The evening streetlights of Canterlot light up, providing visible paths for its citizens during the evening. Fancy Pants follows these lights to his home as he walks from work, the Ministry of Public Relations.
The day has been rather busy, especially since he is the minister. Ever since the protests began a week ago, his department has been working at full speed. Support for a war against the Crystal Empire has been growing, the most recent Gallop poll projected war support at 48%, fifteen points up since the memorial. It hasn't helped either that a branch of the Equestrian Military has announced their support for the protesters.
Two days after the memorial, General Black Hawk released a statement to the press complimenting the protesters. He said, "These are true citizens of Equestria who wish to see justice for the three ponies they looked up to. They know the only right course of action is a war against Sombra and his corrupt regime. It is the duty of Equestria's leaders to deliver justice, there is no avoiding it." It took only three sentences to give the minister the worst headache in recorded history.
For the past five days, he and his team have been on damage control, trying to reinforce the message that Princess will be meeting with her Royal Council of Ministers soon to develop a plan. It hasn't been easy; at every single press briefing, the question of whether the Princess would consider war has popped up a minimum of ten times a day. Unfortunately, he doesn't know if war will be considered nor what to say to the press, so he's frequently relied on a placeholder answer. "The Princess and her Council are close to delivering a response towards Sombra's aggression." He's given them the same answer so much that he sounds like a broken record. However, that position isn't entirely true.
The Princess hasn't called her ministers to work on any sort of response for Sombra. Fancy Pants is honestly surprised the Princess hasn't called the Council of Ministers together, especially after General Black Hawk, who is also the Minister of Ground Defense, released his statement. But it's likely the Princess' still mourning the loss of her niece, nephew-in-law, and student. Under normal circumstances, he would wish that the Princess either pull herself together and run the nation or temporarily give Princess Luna charge until she's fit to lead again. However, Fancy Pants does not find himself under normal circumstances.
As he walks down the dimly lit street, he notices a figure standing underneath a street light outside his house. A knot begins to form in his stomach, he knows who's waiting for him. As he nears his home, he walks up to the dark grey unicorn with a charcoal mane and tail. Her back is turned to him, he clears his throat to get her attention. She turns around and looks at him; her eyes are green with red pupils and purple smoke pouring out. A chill crawls up Fancy Pants' spin, he takes a deep breath before speaking.
"I-I-I wasn't expecting you tonight," he says, his voice shaking.
"The king demands a progress report," she says in an authoritative and monotone voice.
"Ah, I see. W-well there hasn't been much change, but I assure you, everything is well under control." He flashes her a nervous smile, hoping she's satisfied enough to leave. But her expression doesn't change, instead, she glares at him with displeasure. His smile fades away, realizing that she's not leaving.
The unicorn summons a spell from her horn and she shoots a beam at Fancy Pants. He winces, shutting his eyes and stepping back in reaction. When he opens them up, he finds himself in a black void. A plume of green and purple flames burst before him, and from the flames steps out King Sombra. Fancy Pants trembles in fear, his legs weaken as Sombra walks towards him.
Sombra looks down on the little stallion. "You haven't been honest with me," Sombra says. "The reports from my agents are telling a different tale." He begins to walk around Fancy Pants, creating an encirclement of intimidation around him. Fancy Pants' legs begin to shake as if they were the tails of rattlesnakes. "They say that the situation is getting out of hoof for you. More pro-war protests are popping up in every city. Support for a war against my kingdom is rising. If things haven't changed much since our last meeting, then why does the majority of your nation want a war?"
"Well it's really more of a plurality but--," Fancy Pants' correction is cut off when Sombra casts a sudden terror spell on him. Fancy's eyes glow lime green as he is showed images of his worse fears. The torturous imagery causes him to let out blood-curdling screams, screams that might make one think he is trapped in eternal damnation. The spell only lasts a few brief seconds, but for him, it might as well have been an eternity. He falls to the ground, gasping for every molecule of air he can breathe in. His eyes stretch wide and his brow becomes coated in sweat. He looks up at Sombra, tears beginning to drip.
Sombra glares at him as a master would glare at a disobedient dog. "Choose your next words carefully, and remember your place," Sombra scornfully warns him. "That spell was only a taste of what is to come should you decide to cross me. I chose you because of your position and the power it wields, not because of your charisma or your wit, for which you certainly lack." Fancy Pants slowly stands up and composes himself, taking in one more breath and blinking the tears away. "Now, tell me the truth!"
Fancy Pants breaths in one more time. "Your agents...are correct, your royal highness," he admits, though hesitantly. "Support for war is on the rise, the protests gain more supporters with every passing day. It also doesn't help that the Minister of Ground Defense even expressed his support for the protesters. Well, not explicitly but it certainly was phrased to be interpreted that way. I'm surprised he hasn't considered a career in politics."
"You seem to admire the minister," Sombra notes. He paces around Fancy Pants while he digests his reports. His eyes don't turn to look at Fancy but stay locked in a forward position, and his lips purse with concentration.
"On the contrary, but the war hawk does have his moments," Fancy Pants says. "Yet even at his best he still gives me headaches. My department has been on damage control ever since; everyone wants to know if Princess Celestia supports the minister, but no one has seen her since the memorial and I am hounded by the press every single day. It becomes less manageable by the minute."
Sombra softly chuckles. "Oh Tia, you have hardly changed," he mutters to himself. He stops in his pace to look at Fancy Pants, who looks down at the ground to avoid his gaze. "You need not fret about what to do, Sir Fancy, for the solution is right in front of you."
"I don't understand, your royal highness," Fancy replies.
"Then use that tiny brain your mother gave you and think," Sombra says in annoyance. "How long has it been since Equestria had a war?"
Fancy Pants tries to remember way back to his school history lessons. "If I'm correct, the last war we had was the War of the Two Sisters, when Nightmare Moon and her Thestral servants rebelled against Princess Celestia. That was well over a thousand years ago, no pony alive today has a living memory of that war."
"Precisely," Sombra says with a smirk. "A thousand years of peace, while impressive, has made your ponies arrogant of their own strength. For the past few years, all their major problems were solved with the Elements of Harmony and the Princesses. Now that the Magic Element is decommissioned, and your Princess has done little in terms of leading, they see war as the only option. It seems they have forgotten the real reason why Equestria has maintained peace with her foreign neighbors for so long, you should remind them.
Fancy Pants thinks over Sombra's advice for a minute and realizes what he is implying. He nods and says, "Yes, I will make sure to remind them tomorrow."
A sinister smile grows across Sombra's face. "Good. I will allow you to leave now, and be sure to tune into the news tomorrow morning, some of the protesters are going to turn violent tonight."
With that said, the black void and Sombra begin to dissipate around Fancy Pants and the real world returns to him. He is still standing in front of his house, underneath the streetlight, with the dark grey unicorn standing before him. It doesn't seem that much time has passed as the night sky still hangs above. Fancy Pants thanks the dark unicorn, whose eyes are now normal, and walks into his house.
As the unicorn watches Fancy enter leave, Sombra's voice mentally speaks to her. "Obsidian, gather a few of the other agents around Canterlot, we need to cause some destruction."
"Yes, your royal highness," Obsidian replies and vanishes into the dark street.
The sun rises over the horizon, ushering in a new day in Equestria. At Sweet Apple Acres, a rooster crows his loud holler to wake the residents. Applejack gets up from her bed, picks up her hat from her nightstand, puts it on, and makes her way outside the house to begin her chores before breakfast. She tends to the cows in the barn, cleans out their hay, and fills their feed and water troughs. After she's finished with that, she heads over to the chicken coop and does the same routine. Her chores tend to take her at least an hour or two. Her siblings have their own morning chores, rendering them unavailable to help. Applejack doesn't mind, as much as she loves her family, she appreciates the alone time the morning gives her. It allows her to get lost in her thoughts, something she feels is needed these days.
It's been almost two weeks since Twilight's passing and Applejack has become more and more preoccupied with her work on the farm. It's been her way of coping with what's been happening, trying to retain some semblance of normal when everything else around you is drastically changing. Two of her closest friends have died, she barely escaped that monster, and all of Equestria is ready to tear itself apart. Working on the farm and doing her daily chores are the only things keeping her sane anymore. While she would usually retreat to her friends during such chaotic times, things between the five of them haven't been the same.
She hasn't seen any of her friends since the memorial. With Twilight gone, there wasn't much holding them together. She was their lynchpin. They each went their separate ways. Like Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie retreated into their work at their respective shops. Fluttershy isolated herself in her cottage, only coming into Ponyville for the occasional supply run. Rainbow Dash moved back to Cloudsdale to continue training for the Wonderbolts. Why she continues to chase after that dream during these times is beyond Applejack.
Now, this is not to say things have grown cold between the five of them. If they see each other in the streets, they will say hello and exchange small talk, but nothing beyond that. They hardly get together anymore and conversations last no more than a few minutes. Things aren't necessarily cold, rather lukewarm. But she does miss them, and she hopes she might be able to reignite her friendship with them someday when things go back to normal.
When Applejack finishes her chores, she heads inside where she is greeted by the smells of breakfast. She walks into the kitchen to see Apple Bloom and Granny Smith cooking up a storm. Used bowls and measuring cups are scattered across the counters, eggshells and spilled milk are also found among the chaos. On the counter closest to Applejack, a hot griddle cooks four slices of bread that have been soaked in an egg, milk, and spice mixture, which sits in a bowl next to the griddle. The scrumptious smell lifts Applejack's tired spirits, even before she's had a chance to get her coffee.
"Mornin' y'all," Applejack greets them with a yawn.
"Mornin' Applejack!" Apple Bloom says in a joyfully loud voice. "We're having sourdough French toast for breakfast!"
"Smells awfully tasty," Applejack politely replies. In truth, she's grown tired of Apple Bloom's strange fixation with sourdough.
Ever since the memorial, it's been the one thing that she and her friends can't get their minds off of. At first, she thought it was just another scheme to get their cutie marks, but usually, their schemes last a few days, sometimes only half an hour, but never two weeks. Initially, Applejack didn't mind, she quite enjoyed the bread Apple Bloomed made and was quite impressed by her skill. Then she made sourdough waffles, sourdough pancakes, sourdough cookies, and sourdough brownies, so much sourdough that Applejack is now sick of it. Either this is a new phase for Apple Bloom or a strange coping mechanism to handle these chaotic times. Regardless, she hopes Apple Bloom finds something else to cook besides sourdough, preferably something with apples.
Applejack pours herself a mug of coffee and goes back into the living room. Before she sits down, she turns on the radio and tunes it to her favorite news station, EPR. She turns the knobs to set the dial to the correct number, the scratching noise of changing stations comes through the speakers. Once on the right channel, the scratching noise is replaced by the soothing professional tone of the EPR news anchor.
Live from EPR News in Canterlot, I'm your host, Cookie Roberts. Applejack takes a seat on the couch as she listens to the morning report.
The Canterlot guard were awoken early this morning when one of their stations was suddenly attacked by an unknown group of assailants. At around 3:30 this morning, between five to seven ponies attacked the station in the commercial district. At least two of the attackers were identified as unicorns and allegedly cast fire spells at the station, causing damage to the front of the building and inside the lobby. The two night guards posted out front reported to have been clubbed over the head and knocked out when the attack began. The attackers quickly dispersed once the rest of the night guard sprang into action. There have been no reported deaths or anymore reported injuries, but significant damage was done to the station and none of the attackers were apprehended.
Lieutenant Frisk of the station claims that the attackers were pro-war protesters due to several slogans belonging to the protesters painted on the undamaged walls and asphalt. At a press conference in front of the scene, the lieutenant said this to reporters: 'These protesters are cowards for having committed such heinous acts. Instead of taking their grievances directly to the Princess, they instead attack the mares and stallions that swear an oath to protect and serve the Princess and her subjects. We have heard their vicious slurs towards us and the Princess, now they have turned to violent actions. If they wish to make enemies of their own kind, they do so at their own behest.'
Applejack looks down at her coffee and gently shakes her head in disapproval. Ever since the protests began, she has felt conflicted about the whole ordeal. One the one hoof, she knows far too well how evil King Sombra is and that he needs to be brought down. He murdered her friends and enslaved all those poor Crystal Ponies, he shouldn't remain in power. On the other hoof, however, is war really the best option? If a war was to break out between their two kingdoms, her and Big Mac would most certainly be drafted, leaving the farm in the hooves of Granny and Apple Bloom. In fact, most of the soldiers that will fight will consist of draftees, barely trained, and unprepared for combat draftees. Equestria might win the numbers game, but Sombra's military could have the training and equipment to render the numbers moot.
She sips her coffee and continues to listen to the news. That same morning, the Minister of Public Relations, Fancy Pants, delivered a short speech regarding the attack and the situation with the Crystal Empire during the morning press briefing.
Robert's voice is replaced by Fancy Pants' as he delivers his statement. Harmony, that has been the key tenant behind our entire culture. Our nation symbolizes what harmony means, we are all different races of pony yet we work together to achieve greatness. But we do not just practice harmony at home, but abroad as well. We are surrounded by neighbors who are very different from us. To the west, the Deer of Olenia and the Changelings; to the far north, the Griffins of Nova Griffonia and the Yaks of Yakyakistan; to the south, the Buffalo tribes of Appleloosa and the Dragon Clans on the Isles of Dragons; and most recently, the Crystal Ponies of the Crystal Empire. I won't deny that tensions between our two nations are high.
The actions committed by their ruler, King Sombra Umber, are certainly horrific. Many feel that these actions are just cause to declare war, but Equestria has never sought war, for that is not who we are. Applejack looks up from her coffee and glares at the radio with surprise. This is the first time that she's heard the government or at least someone who represents them, take an opposing stance on this issue. When General Black Hawk praised the protesters, she thought it would only be a matter of time before war was officially declared. Now it may seem the government is just as split on this issue as the rest of the nation is.
She continues listening to the minister. Equestria has been at peace for a thousand years with her neighbors. The last war we fought was the War of the Two Sisters, our only civil war against Nightmare Moon and her minions. Since then, our master diplomats and ambassadors have found ways to keep the peace and strengthen harmony with our neighbors. Whenever there's a conflict of interest, we compromise and we work out deals. That's what we have always done and that's what we will do moving forward.
When the Royal Council of Ministers meets with Princess Celestia, she will depend on our advice, which will be cool, collected, and constructive, not hot, temperamental, and destructive. We will search for a solution that will deliver justice and avoid war. Should anypony who wishes to oppose the Princess' decision through violent means, you do so at the risk of provoking the royal guard. Thank you.
A flurry of questions from reporters follows the end of Fancy Pants' speech. Applejack turns off the radio, deciding she's heard enough news this morning, especially after what she heard. For days she was all set on awaiting the inevitable. She never put her full support behind a war but expected it to come any day, especially after General Black Hawk. Now, the future seems more uncertain. An uneasy feeling settles in her stomach and makes her slightly nauseous, she doesn't know what's going to happen now.
"Breakfast is ready!" Apple Bloom shouts from the kitchen. Applejack takes another sip of her coffee and stands up. Perhaps some breakfast will help settle her nerves.
In Celestia's study at Canterlot Castle, she rests on her rug in front of a roaring fireplace. A radio on a stand sits next to the rug, playing the EPR News, but she's not listening. Hearing her own Minister of Public Relations has caused her to fall into her thoughts. She stares into the fire, watching the flames dance and lick the brick inside, while she ponders something.
There's a knock on the door. A servant enters the study with a cart that has a covered plate of food on it. "Your breakfast is here, your royal highness," the servant announces as she enters. Celestia doesn't respond, nor does she acknowledge her presence.
The servant has grown used to it by this point. Ever since the memorial, Celestia hasn't been herself. The servant is the only pony Celestia really sees anymore, though it would be more accurate to say the servant has been the only one to see Celestia. While she would normally have more roles as the Princess's personal servant, delivering food has been all she's done these last several days. The servant wishes she could do more for her, but she knows there's only so much one can do to help someone who is mourning. At least the Princess is eating, that much the servant can make sure of.
She leaves the cart of food by Celestia and begins to leave. "Lileth," Celestia calls out to her. The servant called Lileth stops and turns around with surprise, this is the first time she's heard the Princess speak in days. Celestia stands up and turns to Lileth. "Would please send a notice to my ministers? I wish to meet with them at 1:00 today."
"Yes your royal highness," Lileth responds with a bow. "Might I ask for why you wish to meet them?"
Celestia turns back towards the fireplace and looks up at a small box that sits on the mantel. The box that holds the horns of her niece, nephew, and star student. "It's time we find answers to our problems."