Chapter 7

“Miss,” Patton growled. “If you don't give us back our guns, things are going to get ugly.”

“But only give us the guns,” Matt put in. “Not the Germans.”

“No,” Twilight replied flatly.

“I wasn't asking,” Patton threatened.

“I said no!” Twilight dropped the guns behind her in the dirt and marched up to the General. “I don't know what is going on and why you are fighting each other but while you are here act like you are friends.”

The purple pony barely came to Patton’s hip but she stood her ground, staring into his eyes. Patton huffed then nodded his head.

“Very well,” he sighed. “We will not try to kill each other. But I do want my guns back. I love them almost as much as I loved my mother and you just dropped them in the dirt.”

“You will just have to wait untill I trust you all more.”

“I still don’t know vat is going on,” Frederic stated, bewilderment in his eyes as he gawked at the ponies.

“We don’t know what is going on either,” Matt chuckled. “So just go along with it and we can get back to killing each other later when we get out of this place.”

The German Commander thought for several moments as Patton and Twilight continued to glare at each other. Eventually Frederic shrugged.

“Purple pony,” he said, looking distastefully at Patton. “Ve vill agree to remain peaceful with each other as long as the Americans do ze same.”

“Good,” Twilight smiled. “My name is Twilight Sparkle by the way.”

“Was ist los?” asked Felix.

“Waffenstillstand mit den Amerikanern,” Frederic replied.

Felix stared at Twilight for a moment, “Und was ist mit diesen sprechenden bunten Ponies?”

“Ich weiß auch nicht, woher die kommen, aber die Amerikaner scheinen es zu wissen,” Frederic replied, shaking his head.

“Das gefällt mir nicht,” Felix huffed.

“Mir auch nicht,” Frederic looked around at the Americans and ponies. “Aber ich glaube nicht, daß wir eine andere Wahl haben.”

“What are they saying?” Matt asked Zeus.

“Something about not trusting us and how they don’t know what is going on but they might as well not try to kill us,” he replied matter of factly.

“Oh. I didn't know you knew German.”

“You promise that your men vill not attack us?” Frederic asked Patton.

“As long as your men do the same.”

“Do you want me to send this machine to the same place I sent the other one?” Twilight looked at the tank with utmost curiosity.

“Vat is it talking about?”

“Sure,” Patton replied.

“Rarity, I will need your help with this one. It is much larger.”

Matt had a funny thought form in his head from Twilights statement. Rarity nodded and the two unicorns carefully made their way through the crowd of humans to the tank.

Matt nudged the German he was standing next to with his elbow. Benjamin glared back questioningly. The German hadn’t even noticed the American scoot closer.

“Watch this,” he pointed at the ponies as they prepared their spells. “It’s really amazing.”

A moment later the tank disappeared in a purple hued flash and the Germans gasped in shock.

“Wo ist er hin?” Felix screamed.

“Vat have you done with our tank?” Frederic demanded.

“She sent it to the same place she sent our tank,” Ian replied. “To a farm somewhere.”

“Ah wonder how Granny Smith is dealin’ with giant metal contraptions apearin’ in our yard?” Applejack added with a smile.

“Vat happened to ze tank?” Frederic demanded again.

“Magic,” Matt laughed.

“Don't take me for a child american!” Frederic threatened. “Tell me vat really happened or ze deal is off and ve fight you vis our hands!”

“I am serious.” Matt raised his hands in defence, making himself look like a mime stuck behind an invisible wall. “It turns out these ponies can do magic and fly.”

“We are not lying,” Patton said flatly.

“Ya you are!” Frederic rose to his feet and looked Patton in the eyes. “Last chance to tell us ze truth.”

Twilight became uneasy with the growing hostility between the humans. She turned away from Patton and trotted to the guns to teleported them away as well.

‘Better safe than sorry,’ she thought. ‘Without weapons nearby maybe they won't be so inclined to fight.’

The reaction of the humans to the guns disappearing though was not what she had anticipated. Immediately after the guns disappeared the Germans lunged forward, taking the Americans off guard. A brawl erupted in the middle of the dusty road as Twilight and the other ponies watched horrified. Within only a few seconds, Matt and Zeus lay unconscious in the dirt with Ian pinned to the ground being choked and at the same time trying to choke Martin. Benjamin and Udo were the only Germans that appeared to be noticeably injured but they continued to fight. Jeff, Bill and Patton now stood surrounded by four Germans as Ian and Udo continued to struggle. Felix charged the General, was met full force with an iron punch to the nose and he fell to the ground unmoving.

“Who is the next Kraut son of a bitch that wants to take us on huh?” Patton raised his thick arms and smiled hatefully.

“Ve are going to kill you.” Frederic pulled a hidden knife from a pack on his side. But before the fighting could start again, a wave of purple energy washed over them and the humans fell heavily to the ground in a deep sleep.

“They are such dreadfully hot headed creatures, aren't they dear?” Rarity asked Twilight. She was sad to see the General’s well kept uniform get dirty.

“Ah wonder why they want to kill each other so badly?” Applejack shook her head sadly.

The purple unicorn stood poised to release another spell just in case the first one had failed. After several moments of silence, followed by several of the humans starting to snore, she felt assured that they were fully asleep. Twilight sighed.

“They will be unconscious for more than a hour,” she said. “Lets get some help from Big Mac and put them in a few carts... separated. We need to take them to town before they wake up. I also need to send a letter to the Princess.”

The light filtering through the stained glass windows played across the palace floor. Celestia absentmindedly watched the rivulets of color as she paced the hall. She racked her mind, frantic for new answers that could help solve of avert the looming crisis. It had been nearly three days since she performed the ancient spell. Or had it been two days?

Celestia groaned. She had yet to sleep in the last five days and the hours had melded into one long worrisome blurr. Her thoughts were interrupted by her sister entering the hall.

“Tia?” Luna asked cautiously.

“What?” Celestia snapped, irritated that her thoughts had been sidetracked. She saw the hurt in her sister's eyes and she instantly regretted her harshness. “I am sorry little sister. What do you need?”

“I came to see how you were fairing.”

Celestia was happy that her sister was learning the modern way of talking, though her traditional Canterlot voice had been quite entertaining when they attended political meetings. Watching other members of the nobility flinch whenever she spoke had gotten quite enjoyable.

“I am well enough,” Celestia replied, trying to convince her sister but coming up short.

Luna walked up to her sister and placed her head against Celestia's neck in a type of pony hug. Celestia nuzzled her sister in return as her mind started to wander yet again.

“How long has it been since armies last gathered on our borders.”

Luna knew the answer all too well.

“More than a thousand years ago,” the younger Princess replied quietly, backing away from her sister and looking her in the eyes. “When jealousy took my heart and I marched on Equestria, my own home, with an army of similarly twisted and spiteful creatures and ponies. I am glad that history has muddled the story, making it less... terrible and dark.”

“That was not you leading that horde,” Celestia smiled reassuringly. “But a being completely different from the sister I have always loved.”

“So you have told me many times but it was my heart and mind that became that monster and I still feel that everything evil that came forth from that is my fault. The death and the suffering are my responsibility.” The blue alicorn looked down at the floor and watched a red beam of light shimmer from the fading sunlight. Tonight there would be no moon. Only stars and darkness.

Celestia decided to change the subject to more pressing and less personal matters.

“How goes the research on other way of preventing this war or anything that can help us find victory?”

Luna shrugged. “Other than what we have found so far? The outdated spells of war, weapons and military protocol is all we have. So you have finally given up hope that the Cry of Heroes has failed?”

“I had my hopes that ancient spell would work. But I should have known better. “Celestia walked over to the nearest window and peered out at the ponies passing below, so oblivious of the mounting threat to their lives. “That spell had never been the most effect tool before now though. The only thing we received of any use was a elderly being that gave us some useful information on how a war should be waged. Though he was reluctant to help us fully and want'ed, more than anything, to go back to his own world and war he still saved us in a sense.”

Luna winced at the mention of the event that destroyed the majority of their race. The Great Strife had been a massive war between the alicorns loyal to the Royal Family and those loyal to the tyrant Discord. The war lead to most of their race dying off with only a handful spread out all over the world being silent guardians of the innocent or harbingers of doom. Though none of them came close to having the power of the two sisters and none of them dared enter Equestria.

Luna pulled herself free from the painful memories just as a stream of green tinted smoke wafted into the hall and formed into a scroll in front of celestia. The older Princess took it magically, opened it and started to read silently. After a moment she smiled the first smile Luna had seen on her face in over two weeks. The grin unexpectedly sparked memories of when they were still fillies and the world was simple and perfect.
She shoved those memories aside. “What is it sister?”

Celestia trotted past her and towards the doors that lead into the rest of the palace.

“Come Luna,” she said happily. “It turns out hope is not lost after all.”

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To my pre-readers. If you didn't get the chance to read this while it was in Google Docs, sorry but I am on a roll.
To anyone who is German or speaks that language fluently please make sure I didn't write the wording wrong and stuff.
Shit is really starting to get real now folks, I even have a background plot... thing, or whatever it is called.
Please leave a comment about this new chapter. I want to read what you guys think so far.