Without Question

Without Question

Chapter Twelve – Reclamation

The armies of the Changeling Empire gathered several hundred yards from the massive walls of Thornheart.  As they waited in formation, Silus led several officers over to a rock where he spread a map across it.  The map showed the various sections and districts of the city, including small details such as sewers and whatnot.  Scouts that had been sent ahead reported that the city had a garrison of at least four thousand; the forces of both sides were numerically even.

The outskirts of Thornheart were nothing more than grassy plains with a few hills here and there.  Because of this, the ponies could see the Changeling army from atop the walls.  They couldn’t really do much other than watch.  To sally forth and attack would cause them to lose their advantage behind the city walls.  For now they would have to wait and see what would happen.

Silus had recently discovered some unexpected, yet very good news.  One of the Centuries sent from Fort Ash consisted of a hundred huge, brutish Changelings.  They stood about thirteen feet tall and wielded axes that had blades the size of an adult human. Every inch of their black skin was covered in some kind of biological plated armor; it appeared their skin was like some kind of hardened plastic.  Obviously, these monstrous warriors would make excellent shock troops.

Twenty five of the army’s fastest, stealthiest Changelings were ordered to form a small group that would be tasked with infiltrating the city.  Unlike the other soldiers, these wore no armor so that their movement would be completely unrestrained.  When night fell, they would begin their mission.

As Silus continued preparing the army, a Changeling soldier approached him.

“Milord!  An Equestrian officer and his escorts wish to speak with you!”

Silus furrowed his brows.

“Tell him I will meet him alone.  No escorts for either of us.”

“Uh…very well, milord…” the soldier said with a hint of worry.

A few minutes later, Silus approached the gates of Thornheart.  He stopped about a hundred yards from them when the gates slowly opened and a single armored pegasus exited.  The four guard ponies on each side of the gate gave a salute as he passed and walked towards Silus.  The grey pegasus beamed with confidence, his chest puffed out and long strides in his walk.  His golden armor loudly clanked with every clip-clop before he finally reached Silus.

Silus and the pegasus stared at each other for what felt like hours.  They knew what the other was doing; they were evaluating.

The pegasus glared at Silus with a smirk as his eyes moved up and down.  This…thing…hardly seemed deserving of the brutal infamy it had earned among the Equestrian military.  Sure, it was fairly muscular, but it only used two legs to walk.  There was no way it could match the speed of a mighty soldier pony.  And its armor!  The pegasus resisted the urge to shake his head at how poor Changeling craftsmanship was.  An abomination; that’s all this pale beast was.  How appropriate that the Changeling protector was as hideous as the Changelings themselves.

Silus stared intensely at the pegasus.  This pony was far more muscular than any of the other ponies he had seen so far.  It made sense that a pony of his position and physique would bear such heavy and decorative armor.  Indeed, gold plating covered most of the Equestrian and a bright white plume of feathers formed a mohawk along his helmet.  But the look on the pegasus’ face annoyed Silus.  That pride…how could he have such pride in the murder of the innocent?

“Hmph.  You are the one leading the Changeling army?”

Silus blinked.  His focus had been on the pegasus’ features and the sudden question caught him off guard.

“That I am.  And you are the one whose forces are occupying this Changeling city?”

“I am.  Though I must add, it has been rather quiet without the previous number of occupants…” the pegasus replied, holding up a hoof as he checked it for dirt and scratches.

The nerve of this pegasus to mention genocide so offhandedly caused Silus’ face to heat up.

“Is that so?  I’m sure the silence will be deafening once we reduce that number a bit more…” Silus muttered, though he remained calm.

The pegasus frowned for a moment, and put his hoof back on the ground.

“Now now, that was a bit rude on my part, I’ll admit.  But surely you can see that you are fighting a losing battle…”

Silus raised a brow.

“Oh?  Please, do elaborate.”

“You see, you serve a race of vile, murderous beasts who had the nerve to abuse our Princesses’ mercy.  After we removed those pests the first time, we did not pursue them and simply allowed them to go back to their pitiful lives.  Now here comes the twist; they came back!  We allow them to live, and they repay us with the sacking of our cities and the murder of innocent ponies!  Such arrogance!  Finally we purged your filth from our lands yet again, but that was not and is not enough.  We were the most peaceful nation in this world, the most forgiving and patient, the most merciful and just, and now…the most logical.  This world will not have peace so long as warmongering races like the Changelings exist!  We are the greater good.  We are the bringers of justice.  We are the hooves of our goddesses, and we serve to deliver their divine will…”

Silus scowled at the pegasus’ words.  To slay so many…and in the name of the greater good!  The pegasus continued.

“There is no hope for you and your kind.  Your little ‘victories’ did nothing more than delay the inevitable.  Once you foul beings are gone from this world, a peace unlike any other will ensue.  You may think the killing of your race is atrocious…but if some must die so that many may live, then I will end you with pride.”

It took everything in Silus’ power not to run the pegasus through right then and there.  But to do so would be cowardly and barbaric; Silus would not stoop that low.  No, he was better than that.  Far better.  He would show that he was better than these ponies.

“You will end us, you say?” Silus smirked.

The pegasus proudly raised his head and returned the smirk.

Silus leaned close to the pegasus’ face and whispered, “…you’re going to need more ponies…”

With that, Silus turned around and began to walk back to his army.

“You would dare defy the will of the goddesses of our world?!  I will enjoy dancing on your bloody corpse, you pathetic vermin!” the pegasus shouted from behind Silus, who just grinned and kept walking.

Many hours later, the sun had finally set and crickets chirped in the moist, glistening grass of the plains.  The army stood silently in position about two hundred yards from the gates.  The ponies that stood watch on the walls could see the black horde and the shimmering of their armor in the moonlight.

The pony occupiers hadn’t been in the city for more than two months and didn’t know all of the ways in.  Silus exploited this and sent his stealth team down to the beach where they followed the shore for a while under the cover of darkness.  Eventually, they reached the huge sewage pipes that poked out of the city walls along a cliff.  With no eyes on them, the Changelings removed the grates and slipped in.

The stench was unholy.  The sewage system had not been maintained for some time, and there was enough reeking waste to scare off an Ursa Major.  The Changelings disregarded it.  If they had to trudge through rivers of festering excrement to save their home, they would do it.  After several minutes of wading, the team reached a ladder that lead up to the streets.  A single soldier peeked out from under the lid of the manhole to see if the coast was clear.  Sure enough, it was.

The twenty five Changelings quickly piled out of the sewer and sprinted to a nearby alley, glad to be free of the awful smell.  As a patrol of guard ponies passed by, the Changelings disguised themselves and formed their own patrol.  The stealth team caught the attention of many disgusted soldiers at the gates.

“BY CELESTIA!  What is that putrid stench?!” a guard shouted as he covered his snout.

“Uh…apologies.  My boys fell into the city cesspool,” said the Changeling disguised as an officer.

“Go down to the beach and clean yourselves up!  The mediocre plumbing in the city clogged up and the showers don’t work!” the guard barked.

“Will do, sir,” the Changeling answered.

“Just stay close to the city.  I doubt those Changelings will try anything, but I wouldn’t tempt them,” the guard said as the gates slowly opened.

The moment the gates opened completely, the Changelings drew daggers and attacked the surprised guards.

(Author’s Note:  To compliment the following scene, I felt as though this song was appropriate and adds to the quality of it.  It is not mandatory to listen as you read, but I think it improves the experience.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1Jf_slWj_Y)

“The Changeling army is charging!  Close the gates!” a guard pony shouted from the walls.  As soon as she looked down and saw the Changeling stealth team, she grabbed a nearby horn and blew it as hard as she could.

The entire Changeling army was running at full speed.  Silus himself was at the front, with the massive shock trooper Changelings behind him, and the rest of the army behind them.  Ahead he could see the stealth team under attack from dozens of ponies, and hundreds more were pouring in from other streets.

“FASTER!  We must breach the walls!” Silus screamed as he raised his sword and pointed it to the sky.

The army was closing in, only another fifty yards.  Silus saw the last stealth Changeling fall to the ground and the gates began to close.

“Close the gates!  CLOSE THE GATES!” the grey pegasus commander shouted as he took to the air above the streets directing soldiers.  The ponies turning the gate’s cranks were sweating wildly.

“This is our land!  We will take back what is rightfully ours!” Silus encouraged the Changelings around him as he ran, but the gates were closing fast.  Only twenty five yards now.

“CLOSE THE DAMNED GATES, YOU FOOLS!” the pegasus officer was screaming now.  He hadn’t thought the Changelings would be this bold and it worried him.

Just as the gate’s doors made contact, a Changeling shock trooper plowed into them and sent splintered logs and steel shards flying into the air.  The ponies were too late to halt the flood; the dam had been broken.

“FOR THE QUEEN!” Silus let out a war cry as he and his soldiers began hacking through an Equestrian formation.  Pegasi flew about and unicorns blasted magical beams in confusion.  Changelings that were lightly armed were able to quickly disguise themselves and wreak havoc on the puzzled ponies.  The large, brutish shock troopers grunted and roared as they broke crowds with each swing.

Everywhere, ponies and Changelings fell to the ground.  The battle was in the Changelings’ favor; the sheer surprise of the attack coupled with the shock troopers gave them a huge advantage.  Silus swung all around him, scoring kill after kill.  But just as he was about to swing again, something slammed into his side and lifted him high into the air.

“Changeling SCUM!  I will splatter you onto the pavement!”

The grey pegasus officer had grabbed Silus and was carrying him high above the city.  Silus did not struggle.  Even if he did break free, he would simply plummet to his death.  Instead, he waited until the pegasus reached the desired altitude.

“Soon you will be nothing more than a stain on the streets!  Enjoy the view while you can!” the pegasus laughed and let go of Silus.  Just as he was released, Silus grabbed the pegasus’ leg and swung himself around onto his back.  Wrapping his legs around the pegasus’ waist, he wrapped Molten’s dangling bandana around the base of the surprised officer’s wings.

“WHAT ARE Y—AGH!” the pegasus shrieked as Silus tightened the bandana.

The tables had turned and Silus was in control.  They both fell rapidly towards the city where the battle still raged on.  Below them, a small wooden house grew closer.

“YOU FOOL!  You’ll kill us both!” the pegasus screamed.

Silus merely held on tightly and kept one hand on the bandana.  Seconds before they impacted the roof, Silus yanked away the bandana.  The pegasus flailed his wings, slowing them down slightly, but they crashed through the roof nonetheless.  The quick release of the pegasus’ wings had made sure that Silus was unharmed while the officer was severely injured.  The two had landed on a table in the house’s kitchen.  Silus, though dazed, stumbled off of the pegasus and raised his blade.

Much to Silus’ disappointment, Molten’s bandana was gone, ripped from the hilt.  But now the pegasus officer was at his mercy.

“Ughh…my legs…” the pegasus moaned.

Silus approached the officer and leveled his sword with the pegasus’ throat.

“Go ahead,” the pegasus coughed, “…do it, you murderous waste of life…”

The human furrowed his brows.  Every slaughter had been avenged with another slaughter.  It needed to stop, though many would still want revenge.  He needed to set an example, or perhaps…gain a bargaining chip.

“You.  You are coming with me, pegasus,” Silus muttered and hoisted the immobile officer over his shoulder.

“Unhand me, you…you…aghhh…” the officer mumbled as he passed out from the pain.

Silus exited the house and saw that the battle had spilled into every corner of the city.  He ordered some nearby soldiers to guard the officer while he ran off to give further orders.  Silus ran down the streets, shouting that all ponies were to surrender immediately.  The Changelings, though engaged in combat, were shocked.  Though they wished to kill these genocidal occupiers, they obeyed Silus and captured the ponies who surrendered.

As the sun rose, the battle came to an end and a victory cheer echoed to the sky.  About seven Centuries of Changelings had been slain, but over two thousand ponies had been taken prisoner, as well as the commanding officer.  The ponies were all stripped of their weapons and armor and were shipped off to the capital, where they would be held until Silus had use for them.  The Changelings were overjoyed to have taken back one of their cities, but at the same time, they were disappointed and confused as to why the enemy was allowed to live.

Silus had a message sent to the Queen informing her of the Changeling victory.  He let out a sigh as he watched the sunrise.  He would have preferred to do it himself.  Oh, what he would give to see that look of admiration and pride in her beautiful green eyes…

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Sir!  We found traces of food along the beach!  It seems like the trails leads towards the capital!”

“Experienced soldiers would never be so stupid as to leave behind evidence as obvious as that.  Hmmm…gather the troops…the hunt goes on…” Grimsoul muttered.