Blizzard held his lance in his teeth as the line of reptilous quickly approached. The ground shook as yet another magical explosion went off, sending more debris into the air. Blizzard thrust his spear out, watching as a reptilous skillfully dodged around the attack, snapping the wooden shaft in two with a swift strike of the sword. Blizzard quickly dove forward, using his wings for more speed. The blow sent the reptilous stumbling backwards while Blizzard spiraled upward with the reptilous' blade in his possession.
Blizzard shot back down towards the reptilous, which quickly turned to face the pegasi, catching him by the leg before slamming the helpless pony to the ground. Blizzard shook his head as the world around him span in a whirl of pain and disorientation. As he regained his sense of direction, the reptilous above him brought his sword down towards him. Suddenly a bolt of magic smashed into the blade, sending it flying backwards. The reptilous let out a roar, slamming his foot into Blizzard's head before launching itself towards the offending unicorn with murder in its eyes. The unicorn quickly shot another blast of magic in the reptilous' face, only to have the warrior beast lash out still with its claws, catching the pony in the sides. Blizzard, in a state of delirium looked up towards the reptilous as he tried and regain full awareness.
Blizzard suddenly found something very clear in his mind, as the searing pain of claws entering his sides pierced the cloud that had bogged down his mind. Blizzard let out a screech of pure agony as the reptilous ripped its claws out again before bringing its sword down on the pony, catching him behind the neck. Satisfied with its work, the reptilous kicked the pony off of his blade, the crimson blood still dripping slowly from the cold steel. Suddenly an arrow shot through the reptilous skull as Stone Wall barreled through the line.
"Fall back to mark one!" He shouted as he notched another arrow in his bow while slashing the nearest reptilous across the stomach. The Equestrian soldiers quickly rallied and fell back a few paces as the onslaught continued. Stone quickly shot off another arrow, catching a reptilous in the shoulder, who quickly lost his head as Blaze finished what the lieutenant had started. Blaze quickly shot another reptilous in the face with a bolt of fire before turning on the spot and bucking him in the chest, sending him toppling backwards a good distance.
"Give them mark two! Fall back to mark two!" Blaze ordered as he blasted yet another reptilous with a fire spell while finishing it off with a sword strike to the throat. As the troops fell back, a flurry of arrows shot up, striking the further ranks of the reptilous. Blaze popped up a magical shield as a reptilous slashed at him, only to have another on jump on top of his and tear off a plate of his plate armor, throwing it away before slashing in with its dagger, cutting a rather sizable gash in Blaze's side. Blaze jerked away, only to have another reptilous bring his sword down on Blaze's shoulder, sending him to the floor.
Blaze looked up at the beasts, his teeth gritted against the pain as he sent another bolt of fire into the face of one of the reptilous before sending a magically conjured blade into the chest of the other. Blaze rose to his hooves, blood seeping out from his wounds as he took several steps back, watching as the reptilous pressed harder and harder on the pony line.
"Fourth mark, get to the fourth mark!" Blaze ordered before making his way to the location himself. As he turned again to face the reptilous line an arrow shot out and struck him in the chest, lodging itself firmly inside the pony as a small trickle of blood began to work its way out of the armor. Blaze shut his eyes against the pain, snapping the shaft off to the point where the armor began. As he did, another arrow struck him in the leg, sending him to the ground in a ball of agony.
Blaze shakily attempted to raise himself, but found his limb unresponsive as he lay on the snowy ground. Before too long two soldiers lifted his limp body onto a stretcher before running from the battle towards the field hospital, only to gallop right passed where Blaze had known it to be. As they passed the area, Blaze saw the charred remains of medical equipment, tent supports, as well as some corpses that had been caught up in whatever horrific event had transpired.
The two soldiers took him deeper into the town, the medical care center coming into view as they galloped through crowds of disorganized ponies that ran to and fro, fortifying the town in case the soldiers were unable to stop the advancing reptilous. Blaze felt the curtains brush against him as they passed through the tent's entrance to the medical facilities. He heard several gasps, though he didn't know if they were directed towards him or not.
The ponies quickly set him down on a medical table, that was, interestingly enough, more comfortable than most medical beds he had the misfortune of sleeping in. He felt the familiar weight of his armor disappear as the doctor teleported his armor off to begin their procedures. He felt several spikes of pain as they removed the arrows as quickly as possible before cauterizing the wounds as quickly as possible while tending and mending his other wounds with bandages and small, focused healing spells. As they continued, Blaze slowly felt less and less pain, until the world around him faded into darkness as an empty dream consumed him.
-
Stone Wall fired one last arrow as he fell into position at what had been called mark ten, the final mark for his troops. Stone quickly raised a horn to his mouth, the sound blaring across the field, followed by the cries of war and thundering of hooves as the lines of ponies on either side of the main column came crashing down on the reptilous.
Stone Wall rolled to the side as a reptilous swung his massive battleaxe down towards him. Stone Wall quickly shoved his sword up the reptilous' stomach before taking it out once more to fend off another reptilous attacker as he bared down on the stallion. Stone Wall tore the reptilous' sword from its claws and turned it towards the fierce warrior beast, intent on ending the soldier with his own blade, but the reptilous quickly grabbed the sword's cross guard, stopping its progress. The reptilous swiftly turned the table on the pony, yanking the blade from the magical field before bringing it down on the pony's head, giving Stone Wall only a brief moment to jump to the side, but even though he tried to get out of the weapon's reach, the blade still caught him in the shoulder, sending him to the ground.
Stone Wall looked up at the reptilous, which lifted his blade and sent it down on the pony. Stone Wall quickly rolled out of the way, only to have the blade pierce his foreleg, pinning him to the floor. Stone Wall gave roared in pain before staring up at the reptilous with a fire in his eyes. With sheer force of will and magical power, Stone Wall pushed the blade the whole way through, only taking a moment to snap the cross guard off to allow to blade to pass through.
The reptilous took a step back from the furious, blood-thirsty stallion, which now had a hole in his leg and a blade with a broken cross guard to show for his resolve. Stone wall quickly ran the stunned reptilous through before quickly cutting off the beast's leg and skinning it, tying the rough, scaly skin around his wound, binding it with some of his cape's cloth. Several of the reptilous saw this, and took several steps back from the pony who now wore a piece of one of their brethren.
"Who wants to give me a new rug for my tent and some fine cutlery?" Stone Wall asked with a widening, maddened smile, perceiving their fright. "Or maybe I make a nice suit of armor." A few of the reptilous seemed to need no more convincing as they ran off, while the much more experienced soldiers charged the pony line. Stone Wall's smile grew even larger as he met the braver reptilous with a substantial limp. "I might just have some blood wine tonight!" He roared in glee, scaring off the last few undecided reptilous.
-
Spike rode up on the scene, the chilling winds hitting him full force as the weather ponies continued at their work to make the battlefield all the more challenging for the reptilous. Bellow, Spike saw a sigh he almost couldn't believe. The smaller Equestrian force had encircled the reptilous horde. Distant fires dotted the landscape marking the remnants of destructive spells, and small, far away pops proclaimed the continued use of the small cannons that had proved so troublesome before. The field was already covered in snow, though it now ran with small streams of crimson that fed into small ponds that began to form in the lowers points of the field.
"It appears that Gylom might be in need of assistance." Galintrent commented as he halted Luna a small distance further on. "What is our course of action?" The colonel asked, looking to his general. Spike looked over the field, the bodies almost far too visible. The apparent majority was the reptilous, a fact that only served to make him feel all the more reluctant, but he finally came to a conclusion.
"We create one hole in their ranks and get Gylom away from this place." Spike ordered. "Today is not promising victory for us; even with the number advantage appearing to be on our side." Galintrent nodded slowly before riding over to the signaler, who passed the message on quickly. Spike took a final deep breath before snapping Celestia's reigns.
-
Gylom pulled his lance from yet another felled pony before smashing the face of another pony in with his shield. Gylom slammed his spear into the ground before bringing out his sword and charging into the lines of ponies, hacking and slashing his way through the densely packed fighting force that seemed to spawn three fighters for each one he removed.
"Sir, General Spike has arrived!" Gylom heard one of his colonel's shout over the battle. Gylom smiled, not turning as he planted his sword into another pony before picking another one up in his claws, crushing its windpipe with a powerful squeeze. Gylom threw the corpse away before taking his sword back up, readying himself for the next opponent.
"Eh... sir, Spike's flag bearer has sent the message that they are going to aid in our removal from the field." Another colonel stated. Gylom looked over his shoulder, surprised to see what he had been true after all.
"Send a signal back; we are staying right here until the defeat of the Equestrian forces!" Gylom roared before smashing a pony to the ground with one solid swing of his sword. The colonel nodded and rushed past his brother's in arms towards the flag bearer to give the message.
-
Stone Wall bucked another reptilous in the chest, sending him tumbling backwards. Stone Wall pivoted on his hooves, slicing the reptilous' head clean off as he pushed another reptilous away with a blast of magic. Stone Wall lifted the reptilous' blade and ended the other reptilian fighter with it.
"Sir we have contact to the south! Another reptilous force has appeared on the field and is riding hard for our position!" One of Stone Wall's soldiers’s reported as the lieutenant finished off another reptilous with a swift swipe of his blade. "What are your orders, sir?"
"We can't spare any more troops; they'll just have to handle themselves as best as possible over there." Stone Wall replied as he continued his tirade through the reptilous line, almost receiving as many blows as he dealt as he forced his way deeper into the reptilous force.
-
Spike met the line of ponies, sending several of them flying with a magical blast. Spike soon reached the reptilous line. As he entered into the crowd, the masses parted as he made his way towards where he could see the flag bearer, where he knew he could find Gylom close by. He eventually found the beaten up reptilous general, who fought far more sluggishly than usual. Spike jumped off of Celestia, stowing his lance before unsheathing his sword, joining Gylom.
"We need to get you and your forces out of here before any more losses are suffered!" Spike shouted over the mayhem as he took out the first pony that jumped towards him. "We'll cover your retreat as best we can."
"No dice, Spike, we're staying right here until this battle is won!" Gylom replied as he bashed a pony away. "We might have fallen the first time, but we have learned how these ponies fight, they won't beat us this time!"
"You didn't see what I saw when I first rode in, Gylom!" Spike shouted back. "There are more reptilous dead on the field than there are ponies alive, we need to pull you out of this battle before you lose the entirety of your auxiliary for in the same campaign as when you lost your main force!" Spike reasoned as he slammed his shield into an advancing pony.
"I won't allow my force to suffer two loses at the hooves of these pathetic ponies!" Gylom roared as he punted a pony into the air. "We will win this battle if it takes every last reptilous in this division! And that's also with or without your help!"
"It will take more than your division and mine to take on these ponies!" Spike stated as he kicked a pony up the jaw. "They have you surrounded, and are likely to finish you off within the day if you stay here. Now pull back so that you can live to fight another day, unless you'd rather explain to Greyhield why he now has lost two divisions instead of just one and a half!" Gylom looked over to Spike with a pensive look, and then cursed under his breath.
"Fine, I'll do it your way." Gylom said with a hiss. "Cover our retreat and I'll try to get as many soldiers back alive as possible." Spike nodded as he readied himself for holding the line.
"Tell Celestia to come to me while you’re at it! She'll be of use in holding this position!" Spike said as he held his shield firm against the ponies bashing on it. "All soldiers in my division, hold the line and cover Gylom's removal, don't give an inch, and don't let anything or anypony through!" Spike ordered, several reptilous quickly forming a shield wall alongside Spike as Gylom's troops fell back, some throwing rocks or discarded weapons at the ponies as they went.
-
Stone Wall walked in to the medical facilities, his armor long gone, though his reptilous bandage still was present on his leg. The waves of nurses and doctors rushing to and fro made him feel a tad dizzy as he made his way to the reception area. A single nurse sat behind the shabby wooden desk, organizing paperwork as it was thrown at her, her complexion betraying the stress she felt as she continued her work incessantly, the vast amounts of empty coffee cup giving testimony as to how long she had been at it.
"Excuse me, but can you direct me to where the commander was put upon his arrival to this area?" Stone Wall asked over the bustle of the crowd. The nurse looked up for a brief moment before returning to her papers that were yet filed.
"East wing, third section on the left." The nurse said, waving her hoof as if showing the directions on a nonexistent map. Stone Wall nodded slowly before finally walking away, finding his way a best as he could.
"You really shouldn't try to draft up plans while in the hospital." A slightly familiar voice said farther up the row of medical curtains that functionally separated the large tent into rooms. "You're supposed to be resting, and I doubt stressing yourself over every detail of a plan is the most relaxing activity for anypony."
"I can't let it wait, this needs to be done right now." Stone heard Blaze say as he came closer to the room. "This plan has the distinct possibility of changing our fortunes. The reptilous are obviously stepping up their game that was already better than ours, so we need to try our best to keep up, if not hopefully past them."
"That sounds all well and good, but if it means you won't-" The other voice began as he entered the room.
"Sorry to interrupt, but if you know Blaze at all, you'll know his strong headed nature won't allow for easy convincing." He said, entering the room, surprising the several ponies that lay in it. Stone nodded at Blaze as he walked up. "He's a tough nut to crack, which is good for certain things, but makes him worse off when two things of high importance collide, and one is his wellbeing."
"Especially when the one thing is his wellbeing." The pony, who Stone Wall now placed as Amber, commented with a huff. "It's like you have a death wish, Blaze; both on and off the battlefield!" Stone Wall stifled a chuckle at the comment, disguising it as a cough as he looked over the other ponies in the room. He noticed, oddly enough, both of the remaining residents of the room were a shade of white, though one was a far purer variant than the other.
"Stone Wall, these are my friends, Blizzard and Half Pint." Blaze said in introduction. "It seems today if the day we all see how badly each of us can get wounded in the same battle. Speaking of, how did it end? The battle I mean."
"It ended in victory for our side." Stone Wall stated, gaining some relieved expressions. "A second force of reptilous appeared a little while after we closed in completely on the reptilous, but instead of pressing their advantage, they actually stood in the way and helped get the original force out of the battle."
"A fortunate move for us," Blaze commented solemnly, "If I have the reports straight, the second force was said to be equal or greater in size to the first. If they had decided to fight we would have doubtlessly lost the day."
"Well, the day is won," Stone Wall began, "But the war is only starting."