Applejack’s hooves clopped rhythmically as she marched forward on the seemingly endless road.

Thousands of others marched alongside her in a long line stretching on for miles like some enormous worm. They weren’t just conscripts anymore — they were the soldiers of Equestria. It was the fifth day since they had left the training camp behind after taking the vow of service, being sent to reinforce the garrison of the city at the griffon’s border. According to the sergeant, they would arrive at their destination by the evening.

Applejack was astonished at how far from her home this city was. She knew Equestria was vast, of course, but now she had truly realized that, after covering the distance with her own hooves.

They had passed near Canterlot a couple of days ago. The majestic city was the very heart of Equestrian culture and knowledge as far as Applejack knew. It was too high above the ground for her tastes — she preferred some solid ground under her hooves — but the mare couldn’t deny its beauty.

But even higher above was Cloudsdale. It hovered near Canterlot itself, looking like a big mass of clouds from the ground. If not for Flare’s explanation, Applejack wouldn’t have guessed it was actually a whole city. Only pegasi could live there, having control of the clouds. This city — just like the rest of great pegasi city-states — was semi-independent from Equestria, technically being under its rule, while in fact having its own power structure and even militia.

Those cities were some of the last beacons of civilization on their way to the east.

There were still some scarce towns and villages along the road, but nothing even approached Canterlot’s level. In fact, they were so desolated that Applejack would have thought they were abandoned if she hadn’t seen the ponies living there. The soldiers simply passed through without bothering to stop, ignoring its inhabitants, who were silently eying the marching columns.

“I never thought I’d say that, but seeing how ponies live here makes me glad that I was born in Birminghoof,” Flare commented, wincing at her own words. “I mean, I’ve seen happier ponies at a cemetery!”

Applejack muttered her agreement.

Her own village wasn’t big or important either, but the ponies there would never allow for it to fall so low. Of course, the war with griffons that had ravaged these lands half a decade ago might have something to do with it, but Applejack didn’t think it was the only reason. She remembered their neighbors back at the village recovering after their whole household had burned down. But the ponies here seemed to have lost their fighting spirit.

“If you look hard enough, you can see the city in the distance,” Sergeant Sharp said, taking Applejack out of her walking reverie.

Applejack and Flare both squinted their eyes at the horizon. Applejack thought she could distinguish a thin black line on the horizon, which was probably it — legendary Stalliongrad, the rock that had stopped the scythe of the griffon’s invasion.

It had been founded by earth pony colonists to mine the rich bowels of the Foal Mountains in the times when the Sun Goddess would still walk the earth. Years after her exodus, the city had become a place of refuge for earth ponies, who suffered from the increasing arrogance of the other tribes. There was even a time when it was independent for a couple of centuries, until it rejoined Equestria because of the raising griffon’s threat, which were just coming at the continent from the wild lands across the sea. Even now Stalliongrad was known as a safe heaven for earth ponies, even more so than Agritania — a small earth pony kingdom west of Equestria.

Recalling all that made Applejack’s ears perk up in anticipation. Plenty of her comrades shared her enthusiasm as well — she wasn’t the only one who knew of Stalliongrad’s reputation. The mare wished they were going faster — such was her desire to finally see the city she had been dreaming of going to since she’d heard Granny Smith’s stories as a foal.

She was hoping it would live up to her expectations.

The walls of Stalliongrad were impressive. Tall and sturdy, they were the result of earth ponies’ hard work. Applejack heard that they could even stand against magic. Some giant crossbows — scorpions, as the sergeant had called them earlier — were mounted at the top of the wall at determined intervals, ready to ravage any enemy who dared to come close.

A smaller wall protruded from the main one at some distance from the gate, encircling a pretty large space near the city. Applejack could see rounded roofs of some buildings behind them. Probably barracks or warehouses, thought Applejack. Both walls seemed impenetrable to Applejack, at least until she remembered about griffons — those bastards could just fly high over it.

As she learned from the sergeant’s briefing, the griffons had done just that, using most of their forces to take the city. The battle that had taken place inside its walls was long and bloody, but the invaders had lost in the end. However, neither side had the strength left to continue the war afterward, so peace was made, with the griffons retaining all the land they had seized prior to that, including Baltimare, the only large city-port Equestria had on the east.

Applejack’s attention returned back to the present when the head of the column had reached Stalliongrad’s gate. It slowly opened, letting the reinforcements flow into the city.

“Finally some civilization,” Flare said, looking at the busy streets behind the gate. “The city seems to be more lively than the ones we had passed on our way here.”

“Yep,” Applejack confirmed.

As they marched through the city, Applejack greedily eyed her surroundings. The city was mighty impressive, just like in Granny’s stories. Its sturdy stone buildings had earth pony craftsmanship written all over them. The city had endured a fierce battle with griffons inside its walls five years ago, but it still was in better condition than Birminghoof.

In the center, there was a huge fortress towering over the rest of the city. It was as old as Stalliongrad itself, growing over time just like the city did. An Equestrian flag — a unicorn horn inside a winged horseshoe on a blue field — could be seen flattering on the wind on its highest tower.

A massive weird-looking cloud hung above the whole thing. Applejack’s eyes widened when she saw a group of winged ponies — pegasi — appearing from it and flying off to somewhere. It was no simple cloud, she realized.

Shaking her head in wonderment, Applejack turned her attention to the ponies, who leaned to the sides of the streets, letting the soldiers pass. While most of them were her fellow earth ponies, there was a sizable number of unicorns as well. The pegasi were present too, though they mostly hovered above the crowd. Applejack eyes those with interest, seeing ponies of that tribe up close for the first time.

Nopony seemed unhappy about being inconvenienced by the passing columns. In fact, a lot of the civilians were cheering and clapping their hooves on the paved street as they greeted the reinforcements.

The sergeant was unfazed by all the attention, but the same couldn’t be said about the simple soldiers, who were smiling and waving in return. At least he didn’t try to stop them. Applejack too allowed herself a smile when she noticed a filly that reminded her of Apple Bloom on a sidewalk. The mare waved to her and the filly responded in kind, grinning widely.

With their spirits high, the soldiers finally reached the fortress. As a suspended bridge was slowly lowered down over the deep trench that had been dug all around the structure, the reinforcements began to pour into the courtyard.

Upon entering, their commanders were promptly organizing them into a neat formation. Applejack stood straight as she was trained to do, least the sergeant found some imperfection. She had given him less and less reason for it lately.

Finally, the last of the ponies walked into the courtyard. The bridge slowly lifted behind them. The soldiers were quickly quieted down as an important-looking stallion clad in fancy suit of armor climbed to the small podium that had been risen by a couple of unicorns mere moments ago.

Instead of him, however, Applejack’s attention was drawn to the two hulking earth ponies with battle axes that accompanied the unicorn. They were armored from hoof to head. Their tails were missing, probably hidden inside the heavy suit. But the most interesting thing about them were their size. She had never seen anypony bigger than Big McIntosh, but those ponies were at least twice as large!

“Look at those two,” Flare whispered for only her friend to hear. “They’re so—oohh…” her sentence was interrupted by a swift elbow to the ribs from the ever vigilant sergeant.

“No talking,” he growled quietly.

Flare threw him a glare, but thought better than arguing.

Applejack returned her attention back to the unicorn, who was about to make a speech. The stallion lit up his horn for a moment — she knew he was using magic then — and began to talk.

“Welcome to the Stalliongrad Citadel, troops!” the pony said in a deafening voice. Applejack’s ears wilted to preserve her hearing. The pony wasn’t yelling, but his thunderous voice easily carried through the courtyard nonetheless. That’s what the magic was for, guessed Applejack.

“I’m Legatus Bloodspear, commander of the 2nd Legion,” he continued, unperturbed by a small commotion he had caused among the lines. “I am glad to see so many fresh—”

The legatus droned on like that for fifteen minutes. Applejack forced herself to listen, but it was a simple greeting speech which told her almost nothing. The most important thing he had revealed was a day off tomorrow for the new arrivals to get some rest after the long march. A small cheer erupted in response to his announcement.

“—Equestria and its ponies are counting on you, soldiers!” Legatus Bloodspear finished. “Dismissed.”

Having said that, he and his massive guards disappeared behind one of the smaller gates that led into the fortress’ main building. After that, the troops were finally allowed to relax a bit. Soon they were led into the fortress themselves.

The usual organizational chaos had begun.

It had taken a couple of hours for Applejack’s unit to get their bedclothes and be finally assigned to their own barrack room. Another hour was spent trying to find the barracks in the massive citadel. The sergeant walked determinedly, but it soon became obvious that he had no idea where he was going. They would have roamed the corridors forever if not for one of the local soldiers offering his help to find their way.

“It’s even worse than in the camp,” Flare whined as they entered a tiny room, lined with six bunk beads. Murmurs of agreement could be heard from the rest of the ponies. It was a place purely for sleep and nothing else.

“Settle in, boys and girls, that’s your home now,” Sergeant Sharp said, activating the light crystal on the ceiling with his magic. “Wait for me here. I’ll be back after a briefing.”

The soldiers shuffled into the room as soon as he had left. After a short struggle the bunk beds were distributed among the ponies. Applejack didn’t care much, unlike Flare, who managed to win them two places on the top near each other. It was just as well.

The sound of chatter began to fill the room. It was literally the only thing they could do here. Applejack, however, planned to get some nap. Climbing to her place, she set the bedclothes on it and laid down, closing her eyes.

“So, what are you planning for our day off tomorrow?” Flare asked, interrupting Applejack’s attempt at sleeping.

“Nothin’ much,” Applejack answered, suppressing her annoyance. Flare was just being Flare. “Explore the city, I guess.”

Flares nodded. “That’s what I thought too. Maybe visit some pubs.”

Applejack turned on her belly and found herself face to face with Flare, who was lying a short distance across on her own bed.

“Why though? It’s not like we’ve got bits.”

“We can find some, if you know what I mean,” the mare smiled slyly.

Applejack frowned. “No. I don’t.”

“Eh, forget about it,” Flare waved her hoof. “Anyway, the city looks pretty nice from what I’ve seen. Much better than Birminghoof, that’s for sure.”

“Can’t argue with you here,” Applejack shrugged. “That place is a dump.”

As usual after mentioning Birminghoof, Flare went into a whole tirade to besmirch the city. Not that Applejack disagreed, but listening to it for the hundredth time... Suppressing a sigh, she pretended to listen while letting her thoughts wander back to her home.

Even though the farm mare had left it less than a month ago, it felt like forever. Applejack missed her family terribly. She dreaded the months — even years — apart that still lay ahead of her. What wouldn’t Applejack give to talk with them again, but instead she was stuck here, having to listen to her friend’s whining!

“I’ve got ya, girl, you hated it there,” she interrupted Flare sharply. “No surprises here. But there’s no need to tell me that again.”

“Oh, I just can’t help it, Jackie,” the mare answered, shaking her head. “That city just always brings up bad memories…”

“What in tarnation happened there anyway?” Applejack furrowed her eyebrows. Flares was secretive about her life in Birminghoof to the point of suspicion, but Applejack didn’t usually push. Right now, however, she was in a sour mood. “You always complain ‘bout it, so spit it out already.”

“I don’t really want to talk about it right now,” her friend said, sighing heavily. “Maybe after a few rounds of drinks if you really want to know… I’m sorry, it’s just too hard.”

Flare looked away. A few moments of uncomfortable silence passed between them.

“Nah, it’s me who should be sorry,” Applejack said eventually, rubbing her neck. “I was just thinkin’ ‘bout stuff and that... Well, I’m sorry for letting my anger out on you. You don’t have to tell me anythin’ if you don’t feel like it, but I really think it’s better to share what’s botherin’ you with a friend. Friends should support each other like that, that’s what I was taught.”

Flare chuckled. “I guess I just never had a friend like you. You’re right. I promise to talk to you about that, but not here, okay?”

She gestured with her eyes at the other soldiers in the room. Nopony was paying attention to the two mares, having their own conversations to engage in, but she wasn’t exactly comfortable discussing private stuff. Applejack could understand that.

They switched topics to something more light-hearted, sharing funny stories from the training camp with their fellow soldiers. That kept them entertained until Sergeant Sharp finally returned with the announcement of a late dinner.

It was one of the rare moments when Applejack was happy about something he said — she was starving. Everypony else shared her enthusiasm. They left the cramped bedroom in a hurry, following the sergeant as he led them through the castle’s corridors.

He actually knew where to go this time, so they found the mess hall pretty quickly. After dinner, an unfamiliar officer addressed them, giving a bit of news that invoked a big cheer from the audience. — being regular soldiers, they were entitled to some pay.

This was a nice surprise to Applejack and judging by everypony’s reaction, for her comrades as well. The sum was minuscule, of course, but it was enough to buy yourself a few drinks. Which was probably the point — even the command understood the soldier’s need to unwind sometime.

Flare was especially jubilant at the prospect.

“Tomorrow is going to be epic!”

A large crowd poured out of the fortress in the next morning.

It was their first day off in almost a month of non-stop training, so their mood was high. None of the ponies had been to the city before, but the ones who were smarter had already chatted with the veterans, learning what Stalliongrad had to offer.

Applejack and Flare were the smart ones. As the crowd slowly dispersed into the city, the two mares kept together, simply exploring the city. Even though Applejack was used to seeing a lot of ponies in the training camp, she felt uneasy at seeing so many civilians on the streets.

“Stalliongrad is big,” she voiced her thoughts.

Flare smirked. “No, really? I didn’t notice.”

“Ha-ha.”

“But you’re right, of course,” Flare continued more seriously. “It’s one of the largest cities in Equestria after Birminghoof and Vanhoover. By the way, I’ve noticed that a lot of earth ponies are strangely excited about being in here. What’s up with that?”

As they wandered around the streets, Applejack had to explain to her friend why Stalliongrad was important to her. Flare listened, nodding in understanding from time to time.

“That makes sense,” she said thoughtfully. “I hadn’t really thought about that before, but I guess the other tribes treat you a little unfairly… I get that a lot just because of who I am myself.”

“Because you’re a unicorn?” Applejack asked, surprised.

Flare winced, nodding her head. “Ponies in Birminghoof are at each other’s throats. But it doesn’t matter right now. The point is, I can relate.”

Applejack let the issue be, even though she was curious about what exactly Flare had meant.

Turning her attention back to her surroundings, Applejack simply observed the city around her. Though Stalliongrad was vastly better off than its smaller neighbors, the mare still noticed some signs of troubles.

There was a weariness on the ponies’ faces she hadn’t noticed before. Even the buildings weren’t as well-kept outside of the main street, though they still looked better than their Birminghoof conterparts.

“Yeah, it’s hard to believe there was even a battle,” Flare said when Applejack shared her observation with the mare. “Those griffon savages got their asses handed to them.”

Applejack shrugged. “Sergeant Sharp said it was a bloody mess that lasted for days.”

“Yeah, but the griffons lost, didn’t they?”

The mare grumbled in agreement, though she didn’t share Flare’s laid-back attitude.

They continued their way in silence as Applejack was deep in thought. She didn’t know much about what was happening in Equestria while she was living in her small village, but even they had heard about the war. Only recently had she learned how bad it really had been.

All because of those griffons.

Applejack gathered what she knew about the creatures. She hadn’t seen one in real life, but she knew they looked like a weird mix of a bird and a cat. They were hunters, swooping in on their prey from the sky. The stories among the soldiers said that they even ate ponies.

The mare shuddered at the thought. What if those savages had won the battle of Stalliongrad? Her imagination ran wild, showing her farm burning, while some beastly winged creatures prepared to feast on Apple Bloom. Looking at the situation from such a perspective changed something for her.

Applejack still didn’t like being conscripted in the way she had been, and the sergeant was still a bastard in her eyes, but she realized that Equestria needed soldiers to protect itself against enemies like that.

“Look at this one, Jackie!” Flare tugged at her, breaking Applejack from her thoughts. “I like its name. Let’s go in!”

Applejack blinked a couple of times, gathering her surroundings. She saw Flare pointing at the old sign saying Wavering Mare over an old stone building. It looked like a typical pub, one of the many in this city.

“Sure,” Applejack relented. She looked forward to getting something other than water to drink.

The two mares entered.

The atmosphere inside was warm. The windows were closed, so old-style torches were the source of light, giving the place a cozy feeling. Overall, it wasn’t much different from the tavern back in her own village — just a simple place for simple ponies like her to spend some good time, enjoying their drinks.

A lot of ponies were busy doing just that and quite loudly. Applejack recognized a few familiar faces from the training camp among them. It seemed like the majority of today’s clientele were the resting soldiers. Most of them were also stallions, but Applejack wasn’t bothered by the fact, being used to such a ratio.

Flare quickly found a spot at one of the tables, already occupied by a small company. They gladly accepted the new additions, especially when Flare bought all of them a round of ale.

Downing her mug in one go, Applejack joined the table’s conversation. It wasn’t about anything in particular, but she enjoyed it nonetheless. Their new comrades were tipsy already, so Applejack and Flare did their best to catch up. The alcohol affected Applejack at a lower rate than other ponies though, so when Flare had gotten quite woozy, the ex-farm pony was just feeling a little warmness spreading throughout her body.

They continued like that for a while.

The more Flare drunk, the more talkative she became. Even when the mare was sober, she’d be chatting quite a lot. Sometimes she poked fun at her peers. She usually had some boundaries, avoiding sensitive topics though.

But when her friend openly mocked the pink mane of one of the stallions at their table, Applejack realized that drinking so much might have been a mistake.

“You insolent bitch!” the stallion exclaimed, knocking over his mug as he jumped at his hooves.

Flare just laughed in his face. “Oh, come on!” she exclaimed, noticing his lowered ears. “It was just a joke, for Sun’s sake. You would laugh too if somepony else had a girly mane like yours!”

Growling in rage, the pony leaped at Flare, hitting her in her muzzle so hard that she was thrown backward. She bumped into somepony at a nearby table, causing him to spill his drink all over his coat. As the stallion turned around, his eyes fell on Flare, who was struggling to stand up.

“I was going to drink this, you klutz,” he barked, raising his mug and then bringing it down on her skull.

Applejack winced — the blow looked pretty painful. As Flare’s body dropped to the floor, Applejack jumped off her chair and stood in front of the angered pony.

“Calm down, ya fool,” she said, looking him straight into his eyes. “You could seriously hurt her.”

“Well, that’s the point, girl,” he answered in an unsteady voice, grinning like a madpony. “You seem cute, by the way. Would you like a drink?”

The mare’s vision reddened. This drunken idiot had just hurt her friend for no good reason and now he had the gall to hit on her afterwards! She was slow to get mad, but when she finally did, it was devastating for those at whom it was directed.

Applejack answered the pony’s question with a hook under his chin. She put enough force into it to knock him unconscious with one try. As the stallion dropped, however, his pals stood up. A few moments later Applejack was joined by the ponies from her own table, who stood at her sides determinedly.

One pony hit another and before she knew it, the chaos was everywhere. Drunken ponies were brawling, crushing the furniture off each other and involving more and more ponies in the fray. Ducking, Applejack avoided a flying stool that hit somepony behind her and bucked a pony who was about to step on a helpless Flare in his blind rush.

Applejack was sober enough to realize that it was time to go.

Grabbing her fallen friend, Applejack dragged her to the exit, avoiding the brawlers and sometimes knocking down those who came at her. She shrugged off a few hits she missed, too busy to feel any pain for the moment.

It was hard to see which side was winning — if there even was a side at this point — when Applejack finally reached the way out. It was wide open and as she climbed outside towing her friend behind, she saw some wiser ponies waiting out the brawl in calmness.

Ignoring them, Applejack threw the unconscious Flare on her back and briskly trotted as far away from the pub as possible.

Ponies followed them with surprised stares as Applejack moved through the streets. Her destination was the fortress. It was just a few streets away when her alcohol-addled brain realized that she couldn’t just get past the guards with Flare knocked out on her back.

Applejack didn’t want to be questioned — Sun forbid if the sergeant learned about what had happened — so Flare had to be woken up. Gently putting her friend down in one of the empty sidestreets, Applejack tapped her shoulder. It didn’t help, so next she gave her a slap at her cheek.

Thankfully, she had to do nothing more.

A heavy moan escaped Flare’s mouth as she finally opened her eyes. She blinked a couple of times, touching her undoubtedly hurting head as her gaze focused on Applejack, who was standing above. A recognition dawned in her green eyes.

“Jackie… What happened?” she asked weakly. “Why does my head feel like a herd of cows stampeded on it?”

“I’ll tell ya later, you hornhead,” Applejack brushed her question away. “Can you at least stand?”

With her friend’s help, Flare proved that she could. Her stance was unsteady, but she didn’t fall when Applejack removed her support. It was promising.

“Now, let’s get your flank to the barracks.”

Getting into the fortress turned out to be easy. The gates were down and the guards let them pass after the mares showed their papers. They asked no questions, though their eyes followed the slightly wavering Flare.

Once inside, Applejack led her friend to their room in the barracks. Unfortunately, she hadn’t memorized the way to it yet, so only after asking for directions did she manage to find it. The place was empty at this time.

The room was still illuminated by a crystal on the ceiling, emanating a dim but steady light. Only unicorns could manipulate it and since their unit had just two, they decided to leave the light on at all times. After all, their magic could last for years.

Applejack helped Flare to climb onto her bed and followed suit herself. She laid on her back, finally able to relax. Her body was aching from the beating it had taken, though she bet it wasn’t as bad as Flare head was feeling right now — her groans of pain were pretty telling.

“What in Tartarus were you saying out there?” Applejack asked in frustration.

“What? I don’t remember anything,” Flare groaned, rubbing her temples. “Why does my head hurt so much?”

She didn’t seem as drunk as she’d been back at the pub, but her speech was still drowsy. Applejack hoped that she hadn’t gotten a concussion or something after what had happened.

“Basically, ya mocked somepony, so he hit you,” Applejack quickly explained, giving her friend a heavy stare.

“It does sound like me,” Flare found the strength to grin, but it quickly disappeared. “Is that all?”

“Well, then a big fight started with everypony beating each other up like it was bucking season. I dragged you out myself.”

“That’s a classic,” Flare said and then sighed heavily. “Too bad I missed it. A nice drunken brawl is a good way to unwind after a job.”

Applejack was curious. Flare had never mentioned how she used to earn a living before getting into the army. Not that Applejack had asked — she figured her friend would tell her herself when she chose to do so. But she had promised to talk about it after a few rounds of drinks.

They’d had more than enough today.

Applejack gently reminded Flare about that fact.

“Well, fine…” the mare nodded quickly. “You told me about yourself, so it’s only fair of me to share a few things about myself. But promise me that you won’t tell a soul about it, okay?”

“I swear by my parent’s grave,” Applejack said solemnly.

Flare was quiet for some time, thinking about the best way to start.

“Well, long story short — I was a thief. We were robbing some rich idiots with a group of other ponies.”

Applejack stared at her friend in silence, not sure of how to react yet. She had no sympathy for thieves. Nopony had at her village. But for the few weeks that she had known the mare, she had been a good friend, so Applejack reserved her judgment for now.

“Each of us had their own lives, but once in a while me and the others would meet together to plan to rob another rich mansion,” Flare noticed Applejack’s tension and winced. “I know what you’re thinking. Stealing is wrong, right? But those ponies we were targeting are really rich, so it’s not like they would miss what we took from them.”

Applejack pursed her lips, but nodded curtly.

“I had enough bits to live a good life. Everything was peachy there. Until we got greedy.”

Flare sighed deeply.

“One day one of ours was approached by somepony who offered us to rob someone for them. Yeah, sometimes our team was hired by conflicting nobles who wanted to get something from their rivals. They paid us in bits and it was much easier than having to sell the stolen items we would have gotten otherwise. Anyway, the pony they wanted us to rob was Everlight.”

“What?” Applejack asked in shock. “The regent?”

“He wasn’t the regent back then, sillyhead,” Flare explained. “It was like three years ago. But that’s not the point. We agreed to this job because the pay was good, even though the job itself was complicated. They wanted us to steal Everlight’s necklace, the one he kept on his neck at all times, and replace it with a fake one.”

“Why?”

“I have no idea,” Flare shrugged. “I guess, they wanted to humiliate him or something. But we did it. We replaced the thing on his neck while he was sleeping and delivered it to the meeting place—” Flare lowered her eyes, falling silent.

“I guess it didn’t go as planned.”

“No, it didn’t,” Flare said in a strange voice and Applejack noticed her eyes glistening with tears. “We were ambushed. Some thugs surrounded and attacked us. They were going for the kill. I saw with my own eyes how my friends were dying one by one. We took down a few of them, but there were too many. I was badly wounded, but I managed to escape somehow.”

Applejack looked at her friend with new eyes. She knew that something bad had happened to her in Birminghoof, but she had no idea just how bad it was.

“I’m so sorry, Flare,” she said, putting her hoof on the mare’s shoulder.

“Thanks… Well, that’s kind of the end. I was hiding after I escaped. I had some money stashed, so I got myself fixed up. I tried to figure out who hired us, but I couldn’t do much on my own, so eventually I dropped it and simply lived my life quietly until I heard about the army conscripting ponies. I decided to join on my own, because why not? I wanted nothing to do with that damn city anymore.”

Both mares were silent as the story concluded.

“That’s… one hell of a story, Flare,” Applejack said eventually. “I’m sorry for what happened with your friends.”

“Yeah… Well, at least I have you now, right?” Flare smiled weakly. “I’ve liked you since I saw you back in the training camp. You kind of reminded me of one of my best friends. I wasn’t wrong.”

Even though Flare’s friends were thieves, Applejack didn’t mind that comparison. She had no love for nobles herself. Stealing was still wrong in her eyes, but it wasn’t the same as stealing stuff from your neighbor, who was struggling just like you.

“Thank you, Flare,” Applejack said and chuckled. “To be honest, I didn’t like you much at first, but you’ve grown on me.”

“Oh, I knew I would, Jackie,” Flare giggled in response.

The rest of the day was spent with the two mares exchanging stories from their past.

The next morning was hard for a lot of ponies.

Applejack was one of the lucky few whose natural resilience allowed them to avoid the consequences of the previous day’s fun, but the same couldn’t be said about her friend. Groaning, Flare stumbled off her bed, rubbing her aching head. The trauma combined with the hangover — Applejack was surprised that she could stand in the first place.

The pony who had woken them up — Sergeant Sharp — waited for the soldiers to gather up in the corridor. Applejack was the first one out, taking her place in a would-be line. She could see the same morning process repeating all throughout the barracks. Once her comrades were ready, the sergeant addressed them.

“I hope you’ve enjoyed your day off, some of you more than the rest,” he said, keeping his eyes on Flare longer than usual. “But now it’s over. Once you have a meal, go for a line-up in the courtyard. Don’t miss it. The command was busy reorganizing the units yesterday to include you bunch into the Legion’s structure, so four of you newbies will be transferred and I’ll get some veterans instead—”

Applejack worry was stirring inside. She and the sergeant weren’t on good terms, so she wouldn’t be surprised if he somehow arranged for her and Flare to be separated. She kept her mouth shut, however, knowing that even if he did, she wouldn’t be able to do anything.

After mentioning a few more details, the sergeant finally let the soldiers go, leaving to do his own business. As soon as he was gone, the ponies began discussing the news with each other, trying to guess who would be transferred.

“Do you think it’s going to be me?” Flare asked. “Or you?”

Applejack shrugged. “I sure hope not… But there’s nothin’ we can do about it, ya know.”

Her friend nodded solemnly, her ears going flat against her head.

“Don’t fret it though, sugarcube. We’re still going to see each other if that happens, okay?”

Flare smiled weakly, giving Applejack a nod, but she was silent throughout the meal and all the way to the inner yard. Applejack wasn’t sure if it was more from her headache or sadness at their possible parting. She hadn’t been in the best of moods herself.

The sergeant met them in the yard.

“About damn time,” he said. “Follow me, slowpokes.”

Quite a number of ponies were in the yard already, standing by squads. Applejack noticed that they weren’t peers from the training camp — those looked older and more experienced. She assumed that they were the regular soldiers who’d been here before Applejack’s newbies arrived.

The sergeant led them to stand on the other side of the yard, across the veterans. One by one, the other units were arriving, filling up the place. Its size was pretty large, so even when everypony was present, a lot of free space was available.

Finally, the great reshuffling began. Names were called and the ponies were assigned to different units. Applejack stood firm, but her insides were squirming with uncertainty as her own squad was getting closer and closer to its turn.

To Applejack’s immense relief, neither she nor Flare were transferred. Shooting a glance at Sergeant Sharp, the mare wondered if he had any say in the transfer and if yes, why didn’t he use this opportunity to hurt her.

She wasn’t about to complain though.

When everything was done, Applejack learned that her Squad was designated the 2th Squad of the 6th Company of the 7th Cohort, which she tried to remember. The Legion used to have just four Cohorts before the reinforcements, so now there were more newbies in it than old-timers.

They’d gotten four of those instead of the ones they’d lost. The sergeant assigned to each veteran two newbies to watch over. Applejack and Flare got to be in different teams, but that didn’t matter much, since they were still in the same unit.

“6th Company, form square!” an unfamiliar stallion ordered.

The sergeants snapped to action, gathering their units into the formation under steady gaze of an elder unicorn with a gray coat. He had a grim expression on his face as he looked over the soldiers with a look of authority.

“I’m Major Gloomy Heart,” he announced in a raspy, but loud voice. “I’ve been informed that most of our reinforcement are yesterday’s farmers and such with less than a month of training, but for your own sake I hope you learned well because the rumors you’ve heard are true — war is coming.”

The news of war wasn’t exactly unexpected, but it was the first time a pony in command had announced it directly, so it caused a bit of commotion. It was quickly put down by the sergeants, however, so the major was able to continue.

“The last war we were unprepared, but I’m confident this won’t happen again. We’ve learned from our mistakes and are ready to take our land back from the dirty claws of those griffons—”

Applejack listened to his speech, feeling herself growing impatient. The stallion was talking long and colorfully, while she would have preferred for him to get to the root of the issue. In that regard, even Sergeant Sharp was better. Though her fellow soldiers — mostly newbies — were eating it all up, so she supposed the major knew what he was doing.

She returned her attention to him when she heard something about ships. Ships?

“—on the Luminous. It was recently modernized to accommodate a company-sized detachment. We’re going to be tasked with protecting her from those griffons that get through to her—”

As he continued explaining, Applejack finally realized that he wasn’t talking about a sea ship, but an air ship! She’d remembered hearing about those things back in the camp. Imagining that she was going to actually be in one, flying high above the ground, made the mare feel a little dizzy but excited at the same time.

“—test flight will be tomorrow, but today I’m going to introduce you to the ship. Soldiers, follow me.”

The way to the ship took them a while. The port was at the edge of the city, so they had to march through the crowded streets to get there. Other companies made their way alongside them as well. Soon, Applejack realized that the buildings with rounded roofs she had seen from the outside were in fact the port.

The whole complex was the size of the small town itself. The arc-roofed buildings turned out to be massive from up close. They were called hangars and the ships were stored inside. When Applejack wondered how they would ever get out, one of the veterans explained about a special mechanism that would open the roof when the time was right.

They were met by a pony in a blue uniform who called himself Lieutenant Jumper. He allowed the soldiers into the hangar while telling them about the ship. Applejack could only see the outline of it in dim illumination, but when the light got brighter, everypony could see the Luminous in its full glory.

Everypony including Applejack gawked at the massive wooden monstrosity. It looked similar to the ships she had seen on pictures. It even had sails. She listened to the pony in a blue uniform as he continued to talk.

“The best mages of the Unicorn Union Order have enchanted the crystals that allow our ships to hover. The crystal is placed in the heart of the ship, so any attacker would have to go through all the defenses if they want to destroy it. It’s a recent invention, so not all of our ships are equipped with that. Some still use the old-style enchanted gas, but they’re more vulnerable.”

He encouraged ponies to ask questions and a lot did, so the talking continued for quite some time. Even the sergeant asked a few of his own — Applejack gathered that he hadn’t been on a ship before.

Then it was finally time to enter the ship itself.

There was a ramp that let everypony get on the deck quickly and from there the lieutenant and a few of his assistants led the soldiers below to show where their place on the ship would be.

As it turned out, their rooms were pretty small, even smaller than those at the barracks. The mess hall was tiny too, but at least the ship had a small zone to relax with couches, tables and even some simple games. Applejack, who was used to wide places, found herself uncomfortable on such a cramped ship.

“I don’t like this place,” Flare whispered to her while they walked through its narrow corridors.

“I can’t say I do either,” nodded Applejack in response. “Too little space for me.”

“I know, right? I hope we’re not going to be here all the time.”

Applejack shrugged. There wasn’t anything she could do about that, but she was glad that at least Flare would be with her.

The next few days flew by quickly, with Applejack settling into the new routine. It wasn’t much different from the training camp in her opinion. In fact, the training continued, though the things they were learning now were different.

Their Company was mastering the layout of the Luminous to be able to move throughout the ship quickly to defend it against attacking griffons. It was made more difficult because the ship was hovering in the air, vibrating slightly. It made some ponies seasick.

On top of that, they were improving their fighting skills by sparring with the veterans. Applejack was able to hold her own against them for some time. The reason for it turned out to be the fact that it wasn’t the weapon they had been trained to use.

Though swords were going to be their primary weapons on the ship, Applejack had learned from a veteran that spears were the main weapon for most of the ground troops. It was too cumbersome for a ship, so the command saw no need to teach the new recruits to use it yet.

“We’re going to train with them soon, don’t you worry,” Sergeant Sharp promised them. “For now, just focus on swords.”

Applejack remembered all that on the way to the port. Today there was going to be a mock battle up in the air, where another team would simulate the attacking griffons. Applejack wasn’t needlessly worried, unlike a stallion who was walking beside her. She saw his tail twitching nervously, which was a telltale sign.

“What’s wrong, Plowed Field?”

“Nothin’” the stallion replied. “Nothin’ at all.”

Applejack could see that something was wrong though, so she kept pushing until he finally gave up.

“I’m just worried about fighting so high above the ground,” he admitted.

Flare snorted, but Applejack gave her a stare, which shut her up. The stallion was serious and it wouldn’t do any good to mock him.

“Why would you be, sugarcube?” she asked gently.

“Well, it’s high above the ground for starters. What if somepony falls down and splats themselves?”

Flare shook her head like this was the most ridiculous thing ever. Applejack threw her an annoyed glance, but it didn’t stop the mare from intervening.

“You can be such a silly head, Field…” Flare said, shaking her head again. “There’ll be a big net set below the ship, so whoever falls will be caught in it. They explained it on the morning line-up, remember?”

The stallion reddened, lowering his eyes. “Eh, nope. I kinda missed it…”

“Well, next time don’t,” Applejack said firmly. “There could be something important like that.”

“They mostly say boring stuff, to be honest,” Flare interjected again.

Applejack grumbled but didn’t argue with her friend. Not only would it be a waste of time with that mulehead, but Applejack couldn’t say she was wrong. Besides, they were already approaching their hangar.

Another company-sized group was already waiting beside it, so Applejack’s attention turned to them. They were wearing a different armor than the mare was used to. It was obviously lighter than the one Applejack wore, being made out of leather with some metal plates at vital points. Soon she saw the reason why — those ponies had wings.

She had seen some pegasi in the city, but they were a rare sight. But now Applejack was finally able to gave them a proper look. They were actually not much different from a typical earth pony or a unicorn, save for their feathered wings that were tucked close to their body.

Major Gloomy Heart ordered everypony to stop as a pegasus in a fancy helmet stepped forward from the group. The two ponies met in the middle.

After shaking their hooves and discussing something privately, they returned to their respective companies. Applejack and the rest watched in awe as the whole pegasus company shot up into the air, spreading out as they got higher up to avoid bumping into each other. They did it without a hitch.

Applejack and the rest were brought back into the action by the sergeant, hurrying them along into the hangar, where their company quickly boarded the Luminous.

By the time everypony had gotten to their cabins, she felt the ship vibrating. A constant humming could also be heard from the center of the ship where the crystal was. Applejack once again thought about how powerful a unicorn’s magic was — making large ships fly like some birds. That was mighty impressive. Of course, Applejack knew that a rare unicorn could achieve something like that, just like not every earth pony was as strong as her, but the mare couldn’t help but feel helpless in the face of that kind of magic.

A weird feeling in her stomach told her that the ship had started ascending into the air.

“Those pegasi you saw are militia from Cloudsdale,” Sergeant Sharp said, being in the cabin with the troops. “They’re trained warriors, so I’m not expecting a victory. I just want you all to show what you’re capable of.”

The soldiers grumbled in response, but without much enthusiasm.

“But we have no weapons or armor!” Plowed Field exclaimed in near panic. “We’re doomed!”

“Were you listening with your arse, boy?” the sergeant turned to him, growling. “We’re going to the armory once we hear the signal. It was all part of the training. Any more stupid questions?”

The stallion opened his mouth as if to ask one, but changed his mind at the last moment. The sergeant nodded in satisfaction as a silence hung in the cabin.

Soon the ship stopped ascending.

Applejack couldn’t feel its movement now, so she guessed the battle was about to start. Predictably, the sound of the horn blazed three times throughout the ship. She remembered from her training that it meant an enemy boarding.

“Here we go,” the sergeant said, standing up. “Get ready!”

He opened the door but didn’t go through it yet. The corridors were too narrow for the soldiers to move through more than two at the time, so he had to lead the others through first. Once another squad had passed, he led his own ponies at some distance behind them.

The armory was close to the soldier’s quarters, so they got to it within a minute. It was a tight fit — just like the rest of the ship — but there was just enough space for everypony to arm themselves without wasting any time on waiting their turn.

Applejack’s squad had their own designated section where their personal armaments were supposed to be. They hadn’t been issued anything yet, so for now it was just standard gear, not adjusted to their bodies. Thankfully, the quartermaster had made sure to include sets of female-type armor for a number of mares in the squad.

The armor wasn’t much different from the male version except for its smaller size, since stallions tended to be larger. Even Applejack for all her strength couldn’t compare with them in that regard. Not that she cared about such silly things, of course.

Grabbing a set, she put it on with a speed born of experience, while Flare did the same beside her. Adjusting it to fit her body more tightly, Applejack moved around a bit to make sure it was done right. Satisfied, she finally took a sheathed sword from a rack, securing it on her side.

She was ready for the fight.

“Hurry up, soldier!” the sergeant barked.

Applejack lowered her ears, but then realized that he wasn’t looking at her. The target of his ire was the unlucky Plowed Field, who was still fumbling with his armor. The poor stallion had been added to their squad just before they had taken their vows back in the training camp. The sergeant wasn’t happy about that transfer and Applejack could see why.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” Plowed Field mumbled as he desperately tried to finish the last adjustments.

“I’ll deal with you after this is over,” Sergeant Sharp promised menacingly once the stallion was finally done, making the latter shrink in fright.

By now they were the last squad still in the armory, so the sergeant rushed them to their destination which was up on the upper deck. The sound of battle had reached them before they emerged from the ship.

Even though Applejack knew it wasn’t for real, she still felt a rush of adrenaline in her body as she saw the ponies fighting. Even though it had just started, her allies were already in a bad way. They fought valiantly, but the pegasi were far too maneuverable, quickly changing their positions if the situation got rough for them and flanking their opponents.

“At arms!” the sergeant ordered, going for a flank attack of his own on the group of pegasi, who were pressing at their allies.

With a roar to encourage themselves, the soldiers charged.

Applejack was among the first to enter the fight. As she blocked a hit from one of the pegasi, Flare hacked at the attacker’s foreleg. If her weapon were real, the pegasus would have lost it. Instead of that though, a powerful discharge went through the sword to his leg, numbing the limb for a few hours.

Obviously, the swords were blunt to avoid a serious injury, but a paralyzing enchantment allowed for a more real experience. It was also pretty painful.

Applejack had no opportunity to finish her opponent off, however, as he jumped out of her reach with a flap of his wings. Forgetting about him, the mare moved on to the next one. Working together with Flare and another soldier, they managed to incapacitate the pegasus at the cost of losing the poor soldier as well as Flare’s hindleg, which had been touched by the enemy’s sword. Damn, that pegasus was fast!

Taking a second to breathe, Applejack threw a glance at her surroundings — it wasn’t good. Half of their numbers were already on the decks, unmoving or squirming in agony from too many strikes. The sergeant was still up and about, holding his own against two pegasi at once. The veterans formed at his sides, protecting his flanks. To Applejack’s surprise, Plowed Field was up as well, successfully dodging his opponent’s attacks. But even though the enemy had been taken by surprise, they were winning.

Suddenly, she heard a sound behind her.

Applejack ducked just in time as another group of pegasi struck from behind. Unfortunately, Flare wasn’t quick enough. A pegasus with a colorful tail flew by her like lightning, dropping Applejack’s friend down with a targeted kick to her head. The mare didn’t get up after that.

With a cry of rage, Applejack jumped up on her hooves and rushed to the landing pegasus. Noticing her attacker in time, the pegasus tried to fly up, but Applejack’s anger gave her the edge she needed to grab the pegasus’ tail before she did.

She assumed it was a mare, based on her smaller size and weight. If it was a stallion, Applejack doubted that she would be able to drop her opponent to the decks. While the remains of her squad grabbed the rest of the pegasi’s attention, Applejack battered her enemy with her bare hooves.

She felt a sharp pain in her stomach as the pegasus’ sword hit her below, passing a charge through her insides. To her own surprise, Applejack was able to remain standing. She saw the surprise reflecting in the mare’s widening eyes, barely visible through her helmet.

Clenching her jaw, Applejack forced her opponent’s foreleg to the decks, making her release her weapon. She barely felt her kicks thanks to the numbness that was settling in her body. Grabbing the sword for herself, Applejack touched the mare’s neck with it.

She went limp as a current went through her body.

Rolling to the side, Applejack managed to get onto her hooves, but she was in no condition to continue fighting. In fact, she was the last of her squad still standing with the exception of the sergeant, who was struck down right before her eyes.

Without giving the mare time to recover, the pegasi rushed to finish her off. Fending off the blow from the side, Applejack missed another one from behind her. Hissing in pain, she fell on her side as her leg gave up under her.

Another strike to her neck finally sent her unconscious.

Applejack woke up in the infirmary.

At least she had assumed it was one. The chamber was spacious and well-lit with crystals that were held in their spots at the ceiling. She hadn’t been in this place before, but it had a lot of cots, with her occupying one of them. It was the logical place to be after a battle, even a mock one.

There were a few dozen other ponies besides her, lying in their own cots; some were chatting with each other. Applejack answered a few greetings when they noticed her wake up. After asking them a few questions, her theory was confirmed. They all had been injured the most in the exercise, though none of them seriously enough to keep them here more than a couple of days at most.

As her senses slowly returned to her, Applejack felt a residing pain in her stomach. She lowered her gaze at it — it was all bruised, appearing bluish through her orange coat. Thankfully, she felt herself being under some medication, so the pain wasn’t as bad as it could be.

“You were really awesome out there,” an unfamiliar pony on her left said. “I saw you take down that pegasus bitch with a fancy tail — it was damn impressive! She took down many of us before you caught her.”

The others nodded, confirming the speaker’s words. Applejack felt slightly uncomfortable at such attention, even if it was a favorable one. She pushed a smile nonetheless.

“I just kinda lost it, I guess,” Applejack chuckled. “Heat of battle and all that.”

“Yeah, you were a damn berserker!”

“We would have won if we had a dozen like you with us!”

Applejack took the praising in stride until it finally died down, much to her relief. After the chatter returned to its usual level, Applejack’s thoughts went to her friend. Flare wasn’t in the chamber, so it was safe to assume that she wasn’t injured enough to be here. If something bad had happened to her, the others would have known something, right?

Relaxing, she simply rested in her cot when the door to the infirmary opened. She heard hoofsteps getting closer and closer, but didn’t pay them any attention until they stopped near her. Cracking one eye open, she jerked, seeing nopony other than Sergeant Sharp himself standing beside her bed.

“At ease, soldier,” he waved his hoof as she attempted to get off the cot.

Applejack narrowed her eyes, suspicious at the sergeant’s charitable behavior. His expression was unreadable. He had never tolerated anything even slightly off the regulations from her, so his behavior was ringing bells in Applejack’s head.

“You did good out there,” Sergeant Sharp said after a moment of silence. “Color me impressed.”

“Thank you, sir,” Applejack answered politely, as was required.

The sergeant frowned, looking around when he noticed a sudden drop in conversations around them. The ponies quickly turned away from his glare, pretending to be extremely busy with something of their own.

“I need to talk with you alone, soldier. Can you walk?”

Applejack nodded. She wasn’t as sure as she was showing, but she didn’t want to look weak in front of the sergeant.

With a grunt of pain, she dropped on her hooves. It took her a few moments to get herself steady and get used to her feelings. Her limbs felt a little funny — the effects of the enchanted weapons, she supposed — but that feeling was quickly dissipating.

Together the two ponies walked into a corridor where the sergeant turned to face Applejack. The mare watched him cautiously.

“I want to put our enmity behind us, Private Applejack,” he dropped.

Her eyes widened — it was the last thing Applejack had expected to hear from the sergeant today. However, she was good at detecting a lie and she couldn’t see even a sign of it in Sergeant Sharp at this moment.

“We’re about to go to war and I can’t afford to have my best soldier be hostile towards me,” he continued. “I admit, I messed up with you pretty badly. I don’t expect us to be friends, but I’ll be treating you like every other soldier under my command from now on. In return, I expect you to respect me as your leader. Do you accept my proposal?”

Applejack felt conflicting emotions fighting inside of her. On the one hoof, she knew that it would be the best outcome she could hope for in their conflict, but on the other, it was hard to put behind all the mistreatment he had put her through. Though to be honest, he had never stepped out of line or done something outside of the rules after their incident in the empty barracks…

Making her decision, Applejack nodded.

“I accept,” she said. Noticing a frown flickering on his face, she added, “Sir.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Sergeant Sharp said, nodding in satisfaction. “Now to business. We’ve got the rest of the day off, but tomorrow we’ll have a job. The Luminous is going out to the griffon’s territory for a mission and we’re going to be protecting it. I wasn’t told the details, so I’m expecting everything. I want you to be at your best, soldier, so go rest. Dismissed.”

Having said that, the sergeant turned around and left.

After standing in the corridor for a few minutes, mulling over what had just happened, Applejack followed his order and returned back to her cot. Her insides were tipsy and not just from her injuries — it seemed like tomorrow they were finally going to war.

Next Chapter: Chapter XII - The Night of Terror Estimated time remaining: 7 Hours, 13 Minutes