Author's Notes:

A/N: Sorry for taking so long. I and my coauthor had to work on a lot of different things. So many new stories. So many new chapters. So many now dead stories. But don't worry, we are going to still be working on a lot of things still to come and some of these stories will still go on.

"Are you kidding me? We still haven't found them?!" Sky nearly yells.

"I'm sorry Overlord. They seem to have gone into hiding." A messenger says as he stayed bowing down and trembles as the shadow grows behind Sky.

"You know, it doesn't help yelling at the messengers." Applejack reminds, distracting Sky.

"But it does make me feel better." Sky counters turning to her angrily.

"Leave. I will talk to the Overlord." Daring says.

"Yes, my lady." The messenger says before running off and shutting the door behind him.

"Sky, sit." Daring instructs as Applejack locks the door behind the messenger.

Sky grumbles as he sits on his throne. "We have to find them. Otherwise…"

"Shut up." Daring says tired of his attitude.

"Yes, love." Sky says defeated.

Applejack sighs as she walks back to him. "You are running around ragged."

"They are a threat. That is why." Sky says.

"Well, you need to calm down. Otherwise, you can't stop them." Daring warns.

"We have to have overlooked something." Sky says going back to the maps.

"And that is?" Applejack asks.

"I don't know." Sky says.

"So we need to overlook something, but we don't know what?" Daring asks raising an eyebrow.

"Yes…wait." Sky says looking between six maps.

"What is it?" Applejack asks leaning over the table with him.

"Why is there a location on the oldest one that isn't on the others?" Sky asks.

Applejack hums as she looks at where he is looking. "Oh. That place. The Castle of Lark. Pun name the two archmage's came up for young students to learn basic magic before all this fighting happened." Applejack says writing the name on the blank symbol.

"Tell me, what is the reputation of this castle?" Sky asks.

"It was said to be impenetrable, but after a while nopony tried to seize it through normal means and just starved those who took it as it's the biggest flaw is incredibly hard to resupply under a siege." Applejack informs.

"This is it!" Sky declares.

"What is?!" Daring asks taken back from his outburst.

"This is where they are. It is out of the way and very defensible." Sky says.

"Okay…so attack it or rather surround them?" Applejack asks ready to tell the others.

"Applejack, get Knight captains Dinbor and Desmer. We are going to head there now." Sky instructs.

"Yes, sir." Applejack says walking away smiling a bit.

"Daring, please keep those three from fighting. I want to build a good capital here." Sky requests.

Daring sighs. "Might as well." She says walking off.

"And show them their place on the ladder." Sky says jokingly.

"Have sex, got it." Daring says back with a smirk.

"I meant with words as you have a daughter to take care of." Sky reminds.

Daring chuckles. "Yeah, yeah."

"Isn't that right?" Sky says leaning down to a foal on the floor.

Hazy babbles and reaches up to him.

"Alright." Sky says picking her up.

"Make sure she doesn't wander off." Daring calls.

"Hey. I am about to leave and our daughter can't walk yet." Sky calls.

"Fine. I'll take her." Daring says coming back and taking her.

"You be good for your mom, ok?" Sky asks.

Hazy babbles at him, smiles, and coos.

"She has a way with words like her golden mother." Sky teases.

"Shut up." Daring says carrying Hazy off.

"Time to go." Sky says putting on his helmet before heading out.

A few weeks later, Sky and an army of thirty thousand were outside the castle of Lark in the Reggio fief. The first thing everyone noticed was several bodies on the ground from what looked like a battle, but all of them were knights.

"Huh. Applejack!" Sky calls.

"I know. These are all from the knight orders of Libya." Applejack says after riding up.

Sky sighs. "Might as well give a burial and then this." He says looking up the large castle.

"Sky, you're angry." Applejack says.

"I am at those idiots in there." Sky says before Celebrimbor starts moving up.

"Sky?" Applejack calls warningly.

Sky frowns as Celebrimbor growls lowly. "Knights!" He calls and grabs the attention of the remaining knights. "I must say. I am…" He huffs. "Disappointed!" He yells as Celebrimbor stomps the ground heavily, shaking them all. "You thought, you could get far like this?! Old tactics?!" He calls looking to them. "Well? One of you answer!" He orders and a knight steps forward.

"Sir…we…" The knight starts.

"Failed! I am surprised you are not dead!" Sky yells at him and gets off Celebrimbor and walks toward him. "If you stuck to the planning of any kind and your duty, you wouldn't have been in this situation!" He yells pointing a hoof to the graves now being dug. "I am not satisfied that you abandoned your duty and fled here and then from the looks of it, you couldn't even cooperate and started fighting!" He yells now walking around. "What do you have to say to the families that lost their knights? Tell me!" He yells at them all and they slowly put their heads down. "That's right!" Sky yells before stopping and sighing as he calms down. "The strong sharpened their spears and swords." He says and catches everyone's attention at that. "But the weak sharpen their minds. You are all weak!" He calls before huffing and shaking his head as he climbs back onto Celebrimbor. "To the back of the army! The lot of ya! I'm going to straighten all your knight orders out!" He orders the knights that should have been his enemies.

The knights, too worn down from fighting each other, complied and started falling in.

"Applejack." Sky calls.

"Yes?" Applejack asks carefully.

"Send word we are going to renovate this castle. Get it usable again." Sky says.

Applejack nods. "Anything else?"

"When it is finished, it will be the headquarters for all the orders in my territory." Sky informs.

Applejack nods and smiles at that. "Thanks for talking sense into them." She says before riding off.

"Oh ho. I am not done just waiting for all the other knight order commanders to keep yelling at them." Sky informs.

Applejack grins. "And that's a good leader."

"Now have most of the knights we brought to hold this location so bandit and outlaws don't move in while we are away." Sky says.

"Got it." Applejack calls over her shoulder.

'And later tonight, you and me in my tent.' Sky thinks as he smirks under his helmet.

"Okay. Not appropriate Sky." Applejack says in a dress that looked like two pieces of linens stitched together and wrapped around her that had flower patterns on it.

"How so?" Sky asks smirking.

Applejack frowns to him. "It's too roomy."

"I don't think you will complain when we sleep with each other." Sky says.

Applejack rolls her eyes. "Right. Again."

"Oh, don't be like that my little knighty wify." Sky teases.

Applejack just gives him a blank look at that.

"What?" Sky asks.

"Knighty wify?" Applejack asks crossing her forelegs.

"What? It's cute." Sky says smirking.

"No, it's not." Applejack argued as she kept the stance.

"Yes, it is." Sky says walking up.

"No, it's not." Applejack kept up.

"Yes, it is." Sky says before starting to tickle her.

Applejack starts to giggle. "No…it's not." She laughs trying to get away.

"You say that, but you are laughing." Sky says not letting her catch her breathe.

"No…I'm not." She laughs trying to crawl away.

"Nope, come on now." Sky says before kissing her.

"Stop." Applejack laughs trying to push his head away.

"Nope." Sky says before continuing.

Applejack's giggles start to lessen. "Stop." She says smiling as she kept trying to push his head away.

"Oh, come on Jackie. Why are you so resistant now?" Sky asks.

Applejack kept his head away. "Because I need space."

"Come on." Sky says petting her.

Applejack knocks his hoof away. "Stop it. I need my space and stop pulling my dress apart." She accuses pulling on her dress and keeps it together.

"Alright, but you have to make it up to me." Sky informs.

Applejack sighs. "Fine. But we are very busy for a bit because of all this."

"Oh, looking to be promoted?" Sky asks smirking.

Applejack pushes his head side at that as she gets up and goes to the bed.

"Alright, we will sleep for now. Permission to hold?" Sky asks.

"Don't undo my clothes." Applejack says getting under the covers.

Sky smiles as he climbs in as well and just holds her.

Applejack sighs as she snuggles into him. "So…what are we going to do next?"

"We need to consolidate the Libya front now. Many new forts will be built along the border as a deterrent to those seeking to attack us." Sky informs.

"I see. At least we are building up again." Applejack says closing her eyes.

"Though quite a bit of our armies will be concentrated there. The rest will be heading to aid Cadance and push further into Celtica or be reserved to the northeast to start our conquest of Belgium." Sky says.

"We are going to do many things now." Applejack says nuzzling him slightly.

"Yes, we have far more pony power and the things we can export has grown so now we can enter talks with the republic of Griffonstone. I want them to start seeing me as the head of this country. Not hoards of feuding fiefdoms like it have been for so long." Sky says.

Applejack moans as she covers her head with the blankets. "Yeah. Sure."

"So when are we going to try for a foal?" Sky asks dropping the bomb.

"When are you going to have sex with me in my sleep then?" Applejack asks as she starts to fall asleep.

"I'm serious Applejack." Sky says putting her head into the crook of his neck.

Applejack moans as she nuzzles his neck. "Soon. I don't want to here out here."

"Alright, rest well." Sky instructs wrapping his wing around her.

Applejack moans as she falls asleep.

"Orders from the Overlord." A crier says as proclamations are nailed to the notice boards.

"What's this about?" A passerby asks looking to it.

The crier started reading off the proclamations that were issued in all of the rest of Sky's territory until he came to a new one. "The Overlord is looking for workers to build a capital for the providence of Libya to act as center of the providence, the castle of Lark as headquarters for the knight orders, and to start building forts along the southern border to defend against the southerns, watching with hungry eyes to come north and trample our fields, pillage our lands, and defile our spouses, siblings, and parents with their greed and lust. All those who join to become, soldier or builder shall also be paid for their service." The crier calls.

Everyone nearby starts to talk to each other at that point before going to the nearest guard station for join in.

"Well…this is handy." Twilight says reading the proclamation after coming back from her visit to her sister. "Now he's making a line."

"Um…I see. So you don't plan to head south yet then." Celestia says reading it.

Twilight nods. "Don't you need me here? I can fight."

"But for who Twilight?" Celestia asks.

Twilight blinks confused at that. "What? You of course. We will be fighting soon."

"But if you fight this overlord, you will also be fighting your family." Celestia reminds.

Twilight stops and looks away slowly. "I…never thought about that."

"The same goes for me. My sister has told us she is siding with him. I think I finally understand why she is doing this." Celestia says.

"What is it?" Twilight asks, hopeful she doesn't have to fight her own family.

"She must truly think he has a shot at truly uniting all and creating a true country." Celestia says.

"Weren't we before all this?" Twilight asks knowing the history.

"No. You see, we had a chance for that, but the three great ancestors went their separate ways instead of uniting. Ironically, his efforts have united two of their three house in marriage now." Celestia says.

Twilight looks down. "So…he's the only chance we have?"

"No. Many have attempted this in the past. He is just been the most successful so far." Celestia informs.

"So then…he can fail like all the rest?" Twilight asks walking over.

"Yes. In fact, now he is becoming the greatest threat to all of the rest. He has eclipsed them all in power and wealth now with all his territory. When he just had Gual and the tribes under his command, they mostly saw him as somepony else's problem." Celestia says.

"Will we be hurt by this?" Twilight asks standing by her.

"I am unsure as he is still far away from them." Celestia says.

Twilight looks worried at that point. "And what would happen to us?"

"Either the surrounding lords will band together and pressure us to join them or he arrives on our front door." Celestia says.

Twilight completely looks down now. "Archmage Celestia?"

"Yes?" Celestia asks.

Twilight gulps fearfully. "Will either of us be hurt in this?"

"I cannot say. Things are changing drastically. I think if you pardon the term, we are starting to enter the twilight of this age of war and chaos. One way or another, as even if he falls, many will still try and aspire to what he did and beyond seeing it is possible." Celestia says.

Twilight slowly nods. "Celestia?"

"That is why I am sending you to his court as an advisor." Celestia adds.

Twilight looks shocked at this now. "Celestia!"

"I need somepony to be my eyes there Twilight. All I hear is rumor and no legitimate sources of news. I want you there to judge him in person and learn what he is up to and what kind of pony he is." Celestia informs.

"But I want to know you more." Twilight admits before covering her mouth, blushing.

"That is flattering Twilight, but I am sorry. I don't trot that way." Celestia informs smiling motherly.

Twilight blushes even more. "Oh…I uh…I should be…" She stutters, not knowing what to do now.

"Go pack Twilight." Celestia informs.

Twilight slowly nods as she kept looking away. "I'm uh…sorry." She says before running off.

Sky sat in his war room in the newly completed capital of Gual providence Prance. "Now what is my next move? Do I focus on heading east and start my campaign into Belgica or west back into Celtica and move further in it?" Sky asks thinking on the matter hard.

"It's a tough one." Daring says holding and rocking Hazy.

"Both have pros and cons. If I head east, it will be a much longer campaign, but I will gain more territory if I conquer it all and from there, I will start really developing the navy which will come in very handy down the line, but like I said before, that campaign will be long and take a greater toll on our resources and budget, but if I can take Belgica and Carthaginensis then that will reduce the current fronts from three to two. If I head west, though, the campaign would most likely be shorter and easier and by bordering the republic of Griffonstone, it will be an easier time as it will make it where we only fight as we will be able to take them as the fear of changeling is still strong within their minds, but if I take it, then the western front will grow around five times bigger and we will need to have trade routes made overland and have to build fortifications along the new front." Sky says thinking hard.

"Such is the life of a leader." Daring says smiling.

"Also, tell me, how goes the obtaining of superior wildebeest in Libya?" Sky asks.

"Fluttershy is working on it now. She last reported that they have twenty now and are now working on a hundred." Daring says before sighing. "She also says she wants to be with you again."

"I know. She is my wife after all. So tell me, isn't the next generation of Salamander riders going to be ready soon?" Sky asks.

Daring nods. "Yes. They should be ready soon. Maybe a few more days." She says before a few knocks came to the door. "Come in." She says as she cradles Hazy closer and sees the door open to let, "Professor Twilight." Sky says grinning.

"Huh?" Zora asks.

Sky points to the approaching unicorn. "One of the masters of Archmage Celestia's professors. I have been expecting somepony from your school. What complaint do you have this time?" Sky asks.

Twilight frowns. "I have come personally to stop you and make sure you cease and desist."

"Raven, Zora, please remove her." Sky requests going back to planning.

"And Celestia sent me." Twilight says almost growling.

"Raven, Zora, if you please." Sky requests again.

Twilight struggles as she tries to throw off Raven and Zora's grip. "Celestia sent me to be part of your court and become an advisor!" She yells desperately.

"Hold." Sky calls.

Both Raven and Zora stop and look at each other as they held onto Twilight.

"Repeat and don't do so angrily." Sky says.

Twilight frowns and shakes them off as she steps up again. "Archmage Celestia has ordered me to become your advisor."

Sky is silent as he thinks.

"Throw her out?" Zora asks grabbing Twilight.

"Alright. If you are going to be my advisor, then advise me. Which to invade next Belgica or go further in Celtica?" Sky asks.

"You're better off going after the griffons. Plus, you already have forts being built along parts of the border. You already took out one large area from what I understand in the tribes. Besides, it's better to take out one whole than many over years to come." Twilight says frowning a bit and hating that she has to go through this.

"Oh, I am not going after them." Sky says.

"Huh?" Twilight asks.

"They are their own country with their own culture, a central government, and everything…so, no need." Sky explains.

Twilight blinks confused. "But…don't want you to conquer everything?"

"No. I want to end this age of war and chaos. In fact, we currently have a few representatives to them to talk." Sky says.

Twilight is stunned now and couldn't say much.

"Speaking of which, have we heard back from them yet?" Sky asks.

"Nothing yet Sky." Raven says watching Twilight carefully.

Sky motions her to come to him.

Raven pushes Twilight forward and Twilight stumbles and glares at her before walking to Sky. "What?"

"I meant you, my wife." Sky says.

Raven pushes past Twilight and goes right up next to him. "Yes?"

"Relax." Sky says stroking her mane.

Raven purrs and nuzzles his hoof. "That feels good."

"So what do all of you think about heading west?" Sky asks.

"Sounds good." Raven says smiling as she purrs.

"Very well then. I will head down south to inspect the southern border of Libya before heading to Celtica." Sky says.

Raven kept purring under his petting as Twilight tried to understand why she would like it.

"Now Zora, since you seem to know her, you can explain how things work around here." Sky says.

Zora nods and leads Twilight away.

"Keep an eye on her." Sky whispers to Raven.

Raven nods and walks off in another direction.

"Now then, where is little Hazy?" Sky asks looking to the bundle of blankets.

Hazy coos and pops her head out of the blankets and reaches for him.

"Hey, there my little girl." Sky says picking her up. "So Daring, remind me, what is Flitter and Harmonic doing?" Sky asks.

"Flitter is resting up. Harmonic is sleeping with her just on her stomach." Daring says looking over a map.

"Where is Silk Armor and his mother Mint?" Sky asks.

"Busy cooking. But she is giving most of the food to him." Daring said smiling.

"White and my first born?" Sky asks.

"They are in the library. And he's sleeping on a book." Daring says giggling.

"Ok, first, how do you know that?" Sky asks.

"Because she made a small spell and sent the message to me." Daring says proudly.

"…ok then. Now my first wife and our daughter Precious is at Alastine." Sky says thinking.

"Yes. She is and watching over it." Daring says nodding.

"And how have the increase in builders helping with your projects?" Sky asks.

"We are able to finish things faster now. Most of the major towns and cities are finished." Daring says proudly.

"That is good. Now the report for Libya and the two fiefs in Celtica?" Sky asks.

"We have started work." Daring bashfully offers.

"Ah. Good. Now I need the report on you." Sky says smirking.

"Well, can it be later?" Daring asks blushing.

Sky grins. "Sure. Take your foal and rest up. It's been a long day."

"Come on Hazy." Daring says quickly.

"Also looking forward to having more foals with you." Sky comments smirking.

Daring pushes his shoulder as she takes Hazy and leaves as Hazy waves goodbye at him, making him wave back.