Fury of the Flames

War...War never changes. It doesn't matter what (or who) is the cause of the straggle, war is always a bloodbath, where brave warriors fight, kill and die in the name of Luna, Celestia, Equestria, Freedom and so on. This is a tale of times, when the fires of war raged upon Equestria once again. The once green country was now a battlefield, haunted by the souls of those unfortunate beings who gave their lives for something you may call revenge, rebellion, tyranny.

For Czar Crystal and his soldiers, it was just another fight against the odds. The brave ponies and unicorns of the 1st Lance of the glorious 2nd Battalion stood at the edge of yet another field of battle. Flames scorched the land, corpses filled the field and the wounded warriors were crying for help – the enemies of Luna have finally taken the lesson, and were retreating. They swore revenge, but soon they will learn that there is no hope for them to win. The unit had some losses, some of them will not see the day when the banner of Luna finally waving proudly over the smoking ruins of Canterlot. But losing someone who is close to the heart is not rare in a war.

As they watched the burning horizon, memories of the past invaded Czar's mind. Memories he always wanted to chase away. But these were the memories that made him fight on. He touched the left side of his face, but he could only feel the coldness of his mask, covering the scars left by the flames of the devastation which destroyed his hometown. Screaming friends and loved ones, burning buildings and the faces of his dying relatives. All because of the tyrant called Celestia. She thought that there is nothing that could stop her to be the ruling matriarch of Equestria again, except her sister, Luna. After Nightmare Moon's defeat at the hooves of the Elements of Harmony, Luna was the only thing standing between Celestia and her plans of world domination. But after her bold escape from Canterlot, Celestia did everything she could to kill her. Along with all who stood up against her dream of the new order, and in her eternal rage, she wanted to destroy everything and everypony in her path to reach her goal. So far, she did not succeed.

Now, as the flames were devouring the field, Czar began to shiver as the adrenaline and the heat of the battle started to disappear.

"Everything alright, boss?" asked one of his soldiers.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"But you had that strange look again…"

"And? I can't see the problem with remembering who we are and where we came from. Haven't we all seen the rage of that tyrant? Haven't we all lost something precious? Our hearts were broken, our spirits were tortured and our bodies were beaten. Is that enough?"

"Of course it is, boss. You are always right. What's our next move?"

"I see if I can contact HQ."

As Czar was asking for a telepathic comm. channel, he saw silhouettes appearing on the opposite edge of the battlefield. They were Celestia's followers who came to recover their wounded comrades.

"Can you see them too?"

"Yes sir, what should we do now?" asked a unicorn.

"Burn them. All of them."

"But sir… they are medics. They are here to save those poor beings. And… we should show them that we are better. I mean… we are spiritually above them. Aren't we supposed to be the good guys?"

"Why should we show mercy? Did they show mercy when they slaughtered innocents? Or when they destroyed entire towns and villages? They do not deserve our mercy! Never! As long as I live, they will pay for what they've done!"

"Than we shall give them Luna's mercy" said the lance's Captain, Moonshine. She was the spiritual leader of the ponies of the unit, the one who was the living reminder for what the ponies fought for. "I know how much hatred you have towards them, but we should leave them to do what they must." her voice was like a calming wind of kindness that made Czar shiver again.

"Yes… I think you're right, sister. I almost let my anger consume me. I'm sorry everypony. The fight is over and victory is ours. We need noting more to return home proudly. Thank you, sister."

"The flames in your soul are shining brighter then ever, brave knight of the night. This decision was hard, but right." Moonshine said, smiling at Czar.

"But this does not mean that we are merciful. As soon as we meet them again, we will kill them all. But for now, I think we should leave this place." said Czar with flames of wrath in his eyes.

He ordered his warriors to get ready for the long trip. But as they were saddling up, he looked back at the flaming field again. He thought, "The new world will rise from the ashes. The ashes left by the proud Knights of the Holy Knight and the Scorchers. If we want to set out the fires of war, we will have to use our own fire. Celestia's pathetic servants shall leave in peace, but we'll meet them soon. Very soon. And they will have no mercy that time."

After everything was ready, they began to trot from the scene of the bloody combat. But they left something behind. A large stone, made out of moon rock, filled with the names of those who were killed in the vicious fight. And it had a sentence, sacred for all of Luna's followers:

"Luna potest vos defendere et Stellarum in lumine Noctis lucebit semita tua"

("May the Moon protect you, and the light of the Stars of the Night shine upon your path.")

fin