Black Powder

by Elite Minor

Chapters

Flashforward
When the Air Still Smells of Peace I
When the Air Still Smells of Peace II
Mobilization
Lillibullero
Professional
Hornsburg
The Evening After
Captain of the Guard
Homefront
When the Air Still Smells of Peace III

Flashforward

Flashforward

****

Day

-125

****

Fort Grenzer

****

The rain came down hard from the Cumulonimbus clouds above, darkening the sky completely. The ground was muddy and hard to step through. The cracks and pops of distant musket volleys mixed with booming thunder from the clouds and artillery pieces as the noises resonated throughout the valley. The frequent flashing of lightning and the orange explosions of cannon were the only things that allowed General Shining Armor to see the large star fort in front of him. He was soaking wet, his blue mane pressed flat against his coat.

The pitter-patter of droplets added ambience as they smacked into plated armor and earth. The sky was so black that it was impossible to tell that it was noon. The yells and cries of a repulsed Equestrian regiment filled his ears as he watched them rout from the battlefield.

He turned to look at his Royal Guards.

They were all adorned in the traditional gold-plated armor, the non-pegasi already deployed in line formation, four ranks deep. The pegasi hovered above their comrades, sabers hanging from their belts, ready to be drawn. The earth ponies, armed with the best hoof-fired muskets that the Principality could buy, bayonets already fixed. Wet powder may or may not be a problem. The unicorns, their magic tuned and primed to fire, ready to unleash bolts of death unto the enemy.

Eight thousand Elite Royal Guards.

They looked exhausted and miserable, which was not surprising in the least. Many of the ponies here were hardened veterans that have experienced almost a year and a half of war, while others were replacements fresh out of training. He could see the morale sapped away from the eyes of his ponies, of this he was certain.

They didn't want to fight anymore.

They were tired and had enough.

He needed to rally them.

Now.

"Look at those conscripts run!" he scoffed, watching the routing line regiment.

"Everypony knows that the Royal Guards are a volunteer force! The heart of a conscript is weaker and more tragic. A volunteer is the mark of a true soldier! We have proven this time and time again! Remember Karmaden? Hawthorne Heights? Maybe the Valley of the Damned rings a bell? Let us show them how we fight! Let us show them the Equestrian Royal Guards!"

He darted his head back and forth through the ranks, and he could already tell that wasn't going to be enough. The weariness in their eyes did not fade like it had before, these ponies were burned out. Shining was now starting to get irritated. His elite troops still did not want to fight.

But he needed them to.

He nodded to them and smiled as he let his hardened demeanor slip. He continued to face all of them, the flashes of artillery from the fort behind him lighting up his face. Howitzer shells burst above the high walls at random intervals, leaving lingering clouds of black. That fort was the last thing standing between them and the enemy capital city.

"Looks like history's made room for us after all," he said casually as he calmly walked toward the ranks.

"What's wrong? Many of you don't feel like going?" he asked nonchalantly.

He stepped through the ranks, guards moving aside to let him through. They all turned to face him, some with guilt in their eyes, others with a tired glaze.

But all of them listened to their general.

"It's fine. I do," Shining stated with a soft chuckle.

Then his smile disappeared.

"I'll take this fort alone! And destiny will be waiting! Shots will bounce off me! Cannonballs will swerve with fear! Not one of you needs to take this fort. But I absolutely insist, you come with me and watch me take it!"

He exited the ranks and returned to the front of the line. The energy in his voice and his very being was emanating from him, his guards feeling the warm glow from it lifting their spirits.

"You will come with me and watch me take it!" he emphasized.

"Wolf tail!"

At this order, the earth guards poised their bayonets, the unicorns lowered their horns and the pegasi drew their sabers. Shining Armor turned to look at his guards one last time. The fire in their eyes had been rekindled, at least for now.

That was all he needed.

"If I go forward...follow me. If I retreat...shoot me. And if I'm killed...avenge me."

He drew his own saber.

"AVENGE ME!!!!"

A massive cry of eight thousand voices filled the valley that surrounded the fortress, encasing the entire countryside of northern Karalia in a roar that would be remembered for ages.

General Shining Armor plunged himself into the darkness as every last guard charged in after him.

When the Air Still Smells of Peace I

When the Air Still Smells of Peace I****

Day

-540

****

Ponyville

****

The snow crunched under Twilight’s boots as she exited her library. A yellow-striped orange scarf was draped over her neck and hung down over her chest. It swayed back and forth as the purple unicorn trotted through the powdery snow.

“Only three more weeks until Winter Wrap-up!” she thought excitedly.

She had already begun making preparations for the organization of the clean up and couldn’t wait to stretch her brain muscles over something other than a book for a change. Not that she didn’t like books, because she LOVED them, it’s just that it’s good to stir things up every once in a while.

It was possible she even loved books more than Spike...

Maybe…

“Nah!” she shook her head with a smile as she answered her own silly question.

Needless to say, her plans were getting more efficient with every winter. Last year, she almost wrapped up winter early.

Almost.

That was her goal this year and she would go to any length to accomplish it. Well, any length within reason of course. The images of the “Smarty Pants Incident” playing in mind causing her to shiver more than the cold did.

“Never again,” she thought with dread in her mental voice.

She could see ponies trotting and flying through Ponyville’s streets, going about their usual business. In the town market, she could see an orange mare selling apples from a cart. Maybe she should see how her friend was doing today, quality time is important after all.

Twilight’s stomach growled.

“Well, might as well levitate two quills with one spell.” she thought as she mentally chuckled at her own corny joke.

The unicorn trotted through the market, her boots crunching the snow beneath her. The town was bustling with activity today, as ponies shopped for bargain items left over from Hearth’s Warming and bought food that had been stocked up for the winter season by the various vendors.

Twilight took the time to take in the scenery. It was cloudy today, turning the normally blue sky into a sheet of light gray. Sugarcube Corner was decorated with Hearth’s Warming lights and streamers were still flowing in the breeze. A group of foals were giggling and dashing through the snow, happily enjoying their snowball fight.

The sentiment just felt right to Twilight. This was how winter in Ponyville was supposed to feel. That homey and peaceful feeling that makes you want to run outside and roll around in the snow. Create snowponies, go sledding or making a frozen fort for a snowball fight, perfect for a foal that wanted to play.

But Twilight preferred a more conservative approach. Sitting by the fire, a piping mug of hot chocolate topped with whipped cream warming her hooves with a good book levitated to her face. Hearing the crackling of the fire mixing with the laughter of foals playing outside or the howling of a fresh blizzard blowing through town.

Yes…that was more her style.

The orange pony noticed Twilight’s approach and smirked.

“Hey Twi! You hungry?” Applejack asked as she swiped one of her apples from the cart and held in front of Twilight.

She gazed into the sleek and shiny red skin of the apple with delight.

“Uh…yeah actually. How did you know that?”

“Just good with faces I suppose…” the farmer trailed off.

“…And the fact that you’re drooling,” she finished with a lighthearted chuckle.

Twilight eyes widened as she blushed with embarrassment.

“So THAT’S why my chin feels wet!”

She conspicuously wiped her chin with a hoof as her eyes darted back and forth, hoping no one had seen that.

Applejack laughed heartily.

“Ya don’t have ta hurt me girl. Just take the apple,” she quipped as she hoofed the fruit over to Twilight.

"Thanks. So I just wanted to ask you something real quick, if that's okay?" Twilight asked as she bit into the apple.

The juice was sweet and the fruit was in its prime. As she ate she gazed around town and finally realized how many ponies were in the square today. Must have been a pretty profitable day for the merchants.

“Anyway, what did ya wanna talk about sugarcube?”

Twilight cleared her throat and took a second to compose herself.

“Is Pinkie ready for her trip home next week?” she inquired.

“Well yeah, from what I’ve heard. She’s more excited than a coyote finding roadkill.”

“Are Rarity and Applebloom taking the same train?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah, her and Sweetie are gonna see their parents in Canterlot. Pinkie’s rock farm is the next stop with Manehattan after that. You know, Applebloom’s been pretty excited. This will be her first time seeing Babs in the big city.”

Twilight smiled at that.

“Pinkie didn’t forget her ticket again, right?”

Applejack didn’t answer.

Twilight frowned.

“Where is she?”

****

Twilight found Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and surprisingly Fluttershy, hanging out by the pond outside of town.

Pinkie was ice skating, doing flips, spins and the occasional hoof-stand in an attempt to impress her friends. Rainbow was wobbling on her skates like a newborn foal, grimacing in frustration. Fluttershy was gently tapping the tip of one of her hooves onto the ice with an uneasy expression.

“Oh come on Fluttershy! Just hop in! Like this! WEEE!” Pinkie screeched as she launched herself off of the ice and spun gracefully in the air.

“Ahh!” Fluttershy squealed as exactly two individual snowflakes made contact with her face.

“Too cold…” she whimpered softly as she backed away from the body of frozen water.

There was another loud scrape as Pinkie stuck her landing perfectly, causing the struggling Rainbow Dash to fall face first into the ice with a loud smack.

"Pinkie! Ahh--Ack!" Rainbow glared at her chipper friend as she started to recover from her embarrassing fall.

"Some athlete I am..." Rainbow thought as she sighed, blowing her breath on the ice in front of her.

Twilight noticed the cute blue eyes of her friend blocking her vision, complementing the oblivious grin on Pinkie’s face.

“Oh hi Twilight! You wanna play!?” she yelled as she waved a hoof.

“Um, no thanks. I’m good."

She remembered what happened the last time she had tried ice skating.

“Suit yourself!” Pinkie replied as she pulled a banana out of seemingly nowhere and began munching on it.

“Pinkie Pie! How many times do I have to tell you to stop messing me up!? It's really cramping my style."

The pink pony giggled.

"But look at the bright side Dashie! At least you look super adorable in your little skates on your little hoofsies! And--and--" she explained as she batted her eyes at the pegasus.

“Little?! Adorable!? What do I have to do to get taken seriously around here?!” she complained.

Pinkie completely ignored Rainbow Dash's plight as she turned back to Twilight, smiling wide as ever.

"Are you sure you don't want to play Twilight? You and Rainbow Dash can have a contest to see who wipes out first," the pink pony suggested.

"Hey!" Rainbow yelled.

“Actually Pinkie, I just wanted to know why you’ve forgotten your train ticket…again.”

Pinkie stopped sniffing Rainbow Dash’s snout like a puppy and turned back to Twilight once again.

“Oh no, I have it actually! Here it is!" she chirped happily as she held out a rolled parchment on her hoof.

"Hmm...this ticket looks kind of--wait."

Twilight's eyes shot out of her face as she recognized the paper immediately. She snatched away the parcel with fear and dread running through her body.

"No!"

Twilight's voice quivered.

"Pi-P-Pinkie?"

Pinkie Pie frowned for the first time that day, almost dropping her half-finished banana.

Twilight hissed, her words dripping with venom.

"Is this my twenty thousand word essay to Princess Celestia?"

Pinkie bowed her head and squealed like a little filly that had just gotten caught by her mommy. She shrunk to the ground as she shifted her eyes back and forth between Twilight and the snow-covered earth, her face sad. She resembled a guilty puppy that had broken something expensive.

"And did you DRAW ON IT WITH CRAYON!?"

On the the letter to the Princess was Twilight's original message, overwritten by large jumbled letters in green crayon reading:

THIS IS A TICKET. PLEASE LET ME IN.

"I thought...you know. Maybe they'd buy it," Pinkie attempted to defend herself.

It had a giant green smiley face flanking the urgent message on each side.

"PINKIE PIE!"

****

Red Mane Valley

Southwest Equestria

****

“So I said: NOT this time bud! And into the ravine he went!”

Laughter from the table resonated throughout the bar as a middle-aged stallion finished his punch line.

Waitresses were trotting from place to place serving drinks all the while. The bar was dimly lit by a few lanterns placed on the tables and at the counter, where a bartender was cleaning a mug with a rag.

“Man, that is ridiculous!” one of the ponies responded.

Laughter died down as the hilarity of the joke faded. A more serious topic intervened.

“Yeah, so I heard that the government funding for the mine is being cut…” one stallion trialed off.

The smiles that had graced the faces of the hard-working miners melted away instantly. Everypony froze on the spot, some staring at the speaker in disbelief. Some started shaking their heads as they let they let their gazes downcast, while others' faces distorted in frustration and anger.

“Are you kidding me!? Again!?”

“This is outrageous! How am I supposed to pay for my house!?” another stallion complained.

“This sucks man! They KNOW we depend on that funding, why are they cutting it?” a younger miner griped as he pounded on the table with a hoof.

“I think I know.”

The young gray stallion answered him as he joined the miners at the table. He calmly sat at the table and picked up an unclaimed mug that had been placed by a waitress a shortly before. They all turned to this pony, surprised at his timely arrival.

“And who are you?” a burly stallion asked him.

The young gray pony looked at him with a blank stare before answering.

“That’s not important. What IS important is that your funding has been cut again.”

“Yeah, we kinda went over that already. What's it to you? I've never seen you around here before,” an annoyed worker replied.

“And do you know why?” the gray pony inquired.

“…No. I guess we don’t. You wanna enlighten us Star-Swirled?” the older stallion mocked coldly, his demeanor becoming dark.

“Well, since millions of taxpayer bits are being spent on foreign aid to places like Saddle Arabia and the crumbling Kingdom of Gryphonia, the government thought it would be necessary to cut funding for this entire province," the stranger explained coolly, taking a swig of his mug.

The miner ponies now exchanged looks of disbelief.

"That is the most ridiculous theory I've ever heard. The crown would never turn their backs on their citizens for something as stupid as foreign aid. You're just being silly, kid."

The gray pony scoffed.

"Believe it or not, your province is being cut. Red Mane is getting neglected by Canterlot, and for what? So two countries that nopony gives a rat's ass about are getting benefited by your bits? I can't believe you ponies would just take that lying down. Especially you bunch, considering your entire lives are resting on this."

One of the miners turned towards the young pony and glared at him.

"How about you keep your crazy theories to yourself kid? And who are you exactly? Cause I know for a fact that you're not a Red Maner."

The gray pony smiled as another one of the miners stood up.

"And why would the crown ignore us anyway? Do you have any idea how much money we make for Equestria? We are important. There's no way the princesses would be stupid enough to neglect us."

The gray pony let his now empty mug drop to the table with a victorious smirk.

"So...how much of that money are you actually getting back again?"

A rewarding silence filled the room as none of the earth ponies were able to answer the unicorn.

"That's what I thought."

The gray pony rose from his seat and swung on his cloak, the chair creaking onto the wooden floor as he threw the hood over his head. He turned back to the group at the round table and gave another smirk that looked very eerie from the shadow of the hood.

"Such a pity that a proud and strong land has to bow to the likes of Canterlot. Have fun dealing with your financial woes. Good day."

With a simple teleportation spell, the mysterious colt vanished. The miners looked at each other, dumbfounded. They could have sworn that unicorn left an eerie chill behind him as he teleported.

Something...something wasn't right about that pony.

"Can you believe that guy and all of his cryptic bs? What a creep!" one pony spoke up.

The miners returned to their drinks as they began to think long and hard about what that strange pony had said. Were they really being used by the government? Where was all of their money going anyways?

One of the miners stood up out of his chair, the glow of the candlelight reflecting off his middle-aged face.

"That weird pony may have been a nut, but he was right about one thing. We can't take this lying down. This is Red Mane dammit, and our voice will be heard."

His companions both nodded and voiced their agreements, some raising their mugs in a toast while nodding in affirmation.

"We need to organize a formal complaint. We need to protest."

When the Air Still Smells of Peace II

When the Air Still Smells of Peace

****Day

-533

****Canterlot****

The night sky over Canterlot was teeming with Luna's beautiful stars. To Celestia, the sky resembled a backlit canopy with holes punched in it. The nearly full moon gave off an impressive white light, giving the entire capital an almost spiritual and lonely ambience, blanketing the sky with a wispy white haze over the snow covered earth. Even though she may not tell her sister enough, she really appreciated Luna's work with the night sky.

The usual hustle and bustle of Canterlot had died down since the evening sun had retired. From the balcony, Celestia could still see some scattered lights dotted around the city below but for the most part, the citizens had turned in for the night. The sound of crickets could be heard as well as the barking of neighborhood dogs in the distance. There were still a few weeks of winter to be had until the spring season, although the chill didn't bother Celestia in the slightest.

She had heard a soft clopping of hooves behind her, momentarily shattering the silent peace that Celestia was enjoying. Without even turning around, she already knew who it was. Celestia could recognize her sister's presence from a mile away.

"Sister, I have a letter of demands from the Red Mane province," Luna said abruptly.

Celestia craned her neck slowly as her little sister slowly entered and took a seat on the carpeted balcony next to her. She could see that Luna was in fact, carrying a rolled parchment. Even though she wasn't shocked, Celestia had not been expecting something like this.

She had known for a fact that her aid's package to Gryphonia and Saddle Arabia would cut into the Royal budget, which was part of Equestria's new foreign policy. Although it was true that much of Equestria's revenue came from Red Mane, she didn't think that those ponies would be so bothered by it. It was obvious that she would have to address this immediately.

"Hello Luna. Beautiful night tonight." Celestia smirked.

"Thank you sister. I guess I really went for atmosphere tonight, didn't I?"

Luna moved to lie down next to Celestia and sighed.

"Are you okay?"

Luna rolled her eyes.

"Yes, I'm fine. You know how taxing controlling celestial bodies can be."

Now it was Luna's turn to smirk.

This sort of playful banter was common among siblings and coworkers, even for alicorns. Luna let her head touch the carpeted ground as she lay down completely. She nudged the rolled letter towards Celestia with her nose, which her sister found absolutely adorable.

"You might want to take a look at this. The citizens seemed pretty distressed."

Celestia shook her head in affirmation.

"I will Luna. Is it really bad?" she inquired with a worried tone.

"No. They are protesting but it seems mild for the time being. Nothing too crazy to worry about," Luna said airily, her voice betraying drowsiness.

Celestia nodded and lifted the roll to her face with a quick levitation spell. She opened the letter of demands meticulously, careful not to damage the letter in the event that she may have to refer to it later. She couldn't help but feel a little nervous, her little ponies didn't normally preach dissent towards the crown.

"Have you already read this Luna?"

The blue alicorn appeared to have been falling asleep with she addressed her. With a yawn, Luna gazed up at her sister with tired eyes.

"No. Everything I've been told is from word of mouth. I know I'm supposed to read it too but I think I'll wait until tomorrow."

Celestia nodded abruptly and folded the parchment in front of her face and leered into the contents.

Our Royal Highnesses,

I surely hope that you both are in good health and fortune. I wish that I were writing you this letter of demands under better circumstances. Unfortunately, this is not the case. On behalf of the ponies of Red Mane and under the pressure of a petition signed by ten thousand citizens, I am hereby forced to inform your royal highnesses of the general unhappiness of the public in our great province.

As governor, I am obligated by law to ensure the well-being of this province's ponies. This issue seems to stem from Equestria's new "Friendly Neighbor" policy that you yourselves proposed, enacted, and signed. It was not brought to a vote by the Provincial Senate and was passed by Royal Decree alone. Of course, this is legal in our Constitutional Principality, however it is not a perferred method of conducting government laws and policies. This dealing with foreign nations and redistribution of wealth is a kind gesture abroad albeit a pain in our own coffers.

As you know, the province of Red Mane supplies the Principality with almost forty-five percent of its funding and around twenty-seven percent of the entire nation's resources. Therefore, it would only make sense that a significant amount of the money and material being send to Gryphonia and Saddle Arabia may have originated from Red Mane and at our expense.

Does this not mean that our province's resources and revenue are being thrown into a bottomless pit without our consent?

This is an outrage!

Not only that but you have the nerve to cut our federal funding! To budget this new policy?! Vital facilities and services are now crippled as a result of this underhooved move! Red Mane's economy is already suffering and it is only going to get worse unless this issue is addressed immediately!

I, along with the great citizens of Red Mane, are requesting your attendance to the Provincial Palace in hopes to acquire Royal intervention. Surely, a deal or proposition could be worked out to negate this neglection of one of your own provinces. Perhaps we can come to a compromise or understanding.

You both have been demanded to either cease this new policy or give compensation in return for Red Mane's cooperation.

Good day to you, your highnesses.

Sincerely,

Governor Dusk Quill

Celestia gasped at the attitude and tone of the last couple paragraphs. The letter was pretty standard up that point and then the Governor just decided to unload in an unexpected flurry of malcontent. She was shocked to say the least. Maybe this issue was a little more urgent than what Luna had let on. Her mind was still trying to process what was written.

The part about cutting Red Mane's funding...she didn't even remember doing that.

Strange.

She gazed on the ground next to her only to find that Luna had already fallen asleep, her soft snores the only things Celestia heard besides the gentle breeze. She rose her head to the sky, taking in the ethereal view above.

They had to make an audience to Red Mane. They couldn't afford not to. Celestia decided this with conviction.

****Day

-532

****

Ponyville

****

Pinkie Pie sloshed her way through the snow as she bounced behind her entourage of friends. She was so happy and excited that she couldn't stay still, even with her bags rocking around on her back. A wide grin graced her face as she thought of home back at the rock farm. Its been at least two years since she's been home and she couldn't wait to see her parents and sisters again. This whole trip was going to be fantastic.

Applebloom followed Applejack with several bags on the older mare's back, both talking about Applejack's experience in Manehattan and laughing about her 'fancy' accent. Rainbow had shown up as well with Scootaloo riding on her back as they hovered over the others. Rarity trotted alongside her little sister as well. Twilight was at the head of the group, making small talk with Fluttershy. Whether they were leaving or just seeing off friends, everypony was on their way to the train station.

"--You don't even know how awkward that was! They had about a billion different types of silverware! I didn't want none of that!" Applejack chuckled.

Applebloom giggled along with her, wondering if Babs was into that kind of thing.

Sweetie Belle heard Scootaloo giggling and laughing as Rainbow Dash zoomed overhead, taking the young pegasus filly on a joyride.

"Hmm...that looks like a lot of fun. Can I ride on your back sis?"

"No."

"Aww..."

Pinkie Pie bounded her way to the front of the group until she reached Fluttershy and Twilight. There was something that the pink pony needed to get off of her chest. The other two friends noticed her and let her slip in between, Fluttershy flashing her a quick smile. Pinkie Pie turned to Twilight.

"So...I'm really sorry about the whole ticket fiasco. I didn't mean to destroy your letter," Pinkie apologized, a small frown appearing on her face.

"It's okay Pinkie, I made a replacement last night. Luckily, I was able to remember most of what I wrote. No harm done," Twilight consoled, nodded her head to reassure her friend that it was okay.

"It's just that, when I procrastinate, I freak out. And when I freak out, I do silly things," Pinkie explained.

"Just when you freak out?"

"Well, I do silly things anyway."

The train station was a non-flattering simple one, which was expected for such a small town like Ponyville. There were dozens of ponies boarding and disembarking, the screeches of train on tracks mixing with the calls for boarding and the usual banter of large crowds. It seemed like a pretty busy day for the station.

"Hold on girls, I need to use the little filly's room. Be right back," Twilight said as she left Fluttershy and Pinkie at the head of the group.

The others were still behind them, and when Pinkie turned to back to face them, she noticed that they had stopped to help Applejack pick up the large suitcase that fell from her shoulders. Well, some of them stopped to help anyway, Rainbow Dash was too busy giving Scootaloo her money's worth as she pulled off some basic maneuvers in flight.

Pinkie hadn't even realized it until she turned around but she and Fluttershy had already made it to the station with the others still trailing behind, a good twenty yards away. That was all except Rainbow and her passenger though, zooming around randomly while Scootaloo cackled like a madpony.

"All aboard!" the conductor called out as he starting accepting tickets.

Pinkie hopped in line with Fluttershy following her, but the others still struggling to catch up. What was taking them so long?

"Well Pinkie, I hope you have great trip. It always good to see family every once in a while."

"Thanks Fluttershy! I can't wait to party with my family! I wonder if my sister was able to--"

The train erupted in a giant fireball as the explosion rocked the entire station. A huge cloud of smoke swallowed the entire complex as a secondary detonation ripped through the station's building, spewing debris and ponies everywhere.

Pinkie Pie could feel herself going airborne before anything else. All she could see was the dark gray cloud that she was consumed in. The ringing in her ears blocked her from hearing the screams of the unsuspecting crowd. She hit the ground hard on her side, coughing out smoke and snow as the pain in her ribs intensified. She was covered in ash, her normally pink vibrant coat blackened. Pinkie was lying in a haze of smoke, bruises and scrapes covering her body.

She couldn't see Fluttershy.

She couldn't find anypony for that matter.

Just the haze.

Her ears were still ringing, she couldn't hear herself cry out in fear and pain. A mix of dirt, debris and blood covered her body, even though most of the blood wasn't hers. She could have sworn that her name had been called.

"Fluttershy!" she yelled, trying to call out to her friend.

Groans of wounded ponies could be heard over the crackling of the fire. Smoke billowed into the sky and the ground was strewn with the bodies of ponies. Bystanders panicked and struggled to assist the wounded and the dying as the entire center was engulfed in flames. The train was split in two, a large fire separating the two halves. The station itself had a huge gap where the boarding area was supposed to be, more flames filling in the empty space.

Then, she saw a blur of light blue burst through the smoke and dart towards her.

It was Rainbow Dash.

Pinkie could see genuine fear in her friend's eyes as she landed next to Pinkie and frantically started to talk to her. She still couldn't hear anything and just stared up at her pegasus friend blankly, not quite sure how to react.

Rainbow Dash began to look over Pinkie's body, probably checking for wounds. Rainbow's magenta eyes were filled to the brim with tears, she couldn't stand to see her friend like this.

Her ribs hurt a lot.

Her eyelids began to close as she saw Rainbow Dash scream her name.

Mobilization

Mobilization

****

Day

-526

****

Ponyville

****

War has been declared.

Ponyville was in a frenzy preparing for the upcoming struggle. Food was hoarded, ponies were moving supplies and weapons, and recruiting tables were set up in the middle of town. The news had just come in recently and the ponies of Equestria were doing their best to figure out what exactly they were supposed to do.

It was a heartbreaking sight to see an entire nation's innocence ripped away from it.

Many ponies were volunteering, mainly in anger and impulsively in response to the bombing attacks around the country that had killed over four hundred Equestrian citizens collectively. Many were young ponies looking for adventure, thinking that joining the army was the best way. Others were self-righteous ponies that believed in the defense of Equestria.

This was good for the Equestrian Army. It was a widely accepted fact that volunteers generally fought better and were more resilient than conscripts. With the inherent peace that had been cast over this country for a thousand years, the army was hurting for volunteers. No pony wanted to join because either no pony cared and there was no incentive. There were no wars that needed to be fought, implying that a soldier's job would be pretty boring in a peaceful nation. But now, the army was getting all the volunteers it needed, this way they could avoid conscription...at least for now.

"I know y'all are tryin' to protect me but I'm enlistin'! And that's that!" the mare said as she stormed away from Big Mac and headed towards the recruitment tables for earth ponies.

"Apparently, Applejack feels the same way I do," Rainbow thought, remembering how similar her's and Applejack's responses to the train bombing almost a week ago.

Although, Rainbow Dash didn't blow her top, which surprised her greatly. But both them shared similar ideals, that was for sure.

She flew towards the recruiting booth and saw the line for the Pegasi Cavalry. Rainbow darted into line and frowned. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she was nervous. She had never done something like this before.

This was kind of like joining the Wonderbolts, right?

While she waited, she took a look around the square. It was carrying on usual daily business. Shops were selling foods, products, tools and the like. Foals were playing and shopping with their parents. Smiles and laughs were still shared and the usual conversation hadn't changed much at all.

It seemed almost like a normal day in Ponyville.

But the difference was obvious.

Rainbow Dash could feel the tension in the air, from a populace that has to deal with the fact that their nation is now at war. Of ponies that have to deal with this new phenomenon with hardly any time to adjust. Behind their smiles and within their laughs was fear, uncertainty and apprehensiveness. No pony knew what was going to happen or how this would affect their lives. Beneath the faux peace that the town still desperately tried to preserve, was an underlying sense of dread.

She didn't like the feeling.

Hopefully, she could give those Red Maners a quick whipping and be done with it soon. That would be cool.

"Next!"

Rainbow now realized that it was her turn in line.

As she stepped up, she noticed a familiar mare staring back at her.

"Spitfire?"

"Well, I can't say that I'm surprised, Rainbow Dash."

The orange mare was dressed in a forest green uniform with white crossbelts running across her chest, and she was wearing a golden helmet that Dash had never seen before. She noticed that Spitfire had a parchment laid out before her that contained two different lists of names. One of them was significantly smaller than the other.

Dash stared at the lists, trying to see if she recognized any of the names. Spitfire cleared her throat.

Rainbow looked up in surprise.

"Oh, right. Put me in the army!" Rainbow Dash demanded as she pounded her hoof on the table.

Spitfire just rose an eyebrow at her and shook her head.

"You have no clue what you're signing up for, do you?"

Rainbow Dash shifted nervously.

"I don't care, as long as I get to fight Red Maners."

Spitfire scoffed and rubbed her head with her hooves in disdain. She leaned in closer to Dash, her eyes wide with worry.

"Dash, look. I know you okay? But I can't play favorites here. Now, is the only reason you're joining the army, to 'get to fight Red Maners'? I hope not," Spitfire whispered to her as she sunk back into her chair.

Rainbow Dash bowed her head with guilt as she realized what she just said.

"Look, I'm sorry okay. My friends got hurt by these guys and I want to stop them before they can hurt anypony else," Rainbow pleaded.

Spitfire smiled.

"Now that, is the correct answer. Now, what type of squadron would you like to sign for? We have Lancers, Royal Guard, and Dragoons for the pegasi options," Spitfire finished.

Rainbow stared at her blankly for a second. She had no idea what any of those words meant, except for Royal Guard, that was.

"Did...you say dragons?"

Spitfire facehoofed.

"No. Dragoons. Basically airborne infantry."

Rainbow ran a hoof under her chin.

"Hmm...that sounds pretty good to me. Sign me up for that one!" Rainbow exclaimed with a smile.

Spitfire looked up at Rainbow Dash apprehensively.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

Rainbow groaned.

"Yes, I'm sure! Now sign me up!"

"You're absolutely positive that you want to do this? Because, when you sign your name, there's no going back. So, I'm gonna ask you one last time...are you sure?"

Rainbow sighed.

"Yes ma'am, I'm sure."

Spitfire looked down at the roster as she nodded her head. She handed Rainbow Dash the quill.

"Alrighty then. Sign under either officer or enlisted and you're golden, Rainbow."

"What's the difference?"

"Well, enlisted you're basically just another soldier on the field. And an officer is usually the one in command of the enlisted. That's a very simplified explanation, mind you. There's certainly a lot more to it than that."

Rainbow Dash thought for a second. Surely, the officer one sounded a lot cooler but honestly, she just wanted to help-

"May I also add that we are very short on officers. Just saying," Spitfire interrupted with a sly smile.

She raised her eyebrow at Spitfire.

"Fine. Officer it is then."

"Great! Sign on the left side of the parchment."

As Rainbow Dash did so, she could see Applejack from the corner of her eye. The cowpony was the next one in her line. Rainbow finished signing the roster and set the quill down on the table.

Spitfire looked at the list satisfied.

"I'll see you at the Academy, Cadet Rainbow Dash."

Spitfire smiled at she took Rainbow's hoof in her own and they shook.

"You've got two days before you ship out for training. I'm sorry, you would get more time to prepare but General Crimson Fields wants a full-stack army ready by spring," Spitfire told her.

"It's fine. I'm cool with it," Rainbow Dash replied as she zoomed off to tell her friends.

****

"Militia or regular army?" the tan stallion sitting at the table asked.

Applejack looked confused.

"Um...army?" she said, not confident in her decision.

The stallion gave her an annoyed glance.

"You don't know the difference, don't you?"

Applejack just stared blankly at the stallion who appeared to be getting irritated. He glared at her and handed her his quill.

"Okay then, army it is. What type of regiment?" he inquired.

Applejack stared blankly. What was a 'regiment'? She knew she should have paid more attention in school.

"Excuse me?"

"What. Regiment. Do. You. Want. To. Serve. In?" he spoke coldly and deliberately, looking like he was going to lose his cool.

"What kinds are there?"

He looked around and sighed heavily.

"Dear Celestia...okay. There's the Jagers and Chasseurs for skirmishers. Then you've got your normal Hoof regiments and Grenadiers for line infantry. And the Royal Guards for elite infantry."

He furrowed his brow at her.

"So...what'll it be?"

Applejack thought for a second, removing her Stetson as she scratched her head.

"What do they do exactly?"

The stallion looked at her like he was about to blow his top. His face grew redder as he contained his anger.

"If you're a good shot and don't mind being deployed as a vanguard, then be a skirmisher. If you're an idiot that can stand in a line, then go for Hoof. If you're tough and good at bucking, be a Grenadier. And if you're feeling especially bold today, try for Royal Guard. Do you understand now?"

Applejack's eyes lit up the mention of bucking.

"I've been buckin' since I was just a little filly. I think I'm pretty okay at it too."

The recruiter sighed in relief and rolled his eyes.

"Great. Just sign on the right side over here and you'll be a Grenadier," he said, poking a certain area of the roster with a hoof.

As she signed her name, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around and saw her Big Mac, standing right behind her. He gave her a lighthearted wink and a smile, breaking his usual stoicism.

"Mac, what're you doin--"

"Sign me up for the Grenadiers as well, sir," he spoke calmly with his signature deep voice.

The stallion jabbed a hoof at Big Mac as he glared at Applejack.

"Do you see how easy that was?"

Applejack ignored him and finished signing her name. Big Mac took the quill from her and moved up to sign his.

She gazed up at her big brother, completely stupefied. What was this big, dumb oaf doing? Applejack knew that she wanted to commit to this to protect her friends, even though she had no clue what to expect or what it might bring. But Big Mac?

What purpose could he have for joining the army?

"If you're gonna do this, then somepony needs to keep an eye on you," he explained.

"But what about the farm?"

Big Mac smiled.

"Don't worry about that, Caramel will fill in for me. Besides, we're just crushin' a rebellion. This'll be over in a week," he said confidently.

****Canterlot****

Twilight Sparkle's hooves clicked against the cobbled roads of the capital city as made her way to the palace. She had to move fast, she had to know that the princesses were okay.

When she had gotten the news of everything that had happened in both Red Mane and train stations around Equestria, her being shocked was a dreadful understatement. Especially, after seeing Pinkie and Fluttershy, she knew that she had to come to capital to get the answers she wanted.

Canterlot was buzzing with activity.

Ponies were rushing back and forth as the local militia started putting up defensive emplacements along the outskirts of the city. Royal Guards patrolled the streets, much like they had when her brother had gotten married. This time, she noticed, they shouldered muskets rather than the ceremonial spears that they used to carry. Guess they learned something from the changeling assault. Luckily, Canterlot was a natural fortress, thanks to its precarious perch on the mountain range.

Twilight could see many of the ponies in the streets reading newspapers and some of the upper class ponies speaking about the upcoming conflict. The news of Red Mane's revolution sure did stir up the Equestrian populace, the shock value was very effective.

She turned a corner and entered a new block, now able to see the spires of Canterlot castle once again. The white, beautiful giant that stood guard over the land of Equestria. Twilight had always felt a certain power coming from that place, no matter how often she had stepped through its gates. As curious as she was, she could never figure out what that power was.

Protection?

She passed by citizen and soldier alike as the unicorn entered the main breezeway to the castle's front entrance. The commotion on the streets did nothing to her as her focus was averted to the castle.

As she approached the gate, the Royal Guards that flanked the entrance recognized her immediately, and opened up for her. She nodded her thanks to the elite soldiers and entered into the Canterlot gardens. She swerved through the labyrinth, taking turn after turn and passing contingents of Guards as she attempted to make her way to the courtyard. The labyrinth was a defensive marvel in of itself, this was proven to her when she and her friends tried to navigate it when they had tried to defeat Discord.

After a minutes of taking turn after turn, she had reached the courtyard, filled with statues of ponies and various other creatures alike. Ponies where touring the landmark as always, and Guards stood nearby, ever watchful. In a massive field that flanked the courtyard, she noticed an entire battalion of Royal Guards conducting training exercises. Likely, these ponies would be shipping out with the two Equestrian armies that were being put together.

Twilight always knew that Equestria always maintained a small standing army for emergencies and as a deterrent, usually consisting of a mix between Royal Guards and local militias. But after a thousand years of peace, Princess Celestia had assumed that there was no longer a need for a proper regular army, one that Equestria hasn't had for hundreds of years. Disbanding that army to save funds, she used the budget surplus to build a new capital city to replace the one destroyed by Nightmare Moon...

Canterlot.

"Twily!"

She recognized that young stallion voice anywhere.

"Shining Armor!" she cried as she galloped to her brother.

He was at the head of the battalion, who were all standing in line formation, still as statues. Every Guard was in their gold-plated armor, muskets being held like spears, barrels pointed to the sky. Twilight could see Royal Guard cavalry practicing saber charges on pony-shaped dummies further down the field.

The captain was wearing his traditional purple-plated armor, emblazoned with a pink six-pointed star encased in a shield. The design was on his chest plate, which was connected to the rest of the armor by dual white crossbelts. A curved saber was sheathed and dangled from his belt like the flintlock pistol that was on his opposite flank.

Both siblings came together and hugged each other. As they separated, Shining Armor turned back towards his formation of Guards, watching a different battalion of unicorn Hoof marching up behind the earth pony Hoof battalion. He turned back towards her with a smile. It was a pleasure to see his sister here.

"So Twilight, what brings you to Canterlot?" he asked, his lighthearted voice shadowing his stress.

"Actually, I just came here to talk with the princesses if I could. Just want to make sure that they're doing okay. And getting some clear answers about the current situation would be nice."

Shining Armor sighed as he removed his helmet to wipe his forehead.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Its been pretty hectic here for the last week or so. I heard about your friends, are they doing alright?"

Twilight nodded as she tried to smile.

"They got hurt but at least they're still alive. The doctors told us that Pinkie and Fluttershy will need some time to recover. Both of them have been improving, which is good," Twilight said, forcing down the choke in her throat.

Shining Armor read his sister's body language and frowned.

"Hey, it's okay. I know you care about them deeply but you said they're recovering right?" he said as compassionately as he could.

Twilight smiled at him, fighting a tear.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Thanks."

"Not a problem, little sis."

Twilight nodded as she sighed to calm herself. She gazed up at the immense castle in front of her and took in a deep breath. When she turned back to her brother, she exhaled.

"I'm off to the castle now," she stated.

Shining Armor nodded as he looked over his shoulder to see the unicorn Hoof battalion form up on the other battalion's right.

Unicorn artillery batteries pounded away even further away than the cavalry. The new batteries that were practicing their accuracy across the field were mostly twelve-pounders, if he remembered correctly. According to command, the seven-inch Howitzers that he was expecting to arrive this morning were still not ready or even produced yet.

The mobilization of Equestria's military might was sloppy and he could already foresee that they were going to have logistical problems in the future. If his sister wasn't here, he would have vilely cursed at Equestria's lack of preparedness.

"Well, if you need anything, and I mean anything..." he said as he turned back to her.

"I'll be down here, okay?" he finished as he slipped his helmet back on.

Twilight nodded before she took off in a dead gallop to the castle.

Shining Armor turned back to the now-complete Royal Guard regiment. He drew his saber and pointed at the line of pony dummies across from the Guards.

"First rank! Make ready!" he bellowed.

He took a deep breath in as he thought about the upcoming struggle.

"Present!"

"Present! Present!" two lieutenants parroted.

As the muskets clicked into position and faced the targets, he now realized that he would actually have to perform the duty that his job was originally intended for. The unicorns took aim with their horns and charged death spells.

He had spent years training for this moment.

Shining never thought it would actually happen though. It was...a wake up call.

"Fire!"

****

Inside of the main hall, the large glass windows were ornate of ponies and their accomplishments, a few of them belonging to her and her friends. The hall shined with multicolored lights, amplifying the lavish decorations that showed off the wealth of one of the richest nations in the world.

The entire hall was mostly empty, the throne with no alicorn seated on it. She expected this when she saw that all of the nobles, government officials, and guards were occupied other sections of the castle. However, she did see a tan mare in glasses scribbling in her notebook from across the room. As Twilight approached her, the mare seemed to be mumbling to herself, almost frantically.

The timid pony heard the clopping of Twilight's hooves and recognized her with surprise.

"Oh! You're Twilight Sparkle, aren't you?" the mare asked her with a nasally voice, reminding Twilight of a filly back in Ponyville named Twist, except that this mare's voice wasn't as pronounced...or obnoxious.

"Yes, how--"

"General Masterstroke was just about to call you over actually. He is visiting the princesses as they are recovering in the Royal Medical Wing. Please, follow me," the mare said as she stuffed her notebook into a saddlebag and led the way out of the Royal Hall.

They trotted together throughout the castle, weaving through groups of concerned officials and stoic guards. Twilight also noticed the increased presence of higher-ranking army officers as well, which she would have found odd if she didn't already have an idea on the situation. She gazed at the awkward mare with curiosity.

"I'm sorry but, who are you exactly? I've spent a lot of time in this castle and I've never seen you before."

The mare replied with a nervous laugh as she dipped her head forward.

"My name is Glade Spinner and I'm one of the new accountants here. My job is to help manage Equestria's treasury and taxes, but I was also told to bring you to see the general. This is my first day," she said and chuckled sheepishly afterwards.

"Oh. Well, do you like it here so far?" Twilight asked, attempted to make the mare more comfortable.

"It's a little unnerving to be honest. Well first off, let me tell you that Equestria's economy is now a bloody mess. We lose our income from Red Mane, then our trade rail lines get blown to smithereens. And on top of that, now we have to fund a war?" the stressed out mare sighed.

"It's utter craziness--"

Twilight frowned.

Now that Glade Spinner had mentioned it, she did realize that Equestria is now in a pretty unfortunate predicament. She didn't know that Equestria's budget depended so heavily on Red Mane. Those ponies in the southwest must have finally seen that they can do without Equestria, and all it took to awaken them were the economic pains of having to serve Equestria's needs with their resources. They hadn't had a problem with it until now.

But the question stills begs itself, what inspired the Red Mane ponies to become so violent? Despite the circumstances, ponies did not have that kind of malicious revolutionary ideals injected into them over night. Twilight wasn't buying it, something was at work here.

And the railroads...that attack was awfully well-synchronized.

She knew that the Red Maners did it to both hurt Equestria's foreign trade and also to make a statement but there was more to it than that. Even if they had been planning to rebel for years and implanted agents, how would they have the coordination to orchestrate an event like that?

It was too perfect.

But then again, she wasn't a Red Maner. Maybe Twilight, like many Equestrians, have simply just underestimated them...

"--I mean really, me working in Canterlot? In the Royal Castle? I'm surprised I haven't wet myself," the accountant droned on.

Twilight giggled at the notion as they reached the large purple door that led to the medical wing. It was easy to pick out, mostly from the blatant red cross painted on the front.

"The princesses are in beds four-one-two and four-one-three. Princess Cadance and General Masterstroke are waiting for you there. Good luck," the mare wished well as she dashed off.

Twilight smiled at the socially awkward mare, she reminded her of herself to some extent.

The unicorn entered the castle's hospital and noticed that curtains covered the entrances to what she guessed were the patients' beds. Between the sheets, a walkway was formed in the middle of the makeshift hospital. She trotted her way down the insanely large hospital inside the castle. The Royal Castle was known for having buildings within buildings, which Pinkie Pie found silly.

The groans of wounded ponies and the clanging of metal tools and the rolling wheels of gurneys filled the entire complex. Many of these ponies were victims of the nationwide railroad attacks on Equestria's railroads.

Her thoughts of her injured friends was pushed out of her mind as she read off the numbers pasted onto the privacy curtains.

"Four-one-two and four-one three. Where are they? Four-zero-eight, four-zero-nine..."

Twilight sounded off the numbers in her head as she continued the search for the princesses' sections. It was only a few seconds before she located Celestia's section on her right, directly across from Luna's. She let in a deep breath as she reached up a hoof to move aside the curtain with number 'four-one-two' slapped on it.

When she looked inside, she saw a nurse standing over a bed, watching the patient sleep. To her left, stood a disheveled Princess Cadance. The young alicorn looked like had stayed up all night over a nightmare. Given the situation, this wasn't much different.

Dried tears stained her face, from what Twilight saw as her old foalsitter turned to the nurse and nodded.

"You said a month right?"

"Uh, yes. It will take them around a month to fully recover," The nurse replied.

On the right side of the bed stood a well-dressed army officer. Even though his face wasn't tear-stained, it was filled with concern.

"Alicorns must be pretty damn tough. The princesses took at least fifty rounds each, probably more...and yet they still survive. Amazing as that is, it's a shame that we ever had to discover that in the first place," the older light-gray unicorn general shook his head in disdain.

The nurse passed Twilight as she left the makeshift room.

The general was wearing a military uniform that Twilight had only seen the militia wear. Except, that this one looked much nicer. It was a forest green coat with golden lapels, buttons and bright gold shoulder boards. A single white crossbelt ran diagonally across his chest and back. A sheathed saber hung from one of his flanks as a flintlock pistol dangled from the other side. The crossbelt seemed to be holding the cartridge boxes that he wore on his waist. He had tucked his tricorne hat under a foreleg and held it in place.

"What is it with the officers carrying sabers? I thought only pegacav did that. I see it everywhere. Is it tradition or what?"

"If they would have taken a few more shots like that, then they wouldn't have been able to teleport out of there. They could have been at the mercy of the Red Maners...and I don't even want to think about that," Cadance replied, her voice soft and almost ghostly.

Twilight took a good look at her mentor for the first time today. Immediately, she wanted to turn away in disgust.

Princess Celestia was covered in red-blotted bandages and wrapped in many places by them, including her head, legs, and torso. She still smelled of smoky gunpowder and two of her legs and horn were in a cast. The nurses had done a good job cleaning off the blood that was matted to her ethereal mane and wiping the visible lesser injuries. As awful as it was to see a pony that she had loved and known for years in a condition like that, she couldn't help but to be as fascinated as the general was concerning her survival.

She walked in knowing it was bad but, seeing it first-hand...

"Twilight?"

The unicorn turned her head to find Cadance looking back at her. The pink princess tried to give her a reassuring smile but Twilight saw right through it.

"It's uh...good to see you here," Princess Cadance said, trying to keep her voice from shaking.

"Is everything okay Cadance? Princess Celestia doesn't look too good."

Twilight frowned bitterly as she stole another glance at the recovering sovereign laying on the bed.

"Yes, everything is fine Twilight. We're just...trying to get over the shock is all."

Twilight gazed at her sister-in-law with heavy concern. Cadance was obviously trying to be strong for both her and the officer present but the grief and uneasiness practically oozed from Cadance's being.

"This is awful. How could they? I--its just not fair," Cadance sighed, letting out a hollow whine.

Twilight nuzzled her neck. She wanted to comfort her sister-in-law so badly but simply could not come up with the words.

"And if that's not enough, now I have to run this entire country until they heal," Cadance nearly spat out, not knowing whether to feel sad or frustrated.

Cadance then pushed herself away from Twilight and wiped away the tears that had been forming in her eyes. Taking a large breath in and out, she reasserted herself and managed to work a small smile onto her face.

"Anyway, I'm glad you could make it. This is General Armchair Masterstroke," Cadance announced abruptly, jabbing a hoof at the army officer standing at the opposite side of the hospital bed.

"And he has a proposal that he would really want you to consider," she finished as the middle-aged gray unicorn nodded in affirmation.

Twilight rose an eyebrow at Cadance as the love princess tried to recollect herself.

The officer smiled at Twilight and nodded again.

"Hello Twilight Sparkle, esteemed personal protege of her majesty Princess Celestia. It is an honor to finally meet you," he announced, adding a curt bow in respect.

Twilight was shocked by this. No pony had ever addressed her with such chivalry and poise. Everything was happening too fast. First Pinkie and Fluttershy, then the Princesses, war, and now this sudden 'proposal'...she wasn't even sure if she could trust everything she was experiencing as real anymore.

"Uh...thank you sir. It's an honor as well," she smiled nervously as she dipped her head.

"Miss Sparkle, I am dreadfully sorry that we had to meet under such distasteful circumstances, but there is a favor that I need to ask of you. Surely, you understand."

She bit her lip.

"What is it sir?"

The general let a deep sigh before he continued.

"As you know, my second-in command, General Stone Leaf was a born Red Maner. After he...defected, I was left without a second-in command."

Twilight noticed that Masterstroke was deeply disturbed by the betrayal of his right hoof. Were they good friends?

"Now, I've heard some amazing things about you, bearer of the Element of Magic. You've saved our great country twice, and aided a third. Your magical and analytical skills may have been even great enough to rival the legendary Star Swirled the Bearded. You have become Princess Celestia's personal protege..."

The flattery was making Twilight's cheeks blush in a such bright shade of pink that even Cadance gave a short chuckle, despite her internal heartbreak.

"...And I want you to become mine as well," the general finished.

Twilight blush broke away as it was replaced with sudden shock.

"What?!" she cried, her mind now blank and frozen.

The general smiled in understanding.

"You are a very fascinating mare, Miss Sparkle. And you would be a valuable and massive strategical asset in the field, given the proper training of course. Your potential as a commander is unrivaled. It is your choice of course."

Twilight blinked her eyes repeatedly in confusion.

"You want me to...be a general?" she asked apprehensively.

Who did this stallion expect her to be? She glanced back at Cadance and frowned with uncertainty. Cadance gave her look that she interpreted as 'it's your choice Twilight'.

"No. Not yet at least," Masterstroke replied.

"What do you mean by that?"

"First, you would spend a month at the Officer Academy as a cadet. Normally, it takes two years to make a proper officer but we simply do not have the time. Hopefully, your expertise and talents can help even those odds a little bit," he spoke articulately and elegantly.

He was truly a gentlecolt.

"But...I can't become a general after a month! There's no way!" she protested, fear in her eyes as she thought the amount of responsibility taking on a position of that magnitude.

The general held up a hoof to silence her. Then, with a fatherly tone, he explained.

"Of course not. That's why after your cadet training, you will be placed under General Crimson Fields's command for six months as a second lieutenant. Then, you'll earn your rank as colonel and we'll see where things go from there."

Twilight shook her head.

"Only six months? Doesn't it take years for somepony to become a colonel or a general. Why do I have to be special? Can I just earn it like everypony else?" she said, sounding like an inquisitive filly.

Masterstroke chuckled.

"Miss Sparkle, anypony that can survive six months under Fields's command without taking canister shot to the face deserves a generous promotion right off the bat. Trust me, you will earn it. In fact, I'm hoping that you survive long enough to get it."

Twilight eyes went as wide as saucers as she thought carefully about what he just said about Crimson Fields. Was he really that bad of a general? At this point, she was uncertain if she would take this offer or not. On one side, she had never fought in an actual battle before so she would have no experience. Also, this would be very dangerous, especially considering what general she would be serving under.

On the flip side, Equestria was in trouble. Just by leaving, Red Mane had already been crippling Equestria. The entire nation depended on the reassimilation of Red Mane and if becoming a general would help that process along, then so be it. There was also the subject of the princesses and her friends. They were attacked ruthlessly by these ponies. Surely, Princess Celestia would want Twilight to do this, wouldn't she? Somepony needed to stand up to Red Mane after all. Also, her hunger for knowledge and the urge to exercise her brain called out to her as well. What would she learn from an experience like this? This could be an excellent opportunity to practice her strategic thinking and accomplish a major goal in the process.

After a few more minutes of musing over her options in thought, she had made her decision. It was a tough choice, the points and counter-points in her mind were nearly even.

"Okay."

"Okay?" Armchair repeated in surprise.

"I'll do it. I'll join and do my part." Twilight said resolutely, her doubts in her mind effectively being eliminated with the points of logic that she used to attack it with.

The general scrunched an eyebrow with an astonished smile. He looked most pleasantly surprised.

"Great! Now as for your regiment, I believe that the 20th Manehattan still needs another lieutenant..."

Lillibullero

Lillibullero

****

Day

-525

****

Lillibullero

****

It was ironic that they would train on these grassy plains. The normally bright green plains of Lillibullero were now swarming with the red, cyan, and white coats of the Karalian Army.

Rat...boom...tat...boom...rat tat tat tat tat tat...boom...

Rat...boom...tat...boom...rat tat tat tat tat tat...boom...

Second Lieutenant Thunder Coy watched as the six-file column of a foal conscript regiment marched passed his stationary formation, keeping in step with the drummer as the little colt played the Republican Army's signature drum cadence on a snare. The hooves of the little ponies pounded into the cobbled road, synchronizing them with the beat of the drum. All of them looked sharp in formation, keeping perfect dress and cover while maintaining a steady half-step by bringing their knees up high with every hoof stomp.

He adjusted his black Hoof Guard cap that sat like a black tower on his head with a small hole for his horn. The yellow unicorn watched in grim reminiscence. This was such a sadistic way to weed out officer cadets.

In the next ten years, those young foals would be one of two things. Either dead on the battlefield, or commissioned second lieutenants like himself.

As much as he enjoyed his officer rank, he hated being a conscript cadet. They took him away from his family, treated him terribly, and tried to get him killed. The road of a Karalian officer was a rough one, compared to the enlisted, which was made up of a mix of volunteers and conscripts, depending on the regiment. In contrast though, commissioned officers had it good once they made it through that. Coy was now well-trained, experienced, and the pay was excellent.

He snapped himself out of his stupor as he remembered that his regiment was supposed to march after the 2nd Foal Conscripts. He looked over to his left and at the front of the ranks, a pair of green eyes winked to him and looked away.

The captain of his regiment was an old friend of his from their time with the cadets. Both of them were young, hardly stallions, yet received an immense amount of respect for their experience as every Karalian officer did. His friend was a young brown earth pony named Blaze. Some of the other cadets would joke that both him and Blaze had pegasus names and yet neither of them had wings. No one could ever figure what Blaze's last name was, and whenever somepony asked him, he would tell them that he didn't have one. It was then when Coy realized that his brown friend was recruited out of an orphanage. His friend was almost as odd as Coy was silent.

Thunder was not much of a talker.

"Battalion!" the captain sounded off.

"Company!" the other lieutenant on the left flank shouted.

"Company!" Thunder signaled by shaking his flank side to side, from the right wing of the formation.

"March!" Blaze barked out from the center.

All three drew their curved swords and shouldered them as they marched in step with the red-coated formation they commanded.

And just like that, the 8th Karalian Hoof Guards was on the move.

"That song," he thought as he listened to its melody, keeping his eyes stoic and facing front.

"Of course we would play that song here. It's so fitting. In fact, I wonder if the Equestrians can hear it from over the border."

Thunder Coy smirked a bit at the irony.

Hundreds of years before the first Hearth's Warming Day, the three pony tribes of unicorn, pegasi, and earth pony, still lived in relative peace, their trust not scheduled to deteriorate until a few generations down the line. The land that those ancient ponies settled is today, the border between southern Equestria and northern Karalia.

The border that Blaze's Hoof Guards were a mere twenty miles away from.

Back then, each tribe would keep a mandated number of slaves in their possession to perform hard labor or other menial tasks. These ponies were usually selected out of the populations of each tribe respectively and were chosen from the orphanages, the lower class, convicted felons, and other sources. Otherwise the 'expendable' portion of ponies were forced into slavery.

Depending on the master, the slaves may have been treated well or neglected and abused. It was usually the latter.

As the centuries went by and distrust festered, an unexplained winter hit and malcontent between the tribes broke out. The slaves felt the most negative impact of the conflict. They were forced to work harder to produce food or build walls and protection from the blizzards. There were even cases of slaves being used as sacrifices to appeal to the gods that didn't exist, to stop the frozen onslaught. Indeed, as desperation within the tribes grew, the harsh treatment of servants had only gotten worse. Any slaves that the master had decided that weren't working hard enough or those that disobeyed, were flogged and left out in the cold.

Any slave that tried to run was sent to hang.

After witnessing the atrocities done to their fellow pony, the tension between the slaves and their handlers had reached a breaking point. Much of the lower classes and vigilantes began to protest the treatment of the slaves, mainly by complaining but some went as far as helping some pony slaves escape. As the servants became more self-aware after being bolstered by support within the tribes, slave riots began to break out. Instead of appeasement, the ruling class resorted to oppression by force.

Protesters turned into rioters, and rioters into revolutionaries.

...And those revolutionaries became Karalians.

The new rebel army, made up of slaves, vigilantes and other turncoats, fled into the countryside. They hoped to lose the future Equestrians amongst the plains, and set up a new land for themselves. But the loyalists were relentless. In their frustration with the blizzards, any compassion that they might have had was rotted away by this time. They decided to make an example of the rebels and crush them immediately.

Thirty-seven thousand rebels camped on the high-ground on the ridge of a large hill that overlooked the snow-covered plains below.

The plains of Lillibullero.

Fifty thousand of the best loyalist troops that the tribes could scrape together were sent to obliterate the rebels.

Many of the loyalists were pompous and over confident.

The dissenters had no discipline, no organization. This wasn't an army, it was a rabble of idiotic ponies. They would surely break and run just at the sight of the combined tribal army marching towards them. For the loyalists, this was the easiest mission in the world.

At least, that's what it was supposed to be...

The tribesponies first tried to turn the rebels' flanks and even slip in from behind but the revolutionary pegacav was deployed on the wings of the rebel positions to check such movements. The rebels had adequate supplies after raiding the tribes' stores out of spite before they left. Also, the ridge itself could sustain them with the vegetation that hadn't been frozen yet, and the loyalists had not brought enough supplies to sustain a siege.

Left with no other options, the loyalists launched a three-pronged attack on the ridge. It was a simple, and straightforward attack.

Twenty-five thousand loyalists moved to bash open the center, eight thousand assorted race ponies each to pinch both the left and right flanks, four thousand pegasi to check the rebel pegacav and keep them from flanking the assault forces, and a five thousand unicorn infantry reserve in the center.

The former slaves and vigilantes were ready for them.

Marching across the field, the tribesponies were taking massed arrow volleys before they could even reach the foot of the ridge. Getting up the ridge was another bloody affair, and after taking nearly seven thousand casualties from the arrows fired into the field, the morale of the loyalist ponies was beginning to wane. As they got closer, the rebel unicorns were now firing their short-range death bolts in deadly volleys that tore through the attacking formations.

The experience of the attacker was a dreadful one. The cries of comrades stuck by arrows or blasted by unicorn volleys was deafening. The stench of blood and sweaty bodies filled their nostrils, while the sparkly and almost smoky discharge from the rebel unicorns' horns effectively made it impossible to see the enemy in front of them. Whenever a death bolt volley came rolling in, the sharp crack of the horns made the hearts of the attackers jump with fear, praying that they wouldn't be the ones that got hit.

After reaching the crest of the ridge and taking more horrific arrow fire, the tribesponies were met with a wall of spears that counter-charged down the hill, using the momentum to smash through the ranks of the exhausted loyalists. The unicorns that were firing down upon them took this time to retreat to the reverse slope of the hill and waited there as a reserve. There they would wait until the spear-ponies were cleared of the ridge and then they would take to the high ground once again and provide cover fire, should the rebels need to pull back.

The rebel pegacav used their superior numbers to overpower and shatter the morale of the four thousand loyalist pegasi send to stall them. With the tribes' pegacav depleted and routing, their flanks were now exposed. With renewed pegacav charges, the loyalists were now being attacked in three different directions, all of them with momentum against them. This caused their forces to be caught off-balance.

Remaining pegasi within the assault forces tried to counter-charge the rebel cavalry from the wings but didn't have the momentum nor the remaining numbers to put up an effective resistance.

The battle had turned into a mass rout.

Rebels cut down retreating loyalists by the hundreds as they tried to retreat. The loyalist unicorn reserve tried to provide cover fire for the retreat but couldn't differentiate between friend and foe in the mass rabble of ponies in front of them. Their supposed cover fire was accidentally cutting down more allies than enemies.

Not long after, the rebels had reached the unicorn reserve, heavily outnumbering and simply overwhelming them with a frontal charge. Soon, the reserve broke after nearly losing half their number and joined their comrades in the rout.

The loyalists tried to reform into a glob rather than a formation, but by this time only twenty-one thousand of them were left all together and the rebels had only taken twenty-five hundred casualties. Bravely but stupidly, the loyalists all came together for one last charge at the advancing rebels that now outnumbered them. Both sides clashed in a straight-up, head-to-head, mess.

Unit cohesion on both sides began falling apart as individual fights now took precedence. Except for the rebel pegacav, which withdrew to the flanks to reform and strike at the rear of the loyalist glob, effectively surrounding them. The rebels used their superior numbers, positioning and most importantly, spirit, to overpower the loyalists and bled their numbers dry.

By the time the fighting had stopped, the revolutionaries had claimed a crushing victory over their oppressors.

Over six thousand loyalists had surrendered and nine thousand more never returned from routing. The rest, numbering at around thirty-five thousand, were slaughtered.

The rebels only lost fifty-seven hundred and some change throughout the entire affair.

That was how the battle for Karalia's independence from the tyrannical future Equestrians was won on the plains of Lillibullero.

That song...

It was mocking those malicious and bastardous Equestrians for their embarassing defeat at the hooves of the righteous Karalians. That was why the song was written after all, to make fun of the Equestrians.

Coy and most other Karalian ponies were very proud of their ancestors and the feelings of patriotism towards the Republic was strong within the nation. That piece of history was the reason why he and Blaze felt honored to take part in this upcoming campaign.

The province of Red Mane within Equestria has risen against that evil country as well. Those poor souls were crying out to the Karalians, like a younger sibling who had been bullied. Even better, was the fact that Red Mane wanted to form a republic, just like Karalia. Feeling like the protective big brother, the Karalians were more than happy to come to the aid of friends that were suffering under Equestria's tyranny.

The Red Maners reminded the Karalians of themselves, an oppressed group struggling to obtain freedom that could only be found by spilling their own blood in sacrifice. And against the same vile ponies as well. The mix of righteous hate for the Equestrians, sympathy for Red Mane, and the potential spread of a republican agenda and ideals, were more than enough to convice Karalia to take action.

Red Mane had already declared war on Equestria.

And in one week, the proud and glorious superpower nation would join them in their quest for freedom. It was now time to show the Equestrians the error of their ways, the time to set things right.

Justice would be done.

In a week's time, the Republic of Karalia would declare war on the Principality of Equestria.

Professional

Professional****Day

-522

****Army of Western Equestria****

Applejack and the other mares that she was bunked with emerged from the tent, ready to begin their first day of army training in Luna's 4th Grenadiers. As she left the tent, she noticed that it was foggy today and that ponies from other tents were preparing for the day as well. There was the usual banter of ponies, the clanking of equipment and the squeaks of supply wagons being driven as well.

She was excited.

Today was the first day that she would have to don the red coat of Luna's Grenadiers.

Applejack and the other grenadier recruits thought that it was weird that most of the army wore the usual green coats except for them, the skirmishers, and the Royal Guard.

She knew that she was going to feel silly wearing them. Wouldn't the red make them easy to see and target?

From what she had heard, the entire purpose of the Grenadiers was these nifty little portable bombs that they would light and buck into the enemy ranks. Of course, not all grenadiers had as strong legs as her with years of experience bucking solid trees, so that would mean that they would have to brave enemy fire to get close enough to kick their namesakes. Of course, they would all learn to march, shoot and fight in melee, just like the rest of the infantry.

However, General Crimson Fields wanted Luna's Grenadiers to be especially tough, so he mandated that all grenadier regiments were to focus heavily on melee fighting, which Applejack had no qualms or protests about.

"Shoot 'em, grenade 'em, AND take them on hoof-to-hoof? Golly, we must be the best ponies in the entire army!" she thought with pride.

This was exactly what she wanted. She now had a first-hand opportunity to end this war quickly. The harder she fought, the quicker the war will end. And then, she could get back to the farm and everything will return to normal. These rebels won't have the fight in them to hold out too long, especially against shock troops like Luna's Grenadiers.

This was her plan and it was perfect.

"Why, those Red Maners will run after the first volley! Maybe even at the sight of us! If we show them our ferocity, they would think twice to hurt innocent ponies ever again and they'll be runnin' scared! Serves them right," she thought vengefully, growling a bit under her breath, enough to where the other mares near her couldn't hear.

She still hadn't gotten over her feelings about the attack on the train station and how it had affected her friends. It was a rotten move by Red Mane. Then, it occurred to her that she couldn't feel better until she saw that justice was done.

The farm pony began to stretch her limbs by the dying fire outside the tent. She knew that it was good to get limbered up before performing any physical exercises. As she and her tent mates began to stretch, she heard three familiar voices squeak in the distance. She perked her ears up to listen closely, but the sound disappeared as quickly as it came. It was only a few seconds before her ears drooped back down and she brushed it off as nothing.

"I'm bein' mighty antsy today. I wonder what's makin' me hear these--"

There is was again.

It sounded like the high-pitched laughter of three young fillies.

"Oh HAY no!"

She turned completely around, nearly having a heart attack at what she saw.

There, walking in between tents, laughing and giggling in buttoned red uniforms and black grenadier caps, was the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

As she looked closer, she noticed that Scootaloo had a fife hanging out of her mouth like a cigar and that Sweetie Belle had just slipped her own fife in her pack. Applejack growled in anger as eyes fell upon her little sister's bulky form. Applebloom had a snare drum fitted around her neck and hanging freely towards the ground. The red-maned filly mumbled with two drumsticks in her mouth with a smile.

"So yeah, I'm thinking about writing a song for the regiment. I just don't where the inspiration came from! I can't write music though, only lyrics, so maybe you girls can help me out with that!" Sweetie Belle said excitedly.

Scootaloo spit her fife into her hoof and nodded vigorously with a wide, toothy smile.

"Totally! Once I uh...learn how to play this thing anyway," Scootaloo said sheepishly, looking down onto the instrument.

"Y'all have got my support!" Applebloom chimed in, her voice muffled slightly from the drumsticks in her mouth.

A look of horror crossed Applejack's face.

"No...no no no NO!" she panicked.

"What do those little fillies think they're doing!?"

"Applebloom!" the farmpony boomed.

All three fillies jerked their heads toward her, fear and dread in their eyes.

"What do you fillies think you're doin'!?" she barked, repeating her thought a second ago, almost word for word.

"Ah! Applejack?!" Applebloom squeaked.

Both Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle winced as they glanced at each other.

"Do you have any idea how worried sick Granny Smith must be right now? Leaving her alone on the farm like this? Wait 'til I tell Big McIntosh on you young filly! In fact, he shouldn't be but a few tents down," Applejack finished, looking behind her.

"But sis! You left home too!" Applebloom whined, her sunset-colored eyes becoming watery.

"That's different! You're just not old enough to be out here young filly! How did the army even let you in anyway!?" she cried.

Sweetie Belle stepped up with an innocent smile.

"That's easy! They needed foals for the Fife and Drum Corps and this grumpy recruiter in Ponyville let us right in!" she chirped happily.

Applejack froze.

"Grumpy recru--oh no..." Applejack sighed as she held a hoof to her forehead.

"Girls, you can't just--"

"It's totally fine Applejack! We're just playing music. That's not dangerous, right?" Scootaloo reasoned.

"--But you're still going to be on the front lines! Applebloom! What am I gonna do if you get shot huh?! I don't want that on my mind while I'm fightin'! And what about you Sweetie Belle?! Do your parents know about this?! Don't you think Rarity would be worried sick about you!? What where you girls thinkin', runnin' off like that!? Why?! Why did you do this, huh?!"

Applejack was nearly sobbing as she ended her tirade, huffing intensely, sweat dripping her face. Some of the other grenadiers looked on in bewilderment and a slight fear of Applejack.

Immediately, the three fillies began to feel remorse, their bodies shrinking further into the ground with each outburst.

"Well, it's too late now, you're already in the army. I hope you're happy..." Applejack finished, speaking quietly this time between breaths.

Applejack didn't know what to do now. Her plan was so easy and straightforward up to this point, just defeat Red Mane and come home in one piece. But now she had three little ponies to look after. Every second that they were in danger would no doubt, stress her heart. She needed to fight even harder, now more than ever, to get the Cutie Mark Crusaders home as safely as possible.

She would have to pour hours upon hours into her training, mastering every facet of her new job.

Applejack would become a professional.

And she was still telling Mac.

****

Unicorn Officer Academy

****

"A battalion is a group of infantry ponies consisting of two or more companies, usually numbering at around five hundred strong. A regiment is a larger group of ponies consisting of two or more battalions and the numbering differs between types of unit. Usual division of an infantry regiment follows the standard: two thousand for militia, fifteen hundred for Hoof, twelve hundred for Grenadiers, and one thousand for Elite Hoof Guards (Royal Guard). All of the above are usually commanded by a Captain, Major, or a Colonel. This includes Equestrian, Equestrian Auxiliaries (Gryphonic and Saddle Arabian) and other foreign powers as well."

Twilight scanned through the book once more. It was actually pretty simple and straightforward...for a pony like her anyway. Then again, this chapter was only covering basic units structures and other little tips for aspiring officers. She couldn't wait until she had gotten into the more complex material.

"Gryphon Auxiliary cavalry squadrons are heavy cavalry usually numbering at six to seven hundred a squadron, while lighter pegasi cavalry will number at around nine hundred to a thousand. Gryphon cavalry is used for heavy charges, while pegacav is used for flanking, harassment and charges against weakly defended targets (artillery positions). Pegacav commanders should avoid head-on charges against an enemy infantry regiment, even if stationary and especially when deployed in square."

As Twilight read, there was an image of earth pony units deployed in a perfect square formations, firing their muskets at incoming pegacav. Those ponies were not Equestrian.

"Pegacav should be treated as aerial skirmishers foremost to combat enemy pegacav, (which is why they are armed with breech-loading rifles rather than muskets) and anti-artillery cavalry second. Should they be forced to charge infantry, they should only do so from the flanks and rear. They will also be extensively trained for close combat using curved sabers against enemy soldiers. Light pegacav such as 'Dragoons' are good shots with a breech-loader, artist fencers, and a terror in melee combat."

Twilight had talked to Rainbow Dash about the pegasus joining the Dragoons. As supportive as Twilight was, she couldn't help but to be worried about her friend.

Applejack was just as bad, probably worse.

What did they call them...Grenadiers?

The unicorn was stressed over all of their safeties, including her own. Especially since they would be serving under the same insane general. Well, at least Masterstroke said he was insane. Hopefully that wasn't entirely true. She could tell that Armchair didn't think too highly of Fields and she assumed that it was probably the same way vice versa.

She shifted uneasily in her chair as she grimaced at the situation that she and her friends had found themselves in. The other cadets didn't seem to notice, which was good.

By now, Twilight had learned that she would be serving as an infantry officer for a regular Hoof regiment known as the '20th Manehattan'. She frowned into her book as she thought about that. This meant that she wouldn't know a single pony in that outfit and would have to help the officer in charge with commanding complete strangers.

Was this normal for an officer? The feeling was so strange to her.

"Grenadiers are infantry shock troops known best for their proficiency for the usage of a portable explosive known as a 'grenade'. Grenadiers are notoriously tough and are somewhat feared on the battlefield. They excel at melee combat and are respectable shots with a musket. A famous tactic that is used by the Karalian Grenadiers is called 'Close to Range'. 'Close to Range' is a simple but devastating tactic in which the grenadier regiment would fire one volley at normal range and then close with the enemy formation at double-time march and then stop and buck grenades at the enemy. After this, they waited until the grenades reached their destinations and detonated. After detonation, the Karalian Grenadiers would close the rest of the distance with a bayonet charge, hopefully crippling the enemy formation and/or shattering their morale."

Twilight would have to be strong for all of them. She had to do her best, knowing that Applejack and Rainbow Dash were doing the same. She buried herself a little further into her book.

An infantry officer huh?

Well, she would be the best infantry officer that she could be. And if she survived long enough, the best second-in-command that General Masterstroke ever had. It was her destiny, and Equestria had once again, depended on her to fulfill it.

Twilight Sparkle would be a professional.

****Pegasi Officer Academy

****

Rainbow Dash slashed at the pony in front of her, only for her attack to be blocked by the opponent's own wooden saber. Her adversary went in for a quick thrust at her chest but Dash was able pivot the saber in her hoof to parry the blow. She pushed the enemy sword away from her own as she performed a downward slash from the opposite side this time, which exposed her body. The enemy pegasus saw this and parried the slash immediately. What Rainbow Dash didn't see was the spinning kick from Spitfire's back hoof coming at her from Rainbow's left side.

The blow connected with Dash's face and the force threw her back but Rainbow Dash wasn't going down that easily. She masterfully turned her fall into a back-flip and was able to remain in the air. Her Captain charged her as she recovered and prepared another attack. She lifted her saber just in time to deflect a horizontal slash at her torso and returned the favor with a downward thrust which Spitfire dodged and slashed at Rainbow again, this time a downward stroke aimed at her head. Dash realized her folly and recovered by bringing her wooden weapon up just in time to stop the blow.

Spitfire noticed that Rainbow's left was open again and used a fore hoof to punch Rainbow in the face once again. After this, the orange pegasus gritted her teeth as she released of flurry of slashes, thrusts, swipes at her opponent, determined to break her enemy. Rainbow Dash struggled to parry and block every attack aimed at her, nearly having a heart attack while ducking to dodge a swipe that would have beheaded her, if they were using real swords.

Rainbow Dash watched her experienced captain with awe and terror.

The way Spitfire flipped the saber with ease to a position to attack, frightened her. Spitfire moved fluidly and with great speed, able to recover after every movement, whether it'd be a slash, parry, or thrust, it didn't matter. She was like a painter with a brush, intensely and passionately constructing a work of art. It was like the sword was an extension of Spitfire herself. Her moves were near perfect, the orange pegasus was even able to carry out multiple moves in a single motion, the saber flowing along with her body like water.

Rainbow was losing ground, or air for that matter, getting pushed back, little by little.

Rainbow twirled her saber to build up momentum for an attack while at the same time trying desperately to distract Spitfire. She tried to cut under Spitfire's defense and slash upwards but her opponent saw it coming from a mile away and deflected it with ease. She then air-jumped over Spitfire, performing a front-flip in an attempt to catch Spitfire off-guard. She used to momentum to try and slash at Spitfire's shoulder while in mid-flip. A risky move for sure, but Rainbow Dash wasn't much of a conservative fighter.

Spitfire pivoted and spun her entire body around, saber already in perfect position to block the attack. Still falling, Rainbow silently cursed as she realized that failed attack had left her back exposed and that she would be a sitting duck by the time she righted herself.

The captain smirked as she gripped her saber with both hooves and plunged the tip into Rainbow's back, where her heart would be.

Rainbow Dash cried out as the force of the hit caused her to fall out of the sky, only to crash onto a large flat cloud. The sound of a pillow being fluffed was heard as she hit the cloud. She groaned and pushed her head further into the cloud in shame and dizziness as the other cadets stood in a semi-circle around her. Spitfire landed behind her with that smug expression still plastered on her face. The captain bowed politely and sheathed her wooden saber.

"Sergeant! Time please!" she called out to an older stallion.

"Two minutes and ten seconds ma'am."

As she heard this, she whistled and nodded with satisfaction, looking down upon the defeated Rainbow Dash.

"Not exactly an Academy record, but its still pretty good. Lasted a lot longer than many of the other cadets," she said proudly, taking the clipboard that the sergeant had handed her.

Rainbow Dash picked herself off of the cloud and returned to the semi-circle so that the next cadet could have his or her turn. Spitfire still eyed her with curiosity.

"You surprise me Cadet Rainbow Dash. I didn't take you for a decent swordspony. It was also interesting fighting a lefty for a change as well."

Spitfire smiled genuinely as she returned to the clipboard to the sergeant while keeping her eyes on Rainbow Dash.

"Thank you ma'am!" Rainbow Dash replied, still huffing as she tried to fill her lungs with as much air as possible, while wiping the sweat from her brow.

"You did good, but you need to learn how to cover your left and not to take so many risks like that last one that did you in. Your moves are fluid and your defense is impeccable but your attacks are sloppy and poorly disguised. You broadcast your attacks too much, making it far too easy for your enemy to read your every move. You would do fine against standard soldiers and militia but if you came across a decently talented fighter, you would have been dead, just like right now," Spitfire analyzed and lectured simultaneously.

She then turned and faced the rest of the cadets, beating her wings to float above them and took a look around at her class.

"Let me remind you all that we are Dragoons. We will most definitely come across well-trained enemy pegasi and even ground troops for that matter. Some of those rebel pegasi trained right here! In this academy! They were cadets just like you. And even though they are not war-experienced, I can guarantee you that they've spent years getting ready for it!"

Some of the cadets looked at each other, none of them saying a word.

"We are not gryphons. We do not have the luxury of being able to bash through our targets with pure force or heavy enough to charge blindly into an enemy formation and still expect victory. We are light cavalry. Our role is a little more refined than the heavies. Lacking in power, we must make up for in speed and technique! The lancers have to use these as well, only able to slash through an enemy unit and having to reform and charge again."

The captain looked around, eyeing her cadets with passion in her eyes.

"Our job is to occupy the enemy cavalry and open up a path for our gryphons to reach the enemy's infantry. To harass enemy units with long range rifle fire and to slip behind enemy lines and destroy artillery positions. Assassinate a commander if ordered to do so. All of the above are very dangerous missions and leave us susceptible to many forms of attack. This is why we must be at our best and be ready for anything out there!"

Spitfire smiled as she looked into Rainbow Dash's eyes. It was like looking into a mirror. Mutual passion burned through both of them as Rainbow Dash finally understood what needed to be done.

"We need to train to be the best! Not only so that you can trust yourself but also to trust the pony next to you to be just as good with a rifle or a saber! Many of us will be serving in either the same squadron or a nearby one, so regardless, we'll be seeing each other a lot. Now do me a favor and look to the pony next to you."

All of the cadets obeyed, emotions overtaking them as well. Many nodded to their comrades and others spoke quiet words of encouragement.

"Do not get me wrong, we will take casualties! And when we do, we need to depend on our brothers and sisters to pull through with us and get things done. Work as a cohesive unit, a well-oiled machine. We need to be able to depend on one another in order to be successful."

Spitfire rose her wooden sword, and jabbed it in the direction of Red Mane as she spoke the next words.

"Because when this whole thing starts...each other is all you're going to have."

Silence.

Nothing was heard but the wind blowing through the sky.

After a few seconds, Rainbow Dash nodded.

The Dragoon squadron that she was going to be deployed to was now her adopted family. If she wanted to survive, and more importantly, win this war, she needed to improve herself to be an expert at everything. Whether an expert shooter with a rifle, a masterful artist with a sword, or a competent leader as an officer, she needed to do it all. Being a former weather pony, teamwork was not something very foreign to her. She hoped that her experience there, along with what she will learn at the Academy, will help her mold well with her squadron.

She needed to be strong, not just for herself, or her friends, or even Equestria, but also her squadron. Because if she was strong for them, mostly likely, they will return the favor.

Rainbow Dash needed to become a professional.

Hornsburg

Hornsburg

****

Day

-488

****

Hornsburg

****

"The enemy has taken defensive positions on the ridge past the town here. They have several artillery batteries that are well-deployed across their entire line. If we can cross the river from the north, we can roll their left flank and envelope them. Turn Stone Leaf's line, trap Blue Harbor on the hill...surround him. Maybe even cut the rebel supply line, depending on how well we can pull off this maneuver...it's possible."

The younger field commander jabbed a orange hoof onto the map of the local area, which was laid out on the table in front of both of the high-ranking officers. The older gray unicorn coughed into his sleeve and frowned at the map.

The command tent became silent for a split second. Mostly, because the other high-ranking officers had stepped out.

"It's a solid deployment Commander Burntail, but I'm afraid that time is a commodity that we do not have. We need to attack now, while the Karalian army is still too far away to send support. We need to crush the rebels quickly and then form up again to deal with the Karalians when they arrive," the older general replied.

The younger unicorn stared down at the map in frustration.

"So what must we do?" he asked.

General Crimson Fields stood up and walked slowly towards the table.

"If the Rebs and Karalians are able to link up, it'll be a disaster. The road that the Rebs are protecting is the only effective passage in which the Karalians can enter Red Mane. We've beaten them here, and the rebels are trying to buy them time. We need to take advantage of this while we have it. Canterlot will also be impatient. They send us an order, and it'll be one word, Commander."

Fields stared intently into the eyes of his second-in-command, intimidating him.

"...Attack!"

General Crimson Fields looked back down onto the map, scratching his gray beard momentarily with a hoof.

"No Commander, we march up this ridge past the town, and eat their artillery fire across the entire field. It'll be a bloody mess but we will smash their flanks on either side and then deal the killing blow...a straight drive right up their center. Even that stone wall won't be enough to protect them. The rebels won't last long, they'll break, go home, and give up. And we...we will be victorious."

The look on the younger commander's face telegraphed his uncertainty.

General swiped his hoof across the map as he spoke, pausing to take a swig of his coffee.

"Do we have an accurate estimate on enemy troop levels, Commander?" Crimson asked his subordinate.

The younger pony nodded.

"Yes sir. We have received reports of the rebel army numbering at around seventy-five to eighty thousand total under Stone Leaf's command. We have them outnumbered sir," Commander Burntail reported in a professional and confident tone, if a little worried.

Crimson Fields took another drink of his coffee.

Only a couple weeks ago, Equestria's southern neighbor, the Republic of Karalia, had declared war. Why they did so was beyond the general. It was irritating no doubt, this unexpected move turned this internal civil war into an international endeavor. Now, not only did they have to fight rebels, but also an entire nation that was almost as strong and rich as Equestria was.

This...complicated things.

It wouldn't be easy to take on two armies at once, but it would have to be done for crown and country.

General Fields had heard that the Karalians had launched a preemptive invasion of eastern Equestria, striking from the south and much closer to Canterlot. General Masterstroke and his Army of Eastern Equestria should be able to handle them. That bookworm Masterstroke had it easy though, he only had to deal with the Karalians. Of course, the Crown would send the more competent general to deal with the rebels and the Karalians. He smirked as the pride of being given that honor inflated his ego.

"What have the scouts reported on the incoming Karalian army?" he inquired.

"They estimated the Karalian number to be around ninety thousand, sir. They've got some good artillery and there is a rumor that they've even brought those damn Karalian Grenadiers and also Grenzers for their skirmish element. Those ponies are gonna be a pain in our flank sir, I can feel it," Commander Burntail seethed.

"I know they will, Burntail. The Karalians are experienced war-fighters and have basically written the books that our new officer cadets are reading by their actions alone. Needlessly to say, they know how to fight."

Silence overtook the room as the dreadful irony of that fact sunk in. Quickly, Fields spoke once again.

"And what of our foreign friends? When will they arrive?" Fields set his coffee cup down, hiccuping for a second.

Burntail looked down onto the map.

"Provided that the information is accurate, thirty-five thousand allied Auxiliaries will arrive in the port of Baltimare around the same time the Karalians do. Fifteen thousand Saddle Arabians, mostly Hoof infantry and a couple rocket batteries. Our protectorate, the Crystal Empire, is sending us twelve thousand line infantry and some howitzers. They'll be marching in from the north. We've also got eight thousand of Gryphonia's finest heavy cavalry coming in as a gift to Equestria. Probably to thank us for the foreign aid. The Arabians really hate the Karalians you know, I wasn't aware."

General Crimson Fields nodded in understanding.

"Of course they do. Remember when I said that the Karalians are experienced? That's because they destroyed the zebra country of Ustio and annexed all of its territory."

"Really? I don't pay much attention to foreign media."

"Well, you should."

Crimson looked down onto the map, his eyes glazing over each enemy and allied position, although his mind was elsewhere. He even surprised himself as he realized that Karalia and Saddle Arabia had quite a history.

"Yeah. It all happened about...eight years ago? Let me tell you, the Saddle Arabians didn't take too kindly to watching their closest ally get obliterated by Karalia. They tried to build an army to retake and liberate Ustio but the Karalians stopped them cold and pushed them back across the border. The defeat was the first domino in the collapse of the Saddle Arabian economy."

The Commander's eyes widened in a knowing stare.

"The economy that we rebuilt!"

"Exactly. Now, we've got a hundred thousand here already. Even though that might be enough to take both enemies on, I don't feel like taking my chances with the Karalians. We'll wait until the Auxiliaries arrive before we take them on, regardless of what Canterlot says."

"And tomorrow?"

"I already told you, the rebels are mostly poorly-trained militia, with a few traitorous army units mixed in is all. They'll break. They have to."

The lack of confidence in the general's words was evident in Burntail's eyes.

"It's late. Get some rest Commander, we attack in the morning."

****Equestrian Center****

Day

-487

****

The first rank.

Of all of her luck, Applejack just had to be put in the first rank. Of course she had heard all of the horror stories about ponies that get placed in the first rank. Big Mac had been placed much further in the back, in the fourth rank. She had to admit, she was a bit nervous about all this. But she chose to do this, and she knew that if she wasn't doing it then somepony else would have to.

The proud farmer wasn't having any of that.

She stared out stoically at the ridge in front of her, the fog addling her view of the enemy positions across from her. The slope wasn't very steep at all so they would be able to march up to the stone wall with ease. The fog could provide them with some cover from infantry fire. The pounding of rebel and Equestrian artillery alike filled the eerie silence that resonated throughout the entire regiment.

Applejack craned her neck down the line, surveying everything she could. A few of the ponies in the formation whispered to each other, a few more shivered with nervous twitches, including the stallion that was next to her on her right. His hooves tapped against the ground, one after another. Whether it was in anticipation or being unnerved by the sounds of artillery, she couldn't guess.

Private Applejack turned completely around, looking back and lifting a hoof to a point, trying to pick her brother out from the rear of the formation. She found him easily, even with his coat blending in with the red of the Grenadier jacket. He looked up and noticed her. Big Mac gave an encouraging smile and a quick nod. She smiled as well, trying to hide the anxiety on her face. As she turned back around, she caught a glance of the town of Hornsburg behind them, the white two-story buildings barely visible through the fog.

The cool grasses of the ridge were moistening her hooves with dew, and the air felt cool and crisp. Normally, this would be ideal weather to go on a short run in. They were going to charge up that hill...

However, this type of run wasn't something that she had in mind.

She turned back slowly to face front, eyeing the regiment as she did so. It was like a red sea of ponies that turned green the farther she looked down on the right. She saw that the green started to fade into a dark blue further down the line. Only Manehattan regiments wore the dark blue. That was when Applejack realized that Twilight was deployed on the right.

"I hope she's not in the first rank like me. I'm awful worried about her and Rainbow. Come to think of it, I don't see any of the cavalry. Their probably flyin' high and all that though and I can't see that through the fog. And the youngins are with the Fife and Drum foals on the right side of 3rd Battalion. Please, for the love of Celestia, don't let those little fillies get hurt!"

Applejack's stomach churned as her worry began to gnaw at her, causing her to blink as a bead of sweat dripped down her face. She had been getting sweaty a lot easier as of late. What was that? A small little quirk about herself that she never knew about? She took the black shako off her head to wipe more sweat from her brow and plopped it back on afterward. The farmer tossed the thought from her mind and began to mentally prepare herself to the task at hand.

This day was going to be interesting for sure. It would start soon, Luna's 4th Grenadiers was supposed to move forward in thirty minutes, along with other regiments.

Luna's 4th had its twelve hundred Grenadiers deployed into three battalions of four hundred earth ponies each. There were four ranks in each battalion, one hundred ponies to a rank. Applejack and Big Mac were in 1st Battalion, which was in the middle of the regiment and further forward of the other two. 2nd Battalion was on their left, deployed further back, diagonal to 1st Battalion. 3rd Battalion was the same on the right, parallel to 2nd Battalion. This deployment turned Luna's 4th Grenadiers into a pseudo-wedge formation.

From the view of a pegasus it would have looked like three, red rectangles making a small arrow, pointing towards the enemy with Applejack and Big Mac's rectangle leading from the front.

They were ready.

Applejack was ready...or at least she hoped.

Thirty minutes.

****Equestrian Right****

Second Lieutenant Twilight Sparkle felt very uncomfortable and itchy in her deep blue Manehattan fusilier uniform. She was standing in front of the 20th Manehattan Regiment of Unicorn Hoof. Fifteen hundred unicorns that she had gotten to marginally know in the last month were standing behind her in three thin ranks of five hundred, shoulder to shoulder.

They were deployed on the right wing of the Equestrian advancing forces, the wing that General Crimson Fields wanted to move out first. After the Pegasi Dragoons created a diversion on the extreme left to distract enemy cavalry, they would listen for a single, thunderous salvo from every artillery battery the army had. Then, the order would come in to advance the left and right wings at the same time. Once the wings started creating havoc on the flanks, the center would move in and deal the lethal blow to the rebels' center.

Twilight knew this was a stupid plan from the beginning. But she was just a second lieutenant, not a general or field commander. She thought it better than to question her orders, no matter how idiotic they sounded. An army relied on cohesion, if orders weren't followed, cohesion would be gone. The army would fall apart from lack of order, and the rebels would win as a result.

A cold shiver went down her spine as she thought of that horrid possibility.

She readjusted her crooked bicorne hat with her hoof, she was saving her magic to fire.

That was the advantage of unicorn hoof over earth pony hoof. The ability to fire death bolts without carrying around a cumbersome musket, making them more agile to deploy. Unicorn horns were quicker on the reload as well and more accurate, probably why many ground skirmishers and artillerists were unicorns. A unicorn hoof regiment was slightly cheaper to train, equip, and maintain than a earth pony one, but not as numerous as earth pony hoof because of population constraints...and politics of course.

But these advantages came with drawbacks.

Because of the magical drain to produce a death bolt, a unicorn's ammunition supply was limited to their magical ability. Other than the rare powerful unicorns like herself and her brother, the earth pony usually had more ammunition. Not to mention that unicorns, by nature, were terrible at melee fighting, almost as bad as the militia. If earth pony grenadiers or even hoof for that matter, got close enough to charge them, it would be a disaster.

She listened to the booms of the twelve-pounders that were hopefully blasting away at the rebels' defensive wall that the pegasi scouts had told them that they were hiding behind. Twilight paid the explosions no mind as she looked down to her belt.

Sure enough, there they were.

One saber sheathed on her right, connected to her belt and a flintlock pistol hanging next to it. She knew without looking that there was its twin on her opposite side. She mentally chuckled at the thought of carrying these.

It was an Equestrian officer tradition to have this loadout after all.

"An infantry officer anyway...I wonder what Rainbow Dash has."

The 20th Manehattan was stretched into thin ranks for a reason. A reason that Twilight despised and that frustrated her.

According to what she had heard among the other officers in her regiment, the 20th Manehattan were meant to occupy the enemy's left flank and absorb their fire, while the earth pony hoof units in reserve behind them could exploit the breach.

"Bullet stoppers...that's all we are. Just meat-shields for the rest of the army."

Twilight grunted and rubbed her forehead with a hoof as she tried to divert her thoughts.

A geyser of black erupted from the ground in front of the regiment, but nowhere close enough to do any damage. A stray rebel artillery shell. A couple of them would explode near their regiment every few minutes or so but were largely ignored, most of them falling short and landing ahead of them.

She took a deep breath and glanced over her shoulder, eyeing the nervous unicorn ponies behind her. She immediately recognized a few of them within the ranks, when they had drilled together. Many of them were awfully young.

But then again, so was Twilight.

Numerous explosions were heard behind her, one after another. She counted eighteen guns that had just fired. There was no way that was the entire Equestrian Grand Battery. She could hear the friendly round shot rocket overhead, destined for either falling uselessly into the grass...or rebel blood.

A quick rapping of a snare drum was heard, and Twilight knew exactly what it had meant.

"Battalion!"

She heard the order in the distance, coming from Colonel Chamber Lane.

"Company!"

A distant voice that Twilight knew was the other lieutenant from the right wing.

"Company!" Twilight yelled as loud as she could, almost hurting her throat in the process.

She listened as other officers down the line parroted the command. They had been given the order to advance.

The full impact of that fact was just now hitting Twilight. She had been pretty calm and collected up to this point, lost in her own thoughts as she usually was, but that crisp order in the cool, foggy air had shocked her awake. Now she was getting nervous but she subdued the urge to hyperventilate a lot easier than usual, much to her satisfaction.

She took a deep breath.

"March!" the colonel of the 20th Manehattan barked.

Twilight's left hoof took a step forward.

****Equestrian Extreme Left****

"Snafu!" Rainbow Dash called out the other lieutenant.

"Whatcha want Dashie?" the dark brown pegasus replied lazily.

Rainbow let her binoculars drop from her eyes and looked at him with annoyance. She took off her helmet, scratching her head before putting it back on. Putting her hair in a ponytail on duty was extremely convenient, it kept her from having to constantly blow her mane's bangs out of her eyes. One of the many useful tips that she had picked up at the Academy.

"You know, only my friends are allowed to call me that."

Dash snorted as she continued to glare at him.

"Not anymore baby cakes. You ain't got no friends out here," he spoke with a blank smile as he confidently trotted up to the edge of the cloud and plopped himself on his haunches next to Rainbow.

Rainbow Dash frowned at his comment as she turned back to her binoculars and tried to pierce the fog with her vision. In the distance, she could see small black silhouettes scurrying on the ground and in the air in front of them. Some of those ponies were starting to group themselves near what looked like emplacements.

She handed Snafu the binoculars.

"Do you see that? Doesn't it look like rebel arty is deploying on that hill? I think those are pegacav above them. That's our target, right?"

After using them for a few seconds, Snafu's brown hooves shoved the binoculars into Rainbow's gut, causing her grunt and wrap her hooves around her stomach.

"Jerk," Rainbow thought as she snarled at him.

Snafu nodded and turned to her.

"That looks like them alright. It's kill or be killed time now, Dashie," he said in his usual flippant tone.

That tone irritated Rainbow Dash to no end, and even though she wouldn't admit it, it kind of creeped her out too.

Before she could give him a piece of her mind with a snarky comment, she heard the roaring of hundreds of voices in the distance. She picked up the binoculars and looked down range again. She caught sight of the supposed artillery positions on the hill but those haven't been moved or anything like that.

So where was the screaming coming from?

That's when she tilted her head to gaze up at the air above the hill. In the distance, she saw a few hundred black dots in a large triangle formation in the sky. As she watched the black forms through the fog, the yells were getting louder. And the black dots became pony-shaped silhouettes, zooming in from above them.

Rainbow's eyes went wide with terror.

"Snafu! We gotta go!"

Rainbow Dash sped off like a rocket, leaving her fellow lieutenant to catch up. They both picked up their speed in an effort to get as far away from the charging rebel pegacav as soon as possible and to get back and warn their Dragoon squadron.

She huffed for air as she soared, sweat dropping from her prismatic mane onto her face. Her pulse was throbbing throughout her body but her adrenaline drowned the feeling out. Her wings began to ache ever so slightly as she tried to pick up speed. Despite how abrasive he was, she was worried if Snafu could keep up with her but she had no time to look back to confirm. The yells weren't as loud now, which was a relief for the time being.

They didn't even have their weapons on them...

And they were actually getting attacked!

By real enemies!

The dawning of this fact finally hit her as the tiniest bit of fear surged throughout her body and made her shiver a little bit.

"I hope Snafu didn't see me do that."

To Second Lieutenant Rainbow Dash, the Battle of Hornsburg had already begun.

****

Equestrian Artillery Positions

****

"Counter-battery fire!"

The general dropped his spyglass from his eyes as the peaceful bliss was shattered by the rumbling of distant artillery. Behind him, he heard shouts and the rustling of hooves on grass as the Equestrian unicorn artillery crews moved to and fro on either side of him, preparing a salvo.

It was hard to see past the fog, he didn't even know why he bothered with the spyglass.

General Crimson Fields turned to Commander Burntail, as if to say something before he was cut off by the yelling of orders and return yells of confirmation coming from the artillery crews nearby.

“Load ball, not canister you idiot! Put that back!” An artillery commander barked at a subordinate behind a twelve-pounder cannon.

“Fire salvo! One thousand yards! Five second fuse!” the artillery commander yelled near them.

“Fire salvo! One thousand yards! Five second fuse!” distant echoes from multiple subordinates responded.

The unicorns lit the fuses with their magic as they dipped their heads to touch them with their horns. The batteries near on either side of the two officers erupted and spit flame as the wheeled cannons recoiled from their discharges. The roaring of the Equestrian artillery was deafening, but not enough to effect the two hardened commanders. Their stone-faced expressions would have terrified the average pony. Sparkling magical smoke residue lingered in the air after the barrage, combining multiple colors into the fog.

Burntail looked at his superior officer with an uneasy glance, the stench of expended magical charge burning his snout.

"We have the howitzers up, right? The ones that are able to fire flak-shot?"

There was worry in the younger commander's voice.

The general sighed.

"Yes, Burntail. No enemy cavalry will be charging us today."

Crimson opened his mouth to speak once again but was cut off by the artillery crews yelling some more. He furrowed his brow in irritation, this was a terrible spot to view the battle, despite the higher ground. He would have to move soon if he wanted to get any orders relayed on time.

"I think we are ready commander," Crimson said with confidence.

"Sir, I advise that we send in skirmishers first."

Regiments were forming up behind the howitzers that were further back from the twelve-pounders, deployed on the reverse slope of the hill rather than the top. Mostly green-coated hoof and light-blue skirmisher columns were moving up to the center and right reserves. A Royal Guard regiment was visible as well, their gold helmets standing out, forming up on the left reserve. They were ready to fight, even though their Captain was tangled up in the eastern front near Canterlot with most of the Royal Guards.

"Commander, every second we waste is another second given to the Karalians to arrive. I won't have it. No time, full attack. Now."

"Yes sir," Burntail responded apprehensively.

"20th Manehattan to the front!"

****

Rebel Reserve

****

"Here they come General! Right at us! Just like you said!" the young pegasus stallion praised with a cheerful smile on his blue face.

The green unicorn next to him nodded and smiled in agreement.

The rest of the general's staff stayed quiet, most of them trying to observe the obscured field in front of them with spyglasses and binoculars.

"I guess that I can read my old own compatriots better than I thought. I spent enough time with them over the years, I suppose that has something to do with it. Crimson has been, and always will be, a blind fool. Keep the reserves ready and rearing to go, Captain. We're going to be in for a hell of a fight. We must hold this line gentlecolts! Freedom depends on it!" he yelled as he galloped off, running in front of a militia regiment.

The militia ponies, were all in brown and white coats, some of them ragged. They watched as the figure that gave them so much hope and inspiration ran down the entire line in front of them, a determined look on his face. The eyes of a pony that was consumed by his cause.

He shouted encouragement to the militia reserve as they looked on. General Stone Leaf drew his saber and held it to the sky, the hoof-gripping handle cold in his grasp.

"Ready yourselves, ponies! For Red Mane, we will be victorious today! For the Republic, our blood may be shed, but we will shed the enemy's tenfold! Glory awaits you like a starving lover on that field ahead! Take it! It's yours!"

The militia cried with enthusiasm and gave off a rumbling and morale-raising shout. The sound of those two thousand voices in perfect unison, shouting all together, was frightening to say the least.

But the general loved it.

And this was only one of his regiments.

****

Equestrian Right

****

The unicorns of the 20th Manehattan were all marching in step, fife and drum playing as they advanced. Twilight did her best to clear her mind and remember her commands that she was supposed to give. It was easy, mostly just repeating what the colonel said. She reminded herself of what she was supposed to do in the event that her superior officers were killed.

She could feel that the dew was wet as her hooves brushed against the taller grasses. They were slowly getting closer to that dreaded stone wall. The night before, when she talked with the other officers by the campfire, they had said that casualties should be relatively light. She hoped that was the truth.

They marched on, their hooves pounding into the luscious grass with every stomp, bringing their knees high in sync with the drumbeats. Twilight thought of the irony of that cheerful fife music playing as many these ponies marched to their deaths.

Artillery was getting more and more frequent the closer they got. Shells from enemy unicorn artillery were bursting in front of them, leaving small craters in the path ahead. Cannonballs were kicking up geysers of black and gray smoke on the grass in front of them, the explosions causing a few ponies in the line to cringe in uneasiness. The wall of dark blue marched slowly up the grassy ridge, the music from the Fife and Drum Corps still playing delightful music.

Twilight nearly had a heart attack when she witnessed a black cannonball hit the ground, not ten feet away from her and skip off the earth. Off to her right, it rocketed into the formation, knocking a few ponies over like bowling pins. Twilight didn't look, desperately trying to keep her eyes front. She heard crunches and snaps of bones as the ball made contact with bodies. Screams and wails in pain could be heard from the Manehattan ponies. Without having to steal a glance, she knew just from what she was hearing that a few ponies probably had just lost some limbs.

"Where's his head?!" a mare with a heavy Manehattan accent cried out in disbelief and horror.

Colonel Chamber Lane then came galloping down the line, calling out to everypony, repeating over and over again.

"Ignore that artillery everypony! Just ignore it and press on! Ignore it and press on!" he ordered, saber to the sky.

Twilight craned her neck to watch him zip past her and continue galloping down the line. She looked behind her in an attempt to see where the shell had hit. All she saw behind her was a blue wall of ponies, marching in sync as if a cannonball had never hit.

Of course.

They were trained to plug gaps in the line immediately.

More cannonballs came screaming in, leaving trails of smoke in their flight paths. Most were still striking ahead of them, but Twilight nervously looked on as she realized that they were landing closer to the formation the further forward the 20th went.

Another shell came roaring in, bursting high above the formation, leaving a lingering orange fire in its wake. It split in several fragments, one of them hitting another lieutenant. Twilight looked to her left and saw that the stallion was killed immediately by the shrapnel, his face horribly burned and hardly recognizable. Fiery residue from the shot was left behind, leaving small patches of flames on the ground. The line ponies behind him marched on, some of them glancing down at him and having the dignity to step around him, rather than stomping on his body. They were wary of the flames as well. Twilight frowned and turned back to the front, trying her best to keep her breakfast down.

"That was a howitzer shot!"

"Those things are shorter-range right? We gotta be getting close!"

Twilight silenced them.

"Quiet in the ranks!" she ordered.

There was break in the fog, allowing the Equestrians to see what was in front of them. Twilight noticed that the slope got steeper the further up they went, and at the top the ridge, was that damned stone wall. Rebels were positioned on the tan and white stone wall, which was only a few hundred yards away. It stretched across the entire length of the ridge, the rebels using it for cover. They had apparently seen the 20th because some of them were already beginning to take aim.

But Twilight noticed something very disturbing about those ponies on the wall.

They were also wearing dark blue.

Twilight looked up at the 20th Manehattan regimental flag, still able to keep her step with the march, despite the artillery. It was a traditional rectangular flag, its design was a large blue X that covered the entire length of the flag, with a white background.

Then, she looked at the enemy's regimental flag.

Traditional rectangle with a large blue X and a white background.

Her heart plummeted.

****33rd Manehattan

****

"Lime! Please tell me that I'm NOT seeing this!" a green earth pony mare cried frantically to her friend.

The yellow earth pony next to her gazed solemnly back, picking up his musket.

"I know Flitter, I know. I hate this, it isn't fair," he replied, his voice shaken.

The green mare looked back to the sight in front of her, her fore hooves dug into the stone wall. A massive blue wall of ponies was marching up the ridge to meet them. There were tears in her eyes.

Many of the other ponies on the wall wore faces of confusion and dread.

"Why!?" she wailed.

"Why is this happening?! Please turn back! By the stars, please turn back!" she yelled to the advancing ponies, doing her best to refrain from sobbing on the spot.

She wiped her eyes, her body trembling in grief.

"D-do you think Star Catcher a-and Pen Leaker are in th-there?" she asked, her voice quivering.

The yellow pony frowned at the mention of their oldest and closest friends.

Manehattan was technically in Red Mane territory but many of the regiments still sided with Equestria after the split in the army.

The young stallion looked down the ridge, scanning his eyes over the ranks of ponies that were wearing the same uniform as him and Flitter. He witnessed a black geyser from a rebel shell blast a hole in the blue line, the cries of ponies heard immediately after.

He was now locked in a thousand yard stare.

"Those brave ponies across from us are our brothers and sisters," he spoke with a heavier Manehatten accent than his friend.

"Our friends...family even," he added after a pause, his eyes becoming misty.

"Manehattan ponies like us," he took a deep breath.

"...And they've been mislead to their fates."

He cocked back the hammer of his musket.

The green mare gasped in sheer terror at this action.

"I can't shoot them! I can't!" she sobbed.

Quick Lime looked at her sadly, fully regretting what he was about to do.

"I'm sorry, Flitter...but we have no choice. This is our independence at stake here."

Flitter Bug sighed heavily, still sniffling, mucus running down her uniform.

"I wish we did," she whimpered quietly, her head down in sorrow.

She picked up her own musket and cocked it back with a hoof. She took her position, leaning against the stone wall for support.

Quick Lime joined her, both of them taking aim with parallel sadness.

****20th Manehattan****

The bombardment was getting worse. Howitzer shells were bursting overhead, raining burning carcass shot on them. The enemy round shot was scoring more hits, the cries of ponies being blown to pieces becoming more frequent. The regiment held together, plugging gaps that were carved by artillery explosions. They pressed on, fear and adrenaline pumping in their veins, but despite all that, they pressed on.

Twilight Sparkle did her best to drown out all of the chaos around her, and tried to focus on the distance from the stone wall. Earth pony muskets were usually effective at to about seventy-five yards, unicorn deathbolts at one hundred. Now, the earth ponies would still be able to pick them off at greater distances, but it wouldn't be as devastating. They could stay just out of musket range and try to pick the defenders from a distance but because of the rebel protection from the stone wall and the artillery barrage chewing through the 20th, that wouldn't make much sense.

They had to get closer for better volleys.

This was bad, very bad.

A unicorn regiment as the vanguard? No skirmishers? Or at least somepony who was actually competent at hoof-to-hoof fighting? What was General Crimson Fields thinking?

Was he stupid?

So this is what Masterstroke warned her about...

Twilight felt queasy all of a sudden.

A few cannonballs landed a few feet from her, kicking up dirt and debris. She marched on, trying to get all of these demoralizing thoughts out of her head. She had to focus on what needed to be done now. But what options did she have? She didn't exactly have the time or setting to be mulling around in her head, she was marching into a deathtrap for Luna's sake!

More howitzer shells bursted above them, the sick thuds of shrapnel shot hitting flesh could be heard behind her, followed by a few more painful cries. The colonel continued to convince to push forward, galloping down the entire line, waving his saber in the air. The 20th marched on, keeping enough discipline to take their measured half-steps, braving the artillery the best they could. These are good ponies, they drilled and trained hard, Twilight knew. It showed here.

A mixture of loud pops and the sound of an angry beehive snapped her out of her thoughts, her brain shutting down immediately.

The enemy infantry had opened fire.

Metal balls from muskets whizzed by her head as they slapped into the flesh of her fellow unicorns behind her. She looked back, watching some of them drop from the line, a few of them screaming in agony. Twilight swore that she could feel the warmth from the drops of blood that had been showered on her tail and back legs. Manehattan unicorns were dropping by the dozens, from Twilight's eyes it was a devastating volley. She cringed at the number of falling ponies.

"At the quick-step!" the colonel shouted, starting to canter towards the stone wall.

The blue lines started to surge forward at a jogging pace, trying to close the distance.

Sporadic pops coming from the wall suggested that the rebels were now firing at will, muskets discharging at random intervals. Smoke began lifting from the stone wall, hindering vision for both sides somewhat. Here and there, Twilight would hear a grunt or a shriek of another pony getting shot by a stray bullet and the dreadful thud of another body hitting the ground.

Rebel artillery was still hammering away at them, round shot blowing holes in their line as they advanced, and bursting howitzers shells raining even more shrapnel and flames onto them. Some of the bursting howitzer shots reminded her of Pinkie Pie's party poppers, only a much louder and deadly version. These ones left poisonous clouds that made many ponies begin choking and coughing after marching through the hazardous gases and breathing them in.

"Is that quicklime? They can afford all this? How rich is Red Mane anyway?" she thought with fear, thankful that she wasn't near any of the quicklime clouds.

"Stop here! Battalion! Halt!" the colonel ordered suddenly, his saber still raised.

"Get your ranks!" Twilight shouted.

The unicorns formed up behind them, reestablishing their lines. A few of them dropped from being hit as they halted.

Some of the unicorns were whimpering like scared puppies.

The colonel began the command.

"First rank, make ready!" he yelled.

At this order, all of the officers, including Twilight, took a knee and charged their horns to fire. The unicorns behind them charged up their horns, pointing them to the sky. An artillery shell exploded somewhere off to Twilight's right, throwing a couple of ponies to the ground. Another whizzing bullet zipped by her head and pierced the coat of the unicorn behind her. The mare that got shot grunted and hit the ground with a thud, never to move again. Twilight felt the wind from that shot, that had almost been her.

"Present!"

"Present!" Twilight repeated, pointing her horn downrange.

She found a sizable gap in the wall slightly to her left, which was filled by four twelve-pound artillery pieces and their crews. They were pointing right at the 20th and were reloading for another shot, rebel unicorns shoving stick-like tools down the barrels. Although barricades surrounded the guns, they were still more vulnerable than the infantry.

She pointed her horn at them, feeling the pressure of the death bolt waiting to be slung from her horn. The other unicorns behind her also dropped their heads, horns blaring with a magical glow.

"Fire!"

Steady cracks of horns being discharged filled her ears as she fired her own, the smoky residue of expended magical charge burning her nostrils.

A few rebel earth ponies and artillery unicorns cried from being hit, bodies falling over the wall, their muskets clattering to the ground. But the casualties were too light for Twilight's taste, looking on in uneasiness as she charged up another shot.

"Second rank! Make ready!" the colonel commanded.

"Make ready!" Twilight yelled again, straining to draw more magic for another death bolt.

Death bolts required a lot of focused magic from a unicorn.

After the order was given, the entire first rank took a knee, allowing the second rank to shoot over their heads safely.

"Present!"

All of the horns in the rank dropped, pointing at the wall.

"Fire!"

Another volley came roaring in from behind her, the magical smoke becoming thicker. Through it, she could hear shots bouncing off the wall and hitting a few more rebels, as well as the smacking sound of more bullets hitting the ponies behind her. Round shot was still coming in, slamming into the ground around the 20th, scarring the grassy ridge with craters. Black and gray gunpowder smoke mixed with the expended magical residue, making sight even more impossible. Twilight coughed, accidentally breathing in a little bit of it. The smell from the smoke and the bodies was unbearable.

"Third rank! Make ready!"

The second rank took a knee.

"Present!"

"Fire!"

The last volley swarmed over her ears, destined for the enemy. Only a small few of earth ponies at the stone wall dropped from being hit, Twilight seeing a hat fly off of one of the stricken earth ponies. The Manehattan rebels yanked the bodies of their dead from the walls and filled in the gaps. The ponies in front were discharging muskets, while the ones behind them loaded up fresh ones and handed them off to the shooters.

As Lieutenant Sparkle charged her horn, her thoughts came back to her.

"That could have been worse."

A mare near her took a round to the chest and wailed in pain as she dropped from the line.

Twilight took a look around, taking in what she could see through the smoke. The ground was marred with black craters and bodies. Her eyes glazed over the stone wall and she frowned at what she saw. Despite firing by rank, it looked like the enemy couldn't have taken more than fifty casualties. It was that damn stone wall, it was blocking their shots!

"We need to charge now!"

"Hold here! Hold here and reload! We're going to keep this position until the supporting earth ponies get here! General's orders!"Colonel Chamber Lane barked.

"What!? That's insanity! We can't stay here!"

The 20th Manehattan was in the worst position possible. Out in the open with the enemy pouring continuous fire on them from a defensive wall while being shelled by artillery. They were now sixty yards from the wall, well within the range of earth pony muskets. Not to mention that the rebels had the high ground.

"Fire at will!" the colonel ordered.

Sporadic cracks, pops and flashes came from the 20th Manehattan as unicorns fired away at random. Twilight's horn was loaded and she once again took aim at the artillery crews. She fired and the sensation of intense magic leaving her horn tremored through it, the feeling sensitive. She watched as she missed the pony she was aiming at but saw the pony near him slump lifelessly to the ground.

A hit.

She hit him...even watched the bolt as it went downrange.

She was expected to either feel a dreadful amount of guilt or remorse, an overwhelm sadness or despair at the life she had just taken...on the flip side a sadistic satisfaction maybe...but she felt nothing.

It was trivial. Almost as if it was as mindless as opening a door or brushing her teeth. As if it didn't happen. But she wanted to feel something, anything. Just let her know that she was still alive.

Still nothing.

Twilight heard a command coming from across the ridge that made her heart jump into her throat.

"Double canister!" an enemy unicorn yelled from the barricades.

The four guns at the front erupted and recoiled violently as they fired their deadly blasts. It sounded like an explosion, followed by a loud, distinct ring. Twilight's body quivered in fear, hoping that the blankets of death wouldn't hit her. She witnessed some of the metal balls skipping off of the grass and leaving divots in the ground.

A deadly medley of rusted nails, chunks of broken glass, and metal balls shredded through the ranks of the 20th Manehattan. Ponies screamed violently in intense agony and terror as the projectiles ripped through flesh and bone. Blood was splattering seemingly everywhere as Twilight watched a stallion get his fore leg ripped off at the knee by a line of metal balls. She heard the ripping and tearing of pony flesh, making her want to vomit.

A stallion approached the colonel from behind and tapped him on the shoulder.

"What do you want!?" Chamber Lane snapped, irritated.

"Sir, permission to return to the rear," the stallion said, his voice strained.

The colonel looked mystified until he scanned the stallion's body.

One of his fore legs was missing at the shoulder, the poor colt's uniform torn and bloodied.

A chill went down the colonel's spine, his face in shock.

"Permission granted...permission granted!" he insisted.

Twilight looked around frantically, starting to panic. What was she supposed to do? Finish loading her horn and shoot...but then what?

The loud cracking of a volley broke her train of thought as another hail of musket balls came screaming in. More Manehattan ponies dropped from the lines simultaneously as the volley thinned the Equestrian line even more. A mare screamed as a ball severed her horn. A fresh howitzer salvo came roaring in, the shells bursting in mid-air, adding more fiery clouds and raining even more shrapnel onto the ponies. Round shot from other artillery batteries came blasting through the lines again from their left, enfilading them.

"Dear Celestia! How much of this are we expected to take!?"

The colonel looked down the line at his now-decimated regiment with mixed emotions.

"Celestia-dammit! Retreat!" he ordered, seemingly reading Twilight's mind.

The blue unicorn ripped off his hat and threw it to the ground in frustration.

"Pull back! Pull back!" Twilight shouted.

Ponies began to break away and run from the battle line. A few unicorns fired off what shots they had and then joined in the retreat. Yells within the ranks and confusion spread from the sudden order. Soon, the entire regiment was surging back towards the main Equestrian line, ponies no longer in formation, many running as fast as they could. The entire field was littered with the prone blue uniforms of the dead and the scattered wailing and limping of the wounded.

The shooting from the stone wall decreased in frequency the further they ran. Artillery was still coming in, one causing a large black geyser that swallowed a group of unicorns that were clumped together.

Twilight was lost in a forest of panicked and crying ponies, all of them running away. Though it was technically a organized retreat, it certainly didn't look like it. The frenzy, chaos, and breaking discipline of the regiment made the situation more reminiscent of a mass rout.

It wasn't long before all of the gunfire from the stone wall ceased, the 20th slipping out of range. She could see the 22nd Earth Pony Hoof marching up to replace them, followed by two other earth pony regiments and a Unicorn Sharpshooter battalion as well, the last one deployed in a spread out skirmisher formation.

But Second Lieutenant Twilight Sparkle didn't care about any of that. All she cared about was getting the hell out of there. She had seen, felt, and experienced more today than most ponies should in a lifetime. And unlike other endeavors where she had exciting adventures with her friends and loved it during the adventures of the past, this time she was afraid for her life.

This was different.

This was horrible.

Her hooves continued to thunder against the ground as she galloped away as fast as she could. It wasn't until now that she realized that she had been crying the entire time. Her sobs nor the tears running down her cheeks or even the burn in her lungs from running registered in her mind. It was filled with the images of everything she had seen back there, while at the same time her primal instinct telling her to run away from it as fast as she could.

So that was all she could do.

Cry and gallop as fast her hooves would take her. And she wasn't alone.

The battle of Hornsburg was finished with the 20th Manehattan.

****

33rd Manehattan

****

Flitter Bug tried to point and fire her musket but her sobbing and trembling was stopping her. She couldn't do it. The mare threw her weapon to the ground and sobbed into her hooves, leaning against the wall for support.

Quick Lime discharged one last shot, tears in his eyes as well. The musket was trembling in his hooves and he took his hoof out of the hoof trigger well and let it clatter to the ground.

Many of the other ponies on the stone wall looked on with forlorn expressions at the retreating ponies across from them. They ceased fire and gazed upon the carnage that was left behind. They could see a thick line of dark blue sprawled across the ground in a line, where the 20th Manehatten stood. A few other bodies could be seen scattered around the ridge, especially around where the main line was and further back as well. Down on that field, the rebel ponies knew lay the mangled and bloodied remains of their fellow Manehattanites, possibly ponies that they might have known personally.

The 33rd Manehattan looked on solemnly with watery eyes spreading like wildfire, knowing in their hearts and minds that they had just slaughtered many of their own.

Flitter turned to her friend, her voice quivering. She was doing her best to choke back sobs.

"W-Why didn't they retreat? T-They just stood there and took it. Why didn't they run sooner?"

Quick Lime embraced her and rocked her back and forth. They both held each other in a tight embrace. They consoled each other as best as they could.

****

Rebel Reserve

****

The blue pegasus flew up to his general with sorrow and uneasiness on his face.

"Yes, Captain Blue Harbor?"

"Did you see that last charge, sir?"

The green unicorn turned to him.

"You mean on the left? Wasn't much of a charge, Captain."

The blue pony remained silent.

"I did see it, however. By the stars, did I see it..." General Stone Leaf added, heavy emotion in his voice.

"...Those ponies deserved a better fate," he continued in a sympathetic tone.

"Such bravery is worthy of a better cause. I could not believe that a mortal pony could march forward in the face of such...destruction," he finished, exhaling as he shook his head in disdain.

"My heart stood still as I watched it," the captain revealed, his eyes misty.

The general nodded in response as a fleeting thought crossed his mind.

"Damn this war..."

****

Equestrian Extreme Left

****

A random Dragoon tossed Rainbow Dash her rifle as she returned to her squadron at full speed. Snafu was far behind, flying off to gather his weapons as well. The intimidating rebel yell wasn't far off, the enemy Dragoons were getting closer. Captain Spitfire and a first lieutenant flew around the clouds that the squadron was occupying, alerting them to the incoming attack.

The pegasi were scattered amongst the clouds, trying to form together in two ranks in hopes to get a rifle volley off. Rainbow and Snafu saw their squadron forming up in a clear patch of sky, in between scattered clouds. Even this high up, it was still foggy and trying to shoot the charging enemy would be a bit of a pain. While the standard infantry where trained just to point their muskets or horns into a enemy formation and fire, the Dragoons were different. They actually picked out targets and aimed, which in this weather, would be much more difficult.

Both pegasi lieutenants formed up in front of the first rank, readying their rifles to fire.

Rainbow Dash's breech-loader was already pre-loaded, which she mentally thanked herself for doing earlier. She looked to her left and right, both ranks of Dragoons forming up into lines.

Captain Spitfire glided down the front of the lines, trying to inspire and command at the same time. The roaring from the enemy was coming in from behind her, attempting but failing to drown her out. Black silhouettes of rebel pegasi could be seen through the fog, steadily coming closer.

"Pick your targets, Dragoons! This is what we've been training for! Right here! Right now! We're going to let off two devastating volleys and then we'll counter-charge! And when you charge...yell like you're bringing the end of the world to their doorstep! I want them to hear you all across Red Mane! Make them fear the 10th Dragoons!" Spitfire encouraged.

Rainbow cheered with the others, double-checking her rifle and making sure it was primed.

"First rank! Make ready!"

All of the pegasi in both lines rose their rifles to the sky, the barrels appearing to split their faces in half.

Rainbow did the same, feeling the cold touch of the hoof trigger, fitting snugly in her grasp.

"Take aim!"

The rifles from the front line dropped, pointing at the approaching silhouettes.

"Fire!"

The entire front line and the officers ahead of them discharged their rifles simultaneously, the thunderous cracks and orange flashes of their rifles easily distinguished through the fog. In the distance, Rainbow Dash could see some of the silhouettes drop out of the sky. She saw the pony that she aimed at fall as well. Thanks to the fog cover, all she saw was another black dot falling out the sky, not a living and breathing pony. That fact put her at ease.

"Well, I guess my shooting's alright at least. Now comes the hard part," she mused, thinking of the charge.

The rifles that discharged over her shoulders let off mighty cracks that caused her ears to ring.

"Ow!" she yelled at the pegasi behind her.

"Sorry," a mare responded with a soft tone.

"Second rank! Take aim!"

The pegasi behind them took aim, their rifles pointing over the shoulders of their comrades in front.

"Fire!"

The second volley erupted, throwing more smoke into the air. More black enemy dots were falling out of the sky. Rainbow Dash was impressed, there were some really good shots in this squadron.

Spitfire looked to her squadron and saw that they were ready to go.

"Prepare to charge!" she ordered.

All of the pegasi starting slinging their rifles back over their shoulders and drawing their sabers.

This was it.

The sound of sliding metal became rampant as the entire of squadron of nine hundred pegasi drew their signature melee weapons. Rainbow drew hers, feeling the cold metal against her hoof. In the past few weeks, she had become exceptional with it. She could do things now that she didn't even know were possible with a sword. She had trained hard for this, and now it was time to see if all of that work would pay off.

"For Equestria, for my home, and for my friends."

She thought about that for a second. No. She didn't have to add "For my squadron". Because they were already her friends.

Rainbow decided just to leave the thought as it was.

It felt right.

"CHHAAARRRGGEE!" Spitfire yelled her lungs out.

Rainbow and the rest of the squadron brought their sabers up as they sped towards the incoming pegacav, their bodies slicing through the fog. Dash's body was getting covered in water droplets and her wings were beating powerfully, rocketing her forward. She heard rifle volleys off to the left. Without looking, she knew that the 9th Dragoons had flanked the enemy cavalry and were pouring on their fire into the airborne rebels.

She watched as even more bodies dropped out the sky. The enemy was losing dozens of their number after every volley, which was encouraging. After counting two volleys, the cries from her friends in the 9th were heard as they too charged towards the enemy.

"Two full squadrons against one depleted one. I don't care if the rebels have been training longer than us, we should win this," Rainbow reasoned.

The 10th hit the front of the enemy Dragoons as the 9th hit the flanks. Loud yells mixed with the clashing of metal sabers filled the foggy sky. Pegasi slashed and stabbed at each other, testing their opponents' fighting prowess. The fog broke, clearing her vision. Rainbow Dash saw the enemy in front of her, Dragoons dressed in a dirt brown in contrast to the Equestrian green.

She picked out the closest opponent to her and brought her saber down for a powerful, initial slash.

The enemy cavalry pony that she attacked blocked her slash immediately and followed up with one of his own. She parried and slashed upward, attempting to slice his face open. As the rebel pegasus blocked Rainbow's attack, a second Dragoon intervened and slashed the rebel's shoulder open, making him lose his saber and cry out in pain. This gave Dash the opening she needed. She thrusted her blade into his chest and pulling it out, ending him. As the pony fell to the earth below, Rainbow was already engaging a second enemy.

This second one was a mare who was much more skilled than the last. Rainbow Dash and the friendly pegasus who helped her took on this mare together, the enemy being able to keep both Equestrians at bay. Both ponies attacked the rebel simultaneously, only to have their assaults deflected by the enemy's immaculate speed. This mare blocked and parried each attack, switching back and forth between Rainbow Dash and her ally every time they tried to attack.

The rebel spun with great fluid motions, even able to block attacks from both ponies as she had her saber switch between her left and right fore hoof from behind her back in order to do so. She did all of that in mid-spin as well. Despite being flanked on both sides by the two Equestrians, the rebel still managed to slip out from in between them and quickly recover from the spin into a combat-ready position. The dark purple mare faced both of them with a smirk, saber at the ready.

Watching that appalled Rainbow Dash, stunning her for a split second.

"How did she get out of there!?"

In a swift and well-executed motion, the rebel pegasus deflected two more attacks by both ponies in quick secession and then rammed her blade into the gut of Rainbow Dash's ally, killing him. The Dragoon colt's body sunk below the fog like a rock. The mare retracted her blade quickly to deny a diagonal slash from Rainbow. The rebel went on the offensive, taking a bold swipe at Rainbow Dash's back legs, which she ascended to dodge. The rebel rose up to match her. Rainbow parried another blow that was meant to stab her in the chest, and twirled her entire body with great speed and agility, ending in a downward slash.

The rebel blocked it, although appearing to struggle with it. The mare gritted her teeth and slashed at Rainbow, her saber meeting Rainbow's slash halfway. Both of them zipped past each other as this happened, both of them turning around to slash again in mid-turn, Rainbow Dash twirling her saber in her hoof as she did so. It was a quirk that she picked up from her captain. She fluidly twisted the saber in her grasp to produce her next combination of furious slashes to tire her opponent out, ending in a powerful thrust. Even though Rainbow's quick burst of slash attacks came from a new direction each time, the rebel blocked every last one, ending in her sword pressing against the thrust to her chest.

Rainbow noticed that her adversary was sweating and panting, she was getting tired. She eyed the mare's rank.

"She's only a corporal! How is she this good?!" Rainbow thought.

Rainbow retracted her sword and spun her body in a complete three-sixty, using the momentum to power up her next slash at the rebel's side. The rebel parried the attack, falling for Rainbow's trap. The rebel's body was now over-extended and off-balance, giving Rainbow Dash a window. In a swift move, she swung the rounded the sword around over the mare's head, like drawing an invisible circle in the sky with her blade.

Her saber dug into the rebel's now exposed hip on the opposite side.

The mare shrieked in pain, and began launching desperate attacks against Rainbow. The rebel was losing her composure and Dash knew it. This meant a bigger possibility of mistakes...mistakes that would give her an opening.

It came sooner than she would have thought.

The rebel mare was only able to give Rainbow Dash two good slashes, which she parried with ease, before giving her that very opening.

Rainbow brought her sword across, slitting open her adversary's throat.

As the blood leaked out of the mortal wound, the stricken mare's eyes went wide, staring into Dash's own. She frowned at her latest kill, feeling the slightest tinge of remorse.

"You fought well and with honor. A true Dragoon. You should be proud," Rainbow gave her consolation.

The mare coughed out blood as her wings stopped beating, boring her eyes into Rainbow Dash's. For a split second, Rainbow could have sworn that the mare had become Equestrian again.

She plummeted out of the sky.

Rainbow looked on in shock for a second before moving on to engage another combatant.

She took a look around and noticed that Snafu was slashing and hacking away at enemy Dragoons, shouting obscenities and laughing sadistically. He rammed his saber into another stallion's chest, and ripped it out violently, cursing his enemy as he did so.

Rainbow frowned at the sight.

As she continued to scan the field, looking for more enemies to fight, she picked out Spitfire, who was not too far away. The orange mare was taking on three enemies at once, dual-wielding two sabers, the second saber probably taken from a dead pegasus...and was winning.

How Rainbow wished that she could be as good as her Captain.

As Spitfire finished off two of her three opponents, the survivor retreated, zooming away. But it wasn't just her, it was the entire enemy squadron. The combination of the 9th and 10th Dragoons had broken them.

"Form back up and reload your rifles! See if we can't give those rebs a good parting gift!" Spitfire ordered as both Equestrian squadrons formed back into volley lines, facing the retreating enemy.

Rainbow Dash glided back to the front of the line that was being reformed, sheathing her saber and fishing her breech-loader from over her back. As she starting the arduous process of reloading it, she silently cursed to herself. Her rifle was a nice one and a lot more accurate than a musket, but it was a pain reloading, with greater complexity too.

After almost forty seconds, both squadrons had finished reloading and was ready to give the enemy another round of volleys. Except that when Rainbow Dash looked up from her rifle, the enemy was gone.

"Damn, I was afraid of that. The enemy has escaped but I think we should hold position in case they reform and come back. If they don't, then we just might have a shot at taking out that artillery position on Black Saddle Hill. We can flank from the south from here," Spitfire advised to the Captain of the 9th Dragoons.

The other Captain was holding up binoculars, peering out in front of them. After scouting for threats, he dropped his binoculars from his eyes, turning to her in alarm.

"Ma'am, we've got more of them. Coming in fast."

Spitfire turned back at him with urgency.

"How many?" she demanded.

The 9th's Captain bit his lip.

"I think I can make out...maybe three squadron's worth?" he concluded with worry in his voice.

"They definitely outnumber us this time," he added.

Spitfire nodded in understanding, thinking the situation over for a moment. The tables had turned now.

Then she got an idea.

"I've got it! We'll give their lead squadron our volley fire and then...we'll retreat!" she said with a smirk.

The other captain looked at her apprehensively.

"Retreat ma'am? Our orders are to take out those batteries, if we don't, our assaulting infantry on the left will be marching into a bloodbath."

"Look, behind our front line on our left flank, we've got those new howitzer batteries that have an anti-air capability. We can retreat behind the covering fire of the howitzers and infantry. Also, we have the 8th Dragoons and the 5th Lancers stationed back there as well. We can let the enemy face flak-shot and infantry fire. We'll give more volleys from our rifles and then for the grand finale...we'll counter-charge with superior numbers! Then, Captain...we can deal with that artillery you're worried so much about."

Rainbow Dash had to admit, it was a pretty solid plan. She was happy to be serving under Spitfire and not somepony else.

The 9th's Captain sighed in defeat.

"Alright. We'll do it your way."

The yells and cries of the charging enemy was starting to be heard through the fog once more. The 9th's Captain returned to his squadron, deployed on the 10th's left.

"Here they come!" Spitfire called out.

"First rank! Make ready! Take aim!" she ordered.

Rainbow Dash brought down her rifle, picking out a target that seemed like the closest to her.

"...Fire!"

The volley from the officers and front line cracked and buzzed past her ears, which were ringing again.

She watched as the ponies from across the way began dropping again, including her target. More shots were heard as the 9th unleashed their first volley as well.

"Second rank! Make ready! Take aim!" Spitfire shouted, sounding like she was going through the motions.

"Fire!"

The second volley rang out from both squadrons simultaneously, decimating the incoming pegacav.

"Retreat!" Spitfire urged.

The lines broke apart as everypony rocketed away from the enemy, seeking asylum behind allied lines. Thankfully, from where they were deployed, it wasn't too far away.

Rainbow zipped past a couple of pegasi from the 9th and peered ahead. Already, the Equestrian howitzer position was in view. Earth pony hoof stood in line in front of the artillery and a Royal Guard regiment behind. She glanced at the sky above and sure enough, there was the 8th Dragoons and the 5th Lancers. She gave a victorious smirk as she wondered if the enemy had any idea of what was going to happen to them.

It wasn't fighting fair but this was war.

"Right?" she mused, completing the thought.

As she threw away that pesky thought, she realized that they were a lot closer to the allied line now.

Almost there.

"Over here!" a howitzer pony called out to the retreating Dragoons that were soaring above him.

"Get behind us!" he shouted.

Rainbow Dash looked down and saw that the infantry were forming squares, pointing their muskets at the sky behind her. She could still hear the enemy's yells as they charged on.

They got behind allied lines and Spitfire got everypony to form up next to the 8th Dragoons and 5th Lancers. She relayed her plan to the captains of both squadrons as the 9th reached the allied line and formed up as well, two ranks deep like the other squadrons.

"Take this time to reload your rifles, ponies! Prepare to counter-charge again!" Spitfire ordered.

The fog wasn't as bad down here, allowing Rainbow Dash to see that in fact, three entire pegasi Dragoon squadrons were coming straight at them. She continued to glance up from reloading, trying to judge how far away they were.

The howitzers opened fire with flak-shot, spitting out shells that left black cloud bursts in the foggy sky. If she remembered correctly, Fields' army had about eighteen howitzers at his disposal. Some of the black bursts blew holes in the charging ponies' formations, causing pegasi to drop out of the sky in clumps. The howitzers were firing together, dotting the sky black with their shells. The pegasi across from her were taking a beating from those guns.

Her Dragoon brothers and sisters, charging through artillery fire to come and kill her.

Great.

After the salvo, the guns went silent, reloading for a second shot. Rainbow was surprised, she had thought that the enemy cavalry was a lot closer than it actually was. There was no doubt in her mind that the howitzers would be able to get at least one more shot off from each gun.

After a couple seconds of gawking, she gazed down at her rifle. It was loaded and ready to fire. She chuckled, she must have been subconsciously reloading the whole time. She listened as the musket fire from the squares began to erupt, followed by the second salvo of howitzer fire. She faced front once again and watched as bullets dropped individual pegasi and black puffs ripped through their formations. It was a slaughter so far.

However, despite the heavy casualties, the enemy was gaining ground fast. They were a lot closer now and the howitzers were vulnerable.

Apparently, Spitfire picked up on this.

"For the last time! Make ready! Take aim!" she repeated for the third time today.

"Fire!"

Lieutenant Dash fired, her shot missing this time. Despite that, the enemy formation was trailing bodies as they advanced. Two more volleys from the 8th and 9th thinned their ranks out even more.

"Second rank! Make ready! Take aim!"

The squares were pouring on their fire, unrelenting.

"Horsefeathers that looks bad..." Rainbow grimaced at the nasty killing field in front of her.

"Fire!"

Three more rifle volleys tore through the enemy's lines, breaking the will of the lead squadron. From what Dash could see of the retreating enemies was appalling, that squadron must have lost at least half their number, most likely more than that. The other two squadrons were still coming, almost at full strength since the lead squadron absorbed most of the damage.

"Charge!" Spitfire cried out as she drew her saber.

All four Equestrian squadrons surged forward, determined to meet the enemy halfway. The Lancers were a lot faster than the Dragoons, blasting ahead of their friends with their shoulder-mounted lances, ready to impale the rebel cavalry. They met with the Dragoon squadron on the left to do just that. Rebel pegasi were gored by lances, some getting stabbed by multiple lances. The 5th pressed all the way through the squadron and reformed behind them for another charge, which would take time.

It was then when all three Dragoon squadrons converged on the other rebel squadron on the right, probably so they wouldn't have to face friendly attack from the Lancers, when they made their second pass. All of the allied artillery and infantry ceased fire, denying the risk of shooting their own ponies.

Rainbow Dash clashed with another lieutenant, the stallion appearing a lot older than she was. She slashed twice at him, once from the right with a backhoof motion a ping-pong player would use and another to the left, following up with a thrust aimed at his gut. The enemy lieutenant blocked both slashes and pushed away the thrust at his gut with a scoff.

"Amateur," he taunted.

Snafu joined in, slashing at the officer's left shoulder, only to be parried. Both Rainbow and Snafu timed their attacks together, slashing and thrusting vigorously, putting a lot pressure on the rebel officer. The officer bucked Rainbow Dash in the face with both of his rear hooves, knocking her out of the fight temporarily. He recovered to block the next set of Snafu's attacks.

"Silly girl," the older stallion commented.

Rainbow Dash's jaw hurt and she was now bleeding a little bit from the teeth but she returned to her position on the left side of the rebel duelist. She continued her attacks, which the enemy soldier blocked with ease. It was then when she realized that even together, her and Snafu might not be enough to bring him down.

The rebel turned his back to both of them to draw a pistol. Still blocking both Equestrians' moves from behind his back with his sword, he fired his pistol into the face of another charging Dragoon that was trying to attack him from the other side. As the rebel tried to turn back around to properly reengaged the two Dragoon officers, he made one single mistake that costed him his life.

One of Snafu's slashes made it through, running a thin red line down the rebel's back leg. Blood was trailing away from the fresh wound, making the smug lieutenant cry out. Rainbow saw her chance and thrusted her blade into his ribs, followed by Snafu running his blade through the enemy soldier's neck, driving it in with both hooves.

"Who's the amateur now, you stuck-up prick!" Snafu yelled at the dying lieutenant, bringing his face closer, almost muzzle to muzzle.

As if that wasn't enough, he spit in the rebel's face before yanking out his sword and letting the body fall.

"Snafu* called him a prick? Oh, the irony,"* Rainbow thought.

As much as she disliked Snafu as a pony, she couldn't help but to admit that he was really helpful in battle.

Two enemy Dragoons charged at both Equestrian lieutenants, as two more jumped Captain Spitfire. Sporadically, shots of rifles went off in the mass of pegasi, the result of Dragoons taking shots at each other from point-blank range.

Rainbow Dash blocked the downward slash aimed at her and held the enemy in place until she spun her body in another three-sixty, putting a lot momentum behind her next slash. The opposition parried it with great difficulty, gritting her teeth. Rainbow flapped her wings again, not only to stay in the air but also to drift to the opposite side of the pony and slash at her back leg. The other pony denied her again but Rainbow Dash was far from done. She performed the circle maneuver again, swiping the blade over her adversary's head and ending in an opposite slash. The rebel saw this coming and immediately blocked it. What she didn't see coming was Rainbow sliding her blade along her's and giving her a quick thrust at her heart.

Rainbow's circle attack was a feint. She used her more agile and faster-paced fighting style against the slower mare to great effect. It was obvious that this mare wasn't nearly as skilled as the others she had fought so far. She recovered her blade as the mare let gravity take hold of her dying body.

Rainbow Dash watched her fall.

Was this mare the kind that was part of or supporting the ones that hurt Pinkie and Fluttershy? Was it possible that her and Rainbow could have been good friends in peacetime? Was killing her the right thing to do?

"Of course it was! *She** attacked me!"* Rainbow struck back at her thoughts.

"She deserved it!" Rainbow justified.

"Any pony who is or who is willing to help such evil and devious ponies like Red Maners, who purposefully attack innocent civilians, deserve it!" she reasoned.

As she snapped out of it and gazed upon the aerial battlefield, she noticed that the enemy squadron was breaking and routing, unable to handle the stress of holding back three Equestrian Dragoon squadrons by itself. After the second charge from the Lancers ravaging the other rebel pegasi squadron, they broke as well.

Snafu had defeated his enemy by brutally hacking up the stallion's body and Captain Spitfire had polished off the two mares who bounced her from above, cutting down both of them in quick succession with swift, robotic, and clean slashes.

As Spitfire gazed the territory ahead of her, she smiled widely.

"Their artillery position is probably not very well-protected now. Pegasi of the 10th Dragoons, let's go!" she waved her saber in the air.

She and her squadron began to peel away from the allied line and back towards the hill that housed rebel artillery. If they took out those batteries, the entire Equestrian left and center would have nearly half of the rebel artillery aimed at them taken care of. It would reduce Equestrian casualties by the hundreds, maybe thousands.

"Follow your brothers and sisters!" the Captain of the 9th Dragoons commanded.

Soon, all four of the Equestrian cavalry squadrons in the area were moving toward the enemy artillery position. It wasn't far, only about twelve hundred yards or so, nothing for a flyer. However, they were starting to get tired from all of the fighting though.

It wasn't long before they reached it, the hill was littered with cannons and their crews. The twelve-pounders were deployed on the crest of the hill, firing shell after shell at what was assumed to be the Equestrian center. Howitzers were deployed behind them on top and reverse slope of the hill, their barrels pointing at the sky.

From Rainbow Dash's view, it appeared that the howitzer crews had spotted them incoming and were scrambling to their guns. She gulped as she looked at the number of guns on the hill. Twenty-four howitzers and sixteen twelve-pounders.

"Twenty-four howitzers? Oh, come on! Where do they get all this stuff!?" she thought, frustrated.

All the while, she and the rest of the Equestrian pegasi flew closer and closer. She could see the barrels of the howitzers being pointed at them.

"...This is going to hurt...isn't it?" she sighed and groaned.

Spitfire, who was flying next to her, frowned in dread at her comment.

All twenty-four of the enemy howitzers fired in unison, trying to protect the valuable twelve-pounders. Black bursts starting popping up all around Rainbow Dash, one shell slicing through a group of ponies to her right. Bursts of black clouds were ripping through the formations of all four squadrons, killing dozens of pegasi. The howitzers were surprisingly accurate, only a fraction of their shots missing entirely.

It was devastating, but not nearly enough to halt the charge.

Spitfire gritted her teeth.

"Damn flak-shot..." the captain cursed under her breath.

"Everypony! Charge to that hill as fast as you can! I know we're tired but we've still got a mission to carry out! Think of all ponies you will save by taking out those guns!" Spitfire encouraged, speeding ahead even faster.

Now they were too close. The howitzers didn't have enough time to reload before they got there.

Spitfire smiled as she drew her saber.

She was the first one in, hacking down an artillery pony for one of the twelve-pounders. The 5th Lancers swarmed through the crews of the howitzer batteries on the reverse slope of the hill, getting revenge for their fallen comrades that were hit by the flak-shot. The 9th and 10th charged the twelve-pounders on the crest while the 8th moved to attack the howitzers that the Lancers had left alone ontop of the hill.

Rainbow stormed in on one the guns, hacking away furiously. In two swipes, she had already killed two of the four ponies manning the front of it. The rest of the crew for that gun was being dealt with by the others, save for the two survivors in front of her. The last two ponies charged at Dash, swords drawn.

She did a front flip over their heads, landing behind one of them. She beheaded the one she landed on the ground behind, and deflected a slash from the other. As both sabers were still connected, she flicked her hoof, twirling the saber. Her sword flipped and chopped off the hoof of the artillery pony that held his sword. Rainbow Dash caught his sword with her other hoof. She was now standing on two hooves, using her wings to keep her balance. The artillery stallion cried out in pain as he dropped to all four of his knees. She held them both of them by his throat, intersecting each other in a X.

The fight for the artillery was over quickly. It was obvious that the crews weren't very good melee fighters. Also, they were dreadfully outnumbered. All of the guns had been captured. Taking this position was the easiest thing they had done all day. These guns didn't stand a chance against them.

"Kill him Dashie. Kill him now."

Rainbow looked up to see Snafu, smirking and leaning casually against the cannon that the stallion had manned only moments before.

"Cut him up into sushi already. I'm hungry."

The rebel's eyes grew wide, looking like he was about to start begging.

Rainbow Dash winced.

"...I-I shouldn't. He's a prisoner," she replied, her voice sounding unconfident and her breathing heavy.

Snafu nodded with a smile as he casually stepped over to Rainbow Dash.

"Alright, I see how it is. You're going to let him live, ain't ya?" he spoke nonchalantly.

"This pony, who's been shooting at Equestrian ground troops all day with his arty piece? Tell me, how many do you think this gun killed? How many more would have died by this cannon if we've hadn't showed up? This pony who supports the rebels that nearly assassinated our beloved princesses. I think you knew them personally, didn't ya? How does that feel?"

Snafu was stalking around behind Rainbow Dash, speaking into each of her ears as he paced back and forth.

He continued.

"Speaking of personally, you also told me that they hurt your friends as well, didn't they? How are they by the way? Are they recovering from the wounds that ponies like this one caused? Now, think it over carefully...does this pony really deserve to live?"

Snafu trotted up next to her to watch.

Rainbow Dash was looking into the eyes of the pony she held captive, swords still ready to slit his throat.

The stallion looked up at her hopefully.

"I shouldn't do this, it's wrong! But Pinkie...and Fluttershy...the reason I joined..."

Snafu sat down next to her. Gazing at the rebel without expression.

"AHHHGG!" Rainbow shouted, a quick slide of metal upon metal being heard as both blades were brought across the stallion.

A short bout of gurgling was heard as Rainbow Dash frowned deeply. She closed her eyes and turned away.

Loyalty.

Loyalty to her friends, to the princesses and to Equestria. She would do anything to maintain it.

Letting this pony live seemed to contradict that in her mind.

Their protector. That's what she was. She was protecting them from ponies like this one.

Whoever had done this to her best friends needed to be stopped, no matter the cost. She couldn't imagine how many other ponies and families that Red Mane had destroyed already. There was no way she was going to let them get away with this, or worse, a chance to do it again.

Red Mane.

The enemy.

She swore on her life that she would make them pay.

Nopony hurts her friends.

That was what she had thought before and was holding true to now. This vow would be held, no matter what happened to Rainbow Dash in the process.

Snafu flashed the stallion an evil grin as the body dropped to the ground with a thud, blood pooling under it.

"Atta girl," Snafu praised.

Rainbow Dash kept her eyes closed. She felt so....dirty.

A Dragoon was taught to fight with honor...but this?

There was no honor in this.

"Well, time to pack up Dragoons!" Spitfire approached them with a cheery smile on her face.

"Oh dear Celestia! Did the Captain see that?!"

"Command wants the 9th and 10th to haul all of these captured guns back to the allied line. Sounds more like a Burntail order than a Crimson Fields order. General Fields would probably want a suicidal charge on the flank, which we do have, by the way," she joked, even though all three of them knew that was probably true.

"Hmm...maybe she didn't see it," Rainbow concluded.

"The 8th and 5th will act as a rear guard and provide us with cover in case the rebs decide to retake this hill. We have plenty of ponies, more than enough actually. One trip should do. After that, we are to return to act as a cavalry reserve on the left flank near our howitzers, and await further orders there. Basically, where we just were."

Spitfire trotted up to both of them, patting them on the back.

"Today was a success. I can't imagine how many of our ponies we have saved by silencing all these. Excellent work, you two! Lieutenant Dash, your dueling skills have improved greatly, it really showed today. I'm proud of you, both of you. A senior officer is nothing without the ponies under her."

Rainbow Dash faked a smile.

"Thank you, Captain," she managed.

Spitfire began to trot away, but froze and turned back to Rainbow Dash.

"Oh! And Lieutenant Dash?"

"Yes ma'am?"

Spitfire smirked, looking at the blades in both of Rainbow's hooves before glancing back at her eyes.

"You really should dual-wield more often, it fits your fighting style and looks good on you. Kinda sexy actually, especially with your ponytail."

Spitfire chuckled as she trotted away to tend to the ponies strapping the artillery pieces and ammunition caissons to their bodies. Both squadrons were preparing to take flight.

"Well, wasn't that cute?" Snafu quipped as he spread his wings and took off.

Rainbow Dash turned away again, gazing at the fields below. Fields that the infantry would have to cross to reach the enemy. The Equestrian cavalry had the rebels flanked but lacked the numbers to launch an effective attack. This was a smart move by Commander Burntail.

("Capture all of the expensive artillery first, then we can send you off to die some more!")

Rainbow Dash could almost hear Commander Burntail saying those words exactly.

But it was just a passing thought.

Her mind was truly on the pony that lay dead next to her, and all of the others that she had killed today.

****

Equestrian Center

****

Private Applejack kept in step with the other ponies in her formation as they marched up the ever-foggy ridge. Artillery fire was louder and more frequent now. Cracks of musketry could be heard off in the distance from the right flank. More artillery and gunfire could be heard on the left as well. The fifes and drums of Luna's 4th Grenadiers pierced through all of that.

"What the hay is goin' on here?"

"Keep it in step, Private Amber! You are Grenadiers! At least look the part!" their colonel yelled, urging them on up the ridge.

They marched on, all three rectangle formations of the regiment keeping their pseudo-wedge tight. Other regiments were marching alongside them, how many, Applejack couldn't tell. She knew beforehand that Luna's 3rd Grenadiers was on their left and the 19th Earth Pony Hoof was on the right but there were many more regiments advancing than that.

This was the main attack.

"Sheesh! Good thing we are fighting rebels today, cause I can guarantee that the Karalians would be laughing if they saw how you ponies marched. Atrocious!" the earth pony mare demeaned again.

Applejack felt the dew brush against her hooves, sending a tingling sensation throughout her legs. Her heart was pounding in her chest as her senses sharpened like sabers. The adrenaline was starting to get to her, it was of fear and excitement, mixed together in an unstable brew within her body. She had to strain with great difficulty to subdue the feeling boiling up inside her and maintain the stoic and disciplined expressions that were expected of Grenadiers.

The pounding of hooves rumbling throughout the ridge as tens of thousands of ponies advanced to take part in this massive assault. Despite her emotions running amok, Applejack couldn't help but to feel empowered by the sheer number of ponies taking part in this offensive.

Two cannonballs came screaming in, blasting small craters in the ground a few dozen feet ahead of her. They left arching smoke trails that revealed their flight paths. She marched on, ignoring the sounds of her musket slung over her back beating against her pack, and the metal clangs of her canteen hitting her grenade pouch repeatedly. More cannonballs came screaming in, most of them still landing short.

They continued marching up the side of the ridge, the artillery gradually becoming more accurate the further they pressed. Luna's 4th was dead in the center of the assault force, Applejack had heard that this was to be so the night before. Their mission was to punch a hole in the stone wall and open up a path for their allies in reserve to swarm in and exploit the breach.

Applejack smirked at the thought.

"Finally, I can show these bad ponies that they messed with the wrong friend! I'm gonna teach them a lesson that they won't soon forget!"

She was brought out of her reverie by another salvo of incoming cannonballs, landing much closer this time and kicking up earth with geysers of black and gray. Applejack gazed into the fog and could make out the outline of the stone wall on the crest of the ridge. Her determination and rage within her began to cancel out her other emotions, one by one.

"There they are..."

Her anger towards Red Mane turned her smirk into a snarl.

The ponies that advocated the attacks that hurt her friends. The ponies that protected the ones who had murdered, maimed, and injured hundreds of Equestria's innocent civilians in the train bombing attacks across the country. The ones who had tried to assassinate Luna and Celestia.

And if all that wasn't enough... they immediately declared war on their Equestrian brothers and sisters.

In Applejack's eyes, it was a laundry list of wrongdoings that Red Mane needed to pay for. Applejack needed to show them the error of their ways. Teach them what happens to bad ponies that hurt others.

More shells landed around the 4th and the surrounding regiments, every once in a while, one would score a hit. The lines from the multiple Equestrian regiments were nearly flush with each other as they advanced together. A reserve line of several more regiments further behind the initial line was marching forward as well. Applejack was thankful that the enemy fire was being spread across the entire advancing forces, rather than just her unit. That would be...unbearable.

Luna's 4th Grenadiers marched on, fife and drum still playing the regiment's new theme song. She had heard that Sweetie Belle had written it, lyrics too. Unfortunately for the small unicorn filly, the Fife and Drum Corps didn't allow singing during battle, so she had to be satisfied with playing her fife along with Scootaloo. Applejack racked her brain again, remembering that the little fillies were deployed on the far right of the regiment.

"Dear Celestia, please let them be okay. Help them make it through. Don't let them get hurt."

Her concern for her sister and her friends has been weighing on her mind since the day she had found out that they had all ran away from home and joined. Another item for the laundry list, taking care of these fillies and fighting to make sure the Red Mane ponies don't get a chance to hurt them.

"If they lay one hoof on those fillies..."

Applejack growled at the thought.

Howitzer shells burst overhead, raining carcass and shrapnel shot down upon them. Here and there, she would hear the cry of somepony getting hit or the explosion of an artillery shell, but she marched on, determined. The incline of the slope had her legs burning from exertion and more sweat dripped down from her bangs. The red coat she was wearing over her shirt was heavy and hot. The rest of her uniform was itchy.

They were getting a lot closer now, Applejack being able to see the orange flashes of the enemy cannon through the fog.

But she saw something else...

She squinted her eyes through the fog to get a better view of what she was looking at. Pony-shaped silhouettes were seen scattered in front of the stone wall, hundreds of them. They were spread out and appeared to be crouching...

Applejack groaned in dismay.

Skirmishers.

From what she could make out, there were at least four or five battalions of them deployed in front of the stone wall. The Equestrians would have to deal with them before they could even reach the wall. The deployment of the skirmishers was superb. They were lower down on the ridge, at a point where they had a near-perfect field of fire. At the same time, the rebel artillery and infantry manning the walls could safely fire over their heads without hitting them.

That ridge was the perfect slaughterhouse. And it was waiting for her.

She gulped a bit, doing what she could to retain her confidence and keep moving forward.

She heard orders from across the ridge and saw all of the skirmishers go completely still for a couple of seconds.

Shots rang out from the skirmisher hordes as the rounds from breech-loaded carbine rifles and death bolts from unicorn horns came flying in. Ball and bolt slapped into flesh with sickening thuds all across the line of several Equestrian regiments, dropping a reasonable amount of soldiers. Screams and yelps of pain rippled through the lines of Luna's 4th as Grenadiers began dropping from the line.

Applejack couldn't see the damage but it didn't sound too bad. She really hoped it wasn't.

It wasn't long before they were in range to return fire at the skirmishers. As they did so, however, the rebel earth pony and unicorn light troops gave them another volley. More Equestrians dropped, many more than last time. The colt next to Applejack took a round to the chest and dropped to the ground with a thud, his body still as a statue. She shuddered at the sight and gazed warily down at his corpse.

"So *this** is why being in the first rank is bad!"*

"Battalion!"

"Company!"

"Halt!"

Applejack stomped her last hoof into the soil forcefully, now once again still and staring at the enemy in front of her. The popping of skirmisher fire had died down, signaling the end of their volley. A cannonball hurled itself into the ground a few feet from her, seemingly at the same exact time she stomped her hoof.

"First rank! Make ready!" the colonel called out.

Applejack fished her pre-loaded musket out from behind her and slung her hoof into the trigger grip. She held it in front of her face with one hoof, the barrel appearing to anypony that was standing across from her that the barrel was slicing her face in half.

"Present!"

The drum rolls from the Fife and Drum Corps began beating at a faster rate.

"That's probably Applebloom doin' that dru-Argh! I need to focus!"

Her musket dropped and was pointing at the rebel light troops, bayonet already fixed. She held it with her right fore hoof, stock snug in her shoulder, and standing on her other three hooves for balance.

"Fire!"

She could have sworn that her musket was the first to go off as she yanked the hoof trigger back and watched a pony directly across from her drop like a rag doll. Fire from the rest of the rank kicked smoke into the air. Dozens of skirmishers dropped, the survivors desperately trying to reload quickly.

"Did I just kill him? Or was that somepony else?" Applejack thought as she watched the light trooper fall, temporarily in shock.

"Second rank! Make ready!" the colonel called out once more.

Applejack crouched down and began to process of reloading, just as she was trained. She pulled the hammer of her firearm to half-cock as bullets whizzed by her head, one hitting a pony near her.

The second volley went off as she grabbed a paper cartridge and tossed to the ground. Using a hoof to stabilize it, she bit off the top of the paper wad to expose the contents inside. She dumped only the powder down the barrel and took out the metal ball that was also inside and tossed it on the ground. She dropped the paper wad to the ground and rolled into a crude ball and scooped it back up to throw it down the muzzle, followed by the metal ball.

The third volley went off, felling more enemy skirmishers. Many of the other Equestrian regiments were firing by rank as well.

Applejack drew out the ramrod with her teeth and jerked her head back and forth to get the metal stick to pack down the powder nicely. After a few seconds, she withdrew the ramrod and put it back in its sheath that was outside along the barrel. Then, she flipped open the pan of the muzzle-loader and poured in a different kind of powder that she grabbed from one of her pouches. She slapped down the pan's fizzle to close it and cocked back her musket to where the hammer was at full cock.

"I hate this thing! Darn inconvenient, it is."

After all of that, she was finally ready to fire. She smirked to herself, she was a lot faster than usual. Only took her twenty-three seconds this time, from what she counted in her head.

"Battalion! Light grenades!" the colonel of the 4th ordered.

"What!?"

After all of that, she couldn't even shoot it. She grunt-groaned in frustration.

Instead, she slung the loaded weapon back over her back and fished a grenade out of one pack with a hoof and fished a match out of another pack with her teeth. She stuck the match across her uniform, lighting it and pressed it into the wick of the grenade.

"Buck grenades!"

The apple farmer dropped the portable bomb to the ground, twirled her body so that her two back hooves had a clear shot and bucked it away with all her might. She watch as it sailed along in the air with hundreds of other grenades from the rest of the 4th. She heard them hit the ground with resounding thuds.

"One apple tree, two apple tree..."

The violent chain of explosions ripped through the formations of the rebel light hoof, ripping apart their bodies with devastating effect. The other Grenadier regiments throughout the Equestrian line detonated their own a few seconds later. Bodies of rebels were ripped and torn to shreds by the bombs, many corpses stained black with gunpowder or red with blood. Applejack saw distinct gaps in the skirmish doctrine, and then the rebels started to rout after that. Every last skirmish formation fell apart and broke discipline as their ranks fell into chaos.

The skirmishers jumped over the wall and galloped away from the battle line, screaming in terror as their commanders failed to keep order. The sudden retreat caused the skirmishers to stand up and now were getting hit by friendly fire, making things even worse for them. Applejack didn't realize how intimidating the grenades actually were, or that the fear factor was that great.

"Quick-step it to the wall! And ready another grenade! We're gonna blast our way through their defenses!" the colonel yelled ecstatically.

The Grenadiers advanced at a canter as they multi-tasked with arming another grenade and jogging closer to the stone wall. A volley erupted and cracked from the rebel militia that was stationed there, the bullets punching into the flesh of more Grenadier ponies, causing Luna's 4th to trail bodies as they moved. A salvo of canister shot ringed out from an artillery position that was directly in front of them, cutting down more Grenadiers. The other supporting regiments were facing similar treatment.

Applejack turned just in time to watch an onslaught of canister munitions behead their colonel.

She froze in shock, her mouth hanging open slightly as she halted her jog. It had occurred so fast. She wasn't expecting anything like that to happen. The mare who had trained them to be fearless Grenadiers for the last month was gone. The one who gave them grievances for not being as professional or hardcore as a Grenadier was supposed to be. The one who pushed them to not only become better soldiers, but better ponies.

And now she was gone.

In a split second.

Their leader was dead.

Apparently, she was not the only one who had seen it unfold.

"The colonel's dead!" a stallion cried out.

Panic ensued within the ranks of Luna's 4th as the line began to waver.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Let's hold onto our horses, ponies! I've got command," a captain urged, waving his officer saber back and forth.

Many of the Grenadiers broke and ran away from the wall, seeking asylum from the battlefield.

The captain's ears drooped at the sight.

Applejack was now very confused. She had no intention of running and was still rearing to push forward. But with most of the ponies around her breaking ranks and fleeing from the fight, she now faced a dilemma. She could retreat with her regiment and they could all reform together to come again. Or, she could stand her ground here and wait for the supporting regiments to come up. She could tag along with them and continue pressing the attack.

Was this really all it took for a unit to fall apart? None of the other regiments were running. And Luna's 4th was a Grenadier regiment, not standard Hoof infantry or skirmishers. They were supposed to be demi-elite infantry, shock troops. Yet they lose their colonel and break instantly?

No.

She was not marching all the way back up here. She worked hard to get this far and refused to cough it all up now.

Applejack held her ground.

The farmer-turned-soldier looked around, noticed that fifty or so others decided to stay as well. The ones that remained behind were scattered, firing shots and throwing grenades over the wall at random. A lieutenant also stayed behind, Applejack watching as the mare officer fired her flintlock pistol at the stone wall. She turned around to see a strong, red earth pony reloading his musket.

Big Mac had stayed as well.

Applejack then remembered that she had a grenade in her hoof, ready to be lit. She fished out another match and lit the bomb. She copied her actions from before and dropped it to the ground so she could spin on her front hooves and buck it with her back ones.

She did just that.

The grenade sailed through the air, landing under the wheel of one of the rebel artillery pieces. It exploded, blowing the wheel away from the piece and causing the cannon's bore to slip and point to the ground. Unfortunately for the artillery crew, they had just fired a shot at the same exact time. The metal balls from the canister bounced off of the ground and ripped through the bodies of the very crew that had fired them.

Applejack recovered and drew her loaded musket. She pointed the barrel at the ponies manning the rebel defenses and fired, jerking the hoof trigger back. A militia pony's head exploded soon after and she began to reload.

****

The captain was desperately trying to reform Luna's 4th Grenadiers.

He looked around at his running ponies and gazed back towards the front line. The other regiments had already reached musket-range of the walls, all of them continuing to fire volleys at the defenders. He frowned at the gap in the center. The gap where Luna's 4th was supposed to be. He knew that they had to keep the pressure up and smash that center open, or the enemy there would be freed up to ravage the other regiments.

He noticed a small scattered group of Luna's 4th that had stayed behind. More specially, he saw an apple-flanked orange mare reloading her musket. She was standing bravely in the line of fire, seemingly calm as she carried out her duty.

"Look!" he called out to the routing Grenadiers.

"Private Applejack is standing there like a stone wall! She's showing the bravery that we should all be showing! Let us show them that Luna's 4th doesn't run out on its friends!"

Most of the Grenadiers stopped running and heeded his words. They turned to gaze at Applejack as she reloaded and fired. They turned their attention back to him.

"Rally! Rally Grenadiers! Rally behind the apple pony!"

They cheered as they began to reformed their lines. It wasn't long before they were marching back up the ridge.

The captain looked around, all of them, save for a hundred or so that probably didn't hear him, came back from routing.

He smiled.

****

Applejack was going through the motions that she had learned in training mechanically.

Load, point, fire, recover. Load, point, fire, recover. Light, drop, buck, recover. Light, drop, buck, recover.

Her goal now was just to put as much lead and explosive downrange as possible. She had been at this for nearly a minute, miraculously surviving a volley from the militia, and a salvo of canister from the remaining cannons.

Then, she heard the fife and drums of her regiment's theme song once again.

She turned around and saw the rest of Luna's 4th coming back up the ridge.

It wasn't long before the regiment was reformed at their previous position. The captain was now in command and giving the orders, which to his relief, the 4th was listening to him this time. Applejack's confidence renewed as the ranks of her Grenadier comrades filled in around her.

Some of the other regiments were trading volleys with the defenders while a few already had bayonet charges underway. The overall fighting around them was chaotic, defending militia desperately trying to keep the Equestrians back while the latter were pressing their attack as hard as they could. Artillery shells fired from both sides were raining down into the mix.

"Light grenades!"

The ponies of the 4th lit their namesake weapons in preparation for another shower of explosives onto the rebel militia. Hundreds of the small, circular bombs arched over the stone wall, landing into the ranks of the defending militia on the other side. The grenades detonated, dooming the rebel militia to the same fate as the rebel skirmishers before them. Multiple explosions ripped holes in the rebels' defensive line, many of the Red Mane ponies screaming in terror as their morale began to waver.

"First rank! Make ready!" the captain called out.

"Present!"

"Fire!"

The cracks of synchronized musketry and puffs of gray smoke erupted from the first rank of Luna's Grenadiers, the musket balls shredding through the now disorganized rebel ponies on the wall. Rank after rank fired into the rebel lines, clipping a few more of the enemy.

After the fire by rank cycle was finished, the captain decided that it was time.

"Poise bayonets!"

Applejack shouldered her musket, the bayonet pointing down in front of her like a spear or lance. All of the ponies around her did the same. On three hooves, she prepared to sprint as fast as she could go.

"Charge!" the captain yelled out.

The lines of Luna's 4th surged forward and a deafening war cry was emitted by the Grenadiers as they galloped to the wall. The rebels struggled to get off whatever shots they could, including a couple canister shots. A few Grenadiers dropped from being hit but the casualties were light for the most part.

Applejack leaped over the wall, along with the rest of the first rank, the others not too far behind. She gored a militia pony with her bayonet as she landed. She pulled out her bayonet and stabbed the pony again in the throat. As the stallion hit the ground, she charged past him to smack a second pony with the stock of her musket.

Equestrian troops clashed with the rebels, the shouts and cries of battle mixing in with the sounds of metal blades meeting, the crunching of bones in close combat, and the popping of sporadic fire.

****Rebel Reserve

****

"Captain, we are going to have to move our infantry reserve up if we want to stop the Equestrians from overwhelming our defense. We must act quickly, they've already made it to the wall."

General Stone Leaf lowered his binoculars after explaining.

"We have three entire militia divisions hiding in the trees as a reserve. Do you want me to pull them up?"

Stone Leaf nodded in affirmation.

"Do it. We can't lose the center like we're losing the right. All of the supporting artillery there that we had on Black Saddle Hill was lost to enemy cav. Our left is holding fine, but that is going to be useless if the other two sectors fall apart."

"Yes sir."

Captain Blue Harbor flew off to relay the order.

****Equestrian Center****

Applejack ran her bayonet through another militia mare and discharged her musket while it was still in the mare's gut. These ponies couldn't hang with her in close combat. The advanced training of the Equestrian Grenadiers and Hoof infantry was proving too much for the spirited yet poorly trained rebel militia. As her latest adversary fell to Applejack, the farm pony stopped.

All realism slipped away from her, as she gazed at the chaos of the battlefield. Everything now seemed to be running in slow-motion for her. She watched as pony fought pony. She watched rebels being stabbed or clubbed in the face by her fellow Equestrians. She watched as a small group from the 19th Earth Pony Hoof stormed in and captured a rebel artillery battery, then shooting down all of the crew when they tried to surrender.

The militia was routing.

"Pull back!" she heard them say, over and over again.

Even though the rebels still had numerical superiority, their losses in melee combat were proven to be too great for them to handle. The Equestrian troops began taking this time to reform their lines and reload their muskets as the broken rebels fled. Applejack could hear the drumbeats and piping of fifes, coming from the second wave that was coming up the ridge to reinforce them.

Applejack smiled.

The foes of her and her friends ran from them like cowards. It was a rewarding feeling. Maybe now Red Mane would think twice before trying to hurt her friends again. Her heart jumped into her throat with glee at the success as she bit off the end of a paper cartridge.

This battle was won.

****Equestrian Artillery Positions

****

"Sir, the first and second waves have successfully breached the stone wall. Dozens of enemy guns have been captured already. Looks pretty good."

Crimson Fields smirked at the report.

"Just as planned. The third wave is mostly skirmishers, correct?" he asked Commander Burntail.

Burntail dropped his binoculars and turned to his general.

"Yes sir."

"Good. I want them deployed along the wall in line formation. Give the rebs a dose of their own medicine in case the first two waves fail. I want the fourth wave of Royal Guards deployed at the foot of the ridge as our infantry reserve. I want whatever cavalry that is free to flank on both wings. Stone Leaf and Masterstroke always thought that they were better than me...I wonder what they think of me now."

Crimson Fields chuckled as he pounded his hoof into the ground.

****

Rebel Reserve

****

"Our militia at the wall is routing from the enemy and we are losing artillery pieces left and right. Sir, we can't go on. The day is going against us. We must retreat while our forces are still intact,"

A red unicorn colonel advised to General Stone Leaf.

The general was gazing through his spyglass, his face betraying a look of disbelief. His hooves were shaking as he let his spyglass fall to the ground. He gazed down at it, solemnly, as if he was mourning a lost loved one. He looked up and back onto the embattled ridge. A little closer he could see the militia reserve moving up to plug the gap left by his routing troops. The reserves swarmed over the hill like ants, covering the landscape with thirty thousand dirt-brown jackets.

"My ponies. My brave ponies...I thought that they could win this fight with good deployments and spirit alone. And I was wrong. I have made a mistake, and my error of judgement will take a long time to gain forgiveness...from my troops and myself. I overestimated our capabilities and I have underestimated the ruthlessness and brutality of Crimson Fields."

The general spoke solemnly, watching the explosions from the artillery, the screams and cries of ponies in combat, and the cracking of musket volleys that were cutting down his already routing militia.

His guilt swelled into his chest, constricting him.

"Cancel the order to the reserves. We must retreat from this place, we must live to fight another day."

He turned to his entourage and bodyguard behind him. They all looked at him sympathetically. One mare, who's rank identified her as a major, sniffled and shed a tear.

"I am sorry. I have failed all of you."

****

Equestrian Center

****

Applejack's rank unleashed its volley, tearing into the retreating enemies. She kneeled down and began reloading as the second rank fired and the third rank after them. As she finished reloading, the order came down the line from multiple officers that they were to cease fire.

She looked out in front of her and saw that the routing troops had slipped out of range. It was what was behind them that had caught her eye.

"Whoa nelly!"

Her eyes shot open in alarm as she was trying to comprehend what was lying in front of her.

Thirty thousand rebels were moving to reinforce their scattered comrades. They swarmed the entire opposite side of the ridge. From the air, it looked like some pony had just disturbed an anthill. The sheer numbers had Applejack in shock. Just seeing it was intimidating enough but the thought of actually having to fight all of those ponies was overwhelming.

"Do we have to kill *all** of 'em?!"*

Gasps and concerned whimpers were echoing throughout the ranks of Luna's 4th as they all took in the sight of Red Mane's large reserve force coming right at them. The other regiments were formed up as well and the second wave of the assault force had reached the new lines that were formed past the wall.

That was reassuring.

"We're gonna need all the help we can get," Applejack thought as she groaned out loud.

"Steady! Steady everypony! Don't let them scare you!"

"A little late for that, Sugarcube."

"This is just a show of force. Don't let them get inside your head!" the captain explained, trying to maintain the morale that he had worked so hard to repair.

They all watched as the enemy reserve force drew closer, their hooves thunderous against the ground. Here on the other side of the ridge, the fog was much thinner and the orange-yellow glow of the morning sun was shining through. The dirt-brown wave of pony that was surging towards them was drawing closer and closer, increasing the sense of doom throughout the Equestrian ranks.

All of a sudden, the pounding of marching hooves ceased. Bewildered, Applejack studied the enemy in front of her.

They had stopped.

Silence ensued throughout the entire ridge. Even the blasts of cannon fire were absent. She witnessed the rebel ponies begin to retreat from the ridge, deploying skirmishers and pegacav as a rear guard. Applejack just stared in wonder at the retreating enemy as the voices of some confused ponies whispered through the ranks, most of them asking about what just happened.

"I knew it! We have broken through their main line, they wouldn't dare waste their reserves on us!" the captain shouted confidently.

Applejack was still reeling.

She watched as the rebels disappeared from the entirety of the ridge.

They had won.

Victory.

She really didn't know what to think now. Her adrenaline gave out, making her knees wobble slightly before she regained control. She wanted revenge and she got it. She had killed at least half a dozen ponies today. The guilt hadn't hit her yet, and hopefully, it never would.

Now what?

She still needed to make sure her sister and her friends were okay. Also, she needed to check up on Big Mac, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash. To be certain that they had all survived the day.

And after that?

She had to continue to fight.

Red Mane was still out there, and especially from what she saw, their armies, though battered, were still largely intact.

Nothing changes from before the battle or after. She knew what she must do.

Fight on.

The Evening After

The Evening After****Day

-487

****Hornsburg

****

Twilight Sparkle stared into the campfire, the flames licking the evening air. Orange glows of light were cast onto her face as tears slowly went down her cheeks. Her uniform was a raggedy mess, her bicorne hat lying at a slant on her head. Her pink-highlighted purple mane was unkempt, appearing as though one of Pinkie Pie's balloons had been rubbing on it.

The atmosphere of the camp was dour. Essences of gloom and despair were shadowing the entire encampment. Many ponies were still exhausted, shocked, or wounded from what had happened today. Groans and sniffles resonated throughout the tents, mixing with the crackling of fires, sizzling of pots, and low whispering among some of the ponies. There was even some open sobbing from a mare a few tents down.

This was the camp of the shattered 20th Manehattan Regiment of Unicorn Hoof.

Staring into the fire, scenes from earlier today played out in front of Twilight, haunting her with gruesome images of her dead comrades. She could still hear the cannon fire, the menacing crack of a musket volley, and the chilling thud of another lifeless body hitting the ground.

It tore at her inner soul. It broke her heart. She wanted to run into a random tent alone and cry herself to sleep.

"What was I thinking!? This job is too hard! Why did I think I could do this?!"

"Lieutenant."

Twilight looked up and saw a blue unicorn with an interesting mustache looking back down at her. He had a neutral expression on his face.

Twilight was moving her hoof to her brow before Colonel Chamber Lane waved her off.

"Don't bother with the formalities. I just want to talk," he spoke softly.

He took a seat right next her by the fire, his sword and its sheath clattering against the ground.

"You did well today, you kept a cool head. A fine job," he praised.

Twilight sighed.

"No I didn't. I ran and cried like everypony else. I'm not brave or tough. I wasn't made for this," she looked to him with teary eyes.

He shook his head.

"On the contrary, you were very brave and I am proud of you. Masterstroke made a good choice in an apprentice," he spoke with a chipper tone.

He levitated a bottle of whiskey towards him and used his magic to pop it open. He took a couple of sips and offered the bottle to Twilight.

She shook her head.

"You know, he probably only sent you with the infantry to gain a perspective."

Twilight rose an eyebrow.

"A perspective?"

Chamber Lane nodded before he took another swig.

"You see, I too, was one of his students. About a couple decades ago, haha. Damn smart Masterstroke is. Him and Stone Leaf. Probably two of the best unicorn generals ever to graduate from the Academy."

The older blue unicorn stallion took yet another gulp of the alcoholic beverage.

"What does any of this have to do with perspective?" Twilight asked, now curious.

"I know how Masterstroke is. You may or may not be aware of it, but all of this is him training you. He is grooming you to be a general."

Twilight fumed immediately upon hearing this.

"What kind of training is this!? This is insanity! How is this going to help me become a general? If he is putting so much hope into me, why does he think its okay to put me at risk? I felt bullets fly by me today."

Twilight's rage made her stomp her hooves into the grass, tears running down her face. After a minute of her rampage, her exhaustion reclaimed her and she calmed back down.

"I know you're troubled. So am I. Today was awful, I think we can both attest to that," the older colonel spoke calmly.

She was sniffling, her eyes cast at the ground, still red with tears. She turned back to him.

"You still didn't answer my question," she said between sniffles, her voice much softer this time.

Chamber Lane nodded and proceeded to drain the last of the bottle in several large gulps. He tossed the bottle away and turned back to her.

"Perspective. He probably wanted you to feel what a grunt feels. Wanted you to train ponies personally, and feel what they felt in combat. To understand them."

Twilight's eyes widened with understanding as she turned her gaze from the fire back to him.

"I think I've got it."

"Do you?"

"Of course. He wanted me to learn how hard it is for the infantry so that when I became a commander, I wouldn't abuse them or treat them like disposable toys. He wanted me to understand their pain, so that when the time came to make decisions, I would consider the soldier's plight as well. To make me more conscious about the effects of my orders," she answered, becoming more ecstatic after every sentence.

Chamber Lane smiled warmly at the younger mare.

"Very good, Lieutenant! You see, you are pretty smart. It's no wonder Masterstroke took such an interest in you."

"He wanted to make me more responsible with handling an army...he really was training me."

"He didn't want you to become Crimson Fields," the colonel quipped.

"Haha...yeah," Twilight agreed.

She trailed off, looking up at the stars. The evening sky was beginning to drift from a dark orange to an even darker black and the moon was beginning to show.

Minutes passed.

The two ponies just sat beside each other quietly next to the fire, observing the soon to be moonlight sky above.

"Now that you understand, I think, with a little experience under your hooves, you'll be a fine general one day. Maybe even as good as Masterstroke," Chamber Lane finished.

Twilight smiled at him, dry tears staining her face.

"Thank you."

"Huh?"

"Thank you for helping me understand, colonel. Without you, I would still be an emotional wreck."

Twilight giggled and wiped her eyes free of fresh liquid.

Chamber Lane stood up on all fours and prepared to walk away. Before he took a step, he looked over his shoulder at her.

"You're a strong mare, Lieutenant Sparkle. A lot stronger than you realize."

With that, he trotted away. As his form disappeared into the tent, Twilight gazed back up at the night taking over the sky.

She eyes popped open.

"I almost forgot!"

Then, with great urgency, she galloped away.

****

"I am so glad y'all are alright!"

Three very uncomfortable fillies were trapped in a death hug courtesy of Applejack. All three of the filly friends squirmed and grimaced in uneasiness.

"What's the big idea, Sis?" Applebloom complained.

"Yeah, we're not even related to you!" Scootaloo added.

Applejack chuckled.

"I was worried about y'all. It feels like a burden just got lifted now that I know you're safe," she explained as she gave her little sister a noogie.

Applejack cuddled and hugged the three annoyed fillies as Big Mac entered the tent. The Crusaders broke away from Applejack and ran out of the tent to get dinner, leaving the two older Apples alone.

The younger farmer gazed up at her big brother with a smile. She was glad that everypony had survived the ordeal.

Big Mac trotted up to her slowly.

"So...word is 'round the camp that the others are mighty proud of ya," Big Mac's deep voice pierced the silence that had taken over since the Crusaders left.

Applejack showed no visible reaction.

"Are they now?" was all she replied.

"Yeah. Apparently, when the rest of the regiment saw you holdin' the line while most of everypony else broke...they said it was inspirin'."

"But you held the line too! And so did a few others. How come y'all didn't get any recognition?" Applejack frowned, uncomfortable with the special attention her peers were giving her.

"Don't you worry about us...Stonewall Applejack."

Big Mac smirked as he spoke.

Her eyes grew wide in shock.

"They gave me a nickname?" she cried in disbelief.

He chuckled softly.

"Ya better believe it, Sis!"

Applejack cringed.

"Well, golly. I'm not sure I feel too good 'bout this..."

Big Mac smiled at his little sister.

"Don't you worry none, its not that big of a deal. It'll probably blow over in a week. You know how these ponies are."

Applejack rubbed her head with a hoof, she was still reeling from this news.

Big Mac frowned.

"Say, didn't you say you had to be somewhere tonight?" he asked.

Applejack's green eyes nearly popped out of her head.

"Aw, darn it! You're right! I won't be long now!" Applejack called out as she dashed out of the tent at full tilt.

Big Mac just sighed with calm, stoic smile as he watched her gallop away into the evening sky.

"She's been acting a lot on emotion lately, which ain't like her. I hope she keeps the sense that ma and pa taught her. She's a passionate one alright."

"Eeyup," he concluded out loud to himself.

****

Rainbow Dash was lying on her back on a cloud, staring up at the fading light from the evening sky. Her rifle was resting on her chest as her saber was dangling over the side of the cloud from her belt. Snafu was sitting with his back against a smaller cloud next to her, chewing on a toothpick. Around them, the other Dragoons were resting on various clouds, trying to recover from the events of earlier today.

She could already count the stars that were slowly showing up in the night sky. She remember all of those quiet nights in Ponyville when she would do this all the time. The young lieutenant had a feeling that she would be missing those days real bad sooner or later. Hopefully, this war would be short. But if it wasn't, she would tough it out.

For everypony.

"Ya know, 'bout Crimson Fields...I like his style," Snafu spoke suddenly, staring out across the landscape of Equestria.

Rainbow Dash turned across her body to look back at her fellow lieutenant. She was now leaning over her cloud, facing the cloud below her that Snafu was on.

"Why?"

Snafu chuckled shortly and spit out his toothpick.

"Cause he don't give a shit. He ain't no fancy Star-Swirled the Bearded. He's straight up: 'Imma come right up to ya and pop ya in the damn mouth.' I like that. He doesn't fuck around."

Rainbow Dash groaned and covered her face with her hooves.

"Could you...I don't know, cool it with the cussing?" she complained.

He gave her an arrogant smirk as he slid a fresh toothpick in his mouth.

"You better toughen up if ya wanna fight in Crimson Field's army, Filly. Cause it ain't gonna get any easier," Snafu said through his teeth as he bit into the toothpick.

"So that's how you plan to survive this war? Hardass your way through it?" she retorted, sneering at him.

"Ain't nopony's gonna make it out of this war, Dashie. Might as well enjoy yourself before ya cough up the ghost," he snickered.

"I told you before that only my friends can call me that. But maybe you're just too much of a fucking featherbrain to understand something like that. Is it too complicated for you?" she snapped back at him.

His attitude was already getting on her nerves, just another reason why she wanted to end this war quickly. The less of Snafu that Rainbow had to deal with, the better.

Snafu laughed.

"Oh tha irony. Ya tell me not to cuss but it's okay for you to run your mouth? I do admire your snippy attitude, though. Since you don't like it when I call ya 'Dashie', I'll just call ya 'Snips' from now on. How does that sound, Baby Cakes?"

Rainbow Dash groaned once again as she rolled her eyes at yet another nickname he used for her.

"Just how many names are you going to give me?"

She rolled back into her cloud, turning her back to him. At least she would be able to leave soon. It was almost time to see them after all.

"Just one now, Snips," the brown pegasus taunted.

****

Crimson Fields once again stood alone in the command tent with Commander Burntail. They were both looking over a final field reports that had come in.

"Judging from everything we've been told, we have suffered around 8,700 dead, 11,000 wounded or missing, and about 500 deserters. Nearly one-fifth of our force. We originally deployed 100,000 Equestrian troops to the field," Commander Burntail recited from the reports.

Crimson Fields scratched his beard with a hoof as he used his magic to levitate a written document, studying it closely.

"Replenishment rates will replace those losses in a month. What about the enemy? I know that we have the Karalians in an awkward stance thanks to my victory, but what of the rebel army? How much damage did I do to the traitors?" the general asked.

Burntail sighed as he glazed his eyes over a second report.

"From what we can tell, the enemy deployed about 77,000 troops to the field, a vast majority of that being militia. The rebel casualty rates stand at about...9,150 dead, 12,750 wounded or missing, unknown amount of deserters, and we have captured over sixty guns, and we only took about 400 prisoners. These are only estimates though. The only numbers that have been confirmed are the prisoners and the guns."

Crimson Fields glared at the younger pony once the results he had heard registered in his mind. He pounded his hoof on the table in anger.

"That's it!? They escaped that well intact!?"

His outburst resonated throughout the tent.

Commander Burntail was positive that some of the ponies outside had definitely heard it.

"We were supposed to crush them! But not to worry, that tick Stone Leaf can't run forever!" he decreed, his face flushed red with anger.

Commander Burntail shrunk back from the general in response.

"We must give chase immediately!" Crimson Fields declared.

"B-But sir! We are still recovering from today's engagement and our ponies are exhausted. We need at least a couple days before we are ready to have another battle of that scale. Besides, Stone Leaf has probably already slipped away by now," Burntail explained.

General Crimson Fields sighed heavily in discomfort. He pounded his hoof on the table once more. After a few seconds, he started to slow down his breathing.

He turned to Commander Burntail.

"Line up all of the prisoners," he spoke in a normal-speaking tone.

Burntail rose an eyebrow, completely mystified.

"W-What?"

Crimson nearly cut him off.

"I want you to put firing squads together..." Crimson finished.

Burntail stopped and stared, mouth agape at the general, unsure of what he had just heard.

"Sir?" he squeaked out.

Crimson Fields was abrupt.

"Kill them all. That's what we must do! Show Red Mane and the world what happens when they try to stand against me," he stated resolutely.

"But sir! We can't jus-"

Crimson Fields grabbed the young commander by the collar.

"Tomorrow morning, you will give the order to line them up? Do you understand? Or are you going to need a new job?" General Fields threatened.

Burntail's eyes grew wide in shock and horror.

This stallion was a madpony!

****

Rainbow Dash flew through the cloudy camp in the sky that the 10th Dragoons had set up for the night. Makeshift buildings were constructed out of cloud, giving the cavalry pegasi some shelter. She weaved her way through her fellow Dragoons as she moved to her destination.

"Sixty-one, sixty-two, sixty-three..."

Rainbow Dash rolled past a stallion and had to dodge a lance that she had almost run into. The lancer holding it uttered a quick apology as she zipped by.

"Sixty-seven, sixty-eight, sixty-nine..."

Rainbow Dash stopped.

"Who's doing that counting?"

Rainbow Dash looked over her shoulder and saw a Dragoon mare sitting by herself on a cloud. This mare had a yellow coat and an aqua-colored mane. Rainbow thought she had recognized her for a second but then shrugged it off. The mare was staring blankly out in front of her and slowly reciting numbers. The young lieutenant rose her eyes at this, it was very strange behavior for a pony.

She glided down onto the cloud, causing it to make the sound of a pillow being fluffed as her hooves touched. She trotted up behind the mysterious mare. As she got closer, she could recognize the raindrops that the mare had for a cutie mark.

Rainbow then realized that she knew this pony. She couldn't place the name, but she had noticed this pony before.

"Seventy-four, seventy-five, seventy-six..." the mare droned on robotically, her wide open eyes showing absolutely no emotion as she stared into the abyss.

Rainbow trotted up to the mare and put a hoof on her shoulder.

No reaction.

"Eighty-one, eighty-two..."

She rose an eyebrow, mystified. What was this pony doing? What is she counting?

"Stars? There's nothing else to look at here," Rainbow Dash reasoned as she gazed across the night sky.

She felt vibrations coming from her hoof. She looked down and realized that the mare's body had been shaking this entire time.

The odd behavior now had Dash confused. She shook the pony with her hoof.

"Hey. Hey," she repeated rattling her fellow Dragoon over and over again.

The yellow pegasus finally broke her concentration and slowly turned to acknowledge Dash. She still had the blank stare in her eyes, which were bloodshot, as Rainbow could see from close up. Frankly, this sight sort of freaked her out.

"Hey, Dragoon...what are you doing out here by yourself?" Rainbow asked with concerned tone.

The pony stared at her blankly and continued to count as if Rainbow Dash wasn't there.

"Eighty-eight, eighty-nine..."

Now Rainbow was officially creeped out. She shook the mare even harder, trying to snap the other Dragoon out of her trance.

"I'm an officer! I asked you a question, Dragoon! Respond!" Rainbow demanded as she continued to shake her.

The mare looked up at her and smiled at Rainbow Dash.

This was good. She was finally getting a response out of this strange pony...but something about that smile just didn't seem right to her. The Dragoon officer stopped shaking her and frowned at the mare.

"What are you doing out here, Dragoon? Away from the others?" Rainbow asked once more.

The mare just continued to beam at her, even being bold enough to stroke Rainbow's snout with a hoof. She opened her mouth slowly, as if she was struggled with what to say.

"I was counting dead ponies, ma'am," she spoke softly with a quiver in her voice.

The mare maintained her smile, still stroking Rainbow Dash's face softly.

Silence.

Rainbow Dash stared at the mare, unable to comprehend what she had just said. Her mouth was agape, trying to form a response that her reeling mind couldn't produce. She was just struck, not exactly knowing what to do. How was she supposed to act after hearing something like that?

The mare dropped her smile and turned back where she was facing before, locked in her trance once more.

"Ninety, ninety-one, ninety-two..."

Dumbfounded, she no other answer than to fly away immediately. She took off into the night sky, leaving behind the lone Dragoon.

****

"Girls!" Twilight shrieked in joy as all three friends tackle-hugged each other in the middle of an open field.

They embraced each other tightly and passionately as they all teared up in each other's forelegs. Rainbow Dash sniffled as she rested her cheek on Twilight's shoulder, while the unicorn was content with just crying softly and pelting both of them with kisses. Applejack did her best to nuzzle and cuddle both of them, her heart bursting with happiness.

"I'm so glad both of you are okay," Applejack said, gripping both of them even tighter.

Normally, Rainbow Dash would complain but at this moment, she could care less.

"All of us survived...thank Celestia," Rainbow sighed in relief, looking up at the stars above.

Twilight was now sobbing in Applejack's shoulder. She hiccuped as she cried, Applejack shushing her and Rainbow squeezing them even closer.

"To-day was awful! Just AWFUL!" Twilight declared between sobs.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash both looked at their friend with solemn, sympathetic glances. They felt the same exact way. They held each other for a while in silence, giving them time to collect themselves. After a few minutes, Applejack broke away from both of them with a huge grin on her face.

"What is it?" Rainbow asked in curiosity.

"I have letter from Rarity. I didn't open it yet because I thought it would be best if we all read it together," Applejack revealed, holding up a parchment proudly.

"Well, enough stalling! Let's see what it says!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

Applejack opened up the parchment and held it up so that they could all read together while the farmer-turned-Grenadier provided narration.

"It says: Hello my dear friends, I hope that this letter finds you well. Everything is practically the same here in Ponyville, despite the war. Aside from a number of ponies missing, of course. I happy to report that Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie have recovered marvelously, and were even well enough to be discharged from the hospital today. They are currently under my care at the Boutique, where I have taken it upon myself to nurse them back to health."

Rainbow Dash beamed at the news.

"This is awesome! They're okay! Aw, man. That is the best news I've gotten all day!" the pegasus squealed, her demeanor becoming ecstatic.

Twilight nodded in agreement.

"Does it say anything else? I can't see very well from this angle," she asked Applejack.

"Yeah. It goes on, see?" Applejack ran her hoof down the writing to the bottom of the page.

"It also says: Twilight, if you would please respond to us so that we know that all of you are unscathed, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie are always asking about you three. And Twilight, Spike misses you so much, the poor little thing. Right now, he's helping me tend to the girls in the other room. I love you all very much...Rarity," Applejack finished.

Twilight smiled.

Everypony was alive and well.

There was a chance that they might all make it out of this yet.

The three soldier mares stood in that open field together converse for a few minutes. They joked, laughed, and talked out what they were going to do when they got home.

"Hey, I heard a lot about you, Stonewall Applejack. What's that about? You must have done something pretty cool to get nickname like that," Rainbow Dash brought up as she punched the apple mare's shoulder.

Applejack blushed in response, still not comfortable with her new namesake that Luna's 4th Grenadiers had given her.

"I don't if I rightly deserve that name. I was just doin' what I was supposed to," she tried to brush off as the farm pony's face grew redder.

"Well I think its great, Applejack. You should be proud," Twilight praised.

For the rest of the night, they stayed together in that field away from the army camps. They talked, hugged, and even slept side by side.

Together.

As friends.

Captain of the Guard

Captain of the Guard

****

Day

-487

****

Equestrian/Karalian Border

****

Captain Shining Armor gazed down at the valley from his hilltop perch. He corrected the crossbelts that held the crest of his favorite uncle's until it was no longer crooked. The lush, grassy valley was dotted with trees and even a couple of farms. Storm clouds loomed overhead, turning the sky a grayish black. It was obvious that the entire valley would most likely be pouring rain for the rest of the night. The weather's presence unnerved him. The storm wasn't controlled by pegasi. It was...unnatural. Almost creepy.

He shrugged the thought away as he adjusted his spyglass to scout out the entire landscape in front of him. Tall purple mountains surrounded the valley to his right and left, the helpless valley seemingly about to be devoured by its gargantuan neighbors. In the center of the valley stood a lone hill, keeping a watchful eye over the farms, trees, and grasslands below.

General Masterstroke had ordered him to take that hill in the morning, before the Karalians did. The General emphasized to Shining that whoever held that hill would have a huge strategical advantage. Even more so if either side was able to deploy artillery on it.

This valley was the border zone between Karalia and Equestria, the road beyond the Equestrian side being a straight path to Canterlot. Despite the capital being a natural defensive position, General Masterstroke knew he had to stop the Karalians from launching an offensive to take Canterlot. The defending garrison in the city might not be enough to stop the experienced enemy ponies from victory, so it was up to the Army of Eastern Equestria to repel the invaders.

Directly across the valley on the other side, sat another chain of hills identical to the ones Shining Armor was watching from. He was told that the Karalian army was camped just behind them for tonight. The valley itself was about eight to ten miles long and five miles wide, giving the Guard Captain was a good view of tomorrow's battlefield.

His first battle.

The thought was almost unheard of.

Of course, for weeks he knew that this was inevitable but the feeling of actually being here was making him anxious and worried. He prayed that his training with the Guard would be sufficient, that he would be able to keep everything together and help Masterstroke claim victory. He prayed that his sister would stay safe on the Western Front and that Cadance was able to handle the stress of running the country while Princess Luna and Celestia were still recovering from their wounds.

He also feared many things.

The fear of dying was the first in his mind, even though it wasn't the strongest. Every soldier had that fear though, he had expected it. But there was a fear that had taken over his very being, a sense of dread that he had not prepared for.

Failure.

Shining Armor was the Captain of the Equestrian Royal Guard, some of the most elite Hoof Guards in the world. The Royal Guard Corps stood at a massive twenty thousand strong, fourteen thousand of which were deployed with him in this very army. Another four thousand were left behind to garrison Canterlot and the remaining two thousand were deployed with the Army of Western Equestria.

So many ponies.

So many lives.

All under his command.

All his responsibility.

What if he led them into a bloodbath? Could he ever forgive himself? These fourteen thousand ponies were his comrades, fellow Guards, brothers and sisters. What if the Karalians had already taken the hill? Surely the enemy would have seen the importance of the position by now. He had also heard rumors around the Royal Guard camps of Karalian Grenzers hiding in the valley, using the trees for concealment.

Tomorrow would be the day. He had to show everypony why he was Captain of the Guard. Despite his nagging discomposure, he had to be resolute and unwavering in his command tomorrow. He had to show his ponies that he had no fear, that their Captain was filled to the brim with courage and bravery. He needed the morale that the image would give his ponies. Give them the motivation to win this battle, and hopefully, help end this war.

He turned his back to the valley and trotted back down the hill. He could already see the campfires and tents that his Royal Guards had set up for the night. The movement around the camps was lively, ponies moving back and forth from the tents and getting in the line for their meals. Many ponies had taken off their Guard armor, letting their uniform appearance disappear. Removing the enchanted armor revealed the true colors and body types of the ponies, technicolor coats replacing the generic white and gray ones that the armor created. Ponies were laughing and conversing by the fires, Fife and Drum foals practicing their instruments nearby.

Shining Armor continued down the hill. These were among his favorite times when he was deployed with his troops. The feeling of relaxation and recovery after a long duty day just felt...refreshing to him. Seeing the very ponies who took their jobs extremely seriously unwind for the day always blew his mind. He really couldn't explain the feeling at all. As if everypony became an actual pony again, not just another nameless or faceless soldier.

He liked that.

He liked that a lot.

"Sir!"

Shining Armor looked up and saw a stallion that was still wearing his Guard helmet, saluting the Captain as he passed by. Shining returned the salute and continued on. Many other Guards were now standing up to salute him, eagerness and passion in their eyes. He didn't understand, he had told his Guards specially not to salute him off-duty.

A Guard mare spoke up.

"Captain, we have already been briefed about our orders for tomorrow," she explained.

She was a purple unicorn with a yellow-highlighted mane, her baby blue eyes gazed into his own.

Shining Armor was taken aback by her look. This pony reminded him too much of Twilight. The resemblance was uncanny, and frankly, it made him a little uncomfortable.

"We are ready. And we will do whatever you need of us. We trust you completely, sir!" she yelled with a passionate tone of voice.

On the surface, Shining Armor smiled and thanked her for her loyalty before trotting away. On the inside, the mare's words ripped him apart. It didn't help that as he stepped through the camp, more salutes and comments came from the Guards, some even began cheering for him.

"We'll follow you to the bitter end, sir!" one gruff stallion said.

"Lead us to victory!" a pegasus mare urged.

It was more than clear that all of them trusted him indefinitely. He dreaded nothing more than to lose that trust. These were good ponies, and he wanted to give them his very best tomorrow. But what if he couldn't?

"Please Celestia, don't let me doom them..."

****

The Captain of the 8th Hoof Guards focused his binoculars at the hill in the middle of the valley. He smirked when he saw no movement from the Equestrians to take the hill. He knew what he was about to do was going to get him in serious trouble with his superiors but he felt that this needed to be done. He couldn't help but to be impressed with himself, managing to talk Colonel Primer and the crew of a six-pounder cannon battery to join him.

The rain falling from the night sky drenched Blaze and the unicorn standing next to him. He could already feel the ground beneath him getting muddy. He gazed back at the Karalian camps behind him. Most of the fires had died out and other than the ones participating with his plan, everypony was asleep for the night.

He turned to the yellow unicorn next to him, his best friend.

"Is Colonel Primer ready to go? What about the battery's crew?" Blaze asked in his prominent English accent.

Thunder Coy cocked his head to the side and stuck out his tongue.

"Good. Then everything is going as planned," Blaze replied.

The brown earth pony colt stood there in front of the 8th Hoof Guards on the crest of the hill, waiting for the two other Karalian units to arrive. The Karalian Hoof Guards were deployed in a three-rank line formation. The ponies behind the two young officers were standing tall, waiting for their Captain's orders. All of the Hoof Guards were wearing red coats with white crossbelts, their muskets slung over their backs.

Second Lieutenant Thunder Coy faced the Guards and flicked both of his ears up and down. Then, he proceeded to wag his tail back and forth while lolling his tongue out.

The Guards all stared at him in confusion. Although they have been taking orders from Coy for a long time, they still couldn't read his sign language.

"He told all of you to try to keep your powder dry," Blaze reiterated, bringing his binoculars back up to his eyes.

Soon, Blaze saw what he was looking for.

Ponies wearing gray coats and tall black hats adorned with a yellow dot, were approaching them from the camp. The sight of these uniforms was an enemy death omen and a Karalian godsend. These soldiers advanced in a loose formation, spread out a few yards from each other. He knew that these ponies were the most elite skirmishers in the world, armed with the newest rifles that were courtesy of Karalian innovation. The very light hoof soldiers who made the downfall of Ustio a reality. Blaze knew that it was partially because of these ponies that a Karalian flag was flying above the Ustian capital of Callisto.

The Windbüchse Jaegers.

Blaze recognized the green earth pony leading them and flashed the skirmisher a salute. When the superior officer returned it, Blaze and Coy recovered and cut their salutes.

"I hope you know what you are doing, Captain," Colonel Primer warned with a steely glare.

Blaze nodded, he understood why the Colonel was not comfortable with acting preemptively to their orders. He looked beyond the formation of Windbüchse Jaegers and noticed a few teams of ponies hauling artillery caissons and the limbers that were attached to four six-pounder cannons.

"Of course I do," Blaze answered confidently.

"Your Jaegers will be the vanguard force, with my Hoof Guards and the artillery following behind. We'll take the hill before the Equestrians do and that will give us a huge advantage. That hill is key for establishing superiority across the entire valley. Not to mention the priceless look on the Equestrian general's face when he finds out that we've taken it already," he finished with a smirk.

Primer sighed and rubbed his face with a hoof.

"When the Equestrians see us there and try to capture the hill...and they will try to capture that hill... we'll be greatly outnumbered. No matter how well we dig in, they will overwhelm us. Three units won't hold that position," Primer argued.

Thunder Coy frowned as he looked to Blaze, who threw up a hoof to to shush him. Coy whimpered in response.

"I know it's risky, but when General Spade realizes that two of his best units are forward deployed on good ground but without any support, he'll reinforce us. It's too good of an offer for the General to pass up. I've served long enough with that pony. I know him too well," Blaze said.

The other earth pony shook his head in disdain.

"I still don't like it, but I trust you," he concluded.

"Thank you," Blaze said.

The rain was still beating down on them, coming down in heavy drops. They were thankful that there was no thunder or lightning. The black of night was darkened even further from the clouds, concealing the moon and stars. Seeing in this darkness would be nigh impossible.

"Maybe lightning wouldn't be such a bad thing after all," Blaze thought.

By this time the Windbüchse Jaegers had already deployed directly behind Blaze's Hoof Guards and the six-pounder battery had almost caught up.

It was time.

"Send your ponies forward."

Primer rolled his eyes.

"I can't believe I'm taking orders from a captain."

Primer waved his skirmishers forward, the Jaeger ponies walking through the Hoof Guard ranks and passing them. The six-pounder crew stopped behind the Guards, waiting for them to push forward.

Blaze and Coy looked ahead, silently watching the skirmishers advance for several minutes. Both young Karalian ponies looked on in admiration. True to their namesake, the Windbüchse Jaegers even crouched like hunters when they moved, as if searching for their prey. When Primer's ponies were relegated to dot-sized silhouettes, they knew it was time. They both looked at each other and nodded in unison.

Blaze turned to his Hoof Guards, gazing in the eyes of each and every one. He had served with many of these ponies for years, others not so much. At least a half of this regiment was made up of veterans of the Ustian War, including Blaze and Coy themselves. His green eyes pierced the ranks of his ponies, looking for anything that could be close to dissent. He scanned for a hint of disapproval from his troops.

As per usual, he found none.

"When I give the order to push onward, there will be no music from the Fife and Drum Corps. You will all move quietly. This is going to sound awfully strange but don't march. Just walk as quietly as possible. Try to keep your ranks though and do your best not to lose each other in the darkness. I'm sorry but we have to be as silent as possible, at least until we are out of earshot of the camp. Pretend you're Thunder Coy if you have to."

There was no visible response to Blaze's orders from the Hoof Guards. Seeing this, he smirked as he looked to Thunder Coy, who reared up on his forehooves and flailed them about comically. Blaze chuckled at his friend's antics and drew one of his two sabers. Coy drew his own with his magic and held it in front of him with a yellow magical aura.

The Equestrians were in for a surprise.

Tomorrow, the Karalians would own that center hill.

Homefront

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

When the Air Still Smells of Peace III

When the Air Still Smells of Peace

III

****

Day

-532

****

Red Mane

****

The southwestern Equestrian wind wasn't as biting as Luna thought it would be. The sun had still shown through the partly cloudy skies today. The night princess watched the birds chirping as they flew by the chariot which held her and her sister. Luna had been leaning over the edge with her hooves and casting her eyes over the green and hilly landscape below. To Celestia, she looked like a happy puppy, who was enjoying the breeze that blew across her face. But the other alicorn could not complain, for she enjoyed it as well.

The six Royal Guards that pulled the chariot flew together in perfect synchronization, emanating the discipline and professionalism of Equestria's finest. Before them, both sisters could see the regional capital of Red Mane growing in size as they got closer.

They observed the tall and refined buildings, which was expected of such a rich province. The city was immense, only to be rivaled by either Manehattan, the Crystal Empire, or Canterlot. Seven-hundred thousand citizens in this city alone, if Celestia remembered correctly. It truly was a marvel to look at; the city itself was a symbol of the province's economic power.

The chariot began to descend into the outskirts of the city from the east.

Local ponies gazed to watch the Princesses of Equestria glide down with their golden chariot in all their glory. Most of the ponies were mesmerized at the uncommon appearance of the rulers in Red Mane. Ponies gathered near the chariot, all of them bowing in the streets obediently. The chariot touched down onto the street and began to slow to a crawl.

Celestia was relieved to see this behavior from the citizenry. The way the governor's letter was written, she expected to see more tension and malice. But alas, the ponies here behaved just as ponies from any other city. Maybe this issue could be solved very easily if she played her cards right.

The Royal Guards began to trot down the road towards the entrance of the city. Ponies stood at the edge of the first few buildings, still deep into their bows. Celestia looked to Luna and smiled and Luna turned towards the city and they both began to wave airily at their subjects, appearing regal and graceful. The Royal Guards led the way, marching at the quick step, keeping their small formation.

The road was quite lovely, Celestia saw.

Bushes lined the paved road into the city and the surrounding area was filled with lush green grass. The green hills flanked the trail and city itself for miles around and pine trees were scattered across the land. This was really was a beautiful place, they both thought. The alicorn princesses were gaping at the scenery, taking in as much as they could.

A loud crack.

"Sister!" Luna yelled urgently as a dark blue forcefield covered the chariot.

Something dinged off the shield as Celestia snapped out of her stupor. She looked up and saw a puff of smoke blowing out of a second-story window.

"Make ready!" somepony yelled.

Suddenly dozens of earth ponies emerged from the bushes and trees on either side of the road, armed with muskets and deployed in a skirmish formation. A large group of unicorns poured out of the city and formed a volley line in front the entourage. The formerly bowing citizens screamed in terror as they galloped into the safety of the city, confused and disoriented.

"Take aim!"

The muskets clicked as earth ponies lowered them at the princesses and their Guards.

"Fire!"

Cracks of musketry and puffs of smoke filled the senses as Luna and Celestia feared for their lives. They heard shots bounced off of the magical shield and a few of their Guards cry out in agony. The thicket of musket balls was unlike anything either of them had ever experienced. When the smoke cleared, two of the Royal Guards were sprawled out on the ground and the two entire ranks of unicorns across from them were priming their horns to fire.

"No!" Celestia thought.

An alicorn's magic may have been stronger than a unicorn's but with that many unicorns firing together, Luna's shield wouldn't stand a chance. Celestia desperately dumped her own magic into the shield, turning the color green and amplifying the strength.

"Make ready!" a Royal Guard called out.

The four remaining Guards formed a line in front of the princesses, in an effort to protect them. They fished over their backs for their rifles and pointed the barrels to the sky, holding them in front of their faces with one hoof, keeping three on the ground.

"Present!" he yelled as they let their long-range weapons drop and point into the enemy formation.

"Fire!"

The sun princess saw a couple of the unicorns across from them shriek in surprise as they dropped from being hit. The Royal Guards let their emptied breech-loaders fall to the ground as the pegasi drew their sabers.

"Charge!"

While the pegasi cavalry Guards made their glorious yet suicidal charge at the unicorn formation, another group of unicorns appeared from the shrubbery and raced up behind the chariot. They all poked their heads into the alicorn shield and had begun to absorb the magic, using their horns like a pump.

Celestia and Luna alike could not ignore the feeling that their power was being sapped away but they were too focused on preparing for the incoming unicorn volley. But as they braced, both of them couldn't help but to feel that their magic was draining at such a rapid pace that they might not be able to hold back the volley.

"Take aim!"

"How? How are simple unicorns able to draw that much magic away from us?" Celestia thought.

"Fire!"

Magical death bolts blocked their vision of the city as the deadly projectile spells came zooming in. The remaining Royal Guards were shredded instantly, caught directly in the path of the volley, serving their purpose as meat shields.

It wasn't enough though.

The barrier immediately collapsed under the sheer amount of war magic that had been cast at it. Magical shots penetrated and soon the princesses felt the pain of them hitting their bodies.

"We have to fly!" Luna cried out as she spread her large wings.

Celestia followed and both ascended into the air, in the hopes that they could escape, or fight back.

They were immortal, not indestructible.

But an untimely musket volley from the earth ponies had foiled the aerial escape. They had only gained a few feet of altitude before musket balls ripped through their feathery appendages. The sisters both looked at each other and saw the other start bleeding. They used more of their magic to begin to mend some of the wounds the best they could.

"Shoot the wings!" a rebel cried out.

More shots poured in randomly as the rebels had started to settle for just firing at will, rather than organized volleys. Death bolts and muskets balls zoomed past, a few of them slamming into the alicorns' bodies.

Both Luna and Celestia looked at each other and frowned. They didn't want to have to do this but they had no choice. The alicorns should have just enough of their depleted magic remaining to carry out their last resort.

They both charged up magical energy as they loaded their own projectiles. Death bolt and ball continued to zip past them, a lucky one here and there managing to hit. The sisters then lowered their horns at the center of the unicorn formation.

They unleashed their power.

"Disperse!" the unicorn commander ordered as the blast flashed towards them.

The attack was impressive, a stunning white beam of light that made the unicorns' death bolts look like foal's play. The rebels all leaped out of the way at the last second, only a few of them getting caught in the powerful blast.

To Celestia's horror, she had forgotten that the city was directly behind the formation.

The blast ripped through a massive three story building and completely sliced through the integrity of the structure. The building creaked and groaned as the force from the alicorn death bolt sent it tumbling down. A foal's playground was directly in the path of the fallen building, and Luna cried in horror as it crushed everything below it.

Bystanders screamed and cried out as chaos overtook the city.

Neither of them could believe what they had just seen. It happened so quickly, that it didn't even feel real. Their brains could not register anything that they had just seen. All of this was happening too fast, frustrating them because of their inability to control any of it. They couldn't have done that, there was no way. Not the benevolent and pure princesses of Equestria. If the rebels were angry before, now they would be absolutely livid.

"No!"

They refused to accept it.

But it was true.

They were foal killers.

There had to have been scores of little fillies and colts in that playground.

Not to mention how many ponies were in the building.

The stinging from musket balls and death bolts returned to them as their senses did. They had distracted the larger unicorn formation at the front but were now taking death bolt fire from behind. Indeed, the unicorns that had sapped their magic earlier were now firing it back at them. There wasn't enough bolts to destroy them now, which let them know that their plan had worked.

Celestia cried out in pain as a ball had slammed into her shoulder, immortal blood spurting from her wound.

"The--the distraction w--worked. We h--have to get o--out of here sis--ter," Luna said with steaming tears in her eyes.

Celestia nodded sadly as they prepared what was left of their power. Both were extremely wounded, adrenaline the only thing keeping them conscious. They would need immediate medical attention when they got back to Canterlot.

In an impressive flash of white, both alicorn sisters disappeared.

The cracks of musketry died down as the rebels realized that their targets had disappeared, a few of them voicing their hate.

From a second-story window, a gray pony observed the incident with a cold smirk.

The agent had accomplished his mission.

****Day

-531

****

Ponyville

****

Rainbow Dash sat by Pinkie's bedside, watching her friend sleep.

Fluttershy was recovering in the other room a few doors down.

Twenty-three ponies were dead.

And thirty-seven more wounded.

It was unbelievable.

There was no way that any of this could be happening. Not in Equestria.

Rainbow Dash was angry.

She had just gotten the news that this tragedy was no accident. Apparently, similar explosions like the one in Ponyville had occurred at train stations all across Equestria. All of them within a few minutes or hours of each other.

This was not a coincidence.

It was sabotage.

Especially after the news came out about the Princesses' Royal Procession getting ambushed en route to Red Mane. Word had gotten out that even though they were badly wounded, both Celestia and Luna were alive and back in Canterlot, receiving medical treatment.

Hours later, after executing Governor Dusk Quill and his loyalists, the province of Red Mane declared its independence from the Principality of Equestria.

Stone Leaf, the General of the Army of Red Mane Valley, declared the birth of the Republic of Red Mane.

"No longer will the imperialistic policies of Equestria oppress our ponies. For far too long have we lived under the bastardous stranglehold of our former handlers. It is a dirty business to obtain freedom and independence, but it must be done to ensure the welfare and future of the ponies of Red Mane. As proud general of this army, I will defend these ideals to the death!"

Rarity had read them that speech from the Canterlot Times while they were in the waiting room. Immediately after, the nurse had called them in.

"Attacking any Royal is an act of war," Twilight had told them before she left to check up on Fluttershy.

War.

The word rang in her head and then lingered like a snake hissing over her back.

Rainbow didn't know much about it, to her surprise. It was a foreign subject. Sure, she had learned about ancient battles in school and occasionally heard about wars between other countries, but not in a thousand years has Equestria taken to the battlefield.

It was the unknown.

And she was terrified.

But would she answer the call?

Dash wondered as a tear fell from her cheek, gazing at her stricken friend. Pinkie had suffered two broken ribs and a fractured hoof. Fluttershy had broken both wings, a foreleg, sustained minor burns, and dislocated the shoulder of her other foreleg.

Both had passed out.

They were lucky that they were far enough away from the blast that they were both thrown back from the explosion rather than engulfed by it. The doctor and nurses had told her and her friends that they would be fine but for some reason that didn't make her feel any better.

She turned to the window, watching the sunrise. The sun and the moon were still rising and falling at regular intervals, which meant that Princess Luna and Celestia were still alive. Maybe this wasn't a complete disaster after all. The light glazed itself over the landscape, eventually reaching Pinkie's room. As the light hit her face, she let out a sigh of relief. She didn't know how, but somehow, the light rejuvenated her. It was giving her new life, a break from the stress that she absolutely needed.

Rainbow Dash had always felt that it was a duty of hers as the Element of Loyalty to protect her friends, Pinkie and Fluttershy especially. Pinkie was the youngest of the group and the most innocent, so of course Rainbow Dash felt protective over her. Fluttershy as well, she was kind-hearted and pure, and Rainbow Dash didn't want to see that destroyed. Rainbow cared for all of her friends, but she had a special connection with these two especially. Aside from being their friend, she also saw herself as their protector.

"Mmmm...Dashie?"

Rainbow Dash looked over her shoulder and saw Pinkie yawning, her mouth opened wide. Her eyes were sleepy and half-open, and her pink fizzy mane was a complete mess. After the yawn, Pinkie just stared at Rainbow blankly. She decided to approach the bedside slowly and rest her fore hooves on the side.

Rainbow gave her friend a light smile.

"How are you feeling Pinkie?" she spoke softly.

Pinkie returned her own weak smile.

"Well, it only hurts a little bit, but I'm still pretty tired."

"You should probably get some more rest then, you'll need it."

Pinkie's smiled faded away and drooped into a frown. She blinked at Rainbow Dash again.

"Dashie...what happened?"

Rainbow refused the urge to cringe. She couldn't tell her about what had happened, at least not now.

"Don't you worry about that, Auntie Rainbow Dash has got it all taken care of," she joked with a smirk.

Pinkie laughed.

"You took my lin--ouchie," she squealed in pain.

Pinkie grimaced as she held a hoof over her ribs and coughed. She stared stared back at Dash, smiling through the pain in her ribcage.

Rainbow Dash frowned in concern, she couldn't stand to see such a close friend like this. It just wasn't right. Pinkie and Fluttershy were probably the last ponies that deserved to be put through something like this.

"Where's Fluttershy?"

"She's fine. In the other room actually."

Pinkie jerked her head over to the closed door, as her face lit up suddenly.

"Really?! Can I talk to her?!" Pinkie's eyes grew wide as she slammed both of her hooves onto the blanket.

The pink pony twitched as a sharp pain shot up her fractured hoof.

Rainbow chuckled. She was still Pinkie, that's for sure.

"Yeah, but she's asleep right now with Twilight keeping an eye on her. Applejack had to step out to blow off some steam and Rarity left to go calm her down after she almost bucked somepony in the face. You should probably get some sleep too," she pointed out.

It wasn't every day that they saw Applejack get upset like that. Witnessing it made Rainbow shiver. She was the one that was supposed to be pissed, and Applejack the calm and stoic one. Apparently, they traded roles today.

Pinkie sighed as she ran a hoof over her blankets.

"Yeah, you're probably right."

And with that Pinkie let her head fall back down onto her pillow, turning away from the pegasus.

"Well, Rarity will be by later. And I left you a Daring Do book by the way. It's on the little table next to you," she pointed out as she began to trot towards the exit.

Pinkie Pie turned over back towards the door and gazed at her friend one last time.

"Dashie?"

Rainbow Dash took her hoof off the door and looked back.

"Yeah?"

"You're a good friend, and I love you lots. All of you."

A normal pony's heart would melt at such a statement, especially in the way Pinkie Pie said it.

Rainbow Dash grinned.

"Thanks Pinkie. It's good to hear that. And I'm sure the others will appreciate it too."

"No, 'I love you' back?" Rainbow Dash thought in frustration.

As collected as she was, Rainbow was not good at sappy stuff.

She watched Pinkie smile as the pink mare snuggled into her face into the pillow like a baby filly. Rainbow Dash repulsed a choke as she opened the door and stepped out. As she closed it behind her, Rainbow Dash could feel the warmth of a single tear coming down her cheek.

Yes.

She would answer the call.

Red Mane.

The enemy.

She swore on her life that she would make them pay.

Nopony hurts her friends.