"Alright, men, we're being dropped just outside Nagasaki. If the bombing tomorrow goes wrong, we're to go in and launch an attack, and make way for a small invasion force to come in. I won't lie to you, if this turns into an assault mission, it'll be the most difficult mission you'll ever be a part of. But, if we stick by each other, and follow orders, we'll get through it. Now, we drop in three minutes, so make sure you're geared up and ready," Twilight said as before she turned and headed towards the door.
Twilight had been teleported away from Equestria a year ago. Since then, she's managed to get herself caught up in the Pacific campaign of WWII. She's now a First Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. She's also been given command over a small squad of marines known as the "Legion of Nightmare". Over the past year, she's obtained many scars, both physical and mental.
A couple of days ago, the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, hoping to crush any resistance Japan had left. After taking notice of Japan's continued resistance, a second bomb was now being prepared for a date with Nagasaki. Twilight's squad was being dropped outside Nagasaki so they could lead a charge through Japan's barriers and allow a small invasion force to come in and drain Japan of it's life force, in case something happens during the flight of the bomber.
"Alright, come on, let's jump," Twilight said as she opened the door.
A slight breeze was felt as the door was opened. There was nothing but darkness outside. As Twilight's squad leapt out the door, she began to pray to Celestia, whatever good it could possibly do, that the bombing would be a success. As soon as the last Marine was gone, something hit the wing, just in front of Twilight. The sudden impact caused the plane to violently jerk to that side, throwing Twilight out of the plane. Twilight had quickly regained her composure, and straightened herself up, then proceeded to salute the plane, an old habit of hers that she felt gave the pilots good luck somehow.
It didn't take Twilight long to realize that she'd been thrown a little further than she'd have liked. While her squad would land relatively close to one another, Twilight would be landing a good three hundred feet at least from her intended landing spot. With it being so dark, and knowing she had just had to reorient herself so her landing could be as soft as possible, Twilight couldn't tell which way to fly in order to catch up with her squad. Instead of even trying and possibly flying even more off course, Twilight decided to dive bomb herself so she could reach the ground and figure out where she was as quickly as possible. She used what force she could to flip eighty degrees, closed her eyes, and began a rapid decent towards the ground. It took all of five seconds for Twilight to hit something.
When she came to, Twilight noticed she was no longer in the air. Something was off, however. She looked around and saw plenty of marble walls and columns. She pulled the M1A1 Thompson submachine gun off her back with her magic and kept it at the ready as she looked around the room she found herself in. It didn't take long before she got a feeling of deja vu. She soon took notice of a certain stained glass window with what looked like her. It felt like she was staring at some strange mirror.
Footsteps suddenly reached Twilight's ears, causing her to turn around and aim down the sights on her Thompson. She had expected to see a small Jap patrol, even though she knew at that point that she wasn't in Japan anymore. What she saw at the end of her irons sights, however, wasn't a Japanese soldier, but a dark gray stallion in midnight blue bat armor. It took a couple of seconds, but Twilight soon realized she was aiming her gun at one of Luna's night guards. Twilight swiftly put the Thompson on safety, then lowered it to the floor and let it go, showing she didn't mean any harm. She had somehow landed in Canterlot, she was home.
"Who are you, and what is your business here at this late hour?" The night guard asked.
Twilight unfolded her wings to show that she was an alicorn. The display of Twilight's wings caused the night guard to take a couple of steps backward. After taking off her helmet, Twilight slung her mane to one side and said "I am First Lieutenant Twilight Sparkle, one of the four princesses of Equestria, and the star pupil of Princess Celestia herself".
This response caught the guard off guard, to say the least. It was no secret that Twilight had gone missing a year ago. The guard quickly regained his composure, walked over to Twilight, and pulled out a void ring. Upon seeing the ring, Twilight knew what was going on. She figured the princesses had decreed that anypony claiming to be her was to have a void ring placed on their horn before being escorted to the princesses themselves. Twilight bowed her head and allowed the ring to be slid over her horn. The night guard then took out some enchanted bandages and tied Twilight's now retracted wings tightly against her sides. Twilight grunted a little at the discomfort, but quickly ignored it. The night guard then picked up Twilight's Thompson and escorted her to Princess Luna.
"Princess Luna, I have a mare here that claims to be Princess Twilight Sparkle. As per protocol, a void ring lays upon her horn, and her wings have been bound to her body so that she can not escape," The night guard said as he entered Luna's bed chamber.
"Send her in," Luna said.
The night guard then stepped aside to let Twilight into the room. Luna raised her left hoof to let Twilight know to stop. Twilight prepared for the worst. What came was a flash of light from Luna's horn. After the light dissipated, and the moonlight once more became the only light in the room, Luna looked up to notice Twilight standing there in front of her.
"Release her bindings, this Twilight Sparkle is the real one," Luna said.
The night guard then took the bandages off of Twilight, allowing her wing to spread again. He then took the void ring off of her horn and stepped back. Luna motioned with her left hoof to let the night guard know that he should depart, which he did after bowing first. After the night guard had left, Luna nearly ran over to Twilight and embraced her in the most sincere hug Twilight has had in the past year. Twilight couldn't help but return the hug, reinforcing the knowledge that she was indeed home.
"Princess, are you alright?" Twilight asked after she noticed Luna had tears rolling down her cheeks.
"I'm more than alright, Twilight. It's been a whole year since you left us, so please excuse my tears... I'm just glad to see you again," Luna said.
"I'm glad to be home. Though, I must admit, I am a tad worried," Twilight said.
"And why are you worried?" Luna asked.
"I'll explain tomorrow after breakfast. There's nothing I can do about it anyway, much as I wish I didn't have to say so," Twilight said.
"Alright then," Luna said, taking on some of Twilight's worry.
"So, where do guards take things like confiscated weapons?" Twilight asked.
"To the guard vault, whyever do you ask?" Luna asked.
"That guard had a very powerful weapon of mine, and I'd like to keep it by my side," Twilight said.
"Whyever do you have need of a weapon?" Luna asked, obviously shocked.
"I'll explain everything tomorrow, I promise. But right now, I'd like to get my gun back, if you'll allow it," Twilight said.
"Very well, follow me," Luna said after a moment's hesitation, after which, she headed towards the door.
Twilight followed Luna as she walked down the hallway. After a short while, Luna broke the silence with a question.
"So, if you don't mind me asking, what are you wearing? Or do you want to explain that tomorrow as well?" Luna asked.
"I'll explain that tomorrow as well. I'd very much like to repeat as little as possible, if that's alright," Twilight said.
"I can understand that. Having to repeat oneself is frustrating," Luna said.
After the two princesses reached the vault, Luna asked one of the guards to retrieve the weapon that should've been brought to the vault not long ago. After bowing, the guard on the left went into the vault and came back out with Twilight's Thompson a minute later. Twilight took the Thompson and slung it over her back.
"Now, Twilight, follow me. I know one more pony you need to see before the night is over," Luna said, as she turned and started walking again.
"Princess Celestia, right? I can't wait to see her again, that's for sure," Twilight said as she followed.
"She'll be overjoyed when she sees you. She cried for the better part of two and a half hours when she got word that you couldn't be located anywhere in Equestria. Ten bits says she tackles you," Luna said.
"After just waking up? She's a princess, not a Marine, so I doubt she'll have the energy. Still, I can expect a long hug and tears like with you," Twilight said.
"She won't let you go, you know. She'll keep you in a hug for a few hours at the least," Luna said jokingly.
When the duo arrived at Celestia's door, Luna told Twilight to wait outside while she went in and woke her sister up. After about fifteen minutes, Luna called Twilight in, but not by her name so as to keep a surprise for her sister. As soon as Twilight entered the room, her eyes met Celestia's. Twilight felt like she standing in one place for an eternity before Celestia got out of bed and, just like Luna, almost ran over to Twilight to embrace her in a tight hug.
After a few minutes, Celestia broke the silence, still clinging to Twilight as if she could vanish again at any second.
"Where have you been?" Celestia asked, sounding like she was on the very verge of breaking into a crying fit.
"On quite the adventure, though not all that fun of one. I promise though, I'll explain everything tomorrow when everypony is here, my friends included," Twilight said.
"I'll go ahead and send Spike a letter telling him to gather the others and meet us here tomorrow," Celestia said as she broke the embrace.
Celestia then wrote a quick letter and sent it to Spike, who would soon awaken with a loud belch.
"So, what'd you tell him?" Twilight asked.
"I told him that I require an urgent audience with your friends tomorrow. I figured you wouldn't want your name mentioned," Celestia said.
"This'll make for a nice surprise. Unlike with you and Luna, I'll need to expect to be dog piled tomorrow by my friends and Spike," Twilight said, the statement earning a giggle from Celestia and Luna.
"Now, come here and talk to me, Twilight. I've not been able to see you for a year, so surely you can spare me a small conversation," Celestia said.
"I would, but I'm kind of exhausted. I'd actually like to just take a bath and go to bed... if that's alright," Twilight said.
"Only if I can get one more hug," Celestia said.
"I don't see why not," Twilight, walking over to Celestia.
"I've missed you so much, Twilight," Celestia said, pulling Twilight into another tight embrace.
"I've missed you to, Princess. I'm home, though, and I'm not leaving anytime soon," Twilight said.
"I'll hold you to that," Celestia said, releasing her embrace.
"I'll see you in the morning, Princess," Twilight said as she turned and walked out.
Luna followed Twilight so as to escort her to the nearest vacant room. Twilight thanked Luna, and, after bowing, closed the door and started to take her uniform off. She slipped into the bathtub in the adjacent bathroom and moaned as the warm water washed over her coat. After about thirty minutes, Twilight got out of the tub and dried herself off, then proceeded to jump on the bed. After climbing under the covers, it didn't take long for her to fall asleep. With Luna on watch, Twilight was sure to have good dreams tonight.