Pony Tankers: Snow and Steel

Cream's hooves hit the cold stone of Riverpool's main road with a thump, and her legs promptly gave out under her. She rolled once, then twice, before finally landing on her belly a couple of meters away from Comet. She slowly raised her head in a daze, her vision somewhat fuzzy, and she thought she could just barely make out Flax and Sage taking cover behind a building a short distance away. Blearily reaching forward, Cream thought if she could just... move a little further... she just might reach them, and she'd be safe.

Then, a trio of bullets tore up the road right beside her, missing her by mere inches and showering her with a mixture of snow and dirt. Each impact made her flinch, the air torn apart as though somepony was cracking a whip that was just a hair too short to hit her. She wasn't even sure if they'd missed, at first, but the fact that her minor bleeding wasn't getting any worse was proof enough. With the ringing in her ears finally beginning to subside, the cacophony of the battle raging around her began to break through.

Cream's head pounded with the percussion of artillery, and another shockwave rolled through her body as another one of the Equestrian tank killers let loose with its massive gun. Glancing aside, she was just quick enough to catch sight of the Crystal tank that had mortally wounded Comet going up in flames. Then, a new sound reached her ears, muffled as it was.

"... Cream! Cream! Get your fuckin' head on straight! Get off! The! Street! They're gonna kill you out there!" A voice called, and she had to turn her head toward it to realize it was Flax shouting at her. Her eyes were wide and desperate, and Sage was standing right beside her with a similar expression. Cream knew that standing up out in the open would be a death sentence, so she did the only thing she could. Slowly but surely, she started to crawl across the street toward the safety of the building her crew was hiding behind, or, as her frazzled mind only pieced together a moment later, what was left of it. She was only halfway there when an explosion to top all the rest erupted behind her.

Cream heard and felt it without seeing it, the detonation of the scuttling charge in Comet's hull tearing the little machine to pieces and igniting her ammo along with it. A wave of heat and smoke washed over Cream's prone form, but thankfully the majority of the shrapnel was blown skyward instead of into the surroundings. She was pushed down into the stone as if somepony was attempting to smother her, and the ringing in her ears returned in full force to drown out everything else. A moment later, the sensation gave way to a tightness in her chest, and an almost serene silence. If she focused, the ringing was still there, but the trickle of liquid down the side of her head told her that one of her ears was bleeding.

Cream's mind reeled, and the barrage on her senses seemed neverending. She wanted nothing more than to curl up right where she was and await a well-placed bullet - or, as a more wishful part of her mind hoped, to simply teleport someplace far away from here. She didn't even care where she went, just so long as she wouldn't have to stay there on that hellish street. Madness reigned all around her, and the swirling maelstrom of battle was starting to swallow her up.

Then, she felt a hoof on her foreleg.

Cream forced her eyes open, her vision blurry with tears, and recognized Flax's face. She was just a few meters from safety, and her commander had darted out of cover to drag her in. She wondered how Flax hadn't caught a bullet already, but glancing around revealed the answer. Emerald setting off the bomb and destroying Comet had created quite a cloud of smoke, and it left that side of the street temporarily shrouded from view. It wasn't safe by any stretch, but it was enough for Flax to take the risk. Cream still couldn't force any of her muscles to cooperate until after she was safely behind the house alongside her friends.

Cream sat back against the stone wall and tried to steady herself. Her eyes were wide open and unfocused, and it was all she could do to keep her breathing in check. She was on the verge of hyperventilating when Sage suddenly stepped into her field of view and crouched down. Cream almost didn't even notice the other mare until she grabbed her face with both of her forehooves. The contact snapped her out of her spiraling, and she awkwardly made eye contact while looking into Sage's one eye. She opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out, and Sage spoke over her before she could try again.

"You're alright!" Sage shouted, forced to nearly scream over the din of the battle around them. "You're still in one piece, lass! You need to get your wits back - we're gonna need you if we want to make it out together, aye?!"

"A-Alright," Cream croaked, her voice barely a whisper by comparison. She could hardly hear herself, but Sage seemed to understand nonetheless. "Alright... I'm okay. I'm okay. I-I just... Emerald was... She-"

"Emerald did what she had to! I dinnae like it any more than you, but ye can't change it now. We need you right here, right now - can ye do that?" Sage leaned forward, bumping her forehead against Cream's as she spoke. The gesture was simple, but the extra contact helped to slow her down a little more. Cream nodded slowly, swallowed the lump in her throat, and glanced aside to see Flax checking the magazine of her submachine gun. Reminded that she'd left her own weapons behind in the tank, Cream felt a little pang of guilt. Too late for them now.

Evidently satisfied with getting Cream back on track, Sage released her head and stepped away. She got Flax's attention and asked her a question, but Cream wasn't paying attention. Instead, she looked around from where she sat against the wall and took in the battle all around her as more of a spectator rather than an active participant - or, with how she felt lying on the street, a victim.

Equestrian troops darted to and fro among their makeshift barricades and houses-turned-pillboxes, returning fire on their determined attackers wherever possible. Machine guns roared and cannons thundered, and as more of Cream's hearing returned to her she could finally make out the rumble of engines. More machines, just like hers, rolling through tight streets in a brutal melee of their own. Looking further to her left, Cream leaned away from the wall behind her to try and see around the silhouette of the town hall. She could just barely make out the rear end of Midnight Rider parked on the far side, seemingly still intact with smoke rising from its exhaust pipe. She didn't dare poke her head around the corner to see what became of the Crystal troops directly ahead of her fighting position, but the fact that the rhythm of gunfire going both ways hadn't decreased gave her plenty of indication.

Then, before she could do any more watching, Cream felt another hoof on her shoulder. This time it was Flax. "Here's the game plan," she began, glancing over her shoulder to make sure Sage was listening too. "Y'all are gonna stay close to me while I go find the nearest radio. I gotta stay on the air to coordinate the defense and warn them trucks not to come too close if they start comin' back before the battle's over. Y'all ready?"

"Ready as I'm going to get, Flax," Sage answered first, nodding slowly. Cream gulped, then nodded as well. She pushed off the ground and stood on shaky hooves, taking a moment to wipe some snow off of her side, and stepped closer to her commander.

"Flax, I'm... what are we supposed to do now? I mean, without Comet? We're tankers, not infantry!" Cream pleaded, knowing fully well she was stating the obvious. She felt like a scared little filly, whining over nothing, even if her fear was warranted in a situation like this. Flax had just begun to turn away when she heard Cream's voice, perking one ear before facing her again with a stoic frown.

"We're gonna fight like hell, Cream. That's what we're gonna do; bein' out of a tank don't change our mission, and it don't change the fact that we still got a battle to win. The rest of the unit's countin' on us, and those trucks will ride right into the trap if we aren't here to warn 'em." Cream gulped again, but nodded. What else could she do? She kept her mouth shut for the moment, merely ducking her head and galloping along behind Flax and Sage as they made for the west side of town. That was where the defenses were strongest, and where Flax was most likely to find a radio.

Passing between buildings and in front of barricaded alleys, Cream didn't have much time to calm her nerves. The intensity of the battle varied from place to place, but Riverpool wasn't a large town, and the Crystal ponies brought plenty of firepower for everyone. A walk that would've taken just a minute or two before the war was taking at least twice as long, and it felt like it was taking even longer. Flax seemed to be the most knowledgeable about staying alive outside a tank, taking the lead and guiding her crew along. Cream took up the rear, taking some of the pressure off of Sage and her limited eyesight.

It seemed like they just might make it when they were only a street or two away. Cream could hear the thudding of their one and only mortar raining death on the Crystal troops mixing with the roar of two of their precious few machine guns. Shouts and screams mixed with the gunfire, and Cream realized the enemy was close enough that she could hear them shouting right back. There was something of a language barrier, but it wasn't enough to stop either side from hurling vile insults and threats alongside bullets and grenades. Flax took one moment to look back over her shoulder, her eyes meeting with Cream's, and she signaled for a halt.

"Alright, last stop... we gotta cross the street one more time, and they're real close. I'm gonna see if we can't get our friends across the road to pop a smoke grenade for us and give us cover - otherwise, we're as good as stuck here. Ain't no way we're crossin' that street with the Shinies this close..." Flax trailed off, turning her eyes forward again, just in time to let out a shriek. She'd been so focused on Cream, and Cream focused on her in turn, that neither of them noticed the Crystal soldier charging forward to try and take a few meters of ground.

One soldier was quickly joined by a second, and they went for the mares in front. One tackled Flax to the ground before she could raise her weapon, and the other rushed Sage and repeated the maneuver before she could even fetch her pistol from its holster. One of them looked to be about Flax's age, older than Cream and far stronger judging by the way she wrestled her friend to the ground. The other was closer to Cream's age, or at least she looked it. Cream was frozen in horror for what felt like an eternity, the two Crystal ponies apparently having missed her entirely while focused on their quarry.

The one pinning Flax to the ground used her rifle for leverage, holding it longways and using it like a bar to keep Flax's forelegs pinned down. With her own fores occupied, the Crystal pony resorted to trying to choke Flax out with the rifle while Flax squirmed and struggled beneath her. Just a couple of feet away, Sage wrestled and coiled on the ground with a mare who was clearly weaker than her and almost seemed like she'd take the advantage. Then, just when Cream was hopeful that Sage would roll her opponent over, a solid thwack with the butt of the Crystal mare's submachine gun dazed her long enough to dash that hope as quickly as it had arisen.

"Cream!" Flax rasped, fighting for air and her very life, "Cream! Fuckin'... do somethin'!" Staring from where she sat, Cream wasn't sure that she could do anything. Unfortunately for her, she didn't have a choice. Flax calling out alerted the two Crystal ponies to her presence, and both of them glanced away from the pony they were fighting with mixed reactions. The one choking Flax out looked downright murderous, but the one who had just barely managed to subdue Sage looked terrified. Seeing as the one on top of Sage was closest, Cream went for her first. She clenched her eyes shut and charged forward, pushing off the ground with her hinds and hoping against everything that she was heavy enough to have an impact.

Cream collided with the small Crystal mare with a thud, knocking the wind out of herself for a split second and sending both of them to the pavement. The other mare's helmeted head clonked against the ground, and that left her dazed just long enough for Cream to get on top of her. The only problem was, now that she was there, she had no idea what to do. The other Crystal pony was still focused on Flax, but Sage was slowly recovering now that she was freed. Cream glanced left and right with wide eyes, her chest heaving again, when she finally spotted something she could use - the very same submachine gun the Crystal pony had whacked Sage with!

Cream snatched it up from the ground, but... then she just stared at it. The mare beneath her would recover any second, but Cream was once again paralyzed. She'd never so much as pointed a gun at somepony, let alone considered pulling the trigger. She'd always been a driver, and the last time she even held a gun was during basic training. Now, here she was, fighting not just for her own life but for the lives of her friends. She had a choice to make, and not much time to make it. Just when Cream was about to make up her mind, though, she was out of time. The other Crystal pony left Flax behind, diving away from her and instead tackling Cream. What had started as a semi-orderly melee, or as close as such a thing could be, was rapidly devolving into a desperate dogpile with Cream in the middle. She dropped her gun as quickly as she'd snatched it, screaming in terror as she fell to the side and joined the first Crystal pony on the ground.

Looking up, Cream's ears twitched as she heard the unmistakable sound of a knife leaving its sheath. All of a sudden, her situation felt that much more dire. Cream flailed her forehooves while they were still free, and she just barely managed to catch the other mare's hoof before she could drive the tip of her bayonet into her stomach. The blade glinted in the light, reflecting the pure white snow all around, and the Crystal pony on top of Cream cursed under her breath as she tried to force the blade forward. "Scheiße... Quit your schtruggling! Let me end zhis!"

Realizing that the other mare spoke Equestrian, or at least some, Cream tried one last thing as her strength began to fail her. "W-Wait! Please! I don't wanna die! Not like this! We d-don't... we don't have to do this!" She wailed, forelegs trembling as the tip of the bayonet inched closer to her. She was just beginning to feel it poking through her uniform when the tide of the scuffle turned again. Cream saw a flash of blue fur over the Crystal mare's shoulder, her eyes widening just a little further as she recognized Flax getting back to her hooves. Cream cried out as the bayonet started to pierce her hide, but then it stopped.

It stopped, because Flax had picked up the steel helmet that the Crystal soldier allowed to fall off her head when she tackled Cream. Using the piece of headgear as a weapon, Flax bludgeoned the mare across the back of the head hard enough to make her eyes cross before she was out cold. Her hooves went limp, and the knife that had been seconds away from plunging into Cream's barrel fell away. The Crystal pony keeled over to the side and landed in a heap, blood trickling down the back of her neck. Cream shuddered and took several deep breaths to calm herself, curling up on the ground and turning away while Flax moved in to... finish the job.

A few more firm whacks for good measure, each one coming with a curse under Flax's breath, and Cream retched when the last one was punctuated by a crunch. Only then did Flax let the dented helmet out of her grasp, dropping it onto the corpse of the enemy soldier and getting back to her hooves. Cream just barely peeked one eye open, noticing that the sheer brutality of Flax's counter-attack had also frozen the other Crystal mare with fear. She looked Cream's way, and their eyes met for the second time. That mare had been trying to kill Sage just a moment ago, and Cream had been about to kill her just seconds after that, but... Cream felt sorry for her. She couldn't will herself to speak, but she tried to reach out to her as best she could. Cream shook her head, and the Crystal pony nodded slowly. Cream hoped the message got across.

Just then, Sage finally recovered and stood up with Flax's help. She took her pistol out of its holster and racked the slide. She leveled the weapon at the cowering Crystal mare with a sneer, but she didn't get to pull the trigger before Cream intervened. "No!" She shouted, surprising even herself with the volume of her voice. Sage looked over, dumbfounded, while the enemy cowered on the ground. "You can't! She gave up! Can't you see?! She's not a threat anymore, she surrenders!"

Cream glanced aside, desperate to be right about her last assumption. The Crystal mare got the hint, hastily unclipping her infantry webbing and worming her way out of it. Now utterly defenseless and without any of her equipment, the mare raised her forehooves and stared up at Sage with wide eyes. She was looking right down the barrel of that pistol. Cream clenched her jaw, already bracing her ears for the gunshot... but it never came. Sage sighed and lowered her pistol, much to Flax's surprise, and nodded. "Fine. You're right, lass. It isn't right. I got ahead of meself."

Flax was apparently less understanding, even if she wasn't about to outright kill the mare either. She hauled the mare to her hooves and jerked her to the side, terrifying her with her mere presence. The mare had watched what became of her comrade, after all. Flax's chest was still heaving as she caught her breath after that kill, but she was recovering from the rush of the fight. "Damnit, Cream... we ain't supposed to be draggin' around prisoners! She'd better be worth somethin' when we get the chance to question her. For now, she's comin' with us. Take the lead and get our buds across the way to throw some smoke for us like we planned - I'll keep an eye on our friend."

Cream slowly got back up, her legs feeling like jelly beneath her, and gulped. That went better than she expected, all things considered, but she tried her best not to catch a glimpse of the dead mare lying nearby. Flax really did a number on her, and she hardly seemed fazed by the ordeal. Cream was certain she'd be having nightmares about today for the rest of her life, but in the moment it was almost worryingly easy to push it all down and keep the ball rolling. After all, they weren't out of the woods yet, and her crew was counting on her.