For the longest time after the video call was terminated, Don, myself, General Shining, and Alex, all stayed in the PCC. We were crying, screaming, stamping around, throwing profanity, and coming up with a plan.

I looked over at them. "They want to make this war personal so f@#king badly, then we'll make it personal for them!" (The others in the PCC had run for their lives, as a Human-wolf in our state was the most dangerous thing alive!)

All across the rest of the Battleship Express, our rabid, vicious, hate-filled rage spread like wildfire. It was like a spark lighting a trail of gasoline. The more that they watched, the more angry they became. They maybe didn't have the levels of rage that Don, Shining, Alex, and I had, but it was still a close second. Now, all of us wanted blood; Zebra blood.

"How DARE they have the AUDACITY to steal mates from the Major, Captain Leopard, and Lt. Alex?! They. Will. DIE!!!!"

After taking at least a few moments to try and get a grip on myself, I did manage to replace the screen that I had destroyed in my rage. Just as I did, we suddenly got a call.

I flipped the screen on. "What? What is it?" To my surprise, it was the Princesses again. This time though, they didn't look so worried, in fact, I barely even recognized them anymore. Where there had once been 3 princesses, I now saw 3 vessels that harbored about as much hate-induced rage as we had.

Celestia then spoke up. "Are they gone?"

"Yes, they're gone. It's just us, and you."

"They......how dare they.......HOW DARE THEY ATTACK AN UNARMED MEDICAL TRAIN!!!!!!!" Cadence screamed, "THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS!!!!!"

"NOT AS OUTRAGEOUS AS THEIR TAKING TWILIGHT AND HER FRIENDS HOSTAGE!!!!" Celestia added.

"What do you want us to do Princess?" Shining asked.

"Do I even need to say it General?"

"I vote that you should. I mean, we all have an idea of what to do, and most likely, you do too. However, those two ideas may conflict, so could you please specify what your idea is?"

When Celestia looked at us, I could hear the sirens sounding, as well as the area around her getting darker. She looked like a steam engine seconds away from a boiler explosion.

"Do it!"

"Um, what?"

"DO IT!!!!" She screamed, "SHOW THEM WHO THE REAL MASTERS OF WARFARE ARE!!! I'm giving you all of the authority to wage the war as you see fit! Hold NOTHING BACK, do you hear me?!?! NOT A DAMN, F@#KING, THING!!! Do WHATEVER you have to do! I DON'T CARE HOW MANY ZEBRAS DIE, just.........END THEM!!! RIP THEM UP, TEAR THEM APART, SHOOT THEM, BURN THEM, DROWN THEM, EVEN USE YOUR MOST POWERFUL WEAPONS, JUST F@#KING KILL THEM ALL!!!!!"

I turned to the camera, and saluted. "As you have willed it Princess, it shall be done!!!"

Don saluted as well. "We will begin the campaign immediately Princess. By the time that the sun rises tomorrow morning, it will mark the last sunrise before we move beyond the Macintosh Hills!"

"We will annihilate the Zebras, and we will bring Twilight, Dash, Pinkie, and Applejack home!" Shining finished.

We all agreed to this, and then the call was terminated for the time being. All of us then went to prepare.

While some were cheering the death and destruction that they were about to cause, two men on the train were not. Chief Engineer Jim went to the office of Father Francis Charles, the chaplain of Battalion 4009.

"I'm extremely worried about this Father. This war was already going bad enough, and now we have to contend with them losing their mates. That's shoved them off the deep end!"

Father Charles nodded. "I've seen it all too many times. Their hatred has turned them into what they hate the most."

"Futas by another name."

"Exactly! By using their anger to defeat these 'Futas by another name', they've become no better."

Jim sighed. "I'll go and see if I can talk some sense into Don." He got up to leave. "But, Father?"

"Yes Jim?"

Jim sighed. "I just wish that......Jeff was still here with us. He would know what to do."

"Yes, Jeff Coleson was a great man. Now, he's gone home, leaving us behind to continue his legacy."

"Yes, a legacy that is threatened by the recklessness of a handful of individuals."

Jim then left to go see Don.

"Come in."

"Don, we need to talk."

Don looked up from the maps on his desk. "What about Jim?"

"This whole mission. Our job was to protect the Ponies, not wipe out a whole race."

Don looked up at him, with a look of pained anger on his face. "We have to do this Jim. They took Twilight from me, Dash from Leopard, and Applejack from Alex. They also took Pinkie. We have to get them back!"

"I know, but......do you really think that this is the way to do that?"

With a fury, Don grabbed Jim by the collar, and slammed him up against the wall of his office. "Don't you question me Bender! I'M the one in charge here! You....." Don's anger began to give way. "You don't know what it's like to lose those you love! You don't have any family that died in the war! YOU DON'T KNOW HOW IT FEELS TO LOSE SOMEONE CLOSE TO YOU!!!!" Don then shed a few tears.

Jim grabbed Don's hands, and pried them off of him. "Yes, I do Don. I lost both of my grandsons to WW6, and my sons and nephews to WW5. I KNOW how it feels to feel loss! And believe me, I'm just as mad as you are! They're holding 2 of our battalion soldiers hostage, and executed a 3rd! I'm HELLA pissed off! But this is not the way to go."

"Well, then how would you do it Jim? I see no way that this can end without us taking drastic action."

Jim thought about that. He tried to come up with another answer, but they all came back to the same conclusion; all out war, or giving in. Finally, he looked at Don. "I know that you're right Don, but I just wish that there was another way. However, those Zebras have indeed signed their own death warrants. I see now that we must defeat them. You are the boss around here, so it's your call, but I still say that we need to do this carefully."

"Noted Jim. And we will be taking this campaign 1 step at a time. However, we'll need to strike them hard, fast, and with a vengeful fury. We have to wipe them out before they can respond to our presence!"

Jim sighed. Deep down, he was conflicted. He knew what the right thing to do was, but yet, he knew that they had to save the hostages as well. He couldn't do both, so, for the time being, he decided to see where the campaign went.

Meanwhile, in the Zebra Empire, the 4 Element bearers were moved to their dungeon cell for the night. Here, their restraints were somewhat removed, and they were given water in bowls, and food in bowls as well. They were then locked into their cell. However, before they could really even collect their thoughts, their cell door opened, and a large lump was thrown inside, before the door slammed shut again.

To Twilight's horror, she saw that it was Private Cole! He was horribly bruised, naked, bleeding, and had clearly been raped multiple times.

"Private, Private Cole! C-can you hear me?"

"Mmm.......hmmm...." Came a weak reply.

"What.....did those monsters do to you?"

"I....r-refused to t-tell them....anything. T-they, tried to f-force me, b-but I h-held....firm..... T-they....broke me."

"Where's your friend, Private Dan?" Pinkie asked.

"D-dead." Cole muttered.

"T-they, k-killed him?" Applejack asked nervously. W-wh-what happened?"

Cole smirked a bit. "Heh. T-they tr-tried to f-force him to s-suck a cock. D-Dan told him that any-anything that went i-into his mouth, t-they were g-going to lose. T-they d-didn't listen, and one l-lost his d-dick and b-balls because of it! K-kicked his f-face in, b-but Dan j-just laughed at them until he b-breathed his last."

"So they killed 2 of the 3 Humans, and horribly abused the 3rd one." Twilight thought. "How much longer will this last?!"

Suddenly, the sounds of their cell being unlocked were heard. Then, the door slowly opened, and a Zebra soldier carrying medical supplies entered.

"Um, I came to patch up the Human."

"T-touch me, and y-you die!" Cole muttered.

"But your wounds are infected! I have to patch you up, or your value as a bargaining chip will diminish. You are the last one left, so we cannot afford to let you die."

"F-f@#ker....." Cole muttered. He did however let the Zebra patch him up.

The Zebra then looked at the 4 Element Bearers. "I don't know if you really care, but I'm Private Maul. I hate the Zebras, and everything that they stand for. Even though I am a Zebra, I do not stand with them. I came down here tonight to give you the last act of kindness before I end my own life." He then pulled out a communicator. "I thought that you would want to say goodbye to your coltfriends. This communicator has just enough power for one more call." He then handed the device to them.

Twilight began to fiddle with it. Eventually, she triggered it, and using the com settings, she somehow managed to get it to patch through to the Battleship Express.

I was sitting in the SCC close to my room when Twilight's communication came. I was talking to Don and Alex, when suddenly, our screen in the room came to life.

"What is it? Who is this?!" Then, to my shock, I saw Twilight! "T-T-TWILIGHT?!?!?!"

"WHAT?!?!?!" Don got over to the screen. "Twilight?! Is that really you?!"

She nodded. "Yes, I'm here Don. I'm ok, for the time being at least."

"Are the others there with you?"

Twilight turned the communicator. Sure enough, Dash, Pinkie, and Applejack also became visible.

"Where are you Stud?" Dash asked.

"Right here Dashie, I'm right here!" I moved a bit closer to the screen.

"I miss you so much Stud. You have to come get us!"

"Sure, just one question. What's my cat's name?"

Dash looked at me curiously. "Um, what cat? You don't have a cat. You have a wolf named Aurora."

I nodded. "I know, I just had to make sure that it was really you. One can never be too sure."

She nodded. "Yeah, I feel ya Stud. Just please hurry! Our time as bargaining chips may be coming to an end. Zakia keeps talking about taking us into his harem!"

"Which he WILL NOT be doing!" Don broke in. "We have a plan to end this. But, my quick question, how are you talking to us right now?"

"That was my doing Sir." A Zebra then stepped into view. "My name is Private Maul. I'm a Zebra who hates my race, and everything that they stand for. I decided to do one last good thing before I committed suicide tonight. I cannot stand what my people have done. I will end it now."

He then reached to his belt, grabbed a gun, and then walked out of view. Then, there came the sound of a door closing, and then we all heard a loud *Bang!*, and something hit the ground.

"He's dead! He shot himself!" Twilight reported just before she threw up.

None of us knew what to make of that. However, he was a Zebra, and he was dead, so now he was not a threat.

"Just hang in there for a little bit longer Dash", I told her. "We're all coming for ya! It'll just be a little bit longer. Princess Celestia herself has given all of us the full authority to wage the war as we see fit. We will show the Zebras what happens to those who steal our mates! I will find you, I will save you, I'll hug you, and then I'll carry you back to the train."

Dash smiled a bit with tears in her eyes. "That'll....be so nice Stud, just hurry!"

"We will. Now, all of you girls just keep surviving, and brace for impact! Soon, we'll be right there, and there will be no one left to hurt you."

They all nodded. "Just, please hurry. Like we've said before, we don't know how much longer we can last without having to resort to doing something horrible."

"Don't worry girls", Don reassured them, "You won't have to. Now that they've decided to take things to a personal level, we've decided to remove the gloves. They will fry, every last single one of them! May Death show them mercy, for we will have none!"

I then thought of something. "Oh, wait, do you girls know where Private Cole and Private Dan are?"

"I'm here Sir!" Cole then moved into camera view. He looked like he'd been roughed up pretty bad.

"Are, you alright Private? And where's Dan?"

"He's.......he's dead Sir. He warned the Zebras that anything that went into his mouth they would lose. They didn't listen, he bit one of their dicks off, then managed to get the balls too before he was beaten to death. He died laughing in their faces! It's down to just me Sir. I've also been beaten, raped, jizzed on and in, urinated on, had my tail fur cut off, lost parts of my hair, and I was branded as well. They did similar things to Dan before he was killed."

When we heard that, we were all shocked. Then our shock gave way to sadness, which became horror, which then bled into more rage.

"They.....will PAY THROUGH THEIR ASSES FOR WHAT THEY'VE DONE TO YOU, DAN, AND CORPORAL DAVIS!!!!"

"They need to be wiped out, all of them!" Cole said through clenched teeth. "They're all in on it, even the females and children!"

"WHAT?!?!?!"

"Yeah! While we were being dragged through the streets of Zebrica, I saw numerous captives being raped by children, and females were also raping, and drugging the captives. This system truly is rotten to it's very core. It needs to end!"

I was quivering with rage. "Just, hold on Cole. We will be on top of your location in a matter of days! Your capture will be avenged, and all of the Zebras will PAY!!!"

Cole nodded, and then, after he, Twilight, Dash, Pinkie, and Applejack said their goodbyes to us, the video call was terminated due to Maul's communicator running out of power, and we were all left to collect our thoughts.

All throughout that night, from the desert surrounding the ruins of Appaloosa, Desert Battalion witnessed a sight that scared them more than anything that they had ever seen. From all around the area, came sounds that they had never heard before. They were the cries from Human-wolves in deep distress. Some were cries of pain, others were cries of anger and rage. They also occasionally saw glowing eyes peering at them from the darkness. Sometimes, the glowing eyes would step into the light of nearby campfires, revealing a Human-wolf. The Human-wolf would just stand there for a few moments, before slipping back into the darkness.

When word reached the battalion of the video call from Overlord Zakia, and what resulted from that, Captain Fur sighed. "So, they lost their mates, and are ready to go the full miles to get them back. I guess that they've already taken to practicing their psychological warfare tactics, and I must say that I am most impressed. My soldiers are absolutely petrified of them; a fine piece of work on their part."

Fur also learned that Shining's Battalion, Canterlot's First, had merged with Battalion 4009, for the upcoming "expedition" into the Zebra Empire. Now calling themselves the "Big Boy Battalion", they were ready to ship out with the Battleship Express, and Iron Glory. They wanted both vengeance for those killed, as well as to avenge the capture of the 3 Battalion 4009 soldiers, and the 4 Element Bearers.

Back in my room, I prepared for the worst. I practically glued my Kitsune mask to my face, vowing never to remove it until Dash was safely back in my arms. For noise while I prepared for what was to come, I played the one song that described my life beyond perfectly.

From a long box underneath my bed, I pulled out my fiercest melee weapon. It was an old fire ax that I had taken from Firehouse 69, located in Watertown, New York, where'd I'd been employed until WW4 began. I kept the ax, and even though I didn't use it very often, when I did, as Don used to say, "When the mask goes on, and the ax comes out, shit just got real!" I began to sharpen my ax all while imagining it tearing through Zebra flesh.

On the floor next to me, Aurora was growling as she gnawed on a bone from a Zebra's leg that I had given to her. She too had grown very fond of Dash during her stay on the Battleship Express, and wanted her back just as much as I did.

"I want Mommy back!" She growled softly as she chewed.

"So do I Aurora. That's why we're all about to go and get her and her friends, as well as Private Cole from those monsters!"

"So, will I get to fight too? I REALLY wanna see how well my mini-nuke works! I mean, I've gotten to use my sniper-rifle, minigun, and missile launcher, but I've never gotten to use my mini-nuke!"

I smirked at her. "Hold still girl." I then imputed a code into her battle armor, which opened up a small panel. I then carefully removed a small missile.

"Is, is that it Master?"

I nodded. "Yep, this is it, the mini-nuke, capable of a 1 kiloton yield. Smallest atomic weapon ever mounted to a missile small enough to be launched by a single individual. And you Aurora, were the first dog to ever be given the battle-armor capable of launching it. You were the pioneer who proved the worth of the first prototype of the Dog Combat Armor. The same suit that you're still wearing right now, give or take some upgrades."

Aurora nodded, but then asked. "But, why did you remove the missile? Am I not going to be able to use it?"

I shook my head. "Oh no, you'll still be able to use it, I just wanted to do this to it first." I then took a large Sharpie, and on the side, I wrote, "God save the Zebras? No, God save them from Aurora!" After showing it to Aurora, who barked in approval, I then reloaded the missile into her suit, re-secured it, and closed up the access panel. I then let Aurora out of her battle-armor, and she went back to chewing her bone.

I wasn't able to sleep well that night. My mind was too enraged to allow sleep. Instead, I passed the time by exploring the entire train from the tip of the Plow-Catcher, to the end of the work caboose's rear coupling. I discovered a few things that very few people on the train even knew about. In a supply car were where the train's library and archives were located. Also contained in there was the train's war diary, which contained entries from the day we met in our bunker in Kansas for the first time, all the way up to the Battle of Las Vegas, and new entries for Equestria were being added as well. In another car, I passed the small prayer room that also served as Father Charles's office, as he was our battalion's chaplain.

I even walked through the magazine car that contained our nuclear shells. All of them were secured on racks that were bolted to the floor, ceiling, and walls. At one time, 40 shells, each believed to be capable of a 5 megaton yield, were housed here. However, that number was brought down to 20 when the war was coming to a close, and 1 more was launched at Vegas. There should have been only 19, but Iron Glory was carrying 3 shells when it followed us through the black mass to Equestria. We now had 22 nuclear shells, and all of them had witty, or funny phrases painted on them. "Was Fallout REALLY just a game?" "Hey, wanna reenact Hiroshima?" "Does the name 'Chernobyl' sound like a good graveyard name?" "Nuclear shells aren't THAT heavy, they only weigh 5 megatons!" Phrases like that.

My final discovery for that night though, was the one that really shocked me. In one final supply car, as I was looking through crates of spare parts for the railguns, I suddenly noticed that some of the crates were not like the others.

"What?"

I looked closer, but just before I could see what was in the crates, I heard a gun behind me click.

"Hold it right there. Hands up!"

I quickly complied.

"Now turn around, slowly. Keep your hands where I can see them!"

I turned around, and low and behold, there stood Jim!

"Wait, Leopard?! What are you doing in here?!"

"I could ask you the same question Jim. I couldn't sleep, so I decided to take a walk through the train, but what are you doing here?" I put my hands down.

"Helping to protect this train's greatest secret. A secret that only myself, and Jeff Coleson knew about. I don't even think that Don knows about this."

"Um, what secret?"

"A secret that I will share with you, but ONLY if you swear to never tell another soul! You and I are the only ones who know about this, as Jeff is dead."

I nodded slowly, and after doing what was required, Jim quietly opened one of the crates. I gasped in shock when I saw what was inside.

"Jim! Is this.....?!"

Jim nodded. "Yep. It's actual gold bullion. $100 million worth of it to be exact."

"But.....why is it here? And why is it such a secret?"

Jim sighed. "Because the truth is.....well" Jim sighed. "Jeff and I.......we um, s-stole it."

"What?! Stole it?! From where?!"

"From Fort Knox itself. During WW4, it was a race against time to get the gold supply from Fort Knox, to the Federal Reserve Bank in New York. Most of the gold made it, but the last supply train, one carrying $100 million worth of gold, never made it. The engine was hit by a bomb just as it left the fort, and the train was stranded." Jim then went on to tell me about how Jeff, who was stationed at Fort Knox, found the gold, and with Jim's help, the two of them buried the crates to keep them safe. They did return for them when it was safe enough, and the gold crates were presented to the Federal Reserve Bank in New York after WW5. The bank however, for an unknown reason, just put the crates into storage and forgot about them. "And that's where Jeff and I come back into the picture Leopard. In short, we stole the gold from the Federal Reserve storage room, and had it loaded on board the Battleship Express during her construction. It's stayed with us ever since, and we've had no idea what to do with it. After Jeff died, I kept trying to tell myself that we were a ‘mobile Fort Knox’, but I still felt incredibly guilty for what we did."

I was still confused. "Ok, I kinda get why you hid the gold, but why did you steal it again?"

"Jeff and I did that, because well, we knew that the war could go badly, and all of our gold reserves were hidden in the Federal Reserve banks in New York, and DC, as well as a few other locations as well. If we lost that gold, we were f@#ked! So, we took our $100 million in gold, and kept in on the train. Now, even if the US lost its gold to the Futas, we would still have some left to keep the value of our Dollar. It was the wrong thing to do, yes, but we did it for the right reasons."

When Jim finished his story, I was absolutely stunned. Here I was thinking that we just lived in a mobile city that we shared with lethal weapons. Now I learned that we were sitting on top of $100 million in gold as well!

"Jim, this is absolutely insane! If I hadn't seen this with my own eyes, I NEVER would have believed it!"

Jim nodded. "Yes, that's why it's the train's most carefully guarded secret." He then looked at his watch. "It's almost 5am. Don wants to have a final meeting with everyone at 7:30, and we have things to do before then. I'm going to let you go, but remember Leopard, not a word about this, to ANYONE!"

"You got it Jim, I won't tell a soul. Not that anyone would believe me anyway, but yes, I won't tell."

Jim nodded, and then we both went our separate ways. I returned to my cabin, and did manage to get a little bit of sleep.

The next morning, the first Day of Judgement had dawned on the Zebra Empire. They didn't know it yet, but they were all marked for death, every, last single one of them!

Once I was all dressed in my battle gear, I helped Aurora suit up, and once she was ready, I put a leash on her, and we all went to Don's meeting, which I was pretty sure was our final briefing before the campaign began. When we arrived, we found ourselves surrounded by both Human-wolves, and Equestrian soldiers. The rage was so heavy that it hung in the air. It oozed from all of us.

Once Don appeared, he went to the front of the crowd. "Hello all. We have some serious work ahead of us, so I'm going to keep this extremely brief. To get to the point, by a show of hands, how many of you guys fought in against the One Race Empire? Specifically in WW5?"

A handful of people raised their hands, including myself.

"And do you remember what happened? They tried to mass genocide all of Humanity when they lost, and they had to be annihilated. For those of you who weren't there, and I know that this is going to sound INCREDIBLY racist, but believe me, it is not, but do you ever remember seeing anyone who was black AFTER WW5 ended?"

We all shook our heads.

"That is because in order to stop the genocide of Humanity itself, the Black Race.....had to be completely exterminated. It was horrible, and it was erased from the history books, but by their total annihilation, the rest of Humanity was saved. Again, I know that that sounds incredibly racist, but that was war. Now the One Race Empire has returned, this time through the Zebra Empire. Thanks to Intel from a captured soldier, Private Cole, we had the shocking revelation that ALL of the Zebras are out for the extermination of the Pony Race! ALL OF THEM!!! Cole told stories of children raping captives gleefully, CHILDREN!!! He told of females drugging captives, and then raping them, while LAUGHING!!! They know it's wrong, BUT THEY DON'T CARE!!! And now, THEY'VE STOLEN MY MATE, CAPTAIN LEOPARD'S MATE, AND LT. ALEX BARKLEY'S MATE!!! THIS MADNESS MUST END NOW!!!"

By this point, we had all worked ourselves up into a frenzy again. We wanted blood, we wanted to kill, we wanted the order to be given!

"We have been given the FULL AUTHORITY from Princess Celestia to wage war AS WE SEE FIT!!!! This war against the Zebras ends with their total destruction! We will leave the Caribou to watch and see what happens to those who DARE to mess with Humanity! NOW WHO'S READY TO DO THIS?!?!??!"

We all SCREAMED at the top of our lungs.

"SO LET'S F@#KING DO THIS!!!!! GO, GO, GO, GO, GO!!!!!!"

We all scurried to our stations. I was driving, Alex was my fireman, Todd was the brakeman, and Fred and Andy manned the roof guns. Don was in the PCC. The train was all ready to go, everypony was all loaded up, Iron Glory was coupled to the back of our train, and we were ready for our date with Destiny. Even 4009 herself seemed to be ready. It was so strange. More and more, it almost felt like 4009 was alive. She almost seemed to sigh at times, and she hissed at Rarity angrily when she tried to paint her. If I had to guess, the front of the engine was her face, her boiler was her inner organs, her firebox was her heart, her front wheels and 1st set of drive wheels were her arms, and her 2nd set of drive wheels and back wheels were her legs. Her brain was the cab. The pipes and tubing were her blood vessels. The Plow-Catcher was her mask, and her tender was like her backpack. We all felt that 4009 had a soul in her somewhere, and it was now beginning to manifest itself. She seemed to be just as angry as we were about the situation at hand.

"Just get us to the Zebra Empire, old girl, and then keep us rolling through their territory! Help us kill them all!"

"YESSSSSSSS....." She seemed to sigh.

"Good, and now that we have the orders from Don, LET'S GO!!!!"

I blew the whistle, and moved the throttle forwards. With a great noise, the Battleship Express, the flagship of the RWD, the train that claimed the dog-tags of over 1 million Futas, was on the move again. This time, her mission was clear; get our marefriends back, and kill all of the Zebras!

Our plan of attack was simple. We roll up the Macintosh Hills, go down the Macintosh Hills, take control of the Badlands, then, in a wide sweep, start from the Hayseed Swamps, and work down through the Forbidden Jungle. Wipe out any and all Zebra towns, cities, and settlements. Kill all the Zebras, and show no mercy. Get to Zebrica, liberate our people, kill Overlord Zakia, and then wipe out the city, and move on to mop up whatever resistance was left. We also had to move fast, and stealthily, as who knew what Zakia would do if he knew that the war for him was lost. We had to get to our marefriends before Zakia killed them.

According to our Intel, the Zebra Empire had a population of approximately 20 million Zebras. There were also 5 major cities, including the capital, Zebrica, a number of smaller towns, and many villages and settlements. There were also a bunch of military garrisons. Rail lines ran all throughout the empire, and there were a number of checkpoints as well. We all knew about the closest railway checkpoint, which was at the bottom of the Badlands. We would have to strike it hard and fast, wiping it out before they could raise the alarm!

The previous night, a few of our scouts went ahead and scoped the checkpoint out.

"It's a large garrison built in the middle of the railroad tracks. There are doors on both ends to let trains pass. It's also staffed by maybe 90 Zebras full-time. For weapons, they have machine guns, and other small-arms fire. Nothing that we can't handle."

Don agreed that this was our best striking point, as also, at certain times of the year, due to atmospheric conditions, the garrison would be out of communication range. None of their communication devices would work, and nopony would notice the base going quiet. Right now, the base was out of range, and would be for another week. It was the perfect time to attack.

Just before we headed out, we checked the Plow-Catcher one last time. We sharpened the edges to once again be razor-sharp, and we sharpened the metal spikes as well. Most likely, we would have to ram through the garrison, then stop and wipe it out. We also readied the forward-facing 8in artillery guns located on the sides of the boiler. These guns were not used very often, except in the case of oncoming trains, or softening up a target before ramming it, but now they were about to be used again.

Closer and closer our train got to the top of the Macintosh Hills. Once we were at the top, Don told me to open the throttle, and be prepared to ram the railway checkpoint garrison after hitting it with the forward 8in artillery guns. Once we were over the top, I did as Don asked.

For those Zebras stationed at the Outland Railway Checkpoint, it was the most boring job around. They were out of communication range, and there was nothing to do. The tracks were clear, as they always were, and the last action was the Zebra forces retreating after their disastrous defeat at Appaloosa, just after a prisoner train came through with several high-value prisoners.

As many of the Zebras were still thinking about the previous day's events, they suddenly became aware of strange sounds. It sounded like loud chugging.

"Huh? What's that?"

"It sounds like another train!"

"But we aren't expecting another train!"

Suddenly, from the top of the Macintosh Hills, there came a great cloud of smoke, followed by an ungodly shrieking.

"Good GODS!!!! WHAT WAS THAT?!?!?!"

Then, to their horror, they saw a sight that they had prayed that they never would, the Black Leviathan itself! It was now in the Zebra Empire!

"Oh Shit!!!! Get the radio online, IMMEDIATELY!!!!"

A tech tried to make a call. "ANY AND ALL UNITS IN THE AREA, MAYDAY, MAYDAY!!!! WE ARE UNDER ATTACK BY THE BLACK LEVIATHAN!!!! DOES ANYONE COPY?!?!?!?!" Only static met his reply. The atmosphere was still messing with the radio signals. No help was coming for Outland Railway Checkpoint Garrison.

"ALL HANDS, MAN YOUR BATTLE STATIONS NOW!!!!! WE HAVE TO STOP THAT TRAIN HERE!!!!" The garrison's defenders raced to their stations. They shut the main doors, blocking the tracks. They figured that our train would hit the doors, and most likely derail. They still prepared for the worst case scenario. Inside the garrison though, was another train! A transport train that was now trapped inside, right in the path of our oncoming Battleship Express, with only a strong wooden door between them!

On our end, I kept the train racing for the garrison. I blew the whistle again, to signify that we were not going to stop. Once we were within range, Fred and Andy activated the 2 forward 8in artillery guns located along the sides of the boiler.

"Firing now!!!"

*KABLOOEY, KABLOOEY!!!!!!* The guns were extremely loud. Between them, Fred and Andy managed to fire 2 shots from both of the guns before they had to brace for impact.

"BRACE FOR IMPACT!!!!" I screamed over the coms.

Then, after we all braced into our crash positions, we slammed into the garrison at the bottom of the Badlands, going at least 60mph! That impact would have destroyed most trains, however, our train is NOT normal! The shells were fired to soften the target for a ramming. We crashed through the first set of doors, rammed, and derailed the transport train, before crashing out the back! We then braked to a stop, and piled out of the train to do battle with the survivors.

"Sir, I can't get a reply from anyone! And that train is not slowing down!"

"That's bad, but if they're going to try and ram the gates, they're fools! FIRE AT WILL!!!"

The garrison troops began to fire at the train. However, most of their bullets either missed, or bounced off of the engine's thick armor. Then to their horror, two previously unknown guns fired two shots apiece, which shattered the garrison's structural integrity. The truth was that the whole base was actually pretty poorly designed. It had no real foundation, and was built directly over the train tracks. It was held up by a series of metal beams covered in the Zebra version of concrete, but our shells impacted with those beams, causing them to become dislodged. Now, the entire garrison would most likely collapse. Then, to make matters even worse, the train crashed right through the garrison! 13 Zebras were killed, and the transport train was destroyed. Then, to the defender's shock and horror, the train came to a stop, and the soldiers inside came pouring out!

"OH SHIT, HERE THEY COME!!!!"

The defenders tried to put up defenses, but they never stood a chance. Thanks to our hate-fueled rage, we fought them with our guns, and even melee weapons. Leading the charge, was Fox-face himself, aka, me!

"YEAH, FOR EQUESTRIA!!!" I screamed. Then, with Aurora by my side, and Don and others behind me, I let loose with my shotgun. First one Zebra, then another got a fatal case of lead poisoning. Aurora used her sniper rifle to take down several Zebras on the top walls of the garrison, before turning her minigun on several nearby alcoves.

"TAKE SOME OF THESE YOU STRIPED FREAKS!!!!" She screamed, before launching a couple of frag grenades. The grenades found their targets, and 11 Zebras were blown to pieces.

"PLEASE, HAVE MERCY!" One of them screamed.

"There is no Mercy!" Aurora responded coldly before tearing his throat out.

And indeed, all across the garrison, out of the 100 members of Battalion 4009 who fought, no mercy was shown. In less than 10 minutes, it was all over. All 90 Zebras of the garrison were slaughtered. We only suffered 13 wounded. We did however have to make a hasty exit from the garrison, as it was about to collapse. Once it did, and the rubble was fully dismantled with explosives, on a flagpole that was still standing, we tore down the Zebra's flag, and in its place, we raised up Old Glory, the beautiful Stars and Stripes.

"We've won a victory today boys!" I congratulated everyone. "A small victory yes, but a victory nevertheless! The Zebras still do not know of our presence in their territory. We have taken the Macintosh Hills, as well as this garrison in the Badlands. By our count, there are only two garrisons left here, and once those are taken, we back-track a little bit, and then, starting from the Hayseed Swamps, we sweep out way south to the Forbidden Jungle, destroying everything in our path, until we reach the Zebra capital city of Zebrica, where our prizes await!"

There came a number of loud cheers, and after piling back onto the train, we all got ready to continue our reign of terror and bloodshed on the Zebra Empire.

"General Tarrath, report."

"All seems to be quiet, Overlord Zakia. The city of Zandia up here in the Hayseed Swamps is just as good as ever, and all seems to be quiet. Whatever you said to those Equestrians really must have shut them up!"

"Yes, it definitely seems so General! Any contact from our garrisons in the Badlands?"

Tarrath shook his head. "Negative, Overlord Zakia. They have fallen silent, however, it is one of those times of the year, so it's most likely due to atmospheric interference. If there really was a problem, we would have heard about it by now."

Zakia nodded. "Excellent General. I guess that we have nothing to fear. All is well in my empire, and it shall hopefully be for a long time to come!"

Zakia then terminated the call, little suspecting the railway terror that was right at that moment loose in his empire. It had already silenced a railway garrison, and was poised to strike again. Its presence was still unnoticed. Unnoticed that is, until it was already far too late!

Author's Note

Yeah, I know that this chapter was called "Death Comes to an Empire". However, this chapter was meant to cover events leading up to our first battle. The train is Death, and the chapter ended with it arriving in the Zebra Empire after a border battle. The next chapter, "Death to an Empire", will be all about the collapse, fall, and total annihilation of the Zebra Empire. It will be amazing, it will be bloody, it will most likely have to be in several parts, but the read will be worth it! It will also involve nuclear weapons, melee warfare, and our anger and rage growing more and more. Our anger grows ever stronger, and so, does our lust for Zebra blood.

What will happen next? When will the Zebras realize that the Battleship Express is in their midst? How will Zakia react? How will Tarrath react? Well, not to spoil anything, but Tarrath will find out first, and will be unable to report it to Zakia due to a health condition called "Painful Death"! He will die, but at a great cost. What great cost? Well, keep reading, and you'll find out!

Meanwhile, comments, feedback, questions, as well as spreading the word about this story, are always appreciated, and I'll see you all in Chapter 12!

ScarFox out for now, ALL ABOARD!!!!!