The battle to end the siege of Canterlot had lasted nearly three hours after JSOG’s entry into the conflict. The aftermath of the past nine days littered the valley like mounds of detritus; corpses were piled up into artificial hills, equipment burned like flares, and airship hulls smoked through their wounds as they lay broken upon the ground like toys. The sheer casualties from both sides were uncountable, unbelievable, unacceptable. The Equestrian losses had been in the hundreds of thousands, if not over a million. The Griffons had lost nearly their entire army group, the bulk of which was slain by the human godrod, and then to the subsequent counterattack that had followed from the Night Guard. The human forces had suffered badly as well, losing nearly a quarter of their effective fighting force, and several irreplaceable vehicles. The lowest losses, but the most telling, was in JSOG’s numbers. They were a dozen now, including the wounded.

With the masks having been destroyed, and the last of the progeny slain, the war for Canterlot had ended. There were Imperial battlegroups spread across the continent, continuing their objectives, but the most important battle had been won. The balance of the war had been pushed back into Equestrian favor, and out of Order’s hands.

“There’s the cost.” Jack muttered softly as he found his eyes wandering across the fields, where hundreds of thousands of ex-mindwashed civilians and the like were still being looked over by the militia and the royal guard. The jubilant mood the victory had brought was swiftly crushed beneath the foul weight of the pyrrhic victory. The sound of mourning echoed across the valley, pulling a grim pall over the morbid event.

“Almost got it, try it now, Maggie.” Walter called out as he shoved wooden boards under the tank’s track, trying to give it something to grab besides watery muck.

Bracing against the back of the tank, Jack heaved as the driver eased into the throttle, letting the tracks bite into the terrain. A pair of royal guard unicorns lent their magical strength, attempting to lessen the weight of the huge tank. Slowly but surely, the tank pulled itself free from the muck, it’s nuclear turbine engine spewing out clouds of steam out the exhaust. “That’s got it!” Maggie called out as the tank trundled free from it’s would-be muddy tomb, flag fluttering in the afternoon breeze. Overhead, the 1st Expeditionary mothership slipped through the air, headed for it’s landing zone within the forest

“Flitter.” Jack spoke quietly, but drew the woman’s swift attention easily enough. “I need to go and check on my people, see to the dead. If you need me, I’ll be nearby.”

“Alright.” Flitter nodded once, seeing him off as he began to slowly follow the procession of battered combat trucks as the tank cleared a path through the corpse fields. Sliding a hand over Daisy’s eyes, Flitter plucked the fallen mare’s tags free, and marked her for retrieval. The girl’s armour was rent to pieces around her, ruined by the claws of the flying progeny. She’d fought hard, but that was all Flitter could say. There was no upside to her death, no silver lining; she was gone, and nobody could replace her. Slowly standing, with a ball of dog tags in her hand, Flitter set off for the next casualty marker on her HUD.

As she plodded across the filth laden muddy fields, Flitter paused in her patrol for JSOG casualties to veer off toward a field hospital that the wounded were lining up before. The place was completely overloaded, but people, griffons, and ponies alike were being sent through notably fast. The procession exited the tent, headed for the waiting combat train. As she passed by the lines, Flitter stepped aside to allow a heavy drone to slowly stomp by, laden with medical equipment and supplies. Inside the tent she found the 1st’s field medics and doctors hard at work, using terran medicine and training to patch up the wounded at speed equalling equine mage doctors. Over the cries of the badly wounded and dying, Kord yelled directions and guided the others, having multiple militia ponies sort the wounded by severity.

“Mister Adder?” Flitter spoke, pulling off her helmet and tucked it under her arm.

“Knight Captain, merde, you look like hammered shit. I’m a little busy, were you wounded?” The irritable french medic began unloading the heavy drone as it stopped, calling out the supplies for those who needed them.

Shaking her head, Flitter blew a lock of stray hair from her eyes. “Just bumps and bruises. Where… did you put my sister?”

“The mudball you loaded into the truck? Minimal wounds, she was sent out on the last train. My guess is she’s getting cleaned up in the city up there.” Kord motioned with his head toward Canterlot, guessing it’s location through the thick olive drab plasteel tent. “You should get something in you, you look like the walking dead.”

Nodding slowly, Flitter set an armoured hand over her cheek, as if finally feeling the weight of it all come crashing down on her. “Right… maybe later. I still have… business.”

“I understand.” Kord spoke softly, turning his eyes toward those who’d died on the operating tables. They were covered by simple white sheets, stacked high upon each other. There were more than a few human boots pushing the sheets up. “Do not worry for us, Knight Captain. We knew what we were signing up for.”

“I don’t think any of us did.” Flitter spoke quietly, leaning on a medical crate. Her rifle was slung over her back, it’s barrel turned shades of blue and purple from the heat of battle. “I partially wish… we hadn’t dragged any of you along. To die so far from your home, following Jack and me…”

Pausing momentarily as he reached into a supply box, Kord sighed. “Flitter, we knew what we were getting into, one way or another. To those outside, it might seem like we just followed the Martyr out of blind loyalty, but the reality is more… complicated. I know at least three dozen of us who didn’t have permanent homes, permanent jobs. More didn’t have any family left. The military was a last resort for a good lot of us, so when it chewed us up and spat us out, we didn’t have anywhere else to go. I don’t know if you’ve ever felt it, but to live your life as a meaningless void, simply taking up space? It’s awful. To be given a reason to keep going, to be given an objective? Given something to fight for?” Kord turned an unlit cigarette over in his fingers watching it with tired eyes. “To some people, dying for a good cause, is just as good as fighting for it. You and the Martyr just gave some of us what we needed. What we wanted.”

“Thank you, Kord.” Crossing the small distance between them, Flitter pulled the far shorter man into a hug, earning a wheeze from the frenchman.

“Merde, she’s a hugger…”

Releasing Kord, Flitter cracked the faintest of smiles. “Keep up the good work-” She paused as her hardlight hud appeared before her face, projected from the neckline of her armour.

“Hellion, this is Overlord. Princess Luna is looking for you, you should probably save her the trouble.” Milani was sitting rigidly within her command chair, looking no worse for wear over the events of the day. “We’ve landed at Firebase Gorgon, come and get some coffee when you can.”

“Affirmative. Have someone run some out for the doctors here too, they’ll need it.” Flitter set her free hand on her hip, resting it beside the pommel of her sword.

Chuckling gently, Milani nodded in agreement. “I’ll send a drone out with a kettle. Overlord out.”

With a simple nod to Kord, Flitter popped her helmet up, and secured it on her head with practiced smoothness. Pacing out of the medical tents, Flitter found the Princess’s location marked with a golden pip. Kicking on her jump jets, Flitter began to bounce across the ravaged grasslands. With the air rushing passed her helmet, Flitter was thankfully saved from the wailing sounds of sorrow rising across the killing fields. Her bounce carried her onwards, well into lands previously held by Imperial forces. Spotting Luna was a simple job, as the alicorn was standing upon the lip of the massive crater left by the godrod’s impact. Heat still radiated from the crater, like an oven left on and the door stuck open. All around them were pieces of the Imperial air navy, indistinguishable from each other due to heat damage and warping from the blast.

“It really was something else…” Flitter intoned as she landed, and walked up to Luna’s side.

“To think, such destructive force available at a word.” Luna glanced over to Flitter, her features pale and grim. “We have won, but at what cost? We’ve changed the face of life on Equus forever. One does not simply… return to the old, after witnessing what we have witnessed. After doing what we have done.”

Nodding in agreement, Flitter set her hands on her hips and let her eyes wander across the field. She wanted to look away, but found herself powerless to. “I was told you were looking for me?”

“Yes.” Luna nodded, slowly tearing herself away from the crater’s edge. “I wanted to speak to you before the press pulls themselves from the crystal caves, alongside the rest of the civilians. Before the generals and their ilk get their hooves on you.”

“Well, you’ve got me here, now.” Pulling off her helmet, Flitter wrinkled her nose against the stench of the area, immediately regretting the attempt at familiarity. The smell of overloaded magical discharge was like a slap to the face, far worse than the stench of cooked fuel, burning ozone and melted metal.

“The Generals will want the technology you’ve brought. They will want a full report of everything you’ve done on Earth as well.” Luna paused, finally tearing her gaze away from the glass at the bottom of the pit. “They will want the humans as well, but I doubt they’ll make any progress there, considering Jack’s past surliness with them.”

Coughing politely, Flitter braced herself against the unpleasantness that hung from the air and Luna’s words. “Well, then I do suppose it’s a good thing that it has already been established that JSOG does not answer to them, only the princesses and other signatories. They can bark and demand all they want, but until you or Celestia give the order, it all stays classified.”

“Good.” Luna’s response earned a gentle eyebrow raise from Flitter as she followed the Lunar Diarch down the berm of glass. “I… do not wish for such destructive devices to be within reach so swiftly. Our technology has raced forward thanks to humans, but it has not done so naturally. We have no checks, no balances. Unchecked progress can claim as many lives as it saves, especially when in the wrong hands.” Sighing softly, Luna stepped over the broken skeleton of a griffon that was fused to the ground around it, flesh all but blasted off while bone fused to metal. “When Jack first brought his weapons before us, I was elated at the idea of what they could mean for our defense. My… mind, was focused upon war, still.” Pausing, the princess looked out across the battlefield, haunted by what she saw before her eyes. Flitter couldn’t help but wonder where the recognition in the Princesses eyes came from, but she was certain she truly didn’t want to know. “I have had my fill of war…”

“If I may?” Flitter spoke equally quiet, though there was only the dead to hear them. The dead, and the softly ticking, cooling metal. “Keep the talks of peace for when we’ve won this thing. We might have smashed Order in the nose, but he’s not down yet.” Glancing over at Luna, Flitter mentally registered the calculating look she was receiving in return. It was a dark one, a look with no return if the wearer embraced it. “It’s not over until it’s over. Right now, we need strong leaders, we need offensive leaders, not defensive ones. We need to act before our enemy, because if we don’t, they’ll fucking bury us.” Flitter’s animated hands stabbed at the ground for emphasis that wasn’t needed, while she swallowed and held her composure with bands of mental steel.

With a soft, regal chuckle that was all too out of place in this sprawling graveyard, Luna leaned against her ex-aide’s power armoured side. “And here, I had thought you’d changed drastically during our conflict with Discord… what did you encounter on the other side of the portal?” Luna tilted her head ever so slightly, now on eye level with the shapeshifted pegasus. Her eyes twinkled gently with an unquenchable curiosity, while also searching for a mental distraction. Any port in the storm, as it were.

“I…” Flitter hesitated as she turned her helmet in her hands, gazing upon the painted half skull across it’s jawline; taken in no small part from Jack’s once ruined appearance. “We found a whole other galaxy, Princess. We found heroes and villains, places you wouldn’t believe, sights that… stick with me, no matter what. The beauty of it all, the ugliness, and… lies. So many lies. So much… misdirection. Did you know that even after the war for their species survival cost them nearly four billion people, humanity’s total population numbers in the hundreds of billions now, across forty two colonies, six O’Neill cylinders, and countless other little satellites? And they’re… they’re all in danger again, at risk of another war because of one man.” Sticking up a single index finger, Flitter smiled in disbelief at her own memories, lost in them for the briefest of moments. “I want to go back.” Her voice came out softer than she’d wanted, betraying her heart in five words. “I want to go back and bury myself in that world again, I want to feel it’s pulse again. I will never feel it here. I… don’t want to feel it here.”

Leaving the site of impact, Flitter and Luna started across the battlefield, headed back towards Canterlot’s lines. The Lunar Diarch spoke as Flitter fell into a momentary silence while they walked. “Celestia will want to award medals. Your tale is one that will be etched into stone and told again and again for years to come.” Luna spoke gently as Flitter suppressed a shudder at the memory of the amusement park they’d first set foot into. The rundown, flagging mockery of heroes all in the name of squeezing another dollar from hapless consumers. She could see now why Jack had been so abhorred by it all, to have his accomplishments, and the sacrifices of others reduced to a cheeky tagline and bathed in corporate sterility. To have it all turned into a failing side attraction. A part of her wondered if the same would happen to her, and JSOG.

“You’ll have to excuse me if I wholeheartedly want to avoid that kind of thing-” Flitter paused as her comms lit up again with a call from Overlord. She was thankful for it, she apparently couldn’t keep her mouth shut around Luna. Never could, it felt. There was a comfort in that though, a familiarity she only felt around one other person.

Milani was moving in her chair, going to get up it seemed. “Hellion, sorry to pester you, but Equestrian High Command is demanding our presence in the city. Might want to collect the Royal Highness and see what they want. I’ll alert Courage. They’re being… Awfully insistent.” There was a tone of… Flitter wanted to call it warning, but it wasn’t quite that. She didn’t know the woman well enough to say for sure. Regardless, it set a razors edge to her skull, hardening her again.

“Thanks, Overlord, see you soon.” Closing the channel, Flitter let her head hang as she sighed. “There really is no rest for the wicked, hm?” She let the corner of her mouth tug upwards in the failed facsimile of a smirk. She didn’t feel it. Luna didn’t believe it.

“Yes…” Sighing in turn, Luna pushed a bit of slagged ship hull aside with her magic, clearing a path so as to not be forced to walk around. Such earthly concerns were still below her, and why wouldn’t they be? “I had dismissed my Nightguard in vain hopes of having a moment to myself among the graves, to avoid the pratling for even a few minutes. The Generals serve their purposes to the crown, but now, they serve too much of their own machinations… The last time I ruled, nobody would dare.” There was a brief pause, followed by a grim smirk. “The only saving grace I can foresee is seeing our Jack confronting those puffed chests again. It’s always a treat for my soul to see him among today’s ‘high’ society. While Celestia may not admit it, we’ve both found it wonderfully pleasant to witness him saying the very things the two of us are forced to keep silent, so as to save face and avoid political fallout.” As she spoke, an armoured Nightguard landed abreast of the pair, bowing slightly before giving the same report Flitter had earlier received. “Thank you, Matriarch Scratch, but I’m already aware. You should return indoors, the sun is doing you no good.”

Vinyl Scratch lifted the hem of her helmet, grimacing toward the sun like it was a hated enemy. “Yeah, that was the plan. I also wanted to inform you myself, the end of this battle means our contract is complete.” The once DJ watched the Lunar Princess with sharp red eyes, barely even registering Flitter’s presence, save for when her mechanical arm clicked, sending a bristle of fur down the mare’s neck.

“I expected as much.” Luna intoned as she continued to walk. “I thank you for your assistance regardless. May I not need to call upon you for another hundred years. Libertas.”

As the word was uttered with a hushed whisper, the former DJ visibly relaxed as if a spell were lifted, letting her magical bat wings dematerialise into her armour, which she allowed to fall into the mud without a care. “Finally. My club has gone to shit, and this armour chafes my ass.” Without another word, she set off, all too eager to leave for her own reasons.

With the freed DJ cantering off through the wastes, Flitter chanced a glance at the princess. “Dare I ask?” She didn’t want to know, not really, but her curiosity kept nagging at her.

“I have pacts with many night dwellers, the vampiric are no different. I simply offered her some… upward mobility, in exchange for her services.” Luna flapped her wings idly, coming to a gentle hover to avoid the deep cloying muck. “The aid of a vampiric matriarch usually comes at a much higher price. Collect your soldiers and see to your dead, Flitter. I will keep the Generals at bay so you may have the time you need to do so. Your bravery today demands no less of me.”

Nodding once, Flitter pulled her helmet back on, breathing in the recycled air as it hissed shut and sealed. Her own jetpack unfurled from within her armor plates, letting out a keening hum as it prepared for flight. “We’ll be in the human camp, find us there.” Without another word, Flitter lifted off, jetting across the desolate wasteland like a rocket.

The human camp smelled of burnt ozone, cooked cordite, smoking gunpowder, and clinging death. The cries of the wasteland before them were naught but a distant echo on the wind, haunting the woods. The support staff had since disgorged from the ship, and had begun assisting in cleaning up the firebase with power loaders. The Progeny proved to be often too heavy to move in one piece, so their bodies were cut apart with monofilament chainsaws, and promptly tossed in a thankfully distant fire pit to burn. The pit was deep, dug out with machinery and doused with accelerants; a nameless pit for the monsters to be turned to ash and reduced to naught but a bad memory. The area around the camp had all but been deforested by the blistering fire whipping back and forth, with the heavyset quickform concrete barricades being all that had saved humanity from being turned to ground beef against the imperial onslaught. A thick layer of sawdust, splinters, and fallen leaves covered the ground, making it spongy and awkward to find proper footing. Graves had already been dug for the fallen, though more than a few were empty, with no body to be found to fill them. The graves themselves were far more respectful than the pit for the progeny. After all, the people who had fought and died here deserved that much.

With a grunt and a heave, Jack tossed a smashed troll progeny’s corpse into the roaring fire, allowing his eyes to remain for the briefest of moments as flame licked up around their greasy hides. A woman in a rebreather stood nearby and nodded to him, before she levelled her flamethrower and gave the pile another squirt of jellied ship fuel. The stuff reeked, but it couldn’t possibly beat of the smell of cooking Progeny. The smell was worse than death.

Shaking his head gently, Jack turned on his heels, heading back to the battlelines. There was still more corpses to move, and friendly bodies to recover from under them. In some places, the corpses of their enemy were stacked up five or six tall, high enough to be used as sandbags. It was morbid to say the least, but it had saved lives. Nearby, Walter was rolling several griffons off a fallen human, his features scrunched up like he’d eaten something and found it to be utterly offensive to all of his senses. He didn’t slow in his work as Jack tred closer, wrapping his huge hands around the bodies to toss them aside like broken ragdolls. The casualty was a young man with a prosthetic arm. He’d died clutching his service knife. Died fighting.

Leaning in, Walter rested his forehead against the young man’s, screwing his eyes shut tight. “M’sorry, brother…” He lifted his head momentarily, to gently close the fallen warrior’s eyes with his hand.

Jack hesitated for a moment, before starting. “Walter-”

“Jack.” Walter’s response came whipfast, the tone almost warning, nearly cracking. “Don’t.” The broad shouldered man didn’t need to say anything else. Jack knew. He knew all too well what was being said wordlessly. Without a single word, he settled his massive hand on Walter’s shoulder. He wouldn’t leave, there was nothing Walter could do to make him. Nodding once, the ex-security guard set his own hand over Jack’s, taking a deep breath as he did so. A steadying thing, to soothe his raw nerves and stuff the emotions back down. “We still got a job to do.”

“Yup.” The response could have been taken as callous, but wasn’t. It was the honest, naked truth; an ugly, squat little thing that demanded you stare it in the eyes and accept it.

“Yeah…” Walter nodding again, rising to his feet. “Yeah, we got work to do.” Walter’s eyes flicked skyward for a moment, just before Flitter landed and trotted to a halt, bleeding off the momentum of her bounce. Without a word traded between the two, Walter gestured toward the woman with his head, before plodding off toward the other corpses

Taking the hint, Jack set off for Flitter; the woman spotted him immediately, as he was all but impossible to miss at almost eight feet tall and two thousand pounds of gleaming silver armour. The two shared a gaze for the briefest of moments, before Jack lowered his slightly. Flitter was the one who broke the silence between the two of them. “High Command wants us in Canterlot.” Before he could spit venom at the idea, she spoke again. “Luna’s giving us all the time we need to see to our guys, living and… dead.” The word was heavy… always would be. Again, Jack found himself silent, nodding gently in thanks to a Royal who wasn’t present. Flitter slowly pulled off her helmet, glowering at the ground before she closed her eyes, willing the emotions down, and out through her feet. “Once we get everyone squared away, I want to go up there and head this off. None of the others need that shit.” The final word came out as a sharp hiss, more angry than she’d meant to let on.

“Agreed.” Jack spoke softly, letting the roll go to Flitter for a time. “There’s coffee, good stuff. The support staff put it on a few minutes ago, so it’s fresh.” He was already turning for the lowered landing ramp, sliding by a trundling heavy drone with far too much grace for a man so large.

Cracking the ghost of a smile, Flitter followed after him, meeting his long strides with two of her own, though they were in no hurry. As they started up the ramp, she felt a sudden wave of exhaustion fall over her like a leaden blanket, making her want to just buckle right then and there. How long had she been awake? How long had Jack, for that matter? She hadn’t even seen him close his eyes for longer than a blink, while she’d stolen a minute or two where she could… Her legs worked on autopilot, her body remaining upright and striding as her brain took a little break. Coffee was consumed, gulped down greedily by parched lips regardless of temperature. As she drank, Flitter could only slowly shake her head. “I just…”

“Take your time.” Jack murmured quietly, setting a massive armoured hand over her shoulder, nearly engulfing it with the simple gesture.

Setting her own hand over his, Flitter smiled faintly, squeezing the armour despite knowing he couldn’t feel it. “Let’s find the others and make sure they’re not doing anything foolish.”

The others were seen to, ensured that they were alright, that they weren’t hiding wounds. They were just as stubborn as Flitter was. Minerva had to be sent to the medics despite her claims that her gunshot wound wasn’t that bad, that it had only nicked the bone and that the docs had bigger things to worry about. Flitter wasn’t having any of it. Even if she had to carry the big bitch all the way there herself, she threatened. It earned a smile, an earnest, amused thing that almost glowed with tired warmth. A warm, damp towelette was offered for Flitter’s face by a support crewman, when she wiped it came away filthy black. She needed a shower, no, a bath. A long, hot bath, and a big bed to crash down upon so she could sleep for a million years. A big bed, with feather filled pillows, like fluffy clouds… Her mind wandered to Cloudsdale as it hung over Canterlot like a shall. Surely she could head up there for a few and catch a nap, nobody would mind, but… she’d need to be a pegasus to do that.

Looking to Jack, Flitter shooed that thought away as she curled a hand around the bottom of his arm, her fingers not meeting her palm. “Come on, let’s go. We wait any longer and High Command might scrape together enough bodies to ask politely.”

With a faint smirk, Jack nodded and stood. “Aight, yeah. Let’s do it.” Without a hint of tiredness or resignation in his steps, Jack turned about-face and began striding out of the ship, still fully clad in his armour. Shaking her head at his demeanor, Flitter left with him, headed for Canterlot. The pair took to the skies on the bounce, doing their best to avoid the clearing operations working away below. By the time they reached the path leading up the mountain, the sun was slowly beginning to set, causing a burning colour across the sky. The sunset was simple, a canvas of smudged warm colours washed across fluffy clouds. Ceasing their jumps, the pair walked up the road, enjoying the sight.

By the time they reached the gates at the top of the road, the sky had grown dark, and the gates were closed. Pausing briefly, Jack glanced at Flitter, his helmet furled up in his collar. “So, what? Should we knock?”

“I’ve seen you knock, we don’t want them thinking they’re under attack again.” Flitter mused with a half smirk playing her lips, earning a near comical pout from the large man.

“I see how it is.”

“Do you now?” Flitter teased gently as her jets unfurled and helped her simply hop over the gate, landing on the other side with a rubber muffled thud on the cobblestone. The city was slowly coming to life before her. Lights were on, and guards patrolled the streets, but now she could see ponies returning to their homes, the jubilation of victory still in the air here. The serene scene was interrupted when Jack landed next to her with a booming thoom of mass against the cobblestones, shattering them with the sound of gunshots. The guard manning the gate all but toppled over himself, and several nearby ponies bolted for cover. Glancing over to him, Flitter gestured at the disturbed peace. “My point-”

“Yeah yeah, keep it up, Sparky.” Jack muttered as they set off for the Castle, which stood in the distance like a crooked, regal finger. “Remind me to not let any of our engineers come up here.”

“Shut up, you know it’s magic.”

“Point still stands, don’t it?” He shot back as ponies peered out at them through windows or around objects, eyeballing the pair of heavily armed humans as they trod through the streets. Flitter’s rifle remained secured against her chest on it’s smart sling, barrel replaced and magazine reloaded. Jack was almost entirely unarmed, that is to say, of ranged firepower. Flitter was sure he’d be fine no matter what he had on him. “Heads up.” Jack murmured quietly, drawing Flitter’s attention away from him, and back to the street ahead.

A ramshackle squad of royal guard and militia were approaching, still heavily armed, though from the looks of them, definitely not looking for a fight. “Knight Captain Falenas?” The leader called out to them.

“That’s me, what can I help you with?”

“I need you to come to the castle immediately, you’ve been called upon by High Command.”

Sighing in exasperation, Flitter drummed her fingers across her helmet’s side. “Wonderful, thank you.”

The guard nodded simply, and continued. “Please follow us, we’ve been tasked to retrieve you.”

“Retrieve me? Did they think I was going to run off?” When the guard didn’t respond, Flitter shot a furrowed look to Jack, who only looked mildly amused. With no reason to fight it, Flitter fell into Step with Jack, and followed the ramshackle squad through the castle gates, and into the main hall. The castle was in upheaval, with civilians still streaming up through the halls, exiting the crystal caves where they had taken shelter in from the siege above. The civilians parted aside without so much as a single order shouted, whether out of fear or awe, Flitter didn’t know. They were heroes, but heroes of war, inequine… She understood their trepidations, in some primal way at least.

Approaching the big doors leading into the council chamber, Flitter found herself pausing when Jack stopped short, looking at the large ornate oak doors, with their swooping golden filigree. He took in a deep breath, and slowly let it out through his nose, his eyes closing as he did so.

“Jack?” Flitter asked softly, her eyes flicking up in hopes of meeting his, to try and read what was going on in his mind.

Slowly opening his eyes, Jack looked to the side, and let his eyes wander along the walls, following the scorched scars that ran their length, remnants of his battle with Celestia. “She’s going to be in there.” He said, with a tone so soft Flitter almost didn’t recognize it as his. She had no illusion as to whom he reference, either.

“I can’t imagine why not… Are you…?” She let the question trail off.

“Maybe. Probably.” He sighed, and activated his helmet, letting it unfurl and close around his head, sealing like heavy metal skin over his gruff features, to hide his face from everyone around him. “Let’s do this.”

The guards nodded, and pushed the doors open with their magic. The sound of argument within the room immediately became apparent as the magic seal on the room that held sound in was fouled. The argument swiftly died as the pair strode in, Flitter leading before Jack. The three generals stood around the central table, a map of Equestria rolled across it with a great number of tactical icons spread across it. Luna was at the table as well, accompanied by the commander of the Night Guard. Princess Gilda was present, accompanied by the once rebellious officer who had been appointed as her personal bodyguard. It took Flitter a moment to Find Celestia, as the great white alicorn was not standing at the table, but rather furled up on a pile of pillows, being tended to by a swarm of doctors. Flitter found herself dumbstruck at the sight of Celestia; completely deprived of power, reduced to a mess of limp hair, frail limbs, and rough coat. She found herself shocked beyond words, unable to even conjure the faintest idea of what to say.

Jack found the words all too quickly, and voiced them faster than reason could stall. “You look like shit, Princess.” There was the faintest hostile edge to his words, though they rode on a wave of mirth.

The room all but froze at the flippant words, a whole gamut of emotions running across the collected people there as Jack crossed his great armoured limbs before his chest. It was a good thing he’d put on his helmet, because Flitter could tell he was probably smirking like a jackass. Before the bubble of emotions burst across the room, Celestia lifted her head, and let out a faint, exhausted titter of laughter. “Fuck you, Jack.”

If the room hadn’t been shocked to silence before hand, it was now. Letting out a huff of amusement, Jack approached the table and set his huge hands down on it. “Alright, you all wanted us up here.” His helmet slowly panned across the table, the featureless plate betraying nothing. “So talk.”

Stepping up next to him, Flitter shot a brief salute to those at the table. “Knight Captain Falenas and Pathfinder Kessel, reporting as requested.” She crossed her arms behind her back, letting her gaze find a place to rest on the wall behind the gathered leadership, while Jack simply set his armoured hands on his hips, staring down at them all.

Major Highwater was the first to speak, lifting his beak and breaking a small smile on it. “I’m glad to hear your voice again, Captain Kessle. After that mess in the mountains, I wasn’t sure if I’d see you alive again. Thank you for sparing both myself and my men, as well as saving Princess Gilda.”

“I don’t remember him being so damn big.” Gilda muttered, crossing her arms over her chest.

With the tension in the room dissipating ever so slightly, General Ironsides resumed his ramrod straight stature, and looked upon the pair of humans before him. “We called you here, primarily to… Thank you, both of you. Our situation was beyond critical, and your help could not have come at a better time.” General Wave, and General Stormfront both nodded in agreement, before matching Ironsides’ stock straight posture as all three saluted the pair. “We have put in to have the pair of you awarded the Solar Medal, the highest honour one can receive in Equestria.”

Flitter fought as best she could to withhold the little shiver that ran through her body from the shock of the announcement. Her heart skipped a beat, but despite the excitement, she just couldn’t muster it up. It felt wrong.

Again, Jack beat her to the punch.

“You could have waited to tell us that. You want something, and you’re trying to sugarcoat it with medals.” Flitter had almost expected him to be angry, not… emotionless. Mechanical.

The generals shifted slightly, their gazes dropping ever so slightly out of shame. “We require further assistance against the Empire, and Order’s forces. The humans have proven to be a competent fighting force, so we would request that they attack the Empire’s manufacturing centers as soon as they are able, or engage the Army Group near our border to the Crystal Empire. If we can strike decisive blows to their remaining strategic resources, then we can end this war before it drags on too long. In the meantime, our forces will be regrouping, and making a push for their capital while they’re on the backhoof.”

Squashing down the feelings in her chest and the exhaustion clawing at the inside of her skull, Flitter lifted her head to regard the trio of Princesses. “JSOG will follow your orders and go where you order us to. Our operational strength is one dozen, including myself.”

Recoiling as if struck across the muzzle, Celestia closed her eyes as she released a shaky breath, unable to meet Flitter’s gaze. “Good. Thank you, Knight Captain.”

With Flitter’s forces committed, all eyes save Celestia’s fell upon Jack, who stood back and glared at them all through his faceplate. He slowly licked his teeth as he considered his words, allowing those present to stew in anticipation. “The First Expeditionary isn’t your personal attack dog.” The moment the words left his armour’s external speakers, a chill fell down across the room. “They are not your army. Every last person within it is a volunteer, who agreed to break the siege. Any further operations will need to be agreed upon by their leadership, and appropriately compensated.”

“Mercenaries…” Stormfront muttered, his thankful appearance shifting to one of distaste. “With that weapon of yours, you could lay waste to anything you met on the field! All we ask is that you use it on the targets we specify!”

“No.”

“NO!?” General Stormfront nearly jumped the table in anger. “And why not!? The Empire has earned our wrath a thousand times over!”

“No, they haven’t.” Jack slowly leaned his weight onto the heavy oak table, his grip causing it to splinter and fracture like ice. The whole table groaned in earnest under the weight of the Thanatos Operator. “The Empire has been forced to fight, just like your civilians. Every time that weapon is used, it’ll slaughter thousands of innocents. It will not be used against the Empire again, only targets that I deem worth the cost. Not you, not JSOG, Not the Princesses, Not God. Me.”

“You hypocrite.” Wave growled out, while Celestia looked aside, lowering her gaze. “You fired it on the Empire before our gates, when they were packed shoulder to shoulder with our own civilians, and now it’s too much to use of solely military targets? You’re trying to stronghoof us in our time of need, and it is disgusting. Your sudden moral shift is just going to cost us more innocents.”

“Generals.” Celestia spoke once; a low, soft tone that still managed to utterly silence the room and quell the trio. “Jack is right… I understand what he is really saying. We cannot be trusted to not abuse the power of that weapon, not in his eyes. The power to shatter the sky. I remember…” She slowly turned her soft eyes toward Jack, causing him to stiffen inside his armour. “I remember when we spoke of humanity’s weapons of mass destruction. When you told me we weren’t ready. I asked you if you thought humanity was.”

“And I told you the truth. Nothing’s changed in eighty years. I won’t trust anyone with it, only myself.” He straightened slightly, releasing the table from his death grip.

“Can you be trusted with it?” Celestia asked, her soft eyes suddenly gaining a diamond hard edge.

He stared at her for a long moment, letting the question hang in the air. “No. And I’ll have to live with my choices for the rest of my life. It’ll all be on me, not anyone else. I’ll be the one accountable. Somebody has to be accountable for it.”

Celestia’s eyes softened again as she slumped back into her chair, allowing her attendants to see to her again. She nodded once, before closing her eyes. Luna looked from her sister to those present at the table as she let out a gentle breath. “Thank you for coming on such short notice. We will speak to the human leaders when they are available, and formulate our next move. I would offer you both a place to stay, here in the palace, but…” The lunar diarch paused momentarily, before tilting her head ever so slightly. “I do have a room available, if you would take it. I’ll have food brought up to you, and ensure nobody bothers your. Consider it the barest beginnings of a thanks, for both your efforts today.”

“It’s a start.” Jack rumbled, turning from the table. Flitter began to turn with him as well, just as Celestia spoke again.

“Jack… May I have a moment of time with you? Alone?”

Squaring his shoulders, Jack continued for the door. “No you may not.”

“Jack-” Celestia began again as Jack pushed the door open.

“I’m not going to forgive you. I’m not gonna give you a chance to try and justify what you did in private. Just like how I gotta live with what I’ve done, with the blood on my hands, you gotta live with the blood on yours. You gotta live with Ada’s blood. Petyr’s. Mine. If you’d let us go home, they’d both still be alive.” Jack walked through the doors, into the hallway beyond. “Maybe I would still be too.”

As it turned out, the room that Luna had offered to Jack and Flitter was her own; the second tallest tower of the castle. It was an opulent room, dark and rich in colours with silks draping down from the roof across the large bed. There was a private bath off to the side, with a balcony overlooking the city below on the other. It was where Luna would raise the moon every night, but seeing as how she already had, the room was left to the pair without any interruption.

Flitter had slipped off to the bath, leaving her armour to stand as a terracotta guard by the door, with her rifle leaning against it. Gauging from the extremely pleased noises coming from beyond the bathroom door, Jack could only assume she was getting the most out of the hot bath. Slowly taking in the room, he disengaged his armour, slipping free from it’s confines. His bodysuit flexed around his huge body as it too disconnected from the life support systems. He felt lighter on his feet, but fatigue was beginning to drag at his limbs like lead weights. Looking over the paltry food cart that had been rolled in a few minutes prior, Jack sighed softly as he gently took a crystal glass and a bottle of Appleoosan whiskey off the cart. Pouring the whiskey over ice cubes, he wandered out onto the balcony and let his weight rest on it for a moment, drink in hand.

The lights in the valley were dim now, the fires having died down to embers throughout the day. He could still make out the shape of the ship in the woods through the night, thanks to his augmentations. He could see shapes moving around it, shadowed by high powered lanterns marking the perimeter. Jack’s eyes slowly drifted toward Ponyville, and the border mountains beyond. Letting out a sigh, Jack closed his eyes.

The door to the bath creaked open quietly, though not quietly enough to avoid alerting him. Flitter’s bare feet tread across the floor, the wetness of her skin causing them to slap faintly with every step. “Jack?” She called out, seeing his empty armour.

“On the balcony.” He called back, swirling his drink slowly, watching the dark liquid slosh around the cold rocks.

Her feet grew closer, and he closed his eyes in anticipation. He could hear her passing through the threshold of the door, and stop in her tracks. He could hear the near silent inhalation of breath through her open mouth, a quiet little gasp at the sight of him.

“Jack…” She murmured softly, approaching him slowly. She placed her hand over his forearm, barely able to even cover it’s width. “What… what did they do to you?”

Opening his eyes again, he turned his head to her and smiled gently. Her eyes were tired and full of worry for him, but the worry softened as he placed one of his huge hands over her smaller metal and flesh ones. “We both made sacrifices to pull this off, Sparky.” She was wrapped only in a towel, though it was one meant for an Alicorn. Her hair was wet and brought back in a loose ponytail, serving to highlight the scars marring her face and shoulders. “Anyone tell you that you’re beautiful, lately?” Lifting his hand, Jack ran his forefinger across her jaw, while tilting her head with his thumb.

His compliment earned a faint flush of colour in her cheeks, and a playful cuff across his chest that earned a surprised noise from Flitter. “Fuck me, it’s like steel… Did Blackburn do this to you?”

“Yep… Me and two other guys. Thanatos Operators. I’m so fucked with cybernetics and genetic augmentations, I’m… not really human anymore, which is ironic given Blackburn’s stance on that.”

Investigating his body, Flitter soon took him by the hand before pausing. She hung her head, a deep flush of colour tinting the tips of her ears. “Why…”

“Why?” He grinned gently. “I’m looking at my why.”

“You did this to yourself for me?” Flitter asked with a bit more edge in her voice. An angry little edge that bit in like no other.

Sighing, Jack downed the glass of whiskey in one gulp, pausing to feel the liquor run down his throat. The feeling was one he’d been so used to that it’s absence for the past year only hit him now. He wanted more, but would stop there. “Yeah.” He finally said, looking down at Flitter. “I did. Blackburn knew about JSOG, and if I didn’t play his game he would have come after all of you, like… Minty.”

“So he was the one behind her going missing… bastard…” Flitter’s lips curled in pure hate, her eyes narrowing out at nothing. “I watched you space him… he deserved worse for what he did to you.”

“Flitter, he… never did anything to me I didn’t agree to.” Jack placed a hand on his own chest. “I became this so I could keep… the people I care about safe. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.” His gentle tone killed the hate in her eyes all but instantly as they lifted up to meet his. “I know I’m not the man you fell in-...” He trailed off for a moment. “I’m still Jack, Flitter. And I know you’re still you.” He placed his big hand over her own chest now, between the swell of her breasts. Flitter settled both of her hands over his, closing her eyes.

“I know… I love you, Jack.” She squeezed his hand as she squeezed her eyes. “I missed you… so much.”

“I missed you too, Sparky…”

Pulling away, Flitter continued to grip his hand, leading him back inside. “Come on.”

“You seem to have a plan-” Jack’s words failed him as she let the towel fall off her body as they entered Luna’s room, revealing the magically intricate wings detailed across her muscular back.

“Mhm.” She stated simply as she climbed up onto a nearby bit of furniture, dragging him in as she did. Now at equal heights, Flitter leaned in, and kissed him for all she was worth. Jack was quick to embrace her back, wrapping his inhumanly large limbs around her powerful athletic body, tracing the lines of her nudity idly as he closed his eyes and revelled in the moment. Flitter soon broke off the kiss to sink into the embrace. “The plan is: you’re going to take off your bodysuit, we’re gonna lay down in the princesses bed, and I’m gonna snuggle the everloving fluff out of you.”

Unable to control himself, Jack let out a laugh. “And here I thought you were going to say Fuck.”

“Did I say we weren’t going to?” Flitter flicked the tip of his nose. “No, I didn’t. We’re going to take advantage of this moment, and we’re going to have a good time.”

“Yes ma’am.”

A soft purr exited Flitter’s lips. “Oh I liked that… Come on Pathfinder, The Captain needs her backrub.”

Author's Notes:

Well, better late than never I guess. This chapter hasn't exactly been easy for me to do, being part diplomacy and part whatever. I know there's likely a lot of things you guys want touched on, but they'll be taken care of in the next chapter.

The reason why this chapter took so long is a combination of me having way too much shit to do, and life throwing curveballs at me. I was laid off my job back in March, and I was on my way home when I learned that I was going to be losing my home too. One of my roommates essentially hadn't paid rent, and we were too short to make our bills so instead of suffering through it for another month, my other roommate decided he wanted to leave, which meant I had roughly under a month to find myself a new home, sign for it, and move before the landlord came and kicked us out.

On top of that I've had a number of side projects, which have resulted in about 100k words in collab docs with friends of mine for our Pen and Paper game, and completely rebuilding the rules for said game. I hope I can get the next chapter out faster than I did this one, but at this point I need to avoid rushing as well. This chapter feels rushed as hell to me, but there's not much else I can do at this point.