The destruction of Luna’s shield spell did no damage to the city.
But now there were hundreds of ships, so close that even Hayden’s worst cannon crews couldn’t have missed them if they tried. Hayden watched as almost every shot scored a kill, watched as ship after ship tumbled to the ground outside the city. But some kept moving, crashing down onto the walls or tearing up houses right on the edge.
Hayden winced with each crash, praying that none of her own men were down there to be crushed under the weight. But if there were, there was nothing she could do now. They would be casualties like any others.
But even more interesting to her was the streak of fire coming straight down from upper atmosphere. She had no radio, or else she might be hearing Avalon’s voice as he landed the incredible craft.
Hayden’s eyes widened in horror as she saw the vessel’s trajectory. It was straightening into a vertical position, landing legs extending like something SpaceX might’ve made a century after she left. It was aiming to touch down in open farmland on the north side of the city.
They weren’t being attacked on that side. For the same reason, Hayden had recalled most of the cannons from there, keeping only a few to make it seem that those towers had guns if anyone tried to flank.
Flames blasted out from inside the craft, scorching crops to dust and charring whole fields black. The roar was audible even over the cannons, though at least it wasn’t as loud as the launches she remembered from her own youth. Back then, anyone this close could’ve been killed by the sound. Whatever engines that rocket used hadn’t killed Hayden, or any of her soldiers.
Avalon can see the war, right? He wouldn’t just walk right out and get himself killed. The rocket was smaller than the Excellus, and it didn’t seem to be armored in any way, but it was still a sealed rocket. Even if the griffons are stupid enough to try and get inside…
A few of them were that stupid, apparently. Several ships were angling upward and back towards the rear of Icefalls and Avalon’s rocket.
And Hayden had no ships of her own, except for the one she had packed with refugees and supplies in case the worst befell Icefalls.
There would be no removing them now, no arming them. That meant they had only one choice. “Get me every winged pony in the reserve,” Hayden ordered. “And you, Slipstream. All the Blackwings as well. We’re going there.”
The room was chaos. Though the initial volley had inflicted terrible losses, on the whole it had still deprived Icefalls of their chief advantage: range. Once the enemy’s ships were over the city, their guns were much more reluctant to fire. They had been stationary at the moment the spell failed, but also very close. The city would soon have ground troops swarming all over it.
“Are you sure about that?” Lodestone asked, panicked. “Those are the fastest ponies in the reserve. Whatever that thing is, can’t it wait?”
Hayden considered that, squinting out at the rocket. Smoke rose from most of its skin, thick white plumes of it from the rear of the rocket. It stood almost as tall as the command tower, though it was otherwise quite thin and aerodynamic. She’d seen plenty of larger rockets launched in her lifetime. That’s just more evidence of how advanced they are. That thing made it to the damn moon and Avalon still managed to land it on my lawn.
She might’ve been awed by the achievement if Icefalls wasn’t burning all around her.
“Not the reserve then.” She turned to Slipstream again. “Only my Blackwings. We’re going to go out there and bring Avalon back.”
To her surprise, it was Slipstream who shook his head. “Respectfully ma’am, no.” He stepped up beside her, lowering his voice. “That’s outside the city, and the enemy knows who you are. If they see you the whole army might redeploy just for a chance of killing you. Once they do that, they’ll realize we only have three guns on that side.” Even as he said it, one of those three guns fired, blasting one of the little sloops out of the sky.
Most of the birds inside tumbled to the ground, but a few managed to recover, zipping out of the wreckage to land on the deck of one of the others before the ruin smashed to earth.
“They can already see that thing is important,” Hayden observed, but without much passion. She could see the sense here, and was rapidly losing the desire to argue. Going with the Blackwings in the city when they weren’t being attacked was one thing. But out there now?
“They don’t know what it is,” Slipstream said. “Not yet, anyway. Hopefully that’s enough time for us to get your… Avalon… out of there?”
She nodded, gesturing surrender with one wing. “If you’re sure, Slipstream. The odds are worse out there. They’re in the air, in their territory. There’s more of them. You’re going to lose more stallions.”
He shrugged. “I already told the princess we were willing.”
So it was that Hayden had to watch her ponies go out and risk their lives. They wouldn’t even be able to beat the griffons to Avalon’s rocket—their guns didn’t fire at the enemy once they abandoned their ships. They could only pray that the griffons didn’t realize it was because they didn’t have enough powder back there to risk it.
“It’s infuriating, isn’t it?” asked a voice from behind her. Familiar, but not the one she was expecting. Not the princess come up from wherever she’d been resting. But another pony, one she’d thought was tucked safely away.
She spun around, and almost screamed right there. But that would’ve been exactly the sort of display that lost her respect with these ponies. She could only nod, watching as the griffons split their formation, half flying out to meet the Blackwings while the others continued on towards the rocket.
“It sure is.” She hesitated a moment, then glared sidelong at Nightbreeze. “What the hell are you doing out of your shelter?”
She advanced, sliding in right beside Hayden. Closer than she’d felt the other pony in a long time. Closer than she’d thought she would ever feel her again. “Went out when the princess went in,” she whispered back. “Thanks to you this is my city. You think the guard are going to tell me no?”
“No, but I would,” Hayden whispered back, retreating towards the back of the room. So many raised voices—shouts of new information as the enemy pressed closer. Troops landing in the city. Walls under siege. Even with their superior weapons, they were so badly outnumbered. If the city was still standing by nightfall, it would be a near thing. “I wanted you to survive this, Nightbreeze. Even if I didn’t.”
Nightbreeze shoved her, so she stumbled backward from the windows. For better or worse, there was nothing Hayden could really do about the Blackwings’ mission now. And if anything happened anywhere in the city that needed her attention, a watching pony would call for her, let her know. “Too bad,” she said. “I’m not going to hide while ponies die for me. I’m more useful out here.”
Hayden’s eyebrows went up. “You’re not a general, Nightbreeze. You don’t even know how to hold a sword. What happens if this tower gets attacked?” So far the griffons had dropped a few burning barrels on them, mostly while attacking the keep. They hadn’t done much to the armored stone and reinforced glass.
Nightbreeze frowned, scanning the room for a few moments. Then she pointed off to the side, where several lower officers muttered in hushed voices over various pads and scrolls. The requisition officers, getting supplies and support ponies where they were needed. “Your chief supply officer, Unified Standard. She looks like she’s about to cry. I bet you twenty bits that I can work out whatever’s troubling her. And if she’s happy, that means your troops have what they need.”
Hayden winced, then nodded. “Fine.”
She knew she’d lost before Nightbreeze even started talking. She only half-listened—something about a water shortage on the southeast wall, where one of the exploding towers had damaged the fancy new plumbing.
While Nightbreeze talked, Hayden watched as the Blackwings cut straight through the griffon formation, and continued on towards the rocket. They looked like they’d lost a few members from the outsides this time, though.
Then they reached the rocket. Hayden saw a few flashes, and shapes emerging from the previously smooth skin. Round shapes, like blisters forming out the exterior of the rocket. Blisters that started shooting.
The weapons obviously weren’t meant for shooting airborne troops. Each shot rumbled in the air, and turned the birds it hit into a fine red mist. There weren’t holes in their armor—there wasn’t any armor left.
Those aren’t weapons. That’s the anti-collision system. Please be smart, Blackwings.
They were. They hesitated as the weapons worked, letting the flock of birds scatter from around the ship. Only a few remained—banging at seemingly random points on its skin. Only those who stayed right up against the rocket were immune to the anti-collision system.
What we could’ve done with a few of those on our wall, Hayden thought, even as the guns stopped firing. They’d killed more griffons in a few seconds than the Blackwings had during their entire defense of the bank.
“See?” Nightbreeze spoke from behind her, and Hayden could tell from the smugness how well her friend had done. “Unified Standard is good, but she didn’t even think to use one of the fire brigades to bring water to your beleaguered unit. They’re already on their way.”
Hayden lowered her head, whispering into her ear. “I’ve ruined your life enough times, Nightbreeze. I don’t want you to die here with me.”
The bat’s eyes widened just a little. “Is that really what you think is going to happen here? You think we’re all dead?” The question was too loud. All the little conversations fell silent. All the generals moving troops and resources around. Only a few distant rumbles from cannons were enough to break the silence.
All these ponies had heard her, and now they were all watching Hayden. She had to answer.
But she wasn’t going to lie. “I think there will be more deaths before we win this war,” Hayden said. She wasn’t trying to whisper anymore. “I’m prepared to die for Icefalls. Every pony here might have to. The ones they’re commanding are dying for us right now. Our friends, our brothers, our sons. This tower will certainly be a target the instant they realize where the orders are coming from. Will you die with us if that happens?”
Nightbreeze didn’t get a chance to answer. “High Marshal, your unit is slowing down. Whatever they’re carrying, they aren’t going to make it. That destroyer is going to cut them to pieces!”
Hayden darted to the window, staring at what Lodestone had just indicated. A gigantic griffon ship had just emerged from the back of Mount Saros, and was angling down to assault the Blackwings from above. There looked to be fewer of them now, and several of those who remained were harnessed to a chariot. With a nervous-looking creature in billowing robes riding inside it.
Not only that, but several more looked to be carrying something. Bundles of supplies—probably the raw materials for Avalon’s cure.
And that warship was going to kill them all.
Damnit, turn around. Go back to the rocket. Hide inside that armored skin.
They didn’t. The warship got closer.
“Speaking of dying,” Hayden said, and in a brilliant flash Achelois was in the air beside her. She had seen the princess sheer entire ships in half. “Keep my city intact while I’m gone.” She took to the air, flying towards the armored trapdoor before anypony here could try and stop her.