Chapters It has been 6 years since the event many have dubbed "The Deep Freeze." Meteors, seemingly from nowhere, smashed into the lands across Equestria, killing thousands from the initial impacts. Thousands more fell victim to inhaling the toxic dust released from the impact sites that spread throughout the air within mere days. It was this same dust that found its way into the atmosphere. Soon days began to end faster and faster, with darkness encroaching upon time that normally would have been filled with Celestia's Sun. At first it was seen as Luna's doing, but this theory was quickly put to rest by Celestia herself. Despite their best efforts, Pegasi could do nothing against the toxic dust that threatened to blot out the Sun completely. And it did.
Soon after, the snow came. A gray, sickly looking snow compared to the normally rich, white snow that usually came during Winter. This too, was lethal, having been formed from the toxic clouds now covering the skies completely. The endless nights and freezing cold began to take its toll on the weary survivors of the initial impacts. Countless lives were lost as many tried to leave in search of locations unaffected by the disaster. Hordes of ponies could be found, frozen solid trying to leave the major cities and towns; a grim reminder of just how deadly the freezing temperatures were.
Soon came the blizzards. Deadly, toxic, windswept snow battered and tormented the surviving ponies, claiming even more lives as they raged on. Teams of researchers made up of Pegasi, Earth Ponies, and Unicorns alike searched for a solution to the blizzards which only seemed to grow in size and ferocity. Soon after, magically adept Unicorns were dispatched in teams of three to all major cities in Equestria to protect them against the blizzards. These "blizzard teams" kept the lethal snowstorms at bay for a time, by conjuring magical barriers around the cities. But as the blizzards intensified, the fatigue from the prolonged usage of the spells took its toll on these Unicorns, and one by one, these cities were overtaken by the poisonous snow that threatened to overtake the entire world. Only a few scattered towns and cities remain now.
Celestia's death struck came as an unexpected, and near fatal blow to the Equestrian monarchy, leaving her sister Luna to take on her sister's responsibilities as well as her own. This proved to be too much for the Princess of the Night to handle, and she vanished without a trace, leaving no one to take the throne. She is presumed dead. With both Princesses gone, all sense of government crumbled, and anarchy soon broke out, spreading through surviving cities like a plague. Roving bands of marauding bandits roamed the frozen wasteland, killing, stealing, and raping as they pleased. Soon the slave trade erupted like a vile volcano. Groups of slavers roamed the icy wasteland that once was Equestria, they preyed on the weakened, weary survivors, corralling them into pens and strapping modified prison collars onto their necks; ones that would now kill instead of subdue. The Royal Guard, now the only active military force in Equestria, worked to quickly eradicate these groups, finally succeeding within four months, wiping out nearly all of the slavers, bandits, and anarchists.
The came Heat.
In the months following the Royal Guard's victory, groups of bandits, slavers, and anarchists alike were all united under one flag. They were heavily armed, and fiercely loyal to their charismatic leader known only as "Fire." He led an attack on the heart of the Royal Guard's operations, Canterlot. The Royal Guard was unprepared for such an attack, losing many of their members in the initial strike. A bloody and prolonged conflict raged on for days, until Heat's forces finally retreated. Heat had struck a sizable blow to the Royal Guard's forces, leaving them weakened and wounded. More attacks followed, now at the surrounding cities and towns, forcing the Guard to send a portion of their forces to each of the cities the protect them.
After months of attacks, growing in size and intensity, the Guard could not defend much longer. They had no other choice. They needed to go on the offensive now, or risk losing what little grip they had on what was left of Equestria. However, with their ranks spread thin, no new recruits, and only nine squads of five ponies, it looked as if this was a dead end for the once great Royal Guard...
Victor squad.
The Royal Guard's ace in the hole. Made up of the best that the they had to offer. Hand picked, it was made up of the Royal Guard's elite. Five ponies from all over Equestria, at the top of their class in what they did, resided in this squad. If the Guard was going to win the battle with Heat, this was their best chance at doing so.
The first was their leader, Captain Whipped Cream. Originally a confectionery maker from Phillydelphia, he found himself in the Royal Guard after a blizzard destroyed his town. The Unicorn escaped using the abandoned and crumbling underground mining tunnels, nearly freezing to death in the process, and made his way to Canterlot, where he was quickly integrated into the guard's ranks. He was selected for his leadership abilities and his ability to stay calm under immense pressure to be Victor squad's leader.
The next was Second Lieutenant Starnsy Warnsy. An Earth Pony born in Manehattan and raised in Ponyville that worked as a construction worker, she was a survivor of the initial impacts. When the slave trade exploded in the wake of the disaster, she was captured and forced into slavery. She escaped with the help of another survivor who was killed during the escape. Starnsy made her way to Canterlot where her collar was disabled, but was unable to be taken off, due to the metal lock being fused together. She hastily joined the guard afterwards as a thanks for disabling the collar. She was selected for Victor squad due to her prowess with explosive ordinance.
Victor squad's third member was Staff Sergeant Red Iron, an Earth Pony factory worker from Stalliongrad. When the disaster struck, he quickly left with his wife, sailing across the sea in search of an area unaffected by the disaster. During the trip, his wife fell victim to hypothermia an died before they reached the mainland. He wandered aimlessly until finding Canterlot's castle, seeking shelter inside, he did not expect to find anypony still alive. He was drafted into the guard and was chosen for Victor squad because of his skills with heavy weaponry.
The fourth member of Victor squad, Corporal First Response, was a Pegasus paramedic from Manehattan. He found himself running and flying for his life when Heat came through and began systematically executing everypony that lived in his neighborhood. Unable to save his siblings, he flew until he could fly no more, crash landing in front of the drawbridge leading to the castle in Canterlot. First Response was chosen for Victor squad because of his superb medical abilities.
Victor squad's final member is also their newest. Private Feather Quill. A writer from Canterlot, he was part of the civilians evacuated to the castle. He only recently was taken into Victor squad after he proved himself a near dead eye marksman during a surprise raid on the castle, defending the main entrance and killing 17 of Heat's main raiding party.
These five ponies are the best chance that the Royal Guard has of defeating Heat and reclaiming their hold on Equestria.
The five members of Victor squad trudged through the snow towards their objective. It was a routine scouting mission, set up a position and monitor one of Heat's main camp, looking for weaknesses or any other useful intel. Feather Quill had his concerns however. "P-Permission to speak, Captain?"
Whipped Cream glanced back at the private. "Is it vital to the mission?" He asked flatly.
Quill thought to himself for a moment before answering. "Well... I-I don't think so but-"
"Chain of command then, Quill."
"C-Corporal Response?" He asked as he quickened his pace to catch up to the corporal.
"Hm?" The white Pegasus turned his attention to the pony addressing him.
"Don't you think it's a bit... W-Well, strange for them to send an entire squad out for a scouting mission?"
Before First Response could answer, Starnsy chimed in. "There's safety in numbers, Quill. You've seen what Heat is capable of."
Quill sighed, thinking to himself as he looked down at the gray snow under his boots. "It just doesn't feel right. I'm getting the same feeling I got before the castle was attacked." He looked forward at the large pony ahead of him. "What do you you think, Red?"
Red grunted, simply walking along the path. When he spoke, he spoke in his thick Stalliongrad accent. "I think we find camp. We set up. We watch. We go back to castle."
Whipped Cream spoke up again. "Hey, cut the chatter. We're nearing the camp." He pointed to a faint glow down the slope to their right. "Let's set up on that ridge right there. We can get a good view of the camp from there." Following the Captain's orders, Victor squad set up shop on the ridge overlooking the camp. Their mottled white and gray armor blended in with the snow near perfectly. Captain Whipped Cream laid prone, scanning the camp back and forth with his binoculars as the rest of his squad went about their respective duties.
Starnsy patrolled with Red Iron, making sure nothing took Victor squad by surprise during their observation. First Response laid next to Feather Quill's DMR, waiting for him to stop writing an entryin his small journal that he kept with him at all times. The medical Pegasus was to act as Quill's spotter if the need arose. Starnsy looked over at Red as they made another round about the small encampment. "Something on your mind, Red?"
The large stallion didn't answer for a few seconds. "Thinking about what Quill said. He has point. Why send whole squad for job that two ponies could handle? It makes no sense. I get strange feeling we were not told everything."
Starnsy double-checked the explosives on her belt. "I mean... I guess you're right. It's a bit strange, but why do you think they sent all of us?" Starmsy asked as she watched the horizon for any movement.
Red stopped. "Truthfully? I think this is not just scouting mission. Something bigger is happening here I think..." Red trailed off, looking into the distance as he thought.
Back in the encampment, First Response sighed. "Quill, get over here. You're supposed to be helping with surveillance."
"Ah! Y-Yes sir! Sorry sir!" Quill put away his journal, inkwell, and quill as he hurried over to his DMR. He unfolded the bipod and laid prone next to First Response, taking a deep breath to calm himself as he looked through the scope and adjusted it for the dostance they were at. The corporal rolled his eyes and looked through his rangefinder. As he scanned the camp, he stopped abruptly.
"Uh, Captain, you might wanna come see this." He motioned with his hand for the Captain to come over.
Whipped Cream stood and made his way over to the sniper and his spotter. He laid down once more and took the rangefinder. First Response adjusted it so that the captain could look at what transpired in the camp.
In Heat's camp a truck was being unloaded, but it wasn't the cargo that was of interest, it was the ponies unloading it. Each of the ponies unloading cargo was wearing an exosuit that ran all the way up their spine to the base of their skull, extending to the arms, hands, legs and feet. There was a large circular device on the back that covered the entire upper back of the ponies wearing them. They wore respirators on their faces, most likely to protect from any toxic fumes.
Whipped Cream put down the rangefinder and pinched the bridge of his nose. Feather Quill saw them through his scope and looked over to their speechless Captain. "C-Captain, what are they wearing?"
Red Iron spoke up from behind the private, startling him."Exosuits. Hydraulically powered. Hardwired into their nervous system. They were discontinued after they found to have problem with overheating."
Firat Response spoke up as he peered through the rangefinder. "Yes, but it seems they've found a solution to that with that device on their back. Looks to be a cooling unit."
Red extended an open hand to the corporal. "Give here." First Response placed the rangefinder in his hand and continued to observe what he could from their encampment. A low rumble could be heard from the east side of the camp, and Red turned his attention there, looking through the rangefinder. Now Red Iron was not a pony to be frightened easily, but what he saw next made his blood run cold and sent a chill down his spine. Entering into the camp was a tank. One he recognized all too well. He muttered under his breath. "Tiger..."
Feather Quill was trembling as he saw the metal behemoth enter the camp through his scope. "I-Is that a tank? An actual working tank? O-Our weapons can't punch through that armor!"
Starnsy frowned as she crouched beside the quivering Quill. "You sure? I have a lot of explosives here."
Red interrupted her. "Нет. Your explosives are anti-personnel. Not anti-tank."
"Then what do we do?" Asked Starnsy as she watched the tank roll into the camp.
Whipped Cream spoke up in a firm, authoritative voice. "We're gonna pack up. We aren't gonna leave any trace that we've been here. We're gonna go back to the castle and warn them."
"No we aren't." First Response said bluntly as his ears twitched, picking up on the minuscule differences in the weather. We have a blizzard forming. He have a few minutes at best, we should get our blizzard gear on." As if on cue, the wind began to pick up, whipping through their manes and tails as it gained speed. The members of Victor squad donned their thick blizzard suits, covering any skin that was visible and slipping on facemasks and goggles. To an outside observer, each of the ponies looked exactly the same, save for the ranks on their shoulders. As the wind picked up more and more speed, visibility began to drop, and soon the five ponies could barely see their hands in front of their faces. The sound of the wind roaring past drowned out all sound around them, including their voices. This blizzard was stronger than the last by a mile, it took effort to stay in place or risk being swept away and buried under sickly snow. And in the midst of it all, unbeknownst to them, Victor squad began to split...
8:00 PM. 3 HOURS AFTER BLIZZARD
Red Iron awakes with a start, looking around as he tries to calm his breathing. Surrounded by gray snow, he sighs as he thinks to himself. "Great... Must've been buried by the blizzard." He frees an arm and brings it to his face, removing the mask and goggles he wore. It was bright enough to see his icy prison, but light was fading fast. Red Iron swallowed and collected as much saliva as he could in his mouth, slowly letting it drip from his lips. It slowly dripped into the snow below him. "So I'm facedown under the snow..." He took a deep breath and, with a grunt of exertion, pulled his other arm free. With both arms now at his disposal, he began to claw his way out of the snow he was buried in, taking care not to ingest any. After a few minutes of digging, he pulled himself to the surface and looked around at the expanse of gray around him. It was completely flat, nothing to indicate any activity recently. He pulled his legs free and stood, looking around. "Starnsy!!!" He yelled, in his thick Stalliongrad accent. He listened for a response...
Nothing. The only response he heard was his own echo fading away with every repeat.
"Captain!!!" He yelled, louder this time, hoping for a response, anything but the quiet he heard now.
Still only silence answered him.
"Quill!!! First Response!!!" He yelled as he looked around. "SOMEPONY!!!!" He collapsed to his knees, out of breath for a moment. He stood once more, looking around. The landscape had not changed, still the same gray expanse of snow before him. "I'm alone then... Where are the others...? I have to get back to the castle to..." He took a deep breath and exhaled. "No... I will find squad. I cannot leave them out here like this... Any one of them could be injured, or worse." He slung his LMG back around, thankful that it was strapped to him during that blizzard. As he began to wander, he looked up at the gray sky. Very little light shone through, but if he had to guess, it was going to be dark soon. He squinted his eyes, looking out across the horizon for any landmark. He could not wander forever, he needed somewhere to go.
After looking for what felt like an eternity to him, Red Iron spotted a spire in the distance. From where he stood it looked merely like a black toothpick, jutting out like a splinter against the gray skin of the world. He hefted his LMG, walking towards the spire in the distance, it never seeming to get closer as he journeyed on. However, he remained vigilant in his search for his squadmates, scanning the snow for any signs of life.
As he walked towards the spire in the distance, he thought about one of the many things that ran through his head. Namely, why he had called for Starnsy. He hadn't even meant for that... He guessed maybe, that it was out of instinct. Did he still care for her? He wondered as he trudged through the sickly snow. His mind wandered to that night of June a year ago, Starnsy had fallen into a frozen lake. After jumping in to save her, Red Iron had dragged her back to dry land, and then carried her back to the castle. He had spent the rest of the night thinking. She reminded him of Sweet Dream, his wife. Red Iron sighed as he remembered their journey here, across the seas before they had frozen.
Halfway through their journey, Sweet Dream had fallen into the water, and after being brought back onto their raft, had fallen victim to hypothermia. He quickly dispelled those thoughts as best he could. Sadly, he could not, his mind wandered to memories of the time before the disaster. The day he had first set eyes upon her; how he had spent time with her in the early days of their relationship, she had loved walking with him through the town's central park, he smiled as he remembered her adorable giggle whenever he made her laugh; his mind sifted through the memories again, to when he had proposed to her in the middle of their favorite park, how she nearly fainted and how he couldn't even count how many "Yes's" came out of her mouth that night; he remembered what he would call her all the time: "Moya lyubov." My love. And how she would blush when he did. The dark memories slowly crept back in, and he remembered their frantic packing, and getting on the boat to try and find somewhere that hadn't been taken by the disaster. He let out a pained sigh as he relived it once more: Pulling his wife from the arctic waters, holding her close to keep her warm, watching the life slowly drain from her eyes, and the agonizing hours of the trip afterwards. He quickly stifled these thoughts, pushing them down, suffocating them, drowning them. In his wandering, he had come upon the source of the spire that had been looming in the distance. He watched from a ridge the goings on in this Heat camp he had stumbled upon. He could see nothing through the haze that obscured the camp, he strained his eyes to see more. He felt a presence behind him, and as soon as he began to turn, he was met with a rifle butt to the face. Then darkness came.
He awoke sometime later, groaning and rubbing his aching head. Red looked around the room he was in, it was dark, but thankfully enough light was streaming in for him to see, but only just. He had been stripped of his weapons and body armor, leaving him only in his warm underclothes. "Where..."
"A holding cell." A bored sounding voice interrupted. Red walked towards the source of the voice, emanating from the wall in front of him.
"I didn't think Heat took prisoners." Red replied flatly.
"We don't. You aren't a prisoner. You're a contestant." The voice stated with a small chuckle.
Red was confused to say the least. Contestant... Contestant in what?"
"Why don't I show you? Direct your attention to the front of the cell." With that, a small piece of the cell slid away, letting Red see what was transpiring outside. He could see a circular arena with snow lightly dusting the ground inside. He heard the cheers of the crowd that he had not noticed before. As he watched he saw a stallion, running as fast as he could. He held in his hand a scimitar. Red briefly wondered where one would get something such as that, but this thought was a fleeting one, as he watched what looked to be a laser pierce the stallion's chest, watching him collapse to his knees and look at the hole in his torso, before falling flat on the ground.
The voice spoke up once more. "Hm. Looks like you're next. Hope you survive longer than that last contestant."
Red could hear the disgust in his voice, he knew that if the stallion outside his cell had it his way, he would have killed him already. He heard the sound of soldiers chanting for the next contestant to be released. Iron gritted his teeth as he felt the containment cell he was in begin to move towards the arena, before it sped up and threw him facedown into the middle of the snow dusted arena. He groaned and staggered to his feet. He had noticed before, but it occurred to him that his captors had left all of his winter gear on. "I guess Heat isn't cruel enough to do that..." His thoughts were interrupted by a loud thud against the ground, as well as another following it shortly after. "What the-" He turned around to see what had been making the sounds. There stood a towering metal behemoth, looking down at him. It was apparent however, that this being was not purely mechanical in nature.
He could see the soldier within it, grinning down at him from his position within the mech suit. Snow lightly dusted the surface of the armored suit, the frost on the suit quickly dissipating with every slight movement it took. Red took note of its armaments, for on one arm lied what was very clearly a large blade. On the other, a strange piece of technology; Red could only assume it was what created the laser he had seen earlier from his cell. He pried his eyes away from the Steel behemoth before him to quickly survey his surroundings. Corpses littered the ground, some fresh, others already in the later stages of decomposition. Broken weapons lay strewn about the circular arena, and it was then that Red realized he had no chance of fighting with his bare hands. His thoughts were stolen from him once more as a loud noise what sounded like crackling electricity erupted from the suit's left arm, along with a white hot light in the barrel. The noise stopped abruptly as the laser fired, and Red only narrowly avoiding it by diving out of the way.
There was no time to waste, Red felt along the ground, finding a large, flat chunk of metal with a convenient piece bent out of the center he could use as a handle. As he hefted the piece of metal, he noted its weight, it would be a chore for most stallions to move something such as this. But Red wasn't most stallions, he held it with relative ease in his right hand, the large piece of metal easily covering his right arm and most of his body if held correctly. He quickly turned again to face the imposing metal mech that had already closed the distance between them with a single step, bringing his large blade down on Red, who held up his impromptu shield to block it. To his surprise, the metal held, albeit bending slightly. Red could feel the impact through the shield, leaving his arms sore. Another blow came, denting the shield again and battering Red's arms once more. "I can't keep this up much longer, he'll crush me..." He peeked out over the shield and saw the soldier going through the motions to wind up another blow. As it came down Red dived out of the way again and rolled to his feet. Upon seeing the mech's blade dug into the ground, he quickly ran up and slammed the edge of the shield into the joint that connected the mech's arm and forearm, severing it with surprising ease. He quickly ripped out the blade, taking it for himself to use. "I'm a regular knight of old aren't I..." The soldier within the suit growled, using his left arm to smack Red into the wall of the arena and stand up once more, wires hanging freely from the space where the suit's right arm used to be.
Red gasped for breath on the ground, the impact from slamming into the wall had winded him, and he was certain he heard something break when he hit the wall. Upon trying to stand, his thoughts were confirmed, when he put weight on his left leg, pain shot up it. The impact had broken his left leg and there he stood, leaning on the salvaged blade to support him. His ears perked as he heard the familiar crackling electricity sound. Looking up, he saw the mech charging up the laser on his arm. Red waited for the right moment, and...
The sound died out again and the energy in the barrel ceased for a second. Red dived away again, landing roughly on his left shoulder with a grunt. He had felt the heat from that blast, and the winter gear on one of his legs had been singed away. "Too close..." His left leg still throbbed with pain. He had landed on it as well as he dived away, only serving to intensify the pain. He staggered to his feet, his breath creating small clouds of vapor in front of him. He heard the sound of rapid metal thuds against the ground and looked up again in time to see the left arm of the mech before it sent him skidding across the ground of the snow covered arena. He had definitely heard another snap, the pain took a minute to reach him, but when it did, it hit him in the chest, his ribs had been broken from the blow this time. More rapid metal thuds, and another sound of metal hitting flesh and cloth, and another sickening crunch could be heard in the arena.
The crowd had fallen silent now for a moment, eager to see what was most likely the end. The mech had shattered Red's right shoulder and he could no longer hold his makeshift shield, dropping it to the ground as he collapsed to his knees and rested his weight upon the blade he had taken from it. Time seemed to have slowed down for him, as he looked up and saw the mech, and the arm cannon pointed directly at him, the telltale glow of the energy and the heat emanating from it was almost surreal. He looked around and saw the cheering crowd, eager for blood, the falling snow lightly gathering on the ground and being blown away with the light winds that drifted through the arena.
"So... This is it for me...?"
His breath was slow and labored, his chest rising and falling slightly with each breath he took, the vapor disappearing just as quickly as it had begun when it hit the cold air. He closed his eyes and tilted his head up, flakes of snow landing on his face and melting away instantly. His thoughts wandered to those of his friends he had made in his squad, of the fond memories they shared. He remembered his life before the disaster, how he had met his wife, their marriage, the time they had spent together, and the memories they had made with each other.
"I didn't think it would end like this..."
He slowly opened his eyes and looked up at the gray, cloud-covered sky that once shone blue, and that the rays of the Sun that would dance lightly upon the lush, green grass on a perfect day. Of better times, he thought. He wondered if the world would ever be the same as it had before. Still looking at the sky, he smiled softly.
"Moya lyubov... I'm coming home..."