And Ever We Fight On

Captain Spitfire was staring outside the window of her office towards the blue sky above. She had already been on three tours, which made the return home to Cloudsdale always special. On the front lines, the sky always looked brown or black from the constant smoke, but here, the sky was almost always blue.

“But that could change if the war comes here,” she thought. The Crystal Empire consisted of mostly earth ponies, except for Sombra and his thugs he calls generals and personnel, so what was stopping them from blowing Cloudsdale out of the sky? No, that'd happen over her dead body.

There was then a knock on her door. “Come in.” The door opened and a fellow pegasus with a sports jacket walked in. On instinct, Spitfire quickly saluted him. “Sir.”

“Come on captain, you know with me that's not necessary,” Wind Rider said.

“It's called military etiquette,” Spitfire said. She then grinned. “Plus you are my senior officer.”

“Wow, age jokes. Glad to see the war hasn't gotten rid of your sense of humor.”

“Please don't tell me you're about to ruin my vacation…” Spitfire groaned.

“That depends...I haven't heard anything but I wouldn't be surprised,” Wind Rider replied. “Enjoying the view as always?”

“I'm cherishing every moment I got. Alright, hit me with you got.”

Wind Rider then took out a map of Equestria and put it on her desk. “I've got bad news and more bad news. We just got word that Yakyakistan has fallen to the enemy.”

“You're shitting me.”

“I wish I was,” Wind Rider said, shrugging. “As far as we know, the yaks have retreated deep into the mountains and are waiting for winter to hit, hoping to get an advantage.”

Spitfire banged her desk with a hoof, spilling over her tea. “This is why we needed to be more upfront with the griffins and tell them to get their heads out of their asses! We could've flanked the enemy on all sides and now we've lost that opportunity.”

“And that's where it gets worse...the army that was headed towards Vanhoover is now heading back east, probably to regroup with Vayentha’s group near Neighagra Falls. They could be making a push towards Canterlot.”

“They in a hurry to finish this war?” Spitfire then narrowed her eyes. “...And you're saying I haven't been called back?”

“Like I said, I haven't heard. Bolts honor.”

“Not even Soarin or the others?”

“Like they'd be deployed without you.” Wind Rider then seemed to fidgit a bit. “Spitfire...can I get your input on something?”

“What's up?”

“You know I always respect the talent the Wonderbolts have and now is no exception.” Wind Rider paused for a moment as if hesitant to continue. “But with Rainbow Dash, it's only been four months since she's been with us and you've already made her a sergeant?”

“Sergeant Dash has earned her title in more ways than one,” Spitfire replied. “She's a gifted flyer and unfortunately she went through hell after she lost her wing. It's a miracle we found a replacement, more so that she's able to fly with it. Not to mention I was ready to kick Private Dust off the Wonderbolts completely but Dash urged me not to, promising to make her a better soldier.”

“And you're sure this is nothing personal between you two?”

“With all due respect sir, I think you can trust Spitfire's judgment.” A prism colored pegasus with a metal wing walked in, quickly saluting to her senior officer. “Ma'am.”

“Dash.” Spitfire smiled. “Glad to see your hearing is as good as ever. By the way, don't listen to this old codger here…”

Dash grinned. “If you say so ma'am.”

Wind Rider sighed. “My apologies sergeant. Can we help you with something?”

“Just got a message, from the Princess herself. We're heading to Canterlot apparently.”

Spitfire then glared at Wind Rider. “Hey I wasn't lying, this is news to me too,” he said.

“Well, if Celestia's calling us it must be important, and that only means one thing…” She sighed as she looked around her small but quiet office. “It was good while it lasted…” “Alright Dash, I'll notify the others and we'll be leaving in half an hour.

All together there were seven of them, flying the short distance to Canterlot. Minus Wind Rider, they were known as Alpha Team, consisting of Spitfire, Soarin, Fleetfoot, Rainbow Dash, Blaze, and Lightning Dust. The Wonderbolts used to be one group but due to the high number of recruits and the war itself, some of the members broke off and helped create additional teams. Rapidfire and Misty Fly headed Bravo and Delta Team, respectively.

“Man what a drag, I was going to visit my folks this afternoon considering its been two months since I've seen them,” Fleetfoot said.

“My dad and I were going to go to the annual Apple Pie festival in Appleloosa,” Soarin commented.

“I swear it's always pie with you,” Fleetfoot replied, rolling her eyes.

“Have you ever seen him eat one? It's adorable,” Dash said, nudging Soarin's side with a wink.

Blaze groaned. “Okay Dash, I get you and Soarin are happy and all but constantly reminding us is getting kind of old…”

“Yeah well it's getting kind of old always hearing you and Fleets moaning in the middle of the night,” Soarin replied.

“HEY!” Blaze and Fleetfoot both snapped.

“Alright we don't need to hear about what goes on after lights out,” Spitfire said. “Bunch of horn dogs you all are…”

“Don't even get me started Spits,” Fleetfoot said.

“You do and even Blaze won't be able to make you feel better for a few days.”

“What a lovely bunch we all are…” Wind Rider commented, shaking his head.

Once they descended outside the palace, the group made their way inside. Dash held back for a moment. “You know you've been rather quiet lately.”

Lightning Dust glanced at her and sighed. “I know...sorry.”

“You're not still upset about that are you?”

“When I first joined, I was some hot shot who thought I was better than everypony - even you. And despite that you still considered me a friend. Then Spitfire brought my flank back to earth and well...I'm really sorry Dash.”

Dash looked back at her metal wing for a moment. “Don't worry about it. What's done is done.”

Upon entering the palace, they were quickly escorted to one of the conference rooms. The guard then left, telling them that the others, including the Princess, would be joining them shortly.

“Others?” Spitfire asked. “Guess this is going to be a joint operation then.”

“If it's with Captain Shining Armor we'll never hear the end of it,” Wind Rider commented.

“Hey don't look at me,” Spitfire snapped. “It's not my fault the Wonderbolts and the Royal Guard don't always see eye to eye.”

The door then opened and two earth ponies walked inside. Dash recognized them immediately. “Pinkie? Maud? I thought you two were in Vanhoover?”

“Dash!? Wow, what a coincidence, we were just talking about you guys,” Pinkie said.

“We were informed to return to Canterlot immediately,” Maud explained. “It must be something big…”

“With you two, I don't doubt it,” Spitfire replied. Pinkie Pie and Maud Pie were not your average earth ponies. Their ability to smash through rock and even be able to dig large tunnels made them invaluable. “Well they did grow up on a rock farm,” Dash thought.

“It has been awhile since we last saw each other,” Pinkie said.

Dash chuckled. “Good times huh? That last battle showed me you guys were the real deal.”

Pinkie grinned. “And that's with rock... imagine what we could do to metal?”

“The armor the Crystal Empire uses consists of a metal that is both light and sturdy, for the sake of mobility,” Maud added. “But if you hit hard enough and fast enough, you can dent the armor pretty good.”

“Which can be very painful,” Pinkie said pleasantly.

“Very.”

“I'm glad they're on our side,” Fleetfoot muttered.

The door then opened again and this time Princess Celestia came in, accompanied by a unicorn nopony seemed to recognize. “Oh good, everypony is here,” she said as everyone bowed. “I apologize for the suddenness of all this, especially those who were on leave.”

“It's not a problem Princess,” Spitfire said. “But I'm guessing this has to do with Neighagra Falls?”

“I'm afraid so,” Celestia replied. “With the yaks temporarily out of the way, Sombra is pooling all his resources into striking against Canterlot swiftly and immediately. I'm not sure as to what Sombra’s strategy is, but it appears he wants to put an end of this war soon.”

“So it's true that it's merely a feint?” Wind Rider asked. “I can't see the yaks even considering the thought of surrendering.”

“A feint and an opportunity to regain their strength once winter comes,” Celestia said. “Until then, we are on our own for the next three months.”

“Three months!?” Pinkie cried. “There's no way we can hold out that long!”

“Not to mention if we want to corner the enemy we'd have to take a lot of territory before the yaks begin their assault,” Soarin added.

“And I'll have to try again with convincing the Griffin Council to get involved,” Celestia said, sighing in annoyance. “Make no mistake, Sombra will turn to the East eventually.”

“Actually...about that Princess,” Dash chimed in. “See, I have a friend named Gilda and she wants to fight but considering the circumstances…”

“You want to see if she can join our forces?” Celestia asked. “Hmm...I see no problem with that and I'll try to contact her. What say you Captain?”

“Heh, I always wanted to see how a griffin fights.”

“Now, on to why you're all here,” Celestia continued. “As mentioned before, the might of the Crystal Army approaches Canterlot, meaning we must throw everything we have against them. You are all considered the best that Equestria has to offer so what I'm tasking you all with will be very difficult.”

“Wow...best of the best…” Dust whispered.

“Captain, your air unit has given us advantages in the past,” Celestia stated. “The Pie sisters are skilled at stealth, while at the same time being able to flank the enemy from below ground. Together you maybe the driving force that could win this war for us. As of now, you are all now part of a new unit.”

“So... who's leading this unit?” Pinkie asked.

“That would be me.” The unicorn that accompanied Celestia spoke for the first time. “Princess Celestia believes that this unit should have representatives of all three races.”

“And...who are you?” Dash asked.

“This is Sunset Shimmer, a former student of mine,” Celestia explained. “Her skills will come in handy I can assure you.”

Sunset blushed slightly at the princess’ praise. “Our role may go unnoticed but it is of the most importance. The army will be focused on the enemy while we fight in the background.”

“Oh...like special ops... I'm down with that,” Dash said.

“When do we depart?” Maud asked.

“First thing tomorrow morning,” Celestia said. “Until then, I'll allow you all to get acquainted.” With a final nod, she then left the room.

It was then quiet for a moment. “So uh...nice to meet you all,” Sunset Shimmer said. “The Princess told me all about you guys...it's truly an honor to meet you all since you guys are practically heroes.”

“I'm pretty sure the hero bit is slightly exaggerated,” Spitfire said. “But yeah, we've worked together before so you won't have any issues with us.”

“Okay, but before we get into talking about ourselves I suggest we take this somewhere that involves food,” Fleetfoot suggested.

“Yeah...I'm starving,” Blaze complained.

“You guys go on ahead, I still have things to do here,” Wing Rider said.

“Well...I think I might know a good place,” Sunset stated.

As it turned out, Donut Joe's hadn't changed at all since the last time she went there. The donuts were just as good as well, but since Sunset decided to buy she figured a box of twelve would be enough. It then became two, but soon after Pinkie insisted on getting two more.

Sunset could only watch in slight horror as the Wonderbolts and two earth ponies slammed down four boxes of donuts. At least Maud was eating at a reasonable pace. “Uh...hungry I guess?” she asked. “I can't believe they're going to finish all of those…”

“You kidding, this may be the last time we get to pig out like this,” Spitfire said. “Neighponese buffet would've been good too.”

“Except they would probably kick us out...or probably just me,” Pinkie said with an innocent smile.

“Pinkie could eat all of these boxes by herself no problem,” Maud said. “No joke.”

“...Seriously?” Sunset asked.

“Yeah Pinkie has an abnormal appetite,” Dash replied. “But the better question is where does it all go?”

“...You calling me fat Dashie?” Pinkie asked, narrowing her eyes.

“Pftahahahaha seriously!? I was suggesting the opposite! I mean look at those thighs!”

“I know, rock breaking burns a lot of calories but believe me Maud certainly has more muscle than me!” Maud decided not to comment.

Sunset couldn't help but look at her new comrades in wonder. “Well, this certainly won't be a boring experience that's for sure.” But now that she thought about it, she suddenly felt a bit of dread.

“Am I truly ready to fight in a war?”