//------------------------------// // Chapter Seventy-six: The Siege of Foal Mountain // Story: A Rather Large Adventure // by BradyBunch //------------------------------// After an entire day since Scorpan left, Luna was getting angsty for his quick return. Could he have actually held the other army back? All by himself? Prophets worked by miracles, but how many of them could you string together? The army on the horizon was still not making any kind of move, but Luna could only imagine they held the same kind of anxiety about their chances of success. If the other Noxxa could come, it had to be today, and every day they spent waiting here was another day they could have spent trekking across Equestria by another route to Canterlot. A decision had to be made, and soon. But the Equestrians couldn't know of it until the Noxxa made their move first. It was only a few hours before she had to move the moon that a winged creature dropped from the sky and skidded to a halt on the summit of the mountain where Luna was. The changeling, a violet one named Resin, straightened herself and saluted. “Luna!” “What is your evaluation?” Luna asked, tense for the response. “I managed to successfully sneak into their ranks and get close to the commanding officers,” Resin replied. She shivered. “Disgusting creatures. All spines and reeking flesh and glistening fangs. They’re being led by a particularly nasty specimen aptly called Terror. They’ve been spending all this time assembling their engines of war and doing maintenance on armor and weapons.” “Was there an albino centipede named Marshal Malice anywhere?” Luna asked. “No, ma’am. I did overhear some of the leading generals grumbling about it, though. This Malice guy had left them under Terror’s jurisdiction to chase echoes and rumors in distant lands by himself. I’m sure Malice is evil, but Terror is a monster.” “Did you get a good look at Terror?” “No, ma’am. Terror’s being kept in the command tent. I heard a remark saying it was for his own good. ‘S a matter of fact, nopony has even seen Terror except for his mouthpiece, who’s not really important. All that Nox does is deliver whatever Terror has to say.” “What is his strategy?” Luna asked. “He’s impulsive and rash, which is why his generals hate him and his advisors try to run things independently from him. He had the Noxxa run on their path to new cities, not march, and he always suggests head-on assaults. If any Noxxa speaks against his decisions, he kills them. They got the numbers to not worry about any of that. The word among the generals was to begin their siege at sundown. Catapults, volleys of arrows, fireballs, the like. The Noxxa that can fly he’s keeping in reserve to swarm our forces when we emerge from the rubble. So at least he’s got some kind of brain for a siege.” “Could be worse,” came a voice. Glitz had been listening in, and emerged from her seat as she spoke. “He and his generals could actually get along. Perhaps with the right rumors going, the entire army could be swayed into an uprising, and we can strike ourselves when the time is right.” “While we’re on that topic, we could even send a Changeling with some poison into the field kitchens,” Resin suggested. “One bottle of the proper liquid could kill more troops than an entire regiment of our own.” “I will not risk it,” Luna firmly refused. “If they discover you and the poison, the trick won’t work the same way twice.” “But this can work the first time!” Resin insisted. “That’s why the proper liquid is called a solution sometimes.” “This solution will backfire,” Luna responded. “We will not resort to this dirty trick.” “And what, you’d rather kill hundreds or thousands of our own troops to satisfy your traditional sense of spirit?” Glitz harshly retaliated. “This is war. War is dirty. Don’t pretend you’re being honorable by suggesting we fight and kill each other like civilized ponies. The minute we stepped into war, we became uncivilized.” Luna stomped the ground. “I will not lose myself to destroy my enemies!” Luna stated with finality potent enough to cease any further dissent. Even though both Glitz and Resin were giving her very pointed looks of disappointment or anger, Luna stood by her words. After a few moments of silence, Resin sighed and looked away. “Look, we need to prepare for an assault now. What more do you need of me?” “Get into position,” Luna said. “Once the Noxxa come again, blend into their forces and return to their camp.” Resin nodded and quickly left the summit. Glitz was left to scrutinize Luna with sharp eyes. “If you think you know what you’re doing, I can assure you, you don’t. You’re a royal peacekeeper, not a soldier. The right perspective is needed to accomplish what we set out to do. I respect your authority, but your authority won’t do you any good if you cannot take the right action when you need to!” “I have fought in more wars than the summers you have lived,” Luna replied. “Do not speak for my experiences. I have learned--and so has Nightmare Moon-- that easy action is not always right action. I will not lose myself a second time.” Their attention was turned as a deep roar went up from the black line on the orange and pink horizon. Glitz and Luna came to the edge of the mountain to see dozens and dozens of spindly, long-armed, insectoid catapults moved into position ahead of their main force. Forming up behind them and next to them were organized regiments of Noxxa, and their thin pikes rose into the air like strands of hair. “They’re getting into position,” Glitz noted. “Resin was right.” “Spread the word. Prepare for a nighttime assault,” Luna ordered. “Keep any lights to a minimum to lessen visibility, and prepare the catapults. Evacuate the lower defenses and start gathering ammunition of our own. Prioritize arrows and spread weapons over solid munitions. They’re aiming at a mountain, but we’re aiming at individuals. They’ll come in rough and hard. But we can minimize casualties and gather our strength for retaliation.” “Are you going to use your magic anytime in all this?” Glitz prodded. “I’ll save it if they decide to make a stronger move. I am confident in our ability to hold this spot even without my magic, but if they begin to throw magical attacks at us, I need to match them. Let’s not expose our greatest strength at the battle’s earliest stage.” Glitz gave a gruff nod and sped down the mountain path, leaving Luna alone. The Noxxa didn’t strike Luna to be very organized, especially considering Terror’s reported tendency, but the way things were looking, they were in for a heavy blow over the course of the following days. How many would make it out alive? How would Luna emerge from it? Celestia was counting on her to preserve their nation. Luna would try or die. The time was now. Luna ignited her horn. The moon slowly rose in tandem to the slowly disappearing sun, and the silver moon bathed Luna like a spotlight on the tip of the mountain, her firm eyes cast over the catapults below like devilish black serpents ready to strike. Finally, as the sun descended below the mountains and the tinge of indigo took over the air, the siege engines suddenly whipped forward to send their fiery quarries crashing into Foal Mountain. The siege had begun. The first few rounds of boulders and fireballs smashed against the bottom half of the mountain and created an avalanche of smaller pebbles that flooded further down the slope. There was the occasional death here and there, but Luna knew it wasn’t Terror’s intent to directly kill the enemy hidden in the mountain. He was just trying to bring the whole thing down. After all, one target was much easier to hit with a catapult than the smaller enemies embedded in it. Soon the silhouetted mountain was wreathed in smoke and flame from the avalanches and fires. However, the catapults were too far away to strike at the Equestrian forces higher up the mountain, where their own siege engines were silent. Glitz had returned to Luna and reported that even though they were in range, they wanted the Noxxa to come closer before retaliating. After about an hour of constant bombardment, the next move was ready. Feeling confident, the catapults moved even closer to the mountain, backed up by accompaniments of Noxxa. Behind the trebuchets and mangonels, primitive cast iron cannons were taking their place to further bombard the mountain. Luna didn’t like the look of their capabilities. “I think now’s the time to let them know the range of our arrows, don’t you think?” Luna remarked to Glitz. Glitz grinned wickedly. “I was wondering when you’d say that.” She took the horn at her side and blew three steadily rising notes. The sky, which was full of boulders sailing toward Foal Mountain, was suddenly filled with sleek arcs of arrows shooting the opposite direction. The fact that they were on top of a very tall mountain added some range to their arrow shots. The arrows didn’t need to be particularly accurate; they fell in swarms upon the Noxxa manning the catapults and left little survivors. The few that did ran back to the line of cannons, leaving the precious catapults abandoned. “If they don’t get back there, they won’t be able to use them for much longer,” Luna mused. “My thoughts exactly,” Glitz agreed. She took the horn again and let loose a long, deep note. Emerging from the mountain and above the cloud line came a hundred dragons speeding with little abandon towards the catapults. “What are you doing?!” Luna choked out. “Luna,” Glitz cooly said. “Those catapults are a problem. I think it’s best to remove them from the equation entirely now.” “Well, I-” Luna started to say. She didn’t have anything against it, necessarily. “Give me a warning next time! I think I’m starting to feel the effects of my age now…” Glitz shrugged. “Your fault for living a kajillion years.” The dragons swooped down as fast as the volley of arrows, spewing fire as they went. They reached the abandoned catapults, crashed through the catapult beams, and enveloped them in billowing flames. They weren’t actually reduced to kindling, but they certainly came close. Then the dragons created a wall of fire between the main body of Noxxa and the burning catapults, and retreated as quickly as they had come. They paid dearly for their excursion, however. Fully half of them had been shot down by the cruel arrows of the army, and the rest of them were wounded in some way. Luna’s attention was on a small group of three dragons who, instead of retreating, had emerged from the wall of fire and were charging towards the lines of cannons. In horror, Luna saw them get riddled with arrows, fall down, and perish before their fire could ignite the gunpowder stocked beside the cannons. It was hard to decide when to improvise on the battlefield and when to follow orders. Luna thought that had they gone unhindered, it would have been a very noble action. But they had died before they could do anything. “Should have followed orders,” Glitz muttered darkly. “They threw their lives away.” Luna got momentarily incensed by that statement. They had done what they thought was best! The maneuver was still a success, however. With the destruction of the first line of catapults, Terror’s option of breaching the mountain with catapults had been reduced to almost zero. He didn’t really have much of a choice except to send forth his armies en masse at that point. Soon the first few waves surged through the valley and began to rush up the face of the mountain. It was very costly. All through the long, long night, Noxxa fell into traps and holes as they scrambled up, and the rest were slowed down by the avalanche remains. The entrenched ponies, yaks, changelings, and the few remaining dragons rained fire, boulders, magic, and arrows upon their heads. They poured pitch and oil in torrential floods and set entire regions of the rocky face on fire. Smoke rose and covered the mountain like a veil at a funeral. It masked everyone’s vision, but the Equestrians didn’t need to be precise. And the fires at the base of the mountain prevented the Noxxa from retreating anytime soon. Foal Mountain had become a deathtrap. Luna spent the night flying from one fortification to another, sending magic blasts and telekinesis wherever appropriate, before word came that another entrenchment needed help and she went flying off once again. It would have been monotonous had the circumstance not been so tense. Hours and hours of this later, and with no sign it would ever stop, Luna felt like her efforts were hopeless. How much was she actually contributing? But none had made it up to the defenders, and Luna felt like their true strength had been successfully concealed from the enemy. No matter how hard the Noxxa tried, they simply couldn't breach the mountain. Wave after wave had tried and failed. The mountain was simply too steep and the terrain too well-fortified. All they got for their efforts was ash. By the time Luna lowered the moon and the glimmering sun rose once more, the mountain still stood strong, and the Noxxa had lost over fifteen thousand of their forces. There were about a hundred and forty Equestrian troops who had either died or were crippled from enemy arrows or catapult debris. Those losses weren't as bad as Luna was expecting, but she still felt sad they had to give their lives so soon. After Luna lowered the moon from the mountain’s summit, when the glowing dawn arose and a lull occurred in the fighting, Luna turned around, squinted, and spotted what looked like a flock of creatures in the distance behind her. “Is that…” Luna blinked hard as soon as her magic cut off. “Is he back?” Luna spread her wings and flew off to the assembly area behind the mountain. As she touched down a few minutes later, she was able to see the lead chariot in the air also swoop down and bump and roll to a halt. Scorpan, all wrapped in scratchy burlap, hopped out and circled his arm to the remaining flying figures as if to urge them on. “What is the meaning of this?” Luna wondered, astounded. Scorpan didn’t look weary or battle-worn, and he had brought others with him? The first of the figures following his chariot touched down to stretch, and it was--a hippogriff? He carried a spear and shield, and was armored in coral. “I bring word from the hippogriffs of Mount Aris,” Scorpan said, a smile gracing his wizened features as more and more of them landed and collapsed from exhaustion. “They shall aid our efforts in this war.” “Then they are most welcome!” Luna exclaimed. “Who leads them?” Here Scorpan looked sober. “Queen Novo,” he said. “But she is…” A net made from woven weeds and vines, carried by two burly pegasi, was settled close to Luna and quickly unraveled. Inside was what looked like a statue of a rearing old hippogriff, regal-looking and… unnaturally realistic. It took a second before Luna got the implication. A hoof was brought to her mouth in horror. “This was the doing of what they called the Storm King,” Scorpan relayed, sounding bitter. “How did this come about?” Luna whispered. “Were you successful? How did the hippogriffs find you?” “I was too late,” Scorpan answered. “Someone had already done my job for me by the time I came upon the Noxxa’s position. I was about to return immediately, but a whisper from the Goddess came to me. Wait. So I did. “Several hours later, as the sun set and the night sky rose, the distant horizon began to fill with them. I welcomed them and helped them assemble on land. The hippogriffs had been flying across the ocean for days by then, braving extremities and bad weather. Their course was longer than they expected due to a massive hurricane redirecting their course, so they were already past their limit. I stayed with them while they recuperated, and a few hours ago we left to come here.” “They came here to fight? Not as refugees?” “We know of your plight,” came a new voice. Dropping down beside the stone queen and Luna was a bubbly-looking golden hippogriff with freckles under her vivid blue eyes. A simple sword was buckled at her side, but it didn’t look like it fit her taste. “And we’ll aid you the best we can. Princess Skystar, at your service.” “You would so willingly come to us?” Luna wondered. Here, Skystar’s eyes darkened in grief. “My mother would have wanted it. And we owe it to Star Swirl to protect his lands the same way he protected ours.” Scorpan was smiling, an unaccustomed expression for him. “He sure got around a lot. We are thankful for your alliance.” He was about to say more, but he spotted Glitz galloping towards him and knelt as the tough, war-wrinkled unicorn slammed into him with a firm hug. “You’re back!” she exclaimed, letting go of her hug to scoldingly rub his scalp. “And you didn’t die! How about that, huh?” “I could say the same thing,” Scorpan replied, knocking her hoof away. “I was worried for you.” “Yeah, right,” Glitz said with a slight eye roll. “Prophets only care about praying and talking and being alone.” “And generals only care about war and yelling and medals,” Scorpan retorted gently, giving her a scratch behind the ears. Glitz gave a weird whinny-grunt-moan and shook her head away from his fingers. She was about to say more to him, but the looks from everypony else made her color flare up, and she looked intently away. “Ah, yes,” Luna remarked, taking a few steps. “Mutual respect?” “And only that,” Glitz confirmed immediately with a hoof jab. “He’s all old and rough and a freak, but he’s strong and humble, at least.” “Oh, I dunno…” Skystar teased, rolling her eyes to incense Glitz some more. “If you insist-” A screech filled the air, and then a loud explosion thundered in their ears along with the pity-pats of rubble, making all of them cower instinctively and look up. A projectile had smashed into the peak of the mountain with far greater force than a catapult would make. Scorpan narrowed his eyes and stomped away without looking twice at Glitz. She spared him a glance, then sighed and returned her attention to the sudden booms in the air. “Did we miss anything?” came a hippogriff alongside Skystar. She was pearl white with merging purple and red hair in long curls. “Well, Brine, they’re kind of under attack,” Skystar related. “I figured that part out for myself, surprisingly enough.” “Gather those in good condition to fight and spread them among the higher levels,” Luna told Skystar. “And lead those who are fatigued to the command center.” “Brine, I trust you with this task,” Skystar told the hippogriff beside her. “I know you would love to fight beside me for our queen. But you can save our people in other ways.” “I’ll play my part as long as it’s the most useful,” Brine avowed, making Skystar smile in relief, and departed, leaving Skystar, Glitz, and Luna together. “We’ve been holding them off for several days now,” Luna informed Skystar as ponies and hippogriffs began to scramble. “But only attacked for the last twelve hours. It’s starting back up again. Terror’s up to something. I recommend you place yourself among your own soldiers.” Terror, apparently, had been up to no good. He’d spent his time setting his cannons and those who manned them on siege towers and on top of Noxxa the size of houses, both of which were now moving through the valley to the foot of the mountain. It’d take some time before they reached the mountain, but the cannons were still in range, blasting one at a time so the fire was always sustained. To make matters worse, another wave of Noxxa were forming behind the towers and large bugs to follow as they went. “The cannons can fire up from any range!” Glitz had to shout to Luna as they reached a fortification overlooking the terrain below. The black, distorted shapes were getting closer and closer by the minute, even though the foot soldiers had stopped conveniently short of arrow range. “A few of our emplacements have been blown to Tartarus already! Any more of this and there won’t be an army anymore!” “How are our archers?” Luna shouted back, leaning back as a disturbingly close cannonball slammed into the mountain and threw dirt in her face. “Working overtime!” Glitz replied. “But no amount of arrows can penetrate their armor!” “Catapults?” “They’re too slow to maneuver reliably!” Glitz shouted over the chaos as another explosion hit the mountain and debris flew everywhere. “We took down a siege tower and two big bugs with some lucky shots, but we can’t rely on them forever!” “Our dragons?” “They ain’t doing another stunt like yesterday!” Glitz yelled. Luna didn’t like what she was about to suggest. “How are the yaks?” “All armored up with nowhere to go!” Glitz reported. “And our unicorn contingencies?” “Awaiting orders!” “Then this could work!” “I don’t like the sound of that!” Luna was about to explain, but was cut short by an explosion on the bank of their fortification, and what followed was a horrible scream. In their small fortification suddenly filled with smoke, a Royal Guard was cradling the remains of a brown earth pony conscript, his helmet knocked off and exposing his frightened eyes as he screamed incoherently. The conscript’s upper body had been blown into a pasty mush by shrapnel; he had been too close to the cannonball impact. Luna didn’t know if he was even alive or not. She dreaded either option. All the guard could do was gently lay his remains down and push them off to the side. He was hyperventilating and holding on to the upraised bank for support. His mouth would not stop chattering. His grip on his weapon faltered, and his spear clattered to the stone at his hooves. “Keep ahold of yourself,” Luna urged him, coming to his side as he sank to the earth. “You’ll be okay. Speak to me.” “It’s for nothing,” he numbly mumbled, even as he breathed like he had run a mile. “All I can do… is watch as my people… get ripped apart! I became a guard because… I wanted to help! Like I can change things… for the better! But I’m wrong!... I-I can’t make a difference!... I’m not important!... Not enough for this, anyway… But what does that matter? Important, unimportant… We’re all the same… when cannons tear through us!” Luna gripped him firmly about the waist, which seemed to activate a hidden switch in his brain, and tears appeared in his bright blue eyes. She nuzzled him gently, and helped to prop him up with her magic. He didn’t look nearly so shaken now that he had someone to focus on. “I shall protect us,” Luna swore to him, gripping his face with a hoof. “Together we shall win!” “Together…?” he repeated, then shook his head and picked up his spear again. “But how? I-I’m not sure how I can help.” “What’s your name?” Luna asked. “...Th-Thunderjump,” he stammered out, fluffing his wings. “Stay with me,” Luna ordered him. “You’re my personal bodyguard for now. Glitz!” she ordered. “Give the signal for the yaks to charge.” “But I thought I told you cavalry charges had a high death rate!” Glitz roared at her. “Just do it!” Luna replied even louder. “I can save every one of them if I do this right!” Glitz looked exasperated, but she sighed and facehoofed, then reached for her horn and brought it to her lips. “I hope you know what you’re doing here!” Luna’s magic enveloped the horn as she blew a deep note, the deepest she had ever blown. The magic made it loud enough to reach the entire mountain. Luna’s magic then moved to several large boulders scattered over the mountain face and lifted them all simultaneously. As they rose, the yaks waiting in hollowed-out tunnels charged through the sudden openings, and on top of them were earth ponies holding lances and swords on their back. The tremor of the yaks rumbled the earth itself, but their shouts and bellows were even louder. Some screamed in rage. Some with what they thought was courage. And some in fear. But they all screamed. As they swarmed from different points over the mountain, they met together in a rough arrow shape and flew like the wind at the advancing cannon line. Cannon fire peppered them as they charged, throwing yaks and their pony riders into the air in clouds of dirt and blood. “We need to draw their fire!” Glitz yelled at Luna over the commotion. Her normally scratchy voice was even more ragged now that she had been shouting all this time. “Give the signal for the unicorns!” Luna responded loudly. Her voice was getting hoarse as well. Glitz brought the horn to her lips once more and blew two rising bass notes. The unicorn troops, which had been held in reserve for ranged support, emerged alongside their brothers and sisters in their fortifications and unleashed a storm of laser beams and elemental spells like fire or lightning. It was loud, it was flashy, and only a few of the unicorns were powerful enough to do any serious damage to the siege towers, but it got their attention. The cannon towers had no choice but to target the mountain more instead of the yaks charging at them head-on. The yaks spread out right before breaking the line, which they did with head-on collisions with the towers and heavy pierces of the pony’s lances. Wood cracked and groaned and splintered beneath the yak’s legendary force and desire to smash things. Several at a time were needed to push over a tower, which slowly, slowly, fell to the earth with a crash. As several towers fell, it opened a path for the rest of the yaks to breach the formation, circle around behind their ranks, and take out the Noxxa moving them, bringing the towers to a standstill to be finished off with more projectiles. The huge Noxxa armed with cannons, however, needed their attention more. They were mobile and dangerous by themselves, and had a mind of their own about the creatures swarming beneath them. Some of them simply abandoned shooting at the mountain entirely and began to stomp at the yaks and snatch some in their jaws and slam their rears on the ground to create tremors. One large Nox even swiped a siege tower in half to send debris raining down upon the desperate riders. Cannons thundered. Noxxa screeched and stamped. Ponies and yaks roared and cried and died. “This is useless!” Thunderjump croaked. “They don’t stand a chance!” “Not while they’re alone,” Luna corrected him. “Wonderbolts! Now!” Glitz blew two rising notes again and held the second as long as she could. Coming from behind the mountain and trailing smoke, a dozen blue pegasi flew in formation like pellets from a shotgun. They struck the legs of their massive opponents and rebounded to other legs to bend them the wrong way, or aimed right for their heads with well-practiced bucks. The leader of them uppercutted a huge monster with what looked like a flash of fire, marking her as Spitfire, Firestorm’s sister, Luna remembered. As they distracted the Noxxa, even more pegasi began to fly up and soar towards the battle. They carried ropes, chains, and hooks to ensnare the monsters. But it was at this moment when a tremendous gust of wind surged from the opposite end of the valley, blowing all the pegasi off to the side or knocking them out of the air entirely. The wind was strong as a hurricane but only blowing one way. Luna could sense this was no ordinary windstorm. Terror had finally cracked and decided to use the same secret weapon they had: magic. The wind wasn’t strong enough to knock their forces off the mountain. It was to keep any pegasi grounded. Luna decided to reveal her strength the same way the Noxxa had. With her mane flowing ethereally, Luna levitated off the ground and ignited her horn with a blaze of blue. A channel of air shot from her own horn and split the windstorm in two opposite directions, leaving the pegasi free to race back down and for any arrows to hit their targets. The wind was now roaring harmlessly off to the sides, allowing the yaks and ponies to grapple the large Noxxa’s legs and topple them to the ground with thundering booms. No longer would her power be held back. The siege of Foal Mountain was now a battle of magic. The long funnel continued to split the windstorm further and further until it reached the opposite end of the valley, likely towards Terror himself. Almost immediately when this happened, the wind cut off entirely, leaving the landscape as barren as before. Luna knew that despite the insubstantial nature of air, moving too much was like moving a mountain. The pressure would rebound on you before you even knew it. Terror was obviously strong to have even considered it, though. And it was starting back up again! Luna, jolted by the unexpected resilience of Terror, braced herself as winds renewed whipping around her face. This time, rather than fly right at them, the wind was going side to side, or swirling in nonspecific paths. Dust and dirt were picked up right under her hooves and joined the winds as they picked up more. Then even more dust and dirt joined the winds, coming from the mountain and ripping right under the ground between their forces, and by the time she realized what was happening, Luna couldn’t even make out the enemy on the opposite end of the valley. Terror was creating a screen to conceal his forces, and it was growing thicker with every passing moment. Luna let her magic flow freely through the dust storm, but there was no specific object to focus on; the dust was already too thick and widespread. Taking a deep breath, she reeled her magic back in, focused some more, and created another highly-concentrated air tunnel in the storm. But that only seemed to be making matters worse. Not only did it not open a path, but it simply sped up the debris. Wind and dirt was caking Luna’s snout and forehead now as the storm invaded the trenches they had cut into the mountain. She was forced to squint as her magic cut off again, leaving her stumped as what to do. But she hissed as dust got into her pupil anyway, and she blinked hard as her eye became wet to remove the foreign material. But then her vision cleared up and the wind died down as a sudden shade overcame her. Luna’s help came from Thunderjump’s wing, blocking her face from the dust and whipping wind. His other wing was blocking his own face, but he had obviously gotten some large particles of dust in his eye, because a tear was cutting down the dust caking his cheek, leaving a dark trail. “I’ll protect you!” Thunderjump shouted over the wind. “Together we can win!” The familiar words were enough for Luna’s chest to burn. Even while squinting, he was beginning to see clearly! And it fueled her resolve. They all depended on her! But her eye was focused on the tear stain on his cheek. That wasn’t a tear of fear or despair, at least. The water just… cut through the dirt so well! Luna pondered. Why did it draw her eye that well? And the idea struck her. Water! She ignited her horn once more. A deep rumble came from above, and Luna looked up curiously. Though the dust storm obscured the skies above, the rumbles from above could mean only one thing. A plink beside her signaled the start of it, then another few wet drops on the rocks and on her nose appeared, and very soon, like a tropical monsoon, rain was coming down hard. Luna jolted in surprise. That wasn’t her. Then who- The dust storm began to clear up very quickly, although the wind remained ever strong. Squinting some more, Luna spotted tiny colorful flying creatures among the clouds that were created above the battlefield. At the same time, she noticed the yaks and the pony forces below scrambling desperately to return to cover. True to Luna’s prediction, a large column of Noxxa had been trying to use the dust screen to move unhindered through the valley. And they were right on their doorstep as well; they were close enough up the slant of the mountain that Luna could see the yellow colors of their surprised and desperate eyes. But now they were close enough for the sudden combined volleys of arrows, unicorn magic, and catapult scattershot to rip through their ranks like wet paper. Twenty minutes later, as the skies cleared up to allow the sun to shine once more, a vastly smaller amount of Noxxa came back than those that went. Luna’s heart was pounding by the time the fight ended. That had been entirely too close, and if it wasn’t for the rain, things could have been disastrous. But if the pegasi had been down on the ground fighting the cannons, before the windstorm and dust storm prevented them from flight, then who was controlling the weather? Then she remembered: the hippogriffs! They had promised their aid, and they had given it. They were able to take off from secure spots higher up and fly above the harsh winds to mold the clouds into ones heavy with rain. Skystar must have come to the same realization as Luna at the same time, but that was the smaller of the two tender mercies at work here. The hippogriffs had saved them from disaster, and if Scorpan hadn’t waited to direct them back here, they likely wouldn’t have survived. Luna was dripping with rainwater, and mingled with it was sweat. It was tough to counter long-range magic attacks. Thunderjump also looked like he had just climbed out of a swimming pool. Then there came anguished screams and panting from all over the mountain face, and Luna realized something was seriously wrong. Heat was shimmering on the rocks like smoke, but was more akin to a mirage. Strangely enough, though, when Luna realized the sources of heat, it almost seemed to disappear, like it was being sucked out of her and the rocks and the ponies around her- It hit her. Shimmering waves came from the earth itself, from the air, and even from the sun above her. Oh, if Celestia knew how her solar gift was being abused! The heat was being drawn into a spiral right in front of them, translucent and rippling. Luna’s horn blazed, and a tight stream of blue magic came out of her horn and curved to create a massive blue sphere that soon covered the entire mountain. The heat was intense even through the shield, however. It twisted and shimmered, and eventually ignited the gases within, and with a flash of fire, a mighty firestorm appeared to tear up the ground and turn everything near into a fiery mess. It was like an erratic, fiery finger of an otherworldly being, leaning down to draw a lazy line into the earth. Luna was able to see the remaining hippogriffs in the air scatter before its path as the tip of the firestorm moved onto the curve of the shield encompassing the mountain. Luna was straining to keep the integrity of the shield. There was so much force behind the firestorm, Luna could have sworn it was from a god. But just before the shield began to flicker, she noticed the hippogriffs and several of the pegasi flying back to the firestorm and flying in the opposite direction. The smoke trails from the few dozen or so pegasi showed they were led by the Wonderbolts. Then the shield gave way, and the firestorm slammed into the tip of the mountain like a twisting drill. Ponies screamed and fled from the heat and flying rocks, which flew in every direction as it delved deeper and deeper with explosions and roaring crackles. The more the firestorm destroyed, the more heat it created, increasing the power of the artificial tornado. But the Wonderbolts were still going in the opposite direction, doing their best to unravel it. Luna knew they were burning up and dying even as they did so. She felt a pang of pride for their courage, and with another chime of her burning horn, she began once more to summon the winds in the air. It crushed her shoulders to do so, but Luna stood anyway. Cracks appeared at her hooves. A scream tore from her hoarse throat. The constant speed of the winds soon began to show itself as they enveloped the firestorm like a winter coat. The wind was unpredictable and strong, and it took all of the Wonderbolt’s energy to focus the wind in a better way. Fire spurted in every direction from the tornado, and the air cover surrounding it soon began to unravel. Luna felt destitute. She couldn’t fail, but her strength was reaching its end. Even Thunderjump wasn’t around to support- He wasn’t there. Luna looked around wildly. Had he run away? Her eye came back to the fiery tornado embedded in Foal Mountain. And rocketing towards it-- Thunderjump looked like every other Royal Guard, but Luna could still recognize him. He soon joined the rest of the pegasi in spinning the fire in the opposite direction. And a multicolored display lit up the tornado, bathing the mountain in reds and blues and greens and oranges. The unicorns were joining in to keep the firestorm under control. None of them could sustain so much air pressure for long, but when one color faded out, another took its place. And their examples gave Luna hope. It gave her strength. Refocusing on the task at hoof, she blinked hard and gritted her teeth. Her magic spun the air around the tornado in a more focused cone this time. Her head felt like it was about to split from the pressure, but she did not relent. Equestria needed her! With the help of the Wonderbolts and the unicorn recruits, the furiously spinning firestorm slowly began to unwind and get caught in the spinning winds under their control. The tornado finally died as the fire became trapped in a tight cylinder, without form or shape. But what now? They couldn’t control the flames forever! “ATHEK WORTHEN ROTH!” The bellowed language left a chill in Luna that had nothing to do with the intense heat differences. The vivid sun-colored fire under their control turned black as night. Then it seemed to boil in a vacuum-tight sphere as the air rose higher up. Luna followed its path and caught sight of how it came about. Scorpan was on the tip of the mountain, his hand outstretched. He rippled with a black aura that matched the color of the flames gathering into a sphere. It looked like a solar eclipse; the black firestorm was restricted and wild, yearning to be free. “CHU’LEK ASEKA! SAMO KOTH DII DU!” And the concentrated black fire was launched across the battlefield. It screamed like a missile and left a trail as it soared across the sky, becoming fainter and smaller, until it impacted right in the Noxxa ranks with a muffled explosion. Then, since the sound was delayed from the distance traveled, the real sound of the explosion hit them, and it was like thunder roaring right in Luna’s ears. It made her stumble from the tremor, staggering back before unceremoniously falling on her rear. And from what Luna could see, a crackling, dying ball of fire was at the center of impact in the distance, and walls of black flame roiled out from it like a sonic rainboom. Plumes of thick smoke rose up from their side, obscuring the sky behind it. “...Well,” Glitz croaked out; it had been some time before she had anything to say. “That went well. Gave ‘em something to think about, huh?” “Are you hurt?” Luna gasped, allowing the blue surrounding her horn to die down. “Don’t ask if we’re all right. Take care of yourself first!” Glitz ordered. Glitz’s own horn was sparking, and her eyes looked unfocused and unsteady. She must have taken part in containing the firestorm. Luna finally relaxed on her rear, and as she did, numbness overcame her legs. They felt so good to not support her anymore! She panted, but tried to get her breathing under control. The flapping of wings and the sound of two creature’s impacts let her know several creatures had landed. She felt a hoof on the back of her head, and another on the small of her back. “My lady?” came the uncertain voice of Thunderjump. Luna looked up into his concerned eyes. Beside him was Skystar, who was singed and windswept. Then she turned her sore eyes back down at the ground and nodded, tired and unwilling. A strange feeling had overcome her, now that the battle was over and the scope of what she had done was revealed. “Is something wrong?” Thunderjump asked. Glitz came beside her as well, and so did Skystar. “I think… I fully understand you now,” Luna said, addressing Thunderjump. “Princess?” he asked. “The fear of…” Luna thought how to best put it into words. “...not being able to save others. To make a difference in their worlds. I wanted to preserve our people’s lives, but I had to use many of them just for the rest of us to stay alive. Even your own people, Skystar! How much of a difference was I able to make? At the end there, I really felt like my efforts weren’t going to be good enough. Maybe there really is no point in all this. And Glitz, you urged me earlier to send a poisoner into their camp. Maybe…” “The last thing we all need is your self-doubt,” Glitz snapped. “What we need now is to look to the future.” “We wouldn’t have let our people fight if we didn’t understand what we’re doing here,” Skystar added. “And for that I’m grateful,” Luna was quick to say. Her posture became straighter, and her breathing was a lot calmer now, but dubious feelings swirled in her head. “We’ll be all right,” Thunderjump murmured. “Just say the word, and I’ll follow.” Luna managed to smile at him. It made her heart twist in the right way to know she had been at least able to help him. She gathered her legs together and stood up. There was a slight shake behind her knees, but she was otherwise steady. “Well, he’ll think twice about this,” Luna spoke a tad louder. “No matter what he throws at us and how hard he puffs, the wind cannot topple the mountain.” “Are you sure that was him?” Glitz asked. “We know Terror’s not right in the head. And the insane or zealous do the same thing every time and expect the results to somehow change. This attack was too… what’s the word? Intelligent. Each one had a purpose, and it was varied and executed flawlessly.” “You mean he has somepony else controlling his actions?” Skystar wondered. “It’s possible,” Luna conceded. “We received a report that there’s an imbalance between the generals and the lead commander.” “But what could it mean? What’s the deal with the dissonance here?” Glitz demanded. “Perhaps he is being kept in the dark from his generals’ own strategies. Maybe he’s not as mad as we thought. Perhaps he’s even being brainwashed to say anything the generals want them to. But I’m sure our next intelligence report will try to make sense of it,” Luna offered. Skystar shrugged. “Whatever comes, we can take it. I’ve handled a lot more.” Glitz grimaced. “Don’t be so certain, either of you.” Resin hated this. The Noxxa were such a fallen race that it revolted her to pretend to be one of them. But her role in this war required her to hide her true colors. And it was a shame, too. Violet was her favorite color! It mostly had to do with her own coloration, sure, but it simply caught the eye so well. And now here she was, back as a disgusting bug. It wasn’t that Resin was a bad changeling--in fact, she was adamant about the notion of friendship. So much so, in fact, that she never wanted to go back to the wretched condition she was in, as just another drone under Chrysalis’ dominion. She knew her state back then had been vile, and she wanted no part of it anymore. As far as she knew, insects like them were greedy and disgusting and wriggly and ruined creatures. And she hated how similarly the Noxxa resembled her old state as a mindless changeling, all black and horrid and sharp and cruel. It made her stomach churn, but also strengthened her resolve to never again fall back into her old ways. Though she was in the valley of the shadow of death, she feared no evil. To be more specific, she had managed to get back into the camp, keeping her distance from the front line. The firestorm had looked spectacular from this distance, but it had become far less so when the fiery comet had streaked into their own front lines and decimated entire regiments. Luckily (or unluckily, what was she thinking?) their base of operations was further back from the actual battlefield, so it hadn’t been touched by the fireball, which even now was shrinking as the rest of the Noxxa got the flames under control. She was just another face in the crowd now. Just another faceless, nameless piece of filth rushing along among the organized chaos that was the base of operations, another Nox coming and going. Their camp consisted of stockpiles of logs or iron covered by tarps or leather, tables covered with maps and paper scrolls, workbenches with hammers and scrap, campfires for cooking, light, warmth, or forging, grindstones that threw sparks and squealed with use, tall tents that contained something foul-smelling--which, when she took a peek inside, she regretted; they held mounds of rotting flesh from all manner of creatures--and even several guard towers, meant to be disassembled and transported. Everything seemed to be coated in iron or spikes. The aesthetic wasn’t one she was fond of. The ground was muddy and slick, which didn’t help Resin’s thoughts of the whole place. Finally, the entire layout was alien and unnatural to her. It was like everything was put at random, and the mud between buildings, which she guessed could pass as roads, wove and floundered. But for all their complexity and villainous intent, she still knew where to go. After all, the command tent was the only one surrounded by a gate, guarded by sturdy towers, and more than two stories high on an elevated hill. So she simply cut a path across the camp, passing by all manner of Noxxa and fires and under-construction catapults. Resin had debated bringing poison into the camp, actually. She knew it would be effective if the Noxxa actually ate the poisoned food. But she had ultimately decided against it; she respected Luna’s order, and it wasn’t her place to do something unexpected that could compromise her purpose here. Besides, as the pervasive smell of burning flesh wafted into her nose, she didn’t know if she would have the stomach to see it through. Finally she came to the barbed gate separating her from the all-mysterious command tent, which towered above her like… a massive chess piece. The analogy almost made her chuckle. It sure looked the same. And it definitely seemed like a massive game of chess that Luna and Terror were playing here. “Halt!” came a harsh voice, snapping her to attention. The two or three guards on each tower were glowering down at Resin, and were pointing mounted crossbows at her. And two armored Noxxa armed with cruel-looking halberds were at either end of the crude gate door. Resin felt electricity jolt from her hooves to her head. It was only a quick and quiet reassurance that she was a Nox now too that saved her from panicking. “State your business!” snarled the Nox on the right. “I’m here to… to, um, take out the trash. Tidy up the place? That kind of thing?” “None shall lay eyes upon Terror!” the guard on the right reaffirmed. “He’s too dangerous for any but his messenger to confer with!” “Y-yeah,” Resin agreed. “Danger, and power, and stuff. Yeah. None of that. Just tidying up. H-he asked for a volunteer, so… here I am.” She cringed. That was just digging a deeper hole! She needed to act tougher! “What’s your name?” Resin coughed in panic. It must have sounded like a Noxxa name, though, all unintelligible and harsh, because he followed up. “What is your purpose here?” “I… already told you. Take out the trash and stuff.” “She’s right,” came the guard next to him. “You just asked her that.” “Oh,” he said. He looked very less sure of himself. “Look, I just thought-” “Are there any other questions I need to answer before I have to go in?” Resin demanded, thrashing her front two legs indignantly. She did admit, having six legs meant it was easier to gesticulate while remaining stable. “Or will Terror have his cleaning service be late?” “Well, uh…” the guard started. “What… is your favorite color?” The guard on the left hissed uncomfortably and looked away from him. “Black,” she instantly responded. “And sometimes, really, really dark grey.” “That doesn’t tell me anything,” the guard replied, waving a claw in the air. “We all like black and dark grey.” “Then why the Tartarus did you ask me that, then?” Resin retaliated. “I-” he started, then sighed and opened the gate with a creak of wood. “Make it quick.” Resin made it a point to strut through. She made it quick, though. “You are without a doubt the worst gate guard I have ever seen,” she heard the other gate guard remark behind her. “Well… at least you’ve heard of me!” he retorted. Resin was tempted to creep through the door to the tent, but she reminded herself again that she was one of the enemy now, so she simply walked inside. The tent was circular and red on the inside. It was much warmer inside, to the point of stuffiness. Maps and lists covered each other in stacks on a simple table in the center. There was a ladder on the far side to reach the higher levels, which were supported by beams and crosspieces. This was no simple camping tent, she knew that much. There were also several flaps leading to side rooms, which she knew she needed to investigate. She moved into the first red anteroom. It held a small cot and simple washbasin made of clay. It was minimalistic, needed for long-term marches. She was about to head back out when she heard a scream come from the chamber right beside hers. And what made her pause was that it was decidedly female. She crouched near the cot as the scream died down. She was able to see through the thin fabric into the next room, albeit only the silhouettes of the occupants. One was definitely the outline of a Nox on four legs, gesturing with his other two. And there was an inclined slab on which a silhouette was twitching. “I ask you again. The attacks failed, even accounting for the magic users. How strong is Luna, exactly?” came the Nox. It was smooth and deep, and eerily quiet. “Stronger than you,” came the reply from whoever was on the table. It sounded like a withered, wizened, weakened version of whoever she once was. “Stronger than me. Feh. Even stronger than Malice!” “I have complete faith in my Marshal,” the Nox smoothly affirmed. “I suppose you can’t say the same. When it comes to power, you can only think in terms of how strong your own is. But I assure you, without his insistence on your survival, you would become utterly forgotten by the denizens of this earth. I know there is more use in you, my dear. Never deny your potential! Make yourself profitable, and I will restore to you what you need.” “I need love,” she croaked, and it sounded desperate. “Give it to me! I beg of you!” “I’m afraid I can’t do that, my dear,” he murmured, caressing her face. “I need your help more than you need to feel loved.” The female on the table groaned and thrashed some more. “Please!” she begged. “I swear, Luna isn’t that strong. They keep on going about friendship. But that can’t be it!” “Then why,” he whispered, “did she overpower your magic?” That threw Resin for a loop. The wind storms and fire were from her? “I’m… too weak.” “Precisely,” the silhouetted Nox said, jabbing a claw at her. “And always remember that. You are our servant alone. Which means you will speak for me, or I put another hole in your leg.” “What do you want me to say this time?” she said resignedly. “Say that this is but a mere setback on our route to take Equestria,” the smooth-voiced Nox ordered her. “We will split our forces and head south with our main contingent. We shall bypass this accursed mountain entirely and reach Canterlot in a few days.” While she repeated the statement in a slurred and mindless tone, Resin tried to keep herself from panting too loud. She needed her help, and hang the orders! When she finished speaking, the silhouetted Nox gave her a kiss, and it was almost tender. “Thank you for your help, Terror.” And he simply crawled off and out of the tent. Resin was reeling, a claw to her tough head. That discomforting monster wasn’t Terror? And instead, it was-! Before she knew it, Resin burst though the flaps of the room and immediately went into the room right over, making sure to shut them tight. She took one look at who was restrained, and Resin almost gagged. But she was petrified instead. She was hooked into the table through the holes in her legs. Lashes and open blisters covered her exposed stomach and face, which were both round and ebony black. Her mouth was open, exposing a serpentine tongue and fangs. She was wrinkled and weak, and looked like the most pathetic, worn-down creature on Equus. Resin sank to the floor, mouth agape. Her mind was going a hundred miles an hour. To any other creature, perhaps, the creature locked to the table was unrecognizable. But it was a face Resin couldn’t forget. How could she forget her own mother? How could she forget Queen Chrysalis?