Coal Dust was awoken with a start by the familiar ringing of the alarm bell over the barracks door. He groaned and rubbed his eyes, hoisting himself out of the bed with practiced efficiency.
"All base personnel report to the entry area immediately. This is not a drill. Repeat: All base personnel report to the entry area immediately. This is not a drill."
He frowned. The alarm was usually not accompanied by an intercom message. The voice on the other end seemed nervous, like the mare running it was frightened and doing her best to hide it.
Coal Dust trotted to the door and exited the barracks, only to find a crowd of soldiers, secretaries, and a mix of others funneling past in the direction of the front gate. Coal Dust fell in with the group and went with the flow, passing the recruit depot in the slow crawl of traffic congestion. As they rounded the last quonset hut, he saw the gathering crowd at the gate. In front of the gate was a large munitions crate with Commander Nest perched atop it.
He scanned the crowd, looking for any ponies he might know. Near the front stood a white pony that was a head taller than the rest of the lot; Headstrong always had been the easiest pony to pick out from a group. It took some doing, but he managed to slip around the fringes of the crowd and up to the front. As he went along, he noticed that a lot of ponies were affording him more looks than normal, and the extra attention made his spine crawl.
“Hey, buddy,” Coal Dust half-heartedly greeted to Headstrong from the side. The big stallion hadn’t seen him coming and flinched.
“Dust!” Headstrong greeted with the intensity of two hearts, wrapping a hoof around his friend’s shoulders and dragging him up even with himself. “Glad you’re okay, it sounded like you had it rough in the toilet.”
“Watch it,” Coal Dust reminded, wincing as the bulky stallion’s hoof caught him on one of the wounds.
“Whoops! Sorry,” Headstrong apologized, removing his hoof from his friend’s shoulder. “You sure you’re not getting sick?”
“Yeah, I’m fine now, thanks,” Coal Dust answered quickly, ready for a change of subject. “Any idea what’s going on here?”
“I dunno. I was put on emergency guard duty for a little while after I left the barracks. Nest was running around in a hurry and Sombra showed up for a while, but that’s all I know.”
Coal Dust held his head in his hooves, “Oh no, this is about me.”
“Ah, don’t get too worried. The entire base assembled just for you? I doubt it.” Headstrong said in an attempt to console his friend.
“You don’t even know…” Coal Dust returned under his breath.
The loud ringing of a cowbell from the munitions crate signalled that Nest was ready to start. “Attention!” he yelled.
‘Ten-Hut!” the entire base shouted in unison, everypony standing rigidly in place and staring forward.
Nest saluted. “At ease. Good job on the scramble, all those drills have really payed off.” The crowd shifted as they relaxed their stance. “Now then, onto to the important stuff. Im sure you’ve all heard the rumors about how last night’s patrol was assaulted and the better part of the day was spent making theories about what happened out there.”
“Oh no,” Coal dust muttered under his breath.
“Well, I can tell you that after I spent the day getting to the bottom of the matter and finding out the facts, the truth is ugly. Fillies and gentlecolts, we are headed for war with the Changelings. They are the ones responsible, no doubt about it.”
A few murmurs of unrest spread throughout the crowd, but was quickly shushed. “As for how soon, the answer is right now. A few minutes ago, two bugs showed up and demanded that we surrender within the hour. That leaves little time for discussion, so let me be quick. Equestrians do not surrender to the likes of Changelings, and with the backing of Sombra and his Crystal Pony magic, we are going to win this battle.”
Coal Dust noticed that Headstrong was standing stiff as a board in an attempt to appear emotionless, but his eyes spoke that he was ready to have a heart attack.
“So, get yourself a little chow, get your gear and maybe do a few push-ups, and meet back here in exactly forty-five minutes. Dismissed.”
Sombra stood in the hallway that led out onto the castle’s balcony, sweating bullets and struggling to keep himself composed. He had given countless speeches in his career, and he had never had much trouble with nervousness. Public speaking was something of a natural talent to him, and the jitters had gone away very early on. He could get into his element and give a powerful and emotional speech and not feel the anxiety resemblant of a school aged foal presenting a theme to the class.
But this speech was different. Before, all of his public speaking exploits had been in times of peace, announcing some government news or campaigning for office. Now, he was giving the speech that would make or break the Empire’s fate and that of Equestria as a whole. His entire life, no moment had been so momentous or as important, and now he was suddenly thrust to this, having not expected anything like it it to happen when he woke up in the morning. It was giving him nerves that he had nearly forgotten existed.
His wife was there by his side, holding his hoof and comforting him. She wanted to do all that she could to console him in this time, even though she still did not know exactly what the ordeal was. Still, she recognised the signs that her husband was in distress and she was determined to help out.
“They’re ready for you, Your Highness,” a voice broke in, bringing Sombra back to the real world.
“Good luck,” Ruby said, planting a kiss on his cheek and squeezing his hoof one more time.
“Thank you,” Sombra said, dismissing the guard. He leaned down and planted a quick kiss on Ruby’s muzzle. “Love you.”
“Love you too, honey,” she returned, stepping back and giving a warm smile.
Sombra looked forward and held his head a bit higher. There was no backing out now; he could worry about being nervous when he was finished. He blinked hard as he forcibly pushed the thoughts from his mind and began trudging forward. He noticed that his hooves were much heavier than he remembered them. Three steps in, he crossed the threshold and walked into the late afternoon sunlight that bathed the balcony.
The crowd was already noisy with chatter, though not cheering. They were all wondering what was happening, why they had been called in without any advanced notice. The small army of couriers had been very efficient, gathering nearly the entire population in only a matter of minutes.
Over the years, Sombra had learned how to read a crowd’s general mood just by the tone of the chatter. This time, he picked up impatience and nervousness. Before he knew it, he was at the edge of the balcony. The crowd slowly began to hush as they noticed that Sombra was standing there, ready to make his announcement. As he looked on, thousands of eyes turned to face him, eagerly awaiting the news so they could get back to their lives.
There was no time to lose, so Sombra began by clearing his throat. “My subjects, I thank you for gathering here on such short notice. I will be short and to-the-point. I ask that you remain calm and quiet until I am finished speaking.” He paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts before pressing on into the heart of the matter. “In recent days, you might have noticed an increased military presence in the city. This has been in response to elevated threat levels from Changeling territory. These measures were initially out of caution and did not mean any imminent danger to the Empire.”
The crowd was dead silent, all of the ponies in it listening attentively. Sombra hesitated for a second before launching into the part of the speech he dreaded the most. “Today, however, shocking new developments came to our attention. A patrol was attacked last night, and three soldiers were unfortunately killed. Today, we learned that the perpetrators of the attack were in fact Changelings.” The collective gasp came as expected, though perhaps more intense than he anticipated.
Sombra raised a hoof, “Citizens, please! Remain calm!” The couriers standing around were yelling similar words, attempting to rein the crowd in before they became uncontrollable. The din of worried voices slowly died back, and the King felt a weight lift from his shoulders. Though there was still one more revelation that could send them over the edge to go, the first had gone over as smoothly as it could have. “Citizens, please, allow me to finish,” he reminded, bringing the crowd’s focus back to himself. “Thank you. As I was saying; We have been on high alert since we discovered this news, and we have spent the whole of the day attempting to find out more. Just a few minutes ago, we had our worst fears realized.”
Here it comes…
“News has arisen in the last hour that there is indeed a swarm…” he winced, preparing for the worst, “... waiting outside of the Empire.” Sombra closed his eyes and waited for the mass hysteria to set in. He was prepared for anarchy to take over and for his efforts to come flying apart at the seams, effectively dooming the Empire to defeat.
The crowd once again gasped, but immediately fell silent again. Sombra waited a few seconds before he opened his eyes and looked back at the crowd. They were all staring back up at him, waiting for more information. The King sighed relief, and stepped up to the balcony railing once more. The worst of the speech was over. He felt the anxiety fade quickly, replaced with grim determination.
“This swarm wishes to take over our Empire. Very soon, they will attack our city in an attempt to take it from us. I do not intend for that to happen!” The response from the crowd indicated that they were beginning to feel a sense of patriotism from those few words.
“Our military is going to meet them on the battlefield, but they are not strong enough to win the battle alone. You citizens are those who will truly win this fight! Crystal Ponies, you all possess a powerful magic deep within yourselves that can make all the difference in this battle! When the fighting starts, we will power the Crystal Heart and repel the scourge from our homeland!”
The cheers that came from the crowd were promising. He had them on the right track, but just a bit more of a push was needed to get them fully fired up. “Make yourselves ready, my citizens! Prepare yourselves to defend what is yours! Your families! Your neighbors! Your country! We will win this battle because we are united as one!”
The cheers from the crowd reached the level the Sombra was now aiming for. He stepped down from the railing, breathing a sigh of immense relief.
“Some speech he gave back there,” Headstrong muttered while adjusting a pad inside of his helmet.
Coal Dust said nothing in return, continuing to stare blankly ahead. Since the announcement, he had remained silent. Headstrong was beginning to notice.
“Are you even listening, Dust?” he asked pointedly, poking at Coal Dust with a hoof.
“Huh? Sorry,” Coal Dust dismissed without even looking at his friend.
“Buddy, you’ve been acting really off today. I know what happened last night was bad, but you're not acting yourself at all.”
Coal Dust finally looked at Headstrong. “Can we change the subject, please?”
“Fine by me, just as long as you quit beating yourself up over it.” Headstrong blew the helmet off, admiring the shine he kept on it at all times.
“Thank you,” Coal Dust returned. He grabbed the armor sitting on the bed next to him and started undoing the straps. Headstrong was naturally already dressed and ready, having made a point to be the first one in line at the armory and also chosen to forgo eating.
“How’s your family?” Headstrong asked, not putting a lot of emphasis on the question; he was wrapped up in inspecting his spear point.
“Why that?” Coal Dust asked in return.
“I dunno. Something to change the subject, I guess.” Headstrong never took his eyes off of the spear while he spoke.
“Alright. I haven’t heard much from them lately. I sent home half of my pay this month like always along with a letter to check in. That was about a week and a half ago; still haven't heard anything back.”
Headstrong chuckled, “You send off half of your pay and I can barely manage on my own without giving any up. How do you do that?”
“For one, I don’t spend most of it on going out to eat,” Coal Dust answered back in jest.
“Yeah, sure. Make jokes out of me being big,” Headstrong replied, mockingly taking offense.
“But really, I just don’t need all that much. Plus my mom’s out in Fillydelphia still raising two kids, so she needs the money more.”
“Wow, you’re a saint. My parents struggled when I was growing up but now that all the kids are out of the house they aren’t doing too bad.”
“Probably because the food bill is half of what it was,” Coal Dust quipped.
Headstrong shrugged, “Yeah, you’re probably right.” He hadn’t realized that another joke was being made of his eating habits.
Coal Dust stood up and slipped the armor plate on over his back, reaching back to pull the straps down tight with his teeth. He winced a bit as the two halves came together. “Damn thing keeps pinching me,” he grunted, shifting awkwardly to free the fur caught in the armor.
“You gotta suck in your gut when you pull it tight,” Headstrong advised.
“Good point,” Coal Dust agreed, finally managing to shake free of the pinch.
The barracks door opened with a loud squeak. A mare poked her head in. “Five minutes, boys. Chop chop!”
Coal Dust pulled his helmet on; the crest had a few threads frayed and they tickled at his ears, making them twitch.
“About ready?” Headstrong asked.
“Yeah,” Coal Dust answered, retrieving his spear that was propped on the bedside and sliding his sword into its sheath. “As I’ll ever be.”
“Let’s go!” the large white earth pony shouted in an attempt to rile the rest of the stallions. He trotted towards the door, followed by two other soldiers. The rest were finalizing their own preparations. Coal Dust fell in behind the other two and exited the barracks as Headstrong held the door open. Outside, other soldiers were filing out and making their way to the front gate. Their faces were grim and determined under the helmets, though many could not help but show some anxiety in their expressions.
Ahead loomed the same image as forty-five minutes ago, yet a few things were different. Nest was perched atop the crate with a blank screen behind him, and he was wearing a set of plate armor instead of his usual uniform. The crowd had only just started gathering by the time Headstrong and Coal Dust found a place in the front. The minutes seemed to drag by, Nest standing on the crate like a statue as he watched the troops gather. Five minutes passed before he finally began to speak.
“Attention!” Nest barked.
“Ten-hut!” acknowledged the soldiers, standing at attention.
“At ease,” Nest dismissed. “Now then, as I told you before, we are preparing for a full-on attack by the Changelings. Let me clue you in on the game plan.” The screen came to life with magic, and an aerial picture of the Empire came into view. “Based on our intelligence, the attack will come from the northwest. The lay of the land is mostly flat with a low rise about half a mile from the edge of the city.”
A diagram appeared on the picture, showing a red line with arrows behind it on the hill. “This is how we expect them to approach. One big ball of exoskeleton that banzai-rushes and destroys. They will come hard and fast, and show no mercy. Also, they likely outnumber us fifty to one. Sounds hopeless, I know, but we have a major ace in the hole. Aurora if you please?”
The screen showed the Empire light up and fire off the usual blast of magic that was sent every week and turned everypony nearby crystalline. “Though it has never been tested, we can assume that the Crystal Heart is not friendly to those who wish to do harm. While we are out there fighting and holding out for the city, King Sombra will gather up the citizens and fire off the mother-of-all spell blasts. This should send the bugs packing, and then we win.” The screen faded back to blank white.
Nest took a drink of water. “We don’t have long. They promised to attack and we only have about ten minutes before time’s up. As far as our tactics go, we rely on defensive measures only. Do not take the offensive and stick close to one-another. If they break our ranks, we lose. Protect your soft spots and stay vocal to your squadmates. Let them know what’s going on and watch out for each other. Stay focused, and stay alive. Sombra should be able to fire before we get into the real thick of things, but always stay cautious.”
The soldiers were so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Nest looked out at them, this time with more determination in his eyes. “Now I want to hear it from all of you. Are you ready to defend all those that we hold dear?”
“Yes, sir!” yelled the congregation in unison.
“Are you ready to keep the entire land of Equestria safe?!”
“Yes, sir!”
“That’s what I wanted to hear.” Nest hopped down from the crate, “Saddle up, boys. We’re going to make history.” The crate was tugged away from the gate by two workers, leaving the gate clear. The chain link fence rattled as it was pulled to the side and opened to the widest extent possible. Nest was the first one out, followed by a mass of eager soldiers.
Victory seemed certain.
Ten minutes had passed in the blink of an eye, and Sombra found himself down on the ground, standing next to the Crystal Heart at the base of the castle. Ponies were coming up to him in droves, lining up and requesting orders on what to do, where to go, and other questions that had little relevance. He watched them hurrying around, going to their places and gathering their loose ends. A group of foals, some Crystal Ponies and some not, ran past the castle in what appeared to be a game of war.
The entire Empire seemed to be buzzing with a type of resilient energy. The ponies looked determined and ready to do their part. As Sombra watched them go, he felt a sense of pride at how well his subjects had handled the situation.
“Hi, Honey!” announced a familiar voice from behind. Sombra turned and was greeted by a quick kiss from his wife. She looked absolutely radiant from the way she walked to the way her coat shone in the sunlight.
“Hello, dear,” Sombra replied, giving her a quick peck on the cheek in return.
“Everything’s turning out well. I mean, look at these ponies!” Ruby exclaimed, gesturing to the ponies with her hoof. “They aren’t afraid of the Changelings, Sombra. Your speech made them believe that they will win.”
“Oh, I can’t take credit for this. We all want to protect what we hold dear, do we not?” He pulled her into a hug and looked around, his pride deepening with each passing moment.
“I should go take my own place, honey. We all need to do our part, after all,” Ruby reminded, wiggling herself free of the hug.
“Yes, that is a good point,” Sombra replied.
“Your Highness!”
“Excuse me, Ruby. I will see you later,” Sombra said, giving her a quick hug and trotting away to meet the pony who called for him. Ruby went on her own way, heading out to take her place to power the Heart.
Coal Dust and Headstrong found themselves near the front of the pack of soldiers as they passed around the Castle. They were moving at a steady trot, though not in any form of order. They moved as foals do through a hall at school, in an amorphous mob that threatens to bowl over any that stand in the way. The Crystal Ponies who had begun to take up positions in the road were forced to step out of the way and let the army pass.
Coal Dust heard cheers from ponies lining the streets. They were all rooting for them, trying their best to put confidence in the soldiers as they marched forth into a heavily lopsided battle. He found himself enjoying the encouragement.
Beside him, Headstrong had lost his facade of being fearless. He did not waiver, but one look at his face and Coal Dust could tell that the big earth pony was mortally afraid. One particularly loud whistle from the sidewalk made him wince noticeably.
The group passed the castle and kept to the right, taking the road that ran to the northwest. The ponies gradually thinned out as they went along, their cheers and words of encouragement also fading. Up ahead, Coal Dust could see the edge of the city and the beginning of the tundra. His resolve began to falter as he realized that he was nearing the battlefield.
Mere moments later, they slipped through the weather shield. The odd wave of warmth it sent through the body reminded him of the day prior, when he had passed this exact spot with four ponies in tow, and how he had staggered back in a few hours later, with only one badly injured pony on his back. How the last remaining strength in his body left him as he collapsed to the road. The guilt he had felt when Gust rolled from his back and landed in the ditch.
No, this was not the time to reflect. He had a battle to fight and an Empire to protect, and the painful memories could wait. It took a serious mental effort, but he managed to force the thoughts from his head and focus his attention.
Nest stopped not long after passing the shield. He watched as the remainder of the unit passed the shield and grouped up in the loose powdery snow. Several of them were shivering already as they left the pleasantly warm city and entered the bitter chill that the weather spell worked to keep out.
“Patrol captains! Get a slip from me and line up at the front to gather your groups!” Nest yelled, his breath making a cloud of vapor. Coal Dust, Headstrong, and a number of other stallions walked forward and formed a line that ran horizontally out from Nest.
“Attention! The squad leaders will call their groups and then we coordinate our placements. Your group is your family. You stick with them like you would to your brothers or sisters. Understood?” Nest barked the order with little emotion in his voice.
“Yes, sir!” the crowd of soldiers yelled back in unison.
“Get to it, boys,” Nest said, this time directed at the squad leaders and not the lot of soldiers.
The group call went off smoothly enough, each soldier coming forward and standing behind their leaders without question. Coal Dust found it highly similar to choosing teams for a playground game, though the groups were already selected. There were sixty leaders in all, and each had a full rank standing behind them shortly. The crowd eventually dwindled down to nothing, all of the soldiers having found places in the lines behind the squad leaders.
Nest began pacing in front of the lines, “We form a defensive line across the front! Be sure to use your shields to the fullest extent possible, and keep an eye on where the pony next to you is at all times. Expect them to come with their fangs out and their horns blazing! Squad leaders, organize your troops into a battle line. Move out!”
Shouts of excitement from the soldiers filled the air as the tightly stacked groups of soldiers began spreading out. Coal Dust and Headstrong managed to keep their groups next to each other, and since they were near the center of the group, they didn’t have to move far to spread out and cover their sectors. The resulting battle line wound up two ponies deep and did a poor job of covering the Empire’s northwest side.
Nest stood behind the line, observing the outcome of his hastily contrived battle plan. It didn’t look like they could hold on through much against a swarm the size of a field army, but in truth they didn’t need that capability when Sombra’s heart blast came into play. No matter how he organized the troops, they wouldn’t stand a chance against the swarm anyway on their own.
The soldiers stood idly, checking their equipment over one last time or talking to the ponies around them. Up ahead, there was nothing but empty white plains.
Minutes ticked by, and Nest found himself staring at the pocket watch he had brought along. The swarm had warned to attack in one hour. One hour and five minutes had passed since the Changelings had delivered their message. If there was one thing that the commander hated, it was lateness, even if it meant lateness to a war. He felt his disgust with the enemy fortify a little bit more as the second hand continued ticking away.
“Here they come!”
All eyes went forward to the distant ridge. Surely enough, the very top of it had become shrouded in black. Everypony in the line lifted their shields, some already adopting battle stances. The metallic ring of swords being drawn sounded all around, and Coal Dust followed suit. Headstrong lifted his spear and rested it on the top of his shield, readying to deliver quick jabs at the attackers as they closed in. A good number of unicorns around them ignited their horns in preparation of firing their own attack spells at the Changelings. Everypony held their breath in anticipation.
In lieu of the frenzied rush that everypony was preparing for, the swarm seemed to move agonizingly slow. A glance at his watch revealed to Nest that it had taken them nearly three minutes to make it to the bottom of the hill; they still had nearly half a mile to cross before they arrived; they were walking towards the battle. Around the line some ponies began prancing in place, the wait clawing at their sanity like nails on a chalkboard.
“Steady, steady,” Nest assured them, attempting to hold the eager ones back. They calmed down a bit, though still looked ready to tear out and meet the swarm head-on.
Slowly but surely, more and more of the horizon was overtaken by the black mob. The swarm stretched from one edge of the horizon to the other; a stark contrast to the small contingent of soldiers standing in defense of the Empire. While those who were anxious continued forcing themselves to stay put and hold rank, many others began losing their nerve.
The swarm was nearly halfway across the field in front of the soldiers now. Everypony stood at the ready, anxiously awaiting the magical blast that was surely coming to supplement their efforts and keep them safe from having to fight.
A quiet, very low rumbling in the distance caught Coal Dust’s attention now. He wondered what it was, since it sounded too distant to be coming from the swarm It almost sounded like distant thunder.
Coal Dust and Headstrong said words of reassurance to those under their command. The swarm, after nearly twenty minutes of dragging across the field in front of them, was close enough to make out individual drones among the ranks. Even at this distance, the piercing blue eyes of the Changelings were unnerving to look at.
“Incoming!” somepony down the line yelled. All eyes turned skyward, and the sight of what was coming struck fear into the hearts of all those who looked. Coal Dust felt another pang of memory as he witnessed it.
Arcs of green spellfire were sailing overhead, piercing through the thin deck of wispy clouds above.
“Get down! Take cover!” he yelled to those in his command. The other leaders were also yelling similar things at their troops.
The ponies in the line all sank down and pulled their shields over their backs and heads in a vain attempt to protect themselves from what was coming.
Seconds passed, and no planet-shattering explosions rocked the line as expected. Coal Dust was one of the first to move his shield aside and look to the heavens just in time to see something even more terrifying.
The spellfire was hitting the shield over the city.
The Crystal Ponies were in position, and everypony else had done all they could to prepare the Empire. The streets were full of Crystal Ponies, all standing in the middle of the streets, waiting for the signal to fire. Some stood still, looking to the Castle patiently for the command, while others had gone to idle chatter to pass the time. The sidewalks were lined with pegasi, unicorns, and earth ponies alike, their eyes to the sky and especially the northwest.
Sombra had returned to his balcony to prepare to give the signal. A pegasus had been positioned at the top of the castle on sentinel duty, to keep an eye from above on the unfolding skirmish outside the city and let Sombra know the perfect time to fire the Heart. She was perched on the top of the spire, watching intently.
Sombra looked back out over his Kingdom once more, looking at all of the ponies spread out around the city. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, savoring the crisp, clean smell of the pleasant winter air. It was an otherwise beautiful day despite the battle about to take place.
The ponies were ready; faster than he had expected them to be. While looking out over them, his mind flashed back to the ant farm sitting in his chamber. A smile grew on his lips.
“They’re advancing!” announced the watch pegasus, swooping down and landing on the balcony.
Sombra tensed. The hour to decide the fate of the Empire was upon them. “Thank you. When they meet the Army, tell me. We fire just before the first clash.”
“Yes sir,” the pegasus agreed, snapping her wing in a salute.
“Stay away from the tip of the tower when it fires.”
“Yes sir!” she shouted before shooting skyward again.
Sombra watched her land at the very tip once again and then diverted his gaze to the northwestern edge of the city. He could see the Army, lined up and waiting for the attack. Ahead of them was the leading edge of the wave of Changelings advancing, covering over the pristine white snow of a distant hill with black chitin. They were closing in, though slowly. Sombra had expected them to be rushing forward in a blitzkrieg assault. His eyes remained fixed forward, watching as the swarm drew closer. He did not even think to look up until he heard the shouting from the lookout pegasus.
“Fire it! Fire it! Now!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. Sombra looked up at the sentinel as she dove away from the point of the spire, and his stomach dropped into his legs.
Above the Empire, the weather shield was impacted. Not once, but dozens of times. Bright green arcs of flaming spellfire crashed into the transparent barrier, exploding violently. The shield, usually invisible, pulsated with a sickly shade of yellow under the new stress. Explosions rained down across the shield over the Empire, turning the entire sky golden. The Crystal Ponies in the street below were spellbound by the spectacle above them.
And then it could take no more. The shield let loose a deep, electrical crackling as tears appeared in it. They widened with frightening speed, splitting the sky open and revealing the bright blue open air that had been momentarily hidden. The weather shield finished dissolving into thin air in an instant, and then there was no barrier left to protect the Empire. Sombra charged his horn and fired a bright red flare into the sky, desperately trying to send the signal and fire the Heart in the last few moments.
He was too late.
The spellfire rained down, uninhibited to strike the city below. A brief moment of stillness settled over the city before more thunderous explosions began hitting it directly.
The ponies in the streets began running amok, screaming in terror and searching in earnest for respite from the bombardment. Some ran into nearby buildings, others ran straight for the castle, and a few stood still, their heads bowed, still trying to charge the Heart up in time to make the crucial shot. The road began to glow around them, but faded long before they managed to connect to any nearby ponies. More acrid hisses sounded out as more beams rained down from above. They impacted the ground and sent spires of debris skyward; so many of them were coming down at once that the roar of explosions was sometimes continuous. All around, ponies and buildings were disappearing in clouds of smoke and dust from the artillery fire.
Sombra watched the scene playing out before him in a state of shock mixed with horror. He desperately wanted to run, to help, to find out how to put a stop to the merciless shelling, but his legs simply refused to move.
zzzzzip. BOOM. Above the balcony, a streak of green slammed into the Castle. It shook the entire structure to the core, rattling the deck below his hooves. Sombra didn’t think to shield himself magically, instead throwing his hooves over his head just in time to protect himself as a shower of crystalline shards rained down from above. The fragments were as sharp as razor blades; some bounced off of his back, some sliced at his skin as they rained past, and one particularly large one embedded itself in his back. The shock from the penetrating fragment was enough to free him of his petrified shock. Flashing his magic, he teleported down from the balcony to the street directly below the castle.
Now he was amongst the chaos. Ponies were in a panic, many trying to crowd in under the castle for shelter. Many of those who had taken shelter were injured; most of them bruised and bleeding from small wounds. One earth pony mare, however, was missing the lower half of a foreleg. She was glassy-eyed, lying in a puddle of her own blood, and surrounded by several others attempting to help. A small group of castle guards noticed Sombra immediately and surrounded him in a defensive circle. Many ponies were still out in the thick of the barrage, desperately running for any shelter they could find. Turning to face the group under the castle, Sombra noticed that they were all looking to him, desperately hoping that he would know what to do.
He did not. The situation had turned for the worst in a matter of seconds. He hadn’t imagined that this would happen, even when he had been thinking of worst-case scenarios earlier in the day. He looked over his shoulder, just in time to see a house down the road struck by a beam and blown to smithereens. There were bodies out in the streets, the ground was littered with craters, and the Crystal Ponies had lost their shine. They were all dull, their manes and tails hanging limp from their bodies as indicators that their magic had left them.
Sombra swallowed deeply, hanging his head and wincing when it disturbed the fragment still embedded in his back. “Citizens!” he announced, desperately gasping through the pain in his back. “We can still win! Gather what magic you have within yourselves, and power the Heart! This is our last shot! Make it—”
Sombra trailed off as the he watched the final nail be driven into his plan’s coffin. Three ponies near the front of the crowd disappeared into swirling green flames, revealing themselves as Changelings. Sombra watched as the ponies in the crowd took action, attacking the infiltrators with whatever they had on them. The three Changelings were soon buried under a writhing mass of ponies. First one limp body came out of the dogpile, then two, and finally the third Changeling was dispatched.
Sombra realized what he had to do now. It was time to leave the Empire.
As he began the awkward and pained lope around the crowd to lead them to the south and east, Sombra recognized the sentinel Pegasus standing near where the Changelings had been killed. “You, sentinel. I have one last job for you. Fly up to meet the army and find Commander Nest. Notify him that we are abandoning the city and that he is to stand down and retreat.”
“Yes, Your Highness!” she confirmed, saluting and taking flight in the direction of the battlefield. She didn’t hesitate for even a second, and Sombra felt a bit of pride at her bravery.
As the sentinel departed, Sombra remembered that Ruby Splash had been out somewhere in the city when the barrage commenced. His breath caught in his throat for a moment, and he cast several glances towards the large huddle of ponies. He didn’t spend much time looking, as he knew that Ruby would have come forward to him by now. Instead of searching for her, he looked to the small contingent of Royal Guard around him.
“Guards! You have a job to do. Ruby Splash is still out there. You find her and you bring her back safely. Understood?”
“Yes sir!” they shouted, turning and running out from the cover of the castle. Of the seven present, five went out. The two remaining guards took up positions on either side of Sombra, flanking him as he began walking around to the opposite side of the castle.
The barrage seemed to be relenting. The spells came less frequently now, though still frequently enough to keep the din of deep rumbling explosions alive. As Sombra made his way around the crowd, a beam hit close enough to make his ears ring and send a few bits of debris flying at the ponies under the shelter.
By the time he made it to the other side of the crowd, the barrage had slowed to nearly a stop. Sombra began the march out of the city without any fanfare. He walked as quickly as he could, limping from the shard still embedded in his back. The crowd followed him hesitantly, all of them huddling together and watching the sky for more spellfire.
The road that ran to the southeast was pitted with craters that the group had to avoid. Near the craters in the road were scattered bodies of crystal ponies and occasional Castle Guards, some more complete than others. With each body they passed, another group of ponies lost control of their stomachs and vomited onto the road.
Many buildings around them bore the scars of the barrage. Smouldering holes, charred black on the edges, dotted many homes; some of them were missing entire sections or had been reduced to little more than a pile of rubble. Occasional survivors were out wandering, those who saw the large group went to join it. Many of them were sobbing as they marched past their former homes and took in a final glimpse.
Sombra kept his horror to himself as he walked. The citizens needed to see that he could stay strong in this time of desperation, and allowing himself to break down now would lead to the only sense of order left dissolving. He held his head up high to the point that it was uncomfortable, trying to keep his line of sight away from the ground so he would not see the devastation.
The end of the carnage lay just ahead. The edge of the city was slowly approaching, looking more and more enticing to the refugees as the march continued. However, in their path stood a pile of rubble that blocked the road. A taller building had toppled into the street, spilling itself over, across to the other sidewalk. Sombra motioned for the group to halt before he approached the rubble to look for a way through. The pile was too jagged and unstable to walk on, and he could not find a suitable path over it on first inspection.
As his eyes traveled down the pile to the original site of the building, he caught sight of something that would haunt him forever. On the outer edge of the debris pile where the sidewalk met it, sat what remained of a foal carriage. It was crumpled like a toy and barely recognizable, but what was next to it was what set him off. Lying about a foot in front of the carriage, barely visible under a mangled support beam, was a small blue hoof. It was so small that it couldn’t have been more than a yearling.
Sombra’s stomach lurched violently and he felt his knees buckle. He quickly averted his eyes as he felt hot tears start to build up. He held the tears back and forced himself to persist. There was surely another way out without having to double back through the city.
“This way!” he announced, his voice faintly breaking from the pain of what he had witnessed. He did his best to run away from the foal’s body, but could only hobble. He led the group off of the street and around the building opposite of the collapsed one. The alleyway was tight for the group of nearly a thousand ponies, forcing them to walk single file through it. Sombra went first and then stood at the end of the alleyway, ushering the refugees through. Ahead lay empty tundra and the endless expanse of pure white snow.
The next few moments were a blur for Coal Dust. The spellfire had impacted the shield and destroyed it with little resistance. The sickening roar of explosions raining down on the civilians and the entire Empire’s lifeline echoed hauntingly across the tundra. Some ponies began screaming in anger at the Changelings.
“You bastards!” a voice screamed from down the line. A moment later, the form of a red unicorn came barreling out of the formation, charging headfirst towards the Changelings. He fired several rapid bursts from his horn as he sped along, eyes blazing with anger and bellowing the most vulgar profanity he could muster as he charged forth. His shots mostly missed, but one found its mark and dropped a Changeling to the ground. As soon as the last of his shots went off, he was cut down by a multitude of return shots from the swarm.
It started with one, an then another. One by one, more soldiers began to break rank and charge at the changelings in a futile, anger driven attack. Only a lucky few managed to score hits before being riddled with beams of magic.
Nest’s signature tenor screaming echoed from afar, desperately trying to restore order.
Seeing the foolish few who charged bludgeoned to death by Changeling magic was too much for some of the weaker-willed soldiers. Immediately following the departure of the chargers, an even greater number of soldiers bolted in the opposite direction, away from the fight and towards the city. Several from Coal Dust and Headstrong’s units were among the cowards.
Nest’s screaming drew closer and was beginning to lose volume as he lost his voice. Coal Dust caught sight of the commander, his pale green head turned red under the fur by his impassioned shouts.
The line was left even thinner. The roar of the barrage and the smoke rising from the city slowly began to kill off all vestiges of hope left in them. Each second that passed marked another soldier that ran. Some ran for fear of their own lives, some ran for fear of the lives of the ponies in the city.
Nest, faced with the barrage pummeling the city behind him and the frighteningly steady approach of the Changelings, also found himself considering retreat. The blast could still happen, couldn’t it? Sombra was probably just getting the citizens back on their hooves and charging the Heart at that very moment.
So why hadn’t it come already?
The Changelings continued their advance, slowly closing the gap between them and the decaying contingent of soldiers. Coal Dust noticed that nearly a fourth of his troops had already turned tail and ran, and Headstrong’s unit wasn’t faring any better. Unease was evident in all those who remained as the others began to flee.
“Commander Nest!” yelled a female voice from far behind the line. A young blue pegasus mare came rushing out of the city, flying along the lines for a short distance before she spotted the Commander. She approached him with haste and stopped in an unsteady hover in front of him.
“Commander!” she shouted, speaking rapidly from the adrenaline coursing through her body. “Message from Sombra! The Empire is being abandoned!”
“What?!” Nest yelled in confusion, tearing his eyes from the line of Changelings ahead and locking them on the messenger.
“They’re evacuating to the southeast. He ordered you to stand down and retreat,” she reported.
Nest felt a large piece of his remaining sanity get kicked loose by the news. He looked back and forth between the mare and his line, desperately looking for the answer to the problem; he knew that no such answer existed.
“Thank you, ma’am,” Nest acknowledged, fighting to keep from dissolving into a rambling insane pony. The mare saluted, a gesture that was out of place for a civilian. Nest saluted back, not bothering to question it. She flitted away, flying up and away from the battle lines to soar over the city. Nest watched her shrink into the distance and then turned to face his own troops. Those who had heard the exchange watched with pleading looks to turn tail and run. Nest stood still, silently trying to comprehend what he had just been told.
In those few moments of hesitation, Nest witnessed one final event that broke the last shred of sanity he possessed. In random places along the battle line, several swirls of green fire erupted from seemingly nowhere. The places where soldiers stood a moment before were replaced by Changelings. The few drones who had infiltrated caught the ponies around them off guard. They immediately leapt onto the first victim they could find and wrangled them to the ground in a systematic and well-practiced maneuver.
Coal Dust heard commotion to his right side and watched as one of his soldiers was tackled to the ground. A quick jab from a grotesquely curved blade kept the soldier down, and the Changeling immediately began searching for a new target. He locked eyes on Coal Dust, who had just enough time to yell for help before also being wrestled down.
Coal Dust yelped when he hit the ground, this time from the pain of a sharp hoof jabbing at the wounds sustained the previous evening. He kicked savagely, though his hooves never found their mark. As he helplessly flailed, he subconsciously began bracing for a knife to plunge into his back.
The sound of a powerful bodycheck above him and the sudden removal of the porous hoof in his wound surprised and relieved the Pegasus. He looked around, and a few feet away was Headstrong, standing over the attacking drone and pummeling him with heavy blows. Another soldier helped him back upright and brushed the snow from his side.
Headstrong stood up again and stepped away from the now crushed and still remains of the Changeling, wiping some of the blue-green fluid off his face. He nodded to Coal Dust and passed by to retake his position.
Farther down the line to the south and west, Commander Nest finally came to grips with the situation. He was now the only thing left standing between the swarm. They stood no chance, and in the seconds after the infiltrators revealed themselves, he began shouting with all the force left in his already raspy lungs.
“Retreat!”
A second later, a roar of insect-like chirps and growls rose from the advancing swarm. The ponies watched as multiple Changelings took wing from the swarm and rushed forward at alarming speed. The entire swarm then took off in a gallop, charging forward to meet the flimsy defensive position. The gap rapidly closed and the remaining soldiers dug in their hooves and presented their shields. Coal Dust thought he heard a distant call for retreat in the final seconds before impact.
The clash of the two armies knocked some of the smaller soldiers over. Those who had fallen left holes in the defense, and Changelings rushed in through the gaps, slashing about wildly as they found soft targets. Screams rattled through the line as soldiers were taken down.
“Retreat!” came a multitude of voices from the left. Coal Dust and Headstrong turned to the left to see a rush of ponies departing the battlefield at a full gallop. The line was dissolving from one end to the other.
Coal Dust needed no further invitation. He gave a final thrust with his shield to knock back the drones pushing against it, and when he had them at bay for a brief second, he dropped the shield and bolted. As soon as he turned around, he felt the cold steel of a Changeling’s dagger scrape across his rump. He yelped in surprise and gave a buck with his hind legs, contacting the attacker in the gut and throwing his balance off enough to fall.
For the second time in under a minute, someone was helping him back to his hooves. This time it was Headstrong, and he made use of his size and was able to lift his friend and get him back on his hooves without stopping. Coal Dust was back in high gear as soon as he was upright, and they joined the ranks of the soldiers in exodus from the battle.
The Changelings did not make a point to pursue the departing soldiers. As soon as the line fell apart and fell back through the city, they slowed their pace back to the steady march from before. The thin band of ponies crossed the Empire in an adrenaline-fueled dead sprint, desperately fleeing for their lives. Behind them, the sea of black chitin rushed into the unguarded metropolis.
The Crystal Empire had fallen.