First off, let me apologize for the tardiness of this chapter. I could go on and on about writers block, different difficulties in life, or a host of other excuses; but the truth is that I lost the will to continue this for a time, even though I had written half of it six months prior. However, it never truly left my mind, and I was constantly trying to work up the motivation to finish it. And even if I can only got out two chapters a year, I WILL be finishing this story. For those of you who have stuck with me for all of this, you have my sincere gratitude, and for those who leave over the long wait times, I can completely understand.
Now enough sappiness, let's get to the story!
******
As she banked through the lightning from above, Rainbow Dash spared a quick glance at the storm clouds just over her head.
'These winds would make for some wicked stunts,' she thought to herself as she dodged another spell bolt from below, 'Too bad they won't give me the chance to actually try anything.'
Returning her attention to the ground, Rainbow Dash looked over the battle raging below. The majority of Luna's force remained bunched up behind their front line Unicorn casters, the Earth Pony teams where patently waiting for the gates to be breached while the Unicorns kept up a steady stream of spells slamming into the cities battlements, ice spells seemed to be a favorite since it could cover the walls spell slits. Various Pegasi squads tried to harass the Canterlotian forces behind the battlements by dropping various blades or spell shards on top of the defenders heads, and trying to avoid their counter fire. She could just make out the colors of her friends and Luna as they remained pressed against the base of the walls while Luna and Rarity worked on breaching the gates magical defenses. Which the Royal Guards were doing their best to make an impossible task.
The companies behind the walls seemed to be split on trying to contain the damage from the offensive spells, mostly by melting the ice from their spell slits, while the rest concentrated on their own spell slinging. And unfortunately, they were not firing with the same restraint as Luna's force. Fire balls, lightening, and explosions rippled across defensive shielding in front of the lines at regular intervals.
Seeing a fresh stream of fire launch from above the city gates, Rainbow Dash saw Fluttershy cringe back and press even harder against the walls behind her as Pinkie gently offered her some marshmallows warmed by the passing stream. Applejack seemed to be fidgeting again as she looked towards the gates at which Luna and Rarity continued to labor. Luna had assured them that the gates would not refuse one of their mistresses for long, except for the fact that the Unicorns on the other side were constantly reinforcing the warding on them.
Dash did feel a little guiltily about flying off for a bit, but she had been getting restless and needed to stretch her wings for a bit. Also, there was the fact that she had wanted to see if... A faint flash above interrupted her thoughts as she saw two small shapes appear. An orange speck started to streak away from the grayish one which promptly disappeared in another faint flash. Rainbow Dash kept one eye on the orange speck as it made its way towards the Royal Palace at an ever increasingly sharp angle.
'Come on squirt, I know you can make it... BULLS EYE!' Dash barely restrained the urge to hoof pump as she saw the speck grab onto a flag pole above the Royal Apartments. It hung there for a small while and then started to make its way down towards the roof tops. She was so elated to see the plan working so perfectly that she almost missed the magical energy racing up towards to her from below... almost. Even as she rolled away from the stream, she felt the enchantments in her Lunar armor activate and brush off a slight chill which permeated the spell. Returning her full attention back towards the city battlements, she could make out a Unicorn caster preparing another blast as they locked eyes with each other.
"Oh, so you want to play hard ball with me, do ya?" Dash called out as she reached into the storage space built into her chest plate. "Time to show you what happens when you mess with the best." Griping a gem enchanted spell shard in each of her hoofs, Dash furiously beat her wings into a power dive as she weaved through spell fire from below and lightening from above. Careful to keep her speed below Rainboom levels, Dash kept her gaze locked onto her target as she gently released her first spell shard before she cocked her other hoof back and flung the second one forward before shooting off towards the side. The Unicorn below her easily saw her throw and promptly fired a blast which detonated the shard in a fiery blast. As his eyes started to track Rainbow Dash once more, he failed to see the first shard fall through the explosion and shatter at his hooves. Looking down, he saw a dark mist which promptly coiled around his body and solidified into a solid block of ice.
"Hahaha," Dash snickered as she angled back towards her friends, "Dude, you really needed to chill out."
Rarity glanced over as Dash pressed against the base of the wall. "Really Rainbow Dash?" she asked with a disproving look as her horn continued to glow brightly. "I wish you would take things a bit more seriously. We do happen to be fighting for Twilight, and our own lives, here."
"Oh relax Rare's, it's not like I was in any real trouble," Rainbow replied while buffing a hoof against her armor. "He may have been good, but it's not like he could have actually hit me."
Rarity raised an eyebrow at this, and then pointedly looked towards Dash's shoulder. Glancing down, Rainbow noticed a small layer of ice crystals running down the side of her chest piece and gave out a low whistle. "Well would you look at that. Guess he was a bit better than I thought, but still nowhere near good enough." As she started to break the ice away, Dash looked up a saw Rarity still looking at her. "What? I'm perfectly fine. Besides, don't you have to concentrate on that gate or something?"
"Not really," Rarity replied with a glance towards Luna, who was facing the gates head on as her horn shined with a fierce light. "It is not like I have the skill to unlock these gates myself. I am merely supplying the energy required to keep the locks open, it is the Princess who is really doing all of the work. But never mind that, did you see if they succeeded?"
"Yeah," Dash said as she finished cleaning up, "you should have seen them Rarity. Sweetie popped them up so high that no pony could have seen them from the walls. And while Scoots almost overshot the tower, she managed to snag this flag pole at the last instant and made her way down. I'm telling you, it was awesome! And once Apple Bloom joins us, we'll have our ears planted right on the Royal balcony."
"This is most satisfying news," Luna said as her horn dimmed to a soft glow, "It is good to hear that at least something's are going as they should."
"Oh do tell," Rarity said as she returned her attention to the city gates, "Have you been refused entry after all?"
"In a manner of speaking," Luna replied in a disgruntled huff, "The warding on the gates has been breached, but the Guards have also secured a brace across the entry and I find myself unable to dislodge it."
"What are you talking about?" Rainbow Dash said as she floated up into Luna's face, "You mean to tell me that you can't move a simple block of wood when you push the Moon around twice a day? You have got to be joking!"
Luna sighed and started to rub her head. "Since you are not versed in magic, let me explain something's to you. First off, I do not 'push the Moon around,' I guide and nudge it along its course. Except for a burst of power at the beginning and end of its journey, I expend very little actual energy. And as for the simple block of wood, this is an enchanted piece of an intricate arcane defense designed to impede spell-casters from gaining entry. Not to mention there are at least a dozen Unicorns over there who are shielding it from my magic, and that I am trying to move something that I cannot even see."
"So are ya saying that ya can't even bust it down?" Applejack called out from her side of the gate.
"No, I actually could demolish the gate now and force my way through. However, doing so would cause serious harm to the defenders on the other side, and I promised my sister to try and keep the causalities to a minimum."
"So whatcha going to do then? Knock and ask if they'll let you in now all polite like?"
"Hardly," Luna replied as she glanced up at the city walls above them, "Rainbow Dash, you will need to reach the other side and then disable or distract the casters long enough to breach the gate."
"Ah ya! Time to show them what the Dash can do!"
"Now hold on there sugarcube," Applejack cried out as she grabbed hold of Dash's tail to keep her on the ground, "Why does Dash have to go alone? Can't we get some other Pegisi to help her?"
"Oh oh oh!" Pinky exclaimed as she waved her hoof around, "I got this one!" Turning to face her fellow Earth Pony, she took a deep breath before starting, "You see Applejack, there are almost a gazillion guardsponies up there with all kinds of nasty spells and pointy objects like spears and arrow bolts. So, normally a group a Pegisi wouldn't be able to fly over them together since they would be shot down and turned into some really messy pincushions, and a lone Pegisus wouldn't be very effective since they couldn't do much on their own before they were caught by everypony else. However, since we only need Dashie to be a distraction as we bust through here, we'll be able to help her out in no time and keep her from becoming a Splashy instead."
Her eyes went a bit crossed as Applejack processed what Pinkie had said. "Well, I guess that makes some sense," she muttered as she let go of Dash's tail and looked her in the eyes, "Now you listen here RD, don't ya go takin' any more risks than ya have to. Get in there, take them down real quick like, and then wait for us to come in and help. Don't fret about tryin' to prove how awesome ya are and wind up getting yourself killed, ya hear?"
"Don't you worry AJ," Rainbow said as she crouched down into a launching stance, "Just get ready knock on those doors really loud, because I'll have them ready for you in ten seconds flat." And with that assurance Rainbow Dash launched herself up and over the gatehouse.
********
"They are persistent, I'll give them that," the Guard Commander commented as he watched his prince hide behind a battlement.
"Persistent or not," Blueblood flinched as an icy wind gusted from several yards away, "they should be entirely outclassed. So tell me, my good Commander, why are you just sitting there and not doing something about this!"
The Guardspony gave a small sigh as he looked through the ice covered spell slit. "As I mentioned earlier, my Lord, there is precious little we can do at this moment. For now, the mechanics of a siege work in our favor since they do not have nearly enough troops to contain us indefinitely, let alone occupy the city. Once their Unicorns have exhausted themselves, we will be in a better position to sortie beyond the walls and engage them directly. So unless they can somehow breach our fortifications, we will crush them before too long. Do not worry yourself so much, my Lord, we are safe enough as it is."
"Oh really?" Blueblood questioned as a pair of medics carried a partially frozen Guardpony past them. The Unicorn's legs were completely encased in ice and his teeth chattered as the medics tried to console him with promises of a warm thawing spell and hot soup.
The Commander gave a small nod towards the departing ponies, "There will always be casualties in an engagement, even a successful one. Come and see for yourself how little their lines have advanced since they began their barrage," he said with a sweeping motion towards the spell slit.
Blueblood gave a small huff as he started to turn towards the blocked opening. "Well, if you are certain of our safety, I suppose a quick peak would not be..." he never got to finish his sentence as he suddenly found himself face to face with a fast moving Pegasus mare, and as his eye tracked her path upwards he noticed several things. First was that she had one of the most unruly manes he had ever seen, which also contained every color of the rainbow, poking out from beneath her dark helmet. Second was the sparkling necklace containing a ruby red lightning bolt. Third was her expression which initially showed surprise which quickly morphed to recognition and then to pleasure crossed with a vindictive smirk. Lastly was the fact that even before she had cleared the battlements, she had started to bring her rear legs up and had them cocked forward by the time she reached his head.
The Commander had seen this all as well, but found himself unable to react before the mare had blown past him, and had delivered a solid whack against the back of the princes skull. This had the expected result of driving said skull forward into the ice covering the safe opening, which resounded with a solid thwack and snapping as cracks snaked away from the face forcibly implanted into its surface.
********
As she arched her way towards the ground behind the gates, Rainbow Dash could help but snicker to herself. 'Hate to steal one of Pinkies lines, but Best Expression Ever!'
********
The shocked Guard Commander lost precious seconds to indecision between chasing down fleeting Pegasus and concern over his sworn prince. The concern quickly won however, and he reach over to slowly peel the noble away from the ice wall. "My Lord? Are you alright?"
Blueblood looked at him in a daze for several seconds as his brain tried to process what had just happened to it. Once it finished reconstructing the events, he noticed the cracks in the ice had already been imprinted with a reddish outline of his face. He raised a hoof up to his face as he tried to staunch the blood he felt from his nose. "Commander, I want that mares head on my wall, her hide for a blanket, and her feathers for my pillow. And I want them NOW!"
The Commander gave quick salute before he ran towards the stairs in pursuit of the princes fury. Behind him he heard Blueblood hollering for a medic.
********
Five...
Juke left, drop under the spell fire, rush forward, leg sweep, help introduce face to floor.
Four...
Catapult over the body, spin in midair to throw off aim, land between the two, show why two heads cannot be in the same space.
Two...
Cartwheel backwards, pivot away from hoof strikes, redirect, slip inside their guard, quick strikes to chest to break balance, uppercut to chin.
One...
Cocky smile, dash forward during hesitation, wrap foreleg around throat, pivot on axis, trap head between both legs, maintain hold until consciousness is lost.
Zero...
"Ah feathers," Rainbow Dash groaned as she continued to struggle with the Unicorn, "Will you just pass out already! You made me go over my time!" Leaning forward, she watched as the guard continued to thrash about until his eyes rolled back into his skull and he finally went limp. She held the choke for a few more seconds just to make sure, and then quickly released him and felt for the pulse to return. "OK tough guy. You were good, but you were also totally outclassed here."
She cast a quick glance amongst the groaning Unicorns who were spread out along the gateway. "Nine, ten, eleven? Huh, she must have underestimated these guys. HEY! PRINCESS! THE COAST IS CLEAR! TIME TO GET TO WORK AND GET EVERYPONY ELSE CAUGHT UP TO ME!"
She heard a muffled reply through the enchanted wood and was just about to relax for a second when something felt off. Normally she would had put it down as a slight post fight letdown, but after spending so much time with Twilight, she knew it was something else. A spell which was being super charged past all sane reason, and one which was especially close by.
Thinking quick on her hoofs was always one of her specialties, so Dash let hers drop out from under her and gave a quick flap to push herself down. Even with the assist, the lightening still singed her mane and she barely avoided the subsequent strikes by rolling along the ground and jumping into a light hover. Twisting around, she found herself locking eyes with that idiotic Commander. "Hey! What's your problem! That could have seriously killed me!"
"That was the general intention," he said as the surprise faded from his eyes and was replaced by a look of cold hatred while his horn started to overcharge again, sending out small arcs of electricity, "And I still plan on seeing it through."
Rainbow just had to facehoof at that. "Dude, seriously? You maybe had a chance with that first strike. But electricity? Now? No way," Dash said as she tapped her chest plate, "I mean, hello? Enchanted armor, lightning fast reflexes, and let's not forget a Pegasi's natural resistance to lightning."
"That all may be true," he said as he launched a bolt, which Dash nimbly avoided, and blasted a chunk out of the passage way, "But if so, why are you still dodging? Why don't we test and see if you really are as lightning proof as you think."
"Because even if it doesn't take me out, it'll still sting moron." She quickly darted forward, but the Commander blocked her strikes with his own hoofs and forced her back with several jabs followed by arcane bolts. She had to give a small snicker as she found herself back to where she started. "Finally looks like I've found a challenge. A Unicorn who can fight as well as cast."
"Those who forgo their martial skills for the pure arcane shall leave a vast hole in their defenses," he seemed to quote, "And you shall find that I have no such holes." And then he surprised Dash by leaping forward himself and engaged her in magically enhanced hoofticuffs which she found herself hard pressed to match.
Foreleg strikes, rear bucks, wing chops, he was able to counter all of them. Her advantage from extra appendages were negated by his magical prowess. Her natural advantage of flight was not allowed due to the nature of the passageway. And her techniques were blunted by her wish to only incapacitate, while his were heightened by rage and a desire to kill. Given these factors, and the fact that he had clearly spent most of his adult years practicing for something just like this, Rainbow was surprised she lasted as long as she did. Oh, she got a few jabs in here and there, she even managed to split his lips with one really solid punch, but his response was a slick maneuver were he grabbed her hoof, spun around, and launched her over his shoulder and into the wall. She was so dazed from the impact that she barely had time to ground herself before his lightning struck her full force. She felt her armors enchantments kick in on full overdrive, while her natural magic also shunted whatever it could. Even with both of these working in tandem, it was only just enough to keep her from passing out. As it was, she was left twitching on the ground as the excess electricity bled out of her system, completely vulnerable to any follow up attacks. As she lay there though, she could finally see a bluish aura surrounding the crossbar behind the commander as he slowly advanced on her, and despite her situation she felt herself smile.
"I fail to see what is so funny," he said as he advanced and placed a hoof against her throat, "Do you have any last words before I send you to Tartarus, you heretic?"
"Yeah. Do you happen to have any aspirin on you?" she asked, and gave a slight chuckle at his confused expression. "The thing is, you're going to really need it when you wake up."
Now you will have to give the commander some credit, he was still trying to figure out what Dash meant, but he only had a few seconds before an orange pair of hooves collided with the back of his helmet. Even then, he did not have time to register that fact before he was flying across the floor, slammed against the far wall, and collapsed in a boneless heap. He was out before he even hit the ground.
"Ya doin' alright done there, sugar cube?"
Dash took the offered hoof and pulled herself back upright. She could still feel her muscles twitching a bit, but not enough to keep her down. "Thanks, AJ. Although your timing could have been a bit better." Looking past her friend she saw the princess enter and fixed her with a smirk. "Took you long enough."
Luna simply walked past them and approached the fallen commander. "Intricate arcane defense, remember?" She reached her hoof down and felt his neck. Giving a satisfied nod, she levitated him and the rest of the fallen Unicorns into more comfortable positions out of the main passage way. As she strode back towards the partially open gates, she gave them both a small smile. "I must commend you both. So far, we have yet to actually kill anypony, and my sisters healing spell shall see to these ones in due time. But I fear we are nearing the end of our luck."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Dash asked as she saw the rest of her friends hurry through the partially open doors and began to pull them open. "We're in now. Aren't things supposed to start getting easier?"
"Easier? I am afraid not. Although things will be simpler, now that their defenses are broken," Luna said as the gates were opened wide. She heard her forces give a wild yell as they began to charge towards the portal, and Unicorns from both sides increased their spell firings in order impede each other. She turned back towards Rainbow Dash and her face was pulled taunt in a grimace of pain. "This is the time when things start to get, messy."