The Strange Ponies

4:00 A.M.

“We need to defend ourselves!” Mac let a loud groan of pain escape his lips, the upper side of his chest a deep purple bruise.

“Why are they doing this?” Marble shivered in place uncontrollably.

“I don't know! Do you have any weapons here?” Mac rushed over to his friend, hooves holding her shoulders in place roughly.

“We're going to die here…” Marble began to weep in place, tears rolling down her cheeks slowly.

“Marble, stay with me! We need to focus, I need something to protect us!” Mac let his brave strong eyes lock onto her frail one's.

“Crossbow, atop the bookshelf. Lime hid it here in case of Timberwolves…” Marble sniffled before curling into a small ball on the floor.

Mac was quick to pounce onto hind hooves, reaching out of sight for the hidden weapon atop the bookshelf. His body wincing in pain as he stretched his bruised ribs outwards, hooves barely grasping a old dusty crossbow and lowering it down.

“This might work but I need bolts.” Mac lifted and inspected the small black single fire crossbow in his hooves.

“I have no idea where she hid them!” Marble sobbed in place, her tiny frame a broken deflated mess on the floor.

“Listen to me Marble, we're not going to die here!” Mac walked over to the mare annoyed, lifting her to her hooves sternly his voice serious.

“Peek-a-boo!” The beige hood giggled from the shattered window, peeking her muzzle into cabin sarcastically.

Marble let a loud scream echo through the cabin, a sharp axe smashing through the front door unexpectedly. The stallion pushed his friend aside as he ran over to a nearby desk, using his strength to shove it across the floor and in front of the door.

A large hole being carved out of the old wooden frame as the axe continued to chop down the door, the beige hood smirking as she began to crawl in through the window easily. Marble spotting her placing a hoof inside, the mare grabbing a large book on self defense from the floor and tossing it hard.

Pelting the beige hood across the skull as she flopped backwards out the window with a thud, the axe completely chopping the top of the door out of the way before it began to slam into the desk.

Mac casting a hateful glare to the large Shadowbolt outside the hole chopping her way inside, his instincts telling him to lift the empty crossbow towards the mare. The Shadowbolt spotting the weapon in his hooves, swiftly rushing back off into the darkness with her axe.

“We need to hide in the back now!” Mac motioned the mare to follow him towards the storage room, both ponies galloping into the dark room with no windows.

Marble nestled into a cold icy corner behind the stallion as he towered over her protectively, his dark green eyes gazing down to his feet spotting a large box of bolts under a mop.

“Now we're talking!” He sighed triumphantly in relief, his strong calm hooves loading the weapon with ease before it clicked into place.

“You're going to kill them?” Marble watched her dream stallion take on a colder darker edge.

“Only if they force me.” He lifted the crossbow high atop his spare hoof to steady his aim, locking his eyes on the open door in a headshot.

The sound of hooves crawling in through the shattered window echoed through the claustrophobic cabin, Marble placing her hooves over her ears before squeezing her eyes shut tight.

Hoofsteps of multiple ponies walking around in the living room could be clearly heard, the sudden skip of the record player springing to life filled the whole cabin with deafening music. Any sound of hoofsteps drowned out with ease, they now had complete run of the cabin locking the music on a loop.

A delicate synth-driven song echoing deep into the night.

“ Well he was Canterlot based

She lead a rock farm life

He used to fly weekends

It was the easy life

But then it turned around

And he began to change

She didn't wonder then

She didn't think it strange…”