Haywire walked mindlessly through the streets of Ponderosa where the scenery had been baptized by war. She was exhausted - not just from fighting she never wanted to be in the first place, from the disturbing sights of ruins in front of her, but also by chaotic, outlandish scenes that happened before her eyes. The symbols of “National Communism” are absolutely everywhere...friendly mortars created images at their impacts, from the Horseshoe and Hammer symbol to phrases like “The Greatest Union”, “Glory to National Communism” to even Darkwing’s face imprinted on the ground, “Hail The Greatest Supreme Leader Equestria Had Ever Seen”. There were giant balloons of the Glorious Supreme Leader Lord Dark Wing in the sky, asserting dominance over the city. It was a surreal battlefield - her mind was tied into a giant knot, she couldn’t comprehend what the buck she was seeing!

As she patrolled on the lifeless street, she saw a struggling stallion, he was heavily wounded. She approached him quickly to investigate. The pony was in Equestrian uniform but his rifle was nowhere to be seen.

“Hang in there, I’m going to help you.”
Haywire hastily warped up his wound and the stallion looked at her in confusion but couldn’t say a word.

“You are not an evil monster, you are only here to perform your duty… and I… never asked for this. I don’t want to fight you.”
Sadness appeared on Haywire's face for an instant.

“We have a POW here!”
She yelled to notify the rest of the squad for assistance.

“Hang in there. Good luck and I wish you the best.”
She watched him carried away to the rear.

As the Stalliongradian forces established control over Ponderosa, Haywire and her company was transported to an encampment at the city outskirts to rest and resupply. The ZIS-5 truck was by no means a comfortable transport, squeezing almost 20 soldiers on a truck that’s designed for only 18 made matters worse. She looked through the back of the truck and watched a glassy field pass them. The peaceful rhythm of the glass waving reminded Haywire of her home Stalliongrad, when it was a simpler time, she would hang out and have fun with her sister. Then she thought of the pie her sister gave to her during the food shortage… Haywire really misses her. She wished so hard that she could go back to the normal life she had before the war, she never wanted to be here, she never wanted to fight Equestria, she never wanted to fight fellow ponies…

But it was already too late. She can’t turn back time, she can only move forward from now. She looked at the scenery around her once again and shredded a drop of tear. Only if Little Sister could be here to hug her…

Hayseed walked out of her condominium, where she saw rows after rows after rows of Dark Wing posters in her hallway, reading “Hail The Greatest Supreme Leader Equestria Had Ever Seen”. She let out a sigh and walked downstairs, it was only a 2 minute walk away from the factory she works at. On her way there, there were statues of the Dark Wing everywhere. On the wall, on top of fountains on the road, even the road signs had his face on it. On top of the factory’s entrance there was a gigantic portrait of Dark Wing, the portrait overlooked ponies which are starting to show up for another day of work.

As she entered the factory, the announcement system rang.

“Good morning to our glorious workers of the Greatest Equestrian Union! I, The Greatest Supreme Leader Equestria Had Ever Seen, Lord Dark Wing applaud you for the service to the Greatest Union! Work safe, citizens! For the glory of the Greatest Union!”

Hayseed kept walking and let out a sigh. Everyday, Dark Wing talks in the announcement to directly address the subjects of the Greater Equestrian Union and she is one of them. She doesn’t pay mind to them too much, as they are more or less the same telling encouragement.

The war against Equestria has been waging for almost 4 years. For Hayseed, it felt like decades had already been passed. The worker’s life was totally awesome, the food was better than anything she had seen; the work hour has increased much longer to fuel our glorious war machine, almost 12 hours a day to give the workers a sense of pride and accomplishment. For the glory of the Union and fulfilling their purpose in life, what better things can a pony ask for? It was truly a worker’s paradise.

Hayseed can’t help but to feel uneasy. There is imagery of their national leader everywhere! All she could hear from other ponies was Dark Wing this, Dark wing that, she had never seen something like this! Something like this belongs in a lucid dream but instead it’s the cold, hard reality in front of her.

Hayseed had not seen her sister ever since the war started. From her sister’s letters, Haywire lived in the frontline for all these years and every letter she sent, the sentiment of missing Hayseed and resentment toward the war grew stronger and stronger. Hayseed can’t help but to feel worried for her sister’s well being. Not only that, the time between each letter is a time of fear and uncertainty, as she doesn’t know if her sister is alive or dead until the letter arrives. The war has taken a toll on everyone in this war, be it those in the front or those at home. Hayseed hasn’t been happy for a long time.

All she had seen today was trucks. She was so busy test driving those ZIS-5 at the test ground, loop after loop, obstacles after obstacles. She was sure that much mileage was enough to cover the entire radius of Stalliongrad. When she got off work and back in her dorm, she was exhausted. She didn’t want to do anything else but to lay on her bed. She looked at the picture of her and her sister together and fell asleep shortly after.

“Big sister...”

On Tuesday, June 15, 1017, after the fall of Tall Tale, Princess Celestia announced the surrendering of Equestria and ceased all the fighting at noon. The next day, the Treaty of Vanhoover was signed, the Greater Equestrian Union annexed Equestria and exiled Princess Celestia to New Mareland. The war was over.

Haywire could finally breathe. 5 years of fighting and the life on the battlefield is over. She and other soldiers stepped on the train home, she could finally see her sister. As the train went full steam ahead toward Stalliongrad, it passed through all the conquered land, it reminded her of her home, just her and her sister and having a great time together. However, this time is different, she is going home! She is going to see her sister soon and she couldn't be more glad. She took out the picture in her helmet, it was a picture they took after they finally had a full meal when the food shortage was over. She looked at it and smiled, that smile then turned into sobbing… she had been strong for too long. All these unwilling battles that she fought, all these time of sufferings, all these time absent from her sister… had come to an end.

The victory was felt across the entire union, even to those at home. Supreme leader Dark Wing proclaimed a celebration that lasted 3 days and all the workers were given leave. Haywire was very excited - big sister is coming home! She was very happy. However, she was still very anxious as she didn’t know if she lived to the end. Despite the grand celebration that happened in the city, she was in no mood to join it. To her, this wasn’t over until her sister had come home safe and sound. She waited at the train station the entire day, all the soldiers coming home train after train, she still didn’t see her sister. She came back to the train station the next day, she started to worry, did big sis die? Did she make it? It was some of the worst feeling she ever felt - uncertain about your loved ones life because she doesn’t have a way to contact her. Minutes felt like hours, soldiers and families passing left and right. She was on her highest alert and scanned every corner of the train platform. Suddenly, she spotted the patch of the unit her sister is part of and she quickly moved toward that direction.

“Haywire! Sister! Haywire! Where are you? Haywire!”

Hayseed yelled multiple times, the platform was full of ponies, it was loud and noisy.

“Hayseed! Hay-”

Hayseed seemingly heard her name in the clutter, Hayseed wasn’t sure but her gut felt that it was her sister, she moved toward where it came from and yelled again. Her guts were right, she quickly moved toward her and her heart was racing.

“Hayseed! Oh little sister, I’m so glad to see you… It’s been too long...”

“Big sister… I missed you so much...”

Two sisters embraced each other in happy tears and warm hugs. Two sisters united at last.

“No, no, we’re not leaving until I have enough of your hug, little sis.”

“Whatever you say, big sister~”

Haywire softly nuzzled her forehead and enjoyed that warm feeling of hers. The crowd of ponies around them flew nonstop, but they were frozen in time. To Haywire, 5 years of pain and suffering were all worth it for this moment. All the memories of that dreaded battlefield flooded her, death, ponies dying in front of her, screaming, yelling… the hug healed her for just a moment. That lighthearted mood between the two is gone, replaced by a wall of emotions. She could not hold herself any more, she broke down on the floor with Hayseed in her hooves and cried like a foal.

Hayseed attempts to comfort the broken sister in front of her. She was used to being the one comforted by her sister, not the other way around. She gave her some backstrokes but it was futile.

“Big sister I… I-”

Something has stroked her. These years where she was overworked everyday, exhausted all the time, came back home hoping to see her sister but she was all by herself… how could she forget?

“I- I’m here now big sister… you don’t have to miss me any more...”

Hayseed wanted to say more but her throat was caught. She wanted to help Haywire feel better but nothing was working. She tightened her embrace and sobbed hard. She had finally seen it in her sister… she had been strong by herself for far too long. She petted Haywire on the head slowly. Nothing more was said in between the two, they poured out years of emotions onto each other, trying to make up for lost time.

They were just in time for the last day of “The Greatest Victory Party”. The entire city of Stalliongrad was full of colorful decorations and the Greater Equestrian Union flag. Even more statues of the Supreme Leader Lord Dark Wing were placed in the city. It was nothing like they had seen before. Free food on every street, ponies drinking, dancing and singing in large groups, laughter and happiness filled every corner of the city. It was like when the food shortage ended but the magnitude of the emotion was many times greater here. The sisters had all the food they could and had all the fun they could, it was an unforgettable day for both mares.

Even though the Supreme Leader’s celebration would only last for 3 days, ponies didn’t just stop there. They continued their own celebration for a while longer, some to even as much as a week. As time passed, the lives of people had gone back to normal. The factories are converted back to civilian factories, some of the population has been demobilized and even more imagery of our Glorious Supreme Leader Lord Dark Wing was bestowed to the Union. Stalliongrad was blessed with the Grand Statue of “Champion of National Communism”, depicting our glorious Supreme Leader in his beautiful, godly physique. It was truly a sight to behold. Much of the Equestria was still in ruins. There was plenty of food and water but a lot of infrastructure was broken. However, our Glorious Supreme Leader Lord Dark Wing worked day and night to draft a glorious reconstruction plan, he promised that within a year Equestria will return to pre-war life standard.

As the scent of victory grew distant, Haywire started to notice everything bizarre around her. She was starting to get used to normal life again but something had changed forever and as much as she tried her best to return to normal life, she couldn't. She can still see the remnant of the battlefield before her eyes: these gosh-darned Dark Wing imagery. Stalliongrad looked nothing like Stalliongrad, she can’t walk 2 steps without seeing a Dark Wing poster or statue. The landscape looked like something that belonged to a bad dream, every time she walked on the street she felt mentally uneasy not just from the excessive amount of Dark Wing’s face, but the streets felt a little too peaceful. On top of that, ponies wore shirts with Dark Wing’s face on it and she could hear his name in almost every sentence. It was so creepy, she had to overcome some mental gymnastics for her every time she went out.

Even though the war had Ended, Hayseed’s life did not change much. As much as she hoped, the 12-hour work day did not go away because of the war. Everyday of work remained exhausting, the only thing that was holding her together was the delicious food. It was that and the thought of her sister that kept her spirit up. She could not speak against the factory or she’ll be sent to reeducation camps. One of her colleagues was sent there for a week and came back as a completely different pony - it was terrifying. She did not have the option to quit either, it’s either this or the army and factory is far more preferable. She was not bothered by the Dark Wing imagery as much as her sister but she still found it very annoying, on top of that she felt watched every now and then. She is depressed and she doesn't feel safe.

When Haywire told her sister that she has to go away for 3 weeks for a mission in Las Pegasus, Hayseed broke down in front of her. All the negative emotions and resentment had her at the breaking point and this news broke her. It took some time for Haywire to calm her sister down. She gave Hayseed a scarf,

“Think of this scarf as me. When I am not here, this will be your companion. Hayseed, you are the best thing that ever happened to me and I wouldn’t trade you for anything. Besides, 3 weeks is nothing compared to 5 years, I’ll be back in no time! Please just stay strong for me little sis, alright? I love you.”

She kissed Hayseed on the forehead and a smile emerged on her face. They embraced one last time before Haywire got on her way.

For the 3 weeks in Las Pegasus she learned a lot of things about the city. This is one of Equestria’s busier ports, a lot of goods from other countries stop here. The city is still undergoing reconstruction, only the Infrastructure essential to trading like the ports and roads are almost done and they are even expanding it, but the other things are only slowly being rebuilt. Just like Stalliongrad, this city is also filled with Dark Wing’s dreaded imagery and she hates it with a passion, this city being “the entertainment capital of the world” did not help. She saw casinos with Dark Wing’s faces on it every two seconds! She contemplated about this country of a menacing cult a lot in her time here. She doesn't want to become one of these brainwashed ponies and if she wishes to maintain her sanity she has to leave. Hayseed is suffering from all these long hours of work and she is mentally broken… Something has to be done, but she doesn’t know where to start. These ships are a good place to start but she had only been in the city once and she knew nothing about Las Pegasus shipping. She is infuriated, the escape is right there but she can do nothing about it!

Opportunity always presents itself at the perfect moment. One day she stopped to get food at the local store, she slipped out a comment about these Dark Wing statues and it was caught by the worker. Haywire thought she was screwed but the worker delved into a long conversation with her. took her to a back room and explained everything. He was a part of the underground Free Equestrian Resistance movement. This store was controlled by the government on the surface but everypony in this store was a part of the resistance. They are spread out across the entire city and they are all gathering strength to rise up in the right time. Fortunately the harbor is already infiltrated and the worker gave her the information she needed to contact them.
Once she got to the harbor, she knocked 4 times on the container and threw a rock, it is the secret code for initiating contact. They walked into a docked ship and there, she was told everything about this harbor. Most of the ships came from Griffonia. These countries are either a dictatorship or a state with an uncertain future. However, there is one that is promising - The River Federation. It is a democratic state run by ponies, the last Harmonic stronghold in the world, sometimes called ‘Equestria of the East’. It is a much better place to live in than here for sure. Once she is there, there will be friendlies to help you. Their ship is not here often, only here once for every 2 weeks. Considering international relations, the trade can stop any time soon. Dark Wing had yet tightened his grip in Equestrian territory, if she was to do anything, it’s now or never. There isn’t much time left for Haywire, she has to make her move soon.

When she finally returned to home, the sisters embraced once more and Haywire told her sister everything. Hayseed, mentally exhausted from the last 3 weeks, agreed to her sister’s plan. Both mares started packing clothes, food and water. Haywire paused for a second and looked out of the window, her eyes fixed on the Dark Wing statue on the road not far away, and then looked at her little sister, contemplated and uncertain about their future. On her way to the train station, the same old bizarre streets met Haywire’s eyes again, only this time she is not scared any more. She knows this will all be over soon. They boarded the train and they left the city in no time. Hayseed looked at the city she grew up in and disappeared into the horizon, a hint of sadness appeared on her face.

After 3 days of train traveling, they arrived at the port of Las Pegasus. The sisters were right on time, the next ship is going to get here in 12 hours. They waited in the resistance ship hideout. Despite the relative peacefulness of the harbor, Haywire could not relax. She had a bad feeling about the next few hours. Hayseed fidget her hooves to kill the time, while Haywire stayed high alert the entire time. So many goods and ponies working to make a busy harbor.

The ship with the River Federation flag has docked… The sisters wasted no time to board the ship. They hid themselves in the cargo. That is it, escape is near! Or so they thought. Haywire had just realized these cargo are being unloaded, they have to find a new place to hide! They went below the deck and hidden in the bathroom.

The ship has sailed. Although they could see it since the lower deck has no windows, they know the land of Stalliongrad is all behind them. No more Dark Wing, no more cult brainwashing… When they were asleep in the lavatory, one of the crew members had found them. They gave the sisters a proper shelter instead of staying in the lavatory out of kindness. The crew member was sympathetic to their situation. The trip will take 20 days and they were provided with food and water. The sisters woke up in time for dawn. They walked to bow, looking at the vast open sea and leaned toward each other. They're just happy to be together. As to tomorrow, a hopeful tomorrow awaits.

Author's Note

Thank you for finishing my story. I don't usually write fanfic so I really appreciate your time. I promise the next will be better.