Teleportation. The fastest way in Equestria to get from point A to point B. And for our prisoners, even though their trips were instantaneous, it was the longest moment of their entire lives. For half an instant, all 4 of them were together. Then, beginning the other half, they were suddenly split up, and sent to their destinations.

The first to arrive by a hairsbreadth were Corlia and Stevia. All of a sudden, they found themselves lying on their backs on the cold hard ground inside what appeared to be a large fortress. The flag of the Caribou Empire was also visible on the wall that they could see.

"What is the meaning of this?!" A harsh voice asked.

"They look like Zebra warriors My King!"

"But why are they tied up?"

"Bring them to me." The harsh voice said.

The two Zebras were then grabbed by their chains, and dragged over to the base of a throne. Their chains were then cut to allow them to stand, although they were still being held under guard. The two then looked up, and to their horror, they found themselves looking up at King Danin, the leader of the Caribou Empire. He was dressed in his grey battle mail, and dark pants with boots. On his chest was a metal breastplate, and on his head was a grey crown. He also did not look too happy to see the two Zebras either.

"Now then, who are you, why are you here, and more importantly, HOW did you get here?! Talk fast, and do not lie!"

"I am Ambassador Corlia of the Zebra Empire. This is one of my fellow warriors, Corporal Stevia. We fought in the Battle of Ponyville, but were ultimately captured, and interrogated."

"But how did you get here?!"

"One of the Human officers, The Kid, ordered us tied up, and then had the Diarch Whores teleport us to you. We would have been sent back to Overlord Zakia, but thanks to The Kid's cruel sense of humor, he decided to have us sent to you."

For the longest time, Danin just stared at the two intruders. They had no weapons or armor, and were chained up. As Danin was contemplating what to do, one of the Caribou guards noticed something.

"Hey, what's that tied to your necks? It looks like two documents."

Both of their hearts almost stopped beating. Before they could answer, the messages were cut loose, and were read aloud.

"This document, carried by the ambassador, is a declaration of war from the Humans!"

"WHAT?!?!" All of those in the room were shocked.

"Yes. It says here that they will drive us to extinction! They will never rest until we have been destroyed, demilitarized, and rendered unable to ever conquer again! It's signed by all of their officers, and makes their intentions quite clear. They've sided with the Equestrians against us!"

Danin's reaction was unreadable by anyone. "And, what of the other document?"

"Um, this one appears to be a letter addressed to you, written by a 'Major Don Curry'. He must be the Human's leader."

The letter was handed to Danin, who tore it open, and read it. As he read, he became angrier and angrier. Finally, he became so volatile that he actually began throwing all kinds of weapons at those in the room, even his own soldiers!

"HOW, DARE THIS HUMAN ABOMINATION DARE TO CALL ME THESE THINGS!?!?!?! CALLING ME A WARMONGER, AND ALL CARIBOU A DISEASE; THE SCUM OF THE EARTH?!?!" He then turned his wrath to the Zebras. "AND HOW DARE YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO BRING ME THESE THINGS!?!?! FILTHY, COCK-HUNGRY, SLUTTY FAGGOTS!!!!!!"

"My King!!!" One of his officers screamed over Danin's rage, "I do not believe that the Zebras brought these messages willingly!!!!! They were tied to the backs of their necks, and they were completely chained up, unable to move!!!! Plus, there is no way that they could have teleported themselves in here! They were simply being used as vessels to deliver the human's garbage!!!!"

This did at least somewhat serve to calm Danin down. He sat back down on his throne, but he continued to keep fidgeting with a dagger.

"So, these Humans have decided to side with the Equestrians have they? Well then, so be it! They shall be utterly destroyed! General Rodin?!"

"Yes Sir?"

"Begin making the preparations for an assault on Las Pegasus immediately! Those puny Appaloosa and Dodge City are too small of fish. We must capture a major city!"

Rodin saluted. "As you have willed it, My King, it shall be done!"

However, before Rodin could act, he was interrupted. Suddenly, Danin's communicator came to life, and a hologram of Overlord Zakia appeared. And he did not look too happy either.

"King Danin, Lord of the Caribou?"

"What do you want Zakia?"

"OVERLORD Zakia, if you don't mind! However, we received some very, shall we say, 'unexpected postage'!"

"Oh, and what did you receive?"

Zakia then turned his device until the holograms of two tied up Caribou officers appeared.

"General Stuggs?!" Danin was shocked. "I thought that you were captured!"

"Please forgive me, My King, for I have failed you. Yes, I was captured. I was also forced to deliver a war declaration to Overlord Zakia, given to me by The Kid. He also gave Sergeant Dothan an extremely rude and vulgar letter to deliver to Overlord Zakia, telling him exactly what he thought about his culture, and way of life."

"Yes!" Zakia interrupted. "And I was also told that two of my warriors were sent to you. Is that true?"

Danin turned his device until it showed Corlia and Stevia. "Yeah, they're right here. Do you want them back?"

"Do you want your men back?"

"Actually, I do. They have failed, but yet, they have brought back Intel on the Human's war-train. The pictures and descriptions are somewhat vague, but Intel is Intel, so yes, I would like them back."

"Just as I would like my people back as well. They have also sent me Intel of the Human's methods of warfare."

Danin agreed to this, and the prisoners were then taken to a rendezvous point, exchanged, and then sent back to their proper overlords. Once that was complete, the two leaders spoke again.

"Do we have any means of contacting the Humans?"

Danin shrugged. "I do not know, why?"

"Because, don't you think that it's high time that WE declared war on THEM?! I mean, after all of the things that they said to us, isn't it time that we returned the favor?"

Danin nodded. "Yes, you are right Overlord Zakia, it is high time that we showed those mental freak-shows what's what! General Rodin?"

"Um, yes Sir?"

"Can you patch us through to the Humans?"

Rodin looked worried. "I........um, d-don't know Sir. Magical communication is one thing, but the Humans seem to only use technology. Getting into their systems may prove to be an extreme challenge. However, I will try to send out a signal."

Rodin then walked over to a set of what looked to be old radio equipment, but there were also several crystals attached to the apparatus as well. Rodin then flicked a few switches, and turned the device on.

"Transmitting on an open frequency Sir. Awaiting a reply."

The hailing signals continued to be sent out, and the wait for a reply continued.

After the Zebras and Caribou had been sent on their way, most of the crowd dispersed to head back to their stations. The lone exceptions were myself, Don, Jim, Joe, Celestia, Luna, and General Shining. We stayed in the command center a while longer to discuss cooperation terms between our armed forces. Suddenly though, we were interrupted by DELCI.

"Master, Boss!"

"Huh? What is it DELCI? What's wrong?"

"I'm picking up a series of hailing signals, and their origin is from the Caribou Empire! Their signals are glitchy, and somewhat sporadic, but they mean that the enemy is trying to contact us!"

With that, the entire room went silent.

"What?! The enemy is trying to contact us?!"

Don looked worried. "Most likely, this is because of our war declaration, and of course my letters."

"And what do we do Don?" Jim asked.

Don sighed. "Captain Leopard?"

"Yes Sir?"

"Work your magic with DELCI. See if the two of you can patch those signals through to us on our secured channel."

I nodded. "Yes Sir. And would you want video, or just audio?"

"Video would be nice, if that's possible."

"Oh, it should be possible Boss. My Master and I should be able to hijack their signal, and force it through our secured channel. If they want to talk to us, then they're going to get to!"

While the others waited in front of the computer consoles used for live video calls, DELCI and I got to work. After tinkering around for a bit, we managed to "grab" the signals, (which was difficult due to their being magical, instead of standard waves like what we were used to) and force them into our secure channel.

"Anything yet General?"

The general shrugged. "Um, I don't know Sir. I keep thinking that something connects to our signal, but it always goes away as soon as I try and see what it is."

The General then flipped on his hologram projector, and that seemed to have an effect. "Sir, I think that I've got something!"

"What, what do you have?"

A look of concern crossed Rodin's face. "Um, it looks like....." He never got a chance to finish that thought. Before he could, everything suddenly went haywire! The whole screen and sound speakers glitched out and went to static, before the screen went black for a few moments. Then, a picture of a wolf's head appeared on the screen.

"Har, har, har, har!" It seemingly laughed in a rather mechanical voice. "Did you fools really think that it was going to be that easy? Well, fortunately for you, the higher ups are very interested in meeting you. Here they are now!"

The screen then went to a video feed, and those in that room, as well as Zakia and his advisers, all saw a desk, with several Humans sitting at it. They all stared into the camera, unblinking, and with no facial expressions.

"I recognize all of those Humans from the reports from General Stuggs! It's The Kid, Scary Old Guy, Fox-Face, and, um, um.....The Apprentice!" (Don, Jim, me, and Joe.)

Don nodded. "Quite correct. Now then, now that we can see all of you, where are King Danin, and Overlord Zakia?"

They both stepped forwards.

"I'm King Danin, ruler of the Caribou Empire!"

"And I'm Overlord Zakia, ruler of the Zebra Empire!"

"And I am Major Don Curry, commanding officer of the Battleship Express, aka, the war train that all of you fear so much. Now then, now that we have the formalities out of the way, why are you reaching out to us? Do you wish to surrender?"

"You will wish!", Danin sneered. "Zakia and I received your little 'mail shipments'. I must say, you all must REALLY be wanting to die such horrible deaths for DARING to defy us in such a manner!"

"That was our declaration of war. Also, the letters were not meant to be offensive, but rather, describe how I feel about both of your societies. You thrive on slavery and oppression! I've read all about you, and we interrogated your soldiers. You sure love to rape and conquer don't you? Well then, let me be the first to tell you, your little raid on Ponyville was your high-water mark. You will NEVER reach that far North ever again! Soon, you will all be sent scurrying back to the filthy rat-holes that you all came from!"

"That's right!" I added. "And your females will be set free, and will be taught how to create better lives for themselves. No longer will they live behind the mask of 'Male Rule'!"

Zakia looked at me. "So says the freak wearing a mask himself! Why do you even wear that thing?! Take if off sucker, you don't even need it!"

"You really want me to remove it? Because if I do, you're not gonna like what you see."

"Oh yeah? How can it be that bad? You're just so self conscious that you....." I then grabbed my mask, and slid it upwards onto my head, revealing my face in all of it's burnt, battle-damaged glory. "OH GODS!!! IT'S AWFUL!!!! PUT THAT MASK BACK ON, AND DON'T TAKE IT OFF AGAIN!!!!!"

I smirked, and complied. "As you wish!"

Once I was done putting my mask back into place, Danin spoke up again. "You Humans think that you're so clever! Humiliating us, and sending us, as you call it, 'hate mail', but I'm here today to tell you that you're in some seriously hot water now! As of this moment, the Imperial Alliance has declared war on the 'Battleship Express', as you call it, in addition to Equestria. They will burn, and you with them!"

Now it was Jim's turn to speak. "Not if we have anything to say about it! During the battle for Ponyville, did you REALLY think that we were throwing everything that we had at you? HELL NO!!!! What you saw was MAYBE 30-40% of what we're fully capable of! Our train has single-handedly taken on entire armies and won! This is a war that we didn't want, but it is a war that we are now involved with, and will see through to the end, no matter what the cost."

"The cost will be your lives!" Zakia yelled. "And once you have fallen, your train, and all of its weapons will be ours!"

"Oh really, you striped-ass newspaper lookin' motherf@#ker?" Joe added. "I would think not! If the worst happened, and our train was captured, we would initiate the self-destruct sequence, blowing us all straight into the Afterlife!"

"No, we would stop you before that happened."

"Oh really, and how would you do that, oh deranged Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer lookin-ass! You look like you couldn't make the cut for a new Narnia movie!"

"SILENCE!!!!" Danin yelled. "You shut your mouth right now Boy, before I send a force to Ponyville to shut it for you! Now then, we will be open for further communications if you wish to surrender. In the meantime though, prepare your asses and throats, for they will be so VERY sore when we're done with them!"

"Oh really? That's exactly what I said to your wife last night!" Joe yelled just as the call was terminated.

"Vicious, deplorable little punk!" Danin roared after the call ended. "They want a war so badly? Well, they're about to get one! General Stuggs?"

"Um, y-yes Sir?"

"I'm first demoting you to colonel. Then, I'm putting you in charge of capturing both Appleoosa, and Dodge City. If you prove yourself worthy with that task, then I will have you reinstated as a general. If you fail me again though........well.......let's just hope that doesn't happen, shall we?"

"Yes, My King. Thank you, My King!" Stuggs then left with Dothan to go prepare a plan of attack.

"General Rodin?"

"Yes Sir?"

"You may now begin your preparations for your attack on Las Pegasus. I want that done as soon as possible, just in case Colonel Stuggs runs into any more 'difficulties'."

"Yes Sir! I'll go draw up a plan right away!" Rodin then left to do just that.

Back on the train, while Joe was still bragging about his "amazing" roasting skills, Don, Jim, and I were talking to Celestia.

"So that's pretty much the story now Princess. They've declared war on us as well, and are most likely preparing for a strike again."

Celestia nodded gravely. "You're right Major. This is why we need to strike before we can be struck again!"

Don nodded. "Yes, however, there is another problem that we need to discuss."

"Which is what?"

"Well, thanks to your supplies, we will have plenty of coal and water for our Big Boy, but that leaves something even more critical, ammunition. We still have plenty on the train, and Iron Glory has plenty of it for us as well, but what happens when those supplies run out? Our train will be useless!"

Now Celestia was concerned. "Yes, this is a serious problem Major. What kind of ammunition do you need?"

"Well, we're going to need machine gun bullets, 9mm bullets, mortar rounds, 16in shells, powder bags for them, railgun shells....." Don's list went on for a while.

When he finally finished, Celestia just stared at him. "Um, yes, that could be something of a problem. We don't really have anything like that."

Jim looked at her. "If we were to provide you with schematics for everything though, would you be able to make them?"

"I don't know. How complicated is your ammunition to build?"

"Surprisingly, it's actually very much simplified. This was done to make mass production much easier." Jim then picked up a set of schematics for a 16in. shell, and showed them to her. "See?"

Celestia looked at the blueprints. "Yes", She said slowly, "Yes! I think that this would be doable! Everything is listed right here in the schematics, and it's all so simplified! Copies need to be made of these, and then sent to our primary munition production plants in Manehattan, and Van Hoover. They should be able to make the ammunition that you require!"

Don nodded. "Yes, I certainly hope that they will be. And thank you Princess for helping us with this."

"Don't thank me Major. If anything, WE should all be thanking YOU! If you hadn't intervened, I shudder to think of what might have happened in Ponyville."

"Well, thank you, and you still have our thanks, and I don't want to think about what could have happened in Ponyville either. I just thank God that he spared us, and sent us here so that we could help you."

"As do I Major, as do I."

The meetings lasted a little while longer, and then they finally ended for the time being.

Once I was back outside, I walked over to the station platform.

"Um, excuse me", I asked the closest pony who worked at the station, "Do you know where I could find a newspaper?"

He looked up at me. "Yeah, they would normally be some for sale in the bin to your right, but unfortunately, we're sold out today. However, I'm done reading the paper, so you can use mine if you want."

I nodded. "Sure, thank you Sir."

He handed me the paper. "You're welcome."

I saw that the paper was the Ponyville Times. I also saw that right smack-dab on the front page was a picture of Big Boy 4009.

"Massive war-train crewed by Humans from Earth shows up in Ponyville!"

I sat down on a bench on the platform, and began to read. The article was all about the train, and the role that it had played in the defense of Ponyville. As I was reading though, I suddenly saw something out of the corner of my eye.

"Huh? What's that?"

I looked up, and sure enough, I saw Rarity standing by the Big Boy. At first, I couldn't tell what she was doing, but then I saw that she was holding a tape measure.

"Huh? What's she doing?" I continued to watch her.

I saw her walk to between the two set of drive wheels, all the while trying to avoid the jets of water and steam that were periodically released from the engine.

"Vicious brute!" I heard her mutter. "Why did the Americans have to build you for such a drab, and dreary purpose of hauling freight Big Boy? Why couldn't you have been made for pulling passengers? And your colors are all wrong! All of this black and gray! OH! It simply will NEVER do! That does it, you're getting a makeover!"

"Is she.....talking to the engine? And what did she mean, 'you're getting a makeover'?" I had a bad feeling, but I continued to watch anyway.

She began to write in a notebook. "First of all, all of your, eh, 'military hardware', needs to go! No more guns, no more spiked front plow, no thick, bullet-proof glass! Next, your number. You are not '4009', you are '4025', as Captain Leopard himself said! Next, you're going to need a new shape. Cutting out one set of drive wheels, as well as one of the back wheels, and shortening your boiler should bring you down to a 4-8-2 configuration. Next, your railroad name. You're not a part of the 'Union Pacific' anymore, you are now an Equestrian Railway engine! And your color. No more black or gray! Pink is all the rage right now, so I will paint you pink!"

I was in a state of shock. If I had just heard Rarity correctly, she had every intent of taking a priceless American treasure, an American Big Boy Locomotive, 4009, puller of the Battleship Express, strip her of all of her military hardware, cut out one set of drive wheels and one back wheel, shorten the boiler, get rid of the "Union Pacific" logos on the engine and tender, and paint the train pink!

"She CANNOT be serious! That engine is the property of the RWD! A military asset! She wouldn't DARE touch it without our consent!"

Assume nothing, I repeat, assume nothing! As I continued to watch, to my absolute horror, from a cart that she had pulled with her to the station, Rarity pulled out a can of pink paint, grabbed a brush, dipped it into the paint, and was bringing the brush up to the right rear cylinder of the second set of drive wheels!

"STOP!!!!!!" I screamed, throwing aside my paper, and running over to the engine, "GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF MY ENGINE RIGHT NOW!!!!!"

Rarity was so startled by my outburst that she dropped the paint can that she'd been holding! Luckily, when it hit the ground, it simply fell over, and the paint spilled onto the ground, instead of being put onto the Big Boy.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT YOU'RE DOING!?!?!"

"Well, before you ruined my paint, I was about to give your engine a makeover!"

"SHE DOESN'T NEED A MAKEOVER!!!! Big Boy 4009 is perfect just the way that she is! She wouldn't be pulling the Battleship Express if she wasn't the way that she is now!"

"Well, I just meant to..."

"And this engine is the property of the RWD! It's NOT yours! DO NOT EVER touch my engine again! She will remain the way that she is, from now, until the end of her existence!"

Rarity sighed. "Yes, you are right Captain Leopard. I shouldn't have been so bold. It's just that, your engine looked so dirty, so ugly, so....so...."

"Black, gray, and utilitarian?"

"Yes! Exactly! However, if this is the engine that helped to win WW6 just the way that she is now, who am I to touch her? She's a great American engine."

I smiled. "Well, I'm glad that we're on the same page now Miss Rarity. Feel free to look all you want, but no touching!"

"Yes, no touching! However, why would I work on an engine, when my biggest challenge ever is standing right in front of me?"

I was confused. "Huh? What does that mean?"

She smirked. "I mean you Darling! You need a makeover! Your uniform is old and worn, your hair needs to be changed color, and that mask! No, no no! That simply will not do!"

I got that message loud and clear. "WHAT?!?! NO!!! YOU STAY AWAY FROM ME!!!!" I then took off running down the length of the train, with Rarity in hot pursuit.

"HELP!!! RARITY'S TRYING TO GIVE ME A MAKEOVER!!!! HELP ME!!!"

However, instead of actually trying to help their fellow soldier, most of the train's crew were content to let Rarity give me a makeover, or were laughing at my misfortune.

"LOOK OUT BELOW STUD!!!!" A mare's voice yelled.

"Whoa, what?!?!"

A cyan blur landed on the ground in front of me. To my shock, it was Rainbow Dash!

"DASH, HELP ME!!! RARITY'S TRYING TO GIVE ME A MAKEOVER!!!!"

Dash then grabbed my arm. "Hold on tight Stud!"

"Huh? Why do I have to hold on......???? GAAAHHHH!!!!!!!" Dash then took off, and dragged me into the sky after her! She flew for a bit, before pausing over a cloud, and then letting go of me.

"AAAAHHHHH!!!!" I screamed as I fell to what I thought was going to be my death, but instead, I landed on the cloud, and came to a stop! "OOOFFFF!!!" I landed face down, and it felt like I was lying on a really squishy bed.

"Wait....what? How....How is this even possible?! How am I sitting on a cloud?!" I then fully sat up.

"You're able to do this Stud, cuz you're now at least part Pegasus, just like me. You can fly, and even walk on clouds!" I looked over, and Dash had landed on the cloud as well. She sat facing me, and I sat facing her. I saw that she was wearing a blue tank-top, and black shorts.

"Wow, um, t-thanks Dash, for saving me....I mean, it's not like I needed your help! I could have gotten away from Rarity on my own!"

Dash smirked. "Yeah, I'm sure that you could Stud, but I just wanted to help you out! And I also wanted to say, I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For what happened earlier today. I shouldn't have been in your room. I also shouldn't have been naked, or in bed with you. After thinking it over, I realized that I needed to come an apologize to you."

"Darn right about that!"

"So, do you accept my apology?"

I had to think about that. Finally, I said, "Well, that's the thing Dash. I want to, but.......I just........never mind. It's not worth diving into right now. Not that you would even listen anyway! But yeah, I do forgive you, I guess."

"*squee!* Thanks Stud! You're the best!" She then jumped forwards, and hugged me.

"Gah! No physical contact, no physical contact!" However, I only made a half-hearted effort to push Dash away from me. "No hugs! I DO NOT do physical contact!" ("Man, I'm so glad that I'm wearing this Kitsune mask. The last thing I need is Dash seeing me blushing right now!" I thought.)

Dash pouted. "Hmph! All I was trying to do was say that I was sorry! You didn't have to be so mean!"

Before I could answer though, she changed the subject. "Hey Stud?"

"What Dash?"

"Have you learned how to fly yet?"

I looked at my back. Sure enough, my gray wings were still there. Ever since we had all discovered our new abilities, most, if not all of us had endeavored to use them. Some called it Magic, but Don and Jim had a different theory. At one point, all of us had been a part of "Project Sterling" during WW4, which would have created 3 types of Human-Wolf Super-Soldiers; Flyers, or those with wings who could fly, Psychics, who could teleport, and use their mind to move objects, and SS, or Super-Strength, Super-Endurance. Oddly enough, I was a Flyer, as was Don, and others. The project had failed, but now, had it finally succeeded?

I sighed. "No, I haven't flown yet. In fact, I don't think that any of us with wings have. Some of the guys with magic have figured out how to use their abilities, and the ones with super strength don't need any training, but I don't think that any of us have flown yet."

She looked at me with her soft magenta eyes. "How badly do you want to be the first human to fly?"

That did it, I was now in total conflict with myself. Part of me said "Yes, do this! It's time that you started taking control of your life again, doing things, and actually trusting people again! Rainbow Dash is you WAIFU!!!! SHE'S REAL!!! Don't lose her now!" The other part said, "No, this is a bad idea! The status quo is working just fine. All you need is your brothers in arms. Plus, remember what Dash did in your bed earlier? That could easily happen again! Don't do this!"

Even though I was wearing my mask, Dash could tell that I had an inner conflict going on inside me. "So I really am getting to him! I may be close to bringing down his walls. He seems to be close to a tipping point!" To sweeten the deal, Dash added, "I was talking to Major Don a bit earlier today before the meeting. He gave me an enlistment form to sign, so that I could become a crew member of the Battleship Express!"

That did it. The shift happened, and I took control of my life.

I sighed. "Ok Dash, you win. Let's make history!"

"*Squee!* That's so great Stud! Just follow me!" She walked over to the edge of the cloud.

I followed her, and when I was close to the edge, I was really taken aback by the view. We were maybe 4,000 feet or so off of the ground, and I could see the Battleship Express down on the tracks below us.

"Wow. What an amazing view! You can see everything from up here, even the train! So how do we do this, how do I learn how to fly?"

"Um, well, flight isn't really something that you 'learn', it's kinda just something that just......happens. You already know how to do it, you just need that part of your brain to kick into gear."

"Oh? And how does that happen?" (The fact that I had no idea what was about to happen when it was so blatantly obvious is so painful, I really DO NOT want to think about it!)

"Well, I'll do to you, what my parents did to me. Ever heard of 'fly or die'? It's kinda like that."

"Yeah, NO, WAIT, WHAT?!?!?!"

"Bye now!" Dash then spanked me with her wings, and the impact caused me to lose my balance, and fall off of the cloud!

"AAAAHHHH!!!!" I screamed as I fell. Dash then took off herself, and flew down after me to check my progress.

I could hear the wind screaming past me as I continued to fall. I could tell that if I fell onto the train, then I would most likely flatten one of the ammunition cars! Suddenly however, something in my head came online.

"Just put your arms out in front of you, and flap your wings, in long, slow strokes." A voice in my head said, "Up, and down, up, and down. That's how flight works."

I decided that I really didn't have any other options, so I decided to do what the voice told me to do. I then put my arms out in front of me, and then flapped my wings in long, slow strokes. Suddenly, I felt myself slowing down. I got slower and slower, until finally, I actually came to what felt like a complete stop.

I then opened my eyes, and to my shock, I. Was. FLYING!!!! Yes, flying, as in "I just defied all of the known Laws of Physics" flying! The wind was blowing through my hair and furry ears, my tail was flowing behind me, and I was too stunned to say anything. Eventually, I was able to stop mid-flight, and just hover for a while.

As I was flapping in place, Dash flew up next to me. "Wow Stud, you really are a natural-born flyer, just like me! You flew, and you didn't die!"

In response, I didn't say anything, but I did pull Dash into a hug. "T-thanks". I whispered. I then would have kissed her on the cheek, but because I was still wearing the mask, Dash's "kiss" came from the mask's fox muzzle. "Thanks for, everything.......NO!" I then pulled away from Dash. "I mean, sure, you helped me to become the first Human to fly, but......i-it's not like I like you....or anything! I-idiot! Anyway, I have to go back to the train, but......" I then mumbled something.

"What was that Stud? I didn't hear hear you."

"I......said,....." I mumbled again.

"Still can't hear you. You're mumbling again."

"I said, if you.....want to, maybe.....eat dinner with me later.......then you're welcome to..... Anyway, bye!" I then took off fast, and flew downwards, towards the train.

Dash was shocked, and filled with joy. "I knew it! He really does like me! He's just still at war with himself over it! I've almost gotten inside! First he hugged me after he INSISTED that he hated physical contact, and then he tried to kiss me! It's such a shame that that kiss was thwarted by his mask. Oh well, maybe next time!"

Dash then flew back towards the train as well. "Soon Stud", she smirked to herself, "Very, very, soon."

Author's Note

Well, that was Chapter 8. So now both Danin and Zakia have declared war on the Battleship Express, and have vowed to wipe them out. Meanwhile, they've also made plans to take down Appaloosa, Dodge Junction, and even Las Pegasus! What's going to happen with that? Where will the next battle take place? What about those companies in Manehattan and Vanhoover? Will they be able to make more ammunition for us? And if they do, will it work properly? And what'll happen with my relationship with Rainbow Dash? Well, you know the drill, keep reading and I'll tell you!

Meanwhile, as always, comments, feedback, questions, as well as spreading the word about this story, are always appreciated, and I'll see you all in Chapter 9, which will set up another major battle!

ScarFox out for now!

(Also, I haven't really seen any new comments for a little while now. I really enjoy reading them, answering your questions, and sending replies back. I know that so many of you read this story, so could you guys maybe send some more comments/questions my way please? I would really appreciate it.)