//------------------------------// // Chapter 30: A Fighting Chance // Story: Darkness of Ages - Book 1: Greyhield // by YoungQuillMaster //------------------------------// "They just... they came out of nowhere and overtook the palace guards. We stood no chance of defeating them; we couldn't even stand our ground." Cadence finished, her head hanging as tears streamed down her cheeks. Blaze slammed his hoof into the table in a fit of rage before stopping away towards the wall behind him. "It just keep happening," Blaze snorted, "Stalliongrad only lasted several days because of previous warning and a massive army that had rallied there, as well as the fact that all civilians were trained in combat. It just seems that whenever the ponies of a town don't have one of those, the whole defense collapses." He continued, his ire still burning strong inside of him. "Stalliongrad took three days, Canterlot took a day and a half, Pinto Creek took three hours, and the Crystal Empire took one night." "Pinto Creek had only one regiment of soldiers." A lieutenant pointed out. "They also barely had any cannons operational, I'd say the three hours are a sign that we're getting better and defending ourselves." "No, it only goes to show what happens when an entire town is used to fighting. Their civilians live in harsh conditions, feral animals occasionally attacking as well as looters and bandits, so they are already trained in how to defend themselves, the regiment was just a bit more cushion between the enemy line and capture." Blaze explained away as he continued to stomp around the room. "Did any of the guards see how the enemy might have entered the city?" "No, they were completely surprised by it all, though we do suspect that the three major players that are reported in the battle had a great effect on the hidden entrance of the enemy troops." A soldier replied. "Three major players? What are you talking about?" Blaze questioned, turning to look at the soldier in confusion. The soldier produced a scroll from his saddle bags and gave it to Blaze. "According to many reports, there were three large figures that stood out as leading figures. We have identified Discord by what Cadence has said, and from previous reports from Canterlot, we can guess the other two are possibly Chrysalis and Nightmare Moon." The soldier stated as Blaze quickly looked over the various reports written out on the scroll. "These three probably have enough power to conceal an entire army..." Blaze hypothesized and he rolled the scroll back up, "We can't discount the possibility that that might have been what happened." Blaze took several deep breathes in an attempt to calm his nerves enough to think properly. "Call the council in, we have much to discuss after these events." He ordered the soldier. "They have already been given a notice and are waiting outside the hall." The soldier replied. Blaze nodded and began forming words in his head as he walked back to his seat. "Have Cadence escorted to the medical office and give her a look over." Blaze ordered. "We now have one figure of definite leadership, and I will not allow this moral boost, no matter how small, be dampened by an injury." "I'm very quite alright, Sir." Cadence replied. "Shining Armor made sure I had enough time to escape unscathed from the whole ordeal." "I still want you checked over." Blaze replied. "You might have nothing wrong with you, but I'd rather be completely sure than to be extremely sorry later on when something life threatening comes along." Cadence opened her mouth as if she were going to say something, but then closed it after a moment of thought. Blaze looked down at the table, continuing his thoughts on how to address the military council, not even noticing as Cadence walked out with the guard. As he continued to sit there, the group of higher ranking military pony entered and took their seats. "We are all here, Sir; we are ready to begin this meeting." One of them said. Blaze nodded and stood up from the table and looked over the soldier gathered, his eyes catching Stone Wall as he did. "We have recently received dire news that the Crystal Empire has fallen into Greyhield's grasp." Blaze stated simply, judging the reactions of each pony carefully before continuing on, "Fortunately for us, Princess Cadence has escaped, but her husband, Prince Shining Armor, did not, staying behind to give time to her so she could escape." A general murmur of shock and disbelief washed over the room. Blaze allowed it to roll over before continuing. "Stallions, I'll be frank, it is abundantly clear that we cannot beat the reptilous at their own game." "It was obvious before now." One of the stallions commented with a huff as he stared very intently at the table, as if it offended him. "We can no longer continue to adhere to the old methods of combat we have grown accustomed to after all these years." Blaze continued, ignoring the stallion's interjection. "If we are to stand a chance in this war, we must up the ante, and give ourselves whatever advantage we can. Reptilous have far more experience in battle, the whole idea of extended combat being something of normality to them. We must find new way of fighting them that give us an edge over them, no matter how 'dirty' those methods may seem to us." "Excuse me, Sir," A soldier interrupted from the entrance of the room, "I'm sorry to interrupt this council's meeting, but there is a pony who wishes to see you." Blaze cocked his head in confusion. "Who is it, and why are they here at this time?" Blaze asked. The soldier turned back to the door, pushing it open slightly to talk to the pony behind it. "He say he's from research and development, and that he has something you may find very interesting. He says this development has the potential to change the tide of war." The soldier replied after a short minute. Blaze straightened his head, racking his mind for any contact he had received from the research team in recent memory, but could recall none of importance. "Very well, let them in. I'm sure the council would like to know what they might have that could help us." Blaze said, the soldier nodding in response, opening the door a bit more, letting the pony through before closing it again. The pony walked in, but stopped upon seeing all the ponies. "Oh, I-I'm sorry, I didn't know there was a council meeting today." The pony said bashfully. "Perhaps I should come back at a more opportune time." He suggested as he became taking a few steps back towards the door of the hall. "Nonsense, you've come this far and have made some very interesting claims which we would like to be explained." Blaze replied, a gentle smile appearing on his face, though he doubted its effectiveness greatly. The research pony hesitated a second and then took a deep breath in before walking up to the table. "The scientists and testers in Research Team Thirteen have created, well, more of made extensive modifications to..." The pony stammered, trying to align his thoughts. "The point is this, Research Team Thirteen has developed a new weapon which we believe, if used in the correct situation, can change the tide of a battle if not the course of the war." The pony lifted a cloth covered object onto the end of the table, grunting under the weight of the thing. "This is, at least what we call, the Abus Personal Hoof Cannon, or the Abus Cannon for short, named after the leader of the research team." The pony explained as he began to open the package with a hoof, exposing the contraption. It had a wooden stock and a bronze tube that had been hollowed out. The whole thing was about as long as a pony and a half, and had some sort of bipod at the end of the barrel that was folded in, though the hinges clearly stated that it could be unfolded, the stock also seemed to have a piece of wood that could be swiveled outwards. "So what is it exactly, besides a piece of metal pipe attached to a wood block?" One of the ponies asked, looking at it from as many angles he could manage while remaining seated. "Quite simply, it is a cannon that has been reduced in size to the point that one pony can carry it, fire it, reload it, and maintain it. It has less powder behind each shot, but because of the reduced size of the projectile, we can make the equivalent force produced by any usual cannon in a smaller area." The pony explained. "And besides decreasing the size of a cannon and putting it in the hooves of one pony, what does this really accomplish?" The same soldier asked. "I believe I can say that part." Blaze stated as he stood up, walking over to the weapon, the potential uses of it already flowing through his mind. "The reduced size calls for fewer resources, meaning far greater production, allowing a more plentiful number of these, and easier transport to positions that need defending. If we can give even a minimal amount of our troops one of these and train them to reload faster, we can have an almost constant volley of fire, and because we can generate the force of a cannon ball in a smaller area, it is highly likely that even the heavy soldiers that were able to charge through Stalliongrad's cannons would find it much more difficult to make it past these." Blaze smiled as he finished, the room coming to life as the soldier began whispering excitedly to each other. "Oh, and on the reloading speed of each soldier," The researcher added, "We have incorporated a version of a project we had been working on for normal cannons. We had realized the reloading speed cannonries usually achieved was rather awful in most battle situations, so we began work on a pre-prepared box of ammunition, but the project fell through." He continued, producing a small box from his bags. "Mostly because of the weight issues of the cannon's fire and necessary amount of gunpowder, but because the Abus Cannon has a smaller sized projectile, and a reduced amount of powder, we were able to pack a shot and gunpowder in a paper package which allows for even an untrained soldier to reload in a matter of seconds." The pony stated, taking one of said packages out to show the soldiers. "Some of our ponies have taken to calling them 'Little Tastes of Doom', or LTDs, but it is usually preferred to call them charges." "Do you have any more surprises for us?" Blaze chuckled, feeling as if Hearth's Warming had come early as he looked the weapon over, already feeling the lives it would inevitably save. "That's it, I'm afraid, unless you'd like the projected production rate of one of these cannons." The pony said with a shrug. "I think that piece of information might be useful to have." A lieutenant said skeptically. "Our projected rate of production is between fifteen and twenty hundred a day, and that's if we only set aside a minimal amount of a hundred ponies to work on them." The researcher informed them. "If we were to set aside all the current weapons smiths to work on these, we could easily have enough of them to supply the entirety of the army within a week, if not sooner." "You lot are starting to sound less like scientists and researchers, and more like miracle workers." Stone Wall commented. "These cannons could easily be a replacement for bows and arrows, if not swords and lances if we become proficient enough in their use." "Unfortunately, they aren't that good at the moment." The researcher said in a sorrowful tone. "The metal tube requires a certain thickness to make it so it won't burst when the powder explodes, and this makes it rather heavy, not to mention a single charge weighs about the same as two arrows, even though they are smaller. We have made these cannons to be useable by all races, but it is abundantly clear that unicorns have the easiest time with it, since an earth pony needs to stand on three legs while firing, and sit down while reloading, while as pegasi can do the same or fly the whole time." "Essentially, the weapon is very useful in many ways, but has its fair share of draw backs." Blaze stated. "If we were to use them, they would most likely be used by a select few, not only because of the draw backs presented, but also so that the enemy can't obtain them." "So we are going to implement this new contraption in open combat?" A lieutenant asked, looking closely at the cannon. "I'm not sure these things are really worth the risk." "At this moment in time," Blaze replied, "Any branch offered to us, no matter how dried it may seem, needs to be only looked at for what it can do for us. The position we are in with this war is hard to make worse, but there are quite a few things that can be done to make it better." Blaze walked back to his seat, weighing his options as he sat back down. "Stallions, in the presence of the seventy lieutenants of the Equestrian Army, I propose we call to vote the proposed suggestion to include the new Abus Personal Hoof Cannon in our arsenal. You are to vote not in your own interests, but what you believe suits the needs of everypony of Equestria. You will be given a paper and pencil to cast your vote anonymously. If you wish to include the weapon, write yeah, but if you are opposed, write nay, and if it happens you'd rather not say, give in a blank paper or write abstained on it." "W-wait, you are going to vote on it right now?" The researcher pony asked; looking around as one of the soldiers began giving out papers to the ponies. "Isn't this a little sudden? I mean, not that I'm opposed to the swift processing of the possibility of the use of this new weapon on the field, but shouldn't we take it a bit, I don't know, slower?" "We have learned that when the fates of thousands are on the line, a few minutes cannot be spared." Blaze replied, ensuring all the lieutenants received their papers. "Now, I want a trustworthy pony to count the vote, preferably a pony who doesn't know what we are voting on." "We could have the kitchen ponies count it out..." One of the soldiers commented to his comrade. Blaze looked at the pony with a raised eyebrow. "How about that Flint fellow," Another soldier suggested. "He seems quite ambivalent when it comes to matters besides training and battle, and I really doubt he's been kept informed on the notes of our meetings?" "But he's also Blaze's friend, which might make him slightly more disposed to give the result he wants." Another soldier shot back. "But if he doesn't know what that result is then he can't deliver that verdict knowingly." Stone Wall stated. "I think we all fear that our point of view will be stomped on by a cheating vote counter, but I believe we should all submit the decision to the fate it shall meet at the hooves of whoever should count them out." The pony nodded, and placed their papers into a basket that had been placed at the center of the table. Blaze sat back down at the table, several hours having passed since they had left Flint, a civilian pony, and a soldier in the room to count the votes. Blaze looked at Flint who held a scroll in his magical grip, the contents of the paper unknown to any except to the three ponies who stood ready to give their answer to the question the room was asking. The last of the lieutenants sat down and turned to look at the three. "This is the official count as confirmed by the three of us, who have counted the papers three times each to ensure the least amount of errors commit during the process." Flint stated, unfurling the scroll. "Fifteen abstentions are recorded first off, leaving fifty-five votes un in the air, with no possibility of a tie present, unless a pony voted for both, which no pony did. The nays and yeas have been counted and the yeas have it with a margin of thirty-seven to eighteen." The room was silent, a few of the ponies either shaking or nodding their heads, inadvertently showing their votes. "Ponies, in accordance to our agreement, this counting will be accepted as the honest truth." Blaze stated clearly. "Also in accordance to the voting regulations number seventy-three, the abstentions would've had no affect on the outcome if included, thus solidifying the decision made by vote of the seventy lieutenants." Several of the ponies nodded, others sighing as they did, obviously displeased by the result. "Shall I have Research Team Thirteen deliver schematics to the blacksmiths so production can start immediately?" One of the soldiers in the room asked Blaze, who gave him a nod in response. Blaze entered the small room that was marked with a red 'Thirteen' above it. He entered, and quickly found the pony he had been directed to. Blaze cleared his throat, which garnered the attention of the pony, which turned to look at him. "Yes, may I help you with something? Oh don't tell me you're here for the second batch of schematics for the cannon already. I told the last one we'd be a few hours drawing them up." The pony said, the anxiety evident in his voice as he moved on, trotting around the cramped research quarters. "I'm not here for any schematics..." Blaze began. "Oh, that’s good, because I don't have any to give at the moment." The researcher replied, continuing to adjust setting on various chemical vats while writing notes on what he saw. "Perhaps a tad less sulfur will do..." He muttered to himself as he continued on his tirade around his lab. "Uh, my name is Blaze Eternal, are you Abus?" Blaze asked as the scientist rushed by once more. The pony turned to him for the briefest of moments, quickly pushing his glasses up with a hoof before trotting off again. "I guess you are the Blaze Eternal everypony has been talking about..." The pony mumbled, "Honestly I don't see why a seventeen year old coming into a place of prominence is so important in this day and age. Many of the past's greatest achievements where made by great, young minds." "Well I was actually still sixteen when I entered my position." Blaze corrected as he continued to observe the pony as he adjusted valve after valve on various pieces of equipment. "And sixteen and seventeen are so very different. My point still stands." The pony replied. "And as for me being Abus." The pony continued, stopping in his tracks. "My goodness, I smell something burning." He galloped across the room and turned off one of the burners he had set up. "Well at least I now know it isn't any type of explosive, though the smell needs to be checked over to ensure it also isn't a poison..." The pony continued to mutter. "Well, to continue, my name is actually Abacus, but for some odd reason they call me Abus, like cutting out a part from two syllables will make a world of time in the saving of time department. Would I be correct when I suppose you're here to discuss the Abus Cannon?" "Yes, that would be true enough to say." Blaze replied. "I was hoping to get an idea on your thoughts of it and how you came across the idea." The pony stopped once again, but this time turned to look Blaze in the eye. "Commander, I'll be dead honest with you. I barely had any part in the creation of the weapon. It bares my name only because I'm the head of Research Team Thirteen. If we were to call it by its inventor’s name, call it Blast Radius Personal Hoof Cannon. And another thing I'd like to say about it is that I wish I never had anything at all to do with it, and in fact, I wish it had never been made." "Why, when it could save so many lives if we use it on the field?" Blaze asked genuinely curious about the pony's reply. Abacus shook his head with a sigh. "You talk about saving lives, but all I see is us, the ponies of Equestria, creating weapons to kill faster and more effectively. We, the peace loving ponies are making ground breaking research into how to end peace. Forgive me if I'm less than excited by the prospect." At that, the research pony turned back to his equipment and continued his work. Blaze just stood there, speechless, the words striking him hard. Blaze stood on the balcony, the cool night air flowing past him, bringing a chill to him. The field were dotted with torches, several ponies standing out in the cold to ensure that no birds thought the seeds were food, and to make sure no reptilous were coming closer, the attack on the Crystal Empire still fresh in everypony's minds, but even though Blaze had it in his mind, that wasn't what was tumbling around in his head. "Blaze, what are you doing out here so late?" Amber asked from behind him, the sound of the door creaking farther open told Blaze she was coming out beside him. Blaze turned to look at her, the moonlight making her shine with an eternal glow, though the beauty was lost on Blaze's preoccupied mind. "Hello, Amber," He said calmly, "haven't seen you around in a good while." Blaze commented before turning back to the view. "You've been helping your mother I suppose." She stood beside him and nodded. "There are a lot of hurt ponies in the castle; I can't just let them stay there like that." Amber replied, looking at the sprawling city below. "There will be more ponies like them by the end of all this war." Blaze mumbled quietly, catching Amber off guard. "I'm sorry; I'm somewhere else right now. You don't deserve to hear my depressing ramblings." "Blaze, what's wrong? I've never seen you looking so... down." Amber pressed. Blaze let out a sigh, turning to look at Amber. "Today I made a choice that I thought was the right one with all my being, but I'm not so sure anymore." Blaze explained. "I've pressured our soldiers to become stronger, more apt warriors, but... maybe we shouldn't be warriors." "What do you mean? Are you thinking the war is lost already?" Amber asked; her confusion very evident in her voice. "What I'm saying is... I honestly don't know." Blaze looked back over the city, tears beginning to form in the corners of his eyes. "I used to think that the fact that Equestria's army was so small and so weak compared to other, that the fact our military was comparable to an army that would protect a city of any other nation was a bad thing, but... the good and evil of situations I'm in are becoming more and more blurred." "Blaze, if we don't have our solders trained to the prime of their capabilities we won't have a chance at winning this war." Amber reasoned, further confused at why Blaze would have such a doubt. "I used to think like that as well, but... what is Equestria?" Blaze asked, blinking back his tears as best as he could. "What characteristics define Equestria; make it unique amongst all the other nations, kingdoms, and empires of the world?" "Eh, our roaring trade, large economic impact on the world, the fact we have the most diverse population." Amber offered, unsure what he wanted. "The fact that diplomacy has always been our first option, and that we avoid violence at all costs, the very fact we are so peaceful and peace loving sets us out from the rest of the world." Blaze stated. "And yet, what have we been doing all this time? What have I been advocating this entire time, from the time even before Greyhield declared war? I’ll tell you, exactly what any other country in the world would've done." "Well, maybe, at least in this instance, it is good we take after the policies of other nations." Amber suggested calmly. "But then what does that make us?" Blaze questioned as he lowered his head to look at the floor. "At this point, we're no longer distinct amongst nations, and we're only assimilating ourselves more and more with each passing day. We're making highly advanced research into topics we were against, so much so that not only are we just like other nations, but are now taking their policies in domestic and foreign affairs even farther than they usually do and have done." "Blaze, none of the other nations have faced a threat as large as what we have. They have fought wars before, yes, but they never faced an army of greater strength and size than their own that never gives a chance at peace." Amber stated. "Our only resolution at this point is either kill or be killed, no matter how much we may despise it." "Amber, we've been at this war for over a year now, and all we've been able to accomplish is a more militarized form of government in the absence of the princesses and the control of a greater fighting force than we have ever had in over a thousand years." Blaze pointed out. "But are we any closer to winning? No, but even if we do win, Greyhield still has a victory in that he has destroyed Equestria. The old Equestria will be no more, just as he intended." "Well maybe it's time for Equestria to change. Maybe this change in our image will help us in the long run. Maybe some good may come from this whole darkness that we can't see right now and maybe we'll be glad that all this happened." Amber rationalized. "It might not come in our time, but it might just happen someday in the future." Blaze looked at her, his expression unchanging. "We might come out of this war, and a good might be born from it all, but Equestria will die." Blaze declared. "Equestria will be nothing like it once was, and even though I know that change is part of life and the betterment of things, Equestria doesn't need any of this. Equestria should've stayed the way it was." "And let Greyhield kill us all? Blaze, think, Equestria will change, it was changed, but the ponies of Equestria will live on, but only if you fight." Amber said forcefully. "If you give up now, not only will Equestria be gone forever, the ponies of Equestria will also disappear. Blaze, I'm not one who likes war, I personally hate violence, but I know that in this case it is the only answer in response to Greyhield's army. If we don't fight back, we will die, and at our current strength, we still don't stand much of a chance. In this time, it is a necessary evil to go against our nature, and become militaristic, no matter how we might feel about it, or how it might change us in the long run." Blaze thought for several moments, looking back towards the city. "I can only hope that after all this is over that Equestria might have a chance to become what it once was." Blaze said solemnly.