Clover the Clever tricked war goddess Celestia out of a coup attempt. Now she's traded the sun to woo him, and he faces a bleak prophecy: if he's brave and clever enough, he just might survive her affection for long enough to break her heart.
In early Equestria, the pegasi cling to their traditions. Seeking a father for her foal for one of those traditions leads Pansy to consider her true feelings for Commander Hurricane, but she finds his emotions protected by armor nopony has pierced.
On the day of Equestria's first Winter Wrap-Up, the pegasus once known as Private Pansy – now promoted to Captain Pansy – leaves the celebrations early to face her former commander. Who is now in prison.
The pegasi that founded Equestria have a dark past, a past steeped in war and a fight for the survival of their very race, and one that Commander Hurricane played a key role in.
A newly researched contraption allows Rainbow Dash to travel to the past, more specifically inside the mind of the greatest military general that ever lived: Commander Hurricane.