//------------------------------//
// 31. #HeroHurricane 
// Story: Ciderfest BOAS APP Stories: 86?! 
// by Janicethelight 
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Story
You stumble out of the woods to find yourself in an Earth Pony town. It's hard to tell if this is a specific Earth Pony town, but one thing is clear: something is very wrong. Every single Earth Pony is farming with pegasi watching over them, shouting commands. Hoof Work walks out beside you and sighs, "Well, that's not normal." 

You nod as you both take in the sight. A pegasus notices Hoof Work, yelling "GET BACK TO WORK, PRIVATE!"

"That's our cue to leave!" Hoof Work grabs you and runs. He races through the woods, using the tree cover to lose your flying pursuers in the thick canopy. You take a breather in the relative safety of the wooded area. "What now? I have no idea where we are!"

You go to answer, but stop, hearing the unmistakable sound of marching hooves. You run once more. 

Eventually, you find a unicorn city. Every unicorn has a device on their horns. There are signs everywhere with sayings like: "No frivolous magic" and "A dull horn is a happy horn.” Pegasi shout orders as unicorns line up. Targets appear in front of them. Each unicorn hits the target with the same spell at the same time under the watchful appreciation of Commander Hurricane. 

Hoof Work freezes, and almost instantaneously Hurricane stops the tests, looking slowly up to you and Hoof Work.

"What is that strange creature next to the Earth pony? And why is the Earth pony out of jurisdiction?" Another pegasus whispers into Commander Hurricane's ear. "Just what I thought! Insubordination! You two! Come here!" 

The army of pegasi behind you both leaves no room to argue, and so you both make your way to Commander Hurricane.

"I should have you court martialed for this, private!" He spits at Hoof Work. "However, I will use this as a learning opportunity for all of ponykind." He looks to the unicorns and the pegasi that accompany him. "We see the poor Earth Pony, so confused by freedom that he goes into the town for UNICORNS!" Snickering follows.

"Now wait just a cotton picking min—" Hoof Work starts, but Hurricane stops him, addressing everypony else.

"We all know only with practice and discipline can we be a better Pegasopolis!” Commander Hurricane puts a hoof on his chest. “Look how I single-hoofedly took out those Windingos and saved our world! Earth Ponies need our guidance. They have a hard time thinking for themselves, just like this poor stallion before us who should be with his own kind!” 

He points to the Earth Ponies under constant supervision from the pegasi. “Unicorns also need our protection. They don't know the first thing about discipline, and, on their own, they will only use their magic frivolously! Imagine how ridiculous it would be if a pony were to use her magic to just…make clothes or entertain.” He scoffs. “It is only us pegasi that truly understand what pony kind needs: discipline and tactics!”

"She must have found one of the pages." Hoof Work's voice nearly growls, "What do we do?"

[CHOICE] 
How to best stop Commander Hurricane?

> Just tell her she's wrong.(Chaos) 

> Grab the page first! Once things are normal, show her the differences. (Hero)


[ENDING A: CHAOS]
"I'm sure she can be reasoned with." You nod. 

Hoof Work groans a little but replies, "All right. We'll try it your way." 

You come out to face Commander Hurricane. "Commander. This is wrong and you know it! Look around you! The unicorns and Earth ponies aren't your soldiers or slaves. They are ponies just like you. Every pony has something to celebrate! This…this is sick and wrong!"

"No!" Commander Hurricane scoffs. "We tried the whole harmony thing. At first it was nice, but every pony saw me as some brute. Can you imagine?! Me! Even worse, I saw how much unicorns just flaunted their magic for ridiculous things like shopping and picking flowers. Look at them now! Nothing can get through the defenses I'm building!"

"Defenses for what?! And what about the Earth Ponies?" You ask.

"Defenses for our foes. I know that other creatures will try to take our utopia just like those Windigos did! We'll be ready! As for the Earth Ponies, they are simple creatures, who need leadership to make the best use of their farming. With the pegasi’s help, we are harvesting more food than ever!"

"At the cost of their freedom!" Hoof Work points out.

"Freedom to do what? Run around? This is war! We have no time for frivolity!" Commander Hurricane scoffed. "Now I'm going to check around. You and your Earth Pony friend need to get back to work."

"That's it!" Hoof Work immediately rushes in, attempting to tackle Hurricane, who manages to fly to safety.

"See." Hurricane sighs. "It's just sad, but this little frivolous trip confused your friend enough to make him do something stupid. But what would you expect of an Earth Pony? I've wasted enough time here." She flies away.

(+1 page for Chaos)

[ENDING B: HERO]
"Here's the plan. I distract her. You use the page to change the story!" You whisper.

Hoof Work nods. You come out after carefully moving away from Hoof Work. "Commander Hurricane! This is wrong and you know it!" You shout.

Commander Hurricane turns to you, "No. This is what must be done. We are at war! Those Windigos opened my eyes to that. I defeated them, but more creatures will come to take our home from us and I won't allow that! This is what we must do to survive. Harmony is a weakness!"

"Oh yeah?" You ask. At that moment, the sneaking Hoof Work jumps onto Commander Hurricane. The two tumble, fighting. Hoof Work grabs the page he finds hidden under the Commander's helmet. He changes the story. You find yourself in Ponyville with Commander Hurricane. "This is what the world looks like with Harmony!" The Cutie Mark Crusaders run off happily. Twilight and her friends laugh with each other, reminiscing about past foes defeated. 

"You were so busy seeing the flaws in other races, you didn't care to look at their strengths! Unicorns might use their magic frivolously, but that helps their magic grow and show them what they're capable of! Earth ponies aren't stupid. They're just content to enjoy simple pleasures more often. Their biggest strength as a race is community. They come together to help each other. Having all three races, free of tyranny, will make you much stronger than any one over the other!"

Commander Hurricane looks on, shame filling her eyes. "I'd like to go back to Hearth’s Warming now… I have some apologies to make." Hoof Work nods and an orange glow goes around Hurricane, and she disappears.


(+1 page for Heroes)