//------------------------------// // Chapter 15; Fury in the Apple orchard // Story: The War of 1002 // by Fireheart 1945 //------------------------------// Bright Star couldn't hear James' speech that well, but knew it was inspiring from the way the ponies who had heard it had broken out into cheers, so he cheered along with them. I know somepony will tell me what he said... if we survive this battle. He looked at the incoming Changeling hordes. There's so many of them! He felt an urge to flee; he was an earth pony, after all, he was built for that kind of thing. Before he could make that decision, though, he saw his friends and comrades taking their positions. They look just about as scared as I feel. His courage returned, and a grim determination settled upon him. I can't let them down, and I won't. The cannons began to fire. Here we go again. He had seen this routine a lot within the past week; the artillery would fire, then the crossbowponies when the enemy got close enough, then it would fall to everyone to use swords and spears to defend themselves. The life of a soldier seemed almost predictable sometimes. His unit had stationed in the apple orchards that gave the town it's name. Some of the leaves fell from the trees as the guns fired. One of them fell onto Bright's nose. He snorted and blew it away. He lifted his crossbow to his shoulder, aiming as well as he could. "FIRE!" shouted one of the sergeants. He shot his bolt, and hundreds of "twang!"s went off, showering the Changelings with quarrels. Bright still felt guilty everytime he had to go into battle. I'm killing living beings. This isn't right. The one thing that kept him doing it was the knowledge that they would kill him... and the ponies he considered his friends. He reloaded, fired, reloaded, fired again. He felt like his weapon was his master; it demanded "food" in the form of crossbow bolts, and demanded them constantly. The artillery roared, and the hiss of cannister balls whizzed through his ears. Hundreds of Changelings fell, penetrated by the minuscule balls. The rest simply didn't care, and their return fire, while inaccurate, filled the air. He dodged one bolt of green energy, but dropped his crossbow; it slipped between his hooves to the ground. Aw, horseapples. He saw a Changeling come over the parapet and leap to the bottom of the trench. I guess the time for crossbows is over anyway, he thought. He picked up his spear and stabbed the drone in the neck. It let out a screech as it died. I shouldn't be doing this. But if I don't, they'll kill everypony else. That thought sustained him through the fighting, as the porous monsters continued their assault. They kept coming no matter how many of them died, swarming over the defenses to attack the Equestrian soldiers directly. The fighting continued for some time, although Bright didn't know just how long it went on; time in battle seemed to take far longer to pass than it did normally. An artillery piece fired so close that he stumbled; despite the fact that he had mastered the art, at least compared to other ponies, he had never felt it was natural to stand on just two legs, and in any case he felt his ears ring, and for a moment the noise of battle was almost nonexistant. He saw the cannonball strike a tree, and it fell right on top of two Changelings; apples rolled everywhere. It was almost comical. He rolled away from the gun, and jabbed at yet another Changeling; he felt a weird thought strike him as the spear went through the thing's neck, the weapon supported by a single hoof. How is it that our hooves feel nothing, yet we know when we're holding something? He pushed the thought aside; it wouldn't help keep him alive, or anypony else. He heard a crackling sound as his ears refocused; he turned to his left, and saw that a particularly large apple tree was about to crush him. He ducked out of there fast, before it could kill him... as if the Changelings needed any help doing that. "Spears ready, gentlecolts! We're going to charge!" That was the company captain, Golden Shield, a brother to Silver Shield, although the latter hadn't mentioned the former much. Is he insane!?! We're already fighting for our lives as it is, and you want us to charge right into death's waiting arms? As if he had read Bright's thoughts, Golden Shield, a grizzled Royal Guard, said, in a firm voice, "I will tolerate no disobedience; any soldier remaining behind will wish the Changelings had killed him, you can bet your bottom bit on that. Now get moving!" "Quite the motivational speaker, isn' he?", said one soldier near Bright. Yeah, no kidding. He rushed forward, slaying several Changelings who got in his way. He could see others following the order, if not with relish then with fear of the captain who had given the command. To his surprise, the charge managed to retake the trenches. The company pushed on, their initial reluctance dissipating at their unexpected success, and they charged on into the trees, pushing the enemy back for once. Bright felt a surge of hope. Maybe the captain isn't such an idiot after all. -------------------------------------------------------------- "What? Some brain-dead moron ordered a counterattack? Without my permission!?" James was furious. "Yes sir, Captain Golden Shield ordered a charge to retake the apple orchard." The pony in front of him wasn't nervous at his reaction to the news, but the concern on his face did question the captain's reasoning. He wasn't the only one. James felt rage threatening to overtake him; with great effort he contained it, though it continued to boil beneath the surface. If we get through this battle, I am going to court-martial him. Although the captain hadn't disobeyed any direct orders, he had known that a defensive strategy had been in his superior's mind. He was going to pay the price for jeoparizing not only his own command, but the entire army's... well, not safety, certainly, but security. And I'll be there to watch the WHOLE thing, he thought, with an almost predatory feeling inside. He shoved it down, as with his anger. Maybe the captain had seen some sort of opening. Maybe... if the planets were in perfect syncronization, if the weather was perfectly sunny, if hedgehogs could fly. "Sir, what are we going to do with Captain Shield's disobedience?" asked the gray Guard unicorn. James shook himself out of his thoughts. "Go and tell him that I order him and his command back to his original positions without delay, with a threat of court-martial if he disobeys. The Guard still looked doubtful. "What if he still refuses?" "Then arrest him on the spot and bring him into custody." James said it without delay. "Bring a couple others with you to ensure that that happens." "Yes, sir." The guard saluted, and galloped away. Now to focus on the battle at hand, the human thought, as more Changelings rushed toward his location. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bright Star rushed forward, glad to be on at least three legs temporarily as he continued the charge. Another Changeling died as it was struck in the chest by a steel spearhead. It feels good to be advancing again. Maybe we were going about it all wrong. He shook himself. Jim kept most of us alive as best as he could. It's not his fault, it's the enemy's. All the same, something in the pit of his stomach said something was wrong... He wondered what it was... It clicked, all at once. It feels too easy. That was it. The enemy's number should have swamped them, or so he felt, the moment the charge had begun. Maybe that was the way an advance was supposed to feel? He kept on even with doubts clogging his mind, hacking and stabbing any black body that got in his way. Nearly a hundred other Equestrian soldiers advanced with him, and he felt reassured by their presence. The attack went on, nearly to the northern edge of the apple orchard, before it happened. Bright and hundreds of his comrades (Golden Shield's company hadn't been the only one to advance) stared at the black line, which was just standing there, waiting... They lowered their horns all at once... "DUCK!" Bright shouted. He immediately did so himself. He was just in time; a mere half-second or so after he did, green bolts slammed into the company. He heard screams, and bodies fell to the ground around him. He knew not all of them were unhurt. For about a minute, the air was full of green bolts. More screams rang out, as well as curses. Then he heard hoofbeats, and the ground shook slightly. He looked up; sure enough, the Changelings were launching a charge of their own. A few continued to fire, though with nowhere near the deadly effect they had had a few moments ago. The Equestrians somehow managed to get ready in time to meet the charge. However, unlike previously, they couldn't stand against it. The line broke in less than a minute. They fled. For the first time in the war, Equestrian soldiers panicked. They ran back into the trees, with Bright one of their number. "You damned flea-bitten cowards! Get back into the fight!" Bright almost hesitated. That voice belonged to Captain Shield. He also noticed, to his bizarre amazement, that he was still holding his spear. He kept running. Why don't you meet the enemy yourself, captain? He felt slightly guilty, but mostly anger penetrated his heart. The captain had lead his company into this mess, and now the Changelings had practically destroyed the company. He almost stopped. The entire company, along with a few units near it, had abandoned their positions; except for the artillery, there was nothing in the enemy's way. They could break into the rear of the army and destroy it. He did stop when he noticed a pegasus hiding behind a tree; the poor stallion was sitting with his hooves over his head, shivering in terrible fear. The fellow had a crossbow right beside him. Bright tapped the soldier with his hoof. The kid jerked. "No, NO! GO AWAY, YOU MONSTER!" The soldier stopped shaking, got up, and got a better look at him. "Listen to me!" Bright said firmly. "We have to try to stop them or they'll cut the entire army to shreds." He stood straight. "Come on, you still have a crossbow and quarrels, get into the tree and start shooting." The soldier got up, tears in his eyes. "Okay, I'll do it." He picked up his crossbow, then flew up into the tree. Bright was surprised at how quickly he had gotten over his fear. He ducked behind the tree, waiting... Hoofbeats. He stabbed out on the right side of the tree, and met resistance. He was shocked to see it was a pony... then it's body changed shape, and turned back into a Changeling. Ahhhhhhhh... He felt almost revolted enough to vomit. The shock of seeing a white pony, even though it had proved in reality to be a Changeling, had shaken him to the core. Wait... if they're doing this everywhere... He lurched backward, even more horrified. If they were doing this as a concentrated strategy, then they would be able to capture the army's artillery without another shot from them, and infiltrate the army's lines to make it even easier to destroy them. We have to hold the line here, no matter the cost, or they'll kill us all! He knew someone would have to rally the remains of the shattered units. Captain Shield wasn't anywhere close by. Bad feelings aside, the captain probably wasn't the best idea anyway. Nopony was going to listen to him, not after this. Twang! He heard a crossbow go off from somewhere above him; the pegasus must have found a target. The pegasus... Bright looked up. "Hey, you up there!" He heard a loud creak. "Yeah?" "We have to organize a line, go out and find some ponies to try to hold them back long enough for me to warn our artillery!" "You got it!" The tree shook as the pegasus flew off. Now to run, run faster than I've ever run before. He took off, galloping as fast as he could toward the south. Before he got to the southern edge of the orchard, he crashed into a party of three ponies. He tumbled head over hooves into a tree. He was momentarily stunned. Why is everything upside down? He realized he was on the ground, and that it was he that was upside down. He got to his hooves as fast as he could. "Uh, please excuse us," said one of the soldiers, a gray unicorn Guard in silver-colored armor. "We're looking for Captain Golden Shield. If you could notify us of his current location..." "You should stop worrying about him and start worrying about the Changelings; they broke our lines, and are heading right back toward our artillery. If we don't stop them, and soon, there won't be an army to save anymore." "What!? Are you certain of this?" The gray unicorn scanned him. "Alright, so you're not a Changeling." He turned to one of his colleages, a pegasus Guard. "Go inform our frontlines to the south of the change in the situation, at once." The pegasus saluted and flew off to the south. The unicorn turned back toward the north. Bright's hoof stopped him. "You can't go up there, the Changelings are up there!" The Guard turned he is head, indignant. "Get your hoof off me! I have orders, from Colonel Lavigne himself, to have Captain Shield bring his command back to it's original positions and to arrest him if he refuses." "Forget it, he's almost certainly dead by now." That statement seemed to bring a little sense back to the unicorn. "Hmmph. You're probably right. And if he's still alive, he's going to have to deal with his own problems." He still looked upset, though. "If I find him alive, though, I'll blame you for the delay in the delivery of the orders." "Whatever, just get to safety..." A green jet of light streamed between them, cutting off the conversation. The unicorn turned and fired his horn at the enemy, nailing one dead center. The earth pony beside him, armed with a crossbow, shot at the enemy as he ducked behind a tree. More green bolts flew past their position, and more Changelings came forward, insectile sounds coming from them as they did so. "Come on!", Bright said, tugging at the unicorn. "We have to get out of here!" The unicorn growled furiously. "You're right. Hold on." His horn lit up, and a gray-tinged shield lit up around all three ponies. "Let's go, this spell requires a lot of energy to keep it going." They all galloped as fast as they all could to the south. Only one thing was going through Bright Star's mind. I hope we're not too late... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- They were in sight of the artillery and the trenches. Bright felt relief flood his body. It looks like they haven't reached our lines yet. Green jets shot past his shoulder. Ah! I though we'd lost these rascals! He dodged as much as he could. "Look out! Our cannons are going to fire!" Bright looked up; indeed, the battery up ahead was preparing to fire. There was no time to think, only to act. He jumped behind a cluster of Changeling bodies, and heard his newfound comrades follow suit. The roar of the guns firing was obliterated by the hiss of cannister balls flew by over head. The Changelings bodies he was up against jerked. He braced himself, although part of his brain thought, how useless. Three more roars came, followed by hissing balls filling the air each time. He looked up, over the bodies he was hiding behind. There was a cloud of white smoke over the position. "Come on! Now's our chance!" shouted the gray unicorn. They all rushed toward their own lines, scrambling over dead bodies. They had almost reached the trenches when three unicorns appeared in front of them. "Halt!" one of them yelled. His horn and that of his companions lit up. "Stop, you fool! We're on your side!" Bright cried out, knowing, even as he said it, that it was useless. Several magical beams flew over their heads as all three ponies ducked. "Come on up, slowly now!" The call came from the same unicorn that had told them to halt. They all obeyed, walking slowly back into their own lines. The white Guard unicorn said, "Now, prepare yourselves for scanning." He and his comrades went on to do so. "You're clean. What were you all doing out there? Did you realize you were being chased by Changelings!?" "You have to listen to us! Our line was broken up north, and our units have been scattered throughhout the orchard. We need help to keep holding!" Bright said this in a firm, but loud, voice. "Are you sure?" the unicorn asked in shock. "I knew Captain Shield gave the orders for a charge, but I didn't think this had happened. We could still hear fighting up north." "Believe me, they're on their way. And they've been..." "Pretending to be us, yes I know that. That's why they're called Changelings." "Alright then, has Captain Golden Shield returned?" asked the gray unicorn. "No, we haven't seen him since he gave the order for the attack." Bright listened, ears perked. There were sounds of fighting inside the orchard, and, occasionally, the crash of a tree falling to the ground. Apparently, the soldiers in the orchard were still fighting. For how long, though... Yes, for how long... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ James listened dismally to reports of fighting in the orchards. The units were scattered and putting up infrequent resistance. Some units had stopped sending reports at all. He had to hope they were stil lfighting and were only cut off, not destroyed. The battle in other areas was growing more and more out of control as the fighting continued. What had begun as an organized engagement had spiraled into a chaotic struggle. James knew he had to try to regain control; he had been trying to, with little luck. By the slimmest of margins, they had prevented the Changelings from infiltrating their lines and impersonating real soldiers. "Sir, they're still coming, we can't hold them off forever!" a regular said, with worry clouding his face. "I know." He couldn't run from the fact; the enemy was on the verge of complete victory. In some areas to the west, despite his desperate orders to hold on, there was fighting on the outskirts of Appleloosa, and by the few reports he had gotten, the battle would soon spread into the town itself. We've failed. To his immese surprise, he felt no sadness, only peaceful serenity. If it was all going to be over, then he'd die side by side with friends and comrades who had fought and suffered along with him. The ground started to shake. A loud, continuous thunder could be heard to the west, drowning out the sounds of the Changelings' charge. An earthquake, he thought. "Sir, look!" A brown earth pony was shouting, pointing a hoof toward the west. James turned... and felt his hopes soar. Massive, brown-colored bodies were surging toward the Changelings. With loud roars and battle cries, the buffalo herd slammed into the Changelings' flank, crushing them against what remained of the army and their own warriors. James gave a cheer, then turned to his soldiers. "Hurrah! Look, our buffalo allies have arrived. We'll crush the enemy!" The troops gave a tired, but persistant and determined cheer in response to this announcement. The Changelings, on the other hand (or hoof), reacted in a confused manner to the buffalo attack. Their actions became disorganized, and now it was they who struggled to hold their ground. Although the buffalo didn't have anything like the numbers of their foes, they had the size to make the issue moot. Countless Changelings were tossed into the air like clods of dirt, while others were trampled and crushed. "All units, try to link up with our allies! Push foward!", James yelled. The army did it's best to obey; even now, fighting to the east was still confused, and, as he fought on with his comrades in arms, he received no further reports himself, as he was too busy trying to fore the enemy back. Presently, as the buffalo penetrated further into the Changelings' lines, their resistance suddenly ceased, and they began to flee. "Come on, we have them on the run!" James killed another Changeling that had turned around and had tried to gore him. He again kicked it off his blade and ran on. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unfortunately, tired by hours of fighting, the Equestrian army proved to be in no condition to catch the enemy's main force befome it could escape, although smaller pockets were surrounded and cut to pieces by the allied forces. James finally ordered his forces to halt. A few soldiers threw themselves on the ground, too tired to care about anything but resting, while others licked their lips, thirsty beyond belief. The army would need a massive overhaul, that was certain. It's ammunition was all but depleted, and the casuaties suffered in this battle surpassed all thoses suffered in previous engagements. James sat down as the buffalo and the ponies began to intermingle. There didn't seem to be any hostility between them, and soldier and warrior shared stories, some so obviously and outrageously exagerated that he had trouble trying to sort out what had really happened. "And what is this ape-like thing?" a deep voice came from behind him. He whirled around, left hand on the sheath of his sword. There, several meters away, stood Chief Thunderhooves. Oh, great. Now I might have to deal with this bruiser. "I'm a human. The name's Colonel James Lavigne. I lead this army." The buffalo snorted disbelievingly. "How do I know you're not a Changeling in disguise? "Because he's not!" A unicorn, with white fur and a tan mane, trotted up to them, and scanned James. After a few seconds, he announced, "He's clean." "Maybe your words do have some truth to them after all." The chief still didn't sound trusting. "Sir, I was the guy chosen to talk to the buffalo," the unicorn said. "Oh? And what was the decision they made, and why did they make it?" "Because we enjoy healthy relations with the Appleloosans, and our code does not allow for us to stand by while innocents are harmed," answered the chief. "That said, we shall have no further part in this conflict. We have done what needs to be done, and shall return home." He said this in a tone that brooked no arguement. Damn it! Still, James was more pleased than not. The arrival of the buffalo had saved the army and the town, and, although they would not fight any further in the war, their intervention had likely tipped the balance of the entire conflict. "Well, thanks for what you did do. They almost had us that time," he said quietly. The chief nodded, then called his warriors together. They all left in a similar manner to which they had arrived. A few carried bodies of tribemates; the buffalo had not gone completely unbloodied, although their losses had been extremely low. James watched them go, wondering what was going to happen now. the entire war had shifted from a near-defeat situation to victory in a matter of perhaps half an hour, if that. Maybe I wasn't lying to these fellows after all. Maybe we really can win. It was certainly in the cards now.