“We’re getting nowhere with this.” Grim started. “You keep avoiding the main question, filling me in on useless information—”

The door behind me made a knocking sound. Somepony was outside. Grim, annoyed by the interruption, trotted to the door, and proceeded to open it.

“I’m in the middle of something. This better be good.”

“We have a situation with Number Two. She-” I turned to look and found a mare I didn’t recognize standing at the door. We made eye contact, and she spoke again. “She’s having a breakdown. She refuses to cooperate.”

“Is that Sunshine? Is she alright!?”

“Quiet!” Grim snapped at me, staring hard into my eyes, urging me to sit down. I just then noticed my hooves standing up. I don’t remember when I stood up.

Grim continued “What did they do to her before you were sent here?”

“They had her restrained to a chair in the same room, to-”

“You tied her to a chair?!”

“I said QUIET!” Grim was yelling as well. He took a deep breath, before turning to face the mare.

“Like I said, we restrained her to her chair to prevent physical injuries on herself or others. What are your orders?”

Grim pondered to himself for a long while, trading glances at me and his acquaintance.

“Have the Unicorns implement a calm spell on her if the doctors can’t find a solution. For now, though, keep her restrained and monitored. If or when she’s stable enough to talk, then proceed as planned with the session.”

“Yes sir!” The mare answered diligently, before closing the door and trotting out. Grim took a seat in front of me.

“What have you done to her!?” I demanded.

“Too much, apparently…” he muttered. Bitterness swelled up inside me. He was the reason me and her were apart. And he didn’t seem to give a damn about her, or my well-being.

I frowned. “If you hurt her...”

Grim didn’t falter. He simply stared at me, with a stoic expression.

“I’m not hurting her.” He replied matter-of-factly. “And neither are they. Rest assured, we’re not trying to keep you separated. We’re not trying to hurt you. We’re doing our job."

“I still don’t get what is so damned important about the Aigaion that you are obsessed with prying it out of me!”

“Do you even understand the amount of public fear that was accumulated from the Changelings? How where every city that had ponies, or griffins, or yaks, there was always the chance a Changeling was infiltrating that city? The Changelings were no strangers to espionage, just as they are no strangers to combat as well.

“The paranoia that the public experienced as long as we were still fighting the Changelings wasn’t doing any favors. Defeatism was common across the country, which might’ve been the result of Changeling Espionage as well, for all I know. My point is that the Aigaion was especially feared by many when it made its debut in the war.

“The reason for our ‘obsession’, Night Light, is because we need to put an end to the reign of terror caused by this monstrosity. Most ponies think this thing still exists, even to this very day! Once we bury the hatchet, the ponies will have no more reason to fear. That is why we are doing this.”

“Why would that matter? The war is already over!”

Grim narrows his eyes. “Fear doesn't need a reason for ponies to be afraid.”

I sat back in my seat, sighing to myself, pondering Grim’s words. Staring at the window in front of me, I saw the shadows of clouds drift across the landscape. About 3 hours have passed by since I entered this room. Though I had no way of telling how long exactly.

“Back to the task at hoof. From what we can gather, you were there during the first sorties against the Aigaion. Like Las Pegasus; Describe what happened there. You were there that day, weren’t you?” Grim asked.

A shiver having nothing to do with the cold travels up my spine. I was very much hoping he would avoid this subject entirely.

A wave of shivers quakes my body as I visualize back to that day. My mind is refusing to form mental images.

“You do not have to go into every detail about the things you don’t want to remember.”

Grim must've caught my complexion because he spoke with a sudden reverence to me. A sort of respect that he knew what he was asking was hallowed territory in my mind.

“...Okay" I swallowed, taking a deep breath to stop the shaking. "I was stationed on the Blueblood still when the fleet was about to be docked there.”

Hearth’s Warming. It was a holiday that everypony knew well and one that was widely celebrated across Equestria. Though not as festive and enthusiastic as the previous Hearth’s Warmings before the war, ponies were still trying to be merry and cheerful despite the circumstances. The ship we were on would soon be docked at Las Pegasus for Repairs and Maintenance.

A common problem many of the ships faced was their lack of fuel storage. They could only cruise for about two weeks before having to refuel. That’s one week at least of total operation time during their voyage before we had to head back to port.

This time around, ponies didn’t seem to complain about the sudden change of course to Las Pegasus. A couple of the crew ponies said they had families in the city they wished to see on shore leave, or at the very least, to send a postcard to. The mood was optimistic across the ship, and ponies felt less anxious than usual. They weren’t on edge as much as they were out in the sea. At least in Las Pegasus, they were in Equestrian territory.

They even changed the rations of Lunch and Supper. We arrived at the city about 2 days ago, giving them plenty of time to refill our rations, ammunition, and fuel. The rations—instead of the usual Hayburger or occasional Celery Stick—we had Mashed Potatoes, Eggnog, Pies, and some good stuffing. A festive and welcome change from the usually bland selection.

For the last two days, in prep for celebrating Hearths Warming, ponies around the ship were singing holiday songs whilst eating their newly prepared feast. Some would even get up and dance to the music if they weren’t eating. Although Hearth’s Warming was about a week and a half away, ponies didn’t seem to mind celebrating early. Some even get letters from their distant families, loved ones, friends, or colleagues as an early gift. They were also given the luxury of writing back for once.

The last letter I’ve written to Sunshine was more than a year ago to this day.

I never got a response back from her. Even with her fighting on the front lines, I assumed she would have a little free time to write back. I was terrified of the implications of her not responding, but something deep in my soul told me she was still alive. I had no idea, of course, it was only a hunch.

But it felt right.

Despite my efforts to pry it out of almost every high-ranking military official I’ve come across, I could not find out where Sunshine was potentially stationed. They took their Operation Security very seriously against the Changelings so I could only guess. She could be in the Shire, or maybe she could be in the Crystal Empire. She could be one of the garrison soldiers here in Las Pegasus, but I had no way of knowing for sure.

Until now.

I was sitting in the cafeteria with my friends, munching on our food while listening to ponies sing “White Hearth’s Warming” when a courier waltzed through the room dancers with an announcement.

“Everypony, I’ve got letters from loved ones, families, and friends for all. Gather around!” he yelled, which urged everypony to line up near the courier as he handed out letters and postcards. I didn't pass up on the chance myself and jumped up in line to wait patiently for my turn. About two minutes passed by, and he looked me in the eye as I stepped forward.

“Is your name Night Light?”

I felt my heart skip a beat. “Yeah?”

“This one’s for you. From a ‘ST,’ if you recognize that initial.” he took the time to read the front of the envelope.

I felt my blood go cold. I quickly got a hold of the small envelope with two fancy initials scribbled on it.

ST to NL.

“Who is that from?” Lucky asked from behind, waiting for me to step back to the table to ask me of my leftovers.

I didn’t answer. I hastily opened the envelope instead and found a piece of parchment, folded with writing on it.

I immediately recognized the mouthwriting and unique calligraphy. This was her.

I silently read to myself.

Dear Night Light,

At the time I am writing this, it is somewhere in the middle October, 1012. I can’t remember what date exactly it is, but that’s beside the point. I am writing to you because I’ve received the letter that you wrote to me. I feel happy, knowing you are safe and sound for now. I have no idea how long that will last, however, so I am writing this for you to read so that you will know what is going on with me.

I cannot say where I am currently, due to Counter-Intelligence protocols. It’s very cold here, but me being a pegasi makes it not too bad. And the uniforms that Rarity made have good insulation, so I haven’t any need to worry so far. Except for the Changelings; we’re constantly on alert for any attack by them, it makes some of the ponies here a bit paranoid.

I hope you are doing as well as you can be during times like this. Celestia knows that I worry for you almost every day. I keep thinking about waking up one day and hearing that you were killed in action on a mission, and the thought of it terrifies me. But so far, that thought has not become a reality. I pray to Celestia and Luna every day to keep you safe.

And as for me, how I am doing; things are hectic around here. We keep getting pushed back by the Changeling onslaught further north. Ponies die are doing whatever they can. Although we’ve adapted somewhat, we are still not ready I think. I hope you are, for your sake.

I think made new friends as well if you can believe it. I like to think that they would’ve also been good friends before the war, but you know how it is. It is strange how fate and life works. If not for the war, I probably would’ve never met them.

But that’s for another day, I suppose. I am running out of paper. In case this letter takes a while to reach you, I hope you have a happy Hearth’s Warming, and a happy New Year! And I hope to hear from you again soon.

-Sunshine Tempest.

I had to fight the sudden urge to cry.

Tears were pricking the side of my eyes, as I finished reading the letter.

She did it. Spitfire submitted my letter. The next time I see her, I’m hugging her.

“You okay boss? Is something wrong?” Lucky asked, noticing my tears with a worried expression.

“No, I- er, I mean, yes. I am fine. I feel better now.”

“Who wrote that letter?”

“Sunshine. She wrote back to me.”

“Your marefriend?” Naya inquired, recognizing the name.

"I didn't know you had a relationship." Lucky was piqued after grabbing ahold of his letter to sit back down with me. "Or any family, really."

"She..." Words failed to describe how she and I met, apart from the fact we both grew up together in the same town all our lives.

"She's the only family I got left, at this point." I finished quietly as I reread the letter again and again.

"What about your mother and father?"

"I..." I paused. "I don't know what happened to them."

"Or maybe you don't wanna talk about it?“ Bigs chuckled. "I know the feeling. I miss my family back home. And I’m sure they miss me too. But fuck, do they drive me crazy! I'm glad I moved out of that house."

"Family shouldn't be shunned, it should be honored and loved." Naya piped up, sipping on a still-steaming tea cup from the servery. "I thought Equestrians were taught to respect their elders and for us to have fraternity?"

"Tell me you are not from Dodge City without saying it..." Bigs mumbled.

"I didn’t know you had brothers. What are their names?” Lucky asked.

“Muddy, Clutzy, Brawny, and Slender hooves they were called, and then there's me: Big Mouth. Muddy likes to get dirty and roll around in whatever filth he can find, and tends to do some stupid shit for no reason; Like going off to find a cockatrice on his own and go missing for three days, only to come back with the head of one in his mouth!"

That made me stop reading, caused Naya to stop sipping her tea to side-eye Big Mouth with a confused glare, and for Lucky to guffaw aloud with a belly laugh.

"He-heh-he actually did that?" Lucky chuckled the question.

"True story." Bigs smiled. "Now Clutzy? He is prone to accidents and easily pushed around. He wasn’t the most physical of us all. But he is pretty damn smart, for a small colt. He one time made a liquor still out of clay and glass."

"I think that is breaking every sanitary and production law that Equestria has." Naya atonally spoke up.

"And I bet it tasted like shit." Lucky agreed.

"It did, and it gave us all alcoholic poisoning for a day; we had to get our stomachs pumped that night."

All of us collectively stared at Bigs as if he were insane

"Yeah," Bigs awkwardly rubbed his neck with a hoof, "he may be smart by our standards, but the bar was very low still.

"Anyways, Brawny likes to move around a lot and is always physical. He likes to ‘remain active’, as he would say. He is known to be the bruiser out of all of us. He has the heaviest hooves anyone had ever seen and was undefeated in a fight."

"And Slender?" Lucky asked the final name.

"Slender... um..." He paused. "He kinda sucked, not gonna lie."

Another awkward pause.

"... Thats it?" Lucky asked. "That's all you got about him? Isn't he... like-"

"Skinny?" I asked for him. "Thin Boned? Small Framed? Frail?"

"He was boring and had abnormally longer limbs than each of us. And that's it."

“That sounds rather lame…” Naya muttered.

"He was rather lame." Bigs corrected. "The most boring stallion ever to exist, I think. He just reads, and reads, and reads... and reads. And he hardly speaks at all! It's like talking to a mannequin."

"Well then," Naya cleared her throat, "Apart from the last individual, your brothers all sounded like a unique band of ruffians."

“We were troublemakers, what can we say? We always found some way to cause havoc. Anything for a good bit of fun, I guess.”

“What did you do with them? What were you doing back then?” Lucky questioned. Bigs made a cocky, smug grin.

“I was called ‘Big Mouth’ because I was always getting into fights with ponies I didn’t know. And I got into those fights by giving them the meanest cussing streak of their lives. And when they tried to tussle, they end up with such bloody spots on their faces, that you can’t even recognize them.”

“So... You all caused nothing but trouble?” Naya piped up.

“Some of us did it intentionally, others did so unintentionally.” He gave a sly smile.

“And I thought my family was crazy…” I heard Lucky mutter to himself.

“Why? What did they do?” I inquired.

“Mud wars."

"Okay, so I guess we are just doing a show-and-tell today, huh?" Naya muttered to herself as she finished her now cool beverage.

"Once a year, every year," Lucky continued, "we would gather up all of our family members - distant and close - and have a feud by throwing mud at each other. We would divide up into two teams, based on which side of the family we were on. Whichever group was the least filthy wins bits as a reward. It was actually kinda fun.”

“That’s not crazy. That’s just plain stupid.” Bigs corrected.

“It was fun though! We all enjoyed it. It was a family tradition.”

“What was the tradition: being stupid, or being muddy?” Naya joked.

“Both!” Lucky laughed. Naya shook her head as Bigs just smiled.

“And what about you, Naya?” Bigs questioned.

“What about me?”

“Did your family do anything special for the holidays? Or anything at all?”

“Well, no. My family was not the... 'traditional' type.”

“Come on, you must have something special for us to share, right?” Lucky probed.

“Well..." She suddenly seemed small, as she kept her head low. "I guess you can count singing interesting.

“... You can sing?” I asked.

“Yes... I think.”

The three of us were looking at her skeptically. Naya waved her hooves in front of her in disapproval

“B-but that does not mean I am good at it! I-I’m not that great of a singer.”

“Well, prove it.” Luck leans on the table with his elbows.

“W-What?”

“Sing for us. Anything, it doesn’t matter, sing us a carol!”

“Yeah! Come on, I wanna hear this!” Bigs agreed.

“Didn’t you hear me say 20 seconds ago that I was not a good singer?”

“I don’t believe that. I mean, why are you doubting yourself so much? Come on, I’m sure you’ll sound fine!”

“I don’t even know that many songs! Seriously, I am not that good.”

“And I’m saying I disagree. Give it a chance it’ll only be this one time.” Lucky promised.

There was a quiet among us as she contemplated her choice intensely. Until I saw her shoulders sag.

Naya shifted in her seat with her cheeks flashing red, which was barely noticeable beneath her scarlet coat. “Just one time, and that’s it.”

We all looked at her anticipatingly, waiting for her to start. She cleared her throat, and sat upright on her haunches. In a crystal clear voice, with the pitch of a goddess, she closed her eyes and began to sing.

“Ages pass. Snow falls.

All the earth sleeps beneath

a blanket of white.

Darkness clouds the sky.

Snow falls without end.

Recalling our past, we march on.

Times of turmoil shall pass.

Dawn fills our hearts with light.

Our hopes rise with the brilliant.

Sun rises with faith in tomorrow, we march on.”

When Naya was finished, she opened her eyes and was greeted with the sight of me, Bigs, and Lucky staring at her, jaws and eyes wide open. Naya looked worried.

“Was… was it good?” She asked, afraid of our answer. Some of the other ponies were looking at her with astonishment as well. Everypony who managed to overhear the song was staring at Naya in shock.

And an in instant, everypony began to simultaneously cheer for her.

“That was amazing! Seriously, how could you think you weren’t good with a voice like that!?” Lucky practically yelled. Everypony else agreed with Lucky’s connection.

“Was it that good?” Naya asked.

“Are you kidding me? It was better than good! It was amazing, you have the voice of a princess!” one of the other pilots piped up.

“He’s right.” I agreed. “I don’t know why you doubt yourself so much, you sounded awesome!”

Naya was furiously blushing now. It actually looked kind of adorable. “I… thank you, Night Light. That really means a lot to me.”

“Of course! that’s what friends are for, right?”

She gave a warm and optimistic smile, making me feel happy for her. She’s definitely recovering.

My thoughts were interrupted by a horrendous noise that filled the entire room. Through the never-ending siren, I heard Hawk Eyes almost scream through the intercom over the noise.

“General Quarters, General Quarters! All Personnel, Battlestations! Battlestations! Pilots, report to Briefing!”

In an instant, everypony sprung.

The caroling, dancing, eating, talking, festivities, and fun simultaneously stopped, replaced by a vigorous resolution for ponies to move to their places as fast as physically possible. Everypony stood up and mingled their way to their assigned positions.

My friends and I looked at one another and bolted up almost simultaneously.

Most of the crew ponies were moving to the flight deck, to mount the AA batteries on the ship. The others were heading further below deck, to monitor and maintain the ship’s vital parts to keep it in working condition.

They would be there to help keep the Blueblood afloat if it takes damage. The rest of the ponies were pilots, such as myself, and they were galloping, flying, and trotting their way to the Hanger Bay to reach the Mission Room.

When I arrived at Hanger Bay, I lost sight of my friends in the midst of the confused chaos. I flew my way over the large crowd of ponies to the other side of the large hangar, towards the Mission Room.

When I opened the door, the ponies working the projector were frantically working to sort the different pictures for their slides. A few pilots were already sitting down in their seats, waiting for new orders. Some of them looked anxious.

A few of these ponies were still rookies: this would be their first mission… and possibly their last.

I sat down in one of the metal chairs, facing the wall away from the projector behind me. More ponies began to mingle, including Naya. She sat in the chair next to me.

“What’s happening?” Naya asked, in a noticeably worried tone of voice.

“I don’t know,” I replied.

More pilots trotted in and sat down in their chairs. About two minutes later, the lights began to dim. I could hear the projector behind me start-up as Hawk Eyes trotted into the room, his face as grim as it can be.

The Battle-Stations alarm was starting to die down in volume when most of the ponies began to realize what was going on. The screen was filled with white light, and Hawk Eyes cleared his throat before he began to speak. His voice was gruff and serious, earning everypony’s attention from the moment he started talking.

“Everypony, listen up! We have a situation! LPRS has picked a massive formation of enemy aircraft about 45 minutes away from here to the northwest, and they are approaching our location. We’re expecting Bombers and Fighters of all kinds to be present. The fleet is exposed to any air attack, meaning we’re sitting ducks!

“The city of Las Pegasus will be under attack, and Civilians are making their way to the bomb shelters now. We’re launching all available aircraft in the vicinity to join us on this fight. Blueblood and Pegasopolis are requested to launch all available fighters to intercept. As long as those enemy planes are still in the air, the city is at risk of being damaged.”

The pictures on the screen began to change, revealing the city but at an even higher altitude and facing top down. I could see warships in the harbor, which were very small compared to the city.

“Many of the industrial centers are at risk of being annihilated. Your orders are to keep the city safe and to intercept all threats present over the city. We’re counting on flawless execution here! I want you all to wipe these bugs from our skies! If they want to attack us, let them come!

“Since this will be an extended operation, the Sky Strip and the Carriers will act as forward air bases for planes to resupply if needed. There are no Guarantees that the Sky Strip will remain operational throughout the battle since it is likely that it’ll suffer damage during the bombing. More information will follow from Long Eye once he’s in the air.

“Garuda will take off first, followed by Nimbus, Cumulus, Dash, Stratus, and Sky. You all have 5 minutes to suit up and be at your assigned positions! Dismissed!”

With those words, everypony sprung to action.

All the ponies sprinted out of the room and made their way to the lockers, to go off on sortie. I flew over the crowd of ponies again and saw ponies all around Hanger Bay moving aircraft to one of the elevating platforms, preparing for take-off.

Once I made it to the locker room, I galloped toward my designated locker. Upon opening it, I retrieved the jacket that I’d worn over Mead Lake. It wasn’t as filthy as it was before, but it still had some stains on it from the ordeal, though barely noticeable.

Fumbling around with it made the Eavesdropper that Doc gave me fall out of my pocket and onto the ground. I scrambled to pick it up, inspecting it for damage.

I paused.

It hadn’t left my pocket ever since I first acquired it, and this was the first time I had gotten a look at it since then.

And, again since then, I felt that... feeling. There was an inexplicable weight in the air around me as if we had suddenly sunk underwater. My heart, though it thundered it minute ago, was now calm and controlled in its rhythm.

The air felt static. As if time had frozen in that moment as I stared at the... seemingly small, frail, and worthless piece of tech in my grasp.

Doc's words echoed in my head.

You will be arguably more dangerous than you could ever hope to be, just with this little gadget.

Shaking my head, I stowed it back in the pocket and proceeded to suit up. I'll put it on later, right now I need to suit up. Naya, Bigs, and Lucky were at their lockers suiting up as well.

Lucky was already finished with his, and he then galloped outside, to the flight deck no doubt. I put on my flight cap, and my life preserver vest as Bigs was also finished as he galloped to the flight deck as well.

When I was finally done preparing, I looked over to Naya, who was still trying to get into her jacket. She struggled a little bit.

I noticed her arms were visibly shaking. She was nervous, I can tell. I tapped her on the wither, and she turned to face me.

“How are you holding up?” I asked. She didn’t reply at first.

“... I’ll live.” she finally spoke, as she finished putting on her jacket. She turned to trot out the door.

“Hey, listen to me,” I called out to her. She turned to face me, anxiety etched on her expression. “Whatever happens up there, I need you to keep your cool. Don’t panic, shoot straight, and fly true. Alright?”

She pondered to herself for a little while, before replying “I’m not worried about me. I’m worried about all of us. What’ll happen if you get shot down again? Who will guide us?”

“If I do get shot down, we’ll be in home territory, and close to the fleet. I’ll be fine. What you need to focus on is keeping the ponies in the city and in the fleet safe and sound. I want you to focus on that for me. In any case, you are #2, so I expect you to keep your cool and take the mantle if that happens. Okay?”

It somewhat shocked me at how nonchalant I was at talking about my potential death, a fact that wasn't lost onto me as I spoke to her. I felt the same dread that encompassed me every day of a potential attack morph into a gnawing fear, that the nightmare I had tried to avoid was about to become reality again.

But I didn't care. It seemed unworthy of my attention to think on such things. Not when my squad and friends were counting on me.

Naya was looking down at the floor, her bangs hiding her facial features. I placed my hoof under her chin and propped her face up to me. She looked almost sick. I then gave her a rough hug, which she did not expect.

“Everything will be alright. I know it will be. I need you to be strong, not just for me, but for us.”

She didn’t move. She simply stood there, as I continued to hold her.

“I’ll try.” She softly assured.

Afterward, me and Naya made our way to the flight deck as fast as we could to meet up with Bigs and Lucky. Upon stepping outside, we could hear more sirens in the distance coming from the city, felt the cold against our coats, and could see the fleet mobilizing for action. The sky was overcast, filling the air and atmosphere with a grey tint.

The Pegasopolis was doing the same thing, both of which had Destroyers escorting them. The Cruisers and Battleships, along with several other Capital Ships, were forming closer together in formation, their AA Batteries ready for combat. I saw a large squadron of planes form up in the sky over Las Pegasus, coming from the Sky Strip. The whole city seemed to be wide awake.

I saw our planes for my team being lined up by crew ponies, who were frantically working their flanks off to get the planes into position. Others were too busy trying to shovel snow off of the flight deck and prepare for take off. The rest were doing… something. I can’t tell what else they were doing.

“Hey, you four, get in while we get you set up!” one of the ponies yelled at us whilst pulling onto one of our aircraft into position. My friends and I galloped towards the aircraft and proceeded to board them.

When I sat down in my seat inside the cockpit, the plane was moving on it’s own. We still weren’t lined up for takeoff just yet, as the ponies were working tirelessly to ready us for takeoff.

I fetched out the Eavesdropper from my pocket again, and inspected it for wear and tear until wrapped the piece around the ear lobe and tucked the speaker in the canal.

I set my other earphones for communications on the other ear and proceeded to set the correct frequencies. The channels remained unchanged until we were compromised by some infiltration of radio frequencies. By then, we would change it to something else, and spend a good amount of time trying to remember it.

As soon as I set the following radio channels, I heard a tinny voice speak to me in my left ear.

“Hello hello,” it spoke. Its voice sounded vaguely familiar. “If you can hear this, then that means the device is working. Listen carefully.”

It was Doc’s voice.

“You cannot speak through this thing, but we can speak to you. Although, we will refrain from communications once you are airborne. Your task, besides your military objective, is to tune in on the enemy communications and find out what they are saying in the air. If you can listen to them, we can listen to them as well. Simultaneously.”

I continued to listen to Doc’s almost mechanical voice as the plane stopped moving. The crew ponies seemed to have everything ready.

“We will monitor enemy communication throughout the rest of the flight. You may also use this device against your enemies in a dogfight as well, so use it responsibly. But other than that, there is not much else to say to you.” He was silent for a while but he finished by saying, “Good luck, Night Light.” before the voice went silent with an audible squelch.

I heard another tinny voice speak to me, this time in my right ear. “Blueblood control to Garuda Team, are all members ready?”

I looked back behind me, and saw the other planes lined up, prepped, and ready to go. “Affirmative, Blueblood. We’re ready for war.” I spoke back.

“Roger, standby. We’re analyzing the situation.” I sat in the cockpit canopy, switching radio frequencies for my team, and for Spitfire’s team. There was light snowfall that littered the canopy glass, slightly obscuring my vision.

The weather is going to be a problem, I can tell.

I spoke into my mask again, speaking to my friends. “Garuda team, are you ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Da.”

“Yup.” They all spoke at once.

“Set your flaps for takeoff, and start your engines. Keep the throttle back until I say so.” I ordered, as I did the same. I set the radiator flaps open about halfway, to reduce engine heat and drag. I also had my ailerons trimmed, to even it out the instability mid-flight.

“Garuda, you have permission to take off. Launch now!” Blueblood announced.

“Affirm we’re launching now.” I switched to my team’s frequency. “Everypony, we’re on a tight schedule again, so do a speedy takeoff.”

“Waiting on you.” Lucky responded.

I slid the throttle all the way forward, and the propeller began to spin even faster. Soon, my plane was slowly gliding along the small runway and was floating in the air in less than 20 seconds. I pulled the stick back to increase altitude, and raised my flaps. I glanced behind me, and saw the others beginning to lurch forward along the runway. I flew upward, gaining altitude as I continued to watch. One by one, they were in the air.

“Garuda team launched. Good Hunting!” Blueblood spoke once again.

“Everypony, get to 1500 meters or so and regroup on me. No formation this time, just meet with me.”

“Affirmative.” Bigs answered. I looked down below and saw a better view of the area around me. And the chaos with it. The entire fleet was moving into action, as they prepared for the incoming onslaught. There were more planes being launched from the Pegasopolis as well as from land. I couldn’t tell exactly how many aircraft are over the city, but I estimated at least 80 of them so far. More on the way.

I noticed Blue Smoke streaming from one of the planes launched from the Pegasopolis. Soon after, more planes from the carrier began following the smoke, trailing behind in a neat and spaced-out line formation. It was the Wonderbolts again.

Spitfire and her team was stationed on the Pegasopolis. Me and my team, along with several others, were stationed on the Blueblood. This is obvious enough. What I did not know, however, was that there was more Wonderbolts than I originally thought. During the raid over Pegasi Gulf, the Wonderbolts had about 8 to 12 planes with them. A large number for one team. Now though, I could make out at least 18 of them, maybe more. So many planes from everywhere were being launched for this battle. I felt my hooves quivering at the stick.

My friends were steadily gaining on me as I reached the objective altitude. They began to form up on me in an echelon - a diagonal line - to my right. I noticed in the distance that more planes were being lined up for takeoff on the Blueblood’s runway. I couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming premonition that something terrible was coming. The sounds of Air Raid sirens can still be heard from the city over the roar of the engine, as I continued to fly westbound.

I switched my frequency to the Blueblood, and proceeded to speak into the mask. “Blueblood, this is Garuda, what is our current objective at this time?”

There was silence for a little while, before they answered. “Current orders are unknown at this time. Universally, the Primary Objective is to defend Las Pegasus. Other than that, I can’t tell.”

“Roger, we’ll get in contact with somepony, and go from there. What’s the estimation on when the enemy will arrive?”

“At least a half-an-hour. Exact time is unknown. They’ll be approaching from the Northwest”

“Ten-four, Garuda out.” I finished, and switched channels. “Okay Garuda, the enemy is expected to be over the city in less than half-an-hour, arriving from Northwest. This isn’t a tactical air raid, this is an all out battle. Free engagement is allowed as far as I know, so remain vigilant and wary of allied planes with enemy planes. I don’t want any friendly fire accidents!”

“Finally, I get to up my ‘Bugs Squashed’ count.” Bigs muttered to himself.

“I reckon this’ll be quite a perilous mission. Y’all oughta be careful.” Lucky warned.

“I’m ready for what they throw at me.” Naya reassured… although I do not know if she was trying to convince us, or herself.

“Keep your head in the game, and stay focused on your surroundings. The sky will no doubt get crowded, so don’t fly too erratically and crash into somepony.” I instructed to my friends. Not one of them said another word.

I heard another voice speak in my right ear, one of a mare. “Night Light, I hope you and your squad are ready for action! We’re heading 295, along the coastline, to try and find the bombers before they reach the city limits. You’re more than welcome to join us, or to stay and defend the city. Your choice.” It was Spitfire, calling out to me on Lead Channel. I switched to it, and replied back to her.

“Roger that, I’ll decide what to do soon. Good luck to you.”

“Yeah, you too. Be careful.”

I switched channels again, back to my team. “Okay, listen carefully. Here’s what’s going to happen. Naya, you’re flying with me. We’ll be heading 295 along the coast with others in hopes of finding the enemy before they find us. Bigs and Lucky, you two will stay above the Harbor and the Gulf, engaging any enemies you may encounter. Lucky, you’re in charge of your 2-pony group until I say so. Be effective and thorough in your call outs.”

“Affirmative. I’ll do my best not to disappoint.” Lucky answered. Bigs remained silent.

“Naya, you’re my wingpony for this fight. Stay strong, alright?”

“Okay…” she softly replied. She sounded hesitant, but it was too late to gripe and talk about it now. I’ll just have to take her word for it. Afterwards, I switched to Lead Channel and spoke into the mask, talking to Spitfire.

“Wonderbolt Lead, Garuda 1 and 2 are linking up with you guys. We’ll assist you in the interception mission.”

“Good to hear, Night Light. We’ll be up ahead.” she answered before speaking again, this time to everypony listening in on Lead Channel. “All Teams, Roll Call!”

“Nimbus is 6 Strong!”

“Gryphus is ready, 3 Strong!”

“Cumulus is currently 2 Strong, more members are on the way.”

“Dash is 5 Strong, with more incoming.”

“Sapphire is ready, 8 Strong!”

“Stratus is 3 Strong, more on the way.”

“Garuda is 4 Strong, and ready!” I joined in soon after.

“And Wonderbolts are 22 Strong, with more reserves incoming.” Spitfire butted in. “More teams are incoming, but it looks like most of everypony is here.”

“Sergeant Spitfire, what are our current orders?” One pony asked.

“I’m getting to that, listen carefully. Nimbus, Sapphire, Gryphus, and Garuda are assisting the Wonderbolts with Interception duty, heading 295 along the coastline. Cumulus, Dash, and Stratus will loiter over the city’s harbor and act as a second line of defense. Our goal is to shoot down as many bombers as we can, with fighters joining them.” She paused a moment, to catch her breath. “Gryphus, you’ll be Booming and Zooming while shooting down as many fighter escorts as you can before you have to RTB. Nimbus, and Sapphire will bait enemy fighters away from the formation to the west, and they’ll assist you in engaging them.”

“Copy that, Wonderbolt Lead. moving into position.” Gryphus lead replied.

“Sapphire confirms orders, mobilizing now.”

“Affirm from Nimbus, we’re moving.”

“Right, Garuda and us will be focusing on the Bombers. Kill as many as you can. Do all teams copy?” Spitfire asked over the radio, to everypony listening.

“Garuda copies.” I replied.

“Nimbus copies.”

“Cumulus copies.”

“Stratus copies.”

“Dash copies.”

“Gryphus confirms orders.”

“Sapphire copies move orders.” they all replied at once.

“Right then, move it or lose it!” Spitfire barked as all the planes around us began to mobilize. I could count at least 10 planes turning back and heading toward the city, in a scrambled and loose formation. More planes from the fleet and the Sky Strip were joining the sky in this great crusade. More and more planes began forming near me, flying in the same direction as my team was.

I switched my channels to Garuda again, and spoke into the mask. “Garuda Team, listen up: We’re tasked to shoot down as many bombers as we can before having to RTB. as you know, the Sky Strip and the Blueblood are available if you need to RTB for resupply. Do not hesitate to use it. Stay close to each other or to a Wonderbolt, and you’ll be fine. Understood?”

“We copy, Night Light.” Bigs responded first.

We flew Northwest for about 10 minutes or so, the Air Raid Sirens steadily moving out of earshot as we moved away from the city. During this time, Spitfire continued to call roll and order newcomers from the Blueblood or Pegasopolis to loiter over the harbor. More planes from the Sky Strip began to follow our formation heading Northwest. About half of our force was split up: one half intercepting the bombers, the other half defending the city harbor. With more still incoming from the Sky Strip, as well as other airfields in close proximity. In total, it should be about 200-300 planes. I have no idea if it would be enough, but we were about to find out.

Suddenly, in my left ear, I heard static noises emit from The Eavesdropper. No other noise or voice was heard. Nothing but static. I then realized that enemy communications were being transmitted through the earpiece, but was just out of range. We had to be close to them by now. my altitude was currently 1400 Meters, just underneath the cloud cover. I didn’t know if the Changelings would be over, inside, or underneath the clouds. Gryphus was above it, keeping an eye out for any aircraft. I could not see anything beyond a few hundred yards; the snowfall and fog was making it difficult to see very far.

“Spitfire to all planes, do you see anything?” Spitfire called out in my Right Earmuff.

“I see clouds, water, and sky. And planes, but they’re just our planes.” Somepony else remarked rather sarcastically.

“Be serious! Gryphus, do you have a visual?”

“Negative. We have no visual contact.”

More static emitted from my left ear, and more garbled voices can be heard. I could almost make out what they say, but not quite enough. My hooves were slightly shaking, and I could feel tingles down my spine. Maybe goosebumps.

“All planes, spread out and keep your eyes peeled. The second you see them, call ‘em out!” Spitfire ordered in my right ear.

“Ten-four! Sapphire is peeling off to the west a bit.” I heard somepony else say, before seeing some of our planes break off from the large formation we were flying in. Another group of planes proceeded to increase altitude, trying to climb above the clouds.

Another fit of garbled voices were speaking in my left ear, but I could recognize some bits and pieces of it.

“... eep an eye for… can’t give away our position for…”

There wasn’t much to go on. All I knew for certain was that they didn’t want to be revealed. What did Doc say the range on this thing was again? Five Kilometers? We had to be alarmingly close by now, if I could hear them like so. It also spoke in a strangely natural yet artificial voice, almost like someone was reading a script and was getting very drawn into it. The voices continued.

“-ay inside the clouds. The closer we are - kzt bsht - ithout becoming detected.”

I understood it that time. They were hiding in the clouds it seems. How close they were was unclear, nor what altitude they were. There was also the potential fundamental problem that they could be using the imperial measurement system instead of metric, like how I was using, to throw me off. But wherever they are, they were really close.

“I see something.” Someone from Gryphus called out.

“What is it?” Spitfire answered

“It’s… something. I can’t say it’s an aircraft, because it’s not. But whatever shape it is, it’s big, and hiding in the clouds.”

“Weird. How far is it?”

“Eh, about… eight to twelve klicks. Give or take. Can’t make out what it is.”

“Okay, roger that. Do you see anything else?”

“Negative.”

“Alright, climb higher and find out what it is. The rest of you, maintain formation.”

Then I heard something that finally gave me a clue to where the enemy was. More voices emit from my left ear.

“Maintain formation and stay above 1000 meters. If we stay just above the lower cloud layer, we’ll slip through easily.”

I glanced downward to my left, after rolling my plane a bit to the side. I saw a couple of cracks through the clouds, revealing a greyish ocean that somehow looked colder than before. Through one of the cracks I saw a mass of shapes glide underneath us… and nobody noticed it.

“I see them! They’re below us!” I yelled through the mask. “Naya, dive! Dive now!”

“What? Below us?” Spitfire repeated, clearly confused of what’s happening. I proceeded to dip my plane downward, towards the crack in the clouds below us. Naya was following close behind.

“Wait… I see them too! They were hiding in the clouds below us!” Somepony else called out.

“Ah shit! Okay, dive! Intercept them immediately!” Soon after, more planes began to fly downward. I was ahead of everypony, Naya beside me to my left as we continued to descend. Soon, we were speeding very fast, and very far down, until we were below the cloud cover. As soon as I could see around me, I found - not one, but several - large formations of bombers. No fighter escorts. Strange. But I counted at least 20 or so bombers before moving to engage.

I heard more voices on my left ear. "Contact! 6 o’clock level! They found us!"

More allied planes broke through the clouds as tracers began to fill the air around me. And once again, chaos ensued.

I began the engagement against several 111s, diving down above them as I sent gold tracers striking their craft. They soon dissipated into recognizable shards of steel and aluminum. Soon, they began to spread out, from panic and shock at their casualties I assumed.

I zoomed past the formation, descending downward as pieces of the bombers fell down with me. I pulled back on the stick to elevate upward and engage them again. It was at that moment that my plane began to vibrate and shake, before it spun flatly to the right. Soon, I found myself in a flat spin, descending downward.

“Night Light, respond. Are you alright?” Naya called out in my right ear. I didn’t answer. I stepped my left hind leg down on the rudder, trying to counteract the momentum of the spin. While doing so, I carefully tried to steer the nose of my craft downward, to gain speed and energy. Soon, the plane was now in a barrel roll instead of a flat spin, and I carefully elevated upward. As this was happening, I saw the ocean rapidly closing in on me. It reminded me of that Nightmare I keep having…

No!

No, not like this!

I gave it everything I had, and pulled the stick back as far as I could. My speed was well above 500 knots, and my altitude was even lower than that in meters. As my plane began to stabilize and climb, it barely missed the flat churning plane of water, spraying water behind me as I flew just over. Once I began to gain altitude, I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

“Night Light Are you okay??” Naya asked again. I pulled the mask to my face.

“Yeah yeah, I’m good.” I half-casually responded, even though I nearly defecated myself from such a near-death experience.

“All planes, give me a sitrep: What’s the status on those bombers?” Spitfire called out.

“It's gone pear-shaped! We’ve lost 5 of our guys already.”

“Fuck- a-alright, Keep up the pressure. If we kill more of them, they’ll break. Gryphus, gimme a roll call.”

They didn’t respond.

While this was happening, I saw the bombers above me gradually getting closer to the city. The fighting had ensued for only about 5 minutes, and we weren’t making any big progress.

“Gryphus, respond! What’s happening over there?” again, no response.

“All units, we’re 7 minutes out from the city. Maintain formation.” a voice spoke in my left ear. We’re running out of time…

“Affirmative. Once we’ve done our job, the Aigaion will finish them off. Prioritize Destruction over Accuracy." another one spoke.

At that transmission, I felt something familiar. Something only scarcely felt when all my attentionwas diverted to myself.

I felt rage.

They were intent on destroying everything. And at that moment, I felt like I was responsible for all of those ponies down below me. I felt like I was doing everything I could, and yet it would not be enough.

But the fury was palpable enough for me to try it anyway.

I gained altitude once more, aiming for the front bomber formation. I found myself right underneath their blind spot. There would be no turret protecting them from that angle. As I was about a few hundred meters below them, I revved the throttle forward and pulled the trigger. Some of the tracers struck home and tore a wing off, its wreckage speeding past me as I climbed upward above the formation.

After I was a good distance in front of them, I turned to the right and flew straight downward from above them. As I suspected, their front gunners tried to open up on me, and almost all of them were missing; I was in their dead zone.

More golden tracers were sent from my craft, as communications on both ears were getting hectic. I heard sporadic bits and pieces of dialogue that I could faintly make out on both sides. But it was impossible to interpret them all at once. It mostly consisted of panic from both sides as they were suffering casualties.

More bombers began to fall down to the ocean below as I shot them down one by one. After I zoomed past them, again and again, their gunners barely missing me with each bout. Each time I zoomed past, I squeezed the trigger. Each time, a bomber falls to the earth.

“Where the fuck is our escort? We're getting slaughtered out here!” my left ear heard more Changeling voices.

“Stay cool, it won’t be long now. They can’t shoot all of us down. The Aigaion will maintain air superiority once we’ve done our job.”

There’s that name again… what the fuck is ‘Aigaion’?

“All planes, Las Pegasus have picked up more aircraft approaching from the Northwest. Looks like fighters.” Spitfire announced.

“No! Sapphire lead is down!”

“Berry, get a grip! You gotta take over command!”

“How many of them are there?!” One mare screeched.

I performed the same strategy as I engaged the bomber formation again. With each time I pass by them, at least one or two of them were shot down. They were steadily withering, but about 10 or 12 still remained. Soon though, there won’t be any. If I can’t stop the damage, then I’ll make sure the ones who caused it won’t get back alive.

More golden tracers strike their planes, the 20 Mil Cannons ripping them to shreds. It only required a small burst to shoot one down. The only problem was the ammo count was much smaller, meaning I can’t spray and pray. I’ll have to be selective on my targets.

At that moment, spitfires from the East, appearing seemingly out of thin air, began to swarm the formation. More and more of them began to fall and burn. It was the reserves that were loitering over Las Pegasus. They arrived just in time to stop the first formation.

“Group one has been shot down. Groups two and three are still in pursuit!”

“We’re almost there. Keep flying, we’ll make them pay.” As the voice concluded, more and more bombers in formation emerge from the thick cumulonimbus that stretched to the aethers.

There was no way we could stop them all in time... there was just too many.

“All planes, they’re over the Gulf, engage at will!” Another pony called out.

“Gryphus, this is Wonderbolt Lead, respond! What the fuck is happening over there?” Once again, no response was heard.

They might have been shot down… but from what? Maybe it was the fighters that Spitfire was warning us about?

“Ah forget it - Wonderbolts, on me! Let’s fry these Bugs!” Spitfire ordered.

“3 minutes out.” the voice in my left ear announce again.

I turned my plane to the North to engage the second group of bombers, and more allied planes began to do the same thing. Green and Golden tracers danced in the sky around me. Aircraft from both sidwere falling down to the earth. Some on fire, some in pieces, some not even recognized as a plane; just bits of metal. I saw one of our spitfires catch fire and fall down.

Some of the green tracers were striking my craft, poking holes all over my wings. Thankfully, the bird of steel was still flying despite the damage. Although my plane was littered with holes, it was still airborne and flyable. I still have ammo left, though not a lot.

“2 Minutes out… Pilot to Bombardier, your ship.”

“Bombardier to Pilot, roger that.”

“We’re running out of time. All planes, give it everything we got!” I ordered my team in the mask. “Bigs, Lucky, intercept them immediately!”

“What does it look like I’m doing?!” Bigs replied.

“I’m coming from up top, 12 o'clock high! Watch out!” Lucky called out.

More fiery wrecks of bombers descended downward to the earth, but the number of bombers that still remained was not enough to minimize the damage… there was no avoiding it. Soon, Flak started to erupt in the sky.

“Pod 5 has been hit! We’re down to 8 in the second group!”

“Keep it steady! 1 more minute!”

“Opening bomb bay doors!”

I saw the bombers beginning to drop altitude a little bit, but not going down. They were gaining speed and preparing to release the Payload.

“Everypony, now or never! SHOOT DOWN THOSE BOMBERS!” I screamed.

The number of Golden tracers that filled the sky seemed to have increased tenfold. And steadily, one by one, more bombers were going down.

... But it wasn’t enough. Soon, I saw many small, cylinder shaped objects - Bombs, I assumed - drop from the bomb bay doors. There were at least 80 bombs, most likely more, that were dropping towards the city. Soon after, the bombers veered Northbound, away from the city.

“Bombs away, bombs away!”

“We’re done here! pull off, pull off! Aigaion will finish them off!” That stupid name was starting to get on my nerves. What the fuck is an ‘Aigaion’?!

“They dropped their payload! They’re breaking formation.”

“Nimbus, Dash, intercept the third formation! Move it!” Spitfire barked through my right ear. Only a handful of bombers from the second group were still airborne, with more on the way.

Soon, I saw a flash of light to my right as my plane faced west. It erupted like a torrent of lightning from the earth. I saw it was coming from Las Pegasus, as I saw light emit from the ground. Seconds later, that light transformed into a giant blaze.

A blaze of fire.

“What is going on? The city is on fire!” Somepony called out.

“It’s… it’s spreading. The whole city is gonna go up in flames!”

“Those must’ve been Thermobaric Bombs!“

“Oh my God... it's burning everything!”

The inferno was slowly starting to seep into the many buildings that cluster around the harbor. Soon, they were burning to the ground until nothing but glass remained. Staring at the fire, I felt more rage well up inside me. There were still ponies inside those homes down there, and they could be burning…

“Night Light, what are your orders now?” Bigs called out in my right ear. I felt a single tear run down my left cheek, as I pulled the mask slowly to my face.

“Garuda team…” I didn’t finish my sentence; I struggled to hold back more tears.

“Night Light?!” Bigs asked.

The third formation of Bombers flew into view as they broke through the clouds. Spitfires were swarming them from all sides, sending golden tracers towards them as they fired back. I felt numb to the core.

It was too much; the chaos, the destruction, the overwhelming adversity, the sensory overload of voices screaming in my ears. For a moment, I thought I had gone deaf as shellshock took hold of me.

And like a stream of water clearing a channel through the grime, a heard something in the eavesdropper that stood out to me.

“Pod 7 to Aigaion, payload delivered and the mantle is yours.”

“Aigaion to Pod, roger that. We’re moving into position now… All planes, assume defensive formations!”

I screamed out loud in frustration. This Aigaion character was really starting to piss me off. As I flew closer to the third formation, I fired my cannons with reckless abandon, tearing their hull to literal shreds as their wrecks dropped to the ocean below. But it wasn't enough as soon, the third formation released their payload as well, adding more fuel to the Inferno.

“The third group has completed their course… Aigaion, the rest is on you.”

“Aigaion confirms orders. Moving to establish Air Superiority.”

The bomber formation began to spread and dissipate, leaving nothing but a burning city, smoke, planes, bullets, and flak filling the sky. Many of the escort planes that were engaging us began to pull off and veer away from the furball that was being developed. Soon, it looked like they were retreating.

"They're falling back! Do we pursue?"

"Negative, let them run! No point risking our lives now." Spitfire orders to all planes.

Before anyone could reply, there was a sound.

A new sound pierced the veiled air of the storm in front of us. It was loud, ominous, and mighty.

A deep, and long bellow of a foghorn was heard, seemingly from the heavens itself as it seemingly manifested without any sort of origin.

Soon, I saw flashes of light shine through the clouds.

“What the hell is that noise!?” Lucky asked.

Soon, the clouds began to fade and twirl away, revealing a new shape… one I have never seen.

It had a polymer-like material, for a giant balloon that was effortlessly gliding through the air. The horn sounded again, just as awful as the first time I heard it.

The underbelly of this beast was mostly metal, with many industrial-sized propellers accelerating it forward and several arcane-looking engines underneath that carried propulsion upward. It boasted massive cannons sticking out from seemingly every direction, and machine gun ports in nearly the same spots. Spotlights below the ship were flashing their beams of light everywhere. It was a geometric shape that seemed to have consumed the clouds around it.

As it came into full view, the foghorn sounded once again. Loud enough to pierce the glass of the Cockpit and overlap the sounds of the engine rumbling.

“What in the fuck?! What in Tartarus is that fucking thing?!” A mare screamed through the radio.

Embedded at the very front of this monstrosity was cursive writing:

Aigaion

Naya's Song: