Three years. Three miserable years was how long this war lasted and at the end of it all, it would take even longer to rebuild everything that was lost. At the beginning, we weren’t sure what exactly was going on and why it was happening, but many of us enlisted, because who wasn’t willing to die for their country?

As we found out, the Crystal Empire had returned under mysterious circumstances and ultimately declared war on Equestria, though it turned out King Sombra was the one pulling the strings behind this entire war and it was all about taking over the world, that kind of stuff. It should’ve been a short conflict, but the Empire was more prepared than we thought and after victory after victory, they were almost on Canterlot’s doorstep.

That was where we came in: Omega Squad. We were the ones that took on the major challenges, helping here and there with the Equestrian Defense Force (EDF) and in some cases working on black ops missions. The best of the best as some said. However, even we were pushed to our limits and this war proved to be unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. To be honest…to this day I’m not sure how I’m still alive…

- Excerpt from the diary of Sergeant Rainbow Dash, Omega Squad

It had been almost a full year since the war began and morale was slowly starting to dip for the EDF. The Imperial war machine seemed to be going nonstop with their troops and artillery, almost overwhelming them at every turn. There had been some victories in between the string of defeats, but it was only delaying the inevitable. It took everything Equestria had to keep the enemy away from striking the capital.

It had been a busy few months for Omega Squad. Missions had them going around the continent in all parts of the war front and they hardly got any rest, but they were used to that by now. For the moment, they were able to catch a fews z’s at least.

The small town of Hoofington had managed to stay out of the war for at least a little awhile, until recently when intel reported that the Imperial Army was trying to make its way through the town in a recent push to hit the capital of Canterlot. Fortunately, there was enough time for the residents to evacuate and the town was currently deserted, save for the members of Omega Squad.

Captain Spitfire was sitting on the roof of an abandoned shed that was next to a farmhouse, surrounded by a field of long grass. There had been no contact from HQ via radio about Imperial sightings so the least she could do was allow herself to get a little bit of relaxation. The weather was clear and the breeze was gentle, currently coming from the west.

She got up and stretched slightly before looking down and seeing one of her fellow soldiers sleeping on the hood of a pickup truck. “Hey, no time for napping Dash,” she said in a slightly teasing tone.

The girl with rainbow-colored hair opened one of her eyes. “I wasn’t napping, I was just resting my eyes.”

“Sure you were,” Spitfire smiled slightly. “Don’t forget the enemy’s coming this way.”

“I’m well aware of that,” Dash said. She frowned slightly. “It’s too bad really…it’s nice and peaceful here…except that’s not gonna last much longer is it?”

“Probably not…” Spitfire sighed. “Still no word from HQ either, it’s almost as if-” She suddenly stopped. At that moment she realized the breeze had stopped as well and while that by itself was not unusual it often was a bad omen, at least for her.

“What’s up Spits?” Dash was up, fully alert.

“The wind has stopped…and you know what that means…”

“Shit…” Dash suddenly grabbed her rifle and got on top of the truck’s hood. “Alright everyone, it’s go time! Get to your positions!” And in an instant, the field was suddenly full of bodies, all members of the same squad as they quickly made their way into the town, taking up defensive positions.

“You think it’s them?” Dash asked as Spitfire jumped down.

“If I’m right…” Spitfire started. About five seconds after that, an explosion erupted about fifty meters behind them, the result of an artillery blast. “Yep, it’s definitely them.”

Suddenly her radio crackled to life. “Omega Squad, do you copy!?”

Spitfire grabbed the small radio off her belt. “This is Omega, I copy.”

“Imperial forces are headed in your direction. You must hold them back at all costs!”

“Understand HQ, over and out.” Spitfire sighed as she clipped the radio back onto her waist. “In other words, don’t expect any reinforcements.”

“What else is new…?” Dash grumbled.

“Let’s hurry, if they’re shelling the place that gives us some time before they start moving in. Stick with me Dash and we’ll meet up with Soarin and Fleetfoot.”

Dash grinned slightly. “This is where the fun begins.”

One hour later…

Dash was starting to regret her words as she practically sprinted down one of the empty streets and quickly found cover behind one of the buildings as gunfire erupted where she just was. Things had gone to shit almost immediately as the enemy’s attack proved to be much more aggressive than they planned, as they rained down mortar and artillery fire, leaving most of the buildings now in ruins. Omega had no choice but to retreat and unfortunately most of them had been separated due to the chaos.

As of now, the Imperials were currently stationed on the other end of town and Dash was hoping Spitfire was planning on a counterattack. As she was determining her next move, her radio suddenly went off. “Dash, you copy!?”

Speak of the devil… “Spitfire, please tell me you got a plan to send these assholes packing…”

“I do, but some of the squad is still missing. You see a bell tower from where you are? Should be north-northeast.”

Dash looked out from cover and saw the building to her two o’clock. “Yeah I see it. That’s our rendezvous point?”

“Right. I got Misty on top of there so keep on her frequency in case you get into any trouble. Getting here is priority number one but if you see anyone else in trouble, do what you gotta do.”

“Yes ma’am.” She then changed the frequency on her radio. “Misty, you copy?”

“Good to see you’re still in one piece Dash,” Misty’s calm voice came through.

“Good to see you’re my guardian angel at the moment,” Dash said, smiling slightly. “How’s it looking up there?”

“The Imps are advancing slowly, being cautious since I ended up taking down three of their men so far. The good news is so far its only infantry but if we take too long to finish up and they call in backup this is going to get even uglier.”

“Copy that, I’m on my way to your position.” The street was now clear for the moment, allowing Dash the opportunity to make her way across into one of the narrow alleyways. It was quieter for the most part due to the artillery barrage finally ceasing, but the sound of gunfire echoed across the town. At the end of all of this, these people would no longer have a home to come back to. It only strengthened Dash’s resolve and increased her eagerness to put a bullet in one of those Imp’s heads.

As she came across a connecting alleyway, a hand suddenly shot out and grabbed her, pulling her in. Reacting quickly, Dash pulled out her sidearm with her free hand and quickly pointed it towards her target! “Whoa take it easy Dash! It’s just me!”

Dash suddenly froze as she recognized the person in front of her. The short blonde hair on her shoulders quickly gave the culprit away. “Lightning Dust!? Son of a bitch, you scared me! I almost put a bullet into you.”

“Well that’s a nice way of saying you’re welcome,” Dust said slightly teasingly. The small machine gun in her hands identified her as a shock trooper, the ones who were usually first into the battle. Shock troopers and scouts - which Dash was and her class was responsible for recon and being able to take out enemies from a longer distance - worked hand in hand as they essentially provided backup for one another. It was only appropriate that Dash and Dust, who were close friends, often worked together.

“There’s a patrol coming down the street up ahead,” Dust explained. “Not saying you wouldn’t have seen them but you’d kinda be screwed on your own.”

“Fine, thank you Dust,” Dash grumbled slightly.

“See, wasn’t too hard was it? Anyway, now that you’re here, we can really wreck some havoc.”

“You do realize we’re supposed to meet at the bell tower?”

“Course I do, but Spits never said we had to be quiet about it.”

Dash groaned. It was amazing how she got along with this girl. “Fine whatever, let’s just get a move on.”

“Follow me.” Dust took the two of them down the connecting alley which led to another wide open street. Upon reaching the next block, Dust motioned for them to stop. “Down there.”

Dash looked down the street and saw the backs of about six Imperial troopers walking down the road. If they were here, that only meant getting to the bell tower was going to be much harder. “What do you think?” Dust asked. “Should we just take them out?”

“They’re way too far out of range.”

“Yeah well it’s a good thing I have one of these and a very good throwing arm,” Dust said as she pulled out a grenade before pulling the pin. She then threw it as hard as she could and the arc she had was almost unbelievable. It landed just behind the troopers’ feet and before they could react it went off, sending the six of them flying straight into the concrete.

“Damn that felt good!” Dust cheered.

“You better hope that didn’t alert the rest of them to our presence.”

“You worry too much Dash. You’re starting to sound like our dear Captain…”

“Gee, wonder why…” The two of them made their way across the next street…only to run into a barricade. “Oh come on!” Dash groaned. Unfortunately, they were outnumbered so going in guns blazing wouldn’t work. Unless…

“Misty, do you copy? I could use a little distraction on your end…”

“Where would you be without me?” Misty said with a scolding tone, though Dash could imagine she had a grin on her face. “Where’s your location?”

Dash took a look around her surroundings. “About fifty kilometers southeast of your position. Bunch of Imps near a theater.”

Misty was quiet for a few moments. “Okay got ‘em. Yep, that’s probably more than you can handle on your own.”

“Hey don’t forget about me,” Dust said with an annoyed tone.

“Is that Dust? …Well even then you’re probably still screwed.”

“Love you too hun.”

“Just need a distraction and we’ll take care of the rest,” Dash said.

“Alright, just give me the cue when you’re ready,” Misty replied.

Dash looked over to Dust who then nodded. “Go for it.”

It only took a few moments before a shot rang out and a small explosion went off - Misty had set off a large container of what had to have been fuel and the entire platoon stationed there was caught off guard, not paying attention to the two women behind them.

Dash fired off the first shot, which went through the soldier’s head, killing him instantly while Dust unloaded a full clip into the remaining troops, dropping them all instantly. “Thanks for the assist Misty. We’re moving out.”

Dust looked over as she heard a grunt of pain. One of the soldiers managed to survive the barrage of bullets. She then pulled out her pistol and without a word shot him in the head, killing him instantly. “That’s one less Imp we need to worry about,” Dust said.

“We could’ve interrogated him you know,” Dash snapped.

“Wouldn’t matter, I doubt he’d talk anyway,” Dust said calmly, the humor again gone from her face. “Besides, they’d rather die than betray their country. Honorable, I guess…anyway, let’s get a move on yeah?”

She moved past Dash, who could only sit there and stare at the large amount of bodies before joining her.

After another five minutes, they were able to finally make it to the bell tower, where the rest of the squad was stationed. “Took you two long enough,” Spitfire said. “Almost missed the big show.”

“Show?” Dash asked. Moments after she finished her question, explosions rang out north of them.

“I sent Vapor Trails and Blaze to lay down some mines before the infantry showed up,” Spitfire said. “And we’re talking about the ones that go off in a chain reaction.”

“You sent the rookie out there?” Dust stared at her.

“Private Trails is quite skilled when it comes to explosives so I put her to the test,” Spitfire said matter-of-factly. “Don’t worry, why do you think I sent Blaze with her?”

Suddenly, a figure slid down the railing along the bell tower and quickly made her way over to the group. “Captain, it’s the enemy,” Misty said. “They’ve turned tail and run!”

“…Maybe I didn’t give her enough credit,” Spitfire said with a grin. “Good work Omega! The enemy was willing to shell this town completely but we stood strong nevertheless! Tonight, drinks are on me!”

The rest of the squad started cheering, though it wasn’t clear if it was due to victory or getting free drinks. However, Dash looked slightly concerned. “That’s great and all, but they didn’t put up as much of a fight as they usually did.”

“Dash, come on, for once can you not be a downer?” Dust said. “They obviously thought this place was lightly defended and got caught off guard. Sure, they may come back but we’ll be ready for them…as long as they don’t send in a huge tank brigade.”

Dash sighed and then smiled slightly. “Yeah you’re right…guess we all deserve to get a little wasted tonight.”

It was still early in the war and was only the third battle I participated in and by that point I thought I had figured out the enemy’s strategy. But little did I know what the Empire was willing to do - and how far they would go - to achieve victory and what victory for us was going to cost.

Author's Note

Before I started writing this, I wasn't happy with And Ever We Fight On, and while I wanted to stay true to pony, I felt like I was being limited in what the characters could do. Therefore, I again scrapped the story and I'm now starting new, although most of the ideas I had for the previous fic will be put into this one. Also, if anyone can guess why I chose omega you'll...uh...I dunno get a cookie? Or recognition for how awesome you are? I dunno...