BANG BANG BANG.

The crashing of hooves on the bulkhead exploded in Firefly's ears. Azure eyes snapped open. Pupils constricted to pinpoints. Adrenaline flooded her veins. Firefly awoke with a start, the sudden rush launching her to sitting position. She immediately regretted her actions. Her panicked motions were greeted by a sharp smack to the forehead by the baseplate of the top bunk. Stars danced in front of her as she cradled her aching face in her hooves.

Firefly hated bunking on her airborne radar and communication vessel. It was cramped, it was cold, and it was loud. That said, it was still better than dying of exposure while bivouacking this far north, not to mention the fact that any sleep was better than no sleep. All the same, sleep brought on things like... that. Whatever that was. Firefly shuddered at the recalled memory, but concealed it with an exasperated groan and an exaggerated rub of her sore forehead. They couldn't get back to the ship soon enough.

"Rise and shine sleepyhead!" The greeting was chipper, almost sing-song. "We're almost back to the ship!"

"I swear to gods, Eastwind..." Firefly growled.

"Do you, now? Better get all that swearing out of your system before we get back!" The other mare grinned and playfully punched Firefly on the shoulder. "I don't think the Captain wants you fouling his air!"

Eastwind's impish grin dominated her face. Firefly shook her head. She knew better than to trust the Cirrian lieutenant's military pedigree; Eastwind's youthful enthusiasm and puckish demeanor had outlasted both OCS and active deployment. As she spoke, her impeccably trimmed mane shifted beneath her flight cap, allowing a single white streaked lock to fall out of place, a trespass that was quickly corrected with a swipe of a pale yellow hoof.

Firefly glared into Eastwind's now visible crimson eyes. She had to admit she'd hated Eastwind's guts when they first met, but her constant mischief went from vexing to endearing after flying with her through the hellfire of the Continental War. Friendships have a funny way of happening when you're being shot at together, Firefly mused.

"If you ask me, the air around the captain is already foul..." Firefly scowled as she spoke.

The commander rolled out of bed and alighted on her hooves. She shook herself out, stretching tired muscles, pulling her tussled mane out of her eyes, and giving her tail a few flicks to straighten it. The clicks and swishes of sliding harnesses and closing clips filled the air as Firefly donned her flight gear once again: a flight jacket, a flak vest, a flier's cap, and a combat harness with hardpoints for weapons.

"What's on the docket for this week, Windy?" She asked as she dressed herself.

"No more patrols today since we just finished an overnighter. Thank gods." Eastwind yawned as she leaned up against the bulkhead. Stifling it with a hoof, she continued going over the schedule. "Squadron night, PT, more PT, and oh hey, looks like we've got a new recruit coming in at the end of the week."

"Of course," Firefly said while adjusting her cap. Her ears slipped into wool-lined slits worn to comfortable softness with repeated use. "Hope this one's better than the last one."

"The 'last one' had perfect scores from the naval academy." Eastwind tapped her hoof on the deck. Without looking, Firefly could discern notes of both impatience and amusement. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you enjoyed washing them out!"

"The last one? Definitely. He was an ass." Firefly snorted in contempt. "Stuck-up, bullish, and otherwise a pain in the flank. Not to mention too predictable while sparring. He couldn't think on his hooves if his life depended on it. Kid wouldn't last five seconds in a firefight."

"That's what you said for the past three candidates, Firefly."

"What can I say?" Firefly chuckled. "I have high standards."

"Eventually the CAG is going to ask you to settle down. You can't just keep washing them out if you don't have a legitimate reason to do it."

Eastwind's reminder rang true. The Commander, Air Group, had given her a deadline for choosing a junior officer to fill out her squad's ranks. If she didn't choose a replacement in two weeks, she'd be assigned one whether she liked them or not. Still, Firefly wasn't just going to pull ANYPONY for her unit, especially when she still had say in the matter.

"Not liking them is plenty of reason to wash them out. If I'm going to be spending the next couple months fighting and bleeding alongside them, I have to like them. The CAG is going to have to deal with my selections process. I'm in charge of this outfit and she knows that."

"I trust you, Firefly, but sometimes I worry."

"Don't. We've got enough to worry about with the pirates pointing guns at us and the Captain riding our backs! Now where the hay is Sunburst?"

"Awake," came the response. "Which is more than I can say for the rest of you. I thought I was the one they'd put out to pasture first."

Chief Petty Officer Sunburst was old. He knew it. The squadron knew it. Even fleet command knew it. Though he was far from geriatric, a bit of sable had already begun to creep into his orange mane. The squadron often joked that even his cutie mark, three blue raindrops overlaid on a sun, was getting wrinkly as his face. Until his provisional reenlistment contract expired, however, they were stuck with him. Or more precisely, he was stuck with them!

"Keep talking, old sire!" Firefly allowed herself a wry smirk before finishing. "FleetCOM will be tossing your wrinkly ass onto an Amani beach soon enough!"

"They'd better send some of those ESO girls with me!"

"Keep dreaming, Sunshine!" Eastwind snickered. "I don't think we need to add any more ex-wives to that laundry list of yours!"

A loud pounding on the forward bulkhead interrupted their banter. "Lieutenant commander! We're twenty klicks out. We need to get ready."

"Thanks, chief. We'll be on deck in five majesties."

The chief warrant officer waved a quick salute and closed the hatch behind her. A smug grin on her face, Firefly turned to address her team. "Ready guys?"

"Ready as we're going to be," Eastwind replied.

Firefly donned the last of her kit. The repeater clicked into its housing, pointing over her right shoulder. Over her left shoulder slid the launch tube and bulbous warhead of a ballistic lance. Finally, Firefly fixed the earpiece of her wireless set to her ear and clipped her throat microphone into place.

"Timberwolves, radio check," she spoke, clicking the switch on her left hoof.

"Eastwind."

"Old sire."

"Storm Warden."

All of the responding voices rang clearly in her headset. They were ready.

Firefly tightened her scarf, dropped her goggles over her eyes, and hoofed open the hatch. The metal door swung open, battering the three pegasi with high-altitude wind. Despite the suddenness of the icy blast, the veteran squadron was unfazed. Weeks in the frozen Frontier had hardened them to cold and wind. Sunburst and Eastwind closed and secured the hatch as they all stepped onto the corvette's upper deck. Firefly stretched her wings, breathed deeply, and leaped overboard.

The ARC ship's wake caught her outstretched wings and buoyed her up over the cockpit, allowing Firefly to bank into position just ahead of the ship. She waved her hoof in a circular motion, calling for rally up. Looking left and looking right, Firefly saw that Sunburst and Eastwind had quickly taken up positions flanking her. She smiled. They all fit together like one well-oiled machine.

Firefly's tail and scarf wildly whipped about as the wind began to pick up. She keyed her radio. "Looks like some snow near the fleet. Stick close to the ARC ship and we'll be fine."

Up ahead, fresh flakes danced through the air in shimmering curtains of crystalline ice. Visibility rapidly dropped as the squadron entered the snowstorm. Ice-cold wind and gritty frost rubbed at Firefly's muzzle and tore through her mane and tail. Cold weather acclimatization my flank, she grumbled to herself. Another moment and she was past grumbling. The frigid cloud engulfed the ponies and their ship, surrounding them in thick, murky grey.

"LORAN signal is loud and clear. Timberwolves, course correcting plus five degrees, holding altitude."

"Copy plus five degrees, holding altitude," Firefly echoed.

Firefly could feel the ship's bow wave shift ever so slightly and adjusted her flight path accordingly. Sight wasn't the only sense that Pegasi relied on for flight, but Firefly still hated being blind. On the Frontier, combat fliers found themselves increasingly reliant on their ARC ships for long-range communications, navigation, and resupply. If only I could see radar and hear radio transmissions, she thought to herself.

"Five klicks out," the ARC ship pilot announced.

"Copy five klicks," Firefly repeated. "Looks like the weather is clearing."

As if on cue, the glittering veil lifted, allowing the golden sun to break through the swirling snow. A hollow cripsness crackled in the air that nipped at skin and crystallized on every breath. Wispy cirrus clouds coalesced at altitude, gracing the mid-morning sun with a majestic halo of many colors. Mountains rose from frigid plains, cutting the sky with their jagged, rocky peaks capped with snow and ringed with lenticular clouds. Still air above and blindingly white snow below framed a sublime portrait of unspoiled nature.

A flash of reflected sunlight begged Firefly to steal a glance. Her quick peek was nearly blinding, but it was worth it to see the one thing that dominated the Frontier's horizon line. An enormous obelisk to the north towered above the wastes, its polished surface gleaming like the facets of an enormous diamond. The monolith dwarfed all buildings in its shadow, even making the great ships of the fleet look like Canterlot pleasure yachts.

An alien landscape grew in the structure's penumbra. The base of the tower straddled a grand plaza, its flying butresses casting long shadows over the dwellings below. Crystal streets radiated out from the central spire with cross streets arranging dwellings and shops into neat angular blocks. The dense cityscape tapered off as it sprawled away from the spire.

Where there was once desolation there was now lush flora. Green grass and wooded thickets formed a patchwork carpet with farms and orchards in an enormous ring around the tower. The verdant quilt abruptly ended a few kilometers from the spire. On one side of the terminator were green fields and on the other, frozen wastes. Separating the two was a barely-perceptible shimmer that traced out a great circle with the tower at its center.

Sunburst whistled in awe. "There's the shield dome. I'll never understand that magic, but it's really a thing of beauty..."

"We've been doing this for weeks and the Crystal Palace still takes my breath away," Eastwind sighed dreamily.

"Stay focused, guys!" Firefly smirked as she jokingly chided her team. "You act like this is the first time we've flown into the Crystal Empire or something!"

With the snow gone, the fleet was finally visible. Airships of all shapes and sizes puttered about on the edge of the city. Frigates and their attending fliers circled the perimeter on combat air patrol. Cruisers and destroyers lay anchored while conducting crew drills or refueling. But one ship loomed above the others, a massive floating fortress that bristled with weapons and bustled with activity.

"Home sweet Majestic home!" Eastwind said, echoing Firefly's sentiments. "A hard bunk in steerage never sounded so good!"

As Firefly and her team approached, the tiny dots on the massive vessel's flight deck began to resolve themselves. Ponies, griffons, zebras, and even a few young dragons milled about around the central superstructure, an elongated metal island topped with radar masts, radio aerials, and anti-air guns. Eight large landing pads and their attached flight elevators serviced arriving and departing smaller ships, most of them ARC vessels like Storm Warden.

Firefly keyed her radio. "Majestic control, this is Timberwolf One, requesting permission for approach, over."

"Timberwolf, Storm Warden, you are cleared for approach to landing spot three." The smooth voice of the Majestic's air traffic controller came back over the airwaves.

"Gear down and props to vertical, Majestic," the ARC pilot responded. "Coming in now."

"This is Timberwolf One," Firefly spoke. "We're following the ARC ship in. See you on deck, boys."

Firefly and her squad circled the landing spot twice, allowing the ARC ship time to land and begin to power down its engines. The Timberwolves flared hard, descending onto the deck and making a soft touchdown. As she folded her wings to her sides, she was blasted in the face with fresh powder blowing off the deck from Storm Warden's rapidly fading downwash. Flight operations crew descended upon the ARC ship like birds upon feed, but with her part done, Firefly paid them little mind. She shook the snow out of her tail and pinions and trotted on.

The Timberwolves continued to the flight deck island, where Sunburst trotted forward to heft open the exterior hatch. Firefly lifted her goggles and loosened her scarf, allowing it to flutter behind her as she descended the ladder into the bowels of the ship. As Sunburst closed and secured the hatch behind them, the topside sunlight disappeared, leaving only the electric lights of the Majestic's interior. Ladder grating rapidly transitioned to hard deck, which yawned into a cavernous hangar in the belly of the Majestic. Machinery hummed and churned all about them. Welding torches and rivet drivers and hammers and spanners harmonized in a symphony of military operations.

Typical of Equestrian ships, the working areas were well-lit and decorated with little reminders of home. Lucky horseshoes, inlaid display cases with pressed flowers and photographs, and corkboards with cards and letters from school children and loved ones adorned the walls of the hangar and the workspaces of the engineers and mechanics. Though she was grateful for any support, the charm had long ago worn off on Firefly.

"Poor kids probably had to do it for some dumb school assignment," she muttered as she passed a corkboard being updated with the latest batch of letters.

"Don't be so dour, Firefly," Eastwind said. "I'm sure some of them really love writing to their heroes in the Alliance Navy!"

"Of course! Who could resist?" Sunburst said. In his most bombastic navy recruiter's voice, Sunburst carried on, "Exotic locales, wily pirates, swashbuckling action, handsome stallions, and gorgeous mares! Live the adventure! Sign up today with the Alliance Navy!"

Sunburst acted out his speech, sweeping his hoof wide to trace a mock horizon, covering one eye in imitation of a pirate's eyepatch, and making sword-stroke motions in the air at the mention of 'swashbuckling action.' He concluded with his best 'handsome stallion' face and a mockingly enthusiastic salute as if posing for a recruiting poster. Eastwind laughed heartily at his antics and Firefly couldn't help but crack a smile.

The smile quickly faded, however, as they passed a gutted corvette laid in silent repose on the hangar floor. The ship had seen combat and plenty of it. Bullet holes and shrapnel cuts marred the surface of its plating, some of them even extending into the ship's superstructure. At the edge of perception was the acrid odor of burned metal and melted electronics. Firefly shuddered at the memories it evoked.

"Lieutenant Commander Firefly! Just the mare I needed to see!" The sudden address snapped Firefly back into reality.

"Commander on deck!" Eastwind barked.

At the pronouncement, all three Timberwolves lined up and snapped to attention. Their hind hooves clicked together and their front right hooves all jumped to brow height in a single, practiced motion, concluding with the squad remaining motionless before the commander. The mare addressing them was of middling height, with a lithe and wiry frame typical of combat fliers. Among those combat fliers, however, she was unique.

Instead of feathers, she sported leathery wings akin to those of a bat, making her areion — batpony, as the colloquialism went — heritage immediately apparent. The khaki service uniform contrasted heavily with her navy blue coat, her white garrison cap framed by tufted ears unique to the areion. Her silvery tail was trimmed to regulation, her similarly-colored mane tucked into a tight bun under her headgear. A pair of fierce gold eyes rounded out the countenance of a veteran senior officer, the commander of the air group and executive officer aboard the Majestic.

"At ease, Timberwolves." The commander's stoic expression softened as she returned the salute. "I'm not running inspections... not today anyway."

"Commander Brahma Kamal! Good to see you again!" Firefly said as she dopped attention in favor of a more relaxed stance. "I wasn't expecting you in the hangars!"

"Neither was I, but our last batch of nuggets just came in. I've got a new candidate to introduce to you."

Firefly's heart sank. They weren't supposed to arrive until the end of the week! All she was looking for was a hot shower and a warm bunk followed by cold drinks on shore leave. She didn't have time for this horseapples!

"With all due respect, ma'am, my squad was run ragged on that last patrol. We're all exhausted and in serious need of some shut-eye. Now isn't a good time."

"Firefly, I'd argue that now is the perfect time. Squadron night for you guys is tonight, isn't it?"

Firefly gritted her teeth. She knew what the CAG was getting at. The squadron night tradition dated back to the end of the Continental War, where veterans would gather on leave to swap stories and offer comfort over tales of battle. The shared bonding experience carried over to those deployed abroad. This was especially true with the long hours that the combat fliers pulled on patrols on the Frontier. It thus came as no surprise that Brahma knew about squadron night. But Timberwolf's squadron night belonged to Firefly. She didn't need some nugget with a chip on his shoulder screwing it up.

"Can I say no?" Firefly ventured.

"Firefly, you're nearing the end of your alotted evaluation period." Though her tone was official, there was no malice in her voice. Brahma's countenance was that of a firm but patient tutor addressing an obstinate foal. "If you don't select a candidate to fill the position in your squadron, one will be selected for you by the administration whether you like it or not."

"I know, I know." Firefly sighed tiredly. She unconsciously rubbed her forehead, wondering if she would regret her decision. "Let's get this over with. Bring them in."

"Lieutenant," Brahma turned her head and called out behind her. "This is Lieutenant Commander Firefly, your new supervising officer."

From behind Brahma stepped a well-built pegasus stallion. His muscular frame filled out the uniform shirt he was given and his issued junior officer's combination cap seemed almost too small for his head. His coat was a misty grey the color of stormclouds, his mane and tail a cerulean blue streaked with sky. His cutie mark was a wind-blown stormcloud with a lone lightning bolt shooting out. Probably a former weather pony, Firefly thought. Though he pulled himself upright during presentation, Firefly could tell he was nervous. The fresh officer snapped to attention and saluted Firefly.

"Lieutenant Junior Grade Thunderlane reporting for duty, ma'am!"

Boy you really are green, aren't you? Firefly mused. His uniform was perfectly clean, his shirt impeccably creased, and his hat buffed to a mirror sheen. That was going to change as soon as he got dropped into his first sortie. Firefly returned his salute, but omitted putting him at ease. Like a good soldier, Thunderlane remained at attention.

"Where are you from, son?"

"Equestria, ma'am! A little town called —"

"If I wanted more information, lieutenant, I'd ask you for it!" Firefly cut him off.

"Apologies, ma'am!" Though he maintained his stance, the little waver at the edge of his voice told Firefly he was shaken.

Firefly stole a quick glance at Brahma, whom she could tell was struggling to maintain a straight face at her grilling of the new recruit. For Thunderlane, this was surely terrifying, but for Firefly, this was merely routine. She could have fun with this...

"Equestria, huh? I figured a prettyboy like you would be from Pyre!" Firefly said with furrowed brow. "Where in Equestria?"

"Ponyville, ma'am!" The response was curt and abrupt. Good, he was quick to pick up commands.

"Ponyville? I've never heard of any Ponyville! Where's that?"

"Central Equestria, ma'am, dead west of Canterlot!" He knew his geography, at least enough to point to spots on a map, and could condense the information into fast tidbits in a moment. This was already an improvement to the 'navigationally impaired' officer that had last been in Thunderlane's place.

Ordinarily, Firefly would have asked more questions at an ever increasing rate just to see if Thunderlane could keep up. But the previous night had taken its toll and Firefly was just as eager to get off the flight line as Thunderlane surely was. She decided to skip her usual gamut of questions and get straight to the heart of the evaluation. Any yahoo could answer questions about Equestria, the Alliance, and their history, but not everypony would be honest as to why they had signed on in the first place. Firefly turned up her senior officer glare to maximum.

"So, lieutenant... tell me about yourself. How did you get stuck in this horseapples outfit?"

Firefly's stern gaze and pointed delivery hit the conversation like a burst of flak. Brahma's hinted smile immediately disappeared. Eastwind and Sunburst exchanged looks of disapproval at the edge of her vision. But Firefly wasn't concerned about their reactions; they knew full well how she did things. She was most concerned with Thunderlane. The lieutenant hestitated for a moment, as if taken aback by Firefly's sudden interjection. But then, a curious change came over Thunderlane. His chest puffed out, his eyes seemed to ignite, and he stood up even straighter if that was possible.

"I volunteered, ma'am!" Thunderlane proclaimed. "I went through OCS ahead of the draft during the Continental War, but they finished off the griffons before I was deployed. I stayed on during the drawdown since the REA needed capable young officers."

"And then FleetCOM booted your nugget ass up here?"

Firefly was now more curious than anything else. There were two kinds of recruits: those who joined to get a taste of action and those who were dragged into it by circumstances outside their control. Strangely enough, Thunderlane was neither of these.

"No, ma'am. I volunteered for that, too, when I read about the Crystal Empire." Thunderlane paused a moment, thinking out his response carefully. "I love helping other ponies, ma'am. I thought I could do some good up here."

His sincerity was unexpected, shocking even. But what resonated most clearly in Firefly's head were those words. I thought I could do some good up here. She remembered those words. She remembered the one who said those words. Emotions flared within her, barely contained by her hardened exterior and veteran's demeanor.

"Boy you're a regular colt scout aren't you?" she spat, perhaps more emphatically than she meant. But even if she didn't mean it, she wasn't going to apologize.

"Let me tell you something, lieutenant," Firefly said, her gaze not wavering from Thunderlane. "You may have come up here to do some good, but a tour in the Frontier isn't your little sister's tea party. It's cold, it's mean, and it's hard out there."

Firefly began to pace back and forth in front of Thunderlane as she continued. "The second you step into that uniform and strap on those weapons, nothing else matters. It's you, the sky, and your guns. You alone are responsible for making sure you live long enough to come back to what you left behind. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Thunderlane bellowed in response.

"You don't..." Firefly whispered, her stony-faced expression hiding the last dying ember of emotion. "But you'll learn soon enough."

"Commander Kamal, I expected you on the bridge, not in the hangar." The sharp voice of a stallion cut through the noise of the hangar.

"Captain on deck!" Sunburst snapped to attention and raised his hoof in salute.

Even as she fell back in line, Firefly bristled at the voice. As if this day couldn't get any worse. The ember of emotion reignited, threatening to break into an all-out conflagration. The tongues of inner fire were already licking at Firefly's fatigue-addled self-control. Thankfully, Brahma was the subject of the address. Firefly wasn't sure what she'd do if the captain had chosen to address her personally.

"Captain Skywind, I might say the same for you," the commander replied as they exchanged salutes. "I was introducing a new combat flier to his squadron."

The pegasus captain towered over his subordinates, being nearly a full head taller than Firefly. Skywind was broad-shouldered, his features handsome and chiseled. His white wings were neatly folded by his side, the navy-blue tips of his pinions contrasting sharply with both his flight feathers and the khaki of his navy service uniform. His cutie mark was the likeness of a winged sword; sharp, much like his profile.

Locks of immaculate brown hair were tucked neatly under his combination cap and his white coat shone in the cold light of the hangar deck like the walls of the Crystal Palace. Firefly could see the pride in his terrible blue eyes. Skywind carried himself like a pony of noble standing, presenting himself with neither timidity nor remorse. The captain paused at Brahma's reply, finally acknowledging Timberwolf flight's presence with a bored, emotionless glance.

"Isn't that the adjutants' job?" he said impassively.

Firefly gritted her teeth. He hadn't even given them the courtesy of returning the salute or setting them at ease. Furthermore, the indifference with which he addressed the CAG was infuriating. Again, Brahma coolly responded to the captain, keeping Firefly from spewing some choice words.

"I could delegate to my adjutants, sir," Brahma's words were calm but firm. "But as the CAG on this ship, I exercise full discretion over how I choose to work with my squadrons."

"Do as you see fit, commander, but don't waste too much time showing the foals around. They received the best training in Pyre and have the best equipment the Alliance can offer. I expect them to be able to perform straight out of the gate!"

"I am well aware of that, captain. VFA-108 will be ready when they are called upon."

"As they should be. Now, I have administration to attend to." Skywind trotted on as he spoke. "I'll be on the bridge, commander."

"Jackass..." Firefly muttered under her breath.

Skywind stopped dead in his tracks. Firefly's ears drooped for a second at the realization that her mumbled epithet had been overheard. As the captain turned around, though, Firefly quenched her embarrassment with anger. She remained firmly at attention, eyes straight forward, resisting every urge to glare and scowl at Skywind.

"What was that, lieutenant commander?"

"I don't follow, sir."

"That's funny, I could have sworn you'd said something to me!" Skywind's tone had gone from bored to mocking in moments. "... or about me."

"The hangar is quite loud, sir." Firefly spoke slowly and kept her tone flat in an effort not to betray her original intent.

The captain stepped up until he was nearly muzzle to muzzle with Firefly. His eyes fixed upon hers and his glare was focused to bore into her skull. Out of the corner of her eye, Firefly could see Eastwind and Sunburst visibly recoil at the captain's sudden advance. Firefly didn't flinch. She stared straight ahead, pretending that she was looking into the nothingness that surely filled Skywind's head.

"You may not have high expectations of this ship, lieutenant commander, but I do!"

Skywind whirled around as he spoke, very nearly brushing Firefly's muzzle with the tip of his tail. It was all Firefly could do to keep from body-checking him into the deck. Skywind's voice was laced with a noxious mixture of personal pomp and antipathy toward Firefly's muttered curse.

"I requisitioned nothing but the best from Alliance and I expect nothing less than overachievement!"

Firefly remained silent, physically biting her tongue to keep from spitting and cursing right then and there. Nopony deserved to place himself on a pedestal like Skywind. Nopony. That kind of hubris was what Firefly craved to break. She'd done it before against bullies, thugs, and self-righteous patricians when she was young and she wouldn't hesitate to do it again. But chain of command stood in her way this time — a chain of command that involved Brahma. The CAG was on her side and making Brahma's life difficult was not going to help. Firefly cringed as Skywind carried on unabated.

"But in order to attain that level of performance, a soldier must first be broken — broken of all preconceptions about how they THINK things should be run!" Skywind began to pace as he continued to lecture. "Out here, you don’t take orders from the Princesses of Equestria, the Aquellian Prime Minister, or the King of Pyre. You take orders from ME."

The last word was less spoken and more fired like a cannon shell. Skywind swept his gaze across the Timberwolves, who were still stuck at attention, and took a moment to glare at Thunderlane. He finally turned back to face Firefly, staring straight into her eyes once again.

"Out here, I am God." Skywind's words were hard and cold, offering all the comfort of a knife to the throat. "Do I make myself clear, lieutenant commander?"

"Yes, sir," came the flat response.

"Do I make myself clear, lieutenant commander?" Skywind repeated.

Firefly seethed. He'd heard the first time. She knew he'd heard. Under any other circumstances, Firefly would have left him bleeding on the floor. But chain of command was in effect and all the consequences it entailed.

Firefly clenched her teeth and forced her response. "Yes. Sir."

"Your squadron is dismissed. Commander Kamal, I'll see you on the bridge." Skywind took a few steps before looking over his shoulder at Firefly and uttering a few parting words. "I'll have my eye on you, lieutenant commander."

Firefly's eye twitched involuntarily as Skywind finally trotted out of earshot. For a moment, she couldn't even leave attention. Contempt. Rage. Frustration. Skywind brought out the worst in her. As she festered, the feelings that she had been bottling up during their encounter finally boiled over. Any semblance of self-control that remained evaporated in the heat of rage.

"THAT PYRIAN SON OF A BITCH!" Firefly stomped on the deck as she spat her venom, the loud BANG drawing quizzical glances from nearby mechanics. "He really gets off to that, doesn't he?"

"Firefly." Brahma's inflection was flat in stark contrast to Firefly's incensed tirade.

"I bet that bastard hasn't worked a day in his life!" Firefly continued to rail. "Where the hell was he the last war?"

"Firefly!"

"How do you let him treat you like that, commander?" Firefly implored Brahma. "Where's the admiral in all this horseapples, huh?"

"ENOUGH!" Firefly winced at the sudden shout from Brahma. The stern air wing commander had returned. "Firefly, I don't care how much you hate the captain, he is still your superior officer! I shouldn't have to remind you to give him some respect!"

"Respect that he doesn't give us?" Firefly shot back.

"We're better than that, Firefly," came the snapped response. Brahma paused for a moment, meeting Firefly's eyes. "You're better than that. I know you are."

The tone whiplash left Firefly conflicted. Part of her wanted to punch somepony, anypony, even Brahma. The other knew that Brahma was right. Skywind was an insufferable prick, but he was still in charge. She had to handle herself, if only for Brahma and the team.

"I'm sorry, ma'am," Firefly finally said, her ears drooping.

"So am I." Brahma sighed. There was a long pause as the miasma of ill will slowly dispersed.

Finally, Brahma spoke. "Your squadron is dismissed, Firefly. Have fun at squadron night, but don't stay out too late. Your training block is at 0830 tomorrow."

"Aye, ma'am," Firefly replied. She stepped to the side, addressing the young officer who still hovered in the wings. "Thunderlane?"

"Lieutenant commander?" Thunderlane's ears perked at the mention of his name.

"Firefly, please," Firefly said, holding a hoof up in a halting gesture. "Squadron night is 2100 at the Six Carat Horseshoe. Ask for it on the ground. The Crystal Ponies will point you in the right direction. Understood?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Best get going, kid."

Thunderlane saluted cleanly before doing an about-face and trotting off with Brahma Kamal. As their hoof falls faded into the hum of hangar work, Firefly closed her eyes and sighed. She rubbed her tired eyes with a hoof. The sooner she could put this behind her, the better.

"You okay, Firefly?" Eastwind was worried again; Firefly could hear it in her speech.

Firefly pushed past Eastwind, barely feeling the touch of her wingmate's hoof on her shoulder. She didn't need Eastwind worrying and she didn't want her pity. She trotted straight for the armory.

"I'm fine," she spat.

"That's horseapples and you know it!" Sunburst quickened his steps to keep up, even opening his wings a little in case he had to chase her down. Saying nothing at first, Firefly picked up the pace, arriving at the armory in short order.

Weapons vault number fourteen was one of many on board the Majestic. Racks and shelving held aetheric repeaters of varying types and harnesses for all sizes and shapes of pony. In one corner stood a set of racks and a separate ammunition locker for griffon rifles and Equestrian machine guns. Finally in the very back of the chamber was the heavy steel door to the ordnance vault, where explosives such as Firefly's ballistic lance were stored.

"Timberwolf flight. Lieutenant Commander Firefly, Lieutenant Eastwind, Chief Petty Officer Sunburst. Three ballistic lances, three repeaters to check in." Firefly said quickly to the adjutant at the armory office. She was waved through just as quickly.

"Firefly!" Sunburst nearly tripped coming through the armory doors, but caught himself with a flap of his wings just in time. The older stallion shook it off, landed on his hooves, and stepped up to Firefly again. "You can't blow up at the captain like that and expect us to believe you when you tell us you're 'fine'!"

Firefly detached her repeater from her harness, electing to cradle it in her front hooves as she put it back on its rack. The ballistic lance came next. Each step was a familiar process, each process a part of a comforting routine. She needed something to cling to, something to get her mind off the hangar debacle.

"It's nothing a nap and a drink won't fix, chief." Firefly continued deflecting Sunburst's interrogation as she stripped down.

"That's not—" Sunburst was interrupted by a hoof gently crossed in front of him by Eastwind. Sunburst's eyes narrowed, but he said nothing further. Eastwind met eyes with Firefly. The latter quickly spun around to avert her gaze, carrying the ballistic lance off to the ordnance vault. She knew Eastwind would keep asking, but Firefly didn't want to answer.

"What did you think of the kid?" Eastwind asked instead. At the change of subject, Firefly instantly perked up. Eastwind knew how to take care of her wingmates and for that Firefly was eternally grateful.

"He's sharp." Firefly jumped at the chance to talk about something else. "Not a musclehead like I thought he'd be. It was actually refreshing."

There was a lot to like about the kid. He followed instructions but at the same time, he could think on his hooves. He was well-trained, well-educated, and highly motivated. The thing that stood out most to Firefly, however, was that Thunderlane was legitimately a pleasant individual. In writing, his patriotic and altruistic platitudes would have fallen flat, but in person, it was far more tolerable — endearing, even. The last step would be to give him a shakedown flight with the squadron.

"Agreed. I think Thunderlane has plenty of potential," Eastwind nodded. "Still plan on washing him out in the first week?"

"If he plans on making a complete jackass of himself at squadron night and this week's drills, then yes, I do plan on washing him out. What about you, Sunburst?" Firefly looked to the chief petty officer, who still wore a scowl after being cut off by both his squadmates. Firefly sighed. "All right, all right. I apologize, chief. I'm sorry. I'm a little strung out this week, all right?"

"Just try not to string anypony out at the Horseshoe tonight!" Sunburst huffed. "Anyway, Thunderlane gets an initial vote of confidence from me. He seems like a good kid and I'd like to see what he can do."

"We trust you to make the final call, Firefly," Eastwind said. "But try not to give him the boot unnecessarily."

"We'll see."

Firefly took a deep breath of the cold, dry air as she finished locking up the armory. She didn't mean to do this to her squadmates. She'd never meant to slight Sunburst or force Eastwind to cover for her. She cared too much for her team to put them through another hell. But all the same, maybe things were looking up. The rookie looked promising and her squadron was still solid as ever. Those things were what mattered. Everything else was just frills.

"Let's get going," Firefly said as she latched the armory door shut. "I've got a hot date with the shower!"

Author's Notes:

Musical Index
AC: Assault Horizon - Rebirth

Squadrons Featured (in order of appearance)
Timberwolf
Pax Equestria Allied Commerce Entente (PEACE), Task Force Paladin
108th Alliance Expeditionary Fighter Squadron (VFA-108), CFT-1