//------------------------------// // Overhead // Story: That Which was Lost // by LadyRFC //------------------------------// “Oh you have got to be kidding me!” Rainbow was standing on shaky legs beside Applejack, both staring into the early night's foggy air, the clear sound of armor clad hooves echoing throughout the forest. “Ah had a bad feeling,” Applejack muttered under her breath. She looked around at their forces. It was worse than she had imagined. Nopony could stand without shaking and the changlings were clearly gasping for air, pushed beyond their limits and starving besides. “We're done, aren't we?” Blue Flame asked softly, his tone showing that the idea wasn't a shock or disappointment but only a fact. A cold, unchangeable fact. “No!” Rainbow cried, straining her neck forward as shadows appeared in the fog. “We can do this! We can!” “Rainbow, Ah know you're stubborn. Ah am too,” Applejack sat down, her hind legs screaming simply from standing for as little time as she had, “but we can't push any harder. We tried our best, sugarcube. We can't do anymore without somepony getting hurt.” “No,” Rainbow spat out, clinching her teeth to remain standing. “Rainbow, Applejack is right,” Blue Flame urged, “we can't risk anypony getting hurt. Both my princess and yours wouldn't approve.” The fog began to slip over the shadows, revealing silver armor plated ponies, many earth ponies, but a few were pegasus. All appeared healthy and fit. This was the real army. The army that had waited for them to exhaust themselves before they marched in. “Twilight,” Rainbow ground her teeth together to keep from crying in frustration, “Twilight wouldn't give up. She'd fight!” Before Applejack or Blue Flame could respond, a changling that had been struggling next to Rainbow finally managed to rise itself onto its small, twig-like legs. It blinked and looked at the blue, rainbow-maned pegasus. “I'll fight with you, Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow looked into the crystal clear blue eyes and couldn't help asking, “What's your name?” “Marina.” The pegaus blinked, smiled slowly and looked ahead at the long line of troops headed straight for them at a calm and measured pace. “I'll be proud to fight alongside you, Marina.” Applejack bowed her head, hiding a smile. “Ah guess Ah can't argue now, can Ah?” Blue Flame snorted lightly and looked ahead. “Not much of a soldier if I couldn't fight till the end myself. I'd hate for new comers to show me up.” Applejack looked up towards the troops, her face grim. Their talk was just that: talk. She well recalled her body's warning signs back when she had foolishly taken on too much work at Sweet Apple Acres. The over tight muscles, damp skin, inability to catch one's breath, the blurred vision. And no pony was in much better shape. In their current state, even taking out a few of the enemy would do little. The numbers marching towards them, from the sound alone, were overwhelming. She clinched her jaw and snorted, moving her head down to prepare to charge, pushing all other thoughts away, focusing on one soldier. She watched the moonlight glint off his armor, she stared at the plating shifting as he marched. She eyed a break in the armor at the front hoof, timed his pace to where the gap was largest. A few more seconds. “NOW!” Rainbow cried, rushing at what was meant to be a full gallop, but what appeared to be more of a trot. The changlings and Blue Flame followed, recklessly charging. Applejack forced her legs into motion, feeling her bones creak under the unwanted motion, her own frame screaming in instant pain. She was one step more away from her intended target, his head lowering at her approach, when her left back leg stiffened and froze, stuck straight and useless. Unbalanced, she fell to the ground, flinching. She felt a metal encased hoof fall into her side, the cold surface freezing her sweat drenched skin. It pressed into her. She screamed out. Had her scream ever seemed so loud before? It was deafening. And it was more of a roar than a cry. A big, deep, loud reptilian roar. The pressure in her side lifted. Applejack's eyes snapped open and her gaze fall on the soldier over her, whose face was fixed on something high above them all in the starry sky, a look of disbelief and horror on his face. She followed his gaze and gasped. The stars above winked in and out of existence, blocked from their sight by large winged beasts. To see them fly by day was amazing enough, but never had Applejack dreamed she would see a large group of dragons flying by night. Another dragon's cry ripped through the cold night air, jarring every pony on the ground. The seemingly relentless army froze and then, one by one, began to drop towards the ground, hiding their faces. “Sacred movement,” a voice whispered in awe. Applejack looked over to see Blue Flame crouched down towards the ground, nearly bowing his head to hide it, as his kin had done, but too enraptured to finish the pose, his dark eyes locked onto the masses flying overhead. For a moment Applejack thought she saw a much smaller shape. A familiar one, with a purple coat and mane, flying with the dragons. But she couldn't be sure. The group moved past them and began descending towards where Princess Lily and the gathering civilians were. Gradually the sky began to clear, the stars once more staring down on them. There was an awkward silence, the soldiers slowly lifting their heads to look up into the clear sky. Applejack locked eyes with the soldier standing over her and waited. He looked conflicted. They all did. Unnerved by the odd appearance, the soldiers began to back up and regroup, muttering low to one another. “Blue Flame?” Applejack hissed. “I don't know,” he whispered in her direction, slowly getting up himself and heading towards her to assist the earth pony. “This has never happened before. They think maybe the emperor sent them, but it seems like overkill to send the whole dragon clan. Something is very wrong.” “To them maybe,” Rainbow added from Applejack's other side, surprising the pony as she helped her to stand. The pegasus grinned. “But good for us! Twilight got through to them!” Applejack tried to smile back at Rainbow, but faltered. “Maybe. But we gotta get back to make sure.” “Retreating would be rather wise,” a changling behind them said slowly, its eyes locked on their enemy which was nearly done reforming its ranks. “Wise and difficult,” Applejack muttered as her side shivered in a painful spasm. She then felt something under her and was shocked when a changling stood underneath her, lifting her off the ground on its back. “I am called Lostress. Hold tight.” Applejack decided then and there that Rarity was right. They had beautiful eyes. Wonderfully, beautiful and strong blue eyes.