> Elements of Independence
>  by Paintbrush235
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter One: Through the Portal
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Deep inside the spectacular complex that was the new Castle of Friendship that now dominated the landscape around the small crossroads town of Ponyville, is the personal library of the Princess of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle. On this particular day, the newly appointed monarch sat in her own archive of information, reviewing and packing books and journals into her saddlebags that sat on her desk. Just opposite her in the room, sat the mirror that acted as the portal to the human world. 

Twilight inhaled with excitement. Her heart was going a mile a minute. She was about to embark on a personal journey of research and study she had been planning for months now. Since her second visit to her Canterlot High friends, she had become fascinated with the idea of returning and studying the humans further. She had never had the opportunity to do so on her last two visits, and she intended not to waste her new chance. She had prepared herself for an even longer stay than before; at least a couple of months. This was possible with her new ability to control the opening and closing of the portal.

She had just finished packing her last quills and ink bottles into her bags when a series of knocks came from the door to the room.

"Come in." Twilight called, quickly hiding away her saddlebags.

The door's latch clicked and then swung open. Behind the door, it revealed Twilight's number one assistant Spike the dragon, and her five closest friends, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie. Twilight was surprised to see them, but not nearly as surprised to see the two figures standing behind them. One of them was Applejack's older brother Big Macintosh, and the other was Twilight's own big brother, Shining Armor.

The group shuffled it's way through the door and stood in front of Twilight. They all had serious expressions on their faces that would've made Discord cringe.

Twilight looked at them all with confusion. "What's wrong everypony?" She looked at the two stallions present. "Big Macintosh. Shiny. Why are you here?" She didn't want to sound rude. She loved their company and was always happy to see her BBBFF. She just wanted to know why they all had come to see her.

The ponies and dragon facing her all looked at each other with worry painted on their faces. Finally, Applejack sighed and spoke up.

"Sugarcube. We know you are going back to that other world today."

Twilight face immediately showed her nervousness. She sighed as she admitted to herself that she had been found out. She hadn't told any of her friends or family that she was going on this trip to the human world. The reason why was stated when Applejack spoke again. 

"And we all want to come with you. No buts about it." The farm mare said firmly.

Twilight shook her head. This is exactly what she had been trying to avoid. "Like I said last time girls, you can't come with me. There can't be two of you all running around in that world."

"Oh don't give us that excuse Twilight." Rainbow Dash now piped up. "We know that you aren't even going to the world that has that school this time."

Twilight gulped. The cyan pegasus was right. Twilight had found a way to change whatever place the portal led to and had deliberately set the portal to any random location as long as it was in the human world.

The purple alicorn sighed. "That is true Rainbow but I still can not let you come with me. It could be dangerous, and I don't want any of you to get hurt on my account."

"Twilight darling." Rarity now put forth her thoughts. "I think that after everything we went through by now, you know that we are no strangers to danger."

"Yeah silly!" Pinkie Pie chirped. "We can take on any meanies that stand in our way!"

"You bet we can!" Rainbow Dash agreed. "We can handle ourselves Twilight. Plus we want to make sure that you are okay y'know."

Fluttershy nodded at Rainbow Dash's last statement. "Yes. And um I could make sure that you don't get um sick. If thats um okay with you though."

Applejack smiled and removed her hat. "See sugarcube. We'll be fine."

"So will I." Spike now joined in. "You definitely will need your number one assistant to help you on your trip."

Twilight smiled, feeling tears come to her eyes at her assistant and friend's loyalty. She trotted up and brought them all into a group hug that they all quickly joined in.

"You are all the best." She sniffed. "I love you all." She then stepped back and looked at the only other males in the room besides Spike. "There is one thing I don't understand though. Why are you two here? Shiny shouldn't you be in the Crystal Empire?"

Big Macintosh was the first to speak. "Ah can't let mah sister go into danger by herself anymore." he explained. "I've decided to come with her this time." Big Mac then walked over to his sister and nuzzled the top of her head.

Twilight then turned her attention to her own brother, who was wore a brotherly smile across his face. "My reason is the same as his." He said gesturing to Big Mac. "I can't let you go by yourself anymore. I'm here now to do my duty as a brother and a guard." Twilight's tears finally broke through and she ran up to hug her brother, who returned the embrace. "Besides," he continued, "It's time I started saving you for a change." Twilight giggled at this.

She then stepped back and sighed. "Alright everypony." She said. "You all can come with me. I guess I should wait for you all to pack though."

"Oh no need darling." Rarity said, and promptly lit up her horn. Immediately, seven saddlebags and one backpack for Spike floated into the room and came to rest on the backs of their respective owners. "We packed already."

Twilight chuckled and rolled her eyes. "You weren't going to take no for an answer were you?"

All eight individuals shook their heads.

Twilight sighed. "Alright then. I guess there is no point in delaying it. Just follow me and expect to be a little dizzy when we get there." With that she turned to face the already active portal and took a few slow steps towards it. Pausing to take a deep breath, she finally took the step that plunged her into the portal. And one by one behind her, her friends and family followed after her into the human world.

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Twilight groaned. Her head ached like somepony had rattled and beat drums around her for eight hours straight. She slowly began to open her eyes to see how her body had changed. When she opened them and saw these changes, she immediately knew something was different than previous visits. 

She had gained hands like before, but her skin was paler than before. Taking a further look at herself she saw that her clothes were also different than her clothes at Canterlot High. She was wearing a long green dress that reached all the way down to her feet which were covered in black shoes with brass buckles on the tops of them. Draped across her back was what appeared to be a black shawl and atop her head rested white cap that covered her hair, which she could tell was tied up into a small bun. 

Twilight at last took in her surroundings. She was in a dense forest of some kind, and telling by the temperature and the fact that the leaves were off the trees, she guessed it was winter. The sky was filled with light grey clouds and a light chilled breezed was sweeping through the trees, causing Twilight to shiver. Where am I? She thought to herself.

*Groan* 

Twilight snapped her head around to see where the groan came from and saw three figures laying down in the leaves. One of them was a male, Twilight could see, and had the same pale skin as her. In fact they all had varying shades of her own pale skin. The male had blonde shaggy hair and wore a dark brown jacket that ran past his waste and dark tan pants that cut off at the calves where they were met by what Twilight assumed were stockings. He wore black shoes and a black hat that looked like a beaten up triangle from the top. On his back was a brown knapsack and slung across his chest to the left was a wooden canteen.

The second figure was female and had pink curly hair underneath a cap similar to Twilights. Her dress looked a little more dirty than Twilights and was dark blue at the skirt and dirty white at the top. She too wore a dark wool shawl across her back and also carries a canteen. 

The final figure was male, though younger than the other, and had faded rainbow colored hair a top his head in a pony tail. He wore a light brown jacket similar to the first figure and a white vest underneath it as well. He wore dark black pants and had stockings similar to the other man. His clothes were also patched up in random places and his hat was wide brimmed, brown and beaten up. He lastly had on a knapsack, cloth bag and wooden canteen.

Twilight soon saw that the groan had come from this person. "Ugh. Twilight. Why don't you warn us next time huh?"

Twilight couldn't believe her ears. The voice sounded so familiar, albeit a little deeper than before. There is no way it can.... she thought, Could it be?

"Rainbow Dash?" She asked hesitantly. "Is that you?" 

Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight with confusion as she sat up. "What do you mean Twilight? Of course it's....." She stopped when she saw her friend. "Whoa Twilight. So that's what you look like when you come hear. Wait. Why does my voice sound deeper?"

"Because you've turned into a male!" Twilight blurted out.

"What?!?" Rainbow exclaimed before looking at her (I should say himself). "What the heck?! Why am I a male?!" He yelled.

"I don't know Dashie, but you look great in those new clothes." The voice came from the newly humanized Pinkie Pie who had sat up next to Rainbow Dash and was taking a look at her new self as well as her friend. To Twilight's expectation, she didn't seem to fazed about her transformation. 

"Can somepony tell me where the hay we all are?" Twilight looked back at the last figure when she recognized the deep country accent. Big Macintosh sat up behind Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie and was looking over his new figure and his new surroundings. He also was scratching at the sleeve of his coat. "These clothes are mighty itchy."

Twilight looked around at the forest, trying to see anything that might be recognizable. But she saw nothing but trees and low hills. "I have no idea where we are guys." She admitted. "I've never been to anywhere like this when I came here before."

"Hey wait a minute." Rainbow Dash interrupted. "Where is everypony else?"

Twilight froze. She quickly looked around and saw to her horror that Spike, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack and her brother Shining Armor were no where to be seen.

"Oh my gosh!" Twilight started panicking and stood up looking around in random directions. "Where are they? We need to go find them! Oh I knew this was a bad idea! What if they are lost or hurt or in trouble or..." she was stopped when Rainbow Dash stood up, grabbed Twilight by the arms and shook her out of her rant.

"Twilight get a hold of yourself!" he commanded. "Everything is going to be fine. I'm sure they are ok."

Twilight stared at her friend. "Y-you really think so?" She stuttered.

Big Macintosh now stood up and walked over to the pair with a reassuring smile. "We know so Miss Twilight." He said calmly. "I'm worried fer mah sister to, but ah know that she can handle herself if need be. And so can the rest of them."

"Yeah Twilight." Pinkie Pie now joined them. "They'll be ok. You know they will."

Twilight looked at her friends for a moment letting all that they said sink in. She then took a deep breath and relaxed a little. "Ok you guys. I believe you. We should start looking for them though. In the meantime there are a few things you should know about the humans."

"Like what?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Well for one they don't say 'everypony' or 'anypony'. They say 'everybody' and 'anybody'. They also always walk on two legs and they use their hands to grab things. They also do not fly nor....." Twilight stopped when she felt something cold land on her nose. She looked up and saw tiny white snowflakes starting to fall down around her and her friends. The snow soon began to fall faster and harder until it was similar to the early snowfalls of winter in Equestria. The four figures shivered in the cold.

"M-maybe we should get out t-this forest and f-find shelter?" She suggested.

"L-Let's do that." Rainbow Dash shuddered.

"S-seconded." Pinkie Pie squeaked.

"E-Eyup." Big Mac agreed.

Twilight looked around for a direction to go, and saw that they had ended up in a shallow ravine that seemed to head downhill to their right. She gestured for her friends to follow her and they slowly began to make their way down the path. 

The wind howled like windigos and the snow fell even harder. Twilight squeezed her eyes to slits as she and the other trudged on down the hill. After about fifteen minutes of walking, they halted at what appeared to Twilight to be a dirt road. It ran perpendicular to the path the had come down and in either direction ran through to woods.

"Which direction should we go now Twilight?" Rainbow Dash questioned.

Twilight was about to answer when a sound pierced it's way through the wind and entered Twilight's ear. Twilight could tell that it had come from the right down the road and it appeared to be getting closer. It was the sound of a horse neighing. Twilight recognized it from the time she had visited the human Applejack's farm. The neighing got closer and closer, followed by the sounds of rattling wagons as they bounced along rocks and ruts. Twilight and her friends stood still and stared down the road. Suddenly from around the bend, another human appeared. Twilight  could just make out that he wore a blue coat with red facings and a hat similar to Big Mac's. He also carried a strange stick in his arms and had numerous bags and pouches hanging from his body. The blue coated human was followed by another, and another, and another, and another, and still even more came around the bend. Twilight could see that some of the blue coated humans were riding on horses, and some were pulling wagons with strange metal tubes on them. Most of them had patches on their coats and pants, Twilight could see as they got closer, and almost all were carrying the strange long sticks. 

Twilight tensed up as they came to within 10 yards of her and her friends. Rainbow Dash and Big Mac put on protective glares and Pinkie Pie instinctively wrapped her arms around Rainbow Dash for protection.

The group tensed up even more as two of the blue coated humans noticed them and started approaching them. Twilight and her friends backed up slightly and were about to back up even further when a loud voice startled them.

"Halt!"

And they did. From the crowd of blue coated humans appeared one that had what Twilight recognized as epaulettes on his shoulders and carried a sword on his left side. He walked up in between the two humans with the sticks and approached Twilight and her friends.

"What are you all doing out here?" He asked. He seemed to sound accusatory. "What are you doing on this road?"

None of Twilight's friends said anything. The human was about to speak again when the sound of a rapidly approaching horse came from behind him. Looking behind him, Twilight saw a human sitting atop a white horse trotting towards the scene. When he stopped, Twilight was able to get a good look at the human. His hair was grey and he wore a light blue cape over a dark blue coat with light yellow facings. He looked like a commanding figure and Twilight guessed that he was a leader of some sorts.

The other humans present quickly stood up straight and still when the rider approached. The human with the sword brought his right hand up into what Twilight assumed was a salute.

"General Washington Sir." he said to the rider. Twilight saw that this General Washington was looking at her and her friends with great interest.

"Who are these civilians captain?" General Washington spoke calmly and with a regal voice Twilight noted.

"We were just about to get to the bottom of that sir." the captain replied.

"Well we won't do it here." Washington stated firmly, pulling at his cape. "The British could be anywhere in these woods and we must reach the Delaware before they do." He then motioned to Twilight and her friends. "Also, they appear to be near freezing. We'll take them with us. Ma'am" He spoke to Twilight. "Will you follow the captain here."

Twilight hesitated. She didn't know who these humans were. On the other hand, she and her friends were lost and these humans seemed to at least know where they were going.

"Yes we will." She replied briefly.

"Good." Washington nodded. "Look after them captain." 

"Yes sir." The captain replied. With that, the human known as General Washington rode off down the road with the rest of the mass of blue coated humans. The captain then turned and faced Twilight and her shivering companions.

"Ma'am, if you and your friends will please follow me."

Twilight looked at her friends, gave them a nod of reassurance and followed after the captain into the cold.

> Chapter Two: Escape by Boat
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Rainbow Dash POV

Two Hours Later

Rainbow Dash kept close to his friends. This was not out of fear by any means, no sir. He was sticking close to keep them protected from these strange humans. Twilight might have said before that the humans she had met were trustworthy, but she had already admitted that she had never seen humans like these before. Rainbow Dash didn't trust them either, but he trusted her friend, so when Twilight said that they would follow along with the crowd of blue coated humans, he followed as well.

They had been walking for about two hours now, and the affects of the cold were starting to take their toll. Earlier, a wagon drawn by two creatures that resembled ponies that Twilight referred to as "horses" came by them. By then, Twilight and Pinkie Pie were struggling with the cold were showing signs of exhaustion. That is when the captain who was accompanying them stopped the wagon and offered it for Twilight and Pinkie Pie to ride in. They accepted the offer and Big Mac and Rainbow helped their two friends onto the vehicle and walked beside it for the rest of the journey.

All the while, Rainbow Dash was taking in both her (correction: his) new body. It certainly felt strange to be walking on two legs now, but surprisingly, it had not taken him to long to get used to it enough to walk without looking silly. The cloths were strange as well. In Equestria, ponies wore clothes sometimes for special occasions or jobs, but the former pegasus had never seen nor worn anything like this. The clothes were very earthy in color and itched a lot. His shoes weren't all to comfortable either, but Rainbow Dash didn't mind much when she saw that some of the humans had no shoes at all and some only rags wrapped around their feet. Seeing that he now only had fur on his head, Rainbow Dash was grateful to have something protecting her feet from the snow. 

His knapsack sagged on his back, and Rainbow Dash was also grateful that he no longer had wings to be crushed by it. The cloth bag that hung on his left he found contained what appeared to be hard crackers and his canteen clunked against the buttons on the flap. When he looked at it, he saw that what he and Big Mac were carrying was not too different from what some of the other humans were carrying. 

That brought the former pegasus's attention back to observing the humans. The blue coats they wore were patchy and torn, with some buttons missing from them. Their pants were of similar condition with some soldiers having their knees exposed to the wind and snow through the cloth. The hats that sat atop their heads were similar to Rainbow's and Big Mac's, except that some had a white border along the edges. Some wore hats that looked similar to the wool caps that ponies wore in the winter back in Equestria. All in all these humans looked roughed up and tired.

"COLUMN HALT!"

Rainbow Dash was snapped out of his observations by the sharp yell of someone in front of him. He turned back to the front and saw that while he had been looking at the humans, they had arrived at the shore of what appeared to be a wide river. Humans were dismounting their horses and others that were walking made their way over to random trees, set their long sticks down and lay down themselves against the trees.

The captain who was escorting Rainbow Dash and his friends walked up to the back of the wagon and held out his hand.

"May I help you down madams?" He asked politely. Twilight and Pinkie Pie looked at each other before Twilight slowly reached out and grabbed the captain's hand. "Thank you." she said softly, and slowly with the help of the captain climbed out of the wagon followed by Pinkie Pie.

The captain then gestured for the group to follow him. He then led them over to a group of humans that all carried swords and were all staring across the river.

"Excuse me sirs." the captain said when he approached them.

The group of humans turned around to face the new arrivals. Rainbow Dash immediately recognized the one in the middle as the human the captain had called General Washington.

"Here are the civilians we picked up earlier sir." The captain gestured to the group.

The one called Washington nodded. "Thank you captain." He spoke. "You may rejoin your company. We can handle it from here." 

"Yes sir." And with that the captain turned around and left Rainbow and his friends with Washington.

Washington walked up to Rainbow and the group and looked them over curiously before speaking. "I am General George Washington." He said. "May I ask who you all are?"

Rainbow Dash and his friends all looked at each other hesitantly before Twilight finally spoke. "My name is Twilight Sparkle." She spoke with confidence and firmness despite the cold. "And these are my friends Pinkie Pie, Big Macintosh and Rainbow Dash."

Washington and the others present all looked at each other with confusion. "You're definitely not native to New Jersey I presume." He said.

"Is that where we are?" Twilight asked. "What is New Jersey?"

Washington cleared his throat. "New Jersey is one of the richest colonies in North America. Where are you all from?"

Twilight hesitated. "We come from a land called Equestria." she said finally.

Washington raised an eyebrow. "I have never of a nation called 'Equestria'." He said. "Are you telling the absolute truth?"

Rainbow Dash felt insulted that this human just accused his friend of possibly lying. "Of course she is telling the truth!" He exclaimed.

"Rainbow!" Twilight tried to shush her friend. Washington however just chuckled.

"There was no disrespect intended young lad." He reassured. "It is just that we have been running into tory spies that would reveal our most precious secrets to the enemy at the first chance."

Twilight now raised an eyebrow. "The enemy?" She obviously had more questions but Washington raised his hand to stop her.

"I am afraid that we must cut this conversation short." He said bluntly. "The enemy is in pursuit of our men and we must put this river between us and them or else all is lost. Colonel Glover!"

"Yes sir." The human who answered wore a black cape over a brown green coat and had light brown hair under a triangular brown hat that was tied into a short pony tail with a black ribbon. He, like the other humans present, carried a sword, but Rainbow Dash could see that that was the only military like item that he carried. He stepped up to Washington.

"Glover, take your men up river to the smelter like we discussed and requisition the boats. All of them Glover. There is no time to waste."

Glover grunted. "I will as quick as I can sir." His voice seemed to resemble those that Rainbow had heard in Trottingham. "But it won't be easy."

"For God's sake Glover." Washington sighed. "Just get it done."

"Do y'all need help?"

Rainbow and everyone else present turned to the figure that had spoken. Big Mac had now stepped forward from the group and had a helpful expression on his face.

Glover walked up to him and Rainbow Dash and looked them over. "You ever been on a boat crew before?" He asked.

Big Mac shook his head. "No. But Ah was always a strong worker back on mah farm. And mah friend here can do just about anything that he puts his mind to." He looked at Rainbow and winked slightly.

Glover frowned. He then looked back at Washington who simply shrugged and nodded. "It is your decision Glover."

Glover looked back at Rainbow and Big Mac. He then sighed. "Alright you two." He said gruffly. "Follow me."

Twilight looked at Big Mac questioningly. "What are you doing Big Mac?"

"Y'all said that we had to trust them to get us someplace safe." He replied. "So we gotta give 'em reason to trust us."

Twilight sighed, realizing Big Mac was right. "Alright." she said. "Just be careful."

Rainbow Dash smiled reassuringly. "We will Twilight."

"Hey! You two!" Glover was waving to Rainbow and Big Mac. "Sometime this winter!"

Big Mac and Rainbow Dash quickly hugged their two friends, then ran over to the human called Glover. Twilight and Pinkie Pie waved to them as they left.

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Big Macintosh's POV

Big Mac kept close to Rainbow Dash as the human called Colonel Glover led them over to a group of men all carrying the strange sticks that the rest of the humans were carrying. Glover stopped a few feet from the group of humans and gestured to Big Mac and Rainbow Dash.

"Wait here." He ordered. He then walked up to a human in the group who had straps on his shoulders. The blue coated human had a long white tube with a very small bowl at the end of it that had smoke coming out of it. His hair was scraggly and unkempt and he had some fur on his face. 

"Sergeant O'Keefe." Glover spoke to the rough looking human who answered with a short salute. 

"Yes Sir." O'Keefe said with a grimy sort of voice.

Colonel Glover pointed towards Big Mac and Rainbow Dash. "These two have volunteered to join the regiment in our expedition to acquire some boats for the army. Give them muskets and have them somewhat acquainted with them. We march in two minutes." 

"Yes sir." O'Keefe replied and then looked to Big Mac and Rainbow Dash. He then gestured to them to come up to them, which the slowly did.

"You two ever handled a musket before?" He asked.

Big Mac's mind experienced a moment of understanding. Muskets. So thats what they called those big long sticks. He still didn't know how they worked though so he shook his head. Rainbow Dash shook his head as well.

O'Keefe sighed, then reached down and grabbed two these "muskets" and handed them to Big Mac and Rainbow. He also have them two leather boxes that were connected to white leather slings and he told them to sling them over their left shoulder. He then grabbed another one and held it in front of the duo with both of his well.

"Ok then. This is the trigger, this is the flint, this is the frizzen, this is the ram rod and this is the muzzle." He said pointing to various parts of the musket. "Now I want you to repeat what I do. Ok?" They nodded. "Good. Now first ya reach back here to yer cartridge box and grab one paper cartridge like this." He showed them. "Then ya tear the top open with yer teeth. You then open the frizzen hear and pour just a wee bit of powder into the pan here. Ya then close the pan and pour the rest of the powder down the muzzle here and then the ball as well." When he finished performing those steps and when he saw that Big Mac and Rainbow Dash had completed the steps correctly he continued. "Ya then take yer ram rod out here and put it in the barrel and ram it all home. Ya got it?" The two nodded. "Ya then take the ram rod out and put it back in it's place. And then when yer ready to shoot, ya cock it back all the way and then pull the trigger here. Don't do it now!" He quickly said when Big Mac and Rainbow attempted to do the last step. "Just wait 'til I tell ya. Ya got it?" 

"Yes."

"Eyup."

"Good." O'Keefe sighed. "Now fall in over here."

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Big Mac grunted. He hadn't expected the musket to be so heavy on his shoulder. That was where he and Rainbow were carrying theirs, as they were told to do so by Sergeant O'Keefe. O'Keefe seemed to be a bit of a bully to Big Mac when he saw the way he ordered his men around. But what Big Mac came to understand, it all seemed necessary to keep order amongst the group of humans he and Rainbow were now marching with. Big Mac saw the resemblance these humans had with the Royal Guards that he had seen back in Equestria. The biggest glaring differences were the weapons, the uniforms and of course the species.

They had been marching for about twenty minutes now, and Big Mac was wondering if they were ever going to get to this "smelters" or whatever they called it, when he at last spotted a couple of wooden buildings near the river. One small building that Big Mac recognized as an outhouse stood in the middle of a small field. At the shore of the river, he could also see the boats that they had come to get. 

"Halt the column." Big Mac heard the voice of a human he had been introduced to as Lieutenant Gordon. At once the group of humans stopped and faced the outhouse. Big Mac then saw Colonel Glover climb off of his horse and approach the outhouse, stopping about halfway in between. For a few moments, nothing happened and Big Mac, Rainbow Dash and the rest of the humans stood in silence. Then suddenly, the door of the outhouse opened to reveal a man dressed in dirty clothes and shaggy black hair come humming out. He was busy pulling up his pants and didn't seem to notice to group of humans in the field until.

"You are Robert Mackenzie?" Colonel Glover spoke up.

The man looked up slowly and stared for a few moments at the line of men that had appeared in his field. Colonel Glover then walked up closer to Mackenzie.

"You are the proprietor of the the iron works of Durham?" He asked.

Big Mac saw Mackenzie straighten up a little bit, but he also eyed the soldiers with suspicion. "Who are you?" He asked Colonel Glover.

Colonel Glover reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Mackenzie. "My necessity and authorization from the army of the Continentals." Mackenzie took the paper and read it over as Colonel Glover continued. "We have commandeered your fleet of boats for the temporary use of the American revolutionary effort." He said plainly.

Big Mac could see a look of disbelief come over Mackenzie's face. "What? By God sir is this your so called revolution?" He said indignantly. "Is this your 'liberty' and 'equality'? To destroy a man's business? To rob him of his property?"

"I follow my orders sir." Colonel Glover said frowning.

"Who's orders?!"

"General Washington."

"Well Goddamn him for the bandit that he is!" Mackenzie shouted. "How am I gonna make a living?" His next question was addressed to the soldiers, and Big Mac could swear he was looking straight at him. "Who's gonna pay me?!"

"The Continental Congress." Colonel Glover answered. "And our eternal thanks for your generous assistance in the matter."

He then turned around and faced two other officers at the head of the column. "Let's go."

"Alright lads." Lieutenant Gordon said to the group Big Mac and Rainbow Dash were in. "Right face." As one, albeit somewhat clumsily as one, they all turned to face to their left and began marching towards the boats. All the while Big Mac continued to stare in sympathy at Mackenzie as the man continued to shout. 

"Goddamn you and your 'Continental Congress'! I'll see you all hanged! Every last one of you!" He then pointed at random men in the column, including Big Macintosh. "You too! And you! You will all suffer the consequences! YOU DON'T STAND A CHANCE! GIVE UP NOW!"

Big Macintosh looked down at his feet in shame. They were taking someones goods without there consent. He had never felt more like a thief than he did now.

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Later as they began to row their way back down river in the boats, Big Mac still couldn't shake the feeling that nagged him since he hear Mackenzie's words. He sat in the boat clutching his newly acquired musket with a frown adorning his face. Beside him sat Rainbow Dash, who also seemed a bit disturbed by the recent events.

Sitting across from them was Sergeant O'Keefe, who looked at them with his own frown. "Alright ye two." He finally spoke. "What's eatin' ya?"

Big Mac looked up and sighed. "It don't seem right ta take the man's boats like that." He said quietly.

O'Keefe sighed. He looked to his left shaking his head before turning back to speak the to pair. "I'll tell ya somethin' lad." He said sternly. "This is war. Alright. There ain't nothin' thats right about it. We all gotta make some sacrifices. Personally, I've no sympathy for a man like that who is unwilling to help th' ones who're fightin' fer his freedom. Besides if we didn't get the boats, we'd all be dead soon from a redcoat bayonet."

Big Mac looked back down at his feet after hearing this. It seemed to make sense to him. He had heard of some of the early wars in Equestria in school. He had always been proud that the Apple family was willing to give to those in need without asking anything in return. Also, they needed the boats to get Twilight and Pinkie Pie to safety it seemed like. He looked back up at O'Keefe and nodded. "Ah guess ah understand now."

"Good." O'Keefe smiled. "Now just keep ready on that there musket if them redcoated bastards show up when we get back.

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Twilight's POV

Twilight and Pinkie Pie huddled near a small tree about two yards from the river shore. They had wrapped themselves as tightly as the could in their shawls for warmths. By this time the snow and wind had died down, and they weren't as cold as before. It wasn't warm by any means however.

Twilight had come to learn three key points of information as they waited for Big Mac, Rainbow Dash and the boats to come back: One, the humans were soldiers and their sticks were called "muskets". Two, they were part of an army called the Continental Army. And three, the man called George Washington is their commander.

The humans were as generous as they could be as well. Twilight was informed that they were running low on supplies and therefore, when she was offered a canteen of water, she tried to politely refuse, but the soldier who offered it insisted and she accepted. She gave some to Pinkie as well. Neither of them had realized how thirsty they were until that point.

Twilight was and Pinkie Pie were still huddled up together when another officer (Twilight had figured out that the officers were to ones who carried only swords) walked up to them. The officer removed his hat and revealed that his hair was a dark brown and was tied in a pony tail like most of the soldiers present. When he stopped in front of the two girls, he bowed slightly in greeting. 

"Madams." He said. Twilight could tell by his voice that he was young. "I am Captain Alexander Hamilton. His excellency General Washington has asked me to accompany you when we cross the river."

Twilight and Pinkie stood up while Twilight extended her hand to the captain. "Thank you very much Captain Hamilton." She said with a smile. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Captain Hamilton in response to Twilight's gesture, took her hand and kissed it lightly on the top. This in turn caused Twilight to blush with embarrassment and Pinkie to whisper. "OOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH."

"Pinkie!" Twilight exclaimed, blushing even redder. Captain Hamilton simply chuckled lightly at the exchange.

"Well ladies." He said smiling. "I'll be here to make sure that you are all safely...."

"Mister Hamilton!"

Captain Hamilton spun around at the shout and saw his commander, General Washington, running towards him with a group of officers running beside him.

"General Sir!" Hamilton saluted.

"Prepare at once for embarkation." Washington said quickly. "Scouts have reported that the vanguard elements of the British are fast approaching."

"Yes Sir!" Hamilton turned back to Twilight and Pinkie. "Ladies if you will please come with me." Twilight and Pinkie Pie began to shake again. Not from the cold, but from fear. Fear of this unknown enemy that was bearing down on these soldiers. Then Twilight heard a shout that filled her heart with relief.

"The boats are back!"

------------------------------------------------------

Rainbow Dash's POV

Rainbow Dash looked intently towards the shore for his two friends as the boats rowed closer and faster. He could see other soldiers scrambling around on the shore grabbing bags, crates and barrels. Others seem to be forming a line of men facing the opposite direction of the shore. At last he spotted his friends, who were crouched near the shore with a group of Continental officers.

With a bump, their boat reached the shoreline. Colonel Glover who had been at the front of the boat, jumped onto land and began waving at the officers around Twilight and Pinkie Pie. They started to run towards the boat. One who ran right next to Rainbow's friends shouted the entire way.

"Colonel Glover! Move that boat over here!"

"The boat is moving Mister Hamilton!" Colonel Glover shouted back. "Come on lads move quickly now!"

"50 YARDS SIR!" A shout came from the shore. Then Rainbow Dash began to hear small explosions and looked up to see they were coming from the soldiers muskets. They were now pointing them at other humans that had appeared in the trees near the shore. The difference was they were dressed in red coats, and they seemed to be pointing their muskets at Rainbow Dash and his friends!

ZZIIIINNG!

Rainbow ducked down as something whizzed by his head. "What was that?!" She shouted to no one in particular.

"That be the red coat musket balls!" Rainbow turned and saw that Sergeant O'Keefe had his musket up and pointing at the red coated humans in the trees. "Remember you two! Do as I do! Aim for the red coat bastards!"

Rainbow looked at Big Mac. He had already mimicked O'Keefe's moves and was now aiming his musket. Rainbow quickly brought his up and aimed it like O'Keefe. He spotted a red figure. He was kneeling and aiming his musket towards their boat. Rainbow remembered. Pull the trigger. He did. The red figure dropped and didn't get back up. Rainbow was now having trouble seeing through the smoke the muskets made.

He heard a grunt to his right and turned to look. O'Keefe now had his musket down and was looking at his chest. Red liquid was squirting out and creating a deep red stain on his clothes. Rainbow recognized it was blood. O'Keefe then fell forward into the water with a splash. Like the red figure, he didn't get up. They had killed him! Now Rainbow began to feel scared. He could be killed soon. Then he remembered he also had a musket. He could defend himself. He started the process to load that O'Keefe taught him. He would avenge O'Keefe. Cartridge. Prime the pan. Down the muzzle. Ram it home. He was about to get ready to fire when he fell to boat jolt. They had loaded it while he was busy and now they were pushing off from the shore. Rainbow quickly took aim back at the shore and just pulled to trigger. Didn't wait to see if he hit anything. He then ducked down behind the wall of the boat with Big Mac who had the same idea. He then covered his ears and began to whimper at the loud bangs and the shouts of the men. As his vision started to turn black from fear, all he could hear was Colonel Glover.

"PUSH! GET US OUT OF HERE! PUUUSHH! ROW DAMN IT ROW!"


> Chapter 3: Further Introductions and Answers
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Rainbow Dash's POV

"......ink he's....ing....up. Rai.......ow......Rain...ow...Rainbow!"

"Ahh! Wha what!?!" Rainbow Dash jolted awake. Looking up he saw that Twilight stood over him with Big Mac standing beside him. Sitting down right next to him was his friend Pinkie Pie. Taking a further look around, Rainbow could see that he was lying on a cot in a tent of some kind.

"Where are we?" He asked, groaning. His head felt like someone had taken a hammer to it.

"We were told by some of the officers that we are in a place called Pennsylvania." Twilight answered. Rainbow paused at hearing the name and looked up and his friend, who simply shrugged. She obviously had no idea where or even what this place called "Pennsylvania" was. Rainbow Dash then looked back at Big Mac and was surprised if not shocked to see that he still had the musket that had been given to them.

"Big Mac." He said. "Why do you still have that?" He pointed at the weapon. Big Mac glanced at the musket in his hand and was about to answer when Rainbow continued. "Don't you know what that thing does?" he asked in fear.

Big Mac, to Rainbow's surprise, simply nodded. "Ah do know Rainbow."

"Then why do you still have it?!?" Rainbow exclaimed.

"Simple, to protect y'all and myself." Big Mac explained. He then looked down at his shoes as he continued. "Ahm not to proud of what ah did two days ago. Ah didn't enjoy it at all." His face then contorted into one of determination as he looked back at his friend. "But ahm not about to  let anyone harm me or mah friends or family, which is what these folks is fightin' fer." He gestured to outside the tent.

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. He then decided to see for himself where exactly they were and get up. Immediately his friends approached him to help him up but he waved them off. "I can handle it." He said, and rose up off the cot and stepped towards the tent flap.

Rainbow Dash looked on in awe when he opened the flap. Stretching for what seemed like miles were rows and rows of canvas tents. Bluecoated men were roaming all over the campsite, pitching further tents or standing in lines with their muskets.

"How long was I out?" Rainbow asked.

"About a day or so. We were so worried Dashie." Pinkie Pie replied.

"If you are alright Rainbow." Rainbow Dash looked back to see Twilight was now standing behind him. "You ought to get your coat and the rest of your things on. General Washington wants us to meet him at his headquarters over the hill."

Rainbow looked around for the items he had been wearing when he blacked out, and found them piled under the cot and began to put them all on. He found the musket that he had been given from Glover's men, and he hesitated to pick it up. He was still uncomfortable with the idea of it's deadly capabilities. But then he remembered Big Mac's reasons and decided that he should at least hold onto it. He wasn't about to let anyone harm his friends either, and those humans in red coats certainly were trying to do just that. He therefore grabbed the musket and followed his friends out of the tent.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight's POV

Twilight grimaced as she and her friends walked through the camp. Everywhere she looked, she saw soldiers that looked like they had just marched on the gates of Tartarus. Many soldiers had only rags to wrap around their feet. Twilight saw a pair of soldiers having their feet wrapped in bandages by a woman. The soldiers feet were black with frostbite. Twilight had to look away to prevent herself from vomiting. She had heard of the effects of frostbite from what she had read in the Canterlot Library during a temporary interest in medical history, but she had never seen them for herself until now. 

It wasn't just the soldiers with frostbite that nearly turned Twilight's stomach. Many other women were tending to other soldiers whose limbs were wrapped in bandages and many had the same bandages wrapped around their heads, except theirs were stained red with blood. Overall, all the soldiers were covered in dirt and grime of every kind and degree. Their uniforms were near ragged and missing buttons here and had a patch there. The whole scene would've made Rarity cringe, Twilight thought to herself.

Twilight sighed when she started to think of her fashionista friend. She had no idea where Rarity was, or even if she had ended up in the same world as Twilight had ended up in. Heck, she didn't know that about any of the others who had come with her into the portal. Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Shining Armor, and Spike. Oh Spike. She thought to herself. I hope that you are safe wherever you are. She knew her friends and brother had their own ways of looking after themselves, but Spike was just a child. She could only hope that Spike had not ended up alone in wherever he landed.

"Miss Twilight?" Big Macintosh's voice snapped Twilight out of her own personal thoughts. She looked back at her friend who wore an expression of worry upon his face. "Y'all alright?"

"Oh, um yes I am. Thank you Big Mac." She replied. Big Mac simply nodded, then he gestured ahead of him. "Well, we're here now." 

Twilight looked in the direction he gestured to and saw that they had indeed arrived at the house that she had been told housed General Washington. The house was made of stone and looked very simple and modest in it's design and size. The main entrance was guarded by two soldiers who wore blue uniforms with white facings. Their wore helmets with black plumes on the top that ran from the front to back. As Twilight and her friends approached, they nodded to them and the one on the left of the door opened it for them.

"Thank you." Twilight said in reply. The soldier simply nodded and returned back to his post as the group entered the house. Once inside, Twilight and her friends found themselves in a long hallway that ran to the back of the house. All along the passageway were entrances to various rooms and climbing up the left wall was a wooden staircase. The hallway and rooms were also crowded with blue coated officers conversing in groups of two or three with individual officers walking from room to room or entering with packets papers in hand or leaving without them.

"Ah you're friend is awake." Twilight and her friend looked up the staircase and saw another officer descending towards them. Twilight smiled when she recognized that it was Captain Hamilton, the young officer who had looked after her and Pinkie Pie back on the river. The man had a slight smile on his face as he approached to welcome the group, but Twilight could see that behind the smile she could see that Captain Hamilton was distressed and fatigued.

The captain stopped at the bottom of the staircase and bowed to Twilight and Pinkie Pie in greeting. "I trust that you are all well?" he inquired.  Twilight simply nodded. "Yes we are okay." Meanwhile Pinkie Pie smiled one of her wider smiles. "We are absolutely great now that Dashie is awake!" She exclaimed. Behind her Rainbow Dash blushed with embarrassment at the nickname. Captain Hamilton chuckled to himself and his smile grew bigger. He then turned his attention to the two males of the group. "You two did well at the river a day ago." he said. He then extended his arm and opened his hand for a handshake, which Big Mac and Rainbow, who were used to hoof bumps or hoof shakes, slowly brought their own hands up. They were relieved when Captain Hamilton grasped each of their hands and shook them a few times. "Very well done for your first time." He said in a congratulating manner. He then turned his attention to all four of them. "The General is waiting for you all upstairs in his office. Please follow me if you will." He then turned and began to walk back up the staircase. Twilight and her friends followed behind him, with Big Mac by Twilight's side and Rainbow Dash next to Pinkie Pie.

When they reached the top, to their left was the upper hallway that led to two other rooms with a railing along the edge. Captain Hamilton led the group to the door that was closest to the top of the stairs. He stepped up to the door and knocked on it three times.

"Yes?" Came the reply.

"It's Captain Hamilton sir." Hamilton spoke into the door. "The four civilians are here to see you."

"The door is open. Send them in." 

Captain clicked to latch on the wooden door and opened it up. He gestured for Twilight and her companions to enter. Twilight slowly moved up to the door and stepped into the room. Walking in she saw that pushed up against the far wall was a large bed with a canopy. The room had three glass windows that allowed light to enter in. In the center of the room was a small wooden desk that was piled high with maps and other papers and packages. Sitting at the desk, was the man called General Washington.

He looked up from his desk and stood from his chair. He bowed as Twilight and her friends entered. "Welcome." He said. Please do come in." He walked around his desk and over to the group and bowed slightly again, which Twilight and her friends returned.

Looking up, Washington saw that Big Mac and Rainbow Dash were carrying their muskets with them. "Why did you bring those good sirs?" He asked.

Big Mac looked at his musket and blushed with embarrassment at the idea that he wasn't supposed to bring it with him. "Sorry sir." He said rubbing his neck. "Ah just didn't think it was right to leave it around where it could hurt or stolen."

Washington smiled and nodded. "Well said young man. A good soldier always looks after his weapon." He said patting Big Mac on the shoulder. 

Washington turned back to Twilight, who was able to get a good look at the General for the first time. She could see that his hair was a slight shade of brown, but she could also see that their were tinges of gray on the edge of his hair. His eyes had slight bags underneath them, as if he hadn't slept in days. Twilight could only guess what kind of stress the man must have been going through.

"Ma'am?" Twilight's observations were cut short when Washington's voice cut into her thoughts. She saw that the man was looking at her with concern. "Are you alright?"

"Oh yes I am fine Mister Washington." Twilight replied. "Just got a little distracted. Sorry for worrying you."

Washington smiled. "It is perfectly fine Miss Sparkle." He reassured her. He gestured to a small green sofa next to the bed. "Would you two ladies like to rest yourselves?"

"Yes we would. Thank you." Twilight answered and she and Pinkie Pie took their seats on the sofa. Big Mac and Rainbow Dash grabbed a couple of wooden chairs in the corner and brought them closer to the sofa to stay close to their friends. Once everyone had sat down, Washington grabbed his own chair from behind his desk and took a seat in front of the four.

"So, you said that you are all from a nation called 'Equestria'?" He asked.

The group nodded. "Yes sir." Twilight spoke. They had decided earlier that she would be the primary voice during the interview.

Washington nodded his head and continued. "And where is this land located? I can not find it on any map we have in our possession."

"Well sir. It's actually not part of this world." Twilight answered shyly.

Washington raised and eyebrow and sat up at this. "You mean to say that you all are from another world?" He asked.

"Yes sir. It was my intention to travel to this world to observe human culture and learn more from them as I have visited before." She looked to her friends sitting next to her. "My friends insisted that they come along. They were worried about me and wouldn't take no for an answer. I tried to talk them out of it because I didn't want them to get hurt."

Her friends all smiled and gave the princess a reassuring look as if to say that they didn't blame her for what had happened so far and that it was their own choice.

"Excuse me but.." Washington interjected. "What did you mean by 'observe human culture'? You are humans yourselves. Are you not?"

Twilight looked down at the floor in nervousness. "No sir. We were not originally humans before we arrived. On our world, we are a sapient species called Ponies."

"Ponies?" Washington asked almost disbelievingly. Twilight nodded. "Yes sir." She then went into detail, describing the different species of ponies, which species she and her friends had been before they had come to the human world, and other pieces of information that she felt were important. When she told Washington that she was a princess in Equestria, the general straightened up suddenly. 

"And that's about it sir." She finished. Twilight then cleared her throat. "Now if I may ask sir who exactly you are, where we are, and what is going on?"

Washington sighed. "I suppose it is only fair that I tell you. However it is not all happy what I tell you. You are now sitting in the camp of the Continental Army. We are made up of men from all thirteen colonies of a land called North America. We have been fighting for our independence from our original rulers, England, for about two years now."

"Why are you fighting your rulers?" Twilight asked.

"I can understand your confusion as from what you've told me about your government. Your rulers sound like generous individuals." Washington paused to clear his throat. "But the ministry in England has constantly turned a blind eye to the rights of us colonists. They have imposed taxes on us without our consent or representation. And just three years ago, when some colonists in Boston Massachusetts, the city where three years before British soldiers were reported to have fired upon a crowd of unarmed protestors, destroyed some tea in protest, they responded by closing it up and nearly starving the population."

Twilight and her friends all gasped upon hearing this information.

Washington sighed as he rubbed his forehead. "It all came to a head when British soldiers were sent to disarm the militias of Massachusetts in April of last year. They met a group of militia at a place called Lexington. There the British soldiers fired upon the militia. Eight of our fellow patriots were killed. Ever since we have been at war with the British. I have the unenviable task of leading this army against one of the mightiest armies in the world."

Washington now stood up and walked over to the window, a look of despair on his face. "Earlier this year we held the city of New York with 20,000 men and 200 pieces of artillery. Now after being chased out by the British having at last arrived here, I have less than 2,000 men fit for duty and 18 guns. And soon many of my men will be going home." 

Twilight and her friends all sat in silence listening to the General. Twilight could not believe that any government would be willing to do such things to it's own people. For Big Macintosh, it sounded as if the families of the colonies just wanted to be left alone. He knew that the Apple family wouldn't stand for any this. Rainbow Dash's blood was boiling. This sounded similar to when Tirek came to Equestria to steal their magical essence that made them who they were. In this case, this King was coming over here to take away what belonged to these colonists. It was these thoughts in both Big Mac and Rainbow's heads that caused them both to stand up and face Washington, who looked at them when they approached.

"Genral." Big Mac said with confidence and his head held high. "I'll help y'all sir."

"So will I." Rainbow Dash said with equal tenacity. "Just tell us what to do and we'll do it."

Twilight and Pinkie Pie both smiled at their friends' bravery. Soon they too, both stood up and faced the General. "We'll help in any way we can as well sir."

Washington smiled slightly at the volunteers. "Your offer is highly appreciated during this time good sirs and misses. Very well, I accept your help." He looked to Rainbow Dash and Big Mac. "I will see to it that you are added to the ranks in one of our regiments. When I can find a commanding officer for you, you shall be notified." The two men nodded. Washington then turned to Twilight and Pinkie Pie. "There are a few jobs around here that may require your assistance. The quartermaster needs help in repairing the uniforms and the wounded need to be tended to."

"As you wish sir." Twilight said. "We are only guests in your camp." 

"Thank you Miss Sparkle." Washington said. "I bid you a safe return to your tent. Your orders shall reach you soon. I bid you all a good morning."

-------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile

Shining Armor felt like he had been smashed in the head by a metal pot. He slowly opened his eyes to see where he was and where his sister was. If he was hurting this much, he figured Twily was as well and wanted to check on her. Only when he opened his eyes, he didn't see Twilight, or anypony that had followed her into the portal. All he saw when he opened his eyes were trees, endless amounts of trees and brush. It wasn't like the Everfree Forest though. It wasn't as dark or gloomy. A light fog floated just above the the ground, which was covered with the brown decaying leaves of winter. That was one thing that Shining Armor knew for sure about wherever he was; it was winter. And it was cold. It was then that a slight breeze hit him and caused him to look at himself in a nearby puddle for the first time since stepping into the portal.

He was definitely a human now, from what he knew from Twilight's descriptions. His white fur was all gone as was his tail. Only his hair remained, though it was now ties in a ponytail in the back with a black ribbon. He could feel that he wore a light cotton shirt that was underneath a green waistcoat that was underneath a reddish brown coat that fell to just above his knees. His pants were light brown and they connected with stockings that were halfway covered up by brown gaiter that were worn over black leather boots. His hat was black and was shaped like a triangle. He also was carrying on him a cloth bag and a metal canteen that hung on a rope.

Shining Armor was stunned. He had expected to be a little surprised when he turned into a human, but Twilight had never described any humans looking like this. Quickly he shook off the shock and began to take stock of his situation. Looking around he saw that he was alone, which again confused him. He had entered the portal with Twilight and her friends, but they were nowhere to be found. Fear started to take hold in his mind. Not fear for himself, but fear for his sister and her friends.

"Twilight!" He shouted. "Are you out there!"

He was met with only silence. 

"Twilight!" He tried again. "Applejack! Rarity! Big Mac!"

Only the chattering of birds met his words.

Shining was now growing more anxious by the second. He was spinning in circles looking for anyone. "SPIKE! ANYBODY!"

"Shining Armor!"

Shining Armor stopped and quickly turned to look behind him. The voice had come from a thick set of brush and bushes and it had sounded young and male.

"Spike?!" He called. "Is that you?!"

"Yeah its me!" Came the reply. "I'm over here!" 

Shining Armor began making his way through the trees and brush over to where he had heard Spike's voice coming from. When he finally reached it, he was greeted to a great surprise. Twilight had said that on the previous trips to the human world, Spike had become a dog of some kind. However the creature standing before Shining Armor seemed to be much more human than dog.

The individual before him was male and young, at least 14 years old. He had pale skin and light green shaggy hair. He wore a small grey waistcoat and a small brown coat over it. His hat was wide brimmed and floppy. He pants were blue grey and he had dirty white stockings and black shoes with buckles on the top of them.

"Spike?" Shining Armor questioned. "Is that really you?"

"Yes it is Shining Armor." Spike replied. "And I know what you're thinking and let me just say that I am as confused as you are as to why I am not a dog."

"Well we can worry about that later Spike." Shining Armor said looking around the woods. "In the meantime we need to figure out where we are and where the rest of the group is." 

Spike suddenly looked up with worry. "Wait, Twilights not here?" He looked around frantically for his friend and saw that she was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly tears began to form in the young boy's eyes as he started to panic. "What are we gonna do? We gotta find Twilight! Sh-she could be h-hurt or trapped o-or or...." 

"Hey hey hey Spike." Shining Armor knelt down in front of Spike and grabbed his arms. Spike looked at him with tears beginning to stream down his face. "Hey listen buddy. It's going to be okay. I promise it will." Shining Armor tried to reassure Spike. "I know that Twilight will be just fine and we will find her alright?"

Spike sniffed and rubbed his nose. "Okay." He whispered. Shining Armor patted him on the back and smiled.

"Alright then." He said. "Now we need to get moving so that we can start looking for the others. There was a road back there and we're going to follow it. I need you to be brave and follow me okay? Can you be brave like a royal guard?"

Spike nodded.

"Ok then, follow me." 

--------------------------------------------

Shining Armor was tired. He had been tired for a while now. As far as he could estimate it he and Spike had been walking down the dirt road for about two hours now. Despite the three layers of clothing that he and Spike were wearing, the winter chill was starting to get to them. The wind had picked up and now stung his face with each blast. 

He could also see that Spike was starting to shake with the cold. This caused Shining Armor to shift his focus from finding the others to getting him and more importantly, Spike, somewhere warm.

"Sh-shining Arm-mor." Spike shivered. "H-how m-much f-f-f-f-f....." He never was able to finish his sentence as he collapsed onto the road. 

"SPIKE!" Shining Armor shouted as he dropped down and cradled the limp unconscious body of Spike in his arms. He slapped at Spike's cheeks in an attempt to wake him up. "Nonononononono! Don't do this to me Spike! I need you to wake up!" He was near hysterics. "Wake up! WAKE UP! PLEASE WAKE UP!" He was about to shout some more when he began to feel light headed. He also began to hear what sounded like hooves approaching him and looked up woozily. In front of him were five brown horses, who snorted their hot breath into the winter air. Sitting on top of the horses were five human males dressed in brown fringed coats and triangular hats similar to Shining Armor's. They all carried strange long sticks and had various pouches hanging from them.

One human got off his horse and quickly approached Shining Armor. This was the last thing Shining Armor saw before he slipped into unconsciousness. As he did, there was one phrase that he continued to mumble as he fell over.

"Help him please. H-help him ple......"


	 
	
> Chapter 4: Down South
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Rarity's POV

Warmth. All she felt was warmth. She was surprised at this. Twilight said that she ended up on a sidewalk when she woke up here. I can't imagine any sidewalk feeling warm. Rarity thought to herself. She slowly opened her eyes to see where she and her friends had landed. When she opened them up, she instantly was confused. For instead of lying on the sidewalk in front of the school that Twilight had talked about, she found that she was lying on a large wooden canopy bed in one of the most grand bedrooms she had ever seen.

Rarity sat up and looked around the room. There were two large windows covered by yellow curtains that let in faint rays of sunlight into the room. Beside the bed was an candle that flickered and danced with a slight breeze. Rarity then looked at herself and was amazed. She had indeed turned into a human, from what Twilight had described. Her alabaster fur was gone and she only saw pale skin on her body. She saw that across the room was a mirror, and she decided to make her way over to it to look at herself fully. She slowly got of the bed and swung her new feet over the edge and cautiously set them down on the floor. Her "feet" as Twilight had called them, were strange to her, but she surprisingly seemed to be able to balance herself on them with relative ease. She slowly walked over to the mirror and when she finally saw her reflection, she gasped in amazement.

She was beautiful! Her face was perfectly shaped and her hair was still as grand and fine as usual, if not better. It was pulled back and tied up in a bun that pointed down from her head. She wore a gorgeous long white night gown that had lace around the collar and the cuffs of the sleeves. She was already starting to get inspiration for future projects.

Knock Knock

Rarity turned around sharply as she heard the knock and saw that it came from a large wooden door at the far end of the room.

"Missus? Are you awake? Are you alright?" A female voice came from the other side of the door. Rarity contemplated whether or not to answer. But then she realized that she had not been harmed and must have been brought here by whoever was at the door.

"Um yes I am fine." She answered. "Do come in."

The door clicked and then creaked open. Rarity saw that the figure was indeed female. She wore a pretty but simple ensemble of a long, round green skirt with the upper portion of the dress being light tan in color with white trim around the neck. Around her she wore a sort of white cloth hat that seemed to cover her entire head. The woman also wore a white apron over her dress, This led Rarity to believe that this was a maid of some sort.

"Good morning Miss." The lady said smiling, dipping slightly in greeting. "My name is Clarabelle, and Mister Davids asked me to bring you these." She held out a bundle of clothes, which Rarity grabbed from her. Rarity then unfurled the bundle to see it fully and nearly gasped in amazement. 

The dress was stunning. It was made out of powder blue silk and was pleated in the back. A crimson red ribbon was tied at the front on the chest and the sleeves fluffed out at the ends. 

"Do you like the dress Missus?" Rarity was snapped out of gazing in awe at the dress when she was reminded that she wasn't the only one in the room.

"Like it? I love it!" She exclaimed while hugging the dress tightly in her arms. "I simply must thank this Mister Davids you speak of when I see him."

"Well that is another reason that I am here Miss." Clarabelle smiled. "Mister Davids wants to meet you and Miss Fluttershy in the parlor room and he sent Florence and I to assist you in dressing."

Rarity's eyes went wide. "Wait. Fluttershy is here as well?" She asked excitingly.

Clarabelle nodded. "Yes ma'am. She is in the room down the hall being dressed by Florence."

Rarity breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't alone here. She simply had to go make sure Fluttershy was alright, but she decided it would be best to get dressed herself. It seemed hardly appropriate to go wandering around a house in nothing but a nightgown.

"Thank you very much Clarabelle. And please call me Rarity."

Clarabelle nodded. "Of course Miss Rarity."

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Fluttershy's POV

Fluttershy was blushing redder then a tomato. She had never thought herself as being attractive before and she had always been too shy to try and make herself attractive to others. So when Florence had finished helping her into the butter yellow dress and tied up her hair with ribbons and bows, and showed Fluttershy herself in a mirror after all was finished, she was astonished. She looked like she was member of the Canterlot elite in human form. She could hardly believe her eyes.

"You look absolutely stunning Madame Fluttershy." Florence said as she put some finishing touches on her hair. "Très bien."

Fluttershy giggled lightly. She liked Florence already. She had been a little frightened when she woke up to see that she was in her room. However her calm demeanor took away that nervousness and had coaxed Fluttershy out of bed. Now she was just nervous about meeting this "Mister Davids" that Florence said wanted to see her. She had always had trouble talking to stallions back in Equestria and she feared that it would be the same situation here.

"Madame Fluttershy." Fluttershy looked behind her and now saw that Florence was standing by the door. "It is almost time to meet Mister Davids." She then opened the door to the main upper hallway. "If you will please follow me."

Fluttershy hesitated before slowly making her way to the door and into the hallway. When she entered the hallway she saw coming out of a door further down the hallway, a lady in a gorgeous blue dress with violet hair. At first she didn't recognize the woman, but then she remembered what Florence had told her earlier.

"Rarity? Is that you?" She asked.

"Fluttershy darling!" Rarity ran up to her dear friend and wrapped her arms around her in a tight embrace. Fluttershy could feel tears start to form in her eyes as she hugged Rarity back. She had been so worried that her friends had been hurt and were alone somewhere dangerous. It was a relief to hear that Rarity was alright.

Rarity soon pulled out of her embrace and looked at her friend. Her eyes went wide as she got a full look at her. "My goodness dear Fluttershy! You look absolutely stunning!"

Fluttershy blushed and looked down at the floor at this compliment. "I'm not that pretty." She whispered.

"Oh but you are my dear." Rarity insisted. "That dress compliments you perfectly. You simply must allow me to make you a similar one when we get back home."

Fluttershy looked up at Rarity with a small smile. "That okay, if you want to that is."

"Ahem." Fluttershy looked behind them to see that Florence and Clarabelle were standing at the top of a large staircase. "Mister Davids is expecting you." Florence reminded them. Fluttershy and Rarity looked at each other and smiled. They then quickly made their way down to the stairs behind the two maids.

When they reached the bottom of the steps, they directed by Florence and Clarabelle towards a large dining hall. Inside the dining hall, they found a large wooden table with lavish decorations, tablecloths and fine china adorning it. Towards the far end of the table were two wooden chairs facing each other on opposite sides. What caught their attention the most however, was the human male sitting at the head of the table near the chairs. 

As Fluttershy and Rarity entered the room, the man immediately got up from his chair and made his way towards them. Fluttershy saw that the man was about 2 inches taller then her. His hair was jet black and was tied in the back in a ponytail. He wore an open green brown coat that had gold braiding around the buttons and edges of the coat and collar. A vest of the same color was worn underneath with the same gold braiding. His pants were a lighter shade of brown and were connected to white stockings at the calves. The mans face was slightly square shaped and his nose had a slight point to it. His eyes were emerald green and they seemed sparkle with the morning light that shone through the windows of the dining room.

The man reached the pair of women with a bright smile on his face. He then grabbed each of their hands one at a time and planted a kiss on top of them. Fluttershy blushed even bright than before at this gesture, but she could tell that the man was just trying to be polite. The man looked at the two, continuing to smile a bright smile that Fluttershy could see was a smile of relief.

"Glad to see that you two are alright." He said with a smooth deep voice that reminded Fluttershy of Fancy Pants. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Andrew George Davids. I welcome you both to my estate. You both gave us quite a scare."

Fluttershy was confused. But she didn't have the courage to ask questions. Rarity did however. "What do you mean sir? What happened to us while we were asleep?" She asked.

Mister Davids gestured to the chairs at the table. "Why don't we sit down first?" He suggested.

"Thank you sir." Rarity replied.

"Um thank you." Fluttershy whispered. 

Soon the two ladies had taken their places in the chairs on either side of the table. Fluttershy sat to the left of Mister Davids's chair, with Rarity sitting to the right. Mister Davids sat down at the head and began to explain.

"You see ladies, the reason you are here is because we found you alone out in the swamps to the west." He began.

"Who's we?" Rarity inquired.

"Myself and my fellow members of the South Carolina militia." Mr. Davids answered. "We were out riding along the road that runs through the swamp when we saw a flash of light coming from the trees. We stopped to investigate and we found you two lying face down in the leaves and brush. Well we couldn't leave two innocent women lying alone in the swamps now could we? So we carried you back here to my estate and I have had Florence and Clarabelle look after you ever since."

Fluttershy smiled. She was grateful that this man had helped her and Rarity. "Th-thank you for helping us." she whispered.

Davids leaned in towards her slightly. "I'm sorry dear, what was that?" He asked.

"Thank you."

Davids heard it this time and smiled. "My dear. You have no need to thank me. I wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I left you two out there now would I? It's a good thing that those bloody Tories didn't find you first. God knows what they would've done to you."

"Tories?" Rarity asked questioningly. 

Davids took a sip from his glass of water before answering. "The Loyalists. The bloody traitors who are fighting against us Patriots." He looked at the two women who wore confused expressions on their faces. "You two aren't from around here are you?" Both Fluttershy and Rarity shook their heads. Rarity then began to go into an explanation that was similar to one being told further north. In return Davids explained the current situation in North America. Both of the girls listened with growing concern.

"And now Washington's Army has been driven clean out of both New York and New Jersey." Davids continued with a frown. "People are saying that Philadelphia will fall soon as well." He quickly then put on a face of determination. "But I have confidence. I believe that if we all just stay the course, we will prevail over our oppressors." 

"Here here." Rarity said with enthusiasm. "I hope that these English brutes learn there lessons."

"Well said madame." Davids said.

Fluttershy stayed quiet. She didn't like that these people from England were being so harsh to their own people, but at the same time she didn't like fighting.

Davids set down his glass and pushed his chair back from the table. "Now then. Today is a very special day in that I am to go and meet with the officials in Charleston about enlisting my militia company into the Continental army as regulars. Washington will need all the troops that he can get after these setbacks. I must begin my trip today and I was wondering if you two ladies would like to join me?" 

Fluttershy was a little hesitant. She was nervous about being in a new world, but in one like this. But when she looked at her friend Rarity, she was met with a look that said to her "it will be alright". With this in mind, she nodded her agreement to Rarity.

"We would be honored Mister Davids.

-----------------------------------------------

Rarity POV

Rarity could only marvel at the sight before her eyes. After traveling across some of the most beautiful country that she had seen in a while with Fluttershy and Mr Davids in a horse drawn coach fit for royalty, they had arrived in the city of Charleston, Mr. Davids had said was the capital of South Carolina. 

The city was beautiful. From the hilltop leading into the city, Rarity could see the masts of dozens of ships in the harbor. As they entered the city Rarity saw that it was bustling with life. Women walked around in beautiful dresses and hats while the men wore their capes and coats with great poise. The fashion and style could be compared with that of Canterlot. Rarity also saw traces of the conflict that Mr Davids had informed them of.

In certain place she could see what she recognized as cannons being pulled behind teams of horses across the street. They were followed by men in dirty earth tone clothing with bags and other various pouches hanging off of them. She could also see a group of about 20 men dressed in 
blue coats with red facings and wearing black hats with a silver upside down crescent moon on them, marching towards them in a column four across carrying strange long sticks on their shoulders. Davids explained that they were weapons called muskets. Davids then had the driver of the coach pull over next to them.

"Excuse me Lieutenant." He called leaning out of the coach window. One of the soldiers, one who carried a sword at his side instead of a musket and had a silver epaulette on his right shoulder turned around and walked up towards the coach.

"Pardon me Lieutenant, but could you tell me where the 2nd South Carolina Regiment would be located?" Davids asked the young officer.

The man pointed back down the road from where the soldiers had been coming from. "The rest of the regiment is down at the docks receiving arms sir." He said. "Just head straight down this road."

Davids nodded to the officer. "Thank you very much lieutenant." He then turned up to his driver. "Straight down the road Mr Percival please."

"Yes sir." The driver replied and called to the horses and drove forward.

Soon the coach arrived at the docks, which appeared to be even busier than the city. Everywhere she looked Rarity could see soldiers and sailors carrying muskets, crates and barrels on and off ships and around the piers. Officers were shouting orders to their men and ships bells rang in the air.

The coach came to a stop in front of a ship with two masts. Davids exited the coach first, then extended his hand and helped Rarity and Fluttershy exit. 

"Excuse me Ladies." Davids said and proceeded to walk over to another officer who was directing a group of soldiers in the unloading of supplies.

"Pardon me Lieutenant Davids." He said with a smile, "But I couldn't help admiring the way you move your men so efficiently."

The officer turned around after hearing this. Rarity looked on and saw that the man was young. He had dark black hair and bright blue eyes. A smile was also starting to spread across his face. He then wrapped his arms around Mister Davids, who returned the embrace.

"It is good to see you father." The officer said. 

"It is good to see you as well Matthew son." Mr Davids smiled. He then turned around and walked his son towards Rarity and Fluttershy. "Son, I would like you to meet these two lovely ladies. Miss Rarity and Miss Fluttershy. They are staying as guests at the estate. They were found not four miles from it in the swamps."

Matthew bowed when he reached the two women who returned the greeting. "A pleasure to meet you ladies." He said kindly. "Now how in God's name did you wind up in those ghastly swamps?"

"Well you see." Rarity chuckled. "It is quite a story." She then explained the situation, about Twilight, the rest of her friends, Equestria, and how they had arrived. All the while Matthews eyes grew wide with wonder and amazement. 

"Well that is quite a tale ma'am." Matthew said. He then scratched his chin in thought. "Come to think of it, that sounds very similar to what Lieutenant Jenkins said he heard from a woman he found wandering into his camp 2 days ago."

"Really?" Rarity was startled when Fluttershy suddenly spoke up. "Did he say what the name of the woman was?"

Matthew continued to rub his chin as he tried to remember. Suddenly after a few moments he snapped his fingers and smiled. "Yes! Uh he said her name was uh Applejack." 

"APPLEJACK!" Both Rarity and Fluttershy exclaimed.

	
> Chapter 5: School of the Soldier
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Big Macintosh's POV

"SHOULDER YOUR FIRELOCKS!

Big Mac quickly grabbed his musket, which had been at the position of order, and brought it up to his shoulder, placing his left hand underneath the butt stock and bringing his right hand down to his right side in one quick motion. As he did so, so did 86 other members of his company. It had been a week and a half since Big Mac and his friends had arrived in the camp of the Continental Army and volunteered for service, and he was already starting to get the hang of soldiering. He had been assigned to the 3rd company of the 2nd Continental Infantry Regiment. Their company commander was Captain Harris Beckley, who Big Mac found out was a former carpenter from the colony of New York. Captain Beckley was a man of medium build and height, with a head of black hair and a pair of bright blue eyes on his lean face. At this point in time, he was standing off to the side of the company as he watched the man who was actually giving orders; Sergeant James McLanley. 

Big Mac had instantly felt intimidated when he first met the tough and tall sergeant from rural New York. The man exceeded his height by two inches and on his worn face was a scar under his left eye that the rest of the soldiers in the company said was from a tavern brawl over a woman. He was also a burly man and he used his strength in drill by shoving men into line when they were out of ranks and violently adjusting their muskets if the did the drill incorrectly. Despite this, Big Mac had grown to respect Sergeant McLanley over time. He recognized that he had to be stern and tough with the men in order to get things done. Big Mac had the made the mistake of messing up on the drill in front of McLanley, and received a loud and stern shout from the sergeant with plenty of profanities thrown in. After that, Big Macintosh never forgot to prime the pan when loading the musket.

"FIX YOUR BAYONETS!" McLanely bellowed again, flecks of saliva flying out his mouth along with his commands.

Big Mac and the rest of the company responded by bringing the musket down to their left side and then grabbed the steal socket bayonet from it's scabbard. They then brought the bayonets up to the muzzles of the muskets and locked them in place. When that was all done, Big Mac and the company came to a position of attention. 

"SHOULDER YOUR FIRELOCKS!"

Soon the company had their muskets upon their left shoulders.

"CHARGE YOUR BAYONETS!"

And with that, Big Macintosh and the rest of the company brought their muskets down and pointed the long blades on the ends to their front. 

"SHOULDER YOUR FIRELOCKS!"/b]

Back to the shoulder.

"ORDER YOUR FIRELOCKS!"

Down on the ground.

"Alright you lazy lot, stand at ease!" Sergeant McLanley then walked over to Captain Beckley and brought his right hand up to his head in a salute, which the Captain returned.

"The company is yours sir." McLanely said.

"Thank you Sergeant." Beckley replied. "You may dismiss the men. That's enough for today."

"Very well sir." McLanely saluted again and then turned around to face the line of men. "Company! Dismissed!" He shouted, and with that, the men broke their line formation and made their way back to their tents.

Big Macintosh groaned to himself as he brought the heavy musket off of his aching shoulder. The drill wasn't easy, but Big Mac had somehow quickly picked up on the movements, much to the surprise of the officers of the regiment. He had been told that Captain Beckley had said that he was one of his best soldiers. Big Mac didn't think that was true though. He thought there were plenty of others in the regiment that were better soldiers than he was. From what he had heard, most of the men in the regiment had already experienced combat against the British Regulars, as Big Mac had been told was what they called the enemy. These men had had a great deal more experience, while his claim to combat experience was the crossing 2 weeks ago. If Big Mac was one thing, he was humble, and he realized he still had a lot to learn.

"Hey Mac!" Big Mac turned around to the source of the voice. Standing behind him was his new friend, Oliver O'Toole, a plucky and skinny young teenager from Green Haven. The little red headed boy had been the first man that had spoken to Big Macintosh outside of drill when he arrived in the regiment. They had bonded through the fact that they were both farmers and they shared their stories of hard times, cold winters, that led to warm springs and bountiful crops. Needless to say, the two had become fast friends.

Now the cheery young farmer walked up to Big Mac with a bright smile on his face. "Harris an' Corporal Carter found a goose while on patrol." He said with elation. "They're cookin' it up now. C'mon, let's get a piece!" 

Big Mac smiled and the two made their way over to the fire on the other side of the camp. Big Macintosh never thought that he would've been happy to eat a goose, much less any kind of meat, before he and his friends came here. Being a pony, or at least a former pony, he had never had meat in his life. Now, however, with the fact that the only food he had had recently was a kind of bread that the men called "fire cake", he felt that he could eat anything. He didn't feel that guilty after Twilight had explained to him and the rest of his friends that humans were an omnivorous species. Big Mac knew that this meant that now that he was a human, he had to eat meat to survive. He didn't like it entirely but it was what it was. 

Soon, Big Mac and Oliver arrived at the cook's tent of the 2nd Regiment, where they found the regiment's cook, Ivan Dorris and his assistant, Big Macintosh's friend, Pinkie Pie. When Pinkie Pie had told the Continentals that she was a baker back home, they had immediately asked for her services in preparing food for the soldiers. And just like back home, she perplexed and confounded them in every way imaginable. Though she lacked adequate ingredients and knowledge of the local recipes, the former party pony had been able to conjure up meals that the soldiers described as outstanding. But hey, that's just what Pinkie Pie does. She aims to please.

"You got that right!"

"Huh? What'd you say Pinkie?" Big Mac asked, confused as to just who the perky girl was talking to.

"The big talking man Big Mac." Pinkie Pie replied.

Big Mac was about to ask just who she was talking about when suddenly he was tugged away from the tent and toward the campfire. There, most of the men from his company were gathered around an iron pot with boiling water bubbling away inside. One of the men, Corporal Carter, was stirring the pot and eying it carefully as he tended to it.

As Big Mac and Oliver approached, two of the soldiers, Private Fisher and Private White turned to them and made room for them to sit down. "Have a seat lads." Fisher smiled, "We got an early Christmas feast here."

"Yeah c'mon boys." White piped up. "The Corporal here knows just how to fix it up."

Big Mac and Oliver sat down between the two men and warmed themselves with the fire. Big Mac was starving, and was ready for a meal that consisted of something other than hardtack and water. Though while Big Mac and the rest of his company sat by the warm fire, out in the cold and wild Jersey woodlands, one of his friends was in a very different position.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rainbow Dash's POV

Rainbow Dash walked as slowly as he could through the dense and dead underbrush, his footsteps muffled by the light snow on the ground. In his right hand, he held a pistol, loaded and half-cocked. His left hand held onto the scabbard of a small sword, still in it's place, so as not to let it rattle. He quickly looked behind him, and saw two other men who were with him, Private Woodward, or "Woody" as they called him, and Corporal Reilly. All three of them moved slowly through the woods, led by another man who was about two yards in front of Rainbow. The man's name was
James, Sergeant James, a burly man in his late thirties, who carried a Pennsylvania rifle in his hands, and hanging from his belt was a long knife and a hatchet. 

These men belonged to the 5th Continental Regiment, to whom Rainbow Dash had been assigned to. The group was on a scouting mission, and the mission was simple enough on paper. Make your way southeast to the banks of the Delaware river and observe any enemy activity that presents itself. Getting to the river wasn't so simple however. They had to do their best to remain unseen by any locals, as they had now way of knowing who was a friend, or who was a Tory. Tories! When that had been explained to Rainbow Dash, it had made his blood boil. Being the embodiment of the Element of Loyalty, the idea that the former friends and neighbors of these patriots would turn against them really struck a chord with him. He would never abandon his friends! Never!

The group had been slowly trekking through the trees for about an hour now, and according to Sergeant James, they were nearing the river bank. Soon, Rainbow and the others began to hear the sounds of rushing water and soon enough, they had reached the edge of the woods were it met the Delaware. The group then set up a short line in the brush and tall grass just before the banks. Rainbow Dash shuddered slightly when he looked at the river. Memories came rushing back to when he and his friends had first crossed the river with the Continentals, and back to when Rainbow Dash killed someone for the first time. He quickly shook these thoughts out of his head. He had had no choice. The redcoat he had killed was trying to kill him and his friends. He had been protecting them, just as he was now. 

"Dash." Rainbow turned his head toward the whisper and saw Sergeant James gesturing for him to approach. He made his way over to him and when he got to the sergeant, he was handed a spyglass.

"Take a look o'er there Dash." The burly man from Pennsylvania said, pointing across the river. "Tell me what ya see lad."

Dash glanced at the sergeant before placing the spyglass to his eye and looking across the expanse of water. He saw what appeared to be a small village, smaller than Ponyville even. There were also men milling about the village, but Rainbow Dash didn't recognize the uniforms. They were blue, like the Continentals, but their hats were tall and pointed. Also a lot of them wore large mustaches, which Rainbow had yet to see on the Continentals' faces. One thing was clear, and that was that they were soldiers.

"I see soldiers Sergeant." He said, looking away from the spyglass.

"Aye, ye be right Dash." Sergeant James nodded. "They be soldiers alright. But not just any soldiers. They be Hessians."

"Hessians?"

"Aye. Murderous bastards the lot of 'em." James continued. "Wonder what they're doin' here though?"

Rainbow Dash was about to reply when suddenly a sound reached their ears from behind. It was the sound of a horse neighing, and it was coming from the road they had left a while back. Sergeant James immediately got up and with a quick gesture for the rest to follow, which they did, he made his way back into the woods and towards the road, Rainbow Dash and the rest of the patrol following.

Soon, they reached the road, and when they did, Sergeant James had Rainbow Dash and Woody take a place on the far side of the road while he and Corporal Reilly stayed on the other side. They were told that when the rider appeared, they would come out of the trees onto the road and stop him. Rainbow Dash was told that no matter what, he was not to let the rider pass. Rainbow Dash remembered this as he readied his pistol.

A few moments passed and nothing happened, but then suddenly the rider appeared, on the back of a black horse. He was dressed in civilian clothes and had a haversack slung over his shoulder. He was approaching fast. Just then, Rainbow Dash saw Sergeant James and Corporal Reilly spring out of the bushes. He and Woody joined them and pointed their weapons at the rider.

"HALT!!" Sergeant James called out. The rider still kept coming. "HALT OR WE WILL SHOOT!!" Rainbow Dash cocked the hammer of his pistol all the way back. The rider still kept coming. "HALT!!!"

Finally, just as Rainbow Dash figured he was going to have to shoot the rider, he pulled on the reins and stopped his horse right in front of the patrol. Rainbow kept his pistol trained on the man as Sergeant James walked up to him, his rifle in his hands.

"Pray tell good man, why in God's name have you stopped me?" The rider asked. 

"I was just about to ask you what you were doin' out here in the woods in this weather?" Sergeant James questioned. "And what have you got in that there sack?"

The man clutched the sack closer to his side. "Just some letters." He said, agitatedly. 

"Well I guess ye won't mind if'n we take a look fer ourselves would ya?" Sergeant James growled. "Woody! Dash!"

"Yes Sergeant?" The two men called out replied.

"Keep yer guns on him. If he makes a move at all, shoot him."

Rainbow Dash and Woody nodded and pointed their pistols at the rider, who sighed inwardly. Sergeant James then gestured to Corporal Reilly to search the bag, which he began to do. He soon pulled out the papers that were stuffed inside. Looking at them over he soon looked at the rider in disbelief and slight anger. He then showed the papers to Sergeant James, who read them carefully.

"Well look at what we ave here."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight's POV

Twilight sat at a small wooded desk in the study of Washington's headquarters. She was writing in the journal that she had brought with her to document her findings on human behavior and culture. She had just finished scribbling down with her quill what she had learned from a sit down with Captain Hamilton, who had been telling her of his experiences as a child in a collection of islands known as The West Indies. Twilight was fascinated by the wide variety of cultures that seemed to exist on this world. Such a vast quantity of knowledge and information, she almost couldn't fathom. It was sad that she wouldn't be able to visit these exotic places this time around.

Still, she couldn't really complain. General Washington had been very kind to her. He had put her up in one of the bedrooms of the headquarters and had assigned a group of soldiers to care for her. She had tried to decline the offer, insisting that she was fine on her own. But Washington had insisted right back that it was his privilege. Seeing that he would not be moved, Twilight reluctantly agreed to be quartered in the headquarters.

Just as Twilight was finishing up the last entry in her journal, there came a knock on the door. Twilight turned towards the door. "Who is it?"

"Colonel Knox madame." Came the reply.

Twilight smiled. She had met Colonel Henry Knox a few days ago when she saw him talking with General Washington in the hallway. They had become good friends over time due to their love of books. Knox had even offered one of his books for her to read. The book was a collection of stories written by a man named William Shakespeare. 

"Coming Mr. Knox." She called, and got up and headed to the door. Upon opening it, she found Colonel Knox standing in the doorway with a book in his hand. It was one of Twilight's books on Equestria's history. She had lent it to Knox as a trade for the Shakespeare book. 

Colonel Knox dipped his head in greeting when Twilight opened the door. "Good afternoon madame." He said with a smile. "I trust that you are staying warm?"

"Oh, yes. Thank you Colonel Knox." Twilight replied. "I see you are still reading the book I gave you." She pointed to the book in his hand. "Are you enjoying it?"

"Oh yes ma'am. Quite so." Knox answered. "I must say that your species have a most diverse and colorful culture."

"Thank you Colonel Knox." Twilight smiled. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Oh um actually there is another reason I am here." Knox answered. "General Washington would like to speak with you. He is waiting in his study."

Twilight's eyebrows went up in surprise. "Oh, well, of course. I'll be along in a moment. Let me just get my journal and quills." She quickly went back to her desk and grabbed the journal she had been working in and her other note taking materials, and then returned to the door with a smile. "Lead the way Colonel Knox."

"Of course madame." Colonel Knox nodded, and then turned down the hall to the private study that served as General Washington's office. Upon reaching it, Knox made a move to knock on the door, but Twilight waved him away, telling him she could see herself in. Knox simply nodded and then promised that he would return the borrowed book as soon as he was finished with it. He then left to tend to matters concerning the army's artillery supplies.

Twilight walked up to the wooden door and knocked on it three times.

"Yes?" Came the reply.

"It's me General. You wanted to see me?" Twilight answered back.

The sound of footsteps came from behind the door and soon it swung open to reveal the tall general. Twilight could see slight signs of bags forming underneath the man's eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept for a long while. 

"General Washington, are you alright?" she asked worriedly.

Washington rubbed underneath his right eye before replying. "Uh yes yes. I am fine." He said sighing slightly. "Please Miss Twilight, do come in and sit down." He gestured to the green sofa near the window of the room.

"Thank you very much General." Twilight smiled and made her way over to the sofa. After she had taken her seat, Washington sat down at his desk next to her. The desk was piled with maps and various parchments of what Twilight could only guess was military matters. 

"How are you faring Miss Twilight?" Washington asked.

"Oh quite alright General." Twilight replied. "How about yourself?"

"Oh I keep myself occupied." Washington sighed inwardly. "Trudging along despite current circumstances." His expression soon looked grim as he looked back at the maps and papers upon his desk. "Which seem to have no sign of improving at any time."

Twilight frowned and looked down at her journal. She felt slightly guilty that she had been planning to spend her time in this world studying these humans. She couldn't do that now, not when they were suffering like this. "Is there anything that I may do that can help General?" She asked.

Washington looked up from his desk. "Miss Twilight, you are a guest here, and although I am quite confident in your intelligence, I doubt that there is anything that you could do for me." He said politely. "No it must fall to me, and by God so long as I command a corporals guard I will make some endeavor." 

Just then a knock came from the door. "Yes?" Washington called.

"Captain Williams sir." 

"Enter."

The door creaked open and a young officer stepped through. After nodding in greeting towards Twilight, the captain went up to Washington, producing a sealed paper from a haversack he carried. 

"A rider just brought this for you sir." He said with a frown.

Washington took the letter, broke the seal and began to read. As he read the letter, his expression grew angrier and angrier and angrier until suddenly he slammed his fist down onto his desk, making Twilight and the young captain jump.

"Damn that man!" Washington exclaimed. "The nerve of him to just sit there while we stand on the brink of total destruction!" He suddenly stood up from his desk and began to pace about the room as Twilight and the captain looked on in silence.

After a few moments of pacing, Washington stopped, shook his head and sighed. He then sat down at his desk and grabbed a clean sheet of parchment and a quill. 

"I am done asking that man!" He decreed as he dipped the quill in an inkwell. "Now I will order General Lee to bring his army here!" He then furiously scribbled a short letter which he signed and had sealed. He then handed it to the captain standing behind him. "Make sure that this goes out at once to General Lee." He said.

"Yes sir." Captain Williams nodded. He turned around and exited the room, closing the door behind him.

Washington sighed deeply before rubbing his face again. "We must bring our forces together at once if we are to have any hope of surviving the New Year." He groaned. "And unless some desperate action is taken to restore faith in this conflict, we will lose our army by that time."

Twilight was just about to offer her sympathies and help again, when another knock came from the door.

"Yes?" Washington called. 

"It's Hugh sir."

"The door is open."

The door creaked open to reveal a dark haired man dressed in the uniform of a brigadier general. Twilight recognized him as Hugh Mercer. She had met him earlier while touring the camp. She had found him at the hospital tent set up for the sick and wounded Continentals. Upon arriving, she had offered any help she could and had been directed to the young general. They had afterwards struck up a conversation and had become good friends. Twilight had been particularly fascinated with Mercer's knowledge of medicine and had taken many notes during their following conversations.

"Good afternoon Miss Twilight." Mercer greeted as he entered the room. He walked up to Washington and whispered into his ear. Washington looked at the man for a moment before getting up from his seat.

"Please forgive us Miss Twilight," He said before leaving. "But their is an urgent matter of military importance that I must attend to right now. Please do join my staff and I for dinner later this evening, will you?"

"Of course General." Twilight smiled. "It would be a pleasure." 

Washington smiled, nodded respectfully, then turned to leave with Mercer, who did the same before leaving as well.

Twilight sighed. She wanted to help these humans so badly. It just seemed that her skills would be of no use to anyone here. She returned to her room, determined to find a way to assist the Continental cause.