"So y'all were brought here from your world because of what Daniel did, huh?"
Donny didn't acknowledge the pony's question. He sat on a wooden crate near the exit of the First Lady, sharpening a large knife. Apple Bloom stared at him for a moment, awaiting some type of response, but was disappointed to find that he was not much of a conversationalist.
"So who are you folks exactly? Why are ya on the run from the other humans? Did ya do somethin' ta make 'em mad?"
"Best if you stop talkin', horse. Daisy may have wanted you alive, but that don't mean I won't smack you with the butt of this here rifle if you keep botherin' me." Donny growled.
"You'd really hit a filly?"
Donny laughed. "Darlin, I'd smack your sick old grandmama if it meant my ears gettin' a break from your constant yammerin'."
Apple Bloom gave him a dirty look. "Hey, you guys were the ones who dragged me along, so that means yer gonna have to deal with my questions whether ya want to or not."
The Vox member stood up and grabbed his repeater. "See this?" he asked, pointing at the weapon. "I don't know how things work in this world, but where I come from the person who's holding this gives the orders, and right now I'm orderin' you to shut your mouth!" he plopped back down on the crate, breaking it slightly, and continued honing his blade.
The filly huffed and resumed staring out the window, surrendering a gasp when she noticed how high the airship had gotten.
"This view is amazin'!"
There was a flock of birds flying by the airship. Apple Bloom waved to them as they passed, then pressed her face against the glass as much as she could. The view itself was more than enough to distract the pony from the situation at hand.
So this is the kinda view the pegasi get to enjoy? Alright, now I'm jealous.
She was sure she could see almost all of Equestria from where they were. The filly noted the different terrains: forest, plains, swamp lands, desert, even a few of the larger pony cities were visible. It was as if they were looking at a giant map of the region. Looking up, Apple Bloom noticed that they were almost at the same level as the clouds. The dark bodies in question were still spread over a large portion of the sky, not yielding any view of the sky above. As the First Lady ascended, they got closer and closer to the cloud line, giving off the illusion that they were going to crash right into a giant ceiling.
The farm pony became very anxious at the prospect of crossing that cloud threshold. Celestia only knew what awaited her on the other side, and if these humans she was with now were wanted by the same humans that Daniel was working for, then she probably had a lot to worry about. Luckily these humans seemed more interested in fighting each other than hurting her or other ponies.
Just gotta make sure it stays that way. Apple Bloom concluded.
The airship's cabin door opened and Fitzroy appeared. She glanced at the filly, then turned her attention to Donny.
"She been any trouble?"
"Hmph." he grumbled back, finishing with his knife and stabbing it into the wall next to him. Daisy ignored the half-assed reply and walked over to the ship controls.
"You sure this thing is set up properly Doc?"
Apple Bloom noticed another human enter the room that she hadn't seen before.
"Jeez, how many humans they got back there?" she mumbled. This human seemed much cleaner looking and far more couth than his compatriots. He had seemingly nice cloths and stood with a posture that implied a great deal of sophistication. Looking in his soft yet calculating eyes revealed an educated intelligence.
"Yes, the changing worlds may have rendered the topographic course settings useless, but with the new coordinates we marked down, this will get us back to the city." he explained.
"Good. I wan't the men ready to move when we get there. If Joshua's right, then we don't have a lotta time before the Prophet begins his assault."
"Assault on what?" Everyone turned to face Apple Bloom, who seemed to suddenly shrink at the attention. Fitzroy quickly disregarded her interruption and continued.
"This may be the only chance we got of taking the city with what limited resources we've managed to scrounge up."
The two men nodded in agreement. "Hopefully Comstock underestimates us as much as we think he does. If he sends enough of his men out on this shock and awe campaign, then we could practically stroll into his house without too big of a firefight." Donny added.
"That's the plan." Daisy replied. "We could move the city while the Founders are out fighting. By the time they got back, we'd be long gone."
"Then those bastards would either crash or have to land in the very places they burned down." Donny laughed.
Apple Bloom grew more uneasy with each sentence uttered. "What assault? What are y'all talkin' about?"
Again, the three humans regarded her, but this time Fitzroy addressed the filly.
"Your world is about to get attacked by the city that's floatin' right above those clouds. While that's happening, we're gonna kill any Founders that stay behind and take the city for ourselves."
The unsympathetic way Fitzroy relayed the news stung worse to Apple Bloom than the news itself. She felt the familiar burning sensation as she struggled to fight back tears.
"What do ya mean? Why would they do somethin' like that?"
"The Prophet don't need a reason, sweetie." Daisy replied. "He says 'jump', and the rest ask 'how high'. That's just the way it goes."
"But ya gotta stop 'em!" Apple Bloom pleaded. "Ya can't just let 'em attack my friends and family! Ya can't just let 'em murder everypony!"
Donny and the other human averted the filly's tearful eyes, but Daisy stared intently at the pony. She moved closer to Apple Bloom, her eyes as cold as ever.
"You think this is the first time men like Comstock have committed such atrocities? They been doin' this shit for hundreds of years. Genocide, slavery, all of it in the name of God or country. Men like him walk into peaceful villages, where they slaughter the men, rape the women, and sell the children into servitude."
She leaned in close to the filly. "The only way to beat men like him, is to wipe 'em out by any means necessary. I can't offer you any words of comfort, but know that your kind will be the last to endure this kinda violence. When your world burns, so too will the Founders. So too will the old America."
"N-no! This can't be happenin', it's just a bad dream! I need ta go back. My sister....." Apple Bloom stammered. She let her tears fall openly now, feeling more helpless than ever. The others turned away, finding other things to do while their prisoner wept. As the airship emerged from the tops of the clouds and the sun filled the cabin with its brilliance, it was only met with grim despair as Apple Bloom could do nothing but cry.
* * *
After the diplomatic briefing concluded, Twilight exited the noisy room, leaving the delegates to talk with each other under their own facade of self-proclaimed authority. She was followed by Luna, Cadence, and Chrysalis. The changeling queen kept her guards close, but maintained her laid back attitude.
"Do we know anything about what these humans want?" Luna inquired.
"No, nothing." Twilight replied. She had informed them of everything save for the dream. There was no need to bring that kind of inconclusive fear into the mix. "You know everything I do."
"That isn't too much to go on right now." Cadence pointed out. "Perhaps we should attempt to open a line of communication. They haven't shown any real hostility...."
"Except for the only human you fools have made contact with." Chrysalis interrupted. "Come now, you really think they would have sent their most violent agent down here to establish contact with us? I have a feeling they aren't here to play nice."
Luna and Cadence looked at the queen hatefully, but Twilight nodded in agreement. "She's right. If Daniel is anything to go by, we have to handle this with caution."
"Princess Twilight!"
They all turned to see a courier galloping down the hallway. Once he reached the group, he closed his eyes and panted heavily.
"T-there's been a situation, your highness." he opened his eyes again, looking directly at the princess. "I have news from...."
His voice faded when he saw the changelings, a mixture of shock and confusion present on his face.
"Oh don't stop on my account." the queen laughed. "I'd love to hear the news as well."
The courier looked uneasy. "Uh, Princess?"
Twilight gave him a reassuring nod. "Go ahead, good sir. She's an ally." The princess glanced at the smiling queen and mumbled. "For now."
"Right then. I bring most unfortunate news, your majesty. Dodge Junction has been attacked."
The courier waited for the gasps to conclude before continuing. "As far as we could tell, there were no survivors. Not only that, but we also have reports that there are strange ships travelling through the sky all over Equestria. My superiors fear that it is a full scale invasion."
Twilight could feel her heart pounding inside her chest. This was exactly what she had been fearing all along.
"Is the Royal Guard planning a counter offensive?" Luna asked.
"Last I heard. They're running through different scenarios right now, but it doesn't look good. Our armies seem to outnumber them, but they're technology and weaponry are far more advanced." the courier gravely replied.
"W-well where is Celestia then?" Chrysalis finally asked. "Our world is being invaded and she's catching up on her beauty sleep?"
"Silence, you insolent cur!" Luna snapped back, the Royal Canterlot voice clear and present in her words. "My sister isn't present because she is currently dealing with something very dire. We are more than capable of handling this situation ourselves."
Twilight wished she shared Luna's confidence. Being truthful with herself, she wasn't certain things would be as simple as the night princess thought they would be.
"Ooh, how secretive. And I suppose you won't be explaining what exactly has the princess so wrapped up?" the changeling queen inquired. Her question was met with silence.
After a brief moment, Twilight turned to the courier. "Thank you for bringing us this information, but I have a favor to ask."
"Anything, princess." The courier bowed.
"I need you to fly to Ponyville and gather the Elements of Harmony. They should all be together at the hospital. Inform them of the situation and tell them to travel to Canterlot."
"Oh, well actually I stopped in Ponyville looking for you, and ran into two of the Elements." the stallion informed. "Before leaving, I told them what was going on, and I think they were going to make their way to Canterlot. They should be on their way right now."
"Just two?" Twilight found that odd. Her friends should have all been together.
"Yes, I believe it was Applejack and Rainbow Dash." he added.
Twilight smiled at this. Even with everything that was going on, news that Rainbow Dash was back on her hooves was enough to get her spirit up.
"Thank you. In that case, I would like you to begin setting up lines of communication between the various settlements and Canterlot. If we are indeed dealing with an invasion, we need to have a connected defense system to properly prepare ourselves."
The courier nodded. "Yes Princess, right away." Then took off down the hallway.
Twilight turned back to the others. "Okay, we should probably...."
A large explosion shook the entire castle. The shaking almost threw all of them off their balance, and caused a few nearby windows to crack. Screams could be heard from the conference room as the ponies reacted to the sudden shaking.
"What's going on!?" Cadence shouted.
"An earthquake?" Luna asked, spreading her hooves out in an attempt to stabilize herself.
"That was no earthquake." Twilight gasped. After another moment, the shaking subsided. There were still frightened whimpers from the other room.
"We're under attack!" Chrysalis shouted, no longer displaying her cool attitude but showing genuine fear.
Suddenly, they all felt shaking yet again. This time not as a result of explosions, but of something far more menacing. Twilight began to feel weightless as the old castle moaned and creaked. The feeling of weightlessness set off alarms in her mind, and the realization of what was happening slowly dawned. Unheard by them, the entire capital cried out in panic. The ancient stone that had held the massive settlement in place for countless years was failing, and there was nothing to stop the reality of what that meant.
The city of Canterlot was falling.