My Little Pony: Soldier's Side
Chapter 12: The End is Near
"So long as a griffon still breathes, this war will continue," Princess Celestia once said to her military commanders. Meanwhile in a Griffon Kingdom ravaged by the alicorn princess, Gabby was gathering water from a nearby creek. Spring had arrived in the Griffon Kingdom, but Gabby seemed to notice that the river began to flow red with blood.
Gabby looked off in the near distance, and saw Celestia's wrath on the griffons. A dozen bodies laid in the creek facedown. One had her eyes staring up at the sun, her beak slightly agape and a bullet hole in the head. Gabby was quick to run back to tell her Princess Ghislaine what she saw, "Shh...calm down Gabby, take me to where you saw them"
Gabby nodded, and took her to the spot in the creek, "Looks like an ambush," said Gretchen, kneeling down to close the dead soldier's eyes.
Gabby sniffled while warmly hugging Princess Ghislaine, "There is a village not far from here, these could have been reinforcements," said Ghislaine,
Suddenly, the griffons smelled petrol and smoke off in the distance, they followed and came across a horrifying discovery. There was a village, but the village was no more. It had been burned to the ground. It did not matter to the ponies who they killed as long as they are griffons. They came across a pit outside the village. It was filled with bodies.
The smell of petrol and burnt flesh came from the pit. The bodies of the villagers had been burned. Flames still flickered from the pit of the burned and mangled bodies of the dead. They picked up the bodies of the griffon soldiers from the creek, and buried them in the pit with the villagers, "Rest well...for you will not be forgotten," said Ghislaine.
"Not every pony in Equestria is like this, I would know," said Gabby, putting in a makeshift grave marker with branches,
"So would I," said Gretchen, "In time, it won't be just us asking for an end to the war, but Celestia's own ponies,"
Princess Ghislaine nodded in agreement to their statements, "Come now, we must get moving before nightfall," said the griffon princess, Queen Galiana was doing all she can to convince Princess Celestia to end the war, but the alicorn princess refused. Not even as bombs rained down from the skies and shells from naval guns hammered her lands.
Ports and factories were destroyed. Like ants to an elephant, the Royal Griffon Kingdom and Imperial Orel naval forces firmly held their ground against the might of Equestria's navy. The two kingdoms of the griffons were wary to test the might of the Equestrian Navy, but the sinking of the heavy cruiser 'Unicorn' instilled confidence in their sailors.
Still, Celestia refused to end the war, even while the tide was turning, "Do you hear the stories the soldiers tell?" asked Flash Blade,
"This war is a lost cause, the griffons from both kingdoms, and even the kingdom itself is against us, we cannot win," she further added,
The defeats were beginning to have an effect on Celestia, and the genocidal tactics were only strengthening the griffons will to fight and resist. It is said the winter claimed more lives than actual battle. During the course of the invasion, The Equestrian Army suffered defeats at Kings Run and Hawksbill Ridge, and the Siege of the River Guto Fortress.
"To think that I called griffons inferior to ponies, what a fool I must have been," Princess Celestia said, walking up toward a castle window looking toward the Griffon Kingdom, "those griffons, brave fighting griffons, they must see me as a monster now, they may not forgive me for my crimes, but...the time is now, to settle for peace," she concluded,
"I'll send for an escort to go with you to the Griffon Kingdoms," said Shining Armor, the Head of the Royal Guard,
"No...I would rather have the Queen and Tsarina meet me here, send messengers to Lev and Griffonstone, hopefully they won't kill them," said Celestia,
Meanwhile in the Griffon Kingdom, Gabby, Princess Ghislaine, and Gretchen were on the move. Hearing the rumble of engines, they got off the trail. Ghislaine looked through the leaves of a bush to find Panzer Divisions moving along with infantry, and among them was Major Gunner, "Cousin Gunner!" said Ghislaine with joy that her family is alive.
"Praise to the Queen, you are still alive," said Gunner as the two hugged a warm embrace between family. To the 'awws' of the troops, they broke away and saluted, "we are moving out to Singvogel, word has it that there is a massive buildup of Equestrian armor not far from there," explained the Major, "this maybe the final push that we need"
"Gilda...Greta, good to see you my good friends," said Princess Ghislaine to two of the four in a crew of a GW Panther,
"It's good to see you're still alive, Your Majesty, Princess Celestia should take notes on how a real princess fights," said Gilda from the gun shield,
A major from the Imperial Orel Army came to see what was going on, and smiled warmly to the battle-tested princess, "So...you are Princess Ghislaine De Falkeland? It is truly an honor to meet you, I am Major Giulia of the Imperial Orel Army," said the golden eagle-lioness griffon, "do take my word as the truth, we need all the help we can get,"
Royal Griffon and Orel soldiers with rifles, machine guns, anti-tank rockets and anti-tank rifles marched with T-44-100s and 'Kampfpanzer Jaguars', GW Panther and SU-152M1 self-propelled guns, Jagdpanzer Kanone E-60 12.8cm and SU-102 tank hunters. If they get tired while they marched, they will ride on the tanks. A final battle is about to begin