Caring Sparkle (Under Revision)

Entering the light filled gateway, Twilight had no idea what wonders she would see on this journey. The sight, that greeted her arrival, was truly a sight to remember. All around her, a vast array of colors coated her surroundings. Flowing in such a fluid motion, it was truly catching to the eye.

The path, Twilight saw before her, led to another light filled gateway. Twilight could feel the Elements power flowing freely around her. Accepting the challenge ahead of her, she stepped into the light. Feeling the Elements embrace wash over her before everything went blurry.

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“Ughh! What's that smell?” Twilight covered her nose, preventing the rotten aroma from invading her senses.

The rush of energy, from entering the gateway, must have been too much for me, Twilight thought as she became aware of her new surroundings.

This is definitely the library that the Princess mentioned. Well, what was left of it. The library looked like something you would see in a movie after a big fight scene. Book shelves toppled over, paper everywhere, long light fixtures barely hanging from the roof, this place couldn't get any worse. But, almost as if the room could hear her thoughts, a nearby light fixture fell from the roof causing it to shatter loudly against the floor.

Twilight made a mental note never to say, or think, that again.

Twilight made her way over to the large desk in the corner of the room. That looked like the best place to look for information at this point.

“Come on.... There's got to be something around here,” Twilight looked at the wall next to the desk to find a map of the library. It seemed that the humans language wasn't to different from Equestrian. The only information the map offered, that seemed of value, was the name of the Library though. “Ra...Rapides...Parish Library” Twilight read quietly to herself, making a mental note of the name. If she could find a map of the local area, she could now get a better idea of exactly where she was.

Not finding much more of interest, Twilight decided it was time to find out what awaited her outside the library. Finding the exit, she cracked the door open just enough to see outside. Seeing as it was completely deserted, Twilight made her way out onto the road to get a better idea of the area, greeted by the warm rays of the sun.

The reason behind the library being trashed now made sense to Twilight. Everywhere she looked, destruction and signs of struggle could be seen across the street and buildings. The road, cracked and worn, stretched far. On both side, small building stood in straight lines, each worn and trashed just like the library. Vines could be seen growing along the sides of buildings. Some vines, leading into buildings where holes in walls and broken windows could be found.

Before Twilight could examine the rest of the area, she was startled by voices coming from a nearby alley-way. Thinking quickly she hid behind a nearby short, stone wall that separated the Library from the neighboring building.

Peeking out from behind the wall, Twilight saw 3 humans walking out from the alley way, casually talking and laughing. Two males, one female. Each of them carried long, metal contraptions across their shoulders. They looked like tools. Whatever they were, Twilight knew they couldn't be anything good.

The three humans stood next to each other, chatting happily as they made their way down the alleyway. The male that stood on the outer left edge, towered above the other two. Actually, compared to the other two, his height and physique dwarfed his comrades. What stood out more to Twilight, even more than how huge he was, was how large the machine dangling from his shoulder was. A long, metal box closing into a smaller tube. The bottom of the machine had shiny pieces of metal dangling freely. The man, honestly, brought chills up Twilight's spine.

The other male, unlike his larger companion, was the shortest out of the three. But not by much. His hair, much longer than the other male's, stopped at his shoulders. His face showed sign of stress, small black rings running beneath his eyes. But, underneath it, Twilight could see a happy spirit. This male seemed to carry two much smaller metallic machines. They seemed to form an 'L' shape and was small enough to sit easily on both of his sides.

The female carried herself quite confidently. Her short hair flowed slightly in the wind, stood slightly taller than the male with the long hair, and looked younger than the other two as well. Though, her eyes seemed cold as ice. Hanging from her shoulder, a short, fierce looking machine shine in the sunlight. It looked very well taken care of.

They all looked quite happy. Those expressions quickly changed as a loud popping sound rang through the air and the tall male, blood flowing from the now open flesh where his face used to be, fell lifeless to the ground. The world around them suddenly sprung to life with  a barrage of popping sounds. Twilight, covering her ears, cowered down beneath the wall. She opened her eyes just as one of the humans swiftly hopped across the wall before ducking below it's cover. The long haired male now pointed one of these machines at her.

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“What??!! Are you a...???No, Marcus, snap out of it! Wait??? Are you a fucking unicorn?!” The male continued to aim the machine directly at Twilight's face.

The unicorn, obviously stricken with fear, nodded before managing to squeak out, “Yes...” .

“Holy Shit! Society collapses and suddenly mythical creatures appear!And you understand English! Maybe the apocalypse really is starting.” Marcus then poked out from the wall, firing more rounds from his .45's at the man who killed Berin.

Seeing a red mist come from where the man used to be, Marcus knew he had hit him. Bitch deserved worse, but there wasn't much he could do under the current conditions.

Ducking back behind the wall, Marcus loaded more rounds into the magazine's of his .45's. Kristan must have ran across the street back into the alley. The sound of an assault rifle, coming from the alley, assured Marcus that she was okay.

“So, seeing how you look innocent and scared, is it safe to assume you're not here to kill us? Or do I have to put a bullet in your skull right now?” Marcus aligned his iron sights back to the unicorns face.

Fearing for her life, Twilight took a inhaled deeply before speaking. “I'm not here to cause trouble, honestly. I just got here. I don't know what's going on. But I assure you that I'm not with them,” Twilight assured, pointing back over the wall.

Relieved by these words, Marcus lowered his weapon. Last thing he wanted was to start killing mythical creatures under suspicion of being the enemy. Wouldn't that be a story.... “So, do unicorns have names?” Marcus asked, trying to calm the frightened creature.

The unicorn seemed to relax, slightly, at the kind words. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.”

“Nice to meet you Twilight. Wish we could have met when not being shot at. Don't worry, we'll get you out of here,” Marcus assured her as he patted her mane.

Another human dove across the wall, obviously seeking for cover, just as an explosion came from behind the wall. Kristan planted her back against the wall and took a deep breath before look at her friend.

“Marcus..... Is that a unicorn?” Kristan asked her, now smiling, comrade.

“Kristan, meet Twilight Sparkle. She's a purple unicorn that speaks English. Now before we go any further, we need to get out of here. I think Berin had some plastic explosives in his pack. We can use those as a distraction as we retreat. I need you to give me cover fire,” Marcus quickly explained before his, super- hyper, friend was able to ask any more questions.

In a swift motion, Marcus hopped over the wall just as Kristan began firing in the direction of incoming hostiles.

Not too long after, Marcus was back, drenched in sweat. “Kristan, once these explosives go off, you take the lead back to HQ. We don't have long since their on a timer. I'll be right behind you with Twilight.”

“Alright, but I want to speak with her once we get back home. You always get all the fun,” Kristan replied with an excited tone in her voice.

That all changed when a metallic orb landed next to Marcus.

“Grenade! Move!” Marcus yelled as they made a mad dash out from behind the wall. Twilight, confused as to what was happening, followed.

A few seconds had passed before a loud explosion erupted from behind the wall. Shrapnel and debris spread from the blast site.

The blast threw Twilight off her hooves and sent her sliding across pavement.

Marcus ran back for Twilight while Kristan provided cover fire. “Hurry or else we will all die!” Kristan yelled as another round of bullets shattered through the rib cage of one of their pursuers. Bone fragments and blood erupted from the massive hole in the mans chest before he collapsed gasping for air as his lungs collapsed.

Marcus dragged Twilight behind a nearby car before checking for wounds. A large gash on her hind leg indicated that shrapnel, from the grenade, had hit her. Marcus reacted quickly, applying a tight tourniquet at the highest point of her leg. With her unconscious, Marcus had no choice but to carry her. Lifting Twilight over his shoulder, into a fireman's carry, Marcus made a sprint past the point that Kristan had been defending.

Dropping two more enemies, satisfied with their agonizing screams, Kristan followed.

The bombs detonated shortly after. Blocking off the road with the remains of nearby shops.

“Marcus, you sure do know how to make an exit. I'm pretty sure I saw a couple of the ones, closest to the bombs, instantly disintegrate,” Kristan said with a chuckle.

“You weren't too bad yourself. Seems like those training sessions at the range payed off. Now lets get Twilight to HQ. She needs medical attention,” Marcus replied back. Twilight was here for a reason, and he'd get his information as soon as Twilight was better.