Celestia wondered, her expression unchanging, how long it had taken ponies to develop stained glass like the kind that graced seemingly every wall of the palace. She loved the spectrum of colors that danced across the floor over the course of the day, but part of her felt it was overly decorative in such dark times. But that would never do, she scolded herself -- the palace, and herself by extension, must remain positive and radiant, a beacon for ponies to look to and garner hope that dark days would soon end.
She had developed a method for listening to a pony and wandering off into her thoughts many centuries ago. She was sure she would have gone mad listening to every pony for a millenium prattle on about this grievance or that. She would have to be sure to teach Luna-
Her expression faltered for just a moment, but it was back in place as quickly as it had slipped. "I understand your customers are finding the lumber supply to be short, and I sympathize," the solar monarch said politely, "but this is a facet of wartime. The defense of this kingdom is paramount, don't you think?"
"I do, your majesty..." The potbellied stallion stroked his moustache nervously.
"It is therefore paramount that those serving to defend our country are given what they need to defend it, yes?"
"Of course, your grace."
"Good." Celestia smiled warmly. "That said, we cannot expect life at home to halt entirely. I can promise nothing, but I will see if there are resources we can redirect to help with your supply problems."
"Thank you, Princess." The stallion bowed low. "Anything you can send my way would be a great help. Thank you." He rose and followed the attendant out. Before the herald could call the next pony forward, a messenger came crashing through the door, a scroll held aloft in his magic grip.
"Your Highness, word from the south!" The messenger kneeled and held the scroll forward. Celestia grasped the parchment in her own aura and unfurled it. As she scanned the pages, she was quite certain her usually calm demeanor was falling to pieces, if the murmurs of the crowd were any indication.
"And this came directly from them?" The sun princess asked slowly.
"I... Yes, your grace." If the messenger were chewing any harder on his lip, he might have swallowed his own face. Celestia closed her eyes. That thing, shrouded in Luna's form, stared back at her. Across a black void a thousand thousand miles across, it frowned, but its eyes glittered with glee.
“I told you.”
Celestia took a slow, deep breath and open her eyes. "I am very sorry, everypony, but a matter has arisen that requires my immediate attention. " With no further explanation or instruction, the alicorn rose from her throne and strode from the hall. The messenger was hot on her fetlocks. "Has the war council been summoned?"
"They are either on their way, or have already arrived, your highness," the messenger said quickly.
"Good. We have little time, I'm afraid."
The unicorn slowed a pace. "Your highness, we are not permitted to read the messages, as you are aware... What did it say?"
Celestia stopped outside the double doors leading to the war room and looked back at the messenger. Her gaze was warm, but it was like a candle from down a hallway.
"That I have failed, my little pony."
The doors swung open long enough for Celestia to stride through, and shut immediately behind her.
~*~
Day Twenty found the remains of Strike Force Eight doing the same they had done since they’d begun their desperate race north: rest, watch the skies, and do their best to keep ahead of those storm clouds. No shadow shroud had fallen, and the clouds were still heading in a different direction, but nopony was eager to risk a repeat of the maelstrom.
They were all so busy watching their tails, they were hardly watching their flanks.
The first horn sounded from the Adamant's port bow, a steady note matched by two more. Dozens of colored specks were heading their way, fast, from the west. A quick spyglass survey told them enough: glimmerbacks, broadwings, too many.
"How did they find us?" Rainbow Blaze cursed.
"It was a matter of time," Firefly said, "I’d just hoped we'd have more. They’re heading the same directions as us, after all." She turned to her ponies. "We are not dead yet. Every pony that can fly, I want suited and ready to jump in two minutes. CAG will not jump until the enemy is within critical distance -- let's not send anypony out to get slaughtered. Captain, how are your weapon salvos looking?"
Captain Azure Mist, the commander of the Starfall, laughed wryly. "After the storm, this might be the last of it. I can give you two, maybe three opening salvos. There won't be much of anything left after that."
"It'll be enough. Have the ships start for the ground. If, Faust forbid, you do go down, let’s make the fall as short as possible." Firefly's leaders were already gone, off to rally their platoons. With a frown, she went below to get her own gear. The mare had long ago lost her helmet, foregoing a replacement in favor of her ponies getting the equipment they needed. Her sabres were slashed to Tartarus and back, but they could still give as good as they got. When she returned, Blizzard Platoon was gathering on the deck. Taro Blush saluted, her inherited platoon following suit.
"Well, ponies," Firefly chuckled, "Today, we're headed straight for the gates of Tartarus."
"Single file or double, Ma'am," Taro asked.
On the Adamant, an inexperienced pony might have considered the ship to have descended into a state of chaos. For the crew, it was just how things got done. When Comet heard the news, the first thing she did was rush to the bow and retch over the side of the ship. Lily patted her on the back, trying to ease the quivering pony. Comet looked up to her, swallowed, and wiped her mouth. The two fillies gave each other a firm nod and went to find their gear.
Below deck, the pair had to hover over racing unicorns and earth ponies to reach the armory fast enough. Most of their platoon was already dressing or leaving when they arrived. The twins were moving a bit slow, the checks for their "new" sabres taking longer than usual. At least they were finally getting to use them. "You're late, girls," Dewbead barked. "Sixty seconds, see you on deck." The sky blue pegasus was gone after that, off to find her wingpony. Sparky Bolts sat in his armor, waiting for his new wingponies to dress. The two of them rushed through every step, checking each other off as they went rather than waiting for the end.
When at last Comet put her helmet on, most of Crescent Platoon had departed. She stood and felt a hoof on her shoulder. Lily wore an almost pained expression.
"Comet..." The indigo filly made to speak. "No, just, shut up for a second. I don't know if this is it, if we have a chance of making it out of this one or not, so I just wanted to say... You're a better wingpony than I could have ever hoped for... and a better friend."
Hugging with sabres equipped is simply impossible, so the fillies settled for a nuzzle through their helmets. Lily kissed Comet on the helmet, they nodded to their third wingpony, and the three headed up. A tense silence had settled over the ship as they reached the top deck. It was clear that the dragons were going to catch them, but that didn't stop the airships from racing north at their best speeds. There was no more hustling of crew or equipment, no more shouting of orders; everything, and everypony, was right where they needed to be. Now all they could do was wait.
Rainbow Blaze trotted out in front of his platoon and looked them up and down. "We knew this might happen, ponies. Our chances of making it back without a fight were low to begin with. The only chance we have of escaping, of making it back to Equestria, is if the ships survive. Defending them is our top, hell, our only objective. We hold this line, ponies, whatever it might cost us.
"Out there," the cobalt stallion pointed, "Death is waiting for us. It's sent its scaled monsters to drag us down to Tartarus. But we only have one thing to say to death. What is it?"
"Not today," Slipstream said. Up and down the row, Crescent Platoon repeated the mantra.
"Not today," Rainbow confirmed. "Hold true to the ponies beside you. You have gotten each other this far, and Faust willing, you will see each other home. And whatever happens, know that I could not ask for a better group of ponies to have served with. I'll see you on the other side." The first salvo shot out across the sky, spearing a dozen dragons or more, but halting the flight's advance not at all. In record time, a second salvo was loaded and fired to the same effect.
Rainbow smirked at Fir Bough. The pale green mare returned the toothy grin and shouted, "They’re playing our song, Cyclone Company. Let's go cut a rug!" So they, and every able pony with wings, hurled themselves into the open sky. For just a few seconds, their flight was perfectly serene. They fell, caught the air with their wings, coasted on the afternoon winds, and rose on warm updrafts. In another time, it would have been a wonderful day.
For them, it was likely their last. At least the skies were good.
A third salvo rushed past the ponies as they closed the gap between them and the Dragon hoard. Firefly was the first pony in, cutting along a glimmerback’s cheek and severing its jaw. The red ribbon continued down its neck, releasing hot, dark life force behind her. By the time she pulled away, its neck was nearly split end to end. Her ponies were right behind her, stabbing and cutting with nothing to lose. Downpour Company focused into a tight column, drilling through the left flank of the dragon flight and lacerating anything that got within reach. The tattered remains of Moonlight Company were weaving back and forth around each other, leading dragons on wild chases only to pass them off to their comrades for a quick dispatching.
Rainbow Blaze and Fir Bough led their platoons in a charge for the back of the enemy flight, Crescent going above while Dawn dropped below. Between the two, they stabbed, cut, and dewinged as many outliers as they could manage. Behind the glimmerbacks, the broadwings were still coming on entirely unperturbed by the mounting losses.
“We take them!” Blaze yelled back at his ponies. “Leave the smallfry to the others.” He looked up as Firefly, Ardent, and the rest of Apex Platoon went speeding past. “...Well alright then,” he muttered to himself. The stallion ducked out of the way of a glimmerback’s open jaw, rolled in mid air, and stabbed its gut just north of where its thighs met its torso. The beast howled in pain, whipped its tail underneath, and slammed the pony against its gut. The blow knocked Rainbow senseless, but drove his lance through the dragon and out its back. Stuck together, the two plummeted like a stone.
“Blaze!” Slipstream and Clear Morning broke formation to follow their leader. Their squad broke after them, but a pair of glimmerbacks cut them off with roars and fangs. The first, a shiny red with eyes like warm coals, screeched at them with a key that could shatter glass. The twins' spears shut it up. The second, a sleek yellow who was not so eager to die like its friend, dropped lower to evade the others’ attacks. It failed to notice Slipstream and Clear Morning had come back up, and the drake fell backwards onto their glaives. The beast seized, looked down at the polearms that protruded from its chest, and died.
“Keep going,” Slipstream called to his squad, “we’ll find Blaze. Go!” The pegasus turned for the earth and sped off. With every second counting, his squad turned and sped after the rest of their platoon.
Up ahead, Crescent Platoon was gaining on Apex’s tail. A broadwing hunched up in front of them, its chest swelling dangerously. The fuschia mare beat her wings powerfully, the wake rippling like a drumbeat. Every pony behind her caught her signal and broke formation. The first jet of flame erupted like an explosion, spreading in all directions before the dragon. The air itself seemed to ignite as ponies scrambled to escape the blaze. The fire continued all the way to where the glimmerbacks were engaging the other pegasi, catching dragon and pony alike. Before anyone could recover, a second broadwing emitted a second jet, nearly as powerful. Still recovering, some ponies could not escape the blaze and disappeared.
Comet had to close her eyes from the heat, and when she opened them again, her squad was gone. She spun about in midair, trying desperately to find them. She called out, but nopony answered. In a panic, she flew up, rolling between broadwings as she soared for a better view. The sight from up high froze her blood.
Some of the glimmerbacks had broken through their lines and were after the airships. The Starfall was already on fire, and the Adamant had acquired new holes to replace its old ones. The Equinox was listing dangerously. Beams of magic lanced in every direction, catching as many of the beasts as they could, but more kept coming. Below her, the broadwings were fighting her comrades, but they were hardly slowing down.
It wasn’t until Firefly led a charge twenty strong, and gifted a broadwing with a new set of bloody gills, that the large dragons finally regarded them as a threat. In such tight quarters, the massive drakes could barely maneuver to attack their smaller foes, but the plumes of fire and smoke they bellowed more than made up for it. Squads of ponies could barely manage a strafing attack before having to escape a fiery retort. And nowhere in this nightmare was her squad.
A broadwing reared up, saw Comet, and decided a quick snack was in order. It lunged for her, but it would have been hard to not notice such a large creature. The filly roared and dove for her attacker. At the last second, she rolled around, bounding off the drake’s nostril and crashing into its eye. Sabre tore at gooey flesh, and the broadwing roared with righteous indignation. It thrashed its head about, but the filly held on, cutting at the now disabled eye with everything she had. If everything was lost, she was damn sure this monster would be going down with her.
One of the Apex squads took the opportunity to cut along the dragon’s joints, severing the muscles powering its eponymous wings. Gravity started to win over on the beast, but still Comet held on. There wasn’t really a point to it, but she didn’t know what else to do.
“Comet!” Lily Nimbus and Sparky Bolts grabbed their wingpony as best they could and pulled her from the dragon’s ravaged eye. “Comet come on, there’s plenty others to kill.”
“Lily, Bolts!? Where-”
“Must have gotten separated across the plume. Everypony’s fine, now come on!” Comet followed her wingponies up to where the rest of Squad Four was flying a holding pattern over the battle. With the five of them grouped up, they fell into a pyramid formation and plummeted for the nearest drake.
~*~
Rain was not entirely sure when she started loving Willow Wisp. Was it in Basic, or shortly thereafter, she could not say. What she could say, however, was that she trusted him, unwaveringly, with her life. That was good, since they had fallen into a reverse tandem flight pattern -- every strike Willow made, Rain followed right after, doubling the damage dealt. Where the rest of their squad had disappeared to, neither knew nor had time to consider. The pair were nearly on top of each other, Rain only a wing’s length behind her wingpony. Normally she, being the more agile, would call their maneuvers, but her primary concern now was ensuring her colt's safety. He initiated, she cleaned up, and so far they were both still alive.
The two of them rolled under a broadwing, cutting at its throat with lackluster results, before following the curve of the neck up and over. Above, Stratus Drifter was rallying what he could find of his squad. All of them were happy to see each other, and fell into a loose formation as they charged their next drake. Daring a glance around, nopony knew exactly how many they had managed to kill, but one thing was too clear.
They would not kill enough.
~*~
Candescence leaned on her first mate. Blood poured from a gash across her chest and shoulder where a glimmerback had gotten lucky. Its severed spinal column was an agreeable trade.
“Captain,” Night Light shouted as he socked a glimmerback across the jaw, “we can’t keep this up! The Starfall’s lost and we’re losing altitude!” The ship rocked violently as a glimmerback was blasted with a magic burst and crashed into the starboard bow. Wood splintered under the weight of its carcass. In the midst of the impact, nopony noticed the one right behind it slip onto the underbelly of the ship, and it clambered over the side and devoured one of the gunners before anypony realized it was there. A trio of earth ponies brought it down, but for every one they slayed, too many remained.
“We’re out of options, Magister.” The mare formed a shield to guard one of the five remaining ballistae on the deck. A blast of acid rebounded off of the bubble, eroding the structure around it. The ponies gunning had to back away before the ballista and everything around it fell away like wet paper. The captain cursed -- she could not keep it up. “If we even try to abandon ship, they’ll eat us alive.”
“You mean we’re-”
“With all hooves, Mr. Light.” Her head was getting light. “Let’s take as many of them with us as we can.” The ship lurched as part of the stern fell away. Another ballista was ripped from its perch and thrown into the open air, dragging the hapless ponies crewing it along. The balloon was deflating faster now, acid holes letting the magically buoyant air slip free. Another shudder wracked the Adamant -- its back was threatening to snap in half, and then they’d be completely buggered.
Night Light's hoof absently drifted to his locket. He turned it once, twice, the picture within clear without even opening it. He turned back to the battle, sighted a dragon closing in on a wounded pegasus, and grabbed it around the tail with his magic. More grips shot out, binding the drake at every joint. All of his anger, all of his regret, all of the pain he could see in Velvet’s face poured through his magic into the scaled beast.
The glimmerback ripped apart like paper.
But where the one dragon had been, three more were ready to do the same. Night Light planted his hooves and charged his horn. He had plenty left to give.
~*~
Comet spun as she surged forward, leaving a dozen cuts along a broadwing’s back before banking away. She and Lily must have cut the scaled bastard a hundred times, nevermind the rest of their squad’s work, but it kept going. Before they could charge in again, the dragon surged forward, knocking them back in its wake. It rolled onto its back underneath the Adamant, drew a deep breath, and exhaled blistering fire across the belly of the ship. Planks turned to cinders, ponies fell overboard, flailing to put out their burning fur, and the ship’s superstructure finally gave out. Comet could only watch as her ship caved in and fell from the sky, a charred wreck of its former majesty.
The Starfall, appropriately named, was mostly on fire now. Its flaming husk completed its slow descent, crashing to the stony earth and flying apart in a cloud of smoke and dust. Only the Equinox was airborne, and it was not far behind its sisters. With the other ships gone and too few ponies left to defend it, all of the dragons’ focus fell to the battered vessel. Fire and Acid burned its hull away, exposing the decks and superstructure like ribs on a carcass. Squad Four raced for the airship, cutting anything the could along the way.
They met up with the joined remains of Squads Two and Three along the way; it seemed everypony had the same notion. But still a mile out, they could only watch as the Equinox disintegrated, the last cables holding it to the balloon finally eroding away. The boat plummeted to the ground with a sickening crash and a plume of smoke and dust.
They were alone.
The combined squad turned to face their foes, a few brave fish in a sea of sharks. As a broadwing drew near, they split, sweeping around from all sides and doing whatever damage they could. If it felt any pain, it did not show it. Comet cried bloody murder as she tore through the webbing along its outer wing to no effect. The drake flipped end over end, its tail crushing Crystal Lake under its colossal weight. The filly turned to get another attack, but it had already wheeled back and was turning away from her. Crying out in desperation, she and Lily sped ahead of their squad to kill it.
One more kill.
One more hit.
Anything to take with them.
A sonic blast brought them both to a halt. Behind them, the sky crumbled to dust, striking both of them deaf. Everything, every pony, every dragon, stopped and stared in horror.
A dragon, bigger than any other, scales shining in the late afternoon light, was charging down on the battle, wings spread in an even glide. Its tail rustled slightly in the wake, but every other inch of it was a statue, a monument to winged terror and destruction. They had only seen one sparklefang before, but they were impossible to mistake.
Comet expected her comrades to scatter in the face of this new behemoth. She did not expect the dragons to scatter as well. She and Lily were stunned as the battle seemed to fall apart around them, everyone scrambling to get away from the new challenger.
That, unfortunately, made them easy targets. The sparklefang was bearing down on them, its jaw slowly opening like a gate to Tartarus. The two ponies panicked and raced away as fast as their wings could carry them. Their scramble brought them right behind a glimmerback, just as frightened as they were, but no less eager to attack when it noticed them. It rolled onto its back, flared its wings, and lunged.
Comet rolled to her left, crashing into Lily and knocking her away. The blow sent the pink filly spiraling out of control, but both of them had escaped the dragon’s bite. Unfortunately, it left the chiroptequus alone with a hungry drake. It seemed to smile at her, eyes full of green malice, before the flame was snuffed in a moment of utter fear.
The sparklefang was on top of them, its maw wide open. Green light radiated from its gullet. Comet turned, stared, felt the heat, cringed as the wave of green fire erupted across her and the dragon, and was gone.
~*~
At first, Lily couldn’t do anything. She stared in abject horror at the green sea of flame where Comet used to be. She stared as the sparklefang dispelled the remaining flame in its wake, banked high and away, and made its way south after the majority of the dragons. She stared at the empty space where her friend no longer was.
And then she screamed. The sound ripped itself from her throat, painful and bloody. With three powerful beats of her wings, she was after the titanic dragon, bloody murder ringing from her as she sped across the sky. But for all of her effort, it was still faster, and was quickly fading to a tiny speck on the horizon.
That didn't stop her from trying.
“Nimbus!” Wren Song tackled her in mid air, wrapping her legs around the raging filly and controlling their fall with her wings. “Nimbus, Lily, it’s gone! You’re not going to catch it.”
“I don’t care!” The filly screamed as she tried to break free. “I don’t bucking care! That thing killed Comet! It killed her! I’ll chase it to the end of the world, but I’ll kill it! I’ll kill it! I’ll…” She had screamed herself hoarse in under a minute, but she didn't care. Tears rolled down her face, but she didn't care. The fight drained out of her, leaving her to wail in her commander’s forelegs.
She had promised. She had promised, and pushed, and fought harder than she had ever fought for anything, and it didn't matter.
She’d still lost Comet Shimmer.
~*~
Night Light was dead. He was very much sure of that. But if he was dead, why was he in pain? Maybe one goes to the afterlife in whatever state they were in when they died? That’s just unfair.
A cough wracked his body, eliciting a fresh wave of pain and aches, but it was enough to convince him he was, in fact, still alive somehow. He was content to lie there for a moment, putting together how he had come to be on the ground, under a beam, surrounded by charred debris beneath a clear, early evening sky. When it returned to him, the battle, the ship, the sinking, adrenaline set his blood on fire. With a single heave of his magic, the beam was tossed aside, and he was on his feet.
This proved to be a mistake. His hind leg howled in pain, forcing him off of it with a cry. He gingerly scryed it with his magic. Broken. Just what he needed. But the others. Where were the others-
“Night Light!?” Mint Sprig, one of the cooks, poked his head through a gap between two boards. “Celestia’s supple backside, it is you! You’re alive!”
“Somehow,” the unicorn gasped. “Is anypony else?”
“Yeah, everypony’s gathering together on top of the hill.” The earth pony started to pry the boards apart, and Night Light helped with his magic. At least that was still functional. “I hope you’re up to searching. We could use more magic, moving the wreckage around.”
“Mint,” Night Light stopped, “the captain. She was wounded, is she…”
The cook shook his head. “Not for much longer, I think. She’s lost a lot of blood. I don’t know how much there is to do.” The unicorn wanted to sit, but there was no time. “Come on, Light. Everypony’s this way.” Pushing a piece of the hull aside, the two stallions made there way out of the Adamant’s smoking carcass. The air was thick with ash and death, and Night Light had to shut his eyes and focus on walking with only three legs. When he opened his eyes again, they were outside the Adamant, and the unicorn came to understand the extent of their losses.
Marooned.
Three columns of smoke rose from the desert floor in lazy, thick plumes, each originating from the husk of a destroyed airship. Like insects, the surviving ponies scurried around and through the smoldering remains; pegasi scanned from above while unicorns and earth ponies shifted debris below. Sometimes, they would emerge with another pony following them, sometimes they would be carrying the pony to safety, and too often they would only bring a body.
Night Light reached for his locket, but only dry, singed fur met his hoof. He patted around frantically, but they search only confirmed it: his picture of Velvet was gone. He looked back to the smoking corpse of the Adamant, its charred innards spilled across the sand and stone. He started for it, desperate to search, but a bone rattling groan and a threatening crunch from somewhere deep within warned him away. The unicorn breathed a deep, shaky breath, and when Mint Sprig laid a hoof on his shoulder, he jerked himself away from the crash.
The two ponies headed up the slope to a gathering underneath a rocky overhang. A few tattered sails had been hastily fused together and slung to create a large tent, and inside, the countless injured were tended to by the few medics remaining. Night Light became aware of just how little they had managed to pull from the ships. Where the smell of antiseptic should be pungent, there was almost no trace of it. The medics were sewing wounds and wrapping bandages with whatever scrap they could get, disinfecting with magic when the practice had been declared ineffective decades ago. One of the Adamant's medics rushed over to see to Night Light's leg, but he waved her away. "Somepony needs you more than I do, Doc. I can wait." The unicorn gave him an uneasy look, but nodded and ran off to the next crisis. "Tell me there's more than this, Mint."
"There is," the earth pony said, "but the captain's this way." They made their way past rows of spread blankets and salvaged cots, trying very hard to ignore the gruesome sights that awaited them should their gaze wander. Candescence was near to the back, her side wrapped in dirty bandages. Her coat was grimmly pale as she gasped for breath. Fir Bough sat beside her, wiping her brow with a rag every so often. Her gaze fell on Night Light as he drew near.
"Well well, I should have known you were still alive," she said with a crooked smile. "You're very hard to kill, Magister."
"Just lucky, Ma'am." Night Light carefully sat down. "How do you feel?"
"Like I'm dying, Light." She smiled a mirthless smile. Fir made to protest. "Denying it isn't going to change the fact, Stick. Magister Night Light, Fir, without a ship, I am not properly a captain. Despite this, my options are limited, and you two are here."
"Whatever you need, Ma'am."
"Get them home." She waved a hoof aimlessly. "Whatever you have to do. Faust be good, I won't die yet, but I'm in no shape to lead. You need to get them to safety. Do you understand me?"
"I do, Captain. I'll get everypony home." He saluted. "And you'll always be my captain, Ma'am." Her smile called him on his blind loyalty, and she closed her eyes. If it weren't for the nearly imperceptible rise and fall of her chest, she could easily have been dead. Night Light wiped his nose, stood, and limped away before his captain had a chance to see him crack.
Fir Bough caught him. "I'm going to stay with her. You find anypony left out there, leave her to me."
"As you say, Sergeant." The last place the unicorn wanted to be was the hospital-tent-turning-morgue, so he made a beeline for the exit and fresh air. Apparently, he was not the only one looking for the escape. Rainbow Blaze was perched on a rock, his left wing bound tightly to his side. He looked up as the unicorn drew near, then turned his gaze back to the smoldering wreckage.
"How bad is that?" Night Light gestured at the wrappings.
"Cracked rib. They finally grounded me, as if it matters." All the fire in his eyes had been snuffed out. "What about you? That limp looks bad."
"It's broken, not sure how bad. It's not dangerous, so it's best that the medics see to the others first."
"Maybe, but you don't want to keep walking on it. Come on." The two stallions made their way down to the wreckage of the Starfall.
"Sgt. Fir Bough's with the captain. She's going to look after her... It's not good." Rainbow only nodded. The sails along the front of the ship had almost all escaped the blaze, and were being cut into strips for bandages. Combined with a sufficiently whole bar, the pegasus fashioned a decent splint. The unicorn gasped in pain as he set the leg and bound it, but Rainbow did not notice Night Light was crying until he was done.
"I was going to marry her," The unicorn sobbed. "The night we left Canterlot, I proposed to her. I told her, 'when I get back, we'll have the wedding you deserve. It'll be perfect. But for now, just remember that I'll think of you every day, and that I will do everything I can to get back to you.' She said yes... And now I'll never see my Velvet again." The unicorn cried, beyond caring who saw him, and Rainbow put his good wing around him and dragged him close.
~*~
Of all the things one can lose in a war, cutie marks are rarely ever brought up. As the last stitch was set in place, Sun Ray would have to make sure it was added to the list. Her right mark was still fine, but her left had been replaced by three deep, red gashes that wept angrily. Her leg still responded, if only to scream at her to stop moving, and the medic said she would likely keep the leg. A lifelong limp, however, was just as likely.
At least she still had her sister. The snowfall blue filly never left her side for a second, whispering reassurances and nuzzling her when the pain grew too intense to bear. There wasn't enough pain potion to go around, and what little remained was being saved for the worst cases. So the twins had to take solace in each other.
Slowly, news reached them from the survivors as they roamed the camp. All the pegasus companies were spread to the ends of the world, and searches had to start in the sick tent, spread across the camp, and then reach as far as ten miles in any direction. Confirmations came slow, pony by pony, but the picture started to come together.
Thunder Clap had lost an eye. Crystal Lake's mangled body had been recovered about an hour ago. Slipstream and Clear Morning had found Lieutenant Blaze alive but badly injured. Stratus Drifter had barely escaped becoming dinner, and was cut all over by the tips of the dragon's fangs. Snow Veil's tail had been scorched to the flesh, and likely would remain sparse. Dewbead sported a long cut underneath her right ear, all the way from her brow down to the middle of her neck. Silver Raindrops nearly had her leg ripped off, but Willow Wisp had taken a few claws to knock her out of the way. Even as they treated him, she repeatedly clobbered him and called him a prideful foal.
And Comet Shimmer was dead.
The twins were sure it was a mistake. That know-it-all had somehow managed to make it through everything, from Basic up through every fight. She knew more about dragons than the rest of the platoon combined. There was no way she had gotten caught unawares. But Lily Nimbus had reported it, and Wren Song had confirmed. Sun Ray had never seen a pony look so broken as when the pink filly made her report.
"Maybe she's lucky," the yellow twin muttered. "Better to die quick than to waste away out here."
"Don't say that," Moon Beam commanded. "We're going to make it. It can't be much farther to The Line now. We'll make it back, and we'll go home. It'll be ok, sister."
"And what then, sis?" More pleading made it into Sun Ray's voice than she'd meant. "We'll go home. And the dragons will come. They'll batter down the lines, and the fire will spread across Equestria. The forests and the fields will burn, and," she choked on a sob, "and all that's good and green will be gone... There won't be a home to go to, Moon." Hot tears rolled down her face, uncontrolled and full of fear. Moon Beam wrapped herself around her sister, hiding her own tears in her fur.
She wanted to believe, but Sun Ray was right. The end was coming for everypony. It was just coming for them a little sooner.
~*~
Firefly was quiet for a long, long time. There was no way they could move so many wounded over land, and even if they left them all behind, there were hardly enough supplies left to see the rest safely home. She wanted to break something, anything, but everything they had left was too valuable. So she sat in silence and looked out on her failure.
Cyclone Company's back was broken.
Considering it was a suicide run when they had jumped to defend their ships, it was a miracle that any of them were alive at all. Their wounded included, Blizzard Platoon was down to two squads worth of ponies. Apex was barely any better. Dawn was just over a single squad, and Crescent had somehow escaped with two and a half. They had been right behind her, she knew, and that had not worked out for anypony else. Some of the wounded from the maelstrom fight had escaped the ships before they went down. Others...
The fuschia mare knew they did not have the strength to fight again should the time come. With no support, and more injured ponies than healthy ones, they would not hold a candle to the flame of a dragon attack force. She looked over the shattered sabre that adorned her left hoof. She was sure the dragon whose brain the other part was lodged in did not appreciate her leaving it there, but it wasn't exactly her decision.
Firefly looked around. Her company was scattered across the refuge, clinging to their little island in the endless sand sea. Each pony she did not see left a hole in her heart, and she was sure she was going to bleed out before the sun rose again. Each one hurt, and whenever she tried to think of one, another hurt as bad or worse, until it had compounded on itself to the point of numbness. Her ponies still needed her, she knew -- some were still alive, and they needed to escape this desert. But there was nothing she could do. She had given everything she had, and she had failed all of them, the living and the dead.
"Fly?" Rainbow Blaze cautiously approached his captain from behind. She removed her sabres and threw them in his general direction, missing by a mile. He closed the remaining distance and pulled the mare into a warm embrace. She was too tired to struggle. The two ponies leaned against each other, watching the last light of the day fade in the west. Their grip on each other deepened, as if they were trying to meld into a single pony. Everything that they wanted to say, had never said because of rank or timing, everything they felt floated between the two in unspoken dialogue.
Even when Rainbow wanted to say something, he could not find the words. Nothing described everything he wanted in as many words as he knew Firefly would permit him. So he leaned around, kissed her on the brow, and held her as close and as tight as his legs and his cracked rib could manage.
"Tomorrow, we need to figure out what we're going to do," Firefly said as the last light of the day vanished.
"Yeah. But let's take tonight off." Rainbow nuzzled the side of her neck.
"...Thank you." He looked down, and she was smiling at him. It wasn't the cocky, fiery smirk he usually saw, but a genuine smile, full of everything she held for him and hid behind the thinnest of veils. This time, he skipped her brow and showed her just what she meant to him.
~*~
Twelve ponies had graduated from Fort Hurricane in the dog days of summer. The remaining eight sat in a circle, sipping at cups of water, trying to make sense of what had gotten them to this place. Lily Nimbus was checked out; the filly was curled into a tight ball of pink fur and jitters, eyes fixed on a point very far away. No matter how the others tried to console her, she did not respond. They'd lost Comet, and Lily had followed her.
How had this happened? How had the kindest, the smartest, the most creative, and the most generous of their class all perished, leaving their lesser members to carry the burden of their memories?
"...We should do something for them," Stratus Drifter finally said. Bandages adorned the majority of his body, and he gingerly avoided movement to avoid aggravating one cut or another. "A marker, or... or something."
"We're going to need a lot of markers soon, if we start." Willow Wisp closed his eyes. There was no solace there.
"Well we have plenty of spare wood," Sparky Bolts spat. His tone almost set off the lemon colt, but both were too weary to do anything. None of them really felt up to doing anything, not when it would get them nowhere.
Not when it wouldn't get them home or bring their friends back.
"I told her," Thunder Clap started slowly, "one time, that I felt like I deserved to go out fighting. With what Gale did, I felt like I should pay it forward. She told me, 'we need you alive,’ and I knew it was true. And even though I had... have no right, I'm still here... and they're not." The green stallion snorted. "Buck... BUCK!" He kicked and stomped the dirt, and the exertion set off a new wave of anguish in his phantom eye. He buckled over, hissing in pain, before Silver and Stratus closed in to calm him down. "It's not right," he said through ragged breaths, "it's not right that I'm left." And the hulking, green, juggernaut of a pony started crying like a child.
If he wasn't, everypony thought, they probably would be.
Willow snorted and shook his head, trying to dispel his own tears. It wasn't working. So instead, he walked over to Rain and nuzzled her. When he found she had already started crying, he kissed each tear and held her. It helped, he could tell, but she was out of smiles. He tried to smile for her, and he saw the recognition, the love in her eyes, but it just wasn't enough to help her.
Stratus Drifter and Sparky Bolts shared a look. "We should rest up," the charcoal colt said. "Tomorrow, we need to figure out how we're going to get home."
"It's over, Drifter," Sun Ray muttered as she set her head on her sister's back. "We're not getting home."
"He's right," Sparky Bolts said. "If we have a chance to make it back alive, we should try. It's better than wasting away out here."
"Give it a rest," the daisy yellow filly growled. "We're done, we lost, we're not getting home, and this is how our story ends-"
"I am not dying out here!" Stratus surged to his feet, nostrils flaring and eyes wild. They were amazed he did not start spurting blood from everywhere. "I did not come all the way out here, see so much shit, and go through so much pain to die under a rock in the dead end of nowhere! Even if I have to carry you on my bucking back, we're getting home. Somehow, we're going to get home." The others stared at him. Sun Ray wished she had his optimism, but there was nothing she could see that validated it.
"He's right," Thunder Clap hissed, the pain in his eye fading away. "We'd be letting down everypony who died to get us this far if we gave up. We have a job to finish." He looked up at the dark pegasus. "What do you have in mind, Drifter?"
"...Right now? Sleep. We're all burnt out, and we're not going to make a good plan tonight. We rest, we eat what we can tomorrow... And we see what we have left."
~*~
“So I follow Peak out behind the house, out to that crappy shed we used to hang out in, and there’s Banded Iron, trying his hardest to suck Honey Comb’s face off. Remember Honey Comb?” Fir Bough heaved with laughter.
“I do. What a sorry mess she was.” Candescence laughed as best she could. “And he was with her?”
“Yeah, and he was going for gold. His hooves started sliding lower, so I slammed the door open and shouted,” Fir had to recollect herself, “‘Iron, you’re a young colt, don’t do it!’” The two of them collapsed with laughter, holding onto each other for dear life. “He was so mad. I’ve never even seen you get as mad as he was.” She pounded her chest to get everything working again. “So he bolts up, and Honey Comb’s freaking out, and as she’s trying to flail her way to safety she socks him cross the cheek.”
“No!”
“Swear on Celestia’s horn, she did. And Iron, big fella that he was, is out like a light.” Fir wipes a tear from her eye. “And now’s she’s charging at the door, which of course I’m still standing in, and I barely roll out of her way with everything intact. And you know what the best part is?”
“What, Stick?”
“The next morning, Iron doesn’t remember a bucking thing!” Fir had to wait for them both to calm down. “She hit him so hard, he didn’t remember anything past dinner.”
“I can’t believe I never heard that story.” Candescence laughed weakly. Her chest was past hurting now, so at least she could enjoy Fir’s company. Her breathing was heavy. “Those were good days.”
“The best. Then you went off to college, Iron got work up north… all you older lot left us kids behind. Things got kinda quiet after that.” Fir smiled at her old friend. “I’d always look forward to you coming back for the holidays. 'Big Sis' coming home from school, I always had that to look forward to.”
“Mhmm, but then I had Translucence. Best mistake of my life.”
“You didn’t mean to?”
“Didn’t I tell you?” A cough wracked the unicorn, but she waved Fir’s help away. “Sorry, it must have gotten caught up in everything. It was our last couple weeks before graduation, and we were all celebrating. We got carried away, too much to drink, and you know how it goes.
“I don’t regret it. He’s the best son I could ask for. But I’m sorry I drifted away after that.”
“Heh, it makes sense. You had to look after him, after all.” Fir laid down beside the captain. “Not to mention your cushy job as the X.O. of a royal battleship. How’d you even balance the two?”
“I didn’t serve any time away until Lucence was old enough to take care of himself, and I was never gone for long. Benefits of peacetime, I suppose.” Candescence laughed. “Maybe I should have stayed there.”
“Yeah, I guess you should have.” Fir closed her eyes. “But we’ll make it home, Candy, and things’ll be good again. You gotta see your son graduate, right?”
“I’d like that…” The rest of the sentence clung to her tongue like tar, but Fir already knew. “Fir, I want you to promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“Make it home.” Fir stared at her friend. All of her words dried in her throat, blocking off her air. “One of us has to, Fir. Promise me.”
“I will. Whatever happens, I will.”
Candescence smiled and closed her eyes. “Thank you.”
~*~
Dawn found them with less than they had had last night. Some ponies had succumbed to their wounds, cutting their numbers by a fair fraction. Words were said, quiet consolation for the living, and the remaining ponies set to work gathering everything they had left. By their best estimates, they would have enough food to ration for four days, water for five, and then they would be out of luck. And there was still the matter of the injured.
Captain Candescence was a candle in a storm. Her wounds ran deep, deeper than the surviving medics could treat, and they did not have enough to keep her fed and hydrated to see her through the worst of it. The unicorn mare put on a brave face for her friend and her crew, but she knew as well as anypony. Fir Bough held vigil at her bedside, eyes lidded as she watched over her. Around mid morning, Night Light joined her. He looked to his captain's childhood friend for some good news, but there was none to be had.
A faint buzz tickled his horn, and he glanced around for the source of the disturbance. But there was nothing to cause it. Against logic, he looked down at his captain.
A faint, nearly invisible glow surrounded Candescence’s horn. “Captain?” Night Light started and gently shook her. “Captain, stop. Your strength-”
“Go, Mr. Light.” Her words were nearly imperceptible. “You promised.” The unicorn stared at her in bewilderment. Fir shoved him to his hooves.
“Go.” The unicorn blinked at her, nodded, and took off.
Outside, Rainbow Blaze and Firefly ambled past the pile of collected supplies, silently tending to their thoughts, when the mare happened to take a long look over the west horizon. Far away, a number of dark dots floated across the sky.
They were back to finish the job.
Part of her wanted to scream, but the better part of her bolted for the nearest spyglass, the only one left. She ripped it from its perch on the supply pile, pulled it out, and peered through. Night Light appeared by their side, scanning the horizon. His breath caught in his throat when he saw the specks.
"...They're ships." Firefly grabbed Rainbow and shook him. "They're ships, and they're heading towards us! You, Light," she turned to face the unicorn, "grab whatever we can use to signal them. Start a fire or something, I don't care, just get their attention before they pass us by. Go!"
News of the airships swept across the camp, bringing life to the survivors and driving them to action. Any wood that could still burn was pulled from the crashes into a big pile and set ablaze. For good measure, the single barrel of ale that was left was dumped on the pyre. As the smoke stack climbed higher and higher, the ponies stood and watched with baited breath.
None of them had ever felt more relieved in their lives than when the lead ship altered its course and headed straight for them. The survivors whooped and cheered, and some of the pegasi took to the air and flew out to greet the ships, as if they could somehow pull the vessels closer by themselves.
It was another half hour before the airships, eight in all, set down at the base of the hill and dropped their anchors. Their ranking officer, Admiral Silk Screen, glided down from his ship and approached the gathering. They managed to salute, and even stand roughly in rows, an effort that the admiral returned respectfully.
"Holy Tartarus, what happened to you all?"
"It's a long story, Sir." Firefly stepped forward. "Captain Firefly, 265th Airborne Division, 2nd Battalion, Cyclone Company, Sir. We're all that's left of Strike Force Eight. We were separated from Colonel Redwood's ground forces by an artificial storm, and a battle yesterday took out the last of our ships and most of our ponies."
"You have wounded, I take it?"
"Yes sir, many, and in critical condition." The admiral waved with his wing, and the medics, every medic it seemed, started disembarking. "We have a some supplies, but most of it was destroyed in the fires. If you hadn't shown up, we were going to start walking."
"Well it's good to see some friendly faces out here," Silk Screen smiled. "We picked up on a faint magic signature out here, pulsing an S.O.S. pattern. It was almost impossible to track, but here you are. I take it your unicorns are responsible?”
“No Sir,” Night Light said, “we didn’t expect anypony would be close enough. Nopony’s been… Oh no.” He grabbed one of the medics running by. “Captain Candescence, she- go help her, now!”
“Light,” Rainbow put a hoof on the unicorn’s shoulder, “go. We’ll deal with things here.” Night Light nodded and limped back to the tent as fast as he could, the medic keeping with him.
Silk Screen frowned. “Strike Force Eight should have been far south of here by now. How did you wind up on this rock?"
"Once we escaped the storm, we were down three ships, we’d lost all of our ground forces, and our surviving crews were beat to Tartarus," Firefly explained. "We determined our only chance of survival was to make a shot north for The Line and try to reach somewhere safe."
The Admiral frowned. "...So you haven't heard, then?" Firefly's face was unreadable, but everypony behind her was pale with dread. The admiral sighed. "You mentioned a storm. Did you destroy it?"
"It sort of destroyed itself, but yes."
"Then there were others. They hit the Line in a few locations, demolished our defenses wherever they showed up. By the time we started to see the whole picture, they had gathered into a single unit..." Silk Screen swallowed, "Dodge Junction is gone. They tore it apart in less than twelve hours." One could hear the wind roll the pebbles across the desert floor. "High Command sent out a mass recall order: every combat capable force is to rally north of Dodge Province, along the Riverlands, for a counter offensive."
"Sir," Firefly started, "with respect, I don't think we qualify as 'combat capable.' Our air groups are down over sixty percent of their strength, and our ship crews are almost all gone. Most of the survivors are injured."
"I understand, Captain, but let me make this clear." Silk Screen locked eyes with Firefly. "There is no Line. If we fail in this counter offensive, there will be nothing between the largest dragon flight we have ever seen, and Equestria. There is no plan B. Are you going to sit out on our last chance at defending our home?"
The mare's expression darkened. "I wouldn't dare, sir." Behind her, her ponies looked ready to piss themselves, but every one of them nodded in agreement.
"Good, because we need everypony we can get." He motioned for her to lead on. "Let's get your ponies on board. We're already late."