//------------------------------// // Ch. 19; The Last Battle Of Winter // Story: Star Wars: A Second Chance // by Dorath //------------------------------// “A’right,” Applejack, duly elected leader of the Ponyville Partisans (she didn’t particularly care for the name, but she had been outvoted), said as she glanced over at her gathered army as they crouched behind snowy ramparts, “Once Rainbow gets back from scoutin’, we can get ta work liberatin’ Ponyville from this here ‘Foals’ Crusade’.” “And then everypony gets milkshakes!” Pinkie added enthusiastically, drawing laughter from the other ponies. “Umm, not that I’m against a friendly wager,” Thunderlane broke in, “But exactly how are Rumble and the other foals supposed to pay for the milkshakes when they lose?” The unanimous reply of “Swear jar!” coming from several dozen ponies had Thunderlane’s ears drawn back as he stared at his fellows in confusion, “Swear what?” “It was Miss Cheeilee’s idea, actually,” Twilight explained as she pointed a hoof over at where the schoolteacher, Mayor Mare, Fluttershy, and a number of other ponies had decided to merely observe the Fifth Annual Ponyville Snow War, “She thought that if we started making Revan pay a fine anytime she cursed, it might get her to clean up her language, and then she volunteered the currently collected funds to pay the forfeit.” “Huh,” Thunderlane grunted slightly, “Has it helped any?” “Eeenope.” “Not in the slightest, I fear.” “I haven’t noticed any difference.” “I think she’s been making up new swear words.” As the gathered ponies shared a chuckle, Rainbow dropped out of the gray sky to give Applejack a cocky salute, “Forward Reconnaissance Lieutenant Rainbow Dash reporting in.” “Sure took ya long enough, RD,” Applejack groused good-naturedly, “What’d ya find out?” “Hey,” protested the pegasus, “Once we start the “No-Fly” rule begins, and I wanted to make the most of it, besides, Sparkler and Dinky were really on the ball with the air defenses.” “Those’re my fillies,” Ditzy chimed in with a proud smile. Rainbow threw a grin at the mailmare as she quickly sketched a crude map in the snow, “So, the foals have a pretty basic snow fort going on, except for the towers they built here and here, and they built a second set of walls around their flag. I think they have a couple of tunnels dug so they can get between the two courts without having to climb over their inner wall …” “Not bad,” Applejack admitted, “They’re bein’ clever, an’ we already know that they have Spike with them for snowball defense, did ya spot any other surprises that tha foals went an' cooked up?” “Yeah,” Rainbow reached up a hoof to rub the back of her neck, “They brought in a ringer, Revan.” “Can they do that?” Carrot Top wondered, “She’s an adult after all …” “Ah don’t think there’s anythin’ in tha rules against them askin’ her ta join them,” Applejack glanced over at Twilight who nodded in agreement, “Ya had a snowball fight with her last winter, Twi’, what’s Revan bringin’ ta tha Crusaders?” “Other than command and combat experience, and bloodthirsty enthusiasm?” the librarian tapped a hoof on her chin as she deliberated, “If she goes on the defensive with Spike, they could significantly hinder any assaults, unless we force them to split their attention, but I believe the both of them can be overwhelmed by enough concentrated fire.” “Don’t ya worry yer head none, sugarcube, Ah got a plan that ought ta take care of tha both of them,” the farmpony raised an eyebrow as Pinkie Pie waved a hoof in the air bouncing in place like a filly with a question for her teacher, “What is it, Pinkie?” “I was wondering, AJ, is anypony ever just whelmed?” Applejack dropped her face into her hoof while her fellow ponies chuckled. ________________________________________ Apple Bloom ducked back behind her battlement as a volley of snowballs splattered against the packed snow. Sweetie Belle dropped down beside her as she readied another missile, while Scootaloo yelled taunts over the wall, before she too retreated into shelter, her muzzle covered with a fresh layer of snow, “Who got ya?” “Mister Time Turner,” the orange pegasus replied, brushing the snow off as she accepted the snowball Sweetie offered her. Rearmed, the three fillies returned to their post, scanning the no-pony’s-land between the two warring factions for signs of yet another sortie by the adults. Despite their unflagging zeal, the three Crusaders all agreed that things where not going well. With their greater numbers, the vile, alfalfa-loving Partisans had elected to push their attacks aggressively, forcing the valiant fillies and colts of the Foals’ Crusade to keep on the defensive. The adults’ last charge, spearheaded by Bulky Biceps and Big Macintosh, had actually breached the outer wall before they were finally driven back, Miss Revan was down there holding the gap now, but that meant she was no longer providing snowball-defense to the others, and as determined as Spike was, he couldn’t be in two places at once. The youngest Apple glared fiercely at the Partisans’ (not particularly) distant walls, hoping to see a familiar Stetson rise above their protection. Applejack had already participated in several attacks over the morning, but they had always been against other portions of the fort, denying (most unfairly, to Apple Bloom’s mind) her little sister a chance to pelt her with snow. A pink unicorn mare with a violet mane clambered her way up to the tower where the trio of foals were currently bombarding Cloud Kicker, Berry Punch and Toe-Tapper as the Partisans tried to dig into a snowbank to escape the barrage. Sweetie Belle tossed a distracted, “Hi, Sparkler!” over her shoulder to the new arrival as she lobbed a snowball that just missed Cloud Kicker as the three adults dropped down into their newly-made bunker. “Hey, fillies,” the teen replied, “How’s it going up here?” “We’re holdin’ our own,” Apple Bloom declared resolutely, then the little earth pony’s boldness faltered, “But it would be good ta hear that ya an' tha other older foals done conjured up a plan.” “Well, then this is your lucky day,” Sparkler smirked at the fillies, “We’re sending two three-pony teams under the back wall to try and sneak around and capture the Partisans’ flag, or at least create as much chaos as they can. And wouldn’t you know it, your three names where at the top of the list,” the unicorn’s smile widened as the three foals puffed up their chests, “Head on down and meet Velvet Lilly at the back wall, I’ll hold this tower until Snips, Snails and Zipperwill get up here.” ________________________________________ Applejack glanced over at the Ponyville clock tower while her fellow Partisans caught their breath and rearmed, ‘Almost noon, tha foals have made a pretty good showin’ of it, but Ah reckon it’s time ta wrap this up.’ “A’right, everypony, time for tha last big push, Pinkie, when we start, ya know what ta do, Ditzy, ya an' Parcel Post, stay here an' guard tha flag jus’ in case them Crusaders try anythin’ funny.” Looking her troops over one final time, the farmpony took a deep breath, and then the Ponyville Partisans swarmed out from behind their ramparts with Applejack at their head, throwing volley after volley of snowballs as fast as their hooves could make them, while the two teams of ponies she had sent ahead arose from their makeshift shelters to lob snowballs on high arcs to drop behind the Foal’s Crusades’ fortifications. Applejack squinted her eyes against the oncoming snow as the foals swarmed to their walls to try and hold off the mass of onrushing Partisans, while Revan stood grinning and shouting defiance as she swatted the adults’ attacks away with her lightsaber, a snowball of her own ready and waiting for anypony who tried to force their way past her. Raising a hoof, Applejack gave Revan a friendly wave, and then darted to the side with a shout of “Pinkie!” A loud “Thoom!” echoed across the field on the heels of her cry, as a massive snowball streaked out from within the Partisans’ ramparts and knocked the Jedi mane-over-hocks. The farmpony grinned as Revan’s confused exclamation of “… the frell?” rang out, just before Pinkie’s “Winter-Revelry Cannon” sounded again and buried Spike and Lance in snow. Yet, even as the adults of Ponyville thundered triumphantly towards the now undefended gap in the foals’ walls, Rarity and other ponies cried out in surprise and stumbled in their rush as snowballs pelted them from behind. Looking back, Applejack saw that the Cutie Mark Crusaders had somehow flanked her forces, while Dinky, Twist and Pipsqueak were inside the adults’ bulwarks and attempting to claim the Partisans’ flag from Ditzy and Parcel. ‘Why those sneaky little buggers,’ Applejack thought, giving credit where it was due, as she pushed into the foals’ outer courtyard, where she was quickly beset from both before and behind as the desperate Crusaders tried to turn aside her charge. Despite the foals’ best efforts, Applejack forged ahead, her advance made easier first by Big Mac and Bon Bon taking up positions on her flanks to protect their leader from the Crusaders’ bombardment, and then by the incoming fire faltering as, with another “Thoom!” and startled yelps, more of the defenders where buried beneath Pinkie Pies’ snowy wrath. The farmpony grinned as she heaved herself over the inner wall, one hoof already reaching out to claim the Foals’ Crusade’s flag … and the clock tower sounded twelve, bringing the Fifth Annual Ponyville Snow War to an inconclusive end. ________________________________________ As the gathered ponies (along with a twi’lek and a dragon) clambered to their feet and shook the snow from their coats, the question on everyone’s lips seemed to be “What now?” Applejack brought her hoof to her muzzle and let out a sharp whistle to get everyone’s attention as she turned away from her brief discussion with Twilight and the four teens who had served as the Foals’ Crusade’s Directing Council. “Okay everypony, we’ve talked it over, an' seein’ as how neither side actually won, we’ve decided that we’re all goin’ to head over to Sugercube Corner an' everypony is gettin’ milkshakes!” With a great cheer, the two groups left the trampled field together as they headed for Sugercube Corner, where the Cakes, no strangers to the often-whimsical wagering practices of Ponyville, already had trestle tables and benches waiting for them.