//------------------------------// // Chapter 22 // Story: Equestria: World War II // by The Unseen //------------------------------// 5TH SEPTEMBER 1939 -----------------------------------------------------------------------CANTERLOT------------------------------------------------------------------------ It was now 8:00am in Equestria. The three princesses, along with Twilight, had been in the archives of Canterlot Castle since around 1:00pm the previous day. The only time they had taken breaks was to coordinate the war effort, and to eat. They had been researching for a way to defeat Discord, but hadn't found any, despite looking in books that were even older than Celestia and Luna themselves, and even one that was over 6,000 years old. Despite that, they did not mention a single method of defeating Discord, except for the Elements of Harmony, which the princesses knew, were not powerful enough to defeat him this time. As if that was not enough, Celestia's plan to contact Faust had not worked. She had tried that the previous night, through Luna's dream magic, but they had been not able to contact their mother, so that was also a bust. They would try, until they were able to talk to her, even if it took months. They knew the war would last at least that long, since it was Discord's work, after all. "Twilight, I think we should take a break and have breakfast. We've been at this for almost fourteen hours now." said Celestia. "Yeah, maybe we should." replied an extremely tired Twilight, with bags under her eyes. She stood up, and heard a crack from her body. That alone showed just how long they had been sitting. The three princesses, along with Twilight, left the archives, groaning and yawning as they did, and went to the dining hall. Their breakfast consisted of pancakes and a refreshing glass of orange juice. It was a well-needed break from their constant research. "How will we ever defeat Discord if we can't even find a way to do that?" asked a grumpy, sleepy, and frustrated Twilight. "I don't know, Twilight. We can't do anymore research for some time, since we have to focus on the war efforts. Our ponies' training begins tomorrow in Britain. They will be highly focused on that, plus, we have to keep checks and make laws on the modernization of Equestria and Crystal Empire." said Celestia. "I understand, Princess Celestia. I'll make sure to try and visit Britain every so often, and keep track of their progress." replied Twilight. "Thank you, Twilight. That will be a great help. And Luna, can you make sure to visit the dreams of our soldiers tonight, to calm them and give them the courage to face Discord's army?" asked Celestia. "Of course, sister. That is my duty. And I shall also keep an eye out for any information on defeating Discord in my dreams." replied Luna. With their plans made, the four of them finished breakfast and went back to their individual duties. The war was coming, and they had to be prepared for it. It was going to take everything they had, but they knew they couldn't give up. The future of Equestria depended on it. -----------------------------------------------------------SOMEWHERE IN GERMANY------------------------------------------------------------- It was now 5:40am in Germany. Discord was in the bathroom of his private chamber of the lab's living quarters, in his true form. This was the first time he had accessed his true form since the League of Nations shootout a few days earlier. He admired it, as it was pretty much the thing he represented, chaos. That was when he heard a knock on the door. "Dr. Discord? Are you there?" asked the voice of one of his scientists. "Yes, yes, give me a second, I'm changing!" shouted Discord, quickly shifting back into human form, and putting on his lab wear. He left the bathroom, and opened the door of his room. "What is it, Jakob?" asked Discord. "Dr. Discord, we've figured out what caused the failure yesterday?" replied Jakob. "What?! What is it?" asked Discord, eager to find what caused that mess yesterday. "Dr. Denis figured it out last night. He's waiting in the main lab." "Okay, tell him I'll be there in fifteen minutes. I'll quickly grab some breakfast." replied Discord, dismissing Jakob, and quickly going to his room's kitchen to make some pancakes. Exactly fourteen minutes later, Discord was in the main lab, joining Dr. Benin. Benin was a scientist who had come from the USSR, under a delegation sent by Stalin, after the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. He looked a lot like Discord's human form, a typical Caucasian man, with blond hair, and the same sinister smile on his face. "Ah, Dr. Discord. Ay assume yoo vould like to hear my findings?" asked Benin, in a thick Russian accent. "Ah, yes, Dr. Benin. I would like to know what you found." replied Discord. "Oh, sure ting, Doc-tor. Do you vonder vy de voman's body exploded during de experiment yesterday?" "No, I do not." "Vell, I have ze answers ve need. It vas a chemical in ze Erweiterung." "What?! How is that possible? We've tested the components of Erweiterung so many times before." exclaimed Discord. "I know zat, Doktor. But it seems zat ze specific combination of chemicals used in ze serum caused a chain reaction zat led to ze body's explosion." explained Benin. "Oh, dear. I'll have our scientists find a substitute chemical. Anything else, Dr. Benin?" asked Discord. "No, zat is all. Ve vill begin testing ze new formula immediately." replied Benin. "Good. Keep me updated on the progress. And let's hope we don't have any more...incidents like yesterday." said Discord, with a chuckle. The two of them ended their meeting, and Discord then went to the other lab, which produced more conventional, but highly destructive weapons. Using the Hawker Hurricane plans they had got them, the engineers working here were trying to get the Luftwaffe Bf109s to outfly the Hurricanes. He went down to the hangars, where the lead engineer, Dr. Franz, and his crew seemed to be getting ready to take one of the Bf109s up for a flight. "Oh, Dr. Discord! We were just able to conduct her first flight since she came in here! Would you like to know what we have done to her?" asked Franz. "Yes, Franz. I would like to know how you have improved this aircraft." replied Discord. "We've added a new supercharger system, a strengthened airframe, and a more effective cooling system. We've also redesigned the wings for better maneuverability. We think that with these modifications, the Bf109 will be a force to be reckoned with." explained Franz, excitedly. "Well, that gives the advantages of speed and maneuverability. But we can't do shit if we can't destroy the Allied aircraft! What improvements have you made to its weapons?" asked Discord. "Well, we have modified the guns to fire faster, and also have changed the ammunition to be more powerful. We've also added a new bomb carrying system so that it can carry more bombs than before." replied Franz. "Good. Keep up the good work. We need every advantage we can get." said Discord, as he checked the aircraft, somewhat pleased with the work being done. He then stood back and watched, as one of Franz's test pilots got in, started the fighter up, rolled it out of the hangar, onto the forest airstrip, and took off. As Discord left the hangars, he couldn't help but feel satisfied with the progress they had made in just a few months. Soon, Germany would be the most powerful nation in the world, and he would be the one to thank for it. The thought brought a smile to his face, and he went back to his private chamber. But little did he know, the ponies of Equestria were also preparing for war. And they were not going to go down without a fight. -----------------------------------------------------------------------CANTERLOT----------------------------------------------------------------------- It was now 10:23am in Equestria. The three princesses, along with Twilight, were in the conference room, after a quick nap and breakfast. They would be heading back to Manehattan in some time, from where Twilight and Shining Armor would be leaving for the United Kingdom, to boost the morale of their ponies, whose training would begin tomorrow. The two siblings were highly interested to see how a human military functioned, and what life was like in a human country, since they would be there until the first batch of ponies finished their military training. As Twilight was explaining her trip plan with the princesses, and how they would keep in touch until a telephone network was set up in Equestria, one of the assistants came in. "Your Highnesses, Shining Armor has let us know that he will be in Manehattan in fifteen minutes. You better hurry, if Miss Twilight would like to catch her flight to Britain." "Thank you. We will be leaving in around five minutes." said Celestia, who was a little nervous about her pupil going off to a land that she did not know much about. She was worried, about Twilight would take living in the human world for a few months, and seeing war would affect her. "Are you sure that leaving Equestria for such a long time will be good, Twilight?" asked Celestia. "Of course, Princess! It will be amazing to see human culture up close, and I can also get up close looks at their military, government, and technology!" replied an excited Twilight. "I know, Twilight, but you do realize that this is not a vacation, right? You will be there to support and encourage our ponies who are training for war." reminded Celestia. "Yes, Princess, I understand. My main focus will be on the ponies, and I will do everything in my power to help them." replied Twilight. "Good. And make sure you keep in touch with us regularly. We will worry about you otherwise." said Celestia, smiling. Around eight minutes later, they were in Manehattan. Shining Armor was already there, waiting for them. "Alright, Twily! Are you ready for this trip? We'll be in Britain for around four to five months, and we'll be back in Equestria after that. Got it?" "Yep, big brother. I'm so ready!" shouted an extremely excited Twilight, as they began walking to the airstrip, where the RAF DC-3 was waiting. They would be flying along with some other Equestrian and Crystal Empirean diplomats and military staff, who would also be joining them in Britain, not just to witness the ponies' military training, but also to break deals, and build a consulate in London. Twilight and Shining Armor bid a fond farewell to the princesses, as they went in hopped in the DC-3, which was about to start its engines. The second the two ponies got in, the plane's door closed, and the engines rumbled to life. They watched as the DC-3 taxied out, and took off. They watched as the plane climbed away from Equestria, and knew that this was just one of the many first steps in a long ordeal.