Captain Wind Blast

Colus, Celestial-Occupied Chiss Planet

Twilight Force

“RAAAAGH!” Wind Blast roared as he dueled with his opponent, an Alliance pegasus piloting a single-seat Comet just like he was. Like every member of Twilight Force, they had their wingtips colored in purple. Every ship and ground vehicle had purple strips and soldiers wore purple armor. This was all in honor of their exiled Princess, Twilight Sparkle. Every single member, would die for her and now fight in the hopes of reuniting with her.

Before her ascension, most knew her as a nerdy librarian. However, she took everypony by surprise by personally leading Twilight Force everywhere. No current leader would’ve done so except for Luna but that was a long time ago. Now every leader would lead from the rear, except for the Element of Magic.

Her brother Shining Armor was proud to be a Royal Guard, dutifully protecting Celestia wherever she goes. Once he became a General, he betrayed his own unit by diverting the best to serve under his little sister. This caused many units to look at the then Twilight Guards with contempt. With the expansion of the Celestial Alliance, the Twilight Guards were turned into the Twilight Force, an army of hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers, hundreds of fighters and bombers, and nearly 50 warships. Considering how aggressive they were utilized, they were the biggest and most experienced single force in the Alliance.

Ponies, Changelings, Zebras, Griffins, Minotaurs, Dragons, etc. all ready to die for their beloved princess who saved them countless times.

When they finally found out what happened to the inhabitants of the planets they conquered under Magia Regnum, many members of Twilight Force were put on suicide watch. None had the stomach to do so, as it was seen as abandoning their princess who needed them. The genocide of the Deer for denouncing Magia Regnum was the last straw. Twilight Sparkle declared herself a member of the Rebellion along with the entire Twilight Force. Her friends, who profited or supported Magia Regnum were immediately revoked of their honorary membership of Twilight Force.

Twilight Force rendezvous with forces under Admiral Red Talon, a griffin, and Admiral Tidal Wave, a unicorn. They were the most senior officers left in the rebellion after the capture of Starlight Glimmer. With a fleet number in more than 100 and 2 million soldiers, they set for the next target of the Celestial Alliance: the Chiss Ascendancy.

Negotiations were stagnant on the planet of Suilo as the Chiss believed they were invaders. Only when they engaged the Celestial Alliance invasion fleet did the Chiss trust them. With their combined forces, they destroyed every single transport, killing almost a million CA soldiers, and completely demolished their fleet thus disgracing Admiral Sun Strike, the commander of the fleet. Coincidentally, Big Mac who was a dear friend of Princess Twilight and the husband of Fluttershy, lost his arm in the attack. This caused Fluttershy to be completely against Twilight eliminating any sympathies her friends had on Twilight.

This also gave the CA military a huge shock as none have ever delivered a resounding defeat to them. It wasn’t a complete loss however as they captured their Princess and her brother. Ever since then, the Celestial Alliance have surrounded the Chiss Ascendancy and have tried multiple times to break through. They’ve captured planets but could not hold them for long before a Chiss-Rebellion fleet would come in to liberate it.

Colus was no different. It was a frozen planet on the edge of Chiss space. They controlled the surface, but could not take the underground cities of the Chiss. Just trying to capture one was a challenge, straining Alliance logistics and denying their ground troops any air support. So they resorted to the one thing they could do, cut off the cities from supplies.

And this is where he was, an ace dogfighting another ace over the frozen planet. Up above them, the Celestial Alliance fleet was being decimated though more ships keep arriving by the minute.

Admiral Tidal Wave promised to return Colus to them so he unleashed the entire Twilight Force on the planet. Things were going great for Wind Blast. He downed his 54th kill when he noticed an ace among this enemies, a Comet with the Mark of Death. Every ace, whether they were loyalist or rebel, had their fighters painted with a burning skull of their species with a spear stabbed through the jaw and out the cranium. This one in particular was a pegasus like him, considering the pony skull with wings in the background.

The two duel each other, flying between broadsiding ships and wreckage when Wind Blast dived into the planet to take their fight to an area without interference. For nearly an hour, they weaved through the mountains trying to gain the upperhand. Both of their Comets were smoking from taking multiple hits and Wind Blast’s nose was bleeding.

“COME ON YOU BASTARD!” Wind Blast yelled. They were just above a half frozen lake with Wind Blast dodging and weaving all of their laser bolts fired at him. He looked back and had his hand on the landing gear switch.

Deciding the time was perfect, Wind Blast flipped the switch. There was a bang and he saw one of his landing gears flying towards his enemy after hitting the water. Sensing the danger, his adversary banked right just in time as the landing gear barely scraped the cockpit window.

“It was a good shot.” He said to himself.

For another 30 minutes, they dualed each other through the mountains though neither gained anything. Both pilots were fatigued and their starfighters were just about ready to fall apart.

*BEEP BEEP*

Wind Blast’s thoughts were broken when he looked at his fuel indicator. He froze when he saw it was on zero. Looking to his left where his opponent was flying next to him, he could see the red blinking lights coming from the cockpit indicating the same thing.

The Pegasus dug through his pocket and took out a single picture. It showed a blue Pegasus Mare with a white mane in her purple pilot’s uniform waving at the photographer from the top of her Comet. She had the biggest smile on her face which made Wind Blast smile.

“I’m so sorry Lime Light. My flower, forgive me.”

He put the photo back in his cockpit and started breathing heavily to psych himself up. Without warning, Wind Blast banked left towards his enemy. The enemy pilot’s eyes went wide eyed as he did not expect such a suicidal move. Their wings collided and shattered due to the damage they took in the fight. Wind Blast closed his eyes as his starfighter spun out of control.

“I love you Lime Light!” Wind Blast yelled as he felt the ground get closer. There was a loud bang before his head hit his cockpit window and the Pegasus was immediately knocked out.

30 Minutes Later

“Ugh fuck me.” Wind Blast said as he regained consciousness. “Why ain’t I dead?”

He saw around his cockpit that all of his equipment was destroyed by the impact. The cockpit window was shattered and there was blood pooling down to the ground. Wind Blast unstrapped himself and got out of the window. To preoccupied by the pain, he fell onto the snow lying face first.

“Ow fucking hell.”

Painstakingly, he took off his helmet, revealing it was cracked and heavily damaged, though possibly saving his life. His eyes then noticed smoke in the distance. Wind Blast searched his cockpit, but to his dismay, could not find his medical kit.

“It’s fucking cold, too far from friendlies, and I’m gonna freeze or bleed to death. Might as well make sure I get the kill.” He said to himself. Getting up, he took out his sidearm and trudged through the snow slowly.

For five minutes, Wind Blast slowly walked through the snow.

Just over the hill. He thought to himself as he walked up a small hill. When the pegasus made it over the hill, he was not prepared for what he saw.

There, bleeding and leaning on the wreckage of a Comet, a grey Pegasus with red hair stared at him with tired eyes.

“Wind Blast?” asked the Pegasus.

“Fire Storm?” Wind Blast asked. He limped towards the Pegasus until they were right in front of each other. After a moment of silence, the two hugged for about a minute or so. The only sounds to be heard was the wind.

“Never thought I’d see you again.” Fire Storm whispered.

Wind Blast didn’t say anything as they both collapsed to their knees.

“You do know we’re not gonna make it right? We both loss too much blood.”

The Rebel Captain chuckled.

“I fully expect a story to made about us. Two orphan boys who became aces, only to kill each other. At least...Cheerilee, Octavia, Vinyl, Lime Light and Filthy Rich will be okay.”

“For the moment at least.” Fire Storm replied.

“Yeah...for the moment.”

They laid down on their backs, side by side and staring into the sky. Both knew they weren’t gonna make it so they held each other’s hands.

“How did it come to this. As the older brother, I was supposed to watch over you. All of you.”

Fire Storm turned his head to look at Wind Blast.

“Come now, we’re not even related… by blood at least. I’d say you did a good job Wind. Cheerilee’s a teacher like she wanted, both Octavia and Vinyl are famous musicians, Lime Light’s kicking ass somewhere, and Filthy Rich, well, is rich. Down side is his wife sucks ass and his daughter is a spoiled brat, but I’d still say you did a good job being our older brother.”

“And now, I’m laying here with my younger brother, both of us bleeding on the snow after beating the shit out of each other in the middle of nowhere.” Wind Blast turned his head to look at his younger brother. “But we had a good run didn’t we?”

Fire Storm smiled.

“We made our marks in history, as one of the best aces.”

“In our history. I bet there are better pilots out there in the rest of the galaxy.”

“Yeah you’re probably right.”

The two Pegasi stayed silent, enjoying each other’s company, as their visions begin to darken. Up above breaking through the clouds, they could see Rebel and Chiss transports flying past them.

“This is Admiral Tidal Wave. We have broken through the Loyalist blockade. I repeat, we have broken through the Loyalist blockade. Onwards my brothers and sisters. To victory! Destroy the Loyalist dogs!”

Wind Blast smiled despite darkness clouding his vision.

“Long live her majesty.” He whispered before the darkness overtook him.

Princess Celestia Galaxia

CAN Soul of Equestria

Over unknown planet

A frustrated Celestia in her golden armor, slammed her fist on the holotable. Yet again, they’ve been pushed out of Chiss territory. There were a few high commanders who proposed destroying the Chiss planets outright, but that only denies the CA of resources and new territory for them. So for now, they need to continue pumping out personnel and warships to overwhelm anypony that stands in their way.

Luna somewhat respected the Chiss however. They made sure no vital information fell into their hands, including information of missing Chiss warships and high-ranking officers. Celestial Alliance High Command were extremely curious with such Chiss like Thrawn and Ar’alani other than the fact they were highly experienced and talented commanders. What worried them was neither were ever encountered by their forces.

Then there was the fact that they found the wreckage of Admiral Sun Strike’s patrol fleet over Tartarus. There no survivors found and the exiled Twilight Sparkle and Spike were also missing which worried her greatly. The Rebels never mentioned their return in their propaganda holovids, so where were they?

“Your majesty, General Iron Wall says he has a situation ground side. He couldn’t explain so he asks that you meet him ground side.” the coms said.

“Very well. Have a transport ready.” Celestia said. She rubbed her forehead in frustration. Their efforts to spread the idea of Magia Regnum started off so well, but they’ve begun encountering big obstacles as they got closer to the Core of the galaxy.

30 Minutes Later

“So what am I seeing here?” asked Celestia. She stood just below a hill where a transparent figure sat with its legs crossed and its eyes closed. Next to her stood General Iron Wall, an elderly gray Unicorn with a black mane, and General Rolling Block, a brown Earth Pony with a blonde mane wearing a Stetson hat. Both of them wore golden armor with the sun emblazoned on their chest.

“Some kahnd awf ghost maybe? Perhaps we’ve encountered another race that kay-yun use magic like us?” General Rolling Block said with a thick Appleloosan accent.

“If that’s the case, we should approach the unknown peacefully. If we play our cards right, we can convince them to join us.” Iron Wall said with an accent hinting at his Canterlot origins. He looked at Celestia who was glaring at the figure. “Do not antagonize him Celestia. For once, show some restraint.”

Celestia let out a huff.

“Look at the figure. Whoever he or she is, they believe themselves superior.”

Iron Wall smacked the back of Celestia’s head causing Rolling Block to snort. Celestia looked at the elderly general but faltered at his intense glare.

“We can’t go around wiping out every race we see. I’ve won wars for you, some without firing a shot. The unknown is baiting you into making an irrational decision.”

The Princess’ horn lit up a little.

“What makes you think you can hit me and get away with it?” Celestia snarled. However, Iron Wall remained impassive.

“I’ve saved your life countless times. I’ve also warned you about Magia Regnum how you will only awake a sleeping giant. I’m not one to physically punish a petulant child, but I will if I have to.”

“Nobody would know if I got rid of you.”

“I know you won’t do it.” Iron Wall waved off her threat. “You need me. Besides, we both know Director Jackpot Star would know.”

Celestia continued to stare at the elderly, but highly experienced and popular General. After a moment, the light on her horn dimmed and she turned to march up the hill.

"Feel like sumthing's wrong with her.” Rolling Block whispered to Iron Wall as they followed their princess.

“They haven’t been the same since Princess Twilight Sparkle’s betrayal.” Iron Wall responded. “Starlight Glimmer, Sunset Shimmer, Tidal Wave, Red Talon, the entire Twilight Force, but it was Princess Sparkle’s betrayal that seemed to push the Princesses off the edge.”

"Celestia an Luna seemed mo-wr angry, irrational. Cadence looks depressed, an Shinin' Armor won't tawk ta nobody. Heard 'e almost gawt into a brush with thuh other Elements.”

“Not really surprised when they pushed their own interests ahead of their own friend. Best we follow her before she does something stupid.”

The two climbed up the hill after their princess. Their white cloaks flying from a breeze. Behind them, a division worth of Celestial Alliance troops waited for the go ahead. All of them itching for a fight and it shocked them that the one thing stopping their advance on the city in the distance was a single figure.

When Celestia stopped in front of the sitting figure with her two Generals, the figure did not react. Rolling Block was slack jawed at how the unknown was transparent though Iron Wall was more intrigued. Possibly thinking the benefits of making an alliance.

“Speak creature. What is the meaning of your interference?” Celestia said with her arms crossed.

And there it is. Iron Wall frowned and gave her a disapproving glare.

This time, the creature opened its eyes and stood up. It looked elderly with its wrinkles and gray hair. Its elegant white armor and black robes spoke of someone of power. Iron Wall noted how its body structure was similar to the Chiss with its hair only covered the top of its head, the jaw, and just below its nose.

The gray eyes bore deep into their souls causing their stomachs to drop, even Celestia herself.

“Who...who are you?” Celestia asked shakingly. She felt fear, 2nd to a dream a while back where both herself and her sister encountered a creature in black robes, a skull mask, and wielded a red sword.

At first, the creature did nothing but stare at them as if they were children. Finally, it spoke.

“I am the former Emperor Valkorion of the now defunct Eternal Empire. You dare come to home planet to conquer it?” The figure identified as Valkorion said in a deep voice.

“Defunct?” Rolling Block asked.

“If you haven’t realized, I’m dead. Been dead for thousands of years in fact and my Empire fell not long after my death.”

“You’ve got it wrong your majesty.” Iron Wall said causing the two others to look at him curiously. “We’re here to offer your species an alliance.”

“An alliance?” The creature asked with a hint of amusement. “Why would my people ally themselves with an alliance that would perform genocide on them?”

“What do you mean?” Celestia asked.

“My people are known as Humans, we reside all over the galaxy. Zakuul is merely one planet out of many Humanity has called home. As for me, there are a small group of people that wield powers such as myself where our strengths vary. All I had to do was lift a finger to stop your division from advancing.”

“But you’re dead.” The alicorn said clenching her fists.

“Clearly, your knowledge is still limited Princess Celestia Galaxia. You know nothing of what awaits you and I will be damned if I let my planet fall victim to a pitiful child such as you and the rest of your little council.”

“You dare insult me?” growled Celestia who’s horn glowed causing the two Generals to back off. Lightning began coursing through the arms of Valkorion and his eyes began to glow.

“I dare. I must thank Vitiate of all the knowledge he acquired before he was destroyed. Now, I can be my people’s eternal guardian.”

Celestia wordlessly fired a great yellow beam at Valkorion. To their shock, he slapped the beam out of the way and they watched as it punctured the hull of a low flying CA Corvette. A huge explosion occurred midship causing the Corvette to break in half signifying a reactor detonation.

“Kneel before, THE DRAGON OF ZAKUUL!” Valkorion roared as he started floating. He lifted an arm and lightning flew out of his fingers. The lightning struck a Changeling officer before it started hitting other soldiers, until an entire Battalion’s worth of troops laid on the ground with their bodies smoking.

“OPEN FIRE!” Celestia ordered. The troops were still in shock and shook with fear but complied nonetheless. Valkorion stood still as laser bolts harmlessly went through his transparent body.

“Pathetic.” He whispered before he jumped high into the air.

The three ponies looked up to see Valkorion coming down towards them, a fist at the ready with lightning emitting from his fist though much, much brighter.

Thinking quickly, Iron Wall grabbed both Celestia’s and Rolling Block’s arms and conjured a spell. They were teleported just in time as Valkorion made impact with the ground.

CAN Soul of Equestria

Three bodies appeared in the air in Iron Wall’s room and landed on the floor with a thud. The elderly unicorn groaned before his fellow General helped him up his feet. He looked to Celestia who was standing in front of the window. Her eyes stared at a spot of the planet where they could see flashes of lightning.

“I warned...all of you.”

Celestia looked at Iron Wall who was tired from the teleportation spell.

“We don’t know what else is out there. There could be more...like this Valkorion.” He said between breaths. “But none of you listened. Not then, not now, not later.”

The alicorn stared at the respected General. Wordlessly, she walked passed him slowly and out of the room.

Grand Admiral Thrawn

Command Centre, Nirauan, Empire of the Hand

In a long, empty, hallway, Grand Admiral Thrawn briskly walked in a hurry. Next to him, Admiral Voss Parck accompanied his friend. The sounds of their boots echoed throughout the hallway.

“Infrastructure projects going smoothly, the MRT in Sanctuary was completed while you were gone, and the droid factory is nearly operational. All in all, things are mostly going as planned.” informed Parck.

“And what of the population?” asked Thrawn.

“More or less, happy. We still have Mon Calamaris here and there refusing to work, some racial tensions, last week’s festival was a disaster, luckily law enforcement was on standby,”

“No free alcoholic beverages next time then?” interrupted the Chiss.

“Absolutely.” Parck grimaced. “Having a bunch of drunk Wookiees is not a pretty sight. All in all, the entire population in our territories is happy. You’re up 10 points in recent polls at 95% approval rating while the Emperor has stagnated at 0.”

“Any intruders?”

“A few here and there. Yesterday, a Zygerrian slave hunting fleet stumbled into the Onager while it was testing its cannons with its escorts.”

“Casualties?”

“No casualties for us and no survivors among the few thousand Zygerrians. About 2000 slaves freed, mostly Twi’leks and Togrutans. Recently however, Battlegroup Swarm took down a Black Sun fleet that intruded on our territories. Hostiles eliminated, but about 60 wounded when a Black Sun ship rammed the Swarm.”

“Good. I want defenses increased on planets closest to Bastion.”

Parck rose an eyebrow.

“Why?”

“Kaine’s forces are being stretched thin. Bastion’s left unguarded several times and the Rebel advance into Kaine’s sector is threatening the secrecy of our territories. I’d send ships to defend Bastion itself, but we would need them here and we’re running the risk of exposing ourselves to the public too early.”

The two entered a room in the hallway guarded by some Death Troopers. In the middle of the large room was a conference table, where the holograms of the Hydras plus Vice Admiral Terrinald Screed, Grand Moff Zsinj, General Jahan Cross, and Admiral Sander Delvardus.

“Gentlemen,” Thrawn began as he took a seat at the head of the table with Parck taking a seat to his left. “Our plans are near fruition. Once the Emperor’s plans on Endor are completed, we make our move to eliminate the Emperor and Vader.”

“I’m sorry if I’m lost here,” Began Screed. “But how exactly are we going to eliminate them?”

“Before I begin Vice Admiral.” said Thrawn. “We will all be assigned to our units and put on high alert. Until we learn whether the Emperor is victorious or not, we will remain on DEFCON 3.”

“Whether?” asked Zsinj.

“With the Emperor’s ego. You never know. He screams a comic villain who would snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.” commented Teshik.

“But how do we put them out of the picture?” asked Delvardus.

“I can answer that for you.” said Cross. “Thanks to Thrawn’s extensive studies on both the Sith and Jedi Orders, Thrawn, Teshik, and I devised a plan. You see, the Sith are ambitious, always striving to learn and best their Sith masters. We all have already known the few plots by Vader to get rid of his majesty correct?”

The rest of the conference nodded in confirmation.

“However, there is one person that has been gathering force users to usurp Palpatine and Vader.”

Screed looked around to see the Grand Admirals were silent, knowing exactly who he was talking about.

“Y-you’re talking about Jerec aren’t you?”

“Correct. Over the years, Jerec has been gathering followers of his own and is in a position to eliminate the Grand Inquisitors and place himself on top. That’s not enough however, he strives for the throne as well. With the Inquisitorius against the Emperor, we need to get the Prophets of the Dark Side to turn against the Emperor as well.

“I’ve been in contact anonymously with Cronal, aka Blackhole. I told him if he can eliminate Palpatine, he would have the throne. In return, Cronal wants Kadann and the High Prophets eliminated.”

“That’s where we reel in Makati?” Grant asked.

“Indeed. But we all know the power Palpatine and Vader have and both the Inquisitorius and the Prophets of the Dark Side may not be enough. So I made contact with...a sworn enemy.”

“Wait, the Jedi High Council?” yelled Batch. “Are you mad?”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” said Thrawn. “We tip off the Jedi Council of Palpatine’s and Vader’s location, and they won’t be able to resist. Whether the Emperor or Vader survive, maybe both, they will travel back to either Coruscant or Byss. In order to do so, they must make a series of stops. I proposed the ambush to be on Takodana, a planet full of bounty hunters, mercenaries, criminals we can pay off to hunt down the Emperor and Vader. While Death Squadron will be busy mopping up the Rebels and guarding the second Death Star, the two will travel via a single Star Destroyer in triumph.

Once they jump out of hyperspace over Takodana, we will pull the ships of the three groups via gravity well generators in front of the Star Destroyer simultaneously. Thanks to our friend Batch here, he was able to create a few cloaked Interdictors. As a precaution, we have a few sleeper agents in the Majestic ready to disable the reactor and the engines. We will let them fight each other and hopefully, Vader and Palpatine are out of the picture.”

“But what if, by some miracle, the two survive?” asked Grunger.

“That’s where Takel comes in.” said Teshik. “Takel’s fleet alongside the Enforcer, will be the closest Imperial fleet to Takodana. Once they receive the SOS, they will jump in and eliminate everyone by any means necessary. Base Delta Zero...is authorized.”

The room fell into silence, knowing what Base Delta Zero is.

“Whatever it takes.” Thrawn said. “Even Vader and Palpatine cannot survive Base Delta Zero. General Gentis proved the Emperor is nothing but a mortal man. In the event that they still survive all of our attempts, we cut our losses for now and continue to do our duties like normal. Should they start getting suspicious to any of us, Cross and I have planted evidence to incriminate Tigellinus, Pitta, and others. After that, Loor and Cross will stage a ‘coup’ on ISB and eliminate Isard and her inner circle, planting evidence that she knew of the plot but refused to act in order to give an excuse to eliminate any competitors to the throne.”

“So even if we fail, we will still have control of all of our forces plus the ISB.” said Grant. “By then, we wait for another opportunity no?”

“What’s my job?” asked Delvardus.

“You will keep Isard busy.” Cross said. “Recently, she’s begun drawing up plans to have you arrested and take control of your Storm Commandos and Shadow Troopers. Your intel network should be enough to give Isard a headache and keep her attention away from us. Your troops are loyal to you. When the time comes and if things go according to plan, you will be the one to finish off the Ice Queen.”

“Hmmmm, things would be much easier if we had the others.” Takel muttered.

“Gentis let his emotions take control. His ingenuity would’ve been a vital asset to us. As for Trachta and his group, they were fools who could not work together. Trachta and Kadir were huge losses. Having someone like Trachta close to the Emperor and Commander of the Coruscant Security Force would allow us to lockdown Coruscant when the Emperor dies.

We may have control of the Coruscant Defense Fleet, but we are still looking at a long ground battle once that bastard is dead.” responded Teshik.

“All in due time my friends.” Thrawn said. “Now, we will discuss what areas of the Empire each of us will secure and who we may be facing.”

“What about me?” interrupted Screed. “I’ve given all of you information of secret hyperspace routes, the Emperor’s secret fleets, and his bases. What do I do if things fall in place?”

“Patience Screed. You must remember that your name is still well-known and very popular.” reassured the Chiss Grand Admiral. “You will have an active role, but that comes later. Your current predicament my friend, is a temporary setback.”

The Happy Bird

Downtown Sanctuary, Nirauan

Deep in downtown Sanctuary, off duty servicemen hung around The Happy Bird, a popular nightclub among Imperials. Some jumped as the door was kicked open but was soon was followed by laughter as they saw Spike, Aero, and Mic carry a knocked out Cav.

“Can’t fucking believe he followed us all the way here, got drunk, and tried to start a fight.” said Mic beneath his helmet as he carried one of Cav’s leg.

“Well, we did forget about him...again. I’d be pissed too.” Aero commented noting the cracks and dents along with the blood that still coated the CQB specialist’s armor. “Alright, in we go.”

They threw Cav into the backseat of their speeder and jumped right in. In no time, they were going down the busy street. Around them, civilians of all kinds of species were enjoying the nightlife. A group of Human, Twi’lek, and Trogutan teens walking down the street laughing, a drunk Transdoshan and a drunk Wookiee passed out together outside a bar, a Twi’lek woman and a Human male barring any clothing being arrested by the police for public indecency, etc.

“Damn I love this planet.” said Mic as he relaxed in his seat.

“For sure. Just hope everyone stays the fuck away and let us live a good life.” Aero responded.

The trio was silent as they went down the busy downtown. People were so happy here, but for how long they wondered.

“Hey Mic, what were you saying back there?” asked Spike who was on the backseat with Cav’s head on his lap.

“Hm? You mean when I was a little buzzed?” asked Mic looking back at the young dragon.

Spike nodded.

“I was thinking man, about how you don’t have wings but others of your race does. Just...what if you use that magical fire of yours to do other things ya’know? Like cover yourself in some kind of fire armor or use the fire to form some kind of wings to let you fly?”

“Ah yes, you’ve been playing too much Blockcraft. The game where everything’s a fucking block. Created by that douchebag Botch or something. I’m telling you you’re addicted.” Aero said.

“No I’m not.”

“Dude, last week’s briefing you yelled that you got a Diamond Sword Sharpness 3 or some shit and something about Level 10 Sand. Nerdiest fucking things I’ve ever heard.”

“Says you who has a collection of Nyarf guns and watches Ghost Harassers non-stop.”

“Bitch please, at least I didn’t have a childhood crush on Cuga Booding Jr.”

While the two were arguing, Spike was staring off into the distance in thought.

Hmmm, can I?

Captain Dagon Niriz

Hand of Thrawn Fortress, Nirauan

Niriz watched with interest as some members of SCAR Squad were practicing against target droids. He watched as Zuke attached a device to his rotary blaster cannon. Immediately, a huge blue shield big enough to protect the hulk of a Stormtroopers appeared. The barrels of his cannon stuck out of the shield just enough to allow him to fire back.

“YEAH! GET SUM!” Zuke yelled as he began firing everywhere like a mad man. Niriz noticed a retractable white and black Power Hammer attached to his back vertically on his waste instead of a thermal detonator. A Smart Rocket Launcher was strapped to his back but painted with the words “Friendship Launcher” in pink.

Near him, Misty was whistling a tune while blasting droids away from a distance with his sniper. Instead of his usual helmet, he was wearing a prototype created by Mic. On the outside, it looked like a normal Stormtrooper helmet though the visor was blue. It gave Mic the ability to have targets marked, a radar, heartbeat monitors of the rest of his squad, and can be switched to both night vision, and thermal vision.

Mic had helmets suited like this for the rest of his squad but for Twilight and Spike, they had specialized goggles that functioned the same way.

On his wrist was a gun that fired poison darts of his choosing. Considering his days studying botany and his hunting experience, Niriz knew it would come in handy.

Shrap meanwhile, besides his usual flamethrower, had incendiary grenades attached to his waste. Instead however, they were all inside packs for protection so he wouldn’t run the risk of one of them getting show and blowing him up. Curiously, a stuffed porg toy was sticking out of one of the packs.

Finally, there was Kreel who was slashing away the droids with his green lightsaber on one hand, and firing his blaster on the other. Nothing much changed among the Sergeant’s inventory aside from a holo communicator attached to his wrist. Last time Mic, Aero, and several other personnel took a whole army’s worth of holo communicators and created a giant rave party consisting of personnel from all over Thrawn’s territory. Having enough, Kreel had Mic create holo communicators attached to everyone’s wrists.

It wouldn’t come as a surprise for Niriz if Mic added some personal touches to give him more opportunities for shenanigans.

“Enough of this.” Kreel said. He deactivated his lightsaber and put it away. “UNDEROOS!”

Immediately, 9 young adult Thanrax dropped from the ceiling and began mauling the droids. Once that was done, the Thanrax started panting with their tails wagging happily. One began licking Zuke’s helmet causing the man to laugh.

“Alright gents, now we can all rel-”

Kreel was interrupted when his holo communicator activated, showing a woman making out with another woman. Moans echoed throughout the room.

Wordlessly, Kreel slapped his holo communicator, deactivating it.

“MIC!” Kreel yelled into the air.

And, there it is. Niriz thought unsurprised.

Niriz turned around to the alicorn he was teaching. She was hunched over a holotable, frustration evident on her face as her fleet was yet again destroyed in a simulation.

“I don’t get it! Everything I do gets countered!” She said in frustration.

Taking position on the other side of the holotable, Niriz looked at her situation. It was an open space battle, no obstacles. On her end were 15 Star Destroyers and 2 Immobilizer 418s that were now floating wrecks. Her opponent was an entire squadron consisting of 18 Star Destroyers and 1 Super Star Destroyer.

“You still don’t get it don’t you?” Niriz asked.

“Get what?” She asked.

“Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle. Know yourself but not the enemy, every victory you will also suffer a defeat. If you don’t know yourself and the enemy, you will lose every battle.”

Twilight was silent for a moment.

“Wh-what do you mean by that?” she asked.

Niriz began pushing some buttons.

“Let's start with this, we will switch sides.”

The outnumbered fleet was now in Niriz’s side while the SSD and its battlegroup was now in Twilight’s control. Both were on different sides of a solar system and neither Niriz and Twilight could see each other due to fog of war.

“Attack me.” Niriz said.

5 Minutes later

Twilight stared, mouth agape. Her fleet with superior numbers was now a floating debris field. Captain Niriz sent scouts throughout the system and found her fleet quiet easily who stayed in formation with the SSD in the center. A group of 4 Star Destroyers with the 2 Interdictors immediately jumped in her system.

When she moved to intercept them, the Interdictors activated their gravity well generators and pulled one of his Star Destroyers out of hyperspace, right in front of her SSD’s bridge tower. She couldn’t react in time as the Star Destroyer detonated in a massive explosion, taking out the bridge tower and disabling her flagship while also killing her senior staff.

With nobody to lead them, her fleet fell into disarray and launched an attack on the small group. This was the time when the rest of his Star Destroyers jumped in and began picking off her disorganized fleet one by one until none were left alive. Except for the hull of the SSD however which Niriz commented he could capture, repair, and turn it into a valuable asset.

“You...you sacrificed a Star Destroyer and all those people!” Twilight said in shock.

“Not sacrifice my little Twilight,” Niriz said playfully with a smirk. “But necessary losses. I’m not Thrawn who probably could’ve done something without sacrificing a Star Destroyer, so I did everything to the best of my abilities. I also knew you would choose the SSD as your flagship and would never sacrifice your own forces.”

“Wait a minute.” Twilight said analyzing the battlefield. “Know your enemy and know yourself. You knew I was lacking in naval strategies. Are you suggesting I should’ve conceded and retreated my forces before?”

Niriz nodded and he smiled.

“You were facing a stronger and numerically superior enemy. If you had stopped and thought for a minute, you should’ve retreated as it was a battle you cannot win. Better to retreat and fight another day than to lose all your forces in a gamble.”

“But if I sacrificed a Star Destroyer-”

“Would you have stomached that idea if I hadn’t shown you?” Niriz asked with an eyebrow raised.

Twilight shrunk sheepishly.

“No.”

“Exactly, your only logical choice was to retreat. Now,” he pressed some buttons and reset the simulation. “Instead of the computer, you will face me.”

Csaplar, Csilla, Chiss Ascendency

Commander Eli Vanto, Imperial Liaison to the Chiss Ascendency

From a rooftop cafe, Eli looked down from his seat as the street below was filled with protesting Chiss, mostly young Chiss.

“We have been attacked, again and again by this Celestial Alliance. While we sacrifice ourselves, the oligarchy sits on their endless wealth. They insist we stick to the old ways where we let them attack first. Enough is enough, we must tear down the oligarchy and bring change to the Ascendency. The galaxy is changing and so must we.” said an elderly Chiss through the speakers in the middle of the crowd.

“We must follow the example of Mitth’raw’nuruodo and establish relations with this Galactic Empire. Only then will we have a chance of survival. Down with the oligarchy!”

The crowd roared in approval.

“Bring out the guillotine!”

“Power to the mass!”

“Seize the means of production!”

Eli smirked a little, knowing these protests are pushing the ruling elites to establish ties with the Empire. At first, they rejected his offer but after every meeting, he noticed the elite were shaken little by little. The protests at first were small, but began to grow in size due to the CA invasions and news of Thrawn’s achievements Eli leaked to the media.

“Only a matter of time. Either they relent or the people will drag them out of their homes.” Eli muttered stirring his cup of coffee. “Then, and only then, can we actually put a stop to the Celestial Alliance’s plans.”

“And you are certain, this Galactic Empire can stop the Celestial Alliance?” Asked the female sitting in front of him.

“If the Hydras succeed, then yes. It’s a gamble but what choice do you guys have really?” Eli said. His eyes never left the protesters down below.

“Fine, you’re right. But I would still need to establish contact with your Emperor.”

“Not the Emperor. That wouldn’t do you any good. Best you establish with Grand Admiral Thrawn first. His command is the closest to the Celestial Alliance and I’ve heard, he’s already encountered them.”

“So you’ll help me run the CA blockades right?”

Eli looked at his companion with a smile. She was a unicorn, wearing a purple shirt with a leather jacket. Normally Eli would be nervous around intelligence agents of any kind, but his time working with the turncoat Celestial Alliance Intelligence Division agent (C.A.I.D.) was in his opinion, a pleasure.

“Sure, so let's get down to business Agent Sunset Shimmer.”

Author's Note

Ayyyy uploading this because I'm working tomorrow and have no time. For the people who have a problem with the rest of the Mane Six choosing their own interests over Twilight, I will show you guys how things went down in a future flashback chapter. Probably the next chapter, I haven't decided yet.

Also, Gus Fring in The Mandalorion? A fleet of Imperial Star Destroyers in The Rise of Skywalker? If this was a new fleet made by the Emperor as some theorized, why are they Mark I variants?

Anyways the dogfight was inspired by this video.

First video probably not working for you because copyright reasons. Sad I can’t play the video but at least here’s the song you can listen to: