Equus: World at War

Far away within the capital city, a group of pegasi and thestrals marched down one of the many castle corridors. Each wore their manes short, dark blue uniforms perfectly matched apart from the differing array of medals upon their left breasts, distinguishing each ponies’ achievements during their military careers. Any creature which walked ahead of the five ponies would immediately step aside for them, as they travelled through the castle in step, making their way to one of the main elevators.

Filing inside, they seemed to automatically stand in a military fashion, hooves shoulder width apart, hands held behind their backs. The lead pony, a pegasus, would press the button for level A5. The elevator shuddered briefly, doors closing, before finally descending into the depths of Mount Canterhorn.

Level after level passed by, till they felt the elevator slow down, doors eventually pulling apart as they exited, traversing a long corridor to a guarded set of double doors. The armed earth ponies opened them without question, revealing a set of stairs down to a large table with a scale model of Van Hoover and its surrounding areas. Creatures moved back and forth as they discussed the battle, with Military officers and heads of the various regiments debating over troop placement and when to advance or retreat from the various trenches.

The group of pegasi and thestrals stopped at the end of the table, waiting for their commanding officer to come and address them, which would be almost instantly. Dressed in a similar uniform but of a lighter shade of blue compared to their own, which contrasted with his even lighter fur colour, Captain Wind Rider looked up from a file in his hands, "We have reports that air vessels 4, 5 and 6," he began, pointing at several marked transport class airships suspended by rope above the Van Hoover miniature, "Are currently lining up for an attack on the western trench lines tomorrow. One of them is to be the main attacker and the others are supposedly decoys to divert our fire power. Those trenches are currently our main counter to any sea-based landings the Van Hoover forces may attempt to deploy on our end of the coast.”

He’d pause as he let the information set in, frowning as he continued, “Recent intel suggests that they have indeed primed multiple fishing boats with equipment to entrench, leading us to believe that this truly is their intended plan; to take out as much of the west trench line as possible and set up defences on the beach, facing our flank."

The leader of the group, a yellow fur and orange maned pegasus nodded, "We'll deal with them accordingly Captain. Is this a capture or a removal mission?" she soon asked, taking off her hat and placed it under her arm.

The older stallion turned "Capturing is indeed the case with this one, though we will condone elimination in the direst circumstances. The ammunition and firepower they have aboard those cobbled-together vessels would still be a major benefit to our forces. We've observed their pattern and they seem to be taking an anticlockwise pattern about the city, therefore we calculated vessel 5 will potentially be the real threat, as it will be located in the middle of the other two vessels, providing it with appropriate cover from our anti-air weapons. Furthermore, we received intelligence from one of our Queen’s agents that 5 has indeed been receiving extra mention within the docks lately. We have arranged for transportation on one of our standard airships heading that way as to not alert any creature of your presence," Wind Rider would look over the model.

A rainbow maned pegasus, behind the group leader, would stand at attention "Permission to speak ma'am," she asked, back straight and looking up slightly.

Spitfire glanced back, "Granted... you notice something?"

The pale blue pegasus stepped forwards, "Have you assessed for the airships overall speed and height within the sky. They normally have 12 hours in the air unloaded, if there is a payload inside then it would most likely have to refuel sooner than the others, especially if it is in constant motion" Wind Rider looked to the model, scratching his cheek, "It is… indeed a possibility... and most likely they will want to be airborn as long as possible as this is one of their main aerial defences. I’ll see if we have looked into this." the stallion walked over to begin talking with some of the other Captains.

Spitfire gave a slight grin "Interesting observation Dash"

"It's just like we learned when calculating for long distance flights in the academy ma'am," the pegasus would nod to her commander.

Wind Rider eventually returned with several papers in hand, "So, intel also reported on vessels ‘1’ and 5 refuelling sooner than the others. Currently vessel 1 is providing support to the east side of the city so removing it would weaken that flank. However, we gave another look over it and this does tally with another report," He pulled up a sheet from the back of the stack, "from three days ago, which indicates over three dozen power armour units left the city and took up positions amongst the trenches. As of yet, they have not engaged in combat.”

The stallion flicked through the pages till he found a marked document, “Furthermore vessel 1 has displayed different behaviour to the last three weeks, firing less shells, on average. At first, we merely deemed it as conserving ammunition… Especially with its changed flight path. All in all, we believe that vessel 5 will be attacking first with vessel 1 most likely joining from behind, providing additional firepower or at the very least, detract fire from 5... we will have to take the risk and target both... That was an excellent observation Second-Lieutenant Dash” The Captain would say, looking over his shoulder, nodding to several other officers.

He turned back "With this recent news we will have to adjust accordingly," he cleared his throat before beginning, "Lieutenant Spitfire, you and your team of Shadowbolts will begin your assault upon vessel 5 and neutralise the threat within 30 minutes of boarding. You will then fly the vessel past the rear trenches for collection,” The Captain handed her the file containing the details, marked with the anonymous title of 'White Spear'.

“Meanwhile Lieutenant Lightning Dust's team will be sent to deal with the other airship, boarding the other one ten minutes after you. If all goes to plan, we will have two vessels on our side of the trenches before they can alert the forces at Van Hoover... everything clear? If it seems the vessels will instead be taking the actions we previously predicted, we have a third Shadowbolt group on standby for an intercept. You will have two hours to prepare before taking the train down to the base of the mountain, from there we have arranged transport to take you to Van Hoover."

Spitfire raised her head as he spoke, eventually nodding, "... yes sir. We will get to the armoury immediately," The Lieutenant saluted, as did the others of her unit.

Dash would cast a glance at Spitfire however, already detecting a certain tension in the other pegasus. At that, the group left the war room and returned to the elevator, heading further down at the press of a button.

As the doors closed, Spitfire immediately smashed her fist into the steel wall beside her, making one of the thestrals jump, though the other members of the group managed to control their reactions, having noted their commander’s tension.

"Can you believe it, sending Lightning! What are they thinking bringing that idiot up to Van Hoover, she will ruin everything!" the pegasus turned back on the others, who for the most part remained silent, "You know what I mean! She can't stick to the timing and we only have a small window to accomplish this. Her unit is messy, easily distracted and always tries to bend around the parameters of the mission. They should be sending Fleetfoot's unit instead, she would be able to pull this off without any issues."

The others were quiet, though they would nod one by one in agreement. Eventually, Dash would speak up, "Should we.....prepare to engage vessel 1 as well?" she asked.

One of the thestrals, Dark Crescent, nodded at the idea, " We can manage a vessel like that in under twenty minutes Spitfire. It'll give us the opportunity to get aboard the other one in preparation. If they cut too close to the time limit, we can intervene."

Spitfire looked between them, silent for several moments before closing her eyes and nodding, "… Let’s prepare to go out there as soon as we have secured our vessel then... Not another word about this till we are out of Canterlot." she would quickly say, straightening out her uniform just before the doors opened once more.

The five of them traversed the halls till they arrived at the armoury, one reserved specifically for the Shadowbolts. All their equipment was state of the art in terms of what the capital had to offer them. High strength steel, coated in a layer of enchanted silver to add additional protection. The precious metal housed magical wards to reduce the force behind blows.

Dash removed her uniform, hanging it in the locker as she retrieved the armour, fitting herself into the tightly woven full body suit to which the metal plating was attached. Wires ran beneath the skin of the suit, connecting each of the individual plates to a small canister housing concentrated magic which was connected to the back of their belts. The metal could only hold limited energy to power the spells woven through it and without continued energy being fed in, it would only take one of two shots to overwhelm and punch through the enchantments.

She'd adjust the various buckles, fitting the armour tightly to her body and ensuring everything settling into place. Soon enough she withdrew her choice of sidearms, two .45 calibre revolvers, holstering one on her side and the other towards the back. Though they provided the Shadowbolts with the new semi-automatic pistols, she preferred the reliability and stopping power afforded by the revolver. She'd place the 4 speed-loaders into a pouch at the back as well, with a sabre and dagger soon following.

As they all dressed for the mission, they would remain practically silent. Some may have given their prayers to higher powers in that time, whilst others ran through their heads scenarios they may encounter and how to overcome them.

Both thestrals withdrew their rifles, semi-automatic carbines using the newly improved .290 Titan rounds, more than sufficient for whatever they would be facing on aboard the airships. Eventually the male pegasus of the group spoke up, "I assume we will be heading to the main deck as swiftly as possible Spitfire and try to bypass the majority of guards?" Soarin called across the room, pulling his sabre out of the locker as well as his semi-automatic Birch-Croft pistol, using one of the speed loaders to fill the 10-round magazine.

"We will Soarin. Though I would prefer to eliminate the crew, so we aren’t overwhelmed… with the time constraints we’ll just claim the vessel, get to extraction and have them manage the rest. Soarin, I want you on a rifle too, for extra cover in the halls this time and I want Dash staying back with Cresent and Eclipse as well. This is a big ship that’s planning a full scale attack, so I expect they’ve got even more creatures on patrol than normal" she moved into the centre of the room as she explained.

She would continue, looking between each of them, "We get in, take out the pilot crew before the bombing, then three of us head on to the other one to make sure Lightning Dust and the others don't fuck up. We'll see who’s capable at the time, but ideally I want Dash and Eclipse with me to go to the other one, Soarin, you and Crescent will land the ship and let the extraction crew deal with any left aboard, you got it?"

They all nodded as they finished preparations. Prior to leaving, they would put on jumpsuits to cover their armour, bergens containing their weapons being carried at their sides or slung over their shoulders. No one could know who or what they were. Any creature could easily be a traitor and inform the enemy, ruining the operation.

********

Setting off under the guise of airship mechanics, they would make their way to the Canterlot station, where they were taken down to the foot of the mountain. Departing, they would head into one of the nearby military camps, boarding one of the many large transport vessels heading to Van Hoover.

They moved inside with a hurried jog, passing the hundreds of soldiers that entered alongside them, none batting an eye to their presence. The group would move past the main area for transferring the military units, going to one of the boiler rooms where they could hide away for the entirety of the flight. The staff knew not to disturb them, though not told the reasons why, only that they would suffer repercussions if they were to.

********

They would eventually arrive, the vessel descending to the ground whilst the five Shadowbolts shook the sleep from their bodies, already hearing the tanks leaving the cargo bay. Slowly, they would trail behind the last few soldiers, though they would not join them, instead remaining in the vessel as the ramps were lifted once more, airship beginning to rise.

Finally, they would strip out of their overalls, tossing them to the side of the hanger, sidearms and rifles loaded in short fashion as they assembled before the ramps. No soldiers on the ground would see it or be even paying attention to vessel reopening its hangar doors 2000ft off the ground for a brief ten second period, or the five ponies leaving swiftly out into the night sky, rising higher, past the clouds and waited for their target to finally leave the city. As predicted, the enemy airships would leave close to midnight as the reports suggested, travelling swiftly to the left flank of the trenches.

They fixed on their helmets, the faceplates reducing the visibility slightly, but for the protection they offered it was well worth it. Waiting for the enemy airship to draw closer, they would eventually fly down towards it, traveling at high speeds as they tucked their wings against their bodies, cutting through the air. Their wings snapped open for the last twenty metres in unison, slowing their descent to almost a complete stop, where they gently settled onto the surface of the vessel.

They made their way across the roof of the airship, finding a maintenance hatch which should lead to a secluded section of the vessel, hopefully. Though they were originally transport ships, they were expansive, designed for large crews and long-distance flight. Fortunately Spitfire and the rest of her team were aware of the rough schematics for this particular variant. Producing a small bag of thermite and attaching it over the lock of the steel door, they'd ignite it. Bright yellow and white light flared from the pouch as sparks and molten metal shot into the air. The Shadowbolts stayed clear till the burning mass fell through to the room below, at which point they moved into peel back the hatch, heading inside.

The room was fortunately, unoccupied. After taking off the safety for their weapons they began moving, Soarin taking point whilst Spitfire moved behind him, sabre in one hand, revolver in the other. Behind her followed Dash in a similar fashion, then Eclipse and Crescent, rifles raised as the thestral at the very back would continuously look behind himself every few seconds.

Constant training as a group had allowed to move as one, each knowing when to stop at a corner, how long to wait, and when to move once more. Even their steps were in time, such that the enemy would have difficulty discerning their numbers. Not that their hooves produced significant noise, the underside coated in a rubber sole which reduced the sound they produced. Moving through the corridors, they continued to avoid guards where possible. It was not too hard to discern where they were in a hallway, their plate armour and heavy footsteps alerting the Shadowbolts before they'd even reach the end of the adjoining corridors.

Waiting at one particular intersection, close to a main staircase, the group would hear the movement of several guards on patrol, walking in a continuous circle in front of the staircase entrance. Deeming it necessary to remove them, Spitfire and Dash waited for them to walk down to where they lay in wait. Every step they drew closer, the two pegasi would slide slowly towards the edge of the walls till the guards’ legs finally came in sight. Dash rushed at one, a Griffin, her hand grabbing hold of their sword hilt, keeping in its sheath to prevent it being drawn as the mare slipped behind them, burying her dagger into the side of the guard’s throat and punching forwards, slicing through their vocal cords and arteries before they could call out. Blood spurted down their front and onto the floor as Dash grabbed their arms and pulled them back so they couldn’t retaliate.

Spitfire, on the other hand, would grab hold of their arm, driving a fist into the other guard’s throat, silencing them swiftly. She moved a leg behind the stallion’s own, shoving them back and tripping them onto the ground before diving atop them. The yellow pegasus grabbed their muzzle and forced their head up, burying her dagger under their chin repeatedly, keeping their mouth shut to further prevent any noise. Soon disposed of, the two pegasi looked to one another, Spitfire motioning over her shoulder as she pulled her blade free, signalling Eclipse and Crescent to move in. The thestrals tosses their rifles behind their backs, letting them hang from the sling straps, before pulling the bodies towards the now unguarded staircase. The two mares followed closely behind the pair whilst Soarin walked backwards at the rear of the group, keeping pace as he swept his rifle back and forth, scanning the corridor till they rounded the corner and were out of sight.

They left the body in a small cleaning cupboard just opposite the stairs, moving down to the second level, where the control deck was located. Pressing on, Soarin motioned for their attention, signalling that ten minutes had passed at this point. The other four gave small nods of acknowledgement, hurrying along to ensure they had sufficient time to board the other vessel. Like before, they managed to avoid most of the guards bar a trio of pegasi that exited a break room at one point, which they would deal with in short fashion.

Now only a turning from the control deck and feeling optimistic at completing the mission in under twenty minutes, they'd all turn sharply as a door suddenly opened at the end of the corridor they were walking down, an earth pony in a mechanics uniform stepping out. Their eyes flickered to the side, immediately freezing at the sight of the five armoured individuals prowling the vessel. Soarin took a split second to decide his course of action, sprinting towards them. The Earth ponies flight response finally kicked in as they ran down the corridor, towards the main deck, managing to call out 'HEL..." Before Soarin grabbed hold of them, arm wrapping around and squeezing their throat to cut them off, as he plunged his dagger into the other stallion’s chest twice, slipping it between the ribs. The Earth pony’s voice would be heard though, echoing off the closed walls of its many corridors.

Immediately there would shouting from the vessel’s many rooms as Soarin turned to his left, shoving the dying pony to the ground as a group of ponies rounded a corner quickly, spotting the stallion before running down to face him, weapons being drawn as they called out "Intruder! We're being attacked!" The Shadowbolt pulled himself behind a wall for cover, looking back to the other four, seeing them doing the same, taking cover as guards came to meet the intruders. Spitfire finally shouted out, "Engage! Now!" Soarin, along with Eclipse and Crescent, at the opposite end of the corridor, raised their rifles and opened fire.

Sharp bangs punctuated the shouting as each bullet for the Shadowbolt’s carbines punched centimetre wide holes through the front of the enemy’s armour, passing through the steel with ease to occasionally blow a hole out the backplates even. With every shot a brass case would be ejected from the carbines, falling to the ground.

The guards would stop rushing down the corridors after several minutes of trying, realising the Shadowbolt’s firepower was to great to simply overwhelm them. Adjusting their tactics, they brought their flintlock rifles to bear as it became a true fire fight, the Shadowbolts ducking into cover, before snapping out briefly to fire several shots at the guards before pulling back at the returned fire, retaliating every few seconds and reloading when they could afford it.

Eclipse let out a muffled shout as he shifted out to fire, two well placed shots hitting him, one in the thigh, another in the arm, red and blue light flashing the points of impact as the projectiles bounced off. They hadn't penetrated, but it was enough to dent the armour and throw off the thestral’s aim, sending his shots wide. Taking a moment to focus himself, pushing through the pain, he’d stretch his arm out behind his cover before firing once more, gritting his teeth.

Soarin pulled back as his last round was fired "Out! Reloading!" he called, lifting his rifle up as Spitfire moved to cover him, firing down the corridor with her sidearm before seeing a cylinder being thrown, eyes widening as she looked at the object, suddenly realised what it was as it bounced across the ground.

Spitfire grabbed Soarin as he was about to move in to replace her, the cylinder exploding sending shrapnel out in all directions, which embedded in the walls as well as the two pegasi, throwing them against the side of the corridor. Dash, Crescent and Eclipse turned instantly at the noise, looking to see their companions lying on the ground, dazed for a moment, before trying to crawl away.

Instantly Dash rushed to them, wings flaring and propelling her forwards at speed, covering the distance of the corridor in a second as she grabbed the backs of their uniforms, pulling them fully into cover. Once safe, she stood ready to meet the group already rushing towards the wounded Shadowbolts, as the pair of thestrals fired their last few shots before backing to the others, reloading whilst they still could.

Pulling out her sabre and gripping it tightly, she’d take several quick breaths, before bursting around the corner as the first rifle barrel poked past. Dash caught the end of the firearm between the blade and cross guard, clearing the weapon to the diagonally down and to her left, before twisting the blade so it was point first and no longer against the rifle barrel, driving the tip into the stallion’s throat. Dash's revolver flicked up, firing twice into the stomach of a pony just to the left, swiftly retracting her blade so it was free, slashing it across the other pony’s throat. A third stallion moved in from the right, thrusting with their arming sword. The pegasus stepped back, her own blade flicking down, guiding the tip of the attacker’s weapon to the side, missing her stomach by inches. Whipping her sabre around, over her head, she brought it down across their face, the guard dropping their sword and holding the gaping wound as the rainbow pegasus finished them off with a bullet to the head.

She quickly spun round towards the door to the control deck to see a riflepony taking aim and firing, their shot hitting the pegasus in the chest, armour releasing a bright green and blue flash of light, forcing her to stumble back a step as pain lanced through her chest, the impact knocking the wind out of her momentarily. Pushing past it, she snapped her arm up, emptying the last bullets of her revolver into them.

The mare rushed to the door as she adjusted her breastplate, taking up position against the wall. She'd break open her revolver, casings spewing out via the extractor. From a back pouch she withdrew one of the speedloaders, calling "Clear!" As she pressed six more rounds into the weapon, snapping it back into place. Crescent and Eclipse soon rushed up to her, each dragging one of the wounded pegasi, blood trailing across the ground behind them.

They had to move before some creature locked the doors or they were even corned in this corridor. With a sharp nod, the two thestrals kicked and held the doors open for Rainbow Dash as she charged inside between them both. The stallions’ rifles flicked left and right as they fired at each target that rose up from their cover to attack, the pair advancing into the room swiftly, killing ponies left and right, bullets blowing large holes through the enemy. Once inside, Eclipse turned, dragging the wounded Soarin and Spitfire inside before slamming the double doors shut, Crescent proceeding to cover his companion, stepping forwards to draw enemy fire to himself.

Whilst the two thestrals picked off individual attackers, Dash would burst in, engaging with the largest group of enemies who attempted to fight back. She'd fire several rounds towards them, to force their heads back into cover, as she leapt over their overturned oak table, wings flaring as she stopped in the air above them. Her revolver flashed left, killing one guard instantly as the other brought their rifle to bear. In reaction, the mare fell the remaining few metres, kicking the weapon out to the side as she’d plunge her sabre down into their chest, tearing the weapon free before dispatching them with a back slash across their face, cutting cleanly through the arm they desperately raised to cover their face.

As soon as the stroke had killed them, Dash would be thrown forwards from a shot to her back, falling against the overturned table. She spotted the attacker soon enough, the stallion already drawing out their flintlock pistol to get another shot on Dash. Dropping her empty revolver to the ground, she grabbed hold of the second revolver on her back, whipping around to face the attacker.

Before she could take the shot, their head snapped back, blood splattering the wall behind them as Crescent put a bullet through their forehead. Dash forced herself to her hooves, looking about to see Eclipse over the last pony, a Van Hoover officer scrambling back as the thestral pulled out their pistol, putting several shots in the other stallion’s chest, watching as they eventually slumped to the ground. They could all take a moment to breath; no guards had attempted to break down the doors to the room…yet.

Sealing the entrance more securely before any remaining soldiers could mount a counter attack, they would have a chance to tend to the wounds of Soarin and Spitfire. Both were bleeding from their legs and sides, though the armour had spared them from the majority of the shrapnel. What had gone through did not look too deep, though that was to their less trained eyes, a true medic may say otherwise.

The worst injury was to Soarin’s leg, the stallion’s ankle bent off to the side, the metal shin guard dented heavily which they could only assume had impacted the wall hard from the explosion. Luckily, they were both conscious though dazed. The mission had to go on and some creature needed to keep guard.

Soarin was soon set down at the radio station, head clear enough for him to work on tuning in to the specific channel they had been given, calling down, "OBBK we have taken control of 5" the pegasus growled as they felt another wave of pain from their leg "Repeat OBBK we have taken control of 5, proceeding to land in designated position," the stallion gritted his teeth, putting a hand to his stomach after a moment, breathing out deeply as he almost wretched from the pain, just managing to hold himself together.

Rainbow Dash moved over to Spitfire who lifted their arm as best they could for the younger Pegasus, allowing Dash to begin disinfecting the wound and applying styptic to coagulate the blood swiftly,

"Dash… did you… see they had our rifles out there… and they had grenades… whe-when did they get those? Intel didn’t say anything about this" She asked weakly, head bobbing forwards for a moment.

Crescent soon called back to her, "4 were our newest models which even our troops don’t fully have. I also saw one using something like a semi-automatic but I could be wrong."

Dash looked up from where she was kneeling beside their leader, "What's the call Spitfire... with vessel 1?" eventually pulling away, "Lightning Dust and the others... we still heading in to provide support?" Spitfire glanced over at Soarin as he made contact with the ground forces, telling them that the airship was secure. Her eyes tailed down to look beneath the desk at his broken leg.

Dash followed her look to the grey pegasus, wincing as she saw how severe it looked, turning away quickly. The Lieutenant finally shifted her arm, feeling pain coursing immediately, unable to move it more than a few inches, "... No, we... we stick to the plan we were set and leave them. We still need to maintain this vessel and with the injuries. We would be at too great a risk dividing. Let’s just pray to the Night Mother they can manage it," she'd concede begrudgingly.

Dash would look up to her before nodding "... right... we need to ensure we complete our mission first," she'd say, putting a hand on the yellow mare's uninjured shoulder, before moving over to steer the vessel “Soarin we good to go?” Dash called across the room, the grey stallion giving an ‘OK’ sign to her as he’d continue talking over the radio, explaining the situation.

The vessel swung to the left, moving over the trenches, the anti-aircraft cannons standing down and allowed it to pass over head. It would land some distance behind the frontlines, in an area already surrounded by soldiers, ready to sweep the vessel and wrest control from any of its remaining occupants. Now all they needed to do was wait.

********

It would take little time for them to be extracted, a proper medical time ready to tend to Spitfire and Soarin appropriately, having brought blood bags of their individual blood types. They were quick to notice the lack of vessel 1 within the zone however, looking from their position to see it hanging above the battlefield, midway between the two waring fronts, remaining motionless in the air.

They waited for Lightning Dust, or one of her team, to call over the radio of their success, but there was none. The vessel merely hung between both fronts, hovering high above the ground with them all wondering what was happening… till it suddenly exploded. Light flashed and illuminating the battlefield briefly, the wave of sound soon catching up with the light as they'd hear the boom that echoed off the hills and trees, as the airship turned to the side. Burning brightly, it would begin falling down, plummeting into the sea a kilometre or so off the coast.

Dash took a step forward, looking back at Spitfire who bore a hard look, jaw working as she turned to the other pegasus after a moment, shaking her head in anger. It was just as she predicted from Lighting and her team… failing mission criteria.

Minutes passed as they waited for as long as they could for any signs of the other Shadowbolt team, Spitfire’s anger eventually turning to worry as she began to fear the worst. Eventually, just as they were about to board the high-speed vessel to return them to Canterlot, two pegasi landed, carrying a griffin between them who was missing the lower half of this right leg and right arm, tourniquets tied just above the stumps to slow the flow of blood and tightly wrapped bandages drenched in blood covered to the ends of both limbs.

Medical staff rushed over to take the unconscious a griffin, as one pegasi looked over to Spitfire's unit, holding their head and walking off without a word, squatting on the ground, sitting hunched over as the other member of their team came over to hold their shoulder.

********

Dash would make her way to the Canterlot hospital, walking briskly to a ward, sectioned off to treat the injured Shadowbolts. It has been three days since the mission and Rainbow Dash had only just received a full debriefing regarding the events of the mission earlier that morning. Entering through the door, after signing in at the desk outside, she would head through nervously, taking a deep breath as she readied for the worst.

Soarin and Spitfire were located in opposing beds, the Lieutenant's side was bandaged and their arm was in a cast, while the stallion had a leg cast and similar bandaging across the entirety of his left side. Dash stood to attention, announcing her presence with the clop of her hooves on the floor, soon closing the door behind herself, "How's it look for you both?" she'd ask tentatively, taking off her officers hat, fingers running over its rim lightly before she finally walked over to them.

They looked between each other briefly, before Soarin offered to let the commander explain, "Well, I got hit with a shit ton of shrapnel which tore several of my arm and wing tendons, my surgery will be later today. He’s got the obvious, a fucked up shin… and what do you know, also shrapnel"

Dash gave a small smile, looking to Soarin as he began to explain, "Yeah I'm going to be in here a few weeks. It's not just a snap but a lot of fractures so... I'll be out of action for a while." he'd laugh, looking up to Rainbow Dash as he shifted in his bed slowly, "Did they figure out why it was so bad?"

The mare nodded "Yeah, they had a look over your suit and reckon the shin plate hadn't been connected fully to the power supply... anyway, they reckon it punched through what remaining power there was for enchantment so, not as ‘bad’ as it could be but still not good… They were definitely prepared for armoured borders looking at the weapons they had. Higher-ups are freaking out knowing the enemy has our level of weapons so readily available for airship guard," Dash would say, glancing down.

There was a brief silence till Spitfire finally asked "... what happened… to them?" The Lieutenant bit her lip as she waited for the answer, watching Rainbow Dash sigh.

The rainbow pegasus soon scratched the side of her head before pulling up a seat beside Spitfire’s bed. She rested herself forwards, elbows on her knees as she spoke, "Well, Lightning Dust and the others got in. They had some bombs aboard but predominantly it was loaded with abyssinian mercenaries with a squad of their power armoured units ready to be deployed, from what she reported. They guessed that the plan was for the first ship to bomb, second to supply troops to flood the empty trenches." Dash sat up, "Yeah they got in a big fire fight, like us but with way more on their tails and couldn't even make it to the main deck. Silver Flair was shot and bled out and they changed plan to take out the vessel completely. They manage to get some of the explosives into one of the main engine rooms.” She paused briefly

“… Grent gets attacked by one of the power armoured units and gets killed, Grell moved in to save him, had his leg cleaved off by a sword, then some….sadistic bastard in a powered suit toyed with him and ripped his arm off before they could take it down," she went silent, "We saw the rest. They reckon 600 abyssinian mercenaries were taken out with it and maybe a dozen power armoured close combat fighters, so... Higher-ups reckon it was a called for decision, based off circumstances, so they won’t be, you know, looked into at all." Dash left it that, running a hand over her mouth.

Spitfire shook her head, "Yeah that's a... At first I thought… y-you know what I mean."

The three of them remained silent, for the Shadowbolts that had been lost, looking down to the ground, till finally the doors to their ward were opened, breaking the silence, as several nurses moved in, "The doctor is ready to give you a proper examination Ms. Spitfire and evaluate the best course of action. Are you ready to see him?"

The yellow Pegasus sat up straighter "Yeah yeah, not like I've got anything to do here do I," she gave a small grin to her companions as she'd be wheeled out of the room, leaving Soarin and Dash alone.

They looked at each other for a few moments before the mare made her way over to his side, resting on the beds railing, "Are you alright?" She asked once more, now the commander was gone

"Yeah I'm fine, you know just worried about my leg. They're still debating on whether it can be fixed or if they should just go for a prosthetic at this point" he'd explain.

Dash glanced at his leg in the cast "That bad?"

The grey pegasus nodded "Yeah it's that bad... basically just bone splinters"

She frowned, looking back up to him, reaching her hand out to cup his cheek "You'll be fine.... you know we get the best treatment. The, uhh, magic the doctors can do is really good now, putting everything back in place."

Soarin looked up "Grell is going to get a prosthetic though" he'd counter, as if to prove his leg was still a possibility.

Dash gave a brief smile "But you've still ‘got’ your leg. Trust me you'll be walking out on your own two hooves"

Soarin looked down, not wanting to keep his hopes up till he heard it from the doctors, "... How are you holding up Dash?" The stallion asked finally, reaching a hand up to hold her elbow as he asked.

"I'm good, don't worry about me... I'll be off on another mission soon, back to Van Hoover to join in some job taking out the other airships closer to the city. Talk in the trenches is still going on about what happened. Our soldiers reckon the enemy fucked up and killed themselves by accident…if only they knew what had happened"

"We lost two, but we saved who knows how many ...hundreds or even thousands Dash...and we'll remember what they did, even if no one else will know" Soarin replied, going quiet for a second before pulling her down gently, Dash allowing it for the moment before moving down on her own, giving his lips a brief kiss before straightening up

"... not yet Soarin. When the wars done then we can but till then... you know we're not allowed," a small smile reached the corner of her mouth as she patted his arm.

The stallion grinned as he sat back, "I know, I know... still... you want to go for a drink at some point? Just between two soldiers of course to not stir trouble, that won’t cause any problems… I wish you didn’t have to go" He would eventually finish.

She smirked running a hand over his mane briefly "Fine, you get a drink but nothing obvious or we'll both be in the shit. I'll see you when I get back alright. Don't go dying on me while I'm gone... or breaking your other leg going down a flight of stairs" Dash sighed at his last comment “I wish it was over too, but it’s for the greater good. When we are done, Equestria will be whole and a better place again,” she squeezed his hand, holding it for several moments, though she eventually let go and set off, before anyone saw them.