There was nothing Dash could do to stem the flow of tears flowing down her face. Her wounds hurt, but nowhere near as much as watching her birthplace and home being torn apart and razed to the ground before her eyes. She had been walking aimlessly down a track for the last few hours, stumbling in a disbelieving daze towards Celestia knew where... Her hooves dragged across the dirt path, not bothering to lift them all the way up as she stepped further and further from the battlefield, staring into the middle distance as she walked. She was only seeing what was in her mind, and not what her eyes saw.

Equestria had become an extremely dangerous place... The only settlement that Dash knew hadn't fallen in this area was of course Canterlot, everywhere else was inhabited by Griffon warriors and wasn't exactly welcoming to ponies anymore. The pegasus had no idea where to go... Now that Cloudsdale didn't even exist anymore, where would her fellow Pegasi live? Canterlot was the only real option, but they were already overflowing with refugees and wouldn't be too accommodating for the Pegasi... There were reasons for them choosing to live high in the skies, far from the other kinds.

"Well what do we have here..." A voice came from infront "That's Equestrian armour, and she's got wings~"

"Heh..." Another grinned "Looks shellshocked... Must've fallen from that sky place and broken a wing"

"What a coincidence. We're here talking about how boring this is and here comes a little mare to play with.."

Dash blinked, the voices snapping her out of her daydream, looking up to see armoured Griffons at the side of the road, next to an overturned cart and a horribly mutilated stallion trader.

"Here, here, pony, come get the carrot" He chuckled, beckoning her towards him "Theres a goooood girl~"

She sighed, shaking her head and continuing to walk "I'm not in the fucking mood" She surprised even herself, she thought she'd want to cut every last feather from his body, but she wasn't as mad as she thought she was... at the Griffons at least.

The two stood in a stunned silence, watching the mare walking past before snapping back into action "You don't get a choice, bitch!" He called, stepping onto the track to block her path.

Dash took a deep breath before looking between the two "I have had a very long day, and I would appreciate it if I could have just one Griffon offer me a drink, not just the end of their sword"

He smirked "You're saying you wanna have a drink with us?" he looked to his partner and chuckled "What do you like?"

She raised an eyebrow at him "Does that stallion have any cider?" She looked from the guards to the cart "I could use a fucking drink..."

The two looked between each other again before sitting down on some stumps and nodding "Yeah, though it's cheap rubbish..."

She removed her helmet and placed it down next to where she sat, taking a bottle from the Griffon and nodding "It'll do" She wasn't scared by the griffons. She was confident she'd beat them in combat, and knew she could fly quicker than the pair anyway. "So... You both look young, what're you doing here?"

"Almost as young as you" One quipped, staring at her with his cold eyes "It's mandatory for all male griffons over the age of 16 to join up at a time of war. We're reservists so we defend the already conquered areas"

"Don't tell her too much... She could be like, a spy..." The other muttered, looking at him, before silencing himself.

"I'm no spy" She chuckled "Commander Rainbow Dash" She grinned.

He sighed "You do realise now you've told us that, we're obliged to kill you"

"You were obliged to kill me because of my species, but you didn't. That was interesting on its own... But if you don't kill me now I really will be intrigued"

The Griffon gritted his beak and lunged for the mare, using a pump of his wings to get extra speed towards Dash.

Rainbow had been expecting it, however, and was quicker. She smashed her bottle on the stump and used the Griffons momentum to drive it deep into his throat, pushing his body with her hooves past the mare and sighing. "What a waste of cider..."

The second shakily got to his claws, drawing his sword and looking at Dash, his legs and grip quivering.

"We both know how that'll end" Dash muttered "And I'm so tired of all the killing... So I urge you to place your sword on the ground, get me a new bottle of cider, and fly away. Please"

The Griffon looked from Dash to his dead friend, gulping and dropping his sword "T-they'll kill me if I go back..."

Dash rolled her eyes, kicking her helmet to the Griffon "Tell 'em it was me" She grumbled, going to the crate of cider and stuffing two bottles into her armour, taking another and opening it "Kill ya later" She chuckled, walking along the dirt track and drinking.

Dash continued her long walk, finally running into some ponies and allowing herself a small smile, by this point all of her ciders had been drunk and she was feeling the effects. It was a small group of five unicorns, all armour clad. "Good evening" Dash chuckled.

They quickly turned, swords raised "State your name and rank! Quickly!" A large stallion growled, spear pressing against Dash's neck.

She raised an eyebrow "Do I look like a Griffon, Colonel?" She growled, slapping the spear away "What are you guys doing here anyway? The warmth of Celestia's breast is the other way, in Canterlot"

"Do as your told, and quickly mare" another spat "Did you find that armour and think your important?" The group snickered.

Dash frowned. She didnt know what the hell was going on. The first unicorns she'd seen for a month were getting rude. "Listen to me, and listen carefully. I dont know who the fuck you are, but those stripes on your armour suggests you're a nobody. And the fact that your armour looks untouched, you're either extremely good, which I doubt, or youve not actually been in a fight. Which is it?"

"I've been in more fights than you, little mare" He huffed, squaring up to her.

She rolled her eyes at his aggressiveness "Do you know who I am?"

"Some little bitch that stole armour?"

"Commander Rainbow Dash of the Royal Air Force unit of the Equestria Royal Defence Force. Youngest winner of the Iron Hoof, Golden Wing and Lunar Moon. Who the FUCK are you?

He looked a little taken aback, but held his aggressive tone "So? Thats a Pegasi rank... You're basically a unicorn recruit" He chuckled.

Dash had had enough. It'd been a bad day, and she'd had a drink or four. She drove her dagger into his knee, growling "Now you listen here, colt. Where I'm from, we show our leaders respect, and fight with pride. Obviously you horny cunts don't have the same discipline. Just because I have wings on my back and you a horn on your head does not mean I don't outrank you"

"O-oh Celestia!" He cried, reaching down to hold his wound.

"Now. I'm going to let you live in exchange for information, understood?"

"Fuck you, featherbrain!"

Dash grumbled to herself quietly, before twisting the dagger in his knee "I'll ask again. Your life for information?"

"F-Fine! Stop!"

"Good boy" she grins "Now. Where have the Pegasi gone? How do I get to my army?"

He grit his teeth "Canterlot Rock... Word is they're meeting up there"

"There we go!" She smiled, withdrawing her knife and wiping it on the coat of the stallion. "That wasn't too hard, was it? See you around" She laughed, trotting for a bit before taking flight towards the capital.

Author's Note

Thanks for reading!