Gain

Swiftlight was able to pull himself back from the front line for brief a rest, but he'd lost his spear. Looking around for an officer in charge, he realized that he was the only one at this position. The fighting in the square was getting much thinner with the timberwolf reinforcements cut off. A massive explosion somewhere off of his left sent everyone, timberwolves and ponies alike sprawling as the ground shook beneath them. Swiftlight regained his hooves and turned to see a massive fireball reaching upward into the sky. In that direction, he noticed a squad of unicorns that were pinned down by changeling sniper fire. They were in a trench in the street that looked to have been made by a previous explosion. He made a mad dash for their position, sliding down into the ditch with them.

"Who's in charge here?" he yelled over the cacophony of the battle.

One of them pointed at a lieutenant whose head was missing, apparently burned off by magical fire.

Swiftlight turned back to them, "Alright, it's time you guys helped us out. We're getting slaughtered in the middle, and those snipers are taking out the entire field. I need you to spray those buildings with everything you've got." Another blast nearby shook the ground; dirt rained down moments later. "I don't care if you can see them or not, just shoot anywhere close; we've got to get them pinned down or we're dead!"

"Aye, sir; on your command," one of them replied. They all moved into a ready position.

"Open fire!" Swiftlight commanded, and the unicorns unleashed a barrage into the nearest of the buildings. So much smoke and debris was raised that the changelings were only able to blind-fire through it. "That's it; keep it up!" Swiftlight yelled to them over the roar of the fighting. The captain looked around to assess the situation, and it wasn't quite as grim as before, but their numbers were still shrinking. The dead were strewn all across the square in quite a macabre scene. The wounded were crawling back toward the center. He could easily have believed that they were below half strength by now.

Swiftlight jumped back up and dashed forward to the middle again. He reached it just in time to see a changeling flying between the buildings. He only had a moment to look at her, but she was much larger than any of the others. Easily being twice their size or better, she must have been the queen. Time slowed as he beheld Queen Chrysalis; Swiftlight raised his crossbow, but a blast of energy shook the ground, ruining his aim. His shot went wild, and as her horn glowed brightly, he instinctively dove to the side. A massive burst of raw lethal energy ripped through timberwolves, ponies, stone, and earth in a sweeping path that cut down all of the defenders at that center street in one attack. The ground shook as it burned under the fierce power that was unleashed. Smoke obscured what happened to the queen, but Swiftlight had another concern.

"To the middle! We need reinforcements at the middle!" he cried, once again charging in alone.

He was the first living thing to arrive, and he stood in the center of the burned street, waiting for the mass of timberwolves that was spilling around the corner. The ground was hot beneath his boots and steaming as he loaded his crossbow and fired. The stick-dogs were heading directly at him, snarling and growling as they came. Just then, several dozen more ponies arrived and formed the line. They met the timberwolves head on, colliding and bringing the tide of them to a halt once again. Then something happened that Swiftlight had never seen before. The timberwolves piled so thick that they were on top of each other, three or four high in some places. It was like a rising tide on a windy day. They were over and on top of the defenders, trampling them. Swiftlight managed to side-step this flood and flattened himself against the stone facade of the building at his left as the remaining defenders turned and ran back toward the center of the square. The changeling snipers began spraying magic at the fleeing soldiers. As Swiftlight decided to join them, timberwolves came from the other side. The left had collapsed, and a timberwolf leapt at the stallion. He put one hoof against its throat, and the other against its fore-leg. They pushed back and forth for a moment with jaws snapping at the captain's face, and then Swiftlight did a half spin, bringing it to the ground and stamping on the timberwolf's body. Not wasting another moment, he clamored quickly up the side of the stone building. In a matter of seconds, he had made it two stories up; his years of rock-climbing in Van Hoover had apparently been time well spent. The timberwolves couldn't reach him for the moment, but he was hardly safe.

Looking back around the battlefield, he saw the nest of unicorns get overrun. Timberwolves poured in on top of them even as they were being blasted apart by the frantic flood of magic from the soldiers inside. They destroyed several dozen of the beasts before the firing stopped. The entire exchange lasted only a few seconds. Deciding that down was no longer an option, Swiftlight climbed farther up the building, working his way to the high windows from where that sniper fire had been coming, some of the damage aiding his ascent. He could clearly see his objective from this vantage point, but they wouldn't be able to see him until he got to the window, unless they happened to stick their heads out. Being careful to mind his grip, Swiftlight climbed up, positioning himself beneath the opening. His muscles were burning from the effort, and he rested there for a moment. This last part would be the worst of it. He had to get into that window and take out the sniper before it could get him. His heart pounded furiously as he waited for his moment. By the frequency and positions of the blasts, there were at least three of them. Swiftlight got his crossbow ready; he only had one arrow remaining. Just as the nearest changeling unleashed a blast, Swiftlight pushed hard up, grabbing the window with a front hoof and vaulting with his hind legs against the outer wall. He sprang up and into the window, firing the arrow into one changeling, he dropped his crossbow, grabbing another enemy and twisting as he landed. The look on the changeling's face caught Swiftlight off guard. The creature was much smaller than he'd expected, and in the eyes, he didn't see hatred or evil. Surprise and terror were the only emotions Swiftlight detected as he slammed the changeling head-first into the wall and threw him out the window. Drawing his knife as he spun, Swiftlight identified another changeling that was aiming to fire. He threw the knife, which spun through the air, striking the changeling in the face, handle first. A misdirected blast of magic hit the ceiling; he was not seriously injured, but the knife bought Swiftlight a precious moment that he needed. The captain sprang forward hard, just being missed by another magical blast from a fourth changeling that he hadn't noticed to his right. He caught his target in the throat with one hoof, and in the side with the other, slamming it against the wall. Grabbing it in a headlock, he spun around as the other fired twice. The first shot struck Swiftlight's armor. He felt a sharp pain as it burned into his back. The second shot struck his own comrade in the head, killing it instantly. As it fell, Swiftlight leapt forward, ramming the remaining changeling with his helmeted head. It tried to dodge, rearing up, but Swiftlight caught it in the belly, sending it to the ground writhing as furniture as knocked out of their way. He then used the prow on his helmet again to strike the changeling in the face, stunning it. Using his powerful hooves, Swiftlight ended the creature's suffering quickly.

In a frenzy, he scanned around the room; Swiftlight found that he was now alone. There were more snipers in the building, and every moment he delayed would mean more dead soldiers outside. He took a quick drink from his canteen before replacing it in his harness. He picked up his knife, fixing it to his boot, grabbed his crossbow, retrieved his arrow from the dispatched changeling, and crept silently to the door. He held his breath as he opened it to the hallway, trying desperately to listen to anything that might give him a clue as to what he'd find out there. The explosions outside were loud, and while that made sneaking easier, it also made it difficult for him to hear anything else that might be moving about. Sweat trickled down his nose, and he wiped it away. Once the door was open, he could clearly see that the corridor was empty.

Silently padding up the dark hallway to the next door, Swiftlight found it open. The room was empty. He moved to the next door, which was also open. Green flashes of light against the wall told him that there were enemies inside. Slowly he peered around the corner. There were three changelings, their backs to him as they fired their deadly magic mercilessly through the open windows. They were not watching their backs at all. Swiftlight slunk into the room, dropping low behind a big cushioned chair. He waited there a moment, sweat now running into his eyes. He wiped it away and crept low behind a table, the injury on his back burning with each movement. This was the last bit of furniture he could hide behind. As he was about to spring out, a bolt of unicorn magic shattered one of the closed windows, the energy impacting into the ceiling and exploding. Swiftlight froze in place as bits of wood, glass, and plaster splintered about the room.

The changelings swore as they ducked.

"Close one, eh?" one of them said, almost cheerfully to the others.

"Nah, they were aiming for you!" another laughed back.

They carefully got back up and resumed firing. Swiftlight hadn't been seen. He chose his moment and approached the one on the right quickly and quietly. His heart was pounding in his chest, and all he could hear was his own breathing. He sprang up, and at this close range, fired his crossbow, striking the farthest one away in the head with the arrow. Dropping his crossbow, he leapt from the ground and onto the nearest changeling's back. He pulled its head to one side with his left fore-hoof as his knife found its mark in the changeling's throat. It sputtered as he held it there, and Swiftlight turned his attention to the last one. It was backing up, too far away to leap to, and it had already turned to face him wearing an enraged look on his onyx face. The one he held was as good as dead but still clinging on to that last ounce of life. He had to move quickly, before his changeling shield expired. Swiftlight dove to his right, ramming his shoulder into the wall and scrambling his way across the room to the other. It flapped bug-like wings and flew up onto the table. In the moment of flight, Swiftlight dropped the one he'd been using as a shield and dashed straight for the live changeling. A green blast of magic flew past his head as Swiftlight rolled, sliding under the table. He kicked up hard with all four hooves, embedding his knife into the wood and shearing the blade in two as the table toppled over. The changeling fell directly onto him, and they struggled hoof to hoof.

Swiftlight caught the changeling with a left jab, deflecting what would have been another magical blast. The changeling kicked him in the ribs, a blow that was absorbed by the armor. Embracing the changeling and rolling to one side, he got it off-balance, and now they were both on the ground. He tried to work his broken blade into the changeling's throat, but teeth found Swiftlight's fore-leg, drawing blood. The armored pony head-butted the changeling, for which the prow on his his helmet was designed, twice before it stopped biting him. It was only dazed for a moment, but that was long enough for Swiftlight to gain the advantage. He was now on top, his right front leg pressed into the changeling's throat. It struggled, wings flapping, hooves clawing, but Swiftlight was too heavy. Green magic glowed on the changeling's jagged horn as if he were powering up another shot, but the light went out as the life left his eyes.

Swiftlight held the dead changeling there for a moment, just to be sure, and then rolled over onto his own back, panting. He lay there for barely a minute before he got up, drenched with sweat. He took another small drink, and searched for anything that might make a good weapon. The arrow he had fired had broken when the dead changeling had fallen. All he came up with was a broom handle. Once separated from the bristly end, he used the stump of his knife to cut a crude point in the wooden shaft. It was not the best spear he'd ever made, but it would have to suffice. As he was turning to leave, he heard a voice in the hall.

"Hey guys, you'll never believe what I just found," a changeling rasped as it entered the room without hesitation.

Swiftlight launched his spear without a second thought. The changeling panicked, spinning ineffectively to dodge and was pierced through his flank and pinned to the wall. It cried out in pain, dropping a book to the ground. Not wasting any time, Swiftlight ran up on him and sliced at his throat with the broken knife. It didn't cut deep, but it was enough. The changeling wouldn't cry out again. Turning his attention to the book that had fallen to the floor, Swiftlight was surprised to discover that it was a volume of nursery rhymes. He could only wonder what the beast could have wanted with it.

After a search of the rest of the floor, Swiftlight was satisfied that there were no more changelings in the building. He moved to the corner of an empty room, hiding behind a book case. He sat there and tried to catch his breath. The soldier was exhausted from the last hour of fighting, and by the noise outside, things could only have turned for the worse. The explosions were constant now with almost no time in between them. Swiftlight considered finding a way back to the battle, but he collapsed from a lack of strength, sweat saturating his black coat. The entire building was shaking from the destruction that was unfolding outside. His fore-leg was still bleeding, so the captain used his med-kit to put a stop to it. There wasn't much he could do for the magical burn on his back, but he managed to stuff a bandage under his armor to stop the bleeding. Swiftlight could only wonder at the new tactics the changelings were employing. Until Ponyville, they had been keeping their involvement completely secret. Now, they were out in full force with their timberwolf minions, a most lethal combination. In any case, the situation at hoof wouldn't allow Swiftlight to safely exit the building. He hunkered down in his corner behind the book case and rested, waiting for an opportune moment to rejoin the fight.