All's Fair in Love and War

The sound of a trumpet rang through the halls of bunker. Grey’s eyes cracked open. The sun shone in through the thin lines on the walls that were a pitiful excuse for windows. Their only real purpose was to let air in. She sighed and stared at the ceiling. It was plain and a vaguely beige color, just liked most of the bunker.

Standing up off the cot, she stretched her stiff joints and wings. She brushed the dirt off her fur, and viewed herself in the cracked and dulled mirror. She straightened her short blonde mane. Her orange-yellow eye had lost its glint long ago, and she stared expressionless at her own reflection.

With a quiet sigh, she donned her purple armor, straightening her askew eye patch. She cracked a small smile; she always liked the way she looked in the Royal Guard attire. But she moved on from her reflection, making extra sure to tuck away her necklace before exiting her room.

Grey walked down the halls, heading towards the dining hall. Everypony she passed by greeted her with a salute and a respectful, “General.” She returned their acknowledgements with a nod and whatever that particular pony’s rank was.

She reached the dining hall, getting a plateful of what they called “breakfast”. Chopped carrots, beans, and kale. Fantastic. She took her share and sat down at a table in a corner, alone, just like usual.

She took her time to observe the other Lunar Soldiers. They were in varying levels of armor, some fully covered, others choosing to eat slightly less encumbered. She could tell that each day was wearing them down more and more.  Being on the Day Battalion was much more difficult than fighting at night, and it was clearly taking its toll on them. She somewhat envied the bat ponies that got to battle with Luna under the night sky. However, she couldn’t complain much, she did choose this position after all. She thought it better to help the struggling Day Battalion to gain the upper hoof.

Thankfully, on this particular day, they were simply on guard duty. They were currently in a ceasefire with the Griffon Empire. So they could rest easy – for now. It won’t be long before the fighting commences once more.

After breakfast she went on with her tasks for the day. Normally she would be spending a good chunk of the day making battle plans or working on the schematics for new weapons. However, today, she could take the pleasure of doing much more simple tasks. Uniform check, doing PT with the rookies, and other such things that her subordinates would typically take care of. Heck, she even helped out with delivering letters. Although other ponies insisted that she not waste her time with something so mundane, she always loved to do it. It came naturally to her.

She was in a weapon storage unit organizing the recent delivery of supplies, when she overheard a conversation that two workers were having nearby. She enjoyed listening to the conversations of more average ponies. They were always somewhat more relaxed and pleasant than the ones she had with her peers.

“Did you hear what the search crew dragged in last night?”

“I’m assuming it’s another unknown causality.”

The stallion chuckled, “Nah. Wouldn’t be surprised, though. No, it’s some stallion that was found in the rubble of an old abandoned town. He calls himself ‘Doctor Whooves’ or something. “

Grey’s head swung around so fast that the force could’ve snapped a lesser ponies neck. She galloped down the isle where the stallion was talking with his friend. She leaned in uncomfortably close and frantically asked, “What did you just say?!”

The two ponies were startled and almost fell backwards at sudden interrogation, “W-what?”

“You heard me!” Grey put her hooves on the pony’s shoulders and shook him, her usually solemn eye filled with crazed emotion, “What were you just talking about?!”

The frightened stallion answered, “A pony was found in the wreckage of an old town!”

“What was his name, soldier? His name!”

“Doctor Whooves! I think, I-I don’t know for sure!”

Grey released her grip on the worker and took a step back, “Do you know where he is?”

“I don’t know. They said he was injured, so he might be in the hospital ward.”

Grey stared into the distance, her thoughts running wild, Is it true? No, it couldn’t possibly be. It must just be a stupid rumor, or a mistake in the name. It’ll probably just be another delusional, shell-shocked pony. Just like it always is.

She finally looked back at the two still trembling ponies. “Thank you. Please, uh, continue whatever you were doing.”

And with that she strode out of the room.