Elysian Fields

by Bullets

Part 1 - "Soldiers of the Wasteland"

The sun cast a dim glow across the barren wasteland it overlooked as it slowly set. Darkness was beginning to engulf the area as the moon rose into the sky. A thin layer of fresh snow blanketed the desolate earth which was once covered in vast expanses of forests and meadows. War had ravaged the land for many years, leaving the area almost unrecognisable. Anypony who once roamed this landscape would not believe it was the same area, if it wasn't for a large castle protruding from a nearby mountain.

The war had started in the years prior, when a sect of rogue Pegasi broke the treaty between the three pony races of Equestria. They had formed in secrecy and began by spreading propaganda which promoted their cause. Eventually their actions became more violent, leading to murders and assassinations becoming a frequent event. The group had wanted to revoke the treaty to allow Pegasi control of Equestria, and control over the other Earth and Unicorn ponies. Following the attacks, a Unicorn supremacist group retaliated with their own attacks. Only the Earth ponies and loyalist Unicorns and Pegasi stuck to the treaty.

Due to the actions of the rogue groups being somewhat unorganised and secretive, the Royal Equestrian Army had trouble tracking them down and putting a stop to them. At first, the actions of both rogue groups were considered general nuisances and methods of invoking fear, but as time passed and their group numbers grew, the acts became more damaging as the struggle for power continued. This is due to local police having difficulty in tracking down or finding any of the culprits. The problem eventually escalated to a point where the groups were capable of taking on the military. With the Equestrian Army attempting to subdue both groups, they moved from being on the offence to being on the defense, fighting for the survival of Equestria. Guerrilla warfare became a common attack method between both groups as the fight for power escalated. Eventually, a full scale war broke out between the Pegasi, Unicorns and Royal Equestrian Army. Due to this, Equestria saw the return of the strange, ethereal beings known as Windigos. Sensing the hatred and violence, they whipped up a blizzard that had ravaged the land ever since.

The sun had now fully set, only to be replaced by the moon in its absence. A single earth pony stood atop a rocky mound as he surveyed the surrounding area. The stallion was tall in stature, muscular, bore many scars across his body, and had two golden wings, covered by two crossing horns with the sun on top, decorating his flanks. His coat was a light brown, and his mane a matte black with dark crimson streaks. He wore a dark green jacket, and a beret of the same colour with a Royal Equestrian Army field marshal insignia attached to it. He was also cloaked in a small cape which bore the insignia of his chosen alliance; the Royal Equestrian Army.

"Marshal, is everything alright?" called out another smaller earth pony, who was dressed in a similar manner. "We really should get going."

Marshal slowly turned to face the smaller stallion who called out to him. His face was void of emotion, but there was a look of thoughtfulness present in his eyes. "Alright? When has it ever been alright? Day by day, month by month, year by year, this war continues to rage on. Tell me when it truly is alright; I'll gladly welcome that news."

The smaller stallion stood there, silently watching the marshal get down from the rocky mound. As he did so, the marshal approached him with a somewhat solemn look on his face. A smile then cracked his lips and he chuckled lightly. "Private Coltrane, the answer to your question is yes, everything is alright. There are no White Army squadrons currently occupying the area; a good sign to say the least. Now return to your platoon position at the front of the group, if you would be so kind."

"Yes, Marshal Thunderhorse, sir!" replied the private as he marched off towards the platoon position that he had been assigned to.

Marshal Thunderhorse, or 'Thunder' as he preferred to be known as, took one last look back at the wasteland that was behind him, as he silently thought to himself. Another black winter night... Typical. He turned back towards his platoon and set off towards the mountain palace in the distance, just as the snow started falling again.

“Great, more snow,” grumbled a young stallion at the front of the platoon. “Its not like we need anymore...”

Another earth pony stallion turned to him, and gave him a friendly thump on his shoulder. “Yeah, but at least we’re almost back home,” he said while chuckling lightly.

“I suppose so. At least I’ll be able to see my family again soon. It’s been weeks since I last saw them...” replied the young stallion, smiling at the thought.

“Yeah. Then you can give your mum a big kiss when you see her,” joked one of the two unicorns from a few metres back. The platoon burst into friendly laughter, while the young stallion’s face flushed a dark red with embarrassment.

“Alright, alright, lets keep moving. Otherwise we may never make it back at this rate!” Thunder shouted to his platoon, before he chuckled lightly under his breath at the platoon’s friendly banter.

* * *

Celestia and Luna sat in the palace study, carefully analysing many maps and sheets of information strewn across desks and the floor. As the ruler of Canterlot, Celestia had control of the Royal Equestrian Army and how it operated. It was her job to organise the sub-divisions, battle tactics and territories, and decide when to engage in combat with opposing forces. It was a difficult and demanding role, but she was able to manage it with help from her sister. Luna was the head of the logistical department of the Army.

"Luna, how many losses were reported in the last skirmish?" asked Celestia, as she analysed the maps before her.

"Forty-two, Tia. The attack as a whole was successful," replied Luna as she looked through her notes.

Celestia looked up from the map she was studying. "Not too many then. Although it still saddens me that we lost some honourable ponies. Have their bodies been recovered and identified?"

"So far, thirty-seven have been returned to the barracks here in Canterlot. I don’t have any information on four of them, but the last on I know of is being brought back with the Alpha platoon, who are travelling here now." Luna skimmed through her notes for the details of the platoon she mentioned. "It seems that Alpha platoon is currently being led by Marshal Thunderhooves."

"Thunder? Why is he assigned to the Alpha platoon again?" asked Celestia, with a look of confusion on her face.

Luna once again skimmed through her notes to find the details of the platoon and pony in question. "Ah here it is. Marshal Thunderhooves was transferred to Alpha platoon four months ago, to organise them in fending off the southeast Pegasi attack near the border. As I pointed out earlier, the pre-emptive strike on the outpost situated there was successful."

Celestia returned her attention to the maps in front of her, using her magic to cross-off an enemy camp marked next to the Canterlot border, before looking up towards Luna. "When they return, I wish to speak to Thunder. I do hope they make it back okay..."

* * *

The snow fell heavily as Alpha platoon marched on in the dark night. The wind was fierce, turning the snowfall into a raging blizzard, and the windchill was almost unbearable. It cooled any metal to a point where touching it would be painful, and froze rations solid.

"The blizzard's getting pretty fierce, and the visibility is near zero. Let's stop here and set up camp!" shouted Marshal Thunderhorse to the rest of the platoon, as they struggled to continue marching in the dead of night.

Hearing the order from their marshal, the platoon came to a halt and started to unpack supplies as fast as they could. The two Loyalist unicorns assigned to the platoon used their magic to set up tents and other supplies for sleeping in. Within a few minutes, the camp was set up and the platoon members began to crawl into the tents, to escape the wrath of the unforgiving blizzard. The tents prevented the wind and snow from contacting the troops, but the icy chill still crept into their shelter, chilling them to the core.

“Coltrane! Get over here,” shouted Thunder, as he waved Coltrane over. “Coltrane, I want you on watch duty tonight. If anything happens, don’t hesitate to shout for us. Got it?”

“Yes sir! Will do,” replied Coltrane, despite knowing that it was going to be a long, cold night, out in the open.

Before he got into is tent for the night, Thunder went to the edge of the camp one last time. He merely stood there, surveying the desolate surroundings. The barren wasteland and darkness combined emanated an aura and feeling of death; enough to make even the most unemotional pony feel scared. It would have been impossible to see anything if it wasn't for a thin sliver of moonlight which sliced through a break in the dark, foreboding clouds. The light illuminated the camp somewhat; a ray of hope for Thunder. Thank you Luna, thank you, he thought to himself as he headed back and entered a tent to shelter from the ongoing blizzard until morning.

Within a few hours morning arrived. The blizzard had died down eventually over night but had left the camp half buried in snow. Thunder was the first to awaken and to leave his tent, already geared-up for the day's travelling. He had struggled to exit his tent and realised that it was fully snowed over when he finally got out. He surveyed the campsite for any equipment damage, and concluded that everything was alright. It's light, which means it's time to get everypony up, he thought to himself.

He opened up his satchel and produced a small bugle. It was dented and discoloured but still worked fine. Thunder sharply inhaled and blew into the mouthpiece. The immense sound produced bombarded the camp and echoed way into the distance. He waited for everypony to awaken and appear out of their tents. Two minutes passed without a single pony appearing. Thunder blew into his bugle again to produce the same ear-splitting sound. Still nothing. "Right, what's going on?" he said out loud, an annoyed look present on his face due to the lack of movement from his platoon.

He walked over the nearest tent and began to unzip the entrance flap. "Come on! Get up you slackers. It's time to..." Nothing could have prepared him for what he saw next. The tent was full of his troops. Dead. Blood was pooled around their rigid bodies, iced over due to the freezing temperatures of the night before. Thunder stumbled backwards. He was a hardened war veteran, but this still shocked him. Frantically, he got up and checked the next nearest tent. More remains. He checked every other tent in the campsite only to find the same thing; they were all full of dead troops. By this point Thunder was seriously panicking. He was in the middle of nowhere surrounded by tents full of dead ponies. What in Celestia's name could have done this!? And where is Coltrane? He was supposed to be on watch duty.

He decided to re-survey the campsite for any clue that could explain the deaths. It a first glance, it looked completely normal to Thunder. Nothing was destroyed or out of place. However, as he looked over towards his tent the answer came to him. Why was it that only he had survived? His tent was set-up next to the embankment. The blizzard during the night had completely covered it in snow leaving it hidden from sight, and from whoever killed the rest of his platoon. The rest of the camp however, was set-up on top of the higher ground. It was left completely exposed and in sight to anypony who may have come across it; a sitting target at best. Thunder didn’t think that it would matter as long as he had somepony on watch. He had set up camp in many places like this before and was fine, but for some reason, Coltrane had gone missing.

“Where in Celestia’s mane is Coltrane? He was supposed to be on watch duty...” Thunder said to himself as he frantically looked around the campsite. Coltrane was nowhere to be found.

I need to get out of here, Thunder thought as the sudden realisation kicked in that he was a lone warrior in potentially hostile territory. Realising it was pointless, he gave up looking for Coltrane and quickly packed any other necessary supplies he might have needed into his satchel bags, and set off towards Canterlot as quickly as he could. His thoughts were racing and a feeling of nervousness washed over him. How could this have happened?

* * *

"Hold it men," a cloaked Pegasus pony whispered to three other stallions with him. The pegasus’s cloak bore the insignia of the White Army; a star with large wings spread on either side. The four stallion group was a fire-team assigned the duty of ‘removing’ any enemy forces within the area. They had been given the task of sweeping the area after an attack on one of their border outposts, when they spotted the returning Royal Equestrian Army platoon in the distance. They had decided to tail them until an opportunity for them to ‘do their job’ arose. "We need to keep our distance for a while, so lay low until the blizzard picks up. That way they won't hear us coming, and our tracks will be covered by the snowfall.

An hour or so passed while the four pegasi waited for the area to become shrouded in darkness, and for the blizzard to worsen. The leader looked towards his men and nodded. "It's time."

The four of them got up from the mound of snow they had hidden behind and started towards the Royal Equestrian Army camp in the distance. The moonlight that caressed the hill acted as the perfect beacon to find the campsite. While it allowed the camp to see oncoming intruders to a certain distance, it also allowed intruders to see it from a distance.

"A double-edged blade cuts both ways..." whispered one of the stallions as they neared their target. “Wait though. There’s a lookout, over there,” whispered the stallion as he gestured towards Coltrane, sitting at the edge of camp.

"We've trained for something like this. Do your job, and keep it quiet. We don't want to wake any of our friends here," commanded the leader.

With that, one of the younger stallions flew into the air, utilising the darkness and snow as cover. Stealthily flying above and over Coltrane, he hovered for a moment as he unsheathed a serrated object. Quietly lowering himself just behind Coltrane, his mind was set on his target. Coltrane had no idea he was there; the pegasus was highly trained in the arts of stealth, and due to the fact that Coltrane was beginning to get tired, he lacked full concentration. The pegasus landed behind Coltrane and silently ran the object along his throat, muffling his mouth with his hoof in the process. Coltrane’s eyes shot wide open as excruciating pain surged through his body, but he quickly faded to black, without a struggle or whimper, his life force spilling out of his body. The pegasus then took flight, holding his crimson blade between his teeth, and carried Coltrane’s body a short distance away from the campsite. He placed it down onto the ground, piled snow on top of it, then headed back and regrouped with the others.

“Good work, now lets continue,” whispered the leader. He and the other two remaining ponies each produced a large serrated object, then all four began to slowly unfasten the tents to themselves. They entered each tent as quietly as possible, utilising the howl of the blizzard as a cover for any sound they made. A few minutes passed, and eventually each one quietly emerged from their chosen tent. A crimson liquid dripped from each of their objects, which quickly froze solid due to the freezing temperatures. Any drops on the ground were immediately covered by fresh snow. Each pony then refastened their chosen tent and moved onto the next. Within a few minutes the actions had been repeated and more lives had been ended. The Pegasi assailants regrouped in the middle of the camp, wiping their blades clean and re-sheathing them.

"Is that all of them?" asked the cloaked stallion as he finished concealing his weapon.

“We think so,” answered one of the pegasi as he looked over his shoulder towards the tents he had just exited.

"Good. Then like lesser birds on the four winds, let us swiftly depart this chilling, haunted area." The four mysterious stallions silently left the artificial Golgotha and disappeared back into the dark night, leaving any emotions they may have had behind with the dead.

* * *

Thunder marched onwards towards Canterlot as fast as he could. He was now a lone warrior, kept company only by the deathly silence that spread across the valley that lay before him. The clouded skies seemed to be an omnipresent being, following and watching him, ready to unleash more fury without warning. Thunder's mind was racing as he tried to work out what he was going to do if he came under attack; a single earth pony couldn't stand up to a pegasus or unicorn squadron.

What am I going to do? What if I don't reach Canterlot by nightfall? Ignoring the images burned into his mind from the camp he had just left, his only goal now was to get back alive, to report everything to his two rulers. I must tell Celestia and Luna what happened. But first I need a plan I can execute, should I come across any hostiles. Thunder thought long and hard for ideas he could use to evade capture, or an attack by any enemies that he may come across. Several ideas came to his mind, all useful in different situations.

What he didn't notice was the slight flurry of snow in the air. He had been so lost in thought that he forgot to keep an eye on the weather. The fresh snowfall was only going to add to the existing snow and ice on the ground, thus slowing his journey even more. His over-packed satchel full of emergency supplies was already slowing him enough, but now even the Windigos were against him. His last major line of defence had turned hostile, and all he could do was watch as more snow blanketed the dead earth before him. Still, there was nothing he could do about it, his only choice was to continue trudging on towards his destination.

Time seemed to pass by slowly as he traversed the terrain which lay out before him. Every second felt like a minute, and an unbearable boredom gripped his mind. Every now and then the images of his dead squadron would infect his thoughts, bringing his fractured mind back to the harsh realm of reality, where death could be just moments away and rescue was just a mad pony's illusions. Thunder had seen many grotesque things during all his years as a field marshal, but nothing quite as severe as waking up to find his entire platoon dead. The sight, the smell, the image of blood pooled around their bodies.

It was enough to make any hardened veteran uneasy. He decided that it was best to try to keep hold of his calmness as long as possible. He tried to focus on reaching Canterlot rather than mulling over past thoughts in his mind, after all, it was in his best interest to get help and inform Celestia and Luna before anything else could happen. But he also wanted revenge on whoever attacked his camp and killed his platoon members, some of whom he had made good friends with. He too, longed to hear the cries of the enemy as he enacted his vengeance upon them.

The negative thoughts continued to plague his mind, only to be countered by positive ones. The clash of positive and nihilistic thoughts didn't help with his weakened mental state. I need to continue... No... I must continue. But what if I'm too late? What if everyone's dead? I may as well just give up here... Thunder stopped to briefly rest and to survey his surroundings. The palace still seemed an eternity away and the terrain was beginning to get worse. What had previously been small hills and holes were now turning into rocky pathways, ditches and craters. The layers of ice that coated the ground didn't help, either. One false move and you could find yourself falling onto jagged piles of sheet rock and ice, which was lethal, or mutilating at the very least. It was something else that Thunder didn't want to think about. Right now, all he wanted to do was to reach safety, warmth and the company of others. I must keep going...

* * *

Dusk was fast approaching as Celestia and Luna sat in the palace study again, analysing more maps and documents. "Has a report been sent through by Alpha squadron today, Luna?" asked Celestia as she finished reviewing the reports on her desk.

"Not as far as I know," replied Luna as she flicked through her piles of documents. Each squadron would send a report to the castle every other day to update them on their locations and current actions. The reports were sent using a unicorn's magic, which each squadron had a minimum of two. However, due to Thunder being the last surviving member of Alpha squadron, and of earth pony nature, he was unable to update the palace.

"The last report from Alpha squadron was three day ago. Do you think something has happened to them?" asked Luna as she neatly re-stacked her piles of paperwork.

"I'm starting to think that. Thunder has never been lax in operations, so sending an update would be one thing he could guarantee. The last report we received from him detailed their victory at the border and how they were heading back here to resupply and await more orders. However, I'm wondering if their choice of route has caused problems. I knew it wasn't a very good idea but I didn't say anything, and I wish I had now." Celestia sighed heavily as she realised her lack of proper judgement on the situation.

"Why? What route did they take?" asked Luna with a blank expression on her face.

"The V.O.T.D...." replied Celestia bluntly.

"The what?" asked a confused Luna, obviously unaware of the acronym's meaning.

"You know, what used to be the Everfree Forest. The desolate wasteland known as the 'Valley Of The Damned' nowadays. Where the first battle took place. Remember?" answered Celestia, with a hint of sarcasm rising in her voice.

"Oh right. Why did they take that route again? Surely the swampland would have been quicker to traverse, even if it is a swamp..." asked Luna as she skimmed through a pile of maps for referencing.

"The swampland is home to the hydras, remember? Besides, the valley is the only other route home. I’m sure Thunder is smart enough to lead his men safely back here. After all, he did send us that letter saying that due to hostiles potentially occupying the swamplands, the only other route home was through the valley. If I had to choose between a rocky valley, or a hostile, hydra infested swamp, I’d choose the valley." Celestia returned to her paperwork in front of her.

“But, you could just fly back here. Or teleport with magic,” said Luna bluntly.

Celestia put a hoof to her face and slowly shook her head.

* * *

The sun was once again setting on the horizon. An exhausted and weary Thunder slowly trudged on through the miles of snow that lay before him. He was cold, hungry, and frightened. Despite being an experienced commander for many, many years, he had yet to spend a night alone in the wild, in potentially dangerous territory. In the rush to leave earlier that day he had chosen to take food over his tent, in hopes that he could find natural shelter should he need it. His hopes had payed off. In the distance was a small cave entrance. It was discreet enough to prevent most hostiles from noticing it, but large enough to shelter in. Thunder decided that the cave would be his best bet for a safe night. He trudged over to the ave entrance and inspected it. It was more of a small stone hillock than a cave, being only a couple of metres wide, high and deep, however, to Thunder this was a glorious find.

Perfect, this will do nicely for the night. Now I just need to barricade the entrance. Thunder placed his paraphernalia into the cave and began to pile up snow in front of the entrance. Not much was needed to cover the entire thing, the cave tapered smaller at the entrance making Thunder's task easier. "Perfect," he quietly said to himself as he finished barricading the entrance. He had blocked the only way in with compacted snow, leaving a small gap at the top for airflow. Having done this, he headed back over to his satchels and unpacked his bedding. He laid it out onto the hard stony floor of the cave and climbed into his makeshift bed. It wasn't the comfiest of sleeping places, but at least he had shelter. Maybe some sleep will calm my mind and nerves... He closed his eyes and slowly drifted into the realm of dreams, his exhaustion having taken its toll.

* * *

A blustery wind greeted him. It was pitch black all around and snowfall buffeted his face and body. He looked around; nothing but snow and darkness. In the distance, a light. It crept slowly closer to him, pulsating as it did so. It dimmed slightly and flickered out. A lost hope. A shriek came from behind him in the distance. He turned abruptly, only to be greeted by a ghostly image of a pony flying straight at him, the source of the shrieking. He recoiled in fear as the spectral being dematerialised out of existence. He slowly opened his eyes, only to be greeted by darkness once more. Suddenly, he felt as if he was falling. With a thud he hit the ground. He slowly rose and looked around, he was back at his camp like he was that morning. A voice could be heard faintly in the distance. "You failed us... We trusted you." Thunder spun around, searching for the source of the voice.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" shouted Thunder as he continued to look around.

"Too late..." said the voice as something hard tapped Thunder on the shoulder. He turned around, only to be greeted by a skeletal pony lunging right at his face, a scream echoing into the distance.

* * *

Thunder awoke, abruptly sitting up. A cold sweat ran off his brow as he hyperventilated. He quickly looked around the cave searching for anything that may be there. Seeing nothing he began to calm down.

"A dream..." he whispered quietly to himself as he looked towards the cave entrance. A small amount of light was pouring through the gap at the top, indicating it was morning. Time to get going, he thought to himself as he began to pack away his bedding. He repacked his satchels and rested them against the wall, then headed to the entrance to dig himself out. The cold night air had caused most of the blockade to harden into ice, making his task harder. However, after a few hard bucks most of the iced shattered and collapsed away, revealing the vast valley expanses once again.

Grabbing his satchels, he headed cautiously outside, looking for anything that could be hostile. Deeming the surrounding area safe, he fully emerged from the cave and inhaled a few deep breaths of fresh morning air. The sky was clear and the sun shone down upon the valley, revealing everything in the area. Thunder welcomed this break from the relentless blizzards that had been raging for the past few weeks. However, it did not make his goal any easier. He still had to reach the palace and deliver the news to Celestia and Luna. His destination wasn't too far away at this point, but the terrain still made the journey difficult.

If I try, I can make it to the palace by nightfall, thought Thunder as he checked the cave one last time for any remaining objects he may have missed. Seeing none, he headed off, his mind set on the reaching the palace by nightfall.

I'm almost there, just wait a little longer...

Comments

[LunaUsesCaps]

Congratulations on EqD approval, Zuriel! Expect your views to skyrocket.

~Hato F.

[Bullets]

175155

Thanks a lot, Hato!

[Scolipede Guy]

This is named after a Megadeth song, isn't it?

\m/

[Bullets]

176807
Yep. \m/

[Amaster102]

176807 sorry, but it's Dragonforce 177658

[Bullets]

180157
The story itself, and each chapter will have a song as the title. They wont all be Megadeth, but yes, chapter one is DragonForce. I can say now that chapter two will be named after another Megadeth song.

[Grimmfield]

Oho very well done, I'm enjoying this quite alot, can't wait to read more

[Bullets]

183752>>183757
Thanks a lot!

[Klice]

Nice starting. I'm curious now !

A little repetition here, though :
He too, longed to hear the cries of the of the enemy as he enacted his vengeance upon them.

[Borg]

Yeah, I didn't think I was being serious with that "time travel" comment.

And I found it amusing to imagine a pony with a cutie mark that is presumably a symbol of the Royal Equestrian Alliance or whatever you want to call it trying to defect to one of the rebel armies (never mind that he's an earth pony).