Chapter 1
Light Runner sat quietly at a table inside the almost empty bar, quietly sipping on a cider as he watched the door. It was getting towards early evening and the few regulars who still dared to come near the establishment had already made themselves at home in their usual chairs, ciders and other assorted drinks in hoof. The Loose Horseshoe wasn't exactly much of a looker when it came to bars. A slightly run down two story structure on the edge of what had once been Manehattan's financial district, but its unassuming looks made it fit for the purpose it was now being used for.
Light had been sitting at his table for two hours now, sipping on non alcoholic cider as several ponies came and went, none of whom were his contact. He had been stationed there by the high command of Manehatten's premier resistance movement, the Equestrian Liberation Front, or ELF as some liked to call it. The ELF had been harrassing the changeling occupation forces in the city ever since they had taken over. Mostly small time stuff like tossing grenades into popular changeling spots and sniping at officers they could identify within the city limits, but now they were gearing up for something a little more spectacular. What they needed though, was an insider.
As a resistance fighter, Light Runner did his best not to stand out much. He was an earth pony with dark grey coloured fur and a light grey mane. He wore no clothing, only a simple set of saddlebags that concealed his weapon, a small handgun hidden inside a small pouch sown into the inside of one of the bags. It was enough to fool a cursory inspection, and if it ever got to more than that he was probably dead anyway.
He glanced up as he heard the doors of the bar open and an earth pony stepped inside. She was a pale yellow colour that bordered on silver in places, but the most distinctive feature of her was the black uniform she wore. A jumpsuit that marked her as one of the workers from the city’s main railyard. On one sleeve of the uniform was the strange changeling symbol that marked the mare as what the changelings called a Hilfewilliger, or willful helper. In Equestrian that made her a collaborator.
Several of the bar’s patrons shot glares at the mare and sidled away from her but she paid them no mind as she honed in on Light. He eyed her cautiously. His contact was supposed to be one of the workers from the railyard, but it could be a well baited changeling trap. The military police that had been assigned to the city were steadily getting better at infiltrating the ELF and several operations had been compromised in the past. She stood directly across from him, grabbing onto one of the chairs at his table. “May I?” She asked.
“What do you want?” Light replied, sounding disgusted. He had to keep up the façade of being disgusted that a collaborator would dare to talk to him, at least for now. Several of the bar's patrons were also members of the ELF, but there were also civilians here and there.
The mare didn’t flinch. “Just looking for a good time.” She said in a sultry manner. "Working on the points all day can really get a mare all worked up."
Light gave a small nod. That was the code that their contact inside the railyard had given her. Why the slightly sexual undertone? Why not? The changelings had little understanding of pony intimate interactions so it would be harder for an infiltrator to play it off naturally. “Why don’t we take this out back?” He said, nodding towards the bartender who tilted his head towards a door marked ‘Private. Staff only.’
He stood up from the table and slowly trotted over to the door, pushing it open and ushering the mare inside before closing it again. The room beyond was dark, and when the door was closed again behind the pair it was pitch black.
Then the lights flashed on and suddenly they were surrounded by ponies, heavily armed ponies, all with their weapons aimed at the mare. The mare froze in fright and Light quickly stepped forward, produced his pistol from his saddlebags and pressed it to the back of her head. “Don’t move.” He said. “We just need to make sure you’re not one of them. Doc?”
Another pony stepped forwards with a syringe and before the mare could protest he jabbed it into her foreleg, taking a small sample of blood. She hissed in pain as he withdrew and inspected the contents of the syringe. “Its red.” He said. “She’s clean.” It was a trick they had learned to route out infiltrators. Changelings could imitate every aspect of a pony, even blood colour, but if the blood was removed from the body for a short period of time it would change from red to green.
The group of ponies slowly lowered their weapons. “Sorry for the hot welcome, but we’ve had infiltration attempts before. We needed to be sure you weren’t compromised.” Light said.
The mare blinked a few times. "You know full well that I'm risking execution just by being in the same room as all of you." She said. "Not to mention the lives of my family. You better have something worthwhile to offer me in exchange for this."
One of the other ponies moved over to what looked like a giant keg of beer and tapped on it four times. After a few seconds the front of the barrel swung open on hidden hinges, revealing that it was in fact empty and hollow. A staircase led downwards from the inside into the floor.
“After you.” Light said, holding out a hoof and indicating that the mare should lead the way. She slowly moved forward, passing the armed guards and slowly starting to descend the stairs inside the keg. The door closed behind them with the soft clack of wood on wood. The small group descended the stairs for about 30 meters underground until they emerged into a large concrete tunnel, full of ponies bustling back and forth. There appeared to be a mix of Equestrian soldiers, militia and civilians of varying stripes. Some carried weapons, others were resting on pop up cots pushed against the walls.
“These are the old smuggling tunnels.” Light said as he began to weave through the crowd. Some of them paused to look at the mare, causing her to shrink a little, before they shrugged and kept going. If she had made it into their hideout she obviously wasn’t a threat to them despite her collaborator’s uniform. “They were used to smuggle cider and other items into the city during the prohibition era. We’ve been waging our resistance down here since the last days of the battle for the city. Apparently command is working on something, but they needed an insider.”
“But why me?” The mare asked as she was led further into the tunnel network.
“Because we managed to steal your file from the changelings.” Light said. “We took a gamble on the fact that you weren't a willing collaborator. You kept your job at the railway yard in exchange for your family being removed from the deportation lists.” The 'lists' referred to groups of names taken from the city's census documents. Selected at random, ponies who found their names on the lists would be arrested by the changeling military police and be deported from the city. The ELF had discovered that they were being taken to some kind of camps, either in central Equestria or somewhere back in the changeling homelands, but beyond that very little was known. The ponies who were taken were never seen again, so to find a way to have ones family removed from the lists was a temptation that few could resist.
Light took a left turn and led her down a tunnel that was bricked off at one end. Two sentries with automatic rifles stood on guard duty outside a door embedded into the wall. They stiffened as the pair approached and one stepped in front of the door.
“Halt.” He said. “State your business.”
“Light Runner bringing a contact to the Colonel for briefing.” Light said.
The stallion turned and knocked once on the door before opening it slightly. Some words were exchanged and then the door was fully opened. “You may enter.”
Light led the way through the door into what looked like a fairly well stocked office. There was a large desk with a portrait of the two Princesses hanging behind it. There was a bookshelf off to one side, and a cot off to another for sleeping. Behind the desk sat an Equestrian army officer wearing the gold braid of a colonel. He stood up as the pair entered.
“Welcome back Light. I see you found our new friend.” He said.
“Yes sir.” Light replied. “She came as requested. We checked her over and she’s clean.”
The colonel nodded. “Welcome Miss Bright Silver, please take a seat.” He gestured to a seat in front of his desk.
Silver slowly moved forward and climbed up onto the padded seat. Light stood off to one side. The colonel opened a file on his desk. “Bright Silver, railway engineer. Born here in Manehattan. Worked for the railroad from age 16. Worked for the Equestrian military transport Corps during the war, conscripted by the changelings when they took over in exchange for the protection of her family from the deportation lists.”
Silver didn’t respond. She already knew her own life story. The changelings had taken her family and in order to prevent their deportation to the work camps, she had been given an ultimatum. Work for the changelings, or her family was sent away. The threat still hung over her. If the changelings even so much as thought she was doing something wrong they could easily deport her and her family, or worse, simply shoot them as a public display of what happened to those who were disobedient.
The colonel continued. “It is because you were unwillingly conscripted that we decided to approach you. We have an offer for you. We can get you and your family out of Manehatten and onto a ship heading for New Mareland, but in exchange, you need to do something for us.”
Silver looked up. A means of getting her and her family out of this nightmare, but it was going to come at a price. “What kind of something?” She asked.
The colonel sat back slightly. “First, I need you to agree that you will go through with it, for once I tell you our plan there will be no going back. You cannot back out. We will not risk our plan falling into enemy hooves. You can still walk away now.”
Silver took a deep breath and slowly nodded. “I’m ready to do whatever it takes.” She said.
The colonel smiled. “Very well.” He said. “Listen closely. The Equestrian Liberation Front has decided to launch a major uprising in an attempt to overthrow our changeling occupiers. In order to accomplish this we need to knock out their main route of reinforcement for the city garrison. The railway junction. That is where you come in.” The colonel reached down into his desk and produced a rolled up map that had been pilfered from the stationmaster’s house. He unrolled it and pointed to two large round structures situated on some high ground overlooking the junction. “These two structures are the fuel storage tanks that hold aviation fuel and gasoline. The fuel is stored here before it gets shipped out to the various changeling bases along the coast. Your mission will be to escort an operative into the railyard, plant a bomb on one of the tanks and escape. The resulting explosion should be sufficient to destroy the railway yard and cripple the changeling war machine in this area. In the aftermath local changeling forces will likely attempt to retaliate against the civilian population, but their efforts will be disorganized and weak. And that is when we will rise and strike a blow that they won’t soon forget.”
Silver listened and nodded. It was an ambitious plan. Whether it would work or not was another question. “Who is the operative I need to escort in?” She asked.
The colonel nodded towards Light. “Light Runner was a Royal Engineer during the war. He knows his explosives. He will plant the bomb and then escort you south to meet with our evacuation forces. They’ll get you onto a ship for New Mareland. Your family will meet you there. Your mission is simple. You know the layout of the railway yard, its guard posts, and you have the paperwork to get around unquestioned. You will get him inside.”
Silver slowly nodded. It was going to be risky, but she was already working on an idea. She might have a way to get him in, but she would need to consider it a little. “I think I can do it sir. When do we move?”
The colonel smiled. “Tomorrow evening. Light will brief you in detail. For now though please make yourself at home here. We’re a little short on supplies at the moment, but we have plenty of cots for you to rest on and prepare yourself. I also suggest you eat a hearty meal before departing as you might not get another opportunity before you leave for New Mareland.”
Light trotted over and put a hoof on her shoulder. “Come on. I have a fair bit to explain and you have a lot to process.”
The next evening…
Silver sat on a bench at a long table, idly chewing on a slightly stale salad sandwich while Light sat beside her and disassembled a submachine gun, cleaning its constituent parts. Tonight was the night. They had their route, cover and escape all planned out. But even with all of the planning memorized and the thought that her family was going to be safe she was still nervous. She had never fired a weapon before, and she had certainly never engaged in espionage before. What if she hesitated? What if she was found out?
Light noticed that Silver had suddenly stopped chewing and reached a hoof over to pat her on the shoulder. “Relax.” He said. “Either this mission will work, or it won’t, in which case we’ll be dead so it won’t matter to us.” He chuckled.
Silver swallowed her mouthful of sandwich. “Forgive me if that doesn’t exactly fill me with confidence.” She looked him up and down. “I'm curious. How did you get the name Light Runner? It doesn't seem to exactly, well, fit." Ponies were often named based on a mix of their colouration and a magic sense that new parents had when choosing the perfect name for their offspring, and 'Light Runner' didn't seem to fit either his colouration or his talent. It was a very forward question that one might interpret as rude, but Light simply chuckled.
"Its not my real name. Very few ponies in the ELF use their real names. Just an extra layer of security incase someone gets compromised. If a changeling tries to sneak in here using their real name, we'll know right away something is up. And before you ask, I'd rather keep my real name a secret, at least for now. The less ponies who know the better."
Silver blinked and then nodded in understanding. "Must cause a lot of false alarms." She said, raising an eyebrow. "New members and all that forgetting that they have a false name here."
Light shrugged. "We don't shoot on sight, and there are ways of verifying any suspicions we might have. Its not foolproof, but against an enemy like the changelings, we have to take every precaution."
Silver nodded. She knew all too well how good the changelings were at assuming forms. The bastard bug who had offered her the deal of protection from the lists in exchange for her services had first approached her in the form of her own mother. She shivered and decided to change the subject. "So, what did you do before the war?” Despite the fact they had spent most of the previous day together she still didn’t know a lot about him. Most of the day had been taken up going over their plan in detail and working out their escape routes.
“Demolitions.” Light replied. “I worked for a mining company, controlled explosions and the like. Made me a shoe in for the engineers. I mostly laid mines and blew bridges during the war, killed a few changelings with a rifle in the desperate days after the fall of Canterlot. Nearly got blown up more times than I can count.”
Silver nodded. She had been lucky enough to be in Manehatten when the changeling breakthrough had occurred and cut the main railway line between Canterlot and the coast, so she had been stuck there with her family during the battle for the city. It had been a fairly one sided fight. Changeling tanks and assault troops against disorganized Equestrian infantry and militia forces. “Why do you want to go to New Mareland after this mission?”
Light looked over at her. “My surviving family is in New Mareland. They got out when the war started to turn against us, managed to barter passage on a neutral freighter. The ELF has also requested that I meet with the Equestrian government in exile as a representative of our organization. To organize arms shipments and act as a go between should we need it.”
Silver thought that it was the end of the conversation and took another bite of her sandwich, but Light continued. “Today is the day we start our fightback against the occupiers, the defilers. We’re going to knock them back on their fetlocks so hard it will be decades before they recover.” He reassembled his weapons with a rapid series of clicks and snaps, dry fired it once, then nodded. “I’m going to get the explosives from our demo crew. Finish your meal and meet me at the west tunnel. We’ll go from there.” He stood and trotted away.
Silver watched him leave then went back to her sandwich, taking quick bites and swallowing them to get as much food in as she could before she herself stood up and headed for their exit point. She hadn’t been given any specialized equipment since her job was to get them inside. All she needed was her papers and uniform.
The western tunnel was a twisting passageway that emerged in a storm water ditch about a mile distant from the railyard. The tunnel was rigged with explosives so it could be destroyed if discovered.
After a few minutes of waiting, Light arrived. In his time away he had donned a black beanie and dark colored clothing. From a distance he could pass as a railway employee, but it wasn’t meant to be a disguise, it was simply to help him blend into the shadows while they completed their objectives. On one side he had his submachine gun, now loaded and ready for use, and on his back was the saddlebags containing the explosives. The bomb itself had been fashioned out of four old 40mm shells strapped together with a fuse. Three were filled with high explosives and the fourth with an incendiary explosive that would ensure a fire.
He nodded to her. “Are you ready?”
She shrugged. “Not exactly, but let’s do this.”
The two of them slowly moved along the tunnel to its entrance and pushed aside a grating covered in foliage that had been erected to hide the passage. There was no moon that night, and there hadn’t been for quite a long time. Princess Luna had stopped raising it in order to throw off the changeling’s natural night vision, and since she had gone missing it hadn’t risen since. Not that either of the infiltrators were complaining. It gave them the perfect cover.
The two of them quietly re-concealed the passageway and climbed up a low rise to a narrow road that ran alongside the main four line wide railway. “The railway runs like that all the way to the yards.” Silver whispered. “There’s a branch line though, breaks off about a quarter of a mile before the main security checkpoint. It goes up a shallow incline and ends in a siding next to the fuel tanks. There is a checkpoint up there but its usually only crewed by one guard since its so close to the main barracks. We get past that guard without raising an alarm, we have a good shot.”
The changeling garrison in Manehattan used the railway yard as their main base of operations and some 1500 local security forces were bunked in the large barracks buildings down the hill from the fuel tanks.
Light nodded. "Seems like a bit of a stupid idea to have fuel tanks up on a hill like that." He said softly.
"In peace time it didn't matter as much." Silver replied. "They did it for engineering purposes. Means the yard didn't have to rely so much on pumps to move the contents. They could just let gravity do the work. I heard the changelings were planning to empty the tanks and move the fuel to a more secure and 'less disasters in case of accident' location though. What if the tanks are empty?"
"They're not." Light said. "The new fuel storage tanks are still in the process of being built, and the ELF has been slowing down their production as much as possible. Blowing up supply trucks and sniping at their workers."
He nodded down the railway line. “Alright, lets move.” The pair of them quickly crossed the road and then the railway tracks to the far side. There they began to slowly make their way north along the line, listening for any signs of patrols. Twice they had to throw themselves into the dirt as a vehicle passed on the road, but both times it didn’t even slow down. After an hour of slowly moving along the tracks they made it to the branchline and began to carefully move up it. They could see the floodlights of the railway yard lighting up rows of trains in their sidings and more importantly, the barbed wire fence that ran around the perimeter of the whole facility, only broken by guard checkpoints. One such checkpoint was ahead of them, guarding the entry point of the branch line into the junction. A single changeling with a rifle was patrolling back and forth underneath an overhead light.
“Ok, your time to shine.” Light whispered to Silver. “Just distract him long enough for me to get into position.”
Silver gulped and nodded. She stood up, straightened her uniform and began walking up the track, making sure she made enough noise to be heard. The changeling froze and spun as he heard her approaching in the dark. He leveled his rifle. “Halt. Wer ist da?” He called out.
“Don’t shoot.” Silver called back, raising one hoof and slowly stepping into the cone of light from the overhead lamp. The guard relaxed slightly when he saw her uniform.
“What are you doing out there?” He demanded. “Where are your papers?”
“I was doing a track inspection for a train due in in a few hours.” Silver lied, slowly reaching into her pocket and producing her paperwork. “Here are my papers.” The changeling stepped forwards and took the papers, turning away so he could read them in the light. "They seem to be in order, but I do not recall a train being on the schedule. I will have to check this with the station." He started back towards the small checkpoint building where he could contact the main station by telephone.
Silver was sweating bullets. If the changeling made that call their ruse would be discovered, more guards would be dispatched and then it was all over. The camps awaited her and her family.
And that was when Light leapt out of the darkness. The changeling gave a muffled cry as Light’s hoof covered his mouth, preventing him from calling for help. There was a flash of steel and the sound of cracking keratin as the pony jammed a combat knife into the changeling’s chest and twisted it sharply. The bug continued to squirm a little, getting slower and slower before stopping all together. Light held the pose a few moments more to ensure the bug was dead, then dragged the changeling off to one side and rolled the body into the darkness.
Silver was frozen. She had seen dead bodies before, but she had never seen a killing this close. It was brutal and sickening, even if she knew full well that the changeling would have done the same to her. Light noticed she was stunned and quickly moved over to her. “Hey.” He whispered, shaking her shoulder, then scooping up the changeling's rifle and thrusting it at her. “Focus on the mission.”
She shook her head a little, fumbling with the rifle and then nodded, trying to ignore the splotches of changeling blood that had smeared onto her hooves when she had taken the weapon. The two of them made their way along the railway embankment and paused a hundred or so meters away from the fuel tanks. The railway embankment provided concealment and would give them some protection from the blast when it occurred. Light began to fumble for the explosives and prep the timer when Silver tapped his shoulder and pointed down at the tanks. Light followed her hoof and saw movement at the base of the tanks, two sentries trotting slowly back and forth. “Time them.” He whispered.
Silver watched as the two sentries passed each other and started counting. She stopped counting when they passed each other again. “About 60 seconds.” She whispered. That meant there was a window of 30 second when neither guard was looking at the other. Just enough time to make a move.
Light prepared his SMG and pulled her rifle forward, resting it on the embankment for her. “Ever used one of these before?” He asked. She shook her head. “Just point and pull the trigger.” He whispered. “At this range you won't need to compensate, just mind the recoil, and don’t shoot unless you have to or we’ll have every changeling in this base onto us.”
Silver wasn't sure if it came down to it she would be able to make her body pull the trigger. Watching someone take a life was one thing, but doing it herself? She didn't get a chance to voice an objection though.
Light got himself into position and waited for the two sentries to pass each other before quickly galloping across the open ground between the railroad and the tanks, trying to keep his steps light to avoid making noise or throwing up dust. He ducked between the two tanks and hid in the shadows between them. He hadn’t been spotted.
Silver watched with baited breath as Light crossed the open space and disappeared into the shadows. Neither guard had seen him. She sighed softly with relief.
Light produced the explosive pack from his saddlebag and placed it against the base of one of the tanks. He primed the detonator and then pulled a pin to set the timer, 1 minute and 30 seconds. A soft ticking sound indicated that it was armed and ready to blow. He would have set it for longer, but every second longer meant one more chance for its premature discovery. He moved to leave the shadows to sprint back to Silver, but then paused and quickly darted back. The two sentries were coming back.
He glanced down at the bomb as the timer slowly ticked downwards. The two sentries paused as they met each other to exchange some words, taking for about 20 seconds before they laughed and continued on their routes.
Light hesitated for a moment, waiting until he thought the guards were far enough away before he made his move. He broke into a dead gallop away from the massive fuel tanks, no longer trying to be quiet, but just trying to get away from the bomb. One of the sentries heard his hoofbeats though and turned, spotting him galloping away into the darkness.
“Halt!” He shouted, raising his rifle to shoot the retreating pony in the back, but Silver already had him in her sights. She had immediately locked her sights on the sentry when he paused in his patrol and turned. Something in the mare's mind told her to wait, that killing wasn't right, that it went against all her natural instincts. But self preservation and the desire to see her family freed won out. She fired, jerking the trigger a little. She had been aiming at his chest, but the hurried shot instead went slightly higher and caught the changeling in the throat. He went down with a gargling sound, a green pool quickly forming on the ground around him. The second sentry was already preparing to return fire though. He had sighted up on the retreating form of Light, but had shifted his aim when he saw the muzzle flash. He fired. The bullet went slightly low and sparked off one of the rails in front of the mare's face, causing her to squeak in alarm and drop back behind the embankment.
Almost before the shots had faded lights began to flicker on inside the nearby barracks buildings and changelings began to pour out of them, all of them armed but most struggling to get into their uniforms. Light leapt into cover behind the railway embankment and counted down silently. 3, 2, 1.
There was a small flash at the base of one of the fuel tanks, then the world turned white. The tank ruptured, spilling highly flammable aviation fuel all over the ground which immediately ignited. The fire travelled back up the stream and into the tank, mixing with its flammable content. Then the tank detonated. A shockwave traveled outwards as the tank exploded, blowing out every window for several miles around and deafening any pony or changeling who was too close. Then a wave of heat washed over the pair as they huddled behind their improvised cover. Even with no direct line of sight to the enormous explosion it was still like being next to a blast furnace when the door was opened. Several changelings who had been galloping towards the fuel tanks were instantly vaporized, disappearing into clouds of soot and flame as the massive fireball spread outwards.
Silver screamed but the sound was lost in the noise of the raging fire. Light grabbed her and pulled her in close to him, shielding her as best he could from the worst of the heat, but it was still enough to singe their fur.
Then the second tank exploded. Everyone still standing was hurled to the ground as another massive fireball raced skywards and a tidalwave of burning fuel raced down the hill to the barracks, forcing the changeling garrison to retreat inside the buildings as it spread. The wood and concrete structures were soon engulfed by fire and began to burn, the panicked cries of changelings trapped inside drowned out by the roaring of the flames.
The burning rivers of fuel continued to burn onwards, now starting to flow into the crowded railway junction. Several changelings were desperately trying to figure out how to save the hundreds of railway cars and locomotives inside the junction and its adjoining station, but without the pony staff to crew the trains and work the points it was a hopeless effort.
Burning fuel engulfed the two sidings closest to the storage tanks and an ammunition train carrying rifle ammunition and tank shells caught fire. It burned for a moment and then exploded, hurling burning crates of ammunition across the junction and starting small spot fires amongst the various sidings. Then a fuel train caught fire and explosions chained along its length as the fuel tankers caught fire and exploded. 30 ton railcars flew hundreds of feet in the air as even more fuel was added to the burning tidalwave from the initial explosion.
The small passenger station and the signalbox were next to go, both of the flimsy structures being surrounded by burning fuel and quickly starting to burn as the fuel continued to spread. This was where resistance command had expected the fire to be contained, but the explosions had severed the water mains of the junction, so any firefighting effort there was hopeless and the burning fuel continued to spread, now pouring down the hill and entering the harbor. Fanned by the wind the burning slick continued to spread outwards, licking greedily towards the various changeling ships that occupied the harbor.
Alarms began to ring out as captains desperately tried to get their crews to their stations and raise steam to escape from the encroaching fireball. Some of the smaller vessels managed to get their engines started and powered out of harms way, but for the much larger cargo ships and oil tankers there was no hope. The fire engulfed them. The ammunition ship Eroburung exploded into a fireball, capsizing two tugboats that were attempting to pull it clear and blowing the on-deck crew of the fleet tender Reparatur 6 into the water.
The light cruiser Bienenstock had managed to get her engines started and was halfway clear of the spreading fire when she struck a sandbank and beached. She would remain there as the fire consumed her, along with her escort, the destroyer Z-19 which attempted to evacuate her crew.
The oil tanker Brankol already had a full head of steam and quickly got underway, but in its attempt to escape the fire it turned wide and struck a protruding underwater reef, tearing a massive gash it its hull. The ship began to list heavily, spilling more oil into the ocean around it. Destroyers and light warships scattered in all directions while shrapnel from the rapidly sinking Eroburung peppered the decks of surrounding ships.
One destroyer collided with the freighter Konigen, moored alongside a smaller oil tanker that was in the process of refueling the ship. The collision started a fire aboard the tanker which quickly spread to the Konigen’s cargo, several hundred tons of gun cotton. All three ships mushroomed into a fiery explosion, sending even more burning debris flying around the harbor.
It was a spectacular and deadly sight.
From their perch on the high ground overlooking the railyard, Light and Silver slowly peered over the railway embankment at a sea of fire. Explosions continued to chain away inside the railyard as ammunition continued to cook off and the fire located unexploded fuel tankers. The harbor was also in chaos. Several ships were burning, some had run aground and others had collided in their desperate attempts to escape the flames.
It was beautiful in a way, but they didn’t have much time left to admire it. Sooner or later the changelings would start searching for the ones responsible, and they both knew that they could no longer remain in the city. Light slowly released Silver and they stood up, taking one last look at the blacked-out skyscrapers of their home. The fires reflected in their few remaining glass windows and causing the whole city to glow a hellish orange, the funeral pyre for hundreds of changelings. Then the two of them turned and galloped into the darkness, following the railway line southwards out of the burning junction.
Once they were a sufficient distance away they stopped and looked back once more. The entire horizon glowed as the fires continued to burn. Occasionally there would be a distant flash of an explosion, the dull thuds of heavy ordinance cooking off and the deeper booms of machinery and fuel storage wagons exploding.
Silver panted softly. They had covered several miles in the last half an hour and they still had a long way to go before they could considered stopping in any degree of safety. "We, did it." She said, watching as a particularly large and long lasting flash lit up the horizon and then slowly faded away.
Light nodded. "Indeed." He said. "Come on though, we can't stay here. It will take them quite a while to get the fire under control, but I guarantee they'll be looking for us. We need to get down the coast, a good 40 or so miles. That's where our ride to New Mareland will be."
"Won't the changeling's find it?" Silver asked, slowly starting to trot along the rails again. "What then?"
"They won't." Light said. "Its a neutral fishing vessel, and that fire will be visible for a hundred miles in every direction. Even if communications have been severed, which they more than likely have, any changeling patrol vessels within that radius will be making best speed to Manehattan. They won't waste time on a simple fishing boat."
Silver nodded. "I hope my family made it out." She said. She didn't like to even consider what might happen to them if they were caught."
"They did." Light replied, quickening his pace. "We got them out last night. They'll be waiting at a safehouse down there. For now, we need to focus on avoiding any patrols." He started to move away from the railroad, crossing the road next to it and heading for a treeline on the other side of a small overgrown field of wheat. There was a farmhouse nearby with a massive hole blown in its roof. It must have taken a bomb during the changeling occupation. No doubt the place was abandoned. A forgotten monument to the cruelties of the occupation.
"Stay close. We don't want to get separated." The two of them disappeared into the wheat, the tall stalks absorbing them as if they had never existed.
40 miles to the south on an isolated stretch of coast, the 'Aquilean' fishing vessel Tirada awaited them.
Priority 1 message
To: Field Marshal Carapace. Commander of western theater army groups.
Subject: Disaster.
Field Marshal, it is with great anger that I write to inform you of a catastrophic act of sabotage in the former pony city of Manehattan. Elements of the underground terrorist movement known as the Equestrian Liberation Front have infiltrated the city’s fuel storage facility and detonated a small explosive device. This touched off a chain reaction that caused the fuel storage tanks to explode and burning fuel to pour down into the harborside facilities. Below is a categorized list of assets damaged or destroyed in the ensuing fire.
Harbour side facilities.
2x Large fuel storage tanks. Total loss.
3x Barracks. Destroyed, burned to the ground.
85x Food wagons. Destroyed.
68x Fuel wagons. Destroyed.
53x Ammunition wagons. Destroyed.
16x Locomotives. Destroyed.
22x Armoured vehicles on flatbeds. Destroyed.
12x Tanks. Destroyed.
Railway station and signalboxes. Burned.
The fire also spread across the harbor and set fire to several ships at anchor. The ammunition ship Eroburung has exploded, capsizing two tugboats and heavily damaging the fleet tender Reparatur 6. The light cruiser Bienenstock beached and was destroyed by fire, along with four destroyers and two patrol ships. Three other freighters were damaged by fire or explosions. The oil tanker Brankol attempted to flee the harbor but with no pilot on board she struck a reef and lost steering. Thankfully she sank before she could explode, but her wreck has blocked the channel that large ships use to enter the port, rendering the port unusable and trapping any large surviving vessels inside. She continues to leak oil from her damaged tanks and remains a fire risk even now. The freighter Konigen has also exploded taking a destroyer and a tanker with it.
The overall death toll continues to rise, but currently sits at 1400+ changeling personnel of all roles killed or wounded. A few dozen pony collaborators were also killed.
As a result of this disaster, General Freikorp has been arrested for gross incompetence of command and awaits punishment. Our military capability in this region has been greatly weakened, and it will take some time before the city is useable for our forces again, if at all.
This act must not and will not go unpunished. Changeling squads have already entered the city and are rounding up civilians for deportation to the camps. There are reports of sporadic gun battles with local resistance cells, but so far casualties have been light.
I await your response.
Signed.
Colonel Thorax Blade. Army logistics corps, Manehattan.
Smugglers tunnels. Manehatten.
Colonel Light Hoof stood before the assembled ponies of his command, several hundred of them packing the tunnels. The raid the previous night had been an unparalleled success, doing even more damage than their high command could have dreamed. But now came the hard part.
“My fellow ponies.” He began. “Last night our brave comrades struck a mighty blow against the changeling occupiers, and now it is our turn. You will send the shapeshifting barbarians who dare occupy our city to Tartarus. With your bullets, with your bayonets, with your bare hooves if necessary. All across the city our friends and allies are rising up in revolt. Raise high the banners of freedom! Long live Equestria! Long live the Princesses! Long live ponykind!”
The assembled ponies cheered and stomped their approval before moving out, heading for the various exits from the tunnel network. Their days of hiding in the shadows were over. It was time for the Equestrian Liberation Front to emerge from the shadows and strike back at their enemies.
The day of reckoning was here, and it dawned red with blood and fire.