(I'm a fast forwarding. 6 months full speed ahead! Grab your armor, pick up your arms! Armies are marching and Equestria is in a state of turmoil not seen since the separation years ago.)
("So, this means no beard?" Is a freakishly hilarious way to end a chapter!) "Arcellia! Get back in line this instant!" Kleft heard a commanding officer shout. He looked down from his tree nest to see some troops run off through the woods. 'Man, what was I getting myself into!' Kleft thought with a sigh. Five months earlier, Luna had given him a 'special task for a special pony'. It made him feel like she thought he was a toad or something. He was to spy on the Storm nation and find any acts of possible threats. Two months ago, he had still found nothing, and sent a letter to Luna asking if he could return. Her obvious answer was a flat out "No!" Once he was sure all the troops had left, Kleft jumped down from his hideout and headed back to his little encampment. His shift was over for the day.
Winter put down his binoculars, thankfully Celestia wasn't dumb enough to waste him on watching the western border with the Storm Nation, instead he had been sent into spy and wreck havoc upon small Lunar military instillations. This particular one he has been watching for the past week, and had noticed a very fimilar pony as its leader. His mind drifted to the incident on the Lunar Island months back, when that pony confronted him in the market. He took a small letter from his saddlebag, and smiled as he read it. The outbreak of war had made much easier to slip things such as letters across the borders, allowing him more contact with Snow then ever since the breakup of the nations. He Returne the letter to its place and got together his gear. He pinned a quick report to Celestia and magically evaporated the letter and watched as it flew off towards Canterlot. He hid his camping and survalience gear into the tree and then jumped nimbly through the forest to the small base, more directly at the commanders tent. Time to settle an old score, he thought, and then his horn caught fire, and soon, the forest surrounding the camp went up in flames.
Firebreeze and the Strom Riders stood guard at the northern boarder, denying entry or exit to anypony who wanted to enter or leave. This was simply a precaution. There has been a lot of talk about spies lately and no pony wanted to take any risks.
Dark lead a convoy towards the border with the West Nation. The rumbling jeeps almost hid the diplomatic van, so that when the convoy reached the border, it looked like a raiding party, except they stopped at the border gate. Dark climbed out of the jeep and approached the booth, she knocked on the glass on the booth and it slid open to reveal a fimilar pony, "Firebreeze?" she asked.
"Diplomacy. We're guarding a very important diplomat's van to discuss a possible agreement with Heculius."
"I'm gonna need permission from Heculius before we let your convoy in, so..." Firebreeze turned toons of his troops, "Crash, go ask the boss if we can let these folks in!" "Yes sir!" Crash replied. The soldier flew off and returned shortly, then whispered in Fire's ear. Breeze looked back towards Dark, "Come on in." Firebreeze said, opening the gate. "Thunder! You're in charge until I get back!" he said to a soldier. "Follow me, folks," Fire said to the convoy, "I'll be escorting you to Heculius."
Dark nodded then turned her head to the convoy and yelled, "We're moving out!" and jumped back into the lead jeep, and the convoy lunged forward with Firebreeze leading.
Firebreeze soon stopped infront of a very tall Capitol building, "Alright, friends," Fire yelled to the convoy, "You may take three soldiers to guard your diplomat inside the Capitol, and that's me being generous."
Dark yelled back to the convoy, "Renic! Troy! Your coming with me! Everypony else stay here!" Dark flew up and landed on the roof of the Diplomat's jeep, followed by the two ponies she had called out. "Let's move it!" and the jeep lunged forward and went towards the Capitol building. When it pulled to a stop,Dark landed next to the jeep, and the other two opened the Diplomat's door. They then arranged themselves perfectly to where the only way to see the Diplomat was from above. They reaches the top of the stairs and Dark opened the door to the lobby, saluting. The Diplomat nodded to Dark as he walked in and up to the front desk, where the receptionist was busy reading a book. "I am here to see my brother." the Diplomat said in a rough voice. The recepetionist looked up and was face to face with a certain pony she probably never thought she would see, the face of the King of Storms, Tremalion.
Kleft saw smoke appear on the horizon, not a mile away from his current location. 'Odd...' he thought. 'That's close to our camp, but we were given orders not to star fires to cook food, or risk giving up our position.' After around another fifteen minutes, Kleft appeared to find the charred ruins of their camp. He was shocked speechless. Many ponies were tending to burns and wounds, others were trying to get a collapsed tree off somepony. It looked as if there had been no fatalities. A pony watched him enter the camp and instantly pinned him down magically. "State your name, rank, and position!" He barked. Kleft replied calmly with "Kleft Praise, Captain, magical watch." The pony looked at him a bit more closely before getting off. "Good, you're one of us. As you can see," he gestured to the wreckage, "somepony got in and set the commander's tent on fire, burning him alive, bless his soul. We're still tracking the offender. Some think it was a spy, others a changeling. Either way, we need to report to Luna about this. How about you send her the letter, eh?" Kleft thought a moment, then nodded. "Sure," he said, "she trusts me enough. The rest of you should really get out of here, the smoke is sending a beacon to everypony within 20 kilometers."
(Bwaahh... Too tired to write down what had happened during those six months. To make it short, Velvet Haze's sister has grown up, and discovered her cutie mark during her captivity.) Velvet Purple went downstairs, and walked in the small kitchen. "Hey, Haze, i'll go for a walk. Are you coming with me?" "Oh, no thanks. I have to make some necklaces, i don't know why, but i've got a lot of customers today. When are you back?" "Let's say... In an hour?" "You go, then. Remember to avoid strangers~." "Oh, stop harrassing me with that. 'Later." "Good walk~!" When the door closed, Haze walked up to the window, and looked at her sister going away. She had grown up a lot during her captivity. She was already really mature for her age, and she gained more maturity everyday. She was more and more wise, and took life seriously. She had developped a phobia since her captivity, the phobia of persecution. Everything was a threat to her. 'And she doesn't gain in self-counsciousness everyday neither. Her mental state is getting worse everyday.', Haze thought. She walked to her desk's back room, and pinned her code on the lock. The door opened silently, and she went inside. A bright light fused from a small globe at the center of the room, and Haze put her hoof on it. A glyph lighted on the floor, and she had to pin another code on it. After this last code, the light gained in power, and she had to cover her eyes with her hoof. Then, a wall shattered. Haze kicked it, and it broke. Behind it were hidden several guns and blades. She took two old silver magnums, and smiled. 'Ashes's magnums...' She took a pack of cards, and took one. They were razor sharp. A mask was engraved on each of them, the last mark of Masquerade. She hid all the weapons in a saddlebag made of black leather, and put it on her back. She exited the room, and closed the door, locking it automatically. She walked to the table, and wrote a note: "Leaving for a while. Food for two weeks, money under shop's desk. Come back when i can." She sighed, and walked outside. The sun was high in the deep blue sky, like always in Canterlot.
Winter smiled at his handiwork, dispite that after the pony he was really after had appeared at the camp AFTER the fire, he had still managed to kill or injure most of those there. He got out pen and paper and wrote a quick note that read, You like your present? I'm still here, and maybe next time I see you, I will do more than just trap you in a ice cocoon. he rolled up the letter and placed in a dart gun, which he blew directly at that one pony, hitting him square in the face. Winter immediately teleported away, to avoid any search parties.
Kleft was just thinking about how to break the fire to the princess when a piece of paper moving abnormally fast hit him smack dab in the face. He put down his paper and picked up the new one with his magic. As it unfurled, he noticed it was not a writing style of anypony he had met. You like your present? I'm still here, and maybe next time I see you, I will do more than just trap you in a ice cocoon. Kleft read the note over again. And again. Each time he read it, his face became more red and his temper flared. This was no changeling, their camp had just been hit by a saboteur. He was mad. No, he was beyond mad, so pissed off he thought he could kill Celestia just by staring at her. Suddenly, he realized he had just been hit with it, the sender was nearby! He sent out a bio-scan as far as he could possibly go. He picked up a familiar signal for just a moment, but then it vanished out of his reach. "I have you now, you bastard..." Kleft muttered under his breath. "Sorry, guys. This one's personal." He mustered up his energy and flung himself through a teleport that would take him as close to his foe's previous location as possible.
Firebreeze stood outside the door to the secretary's office with Dark and her two troops. He was trying to decide if he should try to make small talk or just keep his mouth shut.
Velvet walked to Canterlot's castle. She would seek for an audience with the princess. After half an hour, she finally arrived at the castle. A guard came to her. "Sorry, but it's a restricted area. Civilians aren't supposed to enter the castle." Velvet smiled to him, and used her special talent. The guard's shadow became darker, and the Guard's irises became wider. He took a knife, attached on his armor, and inserted it violently in his neck. Bleeding, he falled, uncounsious. Velvet passed over his body, and opened the huge door. She walked to the throne room, and knocked. A guard opened. "Who are you? What are you doing here?" "I'm sorry to bother you, Royal guard, but it appears that your colleague needs help." "What do you mean, civilian?" "Here, look over my shoulder. You should assist him at his lasts moments." The royal guard finally saw the other guard and, horried, rushed to him. Velvet opened the door wider, and walked in the room. Before the princess could say anything, she put her hoof in front of her mouth to intimate silence. "You higness, I appear to have at my possession some deadly weapons. And i want them to be at your service. You see, my familly has always served the Solar empire's army, and my time has come. Sorry for your guard, but i hadn't the time to fill papers and things. I know somepony in your army who could refer me." Princess Celestia smiled. "I like your ambition. If you're as good as a soldier, as you are impolite and wild, i cerrtainly have a place for you in our ranks. Who could refer you?" "Somepony i met 6 months ago. His name is Winter Warmth." "You know Winter? That's a good argument. Tell me about your familly, then." "You should remember of Ashes Grey and Masquerade Butcher. I also have a blood link with Silence White, your priest. Here, let me prove you what i say." Velvet opened her saddlebag, and threw the magnums, the card pack, and removed her necklace. "Here. All i want is to pay back what i owe you. It has been three years that i've asked for a loan, and every bids are still in my possession. I want to give it back, but unfortunately, my shop as little money. I can't afford any publicity, and nopony needs the services of an Alchemist. Now, can you hurry up and give me my orders?" "No need to rush. Let me think, Miss Haze." "I would've said i'm sorry, but i ain't. Now i am. Sorry." She laughed. Celestia had a little smile. "I know. Let me contact Winter, and have his opinion. Maybe i'll put you under his orders as a spy-rookie, but you'll have to learn the art of your familly." (What do you say, Snow?)
Kleft looked hurridly around his new surroundings. 'NO!' he thought. 'I can't have lost him!' Kleft swept the area again, but it was no good. There were no other ponies near enough to him to locate. 'I have his scent now, but I must bide my time. Soon, you will feel my wrath, spy!' He turned and teleported back to camp to aid cleaning up.
