The sun already hung high over central Equestria as the train pulled into the central station of the royal capital. The colorful gilded domes and spirals of the mountainside royal city glistened in the warm summer light, and her waterfalls filled her canals and ponds with cool crystalline water; cooling the regal metropolis before continuing their flow down hill. The sight was idyllic and tranquil, completely divorced from the tensions far away in the peripheries of the country. Applejack and Big MacIntosh had taken the earliest train from Ponyville, and though the ride to Canterlot wasn’t very long, they had been held up halfway through by a large army cargo train heading south, they seemed to have become a more frequent sight as of late. The relentless summer sun was bearing down on the two Apples as they got off at the platform. Applejack fidgeted with the collar of her uniform, aside from her hat the farm mare was unaccustomed to wearing clothes on a regular basis and today her officer’s garb felt more uncomfortable than usual.
“C’mon Big Mac, we are still on time, though we oughta head straight for the castle” The orange mare told her brother as she looked at the clock post in the platform.
Before the large red stallion could answer with his predictable “Eyup”, a familiar voice called to them from the entrance of the platform.
“Applejack! Over here!!” the excited pink earth pony called out bouncing towards them. She had a big grin on her face and her pink mane was curly and spunky, a sight that had sadly become rarer and rarer since the war. Besides her, Princess Twilight Sparkle walked accompanied by four armed royal guards, their golden armor gleaming in the early noon sun.
“Applejack!! Bigmac!!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed as she hugged her friends, and (maybe) distant relatives. “I missed you soooooo much! How is everypony in back home? How is Rarity?! Did you see Fluttershy? How are Mr and Mrs Cake? Did you stop by Sugar Cube Corner? You have to tell me everything!!” The pink mare excitedly rambled, not giving anypony a chance to respond.
“Pinkie, we’ll have to catch-up with Applejack later” the purple alicorn said calmly after hugging her recently arrived friend. “This meeting can’t wait, Princess Celestia is waiting for us at the castle”.
“Oh right… the meeting” Pinke responded in a deflated tone, her gaze dropping to the ground. “Let’s go.” she finally said, raising her head; her main turning back to its now more habitual long and smooth way.
The council was being held in one of the castle's grand meeting halls. The tall white walls of the room seemed to radiate in a pearly gleam in the colorful summer light that flowed in from the stained glass windows, each one depicting an event or moment in the history of the realm. As they entered the room Applejack’s fears seemed to materialize. Princess Celestia sat in a throne bearing her solar cutie mark at the opposite side of a massive marble round table, on her flanks two other thrones also bearing the cutie marks of their royal owners. At the monarch’s left sat Princess Cadance, the sovereign of the Crystal empire, a smile formed in the pink alicorn’s face as she saw her sister in law and friends come into the room. The right throne had the cutie mark of the element of magic and princess of friendship, it was empty as it waited for its owner to arrive. Around the huge stone table sat the entirety of the Equestrian government and military high command. Looking around the gathered council Applejack saw many familiar faces, Prince Blueblood, supreme commander of the Royal Equestrian Army as well as generals Soarin, Fast Clip, Whiplash among others. However three present personalities betrayed the topic of today’s discussion. Fancy Pants, the rich noble unicorn and canterlot socialite, had been serving as minister of Foreign affairs since the Civil War; his charisma and tact had proven invaluable in shoring up foreign support. Next to him sat Charging Hooves, the imposing buffalo was dressed in a fine canterlot style suit but he maintained his traditional Buffalo headdress. The large bull had emigrated from the south and in the past years had become an activist in Canterlot rallying against the confederate reservation system and the southern confederation as a whole, which he constantly denounced as anti-harmonic and illegitimate. Besides him sat A.K Yearling, better known as Daring Do. The renowned writer and explorer had gone to the distant jungles of the south-east at the beginning of the war with Luna to lead the Celestial forces there. After the fall of their capital at Stableside to the thestral armies, she had returned to Equestria writing extensively about her experiences, the brutal fighting of the jungle campaigns and the importance of the harmonic cause. Using her pre-war literary fame she had also become a passionate activist against “Nightmare-Moonism” and frequently agitating for an expedition “to restore harmony and legitimate royal rule to the jungles of the south-east". Naturally, this made Dearing Doo a vociferous critic of the Kingdom of Tzinacatlia and the council of Moonspeakers calling them “a corruption of south-eastern religious traditions and a poorly veiled bastion of Nightmare Moon worship, little better than Chipterra.
As they approached the table, Pinkie Pie immediately rushed to sit beside Maud Pie, the stoic Pie sister had joined the army alongside her sister. At one extreme of the table sat Rainbow Dash besides commander Spitfire. With a smile, the blue pegasus waved at her friends as they came in signaling to two empty seats besides her. As princess Twilight took her seat next to Celestia, Applejack and Bigmac quickly took their places at the table. Without wasting a second, Princess Celestia rose and addressed her council.
“Since my sister’s rebellion Equestria has been shattered, friends and families torn apart; harmony and friendship disrupted. Though we have endured much and surmounted every challenge, Equestria cannot remain separated.” The white alicorn paused and looked at her gathered subjects, everycreature silently hung on her words.
“Thanks to Fancy Pants' masterful work we have successfully enforced Equestrian sovereignty by negotiating the peaceful return of Vanhoover to Equestria. The task falls before us to do the same with the rest of the nation.” The solar princess continued.
Applejack felt her heart sink as her fears became realized. Looking at her brother his expression remained as stoic as usual, but she knew he felt like her.
“The situation with the various separatist regimes across the south has become untenable, Equestria cannot continue to exist separated. A house divided cannot stand, and I trust that you will help me in making it whole. With this the alicorn princess sat down, her eyes scanned the faces around the table before gesturing to Fancy Pants to begin. The element of honesty simply sat, almost paralyzed in her seat.
The noblepony turned diplomat arose to address the military council with his usual friendly and charismatic demeanor, “Thank you your highness. As her majesty already recounted the Vanhoover resolution was a show of Equestrian diplomatic might, and while it is everypony's hope that the southern question shall likewise be resolved without bloodshed, yet we must recognize that the situation at hand is more complex and thus we must prepare and anticipate a military solution to the issue. That is why you have been summoned here”.
With this Applejack snapped out of her stunned stupor, “Y-your highness is this really a good idea?!” The element of honesty quickly interjected, somewhat struggling to find her words. “Those ponies were our allies, they fought against the Changelings alongside us. Their dead sleep besides ours in every military cemetery from Las Pegasus to Vraks! Are we really going to start a new war with ponies that used to be our family and friends just like that!?” The orange mare continued, her anger towards the perceived nonchalant attitude of the wealthy canterlot diplomat beginning to show in her tone. The room fell silent for a brief moment at the unexpected outburst. Princess Celestia and Twilight looked at Applejack, a slight look of shocked surprise in their faces.
The first to respond was Daring Do, “Those states, in their current form, represent danger to Equestria and Harmony as a whole! Do you forget that the current ‘king’ of the southern ‘thestral kingdom’ was a general in Disciples of the Night? What are we supposed to do? Wait until they coordinate an invasion with Chiroptera? Leave lunarists to rule over Celestia’s subjects in the south-east?” The former explorer shot back.
“Ah ain’t saying that. But do we even have evidence they have an interest in working with Chiroptera? Aren’t we being paranoid? Applejack tried to argue back before being cut off.
“No! My nation agreed to join Equestria because we were promised friendship and harmony. All we have gotten from southern treason is second class status and reservations!” The imposing buffalo interjected. “I am here because I believe in Equestria and the harmony it promised us with the old treaty of friendship and cooperation. Equestria must honor her promise to the tribes and we will honor ours to her.” The whole room felt silent once again, various ponies present nodded in agreement with the two warhawks.
“Isn’t this something we can talk out with them? Haven’t we had enough war?” The orange mare replied, looking around the table. Her desperation only grew as she found little to no support among those gathered, even both Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash avoided looking at her in the eyes. Turning to princesses she pleaded “Princess Celestia, Twilight. Please.”
The purple alicorn looked at her friend sympathetically. “Applejack, I’m sorry. Ofcourse we will try to solve this without bloodshed. Yet every intelligence report, and every diplomatic overture we have made point to the fact that no state in the south seems willing to negotiate. It just isn’t a realistic option at this point.”
Before the element of Honesty could respond, the sovereign of Equestria spoke to her. “Applejack, you have served Equestria faithfully for years. I have asked from you and your friends more than anypony in defense of the realm. I am sorry I must ask you to sacrifice for the nation once again. However, if you so wish, I will dismiss you from service with full honors; You do not have to participate.”
Applejack looked at her friends, her green emerald eyes conveyed her dismayed ambivalence at the princess’ proposal. “I-I’m sorry Applejack, we can’t just abandon chief Strongheart and the other buffalo.” Pinkie Pie simply said her eyes turned to the ground, unable to meet her friend’s.
“Sorry Aj, Daring Do is right. We can’t just wait for a new invasion of Equestria, we have to act now.” Rainbow Dash followed, her magenta eyes likewise looked away from her friend’s. Bigmacintosh simply remained seated, seemingly resigned to the task ahead.
The room waited for the element of honesty’s response. Finally after a long pause the earth pony turned to the princess and responded “If Equestria needs me I’ll serve, I’ll do my duty your highness.”
With this she sat back down on her seat as field marshall Blueblood took out a map and began explaining the planned offensive against the confederacy. “General Applejack shall make a rapid advance north of Appleloosa to secure the rebel capital. If we can capture the city quickly we should be able to force them to the negotiating table and shorten the conflict. General Soarin and Pinkie Pie shall drive south along the railway and secure Doge Junction…” As the field marshal continued with his preparation for the coming slaughter Applejack looked at the many scenes in stained glass windows. The element of honesty wondered if one day there’d be one of today’s events, one for the final sacrifice she had to do for Equestria.