//------------------------------// // Nightfall // Story: The Final Push // by PropMaster //------------------------------// Glorious Dawn watched the sun, chewing on his lower lip, waiting for it to move. Nearly an hour and a half had passed since they had received their orders, and the Seventh Reserve had formed up on the left flank of the Fourth Company. The unicorns had strapped their large shields to their backs, tightening them down and securing them carefully. They were going to be advancing in the dark, going for a silent approach to the enemy lines, and they couldn’t risk losing any essential gear or using magic. Auras would be far too visible to enemy snipers in the dark, making the unicorns easy targets to be picked off. Red Roam stepped up beside Glorious Dawn, glancing up at the sky before turning his gaze upon his commanding officer. “Any minute now.” Dawn nodded. “We stick to Major Stonewall’s plan. With any luck, that Royal Guard unit to the West will draw the enemy’s attention away from us while we act as rear guard.” Red Roam looked West, to the gleaming gold armored phalanx of the Royal Guard unit that stood several hundred yards away. They had formed up in tight ranks, eyes fixed to the North, and their commander paced before them at the head of their formation. Roam looked to the combined forces of the Seventh and Fourth Companies, chuckling at their loose formation and less tidy ranks. They wouldn’t need much in the way of formation movement, because once the darkness fell it would be a rush across the open ground to the fortifications to the North. Major Stonewall stepped forward just as the sun began to move. Celestia stood outside her pavillion, her wings spread wide as her magical aura exploded outward, ethereal winds whipping at her mane and feathers. Her horn, already maintaining one spell, glowed brightly as Celestia drew on her strength. The sun resisted her grasp, the celestial body unused to such rapid movement, but Celestia persevered. Finally, after straining and sweating for several minutes, the sun shifted and began a stately glide down from the sky. The clouds overhead tinted rapidly, a whirlwind of shifting colors as the light shifted rapidly and filtered through the atmosphere. Major Stonewall’s voice carried over the soldiers as the sun shifted through the sky, adding an air of gravitas to his words. “This is it, my ponies. This is the end of the gryphon invasion. This is when we push them off equestrian soil, into the sea. First the bluffs, then the beaches. Their unprovoked hostility ends today.” Celestia growled as her horn began to heat up, the level of power she was utilizing well beyond her normal usage. This felt like the old days, back when she’d fought gods and demons to defend her homeland and her little ponies. No gods or demons threatened her people this day, but misguided mortals bent on conquest. Even now, griffon tribes marauded through Equestria, all supplied and reinforced from this beach head. Celestia felt anger burn in her chest, as she thought of the burned villages and besieged cities. The war had raged for six months, and this night would mark the end of it. All that would be left of the once-mighty griffon army would be a handful of units, stranded in hostile territory. She drew on that anger, her eyes blazing with inner light, and she drew the sun down from the heavens, casting the world in shadow. The sun blazed brightly, tinting the sky orange and red, as it touched the horizon, doing in mere minutes what normally took hours. Major Stonewall faced the North, watching as the sun disappeared with a final wink of orange light, leaving the sky streaked through with purples and blacks as it fell beyond sight. “This is for East Fillydelphia, Orangevale, Whitetail Grove, and Redrocks Village. This is for all the ponies that fought and died.” He looked over his shoulder, at the assembled soldiers, a fierce smile playing across his features. “This is for Celestia.” Celestia’s wings shivered as the sky turned black, the stars above winking into view between the clouds. Her gaze shifted away from the West, to the East, and the moon rose into the sky, set at the peak of the far horizon. Celestia released her magics with a gasp, only barely standing as she fought to hold the anti-flight spell together. After a moment, it stabilized, and Celestia slumped to the ground, panting. The moon’s soft glow peeked through the clouds for a brief moment before it slipped higher into the sky and was hidden by the overcast sky, the brief sliver of light extinguished as the baleful gaze of the Mare In The Moon disappeared from sight. Major Stonewall’s voice rose, louder. “This is for Equestria!” Celestia looked up at the sky, to the moon, as it fell behind the cover of the clouds, her voice whisper-quiet. “Sister, watch over them.” The darkness was complete, the moon hidden and the earth shrouded in darkness. Major Stonewall turned away from his ponies, breaking into a fast gallop. “Advance!” Across the Eastern and Western front, the army moved, pushing North.