Chapter 7: To the North and to the South
Equestrian Camp, South of Canterlot, Equestria, Gaia, Summer, 56 C.E.
Putrid smoke pushed its way into the Doctor's nostrils. His body ached with a combination of bruises, cuts, and burns. His eyes opened to the dastardly sting of cinders and smoke. He carefully picked himself off the ground and regained his footing. He was pleased to see that there were no broken bones or fractures in his body but that didn't take away the sting of the injuries that he had anyway. As the Doctor examined his injuries, he took note of the surrounding landscape.
The Equestrian camp was in ruins. Hardly any of the tents remained standing and those that did were either burnt or torn. Injured soldiers could be seen making their way through the wreckage. The bodies of the lost were also seen scattered throughout the new wasteland. The Doctor looked through the smoke and was able to catch groups of injured changelings disappearing into the forest. He figured that the changeling army must have suffered just as greatly as the Equestrian army in the battle. Suddenly, he thought back to the face off between Celestia and Esmeralda. He looked for any sign of the alicorn princess or the changeling queen. A nearby groan caused his ears to rise in anticipation. The Doctor followed the groans towards the mangled and weak form that was Princess Celestia. The alicorn princess was in a terrible state. Her body was cut and burned, magical smoke was emitting from her horn, parts of her mane were singed, and certain segments of the golden armor she had been wearing were either dented or melted.
"Don't worry, I've got you," said a nearby voice. The Doctor looked and noticed a mostly uninjured Equestrian soldier carrying an injured nurse mare on his back. The Doctor then looked at the other survivors and took note of where they were heading: in the direction of Canterlot Mountain. He looked down at the injured Celestia. She definitely needed somewhere to rest and heal before the next encounter with the changelings. Thinking back to the changelings, the Doctor looked around for any sign of Esmeralda. She was gone. The Doctor figured that the queen had trudged off with the rest of her injured army; but he was sure that she would be making a comeback sooner than later. The Doctor proceeded to help the injured Celestia up and allowed her to lean on him. She was surprisingly lighter than the Doctor had expected. He figured that there was some magic weight distortion involved or something of that nature.
"Do...Doctor," groaned Celestia. The Doctor began walking himself and Celestia in the direction of Canterlot Mountain.
"Don't strain yourself, your majesty. We have a long walk ahead of us," he said in reply. Celestia nodded and calmly let the chestnut stallion lead the way.
Royal Hospital, Canterlot, Equestria, Gaia, Summer, 56 C.E.
Twilight's head was spinning madly. Her memory of the previous few hours was blurry at best. All she really remembered was the changeling attack, walking towards Canterlot, the flurry of colors, and Angie coming to help her. Everything else was just jumbled. However, Twilight's senses had begun to become clear once again. Her vision cleared up and she noticed that she was lying on a makeshift bed of hay, feathers, and sheets. Soldiers as well as nurses and civilians walked passed her. Twilight examined the room she was in and saw that it was a massive hospital ward.
"You're awake," said a tired voice. Twilight turned her head to see Angie standing next to her bed. The farmmare let out a loud yawn. "You've been out of it for a few hours. It's only a couple hours till dawn now."
"What...what about...the Doctor...Celestia?" Twilight mumbled.
"I don't know. Soldiers of all sorts have been popping up here. Pegasi, unicorns, earth ponies...but no sign of the Princess or the Doctor." Angie gave a sigh before placing a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "Don't worry, Twilight. I'm sure they're on their way. I don't see Princess Celestia or the Doctor as ponies that would easily give in."
"And...the changelings?" Angie shook her head.
"They have casualties like our army. Many were incredibly injured. They've all fled back into the Silent Forest, possibly back to their camp." Twilight could feel some of her strength returning. She slowly sat up and massaged her neck with her hooves. There was still pain, but at least she was feeling better.
"What's the plan now?" Twilight asked with a much clearer and steadier voice. Angie shook her head and shrugged her shoulders in response.
"I don't know. It's pretty much chaos now."
"Why wasn't the army prepared for something like this? How could the changelings have suddenly attacked us like this, and why haven't they tried this sooner?" Again, Angie shook her head.
"I don't know. For all we know, the changelings could have this big master plan and this attack could be the start of it."
"Maybe." Twilight turned to look towards a nearby window. The countryside of Equestria was shrouded in the eerie darkness of nighttime morning. "I just hope my friends are okay...and I hope that we're all able to get out of this in one piece."
"I think everypony's wishing for that." Angie then slumped over onto Twilight's bed and instantly fell asleep. Twilight could tell that the farmmare was exhausted. Twilight simply lay back down and rested her head on the feathery pillow. This was only the beginning and a difficult battle was just around the corner. Twilight was sure of this.
The Rolling Hills, Outskirts of Gustus Amoris, the Changeling Empire, Gaia, Summer, 56 C.E.
The sky had begun to turn into a light blue-black when Erik the dragon landed on the grassy knoll. Derpy, Donna, Flarewing, and Bass climbed off the dragon's back.
"Here we are," said Bass. Derpy and Donna stepped forward to examine the scene before them. A massive, black castle rose high into the sky. Its highest towers consisted of sharp spires and towers that reminded the two newcomers of arrowheads. A magical, green shield was wrapped over the castle like a cloak. Surrounding the castle was a fairly large city of buildings that looked as if they were taken straight out of England's dark ages. Even thought it was still dark, the area was illuminated quite well by the thousands upon thousands of torches that were scattered throughout the castle and the surrounding city of Gustus Amoris.
"So, this is it," said Donna.
"Yes," Bass replied.
"It looks almost exactly as it did when I left," said Flarewing.
"Well, there hasn't been much attention to redesigning the city with the whole war going on and everything." The group fell silent for a moment.
"So Queen Esmeralda's greatest weakness is inside there?" Derpy asked as she pointed at the castle.
"Yes," said Bass and Flarewing together.
"And I'm the only one who can get it," said Donna.
"Yes."
"Well then." Donna turned away from the castle to face Derpy, Flarewing, Bass, and Erik the dragon. "What are we waiting for? Get me to that castle."
To be continued...