Chapter 10

Hard to believe its been 10 chapters already. Merry Christmas everypony, and don't worry, I'll release the sequel before January!

The hot and dry sun blazed down upon the desert, searing the rocks a strange red color. Very few things could survive this heat, and the ones that did spent most of the day under rocks and in the ground. The stillness of the desert was broken only by the large herd of ponies trudging their way through it.

Derek wiped the sweat off his brow, and looked around. As far as he could see, vast and open desert plains filled his eyes. He grimaced at the sight, and took a swig of water from his canteen before lowering his eyes from the burning light of the sun to focus on the ground.

Beside him, Rainbow Dash walked along, her wings loosely folded on her back. She had long since given up on flying, as the air was too dry and hot, and flying required too much energy. For the first time in her life, Rainbow Dash was happy to be on the ground.

"You would think the princess could do something about the sun." Rainbow muttered.

Derek chuckled slightly, as he had been wondering the same thing himself. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had both departed to raise the rest of the Equestrian Army, leaving the Mane 6, plus Derek, in charge. From what Derek had heard before Celestia left, the dragon and griffon armies were both amassing near Canterlot, and would join the pony army once it was raised.

The monotonous march through the desert continued, and before anyone had realized it, the sun was graciously beginning to set, leaving the cold desert night in its wake.

Derek sat down upon the dirt ground, and allowed his body to fall against the earth. All around him, ponies were doing the same, their bodies sore and exhausted from the days journey. It would require at least one more days worth of walking before the herd left the desert behind and entered the plains, where they would meet Princess Celestia again.

"Howdy." Applejack said as she sat down beside Derek.

He greeted the cowpony with a simple nod, and continued to stare into the night sky. His eyes darted amongst the many stars, and began to form shapes and images with them, though he could tell that the constellations that had been on Earth were no where to be found in Luna's night.

"Dinner will be soon." Applejack said quietly.

"What are we having?"

"Apples."

"Should have expected as much." Derek laughed, sitting up so he was eye to eye with Applejack.

Applejack gave him a weird look. "An' just what the hay is that suppos'd tah mean?" she asked indignantly.

Derek raised his hands in mock defense, a smile on his face. "Nothing, nothing at all, oh farmer of apples."

Applejack playfully punched his shoulder, before diving out of the way as Rainbow Dash crash landed right where she had been sitting. The pegasus lay on the ground for a few moments, before hopping to her feet with a crazed smile on her face.

"Ahh, that felt good!" Rainbow said with a satisfied sigh, her eyes slightly unfocused.

"Hi Rainbow. What's up?" Derek asked, his head cocked at Rainbow in confusion.

"Hmm? Oh, right. Twilight's calling a meeting over by that tree over there. Be there in five." Without another word, Rainbow Dash took off into the night sky to round up the rest of the group.

Derek shrugged, before standing up and stretching his arms out.

"Hey Applejack, you head on over, I'm going to get in a quick fly first."

The earth pony nodded, before trotting in the direction of the tree as Derek launched himself into the air.

Five minutes later, Derek landed at the tree, now feeling much more relaxed from his flight. Twilight Sparkle leaned up against the tree, and waited until Derek was situated before starting.

"Alright, so I've just learned some very important news from the Princess." Twilight paused for a second. "She's right behind you."

As if on cue, everyone turned around, and indeed, there stood Princess Celestia, who smiled at the group.

"Twilight, I never thought you were one for being dramatic!"

Twilight giggled slightly, before taking a seat next to Pinkie Pie as Celestia walked out in front of the group.

"Now, the reason I'm here is to one, see how all of you are doing, and two, to inform you of some news that we have learned in the past couple of hours. As I can tell you all are doing rather well considering the circumstances, on to the second item."

"I sent out a scouting group right as I arrived in Canterlot today, and they returned a few moments before I departed for here. Based on their reports, the army that was marching towards Appaloosa was around 4,000 strong. They also confirmed the existence of three large dimensional portals on the southern border of Equestria. These portals are what allow the gargoyles to enter this world."

Rainbow Dash raised her hoof into the air, and waited until the princess to call on her before speaking.

"So why are those gargoyles doing what the Darkness wants in the first place? I doubt their geniuses, but they don't seem like the type to take orders."

Pinkie Pie giggled, before speaking up. "Silly Dashie, it's because gargoyles operate like an insect hive, and they're all connected to the hive mind, which the Darkness has used what little power it has left to hack into it and make all those grumpy gargamagoyles do what it wants!"

Every single jaw, including Princess Celestia's, dropped impossibly low. Twilight looked at the princess, who saw the question in her eyes.

"That's…actually right." Celestia stammered, which only fueled Pinkie's grin.

"Pinkie…how did you…never mind, continue Princess." Twilight said, though she shot Pinkie Pie a few more confused looks.

Princess Celestia looked at Pinkie for a few more moments, before shaking her head and going on.

"Anyway…the army of gargoyles has already overtaken Appaloosa, and turned into a mini-portal. From what we can tell, the three large ones are powered by the Darkness, though we're still trying to figure out what powers the Appaloosa one."

Applejack took the brief pause to interrupt the princess.

"S'cuse me princess, but do y'all have any idea how to beat the Darkness yet?"

"Not yet. The only thing we know for certain is that the only way it can restore itself is for it to use this world's magic. No offense Derek, but your magic is to destructive to heal the Darkness, though I doubt it be a good thing if it managed to get your magic as well."

Derek nodded, before asking another question.

"Princess, how would that thing get this worlds magic?"

Twilight Sparkle answered his question.

"The Elements of Harmony. They can be used to channel every last bit of magic in this world. The Darkness could use them to restore itself."

Derek shook his head. "Wait a second, I thought the Elements could only be used by the bearers."

"It would be using them to channel magic. You don't need to be a bearer to do that. Why do you think the elements are hidden?"

Derek nodded, the realization coming over him. Princess Celestia waited to see if any more questions were asked, before rising.

"It has been good seeing you all. Unfortunately, I must head back. My sister is still a little unsure of how to handle military ponies."

The group bowed to the Princess, who returned in kind before disappearing in a white hot flash of magic.

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The next day passed as slowly and drearily as the day before. The herd of ponies slowly marched through the desert, though it was much less cold as they were farther north.

Eventually, the ponies found themselves walking on grass, though it was dry and dead. Still, it was an improvement, and as they continued on, the grass slowly began to get greener and fuller, until at long last, the herd left the desert behind and entered the plains.

Derek smiled as his eyes rested upon the beautiful rolling hills covered in emerald green grass. He took a swig of water, before removing his shirt and summoning his wings. He locked eyes with Rainbow Dash, who saw the competitive glow in his eyes.

"You're on." She said, before the two of them shot into the air and started racing between hills.

Below the two racers, Pinkie bounced along the ground, busy regaling Rarity with a story that seemed to make no sense.

"So then, I took the parrot, which was squawking like crazy at the time, and threw it at the police box, which was making some weird noise, and then some bowtie wearing pony comes out and yells Don't throw stuff at my TARDIS, it's rude! before going back into the box an- HEY! Are you even listening?"

Rarity shook herself out of her daze, and nodded her head.

"Of course dear, blue box, bowtie pony, go on!"

Pinkie Pie grinned enthusiastically, and continued her story, while Rarity just shook her head and went back to her daze.

Twilight, meanwhile, was busy discussing battle strategies with Applejack, while Fluttershy was chatting with Trixie, who was slowly coming out of her shell. Overall, the herd was much livelier now that it had escaped the desert heat, and was now walking on soft grass.

That all changed the moment they made it to the top of a hill, and looked into the valley below. There, in the bowl shaped valley that stretched for a few miles, was the Equestrian Army.

Dragons, ponies, and griffons alike all roamed the valley, each one of them dressed in battle armor. There appeared to be a sense of urgency with them, as everyone rushed from place to place.

As the herd peered down at the army, two flashes, one white and one blue, appeared at the front of the herd. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna looked over the herd, both of them smiling a warm and pleasant smile.

"Hello, everypony!" Princess Luna boomed in her Royal Canterlot Voice. "A few miles behind this camp, there is a settlement for all civilians! Please, go there! However, we do ask that if you are able-bodied and willing, you stay here and help with the war effort! Thank you!"

The moment Luna stopped talking, movement overtook the herd. Most of the group began to walk towards the settlement, though a few ponies here and there stayed behind. Princess Celestia waited until the civilians were gone before addressing those that stayed.

"Thank you all for volunteering. I ask that you now follow my sister, who will tell you were to go."

Celestia then turned to face Twilight Sparkle and her group.

"As for you all, follow me."

Princess Celestia turned and began to walk into the valley. Twilight and the rest of the group began to follow. Derek looked over his shoulder, and saw Trixie standing still, obviously unsure of what to do. He grinned, and beckoned her to join them. Trixie smiled, and ran to catch up with the rest of the group.

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Princess Celestia led the group into a large white tent that bore the royal symbol on the front. Inside, there was a large round wooden table in the center, where many noble looking ponies were gathered.

"Gentlecolts, please take your seats." Princess Celestia said smoothly, before sitting down at the head of the table.

Derek squatted down between Rainbow Dash and Trixie, and began to inspect the many ponies in the room. Most were older ponies, though every now and then a young one would catch his eye.

"I'll be brief, as we don't have any time to waste." Princess Celestia started. "You all are informed on the events at Appaloosa, and the army that was marching towards the town, so no need to waste time there. I have just learned that the army that attacked Appaloosa is headed in this direction, probably by following the refugees of the town. The army shall be here within a few hours."

Derek audibly gulped, as did the rest of the room. Princess Celestia took a long, hard look at everyone gathered in the tent before continuing.

"Like I said, there is no time to waste, so, let's talk battle strategies." The princess looked over at Derek and his group, and gestured at the old noble looking ponies.

"These here are the top military minds in Equestria." She then looked over at the noble looking ponies, and gestured at Derek. "These are the Elements of Harmony, plus a magically gifted human and a talented unicorn. You will confer with each other on how to best fight this army. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to go deal with a rather constipated dragon."

The princess departed without another word, leaving the two sides alone in the tent. Immediately after she left, the military general ponies burst into action, laying out blueprints and plans onto the table, all while yelling instructions at each other.

Derek sighed and looked around, only to see that he was the only one still sitting, as the rest of the group had dispersed around the tent and were now conferring with the military minds.

"Son of a bitch." He muttered, before standing up and locating a rather crusty old unicorn general. "You there! Hi I'm Derek, tell me how you plan on killing these bastards."

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Thirty minutes and a whole lot of yelling later, Princess Celestia returned to the tent to find it surprisingly calm. Everyone was gathered around the table, their eyes locked onto a sheet of paper that contained battle schemes and formations.

"…and that should drive them back." Twilight Sparkle finished. "Ahh, Princess!" She took a quick bow. "We were just finishing!"

Princess Celestia smiled at her protégé, and nodded. "Good! Would you care to give me a run through?"

"Certainly princess." Twilight Sparkle answered. She began to shuffle through some of the papers on the table, before finally settling on one that had a whole lot of figures drawn on.

"Alright, so here's the basic battle formation. The X's are earth ponies, the O's are pegasus ponies, and the U's are unicorns. The G's represent griffons while the D's are dragons. As you can see, the earth ponies are the main body of the ground attack. The pegasai and griffons will be air support, and the unicorns will be artillery, so to speak. We only have four battle ready dragons, so we'll have to use them conservatively."

"So the battle plan. We have pegasus scouts out already, so when they see the gargoyle army, they'll warn us. Our army will assemble a mile south of here, where we will await the gargoyles. Once they see us, they'll probably charge, and that's where we start."

"Us unicorns will bombard them with spells while they charge, depleting their numbers. Eventually, I will shoot a flare into the air, signaling the griffons and pegasai to take off, and for the earth ponies to charge. Now, I've been working on a spell that may take away the gargoyles ability to fly, which will allow for the air support to operate more smoothly. It may work, it may not, but the biggest issue here is to try and keep the gargoyles grounded."

Princess Celestia raised her hoof. "What exactly does 'air support' mean?"

Twilight nodded. "Good question. If I can successfully ground the gargoyles, then the pegasai and griffon's will do a multitude of things. First and foremost, they will attack gargoyles from above, either by themselves or with controlled crystal bombs. They will also do rescue and air lift if needed, and bring supplies in to the ground troops."

Princess Celestia nodded, then asked another question. "What happens if your spell fail?"

"Then the unicorns act as snipers and pick off the gargoyles that fly. The griffons and pegasai will fight them in the air, while the earth ponies are left to fight the remaining ground gargoyles, though I'm very sure my spell will work."

Princess Celestia nodded, and remained silent. Twilight looked around the room, and went on.

"Soon after the battle begins, we will let the first dragon into the fray. The dragons shall rotated, as we don't want it to get too crowded, and also, the dragons are an invaluable resource that must be protected. As for Derek, you'll be part of the earth pony group, as your fighting skills are among the best."

Derek gave a thumbs up to Twilight, who in turn looked at the princess with a hopeful smile.

Princess Celestia smiled back, and stood up to her full height. "Very good! It is a solid and well thought out plan! I knew I could count on all of you!"

"You forgot about me."

A sudden chill filled the room, causing everyone inside to stand up and look around. There was a loud crack, followed by a magical burst that was felt by everyone. A white flash appeared above the table, sending everyone to the ground.

Once the smoke had cleared, every set of eyes looked up to where the flash had been. In its place floated the God of Chaos: Discord. He grinned maniacally around the room, his eyes full of fire.

"Discord!" Twilight Sparkle shouted, jumping to her hooves. "How did you break free?"

Discord narrowed his eyes at Twilight, before glaring at Celestia. "You didn't tell them, did you?" Celestia's silent reply was all he needed to start laughing. "Oh, how beautiful! She didn't tell you! I'm back for less than a minute and I'm already causing chaos!"

Discord's rant ended the moment Princess Luna charged into the room, fear in her eyes.

"Tia! I felt him!" She stopped once her eyes focused on Discord. "Discord!" she hissed, her eyes narrowing into snake-like slants. This only fueled his joy.

"You didn't even tell her! Oh Celestia, you devil!"

Luna looked over at her sister, who was busy looking very firmly at the ground.

"Tia…what didn't you tell us?"

Celestia took a long sigh, before looking directly at Luna.

"I made a deal with Discord. I let him escape, and he will help us fight the Darkness."

The room went deathly quiet. All eyes were now upon Princess Celestia, who took another deep breath, and seemingly regained her composure.

"Yes, Discord is insane, and an enemy to the throne. But he also knows the danger the Darkness poses to all life, including his own, and he knows he can assist in the fight. So we are putting aside our differences for now to face this greater foe."

Princess Luna looked long and hard at her sister, before going up and whispering into her ear. "We'll talk about this later."

Celestia bowed her head, grateful of her sister's decision to discuss this in private, looked up at Discord, who was busy drinking a cup of acid while riding a bike.

"Discord, if you remember the terms of our deal, then you know that you have to follow my orders. Well, here is my first order: follow Twilight Sparkles orders. She'll find a place for you in the battle."

Discord grimaced, but nodded his head in acceptance.

"Good. Now, if you'll excuse us, my sister and I must discuss some matters of importance."

The two royal sisters left the tent once again, leaving a quiet group of ponies plus a human to stare at Discord, who just laughed.

"Oh, this should be fun!" he exclaimed as he sipped the last of his acid.

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The sun was in the middle of the sky, and all around the camp, that feeling of pre-battle nerves was in full swing. Groups of ponies and griffons dressed in armor sat around, sharing tales and playing cards, each one trying to take their mind on the upcoming blood bath.

Princess Celestia overlooked the entire camp, her mind still ringing from the argument with her sister.

"You can't just make decisions without consulting me! You're not the sole leader anymore, I'm also a princess!" her sister had said, and Celestia had to admit, she was right.

Yes it was wrong of me, but dammit I stand by my decision. Luna will just have to deal. Besides, if Discord proves useful, I'll never hear about it again.

Elsewhere in the camp, Derek sat with the Mane 6 plus Trixie smoking a cigarette. No one talked, for there was no need, as there was nothing to say. It had been decided that Trixie would provide support for Twilight due to her lack of training, giving the light-blue unicorn a sense of relief.

Derek however, was feeling much more nervous. He had fought and killed before, but he had never been in a battle of this scale before. His mind continued to think of all the things that could go wrong, while his gut started to produce butterflies.

That all changed the moment the pegasus started waving the flag. Derek abruptly stood up and pointed at the waving pegasus, as did the rest of the camp.

"That's the signal." Derek breathed. "It's time."

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Derek stood next to Applejack and Rainbow Dash, his eyes gazing out onto the open plain that would soon be bathed in the blood of many species. The gargoyle army had come into view a few minutes before had, and just as Twilight had predicted, they started to charge.

"That's a shit load of gargoyles…" Derek stammered, his knees slightly shaky.

Applejack nodded in agreement, before turning and looking over to where the unicorns where standing. Many different colored spells flew through the air and landed in the ranks of the swarming gargoyles, exploding and sending the enemy flying through the air.

Many gargoyles attempted to take off, only to find that their wings were limp and lifeless against their backs, leaving them grounded. Derek smiled at that sight, as grounded gargoyles meant that they were easier to kill.

A minute passed as they watched the destruction from afar, before Twilights flare launched into the air.

Derek took a deep breath, and turned to face Rainbow Dash, who was preparing to take off.

"Be careful up there." He said, holding his fist up in the air.

She returned the brohoof with a smile. "You too." Without another word, Rainbow Dash shot off into the air and joined the rest of her air team.

Derek watched her fly off, the returned his attention to the charging gargoyles. He noticed Pinkie Pie walk up next to him, as they waited for the next signal. He put his hands on Applejack's and Pinkie Pie's shoulders, and the three of them looked at each other in appreciation.

"CHAAARGE!" The lead general pony screamed, and the entire army surged forward.

Derek ran through the grass with Applejack and Pinkie Pie, allowing the magic to course through his veins. His eyes locked onto an oncoming gargoyle, and a vicious, angry howl filled his lungs the last human's lungs, which he quickly released. With a violent scream, the two sides met in a swirl of blood, and just like that, The Dimension War began.

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To be Continued in The Dimension War

Thanks for reading! Ill have the sequel out soon! Until then, REVIEEW!