//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2 
// Story: The Death of Equestria 
// by Starlight Comet 
//------------------------------//

As she walked along the corridors of the castle, Luna listened carefully for any noises.  When she was sure that the only ones awake were herself and the few guards who were loyal to her, she summoned one of them to her balcony.  "Sir Nightshade," she began, "bring your men here.  We have to complete a very important mission tonight before the sun comes up."

"Yes, Princess Luna." Nightshade said as he bowed.  As he flew away, Luna began to have doubts about what she was about to do.  The last time she disobeyed her sister, she was stuck on the moon for 1,000 years.

"No," she thought, "Celestia has to realize that I am not going to live in her shadow anymore.  It's time somepony does something good for her citizens."  Suddenly, she heard the flapping of a thousand bat wings.  She looked to the sky and saw Nightshade with five hundred soldiers, all ready and willing to serve her.  "Colts," Luna began, "you are here tonight to carry out a mission of great importance.  Many of the ponies of Equestria feel that Celestia is too controlling and wish to govern themselves.  However, my sister is too stubborn to change her ways; that is the focus of this mission.  Tonight, we will raise a new kingdom; one that will let ponies govern themselves and themselves alone.  Tonight, we will show my sister that the citizens of Equestria will not be silenced, that they have a say in governmental matters.  LET US FLY!!"  At this, the bat ponies cheered their approval and followed Luna into the night towards a new kingdom.





After 2 hours of searching, Luna spotted a valley about one hundred miles from Canterlot.  It had a running stream, plenty of trees, and abundant vegetation.  "This is perfect." she thought.  She motioned for her guards to fly down to the ground.  When they landed, Luna walked over to an open area in the valley.  When she arrived at the center, her horn started to glow brightly.  As she concentrated her magic, stone walls shot out of the ground and began to connect together.

While Luna was working, Nightshade order the other bat ponies to start constructing buildings for the new town.  Unicorns and pegasi alike started gathering stones and straw to build a town hall, a mill, several fruit stands, and a school house.  After three hours of strenuous labor, the town was complete and Luna had constructed a vast castle that was as black as night.  As Luna stepped back and smiled at the work that had been accomplished, Nightshade asked, "What shall we call this kingdom, Princess Luna?"

After thinking for a moment, Luna replied, "We shall call it....The Lunar Republic.  Now we must leave before my sister finds out I'm missing."





What Luna and the bat ponies didn't realize was that while they were working, a lone pony was watching them from the top of one of the mountains surrounding the valley.  When he saw what was going on,  he was in disbelief.  "I must inform Princess Celestia of this." he thought to himself.  As he flew back to Canterlot, however, he had no idea that he would soon be planting the seeds of trouble not just for Canterlot, but for all of Equestria.





"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

The sound of his mother's yelling started Starlight so much that he fell out of bed and landed on top of his head.  Swearing under his breath and massaging his head, he wondered what all the commotion was about.  He looked at his clock and saw that it was 8:30 in the morning.  "What was she yelling about?" he wondered.  Almost immediately, Starlight's bedroom door opened to reveal Raven, Princess Celestia's assistant.  Judging from the look on her face, Starlight knew that something was wrong.

"Prince Starlight," Raven said, "Princess Celestia has asked for your attendance on an important matter.  She said that I am to take you to the throne room and bring you up to speed on what has just happened."  Nodding his head, Starlight left his room and began to walk toward the throne room alongside Raven.

Starlight began their conversation by asking "What has made my mother so upset?  Has a new threat emerged in Equestria?"

"Not entirely," Raven responded nervously, "it appears that Princess Luna went against your mother's wishes and established a new kingdom somewhere in Equestria overnight.  She has called it the Lunar Republic.  We have already heard reports that the ponies from Cloudsdale and half of Ponyville have found residence in the kingdom.  And not just ponies, but griffins, buffalo....."

Starlight's thoughts, however, drowned out the rest of Raven's words.  He could not believe what he was hearing: Luna had disobeyed Celestia once more!  "This could mean war!" he thought.  He knew that this would happen eventually; the ponies of Equestria wouldn't stand for their rights being controlled by one pony only and not having any representation.  And yet, it was dangerous to place a majority of the power into the state and local governments because the federal government could impose very little on it's citizens.  There was only one form of government that could work, but he dared not share it with either his mother or his aunt.

"Here we are."  Raven's words snapped Starlight back to reality and he saw that they were standing in front of the doors to the throne room.  "You should probably go in," Raven said nervously, "good luck."  Gulping in his throat, Starlight turned the knob and opened the door, fearing what would await inside the throne room.