"Good morning, Rainbow Dash. Say, are you feeling alright? I saw you up last night.", softly quizzed the pegasus mare, whose coat color nearly matched the color of the Solar Uniform she donned, apart from the emerald green markings, indicating her position in the medical corps.
"I'm fine, Fluttershy. I was just thinking about somepony...an old friend. You remember Scootaloo?", responded the neutrally-emotional Rainbow Dash.
"Yes, I do."
"Well, she's somewhere over on that ridge, right across from us....somewhere in that row of blue, she's there." She began to smirk. "Y'know, it's funny. If you didn't know, she's risen to the rank of a general....I know I taught her well when she was with me, but gees. Either she's the best darn soldier to ever fight, or the rebels were desperate for generals." Fluttershy started to chuckle. "Anyway, I was just thinking about her, that's all. I'd sure love to see her again. Maybe one day."
"Good to hear you're fine......you think anything's going to happen today? I sure hope not...yesterday was a mess down at the field hospitals." said Fluttershy.
"Nah, I don't think so. We're tired, I'm pretty sure they are, too." Dash gestured over across the field, to the Lunar lines. "Besides, if they did, I doubt they'd come here to the center. They'd probably try attacking the flanks again."
"True." quietly said Fluttershy. "Anyway, Dash, um, I need to head back to the field hospital. They need every hoof they can get." Fluttershy saluted, and when Rainbow Dash did the same, she flew away.
"I was certain they would break yesterday." stated Applejack, as Big Mac trotted beside her. "But it was timely that General Pinkie's men came just in time last night. She will be of great use for what I have planned today." The two ponies came to a stop, and turned to face the east, towards Solar lines. "They must have enforced their flanks in defending them, therefore, they must be weakest near the center." She pointed to a small collection of trees in the distance. "Do you see that little copse of trees right there? What we're going to do, is use our cannons to pound that small area. Pinkie's, along with General Bonbon's corps, will then march from our lines, and converge on that copse of trees. Those two forces together will number nearly 15,000 mares and stallions, all marching, at an angle, across the field, and close in as one right at that copse of trees. In the center, the solar lines will break."
Big Mac said nothing for a few moments, as he scanned the opposing lines. "Applejack.....I'm not so sure if that will work. I don't believe no 15,000 ponies ever made could overtake that ridge. Their guns will be pouring down on us as we marched, our ranks would be broken up, before we even reached their wall. Whoever did succeed in reaching their lines would quickly be overrun."
Applejack took in her brother's concern, then turned to him, and firmly, yet calmly said, "In this plan, you must trust. Give it your all. I'll begin the cannon assault here shortly. Your troops may march when they're ready, General."
"Yes, ma'am." responded Big Mac. The two then parted ways.
The house was quiet, as a collection of ponies, all wearing yellow with golden trims, was engaged in a variety of things. Some were making small-talk, two were engaged in a game of cards, and one purple unicorn was at her small, portable desk, surrounded and conversing with a handful of officers.
The ground shook. The calmness was broken. At first, everypony stood still, as a few looked out the windows. Then there was a crash: a cannonball had blasted through the roof of the headquarter building, which was a converted farm home. The Solar officers all scrambled to narrowly avoid the unexpected object.
"By, Celestia almighty....", Twilight stood up, "They're about to attack." All of the officers scrambled out of the building, before collecting themselves outside. Then, the distant echoes of drumming confirmed Twilight's statement.
As the cannon blasting subsided, a tremendous sight beheld the bracing Solar army: a mile-wide row of dark blue, their bayonets shimmering in the sun, their lunar banners flapping in the smoke-filled wind.
Rainbow Dash flew to her ranks, and observed the sight herself. "Never have I seen such a magnificent sight. Oh, if only it didn't have to end in blood. Those are our fellow ponies, our friends, our kinfolk, about to attack us.
Curse this tragic war."
Once the Lunar lines completely cleared the forest, they stopped. All at once, they let out a massive cheer:
"THE NIGHT SHALL LAST FOREVER!"
Scootaloo overlooked the troops under her command, then positioned herself in front of them. "Ponyvillians! Ponyvillians! For your land, for your homes, for your sweethearts, for your lovers,
for Ponyville, FORWARD, MARCH!"
The drums started up, and with them, so did the Lunar army.
The first few hundred yards were slow marching, as regiments shifted and turned themselves to begin angling themselves towards one goal: the copse of trees. Pinkie oversaw her advancing forces. "Yes! Forward, brave Ponyvillians!"
Then the Solar cannons began blasting. The cannonballs and grapeshot rained down on the marching rows of blue. Entire chunks of regiments would be blown away, as the remainders scrambled to reform and push together, to fill the hole. Wounded soldiers that could still walk began limping back to Lunar lines. Once the lines reached Emmaresburg road, which marked the halfway mark of the field, Lunar forces were finally close enough to fire back. For a moment, many paused to breathe, load, and fire at the Solar forces. The bullets flew like angry hornets, as the first Solar casualties occurred.
A few regiments climbed over the fencing. Others either struggled to knock down segments, or marched through sections that had been blown open by The Solar cannons. As what remained of the Lunar attack force tried to move forward, Scootaloo's personal regiment, the 26th North Mareolina, remained stuck at the fence. It was at this moment that Scootaloo stood in front of them.
"MY STALLIONS! MY MARES!" She then removed her cap, pushed her sword through it, waved it high, and pointed it towards the copse of trees.
"WITH ME! WHO WILL COME WITH ME?" A new energy seemed to be injected into her troops, as a mighty roar bellowed from them all. They climbed the fence, and began moving forward once more.
Rainbow Dash flew above her forces, dodging bullets as she watched the oncoming Lunar troops. "By Celestia, they still push forward. A most admirable foe. Nonetheless, they mustn't break our lines! HIT THEM WITH THE VOLLEY! HIT THEM WITH THE CANNON!"
One of her aides looked up to her and pleaded, "Please, ma'am, come down! We cannot spare you!"
Rainbow Dash looked down, and smirked. "There are times that a corps commander's life does not count."
Moments later, she cringed, and fell to the ground. She had been struck. But as aides rushed to her side and called medics over, she declared, "I SHALL NOT BE MOVED....UNTIL THIS FIGHT IS OVER!"
Her troops were dwindling, as the oncoming fire intensified with each hard-earned step forward. Nonetheless, Scootaloo pressed on, her cap-bearing sword still pointed directly at the objective. Other Lunar regiments began falling back all around them. The attack was falling apart. Still, the 26th North Mareolina moved on.
Finally, they reached the goal. With a roar and a massive push, they climbed over the Solar wall, as the clanging of bayonets and the firing of muskets and cannon became deafening. Soon, almost the entire regiment poured over the rock walls. The Solar lines had been breached.
"THE DAY IS OURS, MY MARES AND STALLIONS! TURN THE CANNONS ON THEM! TURN THE CANNONS!" shouted Scootaloo, who was now atop the Solar wall, her sword upward and outward.
But the very next moment, she fell from the wall, struck multiple times with a hail of bullets. As the blood flowed from her wounds, she climbed and rested against a cannon, as her troops continued to pour over the wall.
It was then that a new wave of Solar forces poured in to counter them. The slaughter began. Lunar banners began to fall, as fewer and fewer were left to pick it up as a flag bearer. Within minutes, the gunfire stopped.
General Applejack peered through her binoculars, looking to see the fate of the attack. When the smoke cleared, the Solar flags still flew atop their ridge. There were no Lunar flags in sight.
The charge had been repelled. The Solar lines had held.
Applejack trotted down from her position, to meet General Pinkie. There was no pep. Her bright demeanor was gone, replaced with a face of terror and shock.
"General Pinkie. I'm expecting the Solar forces to counter, and attack our current positions. I need your division to reform and prepare to defend."
Pinkie said nothing.
"Pinkie? We need to prepare for a defensive. You need to reform your division into a defensive position."
After a few moments, a distraught Pinkie Pie looked up.
"General Applejack.......I have no division."
Applejack's usually firm face broke into a pale cloak of sorrow. She closed her eyes, and bowed her head.
"It is my fault. The blood spilled on this land. The bodies of my brave soldiers, strewn about the field.
It is all my fault."
Fluttershy trotted slowly through the piles of dead and wounded. Her face was locked in pity, and at some moments they nearly watered. As her fellow medics attended to the wounded, Solar as well as Lunar, she spotted a small, orange pony in a blood-soaked Lunar uniform lying against a cannon. She rushed to her side, having instantly recognized who it was.
"Scootaloo....Scootaloo? Can you hear me?" She asked, as another medic accompanied her.
"I.....I need to know where General Rainbow Dash is.....where is General Rainbow Dash?" said Scootaloo, a slight wince of pain traced inside her every word.
"I'm sorry, Scootaloo," responded Fluttershy as she began unbuttoning Scootaloo's coat to access her wounds, "She was hit in the fight, she's at a field hospital right now."
"No...NO.....not both of us.....OH CELESTIA....PLEASE.......", she groaned, as tears fell from her eyes, more from the terrible news, than the great pain of her injuries.
As Fluttershy began cleaning a bullet wound, Scootaloo nudged her. "Can you hear me, Fluttershy?"
"Yes, yes I can."
"Will you send her a message, from Scootaloo. Tell her how much I regret all of this......" she paused and tensed up as Fluttershy worked on the tender wound. "Tell her....how sorry I am. Tell her....that I still love her, as a sister....and I always will."
Fluttershy looked her in the eye, and removed her cap and bowed.
"I will, Scootaloo. I will."
The Sun began to set, as it cast shadows over the resting Solar troops, and the many dead that laid on the field. Rarity began trotting around, looking for her sister. She looked over, and saw her. The two made eye contact, and slowly walked to one another, until they met.
As the Sun finally sunk below the horizon, the two white-coated unicorns embraced.