The Test of War

by TheNewYorkBrony

Rating: teen
Tags: Adventure, Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Alternate Universe, Human, Main 6, Nightmare Moon, Comedy
Length: 7174

War breaks out in Equestria between Celestia and Nightmare Moon. The Elements, now an elite military force for the princess, is ordered to assist in military operations. But when one of them goes rouge, things take an unexpected turn!

Nightmare Moon has made an unwanted return, and this time she has her own army. No longer the Elements of Harmony but Team Harmony, an elite protection force for the sun goddess herself, the mane six find themselves in the middle of war. But everything changes when one of them goes rouge. Can they use their new military skills to save their friend and their country?!

Published 2013-07-02 17:40:01 UTC
Last updated 2013-07-18 04:10:43 UTC

Chapter 1

Applejack chewed on a piece of straw as she adjusted her Stetson. “Ya’ll sure this is a good idea?” She asked Fluttershy through her walkie talkie.

Instead of the shy girl, it was Twilight who answered. “Yes, unfortunately, you have to take him out. Sorry.”

The man was a Solar Empire solider who was being watched. Apparently he had been giving top secret military information to the New Lunar Republic, and Celestia wanted him taken out. She sort of knew him, but didn't really care much for him. Too bad he would never know that she was the one who killed him.

Applejack hardly qualified that as an apology, but heaved a sigh before raising her gun. “Jus’ a lil bit more..” She said, steadying the weapon as her target moved into the best range for her to take a shot. When the man she was assigned to kill stepped right in front of her gun, she smirked. “It was real nice knowin’ ya partner.” She said as she pulled the trigger. The bullet zoomed through the air and right through the poor sap’s skull.

“Heh. Poor boy didn’t even have a chance.” She sighed shaking her head. She slung her sniper over her shoulder and tipped her head down as she made her way down the roof top.

“Sheesh, for such an honest girl you sure are trigger happy.” Rainbow Dash buzzed in.

Applejack rolled her eyes as she walked down a darkened alleyway as people began to surround the man’s body. She quipped, “Jus’ cause Ah’m honest don’t mean Ah ain’t got a job to do.”

The device bleeped.

“Good point.” The athlete responded.

Applejack sighed again as she made it back to her truck before driving to headquarters. She threw her gun in the armory, then grabbed a beer from Dash.

“Egghead wants to see you.” Dash grinned. She knew Applejack had done something that had pissed off Twilight and she wanted to see what the tactical technician was going to do to the gunman.

Applejack was beginning to think she was depressed the way she had been sighing this evening. She took a long swig of the drink then wiped the dribble from her mouth before stepping into Twilight’s office. “Whatcha want, Twi?”

“Do you remember why Celestia started this program?” Twilight asked turning around from her computer desk to look the farm girl in the eye.

Applejack nearly groaned. “To better arm the Elements of Harmony and use their skills for military purposes after the fall of the Celestial Kingdom, blah blah blah yadda ya! Look Twilight, Ah know this already it’s-”

The darker girl held up a finger and pushed her purple glasses up her face. “Correct. Now, what else is our purpose?”

Applejack growled. “To protect and serve the Princess while being her personal elite force.”

Twilight nodded. “Correct, again. Now, what you did today was sloppy. Incredibly sloppy. You cannot just take someone out on a crowded street and not expect people to notice.”

“What?! You told me to shoot him! It ain’t like Ah just decided on mah own to do it!” Applejack bursted.

Twilight raised a brow. “Fine. It was my mistake. But please be careful next time. No one knows what the other things that we do are. And the princess would like to keep it that way.”

Applejack didn’t say anything. She was too angry. She just clenched her fists and walked out.

Pinkie, the explosives expert of the group, giggled. “Wow! She really chewed you out!” She lifted up her safety goggles to beam right at the blonde.

Dash laughed. “Oh please! Twilight chews her out on a regular basis!” She stopped and then thought about it before laughing again. “I just thought about that!” she shouted, kicking her feet as she fell onto the floor into a laughing fit.

Applejack almost reached down to punch the marksmen in the face. But she didn’t want to hear more of Twilight so she decided against it and took another swig of her beer.

“Oh Applejack, that really is uncouth. A lady shouldn’t drink her alcohol like that.” Rarity, the former seamstress turned soldier scolded.

Applejack laughed. “Now Rarity, Ah’m sure you’ve known me long enough to know Ah don’t give a complete fuck about what a lady is and ain’t supposed to do.”

“Right. But it wouldn’t hurt to be a little civilized once in a while.” Rarity responded pointedly.

“And on that day, Applejack Apple gave no fucks.” Pinkie giggled, putting her safety goggles back on as she began to tinker with whatever she had been messing with before. The others learned to stop asking after a while, because they were honestly afraid of what concoctions the girl could come up with. She wasn't right in the head, that one. And they all knew it.

“Got that right.” Applejack agreed. “Ain’t nothing civilized about this place no more.”

Fluttershy, who hadn't really been assigned a job in the group yet, spoke up. She was deathly afraid of guns, and opted against carrying any weapon. Twilight thought she might as well be the Medic of the group that way she didn't feel left out or completely useless. “After Nightmare Moon and Celestia went to war the land has been divided.”

“The Lunar Republic.” Twilight corrected as she shoved her lab coat in a drawer. She had been experimenting with a new type of fabric. While working with her own group, Twilight spent some of her spare time developing military technology for the Princess.“And they didn’t go to war, there was a dispute that caused millions of lives to change.”

“So a war.” Applejack deadpanned.

“No, not a war, a sisterly dispute.” Twilight huffed.

“Ah don’t care what you call it, Ah say it’s a war.” Applejack responded.

Twilight decided not to argue with her any further when the main computer screen began to flash. "It’s Celestia.” She called. Everyone made their way to the desk where the computer was to see what orders she had for them.

“Ah wonder what she wants.” Applejack said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

Twilight returned the eye roll before unlocking the screen. In seconds Princess Celestia dressed in a white neat and crisp general uniform appeared, with two royal guard soldiers standing at attention behind her.

“What’s the problem, Princess?” Twilight asked.

“The group of rebels known as D.I.S.C.O.R.D. has tried to start a revolt in what’s left of Ponyville by sending some of their recruits. You all must leave immediately and assist the troops stationed there.” Celestia explained.

“Are they armed? Or do we use the Elements?” Twilight asked.

“Twilight, you know how I feel about using the Elements.” the sun princess said sternly.

“Yes.. but perhaps we can reason with them this time? It would be better to negotiate and not kill innocent people.” the young girl pondered.

The commanding general shook her head. “I understand that the magic of friendship is deep within your heart still, but in this new world, friendship is not as powerful as it used to be.” Celestia explained softly, referring to the time after Nightmare Moon appeared again when they had tried to use the elements on her.

Twilight nodded, frowning. Since the war between night and day began 3 years ago, Celestia has been telling Twilight this for the longest.

Unfortunately due to some unknown spell, Nightmare Moon once again took over the body of Princess Luna and caused her to become a vicious dictator. Not wanting to send her sister to the moon again, Celestia rounded up her own army. Her barracks consisted of her loyal royal guards, the mane six, and civilians who were willing to give themselves up in hopes that the day will once again conquer over the night.

Nightmare’s troops were made up of people who worshiped the night, unloyal guards of Celestia, and civilians who wanted to do deeds of malicious intent. The war began after Twilight became a princess, about a year after her coronation. The girls tried to use the elements against Nightmare again, but it didn’t work. She was stronger than them now. To make matters worse she was now impervious to the magic of friendship. And so was her subjects. Nothing seemed to work, so the land was divided into to two territories, The New Lunar Republic, and The Solar Empire. Ever since Equestria split into two, the bordering territories have been constantly at war.

And that is where the Elements of Harmony come in. Now known as Team Harmony, the girls began to use weapons instead of the actual elements to keep the “peace.” Celestia was fully aware what she was requiring the girls to do, but there was no other way.

“You want us to take care of them?” Dash asked. Implying on the ‘take care’ part.

Celestia remained indifferent. “Do....what you six have to do. I will be listening in for a report, Twilight.”

Twilight saluted her superior. “Yes, ma’am.”

Celestia saluted her back before signing off.

Twilight sighed before turning to everyone. “Alright, you heard her. Let’s get moving.”

Applejack shrugged on her white uniform jacket before grabbing her pistols. “Why the hell are our uniforms white?! They’re a dead give away!”

“The New Lunar Republic’s uniforms are navy blue. This is because one group represent the night, and the other represent the day. Also, those are the respective times each military attacks because of the flamboyantness of their uniforms. This keeps things fair and just.” Twilight lectured as she shouldered her own jacket on. The only difference between her’s and AppleJack’s was the custom emblem signifying her rank as a princess.

The others put their uniforms on and grabbed their weapons before following Twilight out into the afternoon sunlight.

Fluttershy began shaking, she still wasn't used to the whole being in the military thing. The safety on her gun was on at all times, mostly because the rest of the girls thought her pulling the trigger herself would scare the crap out of her. Fluttershy was usually the decoy, not the one actually fighting.

Rarity groaned. “Oh this is just unacceptable! I cannot believe we have to go back there! Who knows what’s left of my boutique!”

Applejack kicked at the dirt under her feet. She didn’t want to think about what had happened to Sweet Apple Acres. Republic soldiers had raided them in the night, killing Granny and severely injuring Big Mac. She had tried to fight..but she was just way too outnumbered. They knocked her out, and when she woke several hours later she was alone. She had no idea where her brother or AppleBloom was. She presumed they were dead.

She hated going back to Ponyville because it just reminded her of how weak she had been three years ago. She always thought she was so tough. That she would be able to carry the weight of running the farm after her Ma and Pa died. Shit, she couldn’t even protect her own family from a bunch of punks. How did she expect to protect an entire country from them?

Applejack felt angry tears sting in her eyes. No, she wasn’t going to cry. Not here, not in front of them. Especially not after what they had done for her sorry ass.

She trudged on after Twilight, focusing on what was ahead of her. She didn’t need old emotions from before popping up on her now. She had a job to do.

A flask magically appeared in front of her face. She looked up to see that the flask was in the hand of none other than Rainbow Dash. She grinned. “I thought this might loosen ya up.”

Applejack took the flask from the former athlete and took a swig. The burn of sweet whiskey running down her throat actually did calm her down a little. She chuckled. “You know Twi’s gonna have a cow when she finds out that you’ve brought liquor on this mission.”

Dash snorted. “If anyone needs to loosen up, it’s her. She’s taking this way too seriously.”

Applejack frowned. She should have figured. After all these years Rainbow Dash still didn’t understand the severity of everything that they were doing. “Rainbow, people’s lives are at stake. Real lives. We can’t just treat this like some competition.”

Dash spread her arms and smiled as she felt the hot sun boring on to her skin. “Yeah, yeah, I know. But still, what better way to start a mission then drunk?”

Applejack rolled her eyes before punching Dash in the arm. “Ah could think of a few.”

Author's Note

idk what happened. this just popped into my head and i was like "stupid you have no idea about what goes on in the military" and then i stopped but then i kept going and next thing you know this is what was produced. sorry if all the military ranks are all messed up i have no idea what im doing. it would help a lot if people who comment correct me nicely. Thanks for reading, and please make sure to tell me what you think!

Chapter 2

"That better not be whiskey I smell!" Twilight shouts from the front.

Applejack grimaces, "No, it's piss."

Pinkie snorts with laughter as Dash coughs to hold it in.

"Making smart remarks doesn't get you anywhere, Applejack." Twilight warned, now somehow suddenly in front of Applejack's face.

The taller girl mumbled, "Yes ma'am." Before handing over the flask.

Twilight put the container in her backpack before turning back around. "I expect that's all that you and Rainbow Dash have." She said, returning to her position in the front.

"That isn't the only flask you have, is it?" Pinkie whispered smirking.

Dash cackles. "I'm gonna let you answer that one for yourself."

Rarity sighs. "You three are the reason why Twilight doesn't like doing group missions."

"But ain't everything we do group missions?" Applejack asked.

"Exactly." The fashionista huffed, pushing passed her.

"Oh, look who's got her camouflage in a twist." AJ taunted.

Rarity snapped her head around and glared at the farm girl. "I am not going to pick a fight with you just because you're upset Twilight took away your liquor."

"Well sugarcube, there's a fight a brewin' but you ain't the one picking it." Applejack responded rolling up her jacket sleeves.

"Um...guys..please don't fight..." Fluttershy squeaked.

"Naw, naw, Ah wanna hear what Miss Prissy Pants has to say." Applejack said getting in Rarity's face.

Rarity scowled at her, her arms crossed in defiance. "You always talk about how you're such a good soldier, about how you and Dash are the reason why this team is so well known but,"

Pinkie knows exactly what she's about to say so she jumps in, "Rarity don't do it!"

But she’s ignored. "The truth is, neither of you could protect your families. You,” she pointed to Applejack, “Have no idea where Big Mac and Apple Bloom are, and you,” She then pointed to Dash, “Have no clue if Scootaloo is even still alive!"

The pair stared at her lock jawed, their eyes full of anger and regret. Rarity knew what button to push, and she didn't just push it, she smashed it until it was broken. Because Applejack and Rainbow Dash could say all the excuses they wanted. But at the end of the day, they knew it was true.

"Well what about you?! Ah haven't seen Sweetie Belle around here none!" Applejack shouted.

This took Rarity aback. She looked shamefully at the ground.

Applejack smirked. "Yeah, you might wanna worry about your own kin before you start talking about how Ah ain't protected mine!" Then, she stopped. She started crying.

"Ah did all Ah could...Ah..Ah tried to save them but Ah couldn't." She fell to her knees. "After mah parents passed it was mah job to watch over AB. It was mah job to protect her. And Ah..Ah failed."

By now Twilight had stopped, and turned around to see Applejack sitting on the pathway with her head in between her knees and her arms across them. She had seen her in this position before. Many times. It was the sign that someone had brought up AppleBloom.

She ran over to her and pulled at her arm. "Applejack." She called softly. "Applejack we don't have time for this."

There was no response.

"Post Traumatic Stress Disorder." Dash sighed. "She's not going to budge." She put a hand on her back but the farm girl didn’t move. She was frozen.

Rarity felt guilty. “I...I had no idea that was such a sensitive subject.”

Pinkie pushed her. “How could you not see?! She never talks about her, she always tenses up when someone brings up the girls, and she can’t even bring herself to say her name! She even wears her ribbon on her uniform!”

Rarity looked over the pink haired girl’s shoulder to see the magenta ribbon tied to Applejack’s arm blow gently in the wind.

She felt horrible.

“Oh sweet Celestia what have I done?” She bent down to Applejack’s level. “Applejack, darling, I had no idea it hurt you so much.”

Applejack didn’t even look up.

Pinkie Pie threw her arms in the air. “Great! Just great! Two years of therapy down the drain thanks to Rarity! She’s not going to get up! She’s going to sit there, and mope and not to anything at all!”

Twilight shook her head. “It may be Rarity’s fault but we have to get going.”

Pinkie glared at her. “How?! She wont move, and we can't move her!”

“Oh yes we can!” Dash shouted. She picked up the girl by her waist and threw her over her shoulder.

“Eh?! RD! What in tarnation are you doin’?!” Applejack spoke up, snapping out of her stupor.

“I’m saving your sorry ass!” She yelled before putting the girl back down. She punched her arm. “You keep feeling sorry for yourself and it’s helping no one! How are you ever going to find Apple Bloom if you keep freezing up every time someone says her name?!”

Applejack tensed, but then sighed. “Ah guess you’re right. But what Rarity said was uncalled for!”

“And I’m very sorry for that darling.” Rarity said, sending her a sincere look.

“Well okay. Let’s just get this show on the road.” AJ responded, starting to walk again. Rainbow Dash was right. If she was going to find her brother and her sister she was going to have to toughen up. And that meant starting today.

About eighty miles west of where Team Harmony was hiking, a group of three female soldiers stood guard.

“There’s nothing here. Why is she making us stand here?!” The first one, a purple haired girl in her late teens asked.

The second one, about nineteen years old with a charming southern accents sighed. “Ah guess she wants us out the way. Us being prisoners of war and all.”

The third one about the same age, snorted. “They took us from our sisters just so we could be watch dogs. It figures. We were never good at anything anyway.”

“Sweetie Belle!” The second one called. “Ah thought we agreed to never talk about them!”

Sweetie Belle stomped her foot. “What makes you so sure that they aren’t alive?! What makes you so sure Applejack isn’t apart of that famous military team everyone’s talking about?!”

Apple Bloom gritted her teeth. That’s what they had told her. That’s what those stupid men had told her. That Granny was dead and so was Big Mac and Applejack. And if she didn’t come with them she’d end up like that too. She clenched her fists angrily.

Scootaloo sighed. “Aw, shit. Here she goes.”

“That’s what they told me! And that’s what they told you and Scoots! Why do ya’ll keep holding onto this stupid shred of hope that one day they’ll find us, and we’ll be happy again?!” Tears started to form in Apple Bloom’s eyes.

“It won’t be the same ya’ll. Look around. Do you even recognize where we’re standin’?”

The two girls beside her looked around the tall grassy field and shrugged, There were over grown weeds everywhere, and an abandoned shack reduced to rubble stood alone in the far corner. They didn’t see anything.

AppleBloom shook her head. “Of course ya’ll don’t. This is the school yard, remember? Miss Cheerilee’s class?”

The realization flooded onto their faces, then shame took its place. AppleBloom sighed. “See? No matter how much you want things to be the way they were before this stupid war, they never will be.”

The three were quiet after that, resuming their post in complete solemn silence.

The girls had made it to Ponyville, or at least what was left of it, seeing how every shop, cafe and building was either boarded up, raided, or occupied by military forces.

Dash whistled as she looked around herself. “Shit. Every time we come here it gets worse and worse.”

Pinkie sighed. “Tell me about it. I can't even look at Sugarcube Corner without getting depressed.” That didn’t stop her from glancing at the once brightly painted sweet shop as they passed, now desolate and eerie as the rest of the once booming, lively town. She sighed again.

They passed the farmer’s market, the smell of rotting produce and wood filling their nostrils. Fluttershy shuddered as they passed the pathway to her cottage. She couldn’t bring herself to think about what happened to her cottage and all her cute little animals.

Dash looked up to see Cloudsdale. She gritted her teeth when she saw it had been taken over by New Lunar Republic soldiers. She felt ashamed that her own race would let those scum rule over them. Kicking some dirt out of frustration she raised her gun.

“Where exactly are these rebels, Twilight?” Applejack asked, eyeing the road way to Sweet Apple Acres. She forced herself to look away. This was no time to have a mental breakdown.

“By my old treehouse.” Twilight responded emotionlessly.

“You don’t mean-” Applejack started.

Twilight gave her a curt nod. “Yes.”

She had left Spike in the three house, she knew she shouldn’t have but he wanted to stay and watch over the books. She thought it was so stupid for him to do that but then he brought up his noble dragon code and she couldn’t say no. She knew it was the wrong thing to do but she still ended up leaving the teenager in Ponyville by himself.

Though she didn’t leave him unprotected. She commanded that he be watched over twenty four seven. She made sure he was safe... but with the recent distraction of the rebels, sh wondered if they were paying attention to him at all. Twilight was deathly worried about the boy, but she couldn’t show it. Especially not after she just told one of her soldiers to suck it up.

“Get ready girls, we don’t know what to expect.” She warned them. She heard the others raise their guns before walking towards the library. But then something that Twilight saw made her stop cold.

“Twilight, Twilight what’s wrong darling?” Rarity called.

Twilight didn’t respond so Rarity took it upon herself to look in the direction Twilight had been looking. She gasped.

“Oh my Celestia!” She shouted.

The others looked then gasped too. There, in the window, were two men holding down a boy tied to a chair. It wasn’t just any boy, but a boy they all knew very well.

Fluttershy started to whimper. “Y-you guys. The rebels are in the library. And they have Spike!”

Author's Note

sorry this is so short. I have to babysit today and i wanted to get this out of the way. welp, i gotta go so please comment and tell me what you guys think. :)

Chapter 3

Twilight could do nothing but stare in horror as she watched the rebels put duct tape over his mouth. She picked up her walkie talkie. "Team Harmony to base."

"Base to Team Harmony." A voice crackled.

“We have a hostage situation at the Oak Tree Library. Rebels have taken over and have captured the boy."

Silence. Then, "Are they armed?"

She laughed dryly. "If you call knives and machetes armed."

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to kill every single one if those bastards."

"Twilight," Pinkie said. "Calm down. You don't want to walk into a hostage situation mad. It might make them-"

"I know what it might make them do!" Twilight screamed.

Pinkie, taken aback, said nothing.

"Princess Twilight Sparkle, fourth in command and leader of the elite force Team Harmony." Twilight spoke slowly.

"Why are you stating your title and rank?" Dash asked.

"Because you're going to have to tell General Celestia that there's been a casualty. My casualty."

"What the hell are you talking about?! Are you insane?! This aint a suicide mission!" Applejack shouted at her.

Twilight remained indifferent. "That's not for you to decide."

"You can't just barge in there, Twilight! You'll be killed!" Pinkie told her.

"Please, darling. I know you're upset and worried about Spikey-Wikey. We all are. But you have to think with reason." Rarity said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Twilight sighed, but it came out as a hiccup. Tears streamed down her face. "I can't lose him. He's all I have left."

The other five girls looked at her concerned. It was true. Spike was all she had left. Shining Armour had been taken prisoner, and Cadence was so busy protecting the Crystal Empire from Republic soldiers that she had lost all contact with Twilight.

Her parents were the first ones to die when this war started. All she had left was her friends and Spike.

And she couldn't even protect him. She started to feel the same feelings Applejack was feeling earlier, but it was much worse. Because instead of him going missing, she was going to watch him die.

"Wha-what do we do?" Fluttershy squeaks, cowering behind Applejack and Rainbow Dash.

"We fight. Just like we always do. We got permission to kill them suckers anyway." Applejack said, rolling her shoulders.

"Surely you don't think we can just barge in there and not make a scene?" Rarity huffs raising an eyebrow.
"There ain't no other way! Unless, you got any better ideas! And Ah don't think Ah need to remind ya we're runnin' out of time!"

That shut Rarity up. But Twilight shook her head. "No. If we're going to do this, we are going to do this my way."

The five stood at attention, waiting for their orders.

"Pinkie Pie, do you still have your smoke pepper bombs?" Twilight asked.

The girl saluted. "Yes ma'am! I packed four bombs!"

"Good. We can use the first two to distract and blind them while the last two will make sure that they can't follow us."

"Dash? AJ?"

"Yes ma'am?" They both asked.

"Guns locked and loaded?"

They nodded.

"Good. Rarity, this is where your attention to detail comes in. Look around and see if you see anything."

"I'll do my best, darling." The former fashionista assured her.

Twilight put on her goggles. "Alright, here we go." She said, raising her gun.

The others did the same and followed behind her. Twilight signaled Pinkie to go in with her and sent Dash with Rarity and Fluttershy, leaving Applejack with her.

The first team, consisting of Twi, Pinkie and AJ, were going to come in through the front. The second, Rarity, Dash and Flutters were going to come in through the back. This way there was a better chance of them going undetected.

Team two agreed to meet team one in the tree house once Spike was obtained before circling around to the back.

Team one approached the front, crouching under the front window. Luckily, it was already open. Twilight gave the signal to Pinkie and the explosives expert threw the first of four bombs in. It exploded, causing the men in front of it to start hacking and coughing. Team one put on their masks before heading in.

Pinkie threw the second one, which further blinded the rebels. By now, the rebels who had been upstairs came down to see what all the commotion was about.

Some of them didn't even make it down the stairs, thanks to Rarity and Dash. Applejack, Twilight, and Pinkie had taken care of most of the ones who were already downstairs.

Quickly, both teams made their way up to Twilight's bedroom where the teenager was being held. Twilight busted into the room with AJ and Dash flanking her on both sides.

Two rebels stood up, drawing their weapons. Applejack drew her pistol, shooting one in the neck and the other in the head in a split second.

Twilight ran over to her brother and untied him before she hugged him. "Oh Spike." She said, breathing in his familiar scent.

The others stood behind her, smiling. Their mission was a success. The leader turned to her team. "Good work, you guys."

“Why the hell does she want us?!” Scootaloo asked, finally glad to have gotten out of the sun.

“The hell should know?” AppleBloom responds, rolling her shoulders. She really hated carrying that damned gun around. She didn’t even think she needed it anyway. Unless they tried to escape. And they didn’t dare do that. They were terrified of what Nightmare Moon would do to them if she caught them trying to escape. It sent a shudder down her back.

Sweetie Belle took off her navy blue jacket, letting her chest free after they had come in from their post. It surprised her when she hit puberty. She never thought she would develop almost the same way as Rarity did.

The others hit it around the same time she did, earning them leering stares and catcalls from the older male soldiers. It scared them, they didn’t want to think of the possibility of being raped, but it was possible. In fact being prisoners of war, they were lucky that they even got this far and even became soldiers themselves. A lot of the girls they had knew when they first got here are either dead or sitting in a cell rotting. It was revolting.

The trio stepped into the dictator’s office. Seeing the woman with her smile; a greedy and malicious one. “Ah, my three loveliest girls. How are you all?” she sneered.

AppleBloom gritted her teeth, saying nothing. She remembered Granny telling her when she was younger that if she didn't have anything nice to say she shouldn’t say anything at all. Scootaloo swatted her arm, annoyance clear on her face. The young farm girl rolled her eyes before muttering a “Just dandy.”

Nightmare chuckled. “Ah AppleBloom. Just as stubborn as your sister. You’ll come around soon.”

AppleBloom’s stomach churned at the mention of Applejack’s name. She refused to believe she was alive. Everyone needed to stop mentioning her like she was. It was sickening.

“I have a job for you three.” Nightmare states, crossing her fingers on top of her desk.

“What is it, ma’am?” Scootaloo asks.

“I want you to infiltrate Canterlot and cause a riot. I want you to kill. Destroy everything in sight.” She told them swirling the wine glass next to her before taking a sip. She smirked. “Oh, how rude of me do you girls want some?” She asks, holding up the bottle.

The three shake their heads.

“Alright then. Suit yourselves. Now, go on. Get on with it.” She says shooing them out.

“What a lunatic.” Scootaloo muttered as the door closed.

“Shh! She can hear you!” Sweetie Belle repremanded.

AppleBloom’s fist clenched. Nightmare was insane if she thought that she was just going to go out and kill innocent people.

After going to their rooms to get their cloaks, the girls stood alone at the train station.

“Guys?” Sweetie asks.

“What?” Scootaloo and AB ask.

“Do you think we’ll see them?”

As the train rolled in, nor Scoots or AppleBloom answered.

Instead of returning to headquarters, they reported to Canterlot at request of the princess.

“Ah wonder what she wants now.” Applejack mumbled as they boarded the Ponyville Express. The train barely ran anymore, its only passengers soldiers and military cargo now.

“Probably wants us to take care of something else. That’s basically all we do.” Dash snorted, staring out the window. It wasn’t just the town that had been lost, it was the rest of the land. Trees hung lower than they did before, grass grew taller, weeds taking the place of flowers. The Everfree Forest had expanded itself, the trees snaking their roots into what used to be smooth commonly used roads.

Civilians who lived in either Ponyville or Cloudsdale were evacuated and moved to Canterlot where it was safe. Unfortunately, a lot of those people weren’t moved in time including Applejack’s family and a few others. Some died, others went missing, and the truly unfortunate ended up as prisoners of war. Twilight wanted to rescue those people so bad, because the girls could be one of them. But she didn’t dare cross into New Lunar Republic territory. It would further complicate things and possibly get more people killed.

“Well whatever it is, I’m sure it’s important.” Twilight says, sighing a little bit. She wished she could go back to the days where it was just her, Spike, and the girls, and all they had to worry about was going to galas and being the Elements of Harmony.

She looked over to the boy, who had fallen asleep and was now leaning peacefully on Rarity’s shoulder. She smiled. He still had a crush on her. Hopefully when this war was over he could ask her out on a proper date. Things could be great for them. For all of them.

The train stopped, jerking into the deserted station. The six and Spike got out, him stretching his limbs and them saluting their fellow soldiers.

“Princess.” A guard greeted Twilight, saluting her.

“At ease, soldier. Why has the general called us in?” She commanded.

“Yes ma’am.” He nods before speaking again. “It appears there has been a break in security. There are Republic soldiers in the city as we speak.”

Applejack stiffened. Now? Of all times? How could anyone be so careless so inattentive that they would let soldiers of an enemy army into what was supposed to be a safe haven for people who didn’t deserve to endure something as heartbreaking and painstaking as civil war?

Her hands clenched into fists. She wasn’t going to let a single one of those bastards live. Not one single one of them.

Twilight, seeing how angry Applejack was getting, thought it would be a good idea to keep moving so that the farm girl couldn’t have another break down. Celestia knows they didn’t need another one of those. She nodded curtly before waving a hand at the soldiers in front of her. “As you were, men.”

They saluted her again before returning to their posts. She sort of felt bad for them, especially since they had to stand out here until nightfall just to make sure that all the military supplies got through and nothing else didn’t.

Spike sighed. “Man, stuff like this really gets me down.”

“Dude, I’ve had to stand post like that, and let me tell you, it’s not a fucking barrel of monkeys.” Dash responds shouldering her gun.

“That’s cause you wouldn’t shut yer trap.” Applejack interjected, lighting a cigarette. They help her calm down, and she only smokes when she’s really irritated or frustrated, which wasn't very often.

Pinkie plucked one for herself from the carton in AJ’s hand and lit it, smirking as she put it to her lips. “I can’t imagine why. You have nothing to talk about since there’s nothing for you to compete for anymore.” She took a drag before breathing out with a laugh.

Dash gritted her teeth as they walked. She did have things to talk about! They just weren’t as important as they were before. She didn’t say anything though, seeing how she didn’t feel like she needed to defend herself.

Rarity frowned. “You two will become unhealthy if you keep up a habit like that.” She hated it when they smoked, especially around her. “Besides, Spike is with us and you might cause him to pick it up.”

AJ slaps him on the back with a grin. “That ain’t a worry. The boy’s got Twilight. She’ll be makin’ sure he ain’t doin’ nothin’ for a long time!” She joked before sharing a laugh with Pinkie Pie.

Spike blushed, glancing over at Rarity. The nineteen year old never thought she looked more beautiful. Even with the hardships of war she still managed to look as endearing as she did before. He hoped that the war would be over soon so that she would have time to focus on being in a relationship with him. Not that he was banking on it or anything.

They had finally reached the castle, the big double doors being opened for them as they walked into the throne room. It had been a while since Twilight had been here, the last time being when there were two rules not one, and the land wasn’t divided. She wondered what it looked like now, her eyes wandering to see the glass stained window murals were gone. In their place were black curtains covering regular windows. There was only one throne chair now instead of two, and any and all things that even reminded Twilight of Luna’s presence was gone.

Celestia cleared her throat. The girls stood at attention, their right arms up in a crisp salute. Spike even joined them.

“At ease, girls. It’s nice to see you all face to face. Especially you Spike. I heard you had gotten yourself into quite a situation.” Celestia spoke, a soft warm smile on her lips. It was something foreign to Twilight and the others now, something they had not seen in three years. For Celestia to do it...it was an oddity. Though she probably only did it to comfort Spike. After all, he had just had a traumatic experience.

“It’s nice to see you too, Princess.” He grinned. He missed her. As much as he loved Twilight, he loved Celestia. To him, Twilight was his sister and Celestia was his mother. It more than made him feel safe, it made him feel loved.

She nodded affectionately before turning to the others. “I assume you heard what has happened already?” She asks.

Twilight steps forward. “Yes. The guards at the station have given me some information...do we know exactly who these soldiers are? Are they in uniform?”

Celestia’s face became the grim expression they had all come to know. “No, I don’t believe so. They appear to be unarmed too.”

“So how do we know they’re Lunar Republic?” Fluttershy spoke up for the first time in a long time.

“We don’t. That’s why I need you girls to stay here and patrol the city. Look for anything or anyone suspicious. See if you can find anything. And if you do find something, report it back to me.”

“Yes ma’am!” The six yelled before giving her a salute. The general dismissed them, telling them they were free to go. As they walked out the throne room, Applejack took a long drag of her cigarette.

“Man Ah’m really startin’ to get tired of this shit.” She says exhausted. Patrolling the city was one of the worst jobs she had ever had to do. Just watching people walk around in misery and despair...it made her sick to her stomach.

The group decided to split up: Twi took the north, Pinkie took the West, Fluttershy and Rarity took the east and Applejack and Dash took the south. They agreed to meet back at the castle at midnight.

As Applejack and Rainbow made their way through the crowded streets of the city, they looked around for any signs of trouble. It was pretty peaceful. Well, as peaceful as peaceful can get during a time like this.

Children ran past them chasing after one another, adults chattered by the outdoor cafes that lined the streets, vendors shouted out, selling things. It was almost like things were normal again. Almost.

Applejack had decided to go off on her own. She hadn’t been in the city for a while, seeing how she was always on missions for the princess, and she wanted to see what was new with it. Dash told her she was heading the other way, and that she would catch up with her in a minute. Just then, Applejack bumped into someone.

She had been so busy looking around herself that she didn’t notice that someone was in front of her. It was what seemed to be a young girl in a dark black cloak. The cloak was large on her, covering up most of her body expect a few strands of red hair and obscuring her face.

“Sorry, little missy.” She apologized.

The girl seemed to freeze in shock before smiling a bit. “Nah. It’s alright. Mah big sis always told me ta watch where Ah’m goin.” she said, grinning wider. She waved goodbye to Applejack before continuing on.

Applejack herself was frozen in place. Why did that voice sound so familiar but not quite? Why did she look familiar when she hadn’t even seen her face? No. It can’t be. It can’t be her. It would explain why the voice was deeper and more womanly but no, she wouldn’t believe it.

Her mind was playing tricks on her. Yeah, that was it, it was a cruel, sick joke her subconscious conjured up to give her a false sense of hope. She was letting the PTSD get the best of her; that teenager she just briefly met was not her long lost sister. But, still, there could be a possibility. There are always possibilities.

Applejack was contemplating actually going after the girl, just to make sure when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Dash gave her a worried look. “You okay there kid? You were kinda staring into space there.” The former athlete says a concerned look on her face.

Applejack shook her head. “Y-yeah. Ah’m fine. Ah just thought Ah saw something.”

Dash knew there was something more to it but decided not to press on. “Well, we should start heading back now. The others will probably be there soon.” She said, turning to walk back in the direction she came from.

Applejack nodded before following after her at a distance, just far enough so that she could say, “There’s always a possibility.”

Author's Note

third chapter! Whoo! finally! This took forever but its finally here! Also i would like to say the plot of this story might change so stay tuned! ;)