Dan Vs. The Price of Peace Pt. 2 · 12:53am Jun 3rd, 2020
So, the Rebels and the Imps had a battle that didn't go over very well. This was a time in the war, the Galactic Civil War, where these two enemies new each other pretty well, and hated each other just as much. The commanders on both sides knew the way things were and had a good idea of how things would go. Even war is something that can become routine after awhile and the attitude of 'business as usual' comes in. It's terrible, but the consumption of life can become as easy as anything else.
These two combatants got to know each other. They knew, for the most, what the other side would do, how many troops and fighters and tanks they would deploy, what kinds of weapons they would use. For the Empire, their loyalty to the Emperor was everything, so most of them would not surrender or change tactics, again, for the most part. The Rebels have the cause, the Empire has their loyalty so they were going to conflict and this battle would just be one of many. Winning it for either side was important, and someone has to lose.
The problem is, victory has a price. Sometimes, it's not worth it. This was the first real time the Rebels and Imperials realized the effect they were having on the greater galaxy. An entire solar system was devastated, millions of innocent people died from one battle. It pales in comparison to the destruction of Alderaan and the Death Star, which were considered to be devastating losses by their respective sides. For the Rebels, it was a revelation that their own actions could have major consequences and for the Empire, it demonstrated a needless loss of resources.
No matter how mundane or routine it seems, it can start having unforeseen consequences. Collateral damage like this had never been encountered on such a scale. It made both sides pause and refocus on keeping combat away from highly-populated areas. Over time, this led to an eventual ceasefire, and finally a truce between Rebellion and Empire. In contrast to the regular universe where victory was achieved by the Alliance and only led to more fighting, in this one universe, Rebels and Imperials found a lasting peace.
The question is, how?
Equestria's involvement, just its existence was enough to influence events. The planet exists in area known as fringe space, an area subjected to multiple sources of immense gravity simultaneously. The constant pull and motion creates an envelope in the fabric of space and time that overlaps between dimensions. In essence, Equestria exists in a spacial hub between dimensions, able to exist simultaneously in multiple spaces at once via the shared fringe space. Equestria's own magic pours into at least six different realities at once, creating vastly altered versions of them.
What Equestria's magic did is more complicated. Despite having a will of its own, magic does not do anything on its own. It amplifies and connects things, it is a natural force of construction and order rather than destruction. Events that would've been overlooked or forgotten had a greater emotional impact, and it traveled further. Equestria's magic united hearts and minds by fostering similar feelings and emotions that crossed boundaries.
Officially, the Rebellion won the Battle of Kerris III. It lost lots of its own heroes, valiant soldiers, and so did the Empire. Many leaders on both sides were also killed in action. The Empire lost a fleet and a research facility that setback several programs important to it, and the Rebels lost an entire task force. Eventually, they relocated to Hoth, but during this era of retrenchment, they were two sides that engaged each other when and where they could. Not much thought was given to those caught in the middle, but there was usually someone.
What few Rebels and Imperials survived watched burning cities as they departed the system. Leaderless and alone, both sides retreated from the sight of carnage, the true winner of the battle. Friends, families, and for the survivors, people they looked up to, were left behind amid smoke and ash. This sentiment in other universes was eventually drowned out, but in one, Equestria turned up the volume. This sentiment echoed across the galaxy, and over time, the fire of war died. Some events, destined to happen regardless, still occurred but the overall destiny of the galaxy changed.
Equestria's magic is meant to create harmony. The Fausticorn had an idea of what that harmony looked like, and so little interpretation was left there. But how that harmony was reached was left unfinished, and so Equestria's magic usually works with what is easiest. In the end, the price of peace was simply cheaper than the cost of victory.
If Celestia had won against Chrysalis by unleashing Full Power, it would have been a Pyros victory?
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A pyre-ric victory.
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And that is why youre the Author, and Im just a reader. 🍌
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I'm thankful to have you as a reader, my friend. It's a privilege and one I hope I never take for granted.