Chapters Chapter 0: Prologue
Goat Republic capital of Mosgoat, Ramsia. Two days after the attack on Canterlot and the Foal valley incident.
The echoes of Hooves clicking on tile floor echoed through the halls of Mosgoat's capital building. An graying, strudy build buck trotted with a folder firmly tucked under his left foreleg. He wore green army fatigues, as well as a leather belt with a holster hanging off of his barrel. His service pistol secured safely inside. On his shoulders was a single large star with the head of a goat emblazoned on it. A clear notation of his rank in the army.
The general walked up to a set of double doors as tall as the ceiling was high, and wide enough to fit five goats side by side comfortably. On either side of the double doors was a solder, both battle made sergeants, holding a bolt action rifle that rested against their shoulder as they stood vigilant guard ready to act if need be. When the general made it close enough both the other goats, a buck and a doe, quickly brought up their right forehooves in a salute to the approaching general. One the general reciprocated, dropping his forehoof, letting the other two goats do the same.
"I'm here to see the council on an urgent matter." The general spoke, to the two guards, to which the doe nodded and responded.
"They've been expecting you general, you may enter." She said before slinging her rifle on her back, the buck on the other side doing the same as they both took the door they stood besides and opened it for the general. Once the general had made it inside they both shut their respective doors, giving the General and the council their due privacy.
Before the general five more goats sat before him, three bucks, two does. Each one a leader in their respective side of government. Agriculture, economy, infrastructure, health, and state; these five goats were the head of the Goat Republic, though few new their faces or names, everyone knew what they did. Goats in lower rungs of government strived to be chosen as the secretive goats' successors. Even withing a few feet from the goats, the general didn't know their faces as they worked in the dark, separated from eachother in a means to keep them all safe from one another should something happen to any of them.
"We have heeded your summons General Rut," The head of state, a buck, spoke up first. "We have knowledge of the attacks on our neighbor Equestria, what we have problem understanding is why it is so important that we join them in their fight against the Griffons. We don't agree with their methods, but instigating the empire is not something we agree would be unwise what with our current engagements with the deer to the east."
The general held out five folders, five hooded figures, the head's assistants left the side of the their assigned governor, retrieving the folder from the general before returning it to their respective heads for them to examine. "Because of the sheer amount of bodies that the empire has set upon the ponies of Equestria. Our spies report that a good third of the empire's military is currently assigned to capture and occupy the equestrian state. Our last estimate of Equestrian military puts them at a third of that, with numbers decreasing by the day. They're untrained against the threat of firearms, their tactics as dreadfully outdated. To say the least, their chance of survival against the griffons are bleak at best, non -existent in reality."
"We understand their current position General, what we cannot fathom is the need for us to interfere with their fight. It's a loosing fight, and anyone with a brain knows it. Why condemn good goats to a useless fight? Even if we Gave them our reserves, that would only bolster their forces to half of what the griffons have already have deployed and entrenched in Equestria. Our forces aren't ready to face such an overwhelming and well prepared force." The head of economy, a doe, spoke, sounds of agreement coming from the other heads once her statement was through.
"But see, we do have a force that is ready for this kind of conflict, one that is poised and ready to face these odds, with a high chance of success so long as we do this right. And the best part, is that we'd only be sending in a Battalion's worth of soldiers into the field." The general spoke confidently as he set the five council members into a confused murmur.
The buck in charge of health spoke up next, "are you planning on deplying our bio weapons? They're designed for deer physiology, not griffon." The buck said, with a degree of confusion and know it all mentality.
General rut shook his head as he simply shrugged the buck's words. "My plan is to activate the G.O.A.T. battalion." He said, the room going quiet for a moment as the shock. "Are you mad? That battalion is experimental at best, and it's dreadfully underbucked! They'd be decimated within the week of deployment!" the state buck bellowed, his other council members agreeing with him.
"See that's the thing though, The G.O.A.T.'s are specially trained for this sort of situation. The Gurrilla operations and assault tactics group is made to fight overwhelming forces like those of the griffons in Equestria. And what better test of their metal than the front? They will be conducting the same operations they were trained for, within their ideal theater of operations. That with the supplementation of out military surplus to the Equestrian forces, we could turn the tide and gain a valuable ally in the process." The buck spoke, the council members conferring between themselves. Doubts still prevalent among the five goats at the council table.
The general sighed slightly as he called the room back to his attention with his commanding voice. "We are at the precipice of something great, or something horrible for the republic! If we side with the ponies, give them the aid they so desperately need we can help them take of the griffons and possibly even win! If we hold our aid, let the ponies fall to their demise, then we give the griffons one of the biggest states in our continent, and give them a prime staging area to attack us! then we'd have the deers and the griffons to contend with! We must act! We must offer aid to our neighbor in their hour of need, so that they can do the same for us. If we do this, we could employ Equestrian ponies to help us in our plight against the deers! Think of it! The great Equestrian republic would be a force to be reckoned with, no one would dare bother us then! We need this as much as the Equestrians do!"
The council sat still and quiet for the longest time. At first it seemed to the general they were going to deny him, but after a few shared looks, the council members all nodded in agreement. A paper was passed among the five council members before brought back to the general. He took the paper and smiled, it was an order to deploy units into equestria, with all five seals emblazoned on the paper. "You won't regret this." He said confidently.
"See that it doesn't." The head of state spoke before dismissing the general to plan out his attack.
_____
Three days after the attack on Canterlot and the Foal Valley incident
Four goats walked through the dark of the night through the Foal Valley. They walked silently parallel to the train tracks, but not on them, instead skimming the walls of the valley, an odd whistle or two hear from time to time coming from the lead goat on either group, signaling the other that they were still in the clear. It was slow going, but the goats were patient, methodical in their movements. It wasn't until they found the decimated blockade that they switched tactics. Two quick sharp whistles and the four goats convened at the open gate.
The four goats were in full kit, with satchels, bandoleers, and weapons. One carried just a pistol in his holster, a doe carried a sniper rifle, another doe carried a heavy machine gun on her back, the last buck held a small sub machine gun. The one with the pistol had a cross emblazoned on his satchels.
"Good Faust it stinks around here," The one with the SMG whined as he waved his hoof in front of his face.
"Can it Derek," the doe with the sniper rifle on her back chastised as she inspected the area in front of the door. "No traps, lets get moving."
"Yeah, Faust forbid Derek has to stand in this any longer for his poor nose," the doe with the heavy gun giggled as she followed the first doe into the gate.
"You can it too Felicia, we don't need to alert any lingering enemy combatants." the doe called out again as the four made it through the gate. The scene hey found was that of slaughter, pony bodies were scattered about, their once vibrant coats dull from the grim they lay in and the beginnings of decay. Along with the Ponies there was a few griffon bodies, though the griffons all had missing limbs of some sort. Single shot rifles lay scattered with the griffon bodies. The four goats all looked at the carnage, the buck with the SMG, gagged every now and then.
"Split up and search."
The other three goats agreed with the doe and began their search of the ramparts and battlements. "No firearms on the pony side, Gun shot wounds galore, this was a one sided fight." The goat with the pistol called out from his spot on top of the battlements.
"I don't know about one sided Cullen, looks like there was a big explosion here, took out a few of the griffons, someone did a real number on them." Felicia responded as she examined the blast area. "Whoever did this knew their way around blasting gel."
"Noted Felicia, though I hate to say that whoever planted all that blasting gel." She crouched down looking at the yellow mare next to the explosive plunger closely. "Is dead." She touched the pony's shoulder, patting it softly. She turned to adress her squad, and that's all it took.
There was a flash of gold in her peripheral, she had let her guard down and now it cost her as a hoof caught her straight in the jaw and sent her tumbling to the side. Before she knew it, there was a knife to her throat, and a wheezing pony staring her in the eyes with fierce look. If it wasn't for the three guns now pointed at the mare, she might have been scared for her life. "Easy now filly, we're here to help." She held her hooves up. Though with a quick hand signal, the butt of an SMG met with the mare's head, knocking her out. The knife clattering uselessly to the ground. The doe quickly recovering to her hooves as she looked at the yellow mare. "Well I'll be darned..." She said checking the mare out along side her medic Cullen.
"We got a live one."
Author's Note
And here we go, the start of the Crimson wars! I hope you all enjoy!
There's more to come for sure. When is debatable, but it is coming.
As always to my readers, any friendly, constructive criticism is appreciated.
Chapter 1: Canterlot
"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!"
The Sergeant called out to the two princess as screams of ponies and gunshots began to filter in through the open window. Luna was the first to act of the two princess. Calling up her halberd to her side, and floating over Twilight's katana to her's. The light weapon being picked up in her own magical grasp once she noticed it's presence. Though she didn't take it out of it's sheath, instead she turned to the elder princess who met her with a steely gaze.
"The time for doubt and hesitance is gone Twilight Sparkle. The time for action and arms is now! Get thy head straight or have it on thy enemy's pike!" The princess flared her wings, with a menacing stance as she turned to the sergeant, "Scramble the fliers, assign unicorn to protect the civilians, earth ponies with us, to the front!" True sight saluted and galloped off to issue out the princess' order.
Twilight was struck dumb, her weapon of choice clicked in her uneasy in her magical grasp. She stared at the device that she'd been trained to use in the past weeks for this very reason, in case the capital was threatened by griffon attack. But she was scared, doubtful of her own prowess with the weapon, worried about letting her ponies down, but most of all, afraid of having to kill. Her jaw worked uselessly as she tried to think of an excuse, a way out of the fight, but the princess of the night loomed over her instead. The stare she gave made her shrink.
"To arms Princess Twilight Sparkle... Your life is not your own any longer, you live or die for you ponies, as my sister once did, you must do as well." She said flapping her majestic wings right before she headed out the window Derpy had flown in through moments ago. Leaving the princess of friendship by her lonesome. Though not for long, her friends came to the door of the war room, all with concerned, fearful looks on their faces. The princess looked up at them for a moment then back at her shaking katana. She firmed her gaze on it, the clicking stopped as her magical hold stabilized.
"For my ponies.." She whispered as she drew her blade, looking up at her two remaining friends, and their adoptive sister. "Fine somewhere safe to hide.." She said trotting over to the window as the three nodded and headed for the inner sanctum of castle.
"For my ponies." She spoke louder as she flared her own wings. "FOR MY PONIES!" She cried out before flying out the window and towards the battle that now raged bellow. Griffons flew about Canterlot airspace in pairs, carrying metal pikes that they pointed from their shoulders. She was confused with the practice, until she noticed a pair of griffons, one was pushing a rod into his pike while the other had his to his shoulder. She was honestly wondering what they were doing until she heard cannon fire erupt from the device. A pony a few yards away, an older unicorn mare fell to the ground, a hole now in her chest. It made the princess gasp loudly, something that the keen griffons noticed, they pointed at the princess and few to meet her, the one that had shot fell back slightly, pulling out a rod an some other materials that he began to stuff down his barrel while the other took aim at the princess.
It took Twilight a second to realize what was going on, she quickly put up a shield, right before the hand cannon erupted its shot! When the projectile hit her shield it made her gasp. The projectile was small, smaller than one of her teeth, and yet the pressure and precision of the single projectile was enough to strain the limits of her shield, almost popping it. It took her back, made the gears in her mind turn, but before she could really think on it, the first griffon was already back and taking aim at her again. This time she evaded the shot, but it still clipped her shield. Her head thrummed with pain as her shield popped, sending a magical backlash to her horn. One that almost made her lose the grip on her sword. Almost.
The griffon hooted in victory as he went about reloading his cannon, while the other griffon took aim again. Twilight could see the grin of malice on his face as he prepared to fire at her. Twilight acted fast, enveloping the weapon in her magical grasp, ripping it out of the now stunned griffon's grasp. She grit her teeth as she turned the weapon on the griffon himself and squeezed the weapon with all her might, feeling the trigger click under her magical grip. She shrieked, not expecting the recoil that now send the rifle flying out of her grasp, but not before she fitted the griffon with a new hole in his chest. It was a mortal wound, but not immediately deadly.
The griffon grasped as his chest, his companion halting his reload to check on his comrade. The griffon grasped at the other's face, splashing it with blood, giving the griffon a kiss on the beak before falling limp in the other's grasp. The male griffon shook visibly as he had to let the body of his comrade and lover fall to the ground dead. Tears in his eyes as he turned to the princess. "DEATH TO THE BITCH PRINCESS'!" he called out in equine right before charging at Twilight.
Twilight looked wide eyed at the charging griffon, unsure of what to do, until he was right on her. She drew her sword and blocked the incoming bayonet at the end of the griffon's cannon. She did this a few times, deflecting blow after blow from the enraged griffon until he had enough. He pulled back just enough to bring his rifle to bear. Twilight barely managed to grab the tip of the barrel in her magic to push the aim off. There was a ringing in her ears soon after the cannon went off right next to her face, a sharp pain the side of her neck, she could feel her warm life blood drip from the new wound.
The griffon still enraged, pulled his weapon out of the princess magical grasp right before charging her again. The princess was ready for him this time however as she brought her sword up to bare, simply holding it out in front of her. The griffon didn't have the time to react at this close of a range, her fell on her sword. It pierced his belly, making the bird cough, tasting his own blood as he looked at the princess. Manic eyes stared at Twilight right before a clawed hand came upand raked her face. Twilight cried out loosing the grip of her sword as she clutched the side of her face raked by the griffon's claws. half her vision turning red as blood washed over her eye.
The extent of her actions not hitting her until she stared at the two dead griffons laying on the steps of Canterlot castle. She shook, a wave of nausea coming over her causing her to loose her lunch. She was given no repose to gather herself as four more griffons came at her. Twilight was scared now, two were hard enough, now she faced four, her options were limited in her mind. Most of them included death. But there was one option, one thing that could save her flank.
Twilight had only read magical theory behind this particular school of magic, but she had no practice on it. Not to mention the listed side effects of using this magic were numerous, to include breaking of the mind. But with her options thin, and this being the only one where she came out alive, she decided it was what she had to do.
Twilight dabbed her hoof in her own blood and splashed it on her horn and focused on it, infusing her horn with the warm liquid. "FOR MY PONIES! " Her battle cry rang out as she began to cast her spell. The effects were almost immediate. She growled as she felt the new power give her courage like no other.
She quickly drew her sword from the corpse of the griffon she had just felled holding it up in her fighting stance she had practiced so many times in the past week. She charged at the griffons this time. Her eyes the size of pinpricks as she fell into the fury of battle. Harnessing her own rage to fuel her actions, barbaric thoughts flowing through her mind as her vision turned completely red at the sight of the griffons as she pumped pure magic into her veins and muscles to amplify them. Giving herself to the berserk school of magic.
__Three hours later__
Canterlot sat in ruin, fires blazing anrazing half the city, griffons still dominated much of the city, even with fewer numbers at the start, they quickly overcame the Royal Guard with their unique weapons. The only reason that the Royal Guard still held any ammount of the city was thanks to their sheer numbers and adaptive strategies. Turning to ranged magic and archery to take down their opponents, the only one who braved enough to face the front was a certain purple alicorn. Her barbaric guttural cries could be hear from the pony line, all they saw was a streak of red and purple flaying griffons left and right in a spurt of energy before the being known as their princess returned. Gasping for breath as she felt her magic reserves dwindling, she was doused in blood, it was griffon blood, mixed in with a bit of hers, gashes and grazing shots littered her once pristine coat. As she stood behind the defences that were hastly made at the stairs of Canterlot castle.
"Mana potion!" she called out to the medic who had been busy tending to an injured pony. The pale green pegasus with a yellow mane turned to her princess and shook her head, "all out princess!" She called out, right before she saw the flash of purple tackle her to the ground. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'ALL OUT?' I NEED MORE!" The pegasus whimpered under the bloodshot gaze of her princess, her jaw working to form a response. Twilight grew impatient and raised a hoof to strike the pegasus, but her hoof was stopped at it's apex by a midnight blue aura. "
"TWILIGHT! STOP!"
Twilight turned to the source, finding a very worn out Luna giving her stern, but worried gaze. Twilight returned her gaze for the longest time, looking like she was about to strike Luna, but she shook her head, her eyes returning to normal, as she shook her head, turning to look at all the scared guardsponies that could only stare at the manic princess. Twilight got off the pegasus and hid herself away inside of the castle halls. Luna quickly followed.
Twilight sat among the dead ponies hidden inside castle's doors. She was crying heavily, both at what she did to the griffons as much as it was what she was about to do to her own. "What have I done Luna?" she whimpered as she turned to the older princess.
Luna moved to Twilight an enveloped her in her wing. "Thou hath done what thou thought was right Twilight, and with it have defended the lives of many of our ponies." She said trying to comfort her.
Twilight looked up at the princess with eyes red from crying, "I almost hit one of our ponies Luna, ME, hit a PONY!" She said, rage filling her voice. Her vision washed with red, but she quickly reigned in her emotions, shaking the red out of her vision. "Was it truly worth it? Even now as we lose the city to those winged bastards?" She spoke with spite for the griffons.
"Thou have singlehoofedly taken down a quarter of the attacking force. Even if we lose this battle today, thou have done significant damage to their overall military strength. Be proud of thy small victory today, we can deal with the consequences another time."
Twilight looked up at the princess and nodded solemnly. It was at that time that True Sight came upon the two princess, gasping for breath and with a fearful look in his eyes. "Your highness, we have trouble! Scouts have spotted reinforcements to the east and quickly approaching!" This brought the attention of both princess' to the sergeant, Twilight was the first to face his guard. "How many?" She asked simply. "Another two companies at least, one of them armed with hand cannons!" The color emptied out of Twilights face, their guard had been hard fighting the griffons for over three hours now, and have only managed to take down half of the original unit of cannoneers, and here came another fresh bath of griffons to battle their tired ponies. Twilight turned to Luna for guidance, to which the elder princess could only figure one possible plan to save her ponies. "Tell all surviving guardsponies to make a full retreat towards ponyville...." Both ponies looked to Luna with shocked expressions, not wanting to admit what they all knew.
"Canterlot... is... Lost .."
Author's Note
The first major defeat in the war, the home of the princess sisters is lost. They're forced to flee to ponyville and to friendship castle. The griffons hot on their heels, what will happen to our princess' and their forces?
Hope you all enjoyed, please feel free to give out an friendly criticism.
Also, I just realized I never quite explained what happened to Pinkie Pie in the crimson plague. I aim to rectify this the next time I get a chance to write. Till then my peoples!
Am I dead? [Not a real Chapter.]
Not in that me the person behind the keyboard is dead. More in the... uh... non-literal sense. [My brain is taking a short vacation so excuse me for that.]
Its pretty apparent to anyone who has read my stories or has followed me for any amount of time that I have been pretty much stuck and not progressing my writing. I have a few reasons for it life wise, but also due to lack of ideas on where to progress my story. I have sat down to think about what to do next from time to time, but I come up short and/or life gets in my way. A sort of vicious cycle that has lead my stories more or less forgotten.
Do I want to keep writing? Without a doubt.
Do I know how to do that? Not at all.
Will I finish this story? Probably not.
Let me explain.
I've debated putting this story on hiatus because of this reason once or twice, but feel that I'd be letting people who actually are still around and want to see what comes of it.... All 11 of you.... Maybe it's just me and I don't want it to die really for selfish reasons. [Like leaving a puzzle half done cuz it was too hard for my brain-muscles] But I really do need to come to terms with the reality that I'd be writing it more for me than anyone else. Less because I want to and more because I feel I have to. [Because feeling you need to do something really gets the inspiration following like a mud pie up gravel.]
Honestly I don't know why I bothered with this post, it's not like I have a cult following of a good chunk of people. Guess it helps to tell anyone about it.
Anyways, I think I will put Crimson war on hiatus. If enough people show honest Interest. I might continue it, but not likely, just don't know what to do, and I know pushing myself to write something will make it come out badly. But If anyone wants to take the idea off my hands, you're free to it so long as you show me some love and let me know about it.
Author's Note
Boop to boop
