//------------------------------// // (3) // Story: Soviet Equestria, The Rise of Communism // by CommunistTaco //------------------------------// Commander Iron Curtain, I am very pleased to say that your offer sounds quite enticing. I invite you to my castle to arrange the terms and reach an agreement on how Celestia's reign should end. My armies are growing tired of fighting against the pathetic ponies of that sun tyrant's army and I am excited that we may be able to end this war peacefully. My father may have been stubborn, but I am a wholehearted fellow who wishes to rule his empire in peace rather than war. I await your arrival. Sincerely, Emperor Razorbeak II Iron Curtain finished reading the letter which bore great news for him and his cause. The griffons would support a revolution and were willing to make peace after he and his party were in power. He quickly filed the letter for safekeeping and went to find Trotsky to arrange his trip to the griffon empire. He would have to avoid the war plagued zones as much as possible to avoid detection so he needed a viable route from his most trusted friend. "Ah Trotsky there you are!" Iron exclaimed as he spotted his comrade talking with some lesser members of the party. "Iron, so nice to see you! What can I do for you?" Trotsky asked with embracing his friend in a quick brotherly hug. "I need to travel to the Griffon Empire. The emperor agreed to support our cause and I need to get to Ruhm as soon as possible." Iron replied. "Hmm, not easy considering all the fighting... Ah! There is a heavily wooded area about 5 miles north of Stalliongrad that has the border running through it. There's a small dirt road that winds through it and crosses the border about 13 miles northwest of Stalliongrad. Due to the dense wooded are, little fighting has been occurring, especially after the Equestrian retreat. You'll have to watch out for pegasus scouting patrols but otherwise you should be able to cross the border without much issue." Trotsky said while pointing to the area on a large map of Equestria. "Excellent. I will need an armed escort just in case things go south and train tickets to Stalliongrad as soon as possible." Iron said nodding. "You will have to leave Stalliongrad carefully, they're currently not allowing any non-military personnel anywhere past the northern city limits." "Good, do you mind getting the escort and train arranged as well as a hotel in Stalliongrad? I need to write the emperor and inform him of my arrival." "Sure thing. I should be able to get you and your escort on the 10:00 am express to Stalliongrad. I'll inform you when all the arrangements have been made." "Great! Thanks Trotsky!" Iron replied as he walked off back to his office. Iron returned to his large desk and began to compose a letter to his new griffon ally. Emperor Razorbeak, I write to inform you that I will be setting out for Ruhm on the morrow with an armed escort. I estimate that I will reach your borders within three days so be sure to inform your soldiers of my arrival. I am very pleased to hear that you are interested in my proposal and I hope our two nations can make peace as soon as possible. I will reach Ruhm in a about a week and then we can discuss terms. Sincerely, Commander Iron Curtain After checking the letter over and sealing the envelope, Iron ran outside to find his receptionist. "Eve I need this shipping to Ruhm as soon as possible." he said before handing her the envelope. "I'll see what I can do. The stupid military is constantly trying to intercept our messengers." she said before stamping 'HIGH PRIORITY' on the letter and shoving it down the mail slot. "Thanks Eve, I know you try your best." he replied. "I'm going to call it an early night, got to catch a train in the morning. Forward all my calls to Trotsky while I'm gone." "Will do, have a nice trip." Eve replied before going back to her desk work. 10:00 struck the clock at Canterlot Central Train Station. Iron Curtain was currently in his reserved cabin that he only shared with his friend and third in command Steelhoof. He had recruited Steel to come along as he was months earlier given leadership of the communist military known to the public as the Reds. In the cars adjacent to their's was a detachment Red First Army militia consisting of 150 ponies. The Reds currently had 10 army divisions as well as 4 naval divisions. They were dwarfed in size to the Equestrian military consisting of 32 army divisions and 15 naval divisions but were better equipped and better trained. Celestia could do nothing to prevent the Reds from doing as they wished as all of her military forces were out fighting the griffons up north and in Prance. Although Iron claimed they were a peace-keeping private security firm, she knew better. She didn't dare object to the actions of the Reds as doing so would risk starting a revolution. Iron and Steel causally discussed politics and their private lives as the train moved north. They would have stops in Manehatten as well as Trottingham before they would continue on to Stalliongrad making their trip a total of 9 hours or so. After pulling away from Manehatten Station, Iron and Steel reviewed their designated route to the Griffon borders. They estimated they could reach the border within two days if everything went off without a hitch. They could only hope that they were not stopped by any military personnel. The train pulled into Stalliongrad at 7:00 pm and Iron exited the train with excitement that could only be caused by being back in his home town. The city was partly in shambles at the time due to a griffon advance last month that had brought the city within artillery shelling range. Several buildings to the north were completely in ruins but the city itself remained intact. Iron and his militia checked into their hotel before settling down for the night, They would have to wake up early in order to leave the city undetected... The militia rose at 4:00 am to begin preparations to leave the city. Scouts reported that one road to the northwest remained unguarded most of the day and that is was their best option for leaving the city. Under the cover of dark, Iron and his men marched through the streets of Stalliongrad to the northwest exit. Just as expected, the city limit was only blockaded by some chain link fence which the troops were able to easily cut through. Within 45 minutes, of leaving the hotel, the communist escort had left the city. Everypony remained silent until Sgt. Shield Bash, commander of the First Army, deemed they were a safe distance from the city. From there they navigated their way to the road that supposedly passed through the forest which they managed to find without much issue. Just as Trotsky said, the road led through the forest towards the Griffon border. Iron and his men hiked all day until they reached a small clearing by a stream. It was there that they decided to settle down for the night. According to the map, they were only two short miles from the border so moral was high or the day to come. Everypony rose at the crack of dawn to pack up camp. After water canteens were filled and soldiers were lined up, they continued their march north. At 10:13 am according to Iron's watch they arrived at what appeared to be the border. Several griffon soldiers were guarding a gate that separated the two countries from each other. As they approached the gate, Iron strode to the front of the line of troops to address the border patrol. As he approached the gate one of the griffons spoke up. "Halt! State your name and business!" Iron smirked at the hostility in the griffon's voice and cleared his throat to reply. "I am Commander Iron Curtain of the Equestrian Communist Party. I am here on political business with the emperor." he said smugly. "Ah, we we're expecting you. Come on through..." the griffon stated before motioning for his buddies to open the gate. Iron and his militia passed through and were now safe inside allied territory. They recieved some military vehicles to make their trip faster and were sent on their way. In two days time they reached the great mountain capital of Ruhm. 'Today.' Iron thought, Today is the beginning of the Communist Revolution, today is the beginning of the fall of Celestia, today is the first day of many more to come...