//------------------------------//
// Resist and Bite 
// Story: Battleship of Equestria 
// by MorgothII 
//------------------------------//

Battleship of Equestria Chapter Eighteen: Resist and Bite

June 18th, 1942 6:00 AM

On the fields near the beach outside the ruins of Ponyville…

The same light fog that was in front of Captain Jacob Holman aboard his flagship, the much-adored USS Fuso, and the rest of the entire Equestrian fleet was also present on the battlefield, though this part is receding quicker. The ponies of the greatest army ever assembled in the entire history of Equestria wait silently in their battle formations, awaiting the final battle. The only sounds made are the occasional cough or grunt, words quietly being exchanged, equipment and shells being moved around, and the occasional utterance of reassurances either to others or to themselves. On the left flank, however, the three hundred bison prepare for war with tribal chants and prayers. At the front of her soldiers who will be the first into battle is Princess Luna in her midnight-black armor, the tip of her sword embedded in the earth before her. The division she leads had been named the Army of the Starlight, in honor of her important role in the day-night cycle.

Minutes pass by as the fog continues to dissipate. Then the princess of the night hears it. The unmistakable sounds of drums and trumpets. The earth starts to vibrate beneath her hooves. Beside her, the battle-hardened American unicorn Marine radioman/bodyguard known as Private First Class Andrew Burns attaches his long bayonet to the barrel of his M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle. Luna watches as the brave Marine loads one of the eight-round clips into the rifle. Just as her beloved Jacob had come to rely on his fellow American, Luna has come to view Burns as a trusted friend, despite her initial distaste of having the radioman be assigned to her after the Battle of Los Pegasus as an unofficial bodyguard.

By now the duo, along with the rest of the 600,000 ponies and the crews of the seventy-five of the one hundred muzzle-loading field cannons spaced between the first rank of well-armed and armored stallions and mares, are able to make out increasingly visible shapes of Caroleans. The number of the enemy soldiers continues to grow and grow, the ranks spreading out like a tidal wave of darkness. A small number of Timberwolves and their riders are at the head of the column, along with a uniquely-armored Carolean and a pony who appeared to have once been a unicorn, but whose body now has a long, rat-like tail ending in what appears to be some sort of war spike. Now guttural chanting can be heard clearly, and even the brave midnight-blue alicorn feels the smallest prick of fear in her heart as she listens to the words.

"WIN THE BATTLE LOSE THE WAR, CHOICE OF EVILS LIE BEFORE YOUR FEET! RETREAT, RETREAT, RETREAT!

WIN THE BATTLE LOSE THE WAR, CHOICE OF EVILS LIE BFORE YOUR FEET! RETREAT, RETREAT, RETREAT!

YOU ARE STANDING IN THE EYE OF THE STORM! MOVE AN INCH, AND YOU'LL BE DEAD!

YOU ARE STANDING BEFORE THE ARMY OF THE TEETH AND YOUR DEATH AWAITS YOU!

WIN THE BATTLE LOSE THE WAR, CHOICE OF EVILS LIE BFORE YOUR FEET! RETREAT, RETREAT, RETREAT!"

Then the monstrous pony flicks his tail upwards, signaling his warriors to cease their taunting chant. By now there is no mistake for the younger of the two princess sisters of the identity of the rider who is the sole non-Carolean present. Cluny the Slaver has arrived. Luna turns towards her now-slightly unnerved warriors. "Steady now. The enemy might outnumber us, but we all have something beyond the power of magic or flight or guns or even friendship. You have a true cause. You fight for others! Let history remember us as ones who stood firm!" Luna shouts, her words overpowering the sense of dread emitted by the ominous chanting.

"FOR EQUESTRIA!" One blue earth pony stallion shouts, his large rectangular shield and sword at the ready. The cry is echoed up and down the line and ranks with an ever-increasing volume, eventually blocking out the Carolean taunts. Luna narrows her cerulean eyes as the fallen unicorn wizard-turned-warlord again flicks his tail, this time towards the ponies commanded by her older sister Celestia. With a blood-curdling howl, the three hundred or so Carolean riders and their equally-savage Timberwolf mounts surge forward in a violent frenzy.

Princess Luna turns towards her radioman/bodyguard. "Private Burns, send the signal for Chief Thunderhooves to attack," The alicorn says calmly, using her magic to pry the ancient blade of her sword front of her from the embrace of the earth. Burns nods at the mare his captain had assigned him to protect with his life. He loads one of the half dozen Very flare guns they had brought on their original mission. Captain Jacob had instructed the Marine in what the color of flares to be used to convey pre-determined orders. Red is for the four 6-inch naval-turned-heavy artillery cannons behind her division. The white flare is for the bison to attack.

The final flare to be used is a green flare. Green is for the twenty-five cannons hidden in by the hedge of the thick grove of trees protecting the space between the division commanded by Princess Cadence and the right flank of Luna's section, along with the twenty of the Japanese Special Naval Landing Force and thirty Russian Naval Infantry, along with roughly a hundred and fifty of the best archers in Equestria. Instead of a bow and quiver, however, one hundred had been armed with spare Type 38 rifles from the Fuso's armory or the guns of her fallen Marine and SNLF members. The remaining fifty had been armed with all of Jacob's twenty M1919 Browning machine guns, three Type 92 heavy machine guns, two 6.5mm Type 96 light machine guns, and all four of 12.7mm DShK heavy machine guns of the Russian destroyer Smyshlyonyi and three Russian Degtyerev DP Model 1928 light machine guns.

In addition, two of the 88mm SK L/45 cannons had been recovered from the sunken wreck of the former Imperial German armored cruiser, the SMS Blütcher, and placed on wooden carts that had been modified into make-shift transportable carriages. Also recovered was a very decent amount of still-usable high explosive rounds. As there would be no more battles against Cluny after this one, regardless of who wins, every single bullet had been brought, allowing for at least a day of small arms fire. Only a few examples of the various firearms had been left behind, on the chance that they win and need future bullets for any other reason.

With a loud pop, Burns pulls the trigger of the small firearm. A small burst of white is seen as the flare becomes visible in the nearly-absent fog. Then the two move behind the front rank and the cannons as the large, broad wooden shields form a solid line. The only gaps are those where the cannons are, shields nearby for the crew to use to plug the gaps once the enemy is too close for the cannons to be reloaded in time. Loud war cries are heard as Chief Thunderhooves and his warriors see the signal and surge forward to meet the Timberwolves head-on.

A few minutes earlier

Left flank…

Chief Thunderhooves turns to his fellow bison. Garish war paint not used since the brief skirmish with the ponies of Appleoosa is present in various and striking patterns. The large and muscular chieftain by contrast has a set of lines of red, white, and black paint one above and below a large line of blue paint across each check, as well as his feathered headdress that is reserved solely for tribal leaders such as himself. Other bison have a feather or two set on either simple fabric bands around their head or lodged in their coat. During the night the horns that make the large warriors had been sharpened for the purpose of goring and impaling the Caroleans and their mounts. Thunderhooves clears his throat to ensure that his followers give him their utmost attention.

"Get ready. Today we help our friends and protect the rest of our tribe," He says in his deep voice. A wave of guttural cries are emitted from the three hundred massive mammals that he has known for many years. Then a white flare goes into the sky. The signal for the buffalo to begin his charge to counter Cluny's own riders. Thunderhooves looks behind him as he turns back to the front. He holds his head high as he sucks in air to deliver his own form of encouragement to raise the fighting spirit of his warriors.

"Now is the hour. Fell deeds awake. Now for wrath, now for ruin, and the red dawn!"

With grunts and hooves smashing against the ground, the speech does the trick. "FORTH BISON!" Thunderhooves howls, already charging ahead. The ground shakes once more as the two-ton creatures surge forward, staying close to their leader.

The two sides continue to close the rapidly-narrowing gap. While there a hundred and fifty of the magically-enchanted wooden wolves, the numbers are roughly equal in sheer number as for each mount there is also a Carolean rider. The bison are at a disadvantage in that regard, but they have horns, momentum, and greater physical strength. Thunderhooves doesn't care if they take heavy losses as long as they eliminate the riders from Hell.

Both armies appear to be holding their breath as they watch the first skirmish of the land battle. Thunderhooves closes his eyes as he thinks of his daughter and the elders and younglings she is in charge of (plus eight veteran warriors to help protect the weakened camp).

Then the battle begins.

First blood goes to the Equestrian warriors as the bison lower their heads and horns. In a nearly-unbroken line, the stampeding herd slams into the first few ranks of riders and mounts. Wooden heads splinter and bodies are crushed by the hooves of the bison. Caroleans are gored by the sharpened horns, several of the limp bodies actually staying on the curved projections for a few seconds before the dead riders are flung away from the still-oncoming herd. Those knocked from their destroyed mounts do not out last them. Many a broken Carolean body litters the area of the savage fighting, disfigured and virtually unrecognizable by the pounding of hooves and claws. A third of the elite section of Cluny's army is now dead from the charge of Chief Thunderhooves.

Then the riders and their barely-trained mounts return the favor. A buffalo collapse to the ground as his fur around his neck turns crimson from the blood leaking out of his throat. The blood-stained muzzle of the Timberwolf points to the sky as it unleashes a demonic howl. A second Timberwolf leaps over a startled buffalo as its Carolean rider plunges a spear into the exposed area between her shoulders, killing the massive mammal. Buffalo, Timberwolf, and Carolean litter the ground as it turns crimson from spilt blood.

Finally the last of the mounted Carolean warriors are slain, and all the savage Timberwolves smashed into firewood. The price was heavy for Chief Thunderhooves, however, as he yet again shakes his head to keep the blood being emitted from a shallow cut on his forehead from getting into his eyes. A hundred bison dead, another ten critically wounded, and all but forty wounded to various degrees. Jacob and the princesses had given their non-equine ally the ability to choose if he would prefer to lead his own attack against the enemy line or withdraw to the rear as an addition reserve for Princess Twilight Sparkle. Thunderhooves stares at the nearly two and a half million Caroleans that are now starting to chant once more.

As much as the buffalo chieftain yearns to continue the fight, he is not willing to attack with a mostly injured force. With a high-pitched yip, the herd of buffalo turns about and quickly heads back to friendly lines. The ponies had one the first skirmish, but now the real battle shall begin.

At the Carolean army…

General Gu'klas eyes his master with well-masked nervousness. He had learned long ago that his master is volatile to losing, and he waits for the Starswirl the Bearded's fallen older brother to erupt in his typical anger. The armored Carolean is stunned, however, by what the warped unicorn's nonchalant tone when he addresses the more trusted of his two second-in-commands. "Prepare the Division of the Fangs for battle and move them towards those woods. I shall lead the rest of the Army of the Teeth."

Gu'klas blinks in surprise at this but recovers quickly with a salute. He urges his armored Timberwolf to the side and rushes off to take the elite section of Cluny the Slaver's army, a division of five hundred thousand skilled and well-armed Caroleans. As the name implies, they are the bite of his army. With a quick shout, they began to move to the side and prepare their own assault on the right flank once their brethren Caroleans in the main army engages the enemy.

Cluny continues to stare at the single banner that gains his attention out of all the others. His one good eye narrows to a slit as his long, whip-like tail cracks in the air behind him. 'So Luna will be my opponent for the first wave. Good,' The cruel wizard/warlord thinks to himself as he addresses his lesser captains assembled in front of the Army of the Teeth. "I have no need for prisoners, save for the four alicorn mares. Slay them all," The stallion says, continuing his casual tone. Aside from his single eye glaring ahead, his checkered blue-and-red mask hiding all other facial expressions that might reveal his inner thoughts. His other officers relay his instructions to his blood-lusting warriors, a cheer of unintelligible words goes up. Once more his rat tail lashes forward, over his masked head. The vanguard of the Army of the Teeth surges forward, ready to do battle and gain the praise of their master and creator.

The Army of the Starlight…

"So it begins," Princess Luna mutters to no pony as the long-awaited charge begins. She nods her head slightly to Burns, his flare gun still out and reloaded with the flare that will signal the order he expects her to deliver. He understands the non-verbal order and once again points the Very into the air. This time there is a red glow overhead that slowly descends over the heads of the Carolean army. The midnight-blue alicorn then turns to the officer in charge of the field cannon battery, a unicorn mare named Far Reach. "Captain Reach, you may fire when they're in range of your guns."

As if to punctuate her order, four loud bangs are heard from the rear of her division as the four six-inch cannons open fire. The 152mm shells arch overhead before plunging down into the packed ranks of the oncoming horde of nearly two million battle-seeking Caroleans. The high explosive rounds all land just behind the front wave of fighters. Dirt is flung into the air in all directions as a crater is formed by each impact. Those Caroleans who are in the center never knew what hit them, their bodies blasted to pieces. Arms and legs fly into the air, along with torn torsos that might be just the head and shoulders and arms and nothing else.

Still the enemy horde keeps on coming. Few if any of the disfigured bipedal creatures who had once been ponies appear to be phased at all by the carnage being inflicted by the cannons. With a loud bang and a brief cloud of smoke, the seventy-five cannons placed along Luna's first line open fire at last. Some shells fall short and bury themselves into the ground before exploding harmlessly. A couple of those, however, actually bounce of the ground and travel right into the feet of charging Caroleans. Shell fragments bury themselves deep into the unprotected legs. Most shells manage to land in the mass along with the heavy artillery. Bodies are continued to be shredded and mauled by the tens and soon hundreds, but the numerous servants of the Slaver continue to press forward.

"Archers! Prepare to fire a volley!" Burns shouts to the third rank of ponies, composed solely of archers, once the lead elements of Caroleans are within their range. Thousands of bows are drawn back as iron-tipped arrows are notched on the bowstrings. After quickly checking to make sure that all the archers are ready to fire, Burns lifts his left hoof into the air and swings it forward before aiming his rifle at the foe. "FIRE!" He orders.

The sound of bowstrings being released and thin, wooden shafts leaping into the air briefly fills the ears of the princess of the night as she watches the volley reaches its maximum height and begins its lethal descent. Caroleans fall by the dozens left and right as the sky rains death upon them, many bodies having multiple arrows embed in their body. The rattling sound of arrows being pulled from their quivers joins the sounds of cannon fire as shells and arrows are flung at the enemy.

By now several thousand, possibly seven thousand, Caroleans are dead. But once more their numbers carries them through. Burns rifle starts to fire rapidly as he begins to deliver his own hail of death. Luna watches as five Caroleans are flung backwards as their heads connect with the .30 caliber bullets from the Marine's first clip. The unique sound the gun makes when it ejects the eight-round magazine is barely heard over the sounds of cannon fire, but the American quickly reloads his gun and resumes firing. He nails an officer waving his sword forward directly in the throat. The Carolean's body goes limp as he falls to the ground. His body is simply trampled by his men as the red mist of battle clouds all other senses.

The field cannons fire one last volley. Their exploding shells kills or disables about a hundred or so Caroleans. Then Luna gives a new order, her Royal Canterlot voice booming and drowning out nearly all other sounds. "CLOSE RANKS AND PREPARE TO BRACE WITH OUR SHIELDS!" Jacob's lover says in a commanding voice. With a single grunt, the large shields are slammed into the ground and against one another. The ones in front of the cannons, however, are not as deeply jammed into the earth as the other shields. Captain Far Reach starts giving the gun crew new orders.

As the gap between the two opposing armies narrow into virtually nothing, Luna gives one last speech. "You are soldiers of Equestria! No matter what happens here, you will stand your ground!" "FOR EQUESTRIA!" Replies her warriors, all fear now vanquished and replaced by the grip of anger for all the death and atrocities Cluny the Slaver had inflicted upon their beloved and once peaceful land, and a will to make every last Carolean answer for them.

The leading warriors of the so-called 'Army of the Teeth' are only a few yards away. They raise their weapons overhead, preparing to slam into the wall of shields or leap over them. Once the demonic figures are about three feet away, Far Reach gives a shrill cry. "FIRE, NOW!" With lightning speed, the two ponies holding the shields in front of the field cannons move their burden to the side like a gate swinging open. The loaded cannons are set off all at once. Each cannon had been loaded with two loads of canister shot. Hundreds of Caroleans are scythed down like wheat by the hail of iron balls bouncing everywhere. Then the shields are swung back into place, more soldiers moving up as the gun and their crews move farther back, now more of a liability than an asset in the close-quarter combat soon to follow.

The now-ragged lines of winded Caroleans slam into the solid line of shields protecting the completely fresh six hundred thousand well-armed and armored ponies. The sheer weight of numbers actually causes the front rank of ponies to be pushed back a few inches as more Caroleans push forward. "Hold it. Hold it," Luna and Burns say up and down the line. "Wait for it," Luna adds. Then the line stops its slight movement. Luna's eyes harden as she gives a command that she has long awaited for since they left Canterlot.

"NOW!"

With a grunt, the strong ponies behind the shields push forward, knocking Caroleans backwards or onto the ground. Before the stunned warriors can recover, swords flash in the sun, plunging deep into the exposed flesh of the nearly-naked bodies of the Caroleans. Unicorns shoot bolts of magic, setting bodies on fire. The taunts of the Caroleans has been replaced by shrill cries of pain as the mares and stallions before them finally unleash their fury and vengeance to the fullest extent. Wild sword hacks bounce of armor. Axes become lodged in shields before their wielders are stabbed before they can even attempt to withdraw them. Spears lunge forward or break off inside bodies. Blood and trampled bodies cover the ground.

An axe-wielding Carolean swings his axe into the skull of an occupied earth pony whose helmet had been knocked off earlier. The slightly-rusted iron wedge sinks into the stallions exposed skull. Before the horned Carolean can yank it free, however, a howling unicorn mare lowers her head and aims her horn at the center of his chest. A small fireball is emitted, setting it on fire. His howls of agony are cut-off moments later by her spear burying itself into his throat. Elsewhere, a Royal Guard earth pony stallion slams his shield into the torso of a hornless, wingless Carolean sword-wielder. The blow leaves his torso completely exposed. The stallion doesn't hesitate for a heartbeat. He plunges the tip of his long, razor-sharp sword deep into the chest of Cluny's slave. The Carolean stumbles backward without a sound as his body collapses to the ground in a limp pile.

The air by now is filled with the stench of gunpowder, sweat, blood, burning flesh, and above all else, death. For the second time in the record history of Equestria, hate is the single emotion felt by the normally-peaceful and friendly ponies.

Luna watches the battle, barely able to restrain herself from joining in the fray. For now, her warriors need their princess to keep herself fully aware of the situation, lest they find themselves outmaneuvered by Equestria's greatest evil who has made Tirek look like a toddler having a temper tantrum. Burns stays right beside her, but still able to fight as the Caroleans who have wings and have taken flight are engaged by the bat-winged ponies of her legendary and elite Night Guard. The Marine's rapid fire from earlier has been replaced by single shots as the American radioman tracks the twisting and weaving forms while avoiding hitting his own allies. Some of the Night Guard falls, but for every death of a pony at least fifteen bodies of winged Caroleans join them.

Luna then sees a small but still large detachment of Cluny's army heading towards Princess Cadence and her army of crystal ponies, along with the secret trap in the woods near the princess of love. "Burns, launch the final flare now!" The alicorn barks to the Marine over the loud battlefield. The Marine nods, once again having taken the smart decision of pre-loading his final cylinder into his pistol immediately after launching the red flare. As a result he simply points the Very flare gun pistol at the sky and pulls the trigger for the final time, a faint shade of green glowing in the clouds of smoke from the firing of the Equestrian cannons.

The woods…

"That's the signal! For the emperor, princesses, and the captain! BANZAI!" Ittōhei Yuzuru Satsuma howls as he stands up, squinting into the scope of his Type 97 sniper. In addition to being one of the two radiomen of the Special Naval Landing Force detachment of the Fuso while she was still part of the Imperial Japanese Navy before her capture and defection of large numbers of her crew, Satsuma was also a sniper. He had given Spike his Model 2 submachine gun after training the young purple-and-green dragon in how to use the weapon during the previous weeks, along with others in using the various types of submachine guns that were available to the small group of Royal Guard archers.

First, the two eighty-eight millimeter cannons fire, quickly joined by the twenty-five field cannons. Again dozens of Caroleans are shredded or tossed about like broken dolls by their high explosive shells. Then Satsuma and the half-dozen snipers hidden in foliage or trees open fire. The other bolt-action and semi-automatic rifles quickly joining the hail of deadly lead. Heads of Caroleans explode from the impact of bullets to their completely exposed faces. But yet again the Caroleans keep on coming. But now it is time for a new tactic.

"All machine guns, open fire!"

Ever since the First Battle of Ponyville, machine guns had been used in every battle, save for Vanhoover due to the limited number at the time, a problem that still exits. However, the lethal guns had been used either in smaller numbers with limited amount of bullets or more spread out along long trench lines. But here, for the first time in all the land battles of the past few months, the machine guns now have both the numbers and rounds in a single, concentrated area.

The muzzles of all of the thirty-two machine guns of various calibers emit a bright flash almost at once as their gunners, both men and ponies, pull the triggers that will unleash the breath of Hell. All who fight for Equestria stare as the hail of bullets streaks toward the unsuspecting Carolean warriors who are quickly approaching the edge of the woods. By now the twenty-seven cannons have reaped quite a harvest in such a short time. Several hundred bodies littering the ground behind them in various conditions between being little bits or relatively intact san bullet entry wounds.

Nearly the entire first two ranks of closely-packed Caroleans fall to the ground like puppets whose strings have been severed. Bodies fall all around as the machine gun bullets sweep through the exposed flesh with sickening ease, severing blood vessels and nerves. The enemy horde has been caught in a deadly crossfire. Thousands upon thousands of Caroleans fall in a matter of seconds from the machine guns alone. The enemy charge falters.

"That's it boys! Keep up the fire!" Satsuma howls as he lines up the recital of his scope with the head of a Carolean NCO. He squeezes the trigger. Make that ex-NCO. The horned head explodes into a grey and red mess as the nearly-headless corpse lumps forward onto his knees. The gunfire continues to pour into the disorganized Carolean detachment. All the foes can do is to try to push ahead somehow. But already half their number is gone.

Satsuma notes a lone Carolean atop a Timberwolf fleeing away from the battlefield. The Asian notes the armor and helmet as belonging to the infamous General Gu'klas, one of the two main lieutenants of Cluny the Slaver. The radioman tries to get a bead on the fleeing general, but several sounds distract him, along with virtually every other man, pony, and Carolean. The first is two large howls as both Princess Celestia and Princess Cadence lead their own warriors forward into the exposed sides of the main army.

Then several explosions are heard from the sea, as well as fireballs to go with the sound. The sound of fourteen-inch guns exchanging fire afterwards then conveys the fact that the USS Fuso, and Henry's flagship, is still afloat. Then a third sound is heard, completely ending the fighting for a few minutes as all gaze at the sight on the beach. The muzzle of Satsuma's sniper rifle points towards the ground as his jaw slackens in a mixture of shock and horror.

"Mother of God…"

The Army of the Starlight…

"Jacob…"

That is all Luna is able to say as she and Burns, along with the rest of her warriors, upon the sight of a heavily damaged Fuso beached on the soft sand. Several hundred feet away, the mangled hulk of what must be Henry's flagship is also stranded. However, its hull is completely wrecked, with a large chunk of her bow virtually severed. Then the princess of the night spots two distinctive figures exit from the ships. Both are alicorns, and one is wearing a pure white uniform, his saber gleaming in the now-clear sun.

It is her lover, Captain Jacob Holman. And the foe he faces can only be his fallen brother, Henry. Luna yearns to help her beloved, but she reminds herself that there is another task that must be completed. 'Stay strong, my love,' Luna silently wishes to the American. The midnight-blue alicorn then turns to her bodyguard. "It is time. You and Satsuma are in charge, second only to Princess Twilight Sparkle and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. Hold fast," She sternly orders the already-protesting Marine. But then his training kicks in and he delivers a salute. "Yes, Princess Luna. God speed," He wishes the mare he once protected as she spreads her wings.

Luna dips her head in acknowledgement as she spreads her wings and takes flight. Her Night Guard quickly spring into action, clearing a path over the Carolean army so no one tries to intercept her. She narrows her cerulean eyes as she contacts her older sister through their special mental link. 'Tia, it is time.' Celestia replies that she is on her way and she is true to her word. The two sister mares responsible for raising the sun and the moon then dive towards the sole figure at the rear of his army, watching the scene unfolding atop his Timberwolf.

His one eye glares at the two as he grabs a long, two-handed sword. "Ah, Your Majesties. I have been waiting for you. Come, let's water the field with your blood!" With that, Luna swings her blade at Cluny's, while her sister fires a bolt of magic at the same time as the Slaver does so.

The final duels have begun.