//------------------------------//
// Chapter 12 
// Story: Ace Combat Equestria: Shattered Clouds 
// by Cpt Celti 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 12

"C'mon Amethyst," Rhapsody murmured. "Just a little bit."
"But... it's so slimy!" she mewled. She gagged a bit as she stared. "And it smells."
Mythic began prodding her with half-lidded eyes. "You know you wanna taste of meat. Give it a little taste. If Sprig can do it, you can too."
The hippogriff smirked. "I do it on a regular basis. Nothing to it." She then grinned wide. "Besides, it's not that big."
Mythic bristled. "It's big enough!"
Ditzy shook her head. "I've heard it tastes gross for first timers. If Amethyst doesn't want to, we can't force her right?"
Rhapsody shrugged and gently tapped Amethyst's face with the meat in Mythic's hand. "Just give it a try. That was the dare."
"Al-a-alright..." Amethyst slowly, steadily, began to open her mouth - 
Mythic shoved the strip of bacon into her mouth and Amethyst bit down. The strip of pork hit her tongue, forcing her to gag. But she didn't want to wimp out now, so she forced herself to swiftly chew up the piece of meat and swallow it down. She exhaled and coughed, beating her chest while Rhapsody laughed and draped a wing over her, patting her back. "You okay, kiddo?" she asked with a wide grin.
Once the young crystal mare managed to gather herself in breath and strength, she looked up at the expecting faces. Slowly, a smile began to form on her lips. "That-" she coughed again and Ditzy handed her a glass of water which Amethyst downed swiftly before exhaling and inhaling a steadier breathing pace. Finally, she was able to complete her sentence. "That wasn't so hard."
Sprig clapped her hands and guffawed. "She likes bacon!" she cheered. A few other hippogriffs who had watched laughed along with the members of Ghost Wing. Once the small celebration cleared up, the grey hippogriff mare stared at her wing lead. "How did you react again when I first shoved bacon in your daffodil sandwich?"
The sea green pegasus groaned, but with good humor, and rested her forehead on her palm. "Was gagging for half an hour-"
"More like half a day!" Mythic broke in.
"Oh like you were better!" Sprig snapped quickly. "You acted like I had poisoned you."
The grey stallion folded his arms and shook his head. "It was only for an - Amethyst?"
Everypony at the table suddenly turned to the crystal pony. She wasn't normally that color, but of course the Crystal's had odd coats to begin with. But Amethyst was a soft violet color normally, and her cheeks didn't usually inflate like that, nor was she that green. But before anypony could ask if she was alright, the Crystal mare was up from the table and out of the mess hall, heading down the hall. Rhapsody pursed her lips together and stared at the rest of her friends.
"Huh... that happened..."
The intercom suddenly gave out a low whine, signaling anyone present in the room to listen up. Rhapsody's ears perked up to listen. Major Soarin's voice broke through the silence that had fallen on the mess hall when the beep came through. "All wing leaders report to the briefing room immediately for a special announcement. Repeat, all wing leaders report to the briefing room."
Several AEGIS pilots of varying nationalities began to stand up, Rhapsody included. She sighed and wiped her mouth of from her blueberry banana smoothie that was the special drink of the day. Despite the sound, it was hardly as bad as it sounded. With a final fist pound to her wing mates, and a promise to meet in the lounge later, the sea green mare headed off to the meeting area.


Twilight slowly sipped her tea, her legs crossed as she sat in the posh den of her former mentor's private apartments of Canterlot Palace. The herbal brew washed down her throat, refreshing her body and spirit. The only outward sounds were a few birds chirping, but they were startled and flew off just as a pair of Rafale's of the Canterlot Defense Squadron flew by and off on patrol. The Canterlot Defense Squadron never strayed far from the palace, rarely going beyond the borders of the main city.
The purple unicorn sighed heavily, lowering her head as she thought back to the war that had taken so much from her and her friends. They had lost much in the ways of family, but the one that had struck them all hard was the loss of Fluttershy. When news had first come to her and the others from Rainbow Dash, it had been a long conference indeed as the loss of an Element of Harmony, as well as a dear and treasured friend had set in. Even the stoic air force captain was hard-pressed to fight back her tears.
It had been at least a month since then, and Twilight had come to accept that she was gone. Rainbow took full responsibility for their friend's fate, but no one blamed her. This sort of thing happened, to the most innocent of people. But that still didn't ease the guilt Rainbow had of pushing Fluttershy towards her position. It still hurt her heart to no end.
"You're brooding again," a soft, almost melodic voice said.
Twilight turned to see the solar monarch enter the room with a pair of folders underneath her arm. As she moved into the study, Twilight found herself eased, if just a little, by her mother-figure. Celestia strode into the room, dressed in a regal white gown, full of confidence and a gentle authority. Sitting down in the plush chair across from her Intelligence General, Celestia crossed her legs and her horn glowed with a soft golden light as she poured some tea and opened one of the folders and began to read them, but she stopped when she saw Twilight simply looking at the fire. "Twilight?"
The unicorn started, nearly dropping her tea, before she regained herself and gave a subtle wipe of her eye. "Sorry, Princess," she said hastily. "Just... thinking, going over plans in my head." It was a lie, and they both knew it. They had grown close in the past few decades, and Celestia knew all of Twilight's facades, and the unicorn knew that she knew. And as if to emphasize this, the solar princess closed the folder with one hand and set it on the table next to her chair. Her violet eyes not once left her former pupil.
"I know you are worried, Twilight," she said softly. "But, cruel as it may sound, you must push past this dire disposition you've dwelled yourself into." Twilight said nothing, merely continued to stare into the fireplace offering warmth to the steadily growing chill. "While I am concerned for Fluttershy, for she is a dear friend to you, me, and everyone, and her being an Element of Harmony, I chose not to interfere with you or your friends' free choice of selecting military careers."
"Rainbow Dash pushed Fluttershy towards it," Twilight countered, a bit harsher than she intended. Celestia exhaled sharply and shook her head. The unicorn quickly tried to recovery. "I don't mean Rainbow was - "
A hand rose, silencing her immediately. "I know what you meant, Twilight," Celestia said calmly. But her eyes were sad, as if sensing that there was lingering animosity towards Rainbow Dash for convincing Fluttershy to become a fighter pilot. "I will say again, I have my concerns, but her fate was not your fault."
Twilight sighed and hung her head. She then sniffed. "I just miss her princess. We all do. And we still are baffled that a pegasus pony who doesn't like to fly achieved such a good score with her piloting."
Celestia allowed a slight smile. "You know, that reminded me of one of your friendship reports."
"Friendship Report?" Twilight asked, shocked. "Princess, that was years ago."
But the monarch simply shook her head and kept her smile. "You spoke of how you should never underestimate your friends, for even the meekest can have the strongest of hearts and the greatest strength."
The sentence brought Twilight back many years, when she and her friends had confronted that dragon that had strayed very far from the Searing Island, a migratory point for all dragons. Fluttershy's courage showed her friends that she should not be ignored just because she was timid. The fact she even agreed to join the air force showed remarkable bravery.
As if wanting to change the subject, Celestia reopened the folder and gazed at the contents. "I wanted to go over the invasion plans for the end of the month before the meeting tomorrow afternoon."
Twilight nodded and finished her tea, setting the cup and saucer on the table and accepting the offered folder. She blinked as she looked them over, but her eyes kept drifting towards the list of battalions and their commanders. The 2nd Royal Canterlot Dragoons were being deployed, and the 4th Field Artillery brigade; Applejack and Pinkie Pie. Another pair of friends being sent to the front of the battlefield. She swallowed heavily and looked back at Celestia.
"I know you have some hesitations for sending her, Twilight," Celestia murmured. The unicorn mare stared at her, then back down at the paper. "They're the first two you ever really spoke to in Ponyville, but I want you to trust in their abilities, and have faith that they will return safely."
She did have faith. More than anypony realized or gave her credit for. Twilight was still fearful of losing her friends though. It ached her heart more than she preferred to let on. Still, this was an order from the Princess of Equestria, and more or less the informal leading voice of AEGIS. If she had faith in her friends to get this done, then it was only fair Twilight put the same trust and faith into it.
"I'll relay this to them in the islands," Twilight informed Celestia, but never looking up. The monarch of the sun frowned inwardly, but pushed it down to extend a wing and lift Twilight's face up. The massive white appendage succeeded its task and the unicorn met Celestia's eyes. A soft, motherly smile coursed across her lips.
"Tell me," she asked, deciding to change the subject. "How are... 'the two of you' doing?"


"A massive storm surge is expected to hit right in the middle of the invasion. We're expecting torrential rain, heavy surf, winds exceeding thirty knots, the whole lot."
"Weather ponies went overboard with this one, didn't they?" Creg from Saber wing muttered.
Soarin shook his head and turned to the Hippogriff wing lead of Saber. "This storm wasn't made by pegasi since Equestria doesn't have jurisdiction in this area," he explained swiftly. He continued to map out the invasion plans for the air force wing leaders. At the same time, at least he hoped, the navy was giving its own the run down. "A plus side to this is that the invasion point is far enough out of range of Sky Breaker. There are three beaches we'll be hitting, codenamed Hail, Corral, and Drake. The upside is that this storm will hamper Gryphnia's ability to resist us. We have pilots trained to fight in this sort of weather for a reason. Downside... we're expecting to lose a lot of landing craft before they even hit the beaches. The water is just too strong, but we can't select a different day to plan this. We won't get another shot."
"So those troops have been sacrificed," Shavul from Timberwolf scoffed. "Shows how much the brass cares."
Soarin set down his marker and glared at the Saddle Arabian lead. They met and Rhapsody could almost hear the fire being set between them. "The Elements of Honesty and Laughter are on this assault. They couldn't take this lightly at all, so every single safety precaution that could be put in place has been. But we're all counting on blind luck that we'll have enough troops to get on the beach and secure the landing.
"We will be working with the Navy on this assault, so please play nice with our sea-skippers, alright?" he pleaded with a hint of amusement. The flight leads shared a laugh and nodded at the Major. For a last second replacement for Spitfire, he wasn't doing half bad. "Good, then let's all get some relaxation in, because we put this insane plan into action tomorrow afternoon. Go get yourselves settled and inform your wings. I've already been told by a friend that the army is telling their troops going on the landing to start making their wills if they want. I'm giving you that same opportunity, but you'll have till tomorrow morning."
The mood definitely sobered up. But they knew this was going to be dangerous. Attacking the Gryphnian mainland on three separate beach heads was risky, and the casualty rate was going to be high in all areas of the battle. Rhapsody remembered learning about a similar beach landing during one of the great wars decades ago. Perhaps it was confidence, or arrogance, she didn't know, but Rhapsody didn't feel obligated to fill one out. She had already done so the day after Operation Blackout.
"I have every bit of confidence in everypony in this room. I trust in your abilities, but don't forget what happens should we fail tomorrow. This is our only chance."
The young Windigo leader raised his hand. "Uh, sir? What would happen, hypothetically, if we don't succeed?"
Soarin looked him square in the eye. Rhapsody had seen such a piercing gaze before. It meant that what was going to be said was to be taken to heart, but never be taken lightly. "If we fail in this invasion, then we lose our one true chance to invade the Gryphnian occupied mainland, lose months to years of tactical advantage, and ultimately seal AEGIS's fate as the defeated in this war." The same flight lead winced and then swallowed hard. "Which is why we can't fail... and we won't." he switched off the monitor and signaled the pony in the back to turn the lights back on.
"I'll see you all on the line tomorrow morning. I wish you luck... we'll need every ounce."


The ocean roiled, the waters churned madly. Today was the day, and hell had taken hold of the sea and created a terrible storm.
A bolt of lightning struck across the sky, causing a few of the marines to jerk in mild shock, but a comforting hand from their comrades helped them relax just a little. The rain poured down in what seemed like buckets, soaking the assembled troops down to the bone. The piercing chill hit every single one of them, forcing more than one to sneeze from a growing cold. As they lowered themselves into the waiting landing craft and settled in for the eventual battle and bloodshed to come, the mood was rather somber. Every one of the soldiers knew that either they, or the one next to them, wouldn't be coming back.
AEGIS had no other choice though. This was the perfect chance, even if they knew the casualty rate would mount high in only the first hour or so. Optimistically, the brass expected at least sixty percent of the boats to make it ashore. Of course, that depended on how well the gryphons could see through the rain. Yes, the mood was quiet, the only sound was the storm and marching feet across the decks of the ships, as the commanding officers began directing their troops while sailors and corpsmen offered warm drinks to keep morale up as best they could. Still definitely quiet.
Well... somewhat quiet...


"This is it huh? Once those craft hit the beach, we'll lose dozens. Not counting the vehicles, no one really cares for them, but those poor soldiers..." Pinkie hung her head. "This just isn't fair. And why do you have to go? Can't the Brigadier General handle this while you stay back?"
Applejack tightened her boots one last time and tightened her pistol belt. It wasn't the first time she and Pinkie had talked about this. The former farm mare turned to her normally bubbly and cotton candy pink friend. Sadly, the normally puffball hairstyle was gone, and the pink tresses hung down, shortened by her military haircut, on her shoulders under the helmet that carried a pink band around the base of it, the trademark of her and her specific troops. It had become commonplace to see Pinkie's hair hanging low to mirror her somber attitude, especially since the war started.
"Ah have to go, Pinks," Applejack said, not for the first time. She stood and leveled her green eyes with the blue of her friend. "The Brigadier can handle the beaches and give orders, but he needs officers with voices the troops with listen to. And ah don't mean to brag, Pinkie, but the Element of Honesty is a pretty darn strong voice."
Pinkie merely shrugged and shook her head. The pink tresses still hung flat on her head as she exhaled and looked up. "Just... promise to come back in one piece?" She then gave Colonel Applejack a soft smile, if albeit a small one. "I still have a party to plan when this is over."
Applejack extended her arm, clasping Pinkie's bicep. The artillery Lt. Colonel followed suit and nodded. "See you when you get back, Colonel." When they let go, Pinkie Pie left to go check on her troops who were scheduled to land after a beachhead was secured by the main force. At least that's what the plan was.
The sudden thunder was outmatched by the loud roar of cannons as the destroyers and frigates of the AEGIS fleet moved in to try and soften the beaches a bit for the ground troops. The sea continued to roil with fierce anger and the skies sounded their own rage at the battle being waged in their territory. Applejack could see the explosions that followed the sound of gunfire from the ships that had made it to the battle zone first.
"If ah make it back," Applejack murmured to herself. Then she made sure her pistol was tightly secured before making her way to the hovercraft that held both hers and her second's M1 tanks. It was then that she heard a piercing shriek overhead. Turning her green eyes skyward, she made out the shapes of AEGIS fighters making their way to the beach. The air support had arrived.
They'd need all that they could get.


Rhapsody sighed heavily to herself as she watched the pouring rain fall around her. The pounding water hit her canopy and nearly obscured her view completely. She could just barely see the other fighters around her. The sight of engine flames let her figure out her proximity to the rest of her fellow pilots. But if this storm didn't let up, even those flames would be hard to see. That would make the dogfighting that much more treacherous. She'd have to rely on the radio and her radar more than her eyes like she usually did.
Making sure her autopilot was still engaged, she looked through her canopy and down, seeing a number of ships from the AEGIS fleet. The exposed decks showed plenty of sailors, marines, and soldiers getting ready for the attack. Rhapsody's wings practically shrank back into her body and her tail clung to her leg just by the thought of how cold it must be down there. Hovercrafts being lowered into the water also had no covers, soaking the gathered troops and equipment onboard. She sighed to herself; this was going to be a harrowing ordeal.
The army and marines were making a joint landing, since landing each separately would take too much needed time, plus leave a victory in very bad odds of being reached. Unfortunately, this had not stopped the brass from sending an advance party to the beaches. It was said they'd be there to draw fire from the main force landing behind them. But they had been notified only after they had made landfall and had come under intense enemy fire.
"This is Captain Blitz of Unit H on Corral Beach," a pony suddenly called. Rhapsody quirked her brow at the fact an army commander had gotten through to the air force command frequency, though she wasn't entirely surprised. "We do not have air superiority over the beach! This is not as promised."
"This is Rear Admiral Pippington aboard the HMS Midnight of the Equestrian Navy," came a strongly accented Trottingham stallion. The Midnight?  Rhapsody craned her neck down to see the ships arriving at the beaches. She could see it, the massive battleship similar in size to the Warlord's Claw she had sunk at Habun Harbor. The ship was facing broadside to the beach, all her guns facing the beach. Rhapsody could just barely hear it, but the forward guns fired all three barrels. An Equestrian battleship was never one to take lightly, especially one as old as the Midnight, and the explosions from the beach where the shells hit could attest.
"Look at the size of that thing," Ditzy murmured, obviously turning to see what had her friend so enthralled.
"Friendly fighters are on their way," the Admiral continued, "continue your efforts to secure the beach."
The Captain grunted an affirmative. "Alright Admiral, we'll do our best, but tell them I'll be seeing them once this is done, over."
Rhapsody shook her head and turned her head to her radar when it let off a ping. She narrowed her eyes and grunted as she snapped on her oxygen mask. Incoming enemy fighters, and plenty of them, heading right for the advancing AEGIS squadron. Switching off her autopilot, she gripped her control stick and angled herself to face the enemy head on.
"Here they come!" Amethyst announced.
"Ghost, engage," Rhapsody replied.
"Timberwolf, engage!"
"Windigo, engage!"
A MiG-29 spurred itself right by Rhapsody's cockpit, followed by an F-15C that had to be his wing mate. Rhapsody let them go by and throttled herself forward. Laden with bombs, she had a priority. Sadly for her, dogfighting was not her primary objective. But she then heard that the two had been engaged by Sprig and Amethyst whilst Mythic kept to her tail. Ever the faithful wingpony.
"Wraith, Corral Beach at vector one-five-zero, four miles," Sky Gazer informed her.
"Roger that, switching to bombs." She flipped the switch on her console and exhaled. And it wasn't long after she had done so that she got a glimpse of the battlefield. She frowned deeply, not expecting such a hell to be so... drenched. She could make out the tracers of bullets flying between the AEGIS landing troops and the Gryphnian defense line. Plumes of sand, smoke, and fire marked either mortars or grenades, depending on size. 
Pulling herself out of her small daze, Rhapsody tilted her Tomcat into a roll towards the right side of the beach. Angling her approach, the console blipped her bomb count. It took merely a second, but a few guns were now aiming at her. But they flew by, no doubt hampered by the storm. Still, she pressed down into an attack angle. "I'm right behind ya, Wraith," Mythic announced. "Let's see what these little bombs can do."
"Heh, mine are bigger," Rhapsody chuckled. With a groan from Mythic, they fell into a pattern and began dropping.


"This is Unit G! We're on the beach!"
Babs Seed held onto her helmet as she sprinted across the sand to the nearest cover. The hovercraft she had run from was pouring out more soldiers. The bombs from their air support rocked the ground, sending dirt and sand into the air. Grunting hard, she popped her head up to see the damage as the two fighters soared back up into the sky to pursue other targets. She allowed a small grin as she saw the heavy damaged and destroyed pillboxes, tanks, and more than enough gryphons littering the sand, unmoving.
But just as she took a look to the left flank, a volley of shells struck the ground. "Take cover!" she screamed and ducked down to her dune. Her squad mates did as instructed by their Master Sergeant, but some were not fast enough. A few screams marked the deaths of many through the shrieks of whistling artillery shells hitting the sand, and several thumps were the results of some being sent airborne. There were some shouts above her as she saw a number of hippogriffs taking wing to see where the volley came from.
"Get back down here, you-" There was a hail of gunfire from a machine gun that silenced her back down into her dune. She grit her teeth, clutching her M16 closer as she waited for it to subside for a moment. When it did, she looked up to see that same hippogriff staring back at her on the ground with a lifeless expression, blood seeping from his beak. Absently, she gripped his collar and pulled him down into the hole she had taken refuge in.
"This is Staff Sergeant Seed to any aircraft overhead!" she cried into her radio. "The gryphons have entrenched  a number of howitzer guns somewhere beyond the mountain range in front of us! Requesting air suppression of those guns!"


"Banshee, you're closest to them, find them and take them out before they're wiped out by artillery fire!"
"Copy that, Wraith," the hippogriff replied curtly. "Consider them gone!"
After letting loose a missile to destroy a gryphon Hind taking pot shots at the marines charging off their hovercraft, she turned her attention to the northern howitzer battery. The flak was getting thicker, so she guessed she was close. The hippogriff's tail flicked as her anticipation grew. A couple good bomb drops would do away with them easily. Turning her Hornet in the proposed direction, she flipped the switch and armed her bombs. Yet this storm was heavy as she got further inland.
But she was a hippogriff, and her eyesight was better than some pegasus pony's. Focusing her yellow eyes, she raised her visor to see. Those guns were somewhere, she just needed... A series of flashes dotted the mountain range. Narrowing her iris's, she caught sight of the camouflaged netting where the flashes came from. Seeing no other course of action, she aimed her bombs and flew in for the attack run. It was then that she saw something else, and it was aiming at her.
SAMs.
Yelping, Sprig pulled up, instinctively pulling the trigger on her control stick. The bombs released, flying far off target. But she didn't pay attention to where they were going until it was too late.


"Fire!" the gryphon yelled.
The large missile flew off the rail, sending it into the sky and after the AEGIS fighter. The Hornet was nimble enough to dodge it, but they were prepared to fire another. He aimed the targeting reticule at the plane, nearly getting a lock - 
"Get out of there!" one of his comrades yelled. There was a thunderous explosion followed by a dull rumble that steadily grew louder. He turned around to look.
The bombs had impacted the mountainside... and caused a rock slide.
Abandoning his position, he flew up into the sky, waving at the artillery crews. They couldn't hear him though as they were shouting orders at each other and continuously firing off rounds at the beach. There was no way to warn them in time, so he took off towards safety. He caught a fleeting glance though of the rocks sliding down and overturning several of the vehicles and burying the rest in a veritable coffin of stone and earth.


Sprig deployed flares to shake the SAM off, which exploded just short of one of the flares. Chancing a look back, she caught sight of the massive rockslide that had silenced the guns firing on Corral Beach. "Huh... that happened," she murmured. Taking a breath, she then added, "Banshee here. I've silenced the guns on Corral Beach. Flowing to other areas for support."


Rhapsody pulled up and corkscrewed forcing the enemy F/A-18 to pass her. She locked her missile onto him and fired. The missile darted after her target, who rolled downwards and was able to dodge. The missile lost track and crashed into the hills away from the beach. Rhapsody swore and pulled back into pursuit, her Tomcat's engines roaring as she sped up, the wings folding back for more speed.
"Wraith! Unit Q has hit the Drake Beach but they've come under chopper fire!" Sky Gazer announced. "Head over there and back up Phantom."
"Copy that. Ready Specter?" she asked.
"And able!" Ditzy replied quickly.
Rhapsody pulled off her pursuit just as an F-15C moved in to replace her in the chase for the enemy Hornet. Pushing her throttle up, the afterburners kicked in and propelled the two pegasi off to the west. She didn't take long to get there, knowing how dangerous gunships were to the ground forces. And soon she caught sight of the explosions and muzzle flashes that gave Drake Beach its own fireworks show.
"This is intense!" Ditzy cried. She held onto the canopy as her friend twisted around to get an accurate target on a pair of Hinds dotting the beaches with their cannons. Gritting her teeth, the sea green pegasus narrowed her rose eyes and waited for a lock. The missile took off and slammed into the side of the first whilst her own cannons sheared off the tail of the second, sending it spinning madly into the ground.


The chopper slammed into the sand, sending fire and debris and earth all over.
Applejack held her helmet down as the ground shook. Adjusting her goggles, she growled and grabbed her radio. "This is Colonel Apple! Admiral, can you tell air support to mind where they're sending their kills?"
"The pilot already apologizes, Colonel," Admiral Pippington responded.
Applejack just shook her head and waved her arm forward. "Let's go ya'll! Move up! Move up!" Her M1 tank jerked forward, climbing the beach's slopes with the rest of her small armored detachment. The infantry took cover behind them as the same fighter took down a couple more Hinds and dropped a bomb on a pillbox. Two more did the same, clearing more of the beach for them to advance.


"We're getting requests for air support all over the battlefield," Amethyst muttered. "There's just too much to do. Can we make it?"
"Of course we can!" Sprig replied confidently. "Good guys always win!"
"Why do you think I always win poker?" Mythic added cheekily.
Rhapsody chuckled. "Because you slip an ace into your sleeve every three hands?"
"That only happened once!" the grey pegasus stallion said curtly.
"C'mon, cut the chatter," Sky Gazer ordered. That said, the four pilots of Ghost Wing regrouped, focusing on where the enemy was putting more of their own.
Corral Beach was the center of the enemy's concentration since the Navy had pounded the few coastal guns and armored divisions on Hail beach, with the help of Mythic and a group of other pilots. The ground forces lost most of their equipment when the bulk was sunk with three of the hovercrafts. But were advancing and close to securing the beach. Drake beach was cleared of pillboxes and choppers and the ground forces there were advancing smoothly. Sprig has stayed a few more minutes to make sure they were clear before turning back to the central beach.
That just left the center where the most fighting was taking place.


"Get that Gustav up there!" Applejack shouted. 
The hippogriff team ran up, slinging their L85A2s behind their backs as the lead swung the launcher up over his shoulder. His aid pulled the rocket from her backpack and loaded him through the back. Sealing it, she slapped his helmet. "In the pipe!" Pulling her rifle around, she began firing back at the gryphons.
"Target spotted. Spread 'em, this is gonna hurt," he announced, aiming at a pill box hammering the right flank. A Saddle Arabian moved up to support him, firing his AUG at a group of gryphons aiming for the launcher. Adjusting his sights, the hippogriff soon got an accurate fix and gripped the trigger. "ON ITS WAY!"
With a loud thump, the rocket shot from the launcher. In less than two seconds, it had burst through the pillbox's wall and exploded on the inside. There was a short yell and the fiery mass burst from the opening in the side. Concrete and steel were shattered upon the rocket. "Target destroyed!" they announced.
Applejack grinned and waved her arm forward. "Move up! Secure those positions!" Her tank lurched forward as it moved to meet up with the soldiers that had sprinted ahead. Suddenly, her ears twitched. She focused her hearing and looked left and right. Applejack couldn't see it, but her hearing was good enough to...
"Colonel! Radar is picking up new contacts!" her radiopony called up to her from the interior of the tank. Applejack slunk back down to his side and took up a headset and listened.
"Colonel Apple here, go ahead!"
"Colonel! This is AWACS Sky Gazer. The Captain of Unit H was taken out by a missile fired from long range! We tracked the origins." There was a brief silence before he confirmed her fears. "We've got a squadron of enemy A-10s coming right towards the central beach! Colonel they're heading right for you!"


"All planes this is Sky Gazer! An enemy squadron of A-10s is heading for the central beach. They don't have the weapons to take them down and they can't move forward. Shoot them down or we'll lose our grand forces!"
"Understood!" cried Wheatfield from Windigo wing. "Let's go get 'em!"
"Wraith here. I'm heading there now. ETA two minutes."
Rhapsody pulled away from her fired missile, which went right into the tail of a MiG-29 that had been severely weakened by her cannons. After leveling out, she pushed herself forward. Her thrusters were at full power. The wings folded back as far as they could as her afterburners kicked in. The wings clung to her back as the g-forces began to push against her body. A cone of white enveloped the cockpit indicating she had reached supersonic. Rhapsody had to allow a grin. She remembered the first time she had flown her Tomcat and had gone supersonic.
She narrowed her eyes as the cone of white enveloped her, slicing her vision along with the torrential downpour. The clouds had begun to close in around her. By now she should be at the central beach. Where were - 
"Wraith! On the nose!" Rhapsody craned her head and yelped. 


The A-10 shuddered violently as an AEGIS F-14A rushed under his plane. He pulled himself out of his attack run on a line of AEGIS tanks and APCs, looking around to see the culprit. An AEGIS F-14A pulled itself up and on its side as the pilot tried to regain control. They must've broken the sound barrier coming here. And he was nearly collided with!
"Is that pilot out of his mind?" he shouted.
"Damned if I know, and damned if I care," one of the fighter escort pilots answered promptly. "I'll shoot it down either way!"


After regaining control, albeit with a dizzy head, Rhapsody and Ditzy gathered their wits and looked around. "Eagle on our tail!" Ditzy announced.
Rhapsody needed no further explanation. She twisted the Tomcat on its belly and dove. The Eagle pursued, the more agile fighter matching her movements. Flipping back around, Rhapsody pulled up and to the left, the Eagle still tailing according to the now flustered Specter riding in the back. A number of missile locks were sounding through the cockpit, but Wraith managed to shake him off. Finally, she decided enough was enough and flew straight up.
As she expected, the eagle pulled up after her. She kept her speed for a few moments before waiting on the tone. It finally sounded after a moment. "He's got us!" Ditzy cried.
"Not for long!"
The Tomcat lurched backwards as the missile lost track after flying right by when Rhapsody hit the brakes. The eagle had been going full strength and shot right by her. Flipping the tomcat once and then stabilizing it in the drop back down, she locked a missile on his turbines and fired. The missile detached itself from the Tomcat and launched, sending it cleanly into the plane's tail. Regaining control after pushing into a nose dive, Rhapsody leveled out and chased an A-10 strafing a group of Leopard tanks. The heavy cannon on the A-10's nose roared so loud, Rhapsody could just barely hear it though, even as it tore through the sand and more than a few armored vehicles and soldiers.
It barely noticed her until it had taken a volley of cannon fire into its fuselage. But it kept flying, making Rhapsody remember just how durable those damn things really were. Gritting her teeth, Rhapsody pulled herself up behind the A-10, who was now aware he was being shot at. He pushed down, relying on his fighter's greater maneuverability at low altitudes. Rhapsody didn't have much of an advantage there, and broke off in favor of Mythic soaring right for the A-10's cockpit. A missile launched from his Typhoon and struck the attacker dead on. "Boom! Headshot!"
"If only you shot that good on the range," Amethyst chided.
"You're one to talk, Ms. 'I don't know what recoil is and broke my nose because of it'," Mythic shot back.
"That was one time!"
"Phantom! On your six!"


The crystal mare turned and squeaked almost adorably as she pulled her hornet into a steep climb, letting a volley of heavy rounds fly under her. "That was from an A-10! That pilot is either brave or dumb," Sprig commented.
"Wait, an A-10 is engaging in a dogfight?" Rhapsody remarked. "I gotta see this! Take him out Phantom!"
"Working on it!" Amethyst bit back. She twisted the lithe fighter left and right, using her superior maneuvering at higher altitude to an advantage. The A-10, unlike the Tornado, was not suited for dogfighting. She easily looped herself around behind the A-10 that tried to match her movements and sent a pair of missiles directly into the tail, sending it spiraling into the sea.
"Nice one, Phantom," Mythic commented. He then grinned, adding, "Maybe you can shoot."
"Oh hush."


"Hi, how are ya?"
The gryphon turned around and Babs bashed her rifle's butt into his beak, swinging the rifle around and shooting the two other gryphons in the room. Beside her a pair of Saddle Arabians were restraining the gunner crews of the pillbox. Through her radio, Babs could hear that her fellow marines were either beating down the gryphons or, as she saw at the next pillbox, just throwing in grenades and letting the explosion sort it out.
"This! Is! For! The! Empire!" A young crystal soldier shouted as he repeatedly punched a gryphon in the face.
"Private, I think he got the memo," Babs chided. "You mind letting him up to breathe?"
The crystal stood up, kicking the gryphon in the stomach before regarding the Master Sergeant with an expression that bordered on disgust. "Should just shoot him, do the world a favor."
Babs frowned hard as she glared at the Crystal. "It's that kind of talk that makes the gryphons hate us, Private. They call us warmongers, and you're proving them right acting like this."
"Can't say I blame him, Sarge," the hippogriff nearby cut in as he tended to a wounded soldier. "The Empire was hurt the worst of all of us. I say let him vent."
"And I say we need to remember what our job is! Secure this position and hold it. Still got a ways to go." Babs gave one last glare to the crystal private before stepping outside to give her report.


Rhapsody pulled her Tomcat up behind another A-10, just noticing a second pull up beside it. It was then joined by another as the pushed down and began firing their guns. She wasted little time with her remaining missiles once she had a lock. Mythic and another pilot from Windigo wing joined her sides and fired as well. The three made a domino effect almost as they exploded in sync and crashed into the beach just short of the column of ground forces looking for cover.
"Sky Gazer, confirm number of A-10s," Rhapsody called.
There was a quick moment of silence before Scootaloo replied back. "Confirmed splash on all targets. The ground forces are clear and proceeding forward. Beachheads secured, mission complete. And good shot you three."
"Thanks Sky Gazer." She pulled up and away to form up with Ghost Wing.


"... Yes, thank you." Rear Admiral Pippington, or Pipsqueak to his friends, adjusted his cap and looked out on the beach, hanging up the phone. He then picked up the nearby radio to speak to the whole of the forces. "This is Rear Admiral Pippington aboard the AEGIS Ship Midnight. Captain Blitz was caught in the firing from the attacker squadron. Whilst we will give the dead a proper service when we have time, Colonel Applejack is now in full command of the ground forces on the beaches until further notice."
"Sir," his communications Petty Officer announced, "The Colonel sends her thanks to the air support, and doubly for the Tomcat that saved her column."


Applejack hung up her radio and exhaled heavily. As she looked, gryphons were being rounded up and herded to a central point on the beach. They had managed to set up temporary tents where Applejack and her senior officers were setting up further plans for the invasion of the mainland. Since the weather was letting up and the waves were calming, naval diving crews had been tasked with salvaging anything and everything from the sunken hovercrafts that never made it to shore. Maps had been laid out along with an assortment of measuring tools. With it all in place, the Colonel began to gather her officers - 
"BEACH PARTY!!"
An ear shattering explosion rocked the central beach as Applejack turned, her ears swiveled downwards and her tail clinging to her leg, as if trying to hide itself. Blinking, she was confronted by a mass of confetti and a number of large mobile gun platforms launching from hovercrafts. They were painted the standard color, along with a few pieces of the armor painted a pink the same color as their commanding officer.
The lead most had Pinkie riding on the cannon itself of one of the guns, waving her helmet in the air and cheering madly. The muzzle was smoking and there were now several blankets and umbrellas set up on the beach near the water. A number of troops, wearing pink colored helmets whooped and hollered as their boots hit ground. A number of them even had surfboards as they charged for the waves.
"Is she insane?" a Saddle officer asked incredulously to the Colonel.
Applejack just grinned and shook her head, her first real smile in over a month. "No. She's just being Pinkie Pie."