The Centurion Project

by TheEighthDayofNight


Chapter 69: Like Thieves in the Night

Steel Horn stroked his beard as he watched his people pass buckets of water toward their fortifications. Even as they sought to dampen the flames, another flash of light sparked in the trees, and a massive ball of flame leaped out, exploding against a different section of wall. Sparks and splinters began to rain from the sky as timbers began to burn and another bucket line was started. Such had it been since just before the sun had set. A scattered, yet powerful barrage of spells lashed out against the fortifications, always from a different angle, always forcing his minotaurs to run to make sure an attack wasn’t coming.

Steel Horn recognized the tactic for what it was, and for what it meant. Elias Bright had confronted his brother head on, strength to strength, and had come out ahead. Either the ponies had taken far more casualties than he had been told, or they were trying to bait him out, to further solidify victory. It was a strategy he could appreciate, even if he didn’t fully respect it.

One of the fires began to dim, just in time for a flash of light to herald the thundercrack of a lightning bolt blowing apart the roof of one of the ramshackle watch towers along the wall. Another fireball sprang from the woods and slammed into the wall, and again the cries went out. Hooves clopped to a rest beside him, and the tiny, vicious little zebra he found himself allied with let out a low growl.

“We should not sit, we should strike!” Khari spat.

Steel Horn regarded the zebra with a raised eyebrow.

“You would charge out into a moonless night and fight with ponies who can easily cast night vision spells, not to mention the thestrals who naturally hold such powers? And what of the rumored enchantments inlaid in their armor? It’s said that unicorn magicians can do much to improve the senses of armored ponies.”

Khari spat.

“The myths and whispers of old hut-wives! Would your brother not have reported such if he had seen it during his battle?”

“Stone Horn doesn’t report as much as he should,” Steel Horn replied with a grumble. “And he fought the Equestrians during the day. He is no more an expert on their tactics than I am, especially not now.”

His eyes narrowed slightly as another fireball leaped from the trees. While Khari flinched under the heat wave that spilled out from the impacting spell, Steel Horn merely watched the shadows trying to stave of it’s burning.

“From all reports, this Elias Bright does not fight like this. He fights head on-”

“He hides behind shields and arrows!” Khari interrupted. “He does not charge forward to fight like the strong of heart!”

“He fights within his means,” Steel Horn said. “If any of my bulls is able to be bested in a one-on-one charge by a pegasus or unicorn, then they are frail and unworthy of my respect. He still met my brother’s charges, still fought in the front, took blows, dealt them out with his own hand. He fights in a different way, I will admit, but it is no more cowardly than the differences between your fighting style and mine.”

He glanced down.

“Or do you think it is cowardly to use your potions when you fight?”

Khari frowned in thought, then slowly shook his head.

“I do not. I suppose… I suppose you are correct. The fighting is strange, but it is how they fight best. So long as they do not turn tail, it is… respectable.” He spat at his hooves and stomped. “But this is not that! This is cowardice! To strike in the dead of night, and with magic!”

Steel Horn shrugged.

“It is a sign of our strength Chieftain. I do not think General Bright would employ such tactics if he was unafraid of our position. He either doesn’t want to, or simply cannot break our position.” He motioned with his hand at the slowly dimming fires. “This is his attempt to draw us out. He learned lessons from Stone Horn and thinks he can apply them here. He thinks that fury will lead us charging out in an unorganized rage, a rage that he can pick apart with ease.”

“I will not let that happen,” Steel Horn said. “We will keep watch, we will continue to defend our fortifications, and we will pray for rain, so that perhaps the princess can see that the Keepers favor our cause.”

Khari looked to the sky.

“It does not look like rain Warchief.”

Steel Horn also glanced up, sighing lightly when he saw a blanket of stars instead of a bank of clouds.

“The Keepers put us to the test friend. Make sure we have bucket lines from the river, as well as additional guards. There will be no infiltrators tonight.”

*****

Storm Hunter grumbled as he picked berries for the fifth time in the last week. It was punishment, he was sure of it. He had been the first naked warrior to slam into the golden-clad Equestrians, had batted them into the wind like ants, but he had followed his warchief’s every command, including the one to retreat. He had ran, and hid, and had escorted the then crippled bull to his brother, and this was his reward. Nobody said the word, but he knew he was being treated like a coward. He struggled not to crush the berries in his fist. His muscles screamed for a new battle, and that screaming had only grown louder throughout a long night of magical bombardment. Spells uncountable, mostly fireballs, had assaulted the walls all night, stopping only just before dawn. It had given the rest of the minotaurs plenty of time to put out the fires, but he had been asleep after the usual evening of drinking and gambling. He had been ordered up and out, told to gather more food for their stores. Since the ponies were close, they needed to make sure they wouldn’t starve before the Saddle Arabians did, or at least, that’s what he had been told. The truth was they thought him a coward, but he’d show them, given the right opportunity.

A shrill whistle brought Storm Hunter’s eyes up, and he, just like the minotaurs around him, blinked blankly at a wall of muted color that stared daggers back. Ponies, most fully doused in mud, stood ready with swords, spells, or spears, braced awkwardly on top of shields, their hooves cocked back and ready to throw. If he hadn’t previously seen the devastating impact that awkward position could cause, he might have laughed.

As it was, his movements were slow. He lowered the basket he was carrying to the ground, then slowly straightened, rolling his shoulders and preparing to charge. His battleaxe was in camp, he’d have to rely on pure muscle. So long as he kept his head down and his mind focused, he could withstand a few spears, long enough to kill a pony or two at least.

He found himself lucky when the human came forward from behind a tree. Storm Hunter’s anger flowed easily at the creature, and he snorted, even as the human spoke calm words.

“Leave your baskets and go back to camp,” the human called. “You’ll only get hurt if you make us hurt you.”

Storm Hunter snorted, his jaw loosening as he prepared to spit an insult, but a touch of motion in the corner of his eye caused him to pause. He glanced back to find more ponies, still coated in mud, still prepared to deal death with spell and spear. There was easily twice the number of ponies to his minotaurs, and none of his bulls were armed. They’d been gathering food peacefully for weeks, what point was there bringing weapons?

Storm Hunter looked to one of his friends, a bull named Gray Mane. The bull had similarly set his basket down, but he looked to be coming to the same conclusion; if they fought, they wouldn’t get close to the ponies before they died. The trap was too good, the noose too tight. Storm Hunter snorted and stamped at the human.

“Coward!” he bellowed. “Fight me like a bull, not like the little calf you are, hiding behind the princesses!”

To his surprise, the human shrugged and stepped forward, passing his shield off to one of the ponies. He walked confidently toward Storm Hunter, drawing his sword in silent acceptance of the challenge. Storm Hunter did his best to not let the human’s calm unnerve him, and he let out a bellow, lowering his head and racing forward, his horns aimed right at the human’s chest.

His eyes were just barely able to keep track of the human, watching for any slippery little dodges, but the human seemed unconcerned, seemed ready to meet the charge head on. As Storm Hunter closed the last few feet, he put on a burst of speed, making sure the human couldn’t dodge at the last second.

His horns passed through empty air, and his charge halted with a gasp of pain as a sword slashed across his spine. His momentum carried him to the dirt, and he found he couldn’t breathe. His arms milled uselessly at his side, not responding to his command to push himself up so that he could fight. Blessedly, another set of hands pulled his muzzle from the dirt, brushing his mouth free of dirt so that he could draw in a loud gasp of air. His eyes opened, then widened with shock as he found the human brushing the dirt away. The human let out a slight sigh, then got to his feet.

“The rest of you are carrying him back, unless of course you want me to finish the job?”

Storm Hunter couldn’t help but look with wild eyes toward his compatriots, who looked between one another before coming to a silent consensus. He couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief when Gray Mane stepped forward, his hands raised.

“We’ll leave without trouble. No fight today.”

The human gave him a nod, gesturing to Storm Hunter’s prostrate form.

“Get going. I want you in that field in ten minutes or I turn you all into corpses.”

Storm Hunter felt hands grab hold of him, and he gritted his teeth, not giving the human the satisfaction of hearing him cry out in pain, immense though it was. As his kin carried him away, Storm Hunter cast an eye back. He was surprised to find that the ponies had already vanished into the trees, taking their nearly full baskets with them. Even as his back cried out in pain, Storm Hunter couldn’t help but notice a slight rumble in his stomach.

*****

Granite ignored the stomach churning end of the teleport and stormed forward with a torch in his teeth. The torch found its way to one of the thatch storehouse roofs just as his hooves caved in the sternumof the minotaur guarding what they believed was the cooking hut. Recon was hard with the wards of the minotaur shamans, but the nearby iron pots were fairly telling, even from the sky. Either he was burning a storehouse full of food, or a latrine, either way, panic was spread, damage was done, and hopefully the bulls would be weakened. Such was Elias’ plan.

“Time’s up!” his legionnaire called, causing all of the raiders to sprint back toward her.

Of the four, Pyrelight was last to touch the already-casting unicorn, but Granite couldn’t hold that against her. In the time it had taken him to dispatch one guard and torch one building, she had lobbed a fireball at the inside of the stockade wall, burned two minotaurs, and lit three huts on fire, and she was lighting a fourth as she grabbed hold of the teleporting unicorn’s tail using her teeth.

A circle of green magic spread out around them, and the unicorn at their center grit her teeth, her horn smoking as she cast her teleportation circle. Granite tensed as bulls began to pour toward them in all directions, and he almost let go of the mare’s armor to buy time for the others to escape, but in a flash of jarring light, they were back in the center of camp.

This time, he and two of his legionaries staggered off to the side to get a second taste of breakfast, while their teleporter collapsed to the dirt, her horn blackened with burnout. Kind Heart was instantly at her side, and her two temporary aids dragged the mare toward one of the shady spots in camp to rest, the pink healer not far behind.

Granite spat into the fresh puddle between his hooves, then straightened, wiping off his muzzle and scuffing some dirt over the spot before moving toward the center of camp. He had led three such raids so far, and that had been the last one. Elias’ plan required they strike in a small, random manner. It was just to exhaust the minotaurs, the human had said, so the damage wasn’t the important part, though that was a nice bonus. No, the important bit was to keep them constantly paranoid, something Elias said would keep them tired.

Granite felt Pyrelight fall in beside him just as he reached the human’s command area, what was essentially just the tree at the center of camp that Princess Luna was resting beneath. The blue alicorn seemed content to just watch instead of being involved, however. She sat on top of Elias’ sleeping bag, as well as some spare legion blankets, watching as the currently-armorless human passed out orders to the legion scouts. Just as he and Pyrelight approached, the human waved the pair of pegasi away, and they took to the sky, spiraling toward Saraj. Elias didn’t spare him a glance, just squatted and stared down at the map of the city pinned to the dirt with a few rocks from the river.

“Report.”

Granite saluted, speaking even as he performed the stiff motion.

“All target buildings were put to the torch, but minotaur response was near instant. We killed or incapacitated the nearest guards, then teleported away as more rushed in. I believe only Centurion Pyrelight’s building are truly burned to the ground, General.”

Elias nodded.

“A touch disappointing that they’ve caught on so quick, but good work Centurion.” Granite felt his tail flicked slightly with joy at the touch of praise, even as the human moved on without bringing any attention to the encouraging words. “Is Flash Bulb burnt out?”

“Yes, General,” Granite said with a nod. “Healer Kind Heart already has her.”

Elias let out a long sigh through his nose.

“Guess that’s fine, the next teleport hit would’ve had to be in greater force or we would have had casualties…” He chewed his tongue for a moment, his mismatched eyes flicking across the map for a moment more before he sighed and scratched the back of his head, finally looking up. “Granite, take a few patrols out, try to scare off their scavengers. Pyrelight, rest up. You’re on overnight duty again with Reverb. Fireballs and sound waves, I don’t want anyone in those fortifications getting a minute of sleep, but stay hidden. They’ll likely start launching sorties out against us soon, and I can’t help you if you get captured.”

“Now,” he continued with another sigh, his eyes again falling to the map, “I just need to figure out what I should be doing.”

A low chuckle sounded from behind him, and the sound of feathers shifting touched all their ears as Luna opened her wings.

“Take a nap perhaps?” Luna offered. “You have ponies sleeping in shifts, yet you have not yet rested my dearest general. Come sleep beside me until Centurion Granite comes back from his patrols.”

Granite could see as the urge to say ‘yes’ was chased by a need to say ‘no’. It was expressed entirely in the too old lines on Elias’ face, was solidified when the human closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, his mouth opening slowly as he no doubt thought of a polite way to express his denial of the offer. Granite, however, also saw just how tired the human was. He hadn’t been sleeping well, that was obvious to everyone, and now that they were running attacks all day and night, he wasn’t even making the attempt. A nap was just what he needed.

“He’d love to nap with you, Princess,” Granite answered before Elias could. “Centurion Pyrelight can even get him moving.”

The unicorn at his side smiled and with a flicked of her horn and a yank on Elias’ belt, the human fell back into Princess Luna’s waiting wings. Elias’ lips tightened into a thin line for a moment, a sign of a scolding to come, but his eyes, facing up, were caught by the alicorn princess staring down. She smiled at him and shifted a hoof, resting it on his chest. He relaxed slightly, his throat finally producing noise.

“There’s so much that needs to get done.”

“And it will get done while you rest,” Luna quietly assured. “All orders have been given General, you need rest or you will be as weak as our opponent.”

Elias’ hand hesitantly, moved, but it stopped mid-motion.

“I can’t sleep long. I need to be up as soon as Granite gets back.”

“And you will be,” Luna said, rubbing his chest in a small circle. “The first thing he will do upon his return is come and wake you, and if he is not back in an hour, I will personally wake you.”

Elias snorted softly, but his hand inched closer to her hoof.

“And how will you tell the time? Last I checked you don’t carry a watch.”

“I am the alicorn that moves the moon, knowledge of the time of day is innate,” Luna said without any heat, her smile widening with the knowledge that she was winning him over. She giggled lightly and nodded toward his belt. “Also, you carry a watch for me, just like the proper, loyal guardspony you are.”

She leaned down and nuzzled his cheek.

“So sleep, and trust me. All will still be well when you wake.”

His hand closed around her hoof, holding it in place on his chest. Even from a distance, Granite noticed a blush touch the pair’s cheeks. He also noticed most of the tension leave Elias’ body as the human adjusted his head to lean directly into Luna’s chest fluff. He let out a long breath and closed his eyes.

“Just till Granite gets back,” he mumbled.

Luna let her wings fall, covering the upper half of his body. As light snores sounded from beneath her feathers, her eyes drifted up. An eyebrow quirked as she met Granite’s smile.

“Shouldn’t you be running patrols Centurion? General Bright only rests because he trusts you to get the job done.”

Granite’s smile didn’t dim as he saluted. Elias was in good hooves, and so long as he made sure everypony stay safe and on task, he knew the human would look over how long it took, especially given his current bed.

“Of course Princess, we’ll be back soon.”

He turned and winked to Pyrelight, nodding her toward her sleeping bag before trotting off to arrange the next series of combat patrols.

*****

“It happens tonight.”

Lionheart didn’t dare look toward the hissing in his ear, just kept eating the grass he and his soon-to-be-bug-food associates had been left tied next to. The other two were quiet, likely subdued much like his guard had been the last two times.

“What will happen?” he mumbled through bites.

“We will come back for these two,” the changeling whispered. “And then it will be on you. I will say no more. Elias Bright is clever, he’ll sniff out a plan if anyone here knows of it.”

“You think I would help him?” Lionheart snarled, his head whipping up so that he and the changeling were muzzle to muzzle.

She snarled back, baring her teeth.

“I think your filthy smugness would tip him off. You will do nothing, you will say nothing, you will wait for contact or when we return, we will take you for food as well.”

She turned away, slapping his muzzle with her tail. Lionheart spat, but she ignored him. Instead she nodded to the changelings controlling Shattered Shield and Dragon Eye. The bugs climbed down and slipped into the forest. The lead changeling glanced back with a vicious smile on her muzzle.

“The moment is nigh Duke Lionheart. Do try to not screw this up.”

He continued to glare after her as she too slipped into the trees, vanishing from sight. As his associates came to their senses once more, Lionheart resumed his “meal”, playing like nothing had happened, even as he continued grumbling darkly between bites.

*****

“Elias!”

The human glanced up from his whetstone as a very familiar yellow unicorn came trotting into camp with a wagon and a dozen legionaries at his back. They looked about in confusion, their shiny, un-dirtied armor looking like tiny suns in the camp of mud-coated ponies. It was near to sunset, he had gotten only a paltry hour of sleep before Granite returned, but it was something. Hopefully he could get more once the night’s patrols were sorted. Then again, with a fresh batch of reinforcements…

Granite trotted toward Ice Blossom with a grin. He stopped and stared at her for a moment, then swiped at her, his muddy hoof smearing a brown streak across her muzzle. While the mare let out a shout of enraged protest, the other filthy legionaries laughed and followed their centurion, dumping water into the dirt and grabbing hoof-fulls of mud to slap and smear on their clean comrades.

Steel Scalpel looked back at the muddy and complaint filled affair with a bewildered blink, then looked to Elias, still blinking owlishly.

“You’re not going to put mud on me right? I have to stay clean to treat the wounded.”

Elias snorted and crossed his arms, nodding toward where Kind Heart was wrapping legionaries sprained hoof, the pink mare completely clean.

“Medical personnel don’t go fight, so they don’t need to hide in the dirt. That being said, what are you all doing here? You’re supposed to be watching the other two princesses and getting the rest of the army in top shape.”

“Most of the wounded are actually treated now,” Scalpel said with a smile, his nervousness shedding away as the mud-throwing began to wind down in a bout of laughter and the wagon was torn open. He turned and the two watched as some crates of food, but mostly supplies like tents, were pulled from the wagon. “I got permission from Princess Celestia to come forward with some extra supplies to make sure all was going well and to bring a few extra guards for Princess Luna.” He glanced up and winked. “She’s awfully worried about her little sister being stuck with the dirty human and his rowdy little ponies.” His smile fell away as he glanced down to where one of the fresh legionaries slipped and fell in the mud, earning the laughter of all his fellows. “Although maybe that fear was a touch justified more than my excuse to come forward early made it seem.”

Elias snorted and turned away as ponies began dragging the command tent from the wagon.

“Smaller force requires different tactics. Really I’m just surprised Night Flash isn’t here. He seems the type to impulsively sprint forward against my orders. I should break you teeth for putting yourself and my legionaries in danger.”

“Or you could thank me for bringing actual food and good some news,” Scalpel replied. “Also there was minimal risk. It would seem that somepony has been attacking the minotaurs when he said that he would be scouting and they aren’t watching the road so much anymore.”

Elias grinned at the yellow unicorn.

“Did anyone really believe I was just coming out here to look around?”

“Mostly just Princess Celestia, but Book Binder and Nightshade are pretty mad you left them behind and threw yourself into battle again. Last I heard one intends to tie you up, and the other intends to yell at you.”

“That doesn’t narrow it down in the slightest,” Elias deadpanned. “Doesn’t matter though, because neither will get the chance. Hopefully we can make a big move now that you’ve brought some fresh bodies.”

He put two fingers in his mouth and let out a whistle, drawing Granite’s eyes. The earth pony’s tail flicked slightly as he perked up from nosing through a box of apples.

“Start briefing Ice Blossom and the fresh legionaries and cancel tonight’s patrols,” Elias said. “We’re going for the bigger ambush tomorrow.”

The earth pony nodded, then stooped back into the box, snatching out an apple before trotting away to start calling out to the other legionaries already gathered. A quartet of ponies passed Elias by carrying the command tent, followed by a unicorn carrying the map table. Elias watched them go, then sent a look at Scalpel. The unicorn chuckled.

“What? It’s not like we were using it.”

“Night Flash hasn’t been doing daily briefings?”

“He just did them in the princesses’ carriage,” Scalpel said. “I don’t think you’ve ever been inside while the carriage was stopped, but it’s pretty big in there.” He chuckled as they watched the quartet of legionaries guide Luna away from her place beneath the tree so that the tent could be set up around it. “I think I overhead Princess Cadence talk about taking a nap in a heated tub, but I never saw anything like that. I wouldn’t doubt it’s in there though.”

“Can’t begrudge them for keeping themselves comfortable,” Elias grunted. “Though it would have been easier if we could enchant our wagons like the carriage.”

“Maybe if you have twenty years and a billion bits,” Scalpel snorted. “That carriage was built as a return present for Princess Luna so that she could tour the nation and get re-acclimated. Princess Celestia laid off half the castle staff for months just to afford it and the nobles still got a bunch of ridiculous favors. If I hadn’t been a friend of Princess Cadence and if Princess Luna hadn’t used the carriage to travel to Saddle Arabia to secure a trade agreement, even I would have been laid off.”

Elias blinked.

“I have several questions. First; I thought all the taxes in Equestria were paid to the princesses, second; couldn’t Celestia actually have cast the spell? Third, you’re friends with Princess Cadence, and fourth, Luna’s done this trip before?”

“They are,” Scalpel answered. “But one of the best parts about the princesses is that they actually care and only take a stipend from the taxes, some of which is used to pay for the castle staff. The guards had to fill in while the staff was on furlough. Second, I’m going to start by saying this will sound patronizing, and sorry, you’re just…”

As Scalpel winced and tried to find an appropriate word, Elias looked down at him with a raised eyebrow.

“Uneducated?”

Scalpel smiled and nodded.

“That’s it. Most foals, even non-unicorns, learn this kind of stuff in magic kindergarten. You just didn’t get that.” He sighed and scratched at his foreleg. “Still, magic doesn’t work like that. You can’t just ‘learn; a spell. Princess Celestia isn’t the expert on size redistribution magic, so far as I know, none of the princesses are. It’s not easy for unicorns to learn outside their area of expertise, and that applies to the princesses, even if less so. For something like the carriage, they had to find an expert, and the only one was already retired. It took setting up him, his children, and his grandchildren for life to get him to come out of retirement for that one project.”

“One of his grandchildren tried to join your legion you know,” Scalpel said. “She was blind in one eye though, so she was drummed out pretty quick, but still, her grandfather was a good pony. He was just tired and didn’t want to work again. Passed a year ago I think.”

“As for Princess Cadence, we fell out of touch once she started working with Princess Celestia’s student; Twilight Sparkle.” He smiled wistfully, staring as the legionaries dragged the tent up, quickly pinning down the tent stakes. “I had just started as the lead practitioner for the castle, fresh out of medical school then, and she was around often and liked caring for ponies; had dreams of becoming a nurse before she discovered her special talent and kept up with it after.” He sighed and his eyes fell slightly. “She was just about my only friend for a while there, but luckily once she left I actually grew up and hired some nurses, and they’re nice to work with.”

Elias closed his eyes and exhaled slightly.

“Don’t tell me that I was your second real friend.”

Scalpel snorted again and gently punched Elias’ leg.

“I’m afraid not Elias, but don’t worry, when the old friends reunion comes to town, I’ll make sure to save you a seat.”

“That is by far the corniest thing I’ve heard,” Elias said. “And Luna? I remember her saying that she and the Shah were friends, but I assumed she teleported to Saraj or something.”

“Unicorns can’t teleport to a place they haven’t been to at least once,” Scalpel said with a sigh and another pat to Elias’ leg, a sign that it was more basic level knowledge he would’ve known if he’d been a pony. “Most can’t even teleport to a place they can’t see, but while subsequent trips were by magic, the first was by carriage. They went through the zebra lands back when the tribes on the road were more friendly.”

“Should’ve marched through there,” Elias grumbled. “Would’ve killed two birds with one stone.”

“But then you would have had to fight a thousand ambushes and then two minotaur armies at Saraj,” Scalpel said. “Honestly, all things considered, things could be a-” He stopped, his muzzle snapping shut as he shook his head. “Nope. I’m done. That’s enough of that thought.”

Elias chewed on his tongue, then nodded.

“I agree. I don’t exactly know much about your Keepers, but even I know what challenging fate sounds like, and I’d rather not do that right now.”

They watched the pony carrying the planning table trot into the command tent, and the four legionaries guarding Luna escorted her back to the tent as well. The alicorn singled Elias out at a distance, and she paused. She pointedly looked up, to where the sun was setting, then back to Elias, her eyebrows wiggling as a grin spread on her face.

Elias did his best not to blush as the mare resumed her walk, throwing another grin over her shoulder as she walked into the tent and vanished from sight. He stood in complete silence for a long moment, until Scalpel finally spoke up.

“Wow. You’ve been away for a couple days. What changed?”

“I haven’t been sleeping well, and in my sleep addled state I make poor decisions when it comes to personal relationships,” Elias said, trying to keep his tone even and professional. He didn’t need to add further fuel to the rumor mill, especially since the yellow unicorn was apparently a friend of the princess of love.

“Which is to say Princess Luna is keeping you asleep with the best of cuddles and you’re starting to publicly admit that you enjoy them.”

Elias sighed, his shoulders sagging.

“Yes. I’m unorganized, sloppy.”

Scalpel stepped behind Elias, then prodded him forward with his horn.

“You’re tired,” the unicorn said. “And as your doctor, I insist you take advantage of the quiet to sleep. I’ll glue you to the tent during tomorrow’s big ambush if you don’t.”

Only the chuckle after spared Scalpel from the full weight of Elias’ glare, but the unicorn still shrank away as the human shook his head ever-so-slightly.

“Too far?” Scalpel squeaked.

Elias nodded.

“Maybe when we’re home again Doc, but no jokes like that here. I don’t think you need to be threatened again.”

“I don’t,” Scalpel said. “But please do sleep. Everyone will worry if you don’t, and it’s a good moment.”

Elias loosened his expression slightly, then sighed, relaxing the rest of his posture. He looked toward the closed tent flaps, then smiled, blushing slightly as he thought about Luna’s grin.

“Well,” he said. “I was invited, and she does make a good pillow.”

Scalpel relaxed as well, snorting and rolling his eyes before pushing Elias forward with a flash of his magic.

“Just get in there before she comes out here and beats you to death with a stick.”

They both chuckled, but Elias kept moving forward, leaving Scalpel to find something else to do. Elias noticed a certain earth pony quickly trot toward the tent entrance just as he entered, then his focus was elsewhere. A happy smile and open hooves invited him to rest a little while longer and given how busy the next few days promised to be, he wasn’t one to refuse an invitation, even if he knew it wasn’t going to last.

*****

“He sits and does nothing,” Stone Horn growled, his fingers tapping along the side of his fourth tankard. “That coward human sits in the shadows while the ponies bite at us like flies, and he sits back and does nothing but watch.”

The drinking hall was small and ramshackle, but it was still packed with at least a hundred minotaurs at dozens of different tables. It made the air hot, and the fire place and ample supply of mead did nothing to dim that feeling, and that made him irritable. Irritable enough to express the anger he had been dwelling on since the meeting with the human. While the minotaurs at his table and some of those surrounding him nodded, one of the larger bulls a table over snorted and jabbed a finger at him.

“The human is trying to draw us out to where he might win, and War Chief Steel Horn is being smart by not letting him. The ponies in the city will starve weeks before we do, and once we’re inside, we have all the power. Just because you’re too much of an idiot to see that doesn’t mean you get to talk behind the Warchief’s back, because unlike you, he didn’t get hundreds of warriors killed.”

Stone Horn slammed his mug down and shot to his feet, puffing up his chest.

“Say that to my face cow. I’m not scared of some old heifer like you.”

The larger bull slowly rose to his feet, kicking aside the chair so that he could step forward and tower over Stone Horn. The younger bull did his best to still appear large even though the other bull was a full head taller than he was.

“You’re only still alive because of your brother,” the large bull growled. “If I had seen my father dragging a piece of shit like you into my camp, I would have sent you back to die with honor, but here you are, a loud-mouthed coward spitting on his better name.” The bull curled his lip, then Stone Horn recoiled as a fat glob of spit covered his eyes. “There, how’d you like your taste?”

As Stone Horn wiped his face clean, the sounds of chairs drawing back filled the air as minotaurs rose for the impending fight. Just as he bared his teeth and began to snap a reply, a wordless bellow filled the air and a chair slammed into the large bull’s head, shattering into splinters. The bull, for his part, was more stunned than hurt, and merely backpedaled a few steps. Stone Horn sighed and looked to the floor as his brother stormed through the crowd of bulls.

“What in the name of the Keepers is going on here?” he demanded. “Are you all stupid or do I really need to burn the mead so that you’ll focus on the enemy outside?”

Steel Horn’s eyes blazed as he grabbed Stone Horn by the throat, then shoved him toward the door.

“Go outside and stay there until I come out, or so help me I will cut your spine again.”

Stone Horn again tried to stand tall as he met his elder brother’s eyes, but he found that he couldn’t help but shrink under the tall bull’s glare. With a snort, he turned and stomped out of the drinking hall, vaguely noticing his decrepit father limping behind him.

The night air was mildly chilly, but fury was more than plenty to keep him warm. Two guards stood at the entrance of the hall, and they watched him storm out with Stone Hoof in hot pursuit. Though he very much wanted to find somewhere quiet to burn off some steam, Stone Horn remained just outside the drinking hall, just as his brother had asked. Stone Hoof leaned against the side of the building, his muzzle shut in a tight line.

Steel Horn wasn’t long, a crowd of cheers chasing him from the drinking hall even as he threw the door shut. The smile disappeared from his muzzle as soon as the warm light of the drinking hall was closed away. There was little anger in his frown though, and frankly that was more concerning than if he had been bellowing in fury. Steel Horn looked to Stone Hoof first.

“Have you said anything to him?”

Stone Hoof shook his head.

“I have not. I do not want to make things worse.”

“First intelligent thing you’ve done in months,” Steel Horn grumbled. “Go and make sure our bucket patrols are at the ready. Those sounds coming from the woods are bound to unnerve the superstitious ones, but I am certain it’s just the ponies making ghostly sounds. More bait to draw us forth that I will not let sink in. Reassure them, make lights if that’s necessary, but no panic, only readiness, am I clear?”

Stone Hoof nodded a shoved himself off the wall, leaning instead on his staff.

“Yes, Warchief.”

Steel Horn gave him a nod and pat on the back before turning to Stone Horn. The young bull met his eyes for a moment, then snorted and looked away, crossing his arms.

“He disrespected me. He deserves his teeth knocked out.”

“He defended me from the disrespect of my own brother,” Steel Horn said.

“I won’t apologize,” Stone Horn said. “This is cowardly behavior and if any bulls die sitting here doing nothing, they will not enter the Verdant Fields.” He spat into the dirt, managing to send a side-glare his brother’s way. “That is your goal, is it not? How many must you condemn waiting for a pony princess to save us? There is no honor, no courage to be found sitting around when we should at least be dying for the attempt at an alicorn in our hands!”

Steel Horn sighed and shook his head.

“We will not have this conversation here where there are ears. Follow.”

He didn’t look back as he strode away, seeming to pick a dark lane between the makeshift huts at random. Stone Horn stared after him for a long moment, then sighed and followed, his arms dropping to his sides as he stepped quickly, trying to catch up.

Steel Horn led him toward the fortifications facing the walls of Saraj, but stopped just short of the tall pillars of timber. He instead walked up a set of stairs to the top of one of the stone “watchtowers” that overlooked the gatehouse of their wall. It was little more than a squat hut that remained empty unless there were wounded from fighting at the gate, but the Saddle Arabians had been quiet since the Equestrian’s had arrived, likely hiding in their holes until they were saved. Stone Horn hated that, hated how anyone could be so cowardly as to just sit and hide while others did the fighting for them.

The minotaur that was supposed to be standing guard at the top of the tower lay flat beneath a blanket, his snores filling the air. Stone Horn snorted and moved forward to stomp on the bull, but Steel Horn extended a hand and stopped him, holding a finger to his lips.

“Leave him, if he is resting, he is a better fighter when the fight comes. We shall be quiet, and if he wakes, he wakes.”

Stone Horn crossed his arms again and shook his head.

“There is no end to it, is there? Weakness after weakness, it’s all you seem to have these days.”

“If I’m weak, then take my head and my title little calf,” Steel Horn countered. He spread his arms wide and stepped back, leaning against the railing of the watchtower. “Kill me now, oh might Stone Horn, warrior and loser of one battle, but bound and determined to lose more. Come and strike me down, so that you can lead our people to another slaughter.”

“I would have won that fight if the human had fought like a warrior instead of a coward!” Stone Horn snapped.

“He fought you like a warrior and you still lost!” Steel Horn bellowed. “Rumor is that he is five years your junior, yet he still knows patience better than you ever have!”

A loud snore cut the air, and Steel Horn immediately quieted, rubbing the bridge of his nose with two fingers.

“I am not having this lesson with you again Stone Horn. I have told you dozens of times, an intelligent warriors picks his battles, uses his opponent’s weaknesses at the right time, but…” He sighed and shook his head. “Not again. You will learn on your own or you will die. I have made my attempt to teach.”

He looked up and crossed his arms.

“So tell me Stone Horn, what do you hope to gain out of these battles we find ourselves facing?”

Stone Horn blinked.

“What?”

“I’ve never really asked, not in a serious manner,” Steel Horn said. “Always around the drinking table and never the planning table. We always laughed when you told us the goal was as much money, mead, and mares as you could handle, but now, seeing how you talk, how you behave, I’m beginning to think that is truly your goal, as if you’re just some warrior instead of a Warchief. I believe in giving my bulls a fair chance to explain however-” He extended his hand toward Stone Horn “-so speak. What do you hope to earn here? Are you some warrior seeking death or money, or are you a warchief with real goals?”

When Stone Horn merely stared at him, Steel Horn continued.

“My goal is to see as many of our people guided to the Verdant Fields, and to have a peace for my wife and son.” He chuckled. “Mostly for my wife. That heifer is desperate for more, and she makes it known every night, but what can I do but say no knowing that tomorrow might be the day I die in battle?” He shook his head. “I will know every child I spawn Stone Horn, and I will raise them to be proper warriors, who fight for more than mead and mares.” His hand rolled over. “So I again ask, what is your goal here? And don’t feed me some horse shit about how we share the same goals, because you’ve made it very clear that my goal for Princess Luna is just that; mine.”

Stone Horn again stared, unsure of how to respond, but this time, Steel Horn merely retracted his arm, recrossing it and waiting for an answer.

Stone Horn thought hard about what he wanted. The way his brother said it had cheapened it, but every bull wanted money and mead and a good cow to bed. What more to life was there? There was fighting, but that answer would only deepen the disappointment in his brother’s eyes. Steel Horn’s goals were still so… meek. Wanting to take a princess for their own was a great start, but his end goal was simply more weakness. All the effort spent getting a princess, only to make a second Equestria with her was a waste. Still, it was a starting point.

“I want to take a princess,” Stone Horn finally said. “But unlike you, I don’t think peace is the way to use her. Once we have pony magic, we can expand. How easy do you think it would be to unite all of the tribes and then conquer Saddle Arabia, or the zebra lands!”

That was solid answer, and though it was spur of the moment, Stone Horn found he liked it. He was still young, still had decades of fighting left in his blood. Giving the Equestrian’s time to recover from a devastating loss would make them better opponents in the future when he had spawn to teach in the ways of war. Incorporating the united front his brother seemed so fond of was a nice touch too, he was sure of it. He met his brother’s eyes with a bit of an excited, almost warm and hopeful smile.

Stone Horn found the disappointment still overwhelming in his brother’s gaze as he shook his head and sighed.

“So you want to be some petty tyrant,” he stated, his voice flat. “Endless blood to satiate pride. Even our father isn’t that brain dead.” His eyes fixed Stone Horn in place. “You have no idea how disgusted I am to call you brother right now, so I beg, tell me that was a bad joke.”

Stone Horn rolled his shoulders, briefly wondering if he should try to play off the words like his brother wanted, but a venomous thought creeped to the forefront of his mind, and he instead puffed out his chest.

“No. If the goal is to earn the praise of the Keepers, then uniting the tribes is our best bet, and we’ll need money and glory to do that. A princess is a start, but we must have more to offer, to give warriors true goals, as you said, to fight for. We take a princess, then we can conquer weaker lands, build our strength, and then your son can conquer Equestria, giving use Verdant Fields here and after. It is the strong way to secure our futures.”

Steel Horn stared at him for a long moment, then wordlessly pushed off the wall and moved toward the stairs, forcing Stone Horn to move to the side. Steel Horn paused before descending, glancing back.

“You are prohibited from fighting or drinking. You will sit and watch while I lead. After I have conquered Saddle Arabia, I will do my best to shake you from this… idiocy you seem trapped in. Perhaps I will arrange that marriage mother used to talk about. A wife and child might temper this… aggression of yours.”

“I do not need to be tempered, it is a good idea!” Stone Horn cried.

Steel Horn, if he listened, said nothing, merely walked down the steps and back into the heart of the camp. Stone Horn stared into the darkness, trying to find a shadow of movement he could shout at, but found nothing. He grasped the railing as hard as he could, his jaw set as he whispered out one final;

“Coward. You’ll come around when you see that I’m right.”

A chuckle sounded, and Stone Horn turned, his eyes turning red. The bull beneath the blanket sat up and scratched the back of his head.

“Don’t get too angry now Warchief, I did say we would speak again after your battle with Elias Bright, I just didn’t think it would go quite so… poorly.”

The minotaur vanished in a flash of green light, being replaced instantly by a unicorn with a red mane. The pony stretched, cracking his neck, one eye open and watching him carefully. Stone Horn snarled at the unicorn.

“You’re the coward that said there would be an ally in my battle against the human. You lied.”

“Actually, Duke Lionheart did his part, he sounded the retreat for the Solar Guard just as planned,” the unicorn said, standing up straight. “You just failed to capitalize on it, and Elias Bright rallied the ponies quicker than we expected. We have made great efforts to not-underestimate him, yet he still continues to impress.” The pony raised an eyebrow. “Also, you did not follow my advice on nullstone, something that would have made the fight far easier.”

Stone Horn glared at the pony, then sighed and leaned back, shrinking slightly.

“That wasn’t my fault,” he grumbled. “We had barely a sword’s worth with us, and we can’t smith it. It’s too brittle, and we can’t enchant it to make it stronger.”

“Do you still have it?” the unicorn asked.

Stone Horn nodded.

“Three stones, un-marred. The smith that was trying to figure out how to weaponize them was killed in the battle. I haven’t found someone better.”

The unicorn smiled.

“Better that he’s dead then, because a sword would be worthless. Great Warchief, is your goal truly conquest, or would you rather have Elias Bright dead and Princess Luna delivered to you on a platter?” He raised his hoof, appearing to study it. “Because I can help with the latter, if you can get me that null stone and some warriors.”

His eyes flicked up, flashing green as he grinned at Stone Horn. The minotaur, for his part, glared back. The “pony” was a changeling, that much was certain, but the offer… There would be no more disrespect if he did what his brother couldn’t, and that would be best, wouldn’t it? It would show the stubborn elder bull how wrong he was to hold back, maybe even pull him out of his weakness. This was one of those “moments” Steel Horn was so fond of mentioning, wasn’t it? The time was right to attack without mercy. Then they could conquer together, now that would be truly great. They could be a force to be reckoned with, a pair of warchiefs to take the world all on the back of one bloody night.

Stone Horn didn’t see the slight green glow to the unicorn’s horn as he fantasized about leading armies with Steel Horn, and the glow was gone by the time he met the unicorn’s gaze again.

“I can muster a few warriors, but we can’t strike the human’s camp, even if I knew where it was.”

“I know where it is, I have some additional fighters for you, and you won’t have to fight the entire camp, just Elias Bright,” the pony said with a smile. “Gather your warriors and slip away quietly. Meet me at the treeline, and I’ll introduce you to my allies.”

The pony vanished in a flash of fire, replaced by a small beetle that immediately took to the air, buzzing off toward the trees. Stone Horn stared off after it for a long moment, then felt his muzzle quirk into a grin. The human was going to pay, and then Steel Horn would see the right way forward. He’d have to.

*****

Elias slipped beneath an axe blade, then batted aside another, his gladius carving a wide arc in the air that eventually met flesh. Blood spattered his front and a body fell away, replaced by another as it always was. Just like always he didn’t let it stop him, tried to not even slow down. He cut and hacked and stabbed his way through body after body, taking a thousand cuts and hits on his way through the fiery battlefield. He was unsure why he recognized it, was unsure why it all felt so familiar, why it felt so much like a dream…

Then all at once, he was on the ground, his legs shattered, his left arm missing at the elbow while his right stretched toward the shattered remains of Feather… toward a bloody pile of feathers. The crimson owner of the pile rolled over, a sad smile on his muzzle.

“Elias, it’s not your fault.”

“I should have been stronger,” the human gurgled, his throat filling with blood. “I got you killed, I’m going to get them all killed if I-”

“Cutting me away didn’t save me,” Scarlet said, ignoring the arcs of magic lancing up his body. Elias couldn’t look away as the bandages wrapped around the pegasus’ middle began to redden. “Friendship isn’t weakness. Friendship didn’t kill me.”

“Friendship with me killed you,” Elias said, the corners of his sight beginning to blacken. “It’s happened to everyone I loved. You were just first.”

Scarlet reached out, and Elias couldn’t help but close his eyes and turn away, waiting for the pony to take his revenge…

A hoof stroke his hair, and the burning of the fire became the smothering of fur and feathers. Frail weight tried to keep him in place, but he was far stronger than the pony trying to keep him down. He pushed up, hearing a gentle sigh as Luna sat back and let him escape. He didn’t say the words, didn’t need to. He’d been saying them for days. He merely dressed in his armor, grabbed his gladius, and walked from the tent into another cool, clear night.

He stalked past Granite, who’s head silently raised from where he was sleeping just outside the tent entrance. Elias paused for a moment, looking back at the earth pony, wondering briefly he should…. Elias closed his eyes and shook his head, stalking onward toward the camp entrance. Granite was his most loyal pony, that was unquestionable, but if he started showing weakness, started sharing what was happening in his dreams, that loyalty might falter, and that would get the earth pony killed. He couldn’t let that happen. Silence was best. He just needed some time alone.

Hooves were matching his steps before he hit the castra gate, and he was forced to stop as Luna slid out from the shadows with a smile on her muzzle.

“Did you really think it would be so easy to escape me General?” She asked.

“Luna, no jokes, no games. I need time to-”

“No jokes,” Luna cut back in. She moved forward, her smile softening slightly as she reached out a hoof and patted his chest. “But you will not be alone tonight. It is my duty as princess of the night to resolve nightmares, and if I remember correctly, I made a pledge to you when you first entered my service to solve these nightmares of yours.”

“And I remember dodging each therapy session because all they did was piss me off,” Elias growled.

“Pony dreams are typically simple to resolve, and I was reliant on magic at the time, making me lazy,” Luna admitted. “I promise you that tonight there will be nothing talk, if that’s about the dreams, if that’s about nothing at all, it is a start in a process we should have been working for months now.”

“Now isn’t the right time,” Elias said. “Give it a few more weeks, then we can do this. Please.”

The last word was soft, and he found himself looking at the ground instead of the alicorn before him. Her hoof rubbed his armored chest gently, and she let out a slight sigh.

“Alright,” she said. “Would you like to spend your time alone or with a quiet companion beside you?”

Elias glanced behind him and found her four legionary bodyguards waiting at a distance. Further behind was Granite, watching the exchange carefully, his body tense, ready to leap into action at the slightest notice. Elias snorted and gave the earth pony a little wave, then looked to Luna.

“No talking about my dreams?”

“No talking about your nightmares,” Luna said. “I don’t think you’ve had a single good dream in Equestria. Frankly it’s rather offensive to me, and I’m starting to take it as a personal challenge, my friend.”

Elias chewed his cheek as they stared at each other for a moment more, then he sighed and nodded.

“Since you’re already up, you might as well come walk.”

Luna flashed him a smile and spun around, falling in beside him.

“Excellent. Lead the way.”

Elias set off at his usual pace, but quickly slowed once they left the lights of the castra. Luna could barely keep up, and though she tried to hide it, she was panting. To make matters worse was the fact that she wasn’t even in armor, just her normal crown and her peytral, yet even those seemed to make her neck sag under their weight. When one of the legionaries cast a light spell, she tried to shift into the shadows, trying to hide the fact that her fur was already glistening with sweat.

As he naturally let his steps slow, Luna seemed to relax, and her breathing seemed to slow, though she never did fully straighten again. They walked deep into the woods, and while he did consider stopping early to let the obviously exhausted alicorn rest, he decided to press their walk on toward his usual spot. It had a tree he quite liked sitting against as he stared out into the darkness in an effort to calm himself, and when that didn’t work, the small clearing around the tree was a nice patch of grass to pace around on. It was just short enough to not poke through the gaps in his sandals.

He snorted and grinned slightly when he saw Luna’s aghast face as he stopped, moving toward his tree. Elias groaned and grunted as he sat down, his muscles screaming at him like he was a few decades older. Still, he didn’t hit the back of his head as he sat, and that left him to lean back and smile at the alicorn. Luna stared back, then her muzzle curled into a smile.

This is where you’d rather be than cuddling your princess?”

Elias shrugged.

“It’s where I like to think. You have other options for cuddling anyway, you just refuse to ask them.”

Luna scoffed and brought a hoof to her breast.

“I am afraid, dear General, that royalty does not settle for anything but the best, and you are the best cuddle-buddy I have yet encountered.”

Elias flashed a grin at one of the legionaries.

“Hear that, she thinks you’re inferior.”

The stallion chuckled as Luna flushed red, her tail flicking.

“That isn’t what I said,” she protested. “I am merely stating that the combination of fingers, and your warmth, and those blessedly strong arms designed perfectly for wrapping a mare in the most marvelous of hugs…”

She trailed off as she spotted Elias’ still wide grin. Her eyes flicked to the ponies all staring at her with slightly slack-jawed expressions, and her tail tucked in slightly as she slouched.

“You are quite nice to cuddle with,” she muttered.

Elias spread his hands and chuckled.

“What can I say Princess? If things had been safer, if we had had more time, maybe you could have cuddled me all night lo-”

He grunted as something punched into his chest. The quiet chuckling fell to silence as all eyes locked onto the arrow shaft bobbing in his chest as he shifted in place. Elias poked the arrow shaft with a finger, felt no pain as it bounced up and down. His eyes flicked up to the trees, where he saw beady eyes glowing, staring back at him.

“Defend yourselves!”

Elias snapped the arrow shaft and sprang to his feet as two legionaries closed around Luna, their shields raised, while the other two moved toward him. A dozen more arrows leapt from the trees, and while he was able to drop quickly to avoid them, one of his legionaries was not. The mare screamed as an arrow found her eye, and she fell to the ground, thrashing about blindly in pain.

Elias saw only her abandoned shield, and he scrambled across the ground to grab it. Shield in hand, he rose into a crouch as another hail of arrows leapt out from the trees. He began to reach for his fallen legionnaire, but the arrows were primarily targeted on her exposed, writhing form. Three found their marks, and she fell limp. Elias bared his teeth at the body, then turned his glare to the trees, where arrows continued to fly, thudding into the ground, and into their shields.

“Come out and fight!” he bellowed. “I didn’t know minotaurs were cowards!”

The hail of arrows continued a moment longer, finding no purchase in the flesh of the kneeling ponies, their shields becoming weighed down with arrow shafts. Their enemy, evidently seeing that their arrows weren’t having an effect anymore, let out a war cry that reminded Elias of coyotes. Instead of the rampaging bulls he expected, a pack of dog-like creatures sprinted from the dark. Yipps turned to howls as ragged looking weapons glinted in the white glow of the magelight one of his legionaries was still maintaining. While the stallion closest to him sprinted toward the dogs, the two protecting Luna looked to him for orders. Elias snarled at them as a dog leapt from the shadows at his right. He back-stepped and cut down with Feather, the blade cutting through the leather collar protecting the dog’s neck.

“Get her back to camp!” he shouted.

He already saw the orders were useless, however. More dogs poured from the trees and while several converged on him, the bulk sprinted toward the legionaries and the cowering alicorn they were protecting. He needed to draw attention if they had any hope of escape.

Feather flashed as he let out a howl of his own and rushed two of the dogs bracing themselves to jab spears at his chest. One of the dogs immediately balked at the brazen charge, and the spear dropped from his paws in panic. Elias slammed the shield into his muzzle while Feather plunged at the second dog. The motion left his chest exposed, but the dog jabbed too late, the spear head passing beneath his arm. Feather tore through the dog’s ribs and he kicked it away, ripping the gladius free in an arcing motion that warded off the dog trying to attack his rear.

*****

Hidden in the trees, a pair of minotaurs watched as the human turned on a diamond dog, nearly cutting the beast in two as another one of it’s fellows struck the human’s back. The pig iron weapons of the dogs did nothing but anger the human, and he again turned, this time taking a dog’s arm off, sending the creature whining into the dirt. Stone Horn snorted and shook his head.

“This is pathetic. He’s just going to warm up on such weak opponents.”

“They did their job with the arrows,” the second minotaur said. “And they’ll tire his sword arm plenty with their bodies. Besides, their job is distraction.”

He took a deep breath and drew back his bow string, the tip grey, and fragile.

“Which one do you want dead?”

Stone Horn looked between the human, who easily batted aside a pair of spears before closing on the dogs, killing one in a sword stroke before turning on the other with his shield, bashing it to the ground, then stomping on its head until it only twitched. He then looked to the pony stallion, who while bloodied, was holding his own against four more diamond dogs, a sword held tightly in his teeth.

Finally, his eyes settled on the princess, her green eyes staring out from behind a pair of mares that did their best to keep almost a dozen dogs back. Here the dogs were actually confident, darting in and out, trying to rip away the ponies’ shields. Claw marks scored the paint of the shields, but so far, the mares had killed a pair of dogs and showed no signs of giving in. If the human was given enough time, he could save them and the ambush would be for nothing. Taking the princess, however, would only enrage him further, and that would make him fight longer, would make him easier to kill.

Stone Horn nodded toward the mares.

“Kill one of them. The null stone should prevent the princess from unleashing her magic too. We’ll take her while the human is busy.”

The bull nodded and he put one of the mares in his sights.

*****

Elias heard a shriek over his shoulder. He dropped his shield and grabbed the dog he was facing by the collar. The creature cried out as Elias used him as a new shield, turning around in time to see one of his legionaries hit the ground. The other one protecting Luna was quickly overwhelmed by the dogs around her, and even though their weapons were ramshackle, with enough attempts they found the gaps in her armor and she fell in a hail of blood and screams. The dogs howled and set upon the pair of bodies, hacking at them with savage glee. Behind the scene of carnage, Luna sat in the shadows, her green eyes quivering in open fear. He briefly wondered why she didn’t cut loose, why she didn’t butcher the dogs as they butchered his ponies, then his thoughts returned. Their deaths were pointless if she wasted her magic now. The dogs would pay without her help, and they would pay now.

Elias found his next bellow of rage matched by the stallion still fighting to his left. They both abandoned their foes and charged across the battlefield. The dogs looked up from their kills just as Feather slashed the air at their stomach level. He welcomed the splash of blood and the howls of pain as three dogs fell, disemboweled in one stroke. The stallion tackled two more and his armored hooves easily stomped in their skulls.

Then the element of surprise from their wild charge was over, and the pair found themselves pummeled with blows. Elias plunged Feather through one dog’s chest, then abandoned the weapon, opting for the shorter options he kept on his belt. Claws ripped into his arm as he drew his dagger, but he answered the grappling dog with an axe to the skull. His knife plunged into the beast’s throat as he ripped the axe out, then he let out a cry as a club shattered on his back.

Elias growled and turned, his eyes promising murder to the dog that stood stunned with his shattered club. His dagger found the dog’s heart, then the axe slashed across his throat. Elias immediately whipped the blade the opposite way, catching a dog with a spear across the eyes. His dagger slashed empty air as another jumped backward, just in time for one of his friends to smash into him. Magic fell away from the pair as the stallion grabbed another by the throat and threw him into the trees, even as his neck twisted to plunge his gladius into a dog’s legs.

One made the mistake of turning and running, offering Elias an opportunity to even the odds just a hair more. His axe bit into the dog’s spine, and with a flick of his wrist, the blade tore free, spattering the dog’s blood on its fellows. The hot blood made the dogs assaulting him pause for a moment, and Elias was quick to capitalize, killing another one and crippling another. As they fell away, more rushed into the fray, their eyes beady and nervous, but their muzzles still baying for blood.

Elias turned his head, the point of a knife biting into his cheek, but luckily missing the eye. He responded with a backhanded stroke of his axe, cutting the dog’s muzzle in two. He lost his dagger to another dogs throat, but he didn’t care, was more than content to grip his hand axe with both hands and get more power behind the swing. One dog managed to avoid his swing, losing only an ear, though that was still enough to cause the dog to yelp and run away. The one standing beside him was not so lucky, the hatchet embedding deep in its shoulder as Elias did his best to keep the dog from using his spear.

More dogs closed in, their number seemingly endless as the light from his remaining legionnaire began to flicker and fade. Elias bared his teeth and roared, doing his best to ignore the glow in the dogs’ eyes. He had little doubt that they could see in the dark, and as soon as the light was gone, he and his legionnaire would fall. He cut down another dog, but three more rushed in, one opening a cut on his arm while another stabbed at the armor on his chest.

“General, cover your eyes!” the stallion shouted.

Elias clawed at the eyes of one dog and hacked at the one who attacked his chest. He found his brain locked in combat as he dispatched the dog and looked to the next, and he couldn’t quite process the statement, could barely think of words enough to shout back:

“What?”

The world was suddenly white, the trees gone in a blistering array of light that burned at his retinas. To accompany the searing pain in his eyes was a thunderclap so loud he could barely tell it had occurred, only really knew it had happened because he his ears ached despite his newfound deafness.

He had been fighting, he knew that much, so he stepped back, trying to get space from any wild swings, hoping the dogs were facing the same situation he was. He rubbed at his eyes, desperate to get his vision back, but as he stumbled back another step, he tripped on one of the many corpses littering the ground. He fell backward, moaning as he fell into a warm, wet pillow that reeked of death.

Elias felt around for something pointy, his hands eventually seizing around the shaft of a spear. He squinted up, brandishing the spear toward the sky, ready to lash out as he watched his vision go from white, to a star field, and then to darkness. Colors traced up the darkness, especially one particularly irritating spot in the middle of his vision, but he was fairly certain he could see leaves bathed in moonlight. He closed his good eye, then winced in pain when he found that his bad eye hurt far more, but was recovering far quicker. There was no circle, and if anything, he could see better than if both eyes were open.

Elias slowly sat up, looking around. A few stray dogs were crawling into the trees, but most were already gone, or dead. Plenty of corpses littered the ground, enough to hopefully keep them away for long enough to check on…

Elias sat up suddenly and looked around, his eyes wild and desperate. The stallion was beside him, his muzzle moving, his eyes scanning the trees. Elias rolled to his feet and pushed the stallion aside, scanning through the bodies.

“Light,” he mumbled. “I need light.”

He vaguely heard the word “burnout” through the ringing in his ears, but it didn’t matter, because he saw her, her body limped and slumped against a tree. His heart stopped, and the spear dropped from his fingers. He didn’t care, he just stumbled forward, crawling and tripping over bodies. A hand reached out and grabbed his foot, and he hit the ground face first. His hearing returned in a snap of rage, and he turned on the diamond dog, slamming blows into the dog’s head until it stopped moving.

His voice finally sounded, sounding hoarse in his aching ears as he again stumbled toward her.

“Luna!” he called, sounding all-to-desperate, but he didn’t care. She wasn’t moving, and he had to see, had to make sure she was still alive.

He crawled over the corpses to finally reach the silent blue alicorn. She had managed to fall to rest in a sliver of moonlight, and it was more than enough to see a dark shaft protruding from her chest, along with two cuts; a long one on her barrel, and a short cut above her temple. Too much blood stained her normally pristine fur, and while he wanted to panic, his body automatically slammed into action. Elias placed a hand over the cut on her belly, pressing hard to apply pressure and staunch the wound, while the other held her face, rubbing her cheek lightly as he pleaded with her.

“Luna, please wake up, please be alright.”

She didn’t answer, didn’t move. The back of his mind screamed out that he needed to act, but the acting part of his brain was winning in it’s panic, and all he could manage to do was to make a slight change in tactics, reaching up to stroke her ears.

“Please wake up Luna,” Elias begged as tears began to stream down his face. “Please don’t leave me alone here.”

His ears strained as he felt the slightest bit of movement from the blue alicorn, but a hoof on his shoulder drew his attention away.

“General, we need to move,” his legionnaire said. “I can only do that trick once, and there are noises in the woods. We need to get the princess to safety, now.”

Elias stared at him for a long second, then slowly bobbed his head, looking back to the blue alicorn.

“W-we can’t,” he stuttered, his fingers still scratching her ears, a silent hope that she would awake to make some joke at his expense. He prayed for her to wake up and make him look like an idiot. The most delusional corners of his mind vaguely wondered if it was some joke, she was lying their asleep, covered in paint just to get more ear scratches. He ignored that part of his mind as he continued to speak. “It’s Light Show, right?” The stallion nodded. Elias pointed to the arrow. “I can’t remove that. If it was in me, I wouldn’t care, but…” He swallowed, his lips dry. His fingers resumed their post, scratching away in his vain hope of waking the princess. “I don’t want to make it worse. Moving will drive it in deeper, especially if she hits the ground. Go to camp, get Scalpel, get some legionaries. I’ll try to wake her up, then I’ll see if we can’t move.”

Elias heard a huff behind him, again felt the hoof on his shoulder, but this time he didn’t let it turn him away. He had to keep trying, she was going to wake up, he knew it. He needed to see the instant it happened.

“General, I am not leaving you both here to be attacked again. I understand it’s a risk, but we need to mo-”

Elias whirled, baring his teeth.

“Follow my order legionnaire or I leave you here with the dogs,” he spat, his words dripping with venom.

The pony shied away, but nodded.

“O-of course General. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

Elias ignored the words, immediately turning back to his alicorn. He rubber her silky soft ears between his fingers, trying to focus away the shaking that was preventing him from doing it just the right way that would bring a squeak from her lips.

For a few long, stressful moments, Luna didn’t so much as breathe. Then, she shifted ever so slightly, and let out a hum so low he thought it was still the ringing in his ears. She leaned into his hand, however, and one green eye flickered open, a faint grin spreading across her muzzle.

“Mmmm, you’re very good at that.”

Elias snorted, then smiled. He began to chuckle as tears streamed down his face, and he resisted the urge to hug her tight. Luna’s hoof feebly raised and pawed at his tears, succeeding only in wiping crimson mud across his cheek. She clicked her tongue and her eye closed.

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t just do that.”

Elias pulled his hand down and rubbed her cheek with his thumb.

“Please keep your eyes open Luna,” he said. “I need you to stay awake until Light Show comes back with Scalpel.”

Luna sighed lightly in protest, but her eyes cracked open again.

“Only for you Elias. Even my sister would receive a snore at that request.”

Elias felt his throat tighten, but he kept his smile wide, and his eyes locked with hers. His leg was warm, a sign that the alicorn was still bleeding. He didn’t want to make the wound worse, however, and he definitely didn’t want Luna looking down. As far as he knew, alicorns could still go into shock, and with her so weakened, doing so might kill her.

Then again, she looked somehow pale beneath her fur, and the arrow wasn’t the only injury that needed treating. He had to try to at least staunch the bleeding.

His hand fumbled at his belt, and Luna let out another sigh, then a squeak as she tried to move. Elias used his scratching hand to hold her in place as gently as possible.

“Please don’t move. I’ll try to patch up the cuts, but I can’t do anything for that arrow.”

She didn’t reply for a long moment, and Elias’ neck hurt from how hard his head snapped up, checking to see if she was still breathing. Slightly glazed with pain, Luna’s eyes were still open, and she met his worried gaze with a smile.

“I am still here my friend,” she said with a pained gasp. “It takes more than a knife to the belly and an arrow to kill an alicorn.”

Elias finally found his bandages and ripped them from their pocket. Luna leaned in, snorting wetly in his ear as he wrapped his arms around her. Taking care to avoid the arrow, Elias did a few loops, then slowly pulled, watching the shaft carefully to make sure he wasn’t tightening the bandage too much. Once he had fully covered the cut on her side, he bit off the remaining length of bandage, then tied it tight, running his hand along the cut to make sure it was sealed tight. Luna giggled deliriously in his ear.

“Oh my, how my favorite general is getting handsy.” She purred and nuzzled his cheek. “What would the nobles say?”

Elias pressed the remaining gauze into the wound on her forehead, drawing a pained hiss from the mare. He then began to wrap that wound closed as well, his throat finding voice, desperate to keep her awake and talking.

“They would try to have my executed for the attempt if the history books are any indication.”

Luna’s hooves weakly wrapped around him as he began to pull away to inspect his handiwork. Elias opened his mouth to protest, but Luna smothered his words by pulling him into a loose, yet firm hug. Her muzzle felt hot as she nuzzle his cheek and hummed.

“Damn them then, because I want you to warm my bed, General,” she mumbled. “this night and every night. I want you to be beside me. Bring Nightshade, and your Snowball, and Night Flash and Book Binder…” She giggled and nuzzled again. “I will buy a bigger bed for all of your snuggle buddies, but I want you Elias.” Her teeth flashed as their eyes met, her smile bright in spite of the obvious pain she was in. “You are so warm my precious human, and the night can be so cold.”

Elias frowned at that word, his eyes flicking to each of her wounds. The bandages weren’t soaked yet, but they were reddening, even if slowly.

“Are you cold now?”

Luna’s smile widened and she hummed again.

“Very. What is my precious, warm little human going to do about it?”

Elias, without hesitation, scooped up the alicorn and began to run toward the castra. Luna yelped in pain, but quickly fell quiet as she shifted, tucking herself against his shoulder in a way that didn’t cause the arrow to jolt as he ran. She, in fact, seemed almost pleased with the abrupt development. A glance down gave Elias a hint why. In his haste, he had picked the alicorn up like he would a large dog, with his hand firmly grasping her rump. Had the situation been even mildly less serious, a blush might have risen to his face, but his panic was fading in the tidal wave that was his anger.

Sombody had set up the ambush, and somebody was going to pay for hurting Luna and getting his legionaries killed. Somebody would pay dearly.

*****

“Bucking idiot!” Stone Horn roared, his hands wrapped around the throat of what he had thought the best bow-bull in the world. The other minotaur, for his part, simply took the punishment, his eyes still glazed with shock. In an act that was the antithesis of his very being, Stone Horn had had to remain completely silent after seeing the arrow miss the human, only to fly into the chest of the cowering alicorn. He might have a low opinion of the soft little pony, but he wasn’t stupid enough to think she wasn’t important. If nothing else, Steel Horn wanted her, and if he was to prove his aggression right, he needed the prize his brother sought.

His brother would only think him an idiot if the alicorn died because of his attack, especially since the bucking human was still alive!

“He has fled with the princess, Warchief,” one of his bulls said, crashing through the brush. “As far as I could tell, she still lives.”

Stone Horn growled and threw the minotaur in his hands to the ground. Stone Horn stomped on his chest once for good measure, then let out a growl in the shocked bull’s face.

“You’re lucky, because if she was dead, I’d offer your head to my brother.”

He looked up, found his others bulls watching, waiting for his word. He snorted and rolled his shoulders.

“As it stands, we still have a chance to make this right. Ready yourselves to fight. Elias Bright will die, and he will die, now.”