The War of Moon and Sun

June 1008

June 13

Trails of white powder stretched across the smooth tabletop. A slender tube wrapped in a turquoise telekinesis field flew to the beginning – or the end – of one of them, and with a sickening sound of air being sucked in, chalk-like dust rose up the tube and disappeared into the nostril of the inky black alicorn.

Nightmare Moon closed her eyes for a few seconds, savoring the sensation, then licked her lips and looked up at the dirty-white earth pony with the scotch-taped round glasses and prominent teeth.

“Excellent, Advisor,” she murmured. Then she coughed, wrinkled her nose, and sniffed loudly. “So what did you say… ahem… is this stuff called?”

“Mintal powder, Horsecoacher.” The bespectacled pony tilted his head. “We make it from the core of Zebrican cacti shipped by sea from Chiropterra. It’s been found in experiments to give amazing clarity of thought and to accelerate brain function for a while, so it has some association with the word ‘mental.’ And it’s ‘mintal’ because it has a hint of peppermint extract in it... let’s just say for the scent.”

“Ask for more.” The alicorn bared her fangs. “Such help from our overseas allies is most welcome. In return, we’ll have to ship them weapons… How are they doing over there, by the way?”

“Not bad, but we wish they could do more.” The earth pony adjusted his glasses, then pulled a map of Zebrica out of his briefcase and unfolded it in front of him. “On one hoof, Tobuck is only holding on with the help of Zarantia. Chiropterra’s forces have completely occupied the island of Manerba and recently captured the city of Miharzehir, so the Tobuckians may soon surrender. On the other hoof, Warzena is supported by Hippogriffia; the Chiropterrans are still unable to capture the city of Askalion or surround the capital of Zamivgazal. Besides, those damned Hippogriffs want to give our friends a naval blockade with their small fleet. So our trade with Chiropterra is in danger. Unless we put real cannons on merchant ships—”

“This is impossible!” A blue-gray, stubbled batpony in naval uniform stood up. “The Coltsmarine already has too few resources, not to mention we’ve lost most of our ships in six months! I object…!”

“Admiral Swell,” Nightmare Moon said softly, and the thestral fell silent. “Sit down. Nopony is talking about removing existing weapons. It’s about giving away the surplus produced.” She looked to the other end of the long table where the economic advisors sat. “Can we even do that? Nightshade?”

“In theory, we can,” murmured a beige thestral stallion with a straight brown mane and red eyes. “The war factories are running at full capacity. So are the shipyards, just for a second, Admiral,” he remarked, glancing at Swell. “Nothing is impossible for us right now. Especially with the research of Dr. Trottenheimer and Advisor Poindexter.” A nod to the bespectacled pony. “I can assure you: a shipment of the required quantities will be produced within the next month. One way or another.”

“What about you, Boo?” The alicorn turned to the white, pink-haired thestral mare next to Nightshade. “How are the finances?”

“Difficult,” she sighed. “But bearable. Abolishing the bit gold standard has injected millions into the economy, especially the military… but it has also fueled inflation. Weapons procurement prices are still under our complete control, however. Otherwise, trade with Skyfall is literally saving us. Although the national debt—”

“Enough,” Nightmare Moon cut her off. “That’s what I wanted to hear. Then—”

“I beg to differ, Horsecoacher,” came a soft but firm voice.

All eyes turned to the light orange unicorn mare in the dark green tunic to the left of the alicorn.

“We need those weapons for ourselves,” she said. “No matter what’s across the ocean. Right now, our priority is the war with Equestria.”

“So the resources at hoof aren’t enough for you, General Shimmer?” The bespectacled pony blinked at her.

“Alas,” she replied sadly. “Our counterattack along the entire front is going slower than we’d like. We’re struggling to take back what we gave up in the winter and spring. At this rate, we won’t reach Ponyville until late summer and Canterlot until early winter. So, yes, we need more. Otherwise,” she flicked her eyes at him, “do something cooler, Gizmo. At least twenty percent cooler.”

“Using the enemy’s phrases, Sunset?” the snow-white pegasus with the blond mane scolded her jokingly. A cockade with a winged pony carrying a crescent moon in its hooves indicated that he was the commander of the Pegasenwaffe.

“Don’t shut me up, Cloud,” the unicorn said with a look of infinite fatigue. “After all, our units have to work together. But—”

“Equestria has good air defense and aviation, Horsecoacher.” The pegasus turned to Nightmare Moon. “If we get bogged down in air combat, we don’t have a chance to help the infantry. And it’s hard for bombers to get far west… and even harder to get back.”

“Besides,” Sunset interjected, “the new automatic rifles are not giving us the advantage we expected. In response, the Equestrians are starting to use crystal-powered energy weapons and—”

“A-a-and?” The alicorn lifted her chin and glared at her. “I’m listening.”

“They’re getting more and more analogs to our Lightnings. That means they’re catching up to us in power. And in the long run they might even surpass us. And that means” – Sunset looked at Gizmo again with determination – “that we need a trump card to turn the tide. Preferably more than one.”

“And how did our top-secret developments end up in the enemy’s hooves?” Nightmare Moon said in a honeyed voice, turning her head to face Aryanne. “Would you enlighten me, Gruppenhoofer?”

“I…” The white mare lowered her gaze for a moment, but then looked into the alicorn’s eyes. “My guess is that there is a new resident in the central office. Without him, the network of sleeper agents would be helpless against the Gestaponies. However—” Sweat broke out on Aryanne’s forehead. “This pony is obviously smarter than the ones they’ve sent before. Anyway, he doesn’t leave any traces, and he’s obviously familiar with the conspiracy—”

“So he’s the one who set off the explosion at the Lunenerbe Medical Institute?” Gizmo hissed. “And you still can’t find him?!”

“He’ll be hard to track down, that’s true. But—” Aryanne’s gaze grew sharper than steel. “I swear I’ll find him and rip his guts out.” She pulled herself up and made a moonlight. “Word of the Lunar Division officer.”

Nightmare Moon nodded. “All right, Gruppenhoofer. Do not disappoint me.” The alicorn looked around at the assembled audience. “So, you say you need a trump card to speed up your offensive? But why such one-sided, flat, two-dimensional thinking, my children? Do you really hope it will help you? After your disgraceful defeat at Canterlot?!”

Sunset and Cloud Skipper cringed under the gaze of turquoise eyes with narrow, vertical pupils. Their icy glare pierced their very souls, making their hearts clench and their blood run cold. Their lungs tightened, unable to breathe. It was like…

Like on the Moon.

“You have already failed me once! And now that a strategic initiative is at stake, all you can do is mumble that you don’t have enough money?! Either bury those bastards in corpses… or be smarter than that. Think in three dimensions, not two! Otherwise,” Nightmare Moon bared her fangs, “I will find replacements for you. At least among the Chiropterrans. Maybe they will do a better job.”

The generals froze in their seats, unable to blink. Apparently pleased with the effect, the alicorn grinned, closed her eyes, and breathed in another white trail.

Sunset and Cloud glanced at each other. The pegasus nodded slightly. The unicorn nodded back and, after taking a breath, turned back to the ruler. “Actually… we have a plan that might work. It’s just a matter of how successful it will be. But success will bring us much.”

Nightmare Moon only raised an eyebrow.

“Y-yes, Horsecoacher,” Cloud added, “let me show you…”

He picked up a hoofful of white and dark blue pony figurines from the edge of the table and leaned over the large map of Equestria spread out on the desk.

He centered the white figures in one spot and placed the blue ones to the right. The gothic lettering beneath the cluster of whites read: CLOUDSDALE.

“What does infantry need on the offensive? Air support.” He took a few more white pieces and placed them opposite the blue ones. “Their advantage is that the air system is more orderly and anchored to a single center.” The pegasus’ hoof pointed at Cloudsdale. “Accordingly, while the Pegasenwaffe fights their air force and the Wonderbolts…” A pair of blue pieces approached the cloud city from both sides, and the white pieces advanced to meet them. “…infantry gets bogged down in positional battles and killed in assaults.”

In a single motion, he swept aside the two lines facing each other to the east. The pieces rolled across the table as if they were abstractions rather than flesh-and-blood units of many thousands.

“So if we gather enough forces for a powerful strike and destroy the center…” Cloud Skipper raked the remaining blue figures into a pile with his wing, and literally swept the “defenders” of Cloudsdale away with them. Then he rearranged the infantry of both colors and added a few more blue ones around them. “…then their support will be uncoordinated and of no use to them.”

The blue pieces flanked the white ones, and then a mighty hoofbeat brought the latter down on the glossy surface of the map.

“Horsecoacher.” The pegasus raised his chin and stared at the alicorn. “We must destroy Cloudsdale.”

Her lips curved into a smile, revealing sharp teeth again.

“Splendid,” Nightmare Moon said. “I like your approach, General. Try not to disappoint me. Give me a detailed operation plan in three days. Time is of the essence, so we should not delay.”

“If I may, Horsecoacher…” Gizmo spoke up. “I would like to add one small detail to this plan. But it’s one that will allow us to do more damage to Equestria. Not so much militarily, but morally.”

“Intrigued. Continue.”

“Recently, a group of our scientists deciphered some curious Zebrican hoofiscript… To get right to the point, it describes the technology for producing a necrotic gas with very interesting properties. It has almost no effect on inanimate things – except for its good absorption. But it has a wonderful reaction with living beings.” Gizmo smiled with pleasure at the details of the development. “Flesh literally melts at the slightest contact with it, allowing you to fuse one body to another, body to weapon, armor, or any surrounding surface. Short-term exposure causes horrible mutations, and breathing the gas (which is bright pink, by the way) for even a minute is guaranteed to kill the pony.” Gizmo grinned. “But that’s where the fun begins.”

“Is this… like the Dread League or something?” Admiral Swell scratched the back of his head. “Walking dead and stuff? Oh, cut the crap—”

“One more word, Admiral, and you will join them.” The alicorn smiled sweetly, and the blue-gray thestral choked. “Continue, Advisor Poindexter.”

“When exposed to large doses of gas, a pony can be revived as a ghoul, and not just an ordinary one, but one that spreads the same Pink Cloud, as we call it,” Gizmo spoke again. “And he wouldn’t get hurt by melee weapons or firearms: after critical damage, his body would regenerate itself. To kill such a ghoul, you’d have to at least decapitate him, although his… uh… body parts would still be active for a while. Or incinerate him. That’s for sure. Of course, it could be done by a powerful unicorn mage, or with a flamethrower—”

“…or with an Equestrian magic rifle,” Sunset said in the silence that followed.

Gizmo hesitated for a moment but managed to control himself.

“Well… yes. That’s one of the drawbacks. Unfortunately, after such a temporary ‘death,’ most of those turned into ghouls behave like beasts, obsessed with killing. And they do not choose sides but destroy everything until they are destroyed themselves. Therefore, when they are used, our forces should not be in the vicinity… to avoid incidents.”

“Well…” Nightmare Moon said. “And what does this have to do with the storming of Cloudsdale?”

“Quite a lot.” Gizmo shrugged. “If we turn the attack into a distraction, we can hit targets with gas bombs that would kill the last will to fight in the sunfuckers.”

“You mean Canterlot?” Aryanne asked, leaning forward. Her eyes glistened, and she seemed to absorb every word the Lunenerbe chief said.

Gizmo nodded. “Including this. Though I suggest that the main target – for the sake of effect – be a different place.” A dirty-white hoof pointed at a small town far west of the front lines. “How about striking Littlehorn? The only targets there are schools relocated due to the war, but the kind that all of Equestria knows about. First, the School for Gifted Unicorns of… ahem, the well-known bunker whore; and second, the so-called School of Friendship run by her apprentice. Two in one. Just fabulous, isn’t it? And if we add Canterlot and Cloudsdale, we’ve got a real combo! The apotheosis of death, destruction, and panic.”

“The apotheosis of war…” Nightmare Moon said, savoring the phrase.

“Exactly!” Gizmo started to laugh. “Imagine aggressive dead ponies walking around Canterlot, who were just ordinary citizens an hour ago! Or pegasi being eaten alive by their comrades in their own fiefdom! Or a crowd of ghoul foals wandering around Equestria like at Nightmare Night, yelling ‘Trick-or-Treat’! But the thing is, they’d be real ghouls…!”

The other ponies at the table also chuckled quietly. The alicorn smirked as well, as if admiring the courage of thought of her own “student” who had surpassed his teacher.

“Well, Advisor, you have surprised me. If all goes well, you will receive the highest award. Of course, I won’t forget you either.” She turned to Sunset and Cloud Skipper, who were still silent. “But only if the operation allows us to gain a strategic advantage. And that’s our weakness right now.”

“We won’t fail!” the white pegasus exclaimed, raising his hoof. “Praise the Moon!”

“Praise the Moon!!!” shouted all the others, also making a moonlight.

“Glory to batponies!” the thestrals added.

Nightmare Moon smiled and raised her right foreleg as well. “I think we can finish here. Octavia, Aryanne, stay here for a while.”

The two mares stayed at the table while the other ponies hurriedly left the meeting room to return to their business. As the door closed behind the last of them, which was Cloud Skipper, the black alicorn grinned and looked at her loyal subordinates.

“Well, amuse me,” Nightmare Moon said. “Has anything happened in the last few days that I don’t already know about?”

“Oh yes, Horsecoacher,” Aryanne giggled. “For example, the day before yesterday, in one of the bars (Hoofbeats, I guess), a group of soldiers on leave from the front tried to pay – just imagine that! – with a playing card with your picture on it!”

Lifting her head, the alicorn laughed out loud. Her hoof in the bluish slipper struck the trembling table with a metallic clang.

Octavia, though, only smiled. Probably just following the general mood.

“And then?” Nightmare asked after laughing and wiping away her tears. “Did they pay?”

“Believe it or not, yes!” There was another burst of laughter. “But the waiter had called the owner first, and the latter, apparently afraid that the Gestaponies would find out, decided to accept the payment. Besides, a dozen drunken soldiers are not easy to refuse.”

“So what did you do when you heard?”

Aryanne shrugged. “Everything according to the law. The soldiers are in the ponice station awaiting deportation to the front; the waiter and the owner are in the next cell awaiting trial. And then maybe they’ll go to the front lines as well.”

“Oh, I’ve thought of something better…” Nightmare Moon brought her hooves together in front of her face and looked at Aryanne. “Tell me, the lamps in the Lunar Chancellery hang unadorned, don’t they?”

“Y-yes, Horsecoacher,” the white pony nodded a little uncertainly. “I’m afraid I don’t quite get the point—”

“I think you can decorate them with beautiful leather lampshades in one of the corridors. All at the expense of the treasury, of course. I’m sure Boo would be willing to spare some of her amazing paper tickets.”

“Brilliant,” Aryanne bowed her head with a satisfied smile. “I admire your ingenuity, Horsecoacher. Rest assured, these ponies will serve the country in a new capacity—”

“You know, maybe let them fight,” Nightmare Moon said after a moment’s thought. “Why waste such soldiers? They’ve got plenty of courage, I see. And those ponies from the club could join them… The lampshades could be made from their families. That’s even better: the skin will be thinner and more delicate—”

“Fine,” Aryanne nodded. “I’ll take care of it immediately.”

“And you, Octavia, how would you like to please me?” The alicorn turned to the other pony. “Apart from your charming music, of course.”

“My story may not be quite as amusing, but it’s interesting in a way.” The gray mare smiled modestly. “Last week, it came to my attention and to the Third Department of the Chancellery that somepony named Quibble Pants (a pony from the West, actually) had written a novel... about our victory. It’s called The Mare in the High Tower. The funny thing is that at first glance, it’s a reference to you, but in fact to one of the book’s characters.”

“Really?” Nightmare Moon raised an eyebrow. “Interesting… And what’s there with our victory, hmm?”

“Actually, it’s a little more complicated than that. The story takes place in the year 1032 by Equestrian count. In that reality, Equestria lost the war and was divided between the NLR, which is called the Lunar Empire there, and the Kingdom of the Changelings. The Crystal Empire and Stalliongrad also fell to our onslaught, and New Mareland is our outpost in Griffonia. The plot has several lines, including a love story, but there is also a ponitical one. The fact is that the Changelings have managed to create some sort of dragonfire superbomb there and are preparing to drop it on Manehattan to continue their takeover of the continent. However, one of their generals is plotting to overthrow Chrysalis and thwart those plans.”

“So how does it all end?”

“Well… in general… that line gets cut off here. But the central line is another, involving the main characters. The point is that in the world of the book, the famous Daring Do, who lives in a ‘high tower’” – Octavia’s hooves showed quotation marks – “in the lands controlled by the Changelings, has written a similar novel called The Butterfly Flies Slowly, in which she tells how Equestria won the war. At the same time, the characters keep using the Kirin Book of Fire for divination. Eventually, one of the characters arrives at Daring Do’s house, and she tells her that she used the Book of Fire in her work on the novel. The mare then divines on the Kirin treatise, asking about The Butterfly – and concludes that Daring Do’s book contains a hidden truth and that you and Chrysalis actually lost the war. The end. Isn’t it weird? On the one hoof, there is amazingly successful composition, complex plot, and open ending. On the other one, equally ridiculous content—”

“No, not at all…” Nightmare Moon muttered. “There is something to it… I think I have found a way to use what you told me. Secretly distribute the book to unreliable ponies in the Republic and then go on a series of raids with Miss Wagner.” The alicorn smiled warmly at Aryanne. “Anypony found in possession of a copy must be shot. Is that clear?”

“Perfectly,” Octavia nodded. “By the way, I wanted to take this opportunity to invite you, Horsecoacher, to my concert next Sunday, June twenty-second. It will be the first time I perform Thestral music from before the First Lunar War—”

“Thank you, child. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, I will try to attend. On such an occasion,” the alicorn mused, “I might even ask to find a piece of my own from over a thousand years ago in the archives. It’s been a long time since I heard it… Perform it next time, say in early July.”

“I would be honored, Horsecoacher.” Octavia bowed respectfully.

“If we are lucky,” Nightmare Moon grinned, “we will soon be celebrating the fall of Cloudsdale together. And with it, the entire air defense of Equestria.”

And she sucked in another white trail.

June 15

When Soarin opened his eyes, he saw the snow-white ceiling of the cloud base bedroom above him.

Oh, no flippin’ way… he thought, gritting his teeth. Again…

He tried to get up – but instead he couldn’t even move from where he was. He turned his head… and groaned helplessly.

All his hooves were strapped to the corners of the wide double bed. The pegasus was essentially crucified, like a living love toy. Which he seemed to be for today.

“Lightning!” he shouted angrily into the scrubbed ceiling, twitching in his restraints. “Damn you! How many times can it be?!”

If rumor and fantasy were to be believed, one could imagine the horseplay that took place beneath the ceiling of this room. Even hotter than on the bed, it was said. After all, pegasi were used to living in three dimensions…

Soarin threw back his head and squeezed his eyes shut. Not to look, not to see this bloody place…!

The stallion pulled on the bound limb with all his might, more to check a box than to actually hope for any result. The strap immediately dug into his skin, causing him to hiss through his teeth in pain. No matter how hard Soarin wiggled, the leg could only be moved a few inches.

“I hate you…” he growled, and then he jerked all his hooves again. “I hate you!”

He was seething with anger that needed to be released. But all he could do was scream into the void, for the room was well soundproofed.

It was his anger, by the way, that excited Lightning, who sucked the pale blue pegasus dry in an effort to extract as much perverse pleasure as she could. Giving her lover (and in fact, her slave) a release – and an overwhelming humiliation at the same time.

The events of the past few months flashed through his mind.

It all started with an unexpected vacation that Spitfire sent Soarin on in early November. One of the Wonderbolts’ top flyers had been suddenly found to be missing a lot of weekends helping out with the Ponyville weather team. And coincidence or not, Rainbow Dash was scheduled to work all those shifts. So it wasn’t hard to guess what the reason was.

But work rules come first. So Soarin assured Rainbow that he would be back soon, touched her nose with his, and took the train to Fillydelphia.

And when he got there, the next day came the Lunar Revolution.

At first, he didn’t believe that Princess Luna had turned back into Nightmare Moon, and he urged the ponies around him to come to their senses. When the rallies and torchlight processions began, he had to hide in the back alleys to avoid running into the raging mob. The station was shut down; many ponies fled the city on their own – or flew away.

Soarin decided to return as well – but not in time. Just as he was packing, the rioters broke into the hotel with the ponice – and when they saw a Wonderbolt, considered one of the pillars of Celestia’s regime, on the guest list, they couldn’t pass up such prey.

He spent two months in prison, his wings bandaged. Then he was forcibly assigned to the Fillydelphia weather team since many of the city’s pegasi had gone to the front as part of the Pegasenwaffe.

That same night, he tried to fly away. A thick blanket of clouds hung over the city, driven in by his own team for the morning snowfall. Soarin had hoped it would be enough for his escape.

How damn wrong he had been.

With the last rooftops behind him and hundreds of miles of snowy forest ahead, three dark shadows suddenly appeared beside him (Soarin later realized they were wearing the purple-and-black suits of the Shadowbolts), and over his ear, above the wind, a mare’s harsh voice said, “And how far will you go?”

Soarin flapped his wings even harder to get away, but the three clung to him in the air and used their combined weight to pull him down to the ground, where they bound his legs and wings.

He spent the next two weeks back in prison, suffering from a black eye and a broken nose: resisting arrest always costs a lot. At least everything else was intact, thank goodness.

And then the day came when the cell door swung open and there she stood, the same Shadowbolt mare who had captured him.

Lightning Dust, the Major of the Pegasenwaffe.

“Get up,” she said then. “We need a pegasus like you.”

“We who?” Soarin asked, squinting against the light pouring in from the corridor.

“The New Lunar Republic. General Cloud Skipper, Commander of the Pegasenwaffe. And me.” She smiled predatorily. “After all, such enviable stallions don’t just fall by the wayside.”

“Go to your general and let him fuck you in your stinking mouth,” Soarin snapped at her.

“Wrong answer.”

Lightning Dust gave a subtle shake of her head and was immediately flanked by two earth ponies with intimidating rifles pointed at him.

“It’s your choice, wing boy. Either you shove your worthless pride where you think it belongs and come with me, or we’re gonna haul your body off to the crematorium. Five seconds enough?”

…And just like that, Soarin found himself at cloud base number twelve. A whole flying island with barracks, headquarters and even an airstrip, over which figures in tight flight suits scurried day and night with deadly grace.

Far ahead, to the west, staggered rows of cloud fortifications could be seen. They would not stop a plane, of course, but they would be quite effective against an airborne force. Especially since there were military airfields below.

Upon arrival, Soarin was kept in the brig for another two weeks (apparently to suppress his will to resist sufficiently), after which he was released.

However, there was one tiny nuance.

In the form of a thin collar, almost color-matched to his fur, containing fifty grams of TNT. And naturally, it was within the power of the turquoise pegasus to remove or detonate the collar.

She also carried a stun gun with her all the time. Which was a very convincing argument on her part in any discussion.

The first time she’d ordered the newly minted Pegasenwaffe lieutenant to come to her bedroom, she’d been rebuffed – and had responded by stabbing Soarin in the side with her device. As the stallion twitched in shock, two of Lightning’s guards – now local pegasi – dragged him to the specified place and strapped him to the bed. And then Lightning Dust could finally have her pleasure.

Since then, she had arranged such “entertainment” from time to time. More than once, Soarin had woken up tied to his superior’s bed; worse, he could simply be knocked out and dragged into the bedroom by her guards… whom Lightning seemed to lack for complete relief. Soarin walked and flew now, constantly looking around: what if the “kidnapping” happened again?

At the base, of course, everypony knew about Lightning Dust’s new “favorite” – and looked at the pale blue pegasus with mocking sympathy. Anyway, Soarin had heard a lot of jokes about himself and “how dusty her lightning is” in the first few months. And that made him hate the turquoise mare’s antics all the more.

But most of all, he hated himself. After all, by having sex with Lightning, he was betraying the other one – his love, the one left behind in Equestria.

Yet he could do nothing about it. It was useless to complain over her head, and he would surely be laughed out of the room. If he resisted, he would be electrocuted in the side. And if he tried to fly away, the collar would explode when the signal was lost, or when the button was pressed.

So he just had to do his “stud duty” and wait for something to change.

The door opened and Soarin turned his head.

“Well, how are you in here, my sweetie?” Lightning Dust chirped, stepping inside and locking the door. She tossed the key carelessly with her wing into the corner of the room.

She gave Soarin an appraising look and licked her lips. Lightning was naked too, and she smelled faintly of sweat and excitement.

The stallion felt everything inside him clench and harden.

“You…!” he shouted, his face contorted with rage. “What the hay are you doing, Lightning? Don’t you have anyone else to fuck, you stupid mare?!”

“Wow, look at you go…” Lightning Dust raised an eyebrow and unfolded her wing.

In her feathery grip was the expected stun gun. Lightning flicked it a few times, causing a faint flash, then swayed her hips and headed for the bed.

“D-don’t come near me!” Soarin gasped, twitching in his bonds. “I hate you!”

“Oh, your little friend doesn’t think so.” Lightning smiled.

Soarin glanced down and gulped, blushing thickly. Lightning climbed onto the bed and ran her tongue lightly over his growing stud.

“You’re a freak!” he blurted out. “When will you just leave me alone?!”

The stun gun was shoved in his face in an instant.

“Not until we win,” she said coldly. “Just lie there and don’t move. I’ll get what I need on my own.”

She smirked at the twitch in his cheek.

That’s true, Soarin admitted bitterly. She has no equal in getting her own.

With the shocker removed, Lightning continued to work with her tongue and teeth. Soarin’s cock swelled with each passing second, but the mare didn’t seem to mind, swallowing him deeper and deeper. Such skills must have been partly responsible for her reaching her current rank so quickly.

A few minutes later, she let his cock out of her mouth and grinned at the stallion’s sour face.

“Now…” She moved forward and rubbed her intimate spot on his cock, making him moan. “…let’s get to the fun part.”

Lifting herself up, Lightning thrusted sharply at him. Her eyes rolled blissfully as a moan of pleasure escaped her chest.

Soarin, gritting his teeth, tried not to make a sound. He wasn’t good enough to resist her lust, but he could do little things to ruin her pleasure. When she had moved her croup to his face, he had angrily bitten her right on her wet lower lips. It had cost him a shocker blast, but Soarin still allowed himself a gloating grin at the time. Lightning didn’t give him that opportunity again – and limited herself to simple manipulations of his cock.

She rose and fell rhythmically, her wings flapping to the sides. Soarin had spread them as well but lying on them was a bit painful. Another little torture from the insatiable, domineering mare.

Meanwhile, the excitement of both of them was rapidly rising to a climax. The scent of passion wafted through the room. Lightning was moaning, as if she wanted the whole base to hear her. Soarin breathed hoarsely, unsure what to do: if he tried to ejaculate faster, he would show that he had joined her game; if he lasted longer, he would only give her more pleasure. So he surrendered to fate and let his body decide for him. Mentally, he drifted as far away as he could, calling up different images in his mind.

And the end was near.

Lightning took him completely inside her with a wet thrust and shook with a deep moan as she reached the highest point of pleasure, her eyes closed in delight.

Her insides clenched so tightly that Soarin could not hold on any longer.

“Ah… ah… Rain… bow…” he exhaled, spurting into Lightning.

The turquoise pegasus’ eyes immediately flew open, and she was off him in a flash, spilling the rest of his cum onto the bed.

“What the hay did you just yap, you Equestrian prick?!” she snarled and grabbed the shocker with her wing.

Soarin’s jaw dropped in horror as he realized he had unknowingly shouted the other mare’s name.

But he didn't have time to think about anything else.

The nasty iron jabbed into his side and a powerful bolt of electricity shot through his body.

Lightning zapped him again and again, until the stallion stopped twitching, and the device itself began to emit only idle sparks.

“Fuck, it’s broken,” she grumbled and threw the useless shocker away.

Then she ran her hoof under her tail and licked the mixture of their juices with pleasure.

“I’m not done with you yet,” she muttered to the unconscious Soarin and went to the shower next to the room.

To continue the pleasure punishment later.

I’ll tape his mouth shut, I think, she thought as she stood under the taut water jets. Stallions always talk too much. And this one even more so.

June 21

The rays of the setting sun glided softly over the white, fluffy flanks of the clouds.

Large and majestic, the pegasus city of Cloudsdale floated in the amber evening sky, and nopony seemed to care what was going on down there. All the hardships and troubles seemed so insignificant from a bird’s-eye view, as if they were happening to somepony else and could be ignored while gliding in the fresh breeze.

But the war raging in Equestria had reached this highland corner of the country as well. The city was surrounded by a triple ring of cloud fortifications, with rebar, stones, and even concrete slabs being embedded by pegasi magic. Here and there, winged ponies could be seen expanding and reinforcing the massive, dense curtains.

The base of the Wonderbolts was a separate cluster of flying islands just above and away from the main mass of the city. At the same time, a great deal of space was devoted to cadet training: young pegasi, under the supervision of instructors, were whizzing through cloud obstacle courses, searching for flags in the artificially created three-dimensional maze, or practicing flight leveling after ejection from the centrifuge.

A little farther away was the regular units’ complex, where ponies in the familiar blue-and-yellow flight suits fired from their battle saddles at moving aircraft mockups and engaged in aerial combat.

And rumor had it that somewhere high up there was another minicamp. This was where the flyers of the secret squad were trained, who were so cool that they were usually not even seen in combat uniforms. Including a living legend – an azure mare with a rainbow mane.

…The headquarters building stood on a small island some distance away. From there, one had an excellent view of both the Academy and the city itself, with its cloud fortifications. All to see the sky in detail and make decisions.

A dozen ponies in the blue uniforms of the Equestrian Air Force were assembled in the large meeting room. Only one seat was empty at the long rectangular table, at the left hoof of one end.

General Spitfire stood up and adjusted her dark glasses.

“Alright, everypony! I have called you together to tell you an unpleasant—”

“Look out!” someone shouted, pointing to the window, and everyone fell to the floor.

Indeed, a bright, shiny object was flying at breakneck speed toward the headquarters against the setting sky.

The glass shattered and the white comet slid across the table and crashed into the wall.

As soon as everyone crawled out from under the furniture, they saw the real cause of the commotion.

Rainbow Dash, in a white flight suit with blue lightning bolts, twirled her head at the far wall as she came to her senses. Her goggles were riddled with cracks from the impact.

Spitfire was the first to regain control.

“Captain Dash!” she yelled, running up to the “newcomer” and slapping her across the face. “How many times do I have to tell you there’s a war on, and you can’t fly at these speeds near headquarters!” Spitfire smacked Rainbow on the other cheek. “And besides, can’t you just show up for meetings through the door like decent ponies do?!”

“Uh-oh… my bad, ma’am…” Rainbow mumbled and rose up to her hooves.

“Louder!!!” Spitfire barked in her ear.

“My bad, ma’am!” Rainbow stood at attention.

The others watched the scene with varying emotions: Fleetfoot, Flitter, and Cloudchaser held back giggles; Fast Clip and Whiplash gave each other glum looks; and Thunderlane glared disapprovingly at Rainbow.

“No more of that! Otherwise, I’ll have to take extreme measures!”

“L-like what?”

Spitfire’s eyes flashed angrily. “Like putting the Thunderbolts under the command of another pegasus!”

“No, just not that!” Rainbow shrieked. “You won’t do that!”

“Maybe I will, maybe I won’t,” Spitfire said as she calmed down a little and sat back down in her seat. “We’ll see.”

Dash slipped sullenly into the empty seat.

“Well, now that everypony’s here, we can get started. As I said, I’ve received the most unpleasant news. Major?” She glared at Fast Clip.

The white pegasus with the clipped mane and tail and the blue glasses stood up, clutching a clipboard with his wing. “In recent days, intelligence reports said enemy airstrikes in central Equestria had abruptly ceased. At the same time, some of the previously discovered military airfields were empty; most likely, the equipment had been moved elsewhere. At the same time, the Shadowbolts became more active; several of their units were spotted on the approaches to Cloudsdale and Canterlot. But no battle ensued; they disappeared immediately, as if they had seen what they wanted.”

“Why?!” Rainbow slammed her hoof on the table. “You should have hunted them down and asked them what they saw over our cities!”

“Shut up, Dash.” Spitfire sighed wearily. “Go on, Major.”

“We assume they are saving their forces for a decisive strike,” Fast Clip said, no longer looking at the text. “The main target will undoubtedly be Cloudsdale; our lines of cloud fortifications are like apricot pits to the enemy. But there could also be attacks on Ponyville, Canterlot, and the airfields closest to the front if their planes manage to break through our defenses.”

“And when will they attack?” Fleetfoot asked.

“By our estimation,” Spitfire said sadly, “tomorrow morning, June twenty-second. The best time would be four o’clock, just before dawn.”

There was a startled whisper in the crowd.

“Then let us strike first!” Rainbow exclaimed. “Make it three o’clock! I and my squad—”

“One more word, Captain Dash, and you will not have a squad!” Spitfire crossed her hooves over her chest. “We need to strategize how to repel the attack. Otherwise…” She gave everyone a stern look. “Cloudsdale’s doomed.”

…Three hours later, the meeting came to an end.

The ponies were yawning as they left. Considering they’d gone to bed an hour early that day to be woken at two in the morning, they still had a chance to get some sleep.

Rainbow was the last to waddle to the door, but she turned and looked at Spitfire.

“General…” The azure mare bit her lip nervously. “There’s… no news of Soarin?”

Spitfire shook her head. “No reason to assume he’s alive, or… another option, so to speak. But I have faith in him. Soarin was my right hoof… before the war started. He’s a good pegasus. Loyal to Equestria... and to Cloudsdale. If he’s still alive, he’ll be eager to get back, one way or another. You know, from the other side,” she pointed her head at the window, “it’s not that easy.”

“But… what am I supposed to do?”

“Wait and hope, Dash. Wait and hope…”

Late in the evening, Soarin walked down the base corridor, lit by the deadly pale glow of the lamps.

The stallion had spent a few days in the infirmary after the incident. After waiting for him to come to his senses, Lightning Dust raped him again. And didn’t rest until there was nothing left in his not-so-weak testicles. Then she stunned him again, called the guards and told them to take him to the med bay and then come back to her.

Soarin didn’t have time to hear anything else because he passed out at that moment.

But judging by the fact that the major had been calm and nonchalant all week, her subordinates had managed to please her well.

And there was just one more gossip among the personnel.

In the past few days, they had all been training noticeably more than usual. Soarin subconsciously sensed that it would soon come to the point and realized that time was running out. Perhaps the pegasus would finally get a real chance to escape this hell and return to those he had been flying side by side with for more than a year.

Especially the one who had conquered his previously serene soul.

And it would be such a shame to mess that up now.

So he acted like everyone else. But he also observed. He compared facts. He drew conclusions. And finally, he made a plan for himself to carry it out.

And when they were given a full day’s rest, Soarin realized it was time.

Tomorrow would be too late.

And tomorrow, things could change so dramatically that not only his life, but all of Equestria would never be the same.

So he had to take matters into his own hooves right now. Do what his mind told him to do to calm his racing heart.

He was looking for a certain pony that night. The one that had captured him and caused him so much pain – and yet held the key to his freedom.

And when he saw her walking back to her quarters after the meeting with her superiors, he was finally convinced that the luck was on his side.

“Major Lightning!” he called to the turquoise mare, who was marching off as if lost in her own thoughts.

Lightning Dust jerked her head and stopped. Her light brown eyes focused on the stallion.

“What d’you want?” she muttered. “Go to your room. We’ll all be woken up at night.”

“That’s why I’m looking for you.”

Lightning Dust arched an eyebrow, and Soarin boldly took a few steps closer.

“I… have something to confess to you.”

“And what’s that?” She snorted contemptuously. “What, you think you can escape me by coming out? It won’t work. I bound you to me to get back at you and that rainbow bitch. I hope she sees you in a Shadowbolt uniform and puts a bullet in her head. Or maybe she will want to shoot you first. But she won’t.” Lightning’s lips curled up into a smirk. “Because I’ll shoot her first.”

“I… realized a lot of what she did to you.” Soarin took a deep breath. “Being kicked out of the Academy because of her was wrong. Mean. Unfair. And… I understand why you became the way you did. So…” He hesitated a moment, choosing his words. “Determined. Bold. Risky. And I wish I could be like you. But among the Wonderbolts, I’d be just like everyone else, I wouldn’t stand out. But here…” He squeezed his eyes shut. “This is the first time I’ve had a chance to become truly stronger. And I want you to help me with that.”

He was sickened by the words he spoke. If it weren’t for the constant reminder that it was all for a good cause, he would have vomited right at her hooves. But he held back, knowing he didn’t have long to embarrass himself.

I’m sorry, Rainbow, he thought. This is the only way. For our own good.

But his words had served their purpose. At least Lightning’s gaze became slightly interested.

“And in what way, may I ask?” she said. “I want only one thing from you. The Republic also wants only one thing from you, but it’s different. Neither I nor the Republic gives a damn what you want for yourself. Just do as you’re told and don’t think about anything else. Right now, I’m telling you to fuck off, and you will. Otherwise,” she touched the holster with the shocker hanging at her side, “I’ll make you do it.”

“Please, Major…” Soarin took another step forward, so they were almost next to each other. “Give me a chance. Let me… prove my loyalty. And…” A lump rose sharply in his throat, and the stallion swallowed hastily. “Let me… love you.”

In the next instant, he lunged forward, scooped Lightning into an embrace, and kissed her hard on the lips. They were wet and sticky, but that was the least of his concerns right now.

A turquoise hoof smacked into his nose, causing him to jerk back. Knowing what was coming, Soarin tried to relax his muscles. The impending electric shock made him fall to the floor and convulse.

Lightning put down the shocker and grimaced. “Look at you. What a pathetic sight! You think you’re gonna be strong… Dream on!”

She kicked him angrily in the jaw and trotted off, leaving him lying on the floor.

As the clatter of her hooves faded into the distance, Soarin stopped twitching and sat up. Then, quietly at first, but growing louder by the second, he started to laugh.

I did it after all. Jackpot!

With his front legs, the stallion held the thing that would lead him to freedom. It was the thing he had covered with his body from Lightning’s gaze as he fell to the floor.

A small black remote control from an explosive collar.

There were three buttons on the device: red, blue, and green. The blue one was labeled “bind”; the other two needed no explanation.

It must be the link between the remote and the tracker in the collar, Soarin reasoned. If they’re connected by a certain radio signal, and that signal is interrupted when they’re separated, the collar will explode. Well, that’s smart. And practical. Bravo, you assholes.

He pressed the green button.

Nothing happened.

It shouldn’t have.

His hoof picked up the hated accessory and tore it from his neck. Judging by its weight, the band of cloth really did contain some explosives.

Soarin laughed and let out a triumphant cheer, but immediately turned down the volume. Not that Major Dust would come back to find out why he was having such a good time.

Pushing himself off the floor, Soarin took off and raced down the corridor to his squad’s quarters. On the fly, he stuffed the collar and the remote control into his uniform pocket.

He would need them later.

June 22

3:50 a.m.

“You can’t smoke around here, sir.”

“Huh?”

The batpony in the flight helmet turned around with a cigarette in his hoof.

A refueling truck, driven by a stubby earth pony, pulled up to the bomber on the taxiway. On a long platform behind the cab, an elongated tank swayed slightly.

The driver was now standing on the car’s step and looked reproachfully at the pilot, who was leaning carelessly against the landing gear.

“You can’t smoke around here,” the earth pony repeated. “It’s gas.”

“How I’m sick of you all…” the thestral muttered, adding a few words in a whisper. Then he tossed the half-smoked cigarette onto the pavement and crushed the butt with his hoof. “Happy now?”

“Thank you, sir,” the earth pony replied nonchalantly and jumped down from the step.

He pulled a coiled hose from the cabin and, holding one end in his teeth, climbed to the roof of the car. Reaching the bottom of the plane, he opened the flap and inserted the hose. Then he climbed down and connected the other end of the hose to the tank.

“A-a-and… here we go.” He unscrewed the valve, opening the fuel supply, and looked at the thestral, who was staring sullenly at his own hooves. “Sir, why would you need all this fuel? The order request has enough to fly to Canterlot and back—”

The pilot gave him a sideways glance and turned away.

It was early morning. The eastern horizon had just turned yellow, and the landscape around them was filled with predawn twilight.

The military airfield lay in a meadow east of the tree line, a short strip of asphalt connected by a taxiway to hangars and garages. The control room and administrative offices were on the second floor.

The hangar, however, was empty. The only plane on the airfield was now refueling on the runway. And except for the faint splash of fuel being pumped into the tanks and the faint singing of birds somewhere in the forest, this corner of Equus was completely silent.

Like the calm before a merciless storm.

“Why are you here alone? Have all the others left?” The attendant inquired further. “You have a special mission, don’t you?”

“Just shut up or I’ll put this hose through you,” growled the batpony and ostentatiously took out another cigarette. But before he lit it, he moved to a safe distance, just in case.

As he exhaled the smoke, the webbed-winged stallion looked to the west, where Celestia’s lands stretched far, far beyond the tree line. Even now, after the formerly single country had split into a multitude of warring states, the main stump was still the largest. And undoubtedly quite formidable.

And somewhere out there, in the distance, lay the target of his desperate flight.

The batpony bared his fangs.

A mission, yeah… To pay back those bastards who justify their atrocities with their fucking friendship.

He tossed and stubbed out his cigarette, then carefully removed a faded photograph from his breast pocket.

In the picture, blinking from the flash, a happy family of three thestrals smiled with fangy grins. Behind them a verdant landscape stretched out, and just off to the side it looked as if a picnic area had been prepared.

A backdrop from the Ponderosa photo studio, where they had once managed to take this picture. Gritting his teeth, the stallion remembered how he had spent a good quarter of an hour begging the unicorn studio owner to let the three of them in.

Turning the picture over, he read the inscription they had made together, each in his own mouthwriting:

Radom + Speck = Starry

Just below that was the date, which he had written himself: 07/16/1007.

I will have my revenge, he thought and put the picture away. For everything they’ve done to you.

Suddenly, a rumbling sound came from somewhere above and to the east, growing louder by the second. Radom lifted his head and shielded his eyes from the rising sun with his hoof, staring up at the dawning sky.

Soon, an entire squadron of the Pegasenwaffe swept across the field, blue dots almost blending into the canopy of the sky at the zenith, even more so to the west.

We will.

The batpony started to take out another cigarette but looked at his hoof-watch instead. It read two minutes to four in the morning.

It’s time. Time is of the essence. They’ll all face retribution today. One that will make all of Equestria shudder.

He looked away from the watch and walked back to the airplane.

The attendant was already disconnecting the hose from the fuel tank.

“All done. You’ve got it, signed and sealed.” The earth pony looked curiously at the thestral again. “Hmm, with so much fuel, there’s less room for bombs. Maybe they’re special bombs? For some very important enemies?”

“Believe me,” Radom said, his cheek twitching as he climbed into the cockpit, “you can’t imagine how important.”

A picture flashed before his eyes of a refueling pony screaming in terror as he was strapped by his own hose to the fuselage of a flying aircraft, but every movement only loosened the knot, bringing the chatterer closer to an imminent fall.

Radom grinned with the corners of his lips and slammed the canopy shut.

The refueler, meanwhile, was speeding down the taxiway toward the airfield buildings.

I’ll have my revenge, Starry, the thestral thought as he started the engine. Those bastards will choke to death in their own shit. And I’ll— He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. And I’ll see you again soon. You and Speck. May the Night Princess protect our souls.

The dark blue bomber with the crescent moon on its side began its run – and soon lifted off the ground and soared into the air.

The refueler, on the other hoof, made it back to the hangars and parked on the side walkway.

As soon as the earth pony jumped out of the cockpit, two pegasi in black Lunar Division uniforms landed beside him.

“Corporal Alter Drive, you are charged with espionage and revealing state secrets,” one of the LDs said in a protocol tone. “Articles 114 and 328 of the NLR Criminal Code. Under wartime conditions, you are sentenced to be shot on sight for such offenses.”

The earth pony, who was listening to all this with his mouth hanging open, flinched to run away…

The pistol clenched in the teeth of the second pegasus rattled, and the fuel attendant fell to the asphalt with a hole in his forehead and an expression of genuine surprise on his face.

As if he had no idea what he was dying for.

4:20 a.m.

As the dawn sun tickled the cloud tops with its golden fingers, a scattering of approaching dark dots appeared on the horizon, hidden in its rays.

They approached very quickly: soon they grew in size and spread out into the air, enveloping the sky city in a hemisphere.

The Equestrians did not hesitate. Fighters soared from the ground-based cover airfields and runways in Cloudsdale itself, and pegasus squads deployed along the lines of the cloud fortifications to defend them.

Spitfire watched from the hovering platform where the headquarters stood, protected by only two anti-aircraft guns. The crews were commanded by Major Whiplash, her trusted assistant for the twelve years she had led the Wonderbolts. Now, because of the war, they’d all been bumped up in rank, but among the ponies themselves, it didn’t really matter. They were all more united than ever – ready to fight off any threat, even at the cost of their own lives.

But by the time the enemy reached headquarters, it would be too late to do anything about it.

As the flexible figures of pegasi in purple-and-black suits appeared alongside the planes in her powerful binoculars, Spitfire put on her flight goggles, adjusted her blue-and-yellow jumpsuit, and flew brightly into the vast morning sky.

The air battle was no longer just to the east, but on all sides of the city. Dark blue fighters machine-gunned the first line of cloud fortifications, and Shadowbolt units moved into the gaps. They were immediately taken by the Wonderbolts. Flying at dizzying speeds through the tight cloud maze was reminiscent of Academy training, or the sky paintball that pegasi sometimes enjoyed. Only now it was real: guns, bullets… and death. And bodies that no one would catch as they fell.

And the Pegasenwaffe’s planes were engaged by white Equestrian fighters. Firing machine-gun bursts and performing wild maneuvers, they tried to keep the enemy planes out of the city and deep into Equestria. If a bomber tried to get past the fighting steel birds, it would be met by Cloudsdale’s air defense system, a scattering of hovering platforms covered with magical shields.

Hovering above the semi-hollow cloud globe that Cloudsdale had become, Spitfire and several pegasi flew out behind the fortifications. The Shadowbolts were especially numerous here, and it was important to reduce their numbers as quickly as possible.

After shooting one from her battle saddle, the yellow pegasus knocked out another with a hoof strike and, grabbing him like a living weapon, brought the third down with the heavy body. A sudden shot caused her to duck and fire at random. As she turned, Spitfire saw Blaze – one could almost say her younger counterpart – knock the hapless gunner to the ground.

Spitfire raised her hoof gratefully – and immediately, spotting a fighter flying by, threw out a hoof tether. It stuck to the fuselage with a powerful magical magnet, and the mare was pulled along at incredible speed. Spitfire flapped her wings and, flying close to the crescent-shaped emblem, placed a powerful explosive charge directly on it. Then she started the timer, snapped the tether, and dove back into the chaos of battle.

A few seconds later, an explosion rang out, and the plane, never reaching the fortifications, spiraled downward, going into a tailspin.

A short distance away, a scatter of white glittering dots flashed, like meteors or electrical discharges. And looking closer, one of them was followed by a prismatic trail.

Fleetfoot glanced up as she took down the next enemy. There, in the zenith, despite the turmoil of the battle, a dark blue speck was moving westward. For a moment, she wondered if she should run towards it or stay here.

But planes were usually fought by planes. Besides, as cynical as it might sound, one bombing wouldn’t change much. Canterlot would be covered by a shield, or the plane would be shot down by air defenses, or whatever. But if they didn’t stop the Pegasenwaffe at Cloudsdale, then all of Equestria would be in trouble.

As she looked closer, though, Fleetfoot noticed something else that made her shiver.

Something small and dark was falling over the cloud city, detached from the bomber.

And the plane, after dropping its deadly cargo, did not turn back – it kept flying westward.

Fleetfoot had no time to do anything. So, in the confusion of the battle, she looked for Spitfire, pointed at the falling bomb, and with a heavy heart, she rejoined the fight.

The anti-aircraft guns rumbled almost imperceptibly in the general rumble – and the bomb exploded in a cloud of pink gas slowly descending over the city.

8:44 a.m.

Fuel was running low. The engines thudded and hummed, but the twin propellers kept pulling the plane stubbornly into the distance.

Radom, his fangs bared, stared at the terrain below, occasionally checking the map on the dashboard. He wasn’t flying as high as he had over Cloudsdale, but he didn’t need to. All that mattered was not to be shot down before the time was up. Only one bomb had been dropped so far; two more were waiting in other bays.

Bastards… Assholes… You’ll pay for everything… the batpony thought, as if stirring his viscous rage in a boiling cauldron. You took my son and my wife from me, and I’ll take all of Equestria from you!

Without taking his hooves from the controls, he looked down at his flight uniform, where a photograph lay in his breast pocket. A memory that was now more precious to him than not only his life, but the lives of all the other ponies.

He had agreed to this mission knowing that it would be a one-way trip. Knowing that if he succeeded, many ponies would die, especially children like his Starry. It was the last favor the Night Princess could grant him, and the last gift he could give her and her people.

Soon, a vast wooded valley appeared ahead. In a wide field cleared of trees was a small settlement, with a few old homesteads scattered a little farther away. The batpony grinned, even though there were tears in his eyes. The desired location was circled in bold red on the inset in the bottom corner of the map.

The valley gradually descended to a lake, into which a river flowed through a crescent-shaped canyon. In Thestral lore, revived under the new regime, this was an ancient place of pilgrimage and power. Taken from the Night Tribe a thousand years ago by despicable Equestrian scum and invaders.

It was we, the Thestrals, who dug this canyon in ancient times. We were the strongest, the chosen tribe of ponies! We were feared and respected… And now, Radom licked his lips, we will be feared again.

He abruptly jerked the stick away from him, steering the bomber down to aim more accurately.

Two runs… only two… Can’t make a mistake… Must kill as many of these creeps as possible!!!

The plane glided over the terrain, approaching the right spot. There was a park around the manor house, which was directly in front of the plane, empty at this time: everypony must be hiding inside the building.

Radom shook his head slightly. It won’t help.

The distance to the target continued to shrink. The batpony’s hoof was already on the button to open the second bomb bay…

BANG!!!

A massive impact shook the plane; Radom almost bit his tongue as he jumped up in his seat. The machine began to lurch sharply to the right. Reflexively, the thestral looked to the left and saw that the left wing was almost gone, and the engine was bursting with black smoke and flames.

There was no time to stall. Radom pressed the button. Take that, bitches!!!

The clanging of the flaps announced that the second bomb had been dropped. However, there was no way for the batpony to see where it would fall now.

The plane flew over the School of Friendship and, smoking and losing altitude, headed for Crescent Moon Canyon.

There, in the black stone cliffs, Celestia had personally designed an entire architectural complex that went deep underground. The new home of the Sun Princess’ School for Gifted Unicorns.

The third and final target of Radom’s suicide mission.

There was one bomb left. But the batpony could not drop it in the usual way. The woods and meadows were getting closer, and there was no guarantee that the plane wouldn’t crash sooner than necessary.

Radom roared and yanked the stick as hard as he could towards himself and to the left.

“NOOOOOO!!! NOT NOW!!!”

The mission must be accomplished.

The valley sloped down, allowing him to maintain some height above the ground. The canyon was close, and he could see the outline of the School’s facade ahead of him.

Even though the school was named after the ruler of Equestria, she didn’t visit her personal institute for training court mages very often. Especially since the war had begun with its relocation.

Although Celestia’s shield could cover all of Canterlot, it was up to the alicorn to create the magical field.

An attack as bold as this was simply not expected. The two schools that had been moved to one location were actually unguarded.

The burning engine finally exploded, and the plane, no longer gliding, rocketed downward.

Only it had a short distance to go in a straight line.

A quivering pinkish force field bubble suddenly wrapped around the black stone facade. Apparently created by the School’s students.

But against a bomber flying at full speed, several dozen young unicorns were completely powerless.

“I’m coming, Speck…” Radom whispered, his hooves shaking as he steered the plane straight for the School.

A pinkish bubble burst as the nose of the falling steel machine pierced the force field.

With a deafening rumble, the bomber crashed into the canyon slope, riddled with alicorn magic.

An explosion rang out. Shattered rocks flew. Flames flared for a moment, then a heavy pink mist began to fill the canyon.

8:51 a.m.

“Please don’t crowd… Come in, come in quickly.”

A white unicorn with a pink mane stood at the door and let everypony into the stairwell. The students of the School of Friendship (some with their parents who had brought them to class) descended into the basement of the ancient building in an organized and silent manner. An alarm siren wailed in the corridors.

“Miss Twinkleshine, how long is this gonna be?” asked a pink filly with a red-yellow-lilac mane and a turquoise-purple tail. Her white friend with lilac and yellow-green curls stood beside her.

Dinky could never remember their names, even though she had been studying with them for months. The pink one looked like a jellybean to her, and the white one like a marshmallow with jam.

“I hope not too long, Toola Roola,” the teacher sighed. “Come quickly, there are more ponies here.”

Once the two friends had made their way to the stairs, it was Dinky and her mom’s turn. Ditzy Doo was hugging her daughter tightly by the side, and Dinky knew the gray pegasus would make sure nothing happened to her “little muffin.”

“It’s good to have you here, Miss Ditzy,” Twinkleshine said. “I hope you’ll help us keep things calm and orderly. The most important thing is to keep the children from being scared.”

“Of course,” Ditzy smiled in her carefree way. “I’d love to.”

Dinky looked at her mother. It was as if she wasn’t afraid at all, and if she was, she was hiding her fear well.

Then I won’t be afraid either. Dinky even puffed up a little with pride. I’ll be just like Mom!

The gray pegasus and her unicorn daughter went down to the basement with everyone else. There they were greeted by Miss Lemon Hearts, a teacher of mutual aid and the psychology of friendship.

“Don’t linger in the aisle, sit on an empty seat…” the yellow pony instructed everyone.

She smiled warmly at Ditzy and Dinky, but the filly thought the teacher was hiding her fear behind false friendliness.

War is scary, Dinky thought as she and her mother made their way through the crowd of ponies and sat down on the floor in the middle of the basement. Everypony is scared. But Mommy isn’t. Or is she? And do I have to be? No, Mommy’s with me. And if she is, I have nothing to be afraid of. My mom will protect me. Or I’ll protect her. Won’t we? Right?

The filly nuzzled against the pegasus’ gray side and poked at the bubbles on her cutie mark as if bursting them. It was their little game that Ditzy sometimes entertained Dinky with.

Dinky also liked to burst the bubble wrap. It crunched so funny! It gave her joy, and any fear or sadness went away instantly.

And thinking back, Dinky thought that she really wasn’t afraid anymore.

Well, maybe a little. Just a little.

She lifted her head and looked around the basement, where she had never been before.

It was a large, dimly lit room with solid stone walls and no windows. In the corners were all sorts of mops, brooms, jigsaws, and other cleaning and technical equipment that the foals who had come down here were already playing with. And more than two hundred ponies could easily fit in here.

After letting the last group of students in, Twinkleshine ran down the stairs with them, and Lemon Hearts, with a few words of encouragement, telekinesed the massive steel door shut with a solid deadbolt.

“At-ten-tion!” The yellow mare tapped her hooves, catching the eyes of all gathered. “Please do not panic. As we know, there is only one plane approaching. I’m sure it’s already being dealt with by our military. We won’t all be here for long. I think it’ll be over in about ten minutes—”

There was a whistle, muffled by the thick walls but still frightening, and Dinky’s heart sank somewhere down.

Mommy… is that really what bombs sound like?

The whistling grew… and was suddenly replaced by a deafening cracking sound, as if a shell was breaking through the ceilings. Dinky screamed and fell into her mother’s lap, covering her ears with her hooves.

For a moment, everyone screamed over the noise…

And then the whole thing exploded in a way that shook the ground.

The massive steel door was thrown inward and smashed into the opposite wall, crushing the ponies huddled there. A stream of pink, dense gas poured into the room.

Dinky didn’t have time to realize it before the wave, which looked like a strawberry glaze, reached her and Ditzy. Her fur tingled wildly, and the little unicorn cried out in pain.

“Don’t breathe!” her mother’s hoof covered her mouth and nose.

Dinky obediently held her breath. Ditzy threw her daughter onto her back and began to make her way through the maddened crowd of screaming ponies toward the exit.

Someone ran past her, shouting and grabbing at… something that resembled a nose as long as a trunk of an elephant from distant Zebrica. The pink mist stung her entire body, and Dinky clenched her eyes shut, trying desperately not to whimper in pain.

Suddenly, she felt that Ditzy had fallen to the floor and was no longer moving.

“Mommy…!” she blurted out.

But it was a mistake.

The pink gas went down her throat and Dinky coughed as if she had eaten a hot pepper. Tears spurted from her eyes – and then she couldn’t see at all because of the pain, as if soap had been splashed on her corneas. Dinky couldn’t even scream: the gas had reached her lungs and was eroding her from the inside out.

Ditzy continued to lie motionless.

Mommy…!

Dinky reached out blindly with her little hooves, hoping to find a familiar, warm side – but instead she found a slimy, muddy mess. Furthermore, Dinky’s front legs went in without resistance, and in the next moment she realized that she was stuck, her consciousness fading from the unbearable pain. And then her body began to melt as well.

Mother and daughter froze on the basement floor, fused together.

There were no more screams. The pink gas muffled the sounds well.

And left no witnesses to its use.

11:24 a.m.

They stood facing each other, three by three; each trio on their own cloud, broken off from the shattered fortifications.

The battle still raged around them – but they seemed to have formed an island of relative calm.

Lightning Dust grinned. At her sides and just behind her stood two Shadowbolts, their battle saddles aimed at Fleetfoot and Thunderlane.

“Here we meet again, Spitfire.”

The fiery yellow mare spat, glaring at her turquoise opponent in a purple-and-black suit. Both had their goggles pulled up on top of their heads.

“I had no doubt you’d choose this side of the battle, Lightning,” Spitfire hissed. “You had more shit in you than any cadet I’ve ever trained.”

“Oh, so you still believe that rainbow bitch?” Lightning Dust spun her head. “Where is she, by the way?”

“I’m here!”

Leaving a rainbow trail behind her, Rainbow Dash landed like a meteorite on a small cloud floating off to the side. The pegasus’ ruby eyes glared hatefully at Lightning.

“What the hay are you wearing?” Lightning laughed at the sight of Rainbow’s white-and-blue suit. “Don’t the Wonder-suckers have any paint left?”

“I’ll show you…”

Rainbow kicked up a cloud with her hoof and ducked, ready to lunge at her opponent.

Lightning lifted her hoof.

“One-on-one combat. No fighting saddles, just bare hooves. I want to pay you back for everything you’ve done to me.”

“It’s your own fault, Dust,” Rainbow said and stood up. “So be it. I accept your challenge.”

Lightning grinned. “Then let’s not waste any time.”

She threw off the heavy harness first, and Rainbow did the same.

“Guys, they’re on to you!” Lightning shouted to the Shadowbolts and sped towards Rainbow faster than the eye could follow.

The two pegasi spun at unimaginable speeds in a frenzied dance of battle.

The Shadowbolts were immediately joined by another one, and the three of them rushed at the Wonderbolts.

Lightning and Rainbow traded blows like two fighting machines. Their hooves either hit a block or smacked into the air. The longtime rivals fought with all their might – and neither could get the upper hoof.

Lightning kicked away with her hind leg, and the pegasi flew apart… only to glare back at each other and come back together in hoof-to-hoof combat.

Lightning grabbed Rainbow by the back of the head and headbutted her twice in the nose. Blood spurted into the air. Dash didn’t hesitate to stab her in the cheek, and when Dust ducked, Rainbow hit her in the flank with a spinning kick.

With a hiss of pain, Lightning leaned back and smashed her head into Rainbow’s belly. With a flap of her wings, the turquoise pegasus grabbed her rival by the tail with her teeth and spun her around, launching her into the distance like a centrifuge.

Rainbow leveled up in a flash, as if in training, and dashed at her opponent. The pegasi clashed, flying a hundred yards before crashing into a patch of cloud floating nearby.

Rainbow raised her hoof for another strike, but Lightning grinned as she swung her hind legs and smacked her in the chin. With her head thrown back, Rainbow soared upward – and then somersaulted backward into the air, glaring hatefully at the towering Lightning.

“You’re a pretty good fighter.” Dash drew her hoof across her bloody face and spat red. “But I won’t let you win!”

“Really?” Dust grinned and charged at her.

The mares clashed again. This time, however, their movements were less lightning-fast and more calculated. And dangerous, too: when she dodged a millimetre from Lightning’s hoof, Rainbow thought she might as well have blown her ear off.

“You know… what’s your biggest problem?” breathing heavily, the turquoise pegasus asked, not stopping her attacks.

“Yours… will soon be knocked out teeth… and a hole in your head!” Rainbow snapped back with a series of punches, none of which hit the target.

“You ain’t gonna get it.”

Lightning headbutted again – but Rainbow reeled back and even flew a few feet away. The turquoise mare flapped her wings and was close again.

“All of you sunfuckers…” Lightning wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow’s waist. “…are too…” Dust’s wing bent sharply, touching the holster on her belt. “…gullible!”

There was an electric crackle. Rainbow’s eyes widened and she convulsed in Lightning’s grip.

Lightning Dust grinned as she saw her rival’s face contorted in pain.

Soon, the azure pony collapsed, and the turquoise one’s hooves unclenched.

Like a broken toy, Rainbow flew downward and landed on her back on a cloud. Her white flight suit was smeared with blood.

Lightning laughed, holding the stun gun with her hoof.

“Well, where’s your superpower now, Miss Twenty Percent Cooler?!”

Slowly flapping her wings, she descended on the same cloud and stood over her defeated opponent.

“For so many years, I’ve been waiting for a chance to pay you back…” she growled, staring into Rainbow’s bloodied face. “You betrayed me to that bitch Spitfire, and she kicked me out of the Academy! You humiliated me in front of everypony and that schmuck Scooterfly, or whatever her name is… You destroyed the reputation of my flying team! And now,” Lightning grinned bloodily again, “you’re gonna pay for it… sun-cunt. Though… a powerless wimp like you” – she poked a weakly cowering Rainbow with her hoof – “can wait. While I take care of the one who raised you!”

She pushed off the cloud and soared upward, toward the aerial battle between the six pegasi that was in full swing.

Rainbow Dash’s eyes widened.

“Spitfire!”

The blue pony moved. But all she could do was roll over onto her belly and reach out her trembling hoof after Lightning Dust.

Who was flying off to kill Rainbow’s chief and mentor.

Spitfire, Fleetfoot, and Thunderlane exchanged fire in the air with the attacking Shadowbolts. But bullets were useless against the incredible somersaults the trained pegasi performed without thinking.

Lightning Dust jumped onto the cloud where she had been standing and put her battle saddle back on. Then she spread her wings and soared up, aiming her rifles.

Spitfire’s opponent dodged the new burst and clashed with Wonderbolt's head in a hoof-to-hoof battle. The fiery yellow mare grabbed her opponent, kicked him in the balls, and threw the pegasus down.

Straight at the approaching Lightning.

The turquoise pegasus ducked under the speeding body and headed straight for Spitfire. The two mares locked gazes. While Lightning had a triumphant grin on her face, fear flashed in Spitfire’s eyes for the first time.

Thunderlane knocked his Shadowbolt down with a powerful punch and looked up. The black pegasus’ eyes widened in horror.

Spitfire’s wings flapped downward, helping her to propel herself out of the air and leap to the side… But with her back brain, the mare already knew she wouldn’t make it.

Two shots rang out.

The grin on Lightning’s face was replaced by a grimace of anger, and she spun sharply out of the line of fire. Bullets whistled past her back.

Spitfire’s jaw dropped and her eyes were ready to pop out of their sockets. She stared in disbelief at the stallion hovering before her.

Thunderlane smiled and released the cables of his battle saddle. Blood trickled from the corners of his lips. Two bleeding holes gaped in his flight suit, staining the clouds below with red.

“Thunderlane!” Fleetfoot cried out in terror.

The white-maned pegasus also slaughtered her opponent and immediately flew up to Spitfire. The two of them held the bleeding Thunderlane down and placed him on one of the clouds floating below.

Lightning landed on a nearby one, her face twisted with rage as she watched the scene.

“Thunderlane, stay alive!” Fleetfoot began unpacking the small first-aid kit she had brought with her. “Take off the suit, we have to stop the blood—”

“Too late, Fleet…” He smiled weakly and coughed. “Tell Rumble… ugh… that his brother… ahhm… died for a good reason…”

One of the pegasus medics was already flying towards them, dodging blasts and explosions.

Lightning Dust roared and grabbed the cables of her battle saddle with her teeth, ready to shoot them all…

“Not that fast, Major,” came a calm voice behind her.

A thin blue collar snapped around the turquoise pegasus’ neck.

Lightning turned and stared at the Shadowbolt standing behind her.

“You…!”

“Goodbye, Lightning,” he said as he flew away and pressed a button on the small remote control he held in his hooves.

Lightning Dust’s head exploded, spraying its contents for several meters.

And the pegasus in the purple-and-black suit took off his shiny yellow goggles and pulled the intimidating dark mask off his head.

“Soarin!!!” came a shriek from somewhere below.

In the next instant, a rainbow comet flew towards him, and the pegasus found himself lying on a cloud, being crushed by someone from above.

“Rainbow…” he gasped, looking up at the bloodied face of the mare looming over him.

“Soarin…!”

A few hot tears mixed with blood fell down the stallion’s cheek, and in a second, he was holding Rainbow tight as she cried out.

“I… waited… for so long… all this time… I thought you were dead…” she sobbed, her face pressed into his Shadowbolt suit. “I even wanted to… fly to save you…”

“Shhh…” he whispered, stroking her back. “It’s okay. We’re together again. I’ve been waiting for the right moment to come back for so long… and now I’m finally here.”

At the sight of the ponies fussing over the injured Thunderlane, Soarin lowered his head and turned his gaze away.

“However,” he gritted his teeth, “I got revenge on that bitch for at least one pony.”

Rainbow looked that way – and shook again with a cry.

“No!!! Thunderlane!!!”

The black pegasus wheezed, then coughed again… and fell silent. The medic pressed his ear to his chest, cursed through his teeth, and began indirect chest compressions while Fleetfoot performed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Spitfire silently held his body.

Several minutes went by, but nothing changed.

The pegasus medic slowly stood up and shook his head. Fleetfoot was still lying there, her mouth pressed to Thunderlane’s lips as if she didn’t want to break that last kiss.

Spitfire stared blankly into space. But soon she raised her head and looked at the current battle scene.

There was still some skirmishing going on, with the remaining fighters chasing each other and the pegasus defenders and attackers firing at each other from behind the clouds. But there was far less commotion than there had been at dawn.

Cloudsdale had held. But it had come at a cost.

Here and there, pieces of the cloud fortifications floated in the air. Blood was everywhere, glistening on clots of magically compacted condensate in the bright sunlight. And the plain below was undoubtedly littered with the bodies of pegasi who had fallen from a mile high.

All that remained was to record the outcome of this battle.

“Dash,” Spitfire said quietly. “You know what to do.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Rainbow sobbed, and as she freed herself from Soarin’s embrace, she took to the air.

She soared to dizzying heights – and then rocketed downward, accelerating to breathtaking speeds.

Her Sonic Rainboom literally swept the remaining planes and troops of the Pegasenwaffe out of the sky, while the city’s defenders, mostly hidden behind walls of clouds, barely noticed that.

This battle was over. And hardly anypony would want to remember it ever again.

The dead Thunderlane was covered with a sheet and carried away with the rest of the unfortunates. A queue of pegasi injured in the battle lined up at the infirmary, which had been built out of cloud fragments. Some were wounded badly enough to receive first aid, then were loaded onto stretchers and transported to the nearby city. There were a number of Shadowbolts among the suffering, but everypony understood Spitfire’s direct orders: treat everyone and deal with the captives later. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to replenish the exchange fund.

The fiery pegasus herself was watching the commotion, standing atop the surviving cloud fortifications. A powerful pair of binoculars hung from a strap around her neck. She wasn’t using them right now, though. And in her gaze as she looked out over the battle-strewn city, there was only endless weariness.

Victory… defeat… What do these lofty words mean when so many lives have been cut short, so many souls maimed in just half a day? Spitfire thought to herself. What was it all for? What were they willing to fight for, and what were we? Does anything even matter at all? We won the battle, yes, but for some of us, the whole fucking war will be lost forever.

And yet the mare stood tall, her head held high.

Despite everything, they had won. And now she carried the weight of her hard-won victory.

As the rustle of wings and the soft swish of hooves against the cloud sounded behind her, Spitfire already knew who had come with the reports.

“Go ahead, Fast Clip,” she sighed, looking over her shoulder. “First of all, what was it about that plane? What kind of weird bomb was that? And what’s the damage?”

“Apparently, the bomb was filled with an extremely toxic gas,” he reported in a hoarse voice. “It’s heavier than air and very absorbent, even in clouds. Some areas in the northwestern part of the city have been affected. These clouds are no longer habitable: those who have touched them complain of an inflammation that still won’t go away. In fact, a few percent of the cloud pool will have to be collected, drained, and buried.”

“Exactly. What about HQ?” Spitfire turned to Fast Clip. “Had Whiplash and his stallions managed to evacuate?”

He looked away – and that was more eloquent than any answer.

“They were… in the middle of the kill zone,” he said slowly. “Believe me, you don’t want to see what they’ve become. We had to… burn their bodies because… even as they were… they continued to spread that pink poison.”

Spitfire gritted her teeth. Then she took out her pocket and put on her usual tinted glasses. Then she tilted her head back to keep her eyes dry.

“Go on.”

It took a tremendous effort of will to keep her voice steady.

“In general, our losses are less than the enemy’s, by all accounts, including the planes hit—”

A shot rang out below, making both of them jump. Screams were heard, and the pegasi, abandoning the task of keeping the clouds in order, rushed toward the noise.

Spitfire’s glance at Fast Clip was enough.

He leapt from the ephemeral platform and glided at full speed toward the center of the action. The mare followed him with her eyes and turned her gaze westward. In the direction the vicious bomber had flown.

I hope it was shot down. Otherwise, our entire air defense isn’t worth a bit.

A few minutes later, Fast Clip was back on the cloud. The pegasus looked even grimmer this time than when he’d reported on Whiplash’s fate.

“Non-combat losses,” he said briefly. “Suicide from emotional shock.”

“Who?” Spitfire asked.

Not that she really cared. Just another fact to file away in her subcortex and stab herself with every now and then, like a needle, when she remembered her own failures.

“Fleetfoot.”

Spitfire took off her glasses and stared at Fast Clip, eyes wide. Her hoof that held the accessory shook slightly.

“How…?”

“All of a sudden. Nopony had time to do anything. Most likely…” the pegasus chewed his lip, “it was because of Thunderlane. They must have been… quite close. To say the least.”

Spitfire herself had seen the way they looked at each other during the meetings. As if saying more with those glances and those faint, at first sight friendly smiles than a writer could say with an entire novel.

They had looked… and they would never look again.

“Interrogate Soarin,” she ordered quietly and turned away again. “We need to know everything about the inner workings of the Pegasenwaffe. Get every bit of information out of him. Otherwise, we’ll—”

Suddenly she was interrupted by movement to the north. Fast Clip himself froze, staring into the distance.

With a trembling hoof, Spitfire brought the binoculars to her eyes and turned the magnification to maximum. She looked at the distant mountain range… and was stunned.

The pink shield of the force field was clearly visible over Canterlot.

11:48 a.m.

Lightbringer had been a weak pony since childhood. He always came last in races with his peers, and he gave up playing hoofball with them after one day when he was unwisely put on the goal.

The colt realized he could never be an athlete. But his wounded ego needed a way out.

After all, Lightbringer was a unicorn.

So in his spare time, he spent hours in Ponyville’s library, studying the various spells he could find in the books. This was before Princess Twilight arrived, so nopony was able – or willing – to help Lightbringer in any way.

But even then, the colt suffered a setback.

Any attempt to channel energy into his horn in an unusual way gave him a headache, and the tip of his magical outgrowth produced nothing but white sparks. Only telekinesis worked without problems, and Lightbringer soon became a pro at it.

He could magically juggle two dozen heavy steel bolts or lift any full-grown stallion into the air. Performing for the citizens of Ponyville brought him some money and a bit of fame, but it was clearly not what the unicorn wanted.

Magic still beckoned to him, that uncharted world of twisted energy tangles. So one day, after collecting all his earnings and adding a little from his parents’ purse, Lightbringer traveled to Canterlot to enroll in the School for Gifted Unicorns. He was fourteen years old by then, and the colt realized that time was running out.

But even that was a bummer. They wouldn't even let him in and told him to go back to his hometown.

Lightbringer couldn’t go back to Ponyville. He didn’t know how to face his family, and he didn’t want to be ridiculed for his failure.

So he did things a little differently. He left Canterlot, but not to Ponyville.

He went to Manehattan.

The money ran out quickly, but with his telekinesis it was no big deal. He could become a loader, of course, but after a few days of work, when they dumped all the work on him for a measly couple of bits, Lightbringer was disappointed in that profession.

And decided to try a new one.

After all, in addition to the power of telekinesis, the unicorn was also working on its precision and coordination. The perfect combination of qualities to, for example… open locks.

In a matter of months, Lightbringer had become the most notorious burglar in the history of the metropolis. Finding an empty apartment and quietly ransacking it was like pounding the pavement with a hoof. But the young stallion was afraid to mess with banks – and not without reason. He’d ventured into one of their vaults once and found a powerful magical defense, so he wasn’t taking any chances.

But the unicorn was not satisfied with a life of crime. Unable to find a place in society, he moved around at random, trying out every opportunity that came his way – but focusing more and more on what he was best at.

One day, of course, he was caught.

A squad of royal guards, complete with pegasi and unicorns, had been summoned from Canterlot. And unlike Lightbringer, they were good with spells.

To the unicorn’s credit, he successfully resisted the hunt for a while. He even distinguished himself by throwing an entire boxcar, raised above the tracks, at his pursuers as he ran.

Eventually he was caught – and a blocking ring was placed on his horn, depriving Lightbringer of his only superpower.

His sentence was harsh: multiple burglaries, plus the murder of officers in the line of duty, added up to twenty years on Riders Island.

In solitary, his blocker was never removed for a second. His front legs were permanently shackled over his orange robe, preventing him from reaching the horn. Having to use hoofkinesis to wash or eat made Lightbringer feel like a lame earth pony.

Everything he’d striven for had fallen apart and turned against him. There was no point in living like this. But as luck would have it, even the food was served with disposable plastic utensils, so the stallion couldn’t hurt himself.

All that changed when the Lunar Revolution came.

By the Horsecoacher’s decree, about half of the prisoners were released – mostly those who had been in prison for ponitical offenses. The rest were given a chance to go free in exchange for military service.

And Lightbringer jumped at the chance.

The fact that the army was advancing on his hometown of Ponyville and Canterlot was of little concern to the stallion. In an effort to forget, to escape the memories that plagued him, he simply did as he was told and tried to be useful to his platoon.

In a way, though, it was still revenge for having been ignored and then betrayed. Now he had betrayed them in return. One for one. All fair and square.

But after the shameful defeat at Canterlot, the army was meaningless to the stallion. What was the point of trying if Equestria was winning anyway?

These thoughts had to be concealed, lest he fall prey to the watchful Batpony commissars. The commander noticed the soldier’s condition, though, and after the troop rotation, sent him on leave to Manehattan.

Entering the frozen, empty hotel room, Lightbringer lay on the bed and stared at the ceiling. There was no point in going on. He just wanted to end it all, as if nothing had ever happened.

But the unicorn’s nature demanded action – at least something to keep himself from going mad from idleness.

So Lightbringer began to do the same old thing.

This time he was caught quickly – after the second apartment had been robbed. According to the law of wartime, taking into account the unicorn’s past merits, this was a firing squad – but even here, one could say, fate came to the stallion’s aid.

He was taken from his cell and brought to headquarters, where he was asked if he wanted to participate in a mission.

Lightbringer didn’t care anymore, so he agreed without hesitation.

And after being told all the details, he didn’t change his mind.

It would finally be a chance to end everything. And go to a better world as a hero.

…The train rolled westward at breakneck speed. The wheels rattled evenly, and jets of dark smoke billowed from the smokestack. Lightbringer was in the driver’s cabin, and his only duty was to toss more and more coal into the furnace. His telekinesis allowed him to hoofle the heavy shovel with little effort.

Three boxcars were attached to the locomotive. The first and last were filled with explosives, but Lightbringer was never told what was in the middle one. All he knew was that the cargo was to be kept safe until the moment of arrival… and then everything would be as planned. The unicorn had a rough idea of what he was getting into, so it was no surprise to him.

Soon everything would be fine again. At least for him. What would happen to tens of thousands of other ponies didn’t matter. They deserved their way. Didn’t they?

Canterlot Peak loomed in the distance, the millennia-old city clinging to its slope. The bridge over the river hadn’t been rebuilt by the Equestrians – quite the opposite. The tunnel in the rock approaching from the east had been destroyed, and from the west the tracks had been covered with stone rubble, so the train could not pass over it.

What the ponies hadn’t anticipated was that Lightbringer didn’t even need it.

A roadblock appeared ahead, the first and last before the tunnel. The passage was blocked by a powerful barrier, and several dozen meters of tracks behind it were destroyed. Soldiers stood around it – pointing guns and shouting madly at the approaching train.

Lightbringer magically closed the firebox door and concentrated. His horn glowed greenish, and the same glow instantly enveloped the entire train.

The stallion gritted his teeth.

Not enough. More!

Around the greenish field, a new yellow one flashed. But fifty tons of steel, steam, explosives, and who knows what else continued to rush down the tracks as if nothing had happened.

More! More power! Mo-o-o-ore…!

The muscles in the stallion’s neck bulged. Sweat was dripping down his forehead. With his hooves on the floor, Lightbringer looked like he’d done a thousand push-ups at once. But even that didn’t compare to what he was about to perform.

His horn was enveloped in a third layer of radiance – white. The whole train seemed to glow from within, announcing the coming of something from heaven to earth.

But it was too early to act. He had to wait for the distance to shorten.

Bullets clattered against the reinforced casing of the steam boiler. That was the unicorn’s cue to get ready.

The locomotive slammed into the fence… and, judging by the crackling wood, shattered it into splinters.

It’s time!

Lightbringer roared with exertion and threw his entire body upward, as if lifting a giant invisible barbell.

And the train went upward with him.

The heavy machine, with its three attached boxcars, lifted a few inches above the wrecked tracks and continued forward at the same speed. Lightbringer waited a second or two, then carefully lowered the train back down.

The wheels rattled against the rails. But the train did not fall off the tracks – even the rear boxcar fell onto the solid rails – but raced on, toward the blocked tunnel.

Lightbringer stood and looked out the window. Ahead was a cliff, as if it had settled in the middle. Where it had collapsed was exactly where the railroad led.

The stallion’s horn flashed again. The magical field enveloped the stone debris – and then began to push it forward, at the same time forming a kind of bubble over the tracks to keep the upper layers from collapsing into the vacant space.

The train flew into the tunnel Lightbringer was digging anew with his telekinesis. The rocks shifted forward with a rumbling sound and crumbled back behind the edge of the magical dome.

In the blackness a gap appeared. With a roar, Lightbringer made another effort to push the mass of rock outward, and the bright sun streamed into the void. With a loud splash, the debris fell into the river.

The train was once again engulfed in three layers of glow. This time, the unicorn had to carry all fifty tons at least a quarter of a mile – that was the width of the river plus the length of the rock-strewn section.

The stallion’s blood vessels burst in his eyes from the strain. He squeezed his eyes shut as he continued to blindly push the multi-ton machine. Soon it will all be over… soon… all… he repeated to himself like a mantra, ready to collapse exhausted on the cabin floor at any moment.

There was thunder. It was Canterlot’s artillery, finally joining the city’s defense.

Lightbringer barely curled his lips into a smile. They won’t make it in time.

After counting down fifteen seconds to himself, the unicorn shut off his telekinesis and sprawled on the floor, completely exhausted from the spell. Even if the train had gone off the tracks, he’d gotten close enough that Equestria’s capital would be hit by the inevitable explosion.

With a loud clang, the train landed on the tracks and rolled on.

If he could make it to the station, Lightbringer would have to detonate the explosives himself. To do this, a special lever was installed in the cabin that triggered the detonators in all the boxcars at once. Including the one in the middle, where the unknown thing lay.

The unicorn stood up on his bending legs and, with his hooves resting on the walls, looked out of the window…

There was a sharp bang, and the world turned into a whirlwind of flames and flying debris of ties and rails.

The locomotive tilted and began to tumble to the left, toward the edge of the cliff. Dragging with it the boxcars without which the attack on the city was meaningless. As was Lightbringer’s entire life.

Rolling around the cabin, the unicorn made another titanic effort. For a few moments, the train flickered again with a triple field of telekinesis. But now it was floating horizontally over the rails.

The glow disappeared – and the train fell onto the tracks with a rumble. The boxcars scraped against the tracks, slowly losing their momentum.

A minute later, the train came to a stop.

Lightbringer, breathing heavily, lay powerless on the side wall that had become the new floor, in the ruined cabin. Coal was scattered everywhere, and the unicorn’s body and clothes were stained black. Blood dripped from the stallion’s forehead – from a cut from a shovel that had bounced off it during the fall.

It was quiet. Only the steam boiler, its power no longer turning the steel wheels, puffed indignantly.

Lightbringer smiled faintly and reached a hoof toward the lever.

The point was.

And then he pushed it down.

The explosion shattered an entire block, and the shockwave blew out windows half a mile away.

And immediately afterward, a thick cloud of glowing pink gas billowed in all directions.

11:57 a.m.

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! HOW… DID SHE DARE… ATTACK… MY CITY…?”

Celestia stood on the castle’s observation deck and stared at the pink cloud swirling inside the shield of almost the same color, her eyes full of pain and anger. Every now and then, the alicorn sent more and more magical impulses into the shield: the pressure of the gas was simply enormous and threatened, if not to burst the force bubble from the inside, then at least to push the rock from underneath. Still, the royal mare had to expand the magical hemisphere a bit at a time to relieve the pressure.

She couldn’t let the poison break through.

“You… were my sister, Luna…” the alicorn growled through white teeth, almost physically feeling the terrible agony of her own subjects.

Hundreds, thousands of ponies were trapped inside the shield that had become a gas chamber, and their suffering echoed in Celestia’s soul.

“But this time… you have gone too far!!!”

With a seething hatred in her eyes, the alicorn turned to the east, where miles away, the rampaging Mare from the Moon must have been enjoying the arranged ball of death.

“If I have to banish you to the moon again for a thousand years, so be it! And if you don’t stop, you will be exiled from this world forever!”

“Princess!” shouted the pegasus guardian as he landed on the observation deck.

The stallion was breathing heavily, as if he had flown at full speed before. Or he had been shaken to his core by something. Or both at once.

Celestia turned sharply around and tried to look more proper.

How hard it was to hold back the rage that was bursting out of her! It was as if an entire sun was pulsing inside her, ready to burst into a supernova!

“SPEAK!” she commanded in her Royal Canterlot Voice.

The guard shrank back under her gaze and squeezed out a single word, “Littlehorn…”

Celestia’s eyes widened even more. Then she threw her head back and let out a long, desperate, terrifying wail. The cry was a mixture of anger at her sister for once again becoming a creature of Tartarus; her own frustration at her inability to prevent the disasters that had befallen Equestria; and the pain of the thousands of ponies affected by the senseless, merciless war being waged as if by someone else’s will!

And then something changed.

The power boiling within the alicorn suddenly became scaldingly clear, and in a matter of moments, it swept away all barriers.

Celestia’s body glowed and rose into the air, enveloped in a sphere of dazzling white radiance. A small sun rose over Canterlot in addition to the main luminary.

The pegasus covered his eyes with his hoof. A mere mortal pony could not look at this glow.

But the magical cocoon flashed yellow, orange, brown – and with an electric crackle, it disintegrated. The guardian was knocked down by a wave of cosmic energy that spread across the world.

And out of the fireball, a completely different mare stepped onto the castle’s marble.

Her coat was the same snow-white, and the sun was also shining on her taut flank… But her mane and tail were no longer glittering green and pink but had turned into fierce flames.

Her eyes had transformed as well: from the dark brown depths, amber lights now gazed out at Canterlot. The hooves and necklace had changed their color from golden yellow to deep orange. The diadem that crowned the alicorn’s head had also changed: the edges had become more jagged, and the diamond-shaped crystal had turned from purple to blood red. The crown itself became a full-fledged helmet that went all the way down her neck.

Daybreaker lifted her upper lip, revealing fangs like those of her nighttime reflection.

“Well…” she said, stepping to the edge of the platform. “By and large, Equestria hadn’t really started anything yet.”

The mare raised her head, an unquenchable inner flame glinting in her eyes.

“The time has come…”

The swirling gas in the magical bubble began to settle. Much of it was absorbed into the supporting structures of the survived and the hulks of the destroyed buildings.

It struck twelve in the afternoon. The middle of the day when the sun stopped.

“…for the complete…”

Ponies ran across the city. Guards and military to the site of the explosion, ordinary citizens away or wherever they could see.

They were in panic. And there was only one pony to blame.

“…delunification of Equestria!!!”