"Alright guys, I got a question for you all." 30K grumbled as the snow flew past him and through the trees, propelled by the strong northern winds. "Whose bright idea was it to have us hike all the way to the edge of the Crystal Empire in the middle of this storm?"

"It doesn't matter." Nomad smirked as he side-leaped over a boulder. "We need to make sure we remain undetected since we're so close to Cloudsdale, and aerial transport is out for the moment. So, this is it."

"Fucking hell." Kozak scoffed. "Hey Nomad, where's the LZ at anyway? I thought the Crystal Empire was sending chariots to pick us up."

"They are." Nomad said. "However, they can't land in the middle of this forest, so until we get a decent-sized break in the canopy or the foliage clears up, we keep pushing forward."

The Ghosts nodded as they continued their hike, occasionally leaping over a fallen tree or ill-positioned boulder. Kozak's Cypher UAV led the way for them through the trees, since it was their only piece of aerial, human-made tech for the moment. Or, at least until they reached the Crystal Empire and got their hands on more human-made tech.

Lt. Colonel Mitchell had negotiated with Shining Armor for a team of Crystal Chariots to pick up the Ghosts at the ideal middle ground between their location and the Empire itself. Seeing as the Eqaharian siege lines were close enough to be a problem, but far enough they couldn't reach the Ghosts in great numbers, finding the ideal LZ was a problem.

Until the Ghosts were signalled to head to a small train station near the former town of Dodge Junction, which had been ransacked during the initial siege of the Crystal Empire. However, the Ghosts had to deal with a few logistical problems beforehand.

Primarily, what to do with their high-value prisoner, Prince Ajax. Though he had already surrendered the intel package now securely in the hooves of Shining Armor, he was still a liability, if he managed to escape and would likely reveal their identities to the Eqaharians.

As such, Aegis and Cyclone Team had left the day before with the Prince, and delivered him safely to the Crystal Empire's dungeons. Shining had apparently needed to be held back physically by his Guards, as he had wanted to pummel Ajax into a bloody pulp upon seeing him.

Now, Hunter and Kingslayer Team were to follow up and head to the Empire as soon as they could to rejoin the other Ghosts who were already there.

Now, as the Ghosts exited the treeline and the abandoned train station came into view, Nomad popped a blue-colored smoke grenade, the signal for the waiting chariots to land. It wasn't long before they did, and as they boarded, Kozak retrieved the UAV and attached it to his rucksack.

"We're good, let's fly!" one of the Crystal Guards flying the Chariot called, and as they soared into the air, Nomad swept over the area visually one last time, confirming they hadn't been detected by the enemy.

====

About thirty minutes later, the Chariots bearing the remaining Ghosts landed in the newly-constructed airstrip north of the Crystal Stadium. To their slight surprise, Princess Cadance was waiting for them instead of her husband.

"Shining's talking on the radio with Lt. Colonel Mitchell." she said as the Ghosts approached. "They're working out a few last-minute details on lodging and supplies for the other humans who are coming over."

"That's good to know." Nomad nodded as the eight Ghosts followed Cadance towards the stadium. "I've been meaning to ask, Princess...how are things going in the Empire since the siege began?"

"Well, I can say that with your help and extra supplies, things are looking up." she replied. "For a while, the refugees coming from the conquered parts of Equestria were an issue in terms of housing and keeping them fed and watered."

"How'd you manage that?" Hunter Lead asked.

"We started rationing food and water depending on how much somepony did for the Empire each day, such as construction or for enlisting in the Guard." Cadance replied as they entered the grounds of the Palace. "It was still tight for a while after that."

"Then the Yaks and Griffons started sending us supply shipments by air and ground." she continued. "The Yaks even volunteered to dig a tunnel through the northeastern mountains for us just in case, but the old trail worked out fine."

"I take it the Eqaharians don't know about it?" Kozak asked.

"They never reached it, seeing as it's further north than we are." she nodded. "Plus, the Eqaharians weren't initially going after us. They primarily wanted the southern parts, where it's not as wintry."

"I wonder why." 30K said. "What's their goal, anyway? Why'd they even invade in the first place?"

"From what I can tell, it's complicated." Cadance sighed. "From what I've gathered, their homeland was suffering in most ways, and they saw conquest as the only way to escape that. I've also heard a rumor that Eqaharia was the original homeland of the Equines, before the three tribes moved northward to Equestria during Hearth's Warming."

"Hearth's Warming?" Nomad asked. "Is that some sort of holiday?"

"It is. Specifically the anniversary of the day Equestria came to be, and the story behind it." Cadance replied as they entered the palace, and headed to the great hall. As the other two Ghost teams waved them over from a table bearing what Nomad presumed was a prepared lunch, Shining Armor then entered the room.

"How'd things go?" Cadance asked her husband.

"Went well," he replied. "Lt. Colonel Mitchell will be sending everything over in about an hour or so. Supplies, additional human technology and vehicles, spare parts and materials, the vehicle crews, whole nine yards. We might even break the siege at this rate."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Aegis Lead said. "We've got to have a solid upper hand before we go on the offensive. And with the majority of Equestria still under hostile control, we need to work them down before we take them out."

Shining nodded, and as he and his wife took their seats, Nomad powered up the satellite phone and called Sunset Shimmer.

"Hey, Nomad." Sunset said once the connection was established. "I was just about to call you. I found the Element of Honesty, Applejack and her family, plus two others. They're in the refugee lodgings in the Crystal Empire. Unfortunately...Applejack's grandmother passed away two weeks ago in her sleep."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Nomad replied. "Did Rainbow and Fluttershy meet up with them at any point?"

"Yeah, they did two days ago." Sunset replied. "Rainbow also reunited with her adoptive sister, Scootaloo, and Rarity's sister Sweetie Belle made it as well."

"Nothing like a family reunion." Nomad nodded. "Anything else?"

"I've got one more piece of good news and some bad news." she replied. "The good news is that I confirmed Rarity and Pinkie Pie are in Manehattan, in a shelter run by a small resistance group."

"And the bad news?"

"The news of Prince Ajax's disappearance reached Canterlot." Sunset sighed. "Apparently Ajax's older brother Prince Hector is leading a full division of troops across Equestria in search of him. Plus, the Eqaharian King, Diomedas, has offered a pretty big reward in gold to anyone who returns his son to Canterlot. Lucky for us, they won't find him at the Everfree base."

"That's not good." Nomad said. "Has news of that reward reached the Empire?"

"Not yet, but it likely will. We should be on the lookout for saboteurs." Sunset advised. "Plus, the longer it takes for Prince Hector to search, the more likely Diomedas will go on the offensive. And if he figures out that we're keeping him in the Empire…"

"It'll go from a siege to total war really damn quick." Nomad growled. "Any way we can capture Prince Hector?"

"Good luck with that. He's the heir to the Eqaharian throne, so he gets triple the attention and protection his brother had." Sunset sighed. "Plus, he's searching every inch of ground he can, so he's never in one place for too long."

Nomad gave a hum of thought, having flashbacks to the hunt for the Santa Blanca Cartel's transport genius, El Cerebro, during Operation Kingslayer. Though he had escaped, the Ghosts did manage to shut down his narco-submarine plan among his other schemes.

Which gave Nomad an idea after a few moments.

"That's just it." he said. "We're going to have to go loud here sooner or later. And if it's on our terms, it's better for us as a whole."

"So what are you thinking?" Sunset asked.

"I think it's time we let the enemy know who they're up against," he replied. "Sunset, I need you to spread a message to whoever comes into contact with the Eqaharians."

"What's the message?" she asked.

"Tell the Eqaharians…" Nomad smiled. "Among other things...do they believe in Ghosts?"

"Will do." Sunset said approvingly. "See you soon, Nomad."

"Same to you." Nomad smiled before ending the call, exiting the room for privacy, and then switched the connection to Lt. Colonel Mitchell aboard the USS Ticonderoga. After explaining his idea to his C.O., Mitchel was silent for a few moments.

"You're fortunate to have brought this up, Nomad." Mitchell replied. "The heads of Operation Echo Solace, the President included, are working on the same idea. We're not getting a declaration of war, it's off the table for now...but we are going all in on this operation."

"We're sending the USS Ticonderoga and the accompanying naval group to Equestria, with all the firepower included along with it. It's still getting officiated, but Nomad...we're done being silent."

"In a few days...we go on the offensive against Eqaharia. The President is preparing an ultimatum, and if that doesn't do the trick...Well, let's just say the enemy's in for royal hell."

"I'm glad to hear it." Nomad said. "See you on the other side, sir."

"I look forward to it, Nomad. Mitchell out."

Update!

Yep, it's time for air and naval support for the Ghosts. And soon, they'll have to defend the Crystal Empire as Hector sets his sights on rescuing his brother...and in the meantime, Twilight learns more about the state of things in Eqaharia from Bianca...