Pisces, Daisy, Syrune, Galaeron, and Luna carved through the vampiric soldiers amassing on the long highway running through Mystwood; it spanned all the way to the face of the Cloudsreach Mountains where the city ended, and where the Eclipse Caverns began. The cavern entrance was heavily guarded by elite vampire soldiers and three towering, five-meter giants enslaved by Alptraum, brainwashed and hypnotized into serving him. Pisces saw the internal conflict in Daisy's eyes as she looked ahead; there was hesitation in her expression. Although half-giant, they were still her brethren, and she was reluctant to move forward with Pisces and the others as they advanced; she knew she'd have to put them down if she followed.

"Daisy..." Pisces turned to face her as he blasted away score of vampires with his Dragon Shatter. "You may hold back if you believe it is too much for you to bring down those giants, but we need you."

"I know, Fleet Admiral..." This was one of the few times Daisy referred to Pisces using his title rather than just a nickname. "I just-... I was already forced to watch my own kin get slaughtered. I can't bring myself to harm my own ponies."

Pisces thought back to the grim tales of Daisy's life in Titan Island of Dorio, where Gaines' empire had bulldozed through five years prior. Daisy was the daughter of an Equestrian naval officer and a giantess, and she was one of the lucky few that was evacuated in time before Gaines himself sunk the whole island. She had never forgotten that day when she was forced to leave her mother and father behind.

"I will not kill them, I promise," Pisces nodded to her, pointing back to the ship still resting on the shoreline. "Go back, collect wounded, and kill any other vampires you come across along the way." Daisy stood motionless for but a moment before Pisces raised his voice at her, bracing himself for the next wave of opponents. "Go!" As Daisy ran back with tears in her eyes, Pisces readied his trident, preparing to thrust it forward. "Brace yourselves, stallions!"

"Hold fast!" Field Marshal Durand shouted to his miriad troops as they halted on the steep roadway with their muskets loaded and their sabers ready; the vampires were swarming like ants. "Musketeers, fire!"

A wall of bullets escaped the barrels of hundreds of muskets, tearing apart the first line of bodies who were charging downhill towards them. Scores of vampires tumbled to the ground with gaping holes in their chests where their hearts once were. Shrieks of horror and dismay escaped the toothy maws of their vampire kin, boiling into anger and hatred. In response, the vampires drew their bows and fired high into the air, calling down a hail of arrows that darkened the sky. Durand had no troops fitted with shields, and the ruined town around them provided no cover for the counterattack. They were wide open. However, Pisces stepped forward, clenched both his fists and held them at his hips, waiting for the right moment. As the arrows drew nearer and nearer, Pisces' body began to glow faintly blue.

"Dragon Wave!" Pisces roared as he thrust his palms outwards, creating an all-encompassing wall of arcane energy in front of him that smashed the arrows to pieces.

"Incredible..." Galaeron remarked as splinters of arrow shafts rained down on the ground.

"Advance!" The fleet admiral bellowed as he charged forward, his trident coated in Dragon Skin and gleaming a faint blue.

Luna followed Pisces into battle, cleaving any opposition that stood against her in a frenzied dance of steel and blood. At this moment she felt nothing, said nothing; she simply went through the motions of battle, her body dictating her movements rather than her mind. No arrow nor sword seemed to bite her as she and the others tore through the ranks of the vampire army, and she moved as swift as the wind as she slashed the throats of a dozen vampires with one swing. Galaeron and Syrune had room to show off as well, and they showed expert skill as they fought together. With her bow, Syrune placed each of her arrows in the eye of a vampire as they drew close, killing many, even their heavy troops in steel armor. Galaeron's proficiency with his twin sabers was profound, and he could behead a vampire with but a single flick of his wrist. Galaeron would tear through any foe who dared to get inside Syrune's comfort zone without hesitation.

"A giant approaches!" Field Marshal Durand hollered as the charging giant's footsteps shook the ground beneath him.

The giant raised his colossal great ax above the line of musketeers and brought it down upon them, but Pisces intervened, blocking the two-handed swing with just his trident and right hand. With a great roar, Pisces fired off another Dragon Wave at the titan, pushing him back and onto a battalion of vampires, crushing them all and rendering him unconscious. The second, female giant charged forward with her spear, lunging at Pisces with eyes full of rage. Pisces dodged with a simple strafe to the right, and he separated the head of the spear from its pole with a downward strike to the base of the weapon. He wasted no time, dashing towards the giantess with terrifying speed. He crushed her knee with a Dragon Shatter-empowered punch, toppling her. And as she fell to the ground, Pisces loaded up another Dragon Shatter aimed at her temple, and this knocked her out cold as it made contact with the side of her head.

The third, male giant was incapacitated not by Pisces, but by a bolt of blue lightning that slammed into his chest, finishing him one hit, but luckily it didn't kill him. "Hey, lads!" Draven was flying in from the south side of Mystwood with Nick in one arm. He touched down to meet with the others as they took a brief moment to regain their strength; the horde of vampires lost confidence after their giants were so easily defeated. "I thought you guys needed a little help, so me and Nick decided to show up. We're still good to fight!"

"What of the others? Twilight and Rummy?" Luna wondered as she rallied with the others.

"I saw Rummy and Spike make their way to the ship just a few minutes ago— they're beaten up bad," Draven replied as he heard another voice call out to him in the distance.

"Draven!" Twilight waved to him as she joined up with the others, Dross by her side.

"Twilight! Dross!" Draven gave her a quick hug as she and Dross entered the battlefield. "Are you alright?"

"We're fine— just a few scrapes is all," Twilight insisted as she clutched the closed scorpion sting on her leg. Although her healing magic remedied her wound and dulled the poison, the pain was still quite overwhelming.

Dross spoke up, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Twilight, you're not-!"

"I'm fine, Dross, don't worry about me..." Twilight shook her head somewhat frantically, realizing the armies ahead were gathering strength. "Where's Spike?"

"He's on the ship with Rummy, Gin, and Raiel. From what I could tell he used up all his magic in his fight," Draven answered her. "Lass... you should be there with em'. You aren't fit for a fight like this."

"No, I'll be alright," Twilight nodded her head, as she took in several deep breaths to calm herself. "I'll just stay back and provide support."

"Do be careful, Twilight. Even alicorns can overexert themselves," Luna warned her as she sheathed her saber.

"Dross, did you see Winslow and Fluttershy?" Draven asked him with desperation in his voice.

"Yeah, although Winslow's a little worse for wear. I saw Fluttershy carrying him back to the ship around ten minutes ago with Cyro and Jhettei. They should be there by now." Dross replied as he readied his powers, his arms transforming into the spiny appendages of a porcupine. "Heads up. Those bloodsuckers are getting rowdy..."

"Form up, stallions! The enemy is mustering!" Field Marshal Durand commanded his troops as he unsheathed his rapier. Scores of vampires formed a wall that stretched for hundreds of yards along the entrance of the Eclipse Caverns and beyond, preparing for their final assault on Pisces and Durand's forces. "Stay close! They'll try to overwhelm you with their numbers!"

"No! I cannot let any of our stallions to be lost on this day! Fall back into a defensive position with Durand and Twilight, troops! Shoot from afar! My comrades and I shall deal with the horde!" Pisces commanded, to which they all followed his orders without any question. "Away with you!"

"Let's do this!" Nick chuckled as he stood behind Draven

"You got it, lad..." Draven gave Nick a wink and a thumbs-up as he stared back at him, activating his lord dragon form once more. "You ready, Dross?" Draven then turned to his spiny ally on the left, who braced himself for the horde fast approaching.

"As I'll ever be..." Dross grinned as he stared down the vampires.

"Luna?" Draven asked the alicorn to his right.

"Let us smite them like I had in the days of old!" Luna shouted triumphantly as she unsheathed her blade and held it out in front of her face.

"We'll be right behind you, Night Princess," Syrune said, Galaeron nodding with her.

"Then let us go forth!" Pisces bellowed as he lifted his trident high into the air. "Onward!" Admiral Pisces attacked first, taking a deep breath before letting loose a colossal column of water from his mouth that consumed a large portion of the advancing enemy line and swept them away. "Dragon Conqueror's Tidal Breath!"

"Have at thee!" Luna screamed as a beam of magic escaped her horn and blistered the land in front of her, killing dozens upon dozens of enemy troops.

"Chimera: Needle Rain!" Dross yelled as a shower of huge spines escaped his hands— flung high into the air, impaling many vampires.

"Grand Dragon Thane's Thunderous Might!" Draven gathered a mass of blue electricity, flew high into the air and brought down a torrent of lightning that fried many vampires into fine ash.

"Chain WRATH: Chain Palace!" Nick shouted, the ground beneath him transforming into a mass of chains that battered the opposition from afar, tossing scores of vampires into the air.

"Holy hell, Nick, how'd ya do that?!" Draven scratched his head in disbelief as he watched the chains turn back into dirt and stone.

"I don't know, I-... I guess I just learned it." Nick shrugged his shoulders at the feat, he wasn't too sure how those words managed to pass his lips.

"Enough conversation! There are still stragglers!" Syrune screamed at them both as she picked off retreating vampires to the north with well-placed shots to the backs of their heads.

"Watch out! The giant is back on its feet!" Dross shouted as the giant raised his massive body and prepared to crush him with his titanic ax. The shots from the muskets behind Dross didn't seem to slow the lumbering titan down.

"Dross!" Twilight and Pisces cried out in horror as the giant swung downwards at the changeling.

Suddenly, before the giant could land its attack, a boulder the size of a small house slammed into his face, blowing him back into the mountainside ahead with a deafening 'boom' as he impacted the hard rocks. A large shadow was cast down upon Dross, the shadow of a large and familiar mare. Dross laughed as he felt the earth shake beneath the mare's hooves. "Daisy!"

Daisy smiled as she replied, though this proved difficult as she heard the battered giant let out a wheeze in the distance. "Hey, Drossy..."

"You've returned," Pisces grinned back at Daisy.

"I may be a giantess, but I'm also a marine! I can't just leave my comrades behind!" Daisy said with a determined mug as she pounded her fist into the earth and pulled up a huge hunk of stone and dirt. "Scale: Euclid Mortar!" She tossed the heavy mass of earth into the crowd of vampires, crushing tons of them. As they charged at her, she punched some of them back with such force that they would scatter the ranks of other small groups "Let's go!"

"Good going, girl! My turn!" Dross said to his crewmate as he leaped into the air, transforming both his arms into the monstrous fists of a giant ape that were the size of houses. "Chimera: King Kong Thrash!"

Dross let loose a hail of furious fists that rained down upon the vampires ahead like a shower of asteroids, rendering some caught in the worst of it into a bloody pulp. As landed back on the ground, his hands then shifted into the immense claws of a giant pistol shrimp which had proportions around the same size as his last attack. With each claw he scooped out a portion of stones from the street beneath him and closed the pincers like a vice, using the large muscles behind each claw to build up tremendous pressure. As the pressure grew to the very limit, he released his claws, causing the muscles behind them to create a snap-back effect, launching dozens of stones outwards like giant flak cannons.

"Chimera: King Pistol Shrimp Volley!" Dross snickered as he watched vampires begin to flee in terror. "Kinda feel bad I didn't bring Pearl along with me...she hates vampires..."

"Well done, you two!" Pisces commended their efforts as he tore apart another cluster of troops with a Dragon Shatter-empowered punch. "Now, Draven! Let's finish this!" A ball of water manifested in Pisces' right hand, which he outstretched towards the lighting dragon to his right.

"Right!" Draven's left hand crackled with electricity, and it melded with Pisces' attack as he held his hand out as well.

They both aimed at the largest group of vampires right in front of the cave entrance, then tossed the small ball forward to smite them with the fury of a tempest. As it made contact with an elite vampire, it spread into an omnidirectional wave of water and electricity that enveloped all those that stood it its way. The shockwave killed the rest of the vampiric attackers and sent them flying all across the Cloudsreach Mountains. As the blast subsided, there was a moment of silence, a brief period of hesitation. Pisces stood strong for a moment, then released the tension building in his body, letting out a deep sigh of relief.

"We are victorious, my brothers in arms!" Pisces announced triumphantly as he raised his trident high into the air. His voice shook the ground, and it roused the civilians who were beginning to gather at the town square. "You are liberated, Mystwood!" The miriads of the partially ravaged city rejoiced, chanting Luna's name over and over.

"Huh? What was that?" Cyro overheard the chanting from outside the ship as he laid down in his bed, receiving treatment from Raiel in the lower levels of The Red Koi, who used her magic to mend the lacerations on his body.

"We won the battle..." Raiel said as a wide grin stretched across her face and an overwhelming feeling of bliss washed over her. "Mystwood is saved."

"What now...?" Spike asked as he laid in the adjacent bed.

"We win the war," Winslow said, sitting down on a chest nearby with numerous bandages on his head and chest.

"What do you mean, Winslow?" Asked Fluttershy, who was tending to his bandages.

"This is far from over," Winslow stated with a grunt to his voice; the wounds on his chest made it difficult to speak. "Luna must retrieve the Eclipse Blade from Fortnight Tower."

Author's Notes:

This is just a small battle compared to the one that draws near in Caven Isle! Alptraum is gathering the strength of the changeling forces! Be prepared for the final showdown to decide the fate of Equestria and the Blacklands as we know it!

I hope you enjoyed! See you in the next chapter!