The day was getting colder by the hour, with stray clouds roaming from the Everfree Forest uncontrolled. The result was an extremely rare overcast day. Pegasi generally didn't like to waste clouds when not moving them for rain or snow. But at the moment, the bulk of the region's pegasi had either fled, were hiding, or were currently on the move in the largest army Equestria had seen in over two thousand years.

Luna's forces holed up in Ponyville was around 4000 strong. Celestia's army marching from the north: just under 6000 ponies.

Twilight was suddenly grateful she had added the wool lining under the armor before putting it on, as the normal cotton cloth lining would have been freezing in the falling temperatures. Twilight wondered for a second if Windigoes had come to Equestria like in ancient times, but dismissed the thought in the absence of evidence.

She also felt a little sheepish that she was riding in a chariot being pulled by two Guards instead of walking along with the rest of the army, but Celestia among others had insisted. She was also pulled along near the front, keeping her out of the dust cloud being kicked into the air.

Her third feeling was one of nervous concentration, going over battle spells over and over in her head. She had fought a few times before with the likes of the changlings (twice) and a few other magic creatures and villains, making her arguably one of the most experienced magic dueler in Celestia's army. But she was also possibly the most worried about it in typical Twilight fashion.

"Twilight, if you don't stop that fidgeting I just might lose it," said Rainbow Dash, scowling in annoyance as she walked sidelong with the chariot. A few volunteer ponies around them looked a little stunned somepony would talk like that to a Princess, though Rainbow just ignored them as Twilight sighed.

"Sorry, Rainbow Dash," she replied, deliberately setting her front hooves apart and flat on the floor.

"There's really nothing to worry about," Rainbow Dash continued. "Especially not with me around."

"Don't forget us, Dash," said Star Hunter, who trotted up to join the conversation. "And I'll keep you from getting knocked around again."

Rainbow Dash threw another glare, this one less playful, and Star Hunter immediately backed off, his smile fading. Rainbow Dash had been in a rotten mood since the previous night's events, and even her friend's banter and hijinks did nothing to lighten it. She claimed it was because it had taken hours longer than normal to preen and she hadn't slept long because of it.

Twilight had unsettling dreams just seeing the aftermath, so she couldn't imagine what had slipped into the dreams of the pegasi who had participated. She had even wondered if perhaps Luna had sent the dreams on purpose, seeing how Twilight had attempted to cast an anti-dream spell that apparently didn't work out like she hoped. So much for becoming the "Star Princess" or something like that.

No, she couldn't give up on that. Once Luna was defeated, they would need somepony to take over her duties wouldn't they? And Twilight conveniently had a star-burst cutie mark and a night-themed name, so who better to fill the position? Plus, who's to say what the future holds? That's why she had to make sure Celestia won not just this battle but any and all that followed. Some power vacuums had to be created, not waited for.

Twilight's nervousness was gone, replaced by a pulsing burst of energy that ran from her horn to her hooves like a slowly escalating flood, and a small smile spreading on her face as they drew closer to her adopted home.

-----

Applejack stretched her legs one by one, trying to shake the nervous tension out of her body. She glanced back once again at the sheathed sword on her flank, even though she knew it was still there. She'd been doing that all day, nervously taking turns glancing at the sky, then the horizon, back to her sword, and back to the horizon, and her neck was starting to get a kink in it.

She hadn't even left her post in the north park to rest since she had woken up that morning, and it was now late afternoon. Rarity had brought her food and had tried to coax her to take a break but was unsuccessful, as were Big Mac, Bon Bon, and Thunderlane on different occasions.

She wanted to be prepared for anything and everything, no matter what time their opponents showed up. The scouts who had been sent out to watch them and the ponies who stood at the ready with her all seemed far more relaxed, which irritated her to no end. And true to her nature she had let them know that, and for the last hour or so hadn't really talked to her.

Applejack took her eyes off the sky for a moment to watch a couple of ponies being taught sword play, one a unicorn and the other an earth pony. Of course the unicorn had the advantage with the levitation, but nopony could match earth ponies for sheer strength. The Guard overseeing them had been giving them the crash course along those lines, probably reciting what he had learned in the academy years before.

"No, no no, plant your back legs for a solid foundation, but keep your front legs loose. You have to be ready to move in any direction, and to make sure you keep their blade as far from your head as you can," he instructed, guiding the flustered earth pony. The unicorn had been picking it up well, though she had voiced her opinion more than once how she felt like it was rather useless since she could do spells.

Applejack started to walk over to offer some pointers of her own when two pegasi streaked by above. Applejack immediately spun and drew her sword, hilt firmly gripped in her mouth, as she crouched into a battle ready position. She relaxed as she realized they were Republic, and watched as they landed somewhat ungracefully in front of the Head Guard before sheathing her sword once more.

Applejack galloped up just in time to hear what she had been waiting for.

"The Empire's troops are almost through the forest, and have taken up formation," one reported, saluting smartly.

"Excellent work," replied the Head Guard. "Sound the alarm, all troops prepare for battle!"

Applejack didn't wait, bolting back to her position and hollering orders to the onlooking ponies. They immediately scrambled to form a line, weapons in hoof or mouth, as they had been instructed. Applejack found a place in the line next to Crescent Moon and a mare earth pony from Las Pegasus. Applejack was directly in charge of roughly 200 ponies from all over Equestria, and their role was immediate backup.

In front of them a line made purely of Luna's Guards was forming, their dark armor glinting in the afternoon sun along with their spears. They would take the brunt of the first attack and drive it back, while Applejack and her squad, along with three others, would then join the fray to try and score an early victory.

"Are you ready, Applejack?"

Applejack turned to see Rarity trotting daintily (how could she do that even at a time like that?) up to her. Rarity also was put in charge of a squad of mostly unicorns and archers. She and her squad were to provide support from the relative safety of the hastily rebuilt wall, while a squadron of pegasi would stave off any attacks from the air.

"Ready as ever I reckon, Rarity," replied Applejack resolutely.

"I do hope Sweetie Bell and Applebloom stay out of trouble," worried Rarity. Their parents had been out of town when everything started and had yet to return, leaving Rarity in charge of her little sister for the time being.

"Don't worry, they'll stay outta the way fer sure," said Applejack with a hint of mischief.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. I kinda slid a bookcase in front of the basement door," said Applejack with a wink. "Plus there's 'bout six ponies guardin the Library right now so even those escape artists won't be able to sneak out this time."

"What if they get trapped?" asked Rarity in alarm. "You blocked their only way out! What if there is an emergency?"

"They got a month's worth of food and Ms. Cherilee down there with them, and on top of that, if worse came to worse, I gave 'em some of that magic scroll so that they could write a letter through Spike to get em out."

"You mean Spike, who is with Twilight who also happens to be with Celestia?" asked Rarity with deep sarcasm.

"It's just in case of worse case scenario, don't worry Rarity!" said Applejack, laughing a little. Rarity took in a deep breath to calm herself as she started trotting back through the line to her position.

"Alright Applejack, but make sure you open the door straight away once this is over," she said as she walked away.

"I see them!" came the call from down the line. Applejack whipped her attention back across the meadow to the forest's edge. Even at midday the shadows were long and the foliage was thick, so Applejack saw nothing at first. But then the forest seemed to gain a golden gleam all along it's edge.

A massive line of ponies emerged into the meadow, the Guards with golden armor making up most of the front. Here and there other ponies with silver armor popped into the line, obviously volunteers, while yet others only had the golden-khaki uniforms. Every last one of them looked armed and ready. Two golden chariots pulled up as well, with two armored ponies their passengers. One was obviously Celestia, and Applejack's heart dropped a little as she recognized the purple-pink striped mane of the other one.

Applejack began to feel the air cackle with magic as the unicorns around her readied themselves, their horns beginning to glow in their distinct colors. The pegasi squadron, set apart by their black uniforms and blue neckerchiefs, took off and began hovering at the ready above. Applejack watched them as they weaved into position, many of them wielding weapons of all sorts, and wondered if any of them wished they had some of the fearsome weapons that a few of the pegasi had, with swords on their wings.

Across the valley, the ponies advanced, and pegasi began taking off into their own formations. Applejack's heart dropped a beat again when she saw Rainbow Dash's distinctive mane among them, even from the distance. She reached back again, and unsheathed her sword in her mouth, careful to not clench her teeth to hard. Then she tensed her body, ready to transfer weight in any direction, and waited.

-----

Twilight dismounted the chariot as did her mentor. She stared at the intimidating battle line of ponies across the familiar meadow, trying in vain to pick out familiar faces from the distance.

"Ready to charge!" ordered Princess Celestia loudly. All around her Twilight sensed the magical surge as unicorns readied their spells, and she heard the clinking of metal as ponies drew their weapons.

Twilight concentrated and started the flow of her own magic, preparing a spell.

This ends today she thought determinedly, and she slowly marched forward just a few tail lengths behind the front line of Guards.

-----

Rarity brisquely called for all the archers to load arrows as she looked out from the top of wall, desperately wanting to pace out of nerves but resisting the urge with practiced poise. Her calm exterior was a front for her darting mind as her thoughts wandered across every possible horrible scenario, all of them much worse than the sample carnage she had witnessed the night before.

She grit her teeth, her resolve coming from who knows where, she prepared a signal spell, and waited.

-----

Rainbow Dash flapped her wings, slowly gaining altitude as she prepared to dive forward into battle yet again. She flexed, making sure once again that her pegasi blades were ready and simultaneously scanning the ponies in the air around her. They looked determined to avenge those they lost in the raid, those without pegasi blades drawing swords, spears, and lances into place. They were out for blood.

And blood they will get Rainbow Dash thought. She knew the time was close, and she forced her body to relax as she geared up to fly forward at Celestia's command.

-----

Princess Luna arrived at the battle field, landing with power right behind the front line.

Across the meadow, Princess Celestia marched gracefully behind her own soldiers, glaring at the cause of so much trouble.

Luna let her mind run through everything that had lead up to this point. Her old frustrations that had lead to her transformation into Nightmare Moon, and how they had been aggravated back then by Celestia choosing to distance herself.

---

Celestia was thinking similarly, about how painful it had been to banish her sister, but yet how relieved she had been to not have to look over her shoulder any longer.

---

Luna thought forward to the present day. Celestia acted like everything had changed, like everything was just alright. It was all a lie. Everypony knew that Celestia was still alone on top of the pyramid of power, unquestioned and unchallenged. Luna had thought she could be content with it, but her sister's arrogance was far too much.

---

Celestia huffed in frustration as she remembered the things Luna had said to her the day she had left and started this ridiculous affair. She had acted like she, Celestia, was some sort of cruel tyrant. The indignation she had felt at such an accusation along with a fresh reminder of the pain of that moment mingled.

---

No, Somepony had to stand up to her! She had gone too far and had asked too much of the ponies. Luna remembered the satisfying vindication she felt as she convinced ponies of the wrongs that had been committed. They could have a fair ruler and a system more free and just.

---

Luna had taken it all too far! Willing to bring harmony to its knees and cause ponies to risk life and limb for a childish power trip! Celestia's anger began to rise, and the now familiar sensation of powerful magic energy coursing through her body and invigorating her fighting spirit was brought to a boil.

---

Luna breathed deeply as the powerful energy surged again through her body before culminating in her chest. She was ready, and she sensed that so were her devoted followers. She lifted into the air and landed on top of one of the barricades, ready to direct from the rear of the formation.

---

Celestia raised her right hoof, and then pointed across the field, her teeth bared in anger. Banishment may have not been the right punishment the first time.

"ATTACK!"

-----

The line of Guards on the ground surged forward en masse, their hooves rumbling loudly. Above, Rainbow Dash and the other pegasi held back, waiting for the opportune moment that was quickly approaching. Dash watched with sharp eyes for the tell-tale sign that would send her speeding across the meadow, and she was rewarded in short order

She saw the dark specks lift into the the air like a flock of birds seeking prey, and Rainbow Dash immediately sped into action. She passed the sound barrier within a few seconds and felt the mach cone form around her as she shot past the front line, before it exploded in a brilliant Sonic Rainboom.

The multi-chromatic shockwave radiated perpendicular to the ground, the arrows blown out of the air like paper airplanes hitting a fan, scattering harmlessly to the ground. Rainbow Dash didn't slow as she pulled up into the cloud of pegasi waiting, banking a tight angle as the gap closed in a blink.

Two pegasi dove to meet her, swords in mouth and heads reared back to strike. Dash twisted as she passed them, the clang of steel ringing in her ears as the blades clashed. She noticed one sword go spinning off towards the earth, while the other pegasi held on tightly through the recoiling collision.

Unlike previous fights, there was no time for a re-turn. The sky, a second before still with tension, now resembled a writhing mass as the two air forces collided, forcing Rainbow Dash to duck and weave as she alternated attacking and defending at every turn. She finally got above the chaos and turned, zeroing in on a pegasus bent on chasing her down. The brown stallion had a sword strapped to his front hoof, and was rocketing upwards with the blade slicing ahead. Rainbow went into free fall straight towards her opponent, letting gravity drive her speed.

They sometimes say that when your life is in danger and the adrenalin rushes that your life flashes before your eyes. What actually happens is that time slows down to a crawl, making seconds last what seems an eternity before the moment ends and time speeds back up to a blur.

It was one of those moments, which Rainbow Dash had a lot of lately. She redirected the blade with her left wing, causing it to miss her head by just a few inches. She spun her momentum like a cat, twisting her whole body, and simultaneously stiffened her right wing in a drag jet position. She slid past the stallion and spread her wings once more, seeking a new target, while the unfortunate brown pegasus careened towards the ground, streaming crimson.

Rainbow Dash didn't even look back, two new opponents streaking forward to challenge her.

-----

If the sky was chaos, the fight on the ground was anarchy. Weapons flashed, their metallic clangs reverberating through the air and mingling with the cries of ponies being struck. Applejack was right in the middle of it all. The Guard line that had been supposed to drive back the initial wave was overwhelmed quickly, thrown off balance by the Sonic Rainboom that had deflected Rarity's arrow attack. Applejack and her battalion had been forced to leap into the fray to save the line from collapsing all-together.

Applejack landed a powerful kick with her hind legs onto the chest of one Guard, flinging him backwards with his breath knocked out of him and his ribs broken, before resetting just in time to block a spear jab from the front. Applejack sprung sideways with the practiced ease of the rodeo, simultaneously twisting her head and slicing off the spearhead. His momentum unbalanced, the Spear-pony Guard stumbled forward, and Applejack seized the opportunity to knock him out as well with a stomping kick that dented his helmet.

Applejack was hardly left time to breath as a pink earth pony dressed in the volunteer khaki flung herself at the farm pony, a sword of her own arching through the air. Applejack turned her head to counter, the blades clashing together in a brief flash of sparks. Neither earth pony hesitated to make their next move. The pink mare used her forward momentum to push by Applejack before planting her front hoof and pivoting in a pirouette, trying to slash Applejack's flank.

As soon as the pony had slid by, Applejack leaped in anticipation of the sword's path. Her powerful jump carried her well over the blade's trajectory, though she could still feel the air move as it sliced by. Applejack landed on all fours, bending her front legs and loading up power through her whole body like she had done thousands of times before. The pink pony was just barely landing on all four hooves, trying to reset herself.

It was far too late as Applejack bucked with all her might, her back legs smashing into the mare's unprotected face. Flesh and bone felt different underhoof than bark, especially in the sickening way it buckled under force. The pink mare probably died instantly, but not even Applejack had even time to acknowledge that.

The line was breaking, and more gold-clad ponies were pushing through. And spells were starting to fly.

-----

Twilight observed the battle from a relatively safe distance. Her idea to repel the arrows had worked brilliantly; Rainbow Dash had executed it to perfection. It seemed like they had gained the quick advantage. Though her curiosity about the health of individual ponies was totally frustrated. She had never considered that despite the uniforms worn by both sides the wide range of coat color made it difficult to distinguish who was who.

Spells arched through the air like lightning, though most appeared to be shot upward into the winding tangle of pegasi, each side trying to support their air force. But how they were missing their own was nothing short of.....

Twilight gasped sharply when she noticed a volunteer on her own side knock a silver-armored mare out of the air.

"UNICORNS! CEASE FIRING AT THE PEGASI!"

Princess Celestia had noticed too and immediately ordered them to stop. The last thing they needed was friendly fire. The skyward spells stopped on cue, with only the unicorns right up front casting at close range. Twilight strained her eyes, feeling slightly helpless and wanting to find a way to help

"Look out!"

Twilight looked wildly around for the danger, and found it above. A small squad of pegasi had broken off from the aerial chaos and were streaking uninhibited towards the two Princesses. Probably a half-cocked plan to end the battle now by capturing them. And a very short lived one.

Both Twilight and Celestia engaged their magic while hardly moving a muscle, their horns glowing brighter and brighter until they seemed to explode in a flash complete with a bang. The pegasi were tossed aside like ragdolls before they got near their target, slamming into the ground and trees of the forest. Several didn't get up, knocked out or worse. The ones that moved were immediately pounced upon by nearby soldiers and captured.

If that's all they have this will be way too easy thought Twilight. Just then, the battle line rushed dramatically forward. The Lunar line had broken completely.

-----

Rarity surveyed the scene below her frantically, searching for a way to turn fortunes. She started firing spells, and ordered unicorns and archers to do the same, into the horde of Celestia's forces to try and slow them down. It was pointless, and it was already time for the fallback plan.

"UNICORNS, SKY SHIELD! PEGASI AND EARTH PONIES, FALL BACK!"

Luna's orders rang loud and clear above the din of the collapsing battle, and Rarity focused her attention above. Luna's pegasi were breaking off of their opponents and were flying back into the Ponyville airspace before the order was executed. Rarity couldn't wait to see if all of them made it.

"Alright, everyone! Sky shield spell!" yelled Rarity. Her horn glowed blue as she concentrated on the hastily taught spell from just a couple days before. A force field rose into the sky, extending from the top of the wall and soaring into the sky, curving as if to complete a dome. Celestia's pegasi that had chased the retreating ones now found themselves separated on the wrong side of the line.

"Up and over!"

Rarity heard Rainbow Dash's order far above as the enemy pegasi made a desperate attempt to escape this new trap. Rarity put more energy into the spell, trying to speed it up. It wasn't in time to trap Rainbow and the faster fliers, but they were fast enough to trap some of them.

In the distance, other unicorns were casting the spell, and soon the spells connected to form a total magic dome over the town and it's barriers. Rarity finally looked below, where an event similar to the one above occurred. Most of Luna's army had made it back in time through the small gaps in the barrier, particularly since they had already been running, and a few unlucky Solar ponies had been caught on the wrong side. Most of them surrendered quickly, seeing no other option.

The spell in place, Rarity immediately set to work. It wouldn't last forever, especially with at least two magical powerhouses in royal armor on the other side, and they needed to reset their defense. The archers immediately gathered up the bows and arrows and retreated into town to take position on rooftops. They hadn't expected to be pushed back so fast, but they were determined to be ready this time. As per the plan, Rarity and other unicorns would remain on top of and near the wall. This go around they would be the primary defense once the barrier failed.

The initial volley of fighting had only lasted ten minutes. High casualties were obvious.to any observer, particularly Rarity had a pegasi-eye view from the wall of the battlefield, because the once green meadow was littered with red masses of used to be living ponies.

-----

"Captain! Get the Magic Corp up here immediately! This field must be broken quickly!" Princess Celestia ordered. Twilight took initiative and quickly trotted forward, bodyguards in tow, to join up with the Magic Corp of Engineers intending to help them. It was a special contingent that usually operated out of the school in Canterlot that researched and tested new magic, a group that Twilight had often envied in her early school days.

Twilight navigated an uneasy path through the battle carnage which several ponies were already working to clear out of the way, finding the wounded and moving the fallen. Twilight resolutely tried not to look, afraid it would make her queasy and unable to go forward, and also afraid of seeing somepony she knew.

They reached a line of earth ponies and pegasi that were gearing to charge again once the force field was out of the way, and the dozen or so unicorns lined up behind them. Twilight was by far the youngest of the group, with most of them being tenured researchers, but she was probably the most talented. Being a Princess and a personal protege of the Sun Princess proved that.

"Ready! Prepare to use an anti-energy spell!" commanded Twilight. "NOW!"

The unicorns flashed their magic, the combined spell smashing into the shield in a blinding light. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust again, but when it did it seemed like their spell had done nothing. Twilight was about to order a different spell when the magic shield cracked. The crack spread like shattered glass across the whole dome. Twilight and the rest of Celestia's army tensed.

-----

Rainbow Dash blasted forward with Spitfire, Soarin, Blossomforth, and Star Hunter on her heels as the spell broke. Cloud Kicker was missing somewhere but they hadn't had time to look for her.

"Everypony stick together!" cried Rainbow Dash as they streaked towards the wall. Star Hunter had suggested a real feather-brained scheme during their brief reprieve, but it was just crazy enough that it could work. They barreled towards the wall gaining as much speed as they could.

"Alright! Now!" called Star Hunter. The five pegasi flipped around so their back legs were pointed down, and then wrapped their forelegs around each other's shoulders, forming a five-pony bullet. They slammed into the center of the wooden log wall and straight through, shattering the structure to splinters. They pulled up, skimming the ground as they did so, and back into the sky, ready to meet the enemy.

-----

Applejack couldn't believe it. They had broken the barrier better than any boulder could, and they had done it not ten seconds after the shield had gone down. Huge wood splinters landed all around her, smaller ones pelting her. Ponies near her shielded themselves in any way they could, most of them equally stunned at the quick dissolution of that wall section. The other sections still stood, but they were already being pelted by spells and hooves.

Unicorns on top of the wall began casting spells furiously into the new onrush, the air resounding with their high-energy impacts. Applejack bit down on her sword's handle again, picking it up off the ground from where she had rested, and charged. The Solar forces had to be pushed back and pushed back now, before they threatened the town any more.

The Solar army was mostly bottle-necked at where the wall section had been blown to pieces, trying to get past the barrier to flood the backfield.

Big mistake thought Applejack. This'll be easier than fishin' in a barrel.

Applejack leaped into the fray, her sword reared back and then brought down with a loud slash onto the neck of a unicorn that had forgot to look up and paid dearly for it. Applejack wrapped her hoof around the sword's hilt and yanked it out of it's hold on the spine in time to ward off a diving pegasus, their blades sparking at the impact.

Applejack scanned the sky for more threats, but the pegasi were once again occupied with each other, with some here and there falling uninhibited to the earth. A scream brought Applejack back to earth, as a Lunar unicorn was cut down right in front of her, and a spear wielding earth stallion gearing up to charge at his new target.

She waited for him to lunge, which was far too low as she leaped and landed on his back. The stallion collapsed under the sudden weight, his spear bending into the ground and snapping, and his breath knocked out of him. Applejack caught a glimpse of glowling light out of the corner of her eye and she leaped sideways off her winded opponent, just in time to avoid a red-colored spell that caught the unfortunate stallion.

Applejack landed on all fours and galloped forward to meet the new challenge, deflecting another spell sent her direction with a well timed swing of her sword.

-----

"Retreat!" Rarity exclaimed. The northern walls on which they stood were starting to crumble under the weight of the attackers, and at least a third of the unicorns that had started on top of the wall had been knocked off. Rarity galloped down the crude stairs they had built, followed immediately by the surviving unicorns.

Rarity blasted a spell at a pegasi that had swooped down to try and cut her off, a particularly nasty fire spell that sent the pegasi screaming into the ground in horrible pain as her body burned.

"That was gastly," muttered Rarity as she ran back towards their second fallback: the park. They dodged through the fighting, shooting spells where helpful until they reached the fresh battle line, where Princess Luna stood ready to lend assistance. The unicorns fell into line wherever they found space. No shield this time, it was to be all offense from here on out.

"Here they come!"

-----

Twilight, still flanked by two guards, hopped over the remains of the wall section Rainbow Six had so cleverly destroyed.

"Everypony duck!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. The ponies in front of her that could hear her dove to the ground. The five or six lunar ponies that had been fighting them looked perplexed, and were delayed just long enough. Twilight cast her spell at the hapless ponies, a powerful yellow light that blasted all of them into the air as if an explosion had occurred. Twilight cast another spell as they fell, then slammed them into the ground harder than gravity could of ever done.

"Princess, look out!" one of the Guards exclaimed. It was Twilight's turn to duck as a spear dashed through the air past her, slicing a few hairs off her mane and before glancing harmlessly off her armor. A sea-green mare cursed at the near miss, and retreated quickly to barely avoid a hastily fired counter spell from the Guard on the left.

Then, a bright, blue jet of light arched through the air past Twilight and into a crowd of advancing troops behind her. The impact sent over a dozen ponies flying helplessly, instantly disabled by the powerful spell. Twilight prepared a spell of her own just in time to counter a second powerful blast that was aimed right at her, barely matching its power.

"Guards! Stand down and watch my back!" Twilight ordered. "Those are Luna's spells!"

Without hesitating, Twilight fired another spell across the din of the battle, which Luna countered resulting in an ear-blasting explosion.

-----

Applejack dove for cover, dropping her bloody sword in the process to get out of the crossfire. Applejack had known that Twilight had grown powerful since her coronation, but matching Princess Luna wasn't quite what she had exptected. She also knew it would be a bad idea to be hit by a spell from either side.

Up and down the short battle line, ponies were temporarily entranced by the brilliant display of magical prowess blazing in what remained of North Park. Applejack scrambled behind a tree, kicking an unsuspecting Solar volunteer out of the way in a rather comical stance.

She peeked around the tree to see the alicorn battle in its glory. Twilight and Luna were alternating running and flying around while firing spells trying to gain the upper hand. Several trees either caught fire or were simply blown to bits, as were several ponies who had the misfortune to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. The air had a different feeling that Applejack had ever felt. The magic in the air was palpable and foreboding , and it was obvious to even the most naive earth pony or pegasi where the source was.

But if Twilight could put up a fight like this, what if....

"Princess Luna! Celestia's comin'!" warned Applejack, spotting the Sun Princess approaching on foot so as to avoid the dogfighting pegasi above. Celestia paused for a moment before blasting open another one of the wall sections, opening a wider gap for her remaining army to pour through (though they kept their distance for the moment, sheltering from the heated battle.

Princess Luna took immediate note and cast spell that Twilight didn't block. Mostly because a gravity spell is a lot less flashy, and it was just enough to throw the young, purple alicorn for a loop before she could correct it.

"Pegasi! Cover retreat! Fall back to the stream!" Princess Luna ordered.

Applejack reacted immediately, first lunging a kick at a Guard who had snapped his attention back to the battle, knocking him off balance, before pelting back towards town. She only stopped to help push along some ponies sporting fresh injuries, and others that were lagging. The stream was a sort of last recourse to turn the tide. Applejack leaped it in a single bound while carrying an injured Lyra on her back.

-----

Rainbow Dash pushed away from an aerial duel with two other ponies to regroup. While the day was being won on the ground, the air had proven more a stalemate. Rainbow Dash and the teammates she had kept track of were more than holding their own, but they couldn't do everything. The Lunar pegasi were better fliers coming out of hotspots like Rainbow Falls, Dodge Junction, and the air fields of near Maneapolis, on top of which many already had fighting experience. Most of the Solar pegasi were city ponies with only basic flying experience and no previous fighting experience. The difference was negating the numbers advantage, which was also slowly evening out with each passing minute.

"Six! We need to win this now!" cried Rainbow Dash. "Spread out! Hit fast and don't slow down!"

"Right!" was the reply, and the other four pegasi burst apart to different areas of the airspace, seeking teammates to help. Rainbow Dash flapped her wings sharply, diving past a Lunar Guard and slicing the poor fellow's left wing feathers in two, before charging towards the ground. There were still several archers firing into the sky, but not for long.

Rainbow Dash skimmed the tree level, moving too fast for anypony to get a bead on her, until she reached the edge of town, the most prominent building on this side the Carousel Boutique. From it's facades she could see several ponies positioned pulling back arrows, with two pegasi circling as guard. They weren't looking the right way when she sliced just above one of them, leaving a deep gash in his back before tackling the second one straight into the roof. They crashed through into what used to be Rarity's idea room, the other pegasus down for the count from the impact.

Rainbow Dash shook herself off, years of stunts gone wrong working in her favor, and burst back through the whole while landing a solid punch on the jaw of a shocked archer. It took ten seconds flat to circle around and put all the archers on the boutique out of commission before she flew back up into the fray, this time from behind.

-----

Rarity saw the event at her precious boutique and swore when it was all over that she was going to make Rainbow Dash pay for it by forcing her to try on a hundred dresses consecutively. But never mind that for now. The stream trap was almost ready.

"Rarity! Please tell me that we're ready for 'em!" yelled Applejack as she trotted up, out of breath.

"Just one more thing," said Rarity, grunting with the effort of pulling one last thing into place. She was sure she looked horrid, covered in dirt, mud, and probably blood though she had not bothered to look just yet, and she made herself another promise that she was going to spend a week at the spa to make up for all of this.

"Ready!" Rarity called, and it was echoed down the stream where countless ponies stood at the ready. The ponies that were watching the southern wall near Sweet Apple Acres had been called up to shore up the defense and prepare for the big counterattack. At their backs were the farthest outside buildings of Ponyville, mostly homes that were now shuttered in preparation for this day.

The last of the Lunar ponies leaped across the stream, the regrouped Solar forces hot on their heels.

"Now!" ordered Princess Luna, who was hovering above the scene. Rarity lit a simple cutting spell, something she knew quite well, and severed a single rope while other ponies did the same. Their prepared trap sprung to life. It was simple but impressive. They had prepared and hidden several spring loaded ramps in the ground not far from the stream's edge, and now they roared out of the ground like a snapping turtle.

The timing had been perfect as well, catching almost the entire advancing front line and hurling them backwards onto their own allies and finally throwing their army off balance. It was Luna's turn to charge.

The Lunar forces yelled in triumph as they galloped forward. Rarity was right alongside Applejack now, deciding to depend on the powerful earth pony to get her through this in one piece.

-----

In the skies, it was hard for Rainbow Dash to believe what she was seeing. They had finally begun to gain the upper hoof in the sky, but down below the story had changed. The line was much wider now, spread across the entire northern section of Ponyville, some of the fighting on the flanks actually taking place on the stony streets. But the center of the line was suddenly being driven back.

Rainbow Dash whistled loudly, a signal to Rainbow Six to gather. She didn't wait for them to get close enough for them to talk but rather signaled to follow her as she dove down from altitude towards the raging chaos..

-----

Applejack was hardly looking at anypony she was attacking now, only ever giving enough of a glance to make sure that they weren't on her side. She had picked up a new sword and was swinging it with fatal consequences to those who stood against her. She could sense Rarity next to her, firing spell after spell and yelling fashion insults that nopony really heard.

Suddenly the world to her right became very bright, a powerful spell impacting not far from them. A couple of ponies flew head over hoofs past them as Applejack whirled to face the new danger. There she registered Twilight, firing magic like a pony possessed at anypony she could reach.

Applejack backed off quickly, pushing Rarity to do the same.

-----

Twilight was caught in such a rush of magical power that she hardly registered anything going on around her. It was all like an odd dream, or a nightmare, and all she could think to do was to cast spells to ward off the danger. Ahead of her two ponies that looked achingly familiar stood ready at a short distance. Twilight hesitated, her mind connecting who they were.

-----

Rainbow Dash pulled up for a brief second over the battlefield, a sight that she had feared would come just ahead. Twilight stood facing Applejack and Rarity, with an open space between them that looked so out of place in the frenzied battle. Rainbow Dash swallowed the fear, and charged forward. She had to protect Twilight and Celestia no matter what it took.

-----

The four friends now divided as enemies stared at each other for the longest second of their lives, making eye contact with each other. They simultaneously started running forward, time slowing again, each determined to find a way to win. But strangely among the clang of weapons, the unearthly screams, the resounding spells, and stomping hooves, they all heard the same sound from the side.

Twilight couldn't quite place a hoof on it.

Rarity was utterly perplexed in that split second by how out of place it sounded.

Applejack thought it sounded...familiar somehow.

Rainbow Dash immediately thought of the sound bowling pins make when they are hit by a solid strike.

A streak of pink blazed out of the chaos followed by a yellow one. The pink one struck Rainbow Dash while the yellow collided simultaneously with Applejack and Rarity.

Rainbow Dash braced for what was sure would be unbelievable pain. Except it didn't come. As she fell through the air she noticed it felt more like an anconda squeeze hug. And that the pink thing smelled like chocolate frosting.

"TAG! YOU'RE IT!"

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