Pony Tankers: Snow and Steel

Flax Seed shivered as she slowly crunched through the layer of snow covering the main road through Riverpool. The street felt empty and lifeless, even with fellow tankers in view just a few dozen feet away. Somehow, that expanse of untouched white snow felt bigger than it was, and Flax felt smaller in turn. The town hall stood proudly over the little town, even if it was a mere three stories high, and it had quickly been converted into a makeshift command post. Flax squinted while her eyes were still adjusting to the searing brightness of so much snow reflecting sunlight, but she could make out the Equestrian flag hung from the face of the building around the second-story balcony.

Infantry ponies were hard at work filling sandbags, though they were arguably working even harder just to find something to fill them with. The town hall was on a concrete foundation, and the ground around it was frozen solid. Flax watched with a mixture of amusement and disappointment while a young mare slipped and fell in her attempts to break the surface with her entrenching tool. Her squad laughed at her expense while she sat and rubbed her aching flank, and Flax even managed a little grin before she finally reached the front door of her unit's new HQ. The old door was shut tight, and she had to apply a little more force than she initially expected to pop it open. Loudly stumbling into the front room, Flax flushed when she realized several sets of eyes were now on her.

The first floor of the town hall was a fairly large, but cozy lobby. A large rug covered the wooden floor, and a desk faced the door from the room's far end. A couple of bookshelves stood on either side mostly filled with books about the town itself, and there was a group of four enlisted ponies standing around the only other piece of furniture in the room - that being a table covered in playing cards. Flax steadied herself and shunted the door closed, narrowing her eyes at the lollygaggers and carrying on to where she assumed the stairs to the next floor would be.

Flax guessed correctly, opening a side door and climbing the steep stairs to the second floor. As soon as she entered the main room, she was in the meeting room Apple Blossom had hastily put together. This room had originally been an in-between area of sorts, wide and open with doors leading to different offices. As such, it was devoid of any furniture - or at least it was originally. A large table had been dragged into the middle of the open space, placed directly under a hanging light, and several other chairs and desks had been requisitioned to provide more flat areas to store important items. Apple Blossom stood at one end of the table, her eyes glued to the map spread out before her, while a collection of tank commanders huddled around and did their best to listen in on her strategizing. The other end of the table was left wide open, and when Flax stepped up and cleared her throat, Apple Blossom finally noticed her presence.

"Howdy, lieutenant! Ya got here just in time," she said, fixing Flax with a grin and a nod in greeting before turning her gaze back to the map. Several of the other commanders nodded along, glancing Flax Seed's way. "I've been lookin' at the map of this area, and given the shape of the terrain I can already pick out a few good spots within' range that we ought to take a look at. I want you to take your platoon out for a little field trip over this here hill to our north and see if the Shinies have anything hidden away in there that our observers ain't spotted yet."

Flax looked down at the map as Apple Blossom spoke, her eyes following where the other mare's hooves indicated. The hill was a few miles away, judging by the scale of the map, and Flax guesstimated that she had enough daylight left to make a quick run. Standing up straight, she looked Apple Blossom in the eye before responding. "Sounds easy enough, ma'am. We can be back before sundown so long as nothin' gets in our way. And, er... if I might ask, do we got any idea what to expect in this neck of the woods? The Major seemed awful sure about sending us so far ahead, 'specially considerin' we're out of range of artillery support."

The first lieutenant hesitated to answer at first, meanwhile, all the lower-ranking tank commanders glanced back and forth between their two leaders. After a moment, Apple Blossom just sighed. "Ain't heard a peep about what might be lurkin' around here - reckon that's why they want a recon unit up here in the first place. That said, y'all be careful. We can't afford to go losin' a whole platoon of tanks on our first day here. If ya run into anything ya can't handle, turn tail and run like you never ran before, and hopefully they won't track ya back here too easily."

Lacking in information though it was, Flax knew that answer would have to be enough. She nodded firmly, then raised her right hoof for a salute. "You can count on us, ma'am. When do ya want us to roll out?" Once again, all eyes changed direction. Flax glanced at the collection of sergeants gathered around the table, noting with some small amount of guilt that she didn't recognize a single one of them. In hindsight, it might've been a good idea to get to know the ponies she was going to be commanding on the drive out to Riverpool. Oh well, Flax thought. Too late now; she'd just have to make up for it in the field.

"As soon as y'all are able to - we don't have much daylight to waste," Apple Blossom finally said, a few seconds later. Then, she glanced at the gathered sergeants. "Second platoon, dismissed! First platoon, y'all stick around. We need to wrap up our plans for defendin' this little outpost of ours." Apple Blossom continued on, laying out the details of her defense plan for the town, but that wasn't relevant to Flax. She watched for which four ponies would step away from the table, and once they did she knew who she had to make introductions to. The four tanks under her command were in turn commanded by four sergeants, two earth mares, a pegasus stallion, and a unicorn mare.

Turning to lead the way away from the first lieutenant's meeting table, Flax beckoned for her subordinates to follow. The quartet was quick to oblige, following in Flax's hoofsteps until they were safely out of earshot of Apple Blossom's continued briefing. Once they were, Flax turned around and looked each of them in the face before speaking. "Apologies for meetin' y'all so late, but here we are. I'm second lieutenant Flax Seed, Apple Blossom's second in command and the leader of this little band. I'm in tank number 21. Who might you be?" Flax started with the earth pony mare on the left of the group, fixing her with an expectant look.

"Sergeant Rivets, at your service," she said, with a notable Manehattanite accent. Her fur was dark and her mane was darker, both shades of grey, and the latter tied back in a bun not unlike Flax's. She was somewhat short, though she looked a little more solidly built with the layers of winter clothing stacked on top of her uniform jacket. A scarf was wrapped around her neck, its bright white wool standing in stark contrast to her darker color scheme. "I'm in charge of tank 22, Midnight Rider. We were right behind you on the drive over here."

Flax nodded, committing the mare's name and tank number to memory before looking to the next pony in line. It was the pegasus stallion. "Alright, you're up. Name and tank number?"

"Sunny Skies," he said, speaking far louder than the mare before him. "I'm in command of tank 24. We were the ones who, er... had that engine problem on the way here. I've got my driver working on it as we speak, and she said it probably isn't anything major. We should be set to go whenever you give the order, ma'am."

Flax raised an eyebrow, studying the stallion for a second, before nodding slowly. "If you say so, sergeant. Just don't push it too hard - we can't exactly go and tow your sorry behind back to town if you break down out there."

"Understood, ma'am!" Sunny raised his right wing for a salute instead of using his hoof, and for a split second Flax had to wonder if that was actually allowed within army protocol. She decided it didn't matter just as quickly, moving on to the next pony in line.

"Vanadium Shield," the unicorn mare said before Flax could ask for her name. She sounded quite grim, her facial expression like a stone carving meant to depict the least happy pony in history. She was tall enough that Flax wondered how she was ever cleared for service as a tanker, and the scar over her left eye spoke of previous experience. Flax was relieved to have at least one definite veteran in her platoon, especially with the, to her, questionable eagerness of Sunny. "I am in command of tank number 25, the one you asked to babysit 24 and its ailing engine."

Flax nodded firmly, hoping that her attempt to look respectful outweighed her immediate distaste for such a dismissive attitude toward a comrade. "I'll keep you in mind, sergeant. How long have you been in the tank corps, if'n you don't mind me askin'?"

Vanadium was silent for a moment, glancing at the ponies on either side of her, before responding. "Long enough to know what I'm doing."

Flax suppressed a sigh. "Good enough. You're my second in command for now, understood?" Vanadium nodded, and Flax was satisfied to move on to the fourth and final commander in her platoon. She was a short earth pony, her fur and mane made up of earthy tones that weren't too different from Sage's. Flax looked at her with the same expectant look she'd given the first three, though this was the first time she'd had to look down at one of her sergeants. "Name and tank number?"

"Morning Dew," she answered, standing up a little straighter. "I'm with tank 23, my crew and I named her Whispering Wind. I might also point out that my crew is comprised of new recruits, so there may be a learning curve before my machine is as efficient as can be."

"Understood, Sergeant. Thank ya for the heads up," Flax said, smiling just a tad. "We'll keep y'all at the back of the formation for now, at least until your crew is a little more comfortable. We need our best sets of eyes at the front." With the introductions finally out of the way, Flax breathed a small sigh of relief before stepping back to address all four ponies as a group again. "All of y'all heard Blossom's plan, and I don't intend to stray too far from it. Get out there, get with your crews, and get ready. I wanna have everyone lined up on the main road and ready to move out in ten minutes!"

All four sergeants nodded, sounding off with a "yes ma'am!" more or less in unison, before dispersing to head back outside and find their crews. Flax followed at the back of the pack, somewhat glad to see the group of infantry ponies who had been playing cards in the lobby had been put to work outside again. Passing through the door and back out into the snow, Flax shivered again while the comforting warmth of the town hall faded in a matter of seconds. The sun was on its way down now, and a glance up at the clock tower revealed that it was already four o'clock in the afternoon. The sky was mostly clear, save for a few lonely, wispy clouds, and the wind was calm. The weather couldn't have been more perfect for a scouting mission, Flax thought.

She trotted quickly back to where she knew her machine was parked, coming in the opposite direction through an open fence gate. As soon as Flax entered the yard, she was disappointed. There was Sage, unloading excess supplies from the stowage bins, all by herself. Cream was gone, just like Flax ordered, but Emerald was also nowhere to be seen. Somehow, she wasn't surprised. Trotting up and picking up the end of a crate that Sage was dragging through the snow, Flax frowned. "So, Emerald ran off on ya instead of helpin'?"

"Aye, that she did. Cannae say I'm surprised. She went to go 'help' Cream with learnin' the ropes from another driver, haven't seen her since," Sage said, sounding as though she weren't particularly upset. Walking backward, Sage maneuvered the wooden crate through the back door of the house they'd parked behind and into the living room. The rest of their meager supplies that weren't intended to stay with the tank were all gathered here, and as Flax inspected everything she realized she should've asked Sage to grab a little extra from the quartermaster's tent.

On top of some spare clothes and enough rations for every pony in the crew, there were a few cans of ammo for everyone's small arms, a couple of tool kits, some spare parts, a pair of fuel cans, a box of grenades, and a small medical kit. It wasn't much, even by normal standards, and Flax knew those supplies weren't going to cut it in such cold weather. But that was a problem for later. Right now, she had a rogue radio operator to track down. Once Sage dropped her end of the crate, Flax followed suit and stood up straight again. She stepped over and flopped down onto the couch placed against one wall, wincing when her flank met cold fabric, and huffed. "I don't figure Emerald told ya where she was headed? I'd be willin' to bet she might've had a specific 'friend' she wanted to visit in another crew."

Sage shook her head, crouching down to pop the lid off of the wooden box and start unpacking some camping equipment - lanterns, cookware, poles for holding up shrouds and tents. "Nae, she didn't. Got real antsy when I mentioned I wouldn't be doing her any favors if and when ye came asking about her, though. Suppose she went to visit one of the crews across the street?"

Flax pondered Sage's answer for a moment, rubbing her chin with a hoof, before shrugging. "Reckon so. Here's hopin' Cream at least managed to learn something while I was talking with the LT."

Before Flax could make another comment, her conversation was interrupted by the sound of hooves crunching through the snow outside. She'd left the door wide open when she and Sage passed through, figuring there wasn't much point in trying to seal up a house that didn't have any functional heating. She heard the hushed voices of Cream and Emerald, slowly approaching from the same side of the yard the tank had been driven through originally. Standing up from the couch, Flax nudged Sage on her way outside and motioned for her to follow. When they got to the yard, Cream was busy giving their tank a once over while Emerald lounged on the back porch of their borrowed house.

"Where did he say you were supposed to check track tension, again? At the back, right?" Cream shouted, poking her head around the rear right corner of the machine. She froze when she spotted Flax, smiling sheepishly before disappearing behind the fender again. Emerald had been about to answer when she noticed Cream's expression, her relaxed grin dropping off into a frown as she spun around to look her commander in the face.

"Ah! There you are, lieutenant. I was just looking for you," Emerald tried, quickly putting on her best attempt at a smile. Flax was unimpressed.

"Yeah, was just lookin' for you, too. Get your ass in the tank, we've got a mission and I'll be damned if I'm late to lead my own platoon because you couldn't be bothered to do your job," Flax barked, her mood already thoroughly soured. Sage was silent, stepping around and past her as she made her way back outside and toward the tank. Emerald scowled, but did as she was ordered, hopping up from where she sat and walking over to climb up the front of the hull. When Cream didn't immediately show herself, Flax marched over and glared down at the mare while she cowered on the snow-covered ground behind the tank. "That means you, greenhorn. Get on in there."

"Y-Yes ma'am! Sorry, I was just, er... practicing some of what I learned. Track tension, and stuff," Cream Soda mumbled, shying away from her very ticked-off commander as she rounded the corner of the tank and made way for the front. Once she lowered herself into the hatch, Emerald followed and settled into her position. Flax waited until Cream was climbing up the front of the hull before hoisting herself up the side, using the hoof holds until she was on top of the turret. Sage was already inside and settled into the loader position, leaving just enough room for Flax to squeeze in beside her. Once she did, Flax snugged up her radio headset over her ears and raised her seat so she could comfortably sit with her head above the hatch.

"Cream, get us rolling. Take us to the middle of town so the rest of the platoon can form up behind us - we're heading out to the north," Flax ordered over the intercom, glancing back just in time to see the exhaust cough up a thick plume of black smoke once the engine turned over and started running. Good, Flax thought, the electric start hasn't gone completely kaput after all. A second later she jolted back as the tank lurched forward, tracks squeaking and rattling as they shook off some of the snow that had accumulated thanks to the wind over the last few hours. Flax glanced around, hearing the distinct rumbling of several other tank engines on the neighboring streets.

By the time Flax's machine rolled out onto the main road, two of the other vehicles in her platoon were able to join her. Looking over her shoulder, she spotted the Midnight Rider with its name painted in flowing, black cursive along the side of the turret. Rivets was turned out as well, resting her forehooves on the edge of her hatch while holding a cigarette between her lips. The sight of it reminded Flax that she could go for one, and after nudging Sage to pass one up to her from the stash in the turret storage box, she was following Rivets' example. If nothing else, the warmth near her face was a nice bonus. Behind Midnight Rider was number 24, though Sunny Skies had apparently elected to stay buttoned up for now. Flax couldn't fathom why, especially given that she'd heard pegasi were suited to cold environments just fine, what with how they lived above the clouds. Nonetheless, he was there, and that was what mattered.

"Emerald, get ahold of our other two commanders and see what the hold-up is. We're just waitin' on them now," Flax asked into her microphone, looking down through her hatch to see the back of her radio pony's head. Emerald nodded, then swapped her headset from intercom to radio and keyed the transmit button.

"They're on the way, ma'am," Emerald reported a moment later, looking up and back. "Sergeant Dew says she had a little trouble getting out of a ditch, Vanadium said she's watching Dew." Flax rolled her eyes, but kept quiet. Figures the newbie driver would get stuck.

A few minutes later, Flax was pleased to see that all four of her platoon's tanks were lined up behind her in single file. All five engines were running smoothly, and all but two commanders were turned out of their hatches and ready to go. Flax looked back motioned forward with her hoof, signaling for everyone to start rolling, then spoke into her microphone. "Alright, Cream, we got a job to do. Punch it!"

)()()()()()()(

The drive out of town and toward their objective was surprisingly quiet. Flax decided to keep her head out of her hatch for now, enjoying the added visibility even if it came at the cost of being exposed to the frigid wind. She kept her ears tucked down, letting her beret help as much as it could, and did her best to avoid looking directly into the wind. Glancing down, Flax saw that Emerald and Cream both had their viewports opened all the way to have an easier time watching the road ahead. Calling it a road was being somewhat generous, though.

As soon as Flax and second platoon left the limits of Riverpool, the road was all but totally lost under a layer of snow and ice. The powerful engines and grippy tracks of their recon tanks handled the terrain well enough, but it made it rather difficult to stay on course. Flax was checking her map every few minutes, double and triple checking that she was heading in the right direction every so often by asking for an update on which way the compass mounted to Cream's instrument panel was pointing. So far, so good. Around the time Flax estimated they should be reaching their destination, she saw it - or she thought she did, at least.

They were approaching a hill, not very steep but tall enough to obscure whatever lay on the other side. The snow here was untouched, the light and fluffy layer on top being tossed into the air in a thin cloud as one tank after another passed through in single file. As they closed with the hill, Flax keyed the microphone on her headset and broke radio silence for the first time since leaving town. "We're gettin' close to our target - everyone spread out and form a line, thirty feet between each vehicle."

A string of affirmatives filtered through, and Flax turned around in her seat to watch as her platoon followed through. Midnight Rider and Whispering Wind went left, spreading out to cover that flank, meanwhile tanks 24 and 25 went right. Sunny Skies finally poked his head out of his hatch, his brightly colored fur and mane plainly visible over the dull grey turret of his tank. Flax caught him glancing her way and motioned for him to keep his eyes forward. Cream was slowing down now, cautiously driving their machine up the gentle slope while Flax leaned forward in an attempt to see over the hilltop as soon as possible. Just before they made it, though, Flax heard a noise - actually, a series of five noises. They came one after the other, the unmistakable percussion of artillery fire from down in the valley. Although Flax couldn't see them just yet, the bright flashes of burning propellant and the shockwave that could only come from big guns were plain as day.

"Artillery! Everyone, stop!" Flax shouted into her microphone. A second later, all five tanks came to a halt just a few feet shy of being visible over the top of the hill. "Okay, we've reached our objective, and now we know what's down there. Those shells didn't go screamin' overhead back the way we came, so... odds are they're poundin' some of our friends somewhere else. We need to shut 'em down."

"Are we allowed to engage 'em, though?" Rivets interjected, her voice slightly distorted over the radio. "LT didn't say anything about fighting what we found, she just wanted us to come out here and take a look."

"We cannot allow them to continue firing," Vanadium countered. "Whatever they're firing at, it is in support of enemy units elsewhere. We should crush them while we have the chance."

"We're goin' down there, end of discussion," Flax cut in, retaking control of the conversation. Looking to her left and right, she saw Rivets and Morning Dew ducking into their hatches and swinging the lids shut. Given that they were about to charge into a fight, Flax followed suit. She lowered her seat and reached back, finding the handle with her hoof and heaving the heavy steel hatch closed. The rumbling engines and the gently blowing wind were suddenly muffled, and Flax's whole world was reduced to what she could see through the rectangular viewports in her cupola. A glance to the side, and Flax met Sage's one-eyed gaze. Sage had a determined look about her, and Flax knew she probably looked the same. A silent nod between them, and she was back on the radio. "Rivets, Dew, you two swing wide and take the left flank. Number 24, stay close to me and we'll hit 'em right in the middle. Number 25, stay up here on the hill and keep an eye on things. Y'all got that?"

The guns thundered again in the valley, sending another salvo of explosive death into the distance, and another string of affirmatives poured through Flax's headset. After waiting another few seconds, around when she guessed the Crystal artillery crews would be in the middle of a reload, Flax switched to the intercom. "Cream, floor it!"

Flax's tank lurched forward, transmission struggling while its inexperienced operator tried to get into the proper gear, but in just a few seconds Flax could see the enemy position coming into view over the top of the hill. She pressed herself as close to her viewport as she could, squinting at the long, pointed shapes in the near distance. There was a white camouflage net covering one part of the position, but the dark grey of the artillery pieces was impossible to miss at this distance. There were five guns, just as she'd expected, and each one was lined up side by side. The outlines of their crew were in plain sight, and just like the last time she'd seen them Flax could recognize the faint shininess inherent to Crystal ponies. It was pretty, sure, but it was also a pretty terrible feature to have in a situation where stealth was important. Oh well, just made the job easier for her.

It didn't take long for the Crystal soldiers to notice the quartet of tanks thundering down the hill, several enlisted ponies frantically abandoning their position behind artillery guns in favor of running for whatever weapons they had on hoof. Flax pulled away from her cupola viewport and looked at Flax, yelling over the rumble of the engine rather than using the intercom. "Sage, gimme HE! Keep another one on hoof and load as soon as I fire!"

Sage obliged without a word, turning and opening the little springloaded cover for the ammo rack on the right side of the turret. She retrieved one shell and armed the warhead, then rammed it home into the open breech of the cannon. While Flax was still getting her eye up to the scope, a high-pitched bang sounded off outside. Flax watched through the narrow scope as a bright red tracer zipped into her field of view from the right where Vanadium's tank should be, impacting a few yards short of the first enemy artillery piece and throwing up a cloud of dirt, smoke, and snow. Before the cloud of debris had fully settled, Flax reached over to the gun controls and lined up another shot. The hydraulic turret drive whined as the turret rotated a few degrees, then the gears rattled as the gun pitched up and slowly aligned Flax's reticule with the center of the first gun's carriage.

Once she was sure she had a shot, Flax slammed her hoof on the firing button and moved to put her eyes up to her cupola viewport in the same instant. Her cannon thumped, rocketing backward in its recoil mount and creating a flash of orange and yellow fire at the end of the barrel outside. A split second later, before the shell's tracer component had even ignited, Flax was pleased to see she scored a hit. The small explosive charge wasn't enough to destroy the enemy cannon outright, but she could see that the breech was badly damaged and the carriage was bent to the point of uselessness. Sage was already loading the next shell when Flax glanced down, just in time for the first bits of return fire to try and answer the cannon fire. The Crystal ponies seemed to lack any anti-tank weaponry, caught unprepared and without anywhere to run that wasn't exposed, and at the moment the only things they had to shoot back with were rifles and a lone machine gun.

Peering through her cupola viewport, Flax watched the artillery ponies ducking down behind anything solid and setting up their rifles. They were splitting their fire, and rifle bullets pinged off of the armor of Flax's machine in a staccato rhythm. She guessed they were aiming for viewports, but with more than a hundred yards between them, it was down to luck more than anything. There was another sharp bang outside, and Flax pressed her eyes up to her left viewport to see Midnight Rider and Whispering Wind entering the fray as well. The chattering of machine gun fire from each tank picked up almost in unison, with everyone opening up as soon as Vanadium set the example. Leaning back and glancing down, Flax saw that Emerald was doing her best to contribute. The hull machine gun barked in five-round bursts, raking back and forth against the partially exposed enemy while spent shell casings clattered noisily to the hull floor. For a short moment, Flax allowed herself to be proud. At least Emerald could do something right.

Refocusing on the battle outside, Flax realized that she and her tank were getting awfully close and awfully fast. "Cream, slow us down and swing right! Don't expose too much of our side in the turn!" A pause, and Flax swapped over to radio. "Vanadium, follow my lead. We're gonna pivot right and encircle the position!"

"Understood, ma'am. We should be careful of getting too much closer, in case they have grenades," Vanadium answered, surprisingly calm given the circumstances. Flax just hoped she wasn't getting cocky. While the two tanks began their maneuver, Flax rotated the turret to compensate and keep the enemy in sight. The one pony wielding the machine gun was near the middle of the position, surrounded by sandbags and doing their best to suppress an enemy who was bulletproof. Given that was the only real firepower she'd seen so far, Flax considered them a worthy enough target. Sage was operating the coaxial machine gun when she wasn't focused on loading the gun, having released the lock to allow the gun to rotate freely in its mount. She was less careful or accurate with her bursts than Emerald, spraying bullets in the general direction of the Crystal ponies and keeping their heads down.

Flax worked her controls until she had her cannon lined up with the machine gunner's position, having to keep the turret rotating to account for the tank's movement. When she had her target lined up for more than a split second, Flax slammed the firing button again and watched as her shell struck home. The gun had barely returned to its starting point after recoiling by the time Sage rammed another HE shell into the breech, nodding to Flax from across the turret. The poor pony on the receiving end, however, was no more. Their position went up in a cloud of smoke and fire, and as Flax watched through her cupola viewport she realized there was almost nothing left by the time the debris settled. Another cannon went off, this time in front of Flax's tank, and she saw the muzzle flash from Midnight Rider. The shell zipped right into the middle of the artillery position, striking a large crate that a couple of rifle ponies were using for cover, and that was when Flax saw what was possibly the biggest explosion in her life.

The crate had evidently been full of ammo for those big guns, and, naturally, it reacted poorly to being blown up. Flax felt it more than she heard it, the shockwave blasting over and through her tank and rattling her to her very core. Her ears rang, her bones ached, and for a split second she was sure her entire world would fall apart. Her viewports were all alight with fire and smoke, orange light pouring in uninterrupted for several seconds. Flax wasn't sure if it was her imagination or not, but she was sure her entire tank had rocked to the side from the force of what had to be several hundred pounds of explosives going off a mere hundred yards or so away. The shooting stopped before the smoke had even cleared, and for a moment all Flax could hear was the rumbling of her machine's engine and the ringing in her ears.

"What the hell was that?!" Vanadium shouted over the radio, breaking the surreal silence that had settled over the valley. Her voice barely penetrated the dull ache in Flax's ears, but she heard it well enough. Before she could respond, though, somepony else did it for her.

"That was me, that's what it was!" Rivets hollered, sounding pleased as could be. "I knew there was something important in that box! Just, y'know, wasn't expecting quite that much of a boom. Everyone alright?"

"Sound off," Flax cut in, only mildly surprised when her own voice sounded muffled. "And report any enemies left standing."

"We're good," Rivets immediately answered.

"Operational," Vanadium said next.

"No problem here, Lieutenant! Helluva show you four put on," Sunny replied, sounding like he'd just watched a rock concert.

"Morning Dew? Talk to me 23," Flax said, after a lengthy pause. There was no response. "Shit... anypony got eyes on 23? She should've been right next to Rivets." As she spoke, Flax pressed her eyes up to her viewports again and scanned her surroundings. The Crystal ponies' artillery position was barely more than a smoldering wreck at this point, with the guns tossed every which way by the massive ammo detonation. Bodies were strewn about like discarded toys, and Flax winced when she noticed many of them were missing pieces. The snow was rapidly being stained black by the ash slowly coming back down from the explosion, and the few tiny pieces of wood that had survived the blast were still on fire. From where Flax was sitting, it didn't look like a single Crystal pony survived the charge, let alone the massive explosion that had ended the fight.

Scanning to the left, Flax finally saw Whispering Wind. They were still beside Midnight Rider, but Flax immediately knew something was wrong. There was a large dent in the front hull armor, a couple of the rivets even looking like they'd popped loose, and the front of the tank was smeared with black soot. They had been closest to the explosion, and Flax could guess they'd been hit by a particularly large piece of debris. The top hatch slowly swung open to reveal Morning Dew, unharmed, and Flax released a breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding. Rivets popped her hatch open a moment later, and Flax watched while the two commanders exchanged words. A second later, Rivets came over the radio again.

"Dew's alright! Just a little shaken up, and she says their radio isn't working. We think part of one of those cannons might've hit her," she said, sounding equal parts relieved and amused at the unlikely odds of such a thing happening. "I bet those newbies in her tank pissed themselves."

"And they wouldn't have if you were more careful with picking your targets, Rivets," Flax chastised, opening her hatch to sit up and look the other mare in the eye across the field of destruction they'd created. "Just because your quick shooting paid off this time don't mean it will next time. You could've just as easily gotten some of us killed doin' that." Flax paused, heaved a small sigh, and slumped down slightly. "But... I reckon this is still pretty good for our first fight. Good work, y'all. Now we oughta get turned around and head back before anypony comes to see why their artillery battery suddenly shut up."