After the war with the bear broke out, the Princess called for a draft. Ponies of all races were caught in it's net, having to leave their old lives behind and getting sent off to basic training.

Snap Shot was sent to basic training to be a flyer in the REA, but there was trouble on the home front before he was sent off to war. His struggles in basic were nothing compared to the trials he would face after receiving a letter from home. Luckily, he might not have to face them alone.

This is a prequel to my war series. This was originally written for a friend, and was only going to be seen by my small group of friends that the stories are based on. However, the more I read this the more I wanted to share it

An entry into Equestria Daily's Friend Off competition. 1002 years before the events of Twilight's Kingdom, Luna finds herself in a battle with a creature of the Everfree Forest that she had never encountered before.

Under the guise of two soldiers on R&R from active duty on the line, Firefly and Snap Shot are on an intelligence gathering mission assigned to them by Agent Snow, real name: <redacted>. (Fleur De Lis) After meeting their contact the two of them must find any indication to confirm Luna's suspicion that there is a threat to Celestia's safety and security. The two rookie agents have to cut their teeth on a mission that is well above their pay grade and any slips could cause disaster for the country.

While attempting to rescue a wounded flyer, Firefly and Snap Shot are captured by the enemy. They are taken to a secure facility and caged, beaten and assaulted. Things take an unexpected turn when a higher ranking pony shows up to question them. Snap begins to wonder what is going on in the capital while the army is fighting a war.

Civil war has broken out in Equestria shortly after Princess Luna's return and strange occurrences have been happening all over the divided country. For the soldiers of the REA, they are more concerned with staying alive than anything weird going on back home.

Author's notes: Yes, I know that these stories are slightly over done and cliche but I decided to write it was a series anyway. Just a warning, this series is going to be much darker than the one I'm currently writing and while this prelude is similar to the last series, it will change drastically in later chapters.

After several long years of fighting, the Equestrian government has managed to hammer out a ceasefire with the CB invaders. While order must be maintained on the front line while a final treaty is produced, but the soldiers from Fort A have other plans. At royal invitation, they are attending a celebration in Canterlot. The four of them can finally relax, after all, nothing can go wrong at a party right?

Winter has hit the war zone and the snow has become an irritant to all the ponies fighting against the CB invasion. However, things are looking up for Snap Shot. He's got a weekend pass for leave and an appointment to keep; all he has to do is make it through one long patrol and back alive. Unfortunately, no battle plan survives contact with the enemy and Friesian Flight receives a distress call in the middle of their patrol and must rush to the aid of their fellow soldiers. Trapped in the small town with an enemy platoon bearing down on them, Show Off must find a way to get every pony to safety before they are discovered. The flight group is unaware that this town holds a deep dark secret that has been awakened.

The war against the Bravos has entered a stalemate, neither side making any progress. Friesian flight returns after barely escaping an encounter with the enemy. Tempers among the group flare and four ponies become alienated with on another. Snap must find a way to keep family from separating while dealing with his past.

The crew from Fort A are transferred to the Eastern Front by order of Princess Celestia. The four friends must deal with a new location and new dangers, some caused by their own CO. Quill's love is somewhere among the hardened bunkers and mud covered trenches, and he will stop at nothing to find her. The war is still raging, will his three friends be able to find Quill's love and keep themselves form dying at the same time.

The group that survived the Fort A disaster are being acknowledged by the royalty. Snap Shot, not being too thrilled with being forgotten by the royals, attends begrudgingly. However, a young private leads Snap to question his belief that the problems at Fort A were caused by royalty. Between the conspiracy and preparation, what else could go wrong receiving a commendation?

Be sure to read the companion: R&R: Risk and Reward http://www.fimfiction.net/story/14486/RNR%3A-Risk-and-Reward