A portal connecting two worlds that should be separated is discovered, and a large scale battle between two fleets rages on before their very eyes. How will the ponies handle the horrors of modern warfare of World War 2?
November 15, 1933 - In the statue garden at the castle in Canterlot
A pony passes by the statue of Discord, talking to her friend Rose Pine about the weather, "Oh today is just a marvelous day, don't you agree Rose?"
Rose smiles at her best friend Money Bags, and takes a deep breath, "It most definitely is Money, it is just a darn shame that no matter how much we petition the princess, she just refuse to get rid of this hideous statue of Discord."
Money sighs and then rolls her eyes in disgust at the hideous thing before stomping a hoof in agitation, "I know! She keeps telling us that it is very important that it stays there to prove as an 'example' for those that wish to defy Equestria. Have you heard the rumors regarding the Griffonian Empire?"
She then gasps and looks at Money, "You have heard about the increasing hostilities between the griffons and the ponies of Equestria?!"
The light tan Earth pony then nods her head, "Oh I most certainly have, I have heard that they have been increasing their military might and building more ships. I have a cousin that knows a friend over the border that says the griffons are hiring shipbuilders to build more triple masted, ships of the line."
Rose shakes her head in disbelief then sighs, "I just can't believe that our relations have gotten so much worse lately after Princess Celestia's nephew, Prince Blueblood left King Razorclaw's daughter Felcrezia at the altar. He even had the gall to have a jester deliver his marriage refusal to the princess, he didn't even have the decency to give it to her himself."
Money then looks around and then lowers her voice to a whisper, "You know, I have heard a couple rumors, one claims that Blueblood turned her down because she was not pretty enough, or that he prefers stallions over mares. The other I heard says that she laid with another male that he discovered when he went to call on her."
The medium gray Pegasi then shakes her head, "That Prince Blueblood is so spoiled, lets walk and talk somewhere...that isn't by this hideous statue shall we?" She then begins to lead her friend to another location around the Canterlot Statue Gardens.
She grins and then nods and follows after her, "Most definitely dear, that sounds like a great idea. This statue gives me the creeps, it feels like the statue is watching you."
Discord looks through the windows of his statues eyes and then bangs his hands against the black wall, "NO, don't go! Don't you leave without telling me more of that juicy gossip about chaos I am missing out on!" He then sighs in misery as they continue on their way out of his range of hearing and then plops himself back down into his reclining chair, "If only there was someone out there to feed me some juicy information about chaos happening anywhere in this universe..."
Just then a thick newspaper comes into existence and falls down on top of the side table beside Discord with a thud, drawing his attention to it.
He turns his attention to the sound he heard beside him and then sees a thick newspaper with a large title in bold: Hitler Rises to power, causes nations to hold their breath! He then picks up the paper and takes a closer look at it, "Well, this looks promising. Let's see what this is all about, maybe this will keep me entertained for a few years." He then figures out where to start first, and reads it aloud, "Adolf Hitler was named Chancellor of Germany today in a political compromise that shocks the world. The Chancellor voices protest against the terms forced upon the nation of Germany after their surrender that ended World War 1 in 1919. Though, the 43 year old chief of the National Socialist party or Nazis, is not Germany's dictator. However, the U.S remains largely unaffected by the news. Field Marshal and president, Paul von Hindenburg refuses to allow Hitler a carte blanche or install fascism and a permanent dictatorship of his brown-shirts. He intends to control Hitler, make him serviceable to a national conservative, but not to a Fascist State. He realizes Hitler must have other notions, that whatever drives the president, has made him decide to associate himself with the Chancellor..." He then continues to read through the articles, finding himself more and more intrigued by the developing events. Until he reaches a point further in the paper, "Oh now this is very delightful indeed! A series of events led up to the collapse of the US economy, costing many investors several millions of dollars and leaving 15 million citizens without work as companies collapse one after another. Even banks are suffering, as they fall like dominoes in the aftermath of the Stock Market crash of October 1929..." He finishes reading the paper and sets it down, clapping his hands in glee at the delicious news, "Oh this will entertain me for a few years at least until another paper appears."
December 2, 1933 - 7:30 a.m - Twilight's Home in Canterlot
Twilight focuses on a book that caught her attention called Stars and Signs by Star Swirl the Bearded when she hears her foalsitter Cadance calling her name repeatedly, "What is it! I need to study this book for a test."
Cadance then steps around the corner with a giggle and then says, "I know you have been studying all night Twilight, I have been trying to get your attention for the past five minutes. You are going to be late to class if you continue to study, there is no way that you are going to fail this test. Don't forget your lunch Twilight, I hope you have a wonderful day.
She then panics and searches for a comb, finds one and then starts running it through her mane, "Oh Celestia, I can't believe I lost track of time like that! Thank you Cadance, see you later!" She then grabs her books and lunch, and takes off for class.
The light pink alicorn smiles as she runs out the door to school, then sighs and heads for the door herself, "While she is at school, I need to go talk to Princess Celestia about some personal matters. When I get back, I should clean up a bit since Spike is with Twilight's mother." She then walks out the door and makes her way towards the castle.
A few minutes passes by as Cadance arrives at the castle, then knocks on the door to Princess Celestia's private chambers, "Excuse me Princess Celestia, but may I come in and speak with you?"
Celestia sets down the book she is reading and looks towards the door, "Come on in Cadance, what is on your mind?"
She enters the door and closes it behind her, then walks towards the solar princess, "Well, I don't know how to explain how or why it even started."
She then looks at her with a worried expression on her face, "Can you tell me more about it?"
Cadance nods her head, "I have been feeling rather sad of late since last week, but nothing has happened to cause this reaction from me. There are the rumors that I have heard involving the Griffon Empire. However I don't think those are the cause, there is no evidence to prove they are more than that. Each time I try to concentrate on where it is coming from, I come up with nothing. It doesn't come from where the Crystal Empire used to be, or even Saddle Arabia. I wish I could find the source and help them be happy, is there anything that can be done to locate them?"
The princess scrunches her forehead in thought and then heads to one of her jewelry boxes, "Tell no other pony what I tell you, but relations are heating up between The Griffon Empire and Equestria. Sadly, there is truth to the rumors, and my spoiled nephew did indeed think she was too hideous to marry him. Putting that aside...I wonder if that old relic might help out, but where did I put it last..." She then rummages around through a couple more before she finds it, "Aha, there it is." She pulls it out, closes the box and makes her way back to Cadance smiling, "This my dear, is a focusing necklace. It belonged to my mother once upon a time, it allowed her to concentrate on the sensations she would get from time to time and helped her to locate what she was looking for. I think that this may help you find the source of the sadness you are feeling." She then sits down and lays the necklace on the ground in front of her, "Come and sit in front of me, then we will both place a hoof on it and channel our power and consciousness into it. You will need to concentrate on what you are feeling and where it is coming from, it may take a little bit of time to locate, but I assure you we will locate what you are sensing and shall deal with it."
She then smiles and sits down in front of her, then places her left hoof on one part of the necklace after Celestia does the same.
Celestia then smiles and channels her power towards the bracelet, "You may begin whenever you are ready Cadance, let's find out where this sadness is coming from shall we?"
Cadance then closes her eyes and then focuses on the feeling, searching for where it is coming from. She then notices a faint pulling up into the sky, making her wonder why it is coming from the sky and follows the sensation higher and higher until the sky turns black and tiny white specks fly past her. She stops following the feeling and then looks around at the blackness around her when her eyes are drawn to two large bodies, one white and one that is so bright yellow it hurts to look at. She studies the smaller white body and notices the shadow of a mare on it, "Can you hear me Princess Celestia? What is this place?"
The princess then smiles and appears next to her, "This is our solar system, consisting of only three planetary bodies. Equus, the sun, and the moon. The other planets have all been shattered and lost many, many ages ago. Our planet is the last one to remain in this system, there is a theory that scientist ponies are trying to prove. Claiming that our system was once part of another called the Milky Way, our moon and Equus were one whole planet three times its size. One day an asteroid collided with that planet and broke it off into smaller pieces. Then collided into the solar body of the sun and most of the asteroid was burned away, but it still managed to take a part of that sun off and those small pieces all were sucked into a black hole. Those pieces all wound up here, there were originally five planets in this system including the lunar and solar bodies. Discord claims that the asteroid responsible for that was his sister Cosmos, but no pony actually believes that to be true."
She then blinks in amazement and then looks around and continues to feel that pull, "Is it known where this Milky Way is supposed to be located Princess Celestia?"
Celestia then thinks for a moment, "Nopony is really sure, though there is a description that Discord gave us in between sobs saying that it is the most beautiful sight you could ever see."
Cadance focuses on the direction the pull is coming from, "Okay, let's continue on our way then Princess Celestia."
Her eyes widen in surprise and then she fades from sight, "I wonder how far away this feeling is coming from, it is quite remarkable that you were even able to sense it when I couldn't."
The alicorn then continues to follow the pull deeper into the blackness, she begins to rush towards the pull in hopes to reach it sooner. She ignores the small white dots zipping past her in her rush to reach the source of the sadness, when she slowly starts to feel it getting stronger, "We are slowly getting closer to the source Princess Celestia, I can see a faint glimmer in the distance!" She pushes even harder to get to the source, making the tiny white dots zipping by appear to be nothing more than a fog that has surrounded her.
Celestia watches for a long hour before she starts to see a dazzling shape in the distance similar to a spiral with a gold dot in the center, causing her eyes to widen in shock and awe at the sight before her, "T...That can't be...He never tells the whole truth, but claims he doesn't lie when it involves his sister..."
Cadance then pushes on towards the spiral as it increases in size the closer she gets, "A-Are you saying that what we are heading towards is the Milky Way!? The place of origin for our own system... it actually exists?"
She sighs and appears beside her as she rushes towards the system before them both and shakes her head, staying close beside her on her journey, "Yes, it appears that it really does exist. This discovery will make history and will be the talk for every pony and creature on Equus, we will have to learn more about it when we arrive."
A couple more hours pass by as Cadance begins to sob, with tears streaming off her face as they both finally arrive on the edge of the Milky Way. She comes to a stop and takes a short break before continuing on at a normal pace towards the source of the pull, coming from somewhere up ahead of them. She then sobs once more and wipes the tears away with a foreleg, "There is a strong sense of sadness coming from somewhere here, but this area is so vast. It will take us both a little while to find which one is the source, what do we do now Princess Celestia?"
Celestia then smiles, "Well if you want to make it easier to find, try to concentrate and follow where your gut, or instincts are trying to lead you. It may take you a little bit to find that, but I have confidence in you Cadance."
She then closes her eyes and tries to find out where to go next, when she gets a niggling feeling that they should head off to her left and below them, "I think I found it again, and it is this way Princess Celestia." She then sends her consciousness towards the direction with Celestia right behind her.
After a half hour of searching, Cadance spots something blue ahead of her in the far distance and focuses on it, "I think that we may have found the source, it just feels right and strangely..."
The princess then nods and smiles, "Familiar? I am getting that feeling as well, shall we go find out what we can about where we came from?"
Cadance then heads towards the blue planet that is near a massive sun and has other bodies around it, arriving in the upper atmosphere of the blue planet and is then hit with a wave of intense sadness as they pass over a devastated area with debris and strange pathways dug into the ground. She looks down at the area and then to Celestia, "I feel it coming from this area, but there aren't any creatures here and the land does not feel right." She then sees a sign attached to a post with a strange drawing, depicting a large object with two smaller objects crossed over it and some writing that she is not able to read on it, "Can you understand what this says Princess?"
Celestia looks around at the land and gets a sickening feeling in her gut that something bad happened here, then spots something yellowed laying on top of the ground. After she looks at it a little closer, she realizes that it is a skull from a creature that was left to the elements. She quickly turns away before her consciousness and focus become interrupted, sending her back and ending the focus the two have. She then quickly makes her way to the sign and looks closely at it, "Notice: This destroyed swath of land is the battlefield near the city of Verdun that lasted 300 days, 300,000 soldiers lost their lives in this zone alone and is hereby labeled Zone Rouge and shall be forever abandoned to nature due to the severity of fighting and the use of poison gas in the area. Beware of unexploded ordinance, be it a large shell or a small grenade! All can still take your life." She is left speechless after reading that and just stares out at the ruined landscape before them.
Tears fall from both their eyes as Cadance looks around at the devastated land, "Three hundred thousand soldiers died on this field! What kind of creatures are we dealing with that would do such things!? How can this planet be the origin of ours?"
The solar princess looks back at Cadance with tear filled eyes, "We cannot pass judgement so hastily on these creatures before learning how this event was caused, let us go to this city and learn what we can of this world."
The Alicorn then sniffles and wipes her eyes dry, "How can we learn anything from this world, we can't interact with any of them, we are only here in our minds."
Celestia then looks at her with a raised eyebrow, "Yes, that is true. We do still have use of two important senses, our eyes and our ears to take in all that we can see and hear."
Cadance then nods her head and starts to look around when she sees a road off in the distance with some creatures on it, having two legs and standing upright similar to the Minotaur, "I wonder what these new creatures are called, they share a somewhat similar to the Minotaur by having an upright form."
Three hours pass by as they wander around the city of Verdun, learning that most of the citizens of this area called Belgium and there are other nations like France, England, Germany, and The United States. They also learn of a politician named Adolf Hitler that has become the Chancellor of Germany, and many in Europe are concerned about what the future may be like with him in power.
She then turns her head to look at Celestia, "I don't understand why many of these creatures are so worried about a foreign ruler, it shouldn't affect their lives at all. It concerns me that we haven't been able to learn any more about that devastated field, or even what these creatures are called."
The princess looks back at Cadance, walks over to her and places a wing over her back and smiles at her softly, "I understand that you are frustrated, we need to keep trying to learn more about these creatures if we are going to have any hopes to make a lasting connection with this world. Only then can a mirror portal be created so we can begin to come into contact with them and find out how we can improve each other's lives. We should search for a spot to create a point where we can easily return here to continue learning more about this world, Twilight should be out of school now and on her way to the library."
Cadance nods her head, "That sadness that drew me here is gone, it vanished after we read that sign. I agree with you Princess Celestia, let's start looking for something suitable to use for the return point." She then begins to search for a suitable spot to create a reference point, finding a half destroyed statue that would work for the moment.
4:30p.m - Back at the Canterlot Library
Twilight makes her way home feeling very pleased with herself, "I should head back home to tell my parents and Cadance that I got an A plus on that Magic Theory exam, I am positive that they all will be so proud of me. After that though, I need to get started on my homework and start studying for the next test coming next week." She arrives at her home and closes the door behind her and looks to see if her parents are home yet, "Mom, Dad, Spike, Cadance? Are you here, I have some news to share with you about my exam today!"
Cadance walks around the corner with a smile on her face, "Oh I cant wait to hear about it, Spike and your parents should be back in another couple hours sweetie."
The young pony smiles at her foalsitter, "Okay, well I got an A plus on my Magic Theory exam! I need to start studying for the next test and do my homework now."
She smiles back at her, watching her head to her room to study, "I will come get you when dinner is ready Twilight!"
March 16, 1935 - Two years later, In Celestia's quarters
Celestia looks out at the sleeping city and sighs unhappily at recalling what she learned today on the other world. Seeing the discarded newspaper lying on the ground saying that Germany's dictator, Adolf Hitler announces Germany's rearmament when a scroll pops up in front of her and breaks her out of her thoughts. She then chuckles in amusement at the contents of the letter, getting an idea and then begins writing her reply, "Oh Twilight, what a clever filly you are. I have high hopes for you, you finally learned of the prophecy about my sister's return. It is high time to put you through a series of tests..."
Two days later, at Little Luna's room at Canterlot
Little Luna looks up to her sister with a concerned look on her face, "Cece, did I miss anything during my...absence?"
Celestia looks down to her sister, then lays down in front of her with a sigh, "Actually, there were some developments as of late that I should make you aware of. Let me start at the beginning for you..." She then begins to fill her sister on what has been going on in the other world and what they have learned.
The little dark blue princess's eyes grow large with wonder as she hears about a new world, its' inhabitants, and the difference in technology. She then listens to her sister tell her that they do not appear to have magic there and how Cadance and her have been studying them, trying to find a way to bring them to a peaceful solution, "When are you going to be visiting again Cece? Do you think I can come along with you?"
The larger princess smiles softly and then looks at her seriously, "Cadance and I will be going back in a few weeks to see what else we can learn of that world. There are some things over that that you are not ready for at the moment, due to their violent and ugly nature. It will be some time before you are ready to go with us, for now let me help you get up to date on a few changes that happened through the years..."
A few months later, just outside of Ponyville
Twilight and Celestia walk into the ballroom, seeing the room is a wreck with broken pillars lying everywhere and the alicorn statue lying on the ground broken with its head on the other side of Rainbow Dash. Her eyes widen at the ruined pillars, "Well, it can't get any worse..." when the doors burst open and a large group of animals rush into the room as her friend Fluttershy stands in the doorway covered with dirt.
Fluttershy stares at the animals in the room, "You're...going...to love me!" and proceeds to chase them around the room, starting a frenzy and sending other ponies running around the room with animals chasing after some of them.
She looks at the chaos around the room, "Umm...huh?" when Celestia tells her to run and puts her hoof to her mouth and whistles to her friends, getting their attention and make their escape out of the room.
Rarity runs down the stairs until she loses a glass slipper, looks back and quickly rushes up to it and crushes it with her hoof. She then returns to follow her friends and grabs Pinkie, "Let's go!"
Twilight and her friends arrive at Pony Joe's shop, then sighs as she looks to Spike and tells him what happened when she and the girls share a laugh after saying it was, "I just hope Princess Celestia isn't upset with us for ruining the Gala."
Celestia then wanders into the shop with a giggle, "That was the best Grand Galloping Gala ever!" She then stands before her faithful student with an amused expression on her face.
She then hangs her head slightly and looks to her mentor, "Pardon me princess, but tonight was just awful."
The princess chuckles again in amusement, "Don't worry Twilight, the Gala is always awful. I was so thrilled when you all were attending, you surely have livened things up quite a bit. You should always just enjoy yourselves the best you can, because life is short and you have to make the most of it."
An hour passes as Celestia excuses herself from the girls for the night, making her way back to her chambers as she wonders what this Lebensborn Project is that is going on in Germany right now, 'Why is Germany's leader doing things this way?'
March 8, 1936 - A few months later at Canterlot
That morning, at the Canterlot sculpture garden
Cheerilee leads her students through the sculpture garden, telling them about the various statues situated in various places when they get to the statue of Discord, "Now girls, what can you see?" She listens to their answers and looks back at the statue, "This creature is called a Draconequis, they are made up of other different creatures." She watches as a squabble breaks out between three of the students, "This statue represents discord and a lack of harmony in ponies. Since you three have shown such a good example, how about you write me an essay about it. Now follow me, and cease your fighting."
A few hours pass as Celestia informs the girls of Discords history, and how she and her sister defeated him with the elements. She heads over to the tower in the room, "This is where the Elements of Harmony are stored ever since you girls found them, you must wield them and defeat him once more or all of Equestria shall suffer eternal chaos." She pulls the chest out and opens it to see it empty, hearing a sinister laugh coming from somewhere in the room as her eyes rest on a window image of a moving Discord.
Discord moves from image to image, delighted that he is finally free, "Oh Celestia, have you missed me? I know I have missed annoying you..." He then grins and pops up behind her ear and lowers his voice to a whisper, "Did you know that there is a different world out there living in chaos? I have never been there myself, but I would love to just take a vacation and bask in all of the excitement happening all over the world, especially in Germany."
She gasps and lowers her voice in response threateningly, "Don't you dare mention anything like that to anypony, if war breaks out over there and comes over here... It will only bring misery and death to this world."
Time passes by as the girls go after the elements, falling for a few tricks that are left for them and go their separate ways for a little bit. Until Twilight reads through some scrolls and breaks through Discords tricks, turning him back into stone with the help of her friends.
Sometime during August, at Cadance's residence in Canterlot
Cadance watches Shining Armor head off to patrol the halls and makes her way towards Celestia's room to go back to the world where theirs originated from, arriving a few minutes later outside of her private chambers, "It's Cadance your highness, may I come in?"
Celestia puts her book down and then rises out of her chair, "Enter Cadance, I have cancelled day court today because we have much to do."
She opens the door and enters her chambers, closing the door behind her, "Indeed Your Highness, we must continue learning about that world inhabited by those creatures called people. It is unfortunate that they suffered through that last conflict that claimed so many, I wonder how many poor souls were lost in it. Is it true that relations are improving between The Griffon Empire and Equestria?"
The princess walks over to her jewelry box and pulls the focusing necklace out and lays it upon the floor, "Yes it is Cadance, thankfully things calmed down after some negotiations. We may learn more as we continue to search for information during each visit. We may have not learned what those creatures are exactly, but we do know that they call themselves 'people'. We have learned so far that several nations were involved in this war that is called either The Great War or World War One, it also appears that tensions are rising in Europe. We do know that the whole world is suffering a great depression due to the rapid fall of the market prices, and that times are tough for the citizens. We need to decide whether or not it would be better to build a portal to this world and aid them in solving their matters peacefully, or if we should leave their world alone to handle its own affairs." She sits down beside the necklace, waiting for Cadance to have a seat before her.
Cadance makes her way over and sits down near the necklace, "Where do you want to go first Princess Celestia, Germany, England, or perhaps the United States?"
Celestia thinks on it for a moment, "Well we do not know for sure where the United States are, so how about we go to Germany this time and see what the people are so concerned about?"
The light pink alicorn nods and then takes her seat by the necklace, "Okay that sounds reasonable, let's be on our way princess." She places her hoof on the necklace and then channels her magic into it, sending them both to the other world.
At the statue in the city of Verdun
Celestia opens her eyes as she arrives in front of the statue beside Cadance and looks around, hearing a child call out, "Attention, attention, read all about it! Nazi Germany violates treaty once more, and reoccupies the Rhineland!" She then watches as several people rush up and buy a paper, one elderly male walks past them and sits on a nearby bench, then unfolds the paper and begins to search for his glasses. Curious, they both make their way behind him so they can read it as well.
Half an hour passes by as the elderly man finishes reading the last page and folds it back up, rises up off the bench with a heavy sigh while shaking his head, "Les problèmes semblent s'aggraver alors tandis que Hitler reste au pouvoir." He then makes his way back to his home to share the news with his family.
Cadance looks to her for a translation, "What did he say Princess Celestia?"
The princess sighs and then looks back at Cadance, "He said it seems that the issues are getting worse while Hitler remains in power. Let us continue on our way towards this lands' neighbor and learn what we can of that place, perhaps we will discover a way that we can aid them in finding a peaceful solution that will lead to friendship between the nations."
She nods her head in high hopes with a smile on her face and rises into the air on her wings as Celestia joins her, "I sure do wish that the people of this world can all get along with each other, it would upset me if there is nothing that we can do for these beings."
They spend eight hours exploring the various cities of Germany, finding nothing that would lead to a friendship. Disappointed in learning that certain citizens are being singled out and taken away for strange reasons as well as hearing what their leader, Adolf Hitler has planned for their nation. Celestia looks at Cadance with a frown on her face, "Let's return to the Castle, what we learned today in Germany is troubling information. Tomorrow we shall head to England and try to learn what we can, as well as try to find out where the United States are."
Cadance follows after her and sighs in disappointment at the lack of positive information, "I can't understand why that the Nazi Party is the only one allowed to exist, or that they are treating certain others so badly just for being who they are."
A few weeks pass as Cadance and Princess Celestia visit and explore the land known as Great Britain, they learn that it is a land that is crowded with cities, with London being the most populated as well as some of the nearby towns' streets being illuminated by something called electricity. Also learning that other people have been competing over getting awards for achievements in flight by using machines called airplanes, and that a female named Beryl Markham plans on making a solo, non-stop journey from Abingdon to New York on the 16th of September. Each time an 'automobile' passed by them, they watched it with curiosity. They also learn that the land north of Great Britain is called Scotland and the island west of them is called Ireland, learning a few things about the difference between each nation of people.
September 16, 1936 - At the Castle in Canterlot
Cadance walks up to the castle after their fake 'urgent trip to Manehattan' that would take them two weeks at the most to deal with things. She arrives at her door and knocks on it, "Princess Celestia, it's me Cadance, may I come in?"
Celestia smiles and goes to her jewelry box and brings the necklace out, then sets it on the floor, "Please come on in Cadance." She then sits down next to it and waits for her to sit across from her.
She enters the room and sees Celestia already sitting on the floor, waiting to begin their journey, "I apologize for being late Your Majesty, I needed to spend some time with Shiny. Our frequent visits to learn about this other land is consuming a lot of our time together."
The princess looks at her with a gentle smile, "I understand that your courtship with Twilight's brother is being tested, but our visits are important because we need to understand these people from the other world if we are to help them find peace."
Cadance nods her head and sits down beside the necklace, "I know it is up to us to help these other people Princess Celestia, I just worry what would happen if we should fail in our quest." She then places her hoof on the necklace and then starts to concentrate, then opens her eyes as they both appear in London.
Celestia looks at her and wraps a wing around her to comfort her, "I understand you worry for these people, but if we don't succeed this time, we will just have to try again and again until we succeed."
The light pink Alicorn takes to the air to head to where Beryl Markham will be taking off from, "Read all about it, final tally of total casualties during WW1 including civilians left twenty million dead and twenty one million wounded!" Causing tears to well up into her eyes, and her wings to fall to her sides limp as she falls to the ground roughly. She rises onto her hooves as sobs begin to wrack her body at hearing of so many lives being lost in a single war.
The princess rushes over to her and pulls her into a fierce hug, wrapping her wings around her as she also begins to tear up over the number of dead and wounded, "Oh Cadance...I do not understand why so many were lost or injured in such a conflict, but we must try to find a way to bring peace to these people."
The two remain hugging and crying over the sheer number of casualties, lasting five minutes before Cadance calms down a little, "We should continue on and join Beryl Markham on her journey to New York, we wouldn't want to be stuck using our wings to fly the distance when we have no knowledge where the United States is on the map."
Celestia nods her head and then starts to walk away towards their destination, "That would be unfortunate indeed if we missed this opportunity, let us hurry then."
The two make it just in time as they see her on the ground, making her way from the hangar to the plane on the runway. They then hurry past her and examine the machine quickly when the princess realizes that the only possible way to tag along is to be in the cockpit with her. Trying to think of a way to fit into the small space, she turns to Cadance quickly, "We don't have much time, but our only chance is to make ourselves into a small orb and situate ourselves behind the chair."
Cadance watches as Celestia goes first and shows her, transforming into an orb no larger than a large pearl and floats into the space behind the seat. She then does the same and situates herself next to her, "I am surprised that you came up with this when we were short on time." She then hears the airplane begin to activate as something slides closed over top of them.
The princess's orb then shimmers with her words, "I have not used this spell for what seems like ages. We may not have our forms, but we can still hear what is going on around us. I am curious of how long this journey will be, aren't you?"
The light pink orb shimmers in response, "I am curious, it amazes me with these people's creative ways to achieve things without the use of magic."
Nineteen and a half hours later the plane begins to struggle to keep running, causing the pilot to curse and slap the dashboard, "Come on Vega, you can't fail me now. We aren't even over land yet! It has been a long nineteen hours and we got caught up in a storm, making us lose our bearings for a few hundred miles."
Cadance's orb shimmers with a greenish hue to it as her stomach is unsettled due to the rough flight, "Princess, I would have preferred to use our wings to cross the sea rather than this machine! I feel sick to my stomach from being tossed around frequently."
Celestia chuckles softly, "I feel the same way you do Cadance, but we lack the knowledge of where the United States are located exactly. I hope we land on ground at least and not crash into the sea, it would be a great inconvenience to have to try to find our way there on our own."
One hour and a few minutes pass by as the plane's engine sputters as it circles around a small community, causing the pilot to sigh in relief, "We made it girl, I don't know where we are but we are over land. I am gonna set down in that spot over there."
As the plane hits the ground roughly, the pilot leaves the cockpit and gets some fresh air, "Well this sure isn't New York. We must have been further off than I anticipated, time for me to go find out where I landed."
The two see their chance and hastily float out of the machine and return to their pony forms, then start their search by the community.
After a couple hours of walking around the community, they learn that it is called Baleine and is a part of another vast country just north of the United States called Canada.
Cadance then looks at the princess briefly as they fly south of the community and head for the United States, arriving after three hours of flying. The first thing that she sees are the super tall buildings stretching up from the ground, with males walking along beams of structures being built.
Celestia is amazed by the brave people walking on beams so far from the ground, "Earth ponies would be too scared to be at such heights, I wonder what kind of material they use to make these buildings reach such heights."
The two Alicorns explore the vast city of New York, dwarfing Manehattan by being three times its size. They spend six more hours wandering about the city, learning that in the late 1890's a person named George Waring had the streets cleaned of the large piles of waste and garbage that were on nearly every street. As they set up another return point somewhere in the city, they return to Celestia's chambers.
Cadance is still astonished by the size and number of people living in the city, "I still am amazed at the sheer number of inhabitants living in a single city, I did not realize how large this planet's population really was."
The princess looks back at her and then says, "It is much larger than ours that is sure, If the cities of Equestria grew to that size we would have to change how we manage such numbers. It is surprising at how advanced they are compared to us, we should try to press forward as well. Let us try to figure out where we are going to build the portals to this world, it is so vast that we would need a portal to each of the lands."
The light pink Alicorn looks at Celestia, nodding her head, "I agree with you Princess Celestia, would it also be wise to separate the portals to that world from each other due to the rising tensions?"
Celestia thinks on it for a moment and nods her head, "That would be a wise precaution due to the unrest, it would not bode well to have the mirrors in the same room. I suggest that we begin our search for portal sites so we can begin to construct them and then think of how best to make first contact with these people."
The two Alicorns spend a few weeks to find suitable locations to link to mirror portals, deciding on building one just outside the city of New York. After a few days of debate, they both compromise and build one in Belgium, just outside the town of Bruxelles (Brussels).
Four days later, Outside of the Canterlot castle
Cadance makes her way from her room in the castle to continue gathering a last few things for her wedding today, thinking of shat she needs to do when she is struck upside the head. She comes to with a throbbing headache and looks around, finding herself in a cave with many crystals in it. Not knowing where she is for sure, "Hello, is anypony there?" She looks around again and sees a large crystal illuminate with a green glow.
Chrysalis laughs maniacally as she has succeeded in capturing her target, "At last I am making remarkable progress! Worry not little pony, a few of my guards shall be keeping you company and make sure that you behave in your little prison!" She then cancels the spell and goes about executing her next part of the plan with an evil grin on her face.
Later that day after the ceremony, Cadance approaches Princess Celestia, "Today is the happiest day of my life, I married the stallion that I love. Things are starting to get out of hand over there after we attended that re-militarization rally in Germany, but I do wish to have no further visits there so I can focus my attention on having a happy life with my husband. Can you please have Princess Luna take my place during the reconnaissance trips?"
Luna steps up beside Cadance and smiles cheerfully, "Congratulations on joining our family Cadance, I would indeed take your place during those trips so you can enjoy the married life. Speaking of which, I do think that it is time that you two newlyweds get on your way to your honeymoon."
Cadance bows to Princess Luna, "Thank you so much for this opportunity Princess Luna, I too agree that it is time for Shiny and I to be on our way to the honeymoon. Farewell, we shall see you some other time Princess Celestia and Princess Luna."
May 7, 1937 - At the Castle during the start of day court, in Celestia's room
Celestia looks to Luna after she finishes raising the sun and lowering the moon with her sister, feeling anxious to visit the other world, hoping to learn what has happened lately before day court begins after noon today. She then pulls the necklace out and sets it on the floor, "I wonder what has happened in the other world lately Lulu, we haven't visited much since January. Are you ready for our visit to the United States, I will even let you pick which state we visit. So where will you choose?"
Luna looks to her sister with a smile, "I think that we should go to New Jersey Cece, you and Cadance haven't gone there before right?"
She shakes her head and smiles back, "That is a wise choice indeed, and you are correct. Let us be on our way then so we can return by the time day court begins, it would not be wise to not be there to hear our citizen's petitions." She then takes a seat and waits for her sister to assist her with focusing on the location.
The princess of the night sits down and works with her sister to focus together and send their conscious minds to New Jersey, feeling herself being sent into the location and opens her eyes, "We are at our reference point in Jersey City sister, let us walk around and learn what we can."
Celestia nods and follows her sister, looking around and sees people gathered outside of some stores along the street with their hands covering their mouths as they look on in shock at whatever has their attention, "Let's find out what has their attention Lulu, perhaps the tension between the nations in Europe are easing."
As Luna and her sister make their way through the people, they see a massive object on fire as a device in the store delivers breaking news about an airship disaster. After hearing of the fires rapid acceleration and the lives that were lost when the ship fell from the sky while burning, she looks to her sister with tears in her eyes, "Let us not build airships until they are completely safe, we can then avoid such disasters as this terrible one was."
She watches the screen and nods her head solemnly, "I agree with you on that sister, let us explore more of this city to find out what has happened since our last visit." She then leads her sister away from the store, heading further into the city.
Luna and Celestia spend the rest of the morning exploring the bustling city, learning a few things that took place in other states. Sighing as she has had enough of hearing about the Hindenburg airship disaster, she looks to her sister pleadingly, "Can we head back now Cece, I was looking forward to learning new things in this city, but the only thing the citizens are talking about is the Hindenburg and the lives that were lost. I think that with this many people shocked at what happened, no one will ever want to be in an airship."
Celestia looks at her sister sadly and nods, "I think that would be a good choice Lulu, my mood is not improving with what we are learning here today. I do share your opinions regarding airships, we shall keep researching them until we can build them so they are safe for our ponies. With that said, let us return dear sister."
They both stop the spell and return to Celestia's room, with Luna getting up and quickly heading to her room. She stops before the door and looks back to her sister, sighing sadly, "Goodnight sister, I need to try to get some rest. I hope something good happens today in Equestria to improve both of our moods." She then exits the room and closes the door behind her, then makes her way down the halls to her room.
She then looks at the door and puts the necklace back in its box, then heads out of her room to tend to day court. She has a peaceful walk through the halls and arrives at her throne and starts day court, deciding to deal with the paperwork early when a guard comes running through the doors.
The guard races through the mostly empty room towards the princess, "News from northern Equestria, Your Highness." bowing before her and removing his helmet.
Celestia watches as her attendants leave her side, "Yes?" She wonders at what this news could be, and stares at the guard expectantly.
The stallion lowers his ears and takes a breath, "I am simply to tell you...It...has returned."
She gasps in surprise and turns to a guard on her right, "I need you to find Cadence and Shining Armor." She watches as the guard and two others race out of the room before starting a letter to Twilight, "My dearest Twilight, you must come to Canterlot at once..."
Two months later in Ponyville, at Canterlot
Celestia looks through her room for an empty journal to record their findings on Earth, when she comes across a book by Twilight's favorite pony named Star Swirl the Bearded, "I have forgotten all about having you, I wonder if my student Twilight is ready to discover her destiny yet. No better time than now, I will send this to her as a test. I hope you are ready for what lies ahead of you my faithful student..." She then begins to write a letter to her before sending it to her through a spell with a soft giggle.
Twilight reads through the scroll that her mentor sent her with a book and looks at the spell it mentioned, deciding to cast it and looks at it one more time,"From one to another, another to one. A mark of one's destiny singled out, alone fulfilled." not realizing that the elements right behind her are acting up with hers starting to shine brightly, "It doesn't make any sense, it doesn't even rhyme." After nothing obvious happens for a few seconds, she yawns and then heads to bed.
Seven days after Twilight's ceremony announcing her as a Princess to all of Equestria in Ponyville
Twilight struggles to learn how to fly from her friend Rainbow Dash as she crashes spectacularly in the dirt, leaving a good sized hole in the ground from where she landed, "I need a break from these flying lessons..." She then listens to what ideas her friends have and follows them to Canterlot.
Celestia walks through the halls after spending some time with Princess Twilight, when she screams at being suddenly grabbed from behind by something and carried away under the ground. She then feels the vine around her start to wrap her up and tries to fight it off to no avail as it fully encases her in layers of vines and sighs in defeat.
For what feels like eternity of being imprisoned by these foul vines, they slowly begin to disappear as the Tree of Harmony glows white as it destroys the vines that have overtaken Ponyville. Seeing her student run up to her and throw her hooves around her happily, she smiles in return, "We know how difficult it must have been for you to give up the elements, it took great courage to relinquish them."
Twilight breaks the hug and approaches the tree, watching as lines rush from the elements towards the center as the tree glows brightly. Shortly after that, a rainbow colored line runs down the tree and illuminates the sun and moon elements. She watches on as it then continues to the base of the tree and stops at one of the roots and sprouts a bloom. Curiosity gets the better of her and she touches it with a hoof and it opens to produce a chest of some kind, "What's inside it, how am I supposed to open it?
Celestia looks at it for a few seconds curiously, "Six locks, six keys." She then stretches her wings out a little bit, "I do not know where they are, but I do know that it is a mystery you will not be solving alone." She then watches as Twilight heads out of the cave and returns to Canterlot with her sister for the Summer Sun Celebration.
September 13, 1937 - Canterlot castle, in Celestia's room
Celestia sits in the room talking with her sister after they both attended the rally in Nuremberg, celebrating the lowest employment rate there has been for Germany since the Nazi's rise to power, "I wonder if now would be a good time to consider building mirror portals since things aren't getting any worse?"
Luna looks at her sister and thinks on it for a few moments, "I think it would be wise to wait another year before deciding on doing something that could affect our world negatively if something bad were to happen."
She then considers her opinion and nods her head, "I agree with you sister, a little more time and caution wouldn't hurt us. We shall wait for another year to pass before making our decisions." She looks out the window, seeing that it is time to raise the moon and lower the sun and looks back to her sister, "It is time to raise the moon and lower the sun sister, your watch is starting now."
The dark blue alicorn smiles and raises the moon while her sister lowers the sun for her watch and heads out of the room, "Goodnight dear sister, may your dreams be filled with happiness." heading out of the room to hold night court.
Celestia sleeps peacefully until a nightmare intrudes on her dreams, showing her a pony being drained of his magic, then the face of his attacker as he laughs evilly after his success. She wakes in fear when she sees her sister throw the doors open to the room.
Luna makes her way towards her sister worriedly, "Sister are you alright?!"
She breathes quickly and tries to calm herself down, "I just had the most terrible dream..."
The lunar princess walks a little closer and stops, "Why do you think I'm here? You know as well as I that this was not a dream, but a vision."
Celestia rises from her bed and starts to head towards the window, "Then we haven't much time. The stronger he becomes, the more we are all in danger."
Two weeks after Tireks defeat, on the road to Ponyville
Twilight and her friends make their way back to Ponyville as Twilight looks at Applejack and says, "Oh I am so glad that the villagers got their cutie marks back as well as our own. Do you think that we will face Starlight again someday?"
Applejack turns her head to look at Twilight and nods, "I guarantee we will...someday, but for now, let's enjoy the trip back to Ponyville and try to have some fun on the way. As long as we have each other, we will never fail to protect Equestria when it is in danger."
March 13, 1938 - In Celestia's room at Canterlot, just before sunrise that morning
Luna wakes Celestia up for their visit to the other world to learn what is going on recently and to look for a good place for the last mirror portal to this world, having already decided to use a statue's podium in New York as the first one as Luna's decision, "Cece, it is time for us to start our visit to the other world to find the location for the last mirror portal, you get to decide where this one goes. We are going to have to raise the sun in an hour anyways, so it is time to wake up."
Celestia rises out of bed after stretching her body, "Thank you for waking me up and reminding me of our plans for finding the location for the last portal site today, let's go have an early breakfast. I have a feeling that this will be a long day for us, let's head to the dining room."
The two eat breakfast together and quietly discuss the latest news from Princess Cadance and Shining Armor as Celestia giggles while leaning towards Lulu's ear, "Oh Twilight is going to be in for one marvelous surprise when she figures out the clues they will leave her."
The night princess shushes her, "Not so loud, we don't want anypony around us to overhear the news..." She then clears her voice and then looks back to her sister, "We need to get back to your room so we can raise the sun and lower the moon, let's get going Cece."
She follows Luna down the halls to her room, once entering the room she looks to her sister, "I think I know of a decent spot for the mirror portal, just outside of Brussels at an abandoned farm. Do you really insist we separate the mirrors from each other? It is not very convenient..."
Luna sighs and shakes her head, "It is not, but it is the safest option for us and them. The only thing I wish we could reduce is the 2 hours the portals remain open once they are activated, at least they both use different phrases to activate."
Later that day, around noon in Ponyville
Pinkie Pie is in the bakery decorating cupcakes when Mrs. Cake comes in talking about something she can't believe she is seeing and smiles then approaches her with a smile, "Pretty impressive if I do say so myself." She then listens as Mrs. Cake asks her to mind the counter so she can go to the supply room for a very special order that needs to be perfect, "Okie-dokie-lokie." as she then thanks her and rushes off, accidentally losing the paper she was holding. Curious as to what is in the letter, Pinkie picks it up and reads it quietly, "A baby? Shining Armor and Princess Cadance are having A BABY? This is the best news ever! I can't wait to tell Twilight!"
Mrs. Cake smiles sheepishly at hearing Pinkie discover the news, "Oh, and Pinkie? It is a Top Secret surprise, so shhhhhh!"
She then smiles nervously at having to keep such a huge secret and blinks a few times, A Top Secret Surprise? That means I have to keep the exciting news...to myself!"
Back at Canterlot that evening, in Celestia's room
Celestia returns to Equestria with her sister Luna after getting a portal mirror built at the farm, trying to learn a bit more about what is going on, "After waiting and finally building the mirrors, something finally happens. At least war hasn't broken out over Germany annexing Austria, it is just like how we made the Crystal Empire part of Equestria."
Luna then looks at her sister with concern in her eyes, "Perhaps, but I advise that we still remain cautious. What should we do if another conflict breaks out and we are attacked, the only way we have to defend ourselves is swords, shields, crossbows, a handful of cannons and magic. We are not at all prepared for any form of warfare if it should ever break, all Equestria has to defend itself is the Equestrian royal guard, which has only a few thousand ponies in it."
Celestia looks back at Luna with a soft smile on her face, "I understand your concern sister, I am confident that those nations will pay us no mind as long as we do nothing to antagonize them. Besides, there is no chance that they will ever find the portal locations or know when they will be open. If they do attack us, our magic will overpower them. As for the warriors, the crown can issue a 100 bit incentive to any pony over 18 to join the guard. What is your opinion on the matter, Lulu?"
She ponders on what could be done to assist Equestria, "Perhaps we can make a military with different branches such as they did over there, Pegasi and any other creatures that can fly can be the Air Force. The Army and Navy can have Unicorns, Pegasi, and other races in them, but what do you think we should do for the specialized tough branch called the Marine Corp? We also need to decide whether to start recruiting now or if it would be more important to have the research department focus their efforts on making progress in the wartime category."
The white Alicorn looks to her sister and sighs, "I think that those are great ideas, and we shall begin doing that at once. Let us think on it for awhile until we can come up with something. For now, we shall keep Princess Cadance, Shining Armor, Princess Twilight and her friends from knowing what is happening over there."
October 5, 1938 - Later that day, at the castle in Canterlot
Discord makes his way into the castle, requesting to meet Princesses Celestia and Luna regarding important and sensitive information they need. Seeing a couple of guards run off to go let them know, he decides to wait there as the guards have requested him to. He entertains himself for a little bit by going through a few photos in his album, remembering how six young ponies changed his life for the better and hopes to do the same today.
Celestia and Luna wait for the guard to bring Discord here, wondering what sort of information he has to give them. They watch as Discord pops into the room with the guard chasing after him, as Celestia shakes her head, "Discord, must you always pop into my room instead of knocking on the door like everypony else does?"
Discord smiles at Celestia, "I have no idea what you are talking about Celestia..." when another Discord knocks on the door and walks into the room, allowing the first Discord's image to dissolve into sparkles and return to the other Discord.
After the last of the sparkles return to him, he smiles and chuckles, "Oh but I did knock, my apologies for popping in unannounced. I was hoping to speak to you about a rather sensitive matter...alone with your sister."
Luna is curious at what the sensitive matter might be and looks to the panting guard in the room, "It is alright, you may leave us guard." As the guard leaves the room, she looks back to Discord, "Okay Discord, what is it that you wish to tell us?"
The Draconequus then closes the door behind him and gets closer to them, "Well, let me tell you how my day went..." He then proceeds to tell them about the days events where he was just spending time with his friends in Ponyville when Twilight suspected him of putting them under a spell, "I then asked them if somepony wants to tell me what's so hilarious, but none of them would answer me. Spike then told me that I would have to had been there to understand it, so after Twilight produced an orange before my eyes with a spell. I then finally understood what was so funny and picked them all up in a hug, after the hug was over I went back to my realm for a bath when this fell onto my side table." He then brings out the thick paper listing all of what happened that year and sighs, "I have been receiving these papers for 7 years, I enjoyed reading about all the chaos that was happening where ever the places are at first. As I continued to stay informed by reading the papers, they got less and less funny. Could you perhaps tell me why I don't find the chaos in these papers funny anymore?"
Celestia stands and looks at Discord with a shocked expression on her face, "Show me the papers you have received so far Discord, we will then tell you what we think is going on."
Discord nods in compliance and snaps his fingers, bringing the seven other thick papers into Celestia's room and landing with a heavy thud, "Okay, here you go Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. The first one I received is on top, I think I am starting to question if I am losing my grip on humor..."
Luna moves next to Celestia as she hastily pulls the top paper off the stack and reads through it, moving to the next one after finishing the first one. She tries to read as fast as Celestia, struggling a little to keep up, "Some of this we already know, who gave you these papers Discord?"
He shrugs his shoulders, "I'm sorry I don't know who is giving me these papers, they just appear in my realm somehow during the year near the end. Can you tell me what is going on and why you are so into those papers?"
It takes an hour for Celestia to speed read through every paper in the pile until she gasps at a few things that have happened in Europe, "Discord, do you solemnly swear to keep what we tell you an absolute secret? Should you tell anypony, I WILL PUT YOU WITH TIREK IN HIS CELL!"
Discord looks at Celestia, then quickly does a Pinkie Swear, "I also solemnly promise on my own life that I will not tell any creature about whatever is going on, now can you please fill me in?"
Luna looks at her sister and nods her head, "Okay, you know that story about our planet's origin? About seven years ago, Princess Cadance brought news to me that she was feeling sad and she did not know why. We investigated it with the aid of an old necklace, and found the galaxy of our origin, The Milky Way. The sadness drew us to a blue planet we later learned was called Earth, our consciousnesses landed on a rough field. The feeling Cadance was having went away after we learned that the field was actually an old battlefield from just over a decade ago that had seen heavy fighting and heavy casualties in the hundreds of thousands due to chemical weapons that were used. We have been studying that world for some time, and from what we learned on that world leaves us waiting and hoping for an opportunity to find peace for the nations on that world. The trouble is, however, things are not abating like they should... they are slowly getting worse. Everything in those papers is the truth Discord, so please either destroy them or seal them away somewhere." She then looks to her sister and sighs sadly, "Unfortunately, it appears that with this 'Munich Agreement' giving ancestral lands back to Nazi Germany, Czechoslovakia is cornered. Europe is starting to become more of a powder keg each passing week, I just hope things calm down before some person over there strikes a match and a new World War erupts in Europe."
Celestia looks at Discord as he quickly sends the papers somewhere safe with a finger snap, "You are not losing your sense of humor Discord, you are just simply realizing that these events are no longer something to laugh about for you. We were going to go visit Earth but after reading those depressing papers, but how about we find something fun to do in the meantime? Just the three of us."
He smiles and claps his hands together happily, "Oh most definitely, what do you think we should do princess?"
April 28, 1939 - Inside Twilight's castle at Ponyville
Twilight lets Spike sleep as she continues working through the night on the speech she must deliver to Celestia's magic students tomorrow, not realizing it is dawn when she finishes it. She then transfers the speech onto notecards to study, "Spike, it is time to wake up, I need your help with getting this speech perfect."
Spike wakes up slowly, yawning and then nods, "It is good you finished your speech, now I will get to hear what you wrote before the students arrive later in the morning." He then gets onto her back to get to the school so she can practice her speech.
After practicing her speech a few times before their arrival, she reads off her speech as she scans the audience. Thinking she spotted Starlight Glimmer in the group, she scans it again before continuing with her speech. Not seeing her in the audience, she finishes her speech. She thanks them for listening to her long speech and makes her way back to Ponyville, feeling a little concerned that she was sure she saw Starlight in the audience.
Later that day, in Celestia's room
Celestia and Luna return from a visit to Germany, learning that Hitler renounces the naval agreement with Britain and the non-aggression pact with Poland. Sighing heavily as things are continuing to worsen, she spots a scroll from Twilight Sparkle and smiles, "I sure hope that this letter from Twilight has some good news after the day we just had sister..." She picks it up and reads it, "She has successfully reformed Starlight Glimmer! This is most definitely the best news we could have gotten today."
Three weeks pass by as Twilight compiles a list of lessons for Starlight glimmer as her friends plan out their visit to the Crystal Empire, "Oh this small list here is just the A's by the way, the B's are over there by the table. Perhaps I should pare them down a bit before we go through them, but let's go join the others in the throne room. They're planning our trip to the Crystal Empire when Shining Armor and Princess Cadance have their baby."
Starlight Glimmer nods her head to Princess Twilight, "Throne room, got it." and takes off through the open doors before stopping and poking her head back through the doorway with a sheepish smile, "Umm, which way is the throne room by the way?"
Later that afternoon after the ceremony
Celestia and Luna smile at the baby alicorn, happy for Princess Cadance and Shining Armor when Cadance hands Flurry Heart to her husband after nuzzling her filly and makes her way towards them. Watching her as she gestures off to the side somewhere away from the others, they nod and then head away from the crowd of ponies.
Cadance smiles briefly for a few moments, "Thank you both for doing what you could to keep the storm at bay, we would have been in big trouble if not for you two."
Luna smiles and nods, "You are quite welcome Cadance, for what do you wish to speak to us about."
She sighs and drops her smile, "How are things developing on that other world?"
Celestia looks at her with a stern look, "You and Shining Armor have suffered enough with what you learned last time, we shall not let you suffer even more from knowing what has been going on there. Live a peaceful life with your family Cadance, you deserve happiness."
Cadance presses the matter and glares right back at her, "Please tell me what is going on in that other world, you leaving me out of the loop may leave you at a disadvantage should something ever happen and a new war starts. We are your allies Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, therefore, it is imperative that we know what is going on. So, with that said, please inform me about the events."
Luna looks to her sister and nods her head, sighing, "Very well then, things have gotten worse since you last visited Earth with my sister." She and Celestia both inform her on what has been going on lately, shocking Cadance and drawing a tear to her eye at the worse parts of it.
September 3, 1939 - Just over four months later, inside of Celestia's room in the castle at Canterlot
The princess sits in her room, writing in her journal about the recent progress that is being made in the other world while waiting for her sister to show up for their visit to Earth. She then closes it after hearing a knock on the door, "You may enter."
Luna enters the room, closing the door as she hangs her head, sighing heavily, "It upsets me that relations are not improving at all between the nations, there is a portal near Germany who seems intent on increasing their strength to rule the world. The other leads to the United States that is slowly starting to recover, and to make matters worse it is not interested in what is happening in Europe." she then looks down at the floor.
Celestia walks over to her and wraps her wings around her, "Worry not sister, for we shall continue trying to find a way to help this other world find peace." She then releases her after a few minutes to go get the necklace to begin their session, then sets it down between them and takes her seat, "Are you ready to begin our visit to the other world sister?"
After the princess places the necklace between them, she places her hoof onto the necklace and focuses on where they are going. Arriving in London, she looks to her sister and sighs, "Let's find out what is going on in Europe sister." She then begins to head in a direction after seeing a few people getting papers from a young child.
They stop nearby as the crowd hurries away with their papers with the young boy holding a paper high above his head, a smaller stack of remaining newspapers in a wheelbarrow as large as him yelling, "Extra, extra! Read all about it, Second World War breaks as Nazi Germany refuses to remove troops from Poland, causing England, France, and three others to declare war on the Third Reich!"
Upon hearing this news, Princess Celestia and Luna both look at each other in shock as sadness starts to take hold over them, "We failed to prevent this from getting worse, now many more people are going to lose their lives." They both fall silent and quickly embrace each other in a fierce hug as they sob, allowing their tears to run down their faces.
After taking some time to hold each other and calm down, Luna backs out of the hug first, "I wish we would have made first contact with them much earlier, I don't think that we should remain here. Let's return to the castle to think of a new way to gather information on Earth, since the citizens are starting to complain about the several day court dates that were cancelled for our visits." After having said that, she and her sister both return to Celestia's room in the castle.
Celestia looks to her sister and facehooves herself, sighing heavily, "I can't believe another large war has started, this will be very costly to those involved in it."
The dark blue princess rests a hoof on her shoulder and looks at her, "Sister, do you think it would be in Equestria's best interests to inform the citizens of the unfolding events on Earth?"
Celestia's eyes dart to Luna's and narrow slightly, "And ruin the happiness in the lives of Equestria's citizens? NO! I will not inform them of what is going on in that world. If we are forced to act, we will notify them then. However, it would be good to send some ponies there undercover secretly, under orders to gather whatever useful information they can about the different nations and their people. Could you help me create a plan for our spies?"
Luna nods and smiles at her sister, "Of course I will help you with the planning, though this will take time you know."
A few days later, in the dining room at Twilight's castle in Ponyville
Twilight is having a peaceful visit with Princesses Celestia and Luna when they all hear Rarity panic about something being wrong with Spike, running into the room holding a glowing young dragon in her magic, setting him on the cleared table as she approaches her assistant, "What's wrong?"
Spike scratches his scales, "I don't know! All of the sudden, my scales just started glowing and burning."
Luna looks at the young dragon, "Little is known about dragon culture, but this is a phenomenon we've seen before. It is the Call of The Dragon Lord."
Celestia then turns to look at him, "Dragon's glow whenever the Dragon Lord has need of them in the Dragonlands."
He looks at Princess Celestia and continues to scratch, "Great! How do I make it stop?"
The night princess stands beside her sister, looking at Spike sympathetic to how he must be feeling, "The only way to end the summons is to answer it. You must journey to the Dragonlands and see what is expected of you.
Rarity then worries for Spike and looks to Luna, "But the Dragonlands are full of... dragons! They are also ghastly creatures! Oh not you of course, Spikey Wikey."
March 18th, 1940 - Inside Discord's Realm of Chaos
Discord is taking a shower when yet another thick paper pops into existence and lands on the side table, getting his attention. He gets out of the shower and dries himself with a snap of his fingers, after picking up the paper and sitting down on a cloud to read it. He finishes the paper and sighs at what is in it, putting the paper away before snapping his fingers to appear at the throne room in the castle at Canterlot to hand it to the princesses.
Princess Celestia sits in the throne beside her sister when she sees Discord appear at the back of the room, wondering why he came here today, "Next pony please."
He waits for the last pony to make their request and leave the room before approaching the princesses, "Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, I have came here to deliver something that has just arrived today." He then brings out the paper and holds it out for them to take it and read it.
Luna watches Celestia take the paper and then read it, finishing an hour later when they learn that Italy has joined the Axis Powers and sighs heavily, "And another nation joins the war, what will it take to end this fighting?"
Discord shrugs his shoulders solemnly, raising his hands into the air, "I apologize princess, but I wish I knew the answer to that question. I do enjoy chaos, but it stops being funny when there is loss of life. I have never found a corpse to be funny."
Celestia looks at Discord with sadness in her eyes, "Thank you for bringing this to our attention Discord, although it is not good news, it does inform us of what has happened recently. Please put this with the others, you are dismissed."
He snaps his fingers and puts it away, then snaps again and returns to his realm, "So, what shall I do to entertain myself today... Oh I know, I will go to Ponyville and see what is going on." He then snaps his fingers and walks around Ponyville, finding it peaceful before making his way to Fluttershy's house.
Flash Sentry approaches Princess Celestia after she handles the last few petitioners of that day, stands at attention and salutes her, "Your Highness, the recruitment posters have been sent to all the cities in Equestria as ordered. Permission to speak, Your Highness?"
She looks at him and smiles, then nods, "That is good news to hear, permission granted Captain Flash Sentry."
He looks up at her and then softly says, "Is there trouble somewhere that Equestria must prepare for?"
Celestia sighs and then slightly shakes her head, "It is nothing to be worried about Captain, just some precautions due to a few issues with the Griffon Empire is all." She then dismisses him, sending him on his way. Turning her head to look at her assistant, "Raven, have you located any ponies that would be suitable for the duty I told you about?"
Raven Inkwell moves in front of her in the now empty room, bows then nods, "I have indeed found twelve Unicorns and Pegasi that would be best suited for the detail you mentioned, how shall I call them in your highness?"
She thinks for a moment and sighs, "Call them in teams of two, for security reasons. Have the devices I tasked the R&D department to create been finished?"
The assistant nods her head, "They have indeed Your Highness, they just finished removing the last few issues with the spells on the hoof bracelets yesterday."
Celestia nods and then says, "That is good, now let us begin this last task for the day so I can go on an overnight tour of Yakyakistan with the girls."
Raven brings in several saddlebags containing an information packet, a map, a compass, notebooks, quills, inkwells, and bracelets, she then sets them down beside the throne steps, then looks at her list, "Big Dip and Dork Fish, you may enter!"
The two ponies walk through the doors as the guards open them, letting a few chuckles filter into the room. They walk forward and stop at the base of the stairs, then bow in respect to the princess.
The princess looks at the two ponies, Big dip is a dark brown Pegasi mare with green eyes and a pair of binoculars for a cutie mark. Shifting her eyes over to the other pony, he is a light bluish grey unicorn with two buck teeth hanging down over his bottom lip, a light yellow left eye, the other being dark blue and a rainbow colored beanie with a propeller on top. She then clears her throat, "I have requested your presence for a very important task, you both are Team Gray and your restrictions are as follows: 1. You are not to discuss your assigned duties with other teams or contact them. 2. You are not to be noticed or speak to the inhabitants. And 3. Do whatever is necessary to avoid being captured by them. I am going to be sending you to a new world that has been discovered, it is a world that has a large conflict occurring right now involving multiple nations. Memorize all of the information in the packets as well as the instructions to the bracelets, then destroy them. Your mission orders are to seek out information regarding the nation, its land and people. You are to avoid the homes of citizens not connected to your task, so stick to the public and political buildings as much as possible. If possible, learn more about the planet. The best chance to gain that information is in libraries, it will be up to you to locate them. The nation I am assigning to you two is Germany, it is declared a hostile territory and its military and political members are cruel to others. Unfortunately you will have to find food on your own. In the bag my assistant will give you two, you will find a map of the land you shall arrive in. On it you will see a few red areas which you are not permitted to walk through, as the land there is dangerous with toxins and devices that will end your life. One more thing I should warn you about is that you will see some terrible and horrifying things during your time there, so brace yourself when you see things that are worse than what you could ever see in this peaceful world. Some situations may be too dangerous, and will require the two of you to plan an approach to gather the information you seek. The mirror you shall be going through can be activated with the phrase, 'Glory to Equestria' and will remain open for two hours until it deactivates. The town you will be close to is in the land of Belgium, it is called Brussels. You are to report back what you have learned every two weeks, I wish you good luck on your journey Team Gray. Please collect your saddlebags from my assistant and follow Princess Luna, she will lead you to your departure point."
The two collect their saddlebags from the assistant and then follow Princess Luna to the room, head inside and then listen as she instructs them to wait inside until the others arrive to use the same portal.
After a half hour of assigning the six teams to their nations, she ensures that the two teams assigned to the United States go different directions by having one team cover one half of the nation and the other team covers the other half. She then sighs miserably and dismisses her assistant, watching her exit the room before looking to her sister, "It feels like I am sending them to their deaths unprepared, do you think I am doing a terrible thing Lulu?"
Luna looks at her sister with a soft smile, "You are doing the best you can sister. It may not be the honest way of gathering information, but it is the only rational choice we have at the moment."
Celestia sighs and then nods her head slowly, "I appreciate your honesty Lulu, but this guilty feeling just won't pass."
The princess walks up to her sister and hugs her, "I know how you feel Cece, I still feel guilty for being so selfish a thousand years ago. Don't worry, we will get through this."
May 10, 1940 - A couple months later, Inside Celestia's chambers
Luna and Celestia prepare for their visit to find out what is going on in the other world, choosing to visit Brussels this time. Hearing thunder in the distance, they soon hear whistling coming from above their heads. They look up into the sky, but see nothing. Seconds later, a loud explosion draws their attention as civilians begin to run to shelters, screaming in panic as debris begins falling down upon them.
Celestia gets an eye full of gore as an explosion happens sixty feet in front of them, catching fleeing civilians and blowing them to pieces. Scattering their entrails all over the ground, with a head landing at her hooves that has its brain exposed. Her eyes shrink to pinpricks as her heart begins to race, and her mane falls flat against her neck, "Th...thi......this is...horrible, I feel even guiltier for sending the teams over here." She looks over to Luna and sees her staring at the head at her feet, her mane is flat against her neck, and her eyes are the size of pinpricks.
She stares in horror at the head, its terrified expression stuck on the face. Suddenly her rump collapses to the ground as she lifts her head and starts screaming into the sky at the horrifying scene of gore. Her mind loses focus and stops the spell as she continues to scream when she returns to Celestia's room. Upon noticing the change in scenery, she stops screaming and looks around the room frantically trying to figure out where she is and fails, "Where am I? I do not recognize this place." She then looks to the other pony in front of her, "Excuse me, do you know who and where I am?"
The princess pulls her into a hug as she gets her freakout under control, letting her tears fall from her face freely, "Calm down my dear sister, calm down. Your name is Luna, you are an alicorn. My name is Princess Celestia, and you are safe here with me inside the city of Canterlot. You are safe here, nothing is going to harm you."
The Alicorn's eyes return to their normal size as she calms down and remembers who, and where she is, as well as what she saw in the other world. She then starts to tremble as she breaks down, throws her arms around her sister and cries at seeing the citizens blown apart like that, taking a breath in between sobs, "Th-thank you Cece, that was so horrible to see. Ho-how are we going to have any hope of bringing peace to those people when they destroy each other with such savagery... I-It would be best to bring those ponies we sent over there back or they may fall victim to it as well."
Celestia holds her crying sister tightly, sharing her grief at the terrible sight. She then takes a deep breath and sighs, "It would be a wise choice, but we know so little about that world. Those that were assigned to that world are very smart ponies who know how to avoid danger, I trust them in their capacity to gather the required information needed about the different nations."
The door then bursts open as four royal guards storm into the room and begin searching for any danger as the captain of the group steps forward, "Princess Celestia, we heard a scream and came running to protect you. Where's the danger, Your Highness?"
The princess stops crying and looks over to Captain Flash Sentry and shakes her head, "There is no danger present, our consciousnesses were visiting another land when my sister saw something scary during our reconnaissance trip and screamed as our focus was lost. No assistance is needed Captain Flash Sentry, please return to your duties."
Flash Sentry salutes Princess Celestia, turns around, and then leads the guards out of the room. He then walks down the hall wondering, 'I sure hope that Princess Luna will be okay, she has never screamed like that before.'
Celestia returns to holding Luna, and continues to let her tears fall, "We shall refrain from visiting that world for awhile and let the agents gather what information they can from that world."
Luna settles down and exits the embrace after several minutes of crying, "That would be the best course of action for the time being, since open conflict has started. I need some time to regain control of myself, good day dear Cece." She then turns around and takes her leave, with tears still running down her face.
June 23, 1940 - One mile outside of Brussels
Team Gray races towards the portal to deliver important information to the princesses, "Big, shake a hoof! We were not supposed to be noticed, so now we have to lose that SS before we report to the princess! If the Nazis find the portal, Equestria is doomed!" Dork Fish looks over his shoulder and sees the officer get off the motorcycle and start searching the area, bringing a sigh of relief to Dork Fish, "He lost us and is searching the area, let's keep moving so we don't jinx our luck."
The two change their directions and take a longer route back to the portal, arriving a half hour later at their destination. Big Dip steps forward, and takes a good look around them, "Glory to Equestria." After it opens, they both walk through it and hurry out of the room to make their delivery.
Pinkie Pie is setting up a movie projector for a couple's anniversary when she hears something crash into the table with the couple's wedding video on it, making her investigate the commotion and walks over to them when she sees it is Big Dip and Dork Fish, "Hey you two, are you both okay? What are a couple of pranksters like you doing in the castle? Did you put a laxative in Princess Celestia's cake again, didn't you learn your lesson the last three times?"
Dork Fish laughs softly and says in a deep husky voice, "Yes we did, and we are on a mission for the princess. Speaking of which, we should really be going. Sorry about the mess, have a good day Pinkie Pie." He then hastily grabs the canister he thinks is the correct one and stuffs it back into his saddlebag and races through the room to get to the princess.
She giggles and then picks up the mess and notices something different about the canister containing the couple's wedding film, "What are these strange markings, I haven't seen these before. I do need to make sure that the projector works, so let's watch the film." She then loads the film into the projector, pulls up a chair and turns it on. She watches strange creatures stand beside a wide road as other strange creatures march down the center of the road, with three other creatures in strange uniforms raising their right arms as the marching creatures pass by them. She continues watching as several large things roll down the road, with some type of cannon attached to the rear or the front of each one. A few moments later, she watches as many more large things roll down the road with creatures in the back of them. After a few minutes of watching them pass by, the location changes with a flag being raised above a building. She looks closely at the flag to try to identify it, but doesn't recognize the design.
After watching the end of the film she turns off the projector, rewinds it and returns it to its canister, "I need to show this to Twilight to see if she knows what those things and creatures are!" She then places it into her saddlebags and trots on down the hall after leaving a note on a table explaining that an incident misplaced the couple's wedding film.
At the private conference room in Canterlot Castle an hour later
Celestia looks at her sister briefly before turning to the two ponies of Team Gray, "You may begin reading your report now, one of you speak while the other prepares the film."
Dork Fish looks to Big Dip, "You are the one who somehow managed to get your hooves on that film, so you do the talking while I prepare it."
Big Dip nods and then begins her report, "We have not been able to report back for a while due to the increase of hostilities around the portal. Earlier this year, Nazi Germany has began a wide scale shock and awe campaign called a Blitzkrieg or Lightning War in English." She then begins to list off the changes that have happened in the past few months when she reaches last weeks events, taking a big sigh before continuing, "On the 3rd of June, the German air force called the Luftwaffe, began bombing Paris. A week later, Norway surrendered to the Germans. The 14th had the fall Paris, followed by the fall of Verdun the next day. On the 21st, France signed an armistice with the Germans, leading to France now being occupied by the German forces. That is all that has happened since we arrived, would you like to hear what we learned about the world itself Your Highness?" She looks at her, waiting for a reply.
Celestia is in complete shock at hearing the beautiful cities of Paris and Verdun falling to the Germans, allowing a few tears to run down her face and fall off the tip of her chin, "P-Paris...fell......Oh all those poor people..."
Luna then looks at her sister and sees that she is in total shock at the latest developments, then looks to Big Dip, "What importance is this film you have found, to this disturbing information?"
Big Dip looks at the lunar princess and clears her throat, "It is a film taken by a camera crew as their military marched into the city of Paris, it shows what they look like and what they have for military equipment Your Majesty. Would you like to watch this film before hearing the rest of the information we gathered, Princess Luna and Celestia?"
The solar princess recovers from her shock and sighs, "Yes, we will watch the film first before you continue delivering the information you both gathered."
Dork Fish then nods to Big Dip, who turns the lights off and starts to play the film. He immediately notices that it is not the correct film due to there being ponies in it, "This ain't the film you grabbed Dip. Where could that film be, unless...uh oh...oh no, oh no that is not good at all."
Celestia narrows her eyes and stares intensely at Dork Fish, "What...did...you...do?"
Meanwhile, on the other side of the portal near Brussels
The SS officer examines the area one more time, finding a trail of strange hoof prints clearly not belonging to any horse he has ever seen. Being almost a perfect circle and the size of a normal horse's hoof, but not as deep as it should be. Deciding to follow the tracks, he slings his MP40 over his shoulder. He then heads towards his motorcycle, then gets back on it and slowly drives beside the trail to find out where they lead to.
The SS officer spends some time following the trail when it comes to an end, stopping near the side of the cliff that is facing the farm behind him. Confused, he stops the motorcycle and dismounts it, briefly reaching up with one hand to remove his helmet. Wiping his forehead with a green grey sleeve in mild discomfort due to the temperature, he scratches his head in confusion until a slight shimmer catches his eye. Startling him, he pulls his MP40 from his shoulder. Holding it at the ready, he inches towards the wall and jabs the end of the barrel into it. As the barrel passes into the wall, he pulls it back to his side.
Suspicious, he grips the gun tightly and pulls the trigger. After firing a few rounds through the strange surface, he watches the ripples as the spread outward to outline something similar to a door. As curiosity strikes him, he approaches it while lifting his hand to touch it. As his hand comes into contact with the surface, his fingertips pass through feeling no pain at all and decides to investigate further.
The officer takes a deep breath and aims his weapon towards the portal, not knowing what will be before him as he starts walking towards it. As he passes through, he opens his eyes to see a light blue room with a brown door in front of him with a few bullet holes through it revealing some sort of room beyond it. He continues to examine the rest of the room, seeing strangely glowing crystals on two walls providing light. He turns around and releases his breath, seeing a shining mirror showing the image of his motorcycle parked on a green field. Hoofsteps catch his attention as he rushes to the side of the door that it hinges on to remain hidden, he stays quiet and waits to see who may enter the room.
Rose Pine walks down the hall of the castle to go have tea with her best friend Money Bags, she notices some damage on a wall to her right as well as the door to her left and sighs, "How many times do the guard ponies need to be reminded not to spar in the castle! I will need to report this to the princess's assistant Raven, then I should still be able to meet for our scheduled tea break around 1 p.m."
After hearing some female talking, he then hears hoofsteps leaving the area and moves to the other side of the door to see what is on the other side. Raising his hand to the door handle, he pushes down slowly and gently pulls on the door. Opening it slightly and without a sound, he looks through the crack and sees an empty hallway.
He opens the door wide enough to poke his head out to look around the corner, then removes his helmet to remain quiet and shifts his body around to poke his head out and peer around the corner. He watches closely as more of the hall is revealed to him, spotting a young foal making its way down the hall away from him as the rest of the corridor is seen, making him wonder, 'There is no possible way that female voice came from that foal, but if it did... Where am I?'
After a few moments of deliberation, he decides it is important to find out for sure. He pulls his head back and returns his helmet to its place and pulls the rest of the door open after checking the other side of the hallway for any enemies again, and sees that there are no soldiers in that direction. He then looks back at the foal and steps into the hallway while holding his MP40 above his hip, aimed at her back, "Halt Fraulein! Beantworte meine fragen."
She stops and turns around to face the pony that just spoke, and is surprised to see some strange creature wearing a grayish green uniform of some sort. She then sees them holding some sort of object, finally looking up to see that they have some sort of helm on their head. Seeing a tall blonde haired, two-legged creature with blue eyes looking sternly and confusedly back at her. Cocking her head to the side with a raised eyebrow, "I'm sorry, I do not understand you. Can you speak Equish?"
The non-commissioned officer's eyes widen as he sees a fabled creature only existing in myths and legends, he then shakes his head and grumbles, thinking she means English, "Stop woman. Answer my questions."
Rose Pine listens intently to their thick accent, ignoring their rudeness and smiles, "Who and what are you, and what do you wish to know?"
Sgt. Gunter Henreig straightens up and holds his gun at the ready, "I am human soldier, from Germany. What are you, and where am I?"
She smiles and looks at their uniform for a moment, then back up at their face, "I am a Pegasi pony , my name is Rose Pine. You are currently inside of Canterlot Castle, in the nation of Equestria. I have not heard of this place called Germany, is it far from Canterlot?"
The SS NCO cocks his head in confusion, "Where is the nation of Equestria located on Earth, I have never heard of such a place."
Rose Pine cocks her head to the side, confused as well, "Umm, I have not heard of the name Earth. You are on the planet called Equus, how did you get here?
Sgt. Gunter then decides he found a potentially valuable individual to turn in to be interrogated for further information on this world and its nations, "You are coming with me, my superiors would most definitely desire to know more about your world."
She shakes her head, showing that she is not willing to go with him, "No thank you, I have somewhere I must be. Have a good day sir." She then turns around and starts to walk back down the hall, looking forward to get to her friend to enjoy some tea.
He raises his MP40 to his shoulder, "Stop there, I am ordering you to come with me. There is nothing you can do to avoid going with me to my superiors. I will take you to talk to them either injured, sick, or healthy."
Rose Pine stops and turns around with annoyance on her face, "You have no authority over me sir, only the nobles, Captain Flash Sentry, and the princesses can give me orders. Now leave me be and go about your day, farewell." She then returns to her path down the hall, hearing hoofsteps hastily approaching her shortly after. She turns to look behind her when she feels something hard strike her on the back of the skull, knocking her out and sending her to the floor.
Sgt Gunter approaches the downed pony when he hears something behind him coming down the hall, he turns to look behind him and sees two ponies coming his way. Reacting in a hostile manner to keep his prisoner, he aims the MP40 at them and pulls the trigger.
As the gun fires off several rounds at the two ponies, he watches as the pony in gold armor falls to the ground. He then watches as a bullet strikes one of the wings on the other pony's body as well as their left front leg, causing them to turn and run away limping while dragging their injured wing. He then releases the trigger and quiets the weapon. He looks at the tan pony with a blue mane and tail, wearing purple armor as they flee from him, leaving a trail of blood down the hall. He turns back around to the unconscious pony, shouldering his MP40 before picking her up and placing her over his shoulder. He then turns around and quickly makes his way down the hall towards the door he came out of, opens it and then heads for the strange mirror.
Moments later with the princesses
Princess Celestia sighs in annoyance at how Dork fish grabbed the wrong film, shaking her head until the door opens and the pony in question races into the room, "Well, was the correct film there Dork Fish?"
Dork Fish sweats nervously as he shakes his head no, "I'm sorry Your Majesty, but it was gone as well as Pinkie Pie. I looked around the room, but I could not locate her anywhere in the room."
She facehooves herself and groans as the important film has gone missing, she is startled by the door being roughly shoved open, "What is the matter Captain Sentry, are you okay? What has happened to you? Why are you limping and dragging your wing?"
Flash Sentry then recounts what happened to the Princesses after closing the door he barged through, "My apologies for interrupting Your Highness, but I was with a guard walking down one of the halls when I came upon a strange two-legged creature wearing a grayish green outfit. It was standing beside a downed pony when it heard us and turned towards us, it then attacked us with a loud weapon that killed the guard beside me and caused the injuries you see. I was not able to continue fighting, therefore I deemed it urgent to inform you about it."
Celestia's eyes widen at hearing that as her heart rate gets a little faster, "You were right to come here immediately Captain Sentry, show us where this took place." She then narrows her eyes angrily at Dorkfish, "As for you Dork FIsh, go and double check to be completely sure that it is not there... we will discuss it later." She and her sister Luna follow Flash Sentry down the hall to where ever the creature was spotted.
Dork Fish takes off towards where Pinkie Pie was with Big Dip right behind him, "I sure hope that we find that film, it would be very bad if others saw what is on it."
As they arrive at the scene, Luna notices several guards patrolling the area, "Sister, something must have happened here due to the amount of guards in the area."
She reaches where it happened and takes in the scene, seeing strange cylindrical metal objects littering the floor as a little bit of blood is spattered on the ground. A tear emerges and makes its way from the corner of her eye down to her chin, it then falls off to land on the floor, taking on a reddish tint as it mixes with a bit of the blood. She then looks at the pock-mark riddled wall, then the door across from it riddled with holes. She then sighs as she hopes that nopony was taken, "Luna, we need to check the other side to see if the creature is there and if it is wounded."
Luna nods her head and follows after her sister, "Lead the way sister, I am right behind you. Captain Flash Sentry, please go to the Medical ward at once and get those wounds treated immediately, thank you for your courageous act by informing us about this incident so quickly. You shall be rewarded with time off to recover and spend it with your loved ones and family."
Flash Sentry bows his head, feeling grateful for their generosity, "Thank you very much Your Majesties, it is much appreciated."
One hour later, at Twilight's crystal castle Library in Ponyville
Twilight hears a knocking on the door and goes over to answer it, "I'm coming, just give me a moment." She opens the door and then sees her friend Pinkie Pie standing at the door, "Hi Pinkie, come on inside. What brings you to Ponyville, don't you have some party to organize?"
Pinkie Pie walks into Twilight's home, then looks around to see that the other girls are there as well, "Hi girls, I'm glad that you all are here as well. That means we get to watch a film I found together!" She then turns her attention back to Twilight to answer her first, "Hi Twilight, I do have an Anniversary to finish setting up, but I found something strange and curious on a film that was in a case with some kind of writing on it. I was hoping that you would be able to tell me what is on the film?"
The Princess of Friendship looks at her with excitement and curiosity, "You found something new to look at and examine, that is wonderful Pinkie! Let's bring out the projector and see what is on this film you found." She then makes her way to the group of friends and looks around for her assistant, "Spike, can you please bring out the projector so we can watch a film that Pinkie Pie found?"
Spike then nods his head and goes off to get the projector when he remembers hearing that Pinkie was the one who found it, "Oh brother, I won't be getting any sleep at all if Pinkie found it..."
Applejack watches and listens as Pinkie tells Twilight how Dork Fish crashed into her table and accidentally mixed up the films, then watched it and has a lot of questions. With her curiosity piqued, she shifts her eyes to Pinkie, "What did you see on this film buttercup, it's not a grown up pony film is it?"
The party pony's eyes dart to Applejack, "I am very sorry for the discomfort I put you all through when we watched 'Two girls and a cup', this film is nothing like that I assure you."
Twilight taps the tips of her hooves together, feeling anxious about the new film with new creatures on it, "Oh I am so excited to learn something new, hurry up and get it ready Spike!"
The young dragon finishes setting the projector in place and then looks to Pinkie, "Okay Pinkie, it is ready for the film to be loaded."
Rainbow looks over to Twilight and laughs, "Oh Twilight, you are such an egghead when it comes to learning new things."
She looks at her laughing friend and shakes her head chuckling, "There is nothing wrong with enjoying expanding your brain Rainbow."
A half hour later, on the other side of the portal
Celestia looks around cautiously for any clues as to whoever came through the portal and killed one of her guards, not seeing anything at all and walking a few more feet to check a new spot. Looking around a different area, she spots a glint shining in the tall grass near a feather from a Pegasi's wing. She makes her way to it and picks it up, seeing a strange set of two letters in a vague SS. Her ethereal mane stops flowing in the air and falls flat against her neck as she recognizes the symbols being a sign of the SS branch of the German Nazi Party. She then hangs her head and sighs deeply, "Oh no, what have I done..."
Luna then goes over to her sister, seeing her mane lying flat against her neck and becoming concerned, "Sister, did you find something that upsets you?"
She levitates the item over towards her sister, "Yes Lulu, it is something most upsetting. The one that came over to our world through the portal...was a Nazi SS member. What makes it so much worse...is that they have one of our servants as a prisoner." She then sniffles as a tear makes its way from the corner of her eye, and down off the tip of her chin, "I...I have...failed to protect our little ponies Lulu, I am a terrible ruler."
Her sister walks up in front of her and embraces her in a hug, "You are not a terrible ruler, we both shall endeavor to return them to Equestria. At any cost, if necessary."
Celestia trembles and sobs in her sister's embrace as tears fall from her face, "We can't fight them Lulu, we do not stand on equal ground with their technology. Yes we do have magic and the ability to fly, but magic does eventually exhaust a pony after constant use. We just are not powerful enough to face them as a armed force. Even if we joined the battle, our magic would wane as well and would result in us becoming prisoners or being killed. Caution must be taken to recover our missing citizen."
Luna sighs and nods her head, "I agree with that notion, for it is wise. Perhaps the two who failed to wait until the portal closed before rushing to find us to deliver the report may make amends by taking that task?
She backs away out of the embrace as she starts to calm down, her mane starts to regain its flowing nature, "That is a smart thing to suggest dear sister, let us return to Canterlot before the portal closes so we can inform those two of their new orders." She then starts to head towards the portal, looking around at the destroyed farm with a cliff rising above the farm on the west side of it. She watches the portal shimmering as it sits on the face of the cliff, just above the ground between a large jagged rock and a destroyed piece of equipment called a tractor, "Let's get going Lulu, we should not remain here much longer."
As the two head back through the portal before it closes, Celestia sees Dork Fish and Big Dip standing before her with grim faces. With a sigh of disappointment, "What is it now you two?"
Dork Fish bows and then takes a nervous gulp, "We have good news and bad news Your Highness, the good news is that we found the lost film. The bad news is that Pinkie Pie has it and seen what was on it, we read the note and she is taking it to a friend in Ponyville."
Her eyes snap onto Dork Fish as her eyes widen, then snaps her eyes over to her sister, "She must be taking the film to Twilight, we can't let them learn of that other place just yet. Come with me sister, let's teleport there!"
Meanwhile, at Twilight's castle in Ponyville
Twilight is in the process of writing a letter to Princess Celestia when she notices a flash of light and a pop, looking up to see Princess Celestia and Princess Luna standing before her with looks of worry on their faces, "Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, what a surprise! I was just writing a letter to ask you if you knew what the strange things on a film that Pinkie showed us was, do you know what those strange creatures standing on two legs are?"
Celestia sighs regretfully, realizing that it is too late and the girls have seen the film, "Those things on two legs are called Humans, the ones in the film are from a nation called Germany. They are called Germans and the ones you saw in the film are it's military, can we watch the film over and we can explain everything after?"
Her eyes sparkle with excitement as she claps her hooves together, "YES, I mean, of course we can Princess. Do you mind watching it over again girls?" She watches as her friends all shake their heads no, then looks to Pinkie Pie, "Can you rewind the film so we can watch it again?
Starlight Glimmer makes her way back into the room, shocked to see Princesses Celestia and Luna in the room and bows, "W-What is going on? And why are you both here right now with worried looks on your faces? Is there some sort of danger that is threatening Equestria?"
Luna slightly smiles and looks at Starlight, "No, Starlight. There is no danger today that threatens Equestria, but let's watch the film with you."
Pinkie smiles and starts to rewind the film, "Oki doki!" After rewinding the film, she then starts the film and darkens the lights once more, "Here we go."
An hour passes as Celestia's eyes water as she mourns for the citizens of Paris, "I feel sorry for those that live in Paris right now, it was such a lovely and peaceful capital in France before the Germans came. Now I shall take some time to explain everything to you from the beginning..." She then proceeds to tell them how it all began with Cadence and her necklace, leaving out the more gruesome parts due to Spike being there.
Another hour passes by when Twilight looks to the wall for a brief moment, then turns back to Celestia, "That explains why you seemed slightly different the last few years, but why would you send ponies over to gather information through secrecy? Surely you could have been more straight forward about it and just approached the human races?"
Applejack looks at Twilight and clears her throat, "Sorry Twilight, but ah agree with the degree of caution that was taken. As she told us, tensions were high. Ah don't know about any of y'all but ah wouldn't like it if their war came to this world, ah like how beautiful our world is without them humans destroying it with their war machines."
Rarity then nods her head and looks between Applejack and Twilight, "Oh indeed darling, imagine how terrible it would be if any of us saw what that field looked like when they first arrived. Though I am curious as to what the fashions are like over there. However, I would not even consider visiting at this time with this second world war going on.
Fluttershy hides behind her mane a little, "I wouldn't mind trying to help them make peace with each other, it is no fun at all when there is anger and conflict. Especially when the fighting goes on, it hurts so many and causes such misery. I wish there was something we could do to help the United States recover faster, I am sure that it must be difficult to provide for your family or even yourself."
Celestia looks to Twilight and smiles softly, "I would have preferred to, but as Applejack said. With tensions so high in Europe, the decision was either to collect information the less honest way, or wait until tensions eased. She then looks to Fluttershy and smiles lovingly at her, "I share your desire to help them find peace, but with how things are between the different nations... It may be a while before an opportunity arises for us to make our presence known and aid them in finding peace, I have a feeling that this new world war will cause a lot of misery before it is over." Noticing Spike is nearby, she turns her eyes to Spike briefly and looks to everyone else in the room with a serious look in her eyes, "I don't know about any of you, but I am quite hungry. Who would like to get lunch, it is my treat to you all today?" She watches as everypony thanks her and accepts the offer, looking back to Spike, "Spike, can you please write down what everypony wants and then go to the restaurant in town to get it?"
Spike fetches a quill and a clipboard and prepares to start writing, "Certainly Your Highness, what will you be having today?"
She smiles at him and orders her food, "I will have a deluxe flower and grass salad with a large carrot cupcake and some Earl Grey mint tea." She then hands him a large bag of bits to pay for the food, "Oh and please don't tell anypony else what you have learned here today, this war does not involve us at this time."
Spike goes around to the girls to get each of their orders, "Okay, I have eight orders not including myself, but I will order when I get there. I will see you all when I return with the food, see you in about a half hour or so." He then exits the library and makes his way to the restaurant, hoping they have new gem recipes for him to try.
Celestia then sighs and then hangs her head a little, "Now I shall tell you what I left out..."
Luna then looks to the other girls and sees them crying at hearing how gruesome things are on Earth, with Rarity bawling like a baby at the marenapping of her friend Rose Pine. She makes her way over to her, pulling her into a tight embrace, "We will do what we can to get her back Rarity, we must be cautious with our actions because of how strong the German military is. We shall make our move when the opportunity arises."
It takes some time before Rarity quiets down as Celestia looks somberly at Twilight, "Twilight, it pains me to tell you that your friend Flash Sentry was injured while patrolling the halls when he came across one of the German soldiers. Worry not, he will be alright. He has a wounded foreleg and his wing was damaged, but he will be able to fly again. His parents will be notified shortly."
Twilight's world shatters at hearing of her friend's injuries, feeling her anger rising at how reckless Princess Celestia was with her decision making. She approaches her in silent rage, stopping before her and raises her hoof, then strikes her across the cheek, "How could you be so BUCKING STUPID, making a portal that remains open for two whole hours?! That is just like turning a few parasprites loose on Sweet Apple Acres and trusting them not to multiply rapidly! Was anypony else besides Flash Sentry hurt by the soldier?"
Celestia sighs and looks down for a brief moment before looking back at Twilight, "One other guard was killed by the soldier, they were an Earth pony stallion called Strong Seed. I am sorry for your family's loss Applejack, just ask if there is anything that you or your family needs."
Applejack catches the name and quickly looks up at Celestia, "Wait...yer tellin' me that Babs second cousin is...gone?" Seconds pass by as Applejack starts to cry and wail at the Apple Family's loss.
A couple hours earlier, somewhere along the road near an abandoned farmhouse between Paris and Brussels
Rose Pine groggily comes to with a splitting headache and opens her eyes after hearing a loud noise coming from somewhere close by, seeing the same German soldier that she fought to get away from before. She tries to get to her feet and jumps out of the cart she is stuffed in, shakily landing on her hooves as she then flies a few feet into the air in the opposite direction they are heading, 'Where am I, I do not recognize anything around me...'
The SS NCO is disoriented by the movement and jerks the handlebars to the right, crashing on the side of the road and angers him. He struggles out from under the machine and looks around for his prisoner, seeing her flying through the air in the opposite direction and rights his motorcycle to chase her down.
She sees the machine race past her from below and skid to a stop, with the soldier getting off and aiming the weapon at her in anger. Drifting to a stop to hover in the air, she hears him order her to stop. Tears fill her eyes as she sobs for a few seconds trying to find her voice, "Please let me go, I have a friend waiting for me!"
Sgt. Gunter is annoyed with her struggles and aims at the wing on her left side, pulls the trigger and shoots it, eliciting a pained scream. He watches as she tumbles to the ground landing in a bush roughly, ending her struggle to get away, "You can't escape, the Führer will be curious when he sees you." He then shoulders his weapon and approaches the downed prisoner to return to his journey to Paris to find the Führer.
Rose Pine screams in pain as her wing is injured in two spots when she crashes into the bush, she is then roughly lifted and dumped into the cart again, crying in agony as the soldier ignores her cries and returns to their journey, "Oh Princess, where are you and your guards..."
Presently, somewhere in Paris
Adolf is standing over a table looking at a map detailing the city of Paris when he hears a knock at the door, looking up at it in annoyance, "Eingeben! (Enter)"
Sgt Gunter enters the room carrying a large gunny sack with two soldiers escorting him, then stands in attention and salutes his leader, "Sieg Heil Meine Führer! (Hail victory, my leader!)"
The Führer looks at the SS NCO and returns the salute with a wave, "Was bringt dich hierher, Soldat, warum störst du mich? Ich bin beschäftigt! (What brings you here, soldier, why are you bothering me? I'm busy!)" while slamming a fist onto the table with an angry glare directed towards the NCO.
The NCO stands at attention nervously after bringing his arm down from the salute, "Vergib mir meine Unwissenheit, meine Führer, ich habe dir etwas zu zeigen. (Forgive me for my ignorance my leader, I have something to show you.)
Adolf stands up straight, raising an eyebrow in curiosity, "Was hast du, zeig es mir. (What do you have? Show me.)"
Sgt Gunter pulls the gunny sack off his shoulder, then dumps the contents onto the floor. Hearing the pony yelp in pain after landing on the floor on her good wing, he lowers his voice and looks at the Führer, "Meine Führer, ich habe einen Filmdieb gejagt, als ich etwas seltsames entdeckte. Ich untersuchte es und fand eine seltsame struktur. Dort habe ich diese stute gefunden, sie spricht nur Englisch. (My leader, I was chasing a movie thief when I discovered something strange. I examined it and found a strange structure. That's where I found this mare, she is only able to speak English.)"
The Führer stands up straight and walks around the desk, wondering what sort of creature they have. He stops at the side of the table as his eyes widen in surprise and curiosity, "Nun, das ist ein interessanter fund... Wie glücklich für dich, dass ich dich nicht töten werde, weil du Englisch kannst. Herzlichen glückwunsch, sie wurden gerade zu Haupt schar Führer für diesen fund befördert. (Well that's an interesting find... How lucky for you that I won't kill you because you know English. Congratulations, you have just been promoted to Master Sergeant for this find.)"
Rose Pine whimpers in pain and fear at the smile worming its way across the other human's face, not liking the way he is staring at her, "I want to go home."
Adolf listens to the translation given by Master Sergeant Gunter, chuckling while the smile widens on his face, "Keine Frau, du wirst für eine Weile nirgendwo hingehen. Es gibt so viele Dinge, die wir über Sie wissen müssen und woher Sie kommen (No woman, you won't be going anywhere for a while. There are so many things we need to know about you and where you are from.)" He then looks to the soldier, "Ich werde heute nach unserem Verhör einen Brief schreiben, um Ihnen die richtigen Insignien zu geben. Nicht trödeln, JETZT BEWEGEN! (I will write a letter later today after our interrogation to give you the correct insignia. Don't dally, MOVE NOW!) He then orders him to assemble a heavily armed detail of soldiers with four Panzer IV's and accompany him back to a hidden room under his headquarters in Berlin for the interrogation, after first taking the creature to a medical expert for animals to get her wing treated or removed if it can't be repaired.
Gunter salutes the Führer and stuffs the pony back into the sack despite her weak attempts to fight going back inside it, leaving the room with the two guards following on his heels to pass along his orders to a superior officer to form a heavy detail for the Führer's return to headquarters immediately. After completing his first task, he then makes his way to locate a skillful veterinarian regarding the prisoner's injuries.
Later that day just before sunset in Canterlot
Celestia sees Big Dip and Dork Fish bow before her in the empty throne room, "My sister and I have thought about a suitable punishment for your blunder, you both shall go forth and learn wherever Rose Pine has been taken and rescue her."
The two nod and then make their way out of the room, hurrying down the halls to get through the portal to begin their search. On the other side of the portal, they wait for the shimmering portal to close before moving on to begin their search as Big Dip looks at her partner and shakes her head, "Way to go partner, you managed to get us into very hot water with the princesses."
Dork Fish looks back at her and sighs, "I'm sorry, I didn't want this to happen! We were both in a hurry to get that SS off of our trail, perhaps we should have just taken him out?"
The Pegasi narrows her eyes at him, "I don't know about you, but I could not live with myself for taking a life. Even if it was some other creature that was trying to take mine, I would do everything to get away from them."
He nods his head in agreement, "I am the same, taking a life just to survive makes me feel selfish somehow. Anyway, where do you suggest we start our search Biggy?"
Big thinks for a moment, "Well, since we got that film in Paris, how about we go back there and sniff about?"
Dork smiles and nods his head, "I think that is a great idea, and if we don't find anything in a week, we will report to the princesses and head back out immediately."
September 10, 1940 - Two Months Later, at Twilight's home in Ponyville
Celestia takes a sip from her tea and looks around the room when she hears somepony make a psst noise, trying to find the pony that made it. Not finding anypony close enough, she then sighs and lowers her voice to a bare whisper, "What is it now, can't it wait until after Luna and I return to Canterlot?"
Tea Time stands inside of the large dining room surrounded by Twilight, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Starlight and Discord, coughing quietly a couple times as he hopes the invisibility lasts long enough for him to deliver his report to the princess, lowering his voice as well, "Pardon the intrusion Your Highness, but I am afraid that this couldn't wait. I just came from London, it was under aerial attack by the Germans when my partner, Sharp Eyes and I were on our way to report our findings to you." He then holds an envelope out for her to take, trying to be discreet and go unnoticed.
She looks at the envelope, then shifts her eyes around the room, not seeing Spike around. She then sighs and looks back in the direction the voice came from, "You may allow yourself to be seen here, these ponies all know about Earth and the World War."
He nods his head at the princess's orders and disables the spell keeping him invisible, "Very well, Your Highness."
Celestia watches as a dirty cream Pegasi pony appears before her with an auburn mane and tail full of dirt and some spots of dried blood, shocking her at their appearance. She quickly takes the envelope and opens it, then reads the report at what has been going on in Europe these past few weeks. Her eyes widen at the news, feeling fear rise within her at how fast the German army is advancing. She sighs as all the other ponies in the room are staring at the new arrival, then turns her head and looks at the others in the room for a brief moment before returning her gaze to the Pegasi before her, "Thank you for your diligence on your mission Team Blue. Where is your partner at, why do they not join you in delivering your report?"
He looks to the floor sadly, his ears drooping forward as he remembers her death, "Many apologies Your Majesty, but she perished during the attack when one of the bombs landed right beside her and detonated. She was splattered against the side of a brick building, her device was destroyed in the explosion. With all due respect Your Majesty, I will not go back to that place after seeing that. Find a new team to go gather the precious information you desire so greatly, if you need it so much. I shall hand this device over to you and take my leave, good day Your Majesty." With his piece said, he takes the device off and places it on the table before Celestia, turns around and takes his leave, heading out of the dining room with a grim frown on his face.
Celestia drops the tea cup, hitting the floor and shatters into pieces, splattering its contents onto the floor. She then hangs her head after having a beloved subject perish in the other world, a single tear falls from her eye and lands on the floor, "Today was supposed to be such a happy day, with Starlight, Discord, Trixie and even Thorax working together and freeing the changeling hive from Queen Chrysalis's rule." She then sighs and puts the device away then levitates a few slices of cake in front of her, only to lose what little appetite she has left. She pushes them away a minute later before Twilight approaches her with concern on her face.
Twilight looks at her mentor with a look of sadness on her face, "What has happened in Europe now Princess Celestia? Why did that pony look that way?"
She looks at Twilight, seeing the others in the room with worried looks on their faces and sighs, "I am happy that Starlight and her friends accomplished such a great feat, saving the Changelings and helping them to evolve. I have just received a report from Team Blue, Tea Time watched as their friend perished while trying to bring me the information they have gathered in England. They were in the city of London when it was bombed by the German Air force called the Luftwaffe, most of Europe is being overrun and we aren't strong or advanced enough to be of any help to the Allies." She stomps a hoof in frustration before she breaks down and sheds a few tears, as Fluttershy and the others surround her in a hug to comfort her.
Meanwhile, Back on Earth in Berlin
Rose Pine briefly screams in pain as the interrogator strikes her across the cheek with the crop again, knocking one of her teeth free and onto the floor, "I told you everything I know about Equestria and the lands around it, including what little I know about the magic of Unicorns. Now will you please let me go home!?"
The SS interrogator strikes her with the crop one last time, "NEIN!" He then smiles cruelly and holds the crop behind his back with both hands, leaning forward towards her ear, "No little Pegasus, you will not be going anywhere for a long time..." before walking towards the door and turns his head to look at the large band going around her midsection, then shoots her a nasty look, "How sensitive are your wings I wonder... Do they even work?" He then exits the cell to go report to the Führer.
Adolf is at his desk going through reports when someone knocks on the door, "Eingeben! (Enter!)" He then looks up to see his interrogator step into the room, "Haben Sie weitere Informationen über diese fremde Welt gesammelt? (Have you gathered more information about this strange world?)"
The interrogator shakes his head, "Nein, mein Führer. Es scheint, dass es keine weiteren Informationen für das Dienstmädchen gibt. (No, my leader. It seems that there is no further information for the maid to give.)"
The Führer looks back down at his desk for a few moments, then looks back up to the interrogator with a grin on his face, "Nach dem, was die Magd uns erzählt, ist es ein Einhorn und sie haben Magie. Da die Magd behauptet, dass die Prinzessinnen jedes ihrer kostbaren Untertanen lieben, lassen Sie diesen oder andere Gefangene, die wir von dieser anderen Welt erwerben könnten, nicht sterben. Sie können sich in späteren Verhandlungen als wertvoll erweisen. (From what the maid tells us, it's a unicorn and they have magic. Since the maid claims that the princesses love each of their precious subjects, do not let this prisoner or others we might acquire from this other world die. They can prove valuable in later negotiations.)"
The interrogator salutes the Chancellor and exits the room to fetch some food for the female pony, arriving outside the door with a few apples and some carrots in a large bowl. Opening the cell, he walks in and sets the bowl on the ground and kicks it over in front of her, "Here's your food, eat up. Thank you for the information, now enjoy your stay here."
Adolf then heads over to the wall and smiles at the painting, "Diese andere Welt könnte uns helfen, diesen Krieg zu gewinnen, wenn die Verbündeten uns aus irgendeinem Grund zurückschieben sollten. Ihre Ressourcen könnten uns Zeit geben, die Welt wieder aufzubauen und zu erobern. (This other world could help us win this war if for some reason the allies should push us back. Your resources could give us time to rebuild and conquer the world.)" He then walks around the room, considering giving that NCO he promoted orders to take a Platoon of 50 soldiers to watch that location for any 'visitors' that might come through as well as capturing as many alive as possible. Making a decision, he then orders someone to go find Master Sergeant Gunter and bring him here immediately.
Oberfeldwebel (Master Sergeant) Gunter's Battalion at the farm outside Brussels
Gunter's small convoy comes to a stop at the abandoned farm, commanding the platoon to make the place livable and hide the vehicles in the barn. Walking around the farm, he thinks of how best to keep any potential visitors from noticing their presence while keeping watch on the area he seen shimmer. He also instructs the men to just observe any activity near a certain space on the cliff wall, capturing any that appear lost or confused and notify him if they leave the area with purpose.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world in the United States
Smooth Deal looks at the radio sitting on display in the window as Cautious Step watches out for him, "You have been coming by here every day this week looking at that damned radio, either go in and purchase it or just forget about it already!"
He looks at his female partner and rolls his eyes, "We can't be seen by them, when are you going to get that through your thick head."
Cautious Step looks at her team mate and sighs, "I do know that we can't be seen or make contact with them, but you need to either act and purchase that radio or move on. So make a damn choice already and let's go turn in our report!"
Smooth lets out an exasperated sigh, "Alright, I am going to go in there while invisible, wait till they are in the back room and leave ten gold bits on the counter. I will then grab the radio and stuff it into my storage pocket and walk out saying, 'I am buying this radio in the window, the money is on the counter, so keep whatever is left of it as a tip.'
She forehooves herself and hovers in the air, "Well just don't stand there like a dolt, put it into action already!"
He nods and heads into the store, watches for the owner to leave the counter and places ten gold bits on the counter. Moving over to the radio in the window, he picks it up and stuffs it into his pocket, "I am buying this radio in the window display, I left the money on the counter for you. Just keep whatever is leftover as a tip, thank you very much mister." He then makes his way out of the store before hearing him holler out, "Now hold on a moment sonny, you overpaid...don't...you want...yer change?"
Cautious chuckles at how the elderly shopkeeper scratches his head in confusion and bite the coin to ensure it is really gold, his eyes widen in surprise as all the coins turn out to be gold and rushes to close the shop temporarily, "I think you just made that shopkeeper's day, now let's get back to Equestria and deliver this report."
Smooth Deal then nods his head and looks at her, "Okay then, let's make our way over to the Statue of Liberty and wait for night to fall before activating it. That way, the guard that patrols the perimeter can keep the civilians away from it, preventing any chance for the portal to be discovered."
She nods her head and starts heading for where they are staying until the day ends, "No matter how long we stay here, I will never get used to the weather not being controlled, it will always be so creepy not seeing other Pegasi move the clouds."
Four hours later, on the other side of the portal in Canterlot
The pair wait two hours for the portal to close before making their way to the princesses, wanting to avoid another incident similar to what happened when the other portal was left unattended for the entire time. They arrive at the large double doors leading to the throne room, when Cautious Step knocks on the doors.
Princess Luna sits up straight after resting her hooves for a little bit until the next group of petitioners arrive, "You may Enter." She watches as the next group of ponies to arrive is none other than Team White from the United States, "I was wondering when the next report would arrive, what do you have to report?"
Smooth Deal bows before the lunar princess, "We have a few things written down to notify you about, but I picked up a radio for the two of you to listen to what is playing over the air in America." He then pulls it out of his storage and sets it on the ground with a smile, "We will still gather information and report in, I was just considering that you could hear a few things that play over the radio that are happening in places far away such as Europe."
She looks at the device curiously, "We are certainly grateful for you producing a device such as this, it may prove helpful to our research on Earth. Now what else have you to report, make haste because I must patrol the Dream Realm soon."
Cautious Step nods and hands the envelope to her with a bow, "Here you go Your Highness, I would continue to read it aloud, however, something tells me that we must return to that other world very soon."
Luna smiles and nods, accepting the envelope with a hoof, "Very well, I once again appreciate the thoughtful gesture and the report, have a good night and may you suffer no nightmares." She then watches as they head out of the room and looks at a pair of lunar guards standing next to the doors, "Night court is ending early tonight, I will begin patrolling the Dream Realm now. I am not to be disturbed unless it is extremely important." She watches as one of the guards nod and head outside to guard the doors, laying back down on the throne to start her patrol.
The hours pass by as Luna ends a few nightmares that pop up, feeling satisfied when all of her subjects are dreaming peacefully. She then leaves the Dream Realm, surprised to see her sister awake at this hour, "Cece, you should still be in bed. It is too early to raise the sun yet, what brings you here?"
Celestia chuckles and smiles at her sister, "Lulu, Is it so surprising that I just want to spend a little time with my dear sister?"
She shakes her head and smiles at her, giving her a hug, "At first, but I am glad that you just want to spend a little time with me. Did you sleep well dear sister?"
After their hug she spots something on the floor, "Dear Lulu, where did that device come from?"
Luna smiles and then walks over to the radio and looks at her sister, "Team White reported their findings tonight and acquired this radio from the US so we can listen to what is going on, we may have to find some way for it to function when the portal is not open."
Celestia trots forth with a large smile on her face, feeling happy at having a way to staying up to date with what is happening around the world on Earth, "I shall have some ponies begin working on it immediately, today was not such a bad day after all. Did you read what was in the report yet?"
She shakes her head thoughtfully, "No dear sister, I thought it best to wait for you so we can learn what is in it together." She then opens the envelope and leads her sister to the throne big enough for both of them to sit in, then waits for her sister to join her on it.
The elder sister jumps up onto the throne and looks at the envelope eagerly, "Are you going to pull the letter out and read it, or am I?"
Luna giggles and pulls it out of the envelope, then holds it open in front of her sister to read out loud, "I will hold it while you read it out loud, that way we both will know what is in the report." She then listens in as her sister reads the report aloud.
After reading the report out loud, Celestia watches as her sister folds it up into the envelope and tucks it away, "It is sad to hear that the depression is still affecting the US, but at least they have managed to keep out of the war. Let us raise the sun and find a place for this radio."
She nods after hearing the report, "Yes it is indeed unfortunate for them, but there is nothing we can do to hasten their recovery. I do, however, have thoughts on where to place the radio."
Celestia looks to her sister, "Really, where are you thinking of placing it?"
Luna smiles at her sister and looks at the back of the throne, "Well how about right behind the throne so that one of us can always be able to listen to it, keeping it quiet enough so the citizens don't hear it."
She smiles broadly and hugs her sister happily, "Oh that is a wonderful idea Lulu, there are a few things that must be done first for that to happen. Let us begin at once!" She then hops off the throne and trots towards the balcony with her sister right behind her as they begin to raise the sun and lower the moon.
March 12, 1941 - In the throne room at Canterlot castle during day court
Smooth Deal and his partner deliver the latest news on the latest events in the United States, "Yesterday, President Roosevelt signed Lend-Lease into law to aid the British fight off the Germans while still staying neutral. That concludes our latest report Your Highness, might I be allowed to take a video camera over there so I can capture interesting events as they happen?"
Celestia thinks on it for a moment and nods her head, "That would be a great idea, ensure you take enough film with you so you don't run out and need to record something. Thank you for your report, you are dismissed." She then focuses her attention onto the radio behind the throne, determined to hear what is going on in the other world.
He bows to the princess, then looks at her quickly, "We should inform you that we are planning to visit Pearl Harbor and begin learning what we can there, our next report will not be for two months and it will be just Cautious Step delivering the reports as that island is far away in the Pacific Ocean."
Cautious Step watches as she nods her head and thanks them before dealing with a stack of papers on a stand beside the throne, and exits the room to get a video camera and film. She then looks at him curiously, "Do we seriously need to bring a video camera with us to the states? You know that we will be travelling to Pearl Harbor soon, so why are you trying to add so much extra weight that we must carry around with us everywhere?"
Smooth then looks at her and sighs, "I am just trying to shorten how much talking we have to do, and you know that the items carried in my pocket don't weigh me down."
A few hours later at Twilight's castle in Ponyville
Discord walks up to Celestia after having a little fun with his friend Twilight by telling her a grand plan was needed, lowering his voice so nopony hears him, "So Celestia, what is happening in the States currently?"
She narrows her eyes at Discord suspiciously, "Are you spying on me Discord?"
He chuckles and then whispers into her ear, "Of course not, I just have ears everywhere to keep an eye out for any potential danger that might pop up at any moment and threaten Equestria."
Celestia rolls her eyes and shakes her head with a sigh, "Things are starting to change in the United States. The depression is not affecting them that bad, but tensions are rising between Germany and the US as well as tensions between the United States and a nation called Japan. I really hope that those tensions fade so America can avoid the miseries of the war in Europe, times are hard enough for the citizens without America joining it."
July 27, 1941 - Just before sunrise, at the Castle in Canterlot
Luna waits for her sister to come to raise the sun and lower the moon when Cautious Step rushes into the room, breathing hard. Worried, she stares at the Pegasi, "What has happened, is there an emergency?!"
Cautious Step tries to catch her breath before giving her report, "I just traveled...five thousand miles...to deliver this...urgent report. Just yesterday...the United States...has seized all...Japanese assets in response...to their invasion...of Indochina." She hastily pulls out an envelope and holds it out to the princess, still trying to catch her breath from the long journey.
She gasps at hearing the urgent news and takes the envelope, "Guards! Please take this Pegasi to one of the royal guest rooms, she has most definitely earned a rest after flying five thousand miles to get here." She then hurries out of the room, stopping just before the doors and looks back at the panting Pegasi, "Thank you very much for your dedication, my little pony. You have most certainly done a great deed this day, sleep well and have a good meal."
Celestia sits in the dining room, about to eat her morning cake when Luna bursts into the room. She looks at her with worry on her face, "Has something happened to the citizens in Equestria sister?"
Luna stops before her and shakes her head, "No sister, something big has happened on Earth and we must act immediately. We need to make our presence known and help ease the tensions between Germany and America, as well as those between America and Japan before someone over there has the final straw and brings America into the war in Europe."
She narrows her eyes at her sister, "You intruded on a very pleasant and steamy dream I have had in a long time, thanks to you I will have to wait for who knows how long for another to come along. No, we are not going to emerge just to do that. We are not prepared to be dragged into their war, should our attempt to make peace between them fail!"
The night princess huffs in annoyance at her sister, "Come, it is time to raise the sun and lower the moon."
Celestia levitates a slice of cake before her face and looks at Luna, "I will be there after I finish eating my morning cake."
Luna turns around and heads out of the room, "We both know that the cake goes straight to your rump."
She snaps her eyes away from the cake to her sister, "What was that sister?
The night princess turns back to her, "I only said I will wait for you there on the balcony."
Just after sunrise, in Twilight's castle at Ponyville
Twilight is walking through the map room when the table activates, moving its focus to Canterlot and zooms in. Getting her attention, she hurries over to the table and watches as a single cutie mark appears and circles over the castle. Surprised by the cutie mark she sees above the castle, she races to the kitchen to drink some coffee to wake her up fully. Returning to the map room, she sees that Starlight Glimmer's cutie mark is still there and the pony in question is walking through the doors with a smile on her face.
Discord watches the events through the day and night, laughing hard at the chaos that occurred, "Oh that Starlight really entertains me so well, though this time was far better than the others."
Meanwhile, inside the cave with the Tree of Harmony
The Tree of Harmony shimmers lightly as a tall, pure white Alicorn with a waving misty mane and tail and brilliant amber eyes emerges from the ground and approaches the tree. The tree settles and stops shimmering as the Alicorn caresses it lovingly with a hoof, "I know you are afraid my child, but fear not. I shall keep you and the elements safe, since I have started to learn what is happening over there. Those events have gotten my attention, with nothing serious requiring my aid, I shall journey there and take a look around planet Earth. After all, after Discord's sister collided with the super gigantic planet Eluune and lost her life. I was forced to choose a portion to hold my spirit or stay and completely perish, I shall return when the balance of harmony is threatened on Equus. I will protect the elements of harmony to my dying breath if my name is Equana. Goodbye for now, my child, I shall be back." She then opens a portal to Earth and starts to wander the planet, listening and gathering vast amounts of information.
December 7, 1941 - Just before sunrise, in the forest outside Honolulu
Deal wakes from his slumber, yawning and stretching before looking for his special somepony, "Where are you at Cautious? I have something I would like you to do."
She comes down out of the treetops and lands before him with a smile on her face, "Yes dear, what would that be?"
He pulls out the video camera and looks at her adoringly, "C-Could you please take this video camera and record what the Island looks like from way up above? The film is capable of recording four hours of video, so just have a little fun with it."
She nods and then smiles playfully, "Once you see what it is like up there, you will only envy us Pegasi more. Okay, I will be back in a little while, try to keep out of trouble." She takes the video camera, giving him a quick kiss before taking off into the air.
She spends a couple hours recording different views of the island from the air, finishing the two hour video with the sun rising from beyond the horizon and into the sky. With the camera still rolling, she spots several dots some distance from her in the sky. Curious, she turns the camera towards the dots and watches them approach.
Minutes pass by as she watches a plane fly towards a battleship and open fire as the other planes begin attacking the base, with some planes breaking off and flying further inland towards other bases. Small bursts erupt in the air around her, forcing her to take evasive actions while trying to hold the camera towards the action.
As adrenaline races through her system, somehow having avoided injury while being invisible, she circles the harbor as tears run down her face in rivers at the damage being dealt. She tries to hold the camera steady, starting to openly sob as she watches one of the ships explode and burn fiercely. She continues to capture the devastation around her with the camera until the planes leave the area, continuing on until the camera runs out of film and stops. She folds the camera up and carries it tightly, then races to look for her special somepony and race back to quickly compile a report and deliver it to the princesses.
Deal runs towards Cautious as she returns to the ground with tears streaming down his face, thankful that she is alive, "Thank Celestia you are alive! I was thinking I lost you in the attack, are you injured at all?!"
Cautious sets the camera down on the ground and throws her hooves around Smooth Deal, glad to see that he is also alive, "No you didn't lose me, but I thought I lost you. I am very happy that we are both still alive, though now we need to compile a report quickly and get it to the Princesses yesterday." She slowly starts to calm down after a few minutes of holding each other, separating herself from the much needed hug and passionately kisses Smooth on the lips.
He looks at her with a sorrowful look, "It would take too long for me to go with you, I wish to go with you but I want to remain here and do what I can to help out without being seen."
She understands and nods in acceptance, "I do want you by my side, but I understand how you feel in wanting to help the ones caught in this attack. Let's get this report written, then I will race back to New York to deliver the report."
In the throne room at Canterlot castle that night
Celestia is telling the pillars of Equestria about the latest events that have happened in the other world when the doors to the throne room are thrust open as Cautious Step with Team White gallops into the room with sadness on her face, "What is the matter, what has you looking so sad?"
All eyes turn to Cautious as she slowly comes to a stop before the princess, catching her breath before attempting to deliver her report. She then looks around the room, seeing others in the room that don't know about the other world yet. She then looks back to Celestia, "Is it safe here, Your Highness?"
Luna approaches the two and looks at Cautious, "Yes it is, my sister just informed them of what has been happening lately. Did something serious happen to make you race here?"
She nods her head and averts her eyes to Spike quickly, then back to Celestia and Luna. She then waits for them to get the hint.
Celestia sees Spike in the room and looks to Twilight, "Princess Twilight, do you think it would be okay to inform Spike on these difficult matters?"
Twilight looks to Spike, who looks around in confusion and scratching his head. She then looks back to Celestia and nods her head with a sigh, "I think that he is grown enough to finally know what else is going on on Earth, you may continue with him in the room Princess Celestia."
She nods and turns back to Cautious, "You may continue to deliver your teams' report."
The weary Pegasi looks around briefly, "I have a film that you need to see to believe, I need somepony to get a projector so I can load a film into it."
Luna watches as Pinkie pulls a projector out of her mane and begins to set it up, shaking her head in brief amusement, "Can you please tell us what is going on? You are beginning to make me nervous and think that it is something very bad. Wait a moment...don't tell me..."
Cautious looks to Luna and nods her head with a sigh, "This morning at 7:45 a.m, planes belonging to Imperial Japan, attacked Pearl Harbor and did a lot of damage. From what I saw, I think a lot of lives were lost this day."
Shocked and confused faces watch Celestia as a few tears make their way down her face as she looks over to Pinkie, "Is the projector ready yet? We must know how badly this will affect the United States."
She looks at Celestia and sighs saying, "From what we have gathered, there was no prior warning to the attack or was there a declaration of war announced."
Luna gasps at hearing that, causing her jaw to drop open for a moment, "Oh that is not good news at all, the whole nation will hear of this and will harbor anger and resentment towards the Japanese."
Rockhoof looks at the pony that spoke, "War is never a good thing, it takes determination, courage, and strength to not become involved in it."
Cautious looks to Luna and sighs, "There is some good news though, there were a handful of ships not at the harbor. As grim as it may be, there is still a fleet."
Somnambula looks at the mare hopefully, "If this nation called Japan can put in the effort to make amends for this attack, perhaps a friendship can come from it?"
She looks at her sorrowfully and shakes her head, "Unfortunately, with the massive amount of damage dealt to the base on the island... There will be no chance for peace after today."
Pinkie finishes setting the table and projector and screen up and looks to Cautious with a sad look on her face, "It is ready for the film now."
She makes her way to the projector and loads the film into it from the video camera, "Do forgive the unsteadiness during the recording, it is extremely difficult to dodge midair explosions happening all around you while trying to record something with projectiles whistling past you in less than a blink of an eye. You will never know what it feels like to be in the situation where at any second, you could die a gruesome death, be blown to pieces by a projectile or by one of those planes hitting you because you can't react in time. I am thankful that the only injuries I have suffered are a few damaged feathers, a singed mane, and a few minor shrapnel cuts. Close the curtains and soundproof the room, let me show you what their war is like..."
Flash Magnus looks to the Pegasi and smiles, "That was definitely very brave of you to push past your fear and face such grim odds of survival, fear can be very difficult to get past."
She looks to the group one time and shakes her head, "Compared to the battles that Equestria has had, what I experienced over there dwarfs it. You do not understand real fear unless you experience what the humans at Pearl Harbor did when the attack began, maybe after watching this film, you all will get a new understanding of what we will be facing if their war ever comes here." She watches as the curtains are drawn shut by Celestia and Luna and starts the film.
As the film starts to play, Mistmane watches the sun rise above the horizon, "For a world that does not control the weather, the seasons, or the sun and moon, that is a beautiful sunrise."
Cautious watches the film as the attack begins, naming off the ships on battleship row and their locations, "This one here is the battleship USS Arizona, the ship next to her is the USS Vestal and narrowly escapes sinking." As the film continues on, she watches and sheds a few tears at remembering how badly the Arizona was burning, "This one here that is moving is the USS Nevada, and was the only one to move from her spot." She hears a few ponies crying at how much damage is being done to the ships, with all eight battleships being disabled and one damaged beyond repair.
When the film ends, there isn't a single dry eye in the room. Even Star Swirl sheds tears at seeing one ship explode and become engulfed in flames and smoke, with something causing the water to catch fire. Feeling sympathy for those on the ships trying to get to safety, unable to do so because of the burning water around the ship, "Oh those poor, poor sailors..."
Cautious then looks to Celestia and then begins the rest of her report by handing her an envelope, "Smooth Deal stayed behind to do what he could to assist them without being seen, I should be heading back after a good meal."
Celestia hangs her head in sorrow at the severity of the damage dealt, "I...I have never seen such terrible destruction such as that. What does everypony think, Should we make our presence known to Earth and try to help bring peace between the nations?"
The first to speak up is Star Swirl as he sighs and looks at Celestia, "My thoughts about this after seeing the film are that we need to know more about their military history, we know virtually nothing besides the events that are happening and those teams have not yet gathered any information about the nation's histories. I think that we should stay hidden until we understand more about these humans, and let them deal with the issues while we catch up on their history so we can understand how they think. After we accomplish that, we will be able to help them."
After his vote, Mage Meadowbrook slows her crying, "With how much pain this war is causing the humans on earth, I think we should make first contact and help them find peace."
Somnambula looks to Mage Meadowbrook briefly before looking at Celestia, "My thoughts are with Mage Meadowbrook, we should do what we can to help them stop the suffering this war is causing."
Rockhoof listens to their opinions and sighs, "I think that we should stay hidden, their savagery could get us involved in their war."
Flash Magnus thinks for a moment before looking to Celestia, "I also think that we should remain hidden, the casualties would be too high on our side due to their advanced weapons."
Mistmane looks to Celestia, "My thoughts are that we should help them find peace, so they can preserve the beauty that is in their world."
Twilight sighs and looks to Celestia and Luna, "My thoughts are divided, I can understand that we should do what we can to help them out. On the other hoof, I also understand that by helping them, we put ourselves in danger of being caught up in their war."
Applejack looks around the room, then to Celestia, "Ah think that if we help 'em, we'll get caught up in their war. Our world, along with those of us that live in it, will suffer like theirs are right now."
Rarity looks at Celestia, "My thoughts are that we should learn more about their world, darling. That way we can improve ourselves and help them find peace in a safer manner."
Fluttershy peeks at Celestia with one eye, "I think that we should show them how kind we are and help them make peace and become friends with each other."
Pinkie Pie smiles at Celestia, "I think we should help them find peace so we can plan a peace party and help them become friends with each other."
Rainbow looks at the others and turns her eyes to Celestia, "I would rather stay hidden because we don't really have anything to be even with their forces. Equestria does have the Elements of Harmony but can only be used against one opponent at a time. Even then, they can only banish them, restore them, or turn them to stone. Flight is in our favor, but humans can fly as well, though they don't have wings. Magic is in our favor as well, but even it has limits."
Stygian sighs and looks to Celestia, "I understand that many of you want to help stop their war, but with how dangerous their technology is, we don't have much of a chance should they turn their weapons on us from some honest misunderstanding. This attack was done by just one type of machine using multiple ranged weaponry, we do not know what the capabilities of their machines and weapons are. We simply must have that knowledge before making an appearance, we are not their equals in warfare. We may as well be using sticks and stones, while they have stronger weapons equal to a cannon and a large battleax."
Sunburst sighs as well, shaking his head and looking sorrowfully at Princess Celestia, "I share Stygian's, and Star Swirl the Bearded's opinions on the matter, we are sorely lacking in knowledge. We have plenty of heart and courage, but the risks are too great for our world."
Starlight looks at her friend Sunburst and looks to Celestia with a sad smile, "I am sorry Princess Celestia, but as much as I want to help stop the war...the risk of losing our world to their violence is just too great a chance to take."
Spike looks at everyone as they turn their eyes to him, waiting to hear his opinion about this. He nervously gulps and clears his throat, "Umm...I think that this second world war thing is super scary, we need to consider how much we would lose if something were to go wrong during negotiations. What if they all blamed us and began attacking us together? This is too great a decision for just us to decide without the others that share our world with us."
Luna smiles at Spike and nods her head, "You are very right about that Spike. Sister, let's gather the other races' representatives as well. I know just who might be able to gather them for this summit...Discord, please show yourself. I have an urgent task for you."
Discord pops out of Luna's mane and stands beside her, "You rang? What is the task, Princess Luna?"
She looks at Discord and sighs, "I need you to go get a few representatives for a summit regarding a decision that will affect all of Equis. Please bring Cadance, Dragon Lord Ember, Thorax, Prince Rutherford, Chief Thunderhooves, and Seabreeze to this room. Inform them that their opinion is needed on a very important matter, but be quiet when you go get Seabreeze as he is a Breezie and is very small."
Discord stands up straight and salutes the princess with a propeller beanie appearing on his head, spinning the blade with a finger, "At once Your Majesty. Up, up and away!" He flies into the ceiling and passes through it, on his way to gather the representatives for the summit.
On Earth at Dusk, at Pearl Harbor
Smooth Deal is watching teams working to get to the sailors still trapped inside the ships, using his hooves to tap on the metal to get their attention when he hears a distant noise entering the harbor. He swivels his head around and looks to see the carrier Enterprise creeping into the harbor with many sailors standing on her deck, passing a distance away from the burning USS Arizona. With a stern look on his face, he looks at all the damage as he starts to feel anger rise within him, "I will not let this go without retribution... They will be made accountable."
Equana watches the human's efforts to save the lives of the sailors trapped within the ships, tears running down her face as she looks upon the USS Arizona. With a heavy sigh, she makes her way out onto the water towards the devastated ship. She stops near the still-smoking hull and lowers her head in reverence to the ship, "You and your crew have been dealt a cruel fate Arizona, damaged beyond repair and shall never roam the seas again. What if you were given a second chance, would you wish to perform your duty once more?"
A faint metallic groan and a creak are made by the burning hull of Arizona, giving her an answer while the bodies of her sailors are sealed inside.
She tilts her head further until some of her tears run down her horn and form a single, large teardrop that falls off the tip and into the water below, "Your response has been heard, may your spirit rise again and come with me. Be sure you bring your crew unfortunately trapped within you, they will be required for you have some training to do if you want to learn to control your new abilities."
Smooth Deal looks around the harbor, feeling a strange presence. From the corner of his eye, he thinks he sees a tall, pure white alicorn with a clear, misty mane standing near the Arizona's hull. Blinking his eyes again, he doesn't see them and shrugs his shoulders until he sees the wreckage of the ship start to glow a faint bluish gray. He rubs a foreleg against his eyes and looks again as the glow intensifies in brightness, his jaw drops open as he sees a ghostly shadow rise up from the ships resting place to float on the surface.
Equana looks at the hidden unicorn, smiling at them before turning her attention to the spirit starting to make its way past the Enterprise and towards the entrance to the bay, "Let's go, there is much to do and learn."
In Equestria an hour later, at the Summit in the throne room at Canterlot
Seabreeze sits in the hands of Discord, an angry scowl on is face as he floats toward Princess Celestia, "What do you think you are doing?! We have pollen to collect and a limited window to get it back home safely!"
Celestia nods and sighs, "My apologies but we have gathered every pony and creature we know that deserves to know what is going on in order to make an informed decision on something that may affect our whole world. There are two films we need to show you, as well as things to tell you before watching the films."
Seabreeze sighs in frustration, then returns to Discord's hands in annoyance, "Fine, but this better not take forever! Pollen does not collect itself you know!"
The new arrivals all listen to the information that was gathered, shocked at hearing how violent and cruel some of the events are. They watch as the first film is loaded and shows the German army occupying Paris and marching down the main street, making a few beings raise their eyebrows in curiosity. They watch the second film and many of them shed tears at watching the ships burn, leaving the room silent as they consider what their opinions are, about helping them find peace and making first contact with them.
Seabreeze looks to Celestia and shakes his head, "You want us to make first contact and help bring them peace?! Have you lost your mind, Princess Celestia! Our world is dangerous enough without those kinds of weapons coming here, my answer is NO!"
Celestia listens to each of their thoughts on the matter and looks at the group, "I know many of you are worried for our world, and we do need to know much more about their world. I do believe that we should do what we can to help them, because if we succeed and help them find peace, they may help us catch up in technology. Let us make this big decision together. With all of this information laid out before you all, please cast your votes yes or no in favor of making first contact and assisting the nations however we can to find peace." She looks to her former student, "Princess Twilight, please write down the names and their votes. We will tally them after everyone in the room has voted."
Twilight pulls out a large piece of paper and begins to write down names on the list, "Okay, I am ready for your votes. One at a time, please call out your name and how you are voting. I will then write it down on the list and count and read them aloud."
Chief Thunderhooves clears his throat and starts the vote, "Chief Thunderhooves votes Yes." He then looks around and waits for the next one to speak up.
She pays close attention to each one, writing them down one at a time as they are called out. Having to add a couple of names to the list due to accidentally forgetting they were there, she finishes the votes with Celestia being the last to cast her vote. Counting them up and writing the numbers down, she looks around the room and raises her voice, "After tallying the results, I have 12 votes saying yes and 12 votes saying no, the vote is tied."
Celestia looks around the room and counts everyone in the room, counting 25 beings in the room including herself. She then turns her attention to her student, "Twilight, did everypony cast their vote?"
Twilight looks at the list, "I think so...let me double check." She then counts the names and looks around the room to see the corresponding creature the name belongs to, "Yes they all did Princess Celestia, what went wrong?"
She smiles at her, "Did YOU vote, Twilight?"
The purple alicorn looks at the list and chuckles in embarrassment, "Oops, silly me. I am still unsure which choice I am going to make."
Luna looks at the young princess of friendship and smiles, "Then it is up to you to make your choice and break the tie, do we go and help them...or do we stay hidden and gather more knowledge?"
Twilight paces back and forth in between the two groups, thinking of what she feels would be best for their world. With a sigh, she stops pacing and looks at Princess Celestia, "I do think that we should do what we can to help them, but at the same time I also feel that there is a great deal of risk if we assist them unprepared." Making her decision, she sighs and lifts her head, "I vote we stay hidden for now and gather the knowledge we require and send better spies than the ones over there currently, though we will keep the spies we have there to keep track of the war. The kind of knowledge we need is about their technology, weapons, machines, and what else they have available to them. We also need to know about their history, and what are their nation's histories with warfare?"
Celestia sighs and nods her head, "The choice has been made, and we shall remain hidden and find a better way to gather the knowledge we seek. Thank you for your time, you may choose to stay if you wish and offer ideas about how we will gather knowledge."
She looks to Celestia, "I might have an idea, but it would be tricky. Do you still want to hear it?"
They all look at Twilight curiously as the solar princess raises an eyebrow, "Please share your idea, how is it tricky?"
Twilight swallows her doubt and stands straight, "Well it hinges on if they would be willing to use their skills for the benefit of our world." She then looks at Thorax and bows respectfully to him, "Thorax, king of the Changelings. Would it be too much to send a few changelings to Earth and borrow historical books regarding anything related to the various nations' histories or their histories of warfare?"
Thorax sighs as he looks around to see all eyes turn to him with mouths agape at what Twilight is suggesting, then looks back at her, "You wish to send several infiltrators over there to borrow books that are relevant to the knowledge we require?"
She gulps and looks back at him nervously, "Y-Yes I am Your Highness because after we borrow those books and copy them, we will give them back to the buildings they were taken from. What do you think of my proposal, Your Highness?"
He taps his hoof on the ground a moment, concentrating on the floor below it. Coming to a decision, he looks back up to Twilight and smiles, "I think it is a brilliant idea, though a bit risky. It will give the infiltrators the opportunity to use and improve their skills for the good of our world, how many are you thinking of sending over there?"
Twilight chuckles nervously, "I am thinking around a thousand infiltrators, that way we can gather the required information within a reasonable amount of time."
Thorax stares at Twilight with his jaw hanging open and eyes wide open, then recovers and blinks twice, "One thousand infiltrators, are you crazy or asking to start a war?!"
She sighs and looks at him sorrowfully, "I know it is an awful lot to send over there, but with how large these lands are and how advanced the Human races are, we need to send that many. I am not trying to start a war with them, we are in desperate need to know about their history, their history with war, and what kind of technology is available to them."
He sighs and shakes his head, "I will speak to the hive and find out which ones would wish to go on this task, I will require further knowledge about the locations they will be going to and the parameters to follow. I will be going now, Discord, can you please return me to the hive?"
Discord pops up near him and smiles, "Of course I will, I had to get Seabreeze back to the others so they can finish gathering the pollen." He lays a paw on the changeling's neck and appears at the hive and waves goodbye to Thorax, "Ta ta for now, my friend." He then snaps his fingers and reappears in the throne room of Canterlot to return the others to their homes as well.
Celestia looks to Cautious Step and sighs, "Thank you for delivering this report, please rest and get a good meal before you return."
Cautious looks back at her and sighs regretfully, "I wish I could rest, but with this sudden attack on Pearl, I must do what I can to assist the humans that are trapped in those ships. However, I will have a meal and take one with me to him when I head back." She then bows to her, turns around, and makes her way to the kitchens.
Twilight then sighs and hangs her head, "Do you know how many are trapped on those ships?"
She stops and then looks back over her shoulder, "If I had to guess, I would estimate around ten thousand humans more or less. The Arizona had about 1,200 soldiers on board when she sank, which only a few escaped with their lives." She then continues on her way to the kitchens.
The Princess of Friendship's eyes well up with tears at hearing the number of humans trapped in the ships, she looks up and around the room to see a few others crying.
Cautious watches as a unicorn races past her down the hall and into the throne room thinking, 'What else has happened?' She returns to the doors to the throne room and stays out of view, activating her invisibility so she can listen to what the pony has to say, stepping back into the room as a guard closes the door behind her.
Dork Fish races towards the Princess and sees several others in the room, then skids to a stop in front of Princess Celestia. He looks warily around the room and cocks his head, lowering his voice, "Is it safe Princess?"
Celestia sighs and nods her head, "Yes, it is safe. Deliver your report from Germany..."
He breathes in relief and then clears his throat, "Your Majesty, we apologize for not reporting back for some time. There are soldiers stationed outside the portal, so we had to put them asleep in order to make our report. Here is what we have learned lately since our last report." He pulls out a list and starts to read off what has happened in the past few months, "In February, Erwin Rommel arrived in Tripoli, Libya. Near the end of the month, Germany started bombing the city of Swansea in South Wales. In April, Germany invaded Yugoslavia during the middle of the month, they arrived in Belgrade and then Athens at the end of the month. In mid-May, the Germans launched an airborne invasion of Crete. Four days later, The German battleship Bismarck sank the Battlecruiser HMS Hood, and all but three crew members survived. Three days after sinking the Hood, the British sank the Bismarck, with just over a hundred of her crew out of 2,200 surviving. In June, the Germans invaded the Soviet Union. In July, the Germans initiated mass killings of Polish scientists and writers in the captured Polish city of Lwów. At the very end of May, Hitler tasked Hermann Göring with developing a plan for the Final Solution to the Jewish question. In August, Hitler put an end to the Action T4 program which called for the mentally ill and handicapped to be killed. In September, the Germans led a siege against Leningrad, the Soviet Union's second-largest city. At the end of the month, German troops executed 33,771 Jews of the capital city Kiev in the Ukraine with help from police and collaborators at a ravine called Babi Yar which became known as the Babi Yar massacre. In October, the Germans started an all-out offensive against Moscow. In November, just outside of Moscow, the temperature dropped to -12 Celsius and the Soviets sent Ski Troops to fight against the German forces. By the end of November, the German troops got as close to Moscow as they could as the freezing troops were under attack by the Soviets. Finally, December has the Germans being slowly driven back towards Germany. That is the last bit of information we have for you, Your Majesty. We are starting to get closer to finding out where they have taken the pony they captured, we think that they are in Berlin. If that is all Your Majesty, I should be getting back before the spell wears off and they wake up."
Luna stares on in shock as Celestia dismisses the pony and takes the information from them, "It's...it's official then..."
Celestia watches Dork Fish leave before turning to Luna with concern, "What is official Luna?"
She continues to stare into space, "The entire world of Earth is at war, so much death... so much misery... Germany and Hitler are both evil..." She then says no more as she faints and falls to the floor, overwhelmed by all of the tragic events happening.
Rarity gasps as she sees Princess Luna fall to the floor, hearing a thud next to her, and sees that Fluttershy had also fainted beside her, "FLUTTERSHY! ARE YOU ALRIGHT DARLING!?"
Celestia sighs and then looks at both Luna and Fluttershy, "Let's take them to my room, this news will take some time for them to recover from."
Cautious Step quickly makes her way back towards the kitchen for some food before the other team member notices her as her mind tries to make sense of things, "I just hope that this world war doesn't come to Equestria..."
Dork Fish hurries back towards the portal room when he senses a moderate drain of magic in the area close to the door where his portal is, "The open portal must be creating this pull when it is open, portals can't drain magic when they are closed. Therefore, there's no reason to worry about it, but I better hurry back to my partner because we have to keep looking for that pony." He then goes through the repaired door and then the portal to hear his partner, 'Psst, over here.'
She returns from the kitchen to see a pony walk through the door across from the one she uses, piquing her curiosity. She then makes her way to the door, then waits for a few moments before opening it silently and sees the rear of a pony pass through it. She decides to stay inside the room for the portal to close, ensuring that it closes.
Cautious waits for an hour until the door disappears when she senses a moderate drain in the area as she exits the room, heading back to her portal curious as to why there is a drain of magic in the area, "I will have to make note of this occurrence for my next report, I must return to Smooth and discuss our next plan of action for gathering intel." She then activates the portal and walks through it, then waits on the other side as she notices a storm starting to brew, with the area having a higher magic content when there should be none. Unable to do anything about it, she just shakes her head and continues waiting, "I wonder who is responsible for this snafu, whoever it is...I'm glad it's not my fault."
The Next Day, in the throne room at Canterlot
It is just past 11:30 a.m. when Celestia is just getting out of the throne for lunch as the last petitioner exits the room when she suddenly hears the radio crackle to life and a female voice speaking, "Please stand by for an important announcement from the President of the United States of America at 12:30 p.m." Causing her to gasp and run out of the room to go get her sister Luna to hear it with her, then pulls out a letter and writes an urgent summons to Twilight. Not taking the time to explain it clearly she simply writes, 'Important announcement from the President of the United States, COME IMMEDIATELY!' and sends it off in a flash.
Luna's Dream
Luna is walking through the eerily quiet and devastated town of Ponyville, seeing windows boarded up, scrapes and dents in the walls of a few buildings left standing when she hears a barely audible 'psst' come from somewhere. Curious, she investigates the noise and heads towards the schoolhouse, when she is suddenly pulled inside Sugar Cube Corner by a pony who quiets her by putting a hoof over her mouth and kicking the door shut. She looks around the room and sees Pinkie Pie with a straight mane cut short standing in the corner, her body having a few bad burns and scars on it. Applejack is in the corner with different scars from the burns that Pinkie has, her signature hat is gone along with her mane and tail being buzzed off. Rainbow is sitting on the edge of one table near Applejack with no wings on her back and her mane is buzzed short as well, holding some sort of slim dagger in a hoof before flipping it end over end twice and chucking it at the wall. Luna watches it land dead center in a black swastika atop a white circle on a red background of a recruitment poster with a pony standing beside a proud German soldier saluting the same way wearing black hoofshoes with a swastika symbol in the center of the shoe.
The mysterious voice then sighs, "Calm down, we will not hurt you despite the rumors they spread" She watches from a dark corner as Rainbow looks at Luna with contempt.
She hops off the table and approaches the princess angrily, "You have some balls coming here to our last sanctuary. Where the hell were you when we needed your leadership the most?! You fucking vanished after your sister died at the siege of Canterlot, Twilight saw that and went insane, then she was taken by the Nazis. Where the fuck were you all this time when we were suffering, HUH!?!"
The mystery pony then glares at Rainbow from her dark place with only a few rays of dim light falling on her and shoves her back with her magic, not happy to see the missing Alicorn, "Back the fuck off Rainbow, Luna is a sheltered pony that thinks friendship and kindness can defeat anything."
Rainbow looks at her and then laughs cruelly, "Yeah right, if friendship and kindness can defeat anything, Rarity and Fluttershy or as we call her, 'Mini Hitler' would still be our friends. They would not be out there, trying to mercilessly hunt us down right now."
Luna cocks her head in confusion, "What happened to make them betray you?"
The room falls silent as Pinkie looks at Luna with a sad face, "When the nazis invaded our world, they laid siege to Canterlot two months after surrounding the Crystal Empire and forcing them to surrender. Rarity was visiting her boutique in the city with her sister about a new summer line of dresses when the first shots were heard in the city, creating mass panic as ponies tried to find safety. Rarity teleported her sister and everyone inside the shop with her to the castle where she thought they would be safe. They remained there for a few hours until German soldiers stormed the castle, but were driven back by Celestia when one of their tanks we later learned was a Panzer 4 stayed put and fought against her. The first shot was deflected by her magic but was nearly struck when a second one appeared and took her by surprise when it fired at her. She held her own for a few minutes and managed to melt them both as she was forced to become Daybreaker, she thought she had won but then two more Panzer 4's appeared...with an even larger tank following just behind them called a Maus. Finding herself on the defensive quickly, she destroyed one of the Panzer 4's when the Maus fired at her. The shell shattered her barrier and exploded right in front of her. Rarity watched in horror as the princess's body was splattered all over the ponies cowering behind her for protection. When yet another large tank appeared called a Tiger and passed by the other three surviving tanks, they called for their surrender. Frozen with fear, they couldn't answer when one pony started to cackle madly. As the Germans took that as their answer, they opened fire on them all and killed nearly all of them with the exception of Twilight, Rarity, Sweetie Belle, and I. After the soldiers took them as prisoners, they cut off Rarity and Sweetie Belle's horns and put them in a dark prison cell with no light and moldy bread to eat and stale water to drink. That is only the beginning of the misery visited upon them when Rarity was forced to watch them torture her younger sister for weeks until one day they skinned her alive and butchered her body for food to supply their troops. Nearly driven insane after watching all that, she was repeatedly raped and eventually gave birth to a young colt with a black coat, blonde hair, and brown eyes when she was finally pushed over the edge when Adolf Hitler came to inspect the foal. He scowled in disgust at it and pulled out his pistol and shot it in front of her eyes and told them to dispose of it and try again."
She trembles and shudders after hearing that as her eyes start to shrink, "H-How awful...w-what happened to Fluttershy?"
The wingless pegasus then crosses her arms, "I'll tell you the short version of what happened to 'Mini Hitler'. Two weeks after Canterlot was taken, Fluttershy, the Wonderbolts, and I were trying to help ponies find safety when the fucking Germans started shelling the city. The royal guards stationed here to protect the city tried to defend it when bombers attacked the station and blew up the train loaded with ponies trying to get to safety, with nowhere left to go as the soldiers surrounded the town while half of it on fire or destroyed, the few of us that were left tried to use our speed and abilities to control the weather to drive the soldiers back. We managed to take out a few of their tanks before the Luftwaffe wiped out the Wonderbolt team. I saw soldiers set fire to the schoolhouse where we put many families and their children, so Fluttershy and I went to go help stop them and put the fire out. We managed to take out the soldiers and started to put the fire out, after it was out we went to remove the debris to open the doors when it collapsed in on itself and killed everyone inside as the fire started to burn again. I continued to help Fluttershy try to put the fire out, taking us a half hour before it finally went out completely when she rushed to the front to move away the debris to try to save those trapped inside. She managed to open up the doors when a foal stumbled clumsily out and collapsed, as she caught the foal, the hide underneath the coat slid off the blackened body in pieces. Fluttershy wailed at what had happened and charged towards the soldiers, taking their lives in her rage at the death of the families trapped in the school. I followed after her closely and we managed to do a fair amount of damage to their forces before a wave of fire passed just over my head and sent me to the ground screaming in pain as my wings burned. I blacked out for a few moments and woke up to hear Fluttershy sobbing uncontrollably, I turned my head to look at her and saw that her wings were cut off and that there were a few soldiers sitting around a large room eating some kind of meat. I looked away and saw a pile of skin belonging to various creatures in the Everfree Forest and around Ponyville, I saw a skin belonging to a white rabbit and realized what had happened...they had captured and probably tortured Fluttershy's animal friends, and were eating them before her very eyes. After that, they raped both of us but only Fluttershy got pregnant. After she gave birth to a white foal with blonde hair and blue eyes, fucking Adolf Hitler smiled and took the foal from her. Fluttershy begged and pleaded to remain with her foal, swearing to do whatever they asked her to do if they granted her request." She then looks at the poster and says, "You see the pony in the recruitment poster, take a closer look."
Luna looks at the poster a little closer and notices that the pony in the poster is butter yellow, with a light pink cropped mane and tail with moderate opal eyes and gasps in disbelief, "N-No...n-no way...th-that cannot be her!"
Rainbow nods her head and looks at the disgraced princess, "It is her, Mini Hitler aka Fluttershy."
She continues to stare at the poster for several seconds in shock, then turns her head to look at the pony, "I can't believe what is happening...could you come into the light so that I can see you and get your name?"
The pony then thinks about it for a moment, "Hmm..." before getting off the chair and slowly walking towards her, "I suppose I should if you don't recognize my voice by now..."
Luna watches the new pony make their appearance, seeing a pony similar to either Twilight or Starlight, "Twilight...is...is that...you, or are you Starlight?"
The mystery pony looks at her with a scowl and yells, "Don't you dare say that name, you don't have the right to utter it after what the Nazi scientists and doctors did to both of us!"
She looks at the pony curiously, trying to understand what she means, "What did they do the both of you?? I don't understand what you are trying to say."
The pony then sighs in aggravation, "Right...you have been gone for 10 years so you wouldn't know... Allow me to show you...what...I...mean..." She then steps into the moonlight to show herself, "My name is Starlight Glimmer, we met after my friends and I freed the old geezer pillars of Equestria."
Luna looks on in horror at what she sees before her, a body mostly matching Starlight Glimmer's coat but having eyes of two different colors with a scar running around her forehead down to her cheek and then around the back of her head over her neck. Her back also has a strange addition that doesn't seem natural, seeing some feather tips in the light. Not sure if she is seeing things or not, she takes a closer look and spots some well hidden scars and gasps saying, "What have they done to you, Starlight?"
Starlight looks at her with a cruel grin, "Well, after we tried to defend the Tree of Harmony, which is dust now, the Nazis captured me and took me prisoner, I was in the same place they took Twilight. I was happy at finding my mentor, but she was a complete basket case and helped them out with experiments, their equations, and their calculations. After they got what they wanted out of her, they put us both in a room and performed an experimental surgery on me. They took one of her eyes, and both of her wings, and transplanted them both into my body. With her last breath, she said At least we will be together forever."
Luna then starts to scream bloody murder as she finds herself atop a hill overlooking Equestria as numerous shadows belonging to strange ships as they begin firing at each other in the distance, catching the town of Ponyville in the crossfire and turning it into a field full of gore and craters. She continues screaming as she sees the sun and moon both hang in the sky, symbolizing that the balance is broken. Not noticing a being of pure white as it walks towards her through the destroyed world around her until the bright light catches her attention, forcing her to stop screaming. She tries to identify the creature within the bright light, squinting her eyes to try to make out any detail, "S-Sister...I-Is that you?!"
The spirit continues to approach her and chuckles lightheartedly, continuing to stride across the peaceful world-turned battleground. Ignoring the devastation all around her, she makes her way to Luna and sighs, "No, I am not your sister. Who I am is not important right now, what is important is that you know that this is only a nightmare." She plucks a wisp of smoke from the ground and squints her eyes at it, "Tantabus, begone you miserable pest." then squashes it with her magic and incinerates it before turning her eyes back to Luna, "I will help out whenever or wherever I am needed most, it is crucial that nothing is done that can anger either nation. Learn what you can of that world, but if you make the wrong choice...this may become a possible reality. Heed my warning well Luna, and help guide both worlds through rough times indirectly and unknown." She then starts to walk away with a smile on her face at having saved the sanity of the young Alicorn, sighing while thinking, 'Ahh, it must be nice to be so young...'
She cocks her head and looks at the strange Alicorn, "Wait!!! Who are you... What is your name?" She sighs as the creature vanishes from sight while laughing instead of answering her question. She is then woken from her dream roughly by somepony shaking her awake. She looks at her fearfully for a brief moment, before blinking a couple of times and seeing that the pony is her sister then quickly grabs her for a hug, "Cece, what is the matter?"
Celestia hugs her sister back, then feels her entire body shaking, "It can wait until I know that you are okay. What causes you to shake this badly Lulu?"
Luna trembles and closes her eyes as a few tears escape her eyes, "Oh it was so horrible, let me tell you what happened..." then releases her grip on her sister and starts telling her about what she saw and heard in the dream.
She then gasps after hearing that as her eyes are wide with fear for a moment before she regains control of herself and starts to worry instead, "That must have been horrifying for you to experience Lulu, I think that somepony is looking after us all but we will heed their warning and be cautious with our interactions to protect the future of our world." She then looks up for a moment before looking back at her sister worriedly, "Are you willing to get up? there is an important announcement coming over the radio from the President of the United States at 12:30 p.m. I just wanted to hear it with you by my side sister, I fear what we will hear from their lips."
Luna forces herself to stop shaking and rises from bed, nodding, "Alright, let's go listen to what they will be saying about the attack yesterday." She then hurries after her sister down the halls at a fast canter.
Twilight stands in the throne room with the other elements wondering where the princesses are at, "Umm...Princess Celestia, are you here?" when she hears the doors open violently and crash against the walls, causing her to gasp in surprise and look at who was entering the room. Sighing in relief at seeing Princess Celestia and Luna hastily entering the room, slamming the doors behind them, "Oh Princess Celestia and Luna, you both startled me. Is there something the matter that you have called us all here so urgently?"
She looks to Twilight quickly, "What time is it Twilight?" continuing on her path to the throne.
The young Alicorn cocks her head curiously, "It is currently 12:20 p.m. Princess Celestia, what is going on?" and follows Celestia down the aisle hoping for an answer.
Celestia looks behind her at Twilight then sighs and stops to face her, "This morning, I was about to go get lunch when I heard that there was going to be an important announcement made by the President of the United States of America at 12:30 p.m. TODAY, IN AN HOUR."
They all gasp and follow Celestia and Luna as they sit behind the throne, casting a spell to seal the doors shut and silence the room as Discord appears next to Fluttershy. They take their places around the back of the throne, anxiously waiting to hear the announcement when the radio crackles to life saying, 'Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States. I now present to you Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the U.S.A. Please quiet down and give your full attention to this national message.'
The whole room is dead silent as Luna turns up the volume so everypony can clearly hear them as she keeps quiet and listens to the broadcast with bated breath.
After hearing the national anthem play, Twilight feels a bit of pride well up within herself and wonders what the words are to it, "I wonder what that song is called..."
Discord looks on into space and answers her question, "The name of their national anthem is 'The Star-Spangled Banner' and the words to it are as follows. Oh, say can you see by the dawns early light what we so proudly hailed at the twilight's last gleaming? Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight, o'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep, where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes, what is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep, as it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses? Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam, in full glory reflected now shines in the stream: 'tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave! And where is that band who so vauntingly swore that the havoc of war and battle's confusion, a home and country should leave us no more! Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution. No refuge could save the hireling and slave from the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave: And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave! Oh! Thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand between their loved home and the war's desolation! Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land praise the power that hath made and preserved us a nation. Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, and this be our motto: 'In God is our trust.' And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!"
Luna gasps at hearing the lyrics to the anthem, "From how it is worded, it sounds like they fought for their freedom against some tyrant and won it. How do you know those lyrics Discord?"
He looks at her and sighs, "Well a few centuries ago before I was reformed, I was looking around for different events to find some sort of chaos that I could harness the magic from it and break free from that stone prison that Celestia and Luna turned me into the first time when I found a battle going on at some sort of a military installation. I watched it for a little while and learned those lyrics were written by Francis Scott Key as a poem originally, however, I found all the death disappointing and was bored to tears after the war finished and looked around elsewhere for more chaos to watch and gather. You all should know that I don't find death amusing, I only find amusement from a pony that can live through misery. Though that was long ago and I now find amusement in the misfortune that befalls your subjects."
Twilight then looks at him with wide eyes and asks, "Why didn't you look further into their world and learn what you could about it?!"
Discord blinks and then looks at her with a straight face saying, "I didn't look into it further for several reasons. One, I only had so much magic at my disposal because the elements stripped me of most my magic. Two, that world had absolutely no magic potential...at all. Lastly, that world carried a heavy feeling of death and doom for those that inhabit it, I don't know why but that world attracts misfortune and darkness that I did not like but Sombra might think it a paradise. Therefore I wanted nothing to involve myself with that world, and still don't so never ask me to go there...please."
Applejack cocks her head curiously as she catches a hint of a lie in there somewhere and asks suspiciously, "What is it about that world that you don't like, Discord? You aren't telling us something, so what is it really?"
He sighs and crosses his arms in annoyance saying, "I should have known that you and your connection with the Element of Honesty would let you detect that... Fine...I'll tell you why I left that world alone. It's because my sister Cosmos created that particular solar system, and she tried to kill me and trap me inside that planet like she did with so many others, however, I managed to get lucky and turned her into that solar system's sun. It took me eons to get my magic back after doing that, so I wandered the galaxies and explored the worlds looking for any that had intelligent life, not finding a whole lot until I found a gold mine of entertainment in this world. So I called it home, yada-yada, and you know how the rest of my story goes pretty much."
