TCB: RAGE!

She galloped all the harder, broken glass crunching underneath her hooves as she ran, Gem ran down the dark littered, and small roads around the warehouses. ‘Where had it gone wrong?’ She thought as she sped along, Broken potion launcher hanging mangled, scraping the ground behind her with a clickety clack in time with her galloping stride.

“This way, hurry!” Cried voices from afar, their hoofbeats some distance away.

“Gotta get away,” She gasped in panic, She glanced at a side door to an old building before beginning to buck at the lock with all her might, smashing away the door began to buckle, but held fast. amazingly reinforced, the heavy steel door wouldn’t budge. she turned at the sound of scraping boots on asphalt filled her ears, her eyes opening wide with fear as she saw the man hobble towards her, face set in a mask of pain as he ignored his twisted ankle, with one bloody chewed looking arm hanging loosely at his side, he drew his revolver, and Gemstone shut her eyes tightly for what may be the last time. *BLAM*.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Come on.” The man said, hobbling past her into the darkened room. Gem stood dazed for a moment, as she watched the man hobble deeper into the building, his shredded flak jacket bore the initials H.L.F. on the back, partially torn off. Gem hesitated for the moment, before she heard more cries of bloodlust fill the air behind her, that was all that was needed to spur her on to find and follow her enemy.

* * *

“Are, are you going to be alright?” She asked worriedly of the man as he grunted in pain, forcing a door open with a shoulder.

“What, you’d think I was hurt by the way you're talkin,” He smirked, before doubling over in pain. “Ha, jus, just a stitch in my sides all, gonna catch my breath for a moment.”

“What, what happened, what did your men do to them!” She said, shakily, not sure whether to be angry or worried for the man in pain.

“I should ask you the same fuckin thing, new tactic for recruiting?” He smirked, letting out a gasp as gem gently touched his rib with a hoof,

“Your, ribs are broken, you shouldn’t even be moving!” She scolded, ears lying flat before returning to worrying, “Will they find us?”

“Don’t worry bout that, they can smell the blood, they’ll be here soon.” He groaned, knocking over filing cabinets behind him with his good arm

“Then why are we here! If you lay on my back I can carry you, we can run away!” She cried, shuffling uneasily underneath the grim faced mans expression.

“Look, these things will run us down till they die of exhaustion. . . I’ve, heard of them before, they won’t ever stop until are heads are smashed open like rotten melons. We have to find someplace to take them on, we have to fight them now before it gets dark. . . they see better in it.

“Allright, but where?!” Gem asked as the first sound of furniture began to crash about.

“ASITFLOWS!” came the howl from outside, screams of manic laughter began to fill the building as the sound of glass shattering rang out like a chorus.

“No time, closet now!” He screamed beckoning her inside. He hardly waited for her to leap in, door grinding against her flank, she hissed as the door was slammed shut. There they waited, breathing deeply in the partial darkness, the only light coming from her horn before the first arrived pounding on the door in a fit of hysterical rage. Gem began to panic, as her vision went dark, so too did her horn. It was the man who kept her from going out completely.

“I don’t wanna die, I, I was only trying to help. . . they said HLF were hurting ponies here, an, and. . “ She gasped panic flowing through her, the urge to run filled her but there was nowhere to go in the closet that seemed all too small now.

“Your name?” Asked the man, as the pounding on the door increased, pieces splintering off as the door began to buckle under the strain of the attackers.

“G-Gem, an- and yours?” She cringed as more shards of wood broke away from the frame, pelting her hide, and forcing her to turn away as a small hole was beaten through the door.

“Later, I’ll tell you after we get out of here, now Gem. . . listen to me good, I can’t load my gun anymore, I’ll need you to do it, you got that? You're going to have to help me so we can get out of here. You still know how to load a gun right, just slid-,”

“I’m a pony, not a fool,” She said, forgetting a bit of fear in the moment, A large eye gazed through the hole, as more forelegs reached through to widen it, they giggled with glee as the ponies clawed the door open ever more, bloodlust filling their eyes as rictus grins spread across their muzzles, stained red, already drenched in dried remnants of a meal before. They lunged trying to push through the hole, jaws snapping together eagerly at an easy meal.

“Not a fool, huh? How’d you end up here,” He smiled before fanning the trigger back with a thumb, the first blood crazed equine let out a howl of pain as the bullet penetrated his eye. He staggered back and Gem screamed as a few of his own fell on him, ripping him apart in an orgy of violence. Three more quickly taking the place at the hole, eager hooves tearing and kicking at the door, anything to get at the two inside.

“Why are they doing this? Get away, go Get away, get AWAY!” She screamed, as a stallion forced his way partially through, his baby blue coat marred with dried blood, his Cutie mark, a teddy bear now half torn away.

“Gem, GEM, Focus, RELOAD!” Yelled the man, as his gun was enveloped in her magic. Empty brass being exchanged for fresh cartridges. He unloaded into him even as he thrust cracked and broken hooves at Gem. Gem began to sob as the pool of his blood rolled towards them, staining her yellow coat as it continued flowing.

“Please,” She cried “Just make it stop, I, I jus want to go home, I, I didn’t want any of this!” She sobbed as more flung themselves at the doorway, her eyes widened as the hinges began to shake loose. The laughter became more savage as more hoofbeats could be heard pounding along the ground outside. The cries became more savage and unintelligible, as did the health of the ponies who rushed the door, Six shells fell before being replaced, again and again. the man didn’t miss by much, if any. some fell to the floor as the occasional stray sent a pony to the floor in a heap, it did not stop them, Laughing as tears filled their eyes, they dragged themselves to what they hoped would become their meal.

“Stay together, Gem. Listen there monsters now, the only way we live through this is if you. stay. calm!” He yelled, motioning for her to reload, Gem was curled up in the far corner nearly catatonic. “Dammit, STAY WITH ME!” He yelled, two hate filled eyes, filled the hole as the gray mare crawled through, The man yelled one last time before taking the handle of his gun in mouth, rummaging through his pockets, as the crazed mare frothed at the mouth stretching towards them even as jagged corners tore away her hide. “J-em, Mehm, D’ou have to snap out of it!” He yelled, firing the single shell he had loaded, more began to drag the limp body of their companion from the hole, screaming and gurgling pouring forth from their throats, promising a slow death.

“Al, Alright,” Gem said pulling herself up shivering. “I’ don’t want to die, I won’t, I won’t die!” She screamed. Her horn glew, wedging the body in the door firmly.

“Alright, stay calm, you hear me?” The man said, sounding groggy as a line of blood oozed out a corner of his mouth, “Gotta, stay, calm.” He said sluggishly, “My pack, little, needle things,” He mumbled.

“Alright,” She said, rummaging through the little satchel  on his back with her mouth, her horn to tied up with barricading the door. Her eyes widened as they settled onto the needles with a opaque syrupy orange color to them.

“W-why do you have, these?” She said shakily, looking up at the man. This time she didn’t cringe as more of the door was broken away, eyes peering through the ever widening hole.

“Just give me one,” He spat, taking it shakily from her, stabbing the hypo into his thigh, his eyes rolling back as he let out a sigh of relief, his taunt pain wracked frame relaxed as the drugs did its work

“This stuff is bad for you,” She glared. somewhere a siren blared, and more gunshots could be heard in the distance.

“Yeah, but it takes the edge off a bit,” He groaned as the medicine numbed his pain, “Would you like to hear something funny?” He smiled at the yellow mare, as the howling horde outside screamed, pulling on the legs of the dead body in the way, tearing off a leg and losing purchase.

“What’s that?” She said, somewhat hopefully.

“I’m out of bullets,” He smiled, spinning the cylinder around a few times.

* * *

“BRACE THAT DOOR, NOW!” Howled the man, scared personnel rushed about the room, pushing desks to block the door, as what remained of his forces braced the pounding doors with their bodies.

“Sir, everything is locked down, the back hall has a vending machine wedged between the wall and door, and all the windows are taken care of, we’ve also readied the upstairs in the case the ground floors are breached sir. We have also welded the doors to the loading bay shut, but more of them seem to be coming here.” Reported the man, breathlessly. Pale faced and covered with blood, he looked decidedly worse for wear.

“Get me the radio,” Growled their leader, shoving him away for not moving quick enough.

“It’s in another part of the building sir, we have no long range communication, we’ll have to wait for aid like everyone else.” The pale faced man reasoned.

“Well then, looks like you’ll just have to go and get them then. WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!” He hissed.

“We don’t have enough men,” He said gesturing to the three able bodied men left, there were five more lying on the floor, one on the table with personnel setting his broken arm, the best they could with what they had on hand.

“Well then, get some ‘volunteers’ and give them weapons, and let’s get that radio,” His stare only deepened as the pale faced man balked.

“Their non combatants, besides it’s suicide to leave the secured area now!”

“LISTEN, I know that, this has to be done though, I shudder to think what those things could do if they manage to leave the compound.

“But sir?”

“LISTEN, just do it, this has to be done! He snapped, grabbing the man's arm as he turned to leave. “These things are monstrous, but the building should mostly be secure. Just thank god none of them are pegasi.”

* * *

“Fuck. . . I never wanted any of this. . . I’m going to get through it though, it’s what I do. It’s what I always do,” The man muttered to himself, they had given him a rifle. . . he knew that was stupid, the small hallways would just make it useless when they rushed him, never ‘if’, they would. ‘I’m supposed to be a janitor, and now I got to clean up this mess. . . dammit, just. . . calm, deep breaths, gotta keep calm,’ He thought to himself, breathing deeply. He looked over to the other four with him, a stern faced man, larger than him ‘At least he looks like he knows what he’s doing,” He thought, he looked away quickly as the man shot him a dirty look with a grunt, before removing pieces of the bracings on the door. ‘Run and grab the radio, there not in the building yet. Not up this far at least.’

“Hey,” replied a deep voice, a hand clamping down reassuringly on his shoulder from behind. causing the man to jump.

“Y-yeah?” He asked shakily, doing his best not to think. Every moment his stomach sunk lower, hard and cold, clutching his chest as they began to feel like a coil of snakes twisting and turning. He looked as the man smiled at him.

“Don’t worry bout this, hell this is isn’t even half as bad as some of the shit I’ve gone through,” He chuckled.

“How so?” He asked the stupidly grinning man, ‘What’s this guy's deal?’ he thought eyeing his oil stained overalls, ‘This guy isn’t a soldier, he’s a joke. . . just like me.”

“Way I figure it, seeing as we have guns, we have the upper hand,” He smiled, nice and big grasping his gun firmly.

“Yeah, and there's more ponies out there than we have bullets. . . we’re dead,” He said, the soldier unlocking the door sneered at him, as he wrenched away pieces of metal.

“Heh, hey don’t talk about that, we run out just start smackin them with the butt. Like this,” He grunted, smashing the butt of the gun into the door, the soldiers pry bar hit the ground with a clank as the mighty blow forced the door open.

“Alright, when they swarm your ass I’m runnin,” He said, eliciting a snort from the mechanic.‘Well, on the plus side this dude seems strong. . . damned gorilla.”

“Well, let’s go!” He yelled, gaining a smack from the back of the hand of one of the maintenance crew.

“Shut the fuck up, you stupid fuckin moron, and go!” He said, before getting them to move, the soldier glared at him before taking point, moving down the hallway with a steady stride. The jackass bringing up the rear, and the mechanic sticking near the front, too impatient to wait even a moment.

“Hey, see any ponies?” The mechanic whispered to the soldier up front, who only gestured for him to remain silent.

They moved along quickly and quietly for the most part, the building held a chill in the air, and the building remained eerily quiet as they went. *Tappa tappa tappa*.

“What’s that?” Asked the man in back. The soldier froze as he listened intently, it was the greasy mechanic who spoke first.

“Aww, hell. Just some messed up vents, stop acting like scaredy cats and let’s move,” He chuckled as they slowly began to move along the dimly lit hall, floor tiles clean, but cracked with age and abuse.

They hardly made even a whisper of a sound as they moved, but a commotion from outside caused the curious mechanic to look out the window. A man was running at a dead sprint, he tossed his rifle and anything loose on him that hindered him. Ponies, about thirty of them were rushing him as he ran towards the main building. It wasn’t even a contest as they tore into him from behind, knocking him to the ground. Even the stern soldier cringed as the mans cry was carried by the wind. They watched with abject horror as they tore away his helmet, before multiple sets of hooves smashed his head like a pumpkin against the ground. . . there was something wrong with the ponies here, but these, there was something worse about them. They didn’t scream like the rest, no laughter, no cries of blood lust. . . they seemed more organized. The soldier stopped the mechanic as he shouldered his rifle.

“No, he’s dead. No wasting what we haven’t got to waste.” He said, before beckoning them along, “Hurry up, we’re still needed, no telling how long before the ponies get into this part of the building.”

* * *

He held her close as the door was nearly torn loose from the hinges, belows of pain and blood lust rising as the door started to wrench free from the frame. ‘Maybe I shoulda taken the easy way out, lord knows I have enough painkillers. . . but not for her. She couldn’t be her could she?’ He thought. “I’ve, I’ve just got to know one thing before we go. . . what was your name, before you turned?” He said, cringing as her head turned underneath his arm, causing a small throb of pain to jolt him to full alertness.

“W-why would you want to know?” She asked slowly.

“I, I had someone I knew once. I heard she. . . she looked a bit like you when she took the plunge,” He said, letting out a low gasp of pain as her warm hide pressed up against him harder.

“I don’t believe so, I’m actually a native Equestrian,” She said, watching the hope in the man's eyes dim. “I’m sorry.”

‘So, it was for nothing in the end after all,’ The man thought, closing his eyes with a soft chuckle, The door lurched forward as it finally began to give out, “Well, if you're going to go out, it’s not so bad dying trying to do the right thing.

The hysterical laughs stopped momentarily, as the sound of two heavy boots strood into the room, there laughter turned to screams of pain soon after, as they were wreathed in hellish flames.

“What, what's happening?” Gem cried, as the man shed a tear.

“Helps here,” He smiled, as the blazing inferno outside the door quickly heated the small space.

*Thump, Thump, THUMP!* The heavy boots sounded as they strode towards the door, as Gem moved her head ever which way to look out the whole, only seeing a large dark figure move towards them, a half alive charred pony struggled to crawl towards him. The man didn’t even bother to stop, stomping the pony’s brains out as he continued forward, single mindedly.

“Are you sure he’s friendly?” She stammered.

“Define ‘friendly’,” He choked, as the door was wrenched open by a set of thickly gloved hands. Hellish light reflected off the lenses of the large man’s full mask. a ventilation tube running behind him towards a pack mounted on his belt. He said nothing as he glared darkly at the two in the closet, to close for his liking.

“U’m hel-hello, my name is Gemstone, an-” Gem stopped as he raised the the tip of his weapon, and pointed it at the two. A rush of gas was heard as he adjusted a nozzle.

“Well. Shit,” The man said hoarsely, clutching Gem.