The night sky draped ebony and silver over the lands blurring past below, the steady wingbeats of the Kirins one of few sounds in the calm air. Twilight watched the night sky from her seat on the bench, horn flickering occasionally as she adjusted stray constellations. Carbon slept beside her, leaning up against her wings in his unconsciousness. From what she could see, her friends were all asleep as well, curled up or sprawled out across the soft cushions.
"How long until we arrive?" Twilight asked softly, glancing at Carbon to make sure she wasn't waking him.
The Kirin glanced over her shoulder. "Princess! I didn't know you were still awake. Uh... we'll probably be landing soon, and then we'll only have a few hours' travel until we reach the Icarus unit, where the ponies will be expecting you."
"How many units are out there?"
"Icarus is the largest one, stationed directly on the border." The Kirin dipped her wings, beginning a slow, spiraling descent, her wingponies following in stride. "There's four others I think. The Atlas unit is on the outskirts of the closest pony town, making the second wall of resistance should the dragons get through. Behind them is the Hermes line, closer to Ponyville and Everfree, and their job will be to kill as many intruders as possible, as they are made of weaker warriors. The final line is the Ares line, which holds the two Princesses. If they fall, Equestria does as well."
Twilight shivered, remembering Luna's icy touch. Could anything beat them both? "And us?"
"We're the Asteria patrol, to bring the very stars down upon those who attack." The Kirin smiled grimly, "after all, what other use is the power of the stars than to smite our enemies?"
Twilight was silent, choosing to look up at the night sky.
"I didn't mean you, of course." The mare stammered, her voice hitching as her flight ended with a short canter. "It just seems like a rather helpful power to have."
Twilight nodded, frowning as she disembarked the carriage, trotting stoically across the small clearing they had found and jumping up into the branches. She hooked her claws around a branch, turning around as she heard the approaching hoofsteps of her guide.
"You sure you want to sleep away from camp? This is still Everfree, even though it's a distant reach..."
She trailed off as Twilight let her remember exactly who she was talking to. "Go stay with your friends, Miss...?"
"Sky Drop." The Kirin replied. "You have a good night too, Princess."
Twilight watched her go before she clambered up through the thick branches, perching near the top, where starlight filtered through the leaves above.
"What am I meant to do?" She whispered to herself, lying down across the crooks of a few branches. "Am I really just here to... to kill? I don't want to kill."
The wind sliced through the leaves, filling the air with their clamor. Twilight wrapped her wings around her sides.
"I don't want to become Nightmare Moon."
-----
"Twilight? Are you okay?"
The Alicorn slowly came to, eyes slowly focusing on a butter-yellow muzzle a few inches from her own. "Fluttershy?"
"Oh, yes, you're okay." She pulled back, turning to face the ground. "She's fine, girls."
"Why was I not fine?" Twilight asked, sitting up.
"Oh, um, it was nothing really."
Pinkie Pie jumped up to one of the lower branches. "Sky Drop said you went to sleep in a tree but then we couldn't remember which one! It was like a big game of hide-and-seek! You played really super-duper well because you didn't say anything when we were yelling for you!"
"How long was I asleep?"
"Oh, only a few extra hours," Fluttershy replied. "Miss Sky says you were up pretty late last night, so I don't blame you."
"Only a few - only a few?!" Twilight sputtered, climbing up out of the leaves. "We're going to be late!"
"We'll be fine if we get," Sky Drop trailed off as Twilight leaped out of the tree, wings pumping furiously as she climbed over the trees, "going."
-----
It wasn't long before the Everfree Forest dimmed into a wide, rocky wasteland. Mountains towered in the distance, and dragons were very much visible at the border and in the skies. The small pony camps were marked with bright, striped tents, both sides obviously making it very clear to the other that they were there.
The chariots slowed and dropped, Twilight still flying ahead. She landed swiftly near the outskirts of the camp, adjusting to the dank, dry air as the chariots landed nearby.
As Twilight wandered over to meet her friends, Carbon stumbled out of the chariot, curling up on the ground. "Much too high. Perfectly okay with the ground."
"You're afraid of heights?" Fluttershy questioned, hopping down beside him. "Oh, you could have just said so."
"Not afraid of heights." He stammered, getting to his hooves. "Much more afraid with the impact of the ground."
"Princess Twilight Sparkle and the Asteria patrol?" A colt asked, trotting up behind them. "You're late. The general's been waiting for you for quite a while now."
"Sorry." Twilight smiled, offering a hoof. "We got held back."
"I-I think you better go see him. He's a bit... temperamental." The colt glanced back towards the tents, tail flicking anxiously.
She nodded. "Could you take us to him?"
"No!" He blurted. "I-I mean, I'd rather not. Y'see, I'm just a recruit, and he's really not fun to be around when you're new... orange and red tent."
"Thank you." The colt scurried away, and Twilight turned to her friends. "I'm going to go meet the general. You guys can just relax and explore. I'll be back soon!"
-----
The orange and red tent was rather small, compared to the others, but surprisingly much darker inside. Despite seeming to be made of the same material, no light shone through, and a small candle in the middle of the room provided the only light.
Twilight noticed a shadow shifting on the other side of the small flame, and she let the tent's draping entrance fall close behind her. The shadow turned, firelight glinting off of a small yellow eye.
"Pony." The creature grunted, moving the candle to the side, the flame dancing as it was tilted to another wick. "Welcome."
"H-hello." Twilight squinted into the dark, trying to get her eyes to adjust. "Are you the general?"
"I lead ponies, yes." Another tilt, another flame. "Sorry for dark, the sun is bright for my kind."
Another flame lit, and Twilight's eyes flitted over shifting outlines. "I don't mind. Princess of the Stars and all," she laughed, "I better be used to the dark."
"Well, Star Princess," another flame lit, and fire danced across a dark gray muzzle protruding with sharp teeth, "meet the leader of the mud."
Twilight took a cautious step back, wary of the paws that calmly folded themselves on the table. "You're a Diamond Dog?"
"Does it trouble pony?" He tilted his head, gemstone-studded collar glinting. "I thought Star Princess liked not-pony."
"No, it's fine. Just unexpected." Twilight dipped her head, embarrassment rising in her cheeks.
The Diamond Dog laughed, a few candles blowing out as he did. He cursed softly, rummaging around for the matches. "My name is General Stone. Pleased to meet you."
Twilight grinned sheepishly, shaking his paw. "So, you wanted to see me?"
"Yes, of course!" He lifted one of the candles from the table and loped over to the back wall, the dim outline of a large poster appearing as her drew closer. He transferred the candlestick to his mouth, left fangs sliding into the warm wax, and gently unhooked the poster from it's hanging place. He set it down on the table, removing the mangled candle and replacing it on the table.
Twilight took a step back as a square of bright light appeared under the poster. The Dog smiled, face lit hauntingly by the harsh glow. His paws moved beyond the light, and reappeared holding several small figures. He set them down gently, along lines and grids that appeared as the light below them brightened.
She leaned in towards the table, peering at one of the smaller figures. It was a pink pony, suspended above it's pedestal by a thin wire. The pony itself seemed to glow when the light hit it, and the rear half of it's body had contorted gracefully into a set of draconian claws.
"Is that Pinkie?"
Stone nodded, placing a few more ponies on the field. The rest of her friends were all present, including herself. Along with them were others she didn't recognize, Stone himself, and a fistful of dragons scattered across the other side of the map. Stone picked up his own piece, tilting it so that the crystalwork shone.
"For each Equestrian pony, there are hundred ponies serving with them. Star Princess and General have more." He set his piece down, lifting a red dragon from a mountain. "We do not know what dragons have. We think many, but more may be in mountain. Scouts do not return."
He picked up Twilight's piece, moving it towards the mountain and following it quickly with her friends. "Star Princess will enter mountain and look around, try to get numbers. She and her friends will not choose to fight unless attacked. Understood?"
Twilight nodded.
"Once we know how many dragons there be, we correct our numbers. Small patrol goes in back of mountain with dragonsbane plant and smokes them out towards our lines. Drachomachia - dragon killers - will be waiting when they escape. Dragonsbane makes dragons very weak. Almost..." he tilted his head, one claw pressing on the back of a nearby dragon, "fragile."
Twilight winced as the small figure snapped, shattering on the battlefield in a jumble of shards and limbs. "What do the Elements do during the attack?"
"They fight like other pony, ten times better than other pony. They take dragons to where other pony can attack." He swept the dragon shards into a paw, tossing them into his mouth. "Then we take Holds and wait for Sun Princess's orders."
Twilight nodded, staring at a small sliver of crystal still remaining on the board. It shimmered amethyst, one tip pointing directly at her piece and the other at the heart of the Hold. As she watched, it spun on a third point, swiveling between the two areas.
Stone noticed it and picked it up, crushing it between two fingers. "Star Princess may go."
"O-of course." She ducked her head, backing up. "I'll see you later, then?"
Stone rumbled a laugh as the tent's door folded shut after her. "If there is a later."
-----
Twilight trotted through the small camp, watching the training slow as the sun neared the horizon. A young Unicorn colt stood nearby, firing arrow after arrow into a dragon-shaped dummy. An Earth Pony mare sat near a forge nearby, grinding a curved blade sharp while a second mare detailed small emerald scales into the hilt. A rangy-looking stallion hunched over a table, leering at his allies through a foam-topped mug.
Twilight shuddered as she felt eyes slowly drawn to her. Mutters broke out, hushed under crackling fires and steady 'thunk's of the colt's arrows. Her ears flattened, but her draconian senses picked up on their words anyway.
"What help will she be? She's half enemy."
"Another one of those unholy mutts."
"Hah, some Princess, being part demon. I'd like to see her with her own kind!"
She stared around at them, fear closing her wings and rising in her throat.
"Bet she's already rutted one!"
"I hear half-dragons have teeth in some nasty places..."
Whimpering, Twilight broke into a run, tears threatening to run down her muzzle as her so-called allies blurred into a colored smudge around her.
She collided with something, halting her progress and sending a firm ringing through her ears. She looked up, seeing a pair of curious blue eyes looking back.
"Princess Twilight?"
A mare, voice rough with age and work, coat orange and slightly dirty with soot. She reached out, helping Twilight to her hooves. With a gentle hoof, she wiped the tears off of Twilight's cheeks. "Don't worry about that them. They're mean as drakes, the whole lot of 'em."
"Is it true?" Twilight muttered. "Am I really a monster? Still?"
"Hey, if you're a monster," she smiled, small fangs poking out from her grin, "then you're a monster among friends.'