The Red Koi barrelled through the raging river with little effort thanks to Pisces' control over its currents, completely changing the direction at which the river ran. A convoy of miriad battleships also followed the advance of the mighty vessel, carrying hundreds of troops to serve in the upcoming battle for Mystwood. Pisces lit his corn-cob pipe and hummed to himself at the spearhead of the ship, his trident in hand. Spike snuck up behind him and stood next to the hulking admiral, looking up at his towering figure.

"Is something the matter?" Pisces raised his brow as he looked down at the young dragon standing next to him. "You look troubled."

"I overheard your talk with Draven... you knew my father?" Spike said as he leaned against the outer railing of the ship. "Who was he exactly?"

"Hmph, you are Orius' son– too curious for his own good. Very well, I shall tell you." Pisces said as he puffed out a cloud of smoke from his snout. "Your father was one of The Four Draconic Emperors, like me, the highest order of lord dragon in the world. He was a kind one; caring, thoughtful, and a benevolent king. He also was a rowdy one..." Pisces smirked as he looked down at the river. "It was hell teaching him the Dragon Disciplines."

"You taught my father?" Spike's eyes widened; finally, somepony who knew his father as well as Draven. "What was he like? How powerful was he? How did-?!"

"Hold on, hold on, young one... you are asking too many questions for an old dragon like me to keep up," Pisces laughed lightly as he continued. "Your father's power was like none other in his prime, and it was often tricky to keep him contained. When he was just a hatchling, his parents had me take him under my wing. Being the next in line for the Blazing Throne, it was my duty to sharpen his skills to become a powerful ruler. He soon surpassed me after five years of training..." Pisces scowled as he thought back to his last meeting with Orius. "Then the changelings attacked his kingdom during The First Changeling Wars; those years were clouded in uncertainty. We went our separate ways then... he didn't even tell me he had a child. And now, you are here with me, so perhaps that was meant to be..."

"What do you mean?" Spike wondered as he glanced up at Pisces, who took in a whiff of smoke.

"Spike, think back to all that you've gone through so far in your adventure... was it difficult?" Pisces asked Spike as he puffed out more white smoke from his snout.

"Well, yeah... this whole voyage has been pretty hard– harder than any other journey I've ever experienced," Spike admitted as he remembered his fights in the arena, his battle with Haki, and the final bout with Kaiser; each mountain he had to climb was higher and more daunting than the next. "I don't know if I'm ready for what comes next..."

"Then I have a proposition for you..." Pisces said as he grabbed the pipe out of his mouth. "Once we complete our mission here, I'd be willing to teach you what I know. Does that sound good to you, Spike?"

Spike's eyes lit up with childlike anticipation as he envisioned himself as a master of the dragon arts. "Really?! Wow, Admiral Pisces, I-!"

"Ah, but be warned... this will not be easy," Pisces said as he gave the pipe to Spike, who took a puff and immediately began coughing. "I am by no means a pleasant instructor to have. You will be worked hard."

"If I've survived this long in the Blacklands, I think I can deal with whatever comes my way with you, Admiral," Spike said with confidence, smoke masking his voice.

"You certainly are Orius' son..." Pisces grinned at Spike as he took his pipe from the young dragon. "But don't think too far ahead. You have to focus on the present for now, Spike. There is too much at stake on this mission. In the Blacklands, it will only get harder from here on out."

"Harder?" Spike's eyes danced about in a daze as he tried to imagine the challenges that lie in his future. "Can't a librarian have a break...?"

"You'll have to be more than a librarian, Spike," Pisces said with a chuckle as he looked ahead, watching the smoke to the west rise into the evening sky, shrouded by fog. "Look, Spike, over there."

"Is that Mystwood?" Spike guessed.

"Yes, and it appears an attack has only just occurred. My best guess is that they were attacked only two hours ago based on the severity of the smoke." Pisces remarked as the thick fog of Crosis Swamp and smoke from Mystwood began to waft into his nostrils. "Winslow, can you see anything up there?"

"No, Admiral," Winslow answered him from the crow's nest. "The fog is getting thick-. Wait. I hear something."

Just then, an arrow flung out of the thick fog and struck a marine in the chest, causing him to fall backwards onto the main deck. And before anypony had time to speak, a hail of arrows began to rain down on the crew. Twilight was the first to react to this, and she immediately put up a magical barrier before the arrows could cause further mayhem. Though, her shield could not reach the other ships around The Red Koi.

"Ambush!" Rummy shouted as gunpowder began to seep out of his skin and ball in his hand like clay. "Battle stations, while Twilight's shield still holds!"

"Guys! I can't protect the other ships! The Red Koi is far too large!" Twilight gasped in horror as the convoy accompanying them became engulfed in a storm of arrows.

"Somepony has to get out there and wipe out their archers!" Draven said as he blasted the banks of the river with his lightning, trying to find their attackers. Luckily, he managed to hit a vampire with a bolt who was hiding in a tree. "The trees! They're in the bloody trees!"

"I'll go! I'm fast enough to dodge the arrows!" Winslow insisted as he jumped down onto the deck, removing his patch.

"Winslow, no! You can't go out there! You could get killed!" Fluttershy begged Winslow as she held him tightly. "You promised you wouldn't get into any danger like this!"

"Fluttershy, I must. Otherwise, these vampires will wipe out our reinforcements." Winslow consoled her as he broke away from her embrace. "I will be okay."

"Alright..." Fluttershy sniffled as she crossed her arms uncomfortably; she knew he was right.

"I'll come with!" Rummy announced as he ran over to Winslow. "I can take out multiple enemies in a short amount of time. You just need to block the arrows for me while I take those tossers out!"

"Watch your ass, Rummy!" Gin gave him a stink-eye and clenched her fist; Rummy knew she was going to be pissed if anything happened to him. "I don't wanna be pullin' arrows out of your sorry hide when you get back!"

"Alright, alright!" Rummy tensed up at the sight of Gin's fist as he turned to Winslow. "Let's get going."

"Very well. Come!" Winslow shouted as he stood at the edge of the main deck. "Follow my lead."

"Nah, follow my lead!" Rummy said as he jumped off the deck, a ball of gunpowder forming beneath his hooves.

"Yes... you are indeed Gin's brother..." Winslow shook his head and sighed as he followed Rummy, jumping onto the nearest ship to the left of The Red Koi.

Just as Rummy was at the correct angle, he detonated the gunpowder, sending him flying forward at incredible speeds. Winslow seemed to teleport from ship to ship, and Rummy landed on the bank just as Winslow did; he was quite impressed by just how fast the sword-wielding unicorn was.

"Bloody hell... are you a demon or some bollocks?" Rummy said in awe as he prepared his powers, gunpowder billowing out of his hands into clouds of black powder. "Alright, let's take these ones out first-!" Rummy was cut off as a gust of wind stirred up by the racing Winslow almost knocked the bowler hat right off of his head. "Bloody hell!"

"Fourth Eye: Soul Dance!" Winslow said as he jumped up, his left eye emitting a bright yellow glow as he drew his sword; his left eye had split into four separate witch eyes.

A whirlwind of slashes escaped the edge of Winslow's blade as he dashed towards his vampiric foes, slicing them to ribbons. Rummy followed Winslow, yet again launching himself into the air like a cannonball. He used the cloud of gunpowder around him, tossing a pouch of grapeshot in front of him and precisely detonating the gunpowder at a condensed point behind the bag. The grapeshot blistered the trees, felling dozens upon dozens of vampires as the shots blew apart their skulls.

Alright! That's all of em'! Let's head to the other side!" Rummy shouted as he blasted off to the other side of the river.

"Right!" Winslow shouted in reply as he dashed from boat to boat.

"Gunpowder..." Rummy was the first to attack this time, and he gathered a giant ball of compressed gunpowder in his hands. As it grew to its maximum size, Rummy tossed it at the river bank, unleashing his attack. "Cannon!"

The ball of gunpowder hit the earth with tremendous force and exploded as soon as it impacted, completely obliterating trees, rocks, and any vampire unlucky enough to be in the range of the devastating explosion. The attack wiped out a majority of the forces on the right bank, and as the smoke cleared, Winslow easily picked off the rest with his superior speed and reflexes, slicing each vampire's head clean off.

"Pretty good, paladin!" Rummy grinned as he launched himself back onto the main deck of The Red Koi. "Remind me never to piss you off!"

"Your fighting skills are exceptional as well, Vice Admiral," Winslow nodded as he complimented his ally.

"Good job, you two!" Daisy clapped excitedly as she jumped up and down with bliss, shaking the whole ship.

"Uh... guys. I don't mean to interrupt your bromance or whatever, but... " Spike gulped as the water beneath the ship froze into a mass of red ice. "I don't think it's over..."

"Others are approaching!" Luna shouted to the crew as she surveyed the area, flying high above the ship.

"No..." Cyro's eyes went wide as he looked down at the red ice in horror, remembering it from his childhood all too well. "It can't be-..."

"What is it, Cyro?" Jhettei asked his friend, who was most definitely in shock. It took him only a moment to realize what was causing this reaction as he took a peek at the ice below that surrounded the hull. "Oh dear..."

"Prepare yourselves!" Pisces scowled as he watched the five members of Indigo Rose approach their ship in a line, walking over the frozen river. "It's Alptraum's inner circle!"

"Shite..." Gin said in a panic as she loaded her blunderbuss.

"Quickly, Luna! Get back to the ship! The Blood Moon cripples your power! You cannot fight these five with us! You are too important!" Pisces ordered Luna, who complied and dropped down to the main deck.

"Twilight, be careful," Dross warned Twilight, placing a hand on her shoulder as her horn began to glow brightly. "These five are very powerful..."

"I can handle myself, don't worry." Twilight insisted as her hands began to shine as well.

Troops jumped off of their boats and ran towards their foes, charging at them with all their courage and strength. However, Sven simply scoffed to himself as he raised giant walls of crimson ice to block their advance, denying them access to The Red Koi and secluding Pisces and his crew. "You all ain't worth my energy... I wanna fight Pisces!"

"Don't be a fool, Sven," Theodore snapped at the brutish ice dragon as he drew his sword cane from its sheath. "Pisces surpasses your abilities tenfold."

"Pfft! Then I'll be going after-... oh?" Sven's eyes lit up as he spotted Cyro hiding his face from him. "Hey... well whaddya know? It's a small world after all! I think I'll kill you instead, Cyro!"

"He knows you, Cyro?" Jhettei asked Cyro, who was clearly disturbed by Sven's presence.

"I'll tell you later, Jhettei," Cyro said bluntly as frozen mist began to coat his fists. "Right now, we just gotta deal with these guys, okay?"

"Very well..." Jhettei said uneasily, as he was off put by the fact Cyro hadn't ever spoken of such a dragon with red ice before; it wasn't like Cyro to hide something from him. So whatever it was, it must've been very personal.

"Alright, so... who wants to attack these blokes first?" Thatchet asked his comrades as they stopped in front of the hulking ship. "Wanna flip a coin? Ah, never mind. Let's all just get in a blue with these wankers!"

"I shall never understand that uncouth lingo of yours, Dr. Thatches..." Theodore groaned as a grey cloud of void energy began to swirl around him.

"Me first!" Sven cackled as he jumped up, charging an icy attack in his hands. "Dragon Mahaha's Freezing Spear!"

"Step back, everypony! Deal with the others!" Pisces ordered his crew as a bubble of blue arcane energies surrounded his fist. He thrust his fist forward, and the bubble broke, causing arcane fault lines to form in the air and release a sound similar to the smashing of glass. "Dragon Shatter!"

"Huh-?" Sven's body exploded into chunks of ice as Pisces attack broke his icy body apart with a long range Dragon Shatter; this was something Draven hadn't seen in a very long time.

"Bloody hell..." Draven gawked at the admiral's power as Sven's body began to reorganize itself on the ground.

"We can't have that..." Theodore smirked underneath his mask as he raised his cane sword at the ship. "Void: Kapteyn Room." Pisces became cloaked in a veil of swirling void energies, trapping him in place. However, this was only for a moment, and Pisces soon broke out of the cage with another Dragon Shatter aimed at the side of the prison. "How bothersome..."

Theodore disappeared in a puff of white void energy, then reappeared behind Princess Luna, who was caught completely off-guard by the attack. Luckily, Jhettei intervened, and he managed to catch the sword with his hands. "Got you!"

Just as Jhettei tried to retaliate, Theodore teleported once again, this time behind Jhettei. Thankfully, Cyro reacted to this, and he blocked the next strike from Theodore's cane with a blade made of blue ice. "I got your back, Jhettei!"

Thatchet leapt at Princess Ocèara with tendrils of black ooze seeping from the holes in his mask. Spike stopped his attack with a blazing fist to his chest. "Dragon King's Blazing Fist!" Although it didn't seem to hurt him at all; it only stopped him. Spike's eyes widened as his flames began to whither and fizzle. "Huh?"

"That's cute, ya hoon..." Thatchet snickered as Spike's magic completely rotted away, and his hand began to sink into his liquid body. "But your flame is just a bloody candle to me... my Brand decays anything, including that worthless fire of yours. Now rack off, ya twat!"

"Dammit!" Spike grimaced as his arm got sucked into Thatchet's tar-like body, and he could feel the bits of bone and other rotting pieces of flesh inside of him. "Okay, that's just disgusting..."

"Dragon Shatter!" Draven leapt forward and freed Spike from Thatchet's grasp as he slammed him in the face with his attack, blowing him back into the wall of ice on the right and onto the ground.

"Ew, ew, ew!" Spike stuck out his tongue in disgust as he shook the back slime off of his arm. "It's so gross!"

"Thank you, Spike. " Princess Ocèara said as she swept off the slime from his arm with her hand.

"Hey, I did the saving!" Draven growled at Spike enviously.

"Dross, look out!" Twilight screamed as she put up a magical barrier, blocking a claw slash from Lamia aimed right at Dross' neck.

"What a shame... wasting your energy on a filthy stallion. And I thought you were cute..." Lamia groaned tiresomely as she tried attacking Dross again. However, she was met with a firm right cross to the jaw as Dross' fist morphed into that of a giant ape's. "Arrgh! You worthless piece of garbage-!"

Lamia was then hit by a blast of magic from Twilight's horn directly in the chest, launching her back into an ice wall. "Hands off, you freak..."

"Nice one..." Dross smiled at Twilight, to which she giggled to herself.

Pisces was occupied with Amon, who slashed at him wildly with Droyuz. Pisces, however, was a better close quarters combatant than he had anticipated, and the hulking dragon pushed him back with every attack with his trident. This surprised the rest of Indigo Rose, as they had never seen anypony block a sword swing from the demon lord so effortlessly.

"Demon Blade Technique: Serpent's Tail!" Amon shouted as he swung his down upon Pisces.

"Dragon Skin!" Admiral Pisces bellowed as his arm became coated in an armor-like coating of blue arcane energies. He then reached out and caught Amon's blade, deflecting the energy back.

"He blocked Droyuz?" Amon thought to himself as he attacked again. "This dragon is a master of The Five Disciplines. I must be careful."

Theodore parried Cyro's sword slash, and teleported out of sight, only to reappear right on top of the young ice dragon with his sword high above his head, ready to cut him down. However, Winslow blocked the attack and fended off Theodore's onslaught of slashes augmented with void energies.

"Thanks!" Cyro said to Winslow as his sword evaporated.

"Looks like we won't win this with Pisces on their side..." Thatchet said to Lamia as he got back up. "Hey, where the bloody hell is Sve-?"

"I'm back!" Sven announced with malice in his voice as he jumped aboard The Red Koi once more, unchallenged by Pisces, who remained occupied with Amon. He then set his sights on Fluttershy and Gin. "Ooo... aren't you two pretty little things?"

Gin replied with a shot from her blunderbuss to the beast's chest, boring a hole through his ice torso, but it didn't seem to slow the dragon down at all. "What the-?" Gin was cut off as Sven knocked her away with a swift backhand, tossing her aside so he could prey on the helpless Fluttershy.

"Gin!" Rummy caught Gin as she fell back, seeing the lump on her head beginning to form as he cradled her in his arms. "Oh shite..."

"You're mine, bitch!" Sven snarled as he threw a spear of ice at Fluttershy.

Winslow had been occupied with Theodore, but he quickly caught sight of Sven's attack, and he blasted away Theodore with a magic attack from his horn, blowing him away. He raced towards the spear of ice, hoping to make it in time before it could strike her in the chest, but alas, his sword was only an inch too short to stop it. However, Amon broke away from his fight with Pisces, looping around to block Winslow's sword. And as he did, Droyuz stopped the icicle from impaling Fluttershy.

"He... saved me?" Fluttershy gasped as she thought to herself, watching the horned demon duel with Winslow.

"What are you doing in the mortal realm, Lord of Infernum?" Winslow questioned Amon as sparks shot off of their slashing swords.

"I am here simply to spread chaos, paladin," Amon replied in his low and menacing tone of voice as he pulled back his blade, sheathing it as he heard Alptraum's voice call out to him.

"It's time to leave, Amon," Alptraum said to the demon lord as Theodore teleported back down to the frozen river below. "Go back to Mystwood with the others."

"Very well, my lord," Amon replied back to his dark master as he turned to Theodore, who was battling Nick and Daisy. "Theodore! We must return!" Amon then turned to face Winslow as he bowed to his adversary. "Until we meet again, paladin."

"And so we shall retreat, good sir!" Theodore waved his hands, casting a vortex over each of his allies. And with that, he and the rest of Indigo Rose vanished into thin air.

"Where'd they go?" Nick raised an eyebrow as his chains retracted back into his body.

"They went back to Mystwood," Pisces concluded as he watched the river rapidly thaw. "That was just a warm-up. They were testing us."

"Testing us?" Spike clenched his teeth nervously. "You mean they were going soft on us?"

"Yes, they were..." Luna added as she crossed her arms in concern.

"Field Marshal, are you alright?" Rummy called over to Field Marshal Sebastian Durand, who was on the ship to the left of The Red Koi.

"I'm fine, but more than a dozen of my men are wounded!" The field marshal replied.

"They were going easy...?" Spike swallowed his fear as he thought of what was to come in the next battle.

Author's Notes:

Well, that was just baby sh*t, folks! The real fight hasn't even begun! As always, I hope you enjoyed! See you in the next chapter!