//------------------------------//
// Prologue 
// Story: Where Even Gods Fear to Tread 
// by Maneiac 
//------------------------------//

March 13

It is with a heavy heart that I write this situation report, Princess. Our forces have suffered a terrible loss at the Battle of Manehattan. I estimate there to be at least 500 casualties that fell to the ambush that was lying in wait for us. Among the dead is one unfortunate soul, Sergeant Cold Front. He was successful in saving his platoon from the ambush, but fell to it himself. 

As you might have guessed by now, our endeavors to recapture the southwestern portion of Equestria have ended up being less than stellar in terms of results. Currently, the ponies of the Royal Guard are demoralized, and are in need of a pick-me-up. If one is not had soon, I fear the morale will drop into insurmountable levels that will only serve in getting us killed. 

There’s not a single soul out there that’s not fighting for the better of Equestria, but I can’t help but see it in their faces when a fellow brother in arms falls.... they question themselves, and their motives. With every covered stretcher that enters the F.O.B., I see the soldiers remove their helmets in reverence and honor, then stare at their reflections in deep thought. 

This.... war.... it’s eating them alive. I see it in every nervous twitch; every quick look over their shoulders, and how they slouch in the mess hall. You may be thinking why their slouching in the mess hall is worrisome; it is because they’re waiting for an opportunity to dive under the tables and survive a bombardment of hot rock and death; of flashing steel and soaring arrows that try to hunt them down, no matter where they hide. 

The guard... my soldiers... they are scared, and have every right to be so. All the actions so far only prove my point, and this recent defeat isn’t helping matters. I’m beginning to think that although we’d be losing a strategic point in our military plans, it would be for the best if we abandoned the notion of recapturing Manehattan. It’s been proven that it’s too heavily defended. 

... Princess Celestia... off the record... I want to apologize for this war happening. It was completely my fault, and now, Equestria is paying the price set for me and me alone. I know that my apologies are next to meaningless now; they’ll be equally as meaningless as those 500 families find out that Mommy or Daddy won’t be coming home, and they receive their Requiem of Service Armor... but... it’s the only thing I feel in control of. 

Sorry won’t bring back the dead, and sorry sure as buck won’t be ending this war, but there’s one thing it can do; it can stir the flame of a Captain... your Captain; the Captain-Commander of the Royal Equestrian Guard. It is a reminder of why I am risking flesh and bone out here, fighting against these forces of evil in ruined cities and across blood-washed prairies and rural areas. It’s a reminder that... through all the death and destruction.... that harmony still lives. 

With Love,
Captain-Commander Twilight Constella Sparkle