Blaze heaved the rope one last time, looking up with pride as the banner of the Crystal Empire waved proudly over the tallest towers of the palace. Looking back down over the city below, he could see many pillars of smoke rising from the crumbled remains of devastated homes. Bodies littered the streets, both pony and reptilous, as small streams of blood flowed through the snow covered streets. Blaze turned back to the few troops that were still with him, looking over each one with a smile.
“You all fought well today. Each and every one of you went above and beyond the call of duty and gave your all to this battle.” Blaze began. “But the battle is far from over. No doubt Greyhield will have another force come to retake the city within a short while.” As he finished that phrase, a guard charged up the stairs galloping straight to Blaze.
“Sir, the enemy has been spotted to the south; they’ll be here in a few minutes.” The soldier stated as he gave a salute. Blaze gave a solemn nod at the news, turning back to the ponies before him. None of their faces betrayed anything of worry or fear, just a stoic gaze that truly was befitting of the soldiers.
“Rally the troops; we’ll hold this city as long as we can.” Blaze ordered. The soldier gave another salute and charged back down the stairs. “Stallions, I suppose you all know the likelihood of victory in our favor is slim, no, it is near nonexistent.” Still the stallions remained as stoic as ever. “Even though this is true, we have already accomplished what we set out for. We have brought hope back to these ponies by showing that the world has not ended, and that there is still a chance to win this fight. Not only does this provide them with a significant morale boost which will doubtlessly last them far beyond the end of this war, but it also may stir them to action. But we haven’t just brought hope to these ponies, but have given hope to all of Equestria. We have forced the reptilous’ to send an army to a different position than they had it originally, and so have opened their defenses so that our army can breach the enemy line and take back what we’ve lost in this blasted war. We might not win this battle, but with this battle, we may just put ourselves one step closer to winning the war. All I ask of you is to fight as long and as hard as possible.”
“Sir, yes, sir!” The unanimous reply came as they each saluted. Blaze returned the salute with a smile before lowering his leg and moving towards the stairs, the soldiers following close behind. Blaze could only hope that the soldiers in the south had their job made that much easier because of the sacrifice these stallions were no doubt going to make, Blaze himself included.
Stone Wall looked over the rolling hills, the campfires of the reptilous scattered about. As he watched, some of the fires were put out and ranks of soldiers began forming. Stone looked over to Half Pint, the younger stallion checking over his equipment one more time.
“The reptilous are on the move,” Stone said in his raspy voice, drawing Half Pint’s attention, “Tell the troops we move in half an hour.” Half Pint gave a quick nod and charged off towards the forest where the other ponies lay in wait. As the pony barreled into the forest, a bird suddenly flew up, screeching as loud as it could. As Stone Wall watched, a detachment of the reptilous started inching towards his position. Cursing the blasted bird under his breath, Stone Wall inched back from the bushes he had been laying under, he made his way back to the soldiers.
“Change of plans, stallions.” Stone Wall said as he approached. “We’re expected it seems and a small patrol is heading this way. Plan is to take them out and then try and make it to their lines before the patrol is missed. Get to you positions and try to take out each reptilous without a sound.” Stone Wall ordered before moving off and taking his armor from its place. “Blaze’s gamble is a steep one, let’s not disappoint him.”
“Sir, there’s a problem.” One of the soldiers stated. Stone Wall turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow as he placed his darkened helmet. “Before you arrived, we sent out our fastest runner to tell the back lines to wait for thirty five minutes before moving up.” Stone Wall chewed over this problem for a few seconds as he placed the main body of his armor on his back and strapped his stomach plate on.
“We already only have fifteen soldiers in this group…,” Stone Wall muttered as he placed his metal hoof coverings on, “I don’t think we can spare the extra soldiers to inform them of the change in plans.” Stone Wall sighed as he picked up his shield. “They’ll just have to figure it out when we start using the hoof canons.” The soldier nodded, giving a quick salute before moving off. Stone Wall sighed once more as he made sure his armor was assembled in the right way before moving to join the stallions as they started spreading through the bushes, ready to take on the patrol. Stone Wall could only hope Blaze was having a better time of it than they were.
Blaze rounded the corner, catching the reptilous vanguard off guard as he took out the leading warrior beast with one quick stroke. The rest of his stallions quickly appeared, lashing out with spears and swords or firing their hoof cannons. Ten of the reptilous fell to the ground in a bloody heap as Blaze retracted his blade and lifted his shield, shooting a bolt of fire into the next reptilous’ face, only to have the beast cut through it, sending the fire washing over his blade as he charged the ponies with reckless abandon. Bastion quickly met the reptilous, bucking him in the stomach, sending the beast back a few steps while Blaze used his shield to block an incoming attack on Bastion.
Blaze rushed up beside the stallion, blocking yet another attack with his sword before lifting up one of the fallen reptilous’ blades, quickly shooting it towards the reptilous closest to them, only to watch as the warrior beast smacked the attack away before leaping into the air, bringing his attack hurtling down towards the pair. Blaze quickly brought up a magical shield that caught the attack with little give. Blaze shot a beam of magic into the chest of one of the reptilous, watching as the beam of silver sliced through the beast’s core, slicing across the cheek of the reptilous behind him. Hawk shot off a round from his cannon, punching through the raised shield and armor of a charging reptilous while Eagle let go of an arrow, which planted itself into the skull of one of the reptilous attacking Blaze and Bastion.
Bastion lifted his spear and sent it into another one of the reptilous while Blaze sent a beam of energy at another one. Eagle jumped down from the banisters of a nearby building, shooting an arrow at a reptilous that appeared behind him as he hit the crystalline street. Blaze shoved his shield forward into the reptilous before shooting a bolt of fire into the creature’s face while Bastion brought his spear around into the creature’s chest. The reptilous expertly dodged the fire and then smacked the lance away with a swing of the sword. Suddenly, a crack sounded across the street, and a splotch of warm, wet splattered across Blaze’s cheek.
Stone Wall shot an arrow into the nearest reptilous, watching as the stallion closed to the beast dragged the creature down, covering the reptilous’ snout with a hoof while doing so. Stone Wall quickly moved up, weaving through the underbrush as the reptilous patrol slowly became one less than it had been a second before until the final beast slumped into death. Stone Wall rushed forward, breaking out into the field, darting between the scare trees and sparse bushes, keeping to the shadows as best as he could as he and the rest of the stallions made their way to the encampment.
Stone Wall leaped over the final hill before the camp, darting towards the nearest tent, shooting under the fabric and into the interior where he quickly dispatched the lone reptilous who had been washing his face as he rose from his cot. Stone Wall charged out of the tent and into the one directly across the way. As he crossed the dirt path, he noticed the silhouette of a reptilous in the vague light coming from inside the tent, standing before the entrance as he lifted a chest plate from the ground. Stone Wall leaped as he entered the tent, wrapping his fore hooves around the reptilous’ neck, dragging it to the ground as he jammed his sword into the beast’s back. Stone Wall rolled away from the creature, noticing a groggy looking reptilous rising from his bed, unaware of what had just happened as he wiped the sleep from his eyes. Stone Wall drew his blade from the fallen reptilous, slamming it directly through the beast’s neck before charging out from the tent and towards the next one, only to hear a horn sound the alarm.
Stone Wall whirled around, hearing something approaching from behind, only to find something slamming into his side, sending him skidding across the ground. Stone Wall rolled back to his hooves as quickly as he could, bringing his sword to bear as his attacker charged him. Stone lifted his blade, blocking an incoming attack, only to watch as the reptilous’ head snapped to the side in a bloody mess as the retort of a hoof cannon went off in the distance.
Blaze shot another beam of energy into the shield wall the reptilous had formed as he backed up slowly, allowing Hawk plenty of time to carry the injured Bastion off towards the castle. Eagle sent another round from his hoof cannon, which Hawk had traded off while he took the injured sergeant away, slicing through one of the reptilous, only to have another beast warrior take the place of his fallen comrade. Blaze’s horn grew brighter as he poured more magic into his spell, looking around the corners of the buildings he past at the multiple shield walls that were moving on their position. Blaze sent the spell out with a roar, and as the ball of magic struck the ground, a wall of flames shot forth from either side of it, putting up a blockade before the reptilous.
Blaze turned and galloped a few steps farther down the road before turning to look at the advancing reptilous line, only to watch as the line broke into a run and charged straight through the fire as if it were nothing. Blaze fully turned to face the group, charging up a spell as the wall advanced ever faster. Blaze let out a runt as the massive spell was released, a beam of magical energy sweeping across the wall of shield, accompanied by the sound of Eagle sending off another round. For a few seconds, the line faltered, and Blaze took advantage of the situation as best he could as he shot off blasts of magical energy and bolts of fire. Soon enough, though, the shield wall reformed and began to advance once more. Blaze attempted to charge up another beam to knock the line back, but a lightning bolt of pain crackled through his entire being as he attempted to channel magic to and through his horn, sending him to his knees for a few brief moments. Blaze shakily got back to his hooves and began charging back down the street, occasionally casting a glance behind him at the incoming horde of reptilous.
“Sir, take this!” Blaze heard Eagle shout. Blaze turned his head to see the pony tossing down his quiver and bow to the ground before taking off down the line of roofs to get a better angle on the enemy. Blaze levitated the bow and quiver to his side as he continued to back towards the castle. Blaze strapped the quiver to his side as he took the first arrow out and notched it into the bow. Blaze aimed his shot so that it would go above the shields, and with a airy twang, the arrow shot out of the bow and sailed above the arrows, met by a roar of pain as an unsuspecting reptilous was caught by the attack. Blaze notched another arrow into the twine, watching as the reptilous line behind the shield wall completed the turtle formation as they raised their shields to cover attacks from above. Yet another charge broke through the air, sending yet another reptilous to the ground, giving Blaze all the opening he needed as he let another arrow into the line, striking the reptilous directly behind the one Eagle had laid low. Blaze quickly notched in another arrow and let it loose, striking the safe reptilous once more, though this time a much more lethal strike to the head.
“Sir, the enemy is approaching quickly on the eastern and western side of the castle! I suggest retreating to the castle for a better position!” Eagle reported from the rooftops. Blaze turned, and sure enough, he could see the shield walls approaching the circular park the castle was situated in.
“Very well, fall back; we’ll hold them off from inside!” Blaze replied, quickly turning as he did, moving towards the castle with all the speed he could muster as his compatriot jumped down from the rooftop he had been fighting from. As they ran, Eagle took out a horn and let out a blaring note, signaling to all the other troops to fall back. Blaze watched as six of the eight ponies that had let to guard the other sectors began galloping from their areas, heading straight for the castle, occasionally turning to take a shot at the reptilous while doing so. This fight was only just beginning, and it wouldn’t be ending anytime soon.
Stone Wall pulled back the trigger on a reptilous crossbow, the bolt sailing straight into the nearest reptilous’ back and straight out the front. Storm Wall, deflected an attack as he rolled to the side, pulling back the crossbow’s slide as he did so, preparing to put another bolt into the weapon, only to have another reptilous smash the weapon into the ground and snap the string. Stone quickly jump back as the reptilous continued its assault while simultaneously holding off the advances of another reptilous, leaving him without a weapon with which to fight the newcomer. Stone Wall quickly brought up the sword of the recently felled reptilous, using it to combat the new comer, only to have a lapse of concentration with the other opponent, allowing the first reptilous to lessen the distance quickly.
Suddenly, Half Pint broke through one of the tent, leaping from the entrance of his previous position with a twirl, ending his motion with his axe in the neck of the one reptilous, giving Stone Wall the advantage he needed as he brought his first sword into the back of the reptilous. Stone Wall gave a nod to Half Pint, who returned the same before charging straight past Stone Wall. Stone Wall turned and watched as the earth pony slammed his axe into the leg of a charging reptilous. Stone Wall quickly brought his sword about and decapitated the stumbling brute. Half Pint pivoted on his hooves, looking around for his next target, only to have a reptilous erupt from the tent behind him. Stone Wall quickly shot his sword forward and parried the attack that would’ve ended the brave soul. Half Pint brought his axe about, slamming it into the creature’s knees, sending the fiend to the ground. Half Pint quickly brought his axe about and ended the reptilous as quickly as possible before giving a grateful nod and smile to Stone Wall through the bit of his axe, which Stone Wall returned.
“Sir,” A soldier shouted as he galloped up to Stone Wall, “The rest of our army is coming, they’ll be here within the minute.” Stone Wall nodded, his brow furrowed.
“Doubtlessly the same can be said of the reptilous. Send word to the commanding officer that they are to deploy as few soldiers as possible in this battle and are to advance on the objective.” Stone Wall ordered. “Now hurry, they might put a bit more of a spring in their step if you get to them fast enough.” The soldier gave a hurried salute and charged off towards the main body of the army. Stone Wall could only hope they message was delivered, and delivered quickly.
Blaze slammed the long banquet table across the doorway as the soldiers pushed barrels down the stairs, allowing them to slam into the solid oak table, pressing it firmly against the frame. Blaze took a chair from one of his stallion and set it behind the small barricade. Blaze nodded to the soldiers behind them, and the group quickly moved back up the stairs as the first smashed could be heard coming from outside.
“Preparations are being made upstairs; we’ll be ready when they come if they make it past this position.” Hawk reported as Blaze arrived to the next level. “As a side note, Bastion is currently being attempted to by our medical officer; I don’t have any news from that end yet besides the fact that they moved the ward to the top of the castle.” Blaze gave a quick nod watching as the stallions rolled a few more barrels down the stairs before placing another table across the doorway with more barrels behind it.
“I fear there is little doubt that they’ll make it past this position. It’s only a matter of time at this point.” Blaze stated calmly. “Ours is no longer a fight for victory for our part, but a battle for their loss; if not in the battle proper, than in time while our stallions back in the south go to work.” Blaze finished, leaping over the sacks of flour and cornmeal that had been laid down as further barricades. Blaze placed the last few bags down after Hawk entered, the sound of breaking wood below telling him all he needed to know.
“Who knows, commander,” Hawk said as he took up his hoof cannon, “Maybe after the troops take care of their objective down south they might just make their way up here and give us some relief.” Blaze shook his head, notching an arrow into his bow as he waited for the reptilous to arrive.
“Even if they could, it wouldn’t be with enough time to give us much in the way of relief. The reptilous line only made it here so quickly because they were within an hour’s march, the stallions in the south are a few days march away.” Blaze stated as he peeked through the small hole between some of the bags as the sounds of wooden being attacked caught his ear. “Either way, we are as prepared as we can be for this attack, and each of us is prepared to give our lives for Equestria’s good.” Suddenly Hawk put a hoof on Blaze’s shoulder, causing Blaze to look over at the pegasus pony.
“Sir, I ask this as a subordinate to a higher officer, and also as one compatriot to another; if and when the reptilous pass this position, ensure you are ahead of them and arrive to the next position. This army can’t lose you.” Hawk pleaded.
“Mine is not to ask why, but to do and to die. If I die, so be it, this army can very well get along with or without me with little change in the state of affairs.” Blaze replied.
“No, this army needs you. Not only are you a very capable tactical advisor and trainer, but your mere presence on any battlefield changes how each stallion fights.” Hawk countered. “You may be given a hard time for how young you are and how you shouldn’t have gotten to where you are now so quickly, but deep down, every stallion will agree that you are an inspiration for the same reasons the stallions ridicule you. Because you are so young and have already done so much you serve as inspiration, if not for the very basic reason of competition you create by being yourself. So, as one stallion to another, as a soldier to another, and as a friend to another friend; make sure that you get to the next floor when the reptilous breach this position. Help those stallions fight on, with your presence on the battlefield is not anything else.” Blaze stared dumbfounded at the stallion for a few moments before finally giving a determined nod. Blaze now felt a new weight on his shoulders as he came to realize how his troops actually felt about their leader. He now knew the true reason behind Bronze Buckler’s advice as the stallion beside him revealed the truth of the whole matter to him; how his soldiers saw him and, more importantly, looked up to him in some ways. He had to make it, but even though he now had a reason to seek survival, he wouldn’t be a coward while ensuring his own life should it come down to it.
Suddenly the boards across the doorway broke apart, sending shrapnel across the room. Hawk shot the first reptilous, sending the beast tumbling back onto his comrades. Blaze quickly released his arrow while some of the other stallions around him let their attacks fly free, striking the reptilous as they struggled to get through the cramped doorway and short stairwell. Blaze notched another arrow into the bow’s string while taking a few steps towards the stairs.
“Hold the line and send Tartarus as many as you can!” Blaze roared above the sound of combat. A resounding cheer met his ears as he went up the first few stairs, turning long enough to let another arrow fly into the crowded group of reptilous attempting to enter the room through the boarded up passage.
Stone Wall charged up to the city gates, a group of pegasi shooting past with a large orb suspended between them. As they past, he rope holding the object let loose and the object hurtled towards the front gate, destroying the structure in a massive ball of fire and shrapnel. Stone Wall brought his shield up as he charged on through towards the lower sector of Canterlot. As he shot out of the dark fumes, he came face to face with a patrol of reptilous. Stone heaved a piece of twisted metal from the ground and shot it towards the leading reptilous while shoving the dark smoke forward to cover his approach. Just before the blanket of darkness covered his vision, Stone Wall watch as the reptilous smacked the piece of shrapnel away with ease.
Stone Wall ducked to the side, using the severely decreased visibility to his advantage as he circle around where he remembered the reptilous being. As he approached, he saw the silhouetted form of one of the beast soldiers looking around the area as he used his arms to attempt to get rid of the smoke. Stone Wall gathered a ball of the smoke, slinging it down the reptilous’ throat, sending the beast warrior into a painful coughing fit, only to be tackle and have a sword jammed in the area where his neck met his shoulders. Stone Wall looked up, seeing his next target in the slowly thinning smoke screen. Stone Wall ran up to the beast, forcing a mass of the smoke into the creatures mouth before slicing his knee across the back, causing the reptilous to fall down to the ground in a muffled roar of pain as he coughed up smoke, only to have the same ball brought back in as he gasped for air. Stone Wall sliced the beast’s neck before bucking the back of his head to ensure the job was done.
Suddenly, Stone Wall was tackled off of his last kill as a reptilous pinned him to the ground, closing its grip around Stone Wall’s throat. For a few seconds Stone Wall feared he would suffocate, until in a moment of almost maniac glee, he realized that the reptilous’ grasp was just above his breathing hole. Stone Wall levitated his sword up behind the fiend and slammed it straight through the beast’s back until the tip of the blade poked through the front. Stone Wall kicked the dying beast off of his chest and throat before finding himself faced with two other reptilous. Stone Wall raised his sword and that of he recently killed reptilous, ready to fight the two fiends as best he could. But as he watched, an arrow slammed into the head of one while Half Pint charged up and took the other’s leg out his practiced ease, allowing Stone Wall to end the beast in one swift stroke.
Stone Wall looked back, beyond the shrouded gate and saw a mass of galloping stallions garbed in golden and white armor heading straight for the gates, a sight that brought a great deal of relief t the battle worn soldier. Stone Wall turned back to Half Pint, who has standing at the ready just beyond the newly fallen reptilous.
“Let’s go,” Stone Wall rasped, “They’ll be more effective if they have less enemies per square meter to deal with.” Half Pint nodded with a grim expression before charging off down the main drag, up the ever higher slope of the great mountain. Stone Wall charged off one of the side roads, scanning each house as quickly and completely as possible before moving on. The battle appeared to be going well for them, and he wasn’t about to stop for a break.
Blaze slammed a dresser across the doorway with Shining Armor beside him. Blaze levitated a barrel over from the pile and sent it down the stairs before giving the large dresser a final push, making the ornate piece of furniture flush with the doorway. Stallions swarmed around, placing barrels, bags of produce, and anything else with a decent amount of weight that wasn’t nailed down to the castle.
“How close were they before you headed up to inform us?” Shining asked as he shoved one of the thrones across to the pile. Blaze heaved a barrel and placed it down on top of the pile.
“They were making headway through the door.” Blaze replied. “Hawk said… he said that he would make that position hold for as low as he could, but that he could give no guarantees once they past the door.” Blaze stated before slamming another bag of flour onto the mess, patting it down to ensure everything was well packed. “We need to set up a small barricade from which we can flight and protect the stairs to the next level.”
“We’ve already taken care of the next level problem.” Shining said with a smile. “We knocked out the three main routes upstairs that were connected to the flight they are currently going up. The only way up now is one step from being fully seal, and will be fully sealed once a pony goes to inform them. I suggest that be you, Blaze.”
“As you’ll have it, Prince, so it shall be done.” Blaze replied as he brought a large table and laid it across the door way directly in front of the stairway. The stallion quickly laid bags of produce, chairs, barrel, and everything else across it, giving it more mass before building up, giving the ponies behind the wall a nice pillbox.
“Hopefully your gamble doesn’t go to waste.” Shining said solemnly. Blaze shook his head with a sigh as he notched an arrow into his bow.
“We’ve already done what we came for. We not only brought hope to the ponies of the Empire, but also delayed the reptilous while ensuring a large portion of their force isn’t where it really needs to be.” Blaze stated calmly, using all his mental strength to hide how much he felt in reality, swarms of emotions whirling around inside of him, made only stronger by the moment of calm.
“Hopefully our reinforcements come soon; they’ll certainly give us some more time even if we don’t succeed here.” Shining said, taking up a spear while cracking his neck in anticipation.
“We have no reinforcements; almost our whole force is deployed at Canterlot.” Blaze replied; feeling like a broken record as similar lines of conversation were brought up.
“You miss understand,” Shining replied as a smirk began to play across his features, “There are soldiers that are coming in that aren’t from your main army.” Blaze looked over to the prince with a questioning expression. “Before I knew that you were going to attempt a liberation, I had been in contact with a group of the Crystal Guards that had managed to escape to take a good portion of the city to safety. They are living on the fringe of the truly frozen north, making it difficult for any for any force to find them unless they knew where to look. They’ve been training ever since they fled and sent word to me this morning that as the sun past its peek that they would fall down on the city and free me.”
“Well that is good news.” Blaze said with a laugh of relief. Blaze leaned back and looked out the large windows and looked for the sun, only to find it missing from the sky, but the shadows of objects in the area told him that it was reaching its zenith. “They should be arriving soon enough. If we can give these reptilous the fight of their life, we might just hold off for long enough to let the Crystal Guard in.”
“I’ll start the coffee.” Shining said with a chuckle as he rolled his shoulders, allowing his armor to settle better on his form. Blaze shook his head; looking back up to the doorway as the sound of something being bashed in further down the stairs spelled the end for the pony downstairs.
Stone Wall charged up the slope, the entire force of the Equestrian army behind him as he charged the gates of the upper district. A unicorn charged up past him, sending a bolt of magic towards the door, sending the wooden gates flying open with such force that they cracked off their massive hinges. As the dust settle, a mass of reptilous came into view, shields raised and spears lowered. Stone Wall lifted his shield and charged with increased speed, his eyes fixed on the goal. All around him, combat spells were fired into the reptilous formation, sending a few of the reptilous flying off into the rear end of their formation. Stone Wall slid under a spear and smashed into the underside of a shield, sending the reptilous into a short stumble before Stone Wall sent his sword around the side and straight into the beast’s chest. Stone Wall raised his shield and caught one reptilous’ attack while sending his second sword out, catching one of the warrior beasts in the front of the formation.
Stone Wall pushed the next reptilous with a wave of magical energy before thrusting his blade straight through another one of the shield bearers. As he watched, Half Pint hit the line with such force that he set a reptilous off balance, causing it to fall on its back before Half Pint brought his axe down on the creature’s skull. The battle raged on as wave upon wave of ponies met the reptilous force, pushing it farther and farther back. The distant sound of hoof cannons told Stone Wall that the battle at the first gate was beginning in earnest.
Stone Wall looked up, the gate to the courtyard of the castle right before them. The same gateway that nearly four years ago had allowed hordes of ponies to flee now flew open as droves of seasoned warriors flooded towards the castle to reclaim what had been lost. Stone Wall charged up the steps to the main castle, bucking the doors open upon arrival, allowing the rest of his soldiers to move in quickly. Stone Wall turned to see the same room where Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis revealed the truth behind what had seemed to be a rousing victory for Equestria. This time, there would be no false victory, only a complete usurpation of the reptilous from the mighty city.
Blaze let go of another arrow, the attack finding its mark in the head of the first reptilous. A hoof cannon fired beside him, accompanied with another reptilous falling down at the stopped up entrance to the floor. Blaze notched another arrow into his bowstring, letting it loose only to have it slam against a shield as a reptilous attempted to pass through the restricted aperture with his shield raised, only to find the task impossible as he let go of his shield and pushed through the hole in the defenses, only to have an arrow slam into his chest, laying him low.
“Blaze, we need to fall back and inform the next level that it’s time.” Shining said beside him as Blaze let yet another arrow fly free, only to have a reptilous slice it out of the air as he climbed through. Blaze gave a quick nod as he turned to follow Shining, notching another arrow into his bow. Blaze turned one last time before entering the next room, letting his arrow fly, smacking with a meaty thud into the reptilous’ shoulder.
Blaze turned and galloped after Shining while he put his bow away. The prince turned and shoved a large cabinet to the side, revealing a passageway. Blaze hurried behind him, entering as quickly as possible, pulling the cabinet back into place before charging up the stairs.
“Two in the stairway!” Shining shouted to the ponies above as they took the final curve in the stairs. A door promptly opened before them, shutting with a slam as the two slipped through. “The reptilous are making progress on the level below; they’ll be here soon enough, though I can say when.” Shining stated. The soldiers gave a nod and quickly began setting up a small barricade in front of the door with what little supplies they had, since the kitchen and main hall were both below them, which left them with supplies from the servant’s quarters. Though there were many rooms and many beds, most of them were quite small, leaving them with little to board the doorway with.
“Sir, I can see a contingent of pony soldiers heading this way!” A stallion shouted from the window. “They’re wearing the Crystal Emblem by what I can see.” The pony stated while passing his binoculars to Blaze. Blaze turned to the point the pony was referring to, and sure enough, there was a small group of soldiers that had a larger group of unarmored ponies behind them that wielded pitchforks, scythes, and other farming tools that functioned as weapons. Blaze gave a small nod before turning to Shining Armor.
“The Crystal Guard is approaching with a group of armed civilians. We might have a chance at squeaking a victory from this battle yet.” Blaze commented, giving the binoculars back to their owner.
“Well, now’s as good a time to make a victory as any since we are on the last level before we reach where we’re keeping our field hospital.” Shining said with a sigh. “Here’s an option we could take: take this group of soldiers downstairs and help our stallions down there before they become overrun with reptilous.” Shining suggested.
“No, if we fail there then it will be the end for sure. By waiting up here we are buying the Crystal Guard some more time so that they aren’t fighting a one way battle once they get here.” Blaze stated, checking how many arrows he had left with a quick glance. He was starting to run dangerously low, but he could hold off the reptilous for a few extra seconds without getting within their range of attack. Blaze looked over the final six ponies around him, each ready to fight the hardest they ever had against a foe whose experience within battle far outweighed their own.
Stone Wall charged up the main tower’s stairs, a small detachment of soldiers following close behind. Stone quickly kicked down the final door, revealing three reptilous still standing at the ready for battle. One of the fiends charged the ponies, only to find a bolt slicing through his chest as one of the ponies behind Stone Wall fired his newly acquired crossbow. Stone Wall quickly shoved one of the reptilous off the side of the tower while sending his sword out to meet the other. The second reptilian warrior quickly parried the attack only to find an earth pony shoot up o him, slamming an axe into his knee, sending him to the ground where Stone Wall slammed his sword through the beast’s heart. Stone Wall quickly opened his saddlebags, taking out an Equestrian flag. Half Pint quickly began tugging the rope on the flagpole, lowering Greyhield’s standard as quickly as possible. Stone Wall sliced the flag from the rope before attaching the cyan ties to the rope, nodding to Half Pint as he finished. The earth pony returned the nod and began raising the flag until it reached the top of the tallest flagpole in the land. One of the soldiers took the ripped flag from the ground, touching a corner to a nearby torch before letting it fly out of the tower as it quickly began to turn into ashes as the soldiers saluted the newly risen flag of The Two Sisters. Even though the battle wasn’t over, for a moment, all seemed well in the world as the flag depicting the two princesses flapped blissfully in the cool evening breeze.
Blaze caught another attack on his shield as the reptilous continued their advance on the ponies with relentless aggression. Below, the sounds of fighting told Blaze the Crystal Guard was making excellent progress towards their position. Blaze shot a blast of magical energy into the face of another reptilous, causing his to stumble back and fall down the stairs. Blaze suddenly found his weight disappearing as he was thrown across the room by a reptilous. His flight came to an abrupt and painful end as he slammed into the wall, a searing pain coursing through his side. He slowly rose to his hooves, bringing his sword back to his side as the beast warrior cam ever closer. Blaze swung his sword at the beast that quickly blocked the attack, locking blade with the tired and hurting pony. Blaze shoved the beast back before shooting a blast of fire into its face, causing it to take a few extra moments to wipe the soot from its face, giving Blaze all the opening he needed as he planted his sword in its chest.
As Blaze shoved another reptilous back to the stairs, something happened that made his heart leap for joy. As the reptilous tumbled backward, a spear appeared through its chest before being shoved to the side, revealing a stallion splattered in blood that bore the armor of the Crystal Guard.
“Good to have you, soldier!” Blaze shouted over the battle as h parried a reptilous’ attack. The Crystal pony quickly brought his spear to bear and ran it through the preoccupied reptilous.
“Good to be here, sir. Is the prince alright?” The guard asked before blocking an attack. Blaze shot a beam of magical energy through the offending reptilous before the guard shoved the limp corpse to the side.
“Yes, he’s safe. Now’s not the time for talk, however, let’s finish this fight and discuss it later.” Blaze stated, returning his full attention to the battle before him.
Blaze stood at the pinnacle of the castle’s tower, looking over the city as he had done that morning. The streets now were littered with many more bodies, and the streams of blood had multiplied and grown all the larger. Beside him stood Shining Armor and the Crystal Guard pony, each of them looking over the scene of destruction and all the work that came with it. The battle had been fought and most surprisingly, won. It had been costly, but it had been more than worth it as the Crystal Heart came to life and shot a beam of energy to the heavens as the hearts of the ponies below felt a sense of relief mixed with sadness. Blaze looked towards the horizon at the distant Equestria that lay just beyond sight. The battle had been won; an important advantage had been gained. Now all that remained was securing the war and finally liberating Equestria from this dreaded conflict. Blaze could barely hold himself from charging off to the sunset and rejoining the main army to take on Greyhield, but much was still left to be done in the city below. For the first time in a long time, Blaze truly could look at the sunset and give a sigh of relief, knowing that what his soldiers had done, what he had done, truly put them several steps closer to finishing the war. Tomorrow would bring a new day, and he wasn’t about to squander it on anything.