Author's Notes:

It hasn't been even a month, yay! I hope you enjoy this chapter.

The army of the undead. No morals, no fears, no hesitation, no mercy, no emotions. One would say that such an army is perfect. Obedient, it would never go against you, it would never run away from battles. Expendable, such an army could be lost entirely without damage to the country it's fighting for. Not to mention that refilling it did not require propaganda or forced conscription. All you need is a graveyard or two and you would have plenty of units. Dead bones are brittle but if they could use armor and weapons, they would be unstoppable, striking fear into the bravest warriors, for the undead knew no fear. They marched on like an unstoppable and immortal force, striking down enemies in their path.

Many would say that using the dead was immoral. And it was, for the dead are dear to many people who are still alive. Long dead, they still lived in the beating hearts and minds of the living, just a memory of someone who once walked the earth along with them. But now, they are just a pile of bones, rotting flesh eaten by worms, and nothing remains inside them that would make them who they were before death. One must also remember that unearthing the graves is universally forbidden and the punishment for it may be severe. It is desecration, and the living care very much about their symbols and memories, no matter what.

Perhaps, a wiser choice would be to use the undead despite the questionable morals of doing so. Countless lives could be spared from the horrors of war and battle, assuring the safety by being the first line of defense. Not to mention that such an army doesn't require much logistics. They do not need to sleep, drink, or eat. They do not need entertainment to keep the spirits up. They would not grow bored and do anything stupid. Using the army of the undead is much more practical and cost-efficient, not to mention that it is, surprisingly, a good thing from the moral perspective. No one needs to die for the cause they might not even believe in. They would continue with their lives, raising children, prospering, never knowing what the war is, never knowing death, for the death is on their side.

Such thoughts troubled Luna's mind ever since she became Arantir's student. The forbidden art of necromancy was frowned upon and relentlessly erased from history and existence. Her sister Celestia was adamant about it, but now both of them had to face the reality — they need to use the undead. After centuries of peace, ponies forgot what it is to fight to the death. Of course, they were now taught how to fight, but how many ponies would be able to raise their swords in the time of danger? Out of fight or flight, would they choose the former... or the latter? Both princesses were inclined to believe that it would be the latter. They couldn't blame ponies for it — they were softened by the age of peace, war would be the last thing any of them would think about.

However, the danger loomed over the horizon. The griffons were out there, waging a war against ponies. They could be anywhere, and both princesses had already gotten the news from Andromalius — there were spy cells in all major Equestrian cities. What would they do? Assassinations, terrorism? Those were just two things they could be planning or already doing, and it left a dark feeling in the minds of the Royal Sisters. Would they be quick enough to prevent the horrors from happening or would ponies feel the strike first? Perhaps, even if some ponies were killed, they would be revived, brought back to life, but it was unknown how such a thing would influence them. After all, death was never something to be shrugged off.

Princess Luna stood on one of the highest buildings in Trottingham, the wind blowing her mane and rustling her fur. The sky and the horizon were clear, and yet certain tension was in the air, she could feel it. Perhaps, the griffons were planning an attack. So far, the spies hadn't reported anything out of ordinary from the other side of the strait dividing Equestria and the Griffon Empire. The griffons were waiting, perhaps, but nothing could be said for certain. To infiltrate their ranks, one would need to be a griffon, and finding one loyal to Equestria was a challenge on its own.

Erich was one of the griffons who was not hostile towards ponies, at least on the surface. However, he didn't want to go against his own countrymen. Luna could see how much it pained him to leave his friends, possibly his family in search for answers and truth. It was understandable that he would not wish to harm them, even if it was indirect. After all, he didn't know what the Equestrian Army planned for his country.

"Your majesty?" a voice from behind called Luna.

"Yes, what is it?" she turned around, facing her general Midnight Hour. "Any news?"

"Nothing yet, your majesty," the mare shook her head. "I came here to ask... Are you alright, princess?"

"Well..." Luna let out a soft sigh. "I do not think any of us would be alright until the war ends," she admitted honestly. "Lives were not lost yet, but I fear that my own efforts would not be enough to prevent blood of ponies from being spilled."

"I believe we can do that, your majesty," Midnight Hour assured her. "We must be strong for our country and we will prevail."

"I am glad you have such confidence, general," the alicorn made a small smile. "You have great will inside you, do not let anyone take it away."

"I will not, your majesty," the mare bowed, assuring Luna. "Confidence is the half of success. Actions are the second half."

"Very true," Luna nodded. "Carry on, general," she looked at the sky again, "I need to have some time to think."

Called from the Union by Celestia, Andromalius had to travel to Canterlot. However, it was done in complete secrecy, away from the prying eyes of curious ponies or cunning spies. Once he arrived at the castle, he was led by members of the Secret Service to the halls of the castle he had not seen before. They lacked decor or windows and were deep underground, going into the mountain on which Canterlot stood. They had to pass many checkpoints, at one point, Royal Guards were replaced by more members of the Secret Service. To his great surprise, Andromalius found a working lift, which was easily the size of a modern tank or two. Of course, Equestria didn't have tanks, so why would they need such a lift?

Nearby, Celestia stood, her expression serious and her thoughts focused on something. Once she noticed Andromalius, she nodded to the guards, who proceeded to unlock the lift and allow both rulers to enter.

"As you have already guessed, this is a secret facility, Andromalius," the princess explained as the two entered the lift and began their descent. "I decided to move the development of the new cannons here for the sake of preserving them. We must not allow them to be captured or else we will have to face them in battle," she almost shuddered. "The reports I've seen... The working prototypes are doing well. Very well, in fact."

"A working prototype in such short notice? That's impressive," Andromalius raised a brow. "I expected that it would take a month at the very least."

"Fortunately, you described the new system rather well, and so it didn't take long for our best engineers to come up with something that would work," Celestia replied. "I was surprised, too. Especially considering that those cannons are a huge step forward," she summoned two pieces of paper. "Look at this. This is the spread at one kilometer. The old cannons, as you can see, are not very precise at that distance," she pointed at one of the pictures and then shifted to the second. "But this, however... This is impressive. Especially with... rifling, I believe?" she asked, and Andromalius nodded. "So, today, you will take a look and say if anything can be improved."

"I'm not a gun expert, but I'll see what I can do," the hell stallion nodded.

The rest of the trip was spent in silence as the lift went down for what seemed like a small eternity. Once it was all the way on the bottom, the doors opened, allowing the two to exit. They walked through a long hall, their steps echoing, and it was the only sound present aside from their breath. Andromalius knew that they were deep beneath Canterlot, and the whole mountain was on top of them. He could almost feel the pressure of the stone, and there was definitely a certain mental pressure he couldn't quite understand. Everything was too... empty. Soon, the two came to large metallic doors with two members of the Secret Service standing guard. Their armor was just like the hall, plain and entirely practical with nothing decorative.

"Password?" one of them asked, his voice seemingly devoid of emotions.

"Pe'r qen'tek ar'ker fuab'or," Celestia said with her horn glowing. The guards nodded and the door began to slide to the side, opening almost completely silently. The grinding of the steel against the polished floor could barely be heard, and yet it was the loudest noise present in the hall.

"I didn't understand any of it," Andromalius admitted. "I don't think I can even remember it... Per... kent..." he shook his head. "No, I can't repeat it."

"That is exactly the point," the princess said, nodding. "You need something more than knowing these words, too. However, I will not reveal it to you. The fewer people know the password, the better."

"I understand," the hell stallion nodded, his mind still wondering about the meaning of the password, provided it had one in the first place.

Soon, the door fully opened, allowing Celestia and Andromalius to enter a chamber with another door of the same size in front of them. The Demon Lord glanced at the first door, noticing its impressive thickness, as well as some glowing runes that were obscured when the door was closed. Once the two were inside the chamber, the first door closed and locked. Andromalis was not claustrophobic but even he felt something about being in a relatively small chamber with no way out. He looked at Celestia and noticed that she was calm. Even if she felt what he did, she didn't show it. Soon, the second door finally opened. It revealed a vast artificial cavern, which seemed to be made entirely of concrete or something similar. Bright lamps were on the ceiling, successfully lighting the space around them, allowing no shadows.

"This site was made long ago, and each ruler reinforced it with something of their own," Celestia said. "No one really knows when it was built, but even if we knew it, we would never know how to destroy it. It seems the first rulers of Equestria thought everything out, and even during times of peace, this facility would still be present, waiting for the time when it is needed."

"Welcome, your majesty!" a pony suddenly appeared in the view. It was a regular-looking stallion, wearing a worker's suit and a pair of goggles. "We were expecting your arrival. The demonstration is ready."

"Very well, let's proceed, then," the princess nodded, and the two followed the stallion to a cannon.

"Load it up!" the stallion commanded, and two other ponies began to work. The breech was unlocked, a huge cartridge was placed inside the chamber, and then the breech was returned to its place and securely locked with a turn of a lever in the back of the cannon. "In three! Two! One!" a small pause ensued. "Fire!"

Violently booming, the cannon shot, launching the projective deep into the cavern. In the moment of firing, a magical shield made itself visible, suppressing most of the sound. The cavern shook slightly, dust falling from the ceiling. After a long moment, the sound of the impact reached the ponies, rumbling through the ground.

"Here, your majesty," the same stallion approached the princess, this time having a pair of binoculars. Celestia took them and looked at the place of impact. Her eyes widened as she blinked. Without a word, she passed the binoculars to Andromalius.

Far away, a small structure stood, resembling a fort. Not a fort anymore but ruins, barely visible under clouds of dust raised by the impact.

"That is... impressive," Andromalius said. "I'm no expert on cannons, but I believe this cannon will be very useful in battle," he turned to the cannon, only to see it hidden behind a huge cloud of smoke. "Alright, I see that there is at least one problem..."

"Visibility after the shot is a problem, yes," the stallion said, nodding. "And the fouling sometimes makes it hard to open the breech. Right now, we're hoping to come up with a solution, but I think it's due to the relative complexity of the cannon. Cleaning it is pretty difficult, that much I can say."

"I believe I know the solution," the hell stallion said. "You're using what I know as 'black powder'. It's not very efficient and creates many problems. However, I do know that better gunpowder can be made. Almost completely smokeless, and it won't wear down on the barrel as much. It would also generate higher pressure, allowing smaller projectiles to be launched with greater efficiency. At least that's what I remember."

"Do you happen to know the formula of the said gunpowder?" the stallion asked with interest.

"I don't think I do, but..." Andromalius tapped his chin. "I think it involves nitro... nitro something. I think it might be nitroglycerine or nitro... nitro..." he tapped his forehead this time. "Mhhh... Nitro... nitrocellulose!" he raised his hoof. "Right, that should be one of the components. Either of the two, probably. There are more, most likely, but that's what I know," he let out a sigh. His father would be very helpful at the moment. But perhaps ponies would figure out the formula by themselves, considering that humans managed to do it in their own time.

"Alright, got it," the stallion nodded. "We'll get right to it and report the results as soon as there are any."

Celestia looked at Andromalius with something in her eyes that told him that she, while understanding the need for such a development, was against it. He remembered quite well how she disliked weapons, fearing that they would cause way more harm to her beloved ponies. She might be right, but the war is war, and it allowed no peace until its end.

Andromalius sighed silently. This war could spark the development of arms not seen before, just like the World Wars of humanity did. He remembered what came out of them: chemical weapons, nuclear weapons, and other efficient methods of killing a large number of humans, no matter if they were civilians or soldiers. The consequences were felt to this day and would continue to haunt the humanity possibly to the end of times. After all, peace was ensured by the fact that major countries had nuclear weapons, which could erase most if not all of humanity in a matter of hours.

Hoping for the better, Andromalius feared the worst. If the war continued for too long, the consequences might be devastating to everyone, and far worse than they initially would be. His involvement in the conflict would certainly bring something, he just had to wait for it to reveal itself.