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// Ch19 The Commander's Suggestion 
// Story: The Third Commander 
// by Priceless911 
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                Cirrus found himself standing in what seemed to be a barren wasteland as he looked around in confusion. As he examined his surroundings, Cirrus tried to find something around him to help tell him where he was, however before he was able to make a guess, an odd glowing sphere in the sky seemed to grab all of his attention. Curious, Cirrus watched the magical sphere closely, but as he did, he realized that it was growing quickly as it flew towards him at an earth shattering speed. Seeing the imminent danger, Cirrus turned to run away from the area as the yellow magical orb came crashing down behind him creating a massive crater in the earth while the shockwave tossed Cirrus far from the impact and leaving him to hit the ground and roll a few feet. Relieved that the sphere missed him, Cirrus quickly picked himself up before rushing back to the crater’s edge to see what happened to the orb.

As Cirrus looked into the crater, he could see the magical barrier clearly while making out what looked to be the shadows of two alicorns inside the sphere. All of a sudden the magical orb exploded outward sending both mares in opposite directions as the two thrown ponies hit the edges of the creator and rolled helplessly out each side while the two regained their control and landed outside the crater on their hooves, sliding a number of feet before coming to a complete and dusty stop. As soon as they stopped sliding, the two mares looked up and glared at one another in anger. The first mare was easy to recognize, it was an adult Princess Umbra, who stood at a battle ready stance, with her father’s sword in hoof. Cirrus then looked at the other mare but didn’t know who she was. The second alicorn was a dark midnight purple, much darker then Thundaga, with a slightly darker shade of purple in her mane than her coat. As for her eyes, they were a dark midnight blue but held a sort of aura of darkness about them that hazed from the edges of her eyes, and ran down her entire body.

Although, Cirrus didn’t know this mare, he could easily tell from all the time he spent with Zine, that her expression was evil as she smiled in a sinister way, held up a black bladed short sword, pointed it at Princess Umbra, and spoke with a royal tone, “You claim to be of the same blood… and yet you’re nothing like your father. You’re weak!... it’s no wonder your po-”
“Shut up… you have no right, nor honor to speak of him… This is my kingdom! And as its princess… I will not allow further harm to come to my subjects.”
Smiling at the princess’s threat, the wicked mare replied, “And you’re going to stop me?”
Princess Umbra opened her wings as she gave a bracing stance, “I will… or I'll die trying!”
With those words, Princess Umbra used her wings to push off the ground as her body darted towards her opponent at an almost unimaginable speed. With her enemy charging, the sinister mare replied, “So be it!”

That said, dark mare readied her sword as she stood her ground and waited for Princess Umbra to close the distance between them. Without hesitation, Princess Umbra readied her blade as she crossed completely over the massive crater towards her target. When the two met, Princess Umbra and her opponent swing their weapons as the blades clashed together with an intense booming sound as if two iron beams were colligating. After the impact, there was an incredibly brief pause befor the two began mercilessly swinging their swords at one another with every attack ending with a block from the opposite fighter. 

One by one, the mares swung their swords with everything they had as the clashing blades created sparks and screeches loud enough to make Cirrus cringe at the intense fighting. As he watched the two viciously attack each other, Cirrus mumbled in disbelief, “Such fury… it’s as if two gods were fighting over the world itself.”
“Funny, that’s almost exactly what’s happening.”
Hearing the familiar voice, Cirrus looked beside him to see Commander Bolt standing next to him in his cloak as he too watched the fight between the goddesses. Seeing the veteran, Cirrus asked while trying to keep focus on both Commander Bolt, and the ensuing fight in front of him, “Commander… that mare, is she the dark creature you told me about?”
Commander Bolt nodded his head, “Yes.”
Cirrus turned to him and replied, “This is the day Princess Umbra fell… wasn’t it.”

Commander Bolt shook his head, “No… Princess Umbra never fell. As I said before, she was defeated and consumed by the darkness. Although this isn’t the day it consumed her at all. This day hasn’t happened yet, in fact this is the day, she will die.”
Cirrus was shocked at his words, “D-die?”
Before Commander Bolt could continue, Princess Umbra and her opponents swords clashed as the two became deadlocked leaving the two to hold each other in place. As Cirrus watched he assumed the two were equally matched, but he was wrong, From the distance, he could see from Princess Umbra’s expression that she was giving it her all, while the other alicorn looked as if she was toying with her as she gave a sinister smile, “You’re stronger than I expected… however, it’s time we end this. RIGHT NOW!”
With that, the dark mare, stepped to the side and parried her swords as the shift in weight caused Princess Umbra to lose her footing and fell forward.

Using this opportunity, the dark mare swung around Princess Umbra’s side to attack while her guard was down. Although her balance was off, Princess Umbra was able to roll over on her side and block the blade as her evil opponent had her pinned on the ground. Preventing the princess from getting back up, the dark mare started attacking with powerful vertical swing as Princess Umbra did everything she could to block each attack with no opportunity to fight back or even flee from her disposition. With the princess blocking each attack, Cirrus could tell that every swing was getting worse as more and more sparks were emitted from the blade with each swing. Seeing this Cirrus looked as Commander Bolt as he asked, “Should we help her?”

Commander Bolt shook his head, “The real question is… can you?”
Cirrus looked at the commander in confusion, but before he could reply, the evil mare took one last power filled swing as Princess Umbra blocked the attack only to have her father’s sword shatter as the evil mares sword continued on its path toward the broken sword’s wielder. Seeing the incoming threat, Princess Umbra quickly flapped her wings to push herself along the ground and away from her opponent as the dark mare’s blade ran close enough to Princess Umbra’s body to cut her side before digging into the ground. After she was free from her opponent attack the escaped princess quickly shuffled to her hooves and got some distance between her and her opponent before looking at her wound with concern. Luckily she was moving fast enough that the blade only broke the skin rather than damaging anything vital. After seeing her victim escape death, the dark mare smiled as she glared at Umbra and spoke, “Very cleaver Princess… but it would seem that this fight has come to an end.”
Princess Umbra looked at her father shattered sword as the broken blade still held half of her father’s cutiemark. Seeing this Princess Umbra sighed in disappointment as she tossed the sword’s hilt far from where she was standing as she replied, “It’s not over yet… there is still one more thing I can do.”

Princess Umbra braced her stance as small arcs of electricity started jumping from her hooves to the ground as her evil opponent smiled, “Ah yes… the fabled Lightning Orb. The very power that you and your father carried so… proudly. However, as a witness to both… I know all too well that there is a strong difference between yours and his.”
The dark mare darted across the area too quickly for Princess Umbra to react as she made a cloud appear above her head but was unable to emit a single spark from it, while the dark mare grabbed her by her throat, slammed her against the ground, and pinned her there leaving the cloud to vanish. With Princess Umbra pinned to the ground, the dark mare smiled, “Your power isn’t real. You never knew it… but it was all a pointless ploy to pass yourself off as a false hero… while in actuality. You were nothing more… then a fake. A wannabe who could only pretend to be a tenth of what her father was. But I knew that if I allowed it to go on, that one day… you would lead me-” She looked at Cirrus and gave him an evil smile, “To the real thing.”

Feeling a little nervous that she was actually looking and talking about him, Cirrus took a step back as Princess Umbra spoke through her strain, “I-I won’t let you hurt him… I won’t let y-”
The mare tightened her grip and silenced the princess as she looked back, “You don’t have a choice… after all… you can’t protect anypony… if you’re not there.” She raised her sword up in a stabbing manner, “Good bye princess… we won’t meet again, I promise you that.”
As she said that the dark mare dropped her blade as Cirrus tried to rush her, “Stop!”
Although Cirrus ran as fast as he could, he was unable to reach them In time as the black blade made contact with Princess Umbra’s face as both mare’s and the environment around them disintegrated into a misty haze before vanishing into thin air.

As soon as they and everything around him vanished, Cirrus stopped running as he sat down and looked at the ground in disappointment. Then as he looked back up, he saw that Commander Bolt had appeared in front of him as cirrus spoke, “This… this is how she dies… so. She is still alive?”
Commander Bolt sat down as he replied, “Yes… she is… she is currently a part of Thundaga… in a since, you’ve met her before.”
Cirrus was confused, “What? What do you mean?”
Commander Bolt explained, “Remember when you spoke with Thundaga at Madam Melody’s manor? Remember how she spoke with a since of forgiveness and shame?”
Cirrus nodded his head, “That was… Princess Umbra’s words?”
Commander Bolt nodded his head, “Yes… but now… it would seem that the darkness in Thundaga heart has taken over completely. And now… she is lost to it.”

Cirrus didn’t understand, “What do you mean, lost to it? You mean… the reason she is attacking innocent ponies is because Princess Umbra isn’t holding her back anymore?”
Commander Bolt shook his head, “No… the reason she is attacking innocent ponies, is because Umbra is supporting the idea. She know she is under the darkness’s control… so… she is giving the kingdom a sense of incentive.”
Cirrus was confused, “Incentive… for what?”
Commander Bolt replied, “Hatred, she wants the kingdom to hate and despise who the darkness has turned her into. She wants the kingdom to stop her… to defeat Thundaga.”
Cirrus shook his head in disbelief, “There is a way to stop her right? Thundaga, if she is the one doing this, then stopping her can fix it. By fixing it, then this fight, Umbra’s death doesn’t happen… right?”

Commander Bolt nodded his head, “Yes… if you stop Thundaga… then it will never happen. But… there is only one way to do that.”
Cirrus showed interest, “And that is?…”
Commander Bolt gave him a serious look as he replied, “You have to kill her.”
Cirrus was shocked, “W-what?”
Commander Bolt nodded his head, “To end this… all you can do is kill her. Kill Thundaga and darkness will die with her.”
Cirrus asked, “And… what about Princess Umbra?

Commander Bolt replied with a carless tone, “Thundaga is composed of both Umbra and the darkness. So naturally when Thundaga dies, so will Umbra.”
Cirrus gave the veteran an angry look, “Are you serious?...”
Commander Bolt nodded, “I wouldn’t suggest it if I wasn’t.”
Cirrus was shocked, “But… why would you suggest at all?
Commander Bolt replied, “Because I know what has to be done.”
Cirrus couldn’t believe what he was hearing, “But she’s your daughter…”
“Yes… I know.”
Cirrus tried to understand, “And you’re still going through with this?”

Commander Bolt’s expression stayed serious as he replied, “Yes… I am.”
Cirrus’s anger returned, “How can you say that… she’s your flesh and blood and you’re telling me to kill her as if you didn’t care.”
Commander Bolt’s expression didn’t waiver, “Right now… I don’t.”
Cirrus shook his head, “There has to be another way. Maybe… we can try to reason with Thundaga.”
Commander Bolt shook his head, “it’s too late, the darkness has already consumed too much of her for her to listen.”
“What if we at least try?”
Commander Bolt shook his head, “Then you will fail… Thundaga is beyond reason. The only way to stop her, is to end her now while we still can.”

Cirrus shook his head, “But we can’t just kill Thundaga without fir-”
In an anger filled action, Commander Bolt stopped his hoof on the ground as a bolt of lightning struck the ground behind him, “IF WE DO NOT LEARN FROM HISTORY, WE ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT!!!”
His voice echoed into the distance as Cirrus paused in shock at his sudden outburst. Seeing this, Commander Bolt sighed as he continued calmly, “I can’t watch this happen… not again.”
Cirrus was confused, “Again?... this never happened before… did it?”
Commander Bolt sat back down, “Actually… it did… and I suffered for it.”

All of a sudden the surrounding changed until they found themselves standing in a royal bedroom in one of the Canterlot towers. As Cirrus looked around he could see a tall black alicorn standing on the balcony with a young Commander Bolt standing in front of her as she spoke “-With every great ruler there is a grate army, and I want you to lead that army. So… do you accept?”
As soon as he heard that Cirrus spoke in disbelief, “Nightmare Moon… and you-”
“Agreeing to fight as her commander… yes.” 
Still watching the scene take place, the young Commander Bolt bowed to Nightmare Moon as the older one spoke, “Back then… I made the decision to fight for Nightmare Moon in hopes of bringing Luna back… but I didn’t help by merely finding another way… if anything… I made the problem worse”

With that said, the scene changed again to the aftermath of a great and bloody battle as Cirrus could see nothing but bodies as far as the eye could see, with a young Commander Bolt sitting in front of a golden spear that was sticking out of the ground like some kind of memorial. Seeing this Cirrus spoke, “Commander Mist’s spear… this was the day he died wasn’t it… the day you… um…”
Stopping himself from finishing his sentence, Cirrus paused as Commander Bolt nodded, “Commander Mist died because I was too stubborn to see what I was doing. I could have killed Nightmare Moon and prevented it from happening all together… but I made my choice and since that day, I’ve regretted it. I know deep inside, Princess Umbra is suffering. But no matter what happens there is only one way to ease her suffering.”

Cirrus gave him an angry look, “By ending it?... you think killing her will make her feel better?”
Commander Bolt nodded his head, “It will prevent others from dying…. And she knows it. And if i'm not mistaken, it looks like she wanted you to be the pony to kill her. She gave you this chance herself. The reason she chose to spare Gem Stone, is because she know you would follow her if she put her life in danger. Princess Umbra knew, that you would choose to save Gem’s life over joining her army. And because of that, she gave you a chance and reason to fight back. Umbra wants you to kill her, that’s why she spared you both, and why she is allowing the darkness of Thundaga to harm innocent ponies… she is suffering, and she wants you to end her suffering for her.”

Commander Bolt turned to trot away as Cirrus stepped closer, “I didn’t agree to this…”
Commander Bolt stopped as he replied without looking back, “I know… but then again,” he turned to Cirrus, “Neither did I.”
With that Commander Bolt turned back to his path as he and the surrounding vanished into thin air, as Cirrus woke from his nightmare as he thought heavily about what his new task would be, “I don’t get it… how can he tell me to kill her so easily… and… even if he made his choice before… wouldn’t it had changed the Eden’s Kiss situation? There’s got to be a hidden meaning in this… somewhere.”

Later that afternoon Cirrus sat inside the Rebellions lab and pondered over the books he read as Zine entered and spoke, “Afternoon commander… how’s your homework coming along? Remember once you’re finished, mommy will let you go outside and play with the other foals.”
Ignoring the joke, Cirrus looked at Zine and asked, “Hey Zine… when we get to Canterlot… do you have any idea how we can beat Thundaga?”
Zine smiled as he held up his hoof and somehow made a magic induced flame appear on it, “When a fire threatens a forest… even the noblest ponies know that the best way to fight a fire…” He put his hooves together removing the flame as he continued, “Is to snuff it out.”

Not liking the answer Cirrus sighed, “Is there a way to face her without killing her?”
Zine trotted to his cauldron as he reached in and replied, “Were death comes, it always takes. Sometimes there are ways around it… but once this is all over… death will claim somepony. Could be you, could be me. Could be Dash or even Storm. All I’m trying to do… is make it somepony other than me. But if I fail… I fail. Question is, who will you let it claim?”
Cirrus felt uneasy, so instead of replying he just sat in silence as Zine scooped up a large portion of what was in the cauldron as he slapped it on the table like a big ball of clay. As soon as he saw the ugly maroon colored lump, Cirrus gave Zine a look of disgust as Zine started using his bare hooves to roll the thick blob into a small sphere as he packed it down making the large lump of clay look like a small maroon orange.

As soon as the ball had taken its shape Cirrus looked at Zine and asked, “That’s the forbidden spell you’re working on?”
Zine held it up as he studded its shape, “Yep… and now it’s done. All I have to do it to put it in effect… which I’m so not looking forward to.”
Cirrus gave him a curious look, “Really? Why? Is it that bad?”
Zine shook his head, “Well… the effect isn’t… but the way to cast it… is. All I can do is put it away till it’s time.”
Before Cirrus could reply, Major Storm entered the lab as she spoke, “Commander here you are. I thought I should bring this to you personally.”
With that Major Storm held out Cirrus’s shield as he took it and immediately noticed a few changes, “It’s dark blue now?”

Major Storm used her magic to hand over a book as she replied, “Well yea, I borrowed one of your books and studied up on the Nightmare Legion of the olden times. I tell ya, it was a fascinating read. Either way, I thought that the commander of the new Nightmare Legion should have the same color weapon as the old, so it’s not sky blue anymore it’s navy. But that a small part of it. Look at the back now.”
With that Cirrus looked at the back of the shield as he saw a nylon adjustable strap and a small metal cup meant for his hoof as she spoke, “What are you waiting for?… try it on. Place your hoof in the cup and tighten the strap to brace it.”
Following the instruction, Cirrus put on the shield and tightened it as he held it up as if he were blocking with it.

Seeing this, Major Storm smiled, “It’s slightly heavier than your run-of-the-mill broad sword. But it is strong enough to block one without any problem and it even has a small button on the inside so you can turn it around without taking it off.”
Looking under the nylon strap, Cirrus saw the button as he pushed it, and noticed that the shield would now rotate a fill one hundred eighty degrees so that he could stand and trot normal without any portion of the shield touching the ground. Then after taking a few practice steps, Cirrus pushed the button again as the shield automatically swung around and locked in place so that the blade could be used again. Jumping at the surprise action Major Storm smiled, “Careful, it’s spring loaded on the return. That way there won’t be any hesitation between passive and offensive shifts in battle. Just remember, this is the shields only weakness. If an enemy managed to land an attack on the inside of it, they risk breaking the locking lever, and if that happens, then the only use this weapon will be is a paper weight.”

Cirrus held the shield out and gave the blade a few practice swings as Major Storm admired her craftsmanship, “And that blade is extremely sharp. Not as sharp as her namesake makes it out to be, but with the right power, it could cut through the thickest chainmail.”
Cirrus unlocked the shield and turned it around again as he gave her a curious look, “Her namesake?”
Major Storm smiled, “Yea, I’m thinking of calling her the Diamond Cutter. Since she’s shaped like a diamond and all.”
Cirrus held up the shield as he pushed the release and watched it swing out again, “Really…”
Zine smiled, “A cool name, now we have a tool to go on the offensive with. That is… if the commander thought up a plan yet.”

Cirrus nodded his head, “Actually… I did think of something… sorta.”
At that moment, Gem Stone entered the room as she started to speak, “Here you are sir, I wanted to ta-”
Before she could finish her sentence, Gem Stone paused as her eyes locked on Cirrus’s shield as she slowly trotted closer to him with an expression that was hard to read. As she trotted closer, Both Zine and Cirrus started to feel nervous since the shield despite its shape strongly resembled Commander Bolt’s and it was unknown how she would react to him carrying it. As Gem Stone approached she carefully studied its surface before griping the edge and turning it around to see how it was attached to Cirrus’s hoof. After seeing both sides, Gem griped the adjustment strap and pulled it tight before jerking the shield back and forth to test how tightly it was attached to his hoof, “Make sure it’s tight, otherwise you’ll lose it” She took a few steps back as she smiled with pride, “It suits you sir. I ask that you carry it with pride.”

Smiling at her approval, Cirrus unlocked the locking lever as he turned it around so he could stand up straight with it, “I will… thank you captain.”
The two smiled at each other for a brief moment as Zine interrupted, “Did you need something Ms. Stone?”
Forgetting her words, Gem Stone blushed, “Oh… um… it’s nothing. I was… just seeing how the plan was coming along.”
Cirrus smiled, “Actually it’s good that you’re here. I need you to round up all the officers for a strategy meeting. I have an idea of how to fight Thundaga, but we will need support from everypony in both the Nightmare Legion and the Rebellion, so be sure to get General Rich too.”
Gem smiled as she replied, “Yes sir.”
With that Cirrus left the room as he replied, “I'll be waiting in the meeting room, see you soon.”

As Cirrus left the room Gem saluted as she hesitantly replied, “Sure… um… See you there Cir- I mean sir… um commander.”
Barely hearing her mistake Cirrus left the room as Major Melody gave Gem Stone a cheeky smile. Seeing this look on her face, Gem gave her an unamused look as she asked, “What’s that look for?”
Major Storm replied, “You’re in love with the commander aren’t you?”
Blushing, Gem Stone looked away, “I am not…”
Major Storm nudged her with her elbow as she replied, “Hide it all you want captain… but I know love when I see it. So, you think he loves you back? When are you going to tell him. Will it be in the heat of battle as you confess your dying love right before facing Thundaga for the final showdown?”

Gem took a step back as she replied, “What is this? A crummy love novel? No, the commander and I share a mutual and professional relationship… I mean partnership.”
Smiling in a cheeky way Major Storm turned to leave the room, “Go ahead and hide it, but take it from me, you two are perfect for each other, so don’t let that one get away.”
Giggling like a little school filly, Major Storm left the room as Gem yelled at her, “There is nothing between us! You hear me? NOTHING!!!”
Ignoring the yelling Major Storm left the room, as Zine looked at Gem’s still red face as he spoke with what sounded like a serious tone, “There is truth to her words you know, but I wouldn’t advise getting too close. We still don’t know what awaits us in the battle ahead.”

Not catching that his tone was serious, Gem turned back as she replied, “There is nothing between us.”
Zine shook his head, “You can try to hide it… but as I said… don’t get too attached. Your heart may be beating again… but even I would feel disappointed if it were to break.”
This time, Gem caught the seriousness of his voice as she asked, “What do you mean… do you know something I don’t?”
Zine placed the murky maroon ball into his saddlebag as he replied, “Just take my advice… no battle ends without lives being lost. Whether it’s his… or yours.”
Without explanation, Zine left the room, leaving Gem to feel somewhat nervous for what his words could possibly mean.

Later, Cirrus, Madam Melody, Major Storm, Zine, General Dash, Butterscotch, Apple Barrel, And Gem Stone sat in the meeting room with the door open as Spike listened in from outside the room. As they all sat in an awkward silence, Cirrus finished, “So… that’s it. Of all the battle tactics I’ve read about or tried to think up… that one is the best option. Any questions?”
General Dash sat back in his chair as he rubbed his head, “You realize, this will mean that the entire city of Canterlot will become a battlefield.”
Apple Barrel added, “And not just one, it’ll be three battles at the same time.”
Gem added, “Outside the wall… inside the city… and inside the castle.”
Cirrus nodded, “I know…. but with the rebellion, and the Nightmare Legion helping, it still gives us a chance. But we need everypony…” He looked at the doorway, “Including you Spike. Everypony, Dragon and Zebra will be fighting.”
Madam Melody sighed, “Zis is truly an all or nozing battle.”
Zine nodded, “Yes… if we win, we win. But if we lose… we all die.”
Major Storm nodded, “I understand my roll sir… but what exactly are our odds of winning this fight?”

Cirrus sighed deeply, “As soon as the signal is up, it will be like the gates of Tartarus just flew open and slammed against us. It will be all out war, nothing like this kingdom has seen in centuries.”
Noticing he was dodging the question, Gem spoke up, “Sir… what are our chances in winning this fight?”
Knowing he couldn’t stall anymore, Cirrus replied, “Five percent… maybe less. If we all fight then chances of winning are one in twenty.”
General Dash asked, “And without my rebellion?”
Cirrus gave him a serious look, “Zero…”

Everypony in the room went silent as Spike asked, “So… it truly is all or nothing then… if we lose?”
Cirrus nodded again, “We all die. Those who don’t die in the fighting will be hunted down and executed. So, if anypony doesn’t want to go through with this plan, then let me know now. I won’t force anypony unwilling to help.”
Zine sat back in the chair as he smiled, “This battle tactic is crazy, reckless, and personally… I think we are all doomed… I’m in.”
Gem smiled, “Crazy plans are what Commander Bolt was known for, so if you’re anything like him… then we just might pull this off. Count me in too.”
Both Apple Barrel and Butterscotch Pie looked at each other, smiled and nodded as Apple Barrel spoke, “We ain’t the type to go runnin’ off with our tails between our legs. So count us in.” Butterscotch smiled, “Who knows, it might be fun.”

Although nopony could see him, Spike nodded as he put his claw down outside the door and gave a thumbs up, “If we bring Equestria back to the way it was, I’m willing to risk my life. I’m in too.”
Madam melody smiled as she nodded in an accepting manner, “Viva la commander.”
Taking that as a yes, Cirrus looked at Major Storm who smiled, “I'll help, I already finished the shield so I’m looking forward to seeing it in action even if, given my role… I won’t.”
With everypony in the Nightmare Legion agreeing, Cirrus and the rest of the officers looked to General Dash as he spoke, “You know, in the past decade I always said that the one pony I would never follow into battle was Cirrus Cloud…” The general smirked, “Luckily I’m sitting at a table with Commander Halo instead. So… I and my rebellion are at your command, Commander.”

Smiling that everypony in the room agreed, Cirrus spoke, “Thank you all. I know you’re risking everything in this fight, and I know I’m asking a lot, but if we manage to pull this off… then the future of Equestria will remember your names.”
Gem smiled, “I don’t need fame sir, but remember this relies on everypony doing their part. So all we ask, is that you do yours. After all, we three will be facing Thundaga personally.”
Zine gave an evil grin, “I'll follow you into the castle, however if the ingredient gets in our way, you will continue on without me. He… is my goal.”
Giving up on understanding him, Cirrus nodded, “As long as you pull your part till then, then that’s fine.”
Major Storm stood up as she spoke, “If that concludes the meeting then I should get going. I'll need to get back to Canterlot ASAP, otherwise I won’t be ready when my part comes up.”

Cirrus nodded, “Remember… we will need your help but if anything goes wrong. Put your safety first. We all are on the chopping block but since you are one of Thundaga’s Royal Guards, there is no telling how she will punish you.”
She nodded her head, “Understood sir. If all goes well I'll see you tomorrow.”
Cirrus looked back at the room as he spoke, “So are there any questions?”
Nopony answered as he nodded his head, “Good, then let’s get ready for our first and only counter attack.”