Prologue: The Grasshopper Lies Heavy
Las Pegasus, 15 years after the end of the Great War, 1040 A.D.
Dinky Hooves growled under her breath as she made her way through the busy Las Pegasus streets towards the run-down cinema, the snow beneath her hooves crunching loudly as she angrily stomped towards the doors. She'd been trying to get into contact with this cell for months, and they'd decided an abandoned cinema on the outskirts of Las Pegasus, nestled in a back-alley, at seven PM on a work night, was the best and most discreet place to meet.
This had better be worth my bucking time! I haven’t spent a year of my life killing traitors in back-alleys and running guns for them to tell me to buck off! she snarled internally, glowering at the boarded up windows and foreclosure notices plastered all over the building. Before the war, it had been a rather popular theater run by a cute Solarian couple, and would routinely host various church functions and plays depicting the stories found in the Solis Liber. It had been no surprise to many of the city's residents when, after the Changeling occupation had begun, the building was shut down and all copies of the Solis Liber in the city were collected and burned in a massive fire, right in the heart of the city for everypony to see. Dinky let a nostalgic smile creep onto her face as she remembered all the times her mother had brought her to this place, before they had moved to Ponyville.
Slipping beneath the faded yellow caution tape that blocked the doorway, Dinky stepped inside. The wood creaked and groaned beneath her hooves, and she had to cover her mouth with a hoof to keep herself from coughing from the sheer amount of built up dust in the room that kicked up as she walked deeper in. Lighting a small sphere of magic at the tip of her horn, she took in the view as her eyes adjusted to the dim light.
The reception area, or at least, what was left of it, was a wreck. Wooden desks broken in half littered the room, and the small altar at the end of the hall was marred with scorch marks, holes, and graffiti.
"Geez, this place is a mess!" Dinky let out a weary sigh, cracking her neck and making her way deeper into the cinema. “What the hay happened here?” She asked, tracing her hoof along the wall as she walked. Graffiti was sprayed along most of the interior, and there were moth-eaten bedrolls in the corners. She frowned as she continued through the building, trying her best to focus on the happy memories she had here.
Cardboard cutouts and drawings of Celestia and her prophets hung on the walls where the old murals used to be. The snow white Alicorn was depicted in only the most regal and royal of fashions, granting her some measure of dignity despite the crudity of the medium. Dinky hummed to herself as she retraced her steps, making her way to the biggest room in the building.
The screening room. It was... eerily different from her memories. Every single seat lay empty, the large white sheet hung on the wall displaying no moving picture. The projector room sat in complete darkness, the only light illuminating the room being that which emanated from the tip of Dinky's horn.
"Helloooo? Anypony here?" she called out, craning her head every which way trying to see if her contact was here. It didn't make sense; she'd explicitly been told to meet them in this exact building, at this exact time, in this exact room. This meeting had taken months upon months of digging, networking, and effort to arrange.
"I swear to Celestia, if they stood me up..." Dinky grumbled to herself, furrowing her brow and kicking a nearby chair. She swiveled on her hooves, turning around...
Coming face-to-face with a masked unicorn.
"EEE—MMMMPH!" She tried to let out a scream, but her attacker swiftly sent a bolt of purple magic towards her, the spell sending her softly to sleep.
Dinky groaned, flitting her eyelids open as she slowly returned to consciousness. Squirming around in what felt like an old recliner, she blearily gazed down at her hooves. She raised an eyebrow when she saw that she wasn't bound or restrained in any way, with the exception of a bandage wrapped around her hoof, a small amount of blood staining the white fabric.
"Where the hay am I?" she asked, not quite expecting an answer.
"You're at the Las Pegasus headquarters of the New Harmonic Resistance, Dinky," a refined, familiar voice said, a slight hint of amusement in their tone. “And I have to say, you’ve been quite the busy little bee, haven’t you, Bubbles?”
Dinky jumped in shock as she laid her eyes on the pony. He was a Unicorn of average build, his navy blue fur reminding her of the night sky. A tattered cap sat atop a pristine white mane. The stallion chuckled. His cutie mark was a quartet of bubbles, with a star in the middle. "Been a while, hasn’t it, Dinky? Remember me, your ol’ Uncle Gallant Soul?"
She nearly jumped out of her chair, her right eye twitching ever so slightly. "Uncle Gallant? What the hay are you doing here?! I’ve been trying to contact you buckers for months now! And what the hay was the deal with knocking me out?! And did you bucking cut me?! Is this how you treat all your new recruits?! How the hay do I know you’re not a changeli—"
He held up a bandaged hoof, silencing her as she saw the red blood absorbed into the bandage. "Dinky, we know. I must apologize for our... caution in how we brought you down here, but once I learned exactly
was trying to contact us, we had to ensure you weren't a Changeling Infiltrator being used to get to me. The only reason we even let you anywhere near this place is because of your mother."
Looking around, she seemed to be in some sort of... ramshackle hideout, probably in the sewers, if she had to guess. Exposed pipes ran along the length of the walls and ceiling, sealed with duct tape and cement to keep water from dripping into the large room. Stolen Changeling electronics such as radios and computers sat with tightly coiled bundles of wire hooked to an unseen power source, while old Equestrian and Changeling arms sat in a large closet at the end of the room. Creatures from every walk of life hustled around the room, from mechanics fixing and tinkering with stolen Changeling equipment, to medical personnel tending to their fellow's wounds. They had her in what looked to be some sort of central meeting room, with old and worn furniture in lieu of an actual war room.
This was a resistance base, alright.
Dinky perked up, sitting upright in her chair, furrowing her brow at him. "U-huh… apology accepted, I guess... but what about Mom? What the hay has she got to do with anything? She got taken by the bugs a year ago." Her face scrunched up as if she'd tasted poison, remembering being forced to watch the changelings drag her mother away to the trains a year prior.
He gave her a quizzical look, trotting towards a lawn chair and sitting down. "How much do you know about Ditzy’s activities these past ten years?"
Dinky opened her mouth to speak, pausing briefly as she tried to recall everything she could. "Uh, after the war ended, she took up a few more jobs as a mailmare to help pay the bills. It kept her out of the house a lot, but it was the only way we could survive."
Gallant leaned forward, looking Dinky in the eye. "That's a half truth, though I suppose she was merely trying to protect you. In truth, Ditzy was one of the best couriers the resistance had the pleasure of working with. Your mother is, by our estimates, responsible for the delivery of information that saved sixteen cells across the GCR area from raids and sting operations. More, if we count the States." Levitating a large file over, he flicked through it.
“So you mean all that time she was taking extra jobs…” she trailed off, covering her mouth with a hoof, remembering each and every odd job delivery her mother took. Every late night delivery, each month long outing…
it all began to make sense.
"Mhm. Transporting valuable intel or cargo. She's also directly responsible for the success of some of the NHR's more... impactful operations. I trust that you remember the Ponderosa Panzer Massacre?"
Dinky gasped, her jaw nearly dropping to the floor. "Wait, wait, wait. Are you trying to say that my mother helped destroy an entire battalion of Panzers?" She couldn’t imagine her mother doing anything like that. Ditzy was always so… so goofy, so happy. Peaceful, even. She’d never once heard her mother complain about the new life they were forced to live.
He smiled, reliving the fond memory. "Oh yes. It took her some time, but she was eventually able to hide explosives throughout the entirety of the compound they were stored in. She was long gone by the time the attack began, of course, but once we began our attack, the bugs didn't stand a chance!" He grinned, leaning back into his chair. "Your mother was a fighter at heart. I was honored to have known her."
Dinky slumped into her chair, taking a moment to process what she'd just heard. "M-my mother... was helping the Resistance? For how long?" She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her mother? A resistance operative? Actually
thinking, breathing creatures? It almost made her feel sick to her stomach on one hoof, but on the other…
She could totally see her mother doing these things without a hint of regret.
He chewed the inside of his cheek, taking on a contemplative expression. "Like I said earlier, a good ten or so years now. Joined up just as you turned twenty, I'd reckon. I'm not surprised that you didn't know, she wanted to protect you. Protect her fellow ponies..." He trailed off, before his gaze suddenly refocused, fixating on her, staring intensely into her eyes. “But that was your mother. What about you? What drives you? What brought you here?"
She nodded, giving him a look of grim determination. "I want to make sure my mother didn’t die for nothing. I want to go back to the Equestria I knew. The Equestria before the war..." She looked towards a Reich flag that was being used as a cleaning rag by a young hippogriff. "Before the Changelings."
He narrowed his eyes, studying her for some time. After a moment, he stretched his cheeks into a small grin. "You're certainly your mother's daughter. I think we've got something you could help with." He hopped out of his chair, walking towards an old office desk, retrieving a jet black briefcase from a drawer. "You’ve made something of a name for yourself, but I feel the need to ask anyway. How confident are you in your skills as a courier?"
Dinky rolled her eyes nodded excitedly, eyeing the briefcase with visible elation, her ears standing straight up and her eyes wide. "C’mon. I’ve been running all sorts of cargo for the outer cells for the past year now. I’m pretty good at it, if I say so myself."
He trotted back over to her, the object clutched tightly in a faint blue magical aura. "Good. The courier who was supposed to deliver this just got snagged by the roaches a week ago. It's imperative that it reaches its destination on time. Think you can do it?"
She lit her horn, lightly tugging on the edge of the handle. "Hay yeah!"
He smiled, releasing the briefcase and patting her back with a hoof. "Now that's what I like to hear! The details will be in the briefcase itself, but I'll give you the basics. You're to board the ten-thirty bus near the Morning Light casino, and that'll take you to the border of the Neutral Zone. From there, you're gonna make your way to the Hoofington Trade post, and hitch a ride on one of the trains over to the GCS. We've provided you with a forged passport that'll imprint with your picture as soon as you touch it, so that the Sturmtruppen doesn't give you any trouble. Make your way to Manehattan, and your contact should be fishing near the ninth dock at midnight. Code phrases are in the briefcase, so make sure to memorize them."
She gave him a curt nod, turning to what she assumed she was the exit, before hearing him speak once more. "Oh, and two more things. First, do not, under any circumstance, open the folder inside the briefcase. And for two…”
She raised an eyebrow, looking at him expectantly.
“Exit's the other way."
She blushed, turning on her hooves and walking with him to the exit.
“Thanks, for everything.”
This is it! I'll finally be able serve my country!
2 weeks later, Hoofington Trainyard
Patriotism's boring.
Two weeks. Two weeks of eating off-brand snacks, the occasional sandwich, and a single hot meal. Two weeks without showering. And two weeks of sleeping in a bus seat. But she'd finally arrived at Hoofington, a small trade post on the border of the Neutral Zone. Before the war, it had been a lovely little town south of Canterlot. Now, it served as one of the many trade posts facilitating the transfer and sale of goods from the Griffonian Empire to the east.
Things could be worse, I suppose. I could always be stuck in a trench. She thought to herself, slumping back into the comfy train seat she was sat on. The chilly autumn air licked at her fur through the window, causing her to shiver beneath the thick gray hoodie she'd brought with her. The small briefcase sat in her saddlebags next to her, secure and hidden away from sight. She'd tucked herself into the back room in the front cabin of the train, a small loaf of hot bread clutched in her hooves as she slowly ate away at it, savoring the taste of a hot meal, even if it was something as simple as wholemeal bread. She took her time, observing and surveying the trainyard that sat a small distance away as she ate.
Compared to occupied cities within the Reich, which sported all manner of changeling iconography and propaganda, especially the trademark triple pointed crown that had become the symbol of Queen Chrysalis's reign, Hoofington was surprisingly... boring. There were no flags, no propaganda posters, nothing of the sort. Simply the plain brick buildings, shingled roofs, and the occasional advertisement in front of a store.
It reminded her of the time before the war.
The sound of marching boots snapped her out of her reverie, quickly snapping her gaze to the noise. A small group of changeling soldiers marched towards the trainyard, their dark grey uniforms the spitting image of perfection. Even the military rucksacks they carried with them were unblemished. As they marched, in perfect synchronicity, Dinky saw at once how the other ponies in the street gave them a wide berth, not even daring to raise their heads for fear of making eye contact.
Heading the group was a slightly taller, more lithe changeling, the two lightning bolts sewed into his collar sending no small amount of fear into her heart.
This was no ordinary group of soldiers.These were Schutzstaffel soldiers. Some of the most elite personnel of the Changeling Reich, the SS were known for their ruthless attitude towards any opponent of the Reich...
Even other changelings.
Dinky curled into herself, trying to make herself seem as small as possible, so that they didn't see her through the window.
She saw who she assumed was the commanding officer approach a hay truck which had been parked at the side of the road, dragging the owner aside and hissing something into her ear. The owner, a portly earth pony mare, began shaking her head furiously, tears leaking out of her eyes. The officer snapped his head back, barking an order to his subordinates, who took their rifles and affixed bayonets, stabbing the hay bales.
For a minute, it looked as if it was all for nothing, but after a couple stabs she heard a blood curdling scream, watching as a thestral emerged from the hay bales, a bloody stab wound in his stomach. One of the soldiers threw him out of the truck, tossing him onto the ground roughly. The thestral cried out in pain again as the officer walked over and kicked him in the side, coolly drawing a pistol and aiming directly at the pony’s head.
The sound of the shot echoed through the streets as the thestral’s movements slowed, then stopped. A pool of blood was slowly expanding under his lifeless body, tinged with the pink colour of brain matter.
The owner of the truck started sputtering, tears leaking down her face. The changelings didn't seem to particularly care, however, as two of the soldiers grabbed her in their telekinesis, dragging her away as she kicked and screamed. Dinky's heart sunk in her chest as she stared directly into that mare's eyes, feeling every ounce of fear and despair that the poor mare must have been feeling.
Those passersby and bystanders brave enough to have stayed behind only looked on in mute silence, before ducking their heads and going back to what they were doing, trying their best to avoid the soldiers’ deadly attention. The officer merely grinned, and began approaching the train, the remaining soldiers following him. They approached the entrance to her cabin, brushing past the ticket taker without hesitation, and marched straight into her cabin, The officer taking a moment to scan the cabin. Aside from Dinky, the cabin's only other occupants were an old griffon couple near the front.
"Hmph. It shall do. Leutnant Webber, please see to it that our luggage is properly stowed." The officer said, narrowing his eyes towards his smaller subordinate.
"Jawohl, Scharführer Venus!" The soldier snapped a salute, his teal green hoof band with the changeling crown on proud display, rushing off to the back of the train in an orderly manner, taking his fellow soldiers rucksacks with him.
Observing this "Scharführer Venus", Dinky resolved to simply retrieve a book from her saddlebags and stick her nose in it and continue to chew her bread. Her heart pounded in her chest as she listened to him speak with his fellows, and she was hoping to all that was holy that it didn't show.
"I loathe these little excursions that we get sent on. Why should we care about some downed plane in the Neutral Zone? Leave that to the S&R bugs. We're Schutzstaffel for Queen-Mother's sake! Not some grunt workers," one of the disgruntled changelings mumbled.
Venus, as he was apparently called, simply shrugged. "Don't worry, soldaten, ve shall finish zis mission and be back at Vesalipolis before you know it. It is not our place to question orders, only to ensure zey are followed."
The pony in the group, a pegasus, simply grunted. "Yeah, that's all well and good, but did you hear? The Gestapo just had some documents stolen from them. They never caught the one who did it, but there's a ponyhunt going on all across the Reich right now."
Dinky's heart threatened to jump out of her chest as the pony finished speaking, the rumble of the train's engines churning and springing to life masking her trembling. Venus chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment, before responding. "Vell, I have full confidence in ze Gestapo's ability to apprehend ze culprit. If zey vere not good at their jobs, then ze Queen vould not put her full confidence in their abilities. I vouldn't worry, if I vere you."
Dinky slowly released a breath she didn't even realize she was holding, taking one final bite of the warm loaf of bread and continuing to read her book, some romance novel by a bigwig bug from Vraks.
And as the train chugged on through the day, and into the night, she listened to the group of soldiers laughing, playing games, and telling old war stories from an era long since gone. Dinky eventually laid down in her chair, having grown tired of listening to the group prattle on. Her final thoughts as she slipped off into the sweet embrace of unconsciousness were that of home, and of simpler times.
I miss you, Mom.
1 day later, early in the morning.
Dinky felt a prodding at her side. "Mmh, five more minutes." she murmured out, flipping over with a mighty flop.
"Miss. Ze breakfast cart is due to arrive soon. Are you sure you do not vant to wake up?"
At the word "breakfast", Dinky's eyes fluttered open. That's a changeling. Indeed, the changeling officer was next to her in full uniform, prodding her awake.
Wait a second.
THAT'S A CHANGELING!
Dinky's eyes widened as she looked at Venus like a deer caught in the headlights. "Uh... no?" She squeezed out meekly, giving the officer an awkward smile.
Venus blinked a couple times, giving her his best approximation of a reassuring smile.
Given the fact that he was a changeling, it was about as reassuring as one would expect. Which is to say, not at all.
"Vould you like to dine at our table? Ve have room for one other, and I find zat it is better to dine in good company."
Dinky opened her mouth to respond, but her breath hitched in her throat. On one hoof, I should totally say no, because they might start asking questions. On the other, if I say no, that might look suspicious, and they might start asking questions! What should I say?! Thinking quickly, she gave him a soft nod. "Oh, uh, sure! I'd uh, I'd love to!"
Venus clapped his hooves together. "Excellent! I am Scharführer Venus, but please, call me Venus." He offered her a hoof, helping her off the cushion seat.
Dinky blushed as she took his hoof. "My name is Swift, Swift Delivery." On the outside, she tried to look as serene as she could possibly be, but on the inside? She was panicking. She'd just agreed to sit down at a table with an SS officer. To talk.
What the buck have I just gotten myself into?
She managed to silence most of her internal objections by the time Venus had led her to his group's section of the cabin. "Gentlemen, zis is frau Swift. Swift, zese are my fellow soldiers. Leutnant Webber—" The smaller changeling nodded curtly. "—Schütze Rainy Day—" the pegasus gave her a small wave, his baby blue coat clashing terribly with the dark grey uniform, the aquamarine mane even moreso. "—Und finally, Unterscharführer Nightshade." The final changeling gave Dinky a wide grin, their purple eyes brimming with joy.
"Hello! Nice to meet you!" Nightshade said, her feminine voice filled with jubilation as her wings buzzed in excitement.
Dinky's ear flicked as she tried not to betray her shock. When she agreed to sit down with a group of SS, this... wasn't quite what she had expected. "Y-yeah. You too!"
A portly unicorn mare softly opened the door to the cabin, pushing a cart full of all sorts of dishes. Pushing the cart up to their table, she smiled at them, her apron slightly stained with grease and oil. "Hello, dearies! What can I get for ya?"
Rainy Day was the first to speak up, cracking his neck. "Yeah, could I just get an omelette, please? Mushroom, if possible."
Venus adjusted his collar, eyeing a small set of thin cardboard boxes on the bottom of the cart. "Love ration thirty-six, if you would kindly."
Webber scrunched his face, narrowing his eyes at the rations available. "Yeah uh, I think I'll have the thirty-six too, please."
Nightshade simply beamed at the mare. "Love ration seventeen, please!"
The mare looked at Dinky expectantly, retrieving the soldier's orders from the cart. "And what can I get for you, sweetie?"
Dinky licked her lips, looking at the cart with an almost ravenous hunger. The only hot meal she'd had in weeks had been a loaf of bread, and there was just so much to choose from! Licking her lips, Dinky made her choice. "I think I'll take a couple eggs, two scones, and some hot tea, please!" The waitress nodded at her with a beaming smile, levitating her order onto a small plate and sliding it onto the table with the rest.
Venus dug into his service coat, retrieving his coin purse and depositing a few silvered coins onto the table, minted with the number twenty and the changeling crown. "Keep ze change, miss."
The waitress gulped like a fish at the coins on the table, not quite expecting such a generous tip. "Oh, thank you, sir! A million thank-yous!"
Venus smiled at her, dismissing her with a wave of his hoof. "No no, it's quite alright. You have a wonderful day, miss."
Dinky internally raised an eyebrow at the act. This was somepony she had just seen execute an innocent pony point blank, and then had another pony hauled off, presumably to her death. But... the changeling in front of her was as nice as could be. Affable, even. Somepony she could see herself going out to get drinks with, even if he was a filthy bucking bug.
Cognitive dissonance is a bitch. Dinky thought to herself, taking a fork and beginning to cut into her eggs, looking at Venus out of the corner of her eye. "Mmph, gulp you didn't have to pay for me, you know."
Venus shrugged, opening the ration and sliding three pink crystals out of it. "Nonsense. You are ze frau, thus I am obligated to pay for our food. I invited you, remember?" He grabbed one of the crystals in his hoof, placing his horn upon it. His horn began to glow a sickly green as the swirling pink energy within the gem was sucked out, wrapping around his horn and dissipating. Once the gem was a dull and lifeless gray, Venus let out a satisfied sigh, depositing the gem back into the box.
Webber mimicked his superior's actions, draining the first of his three gems. "So, Miss Swift, it is a curious thing, no? For a mare as young as yourself to be traveling on her lonesome, especially through the Neutral Zone," He raised an eyebrow at her, spinning one of the love crystals with the tip of his hoof.
Dinky gulped down her bite of egg as her heart dropped in her chest, looking Webber in the eye. "I'm visiting family in Fillydelphia, actually. My sister's birthday is coming up soon and I wanted to surprise her." She could feel her tail twitching as she lied, her heart beginning to race in her chest.
Nightshade gasped, leaning on the table. "Ooh, a birthday?! How old is she going to be?!"
Dinky let out a forced giggle at the excitable changeling. "She'll be turning thirty-five," she said, grabbing a scone from her plate and biting into it, savoring the flaky, buttery layers of the piping hot biscuit.
Rainy grunted, forcing down another chunk of his omelette. "Neat. So what do you do for a livin'? Can't imagine it's easy to keep a job as a hornhead, 'specially in today's world." Venus, Nightshade and Webber all shot him dirty looks at the "hornhead" comment. He looked back at them, shrugging. "What? It's true."
"I'm a mailmare. Just like my mom, and my grandmother, and so on and so forth. It sorta runs in the family, y'know?"
Venus hummed to himself, finishing off the second love gem. "Mhm, I certainly know ze feeling. My family is going on... about nine generations of military service, dating back to the Hive Wars. Some zings are simply meant to be."
Dinky nodded, finishing off the remaining eggs and scone, washing it down with a sip of tea. "Mhm. Thank you for treating me to breakfast, Scharführer, but if you'd excuse me, I'll be returning to my room." She said, sliding out of the booth and giving the soldiers a small curtsy.
Venus only smiled, giving her a small wave. "No, no, it's fine. Though, I will say—" He flashed her a sultry grin. "Zat book you're reading gets incredibly good after about ze halfway point, if you can catch my drift, as it were. I enjoyed ze beginning as well, ze scene in ze camp was particularly satisfying, vat vith ze Changeling victory in ze end."
Dinky blushed, her ears folding back as she returned to her room. Closing the sliding door behind her, she collapsed onto the cushioned seat, gasping for breath. "It's okay... they don't know anything, Dinky... they believed you," she whispered to herself, grabbing her saddlebags and hugging them tightly, the rough and durable fabric feeling like a soft pillow in the heat of the moment. I totally just had breakfast with the Celestia-damned SS and got away with lying to them!
She let out a deep sigh, still clinging tightly to the saddlebags. She was used to running small time cargo on small time routes. Guns, medical supplies, general purpose equipment. But if what Rainy Day had said yesterday was true, then she was probably carrying something incredibly important. She looked at the door, reaching out and locking it, before retrieving the briefcase from her saddlebags, laying it on the table. It didn't have any identifying markings, nothing to signal who this briefcase was made by, or who it belonged to.
Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she exhaled, flicking up the latches holding the briefcase shut and opening it. The inside was lined with a soft velvet, the contents resting neatly on the bottom of the briefcase. There was a black passport, bearing the changeling Crown, a large folder which Dinky presumed was the one she was not to open, as well as a small utility bag, lined with all sorts of bulging pouches.
Grabbing the bag, she opened the flap, depositing the contents of the main pouch onto the table. "Hm... First aid kit, compass, fishing line and hook..." She mumbled to herself as she listed the contents, finding general purpose medical and survival equipment. Nothing fancy like rations or magical lanterns, but the basics, like a multi-tool and a ferro rod. Keep it simple, stupid, she thought to herself, chuckling as she remembered her mother saying those words whenever she tried fixing something.
Putting the items back in their pouch, and affixing that pouch to her saddlebags, Dinky grabbed the passport. The second she laid her hoof on it, the pages glowed a soft green light that quickly faded. Opening the small booklet, she was pleasantly surprised to find a picture of herself staring back at her, with all the details necessary to fool a customs agent… including her cover name.
Eyeing the folder, she briefly contemplated opening it. There was a small circular bulge in the center of it, giving her imagination all sorts of ideas as to what it could be.
She started at the folder for what felt like hours. I have a right to know what I'm hauling... right? That makes sense, totally! She inched her hoof towards the folder, before retracting it. But Uncle Gallant specifically said not to open it... She frowned, thinking for a moment before throwing the passport back into the briefcase, slamming the lid shut and closing the latches. It's fine. I don't need to know a thing until I deliver it. It's probably for the best anyway.
Haphazardly tossing the briefcase back into her saddlebags, not bothering to close the flap on her bags, she slumped into the bench, grabbing her book and flipping to the page she had bookmarked, admiring the setting sun and the terrain outside out of the corner of her eye as the train chugged along towards its destination.
The hours ticked by as Dinky idly flicked through the pages of her book, until the sun finally dipped below the horizon and the only light in her room was that of the small lamp above her. Her eyelids began to droop as exhaustion and fatigue slowly crept their way into her mind. She smiled a bit as images of Ponyville began to fill her head, and her breathing began to slow down as she allowed herself to slip into unconsciousness...
Knock-knock-knock!
Until the sound of hooves rapping at her door jolted her awake from the sweet embrace of the dreaming world, and the lovely memories that came with it. Groaning to herself, she clambered out of her seat and dragged herself over to the door, sliding it open with a grumpy frown on her face.
Standing in front of her was Leutnant Webber, a big dopey smile on his face. "Guten abend, Fräulein! I hope I did not wake you, but the Scharführer was wondering if you would like to join us for din— wait, what is that?" He stopped mid sentence, pointing towards the briefcase that stuck halfway out of her saddlebags. Reflected in his eyes, she could see the symbol on the briefcase briefly glow.
Oh buck all kinds of duck.
Momentarily, Dinky's world went into slow motion. She saw Webber begin to turn his head to yell for help, reaching his hoof towards his pistol and igniting his horn. She could vaguely see the shaded silhouettes of Venus, Nightshade and Rainy Day through the walls of their room, sitting patiently as they waited for Webber to return with Dinky in tow.
Making a split second decision between life and death, Dinky made her choice. She slammed her hoof into Webber's windpipe, causing him to sputter and hack as his hooves shot to his throat, grasping it tightly. She wrapped one of her forelegs around his neck, dragging him into her room and slamming her other elbow onto his horn, causing the gathered magical energy to sputter out and die. "Gotosleepgotosleepgotosleepgotosleep!" she hissed in his ear repeatedly, choking him until he went limp in her grasp, and a couple of seconds after for good measure.
Releasing him, Dinky let out a shaky breath. Haven't had an encounter nearly that close since that one time in Dodge City. She eyed the now-unconsciousness form of the Leutnant, frowning at him. Wish it didn't have to end like this... Sighing to herself, she unclasped his belt, taking everything of use off of it. Levitating the pistol out of its holster, she racked the slide back, noting to herself that it was currently chambered. She filched the magazines he carried on the belt, as well as the large knife all SS soldiers were known to carry.
She threw everything but the pistol and the knife into her saddlebags and fastened them on. Clasping the knife tightly in her hoof, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before plunging it into the base of Webber's skull, the impact making a small crack. Pulling the knife out of the changeling, she wiped the blade on the window curtains, dropping it and then clutching it tightly in her magical aura.
Once more unto the Everfree, Dinky. The grim thought giving her some amount of resolve, she stepped out of her room, cautiously eyeing the changeling's room as she slunk her way to the exit of the cabin.
Of course, that was the exact moment Nightshade chose to poke her head out of the room. "Heya, Webber, Swift! What's taking so long?!" She yelled out, exiting the room and walking towards Dinky's room, not noticing Dinky near the exit door. Her face recoiled in shock as she stopped in her tracks, staring at the corpse of her comrade. "Oh sweet Chr—!" A surge of adrenaline flooded Dinky's body, and Nightshade turned her gaze to Dinky, her face twisted in a mix of disgust and shock.
BANG!
Giving Dinky the perfect opportunity to put a bullet in her head. Of course, gunshots are a loud and very recognizable sound...
"Unterscharführer!" She heard Venus cry out, rushing out of the room just as Dinky slammed the door closed behind her, scrambling up the ladder that took her to the top of the train car. Whipping her head around, she saw what would likely be her salvation; a sign about a half a mile away, signalling that White Tail Woods was just ahead. A small portion of the forest was in the Neutral Zone, but the vast majority of it resided in the Griffonian Celestial States, the half of Equestria that was under control of the Griffonian Empire and the Reformisten government. The Reich had no power there, and even if they tried to pursue her, it would cause a diplomatic uproar. That's my way out!
She grinned to herself, running towards the front car of the train, Webber's pistol and knife floating alongside her as she hopped to the next cart over.
"In the name of Queen Chrysalis, you are under arrest, resistance scum!" She heard Venus yell out behind her, and the sound of rushing wings.
Hopping to the side, Dinky dodged the pegasus attempting to dive bomb her, raising her pistol and firing two shots in his direction. One bullet missed entirely, shooting off into the distance. The other clipped his right wing, causing him to crash face first onto the cart ahead of her.
She flipped her gaze from Rainy to Venus, ducking her head as he shot at her, the bullets piercing her shoulder, causing her to cry out in pain. Raising her own pistol towards him, she winced from the recoil of the gun so close to her face, the hot gas warming her cheeks in the cold air of the night. She screwed her eyes shut from the muzzle flash, her right ear ringing from the CRACK of a gunshot going off right next to it. She heard Venus cry out in pain as she pulled the trigger for a third time, squinting her eyes open, grinning at the sight of the changeling collapsed onto the roof of the car, clutching at the tip of his horn.
"You little bitch... I'LL KILL YOU!" Rainy yelled out behind her, loud metal thunks sounding off as he charged towards her, his wing dragging limply behind him.
"Buck off, ya jingo prick!" she shouted back, cracking a series of shots off at him as he rushed her, any bullets that impacted having seemingly no effect on the Pegasus as he tackled her to the floor of the train, raining punch after punch onto her exposed head, trying to hit her horn.
Dinky blocked as best she could, crossing her hooves over her horn. Squinting her eyes open, she gave the pegasus a defiant smile, who momentarily slowed his assault upon seeing her cocky grin. "The buck are you smiling for?!"
Dinky laughed in his face, shoving him off of her. "Look behind ya!"
Rainy turned his head, his eyes widening at the rapidly approaching sign. "Oh BUUUUUUUU—" He was cut off as his face slammed into the sign, sending him between the train cars and onto the tracks below, a sickening crunch and a pained scream telling Dinky all that she needed to know.
Venus shakily stood up, his eyes filled to the brim with seething rage as he glared at Dinky. "I should never have trusted you, you ponies are all the same! You can't see how good you have it under the Queen's rule!" he grabbed his knife in a hoof, placing it in his mouth as he pawed at the roof of the car with a hoof.
Dinky pulled herself to her hooves, giving the changeling a cold stare. "Give me freedom, or give me death, Bug!" She raised her pistol, aiming center mass. A clean shot, probably the easiest one she would ever take in her life.
"ARGGGGGH" Venus growled out, leaping across the cart as he took flight towards Dinky, his wings buzzing so fiercely they almost reminded her of machine gun fire.
BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG
Dinky pulled the trigger rapidly, not even caring to manage the recoil as his bullet-ridden body sailed over her and fell limply onto the roof of the car, and she continued to shoot the corpse until her gun rang empty, with a soft click signalling an empty magazine. "Huff... Huff... Buck me..." She huffed out, softly depressing the magazine release and sliding a new magazine in, racking the slide and dropping the gun into her saddlebags.
Suddenly, klaxons began whining as Dinky snapped her head up, muttering a few curses as she saw two guard towers ahead, their spotlights trained on her. Whipping her head around wildly, and seeing no other avenue of escape, Dinky made her choice. Looking at the forest below her, she took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she was about to do.
Dinky jumped, falling to the forest below.
"BUCK MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
A few hours later...
Dinky winced as she limped her way out of the woods, taking care to stay off her right leg, resisting the urge to rub at the tightly wrapped bandages that were soaked with deep crimson, or the many multitudes of scratches on her face. Twigs and leaves were stuck in her mane, the ponytail she had had it wrapped in having been undone, giving her a shaggy appearance, not too unlike that of a homeless mare. Her hoodie was scratched and torn in multiple places, and even her saddlebags were roughed up from the fall.
But still, she pressed on.
And on.
And on...
With nothing to tell the time, she reckoned that it must have been at least noon before she reached a road. She almost wanted to kiss the black pavement, but restrained herself to merely walking on it, following the road as far as she could. The only company she had as she walked was the soft clopping of her hooves, and distant rumble of a car's engine.
Wait, car engine... Her eyes widened as she smiled in glee, running towards the noise. In the far distance, the matte black silhouette of a relatively high-end car sped towards her at a modest speed. Dinky raised herself up on her hind legs, waving with her hooves to try and get the driver's attention. As the car neared ever closer to her, it began to slow down, eventually coming to a complete halt with a high pitched SCREEEEECH of the brakes being pressed on harshly.
Dinky approached the car, sighing with relief as she saw the window roll down, revealing the form of a yellow pegasus, the black stripes in his mane contrasting sharply with the color of his fur. "Hello, Miss. Can I help you with something?"
Dinky nodded, almost crying at the sight of another pony. "Yes, could I huff please get a ride to a bus stop or something?"
Eyeing her suspiciously for a moment, the pony smiled at her, nodding. "Of course! Hop on in, don't mind the mess, but I just dropped the fillies off at a field trip the Junge Pionere's hosting."
She returned his smile, opening the door and climbing into the back seat. Inside, the car was nearly immaculate, with the exception of some fast food wrappers left in the back seat. The seats were a brown faux leather, and it almost felt like she was laying on a cloud as she slumped into the seat. "My uh, my name's Swift. What's yours?" she asked, looking at the stallion's face through his rear-view mirror. His face was the very image of a tired old war horse, deep bags under his eyes and his cheeks sunken in ever so slightly. His eyes, despite his age or experience, remained relatively youthful, the faint spark of life ever present as he looked at her.
"My name's Thunderbolt Sentinel. Surprised you haven't heard of me. You a visitor from the Reich?"
Dinky blinked a couple times, slinging her saddlebags off and digging through them. "Uh, yeah. Visiting family in Manehattan. Should I uh... Should I know you?" She gave him a questioning look, quirking her eyebrow, and kept her hoof on her passport.
He laughed, shaking his head at her. "Heh, well if you're from the Reich it probably explains why. I'm the Reichskommisar of Manehattan!"
Dinky's eye twitched ever so slightly. Another. Bucking. Officer?! "Oh! Well, uh, thank you for the ride, Sir." She said, nodding her head as a small gesture of respect. She'd seen stallions do that before, so it must mean something, right?
He chuckled at her. "No problem, honestly! I'm happy to help a fellow pony whenever I can... I just need to see your passport."
Dinky nodded, retrieving it from her saddlebags and holding it up so he could see it. Studying it for a moment, he grunted, satisfied with what he saw from a quick glance. "So, how'd you end up like that anyway? You look pretty roughed up."
She looked out the window, resting her head on the edge of her seat. "My coltfriend and I had an argument on the way here, and he threw me out of the car with my bags near the woods. I don't know where he is now." She mumbled out, an errant tear leaking out of her eye. Smoooth, Dinky.
Sentinel sighed, shaking his head. "Colts these days... None of ‘em know how to behave. I swear, if any colt were to treat either of my daughters like that, I’d kill them myself."
After that, the tension in the car was so thick it could have been cut with a butter knife. The two sat in relative silence for the rest of the ride, with Sentinel or Dinky occasionally joking about something they'd seen, or talking about recent events. All things considered, Sentinel seemed to be a hard working family stallion. He didn't discuss his job too much, but what he did tell her was of the more fun or hilarious moments he'd experienced in his time serving the Geheimstaat, the secret police of the Griffonian Empire.
Eventually, as the sun began to set across the horizon, Sentinel's car pulled to a stop outside of a rather luxurious looking household. Nothing too terribly over the top, but it was a picture perfect image of what a family home should look like. A two-story home, a lovely garden, a perfectly maintained lawn... It almost made Dinky jealous.
"Well, this is where we gotta part ways. I hope your time here in the States is good and uh..." He trailed off, digging into the glove box and retrieving two small laminated cards, passing them to her. "Here's a citizenship permit if you wish to stay, and a surgery voucher for if you do. The States are always welcoming new citizens!"
She tentatively took the cards from his wing, stuffing them into her saddlebags. "Well uh, that's generous of you! I'll certainly keep that in mind. You have a good night, Sir! And thank you for the ride! Don't know what I would have done without you, if I'm being entirely honest with myself." She stepped out of the car, giving Sentinel a small curtsy.
"Like I said, I'm always happy to help another pony out. If you ever need anything, my number is on the back of the permit. Have a good night, Miss Swift!" He climbed out of the car, grabbing a small suitcase from his passenger side seat, and waved at her as she walked off into the night.
Just a little bit longer, and I'll be done with this...
Walking the streets of this new Manehattan, she was shocked by just how... normal it was, despite the occupation. There wasn't really much in the way of iconography plastered everywhere like it was back in the Reich, more-so just subtle reminders. The logo of the Reformisten, a griffon's head above a smaller pony's head, was present on most of the large businesses and buildings, but overall? The city still had an incredibly Equestrian feel, with the subtle hint every so often that the griffons had claimed this city, and were here to stay. The newer buildings were substantially more rugged and utilitarian than previous Equestrian buildings, and took on a darker color palette. Perhaps the biggest example of this new style was the large skyscraper that sat in the center of the city, a stone replica of the Reformisten symbol dominating the roof.
Never thought I'd see the Geheimstaat headquarters personally... It's crazy how much can change in just fifteen years.
Shaking those thoughts out of her head, she made her way through the busy and winding streets to the large port that dominated the coast of Manehattan, narrowing her eyes at the Knickers Island prison complex in the distance. "Dockyard nine... at midnight..." Dinky mumbled to herself, her hooves making hollow clops along the concrete pathway. Fishing trawlers and cargo ships bobbed up and down from the motion of the waves, the sound of the water sloshing soothing Dinky's nerves.
Making her way past the moored ships, she saw the final mooring of the dockyard lay empty, save for the vague form of an earth pony sitting at the edge of the dock, a fishing rod clasped in his hooves. She could hear the pony humming some old shanty, swinging his legs around as he waited for a fish to bite.
She approached the pony cautiously, taking care to make as little noise as possible. Remember your lines, Dinky. "Ahem. Excuse me, sir?"
The pony craned his neck around to look at her, staring her down with his one good eye, the other a milky gray. "Uhh, what kahn Ah do fer ya, sweetie? Fishin' sure is nice this time o' year, dont'cha know?"
She let out a relieved breath. He's half blind... I'm safe, right? "Oh uh, yes! I hear that grasshoppers make really good bait this time of year!"
"Oh yea, they're heavy as sin though!" He gave her a grin like a cheshire cat's. "Well... I think we both know well enough what we're here for. Do ya have the package?"
She nodded, reaching into her saddlebags and beginning to reveal the briefcase, a thought springing to her mind just as she finished lifting the flap on her saddlebags. Wait... that wasn't the confirmation phrase!
"STOP! THAT'S A BUG!"
She stopped, whipping her head around to look at a group of ponies charging down the dockyard, all of them wearing fishing coats... the same coat that the pony in front of her wore. Hearing the subtle whoosh of a flame igniting, she snapped her neck around so hard it let out a loud CRACK!
The pony she'd meant to hand the briefcase too was wreathed in a green flame, his skin melting away to reveal a chitinous exterior. Vicious fangs poked out of his mouth, and a single blue eye stared back at her. "Damnit!" he cursed, drawing a knife from his coat and ramming it into her barrel, shedding the coat and buzzing his wings.
Collapsing to the ground, Dinky stared up at the sky, taking many shallow breaths as blood poured out of her side like a faucet. She heard a loud gunshot ring out, and the sound of something heavy fall into the water with a large splash. The sound of hooves rushing towards her made her smile as she slipped into unconsciousness, a single thought crossing her mind as she allowed her eyes to close, ignoring the panicked shouts she heard.
I hope I made you proud, Mom.
Dinky's eyes slowly fluttered open, a dull pain emanating from her barrel. The sound of ponies talking and chatting reached her ears, as well as the sound of somepony messing with something mechanical. Lifting her head up slightly, she saw a large bandage wrapped around her barrel, and she had been laid down on a couch, a much nicer one than what she'd seen in Las Pegasus.
A familiar, yet blurry face crossed into her field of vision, grabbing Dinky's head and giving her a thorough examination. "Patient stable, showing signs of consciousness... Hrm, loopy, but that'll fade. Recovery will probably take two to six weeks..." the pony mumbled to herself, her snow white fur and red cross cutie mark giving Dinky all she needed to recognize her.
"N-Nurse Redheart?" Dinky whispered out, her throat feeling drier than what she imagined Zebrica to be like.
She jolted a bit, being pulled out of her reverie by Dinky's voice. "Oh! Yes, Dinky. It's me. Do you need some water, dear?"
Dinky nodded, laying her head back down on the cushion. As her vision slowly focused more and more, she saw that she was sitting in the middle of a large assortment of chairs, benches, and couches, and creatures of all sorts flooded the room, excitedly chattering and joking to each other. A large projector was set up in front of her, pointed towards a large white sheet that hung on the wall. A small film, roughly the size of the bulge she had seen in the folder, sat within it.
"Did I do it?" Dinky murmured, adjusting to a more comfortable position.
A bottle of water was floated in front of her lips, and she drank from it greedily. "Yes, Dinky. You did it. We'd received word that the Changelings had learned of our drop point, and tried to get there as fast as we could. And I think... I think you should know what you were delivering."
Redheart sat on the couch with Dinky, flicking the projector on. It hummed loudly as it spurred to life, and quieted down the light flicked on, and the film reel began to spin. The room quieted down, every creature present watching the film intently.
"What the...." Dinky mumbled, her eyes widening as the film played. "That... That's Vraks. Vraks just got nuked..." she stammered out, rising up as the film continued to play.
"Shh, sit down and watch."
Scenes of a similar, dizzying magnitude began to play.
The liberation of Vanhoover, as Equestrian tanks rolled through the streets, hundreds of happy soldiers playing their trumpets as the citizens cheered.
The atomic bomb being dropped onto Vesalipolis, the large mushroom cloud exploding into the air, and Dinky could almost feel the impact herself.
Equestrian marines landing at Haukland, raising the two sisters’ flag up proudly. The ground was scorched and barren, with craters from artillery shells littering the land.
The New Mareland fleet approaching the shores of the Hjortland, hundreds of landing craft streaking across the water into the deer's homeland.
Emperor Grover VI on the deck of an Equestrian battleship, signing a peace treaty as his Reformisten officers surrounded him, their heads hung in shame.
Sinister Serov charging with his troops across the badlands, the gargantuan Stalliongradi tank corps following in his wake.
"This... This never happened. This is impossible!"
Redheart chuckled, grabbing Dinky's chin, directing Dinky's gaze towards her. "It's what could have happened. It's what should have happened, Dinky. You didn't just deliver us intelligence documents, or some stupid film, Dinky...you delivered something infinitely more valuable."
Dinky looked back at the film, which was now displaying perhaps the most impossible scene of all.
A distinctly more colorful Chrysalis, no longer bearing a black and gnarled shell, but a beautifully hued yellow one, with an aquamarine green mane. There were no more holes in her shell nor her mane, and she looked...
Happy.
She approached a large table, sitting directly across from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Placing her hoof into a small inkwell, she stamped her hoof print into a document, smiling brightly. A banner hung in the background, displaying the words "Peace in our time!"
"W-What did I deliver?"
Redheart hugged Dinky as the creatures around her cheered, clinking bottles and letting themselves be consumed by joy.
"Hope."
End.