///LOCATION - NLTT-512-3A/EQUESTRIA/CANTERLOT///TIME - 14:12 LMT///DATE - 20-05-2232///

The weather-conditions were constantly deteriorating. Temperatures had dropped far below freezing, and ponds and lakes all across the capital had frozen over. The beautifull waterfall that fell down from the Palace-Grounds towards the depths below was now a solid wall of ice. Trough the rough weather, the UEN-Convoy marched on towards the walls of the Inner-City.

The Guards at the great gate were now far from ready for fighting, the sweat in their fur from the sight of warfare completely frozen. Still, they were determined to defend their post. The Princesses and the Ministers were to be defended at any and all cost. They had called for more supplies from the 2nd Logistical Battalion, which was also stationed in Canterlot, and they had received exactly what they were looking for.

In total, 5 trucks had performed 3 runs each, providing the Guards with 3 Heavy Anti-Tank Guns, 4 Gatling Guns, several crates of ammunition, and enough food and blankets to allow them to keep fighting for hours, even in these extreme conditions. They were determined to fight for their Kingdom.

Meanwhile, the convoy continued on its way, and was now just a few blocks from the gate, and with their decent speed trough the cold and wet snow, it would take them less than a minute before they would arrive at the plaza that led up to the gate. As they got to the last road to the plaza, the convoy stopped, and the Marines dismounted to discuss their plan of action. Delta 3-1’s Squad Leader climbed onto one of the AVT-5s, and spoke to his men.

”Alright Delta 3! Remember, our primary task is to retrieve Nomad, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do more than that! Now, I would like to share our plan for the next step. As you all know, we have captured enemy soldiers with us. Perhaps we might be able to convince them to have their troops put down their weapons. Dr. Märtha should be able to talk to them. We will wait here while we prepare everything. Remember, the enemy is just around that corner.” He pointed to the corner at the end of the street. ”Whatever you do, DO NOT GET SPOTTED! We’ll be moving out in a few minutes, so get ready, and stay on your feet! We don’t know what those ponies might be up to.”

After his speech, he jumped back down, and entered the AVT-5 where Dr. Märtha was sitting next to the supposed leader of the Squad that had surrendered themselves. The pony, who had identified himself as being Captain Solar Streak of the Royal Guard, 3rd Airborne Batallion, 12th Regiment, 2nd Division. According to Dr. Märtha, Solar Streak was still shaken up from the fight, and he felt dizzy, which was a known side-effect of the Nova Gas. He also didn’t like talking to the great evil from legends across the nation, but he still joked that personally talking to many ponies worst fear wasn’t even the weardest thing that had happened to him those last few days.

As much as he still didn’t trust the aliens who had invaded his lands, he wanted to stop this conflict, and he knew that the aliens believed in the same thing. Conflict was negative for any civilization. Dr. Märtha had already asked if Solar Streak wanted to help end this war. He initially refused, saying that his higher-ups would kill him for treason, but Dr. Märtha already knew how to convince him. She knew that Solar would want whats best for his men. So she told her:

“Look outside. What do you see?”

“Not much. Pretty much nothing, actually!”

“Exactly! Do you really think that your Princesses or COs will be able to know what you are doing?”

“No, not really. But what about you? Surely your leaders want you to continue?!”

“They do. Luckily for us, they can’t tell us what to do anymore! This blizzard has cut off all communications with our FOB and our ships up in orbit. We can do what we want.”

“What are you suggesting?” Solar became more and more interested as the conversation went on.

“Do you believe you can convince your fellow troops to put down their weapons, if ours do the same?”

“Maybe. I can’t promise anything, but there is a chance I could do it. Why?” Solar Streak wasn’t sure where she was going with this.

“Well, this is what I propose: A white peace. Both parties give up. Then, we can finally begin peacefull negotiations!”

“And you seriously think that will work?”

“No. To be honest, I’m pretty sure it won’t work. But if we don’t try, our leaders are just going to send more troops at each other, until there is nobody left to fight. We can change that! If we can make peace between our armies, then we can simply refuse to fight for our leaders. They’ll HAVE to negotiate!” exclaimed Dr. Märtha, a fair bit louder than before, making some Marines quite interested in the discussion, even if they could not understand a single word.

“Fair enough. I trust you. You appear to be speaking the truth, and so shall I. I will make sure my troops will put down their weapons. You can leave that to me. But please, try to convince your metal birds to back away aswell. They are killing our troops!”

“I can’t promise I can get in touch with them, but I will damn well try! You have my word!”

The two stared at each other for a few seconds, before Solar Streak looked at Delta 3-1’s Squad Leader, and extended his right hoof towards him. He was confused by this gesture at first, thinking that the pony was pointing at him, before quickly realizing that he was offering to shake hands. This must have meant that they had come to an agreement. Delta 3-1’s Squad Leader gladly took the hoof in his hand, and gave it a firm shake. ”Allow me to introduce myself. Lieutenant Ruben Vermaas. Pleasure to meet you!”

The Guards at the gate could hear a rumbling sound approaching. They prepared themselves for the fight, manning the guns, and readying their rifles. All eyes were trained on the various streets that converged at the plaza. They were expecting a fight, more violent and bloody than any of them could ever imagine. They were ready. They were ready to die. To die for their country. For their Princesses. But it would not be so.

From one of the streets at the distant end of the plaza, a pegasus could be seen approaching the gate. That wasn’t what bothered the Guards though. No, what bothered them, was the alien walking alongside the pegasus. Guns were aimed, both at the alien, and the pegasus. For all they knew, the pegasus could’ve been a changeling. One Guard could not contain his nerves. Out of shear fear, Private Blaze fired a shot at the alien that kept approaching them at a slow pace. A small flicker of light could be seen as the bullet reached its target.

A crack could be heard as the supersonic round flew back over Private Blaze's head, just inches away from hitting him. Instead of splattering the Private's brains all over his fellow soldiers, the projectile dug itself into the heavy wooden gate behind him. His eyes were wide open with shock. He was petrified. 'Wh.. What.. What happened...?!' he thought, his mind going into overdrive after recognising the sound he just heard wizz past him. Two seconds later, he fell to the ground, completely paralized, trembling with fear. A second later, the Lieutenant's Esper-Shield stopped pulsating.

"HOLD YOUR FIRE!" yelled Solar. Nopony dared to fire, but they didn't lower their weapons either. All eyes were focused on the pony and the alien trough the sights of dozens of guns. "THEY ARE NOT THE ENEMY!"

The Guards looked at each other, confused. 'Not the enemy?' 'Is he crazy?' They didn't know how to respond. They hoped, prayed to the sun, that this pegasus knew what he was talking about. A few Guards had begun to lower their weapons. Others stayed focused on the threats that were still approaching them.

"I, Captain Solar Streak, 3rd Airborne Battalion, 12th Regiment, 2nd Division, hereby order you all to put down your weapons! These aliens, the 'Humans' as they call themselves, don't mean to do harm! They want peace, and one of theirs back!"

Another few Guards put down their guns. One of the AT-Cannon Crews disarmed their weapon, and took out the shell to show that they would not engage. Solar Streak appeared to do it. It seemed like he was able to pull it off. They had almost reached the fortifications. Soon, this whole conflict would be behind them. Peace was closer than ever. New allies would be made. Maybe, just maybe, Equestria could finally venture upwards, explore the stars...

"INCOMING!"

A forwards observer yelled, pointing at the Southern sky. As the Guards and the sole Human looked up, they saw THEM. The Changelings. Hundreds of them, maybe thousands. They were almost two kilometers away, and closing in fast. A plan would have to be made, and quickly, or they would be overwhelmed, and the Palace would be overrun. As the Guards prepared their weapons and armed their guns, nopony payed the two anymore attention. Lieutenant Ruben Vermaas and Captain Solar Streak knew exactly what to do. They could get two birds with one stone, if they could get back to the convoy quickly enough.

They ran and they ran, all the way across the massive plaza. Without any cover, aside from some statues, they were a prefect target for the airborne Changelings, who were now swooping down at the gate and the plaza. The two had to dive to the ground every few seconds, as another Changeling took it upon himself to kill the two of them. None of them succeeded. Eventually, Solar and Vermaas found a relatively safe hiding spot. They wouldn't be to reach the convoy with the Changelings still attacking. Vermaas tried to contact the convoy with his radio. No response. He tried again, with the same result.

After the third try, someone finally answered. It was one of the drivers of the convoy. They had seen the Changelings come in, but wouldn't risk firing at them. For all they knew, it could be detremental to the peace-talks. Now, it was time for them to make their grand entrance, when the Guards, who had previously been their enemy, needed them most. A dreadfull 20 seconds later, the first vehicles screached around the corner, racing into view as they entered the plaza. They dodged the several destroyed statues that were laying all around.

Because they were so focused on shooting the Changelings out of the sky, most of the Guards only noticed that the convoy had arrived when streams of bullets flew trought the sky, filling the flying bugs with hot lead, and literally tearing the enemy apart with the sound of a thousand angry bees, only several dozens of decibels louder. None of them had ever seen such volume of fire, let alone from such small weapons. Lines of red-hot lead flew upwards to the clouds, showering the plaza in a layer of thick smoke from the guns.

The driver of the leading AVT-5, who was the closest to the Guards at the gate, had opened his hatch to look at the destruction of those vile creatures. As he looked to his left with his head sticking out of the hatch, he looked right in the eyes of one of the Guards. They stared at each other. For a few seconds, none of them moved. The driver nodded. The Guard nodded back. The Guard smiled. The driver smiled back. They knew what to do. They weren't enemies of each other. They were allies, united against a common threat. And although their superiors might believe that they were still killing each other, they might have actually been forming a bond.

That's the weird thing about war. It isn't always as straight-forward as it might seem. It isn't just "Shoot the bad-guy". You wonder who the bad-guy is. Is it them? Or is it you? Both? Or neither?

Author's Note

This chapter is similair to the first version of the ending, with some mayor improvements. One of theses improvements, is a reason for being united. A common enemy. Also, this time, it isn't the end. There is more to come quite soon, though since we are just getting 2 new kittens today, I will most likely be distracted for a while!
OH-MAH-GOD-THEY-ARE-SO-CUTE-I-WANT-TO-CUDDLE-THEM-TO-DEATH!!!!