walked into the ever-so-familiar diner to see the usual crowd inside: Grenville at a table, Lloyd on the phone, and Seventy Six at the counter, sipping on some coffee.

"Hey, guys!" Seventy Six called, "Ray's back!"

The few ponies in the diner came trotting up to him, and joined him at the counter. Ray took a deep breath, it was nice to be back with familiar faces.

"Ray, you crazy foal!" Grenville cried with joy," I thought you were in Utah!"

"Well, that was last week!" Ray chuckled back, "You know how that old song goes!: "Lord, I was born a rambling man!""

Everypony began to join in, happy at the arrival of their friend. All except one.

"Rainbow Dash!" the boss called, "GET IN HERE!"

The cyan-colored pegasus stopped frying eggs for the patrons, and stepped into the boss's office.

"You needed to see me, Mr. Eldorado?" she asked as she entered the smoky room.

"Dashie," he said confidently, lighting a cigar,"I wanted to talk to you about your shift...." He then pulled out a card used for clocking in and out. It read "Rainbow "Danger" Dash".

"This here card," he said through a ridiculous southern drawl, "says you've only been clockin' in for 6 of your 8 hours!"

"I've been really busy lately," she said nervously, "do you KNOW how much the Wonderbolts like to hang out with me?" She had recently been accepted into the Wonderbolts fan club, and there had been many autograph signings the last week.

"If you know Spitfire from the Wonderbolts, like you say you do," the elderly pony sneered, "Then how come you're stuck in a two-bit truckstop workin' for me?" He pulled out a file, that read "Rainbow Dash, Smith County Sheriff's Office". "May I remind you that if you want outta this place, you'll get it in the back of a squad car? Now, woman, get Ray some coffee!"

Rainbow Dash stormed out of the office, disgusted. She HATED the way Eldorado treated her like a trophy wife. "Fat buck," she muttered to herself.

"WHAT WAS THAT, HONEY?" Eldorado called mockingly, "I couldn't hear you over the sound of THE SIRENS! WHOOP-WHOOP-WHOOP-WEEEE-OOOO-WEEE-OOOO!" He began to immitate a police car, reminding Dash that she wasn't only working for cash, she was working for freedom from the sexist old stallion. Ever since she had tried to rob the the truckstop, known as the Big L to it's patrons, Eldorado had agreed to keep quiet if she worked off what was in the register at the time, even though she hadn't stolen any money. She walked over, and joined Roseluck on making food for the small crowd of truckers.

Meanwhile, Beltran was filling up Ray's Western Star. He liked to watch the price ring up on the pump. He watched it as it hypnotically climbed. $30....$40....$50.... And then it stopped.

"What in Equestria?" he mumbled to himself. He took the nozzle out of the truck's tank, and looked down it. He was greeted by a huge squirt of gasoline in his eyes. The red unicorn howled in pain, and ran off blindly toward the diner.

"Hey, Eldorado!" Seventy Six hollered,"Beltran's hurt!"

"Can he still pump gas?"

"I think so!"

"Then get him back out there!"

"But, Eldo!" he protested, "He took gasoline to the eyes! Don't you think he should have 'em flushed out, or something?-"

"I DON'T GIVE A RAT'S ASS ABOUT HIS EYES!" the owner snapped back, "GET HIM BACK ON HIS FEET AND BACK TO THE SERVICE ISLAND!"

Back in the diner, Lloyd was talking to Rainbow Dash about a time he had gone to an airshow, the rainbow-maned pony only half-listening, when they heard a scream. Dash ran into the kitchen to see blood dripping from Roseluck's front left hoof, and a turkey knife scrabbling around on the floor, running.

"IT BIT ME!" she screeched, Dash pressing a rag to her wound, "GET IT OUT OF HERE!"

"Hold on," Dash said soothingly, "I'll take care of it." She picked up a hammer, and squared in on the side of the electric turkey knife. She then smashed it in two with an expert blow.

"Damn, honey!" Eldorado laughed, trotting out from his office, "You need to learn how to handle that thing!"

Even through the thick sheen of her makeup, you could still tell that Roseluck was flustered by the incident. She continued serving the food, Dash duct-taping the rag to her leg, to prevent the makeshift band-aid from falling off.

More trouble. Soon, the radio would not get even the smallest signal, and everyone started to complain.

"Hey," Lloyd yelled to Roseluck, "I want my morning music!"

"It's alright!" said Bubba cheerfully, walking into the diner, "We've got that old jukebox, remember?" He walked over to a dusty Rockola jukebox, and popped in a quarter. "Now," he beamed, "what song should I play...."

""20% Cooler, Alex S. Remix!"" Dash cheered enthusiastically.

"SHUT UP, WOMAN!" Eldorado growled, "Don't bring your fancy dubstep around here! How about.... "Dang Me"?"

The truckers cheered, and the jukebox jerked into life, softly playing the old Roger Miller tune.

As the patrons chatted, Rainbow Dash walked over to the window. She looked out onto the highway. She then looked at the clock. It read "9:00 AM". Where was the morning rush?

What she didn't know was that most of the morning rush was piled up on a drawbridge.

Chase The Ace

Chapter Two: Chase The Ace

While the Big L catered to it's small array of customers, a single school bus lumbered down the highway. The driver was sweating heavily, trying to keep his cool under the pressure of at least 50 foals. Sitting just behind him were the Cutie Mark Crusaders, singing loudly.

Finally, they stopped.

"Whew!" he sighed, "just for a minute there, I thought I was gonna-"

"One more time!" Scootaloo cheered, "We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders, on a quest to find out who we are...."

"AIR DAMN IT!" he growled, and he began to repetitively hit his head on the steering wheel.

"Checker, STOP!" Cheerilee cried, sitting across from him, "You'll hurt yourself!"

"Sorry," he chuckled, "It's just, those kids.... They're messin' with my mind! By the way, not that don't enjoy your company, but remind me WHY you had to come along on this field trip?"

"To make sure YOU didn't drive the bus into a ditch, like you did last time!" she replied in a frustrated tone, "seriously, Checker, you've got problems, you gotta calm down!"

Cheerilee then crossed the aisle to the seat directly behind the driver's seat . She told the Cutie Mark Crusaders to move into her old seat, and to leave Checker alone.

"There," she chimed happily, "problem solved!"

****

Meanwhile, Spitfire was sitting in a junky red Cadillac, and faring no better than Checker. She was locked in a car with Fleetwood Brougham, some weirdo who had agreed to give her a ride.

"So, sugar pie," he said smoothly, putting his hoof on her leg, "how far up the road are you goin'?"

"As far as you can keep your hands to yourself, scumbag!" she snapped back.

"Look out, Fleet," laughed Soarin' from the back seat, "she's a feisty one!"

As soon as Spitfire calmed down, she asked if she could turn on the radio.

"Sure, sure," Fleetwood said in a friendly manner, perhaps even TOO friendly, "go ahead, I don't mind. Unless it's dubstep, that is, I HATE DUBSTEP."

Soarin' began to argue with their transporter, saying that dubstep was, "A new breed of music, man!" but this all faded into the backround as Spitfire focused on the radio. She turned the dial back and forth, but couldn't find the smallest signal. Then, she found a tiny signal.

"....Since our microwave facilities went down, but the strange reports continue to come in. Please, if you are near or on a major highway, GET AWAY AT ONCE-"

"I hate that channel," Fleetwood said flatly, grabbing the dial with his free hoof, and tuning it away from the channel.

"Didn't you hear them?" Spitfire asked, concern in her voice, "we've gotta get off the highway. Look, pull into this truckstop right here."

"I'd rather not," he replied, putting his hoof on her leg again, "i'm too cozy right here!"

Finally, Spitfire had enough of this guy. "Here, gimme the steering wheel!" She then lunged for the steering wheel, and tried to force the Cadillac over.

"Whoa, girl, watch it, what're you tryin' to do?!" her perverse transporter yelled, fighting for control of the car.

"Hey, Ray!" Seventy Six chuckled, "Look at these idiots!"

The small amount of customers looked out the window to see a red Cadillac swerving into the parking lot, a large amount of movement going on inside it. It slid around on the loose dirt and gravel parking lot for several seconds, and then came to a screeching halt.

Spitfire opened the door of the Cadillac, and began to walk toward the diner.

"Wow," Eldorado mumbled, "she's a purdy one, I tell you what."

She nearly got through the double doors, when Fleetwood ran up to her.

"What in Equestria was that, missy?" he raged, "I offer to give you and your eating-obsessed friend over there a ride in my brand new Cadillac car, and you nearly KILLED ME! You know, back in my day, ladies would be gentler...."

Little did Fleetwood know that he was in danger.

Nearby, Bubba was filling up Ray's truck, when it roared into life, and begin to rev. The truck turned it's steering wheel so it was pointed toward the quarreling two ponies. Then, it Grinded into first, and took off toward them, snapping the pump's nozzle right out of it's gas tank.

"You idiot!" Bubba called as it sped away, "You're not full yet!"

Luckily, Spitfire saw the truck in time, and threw Fleetwood and herself out of the way. The truck raced by, blaring it's horn, and stopped just short of running into the old playground that was kept on the property to entertain foals.

"Oh, sweet Celestia," Fleetwood whispered, "you saved my life! How can I ever repay you?!" He threw his arms around Spitfire, agitating her yet again.

"You can thank me by keeping your FILTHY HOOVES OFF ME!" She roared, pushing him down into the dirt. Soarin' ran over, and helped him up.

"Sorry about her," he said sympathetically to the drifter, "she just doesn't like you."

"Eh, it's fine, boy," Fleetwood said, sounding like a 50-year-old, even though he was only 1 year older than Soarin', "i'll eventually get her on my side!"

"Yeah, I doubt that, buddy," the Wonderbolt chuckled, walking into the diner.

"Hey, Ray," Grenville called out, "Isn't that your rig that nearly squashed those two?"

"Yeah," Ray replied, "Yeah, as a matter of fact, that WAS my truck! Do you think someone wanted them dead, and used the truck as a weapon?"

"That could be possible," Seventy inquired, "But if they did, they must have hotwired it." He held up Ray's keys to the truck.

"Mr. Eldorado?" Roseluck asked, "What's going on today?"

"Bucked if I know, Rosie," Eldorado replied flatly, "bucked if I know...."

Meanwhile, back on the highway, Lyra, Bon-Bon, and Carrot Top lumbered along in their battered Oldsmobile, still reeling from the accident on the bridge.

"Where are we?" Lyra wondered out loud, snacking on the watermelon that had landed in the car earlier.

"Wherever we are, we're almost outta gas!" replied the ginger-maned pony, tapping the fuel guage.

"Hey, there's a station over there!" Bon-Bon burst out, pointing at a shack with two old gas pumps out front on the side of the road, "pull in over there!"

The Olds station wagon pulled into the abandoned service station, and the three stepped out and stretched their legs.

Bon-Bon looked for a service attendant, but found noone.

"Hello?" she called, walking around outside the small store, "is anyone here?" She peered into the dark window, but saw nothing. She looked up casually, and then to her suprise found a clock running BACKWARDS!

"What in the world?" she muttered to herself, wondering how this could happen. She was about to trot back to the others, when she noticed hooves stretched out from under a bush, covered in blood.

"Uh, Lyra?" she wimpered, pointing to the corpse, "I think I found the service attendant!"

"Is he dead?" Lyra whispered, asking the obvious.

Just then, the three travelers heard a high-pitched squealing noise, similar to a drill. It cut off, giving way to the growl of a diesel engine. A rusty tow truck emerged from a lot behind the building, and began to rev it's engine.

"HEY!" Lyra screamed, waving her hooves, "Someone over here's hurt!"

The truck just continued to rev, the driver not paying attention to her signals.

Carrot Top ran over to the two, and forced Lyra's hooves down "What are you doing?!" she whispered sharply, "that guy is probably the one who killed the service attendant, make sure he doesn't see us!"

The three jumped into the bush with the body, and watched the truck. The driver seemed to be waiting for something. Just then, they noticed a school bus drive by. The wrecker than lurched into gear, and raced off after it.

Checker was doing much better: The Cutie Mark Crusaders had stopped singing, he was traveling a beautiful stretch of highway, and his favorite mare was talking to him.

"So, Cheerilee," he said nervously, trying to make conversation, "have you ever been to Camp Wanahoova before?"

"Yeah!" she replied exitedly," I have! Isn't it beautiful?"

"I know, right? My favorite part's that HUGE redwood they have, you know, with the gift shop built into-"

"LOOK OUT!"

By the time Cheerilee had screamed, a huge tow truck had given chase to the bus, and fiercly rammed the bus. The foals screamed in terror as the truck mustered another attack.

"Hang on!" Checker yelled to the kids as he flung the bus's steering wheel to the left.

****

The bus swerved onto a dirt side road, it's great tires roaring more than squealing, and the truck followed. The two vehicles began to pick up speed. The truck had begun to gain on them when Sweetie Belle let out a shriek of horror from the back seat.

"THERE'S NOONE DRIVING THAT THING!"

The Crusaders were so close, they could see a faint green glow emitting from the grille of their pursuer. The truck came alongside, and stayed there for a few seconds while everypony held their breath. Suddenly, another cry broke their silence, this time from Silver Spoon.

"LOOK OUT, IT'S GONNA BUMP US!"

The truck lunged at the bus, and shoved hard into it in an attempt to run them off the road, the bus sliding on the dirt road, barely avoiding crashing into the thick woods on each side of the narrow road.

Just then, the dirt path merged onto a paved freeway, strangely empty for the morning rush hour, where the bus made it's move. The speedometer pegged at 80 MPH, and probably rising higher, Checker finally managed to put some distance between him and the truck. He was about to breath a sigh of relief, when he noticed a red light on the dash of the bus. The temperature of the engine had exceded 200 degrees, and steam began to pour from under the hood.

"It's that stupid air hose again!" he growled as the bus began to slow.

The truck began to rapidly pick up lost ground, and rejoined the bus side-by-side on the blacktop. It was preparing for another ram when he decided to speak up.

"Cheerilee," he said solemnly, turning to face her, "if we don't make it through this, I wanted to tell you that I love you."

Cheerilee gasped in suprise, her face turning from fear to shock as she took in his startling revelation. She never knew this about Checker because he always kept his feelings for her so secret. Her expression turned to fear again as the tow truck swerved into the side of the bus, knocking her out of her seat.

"CHECKER!" she screamed, "MAKE IT STOP!"

"Hold on!" he replied, throwing the steering wheel to the right. The bus slid off the highway, and onto an exit, the truck following. Checker KNEW he had to stop this thing, he just had to.

The truck gave the bus another hard push. This time, Checker had enough. Instead of trying to shy away from the blows, he delibrately kept contact with the truck. He then began to manipulate the huge machine, trying to steer it with the bus, and shoving it off the road, and down the slope of the overpass.

Their opponent hit the ground, and a huge fireball erupted from it's fuel tanks. The foals stared in disbelief as the huge metal beast burned. Finally, Cheerilee mustered a few words as she turned to Checker, her eyes wide in fear, half-believing that the horrible pile of steel would burst into life again and give chase.

"CHECKER!" she cried, "WHAT'S GOING ON-"

"I DON'T KNOW!" he fired back sharply, his fear getting the best of him too. Just then, the two ponies, tired from their chase, stared into each other's eyes, and realized how much it meant to be alive. The two locked in a warm embraced, and locked in a kiss lasting several minutes. Finally, the two seperated, and looked at each other nervously.

Then, Checker noticed a large wooden sign on the other side of the road. It read, "Lunoco Truckstop: Diner, Arcade, Shower Facilities, Next Exit."

"Well," he said, rubbing the back of his head, "We should probably call the police from there."

Just then, a battered Oldsmobile station wagon came barreling up from behind, repeatedly tooting it's horn. the car stopped alongside the bus, and a green mare leaned out the passenger window.

"Hey, buddy!" she called, "you alright?"

"I'm fine!" Checker yelled back, but then he remembered the radiator had failed. "On second thought," he continued, "we may need a push to the Lunoco Truckstop."

"What in the hell is going on 'round here?" Ray thought to himself as he looked his truck over. Moments before, somepony had started it in an attempt to murder two customers. He walked over to the cab, and flung the door open, only to find noone inside. He walked back over to the trailer, staring at the huge portrait of a clown on the back, unaware that the truck's power mirror was adjusting to reflect him. As he gazed at the strange picture, the Ignition slot began to turn into the "Start" position.

Ray was startled by the beeping of a horn from somewhere behind him. A black Volkswagen Bus with "DJ PON-3" written on the side of it pulled smoothly into the parking lot, stopping at the gas pumps. The truck would have to wait. Ray trotted over to greet the strange arrivals.

D.T.

Chapter Three: D.T.

Rainbow Dash was serving a trucker his food when she heard the beeping of a horn. She glanced out the window to see a black VW bus pulling into the parking lot. She watched as the occupants climbed out of the side-door. There were two of them: A white mare with an electric blue mane, and a beige mare with a black mane who seemed disgusted with the white one's eagerness to get out.

"Hey, Dashie!" Eldorado called, "you go get this one, Beltran and Bubba are busy!"

"Doing what?" she replied sharply, "I work here as a waitress, not a grease monkey!"

"Don't argue with me, girl!" he fired back angrily, "you'll do as you're told, or you're gonna get hauled outta here in the back of a cop car!"

Rainbow Dash growled, and began the walk out to the gas pumps. She was nearly to the door, when she spotted a familiar fiery mane.

"Spitfire!" she cried with joy, "what are you doing here?!"

"Me and Soarin' here were just going on a little trip," she replied, gesturing to her partner, "When this big Volvo came racing down the road, probably wound up at about 90 MPH, really flying. It came racing past, and it knocked our Corvette off the road with it's trailer. Then, this guy offered to give us a ride, he was a perv, and here we are now!"

"Man," Dash laughed, "what a story!"

"DASHIE, GIRL, WHAT I TELL YOU 'BOUT THAT VEE DUBYA VAN OUT THERE?!"

Eldorado's sharp yell interrupted the two friend's catching up, and Rainbow Dash had to say goodbye to her friend for then. She trotted out to the service island, and over to the Volkswagen. She then approached the mare with electric blue hair.

"Can I get you anything for the car?" Dash asked her halfheartedly.

"Sure!" the strange pony replied, "fill it halfway, and check under the hood while you're at it."

As Rainbow Dash filled the tank of the van, she watched Beltran and Bubba unload huge amplifiers and a turntable from the van. She then noticed the "DJ PON-3" emblem on the side of them.

"Hey," she inquired, "what are you doing with those?"

"I'm a travelling musician," the pony said proudly, "I specialize in dubstep, house, and trance. Haven't you heard of me?"

Dash was stumped. "Actually, no."

"Does Vinyl Scratch ring a bell?"

"Nope."

"I was at your friend's fashion show...."

"Can't seem to remember you. Hey, you said something about dubstep?"

"Yeah," Vinyl continued, "I'm gonna play here tonight!"

"AWESOME! Finally, these hillbillies can hear some real music!"

"You should stick around and watch!" Vinyl suggested, "believe me, we're gonna blow the ROOF off this place!"

Rainbow Dash was finished with the van, and was about to go inside when she noticed three more trucks entering the lot: A Mack with a Buckweiser trailer, a red Dodge flatbed, and a red Autocar with "Zeke's Trash and Garbage Removal" written on it's doors and trailer.

She came over to take a closer look at the strange arrivals, when she noticed two familiar faces emerge from the Dodge: Applejack and Big Macintosh!

"Well, howdy, Rainbow Dash!" Applejack said warmly as the two walked over to her, "What're you doin' here?"

Rainbow Dash told them the entire story, with Eldorado, the robbery, and that Vinyl Scratch was going to play at the truckstop.

"Well," Applejack concluded, "I'll be sure to stick around for her performance!"

"Hey," Rainbow Dash asked, gesturing toward the two other trucks, "who's in those?"

"Oh, that's Smokey and Berry Punch," she replied, "me and Big Mac're in a convoy, and those are our partners!"

The five ponies walked into the diner, and were greeted by friendly calls.

"Berry, honey!" Eldorado laughed putting his arm around the purple pony, "nice to see ya! Which one'a those big rigs is your's?"

"Which one do you think?" Berry Punch chuckled back, pointing to the Buckweiser Mack.

It was at that moment that yet another oddity pulled into the truckstop, this one topping all of the others. The ponies inside all stopped chattering and looked out the window to see of all things a school bus being pushed by an Oldsmobile.

"I got this one," called the half-blind Beltran, stumbling out to the bus.

As he began to pump fuel for the bus, he began to notice who was on the bus. All of the foals he had seen before at school conferences were on the bus, and he watched them line up for a role call.

"Alright," sighed Checker, wiping his forehead with a hankerchief, "after that, er, unusual experience on the highway, I want everypony to line up for a role count. Silver Spoon?"

"Here!"

"Twist?"

"Here!"

"Diamond Tiara?"

"Here!"

This went on for a while, and everything went fine, until when he called the name of the young colt who always seemed to be noticed.

"Pipsqueak?"

There was no reply.

"Great," Cheerilee moaned, "now Pip's missing!"

"Excuse me!" yelled a greasy-looking red unicorn, stumbling up to the ponies, "did you say "Pipsqueak's missing?""

"Yeah," Cheerilee replied, narrowing her eyes, "why do you want to know, Mr....."

"Beltran, my name is Beltran."

"Okay, Mr. Beltran, you still didn't answer my question."

"He's my son!"

"Oh," Cheerilee chuckled, embarassed at judging him, "I didn't recognize you. What in Equestria happened to your eyes?!"

"Diesel fuel," he explained, "now, what are you going to do to find my son, missy?"

"I'll do everything I can." She then turned to Checker.

"What are we gonna do?" she whispered sharply, "we've got an unhappy parent, we could be sued!"

"Okay, stay calm," he soothed, "we'll just give him the usual excuse."

The two looked back, and faced the bloodshot-eyed unicorn.

"I'm sorry, Mr.," Cheerilee wimpered, "we can't find him."

Beltran was definitely not buying it. "You two plotholes didn't even look in the bus!" he roared over the sound of a tractor trailer starting, "that's it, I'm going to find him!"

He then ran over to a bikelock, and grabbed a rusty bmx. He then began to pedal it toward the exit of the gravel parking lot, until Ray and Applejack stopped him.

"What are ya thinkin', partner?" Applejack exclaimed, "you can't go out on the highway on a bike!"

"And besides," Ray added, "you can't see!"

"I can see just fine, Ray," Beltran replied solemnly, "I can see that my son's in danger. He's probably dead, crumpled up in a ditch!"

"Be honest, Beltran."

"Okay," Beltran confessed, "I have some double vision, but it's clearing up just fine." He then grabbed Ray, and shook him. "I've gotta find my boy, Ray, I just GOTTA!" He then began to pedal off toward the highway, unaware that someone, or something was watching him.

****

The diesel engine everypony had heard earlier had belonged to Smokey's Autocar. It had burst into life, anticipating a kill, and would get one. As Beltran blindly rode off, it snapped into gear, and took off after him, kicking gravel into the air as it went.

Beltran began to peddle faster, but it was no use, he couldn't outrun an eightteen wheeler. His bike's tire hit a rock, and he fell to the ground. He picked himself up, and turned around to see the enormous Autocar bearing down on him.

"GYAAAAAAAGH!" he screamed as it dragged him under, leaving him a broken mesh of blood and bones. The truck then reversed back into it's parking lot, and shut off.

"Oh my god, BELTRAN!" Bubba shouted, sprinting over to his friend's body. Checker followed to assist him in carrying the body inside.

"Well," Applejack whispered in fear, "if this is happening here, I wonder what kinda sick stuff Pipsqueak is endurin'!"

****

Pipsqueak was late for school, and even worse, on the day of a field trip! He raced out of the house, bag on his back, and rode his bike as fast as he could to the Ponyville Schoolhouse.

When he arrived, he found it empty, not a living soul around. He was about to call his dad's workplace to give him a ride, when he heard a miniature siren. He traced the sound to a toy police cruiser, which was lodged in all things a pony's MOUTH! The pony was definitely dead.

Pipsqueak screamed, and ran back to his bike, when he heard a familiar jingle. He turned to see an ice cream truck lumbering down the street, and was so terrified because of the body, that he hid in a bush until it past. When it did, he noticed that it had NO DRIVER! Then, he picked up his bike, and began riding again, looking desperately for someone to hide with.

As he coasted through an abandoned neighborhood, he noticed that sprinklers were turning on in his wake. He turned around to take a closer look, but they shut off. After a while, he saw a car, and rode toward it.

When he got closer, he noticed that it was a VW Beetle, ran into a tree, with a familiar face hanging out the window, lifeless and cold.

"Poor Derpy," he whispered as he coasted past, unawhere that he was being stalked. Suddenly, a bloodied lawnmower came screeching out from a back yard toward him. He raced away on his bike, barely avoiding getting savagely shredded by the little devil.

Finally, he found a radio, and turned it on for the news:

"I repeat," the radio said, "it has been eight hours now since our microwave facilities went down, but there is one thing we know for sure: While Earth is still under Rhea-M's influence, NO MACHINE CAN BE TRUSTED! If you have any electric appliances, please unplug them immediately! If you have a car or truck-"

Then, Pipsqueak felt a huge weight squash him. The next thing he knew, he was bagged, and thrown somewhere. When he opened the bag, he saw two mares looking at him.

"Why the heck did you do that, Cupcake?" one asked the other, "he's a pony, not one of the machines!"

"Eh," Cupcake shrugged, "I just felt like it."

"Who are you two?" Pipsqueak said curiously.

"I'm Silver Sketch and this is Cupcake Sprinkle," said the first again, "and we're gonna make sure you SURVIVE this little incident!"

For Those About To Rock

Chapter Four:

The truckstop was beginning to fill to the brim with eightteen wheelers when more cars arrived. A pink VW Karmann Ghia, a gray Volvo station wagon and a Lexus pulled into the parking lot, and parked side-by-side. Their occupants were the rest of the Mane 6. All four ponies walked inside the diner, and trotted straight over to Rainbow Dash.

"SURPRISE!" Pinkie squealed, busting out her confetti cannon.

"Hey, guys!" Dash replied, "what are you doing here?"

"We wanted to visit your new job!" Twilight explained, "ever since you took it, we barely get to see you again!"

"Are you enjoying it?" inquired Fluttershy, "I really hope you are...."

While Rainbow Dash told them the entire story, another tragic event was going on. Twist, shaken by the death of Beltran, had wondered off from her class, and into the Big L's extensive arcade.

"This is amazing!" she thought, almost bursting with joy, "they have all the old games: Pac-Man, Galaga, Pole Position...."

Just then, a sparkling white light caught her eye. There was a game in the back she had never heard of before. It looked so awesome, she just had to play it!

Eldorado was in his office, counting profit, when he heard a loud electrical buzzing. "Hey, Bubba!" he called, "come with me to go check that noise out!"

The two ponies traced it to the arcade, and entered to find a young nerdy filly slumped on the floor dead, still clutching the joystick of a nearby arcade game. The tips of her mane were blackened, and every so often, a bolt of electricity would pass through her.

"Extra crispy, ain't she, Bubba?" Eldorado teased, unphased by seeing Twist killed.

"She was so young...." he uttered, a tear coming to his eye, "what're we gonna do to her, Mr. Eldorado?"

"Put'er in the basement," he replied grimly, "but don't let anypony see ya carrying her in there."

Bubba grabbed Twist, and placed her body gently into a burlap sack. He put the sack behind his back, and carried it out the rear door and around the back to the basement's outdoor enterence. He was digging for his keys, when another truck started up.

The truck raced toward Bubba, but luckily, he opened the basement door just in time. The Mack raced around the other side of the building, and dissapeared.

Meanwhile, Fleetwood was talking to Cheerilee about purchasing a bible.

"It will give you unlimited protection," he reassured her, tapping the dusty bible with one hoof, "in times of peril, it's the only friend you'll ever need."

The Mack raced around the side of the lot and sideswiped Fleetwood's Cadillac.

"It will... will..." he stuttered, staring out the window at his precious car being destroyed. "Son of a bitch!" he exclaimed, running out of the diner, "I'm gonna tear 'em off, son! Oh, you wanna rock and roll, bucko? Come here, come get some!" It was that time when he realized the truck had no driver.

He then took off running for a ditch, the Mack following. Everypony in the truckstop watched as the cabover slammed into him, and knocked his carcass into the ditch.

"Whoa...." Vinyl whispered, "that thing punted him like a football!"

Then, all eyes were on Ray's truck as it started up, and blew it's horn a long, low, honk. The Mack seemed to respond, honking quickly twice. Soon, all the other trucks on the lot started, their horns uniting in a terrifying chorus, their highbeams creating a series of eerie orbs, each one bright white.

Finally, Big Macintosh summed up everypony's feelings: "Those apple-buckin' things ain't got no right to be runnin'!"

****

The trucks all began a continuous circuit around the stop, more and more starting and joining in with each pass, even Checker's school bus took part in the ring of rubber and metal!

"The whole world is going upside-down!" Scootaloo shrieked, "I gotta get outta here!" the bolted to the door, but Ray stopped her.

"Oh, no you arent!" he growled, "if you go out there, you'll end up like Frank Sinatra in that ditch over there!"

Lyra and Bon-Bon were still out by their car when the rebellion began, and watched in horror as a truck shoved a telephone box out of the way like a pony swats a fly.

"Oh, once we get to the truckstop, everything's gonna be just FINE!" Lyra muttered sarcastically, "now what are we gonna do?!"

"I have an idea!" Bon-Bon replied, and hopped into the Oldsmobile, and started it. Lyra jumped into the passenger seat, and listened to her plan:

"You see that gap in their circle?"

"Yeah."

"The next time that comes around, I'm gonna go right through!"

"Be careful, Bon! They could squash us!"

As soon as Applejack's Dodge passed, Bon-Bon stomped on the gas, and the beaten Oldsmobile took off toward the diner. Lyra watched silently in fear as a Peterbilt tanker broke it's course around the truckstop, and raced toward them. It hit them in the rear left corner panel, and sent them flying. The station wagon landed with a dull thud upside-down, a few feet away from it's destination, and caught fire.

"Somebody help me go get them!" Carrot Top yelled as she watched the Olds burn.

"I got this," Rainbow Dash called back as her and Checker joined the mare in saving the car's occupants.

As soon as they got the two out of the car, the same Autocar that killed Beltran came racing toward them at full speed. The five ran toward the diner, as fast as they could, when they noticed Eldorado and Pinkie Pie aiming something through the front doors.

"Are you sure this thing fires shells as well as confetti?" he asked her.

"Oh, I'm more than sure it can handle a shell!" Pinkie giggled menacingly, her hair going flat.

"Alright then. Ready? FIRE!" A loud BANG! ripped through the air as a cannonball shot across the parking lot. The five ponies running toward the diner ducked as the cast iron shell shot over their heads, and into the truck behind them, creating an emense explosion.

"YEE-HAW!" Eldorado cheered, hopping up and down, "WE HIT THAT METAL SUMBITCH DEAD CENTER!"

Pinkie Pie looked confused. "We were aiming for the truck?"

"Quick, Bubba!" he called to the pump jockey, "Get us another!"

Bubba ran out, and loaded a second cannonball into the pink barrel of the confetti cannon, and Eldorado aimed for another truck, this time an International with a trailer full of cake. Another shot roared throught the air, and cake splattered all over the outside of the diner's windows as the International went up in flames.

"That's all we have, Mr. Brougham!"

"Alright, then, everypony back in the diner!"

"Hey!" Ray interrupted, "Where'd you get those shells?"

"My hearth's-warming eve stocking," Eldorado replied sarcastically, "Now, come on, everypony back in the diner! Be quick, now!"

"Hold it right there, Mr. Bigshot!" Soarin' growled, marching up to Eldorado and putting his face in the other's, "I have just a few questions for you!" But, before he had the chance to ask them, Soarin' noticed that the jukebox began to play "White Knuckle Ride", by Lynard Skinner. "Can anypony shut that junk off?"

"I've got it," Octavia sighed as she trotted over to the dusty jukebox, and pressed a button to mute it. As she walked away, the machine gave off a huge amount of sparks, and began to play the song louder. She looked at it in bewilderment, and raced over to shut it off, only to be electrocuted severely. Stunned, the beige mare fell to the ground, the tips of her mane on fire.

"Sweet Celestia, 'Tavi!" Vinyl raced over to the fallen pony, and felt her heartbeat. It was faint, but it was definitely there. After what seemed like half an hour, Octavia opened her eyes, wide with fear. "Whatever you do," she warned, "whatever horrible tune it plays, DON'T TOUCH THE JUKEBOX!"

After several hours of close calls, bad music, and listening to Eldorado rant about how much he didn't deserve to be trapped, the Celestia's sun began to set, and as darkness fell, a thundering drone could be heard over the trucks. Everypony inside the diner had begun to grow used to the situation, and some even grew bored of it.

"Excuse me, Mr. Brougham?" Vinyl asked, walking up to the elderly pony, who was currently smoking a cigar, "Is it alright if I go onstage now?"

"Sure," he grumbled back, dabbing the cigars ashes into her electric blue mane, "The day can't get any worse." He led her to a small platform, barely big enough for her two speakers and turntable. The stage was sealed off with chicken wire, which was a common feature in bars in the Equestrian Backwoods, where ponies only knew two things about music: Johnny and Cash.

"HEY THERE, BIG L!" Vinyl yelled to the crowd, "ARE YOU READY TO ROCK?"

Everypony stayed silent accept for the Mane 6, who were stomping their hooves rythmically, enthused at the aspect of entertainment.

"Thank you, thank you, you're a lovely crowd! Now," she continued, starting a record, "LET'S DO THIS!"

What happened next can only be described in two words: Bass drop. A loud hard rhythm ensued, accompanied by strobing lights, temporarily blinding some of the ponies in the front row. The patrons of the bar began to shout angrily and throw full bottles of Buckweiser at the stage, but Vinyl didn't notice it, she was enjoying herself too much. The trucks responded to the horrible noise with another chorus of horns, and one truck's windshield shattered. The crescendo blasted on for approximately 30 seconds, until the lights began to flicker, along with the beat from the equipment, and shut off completely leaving the diner cloaked in darkness.

"Nice going, lady!" Smokey growled, "Now we don't have any lights!"

Everypony began to take their turn complaining, until everything went quiet, except for a high-pitched yowling, resinating from the ditch which Fleetwood was knocked in. Spitfire ran into the restroom, Soarin' following nervously.

He ran in to find Spitfire in a stall, taking off her flightsuit.

"What are you doing?" he asked curiously, ignoring Fleetwood's screams of pain.

"Changing," she choked back, "That pervert had his hooves all over me!"

After she was finished, Soarin' remembered he was in a mare's bathroom. He backed out shyly, and rejoined the others.

"What're we gonna do?" Applejack thought out loud.

"Well, you're gonna go get him, and bring him back here!" Eldorado replied sharply, "That's my son out there!"

"Why should we?" Rarity said slyly, "He's had sex with more than half of the mares in this room!"

"Well, we just can't stand here and listen to this, can we?" Soarin' pointed out.

"If you like him so much," Rarity answered, "Why don't you go out there?"

"I will!"

"I'm coming with you," Rainbow said, walking up to the blue pegasus, "I don't wanna see a friend of mine die."

"You're friends with Fleetwood?"

"NO! I just don't wanna see you squashed, Soarin'!"

"I'll come too," Checker added, "You're gonna need another pair of eyes."

****

The three began the gauntlet over to the ditch. They waited for a gap in the trucks, and scampered across the lot, hiding behind Fleetwood's half-destroyed Cadillac. They were about to scramble back into the pit, when they noticed the school bus looming up behind them. As menacing as it looked, for some reason it didn't attack. In fact, it wasn't even idling!

"Good thing that one was outta gas!" Checker chuckled.

"Don't be so sure it was," Dash replied grimly, "It has a faulty radiator, remember?"

Meanwhile, Pip, Cupcake and Silver Sketch had fought their way through the burning ruin that used to be Ponyville, only to end up outside the powerless Big L, hiding in a ditch next to a half-dead stallion obsessed with Cadillacs!

"Well, this sucks," Cupcake muttered flatly, but her mood increased greatly when she noticed three ponies jump in the ditch with them.

"We're here to save you, Fleetwood!" Soarin' trumpeted triumphantly, his chest puffed out, "Wait, who are you three?"

"JUST GET ME OUT OF HERE!" Fleetwood screamed angrily.

Rainbow and Soarin' had begun to pick up Fleet, and pull him out of the ditch, when they noticed a dumptruck racing toward the ditch, highbeams sparkling. The ponies jumped out quickly, barely avoiding being flattened by the Ford. When they got inside, Eldorado greeted his battered son with tears of joy, and the two hugged. Cupcake and Silver told the occupants of their guns, and that the comet Rhea-M was causing the machines to behave strangely. The celebration was short-lived, though. Everypony froze when they heard Pipsqueak utter a simple phrase:

"Wait, where's my dad?"

Everpony looked at him with sadness brewing in their eyes, until Eldorado trotted up, and blew smoke in the young colt's face.

"Well, shit, boy, you're dad got squashed by those big boys out there!"

"Is this true?" Pipsqueak asked Rainbow.

"I'm so sorry, Pip," Rainbow answered, coming to hug him. Spitfire was disgusted by Eldorado's insensitivity, and slapped him across the face as she stormed pass, heading for the back room.

"Don't worry, Pipsqueak," Cheerilee interrupted, "Now that we've got the tools, we can blow these metal morons' sky-high!"

Everypony cheered, answering the idea happily, and Pip's sadness was forgotten. Everypony began plans on how to take out the trucks, how to preserve food, and how to escape. For the first time all night, a small bit of hope shone through the patrons of the Big L. With these guns, they were ensured survival, or so they thought.

Hell's Bells

Chapter Four: Hell's Bells

Pipsqueak awoke the next morning to a frighteningly loud rumbling. His face was still wet from the countless tears he had cried the night before, but he had no time to think about that. He ran over to the pony immediately near to him, Fleetwood.

"Hey, Fleet," he whispered, shaking the older pony with his front hoof.

"What?" the half-asleep stallion muttered back, feeling his injured head.

"There's something out there! You gotta go wake everyone up!"

"Whatever you say," Fleetwood slurred, getting up off the table where he had layed only a few seconds ago.

Pip then ran to the back room, where Dash, Silver and Cupcake were sleeping.

"Guys," he repeated, "Something big's out there, you gotta come see this!"

By the time they had returned to the diner's front room, everypony was awake, and were staring in awe at something. Rainbow Dash forced her way to the front of the croud to see their worst nightmare come true: A Tiger 2 was trundling out from the rear of the building. All eyes were on Eldorado, glaring in unison due to the fact he had never told them he had a heavy tank at his truckstop.

"About that," he chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head, "I was plannin' on makin' a WW2 museum in the back shops...."

"I got this," Ray called out calmly, grabbing a LAW rocket launcher from the counter. As soon as he picked it up, the tank responded with a spray of machine gunfire into the diner. Everypony ducked as the rain of lead smashed glass, dented stoves, and shattered the porcelain mockup of Princess Luna in the middle of the diner, smiling proudly, holding a can of Lunoco Oil.

Rainbow watched in horror as Ray was blown full of holes, and dropped to the floor, dead. Several others followed, including Smokey, Bubba, Lloyd, and Checker, who was only shot in the leg.

Eldorado was furious at the damage, and quickly grabbed the LAW from Ray's hooves. "You sumnabitch!" he screeched, "Take this!"

The rocket shot out of the LAW, across the room, and penatrated the Tiger's front armor. The MG-42 was about to respond, but all that came was a clicking.

"The sucker's outta ammo!" Eldorado laughed to the survivors, but none of them shared his humor. Everypony stared at the dead bodies of five patrons. Finally, Scootaloo couldn't take it anymore.

"YOU CAN ALL DIE IN HELL!" She screeched, bolting for the doors, "I'M GETTING OUT OF HERE!"

"Scootaloo, wait!" The remaining two Cutie Mark Crusaders ran after her, but it was too late. Scootaloo was out the door and across the parking lot. About this time, Rainbow Dash realized there was nothing coming to get them except the tank, which was now lumbering across the gravel lot towards Scootaloo.

"NOBODY kills my students!" Cheerilee grabbed the LAW, loaded it, and fired at the tank, landing it in the track and disabling it.

"YEAH, CHEERILEE!" Checker cheered from his spot on the floor. He tried to get up and bro-hoof her, but he fell back because of his recent injury, "And can someone get these bodies outta here?"

"I'll get 'em," the newly mentally-imbalanced Fleetwood replied, starting to feel the consequences of being hit by a truck, "By the way, has anypony seen mah cuzzin? She's real purdy, I tell ya...."

While the rambling stallion got to work dragging the bodies away, Dash went out to investigate where the trucks had gone. When she stepped outside, she looked around the lot, and immediately spotted the burning tank, Smokey's destroyed Autocar, Fleetwood's crushed Cadillac, and several other trucks, which were surprisingly intact. Curious, Dash crept closer to the nearest one, Wilcox's Peterbilt. She checked it over for any damage, but there was none. It all made sense when she checked in the cab, the needle was on E.

"THEY'RE ALL OUT OF GAS!" she called to the others, "IT'S SAFE TO COME OUT NOW!"

After checking over the trucks, she continued over to where Scootaloo had been hiding, to find her rolled up into a little ball, rocking back and forth.

"Rainbow Dash!" she whispered feebly, "I knew you would come to save me! You're the best hero ever! Everyone here's gonna get us killed, we need to get out of here, and fast!"

"I think so too, Scoot, but we can't just leave everypony! We've gotta go back for them!"

Dash and Scootaloo went back inside, and announced their plan to everyone.

"So, our thinking is this: We find a couple of cars that still run, grab all the guns and ammo we can carry, and get out on the highway."

Eldorado didn't seem so enthusiastic.

"Are you CRAZY? If we get on the highway, we could run into some more trucks! And besides, where are you plannin' on goin'?"

"I know there's a military base that's just an hour's drive from here," Dash elaborated, "If there's anywhere safe, it's there!"

"I agree with her!" Twilight called out, "If there's anywhere safe, it's there!"

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Pinkie added, beginning to bounce with excitement, "Let's go, let's get on the road! Burn some rubber, shoot some bad guys!"

The rest of the patrons were too tired to argue, and began to gather all of their ammo.

Dash was grabbing her only possession at the truckstop, a copy of "Daring Do and the Sapphire Stone", when Carrot Top trotted up to her.

"Uh, Dash?" She said nervously, "You can use our car if you want! And maybe Fleetwood's car could be used?"

"Thanks, I appreciate your generosity."

Big Mac, Fleetwood, Soarin' and Applejack set to work flipping the Oldsmobile, while the Cutie Mark Crusaders, obviously trying to get their cutie marks as mechanics, tried to start the half-crushed Cadillac. After several failed attempts, they managed to get it running.

After all of the cars were ready, the caravan set out down the highway. They passed the ruins of other cars, a plane that had split a van in half, and many other signs of machine's revolt. Their nice drive was interrupted when they approached the remains of a police roadblock.

Some of the cars' lights were still flashing, and most were still in line across the road, but two or three it has seemed had been rammed, and shoved out of the way.

Soarin' and Spitfire went over to the block to investigate. Soarin' was looking at a cruiser to the right of him, when he heard Spitfire gasp in shock. He trotted over to see the female Wonderbolt pointing in shock at something behind the cop car.

"What's the matter?" he chuckled, "Lost your nerve?"

When he went around the other side of the car, he saw what she had seen. A Highway Patrolpony was crushed against the side of his cruiser, still clutching his C/B, his eyes permanently wide in fear.

By this time, Wilcox had come over to see too, and began to cry.

"What's wrong?" Soarin' asked him compassionately.

"This pony...." He choked stopping to wipe the tears from his eyes, "....Was my brother. Officer Flegel Stevens of Equestrian....Highway Patrol...."

A while more of driving brought the survivors to the military base, but noone was there. Everypony looked around for signs of life, but there were none. All of a sudden, Twilight realized there was an Apache attack helicopter flying over the ridge, it's guns trained on them.

"RUN!" she screeched, but it was too late. The helicopter fired it's machine guns, taking down Lyra, Bon-Bon, Carrot Top and the schoolkids, and then took the lives of Eldorado and checker with a rocket.

The remaining survivors responded quickly with shooting off the LAW and all of THEIR machine guns, but by the time they had downed the Apache, they were low on ammo. The trauma had made the brain damaged Fleetwood show signs of conciousness.

"They're gone...." he whispered, poking Eldorado's lifeless body, "It's just us....Maybe we're the only ones left on the PLANET?!

"I doubt that," Rainbow Dash objected, "I bet there are SOME survivors, we just have to find them." She turned to Wilcox, who was staring blankly at the body of Apple Bloom. "See if you can go find a radio! Cheerilee, Soarin', you two go with him!"

The three trotted off toward a barracks nearest to them, and Rainbow turned to face Scootaloo, who somehow barely survived the attack.

"Look, Rainbow!" she chuckled hoarsely, pointing to her kneecap, "A gunshot to the knee! Get it?"

"Sh, young one." Silver whispered, treating her wounds, "Save your energy..."

Eventually, Wilcox and company returned with a shower radio. Rainbow turned it on, and flipped back and forth down the dial. Nothing.

Finally, she found a small signal, and turned it up full volume.

"It's been....A day now since the occurrences began." She could hear a deep voice broadcasting, which she recognized as Delray, a rock 'n' roll DJ from Ponyville. "Millions have been killed, countless bits in damage has been reported...But, my friends....There is hope. There is a safe zone, which I am broadcasting from right now. Camp Wanahoova. Please, hurry. We can't hold them off much longer alone, but we'll have strength in numbers. Don't worry, Equestria, it's almost over. This is Delray, signing off."

"Well, didn't you hear him?" Rainbow announced, "We've got to get to that safe zone!"

"Whoa, whoa, WHOA!" Cupcake interrupted the cyan pegasus' motivational speech. "You were wrong about the base, so what makes you think you'll be right about Wanahoova?!"

"She's right!" Silver Sketch agreed, nodding, "We're going it alone. See you in hell!"

"You CAN'T leave!" Wilcox protested as they trotted off into the desert, waving his front hooves wildly, "You'll die!"

"Cmon, Pip!" Silver called, "Let's go!"

"No."

"What do you mean, NO? We said we were gonna make sure you survived!"

"I feel safe with Rainbow dash." Pipsqueak stated calmly, stepping next to her. "I think she makes good decisions."

"Aw well," Cupcake sighed, "It was nice knowing you, we'll visit your GRAVE!"

"No you won't," Fleetwood interjected, pointing to something behind them. "We'll visit YOUR'S."

The two turned around to see an 18 wheeler rattling over the rough surface of the desert toward them. Everypony was sure they would've died, if it weren't for a blast that came from behind the truck, making it burst into flames, inches away from hitting them.

"WHO SAVED THEM?!" Fleetwood called to the unseen savior, "SHOW YOURSELF!"

A midnight blue unicorn mare with a magenta mane and green eyes trotted over to the two mares, huddled in fear. She carried an RPG, and helped them up, and knudged them on their way.

Fleetwood had never seen such beauty, such grace. He couldn't believe when she joined the group of survivors, and even stood next to him!

"What's your name?" he asked in awe as the unicorn shook hooves with Dash and the survivors.

"Nightwish, now let's go."

As the few survivors got back into the two cars, they continued down the highway. Some rode on the roof, keeping watch for machines, others rode inside, and chatted about what their new life at Wanahoova might be like. There was another brief instance of hope between the survivors, one that was even stronger than the first, and would carry them all the way to the safe zone.

Approximately 3 weeks later, Equestria cleared the tail of the Rhea-M Comet, just as planned. The Canterlot Royal Guard later found the shattered shell of the Discord statue in the royal gardens, and blamed him for the cause of the disaster. Eldorado was revived by the royal sisters for his past bravery in wars.

The survivors of the Big L

Are still survivors.

THE END