Brother Against Sister

by CartsBeforeHorses

Chapter 13: Marks of Fate

Ponyville, February 2023

The light dimmed as night time fell upon the small town of Ponyville. Residents went inside of their homes, finishing up the day’s work.

Outside of the town, the Second Kingdom unicorn forces hurriedly packed up tents, munitions, and other supplies into their saddlebags. The commanding officers barked orders at the soldiers, who hurriedly formed into lines.

Soon, the division had packed up all of its tents and supplies. Soldiers muttered excitedly as General Top Brass stood before them.

“Stallions! Today is the culmination of two years of waiting. Today, we finish what we started two years ago. Without the pegasi armies of Cloudsdale or Los Pegasus providing Equestrian air support, our job is made much easier. We now have a clear path to victory, as outlined in King Blueblood’s brilliant new strategy to win the war.

“Now, here are your marching orders…”

---

Everfree Forest, March 2023

Thirteen-year-old Pumpkin Cake was out taking a walk in the forest. She was not on any sort of ingredient-hunting mission, rather she was out to stretch her legs a bit.

May of this year would be the two-year anniversary of when she moved in with Zecora. Like her brother, she missed Ponyville, but knew that she could never go back. The Second Kingdom soldiers would see her and recognize her as an escaped unicorn farmer. Though Zecora had given her a potion to heal the brand on her flank, Pumpkin imagined that the soldiers would likely be on the lookout for any young unicorn mares like herself. Thus, she hadn’t been to Ponyville since she had escaped Sweet Apple Acres.

Besides, she had everything that she needed at Zecora’s. She had a caring guardian, food, shelter, and magic teaching. She and Zecora hadn’t been entirely isolated from the outside world, though. Pumpkin Cake had been on a few trips with Zecora to Dodge Junction, the closest other town to the Everfree Forest. Zecora felt it was important to get Pumpkin to socialize and play with other ponies, particularly since there were no other ponies her age around in the forest.

Unlike Pound, Pumpkin was homeschooled. In addition to Zecora’s magical knowledge, she knew quite a bit about the traditional school subjects such as Grammar, Math, and Science, and had been teaching Pumpkin all she knew. Due to her foreign birth, Zecora’s knowledge of pony history was a bit patchy, but Pumpkin Cake learned a lot of history from the events taking place around her. As Zecora had once mentioned, these were historic times.

Indeed, on their trips to Dodge Junction, Pumpkin Cake often heard other ponies speak about events happening elsewhere in Equestria. Over the past few months she had heard about Cloudsdale seceding. She had heard of the barn bombing plot, and had breathed a sigh of relief that she had escaped from Sweet Apple Acres when she did.

On her last trip a few weeks ago, Pumpkin Cake had heard that the Second Kingdom had finally broken the ceasefire. They captured the few areas of Ponyville that they didn’t yet control and moved the fillies and colts from the barn up to the northern Flatlands to begin farming. She didn’t know anything beyond that, but assumed that she and Zecora were safe in the Everfree Forest.

On this day, she was proven wrong.

As she walked along, she heard stallions speaking. Pumpkin Cake ducked behind a thick tree trunk, which concealed her from their view.

“...in this Blueblood-forsaken forest, anyway? I must have a million mosquito bites by now,” a unicorn stallion spoke. Pumpkin could see him off in the distance. He appeared to be levitating a machete in his magic, and was swinging at foliage.

“We have our orders, private,” said a cyan stallion. “We’re to patrol the forest and clear a path for the army until we reach the river. Any ponies we find, we’re to shoot on sight. Can’t have the Equestrians finding out that we’re in here; we’d lose the element of surprise.”

“Yes, sarge,” said a green stallion. Catching a closer look, she discovered that there were just three of them.

Pumpkin gulped as she looked behind her. Zecora’s hut was only a kilometer or so away. She began to sweat. They’d find her and kill her.

Got to come up with something fast, she thought.

She weighed her options.

She could teleport back to Zecora’s and warn her, and they both could run away. But she couldn’t teleport nearly that far, and the noise and the white flash would give her away. The the soldiers would know she was there, and they’d hunt her down. She had her intangibility spell, sure, but she could only stay intangible for so long. She couldn’t run while intangible; she could only travel at a walking pace, so they’d keep up with her just fine until it wore off and then shoot her in the head.

She could try to sneak off without teleporting, but she had a bright orange mane that would give her away. She didn’t know any invisibility spells, because those were only for the highest level unicorns. So there went that idea.

As she mulled her options, she realized that she hadn’t considered actually staying to fight them. So, going against her first instinct to just turn tail and run, she swallowed, steadied herself, and then jumped out from behind the tree, directly in front of the three soldiers.

“Kill her!” the sergeant shouted. All three stallions drew their weapons and fired at Pumpkin Cake, just as she turned intangible. Their bullets passed harmlessly through her as the soldiers emptied their clips.

“How’s she still standing?” one private asked.

“The bullets passed right through her. That’s impossible!” said the other private.

“Turn back now, or else!” Pumpkin Cake commanded, floating towards them, still intangible. She hoped that her spell wouldn’t wear off before they left.

“It’s a ghost!” said one of the ponies, the color draining from his face.

“A phantom!” said another.

“Ghosts aren’t real! Stand your ground! This is some sort of trick,” said the sergeant.

Pumpkin Cake grinned as she got an idea.

“I am the Phantom of the Forest,” said Pumpkin Cake. “Leave and never return again, or I’ll curse you all with terrible diseases!”

“Run!” cried one of the privates, who started to run away until the sergeant grabbed him with his magic and pulled him back.

The sergeant turned to the private. “Keep it together! I’ll have you court martialed! Curses aren’t real, either!”

Pumpkin Cake saw her chance. She briefly turned solid once more so that she could use her telekinesis. She grabbed a stick from the ground, turned it intangible, and placed it inside of the sergeant’s front hoof. Then, she made the stick solid again while it was still in his hoof.

“AAAAH!” the sergeant cried out, the stick displacing his flesh as it came back into existence. His skin and muscle ripped apart as blood spilled everywhere, and he fell to the ground.

“It’s a terrible disease!” the two privates screamed, running away.

Abandoned by his stallions, the sergeant turned back towards Pumpkin Cake. She slowly walked up to him, scowling, as his jaw trembled and his pupils widened.

He whimpered, tears streaming down his face. “Don’t… don’t kill me… I was just following orders... I have a family…”

Pumpkin Cake scowled at him. She just stood there for a few seconds, contemplating what he had said. Finally, she spoke.

“So did I.”

Then, with the last of her magic, Pumpkin Cake cast a teleport spell, disappearing out of the sergeant’s sight. She reappeared close to Zecora’s hut, physically exhausted from all the magic she’d used. She sat down in the underbrush, catching her breath.

For the first time in two years, she cried over the loss of her parents. She didn’t bother fighting her tears or hiding from her sadness this time. She was too tired. The realization set in that the Second Kingdom, which had taken both of her parents, which had separated her from her brother, now wanted to take Zecora, the only family she had left. History would repeat itself, and she would be left with nopony but herself, and then they would kill her too.

She sniffled and bawled for several minutes.

But then, she stopped. History wouldn’t repeat; it was different this time. She looked up at her horn. She now had the power to stop it. Before, she had been powerless, but she was strong now. They could no longer take from her without a fight.

Her tears of sorrow turned to tears of joy as she finally understood. She still missed her parents dearly, and not a second went by when she didn’t wish for them back. But their deaths wouldn’t be in vain because now, she had discovered the strength at her core.

Despite those soldier’s machine guns, they had no power over her. They were powerless to control or even touch her anymore, and they had all fled in terror before her. She decided at that moment that she would continue to fight until every oppressor in all the land fled or died, and everypony could truly live free from those who sought to hurt or control them.

It was her purpose in life.

A brilliant flash of light shone from Pumpkin Cake’s flank as her cutie mark appeared: a symbol of a blue outline of a pony.

---

Mareicopa, April 2013

The bright midday desert sun shone down upon the sprawling city of Mareicopa. Residents of the city wore heavy sunglasses and wide-brimmed hats to stay warm on this sweltering day. During the summer months, the heat would be so unbearable that most residents would either stay inside or go to the swimming pool. Nearly every house had a swimming pool in the backyard. Air conditioning, a luxury in most other parts of Equestria, was a must here.

The city couldn’t survive were it not for the Everfree River which carried life-sustaining water from tributaries in the Canterlot mountain through the Everfree forest, west to Mareicopa, then through Las Pegasus and finally out to sea. Aqueducts built on this river carried it into water reservoirs in the city.

Outside the city in the desert, snakes slithered into the sand, buzzards flew off into the air, and jackrabbits hid behind cacti as the ground shook from the rhythmic stomping of thousands of unicorn hooves. The troops followed the winding path of the Everfree River, closing in on the city.

Spitfire was relaxing on a deck chair beside the swimming pool at her new home. Pound Cake was swimming laps around the pool. After the physical training regimen which Spitfire had put him through for the past three years, he was now a muscular and physically-fit pony.

“Alright, that’s enough swimming. You can just relax if you want,” said Spitfire, glancing down at her watch.

“Okay,” said Pound, breathing heavily as he came to a stop.

“Good job today, Pound.”

“Thanks…” he said. “Just wish that it was a bit nicer outside, and less hot. Even in the pool, I’m burning up.”

Spitfire chuckled. “You think that you’ll be able to decide what the weather is when the Second Kingdom comes?”

Pound didn’t answer.

“That’s what I thought,” said Spitfire, grinning.

“I do miss all my friends in Cloudsdale, though,” he said as he climbed out of the pool and dried himself off.

“So do I, but you remember the laws they passed. I couldn’t just keep my position in the Equestrian air force and stay there too.”

“Yeah,” Pound conceded.

A warning siren sounded off in the distance, along with several explosions.

Spitfire’s head jolted up.

“What’s going on?” asked Pound.

“One of the Second Kingdom’s battalions has been marching west down the Everfree River towards Mareicopa for months. We’ve been holding them off as best as we could, but I guess now they’ve finally arrived. I have to go to the military base. If the Second Kingdom makes it past our forces and into the city, you know what to do.”

“Fly straight to Manehattan,” said Pound Cake.

“You got it, said Spitfire, nodding. “You’ll find the Princesses as well as Rainbow Dash there, and they can find you a new home. I hope it doesn’t come to that, but in case I don’t see you again…”

She grabbed Pound Cake tightly in a hug.

“I love you, Pound Cake. You’re like the son I never had.”

A single tear formed in Pound Cake’s eye. “I love you too. Thank you for everything. All your training, your teaching.”

Spitfire let him go and looked him in the eye. “You’re a good kid, Pound Cake. Never forget who you are and where you come from. Keep Equestria in your heart, no matter what happens. Now I have a battle to fight! See you around, kid!”

She grinned at him, and then ran into the house. She quickly dressed in her Equestrian officer’s attire, and then bolted out the door, flying towards the military base.

---

Ponies clad in military vests ran through the streets of Mareicopa, ordering all civilians to get indoors. Ponies scrambled to get back to their homes. One mare pointed in shock towards the eastern horizon, where she could see the shadows of the thousands of ponies approaching.

Explosions rocked the eastern desert, as pegasi forces dropped bombs on the incoming unicorns.

General Spitfire flew through the gates to the military base, where she went to the rallying point for a group of soldiers.

She spoke, “We are the only line of defense stopping the Second Kingdom from overrunning this city! Since Las Pegasus seceded, if the Second Kingdom forces get past us, there’s no stopping them from making their way to the western sea. Now, get out there and fight!”

They all saluted, and rushed out the door towards their positions.

---

General Top Brass stood with his soldiers as the unicorn magicians cast and re-cast protective force-fields against the incoming missiles.

“Counter-attack!” he commanded. Unicorn artillery forces loaded rockets into launchers, got into position, and fired them towards the military base.

Tanks from the Mareicopa base drove out across the desert, blasting at the unicorn lines. The unicorn wizards projected force fields, which did not withstand the incoming missiles. Explosions ripped the front lines of the unicorn army as many stallions fell to the concussive forces of the rockets.

General Top Brass ordered his top telekinetics to the front lines, where they raised a temporary barrier of sand in front of the incoming tank missiles. The wall of sand towered three meters high, and completely blocked the Equestrians’ view of the Second Kingdom forces.

Mareicopan earth pony soldiers ran into position and smashed through some of the sand barriers with their hooves, shooting at the unicorn telekinetic magicians. They took out some, but most of the barrier still remained, providing the unicorns with a moving shield to fire from behind. Artillery unicorns poked holes in the sand and fired through at Equestrian forces as needed.

The pegasus brigades from Mareicopa flew out into the desert, far above where the unicorns stood. There were less pegasi forces now than there were at the battle of Ponyville, given that much of the air force had left with the Cloud Confederacy. The unicorn planes, which had been improved since the battle of Ponyville, flew over to meet them. The planes now had reinforced cockpits, and dual machine guns. The biplanes were also joined by a few new, metallic-winged monoplanes which were more maneuverable than their predecessors.

The unicorn pilots strafed the pegasus fighters, who responded by shooting back at the planes. The high-caliber rounds from the planes tore through the pegasi like tissue paper, and they fell to the ground a bloody mess. The pegasus fighters managed to smash a few of the cockpits and kill some of the pilots. The ensuing dogfight lasted for several hours, with both sides sustaining heavy losses, but with the unicorns coming out ahead in their first air victory of the war.

Now with free reign over the skies, the unicorn bombers dropped bombs on the Equestrian tanks, blowing them to pieces. A few of the bombers fell as the tanks blasted them out of the sky, but they were no match for the unicorn air superiority.

The unicorn bombers went into position over the barracks, dropping bombs on silos. The silos exploded as the troops within them fled for cover, out into the city. The unicorn bombers continued into the city, indiscriminately dropping bombs over every target they could find: government buildings and civilian homes alike.

Pound Cake, who had already grabbed his bug-out bag, glanced up into the sky and saw the unicorn bombers flying. He grimaced in anger and determination, remembering what Spitfire told him, as he took off into the sky to leave for Manehattan.

Pound could see hundreds of ponies running around in the streets frantically screaming and trying to avoid the bombs and take shelter. These ponies appeared smaller and smaller in size as he ascended into the heavens. He could see the bombers and fighter jets, but he ascended to far above them where they couldn’t fire at him. Not that they would notice a single pegasus among the panicking crowds.

Off in the distance, he could see the Everfree River. He could see the earth pony brigades retreating towards the city, and the thousands of unicorn troops advancing towards it. The Everfree River would lead him towards the Everfree Forest, and provide a source of drinking water in the desert heat. Once he reached the Everfree Forest, he would follow the Baltimare River towards the Horseshoe Bay, and then follow Equestria’s east coast up until he reached Manehattan.

He hovered in the air for a second. Just as he was about to fly off in the direction of the Everfree River, a series of explosions jolted the ground below him.

He glanced down and saw that in Spitfire’s neighborhood, half of the homes were now smoldering craters.

His brow furrowed and he gritted his teeth. Those Second Kingdom scum were attacking civilians in his very own neighborhood! Did they have no respect for the laws of war, for their fellow ponies?

He gazed down at one of the bombers, his eyes searing under both the desert heat and his uncontrollable fury. He shook his head, and remembered what Spitfire had taught him. Her techniques required focus, not rage.

He cleared his mind, stilled his wings and entered a free-fall. He rapidly gained speed as he neared the bomber. Even in the sun’s scorching heat, the whipping gusts at his coat chilled him to the bone.

As Pound extended both of his hooves in front of him, a white cone of air began to form in front of them. Crackling and echoing boomed through the air as he approached the speed of sound. He aimed his hooves square towards the wing of the bomber as he focused all of his energy towards his hooves. One lapse in concentration and he would end up with his blood and guts splattered all over the wing.

With a loud Clank, Pound Cake hit the wing of the bomber. The aluminum wing folded beneath his sheer speed and strength as he continued dive-bombing towards the ground. He flapped his wings and zipped back up towards the sky, his momentum carrying him upward as he hit another bomber on the wing. Gravity and the collision caught up to him, and he came to a stop in midair as he gazed down towards the bombers.

They flew out of control, entering tailspins as the pilots ejected and deployed their parachutes. The bombers exploded into fireballs on the ground below.

Pound Cake heard the crackling of machine gun fire as he turned around and noticed that two fighter planes had spotted him and noticed that he had taken down the bombers. He quickly flew up and over them, soaring high into the sky until he was out of their range.

Breaking the airplanes’ wings was a feat not many pegasi would’ve been able to do without crashing or killing themselves. Though it would have been effective, its inherent risk mean that it wasn’t a sanctioned military tactic. But Spitfire had trained Pound Cake well, and he had practice cracking cement blocks in two in her backyard.

Those Second Kingdom soldiers were evil, callous monsters, Pound thought as he flew. They had no loyalty to anypony but themselves, and no desire to see peace or equality prevail. They would kill anypony in a heartbeat without so much as a second thought. Even if they were just following orders, their behavior was inexcusable and unfair.

Even though there were no courts to try them in, and no police who could round them up, they had broken the laws of war and deserved to be brought to justice. Pound glanced back down at the ground at the smouldering wreckage of the bombers and smiled. That was justice, and he had the strength of body and the purity of heart to deal it fairly.

At that moment, he knew. He would bring all of the evildoers to justice. He would reunite Equestria, and nopony would ever claim to be any better than anypony else again. The racist leaders in Canterlot and the separatist leaders in Cloudsdale would face their day in court, and then everypony else could live as equals.

It was his purpose in life.

A brilliant flash of light shone from Pound Cake’s flank as his cutie mark appeared: a symbol of two jetwings.

Comments

[Emily The Annihilator]

Oh. My. YES.

[Carpinus Caroliniana]

So Pound's destiny is as an aviator? And Pumpkin's destiny is as a covert ops trooper?

Fuck yeah!

[LuseneXxx]

Heh, nice to see technology marching on over the course of the story...