Wartorn

RESTORE HARMONY!

"Get up you useless pegasi!"

"Wha?" Rainbow Dash said groggily.

"Do you want to get killed?!" Rainbow cracked her eyes open and regretted it immediately... The sun light was nearly four times as extreme as it was in Ponyville, and it bounced off the many pale sandy buildings around where Rainbow lay. Wait, what? Rainbow looked at her surroundings again, short huts made of sandstone and logs surrounded the cyan pegasi, but something else grabbed her attention.

"Get the hell up if you want to live!" screamed a brown unicorn stallion that stood above Rainbow. Something tall blocked the sunlight from that direction. It yelled something as it charged. "Shit!" yelled the unicorn. His horn flared blue and the shadow erupted a fountain of blood. "Get moving!" the stallion yelled, bucking Rainbow lightly. She got up wearily.

"Wha hoppen?" she slurred. Something exploded in the distance.

"Come on! We need to move now!" The stallion yelled, charging into the sunlight. Rainbow got onto her hooves as best as she could and followed the brown unicorn.

"What's going on?!" she called ahead.

"Are you blind?! The human resistance cell is going on the offensive again!" he screamed at Rainbow Dash.

"Uh... What?" She asked. The stallion opened his mouth to reply when another tall creature emerged from a nearby hut. It's hind legs bent backwards, the fore limbs were raised high, holding what looked like a corrupted version of the Royal Canterlot Guards' spears, it was clothed in sandy cloth that covered the entirety of it's bipedal body. It screamed as it charged towards Rainbow.

"Whoa!" Rainbow yelled as she dodged the bizarre spear. Which embedded itself in the sand under hoof. With a roar of rage the biped ripped it's weapon out of the sand and lunged forwards. Rainbow punched the oncoming blade away with one hoof and delivered another hit to the creatures head, knocking away its cloth covering. It staggered backwards reeling from the hit... Rainbow grimaced at the exposed creatures face... When she described it later, she would use a single word... Ugly. With another roar, the biped lunged forwards again. But a blue aura surrounded the creature and was hurled into the distance, making it drop the spear.

"Come on!" the stallion yelled as he levitated the strange spear towards him.

"Why are you taking that thing with you?" Rainbow asked the strange stallion. But he ignored her and continued galloping through the sandstone huts. Several more of the two-legged creatures rounded the corner behind her and started yelling in a harsh tongue. Rainbow decided to follow the brown unicorn and dashed forwards. She soon caught up with the stallion as he bounded through the maze of sandstone huts and wells.

A yelling group of creatures suddenly were in front of the pony duo. They yelled even louder as they nearly bumped noses with the stallion and mare. The unicorn levitated the strange spear in front of him.

"Are you cra..." Rainbow began, only to be interrupted by the roaring thunder that the strange spear spat. The group of creatures shuddered under the barrage of fire, small explosions of blood erupting where ever they were touched by the deadly weapon.

"Gotta love human technology." The stallion grunted as the last one fell to it's knees. He tossed the weapon aside. "Too bad most of it isn't pony compatible though..." All Rainbow could do was hover there, jaw nearly hitting the sandy ground as she took in the carnage before her.

"What was that?!" she yelled after a moment or too.

"What was what?" the stallion asked as he levitated several more of the death weapons onto his saddle bags.

"That with the... Uh... Powpowpow! Bangbangbang!" Rainbow exclaimed. All the stallion did was raise an eyebrow at her.

"You've never seen a AK-194 before?" he deadpanned.

"No!"

"How long have you been posted here?" He asked, eyebrow raising even higher.

"Uh... First day!" Rainbow stated.

"Didn't command give you a briefing or..."

"Command?"

"Great... Another one... Look just keep your head down and try not to die..." He stated as he trotted towards another opening. Rainbow hovered after the stallion.

"Wait! Another one? Keep my head down? Try not to die?! What in Equestria is going on here!" she yelled at the stallion.

"LOOK PRIVATE! I'M IN CHARGE HERE! DON'T YOU DARE QUESTION ME!" The stallion yelled, suddenly turning on Rainbow.

"Well excuuuuse me Mr. Weird brown unicorn guy..." Rainbow muttered.

"Why you..." The stallion began, only to be interrupted by a large earthquake. His pupils became pinpricks. "Run." he stated.

"Why..." Rainbow began.

"Run! Now!" he yelled as he dashed away. Another earthquake. Rainbow wasted no time, something in the stallions voice left no room for debate, and charged after the running unicorn. More earthquakes ensued. Finally he stopped behind a pile of rubble.

"What are you running from? Why..." she began.

"Shh!" he hushed.

"What are we hiding from?" she whispered.

"Shut up! It's hunting us!" he whispered back. Suddenly the source of the earthquake stepped next to the pile of rubble. The two ponies tried to mimic the dead as whatever it was paused. Suddenly a shadow passed over head and the earthquakes began rumbling away.

"If you think a AK is a sight to see... Then watch this..." The stallion stated as he rummaged in his saddle bags. Rainbow looked over the pile of rubble only to have her breath stolen. Striding away was a bipedal monster of metal, easily standing high over the tallest of the sandstone huts, it's fore limbs waved through the air as if sniffing the air.

"What is that thing?!" she stammered. The stallion ignored her as he found what he was looking for.

"Badlands command, this is Captain Bronzewall... Requesting deployment of Thunderstrider in section 12..." he said into some strange device floating in his telekinesis.

"What are you doing?!" Rainbow whispered as the metal monster turned back towards the pile of rubble.

"Request confirmed and granted Bronzewall... Please standby." the device said, not caring at all for noise.

"Get down dumbass." the stallion stated, pulling Rainbow back to the ground.

"Standby..."

"What are..."

"Thunderstrider has been dispatched, ETA... 7... 6..." the thing chirped. A roar could be heard in the distance.

"You..." Crashing accompanied the roaring.

"4... 3..."

"Sit the hell down colorful one."

"2..."

"Why..."

RRRAAAWWWRRGGGGGHHH!!

Rainbow looked directly upwards. Looming over head, was the terrifying visage of a metal Ursa Minor... It roared a challenge at the metal biped, which stepped forwards in acceptance.

"We might want to get the hell away... Like right now... As in five seconds ago..." The stallion muttered, pushing Rainbow away from the pile of rubble. She wasted no time in getting away from the dueling titans of steel.

"What are those things?!?" she yelled at the stallion.

"The humans word for them are walkers! Roughly translated of course..."He stated as they ducked behind more cover.

"Alright buddy... I want to know what in Tartarus is going on... And I want to know it NOW." Rainbow commanded. All the stallion did was laugh. "What's so funny?!" Rainbow yelled.

"You said Tartarus! No one says Tartarus any more!" he giggled. Rainbow stared at him.

"What the hay are you talking..." She started, but then her head exploded into a star burst of pain, light dazzled in her eyes as she blacked out.