Days of Ruin

Ambush****When history witnesses a great change,

The Elements are lost.

While the world is being rearranged,

Ponies must feel the cost.

Until demons of the sky endure the race,

Only then will the world repair.

For one shall suffer death’s embrace,

And recall the Elements to end despair.

****

"Feast on their bones!" a gruff voice ordered through Rainbow's communicator.

She was still receiving enemy transmissions.

The soldiers inside the house took up defensive positions in the building. They could already hear the engines of vehicles rolling through the streets. From what Rainbow Dash could hear, it was a mix of various light vehicles.

"Raiders!" Derpy cried out.

All of the little foals cowered at her legs, many shaking uncontrollably and resisting the urge to scream. Troops scrambled into action while the three officers and Applejack tried to organize a plan.

"And now they have ground troops to close the trap? They were expecting us..." Blaze thought out loud.

"Of all the times!" Rainbow groaned in frustration as she punched a wall.

Blaze turned his attention to the soldiers, both his Karalians and Rainbow's Dragoons. They all stood by, awaiting the orders from their officers.

"I don't know why Ofnir is working with raiders," he addressed to them.

"And I'm positive that something is at work here, as this was obviously an ambush."

He didn't sugarcoat anything.

The Karalian told it how it was.

"But we can't dwell on that now. Let's turn this house into a fort!" he cried, inciting cheers from the soldiers.

Rainbow Dash nodded to him.

"That was a good speech."

"It was a speech? I was just speaking my mind."

She rolled her eyes at him.

"What's the plan?"

"What else? We fight to the last pony of course," he chuckled.

All of the soldiers moved to windows on both floors, waiting for the raiders to get closer before opening fire. They toppled over chairs and tables and stacked them against any entrances to prevent access, and windows to give the shooters some cover. The defense was orchestrated to have two ponies to a window, taking turns to fire. For every window they couldn't defend, they blocked it with various items found around the house. Rainbow Dash and Applejack had ushered Derpy and the foals back into the hallway closet, while Blaze and Coy organized the defense. Many of the foals were whimpering and sobbing by this point, trying to reach their little hooves out to both of them.

The yells and hoots of the raiders, the booms of distant explosions in the air, and the roar of engines filled their ears. The situation appeared to be absolute chaos. The foals were panicking, soldier ponies were in a frenzy to prepare for the upcoming firefight, the officers were struggling to maintain order, and the Aurora was under heavy attack from some of the best fighter pilots in the world.

All of this, taking place in an abandoned town of a destroyed land.

Applejack patted two distressed fillies on the heads and tried her best to shush them. Sobs and cries for their mommies were all she got as a response. Derpy attempted to assist in calming them, nuzzling as many of the young fillies and colts as she could. Applejack grabbed Dinky, who was wearing the Element of Generosity again.

The farm pony frowned at Dinky's expression.

"The poor little thing looks like she's gonna burst into tears."

She thought for a second and took a deep breath.

"Hey there little pardner. Do you wanna play a game with me?" she flashed as confident smile as she could muster.

The unicorn foal didn't respond, tears building up in her eyes like a dam that was about to burst.

"I want you and all of your friends to close your eyes and cover your ears as best you can. Then, I want you to take deep, slow breaths and imagine your favorite place to go. Do ya understand?"

Dinky nodded, wiping her eyes.

"Now, there's no cheatin', ya hear? Y'all are gonna play fair. No uncoverin' your ears and no opening your eyes. K?"

Many of the other foals had huddled together with Derpy, listening to Applejack's game.

"Just go to your happy place and stay there. Don't worry about nuthin' else," Applejack finished.

Derpy gazed into Applejack's eyes and nodded in understanding, her wall eyes masking her intelligence.

"Okay, little ponies. Let's play Applejack's game now," Derpy instructed.

At that, Applejack slowly closed the door and unslung her Pressure rifle from over her back. She saw Blaze and Rainbow Dash talking in the hallway, probably talking strategy, she assumed. Thunder Coy was checking up on the windows, making sure the defenses were ready to go.

She could her Rainbow Dash's communicator crackled and static from where she was standing. The gruff of voice of a raider was speaking again.

"Alright Swarmers! They're here! Just the boss said! Let's wipe 'em out and scavenge their goods! And then...we can enjoy our free meals! HAHA!"

The voice made Applejack shiver.

Something was not right with that raider pony.

"Free meals?"

She tossed the thought out of her head. Now was not the time for thoughts like that. She sighed as she regained her composure. She checked her Pressure rifle to make sure it was loaded, popping out the magazine. She inspected it and slapped it back in. A full twenty-round magazine ready to go. She hoped that the magical bullets would be able to protect her.

Despite her being able to keep a cool head, she was terrified.

"Now comes the hard part."

****

The Ofnir fighters swarmed around the Aurora, like a pack of wolves hunting a larger prey. The contrails of their fighters cut into the sky, explosions from missiles hitting the Sky Destroyer's magical shield causing balls of fire to dot the sky around them. Anti-aircraft fire from the ship's eight, double-barreled AA Cannons were lighting the sky up with shells, most of them using a spray and pray method to try and shoot down the nimble fighter jets of Ofnir.

"Pinkie Pie! Stop firing wildly! Pick out a target and only aim at that one!" Twilight called out through her communicator.

Pinkie Pie was sitting in the seat of one of the anti-aircraft cannons on the roof of the ship, her hooves pressed down on both buttons. Her double-barreled cannons was blasting away at the flight patterns of the elite Karalian fighter pilots, unable to land a single hit. Her circular turret threw up multi-colored, magical flak as she tried her best to track them.

"I'm sorry Twilight! But these guys are fast!"

"Use your Pinkie Sense!"

Pinkie Pie grunted as she fired magical shell after magical shell, her frustration growing as she witnessed the fighters managed to dodge her shots at seemingly the last second.

"I can't demand it, silly filly! The Pinkie Sense doesn't work like that!" her voice vibrating from her turret's recoil as she spoke.

"Fox Two!" an Ofnir pilot called out.

An explosion was felt from the Command Deck, shaking the entire room and knocking a few ponies off-balance. Twilight stumbled a bit before regaining her balance. She turned to a pony at a monitor as the chatter between the operators and whining of machines continued on.

"Did the ship take any damage from that?" she asked.

"No Ma'am. Our shields are still holding, although they are getting a bit depleted now. A few more missiles hits like that and the enemy will be able to break through it," the stallion reported to her from behind his desk.

Twilight turned to Rarity, who was at the radar screen orchestrating the artillery support for the troops trapped inside the house. From the chatter in her headset, she could hear a crazy raider stallion talking about...eating ponies?

Her stomach became queasy as she tried to rid the thought from her mind. The raider spoke vividly about killing Rainbow Dash's and Blaze's troops...and then eating the bodies.

She felt bile rise up in her throat but she fought it back down.

"How could a pony do that?"

She felt the rumble of the broadside guns firing salvo after salvo, hopefully ripping through the assaulting raiders.

"Alright, have all guns concentrate their fire on the enemy vehicles. The ground forces will appreciate us taking out those machine guns for them. Maybe if we stop the raider attack, the fighters will back off. I hope so at least," Rarity said, looking over the unicorn's shoulder while taking a sip of coffee.

The light from the radar screen reflected off her face as she gazed intently at the positioning of the red dots that signaled an enemy. The bigger red dots were the vehicles and the blue dots barricading the house were friendly troops. She was concerned about the recent attacks on them. The faulty coincidences and the impeccable timing and coordination of their most recent enemies.

Was it blind luck?

Or was somepony tracking them?

Rarity really hoped it wasn't the latter. That would be terrifying and frankly, a bit creepy. Her dismissed the thought as she continued directing the guns. She could feel the recoil and hear the booming of the Sky Destroyer's main guns as they pounded away at the attacking raider forces on the ground.

"Scootaloo! You're all over the place! Focus your fire!" Twilight called out, trying to drown out the sick dialogue of the raider pony.

"Darn it!" Scootaloo muttered.

Her cannon was in front of Pinkie's, firing around the sky at random. Not once did the younger filly come close to hitting one of the enemy fighter jets. She continued to curse under her breath. She would never be a Dragoon with aim like this.

More missile impacts shook the ship once more, throwing various items onto the metal floor.

"Try firing at one spot in that shield! If we do that, it might be enough to take it down!"

Twilight groaned as she heard that, holding onto a table to right herself.

****

The fighting on the ground was intense, the defenders were pouring fire out of the windows, making quick work of the raider ponies that didn't bother to take cover. A light machine gun placed on the back of a truck was tacking away as it fired long bursts into the wall of the home. Some of the more intelligent raider ponies were taking cover behind their vehicles and returning fire.

Bullet holes scarred the walls of the home, light coming through the breaches. All this did was remind the defenders that this building was not bulletproof. Magical charges flew back and forth in deadly bursts, heating the air around them.

Blaze and Rainbow Dash were holding the hallway window on the second floor. Blaze took careful aim with his Pressure rifle and fired. Immediately, the raider pony manning the Technical's machine gun was blasted off his perch, a magical charge burning through his chest. He frowned grimly as he noticed the Karalian Army helmet fly off of the raider's head. Next to him, Rainbow Dash let off two quick bursts of her submachinegun, spitting blue magical charges at two raiders that tried to rush the side of the house. Both gave shrieks of agony as the charges melted their skin and seared through their flesh.

Applejack and a Dragoon were holding another second floor window, this one in what used to be a foal's room, from what she could see. She squeezed off two shots of her Pressure rifle, the first shot hitting the side of a buggy and the second ripping through the throat of a raider. Her and the Dragoon would take turns shooting while the other took cover and reloaded if needed.

The rumbling of the Aurora's broadside guns was heard among the fighting, prompting Blaze and Rainbow Dash to order everypony to take cover. They covered their ears to avoid going deaf once the shells hit, throwing up bursts or black soil. Through their hooves, the defenders listened to the sounds of the magical shells tearing through the raider vehicles. After holding their ears in their hooves for a few seconds after the loud explosions and crashes, they took up arms once more. The firefight dragged on, many shots fired by both sides missing. Every once in a while, a raider would get hit by either a well-placed or lucky shot.

At the front door, Thunder Coy was taking cover behind a flipped table, an Equestrian Dragoon flanking him on either side. The three ponies were facing the front door, ready for the raiders to attempt a breach. They listened to the combat all around them as they waited patiently. The door bursted open, prompting all three ponies to pump charges into the breach.

The first raider was riddled with shots and was dead before he hit the ground. The second one followed his comrade as she was getting hit with shots that passed through the first. When the third raider entered the room, Coy and the Dragoons' weapons clicked dry. When the raider saw this, his evil smile seemed especially dreadful since Thunder Coy couldn't see his eyes from behind the goggles.

The raider raised a pistol in his hoof and shot the mare on his right and before Coy could react, did the same with the Dragoon stallion on his left. Both Dragoon ponies hit the wooden floor with a thud. Thunder Coy panicked as he fumbled with his magazine, trying to fit it into the well like a puzzle piece.

He dropped it. Thunder whimpered as he began to panic, desperately trying to recover the magazine.

The raider smirked at Coy's disposition and noticed the rank on the unicorn's helmet.

"I'm a lucky pony...I've never eaten 'officer' before."

The goggle-wearing raider cocked back the hammer of his pistol as pointed down at Coy's forehead.

"I wonder how you taste, little colt," the raider continued to taunt, with a sick grin and a crazed look in his eyes.

Just as the raider pulled the trigger, Coy let out a barrage of magical bullets from his own pistol that he was holding under the table. The rounds ripped through the wood and one found a home in the raider's foreleg. The shot that the raider fired missed high, leaving Lieutenant Coy unharmed.

"Gah! Dammit!" the dark brown pegasus cried as retreated to the door.

Coy magically levitated his pistol up to aim properly and emptied the mag, trying to finish off his enemy. The shots missed, hitting the walls or flying out of the door. After the raider escaped, he heard a transmission coming from his communicator.

"Dammit! That was the last of our missiles and we still couldn't break that shield! We'll have to ask the commander for better munitions next time. Sound the retreat..."

****

All of the ponies on the control deck cheered as the four elite fighters zoomed away from the aerial warship. The four attack aircraft shrunk into tiny dots in the sky as the multi-colored puffs of anti-aircraft fire around the Aurora dissipated. The shields held...barely. From Twilight's judgement, one more missile would probably have done it. They escaped certain destruction from the most elite pilots in the Karalian Air Force by the skin of their teeth. She saw Rarity sigh in relief from across the room.

They had done it.

The shields had held.

The ship was undamaged.

And no pony was hurt...in the sky anyway. She had been so immersed in the air battle, that she had not paid attention to any of the transmissions coming from the ground yet. She hoped that every pony was okay. Even more, she hoped that one cannibalistic raider was gone.

As she placed her headphones back on her head, her eyes widened at what she heard.

"We've lost two Dragoons..."