Stone balls slammed into the wall just beneath General Phalanx's position, sending a shudder through the hastily rebuilt structure that stumbled many of the soldiers taking cover from the bombardment. The deer had switched tactics and were now attempting to batter the fortress into submission, their opening volleys of emerald flame proving largely ineffective.

"Get those scorpio bolts up here!" he yelled to the groups of runners in the courtyard below. The entirety of Quillyyn Keep was a mad rush with hundreds of ponies galloping to get into position along the battlements, while the bulk of the 1st Equestrian Army, some six thousand soldiers in all, waited within its walls in broad formations that could disgorge from the front gate at a moment's notice.

Outside, across the open field flanked by thick forests that formed a bottleneck, a massive army of deer was forming up beyond the range of Equestria's catapults. They had seemed to come out of nowhere, arriving with alarming speed after the scouting parties had reported their positions. The whitetail had never been so quick to move, but these Cervidaens were doubtlessly in their own league.

A pegasus messenger landed at his side, quickly saluting as he unfurled a scroll. "Sir, we've received word from General Pluvia Cadere of the 4th Reserves. He has been ordered to hold position along the border, and cannot reinforce us for the time being."

"What? Give me that." Phalanx snatched the scroll incredulously, reading over it twice. "This is ridiculous! Who gave him this order, exactly?"

"It apparently comes all the way from Canterlot, sir. Command is worried the deer will try to bypass us entirely and move into Equestria proper. They want to be prepared."

"And I want to be prepared to not get slaughtered by those prick-headed deer!" He quickly wrote his own note on the reverse, far less formal than his counterpart's, and shoved it into the messenger's saddlebag. "You tell Pluvia there's an entire gods-damned army out here, and we won't be able to hold forever! If he has bodies to throw into the fray, then I need them here, and I need them here now!"

"Yes, sir! I will return as quickly as possible!"

The messenger departed as fast as his wings would carry him, leaving a streak of blue and yellow behind him that quickly faded as he disappeared over the forest canopy.

Phalanx chewed his lip in worry as a squad of unicorns passed by him, their packs loaded with arrows. He hated being here again, a sentiment he knew to be shared by many of his stallions. Quillyyn Keep had been one of the bloodiest battles of the entire war with Whitetail, a fight so devastating that nearly every building within its confines had been reduced to rubble. Six hundred of Equestria's finest had fallen in a matter of days, but in the end they'd won a decisive blow against the enemy. It was supposed to have been the beginning of the end. Ironic, then, that the first battle of the new war against the Cervidaens was taking place here. Partially rebuilt structures provided some cover, and the walls had been mostly repaired in the months since the first siege, but the fortress itself would never stand up to a full-on assault.

With his one good eye he surveyed the stallions around him. Some had tucked into themselves behind the ramparts, fearful of the heavy impacts that shook the walls, while others watched the distant deer in morbid curiosity. There were so many of them out there, a vast sea of glinting crystal, like the color of fresh grass, that would soon be upon them in a wave of blades and arrows.

A shouted warning told everyone to take cover just before another spread of stone projectiles crashed all around. A stallion on the battlements was hit directly, his head exploding in a shower of gore as his body flopped to the snowy ground three stories below. The heavy ball thudded into the courtyard as several ponies from an air assault team scrambled to get out of the way.

He wondered how these redtail would fight. In the war against Whitetail, things had been relatively predictable; the whitetail were soldiers of tradition and strict adherence to what had worked in the past. This had made them strong fighters when on the defensive or when they had the advantage of surprise, but their leadership ruled with an iron hoof and left very little in the way of individual initiative. When faced with Equestria's military might, which relied heavily on leadership at the squad level, the whitetail were frequently outmaneuvered.

He doubted the redtail would make the same mistakes. A nation didn't grow to the size of the Cervidaen Hegemony by being inflexible.

He would hold the keep for as long as he was ordered, even if it meant the loss of everything he'd worked so hard for since the start of the Whitetail war. Such was his station in life, and if necessary, in death. Fighting against the deer had taught him a thing or two about thinking outside of the bounds of typical warfare, and he intended to pull out all the stops in this battle.

Horns trumpeted in the distance, calling the redtail to battle as their formations began to advance at a steady pace. They marched in lock step, banners proudly displayed on long poles. A song of courage sounded from their ranks, at once beautiful to hear and terrifying to behold to the defenders who watched them from afar. It was the dichotomy of the deerfolk at its finest: elegance and brutality, inseparable from one another.

Catapults sprang to life as the enemy came into range, their heavy payloads flung into the air with a collective creaking of wood and rope. The earthen projectiles arced over the walls and tore through the masses, devastating bodies and shattering limbs with every bounce. Those who were wounded were quickly retrieved by unarmored runners who flitted from row to row. Still the redtail advanced, never breaking step, never letting their song subside. Their voices only seemed to grow louder.

"Taash'yyn kel draas, iyl'dras caarrix par saar'i'drii fel kor'yniin! Fel'yyn kel traas, wyyndri sar falx iis falryyn'tor caantel'idriin!"

"My ancient home, I go forth now for thee as in a dream. My precious kin, weep not as you bury me beneath the evergreen." Rockfall quietly spoke the words as he stood in formation with the rest of the 44th Legion, his fluency in the deertongue language giving him an appreciation for the battle song that few could match.

"Not the kind of thing you'd expect a conquering army to shout as they prepare for war," Victus said. The edges of his flexible wing blades clicked against each other as he flexed them in nervous anticipation. Fighting rear guard actions against Nightmare Moon followers for so long had made him nearly forget what it was like to be at the front, facing off against a proper army.

"The deer are a strange people, Victus," Rockfall replied. "I honestly don't know what to expect from these redtail, but if the rumors are true then we may be in for a terrible slaughter on both sides. You've seen what a few well-trained does can do. Imagine hundreds of them!"

"I'd rather not." Victus cast his eyes skyward. "I hope the air assault squads know what they're doing. Our victory relies heavily upon them."

"Give Gilias the benefit of the doubt. She's never steered us wrong before. Besides, we still have Phalanx, and he's a tough old son of a bitch. He'll get us through this, somehow." Rockfall turned to his friend, worry and hope evident on his features in equal measure. "I'm glad you decided to slog through the dirt with the rest of us. I know it means a lot to the others."

Victus placed a hoof on Rockfall's shoulder. "My place is with my brothers. The other pegasi will be fine without me. Between Gilias and Steel Spark leading the way, I've no doubt they'll contribute their share."

"That's what I like to hear. We'll make a mud pony out of you yet." A shared laugh eased their nerves, if only for a moment. Equestrian horns, deeper and far closer, bellowed from the fortress walls, and the heavy iron bars of the front gate opened like the mouth of a dragon beckoning them to come closer.

On the ramparts above, General Phalanx stood on his hind legs and clutched the red and gold flag of Equestria at his side. Thousands of soldiers looked to him with hope.

"Equestrians! Beyond these walls, the greatest threat to our nation in history marches forward! Under the flags of false ideals and vicious lies, Cervidae seek to put an end to everything we have fought for in these long months! The warmongering Elinwynn and her crony brother would have you believe we are murderers and conquerors, and it is through their manipulation of the all but defeated state of Whitetail and its people that they now are able to seize the one thing they value more than anything else in this world -- power. They claim to stand for unity, for the joining of redtail and whitetail, but make no mistake: they wish only to expand their territory, enslave our loved ones, and become the undisputed rulers of the known world. We just so happen to be a convenient scapegoat for their bloody plans.

"Many of you have served under my command in battle. It is my honor to fight alongside you once more. I could not ask for finer stallions. For those who joined after the siege of Evinwiir began, let me give you a simple piece of advice: stick with the veterans, listen to their orders, and you will live to see your families. We fight as one!" He snapped to attention and saluted, standing as tall and proud as the flag at his side. "Honor to the princess! Honor to Equestria!"

The gathered soldiers shouted the salute in turn as Phalanx drew a sword, his magical cloak billowing behind him and glittering with the brightness of a midday's sun.

"May the light of Celestia watch over you."

A shouted order from the unit commanders echoed from line to line, and the army of Equestria poured out onto the battlefield.

High above the impending battle, Gilias and her band of Legion fliers kept a close eye on the enemy. A dozen squads of pegasi had positioned themselves along a cloud bank, spread out over the length of the clearing below where the redtail were moving into position. Theirs was to be the opening strike for Equestria's forces, a signal to the rest of the units to begin their attacks.

"Back into the fray, eh Gilias?" Steel Spark said with a final check of his gear.

"Looks that way. It'll be good to fight against someone besides a bunch of darkness worshiping crazies again."

"Oh I don't know, I quite enjoyed saving your ass a few times," he laughed, nudging her with a hoof.

"Was it saving my ass or being in it that you enjoyed? Because I'll have you know the offer no longer stands. A girl's gotta have some standards." She winked and let the barest hint of a smile show through.

"So you keep saying...and yet, I've yet to see you turn down an invitation to my tent. Or behind a tree. Or on top of a cloud. Or--"

"Alright, alright, I fucking get it! By the Emperor, if I make it through this campaign without slitting my own throat just to make you stop talking it'll be a damned miracle. You can worry about where you stick your prick after we've slaughtered the deer."

She motioned for the pegasi to gather around and called out with a whistle.

"I don't want any fuck-ups out there, so we'll go over this one more time! Once I give the signal, first and second contubernium are going to dispel the clouds. Once the arrows hit the ground, third through eighth will use their bows and pila until they're out of shit to throw at the deer. Ninth through twelfth, you're with me. Keep those bundles tight, and pull your release cords only when you're sure of good saturation. Once you're dry you'll return to the keep to restock and wait for the rest of us to show up. We'll figure it out from there. Got it?"

"Hah-ooh!" the pegasi answered with a stomp, sending wisps of clouds into the air.

"We'll see. Get ready, ponies!"

Brother-General Corvalix watched the bucks of Whitetail and Cervidae march into battle as one, as wondrous a sight as he'd ever seen. Their battle song carried for miles around, unrelenting even in the face of catapult fire. The Equestrians may have been resilient fighters, but today would truly see them tested against the might of deerkind.

Knee-deep snow made progress slower than he would have liked. He cursed the foul weather of Whitetail once again. It was a miserable place that seemed to be under a perpetual haze of rain and snow, and he longed for the comfortable Cervidaen winter.

A ray of light shone on the emerald armor of the advancing deer as the clouds slowly parted, the first time he'd seen the sun in days. He was not the only one to notice; his sub-commanders had spoken excitedly to one another at the good fortune that was befalling them. There could be no doubt, they'd said excitedly: Cervidae was ordained from on high to win this battle. While he did not put his proverbial faith in such things, he certainly wasn't going to complain about a turn in the weather.

All at once the part in the clouds widened, spreading out across the clearing with such rapidity that even the most devout grew worried. Something was happening that hadn't been planned for.

"Are the magii under orders to affect the weather, Sister-Commander?" he asked the leader of the Imperial Protectorate. She shook her head in response.

"No, Brother-General. It would be a waste of our efforts."

Someone from down the line shouted in his direction.

"Sir! Pegasus ponies above!"

Corvalix strained his eyes and could barely make out the shapes of winged ponies shoving a wall of clouds out of the way. They were not attacking, but their presence was puzzling all the same. More scouts, perhaps? The Equestrians did love their flying spies.

A shrill whistle filled the air, causing all who heard it to look up. Even the front-line troops ceased their singing and looked around in confusion. Tiny, dark specks rapidly came into view, each one tipped with a blue point. They trailed streams of icy vapor, dozens in total.

"Arrows! Shields up!" a unit commander yelled out, and thousands of segmented shields snapped into position above the formations forming a rough barricade.

Corvalix watched the strange missiles fall, their whine growing louder with each passing second. Something about them was curious...

The first ice arrows tore into the gathered deer, slamming into shields and punching through the thinner armor on their backs with plumes of freezing spray. A singular shout of surprise and fear sounded from their ranks as bursts of ice ripped entire squads asunder with crackling, snaking lines that formed jagged trails and sliced through anything nearby. Those who were hit directly were flash-frozen outright, crumbling to red-tinted rime and chunks of iced-over gore. Shields and armor provided no safety, serving only to delay the inevitable for the briefest of moments.

Corvalix felt his jaw drop. He'd heard rumors of such weapons being used against the Nightmare Moon followers, but to see them in battle was something else entirely. Those who had not been killed were soon writhing on the ground, clutching at frozen limbs or bleeding from horrific wounds caused by razor-sharp veins of ice that had shredded flesh like the teeth of a great monster.

Before he could issue an order, a steady volley of arrows and spears arced in from above the tree line. Though they were not magically enhanced, their sheer number took a toll on the already disarrayed units. Sub-commanders shouted for order and discipline, managing to reform the lines before more deer could be lost.

"Damned detestable flying rats!" Corvalix stomped in frustration, wheeling around to face the Protectorate leader once more. "I want those nuisances gone this instant, Faeliwyll!" A flight of pegasi swooped in at treetop level, low and fast, and released long lines of needle-tipped darts from bundles attached to saddlebags. Though they did little real damage, it was yet another attack from above that had no immediate answer save the scattershot arrows that had next to no effect.

"As you wish, Brother-General. I feel it is my duty to remind you, however, that our supplies of glimmer potion are quite limited until the the whitetail can rebuild their facility in Evinwiir." The experienced doe chose her words carefully, for Corvalix's temper was legendary among the Cervidaen military ranks.

"I'm perfectly aware. Now hurry it up, every moment that passes is another moment our bucks are losing effective fighting strength."

Taking a step back, Faeliwyll signaled to her contingent of Imperial Protectorate magii. They totaled just over fifty in all, a paltry number compared to the vastness of the redtail army, but their influence and power was without equal across the known world. Clad in shimmering sapphire armor lined with intricate silver inlays, they proudly served their empress in times of war.

Each of them floated a small vial from their waist pouches, the contents swirling and shifting with hues of blue, purple and pink that sparkled and glittered with magical light. A singular gulp of the fluid was taken, viscous like oil, before the precious glass vessels were returned to their satchels.

Long seconds passed. Arcs of magical energy jumped from prong to prong of their antlers with crackling jolts. The does braced themselves as their bodies were filled with power from the aether, causing their muscles to twitch and spasm as they gritted their teeth against it. Black threads showed themselves against their eyes, turning their bright irises a muddled green. The potion had fully taken hold. With a wordless bond the Sister-Commander and her magii turned to face the pegasi who were still wreaking havoc with their quick strikes. The hum of magic turned to a series of thunder cracks as they unleashed the full force of their newfound abilities.

"One more pass, then we're heading back! Keep up, ponies!"

Battle-Master Gilias swept over the evergreen tree tops in a long curve, her last pilum clutched in her claws. Numerous pegasi followed in her wake, spread out in a wedge-shaped formation three tiers deep. The bundles at her side had been exhausted early on, and the archers at the rear were running dangerously low on arrows.

A volley of redtail arrows flitted past and struck several pegasi squarely in the neck or chest. They tumbled out of the sky and disappeared into the dense forest below.

"Fill in the gaps, quickly!" Steel Spark ordered. His crimson cape fluttered behind him, thrice holed by near-misses. Every moment they spent near the mixed army was another moment the deer grew more accurate and sure of their aim. "Once we've passed over the redtail we will break formation and make all due haste for the keep!"

A heavy dart slammed into Gilias' armor, momentarily sending her off balance. She dropped her pilum in surprise, swearing as she quickly yanked the offending missile from her chest plate and dove for the tree tops where the throwing spear had landed among a tangle of branches.

"Go on without me!" she ordered Steel Spark. She landed among the snow-covered trees and strained for her weapon, taking precious seconds to reach it as the formation passed overhead. Her claws scraped against its cord-wrapped shaft, and with a push from her wings she pulled it into her grasp once more.

The forest echoed with a sudden thunderstorm that erupted from all around her. Gilias jumped at the sudden tumult, and as she clambered to the top of the tree her breath was sucked from her lungs.

The entirety of the pegasus formation, from first to last, had stopped in mid-air. Clouds of sparking, shimmering green magic had consumed them like a blanket of fog, their silhouettes struggling to break free. A volley of projectiles shot up toward them with such ferocity and number that the ground below was blackened by their shadows.

The pegasi cried out in anguish, their voices mixing as a singular shout. Another storm emanated from the deer, and over half of the flying formation simply dropped from the sky, punctured by countless arrows and jagged-edged crystalline darts. Their bodies tumbled to the ground, limp and lifeless, where the waiting blades of the deer put an end to those who had not been killed outright.

Gilias called out to Steel Spark, one of the few who had been fortunate enough to still be able to fly. He flapped as quickly as his wings would carry him, bobbing through the air and trailing a stream of blood from his haunches. More arrows shot up to meet him. Two bounced off his armor, but a third found purchase in his side and buried itself so deep that only the fletching still remained visible. Steel Spark carried on for another pair of wing beats, then dropped into the canopy not far from Gilias' position while the surviving pegasi flew back to the keep in a fit of panic.

"Spark!"

Gilias took the sky with all of her might, flying to his side. He'd landed roughly on a thick branch that was already staining red from the spurts of blood that poured from his armor. His breaths were ragged and wet, and his eyes spoke to the pain his words could not.

"Shit! No, no, no! Come on, Steel Spark, you gotta talk to me!" Gilias lifted his head from the bark, a pained, choking breath the only sound to escape his mouth. "Just hang on, I'm...I'm gonna fix you." She scrambled through the medical satchel at her side, frantically searching for something, anything, to save him. A vial of prometheum powder sat at the bottom, but as she prepared to yank the cork with her beak Steel Spark weakly lifted a hoof at her.

"N-No...won't...won't help."

She wanted to object, but knew he was right. The flow of blood from his grievous wound continued unabated, turning the snow pink and red around them. She cradled him in her arms, pulling him closer so that his head rested against her chest, and removed his battle-scarred helm.

"Don't you fucking give up on me, Equestrian," she said in a shaky voice. The first tears she'd felt in years welled in her eyes and dripped down her dirtied feathers. "If you die I will personally pull you out of the afterlife and beat your ass, you understand me? You're not allowed to fuck me and disappear like I'm some five bit whore. I'm worth at least ten bits."

Steel Spark laughed weakly. Color drained from his face, his breathing falling shallow and wet.

"Please, Spark..."

He touched a hoof to her face and spoke no louder than a whisper.

"Pro...protect them. My brothers. Please."

"I will, I swear it. I can get us more help, but I need you with me," she said.

He gulped back his own blood. "I'm sorry..."

Steel Spark closed his eyes. His chest fell one last time, and then he was silent. "Spark? Spark?!" she shook him in disbelief and grief, his head lolling back against the branch.

The sounds of battle came back to her all at once, a painful reminder that the war would not simply stop while she mourned his death. Carefully she picked him up and held his body against her, straining to lift him with heavy flaps of her strong wings. His helm was placed back on his head as she quietly spoke a prayer of salvation to her Emperor, an honor she would not deny Steel Spark simply because he had been a pony. He had been a warrior in life and would remain so in death, and if anyone deserved to feast at the table of the ancients for all of eternity, it was him.

The keep appeared after a short flight, its walls pockmarked by siege weapons. The bulk of the Equestrian military was now in open battle with the deer, vast formations of soldiers clashing in a deafening cacophony. Off to one side of the courtyard the survivors of the aerial assault squads huddled near a fire and treated their wounded. They had lost so many of their own, and so quickly. They stared at her with distant eyes heavy with demoralized spirits, only coming forward when they realized who she had brought into their midst. The Legion fliers gathered around in wordless reverence, then carried Steel Spark's body so that he could lay beside his lost friends and compatriots one last time.

Gilias saw herself reflected in a pile of swords, her armor pitted and scarred by war, the entire underside of her body red with drying blood that matted her plumage and stained her fur. Her grief turned to hatred, deep and terrible, and she pulled her twin curved swords from their sheathes, grasping them tightly in her claws until she shook from the pain.

She would keep her word -- but first she would kill every fucking deer between here and Skytalon.