''On your left!'' Naofumi called out, calling forth another Air Strike Shield to protect a Yak Launcher and its gunner, the grunt of approval registering in his mind as he jogged through the town center, performing sweeps of the area with Storm Song providing overwatch from above. Fantastic clouds of orange and blue lighting arched throughout the air, the sounds akin to a supersonic whip cracking back to back. Maneuvering his way by the wreckage of a home, Naofumi's eyes stung with the fog of black smoke and the taste of metal on his tongue nearly made him throw up. ''Second Shield!'' Naofumi braced once again against the falling debris around him.
He would hold the line.
Storm Song faced the same issue, if not bigger in her air defense. The skies made it a challenge especially to curb the constant firebomb assaults. Nosediving down towards the ground, the water droplets on her goggles were forced out of the way, her hooves and wings tucked in as the sounds of explosions went off, Storm Song pulling off at the last second, the monstrous wave of lighting arching in the small area, causing the limbs of those caught to seize up and keel over, allowing for the Yak gunners who followed behind her on the ground, a defeating salvo following on the immediate area. ''Good job fellas,'' Storm Song gave a hoof salute, climbing higher into the clouds before gently landing, surveying the situation from above.
How much longer could they keep this up? Night Order did come prepared, and those ships did prove to be an issue with how far out they were spaced, and the covering fire they provided to hit the shores of Yak-Yakistan and beyond. She was barely able to hear the sound of another firebomb hitting Naofumi's Air Strike Shield, the tenacity and resolve he displayed being something to keep her, and the rest of Yak-Yakistan motivated in the fight to come, and if they wanted to be remembered after today.
A tenant of advice that Starswirl could certainly take from if he intended for any shred of his dignity to be salvaged.
On the ground, the Yaks held together, their seemingly simple minds coming together as one to repel the enemy in a fantastic display of military and unconventional warfare tactics, the like that Storm Song had never heard or seen of. Slowly, but with great power, Night Order's initial assault was pushed back down to the shore.
''Pony Storm Song!'' Prince Rutherford bellowed with a mighty shout, his voice being carried without effort to the clouds where she was able to ascertain his location by the signaling bell that remained firmly planted in the ground due to a stray firebomb striking it. Without missing a semblance of a beat, the leader of the Yaks pressed on, unshaken at the efforts of Dragon and Pony alike coming to do him harm, only to be met with a furious set of hooves caving their chests inwards.
Focusing her breath in the clouds and crouching low once again, Storm Song rocketed off in a flash, impacting the ground with a swift, but controlled landing, cratering a bit of the ground around her as she landed and looked around the immediate area to clear as Prince Rutherford walked over, a glint of anger in his eyes and claw marks covering his armor. ''We need to do something about firebombs! My Yaks hold ground good as they can, but Night Order ships bring more attackers! Need to cut off at source!''
Storm Song agreed, watching another attack from overhead soar toward the backs of the mountains, melting the snow and ice before being lodged in the rock solidly, a deep rumble of the ground following that nearly forced the pair off their feet. Resisting the urge to breathe in too much of the smoke proved a challenge. ''I don't think we can do that, and keep them distracted long enough. I can't exactly ram through all of those ships by myself, even if I pushed it to the limit.'' Storm Song flexed her wings, beginning to feel them tensing up. Her power as the Storm Pegasus was no laughing matter, but to take something like this on by herself would be essentially suicide; if she managed to gain enough energy to take the ships out, it would kill her before Night Order would get the chance.
''Friend Naofumi? He helps?'' Prince Rutherford handed her a canteen of water, the full container being drained to nearly empty in the few seconds she had in it her mouth before sighing a breath of relief. If Naofumi helped, then the only real line of aerial defense besides her would be gone, and that leaves the way open for Night Order to finish the job. Homes were destroyed, the females and children evacuated to safety, and the small pocket of cover around the Ice Chain would dwindle with every passing second. ''Storm Song?'' Prince Rutherford asked softly, noticing the look in her eyes as she thought the variables over in her head.
It would be a gamble, nonetheless, but would it be one that she herself would be able to live with if she. . .if she and Naofumi failed? Even her staying still as she was for the moment did little good than it did bad, and that would have to change if Princess Celestia wanted her to help.
''How do I just gamble the hopes and dreams of an entire nation on my word? I mean, who just does that?'' Storm Song's mind swam with thoughts of the past, of missions where certain calls could have been made better than others; if those more qualified than her should have led; and if the nightmares would be any less if she had opted out in the beginning.
No time like the present.
''Well, I have an idea, Prince; but we'd only have one chance at it,'' Storm Song hovered a bit in the air, looking at the shores the best she could and laying eyes on the main three ships that had begun the bombardment, while the rest remained spaced out from the other. Their shots came far and few in between, possibly telling her either their supply rain low, or they figured their endgame was in sight.
And Storm Song was less sure of which one would be the lesser, all things considered.
''You have faith?'' Prince Rutherford asked, eyeing her from the side, his voice lower than she would have thought possible. Always as if he had none. ''Prince Rutherford trusts you. Trusts Naofumi and his party. We need to come together, if plan will work, Yaks will back you with all we have.''
And that was the issue itself; would it work, or would it be only misplaced bravado that she could be the one to help turn the metaphorical and literal tide of battle at an even more grave cost?
''Prince, I. . .'' Storm Song tried to talk, only to be shut down by the leader of the Yaks laying a comforting hoof on her shoulder and giving a grunt of confirmation. She knew that he knew what she attempted to say, only for the words to fall short in her throat at the idea of bridging a point of no return. His small smile told her everything that was needed; that if she put forth the effort, and stuck to her vices, it should be ok.
It would be.
Finding little else to be said, Storm Song reaffixed her goggles, giving Prince Rutherford a wing salute as her body tensed and hunched over, streaks of lightning and sparks traveling across the ground as Prince Rutherford thrust his own hoof to the sky, watching The Storm Pegasus zoom over to the Shield Hero as a blur, their supposed conversation taking a few moments to be communicated between the two before she rose in the air, downing a vial that Prince Rutherford was sure that was given to her, the trail of sparks left behind in her wake almost resembling a beacon of sorts to her ascent into the heavens.
''Go. Fight; and win.'' Prince Rutherford's words rang into Storm Song's head as she prepared her plan that would either but her further in fame or infamy. The supplement that Naofumi gave her seemed to have boosted her power; making her senses more finely tuned; her focus crystal clear, and even feeling the mending of wear and tear from the battles of days past. As if in slow motion, the waves of fodder from Night Order simply grazed past the blades on her wing guards, a warm, but firm feeling washing over her with each passing second.
The blackened skies cleared in the direction that she traveled, her motions cutting precise lines in the clouds as she passed over the waters of the Svoya Sea. The few bodies of those who met their end in the air were strewn about on the surface, their last moments contorted on their faces in a final expression of fear. The ships were getting closer, the forward cannons aimed at her missing their target with her quick burst of dodging speed, the water rippling and jutting upwards from under her, doing little to deter her. ''Let's go!'' another push her of wings and Storm Song rose in the air, at level with the crow's nest of the main assault ship.
ZOOM! ZOOM! ZOOM! ZOOM! ZOOM!
Her mind and body literally split off, Storm Song wanted to admire her power boosting as five copies of her comprised of electricity took to provide lighting bolt fire cover as she controlled her breathing and spread her limbs out, gathering as much as power as she could, the shout of protest from the group of Dragons that foolishly began to follow after, armed to the teeth with spears, swords, and sharpened claws.
''Just a little more,'' Storm Song, feeling the lack of oxygen present after 10,000 feet, playing on the fact that Dragons rarely flew this high if ever to perform any kind of evasive maneuvers. Soon thereafter, their wings flapping began to die down, some being too stubborn to turn back or risk an untimely plummet to their death due to their own stupidity. Finding a good place as any to stop, Storm Song did just, turning her body horizontally to barely avoid the claw that grazed her side, spinning her around a second time before her mind caught with the change and propelled her body back towards the ground. ''F-For High. . .Hoof.''
Her mind worked faster than she had thought possible, the pseudo-connection with her 'clones', so to speak perfectly in sync with her emotions. The efficiency displayed rivaled that of any seasoned Royal Guard worth their salt, and with not a complaint to be heard during the entire process. Her target, resembling blips from the current height would force her hoof in the most minute adjustment to hit her mark, and not cause any unneeded mayhem.
A whine echoed, Storm Song paying little attention to her descent down through the clouds, the thrill of her power activating in such a way, forcing a surge of adrenaline through her veins. She knew. . .the risks but the fate of Yak-Yakistan below depended on her success, along with Naofumi and his party. The wind whipped past her as she flew at a dizzying descent of hundreds of feet a second, her wings outstretched and her eyes fixed on her target.
As she approached the ships, she began to channel all of her energy into a single, focused burst of lightning. The electric charge crackled and sparked around her as she dove towards the ships, the sound of the wind and her own heart pounding in her ears.
With a thunderous roar, Storm Song unleashed the full force of her power, sending a bolt of lightning streaking toward the nearest ship. The release was massive, easily covering all of her body and armor beating with the intensity of 10 stallions.
But Storm Song didn't stop there. Using the momentum from her dive, she inhaled, drawing in enough air to form a miniature ball of a storm, a rapid-fire barrage, one after another, striking with deadly precision and causing a chain reaction that ripped through the remaining ships as her copies began to detonate alongside her attacks, sparking fires on the decks and setting the remaining firebombs off in a final display of madness as the skies contorted around her in her own image.
As the last ship sank beneath the waves, Storm Song pulled up sharply, her wings straining against the force of the wind, and backdraft of heat pushing her higher into the clouds than intended. She felt exhausted, drained from the effort of channeling so much power at once, but she couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction at the destruction she had done in the name to protect the Yaks.
Breathless and exhilarated, Storm Song banked sharply to the side and glided overhead, ready to continue the fight on the ground. ''Not so bad,'' Storm Song nodded to herself in confirmation.
At the same time, the whole of Yak-Pakistan was engulfed in a sphere of noiseless white.