The burning feeling... It had gone. My hind leg still felt weak, so I wasn’t going to start walking anytime soon. I rolled over, the ground scratching against me, and threw my front hoof forward. I tried flapping my wings, but I was just met with a sharp pain. I began crawling, throwing my front hoof forward, then throwing my next hoof forward, by stomach being torn at by the ground. I carried on like this for a while, until I found myself in some sort of puddle. The puddle was filled with muddy water, that brown colour which you associate with all those... Well... Horrid things. I lay there for a while, in this puddle, and twisted my head to the side. I saw no pony, no NLR or SE. Where had everypony gone? I had to assume that the attack had been a success and that the SE had broke through the NLR’s defenses. But that didn’t seem likely. This mission was a suicide run. No way we could have broken through. And the only other option meant that the NLR had killed all of the Solar Empire’s forces here... Not including me, because I wasn’t dead. Yet. Time dragged itself on slowly, and I once again found myself crawling across the broken land that was once fruitful. I was crawling towards the NLR camp. It was an even more suicidal option than the attack itself. But it was the only option I had left, because there was no way I was getting back over that hill in this condition.

I wandered through the camp, I knew exactly what was going to happen to the pony I shot in the leg. He was going to be interrogated, beaten, and either kept as a prisoner of war, or he would be executed. I watched the squad of five ponies leaving to retrieve him. I did what I had to, nothing more, nothing less. That was what I told myself every time I killed another pony. I missed the old Equestria, even if it was run by the tyrant Celestia. I missed the peace of... well not being at war. The birdsong in the mornings had been replaced with gunfire and bombs. The fresh air was now thick with smoke and the stench of death. Most of all, I missed my friends. A lot of them had stayed loyal to Celestia. Most were probably dead, and I’d seen a fair few of them through my scope. Under any other circumstance, I’d have laughed at their face as an Empire soldier died from one of my rounds. The pure shock on their faces would’ve been hilarious. As a sniper however, this war was affecting me on a more personal level. I saw ponies die, watched as the light of their existence was extinguished. Twenty-First Recon was only for the best snipers in the NLR, and every shot I fired, hit it’s target. Every pony that felt the bite of my bullet died, because of me, no matter how indirect.

Exactly One Week Before the NLR marched on Trottingham.

I laid there, on a cloud... It was a soft, fluffy cloud, one you could run you hoof through without getting cut or... Well anything. I sat there, on the cloud for what seemed like hours. My pink mane, which I had hated for so long. It had always made me stand out... It was always just so... Pink. My pink mane dangled in front of my eyes, and I blew it out of my eyes a few times, I just couldn’t be bothered to move it out the way with one of my hooves. I looked around lazily, seeing Pegasus working... Clearing the clouds for the sunniest day this week. That meant sooner or later I’d have to move, but I was going to enjoy my time on the soft paradise while it lasted. I closed my eyes, and let the darkness of sleep takeover.

I kicked yet another cloud, clearing the sky for the Summer Sun Celebration was boring, but the pay was good. I just hoped my friend Cloudy Pops was doing his half. He had a tendency to... sleep instead of work. I’d find out soon enough though, I was almost done with my half. Ponyville was envied by most other towns and cities, they had held the event two years previously. But that had been a bit of a disaster with Nightmare Moon. Personally, I didn’t see what the fuss was about, it was only what happened every other day, Celestia raised the sun. I removed one final cloud before flying over to the east side of the town, looking for Cloudy.

I woke up, slowly seeing that the sky looked clearer than before. I rolled over, standing up, and at that point I realised I still had my bit to do. It could wait for a while I guessed... But then, if I didn’t do it... That meant work at the weather factory. The weather factory... You could get burnt... Frozen... Or worse. I shook my head and flapped my wings, before flying off and started to clear the clouds. It wasn’t the hardest job in the world, but it was a waste of all the soft clouds that one could enjoy sleeping on, but I guessed the big boss Pegasus had other ideas. I continued clearing the sky, I was slower than the others, but hey, I still got the job done. Most of the time anyway.

When I tracked Cloudy Pops down, he was actually working. To be honest, I was slightly surprised. He rarely did anything, and when he did, he did the bare minimum. I flew up behind my friend.
“What’s up Popsicle?”
I jumped slightly, at hearing the sound of Haste’s voice.
“My name isn’t Popsicle, Haste.” I mumbled.
I grinned at his reaction.
“Whatever... Popsicle... Glad to see you’re almost done, I was getting bored.”
“You’re done already?!”
“Buck yeah I’m done, you realise the faster you do the job the more time you get off, right?”
“That’s why breaks were invented. I just have slightly longer breaks than everpony else...”
I laughed at my friend’s statement, before my face fell serious.
“Did you hear about the Cakes?”
“What happened to the Cakes?”
“Well, Pinkie Pie disappeared yesterday, and Celestia thinks that The Cakes helped her dissapear, or atleast, thats what I've heard. Celestia’s guards arrested them both this morning. They think she has something to do with the rebels.”
“Pinkie Pie and rebels? That doesn’t sound right.”
“You said that when Rainbow Dash left... If you ask me, everypony is taking sides. I mean, Twilight went back to Canterlot with Rarity and Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie have supposedly joined the New Lunar Republic and Fluttershy moved into the Everfree forest. There’s gonna be a war dude.”
“War shmore. It’s not like it’s gonna be big. Just a few little fights here and there, nothing big’s gonna happen.”
“I wish you were right, it looks like Celestia disagrees though. You remember when Big Macintosh tried to stop the guards last week, and how nopony’s seen him since?”
“He’s probably just... Uhh... Gone to the hospital.”
“People are saying he’s been accused of being a rebel, if it's true, they’re gonna execute him Cloudy.”
“Execute? Come on, Princess Celestia’s not gonna let that happen. She’s not that kind of ruler.”
“I would’ve agreed with you a week ago but... I’m not sure anymore... She’s been getting more and more ruthless when it comes to rebels. Rumours are spreading Cloudy. Ponies are saying that Princess Luna left, and when she did...”
I noticed something as he talked... He never said Princess Celestia. He only said Celestia... But he said Princess Luna... It was a... Not very evidence supported idea hovering in my mind but... It couldn’t be. He wouldn’t be considering becoming... A rebel. He wouldn’t. Haste just wasn’t that type of Pony.
“Well... Uhh, I better get back to work! Don’t worry about this ‘War’ Haste, nothings gonna happen! And stop listening to everything ponies say! You know how some ponies like making rumours up! So... I’ll see you later, okay?”
I didn’t wait for a response, and I found myself flying off, trying to shake the idea of Haste becoming a rebel from my head...