Beyond the Call of Duty

by MarineMarksman

Rating: teen
Tags: Alternate Universe, Romance, Princess Luna, Original Character, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Tragedy, Adventure, Princess Celestia, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark
Length: 7286

Follow the desperate struggle of the Royal Equestrian Armed Forces as war comes back to Equestria.

Previously named The Fall of Equestria.

In the past, there was a major war between the nations of Equestria, Canine Arabia, and Griffondore. The Diamond Dogs, jealous of the ponies prosperity, invaded the lands of Equestria. They slaughtered innocent civilians without mercy, and overran their military with overwhelming numbers. Today, in the year 2047, we get to hear from the survivors of this war, as they share their stories of heroes and tragedy.

Published 2011-10-07 03:45:02 UTC
Last updated 2012-06-01 16:52:39 UTC

Chapter One

-I've decided to rewrite this story and take it in a different direction. It will have a similar plot, but will be much better. Enjoy. <3-

"I don't remember what caused the war. I don't remember why the diamond dogs decided to invade our lands. I don't remember why they raped and slaughtered our people. I don't remember why they killed our beloved leader, Princess Celestia.

What I do remember was how it started. I remember all the bloodshed, the death, the fear. In combat, I lost and made many friends. I lost my husband, my son, and my best friend in the war. All to the diamond dog horde.

From what I can recollect, is that the war started in Stalliongrad, during Hearths Warming. I would know, I was there."

-Major Crystal, Equestrian Army (ret.)

Stalliongrad Outskirts, Equestria
December 25th, 2014

While the citizens of Stalliongrad were sitting around the fireplace, passing around hot cocoa and presents in the spirit of love and tolerance, the colts and mares of the Equestrian Army's Sixteenth Royal Guard Unit were out in the freezing cold. While this industrial city seemed like a peaceful area, it was a target for raids and looting by rogue diamond dogs and griffons. That's why, no matter what, the Sixteenth was always on duty.

Despite what most ponies thought, the military of Equestria didn't charge into battle with swords and glistening centurion armor. Instead, they were equipped with modern firearms such as assault rifles and carbines, as well as dull camouflage and kevlar body armor. They rode into battle in armored tanks, blowing away everything in their path. The bandits that typically came for a visit normally didn't stand a chance.

This time around, things were different.

The snow crunched under Sergeant Crystal's boots as she marched through the forest, her hooves grasping her SCAR-L. Behind her was the rest of her squad, the twelve colts and mares under her command.

"Second squad, how are things looking out there?" Her CO, Colonel Nightwing, inquired over the COM.

"All quiet out here. Freezing our flanks off. Same shit, different day." Crystal replied. She could hear Surprise laughing over the radio. Crystal couldn't help but crack a small smile.

"Alright, second squad. I haven't heard from first squad, and I can't get through to them either. Probably just some interference. Mind checking in with them?" Surprise requested.

"Shouldn't be a problem, ma'am." Crystal responded.

"Alright. They are about a mile to your south. Uploading their location to your HUD."

The goggles Crystal was wearing lit up a few seconds later, displaying a small map of the area. A small dot appeared on the map, which was where first squad would be.

"We got the data. See you in a few, Colonel." Crystal stated, before switching off her COM. "Squad, on me!"

One by one, the members of second squad circled the Sergeant. After a quick headcount, she continued speaking. "Alright, first squad went off the map, so the Colonel wants us to go see how what's up. Probably interference, but keep on your guard. I didn't get to my position for being reckless."

"No, you got it by kissing up to your husband." Crystal's second in command, Corporal Spice, pointed out. A deep blush spread across Crystals face as laughter erupted throughout the squad.

"Alright, simmer down. Just because I'm married to the CO, doesn't mean I'm getting special treatment." Crystal stated, hushing her squad. "Let's hurry up and check on first squad. I don't want to spend all of Hearths Warming with melted snow in my boots."

"Storms picking up." Crystal pointed out as the squad climbed up a steep hill.

"No shit, sherclop." Spice responded.

"Spice, shut it." Crystal ordered. "Snails, you're lagging. Get up here with the DMR and scout out the area."

"Coming!" Snails called up to her, as he clumsily jogged up to the front. Though Snails may be a little slow, he certainly was the best shot in the platoon. In his hooves was an M14 EBR, upgraded with a scope capable of switching to both thermal and night vision modes, which was very helpful in Stalliongrad's unpredictable weather.

As Snails caught up to her, Crystal signaled the rest of the squad to hunker down, before climbing to the top of the hill. Snails went prone as he set up his M14 on its bipod and carefully loaded a magazine into it. Crystal went prone beside him, resting her SCAR on the ground beside her.

"What do you see?" Crystal asked.

"Nothin'. Scope isn't working ri... oh... I haven't turned it on." Snails muttered. Crystal resisted the urge to facehoof as Snails switched on his scopes thermal vision mode and peered into it.

"Shit... I have eyes on first squad. They're all down. Counting three- no, four tango's. Diamond Dogs, armed with AK type weapons."

"Dammit..." Crystal muttered to herself as she switched on her COM, "Colonel, do you read me?"

There was no response, only a few bursts of static.

"Colonel Nightwing, this is second squad, do you copy?"

"Second squad, I want you to pull back immediately! The town is under siege!" Nightwing's voice shouted desperately over the COM.

"Sir, what-"

"There is no time, Sergeant! We have at least two hundred diamond dogs with modern military hardware assaulting the city. Pull back!" The Colonel responded.

Snails and Crystal shared a sidelong glance before she responded. "I copy, Colonel. We're on our way back."

"Let's move..." Crystal muttered solemnly to Snails as they stood up. As they regrouped with the rest of the squad, Spice walked up to her.

"Where's first squad?" Spice asked.

"Dead. Stalliongrad is under siege by diamond dog forces armed with military hardware. We're being called back to help defend the city. Lock and load, ponies!" Crystal called out.

"What did I do during to Great War? I was a member of the Equestrian Navy Seals. During the war, we were deployed all over the world. The war... it changed me. Now a days, I'm a shadow of my former self. But at least I'm not trapped in my shell anymore.

Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to... anyways... during the first hours of the Siege of Stalliongrad, me and my team were deployed to the Equestrian Sea for a hostage rescue mission. That mission was arguably the biggest failure in the history of the SEAL's."

-Command Master Chief Petty Officer Fluttershy, Equestrian Navy (ret.)

Fluttershy looked down at the heavily modified HK416 that was assigned to her. To hold a tool of death in her hand, after helping all those sick animals and ponies throughout the years didn't sit well with her. But what else could she do? After her cottage was foreclosed, she couldn't get a job or a home. She would have died in a ditch if it wasn't for her savior, a Navy recruiter, who cleaned her up and fed her, and then persisted she enlist. After a few years, her CO recommended she sign up for the SEAL's, saying her medical expertise would be invaluable in it. So she did.

"How you holding up, rookie?" Whiplash asked the trembling mare, his voice barely audible over the sound of their blackhawk's rotor blades.

"Oh... just fine... I suppose." Fluttershy muttered. Whiplash shook his head and patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, rookie. We all have pre-mission jitters. Even I do. I've got your back, rookie, don't worry your pretty little head off."

Fluttershy nodded slightly, the beginnings of a smile starting to spread across her face.

"Echo 3-1, you are five minutes out." A voice stated over the helicopters radio system.

"That's our cue! Snips, we have sentry's on the deck. Take em' out." Whiplash ordered.

"You got it, boss!" Snips replied, opening up the blackhawks side door and tucking his SR-25's stock into his shoulder. Seconds later, Fluttershy could hear the suppressed whisper of Snips sniper, as he took out the sentry's one by one.

"Sentry's are down, sir," Snips stated, before adding proudly, "all head shots."

"Nice job. Alright, Fluttershy, Starlight, glide down there and secure the DZ." Whiplash stated. Fluttershy trotted over to the opening and glanced down. Starlight trotted up beside her.

"Strap it down." Starlight stated, motioning to the MP5 that was strapped to her side. "Trust me, you don't want to end up weaponless in a combat zone."

Fluttershy nodded, strapping her HK to her back before she jumped out of the helicopter, spreading her wings and silently gliding to the deck below. Starlight landed next to her without a sound, already pulling out her firearm.

"Woah... you two look like a couple of dark angels from my angle..." A slurred voice pointed out. Before Fluttershy could even begin to look for the source, Starlight twirled around and fired a burst into the chest of a drunken guard, who was slouched over lazily. It happened so quick, there wasn't even surprise in his eyes.

"Decks clear, come on down." Starlight said into her headset. Fluttershy ignored her as she trotted up to the guards lifeless body. He looked so... peaceful. Fluttershy saw that expression before, in the eyes of animals she wasn't able to save.

This was first dead sentient being she ever saw.

"Dark Angels huh...? Sounds like a nice nickname. What do you think rookie?"

Fluttershy didn't respond, as she continued to stare into the guards lifeless eyes.

"What's wrong with her?" Whiplash inquired, as he and the rest of the team walked up to the two pegasi.

"Witnessed her first death. She'll get over it." Starlight stated coldly.

"Come on rookie, snap out of it." Whiplash stated, shaking Fluttershy in an attempt to knock her out of her trance. A couple of SEAL's walked forward and picked up the body, before tossing it over the deck.

"Fluttershy... he would have done the same... we have hostages to rescue... come on..." Whiplash whispered into her ear. "Those are innocent ponies down there. That dog wasn't innocent. I need your head in the game, rookie. Let's go."

Fluttershy shook her head, rising to her hooves and readying her HK. Whiplash smiled slightly, as he motioned her to follow him. Follow him to the lower decks. What every survivor would know to be the depths of hell.

Chapter Two

Museum of Equestria, Canterlot
July 8th, 2047
Present Day

Inkwell sat there, listening to the words spilling out of Fluttershy's mouth. She explained everything in poetic detail, especially when she watched the drunken dog die right in front of her. He had her stories of Fluttershy's innocence, her kindness, her purity. She was the Element of Kindness, after all. But, she really was a shadow of her former self. Sure, she was still kind and polite, but her eyes told a different story. Her eyes literally screamed 'I could kill you in a second.' The horrific scars that covered her body told a lot as well. Inkwell felt pity for her.

"What every survivor would come to know as the depths of hell..." Fluttershy finished.

"And why is that, miss Fluttershy?" Inkwell inquired.

"Because that's the only thing we could compare it to. We were the best of the best, but nopony was prepared for what was down there." Fluttershy stated, cringing slightly at the memory.

HMS Nightingale, off the coast of South Equestria
December 25th, 2014

"Stack up!" Whiplash shouted, as Whiplash, Starlight, Fluttershy, and two other SEAL's formed up on the metal door leading to the lower decks. "Team two, are you in position?"

"Affirmative!" Team twos leader responded.

"Hold up! Hear that?" Starlight asked. Fluttershy listened carefully, before cringing at what she heard. The sounds of boots charging up the stairwell they were supposed to be climbing down, as well as angry howls and barks.

"Dogs!" The SEAL beside Fluttershy called out, before the door flung open. Fluttershy dove for cover, looking up to see that the SEAL beside her had been hit in the chest. His eyes were the same as the dogs. Lifeless.

"Bastards!" Starlight shouted from behind her cover. "Fluttershy, get up and fire!"

Shaking from a combination of fear and adrenalin, Fluttershy rose off the ground and raised her HK, firing a single round at the closest diamond dog. The round struck him in the face, causing his face to seemingly cave in from the impact.

"Nice shot rookie!" She heard Whiplash shout over the gunfire. Feeling more confident, Fluttershy fired a quick burst into the dogs. Two rounds went wild and missed, but a single round managed to hit one of the diamond dogs in the chest, passing right through his heart.

"Blackbird One, this is Team One, we are pinned down by the breaching point. We need fire support!" Whiplash shouted over the radio.

"Roger that, bringing the rain!" The pilot of Blackbird One responded. Seconds later, a blackhawk passed over the cargo ship, before turning around and hovering over the team. Several of the diamond dogs started shooting up at the helicopter, before getting mowed down by the minigun mounted on its side.

"Clear?" Blackbird One's pilot inquired.

Whiplash walked up, pulling out his sidearm, an M9, and put a single round in the head of a lone survivor. "Clear."

Present Day

"How did it feel? Taking a life for the first time?" Inkwell inquired.

"It felt wrong. It made me sick. Once we got back to base, I cried myself to sleep. Nowadays, though, I know that those dogs probably deserved it. Doesn't stop the guilt, though." She responded. "As we climbed down the steps, every step made my heart beat faster. I knew what was ahead, I wasn't going to like. But I knew I had a job to do."

"Team Two, are you there?" Whiplash asked.

There was no response. Just static.

"Team Two, please respond." Whiplash requested. There was still no response.

"Dammit..." Whiplash muttered. "They are too prepared and organized to be pirates."

"What now, Chief?" Starlight asked.

"We continue the mission. Hostages should be on the deck below." Whiplash responded.

"Copy that, Chief." Starlight responded.

"Firewall, take point." Whiplash ordered.

The SEAL beside Fluttershy nodded, raising his M1014, which was the standard shotgun in the Equestrian military, to his shoulder. He rounded the corner and marched forward, followed closely by the rest of the team.

"Hold up." He whispered. The team stopped in front of an iron door. Inside, there was screams of pain from a female. Everypony knew what was happening in there, but they didn't want to admit it.

"Hold still!" A deep, brutish voice shouted from inside the room. Firewall had enough, as he turned around and bucked in the door. The team charged in, to see a large diamond dog attempting to mount a light blue earth pony. Firewall dropped his shotgun and pulled out his ka-bar knife as he tackled the dog off of her. The dog landed on its back as Firewall attempted to stab the dog in the chest. The diamond dog managed to grab his hoof before the knife plunged into him. With a loud, angry howl, the dog flung Firewall off of him and stood up, reaching for his sidearm. He didn't get a chance. A loud shot rang out before the dog went limp on the floor. Fluttershy looked to her side to see the smoking barrel of a Magnum, held by Starlight.

"A little overkill, don't you think?" Whiplash asked. Starlight shrugged and slid the magnum back in its holster, before helping Firewall off the floor.

"You alright, ma'am?" Whiplash asked the shaken mare. She didn't respond, but she did manage to nod slightly.

"Firewall, escort her up top for evac. We'll keep going and find the rest of the hostages." Whiplash stated.

"Aye aye, sir." Firewall responded, picking up the mare and balancing her on his shoulders, before galloping out of the room.

"The bastards..." Starlight muttered.

"We'll kill them all, Star, don't you worry." Whiplash promised. "Let's keep going. Those hostages won't rescue themselves."

Present Day

"That mare told us a lot about what happened on the ship. She told us how the dogs killed the non-important colts in front of them, before cooking and eating them. How they used the mares as sex slave. How they starved and tortured her and the other hostages. I found out later that her husband was among the other hostages. The ones that were still alive. Except..."

As Whiplash kicked in the door leading the cargo hold, time just seemed to slow down. There stood a large group of diamond dogs, pointing their guns at the SEAL's and the hostages. There were fifteen of them, all trembling, gagged, and tied up. They were skinny, bruised, and scarred. They looked like they were dead.

"Put your weapons down!" One of the dogs shouted at the SEAL's.

"Sir? Orders?" Starlight asked.

"Hold your ground. They will kill us if we surrender. And the hostages will be next." Whiplash pointed out.

"Release the hostages! We have you surrounded!" Whiplash shouted at the dogs. At this, the dogs laughed hysterically.

"Are you kidding me?! Three little ponies?! You're fucked!" The dog, probably their leader, shouted back.

"Where's the money!" Another dog shouted.

"There isn't any money. Equestria doesn't deal with pirates." Starlight stated.

"That's a shame. Man, we had a lot of fun with them. You should have been there." The dog said, before pulling out a small six shooter and shooting the nearest hostage in the head. Taking this as their cue, the rest of the dogs opened fire, on both the hostages and the SEAL's. Fluttershy and Whiplash managed to dive behind cover in time. Starlight wasn't so lucky.

"Fuck!" Starlight shouted. Fluttershy looked down at her to see that her leg had been shattered by a lucky hit.

"Team One, fall back! We got your six!" A voice shouted over the COM. Three SEAL's, the survivors of Team Two, charged into the fray, firing their HK's wildly into the dogs. The dogs returned fire, quickly mowing down the three SEAL's. Not about to let Team Two die in vain, Team One charged out of the cargo hold, narrowly dodging a wall of bullets.

The trio of SEAL's galloped up the stairwell and burst through the door leading to the deck. Hovering barely a thousand feet away from them was their blackhawk. Behind them, they could hear the angry howls of the diamond dogs, calling for their blood.

"Run dammit!" Firewall shouted at them, causing the trio to break out into a full out sprint. The door they had just exited through flew off it's hinges as the horde of diamond dogs started pouring out of it. Fluttershy jumped aboard the blackhawk, while Whiplash helped Starlight inside before jumping on board himself.

"Get us out of here!" Whiplash shouted.

"Aye aye!" The pilot shouted back. The blackhawk started lifting off the ground, spent shells pouring out from it's minigun. Most of the diamond dogs were torn to pieces by the barrage. Those who were lucky enough to dodge the minigun's destruction returned fire. Fluttershy could barely hear the rounds bouncing harmlessly off the helicopters armor as it hovered away from the cargo ship.

"The mare ended up killing herself from the whole ordeal. It's all our fault, really. We could have saved them. Maybe not all of them, but at least some..." Fluttershy stated, her eyes glistening with tears.

"It's not your fault, Fluttershy. You wouldn't have been able to take on that many." Inkwell stated.

Fluttershy sniffled a little in response.

"Thank you for your time, miss. I will see you around for a second interview." Inkwell said, before rising out of his chair. Before walking out of the room, Inkwell glanced at the Element of Kindness, who was staring down at her hooves and mumbling something to herself. Inkwell truly felt sorry for the poor creature.

Chapter Three

"When we reached Stalliongrad, we weren't prepared for what we were about to see. Our unit was on its last stand, guarding the last few surviving civilians. Any other Guard units in the area were too far away to help us. We lost many good mares and colts that day. If it wasn't for those SEAL's, we would all be dead."

-Major Crystal, Equestrian Army (ret.)

The storm had cleared up by the time Crystal's unit reached the city. She wished it hadn't. They were surrounded by death and destruction. Bodies of ponies, both civilian and military, and dogs laid strewn out in the street. The snow surrounding the squad was stained with the blood of the innocent. In the next street was a couple of destroyed humvees, and judging by the treads that ran down the street, they were destroyed by enemy armor.

"By the Goddesses..." Snails muttered, taking in the scene. Even Crystal, an experienced veteran who served in the Coltistan War, was shocked by the brutality of this... not even a massacre would be able to describe this slaughter.

"We need to keep moving." Crystal urged. "The fight's long gone from this area."

"Second squad, where are you?!" Nightwing's voice demanded over the COM.

Crystal listened to the distant gunfire and checked her HUD's map. "Ten blocks away. ETA, five minutes."

"Copy that! Nightwing, out!" The Colonel stated, before the COM link died.

Suddenly, Crystal heard the sound of heavy machine gun fire from behind them. Instinctively, she and few others dived to the ground in an attempt to escape the enemy fire.

"Sergeant? What the hell are you doing on the ground?" A voice with a Manehatton accent inquired. Crystal poked her head up to see the source of the voice. It was Sergeant Sprinkles, the leader of Fourth Squad. Crystal rose off the ground and turned to face the Sergeant.

"Thought you were enemy fast movers." Crystal responded with a shrug, before motioning over to the humvees that the rest of Fourth Squad were riding in, "Got anymore room?"

"Plenty. Mount up." Sprinkles stated. Crystal nodded and started to make her way over to the nearest humvee, slinging her SCAR over her shoulder and motioning to the rest of her squad to mount up.

"Miss Crystal? I'm sorry to interrupt, but would you mind if I brought in somepony to assist with the interview?" Inkwell inquired.

"Not at all. Go right ahead." Crystal responded. Inkwell smiled and rose from his seat, before walking over to the door and holding it open. In came a middle aged yellow Pegasus, who's graying pink mane shimmered in the sunlight. It was the Element of Kindness, Fluttershy.

"Dear Celestia..." Crystal muttered, as she shakily rose to her hooves. The two mares stood just stood there for a moment, staring at each other with disbelief, before they charged at each other and wrapped their hooves around tightly around one another. Crystal appeared to be sobbing lightly into Fluttershy's coat, while Fluttershy rubbed her back soothingly, her eyes glistening with tears.

A satisfied smile spread across Inkwells face as he watched the hugging mares. Fluttershy told Inkwell that she hasn't heard from or seen Crystal in thirty years when he first asked her to come in. It was the first time he saw her smile, besides in pictures.

"So, shall we continue?" Inkwell inquired.

"It was dark by the time our convoy arrived at the rally point, though the flaming buildings that surrounded us did a good job of showing the way. As well as the bodies of countless civilians and Equestrian soldiers. It soon became apparent that the dogs weren't just killing us, but they were also feasting on our dead... and survivors. Among... other things..." Crystal stated.

"Fucking bastard!" Crystal shouted as she rolled out of her humvee and raised her SCAR, firing off two rounds into the stomach of a diamond dog, who was ripping apart a screaming foal. A startled cry escaped his lips, followed by a howl of pain, before he went limp and slumped over on the ground. Crystal galloped up to the body and kicked the dogs AK aside, before going to check on the foal.

But it was too late. The dog had ripped off both of the foals forehooves, which would have caused him to bleed out in a minute or less. Sprinkles trotted up beside her and placed his hoof on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her, but Crystal shrugged it off. She held the foal in her hooves and stared down at it, shocked by the brutality of it.

"He was just a foal... barely six months old by the looks of it. But the dogs didn't care. They didn't care whether you were young, adult, or old, they would kill you just the same..." Crystal muttered, her eyes glistening with tears. Fluttershy pulled her in for a tight hug and started to rub her back in an attempt to comfort her old friend and comrade, but that only brought more tears. After a few minutes, Crystal regained her composure and turned back to Inkwell, who was eagerly awaiting to hear more.

"We've got more bodies!" Snails called out.

Crystal shook herself out of her trance and gently placed the foals dismembered body on the frozen ground, before rising and trotted up beside Snails. It was a young married couple, judging by the wedding bands they were wearing. The mares stomach was much bigger compared to the rest of her body, an obvious sign that she was pregnant.

"Sarge... could you shine your light on the mares body...?" Snails requested. Crystal nodded in compliance, switching on her SCAR's tactical flashlight and aiming the beam of light at the mares body. Both Snails and Crystal grimaced at the sight.

"That's... that's sperm." Snails pointed out.

"Those bastards raped her... and slit her throat..." Sprinkles said, walking up beside the two.

"EVERYPONY, GET THE FUCK OVER HERE!" Crystal shouted at the rest of her unit. They quickly complied, lining up beside the trio and staring in disbelief at the bodies.

"You see this?" Crystal asked, pointing at the body of the pregnant mare. "Those bastards not only killed her, they also raped her, and then killed both her and her child. And over there, that dog was ripping apart a foal, who looked barely old enough to crawl! Keep these images in your heads, ponies, so you can remember why we are fighting these savages!"

"After that... nopony said a word. We just waited for when we could get out of our humvees and get our revenge." Crystal stated, staring at her hooves with an expressionless face.

Chapter Four

Crystal leaned her head against the cold glass as she stared blankly out of the humvees windows. Besides the sound of snow and ice crunching under the humvees wheels, and the sound of their humvees engine, it was deathly silent, to the point where could hear your own heartbeat. The convoy rolled forward slowly, steadily getting closer to the battle. The closer they got, though, the more destruction they saw. They passed city hall, which was nothing but flattened rubble covered in a mix of snow, ice, and ash. They passed by the police station, which was literally an inferno. Nearby was a long line of blindfolded police officers, military personnel, and civilians, all executed by diamond dog kill squads.

"Dear Celestia..." Spice muttered silently, before closing his eyes and looking away.

"Crystal, do you read me?" Colonel Nightwing's voice inquired, his face popping up on the upper right corner of Crystals HUD. He honestly looked like he went to hell and back.

"I read you, Colonel." Crystal replied.

"We need you to get here ASAP. We are getting slaughtered over here." Nightwing stated, barely maintaining his cool.

"We're going as fast as we can, Colonel. We linked up with the remnants of Fourth Squad and are en route via Fourth Squads humvees."

"Copy that. We still haven't gotten the reinforcements or air support we were promised, but we have several members of the Navy SEAL's en route. Hope they have something here to support by the time they get here."

Present Day

"When we got there, there wasn't much of us left. Our entire unit was reduced to just barely a platoon. We were low on ammo and supplies, but the dogs just kept coming. Every time we fought off their forces, they would send in another huge waves. We knew that without air support or reinforcements, it would be a useless fight... sort of like the... what was it called, the Battle of the Ranch? You know what I'm talking about, right?" Crystal inquired.

"Of course. You're talking about the Pony-Mule War of 1812, right?"

"Yeah. During that battle, roughly 200 ponies defended the Alamo Ranch from a Mule siege. The mules forces numbered in the thousands. Our forces knew they were outnumbered, but they knew that they had to protect the civilians that were held up in the ranch. After four days, our forces were wiped out, but for every pony that was shot down, we took out two of theirs in turn. Just like me and my troops during the Battle of Stalliongrad. We fought not for the city or for the country, but for the lives of those who lived there, who were depending on us to keep those brutish savages away from them."

Crystals humvee screeched around the corner, narrowly missing a burnt out car. It was quickly followed by the rest of the convoy, their engines roar breaking the silence of the night.

"Contacts!" Snails shouted from the front of the humvee. Crystal looked forward to see a large group of diamond dogs charging out in the open.

"Engaging!" Their gunner shouted, sliding the M2's bolt forward and opening fire. The Dogs turned towards the incoming convoy and returned fire. The driver of Crystals humvees swerved to avoid incoming fire and stopped.

"Out! Out! Out!" Crystal shouted over the burping of the M2. A round passed through the humvees window and hit the driver in the side of the head.

"Pony down! Pony down!" Snails shouted, pushing the drivers side door open and pushing his body out, before rolling out of the humvee. Spice climbed out as well, narrowly escaping death as a round wizzed past his head, missing him by less than an inch. Crystal ducked down and grabbed her SCAR, doing her best to ignore the bullets passing overhead and pinging against the humvees armor. She crawled out of the transport and chambered a round into her SCAR, before turning to check on her troops. Snails was in shock, his chest rising and falling at a sufficient speed to cause Crystal to worry. Beside him was Spice, who was firing his M4 from behind his cover.

"Fifty's jammed!" The gunner shouted over the gunfire, before a round passed right through his forehead, his blood and brains spilling out onto the humvee and ground.

"Fuck!" Crystal shouted out in shock.

"Crystal! Come in!" Nightwings voice shouted over her COM system.

"I'm heavily engaged at the moment, Colonel! We must have ran into the next wave before they reached you!" Crystal responded.

"Copy! Listen Crystal, we have allied air support inbound! Mark your targets!"

"Say again!" Crystal requested, unable to hear him over the gunfire.

"MARK YOUR TARGETS!" Nightwing's voice shouted.

"Copy that!" Crystal responded, before turning to Snails. "Snails! Air support in bound! We need to you to mark the targets."

"He's not in the condition to do that, Sarge. Look at him!" Spice pointed out, motioning towards Snails, who was sitting down in the snow, rocking back and forth in a fetal position and mumbling to himself. Crystal groaned and crawled over to him, reaching one of the pouches attached to Snails ballistics vest and pulling out a small laser pointer. She then crawled under the humvee and activated it, focusing the green beam on the first line of dogs.

"Target marked!" Crystal shouted over the COM.

"Confirmed, target marked. Napalm strike is one minute out." An anonymous pilots voice replied.

"Oh shit..." Crystal muttered to herself, before switching to her platoon main COM channel. "Napalm strike inbound! Move! Move!"

"Fuck!" Spice shouted. Crystal rolled out from under the humvee and lifted up Snails, who was still in shock.

"Covering fire!" Crystal shouted at Spice. Spice nodded, raising his M4 and firing a steady stream of lead into the dogs.

"Come on! Come on!" Sergeant Sprinkles shouted at the trio, urging them to move faster. Crystal and Spice started galloping as fast as possible towards the second line of humvees. A couple of stallions ran up to them and took Snails from Crystal.

"Incoming!" Somepony shouted. Crystal and her followers jumped behind one of the humvees, just as a F-15 screeched overhead, a stream of napalm trailing behind it. The covered the dogs and quickly spread throughout their ranks, the sound of gunfire being replaced by their screams and howls of agony.

"No time to celebrate! Head to the rally point! Double time it!" Crystal shouted to the ponies surrounding her.

"Did you think those dogs deserved that death? To literally be roasted alive?" Inkwell inquired.

A small chuckle escaped Crystals cracked lips, before she looked up from her hooves and stared straight into Inkwells eyes. "No. I don't think they deserved that. I believe those brutes deserved more than that. They should have been torn apart alive, then fed to their fellow dogs, then those dogs would be killed in a similar fashion. The things those dogs did... they that much and much more."

Crystal slowly trotted through the street, wading deep snow covered in blood, corpses, and debris. A squadron of F-15's screeched overhead, all of them painted in Royal Equestrian Air Force livery. They were soon followed by several MiG's, likely MiG-29's, who were firing both their gun pods and missiles.

"Bandits on our tail!" One of the pilots shouted over the COM.

"I'm hit! Mayday! Mayday!" Another pilot shouted desperately. Crystal looked up to see a smoking F-15 pass over, pull a 180, and crash somewhere in the distance. Crystal started galloping down the street, disregarding all caution. The sound of the icey snow crunching underneath her boots was soon drowned out by the roar of MiG as it passed overhead, which was being chased down by a F-15.

"Griffin One to units on ground, I have eyes on enemy armor heading towards where Griffin Four crash landed." Griffin One advised.

"Copy that Griffin One, we are a bit short on horsepower at the moment. Is there anypony in that area?" Colonel Nightwing inquired.

"We're just down the street, Colonel." Crystal stated, as she rounded the corner of the last building lining the street.

"I need you to evac the downed pilot before the enemy gets to him. Are you carrying any anti-armor ordnance?"

"My squad has a few AT4's, don't know what Fourth Squad is packing, however."

"We've got two AT4's and a Javelin." Sergeant Sprinkles voice stated.

"Copy that. That might just be enough to hold off the enemy armor. Get that pilot out of there, Crystal. I don't want anypony left behind."

"Understood. Crystal out."

"You know... it's funny... up until right then, I thought the Canine Arabian Air Forces would be no match for our pilots. To see the complete opposite, and to see our fighters get shot down by those mongrels... it was rather demoralizing." Crystal muttered.

Chapter Five

"I was a member of the Royal Equestrian Air Forces 231st Tactical Squadron, stationed on the Canine Arabian border. Since we were the closest air unit to Stalliongrad, we went sent in to provide air support. Once we got there, though, we had no idea that the dogs had fighters waiting for us."

-Major Soarin, Royal Equestrian Air Force (ret.)

"Hawkeyes, this is Wonderbolt One, we are one minute out from the target. Do you have eyes on any enemy air in the area?" Wonderbolt One, or Spitfire, inquired.

"That's a negative, Wonderbolt One. Wonderbolt's Ten and Eleven, you are cleared to engage enemies on ground." Hawkeyes, the AWACS that was assigned to the 231st Tactical Squadron, or the Wonderbolts, stated.

"Copy that." Wonderbolt Eleven replied.

"Hawkeyes, this is Colonel Nightwing, I have forces to your south that are requesting air support." Nightwing requested.

"Copy that, Colonel, advise them to mark enemy forces with a targeting laser. Wonderbolt Eleven, veer off and prepare to supply close air support."

"Roger. Is napalm approved for use?" Wonderbolt Eleven inquired.

"Napalm is approved for disposal. Careful where you drop it, allied ground forces are danger close." Hawkeyes advised.

"Copy that."

"Wonderbolt Two, Wonderbolt Three, give Wonderbolt Eleven some cover." Spitfire ordered.

"No problem, Spits." Soarin, or Wonderbolt Two, replied. Soarin looked out of the left side of his cockpit to see Wonderbolt Eleven's F-15E roll to the left and dive down a few thousand feet, weighted down by several cluster bombs and a couple sidewinders. Soarin wrapped his hooves around his F-15's joystick and moved it to the left, sending his F-15 into a roll.

"Target marked!" Somepony shouted over the radio.

"Confirmed, target marked. Napalm strike is one minute out." Wonderbolt Eleven stated. Soarin watched from a few thousand feet above Wonderbolt Eleven as his F-15 started diving towards the ground, before pulling up barely 500 feet above the ground and dropping its payload on the enemy forces on the ground below.

"Poor bastards." Wonderbolt Three commented, as they both watched the napalm spread throughout the enemy forces, burning them alive.

"I honestly felt bad for those dogs... at the time, at least. Now, after I was told of the atrocities that were committed by the canine forces, I'm sure a good number of them deserved such a fate." Soarin stated.

"What about the canine air force? When did they show up?" Inkwell inquired.

"Shortly after we finished our first attack runs. Their first wave came in with brand new stealth fighters, the PAK FA, followed by numerous SU-35's and MiG-29's. Nopony saw them coming, not even our AWACS. By the time we realized they were there, they were right on top of us."

"Wonderbolts, we're picking some very small blips on our radar. Might be canine drones or missiles. Move in and intercept them." Hawkeyes ordered.

"Copy that Hawkeyes. Wonderbolt Two, Wonderbolt Three, form up on me. Wonderbolt Four, Wonderbolt Five, form up with Hawkeyes in case there are enemy fighters in the area. The rest of you, split up into pairs and patrol the airspace." Spitfire ordered.

"Understood." Soarin responded, turning his fighter in the direction that his HUD instructed him to. In the distance was a blue blip, indicating that it was Spitfire. Zooming around the air space was about a dozen green blips, indicating where the rest of the Wonderbolts were. And then there were these ten, tiny, red blips far in the distance, high up in the clouds.

"Wonderbolts Two and Three, climb up to 15,000 feet and continuing heading in your current direction. We will attempt to hail the incoming unidentified aircraft." Hawkeyes stated. Soarin looked the left as Wonderbolt Three passed by him and started to pull up.

"Race ya." Wonderbolt Three said.

"You're on." Soarin replied, pushing his throttle stick forward and pulling back the joystick. His F-15's speed increased by about 200 mile per hour as it started to pull up, easily passing his wingmate.

"Unidentified aircraft, you are entering restricted airspace. Identify yourselves." Hawkeyes ordered.

"No response..." Spitfire muttered after a short pause.

"Unidentified aircraft, you will be engaged if you do not change your course immediately. Change your course to heading 225."

There was no response, not even by the time Soarin and his wingmate formed up on Spitfire.

"Wonderbolts One, Two, and Three, unidentified targets are designated as possible hostiles. Move in to identify, and engage them if necessary." Hawkeyes ordered.

"Copy that. Moving in to intercept." Spitfire responded, as her F-15 started to accelerate. Soarin pushed the throttle stick forward in an attempt to keep formation with their squadron leader.

"You'll be right on top of them once you break the cloud cover." Hawkeyes stated.

Soarin switched off his sidewinders and gun pods safety as he watched the distance between his fighter and the red blips grow smaller and smaller.

"Breaking the cloud cover in three... two... one..." Spitfire counted down, before her aircraft disappeared from view as she broke through the clouds. A split second later, Soarin broke through the clouds as well, blinded for a few seconds by the bright sun and the brilliant blue sky. As he eyes became accustomed to the brightness, he spotted ten small objects in the distance.

"I've got eyes on the unidentified aircraft. To our northeast." Soarin stated.

"I see them. Let's try to get beside them." Spitfire said, as her F-15 banked to the right and started accelerating towards the aircraft in the distance. Soarin rotated his joystick to the right as his fighter jerked right.

"Unidentified aircraft," Spitfire began, "this is Captain Spitfire of the Royal Equestrian Air Force. You must identify yourselves immediately and change your course to heading 225, or we will engage you."

There was no response from the unidentified aircraft.

"Wonderbolt One, unidentified aircraft are picking up speed and not changing course. You are clear to engage if needed. Wonderbolts Eight, Nine, and Ten, form up and support Wonderbolts One, Two, and Three." Hawkeyes ordered.

"Copy that, Hawkeyes. We're on our way." Wonderbolt Eight responded.

"Unidentified aircraft, you have three seconds to identify yourselves and change course, or we will engage!" Spitfire shouted.

Soarin jumped as warning alarms started going off.

"Missile lock." A computerized voice stated calmly. Soarin cursed to himself, banking to the left to evade the incoming missile.

"Shit!" Wonderbolt Three shouted, "I've got two- no, three, on my tail!"

"I've got your six, Wonderbolt Three." Soarin stated, watching Wonderbolt Three's F-15 roar past him, followed closely by three enemy fighters. Soarin pulled back the throttle slightly and pulled the joystick to the right, turning his jet around. He then pushed forward on the throttle, picking enough speed to catch up with the enemy fighters. A steady tone started going off, indicating to Soarin that he had a lock on.

"Wonderbolt Two, Fox Two." Soarin stated. His F-15 shuttered as one of his sidewinders launched off of its rail, racing past Soarin's cockpit and hitting the closest enemy fighter in the tail. The fighter started smoking as its engines failed, causing it to plummet out of the sky.

"Shit! I'm hit! I'm hit!" Wonderbolt Three shouted desperately. Soarin watched as his F-15 started to smoke and slow. One of the enemy fighters fired it's gun pod at his F-15, causing his right wing to shred off and hit the other fighter.

"Fuck!" Soarin cursed, locking onto the last remaining enemy fighter and firing off a sidewinder, which ripped right through its left wing.

"Wonderbolt Three, eject!" Hawkeyes shouted.

"I can't! The lever is jammed!" Wonderbolt Three shouted desperately, as his smoking F-15 plummeted out of the sky, disappearing as it dropped into the cloud cover.

"We had never seen the diamond dogs fly with such skills before. We thought they were a bunch of dumb mongrels who flew their fighters like a retarded pegasus. How wrong were we, huh?" Soarin asked with a light chuckle, before collapsing on the table, shaking as he sobbed.