The Equestrian Civil War

The sound of explosions brought Pinkie Pie back from cupcake heaven. She pulled back the charging handle on her M240B, and placed it on a slab of rubble overlooking an entrance into the ancient city.

There were about thirty other soldiers with Pinkie guarding the door, waiting for the Republican troops to come through and trot right into their ambush. The sounds of gunfire, sporadic explosions and the engines of fighters and helicopters all added to the suspense Pinkie was feeling.

She couldn’t figure out why, but she couldn’t wait for the Republicans to come. She craved the feeling of the machinegun being driven back into her shoulder made her feel ecstatic. She hadn’t felt this way since the Plague, when Pinkie was fighting in Canterlot, and Fillydelphia, and Appleloosa, she felt so, alive.

A gray stallion with an amber mane held up his hand to signal everypony to be quiet. He crept up beside the opened gate, and looked out.

The crack of a sniper rang through the street, and the stallion fell to the street, his eye blown out. He was still alive, and he was screaming his lungs out.

“MEDIC! I NEED A BUCKING MEDIC HERE!”

Pinkie Pie cringed at what she heard. A red-coated mare dragged the stallion away from the street, and gave him morphine.

“Celestia save us all,” a Stallion near Pinkie muttered. “Damn, everypony stay down! We’re holding this position! Nopony gets through!”

A wave of explosions sent everypony down lower onto the ground. Pinkie could see smoke over the crumbling walls. She also saw two attack helicopters rise from over the wall, and turn towards the city.

The rumbling of tank treads also alerted everypony that the Republicans were coming. Ponies rushed to their machineguns, and aimed it at the door. Others reached for anti-tank weapons, and made sure they were loaded.

The tank treads stopped suddenly when they sounded to be right outside the door. Pinkie heard voices, and footfalls. They were right outside the walls!

“Open fire when they all come through,” the stallion officer ordered. “I want to make sure that there won’t be any reinforcements coming in when we’re engaged.”

“Yes sir.” Pinkie said. She raised the M240B’s sights, and trained them on the street. She watched as a couple dozen infantry units walked through the walls, accompanied by five Shermane tanks. The helicopters had long since passed over Pinkie’s position. Those Republicans were all alone.

Once the last tank had passed through the city walls, the stallion stood up. He raised his rifle, and shot down a soldier.

“Open fire!” He ordered. Pinkie fired a burst of her M240B, and took down a pink mare. Her blood splattered onto a Shermane, which turned its gun at the building Pinkie and seven other ponies were on top of.

“Oh hay,” the dark green stallion shouted. “Get the buck off of this!”

Pinkie Pie grabbed her M240B, and ran after the officer. The tank fired its gun, and threw Pinkie Pie onto a fire escape two stories down. She hit it hard on her left leg.

“Ow!” She said. “That hurt!”

“Pinkie Pie,” the officer shouted, “You alright?!”

“Yeah,” Pinkie said, grimacing as she got onto her feet. “I’m fine!”

She ran inside the apartment building, only to jump back as the entire façade of the building collapsed onto the street. She got up slowly, and grabbed her machinegun. She limped to the edge of the building, and laid down. She deployed her bipod, and laid the M240B on the floor.

There were more and more Republican soldiers were coming through the gates. Pinkie’s forces were being decimated by the Republican tanks and soldiers. The sounds of gunshots and explosions drowned out everything else.

Pinkie Pie fired a burst at a group of Republican soldiers taking cover behind a slab of rubble just below her. Blood splattered onto it as one soldier fell. The other two turned around, and returned fire. Pinkie jumped up, and ran back towards the fire escape.

The sound of three fighter jets above got her attention for just a second. They passed over the street, and dropped cluster bombs.

It all happened in a split second. Suddenly, the entire street was enveloped by explosions. The sound of the explosions were deafening beyond belief. The shockwave of the explosion toppled the building Pinkie Pie was on, and she only narrowly escaped certain death.

“Ow,” she grumbled, “That REALLY hurt!”

She got up slowly after that. She grabbed her M240B, and limped off. There were few, if any, survivors, and Pinkie knew she needed to get somewhere else to get help. The ambush had failed, and the Republicans had a way to enter the city.

The Equestrian defense was falling apart. The only hope for survival would be the reinforcements from the Fifth Fleet.
***

Rainbow Dash swallowed hard as her plane taxied onto the steam catapult. She had gone through her pre-flight checks, and only needed to wait for the catapult to launch her into the air.

“This is tower, Wonderbolt 1-13.”

“Go tower,” Rainbow Dash replied.

“We have eyes on Republican aerial forces inbound for the Fifth Fleet. You are being redirected to assist in the defense. You will not be heading to Jerhoofalem.”

“Roger, tower.” Dash said, “Wonderbolt 1-12 reads you.”

“Roger that. Wonderbolt 1-12, you are cleared for takeoff.”

Dash dreaded to hear those words. She had never been so nervous about flying since she was a filly. She had never taken off from an aircraft carrier, had never been launched by something she couldn’t control. She could only strap in, and be ready to take control once she left the flight deck.

Two seconds had passed before Dash heard the catapult release. She was sent back into her chair as the F/A-18 Super Hornet was launched across the flight deck, and was thrown off.

Dash immediately grabbed the stick, and pulled it towards her. She also grabbed the throttle, and slammed it forward. The plane was off, and Dash turned to the left to meet the Republican air units head on.

“Wonderbolt 1-12, this is AWACS callsign COLT, do you read me?”

“I read you, COLT.” Dash said, “What is it?”

“The Republican forces are seventeen clicks from your present AO. There are about a dozen of them, most of them fighter bombers. You, along with War Horse Squadron will confront and destroy them.”

“Roger that,” Dash said, “Moving to location.”

Dash turned her head to see five other F/A-18s fly behind her. They were all painted a pearly white, and had a brown horse rearing up on both sides of the cockpit.

“Wonderbolt 1-12, this is War Horse 1-1. I have been instructed to be put under your command. What is our plan of attack, ma’am?”

“Oh, um,” Dash said, “We’re going to attack them head-on. They’re mostly fighter bombers, so we can outmaneuver them. After that, do whatever’s necessary to take them down.”

“Roger that, Wonderbolt 1-12.” The mare said. “Alright, War Horse Squadron, let’s show these Republican flank-holes what we can do!”

“Hostiles are seven clicks, and closing quickly.” COLT reported, “Get ready, Wonderbolt 1-12.”

Dash ignored the comment. She focused on the specks on the horizon that were the Republican air units. There weren’t too many of them. She could easily take them on. Dash and her group of fighters were moving closer and closer to the Republican forces. Their squadron was becoming tighter and tighter, until their wings were almost touching.

“Three clicks,” COLT reported, “Get ready to engage.”

Like Dash needed that remark. She was born ready to dogfight. Why she hadn’t joined the Air Force earlier, she didn’t know. She guessed it was destiny that she would stay in Ponyville and befriend Twilight and the others.

She shook her head. She shouldn’t have been thinking of fate at a time like this. She needed to focus.

“Stay in formation,” she ordered, “You stray, and you die.”

There was no answer, but nopony strayed. As the two groups of military aircraft neared, Dash’s heart beat faster and faster inside her chest. Sweat was beading her eyebrows; this was certainly nerve-racking for the mare.

In a split second, the two crossed paths. Almost immediately, the squadron rolled to the left, and came up behind the group of fighter bombers. Upon investigation, Dash identified them as Sukhoof Su-34 fighter bombers. They were painted a cerulean blue to blend into the ocean.

“Everypony pick an individual target.” Dash ordered, “Not one reaches the fleet, do you hear me?”

“Yes ma’am!” Everypony answered.

“They’re behind us sir!” Dash heard through her comm link, “Should we do anything, sir?”

“No,” she heard another voice say, “Shadowbolt Squadron, you will stay in formation.”

Dash maneuvered behind one of the fighter bombers, and got a radar lock on it. The pilot pulled the aircraft up in a desperate attempt to evade Dash. She followed him, keeping the lock on him.

“I’m locked on!” Dash heard, “Evading!”

The Su-34 rolled over twice to the right, and dove towards the ocean. Dash, caught by surprise, followed a few seconds after. Whoever this pilot was, he was pretty good.

“COLT,” Dash reported, “How am I hearing hostiles on my comm link?”

“We don’t know, Wonderbolt 1-12.” COLT replied, “We are attempting to figure it out. Until then, use it to your advantage!”

Rainbow Dash stayed on the Su-33’s tail, who tried every maneuver in the book to try and get out of Dash’s lock. It climbed rapidly, only to perform a split-s maneuver to try and shake Dash. And the Shadowbolt almost did. Dash could barely stay on its flank.

The Su-33 leveled out one hundred feet above the ocean. It kicked in the afterburners, and sped by at supersonic speeds. Dash smirked, and followed. She could barely keep up, but she pushed the Hornet to its limits.

She let loose a shirt burst of machinegun fire, which grazed the right wing of the Su-33. Hydraulics and smoke leaked from the wing. The pilot turned to the right, and pulled up. Dash effortlessly followed it.

Finally, after two minutes of intense maneuvering, she finally got a lock. She fired two AIM-9 Sidewinder rockets at the exposed Su-33.

“Fox two, fox two!” Dash called. She watched as the missiles impacted the Su-33’s fuselage. The aircraft was torn apart by the explosions, and Dash saw no parachute.

“He’s down.” Dash declared, “I have a confirmed kill.”

Dash turned back towards the furball that had ensued between War Horse and Shadowbolt Squadrons. She kicked in her afterburners, and sped towards it.

There had been two confirmed kills from Shadowbolt Squadron, leveling the playing field. Everypony was engaged in some sort of dogfight, and the comm link was filled by correspondence from both sides.

“COLT, this is Wonderbolt 1-12,” Dash said.

“Go, Wonderbolt 1-12.”

“Requesting reinforcements, sir,” Dash reported, turning behind another Su-33. “We can’t hold our own against them!”

“Say no more, Dash.”

Dash turned her head, and saw three F-15 Eagles swoop past her. They parted, and shot down two Su-33s immediately.

“Took you long enough, Spitfire,” Rainbow Dash groaned.

“We wanted to be fashionably late.” Spitfire said, “What can I say? It took us a long time to get our hands on these babies.”

“Shadowbolt Squadron,” Dash heard again over her comm link. “Mission has been aborted. Retreat from airspace.”

The remaining nine Su-33s turned away from the furball, and flew back towards the horizon. Dash was turning to pursue, but relented when COLT said otherwise.

“Wonderbolt 1-12,” COLT ordered, “Your orders are to return to the ENS Princess Celestia to receive refueling and armament and head to the Jerhoofalem airspace. Leave Shadowbolt Squadron to lick its wounds. You’ve done your job.”
***

“GRENADE!!!”

Applejack heard the scream from across the street. She turned her head to watch a Republican soldier grab it, only to have it explode it in his hand. He fell to the sidewalk, his arm and side mangled beyond recognition.

She hid her head behind the slab of rubble she was behind when bullets slammed against it. She watched a Shermane tank drive up the street, and take an entire wall down of a building at the three-way intersection they were trying to take.
Applejack laid down on her chest, and crawled to the side of the rubble. She aimed her AEK-971, and fired blindly to suppress them while other Republican soldiers ran forward. She got up, and ran inside an open-air market to take cover from rifle fire.

“Major!” Applejack turned to see a purple coat and blue mane run up beside her. “We need to take out that machine gunner on that apartment balcony!”

“Well let’s get goin’ then!” Applejack agreed. They ran out of the market, and onto an abandoned parking lot. They hid behind a red sedan, with a perfect firing angle on the machine gunner.

“Supressin’ fire y’all!” Applejack shouted. She rested her assault rifle on the hood of the sedan, and fired on the balcony. The machine gunner laid down on the floor to avoid the fire.

The Pegasus went up into the air, and threw her grenade onto the balcony. Three seconds later, and explosion sent the balcony crashing through three others before coming to a rest on the sidewalk below.

Applejack slid behind a wrecked car in the middle of the street, and reloaded her rifle. Bullets pounded the other side of the car, but failed to hit her. Applejack pulled out the empty magazine, and reached for a new one, only to find none.

“Damn,” she muttered. She reached for her sidearm, a lone .44 Magnum. She crept out of cover, only to jump back as machinegun fire suppressed her. She hated to admit it, but she was pinned down.

“Ah need some cover fire y’all!” Applejack shouted, peeking her head above the hood. She heard three Republican troops get behind the car a few feet behind her, and heard them load their rifles.

“Covering fire!”

The Republicans opened fire on the apartment complex at the fork of the road that was suppressing them. Applejack bolted out of cover, and rolled inside a diner as small arms fire hissed past her head.

Applejack upholstered her Magnum, and pulled back the hammer. She trained its sights at the entrance, waiting for the Celestial troops that were sure to come.

Applejack was growing fatigued and tired. She had been fighting for over fifteen hours straight, and she desperately needed sleep. Only the adrenaline coursing through her veins kept her awake. Though she could go on for a few more hours, she knew she would give in to the demand of sleep soon if the Celestials didn’t retreat.
***

Twilight sparkle climbed into the AH-6 Little Bird helicopter that would take her back to Jerhoofalem. While she had been invited to stay by Admiral Wave Roller, she had politely declined. She needed to head back into combat.

As soon as she climbed inside the Little Bird, the pilot turned on the engines, and they were airborne in thirty seconds. The flight deck of the Princess Celestia was virtually empty now; nearly all of the jets had taken off.

It was mid-afternoon, and Wave Roller had been notified that Republican troops were now attacking Jerhoofalem itself. He had promptly called Princess Celestia to report the bad news, and she had not been pleased.

Twilight sighed. She never did like war or fighting of any kind. But when Princess Celestia said they would be fighting, how could she refuse? There was just no way of telling her no. She usually was very compassionate and benevolent, but when there was a crisis, she took things very seriously and not so light-heartedly. More than once, when Twilight was living in Canterlot, she had seen Celestia unleash her anger on subordinates.

The helicopter was cruising over the Meditermanean Sea that Jerhoofalem was set up against. Even though she was miles away, Twilight swore she could see each and every explosion destroying the ancient city.

She checked over her Barrett rifle. There seemed to be nothing wrong cosmetically. She then placed it on the floor, and disassembled it with her magic. She slowly inspected each and every piece just to occupy herself. She needed to keep her mind off of what was going on inside the city.

“We’re nearing the DZ, ma’am.”

Twilight looked up, and reassembled the rifle. She slung it over her shoulder, and grabbed the door handle. When they arrived, she wanted to get off as fast as she could. She knew she didn’t want to be caught in a helicopter crash.

“Three hundred meters to the drop zone, ma’am!” The pilot called. “The DZ’s hot!”

Twilight threw open the door of the Little Bird, and was immersed in the sounds of warfare. Cracks of gunfire, booms of explosions, cries of soldiers, and the crumbling of buildings all startled Twilight. Even though she was no stranger to fighting, she had never fought in an urban environment.

The Little Bird maneuvered towards a small, two-story apartment at the fork of a road in the Residential District of Jerhoofalem. A large volume of Republican troops were concentrated there, and the Admiral directed her to go there to keep them there.

As the helicopter neared the apartment, Twilight immediately wanted to head back to the ship.

For a second, Twilight regretted saying no to Wave Roller.
***

“We need to get her to the operating room, stat!”

The medevac helicopter carrying Rarity and other wounded touched down on the airfield. Rarity was immediately put onto a stretcher, and taken to an operating room, where a surgeon was waiting.

“What seems to be the problem here?” The doctor asked as he put on the clear latex gloves.

“She has a bullet lodged in her shoulder,” Dapper Crescent explained. “She’s lost a lot of blood as it’s lacerated her left subclavian artery. She’s already lost consciousness. We need to get the bullet out, and mend the artery.”

“Shouldn’t be too hard,” the doctor reached for a scalpel. Rarity was wheeled under the light, and the doctor cracked his knuckles.

“We need her to stay alive, doctor.” Dapper Crescent said before leaving, “She’s an Element Bearer.”

“Oh, that’s where I’ve seen her before.” The doctor chuckled, “I’ll make sure she won’t die. Now, if you would…”

Dapper Crescent was already out of the door. The doctor picked up the scalpel, and began to cut into Rarity’s shoulder to find the bullet.

It would be four hours of intensive surgery before Rarity left the operating table.
***

“This is Tar Hoof Armored Battalion to anypony hearing this, we need air support! We’re pinned down!”

“Guess that’s us, Flutter.” Solar Chaser said.

“Let’s go.” Fluttershy responded. She had just left the airfield having been refueled and rearmed. She was heading back into the fight alongside a different squadron of recently acquired Hoofcopter Tiger attack helicopters.

“This is AWACS FULL MOON to Fighting Tiger Squadron,” Fluttershy heard through the radio. She had the frequency set to this squadron’s, as her own frequency would be too confusing this far from the city.

“Go, AWACS.” The leader of the squadron replied.

“Tar Hoof Battalion needs your support in the Residential District. It is essential that you get there in time. They’re getting hit hard from up here.”

“This is Flutter 1-1 to AWACS,” Fluttershy said, “I am moving with Fighting Tiger Squadron to provide CAS, over.”

“Be advised Flutter 1,” FULL MOON answered, “There is a heavy concentration of AA weaponry in the area. Keep moving.”

“Roger that, AWACS,” Fluttershy replied a little sheepishly.

“Flutter 1,” the Fighting Tiger leader said, “You’re that Element Bearer, aren’t you?”

“Oh, yes.” Fluttershy said. “I’m flattered somepony even knows me.”

“It’d be hard not to, what with saving Equestria every week or so.” The leader said, “Call me Tiger 1 for clarification. It’s easier that way.”

“Okay, if you say so.” Fluttershy said. “Let’s get going then, Tiger 1.”

As the group of about ten helicopters moved towards the Jerhoofalem airspace, a cluster of about 12 cruise missiles flew past them and impacted onto a street intersection below. Buildings collapsed as the rockets tore up the street and anything on ground level.

“Airspace is hot, everypony.” Fluttershy reported, “Stay together, and I think we’ll stay up.”

“You heard the mare,” Tiger 1 replied, “Tighten up!”

“Uh, Flutter,” Solar Chaser said behind Fluttershy.

“Oh, what is it?” Fluttershy asked nicely.

“We’ve got incoming aircraft, twelve clicks from our current AO.” Solar Chaser answered, “Get down low.”

“Aircraft inbound, stay low!” Tiger 1 ordered, “We need to get to that armored battalion!”

“Seven clicks away, two clicks from missile range.” Solar Chaser said grimly, “Everypony stay below seven hundred meters!”

Fluttershy could now see the enemy aircraft in the distance. They seemed to be going extremely fast, and from what she could tell, they looked to be stealth aircraft.

“They’re in missile range!” Solar Chaser yelled. “We’ve got a lock!”

“Throw flares!” Fluttershy yelped, “Everypony throw flares!”

There was a spectacle of missile-avoiding flares everywhere as the ten helicopters threw off a volley of flares to counter the missiles inbound. The missiles missed, and either hit the streets, or the few high-rise buildings still standing.

The jets zoomed over the helicopters soon after that. The entire event took less than thirty seconds. The jets dropped cluster bombs, and turned away. They weren’t going for the helicopters. Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief, and continued on to provide close air support.

They reached the Tar Hoof Battalion soon after. They hovered above the intersection, and pounded the large, five-story hotel with rockets and minigun fire, allowing the infantry and armor below to advance.

Fluttershy let loose a barrage from her rocket pods before she heard a rapid beeping inside the cockpit.

“What’s going on?” Fluttershy panicked.

“We’ve got a lock!” Solar Chaser yelled, “Evasive maneuvers would help!”

Fluttershy yelped and yanked the stick back and to the left. The helicopter raced back to avoid the missile. Inside the cockpit, there was an incessant beeping pounding against Fluttershy’s ears. It was completely annoying, and only panicked her more.

Suddenly, the beeping stopped. Fluttershy looked back to Solar Chaser, who only shook his head.

“I don’t know what happened.” He said. “You’re the pilot.”

“Well I do.”

Fluttershy cocked her head suddenly, and replied.

“Tiger 1, what do you mean by that? What’s going on?”

“I know what happened to the missile, ma’am.” Tiger 1 replied. She sighed, and said, “We can’t have an Element bearer go down in flames, now can we?”

Fluttershy gasped, and said, “Tiger 1, you don’t mean…”

“Of course I do.” She replied. “I got the missile off your tail. Tell my coltfriend I love him, alright Tiger 2?”

“Yes ma’am.” Tiger 2 replied coldly, not unlike a robot. “I’ll make sure of that. It’s been an honor, ma’am.”

Fluttershy looked to see the Tiger helicopter get slammed by the rocket. It hit the helicopter in the fuselage, and tore the helicopter apart. It completely destroyed the tail, and the helicopter descended in a flat spin towards the hotel. It crashed into the center floors, and the hotel erupted in flames.

Tears were streaking down Fluttershy’s face as she saw this unfold. The immense kindness and sacrifice on her behalf by a complete stranger shocked her.

“Uh, Flutter.” Solar Chaser said, “I hate to interrupt, but we have a mission to do.”

“I know.” Fluttershy replied in a cold tone. “They’ll pay for that.”

Fluttershy climbed, and flew towards the hotel. She fired a volley of missiles at it, and watched the flaming wreck collapse. She turned around, and strafed the infantry and light armor at the fork of the road with gunfire and missiles. Explosions rose above the tallest apartments on that street as the highly flammable fuel ignited.

“Tar Hoof Battalion to CAS,” Fluttershy heard through her helmet, “Thanks for the assist. Come on now, let’s move ponies! YEE-HAW!”
***

“What I want to know is why we’re still fighting in Jerhoofalem, General!”

Thunder Roller looked down at that remark. His forces had been bogged down in Jerhoofalem for over a month and a half now. It was the only city in eastern Equestria Celestia still held, apart from Nipponi Island. The Fifth Fleet was continuously harassing his advances, and the fighting there had evolved into building by building, floor by floor, and room by room combat.

“Miss Luna,” he said, “If we are to win in Jerhoofalem, we need to take out the Fifth Fleet. With them breathing down my neck, I can’t hope to advance because of their battleships and aircraft carriers.”

“Then I want it sunk, General.” Nightmare Moon replied harshly. “I thought you would have a quick victory there. It seems I was mistaken. Everywhere in the East except for Nipponi Island is held by us, and you can’t take a simple city?”

“It is not that easy!” Thunder Roller shouted, but immediately silenced himself. He knew he had gone too far.

“Not that easy, you say?” Nightmare Moon said calmly. “I think taking a city would be child’s play compared to running an entire nation at war, with generals who can’t seem to accomplish the simplest objectives! This battle has been going on for a month and a half now, and I must invade the west before winter arrives in two months. And you are making it very hard to accomplish this goal.”

Nightmare Moon stood up, and looked out towards the city of Stalliongrad. Already, temperatures were crisp in the northern city. The ponies walking the streets wore their heavy coats and hats to protect themselves from the bitter wind gusts the city was infamous for.

She turned, and looked at a map of Jerhoofalem. Along the map, there were blue and white blocks representing large concentrations of Republican and Celestial troops. The city seemed to be split down the middle, with Nightmare Moon holding most of the Residential and Park Districts, while Celestia held the Financial and Industrial Districts, and most importantly, the Temple of the Sun and Moon.

She looked at it, and glanced at Thunder Roller. He was nervous; sweat was beading down his forehead. He was pulling at his collar, and swallowed loudly.

“General,” she said, standing up, “Right now, my sister is begging the Elk and Deer for military support. I will be leaving for Whoazambique to talk with the Zebras, and to Sibearia City to convene with the Bears. While the Bears are communist, I hope to obtain an alliance from both of them. They are enemies of Celestia, and it seems likely they would help me. I am appointing Loyal Shadow to be the de facto leader of the New Lunar Republic while I am away.”

“Loyal Shadow?” Thunder Roller asked, astounded that she would pick his rival for Supreme Commander, “Comrade, I think that I…”

“Say nothing further, General.” Nightmare Moon said, “I have already made my decision. And if I am not mistaken, you have a city to take. Make no mistake, General. I want this done.”

Thunder Roller saluted, and walked out of the office. Once he did, Nightmare Moon picked up a red phone, and immediately, the other line picked up. This phone was connected to Ibearia, the country of the Bears.

“Hello, Comrade Luna,” their Premier, Ivan the Coldhearted, answered, “What can I do for you today?”

“I trust you got my cable?” Nightmare Moon inquired.

“Why yes, Comrade.” Ivan replied, “When will you be stopping by?”

“After I make a stop in Zecornia.” Nightmare Moon answered, “I believe we can have a very fruitful alliance.”

“Da, you are not the only one who wants to see Celestia dethroned.” Ivan said. “And you are leaving for Zecornia when?”

“Soon, Premier.” Nightmare Moon said, “I bid you goodbye, Premier Ivan.”

“And you as well, Comrade Luna.” Ivan replied.

Nightmare Moon hung up the red phone. Her plan was working exactly the way she planned it would.
***

Applejack had been exhausted beyond belief for the past three weeks. She had had little sleep, and even then it was a very light sleep. She was awake for twenty hours day, with only four hours of very uneasy rest. After that, she was back into the hell of war.

Right now, she was inside another bland apartment block the Celestials were using as a forward command post. She had acquired a submachine gun from a dead Mare, a UMP-45 equipped with a holographic sight and foregrip. So far, she had killed more ponies with it than she could count.

They were about to breach the entrance. No doubt there were machineguns guarding the entrance. Many of these good ponies would die. So many of them did, she could hardly keep track of who died and who lived in her battalion.

“A’ight, on one, we breach that there door, ya hear?” Applejack said over the gunfire. “Three, two, one, breach it!”

A violet stallion with a yellow mane kicked open the door. Almost immediately, he was shot up, and fell to the street a bloody mess.

“Damn it!” Applejack shouted, “Somepony get a grenade in there!”

A yellow mare grabbed a grenade, and threw it inside the room. The explosion erupted four seconds later. Applejack got up, and dove inside the door. She dove behind a sofa, and waved her hand at her squadmates.

“Get in here ya scaredy ponies!” Applejack shouted, “Ah can’t do this alone, ya know!”

Her four other squadmates ran inside the apartment, and took cover behind furniture. Applejack looked over the sofa, but ducked down after a burst of gunfire hissed past her ear.

“Open fire!” Applejack ordered. She rolled on the floor, and aimed her UMP-45 at the kitchen, where the Celestial soldiers were holed up. She fired a burst from her submachine gun, but hit nopony in the kitchen. Gunfire sent her back behind the sofa. Her other squadmates were firing into the kitchen with their assortment of weaponry.

“Keep it up, y’all!” Applejack shouted, “Just keep firin'!”

Applejack vaulted over the sofa, and took cover behind a wall. She was so close to the Celestials she could hear them breath. She crept to the edge of the wall, and stuck her UMP-45 into the kitchen. She fired blindly into the kitchen, and heard the screams of injured Celestials.

Silence swept over the apartment. Applejack turned to her squadmates, and nodded. They got up from their cover, and walked next to her. She reloaded her UMP-45, and combat-rolled into the kitchen.

There were only two Celestials out of the five that were in the kitchen that were unharmed and alive. Once they saw the squad of four Republican soldiers pointing weapons at them, they dropped their weapons. They slowly raised their hands over their heads, and went to their knees.

“A’ight,” Applejack said, “Get ‘em out of here. Ah want them extracted now.”

She sighed, and sat down on the sofa. While this apartment was quiet, the entire apartment block was filled with the sounds of gunfire. Outside the block was even louder. The booms of explosions could be heard miles away.

Applejack shook her head. She couldn’t believe that she had been doing this for a month and a half.
It had to end soon. It had to.
***

Rarity awoke in her hospital bed calmly. Her bandages on her shoulder had been removed, and she could move it slowly with a moderate amount of pain. The doctors told her it would be another month before she could go back into combat. But she didn’t mind. She was never one for fighting a war.

She sat up, and sighed peacefully. She was well fed, bathed, and taken care for. She had even gotten around to designing a few dresses!

“Good morning, Rarity.” Dapper Crescent greeted.

“Good morning, Doctor.” Rarity responded sleepily. “Anything from the front?”

“No, nothing, I’m afraid.” Crescent sighed, “It’s been over a month, and thousands have died. It’s absurd, don’t you think?”

“Of course I do!” Rarity exclaimed, “When I had my arm nearly blown off, and they’ve only advanced a few feet. It’s appalling, I tell you!”

“No need to be so dramatic about it.” Crescent chuckled. Normally, Rarity would have snapped at anypony else who would’ve said something like that, but all she could do now was giggle and conceal her red cheeks. He just made her feel so giddy. Sadly, he didn’t pick up on her attraction. Rarity had made it her crusade to make him love her before she went back into combat a month and a half from now.

“Well, I’m dramatic.” Rarity said. “A fashion designer such as myself can’t get anywhere without it.”

“So that’s what you are. A fashion designer,” Crescent said, checking her readings on the machines she was strapped to. “I’ve seen almost everypony, but no fashion designer.”

“I’m one of the biggest designers in Western Equestria, I’ll have you know.” Rarity said. “My dresses are worn to balls in Canterlot, Manehattan, Trottingham and Marelin, well, before the war.”

“A lot of ponies are talking about before the war,” Crescent said, sitting down on a chair beside her bed. “Maybe it’s because I’m around wounded and dying ponies every day.”

“Well,” Rarity sighed, “Do you have any stories from the pilots on the airbase?”

“I do have one, now that you mention it.” Crescent replied. “There was this one Pegasus Mare. A cute one, might I add; she’s a helicopter pilot. Pilots one of those gunships that fly over and strafe the city and kills a lot of Celestials. She told me that when the battle began, in the first few days, she was moving with an entire squadron of Hoofcopter Tigers, and that they were attacking a roadblock, and that they…”

Rarity stopped listening to Crescent, and only looked towards his face. She intricately studied his entire chiseled face. His violet coat shined under the lights of the room, and made him look angelic. His orange mane swept over part of his face, almost going down to one of his teal eyes, making him that much dreamier. His body was in shape, and his muscles were large, but not so large that they were unattractive. He seemed to be one of those doctors who worked out at the airfield gym after work.

Rarity was almost drooling when Crescent asked her a question.

“Excuse me?” Rarity asked embarrassingly, “I didn’t quite catch that.”

“It’s a lot to take in.” He agreed. “I asked if you knew the pilot.”

“Well,” Rarity said, “I know of a friend who pilots a Hind gunship, but she doesn’t sound like who you were talking about.”

At that moment, the door to the room opened. Rarity turned, and saw Fluttershy walk in shyly.

“Hello Fluttershy!” Rarity said, sitting up in her bed. “You’re early today.”

“Oh, well,” Fluttershy said sheepishly, “I have another sortie over Jerhoofalem in an hour, and I was afraid I wouldn’t see you today.” She turned to see Dapper Crescent, and smiled shyly. “Oh, hello Doctor, I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“You know him?” Rarity asked.

“She was the pilot I was telling you about!” Crescent said indignantly. “You weren’t listening to me!”

“Oh, did I do something wrong?” Fluttershy asked, lowering her head.

“No, you didn’t.” Crescent said. “Rarity, I thought you were listening to me. You were looking at me so intensely…”

His eyes widened, and then he smirked.

He chuckled, and said, “I know now.”

“What do you mean?” Rarity chuckled.

“You were shaping me up, weren’t you?”

“What?” Rarity exclaimed. “No! Well, yes. Well…”

“I am good looking,” Crescent gloated jokingly, “Mares find me irresistible wherever I go.”

“Oh stop your gloating!” Rarity said, smacking him on the shoulder. “Whatever happened to being modest?”

“I will be,” Crescent replied, rubbing his shoulder, “If you don’t hit me again.”

“I think I’ll be going, now.” Fluttershy mumbled, backing away towards the door. She liked reading romantic novels every now and then, but she didn’t want to watch them act like that awkwardly.
Rarity and Crescent were looking at each other, until the door shut behind Fluttershy. Crescent cleared his throat, and got up from his seat.

“I should check on my other patients now.” He said awkwardly.

“Of course.” Rarity looked away, blushing a little. “I’ll see you later, then.”

“Yeah.” Crescent replied. “See you, Rarity.”

When he closed the door, Rarity nearly fainted.
***

“Wonderbolt 1-12, Wonderbolt 1-12, come in.”

“Go COLT.” Rainbow Dash answered. She was flying towards Jerhoofalem again for the thousandth time in her newly acquired F-15 Eagle. This time, she was flying with the rest of Wonderbolt and War Horse Squadron were flying to the NLR’s main airbase in the area.

“I have multiple perceived bogies on radar.” COLT reported. “You and Wonderbolt Squadron are cleared to engage.”

“Affirmative,” Spitfire replied over the frequency. “Wonderbolt and War Horse Squadrons are moving to neutralize.”

“You think it’s that Shadowbolt Squadron that’s been giving us trouble, Spitfire?” Soarin’ asked, maneuvering his F-15 closer to Spitfire’s.

“There seems to be enough of them.” Spitfire said. “Let’s just focus on taking them down, and then worry about who they were, okay?”

“Roger that.” Soarin’ replied. “So if it was Luna in one of those planes…”

“Be quiet, Soarin’.” Spitfire answered coldly, extinguishing his fun. “We need to focus.”

“Geez, tough crowd.” Soarin’ said. “Hey Dash, did you laugh?”

“COLT to Wonderbolt and War Horse Squadrons,” COLT interrupted, “Bogies are identified as Shadowbolt Squadron. Move to engage. Weapons hot.”

“Roger that,” Spitfire said. “Let’s move ponies!”

The group of about twenty F-15s and Super Hornets streaked over the ruined city of Jerhoofalem towards their objective. Rainbow Dash had a new copilot along for the ride, and this time was a stallion, a quite large one in fact. He had a blonde crew cut mane, a white coat, and tiny wings. Dash learned before they took off his name was Snowflake.

“You ready to go, Snowflake?” Dash asked, “It’s going to get a little hectic.”

“YEAAAH!” Snowflake shouted. “LET’S DO THIS!”

Dash rolled her eyes jokingly at his overenthusiastic attitude. He had been there when she went to the Wonderbolts Academy only a few years ago. When neither of them became Wonderbolts, they lost touch, though they never really talked to each other.

“Shadowbolt Squadron is within ten thousand feet,” COLT reported, “Go get ‘em!”

Dash looked to her right over towards Spitfire’s F-15. It was painted in the Wonderbolt paint job, blue with yellow lightning bolts going along both sides of the fuselage.

“Wonderbolt Squadron,” Spitfire said, bringing Rainbow Dash back to reality. “Engage!”

Immediately after that, the Wonderbolts broke formation. Dash climbed above Shadowbolt Squadron. She looked down onto them as she maneuvered herself in front of the sun. She activated her weapons systems, and turned down to engage.
She punched forward the throttle as she came within seven thousand feet of the Shadowbolts. She was coming in fast; she would only have time for her guns.

She fired a quick burst of her machinegun before diving below them. She knicked one of the Su-33s in the wing, and the Shadowbolts broke formation.

“We got one of them on us!” Snowflake called, “PULL UP!”

Dash immediately pulled back the stick. Her F-15 cut its speed drastically as it turned upwards. While Snowflake was questioning why she would do that, Dash knew what she was going to do.

She waited until the Su-33 passed under her three seconds later. Dash let the F-15 stall, and let it correct itself. When it did, she was right up behind the fighter.

“Fox 2!” Dash called as she let loose a Sidewinder missile. The missile accelerated towards the helpless Su-33. Rainbow Dash watched as it impacted the engines, and the entire fighter exploded into pieces. There was no time for the pilot to eject.

“He’s down!” Dash called, “Moving to engage other targets of opportunity!”

Dash pulled up, and saw the major furball that was ensuing. Even though the Shadowbolts were outnumbered almost two to one, they had already taken out three of the War Horse Squadron fighters. As Dash sped towards another fighter, one streaked past her nose.

She rolled over, and pursued it. Her instincts were so fast, she came up too close to use her missiles.

The Su-33 rolled to the left, and performed a tight turn to avoid Rainbow Dash. She just barely stayed on its tail as she struggled to try and salvage a good shot.

“I can’t get a shot!” She yelled to nopony in particular.

The Su-33 was guiding her on a wild goose chase. It had dived down close to the dunes outside of Jerhoofalem, and was trying to lose her in them. Dash desperately tried to stay on it as she maneuvered through the rising and falling of the dune landscape.

“He’s good.” She said, “But I’m better!”

She fired a burst of her machinegun as the Shadowbolt flew across her crosshair. The bullets impacted, and she saw smoke coming out of where she hit the fighter. While it still flew with little problems, it gave her a signal to follow if she lost it.

As the two fighters flew across the dunes, Dash could see something in the distance. She paid it no mind as she tried to get another shot on the enemy fighter. After hitting it with her guns, it was trying harder now to not get hit.

Dash kept an eye on the jet as she had an idea. She pulled the jet up, and slowed down. As she did, the jet got farther and farther away.

“You’re just letting him go?!” Snowflake shouted. “YOU’RE AN IDIOT!!!”

“Shut up, Snowflake!” Rainbow Dash retorted. “I know what I’m doing!”

As she righted the plane, she saw the jet was far enough to use her missiles. She got a lock, and fired another Sidewinder missile. The missile hit the Su-33, and it crashed onto the top of a dune.

“Have fun, Rainbow Dash.” She heard over the radio.

“COLT,” Dash responded, “Did you hear that?”

“Wonderbolt 1-12, get out of there!” COLT said hurriedly, “You just stumbled onto their airbase!”

“So that’s where he was leading me!” Dash said. “Damn it! I’m so stupid!”

“Um, Dash.” Snowflake said quietly, “You might want to hear this.”

“What?” Dash said, “Spit it out!”

“We’ve got three bogies on our tail.” Snowflake said, “They’re in missile range!”

“Buck!” Dash shouted, and immediately turned hard to the right. As she flew over the airbase, she got a lock from SAM sites below.

“Get out of there!” COLT said, “They’ve got a lock on you!”

“You think I don’t know that, COLT?” Dash said, “Now just shut up and let me fly!”

A rapid beeping erupted inside the cockpit as the SAMs on the airfield fired missiles at Dash. She punched in the throttle, and dove back into the dunes. She flew in between just about each and every dune as she tried to avoid the missiles on her tail.

“Dash,” Snowflake said sheepishly as the beeping sped up and got louder.

“I know!” She shouted as she performed a hard turn around a dune. As she did, one of the SAMs impacted that dune, and sent sand everywhere. She sighed as one of the other two lost her heat signature and impacted the hot desert sand as well.

“Two down, one to go.” Dash said. “See, Snowflake, I’m not that bad…”

“DASH!!!” Snowflake shouted, “WE’VE GOT A LOCK!”

“Oh buck it all!” She said, pulling the F-15 up into the sky. She rolled over and over to attempt to lose the lock. When she did, she rolled upside down, and dove. When she came up, she was face to face with the three fighters that were pursuing her.

As they passed, she fired her machineguns, hitting one in the cockpit, and sending it spiraling down towards the ground. She turned to the left, and followed another.

“Let’s go!” Dash shouted, adrenaline pumping through her veins. She followed it, and almost immediately got a lock. She fired her last Sidewinder at it, and watched as it combusted the fuselage and ripped the plane apart.

She smirked as she looked back, and saw the last of the three jets behind her. She pulled back the throttle and the stick, decimating her speed. The jet overshot her, and she leveled out behind the last fighter.

She fired her machinegun at it, and watched as one of the Su-33’s engines went out. The Su-33 belched smoke from its backside, and went down hopelessly, as it had stalled from the sudden loss of speed, never to recover.

Dash breathed a sigh of relief, and wiped a pool of sweat from her eyebrow. She looked back at Snowflake, and smirked.

“I told you I knew what I was doing.” She said.

Snowflake only shook his head and chuckled.

***

Two weeks after Dash’s mission to the airbase, the Equestrians began to take the upper hand. They had knocked out the runways for the Republican airfield, and with the air superiority, they began to retake the city of Jerhoofalem.

Thunder Roller, as a result, called in reinforcements from the Republican-held cities in close vicinity, Damarescus and the port of Trippony. The first waves of the reinforcements were arriving, and they were bogging down the Equestrian advance.

Nightmare Moon read over the report as she flew towards the capital of the country of the Bears, Ibearia. She had talked with the Chief Magistrate of Zecornia, Zeboro, and had secured an alliance on one term: if the Bears were willing to aid them financially and militarily, he would dispatch a Zebra Expeditionary Force to Jerhoofalem.

“Your Highness,” Nightmare Moon’s personal assistant, Peach Hooves, sheepishly said, “We are approaching Sibearia City airspace in a few minutes.”

“Good,” Nightmare Moon said, “You may return to your seat now.”

The bespectacled female Earth Pony nodded, and sat down. She had a snow white mane that went down to her shoulder blades wrapped in a tight pony tail, and a dark navy blue coat. She had magenta eyes, and wore thin, jet black eye glasses. If there was a need for a typical assistant, Peach Hooves would be the perfect choice.

Nightmare Moon sipped on a cup of her favorite mix of latte as the plane descended towards the runway. The plane was not large, but not small either. It used to be the private jet for a wealthy Stalliongrad entrepreneur, but he had given it to Nightmare Moon as a sign of his allegiance.

It was painted in a midnight blue coat, with the emblem of the New Lunar Republic on both sides behind the doors. The emblem was a yellow crescent moon tilted to the left with a star of the same shade where the middle of the moon if it had been full would have been. This was flanked on both sides by green olive branches, topped by a bright yellow star. Below this, was a scroll reading “Luna Nobis Custodit” which read “The Moon, our guard” in the ancient Equestrian language.

As the plane touched down and stopped, Nightmare Moon stood up, with the battlefield report by her side. She walked over to the door, and stepped onto the stairwell after Peach Hooves opened it.

The weather in Sibearia City was temperate and mild. There were few clouds in the sky, and the sun shone onto the capital city of the Bears.

Once she stepped off of the stairwell, she was greeted by none other than Ivan the Coldhearted. He shook Luna’s hand, and opened the door for her into his limousine, which was bearing the flags of the New Lunar Republic and Ibearia.

“Comrade Luna,” Ivan greeted, “It is so nice to meet you in person.”

“And I you, Premier,” Nightmare Moon replied. “The weather could not be better, if I do say so myself.”

“This is a rare gem here.” Ivan sighed, “It is usually cold and rainy, as the mountains separating us from the Elk and Deer countries keep the rain falling here.”

“Trust me, Premier; I am quite used to the cold.” Nightmare Moon said, “The cold nights of Stalliongrad leave no room for negotiations.”

“Ah, but this weather does.” Ivan said as the limousine began to pull away from the airport and onto an expressway. “Now, what can we do for you?”

“That is what this meeting will decide, Premier.” Nightmare Moon replied nonchalantly.

“Good answer.” Ivan said. “I will wait for us to return to the Palace before we talk of politics.” He reached for a bottle of
brandy, and poured himself a glass. “Something to drink, Your Highness?”

“No, thank you.” She replied. “I don’t drink.”

“Ah, I see.” Ivan chuckled, “Here, it does not matter if I get a little tipsy. If the people complain, I take away their electricity, or maybe their gasoline. They are at my mercy.”

The limousine seemed to be the only vehicle on the expressway as it sped towards Sibearia City. It was a very historical city, and there were few high-rise buildings. The vast majority of the buildings in the city were housing developments, and there were few temples for worship, as the Ibearian government had outlawed quite a few religions, though the worship of Celestia and Luna was accepted by the State.

There were also many factories, as the communist country needed to keep manufacturing military equipment to be on the guard for a possible Deer or Elk attack at any moment. It was such an attack that had sent the world into conflict almost eighty years before, resulting in the Great Equine War, as Equestria supported the Bears after the Deer and Elk attacked unprovoked. Equestria won, and the Deer and Elk sided with Equestria after the war to avoid another war of this caliber.

But, the talks between Nightmare Moon could begin a war that would be much larger than anything the world had seen in over a thousand years.

Nightmare Moon smiled at the amount of power she held at the moment.

Tell me what you think! Sorry I couldn’t get this out sooner, but my brother needed my flash drive for a week and a half, and it held all of my writing. I also tried to conclude the Battle of Jerhoofalem in this chapter, but now I see that I couldn’t without it exceeding 10,000 words. *Sigh* Anyway, for clarification, Trippony is a pun for Tripoli, Ibearia is a pun for the Iberian Peninsula in Europe, Sibearia is a pun for Siberia, and Whoazambique is a pun for Mozambique. Also, "Luna Nobis Custodit" is Latin, for clarification. If I was mistaken in the translation, feel free to tell me! Next chapter: Will the talks between Nightmare Moon and Ivan the Coldhearted result in an alliance between the Zebras, Bears, and the New Lunar Republic? Will Celestia call on the Deer and Elk for assistance, bringing on a world war? What will happen to the Mane 6, and of all their companions? Find out in the next chapter!