By about 4:15am, Shining and I had cooked up a plan for the remaining areas that we had to capture. We decided to save Van Hoover for last, while we captured the areas around it.

Moving our forces out from the Crystal Empire, we first took the Ghastly Gorge, then the Unicorn Range, and then the Smoky Mountains. All throughout this time, we didn't meet a single Zebra. However, we also made the discovery of a town that we previously didn't know about. The town was called Tall Tale, and in fact, even though it was located between Van Hoover and the Smoky Mountains, and it was on the map, it was one of those places that most Ponies just didn't know about.

"Huh, well how did we miss this?"

I shrugged. "I don't know Shining. Most likely though, we just missed it because it wasn't on the map. Or if it was, we just missed it."

Spike then began to look over a map of Equestria he brought with him from the Crystal Empire. "Um, according to this map, Tall Tale is here, but it's not the most noticeable town ever. It also has a pretty small population."

We came to the town, and our forces took it, but the entire town was abandoned.

I then looked at the map. "And if I had to venture a guess, I'd say that that town was used by the Zebras who manned the quarantine camp in the Smoky Mountains. And once the facility was blown up after we liberated it, I guess that the town was abandoned as well. Nevertheless, we took it, and once we have Van Hoover, we control the rest of the North Luna Ocean, we have access to the Undiscovered West if we need it, and somewhere between 1/4-1/3 of Equestria is back in Pony hands!"

Spike nodded, but then shook his head. "Yeah, but therein lies the problem. Van Hoover is home to a large military garrison, and from what I've heard in the past, more Zebras than Ponies. How do we go about taking it?"

I looked at the map. "Well, we get our guys to surround it on all sides, and then we storm it like we did for the Crystal Empire. HOWEVER, our primary targets are ANY and ALL ships in Van Hoover Harbor! At the very least, we HAVE to neutralize them!"

"And, why do we have to do that?" Big Mac asked.

Shining then took up the story. "Because if they have those ships, then they can start loading mares aboard them for a hasty exit. They may not be able to make it to Zebrica, but those aboard would still make it to Faust knows where, and most likely never be heard from again."

Big Mac nodded slowly. "Uh, yeah, that's REALLY bad! Right, we take out the ships first! But wait. Ain't there more ships on the other side of Equestria where Manehattan is? What about them ships?"

I sighed. "We'll take care of those when the time comes. Recently, I learned an interesting nugget of information that the Trottingham group was withholding from us. As it turns out, while the majority of the ships in the Equestrian Navy were either burned or scuttled to prevent the Zebras from using them, the remaining ships and sailors were taken in by the Trottingham group, and have been patrolling the Equestrian Coast on the Celestial Sea side, preventing Zebra smuggling."

"And is it true that the Griffons have offered to help us if actual war breaks out?"

I nodded. "Yeah, that's true Spike. It seems that although the Zebras were able to take Equestria, other nations, including the Griffon Kingdom, basically told them to go f@#k themselves. The Griffon Kingdom, and the Dragon Lands may prove to be our primary allies in this fight. All we have to do is complete our victory here, then Shining, as the De Facto leader of Equestria, declares war on the Zebras. Then our allies join us, and together we kick those Zebras's asses from one end of Equestria to the other, before driving them into the sea, and away from Equestria for good!"

"Yeah, but how do we take Van Hoover?"

I looked at the map again. "Ok, here's the deal. We first surround the city on all sides, then we neutralize the ships, before finally heading in by rail via the Wabash Cannonball, and then storming the city! The odds are still in our favor, so let's do this thing once we've gathered our forces together again!"

"Right! And Bro?"

"Yeah Shiny?"

"While I'm the 'De Facto leader of Equestria', you, Spike, and Big Mac will be my advisers/right hand stallions! You'll be my chief military adviser, Spike can be my chief planner and map specialist, and Big Mac can be head of my security detail!" (In truth, while we were storming the Crystal Castle, Big Mac killed more Zebras than the rest of us!)

We all looked at him. "Are you.........are you being serious Shining?"

He nodded. "As serious as I can be. I NEED more guys like you! Under you Scar can be the rest of your Marines, and under all of you will be troops. Sure, Braeburn is still in charge of the Appaloosa Resistance, but I'm now in charge of the Equestrian Armed Forces. And now, we have breakfast in Van Hoover!"

We all agreed to that, and with a force of 300 Ponies, we all snuck towards Van Hoover.

It was a very delicate operation. The time was getting close to 6am, and not too long after that, the sun would rise.

"And how's the sun even being raised anymore anyway?" I asked Shining and the others. "Do Celestia and Luna still do it, or do the Zebras do it now?"

Shining shrugged. "Honestly, I have no idea Bro."

"And neither do I." Spike agreed. "Twilight never mentioned it, although she never really talked to me much anymore."

I shrugged. "Well, at any rate, I'm sure that we'll all find out how it works in the end. In the meantime though, we have a city to take over!"

We all then split up our troops, and we all got into position. Frank and his troops would be sabotaging the ships, while those under Rick and Jon would be guarding the outside of the city. Spike and Big Mac would also be leading troops alongside Jake to be the second wave into the city with the Wabash Cannonball, and Shining and I? Well we, and a few of our troops were going to be making a REAL entrance! We were sitting inside of our armored vehicle, waiting for Frank and his team to finish up with the ships before we all came pouring into the city as the first wave.

"How much longer do you think Frank? We're running out of time here!"

"We're almost done Scar. Most of these ships were empty, and the ones that weren't wouldn't be ready to go anytime soon. However, yes, for the sake of Equestria, we rigged them to blow. They'll sink into the harbor, and be completely useless to the Zebras!"

"Good work Frank, and whoever else is with you. You're the best men and stallions, (not to mention mares if there are any with you!) for the job!"

"Eh, thanks Scar. It's just what we do!"

A few minutes later, Frank gave us the word. "Ok Scar, we're all clear! All explosives are set, we weren't spotted, and we're still in the clear!"

"Roger that Frank!"

I then checked with the other guys once I got the word from Frank. "You guys all ready?"

"Affirmative Sir! We're all good!"

"Yes, the perimeter is sound, we've got eyes on ALL routes in and out of the city, and it should fall fairly quickly!"

I then said another quick prayer for God's protection while we did His good work. "Please God, don't let us blow this now!"

I then radioed Frank again. "You got the detonator ready Frank?"

"Affirmative! I'm just waiting for my signal!"

I looked at my watch. The time was now 5:45am. I began a countdown with my fingers. 3......2.....1........I then raised my head, and howled another howl!

With that, all hell broke loose, and the battle for Van Hoover was on!

Once he had my signal, Frank then hit the button on the detonator, and one by one, ALL of the ships in Van Hoover Harbor blew sky high! I knew that the explosives had been planted in strategic places so as to only sink the ships, not outright destroy them. We all then POURED into the city!

From the train tracks, the Wabash Cannonball came in guns blazing, as well as launching the canisters of the gas. Just like back in the Crystal Empire, once the gas began to take effect, the results were almost immediate, and EXTREMELY deadly to the Zebras! Once again, the mares and older fillies grabbed whatever weapons that they could, and laid waste to the Zebras alongside us.

I then led my troops into the city by busting through a gate with our armored vehicle. "YEAH!!!! Let's show these Zebras who's boss!!!!"

However, if we were expecting a long, drawn out battle, we were sorely mistaken. The number of Zebras in Van Hoover was actually very small, and most of those were NOT warriors! First chance they got, many of them threw down their weapons and surrendered. By 6:10am, it was all over. Van Hoover was ours, and we'd only lost 17 of our own, including mares. The Zebras had lost 111, with a further 200 or so surrendering.

The only problem was, we had no idea what to do with them. Luckily though, there were pens made for "troublemakers" inside of the city, so we herded the Zebras into there for the time being.

"What's going to happen to us now?" One of the Zebras asked.

"Well, you'll be kept here until the war is over, and then, provided that you behaved yourselves, you'll be sent back to Zebrica."

The Zebra nodded sadly. "I could have expected as much. I KNEW that taking over Equestria the way that we did was too easy, but did anyone listen to me? NO!"

Once we had the chance to regroup, some remained behind to hold our new areas, and once the sun was up in the sky, the rest of us returned to the Crystal Empire.

"VERY well done all of you!" Shining commended. "Last night, we literally did the IMPOSSIBLE! We SHOWED the rest of Equestria that the Zebras are NOT invincible, and that they CAN be defeated!"

I nodded slowly. "Yes, by God's Grace, we pulled through. We're doing ok so far, but from here on out, it will be MUCH harder! Soon, the Zebras WILL catch wind of what's happened, assuming of course that they haven't already! We HAVE to be able to meet the counterattack when it comes!"

"And we will Bro. Now, I think that it's time we contacted the Zebras to declare war, wouldn't you all agree?"

"Eh, there's something that I think we should do first, but yes, THEN we reach out to the Zebras!"

Shining gave me a curious look. "Oh? And what do we have to do first?"

"I think that we should break one of the rails leading to the Crystal Empire in a strategic point, so that if Zebra reinforcements come by rail, they'll derail, and then we can pick off any survivors."

Shining nodded. "Yeah, good point Bro. We'll do that, THEN contact the Zebras!"

We all then set about doing just that, all while preparing for what we were going to say to the Zebras.

Meanwhile, many miles to the south in Canterlot, former princesses Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Twilight, as well as their Zebra lovers, were meeting with the rest of the Zebra Elders, so as to discuss the future of Equestria. All of the Princesses were naked, and sitting on the floor next to their respective lovers.

Zed currently had the floor. "This is starting to get worrisome for my people Princess Celestia", He was saying. "Even with the stallions gone, I fear that their influence still lingers among the remaining population. We must be ready to COMPLETELY cleanse their lingering filth, and start over again."

"So what exactly do you propose that we do Zed?" Cadence asked him.

On the inside, Zed smirked. ALL of the princesses were like putty in their hands, and would do ANYTHING that the Zebras told them to do. On the outside though, he put up an air of deep concern. "I fear Princesses, that we must all be prepared to LEAVE Equestria behind, and all evacuate back to where we came from, Zebrica!"

When they heard that, the Princesses were SHOCKED! LEAVE Equestria?! Their native homeland for thousands of years?! It was UNHEARD OF!

Zed was prepared for their gasps of shock. "Now please, before any of you get TOO upset, let me explain myself. For FAR too long, you have been chained to those stallions that SAY that they love you, and would always be there for you, but where are they all now? Sick, and possibly dying. Now we Zebras are the only ones left who can help you continue on your race. However, Equestria is all wrong. It MUST be evacuated, so that the proper Zebras can return, and render it FULLY safe for the Zebras to use as their new homeland....that we will share with the Ponies of course!" Zed winced at having slipped up like that.

Luckily for him though, the Princesses didn't seem to notice. "And what does, 'make it FULLY safe for the Zebras' mean, Zed?" Celestia asked.

Zed was just about to vaguely explain a whole lot of bullshit, when all of a sudden, a messenger burst into the room!

"MY KING!!!! WE HAVE TERRIBLE TROUBLE!!!!!!"

Zed looked up. At first, he was angry at having been disturbed, but then he saw the look of fear on the messenger's face. "What's......going on?"

"IT'S THE STALLIONS!!!!! NOT ONLY HAVE THEY ESCAPED FROM ONE OF THEIR CAMPS, BUT THEY'VE ALSO TAKEN THE NORTHERN END OF EQUESTRIA!!!!!"

When the messenger said that, the entire room went so quiet that you could have heard a bead of dew fall from a blade of grass and hit the ground!

"W-wh-what????? WHAT?!?!?! HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?!?!?!"

"I don't know King Zed! It happened sometime last night! They struck first at the Crystal Empire, then Rainbow Falls, that one Village, Van Hoover, and ALL of the areas in between them and Neighagra Falls, which they've ALSO taken!"

It was then that Zed realized the full scope of what had just happened. They'd lost a HUGE amount of territory to what seemed to be a combination of resistance groups, AND formerly sick stallions! Now, Las Pegasus, Manehattan, and possibly even Cloudsdale were DIRECTLY threatened by the enemy! The same enemy that now held the Crystal Empire, Rainbow Falls, Starlight's Village, Tall Tale, Van Hoover, and EVERYTHING else in between!

Cadence turned to Zed with fear. "What.....do we do Zed?"

Zed looked like he was going to die of fright! Obviously, the Ponies were MUCH worse of an opponent than the Zebras initially thought that they were going to be!

Zed then turned to the others. "We HAVE to act IMMEDIATELY on this! Those stallions are ALL still contaminated with that virus, and if they're allowed to roam free, it could prove CATASTROPHIC to the rest of us!"

"So, what would you recommend that we do Zed?" Celestia was getting worried.

"Well, first of all, you let my people handle this! We took care of all of the stallions before, so now we'll just do it again! They will NOT last long against the Zebras!"

Zed then summoned one of his commanders, and ordered him to load up troops onto a train, and leave IMMEDIATELY for the Crystal Empire to restore order there, round up all of the stallions again, and then decontaminate EVERYTHING!

"You must NOT fail us Commander Zundo!"

He saluted. "I will not, My King!" He then left to fulfill his king's bidding.

"So, what do we do now?" Cadence asked nervously.

"Now, we wait for the situation to be FULLY brought under control, which should be before too long. The stallions will NOT be able to hold out against us, and it should all be over by lunchtime!"

The Princesses had confidence in their new Zebra overlords. They SHOULDN'T have!

Lunchtime came and went, and STILL there was no word from Zundo, or those under his command.

"What could be keeping them?" One of the other elders muttered.

"Perhaps they're still engaged in battle."

Zed had a different conclusion. "Or perhaps they've already met with death." He didn't say this out loud, as he did NOT want to sound like the situation was out of his control in front of the former Princesses, but yet he felt more than a twinge of fear at what was happening.

Suddenly, Zed's holographic communication device began to beep. "Well FINALLY!" He then grabbed it, and turned it on. "Well, it's about TIME you reported in Commander Zundo! I was beginning to think that something bad happened to you!"

He and the other Zebras looked, and there stood Commander Zundo, but to their surprise, something seemed.......off about him. His eyes were wide open and were bleeding, and there was blood coming from his mouth as well. He also looked like he'd gotten crushed by something.

"Um.....C-Comander? Are you feeling ok?"

"No....." He said in a weird muffled voice. "I'm actually QUITE dead! As are the others!" The figure that had apparently been using Zundo's dead body as a puppet then dropped him to the ground, before revealing himself, AND his comrades!

"No.....NO!!!! IT CAN'T BE!!!!! YOU'RE ALL DEAD!!!!!"

Shining then stepped up to the communicator a bit closer. "What's wrong Zed? You look like you've seen a ghost!"

"B-b-b-but, THE SMOKY MOUNTAINS CAMP!!!!!"

I then stepped into view. "Oh, that was MY doing Zed! Quite the little plan I cooked up for the Appaloosa Resistance, as well as my other comrades to execute! Your boys over there NEVER knew what hit 'em! Oh sure, we took a FEW of them prisoner, as we HAD to know more information about them!"

"And were YOU responsible for the attacks on the Zebra Embassy?!?!?!"

I nodded, smirking. "Yep, that was Jake and I's finest hour! We just strolled right on in, stole some of your stuff, took 2 Zebra mares, and then left the way we came!"

Zed narrowed his eyes. "You can keep those filthy sluts for all I care, but for the crimes that you've committed, you will all DIE!!!! But before I give the order for ALL of your deaths, WHAT HAPPENED TO MY COMMANDER AND HIS TROOPS?!?!?!"

I sighed. "They all died, but we NEVER touched them!" I then smirked, and began to sing in a sing-song voice, "We saw their train coming towards the Empire, riding fast the whole darn way, but then they got a chance to meet, our local Mountain Timberwolves! Then, just 4 miles further down the line, they hit a broken rail! The whole train came flying off the tracks, and landed in the ditch! We tried to get to them in time, but a steam pipe broke in 2, and 100lbs of pressure hit those poor engine crew! The rest were crushed beneath the train, when it flipped its lid! All of them all died, and there was nothing we could do!"

(2:00-2:24)

When the full gravity of what I'd just said hit the Zebras, they were all SHOCKED! Their ENTIRE force that they'd sent out was now dead, and we were BRAGGING about how we'd killed them!

"Your..........your deaths will be SLOW!!!!"

Shining then stepped back up to the communicator. "What my best friend Scar has said is indeed true. However, what he did NOT tell you is that we're here to stay! Everywhere we advance WILL become the new Equestrian border! And we will NOT stop until ALL of Equestria has been freed form your tyranny! ALL of you will PAY for what you did to MY Ponies! You all had BETTER be preparing yourselves, because as of this moment, Equestria declares war on the Zebra Empire! The documents have all been signed, and I, as De Facto leader, have notarized them! You would be MORE than wise to surrender right now!"

Zed was STILL unable to recover from the shock of everything that had just happened. In his stead, Cadence tried to reason with Shining. "Shiny, you're sick, you NEED to be cured!"

"Cadence, I HAVE been cured! We've ALL been cured! The scientists in the Appaloosa Resistance have cured the virus!"

"That's what they WANT you to think Shiny! You're all still VERY, VERY sick! You HAVE to let the Zebras help you get better!"

Before Shining could answer though, Rune Star, one of the mares who'd been under the Zebra's influence until the battle in the Crystal Empire, spoke up. "I'M a mare, and I can tell you right now that NONE of these stallions are sick! The Zebras LIED to us! They are NOT our friends; they only do what's best for THEM!"

"BLASPHEMY!!!!" Twilight suddenly screamed. "SHE HAS SPOKEN RACIST BLASPHEMY AGAINST OUR ZEBRA OVERLORDS!!!!!"

All of us could see that trying to reason with the Zebras, as well as the mares with them, was futile. We would have to see our war through to the end.

I looked at Zed. "One final time. Do you surrender, or not?"

"NEVER!!!!" Zed screamed. "We will NEVER surrender to lowlifes like you!"

"So be it. We shall do whatever it takes to win."

"And you will DIE!!!!" Zed then terminated the call. He also knew that war as imminent now.

"What, do we do Zed? Do we still evacuate the mares?"

Zed shook his head. "No. We CANNOT take the risk of losing them along the way! We'll deal with the stallions ONCE AND FOR ALL, put them BACK into those camps where they belong, and THEN proceed with our plans from there!"

"And what do we do now, King Zed?" One of the other elders asked.

"Now, we mobilize our forces IMMEDIATELY, BEFORE they can strike again!"

The Zebras then set about doing just that, all while hoping that the war would be over soon.

Back in the Crystal Empire, we all were preparing for war as well, but a few of us were getting some much needed rest. In an actual room in the Crystal Castle, I had Gilda on her back in the bed, all while screwing her brains out! She continued to screech in bliss, before I buried my my mouth into her beak.

"Oh Faust, I needed this Stud!"

"Mmm, so did I Gilda, so did I!"

"Oh FAUST I love you Stud!" She then flipped us over until I was on bottom, and she was riding me for all she was worth!

For the next number of minutes, all that was really heard were the sounds of a Griffon and a Human-wolf hybrid submitting to their feral instincts. Just to be safe, Gilda did take one of the birth control pills that she had with her, but I wasn't wearing a condom, although this was due to the Zebras seemingly having gotten rid of them all! (Not that I even COULD get Gilda pregnant, but yet, this was war, and that was a risk that we could NOT afford to take!)

Eventually, I blew my load into my lion-bird's pussy, before she flopped forwards onto me, and began to purr.

I wrapped my arms around her. "Nyah, I love you Gilda."

"Ngh......I.....l-love you too Dweeb. And I'll have you know right now that I pledge my love to you, now and forevermore. If we get outta this alive, I wanna settle down with you. I don't know about kids but DEFINITELY not off the bat!"

I stroked Gilda's feathery head gently. "Yeah, I'd like that too Babe. But yeah, no kids until we're ready!" We both laughed at this before falling asleep.

For the next few days, we did have to fend off Zebra attacks from the south trying to take back the Crystal Empire and Van Hoover. However, by October 24th, we had another plan for an attack.

This time, the target was Las Pegasus, and we planned to take it in a pincer maneuver. One force would come down from the North and East through the Whitetail Woods, while a second force would come in from the South and East. Along the way, the Pie Rock Farm would also be liberated.

"As it should be!" Igneous Rock said angrily. "Though I usually do not condone violence, those Zebras will PAY for what they have done to my family!" (I'd heard that his wife Cloudy Quarts, and his daughters Maud, Limestone, Marble and Pinkie Pie all were kept on the farm as breeders, while a few stallions, and even Griffons were forced to work the mine on the farm, and break up rocks).

"We will take back your land Sir." I told him. "You can be a part of the force that comes in from Appaloosa to take back your farm if you want to."

"Much obliged, Captain Ben Anderson." (Igneous was one of the few folks who called me by my real name. Most others just called me by my nickname, Scar.)

The date for the attack was set to commence at 2am on October 26th for Las Pegasus, and Midnight for the attack on the Pie Farm. If successful, then the ENTIRE West Coast of Equestria would be liberated, as well as the Northern border. Most of the Southern border would be secured as well, with the lone exception being Baltimare on the East Coast, which would be dealt with in due time.

Once our forces were moved into place, we began to hear strange stories from the big cities on the East Coast, and even from Ponyville and Canterlot. Apparently, most mares were DEMANDING to know how a bunch of supposedly "sick" stallions managed to escape from a quarantine camp, take over a HUGE amount of territory in just one night, and then hold it for days. The Zebras were refusing to comment, and that only ticked off the mares even more.

Mass demonstrations were held by mares DEMANDING answers in front of the Zebra Embassy, and also in Canterlot, Ponyville, Manehattan, Phillydelphia and Baltimare. (Las Pegasus was more Zebras than Ponies. Plus, they were all REALLY out of touch with reality over there!)

In Canterlot, Princess Luna was REALLY beginning to question why the Zebras were allowed into Equestria in such huge numbers in the first place, as they were seemingly causing FAR more harm than good! Princess Celestia was on the fence about the whole ordeal, Cadence wanted to believe what Zed told her to think, and Twilight STEADFASTLY refused to see ANY faults with the Zebras.

"The STALLIONS are the ones at fault here!" She screamed. "THEY rebelled against our beloved Zebra overlords! THEY WILL ALL DIE!!!!!" It was quite clear that Twilight's mind was at the point of no return. If something couldn't be done soon, then she could become permanently insane.

"We HAVE to hold on until the Equestrian Army gets to us!" Luna told her sister. (Luna had actually murdered her own Zebra coltfriend, and then blamed it on a Human assassin.)

Celestia didn't know what to think. "I.........don't know what to say, Dear Sister. I KNOW that we were wrong for allowing this to happen, but yet is it REALLY all bad? Surely the Zebras HAD to be thinking of us at some point, right?"

Luna placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Sister, the Zebras NEVER had our interests in mind! They want to END our ENTIRE RACE!!!!! Right now, thank FAUST for those 6 Humans, and their abilities to fight back! Now they've taken 2 resistance groups, and turned them back into the Equestrian Armed Forces! They WILL be giving the Zebras a run for their money, if not outright DESTROY THEM ALL!!!!!"

Celestia sighed. "If another city falls, I'll reconsider what you have said Sister. In the meantime though, we let this play out." Celestia then went back to the food that she was eating, while Luna looked out of a window in the direction of the Crystal Empire.

"Please Shining Armor." She thought. "Please hurry up!"

Another target that we had to deal with was another quarantine camp located outside of town in the Palomino Desert. According to our scouting forces, the camp was well defended, but yet it seemed to be VERY poorly constructed, and in the end, we decided to begin the attack on the city, while another force under Jon and Jake went to liberate it.

Later that night, just before the attack began, I addressed our troops. "Ok people, here's the deal. We're up against a MASSIVE force of the enemy here. Unlike the previous times, they KNOW that we're probably coming, but yet they don't know when. We're here in the Whitetail Woods right now, and hopefully by tomorrow morning, Las Pegasus, the rest of the Southern Border of Equestria, AND the Pie Family Rock Farm will be BACK under Equestrian control!"

All of the soldiers cheered, and then I continued. "We're in for the fight of our lives though. According to our scouts, we're up against a large garrison, and approximately 4,000 Zebras. There are more Zebras, but the rest of them are stationed out at the quarantine camp."

"And how will we be going in?" Frank asked.

I sighed. "We're going in similar to how we did with Van Hoover, but yet with a few changes. This time we don't have a harbor to take care of, although there may be a few ships that will have to be neutralized. For going in, we'll use the Wabash Cannonball to take on anything that comes in by train, as well as to disperse the gas.

Then Frank, Rick and their troops secure the perimeter of the city, while Jon and Jake will take their forces, as well as our other trains, and liberate the quarantine camp. They will be provided with the cure, as well as the vaccines, and once they're out, the rest of us will protect them until we can get the sick stallions on their way to safety in Appaloosa."

"And how will we get into the city?" Shining asked.

"Well, like with Van Hoover, we surround the city, and then work our way in. Our first priority will be the Zebra garrison, which our train will hopefully be able to knock out with artillery." I then looked at my watch. "Our time is running out. We HAVE to move now!"

I then finished laying out the plan, before our soldiers began to split up into their groups, and we all moved out for both Las Pegasus, and the Pie Family Rock Farm.

At Midnight, Igneous Rock, as well as the force of soldiers under the command of Jon and Jake reached the outskirts of the farm. All was quiet, and then they stormed the farm. Still to this day, details of exactly what happened when they did are somewhat scarce. From what I've pieced together from Jon and Jake, NO mercy was shown to ANY of the Zebras on the farm, and Cloudy Quarts and her daughters, including Pinkie Pie, were safely rescued by the Equestrian forces, as were a number of other stallions and Griffons who were being used as slaves on the farm, and were also apparently immune to the virus. Some of our forces stayed behind to hold the area in case the battle in Las Pegasus got out of hand, but the rest of the soldiers, including Jake and Jon, moved in on Las Pegasus from the South and East. The rest of us came in from the North and East as well.

Once the forces who were going to be storming the quarantine camp were in place, hiding in the Palomino Desert, the rest of us began our attack on Las Pegasus.

Using the artillery guns on the train, the Zebra garrison was targeted, and we began to drop shells onto it. At this same time, other guns on the train began to lob the gas. The only problem was that we didn't quite have the same amounts of gas that we were able to use on the Crystal Empire and Van Hoover. We were still able to cause damage, and we also learned that the mares themselves could pass the effects of the gas on to other mares by prolonged physical contact.

Also unlike before, we faced a LOT more resistance! These Zebras were well trained, and better equipped. We still had the element of surprise, as well as superior weaponry, but it still took a LOT longer than we thought that it was going to! We started the attack at about 2am, and at 6am we were STILL going!

"This is INSANE!!!" Gilda screamed from the barricade that we were hiding behind.

I then popped up and put down 3 more Zebras. "Yeah, no kidding! However, we now hold about 90% of the city, and the Zebras are losing more and more all of their guys all of the time!"

"Just as long as we make it out of here alive Dweeb, I'll be MORE than happy!"

"Oh, we'll make it out of here alright!" I then loaded a fresh magazine into my gun. "We've still got our WHOLE LIVES ahead of us to live as we want after the war's over!"

"Right, so let's DO THIS!!!" We both then popped over our barricade and began to let the remaining Zebras in our area have it with our guns!

By 7:30am, it was FINALLY over. We'd lost 137 troops, with 300+ wounded, and 35 missing. The Zebras had 2,800+ dead, 150+ wounded, and an uncertain number of missing. 45 Zebras were also taken prisoner. We'd taken back Las Pegasus, liberated the quarantine camp, and added another 11,000 stallions to our ranks. There was only 1 quarantine camp left outside of Baltimare, and now the ENTIRE Northern region of Equestria, as well as the entire West Coast was now in Human and Pony hands.

I looked around at the city. "Wow, we've sure caused a LOT of damage here today, but yet it CAN be repaired. The Zebras have got to REALLY be hurting, and we're still gaining ground."

Gilda leaned her head on my shoulder. "Yeah. We won, they died, and we keep moving forwards. Can we go somewhere private? I REALLY need a good f@#k right now!"

I groaned. "Gilda, is sex all you think about?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. I also think about food, being cool, and killing Zebras."

I just shook my head. "You Griffons are SO weird sometimes."

Gilda then grabbed my collar with one of her taloned hands. "What was that Dweeb? You talkin' shit over there?"

"I dunno, maybe I am. What are you gonna do about it bird brain?"

"I'm gonna drag you into an alley, rip your clothes off, and f@#k you until your hips are broken!"

I then gently wrapped my arms around Gilda, and held her close to me. "I love that fire in you Gilda. I think that's one of the reasons that I fell for you."

She hugged me back. "Shut up, hybrid freak! It's not like I actually LOVE you, or anything! B-baka!"

I then kissed Gilda on her beak. "Yeah, and I love you too Babe."

Gilda then opened her beak so that she could kiss me. We then shared a few deep, passionate kisses, before heading off so that I could stuff her like a fat turkey!

Back in Canterlot, the Zebras were REALLY starting to lose their minds! We were gaining ground, and they were losing troops, mares, AND land!

"And they take it back so easily that WE become the idiots in this picture!" Zed raved. "Our mares are asking us why the f@#k we can't deal with the threat, and the more time goes on without a Zebra victory, the more agitated they become!"

One of the Zebra commanders, Bania, looked at the maps. "Without Las Pegasus, our largest city is Manehattan, followed by Baltimare, Phyledelphia, Cloudsdale, and then Canterlot. However, they've GOT to be running out of steam! Now they've got all those sick stallions to take care of, so I doubt that they will be able to mount an assault for a while."

Zed sighed. "Which should give us time to prepare our defenses better. Since we control Cloudsdale, we also control the weather! We'll keep holding back the Winter, and we also see if we can't cause some 'weather delays' for them as well!"

Bania looked at a few charts. "That COULD work, but it'll be hard, as we don't have the largest mare workforce in the world. Also, since only Pegasus mares and Zebras using that one serum to allow them to walk on clouds are in Cloudsdale, and the city moves VERY slowly, it could take us a while to create clouds for storms."

"Well, then what would you suggest?"

"Well, like you said My King, we HAVE to strengthen our defenses! If the Ponies take ANYMORE territory back, it will be a DISASTER!!!! And I would also recommend that we begin the evacuation of the mares and fillies immediately!"

Zed shook his head. "I would, but we can't. We've lost the West Coast, and that fleet of enemy ships keeps prowling around on the East Coast. If we tried to evacuate, I doubt that we would make it very far."

Bania looked up at his king. "We'll continue to strengthen our defenses. Wherever they strike next, we WILL be ready for them!"

Suddenly, a messenger brought in 2 more letters addressed to King Zed. Zed read them, and then turned so pale that his black stripes almost disappeared!

"Oh great, now the Griffons AND the Dragons have declared war as well!"

"Well, isn't that a good thing? Won't they help us take out the Ponies?"

"That's the problem, they've sided WITH the Ponies!"

When the word of the Griffons and Dragons entering the war on the Pony's side hit the streets, mass panic ensued. The Zebras ASSURED the public that the enemy would NOT be taking any more territory, but not all of the mares believed them.

Meanwhile, I had to make a stop in Appaloosa since it was somewhat close by. I had to see how Zuri and Zena were fairing.

I found them still in their cell, and they looked somewhat happy.

"Hey guys."

"Scar!" Zuri came rushing up to the bars. She reached her arms though the bars to hug me. (Even if she was trying to grab at anything in my pockets, shucks for her, I didn't have anything in my pockets or on my body, aside from a shirt, empty pants, and shoes!)

I hugged her back. "Did you miss me Zuri?"

"Oh, more than you know!" I was then actually let into their cell. (I had to bribe a LOT of money to do that!)

I sat on Zuri's bed, and she sat next to me. She gently began to gently hold my arm, and she sighed happily. She was so soft and gentle; so unlike a Zebra.

I then hugged her back again, before gently beginning to brush her rather long mane with a hairbrush that I was given. Zuri's mane was black and white, and rather long. Instead of the mohawk that some Zebras had, she left her mane natural, and just let it hang down her back. Zena was similar, although she cut her mane short so that it didn't quite reach her shoulders.

"So how goes the war Scar?" I've heard that the Zebras are REALLY sweating to stop you!"

I laughed. "And you'd be right Zuri! We've managed to take back the Crystal Empire, Rainbow Falls, Starlight's Village, Van Hoover, Tall Tale, Las Pegasus, and ALL of the land between them! The Zebras only hold Manehattan, Baltimare, Fillidelphia, Ponyville, Canterlot, and Cloudsdale, as well as the spaces between them."

Zena looked over at me with shock. "Wow, that's.......pretty insane actually! And any ideas on when we'll be able to get out of here, and what will happen to Zuri and I when we do?"

I sighed. "Well, if I had my way with it, you would be free to choose what you wanted to do. However, since I don't, most likely you'll be held here until the end of the war, and then deported like the rest of the Zebras who survive surrendering."

Zuri looked at me sadly. "Wait, we'll have to go BACK to Zebrica?"

"I'll do what I can to ensure that those who don't want to go back don't have to, but no guarantees."

Suddenly though, a deputy poked his head in. "Captain Scar?"

"Yes?"

"You're needed at the town hall here pretty soon. Big meeting."

"Ok, coming." I then got up. "I have to go girls, but I'll be back again soon."

Zuri hugged me one last time. "Goodbye Scar."

"Goodbye Zuri, and I'll see what I can do to make sure that you get to stay if you want to, but again, no guarantees."

"Mmm, that would be nice Scar. Oh, and I was going to ask you, how's Gilda doing?"

"Oh, she's doing fine. She can be a bit of a handful sometimes, but I still love her all the same!"

Zuri laughed a bit. "Hee hee! Well, I'm glad that you're happy with her! Oh, and I was going to tell you, I've started seeing Braeburn recently. He was the stallion that I said that I had eyes for."

I turned to her surprised. "Wait, Braeburn was the stallion that you liked?"

She nodded. "Yes. I watched him from a distance for a while, but one day, he came to see Zena and I, and I told him how I felt. He then said that I was pretty, and we started seeing more of each other. I won't bore you with the details, but I think that it's going just fine."

I was surprised. Up until that moment, I thought that Braeburn was gay! "Well, I'm glad that you're happy Zuri. Now you have Jake and I, as well as Braeburn working to make sure that you stay here after the war."

She nodded. "Yeah, it's really great!"

"Just as I have Big Mac doing the same for me!" Zena added.

I turned to her. "Huh? What now?"

"Oh, well, like how my sister Zuri's seeing Braeburn, I've been getting visits from a stallion named Big Mac."

"Big Mac? Large Earth-Pony stallion, red fur, dark blonde mane, green eyes, and white freckles?"

"Yeah, that's him. He's really nice."

I thought about that. "Huh. Well, I remember him saying something about having a potential marefriend, but he never said who she was. Now I'm guessing that she's you Zena!"

"And you're probably right Scar!"

At this moment, the Deputy came back. "Captain Scar? You're needed now."

"Ok, I'm coming." I then looked back at the sisters. "I have to go to the meeting now, but I wish you the best of luck with your relationships!"

"Just as we wish you the best of luck with Gilda Scar!" Zuri giggled a bit.

I hugged them both one last time, and then left for the town hall.

When I arrived, I found Braeburn leading a meeting, while Shining, Spike, Big Mac, the rest of my guys, and a few other leaders were present as well.

"What's going on Brae?"

"Well, our scientists are done with their secret project, and they're ready to unveil it to us."

I was surprised. "What, really?"

"Yes."

"Oh, well, this should be good." I then took my seat.

The lead scientist, Dr. Stables, formerly the head doctor at the Ponyville General Hospital before escaping with a number of male patients and staff to Appaloosa, stepped forwards.

"Thank you Braeburn. Now then, the meat of why you've all been called here today. Well, for the past few months, we've been trying to come up with something to infect the Zebras with that the Ponies are immune to, and now we've had our breakthrough." He then held up a bottle full of dark colored liquid.

"THIS will become the bane of the Zebra's existence! It'll mix into the water supply, and under normal circumstances it would take a while for it to work, but we've been able to aggravate it so that it'll kick in MUCH faster, and when it does, it will be EXTREMELY deadly to male Zebras!"

"Yes, but what does it do Dr. Stables?" I asked.

"It...........will give the Zebras testicular cancer!"

When we all heard that, all we could do was stare in shock.

"Give them........testicular cancer?! How is that even possible?!"

"It's possible, because this chemical creates the PERFECT conditions to develop the cancer, as well as aggravating the testicles so that the cancer will form."

Shining looked at Dr. Stables. "But......won't that lead to Zebra extinction?"

"I can see why would you think that Prince Shining, but no. Only a fraction will be effected, but it will be a VERY high number. By our initial estimates, we estimate that up to 65% of the Zebra males will be effected."

"And how will we get it into the water supply?" I asked.

"That's where you boys come in." The doctor answered. "You're going to have to bag us Cloudsdale. If we have control of Cloudsdale, all we have to do is rain the poison down on the areas affected by Zebras! Stallions and mares are immune, but the Zebras won't be!"

I was surprised. "Ok, Cloudsdale. So now all we have to do is plan out how to do that. In the meantime though Dr. Stables, you and your people just keep us supplied with the special gas to allow the mares to see the truth, as well as the chemicals to dump into the water supply of the Cloudsdale Weather Factory, so that it can be made into clouds, before getting rained down on the Zebras."

"Will do Captain Anderson."

The meeting then adjourned, and then reconvened so that we could discuss the plans for the attack on Cloudsdale.

"Ok people this is going to be our HARDEST campaign yet, and this is due to the terrain. As I'm sure that you know, only Pegasai and Griffons can walk on clouds. This means that the Zebras must be using some kind of serum, which we don't have the time to develop!"

"And why's that?" Spike asked.

"Because now that the word of the Griffons and Dragons joining the war on our side has hit the streets, the Zebras WILL be taking the initiative to launch a counterattack!"

"So what do we do?" Shining asked.

"This time, we'll have a 2 front assault. The Dragons, as well as a number of others who will be using the airships that we managed to capture in Van Hoover and Las Pegasus, will draw fire from the Zebras in the city, while the forces of Pegasai and Griffons, including the (male) Wonderbolts, will storm the city. Then, once inside, priority number 1 will be securing the weather factory. Then we take the rest of the city."

"And what of the Zebras?" Jake asked.

I smirked. "If they surrender, prepare them for transport to the surface. If they wanna fight, then let's give them free flying lessons!"

"And what time will be be attacking?"

"Halloween Night, at sunset." I then noticed the blank looks I was getting from the Ponies. "Oh, yeah. Or as you would call it, Nightmare Night."

"And why at sunset?"

"Well Gilda, the lower the light levels, the less likely the enemy will be to be able to effectively attack us. Plus, it WILL be Halloween/Nightmare Night, so if any screams are heard, any blood is seen, or any bodies fall from the sky, the chances of the Zebras ignoring it are SO MUCH higher!"

Shining smirked, as did many others. "Heh, I REALLY like the way that you think Bro!"

We all then waited for Nightmare Night to begin our attack.

When it began, we all went to where Cloudsdale was in sight. Jake and I would be the only Humans up there in Cloudsdale itself, as we were the only Pegasai of us Humans-hybrids. At the time of our arrival, Cloudsdale was about 100 miles East of the Unicorn Range. The Pegasai and the Griffons, as well as Jake and I would be going in first, followed by the Dragons, and then the others on the 4 airships that we had for the attack. At sunset, the attack began.

ALL of us were nervous. We didn't know what to expect, as we really couldn't risk too many scouting missions. However, when you have pissed off stallions and mares, 2 angry former US Marines, 4 armed airships full of MORE angry Ponies, and a whole slew of Griffons and Dragons, what could possibly go wrong?

The first wave went at the city from above. We landed in various places, and sure enough, just like we previously thought, the Zebras hardly gave us a second glance, as it WAS Nightmare Night. Soon though, once we'd managed to neutralize the long-range radio equipment, the time had come to attack.

In the blink of an eye, our wave whipped out our weapons, and went to town!

"Game on Shining!" I yelled over my radio. "Bring in the airships, and tell General Cinder to bring in his Dragons!"

"Bring on the gas Bro?"

"Yes, and hurry!"

"Roger that, here we come!" The city was then SWARMED by the rest of our forces!

The Zebras did NOT know what to do when we attacked. Unlike what we previously believed, most of them had actually rebuilt a number of floors and roads so that they could walk on them without touching the clouds.

"They can't walk on clouds!" Jake yelled when he saw all of the extra road structures, "Take out the extra roads! The Zebras will fall through the clouds!"

While we were doing this, our 4 airships, as well as the Dragons, were doing battle with the Zebra's airships. The Dragons were our first line of defense, as their scales were so think that NOTHING that the Zebras could throw at them could stop them! They absolutely SCORCHED them with their fiery breath, and tore them to shreds with their claws!

Whenever a Zebra airship went down, usually all aboard were killed due to a SEVERE lack of things like parachutes on the airships! Also most of us who could fly would also grab Zebras, and then drag them out of the city before dropping them to their deaths!

For what it was worth, the Battle of Cloudsdale was one of the best battles of the entire war. Thanks to the gas, as well as our new allies, by the time that that Midnight rolled around, the entire city was ours! We also took back Wonderbolt Academy, freed all of the female Wonderbolts, and we even found Rainbow Dash being held prisoner at the Academy as well.

"Well FINALLY!!!! It's about TIME that you guys showed up!"

"You're welcome Rainbow Dash." I said as she and the other female Wonderbolts were escorted away so that they could be taken care of better.

"So now that we've saved Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, that just leaves Twilight and the other princesses in Canterlot, and Rarity, Fluttershy and Applejack in Ponyville."

"Yeah." Shining replied over his radio. "And now we wrap everything up here, and then we bring on the drugs!"

"The drugs, AND the Winter!"

"Wait, what do you mean 'the Winter'?"

"Well, since it IS almost November, Winter will soon be upon us. However, the Zebras can't STAND Winter, as they live in a very hot climate! That's why they've been controlling Cloudsdale; they HAVE to keep it forever Summer!"

"Oh, NOW I see what you mean! We hit them with the drugs, then FREEZE them with an Equestrian Winter! Great thinking!"

I nodded. "Thanks Shining."

And not too long after that, the last parts of the Battle of Cloudsdale ended. We now controlled Cloudsdale, the weather, the drugs that we were going to dump on the Zebras via rain, Wonderbolt Academy, and all mares and fillies within, including the female Wonderbolts!

Before we took steps to act on what we were about to do, we tried to contact the Zebras again.

"You HAVE to surrender to us!" Shining warned them, "Because if you DON'T, ALL of the Forces of Nature will be released upon you, and bring you low!"

"HELL NO!!!!!" Zed yelled, "We STILL will not surrender to you! And sure, MAYBE you took Cloudsdale, but that's IT!!!! You'll NEVER take anymore territory! We have defenses will take down Ponies, Griffons, and even Dragons! This is the END of your little rebellion!"

Shining sighed. "It's your loss Zed. We GAVE you the chance to surrender, but you didn't take it! We'll give you until we take Fillydelphia. Get out of our cities, get back on your ships, and go BACK to where you came from! If you don't, we'll take Fillydelphia, and then it will be TOO LATE!!!! NO mercy will be shown, and we WILL take back what rightfully belongs to us!"

Zed promptly hung up after giving Shining the finger.

"So, I guess that we play this the hard way?" I asked

Shining nodded. "Yes. Unfortunately we have to do it the hard way."

"At least Zuri and Zena are safe in Appaloosa", I muttered. Big Mac and Braeburn, who were nearby when they heard me say that, also nodded in agreement.

We then brought the Weather Factory back online, and once we were ready, we began to dump the chemicals that we'd been provided with into the weather machines.

By November 3rd, the last of our clouds full of chemical rain reached the last cities and settlements full of Zebras in Equestria. The chemical rain began to fall, and although it didn't hit most of the Zebras directly, it was absorbed into the ground, and it went all over the trees, and other food that the Zebras ate that was still outside. The rest of the drug seeped into the water supply. The Zebras didn't know it yet, but up to 65% of them had just been rendered PERMANENTLY sterile!

Following the last day of our rainstorms, we gave Nature time to adsorb the poison, and then on November 6th, Winter arrived in Equestria. The clouds rolled in, the temperatures dropped, and then the snows began to fall in full-force!

"What's going on?!" Many Zebras asked. "Why has Winter come?!"

Some Zebras on the East Coast had had enough. They were NOT going to die from the cold, and they were NOT going to wait for us to come and kill them. As quickly as they could, they packed their bags, loaded up onto a few ships, and headed BACK to where they came from! Sure, the ships were stopped by the Equestrian Navy, searched for mares, and then let off on their way once they were found to be clean. For the ships that had mares, the mares were removed, and the ships were then sunk!

In total, approximately 4,000 Zebras left in this manner, and none of them were never seen or heard from again. Whether or not they made it back to Zebrica remains unclear, as we never conducted any followups. As long as they were gone, we were as happy as could be!

Once again in Canterlot, Zed was wringing his hands. Ever since Cloudsdale, we hadn't moved from our positions, but yet the Winter was upon them.

"What do we do, My King? We were NOT made for this kind of weather! We HAVE to surrender before this gets any worse!"

"How?" Zed asked. "How is ANY of this even possible?!"

General Bania looked at his king. "It happened for several reasons. First of all, we DIDN'T get rid of those 'Human' creatures when we had the chance! Instead, we kept them around! Secondly, we did NOT crush the Appaloosa Resistance, or those in the Trottingham Resistance! We just let them do their thing, and now we're reaping what we've sown! Finally, our troops got careless. NONE of them were vigilant, or properly prepared, and as such, they were EASILY overwhelmed!"

Zed knew that Bania was right, but yet he couldn't admit that it was true. Zed knew as did many of the others that the Zebras were in SERIOUS trouble, but yet if they admitted that that was the case, MORE Ponies would rebel, and that would undermine their position even further.

In the end, Zed immediately ordered Winter clothing to be made, and then distributed to the Zebras, mares, and fillies still under Zebra rule.

When they were alone, Luna spoke to her sister again. "Have you reconsidered what I've said yet Sister?"

Celestia nodded slowly. "With the fall of Las Pegasus and Cloudsdale, the Zebras only hold Baltimare, Manehattan, Fillydelphia, Ponyville, and Canterlot, and now Winter has fallen upon us as well. Yes, I see now that the Zebras may indeed be destined to fall. We'll see how this plays out next, but I wouldn't be surprised if the war is over by the thaw of Spring."

"And neither will I Sister. I will NOT be missing the Zebras, and if you were wise, you would also do away with your Zebra 'lover', just as I have done."

Celestia sighed. "I may not have to. He seems to be sick with something; almost like some form of cancer."

Luna was surprised. "Wait, cancer? What are the symptoms?"

Celestia described then. Luna smirked. "Testicular cancer! How much are you willing to bet that our Human friends are responsible for that?"

"I'd be willing to bet a LOT on money on it, Dear Sister! I've also heard whispering that many other male Zebras are falling ill with it as well. It's the perfect payback in the most ironic way. They hurt us, and now our forces are hurting THEM! But in any case though, I think that I'll hurry my coltfriend's death along a bit faster!"

Celestia would use poison on him a bit later, and once again, just like her sister, she blamed it on a Human assassin.

Even with the Winter weather, and the Zebra stallions falling ill with testicular cancer, the war still wasn't quite over just yet. By Thanksgiving, we'd managed to fully fortify our holdings, and push all of the way to the Everfree Forest. We were closing in on Ponyville, although our goal was to drive the Zebras East, and back to the coastal cities where they would board their ships, and get the hell out of dodge. Some did, but yet we knew that the Zebras would need MORE coaxing before they did what we wanted them to.

On December 3rd, our time had come. Using our ships, it was time to begin to close our pincer on the East Coast. After splitting up our forces, we hit both Baltimare, and Manehattan.

The fighting was brutal, vicious, took a LOT longer than we thought that it was going to, and it ended up being VERY costly. These 2 cities had the LARGEST Zebra populations outside of Canterlot, and the fighting took on the nightmarish form of the Russian Front during WW2, with places like Stalingrad coming to mind!

It went from street to street, building to building, floor to floor, and even room to room in a number of cases! All around us the snows continued to fall, and the temperatures were in the single digits oftentimes. Sometimes our forces would come out ahead, and other times they would be driven back towards oblivion.

Then, on December 17th, the last defenders of Baltimare fell. The city was Equestrian once again, the quarantine camp outside of the city was liberated, although most Zebras who were captured weren't killed. Instead, they were thrown onto their ships, told to get out of town, and NEVER come back! Needless to say, they fled Equestria, and NEVER came back!

375 of the Allies fell, all of them Ponies or Griffons, 798 were wounded, including Rick, Frank, and myself, and 27 were missing. For the Zebras, an estimated 3,000+ were dead, 1,500+ were wounded, and an unknown number were missing. The surviving wounded, plus maybe 3,000+ others were sent away on their ships. There was also an estimated 375 or so civilian casualties.

The battle for Manehattan was even worse. Christmas came and went, and then New Years 2025, and STILL the city didn't fall! Due to a SEVERE blizzard, fighting had to be postponed for about 2 weeks, and when it resumed, it continued until January 21st! Unlike Baltimare though, only 150 Zebras survived to be sent away. 5,000+ were killed, and an estimated 5-7,000 just straight up froze to death. We lost a lot of good troops as well, but we had what we came for, Manehattan.

Now, the Zebras only held Fillydelphia, Ponyville, and Canterlot, though this was soon to change.

When the time came, on January 22nd, Shining contacted Zed again.

"What do you want NOW?!?!" Zed spat when he saw us.

"What we WANT is for your surrender! Please, for the love of FAUST Zed, STOP DOING THIS TO YOUR OWN PEOPLE!!!!! THOUSANDS of them just straight up FROZE TO DEATH out here! We've left the city of Fillydelphia untouched so that you have an evacuation route. Just head there, get to your ships, and leave!"

Zed looked like he was going insane. "NO!!!" He roared. "I will NEVER surrender to the likes of you! I conquered Equestria, and now I intend to hold onto what's left of it!"

I then tried to reason with him. "King Zed, PLEASE listen to me! It's OVER for you! You only hold a town, and 2 cities. You have MAYBE 100,000 of your people left now. The rest are either dead, missing, or have left. You CANNOT hope to win. Your people are starving, freezing, and even dying of a severe illness! If you surrender now, and evacuate, we will NOT follow you! You can still have a chance to LIVE!"

"I.....said........NO!!!!"

Shining then looked up at Zed again. I saw the hatred in his eyes. He HATED Zed for being so stupid, and FOOLISHLY wasting the lives of his own people! "Zed, you have until February 2nd to leave. On that day, your last door closes, and soon after, Fillydelphia WILL be ours. Then, we'll close in, and take you down. This is your FINAL WARNING!!!! Take heed, and make your escape. Like my Bro said, we will NOT follow you!"

To our dismay though, Zed simply signed off the video call.

For the entirety of the 11 days between January 22nd, and February 2nd, we all watched the Zebras to see what they would do. Sure enough, a LOT of them saw the writing on the wall, and fled. They came to Fillydelphia, we gave them food, blankets, and whatever else they needed, before helping them onto their ships, and then they left.

Not all of the Zebras wanted to leave though. Some of them were willing to spend the rest of the war in internment camps just for the chance of being able to remain in Equestria. An estimated 10,000 or so did this, while an estimated 30,000 or so fled. This left approximately 60,000 Zebras for us to deal with.

Then, on February 2nd, with the flow of Zebras having come to a stop, we made good on our deal, and began our conquest of Fillydelphia. 3 days later, the city was ours. Casualties were minimal, and now the Zebras had no escape back to Zebrica. A few did still come to be held in interment camps, but now we prepared for our final drive.

With Spring about a month away, we all prepared for our final drive to the last 2 cities that were held by the Zebras, Ponyville, and Canterlot. There, the Zebras would take their last stand. There, they would die. Their end was nigh, and it was only a matter of how painful it was going to be for them.

Author's Note

Whew, ANOTHER chapter done! Another chapter full of battles, bringing it down to the last 2 battles in Ponyville, and Canterlot. The end is nigh for the Zebras once again. They had their chance to escape, and now they're going down once more!

How will these last 2 battles play out? Will they be brutal? Will the good guys be able to save the last 4 Elements of Harmony, including the seemingly deranged Twilight? And what about the other 3 Princesses, will the good guys be able to save them? Will Shining and Spike, as well as Big Mac be able to get revenge on the Zebras who ruined their lives? ALL will be revealed in Chapter 5, so stay tuned!

And with this chapter, the new scene was the interactions between Scar, and Zuri and Zena. He checked up on them, and they told him that they had a relationship going with Big Mac for Zena, and Braeburn for Zuri. They also asked him how Gilda was doing, and he told them. Everything's on track as it should be now, and in Chapter 5, the last of Scar's other relationships end, and "Ruby X Scar" will be no more. Chapter 5 will have a MAJOR overhaul, and it'll be the last of the chapters of the original timeline. Chapter 6 and the Epilogue will be brand-new, so stay tuned for those!

In the meantime though, comments, feedback, questions, as well as spreading the word about this story, are always appreciated, and I'll see you all in Chapter 5!

ScarFox out for now!