//------------------------------// // XII Rainbow Dash // Story: A Dream of Sunny Days // by Roranicus //------------------------------// A small group of houses made up the bulk of Saddlefree village while numerous farms extended its territory further to the north. A thick forest to the south separated the settlement from Ponyville and Canterlot. Rainbow Dash frowned as she eyed the tall trees; it would be the perfect place for an enemy to hide. She flew ahead toward the pegasus currently at the front of their V formation. "We land at this inn, soldier. I'll take the lead from here." The yellow-coated pegasus at the front slowed down and flew upwards, allowing Rainbow to glide under him and take the lead position, right in front of the unit's regular leader, Sergeant Flitter. She nodded at Flitter as she passed her. Normally, Rainbow would have trusted the sergeant with this mission, but three recruiters had gone missing in this area and their previous scouts had also failed to return. Not only did Rainbow decide to send in a full unit as a response, she opted to take command of it herself. She turned and cast her eyes north before heading toward the ground. She could almost see Cloudsdale in the distance. Everything between the city in the sky and Saddlefree was flat land with little place to hide. If there was danger, it was either in the village or the forest. Hopefully somepony in town would volunteer some information. Rainbow landed in front of a modest inn, the eight ponies under her command accompanying her. The wing commander slowly looked around. Townponies cautiously stepped away, probably intimidated by their military uniforms. "We're not here to hurt you," Rainbow announced. "We're just looking for information." An earth pony mother quickly grabbed her two children and dragged them inside her house as a pegasus couple quietly flew away. Rainbow sighed and turned toward Flitter. "Alright, Sergeant. Form a perimeter and see if anypony is willing to talk. I'll take Rapidflash and Derpypaws, and head inside." "Aye aye, ma'am," the grayish-blue sergeant answered with a salute. Rainbow trotted toward the inn, the two soldiers following closely behind. She swiftly opened the door, prompting the few ponies inside to turn their heads in her direction. As the day was still new, only three patrons sat at a round, wooden table in a dark corner. A unicorn barkeep gulped behind his counter as he made eye contact with the wing commander. Rainbow tried her best to smile as she made her way to the counter. The barkeep shook his head vigorously as he took a step backward "Whatever it is, we have nothing to do with it, and we want no part of it," he blurted out in a shaking voice. "Look, we just want information," the pegasus grunted as she rolled her eyes, stopping in front of the counter. "I don't know anything, I swear," the barkeep continued. "We just want to be left in peace." "You don't even know what I'm going to ask." Rainbow didn't wait for the pony to respond. "Some of our recruiters were last seen in this town, then never reported back. Any idea what happened to them?" "They got a room here, and they talked to some ponies in town. That's all I know," the unicorn replied, shaking and looking around the room nervously. "As I said, I mind my own business." Rainbow tapped her hoof on the counter. "Seriously, I'm not gonna hurt you or anything. I just wanna ask questions." "He's not gonna answer you," a loud voice shouted from the round table at the back. "Nopony here wants to help you Nightmare Moon lovers." As Rainbow swiftly turned in the voice's direction, she heard another voice whisper. "Quiet down, Applecrisp. You'll get us all in trouble." A fat, green-coated earth pony, presumably Applecrisp, got up from his chair and stared down Rainbow. "Do your worst. I'm not afraid of you featherbrain soldiers. You won't take any more of our youngsters to join your rebellion." "We're fighting to restore the throne to its proper ruler. It's a tad more productive than getting drunk at a bar on a Thursday morning," Rainbow replied with a snort, looking around the table. "Either way, you lot heard anything about our recruiters disappearing?" "I don't know a thing. Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you." the fat pony said, poking Rainbow with his hoof. The two soldiers pointed their spears at him in retaliation. "Stand down, let's not start a fight," Rainbow ordered before turning back toward Applecrisp and pushing him back toward his chair. "This one is obviously just a drunk." A light purple pegasus sitting at the same table timidly raised one of her hooves. "As you said, he's just drunk." She gulped. "I'll answer your questions if you promise not to do anything to him." "Fair enough," Rainbow said with a nod. Applecrisp got up to retort, but the third pony sitting at the table, a dark blue earth pony mare, placed a hoof on his shoulder and whispered something in his ear. The wing commander ignored them as she gave the pegasus mare her full attention. "Any idea what happened to our soldiers?" She nervously shook her head. "No, ma'am, I'm sorry. We're just passing through. I can tell you a lot of ponies here don't like seeing soldiers. I've heard your recruiters weren't too popular." She hid behind her mane. Rainbow rolled her eyes. "I don't know what kind of crazy stories you heard, but Blueblood doesn't want anything good for Equestria. We're not here to hurt you, we're here to help." "And what if we don't want your help?" Applecrisp argued, pushing his friend aside and standing up again. "What if we think it should be Prince Blueblood saving us from Nightmare Moon?" "Let me teach this one a lesson, commander," Rapidflash spat as he pointed his spear toward Applecrisp again. "No, private," Rainbow said as she firmly shook her head. "He's just some idiot who believes the lies coming out of Canterlot. He's not worth our attention." "I'll show you how worthy of your attention I am!" the fat stallion snapped, prompting his two friends to get up and hold him back. "For Prince Blueblood! For Princess Rarity!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. He pushed his friends away and lunged toward Rainbow. Rainbow's blood boiled at the mention of her friend. "You keep Rarity out of this!" she yelled in the drunk's face. "Forcing Rarity to marry him is just another one of his crimes — one he'll pay for." Applecrisp guffawed. "That's what you think? That he forced her into this? I was at the wedding. That mare wasn't forced into this; she was just as excited about it as he was. Face it, Lieutenant, or Captain, or whatever you are, nopony wants you in Equestria. You're just a bully, and I only have one thing to say to bullies." The stallion attempted to strike Rainbow's cheek, but his blow only connected with the hard metal of her helmet. He spat in her face as he recoiled in pain from his failed punch. "It's commander. And you just struck an officer of the Cloudsdale army," Dash warned, seeing red. "Rapidflash, Derpypaws, get this drunk out of my sight." She breathed heavily. He's just a drunk, Rainbow. You're way too awesome to let him get to you. Beside, Rarity would never agree to this. He's just pushing your buttons. The commander looked at the two remaining mares staring at her with pleading eyes. Darn it, she thought as she turned toward her soldiers, who had begun dragging the drunk outside. "Alright, just give him water to drink, and let him out with a warning. We're not here to make enemies." "Th... thank you commander," the purple pegasus stammered. Rainbow took a long breath and tried her best to manage a comforting smile. "I think we started on the wrong hoof. I'm Rainbow Dash, Wing Commander in the Cloudsdale army, and I really just want to know what happened to my ponies." "I'm Candy Swirl," the mare answered as Rainbow invited her and her friend to sit back down. "So you say you just arrived here? That you were in Canterlot?" the commander asked, sitting comfortably on one of the wooden chairs. "Yes," Candy replied with a gulp. "We were there for the wedding, and we're returning home to Vanhoover. We're really not looking for trouble." Darn it, these ponies really haven't done anything bad, but I can't have them spread lies about Princess Luna. What would Twilight do in this situation? Rainbow tapped her hoof to her chin as she considered her options. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you or anything, but you gotta understand that everything you've been told in Canterlot, it's all lies. Blueblood and the other nobles would say anything to discredit Princess Luna. I can't have you spreading falsehoods around." Candy Swirl and her companion both looked down. "We won't, I promise. Applecrisp just had too much to drink. He doesn't realize what he's saying." "Since you were in Canterlot though, there is one thing I'd like to ask," Rainbow said with a sigh. I have nothing to lose at this point. "What can you tell me about Rarity? Did she really seem okay with this wedding? Or was it all another lie?" "She said she loved him," Candy replied in a shaking voice. "It sounded sincere. She said that their marriage would insure peace for all of Equestria." Rarity, what are you playing at? Dash thought to herself. You can't seriously be going along with this. "And you know absolutely nothing about what happened to the Cloudsdale troops who came here?" she asked instead. Candy slowly shook her head. "No, Commander. As I said, we only arrived yesterday, got a room, and had breakfast. If Applecrisp hadn't decided to hit the cider, we'd be on our way back by now." "Alright, fine. Just stay out of trouble, will you?" Rainbow said as she got up. She quickly adjusted her helmet before turning one last time toward the barkeep, who still nervously observed her and her two privates. The commander considered interrogating him further, but decided against it. Hopefully somepony in town would be more cooperative. Dash left the inn and spied Derpypaws having an argument with Applecrisp. She took a few steps in their direction and addressed her soldier. "Just let him go. We don't want to start a commotion." She sighed and turned toward the fat, drunken pony. "Go along your business, Applecrisp. Just stay out of trouble, and try not to get into fights with armed soldiers, will you?" The earth pony grumbled something unintelligible under his breath as he dragged his hooves back inside the inn. Rainbow kept her eyes trained on him, but quickly decided he wasn't worth the trouble. She saw Flitter in the distance talking to a bearded, bald earth pony. Hopefully the sergeant had better luck than her. She gave her wings a few flaps so she could get airborne and join Flitter. She allowed her body to glide, landing gracefully next to the sergeant. "Any luck?" Rainbow asked. "Yes, actually. This pony says he saw griffons in the area," Flitter said as she pointed to the older pony next to her. His unkempt beard and lazy eye made him look like he had seen better days. Apparently, he hadn't seen a bath in a while either. "Griffons?" Dash asked. "Why would they have anything to do with our missing recruiters?" "They're not just your average griffons," the old pony said, staring at Dash. "They're soldiers, all the way from that kingdom of theirs, on the other side of the Oatlantic. They've been asking questions, paying off townsfolk for their help." Rainbow turned toward Flitter. "Is this true? Griffon soldiers from Griffingard are here?" "It's what I just said!" the old pony replied. "The old stallion claims he saw them, that they hide in the forest," Flitter said. "Apparently they contacted a few ponies in town, too. It could be worth investigating, unless you found something else, ma'am." "Nothing in the inn," Rainbow replied, shaking her head. "Although many of the ponies here seem loyal to Canterlot. We'll have to be careful." "Noted, Commander. I'll let my troops know." "Now, as for you," Dash continued as she turned back toward the old pony. "Where exactly did you see those griffons? Were they wearing uniforms?" "No uniforms, at least not in town. They do have armor and weapons in their secret forest hideout." The stallion dramatically pointed toward the forest. "I can show you. Most of the ponies here would refuse to help, but not Old Oatston. No! I told that other unicorn about them, too." "Wait, other unicorn?" Rainbow asked. "It's the first I hear of it," Flitter interjected. "Yes, yes, a white unicorn, traveling with an earth pony," Old Oatston continued. "They were looking for Cloudsdale recruiters, too. They got real nervous when I told them about the griffons." "Could be spies from Canterlot," Flitter suggested with a frown. "Or just overeager ponies wanting to impress us; we'll have to keep an eye out for them," Dash told the sergeant before turning back to Oatston and nodding with a smile. "Princess Luna appreciates your loyalty, Oatston," "I know she does, I used to have bad dreams, and she took them away," he said with a grin, displaying a set of broken yellow teeth just as he poked Rainbow in the chest. "Anyway, I can take you to their secret forest hideout. I followed them there once, after they went and asked questions to the villagers." "What kind of questions did they ask?" Rainbow said, raising an eyebrow. "They wanted to know about you," Old Oatston whispered, inviting Rainbow and Flitter to get closer with his hoof. "They kept asking about Cloudsdale, and Princess Luna. How many ponies you have, which villagers joined you, where you get your food, but I wouldn't answer." "Good," Rainbow said, before turning her head toward the forest. "And you followed them after?" "I did, I did!" he giddily chanted. "Come, let me show you where they hide." "Not so fast," the commander ordered. "Flitter, gather the troops. Let's not head in there blind. Oatston, could you pinpoint where they're hiding on a map? Give us an idea of the surroundings?" "I suppose I could," he suggested, tapping his hoof to his chin. "Awesome," Rainbow replied wide a sly grin. "Let's all get to it, then." The trees' thick foliage could keep the most colorful ponies hidden from view. Still, when trying to hide, Rainbow wished she had brown fur like the soldier she partnered up with instead of her bright, easily noticeable blue coat. She made a mental note to cover herself in dirt on her next scouting mission. She had split her unit in groups of two, each group flying from one tree to the next, or sneaking from the ground and trying to stay out of view. She picked Derpypaws as her partner, a nervous-looking rookie whom she thought could learn a thing or two by watching her in action. The young pegasus breathed heavily. His head twitched at the slightest forest noise. Dash placed a hoof on his back, making him jump and almost fall off the branch he was standing on. "Calm down, soldier. If you move too much, or breathe too loudly, you could get us spotted. Think of this as playing hide and seek with foals. Nothing to worry about." She smiled encouragingly. Rainbow returned to scanning the landscape. She could hear birds singing, the wind in the leaves, and the occasional branch cracking. She groaned as she heard a cough coming from a tree a few meters ahead. I'll need to have a talk with Firebolt about subtlety, and taking something for his darn cough. Both Rainbow and Derpypaws' ears perked up at the sound of a sparrow's whistle — the agreed upon signal between Rainbow, Flitter, and the soldiers. "Somepony found something. Let's go," she whispered to her partner. "Aye aye, ma'am," Derpypaws answered with a nod. The two pegasi glided in the direction of the whistle, staying as close to the trees as possible. Any flap of their wings could rustle the leaves and betray their presence, so they allowed the wind to carry them. Rainbow tipped her head toward the trees as she felt they were getting closer. Both she and Derpypaws lowered themselves on two of the upper branches. Rainbow held her hoof up, asking for silence as she twitched one of her ears. Some sounds could be heard in the distance, possibly someone talking. Rainbow pointed downward — no reason to risk detection by flying. They would go the rest of the way below the branches. The commander easily glided from one branch to another until she reached the ground. Derpypaws wasn't as skillful, and chose a branch that proved too weak. It cracked under his weight, forcing him to flap his wings to avoid a crash. Rainbow groaned at him as he sheepishly blushed. The two ponies made their way through the thick forest, hiding behind trees as they followed the sound of conversation. The sickening smell of flesh being incinerated assaulted Rainbow's nostrils. Bleh, meat, she thought as she remembered Gilda's disgusting habit of eating rodents, both cooked and raw. Rainbow Dash slowly made her way toward the offending smell, constantly keeping an eye on her partner and making sure he didn't step on branches or dry leaves. There was still no sign of any other pegasus soldier, but they were getting close enough to start making out what was being said. "You're right, Gaston. This is good meat! You said you first had it in the south of Equestria?" a gruff voice asked, between munching sounds. "Yup, a small Saddle Arabian village next to the Badlands," another heavier voice answered. "Wasn't pony meat like this though, it was horse meat." Both Rainbow and Derpypaws gasped in shock. They were eating pony meat? This was a definite act of war. "Horse, pony, there's a difference?" a female voice asked, also with her beak full. "Of course, Caroline. Pony meat is much more tender. It might become a hot commodity if this war lasts for a while," Gaston answered. As Rainbow's blood boiled, she spotted Flitter hiding behind a tree with three other soldiers. She took a long, silent breath as she made her way toward the troops with extra care not to make a single sound. She turned her head in the direction the sergeant pointed and spied their targets. Four griffons were sitting around a campfire. To Rainbow's horror, what looked like a pony's hind leg was slowly rotated on a spit by one of the enemy soldiers. Her stomach turned as she shared a knowing look with Flitter that was worth a thousand words; these griffons had to die. Another quick glance at the camp revealed three tents, as well as some armor and weapons laying in a pile. No sign of any prisoners; the griffons must have killed and ate them after they interrogated them. Dash turned back toward Flitter and pointed at the camp with her right wing. Flitter nodded once and pointed at three different locations. Rainbow replied by flapping the tips of her wings three times and moving her hoof in a circular, downward fashion. She mentally thanked Soarin for insisting everypony learned military sign language. She took a quick look at the four soldiers accompanying them. They all held their spears nervously, shaking in apprehension. Better act now before they start over-thinking it. Rainbow flew up and ordered the charge. "For Equestria!" she loudly announced, prompting the three ponies hiding in the trees to join her as she flew above the camp. "Flap 'em," she ordered.+ Flitter, the three soldiers, and Rainbow herself to flap their wings toward the ground, creating powerful gusts of wind that would prevent the surprised griffons from taking off. As the griffons fumbled around, trying to pick up their weapons, Derpypaws, Firebolt, Rapidflash, and Leafbreeze all hovered right under the rest of the unit, holding their spears and getting ready to impale the enemy. Rainbow grinned as her soldiers lowered in altitude, giving the spearponies the space to maneuver without getting caught in the wind funnel. One griffon tried to fly up and attack with his bare claws, but lost his balance as soon as his paws left the ground, allowing Firebolt's spear to travel through his neck. The commander winced as the blood from his pierced jugular spattered across the ground and over the remains of the pony leg they had been devouring. Almost too easy, Dash thought as she looked down at her spear handlers. Movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention. She turned around and gasped as a fifth griffon, a fat one wielding a cleaver, ran out of the largest of the tents. He screeched as he sped toward the ponies, throwing his weapon. "Watch out!" Dash yelled, only a mere moment too late. The cleaver buried itself right through the weak underbelly of Derpypaws' armor. He barely seemed to register his fate as he fell from the sky, struggling to breathe as his innards spilled out of the large, gaping wound left by the cutlery. "No!" Rainbow yelled as she flew down and picked up the fallen soldier's spear. She charged the fat griffon, who was already picking up another large kitchen knife. She screamed a maddening war cry as she thrust her weapon forward with all of her strength. The unarmored griffon never stood a chance. The spear pierced his heart as his brown eyes registered horror. As the dead griffon fell, Rainbow's eyes opened wide at the sight of the large tent's interior. The fresh carcass of a dead pony lay on a wooden table. Its entrails had been taken out, and two of the limbs had been cut off. The sound of battle behind her almost prevented Dash from hearing the worst of it: muffled, panicked cries coming from inside. Bile gathered up in her mouth; she winced and forced herself to swallow it. She couldn't lose her cool in front of her troops, even in the midst of such unspeakable horrors. She turned around and looked at the battle unfolding. Another griffon had been impaled on a spear. Of the two remaining enemy soldiers, one had managed to pick up a spear of her own and use it to frantically parry blows. The other was desperately using a metal plate to protect himself. The air funnel generated by Flitter and the others still kept them well grounded. For all intents and purposes, this battle was over. Rainbow decided she'd had enough. "It's all over. Surrender to us and we'll show you more decency than you've given our friends," she yelled at the enemy. "Yes, I give up," the griffon holding the plate said as he dropped his makeshift shield. His fellow soldier, a tough-looking female, still held her spear high and frowned at him. It took her a few moments to realize her predicament and announce her own surrender. "Okay, fine, you win," she said, unceremoniously tossing her weapon on the ground. Rainbow sighed as her eyes surveyed what remained of the camp. One of the smaller tents had been uprooted and thrown aside. Remains of the pony flesh the griffons had been eating mixed with the blood and gore of the dead soldiers. Further from the campfire, Derpypaws' corpse lay in the dirt, a fly landing on his lifeless eye. Closer to Rainbow, the fat griffon she had killed still seemed to beg for his life, even through the stillness of death. I can't start thinking about this stuff, not now, the commander thought as she shook her head. "Firebolt, you're with me. Flitter, have everypony else search the camp and secure the prisoners." She forced her eyes to remain trained on the sergeant. "Aye, ma'am," Flitter answered with a salute. "You heard the commander. Let's tie up those griffons." Rainbow turned back toward the larger tent. She could clearly hear sobs and muffled cries coming from inside. She adjusted her helmet and turned toward the soldier she had ordered at her side. "I don't know what's in there. Be ready for anything." Firebolt quietly nodded. His grimace and firmly closed muzzle showed just how much he struggled not to vomit at the smell of blood and rotting entrails. Rainbow gulped and took a few steps in. The inside of the tent was warmer, and the musky smell of sweat mixed with urine accompanied the existing stench. A bucket full of entrails lay next to the table, upon which an assortment of bloody knives and kitchen implements were carefully organized. Rainbow turned her head toward a dark corner of the tent, where two ponies looked at her in panic. Their hooves and wings had been tightly tied up, and dirty rags had been shoved into their mouths. "Mhhmphhh!" one of them, a red-coated stallion, called through his gag. "Let's free them," Dash ordered as she removed the gag from the stallion's mouth and got to work on untying his hooves. "Th...thank you, commander," he managed to mumble between sobs. The other prisoner wasn't faring any better. Even as Firebolt removed her gag, she hysterically cried and violently shook her head. She even pushed the soldier aside as she struggled. "Hey, calm down," Rainbow said, placing a hesitant hoof on her shoulder. When the mare kept struggling and pushed her hoof away, the commander decided a different approach was needed. "Soldier, name and rank!" She slowly opened her eyes. "B...Berrystar," she mumbled. "Private Berrystar, of the Cloudsdale army." Rainbow nodded severely. "Good, private. Now let Firebolt here untie you." "Y... yes commander," the soldier replied between sobs as Firebolt got back to work. Dash was about to get back to untying the stallion when Flitter's voice grabbed her attention. "Commander, there's something you should see." "Firebolt, take care of these two. I'll see what's going on," she said with a groan. Rainbow made her way outside and gasped at the sight of her soldiers surrounding Pinkie Pie and Shining Armor, probably the last ponies she would have expected to see. Shining stared her down with a piercing glare, while Pinkie looked away, her ears flattened and her tail tucked around her body protectively. "Wha... Pinkie? What are you doing here?" Dash managed to mumble. "Same as you, investigating the griffons," Shining Armor flatly replied. "We found them hiding in the bushes," Flitter explained. "Let them go. They did the right thing by staying out of sight," Rainbow ordered with a sigh before turning back toward Pinkie and Shining. "What's going on here?" "Can we talk in private?" the unicorn stallion asked, his eyes fixated on the commander. "Yeah, sure," Rainbow said. "Sergeant, give us a minute, will you." "As you say, Commander," Flitter replied. "Come on, let's finish searching this camp," she ordered the soldiers. Rainbow motioned for her friends to follow her into the woods, a few meters away from the ruined camp. She couldn't help but frown, both at Shining's unmistakable hostility and Pinkie's uncharacteristic evasiveness. "So how was your first taste of war?" Shining asked sardonically as soon as they were out of earshot. Rainbow's eyes found their way toward Derpypaws' stiff body. "I did what I had to. This is no different from any other monster I've faced before," she lied. "You don't mean it, Dashie!" Pinkie finally said, violently turning her head in Rainbow's direction. Her tearful, accusatory eyes glared at the commander. "I've never seen anything this horrible in my life, and this is what you want to turn Equestria into?" Rainbow gasped as her heartbeat jumped. "You're blaming me for this? I didn't bring these griffons here. I stopped them. I rescued two ponies, probably hundreds more. If anything, what happened here shows that Equestria needs a stronger military presence." "What happened here was a result of your so-called 'military presence'," Shining argued in an angry tone. "Did you really think that Canterlot would just call it quits and let Luna take the throne? In their minds, you're all rebels." "Are you saying they hired Griffon mercenaries?" Dash asked incredulously. "No, Rainbow, I'm saying they formally asked Griffingard for help. This was probably just an early scouting party you took out. An entire legion is coming here," Shining continued severely, pushing Dash with his hoof. "Please, Dashie. You can't let Equestria go to war," Pinkie pleaded as she firmly grabbed Rainbow's head. "We can work something out. Maybe let Luna hide in the Crystal Empire, or in Yakyakistan. She doesn't have to return to Canterlot. But please, convince her to stop this." The commander pushed Pinkie aside and took a deep breath as she turned away. "It's not that simple, Pinkie. Blueblood, he already accused Princess Luna of murdering her sister, he forced Rarity to marry him. Now he's allowed griffons to come to Equestria and hunt us for food. He must be stopped, no matter the cost." "Are you even listening to yourself?" Shining spat. "You don't even know what the cost is. You're just jumping blindly into some glorified idea of war. Was there any glory here today, Rainbow? How 'awesome' would you say all of this was?" Rainbow turned around and gave her wings a few flaps, getting airborne. "This is what you think? That I'm in it for the glory?" She spat on the ground. "I don't want Equestria to go to war, but I'll do what needs to be done. So will everypony in the Cloudsdale army. Now, are you going to help us? If not, get out of our way." Pinkie shook her head as tears fell down her cheeks. "We don't want this war, and I don't think Luna really wants it either. All we ask is to see her, offer her a place to stay in the Crystal Empire. We can still prevent this." Spitfire's voice resonated in Rainbow's head, a reminder of where her loyalty should lie. "No, Pinkie. I won't let you try to talk Luna into abandoning Equestria. Maybe you're all willing to give up, but I won't let Blueblood and his cronies take over." "I don't want that either, but have you considered there might be another way? Like maybe trusting Rarity with her plan to keep him under control," Pinkie suggested as she glared at Rainbow. "Trusting Rarity with her plan," Rainbow blurted with a gasp. "Do you mean to say she wasn't forced into this wedding? That it was actually her plan?" "She's sacrificing a lot to give everypony more time," Shining said with a sigh. "But she needs our help. The only way Princess Luna will be allowed back in Canterlot is by helping us do the one thing we should all be focusing on." "And that is?" Rainbow asked, rolling her eyes. Pinkie gasped. "Find and rescue Twilight! Is that war really more important than our friend to you?" Rainbow averted her eyes and slowly landed. "I... I haven't forgotten, but I have to protect Equestria first. If you find out anything about where she is, I can promise you I'll let Princess Luna know, and we'll save her. For now, I can't abandon my post. Not even for you, Pinkie." "So I take it we can't rely on your help if we want to see Princess Luna?" Shining asked in a softer tone. "No, I'm sorry," Dash said as she slowly shook her head. "If you go to Cloudsdale, you can petition for a meeting. For now, I have these prisoners to take care of." "Well, in this case that's all we have to say," Pinkie said as she dried her tears. "Please reconsider, Dashie. Your friends really need you right now." As Pinkie Pie and Shining Armor walked away, Rainbow managed to whisper, "I'm sorry," in a barely audible voice. She took a deep breath and dragged her hooves back toward the camp. Her eyes examined the dead bodies once more. She screamed as she knocked one of the pillars holding the large tent aside with a powerful buck, prompting her soldiers to jump and turn in her direction. "Commander, what's wrong?" Flitter asked as she took a few hesitant steps in Dash's direction. "Nothing you can do anything about. Just follow your orders, Sergeant," Rainbow ordered a bit more harshly than she intended. "Make sure the prisoners are secured, and the ponies we rescued are fit to travel. We're returning to Cloudsdale. These two I just spoke to won't be an issue." Cold water ran through Rainbow Dash's prismatic mane. She stared at her shower wall as the grime slowly washed off her sky-blue coat. It had been a few hours since she had returned from her scouting mission. The griffons had been placed in custody, and Fleetfoot had promised her best interrogators would get the truth out of them. The two survivors had been sent to the Cloudsdale hospital, where they would get the help they needed. Finally, Rainbow and Flitter both went through a full debriefing with General Spitfire. An emergency war council session had been called, but Dash had found some time for herself while Fleetfoot handled the griffons. A shower had been her obvious priority. Rainbow shook her head and broke her reverie. She looked down. The bottom of the tub was brown from all the dirt that had gathered up in her mane and coat. She winced as bits of dried blood fell off her legs. She quickly inspected her skin. As she had thought, the blood wasn't her own. It probably belonged to one of the cook's victims, or perhaps the cook himself. She sighed and picked up a bottle of shampoo. Her eyes closed for a moment, and two yellow orbs and a beak glared right into her. The cook's lifeless face stared at her in judgment, his expression frozen in the stillness of death. Rainbow gasped and dropped the bottle she had been holding. She slowly looked around her, breathing loudly and irregularly. Come on, I killed him. I can't be scared of a dead griffon — I'm awesome. As she scrubbed the dirt and griffon blood off her mane and coat, Rainbow thought she saw her victim silently watching her from the corner of her eye. She would turn around, only to see her shadow. She would feel him behind her, only to realize it was just the water raining down. She would jump, then breathe heavily as she attempted to rationalize her actions. He was a monster. I had no choice but to kill him. She washed off the soap and lightly tapped her shower raincloud, stopping the water from falling. Her coat still didn't feel clean, but she couldn't keep Spitfire waiting. Rainbow wasted no time in drying herself off, getting back into her uniform, and heading toward town hall. The building had been converted into their new military headquarters, now that Princess Luna had revealed herself. Dash flew directly there, taking to the sky far above the busy city life. She quietly went through the security checkpoint at the building's entrance and made her way directly to the war room, ignoring her fellow officers and sitting down at the table. She picked up a random report and buried her eyes in it. She thought she heard something as she read about the wingpower achieved in the creation of various tornadoes during drills. "Hey, Rainbow, everything okay?" a voice asked. She turned her head and faced Soarin's worried green eyes. "Yeah, whatever," Dash answered as she turned back to her report. "Let's just get this meeting done. I've had a long day." "I can imagine," Soarin mumbled. Rainbow could hear him wiggling on his chair. She sighed loudly. "Okay, what is it?" "Listen, Rainbow. It's your business and all, but I've read your report; you should talk to somepony. What you've been through isn't easy." He tried to place a hoof on her shoulders, but she brushed him away. "This was just the first battle," Fleetfoot chimed in from the other side of the table. "More will come. I hope you're both ready for it." "Won't be a problem," Rainbow replied, meeting her fellow commander's fuchsia eyes. "Anyway, Fleetfoot, any luck interrogating the prisoners?" Dash could feel Soarin's frown as Fleetfoot grinned at the change of subject. "Oh yes. One of them was particularly chatty. I think you managed to nab the scaredest griffon in their entire army." "I don't know how you can be so happy about it, given what we've learned," Spitfire said as she walked in with Princess Luna. All three commanders bowed respectfully to the princess as both she and the general sat at opposite ends of the table. "So what did we learn?" Rainbow asked the moment everypony was sitting at their place. Spitfire and Fleetfoot shared a nod before the general spoke up, "There's no easy way to put this. We can confirm we have a griffon army on its way here." "The prisoners were part of Griffingard's sixth legion," Fleetfoot explained. "To put it bluntly, they're part of an advanced scouting unit. The legion is coming here, at Blueblood's request." "Darn it," Rainbow snapped. She took a long breath and forcefully toned down her voice. "I had hoped Shining was wrong about this. How many soldiers are we talking about?" "Two thousand flyers," Fleetfoot answered, "although I don't know what their deployment plans are." "There goes the plan for a swift, bloodless victory," Soarin said, rolling his eyes. "Cloudsdale was never built to withstand a siege. We should move the city. Hide in the Crystal Mountains while we get our army ready." "Run away?" Spitfire asked, sweeping the room with her eyes. "It could take months, and allow the griffons to further solidify their position. Canterlot will no doubt bolster their own forces as well." "I will not run away from my own nation," Luna replied as she stared down Soarin. "It's going to be risky; Griffingard soldiers are well trained. However, things will only get worse should they be allowed to share this training with their Canterlot counterparts." "As you say, Your Highness," the general replied. "Commander Fleetfoot," Luna continued, "have you learned who is in command of the griffon legion?" "Yes, both prisoners admitted to it, let me look," she said as she went through some notes. "Ah, yes, one Centurion Bouvier." "I've heard the name," Rainbow said, tapping her hoof on her chin. "Wasn't he in Netherin, helping King Scorpan in his war with the minotaurs?" Everypony in the room turned toward Rainbow, raising eyebrows and gasping at her. "I didn't know you were so knowledgeable about griffon military deployments, Rainbow," Spitfire said. "Twilight once made me sit through a long lecture about it before a trip to Griffinstone. I kinda wish I had brought her notes on griffon culture with me." "Don't worry about it. We can have somepony handle the research," Spitfire said with a dismissive hoof wave. "I'm more worried about his association with Netherin. Isn't that where Tirek came from? I shudder at the thought of griffons learning his ability to drain magic." Luna shook her head. "That kind of magic is forbidden in Netherin. King Scorpan saw what his brother Tirek could do and vowed multiple times that such a misuse of magic would never happen under his rule." "And you're absolutely certain he won't change his mind?" Spitfire asked, raising an eyebrow. "Absolutely," the princess confirmed. "Of all the rulers I've met, he's one of the most honest and loyal." "Let's just hope all his subjects feel the same," Rainbow heard Soarin mumble. "Anyway, what are we going to do about Bouvier and his legion?" Dash asked. "I say we move out as soon as we can," Fleetfoot suggested as she slammed her hoof on the table. "We take Canterlot by force before the griffons arrive." "And what if they raise a shield to protect the city?" Soarin asked. "We could get flanked between the unicorn defenders and a griffon legion." "Commander Soarin is right," Luna replied. " The Canterlot unicorns will create a shield. It won't hold forever, but long enough for the reinforcements to arrive. We need a better plan." Fleetfoot grinned and turned toward Rainbow. "What about your friend Rarity? We could sneak somepony into the city, pass her a message. If she's been forced into this wedding as you say, she'd be more than happy to help us." "Forget about Rarity," Rainbow groaned. "Let's just say I was wrong about her." Dash looked down and closed her eyes. Once again, the dead griffon silently judged her. "So attacking Canterlot is too risky, and Cloudsdale can't withstand a siege," Spitfire said as she got up. "This only leaves one option, meeting the griffons in the field." "Spitfire... I mean General, you would risk our entire army in one battle?" Soarin said with a gasp, getting up from his seat as well. "We only have fifteen hundred ponies, a lot of them still untrained. The griffons outnumber us, and have years of experience." "We've been over this before, Soarin," Fleetfoot said as she tapped her hoof on the table in annoyance. "We can't win if we don't take risks." "You both make good points," Spitfire admitted with a nod. "Which is why I'm leaving Soarin's wing here to protect Cloudsdale and Princess Luna. Should we fail, you may move the city and begin recruiting again. Fleetfoot, Rainbow Dash, and myself will meet the griffons in the field. We know they're coming from the south, correct?" "Yes," Fleetfoot confirmed. "Most of the army has been waiting in the badlands, and should be flying over the Appleoosan Desert." Rainbow's eyes moved from one officer to the next as she slowly tried to wrap her head around the situation. The cook seemed to stare at her from every shadow. How many more lives would she be expected to take? "Wait... so if we're taking two wings, and they have two thousand flyers, they outnumber us two to one," she managed to say. "You're the last pony I would have expected to back down," Fleetfoot teased as she raised an eyebrow. "I'm not backing down," Rainbow replied, her pride overcoming her fear. "I just wanna make sure we know what we're doing. Like Soarin said, it's a huge risk." Luna leaned forward on her chair. "If I were Bouvier, I wouldn't move my entire army at once. He doesn't know what our move will be, so he'll probably send half of his army to reinforce Canterlot, and the other half straight to Cloudsdale." "So we meet this second group before they attack us, and then worry about taking Canterlot," Spitfire finished flatly. "Not what we initially hoped for, but it's the best we can do under the circumstances." Soarin sighed loudly. "And I suppose that's how it begins. The first war Equestria will have seen in centuries." "Yeah, not what I had in mind either," Rainbow whispered. Pinkie's words resonated in her head. We can work something out, maybe let Luna go to the Crystal Empire, or to Yakyakistan. She doesn't have to return to Canterlot, but please, convince her to disband this army. Perhaps it would be for the best. Rainbow took a deep breath and scanned the room with her eyes. "Look, I'm sorry if this is a breach of protocol or whatever, but I have to ask. Are we sure we want to do this? Intimidating Blueblood into giving up the throne was one thing, but we're talking war here. I saw a pony die today, and I killed a griffon myself. There will be a lot more of that if we keep going on this path. I think we should at least take a moment to consider it." She slowly raised her eyes in Luna's direction, feeling the princess's disapproving gaze. "You're right, Dash; it's at least worth the reflection," Spitfire admitted. Soarin placed a comforting hoof on Rainbow's back, smiling awkwardly while Fleetfoot rolled her eyes. "It's too late to back down, either way. We swore our loyalty to Princess Luna, I for one will see it to the end," the white-maned pegasus said. "Tell me Rainbow Dash," Luna finally said, her eyes staring into the distance. "What would you suggest we do instead of fighting?" "Like I said in my report, I met Shining Armor and Pinkie Pie," Rainbow said, gazing downward. "They said they could provide you asylum in the Crystal Empire, Your Highness. From there, we can all focus our energy on finding Twilight. Even Blueblood wouldn't be able to deny her the throne, and I know she'd welcome you back." Luna frowned and turned toward Rainbow. "I'm afraid it's not that simple. You see, I tried entering Twilight Sparkle's dreams for many nights after I heard of her disappearance. There was nothing." "Nothing... what does that mean?" "It can only mean one thing," Luna said, her eyebrows relaxing and her ears flattening. "Every living being dreams." "No," Rainbow whispered. "It can't be..." "She was probably murdered for the same reason Princess Luna was falsely accused," Spitfire suggested. Rainbow barely heard the general's voice as she struggled to hold the tears in. For once, it wasn't the cook staring at her, but the lifeless body of her friend. Rainbow took a long breath and suddenly rose to her hooves, prompting heads to turn her way. "We should give the troops the evening off," she suggested in a heavy tone. It took every ounce of self-control she had to keep her voice from cracking. "They'll need to get their affairs in order if they're going to head to war tomorrow." "Anypony else want to voice any concerns before we commit?" Spitfire asked. When no one replied, she gave them a severe frown. "Then tomorrow, both Rainbow and Fleetfoot's wings will leave for battle as planned. I will lead the assault myself." Luna nodded once, but her expression remained unreadable.