The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.
-Ernst Hemingway
"Captain, we're approaching Hell's Gate!" The ensign called, as she aided a crew pony in tying down the zeppelin's ropes, thereby securing the balloon to the ship.
"Understood. Helmsmare, Full power to the furnace!"
"Aye, Aye Captain!" The Helmsmare, an opal Pegasus with a gritty, ragged amber mane pushed a brass lever forward next to her ship's wheel.
This sent a message to the engineers, two earth pony stallions, covered in soot and coal dust, down below decks in the engine room. They heard the ding of the message reaching them, so one took a coal-stained cloth and wiped the message aperture clear.
"Full throttle ahead!"
"Wot? They're crazy, we're gonna blow up tha ' engine runnin' 'er like that!" The second stallion retorted, nonetheless cranking the engine into full steam anyways.
The worn down airship's smokestacks roared, and the ship put on even more spead, creaking at the seams.
What had once been a beautiful Mare O' War class airship had suffered heavy damage; brass had been shredded in several places and had holes in others, wood had splintered and cracked under pressure, the Zeppelin's balloon had numerous patched holes, and the driving motors were heavily scarred, as if they'd spun into something metal.
The captain's bright orange mane glowed, as did her bright eyes, filled to the brim with steel-hearted resolve. "Forward, everypony! Forward, to Hell's Gates!"
Several hours earlier
The Royal Equestrian Expeditionary fleet was headed full steam towards Griffonic lands, brass gleaming, smokestacks rumbling, and ships' crews milling about. The fleet, five ships and several motorized gliders strong, was primed and ready for battle.
Their Mark I-B cannons were loaded and ready to fire, and 30mm Recoilless autocannons had plenty of ammunition belts. The crews were all tense, eager to combat the Griffons once more.
The five zeppelins- frigate classes- were arranged in a standard wedge formation, with the motorized gliders moving to and fro between the larger ships. The wedge was spearheaded by the most feared ship on the Griffonic front, the RES Ashen Pheonix.
The Griffons despised the Pheonix; they'd tried time and time again to destroy the ship, with little to no success.
Either way, The Pheonix's captain cared little; she was more focused on her fleet's main objective.
"Alright, navigator, what's our current heading?" The Captain questioned, sitting at her desk in her personal quarters. She was a yellow Pegasus mare, with a bright orange mane shoved under an officer's flat cap. Her eyes were as orange as her hair, and her voice was sharp and commanding. Aside from her white Equestrian flat cap, she also wore a light blue collared shirt, covered by a large, thick jacket, to ward off the cold at higher altitudes.
"Well, Captain Spitfire, we're on a bearing due Northwest; straight to Hell's Gate." Sitting across from the Pegasus mare was a unicorn stallion with a blond mane and jade eyes. Unlike Spitfire, he wore a leather jacket, and thick brown wool pants, reminiscent of that worn by motorized glider pilots, though he lacked their cap and goggles. His voice, however, was somewhat snobbish, as if he was trying to hold on to a Canterlotian accent.
"Excellent, Navigator. I must say I'm glad I picked you up back in the Minotaurian conflict; you're an excellent mapmaker." She complemented.
"Mhm, yes, I am an excellent mapmaker." He chuckled. "Though I must say, I am glad you didn't leave me back there." The stallion stared at his gloveless hands. "A bankrupt Prince, quite pathetic, no?"
She snorted. "Whatever you say, Blueblood. Just try to refrain from being so narcissistic around my crew, alright? I'll put up with it; they won't."
The exiled prince sighed, and poured himself a glass of Merlot. "As you wish, Captain."
As Spitfire left the quarters, Blueblood gazed back down at the map, one location catching his eyes- Canterlot.
It was true, the stallion was a spoilt, rich, snobbish, narcissistic arse, but he was a Prince; if one wanted to go anywhere in Canterlot, and they had no real royal support, they had to fight their way tooth and nail for their position. For years he fought off minor nobility and upstart business-mongers to retain his position as prince.
What was more frustrating was that even if he was the older brother, Cadence was the one auntie put in charge of the Crystal empire, Cadence was the one who ascended to Alicornhood...not her older brother Blueblood.
The exile sighed, and sipped at his Merlot. "Cadie, do you remember when I wanted to be a knight, and you wanted to be a princess like auntie...?" He sighed, discontented. "I do..." A half smile worked it's way onto his muzzle. "Still, you got what you wanted, and...I guess that's fine with me." He chuckled, dryly. "Dammit, Auntie, playing favorites as usual." He gazed at his now empty wine glass, and shrugged, refilling it; today would be a long day.
The Helmsmare leaned on her wheel, locked on it's current heading, now bored. She wanted nothing more than to fly far away from the ship, stretch her wings, and then fly back, but the Captain had forbidden it. "Oh great," a voice called, clearly annoyed. "First I have to transfer ships, now I have to share it with you?" Turning around, the Helmsmare came face to face with a prismatic maned, cyan pegasus mare, and she wasn't happy.
"Huh? Oh, hey." The Helmsmare replied, distracted by the sky ahead of them. She remained at her spot on the wheel, thinking of places she could fly to and visit. Her opal coat peeked out of her sailor's uniform, which was very similar to Spifire's minus Spitfire's officer's bars. She didn't, however, wear a flatcap, instead letting her amber mane flow freely.
"What, not even gonna make a comeback?" The prismatic mare goaded.
"Rainbow Dash, I couldn't care less. You're technically a Baroness, though both you and I couldn't give a crap. Me though? I'm just a Helmsmare. Go bother someone important."
Rainbow was about to retort when Spirfire called out. "Helmsmare Dust! Continue current heading, and have our engines brought up to all ahead full!"
Lightning Dust stood to attention, saluting. "Aye-aye captain! All ahead full!" She shoved forward a lever on the left of her ship's wheel which sent a message to the boiler room below the deck.
Down in the boiler room, two earth ponies in grimy clothing, once a pristine white but now permanently marred by coal dust and engine grease. "Oi, Smithy, we've got a message, clean off the bloody aperture!" One of the two shouted over the chugging steam engine.
The other stallion wiped off said message aperture, and called off the order. "Helmsmare wants us to go All Ahead Full, Crescent Wrench!"
"Wot? All ahead? We must be nearin' Hells Gate!" The two worked together, pulling levers and flipping switches, and the large steam engine roared, as it's coal intake was increased, causing the Pheonix to gain speed.
Above decks, the ship lurched forward, and then the other four did as well, powering their own engines to keep in formation with the Ashen Pheonix.
Meanwhile, Spitfire was standing with Rainbow and Lightning at the Ship's wheel. "Helmsmare Dust, is ensign Dash giving you trouble?"
"Not a one, Captain." Lightning replied, one hand on the wheel and the other adjusting her flight goggles that had previously hung around her neck.
Spitfire raised an eyebrow, then shrugged. "Very well Helmsmare, back to your post. Ensign Dash."
"Yes, ma'am?" The prismatic mare saluted.
"As you were freshly transferred and I have no position for you yet, you are free to do as you wish until I find you a job." Spitfire paused, giving the mare a stern look. "And remember, this is my ship. Just because you are a baroness doesn't mean you'll receive special treatment. Understood?"
"Crystal clear, ma'am."
Spitfire nodded. "Good." The captain then spun on her heel, and returned to her cabin.
Rainbow waited until she'd left, then turned to Lightning. "You didn't have to do that, you know."
"You didn't have to put up with me in the naval academy." Lightning retorted, grinning. "If I were you, I'd find a weapon; armory'a below decks, just go look for the Armory Sergeant; can't miss him, he's the only bug on the ship."
"Bug? What, like a changeling? And why do I need a weapon?"
"Yeah, like a changeling. And you need a gun because we'll be in sight of Hell's Gate within the hour. We're going to engage the Griffon fleet there."
"Got it." Rainbow nodded, turning to leave. "And...thanks."
"Don't mention it. Ever." The opal mare frowned, returning to her wheel.
The prismatic mare blinked, confused, then continued below decks towards the armory.
The armory was somewhat large, with all manner of weaponry in boxes or on the wall. "Woah." Rainbow muttered, hands on her hips. "Lotta guns."
"Aye," the armory sergeant grunted, smoking a pipe; he'd let her in. His name was Powder Keg, but most of the crew just called him Bug, since he was the ship's only changeling. "See anything that suits your fancy?"
Rainbow shook her head. "Not really, but I haven't had much use for a gun; I live in Ponyville."
"Ahh that's right, yer one of Grand Magus Sparkle's friends. How is she doing lately?"
Rainbow snorted, smiling. "Same old egghead, except now she has wings. She doesn't use them much though."
The sergeant shrugged. "Anyways, what are ya most familiar with?"
"Well, back when I was a weather mare they taught us how to use police weapons, since weatherponies are technically part of the police force, especially in Cloudsdale and Las Pegasus. Personally I prefer a pistol."
Bug nodded. "Fair enough. Let's see here, I've got a few models for you to get a feel of; a couple automatics and a couple revolvers. We'll try the revolvers first." He pulled one out of the box.
It was the same model Spitfire had holstered on her hip, and was made of glossy steel, with several brass plates, and what looked like brass internal mechanisms. "Colt Brothers Arms model 1878 handcannon. Chambered for forty-five dash seventy rifle cartridges, it packs a wallop. The barrel tends to warp due to prolonged firing, so I recommend swapping barrels every couple hundred rounds to let the old barrel cool. Other than that, a solid design."
Rainbow pondered it. "Maybe. Can I see the others first?"
"Certainly." He set the hand cannon aside, retrieving a large black metal revolver, with a cherry wood grip. It also had a massive center pin, and a large hammer to boot. "LeMat forty caliber revolver. Smaller caliber, but the center pin is hollow, and will load a sixteen gauge shot shell. Carries nine bullets, but it has a tendency to jam if the center pin is fired and the empty shot shell isn't cleared."
Rainbow shook her head. "That's a definite no. Nice looking gun, but it's way too bulky for me. I mean, I thought the colt was big, but sheesh."
"Fair enough. Alright, I also have two automatics you can look at- a colt and a Germane pistol."
"Show me the colt first." Bug nodded, and slipped the weapon out of a packing crate.
"Colt model nineteen eleven. Semi-automatic, seven round magazine plus one chambered round, it's chambered in forty-five automatic."
"And the Germane one?"
Bug grinned. "Oh yeah; scavenged this off a Kraut during the 1914 Civil War. Mauser C96. I took the liberty of shortening the barrel a bit, but it's still as bulky as the hand cannon you were looking at. Fires 7.62 short rifle rounds, and loads ten at a time; semi-automatic, and very reliable."
Rainbow took both the hand cannon and the C96 in her fingers, practicing drawing and firing with both. "You know, I kinda like the Mauser. Care if I take it?"
"Not at all, Ensign; That's why it's here. I have a bit of a hobby when it comes to modifying guns; you should see what I did to those Vickers 26's we scavenged back in the Minotaur lands."
"Sounds cool."
Bug grinned. "Oh yeah it is; rigged 'em with sights and side grips. Now, Anypony strong enough can carry the big things. Badda badda boom, you know?"
Rainbow chuckled. "Yeah, I know."
Finally, the five ship fleet spotted the Hell's Gate canyon. Flying over Hell's gate wasn't possible; Griffonic AA guns had been set up in the mountains, and besides that fact, the mountains were too high; ships simply couldn't keep airborne at those heights; the zeppelin balloons started bursting.
They couldn't go around, either; to one side was the grand mesas; passable, sure, but a massive, twisting, dangerous maze of red rock and box canyons. It was difficult to get through, and it wasn't possible to ascend over either. To the other side lay the Greater Gaian Sea, currently being bloodily fought over by the Equestrian and Griffonic Maritime Divisions. So, going through the canyon, which was only defended by a fleet of Griffon Frigates was their only choice.
The Griffons were hitting them hard. The Pheonix's deck was a loud rage of screaming crew ponies and heavy cannons, and shells from enemy ships slammed into the sides of the Ashen Pheonix. Here and there Equestian Sharpshooters, armed with powerful, tripod mounted Kestrel 700 sniper rifles fired their behemoth rifles, taking out crew members on opposing ships.
The Kestrel was a massive 700 Nitro Express firing, single shot rifle. It fired using a combination of Black Powder and pressurized Steam, and could penetrate heavily armored mechs at long range.
However, it's power was also it's drawback. Due to the massive round, the recoil was so great that it had to be tripod mounted, in order to avoid breaking somepony's arm.
In large numbers on the deck were heavy .303 caliber Vickers model 1926 machine guns, originally designed by the Crystal Empire for their motorized glider pilots. The Equestrians who fought alongside the Crystals during the Minotaur conflict adored the gun, and adopted it for use as a crew-served deck weapon, as another weapon to take down motorized gliders, aside from the more powerful but slower firing 30mm autocannons.
Not to mention the 46 heavy cannons on either side of the ship- it's main guns. All guns were firing, as gun smoke and black powder filled the sky, the occasional tracer seen through the black cloud of death.
All of the crews, used to the massive buildups of smoke and powder, had donned goggles and rebreathing apparatuses, so they could fight unhindered.
Off to the Pheonix's right, a Griffon ship went down, followed shortly by an Equestrian ship, their zeppelins flaming wrecks.
From her spot on the deck, Spitfire bit her Lip. 'Dammit Spitfire, don't lose your nerve, not now.' She looked through her spyglass to her left flank however, and saw another Equestrian ship falling out of the sky. "Helmsmare! Hard to Port! Full broadside of the Starboard guns into that damned frigate!"
"Aye-Aye Captain!" Lightning bellowed, spinning the wheel as quickly as it would spin. The Ashen Pheonix groaned, and turned to her port side. The cloud cleared momentarily, as the Pheonix's guns had quit firing, and the Griffon ship became visible.
Spitfire watched as the guns lined up, her breath catching in her throat. Time seemed to slow down, as she waited for the correct moment...
"Fire!" The Pheonix's 23 starboard guns roared and belched their cannonballs, which careened into the Griffonic frigate, crippling it.
"She's going down!" A deck Gunner called, as the Pheonix intensified its fire on the frigate. A cannonball struck the hull of the ship, and the ship exploded into flames.
"Yeah! We've struck 'er magazine Captain!" The Gunnery co-ordinator yelled, hi-fiving a fellow Gunner.
"Excellent work every pony! Storm Wind!"
The gun co-ordinator saluted. "Aye captain?"
"How is our ammunition store?"
"We still have three quarters of our cannonballs, and we haven't even touched out canister shot!" He called over the sounds of battle.
"Excellent! Helmsmare, hard to our-"
"Glider squadron! Fast and low!" One of the machine gunners called, swiveling his Vickers. "Tartarus there's tons of them!"
The Pheonix was being swarmed by motorized gliders; a Griffonic airborne carrier had arrived to save it's fleet, a large amount of motorized gliders on it's deck.
Now they'd joined the battle. Spitfire made a quick decision. "We can't hold off this many gliders! Retreat the Pheonix! Ensign Dash! Get below decks and get on the short range radio! Have Wire order a retreat!" Rainbow saluted, bolting across the deck and into the bowels of the ship.
"Incoming! Glider bomber!" One of the machine gunners called, as he swiveled his machine gun. His call, however, was too late, as a large bomb hit the deck and exploded, sending ponies flying.
Spitfire struggled to her feet, goggles cracked and uniform stained with blood from where she caught shrapnel. "Damage report!"
"We've lost one of our smokestacks!"
"Aft Brass armor is deteriorated!"
"Port an' Starboard too!"
"Bow Brass Armor's just gone!"
Spitfire swore under her breath like a sailor. "Alright! Continue retreat!"
"Aye-Aye ma'am!"
Rainbow struggled to her feet below decks, as she caught Bug carrying a wounded sailor over his shoulder. "Bug!" The changeling turned about, missing one of his fangs and with his shirt in tatters, as the bomb's shrapnel had hit his armory as well.
"What, Ensign?" He called.
"I need to get to the radio room!"
"Down the hall! Last door on your left!" He called, as he carried the sailor to the medical bay.
Rainbow rushed down the ruined corridor as gunfire shook the Pheonix, finally reaching the radio.
The radio was a magical conduit, powered by one unicorn, that could be used to transfer messages over the invisible magical Leylines that covered most of Gaia. Currently, it was being powered by a unicorn named Live Wire, who was known for being able to boost the signal massively, so as to reach out and signal the entire fleet with one transmission, which was why Spitfire had chosen him to be her radio operator.
"Hey, you Wire?" She yelled, the gunfire and cannon fire making it nearly impossible to hear.
"Ja, icht am herr Wire! Vas ist it?"
"Uhh, you understand me, right?"
"Ja! Ja sheissekopf!" He rolled his eyes, trying to make sense of the information he was receiving from other ships.
"Oh, good! Spitfire says to order a retreat! We're pulling out!"
He nodded, then began yelling into the radio. "Achtung! Luftwaffe Kompanie! Retreat! Macht Schnell!"
Rainbow assumed he was ordering a retreat, as she didn't understand Germane, and headed back towards the upper deck.
The fleet...well, the three remaining ships of the fleet, had retreated out of motorized glider range, and had set down so that the ships' captains could make a plan of action.
"I say we head back to Equestrian lines. No sense still trying to breach their lines... Not with that carrier there." Captain Thorn Bush put forth, a pipe between his lips.
"But if we head back," Spitfire asserted, "We'll catch them refueling."
"And lose our ships in the process. Captain, now is not the time to allow pride to cloud your decisions." Captain Arctic Wind replied derisively.
"Our orders," Spitfire reminded, "Were to clear a path for the ground forces arriving tonight. If we don't, they'll be demolished by the Griffonic fleet."
"No," Thorn growled. "I will not waste the lives of my crew."
"I agree." Arctic threw in. "We're returning to Equestria.
Spitfire snorted, returning to her ship. "Cowards! The lot of you!"
"At least we aren't so pretentious as to think we can take out a fleet!" Arctic called back, as the two returned to their ships.
Aboard the Pheonix, Spitfire gathered her crew together. Many were wounded, bandages covering various parts of their bodies. A few were even...dead, laying covered in the infirmary. They would be deeply missed.
Spitfire took a breath, and began to speak. "Everypony, the other ships will not be joining us, should we engage the Griffons. Thorn and Arctic have decided to return to Equestrian lines. If any of you wish to return with them, you may. I know my crew, I know of your valor and bravery, and... And if you wish to turn back, then tell me now. I will not, nor will I ever think less of you for doing so."
The downtrodden mare let that sink in, as the crew remained silent.
After a few minutes' pause, Bug stood up. "Oh what the hell, I'd rather die fighting than in some bed hacking my lungs up! I'm in Cap'n!"
The crew's voices began to carry their agreement across the ship, and for the first time in years, Spitfire felt like she could take on a fleet by her lonesome. "Alright then you wolves of the sky! Let's get airborne!"
Present
Hell's gate stood defiantly to the Pheonix's front, the remaining Griffonic ships- A carrier and three frigates, still in need of repairs, milling about the entrance.
Spitfire checked the clock in her cabin one last time, as she loaded her revolver -noon. The ground infantry would arrive in an hour's time. Taking her officer's sword off it's wall hanging, she strapped it to her waist and left her cabin.
Blueblood, now thoroughly drunk, grinned like an idiot as he loaded- somewhat drunkenly- his KriegWerfer cycling shotgun. A Krieg had twenty barrels, so as to not overheat due to the rapid rate of fire, and could fire two barrels of 16 gauge shot shells at a time, rotating much like a Gatling gun with every shot, though steam and excess gas from firing a shot propelled the barrels, rather than a hand crank.
Blueblood, having loaded his Krieg, made his way to the deck; no reason for him to sit idly by while a battle takes place, especially since he'd been too drunk off his flank to help in the previous battle.
Spitfire stood on the deck, arms crossed, as the Ashen Pheonix steamed towards the Griffonic ships. They were already beginning combat maneuvers, but the carrier hadn't launched any motorized gliders; they were still refueling them.
"Helmsmare, plot a course straight for that carrier! Gunnery Master! Prepare the lance!" The two saluted, and StormWind rushed below decks while Lightning spun the wheel until the Pheonix was on a collision course with the Griffonic carrier.
"Captain! What are you doing?!" Rainbow called, holding onto the railing.
"What's it look like, Ensign Dash?" Blueblood mused, cradling his shotgun in his arms. "We're about to ram it."
The carrier opened up with it's few 12lber deck guns, but they were ineffective against the Pheonix, and bounced off the brass plating. As she advanced, the front of the Pheonix's hull's brass armor slid apart, and a long brass rod extended out, a sharp point at the end- a ramming spike.
Before it could make any evasive maneuvers, the carrier was pole-axed by the spike, which caught the carrier's balloon, leaving a massive hole in it.
The carrier began to fall out of the sky, dragging the Pheonix with it. Both ships started losing altitude, groaning from the strain. Finally, rather uncomfortably close to the ground, the brass spike snapped off, and the Pheonix bounced back, turning skywards. Spitfire chose to use this to her advantage.
"Quickly, as fast as she'll still steam! We're ascending straight up!" Lightning gaped at the order. It was common knowledge that you had to ascend slowly, for fear of stalling out your engines.
"But captain, that'll-"
"Stall us, I know! Gunnery master! Load cannister, all guns! Wait until I give the order! Helmsmare, right between the three ships!" She turned to another unicorn. "Shield Breaker, get a gravity spell running!" The stallion saluted, immediately firing off a spell. The deck glowed, an suddenly every pony could stand right side up, as they let go of the ship pieces they were hanging on to.
The Pheonix roared upwards, straining, and pulled level with the three Griffonic ships, as it's engine stalled out. "Now! Fire!"
The forty-six cannons roared like beasts, each unloading a canister shot into one of the two ships to either side of the Pheonix. The massive shotgun-like ammunition tore through the ships, which fell out of the sky.
With no time to restart the engines, Spitfire called out another order over the now booming Griffonic cannons. "Quickly! Ready the grappling hooks! We'll board her!"
The smaller cannons that contained the grappling hooks were wheeled into position, aimed, and fired.
As the dug into the ship solidly, the crew slid across to the other ship, guns and blades ready. Screaming and roaring, the Pheonix crew began fighting with the griffons on their own ship, rifle pistol and shotgun blasts resounding out into the sky, as a cloud of smoke built up on the deck.
Here and there when the spotted a target, the Kestrel 700 crews fired their massive rifles, picking off Griffons.
Slowly but surely, the tide of battle shifted into the Equestrian's favor, and finally, the Griffonic captain relinquished his ship.
"Bloody hell," the Griffon sighed, as he spoke with Spitfire in his cabin; she'd allowed him his ship, on the condition he sailed it under truce flags straight to Canterlot, and as an honorable Griffon naval officer, he'd agreed, along with his still alive crew. Besides, if all Equestrian naval officers fought like the yellow demon in pony flesh, there was no way he wouldn't uphold the bargain. "You fight like a demon from Tartarus."
Spitfire chuckled. "I appreciate that, but I was lucky, nothing more. For a few minutes I truly believed we would go down with that carrier." The griffon nodded, chuckling.
"I had hoped that'd be the case; alas, you were the victor, not I." The two shook hands, and Spitfire exited his quarters, heading back to the deck.
Later that day
With the ground forces now deep into Griffonic territory, Spitfire's damaged and battered ship had been ordered back to the Canterlot shipyards for repairs.
Spitfire stood on her deck, enjoying the quiet of the night. Lightning locked the wheel, and walked over to join her. "Something on your mind, Captain?"
Spitfire left the Griffonic ship she was watching alone- the same ship that she'd accepted the surrender of earlier- and turned to Lightning Dust. "Nothing really, Helmsmare Dust. I was just pondering what would have happened if we had been aided by Thorn and Arctic. I doubt the outcome would have been that much different."
"Still," She continued, "It would have ended the battle sooner, and with less damage inflicted on my ship. I rather liked my ramming spike."
Lightning just chuckled. "If you say so ma'am." She paused, curious about a question that had bugged her since the battle ended. "So, what now?"
"Hmm? What do you mean, Lightning?"
"Well, what are we gonna do now? With the ground force marching through Hell's Gate Canyon, they're reach the capital rather quickly, and that'll be the end of the war. I dunno about you, but I don't intend on staying in the navy after that."
Spitfire pursed her lips. "I don't know, Lightning...I really don't know..."
[<-->]
"Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and othershave greatness thrust upon them."
-William Shakespeare.
