As the Stalwart Liberty pulled into dock, it drew in a great deal more attention than usual. Thanks to the crumpled dragon corpse splayed across the deck and the battle tank stuck to the side of the hull. The moment the gangplanks hit the docks, Flitter was up them and moving inside, weaving between aeronaughts as she searched.

The first to notice her was a skittering mechanical spiderform; Roxy quickly stuck to her side, following Flitter in. "Hey Cap, what's the good word?"

"Bugs are dug in and the Imperials are grinding themselves to dust. Princess Celestia wants everybody in the meeting room."

Roxy's spider form clattered through a bulkhead alongside her, mounting the obstacle with ease. "Right, of course. Final push. You looking for the big guy? He's down in the aft hangar with Maggie."

"Thanks." Flitter murmured in return, changing her direction slightly. It didn't take long to find the aforementioned hangar and spy Jack among the chaos. He was sitting on his ass near the open elevator, getting sprayed down with a firehose and a team of earth ponies. Maggie sat nearby, bundled in a thermal blanket and holding a cup of something steaming while a medic stitched her forehead up. She had bloody welts running down her cheeks, evidence of her frantic escape from the tank. "Hey Maggie." Flitter greeted lightly as she strode up, still fully clad in her armour.

The woman glanced upwards, careful to not move her head as she was tended to, instead opting for a little two fingered wave. "Hey Captain, Hey Rox. How'd your rescue mission go?"

"About as well as it could have." Flitter said idly, her eyes on Jack as more filth was blasted off his armour. His shoulders were sagged downwards, and she didn't like that at all. "How bad was it?"

"Well…" Maggie winced lightly. "We completed our objectives without any casualties, but…"

Jack's voice rumbled over the hiss of water, amplified by his armour speakers. "Forge escaped." A great hunk of offal was blasted free, sent sliding out the open bay. "He's at Hunter's Perch. I know it, in my gut."

"Well then chin up, Jack." Flitter said, setting a hand on her hip. "Because that's the final target in our next attack. Once you get cleaned off, we need to get going."

"It never fucking ends…" Jack muttered as he waved a hand, signalling the firehose team to stop. With water running off his plates like miniature waterfalls, he broke the seal on his armour and stepped out. As he stepped away it resealed, and mag-clamped itself to the floor. "Sammy keep the lights on while I'm out."

"Affirmative." The electronic voice of his armour sounded, just as the water resumed blasting filth from it.

Rising to her feet, Maggie began to follow the pair. They'd nearly left the hangar before Flitter glanced over her shoulder at the two operators. "We'll meet you guys there, go on ahead."

The pair glanced between each other, before Maggie shrugged. "Alright. Come on Rox."

As they walked off, Roxy tilted her cameras upwards to peer at Maggie. "So how're you gonna get the tank down?"

"I don't fucking know, do I look like an engineer to you?" The woman shot back with arms crossed over her chest

"Well you kinda look like a stripper, always running around in that skimpy tank top-"

Closing a hatch door, Flitter turned toward Jack as he found a spot to sit. She stared for a long moment as he sat, running his hands over his head while pulling his knees in closer. "Jack." She spoke softly, though it didn't garner a response. "Jack." Her voice rose slightly as she walked over, setting her armoured gauntlet over his shoulder. "Something's wrong, I can tell. Talk to me." She squared her feet before squatting down next to him, letting the weight of her armour rest on her haunches.

Lifting his head, Jack exhaled through his nose. He slowly turned his head toward her, a gentle frown on his features while concern etched its way into hers. Despite the youth that the Nemesis project had imbued him with, the repairs it had wrought on his features. It could do nothing to hide the deep worn lines that etched into his flesh, and the weight of the gaze that he laid upon her. It wasn’t the sort of tired sleep could fix. Wasn’t the sort anything could fix. Slowly his gaze left her again to trail downwards to the floor, half lidded as the creases in his rugged features grew miles deep and agonizingly wide.

"I'm tired, Flitter."

Flitter squatted next to him, utterly silent for an uncomfortably long moment. She wanted to speak, but found the words just stuck. Eventually, she found the means to break the uncomfortable silence. "So… what will you do, then? Are you leaving?" She felt fear creeping into her voice. "If you leave now…"

"I'm not going anywhere." He answered after a moment with a sort of exasperated tone that felt wholly aimed inward. "Not until I finish what's on my plate. After that?" He opened his eyes again and looked toward her. For a moment, he smiled faintly and squeezed her hand, the creases seeming to fade almost imperceptibly. "I wanna start a farm."

"I…" Flitter sat down fully, placing her helmet down on the deck. "Farming? Really? Man of your talents?"

"I should have never let you fucking watch those movies." Jack shot back bitterly as Flitter giggled; the sound of which earned a grumbling grin from him.

"Sorry, sorry…" Flitter scooted over against his side, resting against him. "What kind of farm?"

"A wheat farm, like the one I grew up on."

Flitter looked down to the deck, smiling a bit more. "I remember. I liked the smell, and it was kind of pretty. What else is gonna be on this farm of yours?" Her smile seemed to tease one out of him, though it was faint as a whisper and just as weak.

He shrugged lightly, as if unsure of his own desires. "A nice little house. White picket fence. Backyard. Motorcycle. Dog. Maybe... a wife, and some kids."

Straightening up fully, Flitter stared at him with wide eyes and burning ears. "Uh, say again your last?"

He slowly rolled his gaze to the other side, looking away from her as the burn of embarrassment took in his own chest like some sort of contagious thing. "Well, when I got eaten by that dragon, I kind of took a moment to reflect on my life and everything moving forward, you know? I mean, what better time than when you're living one of your deepest darkest fears?" His voice had humor in it though, as propped up and stilted as it was.

Flitter turned, grabbing his shoulder. "A-are you really doing this right now? Like right now!? I'm still in power armour and you smell like dragon guts!" Her voice took on a frantic edge as she shook him.

"Well I wasn't gonna until I grabbed the ring, but now that you've called me out I feel like I gotta!"

"DON'T YOU DARE!"

Jack could feel his smile growing in lock step with his excitement. "It'd be pretty easy, just four little words-"

Grabbing him by both shoulders, Flitter mounted his lap and set her forehead against his. "If you say that, you owe me a four letter word." Her eyes were wide and boring right into his. Suddenly silent, Jack maintained the staring match for only a moment, before he looked down in shame.

"...Fuck…"

"Not that one." Flitter shot back quietly as she relaxed her grip and sat down in his lap. "Just one time… please, Jack? I've been through this much with you, your curse ain't gonna take me down." She slowly ran the backs of her fingers over his cheek. "I promise."

He opened his mouth as if to speak, only to shut it again. His downcast eyes shut as he set his hands over her shoulders, holding her close for just the moment. "I'll… I'll say it. I promise."

Pressing in, Flitter locked lips with the large man, kissing him passionately as they sat on the cold deck. They remained that way for a long moment, before breaking apart slowly. Cracking a smile, Flitter began to rise. "Come on, Jack. Let's get going before somebody busts us for P D A."

Pushing himself up, Jack stretched and popped his neck as he joined her side. "Yeah yeah, got a war on and all that. There's always a war somewhere- ach, hey!"

Having cuffed her armoured hand across his ass, Flitter skipped ahead, spun on her toes, and stuck her tongue out at him. "Wax off already, Philosopher boy!"

Finding a grin returning to his features, Jack picked up the pace a little. "I'm gonna get you back for that, through the armour." He raised his hand, earning a cackle from Flitter as she took off ahead of him. "You can't run from me!"

The war room was packed to the gills this time around; with ponies, griffons, minotaurs, and humans standing shoulder to shoulder as they looked down upon the laid out map. Celestia stood at the head of the table once again, looking healthier than before but still only a shadow of her former self. Her hair had been combed and styled, but still hung limp without an ounce of magic within it. Her eyes were bagged so deeply that not even the finest makeup available could hide the darkness and the pain, but try she did, to spare the others. With her coat brushed and bathed, despite the deep weariness evident on her every fiber, Celestia still managed to exude a sensation of shining golden goddess. She cast her gaze over the collected people, a faint smile twisting her muzzle. As the door opened and both Jack and Flitter entered, she cleared her throat to speak. "Glad you could join us. I believe this is everybody, so let us begin."

Gesturing to the human tech working the holographic map, Celestia waited for the map to zoom out and give a full view of the target area. "This is Fort Blackclaw, a major industrial city within the Griffon Empire's heartland. Contained within is the Kriegsmarine naval refit yard, one of the largest in the empire. Gilda?" Celestia waved a hoof to the Princess as she stood, brushing her crest.

"Right…" Gilda began as she had the map shifted to show the general area. "Blackclaw is what's standing between us and Hunter's Perch, it, and it's standard garrison of ten thousand, untold irregulars, dozens of ships, and the world's most sophisticated anti-air system." Cones of red filled the valley and approach to the hidden castle in the mountains. "Anybody who approaches Hunter's Perch has to go through Blackclaw. You can't fly over the mountains, they're some of the tallest in the world and they're loaded with scouts and spy stations. Even if you managed to fly over, you'd be swarmed by troops pretty much immediately, without any way to retreat or get reinforcements." Gilda paused for a moment as everyone looked over the approach, the zigzag through overlapping fields of fire, ambush points and naturally hostile terrain.

"What about orbital drop? Or a Halo jump?" Jack questioned, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Like the one I did to get the Mountain Rangers back." Flitter clarified for those unfamiliar.

Gilda seemed to consider it for a moment. "Still won't work… as bad as Blackclaw is, Hunter's Perch is worse. It was built to be unassailable, and has been constantly upgraded over the past four hundred years, including the modern package. Anyone who jumps in there quietly will probably be spotted, and either shot out of the air or land and be outnumbered a thousand to one."

Leaning back and crossing his arms, Kord frowned deeply. "So what I am hearing, is that we go straight through them, or not at all. Merde."

Running a hoof through his recently buzzed mane, Colonel Glow looked toward Flitter. "I seem to remember a certain tactical genius, I wonder what she makes of all this."

"Thanks Colonel…" Flitter muttered as she walked to the edge of the table and began intensely gazing down at the map. Slowly one of her brows began to climb upwards. "Princess Gilda, what's this?"

Leaning over, Gilda and several others looked to where she was pointing. "That's Du Hoc River. It's where the factories and foundries send their coolant runoff. It's fast and deep, but too narrow for a ship."

"And this structure upstream?"

"The hydroelectric dam that powers the city, why?" Gilda furrowed her brow as she looked over toward Flitter.

Beginning to work, Flitter blocked out the murmuring of others as she manipulated the map. It only took a few minutes before she'd hashed a plan. "Okay everyone, take a load of this." She stepped back and began narrating the active plan before the gathered soldiers and generals.

"Step one! Buzzsaw follows the nap of the earth upstream carrying a compliment of bunker-busters. She hits the dam, bursting it. Two fold point, it kills the power to Blackclaw, and it floods the river." Flitter brought her pointer over, following an arrow as it moved up through the valley.

"Step two. Our remaining forces hit Blackclaw in the face. They do as much damage as possible and stir up as much attention as they can, and distract the enemy from step three."

She took a brief breath as the others followed along. "Step three. Righteous Justice takes the engorged river right under their AA grid with JSOG onboard. We hit Hunter's Perch with everything we got. Free the elements, Kill the Emperor, and end the war." Flitter jabbed at the marker for the castle with a faint grin on her face. "If things shake out our way, we're looking at minimal casualties on both sides."

Luna waited a beat before speaking up. "Does anyone have any better ideas? No? Then I say we give this a shot. Ultimately, this is not about revenge, it is about ending this war as swiftly as possible. Once the Imperials are freed of Order's control, they will stop fighting."

General Wave leaned forward slightly, brows furrowing as he looked over the plan. "It's Cowboy as all Tartarus. If this goes sideways we're looking at losing a lot of lives and equipment. Even if the raiders pull everything off, if the main force is wiped, we'll be suffering the consequences for years. Decades even. That said, I can't think of any other way to pull this off. This whole valley is a death trap, and was purposely designed that way. If we can come out of this with even a portion of our collective flanks not shot to shreds, then we'll have done better than we had any right to."

A murmur of agreement went up as Flitter stepped back, looking to her team. "It's the best shot we have. This war has to end. No matter the cost..."

Sharing a glance, Baron and Mythic could only nod, while Taven sighed in resignation. "Suicide missions are our speciality after all…"

The man jumped slightly as Jack set his hand on his shoulder. "All you have to do is secure a beachhead. I'll do the heavy lifting-"

"Jack-" Celestia spoke up, causing his smile to vanish. "We will need your assistance with the opening blows. We have no doubt that a number of progeny remain at Blackclaw, and if we want to avoid unneeded casualties, we'll need your help to clear them out."

His immediate knee-jerk reaction was a scathing one with a few choice expletives, but it was something he bit back with acid. Slowly, Jack looked back to the map and the distance between city and castle. His eyes flicked to those around him, each one present a life he was connected to in some way. There were dozens of them now, over the single one he'd had when he had first arrived in Equestria. They were good soldiers, all of them. More than that they were good people. He trusted all of them to do what had to be done should it come down to it. Those very people met his gaze as it slowly swept the room, waiting to hear if he was ready to trust them, and to make the same sacrifice.

Could he give them all up?

Mustering up the breath in his chest, Jack hardened his heart and his mind. "Alright. To Hell and Back again, just like old times."

Oh it could give me chills~ You know, if I still had a body.

Jack sank slightly into his chair, scratching at his ear in irritation. As the others began to hammer in the details, he whispered to himself. "What do you want?"

Straight to the point, I always liked that about you, Jack. This little plan won't work, not until we kill Jalgromak. The stage is set for his return, and we have an incredibly limited window in which he'll be vulnerable.

Rubbing his head and looking to the floor, Jack closed his eyes as he thought. "What do we need?"

We need my Essence, the Chaos Core. Remember that? Little power source that sent you back to Earth? Mm?

"That means the others won't be able to return…" He rolled his jaw, opening his eyes slightly as he glanced around. "Walter." He kept his voice firm and level, immediately drawing the big man's attention.

"Yeah?" Walter straightened up as eyes flicked from him to Jack. "What's up?"

"Did you and the others talk over things with the Princesses? Reward and going home and all that?" He slowly drummed his fingers along his legs, forcing his gaze to remain on Walter.

Walter hesitated for a moment, his own gaze breaking off to look at Luna and Celestia. "Yeah… We did."

His sister Jessica spoke up over him. "We've decided to stay. Permanently. I mean, it's a pretty sweet deal."

Irving Kleese nodded in agreement. "Homes, citizenship, status and money." The others were beginning to give more attention to the conversation, and Jack.

"Most of us didn't exactly have much back on Earth anyways." Kord said idly as he gestured formlessly with an unlit cigarette. "So this works out nicely.”

"If we don't all die." Roxy added at the end, causing the faint upbeat tone to fall flat again.

Jack stayed silent for a long moment, before turning fully toward the Equine side of the table. "Celestia." The Solar Diarchs attention snapped up, her eyes widening almost imperceptibly. "Luna. I need to talk to you both. In private." Without another word, he pushed off the table and trod out of the room, letting the big doors close quietly behind him.

It was only a minute before Luna trotted out, quirking a brow at him. "What is this about?"

"Where's Celestia?" He tried his best to keep the edge out of his voice as his eyes flicked to the door. Sure enough it opened again, and the tired princess trotted out.

"I'm right here, Jack. What did you want to talk about?" Curiosity tinged her exhausted voice as she met his gaze.

He simply gestured with a hand, heading away from the doors. "Not here. Need privacy." He paused for a moment, looking over his shoulder. "It's important. The… others can't know."

"I see…" Luna murmured in response as she began to follow him a way down the grand halls, with Celestia taking up her side. The pair remained silent as they followed along, though their apprehension was palpable.

Ducking into an empty room, Jack took a few steps in before he turned on his heels and faced the pair. Once the door clicked shut and Luna erected a privacy bubble, he took a long breath. "Thank you for offering a fair deal to my people."

Celestia's ears flicked faintly as she narrowed her eyes slightly. "Of course… I am not the monster you think I am, Jack." Her gaze went down slightly, as if in thought.

Luna however, was still focused on him. "You did not bring us out here to thank us for quaint gifts and the like. What do you truly wish to speak about?"

A slight smirk played across his lips as he set his hands on his hips and straightened out. "You're right. I need the Chaos Core."

Both stiffened in response, and spoke their minds immediately. "Whatever for?" Luna broached with an edge in her voice.

"Absolutely not." Celestia added, her eyes fully focused and narrowed on him now.

He rolled his shoulders slightly, keeping his back ramrod straight and his eyes laser locked onto the pair. "Jalgromak is going to be born likely before the operation even ends. We have an extremely limited window of operation in which we can kill him, before he becomes an immortal god critter and promptly wipes Equis free of all life. To do that, we need the Chaos Core. I, need the Chaos Core."

While Celestia's eyes fell, Luna continued to drill him with her stare. "You intend to fight the creature on your own? That's foolhardy, even for you. If you truly mean what you say, then you will need help."

"Celestia's in no shape to fight, and either way, you're both Equestrians."

"What is /that/ supposed to mean? Do not tell me that even now you look down on-" Luna started, before getting cut off as Jack held a hand up.

"Last I checked you don't have a titanium plate bolted to your skull. Order and Discord built this world, I can only assume they have utter control of it and everyone in it. Once he's out of his cage, all bets are off." Jack blew air through his nose as he looked to his feet. "Believe me, I do not like the idea of squaring off against him alone, not one bit. Honestly, the idea of it scares the crap out of me. But, with the Core, I may just stand the ghost of a chance of pulling this shit off and getting out with my life." He sucked in a breath and took a mental leap forward. "I'm not asking. This whole conversation is a courtesy out of respect."

Bristling, Luna began to respond with venom, before Celestia cast a gaze that silenced her sister. "Fine. If you truly believe that it can bring us victory, then I will not stop you. I've learned to trust your instincts." There was a brief pause, before Celestia sprung her next question like a steel trap. "How do you know he's going to be born soon?"

Jack paused for a second, meeting the gazes of the pair. "The Siege was a gamble to provide an appropriately sized blood sacrifice capable of breaking the seal on a god's prison. One million souls, didn't matter who or how. We likely would have hit it by the end anyways, but when I dropped that rod, I shattered the seal." He could see the why's forming on their features, why would he do such a thing. "If Jalgromak doesn't die, then he's going to haunt this world, just like Discord. You won't ever get rid of him, no matter what you do, and he won't play games like Discord. The only way to kill him, is to summon him onto the material plane and smoke-check his raggedy ass while he's temporarily mortal."

"This gambit…" Luna started, gritting her teeth. "Is the most insane thing I have ever heard. What happens if you fail, Jack?"

"End of the world for everyone else." He replied with a flat edge. "The whole thing stripped bare and restarted from scratch." Lacing his fingers behind his back, Jack tried to keep his voice level. "This was going to happen one way or another-"

"Jack." Celestia spoke softly, cutting off his sentence and killing Luna's before it had a chance to start. "How do you know?"

He stood silent, meeting both their gazes before he sighed softly. "Discord told me. What's left of his psyche anyways. Why do you think he pulled all those humans over here in the first place? It was to make a force capable of fighting his pissed off brother. When they failed to depose you two, he lost them, and only had one card left. Me. Honestly… he's done a pretty piss poor job of preparing me for this in the slightest, but I think preparation of any kind is antithetical to his being."

Silence reigned over the trio as they stood in the empty room, the tense sensation of a standoff beginning to percolate. Luna kept her mouth clamped shut as a venom filled scowl twisted her features, while Celestia sagged her shoulders and closed her eyes. "Fine." Celestia finally said after what felt like hours. "We have no choice but to trust you, and pray that you succeed. What else do you need?"

"Thirteen teleportation beacons, six for JSOG, six for the Elements, one for me." He chewed on his thoughts, imagining the operation in his mind's eye. "I need full control of the raid on Hunter's perch once the elements are secured. We kick off the op like planned, and once the dam is blown, my unit heads straight for Hunter's Perch while the army trades blows. Everything is the same as we planned in there, just with a little twist at the end to keep ours from dying without reason."

"Without you to blunt the Progeny through the operation..." Luna started with grit teeth. "We will suffer grievous casualties." There was a brief pause in which Celestia began to speak, to assuage her sister. Luna cut her off as she glared at Jack, meeting his gaze with her own. "I know what must be done. This is a callous and dangerous game you are forcing us to play, and you are an utter bastard for it."

Tilting his chin upwards ever so slightly, Jack broke his gaze away from Lunas. "I've always been a bastard, seems people like to forget that." He began to turn back, before pausing on an afterthought. "Using what little goodwill we have left, I'd appreciate if you didn't tell them about what I've got planned." His features soured visibly as he started walking again. "I've always been awful with goodbyes."

Du Hoc River, 5:12am

Water sprayed up around Roxy's craft as it cut through the air like a knife, trailing a rooster tail a dozen meters long as she ripped through the nape of the earth. Barely a handful of meters to spare between her and becoming a supersonic smear across the landscape. So close to the river, she could see the white caps forming along jagged stones and whipping pine trees that blitzed by like a solid wall of browns and greens. "This is Buzzsaw, three minutes to target." She spoke easily, but inside she was riding on a high of adrenaline and anxiety. This was not her kingdom, her domain of deep deep blue seemed impossibly far away, forcing her to contend with black, brown, white and green. It was times like these she wished most to have her body back. With a body, she had a great many ways to bleed away the anxiety; without it, all she had was her focus and willpower.

The hydroelectric dam appeared before her as her craft swept around a meandering river bend like a shark sniffing out blood. It was a massive construct of steel, concrete and stone towering over the river valley like a golem set to rest and watch. Trickles of water poured from the outflow pipes telling of the lake held at bay behind it. Without a word, the pilot activated her weapons. The belly of the craft swung open mere meters from the water's edge, exposing the high powered bunker busting missiles within.

They hadn't been clear on how many she would need to blow the dam, but anything less than the bare minimum would kill the whole operation in its cradle. However, using too many would leave her woefully under armed in case she ran into trouble.

A dozen missiles sat in the belly of the hypersonic fighter, and at a thought, a dozen leapt forward like claws aiming to rip out the throat of a hated enemy. They shrieked through the air, spitting watery rooster tails up as oversized repulsor scramjets sped them away from Roxy while she jinked upward. The Bunker busters sliced into the thick concrete like a hot knife through belly fat, only to detonate deep within the collosal dam. Mere moments as Roxy passed over the top of the dam, the micro-neutronium warheads detonated with enough force to rip away the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of steel, stone and concrete, hurling massive chunks into the air. The concussive blow forced the lake back as the dam shattered, though for all the power of the weapons, they failed to hold back the hundreds of millions of liters of water that came rushing forward a second later.

Like a tidal wave, the griffonmade lake came crashing down, sweeping through the river valley in a great torrent, annihilating all in it's way. The cacophonous explosion served as an immediate signal to every last soul within a hundred kilometers of Fort Blackclaw.

The final battle was to be met there and then.

Blackclaw Approach, 5:16am

The raucous whip crack of explosives split the air, signalling a great big green light in Jack's mind, as he launched forward toward the massive fortress foundry that sprawled across the valley like an industrial spider, spewing fumes into the air and poison into the dirt and water. It was dark that morning, a cold pitch black that seemed to bathe everything in a soft ice blue. His NVG’s flared for only a moment as the distant explosion coloured the clouds above and the fortress forge city went dark. It was as good a signal as any, but the moment he left cover and started across the open ground tracers glinted across his visor, and pounding artillery began firing on presighted zones, filling the dark of morning with splashes of hateful colour where gentle yellow lights had once stood. With Jalgromak in control, there was no moment of hesitation, no confusion among the enemy as the lights went out across the whole city. Just sureness of action, and total, complete order.

He would have to deal with the front most defenses first, before moving into the city to handle the artillery. If the Allies of Equis had any hope of surviving the encounter, the big guns had to be silenced, permanently.

The front line walls of the fort came up fast and hard, gunports flashing as they spat bullets and shells at Jack as he churned up frozen soil with each foot fall. Conscious of his ammunition, a single rocket ripped from Jack's shoulder, blasting a small hole in the thick stonework that had stood for hundreds of years against every weapon conceived upon Equis. His bulk did the rest, seeing him smash through the wall and enter the first defensive ring of Fort Blackclaw.

As explosions ripped through the wall and guns fell silent, the fastest of the allies launched forward. Humans and their screaming wheeled machines spat up frozen tundra as pegasi and griffons winged by overhead, vectoring in on the weak point breached in the defenses. Heavy artillery screamed down upon them as tracers ripped back and forth, seeking out soft flesh. They had only the dark of night and raw speed to protect them, but those two together would prove to be a deadly mix for both sides.

A heavy truck was sent hurtling through the air as heavy artillery proved to be a match for its speed, turning the steel frame and ceramic armour into a fireball that careened end over end. Griffons and pegasi fell in bloody clumps of feather and broken bone as unpowered AA guns were handcranked into position, killing those unfortunate enough to cross their sights. Those unfortunate ran afoul tricks and traps laid by crafty defenders, like half buried steel hedgehogs that were naught but dark blotches in night vision that ripped off axles and ditched people into the unforgiving dirt, or razor wire strung up so anyone landing on the walls would be tangled up, ripped open and left as easy prey for guards.

The first wave struck hard despite the grievous casualties, the unbridled desperation bleeding into ferocity as allied troops collided head to head with entrenched warriors of Order. They had to fight hard, to leave the dead, dying and wounded where they fell. It was all or nothing, and they all knew the risks.

At the mouth of the river, the grey and blue hull of Righteous Justice sat belly down in the water, archanotech engines spooling behind it as the river engorged itself and flooded deep. It had taken time to make the vessel water ready, but it had been required for the plan to work. Unlike the agile fighter that had kicked off the battle, the ship could not stick to the nap of the earth so easily, not without some notable issues such as sucking trees and debris into the powerful engines or grinding against stone. So, the great vessel bellied down, and began pushing upstream with engines at half power and with heavy grates strapped over the intakes.

Aboard the Righteous stood JSOG, kitted in black power armour, guns ready and seen to thrice over. The popping of distant guns and the rumbling thunder of artillery floated over the dark valley like a wraith, telling of a battle they couldn't afford to join. The crew of the destroyer were out in force, manning heavy guns, AA emplacements, and securing the camo netting that would serve to hide the ship from prying eyes in the sky before it was too late.

Flitter stared off at the horizon, her fingers twitching at each pop and boom that echoed over them. She grit her teeth as she turned away from it, and looked to the river. The broken dam lay ahead, and beyond it, Hunter's Perch.

Hunter’s Perch, 5:20am

Deep inside the mountains, watching the distant explosions and plumes of flame from his balcony backdropped against the dark, chilly morning, Carolus exhaled through his nose. His victory was assured, but anxiety still ate at his mind, under the power of his god, his lord. Despite all the power that had been afforded to him, he had still been forced to fall so far. He no longer felt pleasure from the simple joys he had enjoyed even days ago, he no longer felt pride for his myriad accomplishments.

The end was approaching swiftly, he could feel it. His lord's birth was at hand, but the enemy was at the gates. Squeezing his eyes shut, he shivered and thought of his father. The old griffon always seemed to know the best way forward, even if it meant bending the knee. A part of him wished that it had been his father in charge of the revolution, that he himself would not have had to suffer such hardships.

Turning away from the balcony, Carolus tread back inside, intent on donning his armour and preparing for the battle he knew would come.

Fort Blackclaw, 5:21am

Progeny howled furiously as they assailed Jack, smashing against his armour as he powered through them, firing on the artillery where it sat in neat rows. His rounds sought purchase in the stacks of shells that sat waiting to be loaded and fired by the enslaved crew, who continued to load and fire as if he were not mere meters from their positions. Every round was a potential death, so he ensured the artillery crews met theirs first. Lifting his weapon, Jack fired on the stacks, setting the shells off prematurely in their racks. The explosive rounds detonated quickly, their warheads and propellant proving to be notably volatile as they set each other off in rapid succession. As the rippling wave of explosives neared him, Jack dug his fingers deep into the muscles of the Progeny who wrestled him, and turned on his heel to use the great thrashing beast as a shield against the concussive wave that smashed into his organs like a dozen sledgehammers.

Emitting barely a grunt, he shoved off the monster and put two in it’s skull, before turning to slaughter the following he’d acquired in heading for the artillery pieces. It was gruesome, bloody work, but he couldn’t waste time. He had to move.

With the big guns silenced, the rest of the Allied forces came crashing down, joining the faltering fast attack units that were now well and truly stuck in with the Imperial forces. Heavily armoured Earth ponies stood shoulder to shoulder with minotaurs and exo-suit wearing humans, weathering the storm of death that rained down upon them, all while giving back as good as they got.

Guns traced back and forth as the fighting left the wide open fields before the fort and entered the cramped streets and alleys of the great industrial fort. With no power, the fort was dark as night before the dawn, as thick clouds gathered overhead and began to pour down rain.

The streets would be flooded with blood by the time that JSOG reached the dam, and Righteous Justice would dump her engine covers into the river. Tossing aside the camo netting, the crew prepared for their air assault as the ship’s engines growled and whined, gaining power as the weightless drives within allowed the ship to gain altitude. Flitter grimaced as she kneeled down on the deck, and lined up her sights on Imperial soldiers who swarmed over the ruins of the dam, taking off to try and impede them. They were running out of time, and couldn’t afford to be hung up by those on the ground.

She hardly felt the kick of the rifle in her arms as it sent bolts forward that slew and slaughtered what they hit with grim efficiency. She couldn’t possibly keep track of how many she had killed over the past few days, but with each pull of the trigger she felt her shoulders getting heavier. Still, she didn’t stop. She couldn’t, not with so much on the line.

Fort Blackclaw, 5:25am

Jack’s boots shattered cobblestone as he pounded through the streets, picking his targets carefully as he ran through at full speed, jumpjets keening as they assisted him in taking corners hard and fast, picking up the worst of his weight to keep from slowing him down. His radio chattered incessantly as flight after flight of chariots launched from the Stalwart Liberty, reinforcing each line the Allies secured in their pounding grind through the city. Supplies were flown in, and casualties were flown out, but he needed something other than supplies.

He’d stuck around too long, his own timetable thrown off balance by a particularly large pack of Progeny he’d been forced to engage to save the forward elements of the Allied attack, and now there was no way he could make a rendezvous with the Righteous on foot.

Eyes flicking up, he saw exactly what he needed. With a word of warning to the crew over the radio, he jetted upwards, landing deftly in the back of a heavy cargo chariot, redirecting them from the Stalwart to the Righteous.

As the chariot bucked and sped off at it’s best speed, the defenders of the fort saw fit to sling flak up at it, attempting to ground it permanently and dash the crew against the cobblestones below. Jack’s limited ammunition swiftly became used to strike back at the probing flak guns, annihilating crew and equipment as quickly as they appeared in his scope.

With the rain pouring down, he almost missed a new threat as it winged in, guns blazing. A flight of griffon elite troops, swinging down hard with their target in sight. Uttering an oath within his helmet as rounds spalled and sparked off his armour amid the onslaught of rain, he turned his weapons on the flight, firing cautiously to avoid wasting precious ammunition. One of the crew cried out and fell free from their harness, tumbling to earth as a balled up clump of shattered armour, spattered blood, and colourful feathers. Jack was fast, but he wasn’t faster than Imperial lead.

With the sound of tearing fabric that ousted the rumbling thunder in the sky, Roxy swept past the flight of griffons, her nose cannon churning up elite soldiers and turning them to fine mist and ejected offal. Behind her were the silver bolts of Stalliongradish fighters, eager to dig their teeth into the battle and bloody the nose of those who would strike at them.

Jack let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, and turned his eyes toward the ship that they were angling hard for now. He was close.

He was close, and so was the end of all this fighting. The end of the journey, clawing its way to the forefront.

The core Celestia had given him thrummed with anticipation as it sat nestled against another item of terrible power.

The King of Kings, Delta King, was about to fulfill his purpose, just as Jack was.

Author's Notes:

Apologies for how long this took to get out, I've had a lot of things on the go, and the global pandemic kind of threw things off.