Rainbow was hidden in a classroom, Octavia somewhere else. The little fillies crowded around the royals, squealing in delight at the princess' beautiful flowing manes.
She still had her ears pricked and her eyes peeled, but it had been an hour since the royals arrived, and no suspicious characters were detected. They were playing the waiting game, Rainbow realized. Just waiting to catch them off guard.
She won't let that happen.
Except, she really didn't have a choice when it really all kicked off.
A rumbling so loud that it even shook the foundations of Cloudsdale came from below, and everypony rushed to the edge of the city to take a look down.
The earth was shaking, shaking more than it ever did. Cities crumbled into piles of ruble below them, and they all gasped in horror and covered their eyes. But this was no ordinary earthquake, the bounty hunters realized.
Some parts of the earth were beginning to lift, only some points. They rose from the rest, and then abruptly broke apart, and they could see the waves traveling down the crust, shaking more buildings as they sped below.
Wells began forming in the ground, earth crumbling and falling away into huge mile-wide holes. Then dark metal tips began rising out of the ground, a laser at each tip and pointing towards the sky. Still they rose, and still the rumbling went on.
It turned out they were giant spaceships, irregularly shaped cones with powerful thrusters beneath them. They pushed out of the earth, hundreds of them, maybe even thousands. Each was several miles apart, and a mile in width. The amount of them was so massive that the line of ships stretched beyond the horizon, disappearing from view. The ponies could even see them curve out of sight, following the earth's surface.
They rose into the sky, pushing clouds aside and casting the largest shadows that any pony has ever seen across the lands of Equestria. For a moment they hovered there in the atmosphere, their engines ablaze and keeping them in the air.
Princess Celestia and Luna had joined the crowd at the end of Cloudsdale, watching the ships. They stared, unable to believe their eyes, but not showing it. This was a full scale attack, and the leaders are expected to remain calm.
"Gather all available forces, Shining Armor; for we have a crisis on our hooves." Celestia said, trying to keep her voice calm.
Octavia joined Rainbow's side, staring at the ships. They didn't have any clue what they did, and could only hope for the best.
Suddenly there was a metallic groan, the noise echoing up and down the length of Equestria. The metal cones split, slowly opening up like flowers. The petals unfolded, and Rainbow could see churning mechanics on each one of them. Octavia put her binoculars to her eyes, pointed them towards one of the leaves, and gulped. From what she saw, Equestria really didn't have much of a fate left.
"Give me that." Rainbow said, snatching away the binoculars and taking a look for herself. She fell still the moment she saw what was on those leaves.
Slowly being pieced together, were weapons of all sorts, some they couldn't even name. They were seemingly from a different age, a more advanced one. Turrets popped out from their sockets, gates opened up and Rainbow could see jet fighters of an alien sort all lined up and ready to go. Missile silos were fully loaded and the warheads pointed at the ground, ready for annihilation. Cannons clicked into place, swirling about and searching for a target. All tightly formed on the leaves.
The points of all the leaves joined together, and all the ships were connected together in a few clicks that echoed over the earth, creating a giant metal shell that ran the length of Equestria; barricading it from everything- absolutely everything else. The land of Equestria was thrown into panic as its citizens ran about and screamed at their impending doom.
Celestia was still looking up firmly, not losing her sense of authority. She saw the markings on the ships. They were ancient markings she saw before, and she knew what was coming if they were true.
Science, is back.
Long ago, at the very start of time, there were two powerful factions that ruled the lands of Equestria together. The two factions were Science, and Magic. Magic was limited, and slow developing, but a very strong superpower despite all this. Science was still at its start, but was developing quickly. Then ponies saw what Science could accomplish that Magic could not, and began experimenting. Magic never found Science's rapid development intimidating, and in fact, the faction was proud of what the pony race had accomplished as a whole.
But then some ponies found a way to use Science in ways never intended. In ways of mass destruction, in ways of hurt. Magic saw this unfit, and attempted negotiation with the Science faction.
Viewing this as a threat, Science decided to wipe out all existence of magic, and dominate Equestria, as they found no use for the Magic faction. A great war broke out, in which entire populations were annihilated, millions killed, and the destruction stretched beyond Equestria. Finally Science was defeated, but the losses and damage to the land itself almost rendered Equestria inhabitable.
Celestia feared this would happen again, and judging from what she's been seeing so far, the Science faction may have finally grown stronger than the Magic faction.
Then the first wave of attacks hit, large drop ships coming out of hangars in the barricade. Fighters deployed, millions and millions of them, and the barricade rained down missiles and laser fire on Equestria.
The ground was littered with craters by now as millions of weapons opened fire. Equestria was in a state of chaos, its military without orders- but that was about to change.
"Our troops are on their way. Some of the convoys are... Having problems." Shining Armor sighed. As much as he didn't want to think about it- and as fast as it happened, Equestria was now at war. "Princess, I advise that the royals retreat to Canterlot and co-ordinate our attacks there. Right now we need a leader to lead this battle, this war. Princess, that is you." They also needed to figure out what the buck was going on.
"Princess- I assure you this is not the time to stay and fight! We fight, princess; that is what we are here for." a royal guard said from nearby, saluting.
"We have all our arial transports deployed, so we'll only be able to take you in an armored truck. Too dangerous for flying anyway, with all the jets deployed by the Science faction." Halcyon Fleet said, one of the Princess's two royal body guards and a Warden, undoubtedly a hard fighter. Right now she had her full body armor on, her light blue helmet well polished and shiny. She had her long rifle slung across her back, and her secondary weapons and grenades all tightly buckled to her belt.
"Thank you, Halcyon. But I cannot risk my subjects." Celestia sighed.
"Sister- did you look around yourself?" Luna asked incredulously. "We don't make this move, everypony dies. The Science faction wins!"
"Wait, how does everypony know about this Science faction thingy?" Shining Armor raised an eyebrow.
"It's an old filly's tale!" Cadence said, lovingly ruffling the captain-of-the-royal guard's mane. "Remind me to tell it to you some time when this is all over."
Shining Armor ignored the giggles from his lower ranking officers and sighed. War is hell.
*
"Twenty miles till we're in range for teleportation!" Halcyon yelled. They were in an armored truck, and they could hear all the explosions going on outside. The plan was to drive the truck close enough to Canterlot and then have Celestia teleport them there- but there was a range limit, so this will take a while. The bounty hunters were assisting them, although Halcyon wasn't sure whether she liked that or not. But since Shining Armor trusts them- then why not?
Celestia had teleported them all down here from Cloudsdale, but it was too dangerous to make random jumps and jump to Canterlot- for all they know, they could accidentally teleport into a bomb.
They were all tuned on the same channel for the mics- only Magic faction ponies may access these specific channels, and attempts by other factions will be useless.
"Taking some heat up here! Octavia! Fire support!" Rainbow Dash yelled through the mic.
"On it." Octavia buzzed. All the sounds of battle were coming through the mic, and it made Halcyon tighten her grip on her rifle.
"Hang in there everypony. We gotta make it." the driver said.
Princess Celestia and Luna were co-ordinating attacks, their eyes misty as they tuned into the eyes of the soldiers. Their magic allowed them to do that, to see what others see. But it also left them completely vulnerable, and that is why they must head to Canterlot- the single most secure location currently in Equestria.
"This is one heck of a bumpy ride. Prepare for emergency deploy- the road ahead is barricaded!" the driver shouted.
"Missiles!" Halcyon yelled as she heard the distinct screeching of one as it flew towards them. It hit off target, but the explosion was enough to tip the car to one side.
"Gah!" one of the royal guards shouted as he hit the floor then tumbled onto the wall when the car tipped. Halcyon unbuckled her seat belt, and fell down onto the opposing wall. She quickly got up, loading her rifle.
"Out! Out! OUT!" She yelled, lashing out a kick that sent the back doors of the truck off their hinges and sprawling across the floor. Outside was total chaos, with explosions that seemed to never stop and generally nothing that reminded her of Equestria. No beautiful land- just smoldering remains of... Everything. "Protect the princesses!" she yelled, firing her rifle at some jet fighters that screeched past. "Come on, princess. Let's get ya to safety." she assisted the royals out of the truck.
"Roughly nineteen miles from here- this way! Move it, move it!" the driver yelled, unslinging his own rifle.
"Air team! Establish aerial superiority- concentrate fire on the air space above our location! We need the princesses in Canterlot immediately!" Halcyon yelled.
"We have an air transport in the area!" an unfamiliar voice said through the mic. "I'm on it right now. But you'll have to clear the LZ first, transport can't land with all the fire! But we'll provide air support, over."
"Who the buck is that?" Halcyon asked.
"She's the best sniper you'll ever see- well, hear about- people unusually get shot before they see her- and be glad she's on our side." Shining Armor said.
"There's a clearing ahead of you." Magnum said. "Roughly three miles. It's clear of debris and all, flat ground for our helicopter to land. Think you can make it there?"
"Oh well. Was in our path anyway." Halcyon said. "Can we make a tele-jump there?"
"Negative. It's heavily fortified. Can't risk a blind jump." Rainbow said.
"Right. We got multiple tangos coming in, your three o'clock. One heavy armor at nine." Magnum said, and Halcyon heard her rifle go off- the blast could be heard outside the mic as the armor piercing round hit its target. They were in the middle of old Fillydelphia, but it had been almost completely demolished, and the buildings that still stood were irreparable. There were parts of the city on fire and there was smoke everywhere. The carcasses of cars and busses were scattered on the streets, some half disintegrated in large bomb craters. Bodies could be seen too, but they merged in with the view so well that none of the ponies noticed them at first. And then the noises- constant rumbling as more buildings went down, booms as explosions tore through Equestria, and the distant and also constant yelling and screaming merged into one unbearable noise.
"There they are! Take cover!" Halcyon yelled, crouching down next to a car. "They're flanking us! Rainbow, can you take out that heavy?"
"I'm a little occupied!" Rainbow said, flying left and dodging a missile shot at her from a jet fighter. She had a combat flight suit on, those were metal armor plates that clamped around your body but were enchanted so they're really light weight. There were two weapons on the back, twin cannons that fire off previously charged spells. The spells were highly effective against metal, and could rip right through. Somehow it did less damage on flesh, so there are also machine guns mounted. The downside is that most homing missile types will be able to track the suit, so there is an eject system that throws the pony away and uses the suit as bait. Wasn't that expensive to produce, after all.
"Done." Magnum said, firing a round into the heavily armored tank. Somehow the bullet punched through all the layers of armor, and it stopped in its tracks, the driver probably bleeding brains on the controller.
"Enemy transport!" Halcyon yelled, then realized there was no end to this. They were coming from the barricade above, and basically a different planet. Imagine how many ponies you could fit in that thing.
"Scoots!" Rainbow yelled. "Shoot down those transports!"
"On it." Scootaloo also had a suit on. Beating her wings furiously against the air, she rode the wind and headed straight for the transport, a beam of magical energy ripping through its engines.
Its back section exploded, smoldering pieces falling to the ground. The transport seemed to still hover at first, then slowly followed the falling pieces.
"Good work!" Rainbow said. But then she hit something, and smashed through. It was one of those invisible copters.
Inside, all the Science faction ponies turned to look at her. Realizing it was an enemy, they scattered for their rifles.
All Scootaloo saw were Science faction ponies appearing out of thin air and then falling to their deaths as Rainbow caused havoc inside the copter. Then Rainbow emerged, and an explosion went off on the ground below her.
"Invisible transports." Rainbow explained.
"Iris, can you see them?" Shining Armor asked.
"Hold on..." Iris looked closer at the area around them, getting the right feel. When he found it, he could see at least ten transports coming their way. "Ten targets!"
"Shuck!" Halcyon yelled. "We can't hold off much longer! They're appearing out of everywhere!"
Princess Celestia and Luna were fighting too, the latter having her shadows coiled around her body as a shield against the bullets. She had dark blades lash out at the science faction ponies, slicing them into peices. Really, really small peices.
Celestia brought the fury of the sun down, sending solar flares down through the holes in the barricade and bombarding the enemy troops with heavy particles. She tried hitting the barricade before, but it had some sort of shield that prevented such an attack from causing damage.
There were no tactics in this war. It's just kill all of them, or they'll kill all of us.
"Air support team, get out of the area." Luna said.
"Princess?" Rainbow asked incredulously.
"Out." Luna said, lowering her head and her eyes glowing light purple.
The air team quickly retreated.
A dome of shadows suddenly came into existence around the ground team, and the royal guards gasped in wonder. The shield glowed dark purple, then expanded, knocking down any invisible transport that may have been in the area. All Rainbow saw were random explosions on the shield as helicopters went down, then the carcasses that rolled down the side. The shield disappeared, and Luna panted for breath.
"Do not hold back on your energy Luna- I assure you, this is the time to use that energy." Celestia said. "But do not push yourself over the edge."
Luna simply nodded, slowly gaining her breath.
"Air team! Cover fire!" Halcyon reloaded her rifle. "Blaze!" she tapped a royal guard on the shoulder. "Follow me! We need to charge out and get those bastards out from behind cover and clear the path. Ready?"
He nodded, and posed, ready to sprint and get to cover.
"Three, two, one-" Halcyon leaped over the car she was hiding behind, her rifle ablaze.
"Come on your highnesses," Shining Armor patted Cadence on the back. "We need to move!"
"Keep your heads low!" Iris said, at the end of the group as they ran for the landing zone.
"Aerial space is clear. Air support is here!" Rainbow cried.
"Fire on targets- twelve o'clock! Get them!" Halcyon said, popping up from behind a bus and taking down two Science faction ponies with a spray of her rifle.
"Shuck!" Blaze ducked back behind cover as a series of bullets hit the car he was hiding behind, showering him with sparks. "We've got a heavy machine gun!"
"No we don't." Magnum said, followed by a loud bang.
"Thanks." Blaze said, then resumed firing.
"One mile to go!" Halcyon said. "Plow through them! Our top priority is to get royalty back to Canterlot!"
They could see Canterlot in the distance, and it was under attack too- but the heavily fortified position on the side of a cliff meant the enemy ponies must proceed through the front gates, and the royal army inside were holding off nicely. There was a shield generator inside Canterlot that prevented the barricade from doing anything from the outside, and was practically indestructible unless somepony turned off the shield.
"Transports! Up ahead! They're trying to block us!" Blaze kept his trigger down.
"Yeah. On it." Rainbow said. Blaze looked up, and spotted the two pegasi with their wings tucked in, slicing through the air at near sonic speed, all weapons blazing at the transports.
"Oh shuck- look out!" Blaze yelled, and tackled Halcyon. Both tumbled onto the ground, but they still couldn't avoid the out-of-control helicopter that came right down on the both of them, metal groaning and cracking as the flaming shell slammed into the ground.