A War On Two Fronts

Turner groaned in pain and rubbed his forehead as he came around from his unconscious state, he had been dragged around ten feet from the truck up onto the road where several other soldiers were also laying. He’d had his bell rung pretty hard, but compared to some of the hits he’d taken in the past it didn’t really rank high. He was pretty sure he didn’t have a concussion, and even if he did there wasn’t a hell of a lot he could do about it. The man shakily rose to his feet and unslung his SMG from his shoulder while looking around, the soldiers beside him were minotaurs and diamond dogs.

“Tom!” Turner said with a quiet yell, he looked up and down the road and was surprised to see a convoy of stopped Marshals that had seemingly been abandoned. The tracks in the snow indicated that their occupants had run on foot through the snow, likely in order to get away from whatever they had been fighting at the camp. “Tom, you out there?”

“Yeah…” Thomas replied as he climbed up out of the ditch from the passenger side of the truck, several backpacks in hand. “Help me with these.” Turner moved closer and grabbed a few, tossing them to the ground before helping Thomas up out of the ditch. “Any of the others awake?” Turner shook his head as he picked up the bags again and move back towards the unconscious soldiers. “You got a compass on you? I think mine got fucked up in the crash.”

“I think so.” Turner replied as he reached to his belt and withdrew the small metal compass, it was sturdy and painted in the usual olive drab. His hands were shaking slightly, and his fingers were starting to feel numb despite his heavy leather gloves. He was still able to open the compass, but found it to be acting rather odd. It was spinning round and round, but other than that it seemed fine. “Mine’s acting funky, spinning around…”

“Well fuck…” Thomas scowled as he started trying to wake up the soldiers, there were about five of them in total, though they came from seperate units. The escape from the camp had not been an easy one. “What the fuck happened out there? Who was that woman?”

“I don’t know… She said her name was Devin or something…” Turner replied as he watched the trees facing towards the Griffon lines, his SMG firmly held in his hands. “Apparently she’s the Guardian of the Woods or whatever.” He briefly looked over towards Thomas. “What about you? What were you shouting about? Shooting at?”

“I don’t know either, they just… Sprang up out of the snow.” Thomas quietly replied, he was having some luck in getting the five other troopers on their feet. “Big fuckers, like Frosty the Snowman on steroids, started tearing up our tents and even through Ergo through a tree… It wasn’t pretty.” Turner sighed, his nose and ears were particularly cold now. “About that time Princess Luna came on over the radio, ordered us to bug out… Those things in the sky, windigos or whatever, she had to get rid of them. I think that was what the A.R.E. was about.”

“That tracks.” Turner muttered, looking at the sky and seeing that the spirits had apparently vanished. All that he could hear was the creaking timbers around the road, the soft hooting of an owl, and the soft breeze that kicked up the powdery snow. No guns, no bombs, no screaming or artillery fire. “Listen… This is fucking spooky…” The first diamond dog was up by this point, he groaned and Thomas was quick to order him to start helping to wake the others. Turner watched the trees even more intently, the silence had him on edge.

“Our last orders were to head East-Southeast and try to rally up with the Company Z of the Royal Fusiliers, but for all I know we’ve been out for a few hours and they’re gone.” Thomas groaned, looking towards the other side of the road that was bordered by Griffon Territory. “My watch is bugged, so is the compass, is there anything that damn A.R.E. didn’t fry?”

“Maybe we can get the truck started, could hook the forward tow hook to a tree and winch it on out…” Turner suggested, looking to the truck which was sitting somewhat submerged in the snow. “Assuming the thing can still drive.” Thomas just gave him a quiet nod, then looked at the Diamond dog that was up and awake.

“What’s your name, Corporal?” He asked as Turner trudged down into the snowy ditch to climb into the driver’s seat of the crashed Marshal.

“Wagger, sir.” The dog replied, his ears snapping up as he sniffed the air. His eyes were a soft brown, similar to the fur visible where his uniform didn’t cover.

“Corporal Wagger, go see if you can get any of those Marshals up and running.” Thomas ordered, gesturing to the Marshals that had apparently been abandoned. Turner tried to start the engine, and became slightly hopeful when he heard the whine of the starter trying to turn over, but it quit before it got any further than a soft groan. He tried again, but there was nothing, not even the groan. Turner scowled and looked around inside for anything that could be of use, or anything he might’ve dropped, but Thomas had apparently grabbed everything. “Turner, if that thing’s fucked spike the radiator and help the Corporal.”

“On it!” Turner replied while climbing out of the seat and walking towards the front of the truck, he drew his combat knife and shoved it through the grill into the radiator several times. Effectively disabling the vehicle, unless the Griffs had a spare Marshal radiator and the know how to install it of course. The Gunnery Sergeant climbed up out of the ditch to see that Thomas had the other four soldiers stirring. Turner moved quickly past, trudging through the snow towards the Marshals that had been abandoned.

Wagger was in the first truck, looking through the equipment for anything useful before trying to turn the key. The engine groaned, but didn’t start, which meant Wagger would have to spike the radiator like Turner had done. Gradually they moved down the line, and in the process the two of them found extra scarves and earmuffs, enough total to supply the seven of them that had apparently been left behind. As they neared the final Marshal both Wagger and Turner were dead quiet, not wishing to alert anyone to their presence unless absolutely necessary. Turner would freeze in place every time Wagger did, watching the diamond dog’s ears as they scanned the area, or waiting for him to sniff the air.

The last Marshal seemed to have the most promise, as Turner climbed into the driver’s seat he noted that the dashboard lights still seemed on. Wagger waited in the front of the vehicle, just in case it needed to be spiked. Turner closed his eyes and said a slight prayer, then reached for the ignition and tried to start the engine. It turned… One time, two times, three… The engine sputtered and groaned, but after a tense ten seconds it rumbled back to life. Turner left the headlights off, meanwhile Wagger walked around to the passenger side and climbed in. The clouds were clearing away, making it possible to see the stars, moon, and something else that was rather unexpected.

“What the fuck’s going on, Gunny?” The diamond dog asked, looking out the window at large purple and blue auroras, which were now cutting through the sky like ribbons. “Griff’s got us outnumbered, weird shit’s up in the sky, for all we know our weapons are fucked! We’re screwed, we’re totally screwed.”

“Keep it together, Corporal.” Turner said calmly as he pulled the truck up beside Thomas and the other troops. Wagger climbed into the back seat while Thomas got into the front, the others crammed themselves into the back as well. Thomas wordlessly reached to the radio on the dashboard and turned it into the on position, static buzzed from the speaker as he picked up the mic and cleared his throat.

“This is Crossroads to any Equestrian Unit, does anyone copy?” He asked, but there was no response. “I say again, this is Crossroads to any allied units on this net, do you read me?” Once again, the only thing that graced their ears was static and the buzzing likely caused by the auroras above. “Fuck…” The man removed his helmet and ran a hand over his hair. “Okay, last orders were to link up with Z Company, so let’s go on the assumption they’re still there. Move out.”

Turner pulled the truck off the road, passing their vehicle that had crashed before coming out of the ditch and into the forest. Turner had been without a compass once or twice before in Equestria, when that happened he had used the constellation known as ‘Eagle’ for a reference point, as it was consistently due north. The group in the truck remained silent, even as Wagger passed out the earmuffs and scarves. The only noise aside from the engine and the radio was the vents, which blew lukewarm air. It was barely enough to be felt, but it was better than nothing.

The forest was eerie and calm, the owls had ceased their hooting and was almost like an alien planet to the men in the truck. Of course, for Turner and Thomas that was technically accurate, but even they felt uneasy about the way the forest seemed to envelop them in its freezing clutches of trees and occasional boulders. They drove for half an hour, occasionally stopping for Turner to orientate himself with the constellation before continuing on ahead, until finally they reached the rally point… Or what was supposed to be the rally point.

The camp that had been there was gone, all that remained were two dead campfires and the places where tents had been set up. All eyes shifted to Thomas, expectantly hoping that the Lieutenant Colonel would have some idea as to what they were to do next. The man frowned, deep down he wished that he had never taken the special recommendation to become a commissioned officer. Surviving in the woods, navigating without a compass, those were all more Turner’s field of expertise… He knew that Turner would help him accomplish the goal, but Thomas needed to come up with a goal to accomplish first.

“Turner… Give me your map.”

The night had come and gone in Canterlot, it had been just as terrifying as the day. Shelling, bombing, screaming and gunfire. Some from the Griffons that had come on the bombing raid, some from National Guard, and some from the rioting citizens that had staged a full scale revolt. Blackout shades had become useless, and so Gwen, Sam, and Paige sat watching the chaos through the window as the two adults huddled together to keep the baby warm. As she had done in Silver Lake, Sam had hidden the family guns.

Gwen’s odd choice in suitors had required her to acquire a place to store certain items, a place that couldn’t be found easily. Needless to say, whatever it’s former purpose, it was how housing the family firearms… Most importantly, it housed several prototype assault weapons that would soon be deployed to Equestrian Forces. Sam couldn’t allow the Griffons to get their claws on them, which now appeared to be a distinct possibility. Apparently the Griffons had noticed the chaos in the city below, and in turn called for more airships, which came loaded down with tanks, troops, and trucks.

The sky was starting to clear, but even if fighters were scrambled it would be too late to stop the invasion that was underway without some form of ground defense. Sam knew very well the amount of troops actually available for such an operation as a result of her work with the War Department, and those numbers were not good. There were maybe three hundred combat troops within striking distance, most of them trainees from the fort in Ponyville.

The majority of trained and seasoned soldiers, like her husband, had been sent to the Southern and Northern Fronts. The floundering defense of the North, now compounded with the Griffons landing in Canterlot, made it clear to Sam that things were far worse than she had been led to believe. The Crystal Empire wanted to send some supplies, but at Celestia’s urging, remained neutral. The Dragon Lands were of little help in the Winter, despite being able to hold their ground against the Griffons…

Sam held her daughter close, rocking her back and forth as she continued to watch Griffon troops streaming down from the airships. Paige had slept all night without any fuss, the first time that had happened, and Sam didn’t want to wake her now… She caught sight of five ponies taking flight from the castle, almost instantly five Griffons were on their tail. Three of the ponies she recognized as Twilight, Celestia, and Rainbow Dash… The other two were Royal Guards, if the uniforms were to be believed.

The guards split off quickly, firing and engaging the Griffons in an air battle, which was practically suicidal. Sam watched, her breath catching in her throat, as the soldiers downed at least five Griffons. It bought enough time for Celestia, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash to escape. The Royal Guards held their ground, Sam watched them fight to the bitter end, their struggle and courage almost completely unnoticed as the entire city was falling… But Sam noticed, and so did Gwen, and she was sure that the three whom had escaped would notice as well.

They were seated in the living room, and so it was easy to see through the window as three Equestrian National Guard trucks rolled up the street. A full squad hopped out from the rear two while the third had their gunner watching the sky. Sam watched in surprise as the ponies thundered up the steps towards her house, and then there came a knock on her door. Sam looked at Gwen, the redhead moved to the door and opened it hesitantly.

“Ma’am, we’re here to evacuate the two humans that live here.” The soldier said quickly, he was only sixteen by the looks of him. “You’re vital to the war effort! Grab whatever you can carry and let’s go!” Gwen looked at Sam with her trademarked coolness, she had been rather shaken the night before, but now that there was a goal that needed completing it was like she had gotten her second wind.

“Get Turner’s truck secured, I’ll get the guns.” Gwen said quickly, Sam looked at the soldier and nodded a quick quiet thanks, but she didn’t want to talk and wake her daughter. She moved to the garage and opened the driver’s side door of the old Ford, gently she rested Paige on the seat before walking to the garage door and opening it manually. The freezing air poured in, and Sam was quick to snatch Paige backup, run inside, and grab her heavy jacket.

“Pip, you ride with the VIPs! The rest of you, let’s keep that security tight!” Sam heard someone shout from outside, a few moments later a pegasus with painted fur appeared in the garage doorway. His mane was cut in the usual military fashion, and to her surprise he was closer to eighteen than any of the other soldiers she had seen in a while. Gwen emerged with her own winter coat on, carrying the prototype weapons as well as the Colt .45 that Turner had given Sam the day he proposed. She tossed the weapons in the bed of the truck, then all four of them piled into the vehicle. Pip, who wore sergeant stripes, got in the driver’s seat, Sam and Paige were in the middle, and Gwen sat on the passenger side.

“We’re good to go, sir!” Pip yelled out the rolled down window, his voice was heavy with a Trottingham accent, the stallion turned his attention to Sam and the baby. “Sorry for yelling, ma’am…” Sam recognized him, when she had first arrived in Equestria all those years ago he had still been in school… Now here he was, older and doing a job no one his age should’ve been forced to do.

“Move out!” Another voice called from ahead, and soon the trucks were on their way. The Ford was third in the line, with one of the Marshals trailing behind to cover the rear. They tore through streets where the fighting still raged, Sam could see soldiers from both sides duking it out, sometimes joined by citizens that were still in a frenzy from the night before. She had seen a lot of death in Silver Lake, but watching as soldiers fought and died still made her want to scream in anguish. They were all practically children, barely old enough to hold a gun, let alone use one… The trucks blew past roadblocks and gates, Sam looked at the soldiers manning them, knowing that they likely wouldn’t be getting out of the city.

An Equestrian Tank rolled out of a street, forcing the convoy to swerve around it. Not two seconds after they had past it did it burst into a fireball as a Griffon tank also rolled into view. The grayish-white snow was rapidly becoming a pink and red slush that lined every street, shops burned and buildings crumbled, it was like watching the end of the world. The lead vehicle suddenly veered to the right and slammed into a building, riddled with bullet holes from a Griffon MG emplacement in a window. The second vehicle soon followed, and Pip had to swerve to avoid it as it flipped on its side and rolled several times.

Sam could hear the machine gun in the rear vehicle belting away, she turned to look over her shoulder and watched as the stallion manning the HMG continued to fight. He was covered in blood, there were at least two bullet wounds in his shoulder, and she could see he was screaming at the Griffons which were descending on the two remaining vehicles. His face was burned into in Sam’s mind, he was perhaps no older than the stallion currently driving the truck, and the look of defiant anger in his eyes reminded her so much of her husband. The stallion refused to back down, to surrender, he would go on to the end.

Sam watched him as for the next two blocks he fired box after box of ammunition, dropping enemy soldiers by the score, until finally… Sam watched him run out of ammunition, but still he drew his rifle and continued fighting, even as the Griffons swarmed the Marshal. Sam looked away, but she didn’t need to see the truck to hear as someone in it shouted several defiant words.

“Come and get me! I’ll take you all on!” The voice called out, and seconds later the Marshal exploded as a grenade detonated inside, which in turn detonated the other grenades in the truck. Many of Griffons were hit with pieces of shrapnel and fell dead to the ground, others were wounded. As Sam looked at Gwen she could see that the woman had heard it as well. Gwen’s job during the war had been to make posters, ways to raise money or supplies… A defiant cry like that should’ve made her beam with the possibilities, a rallying cry for more support. Gwen didn’t smile, she didn’t even blink.

“Bastards, Faust damn bastards…” Sam heard Pip mutter under his breath as the truck finally breached the outer edges of Canterlot and started down the mountain towards Ponyville. Sam looked down at Paige, the baby was stirring and fidgetting, so the woman began to rock her slowly back and forth. Despite her best efforts Sam couldn’t hold back the tears any longer, and so she began to quietly cry. The war had taken her home from her not just once, but twice. She wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to call somewhere home again. As they left the city behind, she spared one final look out the rear mirror.

Sam was just in time to see a large Griffon flag unfurl from the tallest tower on Canterlot Castle. The skyscrapers that had dominated the skyline were also quickly being claimed by the invaders, and Sam couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit of hope that the enemy would win… Not because she wanted Equestria to fall, she just wanted the war to end, she wanted her husband back, she wanted her life back… She didn’t want soldiers to have to fight and die to protect her because she was ‘Vital’.

As the truck drove further and further away she could see the clouds were darkening, the wind was picking up and the snow began to pour down as it had the night before… In the sky she saw the ghostly forms of the windigos as they returned, stronger and scarier than ever. The daylight had apparently driven them off before, but now there was so much hate and anger in the world they could appear at any time… Another bad omen for an already terrible war. At least now they were safe… Or so she thought.

Turner, Thomas, and the others all sat quietly in the truck as they continued to drive in search of any friendly units. The morning sun had turned to midday, and still they had yet to see any sign of their lines other than those made by a retreating army. There was no radio chatter on any of the usual frequencies, the thick cloud cover made it impossible for them to spot any sorts of aircraft. All they could do was keep driving south, towards the Minotaur-Maretonian border, and hope to run into friendly forces along the way.

The radio that they did pick up was mostly made up of civilian broadcasts in languages that none of them could understand. There were no clues to what was going on other than vague, almost triumphant sounding, Griffon chatter. Turner and Thomas has both picked up some of their language over the course of the war, but not nearly enough to tell them what was happening. Turner had been driving them down a quiet unplowed road, the snow was picking up again, and the chill in the air had even the fur covered Diamond Dogs shivering. The truck had thankfully been running well, and it had little trouble traversing the powdery snow, so they didn’t have to walk.

No one wanted to talk, no one wanted to speculate what had happened. If they were pulling back, it was perhaps the largest retreat any of them had seen. They didn’t want to believe that, but what alternative could there have been? Thomas was quietly examining the map in his lap, his hand shaking from the chill as he traced his finger along their current route. The cold was getting so bad it almost hurt, and the only things keeping them from frostbite were their boots, gloves, and jackets… If only barely.

“Outpost Kilo Whiskey should be coming up in a mile or so…” Thomas spoke up, Turner nodded quietly while keeping his eyes on the road ahead. He didn’t want to chance asking the question on everyone’s mind, what if they didn’t find anyone else? What if they had been left behind? The man shook his head quietly, the Outpost would be there. It had to be there… The man kept his eyes straight ahead, focused on the road while searching for any sign of the Outpost. When the truck had driven further he could see something, but it wasn’t promising. “There it is.”

Turner pulled off the road and up to the outpost, which was several shipping container structures surrounded by massive prefabricated concrete walls and sandbags. The front gate was wide open, and Turner could see at least two Marshals still inside the walls. Turner and the troopers in the back seat all looked at Thomas once again for some sort of guidance, with a tentative sigh he folded up the map.

“Wagger, man the gun… Watch the sky and roads. The rest of you come with me, let’s see if we can gather any intel or supplies.” The Lieutenant Colonel ordered as he opened the passenger side door and got out. Turner got out as well, followed by the troops in the back seat. Each one fanned out in a wedge formation, following Thomas as he walked carefully through the gates and into the outpost. “You two, check those Marshals. You two,see if there’s anything left in the barracks we can used. The Gunny and I will check the command center. Be on your toes, they may have set boobytraps as they pulled out.”

The three pairs split up, two dogs moving towards the Marshals while the minotaurs approached the barracks. Turner and Thomas approached the only two story structure in the compound, two shipping containers stacked on top of one another and converted into a building. They opened the front door on the bottom olive drab container and entered with as much caution as they would use when entering an enemy bunker. The interior of the first floor was dimly lit, and many of the consoles and intelligence equipment had either been removed or destroyed. The cheap blue carpet was covered in muddy boot prints, and it was clear that the evacuation had been sudden and chaotic.

“Looks like the left in a hurry…” Turner said quietly as he scanned the room, Thomas nodded with a soft sigh. “Permission to speak freely, sir?”

“Go ahead.” Thomas replied.

“This entire thing is fucked.” Turner stated flatly as he walked through the overturned chairs and crooked desks. “We don’t have any fucking clue where our lines are, or if we even have lines to begin with…” The man rubbed his chin with his gloved hand and approached a ladder leading to the second floor. “Now those Griffs on the radio were chatting about something so cheerful you’d think the war was over. All of it begs a question, Tom.”

“Is the war over?” Thomas finished for him, Turner gave a solemn nod and carefully began to climb the ladder. He was pleased to find no boobytraps near the opening into the second floor, and so he made his way into the cramped space. “I don’t know, Turner, but I doubt it.” Thomas climbed up while Turner began to examine some of the papers and other intelligence devices that apparently had to be left behind before they could be destroyed. “If it was, don’t you think we would’ve run into some surrendered troops by now?”

“Fair point…” Turner replied before he stopped in front of the dimly lit screen of a computer, one of the few modern pieces of technology the Equestrian Army had decided to invest in. From the wires, it seemed that it connected to an antenna on the roof. “Check this out…”

Thomas walked closer while Turner checked under the desk for any sign of explosives, when that was clear he checked the cables coming out of the Computer. He blanched as he found one that didn’t belong, it seemed to be made of detonation cord rigged to a grenade fuse… If he had attempted to pick up the computer it would’ve exploded. Wordlessly the Gunnery Sergeant undid the hasty boobytrap and tapped the keyboard, the screen lit up more brightly and displayed a login screen.

“We need a password to get in.” Turner muttered, Thomas shrugged and typed a few letters into the login box, then hit enter. To Turner’s amazement, the screen flashed a few times before it displayed numerous pieces of intelligence. “What was the password?”

“Password.” Thomas replied with a slight chuckle, prompting Turner to roll his eyes. The two men stood there, Thomas typing in several commands while his companion watched in silence. “I’m linking us into the antenna on the roof, it should have enough range to get us in contact with anyone we have left in Maretonia or on the Minotaur Border.” After a few seconds Turner watched Thomas pick up a radio mic and clear his throat, the static emptiness was replaced by Equestrian Radio chatter… Both breathed a sigh of relief. “This is Lieutenant Colonel Clemons of the Second Bipedal calling any Equestrian Military Units! We are currently at Outpost Kilo Whiskey. We’re lost, we’re outnumbered, and we don’t have a damn idea where we’re going! Does anyone copy?”

“Lieutenant Colonel Clemons?” The surprised but familiar voice of Princess Luna replied, Thomas let out a slight sigh. “I’d been told you were killed in action.” Turner began to pace back and forth with nervousness, the thought that Sam might’ve received a telegram saying he was dead weighing heavily on his shoulders. Thomas remained calm, at least, his tone did.

“Damn near came close to it...” He said, looking at the computer screen with uncertainty. According to the intel that had been gathered prior to the units there pulling out, the Griffons were also in a full retreat. “I have five troopers here with me, as well as Gunnery Sergeant Turner. There any chance we can get an extraction by teleportation? We’re awful alone out here, ma’am.”

“I can maybe pull the troopers out, but you and Gunnery Sergeant Turner are a different story… It would take too much power.” Luna explained, Thomas looked at Turner for a brief moment. Turner gave a slow and solemn nod as he removed his helmet and withdrew one of the pictures of Sam he kept in the liner.

“Do it, the Gunny and me will find our own way out. Not gonna ask these boys to stick around and get killed because of us.” Thomas said with a firm expression. “Can you send me any intel on what we might be going up against? What were those snow golem things, and what about the windigos in the sky?”

“The snow golems shouldn’t be a problem anymore, but just in case they are…” Luna’s voice trailed off for a second, and Turner could hear her flipping through some papers on the other end of the radio. “They’re servants of a being named Devana, if they show up she’s not far behind. From what I’ve seen she doesn’t understand what the war is about, which has her defensive of her territory.” Turner nodded at that, he recalled the meeting he had had with the strange snowy white woman the night before. “You could likely talk to her about what you’re doing there, other wise… I don’t know, find a flamethrower?”

“Understood…” Thomas said quietly, Turner meanwhile was peering through a frost encrusted window down at the compound where the troopers were moving all the gear they could into the truck at the gate. “What’s the story? Where are we pulling back to?”

“Is Gunnery Sergeant Turner there with you still?” The question caught both of them off guard, and Turner looked at the radio with an uncertain expression. Thomas seemed to think for a moment, then sighed.

“Yeah, the Gunny’s here. Why?” He asked with tentative dread, something told him that what he was hearing likely wouldn’t bode well for either of them.

“Canterlot was captured his morning by Griffon forces, prior to that the city was in widespread revolt. We expect we will lose Ponyville in the next four hours.” Luna explained with a quiet and almost exhausted voice, Turner stepped closer and crossed his arms while he listened. He knew that Sam was in Canterlot, and once again he had the fear of what could’ve happened to her or his child resting on his shoulders. “Twilight and Celestia are safe, and four of the Element Bearers are accounted for. Intelligence reports that Starlight Glimmer, Applejack, and Spike were taken captive. Gunnery Sergeant Turner, we sent a team for your family. We won’t know for certain for a few hours, but your wife and daughter should be enroute to an extraction point for VIPs.”

“My daughter…?” Turner asked with surprise, looking at the floor and humming. “Hey, Tom, I have a daughter…” The man looked off with a thoughtful expression and the closest thing to a smile Thomas had seen in a long while. Of course, they weren’t out of the woods yet, according to Luna they still weren’t accounted for, but at least someone would be escorting Sam out of danger this time instead of her having to do it herself. Turner’s brief contemplation allowed Thomas to continue listening to the broadcast.

“As for you withdrawing on foot or by vehicle, there isn’t much we can do to help you.” Luna stated, Thomas sighed but nodded. “The best route I can advise, strange as it may seem, is to head north towards the Griffon lines, making for the Hippogriff Enclave. They’re neutral in all this…” Luna’s tone shifted to a more serious one. “You’ll be out of action for the rest of the war, or until we fight our way back up to that point, but it’ll be better than a Griffon POW camp.”

“The Enclave is one hundred and eighty miles from here! That’s almost as far as the Griff border!” Thomas shouted loudly, Luna sighed on the other end as Turner took a stick of gum from his pocket and began to chew. He gripped his lighter, but rather than light a smoke he just fidgeted with it by opening and closing it from time to time.

“The Griffs are fast regrouping, they’ll swarm that area in the next few days, but because of the A.R.E. right now their lines are fractured so wide you could drive an entire armored column up the road without them noticing.” Luna said emphatically, Turner looked at Thomas with a dubious look on his face, the Lieutenant Colonel could tell his friend was having some serious doubts. “It’s the best we can do, Lieutenant Colonel. You’re free to try and move south on your own, but the Griffon Army will likely catch up to you before you get down here.”

“Roger that, ma’am… We’ll take it under advisement. Give us a few minutes to get our men in order, then you can teleport them out. Crossroads out.” Thomas said before quietly sighing and lowering the microphone, he looked at Turner with a neutral expression. “What’s your take on this, Turner? If it’s going to be use we need to come to a decision on our strategy.”

“We’re cut off, outnumbered, outgunned, freezing our asses off…” Turner said calmly, adjusting his helmet and looking out the window. “The only thing we have going for us is that Marshal and the antenna on the roof, the latter of which will soon become useless.” He looked back at Thomas and gave a slightly firm nod. “We should use that last bit of time in contact wisely, they have intel for us, I say trust it. Go north.”

“It’s that bad that you’re trusting Command’s intel to be accurate…” Thomas said with a dry chuckle while shaking his head, for a few moments he thought before looking back at Turner. “We really are fucked aren’t we, Gunny?”

“I believe the military term for this situation is FUBAR, sir.” Turner replied with a slight nod. “Fucked Up Beyond All Repair, or Recognition… Whichever you prefer.”

“I’m afraid I gotta disagree with the intel, Gunny. Griffs are bogged down just like us, we’ll head south and pray that the Griffs don’t unfuck themselves before that damn truck craps out on us.” Thomas quietly looked at the floor, then at Turner. “Stay up here and man the radio, I’ll head down and assemble the men for teleportation. See if you can tap into any civilian channels, might be able to get a bigger picture that way.” Turner snapped a quick salute before he moved to the radio. “I’ll toss a snowball at the window when we’re ready.”

“Understood, sir.” Turner stated, Thomas nodded and made for the ladder while Turner began to tap away at the computer’s keyboard to try and adjust the frequency for civilian frequencies. It took some real fenaegalling, and he had to move more than a few wires around. If the damn thing had been analogue instead of Arcane it would’ve been as easy as turning a dial… Turner sighed and listened, there was the stuff he couldn’t understand, a few Griffon frequencies in the grey area between Military and Civilian, until finally he came on something he recognized. The tail end of John Denver’s ‘Country Roads’. It seemed the music station on De Barro could really get some range out of its antenna.

“That was John Denver’s Country Roads, something I’m sure many of our boys in Maretonia are thinking about.” The station’s disc jockey said, he didn’t sound like the usual DJ, but Turner figured that with the big pull back they might have needed a backup operator. “Now for the news… Hey, here’s one all the way from Canterlot! Griffon Forces have finally secured the last portions of Canterlot and its outer lying areas! Good job, boys!”

“Wait… What?” Turner said aloud as he leaned in closer to listen, briefly turning up the radio. “Is this an enemy station?” The man felt stupid asking that out loud, that seemed fairly obvious at this point. He listened a little longer, to his surprise it wasn’t that different from Equestrian radio stations back home. The man heard a quiet thud against the window and looked over to see a snowball had splattered against it. Turner switched back over to Luna’s frequency. “Princess, it’s Turner. We’re set… We’ve come to a decision, we’re gonna go south, not North.”

“Understood.” Luna replied after some hesitation, there was a loud thwump from outside, the structure shook, and a bluish flash of light filled the room for the briefest of seconds. “I cast the spell for your men. They’re all here, Sergeant. Now don’t waste any more time and get moving... Hopefully we won’t be out of contact for too long.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice, ma’am. This is Ghost Rider, signing off.” Turner replied before letting go of the mic and sighing, for a few seconds he was about to smash the radio, but briefly he tapped a few keys on the computer and brought up the civilian frequency again.

“...nd remember, if you have any requests, go ahead and call or use Frequency Forty Four if a phone is unavailable!” Turner smirked slightly as he heard that last bit coming from the DJ, there wasn’t going to be any use for their radio once they got on the road. Now, maybe, he could call in and get his enemy to play some road tunes… The idea seemed crazy, but it was better than listening to just static on the ride South. He jotted down the frequency of the station and the call in frequency on a piece of paper, then took a step back and drew his side arm. With cold precision he fired three rounds into the computer, putting it out of commission.

Wordlessly the man climbed down the ladder, sighing when he reached the bottom floor. The man reached beneath his winter jacket to his uniform and felt around for a moment as he walked through the first floor, after a few seconds he withdrew his Aviator sunglasses and put them on. The snow glare was getting worse as the sun started to shine more through the clouds. He looked back around the room, noting there were still a great number of papers scattered about.

Turner reached to his pocket and withdrew his lighter, briefly glancing at the four aces before flipping it open and walking to a file cabinet. He stuffed a pile into the cabinet, then lit one corner of a sheet of paper and dropped it in. The fire took off relatively quickly, it was already licking at the ceiling of the first floor by the time he had left the building. Thomas, meanwhile, was taking similar action to disable the other vehicles and destroy any structures left standing with similar fires.

“Looks like it’s just you and me, sir.” Turner said with a nod as he started walking towards the truck, Thomas nodded and began walking as well while the entire outpost began to burn behind them. “What’s the over under on us getting out of this alive?”

“I give it eighty twenty their favor, but if we pull it off…” Thomas trailed off. “I dare say we’ll have to buy some lottery tickets.” Turner chuckled as they approached the Marshal, black smoke climbed into the air and Turner briefly thought he heard something in the distance, but it faded as soon as it started. “Let’s just hope the snow stays white this time, if we run into more of that grey or black stuff we’ll have to pull out the gas masks… Get anything else from the Princess?”

“Negative, but I did get something from their civilian channels.” Turner replied as he climbed into the driver’s seat, Thomas raised an eyebrow as he started the truck and reached to the radio. After a few seconds he had shifted the frequency to forty four, which sounded like a mix of Griffish and English… Another grey area channel, or so Thomas thought. “Breaker breaker, this is Ghost Rider, is this that fancy radio station request line? You got a request from two good ol’ boys fightin’ for our country out in Maretonia, how copy?”

“That’s right! What can we play for you boys?” An excited and noticeably Griffish accented female voice replied.

“Y’all think you can play that there Rollin’ Stones number? Sympathy for the Devil?” Turner asked, barely controlling himself as he put on one of the thickest accents he’d ever tried while Thomas stared at him in stunned surprise.

“Sure! No problem! Say, are you guys out there with those Equestrians?” The voice on the radio replied.

“You could say that, in a manner of speaking…” Turner glibly answered, a shit eating grin spreading across his face. “Could say we’re right close to one another!” Thomas brought a hand up to his lips, barely stifling a laugh as Turner gestured for him to keep it down.

“That sounds pretty harrowing! Anything you want to tell the Empire?” the voice asked again, Turner looked at Thomas with a surprised expression before a wicked grin spread across both their faces.

“Just ask ‘em to wish us as safe trip, we’ll take care of the rest! Ghost Rider, out.” Turner said before putting down the radio and shifting frequencies until he had reached the civilian station. “I can’t believe that fucking worked! If we keep this up we’ll have tunes clear through from here to wherever the fuck we end up.”

“Well, let’s not waste any time, Gunny. Hit the road.” Thomas said, both of them were grinning widely, neither wanted to admit just how scared out of their minds they were. As they listened quietly to the radio as the DJ came on Thomas readied his weapon and Turner was saying prayers under his breath.

”Our next song request comes from two soldiers out in Maretonia, face to face with the enemy, who just want us all to wish them a safe trip…” The DJ explained as the beginning notes of ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ began to play. “Ain’t that nice? Well, ‘Ghost Rider’, this one goes out to you, wherever you are. Good luck!”

“Hey, if they ever piece together who we are, I reckon we’ll still have some music…” Turner commented while looking at Thomas, the Lieutenant Colonel raised an eyebrow. “Provided you learn how to play harmonica, it’d be hard for me to play and drive at the same time.” Thomas rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the road around them. “You know, a thought occurs… What if the arcane cell in the truck gives out? It’s not like them planes, we can’t just put in more arcane fuel or whatever if it decides to stop recharging itself.”

“We’ll improvise, overcome, adapt… Same as always.” Thomas replied neutrally, the seriousness in his tone gave Turner a bit of confidence that maybe, just maybe, they would make it through the mission somehow. It had been a while since he and Thomas had been in the same unit, let alone on the same mission. “I just hope the Maretonians have Gas’n Gulps or something, this trip is gonna suck if we can’t get some jerky.” The small joke earned a few chuckles from both of them, but neither took their eyes off their respective watch areas.

On the two of them drove, heading South, racing straight towards the Minotaur Border. If the intel held out they’d be fucked when the Griffs caught up with them, and if that happened, well… Turner supposed he’d either be dead, or worse, he’d have to get used to Griffon food for a while. The snow was still deep, but powdery, and as more snow began to pour from the sky above it became clear that they were both figuratively and literally driving away from the storm.