Thorne One was the designation of the primary oil and natural gas well located in the desert wasteland just East of the Everfree Forest. It was one of three major wells crudely erected in the desert after geological and ecological investigations proved the existence of remaining fossil fuels beneath the Earth's surface, enough to refine and fuel Equestria's innovative line of turbo-combustion engines for a few-hundred years.
The timeframe was a suitable amount to give the scientific and alchemic community a chance to develop alternative fuels for these new machines, and thus the race had begun. Meanwhile the domestically-produced monsters burned the petroleum-based liquid-gold as they tore up the streets of a once quieter and cleaner land.
Despite complaints of the foul smell of their byproduct and disturbing sounds, they well proved their worth among the civilian and military dominions. Horsepower had exceeded beyond the capability of manual force, thus its potential was utilized whenever and wherever needed. Civilian ponies whom could afford such expensive transportation often found use for them in businesses for transporting equipment and stock, and others found it easier to simply get around.
Military uses were about the same, however defense was an issue. Combat vehicles were still as crude as most war machines that have been encountered in the wastelands, and proper vehicles of this type were still under heavy development.
Time was running short on this issue, for rumors of the domestic fuel supply had somehow spread to the wastelands, reaching human minds twisted and geared towards obtaining this precious resource, meaning they would do anything to get it. Mercy was the furthest thing from their mind. Many pony explorers of these wastelands have never returned, but the few that have returned with stories so fantastic that they evoked the launch of small security forces to guard the borders of the royal land, as well as the specific oil wells.
Human travelers rarely encountered the Equestrian borders, but when they did, they were welcomed with relatively open arms, but not without prior inquisition of their intentions. They have yet to encounter the larger horrors of the outland, but the day would come. Soon.
Thorne One was protected by two scout technicals improvised from muscle cars, both guarding a gated parameter with sentries and machine gun nests.
The first technical was a 1969 Z28 Camaro code-named "Landmaster", armed with a Lunar Defence Products G-12 minigun on the roof. The driver was an Earth pony named Riga, a seasoned Royal Guardsman specially selected head of security for Thorne One, much to his disgruntlement. His partner in the passenger seat was a lazy young recruit called Star Charmer, a subtle unicorn guardsman living his life in bitter irony.
The desert heat was excruciating and all the two had for a cool breeze was a small metal fan hanging on the rear-view mirror on the windshield, plugged into the cigarette-lighter. They had been sitting in the vehicle for over two hours now, with nothing to do but either watch the roads ahead for threats, as they've been assigned to do, or make use of various reading material that Riga happened to stockpile in the back seat. Or do what Charmer had been doing at this particular moment: sleeping the hours away.
Riga managed to tear his eyes away from a romance novel between his hooves and checked his surroundings for anything new. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, except for a buff unicorn bathing in the sun from the roof of his car instead of remaining inside like he was supposed to.
Swift Swirl was his name, and his vehicle was a domestically-produced copy of a 1965 Pontiac GTO code-named "Gatekeeper". His particular technical boasted better firepower than Landmaster's prototype kit, mounting two G-13 autocannons on the hood and an 85mm rocket launcher on the far right side of the roof. Riga had always criticized the kit as "utter overkill", but their superiors encouraged it and Swirl absolutely loved it.
Through the dusty windows could be spotted a rather stiff-looking pegasus guardsman named River, eyes alert and posture overly appropriate. He was Swirl's bureaucratic partner of little conversation and obsessive drudge of protocol. Inspection of his wooden gaze revealed discomfort for the guardsmen's passive attitude and slack obedience to their assignments.
Riga snorted and went back to his novel.
"What time is it?" Charmer shifted around in his seat as he awoke from his slumber.
Riga checked the digital clock on the dashboard. "It's two-oh-five."
"PM?"
Riga's hold on the book collapsed onto his steering wheel as he shot him a sarcastic look. "What do you think?" He picked it back up and began reading again.
"Well excuse me. Next time can we bring some music for the cassette-player?"
"No. I hate human music."
Charmer shifted his entire self to his side to face Riga, eyes bloodshot and blinking rapidly. "What are you reading?"
"A book. Please stop interrupting me."
Charmer sighed and turned the opposite direction. "Wake me when your attitude improves."
A droning bellow of a two-hundred horsepower engine passed by, snapping their attention back to the road ahead, but they could not locate the source.
River could be seen in Gatekeeper frantically grabbing the CB communicator. "Landmaster, this is Gatekeeper, come in."
Riga reached for his. "Landmaster here. What was that?"
"Sandrail FAV with no visible serials or insignia, and what appeared to be a human driver. He's heading southbound on a high-speed approach for Thorne Two."
"Roger that, we'll take it. Stand by."
"Copy that, Gatekeeper out." River set the communicator down and punched the roof to get Swirl's attention.
Riga bookmarked his novel and threw it in the back with the rest, then started the vehicle up and took off, heading down the road in pursuit of the unidentified vehicle.
Charmer opened the glovebox and reached for a pistol and extra magazine inside, then slammed the lid shut. It was a Royal Arms Factory G-2, one of the first production pistol types built for equine hooves. He cocked it and carefully held it low in his lap, ready to use it if the need arose.
Riga reached for the communicator again. "Base, this is Landmaster in pursuit of a sandrail FAV southbound to Thorne Two, requesting assistance. Over."
A voice crackled on the other end. "Copy that, Landmaster, stay on target. We're notifying Thorne Two and a technical should be on its way shortly."
"Thanks." Riga hung the communicator up.
"Riga?" Charmer suddenly spoke up.
"What?"
"Why couldn't we just let Gatekeeper come along, if you need backup?"
Riga rolled his eyes. "You don't pay much attention to the safety and security briefings, do you?"
"I don't follow."
"Of course you don't. Standard procedure of a two-vehicle security force of a certain location requires one of the two to stay behind should a situation arise that calls for a pursuit, so that the location were protecting stays guarded. Understand?"
"Fine. Still sounds redundant."
Riga shook his head. "Rookie..."
...
...
...
Thorne Two was located in a thin oasis nearby a small pond of water, with plenty of Joshua trees providing decent shade for the two guarding technicals outside the oil-well's defense perimeter. The pond was shallow, but cool enough from the shade to protect schools of guppies and water snails.
Hawker had been stationed at this location for over six months now and has since loved to relax and unwind in the dry grass that surrounded the shallow pool. He had often been teased for the amount of time he spent there, which apparently gave the term "Earth pony" a more literal meaning at his expense. He often wondered why the other guardsmen dismissed the serenity so easily. It was peaceful, and often helped him forget about the hostility of the surrounding desert.
It was their loss. At least he could have more of it to himself, without much interruption.
Hawker rolled onto his belly and edged closer to the pond, reaching for something bathing in the cool water. He pulled out a glass bottle of cider and felt the temperature, making sure his improvised attempt at natural refrigeration was successful.
Upon investigation he found a large ramshorn snail attached to the side, slowly pulling its way across the glass as it traveled a destination that could only be whimsically thought of as searching for access to the contents. Hawker chuckled as he plucked the mischievous mollusk away and threw it back into the water.
Immediately after popping the lid open he noticed another ramshorn gliding upside-down across the surface of the water, twice as fast as it would normally traveling across a more solidified surface. Hawker was rather impressed, especially since this is the first time he had ever seen such behavior from these freshwater critters.
"Hawker!" His partner shouted from the armed muscle car parked only a few meters away. "Hey, Hawk! We got some action today!"
Hawker climbed to his hooves and trotted over to his vehicle, bringing the cider with him.
His car was a prototype EMDETech imitation of a 1968 Chevrolet Impala code-named "Interceptor", armed with a roof-mounted General Electric GAU-19 minigun. It was protected by thick plate armor crudely applied to the frame, commonly referred to as "ghetto armor" due to the aesthetically unappealing form.
Hawker's cocky partner Diamond Fire wore a carefree expression behind his aviator sunglasses as he sat upright and proud in the driver's seat. "Sounds like a softskin's burning rubber on the southbound circuit. Base wants us to take care of it."
Hawker casually opened the door and stepped back. "Move."
"Oh come on, Hawk! You never let me drive!"
"Ever since that incident with the veggie cart back in Fillydelphia, I wouldn't even let you drive a screw. Move."
"That was a whole year ago! Jeeze, you still bring it up like I leveled a schoolhouse or something." The young pegasus scooted back into his passenger seat to let Hawker in.
Hawker closed his door and grabbed the communicator. "Penetrator, this is Interceptor. Stand guard, we're taking off."
He was referring to the 1970 Dodge Super Bee with dual hood-mounted M2 Browning machine guns on the opposite side of Thorne Two.
"Alright," they answered on the static-filled CB, "Penetrator standing by. Good luck, guys."
"Thanks. Out." Hawker put the communicator back and started up the engine, reversing out of the path and speeding down the loosely-paved road.
...
...
...
Riga and Charmer strained for a glimpse of the ghost vehicle past the curves of the road as they traveled over elevations that distorted their view, and regrettably slowed their pace the sharper they turned. But nothing could be seen but more empty road.
They eventually reached a clearing from the obstructions where the road became a straight line for a good distance towards the hidden turn-off to Thorne Two. And just less than a kilometer down the road could be seen a small vehicle speeding away.
"There!" Charmer shouted, pointing excitedly ahead of them.
"Yeah, I see it." Riga reached for the communicator. "Landmaster calling whoever's on their way, what's your current location? Over."
...
...
...
Hawker stopped abruptly as he reached the main road, blocking it off, then reached for the communicator. "This is Interceptor, we're on the slope guarding Thorne Two's pathway."
Fire patted Hawker's shoulder as he looked through binoculars at the road ahead.
"What?"
He pointed. Hawker looked in the direction and saw the approaching vehicle in the distance, then held the communicator back up. "Also, we've got a visual on your little friend. Over."
"Roger that." Riga replied on the CB. "Sit tight. If he evades, blow him away."
"You got it. Out." Hawker put the communicator back.
Fire set the binoculars on the dashboard and reclined in his seat. "Hawk, that thing's a sand buggy, right?"
"Yeah, so?"
"So what if he goes off-road in the dunes? We won't have a clear shot, and I don't think EMDETech built this thing with all-terrain capability."
"He won't go far. The canyons will force him back on the road, and we'll just catch up to him from there.
"Alright. Now what if he just blows us out of his way?"
Hawker pursed his lips and turned to his partner with a deadpan expression. "Well, we either wait here until we become dehydrated zombies or we set the ball in motion. If he doesn't respond to the megaphone and charges for attack, we take him out." He took a drink of cider and set it in the cupholder.
"Speaking of dehydration, should you really be drinking that stuff in this heat?"
"Why not?"
"It makes you thirsty for more."
"Good thing I brought the whole case then."
...
...
...
Riga caught up with the mysterious buggy and switched the communicator output to the loudspeaker pack. "This is Thorne Security, pull the vehicle over! Pull over, now!"
The buggy did no such thing and kept its course, charging for Interceptor's location ahead.
"Pull over, now! If you do not comply, you will be fired upon!"
A small streak of light appeared to emerge from Interceptor, followed by the buggy bursting apart in a fiery explosion.
Riga threw the communicator down and swerved to avoid the flying debris and flaming chassis blocking the road, then screeched to a halt, grabbing the communicator again. "Hold your fire, hold your fire!" He switched back to he CB, realizing he was still on the loudspeaker. "Interceptor, what was that all about?!"
"It wasn't us!" Hawker shouted from the other end. "I swear to Celestia!"
"Then who was it? Do you see anyone else out here?"
"That's a negative, Landmaster!"
Charmer looked as if he saw a ghost and patted Riga's shoulder to get his attention. Upon doing so he pointed towards Interceptor. Something large could be seen behind Hawker's vehicle, growing immensely as it approached them.
"Wait..." Hawker came back on the CB. "Holy c-...!"
The signal cut out as Interceptor spun to its side and split apart, with the two halves deflecting to the side to make way for a giant V-blade storming towards them.
"Whoa!" Charmer shouted in surprise. "Reverse!"
Riga shifted and reversed the vehicle on the road, sharply swerving around the remains of the FAV, then held the communicator up. "Landmaster calling anyone on this channel! I need backup! Now!"
...
...
...
Swift Swirl and River sat alert in Gatekeeper, listening to the CB. River was first to grab the communicator.
"Landmaster, this is Gatekeeper. What's your location? Over."
"Southbound circuit to Thorne Two!" Riga answered in a panic as his four-hundred horsepower engine could be heard drowning the static-filled background. "Some kind of ramrod is after us! Interceptor is down! Repeat, Interceptor is down and we're on the run! Over!"
Swirl grabbed the communicator out of River's hoof. "Gatekeeper on the way. Sit tight." He set it down and started up the engine.
"Wait a minute." River protested.
"Don't give me that by-the-book nonsense again, I know what I'm doing."
A chunk of his forehead blasted away from his skull in a bloody mess as machine gun fire punched through the thinly-armored skin of the vehicle. His head slammed onto the steering wheel, holding the button for the horn down.
River ducked for cover as the vehicle got bombarded, desperately wiping away the blood from his dead partner. He found the communicator in a pile of glass shards from the windows and grabbed it. "This is Gatekeeper, we're under attack! Thorne One is under attack!"
Returning fire from Thorne One's other defenses could be heard, followed by the rumble of approaching engines. Explosions quaked the ground beneath Gatekeeper. River broke cover to see what was happening outside, but as soon as his head emerged from behind the dashboard, he suffered a similar fate as his partner thanks to more machine gun fire.
...
...
...
Landmaster was now thundering down the road in the correct direction, Riga desperate to escape the metal monster chasing them behind. River's voice could be heard on the CB, but the two roaring engines distorted Riga's understanding of what was said.
He picked the communicator up. "Say again, Gatekeeper!"
They were close to the slopes leading back to Thorne One, where the road was no longer straight, which Riga hoped would give them an advantage in evading the ramrod.
"Gatekeeper, come in! I didn't catch your last! Over!"
Still no answer from the other end.
"Gatekeeper!" Riga threw the communicator down after another pause of silence from the CB.
Charmer rolled his window down and emerged halfway through with his weapon, prepared to fire at the ramrod. He lowered it in horror as he watched a human man pop up from behind the ramrod's open-frame driver cab with an RPG-7. "Riga!"
"What?!" He looked in his rear-view mirror and also saw the man with launcher, now aiming it at their vehicle. "Oh, horseapples!" Riga swerved off the road and into the dunes, just as the man fired the weapon. The rocket hit the empty road, much to the man's infuriation as he shouted a curse inaudible over the engines.
Riga stopped the vehicle in a patch of tumbleweeds and let the ramrod pass by. Charmer fell back into his seat, eyes wide with apprehension. Both looked on at the slopes ahead with elevated dismay, not at the ramrod as it sharply turned around and headed back for them, but at what followed behind it.
A whole army appeared to charge for them; tanks, APCs, mobile artillery, scout cars, armed transport vans, buggies, dirt-bikes, and even a medium helicopter all came for them in a thundering stampede behind the ramrod.
"Reverse!" Charmer shouted.
Riga frantically shifted the gears, but the handle was stuck from his panic.
"Reverse!"
"I know!"
"Reverse!"
"I know!"
"Riga!"
"Shut up!" The handle freed and shifted to the gear he wanted. Riga mashed the accelerator to the floor, kicking dirt around as his wheels pushed the vehicle back onto the road. There he spun around with a screech, shifted to overdrive, then mashed the pedal again to continue his desperate escape.
Charmer watched in his side-mirror as the human man with the RPG launcher loaded another rocket into his weapon. But instead of aiming it for them, he turned around and fired it at the column of other vehicles behind him. The other vehicles fired back with their weapons, with one stray projectile impacting the road next to Landmaster.
Riga reacted and swerved, quickly correcting his course as not to fly off the paving. He swerved again to avoid the FAV wreckage, just as another rocket impacted the road behind them. The vehicle became uncontrollable, resulting in them flipping over and tumbling towards the remains of Interceptor.
They impacted the twisted metal upside-down with minimal damage, to both the vehicle and themselves.
"Oh, lovely." Charmer groaned as he lay cramped on the upturned roof, shoving away shattered glass and the piles of Riga's books. Upon attempting to crawl out of the window, he stopped and screamed with terror at the road in front of him.
The ramrod plowed straight into them, reducing Landmaster to flaming debris mixed in with those of Interceptor as they deflected to the sides of the behemoth's giant V-blade.