Heresy

Heresy-Blood and Iron-Part II

The frontline had been pushed back. The spearhead assault that had led to Lieutenant McIntosh's breakthrough was quickly swept back by the griffons, once a regiment had been sent forth to replace those lost in the magical assault. Normally this wouldn't have done much, but they were backed by unicorns and other such mages. It didn't become apparent to the defending forces, until the first line of troops caught fire and began to scream in their throes of pain and death.

The first response team of unicorns pooled their power and began to create a shield against the magic that was starting to move down the ranks and kill more of the colts and mares fighting against the bestial griffons. It became truly apparent though, when half of the Equestrian Guard unicorns that were supplementing the push, were ripped apart from within, destroying the circle of power and enveloping the rest of the mages in magical fire.

They were outclassed in magic, by a group of griffon mages. Or so they thought.

What had been an uphill battle quickly turned into a complete disaster ending with the Equestrian forces being routed. A blast of magical fire ripped through the quick responders and put the line in disarray, with no unicorns to stop and counter the magic that was being thrown at them, there was just no way for them to hold.

It was then that the true problem arose. The cavern that the Equestrians had been using to advance to the open mountainside, started to glow with a dark purple glow. Wards wafted along through the air, and rock started to reform, weaken, and crumble. The entrance began to collapse, burying dozens of ponies in hundreds of tons of rubble, leaving the few hundred that were out on the battlefield completely cut off.

It became a slaughter, as griffons came down in the hundreds, utilizing the advantage of air superiority to drop explosives made of black powder and magic, sending metal shards into flesh and rending apart their aggressors. Teams swooped down and lifted ponies up, dropping their struggling bodies on to rocks, or even their own comrades. The full retreat never came, and those that grouped together to make a final stand were burnt from below by a firestorm that began to be woven. The griffons retreated to their eyrie and the ground opened up to brimstone.

Shit.

Argus knew it would end up about like this.

"Move it Mud. We don't wait around for new blood," the annoyed voice of Argus's new commander directed at him.

Ever since he had been assigned to the EGSF or "Black Guard," he'd been miserable. He was constantly training under their strict regimen, as well as the regimen that had been insisted on by Lieutenant Apple. It was getting to be too much. All of the physical activity, weapon focus, fortitude training, and many mental exercises were just really starting to become a drag. It had been bad enough when he was a forward scout but now it was just plain cruel.

He was going to be departing soon for a mission that unto itself had a simple premise, but he knew that they didn't send the EGSF without good reason. He was a scout, but was also much more than that in this case. He would be providing front line information for the rest of his squad, who in turn would be getting a lot of dirty work done.

They were a rather mixed squad, all with particular and peculiar skills, in his opinion. He himself, small, naturally camouflaged, and an expert at making himself even more so. The code names didn't exactly make them any less odd as well. There was Doc, who was actually all about botany and poison. Next came Spritz, who had an unnatural obsession with fire and various gels and liquids he could make that could in turn, be lit on fire to burn for quite a long time. Khan, was their leader, and he didn't seem to have any specific talents, besides being a gruff talker. Finally, came Argus, whom they'd taken to calling "Mud." He wasn't quite sure why.

Argus found himself quickly scrambling after Khan, as he was brought back to reality by the sound of a weapon's discharge. He was at the armoury with the rest of his squad getting his kit together, but the others were already done. In fact, Khan was the only one left, and he didn't seem to pleased at the moment.

Whatever. He may have been the squad leader, but Argus would be watching out for number one first and foremost.

He collected his kit and stumbled his way over to the doorway as Khan snorted again, making his way out of the cages. It was going to be a long couple of days, he just knew it. Celestia damn it all, he had a crazy CO and now a crazy squad leader to deal with. He made a bet in his own head as to which one was going to end up getting him killed, and it ended up landing back on the Lieutenant. That giant bastard was really a shock trooper and would probably be dragging him along on their next "outing," if he survived this mission with Khan.

Nope. Gotta think positive. You'll outlast the both of 'em and eventually get reassigned or retire. You're a stealthy guy. You know you can do it. This positive thinking stuff only ever worked for a few minutes at any rate.

As he departed the armoury into the now darkening sky, he noticed the sun at his back casting a reddish-orange light across the mountainside in front of him. He quickly caught up with his squad and they began to make their way towards the cave system that was the front line, staying clear of the bustling regulars that were running back and forth carrying messages or supplies, and in some cases, wounded ponies.

Forward they marched, to the cavern entrance, and to what would be a much more terrifying mission than Argus was expecting.

Haze was soaked in gore. Hardly any of the blood spread across his coat was his. He'd hardly even suffered more than a few minor cuts.

The griffons he'd come across were all sleeping, save for the few on lookout. He killed them off rather quickly and quietly, though the smell of their blood quickly awoke the resting group. He was among them like a flash, solemn and brutal, quickly slashing throats and sliding his bayonet into vital points. Half a dozen were dead before the last three were up and attempting to assault him. They all charged him quickly and were uncoordinated, but what they lacked in tactics, they more than made up for in zeal. They all roared as they charged forward.

Haze discharged his rifle into the closest griffon's face, spraying its brains across the room to join the other mingling bodily fluids that lay about the floor and walls. The other two quickly tried to sandwich him between them, and he jumped out of their path, clipping one on the end of its beak with his hoof, albeit not very hard. It became a test of agility, as Haze threw his rifle at the smaller of the two, the wood colliding with the unsuspecting creature's skull, knocking it senseless.

The larger of the two roared again, and he attempted to dodge it, but was lightly skimmed by its claws as he ducked and leaped aside. This seemed to infuriate it even more, as it jumped into the air, nearly skimming the ceiling of the cavern and doze at him. He sidestepped it, and bucked it hard in the face as it twisted to slash at him again. It landed on him and they became a tangled heap of flailing limbs, but it quickly gained the upper hand. Its claws scraped across his sides, attempting to dig deeper in to create a hold.

The pony quickly bucked his back hooves into the beast's lower abdomen and then rocketed his helmeted head forward into the thing's beak, shattering the hard cartilage. The wounded griffon fell backwards, overcome by pain. Haze regained his footing and quickly moved away from the thrashing creature. He jumped over to his rifle, and bucked the griffon that had been regaining its senses in the side of the head. He felt its skull cave in, as he quickly hefted his rifle. He was armed again. The fight wouldn't last longer than the next thrust.

The berserk griffon had somewhat regained its balance, but it was at the point in which it didn't feel pain anymore. Its brain had overloaded on fury. It surged forward.

His form was perfect. A slight side-step, and a single thrust with his bayonet, and he had planted the blade in the eye of the the monster.

The beast stopped in its tracks. It slowly slid backwards, off of the bayonet embedded in its socket.

With a shove, Haze pushed the creature to the floor and snorted with contempt. He quickly reloaded his rifle and made his way onwards. His wounds had stopped bleeding and were starting to heal. He wasn't augmented, but that didn't seem to stop him from running on sheer will and his sense of duty. He proceeded onwards down the most obvious path, the miasma of his stench mingled with blood and gore.

He took this with a grain of salt, as he did anything and everything else. He'd have much more to do to reach his objective, while the Lieutenant made his own way around.

An hour passed, and he made his way from tunnel to tunnel, passageways slowly becoming more modernized with actual flooring, and eventually, he came to a very lightly guarded section of hallways. It converged into what he assumed was a giant cavern, considering the size of the doors nearby. He put down one of the guards without being noticed, and by the time the other smelled blood, it was too late, as the powder in his rifle ignited and the small lead ball blasted forth, spraying brain and bits of beak across the wall.

He snorted. Griffons were bigger than ponies, but they weren't have as smart. They made it up with sheer brutality. Pathetic. He placed a small powder charge near the door, and lit a fuse leading to its center. He was nearing his objective, and he knew that the Lieutenant would join him soon.

Three...two...BOOM

So maybe he was a little off on the length of that wick...regardless, it made quite the noise. A large hole had been blown in the wooden and stone door, and as the dust settled, he saw his objective lying right there. Hmph. Their intelligence was off.

The War Room was empty of griffons, as they hadn't conducted a meeting here for some time, but maps were still strewn about, covering the main table in the center of the large room. Cabinets and desks surrounded the walls, as well as telegraphs. It was all rather advanced.

It was then, that Haze heard a rumble from behind him, and he instinctively dove out of the way as a tomahawk flew past him, clipping some of the hairs off of his tail. As soon as he hit the ground, he turned and fired his rifle blindly, and by some luck managed to hit the beast in the flank. It grunted and took the blow as the lead ball burst out near its rump, a trail of blood following it.

Haze didn't have time to think as the hairy beast charged him. He dove again, slipping the bayonet off of his rifle. He quickly gained his balance and dodged out of the way as the buffalo swiped at him with a stone knife. It was a close fight, and the stoic pony knew that he'd lose if this fight was drug out much longer. The beast was fast and strong, and much bigger than he was.

Haze stood his ground while next to a rather large filing cabinet this time, and as the native of the plains charged, he pushed the cabinet towards him and got close to the wounded flank, suffering a shallow cut from the primitive knife in the process. The buffalo kicked out at him, missing and opening his side where Haze drove his bayonet home, pulling it towards the wounded leg and cutting through major blood vessels. They both grunted and the buffalo struggled to turn for another swipe, relying on his bulk to get the pony at a disadvantage.

By sheer luck, the beast managed to bring its hoof to bear and it collided solidly with the colt's jaw. The pony was knocked senseless as he skittered and hit a row of cabinets and a desk, his rifle already having been discarded and the bayonet falling to the floor. The bloodied buffalo reacquired his knife and moved forward, intending to slowly cut his victims throat and claim Haze's teeth as his trophy.

It was then, that the true extent of the wound dealt by the bayonet became apparent, and the world began to swim before the eyes of the buffalo brave. He looked to his left side, stopping his slow hobbling movements, and he felt as the blood flow intensified. He fell over, every beat of his heart driving more blood from his body. He was big, but so was his heart, and it pumped a lot of blood every beat, and the strain caused by fighting had caused a clipped artery to split.

He struggled forward, hellbent on killing his foe, but it was futile, as the colt came to his senses and grabbed the nearest heavy object, diving forward and using a chair made of iron and mahogany to beat the buffalo to death. The world went dark, and moments later, his skull was stove in by the Equestrian Guard soldier.

'Too many close calls," Haze though to himself, as he began to collect maps and other such vital information. It was nearly how intel had said. Much information was stored there, but most of the generals and colonels of the Gryphus Kingdom as well as their mutual allies in the city-states, as well as other sovereign nations were evacuated. A sense of pride filled the colt as he cracked his jaw around a bit, and reloaded his rifle. His nation was a threat to the world, their military the cream of the crop. Between discipline, technology, and sheer willpower, they were now on top of the world.

A  clunking sound, followed by movement near the broken doorway alerted him to another's presence, but he identified it as his Lieutenant.

Indeed, in was the great Sun Guard, Macintosh. His hulking armoured form stood outside of the doorway, the hole not quite big enough for his bulk.

"Status report, Haze," the stallion rumbled.

"Intel secured, mission is a partial success. We need to find their bunker," was Haze's bland reply. The Lieutenant just nodded and motioned for the colt to follow. The next half of this would be simple enough. Search and destroy.

"What do you mean he was too strong?! You informed me that not even those thrice damned monstrosities that Celestia made would be able to hold up against you and your kin!"

King Thunderwing was in an absolute fit of rage. One of those super soldiers had broken through their front line and was wreaking havoc across their forward position. He seemed to be unstoppable, and was bringing back the damned fighting spirit of those ponies.

The audience in his throne room was rather sparse, consisting of himself, his personal guards, and a group of five unicorns, all tattooed and scarred. It was rather apparent that he was in a state of distress, even without the ranting and screaming. Regardless, he continued on just as before, growing loud and then ending up out of breath, just in time for his adviser to stammer a little, before the torrent of rage broke forth again as he regained his crumbling composure.

The leader of the scarred beasts before the king listed to it all without batting an eye. He had bigger things on his mind. Eventually the griffon king calmed down enough that he would allow his adviser to speak properly and put some sense into his head.

"I hired you as extra insurance. There are many like yourselves, you filthy outcasts. Now earn your keep before I have you truly destroyed," the beastly Regent declared to the rag-tag group. He haughtily gestured for the ponies to leave, but was surprised when the head of them spoke up.

"Piss off, featherbrain," the leader said. "You couldn't find another necromancer within a thousand miles of this mountain range if you tried. There are none as great as us, and certainly none as great as I. You'd do well to remember the name of G'tan Bloodwriter."

His monologue took the great griffon off guard, but his aide, as well as his entourage, all drew weapons and prepared themselves to leap at the insolent creature. Before another word was spoken, the pony turned his back on the king, as did his group. They began to stride out, none molesting them, yet all eyes stayed on them.

As they neared the great stone doors leading to the great hall, the guards created a pike-line, allowing for no passage.

A growling sound became more audible as Thunderwing let the words sink in. A roar erupted from his throat and the room filled with the sound and feel of fury.

Bloodwriter wasn't phased. He simply turned, and looked at the king. His tattoos took on an unnatural glow, a grey smoke rising from his body. A javelin suddenly sprouted from his scarred chest, sinking more than a foot into his flesh, splashing blood all over the floor and haft of the weapon. The King had taken his personal guard's weapon and hurled it at the insolent pony. Nothing spoke such ilk of the mighty Griffon King and lived!

It was here, that the shock set in. Bloodwriter simply looked at the protruding missile, and snorted. The grey smoke became more tangible, and runes began to form in front of him, creating a wispy wall. Blood that leaked out of his wound slowed. The ichor on the stone floor, began to rise, flowing and forming along the runes of smoke. A smell of ozone began to permeate the air in the enclosed eyrie.

All of the ponies began to glow, grey smog rising from their coats. It was then, that a dozen arrows were loosed into their midst, a group of griffons surging towards the creatures with weapons drawn, claws clutching maces and hammers, ready to pulp these adversaries.

None of the necromancers took notice of the wounds as the smoke mingled with blood, became a wall, surrounding them. They were cut off from the view of those in the room, the smell of ozone and blood growing stronger.

None anticipated the flash of light that followed.

A miniature sun seemed to ignite for an instant in the room, instantly blinding those that had their eyes closed. They were the lucky ones.

Those with their eyes open, lost their sight, as their eyes shriveled, liquid pouring down every beast's faces while their eyes literally melted at the very intensity of the light in the flash.

At any rate, none were even conscious after the flash occurred.

The group of ponies that had been the cause of so much destruction, opened the great stone doors and sauntered out. They were not opposed by any other those standing outside.

It was true. Bloodwriter and his crew had more important things to consider at the moment.