“Ready to jump, guys?” Scootaloo turned to her Cobra comrades as the engines of the plane roared. Spike looked at the mother of his child-to-be, worried, “Are you sure you’re okay to do this, Scoot? You’re about to pop.”

“I’ll be fine. Dash, is your jet ready?”

“I’m good to go.” Rainbow Dash re-checked her fuel gauge one last time, turned back to making sure she had her flamethrower, and pulled on her helmet. “You okay, Spike?”

“The guy in the corner…”

Scootaloo laughed, “Are the dead acting up again?’

“Yes.”

Scootaloo walked around the plane, checking on parachutes, weapons, and explosives. “Remember guys, we’re going after the V-2 rocket installations the Nazis have here. It’s likely we all won’t make it back alive. Twilight and Rarity, your job is to watch the rear. Fury, your job is to protect us from the skies. Spike and I will be on point. Fluttershy, you’ll be the meat in our sandwich. We’ll neutralize the rockets and, in case we’re separated, we’ll meet at the pick-up location in the forest, three miles south. We’re going to be about…...Fluttershy, damn it! Control your hornets!!!”

“You know I can’t help them!”

“Do something! Don’t let them sting Scoot!” Spike got in front of her and started swatting at the insects as Fluttershy held out her leg and got them to wrap up around it.

“As I was saying, we’re going to be parachuting about 1000 yards away from the reported location of the missiles. Dash, remember, you need to be low enough to see us and be able to report enemy locations but high enough they can’t see or hear you. Let us know on the com when it’s clear for us to jump.”

“Done and done, Scoot!” Dash adjusted her helmet before she signaled for the others to back away from the door.

“Be careful!” Dash nodded over to Fluttershy before she jumped. She descended about 200 feet before slowly turning on her jets to slow her momentum. “Scoot, I don’t see any Nazis within 50 yards of the landing point, so try to not to attract too much attention.”

“I understand, Dash. Alright guys, last check on chutes! Check each other out! I don’t want anypony falling out of the sky.” She walked around and gave each pony one strong final tug on their parachute to make sure they were secure before she fastened her own. The pilot turned to Scootaloo and yelled, “We’re approaching the landing area!”

Scootaloo gave a curt nod before throwing the side door open again and yelling over the roar of the chopper, “Alright, I want it in this order! Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, Spike, me! Try not to get caught in the trees! Don’t be seen! We’ll meet at the north edge of the forest! Use your maps to find the rendezvous point as marked!”

The plane flew over the middle of the forest, causing enough wind to blow a few leaves, not close enough to cause a complete storm. “Remember, no pony left behind! I won’t lose anypony out there!” The team nodded as Twilight and Rarity stepped up to the door. They nodded, Twilight used her camouflage to disappear, and Rarity got her parrot ready for flight. Once ready, they yelled, “1, 2, 3!” before jumping out.

Fluttershy and her swarm were up next. “Get out of here before they sting us all!” Spike complained.

“Alright Spike, I’m going!” She closed her eyes and took her leap.

Spike looked at Scootaloo. “Are you sure you can do this?!”

“I can’t sit out when the team needs a leader!”

“What if something happens to you?! Then the team won’t have a leader and I won’t have a child!”

“Spike, we don’t have time for this!”

“Scootaloo, for once in your life, think about something other than the mission! You can’t possibly be willing to risk your child, our child, when we have other members of the team perfectly capable of stepping up!”

“I can’t trust anyone else to lead us!”

“Because you never gave anyone a chance!! Not even me, the person you claim to trust most on the team, is allowed to even try to lead the team!”

“Because you’re too impulsive!”

“Says the pony ready to go into a battle zone, pregnant!”

“Spike, come on! We have to go!”

“No, I have to go! You’re staying on the plane!”

“Excuse me?! I don’t have to listen to you!”

“You’re carrying my child! I think I have the right to decide what’s best for their welfare!”

“You can’t control me! Now come on!” Scootaloo started for the door.

“Oh, hell no! You are not going!” Spike grabbed her chute. “Scoot, please! If you can’t do it for me, do it for the baby!”

“Let go!” Scootaloo pulled towards the door, dragging Spike with her. “I understand your concern, but it will be fine!”

“Scoot, I’m asking you, please don’t do this!” Spike pulled on her chute harder.

Scootaloo jerked back, “Spike, stop…AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

Scootaloo fell out of the plane with Spike holding on to her chute. She fumbled around for the cord that could save them both and pulled with all her might. The parachute burst from the pack and they started to float down. They were about two hundred feet from the ground when Scootaloo noticed, “We’re going too fast!! We’re gonna hit too hard!”

“I told you, Scoot!”

Scootaloo and Spike both clenched their eyes shut as they started to get hit in the face with branches before Scootaloo felt the straps break on the chute, launching her to the ground on her back. Suddenly, she felt pain worse than any other pain she’d ever felt.

Worse than being stabbed.

Worse than being shot.

Scootaloo knew then and there she was about to have a baby.

Spike woke up a few minutes later with a headache on the forest floor. Where am I? I was arguing with Scoot, then we fell out of the plane. Wait…...SCOOT! He stumbled to his feet and, after regaining his equilibrium, he started looking for Scootaloo. A few minutes later, he heard whimpers behind the tree. He poked his head around the tree to see Scootaloo whimpering with a hoof on her stomach. Immediately, he knew what had happened and rushed over to her.

Scootaloo looked up at him, “Let the team know…..I won’t be able to lead anymore…..Spike, you’re in charge.”

“No way. Fluttershy is in charge.” Spike stepped away and as he was letting the team know what was happening, Scootaloo saw two familiar shadows emerge, with two familiar faces, the faces of Celestia and Luna.

“You know we need you on the battlefield today, Scootaloo, with your team,” Luna said as she approached her.

“We’ll attend to the child after you deliver,” Celestia assured.

Spike came rushing back, but before he could say anything, Luna looked at him. “We need her to give birth as quickly as possible. She does have a mission.”

Spike opened his mouth to argue but closed it, knowing it was stupid to argue with them and pulled out his knife.

“I’m sorry, Scoot,” he whispered as he started from her collarbone, brought it down to her waist, looped it back up and stopped in the middle of her ribs. The entire time, Scootaloo was biting part of the parachute.

Spike reached down and picked up the pink, blood-covered baby. Celestia nodded to Spike as she took the baby, cleaned her off, and passed her over to Luna. All the while, Spike was stitching up Scootaloo’s torso. When she could finally stand, Celestia nodded curtly as a different plane dropped a rope ladder and the sisters grabbed on, Luna still holding the baby.

“Luna and I will attend to the child. You continue your mission.”

Scootaloo nodded to the two Philosophers before she pulled her side arm from its holster and nodded to Spike, who was gaping at her, “Are you kidding me? You just let them take the baby minutes after you gave birth?!”

“Keep your voice down! What choice did I have? They could have killed us!”

“Scoot, you know we’re never gonna see her again.”

Scootaloo stopped, “Yes, I know. But she could have a chance at a normal-”

“No, she won’t, Scoot! How blind can you possibly be?! They’re going to raise her to be a soldier! A killing machine! Is that really what you want?!”

“No, of course it isn’t!” She swung around to face him with hurt in her eyes. “Spike, you don’t understand what I’d give to be the nice family a few houses down. But you and I both know that is never gonna happen for us. That isn’t what’s in store for us. All that’s in store for us is this mission. Then the next. Then the one after that. We’ll never be normal.” She turned back around towards the mission site. “But we can hope she will be.”

Scootaloo started walking ahead of Spike again and it wasn’t long before he fell in behind her and they both walked to the rendezvous point in silence. They found Fluttershy, Twilight, and Rarity there waiting for them.

Rarity looked at them confused, “Where’s the baby?”

The look in the pair’s eyes said it all. Twilight looked at them sadly. “Celestia and Luna picked the baby up.”

Scootaloo nodded before she brought back the steel to her eyes, the one thing that made everyone want to follow her, because she always seemed so sure, “Alright, remember the plan?”

The entire team nodded, so Scootaloo ordered all rifles at the ready as she and Spike started up the hill.

“Remember, we’re going to stack the gas cans in the center of the four rockets, surround that with gunpowder, and once we’re at a safe distance, we’ll detonate the C-4 into the pile. If all else fails, I can shoot one of the cans. Is everyone ready?”

The team nodded once more, and Scootaloo nodded back. It was go time.

Author's Note

Boss/Joy-Scootaloo
Sorrow-Spike
Ocelot-Pinkie Pie
Pain-Fluttershy
Fear-Twilight
Fury-Rainbow Dash
End-Rarity
Philosophers (dudes who take Ocelot from Boss and Sorrow)-Celestia and Luna