Music: Red Baron by Sabaton.

About a month later...

Rainbow looked out over the edge of the ship she was on, gazing at the zebrican coastline. On the shore, the fresh wave of Prhyan troops were assembling around the various standards the served under. As the ship, the Invictus, ran aground on the sandy beaches, she unfurled her wings and took off, not wanting to wait for the rest of the reinforcements.

If it was up to her, she wouldn't even be on the ship; she would've flown right here. However, the Caesar had insisted she come with the fresh troops for the campaign. She had claimed for it was morale purposes or something along those lines. Mostly, however, the soldiers and sailors either ignored her or would just stare at her. She didn't mind the attention, but after the first week at sea, it just got a little bit creepy. After three, she was more than willing to get off. A desire the Caesar apparently saw, as she had told her to fly ahead and assist someone called Praetor Cossinius, who had engaged a zebrican army.

So, she flew over the marching forward section of the army, heading toward Cossinius's position. Below her stretched out the zebrican coastal region; a sweeping plain of tall, husky yellow grass, crooked trees, and large rocks that seemed to stick out of the ground like teeth. All of this stretched as far as the eye could see, marred only by a non-natural feature: a large plume of rising dust and smoke. As she got closer to the dust cloud, she got confirmation as to what it was. That confirmation came in the form of other sounds: horns, the clashing of weapons, and shouting. She was here.

The field on which the battle was taking place bore no real distinction to the rest of the savannah that surrounded the two armies. One side, the mail-clad Pryhan soldiers pressed an advance, centurions shouting orders and horns blowing their own orders over the dull thrum of combat. Against them, the zebra warriors, clad in hide armors with feather, bone, and jewel adornments, fought back, hooked knives and clubs clashing against short swords in a brutal melee. From down there, it looked like anyone's battle.

However, this was not the case from her position, where she could clearly see the trap the zebras set. While the Pryhan forces pushed forward, groups of zebras were working their way around the sides of the army, slinking through the tall grass. Soon, the army would be completely surrounded.

One the edge of the battle, nestled up on a hill, sat a tent and a small contingent of soldiers. Judging from the large helmet crests and eagle standard, which she had learned about in her lessons, this was a command tent. She ground to a halt outside, kicking up a small cloud of dust as did so.

The two guards outside the tent drew their swords, yet relaxed somewhat when a young voice said, "Hold, men." Out of the tent came a young caragor, perhaps even a little bit younger than her. He wore equipment and armor similar to that of Dorus back at the villa, yet a bit dustier, which would be a given, and a proper swagger stick as opposed to a simple vine staff. "You must be the new soldier that Caesar Drusilla informed me would be coming, yes?"

"Yeah, that's me. Oh, hey, I don't know if you've noticed, but you got zebras breathing down your necks. Comin' through the tall grass on your flanks."

"What!?," he gawked. "And you did nothing about it!?"

She smiled under the neck gaiter, and said, "I was about to. Just wanted to tell you. Gotta go!" And with that, she was off.

She knew what her role was. Quick, hit and run attacks to disrupt the enemy and to assassinate enemy officers. So, that is what she planned to do. First, target the flanks. Give the army time to counter the trap. Then, go for the head. Eliminate the enemy commander, then his direct subordinates. Finally, dive-bombing attacks to disrupt and demoralize the enemy. Simple, fast, and direct; just like her.

Her rainbow trail started to form as she rocketed down on the left flank, slamming a sword into one of the more important looking zebra's chests. He reared up in alarm and pain, and she used this motion to launch off him and at another one. The rest of the zebras were separated by the tall grass, making them easy to pick off one by one. Most barely had time to react, and even those that did didn't have the time to properly fight back. Soon, she had butchered at least half of the force, with the rest fleeing back toward their lines.

Once again, she launched into the air, and soared over the battlefield, using the dust cloud above the field to mask her presence. Looking down at friendly lines, they had moved to counter the zebra push on the right flank and now fought a more spread out battle. Good; she had performed the first part of the plan. Now, onto the leaders.

She had learned that the zebra's war chiefs often would distinguish themselves with feathers in their manes and gold adornments on his headdress. Her vision aided by the prevention of the dust of the battlefield in her eyes, she spotted several of such headdresses; either directly involved in the fighting, or behind the line barking orders.

She swooped down behind the zebra's lines, going for the more isolated war chiefs first. This was where her flight made her a true asset to the Pryhan army. Rapid, hit-and-run attacks on enemy officers where they wouldn't be watching the sky, and therefore had no real way to intercept her attacks. They were cut down quickly, and with it, the zebras command structure and morale.

After she performed these attacks on the war chiefs in the back, she began to see the zebras begin to falter and retreat. The remaining officers attempted to keep order, but it was a futile task. Some of them had picked up on her presence, looking up and shouting, "Ehamba Amademoni! Ehamba Amademoni!*" This only furthered the rout, as many more began to flee the battlefield. Those that stayed and fought, or were too slow, were all cut down by the Pryhan soldiers. Soon, the battle was won, the last of the zebra warriors fleeing into the tall grass. Below, the Soldiers began to cheer, patch up their wounded, and to collect prisoners.

Rainbow herself looked out over the field. Bodies by the dozens or even hundreds littered the flattened grasses. A cacophony of flies filled the air, and vultures flew down as well to feast upon the non-collected corpses. She had to resist the urge to puke inside her neck gaiter and had to set down to alleviate that sensation. She opened up a small pouch on her side and popped a cracker, help her get over the nausea. Just move on, Rainbow. Don't show weakness; weak gets you hurt. Don't show weakness. You're strong, you're skilled, and you're awesome. You aren't weak.

*-Zulu (Zebrican) for 'Flying Demon'.