Ivan’s hands were planted against the floor.

The cold rain pelted against his clothes, and he could see it mix with the blood underneath him. Like a chained man, he gradually stood on his two feet. Even then, they wobbled uncontrollably, to the point where Ivan had to lean against the concrete wall for support. His vision distorted in between color and shades of grey as his body hit the wall.

His body rubbed against the wall with every sluggish step he took. His arms crossed tightly as he shivered from the cold. He lifted his head to look down the alleyway, at the end, he found a silhouette of a girl standing under her umbrella. He stopped his trudging upon noticing that it was Jacklyn underneath it, and next to her feet was a paper bag filled with food. He turned away from her distraught face, and took a few steps back. Then came the attempt to turn his body around.

Thud!

His cheek pressed against the wet asphalt, but his eyes would see the battered bodies scatter around the alley. When his eyes wanted to close, he welcomed that choice with open arms.

“Ivan.”

And then they flashed open. “Uh?”

“We’re here.” Jacklyn said.

He rubbed his eyes. “Oh, okay then.”

“And please behave.” Jacklyn pleaded.

Ivan crossed his arms. “I make no promises.”

Jacklyn pouted.  “Ivan.”

He rolled his eyes. “Ugh, fine.”

The Captain gripped her rifle as tightly as she could, and so did the rest of her personnel.

After a little while more, the vehicle made a complete stop before the engine turned off entirely. The back door opened, where soldiers in Slate blue uniforms and Brodie helmets greeted them. However, their hearts nearly stopped once they saw Ivan.

“Sweet Celestia!” one of the soldiers out in the distance gasped.

“It’s that guy that they’re talking about, right?” her comrade whispered onto her.

“It’s that guy, alright.”

“Yeah, must’ve surrendered or something.” Her comrade commented.

“You think?”

As they conversed, Ivan looked at the four flagpoles in front of him. In a pattern, the American and Equestrian flag waved modestly in the wind.

“Maybe he has some other motives.” Her comrade suggested. “I’m not so sure he’s the kind of guy to join us.”

“Tch, Obviously.”

Then, Ivan took brief glimpses of the buildings that surrounded the place. Many of them were deformed and punctured, with their color dulled to a near grey.

“Come on Ivan.” Jacklyn told him.

He nodded, and followed the group down the narrow pathway that lied in front of them. This time, Jacklyn and Lance joined Ivan in exploring their surroundings. One thing that caught their interest was a monument that sat in the distance. Four tall pyramid like structures surrounded a tall boulder. Embedded on that boulder, was the iconic Pepsi logo, but just like the buildings, it was beaten and dulled.

“Nice.” Ivan muttered.

“What was that?” asked Jacklyn.

“Hm?”

“Oh, and uh, welcome to the EPKO.” the Captain tardily greeted.

They turned away from the monument to face her. “Hm?”

“I said, welcome to the EPKO.” she repeated with awkwardness. “Just…, just thought I’d do so.”

Ivan turned to his right, where the building’s large round structure looked back at him. The windows intertwined with the wall like stripes. When they reached the entrance, they found a banner that named the EPKO without its acronym. When Ivan noticed that it was laid over the name of the building, Ivan quickly dropped to a deadpanned expression. However, he just said, and looked straight ahead.

“Alright, you three!” the Captain declared. “Let us meet your supervisor!”

After saluting their captain, the guards opened the doorway in front of them.

They walked inside, and they were immediately amazed. The cream colored walls matched perfectly with the maple flooring, which brought a sense of awe to Ivan and the others. Especially the uniquely designed statue that hung from the ceiling, it awed them even more when they noticed that it was a collection of sports players posing together like ballet dancers.

“Impressive!” Ivan said.

“Um, ahem!”

A couple yards in front of them, three ponies were standing with their white uniforms and berets. The pony at the front of the trio, a pony with a red violet coat, trotted up to them with enthusiasm.

“Afternoon, you three!” she greeted mirthfully. “The name’s Cherry Sea!”

She raised her hoof in between hers and Jacklyn. Gladly, she leaned down to get a hold of it. “It’s great to meet you too, Madame!”

Cherry Sea could see the passion in her smile, and it made her maintain that eagerness. “It’s nice to meet you two!”

After they let go, Cherry went on to greet Lance with the same enthusiasm. Jacklyn followed along with her sight. Then as Cherry’s hoof let go of his hand, a twitch of her eye would be felt. She mouthed, “Aw shoot.”

She watched in a subtle panic as she trotted over to the deadpan Ivan. Even though he was staring at the stone statue in the middle of the lobby, her stomach would churn at her fears. When her hoof tapped at his hand, her body felt like wincing in that despair. Ivan turned to face her, finding her hoof reaching for his’. Jacklyn promptly closed her eyes, and covered those with her hands.

“It’s nice to meet you, sir.” said Cherry.

“Indeed.” Ivan said calmly.

She opened her fingers up like scissors, then her eye opened. Cherry was still cheerful, while Ivan still had his straight face going. “What the…?”

He couldn’t believe that Ivan was this-

“Jackie?”

“Eh?” She let her hands drift back to her hips.

With one eyebrow lifted, Ivan asked. “You okay?”

“Indeed, Ma’am, is something wrong?” Cherry asked.

Jacklyn briefly glanced at the two. Then after seeing Lance’s befuddled face, her cheeks were reddening, and so she stood straight. She shrieked, “Uh, nothing! It’s all good, heh heh, everything’s all right!”

Cherry laughed, the adjusted her bouncy purple mane. “Alright then, if you say so.”

She trotted past them until he reached the front of the line. With a delighted flip, she was back to facing the three. “Well then, follow me!”

They did as they were told. In the midst of their walk down up the large set of stairs, Jacklyn held her hands together. Meanwhile, her mind wavered back and forth on what she just saw. “Uh… should I be…?”

Ivan, however, was turning his head in every direction of he could. He marveled each and every aspect of the floors and walls. Ponies of any color would appear at every turn, looking onto him and the others with curiosity.

“So, is this your first time in an arena?” asked Lance.

“Yeah.” said Ivan. “We actually have some in Chicago, is that they’re mostly used by the Police.”

“Seriously? Huh, then they must enjoy that place, right? Never knew arenas in America could be this fancy!”

“Actually, sir,” Cherry butted in. “We remodeled the place once we took the city.”

“Really?” asked a curious Ivan.

  Cherry turned her head to him and nodded. “MmHm, the place looked so battered that it looked nearly unrecognizable. You know that statue at the entrance?”

“Yeah?”

“The thing was so severed to the point where its heads were threatening to fall!” she stated. “Thank Celestia we were able to save that poor thing.”

“Hm.” Ivan took one more look at the hallway. “Well, the remodeling looks nice.”

Cherry was immediately flattered. “Thanks, sir.”

“Ngh!” Jacklyn held back her scream, as her hands held on tighter. ”Odd.”

Cherry unlocked then opened the door in front of her. “Have a seat, you guys.”

One of the soldiers turned on the light as the three entered.

Ivan whistled. “Neat!”

When he noticed the what was past the window, he headed over there, and pressed his nose and his hands against it. The seats below were accompanied with desks, and they surrounded a wooden court, where a large podium sat in the center. There, a Lectern stood in the center.

“We conduct all of our meetings down there.” Cherry commented. “Don’t worry, though. We’ll be disassembling that once the war ends.”

Lance and Jacklyn walked over to his side to look down the arena.

“Regardless, that’s pretty damn cool.” Lance complimented. “How long did it take set that all up?”

“Six Months, sir.” she said gladly, which was accompanied with a little anxiety. “I just hope the fans don’t try to deconstruct it themselves, though.”

Then doubts began swirling in her head. “You’re not mad, aren’t you?”

“N’ah.” Ivan admitted. “We’re used to having our stadiums like this.”

Jacklyn and Lance passively glanced at him.

Cherry frowned. “Oh, I see… Anyway, let me discuss the plans for today.”

“Alright then.” Lance turned away from the window, and so did Jacklyn.

“C’mon Ivan.” She said to Ivan, but he just wouldn’t move. “Ivan?”

Seeing him in that trance both captivated her, and continued the cycle of fear she felt. “Ivan…, we have to go.”

He still wouldn’t move, and so Lance and Cherry joined her in that cycle. After waiting a little while more, she touched him on the shoulder.

Softly, he turned around. “Huh…? Jackie?”

“Time to go, Ivan.” she said gently.

Ivan was in no doubt surprised. “Uh, already?”

She nodded.

Ivan blushed. “Oh, uh, okay then.”

He pulled away from the window and walked to the counter. Jacklyn, walking beside him, took a few glimpses of Ivan’s post-euphoric look. She turned one of her hands into a fist for a brief moment, only to let go a moment later. She did her best to hide that worry, and it didn’t matter to her if it was futile or not.

Celestia looked onto the murky seas below her. The wind was pressing against her face, but that didn’t faze her.

“Your Highness, we’ll be approaching Ellesmere, get ready.” the guard flying beside her advised.

Celestia nodded. “There’s no need to tell me, Shine.”

“Mm?”

She pointed her hoof past the ponies pulling the chariot. The land in front of them appeared through the thin clouds before appearing fully. On that island, was nothing but endless snow that blew over the land. Below, she could see several cabins sitting above that snow. In the center, her nation’s flag, and Canada’s flag hung proudly besides one another. She could see countless dots representing people come hovering over to those flagpoles that carried them, that made her smile.

“Oh, right.” the guard said with embarrassment. “Sorry.”

Celestia smiled, even though he wasn’t looking. “It’s all right, Shine.”

When her chariot got closer, the men and women were already forming a fancy line behind each flagpole, whilst three of them stood in between them, Celestia chuckled a bit. Then after the chariot landed, she calmly and gracefully set off on the snowy surface. With that same attitude, she trotted over to the three that were waiting for her. Their heavy coats they wore fascinated her, but at the same time, made her pity them. It made her pity them more when they saluted rather flamboyantly, while holding onto their rifle straps as tightly as possible.

“W-we appreciate your arrival, your Highness!” the soldier in front of her stammered.

With a hoof gently touching her mouth, she laughed. “At ease, major.”

She struck down her salute like lightning. “Uh, r-right!”

Celestia put her hoof back onto the “Now then, can you explain further as to who this person is?”

She nodded, and Celestia trotted beside her as they walked down the two lines of infantry.

“I-It seems that they managed to find some sort of superweapon that can win us the war.” the major explained.

“It seems so, according to her.” Celestia commented. “But do you know who this person is?”

“Well, the guy was rather infamous when the Danville incident sprung up.” she explained rather gracefully.

Celestia queried, “The Danville incident? You don’t mean…?”

“Yep, that place.” she confirmed.

Celestia sighed. “How have they been doing?”

“Nothing’s changed once RED and BLU intervened.” she revealed with disappointment. “It’s now as much total war as on every other front.”

“Damn.”

“Since Vanessa’s death, I doubt Doofania’s gonna rise again.” she shrugged her shoulders. “The bright side is; we now have a chance at winning this war with their little experiment.”

“I guess so.” Celestia said in a melancholic fashion. By then, they had already reached the door to the cabin in front of them. “So, when is she going to arrive?”

“When?” She was fiddling through her keys to find the one that opened the door. “Uh…”

“Nine Hours?” Ivan screamed.

“Anya’s barely leaving, Ivan.” Cherry explained. “The time it takes from Oklahoma City to here isn’t short.”

“Ugh, great!” Ivan grumbled, gripping his rifle. “C’mon you guys; we’re getting out of here!”

“We can’t let you do that.” Cherry advised him. “I am ordered to keep you here-”

“Fine then.” Ivan armed his rifle. “Jacklyn, take her out, Lance, take the guy at the door.”

The guard gasped and prepared to arm up himself.

“Ivan, sit down!” Lance ordered harshly.

Ivan was aghast. “But they’re gonna-”

“Please Ivan, we’re not in any danger.” Jacklyn replied calmly. She looked onto him with that worried look. “Trust me, okay?”

Ivan looked back on her, and that face would ultimately make him give in. With his eyes closed, and a sigh, he sat back down. “Ugh fine.”

There was then a knock on the door. “I-Is he calm?”

“Yes, Hardhat, yes he is.” Cherry replied modestly.

The soldier would come trotting in with a pushing cart filled with snacks of a wide variety. After setting him down with his telepathy, the soldier would trot out of the room as fast as a spooked mouse. Ivan then took a cracker from one of the plates, and added some cheese, he’d chew in the most casual way possible before swallowing. Then he went for another one, and another one, to which Cherry only smiled.

“Hmm, that was a rather quick rebound.”  Cherry laughed. “You must’ve been so hungry, haven’t ya?”

He glared up at her, and swallowed it. “Well, I guess you can say that.”

He pulled one of the bowl of chips towards him and stuffed his hand into the bowl. This was followed by the others pulling in their own plates and bowls of snacks to shove down their throats as voraciously as possible. To which, Cherry kept his smiling attitude throughout.

Ivan looked past Cherry to take a further look at the portrait that hung on the wall. Ponies in their bronze armor lunging their pikes and their swords at the griffons flying above them, using their talons to inflict as much blows as they could. Both sides had bodies lying on the ground, but they fought proudly and with determination. However, it was obvious who was going to come out victorious in the end.

“It’s ‘Gallop of the thousand Ponies’ by Sunshine Pie if you’re wondering.” Cherry said without even moving an inch.

“Mm?” Ivan turned his attention to her, regardless of the chips he was still chewing on.

Cherry explained. “The painting depicts the thousand ponies who fought bravely at the battle of Griffonstone. They were outnumbered and deep behind enemy lines, but their actions brought an end to the war.”

He swallowed the chips. “Hmm, interesting. You some historian or something.”

Cherry blushed as she scratched the back of her head. “Well, not really, I just like to learn, you know?”

“Oh, I see.”

“I tried to become a painter though, but…” She looked down at the cutie mark on her flank: a wooden bucket spilling over countless cherries. She smiled warmly. “The farm was where it was at.”

“Then why are you here?” asked Lance.

Cherry made swirls on the table with her hoof. Her other hoof pressed against her cheek. “I wanted to help keep the peace in the outside world… I kept hearing a ton of bad things happen here. The war in the Middle East, in Canada…, you know, make the poor people smile.”

She sat up, and laughed. “Normally, we’d be wearing our UN Helmets. But since the UN doesn’t want to be involved with this group, heh, it seems her majesty’s army will step in.”

An annoyed Lance took in a deep breath. “Well, makes sense. Your country has a very high opinion of themselves… Say, what’s that rifle you’re carrying?”

She looked down at the maple colored rifle that was sitting next to her. She picked it up by pulling the strap attached to it. “Oh, I forgot, all I know is that I got to shoot it.”

Lance laughed. “Heh, you really hate being here, don’t you?”

Cherry turned back to them in a flash, flailing her hooves in a frenzy. “What, No! I like it here! It’s fun to get to know... uh…”

She could see Lance and Ivan give little snide grins. To which, she stopped the flailing, and gave in. “Uh... no, it sucks being here. Miles away from home…, fearing that death will be at your door at any moment..., Seeing that the people are just angry…”

“Angry?” Jacklyn asked in shock.

She nodded. “They don’t like us, to be honest. They just want us gone.”

This saddened Jacklyn. “Oh… that’s…. that’s unfortunate.”

Through her gloom, Cherry let out another giggle. “It’s the first time you’ve spoken, huh?”

She jumped back, nearly falling from her stool. “Eh? I… uh…”

“It’s okay, Ma’am.” Cherry assured her. “You must’ve had a hard time telling me something, right?”

Blushing, Jacklyn began fiddling her hair with her fingers. “Uh, yeah, right… So, about the people…”

“We’ve been struggling with our PR since hooves landed here, ‘nuff said.” Cherry said while frowning. After a moment of thinking, she’d say, “Hey, in a little while, do you want to go to the window area? There’s something I want you to see.”

“Oh, sure.” said Jacklyn with a determined gaze.

Ivan sighed. “Ugh, I guess so.”

“No problem, Madame.” said Lance with a similar tone. Then his attention turned to the rifle. “Oh, and that’s called the R-Twelve Iron Bolt, if you’re wondering.”

“Oh, right!” she hopped off her stool. “Can you tell me further on the rifle? I’m gonna need this info.”

“For what?”

She stopped reaching towards her pocket to tell him, “Oh, I got an exam on this tomorrow morning.”

“Exam?”

“Well, it’s just to see if we remember.” she explained. “If we fail, we get demoted and tossed into the front lines with the other rejects and taught there.”

She then reached back into her pocket to take out a pencil. In her mouth now, she gave an eager nod.

After fathoming through his perplexed state, he blinked a couple times before starting. “Alright then, the R-Twelve Iron Bolt is a latest model for the Earth Ponies of the Royal Equestrian Army…”

As she wrote down the information word by word, Ivan turned away from his little lecture to eat some more Then, he found that Jacklyn was doing nothing except sit there with her hands over the table. Her gloomy eyes were visible, despite her obviously trying to hide them.

“Jackie, you okay?” Ivan asked her.

She nodded while softly rubbing her arm. “I just need to relax a bit, okay?”

Ivan was suspicious. “You don’t look-”

“Ivan, I’m okay.” She turned away from him. “Please leave me alone.”

Ivan sighed. “Alright then.”

Ivan turned to the food on the table, and took a potato chip from one of the bowls. He briefly glanced up at the guard, who was looking down on him as well with a rather worrisome look. Ivan immediately turned away upon seeing it, and then focused his attention onto Jacklyn once again. Still, she had her face turned away from him. Only this time, she had her hand covering her eye as it seemed. Ivan then sighed again, before he kept eating.

“Oh, I see.” said Anya.

“Yeah, you sure you still want to go through with this?” asked the lady in front of her. “It’s pretty damn obvious that he doesn’t want to be there.”

Anya was playing with her thumbs above the pommel of her sword. “Remember the Element of Generosity, Miss Hilda. If we cannot negotiate with him to join us, then we can at least try to help them in some way. Say, they said that they were heading east, right?”

“Indeed.” said Hilda.

“So, we need to warn them that the Green zone is not a good place to go to.” Anya looked out the window, watching a flock of birds fly alongside them.

“And that’s it?” asked Hilda.

“Order all scouting regiments in southern Colorado to survey the area south of them.” Anya said calmly. “We’re finding him an alternate route for them.”

“On it.” Hilda reached for her smartphone, but stopped halfway there to ask, “Say, do you still want to meet with him after this.”

“Oh, of course.” Anya said straightforwardly.

“You sure? You know with that proposal-”

“I know.” Anya admitted, she rested her chin over her hand.

Hilda deadpanned. “You want to see the guy in person, don’t you?”

Anya smiled. “Also, Princess Celestia would probably be a better negotiator than even I could be.”

“Oh my!” Celestia exclaimed.

“I had that same reaction when I first heard it, too, your majesty.” said the major, assorting the variety of photos of Ivan above the wooden table. “It turns out that ponies aren’t the only ones with such capabilities.”

After the major pushed the photos forward to her, Celestia pressed her hoof against them. She then levitated them into the air with the telekinesis of her horn. The contents nearly stopped her heart when she displayed them in row upon row. Flames and ice were escaping his hands, and countless bodies were seen frozen solid or covered in burning ash. Some of the photos even depicted them being frozen in the process or burned alive.

“There’s even the possibility that he can mind control, also.” the major mentioned.

Celestia’s heart threatened to stop once again. “Mind control?”

“The spies swore that they saw one of the enemy forces turn against their comrades in an instant. It often happened during the shootouts with the target.” She sighed. “But, they don’t have any solid proof that that even happened.”

After gazing at them for a little while more, she gently put those photos down on the table. “Well then, turns out we have a chance at winning this war, after all.”

The major nodded.

Celestia sighed. “So, is there any further information on them?”

“No, not exactly. That’s all they sent to me, guess you’re gonna have to wait until she arrives for more.”

She nodded modestly. “Right.”

The major reached for the mug of hot chocolate at her side to take a sip.

“We thought our magic could win us wars, you know.” Celestia would say.

She faced up. “Huh?”

“At first we thought our magic would win us countless wars.” Celestia laughed a bit, “And we never realized how wrong we were until now.”

The major shrugged and smiled. “I can definitely attest to that, your Majesty.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you still remember when you visited the EPGA?”

Celestia frowned. “Oh, that.”

The three followed Cherry towards the window that looked out into the entire city of Denver. When they arrived, their observations weren’t of surprise, but of sorrow.

“Still haven’t repaired the city, huh?” Ivan said, before muttering to himself, “Damn bastards.”

Jacklyn and Lance heard it clearly, and only gloomed even more at that.

Cherry rubbed a hoof over her foreleg. “That’s not what I wanted to show you. Look down.”

They did as such, and down below, they found men and women of all ages standing there with countless picket signs.

“Sweet Celestia.” Jacklyn muttered.

They wore jerseys and uniforms that affiliated them with their favorite team. The words on their signs read stuff like, ‘GIVE US BACK OUR ARENA!’, ‘GO HOME, CELESTIA!’, ‘DON’T TREAD ON US!’, or ‘NOT IN OUR HOUSE!’. Due to the window being in the way, they’re angry chanting was nearly inaudible. But regardless, it was able to convey enough to make the feel something.

“They’ve been at it for a while now.” Cherry added.

“And how long was that?” asked Lance.

“Since this morning.”

Lance’s gloom sunk even more. “Gee, that long, huh?”

“Yeah.” Cherry sat on her rump before speaking. “When we captured Denver, during the first couple of years after the riots, mind you, they obviously weren’t pleased at the announcement.”

Lance returned to looking out at the protestors. “Of course.”

She trotted to their side. “The Soviets did a huge number on this city during the invasion period. It obviously wasn’t right to take away something that they still had.”

They remained quiet.

Cherry began scratching her mane. “I remember by aunt and uncle telling me how they’d fly massive flying machines above Baltimare and just drop countless bombs … and that they came down like water from a garden hose.”

Cherry then put a hoof against the window. “When we finally beat back the Soviets, the city announced that they were going to demolish the amusement park they had because it was downright irreparable.”

Cherry faced down at the crowd with the same gloom as the others. “We were sad when that happened, but here, they’re more, angry than sad.”

She struggled to maintain her smile. “Do you remember when the HUE began to rise?”

The three were silent.

“Well, we ravaged through the lands like flames, and the world was not happy.” She started. “It was the same thing here.”

They watched as guards of both species came coming out with riot shields, lining up in two rows in front of the protestors.

Ivan looked at one of the protestors, who was a young woman wearing an oversized hockey uniform. Without even holding back, she threw a rock large enough to surpass her hand. The rock struck the helmet of one of the ponies in the front of the row. And then, everyone in the mob dropped what they did in shock of what happened. However, the guards didn’t move an inch, and it turned into an awkward staring contest between her and the guards.

  Ivan and the others watched as the guards stood perfectly still despite what has just been done. Then, there was another rock bashing the helmet of another guard. And with that, the guards took a step forward, provoking the protesters to rile up a massive charge against them.

Seeing this, Cherry closed his eyes in pity. She then shouted to one of the guards, “Call on the higher ups to reinforce the guards outside!”

“On it!”

Her head turned back to the crowd below as the soldier ran off to inform them.

Through her gloom, she attempted another smile. “Heh, back then, we had to call in battalions from other towns to help out in dealing with these people.”

She put her hoof back on the window. “Now, we just call in guys from here.”

Ivan watched as countless of those protesters were bashing their hammers and such at the guards. They would do in return with their batons.

Cherry sighed. “Come on, let’s not let this dwell to deeply into us.”

Lance was the first to turn away and leave. “Right.”

Ivan would follow, but he stopped when he noticed that Jacklyn wasn’t following. “Jackie?”

She was still at the window, gazing down at the fighting.

“Hey Jackie!” Ivan shouted.

“Huh?” she looked around like a curious bird. She’d quickly find Ivan stand in the distance, with the others staring at her as well.

“Time to go!” Ivan called while waving his hand in a backwards direction.

She nodded at a brief but fast pace. “Oh, right!”

As she caught up with them, Ivan could see that her eyes were glossed over with more tears. He was about to speak up, but decided against it, sighing once again.

“Ivan?”

“Eh?”

“Now I see why you wanted to come here.”

“Yep, that’s them alright.” said Dave, looking through some binoculars.

“So, is there anything you want to do now?” asked a resistance fighter next to him.

He handed the binoculars back to the fighter, and walked down the dark room. The only thing illuminating it being the outside light from the windows. “Well, we ask the obvious question: why are they way out here?”

“I don’t know, sir.” the fighter answered. “After we found them with the Soviets, I don’t really know what they’re up to.”

Dave walked to the coffeemaker, located on the half cluttered kitchen counter at the end of the room. Then he poured himself a mug of it. “Well then, if we don’t know the answer, we’ll have to find out another way.”

“Uh, Frey Nine to Wind one.” called someone through the fighter’s radio. “It seems that the sports fans aren’t the only ones rioting.”

“Hmm?” Dave stopped drinking, and got to walking back towards the fighter.

“What do you mean?” the fighter asked suspiciously.

“The civvies are just rioting throughout the city, sir.”

Dave took the walkie-talkie from his hand. “Frey Nine, I’m gonna need you to provide support for us.”

“What for?” asked Cherry.

“Remember? They haven’t received any electricity since we took the city.” the guard explained. “Not to mention how Martial law prevents them from leaving!”

Cherry turned away, rubbed her hoof against the counter. “So, what are their orders?”

The guard sighed. “Stay inside, and make sure the three are safe.”

Ivan could see the worry that was visible on her face.

“Right.” she said. “Now you go and guard outside.”

He saluted. “Yes, Ma’am.”

He walked out the door and closed it.

Ivan crossed his arms as he leaned against the couch. “Well then, the EPGMA or something’s a destabilized country or something?”

She nodded. “If you haven’t noticed, we’re a landlocked country. Thanks to the bombings, we’re struggling to power up every part of land we have.”

Lance put one leg over the other. “Hmm, pity.”

“Then when you add that food supplies are running thin, and income that’s slowly drying up, we might not be able to sustain this place.” Cherry placed her chin against the counter. “We’ve been on the defensive since the first couple years of the war, and now we’re paying the price.”

“You heard of the offensive on North Texas?” Ivan asked casually.

Cherry sprung up. “It was an absolute failure!”

Jacklyn gripped tightly onto her arm.

“And that’s also why I’m telling you that we’re paying the price.” She stomped a hoof against the counter. “Ugh, it won’t be long before we’re gonna have to surrender this place to the rebels to save money!”

Ivan put his hands together, Lance did the same thing.

Cherry pulled out a small picture frame from the cabinet. “And even then, Celestia’s hoof and the Sisterhood will just swoop in, making the battle to take this city all for nothing….”

Her sadness was now resonating onto Ivan. “Will it break your heart if that were to happen?”

“Of course, all that work for freaking nothing!” she exclaimed. “Do you really think I can turn a blind eye to something like that!”

Ivan was quiet, returning to look out at the senate seats.

Cherry smiled warmly. “I guess that isn’t the life of a mercenary, isn’t it?”

Ivan shook his head. “My mission was to do my job and get out of there, all like that.”

“And what got you here?”

“Let’s n-”

“Hm?”

Ivan turned around, her perplexed expression was the first thing he saw. After some brief pondering, he started to laugh a bit. “Well, let’s just say that I was ‘rescued’ in a way.”

Cherry let out a disappointing grunt. “So you’re leaving it vague there?”

Ivan shrugged. “I don’t think you wanna know what we’ve been through.”

Cherry put a hoof on her chin, with a little laughter sprinkled in. “Oh, I see. Some sort of disturbing event going on?”

Ivan nodded. “I guess you can say that.”

“Hm, you know what the Elements of Harmony are?”

Ivan lifted a hand in the air. “If you’re teach me yet another lesson on how to be honest, then I’ll gladly… uh, cover my ears and singsong.”

Her perplexed face would return.

Seeing this, Ivan lowered his hand. “I mean, yeah, who hasn’t? It should be common knowledge, by now.”

Cherry put her hoof down on the table. “So, do you know the other five are?”

“Generosity, Kindness, Laughter, Loyalty, and Magic.” he said while counting them with his fingers. “Why ask?”

She took a deep breath, and continued. “I feel like you humans don’t practice that enough.”

“Eh-.” Ivan’s tensed shoulder lowered. “Ugh, well, to our credit, we aren’t exactly the magical types.”

Cherry laughed. “And yet your kind was still able to hold their own.”

Ivan laughed too. “Uh, heh, I guess you’re right.”

The two laughed a bit.

When it stopped, it took a little moment before Cherry’s serious tone could return. “But, when it comes to the other five, it feels like it’s missing here.”

Ivan said nothing, and only listened.

“You’re here telling me how you don’t want to talk about what happened out there.” Her hoof then gestured towards the other two. “Hell, not even they want to talk about it. Wouldn’t doing so actually help in a way?”

They didn’t say a word.

“Then we got the war going on out there, and the fighting going on here and…” Cherry looked at the picture frame once again, and her fixed on that picture for a while. “I just want this war to end…, don’t you?”

Ivan thought about it a little more, and gave his response. “Of course, but what can three stray mercs do against an entire army? In fact, what can three people do against an entire system?”

This time, it was Cherry’s turn to be quiet.

“Jackie and I are from Chicago, and that place is nothing but hell, and now we’re out here trying to do something with our lives.”

Jacklyn looked onto him with a broken heart.

“I… No, we just want to forget about all we’ve been through.” Ivan admitted. “It’s not worth going back, so here we are.”

After another moment of silence, Cherry spoke. “Well…, what can I do against that decision, right?”

Ivan sighed. “Nothing, I guess.”

“And hey, at least both ponies and humans have a lot in common with the first five elements, you know?”

“What do you mean?”

She gave a little smirk.

Ivan crossed his arms and pouted, especially when he heard Lance giggle. “Ugh, touché.”

Cherry giggled warmly.

Ivan took in a deep breath. “Anyway, I’m curious, who’s that in the picture?”

Her tone immediately piped up. “Oh, it’s-”

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The glass cracked as the explosions rocked throughout the entire senate, bashing the chairs and desks to pieces.

“Sweet Celestia!” Jacklyn gasped.

“Come on, we have to go!” Cherry ordered.

“Right.” they spoke.

Bam!

The door opened, with the guard barging in.

“Oh, it’s you, lieutenant!” Cherry exclaimed, and trotted over to him. “Where do we-”

Rat-at-at-at-at-at!

Her body lunged back when the first bullet blew into her breast. It left the bottom half of her torso vulnerable to the other bullets.

Thud!

Against the counter, her body quickly sunk downwards before they heard a sliding noise.

Thud!

Cherry’s head was the only thing visible on the floor at the moment. She violently coughed out blood, which would splatter against the floor and wall, and then she fell silent.

  The trio’s eyes were widened as their hearts raced at immeasurable speeds. They witnessed the guard stand to the side and salute at the opening in the door. In a couple of seconds, he would enter.

“Good use on the explosives there, lieutenant.” Davey congratulated.

“Thanks, sir.” the lieutenant answered.

Then he turned to the others. “Alright you three, come on. We want you safe.”

Without saying a word, they walked towards the door. They had no other choice but to step over Cherry’s body. They each revolted at the sight of the blood oozing out of her wounds, and smeared against the counter. Ivan, who was the last one to leave, took a good look at the picture she was looking at. In the photo, he was kissing the cheek of a young adult man, who was both blushing and smiling at the camera. Ivan could tell that the kiss she was giving him looked genuine in a way, mostly tender.

“Ivan, let’s go.” Dave said, sentimentally.

Ivan turned to face him. “Right.”

He looked at Cherry’s face once more, he couldn’t help but pity her despite the glare in his eyes. With that, he and Dave left the room, and closed the door behind them. Next Chapter: Chapter 15 Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 36 Minutes