On a cold winter night...
Tales of Equis presents:
A Cold War.
By TheImperialBrony.
This sucks.
You want to know what sucks? Being out here in the freezing cold while watching for some brave, or nut-headed, Equestrian solider to come running across the blackened and frozen landscape that was once a peaceful field.
First Private Silver Sword of the 133rd army of the IPE, at your service. We've been at war with the Equestrians since...oh gods what was it...two, three years ago? Yea, two years ago, when they attempted to reclaim their lost northern semi-autonomous vassals that was the IPE.
You may not know what I'm very well talking about do you? Well lets be brief; basically at the start there were 13 cities or states that made up Equestrias' North and Northwest part, other than Vanhoover. They weren't part of the nation itself but as just small vassal countries, with a little more freedom than most regular vassal styles. Then came our first king who was power hungry like the daemons of Tartarus themselves. Obviously, Equestria didn't take kindly to the new kings' mass conquest of the states and went to war, even though the king himself rallied practically all of the states to his banner. It lasted what? Five, Six years?
Sorry, I'm not very good with memory.
Anyway, some time before the war officially ended, rebellions sprung up in the NAE. Which is what the king came to call the new nation, New Arthrenian Empire, named after their capital state and city; Arthrenia. When the rebellions started, the hellish empire he had fell quickly and the king was butchered and his head placed on a pike in the capital and a new ruler was put in place, who we still have now. Some time after that, war was declared against us in a surprise attack by the bastardy Equestria tyrants.
So there ya go. A very small history lesson from me to you, say this is my little Hearts Warming gift for you.
Now as I said before, this sucks. I got assigned WNW, or Winter Night Watch. This is one of the worst things to be given to do by your superiors. My buddy however, is right down the line where I was stationed. I couldn't see him of course mostly due to the night, but because of the trenches too.
Plus what makes it even more fun is that it's Hearts-Warming night. Now, I'm not the type to celebrate holidays but I got a good excuse this time: War.
I heaved a sigh, my breath visibly filling the air before dispersing, as I stood up again from my somewhat comfortable chair and grabbed the binoculars that sat on a table next to a dimly lit and flickering lamp.
Bringing the deep-gray observation tool to my eyes, I scanned the black field for anypony or thing crossing. I turned one way in a order I had adapted when I first did WNW.
Nothing, just dark, barren grounds.
I rotated my head to the next location slowly and steadily, so not to miss anything in between if.
Still nothing at all.
I shook my head in disappointment at no signs of action and brought the binoculars down. Then again, I thought, it's most likely good that there is no action. Bringing the binoculars back up, I continued to watch the pitch black and frozen ground.
There were a few bodies of ponies, most covered in frost and blood turned to ice, forming a seal on their wound despite being lifeless and far too late. Many closer to our trench line were Equestrian origin. Though there was a few of ours that got unlucky and died as soon as they left the safety of the trench.
With another sigh as I finished my routine scan and moved away from the hole in the wood mini-bunker to set my tool down to its original spot. Sitting back down, I shivered as a gust of wind penetrated the air slipping through my helmet and under my visor, prompting me to pull my thick winter coat tighter to me, despite the thick armor in the way.
There was a crunching behind me and I whipped my head around to see a earth pony mare in full Imperial black and red combat armor, with her Magi-Rifle hooked up and resting barrel-down. She didn't flinch at my sudden movement as she looked at me with a expressionless face from under her gray visor, her mouth only visible.
"How you holding up Private?" she asked curtly, in a flat, professional tone only a seasoned Sargent could have.
My heart rested quickly at the small scare as I replied, "A little cold but nothing seen yet, ma'm. Thankfully."
A ghost of a smile appeared on her lips, "The cold makes you stronger, Private, get used to it."
"I know that ma'm," I bowed my head in small nod, "Ori already has ball-freezing winters, but this one is pretty higher up there on the scale. Especially for me."
She smirked and with a semi-jesting, mostly serious, tone replied to me. Her breath fogging the air as she spoke, "Are you smarting me trooper?"
Instantly I saluted, suddenly fearing for my rank. I stood straight and tall, and brought my right foreleg across my chest, where my hoof would be just under my chin. "No ma'm!"
She chuckled at me, making me relax a bit but I still maintained the salute as she turned to walk eastwards down the trench. "Heheh. At ease trooper, keep your eyes and ears on the land."
Fully relaxing my tensed up body with a sigh of hot air from my mouth I replied, "Yes ma'm!"
Turning back to look at the table and the lamp, I watched the flame dance to a unheard song for a few minutes before doing my little scan again.
Nothing. Like the last 57 times. Yes I've been counting, don't judge me.
I fed some oxygen to the fire in the lamp and it glowed slightly brighter once more before me, as I sat back down in my now cold chair. With a sigh, I closed my eyes and leaned back against the log wall behind me, pulling my coat tighter once more.
"H-H-Hello?"
My ear flicked at a sound, but I kept my pose and my eyes shut. Then I heard it again.
"P-P-Please...S-Somepony help m-me..."
My ear flicked again at it, but this time I opened my eyes and stood up to look out the silted hole. Behind me, some crunching of rocks and frozen dirt and mud sounded as someone walked by, probably that mare from before. As the sounds receded, I stood there. Looking outward. I decided to try something.
"Hello? Somepony there?"
I heard what sounded like a sharp gasp from directly in front of me and a voice of a mare, "Y-Yes! Please down h-here...W-whoever you are."
I stood stunned for a few seconds at the voice, at how pleadingly desperate it sounded. But it was out of the trenches...If I stepped out, I could be shot or seen by somepony. But then if I didn't, I wont be able to save this mare...
I chose the latter. "Hold on for a second, I'll get you real quick," I said to the voice and what came back almost shattered my soldiered heart.
"T-T-thank you...P-Please hurry."
I carefully made my way out onto the long, icy trench, looking both ways to make sure I don't get seen by anypony who was patrolling. I found a ladder that led out of the trench close by thankfully. Taking one last look around before I stepped out to make sure none sees me, I started climbing as quietly as possible.
The black, mostly frozen, charred ground crunched softly under my armored hoof as I made my way to the front of my bunker. This is most likely the dumbest decision I've ever done, but somepony was counting on me. I took a quick look behind me at the trenches. It was a rather imposing sight to behold, sitting on a hole dotted, blackened and rotting hill against the darkness of the clouded winter sky. Taking in a shuddering breath, I came to the front of the bunker.
To find a still body of a pony mare.
I made a sharp intake of breath in fear as I moved to her side, mindful of my sounds still however. Looking over her form, I couldn't tell what side she was on, or even if she was alright visibly due to it being so dark. Clicking off the armored boot of one of my hooves, I found her freezing neck and felt her pulse; it was a soft beating on my hoof, only barely however. I did a little dance in my mind that she was alive, saving a life always brings out something in most ponies.
I hooked my hooves around her body, electing a groan of discomfort from her, diving my armored head gently under her side and set her on my back limply. She shifted lightly on my armor, which I doubt was very comfortable, as I started the trek back to the trenches. My armored hooves created some crunching, that was only barely audible thank the gods. When I reached the ladder, I began climbing down it quietly, mindful to not drop the mare that somehow found my tail and was now snuggling with it in a tight embrace to her body.
I know my tail is soft but hot-damn; even those who sleep love it.
I did a quick look-around before sneaking off back to my bunker. I entered it and moved to a nearby cot I slept in with some blankets and covered her up with it, tucking her in as best I could. After I untangled my tail from her tight grip of course.
I noticed the lamp went out, I moved over and clicked it on and the flame began it's song-less dance again. I pumped in a bit of oxygen into the sealed lamp before turning to face the mare on the cot.
I froze.
She had gleaming, but dirty, golden armor.
I let out moan, dismayed as I facehoofed, my visor preventing my ice covered boot from hitting my face, I rescued a damn Equestrian. Removing my hoof from my visor, I pulled up my chair and sat in it.
I sat there watching over her as she slept uncertain what to do with her. Almost absentmindedly, I began to observe her features.
She had a light gray coat with the same as her mane only with small strips of neon green. From between parts of her armor that showed her fur I saw near the edge of her hooves, that they were a deep green. I cocked my head at that odd coloration, I started to actually question what her parents must have looked like...
I stood up again and better hid her under the blankets, leaving her nose only barely visible, just in case if another guard came by. Then I grabbed the binoculars again to look outside. I tried to focus on watching for anything in the darkness...then again, its dark and there was a possible hostile right next to me. Sighing, I set the tool back on the table and sat back down, the cold chair creaking under my combined weight of armor and myself.
Repeating the same thing from before, I closed my eyes and set my head back. Maybe I can sneak a quick nap this time...
The gray mare groans, she's wakes.
Gods damn it all.
I sat watching as the blankets shifted as the mare began to wake up and begin attempting to figure out where she was. When the last blanket fell off her, her eyes landed on me as I watched her.
We sat there staring at each other for the longest time, before she blinked and rubbed at her eyes, her golden armored boots were off I noticed. I tilted my head at how calm she is at my presence and instantly straightened up once she stopped rubbing her eyes and was looking at me again.
She shivered and pulled the blankets closer to her body before opening her mouth, "W-Where am I?"
I thought for a second before replying, "You're in my guard station, or a bunker if you want to call it that."
She blinked dumbly and looked around for the first time before landing back on me, "How'd I get here?" she asked as she made a small wince that she probably thought I didn't see.
I sighed, my breath clouding the air in my face, "You were calling for help outside my station. So being the stallion I am I helped a little shivering mare," curse that little ego slip.
She made a face, most likely at my ego, "S-shouldn't I be in the medical bay?"
I grunted in morbid amusement, "Not if you want to be killed."
Her eyes went wide as it finally struck her home, if her leaping unstably to her hooves was any sign. She threw the blankets rather pathetically at me as it landed halfway to me.
I threw my hooves up at that, genuinely upset, "Come on I just got those cleaned!"
There was a gray-green blur as she slammed into me, knocking me off the chair as I barely caught myself in the split-second that followed to make as little noise as possible to keep her, and me, from getting caught. She growled at me as I stood back up tall, ready for her to leap at me.
And leap at me she did.
Now I found out how tall she was compared to me, she was almost to my chin. Puny Equestrians. So short.
When she impacted me in the chest, she hit my armor without her armored boot with a resounding snap, which I bet hurt like Tartarus. She made a face of pure pain as it hit her system, her mouth open in a silent scream as she sat down hard on the dirt ground; clutching her hoof.
"That was smart of ya," I jested with a snort of amusement, she shot me a look that should have killed me on the spot, but not.
"Shut up," she retorted, "I would kill you if you didn't have that stupid armor on."
I rolled my eyes at that claim and offered my hoof to help her up. She stared at it like it was toxic before smacking it away with an audible thunk. I shrugged before moving away to pick the chair off the floor and sat back in it.
She watched me the whole time. I snorted at her actions before she got up and sat back down on the cot and brought the blankets with her as she snuggled up in them while staring at me.
I just looked at her before doing the scan again, but this time focused on my hearing.
Nothing...And she didn't jump me, so nice.
I turned to see her still on the cot wrapped up in blankets. Despite this, she was still shivering. I frowned and took off my coat and moved towards her. When I got close she gave the, "I will kill you ten times over" look that all females, no matter species, had. I tried to put the WNW coat on her but she flinched and shied away from it. Shrugging, I put it on the filthy ground (whining internally at that) near her and walked back to the chair and grabbed a nearby book I would keep with me and opened it...ah yes, good ol' Daring Doo.
I heard some shuffling and looked up from the page I was on after some time, to see the little mare trying to get the coat on without removing the blankets. I found it so funny that it was hard to keep my laughter in and some of it slipped out in a soft chuckle. She paused at that, halfway getting it on, and stared at me, once again with that look but it didn't have a pronounced effect due to the small blush across her nose. In fact, it made me laugh even harder.
She muttered something, "I-Its not funny...I'm cold, bastard."
I slowly stopped laughing at the last part she said and looked at her; she was looking down at the ground, intent on drilling a hole and diving into it. I frowned and put the book back where I got it before getting up. She kept looking down and away from me as I came behind her, I lifted the coat onto her back to join the blankets.
It looked like she froze when the coat touched her back. I began to walk away when I heard her voice softly, "C-Could you stay with me...?"
I turned with a surprised look on my face. She was blushing a little harder than before, if the redness in her cheeks was any sign, despite the cold, and was looking down at the floor with occasional glances at me. I moved back to her and sat behind her before pulling her up to me. She actually leaned back into my armored chest, hesitantly, which brought a soft grunt of surprise out of me once she almost fully leaned into my chest.
Her helmet was off and on the floor nearby with her gold boots. I tilted my head to look at her face; her eyes were closed and content and I chuckled. She bumped her elbow into my rib area at that before snuggling more into me.
"Why you so big?" I heard her ask, her eyes were still closed, oddly enough she felt a lost less tense from what I could feel under my armor.
Sigh, mares, I'll never understand them.
I chuckled again, "I'm from the city-state of Ori, we're the biggest there, mostly due to the hardships around it."
She hummed in thought I assumed, "Whats it like there?"
I sighed at remembering what it was like myself, my wonderful home, my breath steaming in the air with a twirl, "Really forested, hilly and covered in monsters in said forests and hills. But if you get past that area it's a beautiful city, with almost every hill a fort. With the biggest being Ori itself. Us Orians pride ourselves in our ability to build great and majestic castles and our, of course, size and military prowess."
"Did ya'll help build Canterlot?" she asked, curious.
I nodded lightly, "Indeed we did. In fact it was named after it's main builder: Canter Lot. Very odd name for somepony though..."
"Really?" she said with slight wonder and giggled a bit at the last statement.
"Yep."
We stayed like that in silence for a while, with me getting up to look out the slit on the bunker to look out on the blackened landscape. I felt we were lucky, mostly due to the fact nopony else has come by my post to check on me. I was honestly still shocked when she wanted me to come back and sit with her, such a sudden change in attitude. Admittedly I still don't quite trust her, because obviously, Equestrian!
While I was holding her, the air suddenly got colder and a bit drier with a sweet smell filling the air, and she noticed it too if her increase in shivering was any meaning. I pursed my lips and got up, though there was a soft wine from her as she was disturbed from her apparent new living teddy bear.
When I looked outside, there was nothing but a rather decent breeze flowing through.
Something.
I blinked and squinted my eyes as I continued to look outside.
Something again.
I looked at the mare on the ground and waved her over lightly. She got up slowly and walked over to me, over-sized coat hanging off her. We both looked outside this time and finally we both saw something we never though we would see in this blasted-tartaruscape-
Snow.
I stood there in disbelief, mouth hanging open at the falling white flakes, their whiteness standing out from the black of the battlefield and the night. Suddenly, lights of varying colors glowed from the opposing trenches.
I started in alarm, grabbing and hooking my Magi-rifle to my side, I pointed it out of my bunker at the softly glowing lights. Focusing on the lights, I waited for the damned bastards to poke their heads out, give me a good fight. I could hear shouts coming from other posts across our lines, asking for confirmation on what they were seeing. I opened my mouth to yell out-
I jumped, slamming my mouth shut in surprise, and almost firing out of instinct as the mare's hoof suddenly grabbed my rifle and forced it down. I turned my head to look at the mare...who had a worried look, careful to keep an eye on the vile lights...wait a second...
Upon closer inspection...they're in the theme of Heartswarming! Blazing green, blue and red mini trees glowed from the opposing trenches, with smaller dimmer lights connecting them. Shocked, I looked down at the Equestrian next to me for a response, only noticing she was just as stunned as I was. The shouts died down as captains told them to "shut up and let them be".
It felt odd to me, and alien. A place so depressing and dangerous getting something so joyful and hopeful but simple like snow and the holiday lights form the other side, it was a change much like the mare's attitude. I chuckled and smiled as hope actually filled me as well as joy who came in last, and I knew the both of us would survive...I don't know how I know but... I do, then again, I could morbidly be wrong. Even in the days, and hopefully years, to come, we would remember this moment, this warm feeling in our hearts like the warm lamp still dancing on my table. Like the blazing tiny lights in the distance.
Not a single ounce of hate radiated from between us as we stared out towards the Equestrian lines. I looked down at the mare next to me and saw something I never thought I would see from a Equestrian when next to a Imperial in all my years-
A smile.
Maybe that's why its called Heartswarming. A time when all disagreements and hatred comes to a flat stop, leaving only the warmth of our hearts, no matter whether there are wars or peace.
Author's Note
This is my first short fic and a fic about Christmas. If you see anything wrong with it, do tell me and I will try to fix it. I was finishing this at like 12:00 at night...so there's bound to be some mistakes.
Here's what the Post-First Division War Equestrian soldier would look like during this timeline-
Also try to find the theme for this story there is one!
Finally: Merry Christmas!
