The Journeys of C

Chapter II

War of the Steam-City

Part I:

The two Cities

                 Ink looked at C and smiled then she looked to the sky again saying she’d like to go there one day. C  lay down ready to fall asleep, but responded to the white mare saying that one day, maybe she’ll go there, until then, she had to stay with her hooves on earth. Inky lay down to sleep as well, but C asked her something very awkward.

“Ink, can you please sleep on top me?” C asked her smiling while she was shocked of the question.

“What? C what even… ?!” before the surprised mare could say anything else, he replied to her.

“So that you can get me warm. Thanks for letting me finish the sentence. Look, I judge that this is already the end of summer and it’s cold and I need time to adapt. And look at you, you have fur, such beautiful and shiny fur.” The changeling said rising up from the ground and touching Ink’s fur.

"C, this isn't ethical." She responded staring into his eyes.

"I don't care. I need to get warm and you have so much furrrrr!"

               After half an hour of arguing and a lot of stupid reasons C stopped suddenly from talking and stared in front of him, but not at Ink, but at something else behind her, in the distance. She looked at him and tried to attract his attention, but he didn’t respond.

                She turned around to see what  was he staring at, but as soon as she turned back, C snapped out of it and kept talking like nothing happened. Ink stared at him and interrupted him wanting to know what happened.

"What do you mean?" He looked at her her.

"C, you stopped talking for about two minutes and stared at the trees behind me." She said staring at the white changeling.

"No. Inky, I spoke with you all this time, I didn't look at those trees, I mean they aren't even interesting." He responded.

                      This led up to another argument and in the end, after about ten minutes the white-furred mare gave up and C tried a final time to convince her to sleep on top of him. She didn’t say a single thing and pushed him down and he rolled on his belly.

                      Then the she sat on top of C and tried to put her head down on his head to sleep, but before she could that, C thanked the mare now calling her Inky. He put his head down and slept while Inky looked at him with a blush on her cheeks, she shook her head then with a smile put her head on his and slept. Next day Inky woke up at the smell of fried meat and saw C in front of a camp fire which had a big boar in a stick above it.

"Good morning C." She said smiling to the white changeling.

"Good morning Inky." He kept looking at the boar slowly licking his lips.

                       Inky sat down next to him and while they both looked at the boar, she moved her head so that she could face C and blushed before asking him about how he felt last night. He looked at Inky with the corner of his left eye and then after looking back at the boar and breathing deeply he turned his head towards her and closed his eyes.

“You were wet!” He exclaimed and said with a smile opening his eyes.

                   Inky blushed and  shocked of C’s response, she didn’t knew how to respond to that and as she tried to catch all the words and feelings that were rolling in her head, when he just put in her face a piece of meat on a stick.

"You ain't going to stop starving if you ain't going to eat." The two started eating the meat, inky kept looking at C, but he just looked in front of him admiring the forest.

“I was wondering. Why are you headed towards The Steam-City?” Inky asked looking at him while taking a bite from the stake.

“The voice tells me to go there.” He responded after finishing what remained of a steak and licking his hooves.

“What voice?” She  looked at him wondering what did she get herself into?

"The voice inside my head of course. It tells me to go somewhere south and the Steam-City could be the location I’m looking for.” C said after he finished licking his hooves and looked at her with the corner of his eyes.

                   Inky was a bit confused, she wanted to go with him, because of her curiosity, but now that she heard this. She kept asking herself what did she get herself into? C rose up from the ground and gave Inky a hoof and looked at her.

"Don't worry Inky, I won't hurt you. I promise I'll take care of you." C turned around to see the bark underneath were they slept last night and after a few seconds after looking at it he and Inky started walking once more.

                 The Ever Free Forest was always mysterious and terrifying to the ponies, due to that they rarely journeyed inside it. A large part was unexplored, but this doesn’t matter to our two travelers, C was attracted by the unknown and adventure, Inky was just glad she had with whom to journey.

                Although she knew that the moment will come when she’ll have to part from C and live once more alone, although he wants to leave her in a place where she could have friends and live in peace. The white-furred mare can’t stay in one place, staying all her life in a place is not her type, but she made an agreement.

                They kept walking in the Ever Free all day long, occasionally stopping to admire the surroundings and even escape the flora and fauna. Either being chased by a manticore or in the danger of being devoured by pony-eating plants, C always helped Inky, keeping her away from harm and she helped him.

                To escape the manticore wasn’t easy, but as they walked they laughed at the thought of how they escaped it, a “dance” between the bush and the trees, but they finally caught the manticore, but C didn’t do any harm to the manticore as Inky thought he would, the white changeling approached the captive manticore and freed it from the vines that withheld that magnificent creature as our hero described it.

"What a beautiful creature it was." C looked at the dusk sky and smiled.

"Indeed. From where I come there are no such creatures as manticores, but I am glad I saw one." She responded looking at him.

"heh... Let's go Inkidi! Night will catch up to us and I don't want to sleep underneath a bark again, but if you don't mindy sleeping on top of me again." C looked into Inky's eyes and smiled.

"Ow, look! Some branches and leaves maybe we can make a shelter! I'll go and gather some!" She went to gather some of the branches and leaves she saw.

"Did I say something wrong? Of course not, she didn't mind sleeping on my back... okay maybe it was awkwardy a tiny little bit." C spoke to himself.

"C, can you please go in search of some more branches?" Inky said to him after putting down some branches and leaves.

"Oki-doki Inky."

                   C went in the forest in search for some more branches while Inky went in search of something to cover the shelter. After a bit of walking and looking at the trees she saw a special one that grew big leaves and decided to cover the shelter with them.

                     She also found small stream and used two of the big leaves to take some of that water and bring it to camp. When she arrived at  the camp, C already prepared the branches and caught two rabbits so that they could eat something.

"Hey Inky! Nice leaves, you can you... you got the big one." He said staring at the leaves.

"What?" She looked at C trying to understand whatever he tried to say.

"It doesn't matter.... let me help you with those."

                      He then went to  help her arrange the leaves on top of the shelter. Inky saw that the white changeling was thirsty and gave him the water she brought from the stream, he gladly accepted the water and drank it in only one gulp.

                   The white mare was a bit surprised, but she kept arranging the leaves on the shelter while looking at C from times to times. At a point he was looking at her to see how she was doing, the white-furred mare blushed a bit, but he looked like he didn’t notice and returned to arranging the leaves. Together they finished the arrangement of the shelter then looked proudly at what they’ve done together.

"This is magnificent! You did a great job Inky." C smiled and looked at the mare

                      Without losing any more time he sat down in front of the will-be camp fire and took two sticks and tried to start a fire, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't manage to do it. Inky giggled a bit making him look at her.

"Why you giggling Inky?" C thought Inky couldn’t manage to do what he couldn’t, but he was so wrong at that part.

"Calm down C. Here, let me try." She approached the will-be campfire and took the sticks, but after putting them together she threw them away.

"Why did you do that?" He asked her looking into her eyes.

"Sorry C, but I don't need any sticks while I have another, faster and easier method." She replied looking at him.

"What method?" C looked at Inky with doubt.

"I'll show it to you, but first. I need my two rocky friends, Seth and James."

                           Inky took out of her fur two rocks and slightly knocked them together making a spark that lit up the small patch of dry grass. After the spark touched the dry grass she gently blew on the fire making it a bit bigger so that she could put it under the branches C brought. She turned her head a bit of her body to face C which was with his mouth wide opened.

"No, no, no, no! You didn't start the fire!" C told Inky staring at her.

"What do you mean C? The fire is right here." Inky pointed at the fire that looked like dancing.

"You cheated Inky! We were supposed to use sticks to start a fire. Here, let me show you." He took two sticks and

started rubbing them together, but to no avail.

"Okay, C. Can I try now?" She said stretching her right hoof so that C would give the sticks to her.

"I doubt you can do it Inky, but okay. Here, now show me where was I wrong."

                            Inky took the sticks and put under the top of one of them a dry piece of bark and started rubbing the two while keeping the top on the bark. C was sure she couldn't do it, although he felt bad for letting her try something that couldn't work anyway.

"Done!" Inky smiled and put her front hooves down letting C look at the small fire she started.

"B-b-b..." He tried to respond, but couldn't find the words. C gave up and accepted Inky’s success over him, he wasn’t  glad about it, but Inky poked him with her shoulder.

"I'm sure you could've done it too C. Don't be jelly, it's just a fire."She smiled at him and all the jealousy he could have disappeared.

"You're right Inky. You should teach me how to do that.." He put his hoof on Inky’s head and petted her.

                           He started to look like a good colt in her eyes, she knew you couldn’t judge somepony you just met after only one day, but she wanted to think she could and in her mind he was just that pony you could trust. Inky prepared the rabbit and put them above the fire, C looked at the fire with a sad look, he was thinking of something, but also he felt weak he couldn’t start a fire.

"Are you okay C?" She poked him with her shoulder.

"What... ? Oh, it's nothing, I'm fine, I'm fine." He responded to Inky the took a bite from his rabbit.

“You know C. I once had a friend that always thought he was good for nothing if he couldn’t do something other shape-shifters could, the truth is he was good at something other shape-shifters only dream of. Don’t be sad C, it’s just a fire, I’m sure you’re good at other things, who knows maybe greater than a stupid fire?” Inky said looking at C then at the fireplace smiling all along, as she reached the last words she looked at him and blinked.

“Oh, come here you silly filly.” C grabbed the white mare and rubbed her hair a bit.

                         The two ate the rabbits then proceeded to clear the remaining flesh from two boar pelts they skinned earlier this day. After doing so, the two went inside the shelter and covered themselves in those boar pelts.

                         But that night was colder than the previous one and Inky’s fur and boar pelt didn’t keep her very warm. C wasn’t doing any better, but seeing how Inky was shivering, he gave her his boar skin without caring about himself.

                          She simply couldn’t accept the skin seeing how C couldn’t stand cold weather, but he didn’t care. It didn't matter if she wanted it or not, he put the boar pelt over her making her warmer. He told her good night and went to sleep, after a minute he rolled on the opposite side, now facing Inky’s face. The mare couldn’t sleep knowing and seeing him shivering, she approached the colt and hugged him making him warmer.

                       Next morning they woke up early in the morning, they both had good dreams and at C’s suggestion the two made a bit of warming up before gathering their camp, taking a few branches and leaves with them in case they needed them for anything.

                       That day was filled with small misadventures, C almost fell into moving sand trying to jump over a pond after Inky which succeeded in jumping over it. To his luck, he caught a vine, Inky gasped relieved C didn’t fell into the moving sand.

                       He jumped on to Inky’s right side using his wings, although he wasn’t good at flying he could still use them to glide a short distance. The two then kept moving, Inky was attacked by a bear, but C didn’t let the bear get away with it. At the end of the fight, C got out with some bruises and wounds, but there was nothing Inky’s plant knowledge couldn’t do.

                        Plus, they now had a bear pelt. The day also brought the two to a small lake where both of them went for a swim, they both liked to swim. C confessed to her his love for swimming and how he’d go in the summers and swim in the old sea of his birth land.

                        Night came today as well, and the two quickly made the shelter and the fire, Inky taught C how to start a fire just as promised. When they went to sleep, they had now a big bear pelt and decided to sleep together underneath it keeping each other warm.

                        They kept traveling like this for about four more days finally being close to the Steam-City. After this night, the two would be able to go and see the city, but this almost made Inky nervous thinking that C would leave her in the city if he’d find a good place for her to stay.

                         But she wouldn’t be so easy to leave behind, but C looked like a pony that kept his word, and so she decided not to upset him seeing what he did for her this past week they’ve been traveling across the Ever Free Forest. Next morning would bring the two to the ending of an adventure and the beginning of another.

“Good morning C.” Inky woke up and stretched her hooves “C?”

                         But there was nopony around, no fire ready to make their dinner, she thought C left her there. She looked in the shelter then she taught he would prank her, so she exited the shelter and with a smile she talked to C as if he was there.

                         The white-furred mare looked around, but there was no C anywhere to be seen. She heard some movement coming from the bush so she went to see what was it. Suddenly Inky was pulled down on the ground by C which showed her to make no sound.

                          Inky stared at him and wanted to know what was going on, but before she could say anything, the sound of ponies marching echoed throughout the forest and she saw as entire lines of legs passed in front of them. She figured it out, C heard this coming and that’s why he didn’t prepare anythingm he didn't want to attract any unwanted attention.

"What's going on? Are those guards?"  She looked and whispered to him.

                           C nodded his head as he kept watching the ponies march, Inky moved her head a little bit so that she could see the ponies better. As she looked at hem, she saw that all the ponies had wings, they were all pegasi.

"They're only pegasi." She whispered to C.

"How interesting." He replied without taking his eyes off the ponies.

                        The ponies kept marching for about six minutes, the two barely stood still all this time. After a few more seconds after the march had finished, Inky and C went towards the direction the ponies had marched to and saw themselves above a hill. Down wad huge beach filled with tents, storage deposits, a small fortress and a great wall with huge towers where more pegasi were put to guard.

“What is that?” the blue mare asked staring down the hill.

“C what’s going on? Have you seen such a thing before?” the blue mare asked C which was also staring down.

“I’m afraid I know Inky.” C said , after he looked one more time at the beach, pretty surprised

“This is a military camp, and by the looks of it. I say...” C said turning his head to look at his companion

"We are in the middle of a war." He said looking into her eyes.

“A war?!” Inky said looking at the white changeling.

“We should go. Wars are a dangerous thing where ponies lose their lives fighting each other instead of working together.” C said looking down the hill with a very serious face.

“Let’s check it out.” She quickly moved his head to look at Inky and smiled revealing his teeth.

“C are you Insane?!” Inky said staring at the white changeling that was moving towards their shelter.

“Yes Inky, I am insane. Now let’s go and see what’s going on.” He after he had finished taking down the shelter and taking the bear pelt on his back.

“C, they’ll kill us on sight. How do you plan to enter?” the white-furred mare asked C.

                   C didn’t say anything and moved forwards to look once more down the hill, but he heard hooves and the wheels of a wagon moving towards them.C hid in the bush and stalked what seemed to be a supply wagon pulled by four pegasi. The pegasi’s cart didn’t have the same symbol as the  armors the others wore when marching in front of him and the white-furred mare just moments ago.

                  He kept stalking the pegasi until he saw an opening then he jumped out of the brush knocking out one of the them then grabbing his spear he knocked out the other pegasi pretty fast, himself being scratched only once. He pulled the ponies and the wagon in the brush where the two traveler’s shelter was.

"Hey Inky. Have you ever seen this symbol before?" He asked his companion.

"I'm afraid I didn't." She responded nodding her head.

                   C used some rope he found in the wagon to tie up the pegasi to a tree and he also used some pieces of cloth to also tie up their mouths. He then put on the clothes the ponies were wearing and also made Inky put them on.

"Wait! I know these clothes. They are worn by pegasi merchants, I met a few before meeting you C, but our encounter could've ended so much better." She replied looking at the clothes then at C.

"How do I look? Fashionable enough?" He asked Inky after putting the clothes on.

"You look funny."

                   She replied to C which smiled revealing his teeth and then turned around and tried to pull the wagon with his front hooves. Inky giggled a bit then went next to C and told him to turn around then she mounted the wagon on his back.

"Inky! How dare you? Does it look like I have bad teeth and a face that will make paint crack? Or more simplified... Do I flishing look like a flishing mule?" He looked at the white-furred mare, but she closed her eyes and smiled.

                      C gasped a bit then with his head almost near the ground he started moving the wagon, but he barely managed to pull it a few centimeters. Inky giggled once more at C which was forcing himself to the max to pull the wagon, but he suddenly stopped and turned his head to look at his companion.

"Stop laughing at me! Look Inky, if you think you can do better. Why don't you pull the wagon?"

                                 He said and to his surprise Inky accepted his challenge and with a smile she easily pulled the wagon and gently slapped him with her long tail making him close his mouth. The two kept moving without saying anything to each other. C looked around while Inky was trying to hide her long tail. The two eventually reached the main gate leading to the camp, but they were stopped by the guards that held spears towards them.

"Halt! Who are you?!" The guards asked them, but  C moved a spear down with his right hoof.

"Now, now, there's no need for sharpy stuff like this. I don't want anymore hole... I mean I don't want any holes in my skin." C said then gave the guards a wide smile.

"You are taking our time, tell us who you are or we're going to dig some holes into you." One of the guards said pointing his spear at C.

"Do you have any idea how awkward that sounds? Anyways! Look at us feather brains, we are merchants from... from you know... " C tried to find a name, but the guards saw the symbol on the wagon.

"You are from Cloudsdale?" A guard asked staring at C.

"Yes! I mean, yes we surely are from Cloudsdale, what a feather brain I am. Well let us in maybe?" C stared at the guards which then looked at each other and proceeded opening the gate.

"You may enter."

                        The guards responded and moved aside letting C and Inky pass the gates and inside the camp. Behind the gates, the earth was completely void of any grass, you could only see the yellowish rock and sand. It was clear that there was a lot of marching there.

                        Even when they entered, a regiment consisting in not more than one thousand pegasi were marching through the camp towards what seemed to be a training ground while other pegasi were in the air training for close combat or long ranged assault.

                        C had his eyes staring at every detail of the camp, he saw a siege engine. A ballista mounted to six pegasi, three on each side and four pegasi, two in the front and two in the back of the contraption. More than ten ballistas joined the lonely machinery and then the ponies flew them up into the air.

                          The ballistas were followed by twenty huge arrow storages that were raised from the ground, each by about twelve pegasi. C and Inky were stopped by a blue colt. The two gulped slowly thinking they've been caught.

"You're going the wrong way, merchants. Follow me."

                       They followed the blue colt. Inky gasped relieved that they didn’t get caught, but C just followed the colt with a smile. For a reason the white-furred mare was afraid that what happened a week ago would happen again. C would become that ponycidal monster she first encountered and kill everypony in the camp.

                     They kept following the blue colt until they reached what seemed to be a fortress, they entered inside it through the massive gates that closed after they entered and a group of about twenty pegasi surrounded the two pointing their spears at them.

                     The blue colt in front of them moved back letting an older pegasi with his face filled with scars, revealing the fact that he went through a lot of fights on the front. But, the scar that passed his right eye was the most noticeable one.

                     C looked at the scar and saw that the scar could only be made by a fire weapon. He stared at the colt with a very serious face wile Inky gulped slowly thinking how they could  escape. She also was preparing to run in case C would become once more the ponycidal monster she first met.

Who are you?” the pegasi general asked C with a sword stretched towards his neck.

“I’m a merchant and I brought you supplies. What else could I be?” C said smiling at the general.

"Yes... perhaps." The general moved to C's back and swiftly cut of his clothes revealing his wings.

“A Changeling!” The soldiers yelled and were pointing the spears even more ferociously at him

"Upsy-mezy..." C said with a smile while staring at the soldiers.

"Now, let's see who are you."The general approached the white mare and tore her clothes of revealing her fur and her long tail.

"It can't be." A soldier said staring at her.

"Surround her!" Another soldier yelled and they all surrounded her leaving C only guarded by the blue colt that escorted them.

"Hey! I wanted to be the star... stupid ponies, at least you love me." C smiled while staring at the blue colt.

"W-what? I don't love you." The blue colt replied.

"I can't believe it. I haven't seen a shape-shifter since I was in the north a month ago. Your kind surely knows how to fight and kill." The general said glaring at Inky while touching her jaw with his hoof.

"Don't be so, I saw the look in your eyes, you are melting for me. I know I am sexy, but not that sexy." C moved his snout closer to the blue colts snout.

"W-what are you even..." The pony tried to say something.

"Shhh, you don't need to say anything. We are flishing in this together." C whispered to the colt moving his hoof on the colts chest.

"Uhm.... " He couldn't say anything and started sweating and trembling.

"I feel pretty flishing groomish all of a sudden!" C yelled at the blue colt, but the other ponies didn't even flinch.

"What!?!" The blue colt screamed and C feel on the ground laughing as hard as he could.

"I.... I simply can't believe how easy it was! You ponies are so easy to troll!" C kept laughing while the pony was too shocked to say anything.

"What should I do to you? Kill then stuff you, or sell you as a pet?" The general looking at Inky.

“What?! How dare you!?”C yelled at the general.

"Yes! Look out general because my friend is quite dangerous." Inky said staring at the pegasi.

"How dare you?! Give so much attention to Inky?!" C yelled staring at the general while Inky couldn't believe what she heard and couldn't close her mouth.

"I demand you give me attention and point those spear thingies at me!" After saying this four pegasi turned towards C pointing their spears towards his neck, but they were less tense than those surrounding Inky.

“On second thought you can take them away from my neck, please.” said C with a scared smile on his face.

                        The general moved towards Inky ordering his colts to hold her down then staring into her eyes he wondered what was she doing in there and why is she with a changeling. The general seemed to know something about the shape-shifters.

"I wonder? How comes you two didn't kill each other on sight? Isn't that how your species behave?The general approached Inky and glared into her eyes while she was held to the ground by his soldiers.

"You can't blame her she came with me. I'm simply fabulous!" The white changeling said widely smiling at the general.

"Then tell me... " The general jumped in the air then fell in front of C and pointed his sword at his throat.

"Why shouldn't I kill you two right here and now?" The general glared at him.

"Well, if I ain't mistaking. If you really wanted to kill us you would have done it by now."he looked into the general's eyes which put his sword away.

"You are a smart one, aren't you? You don't normally meet smart changelings."The colt then turned towards Inky.

"Take them to the prison." The pegasi grabbed C and Inky and followed the general towards the prison.

"C can I ask you something?" Inky said staring at him as they were escorted to the prison.

"You already did, but yes. You can ask me another thing." C looked at her.

"Okay, why didn't you become a maniac like when we first met?" She asked him with a serious face.

"Well, one I ain't angry and two I am not hungry so I shan't kill anypony." C looked towards the direction the two were taken.

"I knew this was a bad idea C, but I think we can escape somehow." She whispered to him.

"Why should we Inky? We got in didn't we? Now we can explore as much as our hearts desire."He replied to her making her a bit nervous.

"General, might I ask you with whom are you at war exactly? I  know this ain't a simple training camp where if you drop your soap in the shower you will get a pretty nasty surprise if you bend over for it." C stared grinning at the general which stopped and turned to face him.

"You really are smart, especially to that remark. We are at war with the foolish earth-ponies and unicorns of the Steam-City. A city filed with incredible devices your kind couldn't even dream of. A place where it's said the floors move by their own ans huge towers of metal shine above the Great White River." The general grinned glaring at C.

"Interesting, but I wonder general, please telly-tell me. Why are you ponies fighting each other? Shouldn't you stay together and I don't know eat grass or something? And more importantly why doesn't this camp have any other ponies except pegasi?" C stared into the generals eyes moving closer to him.

"Quite interested are we? Well, seeing you are no trouble for us I can tell you. Equestria is a a kingdom indeed, but it's split in regions that have a complete freedom on their internal and external politics. We can go at war with other regions and Equestria isn't obliged to enter our conflicts if they do not put in danger the entire kingdom. But, if Equestria did interfere, it would cause quite a scandal and suspicion between the region. The only thing Princess Celestia can do is try a more diplomatic approach." He turned then around and started walking once more towards the prison.

"How fascinating indeed. But, I still have a question remaining general. Why are you at war in the first place?" C asked the general while they kept moving.

"It's none of your business, but I can say that the machinery of the steamers are a great danger to our kind. The Steam-City and Wigonia, our city state, have been at war for the past twenty years. Fortunately for us, the pegasi city of Cloudsdale send mercenaries in our aid and the pegsi of Las Pegasus send us funds to wage this never ending war."

                 C knew the general was telling him this, because he thought that the white-furred mare and the brown-haired changeling couldn’t do anything, they were only prisoners not allied with any important place. Still, the general feared that a changeling swarm could be close and the fact C and Inky were there made him think it was a distraction.

                  The fact a shape-shifter was traveling with a changeling made him even more suspicious. Thinking that the swarm could make the shape-shifters come and attack their camp leading to an onslaught. Killing them was not an option, if the changeling died, he feared the swarm could be even more vicious, seeing how smart he was. And if he killed the shape-shifter, her kind would enter a berserking stance and leave no pegasus alive. The ponies ponies finally arrived at the prison and threw the two inside a cell and locked the door.

"Whatever is coming towards us, we are more than prepared to take care of it."

                          C was wondering what the general could mean, but didn’t show this thinking that he could keep both him and Inky alive this way. He only told the general to be careful, for that there’s a storm heading towards them. He then left leaving four of his veteran soldiers to guard them.

"Captain! I want you to mobilize your forces. Secure both the western and eastern parts of the camp." The general ordered the blue colt after arriving outside.

                        In the east there was the once Huge Green Forest, now only twenty percent of its former glory. The west side represented the Ever Free Forest. The general knew a changeling swarm could easily attack them from there so t most of his colts were to defend that area while the rest would guard the Green Forest for any shape-shifter incursion.

                       The other pegasi would still focus on the defense of the Great Barrier, a long line of massive walls and towers built to keep the Steam-City away from the mainland. But, the ponies of the city were very resourceful seeing that after more than twenty years of war they did not surrender.

                        Inside the cell there was a window from which C could see what was going. He didn’t speak with Inky for two hours, he didn’t say this, but he felt responsible for putting her in that cell. The ponies could enter any time and kill them.

                      That’s why he didn’t want to take her with him, wherever the voice would guide C, he knew it wouldn’t be a pleasant and safe place. This was his life after all, he said to himself while looking outside. After two hours of silence, Inky went near him.

"Do you have any plan of getting out C?" She asked him looking at the window.

"Who needs any plans Inky? Just go with the flow, something will pop out sooner or later." The white changeling looked at her with a smile.

"That's reassuring."The white-furred mare sat next to C’s left side and said with a said voice.

"I'm sorry for dragging you into this Inky, but after we get out of here. I shall get you to somewhere safe then come back to find whatever the voice wants me to find." He said this to her after looking at the floor, but after he said it, Inky hit him with her right hoof.

"You are not going to leave me C! We are in this together and we shall see the end of this together!"

                         Inky then moved away from him and sat laid down to rest. C didn't know what to say anymore to make things any better and decided he would rest for now and try to find a way out eventually although the voice pretty much wanted him to stay in there for an unknown reason.

                         Nothing important happened during that day. Inky went to sleep because she was quite tired from the road while C looked outside the window and saw the soldiers training for an upcoming fight. That scene brought him back a memory from his past that made him stop looking outside the barred window.

                        No food was brought to them that day either leaving them pretty hungry and C started starring at the ceiling and singing about food, the sing being clearly made by him seeing there was no rhyme, but it had a sort of interesting rhythm.

                        C eventually went to sleep around midnight after speaking to himself about found, mainly about meat and how he'd do anything to get some right then. Next day came, Inky was awake when C finally decided to step out of dram land around two in the afternoon.

                       The white-furred seemed to be looking around for a way to get, but eventually gave up and sat down in the back of the cell. She was quite hungry and she wanted to punish the pegasi for this treatment, but she calmed down and tried to forget about food.

"Hey Inky... Inky... Inkyyyy." C approached the white-furred mare with a creepy look on his face.

"Y-yes C?" She asked him with a confused voice.

"Inky... I've... found food!" C made a quick movement making his snout touch her's.

"Y-y-yes? I'm glad... uhm, where is it?" She stared into his eyes.

"Here it is!" C moved back a few steps and showed her a bug in his right hoof he caught.

"Aaaaa! C that's a bug! You can't possibly eat that!" C yelled at him after she jumped back at the sight of the bug.

"Nonsense, everypony knows bugs can be eaten. Look." C put the bug inside his mouth and ate it slowly making Inky barely hold herself from vomiting, as such as the guards.

"Tastes like chicken." C then licked his right hoof with his unusually long tongue.

"How's that even possible?" A guard said and C heard him.

"How you ask? Easy, survival! And guess what?! I have some for you too, come on eat with me." C stretched his right hoof to give the guards the several bugs he found in the cell.

"No thank you." One of the guards said.

"Suit yourself. Inky do you want some? I know you want, why do I even ask? Open your mouth." C put left hoof over Inky's neck .

"No C, I don't need any..." Unfortunately for her, he managed to put a few bugs in her mouth and she swallowed them involuntary, then C ate the rest.

"I'm going to vomit..."

                       A guard said then ran outside being joined by his fellow pegasi after a few seconds. Inky fell on the ground and tried to stop herself from barfing, but her stomach which was now disgusted by what C gave her to eat didn't help her. Nothing special happened until that night when C finally got sick from eating those bugs and tried to get rid of the taste by licking the iron bars of his cell.

"Damn it! Why did I eat bugs?!" C shouted at the ceiling with his tongue on the straw covered floor.

                     C eventually went to sleep and the next day finally came. This day found C so bored he started singing once more, while Inky tried one more time to find a way out. But, his singing was interrupted by the sound of something big being pulled outside their cell.

                        He looked outside the window and saw a white-robbed pegasus in front of a covered device being pulled by about twenty pegasi. The white robbed colt put his hoof on the blanket that covered the huge machinery and pulled it off, revealing a zeppelin.

                      C saw zeppelins before, but he seemed surprised to see one there. Inky could say C was scared, but the changeling wouldn't normally show it. He gulped slowly measuring the zeppelin with his eyes, while doing that he heard the robbed pegasi explaining the new model of the war-zeppelin and how it was built after studying the wreckages of the steamer’s flying devices. Right at that moment a shouting was heard coming from the barricade. From the water side, around twenty zeppelins were heading with great speed towards the camp.

                 Outside, the pegasi were mounting their positions ready to attack the steamer's contraptions. From the barricade, the windows of the towers opened revealing huge ballistas that begun throwing their huge arrows at the zeppelins.

                    The impressive machines weren’t hit by any arrows and approached the camp with a terrifying speed. The pegasi-carried ballista’s flew in the air and begun firing at the war-machines, only hitting one with multiple arrows that exploded in the air, its wreckage hit one of the towers destroying it.

                   The other zeppelins charged with their metal fronts at the ballistas destroying them and killed some ponies. Usually, zeppelins would have helium-filled balloons above them, but these machines didn’t have any s above them, but had a big propeller in the back and six furnaces from which a lot of smoke was coming out.

                   As soon as the zeppelins were above the barricade and the fortress, they revealed the canons that were mounted on their bellies and begun firing big balls of iron that exploded on impact with the pegasi buildings. One of the canon-balls hit the pegasi new zeppelin model killing the robbed pony and destroying the wall with the window where C and Inky where imprisoned.

                  The siege kept going, until the pegasi’s zeppelins were in the air. They had helium-filled balloons above them, but were powerful, maybe not as powerful as the steamer’s machines that presented canons, but were very resistant.

                   An aerial combat began. The cannon-balls of the steamers filled the sky with explosions and fumes, the wreckages of the pegasi zeppelins hit the ground destroying parts of the training camps, some storages and most of the barracks and tents where the soldiers were living.

                  The arrows of the pegasi-zeppelin’s hit the steamer’s machinery destroying most of their cannons and making some of the machinery explode killing everypony inside. The battle still kept going until out of nowhere a lightning bolt hit one of the steamer’s machinery and made it explode.

                    From the horizon C and inky, which were running through the ruins of the camp, saw a huge city nested on huge clouds, it was Wigonia. The huge city of the pegasi arrived to help their soldiers. At the sight of the great city, the steamers knew that running was not an option, none would escape.

                   But, instead an earth-pony aboard what seemed to be the flag-ship ordered the ponies to go full-speed towards the city using all their cannon-balls on destroying the buildings on the clouds, while the lightning bolts destroyed the machinery.

                  Only the flag-ship escaped the lightning-bolts, and the ponies inside rammed the machinery into the city while singing a sad song. When they rammed their machinery into the cloud-sustained city, they made a huge tower collapse destroying all the buildings around it and killing around three hundred pegasi that were near it.

               Down in the ruined camp, the pegasi were laughing and celebrating the fact that once more, they’ve annihilated the steamer’s dream of destroying the Barricade. Although, up in their city the dead pegasi were gathered for a funeral and most of the population was sad for has happened.

              While these happened, C and Inky were hiding from the pegasi that were gathering the dead. They found a place where they could  hide until the evening. It was once a storage, now only a ruin, filled with broken armors, weapons and food supplies.

             Before entering the ruined building, they had to knock out a few pegasi, but, they didn’t leave them in the open. The two dragged the unconscious pegasi, tied them up and hid them underneath some wreckages then proceeded to the ruined storage.

                 That night, most of the pegasi were up in their city above, while the others were still guarding the eastern forest, western forest, the Barricade and were searching for the two escapees. Two soldiers were patrolling a ruined training field searching for the two, when a shadowy figure pulled one of them down.

                 The other pegasi saw his friend that had his throat cut wide open and with blood pouring out of it. The shadowy figure pointed towards the guard with what seemed to him a metal stick with a hole in the middle. The shadowy pony smiled then a loud noise was heard throughout the ruins.

                 The earth-pony ran from that place, encountering other soldiers, but she pointed the metal stick at them, and loud noises were heard once more. On those the figure didn’t use the stick, it used a sword to stab them or cut their throats. The soldiers were already alarmed and split up to find the stranger. C and inky were woken up by the noise made by the hooves and screams of the guards moving around the ruined building.

                  The two moved towards the back of the ruined storage. They were cautious not to make any sound. C was looking at the back of the storage, while Inky was behind him and kept staring at the front of the ruined building, while being careful of each sound made by the guards.

                At the same time, the figure entered through the back of the storage silently. C saw no movement, but heard the guards moving towards the front, while the figure saw some guards stationed in the back of the storage.

              Inky kept looking at the front part, as well as C. The figure and him moved ever closer and in the end they touched each other's butt. Both him and the figure turned to face each other, the figure slapped him, but he slapped the pony back.

             Then she slapped him again and he gave the same treatment to her. Inky intervened and told them to stop, after saying that the grey mare pulled a sword and pointed it at C’s throat and the metal stick towards Inky’s head ready to take them at the same time.

“Ok, calm down please. I want no holes in my skin.” C sat down with his front hooves up in the air at the same level his as his head.

“You’re a changeling and she’s a… whatever she is. Anyway she’s not a pony, by the way I like your necklace.” said the grey mare staring at the white changeling.

“Thank you. Inky why don’t you ever mention my necklace?” C stared at his white-furred companion.

“C I think we’re in a worse situation than your necklace.” She responded pointing her head towards the grey mare.

“That’s not true, there’s never such a bad situation so that you can not compliment a necklace.” The grey mare said pointing at the necklace with her sword.

“Yeah Inky! There’s never a bad situation. Why didn’t you ever ask of my necklace?” said C then the three started arguing, but were finally stopped by the sound of guards approaching the ruined storage.

“I say we first take care of not letting these guards enter.”

                     Said C laying down in the ruins with both mares, cautious about not making any sound. The two mares agreed and Inky turned towards the entrance while the grey mare pointed her metallic stick towards the back of the storage.

"Keep the gun down. The last thing we need is making any noise." The white changeling said

" How do you know about guns?" The gray mare asked very surprised.

"Because my dear gray friend, I am simply me." The white changeling said to her.

"Can you two please shut up?" Inky stared at the two making sure not to make a loud noise. After a while the guards moved away from the storage. C and the two mares relaxed and decided to introduce themselves.

"My name is Captain Snow Dawn of the eight Stalliongrad regiment sent to help the Steam-City end this war."

“Stalliongrad? I already like you.” C said to the mare.

"How comes?" She asked him.

"Let's say I just like the sound of it. Oh, right! I am C by the way." The white changeling replied replied closing his eyes.

"And who are you miss?" The grey earth-pony asked.

"I am Blue Ink, but you can call me Inky and I am a shape-Shifter." The white-furred mare said.

"Nice to meet you both then." The gray mare said.

"Yes, yes, but you know what's really important right now Snowy?" The white changeling said looking at her.

"What?" She asked him.

"Your cape. I mean look at it! Is this cotton?" C grabbed Snow's cape and petted it.

"Yes it is. I made it myself." She replied looking at him.

"Then you are very skilled. I used to have a cape once too." He looked at her after letting the cape out of his hooves.

"But I do like your necklace, is that a diamond?" She looked at C's necklace.

"Yes, it is."  He said looking at the necklace.

"Guys? Don't you think there are more important things right now than a necklace and a cape?"

"Yes, maybe, probably, for sure." C replied looking at Inky.

"Snow, I'm curious. How did you get into the camp?" Inky asked her.

"My flag-zeppelin crushed into the Wigonian Administration Tower... I was the only one that got away in time." She looked at the ground to her right side feeling bad for the ponies that died.

"I'm sorry to hear that Snow." Inky touched her right shoulder with her right front hoof.

"I'm okay... they did their duty. I only wish that they had got to the parachutes in time." She replied looking at the white-furred mare.

"It's okay Snow, things like this happen. What's a parachute?" Inky asked looking at the gray mare.

"A parachute is this... well... a big piece of cloth put inside a backpack that when opened helps you land safely on the ground. Anyway, I was wondering? What is a changeling doing here anyway?" She stared into C's eyes waiting for a response.

"Let's just say I am special." C said looking at her.

"Well, that being said. Do you have a plan of getting out of here?" Inky asked the gray mare which moved at the back of the storage and saw through a crack a pegasi-zeppelin.

"i think I do. If we can get inside that zeppelin I think I could pilot it back to the Steam-City." The gray mare said looking at the two.

           C looked through a crack in the wall and after analyzing the are better he agreed. The plan was simple, C and Inky would have to go in the front and take out as silent as possible the pegasi they’d encounter while Snow would follow them and make sure she doesn’t use her gun to attract more pegasi.

           After a few minutes of sneaking, taking out pegasi and standing still. The three reached the zeppelin which was surrounded by six guards. Snow wanted to use her gun to take them out, but C stopped her, because it was enough that if they went up in the sky they’d attract attention.

           But, they didn’t need more attention before they flew up. Instead he made Inky sneak behind them while Snow would make a distraction. During this distraction the white-furred mare would knock unconscious the pegasi that still guarded the machinery and Snow would also make sure the distracted ones do not return. The three entered the zeppelin and after closing the doors C and Inky went to the propeller room to start the engines while Snow would fly it into the air.

"Uhm... C, do you know how to start this?" Inky asked the white changeling.

"Nope, not the slightest idea, but I know how we can make them start!" He replied looking at the engines.

"You do realize you denied yourself, right?" Inky replied staring at C which opened  small door to some sort of small wheels and tubes.

"Yep, I do!" He stared much closer at the content behind the door.

"Still, how are we going to make this work?" She staring at other pieces of machinery.

"Well, I really have no idea how, but I have an idea." He replied  looking at Inky's face.

"You did it again." She said to him, but after she said it, C hit the box with his right back hoof and the propellers started working.

"See? I told you I have an idea." He said moving towards the exit.

                 After they rose up into the air and headed towards the river, one pegasi inside one of the ruined towers alerted the others and then hell broke loose. The pegasi arrows were aimed at the zeppelin, but luck was with them for that the pegasi ballista’s were either destroyed or unmounted. But C and Inky went to the ballista’s on board and started firing their huge arrows at the pegasi on top of the Barricade, damaging it even more than the steamer’s assault did.

               The zeppelin was hit by a few arrows, but nothing too bad. C and inky joined Snow in the flying room and helped her fly the zeppelin. Snow explained to the two the little he knew about flying zeppelins. After about ten minutes of flight, the three were in sight of the Steam-City.

                  C looked at the city through the window and saw huge towers rising from the river, lights everywhere across the buildings and a very impressive wall, even greater than the Great Barricade’s walls. Inky also looked at the city amazed of its beauty.

"Uhm... Snow? We're in a pegasi zeppelin and I don't think the ponies down there know this." She said after looking at the wall making Snow’s smile suddenly fade away and was replaced by a worried look and a grin.

“Upsi.” She said looking at Inky with the corner of her eyes.

               After that sentence the sky was filled with explosions. Everywhere around them cannonballs were exploding. The zeppelin started shaking, the three were thrown in all directions while Inky saw as the huge towers on the walls opened their roof tops and around ten canons inside each one of them. Huge lights mounted on the walls and towers were fixed on the zeppelin. C told the two mares to come after him for that he had a plan. The two mares went after him barely keeping themselves on all fours.

"Snow, do you know if these zeppelins have any parachutes?" C asked her while running down the corridor.

"Yes. Some steamer veterans told me that even the pegasi need parachutes, in case of wing injuries." She replied looking at him while running.

             As they moved forwards the long corridor to what seemed to the side entrances where parachutes should be. The bottom of the corridor was hit by a cannonball, Inky was stranded on the other side of the zeppelin which shaking on all sides.

"Come on Inky! Jumpy-jump!" C yelled at her from the other side.

"C are you crazy?!" She yelled back at him.

"Of course I am! Now jumpy-jump already!" She looked down and got a bit scared of the altitude, but she knew this was the only solution.

                  She moved back and after she took speed she jumped over the gap. She opened her eyes and looked down and saw another cannonball heading towards her, but C caught her and pulled her away before the cannonball hit her. He lay down on the ground and Inky on top of him.

“That was close.” Inky slapped him.

"Thank you." She thanked him looking to her left.

"I suggest we keep moving." The gray mare said and the two followed her immediately.

                  The three had finally at the side entrances and saw the parachutes. Both entrances were destroyed and in the middle of the floor there was a huge gap that separated the parachutes. Snow jumped on what remained of the floor to take three parachutes throwing two to C and Inky.

“See you down.” She put the parachute on her back and made a back flip jumping through the gap in the floor.

C held Inky’s neck tight around his hooves and put the parachute on her back.

"I promised I'd take care of you." Holding his parachute around his neck he jumped with Inky out the left entrance of the zeppelin.

"Here we go!" He yelled as they jumped.

                 Inky was scared from what altitude the two were falling down, she heard and explosion and turned to see the zeppelin explode and its debris was heading towards them. C mounted the parachute on his back and laughed.

"I didn't have so much fun in a while!" C yelled looking at Inky.

"C, you're crazy!" Inky yelled at him.

"I know!" C then pointed his hooves back and pointed himself forwards increasing the speed of his fall. Inky saw him doing this then after seeing the debris heading towards her she did the same.

"C, what do I use a parachute?" She yelled at him after she reached him.

"One, relax. Two, at my signal we pull this rope."

                They were falling even faster and C saw that it was time to open the parachute so he gave the order, but Inky’s parachute did not open no matter how hard she tried. He saw that and after taking off his parachute he headed towards Inky and opened the bag without pulling the rope. The parachute almost hit him. The force with which the parachute opened dragged Inky up while C kept falling. He smiled then opened his wings and after breathing deeply he tried to use them.

"C!" She yelled from above as her friend was falling down.

“That’s my name!”

                 He opened his wings and after making a rotation he glided using them. To his luck, he wasn’t far from the ground so he managed to glide a bit then seeing he couldn’t use his wings anymore he fell from a safe distance on the ground. Inky landed on the ground and after taking off her parachute, she headed towards C that rose up from the ground and cleaned himself of any dust on his skin.

"Hi there Inky." She said to her as she approached, but she slapped him then hugged him.

"Never do this again!" She stared into his eyes.

                        C wanted to say something, but the two were soon surrounded by steamer soldiers pointing muskets towards them. The guards were equipped from head to tail with a beautiful armor. At first sight, the armor was both beautiful and heavy.

                         One pony approached and after C looked at him, he recognized the clothes and cape being similar to those Snow wore. But, they weren’t so torn apart and the wearer was a colt with a big moustache and a scar on his snout.

"Fire!" The scared colt yelled staring at the two.

"Stop! They're with me." Snow came from the back of the soldiers making them stop aiming at the two.

              The colts stared at Snow, surprised she was still alive. The scared colt ran towards Snow and hugged her, he then welcomed her daughter back. Snow was happy to see her father too then told him how C and Inky helped her escape the pegasi camp and that they were on their side.

              The scared colt saluted them and thanked the two for bringing his daughter back. C smiled and said that it was their pleasure, the colt’s daughter is quite a resourceful and handy one. He then stopped suddenly and stared behind Snow.

"C, are you okay?" Snow stared at C.

"This happened before in the Ever Free Forest." Inky told them while he suddenly snapped out of it.

"Indeed, Snow is quite... Aaaaaaghhh!" C fell on the ground screaming while touching his head with his hooves. The ponies were surprised and jumped to help C, but as sudden as the scream started, C rose from the ground.

“Something’s coming.” The ponies looked confused at him.

"What is coming?" The scared colt asked.

”Something big is coming.” C replied looking at the colt while in the city of Wigonia the eye scared general was in a throne room looking outside a window towards the direction the zeppelin went.

"Is everything ready?" A young colt on the throne asked the general.

"Tomorrow the Steam-City will be filled with our soldiers, sir." The general said after he turned towards the young colt.

"Excellent."The colt on the throne grinned.

               Snow and her father escorted C and Inky to a luxury inn, but they couldn't manage to discuss anything seeing that C fell on the bed the first second he entered the room, Inky joined him immediately, she was too tired to stay awake any longer.

                  Next morning, C and Inky were escorted from the inn the great building in the middle of the city. It was the tallest building in the entire city, it’s top scratching the very clouds above. Inky was amazed and couldn’t stop staring at the massive building, C looked at her and smiled. The street beneath their hooves was moving on its own.

                 Snow explained how the steamers used the steam and electricity they produce from various engines to make the floors move, the light posts to lit up at night and power up their various contraptions. The steamers were a society that was technologically advanced and were fixed on scientific breakthroughs, anything that made their lives easier. But, unfortunately the past twenty years of war left the scientific community of the steamers to research new warfare devices, but on the bright side they discovered methods to use less resources and use everything to their advantage.

               As C and Inky walked inside the huge building they saw inside guards and elegantly dressed ponies that entered and exited various room. The two alongside Snow and her father entered a small chamber and Snow explained that the chamber is going to move upwards and the name of that chamber was an elevator, but C stole Snow’s word from her mouth.

              The elevator moved up, but  as they moved they could see that the elevator they were in had a window that enabled them to view of the city below them. Inky looked at the city and couldn't believe how beautiful and amazing it was while C just stood there smiling while looking at the city.

"I missed such sights." Only Inky heard him say that.

               Inside the top of the massive building there was a huge decorated door and behind it was a great throne room. The walls were decorated with painted glass symbolizing different heroes or rulers of the city, some showed the hard working and trustful ponies of the Steam-City in their Golden-Age prior to the Great War.

                 As C, Inky, Snow and her father moved towards the throne they saw guards in beautiful decorated armor and helmets. On the throne sat an old colt with a crown on his head and a medium sized beard that joined his moustache. In front of the throne was another distinguishable colt that were a helmet made to resemble a crown and with a very beautiful armor with a long red cape. Those two were most certainly the rulers of the city.

"Greetings strangers and welcome to our city. I am king Golden Sky. Ruler of the Steam-City for over forty-six years and this is my son, Blue Dream." The old colt said looking at Inky and C.

"Nice to meet you Goldy." C replied with a smile.

"How dare you speak like that to my father?!" Blue Dream put his right front hoof at his sword ready to take it out.

"Calm down son. I do not mind." The king replied looking at his son which let go of the sword.

"Nowy-now, seeing that we settled this. I am curious? How did this war begin?" C asked the king looking into his eyes.

"Twenty years ago. The Steam-City and Wigonia were allies, but the ruler of Wigonia died in mysterious circumstances and in his place came another pegasi that wanted all the riches and technology of the Steam-City and so the pegasi attacked the city of Shtrahmn." The king said, but stopped to couh then kept telling the story.

"Shtrahmn was located where the Barricade is now. I begged Princess Celestia to intervene and stop this war, but she was unable to so. There were other urgent matters to attend to and the fact the regions were given their own administration made her refuse. After she told me that I declare the Steam-City Independent from Equestria as long as it refused to help us! And so began the war that has been lasting for twenty years." The king stopped explaining and coughed.

"I will help you end this war Goldy, but you should prepare for now. Something big is coming." C said after moving towards the king.

"How do you know this, changeling?" The prince asked him with a glare.

"The voice told me.Don't misjudge me as an insane changeling, for that what the voice was not lying."

             C only began hearing the voice a week ago, but felt he could trust it. Even though he looked like an insane changeling to the ponies inside the room, except Inky, Snow and the King. Golden Sky ordered the soldiers to prepare the city for whatever it was coming, he wasn’t sure if to trust C or not seeing his origin and the voice inside his head, but he had no other solution, he seemed a trustworthy pony.

               Every soldier inside the city was rushing to enforce their defences in preparation for whatever C’s voice was telling him it was coming. The soldiers may misjudge him, but when the king gives an order they have to execute it. Maybe the king was old and his reign was coming to an end, but his wisdom protected the city for these past twenty years and doubting him now would look like treason to them and an insult for what the king has done for them. The poor steamers, little did they know that they couldn’t be less prepared for what was coming towards them. Inside the throne room of Wigonia’s Great Citadel, the young colt on the throne was grinning.

"I'm coming back home father." The pegasi said staring outside the window.

                Inside the Steam-City’s throne room C and Inky were looking outside, while Snow, her father and the Prince were planning for their next action. Inky saw something approaching from the horizon. The white-furred mare alerted the other that came to the window to see what was it and in shock they saw Wigonia moving with great speed towards them. Surrounding the cloud city were six huge zeppelins. The Prince ran towards a device and pressed a button then yelled through it, his words were heard everywhere in the city.

“Everypony that isn’t capable of fighting, go in the bunkers the rest prepare for war. Wigonia has arrived… this is not a drill, I repeat… This is not a drill!”

                 Everypony that wasn’t in the army and was not capable of fighting ran underneath the Steam-City, in the bunkers built to protect the citizens from any air-raids. The soldiers ran towards the towers and walls while those capable of fighting were given armor and weapons to serve the King.

                The zeppelin flyers and their crews rushed towards the hangars. Also the sailors rushed to their ships in the port ready to kick Wigonia out of the sky. C stared at the steamers as they took their positions, but told the King to stop any attempt of fighting the cloud city. The King didn’t listen to C, now was the time when the Steam-City would kick Wigonia out of the skies.  The young colt on the throne of Wigonia ordered the general to start the assault.

                The Steam-City retaliated, firing their massive cannons at Wigonia and at the huge zeppelins surrounding it. The huge zeppelins were hit, but the general was able to give the order, then the assault began. From the huge machinery other smaller zeppelins came out, darkening the sky and began firing at the Steam-City’s defences. Although the steamers were in advantage because they had canons, or they thought that. After the pegasi used a few arrows they begun launching rockets and firing canons at the Steam-City.

               The zeppelins of both cities met in a great aerial battle. The sky darkened by the explosions that took place in the air. The steamers ships arrived and they began firing at Wigonia directly. Both cities were shaking thanks to the powerful weapons they deployed.

                 The steamers seemed to be in advantage, but after they destroyed two of the zeppelin carries and destroyed most of the pegasi zeppelin fleet the young colt rose up from his throne and yelled , like somepony would hear him.

"I'm Prince Red Clouds and I'll destroy this city!" The pegasi prince yelled.

               Inside the Steam-City throne room, the Prince, Snow’s father and the King already celebrated, but C, Snow and Inky knew that this wasn’t the end. C looked at Wigonia then told everyone to duck. Towards the massive building a huge number of rockets were heading, also rockets headed towards the steamers zeppelin fleet and ships. But, that wasn’t all, from Wigonia a large number of lightning bolts hit the city, destroying some of the buildings, but also the lightning bolts were used against the ships and zeppelin fleet.

              Even with their zeppelin fleet falling down from the sky and their ships going to the bottom of the White River, the steamers kept fighting bravely. It was only when the rockets hit the throne room the bravery and morale of the defenders was reduced to ashes.