Although the barren clearing was silent and only the sound of the haunting songs of the wind filled their ears, Victor felt uneasy. As the two trotted warily through the wasteland, once called Ponyville, the white stallion drew his beretta close.
“Nothin’ but that damn smell o’ blood again” the unicorn heaved, choking back a gag.
Killjoy sullenly nodded, her hooves desperately covering her muzzle, blocking out the strong iron smell along with the overwhelming sour scent of decomposing corpses. Every corner of the ghost town was embellished with hanging pieces of shrivelled organs, swarmed with writhing heaps of maggots and flies.
“Sweet Celestia, this place is fucked-”, the pegasus yelped, the nauseating stench assaulting her nostrils.
“It’s hard to ‘magine how this shithouse used to be a town…”, Victor breathed out, his sunken juniper eyes drifting aimlessly at the gore-covered streets. As he surveyed the area hopelessly, his gaze locked onto a faded yellow kit with three faint symbols of butterflies clustered together. The seemingly out-of-place kit was stranded amongst some dismembered limbs, almost like it was abandoned in a moment of pure panic. It was strange to see a Ministry of Peace medkit here, in incredible condition no less.
He trotted cautiously over the severed hooves toward the worn-down kit. With his pale blue magic levitating it toward himself, the dried blood gave resistance. As soon as the kit was pulled from the pile of decayed flesh, a round of shots pierced through the once-still and desolate town.
“Vic! Head for cover!”, the panicked pegasus echoed throughout the clearing, her wings flapping frantically. As Killjoy galloped into a nearby hollowed tree crudely vandalized with miscellaneous body parts, the white stallion followed closely behind, frenzied shots narrowly missing his large stature.
*****
As the duo hurriedly tumbled into what now appeared to be an abandoned library, a wave of decomposition washed over them. The thick scent was heavy and hung onto the walls. Killjoy swiftly glided around a corner and concealed herself underneath a dishevelled study while Victor slid down a flight of stairs and took a stride behind a set of large rusted machinery.
Faint trots accompanied by the creaks of the withered wooden interior echoed throughout the hollowed tree. The croaky voices of the raiders slithered eerily over the decaying corpses on the filthy ground, taunting both Killjoy and Victor.
“We saw you two come here… Might as well just show yourselves before we do somethin’ real nasty to that cute little filly…” A deep and coarse voice snickered.
Victor’s skin grew hot under his fur as his lips curled in disgust and sheer rage. The trots of the raiders grew louder towards him and when they were before the looming machinery, the ivory unicorn cocked his beretta and drew it between the eyes of a large earth pony stallion, presumably the one who made the disgusting comment regarding Killjoy.
BANG
Mangled bits of brain matter materialised and splattered on the surrounding raiders, bright crimson blood spurting and pooling on the wood. The rest of the raiders drew their handguns and shot haphazardly in Victor’s direction, grazing his cheek and shoulder, with one bullet sinking into his left flank. Adrenaline now pumping, the large unicorn charged towards the two remaining ponies and stomped into one’s skull, the crunch underneath the skin echoing throughout the basement. With his face sinking inward and bloodied eyes bulging out, Victor directed his attention to the last raider. The lean pegasus’ wide eyes stared at his friend’s caved-in head and with that as a distraction, Victor bucked his throat, throwing the pony across the room clutching his neck in agony. The white stallion galloped and threw himself onto his abdomen, the intestines bursting out both his mouth and anus.
After all was done, the adrenaline wore off and Victor heaved himself upstairs for Killjoy. Before he could start searching for the creamy white pegasus, the voices of two mares were faintly heard up another flight of stairs. With his guard up, he carefully trotted up with his gun close and ready to fire. Before turning a corner and shooting, the familiar voice of Killjoy was heard.
“What did they do to you two…”
Her pained voice was filled with fear and worry. The unicorn lowered his gun and peered behind a wall. The pegasus was clearly distraught while trying desperately to free a unicorn and an earth pony from filthy rusted cages. Their scuffed coats were riddled with bruises and blood stains. Without further thought, Victor limped over to the three ponies and shot the lock.
“Th-Thank you…” the unicorn with the tangled wine-coloured mane uttered, her emancipated frame trembling. The earth pony, one with sharp golden eyes lowered her head in gratitude. As the two traipsed out of their cell, the unicorn caught sight of Victor’s injury and winced. The stallion looked at her, then his shot wound, then back at her.
“Oh I’m fine, don’tcha fret”, he reassured unconvincingly as his flank became more limp with the wound swelling.
“If you don’t treat that soon, you’ll probably lose that leg”, the unicorn informed grimly, her brows furrowing with worry. The pegasus rushed over to the stallion in shock, her wide eyes glazed on his shot flank.
“What’re we gonna do…” Killjoy breathed out, her lips quivering.
“I would help you but med kits are relatively scarce around here… I’m sorry…” The unicorn said in defeat, her head dropping in shame.
“Wait, I think I’ve got one- I picked it up outside right before them raiders chased us in here! I forgot it down in the basement when I was lookin’ for Kill over here”, the stallion gestured to the pegasus with his head. “Here, follow me”, the large unicorn dragged himself down the flight of stairs with Killjoy acting as his crutch. As the four reached the basement, Victor levitated a pale yellow box from behind the rusted machinery, much to the unicorn mare’s delight.
“Oh thank Celestia! Don’t you worry, with that, I can fix up in a jiffy!” The mare levitated the kit toward herself and started cleaning and bandaging the wound. “I do apologise for my poor manners, my name is Velebeth Rosenberg and this is Cobalt Steinhardt. Thank you two so much for freeing my dear friend and me.”
“Oh- You’re all good, and thank you for helping treat Vic’s wound! I’m Killjoy and this is Victor!”
With the bullet wound now treated, the stallion stood back up, only to stumble in pain.
“Don’t put too much weight on that leg for a while, it’s gonna take some time to heal up even with all these supplies.”
Victor nodded as he lifted his left hind leg and shifted his weight to the other side.
“Well, Cobalt and I were planning to head back to a winery we used to often visit. It may be wise for you two to seek refuge there too. I urge you to come?” Velebeth incited, her expression troubled.
“Of course, we need all the help we can get. Thank you.”, the pegasus thanked as she flew over to Victor’s side, assisting his laboured trots.
