Extermination

A crowd was still gathered around the pit the following morning.  Everyone seemed to be hypnotized by the unscrewing, which was still being done from the inside of the cylinder.  Two feet of shiny new metal was shown, when the cap suddenly came loose.  It fell, and hit the ground with a heavy thud.  As everyone watched, a head slowly rose from the cylinder.  It had two luminous, disk like eyes that observed the crowd.  It's pulsating body heaved as it retreated back inside the safety of the cylinder.  Next, a funnel appeared from the hole.

Something in the back of my mind told me that this was no friendly item...It turned toward the crowd, and a faint hissing noise began to emit.  WHOOSH-I was instantly blinded.  I fell backwards, wiping my eyes as I looked up, and saw a beam of light coming from the funnel.  Whatever made contact with this terrible light was instantly combusted, and turned to flame.  It struck the small crowd, vaporizing anyone it touched.

The crowd, now separating, began to run.  I still lied on the ground as the funnel came toward me.  Without hesitation, I teleported out of the path of this unearthly heat-ray.  My heart pounded, as I too begun to run for my life.  I didn't dare look back, as ponies a couple feet away began to burn, and wail as they were instantly vaporized.  I felt as if the moment I would reach the safety of the library, this mysterious death would leap up and strike me down.

I quickly shut the door behind me as I ran into my home, where Spike was casually eating breakfast.  He peered at me, and spoke aloud.

"Whoa, what happened out there?" He asked.  I had no response for him as I collapsed to the ground, out of breathe, and out of focus.  "What's all over your fur?" He added.  I looked down at myself, and realized I was covered in dust, and dirt.  I pulled myself up, and made my way to the bathroom sink, where I splashed my face with cold water.

"Spike..." I said, "Pack your things."

"What, why?"

"Just do it!" I ordered.  Spike didn't question me that time as I raised my voice.  He quickly ran upstairs and began to gather the few belongings he had.  In a couple minutes, he was back downstairs with a blanket, and a pillow.

"This is pretty much all I need, since I don't exactly wear clothes." He commented.

"I'm sending you to the Crystal Kingdom." I said.  "It'll be safe there, Cadence will watch you until we can figure out how to deal with this."

"Safe?  From what?  What's going on Twilight?"

"Please Spike, no questions, just do as I ask." I ordered.  Spike didn't reply, he only nodded his head.  I gave him a pouch of bits.  "Go to the train station, and get yourself a ticket to the Crystal Kingdom, understood?"

"Yes Twilight."

"Good, now go." I opened the door, and saw a plume of smoke rising in the distance where the crash sight was.

"Whoa..." Spike said.  He understood a little more why he had to leave.

"I'll see you in a couple days." With this, Spike made his way to the train station.

It amazed me how the rest of the day were like any other...Ponies still went through the daily routine of eating, working, and sleeping.  It's as if nothing changed.  I went downtown to get the daily paper.  There, a train stopped at the train station.  I watched as Equestrian Soldiers walked out on to the platform, bringing artillery pieces with them.

They marched through Ponyville in a column, heading toward the rising smoke.  From the pit, a faint hammering noise could be heard.  The creatures were building things inside the cylinders.  I thought about what they were building...perhaps a weapon, or a way to communicate...or worse, more heat-rays.

I went back to the library, and sat there thinking to myself...the image of those ponies burning kept re-appearing in my head.  The sound of blood curdling screams played again and again in my mind.  The fur on my back stood erect as shivers were sent down my spine.  I would've helped them...but the intensity of the moment kept me running for dear survival.

Hours later, in the afternoon, there was a violent crash.  The ground heaved as the artillery began firing upon the cylinder.  I realized with horror that my home was now in range of the heat-ray...The pounding of guns continued on through to dusk, where another falling star was descending toward the ground...the second cylinder.

That night, I couldn't eat.  I felt incredibly sick to my stomach.  The pounding of guns no longer existed, as the hammering continued.  I watched from the windows as ponies were walking through town, pulling carriages full of their belongings.  The only thing I could do was watch.  I decided to try and get some sleep...With the hammering from the pit still audible, I fell into a deep, haunted sleep.