Skyspire Air Force Base, 50 Miles Northeast of Prisma City

Pilot Sharp “Dino” Eyes took a deep, shaky breath as he completed his pre-flight checklist, the memory of recent… events still plaguing his mind. Shaking his head to clear the unwanted thoughts, Dino glanced up at the sky and watched his squad as they performed slow circles above the airbase, patiently waiting for him to take off and join them.

With a steady hoof, he secured his oxygen mask and patched into the radio, “ATC, this is Dino. Pre-flight checklist is complete. Requesting permission for takeoff.”

“Dino, this ATC. Permission granted, you are go for takeoff.”

Dino nodded before placing a hoof on the thrust lever and pushing it all the way forward. The roar of the afterburner on his General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon sent a thrill through him, his heart pounding with excitement. As the G-forces pushed him back into his seat, a surge of adrenaline coursed through his body in a way he knew he’d never get used to no matter how many times he piloted his jet.

Pulling back on the yoke with his other hoof, Dino ascended into the air. Climbing to a height of 200 feet, Dino leveled his jet before moving to integrate with the other four jets in the air.

“Well, look who finally decided to join the party,” Dino’s squad mate, Stitch, quipped as Dino got in formation.

Dino scoffed, “Excuse me for wanting to make sure my shit was in order before taking off.”

“Heh, it's either that or you were busy daydreaming about dinosaurs again!”

“Leave him alone, Stitch. We're all still a bit shaken up by… that,” their squad leader, Max, said.

“You can say that again…” Booger murmured.

“Mhmm,” Whiplash agreed.

Using his radio, Max patched into Shield Control, “Shield Control, this is Max. Requesting permission for passage through the south gate. Clearance code is Bravo-Juliet-One-Five-Tree-Niner-Niner-Six.”

“Max, this is Shield Control. Your clearance code is green. Good luck on your mission.”

Max nodded, “Alright, everyone, on me.”

Everyone gave quick affirmations before forming into a tight V-formation. Max proceeded to guide them around the towering 500-foot Shield Pillar situated in the middle of the base; the aetherium pillar flaring brightly as it shot a continuous beam into the sky and generated the Shield that protected the base from the raging blizzard outside. Breaking away from the Pillar, Max led the squad south, in the direction of one of the four gates situated at the Shield's perimeter. In the distance, Max could see an opening in the Shield.

“Stay close everyone, I don't need one of you idiots accidentally killing yourselves by ramming into the Shield.”

The squad remained close to Max as they approached the opening in the Shield. Once through, they spread out, creating a more comfortable distance between one another. Behind them, the opening in the Shield closed up, leaving no trace of it ever opening in the first place.

The blizzard buffeted against the aircraft, making their frames shake violently. The squad ignored the turbulence and proceeded to climb to an altitude of 40,000 feet before leveling off and flying at a cruising speed of 600 miles per hour.

"As you’re all aware, we’re without GPS, so don’t stray off course. It’s a simple straight shot to the coast—check for any activity—and then we head straight back to base. Understood?” Max said.

“Yes, sir,” Dino said.

“Yup,” Stitch replied.

“Understood, sir,” Booger said with a nod.

“Uh-huh,” Whiplash mumbled.

Satisfied with the responses he got, Max smiled slightly underneath his oxygen mask and prepared himself for the flight ahead.

At the Same Time, In Limesville

“Lilac, Ethan, we have to go now!” Mark yelled over the deafening blizzard raging outside their home. His motions were frantic as he desperately looked for his car keys.

“But what about all our stuff, Mark?!" a voice upstairs yelled back.

“Mom! Just leave it! We'll come back for it later!”

“Wha-? Ethan! Put me down this instant!”

The sound of rushing footsteps reached Mark’s ears, drawing his attention to the staircase leading to the second floor. There, he saw his 15-year-old adopted son hurrying down, a lilac-coated mare cradled in his arms. Said mare was not happy about being handled in such a way.

“Ethan! Put me down!” Lilac shouted as she attempted to climb out of Ethan's arms.

Ethan simply held her tighter against his chest, “Mom, just relax for a second!”

Ignoring the two shouting family members for a moment, Mark's eyes locked onto his car keys lying on the kitchen counter. Rushing inside the kitchen, he grabbed them before rushing back to the living room.

“Let's go!” he ordered as he opened the front door.

He instantly regretted it as the freezing winds whipped against his face and body, sending relentless shivers down his spine. Rushing to the car, Mark quickly unlocked the doors and jumped inside, his son following close behind with Lilac still cradled in his arms.

Hastily securing themselves with their seat belts, Mark put the car in reverse and backed out of the driveway. Once on the road, Mark put the car in drive and began the long trip to the nearest city with a Shield installation.

Making sure to keep one arm secured around his mother, Ethan used his free arm to tune the radio, switching through multiple channels that were usually playing music or some kind of radio show at this time, but were now only static.

“Why isn't anything playing,” Ethan muttered fearfully as he continued to shift through multiple channels.

“Maybe those channels are just down right now…” Lilac said, less angry and more worried now.

“Try channel 86.1, that channel is always playing something no matter what the hell is going on in this country,” Mark suggested.

Ethan nodded and rotated the channel knob on the radio until it stopped at 86.1 AM.

“...me Minister is expected to address the nation in five minutes. In the meantime, we strongly urge listeners to seek shelter in a warm and secure location until authorities arrive to coordinate evacuation efforts. Travel is not recommended at this time, as the blizzard has reduced visibility to near zero.”

“You can say that again,” Mark muttered as he squinted in an attempt to see past the thick fog that fell over the road.

Five minutes later, the voice of the Prime Minister echoed through the radio, as millions across Atlantia tuned in, desperate for any explanation about the chaos and inexplicable terror that had unfolded today.

"Citizens of Atlantia," Richard began, his voice laced with nervousness. "Uh… most, if not all of you, are likely listening to this broadcast in search of comfort or perhaps an explanation for what occurred an hour ago, but…”

A heavy sigh escaped Richard, followed by a brief moment of silence as he grappled with how to break the news to the people. Unable to find a way to sugarcoat his words or soften the blow, he resolved to just… tell them.

“But the truth is, we don’t know what has happened. We don’t know the full extent of this... attack, nor do we know how far its reach has spread. All we know for certain is that it has affected most or all of Atlantia.”

Ethan held his mother tighter, fear and paranoia beginning to cloud his mind as he listened to the broadcast.

“What the fuck is happening?” Mark murmured, not believing his ears.

“I know you are all shocked and terrified and want nothing more to protect your loved ones. So please, listen carefully to my next words.

“As of this moment, martial law is in effect, and the military is undergoing mass mobilization to enter Locked and Loaded readiness. Your safety remains our top priority. Law enforcement will be working closely with the military to evacuate citizens from unprotected settlements and relocate them to areas equipped with Shield installations. I strongly urge you to stay where you are and hunker down until help arrives. However, if you believe your safety is in immediate danger, do your best to move to a more secure location.

“Additionally, all banks will remain closed, and all accounts and assets will be frozen. All commercial flights are canceled, and all seafaring trips from Atlantian ports will be suspended. Furthermore, any foreign ships requesting to dock will be denied entry.

“Please take care of your loved ones, stay safe, and be prepared for anything. Thank you.”

The family of three sat paralyzed with shock and fear as Richard’s final words echoed through the room. The weight of the situation pressed down on them, bringing the chilling realization that no one truly understood what was happening.

“Mom? Dad? Is… Is the world ending?” Ethan shakily asked, tears rolling down his cheeks.

Lilac’s maternal instincts instantly fired up at the sight of her distressed son. Freeing herself from Ethan’s grip, she stood up on her hind legs and hugged him tightly around his neck.

“Shh-shh-shh, don’t cry baby,” Lilac cooed, her voice filled with motherly warmth, “It’s gonna be alright, okay?”

Ethan sobbed, “B-But, wh-what if you- you both disa- appear again? Wh-What if w-we don’t come b-back?” he stuttered as he hugged his mother back.

Releasing his right hand from the wheel, Mark placed it firmly on Ethan's left shoulder and gently squeezed it.

“Hey, hey, that's not going to happen again, okay? Nobody's going to disappear,” Mark said soothingly.

“And if w-we do?”

“Then I want you to know that no matter what happens now, or what has happened in the past, your mother and I love you more than anything, and we wouldn’t trade you for the world.”

Though it did little to ease his fears, Ethan felt a small sense of relief, allowing him to breathe a bit easier after hearing his father’s heartfelt words.

Elsewhere, In Iridessa

“Back up! Back the fuck up!” Anderson shouted as he and the other riot police struggled to hold the line against a mob of looters.

Lootings and riots had initially begun in small, contained areas shortly before the Prime Minister’s speech. The crowds before had mostly consisted of panicked looters and civilians doing whatever they could to get their hands on essential items such as food and water. But they quickly spiraled out of control after the Prime Minister concluded his speech.

Richard’s speech had sparked a sporadic, every-person-for-themselves mindset, leaving Iridessa law enforcement quickly overwhelmed by the mobs of ponies and humans flooding the streets in a frenzy of chaos fueled by extreme fear and paranoia.

“Disperse now or you will be arrested!” Anderson shouted as he tightly gripped the riot shield in his hoof.

The ponies and humans in front of him shouted a cacophony of words, their voices blending into an incomprehensible roar. Anderson couldn’t make out a single coherent sentence amid the chaos, but their emotions were unmistakable. As they pushed and shoved against him, their eyes betrayed raw panic, fear, and utter desperation.

But as much as Anderson felt for them, he and his fellow officers needed to put an end to the chaos and restore order to the city. He doesn’t want to imagine what a lawless Iridessa would look like, but he heavily doubts it’ll be anything but good.

"Tear gas! Tear gas!" an officer behind him shouted as a small squad launched canisters of the noxious gas into the crowd.

Some officers holding the line alongside Anderson took the opportunity to spray the vulnerable crowd with pepper spray, prompting anguished shrieks as it seared their eyes and noses. Anderson, however, couldn’t bring himself to join in on the cruel treatment.

The crowd began to quickly disperse, and Anderson and his fellow officers pushed forward, determined to keep them away from the major shopping center.

But just as quickly as the mob had dispersed, they returned—this time anger was mixed in with their desperation. Anderson and his fellow officers braced themselves as the crowd surged forward, aggressively pushing against the line. Humans clawed and grabbed at the riot shields, trying to tear them away, while ponies resorted to bucking against the barrier with their powerful, muscular hind legs.

A human stepped forward, attempting to rip Anderson’s riot shield away. Acting swiftly, Anderson raised his other hoof, gripping a baton, and struck the assailant, making him yelp and hold his head in pain.

Before Anderson could raise his shield, a pony rushed forward, sharply turning its back to him and delivering a powerful buck to his chest. Despite his protective gear and firm stance, the force of the blow sent him crashing backward. He hit the concrete with a hard thud, groaning in pain as his chest ached, certain that at least one rib had been fractured or possibly even broken.

His fellow officers scrambled to plug the gap in their line, but that small opening was all the mob needed to push through. Anderson screamed in agony as he was trampled by the relentless crowd. His cries were drowned out by the chaos around him, with officers yelling frantic orders as they desperately tried to regain control of the surging mob of ponies and humans.

Anderson whimpered in pain as the crowd finally passed over him. His entire body was racked with unbearable agony as blood began to slowly pool out of his mouth. His ribs, which had been moderately damaged just a moment ago, were now completely shattered from the stampede that ran over him, the fragments and sharp ends puncturing several vital organs in his body, including his heart.

“Officer, are you okay!?” Anderson heard a muffled voice shout before the face of a pony appeared in his slowly fading vision.

The pony appeared young, likely between the ages of 18 and 21, but what struck Anderson most in his final moments was the sheer shock and fear on the kid's face as he watched Anderson die. Anderson felt an overwhelming wave of guilt course through his body as he stared at the shocked pony, wanting nothing more than to turn the kid away from the no-doubt bloody scene that Anderson was.

Unfortunately, Anderson would die moments later, choking on his own blood.

40,000 Feet in the Air, Approaching Luxora

As Dino and his squad approached the coastal city of Luxora, they remained oblivious to the chaos unfolding on the ground below.

It took the squad approximately 21 minutes to reach the city, with the snowstorm and occasional turbulence slowing them down considerably. As they approached, the bright cyan glow of the Shield protecting the city from the storm became visible, standing out vividly against the harsh weather.

Like most other protected major cities, the size of the Shield was unparalleled. Towering to a height of approximately 6,000 feet and spanning a diameter of 12.7 miles, it completely enveloped the city, safeguarding all 327,161 residents within. If Dino squinted his eyes hard enough to see through the bright Shield, he would’ve noticed the massive aetherium pillar erected near the center of the city. It shot a powerful beam into the sky, supported by several smaller pillars positioned about six miles away, each contributing their own beams to stabilize the Shield’s immense energy.

“Alright, everyone. We’re approaching the coast,” Max announced to the rest of the squad, “I know the storm will probably render us completely useless for spotting any suspicious activity, but just keep your eyes peeled for anything unusual.”

Receiving affirmations from the rest of his squad, Max led them past Luxora and into what they assumed was the Atlantic Ocean. As expected, visibility was practically nonexistent; the unrelenting storm and darkness obliterated any chance they had of spotting anything. Hell, they’d be lucky to even catch a glimpse of a ship’s navigation lights in this weather.

Stitch chuckled, “Wow, we’re really gonna waste about an hour of our time just staring into nothing aren’t we?”

Whiplash hummed, “Sure seems like it.”

“Why don’t we try going lower? Maybe we might see something then,” Dino suggested.

“Let’s not take any chances; we have no idea who or what might be down there,” Max said, despite his radar indicating the area was clear of any bogeys.

“Uh, guys? I think we’ve reached the end of the storm,” Booger said.

Looking up from his instruments, Max noticed a monstrous cloud wall a couple hundred meters ahead of the group. The unnatural formation stretched high and wide across the sky, the dark clouds swirling and shifting as if trying to block out the majestic rays of light that seeped through its tight gaps.

“Guys… are we at the pearly gates?” Stitch lightly joked, staring in awe at the cloud formation ahead of them.

“But, that would mean we’re dead,” Whiplash responded, equally in awe.

“Well, didn’t we? For like a moment?”

Dino stared at the cloud formation with growing trepidation. Yes, it was an utterly beautiful sight, but what if this was just the “dirty side” of the storm? The harsh winds and turbulence they had been enduring during the flight were concerning enough, and Dino was not on board with flying through this massive wall of clouds that could potentially severely damage his aircraft.

“Uh, what are we gonna do, Max?” Dino nervously asked as he looked at his squad leader’s jet flying ahead of him.

Max didn’t respond for a moment, clearly thinking about his next course of action. Dino hoped to God that Max didn’t decide to guide them through the clouds, whatever was on the other side couldn’t possibly be worth the danger they were putting themselves in.

“Let’s turn back,” Max calmly announced before rolling his jet to the side and turning away from the cloud wall.

‘Praise the fucking Lord, holy shit,’ Dino thought as he and his squad followed Max’s maneuver.

Dino’s squadron, along with all the other deployed squadrons, would return to their respective bases after encountering the exact same phenomenon. Their superiors would be left scratching their heads at the eerily similar reports from pilots, all describing the sight of a “giant cloud wall” no matter which direction they flew—north, east, south, or west.

This, coupled with the fact that the world around them remained radio silent, made the worst day of their lives somehow even worse.

Author's Note

Hello, everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Here’s some more lore for ya:

Dino’s Squad:

>Sharp “Dino” Eyes

If his callsign wasn’t obvious enough, then you should know that he’s an avid lover of dinosaurs.

Tries to deny it, but the large collection of dinosaur figures in his room proves otherwise.

Stitch regularly teases him because of it.

Once tried to find fossils in his backyard as a kid and was supremely disappointed once his parents told him there were none in the backyard.

Many tears were shed that day.

>Marcus “Stitch” Lebowski

Got his callsign after receiving stitches due to getting into a brawl with another recruit in basic training.

Is a cheeky lil asshole when he wants to be.

Also sleepwalks.

Scared a training instructor so bad one time he got strapped to his bed the next night.

>Caramel “Booger” Candy

Her callsign is a rather unfortunate story.

Was in the gas chamber during training.

Everyone is ordered to break the seals on their gas masks.

Immediately starts feeling the effects of tear gas.

By the time everyone is free to run out of the chamber and take off their masks, Caramel’s is absolutely drenched in snot.

Suddenly, her mane whips by her nose.

Sneeze.wav

Mucus and snot shoot out of her nostrils as she lets the vilest sneeze she’s ever experienced.

Training instructors start calling her “Booger.”

Fml.jpeg

>Crimson “Whiplash” Gust

Doesn’t really talk much.

People think he’s a bit unsettling sometimes with how quiet he is, but he’s just a chill guy once you get to know him.

But he will fuck you up if you mess with his friends in a way they don't like.

Got his callsign simply because Stitch wanted at least one cool-sounding callsign in the squadron.

Everyone agreed.

>Maximus “Max” Rivera

Leader of the squadron.

Takes the roll pretty seriously.

But it honestly feels like he’s babysitting his squad rather than leading them sometimes.

Callsign almost ended up being “Unc.”

Breathed a sigh of relief when their commanding officer disapproved of it.

Ended up just being called “Max.”

Shield Pillars:

Shield Pillars are massive aetherium structures erected in major cities and military installations across Atlantia and the West. Initially designed to protect Atlantia’s coastal cities from hurricanes and other extreme weather events, these pillars have been continuously upgraded and modified throughout the Cold War to (hypothetically) provide protection against nuclear strikes.

Following Dr. Crosby’s discovery of aetherium behaving abnormally to different electromagnetic waves, he and a group of scientists began performing many experiments on the crystalline rock.

During their experiments, they discovered that the size of the aetherium significantly affects its ability to withstand higher electromagnetic waves before reaching its explosive threshold. The larger the crystal, the longer it can endure high-frequency waves.

Additionally, in 1958, one of the scientists in Dr. Crosby’s group discovered a way to “communicate” with the crystal using a binary system which led to some very interesting results.

The Shield Pillars operate based on these principles. The process begins with Shield Control activating a city’s or military installation’s “Main Pillar.” Using specialized generators, Shield Control transmits a pattern of low-frequency electromagnetic waves in binary, effectively "instructing" the pillar to activate its Shield. Simultaneously, a separate division of Shield Control responsible for the “Supporting Pillars” follows the same procedure to ensure synchronized activation.

Once activated, the “Main Pillar” emits a powerful beam directed into the sky. This action is quickly followed by the “Supporting Pillars,” which project their own beams toward the apex of the “Main Pillar.” These combined beams work together to stabilize the energy output, ensuring the Shield effectively covers the entire designated area. The larger the area requiring protection, the more “Supporting Pillars” are needed to maintain stability and guarantee full coverage.

Once the Shield is fully operational, Shield Control can change the strength at which the Shield operates and who can enter or leave via a gate system. The Shield’s strength completely relies on the frequency of electromagnetic waves being transmitted into the Pillars. High frequencies equal a stronger Shield while lower frequencies equal a weaker Shield.

Finally, there’s the gate system, managed by a specialized division of Shield Control that operates under direct orders from military high command or the Prime Minister. This system regulates access to and from the Shield and operates under three distinct modes:

1. Safe Mode: Allows unrestricted entry and exit for everyone.
2. Danger Mode: Requires individuals wishing to enter or exit the Shield to pass through designated checkpoints, where they are inspected by guards before proceeding.

Lockdown Mode: Enforces a complete restriction on movement; no one is permitted to leave or enter without a special clearance code granted exclusively to government and military officials.

Map of Atlantia on Earth
Map of Atlantia with Cities