I breathed in the chilling air, taking it within myself, before releasing it out in a misty breath.
In. Out. In. Out. I repeat the process, yet each breath feels just as hollow as the last.
The wind calmly blows through our ranks, our flags rising and sinking with its strength.
My iron armor feels cold, yet at the same time, warms me like a mother embracing her foal. I feel a chill run through me as the harsh weather attacks my unprotected horn. It appears that this winter is going to be a brutal one. Will I be around to see its end?
I wondered if my brothers feel the same.
I look around me at the scores of soldiers that lie within our division. Some have their visors up, their faces exposed, and I make out several expressions. Some appear to be bothered by the cold, muzzle or beak twisted in a grimace. Others look unperturbed, no emotion registering on their blank slab of a face. I think they are trying to hide from the weather, as if they will not feel the cold if they do not recognize it.
I wonder what my expression is. My battle brothers won’t be able to tell me. My visor remains down. I’m not sure as to the reason.
As my gaze shifts over my fellow country ponies and griffons, I can’t avoid the noticeable looks some soldiers have.
Their lip trembles, their eyes wide, sweat trickling down their brow. It is obvious what plagues my troops.
Fear.
I suppose it is understandable.
For while we rested upon the hills overlooking Windswept Plains, our enemy resides on the berth of open, snow covered grassland.
An army dawned in violet and silver armor, with heavy banners of violet and azure.
They certainly know how to present themselves.
Our enemy stands as none other then the army of the Crystal Empire. A small nation that in recent years had begun a territorial expansion not seen in the region in decades. While we had been aware, it had always seemed to far away to garner enough attention other then a short conversation.
That was till the rumors began to flood across the border. Tales of battle, of strength unseen in any creature, of magic and might that dwarfed any had ever seen.
Still, we brushed off these outlandish claims. Or our leaders did anyways.
That was until the empire had set its sights on Providence. Our country now found itself facing invasion at the hoofs of the continually growing crystal army and led by a creature of rumor and speculation.
Her majesty herself. Ruler of the Crystal Empire and well proclaimed Queen. Meghan the Bright herself.
Up till the moment our armies marched to face each other, the queen was nothing but a rumor, a tall tale in itself. Of a creature that had never been seen upon Equus’ soil. It was all dispelled when I gazed upon the form leading the march of the empire.
Her majesty was...not what we expected. To be truthful, it’s unclear what we expected.
Were we to be awed by a being made of pure energy that commanded untold power? A creature that was a able to touch the sky with its height alone? Whatever we had perceived before was all but forgotten when we gazed upon the proudly named "Queen of the Crystal Empire".
I will not lie. Similar to my brothers, I too inwardly chuckled at the lanky creature that had audacity to stand before the army of Providence. I suppose I never truly put much thought in her actual appearance and upon seeing her, I believed she didn't look like she belonged on the battlefield.
She was a...skinny creature, almost looking fragile in the harsh winter landscape. She stood taller then all her soldiers, yet one could easily match her height if they reared up on their back hooves. Standing on two legs rather then four, we had originally perceived her as some type of Minotaur, though that was incorrect. She lacked fur upon her form; rather she had her pale pink skin exposed to the elements. That was of course what wasn't covered by her beautifully crafted silver gilded armor. I must say I was jealous at the time of the beauty of it, compared to Providence's grey armor standard. Her mane-or hair as I later learned- blew wildly in the gales of the winter weather. Its golden locks were vibrant in their own right. As I would soon find out, her eyes were a cool crystal blue, calmly shining in the twilight of the day.
Despite having an army standing with her, she chose to remain in the front, standing side by side with her loyal Justiciars- who I could not deny, were each very beautiful as well- while wielding a thin wooden staff that appeared to be made from the root of a tree, save for the large amethyst crystal that adorned its top that glowed with unearthly power. In addition, a scabbard lay on her back, obviously holding the impressive long sword she used.
And gods above, her Justiciars! When it's was said they were abominations of the three tribes, I had expected horrid looking monstrosities, yet the mares that stood next to her majesty were a beauty above many a female. However, their outward appearance quickly made it clear why they were known as abominations.
They had both wing and horn.
They could soar the skies, command the earth itself, and wield the magic blessed upon unicorns!
I begin to wonder how such mares came about, but dispel the thoughts as quickly as they begin.
Now is not the time for such frivolous ideas.
We have waited days for this moment. Both armies have prepared themselves. The scouts have been sent and returned. Positions and orders relayed. Battlements built and siege engines prepared.
I cast a brief glance behind me, past the rows of soldiers under my command, spotting our mighty rows of catapults. I can faintly make out the griffons manning them, talons twitching in anticipation. It appears they are ready.
I wonder if the rest of the army feels the same.
A feeling seems to wash over the ranks, feathers rustle and bodies shiver.
The time for battle approaches. As if to confirm this, a Pegasus flies over the ranks, adorned in familiar grey armor as a crimson flag flies in his clutched hoofs.
It appears the general has ordered a charge.
I reflexively ready my joints, my armor clanking in sequence to my movements. Swords are drawn. Shields are raised. Lances and spears aimed. Bows primed.
However, before the first soldier could raise his hoof, a surprise unlike any other would appear in the form of Queen Megan, who stepped out from her scores of soldiers.
She gazed out at us. I don’t think she was admiring the snow covered hills themselves.
Her vision moved from one side of the army to the other, her gaze drifting over every solider, pony or griffon. Despite the vast distance between our respective armies, when her eyes swept past me I...
I shivered. A bone- no- soul chilling feeling ran through me and as I looked to my brothers for support, I saw the same look of fear on their faces.
What in Tartarus below was the queen?
For a creature to make soldiers such as ourselves shiver in fear from its mere gaze, what chance did we stand when it actually attacked?
However, her majesty would once again surprise me by speaking to us, in a voice that seemed to boom from the very heavens themselves.
"Soldiers of Providence!" She called across the snow covered plain toward us, her voice was hard and commanding, yet, I could sense a sweet undertone. “I know you have gathered here today to fight us, to fight me. Your reasons I assume are sound. You want to protect your families, your homes, your lands!" She hefted her wooden scepter into the air, its crystal growing ever brighter. "I wish to do the same! I want to end the fighting! We don't have to stand against each other! We can unite! We can be one nation! A nation of peace and prosperity! A nation of friendship and love! So I ask you! Soldiers of Providence! Stand down! We don't have to fight! We don't have to kill! We don't have to die!" With each statement, her voice seemed to boom till it was almost deafening.
The stillness that descended over the land was unnerving. The speech seemed to seep through our armor into the very souls that made up our bodies. But as the words registered in my mind, in the minds of my brothers, a newfound feeling erupted from us.
Anger.
My jaw clenched tightly as my teeth grinded together to sooth my heated temper. Curses and insults suddenly rained from the mouths of our army. Our once still army came alive with newfound life as shields and swords clanged in retaliation
She had the...the gall to tell us to surrender?! That she wishes for peace and unity?!
They are the invaders of our land! Providence had never dared to sully its name by marching upon the Crystal Empire, even when its forces began to encroach on its boarders! And she talks of unity?! Providence, our home was defined by unity between all ponies, griffon, and even hippogriff! As I looked toward the Queen's army, I was aware of several species among its ranks, yet they were drowned in a sea of pony.
Bah. Unity.
The queen was unperturbed by our battle cries, instead lowering her staff to touch the earth once more. She shook her head for a moment, her golden locks brushing against her face.
For a moment, I was unsure if it appeared she had a…almost sad expression?
But whatever the look, it is soon replaced by a cold look of determination.
It was then that the frozen wind began to pick up, our flags thrashing in the gust. It was an ominous sign, but we had no time to focus on it. Once again, a Pegasus flew above the ranks, braving the harsh winds to carry the charge flag.
My vision followed him for a moment, as his movements seemed to slow ever more, till I could perfectly see every flap of his wing.
Then, I drew my sword from its sheath.
The division lurched forward at first, the snow parting underneath our hooves and talons.
A calm walk at first. Then a slight trot, before emerging into a full blown gallop.
Our division charged away from the army, the fresh powder blasting away under the stampede of our pounding hooves. It blew all around our ranks, creating an almost misty cover as we pressed forward.
My body was invigorated by our charge, by muscles pressing forward with vigor.
With battle cries, our pegasi and select griffons launched themselves into the air, leaving thin gaps that quickly filled up as our division condensed.
I faintly remembered the war horn being sounded, then the roar of thundering hooves and paws as rest of the army charged toward the enemy lines. Each pounding breath battered my lungs as my training took over, my magic gripping my broadsword in newfound power.
My division charged the enemies right division, far away from the center of the enemy forces, where the queen and her justicators laid.
To meet our charge, the enemy pegasi ascended into the sky, while the earth ponies and unicorns braced the front lines.
First contact was brutal, as the front slammed into the enemy’s wall of shields. Some were impaled immediate upon the enemy’s spears, while other launched themselves over the wall of death. Our griffons and pegasi battled in the air for supremacy.
I would soon join my brothers against the enemy wall, my sword clashing with spear and shield of the crystal ponies.
I was quick to spot an opening within the enemy rank, and cried out to my troops to join me. I cut my way through the chink the armor, flanking two enemy earth ponies. My sword cut through their bodies with ease and together, we toppled the enemy line. But I had little to celebrate. The sounds of battle were everywhere. The roar and clash of bodies abound.
We had just begun.
My brothers and I clashed with our counterparts of the empire. Sword against sword. Spear thrust to spear thrust. Hoof to hoof. Claw to claw. I cut down numerous of the enemy rank, my training saving me numerous times from death's mighty embrace. It appeared the day would be ours.
The battle was continuing in earnest when it happened. Our center collapsed. Seven hundred troops of Providence, our finest and strongest, where utterly routed under the onslaught. While I could not know of why this had occurred, it quickly fell as to what the effect would be.
Almost immediately, new enemies appeared on our flank, my division now fighting form two sides, our moral already waning from the renewed enemy.
My eyes frantically attempted to keep up with the pour of new enemy troops that began their fight against us.
Where were the reinforcements? The reserves?
The general could not be abounding us could he?
I couldn’t get the leaching thoughts out of my mind, and my broken concentration was rewarded by a slash of a spear against my side. I cried out in pain, but raised my sword to cut down the aggressor. I barely realized it was a mare before my sword ran her through.
I glanced quickly as my side, noting the crimson staining my fur.
It was a glancing cut.
I would live.
Though, that thought died almost as quick as my eyes gazed upon our doom.
I can say without a doubt this moment was forever burned to the passage ways of my mind. For appearing in a sea of fire, where our center once stood, was the queen herself backed by her loyal maidens.
Or maybe it was not the queen. But the Queen.
It was that moment that title truly sunk into my soul. It was a title earned and sometimes taken. Her majesty was the former.
For walking across the field, decimating solider after solider was Megan the bright, her eyes pits of unholy power. In her hand her staff glowed like a star in the night and seemed to tremble in her grip. Unsheathed from its prison, her long sword rested in her right hand, it literally burning as if it was forged from a piece of the sun itself.
And her justicators revealed just how truly powerful the three tribes combined could be. Their eyes aglow similarly to their queen, their mouths open with pure energy leaking out as if they're very bodies were made of it!
That was not all that came out.
As I quickly realized, there was fire slowly consuming the battlefield. But it was not started by catapult, siege engine or even solider.
It was from the justicators. They were breathing fire. Gouts of flame erupted from their mouths, drenching our soldiers in gouts of death.
Now it seemed that to fall by sword or spear would be a blessing.
Moral collapsed quickly at the sight of the decimation. For how could we stand against this?
Soldiers soon broke rank in favor of fleeing, hoping to avoid falling under the wrath of the queen's forces. I myself would fight on for moments later before terror soon gripped me. For a few soldiers to my left was a justicator. Her coat was a bright fuchsia, though it was marred by splatters of crimson. In addition to her violet amour her weapon of choice was hoof claws, a weapon unseen in our army.
She used them with absolute precision. She moved like a blur, faster then my mortal eyes could track, cutting down score after score of solider, my brothers falling before I could even blink. One felt the piercing blades rip into his chest, before I watched as he was torn in two. His crimson blood added to the continually growing red snow that blanketed the landscape.
It was that moment I fled.
I ran and soon joined more fleeing members of my division. Or what I would soon realize, was our army.
I looked behind me. Gouts of flame and now lightning erupted into what ranks of our army that still fought. I was unsure if they were too proud to flee or too mad.
The sky became alight as several justicators rose into the air, unleashing the fiery wrath upon what pegasi divisions were left.
My breathing became erratic as one justicator was consumed in her own flames before emerging into a dragon incarnate made of pure fire.
I could no longer look at the decimation that awaited us and continued to flee, holstering my sword as I charged up the hill toward our original position.
I knew then and there.
The battle was lost.
We were routed and fleeing for our lives.
As I ran, a creeping thought occurred to me, its voice smooth as silk inside my head.
The Path to an Empire...
is bathed in blood.