Equestria's Supreme Commander

A week has passed since Luna and I had gone to that volcano, only to find the Seraphim ACU missing. Because of that, I had every single base I had direct control over pump out transports and trucks so as to work as evacuation vehicles, and every major city had SAM defenses and artillery, coupled with point defense, while any major port cities-or cities like Manehattan- had torpedo defenses as well.

Luna, myself, Chrysalis, and Cadence were in the Canterlot castle war room, a map of Equestria laid out on a table in front of each of us. "So, given this is Celestia," I said, "we know that she knows what areas would cripple Equestria's response to an attack. She may go after those."

"Unless she knows we'd think that," Chrysalis shot back. "Your first order after getting any major cities defended was to put heavy guard for areas like the research sites that are working on new unit schematics for us. If your description of those Seraphim units are true," she pointed out, "Celestia may just decide to send that Experimental bomber to nuke everything!"

"That's why I had shield generators built," I replied. "It can't drop a second payload before they recharge, and the shields take everything they're given, even if they only have one percent, and why I built multiple air staging facilities nowhere near those areas, and filled those ares with ASF and SAMs that are spread out."

"Still, it would be best to make those priority targets should they show up," Luna said. She turned to me. "Have you had any luck finding their main camp?"

I shook my head. "They're using invisibility spells, most likely, and I don't have infinite energy for enough tier three Omnis to cover the entire planet, and the stealth field generators that counter magic are to impractical for the same reason coupled with their low range, relatively speaking," I said.

"So we have to wait fer them to attack?" Cadence asked.

"Now, who ever said that, 'cause I didn't," I said. "Just because I don't know where they are specifically doesn't mean I can't make a guess." I then used my implants to have a constructor drone from outside project holograms of the Seraphim units on the table in front of us. "The Seraphim units may be powerful, but only the Cybrans have mobile stealth units. Namely the Deciever and Mole scout unit, along with the Spy plane. As such, and assuming Celestia knows this, she most likely has her base somewhere where none or few would notice large tracks in the ground, or where there are no known creatures capable of doing that, which rules out the heart area of Equestria and the north, leaving the southern portion of the continent, for the most part."

"I still don't see how that helps," Chrysalis muttered.

"Simple. Population density," I replied as I brought up a map of Equestria. "The south is as populated as everywhere else number wise, but density wise, not so much. There are more small town and frontier settlements there. Less density means groups are much more spread out. For the entire week, Specter, Ace, and Twi-who is in disguise- has been asking around down there. With the large area, that's better chances betwene towns."

"So look where there's low density?" Luna asked.

"That is one possibility, yes," I replied.

"But Celestia would know this," Chrysalis said as her train of thought hooked with mine. "So she's somewhere far enough away to not get sighted easily, but close enough we wouldn't suspect to a town or something. That is, of course, assuming, she didn't think of us thinking that, which would lead to circular logic."

"And that brings me to the second piece of narrowing evidence," I said. "In orbit, I have a few satellites-originally meant for orbital bombardment- but I've been able to use their lenses to scan for magical signatures. Have been since I got Fort Washington online. As a result, I have this image, showing little magical signature in the south." As I said this, an image of the continent appeared and overlapped with the one already there, most of the south being colored blue due to the high amount of Earth pony magic there. "A week ago, however, it changed to this." Another image, this one having hints of red to indicate unicorn magic. "I doubt highly this would happen in a week. And the areas fits with both of the area criteria I mentioned."

"Then what are we waiting for?!" Chrysalis yelled. "We need to get out there, and make sure that bitch can't do anything!"

"You don't think I tried that when I noticed this before I called this meeting, Chrysalis?" I retorted, arms crossed. "I sent a single tech one transport with a Mole, a Mantis assault bot, two mobile anti-air batteries, and two hunter bots. This is what happened." With that, I changed the projection to show the recorded footage.

It started from the view point of one of the attack drones as the six units were released form the transport. Soon as they landed, the Mole went out from the group, only to be hit by an orb of energy colored white, followed by what I recognized to be the unit that, to be honest, scared me when I first saw it in the starting cutscene of Forged Alliance.

The Ythotha.

Oddly, it did not fire, not at first, on the rest. Instead, it played a message. "Demon, if you are hearing this, which I'm certain you are," the recorded voice of Celestia said, "know that no matter what you do, no matter how many or who you corrupt, I and the faithful who follow me and the Way will fight against you, and we will prevail." At this point in the recording, multiple Seraphim model ACUs showed up in the view. "You have one more week to surrender. If not, then Equestria, and the Heretics within it, will burn by the cleansing fire of the Ahwassas." To both prove her point and destroy my units there, a single bomber came into view before quickly overshadowing my units, the anti-air units firing on it to no avail, as it dropped its payload, and only static was seen.

"Well," Chrysalis said after a tense minute of silence. "Looks like we're fucked."