In a dimly lit room, a man sat alone behind a wooden table.

His hands were linked together with handcuffs, the same applied to his feet. He faced up when the door in front of him opened. He grew anxious as the two men in suits approached him with their soulless faces. He witnessed them raise their pistols in the air with their hand. He was as still as a terrified sheep. “What the-”

Then he’d see one of them raise a flat circular device with their other hand. He dropped all tension when he saw this. “Phew....”

The other agent reached to that device and twisted the little knob. From the device, the massive screen popped up.

“Major General Crowe, nice to meet you.”

He immediately shot up in surprise. “Uh…, Madame President, I… I-”

“There’s no need to dick around, Crowe.” she’d say straightforwardly. “Your Mayoral duties are finished, so don’t try to sugarcoat me.”

Crowe was already grimacing in his defeat.

“So tell me, how the hell did you get into office?”

He turned away after the question was asked.

In response, Ada tried a different approach. “Mister Crowe, did you really want to be mayor?”

He sighed. “Yes, Madame President.”

“So you accepted the offer then?”

“What offer?”

“Become Mayor, and let them in?”

Although he was a bit diffident, he nodded anyway.

Ada drank a bit of her coffee. “Of course, now how did he manage to get you that job?”

“I… I don’t know.” Crowe put one hand over the other. “Election Day came and that’s when everyone in the council voted for me.”

Ada put her hand underneath her chin. “So that’s how it is then?”

Crowe then asked, “Why are you asking me this?”

“Hmm?”

Crowe explained coldly. “You already know how I was appointed into office, and who appointed me into office. So what’s the point?”

Ada leaned back against her chair. “I can tell by your demeanor that you didn’t want it to be this way.”

Crowe tapped his feet against the floor incessantly.

“In order to truly capture our target, we need the most willing of suspects to comply.” Ada smiled. “And it’s apparent that I found that one.”

He bit his lip as he curled his hands into fists. “So you’re on our side then?”

She closed her eyes for a moment. “Technically.”

“And why say that?”

“Come on, Crowe, I’m obviously talking to an official with ‘ties’ to terrorists.”

Crowe pulled his hands away from the table. Aware of the agents gripping tightly onto their pistols, he told her, “Fine then, let’s just say that the ‘terrorists’ also have some secret gems of their own.”

Marianne leaned her back against the railing of the elevator. She turned to see what Big Mac was doing, but found him with a hoof gently rubbing Maribelle’s head. Both of them bared glum faces as they faced the wooden floor.

“Cheer up, you two.”

They put their attention on Marianne. She, in return, was smiling when she said that.

“Yesterday was yesterday, so don’t stress out.”

The two sighed as they turned away from her. Marianne only nodded her head and pouted. She muttered to herself, “The nerves of these two.”

The door opened to the hallway, and they were quick to head into it. As they walked down, Marianne had more to say. “If we’re going to get this over with, then we have to get better.”

Despite her gloom, Maribelle chuckled at the remark. “That’s probably the blandest thing you’ve ever said.”

Marianne laughed too. “Hey, I’m at least trying.”

Maribelle’s laughter was swift to cool off though. “Yeah, I’ll give you credit on that.”

“Alrighty then.”

Throughout that short conversation, Big Mac kept his gloom a hold as he trotted along. That’s when he noted that Maribelle had stopped walking.

“She didn’t mean it, Big Mac.” she reminded him as he trotted beside her. “Remember that.”

He grit his teeth for a moment. “Eeyup.”

Marianne heard the hostility in that response, it only made her tense as they approached the double doors. After the security process, they entered casually into the room.

“Good Morning, you guys.” Trevor greeted with a smile.

They waved back as the door closed behind them.

“This is your last chance, Marianne.” Blutarch said coldly.

She lost her composure immediately. “What?”

Esther took the laptop from his hands. “Jeez, Blutarch! Don’t scare her!”

She slid a laptop down the table, and Marianne caught it before it hit the floor.

“What he meant to say is that our satellite found Ivan and the others carjack an enemy AFV.” she exposited. “They’re currently driving down Route Forty as we speak.”

Marianne opened the laptop, and after gaining access to it, it led her to a window that acted as a camera. Big Mac and Maribelle walked to her side and gazed with eager intent.

“Marianne, we’re planning to airstrike the trio, and then move in to mop them up.” Trevor mentioned. By then, he had approached her and handed her a headset. “It’s your last chance at taking them out, understand?”

Marianne kept staring at the screen, gripping tightly onto the edges of the table. Her eyes were trembling as he pondered at the decision.

Big Mac was saddened at this, with his body growing tenser with every second gone by. Maribelle, in no doubt, felt the same way.

Slowly, she put a hand on her arm. “Marianne, you don’t have to-”

Marianne took the headset away with aggression. After putting them over her ears, Trevor told her, “Your codename is mother bird, by the way.”

She nodded halfheartedly. “This is mother bird; do you copy?”

Trevor walked back to the end of them room. On the way, he faced Esther with a glare, and briefly nodded at her. To which Esther turned away with defeat, she witnessed the other two spiral into mixed feelings as they stared at the computer screen. She put her hands together as she nodded back, whispering, “I guess that’s how.”

An AFV was heading down an empty road that was surrounded by the mixture of green and gold on both sides. Inside, Ivan and the others were listening to the vehicle’s radio.

Jacklyn calmly looked out onto the road, admiring clear blue skies in front of her. That’s when she was starting to remember something, so she turned her body to look at the back. “Ivan, you okay back there?”

Ivan was still fast asleep as he lied over the long seat. Fondly, a smile formed on her face and turned to face the road.

“So how’s he doing?” asked Lance, but there was no response. “Jackie?”

Her eyes were constantly threatening to close as her head was slowly heading down.

“Jackie?”

She lifted her head and murmured, “Ueugh?”

Lance groaned. “You’ve been like this for the past hour, I suggest that you take a nap or something.”

Jacklyn waved her hand in reply. “No, no. Let Ivan rest, Lance. He’s gotta get some rest, before we reach Denver.”

“You know we might not make it there for another hour right?”

“No, don’t worry.” Jacklyn guaranteed. “I can handle it.”

“Lance’s right, you know.”

She shot her gaze to the back, where Ivan stood with pokerfaced eyes. “Uh?”

“You’re our… you’re our… shoot.” Ivan then rectified his claim. “We just need you out there, so I suggest that you go get some rest.”

“No Ivan.” she complied through her now sluggish voice. “You need all the rest you can get.”

“Whoa.”

Out the window and out in the distance, they could a wrecked plane rot in the middle of the plains. The fuselage and its tail was all it had left, and even then, it was near unrecognizable. The massive burn marks that covered it was still was what proved that.

Despite that however, the small windows that lined over the fuselage, was already painting a picture in Ivan’s mind. “Isn’t that one of those planes that…”

During his hesitance, Lance told him. “The planes that don’t know where to fly through.”

“Well, I was going to say those passenger planes I heard about, but that works too.”

This surprised him. “But… but doesn’t Chicago have an airport?”

The question was a baffling one to Ivan. “Uh, no. We have an airbase over there, right Jacklyn?”

She didn’t say a word.

“Jacklyn?” He turned around to see that she had her eyes closed, and was snoring softly. To this, he smiled. “God damn it.”

After carrying her to the chairs in the back, he took her former seat away.

“You know she’s been like this since you started sleeping.” Lance told him as he sat down.

“And when was that?”

“Two hours ago.”

Ivan crossed his arms. “Gee, did you try to tell her to go to sleep?”

“Multiple times.” Lance coughed a bit. “She probably didn’t get much sleep last night.”

Ivan leaned his head back. “Obviously those kids were on her mind or something.”

“Well, of course.”

“And I told her that it’s part of the job.”

Lance sighed. “And you told her that after we left the house.”

“Well.” Ivan pouted. “She should’ve known since she left Chicago.”

The two listened intently to the radio music, after that moment of silence. Lance said something on his mind. “But, judging by the fact you needed some extra sleep. It’s certain that you didn’t get that much sleep either.”

Ivan tapped his fingers against his lap. “Well…”

“But I’m not gonna argue with you.” Lance admitted. “You wanna forget, after all.”

Ivan’s pout remained. “Hmph.”

“Your past woes truly can keep you from relaxing.”

Ivan already spotted the ruse behind that comment. “Hey, don’t play any mind tricks on me, got it?”

Lance sighed once again. “Alright~.”

By then the music had ended. The DJ’s would come on after a slightly long pause. The first DJ, in a male tone, said with a relaxing tone, “Thank you for listening to Fifty-Seven point two: Sakura Notes, the official radio station for content that brings out the Otaku in you...”

Lance laughed a little.

Ivan laughed too. “Yeah, I know, such a dumb-ass line.”

Amidst his laughter, Lance said, “No, I’m not laughing at that.”

This brought Ivan’s attention. “Oh, and what were you laughing at then?”

“Heh, the fact that Jackie will go Tsundere on you if you didn’t apologize to those poor children.” He put a hand over his mouth. “Seriously, those people have the most vibrant of vocabulary, huh?”

“Well, she’s spent a lot of time on that stuff.” Ivan laughed too. “Her saying that to me was both cringy and funny.”

“Hmm, at least she appreciates that she gets to watch stuff like that.”

Then Ivan’s laughter diminished. “What do you mean?”

“Well, you’re both from Chicago aren’t ya?”

“Yeah, but-”

“Back in Sydney, my eldest daughter just loves Japanimation. I bet that if Jacklyn ever met her, they’d be talking up a storm about that stuff.”

Ivan shrugged. “Well, that’s interesting.”

“Both cities are no different from one another.” Lance stated calmly. “Everything is pure chaos, but hey, they got something to pass the time.”

Ivan chuckled. “Even if it’s as weird as Japanimation?”

“Yep.” Lance then stated after a short pause, “What did you do to pass the time?”

Ivan tilted his head back. “I lived in the even poorer parts of the city-”

“Seriously?”

“Huh?”

“I thought Chicago was all the same.” Lance explained.

Ivan sighed. “That’s what Jackie thinks, Lance. In reality, the place was like parts of Southeast Asia. Before the Soviets steamrolled through it, mind you.”

“Oh, that bad?”

“You were either a poor kid, a working class kid, a middle-class kid, or some official.” Ivan sighed. “You weren’t allowed to move up, because it was impossible to do so.”

“And let me guess, you were in the poor side?”

Ivan snapped his fingers. “Bingo.”

“And Jacklyn was in…?”

This left for Ivan to fill in the blank. “Uh… I don’t know to be honest.”

Lance was clearly dissatisfied with this answer. “Really?”

“Well, from what I saw, the community she lived in looked nice.” Ivan said while softly holding his chin. “So I’ll say… uh…”

Lance rubbed his head a bit. “Ugh, who should I believe then?”

Ivan crossed his arms. “Ugh, same goes to you.”

“Eh?”

“In a city where people die and starve, your daughter can still watch shows with weird boob physics and men going at it with one another.”

Lance smirked. “I guess that says how poor you are.”

Ivan snapped. “Hey!”

Lance lifted a finger up in the air. Putting it over the nearest air vent, he made a hissing sound too. Ivan would pout at this and turn away.

“Hmph.” he muttered. “Good Move.”

“Just thought we’d be even, that’s all.”

Ivan leered. “Makes sense.”

With that, Lance simmered down. “Back in Sydney, my family and I managed well. But, we were in massive debt though… but, we did our best.”

“Heh, my mom and I never had a chance. She told me once that she’s a newcomer to Chicago. So obviously she’s gonna start at the bottom.” Ivan faced out at the vast plains. “So your family’s lucky, you hear?”

Lance frowned. “So that’s how it is then?”

Ivan smiled cordially. “Yep, you people have more opportunities than I do, so be proud of that.”

Lance kept his frown. Despite that though, he went to him and said. “Hey, the bright side is you got to tell me all this.”

Ivan held back a shocked expression. “Grrr, well played, you douche.”

Lance laughed, but although he was hesitant to talk further, Lance would ask, “So, about Jacklyn giving the syringe to…”

“Don’t worry about it, Lance.” Ivan sighed. “Jacklyn messed up there, and that’s that.”

“But, you aren’t at all-”

“Of course I am, Lance.” Ivan stated to Lance’s surprise. Then he’d hear Ivan’s tone soften when he’d say, “But, what can we do now?”

“I see.” Lance said.

Ivan turned back to the window, then advised him with, “Oh, and by the way, don’t try anything fishy on me again. Got it?”

Lance sighed. “I make no promises.”

“Grr.” Ivan growled. “Of course you wouldn’t.”

The two were silent as the DJ kept relaying the last of the news. “And finally, Anime East will be held three days from now in Washington DC, tickets are now on sale wherever tickets are sold. Our lovely assistant Reina will be explaining further details later today. And now, back to the music.”

As the music began to play…

“Hmm?” Lance looked out the window, where a blue colored fighter jet was flying at low altitude. “Ivan?”

“Yeah?”

“Is there a flare gun in the glove compartment?”

Ivan opened it and searched for one. “Uh, yeah?”

“Good.” he said casually. “Now head to the gunner and watch my six.”

Ivan was confused. “Why say that?”

A loud beep had overrun the whole interior.  It was loud enough for Jacklyn to shriek as she jumped up from the seat. In the meantime, Ivan was already climbing up the ladder that lead to the HMG above. Once he was outside, he found the fighter jet flying closely behind the vehicle.

“Shoot.” Ivan mouthed.

The fighter jet launched a missile from its one of its wings.

“Damn it.” Ivan muttered while pulling the triggers of the HMG.

Rat-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at…!

Ivan lifted the flare gun into the air. Then the vehicle swerved violently to the left. “Whoa!”

They were now driving through the plains as the missile followed. After his hand unwillingly slammed against the roof, Ivan pulled the trigger of the flare gun.

Chyoo~!

For Jacklyn, she had already been thrown to the other side, and now has to try to stand up.

Also struggling to regain his balance, Ivan shouted, “Damn it, Lance! You don’t-”

BOOM!

Ivan found that the explosion was igniting over the shrubs. “Huh, seems to work.”

  Back inside, Jacklyn was cowering body curled up into a ball. She was praying softly under her breath. “Celestia… Luna… h-help us!”

“Hatchling one to Mother bird, turns out that they’re armed with flares.” the pilot advised. “What now?”

“Grrr, try to barrage them with bullets! If that doesn’t work, then let two and three handle this.”

The pilot sighed. “Roger.

Then the vehicle violently served to the right. Panicking, she grabbed on to the ladder until the serving stopped. Having had her eyes shut, she opened them slowly.

“Jackie!”

She looked at Ivan.

“Find me some Anti-Aircraft rounds!” he shouted.

She stood up on her two feet and jogged to the ammunition compartment in the back of the vehicle. Opening it, she was rummaging through the ammo boxes. “Uh… where is it…? Where, where, where?”

“Jackie!” Ivan called. “That fighter jet’s not gonna wait around!”

“I know, I know!” she said. “I can’t find any!”

“Then bring me armor piercing rounds!”

“Roger!” she grabbed said rounds and jogged back to Ivan’s position. All the while, Ivan had retracted the HMG from the ring mount as he went inside. “Here you go Ivan!”

Placing the HMG against the railing that retracted it, he took the ammo from her hands. “Thanks.”

Jacklyn blushed, turning away as she played with her hair. “No prob.”

Ivan reached her hand up to the access hatch to close it.

Thwap!

“Wha-Ow!” Ivan’s hand slammed against the ring mount as he fell over to the floor.

“Ivan!” Jacklyn screamed.

“Grrr, Jesus!” He felt Jacklyn desperately grab onto him.

“Dear Celestia, Ivan are you-” Then they were moving around sporadically, causing her to go into panic.

“Whoa Lance, what the hell are-!” As he felt Jacklyn cling onto him like a child, he noticed the constant explosions coming from outside. “Oh th-that explains it!”

“Yeah, looks like BLU isn’t the only one here!” Lance advised them. “So hold on!”

Jacklyn buried her face against Ivan’s chest as he was trying his best to stand up. He held onto the ladder when he got some semblance of balance.

“Jackie, can you hand me the ammo please?”

She nodded before pulling away. At that time, Lance had already steered the vehicle back onto the road. However, one of the blasts was able to strike one of the tires, sending it to jump like a scared bull.

Jacklyn reneged on her move to cling onto Ivan once more. This caused her enter into that state of euphoria once again. Ivan though, was doing his best to pull away with a flustered annoyance. Despite that, however, he could feel a sense of calm with this. Even when their feet lifted into the air.

In the midst of distress, he remembered the two of them looking out into the moonlight. However, he remembered tears flowing out from his eyes. He also remembered Jacklyn with tears also.

Then their feet hit against it hard, with Jacklyn nearly slipping away from Ivan thanks to the Impact. She panicked during the fall, but that’s when Ivan held onto her hand. A smile of relief was creasing on her face, as her stomach filled with butterflies. As she stood up, her euphoria was waning.

“Go! Go! Go!” Lance screamed.

“Uh…” In embarrassment, she darted to the AP rounds that slid to the back of the vehicle.

When he received them, Ivan looked away with the same feeling. “Uh, thanks.”

Through his daze, he began to replace the ammunition. During which, he’d sometimes catch a glimpse at her holding her hands together and looking down with those reddened cheeks. It all amalgamated to him sighing once he finished his task.

“This is Hatchling two, I’ve managed to damage one of the tires. But God damn the driver’s doing a good job!”

Marianne slapped her hands against her scalp. “Fine then, fly off and keep the barrage going. It’s Hatchling Three’s turn this time.”

“Roger that.”

Esther’s observances proved to be right.

Ivan slid the HMG back to the top, and went on to search in every direction for the fighter jet.

Ivan entered back inside. “Lance, anything up?”

“They managed to get the left tire!” Lance screamed back. “I don’t know how long it’ll hold!”

Jacklyn, who was standing beside Lance, was witnessing the black smoke with a deep concern.

Ivan could confirm this by heading back outside and seeing the smoke expand. He looked at his hand before curling it into a fist. “Guess that’s what it’s come to.”

To try to alleviate herself, Jacklyn asked Ivan, “Is it gone?”

“I don’t think it matters!” he said. “It’s gonna come b-”

More explosions were raddling all around them for a moment, accompanied by bullets.

“Shoot!” Ivan lifted the HMG up and fired as many rounds as he could. The fighter jet whisked past him regardless, unscathed as well. While reloading his flare gun, he muttered to himself, “Damn American ingenuity!”

He leaned his hand out to the distant wind like a sniper with his rifle. In anticipation, his eyes narrowed as he stared out into the road behind him. Jacklyn was now back to Ivan’s position; her shoulders were tensing as she waited for the next move. Ivan ignored that, and instead focused on the fighter jet that was already appearing in front of him. Then the alarm was sounding off.

“We’re being locked on!” Lance shouted.

With the other hand, he lifted the flare gun once again.

”Frigidus! Ivan thrust his hand forward, and a blast of ice soared onto the jet’s wing.

Ivan smirked. “Bullseye.”

Then a missile fired from its other wing.

“Shoot!” He aimed it at the fighter.

Chyoo~!

The missile flew wildly into the air as it ascended upwards into the sky.

”Frigidus!” Then the fighters main turret was frozen.

The pilot was low locking onto the vehicle. “This is Hatchling two to Mother bird, about to finish off the-”

She glanced to her right and found a still brightening flare sitting on the wing. The sound of the missile’s wishing noise was enough to make her go, “Aw, Sh-”

BOOM!

Burning debris was flying everywhere, during and once the jet violently crashed into flames.

After watching that unfold, Ivan swiped the sweat off his forehead. “God damn that thing.”

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! …

  In front of him, those explosions were already appearing down the road. Ivan held on as the vehicle came to a grinding halt. Questioning this, Ivan went back down. “Hey Lance, what the hell are y-”

Then the vehicle suddenly boosted forward, nearly sending Ivan flying to the floor if he hadn’t held on.

“Ivan, when it flies past, take it out!”

Ivan nodded as he went back up. He could see the bullets coming from the second fighter jet hit the street as it had already flown past, giving him the opportunity he needed.

”Frigidus!”

The blast of ice struck at the engines, leaving the jet to propel forward for a little while more before making its decent. From where he stood, Ivan witnessed the pilot eject before seeing the explosion a handful of seconds later.

“Is it over?” Jacklyn asked with such panic remaining.

Ivan turned to look at her. He could see it in her eyes that she was still distressed. “Probably, it doesn’t seem that-”

The buzzing sound could be heard once again.

“That’s what I thought.” He focused his attention on the street, where bullets were already heading towards them. “God damn it!”

Pop!

Ivan lost his balance as the vehicle made a beeline to the right. Regaining it would be hopeless when the vehicle began to roll over relentlessly over the plains.

CRASH!

He slammed his face against the ground. “Ow!”

He rubbed his nose as he looked as he searched for the vehicle. He then found out lying on its side with smoke coming from the tires.

Bam!

He found that the door was had opened quickly, but he could hear the jet’s screech get louder and louder. Softly, he turned to the sky to witness it approach them. A smile formed on his face as he placed his hand over the armor.

Marianne stood up from her seat, then she slammed her hands against the table. “Open fire on them! Any way you can!”

“Hatchling one to mother bird, commencing attack in three, two, o-”

The screen immediately flashed distortion lines and lagged around before shutting into complete static.

BOOM!

What came, was a burning jet flying right past them as it exploded repeatedly. His smile turned to a frown as it did, even when he witnessed a plane flying over them. “What the…?”

“That would be us, sir.”

He turned to his left, to find countless soldiers in green uniforms and blue berets. At that moment, his shock turned to anger, and was on the verge of taking out another flare.

“Don’t shoot Ivan!”

He looked up to find Jacklyn staring down upon him from the edge of the vehicle. She was carrying Lance in a side hug, and faced him with a determined glare.

Then, with that determination, she told him, “They’re here to help.”

Marianne’s eye twitched as she fought to maintain that smile. “D-did we get ‘em?”

Maribelle put her elbow over her hand. Her other hand rested on her cheek as she closed her eyes. “We have to get ready, Marianne.”

Marianne’s hands were trembling, then they turned into fists.

Big Mac pleaded softly. “Marianne, please stop.”

For a little while more, she held those fists firms as she saw tears splatter onto them. When they loosened, she briefly wiped her eyes with her sleeves. Then it came to standing face to face with her superiors. Calmly, and with a weakened smile, she told them, “What will we call this operation then?”

Blutarch stood up from his seat as well. “We are titling it, Operation Extinguisher. The mission to wipe out any imposing threat and/or impediment to Builder’s League United. With your failure to capture Ivan, this operation will be set in motion.”

Marianne nodded weakly, something that everyone could see. “I-I see.”

In an instant, Blutarch’s pride was reduced to sympathy. “To truly capture Ivan, our focus should be on what is getting in our way.”

The three waited patiently as the vehicle they were now in drove down the road.

The soldier from earlier felt awkward at their silence, and decided to speak up. “Are you guys truly okay?”

Coldly, Ivan bit the bullet. “We’re fine, la-”

“We’re doing okay,” Jacklyn interrupted. “Miss…,”

“You won’t be seeing me for long, ma’am.” Ignoring their concern, she went straight to saying, “In fact, we’ve been tasked with finding and bringing you three back.”

“Who?” Ivan asked curiously.

“Miss Anya Forester.”

Ivan furrowed his brow. “Who?”

“She’s the current head of the HUE.” Jacklyn explained, but she had to turn back to the soldier to ask her, “She’s been elected nearly a decade ago, right?”

“Yep.” she answered. “Not to mention she’s also the head of the EPGMA.”

“I’m sorry?” asked Ivan.

“The Equestrian Provisional Government of Midwestern America.”

His eye was twitching. “What?”

“The current government keeping the HUE afloat, Ivan.” Jacklyn also explained.

The soldier smiled. “Correct, if Celestia never helped us out, we would’ve been screwed over in no time.”

Ivan leaned forward to rest his cheek over his hand. “Oh, so that’s how it is then?”

“Word about this hasn’t reached her majesty yet, so we still have time to negotiate with you before she begins to make her own decision.”

“Negotiate?” the three questioned.

The soldier nodded. She lifted a finger to speak, but-

“Captain!” one of her subordinates called.

“What is it?”

With a tablet in hand, the subordinate told her, “It’s a message from Miss Anya.”

Ivan, Lance, and Jacklyn were already catching glimpses of each other in their worried states.

The soldier flipped the tablet over so that it can face them. That’s when the woman in question appeared on the screen when the soldier pressed the reply button.

“Captain, ha-” Anya stopped once he saw their faces. “Oh…, you did… Wait, Roxanne never mentioned a third runaway.”

“Well, you got one.” Ivan remarked bitterly. “Now get go-”

“Shh!” Jacklyn hushed.

Although a bit surprised at his outburst, she shrugged her shoulders and took a deep breath. “Anyway, hello, my name’s Anya Forester.”

“Hello.” Jacklyn and Lance said.

Ivan kept his cold stare. This made Anya a bit uneasy. “Anyway, I’m glad that the three of you are in one piece.”

“And why say that?”

“Ivan.” Jacklyn called through gritted teeth.

Anya, without any hesitance, told them. “Because unlike the others, we actually have another idea in mind for you.”

This was enough to put Ivan in an uneasy position of his own. He hid it through his revulsion, though. “What do you want to negotiate?”

“I’m guessing that the lovely captain already told you, right?”

They nodded.

She took swiped a bit of her curly hair. “Well then, I know you’re not gonna like it at first, but bear with me.”

They didn’t say a word and payed close attention.

“We want you three to fight for us.”

Jacklyn nearly beamed with joy, but she held it in place. She caught a glimpse of Ivan with a hand over his face. Lance was in a no different circumstance either.

Anya turned away from them and expressed her similar feelings.

Lance, in a harsh tone, told her, “I have a family in Australia, Madame, and I’ve already deserted my post. I don’t think I should be waiting around.”

“Touché.”

The roaring of the vehicle was all that could be heard as each and every one tried in their own way to kill the silence. Aside from the occasional coughs, Ivan scratched the back of his head, while Jacklyn kicked her feet like the waving hand of a metronome.

Anya tapped her fingers against her desk. After a moment of pondering, she stood up straight and faced the three. “Well then…, do you think you can stop by Denver?”

“N-”

“Actually, we were planning on heading there, ma’am!” Jacklyn said without a shred of delay.

Anya was a bit enthralled by this. “Oh really? What for?”

“Uh…” she faced Ivan, who in turn gave her that hostile shake of the head. “We can’t say, ma’am.”

Anya closed her eyes to rub them with her hands. “Aw geez, anyway, you three will be taken to the EPKO in the town center.”

Lance questioned the acronym. “EPKO?”

“The Equestrian Peacekeeper’s Office.” Anya explained. “Miss Cherry Sea and her crew will help keep you three company while I head your way.”

“What?” Ivan asked in shock.

“Yes, we’ll be meeting to discuss the negotiations, and we’re not going to take no for an answer.”

Ivan’s rage was heating up. “Why you-”

It slowly cooled off when he felt Jacklyn’s arm on his shoulder. “Please don’t, Ivan.”

Ivan crossed his arms in defeat.

“After all, this was your-”

“I know, I know!”

Jacklyn and the others were in no doubt worried. Specifically, Jacklyn would keep that hand on her shoulder as she clutched her hand.

Anya then bid her farewell with that same sentiment, but not without getting out her phone to take a photo of them. “Alright then, I’ll see you three there.”

Without checking for a good bye, she shut off the communications.

Leaning back, Anya leaned back to put one arm over her forehead. After letting out a soft groan, she told herself. “Well played Roxanne…, I guess I owe you some coffee or something.”

She laughed awkwardly as she let her arms dangle at her sides. “Celestia damn this war.”

Roxanne heard someone knock on the door. “Come in!”

Will and Leila were the ones to open the door.

“Roxanne, Major York reported that they took Fort Benton.” Will announced modestly. “Better yet, we secured their airport.”

Roxanne gave them a wink and a thumbs up. “Perfect.”

Leila then gave her announcement. “We’re approaching the Lewis and Clark National Forest, what do you want us to do?”

“Surround it, and keep moving.” she ordered, much to their surprise. “We’ll send in two platoons to go in and smite them through attrition. After all, we don’t want to damage that precious park, don’t we?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Speaking of Lewis and Clark,” Roxanne resumed to typing on her tablet. “I’m worried about those two.”

“Mm?”

“They may not be at odds with one another, but they sure are in another aspect.”

Will and Leila expressed that same worry.

“Anya’s gonna have to find out the hard way.”

“On what?” Will asked.

“Learning how Ivan thinks.” Roxanne answered. “’cause she just captured them just an hour ago.”

They gasped.

“Roxanne, you can’t be serious!” Leila said in denial.

“Yep.” she showed them the text on her smartphone. “Just got the message half an hour ago.”

They were worried immediately.

“So…,” Will asked. “Did he reject her proposal.”

“Of course.” Roxanne answered. “You already saw Ivan’s attitude, didn’t you?”

“Oh, right.” He put his hand against his mouth to cough. “Well, that Ivan guy surely is a piece of work, isn’t he?”

“Agreed.” Roxanne and Leila would say in close unison.

Leila then commented on, “I wonder why he’d ask you such a thing?”

“Whaddaya mean?”

Leila’s body hung limp for a second as she rolled her eyes. “Remember, you coming to America?”

“Oh.” He scratched the back of his head. “That.”

He dropped his hand to the ground when the thought hit him too. “I keep wondering that…. You don’t think-?”

“If it has to do with Marianne, then it does seem likely.” Roxanne mentioned. “After all, we learned a while back that she’s Canadian.”

They nodded.

Roxanne put her arms behind her neck. “However, Ivan and Marianne having some sort of connection is only speculation at this point. But if that were the case, then we just got ourselves a Psychological strategy.”

Both were in complete gratitude and surprise. “Seriously?”

“But the problem is,” Roxanne had her hand out like a stop sign, ignoring the two’s dismay. “When and how will we attain it?”

Marianne, Big Mac, and Maribelle exited out the room.

“So, operations begin tomorrow, right?” asked Maribelle.

“Eeyup.” said Big Mac.

“If we can rat out the HUE and ALM in two blows, then we can rest assure that we’re well on our way to wipe out Ivan.” exclaimed Marianne.

“I’m sure…” Big Mac swallowed down some saliva. “I’m sure we will.”

“After all, Ivan will have nowhere to run, right?”

“MmHm.” they responded.

“Hm.” She stopped her walk.

With suspicion, they did the same. When they turned to her, they found her with a quivering smile. Her eyes glossed over as she kept them as wide as she could.

She then said with that same feeling. “So, you all have a good day, okay?”

“Marianne.” Big Mac said. “It’s okay, you d-”

“Cheer up, okay?” Her tone of voice was as gentle as a kitten’s meow. “I’m doing fine, seriously, I’m over it!”

“Marianne, please!” he begged. “You’re letting-”

He felt Maribelle’s hand on his hoof. Facing her would be met with her shaking her head.

“Don’t bring her to her boiling point.” she told him.

“But-”

“Alright you two, I’m heading back to my hotel.” Marianne told them, making the two completely aware of her walking. “See ya.”

“Marianne, w-!”

“Haystack, just let her be.”

His worried eyes stared at her, as she walked further and further down the hall.

“Does this place look familiar?” Maribelle asked.

“Huh?”

“Does this place look familiar?

“Oh.” He faced every side of the hallway. With every glance, he took in the windows to their left, the blue walls, and the marble floor. “Uh, sure. We’ve been here since… oh, that.”

She nodded. “You really triggered her, so don’t do it again.”

He faced down with his hoof swiping over the floor. “Eeyup.”

“That girl hasn’t been herself since he asked him about Canada.”

He nodded.

“Speaking of which, she hardly ever tells us about it.”

His eyes widened. “Come to think of it, you’re right.”

“And it’s scary too.”

Big Mac noticed that she had her hands held together, her face showing off that fear. “Maribelle…”

“Everything about her now’s starting to scare me.” she admitted. “What about you?”

He sighed. “It’s… It’s getting’ to me, too. I mean… I’ve always wondered how she got here.”

“And I seriously don’t know about that, Esther.” said Trevor. Then he took a sip from his coffee mug.

“Oh, I see.” Esther said worryingly. “But do you at least remember where you found her.”

“Sure.” Trevor answered. “We were fighting Police forces north of Chicago when I found her.”

“Oh, really?”

“She was bone thin, struggling to walk. So we had no choice but to take her under our wing.” Trevor laughed a bit. “The look on her face when we started feeding her the rations.”

Esther, through her fear, managed to let a little chuckle out. “Hm, I’m more worried about the fact that she decided to latch onto you people like that.”

Trevor sighed. “That’s just human nature, Esther.”

Esther was already regretting saying that. “Scratch that, I’m more worried about how none of you know how she got here.”

Trevor closed his eyes to cover up his frustration. “To be honest, I don’t think it matters.”

“What do you mean?”

Trevor kept his arms folded for a moment.

“Trevor?”

Then they were spread-out again.

“What matters is how the hell will this affect us from now on.” Blutarch interrupted with annoyance.

Trevor grit his teeth. “Yeah, that.”

After a sigh of his own, Blutarch put his own two cents. “At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter where she’s from, or how Mister Bentley got the information. What matters is whether or not this will work in our favor… or not.”

The room was quiet for an awkward amount of seconds.

“Well, those are my thoughts.” Blutarch declared. “Take it or leave it.”

Frowning, Trevor nodded with his face towards the coffee mug. Esther saw clearly how he felt, and she couldn’t help but feel a sense of empathy for him. She took out her smartphone, and started texting.

Trevor felt his phone vibrate under his pocket. Taking it out and waking it, the message read: Wanna talk in Private?

He looked up, and he found Esther looking back at him with an encouraging nod to the door. To which, he nodded back in agreement.

Esther smiled. “When we’re done here, we’ll go.”

The decrepit highway they traversed over was nearly empty. Only their limousine and a couple of motorbikes that guarded them was all that was visible.

“You seem to be very out of it, Mister Trevor.” a laid back Esther told her, her head leaning back to look at the roof. “I think it’s for the best that you speak up.”

Looking out into the dimly lit sky, Trevor maintained his composure as he did. “Well, I’m worried about Marianne.”

She was back to sitting up straight. “Worried?”

“Well…”

Esther deadpanned. “Are you worried about how she’s been acting lately?”

He nodded.

She shook her head and rubbed her eyes. “There was no need to cover it up then, Trevor! If you truly weren’t in this situation, then you wouldn’t be in this lim-”

“I was well aware of this, Esther!” Trevor exclaimed with his eyes glaring directly at hers.

Her annoyance washed away. “Huh?”

“I was well aware that she’d act this way after the whole, ‘Ivan telling her about Canada’ spiel.” he sighed. “It’s just that… for a girl like her to get so bitter… I don’t know.”

Esther waited for him to continue, so he did.

“If… If this is all a part of capturing Ivan and winning the war, then I have no choice but to accept it.” he assured. “I just… I just wish there was another way.”

“Well, there is, isn’t there?”

He was silent.

Esther playfully rolled her eyes. “Well, let me put it this way: Selene told me that the one thing you don’t sacrifice when accomplishing your goals, is your sanity. It’s something that I hold-”

“Well what about Princess Luna, didn’t she lose her sanity to obtain the followers-” He stopped once he saw Esther’s hand in midair.

“Princess Luna lost everything when she was banished to the moon.” she addressed. “If she didn’t assume that everyone didn’t know the pain she felt from the neglect of her night, then maybe we wouldn’t’ve been in the shadows for nearly a millennium.”

He moved his hands for a little bit more, but after some thought, he dropped them slowly.

“The reason Lunarism was able to popularize was because Selene didn’t lose it like Luna did.” Esther added. “She reached out to those who stood loyal to Luna after all these years. When the Soviets were rolling into the west coast, it was our time to shine.”

Trevor put his hands together.

Esther smiled. “Selene told me that because she knew that the monster Luna became wasn’t her, but as you said, it’s just nature.”

Trevor pointed it out. “Uh, I didn’t-”

She winked.

Trevor sighed again.

With that, she continued. “Anyway, Selene learned from that, and now we got an army big enough to hold on.”

Trevor nodded, but he could see that her smile was going upside down.

“I’m just glad she passed that knowledge onto me though.”

Trevor’s mood dropped to her level as well. “Let me guess…,’

She nodded. “When I succeeded her, I ended up in that situation too. Not knowing what to do… especially when Operation Blazing Drought came rolling in. I mean, if I hadn’t pulled myself together, then who in the hell knows what would’ve happened.”

Trevor was now the one smiling. “Well, just be glad that you did.”

Esther in turn smiled back. “Yep, no turning back now.”

Then she crossed her arms. “Now then, are you willing to get Marianne out of this?”

He was dumbfounded. “Huh?”

“If Marianne’s not going to pull it together, then she’s not going to be accomplishing that goal that easily.”

He grunted in defeat. “What do you want me to do then?”

She giggled, holding back further with a brief hand press on her lip. “The obvious, silly! If you were able to convince her to join you guys, then you might be able get her out of this mess.”

He was silent, to which Esther just closed her eyes in annoyance. “Or you can just wait it out. After all, choosing is what humans do best, I think”

He looked down for a bit. “Yeah… you could be right.”

Esther opened her eyes to see him in that state, to which she rested her hand on her forehead for another smile. “Well, the sun’s gone.”

He looked up to face out the window. “Yeah, you’re right.”

Through her worry, she asked, “It looks nice, huh?”

He nodded, regardless of whether she was looking or not. “Yep.”

“What?”

“Yes, Madame President.”  said the press secretary. “Apparently, the two jets were given an order to take out a bunch of terrorists driving through Colorado. That’s when we found something interesting.”

He picked up his tablet to show him an image of a streak of clear mist striking a fighter jet. “A reconnaissance squad caught this photo. Turns out they were dealing with our little fugitives.”

Ignoring her astonishment, he told her with a considerate expression. “I’d express gratitude towards their lieutenant General if I were you, he was suspicious of the whole thing and sent the squad to investigate.”

Ada shook off her surprise. “I guess I will. Anyway, who sent them the order?”

He put his hand on his hand. “They don’t know, the person relaying the order was named Mother bird, but that’s all we know.”

Ada leaned her head back to look out at the moon shining above her office. “Ugh, speaking of shot down planes, there goes zero, zero, zero, zero point something percent of our budget then.”

He sighed. “I know how you feel, Madame President. But we’re not in a situation-”

“To complain about our losses? I know, Mister Macintyre.” She pulled away to face him. “That’s why I want that last pilot brought in for an interrogation.”

“Who?”

“That last guy, remember? You told me in your report.”

He put his hand on his head. “Oh, heh, right.”

“Deploy troops to the area for another investigation as well.” she added. “Oh, and see if that we can find those fugitives.”

“Fugitives?” Macintyre questioned. “But Madame, we-”

“The Gulf of Tonkin resolution was made for a reason, Macintyre.” she said in the best peppy tone she could manage. “So get to-”

“Madame President, we believe the fugitives fled to HUE territory!”

Her mood was quickly reduced. “Seriously?”

“Yes Madame, Denver and the surrounding territories is under their control.” he explained. “It’s likely that they’re heading there for some sort of shelter.”

She stood up from her seat for a couple of stretches. “Well then, there’s nothing we can do… If we send in troops after them, Equestria will in no doubt respond.”

She sat over her desk. “Celestia’s the only one who recognizes that chunk as a legit country. So we’re just gonna hope that they don’t do anything funny with that guy.”

She then crossed her arms. “Just tell the troops to bring in the pilot for interrogation and to secure the area they were shot down.”

He began typing in his tablet. “Yes Madame President.”

“Oh, and let’s not forget the Lieutenant General of that base and the reconnaissance squad.”

“Right.”

“Also, report this entire thing to the media.”  She stated. “Announce that we’re launching a full investigation on the matter. Every branch within every organization in this entire country is being subject to one.”

“Why so?” asked Macintyre.

Ada sighed. “Lieutenant Crowe said that the Legion has ‘gems’, and by that he meant that there are more people that are hiding underneath us. They’re more than likely aiding them… However, he doesn’t know who they are…, which is only natural for a pawn like him.”

Macintyre fastened his tie. “Alright then, I’ll have the announcement up, tomorrow.”

“Good, now you’re dismissed.”

He nodded before heading straight for the door.

“Oh, and Mister Macintyre?” Ada called.

“Hmm?”

In a defeatist tone, she asked, “We’re gonna be doing a lot of investigating, aren’t we?”

With the same attitude, he nodded. “Of course.”

Big Mac was waiting outside of Marianne’s suite, ignoring the casual wearing guard that stood beside it. The guard returned the feeling back at him. Then the door was starting to click, which completely surprised the guard.

When the door opened, Maribelle had appeared behind it.

“Wha~?” the guard shouted. “Miss Maribelle, you shouldn’t be raiding into Mari-”

In a hostile whisper, she said, “Either we go in, or she doesn’t come out.”

The guard quickly shut up. “Ugh, alright then.”

“Good, Haystack, let’s get in.” Maribelle ordered.

“Got it.” And so, the two were inside. The first thing he saw was the TV having a hole punched right to it, followed by the small coffee table in the living room be flipped on its side. “Dear Luna.”

Then there was the counter to their right being filled with nothing but bags of chips. They were either there or scattered on the floor along with plastic bags and foam cups.

“Yep, she’s been that way since.” she turned towards the door. “And it didn’t have to be that way if someone did something about it!”

“I tried, Miss Maribelle!” the guard said in defense. “Please believe me!”

“Fine then!” Maribelle then headed for Marianne’s room. She attempted to open, but the knob wouldn’t budge. “Damn it. Haystack, give me a boost.”

“Right.” He trotted over to her, and let her hop onto his back. “Umph!”

Using a lock pick, she began to unlock it. Once it was, she slowly pushed it open. The other side was completely dark, the only light being the night sky coming from the window. When the door opened fully, they’d see Marianne lay over the bed. After quietly heading to her, they noticed that her cheeks were caked over with dried tears. The pillow she was hugging was wet those tears… and a bit of drool.

“Damn.” Maribelle decided to look around the room, which was just as trashed as the living room.

Big Mac looked to one of the trashed items, specifically. It was a mirror that had a large array of streaks running through it. There were so much that his face was nearly unrecognizable. When he looked deeper, he could see red droplets laying over it. He felt as if his heart was going to stop. “Oh no!”

He reached into his pocket and clenched onto a syringe. He then galloped to the bed.

“Haystack, what the hell are you-” she then saw the blood on the mirror. “Shoot!”

She hopped onto the bed to notice that there was blood permeating through the blankets. Without waiting she pulled the sleeve back, where she’d nearly gag at the massive cuts that were running from the hand to the wrist. Then the needle pierced through the arm.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!” Marianne screamed.

“Huh?” Maribelle questioned.

When the needle was released, she pulled back as if she was touching a hot stove. She then headed for the nightstand to take out her revolver.

“Marianne, it’s us!” Maribelle screamed.

When she pointed her revolver at them, she didn’t need a full evaluation to figure it out. “Oh… It’s you two.”

“Marianne, what the hell?” Marianne exclaimed. “You gone mad!”

“Ugh…” Marianne groaned while putting the revolver down.

“You messed up the entire suite, and you’re eating like a freaking-!”

Marianne groaned again. “Well if this was Canada, I’d be drinking myself some wine right now, maybe some Caribou Lou… or some vodka… damn it.”

She placed the revolver back over the nightstand. “Why can’t Trevor let me drink for once?”

Maribelle sat next to her. “I have no idea, Marianne. But based on the amount of litter you left, you’d probably die from alcohol poisoning. Hell, I’m even surprised you didn’t choke to death!”

Marianne, a little heartbroken by the statement, curled up into a ball. “Sometimes I thought about that.”

This was met with surprise.

“I’ve been after him for a long time, now.” Another wave of tears were beginning to pile up again. “I just can’t stand the fact that this chase will go on forever.”

Maribelle looked down and found a photo at the bottom. She picked it up and took a look at it.

Marianne smiled as she wiped some of her tears. “And that’s another thing that worries me, too.”

Big Mac was gloomier than he already was.

“I know Ivan didn’t mean it, but this is our job.” She started wiping away more tears. “But how can I latch onto them when this is all for nothing?”

The two were now struggling to hold in their surprise.

“My house is gone, you guys.” Marianne explained sorrowfully. “And then I get told that my mom and dad dying was all for nothing if we can just fly to America.”

“Well, that might not be the case.”

They looked towards Big Mac.

“You don’t know if that’s the truth, it might be false information.”

Through her frustration, Marianne took out her smartphone. She then turned it on to reveal onto them an article.

Maribelle would read it. “Project Free Bird was an undercover evacuation program designed to emigrate Canadian citizens facing draft evasion from both East Canada and the New Vancouver Republic.”

Distraught, she looked back to Marianne.

“I’ve been holding back on searching for something like that. Turns out Ivan seems more right by the second.”

“Well… uh…” Big Mac stammered. “Maybe … Maybe there’s more to it than that.”

“Yeah.” Maribelle commented. “Did you at least research the incident?”

She gently faced them with her somber eyes. “Mm?”

“The day you escaped, didn’t you find further information on it?”

Then she pressed her arms against her knees to rest her head above them. “I did…, but there was nothing to find. No news reports, no files…,”

“But with the new parliament’s in place, shouldn’t they relea-”

“Ugh, stop with the questions, already!” Marianne screamed. “I searched, and searched, and searched! There’s literally nothing there!”

Completely ignoring their tremoring bodies, she then buried her face in her arms. “My house’s gone, remember? What else is there to say?”

Big Mac looked back at the shattered mirror for a moment. “Um… do you think they’re deaths were all for nothing then?”

Marianne didn’t say a word. Instead, she kept a tight grip on her arms. Then she’d admit, “It seems true… but, I don’t want to believe it, though.”

After a moment of reveling in the sorrow, Maribelle came up with an idea. “Then that gives more reason for this to happen.”

“Huh?” the two said in a gasp.

“My dad’s somewhere out there, and I want to find him!” she explained with passion.

Big Mac would speak. “Maribelle, don’t you remem-”

“With the chase lasting longer, it can give us more reason to get what needs to be done!”

Marianne turned back to his arms, pulling her face away from them. “You don’t mean…?”

“Indeed.” Maribelle confirmed. “There has to be a reason why they’d make such a daring cross to the US to begin with! If you can find out why, then… then something good can come out of it.”

Marianne’s joy somewhat came back upon hearing this. She was now wiping away the last of her tears in spite of this. “Heh, maybe that does sound like a good idea, after all.”

“MmHm.” she chirped.

All the while, she ignored the concern that was plaguing Big Mac. “… Maribelle…”

“So, you know what happened to your dad, huh?”

Then her tone of voice went sentimental. “I guess you can say that.”

Big Mac eyes was on the blood. He could feel his mind grow heavy as his gloom kept pressing down.

“When I do find him…, I want to say a couple of things to him.”

“And what’s that?” Marianne asked curiously. This also got Big Mac’s attention.

“Um…, I’m still thinking about it.”

“Oh, I get it.” Marianne leaned back with her hands supporting her. “Maribelle, agree with me that by the time that we wipe out our enemies, we should’ve found what we’re looking for.”

This surprised her. “By that time?”

Meekly, Marianne told her, “So that… we can get ready to face Ivan, get it?”

“Oh, right.” She took out her right hand, Marianne took out hers’ as well.

Big Mac on the other hand, just looked on with fear. ”Why?”

“Big Mac?” Maribelle called.

“Huh?”

Maribelle’s eyes gestured towards their hands. “You agree or not?”

He lifted his hoof a moment, but there were moments were he wanted to put it down. In contrast though, he could see her encouraging eyes. Those eyes spoke volumes to him as he gazed at them with his disheartening ones. With defeat, he reached his hoof out towards their hands. When they touched, Maribelle lifted them up into the air.

“Deal.” they said either casually or excitedly.

“Let’s make this count.” Maribelle proclaimed.

“Right.” said the others.

After the brief celebration, Marianne looked around the trashed room. “Phew, I think I overdid the whole heartbreak thing, didn’t I?”

“Let’s just appreciate that BLU owns this hotel.” Maribelle commented.

“Yep.”

Esther walked down the isle of the darkened and empty chapel. The alter was the only thing being illuminated, even then, only the moon from the top window above was its only source of lighting. Her walk was slow but smooth in every step. The stained glass she was gazing depicted Luna in their glorified stance. When she reached the alter, she couldn’t help but kneel down and reach her hands out towards that glass. Her eyes softly closed as she attempted to feel Luna’s presence. During which, her voice reverberated around the chapel in its angelic tone.

We wish that we have seen

  How much hath thou been in pain.

  And now we apologize to thee,

  Even though we are too late.

O Luna, long hath thou hath withstood

Through those lonely nights.

O, if only there was a way we could

Save thee from Celestia’s horrific light.

And even though thou hath gone,

We will always love thee until we die.

Thy loving embrace lives on

In the beauty of thy night sky.

After singing, she held her hands together and leaned her face towards them. “Please Luna, we mustn’t fail.”

Celestia looked at the stained glass that decorated the halls of her castle. Specifically, the one that displayed the humans as demons burning countless flags as the cross of a puppet hung above them, a wrinkled hand toying with it.

“Your Highness!” someone called.

She turned to the small set of stair. Down the red carpet that stood underneath her, and flowed across the floor, two Pegasus ponies and a unicorn pony stood in triangular formation.

“What is it?” she asked.

After the three bowed and took off their golden helmets, the unicorn would say, “It’s a message from Anya, your majesty.”

He levitated a scroll onto her. When it was in control, she read it from top to bottom. After finished, she ordered them to, “Prepare the Chariot at once.”

“Yes, your highness!” they chanted, and then they galloped back the way they came.

With them gone, Celestia looked back onto the stained glass to ask herself. “Could this be it?” Next Chapter: Chapter 14 Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 2 Minutes